Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his upper chambers by injustice; that taketh his neighbour's service without wages, and giveth him not his earning;
A woe falls here on a king who built a fine palace with labour he refused to pay for. That king is Jehoiakim, son of the godly Josiah, and his crime is wages held back from working men.
These verses sit in a series of verdicts on the kings who watched Judah fall:
The Spirit of God has gathered the testimonies given about all the members of David's family. They presided, so to speak, over the ruin of Jerusalem — Jehoahaz (Jer. 22:10), Jehoiakim (vv. 13-19), Jeconiah (vv. 20-30).
One commentator weighs his life and his death:
The king of Egypt set up another son of Josiah and changed his name from Eliakim to Jehoiakim. But Nebuchadnezzar bound the guilty king in chains and carried him to Babylon… Who of the kings had lived with less conscience? Who had died with more shame? No lamentation for him, but a donkey's burial — that is, shameful exposure — beyond the gates of Jerusalem. For the innocent blood he shed, the Lord would not pardon.
One writer traces the burdens Jehoiakim piled on his people:
Pharaoh Neco laid a heavy war payment on Judah, and Jehoiakim had to raise it from the people. As if this was not enough for the suffering people to bear, Jehoiakim forced them to build palaces for himself without wages. Evil as the people were, the Lord resented this tyrannical cruelty. "Woe to him," He said in His indignation. The Lord loves to see a shepherd leading the flock, but Jehoiakim was a wolf, ravaging the sheep… The moral greatness of Israel and of David's royal house had gone. Yet Jehoiakim would still put on material splendour. Let God's people today beware. Do not try to keep up outward appearances when spiritual power has gone. God wants reality at all times.
One writer shows how far God's word on wages reaches into ordinary business:
He forbids dishonesty and untruthfulness, above all when His name is profaned. He also condemns oppressing your neighbour — even holding back for one night the pay owed to a poor labourer. The employment of labour is often carried on in a hard spirit, grinding the faces of the poor. Some masters give freely to so-called Christian or charitable causes what is wrung out of tears and curses. That is no compensation. In God's eyes it makes the wrong worse.
The debt does not stay silent:
Their very wealth tempts the rich to withhold wages from the poor. Only their own affairs matter to them. They put off to a convenient time the claims of those who live from hand to mouth. But the debt cries aloud to Him who always feels for the poor… The cries of the reapers may not have reached the rich. They did reach the ears of the Lord of hosts, and His blow would fall when least expected.
Jeremiah answers the son by pointing to his father Josiah, whose care for the poor pictured the coming King:
It is foretold of Him in that day: "He shall judge the poor of the people… He shall deliver the needy" (Ps. 72:4, 12). Josiah in his early days was a beautiful picture of Him in this. Jeremiah touchingly refers to it: "He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well with him" (Jer. 22:16). The prophet adds a word of great practical importance for those who understand how much the true knowledge of God matters: "Was not this to KNOW ME? says the Lord."
One writer links his shameful end to his contempt for God's word:
He was a cruel despot, who built his palaces by forced labour; covetousness, shedding of innocent blood, oppression and violence marked his reign. Then his shameful burial, the burial of a donkey, is predicted. It means that a donkey has no burial, and so Jehoiakim would have no burial. He is the only king of Judah whose burial is not recorded… This specially shameful end was most likely announced because he had cut the Word of God to pieces and thrown it into the fire.
The same charge falls on anyone who builds his safety on unrighteous gain, and the same "woe" answers it. One writer sets the believer's ambition against it:
Here the enemy is accused of making unrighteous gain, so as to build himself a safe house with nothing to fear… It was in vain. The disaster, the "woe," would fall on him anyway… In contrast, the believer who wants to serve God never thinks of enlarging his own house. His joy and his honour consist in this, that he, like David, gathers the building materials for the house of his God.
- Build — Jehoiakim built a splendid palace with labour he refused to pay for, on top of taxes he had already squeezed out of the people.
- Wages — God calls a wage held back even one night oppression. Giving freely to good causes does not cancel money wrung from other people's tears.
- Cries — the unpaid worker cannot force payment. His cry still reaches the Lord of hosts, and the blow falls when least expected.
- Know — Josiah judged the cause of the poor and needy, and God calls that knowing Him. The test of knowing God is how you treat the weakest person near you.
- End — the man who built himself a house got no burial of his own. The believer's aim is not to enlarge his own house but to gather materials for God's.
that saith, I will build me a wide house, and spacious upper chambers; and he cutteth out for himself windows; and it is wainscoted with cedar, and painted with vermilion.
These are the words of King Jehoiakim, dreaming of a palace while the nation he ruled slid toward ruin. The prophet writes his boast down as evidence in the case God is bringing against him.
