The Book of Jeremiah
1. Background
/ historical context
a.
The oracles recorded for us in the book of Jeremiah are
not always in chronological order
i.
Jeremiah ministered during the reigns of several
different kings, including Josiah, Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and
Zedekiah (1.2-3)
ii.
Though God has given us his word out of chronological
order (for a reason), keeping the historical context in mind can help us make
sense of what we read and why we read it
b. Jeremiah’s
ministry under the reign of King Josiah
i.
His prophetic ministry began in 626 B.C. at age twenty
ii.
He ministered freely under Josiah and condemned many of
the apostate practices Josiah sought to reform…though there is no record of
their meeting
c.
Jeremiah’s ministry between the death of Josiah and the
Fall of Jerusalem
i.
Those following Josiah refused to listen to Jeremiah’s
message (2 Ch 36.12; Jer 34, 36, 37)
1. King
Jehoiakim destroyed Jeremiah’s scrolls (36)
2. King
Zedekiah permitted Jeremiah’s arrest as a traitor when warning the people not
to resist Babylon (37.11-21)
3. King
Zedekiah later protected Jeremiah after receiving word that he would not be
killed in the siege (38.14-28)
ii.
Baruch went into the temple on Jeremiah’s behalf after he
was banned (36.4-5 ff.)
d. Jeremiah’s
ministry during the exile
i.
The Babylonians offer Jeremiah freedom and honor for
urging Judah to surrender peacefully (39.11-18), but Jeremiah chose to stay in
Jerusalem (40.1-16)
ii.
After Gedaliah’s murder, Jeremiah is taken to Egypt
against his will and against his earlier warning from God (43.1-13)
iii.
More than likely, Jeremiah died while in exile in Egypt
2. The
prophet
a.
Jeremiah was the ‘son of Hilkiah’ (1.1)
b. Jeremiah
was born into a priestly family in Anathoth (about three miles northeast of
Jerusalem)
i.
He would have been intimately familiar with the rites,
rituals, etc. of the Old Covenant
ii.
He would have known the Torah in-depth
iii.
He would have seen first-hand the neglect of the spirit
of Torah for the ‘letter of the Law’
iv.
He would have an audience with priests, prophets, and
worshipers in the Temple
c.
His ministry consisted of proclaiming the word of God
orally (2.4; 5.21; 7.2; 13.15; 19.3; 34.4; 44.24-26) and in writing (30.2;
36.2-4, 32; 51.50-64)
i.
The Book of Jeremiah is a collection of both kinds of
oracles with historical information to tie portions together
ii.
Again, these events are not recorded for us in
chronological order!
d. Baruch
was Jeremiah’s scribe and assistant (36.4, 26; 43.3, 6; 45.1-5)
e.
Perhaps more than any other prophet but Hosea, God used
Jeremiah to give very graphic and powerful illustrations through the
experiences of his life (13.1-11; 18.1-23; 19.1-14; 27.1-11; etc.)
3. A
‘brief’ outline of the Book of Jeremiah [1]
a.
Introduction (1.1-3)
b. Jeremiah’s
calling (1.4-19)
c.
Warnings of judgment from Jeremiah’s early ministry
(2.1-6.30)
i.
God’s rebuke of Judah’s faithlessness and attraction to
idols / false gods (2.1-37)
ii.
Appeal to return to God / promise of forgiveness and
blessing to the contrite (3.1-4.4)
iii.
Announcement of an invasion from the North (4.5-31)
iv.
Indictment of the total sinfulness of Judah (5.1-31)
v.
The coming siege and fall of Jerusalem (6.1-30)
d. Jeremiah’s
temple sermon and other warnings (7.1-10.25)
i.
Temple sermon (7.1-15) [2]
1. Misplaced
trust (7.1-11)
2. Warning
from Shiloh’s fate (7.12-15)
ii.
Worshiping the Queen of Heaven (7.16-20)
iii.
A disobedient nation (7.21-29)
iv.
Judgment against human sacrifice (7.30-34)
v.
Coming desecration of the dead by the enemy (8.1-3)
vi.
Judah’s stubborn refusal to return to God (8.4-13)
vii.
Resignation to the coming invasion (8.14-17)
viii.
Lament for a smitten people (8.18-9.6)
ix.
God’s justification for the coming punishment…his
covenant faithfulness (9.7-16)
x.
The only basis for boasting is in God (9.23-24)
xi.
The worthlessness of circumcision without true faith
(9.25-26)
xii.
Preparation for exile (10.1-25)
e.
The broken covenant and Jeremiah’s complaints (11.1-15.21)
i.
The broken covenant (11.1-8)
ii.
Covenant breakers will be punished (11.9-13)
iii.
