The Coniah Curse and the Sin Nature

These studies are designed for believers in Jesus Christ only. If you have exercised faith in Christ, then you are in the right place. If you have not, then you need to heed the words of our Lord, Who said, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten [or, uniquely-born] Son, so that every [one] believing [or, trusting] in Him shall not perish, but shall be have eternal life! For God did not send His Son into the world so that He should judge the world, but so that the world shall be saved through Him. The one believing [or, trusting] in Him is not judged, but the one not believing has already been judged, because he has not believed in the Name of the only-begotten [or, uniquely-born] Son of God." (John 3:16–18). "I am the Way and the Truth and the Life! No one comes to the Father except through [or, by means of] Me!" (John 14:6).

Every study of the Word of God ought to be preceded by a naming of your sins to God. This restores you to fellowship with God (1John 1:8–10). If we acknowledge our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1John 1:9). If there are people around, you would name these sins silently. If there is no one around, then it does not matter if you name them silently or whether you speak aloud.

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines
The Coniah Curse (a graphic)	The Two Genealogies and the Coniah Curse	The Coniah Curse and the Passing Down of the Sin Nature
David's Family Graphic	Other Resources on the Coniah Curse	Definition of Terms

Preface:	It appears that Coniah (also known as Jeconiah), a descendant of King David, is supposed to be cut out of the line of Christ in Jer. 22:24–30. However, we find his name in Matt. 1:11, which is a part of the genealogy of Jesus Christ. So what gives?

This is a fascinating doctrine, which has parallels to the sin nature; that is, Coniah himself illustrates the sin nature, and the necessity of the virgin birth.

A great many weird accusations have been made about the Bible, including the idea that so many men got in a room, chose which books to insert, and edited the books so that the Bible would teach doctrines that this elite group favored. This is historically inaccurate, impossible at any point in time, and doctrines like the Coniah Curse show us just how complex and intricate the Bible actually is.

This doctrine of the Coniah curse is based upon the writings of three different men, the first of whom is separated from the second two men by a period of over 600 years. We know this to be true, as there was already a Greek translation of the Old Testament in use when Matthew and Luke came on the scene. The concept of the virgin birth can really be traced back all the way to the 3rd chapter of Genesis, as well as to the writings of Isaiah. The concept of the sin nature is found throughout Scripture.

I will place the Definition of Terms at the end of this doctrine. Many of these terms were developed by R. B. Thieme, Jr.; but there are technical theological terms included as well. The words will be double-
hyperlinked so that clicking on the first use of a technical term will take you to its definition; and you can click on the term next to the definition and be taken back to where you were in the doctrine.

The Coniah Curse (a graphic) from TheNey03 on YouTube; accessed December 11, 2013.

I have covered this doctrine, both within the exegesis of Luke 3 and as a stand-alone doctrine. Both will be presented below:

The Two Genealogies and the Coniah Curse:

There is a very important difference in these two genealogies. From Abraham to David, the genealogies recorded by Matthew and Luke are the same; however Joseph's genealogy (in Matthew) picks up with Solomon and follows the royal line to Joseph; but Mary's genealogy (in Luke) picks up with Nathan (presumably Solomon's younger brother) and follows his line to Jesus.

As we view these two genealogies, bear in mind that Luke begins with Jesus and works backwards to Adam (and to God); Matthew begins with Abraham and works forward to Joseph, Jesus' step-father.

Luke 3:31b –32a ...the son of Nathan, the son of David, the son of Jesse,... (unless otherwise noted, the ESV; capitalized will be used in this first section)

Matt. 1:6 ...and Jesse fathered David the king. And David the king fathered Solomon out of her who had been the wife of Uriah,... (Green's literal translation)

This is where the two lines diverge. The book of Luke presents the line of Heli to Nathan (Heli being the Lord's genetic grandfather) and the book of Matthew presents the line as going forward from Solomon to Joseph (called the future husband of Mary in Matt. 1:16 and called the supposed father of Jesus in Luke 3:23). Joseph is never tied genetically to Jesus; Joseph is the legal father of Jesus; and throughout his life, he was presumed to be the father of Jesus (even though he wasn't).

