It also came throughout the days of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah, until the fifth month of the eleventh year of Zedekiah son of Josiah, king of Judah, when the people of Jerusalem went into exile.

从犹大王约西亚的儿子约雅敬在位的时候，直到犹大王约西亚的儿子西底家在位的末年，就是十一年五月间耶路撒冷人被掳的时候，耶和华的话也常临到耶利米。

从约西亚的儿子犹大王约雅敬在位的时候，直到约西亚的儿子犹大王西底家在位的末年，就是第十一年五月间耶路撒冷被掳时，耶和华的话也常临到耶利米。

从约西亚的儿子犹大王约雅敬在位的时候，直到约西亚的儿子犹大王西底家在位的末年，就是第十一年五月间耶路撒冷被掳时，耶和华的话也常临到耶利米。

从犹大王约西亚的儿子约雅敬开始执政，一直到约西亚的另一个儿子西底迦做犹大王的第十一年五月，就是耶路撒冷的居民被掳之日，耶和华的话常常传给耶利米。

从犹大王约西亚的儿子约雅敬年间，直到犹大王约西亚的儿子西底家末年，就是第十一年五月，耶路撒冷人被掳的时候，耶和华的话也常临到耶利米。

從猶大王約西亞的兒子約雅敬在位的時候，直到猶大王約西亞的兒子西底家在位的末年，就是十一年五月間耶路撒冷人被擄的時候，耶和華的話也常臨到耶利米。

從約西亞的兒子猶大王約雅敬在位的時候，直到約西亞的兒子猶大王西底家在位的末年，就是第十一年五月間耶路撒冷被擄時，耶和華的話也常臨到耶利米。

從約西亞的兒子猶大王約雅敬在位的時候，直到約西亞的兒子猶大王西底家在位的末年，就是第十一年五月間耶路撒冷被擄時，耶和華的話也常臨到耶利米。

從猶大王約西亞的兒子約雅敬開始執政，一直到約西亞的另一個兒子西底迦做猶大王的第十一年五月，就是耶路撒冷的居民被擄之日，耶和華的話常常傳給耶利米。

從猶大王約西亞的兒子約雅敬年間，直到猶大王約西亞的兒子西底家末年，就是第十一年五月，耶路撒冷人被擄的時候，耶和華的話也常臨到耶利米。

當猶大王約西亞的兒子約雅敬的日子，直到猶大王約西亞的兒子西底家十一年年底，直到五月間耶路撒冷人流亡的時候，永恆主的話都常常傳與耶利米。

又諭之於猶大王約西亞子約雅敬時、迄約西亞子西底家十一年之末、是年五月、耶路撒冷被虜、○

猶大王約西亞子約雅敬在位時亦得默示、得默示直至約西亞子西底家在位十一年之終、是年五月、耶路撒冷民被擄、

and through the reign of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, down to the fifth month of the eleventh year of Zedekiah son of Josiah king of Judah, when the people of Jerusalem went into exile.

After Josiah, his son Jehoiakim was king over Judah. The Lord’ s message also came to Jeremiah during the whole time Jehoiakim ruled. The Lord continued to speak to Jeremiah while Zedekiah was king over Judah. He did this until the fifth month of the 11th year of Zedekiah’s rule. That’s when the people of Jerusalem were forced to leave their country. Zedekiah was the son of Josiah. Here is what Jeremiah said.

It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, and until the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, until the captivity of Jerusalem in the fifth month.

The Lord’s messages continued throughout the reign of King Jehoiakim, Josiah’s son, until the eleventh year of the reign of King Zedekiah, another of Josiah’s sons. In August of that eleventh year the people of Jerusalem were taken away as captives.

It also came throughout the days of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah, until the fifth month of the eleventh year of Zedekiah son of Josiah, king of Judah, when the people of Jerusalem went into exile.

It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, until the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah, king of Judah, until the exile of Jerusalem in the fifth month.

It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, until the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah, king of Judah, until the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.

It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.

It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.

The LORD also spoke to him when Jehoiakim son of Josiah ruled over Judah, and he continued to speak to him until the fifth month of the eleventh year that Zedekiah son of Josiah ruled over Judah. That was when the people of Jerusalem were taken into exile.

It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, to the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, to the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.

In the fourth month of Zedekiah’s eleventh year, on the ninth day of the month, the city was broken into.

