Jeremiah 22:17
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What's striking here is that "dishonest gain" isn't just about taking money, but encompasses the methods used to get it. The text links it directly to violence, oppression, and even shedding innocent blood, showing that these aren't separate sins but are deeply intertwined with a covetous heart focused solely on accumulating wealth.
But you have eyes and heart only for your dishonest gain, for shedding innocent blood, and for practicing oppression and violence.”
English Standard Version (ESV)
This passage directly contrasts King Jehoiakim with his godly father, Josiah. Jeremiah is denouncing Jehoiakim's corrupt reign, highlighting how his obsession with personal gain fueled ruthless oppression and violence against his own people. The verse immediately following will pronounce judgment on Jehoiakim, promising he'll be carried off like a horse in the wilderness, unable to return.
What truly captures your attention? The verse paints a stark picture of King Jehoiakim's inner world, revealing where his ultimate desires lay.
Jeremiah describes Jehoiakim's 'eyes and heart' being solely focused on harmful pursuits. This isn't just about external actions, but the internal disposition driving them.
The Gaze of Greed
His 'eyes' represent his outward focus and perception. They were fixed on 'gain' – not honest profit, but ill-gotten wealth through injustice and violence.
The Engine of Evil
His 'heart' is the inner core, the seat of his intentions and affections. It was entirely consumed by this lust for gain, plotting and desiring corrupt means to achieve it.
This shows how a corrupted inner life inevitably leads to destructive outward behavior. What we fixate on internally will eventually manifest in our actions.
Jehoiakim's corruption wasn't a single sin, but a terrifying trifecta. Discover the interconnected evils that defined his reign.
The verse doesn't just mention one sin, but a progression of escalating wickedness: dishonest gain, shedding innocent blood, and practicing oppression and violence.
Gain Built on Ruin
'Dishonest gain' (or 'covetousness') was the root. This wasn't passive desire, but active pursuit, often involving taking what wasn't theirs. The commentaries reveal this often meant seizing property through illicit means.
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The Price of Greed: Innocent Blood
To achieve this gain, Jehoiakim resorted to the most heinous act: 'shedding innocent blood.' This implies judicial murder, false accusations, or outright killings to eliminate rivals or seize assets.
The Reign of Terror: Oppression and Violence
The overarching system was one of 'oppression and violence.' This describes the consistent, brutal mistreatment of the vulnerable, crushing them under the weight of unjust rule and force.
These sins didn't exist in isolation; they fueled each other, creating a destructive cycle of corruption at the highest levels.
Was King Jehoiakim personally responsible for every act of violence, or was there a deeper accountability?
The verse points to Jehoiakim's personal culpability, but the commentaries offer a crucial insight: leaders are held accountable for the systemic corruption they enable or create.
The King's Vision
Jehoiakim's 'eyes and heart' set the tone. His relentless pursuit of wealth and power created an environment where injustice, violence, and murder became normalized policies.
The Actions of the Court
Commentators note that Jehoiakim likely didn't commit every act of violence himself. He did it 'by' his corrupt judges and officials. However, God holds the leader responsible for the actions of those acting under their authority and in their name.
Divine Accounting
Just as Ahab was responsible for Naboth's death though he didn't strike the fatal blow, Jehoiakim was accountable for the 'innocent blood' shed and the 'oppression' carried out by his administration. This is a sobering reminder that leaders bear the weight of the moral climate they foster.
Understand the original words
betza · Hebrew Noun
Unjust profit or wealth gained through corrupt means, extortion, or the exploitation of others. It is strictly forbidden by God as it violates justice and holiness.
dam naqiy · Hebrew Noun phrase
The act of murdering someone who is morally blameless or uninvolved in wrongdoing. It is an abomination before God and is often highlighted as a symptom of a nation in spiritual decay.
osheq · Hebrew Noun
The cruel or unjust use of power to crush, treat harshly, or burden others. It is frequently condemned as a rejection of God’s command to love one's neighbor.
chamas · Hebrew Noun
The use of physical force to cause harm or intimidation. In the prophets, it often refers to public disorder and the abuse of the weak by the strong.