There are two different lines leading to Jesus—the line of Abraham to Jesus, through Solomon, found in Matt. 1:1–16. This is the legal line of Jesus, going from Abraham to Joseph, who is Jesus' adopted father, but not genetic father. The line in Luke 3 is the actual line of the humanity of Jesus, which goes through Nathan, the son of David, proceeding eventually to Jesus Himself. Both of these lines are identical between Abraham and David; but Joseph and Mary are descended from different sons of David. They are 25th cousins, give or take.

In the line of David, we come down to Josiah, one of Israel's last good kings; whose son was Jehoiakim; whose son was the father of Jechoniah (1Chron. 3:16 Matt. 1:11). Jechoniah was cursed by God.

In the book of Matthew, Joseph's genealogy goes through Jehoiachin (also called Jeconiah or Coniah). This line reads:

Matt. 1:10–12 ...and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos, and Amos the father of Josiah, and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon. And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel, and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,... (ESV)

Jeconiah was evil, as was his generation, so that God caused them all to be deported to Babylon as a national punishment (also known as the 5th stage of national disciple or the 5th cycle of discipline). For Israel to be forced out of the land, things had to get pretty bad. Very often, when a nation reaches such a stage when maximum discipline is applied by God, both the leaders and the people are in maximum reversionism (or maximum negative volition towards the plan of God). Whereas, I believe that Coniah was (or eventually became) a believer in the Revealed God, we do not know about the people of Israel. No doubt many were; but it appears that believers in Israel did not grow spiritually during Coniah's reign.`

The Coniah curse is found in Jer. 22:24, which will present in a fuller context:

Jer. 22:24–27 "As I live, declares the LORD, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, were the signet ring on my right hand, yet I would tear you off and give you into the hand of those who seek your life, into the hand of those of whom you are afraid, even into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and into the hand of the Chaldeans. I will hurl you and the mother who bore you into another country, where you were not born, and there you shall die. But to the land to which they will long to return, there they shall not return." (ESV; capitalized)

God says, if Coniah were a signet ring on His hand, that He would tear that ring off. Does this sound like the line of the Messiah?

Jer. 22:28–30 Is this man Coniah a despised, broken pot, a vessel no one cares for? Why are he and his children hurled and cast into a land that they do not know? O land, land, land, hear the word of the LORD! Thus says the LORD: "Write this man down as childless, a man who shall not succeed in his days, for none of his offspring shall succeed in sitting on the throne of David and ruling again in Judah." (ESV, emphasis mine)

Because of the evil done by Coniah, if he were a signet ring on God's hand, God would tear him off. There is no future for the line of Coniah. God calls for this man to be childless, and that no man will succeed him in his days. None of his children will follow him in sitting on David's exalted throne. Nevertheless, Coniah's line continues, as testified to in both the Old and New Testaments. Jeconiah is the father of Shealtiel and Shealtiel fathers Zerubbabel. Zerubbabel, as some of you might know, would be the leader to return to Jerusalem, to build up the walls of the city once again.

The phrasing found here is interesting. This does not read, Let this man be childless; it says instead, Write this man down as childless... The Hebrew word for write is kâthab ( ) [pronounced kaw-
THAHBV]. In the Qal imperative, it means, write, write down, record [chronicle, document], direct or decree in writing, proscribe; describe. Strong's #3789 BDB #507. Jeconiah is childless by decree or childless by record; but he is not in fact childless, as he does sire children. So, how do I explain the difference? A king may have bastard sons—sons who are genetically his through an affair (or even by a long-standing relationship), but children who are not heirs to his throne (as they are not sons of the wife of the king). As far as many are concerned, these are not his children; and they are not recorded anywhere as being the king's children. They will never be royalty. This is the way in which Coniah is childless; he is decreed in writing to be childless. He is childless in the way that is most important to a king—particularly as a king on the throne of Judah. His line would no longer yield a royal son and his line would not lead to David's Greater Son. Jeconiah's son (s) would never sit on the throne of Judah (which is the remaining southern kingdom).

If Jesus were descended from Coniah, then He could not sit upon the throne of David, as per this curse. Jeconiah had a son (or sons) but they would not sit upon the throne of Israel (actually, Judah).

Jehoiachin's reign is described in both 2Kings 24:8–16 and more briefly in...

