TWO KINGDOMS

Zedekiah. A prophet among the captives in Babylon, named in Jeremiah's letter with Ahab son of Kolaiah.

SCRIPTURE SAYS

Prophesied “a lie unto you in my name” (Jeremiah 29:21)

ERA

Two kingdoms 930–586 BC

IN THE DAYS OF

Nebuchadnezzar · Zedekiah

BOOK

None bears the name

HOW HE SPOKE

He was one of the prophets among the captives: the letter answers those who said “The LORD hath raised us up prophets in Babylon”, and warns, “Let not your prophets and your diviners, that be in the midst of you, deceive you”.

THE CALL

How he spoke

  • He was one of the prophets among the captives: the letter answers those who said “The LORD hath raised us up prophets in Babylon”, and warns, “Let not your prophets and your diviners, that be in the midst of you, deceive you”. Jeremiah 29:8–9 Jeremiah 29:15 Jeremiah 29:20–21

BEFORE THE KINGS

Before two rulers

KING OF BABYLON

Nebuchadnezzar (Nebuchadrezzar)

KING OF JUDAH

Zedekiah, king of Judah

THE WORD GIVEN

What he prophesied

What he said is not recorded

“Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, of Ahab the son of Kolaiah, and of Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, which prophesy a lie unto you in my name”

Jeremiah 29:21 (KJV) →

THE WORD TO …

To whom the word was spoken

TO THE CAPTIVES IN BABYLON

“Because they have committed villany in Israel, and have committed adultery with their neighbours’ wives, and have spoken lying words in my name, which I have not commanded them; even I know, and am a witness, saith the LORD.”

Jeremiah 29:23 (KJV) →

  • Babylon · Among the captives

THE ANSWER GIVEN

The answer, and what came of it

THE WORD

SCRIPTURE REPORTS

COMPANIONS AND OPPONENTS

Who stood with him, and against him

Ahab son of Kolaiah

Maaseiah

Jeremiah

HOW THE STORY ENDS

Scripture says, tradition says

SCRIPTURE SAYS

  • Foretold: the king of Babylon would slay him before the captives' eyes. Jeremiah 29:21–22

TRADITION SAYS

  • A learned Hebrew told Origen that the two elders in the story of Susanna were the men of Jeremiah 29: “The Lord make you like Zedekias and Achiab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire”. Another Hebrew told him they had deceived the captives' wives by claiming to explain “the things concerning Christ”. Jeremiah 29:21–23 Susanna 1:5 [44] Who says so: Origen, Letter to Africanus 7–8, reporting what Jewish teachers told him, first half of the 3rd century AD

IN SCRIPTURE

Every passage

CHAPTERS · 1

Jeremiah 29

PASSAGES · 3

Jeremiah 29:8–9 Jeremiah 29:15 Jeremiah 29:20–23

WHAT SCRIPTURE DOES NOT SAY

  • Scripture records nothing else about him: no words of his own, no deeds, no date of death.
  • The text does not say what lie he prophesied; the letter's surrounding words concern the length of the captivity (Jer 29:8–10, 29:28), but they are not attributed to him.
  • The phrase “roasted in the fire” is part of the curse foretold in Jeremiah 29:22; no narrative of the event exists in Scripture.

