2 Chronicles 36:10-23 ▼

10 And at the return of the year King Nebuchadnezzar summoned him and took him to Babylon, with the desirable vessels from the house of YHWH, and he caused Zedekiah his brother to reign over Judah and Jerusalem.

11 Zedekiah was a son of twenty-one years in his reigning, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years.

12 And He did evil in the eyes of YHWH his God; he did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet from the mouth of YHWH.

13 And also he rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had caused him to swear by God. And he stiffened his neck and strengthened his heart against turning to YHWH, God of Israel.

14 Also, all the leaders of the priests and the people multiplied to act unfaithfully—an unfaithfulness—like all the abominations of the nations, and they defiled the house of YHWH that He had consecrated in Jerusalem.

15 And YHWH, God of their fathers, sent to them by His messengers, rising up early and sending them, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place.

16 And they mocked the messengers of God and despised His words and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of YHWH arose against His people, until there was no healing.

17 And He brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, and he killed their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and he had no compassion on young man or virgin, on the aged or the weak. He gave all into his hand.

18 And all the articles from the house of God—great and small, and the treasures of the house of YHWH, and the treasures of the king and of his leaders—the entirety he brought in to Babylon.

19 And they burned the house of God and broke down the wall of Jerusalem, and all its palaces they burned with the fire and destroyed all the desirable vessels.

20 And he carried away those who escaped from the sword to Babylon, and they were unto him and unto his sons for servants until the reigning of the kingdom of Persia,

21 to fulfill the word of YHWH by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her Sabbaths. All the days of her desolation she kept Sabbath, to the fullness of seventy years.

22 And in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, to fulfill the word of YHWH by the mouth of Jeremiah, YHWH stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, and he caused to pass over a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and also in writing, saying,

23 “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: ‘All the kingdoms of the earth, YHWH God of the heavens has given to me, and He has commanded to me to build for Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Who is among you? of all his people? YHWH his God be with him, and may he go up.’”