Useful Bible Studies > 2 Kings Commentary > chapter 25
Jeremiah chapter 52 distinguishes more clearly between the two occasions when Nebuchadnezzar made his judgments against Judah’s officials.
The first judgment seems to be against those officials who tried to escape with King Zedekiah (Jeremiah 52:9-11). Nebuchadnezzar ordered their deaths, and the deaths of Zedekiah’s sons. Afterwards, his soldiers made Zedekiah blind before they took him as a prisoner to Babylon.
The second judgment seems to be against those officials who remained in Jerusalem. Jeremiah 52:25 describes them as ‘still in the city’ when Babylon’s soldiers arrested them. Perhaps Zedekiah left them there because they were older men. Like Hushai (2 Samuel 15:33), they were not strong enough to march quickly. They would only have delayed Zedekiah in his escape, and put the men with him in even more danger.
However, the chief priests would have remained in Jerusalem because of their responsibilities at the temple (the house of God). The doorkeepers were the men with the responsibility to guard the entrances to the temple. The chief priests and the doorkeepers would have protested strongly when Babylon’s soldiers entered the temple to burn it down. Those soldiers had no right to approach the temple building, as only Israel’s priests could go near it. It was a very unholy act to destroy it. However, the chief priests and the doorkeepers could not stop those soldiers. Instead, the soldiers arrested them.
For all these officials, Nebuchadnezzar declared the same punishment. He considered them all guilty, because they all had tried to oppose Babylon’s army. So Nebuchadnezzar decided that they must all die.
Next part: Gedaliah, ruler of Judah (2 Kings 25:22-24)
Please use the links at the top of the page to find our other articles in this series. You can download all our articles if you go to the download page for our free 1000+ page course book.
© 2026, Keith Simons.