Jeremiah

Universal Judgment (25:1-38). This oracle is dated to Jehoiakim's fourth year (605 b.c.). Through faithful prophets like Jeremiah, the Lord had repeatedly called the nation to repentance. They had rejected the offer and persisted in idolatry. The day of reckoning had come. Nebuchadnezzar's armies would sweep down from the north and overrun Judah and the neighboring states. These nations would serve Babylon for seventy years, after which time the Lord would overthrow their oppressor. This prophecy of Babylon's doom was fulfilled in 538 when the Persians defeated the Chaldean empire and conquered Babylon.

The coming judgment of the nations is likened to an intoxicating cup passed from mouth to mouth. Judah would take the first swig, followed by several other nations. Finally Babylon, referred to here by its code-name Sheshach (see 51:41), would be forced to take a draft from the Lord's cup. The Lord's judgment is described with other vivid images, including a deafening storm, the slaughter of sheep, the shattering of a pot, and a raging lion.

Exile and Restoration (26:1-35:19). This section begins and ends with events from Jehoiakim's time. These two chapters contrast Judah's rejection of God's prophet with the devotion of the Recabites. The intervening chapters date from the time of Zedekiah. Chapters 27-29 and 34, which condemn the nation's corrupt civil and religious leaders, provide a frame around the messages of hope and restoration in chapters 30-33.

Jeremiah's Life Threatened (26:1-24). Early in the reign of Jehoiakim, Jeremiah delivered a message to worshipers at the temple. Disaster was coming if the people refused to repent of their sinful ways. The temple would be destroyed like the shrine at Shiloh, which had once been the Lord's dwelling place (see 7:12-14).

Those who heard his message, including the priests and false prophets, grabbed Jeremiah and threatened to kill him. When royal officials intervened, the priests and prophets accused him of treason. Jeremiah declared that the Lord had sent him, again issued a call to repentance, and protested his innocence. The officials and the people objected to the religious leaders' charge. Several elders reminded the crowd of an event in the nation's history about one hundred years before. The prophet Micah had announced that the city and temple would be destroyed (see 26:18 with Mic. 3:12). On that occasion Hezekiah repented, and God postponed judgment. The elders warned that Jeremiah's opponents were about to bring a terrible disaster upon the city. Ahikam, a high-ranking official in the royal court, also interceded for Jeremiah, and he was spared.

However, a parenthetical note informs us that not all of the Lord's prophets were as fortunate as Jeremiah. One of Jeremiah's contemporaries, Uriah, was forced to flee to Egypt when one of his prophecies of judgment angered King Jehoiakim. Jehoiakim had Uriah extradited and executed.

Jeremiah Confronts the False Prophets (27:1-29:32). Early in Zedekiah's reign Jeremiah warned the people not to believe the false prophets' messages of hope and peace. In accordance with the Lord's instructions, Jeremiah made a yoke and placed it on his neck. He then sent messages to the kings of the surrounding nations, informing them that Nebuchadnezzar would subjugate their lands. They were not to believe their lying prophets and diviners who were advocating resistance and predicting deliverance. Resistance would only bring disaster and exile. They should submit to Nebuchadnezzar's authority (symbolized by the yoke) so that they might remain in their lands. The message was the same for Zedekiah. He should reject the messages of hope delivered by the false prophets, who were even promising that the temple articles already carried away to Babylon would be returned. Zedekiah should submit to Nebuchadnezzar's yoke in order to spare the city and the temple further suffering and humiliation.

In that same year Hananiah, one of the false prophets, confronted Jeremiah in the temple (28:1). He declared that within two years the Lord would deliver Judah from the Babylonians, restore the temple articles, and return Jehoiachin and the other exiles. After expressing his personal desire that Judah might experience such blessings, Jeremiah reminded Hananiah that historically the Lord's prophets had been messengers of judgment. Prophets of peace could only be authenticated when their predictions came true. In response Hananiah removed the wooden yoke from Jeremiah's neck, broke it, and once again declared that the Lord would deliver Judah and the surrounding nations from Nebuchadnezzar's yoke. Not to be denied, Jeremiah announced that the Lord would place an unbreakable iron yoke upon Judah and the nations. He then announced that Hananiah would die before the year ended, a prophecy that was fulfilled two months later.

