The southern kingdom
of Judah continued to be governed by kings from David's
line for several centuries after the division that of 922. The end of the
kingdom of Judah came as the power of Assyria waned and Egypt and Babylonia struggled for dominance. The Babylonians
prevailed and captured Jerusalem in 587 after a siege. Many of the
leading people of Judah were taken into exile in Babylonia, where they remained
until some were permitted to return nearly fifty
years later.
