In all, out of an estimated total population of more than one million, approximately 10,000 people, exclusive of artisans, were exiled (II Kings 24:14). This event is known as Galus Yechanya, the Exile of Yechanya. The Babylonians left the farmers and poorer classes behind to tend the fields and maintain a local population in Judah.
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Though the cream of the Jewish crop had already been exiled from Judah, the majority of Jews remained in their homeland following Yechanya’s surrender. Most of these Jews were uneducated and inexperienced in political affairs. They lacked the leadership skills necessary to guide the Jewish people through this next delicate phase in their history.
The last king of the Jewish people before the final exile was Tzidkiyahu. He began his reign as a Babylonian vassal when he was 21 years old. Tzidkiyahu was a weak king with limited experience and poor advisers. Zealous princes in Judah together with other national leaders persuaded him to join forces in rebellion against Nevuchadnezzar.
They used two arguments to support their recommendation.
First, they claimed the Babylonians would not bother with their small uprising. In addition, they argued that even if the Babylonians did march on Judah, the powerful Egyptians would intercede on the Jews’ behalf in order keep the Babylonians out of their immediate region.
By acquiescing to their arguments, Tzidkiyahu acted in open opposition to the prophet Yirmiyahu’s advice. He even went so far as to persecute the prophet for having spoken against his agenda.
Tzidkiyahu’s decision proved catastrophic. Nevuchadnezzar arrived shortly thereafter and laid siege to Jerusalem yet again. For a while it appeared Tzidkiyahu’s gamble would pay off, as the Egyptian army came to the city’s defense and put a temporary end to the barricade. But once the Egyptians left, the Babylonians returned to resume their siege of Jerusalem. It lasted two years, until all supplies were exhausted in the city. On Tammuz 9, 423 BCE, the city walls were breached. A month later, on 9 Av, the destruction of the Temple began.
For breaking his oath of allegiance, Tzidkiyahu was forced to witness the death of his sons before he himself was blinded and exiled to Babylon. Other leading officials were likewise put to death. All but the poorest were sent into exile. The kingdom of Judah was terminated.
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The story of Yirmiyahu is one of intense personal and national pain. He never married, having been instructed by God not to build a family of his own in light of the impending destruction. His energies were focused on persuading the Jewish people to repent, an exercise that was, tragically, unsuccessful.
Yirmiyahu first began to prophesy in the years following the reign of Menasheh. He continued to do so for the rest of his life, urging the people to seek atonement. His later years coincided with the rise of Babylonia as a world power and its extended exile of the Jewish people. His messages are clearly marked with a conviction that Judah was under God’s judgment and Babylon was His appointed messenger to exile the Jews.
He stressed spiritual and moral improvement over military prowess or political savvy. Yirmiyahu said that only repentance could save the people from destruction. When his message went unheeded, he realized destruction was inevitable. He thus counseled submission to Babylon, opposing any talk of revolt.
Such an approach did little to enhance Yirmiyahu’s popularity among the Jewish people. Both the populace and the monarchs opposed him. He was later forbidden entrance to the Temple, and was even imprisoned. Throughout, Yirmiyahu displayed remarkable resilience and fortitude in his divinely appointed mission.
