What I Noticed Today (2 Kings 24-25; 2 Chronicles 36)
2 Kings 24-25 conclude the recounting of the kings of Judah.
2 Kings 24
In verses 1-7, Nebuchadnezzar came up against Judah during Jehoiakim’s reign and enslaved them for three years.
Note: Nebuchadnezzar was the son of Nabopolassar. He became king of Babylon in 605 B.C. and attacked Judah later in the same year. He also took captives back to Babylon, including Daniel and his friends (Daniel 1:1-3).
- After three years, Jehoiakim rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar.
Note: We know from 2 Chronicles 36:6 that Jehoiakim was taken to Babylon as a prisoner.
- The Lord sent Chaldean, Aramean, Moabite, and Ammonite raiders against Jehoiakim to destroy Judah because of the sins of Manasseh.
- Jehoiakim died, and his son Jehoiachin reigned in his place.
In verse 7, Pharaoh (Neco) did not march into Judah again. He lost all the territory from the Brook of Egypt to the Euphrates River to Nebuchadnezzar (this included all of Palestine).
In verses 8-9, Jehoiachin was 18 years old when he began to reign, and he reigned for only three months. He was a bad king doing evil in the eyes of the Lord.
In verses 10-17, Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem, and Jehoiachin surrendered.
- Nebuchadnezzar carried away to Babylon the king and his household along with all the remaining treasures in the house of the Lord and the king’s house. Only the poorest people were left in Jerusalem.
- Nebuchadnezzar made Jehoiachin’s son, Mattaniah, king of Judah and changed his name to Zedekiah.
In verses 18-21, Zedekiah was 21-years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem (597-586 B.C.).
- He was a bad king doing evil in the eyes of the Lord.
- After some time, Zedekiah rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar.
Note: We know from Jeremiah 37-38 that Zedekiah made an alliance with Pharaoh Hophra of Egypt.
2 Kings 25
In verses 1-7, to put down the rebellion of Zedekiah, Nebuchadnezzar came up and besieged Jerusalem in the 10th month of Zedekiah’s ninth year (588 B.C.).
- The Babylonians breached the city walls (July 16, 586 B.C.).
- Zedekiah had escaped from the city and was pursued by the Chaldeans. They captured him and brought him to Nebuchadnezzar.
- Nebuchadnezzar had all his sons killed in front of him, then gouged out his eyes, shackled him, and took him to Babylon in chains.
In verses 8-21, on the seventh day of the fifth month of the 19th year of Nebuchadnezzar (August 16, 586 B.C.) Nebuchadnezzar sent his commander Nebuzaradan to burn Jerusalem.
- Nebuzaradan burned the house of the Lord, the king’s house, and all the other large homes in Jerusalem, broke down sections of the city walls, and broke up all the bronze, fire pans, and bowls and took them to Babylon.
- Nebuzaradan took most of the population captive back to Babylon, leaving only the poorest farmers to tend the fields.
- Nebuzaradan also captured Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the priest, court officials, and 60 men from the city back to Nebuchadnezzar at Riblah where all 72 men were executed.
In verses 22-26, of the few poor people left, Nebuchadnezzar appointed Gedaliah to be governor of the city.
- Gedaliah told the commanders of the armies to serve the king of Babylon and live in the land.
- Because of his support of Babylon, Ishmael, a member of the royal family, came with ten men and killed Gedaliah and his followers. Then they fled and went to Egypt because they were afraid of the Chaldeans.
Note: We know from Jeremiah 41:1-43:7 that Jeremiah was forced to go with them to Egypt.
In verses 27-30, in the thirty-seventh year of his exile (560 B.C.), Jehoiachin was released from prison by King Evil-Merdoch of Babylon, and for the rest of his life, he ate at the king’s table.
Some thoughts for additional consideration:
- Judah had been moving farther and farther away from God. Despite the attempts of a couple of kings to bring the people back to God, the people reverted to their old ways of following the foreign gods. Ultimately, God allowed the complete destruction of the city and the exile of the majority of the population. Suddenly they went from living in a country that had been blessed by God, to living in a pagan country of idolaters.
- The self-destructive path of the people of Judah may be painfully obvious to us looking back at this history I wonder why the people didn’t realize what a dangerous road they were on, return to God, and beg his forgiveness? The answer seems to be they were stubborn and persisted in their sin.
- As I look around our country today; I wonder if people have the sense that I do, that we are moving further and further away from God just like the people of Judah did? And I wonder too if people think God will not judge us as he did the people of Judah?
2 Chronicles 36
In verses 1-4, Josiah’s son, Jehoahaz was made king by the people but reigned only three months before Neco deposed him and brought him to Egypt.
- In his place, Neco made Josiah’s brother, Eliakim king in Judah.
- Neco changed Eliakim’s name to Jehoiakim.
In verses 5-8, Jehoiakim was 25 years old when he became king of Judah, and he reigned eleven years from Jerusalem.
- He was a bad king who did evil in the eyes of the Lord.
- Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, defeated Jehoiakim, bound him in chains and took him to Babylon.
In verses 9-10, Jehoiachin, son of Jehoiakim, was made king when he was 18 years old and reigned just over three months when Nebuchadnezzar brought him to Babylon.
- He was a bad king who did evil in the eyes of the Lord.
- Nebuchadnezzar made Zedekiah, Jehoiachin’s brother king of Judah.
In verses 11-14, Zedekiah was 21 years old when he became king of Judah and ruled eleven years from Jerusalem (597-586 B.C.).
- He was a bad king, doing evil in the eyes of the Lord.
- He refused to humble himself despite the prophet who spoke against him numerous times.
- During his reign, even the priests were unfaithful, polluting the house of the Lord.
In verses 15-21, this angered the Lord so greatly that he gave the people into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Chaldeans.
- The temple was stripped of all its riches, the walls of the city were broken down, and all the palaces were burned.
- All the people of Judah were taken captive and brought to Babylon (586 B.C.).
Note: All the great work of Josiah in restoring the people to worship God was short-lived. The kings that followed him were evil and refused to honor God. As a result, God allowed the people to be dispersed, losing the Promised Land, and fulfilling the prophecy of Jeremiah 25:11-14.
In verses 22-23, the decree of Cyrus king of Persia (559-530 B.C.).
- In his first year over Babylon (538 B.C.), Cyrus issued a proclamation asserting the Lord had appointed him to build a temple to the Lord in Jerusalem.
- All the people of the Lord who wished to do so were allowed to return to Jerusalem.
Some thoughts for additional consideration:
- It seems every king who started out good became prideful and made huge mistakes. The kings that started out bad were stubborn, refusing to humble themselves before the Lord and lost everything. The lessons of their history stand as a warning to leaders today.
Tomorrow: Habakkuk
What did you notice in your study today? Feel free to visit the website and leave a question or a comment.
