2 Kings 25 – NIV & CCBT

New International Version

2 Kings 25:1-30

1So in the ninth year of Zedekiah’s reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his whole army. He encamped outside the city and built siege works all around it. 2The city was kept under siege until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah.

3By the ninth day of the fourth25:3 Probable reading of the original Hebrew text (see Jer. 52:6); Masoretic Text does not have fourth. month the famine in the city had become so severe that there was no food for the people to eat. 4Then the city wall was broken through, and the whole army fled at night through the gate between the two walls near the king’s garden, though the Babylonians25:4 Or Chaldeans; also in verses 13, 25 and 26 were surrounding the city. They fled toward the Arabah,25:4 Or the Jordan Valley 5but the Babylonian25:5 Or Chaldean; also in verses 10 and 24 army pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho. All his soldiers were separated from him and scattered, 6and he was captured.

He was taken to the king of Babylon at Riblah, where sentence was pronounced on him. 7They killed the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes. Then they put out his eyes, bound him with bronze shackles and took him to Babylon.

8On the seventh day of the fifth month, in the nineteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan commander of the imperial guard, an official of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. 9He set fire to the temple of the Lord, the royal palace and all the houses of Jerusalem. Every important building he burned down. 10The whole Babylonian army under the commander of the imperial guard broke down the walls around Jerusalem. 11Nebuzaradan the commander of the guard carried into exile the people who remained in the city, along with the rest of the populace and those who had deserted to the king of Babylon. 12But the commander left behind some of the poorest people of the land to work the vineyards and fields.

13The Babylonians broke up the bronze pillars, the movable stands and the bronze Sea that were at the temple of the Lord and they carried the bronze to Babylon. 14They also took away the pots, shovels, wick trimmers, dishes and all the bronze articles used in the temple service. 15The commander of the imperial guard took away the censers and sprinkling bowls—all that were made of pure gold or silver.

16The bronze from the two pillars, the Sea and the movable stands, which Solomon had made for the temple of the Lord, was more than could be weighed. 17Each pillar was eighteen cubits25:17 That is, about 27 feet or about 8.1 meters high. The bronze capital on top of one pillar was three cubits25:17 That is, about 4 1/2 feet or about 1.4 meters high and was decorated with a network and pomegranates of bronze all around. The other pillar, with its network, was similar.

18The commander of the guard took as prisoners Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the priest next in rank and the three doorkeepers. 19Of those still in the city, he took the officer in charge of the fighting men, and five royal advisers. He also took the secretary who was chief officer in charge of conscripting the people of the land and sixty of the conscripts who were found in the city. 20Nebuzaradan the commander took them all and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. 21There at Riblah, in the land of Hamath, the king had them executed.

So Judah went into captivity, away from her land.

22Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, to be over the people he had left behind in Judah. 23When all the army officers and their men heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah as governor, they came to Gedaliah at Mizpah—Ishmael son of Nethaniah, Johanan son of Kareah, Seraiah son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, Jaazaniah the son of the Maakathite, and their men. 24Gedaliah took an oath to reassure them and their men. “Do not be afraid of the Babylonian officials,” he said. “Settle down in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it will go well with you.”

25In the seventh month, however, Ishmael son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, who was of royal blood, came with ten men and assassinated Gedaliah and also the men of Judah and the Babylonians who were with him at Mizpah. 26At this, all the people from the least to the greatest, together with the army officers, fled to Egypt for fear of the Babylonians.

Jehoiachin Released

27In the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the year Awel-Marduk became king of Babylon, he released Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison. He did this on the twenty-seventh day of the twelfth month. 28He spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat of honor higher than those of the other kings who were with him in Babylon. 29So Jehoiachin put aside his prison clothes and for the rest of his life ate regularly at the king’s table. 30Day by day the king gave Jehoiachin a regular allowance as long as he lived.

Chinese Contemporary Bible (Traditional)

列王紀下 25:1-30

1西底迦執政第九年十月十日,巴比倫尼布甲尼撒率領全軍攻打耶路撒冷,在城外安營,修築圍城的高臺。 2城一直被圍困到西底迦執政第十一年。 3那年四月九日,城裡饑荒非常嚴重,百姓無糧可吃。 4城被攻破,城裡的所有士兵便在夜間穿過御花園,從兩城牆中間的門逃往亞拉巴。當時迦勒底人仍四面包圍著城。 5迦勒底軍隊追趕西底迦,在耶利哥平原追上了他,他的軍隊都四散而逃。 6迦勒底人擒住西底迦,把他押到利比拉巴比倫王,在那裡審判他。 7巴比倫王在西底迦面前殺了他的眾子,又剜去他的雙眼,把他用銅鏈鎖著押往巴比倫

聖殿被毀

8巴比倫尼布甲尼撒執政第十九年五月七日,他的臣僕——護衛長尼布撒拉旦來到耶路撒冷9放火焚燒耶和華的殿、王宮及城內所有的房屋。他燒毀了所有重要建築。 10他率領的迦勒底軍隊拆毀了耶路撒冷四圍的城牆。 11護衛長尼布撒拉旦擄去城裡剩下的百姓、投降巴比倫王的人以及其他人, 12只留下一些最貧窮的人,讓他們照料葡萄園、耕種田地。

13迦勒底人打碎耶和華殿中的銅柱、盆座和銅海,把銅運往巴比倫14並帶走了盆、鏟、蠟剪、碟子及一切獻祭用的銅器。 15護衛長還帶走了火鼎、碗等一切金銀器具。

16所羅門為耶和華的殿所造的兩根銅柱、一個銅海和一些盆座,用的銅多得無法計算。 17銅柱高八米,柱頂有柱冠,高一點三五米。柱冠周圍裝飾著銅網和銅石榴。兩根柱子都一樣。

18護衛長尼布撒拉旦擄走祭司長西萊雅、副祭司長西番亞和三名殿門守衛, 19還從城中拿住一名統管士兵的將領、王的五個親信、一名負責招兵的書記和六十名平民。 20護衛長尼布撒拉旦把他們帶到利比拉去見巴比倫王, 21巴比倫王在那裡處死了他們。猶大人就這樣被擄去,離開了家園。

基大利做猶大省長

22巴比倫尼布甲尼撒任命基大利治理猶大的餘民。基大利沙番的孫子、亞希甘的兒子。 23猶大眾將領和他們的下屬聽到巴比倫王委任基大利治理猶大的消息後,便都到米斯巴基大利。他們是尼探雅的兒子以實瑪利加利亞的兒子約哈難尼陀法單戶篾的兒子西萊雅瑪迦雅撒尼亞24基大利向他們和他們的下屬發誓,說:「你們不用害怕那些迦勒底官員。你們住在這地方服侍巴比倫王,就會平安無事。」 25七月,王室後裔以利沙瑪的孫子、尼探雅的兒子以實瑪利帶著十個人在米斯巴刺殺了基大利以及跟他一起的猶大人和迦勒底人。 26因為害怕迦勒底人報復,猶大眾人不論貴賤,都和眾將領一起逃往埃及

約雅斤獲釋

27巴比倫以未·米羅達在他執政的元年十二月二十七日,即猶大約雅斤被擄後第三十七年,施恩釋放了約雅斤28並好言相待,使他的地位高過被擄到巴比倫的其他各王。 29約雅斤脫去了囚衣,終生與巴比倫王一起吃飯。 30在他有生之年,巴比倫王供應他每天的需用。