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Home , 2 Chronicles 20, 2 Chronicles 34, Jeremiah 27, Jeremiah 41, Jeremiah 46, Jeremiah 49

Chronological Reading Plan Reading Notes: Week 34

DAY 231: MONDAY, AUGUST 19, 2013 ~ 2 KINGS 24-25,

2 CHRONICLES 36

Chapter 24 Note: In 605 B.C., about four years after was killed at Megiddo, the battle of between and was fought near the River. At this point the Assyrian empire fell to the Babylonians, and the Babylonian empire was born.

24:2 When Nebuchadnezzar first raided , many Jews were taken to Babylon as captives. Included were Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.

Note: Daniel, , Habakkuk, and Ezekiel were contemporaries who prophesied shortly before and after the fall of Jerusalem.

Chapter 25 Note: For a more detailed description of the destruction of Jerusalem, read chapters 40-44 of Jeremiah, who was an eyewitness of Jerusalem’s end. Lamentations, also written by Jeremiah, is another valuable source for more insight on this tragedy.

—CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE 2

DAY 231: MONDAY, AUGUST 19, 2013 ~ 2 KINGS 24-25,

2 CHRONICLES 36

36:6 “Bound him with bronze shackles to take him to Babylon”—Either something happened that kept from being deported or he soon returned from Babylon to continue his rule. Second Kings tells us that he died in Jerusalem.

36:7 “Nebuchadnezzar also took to Babylon articles from the temple of the Lord.” From this time on, Babylon had control of the Middle East. , which had some control over after Josiah’s defeat, quickly lost that and was confined to its own land. Israel was no longer a free nation. Babylon plundered it a number of times before finally destroying the temple and Jerusalem.

DAY 232: TUESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2013 ~ HABAKKUK

Chapter 1 Note: This book was written several decades before and Jerusalem were destroyed by the Babylonians. In this book, Habakkuk twice complains to the Lord, and the Lord answers him.

1:1 “Oracle”—This is a divine revelation frequently received in visions. It most often refers to warnings of impending danger or doom.

2:2 “And make it plain on tablets”—Everyone was to know about the Lord’s words concerning Babylon. It would happen.

2:4 “The righteous will live by his faith”—The person who is righteous, Habakkuk says, will live by his faith in God’s promised Savior. Although everything will point to a complete and lasting victory for Babylon, the righteous person, by faith, believes God’s promise that this force of evil will be overcome. Paul uses this passage in Romans 1:17. There Paul is talking about the righteousness that comes by faith versus righteousness by works. Human reason can conceive of only a complete victory by Satan or of people trying to dig their way out of God’s punishment by living good lives. But the righteous, by faith, know of another way to peace with God—the righteousness Jesus has given them.

3:2 “In wrath remember mercy”—We might paraphrase like this: “You are filled with wrath over the sins of your people, but in the midst of all your wrath, remember your mercy.”

3:3 “ . . . Paran”—Teman means “southland,” the area south of Judah. Mount Paran is south of Kadesh -Barnea. The following verses recount the exodus from Egypt.

3:14 “With his own spear”—Jesus defeated the powers of death by entering death for us and by coming out the victor. 3

DAY 233: WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 21, 2013 ~ -45

41:1 “Mizpah”—With Jerusalem destroyed, established his headquarters in Mizpah, a city to the north of Jerusalem.

41:4 “Eighty men”—The eighty pilgrims were devout Israelites from what had been the Northern Kingdom. They were on their way to Jerusalem to offer sacrifices at the ruins of the temple.

42:14 Though the people and their leaders came to Jeremiah and asked him to pray to the Lord for guidance, this verse indicates that they already had their minds made up to go to Egypt. (See also 41:17.)

43:11 “Attack Egypt”—Nebuchadnezzar’s invasion of Egypt occurred in the 37th year of his reign, or about 568 B.C. According to the Jewish historian Josephus, all the Jews living in Egypt at that time were deported to Babylon.

44:17 “Queen of Heaven”—The Jews had gathered to celebrate a great festival, but it was not one of the festivals the Lord had commanded. This was a festival to the Queen of Heaven, that is, Ishtar, the Babylonian goddess of fertility.

44:29 “The sign”—To assure the Jews of the truth of his Word, God gave his people a sign. The sign would be the fall of Hophra, who reigned over Egypt from 588–568 B.C. The “enemies” to whom Hophra was handed over were not the Babylonians but his own officers and subjects, who dethroned and strangled him. The Lord, not the Queen of Heaven, was in control.

45:1 Baruch, the son of Neriah and secretary of Jeremiah, came from an influential family in Jerusalem. It is very likely that his grandfather Mahseiah (32:12) is the man (Maaseiah) who is referred to in :8 as governor of Jerusalem during Josiah’s reign. His brother Seraiah was a “staff officer” in the court of (51:59).

