1 Zedequias tinha vinte e um anos de idade quando começou a reinar e reinou onze anos em Jerusalém. A mãe dele se chamava Hamutal e era filha de Jeremias, de Libna. 2 Zedequias fez o que era mau aos olhos do Senhor, segundo tudo o que Jeoaquim havia feito. 3 Foi por causa da ira do Senhor contra Jerusalém e contra Judá que isto aconteceu, a ponto de os rejeitar da sua presença.

Zedequias rebelou-se contra o rei da Babilônia. 4 Aconteceu que, no nono ano do reinado de Zedequias, aos dez dias do décimo mês, Nabucodonosor, rei da Babilônia, veio contra Jerusalém, ele e todo o seu exército. Sitiaram a cidade e construíram rampas de ataque ao redor dela. 5 A cidade ficou sitiada até o décimo primeiro ano do reinado de Zedequias. 6 Aos nove dias do quarto mês, quando a cidade se via apertada pela fome, e não havia pão para o povo da terra, 7 a cidade foi arrombada. Embora os caldeus estivessem em volta da cidade, todos os homens de guerra fugiram e saíram de noite pelo caminho do portão que fica entre as duas muralhas perto do jardim do rei. Fugiram na direção do vale do Jordão. 8 Mas o exército dos caldeus perseguiu o rei Zedequias e o alcançou nas campinas de Jericó; e todo o exército deste se dispersou e o abandonou. 9 Então Zedequias foi preso e levado ao rei da Babilônia, em Ribla, na terra de Hamate, o qual lhe pronunciou a sentença. 10 O rei da Babilônia mandou matar os filhos de Zedequias à vista deste; também mandou matar todas as autoridades de Judá, em Ribla. 11 Mandou furar os olhos de Zedequias, amarrou-o com correntes de bronze, levou-o à Babilônia e o conservou no cárcere até o dia da sua morte.

12 No décimo dia do quinto mês, no décimo nono ano do reinado de Nabucodonosor, rei da Babilônia, Nebuzaradã, chefe da guarda e servidor do rei da Babilônia, veio a Jerusalém. 13 Ele queimou a Casa do Senhor e o palácio real, bem como todas as casas de Jerusalém. Também entregou às chamas todas as construções importantes. 14 Todo o exército dos caldeus que estava com o chefe da guarda derrubou todas as muralhas ao redor de Jerusalém. 15 Nebuzaradã, o chefe da guarda, levou cativos os mais pobres do povo, o resto do povo que havia ficado na cidade, os desertores que se entregaram ao rei da Babilônia e o restante da população. 16 Porém Nebuzaradã, o chefe da guarda, deixou alguns dos mais pobres da terra para serem vinhateiros e lavradores.

17 Os caldeus cortaram em pedaços as colunas de bronze que estavam na Casa do Senhor, bem como os suportes e o mar de bronze que estavam na Casa do Senhor; e levaram todo o bronze para a Babilônia. 18 Levaram também as panelas, as pás, os apagadores, as bacias, os recipientes de incenso e todos os utensílios de bronze, com que se ministrava. 19 O chefe da guarda levou também os copos, os braseiros, as bacias, as panelas, os candelabros, os recipientes de incenso e as taças, tudo o que fosse de ouro ou de prata. 20 Quanto às duas colunas, ao mar de bronze e aos doze touros de bronze que o sustentavam, e que Salomão havia feito para a Casa do Senhor, o peso do bronze de todos esses utensílios era incalculável. 21 Quanto às colunas, a altura de uma era de oito metros, e um cordão de cinco metros e trinta e cinco a cercava. Eram ocas, e a grossura do metal era de dez centímetros. 22 Sobre ela havia um capitel de bronze; a altura de cada capitel era de dois metros e vinte. A obra de rede e as romãs sobre o capitel ao redor eram de bronze. 23 Semelhante a esta era a outra coluna com as romãs. Havia noventa e seis romãs aos lados; todas as romãs sobre a obra de rede ao redor eram cem.

24 O chefe da guarda também levou cativos Seraías, sumo sacerdote, Sofonias, segundo sacerdote, e os três guardas da porta. 25 Da cidade ele levou um oficial, que era comandante das tropas de guerra, e sete conselheiros do rei que ainda estavam na cidade, bem como o escrivão-chefe do exército, que alistava o povo da terra, e sessenta homens do povo do lugar, que estavam na cidade. 26 Nebuzaradã, o chefe da guarda, levou-os ao rei da Babilônia, em Ribla. 27 O rei da Babilônia os matou ali mesmo, em Ribla, na terra de Hamate.

Assim Judá foi levado cativo para fora de sua terra. 28 Este é o povo que Nabucodonosor levou para o exílio: no sétimo ano, três mil e vinte e três judeus; 29 no décimo oitavo ano de Nabucodonosor, ele levou cativas de Jerusalém oitocentas e trinta e duas pessoas; 30 no vigésimo terceiro ano de Nabucodonosor, Nebuzaradã, o chefe da guarda, levou cativas, dentre os judeus, setecentas e quarenta e cinco pessoas. Ao todo, foram levadas quatro mil e seiscentas pessoas.