SOURCES

Where this page comes from

  • L. C. L. Brenton (tr.), The Septuagint Version of the Old Testament, translated into English (1844), Jeremiah in the Greek order: chs. 34:2 (Heb. 27:2, no verse 1), 35:1 (Heb. 28:1), 36:24 (Heb. 29:24), 46:1–18 (Heb. 39, verses 4–13 absent); read in the site's Brenton text (data/text/lxxe).
  • L. C. L. Brenton (tr.), The Septuagint Version of the Old Testament and Apocrypha (1851), the opening sentence of Lamentations (checked against the 1879 Bagster scan).
  • S. R. Driver, An Introduction to the Literature of the Old Testament (1891), pp. 239–240 (Jer 10:11), 248, 253–254 (the Greek text of Jeremiah), 298–299 (Obadiah), 314–315 (Nahum), 317–319 (Habakkuk, Zephaniah), 432–435 (Lamentations).
  • C. F. Keil, tr. D. Patrick, The Prophecies of Jeremiah, vol. 1 (Keil and Delitzsch) (1874), Introduction, pp. 31–35 (the Greek text; Graf 1862 quoted); scan of the 1880 printing.
  • C. F. Keil, tr. J. Kennedy, The Prophecies of Jeremiah, vol. 2, with The Lamentations (Keil and Delitzsch) (1874), Introduction to Lamentations, pp. 349–350.
  • C. F. Keil, tr. D. Patrick, The Prophecies of Jeremiah (Keil and Delitzsch) (1874), note on Jer 25:11 (read on Bible Hub).
  • C. F. Keil, tr. D. Patrick, The Prophecies of Jeremiah (Keil and Delitzsch) (1874), note on Jer 27:1 (read on Bible Hub).
  • C. F. Keil, tr. M. G. Easton, Biblical Commentary on the Book of Daniel (Keil and Delitzsch) (1872), note on Dan 9:2, reporting Ewald (read on Bible Hub).
  • C. F. Keil, tr. J. Martin, The Twelve Minor Prophets (Keil and Delitzsch) (1868), Introduction to Obadiah (read on Bible Hub).
  • C. F. Keil, tr. J. Martin, The Twelve Minor Prophets (Keil and Delitzsch) (1868), Introduction to Nahum, quoting Vitringa (read on Bible Hub).
  • C. F. Keil, tr. J. Martin, The Twelve Minor Prophets (Keil and Delitzsch) (1868), Introduction to Habakkuk (read on Bible Hub).
  • C. F. Keil, tr. J. Martin, The Twelve Minor Prophets (Keil and Delitzsch) (1868), Introduction to Zephaniah (read on Bible Hub).
  • G. C. Workman, The Text of Jeremiah (1889), pp. 117–118, 222–223.
  • A. W. Streane, The Double Text of Jeremiah (1896), p. 13.
  • A. W. Streane, The Book of the Prophet Jeremiah, together with the Lamentations (Cambridge Bible) (1881), p. 172 (note on 25:11).
  • A. W. Streane, Jeremiah and Lamentations (Cambridge Bible, revised edition) (1913), note on Jer 27:1 (read on Bible Hub).
  • A. W. Streane, Jeremiah and Lamentations (Cambridge Bible, revised edition) (1913), introductory note to Jer 39, reporting Giesebrecht, Duhm and Cornill (read on Bible Hub).
  • A. S. Peake, Jeremiah and Lamentations, vol. 2 (The Century Bible) (1910), p. 13 (note on 25:11).
  • M. Faulhaber, "Jeremias", Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 8 (1910), the text of the book; the tradition of his death (online text).
  • M. G. Easton, Easton's Bible Dictionary (1897), entry "Jeremiah, Book of" (read on Bible Hub).
  • C. von Orelli, "Jeremiah", International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia (1915), his death (online text; not checked against a scan of the printed edition; read on Bible Hub).
  • R. S. Hess, Review of E. Tov, The Text-Critical Use of the Septuagint in Biblical Research, 3rd ed. (2015), Denver Journal (facts only) (2017), on 4QJer b and 4QJer d and the shorter Greek edition.
  • C. J. Ellicott (ed.), A Bible Commentary for English Readers (c. 1878–1884), note on Jer 25:11 (read on Bible Hub).
  • C. J. Ellicott (ed.), A Bible Commentary for English Readers (c. 1878–1884), note on Jer 27:1 (read on Bible Hub).
