Introduction: A Prophecy to the Royal House
Chapter 22 of Yirmiyahu is a prophecy addressed directly to the house of the king of Yehudah. Yirmiyahu is sent to the royal palace to tell the king, his servants, and the people that the path of salvation from the decree runs through justice and righteousness. The chapter opens with a promise and a warning, continues with a description of the future destruction, and turns to the fate of the last kings of the House of David: Shallum, Yehoyakim, and Yehoyachin. In the section before us, we will study the opening verses through the rebuke of Yehoyakim.
כֹּה אָמַר יְהֹוָה: רֵד בֵּית מֶלֶךְ יְהוּדָה, וְדִבַּרְתָּ שָׁם אֶת הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה. - So said Hashem: Go down to the house of the king of Yehudah, and speak this word there.
The Radak notes: This prophecy had already been delivered to the House of David earlier - "Execute judgment in the morning." The House of David had already been told to execute justice each morning and conduct it with righteousness and integrity. Now the Holy One, blessed is He, tells him: Deliver this prophecy to them while they are still secure in their homes, and promise them good. If the stick did not work, perhaps the carrot will.
וְאָמַרְתָּ: שְׁמַע דְּבַר יְהֹוָה מֶלֶךְ יְהוּדָה הַיֹּשֵׁב עַל כִּסֵּא דָוִד, אַתָּה וַעֲבָדֶיךָ וְעַמְּךָ הַבָּאִים בַּשְּׁעָרִים הָאֵלֶּה. - And you shall say: Hear the word of Hashem, O king of Yehudah who sits on the throne of David, you, your servants, and your people who enter through these gates.
The address is to the entire royal court. "Who enter through these gates" - some commentators explain that this refers to the gates of the Temple courtyard, while others, including the Radak, explain that it refers to the gates of the royal palace, as noted earlier.
Two Remedies: Shabbat and Justice
The Malbim illustrates this with a parable of a father who decreed death upon his son, and then seeks all manner of justifications and merits to perhaps spare him after all, to somehow avert the harsh decree. Earlier, we saw that Yirmiyahu tried to offer them one remedy: the observance of Shabbat. Perhaps through observing Shabbat they would find protection - yet we saw that they would go out and conduct commerce outside the city. Now he offers them an alternative remedy, hoping it might help: that they execute justice and righteousness.
The Malbim cites the Rambam in Moreh Nevuchim, explaining that the Torah aims to grant man perfection both in beliefs and in practical conduct: that he should not hold corrupted beliefs, and that his manner of conduct should be upright. What are corrupted beliefs? One who believes the universe is primordial, one who believes there is more than one deity, or one who believes the world has no God at all - all forms of heresy and apostasy. Flawed beliefs represent a corruption of faith.
Shabbat grants a person perfection in belief, for one who observes Shabbat thereby proclaims that the Holy One, blessed is He, created His world in six days and rested on the seventh day. As for one who desecrates Shabbat - it reaches the point where, according to Halachah, he may be treated as a non-Jew. Why? Because this often stems from heresy, from a lack of belief in the One Who spoke and brought the world into being. Therefore, his wine is considered yayin nesech, and if he slaughters an animal or bird, the shechitah is invalid and the meat forbidden to eat. All of this stems from corrupted beliefs. Shabbat teaches that the Holy One, blessed is He, created the world, brought it into being from nothing, and continues to direct it.
Justice, on the other hand, perfects one's conduct. When a person conducts his affairs with integrity and justice, his actions are properly ordered. Therefore, the counsel now is: If you were not saved through Shabbat, which I advised you earlier, at least save yourselves through law and justice.
כֹּה אָמַר יְהֹוָה: עֲשׂוּ מִשְׁפָּט וּצְדָקָה, וְהַצִּילוּ גָזוּל מִיַּד עָשׁוֹק, וְגֵר יָתוֹם וְאַלְמָנָה אַל תֹּנוּ, אַל תַּחְמֹסוּ, וְדָם נָקִי אַל תִּשְׁפְּכוּ בַּמָּקוֹם הַזֶּה. - So said Hashem: Execute justice and righteousness, deliver the robbed from the hand of the oppressor, and do not wrong or mistreat the stranger, the orphan, or the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place.
