GEMS FROM JEREMIAH (12) “Déjà-rêvé: The Life & Times of Jeremiah”, part VI
“…thus says
the Lord concerning King Jehoiakim son of Josiah of Judah:
…They shall not lament for him, saying,
“Alas, lord!” or “Alas, his majesty!”
With the burial of a donkey he shall be buried—
dragged off and thrown out beyond the gates of
Jerusalem…
As I live, says the Lord, even if King Coniah son
of Jehoiakim of Judah were the signet ring on my right hand, even from there
I would tear you off and give you
into the hands of
those who seek your life,
into the hands of
those of whom you are afraid,
even into the
hands of King Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon…
I will hurl you and the mother who bore you into
another country, where you were not born, and there you shall die.
But they shall not return to the land to which they
long to return.” (Jer. 22.18-19, 24-27)
598 B.C.: another traumatic “year of three
kings” in Jerusalem – one member of Josiah’s family dies, a second is exiled, and
a third is appointed by a foreign power.[1] Jehoiakim died, and his son Jehoiachin had
barely enough time to acclimatize himself to the throne before the Babylonian
armies, once again, besieged Jerusalem. As
in 605, Nebuchadrezzar oversaw the siege (2 Kgs 24.10-16). The Babylonians plundered the palace and the
Temple, and Jehoiachin, his mother, his wives and five sons and around 10,000 nobles,
soldiers and craftsmen were deported to Babylonia (as well as a young priest
named Ezekiel). This was the first of
three major deportations of Judahites to Babylonia (2: 587; 3: 582).[2] Before leaving Jerusalem, Nebuchadrezzar
placed Jehoiakim’s brother, Zedekiah, on the throne[3]
(the fourth member of Josiah’s family to rule in 11 years).
Once the exiles have been led away from
Jerusalem, Jeremiah has a vision of judgment and hope while he is in the Temple
courts (Jer. 24.1-10). He sees 2 baskets
– one full of high-quality, ripe figs, the other filled with rotten figs. Ironically, God tells Jeremiah that the
basket of good figs represents those who have just been deported to
Babylon! They will be brought back to
the land (excluding Jehoiachin; cf. 22.24-27); they will be “built up and
planted” (cf. Jer. 1.10). The irony is
that being “uprooted” is the dominant biblical metaphor for exile (cf. Dt. 29.28),
but God tells Jeremiah that the good figs will be (re)planted, not
uprooted. Yet, they are in exile
at the time of this prophecy! As for the
rotten figs, they represent Zedekiah and his leaders. Though they are still “rooted” in the land
for the moment, their destruction is guaranteed (24.8-10).
This ironic theme of “safety in Babylon”
is continued in chapter 29, which consists of a letter destined for the exiles that
Jeremiah sent via a royal Judahite delegation to Nebuchadrezzar. As the ripe figs will be “built up and
planted” (Jer. 24.6), so the exiles are exhorted to “build homes and plant
gardens” (29.5; cf. 1.10). The exile is predicted
to last 70 years (29.10-11; cf. 25.8-14), as opposed to the lies of the false
prophets according to which it will surely come to a swift end (29.15-23). One of the priests (29.1) who most probably
heard the reading of Jeremiah’s letter was Ezekiel, who started having visions
five years after being deported (cf. Ez. 1.1-3). With the accession of Zedekiah, Jerusalem had
entered its final decade…
[1] In 609, Josiah had died in battle with Pharaoh Neco II, Jehoahaz was
exiled to Egypt, and Neco placed Jehoiakim on the throne.
[2] The Fourth Book of Kingdoms ends with a note saying that after 37
years in exile, Jehoiachin was released from prison and accorded a place in the
Babylonian court (2 Kings 25.27-30).
Jehoiachin, Ezekiel and Jeremiah all died around the same time (fourth
decade of the 6th century).
[3] The third king: Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin (aka Coniah: Jer. 22.24), Zedekiah
(aka Mattaniah: 2 Kgs 24.17).
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