The Last King of Judah
The life and reign of King Zedekiah.
We have arrived at the final king to rule over Judah during the days of the divided kingdom.
Just as the northern kingdom’s time to repent ended, so now the window of opportunity has closed for Judah.
The Overview of Zedekiah’s Reign
Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king of Judah, and he reigned for eleven years (2 Kings 24:18). His mother was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah, who was also the mother of King Jehoahaz.
Zedekiah “did evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that Jehoiakim had done” (2 Kings 24:19).
Most of what we read about Zedekiah is found in Jeremiah, and what we find about him there doesn’t paint a great picture of him. Zedekiah was a spineless king who kept listening to the wrong people instead of the Lord God.
Good and Bad Figs
In Jeremiah 24, God showed the prophet Jeremiah two baskets of figs before the temple. This was seen after the “second round” of Babylonian captivity (2 Kings 24:14-15).
One basket had excellent figs, like the first figs of the season. The other basket had very bad figs, which were so bad that they could not be eaten (Jeremiah 24:2).
The LORD, the God of Israel, told Jeremiah what the good figs meant:
Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge those who are carried away captive from Judah, whom I have sent out of this place for their own good, into the land of the Chaldeans. For I will set My eyes on them for good, and I will bring them back to this land; I will build them and not pull them down, and I will plant them and not pluck them up. Then I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the LORD; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God, for they shall return to Me with their whole heart. (Jeremiah 24:5-7)
Then, He told Jeremiah what the bad figs meant:
And as the bad figs which cannot be eaten, they are so bad’—surely thus says the LORD—’so will I give up Zedekiah the king of Judah, his princes, the residue of Jerusalem who remain in this land, and those who dwell in the land of Egypt. I will deliver them to trouble into all the kingdoms of the earth, for their harm, to be a reproach and a byword, a taunt and a curse, in all places where I shall drive them. And I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence among them, till they are consumed from the land that I gave to them and their fathers. (Jeremiah 24:8-10)
Zedekiah was a part of the “bad basket of figs,” and would be delivered into all the trouble the Lord planned to bring upon Jerusalem.
Zedekiah is Warned to Serve Nebuchadnezzar
At the beginning of Jehoiakim’s reign, the Lord warned the people that He had given the lands into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar. All should humble themselves before him and serve him. They were told not to listen to their false prophets, who told them not to serve the king of Babylon. If they would serve Nebuchadnezzar, God would allow the nations to remain in their own land (Jeremiah 27:1-11).
This same message was told to Zedekiah. He was told to submit to Nebuchadnezzar, to “serve him and his people, and live!” (Jeremiah 27:12). He was given the choice between life and death (Jeremiah 27:13).
Jeremiah told Zedekiah not to listen to prophets who told him, “This won’t happen, you won’t serve the king of Babylon.” Jeremiah told the king, “They’re lying to you. God has not sent them” (Jeremiah 27:14-15).
Jeremiah told all the people not to listen to these false prophets who lied, “Everything Babylon has taken will soon be returned to us” (Jeremiah 27:16). The LORD told them through Jeremiah:
Do not listen to them; serve the king of Babylon, and live! Why should this city be laid waste? (Jeremiah 27:17)
The Lord then challenged the false prophets. He said, “If they really are prophets, let them call out to Me that the remaining items in the temple will not be carried off to Babylon” (Jeremiah 27:18-21). But then God responded, “But what’s really going to happen is that these things will be carried off and will remain there until I visit them. Then I will bring them back” (Jeremiah 27:22).
While the false prophets proclaimed a message that sounded better to the people’s ears, it was a deadly lie.
The Way of Life vs. the Way of Death
When Nebuchadnezzar made war against Judah, Zedekiah sent to Jeremiah, hoping to hear from him that the LORD would deal with them “according to all His wonderful works” and cause the king of Babylon to leave them alone (Jeremiah 21:1-2).
The message from the LORD was quite different than what Zedekiah hoped to hear.
‘Thus says the LORD God of Israel: “Behold, I will turn back the weapons of war that are in your hands, with which you fight against the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans who besiege you outside the walls; and I will assemble them in the midst of this city. I Myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and with a strong arm, even in anger and fury and great wrath. I will strike the inhabitants of this city, both man and beast; they shall die of a great pestilence.
