the consummate shepherding of the Messiah Jesus.
days (2 Chron. 36:9) in 598–597 B.C., and was taken into captivity, where he lived out his life.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 22:24 signet. A ring with a personal insignia on it (cf. Hag. 2:23).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 22:28 Questions the people who idolized Jeconiah were asking.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 22:30 Write . . . childless. Jeconiah did have offspring (1 Chron. 3:17–18), but he was reckoned childless in the sense that he had no sons who would reign ("sitting on the throne . . . "). The curse continued in his descendants down to Joseph, the husband of Mary. How could Jesus then be the Messiah when his father was under this curse? It was because Joseph was not involved in the blood line of Jesus since Jesus was virgin born (Matt. 1:12). Jesus' blood right to the throne of David came through Mary from Nathan, Solomon's brother, not Solomon (Jeconiah's line) thus bypassing this curse (Luke 3:31–32). Cf. Jer. 36:30.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 23:1–2 Woe to the shepherds. These were false leaders who failed in their duty to assure the people's welfare (as v. 2), starting with the kings in ch. 22 and other civil heads, as well as prophets and priests (cf. 23:11). They stood in utter contrast to the shepherds God would later give the nation (v. 4; 3:15). Other significant chapters that condemn evil shepherds and false prophets include chs. 14; 27; 28; Isa. 28; Ezek. 13; 34; Mic. 3; Zech. 11.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 23:3–4 I will gather. God pledged to restore exiled Israelites to their ancient soil. Cf. similar promises in chs. 30–33, and 16:14–15. The land in view was lit. Palestine, being contrasted with all the other countries (23:3), thus assuring that the regathering would be as literal as the scattering. The restoration of Judah from Babylon is referred to in language that in its fullness can only refer to the final restoration of God's people ("out of all the countries" and v. 8), under Messiah. "Neither shall any be missing" indicates that no one will be missing or detached. These are prophecies not yet fulfilled. Cf. 32:37–38; Isa. 60:21; Ezek. 34:11–16.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 23:4 shepherds . . . will care for them. Cf. Ezek. 34:23– 31. Zerubbabel, Ezra, Nehemiah, and others were small fulfillments compared to the consummate shepherding of the Messiah Jesus.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 23:5 Branch. The Messiah is pictured as a branch (lit., "shoot") out of David's family tree (cf. 33:15–16; Isa. 4:2; 11:1–5; Zech. 3:8; 6:12–13), who will rule over God's people in the future. Cf. Jer. 33:14–17 where the same promise is repeated.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 23:6 The Lord is our righteousness. This emphasis is stated three times in vv. 5–6. Messiah's shepherding is contrasted with that of the false shepherds (vv. 1–2, 11, 14). Judah and Israel will be reunited (cf. Ezek. 37:15–23).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 23:7–8 See note on 16:14–15.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 23:13–14 Jerusalem and Judah were worse than Samaria and Israel.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 23:14 in the prophets . . . a horrible thing. The false shepherds told lies, committed adultery, and declared vain dreams (vv. 25, 27). They became like chaff rather than grain (v. 28), while promising peace (v. 17) to those whose sins provoke God to bring calamity, not comfort. The scene was like Sodom and Gomorrah, whose sin so grieved God that he destroyed them by fire (cf. Gen. 19:13, 24–25).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 23:18 Here was the reason not to listen to the false prophets (cf. v. 16)—they didn't speak God's word.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 23:20 latter days. They wouldn't listen, but the day would come (v. 12) when the judgment would fall and then they would "understand."
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 23:21–22 According to the Mosaic law, these false prophets should have been stoned (cf. Deut. 13:1–5; 18:20–22).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 23:23–24 God at hand . . . God far away. Let not false prophets think they can hide their devices from God, who declares himself omnipresent and omniscient, in both an immanent and transcendent sense.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 23:25 I have dreamed. Here was a claim to divine revelation through dreams (cf. Num. 12:6). But such claims were a deception (Jer. 23:26–27), utterly unequal in power to God's word (vv. 28–29).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 23:29 like fire . . . hammer. God's word has irresistible
qualities to prevail over the deception in the shepherds' false messages.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 23:33 the burden of the Lord? The people asked, in mockery, for Jeremiah to give them his latest prophecy ("burden"). This ridicule of Jeremiah's faithful preaching demanded a response, and God told the prophet to repeat the question and reply simply "I will cast you off," meaning judgment from God was coming.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 23:34–40 The burden of the Lord. When a person falsely claimed to have a word from God, he would be punished for perverting God's truth. Claiming to have prophecies from God, when not true, is dangerous.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 24:1 After Nebuchadnezzar . . . had taken. Babylon's second deportation of Judeans in 597 B.C. (cf. 2 Kings 24:10–17).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 24:5 Like these good figs. The object lesson of v. 2 is explained. Deported Judeans, captive in Babylon, will have good treatment, not death as shown in 29:5–7, 10. They will be granted privileges as colonists rather than being enslaved as captives.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 24:6–7 While it is true that a remnant returned to Judah in 538 B.C., this promise had greater overtones in regard to the ultimate fulfillment of the Abrahamic (Gen. 12), Davidic (2 Sam. 7), and New (Jer. 31) Covenants in the day of Messiah's coming and kingdom (cf. 32:41; 33:7). Their conversion (24:7) from idolatry to the one true God is expressed in language which, in its fullness, applies to the complete conversion in the final Kingdom after the present dispersion (cf. Rom. 11:1–5, 25–27).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 24:8–10 Like the bad figs. Those remaining at Jerusalem during the 11 years (597–586 B.C.) of Zedekiah's vassal reign would soon face hardship from further scattering to other countries, violent death, famine, and disease; cf. 29:17. See 25:9 and note there. These verses quote the curses of Deut. 28:25, 37 (cf. Jer. 29:18, 22; Ps. 44:13–14) and are also fulfilled in the history of the long dispersion until Messiah returns.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 25:1 fourth year. The date is 605/604 B.C., as Jehoiakim reigned in 609–598 B.C. first year. Nebuchadnezzar reigned 605–562 B.C.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 25:3 thirteenth year. The time is c. 627/626 B.C. Josiah ruled in 640–609 B.C. twenty-three years. Jeremiah began his ministry in the