The way to be saved from troubles is by executing justice and righteousness, as we have already seen: "Zion shall be redeemed with justice, and those who return to her with righteousness" (Yeshayahu 1:27) - through this they will attain redemption. When justice and righteousness are practiced, naturally the convert, the orphan, and the widow will not be wronged, and all the more so they will not be robbed, and even more so innocent blood will not be shed. And from the negative, one infers the positive: if they do not practice justice and righteousness - "all of these are found within them" - they spill innocent blood, plunder, rob, and cause all manner of trouble. Radak explains that ashok ("oppressed") follows the grammatical pattern of karov and gadol - meaning the oppressor.
כִּי אִם עָשׂוֹ תַעֲשׂוּ אֶת הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה, וּבָאוּ בְשַׁעֲרֵי הַבַּיִת הַזֶּה מְלָכִים יֹשְׁבִים לְדָוִד עַל כִּסְאוֹ, רֹכְבִים בָּרֶכֶב וּבַסּוּסִים, הוּא וַעֲבָדָו וְעַמּוֹ. - For if you indeed do this thing, then kings sitting on David's throne shall enter the gates of this house, riding in chariots and on horses, he, his servants, and his people.
If you conduct yourselves this way, the Holy One, Blessed is He, promises that kings from the Davidic line who are fit to reign will enter the gates of this house - not a king like Herod, but a king truly descended from David, sitting upon David's throne. "Riding in chariots" - a carriage befitting royalty; "and on horses" - the horses drawing the chariot. These images symbolize grandeur and power.
The Desire for Riding
It is related of HaGaon Rabbi Shmuel Rozovsky that he always preferred to walk on foot. When asked why, he replied that one of the desires enumerated by Rabbeinu Tam in Sefer HaYashar (though it is debated whether Rabbeinu Tam authored it, this is the traditional attribution) - he lists ten types of desire there, and one of them is the desire for riding. A person loves to ride a horse, a donkey, travel by car, hold the wheel. What do people do during summer bein hazmanim? Take the children out for go-karts, jeeps, ATVs. And what is the first thing on a young man's mind? A driver's license. "My father, my father, the chariot of Israel and its horsemen" - hand over the keys. It is fascinating to see that already eight hundred years ago Rabbeinu Tam spoke about this matter, how much a person enjoys sitting in a vehicle; and today everyone seeks the latest polished, air-conditioned model, without which the urge is not properly satisfied. We see from this that a vehicle conveys stature and prominence, which is why people aspire to it. This is what is meant here: kings sitting upon David's throne, riding in chariots and on horses in the royal manner, "he, his servants, and his people" - all partaking in dominion and rule. By what merit? If you execute justice, which will serve as your remedy so that you do not fall into ruin.
וְאִם לֹא תִשְׁמְעוּ אֶת הַדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה, בִּי נִשְׁבַּעְתִּי נְאֻם יְהֹוָה, כִּי לְחָרְבָּה יִהְיֶה הַבַּיִת הַזֶּה. - But if you will not hear these words, I swear by Myself, says Hashem, that this house shall become a ruin.
Which house is being referred to? If "these gates" mentioned earlier are the gates of the Temple courtyard (the Azarah), then this refers to the Beit HaMikdash; but if it refers to the gate of the king's palace, then "this house shall become a ruin" refers to the royal palace itself.
You Are Gilead to Me, the Summit of Lebanon
כִּי כֹה אָמַר יְהֹוָה עַל בֵּית מֶלֶךְ יְהוּדָה: גִּלְעָד אַתָּה לִי רֹאשׁ הַלְּבָנוֹן, אִם לֹא אֲשִׁיתְךָ מִדְבָּר עָרִים לֹא נוֹשָׁבוּ. - For so says Hashem concerning the house of the king of Judah: You are like Gilead to Me, the summit of Lebanon; yet surely I will turn you into a wilderness, cities uninhabited.
