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Jeremiah 7:1-8:3
New English Translation

Faulty Religion and Unethical Behavior Will Lead to Judgment

7 The Lord said to Jeremiah:[a] 2 “Stand in the gate of the Lord’s temple and proclaim[b] this message: ‘Listen to the Lord’s message, all you people of Judah who have passed through these gates to worship the Lord.[c] 3 The Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel,[d] says: Change the way you have been living and do what is right.[e] If you do, I will allow you to continue to live in this land.[f] 4 Stop putting your confidence in the false belief that says,[g] “We are safe![h] The temple of the Lord is here! The temple of the Lord is here! The temple of the Lord is here!”[i] 5 You must change[j] the way you have been living and do what is right. You must treat one another fairly.[k] 6 Stop oppressing resident foreigners who live in your land, children who have lost their fathers, and women who have lost their husbands.[l] Stop killing innocent people[m] in this land. Stop paying allegiance to[n] other gods. That will only bring about your ruin.[o] 7 If you stop doing these things,[p] I will allow you to continue to live in this land[q] that I gave to your ancestors as a lasting possession.[r]

8 “‘But just look at you![s] You are putting your confidence in a false belief[t] that will not deliver you.[u] 9 You steal.[v] You murder. You commit adultery. You lie when you swear on oath. You sacrifice to the god Baal. You pay allegiance to[w] other gods whom you have not previously known. 10 Then you come and stand in my presence in this temple I have claimed as my own[x] and say, “We are safe!” You think you are so safe that you go on doing all those hateful sins![y] 11 Do you think this temple I have claimed as my own[z] is to be a hideout for robbers?[aa] You had better take note![ab] I have seen for myself what you have done! says the Lord. 12 So, go to the place in Shiloh where I allowed myself to be worshiped[ac] in the early days. See what I did to it[ad] because of the wicked things my people Israel did. 13 You also have done all these things, says the Lord, and I have spoken to you over and over again.[ae] But you have not listened! You have refused to respond when I called you to repent![af] 14 So I will destroy this temple that I have claimed as my own,[ag] this temple that you are trusting to protect you. I will destroy this place that I gave to you and your ancestors,[ah] just like I destroyed Shiloh.[ai] 15 And I will drive you out of my sight just like I drove out your relatives, the people of Israel.’[aj]

16 “But as for you, Jeremiah,[ak] do not pray for these people. Do not raise a cry of prayer[al] for them! Do not plead with me to save them,[am] because I will not listen to you. 17 Do you see[an] what they are doing in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 18 Children are gathering firewood, fathers are building fires with it, and women are mixing dough to bake cakes to offer to the goddess they call the Queen of Heaven.[ao] They are also pouring out drink offerings to other gods. They seem to do all this just[ap] to trouble me. 19 But I am not really the one being troubled![aq] says the Lord. Rather they are bringing trouble on themselves to their own shame![ar] 20 So, the Sovereign Lord[as] says, my raging fury will be poured out on this land.[at] It will be poured out on human beings and animals, on trees and crops.[au] And it will burn like a fire that cannot be extinguished.

21 “The Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel,[av] says to the people of Judah:[aw] ‘You might as well go ahead and add the meat of your burnt offerings to that of the other sacrifices and eat it, too![ax] 22 Consider this:[ay] When I spoke to your ancestors after I brought them out of Egypt, I did not merely give them commands about burnt offerings and sacrifices. 23 I also explicitly commanded them:[az] “Obey me. If you do, I[ba] will be your God and you will be my people. Live exactly the way I tell you[bb] and things will go well with you.” 24 But they did not listen to me or pay any attention to me. They followed the stubborn inclinations of their own wicked hearts. They acted worse and worse instead of better.[bc] 25 From the time your ancestors departed the land of Egypt until now,[bd] I sent my servants the prophets to you again and again,[be] day after day.[bf] 26 But your ancestors[bg] did not listen to me nor pay attention to me. They became obstinate[bh] and were more wicked than even their own forefathers.’”

27 Then the Lord said to me,[bi] “When you tell them all this, they will not listen to you. When you call out to them, they will not respond to you. 28 So tell them: ‘This is a nation that has not obeyed the Lord their God and has not accepted correction. Faithfulness is nowhere to be found in it. These people do not even profess it anymore.[bj] 29 So mourn,[bk] you people of this nation.[bl] Cut off your hair and throw it away. Sing a song of mourning on the hilltops. For the Lord has decided to reject[bm] and forsake this generation that has provoked his wrath!’”[bn]

30 The Lord says, “I have rejected them because[bo] the people of Judah have done what I consider evil.[bp] They have set up their disgusting idols in the temple[bq] that I have claimed for my own[br] and have defiled it. 31 They have also built places of worship[bs] in a place called Topheth[bt] in the Valley of Ben Hinnom so that they can sacrifice their sons and daughters by fire. That is something I never commanded them to do! Indeed, it never even entered my mind to command such a thing![bu] 32 So, watch out!”[bv] says the Lord. “The time will soon come when people will no longer call those places Topheth or the Valley of Ben Hinnom. But they will call that valley[bw] the Valley of Slaughter, and they will bury so many people in Topheth they will run out of room.[bx] 33 Then the dead bodies of these people will be left on the ground for the birds and wild animals to eat.[by] There will not be any survivors to scare them away. 34 I will put an end to the sounds of joy and gladness or the glad celebration of brides and grooms throughout the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem. For the whole land will become a desolate wasteland.”

8 The Lord says, “When that time comes,[bz] the bones of the kings of Judah and its leaders, the bones of the priests and prophets, and of all the other people who lived in Jerusalem will be dug up from their graves. 2 They will be spread out and exposed to the sun, the moon, and the stars.[ca] These are things they[cb] adored and served, things to which they paid allegiance,[cc] from which they sought guidance and worshiped. The bones of these people[cd] will never be regathered and reburied. They will be like manure used to fertilize the ground.[ce] 3 However, I will leave some of these wicked people alive and banish them to other places. But wherever these people who survive may go, they will wish they had died rather than lived,”[cf] says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.[cg]

Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 7:1 tn Heb “The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord.”
  2. Jeremiah 7:2 tn Heb “Proclaim there…” The adverb is unnecessary in English style.
  3. Jeremiah 7:2 sn That is, all those who have passed through the gates of the outer court and are standing in the courtyard of the temple.
  4. Jeremiah 7:3 tn Heb “Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel.” sn Compare the use of similar titles in 2:19; 5:14; 6:6 and see the explanation in the study note at 2:19. In this instance the title appears to emphasize the Lord as the heavenly King who drags his disobedient vassals into court (and threatens them with judgment).
  5. Jeremiah 7:3 tn Or “Make good your ways and your actions.” J. Bright’s translation (“Reform the whole pattern of your conduct”; Jeremiah [AB], 52) is excellent.
  6. Jeremiah 7:3 tn Heb “place.” But this might be misunderstood to refer to the temple.
  7. Jeremiah 7:4 tn Heb “Stop trusting in lying words which say.”
  8. Jeremiah 7:4 tn The words “We are safe!” are not in the text but are supplied in the translation for clarity.
  9. Jeremiah 7:4 tn Heb “The temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord are these (i.e., these buildings).” Elsewhere triple repetition seems to mark a kind of emphasis (cf. Isa 6:3; Jer 22:29; Ezek 21:27 [32 HT]). The triple repetition that follows seems to be Jeremiah’s way of mocking the (false) sense of security that people had in the invincibility of Jerusalem because God dwelt in the temple. They appeared to be treating the temple as some kind of magical charm. A similar feeling had grown up around the ark in the time of the judges (cf. 1 Sam 3:3) and the temple and city of Jerusalem in Micah’s day (cf. Mic 3:11). It is reflected also in some of the Psalms (cf., e.g., Ps 46, especially v. 5).
  10. Jeremiah 7:5 tn The infinitive absolute precedes the finite verb for emphasis.
  11. Jeremiah 7:5 tn Heb “you must do justice between a person and his fellow/neighbor.” The infinitive absolute precedes the finite verb for emphasis.
  12. Jeremiah 7:6 tn Heb “Stop oppressing resident foreigner, orphan, and widow.”sn Cf. Exod 22:21; Lev 19:33-34; Deut 10:18-19; 24:14, 17; 27:19.
  13. Jeremiah 7:6 tn Heb “Stop shedding innocent blood.”
  14. Jeremiah 7:6 tn Heb “going/following after.” See the translator’s note at 2:5 for an explanation of the idiom involved here.
  15. Jeremiah 7:6 tn Heb “going after other gods to your ruin.”
  16. Jeremiah 7:7 tn The translation uses imperatives in vv. 5-6 followed by the phrase “If you do all this” to avoid the long and complex sentence structure of the Hebrew sentence, which has a series of conditional clauses in vv. 5-6 followed by a main clause in v. 7.
  17. Jeremiah 7:7 tn Heb “live in this place, in this land.”
  18. Jeremiah 7:7 tn Heb “gave to your fathers [with reference to] from ancient times even unto forever.”
  19. Jeremiah 7:8 tn Heb “Behold!”
  20. Jeremiah 7:8 tn Heb “You are trusting in lying words.” See the similar phrase in v. 4 and the note there.
  21. Jeremiah 7:8 tn Heb “not profit [you].”
  22. Jeremiah 7:9 tn Heb “Will you steal…then say, ‘We are safe’?” Verses 9-10 are one long sentence in the Hebrew text.
  23. Jeremiah 7:9 tn Heb “You go/follow after.” See the translator’s note at 2:5 for an explanation of the idiom involved here.
  24. Jeremiah 7:10 tn Heb “over which my name is called.” For this nuance of this idiom cf. BDB 896 s.v. קָרָא Niph.2.d(4) and see the usage in 2 Sam 12:28.
  25. Jeremiah 7:10 tn Or “‘We are safe!’—safe, you think, to go on doing all those hateful things.” Verses 9-10 are all one long sentence in the Hebrew text. It has been broken up for English stylistic reasons. Somewhat literally it reads “Will you steal…then come and stand…and say, ‘We are safe’ so as to/in order to do…” The Hebrew of v. 9 has a series of infinitives which emphasize the bare action of the verb without the idea of time or agent. The effect is to place a kind of staccato-like emphasis on the multitude of their sins, all of which are violations of one of the Ten Commandments. The final clause in v. 8 expresses purpose or result (probably result) through another infinitive. This long sentence is introduced by a marker (ה interrogative in Hebrew) introducing a rhetorical question in which God expresses his incredulity that they could do these sins, come into the temple and claim the safety of his protection, and then go right back out and commit the same sins. J. Bright (Jeremiah [AB], 52) catches the force nicely: “What? You think you can steal, murder…and then come and stand…and say, ‘We are safe…’ just so that you can go right on…”
  26. Jeremiah 7:11 tn Heb “over which my name is called.” For this nuance of this idiom see BDB 896 s.v. קָרָא Niph.2.d(4) and compare the usage in 2 Sam 12:28.
  27. Jeremiah 7:11 tn Heb “Is this house…a den/cave of robbers in your eyes?”
  28. Jeremiah 7:11 tn Heb “Behold!”
  29. Jeremiah 7:12 tn Heb “where I caused my name to dwell.” The translation does not adequately represent the theology of the Lord’s deliberate identification with a place where he chose to manifest his presence and desired to be worshiped (cf. Exod 20:25; Deut 16:2, 6, 11).
  30. Jeremiah 7:12 sn The place in Shiloh…see what I did to it. This refers to the destruction of Shiloh by the Philistines circa 1050 b.c. (cf. Ps 78:60). The destruction of Shiloh is pertinent to the argument. The presence of the tabernacle and ark of the covenant did not prevent Shiloh from being destroyed when Israel sinned. The people of Israel used the ark as a magic charm, but it did not prevent them from being defeated or the ark from being captured (1 Sam 4:3, 11, 21-22).
  31. Jeremiah 7:13 tn This reflects a Hebrew idiom (e.g., 7:25; 11:7; 25:3, 4), i.e., an infinitive of a verb meaning “to do something early [or eagerly]” followed by an infinitive of another verb of action (cf. HALOT 1384 s.v. שָׁכַם Hiph.2).
  32. Jeremiah 7:13 tn Heb “I called to you, and you did not answer.” The words “to repent” are not in the text but are supplied in the translation for clarity.
  33. Jeremiah 7:14 tn Heb “over which my name is called.” For this nuance of this idiom see BDB 896 s.v. קָרָא Niph.2.d(4) and compare the usage in 2 Sam 12:28.
  34. Jeremiah 7:14 tn Heb “fathers” (also in vv. 22, 25, 26).
  35. Jeremiah 7:14 tn Heb “I will do to the house that my name is called over it, that you are trusting in it, and to the place…, as I did to Shiloh.”
  36. Jeremiah 7:15 tn Heb “the descendants of Ephraim.” However, Ephraim here stands (as it often does) for all the northern tribes of Israel.
  37. Jeremiah 7:16 tn The name Jeremiah has been added for specificity.
  38. Jeremiah 7:16 tn Heb “a ringing cry and a prayer.” The two nouns form a hendiadys meaning a prayer in the form of a ringing cry.
  39. Jeremiah 7:16 tn The words “to save them” are implied by the context of “pleading to me” and supplied in the translation for clarity.
  40. Jeremiah 7:17 tn Or “Just look at…” The question is rhetorical and expects a positive answer.
  41. Jeremiah 7:18 tn The form for “queen” (מְלֶכֶת [melekhet]), occurring 5 times in Scripture and all in Jeremiah, is not the expected construct form (מַלְכַּת [malkat]). It is as though the Masoretes wanted to read with “heaven” the word for “work” (מְלֶאכֶת [meleʾkhet]), i.e., the “hosts of,” a word that several Hebrew mss read and an understanding the LXX reflects. The other ancient and modern versions generally, however, accept it as a biform for the word “queen.”sn The Queen of Heaven is probably a reference to the goddess known as Ishtar in Mesopotamia, Anat in Canaan, and Ashtoreth in Israel. She was the goddess of love and fertility. For further discussion, see G. L. Keown, P. J. Scalise, T. G. Smothers, Jeremiah 26-52 (WBC), 266-68.
  42. Jeremiah 7:18 tn Heb “to provoke me.” There is debate among grammarians and lexicographers about the nuance of the Hebrew particle לְמַעַן (lemaʿan). Some say it always denotes purpose, while others say it may denote either purpose or result, depending on the context. For example, BDB 775 s.v. לְמַעַן note 1 says that it always denotes purpose, never result, but that sometimes what is really a result is represented ironically as though it were a purpose. That explanation fits nicely here in the light of the context of the next verse. The translation is intended to reflect some of that ironic sarcasm.
  43. Jeremiah 7:19 tn Heb “Is it I whom they provoke?” The rhetorical question expects a negative answer which is made explicit in the translation.
  44. Jeremiah 7:19 tn Heb “Is it not themselves to their own shame?” The rhetorical question expects a positive answer which is made explicit in the translation.
  45. Jeremiah 7:20 tn Heb “Lord Yahweh.” The translation follows the ancient Jewish tradition of substituting the Hebrew word for God for the proper name Yahweh.
  46. Jeremiah 7:20 tn Heb “this place.” Some see this as a reference to the temple, but the context has been talking about what goes on in the towns of Judah and Jerusalem, and the words that follow, meant as a further explanation, are applied to the whole land.
  47. Jeremiah 7:20 tn Heb “the trees of/in the field and the fruit of/in the ground.”
  48. Jeremiah 7:21 tn Heb “Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel.”sn See the study notes on 2:19 and 7:3.
  49. Jeremiah 7:21 tn The words “to the people of Judah” are not in the text but are implicit in the shift in addressee between vv. 16-20 and vv. 21-26.
  50. Jeremiah 7:21 tn Heb “Add your burnt offerings to your [other] sacrifices and eat the meat!” See the following sn for explanation. This is an example of the rhetorical use of the imperative for a sarcastic challenge. See GKC 324 §110.a; cf. Amos 4:4, “Go to Bethel and sin!”sn All of the burnt offering, including the meat, was to be consumed on the altar (e.g., Lev 1:6-9). The meat of the other sacrifices could be eaten by the priest who offered the sacrifice and the person who brought it (e.g., Lev 7:16-18, 32). Since, however, the people of Judah were making a mockery of the sacrificial system by offering sacrifices while disobeying the law, the Lord rejected the sacrifices (cf. 6:20). Since they were violating the moral law, they might as well go ahead and violate the cultic law by eating the meat dedicated to God because he rejected it anyway.
  51. Jeremiah 7:22 tn Heb “For.” But this introduces a long explanation about the relative importance of sacrifice and obedience.
  52. Jeremiah 7:23 tn Verses 22-23a read in Hebrew, “I did not speak with your ancestors, and I did not command them when I brought them out of Egypt, about words/matters concerning burnt offering and sacrifice, but I commanded them this word:” Some modern commentators have explained this passage as an evidence for the lateness of the Pentateuchal instruction regarding sacrifice or a denial that sacrifice was practiced during the period of the wilderness wandering. However, it is better explained as an example of what R. de Vaux calls a dialectical negative, i.e., “not so much this as that” or “not this without that” (Ancient Israel, 454-56). For other examples of this same argument see Isa 1:10-17; Hos 6:4-6; Amos 5:21-25.
  53. Jeremiah 7:23 tn Heb “Obey me and I will be.” The translation is equivalent syntactically but brings out the emphasis in the command.
  54. Jeremiah 7:23 tn Heb “Walk in all the way that I command you.”
  55. Jeremiah 7:24 tn Or “They went backward and not forward”; Heb “They were to the backward and not to the forward.” The two phrases used here appear nowhere else in the Bible, and the latter preposition plus adverb elsewhere is used temporally meaning “formerly” or “previously.” The translation follows the proposal of J. Bright, Jeremiah (AB), 57. Another option is, “they turned their backs to me, not their faces,” understanding the line as a variant of a line in 2:27.
  56. Jeremiah 7:25 tn Heb “from the day your ancestors…until this very day.” However, “day” here is idiomatic for “the present time.”
  57. Jeremiah 7:25 tn On the Hebrew idiom see the note at 7:13.
  58. Jeremiah 7:25 tc There is some textual debate about the legitimacy of this expression here. The text reads merely “day” (יוֹם, yom). BHS suggests the word is to be deleted as a dittography of the plural ending of the preceding word. The word is in the Greek and Latin, and the Syriac represents the typical idiom “day after day” as though the noun were repeated. Either יוֹם has dropped out by haplography or a ם (mem) has been left out, i.e., reading יוֹמָם (yomam, “daily”).
  59. Jeremiah 7:26 tn Or “But your predecessors…”; Heb “But they…” There is a confusing interchange in the pronouns in vv. 25-26 which has led to some leveling in the ancient versions and the modern English versions. What is involved here are four levels of referents, the “you” of the present generation (vv. 21-22a), the ancestors who were delivered from Egypt (i.e., the “they” of vv. 22b-24), the “you” of v. 25 that involves all the Israelites from the Exodus to the time of speaking, and the “they” of v. 26 that cannot be the ancestors of vv. 22-24 (since they cannot be more wicked than themselves) but must be an indefinite entity that is a part of the “you” of v. 25, i.e., the more immediate ancestors of the present generation. If this is kept in mind, there is no need to level the pronouns to “they” and “them” or to “you” and “your” as some of the ancient versions and modern English versions have done.
  60. Jeremiah 7:26 tn Heb “hardened [or made stiff] their neck.”
  61. Jeremiah 7:27 tn The words “Then the Lord said to me” are not in the text but are implicit in the shift from the second and third person plural pronouns in vv. 21-26 to the second singular in this verse. The words are supplied in the translation for clarity.
  62. Jeremiah 7:28 tn Heb “Faithfulness has vanished. It is cut off from their lips.”sn For the need for faithfulness see 5:1, 3.
  63. Jeremiah 7:29 tn The word “mourn” is not in the text. It is supplied in the translation for clarity to explain the significance of the words “Cut your hair and throw it away.”sn See Mic 1:16 and Job 1:20 for other examples of this practice that was involved in mourning.
  64. Jeremiah 7:29 tn The words, “you people of this nation” are not in the text. Many English versions supply “Jerusalem.” The address shifts from second masculine singular addressing Jeremiah (vv. 27-28a) to second feminine singular. It causes less disruption in the flow of the context to see the nation as a whole addressed here as a feminine singular entity (as, e.g., in 2:19, 23; 3:2, 3; 6:26) than to introduce a new entity, Jerusalem.
  65. Jeremiah 7:29 tn The verbs here are the Hebrew scheduling perfects. For this use of the perfect see GKC 312 §106.m.
  66. Jeremiah 7:29 tn Heb “the generation of his wrath.”
  67. Jeremiah 7:30 tn The words “I have rejected them” are not in the Hebrew text, which merely says “because.” These words are supplied in the translation to show more clearly the connection to the preceding.
  68. Jeremiah 7:30 tn Heb “have done the evil in my eyes.”
  69. Jeremiah 7:30 sn Cf., e.g., 2 Kgs 21:3, 5, 7; 23:4, 6 and Ezek 8:3, 5, 10-12, 16. Manasseh had desecrated the temple by building altars, cult symbols, and idols in it. Josiah had purged the temple of these pagan elements. But it is obvious from both Jeremiah and Ezekiel that they had been replaced shortly after Josiah’s death. They were a primary cause of Judah’s guilt and punishment (see beside this passage, 19:5; 32:34-35).
  70. Jeremiah 7:30 tn Heb “the house that is called by my name.” Cf. 7:10, 11, 14 and see the translator’s note at 7:10 for the explanation for this rendering.
  71. Jeremiah 7:31 tn Heb “high places.”sn These places of worship were essentially open-air shrines often located on hills or wooded heights. They were generally connected with pagan worship and equipped with altars of sacrifice and of incense and cult objects such as wooden poles and stone pillars that were symbols of the god and/or goddess worshiped at the sight. The Israelites were commanded to tear down these Canaanite places of worship (Num 33:52), but they did not do so, often taking over the site for the worship of Yahweh but even then incorporating some of the pagan cult objects and ritual into their worship of Yahweh (1 Kgs 12:31, 32; 14:23). The prophets were especially opposed to these places, both to this kind of syncretism (Hos 10:8; Amos 7:9) and to the pagan worship that was often practiced at them (Jer 7:31; 19:5; 32:35).
  72. Jeremiah 7:31 tn Heb “the high places of [or in] Topheth.”sn The noun Topheth is generally explained as an artificial formation of a word related to the Aramaic word for “cooking stove” combined with the vowels for the word for “shame.” Hence, Jewish piety viewed it as a very shameful act, one that was contrary to the law (see Lev 18:21; 20:2-6). Child sacrifice was practiced during the reigns of the wicked kings Ahaz and Manasseh and apparently during Jeremiah’s day (cf. 2 Kgs 16:3; 21:6; Jer 32:35).
  73. Jeremiah 7:31 tn Heb “It never entered my heart.” The words “to command such a thing” do not appear in the Hebrew but are added for the sake of clarity.
  74. Jeremiah 7:32 tn Heb “Therefore, behold!”
  75. Jeremiah 7:32 tn Heb “it will no longer be said ‘Topheth’ or ‘the Valley of Ben Hinnom’ but ‘the valley of slaughter.’”
  76. Jeremiah 7:32 tn Heb “And they will bury in Topheth so there is not room.”
  77. Jeremiah 7:33 tn Heb “Their dead bodies will be food for the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth.”
  78. Jeremiah 8:1 tn Heb “At that time.”
  79. Jeremiah 8:2 tc MT, 4QJera and LXX read, “the sun and the moon and all the host of heaven,” but 4QJerc reads, “the sun and all the stars.”tn Heb “the host of heaven.”
  80. Jeremiah 8:2 tn Heb “the sun, moon, and host of heaven which they…”
  81. Jeremiah 8:2 tn Heb “followed after.” See the translator’s note at 2:5 for the idiom.
  82. Jeremiah 8:2 tn Heb “they will not.” But the referent is far enough removed that it might be ambiguous.
  83. Jeremiah 8:2 tn Heb “like dung/manure on the surface of the ground.”
  84. Jeremiah 8:3 tn Heb “Death will be chosen rather than life by the remnant who are left from this wicked family in all the places where I have banished them.” The sentence is broken up and restructured to avoid possible confusion because of the complexity of the English to some modern readers. There appears to be an extra “those who are left” that was inadvertently copied from the preceding line. It is missing from one Hebrew ms and from the Greek and Syriac versions and is probably not a part of the original text.
  85. Jeremiah 8:3 tn Heb “Yahweh of Armies.”sn For the significance of this title see the notes at 2:19 and 7:3.
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Jeremiah 11:1-17
New English Translation

