Day 223: Jeremiah 1-3

(The Book of Jeremiah was the second book that made up the major prophet section of the Old Testament. We saw the Book of Isaiah was the first of the five books that made up the major prophet section of the Old Testament. The Book of Isaiah was written more than 700 years before Christ. Chronologically, the Book of Jeremiah came after the Book of Isaiah and was written more than 600 years before Christ. This book had a very pessimistic perspective: Israel was being judged without mercy because of her willful apostasy. Jeremiah was the first prophet that was openly opposed and persecuted by God's people because of the uncomfortable message God gave to His people through Jeremiah.)

Jeremiah 1
¹ The words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests that were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin:
² to whom the word of Jehovah came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign.
³ It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.

(The Word of God came to Jeremiah in the days of Josiah, Jehoiakim, Zedekiah, and also during the carrying away of Jerusalem (the captivity). This time period was covered in 2 Kings 22-25. The context was established: the author was Jeremiah and the timing covered the years leading up to and including the captivity.)

⁴ Now the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,
⁵ Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee, and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee; I have appointed thee a prophet unto the nations.

(Before God formed Jeremiah in his mother's belly, God knew Jeremiah. This had to be after conception. There had to be something there for God to form. Jeremiah was sanctified in his mother's womb and ordained a prophet.

Key Doctrine: God did not cause people to be conceived. Parents cause conception, which was why Jesus was the only person God caused to be conceived. God responded to what was provided. God formed after a person was conceived.)

⁶ Then said I, Ah, Lord Jehovah! behold, I know not how to speak; for I am a child.

(Jeremiah doubted his ability to speak because of his age. The word child meant "young man," someone under the age of service to God which according to the Bible was either twenty-five years old (Numbers 8:24) or thirty years old (Numbers 4:3) depending on the application.)

⁷ But Jehovah said unto me, Say not, I am a child; for to whomsoever I shall send thee thou shalt go, and whatsoever I shall command thee thou shalt speak.
⁸ Be not afraid because of them; for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith Jehovah.

(God told him not to fear because He would be with him and give him the words to speak. Notice, God said to not be afraid of "them." Was Jeremiah going to be persecuted for the words he would speak?)

⁹ Then Jehovah put forth his hand, and touched my mouth; and Jehovah said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth:

(God put His words in Jeremiah's mouth.)

¹⁰ see, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down and to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.
¹¹ Moreover the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond-tree.

(Jeremiah saw a rod (branch) of an almond-tree. The almond-tree in this verse literally meant "the wakeful tree," because it awoke from the sleep of winter earlier than the other trees, flowering in January, and bearing fruit in March. This was a symbol of God's early execution of His purpose.)

¹² Then said Jehovah unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I watch over my word to perform it.

(The words "for I watch over" were also translated as "for I will hasten." Hasten meant "to wake." The root word for "almond-tree" in verse 11 was the Hebrew word for "hasten.")

¹³ And the word of Jehovah came unto me the second time, saying, What seest thou? And I said, I see a boiling caldron; and the face thereof is from the north.

(Jeremiah saw a boiling caldron (pot) with its face toward the north. The "north" was Babylon, though east of Judea, was regarded by the Hebrews as north, because they appropriated the term "east" to Arabia-Deserta, stretching from Palestine to the Euphrates.)

¹⁴ Then Jehovah said unto me, Out of the north evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land.

(An evil would disclose itself "Out of the north": Babylon.)

¹⁵ For, lo, I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith Jehovah; and they shall come, and they shall set every one his throne at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all the walls thereof round about, and against all the cities of Judah.

(Judah was the focus of this prophecy. Not Israel and the ten tribes that had already been in captivity for about ninety-three years up to this point. Judah was the main focus of this entire book, even when the terms Israel and Samaria were used.)

¹⁶ And I will utter my judgments against them touching all their wickedness, in that they have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, and worshipped the works of their own hands.

(The judgment against Judah was because of their forsaking God and worshipping idols made of their own hands.)

¹⁷ Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee: be not dismayed at them, lest I dismay thee before them.

(Jeremiah was told to prophesy towards the people that were committing idolatry. Do you think this would go over well?)

¹⁸ For, behold, I have made thee this day a fortified city, and an iron pillar, and brazen walls, against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land.

(Jeremiah's prophesies would be against the people to whom he spoke.)

¹⁹ And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee: for I am with thee, saith Jehovah, to deliver thee.

(God warned Jeremiah that the Jews would fight against him.)




