1 Thus saith the LORD; Go down to the house of the king of Judah, and speak there this word,
2 And say, Hear the word of the LORD, O king of Judah, that sittest upon the throne of David, thou, and thy servants, and thy people that enter in by these gates:
3 Thus saith the LORD; Execute ye judgment and righteousness, and deliver the spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor: and do no wrong, do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, nor the widow, neither shed innocent blood in this place.
4 For if ye do this thing indeed, then shall there enter in by the gates of this house kings sitting upon the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, he, and his servants, and his people.
5 But if ye will not hear these words, I swear by myself, saith the LORD, that this house shall become a desolation.
6 For thus saith the LORD unto the king's house of Judah; Thou art Gilead unto me, and the head of Lebanon: yet surely I will make thee a wilderness, and cities which are not inhabited.
7 And I will prepare destroyers against thee, every one with his weapons: and they shall cut down thy choice cedars, and cast them into the fire.
8 And many nations shall pass by this city, and they shall say every man to his neighbour, Wherefore hath the LORD done thus unto this great city?
9 Then they shall answer, Because they have forsaken the covenant of the LORD their God, and worshipped other gods, and served them.
10 Weep ye not for the dead, neither bemoan him: but weep sore for him that goeth away: for he shall return no more, nor see his native country.
11 For thus saith the LORD touching Shallum the son of Josiah king of Judah, which reigned instead of Josiah his father, which went forth out of this place; He shall not return thither any more:
12 But he shall die in the place whither they have led him captive, and shall see this land no more.
13 Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that useth his neighbour's service without wages, and giveth him not for his work;
14 That saith, I will build me a wide house and large chambers, and cutteth him out windows; and it is cieled with cedar, and painted with vermilion.
15 Shalt thou reign, because thou closest thyself in cedar? did not thy father eat and drink, and do judgment and justice, and then it was well with him?
16 He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well with him: was not this to know me? saith the LORD.
17 But thine eyes and thine heart are not but for thy covetousness, and for to shed innocent blood, and for oppression, and for violence, to do it.
18 Therefore thus saith the LORD concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah; They shall not lament for him, saying, Ah my brother! or, Ah sister! they shall not lament for him, saying, Ah lord! or, Ah his glory!
19 He shall be buried with the burial of an ass, drawn and cast forth beyond the gates of Jerusalem.
20 Go up to Lebanon, and cry; and lift up thy voice in Bashan, and cry from the passages: for all thy lovers are destroyed.
21 I spake unto thee in thy prosperity; but thou saidst, I will not hear. This hath been thy manner from thy youth, that thou obeyedst not my voice.
22 The wind shall eat up all thy pastors, and thy lovers shall go into captivity: surely then shalt thou be ashamed and confounded for all thy wickedness.
23 O inhabitant of Lebanon, that makest thy nest in the cedars, how gracious shalt thou be when pangs come upon thee, the pain as of a woman in travail!
24 As I live, saith the LORD, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah were the signet upon my right hand, yet would I pluck thee thence;
25 And I will give thee into the hand of them that seek thy life, and into the hand of them whose face thou fearest, even into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of the Chaldeans.
26 And I will cast thee out, and thy mother that bare thee, into another country, where ye were not born; and there shall ye die.
27 But to the land whereunto they desire to return, thither shall they not return.
28 Is this man Coniah a despised broken idol? is he a vessel wherein is no pleasure? wherefore are they cast out, he and his seed, and are cast into a land which they know not?
29 O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD.
30 Thus saith the LORD, Write ye this man childless, a man that shall not prosper in his days: for no man of his seed shall prosper, sitting upon the throne of David, and ruling any more in Judah.
1 Thus saith H559 the LORD; H3068 Go down H3381 to the house H1004 of the king H4428 of Judah, H3063 and speak H1696 there this word, H1697
2 And say, H559 Hear H8085 the word H1697 of the LORD, H3068 O king H4428 of Judah, H3063 that sittest H3427 upon the throne H3678 of David, H1732 thou, and thy servants, H5650 and thy people H5971 that enter H935 in by these gates: H8179
3 Thus saith H559 the LORD; H3068 Execute H6213 ye judgment H4941 and righteousness, H6666 and deliver H5337 the spoiled H1497 out of the hand H3027 of the oppressor: H6216 and do no wrong, H3238 do no violence H2554 to the stranger, H1616 the fatherless, H3490 nor the widow, H490 neither shed H8210 innocent H5355 blood H1818 in this place. H4725
4 For if ye do H6213 this thing H1697 indeed, H6213 then shall there enter in H935 by the gates H8179 of this house H1004 kings H4428 sitting H3427 upon the throne H3678 of David, H1732 riding H7392 in chariots H7393 and on horses, H5483 he, and his servants, H5650 and his people. H5971
5 But if ye will not hear H8085 these words, H1697 I swear H7650 by myself, saith H5002 the LORD, H3068 that this house H1004 shall become a desolation. H2723
6 For thus saith H559 the LORD H3068 unto the king's H4428 house H1004 of Judah; H3063 Thou art Gilead H1568 unto me, and the head H7218 of Lebanon: H3844 yet surely I will make H7896 thee a wilderness, H4057 and cities H5892 which are not inhabited. H3427 H3427
7 And I will prepare H6942 destroyers H7843 against thee, every one H376 with his weapons: H3627 and they shall cut down H3772 thy choice H4005 cedars, H730 and cast H5307 them into the fire. H784
8 And many H7227 nations H1471 shall pass H5674 by this city, H5892 and they shall say H559 every man H376 to his neighbour, H7453 Wherefore hath the LORD H3068 done H6213 thus unto this great H1419 city? H5892
9 Then they shall answer, H559 Because they have forsaken H5800 the covenant H1285 of the LORD H3068 their God, H430 and worshipped H7812 other H312 gods, H430 and served H5647 them.
10 Weep H1058 ye not for the dead, H4191 neither bemoan H5110 him: but weep H1058 sore H1058 for him that goeth away: H1980 for he shall return H7725 no more, nor see H7200 his native H4138 country. H776
11 For thus saith H559 the LORD H3068 touching H413 Shallum H7967 the son H1121 of Josiah H2977 king H4428 of Judah, H3063 which reigned H4427 instead of Josiah H2977 his father, H1 which went forth H3318 out of this place; H4725 He shall not return H7725 thither any more:
12 But he shall die H4191 in the place H4725 whither they have led him captive, H1540 and shall see H7200 this land H776 no more.
13 Woe H1945 unto him that buildeth H1129 his house H1004 by H3808 unrighteousness, H6664 and his chambers H5944 by wrong; H4941 that useth his neighbour's H7453 service H5647 without wages, H2600 and giveth H5414 him not for his work; H6467
14 That saith, H559 I will build H1129 me a wide H4060 house H1004 and large H7304 chambers, H5944 and cutteth him out H7167 windows; H2474 and it is cieled H5603 with cedar, H730 and painted H4886 with vermilion. H8350
15 Shalt thou reign, H4427 because thou closest H8474 thyself in cedar? H730 did not thy father H1 eat H398 and drink, H8354 and do H6213 judgment H4941 and justice, H6666 and then it was well H2896 with him?
16 He judged H1777 the cause H1779 of the poor H6041 and needy; H34 then it was well H2896 with him: was not this to know H1847 me? saith H5002 the LORD. H3068
17 But thine eyes H5869 and thine heart H3820 are not but for thy covetousness, H1215 and for to shed H8210 innocent H5355 blood, H1818 and for oppression, H6233 and for violence, H4835 to do H6213 it.
