Shealtiel

The Biblical Record

Shealtiel was the son of Jehoiachin, king of Judah. His Hebrew name is commonly understood to mean "I have asked of God." Jehoiachin was the king taken to Babylon in the early sixth century BC; Scripture also calls him Jeconiah or Coniah. 1 Chronicles 3:17 lists Shealtiel first among the sons of "Jeconiah the captive." Scripture records nothing of Shealtiel's own deeds.

His name recurs chiefly in the phrase that introduces his son, "Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel." This expression appears in Ezra 3:2, 3:8, and 5:2; Nehemiah 12:1; and Haggai 1:1, 1:12, and 2:23, among other passages. Zerubbabel served as governor of Judah after the return from exile and led the rebuilding of the temple.

Significance Within Scripture

Scripture presents Shealtiel as a link showing that the royal line of David continued unbroken through the exile. Jeremiah 22:24-30 declares that none of Coniah's descendants would sit on the throne of David. Haggai 2:23, by contrast, states that God would make Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel "as a signet," that is, a seal ring. Many interpreters read these two passages together within the framework of the Davidic covenant.

In the New Testament, Shealtiel appears in both genealogies of Jesus. Matthew 1:12 records, "And after they were brought to Babylon, Jechonias begat Salathiel; and Salathiel begat Zorobabel." Luke 3:27 lists Shealtiel as the son of Neri.

Interpretation and Points of Discussion

Two discrepancies among the biblical texts have long been discussed.

• The father of Zerubbabel: In the Hebrew Masoretic Text, 1 Chronicles 3:19 lists Zerubbabel as the son of Pedaiah, Shealtiel's younger brother. The Septuagint, however, is known to list Zerubbabel at this point as the son of Shealtiel. Several explanations have been offered for this difference. The first appeals to levirate marriage: when Shealtiel died childless, Pedaiah married his brother's widow, and the son born of that union became legally Shealtiel's son (Deuteronomy 25:5-10). A second holds that Shealtiel adopted his nephew, and a third regards the difference as having arisen in the course of manuscript transmission.
• The father of Shealtiel: Matthew names Jeconiah as Shealtiel's father, while Luke names Neri. Views differ on this point as well. One view takes Luke's genealogy as tracing Mary's line; another holds that both genealogies trace Joseph's line, one giving the legal line and the other the line of physical descent. Still another regards the Shealtiel of the two genealogies as two different men. Formal denominational positions on the question are rare, and commentators reach differing conclusions. Those who emphasize biblical inerrancy generally harmonize the two records, while some historical-critical scholars regard them as preserving distinct traditions.
• The noncanonical book of 2 Esdras (4 Ezra) 3:1 has its narrator call himself "Salathiel, (who am also called Esdras)." This is a literary device within that work; the text of the Protestant Bible does not identify Shealtiel with Ezra.

In the Korean Church

The New Korean Revised Version (Gaeyeok Gaejeong) renders the name "Seualdiel." In Korean churches, the name is mentioned chiefly when the genealogy in Matthew 1 is read or when Zerubbabel is introduced in expository preaching on Haggai and Ezra. Few sermons or Sunday school lessons treat Shealtiel as a central figure.