The People Have Violated Their Covenant with God

11 The Lord said to Jeremiah:[a] 2 “Hear[b] the terms of the covenant[c] I made with Israel[d] and pass them on[e] to the people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem.[f] 3 Tell them that the Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘Anyone who does not keep the terms of the covenant will be under a curse.[g] 4 Those are the terms that I charged your ancestors[h] to keep[i] when I brought them out of Egypt, that place that was like an iron-smelting furnace.[j] I said at that time,[k] “Obey me and carry out the terms of the covenant[l] exactly as I commanded you. If you do,[m] you will be my people and I will be your God.[n] 5 Then I will keep the promise I swore on oath to your ancestors to give them a land flowing with milk and honey.”[o] That is the very land that you still live in today.’”[p] And I responded, “Amen. Let it be so,[q] Lord.”

6 The Lord said to me, “Announce all the following words in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem: ‘Listen to the terms of my covenant with you[r] and carry them out! 7 For I solemnly warned your ancestors to obey me.[s] I warned them again and again,[t] ever since I delivered them out of Egypt until this very day. 8 But they did not listen to me or pay any attention to me! Each one of them followed the stubborn inclinations of his own wicked heart. So I brought on them all the punishments threatened in the covenant because they did not carry out its terms as I commanded them to do.’”[u]

9 The Lord said to me, “The people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem have plotted rebellion against me.[v] 10 They have gone back to the evil ways[w] of their ancestors of old who refused to obey what I told them. They, too, have paid allegiance to[x] other gods and worshiped them. Both the nation of Israel and the nation of Judah[y] have violated the covenant I made with their ancestors. 11 So I, the Lord, say this:[z] ‘I will soon bring disaster on them that they will not be able to escape! When they cry out to me for help, I will not listen to them. 12 Then those living in the towns of Judah and in Jerusalem will[aa] go and cry out for help to the gods to whom they have been sacrificing. However, those gods will by no means be able[ab] to save them when disaster strikes them. 13 This is in spite of the fact that[ac] the people of Judah have as many gods as they have towns[ad] and the citizens of Jerusalem have set up as many altars to sacrifice to that disgusting god, Baal, as they have streets in the city!’[ae] 14 But as for you, Jeremiah,[af] do not pray for these people. Do not raise a cry of prayer for them.[ag] For I will not listen to them when they call out to me for help when disaster strikes them.”[ah]

15 The Lord says to the people of Judah,[ai]

“What right do you have to be in my temple, my beloved people?[aj]
Many of you have done wicked things.[ak]
Can your acts of treachery be so easily canceled by sacred offerings[al]
that you take joy in doing evil even while you make them?[am]
16 I, the Lord, once called[an] you a thriving olive tree,
one that produced beautiful fruit.
But I will set you[ao] on fire,
fire that will blaze with a mighty roar.[ap]
Then all your branches will be good for nothing.[aq]
17 For though I, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies,[ar] planted you in the land,[as]
I now decree that disaster will come on you[at]
because the nations of Israel and Judah have done evil
and have made me angry by offering sacrifices to the god Baal.”[au]

