Anonymous

Difference between revisions of "Captivity"

From BiblePortal Wikipedia
1,082 bytes removed ,  14:45, 12 October 2021
no edit summary
Line 1: Line 1:
== Fausset's Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_34938" /> ==
<p> Used in [[Scripture]] for compulsory exile. Besides minor captivities six under the judges, namely, that by Chushan-rishathaim, Eglon, the Philistines, [[Jabin]] of Canaan, Midian, [[Ammon]] (Judges 3; Judges 4; Judges 6; Judges 10), and that by [[Hazael]] of [[Syria]] (2 Kings 10:32), there were three great captivities. First in the reign of [[Pekah]] of Israel, when Tiglath Pileser, king of Assyria, carried away the people. of Gilead, Galilee, and all [[Naphtali]] (2 Kings 15:29; Isaiah 9:1). As [[Pul]] his predecessor is named with Tiglath Pileser as having carried away Reuben, Gad, and half [[Manasseh]] to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river [[Gozan]] (1 Chronicles 5:25-26), probably Tiglath Pileser carried (740 B.C.) out what Pul had intended but was diverted from by Menahem's bribe (771 or 762 B.C., Rawlinson) (2 Kings 15:19-20). </p> <p> Secondly, in the reign of [[Hoshea]] of Israel, [[Shalmaneser]] king of Assyria, after letting him remain as a tributary prince for a time, at last when Hoshea omitted to send his yearly "present," and made a league with So or Sabacho II of [[Egypt]] (of which the record still exists on clay cylindrical seals found at Koyunjik), put Hoshea in prison and besieged [[Samaria]] three years, and in the ninth year of Hoshea's reign (721 B.C.) took it, and "carried [[Israel]] away to [[Halah]] and [[Habor]] by the river Gozan, and to the cities of the Medes" (2 Kings 17:1-6). [[Sargon]] (Isaiah 20:1), according to the [[Assyrian]] monuments, completed the capture of Samaria which Shalmaneser began. In striking minute coincidence with Scripture, he was the first Assyrian monarch who conquered Media. In the monuments he expressly says that, in order to complete the subjugation of Media, he founded in it cities which he planted with colonists from other parts of his dominions. </p> <p> [[Sennacherib]] (713 B.C.) carried into [[Assyria]] 200,000 from the [[Jewish]] cities he captured (2 Kings 18:13). Thirdly, [[Nebuchadnezzar]] carried away [[Judith]] under [[Zedekiah]] to Babylon, 588 B.C. (2 Kings 24; 25.) A previous deportation of Jewish captives (including Ezekiel, Ezekiel 1:1-3, and Mordecai, Esther's uncle, Esther 2:6) was tint of King Jehoiachin, his princes, men of valor, and the craftsmen, 599 B.C. From Jeremiah 52:12; Jeremiah 52:15; Jeremiah 52:28-29; Jeremiah 52:30 we learn Nebuchadnezzar in his seventh (or eighth, according to the month with which the counting of the year begins) year carried away 3,023; but in 2 Kings 24:14; 2 Kings 24:16; 2 Kings 24:10; 2 Kings 24:000, and 7,000 men of might, and 1,000 craftsmen; the 3,023 were probably of Judah, the remaining 7,000 were of the other tribes of Israel, of whom some still had been left after the Assyrian deportation; the 1,000 craftsmen were exclusive of the 10,000. </p> <p> Or else the 3,023 were removed in the seventh year, the 7,000 find 1,000 craftsmen in the eighth year. In the 18th or 19th year of Nebuchadnezzar 832 of the most illustrious persons were carried away. In the 23rd year of Nebuchadnezzar, 745 persons, besides the general multitude of the poor, and the residue of the people in the city, and the deserters, were carried away by [[Nebuzaradan]] the captain of the guard. In Daniel 1:1-2, we find that in the third year of [[Jehoiakim]] Nebuchadnezzar besieged [[Jerusalem]] and carried away part of the temple vessels of [[Jehovah]] to the land of Shinar, to the house of his god Bel. (Subsequently he took all away; they were restored under Cyrus: Ezra 1:7; 2 Kings 24:13; Jeremiah 52:19.) Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, of the blood royal of Judah, were among the captives. With this first deportation in the third year of Jehoiakim (607 or 606 B.C.) the foretold (Jeremiah 25; Jeremiah 29:10) 70 years' "captivity" (i.e. subjection of [[Judah]] to Babylon) begins. </p> <p> Nebuchadnezzar had intended to carry Jehoiakim to [[Babylon]] (2 Chronicles 36:6-7); but Jehoiakim died before Nebuchadnezzar's intention could be effected (Jeremiah 22:18-19; Jeremiah 36:30), and. his dead body was dragged out of the gates by the Chaldaean besiegers and left unburied. This was eight years before the deportation under Jehoiachin. In the first year of [[Darius]] (Daniel 9:2-19) the 70 years were nearly run out. Now Jehoiachin's third year was one year before Nebuchadnezzar's accession (2 Kings 23:36; 2 Kings 24:12). 2 Kings 24:67 years elapsed from that time to the taking of Babylon (Ptolemy's canon). So it would be in the 68th year of the captivity that Daniel prayed pardon for Jerusalem. Cyrus' decree, granting liberty and encouragement to the [[Jews]] to return to their own land, was one or two years after taking Babylon, 536 B.C. (Ezra 1:2). </p> <p> The captivity ecclesiastically began with the destruction of the temple, 586 B.C. The restoration was 70 years afterward, in the sixth year of Darius, 515 or 516 B.C. (Ezra 6:15). The political aim of the deportation was to separate them from local associations, and from proximity to Egypt, their ally in every revolt, and so fuse them into the general population of the empire (Isaiah 36:16; [[Genesis]] 47:21). The captives were treated as colonists. Daniel (Daniel 2; 6) and his three friends and Nehemiah (Nehemiah 1) subsequently held high offices near the king. Jeremiah had recommended the Jews to settle quietly in the land of their exile. They did so, and increased in numbers and wealth. They observed the law (Esther 3:8), and distinctions of rank (Ezekiel 20:1). The synagogues for prayer and reading the law publicly began during the captivity, and afterward were set up in every city (Acts 15:21). </p> <p> The apocryphal [[Tobit]] pictures the inner life of a Naphtalite family among Shalmaneser's captives at Nineveh. Jeremiah, Ezekiel (who died after 27 years' exile at least, Ezekiel 29:17), and Daniel, and some of the Psalms (e.g. 137) give a general view of the state of the whole people in their exile. A portion of the people returned under [[Sheshbazzar]] or Zerubbabel, 535 B.C., who set up the altar and began the temple. Then, after along interruption of the building of the temple through [[Samaritan]] opposition, the work was completed in the second year of Darius, through Haggai and Zechariah (515 B.C., Ezra 5) the prophets, [[Jeshua]] the high priest, and Zerubbabel. A further portion returned under Ezra 458 B.C., and under Nehemiah 445 B.C. (Ezra 7:6-7; Nehemiah 2) In 536, besides servants, 42,360 returned; 30,000 belonging to Judah, Benjamin, and Levi, the remainder probably belonging to the [[Israelite]] tribes. Ezra 6:17 recognizes, in the sacrifices, the twelve tribes (compare 1 Chronicles 9). </p> <p> Of the 24 courses of priests but four returned, so that seemingly only one sixth returned of the people, five sixths remained behind (Ezra 2:36-39, compare 1 Chronicles 24:4; 1 Chronicles 24:18). The latter who kept up their national distinctions were termed "the dispersion" (Esther 8:9; Esther 8:11; John 7:35; 1 Peter 1:1; James 1:1). The Afghans, the black Jews of Malabar, and the Nestorians, have been severally conjectured to represent the lost tribes. All we know is, some blended with the Jews, as Anna of [[Asher]] (Luke 2:36), [[Saul]] or Paul of [[Benjamin]] (Philippians 3:5); some with the [[Samaritans]] (Ezra 6:21; John 4:12); many, staying in their land of exile, founded colonies in the E. and were known as "the dispersion" (Acts 2:9-11; Acts 26:7). The prayer, the 10th of the Shemoneh Esre, is still offered by the Jews: "Sound the great trumpet for our deliverance, lift up a banner for the gathering of our exiles, and unite us all together from the four ends of the earth!" evidently alluding to Isaiah 11:12; Isaiah 27:13; Psalms 106:47. </p> <p> Those who apostatized to Assyrian and [[Babylonian]] idolatry were absorbed among the pagan. The Jews' language became then much affected by Chaldaisms (Nehemiah 8:7-8), so that they could no longer understand, without interpretation, the pure [[Hebrew]] of the law. A [[Chaldee]] targum or paraphrase became necessary. An increased reverence for the law (Psalm 119 witnesses to this), and an abhorrence thenceforth of idolatry to which they once had been so prone, were among the beneficial effects of affliction on their national character. The prophets foretell the restoration, spiritually and also nationally in their own land, of Israel and Judah distinct, and hereafter to be combined (Isaiah 11:12-13), to be miraculously "gathered one by one" (Isaiah 27:12; Jeremiah 3:18; Jeremiah 16:15-16; Jeremiah 31:7-20; Ezekiel 37:16-28; Hosea 1:10-11; Hosea 3:4-5; Zechariah 9:13; Zechariah 10:6; Zechariah 10:10). </p> <p> Their return under [[Messiah]] (then to be manifested) and their spiritual glory shall be the appointed instrumentality of the conversion of all nations (Isaiah 2; Isaiah 60; Micah 5:7; Zechariah 8:13). The Lord Jesus foretold the Jews' dispersion, in that very generation, under Titus and the Romans, 37 years before the event (A.D. 70), and the treading under foot of Jerusalem by all nations "until the times of the [[Gentiles]] shall be fulfilled" (Luke 21:20-24; Luke 21:32). In the siege 1,100,000 Jews perished, according to the contemporary witness Josephus; but not one Christian, for the [[Christians]] obeyed the Lord's warning by fleeing to Pella, when Cestius Gallus first advanced against Jerusalem, and then providentially, without seeming reason, withdrew (Matthew 24:15-16). </p> <p> The market was glutted with Jewish slaves, and Moses' words were fulfilled: "Ye shall be sold unto your enemies ... and no man shall buy you." Again returning they revolted under Bar-Cochaba "the son of a star" (Numbers 24:17); but [[Adrian]] destroyed them, and built a pagan city, AEia, where Jerusalem had stood. "Captivity of the land" (Judges 18:30) refers to the capture of the ark. So in Psalms 14:7 "bring back the captivity" means restore from depression; Job 42:10, "the Lord turned the captivity of Job," i.e. amply indemnified him for all he lost: which passages prove the error of those who refer to the times after the Babylonian captivity any passage which mentions "the captivity," as if it were the only one in the Bible. </p> <p> Christ Jesus, the antitypical David (who took captive His foes), "when He ascended on high led captivity captive," i.e. led in triumphal procession as captives for destruction those who once had led men captive, namely, Satan, death, hell, the curse, sin (Ephesians 4:8; Psalms 68:18; Colossians 2:15; 2 Peter 2:4). Revelation 20:10; Revelation 20:14, thus: "he that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity" (Revelation 13:10); [[Satan]] who "brings into captivity to the law of sin and death" (Romans 7:23) is brought into captivity (2 Corinthians 10:5; Isaiah 49:24; Hosea 13:14). </p>
       