thirteenth year of Josiah (cf. 1:2) and had been faithful to preach repentance and judgment for 23 years (c. 605/604 B.C.).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 25:9 my servant. God used a pagan king, Nebuchadnezzar, to accomplish his will (cf. Cyrus in Isa. 45:1).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 25:10 Cf. 7:34 and Rev. 18:23.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 25:11 seventy years. Here is the first specific statement on the length of the exile (cf. 29:10). This period probably began in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, when Jerusalem was first captured and the temple treasures were taken. It ends with the decree of Cyrus to let the Jews return, spanning from c. 605/604 B.C. to 536/535 B.C. The exact number of Sabbath years is 490 years, the period from Saul to the Babylonian captivity. This was retribution for their violation of the Sabbath law (cf. Lev. 26:34–35; 2 Chron. 36:21).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 25:13 all the nations. Jeremiah prophesied judgments on surrounding nations (cf. chs. 46–49), while Babylon is the focus of judgment in chs. 50–51.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 25:14 make slaves even of them. The Babylonians, who made other nations their slaves, would become the servants of nations.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 25:15 cup of the wine. A symbol for stupefying judgments (v. 16).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 25:17 made all the nations . . . drink. Obviously Jeremiah could not visit all the places listed from vv. 18–26, but in this vision he acted as if representatives from all those nations were present so he could make them drink in the message of wrath (v. 27), and understand there was no escape (vv. 28–29).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 25:29 city . . . called by my name. Jerusalem (cf. Dan. 9:18).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 25:30–33 While embracing the judgments soon to come to Judah and other nations, this has end-time language ("from the farthest parts of the earth") and must be ultimately fulfilled in the time of tribulation described in Rev. 6–19.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 26:1 In the beginning. The time was 609 B.C. The message is about four years earlier than that in 25:1 and about 11 years before 24:1.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 26:2 Stand in the court. This was the largest public gathering place at the temple.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 26:6 like Shiloh. The former dwelling place of God before Jerusalem. Cf. 7:12 and see note there.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 26:11 Jeremiah was accused of treason. Cf. Paul's arrest in Acts 21:27–28.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 26:12 Jeremiah spoke. Leaders and people threatened to kill him (v. 8). The prophet defended himself while in extreme danger. He did not compromise, but displayed tremendous spiritual courage. He was ready to die (v. 14), yet warned the crowd that God would hold the guilty accountable (v. 15).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 26:15 put me to death. Cf. Matt. 23:31–37.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 26:17–19 elders . . . spoke. These spokesmen cited the prophet Micah (cf. Mic. 3:12), who before and during Hezekiah's reign (c. 715– 686 B.C.) prophesied the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple. They reasoned that because they didn't kill Micah, God rescinded the judgment. They must not kill Jeremiah so God might change his mind. Micah's prophecy and Jeremiah's would come true in time.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 26:20–22 another man who prophesied. Uriah, like Micah and Jeremiah, had warned of doom on Jerusalem, speaking in Jehoiakim's day only a bit earlier than Jeremiah's present warning (609 B.C.). He was executed. The decision could have gone either way since there was precedent for killing and for sparing.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 26:22 Elnathan. A high-ranking official who on another occasion sided with Jeremiah (cf. 36:12, 25).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 26:23 the burial place. In the Kidron Valley, to the east of the temple (cf. 2 Kings 23:6).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 26:24 Ahikam. He used his strategic influence to spring
Jeremiah free of the death threat. This civil leader under King Josiah (cf. 2 Kings 22:12, 14) and father of Gedaliah, was appointed governor over Judah by the Babylonians after Jerusalem's final fall in 586 B.C. (39:14; 40:13–41:3).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 27:1 reign of Zedekiah. This may refer to Jehoiakim around 609/608 B.C. (as ch. 26; see esv footnote). Or, possibly, the correct reading is "Zedekiah" as in 27:3, 12, and 28:1, which would put the date at the outset of his 597–586 B.C. reign.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 27:2 Make . . . straps and yoke-bars. This object lesson symbolized bondage to Babylon. The yoke was bound on Jeremiah's neck to picture Judah's captivity (v. 12), then sent to six kings of nearby nations who would also be under Babylon's power (v. 3). Cf. Jer. 28:10–12.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 27:7 Cf. 25:13–14.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 27:8 yoke of . . . Babylon. The point of the object lesson is simple. Any nation that will serve Babylon willingly may stay in their own land, but nations that will not submit voluntarily to Babylon will suffer destruction. Consequently, Judah should submit and not be removed from the land (vv. 9– 18).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 27:18 intercede with the Lord. God would not answer such a prayer, as proven by vv. 19–22. This revealed his indifference to the prayers of these false prophets.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 27:20 C. 597 B.C.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 27:21–22 vessels. Jeremiah revealed that Judah's temple vessels taken to Babylon (cf. 2 Kings 24:13; Dan. 1:1–2) would be restored to the temple. Fulfillment around 536 B.C. was spoken of in Ezra 5:13–15. About 516/515 B.C. these articles were placed in the rebuilt temple (Ezra 6:15).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 28:1 reign of Zedekiah. Cf. 27:1 and see note there. The fourth year would be about 593 B.C. Hananiah. This man was one of several by this name in Scripture, in this case a foe of God's true prophet, distinct from the loyal Hananiah of Dan. 1:6.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 28:2–3 I have broken the yoke. The false prophet, of the kind Jeremiah warned of in 27:14–16, boldly predicted victory over Babylon and
