During Jehoiakim’s reign, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon invaded the land, and Jehoiakim became his vassal for three years. But then he turned against Nebuchadnezzar and rebelled. – 2 Kings 24:1

Today’s Scripture Reading (March 21, 2017) 2 Kings 24

Necho II reigned in Egypt during a particularly tumultuous time in the nation's history. The Babylonian Empire had started its rise to prominence. With the help of the Cimmerians, Scythians, and the Kingdom of Judah, Babylon had shattered the hold that the Assyrians had held previously in the region. Necho wanted to maintain the status quo and avoid the chaos of an Empire struggle in the area, so he sent out a portion of his army to help the Assyrians. Unfortunately, the army he had sent proved to be too small, but he learned his lesson quickly and attacked one more time, this time succeeded. It was a battle that would claim the life of Josiah, the King of Judah.

Leaving a sizable army in the field to protect his assets, Necho returned home, and while passing through Judah, he noticed that the people had placed Jehoahaz, the son of Josiah, on the throne of Judah. But Necho wanted someone who would be more amenable to Egypt’s purposes in the area. So he removed Jehoahaz from the throne and took him as a captive to Egypt. Jehoahaz would live out the rest of his days as a guest of Necho in Egypt. In his place, Necho put Jehoahaz’s brother Jehoiakim on the throne in Judah. Jehoiakim paid Egypt tribute money as the price of their freedom, but essentially the nation paid for their alliance with Babylon by becoming a vassal state of Egypt.

But in 605 BCE Nebuchadnezzar replaced his father, who was sick, as the king of the Babylonians. And one of his first acts was to invade Judah, the vassal state of Egypt. And he defeated them and carried off the first installment of captives to Babylon. For the next three years, Judah would be a vassal state tied to Babylon.

But in 601 BCE two significant things happened. The first was the Nebuchadnezzar returned home, leaving a sizable army in Judah, but not his personal presence. The second event was that Necho II of Egypt would make what would be his final attempt at world conquest, starting with Judah. Whether Jehoiakim recognized Necho’s return as a chance to shake off of the bonds of Babylon, or whether Jehoiakim was moved because his brother Jehoahaz was still a captive of Necho in Egypt, Jehoiakim rebelled against Babylon. But what Judah did not recognize was that the rise of Nebuchadnezzar at this time in history was an act of God trying to get the attention of his people. It was not Nebuchadnezzar that Necho and Jehoiakim were struggling against, it was God. And Judah’s continued rebellion would only solidify the hold that Nebuchadnezzar would end up having on the nation.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Ezekiel 1