36 ¹³ He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God; he stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to Yahweh, the God of Israel. 36 ¹⁴ All the leading priests and the people likewise were exceedingly unfaithful, following all the abominations of the nations; and they polluted the house of Yahweh which he had hallowed in Jerusalem.

36 ¹⁵ Yahweh, the God of their fathers, sent persistently to them by his messengers, because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place; 36 ¹⁶ but they kept mocking the messengers of God, despising his words, and scoffing at his prophets, till the wrath of Yahweh rose against his people, till there was no remedy.

36 ¹⁷ Therefore he brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who slew their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion on young man or virgin, old man or aged; he gave them all into his hand. 36 ¹⁸ And all the vessels of the house of God, great and small, and the treasures of the house of Yahweh, and the treasures of the king and of his princes, all these he brought to Babylon. 36 ¹⁹ And they burned the house of God, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem, and burned all its palaces with fire, and destroyed all its precious vessels. 36 ²⁰ He took into exile in Babylon those who had escaped from the sword, and they became servants to him and to his sons until the establishment of the kingdom of Persia, 36 ²¹ to fulfil the word of Yahweh by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed its sabbaths. All the days that it lay desolate it kept sabbath, to fulfil seventy years.