597 BC (About 2,600 years ago)
After several years of subjugation, the Kingdom of Judah rebels and the Babylonians return and besiege Jerusalem, in about 597 BC.
The Babylonians remove King Jehoiachin from the throne and take him as prisoner to Babylon. He was the son of Jehoiakim, who was the previous king, when the subjugation began. The Babylonians replace Jehoiachin with his uncle, Zedekiah, as a puppet king.
The Babylonians also take more members of the royal family, as well as many skilled workers, artisans, officers, and soldiers, as captives to Babylon (2 Kings 24:10-16; 2 Chronicles 36:9-10; Jeremiah 24:1, 52:28).
Jehoiachin also is known as Jeconiah and Coniah. This deportation in 597 BC is likely to have included the prophet Ezekiel.
The subjugation of Judah fulfills many prophecies given by various Old Testament prophets, including Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Isaiah as explained in the book 100 Fulfilled Bible Prophecies.
As explained by these prophets, too many of the people of Judah had turned away from God and were being punished through Nebuchadnezzar.
Next: Babylon destroys Jerusalem and Temple
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