Rashi cites Targum Yonatan: "You are as beloved before Me as the Beit HaMikdash that stands atop the mountains." And why is the Beit HaMikdash called "Gilead"? Because from it comes balsam and healing for the entire world. The connection to Gilead comes from what is written: "Is there no balsam in Gilead?" (Yirmiyahu 8:22) - the balsam, the healing balm, was brought from Gilead, and whenever people wished to describe a place of healing, they called it Gilead. And the Beit HaMikdash is indeed a source of healing for the entire world.
Radak explains that these words refer to the royal house of Judah, which is the head of the kingdom of Israel. The mountains in the eastern Transjordan were called the Mountains of Gilead, after a central city named Gilead, which in turn lent its name to the entire eastern bank of the Jordan. Just as Gilead is the foremost region of Transjordan, so the House of Judah is the head of the entire kingdom of Israel, and Zion and Jerusalem are the head of all Eretz Yisrael. The Land of Israel is also called "Lebanon," as it is written: "Please let me cross over and see the good land... this goodly mountain and Lebanon" (Devarim 3:25). The prophet tells the king: You, who were the summit of Lebanon and like Gilead, a prominent city - I will turn you into a wilderness, and I will make the surrounding mountains as though they had never been inhabited. The phrase "if not" (im lo) in biblical Hebrew is always the language of an oath, as in "Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul" (im lo shiviti ve-domamti - Tehillim 131:2).
The Malbim explains: Even if you are to Me like Gilead, which is a settled and desirable land, a place of fine pastures and prime soil, and even if you are to Me like the summit of Lebanon, filled with mighty cedars, tall and imposing, and similarly teeming with people - nevertheless, "I will turn you into a wilderness," the very opposite of fertile, populated Gilead, and "cities uninhabited," the exact opposite of populous Lebanon. This is a severe prophecy directed at the house of the king of Judah: unless they change their ways, disaster is imminent and will overtake them.
וְקִדַּשְׁתִּי עָלֶיךָ מַשְׁחִתִים אִישׁ וְכֵלָיו, וְכָרְתוּ מִבְחַר אֲרָזֶיךָ וְהִפִּילוּ עַל הָאֵשׁ. - "And I will prepare destroyers against you, every man with his weapons, and they will cut down the choicest of your cedars and cast them into the fire."
"And I will prepare [ve-kiddashti]" - we have already explained several times that the term kiddush denotes designation or summoning. When a man says to a woman, "Behold, you are consecrated (mekudeshet) to me," he means: you are designated for me and not for anyone else. Similarly, a harlot is called a kedeshah because she is designated for promiscuous acts. And here: I will designate destroyers to come and destroy you. "Every man with his weapons" - every man with his tools of destruction, his smashing instruments, the heavy tools with which they came to smash the house to pieces.
"And they will cut down the choicest of your cedars" - but what cedars are here? After all, the cedars are in Lebanon! Rather, since I have compared you to Lebanon, I say that they will cut down your cedars just as they fell trees from Lebanon. Radak explains why it speaks of cedars: because royal palaces, as well as the Beit HaMikdash, were built "paneled with cedar" - lining and cladding the inner walls with cedar wood. Thus, the destroyers come to demolish the king's palace, cutting down the choicest cedars that panel the walls of the palace, and whatever they dismantle from the palace they cast into the fire, as it says, "And he burned the House of the Lord and the king's palace." And to our great sorrow, the prophecy was fulfilled in its entirety.
וְעָבְרוּ גּוֹיִם רַבִּים עַל הָעִיר הַזֹּאת, וְאָמְרוּ אִישׁ אֶל רֵעֵהוּ: עַל מֶה עָשָׂה יְהֹוָה כָּכָה לָעִיר הַגְּדוֹלָה הַזֹּאת. - "And many nations will pass by this city, and each man will say to his fellow: Why has the Lord done this to this great city?"
"By this city" - near the city. They will pass by, marvel, and be appalled: surely their sins must have been immense for Hashem to have done such a thing to them.
וְאָמְרוּ: עַל אֲשֶׁר עָזְבוּ אֶת בְּרִית יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵיהֶם, וַיִּשְׁתַּחֲווּ לֵאלֹהִים אֲחֵרִים וַיַּעַבְדוּם. - "And they will say: Because they abandoned the covenant of the Lord their God, and bowed down to other gods and served them."
