The Destruction of Judah - The Books of 2 Chronicles, 2 Kings, and Jeremiah

In this Bible Story, we witness the brutal downfall of Judah. King Nebuchadnezzar, arms himself with the entire Chaldean army, and obliterates Judah and its defenses. God promises that when the time comes, he would rescue them. This story is inspired by 2 Chronicles 36 & 2 Kings 23:31-25:30. Go to BibleinaYear.com and learn the Bible in a Year.

Today's Bible verse is 2 Chronicles 36:23 from the King James Version.

Episode 157: Before the burning of the temple, King Nebuchadnezzar appointed Zedekiah, son of Josiah, as King in Judah. Zedekiah hated Nebuchadnezzar and sent for Jeremiah to pray for the deliverance of Judah. However, the word of God that came was not one of hope but of determination. The Chaldeans were coming to destroy Judah and this was from God. After giving this message, Jeremiah was taken by the guards, beaten, and thrown into prison.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Let us pray all the kingdoms of the earth. Hath
the Lord, God of Heaven given me, and he hath
charged me to build him and house in Jerusalem, which
is in Judea Second Chronicles thirty six twenty three. Heavenly Father,
in the midst of my most trying circumstances, and in

(00:23):
the moments where I feel like I'm being held captive
to my past mistakes, my heart will rejoice in the
words you've spoken over me to day through the Prophet Jeremiah.
In spite of what I see, I choose to declare
that you know every plan and purpose for my life.

(00:47):
I rejoice that in your great plan you desire to
give me hope and a future life and not death. Therefore,
like the words in today's reading, I will change the
environment I am in and hold steadfast to your ways

(01:08):
until the time of my deliverance, because you promised to
bring me out and set my feet on fertile soil,
soil ready to receive my seed of faith to unlock
the harvest of abundance that you have for me. In
Jesus's name, Amen, thank you for praying with us today.

(01:36):
Continue your time with God by listening to Today's Bible
story brought to you by Bible in a Year dot.

Speaker 2 (01:43):
Com the destruction of Judah. In our last story, we
learned of God speaking through the prophet Jeremiah. His words
have comfort, justice, and repentance began to truly affect the

(02:03):
hearts of Judah. However, the king planted seeds of doubt
and burned his words in the fire. Now we learn
about the destruction of Judah at the hands of Babylon.
The enormous nation rises up like a great beast to
completely destroy Judah and all its inhabitants. Captives are taken
like cattle back to Babylon, but not without a.

Speaker 3 (02:25):
Glimmer of hope for the future. Inspired by the books
of Second Chronicles, Second Kings, and Jeremiah.

Speaker 4 (02:35):
Hello, this is Jack Graham with today's episode of the
Bible in a Year. In our last episode, we heard
how Jeremiah's words often fell on deaf ears, and how
the priest of Judah were some of the biggest opponents,
even trying to put him the prophet, to death. But
Jeremiah was not afraid, and along with his scribe bar Ute,
Jeremiah recorded God's warnings on a scroll to speak truth

(02:59):
to his generation and generations to come. Sparks of revival
flickered in the land, but the harshness and hardhearted nature
of King Johoicam kept the people from truly turning back
to God. Today we'll hear how the enemy from the north,
the great nation of Babylon, finally descends upon Judah to
enact God's judgment on his people. God's people are led

(03:22):
away as slaves amid destruction and devastation of their home.
But this is not a story without hope, because we
know that God always has a plan and a purpose
for his own and that God is faithful. Let's listen
now to God's word.

Speaker 3 (03:39):
Josiah's time as king was over. The battlefield claimed him,
and the reforming king was sent to the dust. His son,
Jehoah has took his place as king. He was a
young man, only twenty three years old. Although he possessed
similar traits as his father, he would be unable to
rule rightly in Judah, for arise threat emerged from the south.

(04:02):
Egypt had risen up against Judah with chariots of iron.
The king of Egypt, Neko, met jehoahas on the battlefield
and claimed him. He captured the king and drug him
back to Egypt as captive. The king desired to dominate Judah,
but not rule it, so he appointed Jehoah as his
younger brother as king in his place. Iliakim was also

(04:24):
the son of Josiah, but possessed none of his noble qualities.
He was a quiet and brooding man. He was a
wicked and self serving king. Pharaoh changed his name to
Jehora Kim. Egypt was cruel and dominant. However, it was
but a fish compared to the shark that lurked in
the distance. The great beast Babylon was growing in the north.