Then Pharaoh Neco made Eliakim son of Josiah king in place of his father Josiah and changed Eliakim’s name to Jehoiakim. But Neco took Jehoahaz and went to Egypt, and he died there.

Jehoiakim was 25 years old when he became king and reigned 11 years in Jerusalem. He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord his God.Now Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon attacked him and bound him in bronze shackles to take him to Babylon.Also Nebuchadnezzar took some of the utensils of the Lord’s temple to Babylon and put them in his temple in Babylon.The rest of the deeds of Jehoiakim, the detestable things he did, and what was found against him, are written in the Book of Israel’s Kings. His son Jehoiachin became king in his place.

Then the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin’s uncle, king in his place and changed his name to Zedekiah.Zedekiah was 21 years old when he became king and reigned 11 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah, from Libnah.Zedekiah did what was evil in the Lord’s sight just as Jehoiakim had done.Because of the Lord’s anger, it came to the point in Jerusalem and Judah that He finally banished them from His presence. Then, Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.In the ninth year of Zedekiah’s reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon advanced against Jerusalem with his entire army. They laid siege to the city and built a siege wall against it all around.The city was under siege until King Zedekiah’s eleventh year.By the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was so severe in the city that the people of the land had no food.Then the city was broken into, and all the warriors fled by night by way of the gate between the two walls near the king’s garden, even though the Chaldeans surrounded the city. As the king made his way along the route to the Arabah,the Chaldean army pursued him and overtook him in the plains of Jericho. Zedekiah’s entire army was scattered from him.The Chaldeans seized the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah, and they passed sentence on him.They slaughtered Zedekiah’s sons before his eyes. Finally, the king of Babylon blinded Zedekiah, bound him in bronze chains, and took him to Babylon.On the seventh day of the fifth month, which was the nineteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan, the commander of the guards, a servant of the king of Babylon, entered Jerusalem.He burned the Lord’s temple, the king’s palace, and all the houses of Jerusalem; he burned down all the great houses.The whole Chaldean army with the commander of the guards tore down the walls surrounding Jerusalem.Nebuzaradan, the commander of the guards, deported the rest of the people who were left in the city, the deserters who had defected to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the population.But the commander of the guards left some of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and farmers.Now the Chaldeans broke into pieces the bronze pillars of the Lord’s temple, the water carts, and the bronze reservoir, which were in the Lord’s temple, and carried the bronze to Babylon.They also took the pots, the shovels, the wick trimmers, the dishes, and all the bronze articles used in temple service.The commander of the guards took away the firepans and the sprinkling basins— whatever was gold or silver.As for the two pillars, the one reservoir, and the water carts that Solomon had made for the Lord’s temple, the weight of the bronze of all these articles was beyond measure.One pillar was 27 feet tall and had a bronze capital on top of it. The capital, encircled by a grating and pomegranates of bronze, stood five feet high. The second pillar was the same, with its own grating.The commander of the guards also took away Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the priest of the second rank, and the three doorkeepers.He took a court official who had been appointed over the warriors from the city; five trusted royal aides found in the city; the secretary of the commander of the army, who enlisted the people of the land for military duty; and 60 men from the common people who were found within the city.Nebuzaradan, the commander of the guards, took them and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah.The king of Babylon put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah went into exile from its land.Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, over the rest of the people he left in the land of Judah.When all the commanders of the armies— they and their men— heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah, they came to Gedaliah at Mizpah. The commanders included Ishmael son of Nethaniah, Johanan son of Kareah, Seraiah son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah son of the Maacathite— they and their men.Gedaliah swore an oath to them and their men, assuring them,“ Don’t 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.”In the seventh month, however, Ishmael son of Nethaniah, son of Elishama, of the royal family, came with 10 men and struck down Gedaliah, and he died. Also, they killed the Judeans and the Chaldeans who were with him at Mizpah.Then all the people, from the youngest to the oldest, and the commanders of the army, left and went to Egypt, for they were afraid of the Chaldeans.On the twenty-seventh day of the twelfth month of the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Judah’s King Jehoiachin, in the year Evil-merodach became king of Babylon, he pardoned King Jehoiachin of Judah and released him from prison.He spoke kindly to him and set his throne over the thrones of the kings who were with him in Babylon.So Jehoiachin changed his prison clothes, and he dined regularly in the presence of the king of Babylon for the rest of his life.As for his allowance, a regular allowance was given to him by the king, a portion for each day, for the rest of his life.

