King James Version
2 Kings 24
20 verses with commentary
Jehoiakim's Rebellion
In his days Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up, and Jehoiakim became his servant three years: then he turned and rebelled against him.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>In his days Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up, and Jehoiakim became his servant three years: then he turned and rebelled against him.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. The reference to kingship reminds readers that all human authority is subordinate to God's ultimate kingship. As Judah approaches exile, these eve...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
XXIV.
(1) **In his days.**—In his fifth or sixth year. In Jehoiakim’s fourth year Nebuchadnezzar defeated Necho at Carchemish (Jeremiah 46:2), and was suddenly called home by the news of the death of Nabopolassar his father, whom he succeeded on the throne of Babylon in the same year (Jeremiah 25:1). From Jeremiah 36:9 we learn that towards the end of Jehoiakim’s fifth year the king of Babylon was...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**13-16. Howbeit there were not made ... bowls, &c.--**When the repairs of the temple had been completed, the surplus was appropriated to the purchase of the temple furniture. The integrity of the overseers of the work being undoubted, no account was exacted of the way in which they applied the money given to them, while other moneys levied at the temple were left to the disposal of the priest...
Read full commentary →And the LORD sent against him bands of the Chaldees, and bands of the Syrians, and bands of the Moabites, and bands of the children of Ammon, and sent them against Judah to destroy it, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by his servants the prophets. by: Heb. by the hand of
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<strong>And the LORD sent against him bands of the Chaldees, and bands of the Syrians, and bands of the Moabites, and bands of the children of Ammon, and sent them against Judah to destroy it, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by his servants the prophets.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. The divine name emph...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(2) **And the Lord sent against him bands of the Chaldees.**—Jehoiakim’s revolt was no doubt instigated by Egypt. Whilst Nebuchadnezzar himself was engaged elsewhere in his great empire, predatory bands of Chaldeans, and of the neighbouring peoples the hereditary enemies of Judah, who had submitted to Nebuchadnezzar, and were nothing loth to make reprisals for the power which Josiah had, perhaps, ...
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**13-16. Howbeit there were not made ... bowls, &c.--**When the repairs of the temple had been completed, the surplus was appropriated to the purchase of the temple furniture. The integrity of the overseers of the work being undoubted, no account was exacted of the way in which they applied the money given to them, while other moneys levied at the temple were left to the disposal of the priest...
Read full commentary →Surely at the commandment of the LORD came this upon Judah, to remove them out of his sight, for the sins of Manasseh, according to all that he did;
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<strong>Surely at the commandment of the LORD came this upon Judah, to remove them out of his sight, for the sins of Manasseh, according to all that he did;</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. The divine name emphasizes Yahweh's covenant relationship with Israel and His sovereign control over historical events. As Judah approac...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(3) **Surely at the commandment.**—Literally, *Only* (*i.e.*, upon no other ground than) *upon the mouth* (*i.e.*, at the command of; 2Kings 23:35) *of Jehovah did it happen in Judah*. The LXX. and Syriac read *wrath instead of mouth*, which Ewald prefers (so 2Kings 24:20).
**Out of his sight.**—*From before his face, i.e.*, as the Targum explains, from the land where he was present in his Temple....
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**13-16. Howbeit there were not made ... bowls, &c.--**When the repairs of the temple had been completed, the surplus was appropriated to the purchase of the temple furniture. The integrity of the overseers of the work being undoubted, no account was exacted of the way in which they applied the money given to them, while other moneys levied at the temple were left to the disposal of the priest...
Read full commentary →And also for the innocent blood that he shed: for he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood; which the LORD would not pardon.
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<strong>And also for the innocent blood that he shed: for he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood; which the LORD would not pardon.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. The divine name emphasizes Yahweh's covenant relationship with Israel and His sovereign control over historical events. As Judah approaches exile, these events f...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(4) **The innocent blood.**—Heb., *blood of the innocent*; an expression like *hand of the right, i.e.*, the right hand; or, *day of the sixth, i.e.*, the sixth day. Thenius thinks the murder of some prominent personage, such as Isaiah, may be intended, and wishes to distinguish between the statement of the first clause of the verse and the second; but 2Kings 21:16, where the two statements are co...
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**17-18. Then Hazael ... fought against Gath--**(See on 2Ch 24:23).
2Ki 12:19-21. He Is Slain.
Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. The reference to kingship reminds readers that all human authority is subordinate to God's ultimate kingship. As Judah approaches exile, these events f...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(5) **Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim . . .**—Assuming with Hitzig that the passage Habakkuk 2:9-14 refers to him, we gather that he severely oppressed his people by his exactions of forced labour upon the defences of Jerusalem. Thenius concludes from the words, “that he may set his nest on high,” &c., that Jehoiakim strengthened and enlarged the fortress on Ophel erected by Manasseh. (Comp....
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**17-18. Then Hazael ... fought against Gath--**(See on 2Ch 24:23).
2Ki 12:19-21. He Is Slain.
So Jehoiakim slept with his fathers: and Jehoiachin his son reigned in his stead.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>So Jehoiakim slept with his fathers: and Jehoiachin his son reigned in his stead.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. As Judah approaches exile, these events fulfill prophetic warnings and demonstrate that God's patience with covenant violation is not infinite. <br><br>The narrative demonstrates God's justice in judging...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(6) **So Jehoiakim slept with his fathers.**—The usual notice of the king’s burial is omitted, and the omission is significant, considered in the light of Jeremiah’s prophecy: “Thus saith the Lord concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah; they shall not lament for him . . . He shall be buried with the burial of an ass, drawn and cast forth beyond the gates of Jerusalem”(Jeremiah 22:18-...
Read full commentary →And the king of Egypt came not again any more out of his land: for the king of Babylon had taken from the river of Egypt unto the river Euphrates all that pertained to the king of Egypt.
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<strong>And the king of Egypt came not again any more out of his land: for the king of Babylon had taken from the river of Egypt unto the river Euphrates all that pertained to the king of Egypt.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. The reference to kingship reminds readers that all human authority is subordinate to God's ultimat...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(7) **And the king of Egypt came not again any more . . .**—The verse indicates the posture of political affairs at the time when Jehoiachin succeeded his father. Necho had been deprived by Nebuchadnezzar of all his conquests, and so crippled that he durst not venture again beyond his own borders. Thus Judah was left, denuded of all external help, to face the consequences of its revolt from Babylo...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**20. his servants arose ... and slew Joash in the house of Millo--**(See on 2Ch 24:25).
Jehoiachin's Reign in Judah
Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. And his mother's name was Nehushta, the daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. And his mother's name was Nehushta, the daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. As Judah approaches exile, these events fulfill prophetic warnings and demonstrate that God's patience with co...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
**THE REIGN OF JEHOIACHIN. BEGINNING OF THE BABYLONIAN CAPTIVITY**
(2Kings 24:8-16).
(8) **Jehoiachin.**—“Jah will confirm.” Four or five different forms of this name occur in the documents. Ezekiel 1:2 gives the contraction *Joiachin*. In Jeremiah we find a popular transposition of the two elements, thus: *Jechonjahu* (once, viz., Jeremiah 24:1, *Heb*.), and usually the shorter form, Jechoniah (J...
Read full commentary →And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father had done.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father had done.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. The divine name emphasizes Yahweh's covenant relationship with Israel and His sovereign control over historical events. As Judah approaches exile, these events fulfill prophetic warning...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(9) **And he did that which was evil . . .—**Ezekiel 19:5-9 refers to him, according to Keil and Ewald; but Thenius asks how, in his position, and during his brief reign of ninety (?) days, a considerable number of which must probably be allowed for the siege, he could possibly do what is there described. Hitzig refers the passage to Zedekiah; and so Thenius. Josephus calls Jehoiachin “naturally g...
Read full commentary →At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against Jerusalem, and the city was besieged . was: Heb. came into siege
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against Jerusalem, and the city was besieged.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. The reference to kingship reminds readers that all human authority is subordinate to God's ultimate kingship. As Judah approaches exile, these events fulfill prophetic war...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(10) **At that time.**—In the spring of the year (2Chronicles 36:10). Thenius infers from Jeremiah 13:19 (“the cities of the south land are shut up”), that Nebuchadnezzar drew a *cordon* across that part of the country, to cut off any succours from Egypt.
**The servants**—*i.e.*, generals. (Comp. 2Kings 19:6.)
**Was besieged.**—See margin; and 2Kings 25:2; Jeremiah 52:5.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
CHAPTER 13
2Ki 13:1-7. Jehoahaz's Wicked Reign over Israel.
**1-3. Jehoahaz ... reigned seventeen years--**Under his government, which pursued the policy of his predecessors regarding the support of the calf-worship, Israel's apostasy from the true God became greater and more confirmed than in the time of his father Jehu. The national chastisement, when it came, was consequently the more sever...