the return of the temple vessels within two years. In actuality, Babylon achieved its third and final step in conquering Judah 11 years later (586 B.C.) as in chs. 39; 40; 52. As to the vessels, see note on 27:21–22.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 28:4 bring back . . . Jeconiah. This rash, false claim fell into ignominy. Jeconiah, soon taken to Babylon in 597 B.C., would live out his years there and not return to Jerusalem (52:31–34). Other captives either died in captivity, or didn't return until 61 years later. Cf. 22:24–26.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 28:10 took the yoke-bars . . . broke them. The phony prophet, in foolishness, removed the object lesson from the true spokesman and broke it as a sign of his own prediction coming true (cf. vv. 2–4, 11).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 28:13 Go, tell Hananiah. Jeremiah apparently left the meeting, and later God sent him back to confront the liar, likely wearing yokes of iron (which Hananiah could not break!) to replace the wooden ones (v. 14) and to illustrate his message.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 28:15–17 the Lord has not sent you. Jeremiah told Hananiah that 1) God had not approved his message; 2) he was guilty of encouraging the people to trust in a lie, even rebellion; and 3) God would require his life that very year, 597 B.C. The true prophet's word was authenticated by Hananiah's death in two months (cf. v. 17).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 29:1 the letter. Jeremiah, shortly after the 597 B.C. deportation of many countrymen (cf. v. 2), wrote to comfort them in exile.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 29:4–10 Jeremiah's counsel to Israelites in Babylon was to take all the steps in living as colonists planning to be there for a long time (70 years, 29:10, as 25:11). Further, they were to seek Babylon's peace and intercede in prayer for it, their own welfare being bound with it (29:7; cf. Ezra 6:10; 7:23).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 29:11 plans for welfare. This assured God's intentions to bring about blessing in Israel's future (cf. chs. 30–33).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 29:12–14 you will call. What God planned, he also gave the people opportunity to participate in by sincere (v. 13) prayer. Cf. 1 John 5:14–15.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 29:14 I will be found by you. The Lord would answer
their prayer, by returning the Jews to their land, cf. Daniel's example and God's response (Dan. 9:4–27). Fulfillment would occur in the era of Ezra and Nehemiah, and beyond this in even fuller measure after the second advent of their Messiah (cf. Dan. 2:35, 45; 7:13–14, 27; 12:1–3, 13).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 29:15–19 Because you have said. Amazingly still rejecting God's true message, Jewish captives listened to false prophets among them (cf. vv. 8–9, 21–23). This was the very sin that would cause God to send a further deportation to those still in Judah (586 B.C.).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 29:17 like vile figs. Cf. the principle of Jer. 24.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 29:21–23 Ahab . . . Zedekiah. Two captive, false Israelite prophets, who had been misleading exiles in Babylon (v. 15), will stir up the wrath of their captor king, who will cast them into a furnace (as in Dan. 3). They aroused not only the Babylonian potentate's enmity, but God's also, because of prophecies against his word and physical adultery (cf. Jer. 5:7).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 29:24–32 The judgment against Shemaiah, the otherwise unknown prophet, who opposed Jeremiah, was similar to that experienced by Hananiah (cf. 28:15–17).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 29:28 This referred to Jeremiah's letter mentioned in v. 5.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 30:3 I will bring them back. This theme verse gives in capsule form the pledge of chs. 30–33. God's restoration of the whole nation to their own land (cf. 29:10; Amos 9:14–15; Rom. 11:26) has in view a final regathering never to be removed again (see note on Jer. 16:15) and not just a return in the time of Ezra and Nehemiah (Jer. 30:8–9; 31:31ff.; 32:39–40; 33:8– 9, 15–16). This verse is a summary of the prophecy given in Jer. 30:4–9.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 30:7 time of distress for Jacob. This period of unprecedented difficulty for Israel, as the verse defines, is set in a context of Israel's final restoration. It is best equated with the time of tribulation (cf. vv. 8– 9) just before Christ's second advent, mentioned elsewhere (Dan. 12:1; Matt. 24:21–22) and described in detail by Rev. 6–19.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 30:9 David their king. The Messiah, the greater David in David's dynasty, ultimately fulfills this promise (2 Sam. 7:16). He is the great king often promised as Israel's hope (Jer. 23:5–6; Isa. 9:7; Ezek. 37:24–25; Dan. 2:35, 45; 7:13–14, 27; Matt. 25:34; 26:64; Luke 1:32; Rev. 17:14; 19:16). No king of David's seed has held the scepter since the captivity. Zerubbabel, of David's line, never claimed the title of king (cf. Hag. 2:2).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 30:11 not make a full end. Israel will endure as a people until Messiah's kingdom (cf. Rom. 11:1–29).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 30:12–15 Judah had no reason to complain.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 30:16–24 These absolute and extensive promises have yet to be fulfilled in history; they look forward to the reign of Christ, the greater David, in the millennial kingdom of the "latter days."
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 30:21 their ruler. This refers to the Messiah, the king of v. 9 and 23:5–6, springing up from within Israel (cf. Isa. 11:1), able to approach God as a priest.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 31:1 At that time. Equated with the latter days in 30:24. In this chapter, prophecies of the restoration of the nation are continued.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 31:2–14 Here are messianic kingdom conditions.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 31:15 A voice . . . in Ramah. The reflection, for a moment,
is on the distress of an Israelite mother for her children slain in the Babylonian invasion. This was a backdrop for the many contrasting promises of restoration to a joyful time (as vv. 12–14, 16–17) in the messianic day. Matthew saw the same description of sadness as apt, in principle, to depict something of the similar weeping of Jewish mothers when King Herod had babies slain at Bethlehem in a bid to kill the Messiah as a child (Matt. 2:17–18).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 31:18–20 I may be restored. Jeremiah wrote of Israel (the 10 tribes called Ephraim) as finally recognizing, in humility, the need for the Lord to move them to repentance and forgiveness. Cf. Ps. 102:13–17 for the relation of Israel's restoration to their prayers; see also Jer. 24:6–7; Lam. 5:21; cf. John 6:44, 65.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 31:22 faithless. See note on 2:19. a woman encircles a man. Here is one of the most puzzling statements in Jeremiah. Some see the virgin birth of Christ (but "woman" means a woman, not a virgin, and "encircle" or "surround" does not suggest conceiving). Possibly it refers to the formerly virgin Israel (31:21), who is now a disgraced, divorced wife (v. 22; 3:8). She will one day in the future re-embrace her former husband, the Lord, and he will receive her back, fully forgiven. That would be "a new thing on the earth."
