The Captivity of Judah.
Eze., Dan., Lam.
The Ten Tribes Lost. After the fall of Samaria we hear but little of
the ten tribes. They were carried off into the regions of Ninevah by
the Assyrians. All effort to locate them has failed and no doubt will
fail. Sargon, in an inscription found at Ninevah, said that he carried
away into captivity 27,290. These were perhaps leaders of Israel whom
he thought might lead a revolt. He sent others back to take their
place and the Israelites seemed to have mingled with the races about
them and to have lost their identity. No doubt some of them as
individuals were faithful to the worship of Jehovah and may have found
their way back to Palestine under the leadership of Ezra and Nehemiah.
But it was different with Judah who all the time kept true to her
ideals and looked for the return that had been prophesied. This hope
was realized through the work of Ezra and Nehemiah following the
decree of Cyrus.
Judah Led into Captivity. The captivity of Judah was accomplished by
three distinct invasions of the Babylonians and covered a period of
twenty years. (1) _The first invasion and captivity_. This was in 607
B.C., at which time Daniel and his friends along with others were
carried into captivity, 2 K. 24:1, Jer. 25:1, Dan. 1:1-7. (2) _The
second invasion and captivity_. This was 597 B.C., at which time king
Jehoiakim and 10.000 of the people were carried into captivity. Among
these were Ezekiel and one of the ancestors of Mordicai, the cousin of
Esther, 2 K. 24:10-16; Eze. 1:1-2; Est. 2:5-6. (3) _The third invasion
and captivity_. In 587 B.C. Jerusalem was conquered and its walls and
palaces as well as the temple were destroyed and the inhabitants
carried away into exile, 2 K. 24:18; 24:1-27; 2 Chron. 36:11-21; Jer.
52:1-11. This is the end of the southern kingdom.
The Period of the Captivity. Jeremiah predicts that the captivity will
last seventy years (Jer. 25:12; 29:10; see 2 Chron. 36:21; Dan. 9:2:
Zech. 7:6). There are two ways of adjusting the dates to fulfill this
prediction, (1) From the first invasion and the carrying into
captivity of Daniel and others, 607 B. C. to 537 B. C., when the first
company returned under Zerubbabel. (2) From the final fall of
Jerusalem. 587 B. C. to the completion of the renewed temple and its
dedication, 517 B. C. Either satisfies the scripture. In history it is
customary to speak of this exile as covering only the fifty years from
587 B. C. when Jerusalem was destroyed and the last company carried
away to 537 B. C. when the first company returned under Zerubbabel.
The Fugitives in Egypt. When Jerusalem fell the king of Babylon
allowed many of the poorer people to remain in Palestine and Jedediah,
a grandson of Josiah, was appointed to rule over them. 2 K. 25:22. His
career was a very useful one, but through jealousy he was soon
murdered, 2 K. 25:25. This led the people to fear lest Nebuchadnezzar
would avenge his death, whereupon they fled into Egypt 2 K. 25:26.
Jeremiah attempted to keep them from going to Egypt (Jer. 42:9-22.)
but, when he failed, he went along with them and shared their destiny,
Jer. 43:6-7. They settled at Tahpanhee (Jer. 44:1), a frontier town
where many foreigners lived under the protection of Egypt. They seem
to have built a temple there and did much to retain their racial
ideals. Jeremiah seems to have continued his faithful prophecies and
the people seem to have continued as faithfully to reject his counsel.
We do not know how he ended his career but Jewish tradition says he
was put to death by his own people.
The Exiles in Babylon. The state of the exiles in Babylon may not be
fully known but from the contemporary writers very much may be known.
(1) _Their home_. They were settled in a rich and fertile plain,
intersected by many canals. It was on the river, or canal, Chebar (Ez.
1:1.3; 3:15, etc.) which ran southeast from Babylon to Nippur. It was
a land of traffic and merchants and fruitful fields (Ez. 17:4-5). They
were rather colonists than slaves and enjoyed great freedom and
prosperity. (2) _Their occupation_. By reason of their intellectual
and moral superiority the Jews, as they are called from this time
forward, would secure rapid advancement. Some of them such as Daniel
obtained high position. Others became skilled workmen. Following the
advice of Jeremiah (Jer. 29:5), many of them no doubt gave themselves
to agriculture and gardening. Probably most of them yielded to the
opportunities of the "land of traffic and merchants" mentioned above
and engaged in commercial instead of agricultural pursuits. (3) _Their
government_. For a long time they were allowed to control their own
affairs as their own laws provided. The elders of the families acted
as judges and directed affairs in general. For a while they probably
held the power of life and death over their own people, but the
capital cases were punished later by authority of Babylon (Jer.