Jeremiah 2
¹ And the word of Jehovah came to me, saying,
² Go, and cry in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith Jehovah, I remember for thee the kindness of thy youth, the love of thine espousals; how thou wentest after me in the wilderness, in a land that was not sown.

(God remembered the Jewish nation in its youth and "the love of thine espousals." Espousals meant "betrothals" and came from the root word that meant "bride or young wife." God and Israel were married.)

³ Israel was holiness unto Jehovah, the first-fruits of his increase: all that devour him shall be held guilty; evil shall come upon them, saith Jehovah.

(God acted as Israel's Husband, He was their Protector.)

⁴ Hear ye the word of Jehovah, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of Israel:

(This word from God was to all the tribes of Israel…)

⁵ thus saith Jehovah, What unrighteousness have your fathers found in me, that they are gone far from me, and have walked after vanity, and are become vain?

(This was a rhetorical question. God was always Right and therefore this question ought to have shown the Israelites that they were the cause of their unprofitability.)

⁶ Neither said they, Where is Jehovah that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, that led us through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and of pits, through a land of drought and of the shadow of death, through a land that none passed through, and where no man dwelt?

(The Israelites did not stray far from God when He was delivering them from harm.)

⁷ And I brought you into a plentiful land, to eat the fruit thereof and the goodness thereof; but when ye entered, ye defiled my land, and made my heritage an abomination.

(When things were going well, the Israelites chose to stray far from God and defile the land and inheritance He gave to them.)

⁸ The priests said not, Where is Jehovah? and they that handle the law knew me not: the rulers also transgressed against me, and the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after things that do not profit.

(The priests, pastors (rulers), and prophets transgressed against God. They walked after things that did not profit. Profitability was God's ultimate measure.

**Keep in mind how often this book was focused on profitability.**)

⁹ Wherefore I will yet contend with you, saith Jehovah, and with your children's children will I contend.

(God began a series of pleas (contend) with Israel…)

¹⁰ For pass over to the isles of Kittim, and see; and send unto Kedar, and consider diligently; and see if there hath been such a thing.
¹¹ Hath a nation changed its gods, which yet are no gods? but my people have changed their glory for that which doth not profit.

(The first plea was concerned with Israel changing to other "gods." Heathen nations kept the same gods that were never actually gods. However, Israel had the One True God and changed to the unprofitable idols of other nations.)

¹² Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith Jehovah.
¹³ For my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.

(The second plea was concerned with Israel committing two evils: not merely one evil, like the idolaters who knew no better. God's people added the sin of forsaking the True God whom they had known.)

¹⁴ Is Israel a servant? is he a home-born slave? why is he become a prey?
¹⁵ The young lions have roared upon him, and yelled; and they have made his land waste: his cities are burned up, without inhabitant.
¹⁶ The children also of Memphis and Tahpanhes have broken the crown of thy head.
¹⁷ Hast thou not procured this unto thyself, in that thou hast forsaken Jehovah thy God, when he led thee by the way?
¹⁸ And now what hast thou to do in the way to Egypt, to drink the waters of the Shihor? or what hast thou to do in the way to Assyria, to drink the waters of the River?

(The third plea was about the coming captivity.)

¹⁹ Thine own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee: know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and a bitter, that thou hast forsaken Jehovah thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord, Jehovah of hosts.

(The fourth plea was concerned with Israel's overall wickedness.)

²⁰ For of old time I have broken thy yoke, and burst thy bonds; and thou saidst, I will not serve; for upon every high hill and under every green tree thou didst bow thyself, playing the harlot.
²¹ Yet I had planted thee a noble vine, wholly a right seed: how then art thou turned into the degenerate branches of a foreign vine unto me?

(The fifth plea concerned God's past dealings with Israel. The Jews had said they would not transgress but went everywhere playing the harlot, which was idolatry.

Key Doctrine: The word fornication was used four times in the Old Testament.
-Fornication was "committing idolatry."
-Idolatry was "the giving of one's self to an image."

There were two ways to commit fornication/idolatry:
1) covenant with another god or
2) covenant with an unbeliever through sex.

In the Old Testament, the word fornication literally dealt with sex and figuratively with worshipping other gods. Whether it was fornication or idolatry, the effect was unbelief. Throughout the Book of Jeremiah, God used the imagery of marriage to illustrate the Covenant He had with Israel and Judah, and God used the imagery of fornication and harlotry to illustrate the unbelief of Israel and Judah.)

