A Journey Through The Old Testament - Elmer Towns

(597-586 B.C.)
Nebuchadnezzar appointed the youngest son of Josiah as the last king of Judah. This king
also had his named changed by a foreign power. His original name, Mattaniah, means “gift of
Jehovah.” This name was changed to Zedekiah meaning “Jehovah my righteousness.” This
change of name, however, did not represent a change of character on the part of this king. Like
his brothers and nephew who had sat on the throne before him, “he also did evil in the sight of
the Lord” (2 Kings 24:19). This final king of Judah sat on the throne eleven years, but during that
time Judah’s cup of sin filled to the point where God would no longer delay His judgment. “For
because of the anger of the Lord this happened in Jerusalem and Judah, that He finally cast them
out from His presence” (v. 20).
During the reign of Zedekiah, Jeremiah was again imprisoned. Zedekiah had rebelled
against Babylon and was depending on Egyptian aid to defend Jerusalem from the Babylonian
army. But Jeremiah insisted that the king submit to Nebuchadnezzar for the sake of the nation
and not trust in Egypt for their security. The prophet was arrested as a Babylonian sympathizer,
but when the Egyptian aid failed to materialize, he was given a degree of liberty. For a time
Zedekiah served as a vassal of Nebuchadnezzar, but then he rebelled. Nebuchadnezzar responded
by leading his army against Jerusalem to deal with this problem area in his empire once and for
all. For a year and a half, the army of Babylon sealed up the city of Jerusalem and placed it under
siege. By the time of the end, all food supplies had been completely consumed. Finally, a portion
of the wall was destroyed. Though they knew the army was surrounding the city, the king and his
soldiers attempted to escape the city by night. The king was captured and tried for his rebellion.
The resulting sentence was severe. Zedekiah’s eyes were plucked out, leaving him blind for the
rest of his days, but not before he witnessed the deaths of his sons. Then the Babylonian army
went to work on the city. The temple, royal palace, and homes of Jerusalem were burned. The
wall of the city was broken down. The inhabitants of the city were killed indiscriminately.
Anything of value in the city was removed and taken as spoil to Babylon. Those who escaped the
massacre were taken captive to Babylon. Only the poorest of the people were allowed to remain
in the land to tend the vineyards and orchards. “But Judah was carried away captive to Babylon
because of their unfaithfulness” (1 Chron. 9:1).
As the city fell to the army of Babylon, Jeremiah was in custody in the outer court of the
prison. Though Jeremiah had long predicted the fall of Jerusalem, it was something he had
desperately wished could have been avoided. He was freed. He probably sat in the mountains of
Judah and watched his city burn. As he saw his city go up in smoke, he wrote the Book of
Lamentations. In it he laments the destruction of the Holy City. He penned some of the most
mournful lines in all of Scripture. The Lamentations of Jeremiah is an acrostic which expressed
the deep sorrow the prophet felt as he viewed the destruction of his city. Yet even in the midst of
his sorrow, Jeremiah expressed hope as he considered the great faithfulness of his God. “This I
recall to my mind, therefore I have hope. Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because
His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. `The
Lord is my portion,’ says my soul, `therefore I hope in Him!”‘ (Lam. 3:21-24).