In one place of the Bible it says, “Therefore thus says the Lord concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah: He shall have none to sit on the throne of David, and his dead body shall be cast out to the heat by day and the frost by night.” (Jer. 36:30) But then in another place it says, “So Jehoiakim slept with his fathers, and Jehoiachin his son reigned in his place.” (2 Ki. 24:6) Is this a contradiction?

No. While it is true that Jehoiachin did take over control after the death of his father Jehoiakim, he was in Jerusalem only three months before the city fell to the hands of Nebuchannezzar. After only three months of reigning in Jerusalem, Jeroiachin was taken away into captivity, and Zedekiah was then placed on the throne. According to the Hebrews, the idea that is expressed in the phrase ‘sit on the throne’ implies a more permanent role. To put it simply, God was telling Jehoiakim that his family name would cease to be in the position of leadership, and that there would no longer be an empire in his name. Due to Jehoiachin’s extremely short reign before being taken into captivity, we can see that this prophecy was indeed fulfilled.