“ Our God, you are the great God. You are mighty and wonderful. You keep the covenant you made with us. You show us your love. So don’t let all our suffering seem like a small thing to you. We’ve suffered greatly. So have our kings and leaders. So have our priests and prophets. Our people who lived long ago also suffered. And all your people are suffering right now. In fact, we’ve been suffering from the time of the kings of Assyria until today.

“我们的神啊，你是至大、至能、至可畏、守约施慈爱的神。我们的君王、首领、祭司、先知、列祖，和你的众民，从亚述列王的时候直到今日所遭遇的苦难，现在求你不要以为小。

“‘现在，我们的上帝啊，你是至大、至能、至可畏、守约施慈爱的上帝；我们的君王、官长、祭司、先知、祖先和你的众百姓，从亚述诸王的时候直到今日所遭遇的一切苦难，求你不要看为小事。

“‘现在，我们的神啊，你是至大、至能、至可畏、守约施慈爱的神；我们的君王、官长、祭司、先知、祖先和你的众百姓，从亚述诸王的时候直到今日所遭遇的一切苦难，求你不要看为小事。

“因此，我们的上帝啊，你是伟大、全能、可畏、守约、施慈爱的上帝，求你不要轻看我们的王、首领、祭司、先知、祖先和你的子民从亚述诸王时代直到今天所受的苦难。

“我们的神啊，你是至大、全能、至可畏、守约施慈爱的神，现在求你不要把我们、我们的君王和领袖、我们的祭司和先知、我们的列祖和你的众民，从亚述列王的日子直到今日所遭遇的一切苦难，看为小事。

「我們的神啊，你是至大、至能、至可畏、守約施慈愛的神。我們的君王、首領、祭司、先知、列祖，和你的眾民，從亞述列王的時候直到今日所遭遇的苦難，現在求你不要以為小。

「『現在，我們的上帝啊，你是至大、至能、至可畏、守約施慈愛的上帝；我們的君王、官長、祭司、先知、祖先和你的眾百姓，從亞述諸王的時候直到今日所遭遇的一切苦難，求你不要看為小事。

「『現在，我們的神啊，你是至大、至能、至可畏、守約施慈愛的神；我們的君王、官長、祭司、先知、祖先和你的眾百姓，從亞述諸王的時候直到今日所遭遇的一切苦難，求你不要看為小事。

「因此，我們的上帝啊，你是偉大、全能、可畏、守約、施慈愛的上帝，求你不要輕看我們的王、首領、祭司、先知、祖先和你的子民從亞述諸王時代直到今天所受的苦難。

“我們的神啊，你是至大、全能、至可畏、守約施慈愛的神，現在求你不要把我們、我們的君王和領袖、我們的祭司和先知、我們的列祖和你的眾民，從亞述列王的日子直到今日所遭遇的一切苦難，看為小事。

『現在呢、我們的上帝啊，至大、至有能力、至可畏懼、守約守堅愛的上帝啊，我們、我們的王和首領、我們的祭司和神言人、我們的列祖和你的眾民、從亞述列王的日子直到今日所遭遇的一切艱難困苦、求你不要看為小事。

我上帝歟、乃至大至能、可畏之上帝、踐約施恩、凡我列王牧伯、祭司先知、列祖庶民、自亞述王迄於今日、所遭患難、祈勿視為微小、

我之上帝、至尊至能、允宜寅畏、許人以恩、必踐其言、凡我列王、諸伯、祭司、先知、長老、庶民、自亞述王迄於今日、所遭患難、爾毋以為未足。

我至大至能至可畏踐約施恩之天主歟、凡我列王、牧伯、祭司、先知、列祖、及主之民眾、自亞述列王之時、至於今日、所遭之患難、求主莫以為不足、

“ Now therefore, our God, the great God, mighty and awesome, who keeps his covenant of love, do not let all this hardship seem trifling in your eyes— the hardship that has come on us, on our kings and leaders, on our priests and prophets, on our ancestors and all your people, from the days of the kings of Assyria until today.

