Jeremiah 40: Jeremiah is set free and decided to stay in Jerusalem

 In Jeremiah 40, Jeremiah is set free from Nebuzaradan captain of the bodyguard of Babylon.


2 The captain of the guard took Jeremiah aside and said to him, “Yahweh your Elohim threatened to bring this disaster on this place. 3 He has carried out his threat. Yahweh did as he promised because you Israelites have sinned against him and refused to obey him. That is why this has happened to you. 4 Today I’m removing the chains from your hands. If you would like to come with me to Babylon, come, and I’ll look after you. But if you don’t want to come with me to Babylon, don’t come. The whole land is yours. Go wherever you want.

If a Babylonian captain knows about Jeremiah and the prophecies, we conclude that Jeremiah was very famous in his days. After some 20 years preaching, Jeremiah certainly delivered the Lord's message to whomever wanted to listen.


5 “If you wish to remain, then go back to Gedaliah, son of Ahikam and grandson of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon appointed to govern the cities of Judah. Live among the people with him, or go anywhere you want.” The captain of the guard gave Jeremiah some food and a present and let him go. 6 Jeremiah went to Gedaliah, son of Ahikam, at Mizpah and lived with him among the people who were left in the land.

The captain told Jeremiah to go to Gedaliah who was apointed by Babylon to govern the cities of Judah. It seems that Gedaliah is Jew but not from David line.

Gedaliah wanted a peaceful govern:

9 Gedaliah, son of Ahikam and grandson of Shaphan, swore an oath to them and their men. He said, “Don’t be afraid to serve the Babylonians. Live in this country, serve the king of Babylon, and you will prosper. 10 I’m going to live in Mizpah and represent you when the Babylonians come to us. Gather grapes, summer fruit, and olive oil, and put them in storage jars. Live in the cities you have taken over.”

A peaceful environment is basic to production:

11 Now, all the Jews who were in Moab, Ammon, Edom, and in all the other countries heard that the king of Babylon had left a few survivors in Judah and had appointed Gedaliah, son of Ahikam and grandson of Shaphan, to govern them. 12 So all the Jews returned from all the places where they had been scattered. They came to Judah and to Gedaliah at Mizpah. They gathered a large harvest of grapes and summer fruit.

The Jews accepted Gedaliah as governor, however, the Ammonites has sent Ishmael to kill Gedaliah. Johanan knew about that and wanted to defend Gedaliah:

15 Then Johanan, Kareah’s son, secretly asked Gedaliah at Mizpah, “Let me kill Ishmael, Nethaniah’s son. No one will know about it. Why should he kill you? All the Jews who have gathered around you would scatter. What is left of Judah would disappear.”

But Gedaliah didn't believe in him,

16 Gedaliah, son of Ahikam, told Johanan, Kareah’s son, “Don’t do that! What you are saying about Ishmael is a lie.”

Jeremiah 39: end of the Davidic dinasty

 Jeremiah 39: end of the Davidic dinasty

The first year of Zedekiay was 597B (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zedekiah) , so the 9 years (v39) is 597-9 = 588 BC or 587 BC, due to 10 months. The Babylonian army broke through the walls of Jerusalem:

8-10 Meanwhile, the Babylonians burned down the royal palace, the Temple, and all the homes of the people. They leveled the walls of Jerusalem. Nebuzaradan, commander of the king’s bodyguard, rounded up everyone left in the city, along with those who had surrendered to him, and herded them off to exile in Babylon. He didn’t bother taking the few poor people who had nothing. He left them in the land of Judah to eke out a living as best they could in the vineyards and fields.

Zedekiah was the last king of Davidic dinasty. He didn't trust in Jeremiah's words, but he listened to him. He saved him but kept in prison. So, he seemed like a lot of people says things like: “No creo en brujas, pero que las hay, las hay”. It is very difficult to obey the Lord with this kind of thought.