In that same year, at the beginning of the reign of King Zedekiah of Judah, in the fifth month of the fourth year, the prophet Hananiah son of Azzur from Gibeon said to me in the temple of the Lord in the presence of the priests and all the people,“ This is what the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, says:‘ I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon.Within two years I will restore to this place all the articles of the Lord’s temple that King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took from here and transported to Babylon.And I will restore to this place Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and all the exiles from Judah who went to Babylon’— this is the Lord’s declaration—‘ for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.’”The prophet Jeremiah replied to the prophet Hananiah in the presence of the priests and all the people who were standing in the temple of the Lord.The prophet Jeremiah said,“ Amen! May the Lord do so. May the Lord make the words you have prophesied come true and may He restore the articles of the Lord’s temple and all the exiles from Babylon to this place!Only listen to this message I am speaking in your hearing and in the hearing of all the people.The prophets who preceded you and me from ancient times prophesied war, disaster, and plague against many lands and great kingdoms.As for the prophet who prophesies peace— only when the word of the prophet comes true will the prophet be recognized as one the Lord has truly sent.”The prophet Hananiah then took the yoke bar from the neck of Jeremiah the prophet and broke it.In the presence of all the people Hananiah proclaimed,“ This is what the Lord says:‘ In this way, within two years I will break the yoke of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon from the neck of all the nations.’” Jeremiah the prophet then went on his way.The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah after Hananiah the prophet had broken the yoke bar from the neck of Jeremiah the prophet:“ Go say to Hananiah: This is what the Lord says,‘ You broke a wooden yoke bar, but in its place you will make an iron yoke bar.’For this is what the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, says,‘ I have put an iron yoke on the neck of all these nations that they might serve King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, and they will serve him. I have also put the wild animals under him.’”The prophet Jeremiah said to the prophet Hananiah,“ Listen, Hananiah! The Lord did not send you, but you have led these people to trust in a lie.Therefore, this is what the Lord says:‘ I am about to send you off the face of the earth. You will die this year because you have spoken rebellion against the Lord.’”And the prophet Hananiah died that year in the seventh month.

“ The Lord of Hosts says this: The fast of the fourth month, the fast of the fifth, the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth will become times of joy, gladness, and cheerful festivals for the house of Judah. Therefore, love truth and peace.”

Zedekiah son of Josiah reigned as king in the land of Judah in place of Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim, for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon made him king.He and his officers and the people of the land did not obey the words of the Lord that He spoke through Jeremiah the prophet.Nevertheless, King Zedekiah sent Jehucal son of Shelemiah and Zephaniah son of Maaseiah, the priest, to Jeremiah the prophet, requesting,“ Please pray to the Lord our God for us!”Jeremiah was going about his daily tasks among the people, for they had not yet put him into the prison.Pharaoh’s army had left Egypt, and when the Chaldeans, who were besieging Jerusalem, heard the report, they withdrew from Jerusalem.The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet:“ This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: This is what you will say to Judah’s king, who is sending you to inquire of Me: Watch: Pharaoh’s army, which has come out to help you, is going to return to its own land of Egypt.The Chaldeans will then return and fight against this city. They will capture it and burn it down.This is what the Lord says: Don’t deceive yourselves by saying,‘ The Chaldeans will leave us for good,’ for they will not leave.Indeed, if you were to strike down the entire Chaldean army that is fighting with you, and there remained among them only the badly wounded men, each in his tent, they would get up and burn this city down.”When the Chaldean army withdrew from Jerusalem because of Pharaoh’s army,Jeremiah started to leave Jerusalem to go to the land of Benjamin to claim his portion there among the people.But when he was at the Benjamin Gate, an officer of the guard was there, whose name was Irijah son of Shelemiah, son of Hananiah, and he apprehended Jeremiah the prophet, saying,“ You are deserting to the Chaldeans.”“ That’s a lie,” Jeremiah replied.“ I am not deserting to the Chaldeans!” Irijah would not listen to him but apprehended Jeremiah and took him to the officials.The officials were angry at Jeremiah and beat him and placed him in jail in the house of Jonathan the scribe, for it had been made into a prison.So Jeremiah went into a cell in the dungeon and stayed there many days.King Zedekiah later sent for him and received him, and in his house privately asked him,“ Is there a word from the Lord?”“ There is,” Jeremiah responded, and he continued,“ You will be handed over to the king of Babylon.”Then Jeremiah said to King Zedekiah,“ How have I sinned against you or your servants or these people that you have put me in prison?Where are your prophets who prophesied to you, claiming,‘ The king of Babylon will not come against you and this land’?So now please listen, my lord the king. May my petition come before you. Don’t send me back to the house of Jonathan the scribe, or I will die there.”So King Zedekiah gave orders, and Jeremiah was placed in the guard’s courtyard. He was given a loaf of bread each day from the baker’s street until all the bread was gone from the city. So Jeremiah remained in the guard’s courtyard.

