THEODORET (tr. Hill)

(Hypothesis) Theodoret [PG 81:812A-816A; note that the catena text begins about halfway through the hypothesis as transmitted separately, and also includes explicit reference to Apollinaris and Polychronius in the first sentence rather than the generic "some" (cf. also Theodoret's comment on 1.1)]:

The blessed prophet Ezekiel began his prophesying in the fifth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin [Ἰωακείμ], also called Jeconiah; it was not the first captivity, as Apollinarius and Polychronius thought, but the third of Jerusalem, the fourth of Judah and the sixth of Israel as a whole. In the first Tiglath-Pileser took captive most of the ten tribes; in the second Shalmaneser took captive Samaria and went off after enslaving the cities round it; in the third Sennacherib besieged the other cities of Judah and deported many people as captives, but after attempting to attack Jerusalem with great impiety he reaped the rewards of his blasphemy, lost his army from a heaven-sent blow and returned home with a few survivors.

After him Nebuchadnezzar carried out the fourth captivity: after coming to the throne in the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim [Ἰωακείμ] son of Josiah, he reached Judah with a large army; he seized many talents of gold and silver and numerous members of the royal family as well as some of the sacred vessels, and shifted his forces from there, imposing a tribute on the king [O: "on the people"]. With the passage of a brief period, Jehoiakim [Ἰωακείμ] refused to pay the tax imposed, and Nebuchadnezzar in the eleventh year of the former's reign and the eighth year of his own rule advanced again on Jerusalem: he did away with Jehoiakim by ordering him to be thrown from the wall, leaving him unburied for a long time. He took captive all the public officials, appointed Jehoiachin [Ἰωακείμ], also called Jeconiah, Jehoiakim's [Ἰωακείμ / Ἐλιακείμ] son, king for the remainder, and took him off to Babylon. After three months and a few days had passed, he heard that he had rebelled and came once again; he shackled him and took him off into captivity with no small number of others, appointing his uncle king, the brother of the former king Jehoiakim, son of Josiah, by name Mattaniah, also called Zedekiah, requiring of him an oath that he would be loyal to him and pay the tribute on time. When, however, he in turn broke the oath and refused to pay the tribute and be loyal, and instead had recourse to Egypt, he raised a mighty army and came on the scene, capturing the city and all its populace, and setting fire to the palace, the divine Temple and every splendid building; he took off those who had survived death by starvation and slaughter in battle, and transported to Babylon all the furnishings, not only those made of silver and gold but also the pillars built of bronze as well as everything else.

So Jeconiah's was not the first capture of Jerusalem, as some commentators thought, but the third; we are informed of this by the fourth book of Kings, the book of the Chronicles and the divine prophet Daniel, who also begins his work thus, "In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it; the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand as well as some of the vessels from the house of God;" and shortly after, "The king told his chief eunuch Ashpenaz to bring in some of the children of the captivity of the children of Israel and the royal family." So capture of Jerusalem occurred in the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim, this being the first year of Nebuchadnezzar's reign. The prophet himself informs him of this in speaking in these terms, "In the second year of his reign Nebuchadnezzar had a dream;" as I said, the second captivity happened in the eleventh year of the reign of Jehoiachim but the eighth year of Nebuchadnezzar's rule, the third in the first year of the reign of Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim, the ninth year of the rule of Nebuchadnezzar. [The text of O (inadvertently) omits "the third ... Nebuchadnezzar."] Blessed Jeremiah the prophet also informs us of this, and it is easy for anyone interested to assemble the dates and get a clear grasp of them from that prophet.

Ezekiel began his prophesying, therefore, in the fifth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin, also called Jeconiah; it was also the fifth year of the reign of Zedekiah, who was appointed king of the Jews in Jeconiah's place. Daniel, on the other hand, had begun his prophesying twelve years before, and while they were prophesying at the same time in Babylon, in Judah there were Jeremiah, Zephaniah and Uriah son of Shemaiah, though the latter were prior not only to Ezekiel but also to Daniel: blessed Jeremiah began prophesying in the thirteenth year of King Josiah, and Zephaniah says he did his prophesying in the time of King Josiah, whereas Uriah son of Shemaiah was slaughtered at the hands of Jehoiakim for prophesying and foretelling dire events in his time. The divine Ezekiel, therefore, was the last of those prophesying at the time of the captivity; Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi prophesied after the return [the text of O omits "Haggai ... the return"], whereas this prophet had divine revelations arousing fear and dread, and he forecasts the overthrow not only of Jews but also of Tyrians, Sidonians and the other foreigners, Moabites, Ammonites, Idumeans and in addition to them Egyptians. He foretells also the release of the Jews from captivity, the rebuilding of the divine Temple and countless other things that we shall reach on in the detailed commentary. But enough of this--so as not to prolong this outline of the theme, we shall begin the detailed commentary. So let us beseech the prophet's God to grant us through the prophet a share in the grace of knowledge...[Catena text significantly different at the end; Hill's translation has been adjusted to reflect that.]