== People's Dictionary of the Bible <ref name="term_69833" /> ==
<p> Captivity. A word used to designate the subjugation of God's people. God often punished the sins of the Jews by captivities or servitudes. Deuteronomy 28:1-68. Their first captivity or bondage from which [[Moses]] delivered them was rather a permission of [[Providence]] than a punishment for sin. There were six subjugations of the 12 tribes during the period of the Judges. But the most remarkable captivities, or rather expatriations of the Hebrews, were those of Israel and Judah under their kings. Israel was first carried away in part about 740 b.c. by Tiglath-pileser. 2 Kings 15:29. The tribes east of the Jordan, with parts of [[Zebulun]] and Naphtali, 1 Chronicles 6:26; Isaiah 9:1, were the first sufferers. [[Twenty]] years later, Shalmaneser carried away the rest of Israel, the northern kingdom, 2 Kings 17:6, and located them in distant cities, many of them probably not far from the Caspian Sea; and their place was supplied by colonies from Babylon and Persia. 2 Kings 17:6-24. This is sometimes known as the Assyrian captivity. [[Aside]] from certain prophecies, Isaiah 11:12-13; Jeremiah 31:7-9; Jeremiah 31:16-20; Jeremiah 49:2; Ezekiel 37:16; Hosea 11:11; Amos 9:14; Obadiah 1:18-19, etc., which are variously interpreted to mean a past or a future return, a physical or a spiritual restoration, there is no evidence that the ten tribes as a body ever returned to Palestine. Of Judah are generally reckoned three deportations, occurring during the Babylonian or great captivity: 1. Under Jehoiakim, in his third year, b.c. 606, when Daniel and others were carried to Babylon. 2 Kings 24:1-2; Daniel 1:1. 2. In the last year of Jehoiakim, when Nebuchadnezzar carried 3023 Jews to Babylon; or rather, under Jehoiachin, when this prince also was sent to Babylon, in the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, b.c. 598. 2 Kings 24:12; 2 Chronicles 36:6-8; 2 Chronicles 36:10; Jeremiah 52:28. 3. Under Zedekiah, b.c. 588, when Jerusalem and the temple were destroyed, and all the better class of the people and their treasures were carried to Babylon. 2 Kings 25:1-30; 2 Chronicles 36:1-23. This was 132 years after the final captivity of Israel. The 70 years during which they were to remain in captivity, Jeremiah 25:11; Jeremiah 29:10, are reckoned from the date of the first captivity, b.c. 606. Besides these, several other invasions and partial captivities are alluded to in 2 Kings 15:19; 2 Kings 17:3-6; 2 Kings 18:13; 2 Kings 25:11. While in Babylonia, the Jews were treated more like colonists than slaves. They had judges and elders who governed them, and decided matters in dispute. The books of Nehemiah and Daniel describe Jews in high positions at court, and the book of Esther celebrates their numbers and power in the [[Persian]] empire. There were priests among them, Jeremiah 29:1, and they preserved their genealogical records and many of their religious rites and customs. When the 70 years were fulfilled, Cyrus, in the first year of his reign at Babylon, b.c. 536, made a proclamation permitting the people of God to return to their own country and rebuild the temple. Ezra 1:11. Nearly 50,000 accepted the invitation, though a large proportion preferred to remain. Ezra 2:2; Nehemiah 7:7. This company laid the foundation of the second temple, which was completed in the sixth year of Darius. Fifty-eight years after, Ezra led a small company of 7000 from Babylon to Judæa. He was succeeded as governor by Nehemiah, who labored faithfully and successfully to reform the people. The Jewish character and language were changed by their sojourn for so long a time among foreigners, Nehemiah 8:8; and it is noteworthy that we hear little of idols or idolatry among them after the captivity. About 40 years after the crucifixion of Christ, Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans. According to Josephus, 1,100,000 perished at the siege of Jerusalem by Titus, and nearly 100,000 captives were scattered among the provinces and slain in gladiatorial shows, doomed to toil as public slaves, or sold into private bondage. Under the emperor Hadrian, a.d. 133, a similar crushing blow fell on the Jews who had again assembled in Judæa. They are scattered over the world, suffering under the woe which unbelief brought upon their fathers and themselves. See Jews. </p>
       
== American Tract Society Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_15758" /> ==
== American Tract Society Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_15758" /> ==
<p> [[God]] often punished the sins of the [[Jews]] be captivities or servitudes, according to his threatenings, Deuteronomy 28:1-68 . Their first captivity, however, from which [[Moses]] delivered them, should be considered rather as a permission of Providence, than as a punishment for sin. There were six subjugations of the twelve tribes during the period of the judges. But the most remarkable captivities, or rather expatriations of the Hebrews, were whose of [[Israel]] and [[Judah]] under the regal government. Israel was first carried away in part about B. C. 740, by Tiglath-pileser, 2 Kings 15:29 . The tribes east of the Jordan, with parts of [[Zebulun]] and Naphtali, Isaiah 9:1 , were the first sufferers. [[Twenty]] years later, [[Shalmanezer]] carried away the remainder, 2 Kings 17:6-24 . [[Aside]] from certain prophecies, Isaiah 11:12,13 Jeremiah 31:7-9,16-20 49:2 Ezekiel 37:16 Hosea 11:11 Amos 9:14 Obadiah 1:18,19 , etc., which are variously interpreter to mean a past or a future return, a physical or a spiritual restoration, there is no evidence that the ten tribes as a body ever returned to Palestine. </p> <p> To Judah are generally reckoned three captivities: 1. Under Jehoiakim, in his third year, B. C. 606, when Daniel and others were carried to Babylon, 2 Kings 24:1,2 Daniel 1:1 2 . In the last year of Jehoiakim, when [[Nebuchadnezzar]] carried 3,023Jews to Babylon; or rather, under Jehoiachin, when this prince also was sent to Babylon, that is, in the seventh and eighth years of Nebuchadnezzar, B. C. 598,2 Kings 24:2,12 2 Chronicles 36:8,10 Jeremiah 52:34 3 . Under Zedekiah, B. C. 588, when [[Jerusalem]] and the temple were destroyed, and most that was valuable among the people and their treasures was carried to Babylon, 2 Kings 25:1-30 2 Chronicles 36:1-23 . The seventy years during which they were to remain in captivity, Jeremiah 25:11 29:10 , are reckoned probably from the date of the first captivity, B. C. 606. While at [[Babylon]] the Jews had judges and elders who governed them, and decided matters in dispute juridically according to their laws. The book of Daniel shows us a [[Jew]] in a high position at court, and the book of Esther celebrates their numbers and power in the [[Persian]] empire. The prophets labored, not in vain, to keep alive the flame of the true religion. </p> <p> At length the seventy years were fulfilled, and Cyrus, in the first year of his reign at Babylon, B. C. 536, made a proclamation throughout his empire permitting the people of God to return to their country, and rebuild the temple, Ezra 1:11 . [[Nearly]] 50,000 accepted the invitation, Ezra 2:2 Nehemiah 7:7 . This company laid the foundation of the second temple, which was completed in the sixth year of Darius, B. C. 516. Fifty-eight years after, Ezra led a small company of 7,000 from Babylon to [[Judea.]] He was succeeded as governor by Nehemiah, who labored faithfully and successfully to reform the people, and many of the good fruits of his labors remained until the time of Christ. </p> <p> [[Probably]] none among the posterity of [[Jacob]] can now prove from which of his twelve sons they are descended. Both Judah and Israel being removed from "the lot of their inheritance" in Canaan, and dispersed among strangers, the various tribes would naturally amalgamate with each other, the envy of Judah and [[Ephraim]] would depart, and the memory of Abraham, Moses, and [[David]] would revive, Ezra 6:16,17 8:35 Ezekiel 37:26-28 . </p> <p> The last captivity of the Jews, A. D. 71, after they had filled up the measure of their iniquity by rejecting [[Christ]] and the gospel, was a terrible one. According to Josephus, 1,100,000 perished at the siege of Jerusalem by Titus, and nearly 100,000 captives were scattered among the provinces to perish in gladiatorial shows, doomed to toil as public slaves, or sold into private bondage. The cut represents the medal of the emperor Vespasian, A. D. 71, in memory of the capture of Jerusalem. Under the emperor Hadrian, A. D. 133, a similar crushing blow fell on the Jews who had again assembled in Judea; and at this day they are scattered all over the world, yet distinct from the people among whom they dwell, suffering under the woe which unbelief has brought upon their fathers and themselves, and awaiting the time when Christ "shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob," Romans 11:25,26 . </p>
<p> God often punished the sins of the Jews be captivities or servitudes, according to his threatenings, Deuteronomy 28:1-68 . Their first captivity, however, from which Moses delivered them, should be considered rather as a permission of Providence, than as a punishment for sin. There were six subjugations of the twelve tribes during the period of the judges. But the most remarkable captivities, or rather expatriations of the Hebrews, were whose of Israel and Judah under the regal government. Israel was first carried away in part about B. C. 740, by Tiglath-pileser, 2 Kings 15:29 . The tribes east of the Jordan, with parts of Zebulun and Naphtali, Isaiah 9:1 , were the first sufferers. Twenty years later, [[Shalmanezer]] carried away the remainder, 2 Kings 17:6-24 . Aside from certain prophecies, Isaiah 11:12,13 Jeremiah 31:7-9,16-20 49:2 Ezekiel 37:16 Hosea 11:11 Amos 9:14 Obadiah 1:18,19 , etc., which are variously interpreter to mean a past or a future return, a physical or a spiritual restoration, there is no evidence that the ten tribes as a body ever returned to Palestine. </p> <p> To Judah are generally reckoned three captivities: 1. Under Jehoiakim, in his third year, B. C. 606, when Daniel and others were carried to Babylon, 2 Kings 24:1,2 Daniel 1:1 2 . In the last year of Jehoiakim, when Nebuchadnezzar carried 3,023Jews to Babylon; or rather, under Jehoiachin, when this prince also was sent to Babylon, that is, in the seventh and eighth years of Nebuchadnezzar, B. C. 598,2 Kings 24:2,12 2 Chronicles 36:8,10 Jeremiah 52:34 3 . Under Zedekiah, B. C. 588, when Jerusalem and the temple were destroyed, and most that was valuable among the people and their treasures was carried to Babylon, 2 Kings 25:1-30 2 Chronicles 36:1-23 . The seventy years during which they were to remain in captivity, Jeremiah 25:11 29:10 , are reckoned probably from the date of the first captivity, B. C. 606. While at Babylon the Jews had judges and elders who governed them, and decided matters in dispute juridically according to their laws. The book of Daniel shows us a Jew in a high position at court, and the book of Esther celebrates their numbers and power in the Persian empire. The prophets labored, not in vain, to keep alive the flame of the true religion. </p> <p> At length the seventy years were fulfilled, and Cyrus, in the first year of his reign at Babylon, B. C. 536, made a proclamation throughout his empire permitting the people of God to return to their country, and rebuild the temple, Ezra 1:11 . Nearly 50,000 accepted the invitation, Ezra 2:2 Nehemiah 7:7 . This company laid the foundation of the second temple, which was completed in the sixth year of Darius, B. C. 516. Fifty-eight years after, Ezra led a small company of 7,000 from Babylon to Judea. He was succeeded as governor by Nehemiah, who labored faithfully and successfully to reform the people, and many of the good fruits of his labors remained until the time of Christ. </p> <p> Probably none among the posterity of [[Jacob]] can now prove from which of his twelve sons they are descended. Both Judah and Israel being removed from "the lot of their inheritance" in Canaan, and dispersed among strangers, the various tribes would naturally amalgamate with each other, the envy of Judah and [[Ephraim]] would depart, and the memory of Abraham, Moses, and David would revive, Ezra 6:16,17 8:35 Ezekiel 37:26-28 . </p> <p> The last captivity of the Jews, A. D. 71, after they had filled up the measure of their iniquity by rejecting Christ and the gospel, was a terrible one. According to Josephus, 1,100,000 perished at the siege of Jerusalem by Titus, and nearly 100,000 captives were scattered among the provinces to perish in gladiatorial shows, doomed to toil as public slaves, or sold into private bondage. The cut represents the medal of the emperor Vespasian, A. D. 71, in memory of the capture of Jerusalem. Under the emperor Hadrian, A. D. 133, a similar crushing blow fell on the Jews who had again assembled in Judea; and at this day they are scattered all over the world, yet distinct from the people among whom they dwell, suffering under the woe which unbelief has brought upon their fathers and themselves, and awaiting the time when Christ "shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob," Romans 11:25,26 . </p>
       
== Bridgeway Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_18458" /> ==
<p> See EXILE; SLAVE. </p>
          
