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The allegory given in vv.1-10 is interpreted in vv.11-21 as a picture of how King Zedekiah’s policies brought about his downfall and ultimately that of Judah. The eagle designates Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon who took Jehoiachin, king of Judah who is the top of the cedar (the Davidic line) into exile in 597 B.C.E. The seed of [the] land is King Zedekiah, another descendant of David, who was placed on the throne in Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar. Another great eagle represents the pharaoh of Egypt to whom Zedekiah appealed for help against Nebuchadnezzar (17:15). This rebellion against Nebuchadnezzar failed, and Zedekiah was captured, blinded, and then taken to Babylon, where he died in 587 B.C.E. (vv.16; 2Ki 25:7). The allegory concludes with God’s promise that he himself would one day take a branch from the very top of the cedar (the line of David) and plant him in Jerusalem. Through this messianic figure God’s reign of peace would become a universal reality.