Zedekiah (Mattaniah) was Josiah's third son to rule over Judah. He rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar (v. 20) by making a treaty with Pharaoh Hophra (589-570 B.C.) under pressure from nationalists in Judah (cf. Jer. 37-38).
"Clearly, he lacks the moral fiber to be more than what he is, a man who gauges each situation by how long its results can keep him in power."142
Jerusalem was under siege for about eighteen months (588-586 B.C.; 25:1-2). The resulting famine that the residents experienced (v. 3) was only one of many that the Israelites underwent for their rebellion against God. Yahweh again withheld fertility as a punishment for apostasy. Jerusalem finally fell in 586 B.C. The Babylonians captured King Zedekiah while he was trying to escape and took him to Riblah (cf. 23:33) where Nebuchadnezzar passed judgment on him. Nebuchadnezzar killed Zedekiah's heirs to the throne ending his fertility, blinded him (cf. Rev. 3:17), and bound him with bronze shackles (v. 7). All of these measures also represented the fate of the nation the king led. The Israelites were now without royal leadership, spiritually blind, and physically bound. The blinding of prisoners was a common practice in the ancient East.143
"The lesson of Samaria's fall and exile should have been learned."144
