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Verse 10
Theosis · English Bible
4 Kingdoms (2 Kings)

4 Kingdoms (2 Kings) 24

Old TestamentTheosis · English Bible

1In his days went up Nabuchodonosor king of Babylon, and Joakim became his servant three years; and then he turned and revolted from him. 2And the Lord sent against him the bands of the Chaldeans, and the bands of Syria, and the bands of Moab, and the bands of the children of Ammon, and sent them into the land of Juda to prevail against it, according to the word of the Lord, which he spoke by his servants the prophets. 3Moreover it was the purpose of the Lord concerning Juda, to remove them from his presence, because of the sins of Manasses, according to all that he did. 4Moreover he shed innocent blood, and filled Jerusalem with innocent blood, and the Lord would not pardon it. 5And the rest of the acts of Joakim, and all that he did, behold, are not these written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Juda? 6And Joakim slept with his fathers: and Joachim his son reigned in his stead. 7And the king of Egypt came no more out of his land: for the king of Babylon took away all that belonged to the king of Egypt from the river of Egypt as far as the river Euphrates. 8Eighteen years old was Joachim when he began to reign, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem: and his mother's name was Nestha, daughter of Ellanastham, of Jerusalem. 9And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father did. 10At that time went up Nabuchodonosor king of Babylon to Jerusalem, and the city was besieged. 11And Nabuchodonosor king of Babylon came against the city, and his servants besieged it. 12And Joachim king of Juda came forth to the king of Babylon, he and his servants, and his mother, and his princes, and his eunuchs; and the king of Babylon took him in the eighth year of his reign. 13And he brought forth thence all the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king's house, and he cut up all the golden vessels which Solomon the king of Israel had made in the temple of the Lord, according to the word of the Lord. 14And he carried away the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and all the captains, and the mighty men, taking captive ten thousand prisoners, and every artificer and smith: and only the poor of the land were left. 15And he carried Joachim away to Babylon, and the king's mother, and the king's wives, and his eunuchs: and he carried away the mighty men of the land into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon. 16And all the men of might, even seven thousand, and one thousand artificers and smiths: all were mighty men fit for war; and the king of Babylon carried them captive to Babylon. 17And the king of Babylon made Batthanias his son king in his stead, and called his name Sedekias. 18Twenty and one years old was Sedekias when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem: and his mother's name was Amital, daughter of Jeremias. 19And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that Joachim did. 20For it was according to the Lord's anger against Jerusalem and on Juda, until he cast them out of his presence, that Sedekias revolted against the king of Babylon.

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4 Kingdoms (2 Kings) 24:10

John Cassian

John Cassian5th century

The concept we have articulated—that the recognition of vanity leads to a diminishing of the sin of immorality—finds a vivid and instructive illustration in the Book of Kings. Nebuchadnezzar, the ruler of the Assyrians, journeyed from Egypt back to his own territory after seizing the Jews from the Pharaoh Nehao (See 4 Kings 23:31-37). His intent was not to grant them their prior liberty or restore their homeland, but rather to relocate them to regions of their own that were even more distant than Egypt, where they had been imprisoned. This situation can be interpreted in the following way. While it might be easier to bear the burden of vanity than the sin of immorality, it proves to be significantly more challenging to escape the grasp of vanity. When a person endures captivity for an extended period, returning to their homeland and embracing their former freedom becomes increasingly difficult. Thus, the prophet’s inquiry, ‘Why hast thou grown up in a strange land?’ holds true. Those who do not turn away from worldly sins are regarded as having aged in a land that is not their own.