Genesis to Revelation: Jeremiah, Lamentations Leader Guide: A Comprehensive Verse-by-Verse Exploration of the Bible

Introduction to Jeremiah

James E. Sargent

In the English Bible, Jeremiah is the second of the major prophets. Unlike the obscure writer of Isaiah 40–66, the personally revealing Jeremiah allows us to see into his soul. In this respect, the book is a unique piece of literature.

The book is not the work of a single hand. It is a compilation, as indicated by the various types of literature: poetry in war songs, confessional laments, prose in parables, sermons, biographical narratives, a letter, and a vision.

Jeremiah’s prophetic work began about 626 BC. Like that of all prophets, his work was intertwined with the historical events of his day. And those events were tumultuous indeed. Throughout the Assyrian Empire, small vassal states were constantly attempting to break loose from oppressive rule. The kings of Judah—Manasseh (687–642 BC), Amon (642–640 BC), and Josiah (640–609 BC)—were no exception. During Josiah’s reign, our prophet heard the call to ministry (Jeremiah 1:6). All the tensions of this time are well illustrated throughout Jeremiah’s work.

Within the context of his time in history, which is a history of seemingly endless frustration and catastrophe, what was Jeremiah’s message? In short, it was a message of both doom and hope. Jeremiah was no mere optimist. Throughout his ministry, he had to contend with other prophets, false prophets. Many people wanted to believe the false prophets. Why? Because the false prophets offered a message that did not make such enormous demands on either their faith or behavior. The false prophets claimed there was peace. Not so, countered Jeremiah. The false prophets would too easily heal the wounds. The false prophets claimed that the impending exile would be a short one. Not so, countered Jeremiah. For two generations, the people of Judah would languish in exile. Is there any message of hope in our prophet?

Jeremiah’s hope came from his trust that God was watchful in history. This trust was a part of the original commission (Jeremiah 1:4-10). Even in the horror of deportation and the frustration of exile, God would work; for God’s plan was for welfare and not evil (29:11). For Jeremiah, hope did not reside in the efforts of people. At best, the efforts of people were motivated by the heart that is deceitful above all things (17:9).

Jeremiah’s reticence to place much hope in the efforts of people is illustrated by his relationship to the reform movement of Josiah, the so-called Deuteronomic reform. The work of hope will be that of God. Whenever Jeremiah presented the authentic word of the Lord, he had to contend with false prophets and those who would quickly accept the words of the false prophets. His authority was questioned at all times by antagonists as well as by King Jehoiakim, who would not hear the prophetic word.

At one point, Jeremiah sent the scroll with Baruch, his trusted scribe, to be read to the king. The king sat next to the winter brazier. As each column was read, the king carefully snipped off the offending words, placing them in the burning coals. Thus one man attempted to silence the prophet. But the word of the Lord cannot be so easily silenced.

Jeremiah was a man of constant dispute and inner tension. Indeed, by his own admission, Jeremiah was one who acted very much openly and sharply. However, this characteristic reveals as much about the convictions of the prophet as about the mood of the man.

The inner tensions of Jeremiah are revealed in a remarkable series of confessional laments. These are unique to Jeremiah. They give us insight into the character of one called to the task of speaking an authentic word to opponents in positions of power, authority, and popularity.

Many people consider Jeremiah to be a prophet without hope. Indeed, doom and gloom characterize much of his work. However, the hope of Jeremiah can be seen in the subtlety of plowing up fallow ground (4:3), the purchase of land at the time of siege (chap. 32), and the letter to the exiles (chap. 29). Jeremiah’s hope was not the shallow optimism of false prophets. His hope was rooted in the work of God, even through catastrophic historical events.

The prophets of ancient Israel were neither leaders nor philosophers. They were interpreters of historical events and proclaimers of faith in the Lord. The events through which Jeremiah and his people passed were mighty events indeed. His word of hope in hours of extreme stress is a word that every generation needs to hear. To this prophet and his work, we now turn.

Putting It All Together: The Study of Jeremiah

Historical Background

Jeremiah lived from about 650 BC to sometime after 596 BC. Early in his career, Jeremiah confronted a very basic religious problem: The people of Israel were turning more and more toward idolatry. Manasseh and his son Amon officially endorsed astral worship. They endorsed the Canaanite Baal cults as well. Human sacrifice and necromancy (sorcery) returned. Israel’s ancient vow to worship only Yahweh was all but lost.