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 11:1 tn Heb “The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying.” The proposed translation is more in keeping with contemporary English idiom (cf. 1:2 and 7:1 and footnotes there).
  2. Jeremiah 11:2 tn The form is a second masculine plural, which is followed in the MT of vv. 2-3 by second masculine singulars. This shift, plus the fact that the whole clause “listen to the terms of this covenant” is nearly repeated at the end of v. 3, has led many modern scholars to delete the whole clause (cf., e.g. W. McKane, Jeremiah [ICC], 1:236-37). However, this only leads to further adjustments in the rest of the verse that are difficult to justify. The form has also led to a good deal of speculation about who these others were that are initially addressed here. The juxtaposition of second plural and singular forms has a precedent in Deuteronomy, where the nation is sometimes addressed with the plural and at other times with a collective singular.
  3. Jeremiah 11:2 sn The covenant I made with Israel. Apart from the legal profession and Jewish and Christian tradition, the term “covenant” may not be too familiar. There were essentially three kinds of “covenants” referred to under the Hebrew term used here: (1) “Parity treaties,” or “covenants” between equals in which each party pledged itself to certain agreed-upon stipulations and took an oath to it in the name of their god or gods (cf. Gen 31:44-54); (2) “Suzerain-vassal treaties,” or “covenants” in which a great king pledged himself to protect the vassal’s realm and his right to rule over his own domain in exchange for sovereignty over the vassal, including the rendering of absolute loyalty and submission to the great king’s demands spelled out in detailed stipulations; and (3) “Covenants of grant,” in which a great king granted to a loyal servant or vassal king permanent title to a piece of land or dominion over a specified realm in recognition of past service. It is generally recognized that the Mosaic covenant, which is being referred to here, is of the second type, resembling in form the ancient Near Eastern suzerain-vassal treaties. These treaties typically contained the following elements: (1) a preamble identifying the great king (cf. Exod 20:2a; Deut 1:1-4); (2) a historical prologue summarizing the great king’s past benefactions as motivation for future loyalty (cf. Exod 20:2b; Deut 1:5-4:43); (3) the primary stipulation of absolute and unconditional loyalty (cf. Exod 20:3-8; Deut 5:1-11:32); (4) specific stipulations governing future relations between the vassal and the great king and the vassal’s relation to other vassals (cf. Exod 20:22-23:33; Deut 12:1-26:15); (5) the invoking of curses on the vassal for disloyalty and the pronouncing of blessing on him for loyalty (cf. Lev 26; Deut 27-28); (6) the invoking of witnesses to the covenant, often the great king’s and the vassal’s gods (cf. Deut 30:19; 31:28, where the reference is to the “heavens and the earth” as enduring witnesses). It is also generally agreed that the majority of the threats of punishment by the prophets refer to the invocation of these covenant curses for disloyalty to the basic stipulation, that of absolute loyalty.
  4. Jeremiah 11:2 tn Heb “this covenant.” The referent of “this” is left dangling until it is further defined in vv. 3-4. Leaving it undefined in the translation may lead to confusion; hence the anticipatory nature of the demonstrative is spelled out explicitly in the translation.
  5. Jeremiah 11:2 tn Heb “and speak/tell them.” However, the translation chosen is more appropriate to modern idiom.
  6. Jeremiah 11:2 tn Or “those living in Jerusalem”; Heb “inhabitants of.”
  7. Jeremiah 11:3 tn Heb “Cursed is the person who does not listen to the terms of this covenant.” “This covenant” is further qualified in the following verse by a relative clause. The form of the sentence and the qualification “my” before covenant were chosen for better English idiom and to break up a long sentence that really extends to the middle of v. 5.
  8. Jeremiah 11:4 tn Heb “fathers” (also in vv. 5, 7, 10).
  9. Jeremiah 11:4 tn Heb “does not listen…this covenant which I commanded your fathers.” The sentence is broken up this way in conformity with contemporary English style.
  10. Jeremiah 11:4 tn Heb “out of the land of Egypt, out of the iron-smelting furnace.”
  11. Jeremiah 11:4 tn In place of the words “I said at that time,” the Hebrew text has “saying.” The sentence is again being restructured in English to avoid the long, confusing style of the Hebrew original.
  12. Jeremiah 11:4 tn Heb “Obey me and carry them out.” The “them” refers back to the terms of the covenant which they were charged to keep, according to the preceding sentence. The referent is made specific to avoid ambiguity.
  13. Jeremiah 11:4 tn The words “If you do” are not in the text. They have been supplied in the translation to break up a long sentence consisting of an imperative followed by a consequential sentence.
  14. Jeremiah 11:4 sn Obey me and carry out the terms of the agreement…and I will be your God. This refers to the Mosaic law, which was instituted at Sinai and renewed on the Plains of Moab before Israel entered into the land. The words “the terms of the covenant” are explicitly used for the Ten Commandments in Exod 34:28 and for the additional legislation given in Deut 29:1, 9. The formulation here is reminiscent of Deut 29:9-14 (29:10-15 HT). The book of Deuteronomy is similar in its structure and function to ancient Near Eastern treaties. In these the great king reminded his vassal of past benefits that he had given to him, charged him with obligations (the terms or stipulations of the covenant), chief among which was absolute loyalty and sole allegiance, promised him future benefits (the blessings) for obeying the stipulations, and placed him under a curse for disobeying them. Any disobedience was met with stern warnings of punishment in the form of destruction and exile. Those who had witnessed the covenant were called in to confirm the continuing goodness of the great king and the disloyalty of the vassal. The vassal was then charged with a list of particular infringements of the stipulations and warned to change his actions or suffer the consequences. This is the background for Jer 11:1-9. Jeremiah is here functioning as a messenger from the Lord, Israel’s great king, and charging both the fathers and the children with breach of covenant.
  15. Jeremiah 11:5 tn The phrase “a land flowing with milk and honey” is very familiar to readers in the Jewish and Christian traditions as a proverbial description of the agricultural and pastoral abundance of the land of Israel. However, it may not mean too much to readers outside those traditions; an equivalent expression would be “a land of fertile fields and fine pastures.” E. W. Bullinger (Figures of Speech, 626) identifies this as a figure of speech called synecdoche, where the species is put for the genus: “a region…abounding with pasture and fruits of all kinds.”
  16. Jeremiah 11:5 tn Heb “‘a land flowing with milk and honey,’ as at this day.” However, the literal reading is too elliptical and would lead to confusion.
  17. Jeremiah 11:5 tn The words “Let it be so” are not in the text; they are an explanation of the significance of the term “Amen” for those who may not be part of the Christian or Jewish tradition.sn The word amen is found at the end of each of the curses in Deut 27, where the people express their agreement with the appropriateness of the curse for the offense mentioned.
  18. Jeremiah 11:6 tn Heb “the terms of this covenant.” However, this was a separate message, and the ambiguity of “this” could still cause some confusion.
  19. Jeremiah 11:7 tn Heb “warned them…saying, ‘Obey me.’” However, it allows the long sentence to be broken up easier if the indirect quote is used.
  20. Jeremiah 11:7 tn For the explanation for this rendering see the note on 7:13.
  21. Jeremiah 11:8 tn Heb “So I brought on them all the terms of this covenant which I commanded to do and they did not do.” There is an interesting polarity that is being exploited by two different nuances implicit in the use of the word “terms” (דִּבְרֵי [divre], literally “words”): 1) what the Lord “brings on” them, namely, the curses that are the penalty for disobedience, and 2) the stipulations that they are “to do,” that is, to carry out. The sentence is broken up this way in keeping with contemporary English style to avoid the long and complicated style of the original.
  22. Jeremiah 11:9 tn Heb “Conspiracy [a plot to rebel] is found [or exists] among the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.”
  23. Jeremiah 11:10 tn Or “They have repeated the evil actions of….”
  24. Jeremiah 11:10 tn Heb “have walked/followed after.” See the translator’s note at 2:5 for the idiom.
  25. Jeremiah 11:10 tn Heb “house of Israel and house of Judah.”
  26. Jeremiah 11:11 tn Heb “Therefore, thus, says the Lord.” The person has been shifted in the translation in accordance with the difference between Hebrew and English style.
  27. Jeremiah 11:12 tn Heb “Then the towns of Judah and those living in Jerusalem will…”
  28. Jeremiah 11:12 tn The Hebrew construction is emphatic, involving the use of an infinitive of the verb before the verb itself (Heb “saving they will not save”). For this construction to give emphasis to an antithesis, see GKC 343 §113.p.
  29. Jeremiah 11:13 tn This is again an attempt to render the Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) contextually. The nuance is a little hard to establish due to the nature of the rhetoric of the passage, which utilizes the figure of apostrophe, where the Lord turns from talking about Judah to addressing her directly, probably in condemnatory tones. Something like “the very idea that you should…” might best represent the mood. The כִּי is probably asseverative or intensive (cf. BDB 472 s.v. כִּי 1.e).
  30. Jeremiah 11:13 sn Cf. Jer 2:28.
  31. Jeremiah 11:13 tn Heb “For [or Indeed] the number of your [sing.] cities are your [sing.] gods, Judah, and the number of the streets of Jerusalem [or perhaps (your) streets, Jerusalem] you [plur.] have set up altars to the shameful thing, altars to sacrifice to Baal.” This passage involves a figure of speech where the speaker turns from describing something about someone to addressing him/her directly (a figure called apostrophe). This figure is not common in contemporary English literature or conversation and translating literally would lead to confusion on the part of some readers. Hence, the translation retains the third person in keeping with the rest of the context. The shift from singular “your cities” to plural “you have set up” is interpreted contextually to refer to a shift from addressing Judah to addressing the citizens of Jerusalem whose streets are being talked about. The appositional phrase, “altars to sacrifice to Baal,” has been collapsed with the preceding phrase about “altars” to better identify what the shameful thing is and to eliminate a complex construction. The length of this sentence runs contrary to the usual practice of breaking up long complex sentences in Hebrew into shorter equivalent ones in English. However, breaking up this sentence and possibly losing the connecting link with what precedes and introduces it might lead to misunderstanding.