This is the answer they will give one another: the punishment came because they abandoned the covenant of Hashem and bowed down to idols, and this is why they are struck so severely.
Do Not Weep for the Dead
אַל תִּבְכּוּ לְמֵת וְאַל תָּנֻדוּ לוֹ, בְּכוּ בָכוֹ לַהֹלֵךְ, כִּי לֹא יָשׁוּב עוֹד וְרָאָה אֶת אֶרֶץ מוֹלַדְתּוֹ. - "Do not weep for the dead, nor lament for him; weep bitterly for the one who goes away, for he will never return, nor see his native land again."
The commentators explain that "the dead" refers to Yehoyakim, of whom it is written that he died before the gate as they were dragging him off to exile. Do not weep for him - for his situation is far better than that of those who remained alive; he escaped the affliction easily. "Nor lament [ve-al tanudu] for him" - for they would shake their heads as a sign of mourning and grief when mourning the dead or coming to console, and we have already seen this expression earlier. For whom, then, is it fitting to weep? "Weep bitterly for the one who goes away" - for Yehoyachin and Tzidkiyahu, who go into exile and will never return. "Nor see his native land again" refers to Yehoyachin, who was not privileged to return and see the land of his birth, for they exiled him to Babylonia, where he died after spending thirty-seven years in prison. For such a person it is fitting to weep, not for one who died and escaped the affliction easily.
Rashi states: You may infer from this that Yehoyakim's death was more desirable - despite all the tragedy, as it is said of him, "and his carcass shall be cast out to the day's heat and the night's frost" - than the life of Yehoyachin, of whom it is said, "And his allowance was a continual allowance from the king." Even though you receive a regular allowance and are well-provided for, you are still in exile, suffering under Nebuchadnezzar. Thus, Yehoyakim's death was preferable to Yehoyachin's life.
The Malbim interprets differently: the verse refers to Shallum, the fourth son of Yoshiyahu, who is mentioned in I Chronicles 3, where it is not explained what became of him or what his fate was. When they led Yehoyakim to Babylonia, it is recorded there that Yehoyakim died at the gate, and it is said that [the king of Babylonia] exiled Shallum to Babylonia so that he would not dispute the reign of Tzidkiyahu - since Shallum belonged to the royal dynasty, and there was concern that he might strive to reign and contest his rule. This is why the prophet says: do not weep for Yehoyakim who died, but only for Shallum who is now going into exile and will never return. Thus, according to the Malbim, "the one who goes away" is neither Yehoyachin nor Tzidkiyahu, but Shallum, the fourth son of Yoshiyahu. In the next verse we will see that Radak explains that Shallum son of Yoshiyahu is actually Yehoyachin according to the view of Chazal, and that he had two names; and even though he was his grandson, grandson is referred to here as son.
It is Forbidden to Mourn Excessively for the Deceased
Before continuing, let us examine an additional explanation cited by the Radak in the name of Chazal. Chazal interpret the words: "Weep not for the dead, nor lament him" - do not weep excessively, and do not lament him beyond the prescribed measure. There is a general directive here: a person must not grieve excessively over his deceased. That is, if tragedy strikes and someone refuses to be consoled, refuses to accept comfort, and continually weeps and grieves without end, one must realize that such a person is in grave danger. The Gemara teaches: whoever grieves excessively over his dead will end up burying another deceased, Heaven spare us. For one who grieves excessively acts as if to say that the Holy One, blessed be He, is not merciful - "look at what He did to me" - and by doing so, he invokes strict Heavenly judgment upon himself.
A God-fearing man once cautioned a family that was grieving excessively over a lost loved one, telling them that this is forbidden and must stop, as it can only bring harm. But they did not listen. A year later, they still refused to be comforted and carried on, speaking only of that individual and constantly weeping. It was a woman whose son had been killed, may Hashem protect us. Tragically, a year and a half later, a bacterial infection struck her forty-year-old daughter, and within a short time she passed away as well. From then on, the mother spoke no more - neither of the son nor of the daughter. See, Heaven spare us, how sometimes a person must endure fracture upon fracture before coming to their senses. One must be extremely cautious about this, and this is Chazal's warning.
