2 Kings 23-25

2 Kings 23-25

Scripture Thought (What I Learned):

Chapter 23: The Book of the Covenant

                The King sent for all the elders of Judah and of Jerusalem to come unto him. The King then went up into the house of the Lord and read out to them all the words of the Book of the Covenant. Then the King stood by a pillar and made a covenant there with all the elders to God that they would follow the words of the book and do good in the eyes of the Lord.

                So the King commanded everyone to take anything that belonged to the worship of Baal and burn it in a field.  In the eighteenth year of King Josiah a Passover was held to the Lord in Jerusalem.

                The King of Egypt decides to go up against the Assyrian Empire, but King Josiah went up against him and his servants carried him dead from Megiddo to Jerusalem and buried him in his own tomb. The people then took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah and made him king in his father's stead. Jehoahaz was 23 years old when he began to reign and he reigned for 3 months in Jerusalem and he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord.

                The King of Egypt; Pharaoh-nechoh put king Jehoahaz in band at Riblah in the land of Hamath that he might not reign in Jerusalem. Instead the king of Egypt put Eliakim the other son of Josiah king and renamed him; "Jehoiakim" and took Jeoahaz to Egypt where he would later die. Jehoiakim was 25 years old when he began to reign and he reigned for 11 years in Jerusalem and he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord.

Chapter 24: Jerusalem Taken by Nebuchadnezzar

                Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon comes up and makes Jehoaikim his servant for three years. But Jehoaikim rebels against him. Jehoaikim gets some help from the Chaldees, Syrians, Moabites and the children of Ammon. Jehoaikim dies and his son Jehoiachin reigns in his stead. Jehoiachin was 18 years old when he began to reign and he reigned in Jerusalem for 3 months and he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord.

                The King of Babylon comes and besieges the land and takes Jehoiachin and his household and also carried away all the treasures of the house of the Lord, including vessels of Gold that King Solomon had made in the Temple. The king of Babylon also took over 10,000 captive and brought them back to Babylon, he then appointed Mattaniah his father's brother, whose name was changed to Zedekiah to reign in his stead.

                Zedekiah was 21 years old when he began to reign and he reigned in Jerusalem for 11 years and he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.

Chapter 25: The Fall of Jerusalem

                In the ninth year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon he came to Jerusalem and pitched against it and build forts all around the city. Because of the surrounding armies, the city of Jerusalem started to go hungry for the lack of bread.

                Here is where things really get interesting, and where the Book of Mormon can help us understand more of the story from the Bible....

                "And the city was broken up, and all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between two walls, which is by the king's garden: (now the Chaldees were against the city round about:) and the king went the way toward the plain. And the army of the Chaldees took him in the plains of Jericho: and all his army were scattered from him. So they took the king, and brought him up to the king of Babylon to Riblah; and they gave judgment upon him. And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him with fetters of brass and carried him to Babylon." (2 Kings 2:25)

                According to this story all of the sons of Zedekiah were killed, however in the Book of Mormon it talks about how one of his sons... named Mulek fled and came to the Americas!

See Helaman 6:10 and 8:21.

"...the land north was called Mulek, which was after the son of Zedekiah; for the Lord did bring Mulek into the land of the north..." (Helaman 6:10)

"And will you dispute that Jerusalem was destroyed? Will ye say that the sons of Zedekiah were not slain, all except it were Mulek? Yea, and do ye not behold that the seed of Zedekiah are with us, and they were driven out of the land of Jerusalem?" (Helaman 8:21)

                This is something that is very interesting and really helps us to understand the purpose of both the Bible (New and Old Testaments) and the Book of Mormon. The Bible is the word of God, but with the Book of Mormon we realize that God has more to say than just what is written in the Bible and had spoken with people of the Old world (middle east) and the New world (the Americas).

                Nebuchadnezzar with the help of his captain Nebuzar-adan burnt down the house of the Lord and the houses of Jerusalem. The remnants of the people flee to Egypt. Jechoiachin is released from prison and is favored by the new king; Evil-merodach the king of Babylon.