Zedekiah's Fate and the Dynastic Succession‪.‬

Zedekiah's fate has not aroused much scholarly discussion. This is surprising because Zedekiah was Judah's last king and therefore the last reigning heir to David's throne. As a son of Josiah, Zedekiah would represent the Davidic dynastic line. There has been much more attention devoted to the deposed Jehoiachin and his alleged rehabilitation in 2 Kgs 25:27-30, the main question being whether 2 Kgs 25:27-30 presents a positive view about the future of the Davidic dynasty or not (originally von Rad vs. Noth). (1) Most scholars assume that 2 Kgs 24:18-25:7 represents a fairly historical rendering of Zedekiah's final days and fate. His sons would have been slain in front of his eyes, and Zedekiah himself would have been blinded and taken in shackles to imprisonment in Babylon. Without much discussion or analysis, the assumption is that there is no reason to doubt the general historicity of this account. (2)