“ Now, therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love, let not all the hardship seem little to you that has come upon us, upon our kings, our princes, our priests, our prophets, our fathers, and all your people, since the time of the kings of Assyria until this day.

“ And now, our God, the great and mighty and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of unfailing love, do not let all the hardships we have suffered seem insignificant to you. Great trouble has come upon us and upon our kings and leaders and priests and prophets and ancestors— all of your people— from the days when the kings of Assyria first triumphed over us until now.

So now, our God— the great, mighty, and awe-inspiring God who keeps his gracious covenant— do not view lightly all the hardships that have afflicted us, our kings and leaders, our priests and prophets, our ancestors and all your people, from the days of the Assyrian kings until today.

“ Now then, our God, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who keeps His covenant and faithfulness, Do not let all the hardship seem insignificant before You, Which has happened to us, our kings, our leaders, our priests, our prophets, our fathers, and to all Your people, From the days of the kings of Assyria to this day.

“ Now therefore, our God, The great, the mighty, and awesome God, Who keeps covenant and mercy: Do not let all the trouble seem small before You That has come upon us, Our kings and our princes, Our priests and our prophets, Our fathers and on all Your people, From the days of the kings of Assyria until this day.

Now therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the terrible God, who keepest covenant and lovingkindness, let not all the travail seem little before thee, that hath come upon us, on our kings, on our princes, and on our priests, and on our prophets, and on our fathers, and on all thy people, since the time of the kings of Assyria unto this day.

So now, our God— the great, mighty, and awe-inspiring God who keeps His gracious covenant— do not view lightly all the hardships that have afflicted us, our kings and leaders, our priests and prophets, our ancestors and all Your people, from the days of the Assyrian kings until today.

Now therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the terrible God, who keepest covenant and mercy, let not all the trouble seem little before thee, that hath come upon us, on our kings, on our princes, and on our priests, and on our prophets, and on our fathers, and on all thy people, since the time of the kings of Assyria unto this day.

“ So now, our God– the great, powerful, and awesome God, who keeps covenant fidelity– do not regard as inconsequential all the hardship that has befallen us– our kings, our leaders, our priests, our prophets, our ancestors, and all your people– from the days of the kings of Assyria until this very day!

Now therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who keeps covenant and loving kindness, don’t let all the travail seem little before you, that has come on us, on our kings, on our princes, on our priests, on our prophets, on our fathers, and on all your people, since the time of the kings of Assyria to this day.

So I want you to realize that the Lord your God is God. He is the faithful God. He keeps his covenant for all time to come. He keeps it with those who love him and obey his commandments. He shows them his love.

I said,“ Lord, you are the God of heaven. You are a great and wonderful God. You keep the covenant you made with those who love you and obey your commandments. You show them your love.

Lord, we are covered with shame. So are our kings and princes, and our people of long ago. We have sinned against you.

Lord, who is a God like you? You forgive sin. You forgive your people when they do what is wrong. You don’t stay angry forever. Instead, you take delight in showing your faithful love to them.Once again you will show loving concern for us. You will completely wipe out the evil things we’ve done. You will throw all our sins into the bottom of the sea.You will be faithful to Jacob’s people. You will show your love to Abraham’s children. You will do what you promised to do for our people. You made that promise long ago.

I prayed to the Lord my God. I admitted that we had sinned. I said,“ Lord, you are a great and wonderful God. You keep the covenant you made with all those who love you and obey your commandments. You show them your love.

We haven’t listened to your servants the prophets. They spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our people of long ago. They also brought your message to all our people in the land.

Say to God,“ What wonderful things you do! Your power is so great that your enemies bow down to you in fear.

But in the seventh month Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, came with ten men. He killed Gedaliah. He also killed the people of Judah and the Babylonians who were with Gedaliah at Mizpah. Nethaniah was the son of Elishama. Ishmael was a member of the royal family.After he had killed Gedaliah, all the people ran away to Egypt. Everyone from the least important of them to the most important ran away. The army officers went with them. All of them went to Egypt because they were afraid of the Babylonians.

Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, marched out against Jerusalem. He came with all his armies and attacked it. It was in the ninth year that Zedekiah was king of Judah. It was in the tenth month.The city wall was broken through. It happened on the ninth day of the fourth month. It was in the 11th year of Zedekiah’s rule.All the officials of the king of Babylon came. They took seats near the Middle Gate. Nergal- Sharezer from Samgar was there. Nebo- Sarsekim, a chief officer, was also there. So was Nergal- Sharezer, a high official. And all the other officials of the king of Babylon were there too.King Zedekiah and all the soldiers saw them. Then they ran away. They left the city at night. They went by way of the king’s garden. They went out through the gate between the two walls. And they headed toward the Arabah Valley.But the armies of Babylon chased them. They caught up with Zedekiah in the plains near Jericho. They captured him there. And they took him to Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon. He was at Riblah in the land of Hamath. That’s where Nebuchadnezzar decided how Zedekiah would be punished.The king of Babylon killed the sons of Zedekiah at Riblah. He forced Zedekiah to watch it with his own eyes. He also killed all the nobles of Judah.Then he poked out Zedekiah’s eyes. He put him in bronze chains. And he took him to Babylon.The Babylonians set the royal palace on fire. They also set fire to the houses of the people. And they broke down the walls of Jerusalem.Nebuzaradan was commander of the royal guard. Some people still remained in the city. But he took them away to Babylon as prisoners. He also took along those who had gone over to his side. And he took the rest of the people.Nebuzaradan, the commander of the guard, left some of the poor people of Judah behind. They didn’t own anything. So at that time he gave them vineyards and fields.Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, had given orders about Jeremiah. He had given them to Nebuzaradan, the commander of the royal guard. Nebuchadnezzar had said,“ Take him. Look after him. Don’t harm him. Do for him anything he asks.”So that’s what Nebuzaradan, the commander of the guard, did. Nebushazban and Nergal- Sharezer were with him. So were all the other officers of the king of Babylon. Nebushazban was a chief officer. Nergal- Sharezer was a high official. All these mensent for Jeremiah. They had him taken out of the courtyard of the guard. They turned him over to Gedaliah. Gedaliah was the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan. They told Gedaliah to take Jeremiah back to his home. So Jeremiah remained among his own people.A message from the Lord came to Jeremiah. It came while he was being kept in the courtyard of the guard. The Lord said,“ Go. Speak to Ebed- Melek the Cushite. Tell him,‘ The Lord who rules over all is the God of Israel. He says,“ I am about to make the words I spoke against this city come true. I will not give success to it. Instead, I will bring horrible trouble on it. At that time my words will come true. You will see it with your own eyes.But I will save you on that day,” announces the Lord.“ You will not be handed over to those you are afraid of.I will save you. You will not be killed by a sword. Instead, you will escape with your life. That’s because you trust in me,” announces the Lord.’ ”

Pharaoh Necho put him in chains at Riblah in the land of Hamath. That kept him from ruling in Jerusalem. Necho made the people of Judah pay him a tax of almost four tons of silver and 75 pounds of gold.Pharaoh Necho made Eliakim king in place of his father Josiah. Necho changed Eliakim’s name to Jehoiakim. But he took Jehoahaz with him to Egypt. And that’s where Jehoahaz died.

The Lord will also bring the king of Assyria against you. And he will bring him against your people and the whole royal family. That will be a time of trouble. It will be unlike any since the people of Ephraim broke away from Judah.”At that time the Lord will whistle for the Egyptians. They will come like flies from the Nile River in Egypt. He will also whistle for the Assyrians. They will come from their country like bees.

“ At that time the tombs will be opened,” announces the Lord.“ The bones of the kings and officials of Judah will be brought out. The bones of the priests and prophets will be removed. So will the bones of the people of Jerusalem.They will lie outside under the sun, moon and all the stars. All these people had loved and served these things. They had followed them and worshiped them. They had asked them for advice. So the bones of these people will not be gathered up or buried again. Instead, they will be like human waste lying there on the ground.Everyone left alive in this evil nation will want to die rather than live. That is what they will long for in the lands where I force them to go.” The Lord who rules over all announces this.