This is the word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah( which was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon).The prophet Jeremiah spoke concerning all the people of Judah and all the residents of Jerusalem as follows:“ From the thirteenth year of Josiah son of Amon, king of Judah, until this very day— 23 years— the word of the Lord has come to me, and I have spoken to you time and time again, but you have not obeyed.

“ Ask all the people of the land and the priests: When you fasted and lamented in the fifth and in the seventh months for these 70 years, did you really fast for Me?

At the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came from the Lord:“ This is what the Lord says: Stand in the courtyard of the Lord’s temple and speak all the words I have commanded you to speak to all Judah’s cities that are coming to worship there. Do not hold back a word.Perhaps they will listen and return— each from his evil way of life— so that I might relent concerning the disaster that I plan to do to them because of the evil of their deeds.You are to say to them: This is what the Lord says: If you do not listen to Me by living according to My instruction that I set before youand by listening to the words of My servants the prophets I have been sending you time and time again, though you did not listen,I will make this temple like Shiloh. I will make this city an object of cursing for all the nations of the earth.”The priests, the prophets, and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the temple of the Lord.He finished the address the Lord had commanded him to deliver to all the people. Then the priests, the prophets, and all the people took hold of him, yelling,“ You must surely die!How dare you prophesy in the name of Yahweh,‘ This temple will become like Shiloh and this city will become an uninhabited ruin’!” Then all the people assembled against Jeremiah at the Lord’s temple.When the officials of Judah heard these things, they went from the king’s palace to the Lord’s temple and sat at the entrance of the New Gate.Then the priests and prophets said to the officials and all the people,“ This man deserves the death sentence because he has prophesied against this city, as you have heard with your own ears.”Then Jeremiah said to all the officials and the people,“ The Lord sent me to prophesy all the words that you have heard against this temple and city.So now, correct your ways and deeds and obey the voice of the Lord your God so that He might relent concerning the disaster that He warned about.As for me, here I am in your hands; do to me what you think is good and right.But know for certain that if you put me to death, you will bring innocent blood on yourselves, on this city, and on its residents, for it is certain the Lord has sent me to speak all these things directly to you.”Then the officials and all the people told the priests and prophets,“ This man doesn’t deserve the death sentence, for he has spoken to us in the name of Yahweh our God!”Some of the elders of the land stood up and said to all the assembled people,“ Micah the Moreshite prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah and said to all the people of Judah,‘ This is what the Lord of Hosts says: Zion will be plowed like a field, Jerusalem will become ruins, and the temple mount a forested hill.’Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all the people of Judah put him to death? Did he not fear the Lord and plead for the Lord’s favor, and did not the Lord relent concerning the disaster He had pronounced against them? We are about to bring great harm on ourselves!”Another man was also prophesying in the name of Yahweh— Uriah son of Shemaiah from Kiriath-jearim. He prophesied against this city and against this land in words like all those of Jeremiah.King Jehoiakim, all his warriors, and all the officials heard his words, and the king tried to put him to death. When Uriah heard, he fled in fear and went to Egypt.But King Jehoiakim sent men to Egypt: Elnathan son of Achbor and certain other men with him went to Egypt.They brought Uriah out of Egypt and took him to King Jehoiakim, who executed him with the sword and threw his corpse into the burial place of the common people.But Ahikam son of Shaphan supported Jeremiah, so he was not handed over to the people to be put to death.

