Sarsechim is a name found in the King James Bible, appearing 1 time in the text.
Who This Was
Sarsechim was a high official in the court of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. He is mentioned by name only once in the King James Bible, in Jeremiah 39:3, where he appears among the Babylonian princes who entered Jerusalem and took their seats in the middle gate. This event occurred in the final siege and capture of Jerusalem, when the city fell to the Babylonian army in the eleventh year of King Zedekiah of Judah.
In the verse, Sarsechim is listed alongside other Babylonian officials: Nergalsharezer, Samgarnebo, Rabsaris, another Nergalsharezer, and Rabmag. The text describes these men as “all the princes of the king of Babylon” who “came in, and sat in the middle gate.” Their act of sitting in the gate was a symbolic and official gesture—it signified authority, possession, and judgment over the conquered city. The gate was the place where legal and royal decisions were made in the ancient Near East, so the Babylonians seating themselves there declared their dominion over Jerusalem.
Scripture records nothing else about Sarsechim personally—no words, no deeds beyond his presence in that company. He is one of several officials named to document the fulfillment of God’s judgment through Babylon, as prophesied by Jeremiah. His inclusion in the list underscores the completeness of Jerusalem’s fall and the arrival of the foreign rulers who would oversee its destruction and the deportation of its people.
The Name
The name Sarsechim is a Hebrew transliteration of a Babylonian (Akkadian) name, and its exact meaning is not clearly recoverable. Scholars have proposed various possible readings, but none is firmly established. Like many foreign names in the Old Testament, it was likely rendered phonetically by the Hebrew scribes rather than translated. Because the meaning is uncertain, it is best to acknowledge that we do not know what this name meant rather than assign it a speculative definition.
A Closing Thought
Sarsechim appears only in a single verse, a name in a list of conquerors. He likely thought himself powerful and victorious as he sat in Jerusalem’s gate, yet he is remembered only as an instrument in God’s unfolding plan. His story reminds us that earthly authority, however impressive in the moment, is fleeting and subject to the purposes of God. What matters is not the length of our mention in history, but whether we stand with the Lord or against Him. Even the mightiest empires serve His will.
At a Glance
- Gender: Male
- Testament: Old
- Mentions in the KJV: 1
Where It Appears in Scripture
- Jeremiah 39:3 — And all the princes of the king of Babylon came in, and sat in the middle gate, even Nergalsharezer, Samgarnebo, Sarsechim, Rabsaris, Nergalsharezer, Rabmag, with all the residue of the princes of the king of Babylon.