יחזקאל, פרק י״ז, פסוק ה׳

The parable of the eagle takes a calculated turn. After uprooting the top of the cedar tree, a new planting occurs. This represents the political strategy of Nebuchadnezzar. Rather than forcing a foreign ruler upon the people, he chooses to appoint a local king under his protection. He takes a local seed and plants it in a fertile field [מצודת דוד, שטיינזלץ]. In the context of trees, this act of planting can also be understood as grafting a branch onto an existing trunk [מלבי״ם]. The primary approach among commentators is that this seed represents Zedekiah, a descendant of the royal line. Nebuchadnezzar deliberately selected a local leader who understood the customs and laws of the land, knowing that a foreign king would struggle to take root. He placed Zedekiah in Jerusalem, the royal city [רש״י, רד״ק]. At the same time, this planting represents submission, as Zedekiah was grafted like a branch forced to bend under Babylonian rule [מלבי״ם].

The seed is deliberately placed near an abundant water source to ensure its rapid growth [מצודת דוד, שטיינזלץ]. This signifies that Zedekiah was granted greatness and authority over his surroundings. He was given the ideal conditions to succeed and bear fruit, provided he chose the right path [רש״י, רד״ק].

Finally, the seed is set to grow into a willow tree. Commentators offer differing views on the nature of this growth. One approach sees it as an expression of prosperity, suggesting the seed was positioned to grow quickly and produce many branches, much like a willow thriving by a river or a planted vine that outpaces a regular seed [רש״י, מצודת דוד, שטיינזלץ, רד״ק]. Another perspective views this as a symbol of lowliness and inferior status. According to this thought, the specific type of willow mentioned is an inferior breed that typically grows in dry, mountainous regions. Even though Zedekiah was taken from a place of abundance, he was ultimately humbled and left lacking blessing under the heavy yoke of Babylon [מלבי״ם]. Building on this idea, it is noted that God provided the people with the ideal conditions of a willow planted by abundant waters, but through their own corrupt actions, they reduced themselves to a dry and inferior tree [רד״ק].