Chapter 22 gathers several kings of Judah into one short space, and not in the order they reigned. One writer explains how much hung on the king, and why the prophecies are grouped:
Everything depended on the king. God might have chastised the prophets and priests and people, but He would have stood by them for His servant David's sake. But when the people went astray and the king himself led the wickedness, it was utterly impossible to stand by them… The kings named are out of chronological order. The purpose is to bring the separate prophecies against the separate kings of Judah all into one cluster, to show that in practice there was no difference between them. Some might be a little more pronounced in their violence and gross wickedness, but they were all faithless and godless.
The verse ends with cedar panelling and vermilion, a red pigment. A Bible dictionary traces where else Scripture uses the word "painted":
Only once applied to a house: "painted with vermilion," Jeremiah 22:14. Jezebel "painted her eyes," as 2 Kings 9:30 should read. Israel is compared to an immoral woman who painted her eyes, Ezekiel 23:40. They painted the eyelids and eyebrows with antimony or some other pigment, which made the eyes look larger.
A word used for eye make-up is here used of a house. The king was putting make-up on his palace.
The boast follows straight on from the charge just before it: the king built by unrighteousness and used his neighbour's work without paying for it. That was the character of the whole reign:
It was a wretched government, marked by public wrong, violence, oppression and covetousness. The land grew poor while the king indulged in luxury. He built magnificent palaces, or decorated towns, by forced labour that he never paid for. It cost the lives of a miserable enslaved people.
The end matched the life. Nebuchadnezzar bound Jehoiakim in chains and carried him to Babylon:
Who of the kings had lived with less conscience? Who had died with more shame? No mourning for him, only a donkey's burial — that is, shameful exposure — outside the gates of Jerusalem. For the innocent blood he shed, the Lord would not pardon.
The next verses answer the boast by pointing Jehoiakim to his own father, Josiah:
Jeremiah refers with feeling to Josiah in his early days: "He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well with him" (Jeremiah 22:16). The prophet adds a word of great practical importance for everyone who values the true knowledge of God: "Was not this to know Me? says the Lord."
(ESV: "He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well. Is not this to know me? declares the LORD.")
The pattern is wider than one king of Judah. Writers apply the same charge to rulers through history:
In history we see again and again that government leaders invade the land of other nations by force. They conquer it to enlarge their power. They build the greatness of their own house out of what they have taken from others. They build their nest high… In the end all such plans have no other result than the downfall and shame of these ambitious rulers… Ambition and pride founded this fine building on deceit. Every stone and beam of it became a living testimony against the oppressor. In contrast, the believer who wants to serve God never thinks of enlarging his own house.
One writer puts the personal cost in a single line:
How many have pulled down their souls to build up their houses.
- Boast. Jehoiakim's own building plans convict him. The prophet writes them down as evidence against the king.
- Bill. Unpaid forced labour built the splendour while the land grew poor — luxury at the top, misery underneath.
- Blind spot. God's reply points to Josiah: he judged the cause of the poor and needy, and God calls that knowing Him.
- Burial. The king with the least conscience died with the most shame — no mourners, and a donkey's burial outside the gates.
- Blueprint. Rulers still build their nest high on what they take from others. Every stone of such a house testifies against the builder. The one who serves God builds for God's house instead of his own.
Shalt thou reign, because thou viest with the cedar? Did not thy father eat and drink, and do judgment and justice? Then it was well with him.
King Jehoiakim was busy building himself a grand house in cedar. This verse asks him two questions: does fine cedar make a man a king, and what made his father Josiah's reign go well?
These words are for Jehoiakim, son of Josiah. He taxed the land heavily to pay Pharaoh, then went further and made the people build for him for nothing.
As if this was not enough for the suffering people to bear, Jehoiakim compelled them to build palaces for himself without wages. Even though the people were evil, the Lord resented this tyrannical cruelty. "Woe to him," He said in His indignation. The Lord loves to see a shepherd leading the flock, but Jehoiakim was a wolf, ravaging the sheep. The contrast between this monster and his father is noted by God Himself in Jer. 22:13-17.
Fine building materials do not prove a man fit to rule. One writer draws a warning from Jehoiakim for readers today.
The moral grandeur of Israel and of David's royal house had departed; but Jehoiakim would still put on material splendour. Let God's people today beware of trying to keep up outward appearances when spiritual power has gone. God wants reality at all times.
The woe in the verses just before this one falls on a man who makes himself secure by taking from others. One writer sees the same pattern in ambitious rulers, and sets beside it what a servant of God builds instead.
