2 Chronicles 36:1–5; 2 Kings 23:31–24:4; Jeremiah 22:1–23; Jeremiah 26

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2 Chronicles 36:1–5

Judah’s Decline

mThe people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah and made him king in his father’s place in Jerusalem. Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he began to reign, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. Then the king of Egypt deposed him in Jerusalem and nlaid on the land a tribute of a hundred talents of silver and a talent1 of gold. And the king of Egypt made Eliakim his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. But Neco took Jehoahaz his brother and carried him to Egypt.

oJehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord his God.


2 Kings 23:31–24:4

Jehoahaz’s Reign and Captivity

31 bJehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he began to reign, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was cHamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 32 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, daccording to all that his fathers had done. 33 And xPharaoh Neco put him in bonds at eRiblah in the land of fHamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem, and laid on the land a tribute of a hundred talents1 of silver and a talent of gold. 34 And xPharaoh Neco made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the place of Josiah his father, and gchanged his name to Jehoiakim. But he took Jehoahaz away, hand he came to Egypt and died there. 35 And Jehoiakim igave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh, but he taxed the land to give the money according to the command of Pharaoh. He exacted the silver and the gold of the people of the land, from everyone according to his assessment, to give it to Pharaoh Neco.

Jehoiakim Reigns in Judah

36 jJehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zebidah the daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah. 37 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, daccording to all that his fathers had done.

kIn his days, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up, and Jehoiakim became his servant for three years. Then he turned and rebelled against him. And the Lord sent against him bands of the lChaldeans and mbands of the Syrians and bands of the Moabites and bands of the Ammonites, and sent them against Judah to destroy it, naccording to the word of the Lord that he spoke by his servants the prophets. Surely this came upon Judah at the command of the Lord, to remove them out of his sight, ofor the sins of Manasseh, according to all that he had done, and also pfor the innocent blood that he had shed. For he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood, and the Lord would not pardon.


Jeremiah 22:1–23

Thus says the Lord: Go down to the house of the king of Judah and speak there this word, and say, wHear the word of the Lord, O king of Judah, who sits on the throne of David, you, and your servants, and your people who enter these gates. Thus says the Lord: xDo justice and righteousness, and deliver from the hand of the oppressor him who has been robbed. And ydo no wrong or violence zto the resident alien, xthe fatherless, and the widow, nor ashed innocent blood in this place. For if you will indeed obey this word, bthen there shall enter the gates of this house kings who sit on the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they and their servants and their people. But if you will not obey these words, I cswear by myself, declares the Lord, that dthis house shall become a desolation. For thus says the Lord concerning the house of the king of Judah:

You are like Gilead to me,

like the summit of eLebanon,

yet surely I will make you a desert,

fan uninhabited city.1

gI will prepare destroyers against you,

each with his weapons,

hand they shall cut down your choicest cedars

and cast them into the fire.

And many nations will pass by this city, and every man will say to his neighbor, iWhy has the Lord dealt thus with this great city? jAnd they will answer, Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord their God and worshiped other gods and served them.

10  kWeep not for him who is dead,

nor grieve for him,

lbut weep bitterly for him who goes away,

for he shall return no more

to see his native land.

Message to the Sons of Josiah

11 For thus says the Lord concerning Shallum the son of Josiah, king of Judah, who reigned instead of Josiah his father, and mwho went away from this place: He shall return here no more, 12 but min the place where they have carried him captive, there shall he die, and he shall never see this land again.

13  nWoe to him who builds his house by ounrighteousness,

and his upper rooms by injustice,

pwho makes his neighbor serve him for nothing

and does not give him his wages,

14  who says, I will build myself a great house

with spacious upper rooms,

who cuts out windows for it,

paneling it with cedar

and qpainting it with vermilion.

15  Do you think you are a king

because you compete in cedar?

Did not your father eat and drink

and rdo justice and righteousness?

sThen it was well with him.

16  tHe judged the cause of the poor and needy;

sthen it was well.

Is not this uto know me?

declares the Lord.

17  But you have eyes and heart

only for your dishonest gain,

vfor shedding innocent blood,

and for practicing oppression and violence.

