Bible Strands
2 Kings 25:28
And he spoke kindly to Jehoiachin and set his throne above the thrones of the other kings who were with him in Babylon.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Evil-merodach, the newly crowned Babylonian monarch, acts toward Jehoiachin, the exiled king of Judah, during the thirty-seventh year of his captivity. The king elevates Jehoiachin’s standing among the other captive rulers residing in Babylon.
The words — The phrase וַ/יְדַבֵּ֥ר אִתּ֖/וֹ טֹב֑וֹת (va/y.da.Ber 'i.T/o to.Vot) literally records that he "spoke good things" or "spoke kindly" to him. The verb וַ/יִּתֵּן֙ (va/i.yi.Ten) denotes the physical act of "setting" or "placing" Jehoiachin’s throne above the others.
The thread — This elevation of a captive ruler aligns with the biblical pattern that human authority functions under divine allowance, as noted in Jeremiah 27:6 and Daniel 5:18. The text also mirrors ancient Near Eastern royal practices of granting honor to deposed monarchs, standing in tension with Daniel 2:37’s assertion that God alone grants ultimate sovereignty.
Why it lands — The verse documents a political concession that preserves the dignity of a fallen king without endorsing Babylonian rule as divinely permanent. It requires the reader to recognize how historical decrees can sustain a remnant while leaving the final judgment of empires to God’s sovereign timeline.
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.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And he spake kindly to him, and set his throne above the throne of the kings that were with him in Babylon;
Cross-references
- Jeremiah 27:6 So now I have placed all these lands under the authority of My servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. I have even made the beasts of the field subject to him.
- Daniel 2:37 You, O king, are the king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given sovereignty, power, strength, and glory.
- Daniel 5:18 As for you, O king, the Most High God gave your father Nebuchadnezzar sovereignty and greatness, glory and honor.