| New King James Version | NET Bible |
| 1Now it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem and encamped against it; and they built a siege wall against it all around. | 1So King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came against Jerusalem with his whole army and set up camp outside it. They built siege ramps all around it. He arrived on the tenth day of the tenth month in the ninth year of Zedekiah's reign. |
| 2So the city was besieged until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. | 2The city remained under siege until King Zedekiah's eleventh year. |
| 3By the ninth day of the fourth month the famine had become so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land. | 3By the ninth day of the fourth month the famine in the city was so severe the residents had no food. |
| 4Then the city wall was broken through, and all the men of war fled at night by way of the gate between two walls, which was by the king’s garden, even though the Chaldeans were still encamped all around against the city. And the king went by way of the plain. | 4The enemy broke through the city walls, and all the soldiers tried to escape. They left the city during the night. They went through the gate between the two walls that is near the king's garden. (The Babylonians were all around the city.) Then they headed for the Jordan Valley. |
| 5But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king, and they overtook him in the plains of Jericho. All his army was scattered from him. | 5But the Babylonian army chased after the king. They caught up with him in the plains of Jericho, and his entire army deserted him. |
| 6So they took the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah, and they pronounced judgment on him. | 6They captured the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah, where he passed sentence on him. |
| 7Then they killed the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, put out the eyes of Zedekiah, bound him with bronze fetters, and took him to Babylon. | 7Zedekiah's sons were executed while Zedekiah was forced to watch. The king of Babylon then had Zedekiah's eyes put out, bound him in bronze chains, and carried him off to Babylon. |
| 8And in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month (which was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon), Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. | 8On the seventh day of the fifth month, in the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, Nebuzaradan, the captain of the royal guard who served the king of Babylon, arrived in Jerusalem. |
| 9He burned the house of the LORD and the king’s house; all the houses of Jerusalem, that is, all the houses of the great, he burned with fire. | 9He burned down the LORD's temple, the royal palace, and all the houses in Jerusalem, including every large house. |
| 10And all the army of the Chaldeans who were with the captain of the guard broke down the walls of Jerusalem all around. | 10The whole Babylonian army that came with the captain of the royal guard tore down the walls that surrounded Jerusalem. |
| 11Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive the rest of the people who remained in the city and the defectors who had deserted to the king of Babylon, with the rest of the multitude. | 11Nebuzaradan, the captain of the royal guard, deported the rest of the people who were left in the city, those who had deserted to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the craftsmen. |
| 12But the captain of the guard left some of the poor of the land as vinedressers and farmers. | 12But he left behind some of the poor of the land and gave them fields and vineyards. |
| 13The bronze pillars that were in the house of the LORD, and the carts and the bronze Sea that were in the house of the LORD, the Chaldeans broke in pieces, and carried their bronze to Babylon. | 13The Babylonians broke the two bronze pillars in the LORD's temple, as well as the movable stands and the big bronze basin called the "The Sea." They took the bronze to Babylon. |
| 14They also took away the pots, the shovels, the trimmers, the spoons, and all the bronze utensils with which the priests ministered. | 14They also took the pots, shovels, trimming shears, pans, and all the bronze utensils used by the priests. |
| 15The firepans and the basins, the things of solid gold and solid silver, the captain of the guard took away. | 15The captain of the royal guard took the golden and silver censers and basins. |
| 16The two pillars, one Sea, and the carts, which Solomon had made for the house of the LORD, the bronze of all these articles was beyond measure. | 16The bronze of the items that King Solomon made for the LORD's temple--including the two pillars, the big bronze basin called "The Sea," the twelve bronze bulls under "The Sea," and the movable stands--was too heavy to be weighed. |
| 17The height of one pillar was eighteen cubits, and the capital on it was of bronze. The height of the capital was three cubits, and the network and pomegranates all around the capital were all of bronze. The second pillar was the same, with a network. | 17Each of the pillars was about twenty-seven feet high. The bronze top of one pillar was about four and a half feet high and had bronze latticework and pomegranate shaped ornaments all around it. The second pillar with its latticework was like it. |
| 18And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the second priest, and the three doorkeepers. | 18The captain of the royal guard took Seraiah the chief priest and Zephaniah, the priest who was second in rank, and the three doorkeepers. |
| 19He also took out of the city an officer who had charge of the men of war, five men of the king’s close associates who were found in the city, the chief recruiting officer 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. | 19From the city he took a eunuch who was in charge of the soldiers, five of the king's advisers who were discovered in the city, an official army secretary who drafted citizens for military service, and sixty citizens from the people of the land who were discovered in the city. |
| 20So Nebuzaradan, captain of the guard, took these and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. | 20Nebuzaradan, captain of the royal guard, took them and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. |
| 21Then the king of Babylon struck them and put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath. Thus Judah was carried away captive from its own land. | 21The king of Babylon ordered them to be executed at Riblah in the territory of Hamath. So Judah was deported from its land. |
| 22Then he made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, governor over the people who remained in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had left. | 22Now King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, as governor over the people whom he allowed to remain in the land of Judah. |
| 23Now when all the captains of the armies, they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah governor, they came to Gedaliah at Mizpah—Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, Johanan the son of Careah, Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah the son of a Maachathite, they and their men. | 23All of the officers of the Judahite army and their troops heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah to govern. So they came to Gedaliah at Mizpah. The officers who came were Ishmael son of Nethaniah, Johanan son of Kareah, Seraiah son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah son of the Maacathite. |
| 24And Gedaliah took an oath before them and their men, and said to them, “Do not be afraid of the servants of the Chaldeans. Dwell in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with you.” | 24Gedaliah took an oath so as to give them and their troops some assurance of safety. He said, "You don't need to be afraid to submit to the Babylonian officials. Settle down in the land and submit to the king of Babylon. Then things will go well for you." |
| 25But it happened in the seventh month that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the royal family, came with ten men and struck and killed Gedaliah, the Jews, as well as the Chaldeans who were with him at Mizpah. | 25But in the seventh month Ishmael son of Nethaniah, son of Elishama, who was a member of the royal family, came with ten of his men and murdered Gedaliah, as well as the Judeans and Babylonians who were with him at Mizpah. |
| 26And all the people, small and great, and the captains of the armies, arose and went to Egypt; for they were afraid of the Chaldeans. | 26Then all the people, from the youngest to the oldest, as well as the army officers, left for Egypt, because they were afraid of what the Babylonians might do. |
| 27Now it came to pass in the thirty-seventh year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, that Evil-Merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, released Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison. | 27In the thirty-seventh year of the exile of King Jehoiachin of Judah, on the twenty-seventh day of the twelfth month, King Evil-Merodach of Babylon, in the first year of his reign, pardoned King Jehoiachin of Judah and released him from prison. |
| 28He spoke kindly to him, and gave him a more prominent seat than those of the kings who were with him in Babylon. | 28He spoke kindly to him and gave him a more prestigious position than the other kings who were with him in Babylon. |
| 29So Jehoiachin changed from his prison garments, and he ate bread regularly before the king all the days of his life. | 29Jehoiachin took off his prison clothes and ate daily in the king's presence for the rest of his life. |
| 30And as for his provisions, there was a regular ration given him by the king, a portion for each day, all the days of his life. | 30He was given daily provisions by the king for the rest of his life until the day he died. |
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