18 Therefore thus saith H559 the LORD H3068 concerning Jehoiakim H3079 the son H1121 of Josiah H2977 king H4428 of Judah; H3063 They shall not lament H5594 for him, saying, Ah H1945 my brother! H251 or, Ah H1945 sister! H269 they shall not lament H5594 for him, saying, Ah H1945 lord! H113 or, Ah H1945 his glory! H1935
19 He shall be buried H6912 with the burial H6900 of an ass, H2543 drawn H5498 and cast forth H7993 beyond H1973 the gates H8179 of Jerusalem. H3389
20 Go up H5927 to Lebanon, H3844 and cry; H6817 and lift up H5414 thy voice H6963 in Bashan, H1316 and cry H6817 from the passages: H5676 for all thy lovers H157 are destroyed. H7665
21 I spake H1696 unto thee in thy prosperity; H7962 but thou saidst, H559 I will not hear. H8085 This hath been thy manner H1870 from thy youth, H5271 that thou obeyedst H8085 not my voice. H6963
22 The wind H7307 shall eat up H7462 all thy pastors, H7462 and thy lovers H157 shall go H3212 into captivity: H7628 surely then shalt thou be ashamed H954 and confounded H3637 for all thy wickedness. H7451
23 O inhabitant H3427 of Lebanon, H3844 that makest thy nest H7077 in the cedars, H730 how gracious H2603 shalt thou be when pangs H2256 come H935 upon thee, the pain H2427 as of a woman in travail! H3205
24 As I live, H2416 saith H5002 the LORD, H3068 though Coniah H3659 the son H1121 of Jehoiakim H3079 king H4428 of Judah H3063 were the signet H2368 upon my right H3225 hand, H3027 yet would I pluck H5423 thee thence;
25 And I will give H5414 thee into the hand H3027 of them that seek H1245 thy life, H5315 and into the hand H3027 of them whose face H6440 thou fearest, H3016 even into the hand H3027 of Nebuchadrezzar H5019 king H4428 of Babylon, H894 and into the hand H3027 of the Chaldeans. H3778
26 And I will cast thee out, H2904 and thy mother H517 that bare H3205 thee, into another H312 country, H776 where ye were not born; H3205 and there shall ye die. H4191
27 But to the land H776 whereunto they desire H5375 H5315 to return, H7725 thither shall they not return. H7725
28 Is this man H376 Coniah H3659 a despised H959 broken H5310 idol? H6089 is he a vessel H3627 wherein is no pleasure? H2656 wherefore are they cast out, H7993 he and his seed, H2233 and are cast H2904 into a land H776 which they know H3045 not?
29 O earth, H776 earth, H776 earth, H776 hear H8085 the word H1697 of the LORD. H3068
30 Thus saith H559 the LORD, H3068 Write H3789 ye this man H376 childless, H6185 a man H1397 that shall not prosper H6743 in his days: H3117 for no man H376 of his seed H2233 shall prosper, H6743 sitting H3427 upon the throne H3678 of David, H1732 and ruling H4910 any more in Judah. H3063
1 Thus said Jehovah: Go down to the house of the king of Judah, and speak there this word,
2 And say, Hear the word of Jehovah, O king of Judah, that sittest upon the throne of David, thou, and thy servants, and thy people that enter in by these gates.
3 Thus saith Jehovah: Execute ye justice and righteousness, and deliver him that is robbed out of the hand of the oppressor: and do no wrong, do no violence, to the sojourner, the fatherless, nor the widow; neither shed innocent blood in this place.
4 For if ye do this thing indeed, then shall there enter in by the gates of this house kings sitting upon the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, he, and his servants, and his people.
5 But if ye will not hear these words, I swear by myself, saith Jehovah, that this house shall become a desolation.
6 For thus saith Jehovah concerning the house of the king of Judah: Thou art Gilead unto me, `and' the head of Lebanon; `yet' surely I will make thee a wilderness, `and' cities which are not inhabited.
7 And I will prepare destroyers against thee, every one with his weapons; and they shall cut down thy choice cedars, and cast them into the fire.
8 And many nations shall pass by this city, and they shall say every man to his neighbor, Wherefore hath Jehovah done thus unto this great city?
9 Then they shall answer, Because they forsook the covenant of Jehovah their God, and worshipped other gods, and served them.
10 Weep ye not for the dead, neither bemoan him; but weep sore for him that goeth away; for he shall return no more, nor see his native country.
11 For thus saith Jehovah touching Shallum the son of Josiah, king of Judah, who reigned instead of Josiah his father, `and' who went forth out of this place: He shall not return thither any more.
12 But in the place whither they have led him captive, there shall he die, and he shall see this land no more.
13 Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by injustice; that useth his neighbor's service without wages, and giveth him not his hire;
14 that saith, I will build me a wide house and spacious chambers, and cutteth him out windows; and it is ceiled with cedar, and painted with vermilion.
15 Shalt thou reign, because thou strivest to excel in cedar? Did not thy father eat and drink, and do justice and righteousness? then it was well with him.
16 He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well. Was not this to know me? saith Jehovah.
17 But thine eyes and thy heart are not but for thy covetousness, and for shedding innocent blood, and for oppression, and for violence, to do it.
18 Therefore thus saith Jehovah concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah: they shall not lament for him, `saying', Ah my brother! or, Ah sister! They shall not lament for him, `saying' Ah lord! or, Ah his glory!
19 He shall be buried with the burial of an ass, drawn and cast forth beyond the gates of Jerusalem.
20 Go up to Lebanon, and cry; and lift up thy voice in Bashan, and cry from Abarim; for all thy lovers are destroyed.
21 I spake unto thee in thy prosperity; but thou saidst, I will not hear. This hath been thy manner from thy youth, that thou obeyedst not my voice.
22 The wind shall feed all thy shepherds, and thy lovers shall go into captivity: surely then shalt thou be ashamed and confounded for all thy wickedness.
23 O inhabitant of Lebanon, that makest thy nest in the cedars, how greatly to be pitied shalt thou be when pangs come upon thee, the pain as of a woman in travail!
24 As I live, saith Jehovah, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah were the signet upon my right hand, yet would I pluck thee thence;
25 and I will give thee into the hand of them that seek thy life, and into the hand of them of whom thou art afraid, even into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of the Chaldeans.
26 And I will cast thee out, and thy mother that bare thee, into another country, where ye were not born; and there shall ye die.
27 But to the land whereunto their soul longeth to return, thither shall they not return.
28 Is this man Coniah a despised broken vessel? is he a vessel wherein none delighteth? wherefore are they cast out, he and his seed, and are cast into the land which they know not?
29 O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of Jehovah.
30 Thus saith Jehovah, Write ye this man childless, a man that shall not prosper in his days; for no more shall a man of his seed prosper, sitting upon the throne of David, and ruling in Judah.
1 Thus said Jehovah, `Go down `to' the house of the king of Judah, and thou hast spoken there this word, and hast said,
2 Hear a word of Jehovah, O king of Judah, who art sitting on the throne of David, thou, and thy servants, and thy people, who are coming in at these gates,
3 Thus said Jehovah: Do ye judgment and righteousness, And deliver the plundered from the hand of the oppressor, And sojourner, orphan, and widow, ye do not oppress nor wrong, And innocent blood ye do not shed in this place.
4 For, if ye certainly do this thing, Then come in by the gates of this house Have kings sitting for David on his throne, Riding on chariot, and on horses, He, and his servants, and his people.
5 And if ye do not hear these words, By myself I have sworn -- an affirmation of Jehovah, That this house is for a desolation.
6 For thus said Jehovah, Concerning the house of the king of Judah: Gilead `art' thou to Me -- head of Lebanon, If not -- I make thee a wilderness, Cities not inhabited.
7 And I have separated for thee destroyers, Each with his weapons, And they have cut down the choice of thy cedars, And have cast them on the fire.
8 And many nations have passed by this city, And they have said, each to his neighbour, For what hath Jehovah done thus to this great city?
9 And they have said, `Because that they have forsaken The covenant of Jehovah their God, And bow themselves to other gods, and serve them.'
10 Ye do not weep for the dead, nor bemoan for him, Weep ye sore for the traveller, For he doth not return again, Nor hath he seen the land of his birth.
11 For thus said Jehovah concerning Shallum son of Josiah king of Judah, who is reigning instead of Josiah his father, who hath gone forth from this place: He doth not turn back hither again;
12 For in the place whither they have removed him he dieth, And this land he doth not see again.
13 Wo to him who is building his house by unrighteousness, And his upper chambers by injustice, On his neighbour he layeth service for nought, And his wage he doth not give to him.