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 31:26 my sleep was pleasant. The hope of Israel's restoration brought a moment of peace in Jeremiah's otherwise tumultuous ministry.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 31:28 build and to plant. The Lord repeated what he at first told Jeremiah in 1:10 regarding his two works of judging and blessing. The latter is in two images, architectural (building) and agricultural (planting).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 31:29 eaten sour grapes. This was apparently a proverb among the exiles' children born in Babylon, to express that they suffered the consequences of their fathers' sins rather than their own (Lam. 5:7; Ezek. 18:2– 3).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 31:31–34 a new covenant. In contrast to the Mosaic Covenant under which Israel failed, God promised a New Covenant with a spiritual, divine dynamic by which those who know him would participate in the blessings of salvation. The fulfillment was to individuals, yet also to Israel as a nation (v. 36; Rom. 11:16–27). It is set 1) in the framework of a reestablishment
in their land (e.g., Jer. 30–33 and in 31:38–40) and 2) in the time after the ultimate difficulty (30:7). In principle, this covenant, also announced by Jesus Christ (Luke 22:20), begins to be exercised with spiritual aspects realized for Jewish and Gentile believers in the church era (1 Cor. 11:25; Heb. 8:7–13; 9:15; 10:14–17; 12:24; 13:20). It has already begun to take effect with "a remnant, chosen by grace" (Rom. 11:5). It will be also realized by the people of Israel in the last days, including the regathering to their ancient land, Palestine (Jer. 30– 33). The streams of the Abrahamic, Davidic, and New Covenants find their confluence in the millennial kingdom ruled over by the Messiah.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 31:35–37 These verses emphasize the certainty with which Israel can expect God to fulfill the New Covenant (cf. 33:17–22, 25–26).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 31:38–40 The tower was in the northeast corner of the city (cf. Neh. 3:1; 12:39). When New Covenant promises are ultimately fulfilled to Israel in its regathering to its land, rebuilt Jerusalem will meet certain specifications. The "Corner Gate" is at the northwest corner (2 Kings 14:13; 2 Chron. 26:9). The "measuring line" marks out the area for rebuilding. It will point over the hill Gareb and then toward Goah; both places are impossible to identify today. The "valley of the dead bodies" is the Valley of Hinnom, a place of refuse and burning fires (cf. Jer. 7:31, and see note there). The "Horse Gate" was at the southeast corner of the temple courts (2 Kings 11:16; Neh. 3:28).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 32:1 tenth year. The time is 587 B.C., the tenth year in Zedekiah's reign (597–586 B.C.), the eighteenth of Nebuchadnezzar's rule, during Babylon's siege of Jerusalem.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 32:2 army of . . . Babylon was beseiging. The siege, set up in the tenth month (January) of 588 B.C., lasted at least 30 months to the fourth month (July) of 586 B.C. (39:1–2). Cf. 34:1 and see note there. The events of the chapter occurred in this setting of Judah's imminent loss of its land, only about a year before Babylon's final takeover detailed in chs. 39; 40; 52.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 32:2–5 shut up in the court of the guard. Judah's final king put Jeremiah into prison on the charge of preaching treason, against nation and king, whereas Zedekiah savored positive talk to spark new morale to hold out.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 32:8 the right of . . . redemption. A man facing hardship
could sell property, and the right to redeem it until the jubilee year belonged to the closest blood relative. If a stranger had taken it due to unpaid debt, the relative could redeem it as a family possession (Lev. 25:25). Levite land could be sold only to a Levite (Lev. 25:32–34), such as Jeremiah. He did as the Lord told him (Jer. 32:9–12).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 32:14 Take these deeds. Title deeds to the land, kept for security reasons in a pottery jar, would attest in a future day to one's claim of possession. Men of Anathoth did return to Jerusalem from Babylon (Ezra 2:23). Also, some of the poor of the land, left by the Babylonians (Jer. 39), could have included certain inhabitants of Anathoth. In a still future day, God will be able (32:17, 27) to make this land good to a resurrected Jeremiah and confirm to the right people that they are the prophet/priest's descendants.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 32:16–25 With the immense sovereign power God possesses to do whatever he wishes in the present captivity and the future return, Jeremiah wondered why God had him redeem the field.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 32:26–35 God reviewed Judah's sins and affirmed to Jeremiah that the Babylonians would prevail over Jerusalem ("this city" in v. 28, etc.).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 32:36–41 However, one day God will restore Israel to the land and provide the blessing of salvation.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 32:37 I will bring them back to this place. God pledged to restore Israelites to the very land of Israel (cf. v. 44). It is natural to expect his fulfillment of this blessing to be just as literal as the reverse—his scattering from the land (cf. v. 42).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 32:38–39 This speaks of spiritual salvation, i.e., the true knowledge and worship of God.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 32:40 an everlasting covenant. The ultimate fulfillment of a future in the land was not fulfilled in the Ezra/Nehemiah return. This occurs in the time when God gives the people of Israel a new heart in eternal salvation along with their return to the ancient land (cf. 33:8–9 and Ezek. 36:26).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 32:42–44 In the millennial kingdom, land will again be bought and sold in Israel.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 33:3 Call . . . I will answer. God invited Jeremiah's prayer, which appeals to him to fulfill the aspects of his promises that he guarantees he will attend to (as in 29:11–14; Dan. 9:4–19; cf. John 15:7). His answer to the prayer was assured in Jer. 33:4–26 (cf. v. 14).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 33:8 Again the Lord emphasized the individual spiritual salvation associated with the New Covenant restoration to the land.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 33:11 bring thank offerings to the house of the Lord. These are the words of Ps. 136:1, actually used by the Jews at their return from Babylon (Ezra 3:11).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 33:15 a righteous Branch. This is the Messiah King in David's lineage, as in 23:5–6. He is the King whose reign immediately follows the second coming when he appears in power (Dan. 2:35, 45; 7:13–14, 27; Matt. 16:27–28; 24:30; 26:64).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 33:17–22 God promised to fulfill the Davidic (2 Sam. 17) and Priestly/Levitical (Num. 25:10–13) Covenants without exception. The promise was as certain as the sure appearance of night and day and the incalculable number of stars or sand grains (cf. Jer. 31:35–37; 33:25–26).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 33:24 two clans. Judah and Israel. The Lord has rejected. Many, even today, believe Israel as a nation has no future. In vv. 25–26 God emphatically denies that notion (cf. 31:35–36; Ps. 74:16–17; Rom. 11:1–2).