The spiritual condition of Judah was one of flagrant idol worship (cf. chap. 2). King Ahaz, preceding his son Hezekiah long before Jeremiah in Isaiah’s day, had set up a system of sacrificing children to the god Molech in the Valley of Hinnom just outside Jerusalem (735–715 B.C.). Hezekiah led in reforms and clean-up (Is. 36:7), but his son Manasseh continued to foster child sacrifice along with gross idolatry, which continued into Jeremiah’s time (7:31; 19:5; 32:35). Many also worshiped the “queen of heaven” (7:18; 44:19). Josiah’s reforms, reaching their apex in 622 B.C., forced a repressing of the worst practices outwardly, but the deadly cancer of sin was deep and flourished quickly again after a shallow revival. Religious insincerity, dishonesty, adultery, injustice, tyranny against the helpless, and slander prevailed as the norm not the exception.
Politically momentous events occurred in Jeremiah’s day. Assyria saw its power wane gradually; then Ashurbanipal died in 626 B.C. Assyria grew so feeble that in 612 B.C. her seemingly invincible capital, Nineveh, was destroyed (cf. the book of Nahum). The Neo-Babylonian empire under Nabopolassar (625–605 B.C.) became dominant militarily with victories against Assyria (612 B.C.), Egypt (609–605 B.C.), and Israel in 3 phases (605 B.C., as in Dan. 1; 597 B.C., as in 2 Kin. 24:10–16; and 586 B.C., as in Jer. 39, 40, 52).
While Joel and Micah had earlier prophesied of Judah’s judgment, during Josiah’s reign, God’s leading prophets were Jeremiah, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah. Later, Jeremiah’s contemporaries, Ezekiel and Daniel, played prominent prophetic roles.
Historical and Theological Themes
The main theme of Jeremiah is judgment upon Judah (chaps. 1-29) with restoration in the future messianic kingdom (23:3-8; 30-33). Whereas Isaiah devoted many chapters to a future glory for Israel (Is. 40-66), Jeremiah gave far less space to this subject. Since God’s judgment was imminent he concentrated on current problems as he sought to turn the nation back from the point of no return.
A secondary theme is God’s willingness to spare and bless the nation only if the people repent. Though this is a frequent emphasis, it is most graphically portrayed at the potter’s shop (18:1–11). A further focus is God’s plan for Jeremiah’s life, both in his proclamation of God’s message and in his commitment to fulfill all of His will (1:5–19; 15:19–21). Other themes include: 1) God’s longing for Israel to be tender toward Him, as in the days of first love (2:1–3); 2) Jeremiah’s servant tears, as “the weeping prophet” (9:1; 14:17); 3) the close, intimate relationship God had with Israel and that He yearned to keep (13:11); 4) suffering, as in Jeremiah’s trials (11:18–23; 20:1–18) and God’s sufficiency in all trouble (20:11–13); 5) the vital role that God’s Word can play in life (15:16); 6) the place of faith in expecting restoration from the God for whom nothing is too difficult (chap. 32, especially vv. 17, 27); and 7) prayer for the coordination of God’s will with God’s action in restoring Israel to its land (33:3, 6–18).
Interpretive Challenges
A number of questions arise, such as: 1) How can one explain God’s forbidding prayer for the Jews (7:16) and saying that even Moses’ and Samuel’s advocacy could not avert judgment (15:1)? 2) Did Jeremiah make an actual trek of several hundred miles to the Euphrates River, or did he bury his loin cloth nearby (13:4–7)? 3) How could he utter such severe things about the man who announced his birth (20:14–18)? 4) Does the curse on Jeconiah’s kingly line relate to Christ (22:30)? 5) How is one to interpret the promises of Israel’s return to its ancient land (chaps. 30–33)? and 6) How will God fulfill the New Covenant in relation to Israel and the church (31:31–34)? The answers to these will be included in the study notes at the appropriate passages.
A frequent challenge is to understand the prophet’s messages in their right time setting, since the book of Jeremiah is not always chronological, but loosely arranged, moving back and forth in time for thematic effect. Ezekiel, by contrast, usually places his material in chronological order.