45:1 The fourth year of Jehoiakim was 605 B.C. This was an important year in the ancient world. It was the year in which Babylon defeated Egypt in the battle of Carchemish to become the superpower of the ancient Middle East. It was also the year in which Nebuchadnezzar ascended to the throne of Babylon following the death of his father, Nabopolassar. It was also in this year that Jeremiah had dictated all the words he had spoken in Jerusalem since the day of his call into the prophetic ministry 23 years before (36:2-4). The scroll on which Baruch wrote Jeremiah’s words had been cut up and burned by King Jehoiakim (36:23). 4

DAY 234: THURSDAY, AUGUST 22, 2013 ~ -48

Chapter 46 Note: Jeremiah’s prophecies dealt first with the punishment of Judah. In chapters 46–51, however, the man who had been commissioned as God’s “to the nations” (1:5) foretold the coming of God’s judgment on the countries around Israel. He prophesied first the destruction of Egypt by Babylon (chapter 46), then Babylon’s rule over some of the smaller nations around Israel (chapters 47–49), and finally, the destruction of Babylon (chapters 50,51). 46:10 Egypt was Israel’s oldest foe. The Egyptians had oppressed the Israelites and made them slaves after the time of Joseph (Exodus 1), hardened themselves against the Lord (Exodus 5–14), attacked the city of Jerusalem during the time of King (1 Kings 14:25), killed good King Josiah (:29,30), and encouraged King Zedekiah in his rebellion against Babylon that led to Judah’s destruction (37:7; 30:7). 46:2-12 The first part of Jeremiah’s prophecy against Egypt deals with its defeat at the battle of Carchemish by the Babylonian army in 605 B.C. 46:13-26 The second part of the prophecy against Egypt deals with the invasion of Egypt by Nebuchadnezzar, which took place in 568 B.C.

Chapter 47 Note: The Philistines lived to the south and west of Judah along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. They had been a thorn in Israel’s side since the time Israel entered the Promised Land (Judges 3:1-4). Whenever the Philistines were strong, they tried to expand from the coastal plain into the hill country of Judah. These attempts were opposed by Shamgar (Judges 3:31), Samson (Judges 13–16), (1 Samuel 7:2 -17), Saul (1 Samuel 13:1–14:23; 28:1-4; 31:1-10), and (1 Samuel 29:1,2,11; 2 Samuel 5:17-25). David was finally able to subdue the Philistines (2 Samuel 8:1), and they remained subject to Israel throughout the reign of . During the time of the divided kingdom, the balance of power shifted back and forth. Judah was in control during the reigns of (:10,11) and , but Philistia regained dominion during the reigns of Jehoram (:16,17) and (:16-18). 47:1 Since the “Pharaoh” mentioned in the verse is not named, it is difficult to date this prophecy. It may be that Pharaoh Neco attacked Gaza at the time he defeated King Josiah at Megiddo in 609 B.C. (2 Kings 23:29,30).

47:7 This prophecy was fulfilled in 604 B.C. when Nebuchadnezzar passed through Philistia with his army while pursuing Pharaoh Neco after defeating him at Carchemish.

Chapter 48 Note: The country of was east of the . It was separated from on the south by the Zered River and from on the north by the Arnon River. The Moabites were descendants of Lot, and because they were relatives, the Lord commanded the Israelites to leave the Moabites alone as they traveled to the land of (Deuteronomy 2:9). The Moabites, however, did not return the kindness. Balak, the king of Moab, hired Balaam, a sorcerer, to put a curse on Israel when the Israelites camped on the plains of Moab as they waited to enter the Promised Land (Numbers 22–24). King David, a descendant of Ruth, a Moabitess, subjugated the Moabites during his reign (2 Samuel 8:2). During the time of King Jehoshaphat, the Moabites joined the Ammonites in making war against Judah (:1). They assisted King Nebuchadnezzar in punishing King Jehoiakim when he rebelled against Babylon in 602 B.C. Later, however, they joined King Zedekiah in his rebellion against Babylon (:3,6) and were conquered and deported after the fall of Jerusalem. 5

DAY 235: FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013 ~ -50

49:1-6 The Ammonites were descendants of Lot, the nephew of (Genesis 19:38). They lived in the area east of the and north of Moab. The Ammonites were often in conflict with Israel both before (2 Kings 24:2) and after the fall of Jerusalem (:11-14).

49:7-22 The Edomites were descendants of (Genesis 36:1-19) and lived in the mountainous region south of the Dead Sea. Relations between the Edomites and Israelites were never good and were made worse when Edom gloated over the misery of Jerusalem ( 3,10-14).