4-7 When Zedekiah king of Judah and his remaining soldiers saw this, they ran for their lives. They slipped out at night on a path in the king’s garden through the gate between two walls and headed for the wilderness, toward the Jordan Valley. The Babylonian army chased them and caught Zedekiah in the wilderness of Jericho. They seized him and took him to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon at Riblah in the country of Hamath. Nebuchadnezzar decided his fate. The king of Babylon killed all the sons of Zedekiah in Riblah right before his eyes and then killed all the nobles of Judah. After Zedekiah had seen the slaughter, Nebuchadnezzar blinded him, chained him up, and then took him off to Babylon.

Jeremiah is released from prison and put under the care of Gedaliah - the new assigned governor for the region but with no royal (David) blood.

11-12 Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon gave Nebuzaradan captain of the king’s bodyguard special orders regarding Jeremiah: “Look out for him. Make sure nothing bad happens to him. Give him anything he wants.”

13-14 So Nebuzaradan, chief of the king’s bodyguard, along with Nebushazban the Rabsaris, Nergal-sharezer the Rabmag, and all the chief officers of the king of Babylon, sent for Jeremiah, taking him from the courtyard of the royal guards and putting him under the care of Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, to be taken home. And so he was able to live with the people.

Ebed-melek, the Ethiopian, is rewarded:

15-18 Earlier, while Jeremiah was still in custody in the courtyard of the royal guards, God’s Message came to him: “Go and speak with Ebed-melek the Ethiopian. Tell him, ‘God-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel, says, Listen carefully: I will do exactly what I said I would do to this city—bad news, not good news. When it happens, you will be there to see it. But I’ll deliver you on that doomsday. You won’t be handed over to those men whom you have good reason to fear. Yes, I’ll most certainly save you. You won’t be killed. You’ll walk out of there safe and sound because you trusted me.’” God’s Decree.

Jeremiah 38: can a gentile be more reliable than an Jew official?

In Jeremiah 38:

1 Shaphatiah son of Mattan, Gedaliah son of Pashur, Jehucal son of Shelemiah, and Pashur son of Malkijah (...)
8 ... took Jeremiah and threw him into the cistern of Malkijah the king’s son that was in the courtyard of the palace guard. They lowered him down with ropes. There wasn’t any water in the cistern, only mud. Jeremiah sank into the mud.

These Jews were afraid that Jeremiah would weak the soldiers morale, so they threw him in a cistern to let him die there. However:

7-9 Ebed-melek the Ethiopian, a court official assigned to the royal palace, heard that they had thrown Jeremiah into the cistern. While the king was holding court in the Benjamin Gate, Ebed-melek went immediately from the palace to the king and said, “My master, O king—these men are committing a great crime in what they’re doing, throwing Jeremiah the prophet into the cistern and leaving him there to starve. He’s as good as dead. There isn’t a scrap of bread left in the city.”

Ebed-melek, the Ethiopian, decided to save Jeremiah; so he asked the king to intercede for him.

10 So the king ordered Ebed-melek the Ethiopian, “Get three men and pull Jeremiah the prophet out of the cistern before he dies.”

11-12 Ebed-melek got three men and went to the palace wardrobe and got some scraps of old clothing, which they tied together and lowered down with ropes to Jeremiah in the cistern. Ebed-melek the Ethiopian called down to Jeremiah, “Put these scraps of old clothing under your armpits and around the ropes.” Jeremiah did what he said.

13 And so they pulled Jeremiah up out of the cistern by the ropes. But he was still confined in the courtyard of the palace guard.
Ebed-melek saved Jeremiah's life. The king had some interest in Jeremiah's prophecies. He went to Jeremiah

The king was interested in Jeremiah's prophecies and meet him in secret. Jeremiah told the king to surrender, but the king replied:

19 King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “But I’m afraid of the Judeans who have already deserted to the Chaldeans. If they get hold of me, they’ll rough me up good.”

It seems that Zedekiah had enemies that were pro Babylon, but he was also afraid of the Jews who put Jeremiah in the cistern (and were against Babylon):

24-26 Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “Don’t let anyone know of this conversation, if you know what’s good for you. If the government officials get wind that I’ve been talking with you, they may come and say, ‘Tell us what went on between you and the king, what you said and what he said. Hold nothing back and we won’t kill you.’ If this happens, tell them, ‘I presented my case to the king so that he wouldn’t send me back to the dungeon of Jonathan to die there.’”

