2 Kings25
English Standard Version
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1 And in the of his , in the , on the day of the , of with his and to it. And they all it.
2 So the the of .
3 On the day of the fourth the was so in the that there was for the of the .
4 Then a breach was in the , and the of fled by by the of the between the two , by the , and the were the . And they in the of the .
5 But the of the the and him in the of , and his was from him.
6 Then they the and to the of at , and they on him.
7 They the of , and the of and him in and him to .
8 In the , on the day of the —that was the of , of — , the of the , a of the of , to .
9 And he the of the Lord and the and the of ; he .
10 And the of the , who were with the of the , broke the .
11 And the of the who were in the and the who had to the of , together with the of the , the of the .
12 But the of the some of the of the to be and .
13 And the of were in the of the Lord, and the and the were in the of the Lord, the and the to .
14 And they the and the and the and the dishes for and the of used in the ,
15 the also and the . was of the of the as , and what was of , as .
16 As for the , the , and the had for the of the Lord, the of was .
17 The of the was , and on it was a of . The of the was . A and , of , were all the . And the had the , with the .
18 And the of the the and the and the of the ;
19 and from the he who had been in of the of , and of the who were in the ; and the of the of the , who the of the ; and of the of the , who were in the .
20 And the of the them and them to the of at .
21 And the of and at in the of . So was taken into out of its .
22 And over the who in the of , of had , he the of , of , .
23 Now when the and their that the of had , they with their to at , namely, the of , and the of , and the of the , and the of the .
24 And to them and their , , Do not be because of the . in the and the of , and it shall be with you.
25 But in the , the of , of , , with and and along with the and the who were with him at .
26 Then the , both and , and the of the and to , for they were the .
27 And in the of the of of , in the , on the day of the , of , in the that he began to , of from .
28 And he to him and him a the of the were with him in .
29 So Jehoiachin his . And of his he at the ,
30 and for his , a was him by the , to his needs, as he .
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2 Kings 25Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for 2 Kings 25. The full AI study guide (summary, themes, context) has its own page.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter: Jerusalem besieged, Zedekiah taken. (1–7). The temple burnt, The people carried into captivity. (8–21). The rest of the Jews flee into Egypt, Evil-merodach relieves the captivity of Jehoiachin. (22–30).
vv1-7
Jerusalem was so fortified, that it could not be taken till famine rendered the besieged unable to resist. In the prophecy and Lamentations of Jeremiah, we find more of this event; here it suffices to say, that the impiety and misery of the besieged were very great. At length the city was taken by storm. The king, his family, and his great men escaped in the night, by secret passages. But those deceive themselves who think to escape God's judgments, as much as those who think to brave them. By what befell Zedekiah, two prophecies, which seemed to contradict each other, were both fulfilled. Jeremiah prophesied that Zedekiah should be brought to Babylon, Jer 32:5; 34:3; Ezekiel, that he should not see Babylon, Eze 12:13. He was brought thither, but his eyes being put out, he did not see it.
vv8-21
The city and temple were burnt, and, it is probable, the ark in it. By this, God showed how little he cares for the outward pomp of his worship, when the life and power of religion are neglected. The walls of Jerusalem were thrown down, and the people carried captive to Babylon. The vessels of the temple were carried away. When the things signified were sinned away, what should the signs stand there for? It was righteous with God to deprive those of the benefit of his worship, who had preferred false worships before it; those that would have many altars, now shall have none. As the Lord spared not the angels that sinned, as he doomed the whole race of fallen men to the grave, and all unbelievers to hell, and as he spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, we need not wonder at any miseries he may bring upon guilty nations, churches, or persons.
vv22-30
The king of Babylon appointed Gedaliah to be the governor and protector of the Jews left their land. But the things of their peace were so hidden from their eyes, that they knew not when they were well off. Ishmael basely slew him and all his friends, and, against the counsel of Jeremiah, the rest went to Egypt. Thus was a full end made of them by their own folly and disobedience; see Jeremiah chap. 40 to 45 Jehoiachin was released out of prison, where he had been kept 37 years. Let none say that they shall never see good again, because they have long seen little but evil: the most miserable know not what turn Providence may yet give to their affairs, nor what comforts they are reserved for, according to the days wherein they have been afflicted. Even in this world the Saviour brings a release from bondage to the distressed sinner who seeks him, bestowing foretastes of the pleasures which are at his right hand for evermore. Sin alone can hurt us; Jesus alone can do good to sinners.
Key Words
תְּשִׁיעִי: ninth
שָׁנֶה: a year (as a revolution of time)
מָלַךְ: to reign; inceptively, to ascend the throne; causatively, to induct into royalty; hence (by implication) to take counsel
עֲשִׂירִי: tenth; by abbreviation, tenth month or (feminine) part
חֹדֶשׁ: the new moon; by implication, a month
עָשׂוֹר: ten; by abbreviated form ten strings, and so a decachord
נְבוּכַדְנֶאצַּר: Nebukadnetstsar (or -retstsar, or -retstsor), king of Babylon
מֶלֶךְ: a king
בָּבֶל: Babel (i.e. Babylon), including Babylonia and the Babylonian empire
בּוֹא: to go or come (in a wide variety of applications)
Cross References
2 Kings 25Prophesied Zedekiah would be brought to Babylon but not see it; fulfilled when his eyes were put out.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole, JFB
Prophesied Zedekiah would be taken to Babylon, seemingly contradicting Ezekiel 12:13 but precisely fulfilled.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole, JFB
Parallel account of the temple destruction, with chronological details reconciling the seventh and tenth days.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Parallel details of the deportation by Nebuzaradan and the sparing of the poor.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
Explicitly prophesied the carrying away of the remaining brass pillars and temple vessels to Babylon.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Ezekiel in Babylon receives the exact date of the start of the siege of Jerusalem.
Supported by JFB
Famine conditions so severe that women boiled their own children, as foretold by Moses.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Parallel historical account of Evil-merodach releasing Jehoiachin from prison in Babylon.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Gedaliah appointed as governor, opening the narrative of the remnant left behind.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Detailed account of Ishmael's conspiracy, murder of Gedaliah, and the tragic dispersion.
Supported by Matthew Henry
The remnant flees to Egypt in fear of the Chaldeans, disobeying Jeremiah's warnings.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Mosaic covenant curse of extreme famine and cannibalism during sieges is fulfilled.
Supported by JFB
Riblah established as the military headquarters where Judean kings face judgment.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Detailed description of the construction of the two bronze pillars (Jachin and Boaz) now destroyed.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Confirms the execution of Judean leadership at Riblah and the finality of Judah's exile.
Supported by Matthew Poole