31 No trigésimo sétimo ano do cativeiro de Joaquim, rei de Judá, no dia vinte e cinco do décimo segundo mês, Evil-Merodaque, rei da Babilônia, no ano em que começou a reinar, libertou Joaquim, rei de Judá, e o fez sair do cárcere. 32 Falou com ele de modo bondoso e lhe deu um lugar de mais honra do que a dos reis que estavam com ele na Babilônia. 33 Permitiu que ele deixasse de usar as roupas de prisioneiro, e Joaquim passou a comer na presença dele todos os dias da sua vida. 34 E da parte do rei da Babilônia lhe foi dada subsistência vitalícia, uma pensão diária, até o dia da sua morte, durante todos os dias da sua vida.

1 Twenty-one years old, was Zedekiah when he began to reign, and eleven years, reigned he, in Jerusalem,and, his mothers name, was Hamutal, daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.

2 And he did that which was wicked in the eyes of Yahweh,according to all that Jehoiakim had done.

3 For it was, because the anger of Yahweh, had come against Jerusalem and Judah until he had cast them out from his presence, that Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.

4 And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth of the month, that Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his force, against Jerusalem, and encamped against it,and he built against it a siege-wall round about.

5 And the city came into the siege,until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah.

6 In the fourth month on the ninth of the month, when the famine had become severe in the city,and there had come to be no bread for the people of the land,

7 then was the city broken up, and all the men of war, beginning to flee went forth out of the city by night, by way of the gate between the two walls which was by the garden of the king the Chaldeans being near the city round about,and they went the way towards the Waste Plain.

8 And the force of the Chaldeans pursued the king, and overtook Zedekiah, in the Waste Plains of Jericho,and, all his force, was scattered from him.

9 So they seized the king, and brought him up, unto the king of Babylon at Riblah, in the land of Hamath,and he pronounced upon him sentences of judgment.

10 And the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes,moreover also all the princes of Judah, slew he in Riblah;

11 and the eyes of Zedekiah, put he out,and bound him with fetters of bronze and the king of Babylon took him to Babylon, and put him in prisonuntil the day of his death.

12 And in the fifth month on the tenth of the month, the same, was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadrezzar, king of Babylon, came Nebuzaradan, chief of the royal executioners,who stood before the king of Babylon into, Jerusalem;

13 and he burned the house of Yahweh and the house of the king,yea all the houses of Jerusalem even every great mans house, burned he with fire;

14 and all the walls of Jerusalem round about, did all the force of the Chaldeans who were with the chief of the royal executioners, break down.

15 And seine of the poor of the people and the residue of the people who were left in the city, and the disheartened who had fallen away unto the king of Babylon and the residue of the multitude, did Nebuzaradan chief of the royal executioners carry away captive.

16 But, others of the poor of the land, did Nebuzaradan chief of the royal executioners leave, for vinedressers and for husbandmen.

17 And the pillars of bronze that pertained to the house of Yahweh and the stands and the sea of bronze which was in the house of Yahweh, did the Chaldeans, break in pieces,and they carried away all the bronze of them to Babylon;

18 and the caldrons and the shovels and the snuffers and the dashing bowls, and the spoons even all the utensils of bronze wherewith ministration used to he made did they take away;

19 and the basins and the censers and the dashing bowls and the caldrons and the lamps and the spoons and the cups, which were of gold in gold, and which were of silver in silver, did the chief of the royal executioners, take away.

20 As for the two pillars the one sea, and the twelve oxen of bronze which were under the stands which King Solomon had made for the house of Yahweh, without weight was the bronze of all these things.

21 Now as for the pillars, eighteen cubits, was the height of each pillar, and, a line of twelve cubits, compassed it about,and the thickness thereof was four fingers breadthhollow;

22 and there was, a capital, upon it, of bronze, and the height of each capital, was five cubits, with lattice-work and pomegranates upon the capital round aboutthe whole was of bronze,and like these, were the second pillar and the pomegranates.

23 And the pomegranates were ninety-six on a side,all the pomegranates were a hundred upon the lattice-work round about.

24 And the chief of the royal executioners, took away, Seraiah the first priest, and Zephaniah, the second priest,and the three keepers of the entrance-hall;

25 and out of the city, took he one eunuch who was in charge over the men f war and seven men of them who used to watch the face of the king, who were found in the city, and the scribe of the prince of the host, who used to muster the people of the land,and sixty men of the people of the land, who were found in the midst of the city.

26 And when Nebuzaradan chief the royal executioners, bad taken them, and brought them unto the king of Babylon at Riblah,

27 then did the king of Babylon smite them and put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath,thus carried he Judah captive away from off their own soil.

28 This, is the people, whom Nebuchadrezzar carried away captive,In the seventh yearof them of Judah, three thousand and twenty-three;

29 In the eighteenth year of Nebuchadrezzarout of Jerusalem, eight hundred and thirty-two souls;

30 In the three-and-twentieth year of Nebuchadrezzar, Nebuzaradan, chief of the royal executioners took away captive, of them of Judah, seven hundred and forty-five souls: All, the souls, were four thousand and six hundred.

31 And it came to pass, in the thirty-seventh year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth of the month, that Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year he began to reign, lifted up, the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah, and brought him forth out of prison;

32 and spake with him comfortable words,and set his throne above the throne of the kings who were with him in Babylon;

33 so he changed his prison garments,and used to eat bread before his face continually, all the days of his life.

34 And his allowance, was a continual allowance given him from the king of Babylon the portion of the day upon its own day, until the day of his death,all the days of his life.