2Chron. 36:9–10 Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he became king, and he reigned three months and ten days in Jerusalem. He did what was evil in the sight of the LORD. In the spring of the year King Nebuchadnezzar sent and brought him to Babylon, with the precious vessels of the house of the LORD, and made his brother Zedekiah king over Judah and Jerusalem.

Nebuchadnezzar did not besiege Judah for a few months, but waged a campaign that apparently went on for many years. After 3 years, the removal of the people of Israel was begun (Daniel 1:1–5); and after 8 years, nearly all were removed (2Kings 24:8–12). With that, the royal family and nearly all the people of Israel were removed from the land (only the poorest remained behind—2Kings 24:14).

Whatever Coniah did was so bad, that the people were removed from the land for 70 years (obviously, the people had turned cold towards God as well, as God is not going to remove an entire people simply because their leader is evil). Coniah was the appropriate leader for the people of Jacob. Coniah was the leader that the people of Israel deserved at that time.

Application: I write this in October of 2020, with a presidential election on the near horizon. Always remember that, a people get the leader they deserve. It does not matter how much politicking that you do, or how many articles you splash on your fb page, the leader which God has determined, the leader who is appropriate, that is the leader that we will get. This may help to explain why we have had so few great presidents in this nation.

Application: The United States is a client nation to
God, just as Israel was. Because of this, there is great
blessing, but also great scrutiny and, sometimes, great
punishment. There are dozens of memes out there
portraying 2020 as an horrendous year. However, if our
nation is on the downhill slide, 2020 will seem like a
picnic to subsequent years. We need to turn around
spiritually as a nation, if we expect to continue in the
great blessing that we have enjoyed.

Don't Ever Go To 2020 (a meme); from Know Your
Meme; accessed October 23, 2020.

Back to our topic, which is the Coniah curse.

Surprisingly enough, after 37 years in prison, the next
Babylonia leader Evil-merodach, set Coniah free and
dined with him, giving Coniah an allowance to live off of.
The graciousness of Evil-merodach was no doubt representative of the graciousness of God; which suggests that Coniah had a change of heart towards the God of his people. Yet the Coniah curse still stands.

Again, the curse is: Jer. 22:24, 30 "As I live, declares the LORD, though Coniah were the signet ring on my right hand, yet I would tear you off Thus says the LORD: "Write this man down as childless, a man who shall not succeed in his days, for none of his offspring shall succeed in sitting on the throne of David and ruling again in Judah."

Although Coniah was not literally childless, the complete independence of nation Israel along with its kingly throne had come to an end. Coniah's genealogical line continued down to Joseph, but, because Joseph was not the real father of Jesus, Coniah's line did not lead to the Eternal King. It was cut off, so to speak, with Joseph. There were no more royal sons in the line of Coniah; in that way, he is written off as childless.

But there is another line of David, through his son Nathan, which leads us to Mary (that is the line that we are studying here in Luke 3), and this becomes the true royal line, culminating1 in the Greater Son of David.

The sin nature is passed along by the human father; and this is illustrated by the Coniah curse. Throughout the Bible there are a number of real things which also are illustrative. Coniah is a real person, and he illustrates a real thing (the sin nature).
The Coniah Curse and the Passing Down of the Sin Nature
1.	God made many promises to Abraham which were continued to David; David was promised that a King from his line would sit on the throne of Israel forever (this is known as the Davidic Covenant). Psalm 89

2.	This Eternal King is Jesus Christ, also called the Son of David. Matt. 1:1 9:27

3.	However, in David's line there was a king so horrible and God cursed him for all time. This is Jeconiah, also known as Coniah. Jer. 22:24–30 "As I live," says the LORD, "though you, Coniah son of Jehoiakim, the king of Judah, were a signet ring on My right hand, I would tear you from it. In fact, I will hand you over to those you dread, who want to take your life, to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and the Chaldeans. I will hurl you and the mother who gave birth to you into another land, where neither of you were born, and there you will both die. They will never return to the land they long to return to." Is this man Coniah a despised, shattered pot, a jar no one wants? Why are he and his descendants hurled out and cast into a land they have not known? Earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD! This is what the LORD says: Record this man as childless, a man who will not be successful in his lifetime. None of his descendants will succeed in sitting on the throne of David or ruling again in Judah. (HCSB; emphasis mine)

4.	However, Coniah's name is found in the line of David, and in the line of Christ in Matt. 1:11. At first, that would seem problematic, as God certainly made it sound as though he is cut out of the Davidic Covenant.