(04:48):
Its mighty army was vast, unlike any in history. Babylon
was the great boiling point from the north that Jeremiah
had once seen, And like a shark that sens his blood,
Babylon unapproached. When Judah was at its most vulnerable, King
Jehoa Kim woke in the middle of the night to screaming.
He looked out his window to see pillars of fire

(05:09):
lighting up the horizon. The city of Jerusalem was burning.
Women and children rushed out of burning buildings as men
lifted their swords to attack the incoming Babylonians. Jehoa Kim
watched as every man was slaughtered in the streets. Panicked,
Jehoakim gathered his things to escape out the back of
the palace. As he went to open his door, it

(05:30):
burst open with force. Jehoa Kim fell flat on his
back and looked up to see him. He was tall
and dripping with power. His armored chest was broad and
puffed outward. His salt and pepper beard was dirtied from
ash and blood. His eyes were dark and glaring. Jehoa
Kim looked up in terror at the infamous King Nebuconesse.

(05:53):
The Babylonian king said nothing. He sauntered towards the half
naked King of Judah and leaned down picked him up
with ease, as if he was lifting a cat by
its neck fur. Johoakim trembled and begged for mercy. Neber
Canzer gave an impassive stare. His eyes were pits of
unrepentant evil. There would be no mercy dispensed from him.

(06:16):
He threw the small king onto the ground and had
his men bind him in chains. Johoakim said nothing. He
knew that this would be the end of his life.
It would be the end of Judah itself. King Neberkonezzar
and his army scoured the city of Jerusalem for wealth.
They went from house to house, seizing any and all
gold and silver. They opened up the house of the

(06:39):
Lord and carried away all its vessels and precious items.
After stripping Judah naked, never Canza left. He allowed for
Johoakim's son, jehoah Kin, to reign in his father's place.
Never Canezza needed Judah to remain a nation as a
strategic edge over Egypt and Assyria. Jehoa Kin was evil

(07:00):
like his brother and a willing servant of Neberconeszer. However,
his rule was short lived. After only three months and
ten days, he was summoned to Babylon and kept there
for the rest of his days. After jehoah Kin was
taken away, Neberconeza appointed his uncle Zedekiah as king. Zedekiah
was a young man, only twenty one years old. He

(07:23):
was filled with pride and patriotism. He ignored the cause
of Jeremiah to repent and instead ward against God and
the kingdom of Babylon. Vainly, he rebelled against King Neberconzzer,
He provoked him to anger. This would prove to be
more fuel for the King of Babylon to tighten his
grip on Judah. The priests and leaders of Judah followed

(07:45):
in Zedekiah's footsteps. They rebelled against God and turned to
the idols of ancient cultures. They defiled the house of
the Lord and sent Judah's leaders into madness. Yet the
Lord continued to send his message of compassion. He used
his profits to warn them of their ways. He wanted
them to turn to him and cry out to him,

(08:06):
as the slaves in Egypt once did. If they had
just humbled themselves and asked, he would have answered. Instead,
they dug their own graves by warring against Babylon and
turning from God. The image of the Potter burned in
Jeremiah's mind as he watched his nation break. There would
be hope soon, but now was the time for destruction.

(08:28):
The Chaldeans were the next nation to rise up against
Judah under the banner of Babylon. The great army stormed
Jerusalem like a great beast. The walls of Jerusalem began
to crack under the force of Chaldean battering rams. Balls
of fire were sent flying through the air, crashing into hopes.
The Chaldeans broke down the walls of Jerusalem. The crumbling

(08:50):
stone shook the earth and signaled for the entire city
to run. Panic filled the streets. Chaldean soldiers showed no mercy.
Women were to the floor and rate men's heads were
thrown onto pikes. Children were chained up and sent into slavery.
The city charred as the screams of men and women
rose up with the smoke. There in the middle of

(09:12):
the city was the Temple of God. The cedar beams
and golden walls were turning to black as the fire
consumed it. All its altars turned to ash, and all
hope faded into oblivion. The surviving Judeans were captured and chained.
With the burning city of Jerusalem at their backs, they
marched forward to Babylon. God's people were carted off like cattle,