²² For though thou wash thee with lye, and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked before me, saith the Lord Jehovah.
²³ How canst thou say, I am not defiled, I have not gone after the Baalim? see thy way in the valley, know what thou hast done: thou art a swift dromedary traversing her ways;
²⁴ a wild ass used to the wilderness, that snuffeth up the wind in her desire; in her occasion who can turn her away? all they that seek her will not weary themselves; in her month they shall find her.
²⁵ Withhold thy foot from being unshod, and thy throat from thirst: but thou saidst, It is in vain; no, for I have loved strangers, and after them will I go.

(The sixth plea concerned Israel's seeming hopelessness. Israel did wicked things but thought they were doing right.)

²⁶ As the thief is ashamed when he is found, so is the house of Israel ashamed; they, their kings, their princes, and their priests, and their prophets;

(Israel was compared to a thief.)

²⁷ who say to a stock, Thou art my father; and to a stone, Thou hast brought me forth: for they have turned their back unto me, and not their face; but in the time of their trouble they will say, Arise, and save us.
²⁸ But where are thy gods that thou hast made thee? let them arise, if they can save thee in the time of thy trouble: for according to the number of thy cities are thy gods, O Judah.

(The eighth and last plea was concerned with Israel's idolatry. God sent them to the gods that they chased after.)

²⁹ Wherefore will ye contend with me? ye all have transgressed against me, saith Jehovah.
³⁰ In vain have I smitten your children; they received no correction: your own sword hath devoured your prophets, like a destroying lion.

(Israel was not responding well to God's correction. They continued to do wicked acts.)

³¹ O generation, see ye the word of Jehovah. Have I been a wilderness unto Israel? or a land of thick darkness? wherefore say my people, We are broken loose; we will come no more unto thee?

("O generation"…God spoke to the people who heard this prophecy.)

³² Can a virgin forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire? yet my people have forgotten me days without number.

(Even though God treated Israel as His wife, Israel did not treat God as her Husband. They forgot God altogether.)

³³ How trimmest thou thy way to seek love! therefore even the wicked women hast thou taught thy ways.

(Israel must have been incredibly wicked to have taught already wicked people how to be wicked.)

³⁴ Also in thy skirts is found the blood of the souls of the innocent poor: thou didst not find them breaking in; but it is because of all these things.
³⁵ Yet thou saidst, I am innocent; surely his anger is turned away from me. Behold, I will enter into judgment with thee, because thou sayest, I have not sinned.

(Israel continued to claim innocence and believed God's anger was turned from them. However, since they said they were innocent but were not, God would judge them. They were hypocrites.)

³⁶ Why gaddest thou about so much to change thy way? thou shalt be ashamed of Egypt also, as thou wast ashamed of Assyria.
³⁷ From thence also shalt thou go forth, with thy hands upon thy head: for Jehovah hath rejected those in whom thou trustest, and thou shalt not prosper with them.

(This referred to the times when different groups in Judah sought out help from other nations, instead of God, against their enemies.)




Jeremiah 3
¹ They say, If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man's, will he return unto her again? will not that land be greatly polluted? But thou hast played the harlot with many lovers; yet return again to me, saith Jehovah.

(God wanted Israel to return to Him although Israel "played the harlot with many lovers.")

² Lift up thine eyes unto the bare heights, and see; where hast thou not been lain with? By the ways hast thou sat for them, as an Arabian in the wilderness; and thou hast polluted the land with thy whoredoms and with thy wickedness.

(God was essentially asking Israel to show Him one place they had not committed idolatry against Him.)

³ Therefore the showers have been withholden, and there hath been no latter rain; yet thou hast a harlot's forehead, thou refusedst to be ashamed.

(God withheld rain from them to try and get their attention, this still did not work.)

⁴ Wilt thou not from this time cry unto me, My Father, thou art the guide of my youth?
⁵ Will he retain his anger for ever? will he keep it to the end? Behold, thou hast spoken and hast done evil things, and hast had thy way.

(God asked if Israel would ever ask Him how long His anger would be against them. The Bible documented that Job and David (Book of Psalms) both asked this question. Here, they had not even gotten to the point where they were considering this. However, God had His reason: "thou hast spoken and hast done evil things, and hast had thy way.")

⁶ Moreover Jehovah said unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath played the harlot.
⁷ And I said after she had done all these things, She will return unto me; but she returned not: and her treacherous sister Judah saw it.