14 Who is saying, `I build for myself a large house, And airy upper chambers,' And he hath cut out for himself its windows, Ceiled with cedar, and painted with vermillion.
15 Dost thou reign, because thou art fretting thyself in cedar? Thy father -- did he not eat and drink? Yea, he did judgment and righteousness, Then `it is' well with him.
16 He decided the cause of the poor and needy, Then `it is' well -- is it not to know Me? An affirmation of Jehovah.
17 But thine eyes and thy heart are not, Except on thy dishonest gain, And on shedding of innocent blood, And on oppression, and on doing of violence.
18 Therefore, thus said Jehovah concerning Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah: They do not lament for him, Ah, my brother, and Ah, sister, They do not lament for him, Ah, lord, and Ah, his honour.
19 The burial of an ass -- he is buried, Dragged and cast out thence to the gates of Jerusalem.
20 Go up to Lebanon, and cry, And in Bashan give forth thy voice, And cry from Abarim, For destroyed have been all loving thee.
21 I have spoken unto thee in thine ease, Thou hast said, `I do not hearken,' This `is' thy way from thy youth, For thou hast not hearkened to My voice.
22 All thy friends consume doth wind, And thy lovers into captivity do go, Surely then thou art ashamed, And hast blushed for all thy wickedness.
23 O dweller in Lebanon, making a nest among cedars, How gracious hast thou been when pangs come to thee, Pain -- as of a travailing woman.
24 I live -- an affirmation of Jehovah, Though Coniah son of Jehoiakim king of Judah Were a seal on My right hand, Surely thence I draw thee away,
25 And I have given thee into the hand of those seeking thy life, And into hands of which thou art afraid, Into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, And into the hand of the Chaldeans.
26 And I have cast thee, And thy mother who bore thee, unto another country, Where ye were not born, and there do ye die.
27 And to the land whither they are lifting up their soul to return, Thither they do not return.
28 A grief -- a despised broken thing -- is this man Coniah? A vessel in which there is no pleasure? Wherefore have they been cast up and down, He and his seed, Yea, they were cast on to a land that they knew not?
29 Earth, earth, earth, hear a word of Jehovah,
30 Thus said Jehovah: Write ye this man childless, A man -- he doth not prosper in his days, For none of his seed doth prosper, Sitting on the throne of David, And ruling again in Judah!
1 Thus saith Jehovah: Go down to the house of the king of Judah, and speak there this word,
2 and say, Hear the word of Jehovah, O king of Judah, that sittest upon the throne of David, thou, and thy servants, and thy people who enter in through these gates.
3 Thus saith Jehovah: Execute judgment and righteousness, and deliver the spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor; and do no wrong, do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, or the widow, and shed not innocent blood in this place.
4 For if ye do this thing indeed, then shall there enter in through the gates of this house kings sitting in the place of David upon his throne, riding in chariots and on horses, -- he, and his servants, and his people.
5 But if ye will not hear these words, I have sworn by myself, saith Jehovah, that this house shall become a waste.
6 For thus saith Jehovah concerning the house of the king of Judah: Thou art a Gilead unto me, the summit of Lebanon: verily I will make thee a wilderness, cities not inhabited.
7 And I will prepare destroyers against thee, every one with his weapons; and they shall cut down the choice of thy cedars, and cast [them] into the fire.
8 And many nations shall pass by this city, and they shall say every man to his neighbour, Wherefore hath Jehovah done thus unto this great city?
9 And they shall say, Because they have forsaken the covenant of Jehovah their God, and worshipped other gods, and served them.
10 Weep not for the dead, neither bemoan him; [but] weep sore for him that goeth away, for he shall return no more, nor see his native country.
11 For thus saith Jehovah concerning Shallum the son of Josiah, the king of Judah, who reigned instead of Josiah his father, who went forth out of this place: He shall not return thither any more;
12 for he shall die in the place whither they have led him captive, and shall see this land no more.
13 Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his upper chambers by injustice; that taketh his neighbour's service without wages, and giveth him not his earning;
14 that saith, I will build me a wide house, and spacious upper chambers; and he cutteth out for himself windows; and it is wainscoted with cedar, and painted with vermilion.
15 Shalt thou reign, because thou viest with the cedar? Did not thy father eat and drink, and do judgment and justice? Then it was well with him.
16 He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well. Was not this to know me? saith Jehovah.
17 But thine eyes and thy heart are only on thine extortion, and on the blood of the innocent, to shed it, and on oppression and on violence, to do it.
18 Therefore thus saith Jehovah concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, the king of Judah: They shall not lament for him, Ah, my brother! or, Ah, sister! They shall not lament for him, Ah, lord! or Ah, his glory!
19 He shall be buried with the burial of an ass, dragged along and cast forth beyond the gates of Jerusalem.
20 Go up to Lebanon, and cry; and give forth thy voice in Bashan, and cry from [the heights of] Abarim: for all thy lovers are destroyed.
21 I spoke unto thee in thy prosperity; [but] thou saidst, I will not hear. This hath been thy way from thy youth, that thou hearkenedst not unto my voice.
22 The wind shall feed on all thy shepherds, and thy lovers shall go into captivity; surely, then shalt thou be ashamed and confounded for all thy wickedness.
23 Thou inhabitress of Lebanon, that makest thy nest in the cedars, how pitiful shalt thou be when pangs come upon thee, pain as of a woman in travail!
24 [As] I live, saith Jehovah, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim, the king of Judah, were a signet upon my right hand, yet will I pluck thee thence;
25 and I will give thee into the hand of them that seek thy life, and into the hand of them before whom thou art afraid, even into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of the Chaldeans.
26 And I will cast thee out, and thy mother that bare thee, into another country, where ye were not born; and there shall ye die.
27 And into the land whereunto they lift up their souls to return, thither shall they not return.
28 Is this man Coniah a despised broken vase? a vessel wherein is no delight? Wherefore are they thrown out, he and his seed, and are cast into a land which they know not?
29 O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of Jehovah!
30 Thus saith Jehovah: Write this man childless, a man that shall not prosper in his days; for no man of his seed shall prosper, sitting upon the throne of David, and ruling any more in Judah.
1 Thus said Yahweh: Go down to the house of the king of Judah, and speak there this word,
2 Say, Hear the word of Yahweh, king of Judah, who sits on the throne of David, you, and your servants, and your people who enter in by these gates.
3 Thus says Yahweh: Execute you justice and righteousness, and deliver him who is robbed out of the hand of the oppressor: and do no wrong, do no violence, to the foreigner, the fatherless, nor the widow; neither shed innocent blood in this place.
4 For if you do this thing indeed, then shall there enter in by the gates of this house kings sitting on the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, he, and his servants, and his people.
5 But if you will not hear these words, I swear by myself, says Yahweh, that this house shall become a desolation.
6 For thus says Yahweh concerning the house of the king of Judah: You are Gilead to me, [and] the head of Lebanon; [yet] surely I will make you a wilderness, [and] cities which are not inhabited.
7 I will prepare destroyers against you, everyone with his weapons; and they shall cut down your choice cedars, and cast them into the fire.
8 Many nations shall pass by this city, and they shall say every man to his neighbor, Why has Yahweh done thus to this great city?
9 Then they shall answer, Because they forsook the covenant of Yahweh their God, and worshiped other gods, and served them.
10 Don't you weep for the dead, neither bemoan him; but weep sore for him who goes away; for he shall return no more, nor see his native country.
11 For thus says Yahweh touching Shallum the son of Josiah, king of Judah, who reigned instead of Josiah his father, [and] who went forth out of this place: He shall not return there any more.
12 But in the place where they have led him captive, there shall he die, and he shall see this land no more.
13 Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by injustice; who uses his neighbor's service without wages, and doesn't give him his hire;
14 who says, I will build me a wide house and spacious chambers, and cuts him out windows; and it is ceiling with cedar, and painted with vermilion.
15 Shall you reign, because you strive to excel in cedar? Didn't your father eat and drink, and do justice and righteousness? then it was well with him.
16 He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well. Wasn't this to know me? says Yahweh.
17 But your eyes and your heart are not but for your covetousness, and for shedding innocent blood, and for oppression, and for violence, to do it.