5.	So, how is this man kept out of the line of Christ? Matt. 1:11 is the legal line of Christ, going from Abraham to Joseph. Joseph is Jesus' legal father, but not His genetic father. Jesus is not actually descended from Coniah, even though His legal father, Joseph, was.

6.	Coniah represents the sin nature. The sin nature cannot be in the line of Christ. Jesus cannot inherit a sin nature. No one with a sin nature can die for our sins.

7.	The sinless Jesus Christ died for our sins. God had Christ, Who was sinless, take our sin so that we might receive God's approval through Him. (2Cor. 5:21; God's Word capitalized)

8.	Joseph, in the line of Coniah, is not the genetic father of Jesus. Therefore, Coniah is not in the line of Christ. Matt. 1:18–19

David's Family Graphic from Pastor Ed
Collins; accessed April 23, 2014.

9.	The genetic line of Jesus does not
proceed through David and his son
Solomon to Jesus; but through David and
his son Nathan and eventually to Jesus.
Compare Matt. 1:6 with Luke 3:31.

10.	So Coniah, representative of the sin
nature, is kept out of the genetic line of
Jesus Christ; just as the sin nature is not
passed along to Jesus, because there
was no contribution from a human father.
It is the human father who passes down
the sin nature. This is why the virgin birth
is so important. We inherit the sin nature
from our father only. Since Jesus Christ had no human father, He was not born with a sin nature.

11.	Adam sinned knowingly; but his wife sinned because she was deceived. So they are both fallen, but the nature of their original sins is different. 1Tim. 2:13–15

12.	Because of the difference of their sins, God has dealt with the man and woman differently. From the very beginning, the Savior would be born as the seed of the woman. Even as far back as Gen. 3:15, God spoke of the seed of the woman, which would be the natural enemy of the seed of the serpent.

13.	Thus the importance of the virgin birth, which is more than a sign. The virgin birth is the means by which Jesus is born without an indwelling sin nature. Isa. 7:14 Matt. 1:23 Luke 1:35 John 1:14 Heb. 4:15 7:26 1John 3:5

14.	Therefore, Jesus is born without a sin nature because he had no human father. He is also born outside of the line of Coniah, who represents the passing along of the human sin nature. Coniah is cursed; and the sin nature is our curse.
For those who like to speculate, if the humanity of Jesus sinned, then there could be no salvation. At that point, Jesus could only die for His Own sins. No idea how the Hypostatic Union could have held together. However, as noted above, Jesus was without sin—He did not have a sin nature nor did He commit any personal sins. Therefore He could take upon Himself our sins.
Topics	Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines

I did not really look through these carefully. I am not sure if any of them drew the parallel between Coniah and the sin nature.
The Coniah Curse (other sources)
The Genealogy of Jesus Christ and the Curse of Coniah. Grace Bible Church

The Davidic Covenant: The Coniah curse. Robert McLaughlin

The Prophetic Necessity Of The Virgin Birth. Pastor Jeremy M. Thomas; Fredericksburg Bible Church

Why a Virgin Named Mary? Pastor Ed Collins
Dr. Robert Dean gives us a good summation of the Coniah curse: Luke 3:23 NASB "When He began His ministry, Jesus Himself was about thirty years of age, being, as was supposed, the son of Joseph, the son of Eli." If we look at Matthew we see that Matthew starts with Abraham and comes forward. Joseph's name is inserted instead of Mary in Luke 3 because it was typical in genealogies to have the man's name there and not the woman's name. What we have in Luke 3 is the physical descent through His mother coming down to Jesus. Luke 3:31 NASB "the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David. " Jesus' lineage physically couldn't have gone through Joseph because if we look at the Matthew genealogy it traces back through Coniah, and Jesus could not be a physical descendant of Coniah because of the Coniah curse. So He is cut off physically from having that descent through Solomon, but it is through Solomon that He has a legal inheritance to the throne. But it is Mary through whom He has the direct physical descent through and her line goes back to Nathan.2
Chapter Outline	Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines

