`Exile Atones for Everything': Coping with Jeremiah 22.24-30

Abstract

The oracles concerning Jehoiachin in Jer. 22.24-30 seem both severe and absolute. This article examines how both early rabbinic and contemporary scholars cope with its unrelenting condemnation of Jehoiachin. Early rabbinic exegesis focuses on the idea that this passage contains an oath, whereas many contemporary scholars focus on the idea that at least part of this passage contains a lament. Yet these distinctions do not reflect objective classifications of the passage's literary type. Rather, they become a means of opening up the exegete's interpretative imagination. By reviewing some representative examples from early rabbinic and contemporary exegesis, this article argues that, in both cases, interpreters end up presenting a characterization of a god who does not give an unwavering endorsement of Jeremiah's harsh announcement.