The Daily Audio Bible
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31 Yehoachaz was twenty and three years old when he began to reign; and he reigned shloshah chodashim in Yerushalayim. And shem immo was Chamutal Bat Yirmeyahu of Livnah.
32 And he did that which was rah in the eyes of Hashem, according to all that his Avot had done.
33 And Pharaoh Nekhoh put him in chains at Rivlah in Eretz Chamat, that he might not reign in Yerushalayim; and put HaAretz to an ogesh (tribute, fine) of 100 talents of kesef, and a talent of zahav.
34 And Pharaoh Nekhoh made Elyakim Ben Yoshiyah Melech in the place of Yoshiyah Aviv, and changed shmo to Y’hoyakim, and took Yehoachaz away; and he went to Mitzrayim, and died there.
35 And Y’hoyakim gave the kesef and the zahav to Pharaoh; but he taxed HaAretz to give the kesef according to the order of Pharaoh; he exacted the kesef and the zahav of the Am HaAretz of every one according to his tax assessment, to give it unto Pharaoh Nekhoh.
36 Y’hoyakim was 25 years old when he began to reign; and he reigned 11 shanah in Yerushalayim. And shem immo was Zevudah Bat Pedayah of Rumah.
37 And he did that which was rah in the eyes of Hashem, according to all that his Avot had done.
24 In his yamim Nevuchadnetzar Melech Bavel came up, and Y’hoyakim became his eved (servant, vassal) shalosh shanim; then he turned and rebelled against him.
2 And Hashem sent against him gedudim (soldiers of the army) of the Kasdim, and gedudim of Aram (Syria) and gedudim of Mo’av and gedudim of Bnei Ammon, and sent them against Yehudah to destroy it, according to the Devar Hashem, which He spoke by His avadim the Nevi’im.
3 Surely at the command of Hashem came this upon Yehudah, to remove them out of His sight, for the chattot of Menasheh, according to all that he did;
4 And also for the dahm hanaki (innocent blood) that he shed; for he filled Yerushalayim with dahm naki; which Hashem would not pardon.
5 Now the rest of the acts of Y’hoyakim, and all that he did, are they not written in the Sefer Divrei HaYamim of the Melachim of Yehudah?
6 So Y’hoyakim slept with his Avot; and Y’hoyakhin bno reigned in his place.
7 And Melech Mitzrayim came not again any more out of his land; for Melech Bavel had taken from the Wadi Mitzrayim unto Nahar Euphrates all that belonged to Melech Mitzrayim.
8 Y’hoyakhin was 18 years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Yerushalayim 3 chodashim. And shem immo was Nechushta Bat Elnatan of Yerushalayim.
9 And he did that which was rah in the eyes of Hashem, according to all that his Aviv had done.
10 At that time the avadim of Nevuchadnetzar Melech Bavel came up against Yerushalayim, and the Ir was besieged.
11 Nevuchadnetzar Melech Bavel came against the Ir, and his avadim did besiege it.
12 And Y’hoyakhin Melech Yehudah went out to Melech Bavel, he, and immo, and his avadim, and his sarim, and his sarisim; and Melech Bavel took him in the 8th year of his reign.
13 And he carried off there all the otzerot of the Beis Hashem, and the otzerot of the Bais HaMelech, and cut in pieces kol kelei hazahav which Sh’lomo Melech Yisroel had made in the Heikhal Hashem, as Hashem had said.
14 And he carried away into the Golus all Yerushalayim, and all the sarim, and all the gibborei hachayil, even ten thousand Golus captives, and all the charash and masger (smiths, artisans); none remained, except the dalat am ha’aretz (poor people of the land).
15 And he carried away Y’hoyakhin to Bavel, and the Em HaMelech, and the nashim of HaMelech, and his sarisim, and the leading men of HaAretz, those he carried into the Golus from Yerushalayim to Babylon.
16 And all the anshei hachayil, even shivat alafim, and a thousand charash and masger, all that were gibborim for making milchamah, even them Melech Bavel took into the Golus to Babylon.
17 And Melech Bavel made Matanyah dodo (his [Y’hoyakhin’s] uncle) Melech in his place, and changed shmo to Tzidkiyahu (Zedekiah).
18 Tzidkiyau (Zedekiah) was twenty and one shanah when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven shanah in Yerushalayim. And shem immo was Chamutal Bat Yirmeyahu of Livnah.
19 And he did that which was rah in the eyes of Hashem, according to all that Y’hoyakim had done.
20 For through the anger of Hashem this came about in Yerushalayim and Yehudah, until He cast them out from His presence. And Tzidkiyahu (Zedekiah) rebelled against Melech Bavel.
25 And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month [see Zech 8:19], that Nevuchadretzar Melech Bavel came, he, and all his army, against Yerushalayim, and encamped against it; and built siege works against it round about.
2 And HaIr remained under siege unto the eleventh year of Melech Tzidkiyah.
3 And on the ninth day of the fourth month the ra’av (famine) was severe in the Ir, and there was no lechem for the Am HaAretz.
