Reference: Zedekiah
American
1. The twentieth and last king of Judah, son of Josiah and Hamutal, and uncle to Jeconiah his predecessor, 2Ki 24:17,19; Jer 52:1. When Nebuchadnezzar took Jerusalem, he carried Jeconiah to Babylon, with his wives, children, officers, and the best artificers in Judea, and put in his place his uncle Mattaniah, whose name he changed to Zedekiah, and made him promise with an oath that he would maintain fidelity to him. He was twenty-one years old when he began to reign at Jerusalem, and he reigned there eleven years. He did evil in the sight of the Lord, committing the same crimes as Jehoiakim, 2Ki 24:18-20; 2Ch 36:11-13. Compare Jer 29:16-19; 34; 38:5; Eze 17:12,14,18. In the ninth year of his reign, he revolted against Nebuchadnezzar, trusting to the support of Pharaoh-hophra king of Egypt, which proved ineffectual, and despising the faithful remonstrance's of Jeremiah, Jer 37:2,5,7-10. In consequence of this the Assyrian marched his army into Judea, and took all the fortified places. In the eleventh year of his reign, on the ninth day of the fourth month, (July,) Jerusalem was taken, 588 BC. The king and his people endeavored to escape by favor of the night; but the Chaldean troops pursuing them, they were over-taken in the plain of Jericho. Zedekiah was taken and carried to Nebuchadnezzar, then at Riblah, in Syria, who reproached him with his perfidy, caused his children to be slain before his face and his own eyes to be put out; and then loading him with chains of brass, he ordered him to be sent to Babylon, 2Ki 25; Jer 39; 52; Eze 19. All these events remarkably fulfilled the predictions of Jeremiah and Ezekiel, in the chapters preciously referred to. Compare also, with respect to Zedekiah's blindness, Jer 34:3; Eze 12:13.
2. A false prophet, exposed by Micaiah when urging Ahab to fight with the Syrians, 1Ki 22:11-37. His fate is foreshadowed in 1Ki 22:25.
3. Another false prophet, denounced by Jeremiah, Jer 29:21-22.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And Zedekiah son of Chenaanah made him horns of iron and said, Thus says the Lord: With these you shall push the Syrians until they are destroyed. And all the prophets agreed, saying, Go up to Ramoth-gilead and prosper, for the Lord will deliver it into the king's hand. read more. The messenger who went to call Micaiah said to him, Behold now, the prophets unanimously declare good to the king. Let your answer, I pray you, be like theirs, and say what is good. But Micaiah said, As the Lord lives, I will speak what the Lord says to me. So he came to the king. King [Ahab] said, Micaiah, shall we go against Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall we hold back? And he answered, Go and prosper, for the Lord will deliver it into the king's hand. And the king said to him, How many times must I charge you to tell me nothing but the truth in the name of the Lord? And he said, I saw all Israel scattered upon the hills as sheep that have no shepherd, and the Lord said, These have no master. Let them return every man to his house in peace. Then the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell you that he would prophesy no good concerning me, but evil? And Micaiah said, Hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by Him on His right hand and on His left. And the Lord said, Who will entice Ahab to go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead? One said this way, another said that way. Then there came forth a spirit [of whom I am about to tell] and stood before the Lord and said, I will entice him. The Lord said to him, By what means? And he said, I will go forth and be a lying spirit in the mouths of all his prophets. [The Lord] said, You shall entice him and succeed also. Go forth and do it. So the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouths of all these prophets; and the Lord has spoken evil concerning you. But Zedekiah son of Chenaanah went near and struck Micaiah on the cheek and said, Which way went the Spirit of the Lord from me to speak to you? Micaiah said, Behold, you shall see on that day when you go into an inner chamber to hide yourself.
Micaiah said, Behold, you shall see on that day when you go into an inner chamber to hide yourself. [Ahab] king of Israel said, Take Micaiah, carry him back to Amon the governor of the city and to Joash the king's son, read more. And say, The king says, Put this fellow in prison and feed him with bread and water of affliction until I come in peace. Micaiah said, If you return at all in peace, the Lord has not spoken by me. He [added], Hear, O people, every one of you! So [Ahab] king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth-gilead. And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself and enter the battle, but you put on your [royal] clothing. And the king of Israel disguised himself and went into the battle. But the king of Syria had commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, Fight neither with small nor great, but only with [Ahab] king of Israel. And when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, they said, Surely it is the king of Israel. They turned to fight against him, but Jehoshaphat cried out. And when the captains of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, they turned back from pursuing him. But a certain man drew a bow at a venture and smote [Ahab] the king of Israel between the joints of the armor. So he said to the driver of his chariot, Turn around and carry me out of the army, for I am wounded. The battle increased that day, and [Ahab] the king was propped up in his chariot facing the Syrians, and at nightfall he died. And the blood of his wound flowed onto the floor of the chariot. And there went a cry throughout the army about sundown, saying, Every man to his city and his own country, For the king is dead! And [Ahab] was brought to Samaria, where they buried him.
And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin's uncle, king in his stead and changed his name to Zedekiah. Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began his eleven-year reign in Jerusalem. His mother was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. read more. He did evil in the sight of the Lord, in keeping with all Jehoiakim had done.
He did evil in the sight of the Lord, in keeping with all Jehoiakim had done. For because of the anger of the Lord it came to the point in Jerusalem and Judah that He cast them out of His presence. And Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.
Thus says the Lord concerning the king who sits upon the throne of David and concerning all the people who dwell in this city, your brethren who did not go forth with you into captivity -- " Thus says the Lord of hosts: Behold, I am sending on them the sword, famine, and pestilence, and I will make them like vile figs which are so bad they cannot be eaten. read more. And I will pursue them with the sword, famine, and pestilence and will give them up to be tossed to and fro and to be a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse, an astonishment, and a terror, a hissing and a reproach among all the nations to which I have driven them, Because they have not listened to and heeded My words, says the Lord, which I sent to them persistently by My servants the prophets; but you [exiles] would not listen [either], says the Lord.
Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab son of Kolaiah and concerning Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who are prophesying lies to you in My name: Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and he will slay them [those false prophets whom you say I have raised up for you in Babylon] before your eyes! And because of them, this curse shall be taken up and used by all from Judah who are in captivity in Babylon: The Lord make you like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire -- "
And you will not escape out of his hand but will surely be taken and delivered into his hand; you will see the king of Babylon eye to eye, and he will speak with you face to face; and you will go to Babylon.
But neither he nor his servants nor the people of the land listened to and obeyed the words of the Lord which He spoke through the prophet Jeremiah.
And Pharaoh's army had come forth out of Egypt, and when the Chaldeans who were besieging Jerusalem heard the news about them, they withdrew from Jerusalem and departed.
Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Thus shall you say to the king of Judah, who sent you to Me to inquire of Me: Behold, Pharaoh's army, which has come forth to help you, will return to Egypt, to their own land. And the Chaldeans shall come again and fight against this city, and they shall take it and burn it with fire. read more. Thus says the Lord: Do not deceive yourselves, saying, The Chaldeans will surely stay away from us -- "for they will not stay away. For though you should defeat the whole army of the Chaldeans who fight against you, and there remained only the wounded and men stricken through among them, every man confined to his tent, yet they would rise up and burn this city with fire.
Then Zedekiah the king said, Behold, he is in your hands; for the king is in no position to do anything against you.
Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah [not the prophet] of Libnah.
My net also will I spread over him, and he shall be taken in My snare, and I will bring him to Babylonia, to the land of the Chaldeans; yet shall he not see it, though he shall die there.
Say now to the rebellious house, Do you not know and realize what these things mean? Tell them, Behold, the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and took its king [Jehoiachin] and its princes and brought them with him to Babylon.
That the kingdom might become low and base and be unable to lift itself up, but that by keeping his [Nebuchadnezzar's] covenant it might stand.
For [Zedekiah] despised the oath and broke the covenant and behold, he had given his hand, and yet has done all these things; he shall not escape.
Easton
righteousness of Jehovah. (1.) The last king of Judah. He was the third son of Josiah, and his mother's name was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah, and hence he was the brother of Jehoahaz (2Ki 23:31; 24:17-18). His original name was Mattaniah; but when Nebuchadnezzar placed him on the throne as the successor to Jehoiachin he changed his name to Zedekiah. The prophet Jeremiah was his counsellor, yet "he did evil in the sight of the Lord" (2Ki 24:19-20; Jer 52:2-3). He ascended the throne at the age of twenty-one years. The kingdom was at that time tributary to Nebuchadnezzar; but, despite the strong remonstrances of Jeremiah and others, as well as the example of Jehoiachin, he threw off the yoke of Babylon, and entered into an alliance with Hophra, king of Egypt. This brought up Nebuchadnezzar, "with all his host" (2Ki 25:1), against Jerusalem. During this siege, which lasted about eighteen months, "every worst woe befell the devoted city, which drank the cup of God's fury to the dregs" (2Ki 25:3; La 4:4-5,10). The city was plundered and laid in ruins. Zedekiah and his followers, attempting to escape, were made captive and taken to Riblah. There, after seeing his own children put to death, his own eyes were put out, and, being loaded with chains, he was carried captive (B.C. 588) to Babylon (2Ki 25:1-7; 2Ch 36:12; Jer 32:4-5; 34:2-3; 39:1-7; 52:4-11; Eze 12:12), where he remained a prisoner, how long is unknown, to the day of his death.
