Read 2 Kings 24
24 During Jehoiakim’s reign, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon invaded the land, and Jehoiakim became his vassal for three years. But then he turned against Nebuchadnezzar and rebelled. 2 The Lord sent Babylonian, Aramean, Moabite and Ammonite raiders against him to destroy Judah, in accordance with the word of the Lord proclaimed by his servants the prophets. 3 Surely these things happened to Judah according to the Lord’s command, in order to remove them from his presence because of the sins of Manasseh and all he had done, 4 including the shedding of innocent blood. For he had filled Jerusalem with innocent blood, and the Lord was not willing to forgive.
5 As for the other events of Jehoiakim’s reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah? 6 Jehoiakim rested with his ancestors. And Jehoiachin his son succeeded him as king.
7 The king of Egypt did not march out from his own country again, because the king of Babylon had taken all his territory, from the Wadi of Egypt to the Euphrates River.
Jehoiachin King of Judah
8 Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. His mother’s name was Nehushta daughter of Elnathan; she was from Jerusalem. 9 He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father had done.
10 At that time the officers of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon advanced on Jerusalem and laid siege to it, 11 and Nebuchadnezzar himself came up to the city while his officers were besieging it. 12 Jehoiachin king of Judah, his mother, his attendants, his nobles and his officials all surrendered to him.
In the eighth year of the reign of the king of Babylon, he took Jehoiachin prisoner. 13 As the Lord had declared, Nebuchadnezzar removed the treasures from the temple of the Lord and from the royal palace, and cut up the gold articles that Solomon king of Israel had made for the temple of the Lord. 14 He carried all Jerusalem into exile: all the officers and fighting men, and all the skilled workers and artisans—a total of ten thousand. Only the poorest people of the land were left.
15 Nebuchadnezzar took Jehoiachin captive to Babylon. He also took from Jerusalem to Babylon the king’s mother, his wives, his officials and the prominent people of the land. 16 The king of Babylon also deported to Babylon the entire force of seven thousand fighting men, strong and fit for war, and a thousand skilled workers and artisans. 17 He made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin’s uncle, king in his place and changed his name to Zedekiah.
Zedekiah King of Judah
18 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. His mother’s name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah; she was from Libnah. 19 He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, just as Jehoiakim had done. 20 It was because of the Lord’s anger that all this happened to Jerusalem and Judah, and in the end he thrust them from his presence.
The Fall of Jerusalem
Now Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.
Go Deeper
This chapter presents the final three kings of Judah, and it should not come as a surprise at this point that they all “did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.” The first king mentioned is Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah. This is important to note as Josiah was one of the few good kings. Remember, he was known for his sweeping reforms aimed at turning the people’s hearts back to God. How can such a king who fervently followed the Lord have sons who turned their backs on God? From King Jehoiakim, we see that godly parentage does not necessarily guarantee godly children. Deuteronomy 24:16 reminds us that everyone is responsible for their own sin, and that everyone makes their own choice regarding whether to follow God. Jehoiakim’s life is the perfect example of willful disobedience to God’s direction and the consequences that naturally derive from choosing to walk away from God’s commands.
The next king to follow is King Jehoiachin, son of Jehoiakim. His reign did not last long as the young king quickly surrendered to Babylon and its siege of Jerusalem. Interestingly enough, the invasion fulfilled the Lord’s warning to Solomon about apostasy in 1 Kings 9:6-9. Clearly, God cares deeply about His children observing His commands and serving only Him. Countless times in scripture, we see God’s people turn back to false gods and idolatry. Is it coincidence that the first two commands mentioned in the Ten Commandments are in reference to this very thing? Arguably, rebelliousness and idolatry are the common themes and pitfalls for the wicked kings of Judah.
The irony is that nothing is new in our world today. We may read this chapter and think that it does not relate to us now, but we would be wrong. While we may not be tempted to offer sacrifices to other deities or worship man-made images, the issue of the heart remains the same. We are control-seeking, prideful people. Our jobs can become idols when they consume all our thoughts or occupy all our time. Money becomes an idol when it consumes our thoughts and is the motivation for all decisions. Whatever it is, idols still exist today, and the enemy would love for us to read 2 Kings and blow it off as irrelevant. Let us thank God for the examples we see in 2 Kings regarding the dangers of prioritizing other things over God, and may we learn from their mistakes and devote our whole hearts and praise to the One True King.
Questions
- Why do you think God allowed so many wicked kings on the throne?
- Is there anything you learned about the heart of God today that you hadn’t thought about before?
- Consider where you spend the most time (or most money) or an area where you fear losing control. Is there anything that you need to identify as an idol in your life and surrender to the Lord?
Keep Digging
Are you looking for other verses that speak to idolatry? Check out this resource from GotQuestions.org for more biblical truth surrounding this topic.
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4 responses to “2 Kings 24”
“It was because of the Lord’s anger that all this happened to Jerusalem and Judah, and in the end he thrust them from his presence”(v20).
Let this be a reminder to us that God’s character exhibits both justice tied to his holiness and mercy tied to his grace. We are incapable of keeping every law and precept, and like the numerous kings we’ve read about, fall way short of the glory of God. Hence the desperate need of a Savior who would become the way, the truth and the life, the only way to the Father.
These kings have gotten off track, for a while, they have done evil in the sight of God. God keeps trying to bring them back by showing mercy and kindness but that isnt working. And as we refuse to listen and instead harden ourselves to His voice, then more bad things start to happen; and it escalates. At first it is things we can usually recover from. But at some point, if there is no substantial repentance and heartfelt change, the brunt of His wrath finally comes and from it there is no respite.
BUT GOD was rich in mercy Ephesian2:4-8
4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,
God thank You that I am saved by grace. Thank You for showing Your kindness towards me through Christ Jesus. Thank You for this gift!!!! God continue to show me when I get off track. Help me to see, listen (shema) to obedience and to do what You ask me to do. What would Jesus do in these minutes of this day to glorify You, that is where and what I want to do in Jesus name amen.
WOOHOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
when I look at this story I realize that even to present day we are still hard headed and still want to do things our way and it is all because of the power we want over others and us not realizing that God will revenge us some way some how. we have the power of choice and we better chose what is right and just
14 14 He carried all Jerusalem into exile:
It’s hard to imagine being forcibly moved to another country! I know it has happened so many times in history and even happens today, but still so incomprehensible!