Jehoiachin (Jeconiah)

Technical Profile

• Name Meaning: Hebrew Yehoyāḵîn (“Yahweh establishes”); alternate form Yekonyāh (“Yahweh will establish”).
• Period/Era: Divided Kingdom (late monarchic period, on the eve of the Exilic era).
• Main References: 2 Kings 24:6–17; 2 Chronicles 36:9–10; Jeremiah 22:24–30; 52:31–34.
• Key Connections: Son of Jehoiakim; grandson of Josiah; part of the Davidic royal line; opposed and addressed by Jeremiah; deported by Nebuchadnezzar II.

Who was Jehoiachin (Jeconiah)?

Jehoiachin was a king of Judah who reigned briefly in Jerusalem before Babylon’s takeover.
He succeeded his father Jehoiakim during a period of intense Babylonian pressure.
He surrendered to Nebuchadnezzar and was deported to Babylon with the royal court and skilled leaders.
In Babylon he remained a recognized royal captive and later received a change of status under Evil-merodach.

Key Events & Achievements

• Surrender and deportation: He gave himself up to Nebuchadnezzar, and Babylon carried him and many others into exile (2 Kings 24:12–16).
• Dynastic judgment oracle: Jeremiah pronounced covenantal judgment on him and his line in relation to Judah’s throne and exile (Jeremiah 22:24–30).
• Release and elevation: After years of imprisonment, he was released and given an honored place among captive kings in Babylon (Jeremiah 52:31–34).

Life Lesson & Legacy

Jehoiachin’s story illustrates how Judah’s kingship could be judged and displaced under empire while the Davidic line continued in exile.

Key Verse

“In the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year he began to reign, graciously freed Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison.” — Jeremiah 52:31, ESV