          
== Easton's Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_30998" /> ==
== Easton's Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_30998" /> ==
<li> Of Judah. In the third year of Jehoiachim, the eighteenth king of [[Judah]] (B.C. 605), [[Nebuchadnezzar]] having overcome the [[Egyptians]] at Carchemish, advanced to [[Jerusalem]] with a great army. After a brief siege he took that city, and carried away the vessels of the sanctuary to Babylon, and dedicated them in the [[Temple]] of [[Belus]] (2 Kings 24:1; 2 Chronicles 36:6,7; Daniel 1:1,2 ). He also carried away the treasures of the king, whom he made his vassal. At this time, from which is dated the "seventy years" of captivity (Jeremiah 25; Daniel 9:1,2 ), Daniel and his companions were carried to Babylon, there to be brought up at the court and trained in all the learning of the Chaldeans. After this, in the fifth year of Jehoiakim, a great national fast was appointed (Jeremiah 36:9 ), during which the king, to show his defiance, cut up the leaves of the book of Jeremiah's prophecies as they were read to him in his winter palace, and threw them into the fire. In the same spirit he rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar (2 Kings 24:1 ), who again a second time (B.C. 598) marched against Jerusalem, and put Jehoiachim to death, placing his son [[Jehoiachin]] on the throne in his stead. But Jehoiachin's counsellors displeasing Nebuchadnezzar, he again a third time turned his army against Jerusalem, and carried away to [[Babylon]] a second detachment of [[Jews]] as captives, to the number of 10,000 (2 Kings 24:13; Jeremiah 24:1; 2 Chronicles 36:10 ), among whom were the king, with his mother and all his princes and officers, also Ezekiel, who with many of his companions were settled on the banks of the river [[Chebar]] (q.v.). He also carried away all the remaining treasures of the temple and the palace, and the golden vessels of the sanctuary. <p> Mattaniah, the uncle of Jehoiachin, was now made king over what remained of the kingdom of Judah, under the name of [[Zedekiah]] (2 Kings 24:17; 2 Chronicles 36:10 ). After a troubled reign of eleven years his kingdom came to an end (2 Chronicles 36:11 ). Nebuchadnezzar, with a powerful army, besieged Jerusalem, and Zedekiah became a prisoner in Babylon. His eyes were put out, and he was kept in close confinement till his death (2 Kings 25:7 ). The city was spoiled of all that was of value, and then given up to the flames. The temple and palaces were consumed, and the walls of the city were levelled with the ground (B.C. 586), and all that remained of the people, except a number of the poorest class who were left to till the ground and dress the vineyards, were carried away captives to Babylon. This was the third and last deportation of [[Jewish]] captives. The land was now utterly desolate, and was abondoned to anarchy. </p> <p> In the first year of his reign as king of Babylon (B.C. 536), [[Cyrus]] issued a decree liberating the Jewish captives, and permitting them to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the city and the temple (2 Chronicles 36:22,23; Ezra 1; 2 ). The number of the people forming the first caravan, under Zerubbabel, amounted in all to 42,360 (Ezra 2:64,65 ), besides 7,337 men-servants and maid-servants. A considerable number, 12,000 probably, from the ten tribes who had been carried away into [[Assyria]] no doubt combined with this band of liberated captives. </p> <p> At a later period other bands of the Jews returned (1) under (Ezra 7:7 ) (B.C. 458), and (2) (Nehemiah 7:66 ) (B.C. 445). But the great mass of the people remained still in the land to which they had been carried, and became a portion of the Jews of the "dispersion" (John 7:35; 1 Peter 1:1 ). The whole number of the exiles that chose to remain was probably about six times the number of those who returned. </p> <div> <p> [[Copyright]] StatementThese dictionary topics are from M.G. Easton M.A., D.D., [[Illustrated]] [[Bible]] Dictionary, [[Third]] Edition, published by [[Thomas]] Nelson, 1897. Public Domain. </p> <p> Bibliography InformationEaston, Matthew George. Entry for 'Captivity'. Easton's Bible Dictionary. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/ebd/c/captivity.html. 1897. </p> </div> </li>
<li> Of Judah. In the third year of Jehoiachim, the eighteenth king of Judah (B.C. 605), Nebuchadnezzar having overcome the [[Egyptians]] at Carchemish, advanced to Jerusalem with a great army. After a brief siege he took that city, and carried away the vessels of the sanctuary to Babylon, and dedicated them in the [[Temple]] of [[Belus]] (2 Kings 24:1; 2 Chronicles 36:6,7; Daniel 1:1,2 ). He also carried away the treasures of the king, whom he made his vassal. At this time, from which is dated the "seventy years" of captivity (Jeremiah 25; Daniel 9:1,2 ), Daniel and his companions were carried to Babylon, there to be brought up at the court and trained in all the learning of the Chaldeans. After this, in the fifth year of Jehoiakim, a great national fast was appointed (Jeremiah 36:9 ), during which the king, to show his defiance, cut up the leaves of the book of Jeremiah's prophecies as they were read to him in his winter palace, and threw them into the fire. In the same spirit he rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar (2 Kings 24:1 ), who again a second time (B.C. 598) marched against Jerusalem, and put Jehoiachim to death, placing his son [[Jehoiachin]] on the throne in his stead. But Jehoiachin's counsellors displeasing Nebuchadnezzar, he again a third time turned his army against Jerusalem, and carried away to Babylon a second detachment of Jews as captives, to the number of 10,000 (2 Kings 24:13; Jeremiah 24:1; 2 Chronicles 36:10 ), among whom were the king, with his mother and all his princes and officers, also Ezekiel, who with many of his companions were settled on the banks of the river [[Chebar]] (q.v.). He also carried away all the remaining treasures of the temple and the palace, and the golden vessels of the sanctuary. <p> Mattaniah, the uncle of Jehoiachin, was now made king over what remained of the kingdom of Judah, under the name of Zedekiah (2 Kings 24:17; 2 Chronicles 36:10 ). After a troubled reign of eleven years his kingdom came to an end (2 Chronicles 36:11 ). Nebuchadnezzar, with a powerful army, besieged Jerusalem, and Zedekiah became a prisoner in Babylon. His eyes were put out, and he was kept in close confinement till his death (2 Kings 25:7 ). The city was spoiled of all that was of value, and then given up to the flames. The temple and palaces were consumed, and the walls of the city were levelled with the ground (B.C. 586), and all that remained of the people, except a number of the poorest class who were left to till the ground and dress the vineyards, were carried away captives to Babylon. This was the third and last deportation of Jewish captives. The land was now utterly desolate, and was abondoned to anarchy. </p> <p> In the first year of his reign as king of Babylon (B.C. 536), [[Cyrus]] issued a decree liberating the Jewish captives, and permitting them to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the city and the temple (2 Chronicles 36:22,23; Ezra 1; 2 ). The number of the people forming the first caravan, under Zerubbabel, amounted in all to 42,360 (Ezra 2:64,65 ), besides 7,337 men-servants and maid-servants. A considerable number, 12,000 probably, from the ten tribes who had been carried away into Assyria no doubt combined with this band of liberated captives. </p> <p> At a later period other bands of the Jews returned (1) under (Ezra 7:7 ) (B.C. 458), and (2) (Nehemiah 7:66 ) (B.C. 445). But the great mass of the people remained still in the land to which they had been carried, and became a portion of the Jews of the "dispersion" (John 7:35; 1 Peter 1:1 ). The whole number of the exiles that chose to remain was probably about six times the number of those who returned. </p> <div> <p> Copyright StatementThese dictionary topics are from M.G. Easton M.A., D.D., Illustrated [[Bible]] Dictionary, Third Edition, published by [[Thomas]] Nelson, 1897. Public Domain. </p> <p> Bibliography InformationEaston, Matthew George. Entry for 'Captivity'. Easton's Bible Dictionary. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/ebd/c/captivity.html. 1897. </p> </div> </li>
          
          
== Fausset's Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_34938" /> ==
== Morrish Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_65582" /> ==
<p> [[Used]] in [[Scripture]] for compulsory exile. [[Besides]] minor captivities six under the judges, namely, that by Chushan-rishathaim, Eglon, the Philistines, [[Jabin]] of Canaan, Midian, [[Ammon]] (Judges 3; Judges 4; Judges 6; Judges 10), and that by [[Hazael]] of [[Syria]] (2 Kings 10:32), there were three great captivities. First in the reign of [[Pekah]] of Israel, when Tiglath Pileser, king of Assyria, carried away the people. of Gilead, Galilee, and all [[Naphtali]] (2 Kings 15:29; Isaiah 9:1). As [[Pul]] his predecessor is named with Tiglath [[Pileser]] as having carried away Reuben, Gad, and half [[Manasseh]] to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river [[Gozan]] (1 Chronicles 5:25-26), probably Tiglath Pileser carried (740 B.C.) out what Pul had intended but was diverted from by Menahem's bribe (771 or 762 B.C., Rawlinson) (2 Kings 15:19-20). </p> <p> Secondly, in the reign of [[Hoshea]] of Israel, [[Shalmaneser]] king of Assyria, after letting him remain as a tributary prince for a time, at last when Hoshea omitted to send his yearly "present," and made a league with So or Sabacho II of [[Egypt]] (of which the record still exists on clay cylindrical seals found at Koyunjik), put Hoshea in prison and besieged [[Samaria]] three years, and in the ninth year of Hoshea's reign (721 B.C.) took it, and "carried [[Israel]] away to [[Halah]] and [[Habor]] by the river Gozan, and to the cities of the Medes" (2 Kings 17:1-6). [[Sargon]] (Isaiah 20:1), according to the [[Assyrian]] monuments, completed the capture of Samaria which Shalmaneser began. In striking minute coincidence with Scripture, he was the first Assyrian monarch who conquered Media. In the monuments he expressly says that, in order to complete the subjugation of Media, he founded in it cities which he planted with colonists from other parts of his dominions. </p> <p> [[Sennacherib]] (713 B.C.) carried into [[Assyria]] 200,000 from the [[Jewish]] cities he captured (2 Kings 18:13). Thirdly, [[Nebuchadnezzar]] carried away [[Judith]] under [[Zedekiah]] to Babylon, 588 B.C. (2 Kings 24; 25.) A previous deportation of Jewish captives (including Ezekiel, Ezekiel 1:1-3, and Mordecai, Esther's uncle, Esther 2:6) was tint of King Jehoiachin, his princes, men of valor, and the craftsmen, 599 B.C. From Jeremiah 52:12; Jeremiah 52:15; Jeremiah 52:28-29; Jeremiah 52:30 we learn Nebuchadnezzar in his seventh (or eighth, according to the month with which the counting of the year begins) year carried away 3,023; but in 2 Kings 24:14; 2 Kings 24:16; 2 Kings 24:10; 2 Kings 24:000, and 7,000 men of might, and 1,000 craftsmen; the 3,023 were probably of Judah, the remaining 7,000 were of the other tribes of Israel, of whom some still had been left after the Assyrian deportation; the 1,000 craftsmen were exclusive of the 10,000. </p> <p> Or else the 3,023 were removed in the seventh year, the 7,000 find 1,000 craftsmen in the eighth year. In the 18th or 19th year of Nebuchadnezzar 832 of the most illustrious persons were carried away. In the 23rd year of Nebuchadnezzar, 745 persons, besides the general multitude of the poor, and the residue of the people in the city, and the deserters, were carried away by [[Nebuzaradan]] the captain of the guard. In Daniel 1:1-2, we find that in the third year of [[Jehoiakim]] Nebuchadnezzar besieged [[Jerusalem]] and carried away part of the temple vessels of [[Jehovah]] to the land of Shinar, to the house of his god Bel. (Subsequently he took all away; they were restored under Cyrus: Ezra 1:7; 2 Kings 24:13; Jeremiah 52:19.) Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, of the blood royal of Judah, were among the captives. With this first deportation in the third year of Jehoiakim (607 or 606 B.C.) the foretold (Jeremiah 25; Jeremiah 29:10) 70 years' "captivity" (i.e. subjection of [[Judah]] to Babylon) begins. </p> <p> Nebuchadnezzar had intended to carry Jehoiakim to [[Babylon]] (2 Chronicles 36:6-7); but Jehoiakim died before Nebuchadnezzar's intention could be effected (Jeremiah 22:18-19; Jeremiah 36:30), and. his dead body was dragged out of the gates by the Chaldaean besiegers and left unburied. This was eight years before the deportation under Jehoiachin. In the first year of [[Darius]] (Daniel 9:2-19) the 70 years were nearly run out. Now Jehoiachin's third year was one year before Nebuchadnezzar's accession (2 Kings 23:36; 2 Kings 24:12). 2 Kings 24:67 years elapsed from that time to the taking of Babylon (Ptolemy's canon). So it would be in the 68th year of the captivity that Daniel prayed pardon for Jerusalem. Cyrus' decree, granting liberty and encouragement to the [[Jews]] to return to their own land, was one or two years after taking Babylon, 536 B.C. (Ezra 1:2). </p> <p> The captivity ecclesiastically began with the destruction of the temple, 586 B.C. The restoration was 70 years afterward, in the sixth year of Darius, 515 or 516 B.C. (Ezra 6:15). The political aim of the deportation was to separate them from local associations, and from proximity to Egypt, their ally in every revolt, and so fuse them into the general population of the empire (Isaiah 36:16; [[Genesis]] 47:21). The captives were treated as colonists. Daniel (Daniel 2; 6) and his three friends and Nehemiah (Nehemiah 1) subsequently held high offices near the king. Jeremiah had recommended the Jews to settle quietly in the land of their exile. They did so, and increased in numbers and wealth. They observed the law (Esther 3:8), and distinctions of rank (Ezekiel 20:1). The synagogues for prayer and reading the law publicly began during the captivity, and afterward were set up in every city (Acts 15:21). </p> <p> The apocryphal [[Tobit]] pictures the inner life of a Naphtalite family among Shalmaneser's captives at Nineveh. Jeremiah, Ezekiel (who died after 27 years' exile at least, Ezekiel 29:17), and Daniel, and some of the Psalms (e.g. 137) give a general view of the state of the whole people in their exile. A portion of the people returned under [[Sheshbazzar]] or Zerubbabel, 535 B.C., who set up the altar and began the temple. Then, after along interruption of the building of the temple through [[Samaritan]] opposition, the work was completed in the second year of Darius, through Haggai and Zechariah (515 B.C., Ezra 5) the prophets, [[Jeshua]] the high priest, and Zerubbabel. A further portion returned under Ezra 458 B.C., and under Nehemiah 445 B.C. (Ezra 7:6-7; Nehemiah 2) In 536, besides servants, 42,360 returned; 30,000 belonging to Judah, Benjamin, and Levi, the remainder probably belonging to the [[Israelite]] tribes. Ezra 6:17 recognizes, in the sacrifices, the twelve tribes (compare 1 Chronicles 9). </p> <p> Of the 24 courses of priests but four returned, so that seemingly only one sixth returned of the people, five sixths remained behind (Ezra 2:36-39, compare 1 Chronicles 24:4; 1 Chronicles 24:18). The latter who kept up their national distinctions were termed "the dispersion" (Esther 8:9; Esther 8:11; John 7:35; 1 Peter 1:1; James 1:1). The Afghans, the black Jews of Malabar, and the Nestorians, have been severally conjectured to represent the lost tribes. All we know is, some blended with the Jews, as [[Anna]] of [[Asher]] (Luke 2:36), [[Saul]] or [[Paul]] of [[Benjamin]] (Philippians 3:5); some with the [[Samaritans]] (Ezra 6:21; John 4:12); many, staying in their land of exile, founded colonies in the E. and were known as "the dispersion" (Acts 2:9-11; Acts 26:7). The prayer, the 10th of the Shemoneh Esre, is still offered by the Jews: "Sound the great trumpet for our deliverance, lift up a banner for the gathering of our exiles, and unite us all together from the four ends of the earth!" evidently alluding to Isaiah 11:12; Isaiah 27:13; Psalms 106:47. </p> <p> Those who apostatized to Assyrian and [[Babylonian]] idolatry were absorbed among the pagan. The Jews' language became then much affected by Chaldaisms (Nehemiah 8:7-8), so that they could no longer understand, without interpretation, the pure [[Hebrew]] of the law. A [[Chaldee]] targum or paraphrase became necessary. An increased reverence for the law (Psalm 119 witnesses to this), and an abhorrence thenceforth of idolatry to which they once had been so prone, were among the beneficial effects of affliction on their national character. The prophets foretell the restoration, spiritually and also nationally in their own land, of Israel and Judah distinct, and hereafter to be combined (Isaiah 11:12-13), to be miraculously "gathered one by one" (Isaiah 27:12; Jeremiah 3:18; Jeremiah 16:15-16; Jeremiah 31:7-20; Ezekiel 37:16-28; Hosea 1:10-11; Hosea 3:4-5; Zechariah 9:13; Zechariah 10:6; Zechariah 10:10). </p> <p> Their return under [[Messiah]] (then to be manifested) and their spiritual glory shall be the appointed instrumentality of the conversion of all nations (Isaiah 2; Isaiah 60; Micah 5:7; Zechariah 8:13). The Lord [[Jesus]] foretold the Jews' dispersion, in that very generation, under Titus and the Romans, 37 years before the event (A.D. 70), and the treading under foot of Jerusalem by all nations "until the times of the [[Gentiles]] shall be fulfilled" (Luke 21:20-24; Luke 21:32). In the siege 1,100,000 Jews perished, according to the contemporary witness Josephus; but not one Christian, for the [[Christians]] obeyed the Lord's warning by fleeing to Pella, when Cestius Gallus first advanced against Jerusalem, and then providentially, without seeming reason, withdrew (Matthew 24:15-16). </p> <p> The market was glutted with Jewish slaves, and Moses' words were fulfilled: "Ye shall be sold unto your enemies ... and no man shall buy you." Again returning they revolted under Bar-Cochaba "the son of a star" (Numbers 24:17); but [[Adrian]] destroyed them, and built a pagan city, AEia, where Jerusalem had stood. "Captivity of the land" (Judges 18:30) refers to the capture of the ark. So in Psalms 14:7 "bring back the captivity" means restore from depression; Job 42:10, "the Lord turned the captivity of Job," i.e. amply indemnified him for all he lost: which passages prove the error of those who refer to the times after the Babylonian captivity any passage which mentions "the captivity," as if it were the only one in the Bible. </p> <p> [[Christ]] Jesus, the antitypical [[David]] (who took captive His foes), "when He ascended on high led captivity captive," i.e. led in triumphal procession as captives for destruction those who once had led men captive, namely, Satan, death, hell, the curse, sin (Ephesians 4:8; Psalms 68:18; Colossians 2:15; 2 Peter 2:4). Revelation 20:10; Revelation 20:14, thus: "he that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity" (Revelation 13:10); [[Satan]] who "brings into captivity to the law of sin and death" (Romans 7:23) is brought into captivity (2 Corinthians 10:5; Isaiah 49:24; Hosea 13:14). </p>
<p> This principally refers in the O.T. to the 'carrying away' of Israel and Judah. The order in which Israel was carried into captivity is not very clear. It appears however that the events recorded in 1 Chronicles 5:26 occurred first, because of Pul king of Assyria being mentioned, for he reigned before Tiglath-pileser: here the latter is named as carrying away the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half tribe of Manasseh: showing that the [[Israelites]] who stopped short of their privileges, and did not crossthe Jordan, were the first to be carried into captivity. There is nothing in the passage to fix the date, but in 2 Kings 15:29 is another reference to Israel when Tiglath-pileser took Ijon, Abel-beth-maachah, Janoah, Kedesh, and Hazor, which are all in the north on the west of the Jordan; butthen is added Gilead, which is on the east, and this may be intended to embrace the two and a half tribes; then [[Galilee]] with all the land of Naphtali is added, which is again in the north on the west. So that this may be a summary of all that this king carried away captive to Assyria. It was 'in the days of Pekah,' and Pekah reigned 20 years: the date is generally reckoned as B.C. 740 for the captivity of the two and a half tribes. </p> <p> A more definite date is given for the captivity of the remaining portion of Israel in 2 Kings 18:10,11 . It was in the ninth year of Hoshea, king of Israel and the sixth of [[Hezekiah]] that Samaria was taken by the [[Assyrians]] after a three years' siege: this would be B.C. 722. The captives were carried to Halah and Habor by the river of Gozan (these same names being mentioned in 1 Chronicles 5:26 , with [[Hara]] added there). These places are supposed to be in the north of Assyria; but in the above passage in Kings the words are added "and in the cities of the Medes." This is a region much farther east, where they would be far removed from their brethren in Assyria and from Judah, who were afterwards carried to Babylon. </p> <p> The captivity of Judah followed in four detachments. Nebuchadnezzar, B.C. 606, carried away the sacred vessels and captives, among whom were Daniel and his companions. This formed the commencement of the 'times of the Gentiles.' 2 Chronicles 36:6,7 . The second captivity was in B.C. 599, when Jehoiachin had reigned three months. It is called the great captivity. Zedekiah was left as a vassal of Babylon. 2 Kings 24:14; 2 Chronicles 36:10 . The third captivity was in B.C. 588. 2 Chronicles 36:20 . The fourth was in B.C. 584 under Nebuzar-adan. Jeremiah 52:12,30 . The 70 years of captivity foretold by Jeremiah (Jeremiah 25:11,12 ) commenced B.C. 606 and expired B.C. 536 when the Jews returned to [[Judaea]] by the proclamation of Cyrus king of Persia. Jeremiah 29:10; Ezra 1 . The captivity is referred to in Matthew 1:11,17 as 'the carrying away.' The places to which Israel and Judah were carried are considered under their respective names. </p> <p> Those who returned from exile were the two tribes, Judah and Benjamin (unless any few of the ten tribes may have accompanied them; cf. Luke 2:36 ). They retained possession of the land, under many changes and vicissitudes, until their Messiah appeared. His rejection and crucifixion resulted in the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans A.D. 70, and the scattering of the Jews to all parts of the world. </p>
          
