2 CHRONICLES 36 - Last kings of Judah

NOTES BY VERSE

Note: each ** comment in this document is listed in numerical order according to the verse(s) from this chapter

** When the wound becomes incurable, it must be wiped out  <R173>

• God first warns prophetically

• He then ushers in remedial judgments

• Destruction is the final stage when God's warnings are not heeded and people stubbornly continue to rebel against Him

Jeremiah 30:12 NIV

[12] “This is what the Lord says: “ 'Your wound is incurable, your injury beyond healing.

2 Chronicles 36:15-16 NIV

[15] The Lord, the God of their ancestors, sent word to them through his messengers again and again, because he had pity on his people and on his dwelling place. [16] But they mocked God's messengers, despised his words and scoffed at his prophets until the wrath of the Lord was aroused against his people and there was no remedy.

** Once again, God warned His people over and over again because he had pity on his people and on his dwelling place, but they refused to listen and mocked God’s messengers which then aroused God’s wrath

2 Chronicles 36:15-16 NIV

[15] The Lord, the God of their ancestors, sent word to them through his messengers again and again, because he had pity on his people and on his dwelling place. [16] But they mocked God's messengers, despised his words and scoffed at his prophets until the wrath of the Lord was aroused against his people and there was no remedy.

** The Lord’s wrath grew as His people refused to turn to Him; God let the temple and Jerusalem fall into the hands of the Babylonians

2 Chronicles 36:17-20 NIV

[17] He brought up against them the king of the Babylonians, who killed their young men with the sword in the sanctuary, and did not spare young men or young women, the elderly or the infirm. God gave them all into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar. [18] He carried to Babylon all the articles from the temple of God, both large and small, and the treasures of the Lord's temple and the treasures of the king and his officials. [19] They set fire to God's temple and broke down the wall of Jerusalem; they burned all the palaces and destroyed everything of value there. [20] He carried into exile to Babylon the remnant, who escaped from the sword, and they became servants to him and his successors until the kingdom of Persia came to power.

** The Israelites wept over their dismal exiled circumstances

• The rivers mentioned in Scripture are the Tigris and Euphrates, whereas Zion is the dwelling place of God on earth which was destroyed by the Babylonians  <M130>

• They either remembered the enjoyments in Zion which greatly aggravated their current misery, or they wept over Zion’s present desolation  <C34>

Psalm 137:1 NIV

[1] By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion.

Psalm 9:11 NIV

[11] Sing the praises of the Lord, enthroned in Zion; proclaim among the nations what he has done.

Psalm 76:2 NIV

[2] His tent is in Salem, his dwelling place in Zion.

2 Chronicles 36:18-21 NIV

[18] He carried to Babylon all the articles from the temple of God, both large and small, and the treasures of the Lord's temple and the treasures of the king and his officials. [19] They set fire to God's temple and broke down the wall of Jerusalem; they burned all the palaces and destroyed everything of value there. [20] He carried into exile to Babylon the remnant, who escaped from the sword, and they became servants to him and his successors until the kingdom of Persia came to power. [21] The land enjoyed its sabbath rests; all the time of its desolation it rested, until the seventy years were completed in fulfillment of the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah.

** Daniel knew the Israeli captivity by the Babylonians was coming to an end  <K117>

• Daniel was an old man, probably in his eighties and had been in Babylon for nearly 70 years

• He knew from reading the recently completed scroll of Jeremiah’s writings (specifically the part we know as Jer 25:8-11) that the 70-year captivity God had ordained for Israel was just about over

• The reason for the captivity had been Israel’s insistence upon worshiping the false gods of their pagan neighbors

• Its duration of 70 years came from the fact that for 490 years they had failed to let their farmland lie fallow one year out of every seven as God had commanded (Lev 25:1-7)

• The Lord had been patient all that time but finally had sent them to Babylon to give the land the 70 years of rest (2 Chron 36:21)

Daniel 9:2 NIV

[2] in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the Lord given to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years.

Jeremiah 25:11 NIV

[11] This whole country will become a desolate wasteland, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years.

Leviticus 25:2-4 NIV

[2] “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: 'When you enter the land I am going to give you, the land itself must observe a sabbath to the Lord. [3] For six years sow your fields, and for six years prune your vineyards and gather their crops. [4] But in the seventh year the land is to have a year of sabbath rest, a sabbath to the Lord. Do not sow your fields or prune your vineyards.

2 Chronicles 36:21 NIV

[21] The land enjoyed its sabbath rests; all the time of its desolation it rested, until the seventy years were completed in fulfillment of the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah.

** God moved the heart of the King of Persia to fulfill His prophesy through Jeremiah

• The author of Chronicles continued to emphasize worship

• God moved Cyrus, the ruler of Persia, to order and rebuild the temple

• God did not forsake His people, but brought them back to reestablish worship

• The promises given to David had not yet been fulfilled, but if God’s people who were called by His name remained faithful in worship, the promised Messiah would surely come  <R1795>

2 Chronicles 36:22-23 NIV

[22] In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing: [23] “This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: “ 'The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up, and may the Lord their God be with them.' ”