But in 640 BC, Josiah succeeded to the throne. By that time, troubles in other parts of the empire were weakening Assyria. Josiah took advantage of this opportunity to institute an extensive religious reform. Additional impetus for this reform came in 622 BC, with the discovery of a scroll that included much of the book we know as Deuteronomy. Josiah tried, with some success, to enforce obedience to this Deuteronomic code. Idol worship was banned. Yahwistic rituals were carried out with renewed precision. Religious rules were strictly enforced. All Yahweh worship was centralized in the Temple at Jerusalem.

Meanwhile, Babylonia was steadily eating away at the old empire. By 612 BC, the Babylonians had captured the Assyrian capital of Nineveh. Then they pressed onward toward Palestine. Egypt naturally wished to stall this movement as far from its own borders as possible. So Pharaoh Necho agreed to assist the Assyrian forces. As the Egyptians moved northward, Josiah set out to counter them. The armies met at Megiddo in 609 BC, and Josiah was killed. His son Jehoahaz succeeded him. But Pharaoh Necho quickly replaced the young king with his brother Jehoiakim.

Jehoiakim showed no enthusiasm for his father’s religious reforms. Soon pagan cults were thriving again while injustice and immorality increased. Jehoiakim had depended on Egypt to stave off a Babylonian conquest. In this too he proved foolish. At Carchemish in 605 BC, the Babylonians defeated Egypt’s last restraining efforts. Then it was just a matter of time before Judah came under Babylonian control. Jehoiakim quickly switched his allegiance to the new masters. But a minor Egyptian victory in 601 BC encouraged the king to rebel. Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon attacked the outlying areas of Judah, then Jerusalem itself.

In 598 BC, Jehoiakim died. His son Jehoiachin surrendered to the Babylonians three months later. Nebuchadnezzar deported the king and numerous leaders to Babylon. He set Zedekiah on the throne in Jerusalem.

Zedekiah constantly vacillated between the pro-Babylonian and pro-Egyptian (or pro-independence) forces within the nation. He sought Jeremiah’s advice, and then was afraid to follow it. As a result, the Babylonians besieged Jerusalem in 598 BC, literally starving the city into submission. Jerusalem, including the holy Temple, was burned to the ground. Zedekiah was tortured, blinded, and imprisoned. Many additional citizens were marched off to exile in Babylon.

To maintain order in the devastated land, the Babylonians appointed a governor, Gedaliah, who was a member of Judah’s royal family. With him remained the prophet who had tried so hard to turn back his people from their folly. The nation had not repented. Jeremiah had failed. But his words would live on to guide generation after generation of persons seeking the Lord.

Religious Developments and the Prophet Jeremiah

Josiah’s reform held within it the seeds of a religious problem that Jeremiah spent most of his career combating. Deuteronomic theology assumed that if the people would only fulfill the legal and cultic demands of the code, God would have to protect Judah.

The Deuteronomists also assumed that, since the Temple was God’s holy place, God would maintain it intact forever. This idea of the Temple’s inviolability was reinforced by the memory of Isaiah’s promises to Hezekiah in 701 BC, as Sennacherib was besieging Jerusalem. Hezekiah trusted God, and the city was never actually taken; nor was it taken in succeeding years. Certainly, covenant fidelity, cultic holiness, and trust in God were all worthy goals. But popular misinterpretation quickly reduced them to simple dogma. The people believed God would never allow Jerusalem to be taken. The presence of the Temple and its cultic practices assured the city’s security.

Imagine then, the people’s disgust when a man like Jeremiah insisted that Jerusalem was doomed. The man must be a fool! And imagine their chagrin when the city and the Temple fell. Where was their God? Had God deserted the people? It would take many years of prayerful reflection before the people could reinterpret their experience in light of God’s power and faithfulness. Isaiah (and Ezekiel in Babylon) later developed a deeper understanding of God’s covenant with Israel. But the seeds of that understanding had already been sown in the words of Jeremiah.

Outline and Chart

The participant book includes an outline of the Book of Jeremiah and a chart of Israelite History at the Time of Jeremiah as additional study aids.