4 And the Ir was broken through, and all the anshei hamilchamah fled by lailah by the way of the gate between two walls, which was near the Gan HaMelech; (now the Kasdim [Chaldeans] were surrounding the Ir); and HaMelech fled by the derech HaArabah.
5 And the army of the Kasdim pursued after HaMelech, and overtook him in the plains of Yericho; and all his army was separated from him and scattered.
6 So they captured HaMelech, and carried him up to Melech Bavel to Rivlah; and they pronounced mishpat upon him.
7 And they slaughtered the Bnei Tzidkiyah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Tzidkiyah, and bound him with shackles of nechoshet, and carried him to Babylon.
8 And in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month, which is the nineteenth year of Melech Nevuchadretzar Melech Bavel, came Nevuzaradan, captain of the guard, an eved of Melech Bavel, unto Yerushalayim;
9 And he set fire to the Beis Hashem, and the Bais HaMelech (the palace), and all the batim (houses) of Yerushalayim, and every bais hagadol he burned with eish [Tish B’Av, see Jer 52:12].
10 And all the army of the Kasdim (Chaldeans), that were with the captain of the guard, broke down the chomot (walls) around Yerushalayim.
11 Now the remainder of the people that were left in the Ir, and the deserters that fell away to Melech Bavel, with the remnant of the multitude, did Nevuzaradan the captain of the guard carry away.
12 But the captain of the guard left certain of the poor of the land to be koremim and farmers.
13 And the pillars of bronze that were in the Beis Hashem, and the moveable stands, and the Yam Hanechoshet that was in the Beis Hashem, the Kasdim (Chaldeans) broke in pieces, and carried all the bronze to Babylon.
14 And the caldrons, and the shovels, and the snuffers, and the basins and all the klei hanechoshet wherewith they ministered, they took away.
15 And the firepans [for incense], and the bowls, and such things as were made of zahav, and of kesef, the captain of the guard carried away.
16 The two Ammudim, one Yam, and the Stands which Sh’lomo had made for the Beis Hashem; the bronze of all these vessels was beyond weight.
17 The height of the one ammud was eighteen cubits, and the capital upon it was nechoshet; and the height of the capital three cubits; and the netting, and pomegranates upon the capital round about, all of nechoshet; and similar unto these had the second pillar with netting.
18 And the captain of the guard took Serayah the Kohen HaRosh, and Tzephanyah the second kohen, and the three keepers of the door;
19 And out of the Ir he took an officer that was set over the anshei hamilchamah, and five men of them that were royal advisers, which were found in the Ir, and the Sofer who was the chief officer in charge of conscripting the Am HaAretz, and threescore men of the Am HaAretz, that were found in the Ir;
20 And Nevuzaradan, captain of the guard, took these, and brought them to Melech Bavel to Rivlah;
21 And Melech Bavel struck them, and slaughtered them at Rivlah in Eretz Chamat. So Yehudah was carried away captive out of their land.
22 And as for the people that remained in Eretz Yehudah, whom Nevuchadretzar Melech Bavel had left behind, even over them he made Gedalyah ben Achikam ben Shaphan ruler.
23 And when all the officers of the armies, they and their anashim, heard that Melech Bavel had made Gedalyah governor, there came to Gedalyah to Mitzpah, even Yishmael ben Netanyah, and Yochanan ben Kareach, and Serayah ben Tanchumet the Netophati, and Ya’azanyah the ben of a Ma’achati, they and their men.
24 And Gedalyah took an oath to them, and to their men, and said unto them, Fear not to be the avadim of the Kasdim; dwell in the land, and serve Melech Bavel; and it shall be well with you.
25 But it came to pass in the seventh month, that Yishmael ben Netanyah, ben Elishama, of royal blood, came, and ten men with him, and assassinated Gedalyah, that he died, along with the Yehudim and the Kasdim that were with him at Mitzpah.
26 And kol haAm, both katon and gadol, and the officers of the armies, arose, and went to Mitzrayim; for they were afraid of the Kasdim.
27 And it came to pass in the seven and thirtieth year of the Golus of Y’hoyakhin Melech Yehudah, in the twelfth month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, that Eveel-Merodach Melech Bavel in the year that he began to reign [562 B.C.E.] did lift up the head of Y’hoyakhin Melech Yehudah out of the bais hakeleh;
28 And he spoke kindly to him, and set his throne above the kisse of the melachim that were with him in Babylon;
29 And changed his prison garments; and he did eat lechem continually before him all the days of his life.
30 And his allowance was a continual allowance given him of the Melech, a daily portion for every day, all the days of his life.
17 "And it happened that after I had returned to Yerushalayim and as I was davening in the Beis Hamikdash, that I fell into a trance,
18 "And saw Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach saying to me, ‘Hurry and get out quickly from Yerushalayim, because they will not receive your edut (testimony) concerning me.'
19 "And I said ‘Adoni, they themselves have da’as that in every shul I was imprisoning and beating the ones with emunah in you.
