Jeremiah 22:11Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Thus speaks the Lord to Sellim, the son of Josiah, the king of Judah, who rules in the stead of his father Josiah. Sellim is referred to as Jechoniah; that is the name given to him, signifying "peaceful." This is because Jehoiakim, his father, who was placed as a ruler by the Egyptians, was captured by the Babylonians during Jehoiakim's reign. He is called peaceful since the Babylonian king will not devastate the land, being in an alliance and refraining from taking him captive. The text alludes to one who has moved to Egypt, highlighting the utmost tragedy: even in death, he cannot return to his homeland, facing abandonment without a burial. There is nothing more dismal than this fate.

The Lord declares to Sellim, son of Josiah, who has departed from this location: he will not return to this place today. Instead, in the land I have designated for him, he will meet his end and will not behold this territory today. He will be taken away as a captive to Egypt and will neither witness his city nor the king’s palace. The foreign land that takes him in will conceal his body after his passing.

Do not grieve for the one who has passed away, nor let tears flow for him; mourn instead for the one who is gone, as he will not return, nor witness the land of his origin. For thus says the Lord to Sellum, son of Josiah, king of Judah, who ruled in the stead of his father Josiah, who has departed from this place: he shall not come back to this place; rather, in the location to which I have exiled him, he shall meet his end, and he shall never see this land again. Josiah, the just king, had three sons: Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, and Zedekiah. The first was taken captive by Pharaoh Necho, king of Egypt, where he died, and his brother Jehoiakim was appointed king in his place (4 Kings 23-25).

The Lord communicated these words to Sellim, the son of Josiah, the king of Judah, who ruled in his father’s stead. He has departed from this location and will not return today. In that place, he shall meet his end and will not see this land again. The reference to ‘Sellim’ is not to Jehoiakim, as some believe, but to Jehoahaz, since Jehoahaz ruled in place of his father Josiah. He was taken prisoner to Egypt by Pharaoh Nehao, while Jehoiakim met his end in Jerusalem. This prophet, along with the accounts found in the fourth book of Kings and the second book of the Chronicles, provides us with information on these seven matters.