Jeremiah 52:32-33

Who remembers Jehoiachin? He was the king of Judah after Jehoiakim, and was summoned by Nebuchadnezzar, and was taken captive after only a few months of being king. Instead, his uncle, Zedekiah, was made king in Judah (by Nebuchadnezzar), who was evil (just like the rest of them).

The last chapter of Jeremiah deals with the end of the story of Zedekiah, who was eventually taken by Nebuzaradan (the captain of Nebuchadnezzar’s guard, remember?), along with all the princes of Judah, and his sons. His sons were killed before his eyes, before his eyes were put out. He was never killed by Nebuchadnezzar, though, just as Jeremiah prophesied.

Why I mentioned Jehoiachin was because the last few verses of Jeremiah deal with him primarily. Although he was an evil king (for as short a period as it was), as we are told in 2 Chronicles 36:9, the end of Jeremiah contains a story of mercy. The king of Babylon after 37 years is called Evil-Merodach, which isn’t a very promising name, but he shows kindness in that in his very first year as king, he goes to Jehoiachin and takes him out of the prison he has been in:

‘And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a more prominent seat than those of the kings who were with him in Babylon. So Jehoiachin changed from his prison garments, and he ate bread regularly before the king all the days of his life.’ (Jeremiah 52:32-33)

This reminds me of how we should be treating everyone else. It does not matter what wrong they have committed. It doesn’t matter where they come from, who they are, what rank they are, how much power they have, or who they’re friends with. We must show everyone love. If this king of a pagan nation can show this mercy towards his apparent enemy, then is it not detestable if we do not show much more love towards people that we encounter? And the best way to show love is to show them Jesus.

What a time-relevant message from the last chapter of Jeremiah!