Sunday Sermonette: Getting it over with

The last chapter of Chronicles collapses the story told in the last three chapters of Kings. It's pretty much the same story, but the Chronicler seems anxious to get it over with. Just to recap, Kings was originally compiled during the reign of Josiah, but the story of the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple was added later, presumably during the Babylonian exile. This doesn't add anything. It pretty much ignores the destruction of the northern kingdom, which doesn't interest the Chronicler. 

 

Although the writers of both books ascribe the downfall of the Hebrew kingdoms to apostasy and Yahweh's displeasure, the historical reality is that the tiny kingdoms of Israel and Judah got caught between warring empires. After repelling the Assyrians, they first become a tributary of Egypt, and then of Babylon. Pharaoh is content to install a puppet king, but Nebuchadnezzar's philosophy of empire is to eliminate the local polity and culture. He loots and destroys the Temple, and carries off the royal household and literate priesthood, leaving a viceroy over the decapitated state. Then Cyrus of Persia conquers Babylon. He has a different philosophy of empire, in which vassal states are granted religious and cultural freedom and home rule, so he sends the captives back to Jerusalem and allows them to rebuild the Temple and their traditions.Yes, this really happened. It is because of the policy of Cyrus "the Great" that Judaism, Christianity and Islam exist today. Just something to think about.

36 ¹ And the people of the land took Jehoahaz son of Josiah and made him king in Jerusalem in place of his father.

Jehoahaz King of Judah

² Jehoahaz^[a] was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. ³ The king of Egypt dethroned him in Jerusalem and imposed on Judah a levy of a hundred talents^[b] of silver and a talent^[c] of gold. ⁴ The king of Egypt made Eliakim, a brother of Jehoahaz, king over Judah and Jerusalem and changed Eliakim’s name to Jehoiakim. But Necho took Eliakim’s brother Jehoahaz and carried him off to Egypt.

Jehoiakim King of Judah

⁵ Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. He did evil in the eyes of the Lord his God. ⁶ Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon attacked him and bound him with bronze shackles to take him to Babylon. ⁷ Nebuchadnezzar also took to Babylon articles from the temple of the Lord and put them in his temple^[d] there.

⁸ The other events of Jehoiakim’s reign, the detestable things he did and all that was found against him, are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah. And Jehoiachin his son succeeded him as king.

Jehoiachin King of Judah

⁹ Jehoiachin was eighteen^[e] years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months and ten days. He did evil in the eyes of the Lord. ¹⁰ In the spring, King Nebuchadnezzar sent for him and brought him to Babylon, together with articles of value from the temple of the Lord, and he made Jehoiachin’s uncle,^[f] Zedekiah, king over Judah and Jerusalem.

Zedekiah King of Judah

¹¹ Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. ¹² He did evil in the eyes of the Lord his God and did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet, who spoke the word of the Lord. ¹³ He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him take an oath in God’s name. He became stiff-necked and hardened his heart and would not turn to the Lord, the God of Israel. ¹⁴ Furthermore, all the leaders of the priests and the people became more and more unfaithful, following all the detestable practices of the nations and defiling the temple of the Lord, which he had consecrated in Jerusalem.

The Fall of Jerusalem

¹⁵ The Lord, the God of their ancestors, sent word to them through his messengers again and again, because he had pity on his people and on his dwelling place. ¹⁶ But they mocked God’s messengers, despised his words and scoffed at his prophets until the wrath of the Lord was aroused against his people and there was no remedy. ¹⁷ He brought up against them the king of the Babylonians,^[g] who killed their young men with the sword in the sanctuary, and did not spare young men or young women, the elderly or the infirm. God gave them all into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar. ¹⁸ He carried to Babylon all the articles from the temple of God, both large and small, and the treasures of the Lord’s temple and the treasures of the king and his officials. ¹⁹ They set fire to God’s temple and broke down the wall of Jerusalem; they burned all the palaces and destroyed everything of value there.

²⁰ He carried into exile to Babylon the remnant, who escaped from the sword, and they became servants to him and his successors until the kingdom of Persia came to power. ²¹ The land enjoyed its sabbath rests; all the time of its desolation it rested, until the seventy years were completed in fulfillment of the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah.

²² In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing:

²³ “This is what Cyrus king of Persia says:

“‘The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up, and may the Lord their God be with them.’”

Footnotes

1. 2 Chronicles 36:2 Hebrew Joahaz, a variant of Jehoahaz; also in verse 4
2. 2 Chronicles 36:3 That is, about 3 3/4 tons or about 3.4 metric tons
3. 2 Chronicles 36:3 That is, about 75 pounds or about 34 kilograms
4. 2 Chronicles 36:7 Or palace
5. 2 Chronicles 36:9 One Hebrew manuscript, some Septuagint manuscripts and Syriac (see also 2 Kings 24:8); most Hebrew manuscripts eight
6. 2 Chronicles 36:10 Hebrew brother, that is, relative (see 2 Kings 24:17)
7. 2 Chronicles 36:17 Or Chaldeans