Jeremiah spoke the Word of the Lord to the inhabitants of Judah and to
the surrounding nations during the reigns of the final five kings of the
monarchy. Yahweh’s commission to the prophet is summed up in Jeremiah
1:10: “See, I have appointed you this day over the nations and over the
kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow, to
build and to plant.”
The prophet could speak destruction to a nation because God had already
declared it to him.
For the historical background of Jeremiah’s prophecies, see II Kings
22-25 and II Chronicles 34-36.
Note that these prophecies are not in chronological order.
His father was Hilkiah, probably the same Hilkiah the high priest who
found the book of the law during the reign of Josiah. His aunt Huldah
was a prophetess and the one to whom Josiah sent a delegation to inquire
of the Lord. Jeremiah’s contemporaries included the prophets Nahum,
Habakkuk and Zephaniah. Daniel and his three friends were probably his
disciples. Ezekiel also might have been familiar with him.
Jeremiah began his ministry in the thirteenth year of the rule of the
godly king Josiah. His was the happiest reign of Judah’s experience.
When he came to the throne at the age of eight, idolatry in every form
was rampant due to the practices of his father and grandfather. But he
had God-fearing advisors who turned him to the ways of Yahweh. At 16, he
personally began to seek Him.
When Josiah was 26 years old, Hilkiah the high priest found a copy of
the Torah during the restoration of the temple. Upon hearing its words,
Josiah immediately assembled all of Judah. They renewed the covenant and
pledged themselves to the keeping of its commands.
Sadly, the revival was only superficial. On the surface, the people
appeared to have a renewed devotion to the temple and its services, but
their hearts remained cold, unrepentant and actively resistant to the
pleadings of compassion. Yahweh’s stern rebuke came through Jeremiah
that they were a treacherous people who were only acting in pretense.
(See Jeremiah 3:10). (See diagram of Last Five Kings)
King Josiah’s untimely death brought to an end all hope of a true
revival and introduced a succession of four evil kings, three of whom
were his sons, and one, his grandson. Jeremiah thus had the unenviable
task of speaking to a dying nation that refused to listen – a nation
that sought solutions to its problem of national defense through foreign
intrigue and foreign gods. Judah chose to put its trust in worthless,
gold-encrusted wooden idols, and in the superpowers of its day, rather
than trust in its covenant God. (See Jeremiah 17:5-7).
The amazing thing was that in the midst of their rebellion, Yahweh
reaffirmed His love for His covenant people. To an obstinate nation the
Lord declared, “I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I
have drawn you with lovingkindness.” Israel did not cause God’s love
to begin; therefore, they could not cause God’s love to end. It wasn’t
that Israel was attractive to God, but quite the reverse, that He had
drawn them to Himself because of lovingkindness – covenant love.
Israel’s conduct demanded punishment, but God in His mercy would not
completely destroy them. Those who would surrender to Babylon – the
instrument of God’s chastisement – would go into exile, but one day
they would return to inhabit the land. Knowing that we can rest securely
in God’s everlasting love gives us tremendous comfort. If we fail, we
can expect God’s discipline, but we will never be forsaken.
During the last hours of Jerusalem, as the nation hovered on the edge of
collapse and deportation, the Word of the Lord came to Jeremiah
concerning the New Covenant. (See Jeremiah 30-33). These prophecies were
partially fulfilled in the return of Israel to their land some seventy
years later, but were finally brought about in the Finished Work of
Christ and the birth of the Church.
These chapters should be thoroughly read and studied in as many
translations as possible. They are the climax of all that has gone
before in terms of promise, covenant and prophecy. The monarchy and
priesthood teetered on the brink of ruin, and out of the darkness
Jeremiah assured the people of restoration and joy in God.
In July, 586 B.C., the city fell to Babylon. Zedekiah tried to escape,
but was captured near Jericho and brought to Nebuchadnezzar’s
headquarters at Riblah, where his sons were slain in front of him before
his eyes were burnt out.
Jerusalem was razed, and Solomon’s Temple was destroyed. Good tradition
states that as the city lay in ruins, Jeremiah sat outside and wept,
writing what we call the Lamentations of Jeremiah.
Read Lamentations and enter into the feeling of the moment. The
description of Jeremiah’s feelings as he witnesses God’s judgment
gives us an understanding of the sufferings of Christ who, in that same
spot, would fully endure all of God’s wrath.
OUTLINE OF JEREMIAH
1 JEREMIAH’S CALL
2-20 THE CALL TO REPENTANCE
2-3:5 Israel forsakes the Lord
3:6-4:4 God entreats faithless Israel to return
4:5-31 Israel’s conduct brings judgment
5 The people, priests and prophets all have rebellious hearts
6-8:20 Judah refuses to listen
8:21-9:26 Conniving Israel
10 The Living God or worthless idols
11:1-17 The curses of the covenant
11:18-23 Plot against Jeremiah
12 Jeremiah’s grievance and the Lord’s response
13:1-11 The ruined line belt
13:12-14 Filled with drunkenness
13-15-27 The king and queen have forgotten their God
14-15:9 Punishment for their sins
15:10-21 Jeremiah’s plea for deliverance
16:1-17:27 Loss of their inheritance
18:1-17 Israel has forgotten their God
18:18-23 A verbal attack against Jeremiah
19 The smashed potter’s jar
20 Pashhur imprisons Jeremiah
21-33 BABYLONIAN JUDGMENT AND MESSIANIC SALVATION
21 The way of life or the way of death
22 Evil kings rebuked
23:1-8 The Lord our righteousness
23:9-40 False prophets
24 The exiles shall return
25:1-14 After seventy years, Babylon will be punished
25:15-38 The cup of God’s wrath
26 Jeremiah’s life is threatened
27 Judah and all nations to serve Nebuchadnezzar
28 The false prophet Hananiah
29 A letter to the exiles
30-33 Restoration and the New Covenant
The heart of the prophecy is 31:31-34
vs. 31, 32 Jeremiah refers to Sinai and the covenant that place there
(Exodus 19:1-6). That covenant was their charter as a nation, which has
now collapsed as a total failure. Man did not keep the law given. Has
God’s purpose failed? No, says Jeremiah, Israel be restored, but based
on a new covenant that will deal with all the weaknesses of the first
covenant.
vs. 33, 34 The law once written on stone would now become a principle of
life. Each member of that newly constituted Israel would have a
personal, intimate knowledge of Yahweh. This indicates that there would
be no need for a priesthood, for every man would stand face to face with
God. Every Israelite of the renewed nation would be a priest. This new
covenant would not only abolish the priesthood, but also abolish
sin-offerings, for all sin would finally be paid for.
Note carefully the repetition and expansion of these ideas: Jeremiah
32:38-42; 33:8-11.
Jesus claimed to fulfill this New Covenant and bring it to substance.
See Luke 22:20.
Read carefully Hebrews 9:1-10;25, in as many translations as you can.
34-45 JEREMIAH’S MINISTRY PRIOR TO AND SUBSEQUENT TO THE FALL OF JERUSALEM
34:1-7 Zedekiah is promised a peaceful death
34:8-22 The covenant of emancipation is broken
35 The faithful Recabites
36 King Jehoiakim burns the scroll
37-38 Jeremiah’s imprisonment
39 Jerusalem falls to Babylon
40:1-6 Jeremiah released
40:7-41:15 Gedaliah’s assassination
41:16-44:30 Jeremiah’s Egyptian ministry
45 Baruch’s safety is assured
46-51 PROPHECIES CONCERNING THE NATIONS
52 An Historical Appendix
52:1-30 More details concerning the fall of Jerusalem
52:31-34 The release of Jehoiachin
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