In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, the king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, came to Jerusalem and set up a siege around the city. King Jehoiakim resisted at first, but finally surrendered. Nebuchadnezzar took many captives with him back to Babylon, among them being Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. These young men were all princes of Judah from the royal household, and it was the king’s intentions to have these boys educated in Babylon.
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