  32. Jeremiah 11:14 tn The name, Jeremiah, has been added for specificity.
  33. Jeremiah 11:14 sn Cf. Jer 7:16, where this same command is addressed to Jeremiah.
  34. Jeremiah 11:14 tc The rendering “when disaster strikes them” is based on reading “at the time of” (בְּעֵת, beʿet), with a number of Hebrew mss and the versions, instead of “on account of” (בְּעַד, beʿad). W. L. Holladay (Jeremiah [Hermeneia], 1:347) is probably right in assuming that the MT has been influenced by “for them” (בַעֲדָם, vaʿadam) earlier in the verse.
  35. Jeremiah 11:15 tn The words “The Lord says to the people of Judah” are not in the text. It is, however, clear from the words that follow that he is the speaker and Judah the addressee. The words are supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.
  36. Jeremiah 11:15 tn Heb “What to my beloved [being] in my house?” The text has been restructured to avoid possible confusion by the shift from third person in the first two lines to second person in the last two lines and the lines of the following verse. The reference to Judah as the Lord’s “beloved” is certainly ironic and perhaps even sarcastic.
  37. Jeremiah 11:15 tc The meaning of this line is uncertain. The text reads somewhat literally as either, “her doing the wicked thing the many,” or, “doing it, the wicked thing, the many.” The text, relationship between words, and meaning of this whole verse have been greatly debated. Wholesale emendation based on the ancient versions is common in both commentaries and modern English versions. Many follow the lead of the Greek version, which in many cases offers a smoother reading but for that very reason may not be original. The notes that follow will explain some of these emendations but will also attempt to explain the most likely meaning of the MT, which is the more difficult and probably more original text. Since it is presumed to be the original, the text will be dealt with in the notes line for line in the MT, even though the emendations often relate to more than one line. For example, the Greek of the first two lines reads, “Why has the beloved done abomination in my house?” This ignores the preposition before “my beloved” (לִידִידִי, lididi) and treats the form “her doing” (עֲשׂוֹתָהּ [ʿasotah], Qal infinitive plus suffix) as a finite verb (עָשְׂתָה [ʿasetah], Qal perfect third feminine). The forms are similar, but the Greek is smoother. Moreover, it is difficult to explain the presence of “to” in the MT if the Greek is the original. The Greek text likewise does not have the difficulty that is exhibited in the MT by the word “the many” (הָרַבִּים, harabbim). It reads a word for “vows/votive offerings” (εὐχαί [euchai] regularly = נְדָרִים [nedarim]) in place of the word “many” (הָרַבִּים, harabbim) and takes it as part of a compound subject of the verb in the following line meaning “take away.” However, this word is far removed graphically from that in the MT, and it would be difficult to explain how the MT arose from it. The Old Latin apparently reads a word for “fat” (adipes = חֲלָבִים, khalavim) that is closer in script to the MT and would be more likely original than the Greek. However, both of these resolutions look like attempts to smooth out a difficult text. Because there is no solid support for any single reading, it is probably best to retain the MT’s “the many.” Many do retain it and take it as a second accusative of “doing it” and read, “she does the wicked thing with many [i.e., many false gods],” a use of the accusative which is hard to justify. Another alternative, taking the adjective “the many” to modify the noun “the wicked thing,” is sometimes suggested, but is not possible because the adjective is masculine plural and the noun is feminine singular, which pairing is contrary to Hebrew style. Hence one cannot read, “she has done many wicked things.” The present translation follows the suggestion in D. Barthélemy, ed., Preliminary and Interim Report on the Hebrew Old Testament Text Project, 4:209, that “the many” is the subject of the infinitive construct with an object suffix that anticipates the following noun “wickedness” (cf. GKC 425 §131.m), i.e., “the many do it, namely, the wickedness” (for the meaning of the noun see BDB 273 s.v. מְזִמָּה 3.b).
  38. Jeremiah 11:15 tn The meaning of this line is also uncertain. The Hebrew text reads somewhat literally, “holy meat they pass over from upon you.” The question of the subject of the verb is the main problem here. The verb is masculine plural, and the only subjects available are “holy meat,” which is singular; a “they” which goes back to “the many”; or a noun from the end of the preceding line that is combined with “holy meat.” The latter is the solution of the Greek version, which reads, “Will votive offerings [or pieces of fat (following the Old Latin)] and holy meats take away from you your wickedness?” However, that resolution has been rejected in the preceding note as smoothing out the difficulties of the first two lines. It also leaves out the כִּי (ki) at the beginning of the following line and takes the noun “your wickedness” as the object of the verb. That certainly would make for an easier reading of both this line and the next, and the assumption that כִּי may not be in the text is possible because it could be explained as a double writing of the pronoun on the end of the preceding phrase, “from upon you” (מֵעָלָיִךְ, meʿalayikh). However, besides being the smoother reading, it leaves the last line too short poetically. The solution of the UBS, Preliminary Report, 4:209 is that “they” (referring back to “the many”?) is the subject. They read, “so that they carry away from you even sacrificial flesh.” But who are “they” and “you?” Are “they” the priests and “you” the people? (See 1 Sam 2:10-17 for a possible parallel.) This, however, introduces too many unknowns into the text. The translation adopted is based on a revocalization of the form “from upon you” (מֵעָלָיִךְ, meʿalayikh) to “your treacherous acts” (מַעֲלָיִךְ, maʿalayikh; for this noun cf. BDB 591 s.v. I מַעַל 2), a solution that is also proposed in the margin of the NJPS, which reads, “Can your treacheries be canceled by sacral flesh?” For the nuance of the verb presupposed here (= be removed, cease to exist), see BDB 718 s.v. עָבַר Qal.6.c and compare usage in Job 30:15. While this solution does preserve the consonantal text and is accepted here, it should be acknowledged that there is no ancient support for it, and the reading of the noun “treacheries” in place of the compound preposition “from upon” is purely speculative.
  39. Jeremiah 11:15 tn Heb “for [or when] your wickedness then you rejoice.” The meaning of this line is uncertain. The Greek version, which reads, “or will you escape by these things,” (presupposing a Hebrew text אִם עַל זוֹת תָּעוּזִי, ʾim ʿal zot taʿuzi), is far removed from the reading in the MT (אָז תַּעֲלֹזִי [ʾaz taʿalozi]; the rest of the Hebrew line has been left out because the Greek reads it with the preceding line). It again appears to be an attempt to smooth out a difficult text. The translation retains the MT but rewords it so it makes better sense in English. The translation presupposes that the phrase “your wickedness” is the object of the verb “take joy,” and that the adverb “then” refers back to the offering of sacred flesh, i.e., “even then [or “at that time”]” as a constructio ad sensum. For a similar use of the adverb (אָז, ʾaz) compare Gen 13:7. For the use of כִּי (ki) meaning “that” after a question, see BDB 472 s.v. כִּי 1.f. A possible alternative would be to read as UBS, Preliminary Report, 4:209 do: “When trouble reaches you, then will you exult?” If the text of the whole verse followed here, the more difficult text, is not the original one, the most likely alternative would be, “What right does my beloved have to be in my house? She has done wicked things [reading עָשְׂתָה מְזִמֹּת, ʿasetah mezimmot]. Can fat pieces [reading הַחֲלָבִים, hakhalavim] and sacred meat take away your wickedness from you [reading יַעֲבִרוּ מֵעָלַיִךְ רָעָתֵכִי, yaʿaviru meʿalayikh raʿatekhi]? [If it could,] then you could rejoice.” It should be emphasized that the text of the verse is uncertain in a number of places and open to more than one interpretation. However, regardless of which text or interpretation of it is followed, the Masoretic as interpreted here, the Greek as given in the notes, or an emended text based on both, the overall meaning is much the same. Judah has done evil, and the Lord rejects their superficial attempts to placate him through ritual without change of behavior. The particulars are different; the point is the same.sn For the argument of this verse compare the condemnatory questions in Jer 7:9-11.
  40. Jeremiah 11:16 tn Heb “The Lord once called you….” This is another example of the rapid shift in person that is common to Hebrew style but not common in English and could lead to confusion for some readers. Here and in the verses that follow the person has been shifted to first person for consistency in English.
  41. Jeremiah 11:16 tn The verb form used here is another example of a verb expressing that the action is as good as done (the Hebrew prophetic perfect).
  42. Jeremiah 11:16 tn Heb “At the sound of a mighty roar he will set fire to it.” For the shift from third person “he” to the first person “I,” see the preceding note. The Hebrew use of the pronouns in vv. 16-17 for the olive tree and the people that it represents is likely to cause confusion if retained. In v. 16 the people are “you” and the olive tree is “it.” The people are again “you” in v. 17, but part of the metaphor is carried over, i.e., “he ‘planted’ you.” It creates less confusion in the flow of the passage if the metaphorical identification is carried out throughout by addressing the people/plant as “you.”
  43. Jeremiah 11:16 tn The verb here has most commonly been derived from a root meaning “to be broken” (cf. BDB 949 s.v. II רָעַע) that fits poorly with the metaphor of setting the plant on fire. Another common option is to emend it to a verb meaning “to be burned up” (בָּעַר, baʿar). However, it is better to follow the lead of the Greek version, which translates “be good for nothing” (ἠχρειώθησαν, ēchreiōthēsan) and derives the verb from רָעַע (raʿaʿ), meaning “be bad/evil” (cf. BDB 949 and compare the nuance of the adjective from this verb in BDB 948 s.v. רַע 5).
  44. Jeremiah 11:17 tn Heb “Yahweh of Armies.”sn For the significance of the term see the notes at 2:19 and 7:3.
  45. Jeremiah 11:17 tn The words “in the land” are not in the text but are supplied in the translation to clarify the meaning of the metaphor.
  46. Jeremiah 11:17 tn Heb “For Yahweh of Armies who planted you speaks disaster upon you.” Because of the way the term Lord of Heaven’s Armies has been rendered, this sentence has been restructured to avoid confusion in English style.
  47. Jeremiah 11:17 tn Heb “pronounced disaster…on account of the evil of the house of Israel and the house of Judah which they have done to make me angry [or thus making me angry] by sacrificing to Baal.” The lines have been broken up in conformity with contemporary English style.
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Jeremiah 15:10-21
New English Translation

