s Jehoiachin began his Reign at eighteen years of Age, 2 Kings 24. 8. and reigned but chree months, bur that he yielded himic!t tro the King of Ba»z/oz Befieging him, Ver, 12. in the ejphtts Year of the King of Babvlo?'s Reign. He was a Prifoner in "Bas bylon (as appeareth by this Text) in which circumftances he con- rinued (as appears from this Texr) about thirty Y ears; which was during the whole Reign of Neoxchadverger, ſometimes called Neunuchadnizgar, (ometimes Nebuchodonoſor, Ecil-Mrodach was Son to this Nebuchadrittay, whon the ewelfih Month of that Year, the 25th Day ofthe Month (faith this Texr, bur 2 Kings 25. 27.1t 1s the twenty jeuinty Day, bur that difference may catily be reconcuied, The Penman of this part of Holy Wrir,mighr count preciſely from tie Day of his Fathers Death, and the Penman of the Book of Kings from the time of the Coronation of £:3/-.M;.. rodach, or when he openly ſhewed himſelf as King; or theone mighr reckon from theDay that Ezil-Merod2ch decreed the thing che other from the Day when he pur it in Execution.) Lite? up the head, whicn ſignifies 1n Scripture the altering of ones etiare chat 1s in Miſery, Gen, 40. 20. which is all that 1s here meant. for his bringing him our of P?i/92 15 mentioned in the next words, The reaſon of this favour 15 variouſly geuiſed at. The Reverend Aurhor of our Engiih Annotations. fantieth, that Evil-Merodauch, might be much of the ſame Age with him, and char ]:hojachis got into the Acquaintance of this Evil-Merodach, during his Thirty Years Captivity, who conſidering his long Impriſonment, and thar now there was no danger of his heading the ]:rs (whoſe City had now been defiroyed Twenty five years and upward} this Prince out of his Humanity might ſhew him this favour, nor are ſuch things unuiual in Nations upon their changes of Princes and Counicllors.
32 And ipake-| kindlyunto him,and ſet his throne
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» The King of Baby/on might have other Kings his Pritoners, his Father haying been fo great a Conqueror, er he might have others Kings, his Subjetts, that might reſide at his Cour: ; and either our ofa particular kindneſs he had to ſehoiachin, or in re- gard of the Fame David and Solomon, from whom Jhvizchir lineally deſcended, he might do him this Honour,
33 Andchanged his priſon-garments: and he did continually eat bread before him all the days of his life.
34 And for his diet, there was a continual diet given him of the King of Babylon, + every day a portion, unkil the day of his death, all the davs of his Ife w. =
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Chap. LIL
which Serzh had tome Authority under Zedehciah, the ſame with Arian 1.Chro%. 8. 5. Others think it was a Name of Office, and fignificd Lov4 Chanberloin ; bur the beſt Interpreters ſee no reaſon 1 vary from our Tranſlation, the ſence of which 15 that he was a Man of a moderate quiet Temper, that periwaded to Peace.
5o So Jeremiah wrote in a book all the evil that ſhould come upon Babylon, ever all theſe words 7-24! 2e Written again!t Babylon.
51 And Jeremiah faid ro Seraiah, When thou comelt to Babylon, and ſhalt ſee, and ſhalt read all theſe words 7. 1
1 Nor to the Cha!dens, nor poſſibly 15 it to be underſtood of a mcer private reading of them to himſelf, bur to the Fexs, that werc 1N Bapyion, acquainting them with what God had ſpoken a- ozinlt B.iby/on by rhe Prophet.
62 Then ſhalt thon ſay, O LORD, thou haſt ſpo- ken againlt this place to cut it off, that none ſhall re- main in it, neither man nor bealt,but chat 1t ſhall be + deſolate tor ever o.
" 0 Thou hal reftifie that thou helieveſt what thou haſt read to be what ſhall moſt certiinly come to paſs, by ſpeaking words to elis Sence,
63 And it ſhall be when thou haſt made an end of reading this book, that thou ſhalt bind * a ſtone to 1t "and caft it into the midit of Euphrates.
5.4 And thou ſhalt ſay, Thus ſhall Babylon fink, and ſhall not riſe from the evil that I will bring, upon her p: and they ſhall be weary 5. Thus far are the words of Jeremiah r. :
Trhath been often ſaid that Euphrates was that great River which ran by the Walls of Babylon; into this S$:razah 15 com- manded by Fe12miah ro throw this Roll of Prophecy againſt Bavy- ion, ſymbollically ro reach the Fews, that according rothe Tenor of his Prophecy the time ſhall come afrer ſome years, wnen 32- 5y/on ſhould be deſtroyed never to riſe again 10 any great view, or degree of ſplendor, no more than that Roll with the Stone tied ro it ſhould riſe from the botrom of Euphrates. q Some read though they weary themſelves, thar is, ro do what they can, or (as 1t 15 here) and they ſhall be weary with that weight of Judgment which ſhall be upon them, » Either the words of Feremy relating ro B2by{1n reach thus far, or all the words of Feremiah remaining on ſacred Record {for it 1s rhought that the nexr Chapter was I - ther penned by ſome other Holy Man.) Or (which ſeemerh the beſt) rhe Propherical words of Feremian, for the marter of the nexc Chapres is Hiſtorical, and the Book of Lamentations 1s nor Prophetical 3 as to the manner of it, tho* there be1n ut three or four Propherical Paſſages, Lam. 4. 21, 22, UM,
CHAP. LlI.
A Repiiitun of 154; Avign of Zedekiah : Of the Siege, Taking, and D: fri of Jerulaters: With the Cauſes thereof, and what further bappene? there, 1,—>—= 39. Evil-merodach adranceth Tehouchin, 31, -— 34.
i 7 Edekiah was one and twenty years old when he + began torel2n, and he reigned eleven years 1a Jeraſalem ; and his mothers name was Hamu- rl, che Caughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 2 And he did that which wc evil in the ſight of the LORD according to all that Jehotakim had done.
3 For through the angerof the LORD it came to maſs in Jeruſalem and Judah, till he had caſt them V1 from his preſence, that Zedekah rebelled againſt ihe king of Babylon 4, |