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 34:1 Nebuchadnezzar . . . fighting. The siege began c. January 15, 588 B.C. (39:1), and ended c. July 18, 586 (39:2; 52:5–6). This chapter was set in Zedekiah's reign, during the siege of 588–586 B.C., and was an amplification of 32:1–5, the message that resulted in Jeremiah's incarceration. against Jerusalem. Babylon's destruction of Jerusalem began August 14, 586 (2 Kings 25:8–9).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 34:3 This prophecy about Zedekiah (cf. 32:1–5) was fulfilled as reported in 2 Kings 25:6–7; Jer. 52:7–11.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 34:8–10 a covenant . . . to make a proclamation of liberty. Zedekiah's pact to free slaves or servants met with initial compliance. The covenant followed the law of release in Lev. 25:39–55; Deut. 15:12–18 in hopes of courting God's favor and ending his judgment.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 34:11 they turned around . . . took back. Former slave masters treacherously went back on their agreement and recalled their servants. Some suggest that this treachery came when the Egyptian army approached and Babylon's forces withdrew temporarily (37:5, 11) and the inhabitants believed that danger was past.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 34:12–16 The word . . . came. God reminded the unfaithful Jews of his own covenant, when he freed Israelites from Egyptian bondage (cf. Ex. 21:2; Deut. 15:12–15). He had commanded that Hebrew slaves should serve only six years, then be set free in the seventh (Jer. 34:13–14).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 34:17–22 You have not obeyed. Due to recent duplicity (v. 16), God promised only one kind of liberty to the offenders, liberty to judgment by sword, pestilence, and famine (v. 17).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 34:18, 21 calf that they cut in two. God will give the guilty over to death before the conqueror, for they denied the covenant ratified by blood (v. 21). In this custom, as in Gen. 15:8–17, two parties laid out parts of a sacrifice on two sides, then walked between the parts. By that symbolic action each pledged to fulfill his promise, agreeing in effect, "May my life (represented by the blood) be poured out if I fail to honor my part."
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 35:1–19 This chapter provided a description of the commitment to obedience by a group of people to their father, in contrast to the Jews' disobedience to God.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 35:1 days of Jehoiakim. 609–597 B.C. This backed up to several years before 34:1, possibly for a thematic reason—to cite a case of obedience after the episode of treachery in ch. 34.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 35:2 the Rechabites. These were a semi-nomadic Kenite group, related to Moses' father-in-law (Judg. 1:16; 4:11), descended from those in 1 Chron. 2:55. The originator of their rules was Jonadab (Jer. 35:6, 14; 2 Kings 10:15, 23). They derived their name from Rechab (Jer. 35:8) and were not of Jacob's seed, but "strangers" in Israel.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 35:8 obeyed. What was commended here was not the father's specific commands about nomadic life, but the steadfast obedience of the sons. Their obedience was unreserved in all aspects, at all times, on the part of all, without exception; in all these respects Israel was lacking (v. 14).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 35:13–17 The prophet indicted the Jews for flagrant disobedience.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 35:18–19 Because you have obeyed. God will bless the Rechabites not in spiritually saving them all, but in preserving a posterity in which some can have a place in his service. A Rechabite still has a role in Neh. 3:14. Also, the title over Ps. 71 in the lxx (Greek translation of the OT) was addressed for use by the sons of Jonadab and the earliest captives.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 36:1 fourth year of Jehoiakim. This chapter, like ch. 35, goes back several years earlier than chs. 32–34, before or shortly after the first of three deportations from Jerusalem to Babylon in 605 B.C.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 36:2 write on it. The command was to record in one volume all the messages since the outset of Jeremiah's ministry in 627 B.C. (1:2) up to 605/604 B.C., to be read to the people in the temple (36:6).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 36:4 Baruch wrote. Jeremiah's recording secretary (cf. 32:12) wrote the prophet's messages (cf. 45:1), and penned them a second time after the first scroll was burned (cf. 36:32). He also read the messages in the temple (v. 10) and in the palace (v. 15). Later, Jehudi read a small part of the first scroll before King Jehoiakim (vv. 21–23).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 36:5 banned. The word means "confined, hindered, shut up," and is the same term used for imprisonment in 33:1 and 39:15. The fact that princes allowed Jeremiah to depart into hiding (36:19) may indicate that he was curtailed in some ways without being in prison. There is no record of his being imprisoned in Jehoiakim's rule.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 36:6 a day of fasting. Cf. v. 9. Here was a special fast day, appointed to avert the impending calamity, which would make the Jews more open to the message of the prophet (v. 7).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 36:9 fifth year. This year (604 B.C.) was the next year after that of v. 1, which may suggest that it took some part of a year to repeat and record the long series of messages so far given (cf. v. 18). ninth month. November/ December (cf. vv. 22–23).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 36:10 chamber. On the north side, above the wall overlooking the temple court, where the people gathered, Baruch read from a
window or balcony.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 36:17–18 They asked if Baruch had written these words from memory or actual dictation from the inspired prophet. The latter was true. They were concerned it might be God's word (cf. vv. 16, 25).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 36:23 cut them off. As often as Jehudi read "three or four columns," the king cut it up, doing so all the way through the whole scroll because he rejected the message (cf. v. 29). Jehoiakim is the king who sent men to Egypt (ch. 26) to bring back God's faithful prophet, Uriah, so that he could execute him.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 36:24 neither . . . afraid. The king's servants were more hardened than the princes (v. 16).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 36:26 the Lord hid them. God, who guides (cf. 1:8, 19; 10:23), gave Jeremiah and Baruch safety (cf. 36:19; Ps. 32:8; Prov. 3:5–6).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 36:27 Cf. Isa. 40:18; 55:11; Matt. 5:18.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 36:31 I will punish him. Consequences followed Jehoiakim's defiance. In 598 B.C. he met his own death (22:18–19; 2 Kings 23:36; 2 Chron. 36:5). He had none to occupy the throne (Jer. 36:30). Jehoiachin or Jeconiah (Coniah in 22:24), his son, did succeed him, but with virtually no rule at all, lasting only three months and 10 days in 597 B.C. (22:24–30; 2 Chron. 36:9–10). Babylon deported him for the rest of his life (cf. Jer. 52:31–34) and none of his descendants ruled (cf. 22:30, and see note there).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 37:1 Zedekiah . . . reigned. Zedekiah, an uncle of Jeconiah, was raised to the throne by Nebuchadnezzar in contempt for Jehoiakim and Jeconiah. His 11-year vassal rule was from 597–586 B.C. The message of the king to Jeremiah in this chapter is somewhat earlier than that in ch. 21, when Zedekiah was afraid of the Chaldean's (Babylonian's) defeating Egypt and returning to besiege Jerusalem (37:3, 5).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 37:4 The prophet was no longer in the prison court as he had been (32:2; 33:1).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 37:7–10 say to the king. Babylon, which temporarily ended the siege to deal with an Egyptian advance, would return and destroy
