2 Kings 25

And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he, and all his host, against Jerusalem, and pitched against it; and they built forts against it round about.

1It was the ninth year that Zedekiah was king. On day ten of month ten, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came to Jerusalem. He brought his whole army. They camped around the city and built dirt walls to attack it.

2And the city was besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah.

2The army stayed around the city and kept it shut in. This lasted until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah.

3And on the ninth day of the fourth month the famine prevailed in the city, and there was no bread for the people of the land.

3On day nine of month four, the food ran out. The people in the city had nothing left to eat.

4And the city was broken up, and all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between two walls, which is by the king’s garden: (now the Chaldees were against the city round about:) and the king went the way toward the plain.

4Then the enemy broke a hole in the city wall. Babylon's soldiers were all around the city. At night all the fighting men ran away. They went out the gate between the two walls, near the king's garden. They headed toward the flat land in the valley.

NoteThe KJV calls Babylon's soldiers "the Chaldees." That was another name for the people of Babylon.

5And the army of the Chaldees pursued after the king, and overtook him in the plains of Jericho: and all his army were scattered from him.

5But Babylon's army chased the king. They caught him on the flat land near Jericho. His own soldiers had scattered and left him alone.

6So they took the king, and brought him up to the king of Babylon to Riblah; and they gave judgment upon him.

6They took the king to the king of Babylon at a town called Riblah. There they decided how he would be punished.

7And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him with fetters of brass, and carried him to Babylon.

7They killed Zedekiah's sons while he watched. Then they blinded his eyes. They tied him with bronze chains and took him to Babylon.

8And in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month, which is the nineteenth year of king Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, came Nebuzaradan, captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, unto Jerusalem:

8It was month five, day seven, in Nebuchadnezzar's nineteenth year as king of Babylon. Nebuzaradan came to Jerusalem. He was the captain of the king's guard and served the king of Babylon.

9And he burnt the house of the LORD, and the king’s house, and all the houses of Jerusalem, and every great man’s house burnt he with fire.

9He burned down the LORD's temple, the king's palace, and all the houses of Jerusalem. Every large building was burned.

10And all the army of the Chaldees, that were with the captain of the guard, brake down the walls of Jerusalem round about.

10The whole army of Babylon was with the captain of the guard. They broke down the walls all around Jerusalem.

11Now the rest of the people that were left in the city, and the fugitives that fell away to the king of Babylon, with the remnant of the multitude, did Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carry away.

11Nebuzaradan took away the people still living in the city. He also took the ones who had gone over to Babylon's side. He took the rest of the crowd too. They were all marched away to another land.

12But the captain of the guard left of the poor of the land to be vinedressers and husbandmen.

12But the captain of the guard let some of the poorest people stay. They stayed to care for the grapevines and work the fields.

13And the pillars of brass that were in the house of the LORD, and the bases, and the brasen sea that was in the house of the LORD, did the Chaldees break in pieces, and carried the brass of them to Babylon.

13In the LORD's temple there were tall bronze pillars, bronze stands, and a huge bronze bowl. Babylon's soldiers broke them all in pieces. They carried the bronze back to Babylon.

NoteThe "brasen sea" was a huge bronze bowl that held water for washing at the temple.

14And the pots, and the shovels, and the snuffers, and the spoons, and all the vessels of brass wherewith they ministered, took they away.

14They also took the pots, shovels, lamp trimmers, and dishes. They took all the bronze tools used in the temple.

15And the firepans, and the bowls, and such things as were of gold, in gold, and of silver, in silver, the captain of the guard took away.

15The captain of the guard also took the fire pans and the bowls. He took everything made of gold and everything made of silver.

16The two pillars, one sea, and the bases which Solomon had made for the house of the LORD; the brass of all these vessels was without weight.

16Solomon had made the two pillars, the big bowl, and the stands for the LORD's temple. There was so much bronze in them that nobody could weigh it.

