Jeremiah 37:2

But neither he. In view of the history of the latter part of his reign that follows, this is a prefatory statement of the general character of Zedekiah’s rule.

It seems that Zedekiah, personally at least, believed in Jeremiah as a true prophet. Although it is not so stated, the context implies that Jeremiah responded to the king’s request for prayer (v. 3). At least, according to the record (v. 5), it seems to have been soon after this request that the Egyptian army withdrew from Jerusalem. Somewhat later Zedekiah had a secret interview with the prophet, at which he seems to have revealed at least a secret fear, if not a profound conviction, that Jeremiah was an inspired messenger.

If these observations have validity, it would appear that Zedekiah’s decisions reflect vacillation more than they do outright doubt or unbelief. The readiness with which Zedekiah complied with the request of the princes by casting Jeremiah into the dungeon of Malchiah (see ch. 38:4-6), only to remove him from the dungeon at the suggestion of one of the royal eunuchs (vs. 7-13), suggests that if Zedekiah had only possessed the courage of his convictions the fate of Jerusalem might have been much different.