  • C. J. Ellicott (ed.), A Bible Commentary for English Readers (c. 1878–1884), note on Jer 40:1 (read on Bible Hub).
  • C. J. Ellicott (ed.), A Bible Commentary for English Readers (c. 1878–1884), note on Matt 27:9 (read on Bible Hub).
  • H. D. M. Spence and J. S. Exell (eds.), The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1897), note on Jer 25:11 (read on Bible Hub).
  • H. D. M. Spence and J. S. Exell (eds.), The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1897), note on Jer 40:1 (read on Bible Hub).
  • H. D. M. Spence and J. S. Exell (eds.), The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1897), note on Zech 1:12 (read on Bible Hub).
  • John Gill, An Exposition of the Old Testament (1748–1763), note on Jer 27:1 (read on Bible Hub).
  • John Gill, An Exposition of the New Testament (1746–1748), note on Matt 27:9 (read on Bible Hub).
  • Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826), note on Matt 27:9 (read on Bible Hub).
  • R. Jamieson, A. R. Fausset and D. Brown, A Commentary, Critical and Explanatory, on the Whole Bible (1871), note on Matt 27:9, quoting John Lightfoot's Horae Hebraicae (read on Bible Hub).
  • Augustine, tr. S. D. F. Salmond, The Harmony of the Gospels (NPNF First Series, vol. 6) (1888), 3.7.29–31.
  • M. B. Riddle (ed.), Editor's note to Augustine, Harmony of the Gospels 3.7 (NPNF First Series, vol. 6) (1888), note 1344 in the CCEL text.
  • M. L. Rodkinson (tr.), New Edition of the Babylonian Talmud: Tract Baba Bathra (1902), pp. 44–45 (Baba Bathra 14b–15a: the order of the prophets; who wrote which books).
  • I. H. Hall (tr.), "The Lives of the Prophets", Journal of the Society of Biblical Literature and Exegesis 7 (1887), pp. 36–37 (Jeremiah), from a Syriac manuscript ascribed to Epiphanius of Cyprus.
  • Tertullian, tr. S. Thelwall, Scorpiace (ANF vol. 3) (1885), ch. 8.
  • Jerome, tr. W. H. Fremantle, Against Jovinianus (NPNF Second Series, vol. 6) (1893), 2.37.
  • J. Rendel Harris, The Rest of the Words of Baruch: A Christian Apocalypse of the Year 136 A.D. (1889), pp. 21, 24.
  • E. G. Hirsch, V. Ryssel, S. Schechter and L. Ginzberg, "Jeremiah", Jewish Encyclopedia, vol. 7 (1904), biblical data; in rabbinical literature (Seder Olam 26); the Christian legend.
  • M. Seligsohn, "Seder 'Olam Rabbah", Jewish Encyclopedia, vol. 11 (1905), authorship; the dates it gives the prophets.
  • Jewish Encyclopedia, "Hezekiah", Jewish Encyclopedia, vol. 6 (1904), §2 (Zephaniah's ancestor; Ibn Ezra and Abravanel).
  • Origen, tr. F. Crombie, A Letter to Africanus (ANF vol. 4) (1885), sections 7–8.
  • G. A. Smith, The Book of the Twelve Prophets, vol. 2 (The Expositor's Bible) (1898), pp. 41, 47 (Zephaniah), 78, 85 (Nahum), 167, 171 (Obadiah), 193 (Zechariah's seventy years).
  • A. B. Davidson, The Books of Nahum, Habakkuk and Zephaniah (Cambridge Bible) (1896), pp. 12–13 (Elkosh; date of Nahum), 45–46, 49, 53 (Habakkuk), 96–97 (Zephaniah).
  • E. B. Pusey, The Minor Prophets, with a Commentary (first published 1860–77; London printing of 1883) (1883), Introduction to Obadiah, pp. 227–229.
  • C. J. Gadd, The Fall of Nineveh: the newly discovered Babylonian Chronicle, No. 21,901, in the British Museum (1923), pp. 15–16, 40–41 (reverse, lines 38–45).
  • D. D. Luckenbill, Ancient Records of Assyria and Babylonia, vol. 2 (1927), §§776–778, pp. 295–296 (the Rassam Cylinder on Ni', Thebes).
  • T. Witton Davies, in R. H. Charles (ed.), The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament, vol. 1 (1913), pp. 655–656 (Bel and the Dragon: date; verses 33–39).

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