22:1ff Chapters 22–25 may not be in chronological order. In 21:8-10 God implied that it was too late for repentance. In 22:4, however, God said that there was still time to change. The events to which this chapter refers occurred before those of chapter 21.
22:3 God gave the king the basis for rebuilding the nation—turn from evil and do right. Doing what is right is more than simply believing all the right doctrines about God. It means living in obedience to God. Good deeds do not save us, but they display our faith (James 2:17-26).
22:10-12 Good King Josiah had died at the battle of Megiddo (2 Kings 23:29); his son Shallum (Jehoahaz) reigned for only three months in 609 B.C. before being taken away to Egypt by Pharaoh Nechoh. He would be the first ruler to die in exile. The people were told not to waste their tears on the death of Josiah but to cry for the king who was taken into exile and would never return.
22:15, 16 God passed judgment on King Jehoiakim. His father, Josiah, had been one of Judah’s great kings, but Jehoiakim was evil. Josiah had been faithful to his responsibility to be a model of right living, but Jehoiakim had been unfaithful to his responsibility to imitate his father. God’s judgment was on unfaithful Jehoiakim. He could not claim his father’s blessings when he had not followed his father’s God. We may inherit our parents’ money, but we cannot inherit their faith. A godly heritage, a good education, or a beautiful home doesn’t guarantee moral character. We must have our own relationship with God.
22:21 Jehoiakim had been hardheaded and hard-hearted since childhood. God warned him, but he refused to listen. His prosperity always took a higher priority than his relationship with God. If you ever find yourself so comfortable that you don’t have time for God, stop and ask which is more important—the comforts of this life or a close relationship with God.
22:24, 25 Coniah may be an abbreviation for Jeconiah (another name for Jehoiachin). A signet ring was extremely valuable because a king used it to authenticate important documents. Jehoiachin’s sins spoiled his usefulness to God. Even if he were God’s own signet ring, God would depose him because of his sins (see 24:1).
22:30 Zedekiah reigned after Jehoiachin but died before him (52:10, 11). Jehoiachin (Coniah) was the last king of David’s line to sit on the throne in Judah (1 Chronicles 3:15-20). He had seven sons, but not one served as king. Jehoiachin’s grandson Zerubbabel ruled after the return from exile (Ezra 2:2). He was only a governor, not a king.