27 And sure enough, all the officials came to Jeremiah and asked him. He responded as the king had instructed. So they quit asking. No one had overheard the conversation.

28 Jeremiah lived in the courtyard of the palace guards until the day that Jerusalem was captured.

Jeremiah 37: Jeremiah is arrested for treason

 Jeremiah 37: Jeremiah is arrested for treason

The Lord speaks through Jeremiah, but, did it make Jeremiah more rich or powerful? In this chapter, Jeremiah is arrested for treason. King Zedekiah ( a puppet king set on the throne by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon ) is the last king before the Babylonian captivity and Jeremiah has been preaching for two decades to repent and even to surrender to the Babylonian army while false prophets (more nationalistic) were preaching that the Lord would protect his temple, Jerusalem, his people, etc. In this chapter, it was very clear that Jeremiah was right because the Babylonian army is surrounding  Jerusalem. However:

4-5 ... Pharaoh’s army was marching up from Egypt. The Chaldeans fighting against Jerusalem heard that the Egyptians were coming and pulled back.

Although Zedekiah was set by Nebuchadnezzar, he must made some agreement with pharaoh, so pharaoh's army is now marching to Jerusalem. King Zedekiah asks to Jeremiah to pray:

3 However, King Zedekiah sent Jehucal son of Shelemiah, and Zephaniah the priest, son of Maaseiah, to Jeremiah the prophet, saying, “Pray for us—pray hard!—to the Master, our God.”

Zedekiah wants to stay in throne, free from the Babylonians; and he wants the blessing of the Lord. Jeremiah replies:

6-10 Then Jeremiah the prophet received this Message from God: “I, the God of Israel, want you to give this Message to the king of Judah, who has just sent you to me to find out what he should do. Tell him, ‘Get this: Pharaoh’s army, which is on its way to help you, isn’t going to stick it out. No sooner will they get here than they’ll leave and go home to Egypt. And then the Babylonians will come back and resume their attack, capture this city and burn it to the ground. I, God, am telling you: Don’t kid yourselves, reassuring one another, “The Babylonians will leave in a few days.” I tell you, they aren’t leaving. Why, even if you defeated the entire attacking Chaldean army and all that was left were a few wounded soldiers in their tents, the wounded would still do the job and burn this city to the ground.’”

During this absence of the Babylonian army surrounding Jerusalem, Jeremiah decided to leave the city:

11-13 When the Chaldean army pulled back from Jerusalem, Jeremiah left Jerusalem to go over to the territory of Benjamin to take care of some personal business. When he got to the Benjamin Gate, the officer on guard there, Irijah son of Shelemiah, son of Hananiah, grabbed Jeremiah the prophet, accusing him, “You’re deserting to the Chaldeans!”

In fact, Jeremiah's preaching seems in favor of the Babylonians. So, he was arrested when leaving Jerusalem.

14-16 “That’s a lie,” protested Jeremiah. “I wouldn’t think of deserting to the Chaldeans.” But Irijah wouldn’t listen to him. He arrested him and took him to the police. The police were furious with Jeremiah. They beat him up and threw him into jail in the house of Jonathan the secretary of state. (They were using the house for a prison cell.) So Jeremiah entered an underground cell in a cistern turned into a dungeon. He stayed there a long time.

When I was very little and mommy was not converted yet, she told me that good things happens to good people and bad things happens to bad people. The Bible is full of stories that goes against it; in fact, Jesus told in Matthew 5:

10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Jeremiah 36: the Lord is insistent.

 In Jeremiah 36 we see how the Lord is like a father that wants repentance so that he doesn't punish his children. In particular, he deals with the stubborn king Jehoiakim. We read:

1 In the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, Jeremiah received this Message from God:
2 “Get a scroll and write down everything I’ve told you regarding Israel and Judah and all the other nations from the time I first started speaking to you in Josiah’s reign right up to the present day.
3 “Maybe the community of Judah will finally get it, finally understand the catastrophe that I’m planning for them, turn back from their bad lives, and let me forgive their perversity and sin.”

The message was spoken, but now it was to be written in a scroll. It was a long message that began in king Josiah's time.