Jeremiah Complains about His Lot and The Lord Responds

10 I said,[a]

“Oh, mother, how I regret[b] that you ever gave birth to me!
I am always starting arguments and quarrels with the people of this land.[c]
I have not lent money to anyone and I have not borrowed from anyone.
Yet all these people are treating me with contempt.”[d]

11 The Lord said,

“Jerusalem,[e] I will surely send you away for your own good.
I will surely[f] bring the enemy upon you in a time of trouble and distress.
12 Can you people who are like iron and bronze
break that iron fist from the north?[g]
13 I will give away your wealth and your treasures as plunder.
I will give it away free of charge for the sins you have committed throughout your land.
14 I will make you serve your enemies[h] in a land that you know nothing about.
For my anger is like a fire that will burn against you.”

15 I said,[i]

“Lord, you know how I suffer.[j]
Take thought of me and care for me.
Pay back for me those who have been persecuting me.
Do not be so patient with them that you allow them to kill me.
Be mindful of how I have put up with their insults for your sake.
16 As your words came to me I drank them in,[k]
and they filled my heart with joy and happiness
because I belong to you,[l] O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies.[m]
17 I did not spend my time in the company of other people,
laughing and having a good time.
I stayed to myself because I felt obligated to you[n]
and because I was filled with anger at what they had done.
18 Why must I continually suffer such painful anguish?
Why must I endure the sting of their insults like an incurable wound?
Will you let me down when I need you,
like a brook one goes to for water, but that cannot be relied on?”[o]

19 Because of this, the Lord said,[p]

“You must repent of such words and thoughts!
If you do, I will restore you to the privilege of serving me.[q]
If you say what is worthwhile instead of what is worthless,
I will again allow you to be my spokesman.[r]
They must become as you have been.
You must not become like them.[s]
20 I will make you as strong as a wall to these people,
a fortified wall of bronze.
They will attack you,
but they will not be able to overcome you.
For I will be with you to rescue you and deliver you,”[t]
says the Lord.
21 “I will deliver you from the power of the wicked.
I will free you from the clutches of violent people.”

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 15:10 tn The words “I said” are not in the text. They are supplied in the translation for clarity to mark a shift in the speaker.
  2. Jeremiah 15:10 tn Heb “Woe to me, my mother.” See the comments on 4:13 and 10:19.
  3. Jeremiah 15:10 tn Heb “A man of strife and a man of contention with all the land.” The “of” relationship (Hebrew and Greek genitive) can convey either subjective or objective relationships, i.e., he instigates strife and contention or he is the object of it. A study of usage elsewhere, e.g., Isa 41:11; Job 31:35; Prov 12:19; 25:24; 26:21; 27:15, is convincing that it is subjective. In his role as God’s covenant messenger charging people with wrongdoing he has instigated counterarguments and stirred up strife and contention against him.
  4. Jeremiah 15:10 tc The translation follows the almost universally agreed upon correction of the MT. Instead of reading כֻּלֹּה מְקַלְלַונִי (kulloh meqalelavni, “all of him is cursing me”) as the Masoretes proposed (Qere), one should read קִלְלוּנִי (qileluni) with the written text (Kethib) and redivide and repoint with the suggestion in BHS כֻּלְּהֶם (qullehem, “all of them are cursing me”).
  5. Jeremiah 15:11 tn The word “Jerusalem” is not in the text. It is supplied in the translation for clarity to identify the referent of “you.” A comparison of three or four English versions will show how difficult this verse is to interpret. The primary difficulty is with the meaning of the verb rendered here as, “I will surely send you out [שֵׁרִותִךָ, sheritikha](which treats the mater lectionis vav as a mater lectionis yod).” The text and the meaning of the word are debated (for a rather full discussion see W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah [Hermeneia], 1:446-47, n. b-b). Tied up with that is the meaning of the verb in the second line and the identification of who the speaker and addressee are. One of two approaches are usually followed. Some follow the Greek version which has Jeremiah speaking and supporting his complaint that he has been faithful. In this case the word “said” is left out, the difficult verb is taken to mean, “I have served you” (שֵׁרַתִּיךָ [sherattikha] from שָׁרַת [sharat; BDB 1058 s.v. שָׁרַת]) and the parallel verb means, “I have made intercession for my enemies.” The second tack is to suppose that God is speaking and is promising Jeremiah deliverance from his detractors. In this case the troublesome word is taken to mean “deliver” (cf. BDB 1056 s.v. I שָׁרָה), “strengthen” (see BDB’s discussion), or is read as a noun “remnant” (שֵׁרִיתְךָ = שְׁאֵרִיתְךָ [sheritekha = sheʾeritekha]; again see BDB’s discussion). In this case the parallel verb is taken to mean, “I will cause your enemies to entreat you,” a meaning it has nowhere else. Both of these approaches are probably wrong. The Greek text is the only evidence for leaving out “said.” The problem with making Jeremiah the addressee is twofold. First, the word “enemy” is never used in the book of Jeremiah’s foes, always of political enemies. Second, and more troublesome, one must assume a shift in the addressee between v. 11 and vv. 13-14 or assume that the whole is addressed to Jeremiah. The latter would be odd if he is promised deliverance from his detractors only to be delivered to captivity. If, however, one assumes that the whole is addressed to Jerusalem, there is no such problem. A check of earlier chapters will show that the second masculine pronoun is used for Judah/Jerusalem in 2:28-29; 4:1-2; 5:17-18; 11:13. In 2:28-29 and 4:1-2 the same shift from second singular to second plural takes place as occurs here in vv. 13-14. Moreover, vv. 13-14 continue much of the same vocabulary and are addressed to Jerusalem. The approach followed here is similar to that taken in REB except “for good” is taken in the way it is always used rather than to mean “utterly.” The nuance suggested by BDB 1056 s.v. I שָׁרָה is assumed, and the meaning of the parallel verb is assumed to be similar to that in Isa 53:6 (see BDB 803 s.v. פָּגַע Hiph.1). The MT is retained with demonstrable meanings. For the concept of “for good” see Jer 24:5-6. This assumes that the ultimate goal of God’s discipline is here announced.sn The Lord interrupts Jeremiah’s complaint with a word for Jerusalem. Compare a similar interruption in discussion with Jeremiah in vv. 5-6.
  6. Jeremiah 15:11 tn “Surely” represents a construct in Hebrew that indicates a strong oath of affirmation. See BDB 50 s.v. אִם 1.b(2) and compare usage in 2 Kgs 9:26.
  7. Jeremiah 15:12 tn Or “Can iron and bronze break iron from the north?” The question is rhetorical and expects a negative answer. The translation and meaning of this verse are debated. The two main difficulties involve the relation of words to one another and the obscure allusion to iron from the north. To translate literally is difficult since one does not know whether “iron” is the subject of “break” or object of an impersonal verb. Likewise, the dangling phrase “and bronze” fits poorly with either understanding. Two options are, “Can iron break iron from the north and bronze?” or, “Can one break iron, even iron from the north and bronze.” This last is commonly chosen by translators and interpreters, but why add “and bronze” at the end? And to what does “iron from the north” refer? A long history of interpretation relates it to the foe from the north (see already 1:14; 4:6; 6:1; 13:20). The translation follows the lead of NRSV and takes “and bronze” as a compound subject. There are no ready parallels for this syntax, but the reference to “from the north” and the comparison to the stubbornness of the unrepentant people to bronze and iron in 6:28 suggest a possible figurative allusion. There is no evidence in the Bible that Israel knew about a special kind of steel like iron from the Black Sea mentioned in later Greek sources. The word “fist” is supplied in the translation to try to give some hint that it refers to a hostile force.sn Cf. Isa 10:5-6 for the idea here.
  8. Jeremiah 15:14 tc This reading follows the Greek and Syriac versions and several Hebrew mss. Other Hebrew mss read, “I will cause the enemy to pass through a land.” The difference in the reading is between one Hebrew letter, a dalet (ד) and a resh (ר).
  9. Jeremiah 15:15 tn The words “I said” are not in the text. They are supplied in the translation for clarity to mark the shift from the Lord speaking to Jerusalem, to Jeremiah speaking to God.
  10. Jeremiah 15:15 tn The words “how I suffer” are not in the text but are implicit from the continuation. They are supplied in the translation for clarity. Jeremiah is not saying “you are all knowing.”
  11. Jeremiah 15:16 sn Heb “Your words were found, and I ate them.” This along with Ezek 2:8-3:3 is a poetic picture of inspiration. The prophet accepted them, assimilated them, and made them such a part of himself that he spoke with complete assurance what he knew were God’s words.
  12. Jeremiah 15:16 tn Heb “Your name is called upon me.”sn See Jer 14:9, where this idiom is applied to Israel as a whole, and Jer 7:10, where it is applied to the temple. For discussion cf. notes on 7:10.
  13. Jeremiah 15:16 tn Heb “Lord God of Armies.” See the translator’s note at 2:19.
  14. Jeremiah 15:17 tn Heb “because of your hand.”
  15. Jeremiah 15:18 tn Heb “Will you be to me like a deceptive (brook), like waters which do not last [or are not reliable].”sn Jeremiah is speaking of the stream beds or wadis, which fill with water after the spring rains but often dry up in the summer time. A fuller picture is painted in Job 6:14-21. This contrasts with the earlier metaphor that God had used of himself in Jer 2:13.
  16. Jeremiah 15:19 tn Heb “So the Lord said thus.”
  17. Jeremiah 15:19 tn Heb “If you return [ = repent], I will restore [more literally, “cause you to return”] that you may stand before me.” For the idiom of “standing before” in the sense of serving, see BDB 764 s.v. עָמַד Qal.1.e and compare the usage in 1 Kgs 10:8; 12:8; 17:1; Deut 10:8.
  18. Jeremiah 15:19 tn Heb “you shall be as my mouth.”sn For the classic statement of the prophet as God’s “mouth/mouthpiece,” = “spokesman,” see Exod 4:15-16; 7:1-2.
  19. Jeremiah 15:19 tn Heb “They must turn/return to you and you must not turn/return to them.”sn Once again the root “return” (שׁוּב, shuv) is being played on as in 3:1-4:4. See the threefold call to repentance in 3:12, 14, 22. The verb is used here four times: “repent,” “restore,” and “become” twice. He is to serve as a model of repentance, not an imitator of their apostasy. In accusing God of being unreliable he was coming dangerously close to their kind of behavior.
  20. Jeremiah 15:20 sn See 1:18. The Lord renews his promise of protection and reiterates his call to Jeremiah.
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Jeremiah 14
Jeremiah 16
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Jeremiah 22:18-23
New English Translation