There are clear boundaries for how much to weep and lament: three days for weeping, seven days for eulogizing, and thirty days regarding ironed garments and haircutting. For whom, then, is it fitting to weep? "Weep sore for him who goes away" - Chazal explain: for one who departs this world without children. For him it is fitting to weep, as he left no progeny behind. But for one who left children behind, do not weep excessively, and one must not grieve beyond the proper measure. For one who grieves excessively over his deceased effectively portrays himself as more merciful than the Holy One, blessed be He, and his weeping carries an undertone of defiance against the Almighty.
כִּי כֹה אָמַר יְהֹוָה אֶל שַׁלֻּם בֶּן יֹאשִׁיָּהוּ מֶלֶךְ יְהוּדָה הַמֹּלֵךְ תַּחַת יֹאשִׁיָּהוּ אָבִיו, אֲשֶׁר יָצָא מִן הַמָּקוֹם הַזֶּה, לֹא יָשׁוּב שָׁם עוֹד. - For thus says Hashem concerning Shallum the son of Yoshiyahu, king of Yehudah, who reigned instead of Yoshiyahu his father, who went forth out of this place: He shall not return there anymore.
Who is Shallum son of Yoshiyahu? In Rashi's view, Shallum is Tzidkiyahu, who is likewise referred to in Divrei HaYamim as "and the fourth, Shallum." He is called the fourth in kingship among the sons of Yoshiyahu: first reigned Yehoachaz, followed by Yehoyakim, then Yehoyachin, and finally Tzidkiyahu - thus the fourth was Tzidkiyahu, and he is the one called Shallum. "Who went forth out of this place" - once he departs from this place, he will never return. The Radak, on the other hand, maintains that Shallum is Yehoyachin; although he was Yoshiyahu's grandson, grandsons are considered as sons, which is why he is mentioned in this manner. Even so, the Radak also cites Chazal's exposition that Shallum is Tzidkiyahu, as Rashi explains. A further opinion is that of Ibn Ezra, who identifies Shallum as Yehoachaz, who died in Egypt, as explained in the Book of Melachim, in Divrei HaYamim, and in the Radak's commentary there.
כִּי בִּמְקוֹם אֲשֶׁר הִגְלוּ אֹתוֹ שָׁם יָמוּת, וְאֶת הָאָרֶץ הַזֹּאת לֹא יִרְאֶה עוֹד. - But he shall die in the place where they led him captive, and he shall see this land no more.
In the place to which he was exiled, there he will die. "And he shall see this land no more" - not only will he never return to Yerushalayim, but he will not even merit to see any part of the land; he will never return to the land under any circumstances.
Woe Unto Him Who Builds His House Without Righteousness
הוֹי בֹּנֶה בֵיתוֹ בְּלֹא צֶדֶק וַעֲלִיּוֹתָיו בְּלֹא מִשְׁפָּט, בְּרֵעֵהוּ יַעֲבֹד חִנָּם וּפֹעֲלוֹ לֹא יִתֶּן לוֹ. - Woe unto him who builds his house without righteousness and his upper chambers without justice, who uses his neighbor's service without wages and gives him not his hire.
Rashi and the Radak explain that this refers to Yehoyakim, who was wicked and characterized as one who built his house without righteousness. What does "without righteousness" mean? The Malbim explains: Yehoyakim built himself a royal palace, but with cheap construction - namely, using laborers without paying their wages, which makes for very cheap construction indeed.
Notice the precise nuance of the phrasing: strictly according to Halachah, wages become due only upon completion of the work, and as long as the laborers are still working, an employer is not legally obligated to pay them. In contract work, a contractor receives payment upon completing the job. Yet by the standard of tzedek (righteousness), which is beyond the strict letter of the law, it would have been fitting to pay wages as the work progressed. Therefore, the verse characterizes him as: "He who builds his house without righteousness" - you built the house without acting beyond the letter of the law, without practicing charity. "And his upper chambers without justice" - when is a house finished? When the upper story is built. If upon completion of the building you still do not pay, that is no longer merely "without righteousness," but "without justice," for according to law and justice, a debt must be paid upon completion of the work as is their due right.