Jerusalem.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 37:12 Jeremiah set out. He returned to his hometown to claim the property he had purchased in 32:6–12.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 37:13 Hananiah. Jeremiah had predicted his death (28:16), and thus the grandson took revenge with a false accusation (cf. 38:19; 52:15).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 37:15 beat him. Jeremiah often absorbed blows, threats, or other mistreatment for proclaiming the truth from God (11:21; 20:2; 26:8; 36:26; 38:6, 25).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 37:17 This showed Zedekiah's willful rejection. He knew Jeremiah spoke for God.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 37:19 prophets. They were shown to be liars who said the "king of Babylon" would not come. He had come and would return.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 37:21 bread. The king showed a measure of kindness by returning Jeremiah to "the court of the guard" (cf. 32:2; 33:1), promising "bread" as long as it lasted in the siege (cf. 38:9). He remained there until Jerusalem was taken soon after the food was gone (38:28), with only a brief trip to a pit (38:6– 13).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 38:4 Let this man be put to death. Cf. 26:11 and see note there. he is weakening the hands of the soldiers. They charged that Jeremiah's urging to submit to Babylon (38:2) undermined the defenders' morale and will. By proclaiming Babylon's victory, he was viewed as a traitor to Judah.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 38:5 the king can do nothing. This is a spineless evasion of courage and decency by a leader who rejected God's word.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 38:6 no water . . . but only mud. The murderous princes (cf. v. 4) would let God's spokesman die of thirst, hunger, hypothermia, or suffocation if he sank too deeply into the bottom of the cistern. Cf. Ps. 69:2, 14, a reference to Messiah.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 38:7–13 Ebed-melech. An Ethiopian, Gentile stranger acted decisively to deliver Jeremiah from his own people who were seeking to kill him. Perhaps a keeper of the royal harem ("eunuch"), this man later received
God's deliverance of his own life and his tribute for his faith (39:15–18).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 38:14–23 I will ask you a question. This is one of several queries as Zedekiah wanted to hear God's word but rejected it. God's word was surrender, and his answer for rejection was calamity for Jerusalem, capture of the king, and tragedy for his family plus others of the palace. For the fulfillment to Zedekiah, cf. 39:4–8.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 38:22 trusted friends have deceived you. Palace women, taken over by Babylonians, heaped cutting ridicule on Zedekiah for listening to friends whose counsel failed him, who left him helpless as one with his feet stuck in mire.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 38:27 answered . . . the king . . . instructed. Jeremiah did not fall into lying deception here. What he said was true though he did not divulge all details of the conversation, to which the princes had no right.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 39:1–2 In the ninth year . . . the eleventh year. Cf. 34:1, and see note there. Cf. 52:1–7; 2 Kings 25:1–4. This siege of 30 months involved the enemy's surrounding the city walls, cutting off all entrances and exits, all food supplies, and as much water as possible, so that famine, thirst, and disease would eventually weaken the beleaguered city dwellers and they could be easily conquered.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 39:3 sat in the middle gate. This expressed full military occupation of the city, since this gate was between the upper city (Mount Zion) and the lower city to the north.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 39:5 Riblah, in . . . Hamath. Nebuchadnezzar's command headquarters were 230 miles to the north of Jerusalem. passed sentence. He dealt with the king as a common criminal. The king had violated his oath (cf. 2 Chron. 36:13; Ezek. 17:13–19).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 39:6–10 Cf. 52:12–16 and 2 Kings 25:8–12.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 39:7 put out the eyes of Zedekiah. This reconciles 32:4 with Ezek. 12:13.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 39:11–12 Jeremiah's prophecies were known to Nebuchadnezzar through defectors (v. 9; 38:19), and also through Jews taken to
Babylon with Jeconiah (cf. 40:2).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 39:14 took Jeremiah from the court. This was given as a general summary, whereas 40:1–6 gave more detail concerning the prophet who was first carried to Ramah (40:1) with the other captives before being released (40:2–5). "Gedaliah" was a former supporter of Jeremiah (26:24) and chief among the defectors, loyal to Nebuchadnezzar, so was made governor (40:5) over the remnant left in the land.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 39:15–18 Cf. 38:7–13, and see note there.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 40:2–3 The pagan captain understood the judgment of God better than the leaders of Judah.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 40:4–5 The captain did exactly as Nebuchadnezzar had told him in 39:12.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 40:5–6 Jeremiah chose to go to Gedaliah, the newly appointed governor at Mizpah several miles north of Jerusalem. Gedaliah was soon to be assassinated (cf. 41:1–3).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 40:7 captains . . . in the open country. The leaders of Judah's army scattered in fear.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 40:9–12 God had tempered the severity of judgment by allowing a remnant to prosper.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 40:13–16 Johanan. This man's fair warning to Gedaliah of Ishmael's death plot went unheeded.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 41:1–4 In the second month after the city of Jerusalem had been burned, the careless governor entertained Ishmael's group and invited a massacre.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 41:5 eighty men. Most likely, this group had come in mourning over the destruction of Jerusalem, and so were led to slaughter. Ishmael did amazing damage with only 10 men (v. 1). Eventually they must have acquired more to do what is described in v. 10.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 41:9 Asa. He ruled Judah (c. 911–873 B.C.). Cf. 1 Kings 15:16–22.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 41:12–15 went to fight against Ishmael. Johanan heard of Ishmael's murders and taking people captive, and brought men to stop him. They freed the captives (vv. 13–14), but Ishmael and his men escaped (v. 15).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 41:12 pool . . . Gibeon. Cf. 2 Sam. 2:13.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 42:1–2 Jeremiah. He probably was one carried off from Mizpah, freed, and dwelt with Johanan (41:16).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 42:1–6 pray . . . for us. The remnant in Judah asked Jeremiah to pray to God and find his will on what they should do. They promised to obey (v. 6).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 42:7–12 After 10 days of prayer Jeremiah reported God's word, telling them to remain in the land under God's protection (v. 10).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 42:10 I relent. By this God means "I am satisfied with the punishment inflicted if you do not add new offenses."
