2 Kings 17:1-6, NIrV

1 Hoshea became king of Israel in Samaria. It was in the 12th year that Ahaz was king of Judah. Hoshea ruled for nine years. He was the son of Elah. 2 Hoshea did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord. But he wasn’t as evil as the kings of Israel who ruled before him.

3 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. 4 But the king of Assyria found out that Hoshea had turned against him. Hoshea had sent messengers to So, the king of Egypt. Hoshea didn’t send gifts to the king of Assyria anymore. He had been sending them every year. So Shalmaneser grabbed him and put him in prison. 5 The king of Assyria marched into the whole land of Israel. He marched to Samaria and surrounded it for three years. From time to time he attacked it. 6 Finally, the king of Assyria captured Samaria. It was in the ninth year of Hoshea. The king of Assyria took the Israelites away from their own land. He sent them off to Assyria. He made some of them live in Halah. He made others live in Gozan on the Habor River. And he made others live in the towns of the Medes.

2 Kings 17:7-14, NIrV

7 All of this took place because the Israelites had sinned against the Lord their God. He had brought them up out of Egypt. He had brought them out from under the power of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. But they worshiped other gods. 8 The Lord had driven out other nations to make room for Israel. But they followed the evil practices of those nations. They also followed the practices that the kings of Israel had started. 9 The Israelites did things in secret against the Lord their God. What they did wasn’t right. They built high places for worship in all their towns. They built them at lookout towers. They also built them at cities that had high walls around them. 10 They set up sacred stones. And they set up poles used to worship the female god named Asherah. They did that on every high hill and under every green tree. 11 The Lord had driven out nations to make room for Israel. But the Israelites burned incense at every high place, just as those nations had done. The Israelites did evil things that made the Lord very angry. 12 They worshiped statues of gods. They did it even though the Lord had said, “Do not do that.” 13 The Lord warned Israel and Judah through all his prophets and seers. He said, “Turn from your evil ways. Keep my commands and rules. Obey every part of my Law. I commanded your people who lived long ago to obey it. And I gave it to you through my servants the prophets.”

14 But the people wouldn’t listen. They were as stubborn as their people of long ago had been. Those people didn’t trust in the Lord their God.

2 Kings 23:31-37, NIrV

31 Jehoahaz was 23 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for three months. His mother’s name was Hamutal. She was the daughter of Jeremiah. She was from Libnah. 32 Jehoahaz did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord. He did just as the kings who had ruled before him had done. 33 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. 34 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. 35 Jehoiakim paid Pharaoh Necho the silver and gold he required. To get the money, Jehoiakim taxed the land. He forced the people to give him the silver and gold. He made each one pay him what he required.

36 Jehoiakim was 25 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for 11 years. His mother’s name was Zebidah. She was the daughter of Pedaiah. She was from Rumah. 37 Jehoiakim did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord. He did just as the kings who had ruled before him had done.

2 Kings 24:8-17, NIRV

8 Jehoiachin was 18 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for three months. His mother’s name was Nehushta. She was the daughter of Elnathan. She was from Jerusalem. 9 Jehoiachin did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord. He did just as his father Jehoiakim had done.

10 At that time the officers of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, marched to Jerusalem. They surrounded it and got ready to attack it. 11 Nebuchadnezzar himself came up to the city. He arrived while his officers were attacking it. 12 Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, handed himself over to Nebuchadnezzar. Jehoiachin’s mother did the same thing. And so did all his attendants, nobles and officials.

The king of Babylon took Jehoiachin away as his prisoner. It was in the eighth year of Nebuchadnezzar’s rule. 13 Nebuchadnezzar removed the treasures from the Lord’s temple. He also removed the treasures from the royal palace. He cut up the gold objects that Solomon, the king of Israel, had made for the temple. That’s what the Lord had announced would happen. 14 Nebuchadnezzar took all the people of Jerusalem to the land of Babylon as prisoners. That included all the officers and fighting men. It also included all the skilled workers. The total number of prisoners was 10,000. Only the poorest people were left in the land.

15 Nebuchadnezzar took Jehoiachin to Babylon as his prisoner. He also took the king’s mother from Jerusalem to Babylon. And he took Jehoiachin’s wives, his officials and the most important people of the land. 16 The king also forced the whole army of 7,000 soldiers to go away to the land of Babylon. Those men were strong and able to go to war. And the king forced 1,000 skilled workers to go to Babylon. 17 Nebuchadnezzar made Jehoiachin’s uncle Mattaniah king in his place. And Nebuchadnezzar changed Mattaniah’s name to Zedekiah.

2 Kings 24:18-25:6, NIRV

18 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. 19 Zedekiah did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord. He did just as Jehoiakim had done. 20 The enemies of Jerusalem and Judah attacked them because the Lord was angry. In the end the Lord threw them out of his land.

Zedekiah also refused to remain under the control of Nebuchadnezzar.

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1 Nebuchadnezzar was king of Babylon. He marched out against Jerusalem. His whole army went with him. It was in the ninth year of the rule of Zedekiah. It was on the tenth day of the tenth month. Nebuchadnezzar set up camp outside the city. He brought in war machines all around it. 2 It was surrounded until the 11th year of King Zedekiah’s rule.

3 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. 4 Then the Babylonians broke through the city wall. Judah’s whole army ran away at night. They went out through the gate between the two walls near the king’s garden. They escaped even though the Babylonians surrounded the city. Judah’s army ran toward the Arabah Valley. 5 But the Babylonian army 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. 6 The king was captured.

He was taken to the king of Babylon at Riblah. That’s where Nebuchadnezzar decided how he would be punished.

2 Kings 25:8-12, NIRV

8 Nebuzaradan was an official of 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 seventh day of the fifth month. 9 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. 10 The whole Babylonian army broke down the walls around Jerusalem. That’s what the commander told them to do. 11 Some people still remained in the city. But Nebuzaradan the commander took them away as prisoners. He also took the rest of the people of the land. That included those who had joined the king of Babylon. 12 But the commander left behind some of the poorest people of the land. He told them to work in the vineyards and fields.