After the fall of Jerusalem, Nebuzaraddan was sent to carry out its complete destruction. The city was razed to the ground. Only a small number of vinedressers and husbandmen were permitted to remain in the land (Jer 52:16). Gedaliah, with a Chaldean guard stationed at Mizpah, ruled over Judah (2Ki 25:22,24; Jer 40:1-2,5-6).
(2.) The son of Chenaanah, a false prophet in the days of Ahab (1Ki 22:11,24; 2Ch 18:10,23).
(3.) The son of Hananiah, a prince of Judah in the days of Jehoiakim (Jer 36:12).
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And Zedekiah son of Chenaanah made him horns of iron and said, Thus says the Lord: With these you shall push the Syrians until they are destroyed.
But Zedekiah son of Chenaanah went near and struck Micaiah on the cheek and said, Which way went the Spirit of the Lord from me to speak to you?
Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he began his three-month reign in Jerusalem. His mother was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.
And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin's uncle, king in his stead and changed his name to Zedekiah. Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began his eleven-year reign in Jerusalem. His mother was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. read more. He did evil in the sight of the Lord, in keeping with all Jehoiakim had done. For because of the anger of the Lord it came to the point in Jerusalem and Judah that He cast them out of His presence. And Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.
In the ninth year of Zedekiah's reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came with all his army against Jerusalem and laid siege to it, and they built siege works against it round about.
In the ninth year of Zedekiah's reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came with all his army against Jerusalem and laid siege to it, and they built siege works against it round about. The city was besieged [nearly two years] until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. read more. On the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was complete in the city; there was no food for the people of the land.
On the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was complete in the city; there was no food for the people of the land. Then the city was broken through; the king and all the warriors fled by night by way of the gate between the two walls by the king's garden, though the Chaldeans were round about the city. [The king] went by the way toward the Arabah (the plain). read more. The Chaldean army pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho. All his army was scattered from him. So they captured Zedekiah and brought him to the king of Babylon at Riblah, and sentence was passed on him. And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes and put out the eyes of Zedekiah and bound him in double fetters [hands and feet] and carried him to Babylon. [Foretold in Jer. 34:3; Ezek. 12:13.]
Over the people whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had left in the land of Judah he appointed as governor Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan.
And Gedaliah swore to them and their men, saying, Do not be afraid of the Chaldean officials. Dwell in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with you.
And Zedekiah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hands of the Chaldeans but shall surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon, and shall speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye; And he shall lead Zedekiah to Babylon, and there shall he be until I visit him [for evil], says the Lord; and though you fight against the Chaldeans, you shall not prosper [why do you thus prophesy]?
Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Go and speak to Zedekiah king of Judah and tell him, Thus says the Lord: Behold, I am giving this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will burn it with fire. And you will not escape out of his hand but will surely be taken and delivered into his hand; you will see the king of Babylon eye to eye, and he will speak with you face to face; and you will go to Babylon.
He went down to the king's house into the scribe's chamber, and behold, all the princes were sitting there: Elishama the scribe, Delaiah son of Shemaiah, Elnathan son of Achbor, Gemariah son of Shaphan, Zedekiah son of Hananiah, and all the [other] princes.
In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem and besieged it. And in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, on the ninth day of the month, they broke into the city. read more. [ When Jerusalem was taken] all the princes of the king of Babylon came in and sat in the Middle Gate: Nergal-sharezer, Samgar-nebo, Sarsechim [the Rabsaris] a chief of the eunuchs, and Nergal-sharezer [II, the Rabmag] a chief of the magicians, with all the rest of the officials of the king of Babylon. And when Zedekiah king of Judah and all the men of war saw them, they fled and went forth out of the city at night by way of the king's garden, through the gate between the two walls, and [the king] went out toward the Arabah (the Jordan Valley). But the Chaldean army pursued them and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. And when they had taken him, they brought him up to Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon at Riblah in the [Syrian] land of Hamath, where he pronounced sentence upon him. Then the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah at Riblah before his eyes; also the king of Babylon slew all the nobles of Judah. Moreover, he put out Zedekiah's eyes and bound him with shackles to take him to Babylon.
The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord after Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had let him go from Ramah, when he had taken him bound in chains among all who were carried away captive from Jerusalem and Judah, who were taken as exiles to Babylon. And the captain of the guard took Jeremiah and said to him, The Lord your God pronounced evil upon this place.
While [Jeremiah] was hesitating, [the captain of the guard] said, Go back then to Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon made governor over the cities of Judah, and dwell with him among the people; or go wherever it seems right for you to go. So the captain of the guard gave him an allowance of food and a present and let him go. Then Jeremiah went to Gedaliah son of Ahikam at Mizpah and dwelt with him among the people who were left in the land.
And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that Jehoiakim had done. For all this came to pass in Jerusalem and Judah because of the anger of the Lord, and [in the end] He cast them out from His presence. And Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon. read more. And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem; and they pitched against it and built moveable towers and siege mounds against it round about. So the city was besieged until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. And in the fourth month, on the ninth day of the month, the famine was so severe in the city that there was no bread for the people of the land. Then the city [wall] was broken through, so that all the men of war might flee, and they went forth out of the city by night [as Ezekiel had foretold] by way of the gate between the two walls by the king's garden, though the Chaldeans were round about the city. And they [the Jewish soldiers fled] by way of the Arabah (the Jordan Valley). But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho; and all his army was scattered from him. Then they seized the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the [Syrian] land of Hamath [on the northern border of Israel], where he pronounced sentence upon him. And the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes; he slew also all the princes of Judah at Riblah. Then he put out the eyes of Zedekiah; and the king of Babylon bound him with shackles and carried him to Babylon and put him in prison [mill] till the day of his death.
But Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard left some of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and tillers of the soil.
The tongue of the nursing babe cleaves to the roof of its mouth because of thirst; the young children beg for food, but no one gives it to them. Those who feasted on dainties are perishing in the streets; those who were brought up in purple lie cleaving to refuse and ash heaps.
The hands of [heretofore] compassionate women have boiled their own children; they were their food during the destruction of the daughter of my people [Judah].
And the prince who is in their midst shall lift up his luggage to his shoulder in the dark; then shall he go forth. They shall dig through the wall to carry out through the hole in it. He shall cover his face so that he will not see with his eyes the land.
Fausets
1. Judah's last king, 599 to 588 B.C. (See JEREMIAH .) Youngest son of Josiah and Hamutal (Jer 1:3; 37:1), brother to Jehoahaz (2Ki 24:17-18; 23:31). Ten years old when his father died, 21 when he mounted the throne. Originally named Mattaniah; Nebuchadnezzar changed his name to Zedekiah when he deposed Zedekiah's nephew Jehoiachin. This proves that Nebuchadnezzar treated his vassal kindly, allowing him to choose a new name (Zedekiah is Hebrew, "righteousness of Jehovah") and confirming it as a mark of his supremacy; this name was to be the pledge of his righteously keeping his covenant with Nebuchadnezzar who made him swear by God (Eze 17:12-16; 2Ch 36:13).
In 1Ch 3:15 Johanan is oldest, then Jehoiakim, Zedekiah is third in order, Shallum fourth, because Jehoiakim and Zedekiah reigned longer, namely, 11 years each; therefore Shallum, though king before Jehoiakim, is put last; on the other hand Zedekiah and Shallum were both sons of Hamutal, therefore put together. Had Zedekiah kept his oath of fealty he would have been safe, though dependent. But weak, vacillating, and treacherous, he brought ruin on his country and on himself. It was through the anger of Jehovah against Judah that Zedekiah was given up to his own rebellious devices, "stiffening his neck and hardening his heart from turning unto the Lord God of Israel" who warned him by Jeremiah; like Pharaoh of old (2Ch 36:12-13), he would "not humble himself" (Jer 38:5; 39:1-7; 52:1-11; and Jeremiah 21; 24; 27; 28; 29; 32; 33; 34; 37; 38).
In Jer 27:1 read "Zedekiah" for "Jehoiakim" with Syriac, Arabic, and one of Kennicott's manuscripts (compare Jer 27:3,12; and Jer 28:1, "in the fourth year ... of the reign of Zedekiah") The kings of Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, and Sidon sent ambassadors in his fourth year to urge Zedekiah to conspire with them against Nebuchadnezzar. But Jeremiah symbolized the futility of the attempt by sending "yokes" back by the ambassadors. Hananiah, who broke the yoke off Jeremiah's neck, died that year according to the Lord's sentence by Jeremiah. Baruch (Bar 1:8) represents Zedekiah as having caused silver vessels to be made to replace the golden ones carried off by Nebuchadnezzar; possibly this may have been owing to the impression made on Zedekiah by Hananiah's death.
