2 Chronicles 36:14-23 ▼

14 Moreover all the chiefs of the priests and of the Levites and of the people transgressed very much after all the abominations of the nations, and polluted the house of the LORD which he had hallowed in Jerusalem.

15 And the LORD God of their fathers sent to them by his messengers, giving useful advice in advance; because he had compassion on his people and on the flock that he had chosen;

16 But they laughed at the messengers of the LORD and despised their words and mocked his prophets until the wrath of the LORD arose against his people, till there was no remedy.

17 Therefore he brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who slew their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary and who had no compassion upon young men or virgins, nor upon the old men, nor upon babies; he delivered them all into his hand.

18 And all the vessels of the house of the LORD, great and small, and the treasures of the house of the LORD and the treasures of the king and of his princes, all these he brought to Babylon.

19 And they burned the house of the LORD and broke down the walls of Jerusalem and burned all its palaces with fire and destroyed all the costly vessels thereof.

20 And those who had escaped from the sword he carried away captive to Babylon, where they became servants to him and to his sons until the LORD delivered the kingdom to the Persians;

21 To fulfil the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah the prophet until the land had enjoyed its sabbaths, all the days that it lay desolate until the seventy years were completed.

22 Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah the prophet might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and put it also in writing, saying,

23 Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: All the kingdoms of the earth has the LORD God of heaven given me; and he has charged me to build him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Who is there among you of all his people with whom the LORD his God is pleased? Let him go up, and let him come to me.