| English Standard Version | NET Bible |
| 1And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came with all his army against Jerusalem and laid siege to it. And they built siegeworks all around it. | 1So King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came against Jerusalem with his whole army and set up camp outside it. They built siege ramps all around it. He arrived on the tenth day of the tenth month in the ninth year of Zedekiah's reign. |
| 2So the city was besieged till the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. | 2The city remained under siege until King Zedekiah's eleventh year. |
| 3On the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land. | 3By the ninth day of the fourth month the famine in the city was so severe the residents had no food. |
| 4Then a breach was made in the city, and all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between the two walls, by the king’s garden, and the Chaldeans were around the city. And they went in the direction of the Arabah. | 4The enemy broke through the city walls, and all the soldiers tried to escape. They left the city during the night. They went through the gate between the two walls that is near the king's garden. (The Babylonians were all around the city.) Then they headed for the Jordan Valley. |
| 5But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho, and all his army was scattered from him. | 5But the Babylonian army chased after the king. They caught up with him in the plains of Jericho, and his entire army deserted him. |
| 6Then they captured the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah, and they passed sentence on him. | 6They captured the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah, where he passed sentence on him. |
| 7They slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah and bound him in chains and took him to Babylon. | 7Zedekiah's sons were executed while Zedekiah was forced to watch. The king of Babylon then had Zedekiah's eyes put out, bound him in bronze chains, and carried him off to Babylon. |
| 8In the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month—that was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon—Nebuzaradan, the captain of the bodyguard, a servant of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. | 8On the seventh day of the fifth month, in the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, Nebuzaradan, the captain of the royal guard who served the king of Babylon, arrived in Jerusalem. |
| 9And he burned the house of the LORD and the king’s house and all the houses of Jerusalem; every great house he burned down. | 9He burned down the LORD's temple, the royal palace, and all the houses in Jerusalem, including every large house. |
| 10And all the army of the Chaldeans, who were with the captain of the guard, broke down the walls around Jerusalem. | 10The whole Babylonian army that came with the captain of the royal guard tore down the walls that surrounded Jerusalem. |
| 11And the rest of the people who were left in the city and the deserters who had deserted to the king of Babylon, together with the rest of the multitude, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried into exile. | 11Nebuzaradan, the captain of the royal guard, deported the rest of the people who were left in the city, those who had deserted to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the craftsmen. |
| 12But the captain of the guard left some of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and plowmen. | 12But he left behind some of the poor of the land and gave them fields and vineyards. |
| 13And the pillars of bronze that were in the house of the LORD, and the stands and the bronze sea that were in the house of the LORD, the Chaldeans broke in pieces and carried the bronze to Babylon. | 13The Babylonians broke the two bronze pillars in the LORD's temple, as well as the movable stands and the big bronze basin called the "The Sea." They took the bronze to Babylon. |
| 14And they took away the pots and the shovels and the snuffers and the dishes for incense and all the vessels of bronze used in the temple service, | 14They also took the pots, shovels, trimming shears, pans, and all the bronze utensils used by the priests. |
| 15the fire pans also and the bowls. What was of gold the captain of the guard took away as gold, and what was of silver, as silver. | 15The captain of the royal guard took the golden and silver censers and basins. |
| 16As for the two pillars, the one sea, and the stands that Solomon had made for the house of the LORD, the bronze of all these vessels was beyond weight. | 16The bronze of the items that King Solomon made for the LORD's temple--including the two pillars, the big bronze basin called "The Sea," the twelve bronze bulls under "The Sea," and the movable stands--was too heavy to be weighed. |
| 17The height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits, and on it was a capital of bronze. The height of the capital was three cubits. A latticework and pomegranates, all of bronze, were all around the capital. And the second pillar had the same, with the latticework. | 17Each of the pillars was about twenty-seven feet high. The bronze top of one pillar was about four and a half feet high and had bronze latticework and pomegranate shaped ornaments all around it. The second pillar with its latticework was like it. |
| 18And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest and Zephaniah the second priest and the three keepers of the threshold; | 18The captain of the royal guard took Seraiah the chief priest and Zephaniah, the priest who was second in rank, and the three doorkeepers. |
| 19and from the city he took an officer who had been in command of the men of war, and five men of the king’s council who were found in the city; and the secretary of the commander of the army, who mustered the people of the land; and sixty men of the people of the land, who were found in the city. | 19From the city he took a eunuch who was in charge of the soldiers, five of the king's advisers who were discovered in the city, an official army secretary who drafted citizens for military service, and sixty citizens from the people of the land who were discovered in the city. |
| 20And Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took them and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. | 20Nebuzaradan, captain of the royal guard, took them and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. |
| 21And the king of Babylon struck them down and put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was taken into exile out of its land. | 21The king of Babylon ordered them to be executed at Riblah in the territory of Hamath. So Judah was deported from its land. |
| 22And over the people who remained in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had left, he appointed Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, governor. | 22Now King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, as governor over the people whom he allowed to remain in the land of Judah. |
| 23Now when all the captains and their men heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah governor, they came with their men to Gedaliah at Mizpah, namely, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah the son of the Maacathite. | 23All of the officers of the Judahite army and their troops heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah to govern. So they came to Gedaliah at Mizpah. The officers who came were Ishmael son of Nethaniah, Johanan son of Kareah, Seraiah son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah son of the Maacathite. |
| 24And Gedaliah swore to them and their men, saying, “Do not be afraid because of the Chaldean officials. Live in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with you.” | 24Gedaliah took an oath so as to give them and their troops some assurance of safety. He said, "You don't need to be afraid to submit to the Babylonian officials. Settle down in the land and submit to the king of Babylon. Then things will go well for you." |
| 25But in the seventh month, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, son of Elishama, of the royal family, came with ten men and struck down Gedaliah and put him to death along with the Jews and the Chaldeans who were with him at Mizpah. | 25But in the seventh month Ishmael son of Nethaniah, son of Elishama, who was a member of the royal family, came with ten of his men and murdered Gedaliah, as well as the Judeans and Babylonians who were with him at Mizpah. |
| 26Then all the people, both small and great, and the captains of the forces arose and went to Egypt, for they were afraid of the Chaldeans. | 26Then all the people, from the youngest to the oldest, as well as the army officers, left for Egypt, because they were afraid of what the Babylonians might do. |
| 27And in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, graciously freed Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison. | 27In the thirty-seventh year of the exile of King Jehoiachin of Judah, on the twenty-seventh day of the twelfth month, King Evil-Merodach of Babylon, in the first year of his reign, pardoned King Jehoiachin of Judah and released him from prison. |
| 28And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat above the seats of the kings who were with him in Babylon. | 28He spoke kindly to him and gave him a more prestigious position than the other kings who were with him in Babylon. |
| 29So Jehoiachin put off his prison garments. And every day of his life he dined regularly at the king’s table, | 29Jehoiachin took off his prison clothes and ate daily in the king's presence for the rest of his life. |
| 30and for his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king, according to his daily needs, as long as he lived. | 30He was given daily provisions by the king for the rest of his life until the day he died. |
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