During Jehoiakim’s reign, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon attacked. Jehoiakim became his vassal for three years, and then he turned and rebelled against him.The Lord sent Chaldean, Aramean, Moabite, and Ammonite raiders against Jehoiakim. He sent them against Judah to destroy it, according to the word of the Lord He had spoken through His servants the prophets.Indeed, this happened to Judah at the Lord’s command to remove them from His sight. It was because of the sins of Manasseh, according to all he had done,and also because of all the innocent blood he had shed. He had filled Jerusalem with innocent blood, and the Lord would not forgive.The rest of the events of Jehoiakim’s reign, along with all his accomplishments, are written in the Historical Record of Judah’s Kings.Jehoiakim rested with his fathers, and his son Jehoiachin became king in his place.Now the king of Egypt did not march out of his land again, for the king of Babylon took everything that belonged to the king of Egypt, from the Brook of Egypt to the Euphrates River.Jehoiachin was 18 years old when he became king and reigned three months in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Nehushta daughter of Elnathan, from Jerusalem.He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight as his father had done.

Josiah’s sons: Johanan was the firstborn, Jehoiakim second, Zedekiah third, and Shallum fourth.

Zedekiah was 21 years old when he became king and reigned 11 years in Jerusalem.He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord his God and did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet at the Lord’s command.He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar who had made him swear allegiance by God. He became obstinate and hardened his heart against returning to Yahweh, the God of Israel.All the leaders of the priests and the people multiplied their unfaithful deeds, imitating all the detestable practices of the nations, and they defiled the Lord’s temple that He had consecrated in Jerusalem.But Yahweh, the God of their ancestors sent word against them by the hand of His messengers, sending them time and time again, for He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place.But they kept ridiculing God’s messengers, despising His words, and scoffing at His prophets, until the Lord’s wrath was so stirred up against His people that there was no remedy.So He brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their choice young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary. He had no pity on young men or young women, elderly or aged; He handed them all over to him.He took everything to Babylon— all the articles of God’s temple, large and small, the treasures of the Lord’s temple, and the treasures of the king and his officials.Then the Chaldeans burned God’s temple. They tore down Jerusalem’s wall, burned down all its palaces, and destroyed all its valuable articles.He deported those who escaped from the sword to Babylon, and they became servants to him and his sons until the rise of the Persian kingdom.This fulfilled the word of the Lord through Jeremiah and the land enjoyed its Sabbath rest all the days of the desolation until 70 years were fulfilled.

This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord when King Zedekiah sent Pashhur son of Malchijah and the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah to Jeremiah, asking,“ Ask the Lord on our behalf, since Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon is making war against us. Perhaps the Lord will perform for us something like all His past wonderful works so that Nebuchadnezzar will withdraw from us.”But Jeremiah answered,“ This is what you are to say to Zedekiah:‘ This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I will repel the weapons of war in your hands, those you are using to fight the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans who are besieging you outside the wall, and I will bring them into the center of this city.I will fight against you with an outstretched hand and a mighty arm, with anger, rage, and great wrath.I will strike the residents of this city, both man and beast. They will die in a great plague.Afterward’”— this is the Lord’s declaration—“‘ King Zedekiah of Judah, his officers, and the people— those in this city who survive the plague, the sword, and the famine— I will hand over to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, to their enemies, yes, to those who want to take their lives. He will put them to the sword; he won’t spare them or show pity or compassion.’“ But you must say to this people,‘ This is what the Lord says: Look, I am presenting to you the way of life and the way of death.Whoever stays in this city will die by the sword, famine, and plague, but whoever goes out and surrenders to the Chaldeans who are besieging you will live and will retain his life like the spoils of war.For I have turned against this city to bring disaster and not good’”— this is the Lord’s declaration.“‘ It will be handed over to the king of Babylon, who will burn it down.’“ And to the house of the king of Judah say this:‘ Hear the word of the Lord!House of David, this is what the Lord says: Administer justice every morning, and rescue the victim of robbery from the hand of his oppressor, or My anger will flare up like fire and burn unquenchably because of their evil deeds.Beware! I am against you, you who sit above the valley, you atop the rocky plateau— this is the Lord’s declaration— you who say,“ Who can come down against us? Who can enter our hiding places?”I will punish you according to what you have done— this is the Lord’s declaration. I will kindle a fire in its forest that will consume everything around it.’”

