1 & 2 Kings

2 Kings Chapter 24

2Kings 24:1 In his days Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up, and Jehoiakim became his servant three years: then he turned and rebelled against him.
2 And the LORD sent against him bands of the Chaldees, and bands of the Syrians, and bands of the Moabites, and bands of the children of Ammon, and sent them against Judah to destroy it, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by his servants the prophets.

So the final days of Judah have come as the prophets foretold over and over again. Because of the sins of the people and the kings, those sad days have come. Either God sent them in directly or He just withdrew His hand of protection. Either way it was a done deal. Without the hand of protection they were not safe against mightier nations. Years later Babylon is taken over by the Medes and Persians as we read in the book of Daniel. Judah was under Babylon's power for 70 years and didn't really regain all freedom but returned home after 70 years but still under the authority of the Medes and Persians then later the Grecian then the Roman Empire until 70 AD. They lost their nation again because of their rejection of Jesus as Messiah until 1948. Then the time clock of latter day events began.

2Kings 24:3 Surely at the commandment of the LORD came this upon Judah, to remove them out of his sight, for the sins of Manasseh, according to all that he did;
4 And also for the innocent blood that he shed: for he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood; which the LORD would not pardon.

Manasseh was the son of Hezekiah. Hezekiah was a good king that God granted 15 extra years to his life. During that time Manasseh was born and became king later but did very evil. This was the final straw that set in motion the days of judgment that were to come during the years of Jehoiakim who did evil as Manasseh did. God waited until after Josiah died. Josiah was one of the most righteous kings Judah had. After his death, God finally brought about the judgment on Judah for the sins of Manasseh and the other evil kings before and after him.

2Kings 24:5 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
6 So Jehoiakim slept with his fathers: and Jehoiachin his son reigned in his stead.
7 And the king of Egypt came not again any more out of his land: for the king of Babylon had taken from the river of Egypt unto the river Euphrates all that pertained to the king of Egypt.

So this was the sad time of them losing their nation and had no help from Egypt or any other nation. Prophecy came to pass and Babylon took over. In Jeremiah 22 we can read the prophecy against the sons of Josiah who did not follow the righteousness of Josiah.

Jehoiachin Reigns in Judah

2Kings 24:8 Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. And his mother's name was Nehushta, the daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem.
9 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father had done.

After all the things that happened he too did evil in the sight of God. No repentance, no change and no fear of God.

Jerusalem Captured

2Kings 24:10 At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against Jerusalem, and the city was besieged.
11 And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came against the city, and his servants did besiege it.
12 And Jehoiachin the king of Judah went out to the king of Babylon, he, and his mother, and his servants, and his princes, and his officers: and the king of Babylon took him in the eighth year of his reign.
13 And he carried out thence all the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king's house, and cut in pieces all the vessels of gold which Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the LORD, as the LORD had said.
14 And he carried away all Jerusalem, and all the princes, and all the mighty men of valour, even ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and smiths: none remained, save the poorest sort of the people of the land.
15 And he carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon, and the king's mother, and the king's wives, and his officers, and the mighty of the land, those carried he into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon.
16 And all the men of might, even seven thousand, and craftsmen and smiths a thousand, all that were strong and apt for war, even them the king of Babylon brought captive to Babylon.
17 And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah his father's brother king in his stead, and changed his name to Zedekiah.

These kings never did try to mend fences with the Lord but "Did evil in the sight of the Lord." Jehoiachin surrendered instead of rebelling though. I can't say this enough. Evil leaders will not get away with their evil. Eventually they die and face the judgment. I see those today that continually plot evil, oppress their own citizens, pass goofy laws and never seem to change. They strive to take down anyone who disagrees or opposes them. Happy is any nation who has those in authority that love the people they serve. Happy is the nation whose God is the Lord God of Israel who made Heaven and earth. There is a difference between being a control freak or being just and fair.

Zedekiah Reigns in Judah

2Kings 24:18 Zedekiah was twenty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.
19 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that Jehoiakim had done.
20 For through the anger of the LORD it came to pass in Jerusalem and Judah, until he had cast them out from his presence, that Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.

Zedekiah not only did evil in the sight of the Lord but rebelled against Babylon. This we see later causes him to have a very bad ending. Nebuchadnezzar left only the poor of the land and took everyone else captive to Babylon. I wonder how they fed and housed so many people. The suffering must have been very bad for them. Food, shelter, clothing, a place to sleep is something we should be very thankful for. All the sudden it was taken away from them. Without the protection of the hand of God, there was no help. This continued for 70 years until God brought judgment upon Babylon for their sins. More of this time in history is recorded in Chronicles, Daniel, Jeremiah, Isaiah and Ezekiel. -DC

2 Kings Chapter 25