4 So Jeremiah called in Baruch son of Neriah. Jeremiah dictated and Baruch wrote down on a scroll everything that God had said to him.
5-6 Then Jeremiah told Baruch, “I’m blacklisted. I can’t go into God’s Temple, so you’ll have to go in my place. Go into the Temple and read everything you’ve written at my dictation. Wait for a day of fasting when everyone is there to hear you. And make sure that all the people who come from the Judean villages hear you.

The scroll was to be read by Baruch in the day of fasting when many Jews were gathered in the temple.

7 “Maybe, just maybe, they’ll start praying and God will hear their prayers. Maybe they’ll turn back from their bad lives. This is no light matter. God has certainly let them know how angry he is!”

Jeremiah knew that it was difficult the repentance, but maybe the reading of Lord's words would lead them to repentance. This is very similar to announcing the gospel, maybe they will listen. Baruch did it some months after, in the day of fasting. Some Jewish leaders clearly understood that this was a very important message.

11-12 The moment Micaiah the son of Gemariah heard what was being read from the scroll—God’s Message!—he went straight to the palace and to the chambers of the secretary of state where all the government officials were holding a meeting: Elishama the secretary, Delaiah son of Shemaiah, Elnathan son of Achbor, Gemariah son of Shaphan, Zedekiah son of Hananiah, and all the other government officials. 13 Micaiah reported everything he had heard Baruch read from the scroll as the officials listened.

Baruch reads the scroll again to an audience of leaders.
These leaders understood the importance of the message: it was to be addressed to the king, but the king would become furious:

19 The government officials told Baruch, “You need to get out of here. Go into hiding, you and Jeremiah. Don’t let anyone know where you are!”
20-21 The officials went to the court of the palace to report to the king, having put the scroll for safekeeping in the office of Elishama the secretary of state. The king sent Jehudi to get the scroll. He brought it from the office of Elishama the secretary. Jehudi then read it to the king and the officials who were in the king’s service.

In fact, the king Jehoiakim became furious:

22-23 It was December. The king was sitting in his winter quarters in front of a charcoal fire. After Jehudi would read three or four columns, the king would cut them off the scroll with his pocketknife and throw them in the fire. He continued in this way until the entire scroll had been burned up in the fire.

But the Lord is insistent with the king:

27-28 After the king had burned the scroll that Baruch had written at Jeremiah’s dictation, Jeremiah received this Message from God: “Get another blank scroll and do it all over again. Write out everything that was in that first scroll that Jehoiakim king of Judah burned up.
29 “And send this personal message to Jehoiakim king of Judah: ‘God says, You had the gall to burn this scroll and then the nerve to say, “What kind of nonsense is this written here—that the king of Babylon will come and destroy this land and kill everything in it?”
30-31 “‘Well, do you want to know what God says about Jehoiakim king of Judah? This: No descendant of his will ever rule from David’s throne. His corpse will be thrown in the street and left unburied, exposed to the hot sun and the freezing night. I will punish him and his children and the officials in his government for their blatant sin. I’ll let loose on them and everyone in Jerusalem the doomsday disaster of which I warned them but they spit at.’”
32 So Jeremiah went and got another scroll and gave it to Baruch son of Neriah, his secretary. At Jeremiah’s dictation he again wrote down everything that Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire. There were also generous additions, but of the same kind of thing.

My Lord is very insistent with me and his people. Praise to the Lord.

Jeremiah 35: it is possible to obey a human being. Why is it so difficult to obey the Lord?

 In Jeremiah 35, the Lord uses the Rechabites’ community as an example of obedience. They were not supposed to drink wine. Would they still not be drinking wine?

3-4 So I (Jeremiah, I suppose) went and got Jaazaniah son of Jeremiah (instead of "my son"?), son of Habazziniah, along with all his brothers and sons—the whole community of the Recabites as it turned out—and brought them to God’s Temple and to the meeting room of Hanan son of Igdaliah, a man of God. It was next to the meeting room of the Temple officials and just over the apartment of Maaseiah son of Shallum, who was in charge of Temple affairs.

