2 Chronicles 36:8
Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim, and his abominations which he did, and that which was found in him, behold, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah: and Jehoiachin his son reigned in his stead. Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim, and his abominations which he did, and that which was found in him, behold, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah: and Jehoiachin his son reigned in his stead.
The verse closes the account of Jehoiakim by noting that the rest of his acts, his abominations, and what was found in him were written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah, and that his son Jehoiachin reigned in his place, in the rapid decline of Judah after Josiah toward Jerusalem's destruction in 586 B.C. Jehoiakim served Nebuchadnezzar three years and then rebelled, and during his reign Nebuchadnezzar came against Jerusalem and carried its leading people to Babylon, including Daniel and his companions. This stands in Nebuchadnezzar's three captivities of Judah, the first in B.C. 606 beginning the seventy years, the second in B.C. 598, and the third in B.C. 586 with the complete destruction of Jerusalem, seventy years reaching to B.C. 536 in the first year of Cyrus. Jehoiakim did evil in the sight of the Lord, unlike his father Josiah who kept God's law, for the people turned from God, forgot His Sabbath, practiced idolatry, and rejected His messengers until there was no remedy, so punishment came in exile, captivity, and bondage for disobedience. After Josiah's reign the observance of release years and jubilees ended and the land lay desolate while the people were in enemy territory, yet this history of the kings widens the horizon and gives precious spiritual lessons connected with God's revelation culminating in Christ, of whom the Scriptures testify for wisdom unto salvation and eternal life.
Historical Setting and Record
The verse belongs to the rapid account of Judah's final decline after Josiah, as the kingdom passed through Jehoiakim and the kings who followed him toward the destruction of Jerusalem. That decline moved through the reigns of Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah before ending in 586 B.C. The rest of Jehoiakim's acts, his abominations, and what was found in him were written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah, and his son Jehoiachin reigned in his place. The chapter also records the later Babylonian captures of Jerusalem in 599 and 588 B.C., when the remaining temple treasures were taken.
Jehoiakim served Nebuchadnezzar for three years and then rebelled, and after Jerusalem was taken Jehoiachin became king in his place. The chapter gives a long record of the events surrounding Jerusalem's siege that establishes the truth of the event apart from Kings. The account in 2 Kings 24:1 specifies the invasion by saying Nebuchadnezzar came up and Jehoiakim became his servant, although it does not use the word siege. The chapter supports the setting of Daniel's history, in that during Jehoiakim's reign Nebuchadnezzar came against Jerusalem, took it, and carried some of its leading people to Babylon, including Daniel and his companions.
The verse belongs to the record of Nebuchadnezzar's three captivities of Judah: the first in B.C. 606 when Daniel and his companions were taken, the second in B.C. 598 when Ezekiel and many others were taken with much treasure, and the third in B.C. 586 when Jerusalem was completely destroyed. Seventy years from the first captivity in B.C. 606 reaches B.C. 536, the first year of Cyrus in his rule over all Medo-Persia including Babylon. Jerusalem was conquered by Nebuchadnezzar in 606 B.C. and the people were removed to Babylon by 588 B.C. After the seventy-year captivity they were allowed to return, but they never again became an independent nation, and Jerusalem was finally destroyed by the Romans in A.D. 70. The verse stands in the record of the going away into Babylon, with the first great captivity in B.C. 606 beginning the seventy years' captivity and the destruction of Jerusalem and taking of many to Babylon in B.C. 586, putting the first captivity 602 years before the birth of Christ four years before the common era.
Spiritual Lessons and Consequences
Jehoiakim did evil in the sight of the Lord, and he was unlike his father Josiah, who responded to God's law by carrying out its requirements. Judah's people in his time turned from God, forgot His Sabbath, and practiced idolatry. Israel as a whole failed to learn the lessons of Sinai, rejected God's messengers, and continued in sin until there was no remedy, and their punishment brought exile, captivity, and bondage.
The history around this verse marks the end of Israel's observance of release years and jubilees, in that after Josiah's reign the people, rulers, and land could no longer be redeemed, and the land lay desolate while the people were in enemy territory. The scattering of Israel began with Babylon's destruction of Jerusalem, and this scattering followed disobedience to God's commandments. The history of the kings of Israel and Judah widens the horizon, presents the setting for Bible events, and gives precious spiritual lessons. That history was not written to exalt man or merely to record human successes and failures, but is connected with God's historical revelation culminating in Christ, from whom illuminating light is shed through all of Scripture and who holds all its parts together, and the Scriptures testify of Christ for wisdom unto salvation and eternal life.