Stand up and say to them whatever I command you. (1:17)

1

STAND UP AND SPEAK

Jeremiah 1–3

DIMENSION ONE: WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

Answer these questions by reading Jeremiah 1

1.Where is Jeremiah’s hometown? (1:1)

Jeremiah is from Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin.

2.What is his family’s profession? (1:1)

His father and other relatives are priests.

3.When does the word of the Lord come? (1:2-3)

The word of the Lord comes in the thirteenth year of Josiah and continues through the eleventh year of Zedekiah.

4.Who is speaking in verses 4, 5, and 6?

In verse 4, Jeremiah is speaking. In verse 5, the Lord is speaking. And in verse 6, Jeremiah is speaking again.

5.When did God appoint Jeremiah as prophet? (1:5)

God consecrated Jeremiah before his birth.

6.When Jeremiah recognizes God’s call, how does he respond? (1:6)

He pleads that he does not know how to speak, for he is only a child.

7.What reassurance does God offer? (1:8)

God promises to be with him and to rescue him.

8.What two items does God show Jeremiah, and what do they mean? (1:11-16)

God shows Jeremiah an almond branch that suggests God is watching over his word. Jeremiah also sees a boiling pot that represents punishment coming from the north.

9.With whom will Jeremiah come in conflict? (1:18-19)

He will come in conflict with kings of Judah, officials, priests, and the people of the land.

10.What promise does God make? (1:19)

God will be with Jeremiah and will not allow his foes to overcome him.

Answer these questions by reading Jeremiah 2

11.What has characterized Israel’s past relationship with God? (2:2)

Israel has previously shown devotion and love.

12.How has the relationship changed? (2:4-8)

The people have forsaken God and have gone after worthless things. The rulers have transgressed against God, and prophets have prophesied by Baal.

13.Picturesque language compares God with the popular idols. Which image describes God? Which describes the idols? (2:13)

God is a spring of living water. The idols are broken cisterns that cannot hold water.

14.What misfortune has Israel experienced, and why? (2:14-19)

The cities have been ruined. The nation has brought this devastation upon itself through its apostasy.

15.What images describe Israel’s sinful nature? (2:20-37)

Israel is like an ox that has broken its yoke, a prostitute, a choice vine gone wild, a person covered with dirt and stains, a she-camel or a wild donkey in heat, a thief who is caught, a maiden who forgets her jewelry, a bride who forgets her wedding ornaments, and a person so evil she can teach even the most wicked women.

16.Of what additional sin is Israel guilty? (2:34)

Israel is also guilty of the additional sin of mistreating the poor.

Answer these questions by reading Jeremiah 3

17.Judah and Israel are compared to two sisters. Which sister has the greater guilt? (3:6-11)

Judah is the more guilty sister.

18.How should the people respond when confronted with their sins? (3:21-23)

They should return to the Lord, saying that God alone is their true salvation.

DIMENSION TWO: WHAT DOES THE BIBLE MEAN?

Background and Suggestions. In these first three chapters, we meet Jeremiah, learn a few basic facts about his life, and next plunge directly into some of his earliest personal experiences with God. Then we encounter a collection of his early messages.

Begin by asking group members if they have ever come to know someone better through that person’s keepsakes or mementos. After a brief discussion, suggest that our study of Jeremiah might be a similar experience. Explain that, in this unit, participants will meet a man of great sensitivity and even greater faith; but they will meet him through a variety of mementos. After this introduction, explain the need for historical background; then offer a brief summary of the basic historical elements you read in the Introduction to Jeremiah and in Putting It All Together.

Jeremiah 1. The first chapter includes an introduction, Jeremiah’s call, two visions, and God’s encouragement for the task ahead.

Jeremiah 1:1-3. This introduction gives no clue to the date of Jeremiah’s birth. The writer was far more concerned about dating the prophecies themselves. These are precisely dated as beginning in 627 BC (or 626 BC according to some sources) and ending in 587 BC. Working backward from his call, then, most scholars estimate Jeremiah’s birth date to be around 650–645 BC. This date would make him 18–23 years old when he first recognized his prophetic vocation and 58–63 when Jerusalem finally fell. However, at least one scholar suggests that the thirteenth year of Josiah’s reign could be the date of Jeremiah’s