Read full commentary →And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came against the city, and his servants did besiege it.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came against the city, and his servants did besiege it.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. The reference to kingship reminds readers that all human authority is subordinate to God's ultimate kingship. As Judah approaches exile, these events fulfill prophetic warnings and demonstrate t...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(11) **Did besiege.**—*Were besieging*. The king arrived after the siege had begun.
**Came against.**—*Came unto.*
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
CHAPTER 13
2Ki 13:1-7. Jehoahaz's Wicked Reign over Israel.
**1-3. Jehoahaz ... reigned seventeen years--**Under his government, which pursued the policy of his predecessors regarding the support of the calf-worship, Israel's apostasy from the true God became greater and more confirmed than in the time of his father Jehu. The national chastisement, when it came, was consequently the more sever...
Read full commentary →And Jehoiachin the king of Judah went out to the king of Babylon, he, and his mother, and his servants, and his princes, and his officers: and the king of Babylon took him in the eighth year of his reign. officers: or, eunuchs his reign: Nebuchadnezzar's eighth year
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And Jehoiachin the king of Judah went out to the king of Babylon, he, and his mother, and his servants, and his princes, and his officers: and the king of Babylon took him in the eighth year of his reign.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. The reference to kingship reminds readers that all human authority is subordinat...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(12) **And Jehoiaehin the king of Judah went out** **. . .**—Despairing of the defence, he threw himself upon the clemency of Nebuchadnezzar. The queen-mother (Jeremiah 22:2) and all his grandees and courtiers accompanied the king, who probably hoped to be allowed to keep his throne as a vassal of Babylon.
**Took him**—i.e., as a prisoner.
**In the eighth year of his** (*i.e.,* Nebuchadnezzar’s) *...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
CHAPTER 13
2Ki 13:1-7. Jehoahaz's Wicked Reign over Israel.
**1-3. Jehoahaz ... reigned seventeen years--**Under his government, which pursued the policy of his predecessors regarding the support of the calf-worship, Israel's apostasy from the true God became greater and more confirmed than in the time of his father Jehu. The national chastisement, when it came, was consequently the more sever...
Read full commentary →And he carried out thence all the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king's house, and cut in pieces all the vessels of gold which Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the LORD, as the LORD had said.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And he carried out thence all the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king's house, and cut in pieces all the vessels of gold which Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the LORD, as the LORD had said.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. The divine name emphasizes Yahweh's covenant re...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(13) **And he carried out thence . . .**—It is apt said, but implied, that Nebuchadnezzar entered the city. He *may* have done so at the time of his invasion under Jehoiakim (2Kings 24:1). On that occasion he had carried off some of the sacred vessels (2Chronicles 36:7; Daniel 1:2; Daniel 5:2-3; comp. Ezra 1:7 *seq.*) It is certainly surprising to find that anything was left in the Temple treasury...
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**4. he saw the oppression of Israel--**that is, commiserated the fallen condition of His chosen people. The divine honor and the interests of true religion required that deliverance should be granted them to check the triumph of the idolatrous enemy and put an end to their blasphemous taunts that God had forsaken Israel (De 32:27; Psa 12:4).
And he carried away all Jerusalem, and all the princes, and all the mighty men of valour, even ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and smiths: none remained, save the poorest sort of the people of the land.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And he carried away all Jerusalem, and all the princes, and all the mighty men of valour, even ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and smiths: none remained, save the poorest sort of the people of the land.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. As Judah approaches exile, these events fulfill prophetic warnings an...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(14) **All Jerusalem.**—Limited by what follows, and meaning the most important part of the population.
**The princes**—i.e., the nobles, *e.g.,* the grandees of the court, some of the priests (Ezekiel 1:1), and the heads of the clans.
**The mighty men of valour.**—This is probably right. Thenius and Bähr prefer to understand the men of property and the artisans, as in 2Kings 15:20.
**All the craf...
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**5. a saviour--**This refers neither to some patriotic defender nor some signal victory, but to the deliverance obtained for Israel by the two successors of Jehoahaz, namely, Joash, who regained all the cities which the Syrians had taken from his father (2Ki 13:25); and Jeroboam, who restored the former boundaries of Israel (2Ki 14:25).