          
== Holman Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_39499" /> ==
== Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary <ref name="term_80468" /> ==
[[Exile]]
<p> God generally punished the sins and infidelities of the Jews by different captivities or servitudes. The first captivity is that of Egypt, from which they were delivered by Moses, and which should be considered rather as a permission of providence, than as a punishment for sin. Six captivities are reckoned during the government by judges: the first, under Chushanrishathaim, king of Mesopotamia, which continued about eight years; the second, under Eglon, king of Moab, from which the Jews were delivered by Ehud; the third, under the Philistines, from which they were rescued by Shamgar; the fourth, under Jabin, king of Hazor, from which they were delivered by [[Deborah]] and Barak; the fifth, under the Midianites, from which [[Gideon]] freed them; and the sixth, under the [[Ammonites]] and Philistines, during the judicatures of Jephthah, Ibzan, Elon, Abdon, Eli, Samson, and Samuel. But the greatest and most remarkable captivities were those of Israel and Judah, under their regal government. </p>
       
== Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible <ref name="term_50408" /> ==
<p> <strong> CAPTIVITY </strong> . See Israel, <strong> I. 23 </strong> . </p>
       
== Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament <ref name="term_55410" /> ==
<p> See Bondage. </p>
          
          
== King James Dictionary <ref name="term_58846" /> ==
== King James Dictionary <ref name="term_58846" /> ==
<p> CAPTIVITY, n. </p> 1. The state of being a prisoner, or of being in the power of an enemy by force or the fate of war. 2. [[Subjection]] to love. 3. Subjection a state of being under control. <p> [[Bringing]] into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. 2 Corinthians 10 . </p> 4. Subjection servitude slavery. <p> But I see another law in my members--bringing me into captivity to the law of sin. Romans 7 . </p> <p> To lead captivity captive, in scripture, is to subdue those who have held others in slavery, or captivity. Psalms 98 . </p>
<p> CAPTIVITY, n. </p> 1. The state of being a prisoner, or of being in the power of an enemy by force or the fate of war. 2. [[Subjection]] to love. 3. Subjection a state of being under control. <p> [[Bringing]] into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. 2 Corinthians 10 . </p> 4. Subjection servitude slavery. <p> But I see another law in my members--bringing me into captivity to the law of sin. Romans 7 . </p> <p> To lead captivity captive, in scripture, is to subdue those who have held others in slavery, or captivity. Psalms 98 . </p>
          
          
== Morrish Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_65582" /> ==
== Webster's Dictionary <ref name="term_97573" /> ==
<p> This principally refers in the O.T. to the 'carrying away' of [[Israel]] and Judah. The order in which Israel was carried into captivity is not very clear. It appears however that the events recorded in 1 Chronicles 5:26 occurred first, because of [[Pul]] king of [[Assyria]] being mentioned, for he reigned before Tiglath-pileser: here the latter is named as carrying away the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half tribe of Manasseh: showing that the [[Israelites]] who stopped short of their privileges, and did not crossthe Jordan, were the first to be carried into captivity. There is nothing in the passage to fix the date, but in 2 Kings 15:29 is another reference to Israel when Tiglath-pileser took Ijon, Abel-beth-maachah, Janoah, Kedesh, and Hazor, which are all in the north on the west of the Jordan; butthen is added Gilead, which is on the east, and this may be intended to embrace the two and a half tribes; then [[Galilee]] with all the land of [[Naphtali]] is added, which is again in the north on the west. So that this may be a summary of all that this king carried away captive to Assyria. It was 'in the days of Pekah,' and [[Pekah]] reigned 20 years: the date is generally reckoned as B.C. 740 for the captivity of the two and a half tribes. </p> <p> A more definite date is given for the captivity of the remaining portion of Israel in 2 Kings 18:10,11 . It was in the ninth year of Hoshea, king of Israel and the sixth of [[Hezekiah]] that [[Samaria]] was taken by the [[Assyrians]] after a three years' siege: this would be B.C. 722. The captives were carried to [[Halah]] and [[Habor]] by the river of [[Gozan]] (these same names being mentioned in 1 Chronicles 5:26 , with [[Hara]] added there). These places are supposed to be in the north of Assyria; but in the above passage in Kings the words are added "and in the cities of the Medes." This is a region much farther east, where they would be far removed from their brethren in Assyria and from Judah, who were afterwards carried to Babylon. </p> <p> The captivity of [[Judah]] followed in four detachments. Nebuchadnezzar, B.C. 606, carried away the sacred vessels and captives, among whom were Daniel and his companions. This formed the commencement of the 'times of the Gentiles.' 2 Chronicles 36:6,7 . The second captivity was in B.C. 599, when [[Jehoiachin]] had reigned three months. It is called the great captivity. [[Zedekiah]] was left as a vassal of Babylon. 2 Kings 24:14; 2 Chronicles 36:10 . The third captivity was in B.C. 588. 2 Chronicles 36:20 . The fourth was in B.C. 584 under Nebuzar-adan. Jeremiah 52:12,30 . The 70 years of captivity foretold by Jeremiah (Jeremiah 25:11,12 ) commenced B.C. 606 and expired B.C. 536 when the [[Jews]] returned to [[Judaea]] by the proclamation of [[Cyrus]] king of Persia. Jeremiah 29:10; Ezra 1 . The captivity is referred to in Matthew 1:11,17 as 'the carrying away.' The places to which Israel and Judah were carried are considered under their respective names. </p> <p> Those who returned from exile were the two tribes, Judah and [[Benjamin]] (unless any few of the ten tribes may have accompanied them; cf. Luke 2:36 ). They retained possession of the land, under many changes and vicissitudes, until their [[Messiah]] appeared. His rejection and crucifixion resulted in the destruction of [[Jerusalem]] by the Romans A.D. 70, and the scattering of the Jews to all parts of the world. </p>
<p> (1): (n.) A state of being under control; subjection of the will or affections; bondage. </p> <p> (2): (n.) The state of being a captive or a prisoner. </p>
          