Zedekiah was 21 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for 11 years. His mother’s name was Hamutal. She was the daughter of Jeremiah. She was from Libnah.Zedekiah did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord. He did just as Jehoiakim had done.The enemies of Jerusalem and Judah attacked them because the Lord was angry. In the end he threw them out of his land. Zedekiah refused to obey the king of Babylon.Nebuchadnezzar was the king of Babylon. He marched out against Jerusalem. All his armies went with him. It was in the ninth year of the rule of Zedekiah. It was on the tenth day of the tenth month. The armies set up camp outside the city. They set up ladders and built ramps and towers all around it.It was surrounded until the 11th year of King Zedekiah’s rule.By the ninth day of the fourth month, there wasn’t any food left in the city. So the people didn’t have anything to eat.Then the Babylonians broke through the city wall. Judah’s whole army ran away. They left the city at night. They went out through the gate between the two walls that were near the king’s garden. They escaped even though the Babylonians surrounded the city. Judah’s army ran toward the Arabah Valley.But the armies of Babylon chased King Zedekiah. They caught up with him in the plains near Jericho. All his soldiers were separated from him. They had scattered in every direction.The king was captured. He was taken to the king of Babylon at Riblah. Riblah was in the land of Hamath. That’s where Nebuchadnezzar decided how Zedekiah would be punished.At Riblah the king of Babylon killed the sons of Zedekiah. He forced him to watch it with his own eyes. Nebuchadnezzar also killed all the officials of Judah.Then he poked out Zedekiah’s eyes. He put him in bronze chains. And he took him to Babylon. There he put Zedekiah in prison until the day he died.Nebuzaradan served the king of Babylon. In fact, he was commander of the royal guard. He came to Jerusalem. It was in the 19th year that Nebuchadnezzar was king of Babylon. It was on the tenth day of the fifth month.Nebuzaradan set the Lord’ s temple on fire. He also set fire to the royal palace and all the houses in Jerusalem. He burned down every important building.The armies of Babylon broke down all the walls around Jerusalem. That’s what the commander told them to do.Some of the poorest people still remained in the city along with the others. But the commander Nebuzaradan took them away as prisoners. He also took the rest of the skilled workers. That included the people who had joined the king of Babylon.But Nebuzaradan left the rest of the poorest people of the land behind. He told them to work in the vineyards and fields.The armies of Babylon destroyed the Lord’ s temple. They broke the bronze pillars into pieces. They broke up the bronze stands that could be moved around. And they broke up the huge bronze bowl. Then they carried away all the bronze to Babylon.They also took away the pots, shovels, wick cutters, sprinkling bowls and dishes. They took away all the bronze objects that were used for any purpose in the temple.The commander of the royal guard took away the bowls and the shallow cups for burning incense. He took away the sprinkling bowls, the pots, the lampstands and the dishes. He took away the bowls used for drink offerings. So he took away everything made out of pure gold or silver.The bronze was more than anyone could weigh. It included the bronze from the two pillars. It included the bronze from the huge bowl and the 12 bronze bulls under it. It also included the stands. King Solomon had made all those things for the Lord’ s temple.Each pillar was 27 feet high and 18 feet around. The pillars were hollow. The metal in each of them was three inches thick.The bronze top of one pillar was seven and a half feet high. It was decorated with a set of bronze chains and pomegranates all around it. The other pillar was just like it. It also had pomegranates.There were 96 pomegranates on the sides of each of the two tops. The total number of pomegranates above the bronze chains around each top was 100.The commander of the guard took many prisoners. They included Seraiah the chief priest and Zephaniah the priest who reported to him. They also included the three men who guarded the temple doors.Some people were still left in the city. The commander took as a prisoner the officer in charge of the fighting men. He took the seven men who gave advice to the king. He also took the secretary who was the chief officer in charge of getting the people of the land to serve in the army. There were 60 people of the land still in the city.The commander Nebuzaradan took all of them away. He brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah.There the king had them put to death. Riblah was in the land of Hamath. So the people of Judah were taken as prisoners. They were taken far away from their own land.Here is the number of the people Nebuchadnezzar took to Babylon as prisoners. In the seventh year of his rule, he took 3,023 Jews.In his 18th year, he took 832 people from Jerusalem.In Nebuchadnezzar’s 23rd year, Nebuzaradan, the commander of the royal guard, took 745 Jews to Babylon. The total number of people taken to Babylon was 4,600.Awel- Marduk set Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, free from prison. It was in the 37th year after Jehoiachin had been taken away to Babylon. It was also the year Awel- Marduk became king of Babylon. It was on the 25th day of the 12th month.Awel- Marduk spoke kindly to Jehoiachin. He gave him a place of honor. Other kings were with Jehoiachin in Babylon. But his place was more important than theirs.So Jehoiachin put away his prison clothes. For the rest of Jehoiachin’s life the king of Babylon provided what he needed.The king did that for Jehoiachin day by day as long as he lived. He did it until the day Jehoiachin died.