Zedekiah was 21 years old when he became king and reigned 11 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah; she was from Libnah.Zedekiah did what was evil in the Lord’s sight just as Jehoiakim had done.Because of the Lord’s anger, it came to the point in Jerusalem and Judah that He finally banished them from His presence. Nevertheless, Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.In the ninth year of Zedekiah’s reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon advanced against Jerusalem with his entire army. They laid siege to the city and built a siege wall all around it.The city was under siege until King Zedekiah’s eleventh year.By the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was so severe in the city that the people of the land had no food.Then the city was broken into, and all the warriors fled. They left the city by night by way of the gate between the two walls near the king’s garden, though the Chaldeans surrounded the city. They made their way along the route to the Arabah.The Chaldean army pursued the king and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. Zedekiah’s entire army was scattered from him.The Chaldeans seized the king and brought him to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, and he passed sentence on him.At Riblah the king of Babylon slaughtered Zedekiah’s sons before his eyes and also slaughtered the Judean commanders.Then he blinded Zedekiah and bound him with bronze chains. The king of Babylon brought Zedekiah to Babylon, where he kept him in custody until his dying day.On the tenth day of the fifth month— which was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon— Nebuzaradan, the commander of the guards, entered Jerusalem as the representative of the king of Babylon.He burned the Lord’s temple, the king’s palace, all the houses of Jerusalem, and all the houses of the nobles.The whole Chaldean army with the commander of the guards tore down all the walls surrounding Jerusalem.Nebuzaradan, the commander of the guards, deported some of the poorest of the people, as well as the rest of the people who were left in the city, the deserters who had defected to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the craftsmen.But some of the poorest people of the land Nebuzaradan, the commander of the guards, left to be vinedressers and farmers.Now the Chaldeans broke into pieces the bronze pillars for the Lord’s temple and the water carts and the bronze reservoir that were in the Lord’s temple, and carried all the bronze to Babylon.They took the pots, shovels, wick trimmers, sprinkling basins, dishes, and all the bronze articles used in the temple service.The commander of the guards took away the bowls, firepans, sprinkling basins, pots, lampstands, pans, and drink offering bowls— whatever was gold or silver.As for the two pillars, the one reservoir, and the 12 bronze bulls under the water carts that King Solomon had made for the Lord’s temple, the weight of the bronze of all these articles was beyond measure.One pillar was 27 feet tall, had a circumference of 18 feet, was hollow— four fingers thick—and had a bronze capital on top of it. One capital, encircled by bronze latticework and pomegranates, stood 7 1/2 feet high. The second pillar was the same, with pomegranates.Each capital had 96 pomegranates all around it. All the pomegranates around the latticework numbered 100.The commander of the guards also took away Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the priest of the second rank, and the three doorkeepers.From the city he took a court official who had been appointed over the warriors; seven trusted royal aides found in the city; the secretary of the commander of the army, who enlisted the people of the land for military duty; and 60 men from the common people who were found within the city.Nebuzaradan, the commander of the guards, took them and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah.The king of Babylon put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah went into exile from its land.These are the people Nebuchadnezzar deported: in the seventh year, 3,023 Jews;in his eighteenth year, 832 people from Jerusalem;in Nebuchadnezzar’s twenty-third year, Nebuzaradan, the commander of the guards, deported 745 Jews. All together 4,600 people were deported.On the twenty-fifth day of the twelfth month of the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Judah’s King Jehoiachin, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the first year of his reign, pardoned King Jehoiachin of Judah and released him from prison.He spoke kindly to him and set his throne above the thrones of the kings who were with him in Babylon.So Jehoiachin changed his prison clothes, and he dined regularly in the presence of the king of Babylon for the rest of his life.As for his allowance, a regular allowance was given to him by the king of Babylon, a portion for each day until the day of his death, for the rest of his life.