During Zedekiah's reign Jeremiah sent a letter to those who had already been taken to Babylon. He encouraged them to settle down there, marry and have children, and pray for the prosperity of their new home. In seventy years the Lord would restore them to the promised land. They were not to believe the deceiving prophets among them who were giving them false hopes of a quick return. Even greater calamity was about to fall on sinful Judah, and those still living in the promised land would be driven among the nations.

Jeremiah condemned two of these prophets by name. Because of their immoral acts and false prophecies, the Lord would deliver them to the Babylonians for execution, probably on charges of rebellion.

Shemaiah, a false prophet in Babylon, sent several letters back to Jerusalem, informing Zephaniah the priest and others of the contents of Jeremiah's letter to the exiles. Calling Jeremiah a madman, Shemaiah urged Zephaniah to imprison the prophet. When informed by the priest of Shemaiah's words, Jeremiah sent another message to the exiles, denouncing Shemaiah as a false prophet and proclaiming that neither he nor his family would participate in the eventual restoration of the exiles.

Hope and Restoration (30:1-33:26). Though dark days were ahead, God would not totally abandon His people. An awful time of frightening judgment would come upon the sin-filled land. Abandoned by its allies and struck down by God, the nation would be like a man with an incurable wound. However, after this time of discipline, God would cure their wound and bring His exiled people back to the land. Exiles from the Northern Kingdom would be reunited with those from Judah, and together they would serve the Lord and His appointed Davidic ruler. The people would increase in numbers and enjoy a renewed relationship with God.

The message of comfort to the exiles continues in chapter 31. Assuring the Northern Kingdom of His everlasting love, the Lord promised to deliver its exiles from their captors. Like a shepherd He would lead them back home and restore their agricultural prosperity and joy. They would come to Jerusalem to worship the Lord and thank Him for His abundant blessings.

Personification highlights 31:15-22. Calling the Northern Kingdom Rachel (the mother of Joseph and grandmother of Ephraim and Manasseh, the two important northern tribes), the Lord exhorted her to cease weeping over her exiled children, for they would someday return to the land. Comparing Ephraim to His son (see v. 9), the Lord declared that He had heard His child's prayer of repentance. Finally, addressing Israel as a young woman (see v. 4), the Lord exhorted her to cease her wandering and carefully observe the road signs guiding her back to the land.

The concluding, riddlelike statement of verse 22 has puzzled interpreters. The woman is undoubtedly Israel, and the man, probably the Lord. Perhaps reference is made to Israel's newfound devotion to the Lord or to its renewed worship around the Lord's throne in Zion (see vv. 4-6,11-13). In that day Judah's devotion to the Lord would also be renewed. The restored exiles would pronounce blessings upon Jerusalem and prosper in their agricultural pursuits.

Chapter 31 culminates with a glorious promise of a new covenant. In days past the Lord had carefully planned and executed the demise of Israel and Judah. In the future He would carefully superintend their restoration. He would forgive their sins and establish a new covenant superior to the Mosaic covenant they had violated. This time God would supernaturally give them the capacity for loyalty that the old covenant had demanded. The Lord took a formal oath that His people would never cease to be a nation or experience His rejection. He promised that Jerusalem would be rebuilt, purified, and never again destroyed.

During the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem in 587 b.c. Zedekiah, who resented Jeremiah's oracles of doom, imprisoned the prophet in the royal palace. When Jeremiah's cousin Hanamel came to visit him, Jeremiah, as commanded by the Lord, redeemed Hanamel's field in accordance with the ancient law of land redemption (Lev. 25:25-28).

