^\'it]lin a few years after Nebuchadnezzar's first ex- pedition into Syria and Palestine, disaflfection again showed itself in those countries. Jehoiakim — who, al- though tlireatened at first with captivity (2 Chron. xxxvi, C), liad been finally maintained on the throne as a Babylonian vassal — after three years of service " turned and rebelled" against his suzerain, probably trusting to be supported by Egypt (2 Kings xxiv, 1). Not long afterwards Plia-nicia seems to have broken into revolt; and the Chakhcan monarch, who had previously en- deavored to subdue the disaffected by his generals and allies (2 Kings xxiv, 2), once more took the field in per- son, and marched first of all against Tyre. Having in- vested that city in the seventh year of his reign (Jose- phus, r. Aj>. i, 21), and left a portion of his army there to continue the siege, he proceeded against Jerusalem, whicli suljmitted without a struggle (B.C. 598). Ac- cording to Josephus, who is here our chief authority, Nebucliadnczzar punished Jehoiakim with death {Aiif. X, 6, 3; comp. Jer. xxii, 18, 19, and xxxvi, 30), but placed his son .Jehoiachin upon the throne. Jehoiachin reigned only three months; for, on his showing symp- toms of disaffection, Nebucliadnczzar came up against Jerusalem for the third time, deposed the young prince (whom he carried to Babylon, together with a large portion of the population of the city, and the chief of the Temple treasures), and made his uncle, Zedekiah, king in his place. Tyre still held out; and it was not till the thirteenth vcar from the time of its first invest-
NEBUCHADNEZZAR
ment that the city of merchants fell (B.C. 585), Before this happened, Jerusalem had been totally destroyed. This consummation was owing to the folly of Zedekiah, who, despite the warnings of Jeremiah, made a treaty with Apries (Hophra), king of Egypt (Ezek. xvii, 15), and on the strength of this alliance renounced his alle- giance to the king of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar com- menced the final siege of Jerusalem in the ninth year of Zedekiah — his own sixteenth year (early in B.C. 589)— and took it nearly two years later (latter part of B.C. 588). One effort to carry out the treaty seems to have been made by Apries. An Egyptian army crossed the frontier, and began its march towards Jerusalem ; upon which Nebuchadnezzar raised the siege, and set off to meet the new foe. According to Josejihus (Ant. X, 7, 3) a battle was fought, in which Apries was com- pletely defeated ; but the scriptural account seems rather to imply that the Egyptians retired on the advance of Nebuchadnezzar, and recrossed the frontier without risking an engagement (Jer. xxxvii, 5-8). At any rate, the attempt failed, and was not repeated ; the " broken reed, Egypt," proved a treacherous support, and after an eighteen months' siege Jerusalem fell. Zedekiah es- caped from the city, but was captured near Jericho (Jer, xxxix, 5), and brought to Nebuchadnezzar at Kiblah in the territory of Hamath, where his eyes were |iut out by the king's order, while his sons and his chief nobles were slain. Nebuchadnezzar then returned to Babylon with Zedekiah, whom he imprisoned for the remainder of his life; leaving Nebuzar-adan, the captain of his guard, to complete the destruction of the city and the pacification of Judaea. Gedaliah, a Jew, was appointed governor, but he was shortly murdered, and the rest of the Jews either fled to Egypt or were carried by Ne- buzar-adan to Babylon (B.C. .582).
The military successes of Nebuchadnezzar cannot be traced minutely beyond this point. His own annals have not come down to us; and the historical allusions which we find in his extant inscriptions are of the most vague and general character. It may be gathered from the prophetical Scriptures and from Josephus that the conquest of Jerusalem was rapidly followed by the fall of Tyre and the complete submission of Phoenicia (Ezra xxvi-xxviii; Joseph, c. Ap. i, 21); after which the Babylonians carried their arms into Egjpt, and inflicted severe injuries on that fertile country (Jer. xlvi. 13-2(!; Ezra xxix, 2-20; xxx, 6; Joseph. Ant. x, 9, 7). But we have no account of these campaigns on which we can depend. Josephus adds that SIcgasthencs, in his fourth ! book, refers to the same subject, and therel)y endeavors to show that Nebuchadnezzar exceeded Hercules, and conquered a great part of Africa and Spain. Sfrabo adds that " Sesostris, king of Egypt, and Tearcon, king of Ethiopia, extended their expedition as far as Europe, but that Navokodrosor, who is venerated by the Chal- daians more than Hercules by the (ireeks, . . . marched through Spain to Greece and Pontiis." Our remaining notices of Nebuchadnezzar present him to us as a mag- nificent prince and beneficent rukr rather than a war- rior; and the great fame which has always attached to his name among the Eastern nations dciiends rather on his buildings and other grand constructions than on any victories or conquests ascribed to him.
2. We are told by Berosus tliat the first care of Nebu- chadnezzar, on obtaining quiet possession of his king- dom after the first Syrian expedition, was to rebuild the temple of Bel {lid-Mtroihich) at Babyk)n out of the spoils of the Syrian war (ap. Josejih. Aiil. x, 11, 1). He next proceeded to strengthen and beautify the city, which he renovate<l throughout, and surrounded with several lines of fortification, himself adding one entirely new quarter. Having finished the walls and adorned the gates magnificently, he constructed a new palace, adjoining the old residence of his father — a superb edi- fice which he com])letcd in fifteen days ! In the grounds of this palace he formed the celebrated "hanging gar- den," winch was a plaisance, built up with huge stones