17The height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits, and the chapiter upon it was brass: and the height of the chapiter three cubits; and the wreathen work, and pomegranates upon the chapiter round about, all of brass: and like unto these had the second pillar with wreathen work.

17Each pillar stood about twenty-seven feet tall. On top of each pillar sat a bronze cap about four and a half feet high. Around the cap was bronze work shaped like fruit. Both pillars looked the same.

NoteThe KJV measures in cubits. A cubit was about eighteen inches, roughly the length of a grown-up's forearm.

18And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest, and Zephaniah the second priest, and the three keepers of the door:

18The captain of the guard took away Seraiah, the chief priest. He also took Zephaniah, the next priest under him, and three men who guarded the door.

19And out of the city he took an officer that was set over the men of war, and five men of them that were in the king’s presence, which were found in the city, and the principal scribe of the host, which mustered the people of the land, and threescore men of the people of the land that were found in the city:

19From the city he took a leader who was in charge of the soldiers. He took five men who gave advice to the king. He took the chief writer of the army, who signed men up to fight. He also took sixty other men he found in the city.

20And Nebuzaradan captain of the guard took these, and brought them to the king of Babylon to Riblah:

20Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, took all these men. He brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah.

21And the king of Babylon smote them, and slew them at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was carried away out of their land.

21There at Riblah, in the land of Hamath, the king of Babylon had them all killed. So the people of Judah were taken away from their own land.

22And as for the people that remained in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had left, even over them he made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, ruler.

22Some people were still left in Judah. Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon chose Gedaliah to be their leader. Gedaliah was the son of Ahikam and the grandson of Shaphan.

23And when all the captains of the armies, they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah governor, there came to Gedaliah to Mizpah, even Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan the son of Careah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah the son of a Maachathite, they and their men.

23Army leaders and their men heard that Gedaliah was now governor. So they came to him at a town called Mizpah. They were Ishmael son of Nethaniah, Johanan son of Careah, Seraiah son of Tanhumeth from Netophah, and Jaazaniah the Maachathite. Their men came with them.

24And Gedaliah sware to them, and to their men, and said unto them, Fear not to be the servants of the Chaldees: dwell in the land, and serve the king of Babylon; and it shall be well with you.

24Gedaliah made a promise to them and their men. He said, "Do not be afraid to serve the Babylonians. Live here in the land. Serve the king of Babylon, and things will go well for you."

25But it came to pass in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the seed royal, came, and ten men with him, and smote Gedaliah, that he died, and the Jews and the Chaldees that were with him at Mizpah.

25But in month seven, Ishmael came with ten men. He was the son of Nethaniah and the grandson of Elishama, and he came from the king's family. They killed Gedaliah. They also killed the men from Judah and Babylon who were with him at Mizpah.

26And all the people, both small and great, and the captains of the armies, arose, and came to Egypt: for they were afraid of the Chaldees.

26Then all the people, young and old, got up and left. The army leaders went too. They all ran away to Egypt because they were afraid of the Babylonians.

27And it came to pass in the seven and thirtieth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, that Evilmerodach king of Babylon in the year that he began to reign did lift up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah out of prison;

27Jehoiachin, king of Judah, had been a prisoner in Babylon for thirty-seven years. Then Evilmerodach became king of Babylon. In his first year, on day twenty-seven of month twelve, he let Jehoiachin out of prison.

Note"Did lift up the head... out of prison" is an old way of saying the king set Jehoiachin free and treated him with honor.

28And he spake kindly to him, and set his throne above the throne of the kings that were with him in Babylon;

28He spoke kindly to Jehoiachin. He gave him a seat of honor higher than the other kings living in Babylon.

29And changed his prison garments: and he did eat bread continually before him all the days of his life.

29Jehoiachin took off his prison clothes and put on new ones. He ate at the king's table every day for the rest of his life.

30And his allowance was a continual allowance given him of the king, a daily rate for every day, all the days of his life.

30The king gave Jehoiachin what he needed each day. This went on every single day, as long as he lived.