The kinfdom of Israel had been taken captive 120 years before by the king of Assyria. Then God brought judgment upon the southern kingdom of Judah. Nebuchadnezzar had come to Jerusalem and carried away ten thousand of the chief men of the southern kingdom and some of the royal seed, including Daniel and Ezekiel. (See 2 Chronicles 36:6,7; Daniel 1:1-3; 2 Kings 24:14-16) The people of Israel had been living in constant trouble. It took Nebuchadnezzar twenty years to completely destroy Jerusalem. He could have done it sooner but he wanted tribute money. Then, too, Daniel was his court favorite and he may have been influenced by his young prime minister. He was finally forced to devastate Jerusalem because the city persisted in allying herself with Egypt. It was a tragic hour for Jerusalem when her walls were laid flat, her houses burned, the temple destroyed and her people dragged away as captives.
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