THEOSISJerome of Stridon
And you shall raise a lament for the rulers of Israel and inquire, Why did your mother, the lioness, lie among the lions? She nurtured her lion cubs among them. One of her cubs grew strong and became a lion, learning to seize prey and consume men. The nations heard of him, and despite their own harm, they captured him and brought him in chains to the land of Egypt. When she perceived her weakness and that her hope was gone, she took another of her lion cubs and placed him in the forest. He mingled with the lions and became a lion, learning to hunt and devour men; he brought widows to the land and desolation to their cities, and the land was made desolate by the thunder of his roaring.
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The nations from across the regions united against him and cast their nets around him; he was ensnared while they were wounded. They imprisoned him in a cage and transported him in chains to the king of Babylon, so that his voice would no longer resonate in the mountains of Israel.
And you shall raise a cry, O ruler of Israel, and ask, Why did your mother become a cub among the lions? Among them, she multiplied her cubs. One of her cubs arose; he became a lion, seizing prey and consuming men, and the nations took note of him. They caught him at their own expense, leading him in a bridle into Egypt. When she saw that he had been taken from her, along with all that she had, she took another of her cubs and set him as a lion. He roamed among the lions and became a lion, learning to steal prey and devour men, ravaging cities and laying waste to the land with the sound of his roar. The nations from surrounding lands targeted him, spreading their nets; they ensnared him and bound him with a bridle. He was taken to the king of Babylon in a cage and imprisoned, so that his voice would no longer be heard upon the mountains of Israel.
I recognize that I have read a lengthy account of this narrative, which is so obscured that it complicates rather than clarifies the interpretation; nonetheless, all that is written refers to opposing forces and depicts the lions and the battles in the heavenly Jerusalem. It shows how one was captured and another restored, providing multiple instances illustrating that the devil and his allies are commonly referred to as lions, consistent with the words of the apostle Peter: “Our adversary the devil, like a roaring lion, walks about, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Pet. 5:8), and from the Psalms: “do not give up to beasts the soul confessing to You” (Ps. 73:19). Transitioning into historical narrative, it notes that Johanan son of Kareah was taken to Egypt (Jer. 42), but the reason he is called a lion when fleeing with few remains unclear; the other lion being Zedekiah, who was also taken to Babylon.
However, setting aside such interpretations as subjective, we may assert that, due to the impending captivity, the prophet is as much narrating past events as he is foretelling the future. For following the sixth year of Zedekiah (immediately afterwards, we read, “And it was in the seventh year, in the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month” - Ezekiel 20:1), a lamentation is issued for the rulers, or for the ruler of Israel, questioning, Why did your mother, the lioness, rest among the lions? Thus, there is mourning for the rulers, specifically for all of Josiah's descendants. Jerusalem, referred to metaphorically as the lioness, has borne and nurtured lion cubs; from her, one cub grew into a lion, symbolizing Jehoahaz, son of Josiah, whom Pharaoh Necho took to Egypt and replaced with Jehoiakim. Following Jehoahaz's death, his son Jehoiachin was taken by Nebuchadnezzar to Babylon alongside his mother and the city's nobles; from him came Salathiel, the father of Zerubbabel, who was named for having been born in Babylon.
Furthermore, it is evident that the imagery of a lioness, her cubs, and lions signifies events that had already transpired by the time the prophet wrote this. After Jerusalem appointed Jehoahaz from the royal lineage as king, he swiftly demonstrated such cruelty that it is allegorically stated he seized prey and consumed men. When the Egyptian confronted him, he was captured not without suffering or in a trap, as the Hebrew text articulates, preserving the allegory of seizing lions, who are typically caught in pits. He was led away in bridles to Egypt, where he ultimately died. When his mother, Jerusalem, the one who bore and nurtured him, witnessed this and recognized her lost hope, she appointed Jehoiakim's son, Jehoiakim, as king. This king similarly displayed the cruelty of his predecessor and is depicted as a fierce lion who ravaged the people, creating many widows, terrifying the cities, with the whole land shaken by the roar of his might. Consequently, the nations gathered to him, cast their nets, and caught him in a pit, imprisoning him in a cage and chains—not because it was Jehoiakim engaged in this, as he willingly submitted to the king of Babylon and was sent to Chaldea—but to sustain the image of a lion ensnared in pits, entangled in chains, and confined in cages.
Regarding historical details, we note that Zedekiah was established as king of Jerusalem after Jehoiakim. As the text refers to chains, cages, and the term prison, many have assumed it pertains to Zedekiah rather than Jehoiakim. However, Zedekiah was confined but not killed, merely dethroned. Nevertheless, the account of Zedekiah conveys that he was taken blindfolded to Babylon, where he met his end.