18 Therefore thus says Yahweh concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah: they shall not lament for him, [saying], Ah my brother! or, Ah sister! They shall not lament for him, [saying] Ah lord! or, Ah his glory!
19 He shall be buried with the burial of a donkey, drawn and cast forth beyond the gates of Jerusalem.
20 Go up to Lebanon, and cry; and lift up your voice in Bashan, and cry from Abarim; for all your lovers are destroyed.
21 I spoke to you in your prosperity; but you said, I will not hear. This has been your manner from your youth, that you didn't obey my voice.
22 The wind shall feed all your shepherds, and your lovers shall go into captivity: surely then shall you be ashamed and confounded for all your wickedness.
23 Inhabitant of Lebanon, who makes your nest in the cedars, how greatly to be pitied shall you be when pangs come on you, the pain as of a woman in travail!
24 As I live, says Yahweh, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah were the signet on my right hand, yet would I pluck you there;
25 and I will give you into the hand of those who seek your life, and into the hand of them of whom you are afraid, even into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of the Chaldeans.
26 I will cast you out, and your mother who bore you, into another country, where you were not born; and there shall you die.
27 But to the land whereunto their soul longs to return, there shall they not return.
28 Is this man Coniah a despised broken vessel? is he a vessel in which none delights? why are they cast out, he and his seed, and are cast into the land which they don't know?
29 O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of Yahweh.
30 Thus says Yahweh, Write you this man childless, a man who shall not prosper in his days; for no more shall a man of his seed prosper, sitting on the throne of David, and ruling in Judah.
1 This is what the Lord has said: Go down to the house of the king of Judah and there give him this word,
2 And say, Give ear to the word of the Lord, O king of Judah, seated on the seat of David, you and your servants and your people who come in by these doors.
3 This is what the Lord has said: Do what is right, judging uprightly, and make free from the hands of the cruel one him whose goods have been violently taken away: do no wrong and be not violent to the man from a strange country and the child without a father and the widow, and let not those who have done no wrong be put to death in this place.
4 For if you truly do this, then there will come in through the doors of this house kings seated on the seat of David, going in carriages and on horseback, he and his servants and his people
5 But if you do not give ear to these words, I give you my oath by myself, says the Lord, that this house will become a waste.
6 For this is what the Lord has said about the family of the king of Judah: You are Gilead to me, and the top of Lebanon: but, truly, I will make you waste, with towns unpeopled.
7 And I will make ready those who will send destruction on you, everyone armed for war: by them your best cedar-trees will be cut down and put in the fire.
8 And nations from all sides will go past this town, and every man will say to his neighbour, Why has the Lord done such things to this great town?
9 And they will say, Because they gave up the agreement of the Lord their God, and became worshippers and servants of other gods.
10 Let there be no weeping for the dead, and make no songs of grief for him: but make bitter weeping for him who has gone away, for he will never come back or see again the country of his birth.
11 For this is what the Lord has said about Shallum, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, who became king in place of Josiah his father, who went out from this place: He will never come back there again:
12 But death will come to him in the place where they have taken him away prisoner, and he will never see this land again.
13 A curse is on him who is building his house by wrongdoing, and his rooms by doing what is not right; who makes use of his neighbour without payment, and gives him nothing for his work;
14 Who says, I will make a wide house for myself, and rooms of great size, and has windows cut out, and has it roofed with cedar and painted with bright red.
15 Are you to be a king because you make more use of cedar than your father? did not your father take food and drink and do right, judging in righteousness, and then it was well for him?
16 He was judge in the cause of the poor and those in need; then it was well. Was not this to have knowledge of me? says the Lord.
17 But your eyes and your heart are fixed only on profit for yourself, on causing the death of him who has done no wrong, and on violent and cruel acts.
18 So this is what the Lord has said about Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, king of Judah: They will make no weeping for him, saying, Ah my brother! or, Ah sister! they will make no weeping for him, saying, Ah lord! or, Ah his glory!
19 They will do to him what they do to the dead body of an ass; his body will be pulled out and placed on the earth outside the doors of Jerusalem.
20 Go up to Lebanon and give a cry; let your voice be loud in Bashan, crying out from Abarim; for all your lovers have come to destruction
21 My word came to you in the time of your well-being; but you said, I will not give ear. This has been your way from your earliest years, you did not give attention to my voice.
22 All the keepers of your sheep will be food for the wind, and your lovers will be taken away prisoners: truly, then you will be shamed and unhonoured because of all your evil-doing.
23 O you who are living in Lebanon, making your living-place in the cedars, how greatly to be pitied will you be when pains come on you, as on a woman in childbirth!
24 By my life, says the Lord, even if Coniah, the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, was the ring on my right hand, even from there I would have you pulled off;
25 And I will give you into the hands of those desiring your death, and into the hands of those whom you are fearing, even into the hands of Nebuchadrezzar, king of Babylon, and into the hands of the Chaldaeans.
26 I will send you out, and your mother who gave you birth, into another country not the land of your birth; and there death will come to you.
27 But to the land on which their soul's desire is fixed, they will never come back.
28 Is this man Coniah a broken vessel of no value? is he a vessel in which there is no pleasure? why are they violently sent out, he and his seed, into a land which is strange to them?
29 O earth, earth, earth, give ear to the word of the Lord!
30 The Lord has said, Let this man be recorded as having no children, a man who will not do well in all his life: for no man of his seed will do well, seated on the seat of the kingdom of David and ruling again in Judah.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Keil & Delitzsch Commentary » Commentary on Jeremiah 22
Commentary on Jeremiah 22 Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
Rebuke of the Ungodly Kings Jehoiakim and Jehoiachin, and Promise of a Righteous Branch of David. - This discourse begins with an exhortation to the king, his servants, and the people to do right and justice, and to eschew all unrighteousness, and with the warning, that in case of the contrary the royal palace will be reduced to ruins and Jerusalem destroyed by fire. After touching briefly on the fate of Jehoahaz, who has been deported to Egypt (Jeremiah 22:10-12), the discourse turns against Jehoiakim, rebukes his tyranny, in that he builds his house with unrighteousness and schemes only bloodshed and violence, and threatens him with ignominious ruin (Jeremiah 22:13-19). Then, after a threatening against Jerusalem (Jeremiah 22:20-23), it deals with Jechoniah, who is told he shall be carried to Babylon never to return, and without any descendant to sit on his throne (Jeremiah 22:24-30). Next, after an outcry of grief at the wicked shepherds, follows the promise that the Lord will gather the remnant of His flock out of all the lands whither they have been driven, that He will restore them to their fields and multiply them, and that He will raise up to them a good shepherd in the righteous branch of David (Jeremiah 23:1-8). - According to Jeremiah 21:1, Jeremiah spoke these words in the house of the king of Judah; whence we see that in this passage we have not merely ideas and scraps of addresses gathered together, such as had been on various occasions orally delivered by the prophet. It further appears from Jeremiah 22:10 and Jeremiah 22:13-17, that the portion of the discourse addressed to Jehoiakim was uttered in the first year of his reign; and from Jeremiah 22:24, where Jechoniah is addressed as king, that the utterance concerning him belongs to the short period (only three months long) of his reign. But the utterance concerning Jechoniah is joined with that concerning Jehoiakim on account of the close relationship in matter between them. The exhortation and warning against injustice, forming the introduction, as regards it contents, fits very well into the time of Jehoiakim (cf. Jeremiah 22:17 with Jeremiah 22:3). The promise with which the discourse concludes was apparently not spoken till the time of Jechoniah, shortly before his being taken to Babylon. So that we have here the discourses of Jeremiah belonging to the times of Jehoiakim and Jehoiachin respectively, joined into one continuous whole.