5 Then I set out chalices and pitchers of wine for the Recabites and said, “A toast! Drink up!”

6-7 But they wouldn’t do it. “We don’t drink wine,” they said. “Our ancestor Jonadab son of Recab commanded us, ‘You are not to drink wine, you or your children, ever. Neither shall you build houses or settle down, planting fields and gardens and vineyards. Don’t own property. Live in tents as nomads so that you will live well and prosper in a wandering life.’

They didn´t drink wine in obedience to Jonadab (who lived in Jehu's time). The Lord didn´t ask to his whole people not to drink wine; but this community embraced it as commandment. Did the Lord approve it? Yes:

12-15 Then Jeremiah received this Message from God: “God-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel, wants you to go tell the people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem that I say, ‘Why won’t you learn your lesson and do what I tell you?’ God’s Decree. ‘The commands of Jonadab son of Recab to his sons have been carried out to the letter. He told them not to drink wine, and they haven’t touched a drop to this very day. They honored and obeyed their ancestor’s command. But look at you! I have gone to a lot of trouble to get your attention, and you’ve ignored me. I sent prophet after prophet to you, all of them my servants, to tell you from early morning to late at night to change your life, make a clean break with your evil past and do what is right, to not take up with every Tom, Dick, and Harry of a god that comes down the pike, but settle down and be faithful in this country I gave your ancestors.

The Lord is almost jeleous that this commnity obeyed their ancestor's command while his people don't obey Him. It is a big contrast: if humans can obey another human, why this difficult to obey the Lord?

In face of this:

17 “So here’s what is going to happen. God-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel, says, ‘I will bring calamity down on the heads of the people of Judah and Jerusalem—the very calamity I warned you was coming—because you turned a deaf ear when I spoke, turned your backs when I called.’”

but the Lord will honor that community:

18-19 Then, turning to the Recabite community, Jeremiah said, “And this is what God-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel, says to you: ‘Because you have done what Jonadab your ancestor told you, obeyed his commands and followed through on his instructions, receive this Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel: There will always be a descendant of Jonadab son of Recab at my service! Always!’”

Jeremiah 34: Judah obeys the Lord under pressure, mas not in normal conditions.

 In Jeremiah 34, Judah obeys the Lord under pressure, mas not in normal conditions. According to the law, Hebrews should set free after 6 years of work; however, as they were not obeying the law:


8 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people who were in Jerusalem, to proclaim [c]release to them: 9 that each person was to set his male servant free and each his female servant, a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, so that no one would keep them, his Jewish brother or sister, in bondage.

It seems that the army of Babylon was near Jerusalem (v22).

10 And all the officials and all the people obeyed who had entered into the covenant that each person was to set his male servant free and each his female servant, so that no one would keep them in bondage any longer; they obeyed, and set them free.

This covenant was established in odd way. They cut a calf in two. The people passed through the two halves of the calf saying that they will fulfill it; otherwise, they will pay with their lives. However, they didn't fulfill:

18 I will give the people who have violated My covenant, who have not fulfilled the words of the covenant which they made before Me, when they cut the calf in two and passed between its parts— 19 the officials of Judah and the officials of Jerusalem, the high officials and the priests, and all the people of the land who passed between the parts of the calf—

Why did they violate this covenant? Because they feared more the army of Babylon than the Lord:

22 Behold, I am going to give a command,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will bring them back to this city, and they will fight against it and take it and burn it with fire; and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation without inhabitant.’”

They abandoned the covenant as soon as the army of Babylon withdraw.

Thus, the Lord says:

20 I will hand them over to their enemies and to those who seek their lives. And their dead bodies will be food for the birds of the sky and the animals of the earth. 21 Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials I will also hand over to their enemies and to those who seek their lives, and to the army of the king of Babylon which has withdrawn from you.

Jeremiah 33: promises of restauration and the davidic kingdom in middle of the chaos.

 
In Jeremiah 33, the Lord promises restauration when Jeremiah is still in prison (perhaps in the last year before the destruction of Jerusalem). There is a great contrast between what is happening and the promise of restauration. It is almost impossible to believe in restauration because things are only getting worse and worse.

4-5 “This is what God, the God of Israel, has to say about what’s going on in this city, about the homes of both people and kings that have been demolished, about all the ravages of war and the killing by the Chaldeans, and about the streets littered with the dead bodies of those killed because of my raging anger—about all that’s happened because the evil actions in this city have turned my stomach in disgust.