Outline
I. Preparation of Jeremiah (1:1-19)
A. The Context of Jeremiah (1:1-3)
B. The Choice of Jeremiah (1:4-10)
C. The Charge to Jeremiah (1:11-19)
II. Proclamations to Judah (2:1-45:5)
A. Condemnation of Judah (2:1-29:32)
1. First message (2:1—3:5)
2. Second message (3:6—6:30)
3. Third message (7:1—10:25)
4. Fourth message (11:1—13:27)
5. Fifth message (14:1—17:18)
6. Sixth message (17:19–27)
7. Seventh message (18:1—20:18)
8. Eighth message (21:1–14)
9. Ninth message (22:1—23:40)
10. Tenth message (24:1–10)
11. Eleventh message (25:1–38)
12. Twelfth message (26:1–24)
13. Thirteenth message (27:1—28:17)
14. Fourteenth message (29:1–32)
B. Consolation to Judah—New Covenant (30:1-33:26)
1. The forecast of restoration (30:1—31:40)
2. The faith in restoration (32:1–44)
3. The forecast of restoration—Part 2 (33:1–26)
C. Calamity on Judah (34:1-45:5)
1. Before Judah’s fall (34:1—38:28)
2. During Judah’s fall (39:1–18)
3. After Judah’s fall (40:1—45:5)
III. Proclamations of Judgment on the Nations (46:1-51:64)
A. Introduction (46:1; cf. 25:15-26)
B. Against Egypt (46:2-28)
C. Against Philistia (47:1-7)
D. Against Moab (48:1-47)
E. Against Ammon (49:1-6)
F. Against Edom (49:7-22)
G. Against Damascus (49:23-27)
H. Against Kedar and Hazor [Arabia] (49:28-33)
I. Against Elam (49:34-39)
J. Against Babylon (50:1-51:64)
IV. The Fall of Jerusalem (52:1-34)
A. The Destruction of Jerusalem (52:1-23)
B. The Deportation of Jews (52:24-30)
C. The Deliverance of Jehoiachin (52:31-34)
The Book of
JEREMIAH
Jeremiah 1
Jeremiah Called to Be a Priest
1The words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests who were ain Anathoth in the land of Benjamin,
2to whom the word of the LORD came in the days of bJosiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, cin the thirteenth year of his reign.
3It came also in the days of dJehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, euntil the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah, king of Judah, funtil the carrying away of Jerusalem captive gin the fifth month.
The Prophet Is Called
4Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying:
5“Before I hformed you in the womb iI knew you;
Before you were born I jsanctified1 you;
I 2ordained you a prophet to the nations.” Illustrations of God’s Judgment
6Then said I:
k“Ah, Lord GOD!
Behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth.”
7But the LORD said to me:
“Do not say, ‘I am a youth,’
For you shall go to all to whom I send you,
And lwhatever I command you, you shall speak.
8m Do not be afraid of their faces,
For nI am with you to deliver you,” says the LORD.
9Then the LORD put forth His hand and otouched my mouth, and the LORD said to me:
“Behold, I have pput My words in your mouth.
10q See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms,
To rroot out and to pull down,
To destroy and to throw down,
To build and to plant.”
11Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Jeremiah, what do you see?” And I said, “I see a 3branch of an almond tree.”
12Then the LORD said to me, “You have seen well, for I am 4ready to perform My word.”
13And the word of the LORD
came to me the second time, saying, “What do you see?” And I said, “I see sa boiling pot, and it is facing away from the north.”
14Then the LORD said to me:
“Out of the tnorth calamity shall break forth
On all the inhabitants of the land.
15For behold, I am ucalling
All the families of the kingdoms of the north,” says the LORD;
“They shall come and veach one set his throne
At the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem,
Against all its walls all around,
And against all the cities of Judah.
16I will utter My judgments
Against them concerning all their wickedness,
Because wthey have forsaken Me,
Burned xincense to other gods,
And worshiped the works of their own yhands.
17“Therefore zprepare yourself and arise,
And speak to them all that I command you.
a Do not be dismayed before their faces,
Lest I dismay you before them.
18For behold, I have made you this day
b A fortified city and an iron pillar,
And bronze walls against the whole land—
Against the kings of Judah,
Against its princes,
Against its priests,
And against the people of the land.
19They will fight against you,
But they shall not prevail against you.
For I am with you,” says the LORD, “to deliver you.”
Jeremiah 2
God’s Case Against Israel
1Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
2“Go and cry in the hearing of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD:
“I remember you,
The kindness of your ayouth,
The love of your betrothal,
b When you 1went after Me in the wilderness,
In a land not sown.
3c Israel was holiness to the LORD,
d The firstfruits of His increase.
e All that devour him will offend;
Disaster will fcome upon them,” says the LORD.’ ” Major Trials of Jeremiah
4Hear the word of the LORD, O house of Jacob and all the families of the house of Israel.
5Thus says the LORD:
g“What injustice have your fathers found in Me,
That they have gone far from Me,
h Have followed 2idols,
And have become idolaters?
6Neither did they say, ‘Where is the LORD,
Who ibrought us up out of the land of Egypt,
Who led us through jthe wilderness,
Through a land of deserts and pits,
Through a land of drought and the shadow of death,
Through a land that no one crossed
And where no one dwelt?’
7I brought you into ka bountiful country,
To eat its fruit and its goodness.
But when you entered, you ldefiled My land
And made My heritage an abomination.
8The priests did not say, ‘Where is the LORD?’
And those who handle the mlaw did not know Me;
The rulers also transgressed against Me;
n The prophets prophesied by Baal,
And walked after things that do not profit.
9“Therefore oI will yet 3bring charges against you,” says the LORD,
“And against your children’s children I will bring charges.
10For pass beyond the coasts of 4Cyprus and see,
Send to 5Kedar and consider diligently,
And see if there has been such a pthing.
