King Zedekiah was the last king of Judah before the Babylonian exile. He reigned from around 597 to 586 BC. Zedekiah’s original name was Mattaniah. He was the son of Josiah and the uncle of Jehoiachin. Zedekiah was made king of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar II, king of Babylon, after Babylon conquered Jerusalem and took Jehoiachin captive. Zedekiah ruled as a vassal of Babylon for around 11 years before rebelling, which led to the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. Zedekiah’s story is told primarily in 2 Kings 24-25 and Jeremiah 37-39.
Some key facts about Zedekiah from the Bible:
- His original name was Mattaniah. His name was changed to Zedekiah when he was made king (2 Kings 24:17).
- He was the son of Josiah and the uncle of Jehoiachin, the king before him (1 Chronicles 3:15).
- Zedekiah was 21 years old when he became king and ruled for 11 years in Jerusalem (2 Kings 24:18).
- He was made king by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon after Jehoiachin was taken into exile (2 Kings 24:17).
- He was a weak king who did evil in the sight of the Lord (2 Kings 24:19).
- He rebelled against Babylon, breaking his covenant with Nebuchadnezzar (2 Kings 24:20, Ezekiel 17:15).
- Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem and eventually broke through the city walls (2 Kings 25:1-4).
- Zedekiah tried to flee Jerusalem but was captured by the Babylonians near Jericho (2 Kings 25:4-5).
- Zedekiah’s sons were killed before his eyes, then his eyes were put out and he was taken captive to Babylon (2 Kings 25:7).
- Nebuzaradan, captain of the Babylonian guard, burned down the temple, the palace, and broke down the city walls around 586 BC (2 Kings 25:8-10).
Now let’s take a deeper look at Zedekiah’s background, how he came to be king, his reign, the rebellion against Babylon, the fall of Jerusalem, and his eventual fate.
Zedekiah’s Background and Family
The Bible first introduces Zedekiah as Mattaniah, son of Josiah, who was one of the final kings of Judah before the exile (1 Chronicles 3:15). Josiah was considered a righteous king who enacted religious reforms in Judah (2 Kings 22:1-2). Josiah reigned for 31 years in Jerusalem but was killed in battle against Pharaoh Neco of Egypt (2 Kings 23:29). After Josiah’s death, the people made his son Jehoahaz king. However, Pharaoh Neco removed Jehoahaz after only 3 months and replaced him with another one of Josiah’s sons, Jehoiakim (2 Kings 23:31-35).
Jehoiakim ruled as a vassal of Egypt. However, after a few years Egypt’s power declined and Babylon rose as the dominant power in the region under King Nebuchadnezzar. In 605 BC, the Babylonians defeated the Egyptians at the Battle of Carchemish (Jeremiah 46:2). Nebuchadnezzar then laid siege to Jerusalem and took some nobles of Judah back to Babylon as captives, including Daniel (Daniel 1:1-3). Jehoiakim then shifted his allegiance and became a vassal of Babylon for the remainder of his reign until around 598 BC (2 Kings 24:1).
After Jehoiakim’s death, his son Jehoiachin became the next king at 18 years old. However, after only 3 months of rule, King Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem again. Jehoiachin surrendered and he, along with his family and the leading citizens of Judah, were taken into exile in Babylon (2 Kings 24:10-16). This occurred around 597 BC and included the prophet Ezekiel among the exiles (Ezekiel 1:1-3).
It was at this point that Mattaniah’s name was changed to Zedekiah when Nebuchadnezzar made him the next king over Judah (2 Kings 24:17). Zedekiah was Josiah’s third son and Jehoiachin’s uncle (1 Chronicles 3:15). Even though Judah was conquered, Zedekiah was allowed to remain in Jerusalem as a vassal king on behalf of Babylon.
Zedekiah’s Reign as King
Zedekiah began reigning in Judah around 597 BC at the age of 21 (2 Kings 24:18). The author of 2 Kings describes Zedekiah as a wicked king who “did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that Jehoiakim had done.” (2 Kings 24:19). The Bible doesn’t record a lot about what specifically Zedekiah did to anger God during his reign. But other passages indicate that the leadership of Judah continued in the idolatrous practices of the nations around them and failed to follow the Lord’s commandments.
The prophet Jeremiah wrote a scathing rebuke of Zedekiah and the other leaders at this time:
“The prophets follow an evil course and use their power unjustly. Both prophet and priest are godless; even in my temple I find their wickedness,” declares the Lord.
“Therefore their path will become slippery; they will be banished to darkness and there they will fall. I will bring disaster on them in the year they are punished,” declares the Lord.
“Among the prophets of Samaria I saw this repulsive thing: They prophesied by Baal and led my people Israel astray.” (Jeremiah 23:10-13)
Zedekiah ruled as a vassal under Nebuchadnezzar for around 11 years. However, at one point Zedekiah rebelled against Babylon, which set in motion the final destruction of Jerusalem. What led Zedekiah to take this fateful action after so many years submitting to Babylon’s rule?