And afterward,” says the LORD, “I will deliver Zedekiah king of Judah, his servants and the people, and such as are left in this city from the pestilence and the sword and the famine, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those who seek their life; and he shall strike them with the edge of the sword. He shall not spare them, or have pity or mercy.” ‘ (Jeremiah 21:4-7)
The LORD tells Zedekiah, “It’s not just the king of Babylon fighting against you. I am fighting against you. And you will fall.” But the LORD also extended a gracious offer of life to all who would listen and obey Him.
“Now you shall say to this people, ‘Thus says the LORD: “Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death. He who remains in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; but he who goes out and defects to the Chaldeans who besiege you, he shall live, and his life shall be as a prize to him. For I have set My face against this city for adversity and not for good,” says the LORD. “It shall be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire.” ‘ (Jeremiah 21:8-10)
It was messages like this one that caused Zedekiah to imprison Jeremiah when Nebuchadnezzar came against Jerusalem (Jeremiah 32:1-5).
Zedekiah Would Die in Babylon
When Nebuchadnezzar brought his army against Jerusalem, God sent Jeremiah to Zedekiah with another message.
“Thus says the LORD: ‘Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire. And you shall not escape from his hand, but shall surely be taken and delivered into his hand; your eyes shall see the eyes of the king of Babylon, he shall speak with you face to face, and you shall go to Babylon.’ “ (Jeremiah 34:2-3)
However, Zedekiah would not be executed by Nebuchadnezzar, which was probably the fate he expected. Instead, he would die in peace and be mourned as the kings before him were mourned (Jeremiah 34:4-5).
Later, Zedekiah made a covenant with all the people of Judah to set their fellow countrymen free, for they had enslaved their fellow Jews, ignoring what God’s law commanded (Jeremiah 34:8-9). At first, the people followed Zedekiah’s command, but then they “changed their minds” and took their slaves back (Jeremiah 34:10-11).
And so, because they turned back from doing the right thing, God would give them “freedom” to experience disaster and death (Jeremiah 34:12-20). Even Zedemiah and his princes would be given into the hands of Babylon, and the cities of Judah would be made “a desolation without inhabitant” (Jeremiah 34:21-22).
The Babylonians Are Coming Back
Although neither Zedekiah nor his servants listened to the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah (Jeremiah 37:1-2), Zedekiah still sent to Jeremiah and asked him to pray to the “LORD our God for us” (Jeremiah 37:3).
They thought so “highly” of Jeremiah’s prayers on their behalf that we are told they hadn’t yet put him into prison (Jeremiah 37:4).
Then, while the Babylonians are besieging Jerusalem, the Egyptians come out of Egypt to do battle against Babylon, and the Babylonians leave Jerusalem (Jeremiah 37:5). But God sends a warning through Jeremiah that this would not last.
“Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘Thus you shall say to the king of Judah, who sent you to Me to inquire of Me: “Behold, Pharaoh’s army which has come up to help you will return to Egypt, to their own land. And the Chaldeans shall come back and fight against this city, and take it and burn it with fire.” ‘
Thus says the LORD: ‘Do not deceive yourselves, saying, “The Chaldeans will surely depart from us,” for they will not depart. For though you had defeated the whole army of the Chaldeans who fight against you, and there remained only wounded men among them, they would rise up, every man in his tent, and burn the city with fire.’ “ (Jeremiah 37:7-10)
After the Babylonians departed, Jeremiah was thrown into prison on the charge that he was a traitor and was trying to defect to the Chaldeans. Jeremiah denied this charge as false, but justice wasn’t really a concern for the nobles of Jerusalem. So they threw him into prison for a long time (Jeremiah 37:11-16).
Eventually, Zedekiah takes him out of prison and secretly asks Jeremiah in his own house, “Is there any word from the LORD?” Jeremiah responds, “There is. You’re going to be delivered into Nebuchadnezzar’s hand.”
Then Jeremiah asks, “What have I done to you that you’ve put me in prison? Did I lie to you like your false prophets who said Babylon wouldn’t return? Please don’t send me back to prison to die” (Jeremiah 37:17-20).
So, “brave” King Zedekiah decides to go against what his nobles had done, and commands that Jeremiah should be kept in the court of the prison instead, and provided a piece of bread each day until there was no more bread (Jeremiah 37:21).
Zedekiah Condemns Jeremiah to Death, and Then Saves Him
After the princes heard Jeremiah telling the people that whoever surrendered to the Babylonians would live, they asked Zedekiah to let them put Jeremiah to death because Jeremiah was not interested in the welfare of the people (Jeremiah 38:1-4).