They build up the greatness of their own house out of what they have extorted from others. They build their nest high… In the end all such plans lead only to the downfall and shame of these ambitious rulers. They found that they had sinned against their own soul. Ambition and pride founded this beautiful building on deceit. Every stone and every beam of it became a living testimony against the oppressor. In contrast, the believer who wants to serve God never thinks of enlarging his house. His joy and his honour consist in this, that he, like David, gathers the building materials for the house of his God.
Josiah did justice and righteousness, and things went well for him. One writer ties that "well" to the character of the king, and shows why it could not continue under his son.
Under Josiah, there was an outward restraint of evil. The king's godliness affected the nation, and God blessed it. But when his son Jehoiakim was on the throne, God found no moral ground among the people for His favour.
This chapter condemns the last kings of Judah, Josiah's sons among them. One writer notes why Josiah himself gets a mention.
Shallum's father, Josiah, is spoken of also (vv. 11 and 16); but only to contrast him with the wickedness of his sons.
In the next verse, God calls the defence of the poor a true knowledge of Him. The same writer sees in Josiah a picture of the King still to come.
It is foretold of Him in that day: "He shall judge the poor of the people… He shall deliver the needy" (Ps. 72:4, 12). Josiah in his early days was a beautiful picture of Him in this respect. Jeremiah refers to it with feeling: "He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well with him." The prophet then adds a word of great practical importance for those who understand how much it matters to truly know God: "Was not this to KNOW ME? says the Lord."
- Cedar. Fine building does not make a king. Jehoiakim kept up outward splendour after the moral greatness of David's house had gone.
- Cost. He built on unpaid labour. Every beam of that house became a witness against the man who raised it.
- Contrast. Jeremiah names Josiah for one reason: his record exposes the wickedness of his sons.
- Consequence. Josiah's godliness restrained evil and brought blessing on the nation. Under Jehoiakim, God found no moral ground for His favour.
- Care. Judging the cause of the poor and needy is what God calls knowing Him. It points forward to the King who will deliver the needy.
He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well. Was not this to know me? saith Jehovah.
Jeremiah compares two kings: a father who did justice, and a son who built his palace on unpaid labour. The verse ends with a question that ties the knowledge of God to how a man treats the poor.
The verse just before points to Josiah, who "ate and drank." One writer reads that as a note on his lifestyle, not his appetite. The quotes below follow older translations, which read "then it was well with him," where the ESV has "then it was well."
His wicked life was a sad contrast to that of his righteous father. Jeremiah asked, "Did not your father eat and drink" (lived plainly), "and do justice and judgment, and then it was well with him?" He went on: "He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well with him: was not this to know Me? says the Lord" (Jer. 22:15-16). Necho changed his name, but could not change his nature.
The people were already suffering under Jehoiakim. What he did next made God speak in indignation.
That was not all the suffering people had to bear. Jehoiakim forced them to build palaces for himself without wages. Evil as the people were, the Lord resented this tyrannical cruelty. "Woe to him," He said in His indignation. The Lord loves to see a shepherd leading the flock, but Jehoiakim was a wolf, ravaging the sheep. … Israel and David's royal house had lost their moral greatness. Jehoiakim still wanted material splendour. God's people today should take care. Do not try to keep up outward appearances when spiritual power has gone. God wants reality at all times.
Josiah's care for the poor made him a picture of the King the Psalms promise. The question that closes the verse carries practical weight.
It is foretold of Him in that day: "He shall judge the poor of the people… He shall deliver the needy" (Ps. 72:4, 12). Josiah in his early days was a beautiful picture of Him in this respect. Jeremiah touchingly refers to it: "He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well with him" (Jer. 22:16). The prophet adds a word of great practical weight. It is for those who understand how important the true knowledge of God is: "Was not this to KNOW ME? says the Lord."
Why should defending the poor count as knowing God? Because God had already shown Israel what He was like, and expected them to reproduce it.
They knew God in His wonderful work for them. They also knew Him in the commandments, which showed His character. God called them to imitate Him. If He cared for the fatherless and widows, and for the stranger, they too must care. And had they not known what it was to be strangers in that land? God multiplied them wonderfully through all their suffering, and then delivered them with an outstretched arm.
The same passage praises the father's justice. It then tells the son what is coming, for he chose covetousness, innocent blood and violence.
"But your eyes and your heart are only for your covetousness, and for shedding innocent blood, and for oppression, and for violence… He shall be buried with the burial of a donkey, dragged and thrown out beyond the gates of Jerusalem." (vv. 13-19.) Which of the kings had lived with less conscience? Which had died with more shame? There was no mourning for him. He got a donkey's burial — shameful exposure outside the gates of Jerusalem. For the innocent blood he shed, the Lord would not pardon.