18 So[a] the Lord has this to say about Josiah’s son, King Jehoiakim of Judah:

“People will not mourn for him, saying,
‘This makes me sad, my brother!
This makes me sad, my sister!’
They will not mourn for him, saying,
‘Poor, poor lord! Poor, poor majesty!’[b]
19 He will be left unburied just like a dead donkey.
His body will be dragged off and thrown outside the gates of Jerusalem.[c]

Warning to Jerusalem

20 “People of Jerusalem,[d] go up to Lebanon and cry out in mourning.
Go to the land of Bashan and cry out loudly.
Cry out in mourning from the mountains of Moab.[e]
For your allies[f] have all been defeated.
21 While you were feeling secure I gave you warning.[g]
But you said, ‘I refuse to listen to you.’
That is the way you have acted from your earliest history onward.[h]
Indeed, you have never paid attention to me.
22 My judgment will carry off all your leaders like a storm wind![i]
Your allies will go into captivity.
Then you will certainly[j] be disgraced and put to shame
because of all the wickedness you have done.
23 You may feel as secure as a bird
nesting in the cedars of Lebanon.
But O how you[k] will groan[l] when the pains of judgment come on you.
They will be like those of a woman giving birth to a baby.”[m]

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 22:18 sn This is the regular way of introducing the announcement of judgment after an indictment of crimes. See, e.g., Isa 5:13, 14 and Jer 23:2.
  2. Jeremiah 22:18 tn The translation follows the majority of scholars, who think that the address of brother and sister are the address of the mourners to one another, lamenting their loss. Some scholars feel that all four terms are parallel and represent the relation that the king had metaphorically to his subjects; i.e., he was not only Lord and Majesty to them but like a sister or a brother. In that case it would be something like, “How sad it is for the one who was like a brother to us! How sad it is for the one who was like a sister to us.” This makes for poor poetry and is not very likely. The lover can call his bride sister in Song 4:9, 10, but there are no documented examples of a subject ever speaking of a king in this way in Israel or the ancient Near East.
  3. Jeremiah 22:19 sn A similar judgment against this ungodly king is pronounced by Jeremiah in 36:30. According to 2 Chr 36:6 he was bound over to be taken captive to Babylon but apparently died before he got there. According to the Jewish historian Josephus, Nebuchadnezzar ordered his body thrown outside the wall in fulfillment of this judgment. The Bible itself, however, does not tell us that.
  4. Jeremiah 22:20 tn The words “people of Jerusalem” are not in the text. They are supplied in the translation to clarify the referent of the imperative. The imperative is feminine singular and it is generally agreed that personified Zion/Jerusalem is in view. The second feminine singular has commonly been applied to Jerusalem or the people of Judah throughout the book. The reference to allies (v. 20, 22) and to leaders (v. 22) make it very probable that this is the case here too.
  5. Jeremiah 22:20 tn Heb “from Abarim.” This was the mountain range in Moab from which Moses viewed the promised land (cf. Deut 32:49).
  6. Jeremiah 22:20 tn Heb “your lovers.” For the use of this term to refer to allies, see 30:14 and a semantically similar term in 4:30.sn If the passages in this section are chronologically ordered, this refers to the help that Jehoiakim relied on when he rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar.
  7. Jeremiah 22:21 tn Heb “I spoke to you in your security.” The reference is to the sending of the prophets. Compare this context with the context of 7:25. For the nuance “security” for this noun (שַׁלְוָה, shalvah), rather than “prosperity” as many translate, see Pss 122:7; 30:6; and the related adjective (שָׁלֵו, shalev) in Jer 49:31; Job 16:2; and 21:23.
  8. Jeremiah 22:21 tn Heb “from your youth.” Compare the usage in 2:2 and 3:24, and see a similar idea in 7:25.
  9. Jeremiah 22:22 tn Heb “A wind will shepherd away all your shepherds.” The figures have all been interpreted in the translation for the sake of clarity. For the use of the word “wind” as a metaphor or simile for God’s judgment (using the enemy forces), see 4:11-12; 13:24; 18:17. For the use of the word “shepherd” to refer to rulers/leaders, see 2:8; 10:21; 23:1-4. For the use of the word “shepherd away” in the sense of carry off/drive away, see BDB 945 s.v. רָעָה 2.d and compare Job 20:26. There is an obvious wordplay involved in two different senses of the word “shepherd,” one referring to their leaders and one referring to the loss of those leaders by the wind driving them off. There may even be a further play involving the word “wickedness,” which comes from a word having the same consonants. If the oracles in this section are chronologically ordered, this threat was fulfilled in 597 b.c. Then many of the royal officials and nobles were carried away captive with Jehoiachin (see 2 Kgs 24:15), who is the subject of the next oracle.
  10. Jeremiah 22:22 tn The use of the Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) is intensive here and probably also at the beginning of the last line of v. 21. (See BDB 472 s.v. כִּי 1.e.)
  11. Jeremiah 22:23 tn Heb “You who dwell in Lebanon, you who are nested in its cedars, how you….” The metaphor has been interpreted for the sake of clarity. The figure here has often been interpreted of the people of Jerusalem living in paneled houses or living in a city dominated by the temple and palace, which were built from the cedars of Lebanon. Some even interpret this as a reference to the king, who has been characterized as living in a cedar palace, in a veritable Lebanon (cf. vv. 6-7, 14 and see also the alternate interpretation of 21:13-14). However, the reference to “nesting in the cedars” and the earlier reference to “feeling secure” suggest that the figure is instead like that of Ezek 31:6 and Dan 4:12. See also Hab 2:9, where a related figure is used. The forms for “you who dwell” and “you who are nested” in the literal translation are feminine singular participles, referring again to personified Jerusalem. (The written forms of these participles are to be explained as participles with a hireq campaginis according to GKC 253 §90.m. The use of the participle before the preposition is to be explained according to GKC 421 §130.a.)
  12. Jeremiah 22:23 tn The verb here should be identified as a Niphal perfect of the verb אָנַח (ʾanakh) with the א (aleph) left out (so BDB 336 s.v. חָנַן Niph and GKC 80 §23.f, n. 1). The form is already translated that way by the Greek, Latin, and Syriac versions.
  13. Jeremiah 22:23 sn This simile has already been used in Jer 4:31 and 6:24 in conjunction with Zion/Jerusalem’s judgment.
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Jeremiah 35
New English Translation

Judah’s Unfaithfulness Contrasted with the Rechabites’ Faithfulness

35 The Lord spoke to Jeremiah when Jehoiakim[a] son of Josiah was ruling over Judah:[b] 2 “Go to the Rechabite community.[c] Invite them to come into one of the side rooms[d] of the Lord’s temple and offer them some wine to drink.” 3 So I went and got Jaazaniah son of Jeremiah the grandson of Habazziniah, his brothers, all his sons, and all the rest of the Rechabite community. 4 I took them to the Lord’s temple. I took them into the room where the disciples of the prophet Hanan son of Igdaliah stayed.[e] That room was next to the one where the temple officers stayed and above the room where Maaseiah son of Shallum, one of the doorkeepers[f] of the temple, stayed. 5 Then I set cups and pitchers full of wine in front of the members of the Rechabite community and said to them, “Have some wine.”[g] 6 But they answered, “We do not drink wine because our ancestor Jonadab son of Rechab commanded us not to. He told us, ‘You and your children must never drink wine. 7 Do not build houses. Do not plant crops. Do not plant a vineyard or own one.[h] Live in tents all your lives. If you do these things you will[i] live a long time in the land that you wander about on.’[j] 8 We and our wives and our sons and daughters have obeyed everything our ancestor Jonadab son of Rechab commanded us. We have never drunk wine.[k] 9 We have not built any houses to live in. We do not own any vineyards, fields, or crops. 10 We have lived in tents. We have obeyed our ancestor Jonadab and done exactly as he commanded us.[l] 11 But when King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon invaded the land we said, ‘Let’s get up and go to Jerusalem to get away from the Babylonian[m] and Aramean armies.’ That is why we are staying here in Jerusalem.”