In his eighth year (Josephus Ant. 10:7, Section 3) Zedekiah actually leagued with Egypt in treacherous violation of his compact with Nebuchadnezzar. But evidently (Jeremiah 27-28) Zedekiah had been secretly plotting before, in his fourth year; in that year he had gone to Babylon to allay Nebuchadnezzar's suspicion (Jer 51:59), and also sent messengers to Babylon (Jer 37:5-11; 34:21; Eze 17:13-20). Zedekiah disregarded Jehovah's words by Jeremiah, notwithstanding the warning given in Jeconiah's punishment. Still while the issue between the Chaldaeans and Pharaoh Hophra was undecided, he sent begging Jeremiah, Pray now unto the Lord our God for us.
Nebuchadnezzar on learning Zedekiah's treachery had sent a Chaldaean army which reduced all Judaea except Jerusalem, Lachish, and Azekah (Jeremiah 34). Zedekiah had in consequence induced the princes and people to manumit their Hebrew bond servants. But when Pharaoh Hophra compelled the Chaldaeans to raise the siege of Jerusalem, the princes and people in violation of the covenant enslaved their Hebrew servants again. So God by Jeremiah gave the enslavers a "liberty" (Jer 34:17) fatal to them, manumission from God's free service (Ps 119:45; Joh 8:36; 2Co 3:17), to pass under the bondage of the sword, pestilence, and famine.
Then followed Jeremiah's attempt to escape to his native place and his arrest. Zedekiah sent and took him out of prison, and asked, Is there any word from the Lord? to which the prophet, without regard to his personal interests, replied, "there is, for thou shalt be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon." Zedekiah showed his sense of Jeremiah's faithfulness by ordering bread to be given him out of the bakers' street until all the bread in the city was spent (Pr 28:23; Ps 37:19). However, in consequence of his prophesying death to those that remained in the city and life to those who should go forth to the Chaldaeans, who had returned to the siege in the tenth month of Zedekiah's ninth year (Jer 52:4), Jeremiah was again imprisoned. Zedekiah was too weak to resist, but answered his princes "the king is not he that can do anything against you."
At Ebedmelech's intercession Zedekiah rescued him, and again consulted him. Again Jeremiah told him his only hope was in going forth to the Chaldaeans. But Zedekiah was afraid lest the Chaldaeans should give him up to Jewish deserters, who would treat him ignominiously. Jeremiah told him in reply that, by not going forth, he should bring burning upon the city, and upon himself the very evil he feared if he went forth, ignominious treatment from not only the deserters but the very women of the palace (Jeremiah 38). So afraid was Zedekiah of his princes that he imposed on Jeremiah a subterfuge, concealing the real purpose of his interview from the princes. The terrible concomitants of a siege soon followed (Jer 38:9), so that mothers boiled and ate the flesh of their own infants (La 4:5,8,10) and the visage of their nobles was blacker than coal, their skin clave to their bones and became withered.
On the ninth day of the fourth month in the middle of July (Josephus) after a year and a half's siege (from the tenth month of the ninth year to the fourth month of the eleventh year of Zedekiah) about midnight a breach was made in the wall The Babylonian princes took their seats in state in the middle gate, between the upper and the lower city. Zedekiah fled in the opposite direction, namely, southwards, with muffled face to escape recognition, and like one digging through a wall to escape (Eze 12:12,6), between the two walls on the E. and W. sides of the Tyropoeon valley, by a street issuing at the gate above the royal gardens and the fountain of Siloam. Zedekiah was overtaken in the plains of Jericho. He was taken for judgment to Riblah at the upper end of Lebanon; there Nebuchadnezzar first killed his sons before his eyes, then caused the eyes of Zedekiah to be "dug out" (Jeremiah 39; Jer 52:4-11).
Thus were fulfilled the seemingly inconsistent prophecies, "his eyes shall behold his eyes," Jer 32:4, and Eze 12:13 "he shall not see Babylon, though he shall die there." Zedekiah was put "in prison," literally, "the house of visitations" or "punishments," where there was penal work enforced on the prisoners, as grinding, from whence Septuagint reads "in the house of the mill." So Samson "did grind" (Jg 16:21). He probably died before Evil Merodach, successor of Nebuchadnezzar, treated kindly Jehoiachin in the 37th year of his captivity, 26 years after the fall of Jerusalem; for no mention is made of him (Jer 52:31).
2. Son of Chenaanah. (See MICAIAH, son of Imlah). 22/type/am'>1 Kings 22; 2 Chronicles 18. He is distinguished by Jehoshaphat ("is there not here besides a prophet of Jehovah, that we might inquire of him?") from Jehovah's prophets. Zedekiah therefore was one of the "400 prophets of the GROVES", (Asheerah Ashtaroth) who apparently were not slain when Elijah slew the 450 prophets of Baal (1Ki 18:19,22,24), or rather a prophet of the calves symbolizing "Jehovah," for they spoke in Jehovah's name (1Ki 22:8). Compare as to his assumption of horns Am 6:13. Josephus adds (Ant. 8:15, section 3) that Zedekiah denounced Micaiah as contradicting Elijah, who foretold that dogs should lick up Ahab's blood in the vineyard of Naboth of Jezreel; and defied Micaiah to wither the hand with which he smote his cheek, as the prophet from Judah had done to Jeroboam.
3. Son of Maaseiah, a false prophet in Babylon, among the captives with Jeconiah. Jeremiah (Jer 29:21-22,25) denounces him for adultery and lying prophecies, buoying up the captives with delusive promises of a speedy restoration. A proverbial formula of cursing should be taken up by all the captives, "Jehovah make thee like Zedekiah and like Ahab whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire!" (Isa 65:15.) Brother of Zephaniah.
4. Son of Hananiah. One of the princes assem
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But the Philistines laid hold of him, bored out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza and bound him with [two] bronze fetters; and he ground at the mill in the prison.
Therefore send and gather to me all Israel at Mount Carmel, and the 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of [the goddess] Asherah, who eat at [Queen] Jezebel's table.
Then Elijah said to the people, I, I only, remain a prophet of the Lord, but Baal's prophets are 450 men.
Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the Lord; and the One Who answers by fire, let Him be God. And all the people answered, It is well spoken.
[Ahab] king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man, Micaiah son of Imlah, by whom we may inquire of the Lord, but I hate him, for he never prophesies good for me, but evil. Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king say that.
Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he began his three-month reign in Jerusalem. His mother was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.
And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin's uncle, king in his stead and changed his name to Zedekiah. Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began his eleven-year reign in Jerusalem. His mother was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.
The descendants of Josiah: firstborn, Johanan; second, Jehoiakim; third, Zedekiah; fourth, Shallum. The descendants of Jehoiakim: Jehoiachin (Jeconiah) his son, Zedekiah his son.
He did evil in the sight of the Lord his God and did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet, who spoke at the dictation of the Lord. He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who made him swear by God. He stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the Lord, the God of Israel.
They shall not be put to shame in the time of evil; and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.
And I will walk at liberty and at ease, for I have sought and inquired for [and desperately required] Your precepts.
He who rebukes a man shall afterward find more favor than he who flatters with the tongue.
And you will leave your name to My chosen [to those who will use it] for a curse; and the Lord God will slay you, but He will call His servants by another name [as much greater than the former name as the name Israel was greater than the name Jacob].
It came also in the days of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah until the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah son of Josiah king of Judah, until the carrying away of Jerusalem into captivity in the fifth month.
In the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah son of Josiah king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord:
And send them to the king of Edom, to the king of Moab, to the king of the Ammonites, to the king of Tyre, and to the king of Sidon by the hand of the messengers who have come to Jerusalem to Zedekiah king of Judah.
I spoke also to Zedekiah king of Judah in the same way: Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live.
In that same year, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the fourth year and the fifth month, Hananiah son of Azzur, the [false] prophet, who was from Gibeon [one of the priests' cities], said [falsely] to me in the house of the Lord in the presence of the priests and all the people:
Then Hananiah the prophet took the yoke bar off the prophet Jeremiah's neck and smashed it. And Hananiah said in the presence of all the people, Thus says the Lord: Even so will I break the yoke bars of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon from the neck of all the nations within the space of two [full] years. But the prophet Jeremiah went his way. read more. The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet [some time] after Hananiah the prophet had broken the yoke bar from the neck of the prophet Jeremiah: Go, tell Hananiah, Thus says the Lord: You have broken yoke bars of wood, but you have made in their stead bars of iron. For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: I have put upon the neck of all these nations the iron yoke of servitude of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and they shall serve him. For I have given him even the beasts of the field. Then said the prophet Jeremiah to Hananiah the prophet, Listen now, Hananiah, The Lord has not sent you, but you have made this people trust in a lie. Therefore thus says the Lord: Behold, I will cast you from the face of the earth. This year you will die, because you have uttered and taught rebellion against the Lord. So Hananiah the prophet died [two months later], the same year, in the seventh month.
Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab son of Kolaiah and concerning Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who are prophesying lies to you in My name: Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and he will slay them [those false prophets whom you say I have raised up for you in Babylon] before your eyes! And because of them, this curse shall be taken up and used by all from Judah who are in captivity in Babylon: The Lord make you like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire -- "
Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Because you have sent letters in your [own] name to all the people who are in Jerusalem and to Zephaniah son of Maaseiah the priest and to all the priests, saying,
And Zedekiah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hands of the Chaldeans but shall surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon, and shall speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye;
Therefore thus says the Lord: You have not listened to Me and obeyed Me in proclaiming liberty each one to his brother and neighbor. Behold, I proclaim to you liberty -- "to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine, says the Lord; and I will make you to be tossed to and fro and to be a horror among all the kingdoms of the earth!
And Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes will I give into the hands of their enemies and into the hands of those who seek their life, and into the hand of the king of Babylon's army which has withdrawn from you.
He went down to the king's house into the scribe's chamber, and behold, all the princes were sitting there: Elishama the scribe, Delaiah son of Shemaiah, Elnathan son of Achbor, Gemariah son of Shaphan, Zedekiah son of Hananiah, and all the [other] princes.
And Zedekiah son of Josiah, whom Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon made king in the land of Judah, reigned instead of Coniah [also called Jeconiah and Jehoiachin] son of Jehoiakim.
And Pharaoh's army had come forth out of Egypt, and when the Chaldeans who were besieging Jerusalem heard the news about them, they withdrew from Jerusalem and departed. Then came the word of the Lord to the prophet Jeremiah: read more. Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Thus shall you say to the king of Judah, who sent you to Me to inquire of Me: Behold, Pharaoh's army, which has come forth to help you, will return to Egypt, to their own land. And the Chaldeans shall come again and fight against this city, and they shall take it and burn it with fire. Thus says the Lord: Do not deceive yourselves, saying, The Chaldeans will surely stay away from us -- "for they will not stay away. For though you should defeat the whole army of the Chaldeans who fight against you, and there remained only the wounded and men stricken through among them, every man confined to his tent, yet they would rise up and burn this city with fire. And when the army of the Chaldeans had departed from Jerusalem for fear of Pharaoh's approaching army,
Then Zedekiah the king said, Behold, he is in your hands; for the king is in no position to do anything against you.
My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon or cistern pit; and he is liable to die of hunger and is [as good as] dead in the place where he is, for there is no more bread left in the city.
In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem and besieged it. And in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, on the ninth day of the month, they broke into the city. read more. [ When Jerusalem was taken] all the princes of the king of Babylon came in and sat in the Middle Gate: Nergal-sharezer, Samgar-nebo, Sarsechim [the Rabsaris] a chief of the eunuchs, and Nergal-sharezer [II, the Rabmag] a chief of the magicians, with all the rest of the officials of the king of Babylon. And when Zedekiah king of Judah and all the men of war saw them, they fled and went forth out of the city at night by way of the king's garden, through the gate between the two walls, and [the king] went out toward the Arabah (the Jordan Valley). But the Chaldean army pursued them and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. And when they had taken him, they brought him up to Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon at Riblah in the [Syrian] land of Hamath, where he pronounced sentence upon him. Then the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah at Riblah before his eyes; also the king of Babylon slew all the nobles of Judah. Moreover, he put out Zedekiah's eyes and bound him with shackles to take him to Babylon.
The word that Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, when he went with Zedekiah king of Judah to Babylon in the fourth year of his reign. Now this Seraiah was chief chamberlain or quartermaster [and brother of Baruch].
Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah [not the prophet] of Libnah. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that Jehoiakim had done. read more. For all this came to pass in Jerusalem and Judah because of the anger of the Lord, and [in the end] He cast them out from His presence. And Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon. And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem; and they pitched against it and built moveable towers and siege mounds against it round about.
And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem; and they pitched against it and built moveable towers and siege mounds against it round about.
And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem; and they pitched against it and built moveable towers and siege mounds against it round about. So the city was besieged until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah.
So the city was besieged until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. And in the fourth month, on the ninth day of the month, the famine was so severe in the city that there was no bread for the people of the land.
And in the fourth month, on the ninth day of the month, the famine was so severe in the city that there was no bread for the people of the land. Then the city [wall] was broken through, so that all the men of war might flee, and they went forth out of the city by night [as Ezekiel had foretold] by way of the gate between the two walls by the king's garden, though the Chaldeans were round about the city. And they [the Jewish soldiers fled] by way of the Arabah (the Jordan Valley).
Then the city [wall] was broken through, so that all the men of war might flee, and they went forth out of the city by night [as Ezekiel had foretold] by way of the gate between the two walls by the king's garden, though the Chaldeans were round about the city. And they [the Jewish soldiers fled] by way of the Arabah (the Jordan Valley). But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho; and all his army was scattered from him.
But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho; and all his army was scattered from him. Then they seized the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the [Syrian] land of Hamath [on the northern border of Israel], where he pronounced sentence upon him.
Then they seized the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the [Syrian] land of Hamath [on the northern border of Israel], where he pronounced sentence upon him. And the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes; he slew also all the princes of Judah at Riblah.
And the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes; he slew also all the princes of Judah at Riblah. Then he put out the eyes of Zedekiah; and the king of Babylon bound him with shackles and carried him to Babylon and put him in prison [mill] till the day of his death.
Then he put out the eyes of Zedekiah; and the king of Babylon bound him with shackles and carried him to Babylon and put him in prison [mill] till the day of his death.
And in the thirty-seventh year of the captivity of Jehoiachin [also called Coniah and Jeconiah] king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon in the first year of his reign lifted up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah [and showed favor to him] and brought him out of prison.
Those who feasted on dainties are perishing in the streets; those who were brought up in purple lie cleaving to refuse and ash heaps.
[Prolonged famine has made] them look blacker than soot and darkness; they are not recognized in the streets. Their skin clings to their bones; it is withered and it has become [dry] like a stick.
The hands of [heretofore] compassionate women have boiled their own children; they were their food during the destruction of the daughter of my people [Judah].
In their sight you shall bear your baggage upon your shoulder and carry it forth in the dark; you shall cover your face so that you cannot see the land, for I have set you as a sign for the house of Israel.
And the prince who is in their midst shall lift up his luggage to his shoulder in the dark; then shall he go forth. They shall dig through the wall to carry out through the hole in it. He shall cover his face so that he will not see with his eyes the land. My net also will I spread over him, and he shall be taken in My snare, and I will bring him to Babylonia, to the land of the Chaldeans; yet shall he not see it, though he shall die there.
Say now to the rebellious house, Do you not know and realize what these things mean? Tell them, Behold, the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and took its king [Jehoiachin] and its princes and brought them with him to Babylon. And he took one of the royal family [the king's uncle, Zedekiah] and made a covenant with him, putting him under oath. He also took the mighty and chief men of the land,
And he took one of the royal family [the king's uncle, Zedekiah] and made a covenant with him, putting him under oath. He also took the mighty and chief men of the land, That the kingdom might become low and base and be unable to lift itself up, but that by keeping his [Nebuchadnezzar's] covenant it might stand.
That the kingdom might become low and base and be unable to lift itself up, but that by keeping his [Nebuchadnezzar's] covenant it might stand. But he [Zedekiah] rebelled against him [Nebuchadnezzar] in sending his ambassadors into Egypt, that they might give him horses and much people. Will he prosper? Will he escape who does such things? Can he break the covenant with [Babylon] and yet escape?
But he [Zedekiah] rebelled against him [Nebuchadnezzar] in sending his ambassadors into Egypt, that they might give him horses and much people. Will he prosper? Will he escape who does such things? Can he break the covenant with [Babylon] and yet escape? As I live, says the Lord God, surely in the place where the king [Nebuchadnezzar] dwells who made [Zedekiah as vassal] king, whose oath [Zedekiah] despised and whose covenant he broke, even with him in the midst of Babylon shall [Zedekiah] die.
As I live, says the Lord God, surely in the place where the king [Nebuchadnezzar] dwells who made [Zedekiah as vassal] king, whose oath [Zedekiah] despised and whose covenant he broke, even with him in the midst of Babylon shall [Zedekiah] die. Neither shall Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company help him in the war when the [Babylonians] cast up mounds and build forts to destroy many lives. read more. For [Zedekiah] despised the oath and broke the covenant and behold, he had given his hand, and yet has done all these things; he shall not escape. Therefore thus says the Lord God: As I live, surely My oath [made for Me by Nebuchadnezzar] that [Zedekiah] has despised and My covenant with him that he has broken, I will even bring down on his own head. And I will spread My net over him, and he shall be taken in My snare; and I will bring him to Babylon and will enter into judgment and punishment with him there for his trespass and treason that he has committed against Me.
You who rejoice in Lo-debar [a thing of nought], who say, Have we not by our own strength taken Karnaim or horns [of resistance] for ourselves?
So if the Son liberates you [makes you free men], then you are really and unquestionably free.
And whatever you do [no matter what it is] in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus and in [dependence upon] His Person, giving praise to God the Father through Him.