49:23-27 was the capital of Syria and is the oldest active city in the world. Syria was often in conflict with Israel ().

49:28-33 Kedar was an Ishmaelite tribe that lived in the Arabian desert (Genesis 25:13). The location of a desert city named Hazor is uncertain.

49:34-39 was an ancient kingdom (Genesis 14:1) located east of Babylon near the Persian Gulf in what is today Iran. It became part of the Medo-Persian empire, and its major city, , became the empire’s capital (Nehemiah 1:1).

50:1 According to 51:59, this prophecy against Babylon was written in the fourth year of King Zedekiah’s reign (593 B.C.). Babylon became the superpower of the ancient world in 612 B.C. when it overthrew the Assyrian empire. God used Babylon to bring his judgment against Judah and Jerusalem in 586 B.C. Half a century after the fall of Jerusalem, Babylon was conquered by the Medo-Persian empire under Cyrus (539 B.C.). It never regained its independence and disappeared entirely until archaeologists began digging up its ruins from the desert sands.

50:2 Babylon’s destruction would discredit its gods. Bel and Marduk are alternate names for the same Babylonian chief deity.

50:3 Babylon, Israel’s great enemy “from the north” (1:13), would itself become the victim of invaders coming “from the north.” Though Persia is to the east of Babylon, the (51:11,28) came from an area north and east of Babylon. They were an integral part of the Medo-Persian empire that conquered Babylon. In fact, Cyrus the Persian used Darius the Mede as his instrument to conquer Babylon (Daniel 5:30,31). 6

DAY 236: SATURDAY, AUGUST 24, 2013 ~ -52

51:1 Jeremiah devotes 110 verses to the destruction of Babylon (chapters 50,51), or nearly twice the number devoted to all seven other nations mentioned in chapters 46–49. The special attention given Babylon indicates the important role it played in its relations with God’s chosen people. In Jeremiah’s time, Babylon was threatening God’s people with destruction, but at risk were not only the people of God but the promise of God to send a Savior. When Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem and deported the Jews, it seemed that Israel would lose its identity as a nation and that God’s promise would fail. The fall of Babylon was a signal of the release of the chosen people from captivity, their return to the Promised Land, and a reminder that God would keep his promise to send the Savior.

51:58 Ancient Babylon was protected by a wall thick enough that four chariots could travel abreast on top of it. The city was left intact at the time of its capture in 539 B.C., but later it was reduced to nothing.

51:59-64 Seraiah was probably the brother of Baruch, Jeremiah’s scribe (36:4). He accompanied King Zedekiah on a trip to Babylon in 593 B.C. and was commissioned to read the account of all the disasters Jeremiah had said would come upon Babylon.

52:1 The last words of 51:64, “The words of Jeremiah end here,” indicate that chapter 52 is a later supplement to the . It is impossible to say whether it was added by Baruch or someone else or perhaps later by Jeremiah, who may have lived to see Jehoiachin freed from prison by Evil-Marodach, Nebuchadnezzar’s son and successor. We don’t have definite information about the end of Jeremiah’s life. One tradition says he was killed by Jews in Egypt; another says that he was taken to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar in 581 B.C. and died peacefully there.

52:4-16 The fall of Jerusalem was so crucial an event in the history of Israel that it is recorded in :1-14 and then repeated at the end of the book. It is also reported in 2 Kings chapter 25 and 2 Chronicles chapter 36.

52:28-30 These verses list the number of Jews taken to Babylon in three deportations. The first took place in 597 B.C. when 3,023 people were deported. The second took place in 586 B.C. in connection with the fall of Jerusalem when 832 people were taken into exile. The third took place in 582 B.C. when, either to prevent further rebellion or in retaliation for Gedaliah’s assassination (41:1-3), 745 Jews were deported. This list seems to include only deportations that are not mentioned elsewhere. (See :1; 2 Kings 24:11-16; and :12.) 7

DAY 237: SUNDAY, AUGUST 25, 2013 ~ -2

Chapter 1 Note: The prophet Jeremiah wrote the following the destruction of Jerusalem (586 B.C.). This brief book uses five odes, or laments, to communicate its message. The reader who has finished the book of Jeremiah will see that both books have many expressions and pictures in common. What the Lord had predicted through Jeremiah during some 40 years of prophesying had come true. Jerusalem weeps over its downfall (chapters 1,2,4,5). Jeremiah, who bore the brunt of its wickedness and rejection of God’s Word, weeps also (chapter 3).

2:1 “The Lord”—In a striking display of his just anger, God himself had brought Jerusalem and Judah to ruin. This fact is central to understanding Lamentations. It is not Jerusalem’s enemies, such as Babylon, who are causing its suffering. Rather, it is God who has done this in response to Israel’s rebellion. 8 9