Having completed the transaction, Jeremiah prayed to the Lord. He praised God as the almighty Creator and just Ruler over all. He recalled God's mighty deeds in Israel's history and acknowledged that the present crisis was the result of the nation's sin. Aware that the city would fall to the Babylonians, he asked why God had instructed him to purchase a field. What good would a field be once the land was destroyed and the people exiled?

In response the Lord asked, "Is anything too hard for me?" (Jer. 32:27). Yes, He would allow the Babylonians to conquer the city because of its idolatry. The Lord would someday restore the exiles to the land, transform them into loyal worshipers, establish a new covenant with them, and restore their prosperity. In that day people would again buy and sell fields. Jeremiah's purchase of the field foreshadowed this future restoration.

While confined in the palace, Jeremiah received another encouraging message about the future restoration of the land. Though the Babylonians would reduce Judah to a wasteland and fill Jerusalem with carcasses, the Lord would someday forgive His people's sins, bring them back to the land, and cause Jerusalem to prosper. In fulfillment of His eternal promise to David (2 Sam. 7:12-16), the Lord would raise up an ideal Davidic ruler, who would bring justice and peace to the land. Faithful to His irrevocable covenant with the Levites (Num. 25:12-13), He would establish them as His servants.

Zedekiah's Fate (34:1-22). Despite these glowing promises of restoration, the immediate future remained bleak. During the Babylonian siege Jeremiah warned King Zedekiah that the Babylonians would conquer the city and take the king into exile. The prophet assured Zedekiah that he would die a peaceful, not violent, death and would receive an honorable burial.

Jeremiah also denounced the king's unjust treatment of slaves. During the siege Zedekiah and the citizens of Jerusalem pledged on oath to free all Hebrew slaves. Apparently in some cases this was done as an act of repentance for past failures in this regard (Jer. 34:13-15). However, ulterior motives must have been involved; for when the Babylonians lifted the siege, the slave owners reneged on their covenant and revoked the freedom of those just released. Jeremiah sarcastically declared that the Lord had granted these covenant violators "freedom" from their deceitful ways so that they might perish. When the Lord was through with them, they would be like one of the calves cut in two in a covenant-making ceremony. The Babylonians would return to the city and destroy it.

Jeremiah and the Recabites (35:1-19). During the reign of Jehoiakim, the Lord instructed Jeremiah to invite the Recabite family to the temple and to offer them some wine. The Recabites were the descendants of Jonadab, son of Recab (2 Kgs. 10:15-23), a zealous devotee of the Lord and opponent of Baal worship. Jonadab had commanded his descendants to follow a nomadic and ascetic lifestyle, which included total abstinence from wine. Over two hundred years later his descendants were still observing the regulations their forefather established. When Jeremiah set the wine before them, they refused to drink it, faithful to their ancestor's commands.

The Recabites were an object lesson to Judah and Jerusalem. Their unwavering devotion to their ancestor stood in stark contrast to unfaithful Judah's rejection of the Lord's prophets. Judgment would fall on Judah, but the Lord would preserve Jonadab's godly line.

Judah's Final Days (36:1-45:5). This section opens and closes with material dating from the fourth and fifth years of Jehoiakim's reign. Baruch, Jeremiah's scribe, plays a prominent role in these chapters that frame the section. The intervening chapters relate in chronological order various experiences of the prophet, beginning with his dealings with King Zedekiah and concluding with his messages to the Egyptian exiles following the fall of Jerusalem.

Jehoiakim Burns the Scroll (36:1-32). The Lord instructed Jeremiah to record all of his prophetic messages on a scroll. Jeremiah dictated his messages to the scribe Baruch. Baruch took the scroll to the temple on an official day of fasting and read the prophecies to the people assembled there. When the royal officials heard the reading of the scroll, they told Baruch they must report its contents to the king. After warning Jeremiah and Baruch to go into hiding, they informed the king. As the scroll was read, Jehoiakim cut it up by columns and burned it. He then ordered the arrest of Jeremiah and Baruch, whom by this time the Lord had hidden. The Lord then instructed Jeremiah to dictate another scroll. He also announced that Jehoiakim would be punished severely for his disrespect.