The king is warned against injustice, and the violent oppression of the poor and defenceless. - Jeremiah 22:1 . "Thus said Jahveh: Go down to the house of the king of Judah and speak there this word, Jeremiah 22:2 . And say: Hear the word of Jahveh, thou king of Judah, that sittest upon the throne of David, thou, and thy servants, and thy people, that go in by these gates. Jeremiah 22:3 . Thus hath Jahveh said: Do ye right and justice, and save the despoiled out of the hand of the oppressor; to stranger, orphan, and widow do no wrong, no violence; and innocent blood shed not in this place. Jeremiah 22:4 . For if ye will do this word indeed, then by the gates of this place there shall come in kings that sit upon the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, he, and his servants, and his people. Jeremiah 22:5 . But if ye hearken not to these words, by myself have I sworn, saith Jahve, that this house shall become a desolation. Jeremiah 22:6 . For thus hath Jahveh said concerning the house of the king of Judah: A Gilead art thou to me, a head of Lebanon; surely I will make thee a wilderness, cities uninhabited; Jeremiah 22:7 . And will consecrate against thee destroyers, each with his tools, who shall hew down the choice of thy cedars and cast them into the fire. Jeremiah 22:8 . And there shall pass may peoples by this city, and one shall say to the other: Wherefore hath Jahveh done thus unto this great city? Jeremiah 22:9 . And they will say: Because they have forsaken the covenant of Jahveh their God, and worshipped other gods and served them."
Go down into the house of the king. The prophet could go down only from the temple; cf. Jeremiah 36:12 and Jeremiah 26:10. Not only the king is to hear the word of the Lord, but his servants too, and the people, who go in by these gates, the gates of the royal castle. The exhortation: to do right and justice, etc., is only an expansion of the brief counsel at Jeremiah 21:12, and that brought home to the heart of the whole people in Jeremiah 7:6, cf. Ezekiel 22:6. The form עשׁוק for עושׁק , Jeremiah 21:12, occurs only here, but is formed analogously to גּדול , and cannot be objected to. אל־תּנוּ is strengthened by "do no violence." On "kings riding," etc., cf. Jeremiah 17:25. - With Jeremiah 22:5 cf. Jeremiah 17:27, where, however, the threatening is otherwise worded. בּי , cf. Genesis 22:16. כּי introduces the contents of the oath. "This house" is the royal palace. לחרבּה as in Jeremiah 7:34, cf. Jeremiah 27:17. The threatening is illustrated in Jeremiah 22:6 by further description of the destruction of the palace. The royal castle is addressed, and, in respect of its lofty situation and magnificence, is called a Gilead and a head of Lebanon. It lay on the north-eastern eminence of Mount Zion (see on 1 Kings 7:12, note 1), and contained the so-called forest-house of Lebanon (1 Kings 7:2-5) and various other buildings built of cedar, or, at least, faced with cedar planks (cf. Jeremiah 22:14, Jeremiah 22:23); so that the entire building might be compared to a forest of cedars on the summit of Lebanon. In the comparison to Gilead, Gilead can hardly be adduced in respect of its great fertility as a pasturing land (Numbers 32:1; Micah 7:14), but in virtue of the thickly wooded covering of the hill-country of Gilead on both sides of the Jabbok. This is still in great measure clothed with oak thickets and, according to Buckingham, the most beautiful forest tracts that can be imagined; cf. C. v. Raumer, Pal . S. 82.
(Note: In 1834 Eli Smith travelled through it, and thus writes: "Jebel 'Ajlun presents the most charming rural scenery that I have seen in Syria. A continued forest of noble trees, chiefly the evergreen oak, covers a large part of it, while the ground beneath is clothed with luxuriant grass and decked with a rich variety of wild flowers. As we went from el-Husn to 'Ajlun our path lay along the summit of the mountain; and we often overlooked a large part of Palestine on one side and the whole of Haurân." - Rob. Phys. Geog . p. 54.)
אם לא is a particle of asseveration. This glorious forest of cedar buildings is to become a מדבּר , a treeless steppe, cities uninhabited. "Cities" refers to the thing compared, not to the emblem; and the plural, as being the form for indefinite generality, presents no difficulty. And the attachment thereto of a singular predicate has many analogies in its support, cf. Ew. §317, a . The Keri נושׁבוּ is an uncalled for emendation of the Chet . נושׁבה , cf. Jeremiah 6:5. - "I consecrate," in respect that the destroyers are warriors whom God sends as the executors of His will, see on Jeremiah 6:4. With "a man and his weapons," cf. Ezekiel 9:2. In keeping with the figure of a forest, the destruction is represented as the hewing down of the choicest cedars; cf. Isaiah 10:34. - Thus is to be accomplished in Jerusalem what Moses threatened, Deuteronomy 29:23; the destroyed city will become a monument of God's wrath against the transgressors of His covenant. Jeremiah 22:8 is modelled upon Deuteronomy 29:23., cf. 1 Kings 9:8., and made to bear upon Jerusalem, since, along with the palace, the city too is destroyed by the enemy.
From Jeremiah 22:10 onwards the exhortation to the evil shepherds becomes a prophecy concerning the kings of that time, who by their godless courses hurried on the threatened destruction. The prophecy begins with King Jehoahaz, who, after a reign of three months, had bee discrowned by Pharaoh Necho and carried captive to Egypt; 2 Kings 23:30-35; 2 Chronicles 36:1-4.
On Jehoahaz. - Jeremiah 22:10. "Weep not for the dead, neither bemoan him; weep rather for him that is gone away, for he shall no more return and see the land of his birth. Jeremiah 22:11. For thus saith Jahveh concerning Shallum, the son of Josiah king of Judah, who became king in his father Josiah's stead, and who went forth from this place: He shall not return thither more; Jeremiah 22:12. but in the place whither they have carried hi captive, there shall he die and see this land no more." The clause: weep not for the dead, with which the prophecy on Shallum is begun, shows that the mourning for King Josiah was kept up and was still heartily felt amongst the people ( 2 Chronicles 35:24.), and that the circumstances of his death were still fresh in their memory. למת without the article, although Josiah, slain in battle at Megiddo, is meant, because there was no design particularly to define the person. Him that goes or is gone away. He, again, is defined and called Shallum. This Shallum, who became king in his father Josiah's place, can be none other than Josiah's successor, who is called Joahaz in 2 Kings 23:30., 2 Chronicles 36:1; as was seen by Chrysost. and Aben-Ezra, and, since Grotius, by most commentators. The only question is, why he should here be called Shallum. According to Frc. Junius, Hitz., and Graf, Jeremiah compares Joahaz on account of his short reign with Shallum in Israel, who reigned but one month (2 Kings 15:13), and ironically calls him Shallum, as Jezebel called Jehu, Zimri murderer of his lord, 2 Kings 9:31. This explanation is unquestionably erroneous, since irony of such a sort is inconsistent with what Jeremiah says of Shallum. More plausible seems Hgstb.'s opinion, Christ . ii. p. 401, that Jeremiah gives Joahaz the name Shallum, i.e., the requited (cf. שׁלּם , 1 Chronicles 6:13, = משׁלּם , 1 Chronicles 9:11), as nomen reale , to mark him out as the man the Lord had punished for the evil of his doings. But this conjecture too is overthrown by the fact, that in the genealogy of the kings of Judah, 1 Chronicles 3:15, we find among the four sons of Josiah the name שׁלּוּם instead of Joahaz. Now this name cannot have come there from the present passage, for the genealogies of Chronicles are derived from old family registers. That this is so in the case of Josiah's sons, appears from the mention there of a fourth, Johanan, over and above the three known to history, of whom we hear nothing more. In the genealogical tables persons are universally mentioned by their own proper names, not according to "renamings" or surnames, except in the case that these have received the currency and value of historical names, as e.g., Israel for Jacob. On the ground of the genealogical table 1 Chron 3 we must accordingly hold that Joahaz was properly called Shallum, and that probably at his accession he assumed the name יואחז , "Jahveh sustains, holds." But Jeremiah might still have used the name Shallum in preference to the assumed Joahaz, because the former had verified itself in that king's fate. With Jeremiah 22:11 and Jeremiah 22:12, cf. 2 Kings 23:33-35. - The brief saying in regard to Joahaz forms the transition from the general censure of the wicked rulers of Judah who brought on the ruin of the kingdom, to the special predictions concerning the ungodly kings Jehoiakim and Jehoiachin, in whose time the judgment burst forth. In counselling not to weep for the dead king (Josiah), but for the departed one (Joahaz), Jeremiah does not mean merely to bewail the lot of the king carried prisoner to Egypt, but to foreshadow the misery that awaits the whole people. From this point of view Calv. well says: si lugenda est urbis hujus clades, potius lugendi sunt qui manebunt superstites quam qui morientur. Mors enim erit quasi requies, erit portus ad finienda omnia mala: Vita autem longior nihil aliud erit quam continua miseriarum series ; and further, that in the words: he shall no more return and see the land of his birth, Jeremiah shows: exilium fore quasi tabem, quae paulatim consumat miseros Judaeos. Ita mors fuisset illis dulcior longe, quam sic diu cruciari et nihil habere relaxationis . In the lot of the two kings the people had to recognise what was in store for itself.