The people of the land went and got Jehoahaz. He was the son of Josiah. The people made Jehoahaz king in Jerusalem in place of his father.Jehoahaz was 23 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for three months.The king of Egypt removed him from his throne in Jerusalem. The king of Egypt made the people of Judah pay him a huge tax. The tax was almost four tons of silver and 75 pounds of gold.Necho, the king of Egypt, made Eliakim king over Judah and Jerusalem. Eliakim was a brother of Jehoahaz. Necho changed Eliakim’s name to Jehoiakim. But Necho took Eliakim’s brother Jehoahaz with him to Egypt.Jehoiakim was 25 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for 11 years. He did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord his God.Nebuchadnezzar attacked him. Nebuchadnezzar was king of Babylon. He put Jehoiakim in bronze chains. And he took him to Babylon.Nebuchadnezzar also took to Babylon objects from the Lord’ s temple. He put them in his own temple there.The other events of Jehoiakim’s rule are written in the records of the kings of Israel and Judah. He did things the Lord hated. Those things and everything that happened to him are also written in those records. Jehoiakim’s son Jehoiachin became the next king after him.Jehoiachin was 18 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for three months and ten days. He did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord.In the spring, King Nebuchadnezzar sent for him. He brought him to Babylon. He also brought things of value from the Lord’ s temple. He made Zedekiah king over Judah and Jerusalem. Zedekiah was Jehoiachin’s uncle.Zedekiah was 21 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for 11 years.He did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord his God. He didn’t pay any attention to the message the Lord spoke through Jeremiah the prophet.Zedekiah also refused to remain under the control of King Nebuchadnezzar. The king had forced Zedekiah to make a promise in God’s name. But Zedekiah’s heart became very stubborn. He wouldn’t turn to the Lord, the God of Israel.And that’s not all. The people and all the leaders of the priests became more and more unfaithful. They followed all the practices of the nations. The Lord hated those practices. The people and leaders made the Lord’ s temple“ unclean.” The Lord had set the temple in Jerusalem apart in a special way for himself.The Lord, the God of Israel, sent word to his people through his messengers. He sent it to them again and again. He took pity on his people. He also took pity on the temple where he lived.But God’s people made fun of his messengers. They hated his words. They laughed at his prophets. Finally the Lord’ s great anger was stirred up against his people. Nothing could save them.The Lord brought the king of the Babylonians against them. The Babylonian army killed their young people with their swords at the temple. They didn’t spare young men or young women. They didn’t spare the old people or weak people either. God handed all of them over to Nebuchadnezzar.Nebuchadnezzar carried off to Babylon all the objects from God’s temple. Some of those things were large. Others were small. He carried off the treasures of the temple. He also carried off the treasures that belonged to the king and his officials.The Babylonians set God’s temple on fire. They broke down the wall of Jerusalem. They burned all the palaces. They destroyed everything of value there.Nebuchadnezzar took the rest of the people to Babylon as prisoners. They had escaped from being killed by swords. They served him and those who ruled after him. That lasted until the kingdom of Persia came to power.The land of Israel enjoyed its sabbath years. It rested. That deserted land wasn’t farmed for a full 70 years. What the Lord had spoken through Jeremiah came true.It was the first year of the rule of Cyrus. He was king of Persia. The Lord inspired him to send a message all through his kingdom. It happened so that what the Lord had spoken through Jeremiah would come true. The message was written down. It said,“ Cyrus, the king of Persia, says,“‘ The Lord is the God of heaven. He has given me all the kingdoms on earth. He has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up to Jerusalem. And may the Lord their God be with them.’ ”