"Who treats his fellow as a slave without pay, and will not give him his wages" - the Malbim explains that there is a difference between sechar (contracted wages) and pe'ulah (the fair value of labor). Sechar is determined by what was agreed upon in advance - how much work and how much pay. Pe'ulah is based on what a person actually produced and accomplished, even if not agreed in advance: "Pay me according to the value of my labor." And here - not only does he fail to give him contracted wages, for he never made an agreement with him in advance, but "and will not give him his wages (po'alo)": he does not even pay according to the worth of the labor and what was actually accomplished. From this we see how wicked Yehoyakim was. The Radak cites in the name of his father that "his wage" refers to the wages of his laborer, meaning he did not pay the laborer who performed the construction work his due hire.
הָאֹמֵר אֶבְנֶה לִּי בֵּית מִדּוֹת וַעֲלִיּוֹת מְרֻוָּחִים, וְקָרַע לוֹ חַלּוֹנָי, וְסָפוּן בָּאָרֶז וּמָשׁוֹחַ בַּשָּׁשַׁר. - Who says: "I will build myself a spacious house with airy upper chambers," and cuts out windows for it, paneled with cedar and painted with vermilion.
"A spacious house (beit middot)" - a grand house, as in "the men... are men of great stature (anshei middot)." And why is it called this? Because there is something to measure (limdod). When a place is small, there is no need to measure - it is merely two meters by two meters; but when a place is vast, you say: bring a measuring tape and let us see the dimensions. This is also why tall people are called anshei middot, for Chazal explain that whoever sees them begins to measure: how tall is he? Four meters? Three and a half?
"And airy upper chambers" - some explain this as spacious, related to rechavim (wide), as in "and the grave has enlarged itself" (vehirchivah she'ol), an expression of expansion, which is one explanation cited by the Radak. The Malbim explains it as related to ru'ach (wind or breeze), a place where the breeze flows freely - for they would open wide windows so that the wind would enter and cool the house. "And cuts out windows for it" - he widened the windows, in the sense of tearing open, as in "though you enlarge your eyes with paint" and "You tore open the heavens and came down." "Paneled with cedar" - ceiled and paneled with cedar wood. "And painted with vermilion" - they would craft decorations upon the walls and coat them with a type of red pigment called vermilion (shashar), beautifying the house with it.
And what did the prophet intend to convey by this? The Malbim explains: come and see the wickedness of Yehoyakim. Do not think that he lacked a house or a place to dwell; rather, he says, "I will build myself a spacious house." The house, the upper chambers, and the windows - all were constructed at immense expense. You go and build yourself a grand mansion when you already have a place to live, all at lavish cost - and at whose expense? At the expense of the laborers who worked for nothing and never received their wages.
Did Not Your Father Eat and Drink, and Do Justice and Righteousness?
הֲתִמְלֹךְ כִּי אַתָּה מְתַחֲרֶה בָאָרֶז? אָבִיךָ הֲלוֹא אָכַל וְשָׁתָה וְעָשָׂה מִשְׁפָּט וּצְדָקָה, אָז טוֹב לוֹ. - Do you think you will reign because you enclose yourself in cedar? Did not your father eat and drink, and do justice and righteousness? Then it was well with him.
Rashi explains: "Do you think you will reign" - will you prolong your days in your kingdom? Do you imagine that your reign will endure forever, so that you permit yourself to burden your subjects merely to demonstrate to all that you are king? Only someone who expects to rule for a long period seeks to entrench his authority and prove to everyone how much he is the master here. But if it is clear in advance that the monarchy is about to be stripped from you, that in a very short time the entire city will go into exile and be ruined and burned - why must you parade your royalty and dominion? There is no need for it, for they will not long endure here in any case.