The woe uttered upon Jehoiakim . - Jeremiah 22:13. "Woe unto him that buildeth his house with unrighteousness and his upper chambers with wrong, that maketh his fellow labour for nought, and giveth him not his hire; Jeremiah 22:14. That saith: I will build me a wide house and spacious upper chambers, and cutteth him out many windows, and covereth it with cedars, and painteth it with vermilion. Jeremiah 22:15. Art thou a king of thou viest in cedar? Did not thy father eat and drink, and do right and justice? Then it went well with him. Jeremiah 22:16. He did justice to the poor and wretched, then it was well. Is not this to know me? saith Jahveh. Jeremiah 22:17. For on nothing are thine eyes and thy heart set but on gain and on the blood of the innocent, to shed it, and on oppression and violence, to do them. Jeremiah 22:18. Therefore thus saith Jahveh concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah: They shall not mourn for him, saying: Alas, my brother! and alas, sister! they shall not mourn for him: Alas, lord! and alas for his glory! Jeremiah 22:19. An ass's burial shall his burial be, dragged and cast far away from the gates of Jerusalem."
The prediction as to Jehoiakim begins with a woe upon the unjust oppression of the people. The oppression consisted in his building a magnificent palace with the sweat and blood of his subjects, whom he compelled to do forced labour without giving the labourers wages. The people must have felt this burden all the more severely that Jehoiakim, to obtain the throne, had bound himself to pay to Pharaoh a large tribute, the gold and silver for which he raised from the population according to Pharaoh's own valuation, 2 Kings 23:33. With "Woe to him that buildeth," etc., cf. Habakkuk 2:12; Micah 3:10. "That maketh his fellow labour," lit., through his neighbour he works, i.e., he causes the work to be done by his neighbour (fellow-man) for nought, without giving him wages, forces him to unpaid statute-labour. עבד בּ as in Leviticus 25:39, Leviticus 25:46. פּעל , labour, work, gain, then wages, cf. Job 7:2. Jehoiakim sought to increase the splendour of his kingship by palace-building. To this the speech points, put in his mouth at Jeremiah 22:14 : I will build me בּית מדּות , a house of extensions, i.e., a palace in the grand style, with spacious halls, vast chambers. מרוּח from רוח , to find vent, cheer up, 1 Samuel 16:23; not airy, but spacious, for quite a modest house might have airy chambers. וקרע is a continuation of the participle; literally: and he cuts himself out windows, makes huge openings in the walls for windows. This verb is used in Jeremiah 4:30 of opening up the eyes with paint. חלּוני presents some difficulty, seeing that the suffix of the first person makes no sense. It has therefore been held to be a contracted plural form (Gesen. Lehrgeb . S. 523) or for a dual (Ew. §177, a ), but without any proof of the existence of such formations, since גּובי , Amos 7:1; Nahum 3:17, is to be otherwise explained (see on Amos 7:1). Following on the back of J. D. Mich., Hitz., Graf, and Böttcher ( ausf. Gramm . §414) propose to connect the ו before ספוּן with this word and to read חלּוניו : and tears open for himself his windows; in support of which it is alleged that one cod. so reads. But this one cod . can decide nothing, and the suffix his is superfluous, even unsuitable, seeing that there can be no thought of another person's building; whereas the copula cannot well be omitted before ספוּן . For the rule adduced for this, that the manner of the principal action is frequently explained by appending infinitives absoll . (Ew. §280, a ), does not meet the present case; the covering with cedar, etc., does not refer to the windows, and so cannot be an explanation of the cutting out for himself. We therefore hold, with Böttcher ( Proben , S. 40), that חלּוני is an adjective formation, with the force of: abundant in windows, since this formation is completely accredited by כּילי and חרי (cf. Ew. §164, c ); and the objection alleged against this by Graf, that then no object is specified for "cutteth out," is not of much weight, it being easy to supply the object from the preceding "house:" and he cuts it out for himself abounding in windows. There needs be no change of וספוּן into וספון . For although the infin. absol . would be quite in place as continuation of the verb. fin . (cf. Ew. §351, c ), yet it is not necessary. The word is attached in zeugma to וקרע or חלּוני : and he covers with cedar, to: faces or overlays, for this verb does not mean to plank or floor, for which צפּה is the usual word, but hide, cover, and is used 1 Kings 6:9; 1 Kings 7:3, for roofing. The last statement is given in infin. absol .: וּמשׁוח :.los , and besmears it, paints it (the building) with שׁשׁר , red ochre, a brilliant colour (lxx μίλτος , i.e., acc. to Kimchi, red lead; see Gesen. thess s.v .).
In Jeremiah 22:15 Jeremiah pursues the subject: kingship and kingcraft do not consist in the erection of splendid palaces, but in the administration of right and justice. The reproachful question התמלך has not the meaning: wilt thou reign long? or wilt thou consolidate thy dominion? but: dost thou suppose thyself to be a king, to show thyself a king, if thy aim and endeavour is solely fixed on the building of a stately palace? "Viest," as in Jeremiah 12:5. בּארז , not: with the cedar, for תחרה is construed with the accus. of that with which one vies, but: in cedar, i.e., in the building of cedar palaces. It was not necessary to say with whom he vied, since the thought of Solomon's edifices would suggest itself. The lxx have changed בארז by a pointless quid pro quo into באחז , ἐν ̓́Αχαζ , for which Cod. Alex . and Arabs have ἐν ̓Αχαάβ . The fact that Ahab had built a palace veneered with ivory (1 Kings 22:39) is not sufficient to approve this reading, which Ew. prefers. Still less cause is there to delete בארז as a gloss (Hitz.) in order to obtain the rendering, justified neither by grammar nor in fact, "if thou contendest with thy father." To confirm what he has said, the prophet sets before the worthless king the example of his godly father Josiah. "Thy father, did not he eat and drink," i.e., enjoy life (cf. Ecclesiastes 2:24; Ecclesiastes 3:13)? yet at the same time he administered right and justice, like his forefather David; 2 Samuel 8:15. Then went it well with him and the kingdom. אז , Jeremiah 22:16, is wider than אז טו : in respect that he did justice to the poor and wretched, things went well, were well managed in the kingdom at large. In so doing consists "the knowing of me." The knowledge of Jahveh is the practical recognition of God which is displayed in the fear of God and a pious life. The infinitive nomin . דּעת has the article because a special emphasis lies on the word (cf. Ew. §277, c ), the true knowledge of God required to have stress laid on it. - But Jehoiakim is the reverse of his father. This thought, lying in Jeremiah 22:16, is illustrated in Jeremiah 22:17. For thine eyes are set upon nothing but gain. בּצע , gain with the suggestion of unrighteousness about it, cf. Jeremiah 6:13; Jeremiah 8:10. His whole endeavour was after wealth and splendour. The means of attaining this aim was injustice, since he not only withheld their wages from his workers (Jeremiah 22:13), but caused the innocent to be condemned in the judgment that he might grasp their goods to himself, as e.g., Ahab had done with Naboth. He also put to death the prophets who rebuked his unrighteousness, Jeremiah 26:23, and used every kind of lawless violence. "Oppression" is amplified by המרוּצה (from רצץ , cf. Deuteronomy 28:33; 1 Samuel 12:3), crushing, "what we call flaying people" (Hitz.); cf. on this subject, Micah 3:3.