Zedekiah Imprisons Jeremiah (37:1-38:28). During the siege of Jerusalem in 588 b.c. the Babylonians temporarily withdrew from the city to fight an army sent out by Egypt, one of Judah's allies. Jeremiah warned Zedekiah that the city's relief was only temporary. The Babylonians would push back the Egyptians and then destroy Jerusalem. Jeremiah was arrested as a traitor, beaten, and imprisoned for a lengthy period of time in a dungeon. Zedekiah eventually sent for Jeremiah to see if he had any new word from the Lord. Jeremiah repeated his earlier message of judgment, protested his innocence, and asked the king not to send him back to the dungeon. Zedekiah granted his request and sent him to the courtyard of the guard.

While similarities between chapters 37 and 38 might suggest they are parallel accounts of the same events, differences in details make it more likely that chapter 38 records events subsequent to those of chapter 37. While in the courtyard of the guard, Jeremiah continued to proclaim his message of impending judgment. Several royal officials complained to Zedekiah, arguing that Jeremiah should be put to death as a traitor. With the king's approval they lowered the prophet into a muddy cistern, where they intended to let him starve. Ebed-Melech, a palace official, objected to the king, who agreed to let Ebed-Melech rescue Jeremiah from the cistern. Zedekiah again met privately with the prophet. The king expressed his fear that the Babylonians would deliver him over to the hostile pro-Babylonian Jewish party. Jeremiah assured the king that if he surrendered to the Babylonians his life would be preserved. At the same time he warned that resistance would result only in humiliation and ruin. Zedekiah warned Jeremiah to keep their conversation a secret and allowed him to remain in the courtyard of the guard.

Jerusalem's Fall and Jeremiah's Release (39:1-40:6). After a long siege Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians in 586 b.c. Zedekiah ran for his life, but the Babylonians captured him near Jericho and brought him to Nebuchadnezzar. Before the king's eyes the Babylonians executed his sons and the nobles of Judah. They then put Zedekiah's eyes out and took him to Babylon. The Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and carried most of the population away into exile, leaving only the poor behind.

In the midst of this disaster, Jeremiah was not forgotten. By royal order Nebuzaradan, one of Nebuchadnezzar's high-ranking officials, released Jeremiah from the courtyard of the guard and turned him over to Gedaliah.

Details of the prophet's release follow a brief parenthesis indicating that Ebed-Melech was spared (see 38:7-13). After his initial release Jeremiah somehow got mixed in with those being taken into exile. Nebuzaradan freed him and gave him the option to go to Babylon or stay in the land. Jeremiah decided on the latter and returned to Gedaliah, the newly appointed governor.

Turmoil in the Land (40:7-41:15). During the Babylonian invasion some of the soldiers and men of Judah had man-aged to avoid capture. They came to Gedaliah, who promised them safety and encouraged them to return to their agricultural pursuits and serve the king of Babylon. Judean refugees from the surrounding countries returned as well and resumed life in their homeland.

However, all was not well. One of the army officers, Johanon son of Kareah, informed Gedaliah that the king of the Ammonites, who was anti-Babylonian in sentiment (see 27:3; Ezek. 21:18-32), wanted the governor dead and had already sent another of Judah's army officers, Ishmael son of Nethaniah, to do the job. Gedaliah refused to believe this report and declined Johanon's offer to kill Ishmael.