Jeremiah forbidden to pray for the people (11.14-17)
iv.
The plot against Jeremiah’s life (11.18-12.6)
v.
God rejects his inheritance (12.7-13)
vi.
A conditional promise for Israel’s neighbors (12.14-17)
vii.
A corrupt people and their deserved punishment (13.1-27)
viii.
Judgments that cannot be averted (14.1-15.9)
ix.
Jeremiah’s complaint and God’s rebuke (15.10-21)
f.
Warnings, exhortations, and a prophet’s despair
(16.1-20.18)
i.
Threats and promises (16.1-21)
ii.
Further warnings and exhortations (17.1-27)
iii.
Jeremiah’s visit to the potter, a display of God’s
sovereignty (18.1-23)
iv.
Lessons from the broken clay jar (19.1-15)
v.
Jeremiah’s humiliation and despair (20.1-18)
g. Messages
to Judah and the nations (21.1-25.38)
i.
Messages against the kings of Judah (21.1-10)
ii.
Promise of a better day, the Righteous Branch (23.1-8)
iii.
Messages against the false prophets (23.9-40)
iv.
Two baskets of figs, hope for the exiles (24.1-10)
v.
Seventy years of captivity / God’s wrath against the
nations (25.1-38)
h. Jeremiah’s
controversy with the false prophets (26.1-29.32)
i.
Another temple sermon and its consequences for Jeremiah
(26.1-24)
ii.
Jeremiah’s symbolic yoke (27.1-22)
iii.
Conflict between Jeremiah and Hananiah, a false prophet
(28.1-17)
iv.
Letter to the exiles, the ‘whole truth’ (29.1-32) [3]
i.
Messages of hope for restoration (30.1-33.26)
i.
Promises of restoration (30.1-24)
ii.
A new covenant (31.1-40)
iii.
Jeremiah purchases the field in Anathoth, an act of hope
(32.1-44)
iv.
Promises of restoration (33.1-26)
j.
Events and messages near the fall of Jerusalem
(34.1-39.18)
k. Events
after the fall of Jerusalem (40.1-45.5)
i.
Jeremiah released (40.1-6)
ii.
Governorship of Gedaliah (40.7-41.18)
iii.
Flight to Egypt (42.1-43.7)
iv.
Jeremiah’s messages in Egypt (43.8-44.30)
v.
Encouragement for Baruch (45.1-5)
l.
Judgment against foreign nations (46.1-51.64) [4]
m. Recital
of events from the 2nd deportation (598 BC) to Jehoiachin’s release
(561 BC) (52.1-34)
4. Important
themes / teachings from the message of Jeremiah [5]
a.
False hope in God’s promises (Jer 7.1-15)
i.
Jeremiah blasted those at the temple for ‘standing on the
promises of God’ (7.10) while living lives that were completely opposite of
God’s revealed will (7.8-15)
1. The
people were involved in idolatry, social unjustice, stealing, murder, adultery,
rampant commandment breaking…and flaunted it
2. At the
same time, they claimed God’s promises as their security and ‘fire insurance’
ii.
As seen earlier, God revealed his covenant in a ‘pyramid’
of relationships (God-people-land)
1. God
presented his covenant as unconditional and everlasting, which it is
a.
Remember Abraham, who was passed out during the covenant
ceremony?
b. This
picture signified that God was the one working to bring the covenant promises
into reality
c.
This picture did not exempt Abraham (or his descendants)
from responding to God’s covenant promises in true faith
2. In
practice, Israel acted as though God’s unconditional promises placed no demands
or expectations upon them in any sense…this is fatalism not biblical religion
3. In
reality, God’s unconditional promises did not mean, “I will give you these
blessings no matter what,” but “Through faith in my word, I will give you these
blessings. There is no need for you to
labor to make these promises come to fruition, only believe.”
iii.
As warnings of judgment / destruction / exile grew
closer, Israel clung more tightly to their misguided understanding of God’s
covenant promises, sure that God would not forsake his land (especially the
temple) or his people, because he had promised he would not
1. Was God
unfaithful to his covenant? Absolutely
not!
2. The
exile was a mark of God’s faithfulness to his word, a covenantal response to
the infidelity and faithlessness of the people
3. Exile
(judgment) was an act of grace (‘fatherly discipline’ to use NT terms),
designed from the very beginning to turn the people back to God in repentance
and true faith
iv.
Our application:
Let us ask ourselves, “How often do we claim to be ‘standing on the
promises of God’ while walking in faithlessness and overt sin?”
