My Name Is Jehoiachin...

I did evil in the eyes of the Lord...

To the remnants of Judah, scattered by the winds of Babylon,

I am Jehoiachin, son of Jehoiakim, who was thrice named: Jeconiah, as my fathers knew me; Coniah, as the people lamented; and Jehoiachin, as the chronicles will remember.

My tale begins in the echoes of my father's heavy taxes and the shadow of Nebuchadnezzar's dominion. At eighteen, scarcely a man by years, I inherited a throne ensnared by the whims of empires. For three months and ten days, I wore a crown too heavy for my brow, laden with the iniquities of my father and the doomed legacy of my grandfather, Josiah, whose piety I failed to emulate.

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The sacred text declares, "He did evil in the eyes of the Lord" (2 Chronicles 36:9), and such was the verdict upon my brief reign. Yes, I walked in the path not of David but of those whose hearts turned from the Lord. In my youth and vanity, I heeded not the weeping prophet, Jeremiah, whose words were like fire unquenched: "As I live, declares the Lord, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, were the signet ring on my right hand, yet I would tear you off" (Jeremiah 22:24, ESV).

The siege came; Jerusalem bled under Babylon’s iron yoke. My kingdom, crumbling at its foundations, was taken, and with it, my freedom. I, with the queen mother, officials, and the sinews of Judah's strength, was led in chains to the land of Shinar. The temple treasures followed, a spectacle of our desolation.

In the courts of Babylon, my royal lineage became but a whisper, my reign a fleeting shadow. For thirty-seven years, the prison's darkness was my dwelling, my only companion the memory of a land lost. I dwelled in the abyss of consequence, my lineage cursed to wither: "Record this man as childless... for none of his offspring will prosper, none will sit on the throne of David or rule anymore in Judah" (Jeremiah 22:30).

Yet, in the unlikeliest of hours, grace, like a tender shoot from parched ground, found me. Evil-Merodach, succeeding Nebuchadnezzar, lifted me from the miry depths. He spoke kindly, clothed me with garments befitting a king, and set a place for me at his table, where I dined till my last breath. In this, I saw not the schemes of men but the hand of the Lord, for even in judgment, His mercies are not spent.

To you who believe, my life is a parable of warning and hope. The judgment of the Lord is righteous, yet His compassions fail not. Even when our sins enshroud us, His steadfast love breaks through. If there be any comfort in my words, let it be this: the Lord is a stronghold in the day of trouble (Nahum 1:7).

I leave you with this plea: walk not in the folly of kings who set their glory above the Most High. Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near. For though the throne of Judah is no more, the promise to David stands. It is not by the scepter of earthly kings that salvation comes, but by the Lord's Anointed, who will reign forever.

In the stillness of His grace,

Jehoiachin, the king who saw exile.

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