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 42:13–19 The prophet gave explicit warning (v. 19) not to go to Egypt, where they would be exposed to corrupting paganism.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 42:20 They were hypocrites who already desired Egypt.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 43:1–7 When Jeremiah finished speaking. The incorrigible, disobedient leaders accused him of deceit and forced Jeremiah and the remnant to go to Egypt, despite the fact that all his prophecies regarding Babylon had come to pass. In so doing, they went out of God's protection into his judgment, as all who are disobedient to his word do.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 43:3, 6 Baruch. The faithful recorder of ch. 36 was still with Jeremiah, kept safe as God promised him at least 20 years earlier (45:5; cf. 605 B.C. in v. 1).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 43:7 Tahpanhes. A location in the eastern delta region of Egypt.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 43:9–13 Take . . . large stones. Stones, placed in the mortar of the brick pavement in the courtyard entrance of the Pharaoh's house, signaled the place where the conquering king of Babylon would bring devastation on Egypt and establish his throne. This was fulfilled in an invasion c. 568/67 B.C.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 43:12 as a shepherd cleans his cloak. A very simple and easy task describes how quickly and easily Nebuchadnezzar will conquer Egypt.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 43:13 obelisks of Heliopolis. Hebrew "house of the sun." This refers to a temple for the worship of the sun. Located north of Memphis, east of the Nile, these obelisks were said to be 60–100 feet high.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 44:1 The word that came. The unrelenting iniquity of the Jews called for yet another prophecy of judgment on them in Egypt.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 44:2–6 The prophet summarized what had occurred in Judah as a basis for what he predicted coming on the refugees in Egypt.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 44:7, 9–10 Incredibly, after being spared death in Judah, they pursued it by their sin in Egypt.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 44:11–14 Ironically, the Jews taken to Babylon were weaned from idolatry and restored to their land; those taken to Egypt for their obstinate idolatry, perished there.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 44:14 except some fugitives. A small number (v. 28) who fled before the arrival of Babylonian armies were spared.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 44:15 wives. The idolatry apparently began with the women.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 44:17–19 queen of heaven. See note on 7:18. This is a title Roman Catholicism erroneously attributes to Mary, the mother of Jesus, in a blending of Christianity with paganism. The Jews' twisted thinking credits the idol with the prosperity of pre-captivity Judah, further mocking the goodness of God.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 44:20–23 Jeremiah set the record straight, saying the idol was not the source of their prosperity, but it was the cause of their calamity.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 44:24–28 Jeremiah repeated the doom stated in vv. 11–14.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 44:29–30 sign. The "sign" of punishment was described in v. 30 as the strangulation of Pharaoh Hophra in 570 B.C. by Amasis, which paved the way for Nebuchadnezzar's invasion in the twenty-third year of his reign (568/67 B.C.).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 45:1 fourth year of Jehoiakim. The year was 605 B.C. (ch. 36), when the recording of God's messages to Jeremiah was in view.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 45:3 Woe is me! Baruch felt anxiety as his own cherished plans of a bright future were apparently dashed; even death became a darkening
peril (cf. v. 5). Also, he was possibly pressed by human questionings about God carrying through with such calamity (cf. v. 4). Jeremiah spoke to encourage him (v. 2).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 45:4 say to him. God will judge this whole nation (the Jews).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 45:5 do you seek great things . . . ? Baruch had his expectations far too high, and that made the disasters harder to bear. It is enough that he be content just to live. Jeremiah, who once also complained, learned by his own suffering to encourage complainers.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 46:1 concerning the nations. Jeremiah had already proclaimed that all the nations at some time are to "drink the cup" of God's wrath (25:15–26). In chs. 46–51 God selected certain nations and forecast their doom. Likely given to Jeremiah at different times, the prophecies were collected according to the nations, not the chronology.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 46:2–26 About Egypt. Cf. Isa. 19–20; Ezek. 29–32. Jeremiah 46:2–12 depicts Pharaoh Neco's overthrow by the Babylonians at Carchemish by the Euphrates River in 605 B.C., in which Egypt lost all its territory west of the river.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 46:3–6 Here was a derisive call to Egypt to ready itself for defeat.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 46:10 day is the day of the Lord. While this phrase often refers to an eschatological judgment on earth (such as in Zeph. 1:7; Mal. 4:5; 1 Thess. 5:2; 2 Pet. 3:10), it also may refer to a historical day. In this case it refers to the Egyptian defeat (cf. Lam. 2:22). See note on Isa. 2:12.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 46:11 Gilead. See note on 8:20–22.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 46:13–26 Babylon's invasion of Egypt, 15 or 16 years before the destruction of Jerusalem, is here detailed (601 B.C.; cf. v. 13). Having spent 13 years in a siege of Tyre, Nebuchadnezzar was promised Egypt as a reward for humbling Tyre (cf. Ezek. 29:17–20).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 46:18 Tabor . . . Carmel. As those two mountains rise above the hills of Palestine, so Nebuchadnezzar will be superior.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 46:20–21 A beautiful heifer . . . fattened calves. Fat and untamed, ready to kill.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 46:26 Afterward. Forty years after Nebuchadnezzar's conquest of Egypt, it threw off the Babylonian yoke but never regained its former glory (Ezek. 29:11–15).