Sometime later (41:1 gives the month, but not the year), Ishmael and ten other men visited Gedaliah in Mizpah. During a meal they suddenly arose and killed Gedaliah, as well as the Judeans and Babylonian soldiers who were present. The next day eighty men passed by on their way to Jerusalem to mourn over the temple and present offerings at its ruins. Ishmael enticed them into the city, where he then slaughtered seventy of the eighty (the ten who were spared promised him provisions) and threw their bodies into a cistern. Taking the residents of Mizpah as hostages, he set out for Ammon. When Johanon heard the news, he and his men pursued Ishmael and overtook him in Gibeon. The hostages were rescued, but Ishmael and eight of his men escaped.

Jeremiah's Message to the Survivors (41:16-43:7). Fearing reprisal from the Babylonians for the death of Gedaliah, Johanon and the people of Mizpah started toward Egypt. However, before leaving the land, they asked Jeremiah to seek the Lord's will on their behalf and promised to obey His directions. After inquiring of the Lord, Jeremiah told them to stay in the land and promised that God would cause the Babylonian king to treat them mercifully. He warned that if they disobeyed and fled to Egypt, disaster would overtake them. Jeremiah's warning fell on deaf ears. Johanon and others accused him of collaborating with Baruch in an effort to hand them over to the Babylonians for punishment. With flagrant disregard for the Lord's command, the group fled to Egypt, taking Jeremiah and Baruch with them.

Jeremiah in Egypt (43:8-44:30). Jeremiah's exile to Egypt certainly did not bring his prophetic ministry to an end. At Tahpanhes, the site of an Egyptian royal residence in the eastern delta, the Lord instructed Jeremiah to announce the coming fall of Egypt to the Babylonians. The prophet took some large stones and buried them in clay in the brick pavement at the entrance to the palace. He then proclaimed that Nebuchadnezzar would someday erect a throne over the stones. The Babylonian king would devastate Egypt and its temples. The Lord would prove to the Judean refugees that He, not Egypt, was their only source of strength and protection.

Chapter 44 records another of Jeremiah's Egyptian messages. Addressing all of the Judean exiles living in Egypt, the prophet reminded them that God's judgment upon Jerusalem was due to the people's idolatry. Their persistence in worshiping idol-gods would only lead to a further outpouring of God's angry judgment.

The people responded to Jeremiah's warning with hostility. They declared that they would continue to sacrifice to the "Queen of Heaven," the Babylonian goddess Ishtar. They thought disaster had only come upon Judah because Josiah purged the land of foreign gods (2 Kgs. 23).

Jeremiah attempted to correct their faulty reasoning, pointing out that it was idolatry that had brought God's wrath upon the nation. In the face of such obstinacy Jeremiah announced that divine judgment would overtake them in Egypt. As a sign of coming disaster, he prophesied the downfall of Pharaoh Hophra. This prophecy was fulfilled a few years later, in 570 b.c., when Hophra was overthrown by a rival Egyptian party.

Jeremiah Encourages Baruch (45:1-5). This brief message, which dates to Jehoiakim's fourth year (605 b.c.) and concerns the scribe Baruch, rounds off chapters 36-45. These words were spoken to Baruch after he recorded Jeremiah's prophecies on a scroll (see 36:1-7). Jeremiah told Baruch not to covet a high position, for judgment would surely come upon the land. Yet Baruch could be assured that the Lord would protect him through the disaster.

Judgment on Various Nations (46:1-51:51). These oracles of judgment develop the message of chapter 25. Together with chapter 25 they form a frame around this section of the book.

Judgment on Egypt (46:1-28). In 605 b.c. one of the major battles of ancient history took place at Carchemish, located on the Euphrates River in Syria. The Babylonians under Nebuchadnezzar defeated the Egyptians under Necho and thereby established themselves as the major power in the Near East. On the occasion of this battle, Jeremiah proclaimed an oracle against Egypt. In dramatic fashion he imitated the commands of the Egyptian officers as they prepared their troops for battle. He then described the Egyptians' retreat and downfall. Though the Egyptians marched into battle with chariots and weapons, they were doomed to defeat, for the Lord was fighting with the Babylonians.