As punishment for this, his end will be full of horrors; when he dies he will not be bemoaned and mourned for, and will lie unburied. To have an ass's burial means: to be left unburied in the open field, or cast into a flaying-ground, inasmuch as they drag out the dead body and cast it far from the gates of Jerusalem. The words: Alas, my brother! alas, etc.! are ipsissima verba of the regular mourners who were procured to bewail the deaths of men and women. The lxx took objection to the "alas, sister," and left it out, applying the words literally to Jehoiakim's death; whereas the words are but a rhetorical individualizing of the general idea: they will make no death-laments for him, and the omission destroys the parallelism. His glory, i.e., the king's. The idea is: neither his relatives nor his subjects will lament his death. The infinn. absoll . סחוב והשׁלך , dragging forth and casting (him), serve to explain: the burial of an ass, etc. In Jeremiah 36:30, where Jeremiah repeats this prediction concerning Jehoiakim, it is said: His dead body shall be cast out (exposed) to the heat by day and to the cold by night, i.e., rot unburied under the open sky.
As to the fulfilment of this prophecy, we are told, indeed, in 2 Kings 24:6 that Jehoiakim slept with his fathers, and Jehoiachin, his son, was king in his stead. But the phrase "to sleep with his fathers" denotes merely departure from this life, without saying anything as to the manner of the death. It is not used only of kings who died a peaceful death on a sickbed, but of Ahab (1 Kings 22:40), who, mortally wounded in the battle, died in the war-chariot. There is no record of Jehoiakim's funeral obsequies or burial in 2 Kings 24, and in Chr. there is not even mention made of his death. Three years after the first siege of Jerusalem by the Chaldeans, and after he had become tributary to the king of Babylon, Jehoiakim rose in insurrection, and Nebuchadnezzar sent against him the troops of the Chaldeans, Aramaeans, Moabites, and Ammonites. It was not till after the accession of Jehoiachin that Nebuchadnezzar himself appeared before Jerusalem and besieged it (2 Kings 24:1-2, and 2 Kings 24:10). So it is in the highest degree probable that Jehoiakim fell in battle against the Chaldean-Syrian armies before Jerusalem was besieged, and while the enemies were advancing against the city; also that he was left to lie unburied outside of Jerusalem; see on 2 Kings 24:6, where other untenable attempts to harmonize are discussed. The absence of direct testimony to the fulfilment of the prophecy before us can be no ground for doubting that it was fulfilled, when we consider the great brevity of the notices of the last kings' reigns given by the authors of the books of Kings and Chronicles. Graf's remark hereon is excellent: "We have a warrant for the fulfilment of this prediction precisely in the fact that it is again expressly recounted in Jer 36, a historical passage written certainly at a later time (Jeremiah 36:30 seems to contain but a slight reference to the prediction in Jeremiah 22:18-19, Jeremiah 22:30); or, while Jeremiah 22:12, Jeremiah 22:25. tallies so completely with the history, is Jeremiah 22:18. to be held as contradicting it?"
The ruin about to fall on Judah. - Jeremiah 22:20. "Go up on Lebanon and cry, and lift up thy voice in Bashan and cry from Abarim; for broken are all thy lovers. Jeremiah 22:21. I spake to thee in thy prosperity; thou saidst: I will not hear; that was thy way from thy youth up, that thou hearkenedst not to my voice. Jeremiah 22:22. All thy shepherds the wind shall sweep away, and thy lovers shall go into captivity; yea, then shalt thou be put to shame and ashamed for all thy wickedness. Jeremiah 22:23. Thou that dwellest on Lebanon and makest thy nest on cedars, how shalt thou sigh when pangs come upon thee, pain as of a woman in travail!" - It is the people personified as the daughter of Zion, the collective population of Jerusalem and Judah, that is addressed, as in Jeremiah 7:29. She is to lift up her wailing cry upon the highest mountains, that it may be heard far and near. The peaks of the mountain masses that bordered Palestine are mentioned, from which one would have a view of the land; namely, Lebanon northwards, the mountains of Bashan (Psalms 86:16) to the north-east, those of Abarim to the south-east, amongst which was Mount Nebo, whence Moses viewed the land of Canaan, Numbers 27:12; Deuteronomy 32:49. She is to lament because all her lovers are destroyed. The lovers are not the kings (Ros., Ew., Neum. Nהg. ), nor the idols (Umbr.), but the allied nations (J. D. Mich., Maur., Hitz.), for whose favour Judah had intrigued (Jeremiah 4:30) - Egypt (Jeremiah 2:36) and the little neighbouring states (Jeremiah 27:3). All these nations were brought under the yoke by Nebuchadnezzar, and could not longer give Judah help (Jeremiah 28:14; Jeremiah 30:14). On the form צעקי , see Ew. 41, c .
Jeremiah 22:21-23
The cause of this calamity: because Judah in its prosperity had not hearkened to the voice of its God. שׁלות , from שׁלוה , security, tranquillity, state of well-being free from anxiety; the plur. denotes the peaceful, secure relations. Thus Judah had behaved from youth up, i.e., from the time it had become the people of God and been led out of captivity; see Jeremiah 2:2; Hosea 2:17. - In Jeremiah 22:22 תּרעה is chosen for the sake of the word-play with רעיך , and denotes to depasture, as in Jeremiah 2:16. As the storm-wind, especially the parching east wind, depastures, so to speak, the grass of the field, so will the storm about to break on Judah sweep away the shepherds, carry them off; cf. Jeremiah 13:24, Isaiah 27:8; Job 27:21. The shepherds of the people are not merely the kings, but all its leaders, the authorities generally, as in Jeremiah 10:21; and "thy shepherds" is not equivalent to "thy lovers," but the thought is this: Neither its allies nor its leaders will be able to help; the storm of calamity will sweep away the former, the latter must go captive. So that there is no need to alter רעיך into רעיך (Hitz.). With the last clause cf. Jeremiah 2:36. Then surely will the daughter of Zion, feeling secure in her cedar palaces, sigh bitterly. The inhabitants of Jerusalem are said to dwell in Lebanon and to have their nests in cedars in reference to the palaces of cedar belonging to the great and famous, who at the coming destruction will suffer most. As to the forms ישׁבתּי and מקנּנתּי , see on Jeremiah 10:17. The explanation of the form נחנתּי is disputed. Ros., Ges., and others take it for the Niph. of חנן , with the force: to be compassionated, thus: who deserving of pity or compassion wilt thou be! But this rendering does not give a very apt sense, even if it were not the case that the sig. to be worthy of pity is not approved by usage, and that it is nowhere taken from the Niph. We therefore prefer the derivation of the word from אנץ , Niph. נאנח .hpi , contr. ננח , a derivative founded on the lxx rendering: τὶ καταστενάξεις , and Vulg. quomodo congemuisti . The only question that then remains is, whether the form נחנתּ has arisen by transposition from ננחתּ , so as to avoid the coming together of the same letter at the beginning (Ew., Hitz., Gr.); or whether, with Böttch. ausf. Gramm . §1124, B , it is to be held as a reading corrupted from ננחתּי . With "pangs," etc., cf. Jeremiah 13:21; Jeremiah 6:24.
Against Jehoiachin or Jechoniah. - Jeremiah 22:24. "As I live, saith Jahveh, though Conjahu, the son of Jehoiakim, the king of Judah, were a signet ring on my right hand, yet would I pluck him thence, Jeremiah 22:25. And give thee into the hand of them that seek thy life, and into the hand of them of whom thou art afraid, and into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon, and into the hand of the Chaldeans; Jeremiah 22:26. And will cast thee and thy mother that bare thee into another land where ye were not born; and there shall ye die. Jeremiah 22:27. And into the land whither they lift up their soul to return, thither shall they not return. Jeremiah 22:28. Is this man Conjahu a vessel despised and to be broken, or an utensil wherein one has no pleasure? Jeremiah 22:29. O land, land, land, hear the word of Jahveh! Jeremiah 22:30. Thus hath Jahveh said: Write down this man as childless, as a man that hath no prosperity in his life; for no man of his seed shall prosper that sitteth upon the throne of David and ruleth widely over Judah."
