Question And Answer”

Question:

What historical narrative is the source of Jeremiah 52:1-27?

Answer:

Simple: Our narrative curtails its account of Zedekiah’s reign, bringing into strong relief only the two facts of his following Jehoiakim’s evil ways, and his rebellion against Babylon.

Jeremiah 52:1-27 is a historical appendix that describes the fall of Jerusalem and the captivity of Judah. It is believed that this chapter was not authored by Jeremiah, but perhaps by Baruch. The chapter testifies to the truthfulness and integrity of Jeremiah’s long, faithful work as a prophet of God. Nearly every verse of Jeremiah 52 is a fulfilled prophecy, making it a good way to review the entire book of Jeremiah. The chapter is very similar to (2 Kings 24:18-Zedekiah was 21 years old when he began to rule. He ruled 11 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah from Libnah.) (2 Kings 25:30 And each day, for as long as Jehoiachin lived, the king gave him enough money to pay for whatever he needed.) and it appears that the following chapter is not the work of this prophet: it is not his style. The chapter begins with an account of the evil reign and rebellion of Zedekiah, who was twenty-one years old when he became king and reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. He also did evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that Jehoiakim had done. For because of the anger of the LORD this happened in Jerusalem and Judah, till He finally cast them out from His presence. Then Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon. The chapter goes on to describe how Nebuchadnezzar laid siege to Jerusalem in Zedekiah’s ninth year as king. The city was breached on the ninth day of the fourth month in Zedekiah’s eleventh year. The Babylonians burned down the temple, destroyed the walls of Jerusalem, and took many captives back to Babylon.