Then the Chaldeans set fire to the house of God and broke down the wall of Jerusalem. They burned down all the palaces and destroyed every article of value.
Parallel translations
- WEB They burned God’s house, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem, and burned all its palaces with fire, and destroyed all of its valuable vessels.
- KJV And they burnt the house of God, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem, and burnt all the palaces thereof with fire, and destroyed all the goodly vessels thereof.
- NKJV Then they burned the house of God, broke down the wall of Jerusalem, burned all its palaces with fire, and destroyed all its precious possessions.
- NASB Then they burned the house of God and broke down the wall of Jerusalem, and burned all its fortified buildings with fire and destroyed all its valuable articles.
- NLT Then his army burned the Temple of God, tore down the walls of Jerusalem, burned all the palaces, and completely destroyed everything of value.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The Babylonians burn the temple, break down Jerusalem's wall, and destroy its palaces and treasures. The holy city and house of God lie in ruins.
Overview
The temple is burned, the city walls demolished, and the palaces and precious objects destroyed by fire. This devastation fulfills the prophets' warnings and marks the lowest point in Judah's history. The destruction of God's house, however, is not the end of God's purposes, for the very next verses point toward restoration.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Ps 79:1A Psalm of Asaph. The nations, O God, have invaded Your inheritance; they have defiled Your holy temple and reduced Jerusalem to rubble.
- Ps 79:7for they have devoured Jacob and devastated his homeland.
- Isa 64:10–11Your holy cities have become a wilderness. Zion has become a wasteland and Jerusalem a desolation.
- Ps 74:4–8Your foes have roared within Your meeting place; they have unfurled their banners as signs,
- Jer 52:13–15He burned down the house of the LORD, the royal palace, and all the houses of Jerusalem—every significant building.
- 1 Kgs 9:8And when this temple has become a heap of rubble, all who pass by it will be appalled and will hiss and say, ‘Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’
- Jer 7:14therefore what I did to Shiloh I will now do to the house that bears My Name, the house in which you trust, the place that I gave to you and your fathers.
- Jer 7:4Do not trust in deceptive words, chanting: ‘This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD.’
- 2 Kgs 25:9–11He burned down the house of the LORD, the royal palace, and all the houses of Jerusalem—every significant building.
- Mic 3:12Therefore, because of you, Zion will be plowed like a field, Jerusalem will become a heap of rubble, and the temple mount a wooded ridge.
- Lam 4:1How the gold has become tarnished, the pure gold has become dull! The gems of the temple lie scattered on every street corner.
- Luke 21:6“As for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”
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Christ at the center
Temple, priesthood, and the repeated need for a faithful king who seeks the LORD all point past every imperfect reign to the King and Temple who finally and fully dwell with God's people.
How 2 Chronicles 36:19 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.