Zedekiah weakly responded, “Very well, you can do what you want with him. For I cannot do anything to stop you” (Jeremiah 38:5, NET).
So Jeremiah was thrown into an empty, muddy well, and left there to die (Jeremiah 38:6). But, an “Ethiopian Eunuch” found out about what had been done to Jeremiah and told the king about the evil that had been done to Jeremiah (Jeremiah 38:7-9).
Then, Zedekiah gave the command to have Jeremiah rescued from starving to death, and Ebed-Melech, the “Ethiopian Eunuch,” saved Jeremiah’s life (Jeremiah 38:10-13).
After this, Zedekiah sends for Jeremiah again and demands that Jeremiah hide nothing from him (Jeremiah 38:14). Jeremiah responds, “If I tell you, you’ll just kill me. And whatever I tell you, you won’t listen anyway” (Jeremiah 38:15).
Zedekiah swore secretly to Jeremiah that he would not have him killed, nor turn him over into the hands of those who wanted him killed (Jeremiah 38:16). So Jeremiah tells Zedekiah the word of the LORD.
“Thus says the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: ‘If you surely surrender to the king of Babylon’s princes, then your soul shall live; this city shall not be burned with fire, and you and your house shall live. But if you do not surrender to the king of Babylon’s princes, then this city shall be given into the hand of the Chaldeans; they shall burn it with fire, and you shall not escape from their hand.’ “ (Jeremiah 38:17-18)
Zedekiah expressed his fears about going along with what Jeremiah said, “I am afraid of the Jews who have defected to the Chaldeans, lest they deliver me into their hand, and they abuse me” (Jeremiah 38:19).
Jeremiah assured Zedekiah that it would not happen and begged the king, “Please, obey the voice of the LORD which I speak to you. So it shall be well with you, and your soul shall live” (Jeremiah 38:20). Jeremiah also warned Zedekiah of the consequences if he refused to surrender to Nebuchadnezzar (Jeremiah 38:21-23).
Zedekiah tells Jeremiah to keep quiet about this meeting, and Jeremiah does what the king requests. He remained in the court of the prison in the city until the day Jerusalem was taken (Jeremiah 38:24-28).
The Fall
In Zedekiah’s ninth year, in the tenth month of the year on the tenth day of the month (Jeremiah 52:4), Nebuchadnezzar returns with his army to Jerusalem and besieges it. The city fell in Zedekiah’s eleventh year, during the fourth month on the ninth day (Jeremiah 39:1-2). During this siege, the food ran out (Jeremiah 52:6).
When Zedekiah and his mighty men of war saw that Babylon had broken through into the city, they fled the city at night out into the open plain (Jeremiah 39:3-4). But they were seen, chased down, and captured in the plains of Jericho. Zedekiah was brought before Nebuchadnezzar, and judgment was pronounced on King Zedekiah (Jeremiah 39:5).
Zedekiah’s sons are killed while he watched, as well as all his nobles (Jeremiah 39:6). Then, Zedekiah's eyes are put out, his bound with chains and carried off to prison in Babylon, where he remained until the day of his death (Jeremiah 39:7; 52:11).
The king’s house and the houses of all the people are burned with fire. The walls of Jerusalem are broken down, and all but the poorest people are carried off to Babylon (Jeremiah 39:8-10).
But God spares Jeremiah, and Ebed-Melech, the Ethiopian Eunuch who had saved Jeremiah’s life (Jeremiah 39:11-18).
Crowning Principles
Beware the leader who wobbles between what is right and what is popular.
Zedekiah was constantly wavering between wanting to know the word of the LORD from Jeremiah and listening to what his nobles wanted. It seems that Zedekiah wanted to please everyone, and in the end, lost everything.
After being betrayed multiple times by Zedekiah, Jeremiah stops trusting Zedekiah to do what’s right or even to listen to the LORD’s word. Wavering between doing what’s popular and doing what’s right always ends in disaster, and such a leader should not be trusted.
Faithfulness to God always ends in a blessing.
At the end of Jeremiah, in the midst of terrible destruction and suffering, we see the LORD remembering Jeremiah, and the man who had saved his life.
Like the LORD “remembered Noah” in the middle of the flood (Genesis 8:1), so the LORD remembers those who remain faithful to Him, and blesses them (Revelation 2:10).