(09:35):
once again slaves. The heart of God ached for his
people to cry out to him. He had Jeremiah send
a word to them, a word of hope and clarity.
My children, God said, you will be taken captive by Babylon.
But this is not the end of you. Go there
and thrive, plant gardens, build homes and start families. Be

(09:58):
there and affect the culture for good. When seventy years
are completed, I will come to you. I will free
you and bring you back. The words filled the captives'
hearts with both joy and sorrow. I have great plans
for you, plans for good and not evil. I will
give you a future and a hope. When you call

(10:19):
upon me, I will be there when you seek me.
I will restore your soul. I will set you free.
So the people of Judah were brought to Babylon, where
they would be captives for seventy years.

Speaker 4 (10:36):
As we begin today's reading, Judah has fallen into the
hands of Egypt, but rather than take Judah into captivity,
Egypt only controls the nation, appointing one of Josiah's son, Ilaiacum,
as king. Though he was a king with no real
power and lacking the integrity of his father. The king
of Egypt even made him change his name to Jehokam.

(10:59):
Judah was experiencing hardship and suffering, but nothing like what
was coming. The Lord had shown Jeremiah the prophet, the
vision of a pot boiling with water facing north. It
represented Babylon, the giant nation had risen to greater power
than any other before. Josiah had foolishly allowed the Babylonians

(11:19):
into Judah to show off the prosperity of a small nation,
and thus set in motion a conquest that would bring
about God's punishment for the disobedience and unfaithfulness of his people.
The destruction of Judah did not happen all at once.
It began with a Babylonian invasion of Jerusalem while Jehoicam
was ruler. King Nebuconazar easily overtook the city and sent

(11:42):
Jehoicam into captivity to Babylon. The Babylonians began to pillage
everything of value from Judah. The treasures Josiah had so
willingly shown them were taken and sent back to Babylon,
and so began a cycle of oppression. As Neviconazar and
his arms picked Jerusalem apart, taking wealth of any kind,

(12:03):
even from the House of God, the Babylonians would appoint
a Jewish king who did not believe in God. And yet,
even as Judah was being conquered and ruled by a
pagan nation, God continued calling his people back to himself
through prophets like Jeremiah. It was not God's desire to
punish his people permanently, but to cause them and to

(12:26):
call them back to Him that they would cry out
for forgiveness, deliverance, and salvation. The Babylonians were God's rod
of iron to chastise his people. Sadly, they turned the
other way, falling back again into idle worship forgetting. Their
only hope for rescue was God Almighty. Next came the

(12:49):
Chaldeans who served Babylon. They invaded Jerusalem and tore down
her waltz, death, destruction, violation, Everything imaginable you can think
of happened to the people of Judah. It was a
terrible and tragic time for the people who refused to
call out to God. However, when all seemed lost, God

(13:10):
sent a word of hope and a promise and a
letter from Jeremiah. He had not abandoned his plan to
bless these people and use them to bless the world.
God made a promise to Israel, and he would keep
it even in the midst of captivity. Israel was to
be a force for good. In Jeremiah twenty nine to seven,
God says, but seek the welfare of the city where

(13:33):
I have sent you into exile, and pray to the
Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you also
will find welfare. This is such a powerful and important lesson.
You may actually find yourself far from God right now,
or God may seem far away. You may be under

(13:53):
the hand of judgment or discipline in your life. Maybe
some of the dreams that you had for your life
and your future have fallen apart. But God will not
give up on you. God still loves you. It has
a plan for your life, and that plan is to
be a light even in the darkness. Jesus would one
day give a command which said, bless those who cursed you,

(14:16):
and pray for those who abuse you. Even in the
toughest and the most terrible of circumstances, God is faithful
to his people. For seventy years, Judah was held captive
in Bablon, but God's plan to rescue them remained, as
did his faithfulness to all of his people. Dear God,
we are reminded in the reading today that no matter

(14:39):
our circumstances, where we find ourselves, that You are always
seeking us. Give us hearing ears and hearing hearts to
receive and respond to your correction, turning to you in
repentance and faith. Thank you for the forgiveness that we
have in Christ, for the Cross and the Resurrection, the
good news that Say leaves us all who trust in Him.

(15:02):
Thank you for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast.
I'm pastor Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. Let me encourage
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(15:24):
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