Hastings
1. Son of Chenaanah, and one of Ahab's four hundred court prophets (1Ki 22:11,24-25; 2Ch 18:10,23-24). 2. A prophet deported to Babylon with Jehoiachin. He and another, named Ahab, are denounced by Jeremiah (Jer 29:21-23) for gross immorality as well as for falsely prophesying a speedy restoration from Babylon. It was probably their action as political agitators that brought on them the cruel punishment of being roasted in the fire by order of Nebuchadrezzar. 3. Son of Hananiah, one of the princes in the reign of Jehoiakim (Jer 36:12). 4. A signatory to the covenant (Ne 10:1). 5. See next article.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And Zedekiah son of Chenaanah made him horns of iron and said, Thus says the Lord: With these you shall push the Syrians until they are destroyed.
But Zedekiah son of Chenaanah went near and struck Micaiah on the cheek and said, Which way went the Spirit of the Lord from me to speak to you? Micaiah said, Behold, you shall see on that day when you go into an inner chamber to hide yourself.
These set their seal: Nehemiah the governor, the son of Hacaliah. And Zedekiah,
Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab son of Kolaiah and concerning Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who are prophesying lies to you in My name: Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and he will slay them [those false prophets whom you say I have raised up for you in Babylon] before your eyes! And because of them, this curse shall be taken up and used by all from Judah who are in captivity in Babylon: The Lord make you like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire -- " read more. Because they have committed folly in Israel and have committed adultery with their neighbors' wives and have spoken words in My name falsely, which I had not commanded them. I am the One Who knows and I am witness, says the Lord.
He went down to the king's house into the scribe's chamber, and behold, all the princes were sitting there: Elishama the scribe, Delaiah son of Shemaiah, Elnathan son of Achbor, Gemariah son of Shaphan, Zedekiah son of Hananiah, and all the [other] princes.
Morish
Zedeki'ah
1. The name given by Nebuchadnezzar to Mattaniah, son of Josiah, whom he set on the throne of Judah. Zedekiah reigned eleven years, B.C. 599-588, and was the last king of Judah. His reign was evil; he did not humble himself before the prophet Jeremiah, and profaned the name of Jehovah by breaking his oath to the king of Babylon. The chief priests and the people also transgressed greatly. On Zedekiah revolting from Nebuchadnezzar, he formed an alliance with Egypt (cf. Eze 17:3-20); but Egypt was defeated, and then Nebuchadnezzar pushed on the siege of Jerusalem.
Zedekiah was many times warned by Jeremiah against his course, and was advised to submit to Babylon; but for this Jeremiah was persecuted by the princes of Judah. When the city was taken, Zedekiah, with his wives and children, attempted to escape, but he was captured. Two prophecies respecting him are remarkable: one that he shall speak with the king of Babylon, and "his eyes shall behold his eyes," Jer 32:4; and the other that "he shall be brought to Babylon, yet shall he not see it, though he shall die there." Eze 12:13. And thus it came to pass: on being carried before Nebuchadnezzar at Riblah, his sons were slain before his face, then his eyes were put out, and he was carried to Babylon. 7/type/am'>2Ki 24:17,20; 25:2,7; 1Ch 3:15; 2Ch 36:10-11; Jer 1:3; 21:1-7; 24:8; 27:3,12; 28:1; 29:3; 32:1-5; 34:2-21; Jer. 37
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And Zedekiah son of Chenaanah made him horns of iron and said, Thus says the Lord: With these you shall push the Syrians until they are destroyed.
But Zedekiah son of Chenaanah went near and struck Micaiah on the cheek and said, Which way went the Spirit of the Lord from me to speak to you?
And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin's uncle, king in his stead and changed his name to Zedekiah.
For because of the anger of the Lord it came to the point in Jerusalem and Judah that He cast them out of His presence. And Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.
The city was besieged [nearly two years] until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah.
And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes and put out the eyes of Zedekiah and bound him in double fetters [hands and feet] and carried him to Babylon. [Foretold in Jer. 34:3; Ezek. 12:13.]
It came also in the days of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah until the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah son of Josiah king of Judah, until the carrying away of Jerusalem into captivity in the fifth month.
The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord when King Zedekiah sent to him Pashhur son of Malchiah, and Zephaniah the priest, the son of Maaseiah, saying, Inquire, I pray you, of the Lord for us, for Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon is making war against us. Perhaps the Lord will deal with us according to all His wonderful works, forcing him to withdraw from us. read more. Then said Jeremiah to them, Say this to Zedekiah: Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Behold, I will turn back and dull the edge of the weapons of war that are in your hands, with which you fight against the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans who are besieging you outside the walls; and I will bring them into the midst of this city [Jerusalem]. And I Myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and with a strong arm in anger, in fury, and in great indignation and wrath. And I will smite the inhabitants of this city, both man and beast; they will die of a great pestilence. And afterward, says the Lord, I will deliver Zedekiah king of Judah and his servants and the people in this city who survive the pestilence, the sword, and the famine, into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon and into the hands of their enemies, into the hands of those who seek their lives. And he will smite them with the edge of the sword; he will not spare them nor have pity or mercy and compassion upon them.
And as for the bad figs, which are so bad that they cannot be eaten, surely thus says the Lord, So will I give up Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes and the residue of Jerusalem who remains in this land and those who dwell in the land of Egypt.
And send them to the king of Edom, to the king of Moab, to the king of the Ammonites, to the king of Tyre, and to the king of Sidon by the hand of the messengers who have come to Jerusalem to Zedekiah king of Judah.
I spoke also to Zedekiah king of Judah in the same way: Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live.
In that same year, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the fourth year and the fifth month, Hananiah son of Azzur, the [false] prophet, who was from Gibeon [one of the priests' cities], said [falsely] to me in the house of the Lord in the presence of the priests and all the people:
[The letter was sent] by the hand of Elasah son of Shaphan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. It said:
Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab son of Kolaiah and concerning Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who are prophesying lies to you in My name: Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and he will slay them [those false prophets whom you say I have raised up for you in Babylon] before your eyes! And because of them, this curse shall be taken up and used by all from Judah who are in captivity in Babylon: The Lord make you like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire -- "
The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the tenth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadrezzar. For the king of Babylon's army was then besieging Jerusalem, and Jeremiah the prophet was shut up in the court of the guard, which was in the house of the king of Judah. read more. For Zedekiah king of Judah had locked him up, saying, Why do you prophesy and say, Thus says the Lord: Behold, I am giving this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall take it; And Zedekiah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hands of the Chaldeans but shall surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon, and shall speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye;
And Zedekiah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hands of the Chaldeans but shall surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon, and shall speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye; And he shall lead Zedekiah to Babylon, and there shall he be until I visit him [for evil], says the Lord; and though you fight against the Chaldeans, you shall not prosper [why do you thus prophesy]?
Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Go and speak to Zedekiah king of Judah and tell him, Thus says the Lord: Behold, I am giving this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will burn it with fire. And you will not escape out of his hand but will surely be taken and delivered into his hand; you will see the king of Babylon eye to eye, and he will speak with you face to face; and you will go to Babylon. read more. Yet hear the word of the Lord, O Zedekiah king of Judah! Thus says the Lord concerning you: You shall not die by the sword; But you shall die in peace. And as with the burnings of [spices and perfumes on wood that were granted as suitable for and in honor of] your fathers, the former kings who were before you, so shall a burning be made for you; and [people] shall lament for you, saying, Alas, lord! For I have spoken the word, says the Lord. Then Jeremiah the prophet spoke all these words to Zedekiah king of Judah, in Jerusalem, When the army of the king of Babylon was fighting against Jerusalem and against all the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish and Azekah, for these were the only fortified cities remaining of the cities of Judah. [This is] the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people who were at Jerusalem to proclaim liberty to them: Every man should let his Hebrew slaves, male and female, go free, so that no one should make a slave of a Jew, his brother. And all the princes and all the people obeyed, who had entered into the covenant that everyone would let his manservant and his maidservant go free, so that none should make bondmen of them any more; they obeyed, and let them go. But afterward they turned around and caused the servants and the handmaids whom they had let go free to return [to their former masters] and brought them into subjection for servants and for handmaids. Therefore the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I made a covenant with your fathers in the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, saying, At the end of seven years you shall let every man his brother who is a Hebrew go free who has sold himself or has been sold to you and has served you six years; but your fathers did not listen to and obey Me or incline their ear [submitting and consenting to Me]. And you recently turned around and repented, doing what was right in My sight by proclaiming liberty each one to his neighbor [who was his bond servant]; and you made a covenant or pledge before Me in the house which is called by My Name. But then you turned around and defiled My name; each of you caused to return to you your servants, male and female, whom you had set free as they might desire; and you brought them into subjection again to be your slaves. Therefore thus says the Lord: You have not listened to Me and obeyed Me in proclaiming liberty each one to his brother and neighbor. Behold, I proclaim to you liberty -- "to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine, says the Lord; and I will make you to be tossed to and fro and to be a horror among all the kingdoms of the earth! And the men who have transgressed My covenant, who have not kept the terms of the covenant or solemn pledge which they had made before Me, I will make them [like] the [sacrificial] calf which they cut in two and then passed between its separated parts [solemnizing their pledge to Me] -- "I will make those men the calf! The princes of Judah, the princes of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, the priests, and all the people of the land who passed between the parts of the calf, I will give them into the hands of their enemies and into the hands of those who seek their life. And their dead bodies will be food for the birds of the heavens and the beasts of the earth. And Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes will I give into the hands of their enemies and into the hands of those who seek their life, and into the hand of the king of Babylon's army which has withdrawn from you.
