46:2 Carchemish. Nebuchadnezzar defeated Pharaoh Neco at the battle of Carchemish on the upper Euphrates River in 605 b.c. and brought to a close Egypt’s political and military influence over Palestine and Syria.

fourth year of Jehoiakim. See 36:1; 45:1. The ascendancy of Babylon over Egypt was critical for Judah in her final years.