CHAPTER 52
1 Zedekiah was a son of one and twenty years, when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem; and the name of his mother was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremy of Libnah.
2 And he did evils before the eyes of the Lord, by all things which Jehoiakim had done.
3 For the strong vengeance of the Lord was in Jerusalem, and in Judah, till he casted them away from his face. And Zedekiah went away from the king of Babylon.
4 Forsooth it was done in the ninth year of his realm, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, came, he and all his host, against Jerusalem; and they besieged it, and builded against it strongholds in compass.
5 And the city was besieged, till to the eleventh year of the realm of Zedekiah.
6 Forsooth in the fourth month, in the ninth day of the month, hunger held the city; and foods were not to the people of the land.
7 And the city was broken, and all men warriors thereof fled; and they went out of the city in the night, by the way of the gate, which is betwixt two walls, and leadeth to the garden of the king, while [the] Chaldees besieged the city in compass; and they went forth by the way that leadeth into desert.
8 Soothly the host of Chaldees pursued the king; and they took Zedekiah in desert, which is beside Jericho, and all his fellowship fled away from him.
9 And when they had taken the king, they brought him to the king of Babylon in Riblah, which is in the land of Hamath; and the king of Babylon spake dooms to him.
10 And the king of Babylon strangled the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes; but also he killed all the princes of Judah in Riblah.
11 And he putted out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him in stocks; and the king of Babylon brought him into Babylon, and putted him in the house of the prison, till to the day of his death.
12 Forsooth in the ninth month, in the tenth day of the month, that is the nineteenth year of the king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan, the prince of [the] chivalry, that stood before the king of Babylon, came into Jerusalem.
13 And he burnt the house of the Lord, and the house of the king, and all the houses of Jerusalem; and he burnt with fire each great house.
14 And all the host of Chaldees, that was with the master of the chivalry, destroyed all the wall of Jerusalem by compass.
15 Soothly Nebuzaradan, the prince of [the] chivalry, translated of the poor men of the people, and of the residue common people, that was left in the city, and of the fleers-over, that fled over to the king of Babylon; and he translated or brought over other men of the multitude.
16 But Nebuzaradan, the prince of [the] chivalry, left of the poor men of the land vine-tillers, and earth-tillers.
17 Also Chaldees brake the brazen pillars, that were in the house of the Lord, and the foundaments, and the brazen washing vessel, that was in the house of the Lord; and they took all the metal of those [or of them] into Babylon.
18 And they took cauldrons, and fleshhooks, and psalteries, and vials, and mortars, and all brazen vessels, that were in service;
19 they took also [the] water pots, and vessels of incense, and pots, and basins, and candlesticks, and mortars, and little cups; how many ever golden, golden, and how many ever silveren, silveren.
20 The master of the chivalry took two pillars, and one washing vessel, and [the] twelve brazen calves, that were under the foundaments, which king Solomon had made in the house of the Lord. No weight was of the metal of all these vessels.
21 Forsooth of the pillars, eighteen cubits of height were in one pillar, and a rope of twelve cubits encompassed it; certainly the thickness thereof was of four fingers, and was hollow within.
22 And brazen pommels were on ever either; and the height of one pommel was of five cubits; and works like nets and pomegranates were on the crown in compass, [all was brazen. Like manner was the second pillar, and the pomegranates; and they were upon the head in compass, all brazen, like manner of the tother pillar].
23 And the pomegranates were ninety and six hanging down, and all [the] pomegranates were encompassed with an hundred works like nets.
24 And the master of the chivalry took Seraiah, the first priest, and Zephaniah, the second priest, and [the] three keepers of the vestiary.
25 And of the city he took one chaste servant and honest, that was sovereign on the men warriors; and seven men of them that saw the face of the king, which were found in the cities; and a scribe, prince of knights, that proved [the] young knights; and sixty men of the people of the land, that were found in the midst of the city.
26 Forsooth Nebuzaradan, the master of [the] chivalry, took them, and brought them to the king of Babylon in Riblah.
27 And the king of Babylon smote them, and killed them in Riblah, in the land of Hamath; and Judah was translated from his land.
28 This is the people, whom Nebu-chadnezzar translated in the seventh year; Jews, three thousand and three and twenty.
29 In the eighteenth year, Nebuchad-nezzar translated from Jerusalem eight hundred and two and thirty persons.
30 In the three and twentieth year of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuzaradan, the master of [the] chivalry, translated seven hundred and five and forty persons of Jews. Therefore all the persons were four thousand and six hundred.
31 And it was done, in the seven and thirtieth year of the passing over of Jehoiachin, king of Judah, in the twelfth month, in the five and twentieth day of the month, Evilmerodach, king of Babylon, raised [up] in that year of his realm the head of Jehoiachin, king of Judah; and led him out of the house of the prison,
32 and spake good things with him. And he setted the throne of him [or put his throne] above the thrones of kings, that were after him in Babylon,
33 and changed the clothes of his prison. And Jehoiachin ate bread before him ever[more], in all the days of his life;
34 and his meats, everlasting meats were given to him of the king of Babylon, ordained by each day, till to the day of his death, in all the days of his life.