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God is Setting All Things Right. So I am Blogging Through the Bible in a Year.

Monday, August 19, 2013

August 19 - 2 Kings 24-25; 2 Chronicles 36: Judah in Exile; Their Land Rests

Today’s Reading: 2 Kings 24-25; 2 Chronicles 36

The Message

English Standard Version


Today we finish two books, 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles! This brings us to 26 books read. Only 13 to go in the Old Testament!

Thought to Guide Your Reading

Jerusalem was taken over by the Babylonians then ransacked later because Judah never learned from their mistakes.

Summary in 100 Words or Less

Egyptians took Jehoahaz into exile after three months.
Jehoiakim unsuccessfully rebelled three years later.
Babylonians took Jehoiachin into exile after three months.
During Zedekiah's reign Nebuzaradan took the Temple's bronze to Babylon. Judeans were murdered indiscriminately—even in the Temple. Then they razed the city. Judah went into exile.
Manasseh's murderous sins doomed Judah. All of Jeremiah's warnings came true. The land at last had its Sabbath rest.
Gedaliah, Babylon's appointed governor, was killed by the royal descendent Ishmael.
Jehoiachin sat at the king's table later in life.
Cyrus, the Persian king, urged God's Chosen People to return.

How Today’s Reading Contributes to the Gospel: God is Setting All Things Right

Judah's fall did not happen all at once.

Judah did not go into exile all at once. They had multiple chances to repent and change but instead ignored Jeremiah's warnings.

Babylon's war crimes would eventually catch up to them.

God would not allow Babylon to go scot free from their crimes. These are the crimes Isaiah (twice) and Jeremiah mentioned when they spoke of Babylon's sin. Babylon was called by God to punish Judah for their sin but instead committed worse acts.

The land enjoyed rest.

God told Israel to give the land a year of rest to test Israel's faith. God also warned that if they did not allow the land to rest He would give it to their enemies and then the land would have all of its Sabbaths at once. Israel and Judah never gave the land its rest. So for 70 years the land rested to make up for lost time.

King Cyrus allowed Israel to return.

We will get into this in the next month. Since the Chronicles were written to a post-exilic community, this section helped to bridge the contents of those books to the post-exilic history. It also showed that God's promises would come true. God's Warnings and His Promises come true.

Do you see how God set things right even when Judah went into exile?

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