Nehushta

Nehushta was the daughter of Elnathan from Jerusalem. She became the wife of Jehoiakim, a wicked king of Judah, and they had a son named Jehoiachin, also known as Coniah, who reigned as king after the death of his father. 

Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he became king. He only reigned for three months, but 2 Kings 24:8-9 lets us know “His mother’s name was Nehushta the daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem. And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father had done.”

Before Jehoiachin could do much evil as king, however, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, besieged the city of Jerusalem and took as prisoners Jehoiachin, his mother, their servants, and the palace officials.

Nebuchadnezzar carried off all the treasures from the temple and the palace and broke up all the vessels of gold in the Lord’s temple, He carried away all Jerusalem, the officials, the mighty men of valor, the craftsmen, and the smiths. He took everyone except the poorest of the poor. 

Jehoiachin, his wives, Nehushta, and all the chief men of Jerusalem were taken into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon. 

The capture of Jehoiachin and Nehushta fulfilled a prophecy by Jeremiah in Jeremiah 22:26 when he predicted that Jehoichin, called Coniah, would be cast out of Jerusalem along with his mother, and they would die in a foreign country. 

The Bible authors made a point repeatedly include Nehushta when mentioning Jehoiachin, his wicked reign as king, and this captivity. We can assume that the two were in evil harmony together. 

Read about in Nehushta in Scripture: 2 Kings 24:2-15, Jeremiah 22:26-27, 29:2

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