And he carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon, and the king's mother, and the king's wives, and his officers, and the mighty of the land, those carried he into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon. officers: or, eunuchs
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And he carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon, and the king's mother, and the king's wives, and his officers, and the mighty of the land, those carried he into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. The reference to kingship reminds readers that all human authority is subordinate to God's u...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(15) **And he carried away.**—The form of the verb is different from that in 2Kings 24:14. We might render: “*Yea,* he carried away;” for 2Kings 24:15-16 simply give the *particulars* of what was stated generally in 2Kings 24:14. In the present verse the “princes” are defined.
**He carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon, and the king’s mother.**—Fulfilment of Jeremiah 22:24-27.
**The mighty of the lan...
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**6. there remained the grove--**Asherah--the idol set up by Ahab (1Ki 16:33), which ought to have been demolished (De 7:5).
And all the men of might, even seven thousand, and craftsmen and smiths a thousand, all that were strong and apt for war, even them the king of Babylon brought captive to Babylon.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And all the men of might, even seven thousand, and craftsmen and smiths a thousand, all that were strong and apt for war, even them the king of Babylon brought captive to Babylon.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. The reference to kingship reminds readers that all human authority is subordinate to God's ultimate kings...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(16) **And all the men of might.**—“The mighty men of valour” of 2Kings 24:14. (The words depend on the verb, “he carried away,” in 2Kings 24:14.) As there were 7,000 of these, and 1,000 “craftsmen and smiths,” and the total number of the exiles was 10,000, there were 2,000 belonging to the aristocratic classes. Jeremiah 52:28 gives a total of 3,023. Thenius explains his discrepancy as resulting f...
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**7. made them like the dust in threshing--**Threshing in the East is performed in the open air upon a level plot of ground, daubed over with a covering to prevent, as much as possible, the earth, sand, or gravel from rising; a great quantity of them all, notwithstanding this precaution, must unavoidably be taken up with the grain; at the same time the straw is shattered to pieces. Hence it is a m...
Read full commentary →And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah his father's brother king in his stead, and changed his name to Zedekiah.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah his father's brother king in his stead, and changed his name to Zedekiah.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. The reference to kingship reminds readers that all human authority is subordinate to God's ultimate kingship. As Judah approaches exile, these events fulfill prophetic warn...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(17) **Mattaniah his father’s brother.**—He was the third son of Josiah (comp. Jeremiah 1:3; Jeremiah 37:1), and full brother of Jehoahaz-Shallum (2Kings 23:31). Jehoiachin was childless at the time (comp. 2Kings 24:12; 2Kings 24:15 with 2Kings 25:7 and Jeremiah 22:30). In the exile he had offspring (1Chronicles 3:17-18). (The LXX. reads, *his son, *υἱὸν*,* a corruption of θεῖον*, uncle*)*.*
**And...
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**8. his might--**This is particularly noticed in order to show that the grievous oppression from foreign enemies, by which the Israelites were ground down, was not owing to the cowardice or imbecility of their king, but solely to the righteous and terrible judgment of God for their foul apostasy.
Zedekiah's Reign in Judah
Zedekiah was twenty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Zedekiah was twenty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. As Judah approaches exile, these events fulfill prophetic warnings and demonstrate that God's patience with co...
Read full commentary →And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that Jehoiakim had done.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that Jehoiakim had done.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. The divine name emphasizes Yahweh's covenant relationship with Israel and His sovereign control over historical events. As Judah approaches exile, these events fulfill prophetic warnings...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
**THE REIGN OF ZEDEKIAH, the last KING OF JUDAH** (2Kings 24:17 to 2Kings 25:7; comp. 2Chronicles 36:11 *seq.;* Jeremiah 52).
This section and the parallel in Jeremiah appear to have been derived from the same historical work. The text of Jeremiah is generally, though not always, the best.
(19) **And he did that which was evil . . .**—The evidence of the prophet Jeremiah should be compared with th...
Read full commentary →For through the anger of the LORD it came to pass in Jerusalem and Judah, until he had cast them out from his presence, that Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>For through the anger of the LORD it came to pass in Jerusalem and Judah, until he had cast them out from his presence, that Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.</strong><br><br>This verse contributes to the overall theme of chapter 24: Judgment unfolds progressively. The divine name emphasizes Yahweh's covenant relationship with Israel and His sovereign control over historical e...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(20) **For through . . . in Jerusalem.**—Literally, *for upon the anger of Jehovah it befel Jerusalem.* That which fell upon Jerusalem and Judah like a ruinous disaster was *the evil doing of Zedekiah,* mentioned in 2Kings 24:19. That such a prince as Zedekiah was raised to the throne was itself a token of Divine displeasure, for his character was such as to hasten the final catastrophe.
**Until h...
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