11q Has a nation changed its gods,
Which are rnot gods?
s But My people have changed their Glory
For what does not profit.
12Be astonished, O heavens, at this,
And be horribly afraid;
Be very desolate,” says the LORD.
13“For My people have committed two evils:
They have forsaken Me, the tfountain of living waters,
And hewn themselves cisterns—broken cisterns that can hold no water.
14“ Is Israel ua servant?
Is he a homeborn slave?
Why is he plundered?
15v The young lions roared at him, and growled;
They made his land waste;
His cities are burned, without inhabitant.
16Also the people of 6Noph and wTahpanhes
Have 7broken the crown of your head.
17x Have you not brought this on yourself,
In that you have forsaken the LORD your God
When yHe led you in the way?
18And now why take zthe road to Egypt,
To drink the waters of aSihor?
Or why take the road to bAssyria,
To drink the waters of 8the River?
19Your own wickedness will ccorrect you,
And your backslidings will rebuke you.
Know therefore and see that it is an evil and bitter thing
That you have forsaken the LORD your God,
And the 9fear of Me is not in you,”
Says the Lord GOD of hosts.
20“For of old I have dbroken your yoke and burst your bonds;
And eyou said, ‘I will not 10transgress,’
When fon every high hill and under every green tree
You lay down, gplaying the harlot.
21Yet I had hplanted you a noble vine, a seed of highest quality.
How then have you turned before Me
Into ithe degenerate plant of an alien vine?
22For though you wash yourself with lye, and use much soap,
Yet your iniquity is jmarked11 before Me,” says the Lord GOD.
23“Howk can you say, ‘I am not 12polluted,
I have not gone after the Baals’?
See your way in the valley;
Know what you have done:
You are a swift dromedary breaking loose in her ways,
24A wild donkey used to the wilderness,
That sniffs at the wind in her desire;
In her time of mating, who can turn her away?
All those who seek her will not weary themselves;
In her month they will find her.
25Withhold your foot from being unshod, and your throat from thirst.
But you said, l‘There is no hope.
No! For I have loved maliens, and after them I will go.’
26“As the thief is ashamed when he is found out,
So is the house of Israel ashamed;
They and their kings and their princes, and their priests and their nprophets,
27Saying to a tree, ‘You are my father,’
And to a ostone, ‘You gave birth to me.’
For they have turned their back to Me, and not their face.
But in the time of their ptrouble
They will say, ‘Arise and save us.’
28But qwhere are your gods that you have made for yourselves?
Let them arise,
If they rcan save you in the time of your 13trouble;
For saccording to the number of your cities
Are your gods, O Judah.
29“Why will you plead with Me?
You all have transgressed against Me,” says the LORD.
30“In vain I have tchastened your children;
They ureceived no correction.
Your sword has vdevoured your prophets
Like a destroying lion.
31“O generation, see the word of the LORD!
Have I been a wilderness to Israel,
Or a land of darkness?
Why do My people say, ‘We 14are lords;
w We will come no more to You’?
32Can a virgin forget her ornaments,
Or a bride her attire?
Yet My people xhave forgotten Me days without number.
33“Why do you
beautify your way to seek love?
Therefore you have also taught
The wicked women your ways.
34Also on your skirts is found
y The blood of the lives of the poor innocents.
I have not found it by 15secret search,
But plainly on all these things.
35z Yet you say, ‘Because I am innocent,
Surely His anger shall turn from me.’
Behold, aI will plead My case against you,
b Because you say, ‘I have not sinned.’
36c Why do you gad about so much to change your way?
Also dyou shall be ashamed of Egypt eas you were ashamed of Assyria.
37Indeed you will go forth from him
With your hands on fyour head;
For the LORD has rejected your trusted allies,
And you will gnot prosper by them.
Jeremiah 3
Israel Is Shameless
1“They say, ‘If a man divorces his wife,
And she goes from him
And becomes another man’s,
a May he return to her again?’
Would not that bland be greatly polluted?
But you have cplayed the harlot with many lovers;
d Yet return to Me,” says the LORD.
2“Lift up your eyes to ethe desolate heights and see:
Where have you not 1lain with men?
f By the road you have sat for them
Like an Arabian in the wilderness;
g And you have polluted the land
With your harlotries and your wickedness.
3Therefore the hshowers have been withheld,
And there has been no latter rain.
You have had a iharlot’s forehead;
You refuse to be ashamed.
4Will you not from this time cry to Me,
‘My Father, You are jthe guide of kmy youth?
5l Will He remain angry forever?
Will He keep it to the end?’
Behold, you have spoken and done evil things,
As you were able.”
A Call to Repentance
6The LORD said also to me in the days of Josiah the king: “Have you seen what mbacksliding Israel has done? She has ngone up on every high mountain and under every green tree, and there played the harlot.
7o“And I said, after she had done all these things, ‘Return to Me.’ But she did not return. And her treacherous psister Judah saw it.
The MacArthur Study Bible, NKJV Page 351