II Chronicles 36:11-14- Zedekiah was one and twenty years old when he began to reign, and reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD his God, and humbled not himself before Jeremiah the prophet speaking from the mouth of the LORD. And he also rebelled against king Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God: but he stiffened his neck, and hardened his heart from turning unto the LORD God of Israel. Moreover all the chief of the priests, and the people, transgressed very much after all the abominations of the heathen; and polluted the house of the LORD which he had hallowed in Jerusalem.
The prophet Jeremiah preached during Zedekiah's reign as well. He told the king what the Lord had to say. Zedekiah would listen to Jeremiah, but he wouldn't obey what God said.
The king of Babylon had made Zedekiah promise to follow his rule, but Zedekiah was rebellious at heart to God and Nebuchadnezzar. So, Nebuchadnezzar brought war to Jerusalem.
II Kings 25:1-3- And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he, and all his host, against Jerusalem, and pitched against it; and they built forts against it round about. And the city was besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah. And on the ninth day of the fourth month the famine prevailed in the city, and there was no bread for the people of the land.
Jeremiah knew what was coming and he wanted to get out of that wicked city!
Jeremiah 37:12-14- Then Jeremiah went forth out of Jerusalem to go into the land of Benjamin, to separate himself thence in the midst of the people. And when he was in the gate of Benjamin, a captain of the ward was there, whose name was Irijah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Hananiah; and he took Jeremiah the prophet, saying, Thou fallest away to the Chaldeans. Then said Jeremiah, It is false; I fall not away to the Chaldeans. But he hearkened not to him: so Irijah took Jeremiah, and brought him to the princes.
As Jeremiah was trying to leave, one of the men in the gate of the city accused him of being a traitor and dragged him before the leaders of the city. Though the king was kind to Jeremiah, there were other leaders in his kingdom which were not.
Jeremiah 38:6- Then took they Jeremiah, and cast him into the dungeon of Malchiah the son of Hammelech, that was in the court of the prison: and they let down Jeremiah with cords. And in the dungeon there was no water, but mire: so Jeremiah sunk in the mire.
Jeremiah was thrown into a deep pit full of nasty muck which he sank down in and got stuck. There was no water down there for him to drink.
But, God hadn't forgotten about Jeremiah.
Jeremiah 38:7-10- Now when Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, one of the eunuchs which was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon; the king then sitting in the gate of Benjamin; Ebedmelech went forth out of the king's house, and spake to the king, saying, My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon; and he is like to die for hunger in the place where he is: for there is no more bread in the city. Then the king commanded Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, saying, Take from hence thirty men with thee, and take up Jeremiah the prophet out of the dungeon, before he die.
Things had gotten really bad in Jerusalem. There was no more bread. Food was very scarce. But, once the king heard what they had done to Jeremiah, he sent one of the eunuchs who liked Jeremiah to pull him out of the muck.
Jeremiah 38:13- So they drew up Jeremiah with cords, and took him up out of the dungeon: and Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison.
Though the king was kind enough to get Jeremiah out of the pit, he left him in the prison. Perhaps he feared the other leaders in his city. Or maybe, he wanted to keep Jeremiah where he could easily find him.
Jeremiah 37:16-17- When Jeremiah was entered into the dungeon, and into the cabins, and Jeremiah had remained there many days; Then Zedekiah the king sent, and took him out: and the king asked him secretly in his house, and said, Is there any word from the LORD? And Jeremiah said, There is: for, said he, thou shalt be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon.
Zedekiah kept going back to Jeremiah to see if the Word of the Lord had changed. I guess he kept hoping that God would change his mind, but he didn't bother to humble himself or ask for God's mercy.
Jeremiah 37:21- Then Zedekiah the king commanded that they should commit Jeremiah into the court of the prison, and that they should give him daily a piece of bread out of the bakers' street, until all the bread in the city were spent. Thus Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison.
The king made sure that Jeremiah was fed and taken care of. The leaders of the city weren't so happy with Jeremiah. They came to him to see if the king was turning. Zedekiah knew they would do this, so he told Jeremiah what to say.
