Fall and Captivity of Judah

1 ^uAnd in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, ^vNebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came with all his army against Jerusalem and laid siege to it. ^wAnd they built siegeworks all around it. 2 So the city was besieged till the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. 3 On the ninth day of the fourth month ^xthe famine was so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land. 4 Then 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 ^ythe king’s garden, and ^zthe Chaldeans were around the city. And they went in the direction of the ^aArabah. 5 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho, and all his army was scattered from him. 6 Then they captured the king ^band brought him up to the king of Babylon at ^cRiblah, and they passed sentence on him. 7 They slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, ^dand put out the eyes of Zedekiah and bound him in chains and took him to Babylon.

8 ^eIn the fifth month, on ^fthe 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. 9 ^gAnd he burned the house of the Lord ^hand the king’s house and all the houses of Jerusalem; every great house he burned down. 10 And all the army of the Chaldeans, who were with the captain of the guard, ⁱbroke down the walls around Jerusalem. 11 ^jAnd 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. 12 But the captain of the guard left ^ksome of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and plowmen.

13 ^lAnd the pillars ^mof bronze that were in the house of the Lord, and ⁿthe stands and ^othe bronze sea that were in the house of the Lord, the Chaldeans broke in pieces and carried the bronze to Babylon. 14 ^pAnd 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, 15 the 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. 16 As for the two pillars, the one sea, and the stands that Solomon had made for the house of the Lord, ^qthe bronze of all these vessels was beyond weight. 17 ^rThe height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits,¹ 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.

18 ^sAnd the captain of the guard took ^tSeraiah the chief priest and ^uZephaniah the second priest and the three keepers of the threshold; 19 and from the city he took an officer who had been in command of the men of war, and ^vfive 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. 20 And Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took them and brought them to the king of Babylon at ^wRiblah. 21 And the king of Babylon struck them down and put them to death at ^wRiblah in the land of Hamath. ^xSo Judah was taken into exile out of its land.

Gedaliah Made Governor of Judah

22 And over the people who remained in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had left, he appointed ^yGedaliah the son of ^zAhikam, son of Shaphan, governor. 23 ^aNow 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 ^bMizpah, 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. 24 And 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.” 25 ^cBut in the seventh month, ^dIshmael 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. 26 ^eThen 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.

Jehoiachin Released from Prison

27 ^fAnd in the thirty-seventh year of ^gthe 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 ^hfreed² Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison. 28 And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat above the seats of the kings who were with him in Babylon. 29 So Jehoiachin put off his prison garments. And every day of his life ⁱhe dined regularly at the king’s table, 30 and for his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king, according to his daily needs, as long as he lived.

The Priestly Order of Melchizedek

1 For this ^qMelchizedek, king of ^rSalem, priest of ^sthe Most High God, met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2 and to him Abraham apportioned a tenth part of everything. He is first, by translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, that is, king of peace. 3 He is without father or mother ^tor genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God he continues a priest forever.

4 See how great this man was to whom Abraham ^uthe patriarch gave a tenth of the spoils! 5 And ^vthose descendants of Levi who receive the priestly office have a commandment in the law to take tithes from the people, that is, from their brothers,¹ though these also are descended from Abraham. 6 But this man ^wwho does not have his descent from them received tithes from Abraham and blessed ^xhim who had the promises. 7 It is beyond dispute that the inferior is blessed by the superior. 8 In the one case tithes are received by mortal men, but in the other case, by one ^yof whom it is testified that ^zhe lives. 9 One might even say that Levi himself, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, 10 for he was still in the loins of his ancestor when Melchizedek met him.

Jesus Compared to Melchizedek

11 ^aNow if perfection had been attainable through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need would there have been for another priest to arise after the order of Melchizedek, rather than one named after the order of Aaron? 12 For when there is a change in the priesthood, there is necessarily a change in the law as well. 13 For the one of whom these things are spoken belonged to another tribe, from which no one has ever served at the altar. 14 For it is evident that our Lord was descended ^bfrom Judah, and in connection with that tribe Moses said nothing about priests.

15 This becomes even more evident when another priest arises in the likeness of Melchizedek, 16 who has become a priest, not on the basis of a legal requirement concerning bodily descent, but by the power of an indestructible life. 17 For it is witnessed of him,

18 For on the one hand, a former commandment is set aside ^dbecause of its weakness and uselessness 19 (for ^ethe law made nothing perfect); but on the other hand, ^fa better hope is introduced, through which ^gwe draw near to God.

20 And it was not without an oath. For those who formerly became priests were made such without an oath, 21 but this one was made a priest with an oath by the one who said to him:

22 This makes Jesus the guarantor of ⁱa better covenant.

23 The former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, 24 but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues ^jforever. 25 Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost^{2 k}those who draw near to God ^lthrough him, since he always lives ^mto make intercession for them.

26 For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, ⁿholy, innocent, unstained, ^oseparated from sinners, and ^pexalted above the heavens. 27 He has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices daily, ^qfirst for his own sins and then for those of the people, since he did this ^ronce for all when he offered up himself. 28 For the law appoints men ^sin their weakness as high priests, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a Son who has been made ^tperfect forever.

1 The words of Amos, who was among the ^ashepherds¹ of ^bTekoa, which he saw concerning Israel ^cin the days of ^dUzziah king of Judah and in the days of ^eJeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, two years² before ^fthe earthquake.

Judgment on Israel’s Neighbors

2 And he said:

3 Thus says the Lord:

6 Thus says the Lord:

9 Thus says the Lord:

11 Thus says the Lord:

13 Thus says the Lord:

My Rock and My Fortress

Of David.