2 Chronicles36

The final chapter of 2 Chronicles details the rapid succession of Judah's last four kings: Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah. Each king did evil in the sight of the LORD, leading to increasing foreign domination and the desecration of the temple. Ultimately, Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon destroyed Jerusalem, burned the temple, carried away its vessels, and exiled the people, fulfilling divine judgment and prophetic warnings.

Jehoahaz Reign and Egyptian Control

1
Then the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, and made him king in his father’s place in Jerusalem. ​
2
Joahaz was twenty-three years old when he began to reign; and he reigned three months in Jerusalem.
3
The king of Egypt deposed him at Jerusalem, and fined the land one hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold. ​
4
The king of Egypt made Eliakim his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. Neco took Joahaz his brother, and carried him to Egypt. ​

Jehoiakim Rebels Against Babylon

5
Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem: and he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD his God. ​
6
Against him came up Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and bound him in fetters, to carry him to Babylon.
7
Nebuchadnezzar also carried of the vessels of the LORD’s house to Babylon, and put them in his temple at Babylon. ​
8
Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim, and his abominations which he did, and that which was found in him, behold, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah: and Jehoiachin his son reigned in his place.

Jehoiachin and the Second Deportation

9
Jehoiachin was eight years old when he began to reign; and he reigned three months and ten days in Jerusalem: and he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD. ​
10
At the return of the year king Nebuchadnezzar sent, and brought him to Babylon, with the goodly vessels of the LORD’s house, and made Zedekiah his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem. ​

Zedekiah's Rule and the Final Judgment

11
Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began to reign; and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem:
12
and he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD his God; he didn’t humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet speaking from the mouth of the LORD. ​
13
He also rebelled against king Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God: but he stiffened his neck, and hardened his heart against turning to the LORD, the God of Israel. ​
14
Moreover all the chiefs of the priests, and the people, trespassed very greatly after all the abominations of the nations; and they polluted the LORD’s house which he had made holy in Jerusalem. ​
15
The LORD, the God of their fathers, sent to them by his messengers, rising up early and sending, because he had compassion on his people, and on his dwelling place: ​
16
but they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and scoffed at his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against his people, until there was no remedy. ​
17
Therefore he brought on them the king of the Kasdim, who killed their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion on young man or virgin, old man or gray-headed: he gave them all into his hand. ​
18
All the vessels of God’s house, great and small, and the treasures of the LORD’s house, and the treasures of the king, and of his princes, all these he brought to Babylon.
19
They burnt God’s house, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem, and burnt all its palaces with fire, and destroyed all the goodly vessels of it. ​
20
He carried those who had escaped from the sword away to Babylon; and they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia:
21
to fulfill the LORD’s word by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed its Sabbaths. As long as it lay desolate it kept Sabbath, to fulfill seventy years. ​

The Edict of Cyrus and Restoration

22
Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the LORD’s word by the mouth of Jeremiah might be accomplished, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying, ​
23
“Thus says Cyrus king of Persia, ‘The LORD, the God of heaven, has given all the kingdoms of the earth to me; and he has commanded me to build him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever there is among you of all his people, the LORD his God be with him, and let him go up.’” ​

Study Notes for 2 Chronicles 36

Verse 1

Jehoahaz (also called Shallum in Jeremiah) was Josiah's successor, chosen by the people, but his brief reign signaled the end of Judah's political independence.

Verse 3

Pharaoh Necho deposed Jehoahaz and imposed a heavy tribute on Judah, demonstrating that the nation was now a vassal state under Egyptian control.

Verse 4

Changing Eliakim’s name to Jehoiakim was a standard practice used by imperial overlords to assert dominance and ownership over their client kings.

Verse 5

Jehoiakim, placed on the throne by Egypt, continued the pattern of unfaithfulness, ignoring the covenant and the warnings of the prophets (Jeremiah 26).

Verse 7

This removal of the Temple vessels (605 BC) marked the first major Babylonian deportation and signaled the impending desacralization and destruction of Jerusalem.

Verse 9

Jehoiachin’s extremely short reign ended in the second major deportation (597 BC), which included many skilled people and the prophet Ezekiel, further crippling Judah.

Verse 10

Zedekiah was Jehoiachin's uncle (referred to here as 'brother' in the sense of kinsman). He was installed by Nebuchadnezzar, making him a puppet king bound by oath to Babylon.

Verse 12

Zedekiah’s refusal to heed Jeremiah was his ultimate theological failure, as the prophet spoke directly from the mouth of the LORD, making the king’s disobedience high treason against God.

Verse 13

Rebelling against Nebuchadnezzar was particularly grievous because Zedekiah had sworn loyalty to the Babylonian king in God’s name, thus profaning the covenant (cf. Ezek. 17:13-19).

Verse 14

The Chronicler emphasizes that the guilt leading to the Exile was corporate, extending beyond the king to include the chief priests and the general populace who embraced pagan worship.

Verse 15

This verse highlights God’s immense patience and compassion, repeatedly sending prophets ('rising up betimes') because He desired to save His people from destruction.

Verse 16

The persistent mockery and rejection of God's messengers resulted in a state where divine judgment became inevitable ('no remedy'), illustrating the consequence of hardening the heart against grace.

Verse 17

Nebuchadnezzar (the king of the Chaldees) is depicted as the instrument of God’s wrath, executing a judgment that was comprehensive and without mercy, fulfilling covenant curses (Deut. 28).

Verse 19

The burning of the Temple and the destruction of the walls (586 BC) marked the complete end of the Davidic monarchy and the central place of worship for Israel.

Verse 21

The 70 years of exile are interpreted as a necessary theological suspension, allowing the land to 'enjoy her sabbaths,' linking the duration of the Exile to the failure to observe the sabbatical years required by the Law (Lev. 26:34-35).

Verse 22

The conclusion shifts from judgment to restoration. God sovereignly 'stirred up the spirit' of the pagan king Cyrus, ensuring that His promise given through Jeremiah would be accomplished.

Verse 23

This edict, which grants permission for the exiles to return and rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem, serves as the hopeful conclusion to the history recorded in Chronicles, focusing on the continuity of God's covenant promises.

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