          
== People's Dictionary of the Bible <ref name="term_69833" /> ==
== Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible <ref name="term_50408" /> ==
<p> Captivity. A word used to designate the subjugation of God's people. [[God]] often punished the sins of the [[Jews]] by captivities or servitudes. Deuteronomy 28:1-68. Their first captivity or bondage from which [[Moses]] delivered them was rather a permission of [[Providence]] than a punishment for sin. There were six subjugations of the 12 tribes during the period of the Judges. But the most remarkable captivities, or rather expatriations of the Hebrews, were those of [[Israel]] and [[Judah]] under their kings. Israel was first carried away in part about 740 b.c. by Tiglath-pileser. 2 Kings 15:29. The tribes east of the Jordan, with parts of [[Zebulun]] and Naphtali, 1 Chronicles 6:26; Isaiah 9:1, were the first sufferers. [[Twenty]] years later, [[Shalmaneser]] carried away the rest of Israel, the northern kingdom, 2 Kings 17:6, and located them in distant cities, many of them probably not far from the Caspian Sea; and their place was supplied by colonies from [[Babylon]] and Persia. 2 Kings 17:6-24. This is sometimes known as the [[Assyrian]] captivity. [[Aside]] from certain prophecies, Isaiah 11:12-13; Jeremiah 31:7-9; Jeremiah 31:16-20; Jeremiah 49:2; Ezekiel 37:16; Hosea 11:11; Amos 9:14; Obadiah 1:18-19, etc., which are variously interpreted to mean a past or a future return, a physical or a spiritual restoration, there is no evidence that the ten tribes as a body ever returned to Palestine. Of Judah are generally reckoned three deportations, occurring during the [[Babylonian]] or great captivity: 1. Under Jehoiakim, in his third year, b.c. 606, when Daniel and others were carried to Babylon. 2 Kings 24:1-2; Daniel 1:1. 2. In the last year of Jehoiakim, when [[Nebuchadnezzar]] carried 3023 Jews to Babylon; or rather, under Jehoiachin, when this prince also was sent to Babylon, in the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, b.c. 598. 2 Kings 24:12; 2 Chronicles 36:6-8; 2 Chronicles 36:10; Jeremiah 52:28. 3. Under Zedekiah, b.c. 588, when [[Jerusalem]] and the temple were destroyed, and all the better class of the people and their treasures were carried to Babylon. 2 Kings 25:1-30; 2 Chronicles 36:1-23. This was 132 years after the final captivity of Israel. The 70 years during which they were to remain in captivity, Jeremiah 25:11; Jeremiah 29:10, are reckoned from the date of the first captivity, b.c. 606. [[Besides]] these, several other invasions and partial captivities are alluded to in 2 Kings 15:19; 2 Kings 17:3-6; 2 Kings 18:13; 2 Kings 25:11. While in Babylonia, the Jews were treated more like colonists than slaves. They had judges and elders who governed them, and decided matters in dispute. The books of Nehemiah and Daniel describe Jews in high positions at court, and the book of Esther celebrates their numbers and power in the [[Persian]] empire. There were priests among them, Jeremiah 29:1, and they preserved their genealogical records and many of their religious rites and customs. When the 70 years were fulfilled, Cyrus, in the first year of his reign at Babylon, b.c. 536, made a proclamation permitting the people of God to return to their own country and rebuild the temple. Ezra 1:11. [[Nearly]] 50,000 accepted the invitation, though a large proportion preferred to remain. Ezra 2:2; Nehemiah 7:7. This company laid the foundation of the second temple, which was completed in the sixth year of Darius. Fifty-eight years after, Ezra led a small company of 7000 from Babylon to Judæa. He was succeeded as governor by Nehemiah, who labored faithfully and successfully to reform the people. The [[Jewish]] character and language were changed by their sojourn for so long a time among foreigners, Nehemiah 8:8; and it is noteworthy that we hear little of idols or idolatry among them after the captivity. About 40 years after the crucifixion of Christ, Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans. According to Josephus, 1,100,000 perished at the siege of Jerusalem by Titus, and nearly 100,000 captives were scattered among the provinces and slain in gladiatorial shows, doomed to toil as public slaves, or sold into private bondage. Under the emperor Hadrian, a.d. 133, a similar crushing blow fell on the Jews who had again assembled in Judæa. They are scattered over the world, suffering under the woe which unbelief brought upon their fathers and themselves. See Jews. </p>
<p> <strong> CAPTIVITY </strong> . See Israel, <strong> I. 23 </strong> . </p>
          
          
== Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary <ref name="term_80468" /> ==
== Bridgeway Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_18458" /> ==
<p> [[God]] generally punished the sins and infidelities of the [[Jews]] by different captivities or servitudes. The first captivity is that of Egypt, from which they were delivered by Moses, and which should be considered rather as a permission of providence, than as a punishment for sin. [[Six]] captivities are reckoned during the government by judges: the first, under Chushanrishathaim, king of Mesopotamia, which continued about eight years; the second, under Eglon, king of Moab, from which the Jews were delivered by Ehud; the third, under the Philistines, from which they were rescued by Shamgar; the fourth, under Jabin, king of Hazor, from which they were delivered by [[Deborah]] and Barak; the fifth, under the Midianites, from which [[Gideon]] freed them; and the sixth, under the [[Ammonites]] and Philistines, during the judicatures of Jephthah, Ibzan, Elon, Abdon, Eli, Samson, and Samuel. But the greatest and most remarkable captivities were those of [[Israel]] and Judah, under their regal government. </p>
<p> See EXILE; SLAVE. </p>
          
          
== Webster's Dictionary <ref name="term_97573" /> ==
== Holman Bible Dictionary <ref name="term_39499" /> ==
<p> (1): </p> <p> (n.) A state of being under control; subjection of the will or affections; bondage. </p> <p> (2): </p> <p> (n.) The state of being a captive or a prisoner. </p>
[[Exile]]
          
