Zedekiah, the Last King of Judah

Zedekiah (Hebrew: צִדְקִיָּהוּ) was the last monarch of the Kingdom of Judah. He was the brother of Jehoahaz. In Hebrew, Zedekiah means “The Lord is my righteousness.”

In 597 BC, King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon captured Jerusalem, took King Jehoiachin captive, and renamed Jehoiachin’s uncle, Josiah’s son, to Zedekiah, making him king. Zedekiah “did what was evil in the eyes of the LORD.”

Despite strong opposition from Jeremiah and others, Zedekiah allied with Pharaoh Apries of Egypt to defy Babylon. Consequently, King Nebuchadnezzar led his entire army to besiege Jerusalem. A severe famine gripped the city, and after 18 months, Jerusalem fell. After plundering it, Nebuchadnezzar leveled Jerusalem. Zedekiah attempted to escape but was captured by the Babylonian army on the plains of Jericho. Nebuchadnezzar judged Zedekiah at Riblah, killed his sons before his eyes, then put out Zedekiah’s eyes, bound him with bronze chains, and took him to Babylon. Zedekiah remained imprisoned until his death. The Southern Kingdom of Judah thus fell.

Jewish historian Josephus recorded that what happened to Zedekiah precisely fulfilled the prophecies of Jeremiah and Ezekiel. They said Zedekiah would be taken before the king of Babylon, see him with his own eyes, and speak to him face-to-face; Jeremiah’s prophecy ended there. Ezekiel, however, prophesied that the inhabitants of Jerusalem, particularly their “king,” would be taken captive to Babylon, and he would die there, but he would not see the land (Ezekiel 12:13b). When Ezekiel’s prophecy reached Jerusalem, Zedekiah considered these two prophecies contradictory and therefore believed neither. Yet, both prophecies were fulfilled: Zedekiah was indeed blinded by Nebuchadnezzar and taken captive to Babylon.