2 Kings 24:19

Study note

Setting — The biblical narrator records Zedekiah’s accession and reign immediately after detailing his age, mother, and eleven-year rule in Jerusalem. The verse functions as a historical assessment placed directly before the explanation of Judah’s exile.

The words — `הָרַע` (ha.Ra') = the evil and `עָשָׂה` ('a.Sah) = he had done. The phrase `בְּעֵינֵי` (be.'ei.Nei) = in the eyes of frames the action as a divine evaluation rather than a human judgment.

The thread — This pattern of royal disobedience appears in 2 Kings 23:37 and 2 Chronicles 36:12, while Jeremiah 24:8 explicitly ties Zedekiah to the bad figs judgment. The narrative chains his reign to the preceding kings to show continuity in covenant failure.

Why it lands — It states plainly that Zedekiah repeated Jehoiakim’s evil before recording God’s banishment of Judah. The text demands recognition that royal rebellion, not mere political error, precipitated the exile.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.