1. We have
no more right to expect blessing from God in these times than faithless and
sinful Israel…in fact, what we should expect is God’s judgment and correction
2. God’s
promises are unconditional in that he requires no ‘works’ from us, but they are
always conditional with respect to faith in his covenantal promises (ultimately
in the work of Christ on our behalf)
3. Faith
is not a work but the hand that received the work God has done of our behalf
b. The
nature of true religion (Jer 7-9)
i.
Attendance at the house of God is no substitute for a
real meeting with Him (7.1-7)
1. The
people claimed the presence of the temple (i.e., God’s dwelling place) and
their attendance at worship as the reason for their security and hope
2. These
works offer no real security for those without faith
ii.
Religious exercises are no substitute for obedience to
the will of God (7.21-34)
1. God is
being ‘sarcastic’ (is ‘rhetorical’ a more palatable term) in vv. 21-22. Of course he required their sacrifices, but
their faithless ritual missed the bigger point
2. God did
not prescribe ritual and rites for their own sake but as a means to draw near
to him in true faith…this was always ‘the point’ from God’s perspective (v.23)
iii.
Possession of the word of God is no substitute for
putting it into practice (8.4-12)
1. Israel
rightly esteemed God’s word as a blessing in itself
a.
God told Israel they would be the envy of the nations
because of he had graciously given them his Torah or ‘law’ (Deut 4.5-8)
b. God’s
word was especially gracious in light of other nations, whose ‘gods’ revealed
very little in terms of how man might find forgiveness and reconciliation
2. At the
same time, merely possessing God’s word was not enough to make Israel righteous
or wise, especially as its interpretation had been perverted by the scribes,
false prophets, and apostate priests
3. God had
given his word as a means of grace that it might effect real change in the
lives of its hearers / readers, not merely as an end in itself (see below)
iv.
Mere (or even profound) knowledge of theological /
theoretical truth is no substitute for knowing the One who is Truth (9.1-26)
1. The
people’s behavior demonstrated that their knowledge of God was theoretical and
not experiential
a.
We constantly run the danger of emphasizing one over the
other
b. Biblical
faith is a balance of both knowledge and experience
2. When
knowledge results in boasting about one’s knowledge / wisdom / strength / etc.,
we have missed the point, our only grounds for boasting is in God himself (Jer
9.23-24; 1 Cor 1.31; etc.)
c.
God’s sovereignty over human / international affairs (Jer
18-19)
i.
Though we commonly think of Paul when pondering the
analogy of God as potter and humanity as the clay, God used this very vivid
illustration first through the prophet Jeremiah
1. In
Jeremiah, this image is used on an international scale, describing the rising
up and tearing down of nations…all at the decree of God [6]
2. In
Paul, this image is used on a personal level, describing the mystery of God’s
election and calling to salvation
ii.
In both Jeremiah and Paul the point is clear—God is in
control of all things from an individual level to an international level
1. For
those living in defiance, disbelief, and sin, this is a message of judgment
2. For
those abiding in faith in the work of God, this is ultimately a message of
hope!
d. Covenant
renewal / the New Covenant (Jer 31.23-40)
i.
Though we often go straight to Jer 31 when talking about
the New Covenant, we must be aware that Jeremiah speaks of the broken covenant
as well as covenant restoration and renewal throughout his oracles (cf.
3.12-18; 7.21-26; 11.1-13; 12.14-17; 16.10-21; 22.8-10; 23.1-9; ch 24; chs
30-33)
1. Almost
always, the fact that Israel has (repeatedly) broken covenant with God is
explicitly given as the reason that God, in his grace, promises restoration and
renewal
2. The New
Covenant passage in Jer 31 is part of a ‘bigger picture’ described throughout
3. At the
same time, Jer 31.23-40 is clearly the climax of Jeremiah’s prophecies of hope,
as evidenced by the NT usage of this text
ii.
A brief outline of this passage [7]
1. The
re-establishment and blessing of Judah, a Pastoral Image (31.23-26)
2. The
renovation of Israel and Judah, an Horticultural Image (31.27-30)
3. The
renewal of the covenant with Israel and Judah (31.31-40)
a.
Divine timing, “The days are coming…”
b. Divine
initiation, “…declares the Lord…”
c.
Divine action, “…I will make a new covenant…”
d. Divine
description, “…new…” [8]
e.
Divine participants, “house of Israel…house of Judah” [9]
f.
Divine terms / promises
i.
Internalization of God’s torah (‘law’)
ii.
Knowledge of the Lord
iii. Forgiveness
of sin
iv. Relationship
with God
g. Divine
guarantee [10]
iii.
Significance of the New Covenant
1. It is
graciously initiated by God
2. It
results in true obedience to the revealed will of God
3. It
establishes a new relationship to God
4. It
results in universal knowledge of God
5. It
results in moral cleansing
iv.
What is new about the ‘New Covenant’?
1. Looking
at the divine terms / promises listed above…nothing! [11]
a.
Internalization of God’s torah (‘law’)…had always been
reality for the faithful
i.
Often described as the ‘circumcision of the heart’ (cf.
Deut 10.16; 30.6; Ps 19; 119; Jer 4.4, etc.)
b. Knowledge
of the Lord…a covenant relationship without intimate knowledge described here
was as much an absurdity in the OT as it is in the NT
i.
In Exodus, God described his actions as means by which
people might know him and that he was the true God
ii.
Hosea and Jeremiah had blasted the people for their lack
of knowledge due to apostasy and sin
c.
Forgiveness of sin…always a part of being in covenant
with God
i.
Leviticus gives many instances where faithful offering of
sacrifices wrought forgiveness (‘…and he shall be forgiven’ is used over and
over)
ii.
Ultimately, of course, the efficacy of OT sacrifices is
found in Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, as Hebrews points out (Heb 10)
d. Relationship
with God…this is what a covenant is all about!
2. The
‘newness’ of the New Covenant is this:
a.
For the first time, the physical and spiritual boundaries
of Israel would be the same, (equal, coterminous, etc.), i.e. no more idea of
the ‘faithful remnant’
i.
Some had always had these marks of the covenant, but it
was always a minority
ii.
The ‘norm’ in Israel to this point was a faithful few
(‘remnant’) in the midst of an unbelieving / unfaithful majority
b. In
other words, the newness of the New Covenant is its scope
i.
Jeremiah doesn’t describe how this would happen, but…
ii.
The New Covenant is described as already fulfilled…
1. In the
NT, Jesus announces its fulfillment at the Lord’s Supper (Lk 22.20; 1 Cor
11.25; 2 Cor 3.6)…the New Covenant would be sealed at the cross
2. Hebrews
describes its fulfillment in Christ (Heb 8.6-13; 10.16-17)
iii. The New
Covenant is described as not yet fulfilled…
1. The
Book of Revelation looks forward to its final, universal fulfillment that is
yet to come and be completely realized (Rev 21.3)
iv. In the
meantime, we live in the ‘already-not yet’ time we have seen before, the
overlap between the Present Age and the Age to Come, where the New Covenant is
fulfilled but not yet totally complete
[1] There are as many different outlines of the Book
of Jeremiah as there are commentaries, articles, and papers written on the
subject. The very fact that these
oracles are not recorded for us in chronological order makes outlining the book
very difficult. For the sake of brevity
and simplicity, I have chosen to use a shortened version of F.B. Huey’s
excellent outline from the New American Commentary series. While this outline is still fairly long, we
would do better to include too much detail than to omit significant events
pertaining to the message of this great book.
[2] As mentioned earlier and described below, the
closer Babylon came to Jerusalem, the more strongly Judah clung to God’s
‘eternal’ promises never to forsake his land or temple…promises that were
misinterpreted and misapplied by an apostate people. God’s covenantal promises are always unconditional in the sense
that God graciously ‘works’ out all the facets and details of his pledge;
however, the covenant always has a conditional side—the promises must be
applied by faith for individuals to appropriate and enjoy the blessings. Faith is the ‘hand’ that receives God’s work
on our behalf!
[3] Jeremiah’s difficult message to the exiles was to
‘get used to it’ by settling down. He
had the unpleasant job of telling the refugees that they would be there for a
generation, so they might as well go on with life, building houses, getting
married, having children, and seeking the welfare of the city they were placed
in. There is certainly application here
for believers today, especially Jeremiah’s last point of seeking what was best
for those around them.
[4] Note that just about every nation in the known
world at that time is judged for their sin and refusal to acknowledge the true
God of Israel. While this may seem
unfair to those who had ‘never heard the message,’ the reality of God’s just
judgment is reflected in similar fashion in the opening of Romans.
[5] There are many, many applications that may be
drawn from a book the size of Jeremiah; however, these four main themes and
teachings provide points of connection by which to apply the timeless truths of
Jeremiah’s message, even if his context and historical situation are far remote
or difficult to understand.
[6] Let us not forget previous discussions about the
King of Assyria and God’s design (Is 10.5-19).
There is real tension between God’s decree to use Assyria as an agent of
his judgment, the reality of the king’s sinful motivation for his actions, and
God’s real judgment / accountability for the sin of the king. While acknowledging the reality of ‘first’
and ‘second causes,’ the tension must be allowed to remain if we are to think
biblically about these matters.
[7] I am indebted to Dr. Daniel Block, a former
professor of mine, for this outline and for pointing out the necessity to read
Jeremiah’s oracle here within its larger context in the rest of the book (and
the OT).