The Lord says,“ How terrible it will be for the people of Assyria! They are the war club that carries out my anger.I will send them against the ungodly nation of Judah. I will order them to fight against my own people. My people make me angry. I will order Assyria to take their goods and carry them away. I will order Assyria to walk on my people as if they were walking on mud.But that is not what the king of Assyria plans. It is not what he has in mind. His purpose is to destroy many nations. His purpose is to put an end to them.

So I am about to bring against these people the king of Assyria and his whole army. The Assyrians will be like the mighty Euphrates River when it is flooding. They will run over everything in their path.They will sweep on into Judah like a flood. They will pass through Judah and reach all the way to Jerusalem. Immanuel, they will attack your land like an eagle. Their wings will spread out and cover it.”

So the Lord speaks about King Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah. He says,“ His people will not mourn for him. They will not say,‘ My poor brother! My poor sister!’ They will not mourn for him. They will not say,‘ My poor master! How sad that his glory is gone!’In fact, he will be buried like a donkey. His body will be dragged away and thrown outside the gates of Jerusalem.”

Sennacherib attacked and captured all the cities of Judah that had high walls around them. It was in the 14th year of the rule of Hezekiah. Sennacherib was king of Assyria.He sent his field commander from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. He sent him along with a large army. The commander stopped at the channel that brings water from the Upper Pool. It was on the road to the Washerman’s Field.Eliakim, Shebna and Joah went out to him. Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, was in charge of the palace. Shebna was the secretary. Joah, the son of Asaph, kept the records.The field commander said to them,“ Give Hezekiah this message. Tell him,“‘ Sennacherib is the great king of Assyria. He says,“ Why are you putting your faith in what your king says?You say you have a military plan. You say you have a strong army. But your words don’t mean anything. Who are you depending on? Why don’t you want to stay under my control?Look, I know you are depending on Egypt. Why are you doing that? Egypt is nothing but a broken papyrus stem. Try leaning on it. It will only cut your hand. Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, is just like that to everyone who depends on him.But suppose you say to me,‘ We are depending on the Lord our God.’ Didn’t Hezekiah remove your god’s high places and altars? Didn’t Hezekiah say to the people of Judah and Jerusalem,‘ You must worship at the altar in Jerusalem’?“‘ “Come on. Make a deal with my master, the king of Assyria. I’ll give you 2,000 horses. But only if you can put riders on them!You are depending on Egypt for chariots and horsemen. You can’t drive away even the least important officer among my master’s officials.Besides, do you think I’ve come without being sent by the Lord? Have I come to attack and destroy this land without receiving a message from him? The Lord himself told me to march out against your country. He told me to destroy it.” ’ ”Then Eliakim, Shebna and Joah spoke to the field commander. They said,“ Please speak to us in the Aramaic language. We understand it. Don’t speak to us in Hebrew. If you do, the people on the wall will be able to understand you.”But the commander replied,“ My master sent me to say these things. Are these words only for your master and you to hear? Aren’t they also for the people sitting on the wall? They are going to suffer just like you. They’ll have to eat their own waste. They’ll have to drink their own urine.”Then the commander stood up and spoke in the Hebrew language. He called out,“ Pay attention to what the great king of Assyria is telling you.He says,‘ Don’t let Hezekiah trick you. He can’t save you!Don’t let Hezekiah talk you into trusting in the Lord. Don’t believe him when he says,“ You can be sure that the Lord will save us. This city will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.” ’“ Don’t listen to Hezekiah. The king of Assyria says,‘ Make a peace treaty with me. Come over to my side. Then each one of you will eat fruit from your own vine and fig tree. Each one of you will drink water from your own well.You will do that until I come back. Then I’ll take you to a land just like yours. It’s a land that has a lot of grain and fresh wine. It has plenty of bread and vineyards.“‘ Don’t let Hezekiah fool you. He’s telling you a lie when he says,“ The Lord will save us.” Have the gods of any nations ever saved their lands from the power of the king of Assyria?Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? Have they saved Samaria from my power?Which one of all the gods of those countries has been able to save their lands from me? So how can the Lord save Jerusalem from my power?’ ”But the people remained silent. They didn’t say anything. That’s because King Hezekiah had commanded,“ Don’t answer him.”Then Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, went to Hezekiah. Eliakim was in charge of the palace. Shebna the secretary went with him. So did Joah, the son of Asaph. Joah kept the records. All of them went to Hezekiah with their clothes torn. They told him what the field commander had said.