20 ‘And when in al kiddush ha-Shem, the dahm of your eidus (witness) Stefanos was being poured out, I myself also had been standing by and agreeing and protecting the kaftans of the ones killing him.'
21 "And Moshiach said to me, ‘Go! For I will send you out, far away to the Goyim.’'"
22 And they were listening to Rav Sha’ul up to the word "Goyim;" and then they lifted up their kol, saying, "Away with such a one from ha’aretz! He should not be allowed to live!"
23 And while they were crying out, while they were throwing off their kaftans and tossing dust into the air, [SHMUEL BAIS 16:13]
24 the Roman tribune directed him to be brought into the barracks, and ordered him to be examined by the flagellum’s scourge, that the tribune might have da’as of the reason for the mob’s shouting thus keneged (against, in opposition to) Rav Sha’ul.
25 And when the Roman soldiers stretched Rav Sha’ul out with the straps, he said to the centurion who was standing by, "If a man is a Roman citizen and uncondemned, it is lawful for you to scourge him?"
26 And having heard this, the centurion approached the tribune and reported, saying, "What are you about to do? For this man has Roman citizenship."
27 And having approached, the tribune said to Rav Sha’ul, "Tell me, are you a Roman?" And Rav Sha’ul said, "Etiam." [T.N. Latin: "Yes, certainly."]
28 And the tribune answered, "It cost me a large sum of money for me to acquire my Roman citizenship. " And Rav Sha’ul said, "But indeed I have been born a Roman citizen."
29 Ofen ort, then, the ones about to examine him drew back from Rav Sha’ul. Also the tribune did the same. For he was afraid, learning that Rav Sha’ul is a Roman and that he had bound him.
30 And on the next day, desiring to know something definite about why Rav Sha’ul was accused by the Yehudim, the tribune released him and ordered the Rashei Hakohanim and all the Sanhedrin to be assembled. Then, having brought down Rav Sha’ul, the tribune had him set before them.
23 And as he gazed at the Sanhedrin, Rav Sha’ul said, “Anashim, Achim, I have lived before Hashem until this day with a lev tahor.”
2 And the Kohen Gadol Chananyah ordered the ones standing by Rav Sha’ul to strike his mouth.
3 Then Rav Sha’ul said to him, “Hashem is about to strike you, you white-washed wall! You sit judging me according to Torah and yet in violation of the Torah you command me to be struck?” [Lv 19:15; Dt 25:1,2]
4 And the ones standing by said, “Do you revile the Kohen Gadol of Hashem?”
5 And Rav Sha’ul said, “I was without da’as, Achim, that he is the Kohen Gadol, for it has been written, NASI V’AMMECHA LO TA’OR (“A ruler of your people you will not speak evil of, curse,” Ex 22:27(28)
6 And Rav Sha’ul, having da’as that one kat is of Tzedukim (Sadducees) and the other of Perushim (Pharisees), was crying out in the Sanhedrin, “Anashim, Achim, I am a Parush ben Parush and it is for the tikvah of the Techiyas HaMesim that I am being judged.”
7 Now when Rav Sha’ul said this, there came about a machlochet (controversy) between the Perushim and Tzedukim, and the multitude was divided.
8 Loit (according to) the Tzedukim, there is no Techiyas HaMesim nor a malach nor ruchot, but Perushim acknowledge all these things.
9 And there was a kol gadol and some of the Sofrim of the kat of the Perushim were arguing vigorously, saying, “Nothing rah do we find keneged this ish, and what if a ruach did speak to him or a malach?”
10 And fearing much more machloket was coming, the Roman tribune ordered the troops to go down to take Rav Sha’ul away from the midst of them and to bring him into the barracks lest he be torn to pieces by them.
2 Why do the Goyim rage, and the Amim (peoples) imagine a vain thing?
2 The Malchei Eretz rise up in rebellion, and the rulers take counsel together against Hashem and against His Moshiach, saying,
3 Let us break their chains asunder, and cast away their fetters from us.
4 He that sitteth enthroned in Shomayim laughs; Adonoi hath them in derision.
5 Then shall He speak unto them in His wrath, and distress them in His hot displeasure.
6 I have set Malki (My King) upon Tziyon, My Har Kodesh.
7 I will declare the chok (decree): Hashem hath said unto me, Thou art Beni (My Son, i.e. Ben HaElohim Moshiach); HaYom (today) I have begotten thee.
8 Ask of Me, and I shall give thee the Goyim for thine nachalah, and the uttermost parts of ha’aretz for thy possession.
9 Thou shalt rule them with a shevet barzel; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.
10 Have seichel now therefore, O ye Melachim; be warned, ye Shoftei Aretz.
11 Serve Hashem with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
12 Kiss the Bar (Ben, Son, [see Hebrew Mishlei 31:2; Ben HaElohim Moshiach; see 2:2,7, above]), lest he be angry, and ye perish from the Derech, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Ashrei are all they that take refuge in him [Moshiach].
13 He that answereth a matter before he heareth it, it is folly and kelimmah (reproach, shame) unto him.
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