This account of the siege of Jeru-Salem by Nebu-Chadnez-Zar should be compared with the narrative of its later destruction by Titus (70CE). History repeat itself presenting striking paralleles in the two cases: the close investment of the city, the desperate resistance, the horrors of famine within, the incidents of the capture, the burning of the Temple, the demolition of the walls, and the captivity of the people. Also, a coincidence occur when the sanctuary was fired by the soldiers of Titus, that it was on the very same month and day of the month on which the temple was burned by Nebu-Chadnez-Zar.
The earlier destruction fulfilled the predictions of the prophets, the later the predictions of our Lord.
The days that mark the different stages of the siege of Nebu-Chadnez-Zar are carefully remembered. The 9th Year of Zedek-Iah, in the 10th Month, in the 10th day of the month, Nebu-Chadnez-Zar came, he and his host, against Jeru-Salem; in the 11th Year of Zedek-Iah on the 9th Day of the 4th Month the famine prevailed in the city, and a breach was affected; in the 5th Month, on the 7th Day of the month, which is the 19th Year of the King Nebu-Chadnez-Zar, the Temple and other buildings were burned by Nebu-Zar-Adan, adviser to the king and commander of his army. We have the same careful dating in Jeremiah 39: 1,2; Jeremiah 52: 4,12 (in the latter passage 10th for 7th). They were observed afterwards as regular days of fasting. (Zechariah 7: 3,5; Zechariah 8:19)
Ezekiel 21 is a vivid prophecy of the siege. It announces the capture of the holy city. A sword is furbished to work terrible destruction. The prophet is directed to mark off two ways along which this sword is to travel -the one leading to Jerusalem, and the other to Rabbath of Ammon. The scene changes, and we see the King of Babylon standing at the head of the two ways, deliberating, which one he shall choose. He shakes the arrows, consults images, looks for omens in the liver of dead beasts. The decision given is for advancing first against Jerusalem. Now he is at its gates, and has appointed captains to open the mouth in the slaughter, to lift up the voice with shouting, to appoint battering-rams against the gates, to cast a mount, and to built a fort. (Ezekiel 21: 21,22)
For a Year and 5 Months the siege dragged itself on. Jeremiah held out no hope. When Zedekiah, at the beginning of he siege entreated him, "inquire, I pray thee, of the Lord for us," Jeremiah plainly told him
that the city was delivered to the Chaldeans, and that Nebuchadnezzar would not spare them. (21:1-7)
Life was promised, however, to those who should surrender themselves to the enemy. This strain was kept up throughout, in spite of imprisonment, threats, and the contrary testimonies of false prophets.
(Jeremiah 32; 34; 37; 38) At one point the Egyptian army came forth to arrest the Chaldeans, and great hopes were raised, but Jeremiah bade the people not to deceive themselves, for the Chaldeans would prevail. By-and-by the misery of the people became extreme. The Book of Lamentations gives vivid glimpses of the horrors -the young children fainting for hunger at the top of every street; crying to their mothers, women eating their own offspring, etc.
