All the army of the Chaldeans refers, of course, to all of Nebuchadnezzar’s soldiers or “troops” (New American Bible). For the translation of Chaldeans as “Babylonians,” see verse 4 and 2 Kgs 24.2.

The captain of the guard: See the comments at verse 8.

Broke down the walls: Regarding the wall of Jerusalem, see 1 Kgs 3.1. The Hebrew verb translated broke down is rendered “demolished” in 2 Kgs 10.27 and “pulled down” in 2 Kgs 23.12. The city walls were destroyed so that Jerusalem was no longer protected.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Kings, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2008. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .