Jehozadak

Biblical Record

Jehozadak first appears in the priestly genealogy of 1 Chronicles 6. This genealogy traces the high-priestly line from Aaron through Eleazar and Phinehas, and its final portion reads, "And Azariah begat Seraiah, and Seraiah begat Jehozadak" (1 Chronicles 6:14). It continues, "And Jehozadak went into captivity, when the LORD carried away Judah and Jerusalem by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar" (1 Chronicles 6:15), indicating that he was among those carried away to Babylon.

All other references to him occur in the phrase identifying his son Joshua: "Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest," where the KJV renders the name as "Josedech." This expression appears in Haggai 1:1, 1:12, 1:14, 2:2, and 2:4, and in Zechariah 6:11. In Ezra and Nehemiah, the Korean Revised Version and the New Korean Revised Version give the name in the shortened form "Jozadak" and the son's name as "Jeshua" (Ezra 3:2; 5:2; 10:18; Nehemiah 12:26; and elsewhere).

Scripture does not record what Jehozadak did in exile, when or where he died, or whether he returned to his homeland. Nor is there any record that he served as high priest.

Significance Within Scripture

Jehozadak serves as a link between the high-priestly family of the pre-exilic period and the priesthood after the return from exile. His son Joshua, together with the governor Zerubbabel, led the returning community and undertook the rebuilding of the temple. Haggai and Zechariah add the father's name whenever they refer to Joshua, which is generally understood as a way of showing that Joshua belonged to the legitimate priestly line. The name is usually interpreted to mean "the LORD is righteous." Jehozadak does not appear in the New Testament.

Interpretations and Issues

• His father, Seraiah, is commonly identified with "Seraiah the chief priest," who was executed at Riblah after the fall of Jerusalem, according to 2 Kings 25:18-21 and Jeremiah 52:24-27. On this view, Jehozadak was taken into captivity after his father's execution.
• Many interpreters regard the genealogy in 1 Chronicles 6 not as a complete record of every generation but as a selective list. For this reason, Jehozadak's dates are difficult to determine precisely from this genealogy alone.
• Ezra 10:18 records that some of the descendants of "Jeshua the son of Jozadak" had married foreign women. This record concerns his descendants, not Jehozadak himself.

In the Korean Church

Jehozadak himself is rarely the subject of sermons or Sunday school lessons. His name is mentioned chiefly when the phrase "Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest" is read in expository preaching on Haggai and Zechariah or in sermons on the rebuilding of the temple.