18 Therefore thus says the Lord concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah:

wThey shall not lament for him, saying,

xAh, my brother! or Ah, sister!

They shall not lament for him, saying,

yAh, lord! or Ah, his majesty!

19  With the burial of a donkey zhe shall be buried,

dragged and dumped beyond the gates of Jerusalem.

20  Go up to Lebanon, and cry out,

and lift up your voice in Bashan;

cry out from aAbarim,

for all byour lovers are destroyed.

21  I spoke to you in your prosperity,

but you said, I will not listen.

cThis has been your way from dyour youth,

that you have not obeyed my voice.

22  eThe wind shall shepherd all your shepherds,

and byour lovers shall go into captivity;

fthen you will be ashamed and confounded

because of all your evil.

23  O inhabitant of gLebanon,

nested among the cedars,

how you will be pitied when pangs come upon you,

hpain as of a woman in labor!


Jeremiah 26

Jeremiah Threatened with Death

tIn the beginning of the reign of uJehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came from the Lord: Thus says the Lord: vStand in the court of the Lord’s house, and speak to all the cities of Judah that come to worship in the house of the Lord wall the words that I command you to speak to them; xdo not hold back a word. yIt may be they will listen, and every one turn from his evil way, zthat I may relent of the disaster that I intend to do to them abecause of their evil deeds. You shall say to them, Thus says the Lord: bIf you will not listen to me, to walk in my law that I have set before you, cand to listen to the words of my servants the prophets whom I send to you curgently, cthough you have not listened, then I will make this house dlike Shiloh, and I will make this city ea curse for all the nations of the earth.

fThe priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of the Lord. And when Jeremiah had finished speaking all that the Lord had commanded him to speak to all the people, then fthe priests and the prophets and all the people laid hold of him, saying, You shall die! Why have you prophesied in the name of the Lord, saying, This house shall be dlike Shiloh, and this city shall be desolate, gwithout inhabitant? And all the people gathered around Jeremiah in the house of the Lord.

10 When hthe officials of Judah heard these things, they came up from the king’s house to the house of the Lord and took their seat in the ientry of the New Gate of the house of the Lord. 11 Then fthe priests and the prophets said to the officials and to all the people, jThis man deserves the sentence of death, because he has prophesied against this city, as you have heard with your own ears.

12 Then Jeremiah spoke to all the officials and all the people, saying, The Lord sent me to prophesy against this house and this city all the words you have heard. 13 Now therefore kmend your ways and your deeds, land obey the voice of the Lord your God, zand the Lord will relent of the disaster that he has pronounced against you. 14 mBut as for me, behold, I am in your hands. Do with me as seems good and right to you. 15 Only know for certain that if you put me to death, nyou will bring innocent blood upon yourselves and upon this city and its inhabitants, for in truth the Lord sent me to you to speak all these words in your ears.

Jeremiah Spared from Death

16 oThen the officials and all the people said to the priests and the prophets, pThis man does not deserve the sentence of death, for he has spoken to us in the name of the Lord our God. 17 qAnd certain of rthe elders of the land arose and spoke to all the assembled people, saying, 18 Micah of Moresheth prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah, and said to all the people of Judah: Thus says the Lord of hosts,

sZion shall be plowed as a field;

Jerusalem shall become a heap of ruins,

and the mountain of the house a wooded height.

19 Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him to death? tDid he not fear the Lord and entreat the favor of the Lord, uand did not the Lord relent of the disaster that he had pronounced against them? vBut we are about to bring great disaster upon ourselves.

20 There was another man who prophesied in the name of the Lord, Uriah the son of Shemaiah from wKiriath-jearim. He prophesied against this city and against this land in words like those of Jeremiah. 21 And when xKing Jehoiakim, with all his warriors and all the officials, heard his words, the king sought to put him to death. But when Uriah heard of it, he was afraid and fled and escaped to Egypt. 22 Then xKing Jehoiakim sent to Egypt certain men, yElnathan the son of zAchbor and others with him, 23 and they took Uriah from Egypt and brought him to King Jehoiakim, awho struck him down with the sword and dumped his dead body into the burial place of the common people.

24 But the hand of bAhikam the son of Shaphan was with Jeremiah so that he was not given over to the people to be put to death.