Chapter 46 also includes a prophecy of the Babylonian invasion of Egypt, which took place in 568-567 b.c. The Egyptian army would scatter before the swarming northern invaders. The Egyptians would be as helpless as trees of a forest before the axes of woodsmen. Pharaoh and the gods of Egypt, including even their chief deity Amon, would be unable to resist the Lord's judgment.

The chapter concludes with an encouraging message for God's people. Once their time of punishment was over, the Lord would deliver them from exile and restore them to their land.

Judgment on the Philistines (47:1-7). Divine judgment would also fall on the Philistines. The approach of the Babylonians from the north would cause consternation throughout Philistia. The enemy would sweep through the land, bringing death and destruction. This oracle was fulfilled in 604 b.c. when Nebuchadnezzar overran Philistia and conquered Ashkelon.

Judgment on Moab (48:1-47). This lengthy oracle portrays the downfall of Moab, which apparently took place in 582 b.c. at the hands of the Babylonians. This chapter is filled with Moabite place names and vivid imagery. The destruction of their land would cause the Moabites to weep bitterly and flee in panic. In the past Moab had been relatively secure, like wine that had been allowed to settle in one jar. All that was about to change. Moab would be poured out of the jar. Moab's military might would be shattered, causing its pride and joy to be replaced by humiliation and lamentation. Its demise was inescapable. Its people and their chief god Chemosh would be carried into exile. A brief concluding statement promised Moab eventual restoration.

Judgment on Ammon (49:1-6). Ammon, another of the Trans-Jordanian states, would also experience judgment. The Ammonites were proud of their agricultural prosperity and wealth, but the Lord would bring disaster upon their land. They and their god Milcom (compare NIV "Molech") would go into exile. As in the case of Moab (see 48:47), Ammon was promised eventual restoration.

Judgment on Edom (49:7-22). This oracle, which parallels the Book of Obadiah, threatens Edom with thorough and final destruction. Edom was proud of its wisdom and secure position. Since God's own people were not immune from punishment, then certainly the Edomites would not be spared. Like Sodom and Gomorrah, Edom would become a prime example of devastation and ruin. The Lord would come against them like a lion attacking a helpless flock of sheep.

Judgment on Damascus (49:23-27). Damascus, an important city in Syria, would also experience judgment. Arpad and Hamath, two city-states located in northern Syria, are portrayed as being troubled over the news of the fall of Damascus. The strong warriors of Damascus would fall in the streets as the city went up in smoke.

Judgment on Kedar and Hazor (49:28-33). Nebuchadnezzar, the Lord's instrument of judgment against nations, would also attack the Arabian tribes located east of Palestine, two of which are specifically named here (the precise location of Hazor is unknown). This prophecy came to pass in 599-598 b.c.

Judgment on Elam (49:34-39). The Lord would also judge the distant land of Elam, located east of Babylon. He would shatter Elam's military might and scatter its people among the nations. As in some of the preceding oracles, an encouraging word concludes the oracle (see 46:26; 48:47; 49:6).

Judgment on Babylon (50:1-51:64). Though the Lord would use Babylon to punish many nations, He would eventually judge this mighty empire as well. In these two lengthy chapters Babylon's downfall is described in detail.

A mighty nation from the north would capture Babylon. The Medo-Per-sians conquered the Babylonian empire in 539 b.c. The Babylonians' idol-gods, the chief of which was Marduk, would be unable to rescue the city.

Babylon's demise would be good news for God's people. He had sent them into exile for their sins, but now they would be able to leave Babylon, return to Jerusalem, and enjoy a renewed covenantal relationship with God. Babylon's and Israel's relative positions would be reversed. Like the Assyrians before them, Babylon had mistreated and oppressed God's people. Now the time of reckoning had come. The Lord would overthrow Babylon and regather His scattered people to their land. He would restore Israel's blessings and forgive their sins.