“‘ After all that, suppose you still will not listen to me. Then I will punish you for your sins seven times.

The commander of the guard took some prisoners. They included Seraiah the chief priest and Zephaniah the priest who was next in rank. They also included the three men who guarded the temple doors.Some people were still left in the city. The commander took as a prisoner the officer who was in charge of the fighting men. He took the five men who gave advice to the king. He also took the secretary. He was the chief officer in charge of getting the people of the land to serve in the army. And he took 60 of those people serving in the army who were still in the city.Nebuzaradan the commander took all of them away. He brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah.There the king had them put to death. Riblah was in the land of Hamath. So the people of Judah were taken as prisoners. They were taken far away from their own land.

So don’t be terrified by them. The Lord your God is with you. He is a great and wonderful God.

Then Tiglath- Pileser marched into the land of Israel. He was king of Assyria. Menahem gave him 38 tons of silver to get his help. He wanted to make his control over the kingdom stronger.

Do this because the Lord Most High is wonderful. He is the great King over the whole earth.

Shalmaneser came up to attack Hoshea. Shalmaneser was king of Assyria. He had been Hoshea’s master. He had forced Hoshea to bring him gifts.

Pharaoh Necho was king of Egypt. He marched up to the Euphrates River. He went there to help the king of Assyria. It happened while Josiah was king. Josiah marched out to meet Necho in battle. When Necho saw him at Megiddo, he killed him.

“ Our evil acts and our terrible sins have brought about the things that have happened to us. You are our God. Because we sinned so much, you should have punished us even more than you have. But you have left many of your people alive.

Come and see what God has done. See what wonderful things he has done for people!

Nebuchadnezzar’s men killed the sons of Zedekiah. They forced him to watch it with his own eyes. Then they poked out his eyes. They put him in bronze chains. And they took him to Babylon.

He said,“ Lord, you are the God of Israel. There is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below. You keep the covenant you made with us. You show us your love. You do that when we follow you with all our hearts.

Then I will be angry with you. I will be your enemy. I myself will again punish you for your sins over and over.

“‘ Suppose you continue to be my enemy. And suppose you still refuse to listen to me. Then I will multiply your troubles many times because of your sins.

That includes all of you who walked between the pieces of the calf. It includes the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the court officials and the priests. It also includes some of the people of the land.So I will hand over all those people to their enemies who want to kill them. Their dead bodies will become food for the birds and the wild animals.“ I will hand over King Zedekiah and his officials to their enemies. I will hand them over to those who want to kill them. I will hand them over to the armies of the king of Babylon. They have now pulled back from you.But I am going to give an order,” announces the Lord.“ I will bring them back to this city. They will fight against it. They will capture it and burn it down. And I will completely destroy the towns of Judah. No one will be able to live there.”

Then I myself will be your enemy. I will make you suffer again and again for your sins.

During the rule of Pekah, the king of Israel, Tiglath- Pileser marched into the land again. He was king of Assyria. He captured the towns of Ijon, Abel Beth Maakah, Janoah, Kedesh and Hazor. He also captured the lands of Gilead and Galilee. That included the whole territory of Naphtali. He took the people away from their own land. He sent them off to Assyria.