Lamentations say: "How lonely lies JeruSalem, once so full of people! Once honored by the World, she is now like a widow; the noblest of cities has fallen into slavery."(1:1) "No one comes to the Temple now to worship on the holy days. The young women who sang there suffer, and the priests can only groan. The city gates stand empty, and Zion is in agony." (1: 2-4) "The splendor of Jerusalem is a thing of the past. Her leaders are like deer that are weak from hunger, whose strength is almost gone as they flee from the hunters." (1: 6) "Her honor is gone; she is naked and held in contempt. She groans and hides her face in shame. JeruSalem made herself filthy with terrible Sin. Her uncleanness was easily seen, but she showed no concern for her fate."(1:8-9)
Jeremiah says: "Nebu-Zar-Adan took away to Babylonia the people who were left in the city, the remaining skilled workers, and those who had deserted to the Babylonians. (Jeremiah 52: 15)
Exodus says: "The Lord commanded Moses to tell the Israelites: 'You have seen how I, the Lord, have spoken to you from heaven. Do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gold to be worshiped in addition to Me. Make an altar of earth for Me, and on it sacrifice your sheep and your cattle as offerings to be completely burned and as fellowship offerings. In every place that I set aside for you to worship Me, I will come to you and bless you. If you make an altar of stone for Me, do not built it out of cut stones, because when you use a chisel on stones, you make them unfit for My use. Do not build an altar for Me with steps leading up to it; for if you do, you will expose yourselves as you go up the steps."(20: 22-26) "... I now make a Covenant with the people of Israel. In their presence I will do great things such as have never been done anywhere on earth among any of the nations. All the people will see what great things I, the Lord, can do, because I am going to do an awesome thing for you. Obey the Law that I am giving you today.I will drive out the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites,
the Hivites, and the Jebusites, as you advance. Do not make any treaties with the people of the country into which you are going, because this could be a fatal trap for you."(34:10-12) "All the skilled workers among you are to come and make everything that the Lord commanded."(35:10) "Moses said to the Israelites, 'The Lord has chosen Bezal-El, the son of Uri and grandson of Hur from the Tribe of Judah. God has filled him with His Power and given him skill, ability, and understanding for every kind of artistic work, for planning skillful designs and working them in gold, silver, and bronze; for cutting jewels to be set; for carving wood; and for every other kind of artistic work. The Lord has given to him and to Oholi-Ab son of Ahis-Amach, from the Tribe of Dan, the ability to teach their crafts to others. God has given them skill in all kinds of work done by engravers, designers, and weavers of fine linen; blue, purple, and red wool; and other cloth. They are able to do all kinds of work and are skillful designers."(35: 30-35) "Bezal-El, Oholi-Ab, and all the other workers to whom the Lord has given skill and understanding, who know how to make everything needed to build the sacred Tent, are to make everything just as the Lord has commanded." (36:1)
Jeremiah says: "But Nebu-Zar-Adan left in Judah some of the poorest people, who owned no property, and he put them to work in the vineyards and fields." (Jeremiah 52; 16)
Lamentations say, "The enemies robbed her of all her treasures. She saw them enter the Temple itself, where the Lord had forbidden Gentiles to go."(1:10) "There is murder in the streets even indoors there is death."(1:20) "The Lord in His Anger has covered Zion with Darkness. Its heavenly splendor He has turned into ruins. on the Day of His Anger He abandoned even His Temple."(2:1) "Her people groan as they look for something to eat; they exchange their treasures for food to keep themselves alive. 'Look at me!' she cries to everyone who passes by. 'No one has ever had pain like mine, pain that the Lord brought on me in the Time of His Anger. He sent Fire from above, a Fire that burned inside me. he set a trap for me and brought me to the ground, Then he abandoned me and left me in constant pain. He took note of all my Sins and tied them all together; He hung them around my neck, and I grew weak beneath the weight. The Lord gave me to my foes, and I was helpless against them."(2:11-14) "Our glittering gold has grown dull; the stones of the Temple lie scattered in the streets. Zion's young people were as precious to us as gold, but now they are treated like common clay pots."(4: 1-2) "People who once ate the finest food die starving in the streets; those raised in luxury are pawing through garbage for food. My people has been punished even more than the inhabitants of Sodom, which met a sudden downfall at the Hands of God."(4: 5-6) "The Will of the Lord alone is always carried out. Good and Evil alike take place at His Command. Why should ever complain when we are punished for our own Sin? Let us examine our ways and turn back to the Lord. Let us open our hearts to God in heaven and pray, 'We have sinned and rebelled, and You, O Lord, have not forgiven us.' You pursued us and killed us; Your Mercy was hidden byYour Anger, by a cloud of Fury too thick for our prayers to get through.
You have made us the garbage dump of the World. We are insulted and mocked by all our enemies. We have been through disaster and ruin; we live in danger and fear. My eyes flow with rivers of tears at the destruction of my people. My tears will pour out in a ceaseless stream until the Lord looks down from heaven and sees us. My heart is grieved when i see what has happened to the women of the city. I was trapped like a bird by enemies who had no cause to hate me. They threw me alive into a pit and closed the opening with a stone. Water began to close over me, and I thought Death was near. From the bottom of the pit, O Lord, I cried out to You, and when I begged You to listen to my cry, You heard. You answered me and told me not to be afraid." (3: 37-57)
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