2 Kings 25 - New American Standard Bible (NASB)

Nebuchadnezzar Besieges Jerusalem

25 ^(A)Now in the ninth year of his reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, ^(B)Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem, camped against it, and ^(C)built a siege wall all around ^[a]it. ² So the city was under siege until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. ³ On the ninth day of the fourth month ^(D)the famine was so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land. ^{4 (E)}Then the city was broken into, and all the men of war fled by night by way of the gate between the two walls that were beside ^(F)the king’s garden, though the Chaldeans were all around the city. And ^[b]they went by way of the Arabah. ⁵ But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho, and all his army was scattered from him. ⁶ Then ^(G)they captured the king and ^(H)brought him up to the king of Babylon at ^(I)Riblah, and he ^[c]passed sentence on him. ⁷ And ^(J)they slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, then ^(K)put out Zedekiah’s eyes and bound him with bronze shackles, and brought him to Babylon.

Jerusalem Burned and Plundered

^{8 (L)}Now on the seventh day of the ^(M)fifth month, which was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan the captain of the bodyguards, a servant of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. ⁹ And ^(N)he burned the house of the Lord, ^(O)the king’s house, and all the houses of Jerusalem; even every great house he burned with fire. ¹⁰ So all the army of the Chaldeans who were with the captain of the bodyguards ^(P)tore down the walls around Jerusalem. ¹¹ Then Nebuzaradan, the captain of the bodyguards, led into exile ^(Q)the rest of the people who were left in the city and the deserters who had deserted to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the ^[d]people. ¹² But the captain of the bodyguards left some of ^(R)the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and farmers.

^{13 (S)}Now the Chaldeans smashed to pieces the bronze pillars which were in the house of the Lord, and the stands and ^(T)the bronze ^[e]Sea which were in the house of the Lord, and carried the ^[f]bronze to Babylon. ^{14 (U)}And they took away the pots, the shovels, the ^[g]shears, the spoons, and all the bronze utensils ^[h]which were used in temple service. ¹⁵ The captain of the bodyguards also took away the firepans and the basins, what was fine gold and what was fine silver. ¹⁶ The two pillars, the one Sea, and the stands which Solomon had made for the house of the Lord—^[i](V)the bronze of all these articles was too heavy to weigh. ^{17 (W)}The height of the one pillar was ^[j]eighteen cubits, and a bronze capital was on it; the height of the capital was ^[k]three cubits, with latticework and pomegranates on the capital all around, all of bronze. And the second pillar was like these, same features with latticework.

¹⁸ Then the captain of the bodyguards took ^(X)Seraiah the chief priest and ^(Y)Zephaniah the second priest, with the three ^[l]doorkeepers. ¹⁹ And from the city he took one official who was overseer of the men of war, and ^(Z)five ^[m]of the king’s advisers who were found in the city; and the ^[n]scribe of the captain of the army who mustered the people of the land; and sixty men of the people of the land who were found in the city. ²⁰ Nebuzaradan the captain of the bodyguards took them and brought them to the king of Babylon at ^(AA)Riblah. ²¹ Then the king of Babylon struck them down and put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath. ^(AB)So Judah went into exile from its land.

Gedaliah Made Governor

²² Now as for the people who were left in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had left, he appointed ^(AC)Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan over them. ^{23 (AD)}When all the captains of the forces, they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah governor, they came to Gedaliah at ^(AE)Mizpah, namely, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, Johanan the son of Kareah, Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah the son of the Maacathite, they and their men. ²⁴ And Gedaliah swore to them and their men and said to them, “Do not be afraid of the servants of the Chaldeans; live in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it will go well for you.”

^{25 (AF)}But it happened in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the royal ^[o]family, came ^[p]with ten men and struck Gedaliah down so that he died along with the Jews and the Chaldeans who were with him at Mizpah. ^{26 (AG)}Then all the people, from the small to the great, and the captains of the forces set out and came to Egypt; for they were afraid of the Chaldeans.

^{27 (AH)}Now it came about in the thirty-seventh year of ^(AI)the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, that Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he became king, ^[q](AJ)released Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison; ²⁸ and he ^(AK)spoke kindly to him and set his throne above the throne of the kings who were with him in Babylon. ²⁹ So ^[r]Jehoiachin changed his prison clothes, and ^[s](AL)had his meals in ^[t]the king’s presence regularly all the days of his life; ³⁰ and as his ^(AM)allowance, a regular allowance was given to him by the king, a portion for each day, all the days of his life.