Many who read and study this chapter are 1st or 2nd generation students of R. B. Thieme, Jr., so that much of this vocabulary is second nature. One of Bob's contributions to theology is a fresh vocabulary along with a number of concepts which are theologically new or reworked, yet still orthodox. Therefore, if you are unfamiliar with his work, the definitions below will help you to fully understand all that is being said. Also included are various technical terms from Christian theology along with a few new terms and concepts which I have developed.
Sometimes the terms in the exegesis of this chapter are simply alluded to, without any in-depth explanation of them. Sometimes, these terms are explained in detail and illustrated. A collection of all these terms is found here: (HTML) (PDF) (WPD). Often, the terms below are linked to complete doctrines.
Definition of Terms
This is the stage of discipline God brings upon Israel when the people are removed from their own land and taken into slavery by some foreign power. Thieme called this the 5th Cycle of Discipline. The Five Cycles of Discipline (R. B. Thieme, Jr.) (Ken Ford) (Joe Griffin chart) (Lee Griffith) (Wisdom and Knowledge) (L. G. Merritt).
A covenant (contract, agreement) which God makes with David which include the promise that David would have a Son Who would rule over Israel forever and that Israel would occupy a huge chunk of land (today, the equivalent of Israel, Jordan, Syria and Iraq, as well as portions of the Sinai Peninsula and Saudi Arabia). This covenant is eternal and unconditional.3 For details on this covenant, see 2Samuel 7 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD) 1Chronicles 17 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD) Psalm 89 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).
The (or, the Revealed Lord)	We do not look within ourselves or do we build up some concept of God based upon our own experiences, but we first understand God as He has revealed Himself. Throughout the lives of the saints who have gone before us, God revealed Himself through the written Word and sometimes through direct contact. Once a foundation is laid, then we can see how God is understood through various experiences in our lives.

We do not look within to find God and we do not go out and search for God. He will reveal Himself to us. Those who look to other gods are simply worshiping that which others have defined as God; or, in many cases, they incorporate their own norms and standards into their belief of the God they choose to believe in. Essentially, such a person is making God in his own image.
Reversionism is getting out of fellowship through sinning, and then remaining out of fellowship for a long time. Often, such a believer reverts to his behavior as an unbeliever (like the dog who returns to his vomit). This is called reversionism; or spiritual regression; or spiritual retrogression. This is going further than simple carnality, which is being out of fellowship; this is a person staying out of fellowship for long periods of time, losing his spiritual focus, and beginning to think like an unbeliever. He is a believer who is off course, walking backwards, or has fallen into a ditch (Reversionism—Ken Reed) (Reversionism—Jim Rickard) (Reversionism—divine viewpoint)
The sin nature is that part of man, passed down from father to his children, which is in rebellion to God. In the Church Age, we are either controlled by the sin nature or by the Holy Spirit. The sin nature has an area of weakness and an area of strength, as well as a lust pattern. The Doctrine of the Sin Nature (Grace Notes); Doctrine of the Old Sin Nature (Buddy Dano); Old Sin Nature (James Allen) (Michael Lemmon4) (L. G. Merritt) (The origin of the old sin nature—McLaughlin) (Doctrine of the Old Sin Nature—Makarios—Word document) (Sin Nature)
The virgin birth is a doctrine which is essential Christianity. The importance of the virgin birth is based upon the concept that the sin nature is passed down through the man. Because Jesus is born of a virgin, He did not inherit the sin nature. It is not a part of his genetic makeup.

Secondly, the virgin birth is prophesied in Isaiah 7:14 9:6, so this had to be fulfilled by the Messiah. See the Virgin Birth of Jesus Christ (Grace Bible Church) (Doctrine.org).
Some of these definitions are taken from

https://www.gotquestions.org/

http://rickhughesministries.org/content/Biblical-Terms.pdf

http://www.gbible.org/index.php?proc=d4d

http://www.wordoftruthministries.org/terms-and-definitions/

http://www.theopedia.com/
Chapter Outline	Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines

Bibliography

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Kukis Homepage	Doctrines