The End of the Kingdom of Judah
March 9, 2014
21. For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination: he made his arrows bright, he consulted with images, he looked in the liver.
22. At his right hand was the divination for Jerusalem, to appoint captains, to open the mouth in the slaughter, to lift up the voice with shouting, to appoint battering rams against the gates, to cast a mount, and to build a fort.
The king of Babylon required Zedekiah, the one Nebuchadnezzar placed on the throne of Judah to replace Jehoiachin, to swear an oath to God that he would be loyal. Here are the verses;
KJV 2 Kings 24:15-17
15. And he carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon, and the king's mother, and the king's wives, and his officers, and the mighty of the land, those carried he into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon.
16. And all the men of might, even seven thousand, and craftsmen and smiths a thousand, all that were strong and apt for war, even them the king of Babylon brought captive to Babylon.
17. And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah his father's brother king in his stead, and changed his name to Zedekiah.
KJV 2 Chronicles 36:11-13
11. Zedekiah was one and twenty years old when he began to reign, and reigned eleven years in Jerusalem.
12. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord his God, and humbled not himself before Jeremiah the prophet speaking from the mouth of the Lord.
13. And he also rebelled against king Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God: but he stiffened his neck, and hardened his heart from turning unto the Lord God of Israel.
The reason Zedekiah betrayed Nebuchadnezzar was because a false prophet, Hanniniah, gave this false prophecy.
KJV Jeremiah 28:1-4
1. And it came to pass the same year, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the fourth year, and in the fifth month, that Hananiah the son of Azur the prophet, which was of Gibeon, spake unto me in the house of the Lord, in the presence of the priests and of all the people, saying,
2. Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, saying, I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon.
3. Within two full years will I bring again into this place all the vessels of the Lord's house, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took away from this place, and carried them to Babylon:
4. And I will bring again to this place Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, with all the captives of Judah, that went into Babylon, saith the Lord: for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.
This false divination by Hananiah caused those who believed it to not fear the words Jeremiah spoke and that is why the verse below states, “it shall be to them as a false divination in their sight, to them who have sworn oaths; “ Zedekiah swore an oath by God but broke the oath.
23. And it shall be unto them as a false divination in their sight, to them that have sworn oaths: but he will call to remembrance the iniquity, that they may be taken.
God called this sin to remembrance and Babylon took Zedekiah and punished him, killed all his sons and put out his eyes. God removed Zedekiah from the throne of Judah.
24. Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Because ye have made your iniquity to be remembered, in that your transgressions are discovered, so that in all your doings your sins do appear; because, I say, that ye are come to remembrance, ye shall be taken with the hand.
25. And thou, profane wicked prince of Israel, whose day is come, when iniquity shall have an end,
26. Thus saith the Lord God; Remove the diadem, and take off the crown: this shall not be the same: exalt him that is low, and abase him that is high.
The three times the word “overturn” is used represents the three waves of destruction listed in Jeremiah 52:
Jeremiah 52:28-30
28. This is the people whom Nebuchadnezzar carried away captive: in the seventh year three thousand Jews and three and twenty:
29. In the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar he carried away captive from Jerusalem eight hundred thirty and two persons:
30. In the three and twentieth year of Nebuchadnezzar Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive of the Jews seven hundred forty and five.
The word “overturn” is shown in Strong’s below; It does not indicate transporting but to be laid waste or ruined.
Ref. # 5327
Romanized natsah
Pronounced naw-tsaw'
a primitive root; properly, to go forth, i.e. (by implication) to be expelled, and (consequently) desolate; causatively, to lay waste; also (specifically), to quarrel:
KJV--be laid waste, runinous, strive (together). #notsah. See HSN5133.
27. I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it: and it shall be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him.
The “He” whose right it is, mentioned above, is Jesus Christ. The reign of Zedekiah was as a stooge for the king of Babylon and the rightful king of Judah, Jehoaichin, was yet alive in Babylon and was acknowledged as such by the King of Babylon.
KJV Jeremiah 52:31-34
31. And it came to pass in the seven and thirtieth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, in the five and twentieth day of the month, that Evilmerodach king of Babylon in the first year of his reign lifted up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah, and brought him forth out of prison.
32. And spake kindly unto him, and set his throne above the throne of the kings that were with him in Babylon,
33. And changed his prison garments: and he did continually eat bread before him all the days of his life.
34. And for his diet, there was a continual diet given him of the king of Babylon, every day a portion until the day of his death, all the days of his life.
The prophet Ezekiel never mentions Zedekiah but confirms that Jehoiachin or Jeconiah was the rightful king of Judah.
KJV Ezekiel 1:2
2. In the fifth day of the month, which was the fifth year of king Jehoiachin's captivity,
God ended the kingdom of Judah and the reign of a king but there were rightful heirs of Jehoiachin or Jeconiah. See Article below.
Jeconiah (Hebrew: meaning "God will fortify (his people)"; Greek: Latin: Joachin), also known as Coniah and as Jehoiachin (Hebrew: Latin: Joachin), was a king of Judah who was dethroned by the King of Babylon in the 6th century BCE and was taken into captivity. He was the son and successor of King Jehoiakim. Most of what is known about Jeconiah is found in the Hebrew Bible. Records of Jeconiah's existence have been found in Iraq, such as the Jehoiachin's Rations Tablets. These tablets were excavated near the Ishtar Gate in Babylon and have been dated to c. 592 BCE. Written in cuneiform, they mention Jeconiah ("Ia-'-ú-kinu") and his five sons as recipients of food rations in Babylon.[2] Comparing Babylonian records with date references found in Hebrew biblical texts, the length of Jeconiah's captivity can accurately be determined.