          
== International Standard Bible Encyclopedia <ref name="term_2476" /> ==
== Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament <ref name="term_55410" /> ==
<p> '''''kap''''' -'''''tiv´i''''' -'''''ti''''' ( גּולה , <i> '''''gōlāh''''' </i> , גּלוּת , <i> '''''gālūth''''' </i> , שׁבוּת , <i> '''''shebhūth''''' </i> , שׁביה , <i> '''''shibhyāh''''' </i> ; μετοικεσία , <i> '''''metoikesı́a''''' </i> ): </p> <p> I. Of the [[Northern]] [[Kingdom]] (The [[Work]] of Assyria) </p> <p> 1. [[Western]] Campaigns of [[Shalmaneser]] II, 860-825 bc </p> <p> 2. Of Rimmon-nirari III, 810-781 bc </p> <p> 3. Of Tiglath-pileser III, 745-727 bc </p> <p> 4. Of Shalmaneser IV, 727-722 bc - S iege of [[Samaria]] </p> <p> 5. Samaria [[Captured]] by Sargon, 722 bc </p> <p> 6. [[Depopulation]] and [[Repopulation]] of Samaria </p> <p> 7. The [[Ten]] [[Tribes]] in [[Captivity]] </p> <p> II. Of [[Judah]] (The Work of the [[Chaldean]] Power) </p> <p> [[Southern]] Kingdom and House of [[David]] </p> <p> 1. Break-up of [[Assyria]] </p> <p> 2. [[Downfall]] of Nineveh, 606 bc </p> <p> 3. [[Pharaoh]] Necoh's [[Revolt]] </p> <p> 4. [[Defeat]] at Carchemish, 604 bc </p> <p> 5. The New [[Babylonian]] [[Empire]] under Nebuchadrezzar, 604-562 bc </p> <p> The [[Mission]] of Jeremiah, 626-580 bc </p> <p> 6. Revolt and [[Punishment]] of Jehoiakim, 608-597 bc </p> <p> 7. [[Siege]] and [[Surrender]] of [[Jerusalem]] under Jehoiachin, 597 bc </p> <p> 8. First Deportation, 597 bc The Baskets of [[Figs]] </p> <p> 9. The [[Ministry]] of Ezekiel, 592-570 bc </p> <p> 10. Jeremiah's Ministry in Jerusalem, 597-588 bc </p> <p> 11. Zedekiah's [[Rebellion]] and Siege of Jerusalem, 588-586 bc </p> <p> Jeremiah "Falling [[Away]] to the Chaldeans" </p> <p> 12. [[Destruction]] of Jerusalem, 586 bc </p> <p> Flight, Capture, and Punishment of [[Zedekiah]] </p> <p> 13. [[Second]] [[Deportation]] of Inhabitants, 586 bc </p> <p> 14. [[Third]] Deportation, 581 bc </p> <p> (1) Number and [[Quality]] of Exiles </p> <p> (2) The [[Residue]] [[Left]] </p> <p> 15. Gedaliah, [[Governor]] of Judah </p> <p> (1) Jeremiah and the [[Flight]] to [[Egypt]] </p> <p> (2) Descendants of the Fugitives, 471-411 bc </p> <p> 16. The Exiles in Babylon: Their [[Social]] Condition, 464-405 bc </p> <p> 17. The [[Rise]] and Development of [[Judaism]] </p> <p> 18. The [[Return]] by [[Permission]] of Cyrus, 538 bc </p> <p> 19. Rebuilding of the Temple, 536 bc </p> <p> [[Completed]] 515 bc </p> <p> 20. Reforms and Labors of Ezra and Nehemiah, 445 bc </p> <p> 21. [[Modern]] [[Theories]] of the Return </p> <p> 22. [[Importance]] of the Period of [[Ezra-Nehemiah]] </p> <p> Literature </p> I. Of the Northern Kingdom (the Work of Assyria) <p> 1. Western Campaigns of Shalmaneser II, 860-825 bc </p> <p> The captivity of the Northern Kingdom was the work of the great [[Assyrian]] power having its seat at [[Nineveh]] on the Tigris. The empire of Assyria, rounded nearly 2000 bc, had a long history behind it when its annals begin to take notice of the kingdom of [[Israel]] and Judah. The reign of Shalmaneser Ii (860-825 bc) marks the first contact between these powers. This is not the Shalmaneser mentioned in 2 Ki 17 and 18, who is the fourth of the name and flourished more than a century later. Shalmaneser Ii was contemporary during his long reign with Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, [[Ahaziah]] and Joash, kings of Judah; with Ahab, Ahaziah, [[Jehoram]] and Jehu, kings of Israel; with [[Hazael]] and [[Benhadad]] II, kings of [[Syria]] at Damascus, and with Mesha, king of Moab. The Assyrian authorities for his reign are an inscription engraved by himself on the rocks of Armenia; the [[Black]] [[Obelisk]] brought by Layard from Nimroud, now in the [[British]] Museum; and the texts engraved on the bronze gates of Balawât, discovered by Hormuzd Rassam in 1878, and recognized as the swinging gates of Shalmaneser's palace. From these authorities we learn that in his 6th year he encountered the combined forces of Damascus, Hamath, Israel, and other states which had united to oppose his progress westward, and completely routed them in the battle of Karkar (854 bc). The danger which threatened the western states in common had brought Syria and Israel together; and this is in accord with the [[Scripture]] narrative which tells of a covenant, denounced by God's prophet, between [[Ahab]] and Benhadad (1 Kings 20:34 ), and mentions a period of three years when there was no war between Syria and Israel. The defeat of the allies seems, however, to have broken up the confederacy, for, soon after, Ahab is found, with the aid of [[Jehoshaphat]] of Judah, attempting unsuccessfully, and with fatal result to himself, to recover from the weakened power of Syria the city of Ramoth-gilead (1 Ki 22). In another campaign to the West, which likewise finds no record in Scripture, Shalmaneser received the tribute of [[Tyre]] and Sidon, and of "Yahua of Khumri," that is, of Jehu, of the land of Omri, as Israel is called on the monuments. </p> <p> 2. Of Rimmon-Nirari III, 810-781 bc </p> <p> The next Assyrian monarch who turned his arms against the West was Rimmon-nirari Iii (810-781 bc), grandson of Shalmaneser II. [[Although]] he is not mentioned by name in Scripture, his presence and activity had their influence upon contemporary events recorded in 2 Ki. He caused Syria to let go her hold of Israel; and although he brought Israel into subjection, the people of the Northern Kingdom would rather have a ruler exercising a nominal sovereignty over them in distant Nineveh than a king oppressing them in Damascus. Hence, Rimmon-nirari has been taken for the saviour whom [[God]] gave to Israel, "so that they went out from under the hand of the Syrians" (2 Kings 13:5; compare 2 Kings 13:23 ). </p> <p> With the death of Rimmon-nirari in 781 bc, the power of Assyria received a temporary check, and on the other hand the kingdom of Judah under [[Uzziah]] and the kingdom of Israel under [[Jeroboam]] Ii reached the zenith of their political prosperity. In 745 bc, however, a usurper, Pul, or Pulu, ascended the throne of Assyria, and reigned as Tiglath-pileser III. It is by the former name that he is first mentioned in the Scripture narrative (2 Kings 15:19; 1 Chronicles 5:26 ), and by the latter that he is mentioned on the monuments. That the two names belong to one man is now held to be certain (Schrader, <i> COT </i> , I, 230 f). </p> <p> 3. Of [[Tiglath-Pileser]] III, 745-727 bc </p> <p> Tiglath-pileser was one of the greatest monarchs of antiquity. He was the first to attempt to consolidate an empire in the manner to which the world has become accustomed since [[Roman]] times. He was not content to receive tribute from the kings and rulers of the states which he conquered. The countries which he conquered became subject provinces of his empire, governed by Assyrian satraps and contributing to the imperial treasury. Not long after he had seated himself on the throne, Tiglath-pileser, like his predecessors, turned his attention to the West. After the siege of Arpad, northward of Aleppo, the Assyrian forces made their way into Syria, and putting into operation the Assyrian method of deportation and repopulation, the conqueror annexed [[Hamath]] which had sought the alliance and assistance of Azariah, that is Uzziah, king of Judah. [[Whether]] he then refrained from molesting Judah, or whether her prestige was broken by this campaign of the Assyrian king, it is not easy to say. In another campaign he certainly subjected [[Menahem]] of Israel with other kings to tribute. What is stated in a word or two in the [[Annals]] of Tiglath-pileser is recorded at length in the [[Bible]] history (2 Kings 15:19 ): "There came against the land [[Pul]] the king of Assyria; and Menahem gave Pul a thousand talents of silver, that his hand might be with him to confirm the kingdom in his hand. And Menahem exacted the money of Israel, even of all the mighty men of wealth, of each man 50 shekels of silver, to give to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria tamed back, and stayed not there in the land." In the reign of Pekah, under his proper name of Tiglath-pileser, he is recorded to have raided the northern parts of Israel, and carried the inhabitants away into the land of Assyria (2 Kings 15:29 ). We next hear of Ahaz, king of Judah, appealing to the [[Assyrians]] for help against "these two tails of smoking firebrands," [[Rezin]] of Syria and Pekah, the son of [[Remaliah]] (Isaiah 7:4 ). To secure this help he took the silver and gold of the house of the Lord, and sent it as a present to the king of Assyria (2 Kings 16:8 ). [[Meanwhile]] Tiglath-pileser was setting out on a new campaign to the West. He carried fire and sword through Syria and the neighboring lands as far as Gaza, and on his return he captured Samaria, without, however, razing it to the ground. [[Pekah]] having been slain by his own people, the Assyrian monarch left Hoshea, the leader of the conspiracy, on the throne of Israel as the vassal of Assyria. </p> <p> 4. Of Shalmaneser IV, 727-722 bc - S eige of Samaria </p> <p> In 727 bc Tiglath-pileser Iii died and was succeeded by Shalmaneser IV. His reign was short and no annals of it have come to light. In 2 Ki 17 and 18, however, we read that Hoshea, relying upon help from the king of Egypt, thought the death of Tiglath-pileser a good opportunity for striking a blow for independence. It was a vain endeavor, for the end of the kingdom of Israel was at hand. The people were grievously given over to oppression and wickedness, which the prophets Amos and Hosea vigorously denounced. Hosea, in particular, was "the prophet of Israel's decline and fall." [[Prophesying]] at this very time he says: "As for Samaria, her king is cut off, as foam upon the water. The high places also of Aven, the sin of Israel, shall be destroyed: the thorn and the thistle shall come up on their altars; and they shall say to the mountains, [[Cover]] us; and to the hills, [[Fall]] on us" (Hosea 10:7 , Hosea 10:8; compare Hosea 10:14 , Hosea 10:15 ). No less stern are the predictions by Isaiah and Micah of the doom that is to overtake Samaria: "Woe to the crown of pride of the drunkards of Ephraim, and to the fading flower of his glorious beauty, which is on the head of the fat valley of them that are overcome with wine" (Isaiah 28:1 ). "For the transgression of [[Jacob]] is all this, and for the sins of the house of Israel. What is the transgression of Jacob? is it not Samaria?... [[Therefore]] I will make Samaria as a heap of the field, and as places for planting vineyards" (Micah 1:5 , Micah 1:6 ). No help came from Egypt. With the unaided and enfeebled resources of his kingdom [[Hoshea]] had to face the chastising forces of his sovereign. He was made prisoner outside Samaria and was most likely carried away to Nineveh. Meanwhile the land was over-run and the capital doomed to destruction, as the prophets had declared. </p> <p> 5. Samaria Captured by Sargon, 722 bc </p> <p> Not without a stubborn resistance on the part of her defenders did "the fortress cease from Ephraim" (Isaiah 17:3 ). It was only after a three years' siege that the Assyrians captured the city (2 Kings 17:5 ). If we had only the record of the [[Hebrew]] historian we should suppose that Shalmaneser was the monarch to whom fell the rewards and honors of the capture. Before the surrender of the city Shalmaneser had abdicated or died, and Sargon, only once mentioned in Scripture (Isaiah 20:1 ), but one of the greatest of Assyrian monarchs, had ascended the throne. From his numerous inscriptions, recovered from the ruins of Khorsabad, we learn that he, and not Shalmaneser, was the king who completed the conquest of the revolted kingdom and deported the inhabitants to Assyria. "In the beginning (of my reign)," says [[Sargon]] in his Annals, "the city Samaria (I took) with the help of Shamash, who secures victory to me (.... 27,290 people inhabiters of it) I took away captive; 50 chariots the property of my royalty, which were in it I appropriated. (.... the city) I restored, and more than before I caused it to be inhabited; people of the lands conquered by my hand in it (I caused to dwell. My governor over them I appointed, and tribute) and imposts just as upon the Assyrians I laid upon them." The Assyrian Annals and the Scripture history support and supplement each other at this point. The sacred historian describes the deportation as follows: "The king of Assyria took Samaria, and carried Israel away into Assyria, and placed them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the [[Medes]] ... because they obeyed not the voice of [[Yahweh]] their God, but transgressed his covenant, even all that Moses, the servant of Yahweh, commanded, and would not hear it, nor do it" (2 Kings 17:6 , 2 Kings 17:7; 2 Kings 18:11 , 2 Kings 18:12 ). </p> <p> 6. Depopulation and Repopulation of Samaria </p> <p> The repopulation of the conquered territory is also described by the sacred historian: "And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Avva, and from Hamath and Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel; and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof" (2 Kings 17:24 ). The fact that Sargon introduced foreign settlers taken in war into Samaria is attested by inscriptions. That there were various episodes of deportation and repopulation in connection with the captivity of the Northern Kingdom appears to be certain. We have seen already that Tiglath-pileser Iii deported the population of the northern tribes to Assyria and placed over the depopulated country governors of his own. And at a time considerably later, we learn that Sargon's grandson Esarhaddon, and his great-grandson Ashur-bani-pal, "the great and noble Osnappar," imported to the region of Samaria settlers of nations conquered by them in the East (Ezra 4:2 , Ezra 4:10 ). Of the original settlers, whom a priest, carried away by the king of Assyria but brought back to Bethel, taught "the law of the god of the land," it is said that "they feared Yahweh, and served their own gods, after the manner of the nations from among whom they had been carried away" (2 Kings 17:33 ). The hybrid stock descended from those settlers is known to us in later history and in the [[Gospels]] as the Samaritans. </p> <p> 7. The Ten Tribes in Captivity </p> <p> We must not suppose that a clean sweep was made Of the inhabitants of the Northern Kingdom. No doubt, as in the Babylonian captivity, "the poorest of the land were left to be vinedressers and husbandmen" (2 Kings 25:12 ). The numbers actually deported were but a moiety of the whole population. But the kingdom of the Ten Tribes was now at an end. Israel had become an Assyrian province, with a governor established in Samaria. As regards the Golah - the captives of Israel in the cities of the Medes - it must not be supposed that they became wholly absorbed in the population among whom they were settled. We can well believe that they preserved their [[Israelite]] traditions and usages with sufficient clearness and tenacity, and that they became part of the [[Jewish]] dispersion so widespread throughout the East. It is quite possible that at length they blended with the exiles of Judah carried off by Nebuchadrezzar, and that then Judah and [[Ephraim]] became one nation as never before. The name Jew, therefore, naturally came to include members of what had earlier been the Northern [[Confederacy]] of Israel as well as those of the Southern Kingdom to which it properly belonged, so that in the post-exilic period, Jehudi, or Jew, means an adherent of Judaism without regard to local nationality. </p> II. Of Judah (the Work of the Chaldean Power) <p> Southern Kingdom and House of David </p> <p> The captivity of Judah was the work of the great Chaldean power seated at [[Babylon]] on the Euphrates. While the Northern Kingdom had new dynasties to rule it in quick succession, Judah and Jerusalem remained true to the House of David to the end. The Southern Kingdom rested on a firmer foundation, and Jerusalem with its temple and priesthood secured the throne against the enemies who overthrew Samaria for nearly a century and a half longer. </p> <p> 1. [[Break-Up]] of Assyria </p> <p> Sargon, who captured Samaria in 722 bc, was followed by monarchs with a great name as conquerors and builders and patrons of literature, Sennacherib, Esarhaddon, Ashurbanipal. When [[Ashurbanipal]] died in 625 bc, the dissolution of the Assyrian Empire was not far off. Its hold over the West had greatly slackened, and the tributary peoples were breaking out into revolt. [[Bands]] of Scythians, a nomad [[Aryan]] race, from the region between the [[Caucasus]] and the Caspian, were sweeping through the Assyrian Empire as far as [[Palestine]] and Egypt, and the prophecies of Jeremiah and Zephaniah reflect their methods of warfare and fierce characteristics. They were driven back, however, at the frontier of Egypt, and appear to have returned to the North without invading Judah. </p> <p> 2. Downfall of Nineveh, 606 bc </p> <p> From the North these hordes were closing in upon Nineveh, and on all sides the Assyrian power was being weakened. In the "Burden of Nineveh," the prophet Nahum foreshadows the joy of the kingdom of Judah at the tidings of its approaching downfall: "Behold, upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace! [[Keep]] thy feasts, O [[J]] udah, perform thy vows; for the wicked one shall no more pass through thee; he is utterly cut off" (Nahum 1:15; compare Nahum 3:8-11 ). The Medes regained their independence and under their king, Cyaxares, formed an alliance with the Chaldeans, who soon afterward revolted under the leadership of Nabopolassar, viceroy of Babylon. [[Rallying]] these various elements to his standard [[Nabopolassar]] laid siege to the Assyrian capital, and in 606 bc, Nineveh, which had been the capital city of great conquerors, and had "multiplied (her) merchants above the stars of heaven" (Nahum 3:16 ), fell before the combined forces of the Medes and Chaldeans, fell suddenly and finally, to rise no more. Of the new Babylonian Empire upon which the [[Chaldeans]] now entered, Nebuchadrezzar, whose father Nabopolassar had associated him with him on the throne, was the first and most eminent ruler. </p> <p> 3. Pharaoh Necoh's Revolt </p> <p> That the people of Judah should exult in the overthrow of Nineveh and the empire for which it stood we can well understand. Jerusalem herself had by God's mercy remained unconquered when [[Sennacherib]] nearly a century before had carried off from the surrounding country 200,150 people and had devastated the towns and fortresses near. But the hateful Assyrian yoke had rested upon Judah to the end, and not upon Judah only but even upon Egypt and the valley of the Nile. In 608 bc Pharaoh Necoh revolted from his Assyrian suzerain and resolved upon an eastern campaign. He had no desire to quarrel with [[Josiah]] of Judah, through whose territory he must pass; but in loyalty to his Assyrian suzerain Josiah threw himself across the path of the [[Egyptian]] invader and perished in the battle of Megiddo. The Pharaoh seems to have returned to Egypt, taking [[Jehoahaz]] the son of Josiah with him, and to have appointed his brother [[Jehoiakim]] king of Judah, and to have exacted a heavy tribute from the land. </p> <p> 4. Defeat at Carchemish, 604 bc </p> <p> But he did not desist from his purpose to win an eastern empire. [[Accordingly]] he pressed forward till he reached the Euphrates, where he was completely routed by the Babylonian army under [[Nebuchadrezzar]] in the decisive battle of Carchemish, 604 bc. The battle left the Chaldeans undisputed masters of Western Asia, and Judah exchanged the yoke of Assyria for that of Babylon. </p> <p> 5. The New Babylonian Empire Under Nebuchadrezzar, 604-562 bc </p> <p> So far as cruelty was concerned, there was little to choose between the new tyrants and the old oppressors. Of the Chaldeans Habakkuk, who flourished at the commencement of the new Empire, says: "They are terrible and dreadful.... Their horses also are swifter than leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves; and their horsemen spread themselves: yea, their horsemen come from far; they fly as an eagle that hasteth to devour" (Habakkuk 1:7 , Habakkuk 1:8 the [[American]] [[Revised]] Version, margin). Over Western Asia, including Judah, Nebuchadrezzar since the battle of [[Carchemish]] was supreme. It was vain for Judah to coquet with Egypt when Nebuchadrezzar had a long and powerful arm with which to inflict chastisement upon his disloyal subjects. </p> The Mission of Jeremiah, 626-580 bc <p> The mission of Jeremiah the prophet in this crisis of the history of Judah was to preach obedience and loyalty to the king of Babylon, and moral reformation as the only means of escaping the [[Divine]] vengeance impending upon land and people. He tells them in the name of God of the great judgment that was to come at the hand of the Chaldeans on Jerusalem and surrounding peoples. He even predicts the period of their subjection to Chaldean domination: "And this whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years" (Jeremiah 25:11 ). This preaching was unpalatable to the partisans of Egypt and to those who believed in the inviolability of Jerusalem. But with stern rebuke and with symbolic action he proclaims the doom of Jerusalem, and in the face of persecution and at the risk of his life, the prophet fulfills his ministry. </p> <p> 6. Revolt and Punishment of Jehoiakim, 608-597 bc </p> <p> Jehoiakim, who was first the vassal of Pharaoh Necoh, and then of Nebuchadrezzar, was in corruption and wickedness too faithful a representative of the people. Jeremiah charges him with covetousness, the shedding of innocent blood, oppression and violence (Jeremiah 22:13-19 ). The fourth year of Jehoiakim was the first year of Nebuchadrezzar, who, fresh from the victory of Carchemish, was making his sovereignty felt in the western world. The despicable king of Judah became Nebuchadrezzar's vassal and continued in his allegiance three years, after which he turned and rebelled against him. But he received neither encouragement nor help from the neighboring peoples. "Yahweh sent against him bands of the Chaldeans, and bands of the Syrians, and bands of the Moabites, and bands of the children of Ammon, and sent them against Judah to destroy it, according to the word of Yahweh, which he spake by his servants the prophets" (2 Kings 24:2 ). The history of the latter part of Jehoiakim's reign is obscure. The Hebrew historian says that after a reign of eleven years he slept with his fathers, from which we infer that he died a natural death. From Daniel we learn that in the third year of Jehoiakim, Nebuchadrezzar came up against Jerusalem and besieged it, and carried off, along with vessels of the house of God, members of the seed royal, and of the nobility of Judah, among whom was Daniel the prophet. That Jehoiakim was included in what seems to be a first installment of the captivity of Judah is expressly affirmed by the [[Chronicler]] who says: "Against him (Jehoiakim) came up [[Nebuchadnezzar]] ... and bound him in fetters, to carry him to Babylon" (2 Chronicles 36:6 ). [[However]] the facts really stand, the historian adds to the record of the death of Jehoiakim and of the succession of [[Jehoiachin]] the significant comment: "And the king of Egypt came not again any more out of this land; for the king of Babylon had taken, from the brook of Egypt unto the river Euphrates, all that pertained to the king of Egypt" (2 Kings 24:7 ). </p> <p> 7. Siege and Surrender of Jerusalem Under Jehoiachin, 597 bc </p> <p> Jehoiachin who succeeded Jehoiakim reigned only three months, the same length of time as his unfortunate predecessor Jehoahaz (2 Kings 23:31 ). The captivity of Jehoahaz in Egypt and the captivity of Jehoiachin in Babylon are lamented in a striking elegy by Ezekiel, who compares them to young lions, the offspring of the mother lioness Israel, which learned to catch and their prey and devoured men, but were taken in the pit of the nations and put in rings, so that their roar was no more heard in the mountains of Israel (Ezekiel 19:1-9 ). Nebuchadrezzar came in person while his servants were besieging Jerusalem, and Jehoiachin surrendered at discretion. So the king and his mother and his servants and his princes and his officers were carried off with the mighty men of valor, even ten thousand captives. 