Jeremiah's prophecy against Jehoiakim highlights how personal greed and a lust for power led this king to exploit his people through violence and oppression, ultimately hastening Judah's downfall.
c. 609 BC
Jehoiakim becomes King of Judah
After his father Josiah's death in battle, Jehoiakim (originally named Shallum) is installed as king by Pharaoh Neco of Egypt.
c. 605-598 BC— this verse
Jehoiakim's oppressive reign
Jehoiakim rules Judah with a heavy hand, marked by heavy taxation, forced labor, and the shedding of innocent blood to fund his building projects and maintain power.
c. 600 BC
Murder of Uriah the Prophet
Jehoiakim has the prophet Uriah executed by sword and his body cast into common graves for prophesying against Jerusalem, an act of shedding innocent blood.
598 BC
Jehoiakim's death and brief reign of Jehoiachin
Jehoiakim dies amid Nebuchadnezzar's siege of Jerusalem. His son Jehoiachin reigns for only three months before surrendering to the Babylonians.
597 BC
First Babylonian Deportation
Jehoiachin and thousands of Judah's elite are exiled to Babylon, marking a significant loss of leadership and talent following Jehoiakim's corrupt rule.
This passage powerfully echoes Jeremiah's condemnation, showing how leaders who exploit and harm their own people for personal gain are seen by God.
Ezekiel 18:11-13This highlights the severe consequences of specific sins, including shedding innocent blood and practicing oppression, framing them as direct violations of God's commands and worthy of judgment.
1 Timothy 6:10This verse identifies the root of the evils described in Jeremiah 22:17, explaining that the love of money, or covetousness, often fuels such wicked actions.
Proverbs 28:16This proverb directly contrasts righteous leadership with the kind described in Jeremiah, showing that a ruler lacking understanding and filled with greed will oppress their people and rule unjustly.
pulpitJeremiah 22:17: "But thine eyes and thine heart are not but for thy covetousness, and for to shed innocent blood, and for oppression, and for violence, to do it."
Verse 17. - But thou, O Jehoiakim, art the opposite of thy father. For (not, But) thine eyes and thine heart are not but for thy covetousness. "Covetousness" includes the ideas of injustice and violence (comp. Jeremiah 6:13; Jeremiah 8:10); hence the second half of the verse emphasizes the cruel tyranny which marked the internal polic…
barnesJeremiah 22:17: "But thine eyes and thine heart are not but for thy covetousness, and for to shed innocent blood, and for oppression, and for violence, to do it."
Covetousness - literally, gain. Besides exacting forced labor Jehoiakim, to procure the necessary means for the vast expenses he incurred, put innocent people to death on various pretexts, and escheated their property.
What's striking here is that "dishonest gain" isn't just about taking money, but encompasses the methods used to get it. The text links it directly to violence, oppression, and even shedding innocent blood, showing that these aren't separate sins but are deeply intertwined with a covetous heart focused solely on accumulating wealth.
This passage directly contrasts King Jehoiakim with his godly father, Josiah. Jeremiah is denouncing Jehoiakim's corrupt reign, highlighting how his obsession with personal gain fueled ruthless oppression and violence against his own people. The verse immediately following will pronounce judgment on Jehoiakim, promising he'll be carried off like a horse in the wilderness, unable to return.
This passage directly contrasts King Jehoiakim with his godly father, Josiah. Jeremiah is denouncing Jehoiakim's corrupt reign, highlighting how his obsession with personal gain fueled ruthless oppression and violence against his own people. The verse immediately following will pronounce judgment on Jehoiakim, promising he'll be carried off like a horse in the wilderness, unable to return.
"But you have eyes and heart only for your dishonest gain, for shedding innocent blood, and for practicing oppression and violence.”" — What's striking here is that "dishonest gain" isn't just about taking money, but encompasses the methods used to get it. The text links it directly to violence, oppression, and even shedding innoce…
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.
Last reviewed October 2026