The son and successor of Jehoiakim is called in 2 Kings 24:6., 2 Chronicles 36:8., Jeremiah 52:31, Jehojachin , and in Ezekiel 1:2, Jojachin ; here, Jeremiah 22:24, Jeremiah 22:28, and Jeremiah 37:1, Conjahu ; in Jeremiah 24:1, Jeconjahu ; and in Jeremiah 27:20; Jeremiah 28:4; Jeremiah 29:2, Esther 2:6; 1 Chronicles 3:16, Jeconjah . The names Jeconjahu and abbreviated Jeconjah are equivalent to Jojachin and Jehojachin, i.e., Jahveh will establish. Jeconjah was doubtless his original name, and so stands in the family register, 1 Chronicles 3:16, but was at his accession to the throne changed into Jehojachin or Jojachin, to make it liker his father's name. The abbreviation of Jeconjahu into Conjahu is held by Hgstb. Christol . ii. p. 402, to be a change made by Jeremiah in order by cutting off the y ( will establish) to cut off the hope expressed by the name, to make "a Jeconiah without the J, a 'God will establish' without the will ." For two reasons we cannot adopt this as the true view: 1. The general reason, that if Jeremiah had wished to adumbrate the fate of the three kings (Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, and Jehoiachin) by making changes in their names, he would then have changed the name of Jehoiakim in like manner as he did that of Jehoahaz into Shallum, and that of Jehoiachin into Conjahu. The argument by which Hgstb. seeks to justify the exception in the one case will not hold its own. Had Jeremiah thought it unseemly to practise a kind of conceit, for however solemn a purpose, on the name of the then reigning monarch, then neither could he have ventured on the like in the case of Jehoiachin; for the present prediction was not, as Hgstb. assumed, uttered before his accession, but, as may be seen from the title king of Judah, Jeremiah 22:24, after he had ascended the throne, was actually king. Besides. 2. the name Conjahu occurs also at Jeremiah 37:1, in a historical heading, as of equal dignity with Jeconjahu, Jeremiah 29:2; Jeremiah 28:4, etc., where a name proper only to prophetic discourse would not have been in place. The passages in which the prophets express the character and destiny of a person in a name specially formed for the purpose, are of another kind. There we have always: they shall call his name, or: his name shall be; cf. Jeremiah 33:16; Isaiah 9:5; Isaiah 62:4; Ezekiel 48:35. That the name Jeconjah has not merely the prophet's authority, is vouched for by 1 Chronicles 3:15; Esther 2:6, and by the historical notices, Jeremiah 24:1; Jeremiah 27:20; Jeremiah 28:4; Jeremiah 29:2. And the occurrence of the name Jojachin only in 2 Kings 24; 2 Chronicles 36:1; Jeremiah 52:31, and Ezekiel 1:2 is in consequence of the original documents used by the authors of these books, where, so to speak, the official names were made use of; whereas Jeremiah preferred the proper, original name which the man bore as the prince-royal and son of Jehoiakim, and which was therefore the current and best known one.
The utterance concerning Jechoniah is more distinct and decided than that concerning Jehoiakim. With a solemn oath the Lord not only causes to be made known to him that he is to be cast off and taken into exile, but further, that his descendants are debarred from the throne for ever. Nothing is said of his own conduct towards the Lord. In 2 Kings 24:9 and 2 Chronicles 36:9 it is said of him that he did that which was displeasing to the Lord, even as his father had done. Ezekiel confirms this sentence when in Ezekiel 19:5-9 he portrays him as a young lion that devoured men, forced widows, and laid cities waste. The words of Jahveh: Although Conjahu were a signet ring on my right hand, convey no judgment as to his character, but simply mean: Although he were as precious a jewel in the Lord's eyes as a signet ring (cf. Haggai 2:23), the Lord would nevertheless cast him away. כּי before אם introduces the body of the oath, as in Jeremiah 22:5, and is for rhetorical effect repeated before the apodosis, as in 2 Samuel 3:9; 2 Samuel 2:27, etc. Although he were, sc. what he is not; not: although he is (Graf); for there is no proof for the remark: that as being the prince set by Jahveh over His people, he has really as close a connection with Him. Hitz.'s explanation is also erroneous: "even if, seeking help, he were to cling so closely to me as a ring does to the finger." A most unnatural figure, not supported by reference to Song of Solomon 8:6. As to אתּקנךּ , from נתק with ן epenth ., cf. Ew. §250, b . - From Jeremiah 22:25 on, the discourse is addressed directly to Jechoniah, to make his rejection known to him. God will deliver him into the hand of his enemies, whom he fears, namely, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar and the Chaldeans, and cast him with his mother into a strange land, where he shall die. The mother was called Nehushta , 2 Kings 24:8, and is brought forward in 29:2 as גּבירה . On the fulfilment of this threatening, see 2 Kings 24:12, 2 Kings 24:15; Jeremiah 24:1; Jeremiah 29:2. The construction הארץ is like that of הגּפן נכריּה , Jeremiah 2:21; and the absence of the article from אחרת is no sufficient reason for holding it to be a gloss (Hitz.), or for taking the article in הארץ to be a slip caused by על הארץ , Jeremiah 22:27. To lift up their souls, i.e., to direct their longings, wishes, towards a thing, cf. Deuteronomy 24:15; Hosea 4:8, etc. - The further sentence on Jechoniah was not pronounced after he had been carried captive, as Näg. infers from the perfects הוּטלוּ and השׁלכוּ . The perfects are prophetic. The question: Is this man a vessel despised and to be broken ( עצב , vas fictile )? is an expression of sympathising regret on the part of the prophet for the unhappy fate of the king; but we may not hence conclude that Jeremiah regarded him as better than his father. The prophet's sympathy for his fate regarded less the person of the unfortunate king than it did the fortunes of David's royal seed, in that, of Jechoniah's sons, none was to sit on the throne of David (Jeremiah 22:30). Ew. has excellently paraphrased the sense: "Although there is many a sympathising heart in the land that bitterly laments the hard fate of the dear young king, who along with his infant children has been (? will be) dragged away, yet it is God's unchangeable decree that neither he nor any of his sons shall ascend the throne of David." נפוּץ , not: broken, but: that shall be broken (cf. Ew. §335, b ). Wherefore are they - he and his seed - cast out? At his accession Jehoiachin was eighteen years old, not eight, as by an error stands in 2 Chronicles 36:9, see on 2 Kings 24:8; so that when taken captive, he might well enough have children, or at least one son, since his wives are expressly mentioned in the account of the captivity, 2 Kings 24:15. That the sons mentioned in 1 Chronicles 3:16 and 1 Chronicles 3:17 were born to him in exile, cannot be inferred from that passage, rightly understood, see on that passage. The fact that no sons are mentioned in connection with the carrying captive is simply explained by the fact that they were still infants.
The land is to take the king's fate sore to heart. The triple repetition of the summons: Land, gives it a special emphasis, and marks the following sentence as of high importance; cf. Jeremiah 7:4; Ezekiel 21:32; Isaiah 6:3. Write him down, record him in the family registers, as childless, i.e., as a man with whom his race becomes extinct. This is more definitely intimated in the parallel member, namely, that he will not have the fortune to have any of his posterity sit on the throne of David. This does not exclude the possibility of his having sons; it merely implies that none of them should obtain the throne. ערירי sig. lit., solitary, forsaken. Thus a man might well be called who has lost his children by death. Acc. to 1 Chronicles 3:16., Jechoniah had two sons, Zedekiah and Assir, of whom the former died childless, the second had but one daughter; and from her and her husband, of the line of Nathan, was born Shealtiel, who also died childless; see the expos. of 1 Chronicles 3:16. Jechoniah was followed on the throne by his uncle Mattaniah, whom Nebuchadnezzar installed under the name of Zedekiah. He it was that rose in insurrection against the king of Babylon, and after the capture of Jerusalem was taken prisoner while in flight; and being carried before Nebuchadnezzar at Riblah, saw his sons put to death before his eyes, was then made blind, thrown in chains, and carried a prisoner to Babylon, 2 Kings 25:4.