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Lenten Season · Fourth Sunday of Lent · Year B

2 Chronicles 36:14-16, 19-23

Zedekiah King of Judah

March 7, 2027

An den Wassern Babylons (By the Waters of Babylon), Gebhard Fugel
An den Wassern Babylons (By the Waters of Babylon), Gebhard Fugel, c. 1920Diözesanmuseum Freising (artist died 1939)
A German church painter's exile scene: the harps hung in the willows and the people sitting with their backs to the viewer by the water.The reading ends the books of Chronicles with the exile and the decree that let them go home, which is what this group is waiting for.Gebhard FugelA German painter of church murals and biblical subjects, best known for an enormous panorama of the crucifixion.Diözesanmuseum Freising (artist died 1939)A Bavarian diocesan museum on a cathedral hill, holding one of the largest collections of church art in Germany.Diözesanmuseum Freising (artist died 1939)
Roman Lectionary
GospelJohn 3:14-21Jn 3:14-21Alt. GospelIf Second Scrutiny of the Elect: John 9:1-41If Second Scrutiny of the Elect: Jn 9:1-41 orJohn 9:1, 6-9, 13-17, 34-38Jn 9:1, 6-9, 13-17, 34-38
Second ReadingEph. 2:4-10Eph 2:4-10Alt. 2nd ReadingIf Second Scrutiny of the Elect: Ephesians 5:8-14If Second Scrutiny of the Elect: Eph 5:8-14
First Reading2 Chron. 36:14-16, 19-232 Chr 36:14-16, 19-23Alt. 1st ReadingIf Second Scrutiny of the Elect: 1 Samuel 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13aIf Second Scrutiny of the Elect: 1 Sm 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13a
Responsorial PsalmPs. 137:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6 (6ab)Ps 137:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6 (6ab)Alt. PsalmIf Second Scrutiny of the Elect: Psalm 23: 1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6, (1)If Second Scrutiny of the Elect: Ps 23: 1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6, (1)

Overview & Insights

“The Lord, the God of heaven… has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem.” (2 Chronicles 36:23)

The accounts of the last four kings of Judah are very brief. Two of them (Jehoahaz and Jehoiachin) ruled for only about three months each, while the other two (Jehoiakim and Zedekiah) each ruled for eleven years. Jehoahaz and Jehoiakim therefore were nothing more than transitional figures bracketing the rule of King Jehoiakim of Judah and leading to the rule of Zedekiah. Although Jehoahaz and Jehoiakim were still successors to the throne of their respective fathers, Jehoiakim and Zedekiah were actually puppet figures put on the throne by the Egyptian and Babylonian kings, respectively (36:4, 10). The Chronicler made use of the Deuteronomistic accounts of these kings’ reigns (in 2 Kgs. 23:31–24:20) but abbreviated even further the already short accounts given there.

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Take it further: 2 Chronicles 36:14-16, 19-23

Commentary

2 Chronicles 36 Commentary: The Fall of Jerusalem2 Chr 36 Commentary: The Fall of Jerusalem Enduring Word · David Guzik

David Guzik's verse-by-verse notes on the exile, the sabbath rest of the land, and the decree of Cyrus.

2 Chronicles 36 Commentary2 Chr 36 Commentary Precept Austin

Deep verse-by-verse study collating multiple commentators on Judah's last kings and the return from exile.

2 Chronicles 36:14 Commentaries2 Chr 36:14 Commentaries BibleHub

Aggregated classic commentaries on the desecration of the temple and the Babylonian captivity.

2 Chronicles 36 - Constable's Expository Notes2 Chr 36 - Constable's Expository Notes StudyLight

Thomas Constable's detailed expository notes on the closing chapter of Chronicles and the edict of Cyrus.

Fourth Sunday of Lent, Year B (Readings) Agape Bible Study

Catholic study reading the destruction of the temple and exile as the setting for Laetare Sunday's mercy.

Background & Word Study

II Chronicles 36 - Sefaria Sefaria

Hebrew text of the final chapter of Chronicles with classical Jewish commentary and translation.

2 Chronicles 36:14 Interlinear2 Chr 36:14 Interlinear BibleHub

Hebrew word-by-word interlinear with parsing and Strong's numbers for the passage.

Books of Chronicles Overview BibleProject

Animated overview showing how Chronicles ends in exile yet leaves readers hoping for return and a temple.

Questions preachers ask

How does 2 Chronicles end?

After the fall of Jerusalem and seventy years of exile, God stirs up Cyrus of Persia to send the people home and rebuild the temple, a dawn of hope after judgment.

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