The Radak explains "because you enclose yourself in cedar" - that you surround and entrench yourself with cedars, meaning you construct for yourself an edifice of cedar. As for "did not your father eat and drink" - seemingly, what did the prophet mean by this? Are eating and drinking considered praise? The Radak explains that it is as though the prophet tells him: I do not begrudge you your pleasures, what you eat and drink. If you were executing justice and righteousness - eat and drink in good health, provided that you uphold justice and righteousness! Behold, your father Yoshiyahu ate and drank in the manner of kings, enjoying what was fitting for him to enjoy, yet he did justice and righteousness, and "then it was well with him" - he lived well all his days. There is nothing wrong with eating, drinking, and enjoying, provided everything is conducted with justice and integrity. But you take your pleasure, eating and drinking from what is not yours - at whose expense? At the expense of the workers, at the expense of those who built your palace. Thus, your eating and drinking are steeped in extortion and robbery.
There is another explanation: Yehoyakim would constantly observe fasts. He would commit evil deeds and then fast, imagining that this would atone for all his misdeeds. It is like those people who appear once a year on Yom Kippur, purchase the opening of the Aron Kodesh for ten thousand dollars, and that is that: "Master of the Universe, take Yours and leave me be until next year." Every year he buys himself another year; he has a receipt and documentation, and perhaps he even took a selfie - here, I am photographed, everyone can see that I was there, done. Yehoyakim was just like that, believing that fasts served as payment for his evil deeds. Therefore the prophet tells him: did not your father eat and drink, and do justice and righteousness? Eat and drink in good health, but execute justice and righteousness; do not fast while going around robbing people.
A miserly rich man once came before one of the great Chasidic Rebbes. The Rebbe asked him: "What do you eat?" The man replied: "I do not pursue pleasures; I eat only black bread and a few olives." The Rebbe said to him: "What are you talking about? Is this fitting? You should be eating fattened fowl, you should be eating fine steaks, according to what Hashem has granted you!" After the man departed, the attendant asked: "The Rebbe is known as a great ascetic, so why did you suddenly encourage him to spread such a lavish table?" The Rebbe replied: "Understand: if this man eats fattened fowl, there is a chance he might give black bread to the poor. But if he eats black bread himself, he will assume that gravel is sufficient for the poor." He told him: eat properly, so you will at least understand that a pauper needs sustenance; but when you skimp on yourself, what will you ever give to the poor?
The Chida recounts in Ma'agal Tov that during his travels he arrived in Tunis and was hosted by a local sage. Food was served, and the Chida relates that he looked at the plate set before the host and was astonished: where will all of this fit? Yet the host ate and left nothing behind. Afterward, however, he took a volume of the Gemara and sat learning through the entire night with immense diligence, without a single pause. The Chida observed: his Torah study corresponds to his eating. A vehicle needs to travel, and it must be refueled; he refueled properly, and then studied properly. He was not like an ordinary person whose head feels heavy after such a feast and must immediately go to bed. And this is what the prophet is conveying to Yehoyakim: it would be far better if you simply ate; your father Yoshiyahu ate, but he executed justice. You, however, practice self-mortification while failing to do justice.
The Malbim adds a profound insight into the greatness of Yoshiyahu: "Will you reign..." - do you think that by competing in cedar, by building yourself such a grand house, you prove yourself a king? Come and see that your father ate and drank, yet he did not act as you do. And what was his greatness? Even while he ate and drank, at that very same moment he enacted justice. When someone came for judgment, he did not say to him, "Sir, do not disturb me, I am eating now." Rather, he "ate and drank, and executed justice and righteousness" - at that very same time. Eating and drinking were not paramount to him, to the point that he welcomed people to come and seek judgment before him even during his meal, "for then it was well with him." For truly, it is not good for a king to seek his own self-interest, but only the welfare of the public; and your father acted properly, unlike you.
דָּן דִּין עָנִי וְאֶבְיוֹן אָז טוֹב, הֲלוֹא הִיא הַדַּעַת אֹתִי נְאֻם יְהֹוָה. - He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well. Is this not knowing Me? says Hashem.