'None remained, save the poorest sort of the people of the land. He carried out thence all the treasures of the house of Yahweh, and the treasures of the king's house, and cut in pieces all the vessels of gold, which [[Solomon]] king of Israel had made in the temple of Yahweh, as Yahweh had said. </p> <p> 8. First Deportation, 597 bc </p> <p> And all the men of might, even seven thousand, and the craftsmen and the smiths a thousand, all of them strong and apt for war, even them the king of Babylon brought captive to Babylon. And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin's father's brother, king in his stead, and changed his name to Zedekiah' (2 Kings 24:10-17 ). From Jehoiachin dates the carrying away into Babylon, the year being 597 bc. The unfortunate monarch lived in exile in Babylon 38 years, and seems to have retained the respect and loyalty of the exiles among whom he dwelt. </p> The Baskets of Figs <p> It was with reference to the deportation of the princes and craftsmen and smiths that Jeremiah had his vision of the baskets of figs - one containing figs very good, like the first ripe figs; the other very bad, so bad they could not be eaten (Jeremiah 24:1-3 ). The good figs were the captives of Judah carried away into the land of the Chaldeans for good; the bad figs were the king Zedekiah and his princes and the residue of Jerusalem, upon whom severe judgments were yet to fall till they were consumed from off the land (Jeremiah 24:4-10 ). </p> <p> 9. The Ministry of Ezekiel, 592-570 bc </p> <p> [[Among]] the captives [[Thus]] carried to Babylon and placed on the banks of the [[Chebar]] was the priest-prophet Ezekiel. [[Five]] years after the captivity he began to have his wonderful "visions" of God, and to declare their import to the exiles by the rivers of Babylon. To the desponding captives who were engrossed with thoughts of the kingdom of Judah, not yet dissolved, and of the [[Holy]] City, not yet burned up with fire, Ezekiel could only proclaim by symbol and allegory the destruction of city and nation, till the day when the distressing tidings reached them of its complete overthrow. Then to the crushed and despairing captives he utters no lamentations like those of Jeremiah, but rather joyful predictions of a rebuilt city, of a reconstituted kingdom, and of a renovated and glorious temple. </p> <p> 10. Jeremiah's Ministry in Jerusalem, 597-588 bc </p> <p> Although the flower of the population had been carried away into Babylon and the [[Temple]] had been despoiled of its treasures, Jerusalem and the Temple still stood. To the inhabitants who were left behind, and to the captives in Babylon, Jeremiah had a message. To the latter he offered counsels of submission and contentment, assured that the hateful and repulsive idolatries around them would throw them back upon the law of their God, and Thus promote the work of moral and spiritual regeneration within them. 'Thus saith Yahweh, I will give them a heart to know me, that I am Yahweh: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God; for they shall return unto me with their whole heart' (Jeremiah 24:5 , Jeremiah 24:7 ). To "the residue of Jerus" his counsels and predictions were distasteful, and exposed him to the suspicion of disloyalty to his people and his God. [[None]] of his warnings was more impressive than that symbolically proclaimed by the bands and bars which the prophet was to put upon his neck to send to the kings of [[Edom]] and [[Moab]] and [[Ammon]] and Tyre and Sidon, who seem to have had ideas of forming an alliance against Nebuchadrezzar. Zedekiah was also urged to submit, but still entertained hopes that the king of Babylon would allow the captives of Judah to return. He even himself went to Babylon, perhaps summoned thither by his suzerain (Jeremiah 51:59 ). With an Egyptian party in Jerusalem urging an alliance with Egypt, and with a young and warlike Pharaoh on the throne, [[Hophra]] (Apries), Zedekiah deemed the opportunity favorable for achieving independence, and entered into an intrigue with the Egyptian king. So Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon (2 Kings 24:20 ). </p> <p> 11. Zedekiah's Rebellion and the Siege of Jerusalem, 588-586 bc </p> <p> It was a bold throw, but Nebuchadrezzar would brook no such disloyalty from his vassals. He marched at once to the West, and committed to [[Nebuzaradan]] the task of capturing Jerusalem, while he himself established his headquarters at Riblah, in Syria, on the Orontes. Meanwhile the Pharaoh with his army crossed the frontier to the help of his allies, and compelled the Chaldeans to raise the siege of Jerusalem and meet him in the field (Jeremiah 37:5 ). But here his courage failed him, and he retired in haste without offering battle. Nebuzaradan now led back his army and the siege became closer than before. </p> Jeremiah "Falling Away to the Chaldeans" <p> During the breathing-space afforded by the withdrawal of the Chaldeans, Jeremiah was going out of the city to his native Anathoth, some 4 miles to the Northeast across the ridge, on family business (Jeremiah 37:11-15 ). His departure was observed, and he was charged with falling away to the Chaldeans, and cast into an improvised dungeon in the house of [[Jonathan]] the scribe. While there the king sent for him and asked, "Is there any word from Yahweh?" And Jeremiah answered fearlessly, "There is. [[Thou]] shalt be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon." For a time Jeremiah, by the favor of Zedekiah, enjoyed after this a greater measure of freedom; but as he continued to urge in hearing of all the people the duty of surrender, his enemies vowed that he should be put to death, and had him cast into a foul empty cistern, where he ran the risk of being choked or starved to death. Once again the king sought an interview with the prophet, giving him private assurance that he would not put him to death nor allow his enemies to do so. Again the prophet counseled surrender, and again he was allowed a measure of freedom. </p> <p> 12. Destruction of Jerusalem, 586 bc </p> Flight, Capture, and Punishment of Zedekiah <p> But the end of the doomed city was at hand. In the 11th year of Zedekiah, 586 bc, in the 4th month, the 9th day of the month, a breach was made in the city (Jeremiah 39:1 , Jeremiah 39:2 ), and the final assault completed the work that had been done by months of famine and want. Zedekiah and his men of war do not seem to have waited for the delivery of the last assault. They fled from the city by night "by the way of the king's garden, through the gate betwixt the two walls," and made eastward for the Arabah. But the army of the Chaldeans pursued them, and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. They took him prisoner and brought him to Nebuchadrezzar at Riblah, where the king of Babylon first slew the son of Zedekiah, and then put out his eyes. With the sons of the captured monarch were slain all the nobles of Judah. This time neither city nor temple nor palace was spared. Nebuzaradan "burnt the house of Yahweh, and the king's house; and all the houses of Jerusalem, even every great house, burnt he with fire" (2 Kings 25:9 ). His soldiers, too, broke down the walls of Jerusalem round about. The treasure and the costly furnishings of the Temple, in so far as they had escaped the former spoliation, were carried away to Babylon. The ruin of Jerusalem was complete. The [[Book]] of Lamentations utters the grief and shame and penitence of an eyewitness of the captures and desolation of the Holy City: "Yahweh hath accomplished his wrath, he hath poured out his fierce anger; and he hath kindled a fire in Zion, which hath devoured the foundations thereof. The kings of the earth believed not, neither all the inhabitants of the world, that the adversary and the enemy would enter into the gates of Jerusalem. [[Woe]] unto us! for we have sinned. For this our heart is faint; for these things our eyes are dim; for the mountain of Zion, which is desolate: the foxes walk upon it" (Lamentations 4:11 , Lamentations 4:12; Lamentations 5:16 , Lamentations 5:18 ). </p> <p> 13. Second Deportation of Inhabitants, 586 bc </p> <p> "So Judah," says the prophet who had been through the siege and the capture (if not rather the editor of his prophecies), "was carried away captive out of his land" (Jeremiah 52:27 ). The statements of the numbers carried away are, however, conflicting. In Jer (Jeremiah 52:28-30 ) we read of three deportations: that of 597 bc when 3,023 [[Jews]] were carried off; that of 586 bc when Nebuchadrezzar carried off 832 persons; and one later than both in 581 bc, when Nebuzaradan carried away captive of the Jews 745 persons - a total of 4, 600. </p> <p> 14. Third Deportation, 581 bc </p> (1) Number and Quality of Exiles <p> In 2 Kings 24:15 , 2 Kings 24:16 it is said that in 597 Nebuchadrezzar carried to Babylon 8,000 men. Dr. [[George]] [[Adam]] [[Smith]] taking all the data together estimates that the very highest figures possible are 62,000 or 70,000 men, women and children, less than half of the whole nation ( <i> Jerusalem </i> , II, 268-70). In 597 bc, Nebuchadrezzar carried off the princes and nobles and craftsmen and smiths, leaving behind the poorest sort of the people of the land (2 Kings 24:14 ). </p> (2) The Residue Left <p> In 586 bc Nebuzaradan carried off the residue of the people that were left in the city, but he "left of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and husbandmen" (2 Kings 25:12 ). "They were, as the [[Biblical]] narratives testify, the <i> poorest of the land </i> , from whom every man of substance and energy had been sifted; mere groups of peasants, without a leader and without a center; disorganized and depressed; bitten by hunger and compassed by enemies; uneducated and an easy prey to the heathenism by which they were surrounded. We can appreciate the silence which reigns in the Bible regarding them, and which has misled us as to their numbers. They were a negligible quantity in the religious future of Israel: without initiative or any influence except that of a dead weight upon the efforts of the rebuilders of the nation, when these at last returned from Babylonia" ( <i> Jerusalem </i> , II, 269-70). </p> <p> 15. Gedaliah, Governor of Judah </p> <p> Over those who were left behind, [[Gedaliah]] was appointed governor, with his residence at Mizpah, where also a Babylonian contingent remained on guard. Jeremiah had the choice of being taken to Babylon or of remaining in Judah. He preferred to remain with the residue of the people under the care of Gedaliah. With the murder of Gedaliah by Ishmael, a traitorous scion of the royal house, who in turn had to flee and made good his escape, it looked as if the last trace of the former kingdom of Judah was wiped out. </p> (1) Jeremiah and the Flight to Egypt <p> Against the counsel of Jeremiah, the remnant, led by [[Johanan]] the son of Kareah, resolved to take refuge in Egypt and insisted that Jeremiah and his friend [[Baruch]] should accompany them. It is in Egypt, amid disappointment and misrepresentation which he had to endure, that we have our last glimpse of the prophet of the downfall of Judah. </p> (2) Descendants of the Fugitives, 471-411 bc <p> Of the descendants of those settlers in Egypt remarkable remains have been discovered within the last few years. They consist of [[Aramaic]] papyri which were found at Assouan, the ancient Syene, and which belong to a time not more than a century after the death of Jeremiah. The documents are accounts and contracts and deeds of various kinds, from which we gather that in the 5th century bc there were Jews keeping themselves apart as they do still, worshipping Yahweh, and no other God, and even having a temple and an altar of sacrifice to which they brought offerings as their fathers did at Jerusalem before the destruction of the Temple. These papyri give us valuable glimpses of the social condition and religious interest of the settlers. See [[Dispersion]] . </p> <p> 16. The Exiles in Babylon: Their Social Condition, 464-405 bc </p> <p> Of the Jewish captives carried off by Nebuchadrezzar and settled by the rivers of Babylon, we learn something from the prophecies of Daniel which are now generally believed to belong to the [[Maccabean]] period, and much from the prophecies of Ezekiel, from the Psalms of the Captivity, and from the Second Isaiah, whose glowing messages of encouragement and comfort were inspired by the thought of the Return. From Haggai and Zechariah we see how the work of rebuilding the Temple was conceived and carried out. Of the social condition of the Exiles an interesting revelation is given by the excavations at Nippur. From cuneiform tablets, now in the [[Imperial]] [[Ottoman]] [[Museum]] at Constantinople, preserved among the business archives of the wealthy firm of Murashu, sons of Nippur, in the reign of [[Artaxerxes]] I and [[Darius]] Ii (464-405 bc), there can be read quite a number of Jewish names. And the remarkable thing is that many of the names are those known to us from the genealogical and other lists of the Books of Ki and Ch and Ezr and Neh. Professor Hilprext ( <i> The Babylonian [[Expedition]] </i> , IX, 13ff) infers from an examination of these that a considerable number of the Jewish exiles, carried away by Nebuchadrezzar after the destruction of Jerusalem, were settled in [[Nippur]] and its neighborhood. Of this fact there are various proofs. The [[Talmudic]] tradition which identifies Nippur with [[Calneh]] (Genesis 10:10 ) gains new force in the light of these facts. And "the river Khebar in the land of the Chaldeans," by which Ezekiel saw his vision, is now known from inscriptions to be a large navigable canal not far from Nippur (ibid., 27, 28). </p> <p> 17. The Rise and Development of Judaism </p> <p> The influence of the Captivity as a factor in the development of Judaism can hardly be overestimated. "The captivity of Judah," says Dr. Foakes-Jackson ( <i> Biblical History of the Hebrews </i> , 316) "is one of the greatest events in the history of religion.... With the captivity the history of Israel ends, and the history of the Jews commences." [[Placed]] in the midst of heathen and idolatrous surroundings the Golah recoiled from the abominations of their neighbors and clung to the faith of their fathers in the God of Abraham. [[Exposed]] to the taunts and the scorn of nations that despised them, they formed an inner circle of their own, and cultivated that exclusiveness which has marked them ever since. Being without a country, without a ritual system, without any material basis for their life as a people, they learned as never before to prize those spiritual possessions which had come down to them from the past. They built up their nationality in their new surroundings upon the foundation of their religion. Their prophets, Jeremiah and Ezekiel, had encouraged and stimulated them with the assurance of spiritual blessings, and the promise of restoration. For their whole social and domestic and spiritual life there was needed some steady and continuous regulative principle or scheme. The need of this threw their leaders and thinkers back upon the Law of Moses. The rabbi and the scribe took the place of the sacrificing priest. The synagogue and the [[Sabbath]] came to occupy a new place in the religious practice of the people. These and other institutions of Judaism only attained to maturity after the Return, but the Captivity and the [[Exile]] created the needs they were meant to supply. While the prophets were clear and explicit in setting forth the Captivity, they were not less so in predicting the Return. Isaiah with his doctrine of the Remnant, Micah, Zephaniah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and others gifted with the vision of God, cheered the nation, each in their day, with the hope of restoration and return, not for Judah only but for Israel as well. Vineyards were to be planted again upon the mountains of Samaria as well as in the valleys of Judah. Jeremiah had even predicted the length of the period of the Exile, when he declared that the inhabitants of the land should serve the king of Babylon for seventy years (Jeremiah 25:12; Jeremiah 29:10 ). </p> <p> 18. The Return by Permission of Cyrus, 538 bc </p> <p> It was in Cyrus, who brought about the fall of Babylon and ended the New Babylonian Empire in 539 bc, that the hopes of the exiles came to be centered. He was "the battle-axe" with which Yahweh was to shatter Babylon (Jeremiah 51:20 ), and as he proceeded on his path of victory the unknown [[Seer]] whom we call the Second Isaiah welcomed him as the liberator of his people. "Thus saith Yahweh ... of Jerusalem, She shall be inhabited; and of the cities of Judah, They shall be built, and I will raise up the waste places thereof; that saith to the deep, Be dry, and I will dry up thy rivers; that saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure, even saying of Jerusalem, She shall be built; and of the temple, [[Thy]] foundation shall be laid" (Isaiah 44:26-28 ). </p> <p> 19. Rebuilding of the Temple, 536 bc </p> <p> [[Within]] a year of the entry of [[Cyrus]] into Babylon an edict was issued (2 Chronicles 36:22 , 2 Chronicles 36:23; Ezra 1:1 ), granting permission to the exiles to return and build a house for the Lord in Jerusalem. He also brought forth the vessels of the Temple which Nebuchadrezzar had carried away and handed them over to Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah; and [[Sheshbazzar]] brought them with him when they of the Captivity were brought up from Babylon unto Jerusalem. </p> <p> Particulars of the Return are given in the Books of Ezr and Neh, and in the prophecies of Haggai and Zechariah. Of the exiles 42,360 returned under Sheshbazzar, besides slaves; and under [[Jeshua]] the son of [[Jozadak]] the priest, and Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, first an altar was built and then the foundations of the Temple were laid. In consequence of the opposition of the Samaritans, who were refused any share in the restoration of the Temple, the work of rebuilding was greatly hindered, and came to a stop. It was then that Haggai and Zechariah urged the resumption of the work and partly by denouncing the niggardliness of the people and partly by foreshadowing the glorious future in store for the Temple, hastened forward the enterprise. </p> Completed 515 bc <p> At length in the month Adar, in the 6th year of Darius (515 bc) the work was completed and the [[Passover]] celebrated within the courts of the restored [[Sanctuary]] (Ezra 6:15-18 ). </p> <p> 20. Reforms and Labors of Ezra and Nehemiah, 445 bc </p> <p> For some decades the history is silent, and it was in 458 bc that Ezra set out for Jerusalem taking 1,800 Jews along with him. He found that the returned Jews had become allied in marriage with the people of the land and were in danger of losing their racial characteristics by absorption among the heathen (Ezra 9:1-15 ). It was due no doubt to his efforts and those of Nehemiah, supported by the searching and powerful utterances of Malachi, that this peril was averted. [[Thirteen]] years later (445 bc) Nehemiah, the cupbearer of Artaxerxes, having heard of the desolate condition of the Holy City, the place of his fathers' sepulchers, obtained leave of his master to visit Jerusalem. With letters to the governors on the route and to the keeper of the king's forest, he set out, and came safely to Jerusalem. Having himself inspected the walls he called the people to the work of repairing the ruins, and despite the taunts and calumny and active hostility of the [[Samaritan]] opposition he had the satisfaction of seeing the work completed, the gates set up and the city repopulated. Nehemiah and Ezra then gathered the people together to hear the words of the Law, and at a solemn convocation the Law was read and explained to the assembly. [[Thereafter]] a covenant was entered into by the people that they would observe the Law of [[Moses]] and not intermarry with the heathen nor traffic on the Sabbath, but would pay a third of a shekel annually for the services of the Temple and would bring first-fruits and tithes (Nehemiah 10:28 ). </p> <p> 21. Modern Theories of the Return </p> <p> The course of the history as here set forth has been disputed by some modern scholars, who hold that there was no return of the exiles under Cyrus and that the rebuilding of the Temple was the work of the Jews who remained behind in Judah and Jerusalem ( <i> EB </i> , article "Ezra-Nehemiah"). This view, held by the late Professor Kosters of [[Leyden]] and supported by Professor H. P. Smith and other scholars, proceeds largely upon the rejection of the historical character of the Book of Ezra-Nehemiah. The historical difficulties which are found in the book are by no means such as to warrant us in denying the fact of the Return and the work of Ezra in connection with Nehemiah. As regards the Return, the course of the narrative is too well supported by documents which bear upon them the stamp of historical truth to be rashly disputed. Moreover, it seems highly improbable that an enterprise requiring such energy and skill and faith should have been undertaken, without stimulus from without, by the residue of the people. We have already seen how little initiative was to be expected of the poorest of the people; and the silence of Haggai, on the subject of the Return, is no argument against it. That the Judaism of Palestine required invigoration by an infusion of the zeal and enThusiasm which grew up in the Judaism of Babylonian, is manifest from the story of the Captivity. </p> <p> 22. Importance of the Period Ezra-Nehemiah </p> <p> From the age of Nehemiah and the period immediately preceding it came influences of the utmost moment for the future. "Within these hundred years," says the late Dr. P. [[Hay]] [[Hunter]] in <i> After the Exile </i> (I, xvi), "the teaching of Moses was established as the basis of the national life, the first steps were taken toward the formation of a canon of Scripture. Jewish society was moulded into a shape which succeeding centuries modified, but did not essentially change. During this period the [[Judea]] of the days of our Lord came into being. Within this period the forces which opposed Christ, the forces which rallied to His side, had their origin. This century saw the rise of parties, which afterward became sects under the names of [[Pharisees]] and Sadducees. It laid the foundation of Rabbinism. It fixed the attitude of the Jews toward the Gentiles. It put the priesthood in the way to supreme authority. It gave birth to the Samaritan schism." </p> <p> [[Figurative]] uses. See [[Captive]] . </p> Literature <p> Schrader, <i> COT </i> , I; McCurdy, <i> HPM </i> , I, 281ff, II, 249ff, III; C. F. Barney, <i> [[Notes]] on Heb [[Text]] of Bks of Kings </i> ; Foakes-Jackson, <i> Biblical [[Hist]] of the Hebrews </i> , 260-412; G. A. Smith, <i> Jerusalem </i> , II, 223-349; <i> [[Cambridge]] Biblical [[Essays]] </i> , 93-135; P. Hay Hunter, <i> The [[Story]] of Daniel </i> and <i> After the Exile </i> ; <i> EB </i> , article "Ezra-Nehemiah"; Nicol, <i> [[Recent]] [[Archaeology]] and the Bible </i> , 239-78; H. P. Smith, <i> Old [[Testament]] Hist </i> , 219-412; Kittel, <i> History of the Hebrews </i> , II, 329ff. </p> <p> . </p>
<p> See Bondage. </p>
          