This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord when Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, all his army, all the earthly kingdoms under his control, and all other nations were fighting against Jerusalem and all its surrounding cities:“ This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Go, speak to Zedekiah, king of Judah, and tell him: This is what the Lord says: I am about to hand this city over to the king of Babylon, and he will burn it down.As for you, you will not escape from his hand but are certain to be captured and handed over to him. You will meet the king of Babylon eye to eye and speak face to face; you will go to Babylon.“ Yet hear the Lord’s word, Zedekiah, king of Judah. This is what the Lord says concerning you: You will not die by the sword;you will die peacefully. There will be a burning ceremony for you just like the burning ceremonies for your fathers, the former kings who preceded you.‘ Our king is dead!’ will be the lament for you, for I have spoken this word.” This is the Lord’s declaration.So Jeremiah the prophet related all these words to Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalemwhile the king of Babylon’s army was attacking Jerusalem and all of Judah’s remaining cities— against Lachish and Azekah, for they were the only ones left of Judah’s fortified cities.This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord after King Zedekiah made a covenant with all the people who were in Jerusalem to proclaim freedom to them,so each man would free his male and female Hebrew slaves and no one would enslave his Judean brother.All the officials and people who entered into covenant to free their male and female slaves— in order not to enslave them any longer— obeyed and freed them.Afterward, however, they changed their minds and took back their male and female slaves they had freed and forced them to become slaves again.Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah from the Lord:“ This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I made a covenant with your ancestors when I brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery, saying:At the end of seven years, each of you must free his Hebrew brother who sold himself to you. He may serve you six years, but then you must send him out free from you. But your ancestors did not obey Me or pay any attention.Today you repented and did what pleased Me, each of you proclaiming freedom for his neighbor. You made a covenant before Me at the temple called by My name.But you have changed your minds and profaned My name. Each has taken back his male and female slaves who had been freed to go wherever they wanted, and you have again subjugated them to be your slaves.“ Therefore, this is what the Lord says: You have not obeyed Me by proclaiming freedom, each man for his brother and for his neighbor. I hereby proclaim freedom for you”— this is the Lord’s declaration—“ to the sword, to plague, and to famine! I will make you a horror to all the earth’s kingdoms.As for those who disobeyed My covenant, not keeping the terms of the covenant they made before Me, I will treat them like the calf they cut in two in order to pass between its pieces.The officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the court officials, the priests, and all the people of the land who passed between the pieces of the calfwill be handed over to their enemies, to those who want to take their life. Their corpses will become food for the birds of the sky and for the wild animals of the land.I will hand Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials over to their enemies, to those who want to take their lives, to the king of Babylon’s army that is withdrawing.I am about to give the command”— this is the Lord’s declaration—“ and I will bring them back to this city. They will fight against it, capture it, and burn it down. I will make Judah’s cities a desolation, without inhabitant.”This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the days of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah:“ Go to the house of the Rechabites, speak to them, and bring them to one of the chambers of the temple of the Lord to offer them a drink of wine.”So I took Jaazaniah son of Jeremiah, son of Habazziniah, and his brothers and all his sons— the entire house of the Rechabites—and I brought them into the temple of the Lord to a chamber occupied by the sons of Hanan son of Igdaliah, a man of God, who had a chamber near the officials’ chamber, which was above the chamber of Maaseiah son of Shallum the doorkeeper.I set jars filled with wine and some cups before the sons of the house of the Rechabites and said to them,“ Drink wine!”But they replied,“ We do not drink wine, for Jonadab, son of our ancestor Rechab, commanded:‘ You and your sons must never drink wine.You must not build a house or sow seed or plant a vineyard. Those things are not for you. Rather, you must live in tents your whole life, so you may live a long time on the soil where you stay as a temporary resident.’We have obeyed the voice of Jonadab, son of our ancestor Rechab, in all he commanded us. So we haven’t drunk wine our whole life— we, our wives, our sons, and our daughters.We also have not built houses to live in and do not have vineyard, field, or seed.But we have lived in tents and have obeyed and done as our ancestor Jonadab commanded us.However, when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched into the land, we said: Come, let’s go into Jerusalem to get away from the Chaldean and Aramean armies. So we have been living in Jerusalem.”Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah:“ This is what the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: Go, say to the men of Judah and the residents of Jerusalem: Will you not accept discipline by listening to My words?”— this is the Lord’s declaration.“ The words of Jonadab, son of Rechab, have been carried out. He commanded his sons not to drink wine, and they have not drunk to this very day because they have obeyed their ancestor’s command. But I have spoken to you time and time again, and you have not obeyed Me!Time and time again I have sent you all My servants the prophets, proclaiming: Turn, each one from his evil way of life, and correct your actions. Stop following other gods to serve them. Live in the land that I gave you and your ancestors. But you would not pay attention or obey Me.Yes, the sons of Jonadab son of Rechab carried out their ancestor’s command he gave them, but these people have not obeyed Me.Therefore, this is what the Lord, the God of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: I will certainly bring to Judah and to all the residents of Jerusalem all the disaster I have pronounced against them because I have spoken to them, but they have not obeyed, and I have called to them, but they would not answer.”Jeremiah said to the house of the Rechabites:“ This is what the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, says:‘ Because you have obeyed the command of your ancestor Jonadab and have kept all his commands and have done all that he commanded you,this is what the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: Jonadab son of Rechab will never fail to have a man to always stand before Me.’”