Jeremiah 38:24-28- Then said Zedekiah unto Jeremiah, Let no man know of these words, and thou shalt not die. But if the princes hear that I have talked with thee, and they come unto thee, and say unto thee, Declare unto us now what thou hast said unto the king, hide it not from us, and we will not put thee to death; also what the king said unto thee: Then thou shalt say unto them, I presented my supplication before the king, that he would not cause me to return to Jonathan's house, to die there. Then came all the princes unto Jeremiah, and asked him: and he told them according to all these words that the king had commanded. So they left off speaking with him; for the matter was not perceived. So Jeremiah abode in the court of the prison until the day that Jerusalem was taken: and he was there when Jerusalem was taken.
Poor Jeremiah! He was only doing what the Lord had told him to do! But these people were so evil they didn't want to hear the truth. And, they were going to punish anyone who spoke it.
Jeremiah 21:3-5- Then said Jeremiah unto them, Thus shall ye say to Zedekiah: Thus saith the LORD God of Israel; Behold, I will turn back the weapons of war that are in your hands, wherewith ye fight against the king of Babylon, and against the Chaldeans, which besiege you without the walls, and I will assemble them into the midst of this city. And I myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and with a strong arm, even in anger, and in fury, and in great wrath.
God was tired of it all. He had enough! God, Himself, was going to fight against Jerusalem!
Jeremiah 52:7-8- Then the city was broken up, and all the men of war fled, and went forth out of the city by night by the way of the gate between the two walls, which was by the king's garden; (now the Chaldeans were by the city round about:) and they went by the way of the plain. But the army of the Chaldeans pursued after the king, and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho; and all his army was scattered from him.
The king tried to flee away, but God wasn't going to let him escape. He was going to punish Zedekiah for knowing His will and choosing to ignore it!
Jeremiah 52:9-11- Then they took the king, and carried him up unto the king of Babylon to Riblah in the land of Hamath; where he gave judgment upon him. And the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes: he slew also all the princes of Judah in Riblah. Then he put out the eyes of Zedekiah; and the king of Babylon bound him in chains, and carried him to Babylon, and put him in prison till the day of his death.
For his rebellion against the king of Babylon, his sons were killed and he was blinded. Zedekiah, now blind and alone, was thrown into a Babylonian prison and left there to die.
Jeremiah 52:26-27- So Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took them, and brought them to the king of Babylon to Riblah. And the king of Babylon smote them, and put them to death in Riblah in the land of Hamath. Thus Judah was carried away captive out of his own land.
God also punished the evil leaders that had thrown Jeremiah into prison! Nebuchanezzar killed them, too.
But, God wasn't done with the people of Judah!
Jeremiah 52:12-13- Now in the fifth month, in the tenth day of the month, which was the nineteenth year of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, came Nebuzaradan, captain of the guard, which served the king of Babylon, into Jerusalem, And burned the house of the LORD, and the king's house; and all the houses of Jerusalem, and all the houses of the great men, burned he with fire: And all the army of the Chaldeans, that were with the captain of the guard, brake down all the walls of Jerusalem round about.
God allowed the Babylonian army to destroy the city, Solomon's palace, and the temple of the Lord.
Then, the king of Babylon assigned a Governor to watch over the people who were left in the land.
II Kings 25:22, 25-26 - And as for the people that remained in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had left, even over them he made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, ruler. But it came to pass in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the seed royal, came, and ten men with him, and smote Gedaliah, that he died, and the Jews and the Chaldees that were with him at Mizpah. And all the people, both small and great, and the captains of the armies, arose, and came to Egypt: for they were afraid of the Chaldees.
Rebel groups rose up and killed the governor that was placed in charge of the remnant. The people that were left feared what Nebuchadnezzar would do. They thought they could run away, and they were going to drag poor Jeremiah with them! They fled to Egypt, but they couldn't flee from the presence of the Lord!
Jeremiah 44:11-12- Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will set my face against you for evil, and to cut off all Judah. And I will take the remnant of Judah, that have set their faces to go into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, and they shall all be consumed, and fall in the land of Egypt; they shall even be consumed by the sword and by the famine: they shall die, from the least even unto the greatest, by the sword and by the famine: and they shall be an execration,an an astonishment, and a curse, and a reproach.
God was going to send punishment to them in Egypt, and they would die in that country.
The people who hadn't been killed in Jerusalem, were taken as captives to the land of Persia.
II Chronicles 36:20-21- And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon; where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia: To fulfil the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath, to fulfil threescore and ten years.
The Jews would stay in captivity for 70 years, like the prophet Jeremiah had foretold.
