¹⁷ So God brought the king of Babylon to attack them. The king killed the young men even when they were in the Temple. He did not have mercy on the people. He killed both young men and women. He even killed the old men and those who were sick. God permitted Nebuchadnezzar to punish the people of Judah and Jerusalem. ¹⁸ Nebuchadnezzar carried away to Babylon all the things from the Temple of God, both large and small. He took all the treasures from the Temple of the Lord and from the king and his officers. ¹⁹ Nebuchadnezzar and his army set fire to God’s Temple. They broke down Jerusalem’s wall. And they burned all the palaces. They took or destroyed every valuable thing in Jerusalem.