Jeremiah 37:1

Jeremiah Warns Zedekiah

1 Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon made Zedekiah son of Josiah the king of Judah, and he reigned in place of Coniah ^[a] son of Jehoiakim.

Jeremiah 37:1 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 37:1

And King Zedekiah the son of Josiah reigned
The brother of Jehoiakim, whose untimely death, and want of burial, are prophesied of in the preceding chapter. The name of Zedekiah was Mattaniah before he was king; his name was changed by the king of Babylon, who made him king, ( 2 Kings 24:17 ) ; instead of Coniah the son of Jehoiakim:
the same with Jehoiakim, or jeconiah, called Coniah by way of contempt; he reigned but three months, and so was not reckoned as a king, not being confirmed by the king of Babylon, but was carried captive by him, and his uncle placed in his stead: whom Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon made king in the land of Judah;
to whom he became tributary, and swore homage and fealty, ( 2 Chronicles 36:13 ) .

Jeremiah 37:1 In-Context

1 Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon made Zedekiah son of Josiah the king of Judah, and he reigned in place of Coniah son of Jehoiakim.

2 But he and his officers and the people of the land refused to obey the words that the LORD had spoken through Jeremiah the prophet.

3 Yet King Zedekiah sent Jehucal son of Shelemiah and Zephaniah the priest, the son of Maaseiah, to Jeremiah the prophet with the message, “Please pray to the LORD our God for us!”

4 Now Jeremiah was free to come and go among the people, for they had not yet put him in prison.

5 Pharaoh’s army had left Egypt, and when the Chaldeans who were besieging Jerusalem heard the report, they withdrew from Jerusalem.

Footnotes

• [a]. Coniah is a variant of Jehoiachin.