Nebuchadnezzar Destroys Jerusalem

In 586 BCE, after an 18-month siege, Babylonian forces under Nebuchadnezzar II broke through Jerusalem's walls. They systematically destroyed the city, including Solomon's Temple — the center of Israelite worship for nearly 400 years. King Zedekiah was captured trying to flee, forced to watch his sons executed, then blinded and taken to Babylon in chains. The Babylonian Chronicle and extensive archaeological evidence at Jerusalem confirm the scale of destruction.