“In the fourth year
Of King Jehoiakim,
The son of King Josiah,
Of Judah,
This word
Came to Jeremiah
From Yahweh.”
Once again, there is an exact date for this oracle of Yahweh to Jeremiah, the 4th year of King Jehoiakim, 605 BCE. King Eliakim, or King Jehoiakim (609-598 BCE) as he was called, was the son of King Josiah (640-609 BCE). He took over for his brother King Jehoahaz or King Shallum, who just lasted a few months in 609 BCE. Like the preceding chapter, this is a different numbered chapter in the Greek translation of the Septuagint, chapter 43, not chapter 36 as here.