29:22.) (4) _Their religion_. Here also the information is meager and
must be gathered from statements and inferences found in several
books. Several things are certain: (a) For the most part they
preserved their genealogies, thus making possible the identity of the
Messiah as well as their proper place in worship when they were
restored; (b) They gave up all idolatry and were never again led into
its evil practices as they had been wont to do before. Indeed, there
are, even to the present day, no idolatrous Jews; (c) They gave up the
elaborate ceremonials and the public and private sacrifices and the
great festivals. In their stead prayer and fasting and Sabbath
observances constituted the main part of their religious life. The
observance of the Sabbath became a ceremony and was robbed of its
simple divine purpose; (d) They assembled the people together on the
Sabbath for the purpose of prayer and the reading of the scripture.
This custom probably formed the basis for synagogue worship so
influential later; (e) All this private devotion and prayer such as
was seen in the thrice-a-day worship of Daniel was opening the way for
a purer and more spiritual religion; (f) The Canon was greatly
enlarged and new spiritual teachings were announced or new light
thrown on old teachings. The prophesies of Daniel and Ezekiel with
many psalms were added. The book of Lamentations and chapters 40-44 of
Jeremiah were also the products of this date but refer especially to
the conditions of those in Egypt.
The Prophets of the Exile. This period is calculated to bring great
discouragement to the Jews. They so far failed of their expectations
that there is danger that they will give up their proper regard for
Jehovah. They have great need that some one tell them the significance
of their suffering and point out for them some word of hope for the
future. This service was rendered by the prophets. There was great
activity on the part of false prophets (Jer. 39:4-8, 21-23;
Ez. 13:1-7, 14:8-10), but they were blessed by the following true
prophets: (1) _Ezekiel_. These prophecies began by recounting the
incidents of the prophet's call and the incidents between the first
and the second captivities; they then denounce those nations that had
part in the destruction of Jerusalem and those that had been bitter
and oppressive in their dealings with Israel and Judah; they close
with messages of comfort and cheer for the exiled people; (2)
_Daniel_. (3) _Lamentations_. Besides a portion of the book of
Jeremiah and probably of Isaiah which, as suggested above, belongs to
this period, the book of Lamentations, written while in exile in
Egypt, should be placed here. All three of these books should be read
by following the outline given in "The Bible Book by Book."
The Benefits of the Captivity, Dr. Burroughs gives as benefits that
the Jews derived from the captivity the following four things: (1) the
destruction of idolatry; (2) the rise of the synagogue; (3) a deepened
respect for the law of Moses; (4) a longing for the Messiah. To these
might be added or emphasized as being included in them: (1) a vital
sense of repentance was created; (2) the change from the national,
festal and ceremonial worship to a spiritual and individual religion;
(3) a belief that Israel had been chosen and trained in order that
through her Jehovah might bless the whole world.
Lessons of the Period. The experiences of Judah as recorded in this
period bring us several important truths. (1) That sin will tear down
both men and nations. (2) Men are responsible and suffer for their own
sins but not for the sins of others, Ez. 18:2-3; 33:10-11. (3) God
controls all circumstances toward the ultimate accomplishment of his
purposes. (4) He makes free use of all "world rulers as his tools to
execute his will" (5) God sets up and destroys nations. (6) God cares
for his people and overrules all for their good. See Dan., etc. (7)
One can live right in spite of one's surroundings (see Daniel) and
such living will lead men to know God. (8) Evil grows more and more
determined while good grows more and more distinct and hence the
question "Is the world growing better?" (9) God rejoices in the
opportunity to forgive his erring people and in restoring them again
into his partnership.
For Study and Discussion, (1) When, to whom and by whom the exile was
predicted: (a) 2 K. 20:17-18; (b) 2 K. 21:10-16; (c) 2 K. 22:16-17,
Dt. 28:25, 52-68; (d) Jer. 25:9-11; (e) Jer. 34:2-3; (f) Mic. 3:12;
(g) Zeph. 1:2-6. (2) The different classes of exiles: (a) Those in
favor with the court, Dan. 1:19-21, 2:45-49; (b) Common laborers-lower
classes, Jer. ch. 29, Eze. ch. 13; (c) Pretentious prophets, Eze. ch.
13, Jer. ch. 29. (3) The social condition of the exiles, 2 K. 25:27;
Dan. 1:19-21; Is. 60:1; Jer. 29:4-7, Esth., and passages in Eze. (4)
The details of each of the three invasions and the captivities as
outlined above. See scriptures. (5) The exiles in Egypt: (a) Who they
were, (b) How they fared. (6) The activity and influence of false
prophets of this age. (7) The story of Nebuchadnezzar's dreams and
their interpretation: (a) the image dream, (b) the tree dream. (8) The
stories of (a) The fiery furnace; (b) of the lion's den. (9) The feast
of Belshazzar. (10) The visions of Daniel 7:1-14, 8:1-12, 10:4-6. (11)
The four beasts of Daniel and their significance. (12) The oracles
against foreign nations, Eze. chs. 25-32. (13) The benefits mentioned
above. (14) The lessons mentioned above. Find scripture basis for
them.