12 Then the Lord’s message came to Jeremiah. 13 The Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel,[n] told him, “Go and speak to the people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem. Tell them,[o] ‘I, the Lord, say:[p] “You must learn a lesson from this[q] about obeying what I say.[r] 14 Jonadab son of Rechab ordered his descendants not to drink wine. His orders have been carried out.[s] To this day his descendants have drunk no wine because they have obeyed what their ancestor commanded them. But I[t] have spoken to you over and over again,[u] but you have not obeyed me. 15 I sent all my servants the prophets to warn you over and over again. They said, ‘Every one of you, stop doing the evil things you have been doing and do what is right.[v] Do not pay allegiance to other gods[w] and worship them. Then you can continue to live in this land that I gave to you and your ancestors.’ But you did not pay any attention or listen to me. 16 Yes,[x] the descendants of Jonadab son of Rechab have carried out the orders that their ancestor gave them. But you people[y] have not obeyed me! 17 So I, the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, say:[z] ‘I will soon bring on Judah and all the citizens of Jerusalem all the disaster that I threatened to bring on them. I will do this because I spoke to them but they did not listen. I called out to them but they did not answer.’”’”

18 Then Jeremiah spoke to the Rechabite community, “The Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel[aa] says, ‘You have obeyed the orders of your ancestor Jonadab. You have followed all his instructions. You have done exactly as he commanded you.’ 19 So the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says, ‘Jonadab son of Rechab will never lack a male descendant to serve me.’”[ab]

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 35:1 sn The introductory statement here shows that this incident is earlier than those in Jer 32-34, which all take place in the reign of Zedekiah. Jehoiakim ruled from 609/8 b.c. until 598/97 b.c., and his brother Zedekiah followed him after a brief reign of three months by Jehoiakim’s son, who was captured by Nebuchadnezzar and taken to Babylon. Zedekiah ruled from 598/7 b.c. until the kingdom fell in 587/86. This chapter, out of chronological order, provides an illustration to emphasize the contrast between covenant infidelity (Jer 34; 35:12-17) and fidelity. The Rechabites' faithfulness to the commands of their progenitor showed the obedience that God as the Father of Israel expected from his children. This is thus another one of those symbolic acts in Jeremiah that have significance for the message of the book (compare Jer 13, 19). This incident likely took place during the time that people living in the countryside like the Rechabites were forced to take shelter in the fortified cities because of the raiding parties that Nebuchadnezzar had sent against Jehoiakim after he had rebelled against him in 603 b.c. (compare v. 11 and Jer 4:5 with 2 Kgs 24:1-2).
  2. Jeremiah 35:1 tn Heb “The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the days of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, saying.”
  3. Jeremiah 35:2 tn Heb “the house of the Rechabites.” “House” is used here in terms of “household” or “family” (cf. BDB 109 s.v. בַּיִת 5.a, b).sn Nothing is known about the Rechabite community other than what is said about them in this chapter. From vv. 7-8 it appears that they were a nomadic tribe that had resisted settling down and taking up farming. They had also agreed to abstain from drinking wine. Most scholars agree in equating the Jonadab son of Rechab mentioned as the leader who had instituted these strictures with the Jonadab who assisted Jehu in his religious purge of Baalism following the reign of Ahab (2 Kgs 10:15, 23-24). If this is the case, the Rechabites followed these same rules for almost 250 years, because Jehu’s purge of Baalism and the beginning of his reign was in 841 b.c., and the incident here took place some time after Jehoiakim’s rebellion in 603 b.c. (see the study note on v. 1).
  4. Jeremiah 35:2 sn This refers to one of the rooms built on the outside of the temple that were used as living quarters for the priests and for storage rooms (cf. Neh 13:4-5; 1 Kgs 6:5; 1 Chr 28:12; 2 Chr 31:11 and compare Ezek 41:1-14).
  5. Jeremiah 35:4 tn Heb “the sons of Hanan son of Igdaliah, the man of God.” The reference to “sons” and to “man of God” fits the usage of these terms elsewhere to refer to prophets and their disciples (see BDB 43-44 s.v. אֱלֹהִים 3(b) and compare usage in 2 Kgs 4:40 for the former and BDB 121 s.v. בֵּן 7.a and compare the usage in 2 Kgs 4:38 for the latter).
  6. Jeremiah 35:4 sn According to Jer 52:24 and 2 Kgs 25:18, there were three officers who carried out this duty. It was their duty to guard the entrance of the temple to keep people out that did not belong there, such as those who were foreigners or ritually unclean (see 2 Kgs 12:9 and compare Ps 118:19-20).
  7. Jeremiah 35:5 tn Heb “Drink wine.”
  8. Jeremiah 35:7 tn Heb “Don’t plant a vineyard, and it shall not be to you [= and you shall/must not have one].”
  9. Jeremiah 35:7 tn Heb “Don’t…and don’t…but live…in order that you might….”
  10. Jeremiah 35:7 sn Heb “where you are sojourning.” The terms “sojourn” and “sojourner” referred to a person who resided in a country not his own, without the rights and privileges of citizenship as a member of a nation, state, or principality. In the ancient Near East such people were dependent on the laws of hospitality, rather than the laws of state, for protection and provision of legal rights. Perhaps the best illustration of this is Abraham, who “sojourned” among the Philistines and the Hittites in Canaan and was dependent upon them for grazing and water rights and for a place to bury his wife (cf. Gen 20-24). What is described here is the typical lifestyle of a nomadic tribe.
  11. Jeremiah 35:8 tn Heb “We have not drunk wine all our days.” Actually, vv. 8b-9a are a series of infinitive constructs plus the negative לְבִלְתִּי (levilti) that explain the particulars of how they have obeyed, i.e., by not drinking wine…and by not building….” The more direct declarative statement is used here to shorten the sentence and is more in keeping with contemporary style.
  12. Jeremiah 35:10 tn Heb “We have obeyed and done according to all that our ancestor Jonadab commanded us.”
  13. Jeremiah 35:11 tn Heb “Chaldean.” For explanation see the study note on 21:4.
  14. Jeremiah 35:13 tn Heb “Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel.” For this title see 7:3 and the study note on 2:19.
  15. Jeremiah 35:13 tn Heb “35:12 And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying, ‘Thus says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel, “Go and say…‘Will you not learn…’”’” The use of the indirect introduction has been chosen here, as in 34:1-2, to try to cut down on the confusion created by embedding quotations within quotations.
  16. Jeremiah 35:13 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”
  17. Jeremiah 35:13 tn The words “from this” are not in the text but are implicit from the context. They have been supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.
  18. Jeremiah 35:13 tn Heb “Will you not learn a lesson…?” The rhetorical question here has the force, made explicit in the translation, of an imperative.
  19. Jeremiah 35:14 tn Heb “The words of Jonadab son of Rechab, that he commanded his descendants not to drink wine, have been carried out.” (For the construction of the accusative of subject after a passive verb illustrated here see GKC 388 §121.b.) The sentence has been broken down and made more direct to better conform to contemporary English style.
  20. Jeremiah 35:14 tn The vav (ו) plus the independent pronoun before the verb is intended to mark a sharp contrast. It is difficult, if not impossible, to render this in English other than as “But I.”
  21. Jeremiah 35:14 tn On this idiom (which occurs again in the following verse) see the translator’s note on 7:13 and compare its use in 7:13, 25; 11:7; 25:3, 4; 26:5; 29:19; 32:33; 35:14, 15; 44:9.
  22. Jeremiah 35:15 tn Heb “Turn, each of you, from his [= your] wicked way and make good your deeds.” Cf. 18:11, where the same idiom occurs with the added term of “make good your ways.”
  23. Jeremiah 35:15 tn Heb “Don’t go after/follow other gods.” See the translator’s note on 2:5 for an explanation of the idiom and see 11:10; 13:10; 25:6 for the same idiom.
  24. Jeremiah 35:16 tn This is an attempt to represent the particle כִּי (ki), which is probably not really intensive here (cf. BDB 472 s.v. כִּי 1.e) but is one of those causal uses of כִּי that BDB discusses on 473-74 s.v. כִּי 3.c, where the cause is really the failure of the people of Judah and Jerusalem to listen/obey. That is, the causal particle is at the beginning of the sentence so as not to interrupt the contrast drawn.
  25. Jeremiah 35:16 tn Heb “this people.” However, the speech is addressed to the people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem, so the second person is retained in English. In addition to the stylistic difference that Hebrew exhibits in the rapid shifts between persons (second to third and third to second, which have repeatedly been noted and documented from GKC 462 §144.p), there may be a subtle rhetorical reason for the shift here. The shift from direct address to indirect address that characterizes this verse and the next may reflect the Lord’s rejection of the people he is addressing. A similar shift takes place in Wisdom’s address to the simpleminded, fools, and mockers in Prov 1:28-32 after the direct address of 1:22-27.
  26. Jeremiah 35:17 tn Heb “Therefore, thus says the Lord, the God of Armies, the God of Israel.” For the title see 7:13 and the study note on 2:19. The first person address is again used in the translation because this whole section is a speech from the Lord (see vv. 12-13).
  27. Jeremiah 35:18 tn Heb “Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel.” For this title, which occurs again in the following verse, see the notes on 7:3 and the study note on 2:19.
  28. Jeremiah 35:19 tn Heb “There shall not be cut to Jonadab son of Rechab a man standing before me all the days.” For the first part of this idiom see 33:17-18, where it is applied to David always having a descendant to occupy the throne and the Levites always having priests to offer up sacrifices. For the latter part of the idiom, “to stand before,” referring to service, see BDB 764 s.v. עָמַד 1.e and compare the usage in 1 Kgs 1:2; 2 Kgs 3:14; Jer 15:19; Deut 10:8. As comparison with those passages will show, it refers to attending on or serving a superior, a king, or the Lord. It is used of both prophets (e.g., 1 Kgs 17:1) and priests (e.g., Deut 10:8) serving the Lord. Its most common use is to refer to priestly service. The nature of the service is not further defined in this case, though several of the commentaries point out a Mishnaic tradition that the Rechabites later were given the function of bringing wood for the altar.
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