- Know — God ties the knowledge of Himself to a deed, not a claim. Josiah judged the cause of the poor and needy, and God calls that knowing Him.
- Copy — that knowledge works by imitation. God cares for the fatherless, the widow and the stranger, so He called His people to care as He does.
- Contrast — Josiah lived plainly and did justice. His son wanted splendour and took his neighbour's work without wages. God resented the cruelty and pronounced woe on it.
- Reality — keeping up appearances after spiritual power has gone fools nobody. God wants reality at all times.
- Result — God said of the father, "then it was well." The son had less conscience than any king and died with more shame. No one mourned him, and God would not pardon the innocent blood he shed.
But thine eyes and thy heart are only on thine extortion, and on the blood of the innocent, to shed it, and on oppression and on violence, to do it.
Jeremiah 22:17 is God's verdict on the inner life of Jehoiakim, a king of Judah. He built himself fine palaces, and the people paid for them. Behind the royal display God saw three things: greed, blood, and force. He names them as the real business of the king's eyes and heart.
One commentator weighs this king's life against the way it ended.
Who of the kings had lived with less conscience? Who had died with more shame? No lamentation for him, but an ass's burial (that is, shameful exposure) beyond the gates of Jerusalem. For the innocent blood he shed, the Lord would not pardon.
The oppression here was concrete. One writer sets out how it worked, and what God thinks of a ruler like this.
Egypt's Pharaoh Necho laid a heavy war payment on Judah, and Jehoiakim had to raise it. He taxed the land and took silver and gold from the people. As if this was not enough for the suffering people to bear, Jehoiakim forced them to build palaces for himself without wages. Evil as the people were, the Lord resented this tyrannical cruelty. "Woe to him," He said in His indignation. The Lord loves to see a shepherd leading the flock, but Jehoiakim was a wolf, ravaging the sheep… The moral grandeur of Israel and of David's royal house had gone. But Jehoiakim still put on a show of material splendour. Let God's people today beware of trying to keep up outward appearances when spiritual power has gone. God wants reality at all times.
The charge of shedding innocent blood was not a figure of speech.
Jeremiah and other prophets pour out the Lord's warnings on him (Jer. 22:13-19), but he pays no attention. He kills Urijah, a prophet who prophesied against Jerusalem and against Judah. Urijah had no faith when he faced the king's murderous plans, so he fled to Egypt (Jer. 26:20-23). Jeremiah also runs the same dangers, but this man of God trusts in the word of the Lord… In his unbelief the king cut up the roll of Jeremiah's prophecy with a penknife and threw it into the fire. Then he tried to seize the prophet and his faithful companion, Baruch. But we are told that "the Lord hid them."
The verse points at the king's eyes and heart. Scripture has a name for a heart owned that way.
Whatever commands the heart is an idol. Giving your heart to that thing is idolatry, and the person who gives it is an idolater… Take that one great, crying, universal sin of "covetousness." What does the inspired apostle call it? He calls it idolatry. How many hearts are commanded by money! How many worshippers bow down before the idol of gold! What is covetousness? Either a desire to get more, or the love of what we have.
Withholding a workman's pay looks small next to murder. God does not treat it that way.
God, who lives in eternity, takes notice of the thoughts and feelings that rise in a poor labourer's heart. He knows what such a man expects from his day's work. The labourer's heart counts on those wages; the family meal depends on them… Nothing can be more painful to a tender heart than the lack of kindly consideration for the poor, so often shown by the rich… Do you want to know what God thinks of such behaviour? Then listen to these words of holy indignation: "Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts" (James 5:4).
Jehoiakim did not keep what he grabbed.
Even the covetous King Jehoiakim becomes an individual example. From his ill-gotten goods he was cut off in the middle of his years (at 36), as a partridge might be taken from her many eggs. Like Nabal, at his end he was a fool; and so is every man who follows the promptings of his own heart and forsakes the Lord.
The loss reached beyond his lifetime, into the royal family record.
We need only refer to Jeremiah 22:13-19 to find ample reasons why the name of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah and father of Jeconiah, is left out of Matthew 1:11. "Those who honour Me I will honour, and those who despise Me shall be lightly esteemed."
- Eyes — God judges what the heart is fixed on, not what the palace looks like; the king's greed was his real religion.
- Hands — What the eyes fixed on, the hands did: unpaid workers, a murdered prophet, force to get more.
- Cry — The wages held back by fraud reach the ears of the Lord of hosts; God takes the side of people no one else defends.
- Reality — God refuses a show kept up after spiritual power has gone. He wants reality at all times.
- End — Cut off at 36, denied mourning, dropped from the royal record. That is how the Lord answers those who despise Him.