He went down to the king's house into the scribe's chamber, and behold, all the princes were sitting there: Elishama the scribe, Delaiah son of Shemaiah, Elnathan son of Achbor, Gemariah son of Shaphan, Zedekiah son of Hananiah, and all the [other] princes.
Thus says the Lord: Behold, I will give Pharaoh Hophra king of Egypt into the hands of his enemies and into the hands of those who seek his life, just as I gave Zedekiah king of Judah into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, who was his enemy and was seeking his life.
The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning and against Elam, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying,
The word that Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, when he went with Zedekiah king of Judah to Babylon in the fourth year of his reign. Now this Seraiah was chief chamberlain or quartermaster [and brother of Baruch].
Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah [not the prophet] of Libnah. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that Jehoiakim had done. read more. For all this came to pass in Jerusalem and Judah because of the anger of the Lord, and [in the end] He cast them out from His presence. And Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon. And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem; and they pitched against it and built moveable towers and siege mounds against it round about. So the city was besieged until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. And in the fourth month, on the ninth day of the month, the famine was so severe in the city that there was no bread for the people of the land. Then the city [wall] was broken through, so that all the men of war might flee, and they went forth out of the city by night [as Ezekiel had foretold] by way of the gate between the two walls by the king's garden, though the Chaldeans were round about the city. And they [the Jewish soldiers fled] by way of the Arabah (the Jordan Valley). But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho; and all his army was scattered from him. Then they seized the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the [Syrian] land of Hamath [on the northern border of Israel], where he pronounced sentence upon him. And the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes; he slew also all the princes of Judah at Riblah. Then he put out the eyes of Zedekiah; and the king of Babylon bound him with shackles and carried him to Babylon and put him in prison [mill] till the day of his death.
My net also will I spread over him, and he shall be taken in My snare, and I will bring him to Babylonia, to the land of the Chaldeans; yet shall he not see it, though he shall die there.
Say, Thus says the Lord God: A great eagle [Nebuchadnezzar] with great wings and long pinions, rich in feathers of various colors, came to Lebanon [symbolic of Jerusalem] and took the top of the cedar [tree]. He broke off the topmost of its young twigs [the youthful King Jehoiachin] and carried it into a land of trade [Babylon]; he set it in a city of merchants. read more. He took also of the seedlings of the land [Zedekiah, one of the native royal family] and planted it in fertile soil and a fruitful field; he placed it beside abundant waters and set it as a willow tree [to succeed Zedekiah's nephew Jehoiachin in Judah as vassal king]. And it grew and became a spreading vine of low [not Davidic] stature, whose branches turned [in submission] toward him, and its roots remained under and subject to him [the king of Babylon]; so it became a vine and brought forth branches and shot forth leafy twigs. There was also another great eagle [the Egyptian king] with great wings and many feathers; and behold, this vine [Zedekiah] bent its roots [languishingly] toward him and shot forth its branches toward him, away from the beds of its planting, for him to water. Though it was planted in good soil where water was plentiful for it to produce leaves and to bear fruit, it was transplanted, that it might become a splendid vine. Thus says the Lord God: Ask, Will it thrive? Will he [the insulted Nebuchadnezzar] not pluck up its roots and strip off its fruit so that all its fresh sprouting leaves will wither? It will not take a strong arm or many people to pluck it up by its roots [totally ending Israel's national existence]. Yes, behold, though transplanted, will it prosper? Will it not utterly wither when the east wind touches it? It will wither in the furrows and beds where it sprouted and grew. Moreover, the word of the Lord came to me, saying, Say now to the rebellious house, Do you not know and realize what these things mean? Tell them, Behold, the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and took its king [Jehoiachin] and its princes and brought them with him to Babylon. And he took one of the royal family [the king's uncle, Zedekiah] and made a covenant with him, putting him under oath. He also took the mighty and chief men of the land, That the kingdom might become low and base and be unable to lift itself up, but that by keeping his [Nebuchadnezzar's] covenant it might stand. But he [Zedekiah] rebelled against him [Nebuchadnezzar] in sending his ambassadors into Egypt, that they might give him horses and much people. Will he prosper? Will he escape who does such things? Can he break the covenant with [Babylon] and yet escape? As I live, says the Lord God, surely in the place where the king [Nebuchadnezzar] dwells who made [Zedekiah as vassal] king, whose oath [Zedekiah] despised and whose covenant he broke, even with him in the midst of Babylon shall [Zedekiah] die. Neither shall Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company help him in the war when the [Babylonians] cast up mounds and build forts to destroy many lives. For [Zedekiah] despised the oath and broke the covenant and behold, he had given his hand, and yet has done all these things; he shall not escape. Therefore thus says the Lord God: As I live, surely My oath [made for Me by Nebuchadnezzar] that [Zedekiah] has despised and My covenant with him that he has broken, I will even bring down on his own head. And I will spread My net over him, and he shall be taken in My snare; and I will bring him to Babylon and will enter into judgment and punishment with him there for his trespass and treason that he has committed against Me.
Smith
Zedeki'ah
(justice of Jehovah).
1. The last king of Judah and Jerusalem. He was the son of Josiah by his wife Hamutal, and therefore own brother to Jehoahaz.
comp. 2Kin 23:31 His original name was Mattaniah, which was changed to Zedekiah by Nebuchadnezzar when he carried off his nephew Jehoiachim to Babylon and left him on the throne of Jerusalem. Zedekiah was but twenty-one years old when he was thus placed in charge of an impoverished kingdom, B.C. 597. His history is contained in a short sketch .of the events of his reign given in
and, with some trifling variations in
together with the still shorter summary in
etc.; and also in Jere 21,24,27,28,29,32,34,37,38 and
From these it is evident that Zedekiah was a man not so much bad at heart as weak in will. It is evident from Jere 27 and 28 that the earlier portion of Zedekiah's reign was marked by an agitation throughout the whole of Syria against the Babylonian yoke. Jerusalem seems to have taken the lead, since in the fourth year of Zedekiah's reign we find ambassadors from all the neighboring kingdoms --Tyre, Sidon, Edom and Moab --at his court to consult as to the steps to be taken. The first act of rebellion of which any record survives was the formation of an alliance with Egypt, of itself equivalent to a declaration of enmity with Babylon. As a natural consequence it brought on Jerusalem an immediate invasion of the Chaldaeans. The mention of this event in the Bible though indisputable, is extremely slight, and occurs only in
and Ezek 17:15-20 but Josephus (x.7,3) relates it more fully, and gives the date of its occurrence, namely, the eighth year of Zedekiah. (B.C. 589.) Nebuchadnezzar at once sent an army to ravage Judea. This was done, and the whole country reduced, except Jerusalem and two strong places in the western plain, Lachish and Azekah, which still held out.
Called away for a time by an attack from Pharaoh and the Egyptians, on the tenth day of the tenth month of Zedekiah's ninth year the Chaldeans were again before the walls.
From this time forward the siege progressed slowly but surely to its consummation, The city was indeed reduced to the last extremity. The bread had for long been consumed,
and all the terrible expedients had been tried to which the wretched inhabitants of a besieged town are forced to resort in such cases. At last, after sixteen dreadful months the catastrophe arrived. It was on the ninth day of the fourth month, about the middle of July at midnight, as Josephus with careful minuteness informs us, that the breach in those strong and venerable walls was effected. The moon, nine days old, had gone down. The wretched remnants of the army acquitted the city in the dead of night; and as the Chaldaean army entered the city at one end, the king and his wives fled from it by the opposite gate. They took the road toward the Jordan. As soon as the dawn of day permitted it, swift pursuit was made. The king's party were overtaken near Jericho and carried to Nebuchadnezzar, who was then at Riblah, at the upper end of the valley of Lebanon. Nebuchadnezzar, with a refinement of barbarity characteristic of those cruel times ordered the sons of Zedekiah to be killed before him, and lastly his own eyes to be thrust out. He was then loaded with brazen fetters, and at a later period taken to Babylon, where he died.
2. Son of Chenaanah, a false prophet at the court of Ahab, head, or, if not head, virtual leader, of the college. (B.C. 896.) He appears but once viz. as spokesman when the prophets are consulted by Ahab on the result of his proposed expedition to Ramoth-gilead. 1Kin 22; 2Chr
18. Zedekiah had prepared himself for the interview with a pair of iron horns, with which he illustrated the manner in which Ahab should drive the Syrians before him. When Micaiah the prophet of the Lord appeared and had delivered his prophecy, Zedekiah sprang forward and struck him a blow on the face, accompanying it by a taunting sneer.
3. The son of Maaseiah, a false prophet in Babylon.
He was denounced in the letter of Jeremiah for having, with Ahab the son of Kolaiah, buoyed up the people with false hopes, not for profane and flagitious conduct. Their names were to become a by-word, tend their terrible fate a warning. (B.C. 595.)
4. The son of Hananiah, one of the princes of Judah in the time of Jeremiah.
(B.C. 605.)