Do not think that he interrupted his meal only for weighty matters and intricate, complicated lawsuits brought before him. No; while your father ate and drank, people would disturb him in the middle of his meal, and he would judge the cause of the poor and needy. Even a case involving a poor and needy person - where he could have told them to wait until later, or to go to the lower courts - your father would stop his meal and judge the cause of the poor and needy. "Then it was well with him" - it turns out that his "well-being" was not found in the feast; when did he feel good? When he performed justice, when he led the kingdom with righteousness and integrity. And this is "Is this not knowing Me?" - this is the testimony that he knew Me. As it says, "For you judge not for man, but for Hashem, who is with you in the matter of judgment." When a person feels that the judgment he renders is for God, he feels like a partner in the governance of the Master of the World, and that is true good - far more than finishing his meal.
"For your eyes and your heart are set on nothing but your dishonest gain"
כִּי אֵין עֵינֶיךָ וְלִבְּךָ כִּי אִם עַל בִּצְעֶךָ, וְעַל דַּם הַנָּקִי לִשְׁפּוֹךְ, וְעַל הָעֹשֶׁק וְעַל הַמְּרוּצָה לַעֲשׂוֹת. - For your eyes and your heart are set on nothing but your dishonest gain, and shedding innocent blood, and practicing oppression and crushing violence.
You, in contrast, are concerned solely with the pursuit of money - "nothing but your dishonest gain," grabbing illicit profit and extorting money. Ha-merutzah ("crushing") comes from the concept of crushing the poor (ritzutz dalim), as Rashi explains, and denotes fracture or crushing, as in "Whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed [ratzoti]?" The difference between them: oppression (oshek) pertains to money, whereas crushing (merutzah) pertains to the body - crushing one's physical body. How so? He would force a laborer to work and refuse to pay his wages, as we saw earlier, robbing him of a hired worker's pay; and he would beat him so that he would do the work properly, compelling him to labor - this is the crushing of his body. And not only that, but also "and shedding innocent blood" - spilling the blood of the innocent, murdering without due process or justice. About this it is said in Divrei HaYamim: "And his abominations which he did, and that which was found upon him, behold, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah." And what is that book? The Radak explains that because it mentions both the kings of Judah and the kings of Israel, it refers to the Book of Yirmiyahu, where the crimes of Elyakim - who is Yehoyakim - are detailed.
The Malbim notes a precision in "your eyes and your heart": the verse mentions both the sight of the eyes, which is sensory perception, and the sight of the heart, because Chazal teach that the eyes and the heart are the two agents (sarsorim, brokers) of sin. A sarsor in rabbinic idiom is an intermediary. Were it not for the eyes and the heart, a person would have no link to the outside world and would not desire anything external; and why does one desire? Because the eye sees and the heart covets. The prophet says to him: both agents are operating at full capacity within you, and at all times toward what? Toward your dishonest gain. There is nothing you do for the public good; if you do something at all, it is always with the thought of "what's in it for me?" - a politician, in short. Everything is for your own benefit, and neither in thought nor in deed will you do anything unless you see personal profit in it.
Furthermore, a king's role is to avenge innocent blood, to prosecute those who spill innocent blood, to execute justice and law, and not to allow people to murder and commit outrages without facing judgment, for "a king establishes the land through justice." Yet you - not only do you fail to punish the murderer of the innocent, but you yourself spill innocent blood; and instead of overseeing that oppression and violence are not committed in your kingdom, you are the very one committing them. And all of this serves as a preface, in order to declare what your punishment will be.
In summary:
Yirmiyahu was sent to the house of the king of Judah in a final effort to save it: just as he previously offered them the observance of Shabbat, which perfects the integrity of belief, he now offers them justice and righteousness, which perfect the integrity of leadership. If they do so, kings from the lineage of David will enter the gates of the palace in great splendor; but if not, it is sworn that the house will become a ruin, the Gilead will become a desert, the cedars of the palace will be felled into the fire, and passing nations will understand on their own that all of this came about because they abandoned Hashem's covenant. From there, the prophet turns to the fate of the kings: do not weep for the dead who was spared from the calamity, but rather for the one going into exile, never to return; and from this derives a lesson for the generations that one must not grieve excessively beyond the prescribed measure. Finally, the rebuke of Yehoyakim, who built a magnificent palace by withholding the wages of his workers, contrasted with his father Yoshiyahu, who even while eating and drinking stopped to judge the cause of the poor and needy - "Is this not knowing Me? says Hashem."