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 46:27–28 fear not . . . Jacob. Though Israel has been scattered to the nations, the nations will receive their judgments, and the Lord will restore Israel (repeated from 30:10–11) from dispersion to its own land (as in 23:5–8; 30–33). No matter what judgments fall on Israel, they will not be destroyed, as Paul reiterates in Rom. 11:1–2, 15, 25–27.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 47:1–5 concerning the Philistines. Cf. Isa. 14:29–32; Ezek. 25:15–17; Amos 1:6–8; Zeph. 2:4–7. Although Egypt's Pharaoh Hophra conquered the Philistines (who lived on the coastal plain of Palestine) in Gaza and Phoenicia around 587 B.C. (Jer. 47:1), Babylon appears to be the conqueror in this scene ("out of the north"), at the same time as the invasion of Judah (588– 586 B.C.; cf. 39:1–2).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 47:6–7 sword of the Lord! Cf. Judg. 7:18, 20.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 48:1 Concerning Moab. Various sites of unknown location in Moab are to be destroyed (vv. 1–5). The judgment is framed in similar words or some of the same words as in other passages (Isa. 15:1–9; 16:6–14; 25:10–12; Ezek. 25:8–11; Amos 2:1–3; Zeph. 2:8–11). Desolation overtook different parts of Moab at various times, but Babylon in 588–586 B.C. or 582–581 B.C. is likely the main destroyer (cf. Jer. 48:40). The Moabites were Lot's descendants (cf. Gen. 19:37), who lived east of the Dead Sea and often fought with Israel.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 48:7 Chemosh. He was the leading god of Moab (cf. Num. 21:29; Judg. 11:24; 1 Kings 11:7; 2 Kings 23:13).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 48:10 Cursed is he. God's aim to judge Moab was so intense that he pronounced a curse on whatever instrument (army) he would use should they carry it out "with slackness," i.e., "carelessly," or "negligently."
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 48:11–12 This wine-making imagery is vivid. In the production of sweet wine, the juice was left in a wineskin until the sediment or dregs settled onto the bottom. Then it was poured into another skin until more
dregs were separated. This process continued until the dregs were all removed and a pure, sweet wine obtained. Moab was not taken from suffering to suffering so that her bitter dregs would be removed through the purging of pain. Thus the nation was settled into the thickness and bitterness of its own sin. Judgment from God was coming to smash them.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 48:18–20 Dibon . . . Aroer! These places were on the Arnon River, but would be thirsty.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 48:24 Kerioth. Likely the city of Judas Iscariot. Cf. Josh. 15:25.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 48:25 horn . . . is cut off. An example of the OT use of "horn" as a symbol of military power, as an animal uses horns to hook, gouge, or ram. Moab is to be dehorned.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 48:26 Here is a vivid picture of humiliation.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 48:29 Suffering didn't come to humble Moab (see note on vv. 11–12), so she remained proud.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 48:47 I will restore. God will allow a remnant of Moab to return to the land (cf. 12:14–17; 46:26; 48:47; 49:6, 39), through their descendants in the messianic era ("the latter days").
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 49:1–6 Concerning the Ammonites. Cf. Ezek. 25:1–7; Amos 1:13–15; Zeph. 2:8–11. These people descended from Lot (cf. Gen. 19:38) and lived north of Moab. Though Israel had people who were heirs to Transjordan, i.e., Gad, Reuben, and one half of Manasseh (cf. Josh. 22:1–9), the Ammonites, whose god was Milcham or Molech, were chided for having usurped the area (Jer. 49:1), when the northern kingdom was taken captive by Shalmaneser.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 49:2 battle cry. Nebuchadnezzar defeated Ammon in the fifth year after the destruction of Jerusalem, around 582/81 B.C.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 49:4 valleys. The Hebrew (see esv footnote) adds, "your valley flows," i.e., with the blood of the slain. faithless. See note on Prov. 14:14.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 49:6 I will restore. As with Moab (cf. 48:47 and see note
there), God promised that captives would have an opportunity to return. This was partially fulfilled under Cyrus, but will be more fully in the coming kingdom of Messiah (cf. 48:47).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 49:7–22 Concerning Edom. Cf. Isa. 21:11–12; Ezek. 25:12–14; Amos 1:11–12; Obad. 1. This prophecy is closely related to Obadiah. These people descended from Esau (cf. Gen. 36:1–19) and lived south of the Dead Sea. Perpetual desolation is ahead for Edom (Jer. 49:13). God will make it bare (vv. 10, 18). The destroyer is probably Babylon in 588–586 B.C. or 582–581
B.C. as v. 19 has descriptions used of Babylon against Judah (lion, 4:7; thicket of the Jordan, 12:5). Also "swiftly like an eagle" (49:22) is used of Babylon (Hab. 1:8). There is no prophecy of a future restoration.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 49:8 Esau. He was cursed for his godlessness and his punishment was perpetuated in his descendants (cf. Heb. 12:11, 17).
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 49:9 See note on Obad. 5–6.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 49:10 he is no more. Edom was politically extinct after the Roman conquest.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 49:11 This was because no adult men will be left to care for them.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 49:12 those . . . not deserve to drink . . . must drink it. This refers to the Jews who had a covenant relation to God. What will happen to a nation that has no such pledge?
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 49:16–17 Edom was situated in high and rugged mountains and thus convinced it was invincible. But the ruin will come and be irreversible.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 49:19–21 These words are repeated in 50:44–46, where they refer to Babylon.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 49:20 the little ones of the flock. The weakest of the Chaldeans shall drag them away captive.
JEREMIAH—NOTE ON 49:23–27 Concerning Damascus. Cf. Isa. 17:1–3 and Amos 1:3–5. Hamath, a city on the Orontes River that marked the northern limit of Solomon's rule (2 Chron. 8:4), 110 miles north of Damascus in southern