And the Lord gave Jehoiakim, king of Judah, into his hand, with part of the vessels of the house of God, the rest being taken in later expeditions, 2 Kings 25, which he carried into the land of Shinar, the ancient name for Babylonia, to the house of his god, the temple of Bel, one of the chief deities of Babylon; and he brought the vessels into the treasure-house of his god, the usual storage-place of vessels made of precious metals. The object of this expedition was merely to make Jerusalem and Judah tributary to the king of Babylon. Later expeditions increased the power of the world empire over Jerusalem, until it was finally subjugated and destroyed, some twenty years later.

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