Zedekiah
Biblical figure; last monarch of the Kingdom of Judah / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Zedekiah[lower-alpha 1] (/zɛdɪˈkaɪə/) was the twentieth and final King of Judah before the conquest of the kingdom by Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon. His birth name was Mattaniah/Mattanyahu (Hebrew: מַתַּנְיָהוּ, Mattanyāhū, "Gift of God"; Greek: Μαθθανίας; Latin: Matthanias).
Zedekiah | |
---|---|
King of Judah | |
Reign | 597–586 BC |
Predecessor | Jehoiachin |
Successor | Monarchy abolished |
Born | c. 618 BC Jerusalem, Kingdom of Judah |
Died | After 586 BC Babylon, Neo-Babylonian Empire |
House | House of David |
Father | Josiah |
Mother | Hamutal |
After the siege of Jerusalem in 597 BC, Nebuchadnezzar II deposed king Jeconiah and installed his uncle Mattanyahu instead, changing his name to Zedekiah (2 Kings 24:17). The prophet Jeremiah was his counselor, yet he did not heed the prophet and his epitaph is "he did evil in the sight of the Lord" (2 Kings 24:19–20; Jeremiah 52:2–3).
William F. Albright dates the start of Zedekiah's reign to 598 BC, while Edwin R. Thiele gives the start in 597 BC.[1] On that reckoning, Zedekiah was born in c. 617 BC or 618 BC, being twenty-one on becoming king. Zedekiah's reign ended with the siege and fall of Jerusalem to Nebuchadnezzar II, which has been dated to 587 or 586 BC.[2]