See Verses Found in Dictionary
Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he began his three-month reign in Jerusalem. His mother was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.
In his days, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up, and Jehoiakim became his servant for three years; then he turned and rebelled against him.
And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin's uncle, king in his stead and changed his name to Zedekiah. Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began his eleven-year reign in Jerusalem. His mother was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.
And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes and put out the eyes of Zedekiah and bound him in double fetters [hands and feet] and carried him to Babylon. [Foretold in Jer. 34:3; Ezek. 12:13.]
With accounts of all his reign and his might, and the times through which he and Israel passed, as did all the kingdoms of the countries.
Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab son of Kolaiah and concerning Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who are prophesying lies to you in My name: Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and he will slay them [those false prophets whom you say I have raised up for you in Babylon] before your eyes! And because of them, this curse shall be taken up and used by all from Judah who are in captivity in Babylon: The Lord make you like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire -- "
When the army of the king of Babylon was fighting against Jerusalem and against all the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish and Azekah, for these were the only fortified cities remaining of the cities of Judah.
And Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes will I give into the hands of their enemies and into the hands of those who seek their life, and into the hand of the king of Babylon's army which has withdrawn from you.
And Pharaoh's army had come forth out of Egypt, and when the Chaldeans who were besieging Jerusalem heard the news about them, they withdrew from Jerusalem and departed. Then came the word of the Lord to the prophet Jeremiah: read more. Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Thus shall you say to the king of Judah, who sent you to Me to inquire of Me: Behold, Pharaoh's army, which has come forth to help you, will return to Egypt, to their own land. And the Chaldeans shall come again and fight against this city, and they shall take it and burn it with fire. Thus says the Lord: Do not deceive yourselves, saying, The Chaldeans will surely stay away from us -- "for they will not stay away. For though you should defeat the whole army of the Chaldeans who fight against you, and there remained only the wounded and men stricken through among them, every man confined to his tent, yet they would rise up and burn this city with fire. And when the army of the Chaldeans had departed from Jerusalem for fear of Pharaoh's approaching army,
My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon or cistern pit; and he is liable to die of hunger and is [as good as] dead in the place where he is, for there is no more bread left in the city.
And Ebed-melech the Ethiopian said to Jeremiah, Put now these old rags and worn-out garments under your armpits under the ropes. And Jeremiah did so.
In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem and besieged it. And in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, on the ninth day of the month, they broke into the city. read more. [ When Jerusalem was taken] all the princes of the king of Babylon came in and sat in the Middle Gate: Nergal-sharezer, Samgar-nebo, Sarsechim [the Rabsaris] a chief of the eunuchs, and Nergal-sharezer [II, the Rabmag] a chief of the magicians, with all the rest of the officials of the king of Babylon. And when Zedekiah king of Judah and all the men of war saw them, they fled and went forth out of the city at night by way of the king's garden, through the gate between the two walls, and [the king] went out toward the Arabah (the Jordan Valley). But the Chaldean army pursued them and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. And when they had taken him, they brought him up to Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon at Riblah in the [Syrian] land of Hamath, where he pronounced sentence upon him. Then the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah at Riblah before his eyes; also the king of Babylon slew all the nobles of Judah. Moreover, he put out Zedekiah's eyes and bound him with shackles to take him to Babylon.
And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem; and they pitched against it and built moveable towers and siege mounds against it round about.
And his allowance, a continual one, was given him by the king of Babylon, a portion according to his requirements until the day of his death, all the days of his life.
I decked you also with ornaments and I put bracelets on your wrists and a chain on your neck. And I put a ring on your nostril and earrings in your ears and a beautiful crown upon your head! read more. Thus you were decked with gold and silver, and your raiment was of fine linen and silk and embroidered cloth; you ate fine flour and honey and oil. And you were exceedingly beautiful and you prospered into royal estate. And your renown went forth among the nations for your beauty, for it was perfect through My majesty and splendor which I had put upon you, says the Lord God. But you trusted in and relied on your own beauty and were unfaithful to God and played the harlot [in idolatry] because of your renown, and you poured out your fornications upon anyone who passed by [as you worshiped the idols of every nation which prevailed over you] and your beauty was his. And you took some of your garments and made for yourself gaily decorated high places or shrines and played the harlot on them -- "things which should not come and that which should not take place. You did also take your fair jewels and beautiful vessels of My gold and My silver which I had given you and made for yourself images of men, and you played the harlot with them; And you took your embroidered garments and covered them and set My oil and My incense before them. My bread also which I gave you -- "fine flour and oil and honey with which I fed you -- "you have even set it before the idols for a sweet odor. Thus it was, says the Lord God. Moreover, you have taken your sons and your daughters whom you have borne to Me, and you have sacrificed them [to your idols] to be destroyed. Were your harlotries too little, That you have slain My children and delivered them up, in setting them apart and causing them to pass through the fire for [your idols]?
Watsons
ZEDEKIAH, or MATTANIAH, was the last king of Judah before the captivity of Babylon. He was the son of Josiah, and uncle to Jehoiachin his predecessor, 2Ki 24:17,19. When Nebuchadnezzar took Jerusalem, he carried Jehoiachin to Babylon, with his wives, children, officers, and the best artificers in Judea, and put in his place his uncle Mattaniah, whose name he changed into Zedekiah, and made him promise, with an oath, that he would continue in fidelity to him, A.M. 3405, 2Ch 36:13; Eze 17:12,14,18. He was twenty-one years old when he began to reign at Jerusalem, and he reigned there eleven years. He did evil in the sight of the Lord, committing the same crimes as Jehoiakim, 2Ki 24:18-20; 2Ch 36:11-13; and regarded not the menaces of the Prophet Jeremiah, from the Lord; but hardened his heart. The princes of the people, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, imitated his impiety, and abandoned themselves to all the abominations of the Gentiles. In the first year of his reign, Zedekiah sent to Babylon Elasah, the son of Shaphan, and Gemariah, the son of Hilkiah, probably to carry his tribute to Nebuchadnezzar. By these messengers Jeremiah sent a letter to the captives at Babylon, Jer 29:1-23. Four years afterward, either Zedekiah went thither himself, or at least he sent thither; for the Hebrew text may admit either of these interpretations, Jer 51:59; Baruch 1:1; Jer 32:12. The chief design of this deputation was to entreat Nebuchadnezzar to return the sacred vessels of the temple, Baruch 1:8. In the ninth year of his reign, he revolted against Nebuchadnezzar, 2 Kings 25. It was a sabbatical year, in which the people should set their slaves at liberty, according to the law, Ex 21:2; De 15:1-2,12; Jer 34:8-10. Then King Nebuchadnezzar marched his army against Zedekiah, and took all the fortified places of his kingdom, except Lachish, Azekah, and Jerusalem. He sat down before the last-mentioned city on the tenth day of the tenth month of the holy year, which answers to our January. Some time afterward, Pharaoh Hophrah, king of Egypt, marched to assist Zedekiah, Jer 37:3-5,10. Nebuchadnezzar left Jerusalem, and went to meet him, defeated him, and obliged him to return into Egypt; after which he resumed the siege of Jerusalem. In the mean while, the people of Jerusalem, as if freed from the fear of Nebuchadnezzar, retook the slaves whom they had set at liberty, which drew upon them great reproaches and threatenings from Jer 34:11,22. During the siege Zedekiah often consulted Jeremiah, who advised him to surrender, and pronounced the greatest woes against him if he should persist in his rebellion, Jer 37:3,10; 21. But this unfortunate prince had neither patience to hear, nor resolution to follow, good counsels. In the eleventh year of Zedekiah, on the ninth day of the fourth month, (July,) Jerusalem was taken, 2Ki 25:2-4; Jer 39:2-3; 52:5-7. Zedekiah and his people endeavoured to escape by favour of the night; but the Chaldean troops pursuing them, they were overtaken in the plains of Jericho. He was seized and carried to Nebuchadnezzar, then at Riblah, a city of Syria. The king of Chaldea, reproaching him with his perfidy, caused all his children to be slain before his face, and his eyes to be put out; then loading him with chains of brass, he ordered him to be sent to Babylon, 2Ki 25:4-7; Jer 32:4-7; 52:4-11. Thus were accomplished two prophecies which seemed contradictory: one of Jeremiah, who said that Zedekiah should see and yet not see, Nebuchadnezzar with his eyes, Jer 32:4-5; 34:3; and the other of Eze 12:13, which intimated that he should not see Babylon, though he should die there. The year of his death is not known. Jeremiah had assured him that he should die in peace; that his body should be burned, as those of the kings of Judah usually were; and that they should mourn for him, saying," Ah, lord!" Jer 34:4-5.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
If you buy a Hebrew servant [as the result of debt or theft], he shall serve six years, and in the seventh he shall go out free, paying nothing.
At the end of every seven years you shall grant a release. And this is the manner of the release: every creditor shall release that which he has lent to his neighbor; he shall not exact it of his neighbor, his brother, for the Lord's release is proclaimed.
And if your brother, a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you and serves you six years, then in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you.