Footnotes

1. 2 Kings 25:1 Lit against it
2. 2 Kings 25:4 As in some mss and ancient versions; MT he
3. 2 Kings 25:6 Lit spoke judgment with him
4. 2 Kings 25:11 Lit multitude
5. 2 Kings 25:13 I.e., a very large basin
6. 2 Kings 25:13 Lit bronze of them
7. 2 Kings 25:14 I.e., wick trimmers
8. 2 Kings 25:14 Lit with which they served
9. 2 Kings 25:16 Lit there was no weight for the bronze of
10. 2 Kings 25:17 About 27 ft. or 8 m
11. 2 Kings 25:17 About 4.5 ft. or 1.3 m
12. 2 Kings 25:18 Lit keepers of the threshold
13. 2 Kings 25:19 Lit men of those seeing the king’s face
14. 2 Kings 25:19 Or scribe, a captain
15. 2 Kings 25:25 Lit seed
16. 2 Kings 25:25 Lit and ten men with him
17. 2 Kings 25:27 Lit raised the head of
18. 2 Kings 25:29 Lit he
19. 2 Kings 25:29 Lit ate bread
20. 2 Kings 25:29 Lit his presence

Cross references

1. 2 Kings 25:1 : 2 Chr 36:17-20; Jer 39:1-7
2. 2 Kings 25:1 : Jer 21:2; 34:1, 2; Ezek 24:2
3. 2 Kings 25:1 : Ezek 21:22
4. 2 Kings 25:3 : 2 Kin 6:24, 25; Lam 4:9, 10
5. 2 Kings 25:4 : Ezek 33:21
6. 2 Kings 25:4 : Neh 3:15
7. 2 Kings 25:6 : Jer 34:21, 22
8. 2 Kings 25:6 : Jer 32:4
9. 2 Kings 25:6 : 2 Kin 23:33
10. 2 Kings 25:7 : Jer 39:6, 7
11. 2 Kings 25:7 : Ezek 12:13
12. 2 Kings 25:8 : Jer 52:12
13. 2 Kings 25:8 : Jer 39:8-12
14. 2 Kings 25:9 : 1 Kin 9:8; 2 Chr 36:19; Ps 74:3-7
15. 2 Kings 25:9 : Amos 2:5
16. 2 Kings 25:10 : 2 Kin 14:13; Neh 1:3
17. 2 Kings 25:11 : 2 Chr 36:20
18. 2 Kings 25:12 : 2 Kin 24:14; Jer 40:7
19. 2 Kings 25:13 : 1 Kin 7:15-22; 2 Kin 20:17; 2 Chr 3:15-17; 36:18
20. 2 Kings 25:13 : 1 Kin 7:23-26; 2 Chr 4:2-4
21. 2 Kings 25:14 : Ex 27:3; 1 Kin 7:47-50; 2 Chr 4:16
22. 2 Kings 25:16 : 1 Kin 7:47
23. 2 Kings 25:17 : 1 Kin 7:15-22
24. 2 Kings 25:18 : 1 Chr 6:14; Ezra 7:1
25. 2 Kings 25:18 : Jer 21:1; 29:25, 29
26. 2 Kings 25:19 : Esth 1:14
27. 2 Kings 25:20 : 2 Kin 23:33
28. 2 Kings 25:21 : Deut 28:64; 2 Kin 23:27
29. 2 Kings 25:22 : Jer 39:14; 40:7-9
30. 2 Kings 25:23 : Jer 40:7-9
31. 2 Kings 25:23 : Josh 18:26
32. 2 Kings 25:25 : Jer 41:1, 2
33. 2 Kings 25:26 : Jer 43:4-7
34. 2 Kings 25:27 : Jer 52:31-34
35. 2 Kings 25:27 : 2 Kin 24:12, 15
36. 2 Kings 25:27 : Gen 40:13, 20
37. 2 Kings 25:28 : Dan 2:37; 5:18, 19
38. 2 Kings 25:29 : 2 Sam 9:7
39. 2 Kings 25:30 : Neh 11:23; 12:47