Original Word: יְהוּכַל
Part of Speech: Proper Name Masculine
Transliteration: Yhuwkal
Pronunciation: yeh-hoo-KAL
Phonetic Spelling: (yeh-hoo-kal')
KJV: Jehucal
NASB: Jehucal, Jucal
Word Origin: [from H3201 (יָכוֹל יָכוֹל - able)]

1. potent
2. Jehukal, an Israelite

Jehucal

From yakol; potent; Jehukal, an Israelite -- Jehucal. Compare Yuwkal.

see HEBREW yakol

see HEBREW Yuwkal

Word Origin
from Yhvh and yakol
Definition
"the LORD is able," a courtier of King Zedekiah
NASB Translation
Jehucal (1), Jucal (1).

יְהוּכַל, יוּכַל proper name, masculine ᵐ5 Ἰωαχαλ (Manuscripts have ζ, χ, ς, for λ) (probably contracted from יהויוכל, ׳י is able) a courtier of king Zedekiah, ׳יְהוּ Jeremiah 37:3 = ׳יוּ Jeremiah 38:1.

יְהוּכַל proper name, masculine see below יהוה above

יְהַלֶּלְאֵל see below II. הלל above

יַהֲלֹם see below הלם above

יהץ (√ of following; Arabic break, split; valide calcavit; terra depressa et rotunda).

יוּכַל proper name, masculine see יְהוּכַל above.

Historical Setting

Jehucal, son of Shelemiah, served in the closing years of the kingdom of Judah during the reign of King Zedekiah (circa 588 BC). Babylon had already carried off King Jehoiachin, installed Zedekiah as a vassal, and was now tightening its grip on Jerusalem. Court officials were divided between pro-Egyptian optimism and Jeremiah’s unpopular call to surrender to Babylon. Against this backdrop, Zedekiah dispatches Jehucal to the prophet, seeking divine intervention.

Key Passage

Jeremiah 37:3: “Yet King Zedekiah sent Jehucal son of Shelemiah and Zephaniah son of Maaseiah the priest to Jeremiah the prophet, requesting, ‘Please pray to the LORD our God for us!’”.

(The same individual is called “Jucal” in Jeremiah 38:1.)

Role in Jeremiah’s Ministry

1. Royal Emissary. Jehucal’s commission shows that even a resistant king still looked to the prophetic word when crisis loomed.
2. Intermediary for Intercession. The request, “Please pray,” illustrates Judah’s lingering belief that the LORD alone could deliver, even while the leadership refused the obedience Jeremiah demanded.
3. Witness to Prophetic Consistency. Jeremiah’s response (37:6-10) reiterated his earlier message of inevitable Babylonian victory, underscoring that prophetic truth does not bend to political pressure. Jehucal therefore stands as a link in the chain that publicly authenticated Jeremiah’s unchanging word.

Character and Motives

While the text offers no explicit moral evaluation, the narrative context suggests that Jehucal served the king’s agenda rather than God’s. After Jeremiah’s continued warnings, the same Jehucal appears among the officials who later demand Jeremiah’s imprisonment (38:1-6). His progression from envoy to persecutor reveals a heart aligned with nationalistic optimism, not covenant obedience.

Prophetic and Theological Implications

• Reliance on prayer apart from repentance is futile. The king’s appeal through Jehucal sought blessing without submission, a pattern Scripture repeatedly exposes (Psalm 66:18; Isaiah 1:15).
• God’s word is trustworthy even when delivered through unpopular messengers. Jehucal’s mission highlights the contrast between political expediency and prophetic certainty.
• Human authority is accountable to divine authority. By placing a royal official at Jeremiah’s feet, the text subtly reminds readers that “the word of the LORD endures forever” (1 Peter 1:25).

Archaeological Confirmation

A clay bulla unearthed in the City of David bears the inscription: “Belonging to Yehukal son of Shelemiah son of Shevi.” The correspondence of name and patronymic with Jeremiah 37:3 provides an extra-biblical witness to the historicity of both the official and the biblical narrative.

Spiritual Lessons

1. Crisis often drives even reluctant leaders to seek prayer; genuine faith, however, requires submission to God’s revealed will.
2. Proximity to prophetic truth does not guarantee obedience. Jehucal heard Jeremiah’s words firsthand yet ultimately rejected them.
3. God mercifully offers warning before judgment. Jehucal’s visit gave Judah another opportunity to repent, emphasizing divine patience (2 Peter 3:9).
4. Scripture’s historical details are reliable, as demonstrated by archaeological discoveries and the internally consistent portrayal of figures like Jehucal.

Related Figures

• King Zedekiah – vacillating monarch who sent Jehucal.
• Zephaniah son of Maaseiah – priest who accompanied Jehucal on the mission.
• Pashhur son of Malchijah – fellow official who later joined Jehucal in seeking Jeremiah’s arrest.

Summary

Jehucal embodies the tension between political necessity and prophetic truth in Judah’s final hours. His brief appearance underscores the futility of seeking God’s help without heeding God’s word and serves as a sober reminder that the authority of Scripture stands firm amid the shifting allegiances of human history.

יְהוּכַ֣ל יהוכל yə·hū·ḵal yehuChal yəhūḵalInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts