Jeremiah 39:1–10; 2 Chronicles 36:15–21
Nebuchadnezzar surrounded Jerusalem. The people were trapped, starving, and sick. Finally, the soldiers of Babylon broke through the wall. All of the treasures in the temple and the palaces were carried away.
Soldiers burned the temple and all of the houses, and ruined the wall of Jerusalem. The people who remained were made Nebuchadnezzar’s servants. The Babylonian king slaughtered Zedekiah’s sons before his eyes. He killed Judah’s princes and gouged out Zedekiah’s eyes. Judah’s last king was dragged off in chains to Babylon.
Jeremiah was freed and given the choice: Go to Babylon or stay in the land. Jeremiah chose to stay in the land God had promised to Abraham. But when the remnant of people chose to go to Egypt, Jeremiah went with them. Jeremiah is called the weeping prophet because he wept for the peoples’ sins.
King Nebuchadnezzar returned to Babylon with the treasures of Jerusalem. God’s people were his captives. Four hundred years had passed since Judah’s first king, Rehoboam. The city of David was blackened rubble. Solomon’s temple was a heap of ashes.
Questions: What happened to Judah’s last king? How many years did the kingdom of Judah exist?