Babylon's fall is vividly portrayed as dramatic calls to battle alternate with descriptions of the city's defeat. The Lord would vindicate His oppressed people before the arrogant Babylonians. Using the invincible northern army as His instrument, the Lord would destroy everything in which Babylon took pride—its civil and religious leaders, warriors, armaments, and wealth. The city would become like Sodom and Gomorrah. (As in Isa. 13-14, the problem of harmonizing this portrayal of Babylon's fall with the Persian conquest of 539 b.c. is difficult. See comments there.) Again employing the imagery of a lion ravaging a flock of sheep (see 50:44-45 with 49:19-20), the Lord declared that the judgment of Babylon would demonstrate He was a God without equal.

The description of Babylon's fall continues in chapter 51. Once more the Lord's vengeance is a major theme. He would vindicate His people before their oppressor, demonstrating His sovereignty over the affairs of individuals and nations. The Lord is the Creator of the universe, who is infinitely superior to the idol gods.

The Babylonians would be unable to stand before the northern army raised up by the Lord. Babylon would be trampled like a threshing floor at harvest time and be reduced to ruins. In response to His people's prayer for revenge, the Lord announced that the Babylonians would reel like drunkards and be slaughtered like sheep. He would humiliate Babylon and its idols, just as the Babylonians had shamed the Lord's people and dwelling place. Before the Lord's retributive judgment all the wisdom, pomp, and might of Babylon would prove futile.

Having recorded his prophecy against Babylon on a scroll, Jeremiah commissioned Seraiah, an officer of King Zedekiah, who was about to travel to Babylon, to proclaim the message when he arrived there. He instructed Seraiah to offer a brief prayer and to drop the scroll into the Euphrates River as an illustration of Babylon's eventual downfall.

This chapter is parallel to 2 Kings 24:18-25:30 (see commentary there). The statistical information given in Jeremiah 52:28-30 does not appear in 2 Kings 25, and the account of Gedaliah's death (see 2 Kgs. 25:22-26) is omitted in Jeremiah 52. The chapter gives a detailed account of Jerusalem's fall to the Babylonians. It is probably included to authenticate Jeremiah's message by showing that his prophecies of judgment were fulfilled.

Theological Significance. Jeremiah shows prophecy in full flesh and blood. He wanted to identify with his people and live a normal life. Instead he had to preach against his people and confront other prophets and then ask God, "Why?" Through the prophet's humanity, God spoke to Judah and the nations during Israel's greatest crisis. God showed that obedience, justice, and piety pleased Him and ensured the nation's future. Theological and worship tradition ensured nothing. God could change political sides to discipline His covenant people and then lead them back to Him. Nebuchadnezzar succeeded in conquering Jerusalem because he was God's agent of judgment on His sinful people. In the end, however, the nations in their arrogance would face God's wrath, while Israel would be a people of a new, heartfelt covenant.

Jeremiah affirmed that God's ultimate plan was to bless His people (29:11). God's plans, however, are conditional on human response (18:7-10). Persistent rebellion can bring punishment when God had promised blessing. Repentance can avert disaster when God had promised judgment.

Jeremiah affirms the faithlessness of God's people and their need for God to intervene to save them. Jeremiah anticipates a time when God would write a new covenant on His people's hearts, when God would be known in intimate fellowship, when God would no longer remember their sins (31:31-34). Jeremiah's hopes find fulfillment in the new relationship with God made possible through Christ's death (Heb. 10:12-22).

Harrison, Roland K. Jeremiah and Lamentations. Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries. Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 1973.

Huey, F. B., Jr. Jeremiah, Lamentations. New American Commentary. Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 1993.

Skinner, John. Prophecy and Religion: Studies in the Life of Jeremiah. Cambridge: University Press, 1922.

Thompson, J. A. The Book of Jeremiah. New International Commentary on the Old Testament. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1980.