Who Was Jehoiachin in the Bible?

Jehoiachin, also called Jeconiah and Coniah, was the son of Jehoiakim and grandson of Josiah. He became king of Judah at the age of eighteen and reigned only three months and ten days in Jerusalem before Nebuchadnezzar besieged the city. Rather than endure a prolonged siege, Jehoiachin surrendered himself, his mother, his servants, his princes, and his officers to the king of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar carried him captive to Babylon in 597 BC, along with the treasures of the temple and the best of Jerusalem's craftsmen and warriors — including the prophet Ezekiel. This deportation was the second of three major waves that would eventually empty Judah. Jehoiachin remained in Babylon for thirty-seven years, imprisoned in conditions of humiliation. His treatment represented the extinguishing of the Davidic line — a crisis that seemed to threaten God's promises to David. Yet the prophet Jeremiah contained both a word of judgment and hope regarding Jehoiachin. Jeremiah declared that none of his descendants would sit on David's throne, calling him a 'despised broken idol.' But in the darkest moment of Jehoiachin's captivity, a remarkable event occurred. In the thirty-seventh year of his exile, Evil-merodach, son of Nebuchadnezzar, became king of Babylon and 'did lift up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah out of prison.' He spoke kindly to him, gave him a throne above the thrones of the other captive kings, and provided him a daily allowance for the rest of his life. This act of grace toward the imprisoned king was a sign that God's promises to David had not been forgotten. Jehoiachin became the ancestor of Jesus Christ through his son Shealtiel, as recorded in Matthew's genealogy. His story illustrates the mystery of divine providence: a king who lost everything became, through God's grace, a link in the chain leading to the Messiah.