Yechezkel 19 | A Lament for the Leaders of Israel

Chapter 19 presents an allegorical lament for the kings of Israel, structured in two parts. The first allegory describes a lioness and her two cubs. The first cub begins to roam the world, behaving like a lion: “He learned to tear apart prey and devour men.” However, foreign nations capture him and take him to the land of Egypt. This likely refers to Yehoachaz, the only king of Yehuda to be exiled to Egypt (Melakhim II 23:33-34). The second cub is depicted as stronger and more dominant, achieving even greater feats: “He learned to tear apart prey; he devoured men. He seduced their widows, destroyed their cities; the land and all within it were devastated at the sound of his roar” (19:6-7). Ultimately, however, he too is captured and exiled — this time to Babylon.

This raises the question: Who is the second king referred to in the allegory? Rav Amnon Bazak, in his analysis of the chapter, argues — based on linguistic parallels — that this most likely refers to Tzidkiyahu. This interpretation aligns with the structure of the allegory: the lion cubs are depicted as the offspring of the same mother, and indeed, Yehoachaz and Tzidkiyahu were brothers, both sons of King Yoshiyahu.

If this reading is correct, then the allegory of the lioness and her cubs begins with the first of the kings from the period of destruction — Yehoachaz — and ends with the last king of Yehuda, in whose time the destruction of Jerusalem occurred — Tzidkiyahu. Following the approach of Harav Yaakov Medan in interpreting the previous chapter, it appears that Chapters 18–19 together narrate the story of the kings of Yehuda in the final years before the exile.