After Jeconiah was deposed as king, Jeconiah's uncle, Zedekiah,[2Ki.24:17] was appointed by Nebuchadnezzar to rule Judah. Zedekiah was the son of Josias.[7] However, while in captivity, the deported Jews still regarded Jeconiah as their legitimate king. Jeconiah would later be regarded as the first of the exilarchs. In the Book of Ezekiel, the author refers to Jeconiah as king and dates certain events by the number of years he was in exile. The author identifies himself as Ezekiel, a contemporary of Jeconiah, and he never mentions Zedekiah by name.
Jeremiah (22:28-30) cursed Jeconiah that none of his descendants would ever sit on the throne of Israel:Thus says the LORD: 'Write this man down as childless, A man who shall not prosper in his days; For none of his descendants shall prosper, Sitting on the throne of David, And ruling anymore in Judah.'"
Jeconiah was the son of Jehoiakim with Nehushta, the daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem. He had seven children: Shealtiel, Malkiram, Pedaiah, Shenazzar, Jekamiah, Hoshama and Nedabiah. (1 Chronicles 3:17-18). Jeconiah is also mentioned in the first book of Chronicles as the father of Pedaiah, who in turn is the father of Zerubbabel. A list of his descendants is given in 1 Chronicles 3:17-24.
In listing the genealogy of Jesus Christ, Matthew 1:11 records Jeconiah as an ancestor of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Because of the curse upon Jeconiah, recorded in Jeremiah, some Biblical scholars conclude Joseph could not be the biological father of Jesus, providing further support for the Virgin birth of Jesus.
Therefore; this information shows that Zedekiah was never the rightful king of Judah and that the kings of Judah ended with Jehoiachin as all of his sons, though qualified to reign, never did. Ezekiel confirms Jehoiachin as king of Judah but never acknowledges Zedekiah as the king of Judah. The kings and kingdom of Judah ceased to be until, as Ezekiel states, “until he who comes whose right it is; and I will give it him.” From Jehoiachin and his sons after him came Joseph the husband of Mary the mother of Jesus. Mary’s genealogy also has listed;
Shealtiel (Hebrew: or Greek-derived variant Salathiel (Greek: Salathiel) was the son of Jeconiah, king of Judah. (1 Chronicles 3:17-18) The Gospels Matthew 1:12 also list Shealtiel as the son of Jeconiah, while Luke 3:27-28 lists him as the son of an otherwise unknown man named Neri. Jeconiah, Shealtiel as well as the most of the royal house and elite of Judah were exiled to Babylon by order of Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon after the first siege of Jerusalem in 597 BC. During the Babylonian captivity, Shealtiel was regarded as the second Exilarch (or king-in-exile), following his father.[1]
In Hebrew, the name Shealtiel means, Sh?’altî ’El, "I asked El (for this child)". The name acknowledges that the son is an answer to the parents' prayer to God (El) to help them conceive and birth a child. Many Hebrew names similarly express the importance of, difficulty of, and thankfulness for a successful pregnancy.
Shealtiel is a significant but problematic member in the genealogies of the House of David and of the genealogy of Jesus. There is conflicting text in the Hebrew Bible as to whether Zerubbabel is the son of Shealtiel or of Shealtiel's brother Pedaiah. However, though both genealogies of Jesus list Zerubbabel as the son of Shealtiel, they differ as to Shealtiel's paternity with Matthew agreeing with 1 Chronicles that Jeconiah was Shealtiel's father, while Luke lists Shealtiel's father as an unknown man named Neri.
When Gabriel visits Mary he informs her of the following;
KJV Luke 1:31-33
31. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus.
32. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
33. And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
No 0ne else can lay claim to be king of Israel or Judah except Jesus Christ.
Now all the events described in this article are to show that God removed the king and kingdom from earthly men and kept it in store for His son Jesus, who God ordained to be a king and priest forever according to the order of Melchisedek. Jesus now is at the right hand of God and because he lives forever will remain forever both high priest and king. God ended the shadow rule of earthly men in both the kingdom of Israel and the kingdom of Judah because both these kingdoms were evil and He removed them from His sight. It was never Gods intent to give a shadow kingdom to His son. God preserved the fleshly line of men who were qualified to be king but never served in that office so that David never lacked a man to sit on his throne but since Jehoiachin no man did until Jesus. This throne is now in heaven at the right hand of God and soon it will be placed on the Earth as the kingdom of God. Spiritual Israel, which was always the intent of God and existed from the foundation of the world is the church, the elect saints, who will live and reign with Jesus in the millennium.
KJV Luke 1:31-33
31. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus.
32. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
33. And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
KJV Hebrews 1:8
8. But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O mighty one, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.
KJV Matthew 2:2
2. Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.
KJV Matthew 18:23
23. Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants.
KJV Matthew 21:4-5
4. All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying,
5. Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass.
KJV Matthew 25:34
34. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
KJV Matthew 27:37
37. And set up over his head his accusation written, THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
KJV Matthew 27:42
42. He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him.
KJV John 1:49
49. Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.
KJV John 18:33-37
33. Then Pilate entered into the judgment hall again, and called Jesus, and said unto him, Art thou the King of the Jews?
34. Jesus answered him, Sayest thou this thing of thyself, or did others tell it thee of me?
35. Pilate answered, Am I a Jew? Thine own nation and the chief priests have delivered thee unto me: what hast thou done?
36. Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence.
37. Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.
KJV Acts 2:29-31
29. Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day.
30. Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne;
31. He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption.
The oath God swore to David was kept as well as the oath God swore to Abraham.
KJV Hebrews 3:6
6. But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.
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