          
== Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature <ref name="term_30100" /> ==
== Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature <ref name="term_30100" /> ==
<
<p> (
          
          
==References ==
==References ==
<references>
<references>


<ref name="term_34938"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/fausset-s-bible-dictionary/captivity Captivity from Fausset's Bible Dictionary]</ref>
       
<ref name="term_69833"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/people-s-dictionary-of-the-bible/captivity Captivity from People's Dictionary of the Bible]</ref>
       
<ref name="term_15758"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/american-tract-society-bible-dictionary/captivity Captivity from American Tract Society Bible Dictionary]</ref>
<ref name="term_15758"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/american-tract-society-bible-dictionary/captivity Captivity from American Tract Society Bible Dictionary]</ref>
       
<ref name="term_18458"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/bridgeway-bible-dictionary/captivity Captivity from Bridgeway Bible Dictionary]</ref>
          
          
<ref name="term_30998"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/easton-s-bible-dictionary/captivity Captivity from Easton's Bible Dictionary]</ref>
<ref name="term_30998"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/easton-s-bible-dictionary/captivity Captivity from Easton's Bible Dictionary]</ref>
          
          
<ref name="term_34938"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/fausset-s-bible-dictionary/captivity Captivity from Fausset's Bible Dictionary]</ref>
<ref name="term_65582"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/morrish-bible-dictionary/captivity Captivity from Morrish Bible Dictionary]</ref>
          
          
<ref name="term_39499"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/holman-bible-dictionary/captivity Captivity from Holman Bible Dictionary]</ref>
<ref name="term_80468"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/watson-s-biblical-theological-dictionary/captivity Captivity from Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary]</ref>
          
          
<ref name="term_50408"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/hastings-dictionary-of-the-bible/captivity Captivity from Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible]</ref>
<ref name="term_58846"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/king-james-dictionary/captivity Captivity from King James Dictionary]</ref>
          
          
<ref name="term_55410"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/hastings-dictionary-of-the-new-testament/captivity Captivity from Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament]</ref>
<ref name="term_97573"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/webster-s-dictionary/captivity Captivity from Webster's Dictionary]</ref>
          
          
<ref name="term_58846"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/king-james-dictionary/captivity Captivity from King James Dictionary]</ref>
<ref name="term_50408"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/hastings-dictionary-of-the-bible/captivity Captivity from Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible]</ref>
          
          
<ref name="term_65582"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/morrish-bible-dictionary/captivity Captivity from Morrish Bible Dictionary]</ref>
<ref name="term_18458"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/bridgeway-bible-dictionary/captivity Captivity from Bridgeway Bible Dictionary]</ref>
          
          
<ref name="term_69833"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/people-s-dictionary-of-the-bible/captivity Captivity from People's Dictionary of the Bible]</ref>
<ref name="term_39499"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/holman-bible-dictionary/captivity Captivity from Holman Bible Dictionary]</ref>
          
          
<ref name="term_80468"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/watson-s-biblical-theological-dictionary/captivity Captivity from Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary]</ref>
<ref name="term_55410"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/hastings-dictionary-of-the-new-testament/captivity Captivity from Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament]</ref>
          
          
<ref name="term_97573"> [https://bibleportal.com/dictionary/webster-s-dictionary/captivity Captivity from Webster's Dictionary]</ref>
<ref name="term_30100"> [https://bibleportal.com/encyclopedia/cyclopedia-of-biblical-theological-and-ecclesiastical-literature/captivity Captivity from Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature]</ref>
          
          
<ref name="term_2476"> [https://bibleportal.com/encyclopedia/international-standard-bible-encyclopedia/captivity Captivity from International Standard Bible Encyclopedia]</ref>
<ref name="term_2476"> [https://bibleportal.com/encyclopedia/international-standard-bible-encyclopedia/captivity Captivity from International Standard Bible Encyclopedia]</ref>
       
<ref name="term_30100"> [https://bibleportal.com/encyclopedia/cyclopedia-of-biblical-theological-and-ecclesiastical-literature/captivity Captivity from Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature]</ref>
          
          
</references>
</references>