Hebrew-English Text
I. Summary
Kings Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, and Jehoiachin are sent into exile. Zedekiah becomes king and the Babylonians destroy the temple. The prophecy of Jeremiah is fulfilled when King Cyrus of Persia calls for the rebuilding of the temple.
II. Photo
Cyrus speaks: “The Lord God of Heaven has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and has charged me with building Him a House in Jerusalem, which is in Judah.” (v. 23a)
III. Select Verses
3: The king of Egypt deposed him in Jerusalem and laid a fine on the land of 100 silver talents and one gold talent.
6: King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon marched against him; he bound him in fetters to convey him to Babylon.
10: At the turn of the year, King Nebuchadnezzar sent to have him brought to Babylon with the precious vessels of the House of the LORD, and he made his kinsman Zedekiah king over Judah and Jerusalem.
15-16: The LORD God of their fathers had sent word to them through His messengers daily without fail, for He had pity on His people and His dwelling-place. But they mocked the messengers of God and disdained His words and taunted His prophets until the wrath of the LORD against His people grew beyond remedy.
17-21: He therefore brought the king of the Chaldeans upon them, who killed their youths by the sword in their sanctuary; He did not spare youth, maiden, elder, or graybeard, but delivered all into his hands. All the vessels of the House of God, large and small, and the treasures of the House of the LORD and the treasures of the king and his officers were all brought to Babylon. They burned the House of God and tore down the wall of Jerusalem, burned down all its mansions, and consigned all its precious objects to destruction. Those who survived the sword he exiled to Babylon, and they became his and his sons’ servants till the rise of the Persian kingdom, in fulfillment of the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah, until the land paid back its sabbaths; as long as it lay desolate it kept sabbath, till seventy years were completed.
22-23: And in the first year of King Cyrus of Persia, when the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah was fulfilled, the LORD roused the spirit of King Cyrus of Persia to issue a proclamation throughout his realm by word of mouth and in writing, as follows: “Thus said King Cyrus of Persia: The LORD God of Heaven has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and has charged me with building Him a House in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Any one of you of all His people, the LORD his God be with him and let him go up.”
IV. Outline
1-4. Jehoahaz is exiled to Egypt
5-8. Jehoiakim (Eliakim) is exiled to Babylon
9-10. Jehoiachin is exiled to Babylon
11-20a. Zedekiah
11. Introduction
12. Condemnation
13. Rebellion against Babylon
14. The people’s sin
15-16. Unheeded warnings
17-20a. The Babylonian invasion
17. Killing
18. Pillaging
19. Burning
20a. Exile
20b-21. Jeremiah’s prophecy
22-23. Cyrus’s decree to rebuild the temple
V. Comment
No comment today. Stay tuned.
VI. Works Used
(see “Commentaries” page)
Photo copied from http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f1/Berlin_Alexanderplatz_construction_cranes.jpg