And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin's uncle, king in his stead and changed his name to Zedekiah. Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began his eleven-year reign in Jerusalem. His mother was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. read more. He did evil in the sight of the Lord, in keeping with all Jehoiakim had done.
He did evil in the sight of the Lord, in keeping with all Jehoiakim had done. For because of the anger of the Lord it came to the point in Jerusalem and Judah that He cast them out of His presence. And Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.
The city was besieged [nearly two years] until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. On the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was complete in the city; there was no food for the people of the land. read more. Then the city was broken through; the king and all the warriors fled by night by way of the gate between the two walls by the king's garden, though the Chaldeans were round about the city. [The king] went by the way toward the Arabah (the plain).
Then the city was broken through; the king and all the warriors fled by night by way of the gate between the two walls by the king's garden, though the Chaldeans were round about the city. [The king] went by the way toward the Arabah (the plain). The Chaldean army pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho. All his army was scattered from him. read more. So they captured Zedekiah and brought him to the king of Babylon at Riblah, and sentence was passed on him. And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes and put out the eyes of Zedekiah and bound him in double fetters [hands and feet] and carried him to Babylon. [Foretold in Jer. 34:3; Ezek. 12:13.]
He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who made him swear by God. He stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the Lord, the God of Israel.
Now these are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the rest of the elders in exile and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon. This was after King Jeconiah [also called Coniah and Jehoiachin] and the queen mother, the eunuchs, the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen and the smiths had departed from Jerusalem. read more. [The letter was sent] by the hand of Elasah son of Shaphan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. It said: Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the captives whom I have caused to be carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build yourselves houses and dwell in them; plant gardens and eat the fruit of them. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not be diminished. And seek (inquire for, require, and request) the peace and welfare of the city to which I have caused you to be carried away captive; and pray to the Lord for it, for in the welfare of [the city in which you live] you will have welfare. For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Let not your [false] prophets and your diviners who are in your midst deceive you; pay no attention and attach no significance to your dreams which you dream or to theirs, For they prophesy falsely to you in My name. I have not sent them, says the Lord. For thus says the Lord, When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you and keep My good promise to you, causing you to return to this place. For I know the thoughts and plans that I have for you, says the Lord, thoughts and plans for welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your final outcome. Then you will call upon Me, and you will come and pray to Me, and I will hear and heed you. Then you will seek Me, inquire for, and require Me [as a vital necessity] and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, says the Lord, and I will release you from captivity and gather you from all the nations and all the places to which I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I caused you to be carried away captive. [But as for those still in Jerusalem] because you have said, The Lord has raised up prophets for us in Babylon, Thus says the Lord concerning the king who sits upon the throne of David and concerning all the people who dwell in this city, your brethren who did not go forth with you into captivity -- " Thus says the Lord of hosts: Behold, I am sending on them the sword, famine, and pestilence, and I will make them like vile figs which are so bad they cannot be eaten. And I will pursue them with the sword, famine, and pestilence and will give them up to be tossed to and fro and to be a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse, an astonishment, and a terror, a hissing and a reproach among all the nations to which I have driven them, Because they have not listened to and heeded My words, says the Lord, which I sent to them persistently by My servants the prophets; but you [exiles] would not listen [either], says the Lord. Hear therefore the word of the Lord, all you exiles whom I have sent away from Jerusalem to Babylon. Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab son of Kolaiah and concerning Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who are prophesying lies to you in My name: Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and he will slay them [those false prophets whom you say I have raised up for you in Babylon] before your eyes! And because of them, this curse shall be taken up and used by all from Judah who are in captivity in Babylon: The Lord make you like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire -- " Because they have committed folly in Israel and have committed adultery with their neighbors' wives and have spoken words in My name falsely, which I had not commanded them. I am the One Who knows and I am witness, says the Lord.
And Zedekiah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hands of the Chaldeans but shall surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon, and shall speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye;
And Zedekiah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hands of the Chaldeans but shall surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon, and shall speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye; And he shall lead Zedekiah to Babylon, and there shall he be until I visit him [for evil], says the Lord; and though you fight against the Chaldeans, you shall not prosper [why do you thus prophesy]?
And he shall lead Zedekiah to Babylon, and there shall he be until I visit him [for evil], says the Lord; and though you fight against the Chaldeans, you shall not prosper [why do you thus prophesy]? And Jeremiah said, The word of the Lord came to me, saying, read more. Behold, Hanamel son of Shallum your uncle shall come to you and say, Buy my field that is in Anathoth, for the right of redemption is yours to buy it.
And I gave the purchase deed to Baruch son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, in the sight of Hanamel my uncle's son and the witnesses who signed the purchase deed, in the presence of all the Jews who were sitting in the court of the guard.
And you will not escape out of his hand but will surely be taken and delivered into his hand; you will see the king of Babylon eye to eye, and he will speak with you face to face; and you will go to Babylon. Yet hear the word of the Lord, O Zedekiah king of Judah! Thus says the Lord concerning you: You shall not die by the sword; read more. But you shall die in peace. And as with the burnings of [spices and perfumes on wood that were granted as suitable for and in honor of] your fathers, the former kings who were before you, so shall a burning be made for you; and [people] shall lament for you, saying, Alas, lord! For I have spoken the word, says the Lord.
[This is] the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people who were at Jerusalem to proclaim liberty to them: Every man should let his Hebrew slaves, male and female, go free, so that no one should make a slave of a Jew, his brother. read more. And all the princes and all the people obeyed, who had entered into the covenant that everyone would let his manservant and his maidservant go free, so that none should make bondmen of them any more; they obeyed, and let them go. But afterward they turned around and caused the servants and the handmaids whom they had let go free to return [to their former masters] and brought them into subjection for servants and for handmaids.
Behold, I will command, says the Lord, and cause them [the Chaldeans] to return to this city; and they shall fight against it and take it and burn it with fire. I will make the cities of Judah a desolation without inhabitant.
Zedekiah the king sent Jehucal son of Shelemiah with Zephaniah son of Maaseiah, the priest, to the prophet Jeremiah, saying, Pray now to the Lord our God for us.
Zedekiah the king sent Jehucal son of Shelemiah with Zephaniah son of Maaseiah, the priest, to the prophet Jeremiah, saying, Pray now to the Lord our God for us. Now Jeremiah was coming in and going out among the people, for they had not [yet] put him in prison. read more. And Pharaoh's army had come forth out of Egypt, and when the Chaldeans who were besieging Jerusalem heard the news about them, they withdrew from Jerusalem and departed.
For though you should defeat the whole army of the Chaldeans who fight against you, and there remained only the wounded and men stricken through among them, every man confined to his tent, yet they would rise up and burn this city with fire.
For though you should defeat the whole army of the Chaldeans who fight against you, and there remained only the wounded and men stricken through among them, every man confined to his tent, yet they would rise up and burn this city with fire.
And in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, on the ninth day of the month, they broke into the city. [ When Jerusalem was taken] all the princes of the king of Babylon came in and sat in the Middle Gate: Nergal-sharezer, Samgar-nebo, Sarsechim [the Rabsaris] a chief of the eunuchs, and Nergal-sharezer [II, the Rabmag] a chief of the magicians, with all the rest of the officials of the king of Babylon.
The word that Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, when he went with Zedekiah king of Judah to Babylon in the fourth year of his reign. Now this Seraiah was chief chamberlain or quartermaster [and brother of Baruch].
And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem; and they pitched against it and built moveable towers and siege mounds against it round about. So the city was besieged until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah.
So the city was besieged until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. And in the fourth month, on the ninth day of the month, the famine was so severe in the city that there was no bread for the people of the land.
And in the fourth month, on the ninth day of the month, the famine was so severe in the city that there was no bread for the people of the land. Then the city [wall] was broken through, so that all the men of war might flee, and they went forth out of the city by night [as Ezekiel had foretold] by way of the gate between the two walls by the king's garden, though the Chaldeans were round about the city. And they [the Jewish soldiers fled] by way of the Arabah (the Jordan Valley).
Then the city [wall] was broken through, so that all the men of war might flee, and they went forth out of the city by night [as Ezekiel had foretold] by way of the gate between the two walls by the king's garden, though the Chaldeans were round about the city. And they [the Jewish soldiers fled] by way of the Arabah (the Jordan Valley). But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho; and all his army was scattered from him. read more. Then they seized the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the [Syrian] land of Hamath [on the northern border of Israel], where he pronounced sentence upon him. And the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes; he slew also all the princes of Judah at Riblah. Then he put out the eyes of Zedekiah; and the king of Babylon bound him with shackles and carried him to Babylon and put him in prison [mill] till the day of his death.
My net also will I spread over him, and he shall be taken in My snare, and I will bring him to Babylonia, to the land of the Chaldeans; yet shall he not see it, though he shall die there.
Say now to the rebellious house, Do you not know and realize what these things mean? Tell them, Behold, the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and took its king [Jehoiachin] and its princes and brought them with him to Babylon.
That the kingdom might become low and base and be unable to lift itself up, but that by keeping his [Nebuchadnezzar's] covenant it might stand.
For [Zedekiah] despised the oath and broke the covenant and behold, he had given his hand, and yet has done all these things; he shall not escape.