(God wanted Israel to return to Him but she would not. Judah (Israel's "sister") saw what Israel was doing.)

⁸ And I saw, when, for this very cause that backsliding Israel had committed adultery, I had put her away and given her a bill of divorcement, yet treacherous Judah her sister feared not; but she also went and played the harlot.

(For the very cause of Israel's adultery against God, He put her away and gave her a bill of divorce.

God divorced Israel!

Is divorce a sin? Was it God's fault that this marriage ended in divorce? God's divorcing of Israel did not cause Judah to fear God but she went and "played the harlot also." Judah should have learned from Israel's mistakes…she did not.)

⁹ And it came to pass through the lightness of her whoredom, that the land was polluted, and she committed adultery with stones and with stocks.
¹⁰ And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not returned unto me with her whole heart, but feignedly, saith Jehovah.
¹¹ And Jehovah said unto me, Backsliding Israel hath showed herself more righteous than treacherous Judah.

(Israel and Judah justified themselves. However, Judah was more wrong since she saw the effects of Israel's sins and continued to commit idolatry.

God divorced Israel.

God stayed married to Judah. God said the divorced (Israel) was more righteous than the still married (Judah). Was God wrong to say the divorced spouse was more righteous than the still married spouse?)

¹² Go, and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith Jehovah; I will not look in anger upon you; for I am merciful, saith Jehovah, I will not keep anger for ever.
¹³ Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against Jehovah thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under every green tree, and ye have not obeyed my voice, saith Jehovah.
¹⁴ Return, O backsliding children, saith Jehovah; for I am a husband unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion:

(God told Jeremiah to proclaim to Israel to acknowledge her iniquity and to turn from backsliding. God wanted Israel to confess and repent. God divorced Israel in order to help her confess and repent so that they could remarry!

God believed in divorcing in order to repair the Marriage!

Are believers encouraged to follow God's example today in their unprofitable Marriages?)

¹⁵ and I will give you shepherds according to my heart, who shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.

(If Israel would confess and repent, God would give her shepherds (pastors) according to God’s Heart. These pastors would feed Israel with knowledge and understanding, with words. God stated this was a benefit! Do we see words of understanding as a benefit?)

¹⁶ And it shall come to pass, when ye are multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, saith Jehovah, they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of Jehovah; neither shall it come to mind; neither shall they remember it; neither shall they miss it; neither shall it be made any more.

(If Israel followed through with confession and repentance, they would be multiplied and increased in the land. In those days they would not miss the Ark of the Covenant because He would be among them Himself, which would be during the Millennium.)

¹⁷ At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of Jehovah; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of Jehovah, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the stubbornness of their evil heart.
¹⁸ In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I gave for an inheritance unto your fathers.

(In those days, Judah and Israel will be united as one nation.)

¹⁹ But I said, How I will put thee among the children, and give thee a pleasant land, a goodly heritage of the hosts of the nations! and I said, Ye shall call me My Father, and shall not turn away from following me.
²⁰ Surely as a wife treacherously departeth from her husband, so have ye dealt treacherously with me, O house of Israel, saith Jehovah.

(Israel dealt treacherously with God, her Husband.)

²¹ A voice is heard upon the bare heights, the weeping and the supplications of the children of Israel; because they have perverted their way, they have forgotten Jehovah their God.
²² Return, ye backsliding children, I will heal your backslidings. Behold, we are come unto thee; for thou art Jehovah our God.

(Another call to repentance in which God said He would heal their backslidings. He would be their source of repair. The Book of Jeremiah used the word backsliding thirteen times. The only other mention in the Old Testament of this word occurred three times in the Book of Hosea.)

²³ Truly in vain is the help that is looked for from the hills, the tumult on the mountains: truly in Jehovah our God is the salvation of Israel.

(To attempt to find Salvation anywhere other than with God was vain/unprofitable.)

²⁴ But the shameful thing hath devoured the labor of our fathers from our youth, their flocks and their herds, their sons and their daughters.
²⁵ Let us lie down in our shame, and let our confusion cover us; for we have sinned against Jehovah our God, we and our fathers, from our youth even unto this day; and we have not obeyed the voice of Jehovah our God.

(Jeremiah pleaded with the people to admit their shame, confusion, and sin against God.)

(These first three chapters introduced the theme of the Book of Jeremiah: God's people have sinned against God like a wife who has committed harlotry against her husband. God offered the people the opportunity to confess and repent otherwise, God would remove His mercy and bring judgment.)

Day 224