Jeremiah’s account of Judah’s captivity included unmistakable details that made it not only reliable, but verifiable. According to Jeremiah, it was foretold, “Behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, saith the LORD, and Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and will bring them against this land… 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).

Jeremiah delivered this proclamation in the first year of Nebuchadrezzar’s reign (Jeremiah 25:1), which was in 605 B.C. The seventy year period was most likely from 586 B.C., when king Solomon’s temple was destroyed, to 516 B.C., when Zerubbabel’s temple was completed. The Hebrew word translated serve, ‘âbad (aw – bad´) means to work or to be enslaved. What was implied by the phrase “serve the king of Babylon (Jeremiah 25:11) was the involuntary service or worship of another god.

God’s reference to Nebuchadrezzar as “my servant” (Jeremiah 25:9) was an indication that even though the people of Judah would be serving Nebuchadrezzar, they would still be serving God indirectly because the LORD was in control of their circumstances. In some ways, Nebuchadrezzar was no different that the kings of Israel. He was established in his position to carry out God’s plan for his people. Nebuchadrezzar was unlike the kings of Israel though, in that, he did not have a choice as to whether or not he would serve God’s purposes, he was merely hired or appointed to do a job.

When the seventy years of Judah’s captivity was finished, God said he would punish Nebuchadrezzar (Jeremiah 25:12) and recompense the nations and kings that had harmed Israel (Jeremiah 25:14). Essentially, what God intended to do was bring an end to the powers that were hindering his plan of salvation from being implemented. The Hebrew word translated recompense in Jeremiah 25:14, shâlam (shaw – lam´) means to finish or complete, but it also refers to God’s ability to achieve a state of perfection. In his punishment of Nebuchadrezzar, God would ultimately bring about his divine intent of returning his people to the Promised Land so that their Messiah could be born.