The Rebellion Against Babylon
Around 589 BC, Zedekiah decided to stop paying tribute to Nebuchadnezzar and seek an alliance with Egypt instead (2 Kings 24:20). There are a few possible factors that led Zedekiah to rebel:
- Egypt defeated the Babylonians in battle around 601 BC. This emboldened Egypt’s vassal states to rebel against Babylon.
- The Jewish king may have been swayed by pro-independence factions in Judah who opposed Babylonian rule.
- Zedekiah may have thought Nebuchadnezzar was in a weak position and could be overthrown.
The prophet Jeremiah strongly objected to Zedekiah’s decision to rebel. Jeremiah argued that submission to Babylon was God’s will as judgment on Judah’s sin and rebellion against Him (Jeremiah 27:5-8). Jeremiah sent letters to the other nations saying that Babylon’s rule was established by God and that any nation who fought against it would face disaster (Jeremiah 27:1-11).
However, Zedekiah did not listen to Jeremiah or pay attention to the word of the Lord. Ezekiel the prophet also pronounced God’s judgment on Zedekiah for violating his covenant with Nebuchadnezzar:
But the king rebelled against him by sending his envoys to Egypt to get horses and a large army. Will he succeed? Will he who does such things escape? Will he break the treaty and yet escape? As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, he shall die in Babylon, in the land of the king who put him on the throne, whose oath he despised and whose treaty he broke. (Ezekiel 17:15-16)
Soon after Zedekiah’s rebellion, King Nebuchadnezzar responded by invading Judah for the third and final time. His forces surrounded and laid siege to Jerusalem.
The Fall of Jerusalem
When Zedekiah rebelled, Nebuchadnezzar and his army marched against Jerusalem to punish this treason and finally destroy this rebellious vassal once and for all. They surrounded the city and began a siege in the 10th month of Zedekiah’s 11th year as king, around January 588 BC (2 Kings 25:1).
The siege lasted about 30 months until the famine in the city became severe. The book of Lamentations vividly portrays the people’s suffering during this terrible time:
“The hands of compassionate women
have cooked their own children,
who became their food
in the destruction of my dear people.” (Lamentations 4:10)
The Bible records that a breach was made in Jerusalem’s wall around July 586 BC (2 Kings 25:3-4). At this point, Zedekiah and the soldiers fled at night to escape. However, the Babylonians pursued them near Jericho, seized Zedekiah, and brought him before Nebuchadnezzar at Riblah (2 Kings 25:4-6).
Nebuchadnezzar passed judgment on Zedekiah by slaughtering his sons before his eyes. Then his eyes were put out and he was bound in bronze chains to be taken to Babylon (2 Kings 25:6-7). The general Nebuzaradan was sent to Jerusalem to complete its destruction. The Temple of God, the houses of Jerusalem, and the wall around the city were burned down (2 Kings 25:8-10). Most of the remaining people were taken captive and exiled to Babylon, except for some of the poor who were left to tend the vineyards (2 Kings 25:12).
Thus the kingdom of Judah was finally and fully brought to an end around 586 BC. Zedekiah was Judah’s last king before the Babylonian exile that followed.
Zedekiah’s Final Fate
After Zedekiah saw his sons killed and his own eyes put out, he was brought captive to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar. The last mention of Zedekiah in the Bible comes from Jeremiah’s prophecy that Zedekiah would at least be spared the sight of Babylon’s destruction:
As for you, Zedekiah, this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: You will not die by the sword. You will die peacefully. As people made a funeral fire in honor of your ancestors, the former kings who preceded you, so they will make a fire in your honor and lament, “Alas, master!” I myself make this promise, declares the Lord. (Jeremiah 34:4-5)
There are no other biblical references about when and how Zedekiah finally died as a blind captive in Babylon. Since Jeremiah said his death would be peaceful and included a funeral fire, it seems that Nebuchadnezzar showed him a certain amount of respect despite his rebellion. Ezekiel’s prophecy was also fulfilled that Zedekiah would die in Babylon without seeing the city or his homeland again.
Lessons from Zedekiah’s Life
So in summary, what can we learn from King Zedekiah’s life?
- Zedekiah highlights the tragedy that comes from rejecting God’s word. The prophets like Jeremiah brought God’s warnings to repent. But the king ignored them and faced disaster.
- His story shows the fulfillment of prophecy. God decreed punishment for sin through prophets like Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel. What they predicted about Jerusalem’s fall came true.
- Zedekiah illustrates the themes of judgment and mercy. His sons were killed as judgment for rebellion. Yet he was spared death in Babylon by God’s mercies.
- Pride and lack of trust in God can lead to a fall. If Zedekiah had sought the Lord instead of relying on Egypt, perhaps Judah’s destruction could have been avoided.
King Zedekiah remains a notorious figure in the Bible for rebelling against God’s purposes. His disastrous decisions highlight the costs of rejecting God’s word. But even in judgment, we see glimmers of God’s mercy and faithfulness to His promises.