6-9 “But now take another look. I’m going to give this city a thorough renovation, working a true healing inside and out. I’m going to show them life whole, life brimming with blessings. I’ll restore everything that was lost to Judah and Jerusalem. I’ll build everything back as good as new. I’ll scrub them clean from the dirt they’ve done against me. I’ll forgive everything they’ve done wrong, forgive all their rebellions. And Jerusalem will be a center of joy and praise and glory for all the countries on earth. They’ll get reports on all the good I’m doing for her. They’ll be in awe of the blessings I am pouring on her.

10-11 “Yes, God’s Message: ‘You’re going to look at this place, these empty and desolate towns of Judah and streets of Jerusalem, and say, “A wasteland. Unlivable. Not even a dog could live here.” But the time is coming when you’re going to hear laughter and celebration, marriage festivities, people exclaiming, “Thank God-of-the-Angel-Armies. He’s so good! His love never quits,” as they bring thank offerings into God’s Temple. I’ll restore everything that was lost in this land. I’ll make everything as good as new.’ I, God, say so.


The Lord will restore the Davidic Kingdom:

14-18 “‘Watch for this: The time is coming’—God’s Decree—‘when I will keep the promise I made to the families of Israel and Judah. When that time comes, I will make a fresh and true shoot sprout from the David-Tree. He will run this country honestly and fairly. He will set things right. That’s when Judah will be secure and Jerusalem live in safety. The motto for the city will be, “God Has Set Things Right for Us.” God has made it clear that there will always be a descendant of David ruling the people of Israel and that there will always be Levitical priests on hand to offer burnt offerings, present grain offerings, and carry on the sacrificial worship in my honor.’”

As a Christian, it is easy to think that Jesus, a descendant of David, is ruling his people; but it for me, it is not easy to understand the Levitical priests to offer sacrifices.

Jeremiah 32: Hope beyond Jeremiah's death

In Jeremiah 32, Jeremiah is in prison because the king Zedekiah didn't like his preaching. Around  588 BC, it was very clear that Nebuchadnezzar II would destroy Jerusalem because in Jeremiah's words praying to the Lord:

24 Behold, the assault ramps have reached the city to take it; and the city has been handed over to the Chaldeans who fight against it, because of the sword, the famine, and the plague; and what You have spoken has come to pass; and behold, You see it.

In fact, In 587 BC, Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the Kingdom of Judah, and its capital, Jerusalem. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nebuchadnezzar_II).
The Lord says to Jeremiah to buy a property that his cousin Hanamel (his uncle Shallum’s son) would offer him; and indeed it happened in his prison. Jeremiah knows that he is going to loose money, complaining to the Lord:

25 Yet You have said to me, Lord [f]God, “Buy for yourself the field with money and call in witnesses”—although the city has been handed over to the Chaldeans.’”

The Lord wanted to show through this that he would restore the land to his people.

36 “But there is also this Message from me, the God of Israel, to this city of which you have said, ‘In killing and starvation and disease this city will be delivered up to the king of Babylon’:

37-40 “‘Watch for this! I will collect them from all the countries to which I will have driven them in my anger and rage and indignation. Yes, I’ll bring them all back to this place and let them live here in peace. They will be my people, I will be their God. I’ll make them of one mind and heart, always honoring me, so that they can live good and whole lives, they and their children after them. What’s more, I’ll make a covenant with them that will last forever, a covenant to stick with them no matter what, and work for their good. I’ll fill their hearts with a deep respect for me so they’ll not even think of turning away from me.

41 “‘Oh how I’ll rejoice in them! Oh how I’ll delight in doing good things for them! Heart and soul, I’ll plant them in this country and keep them here!’

We Christians understand that we are the people of the Lord, and the Almighty is our God, thus, we are in this new covenant that will last forever. May the Lord fill our hearts with a deep respect for Him so we'll not even think of turning away from Him.

Jeremiah 31: Restauration and the New Covenant

 
In Jeremiah 31 we read about:

. Israel was mourning, suffering, but the remaining will find joy:

6 The time’s coming when watchmen will call out
    from the hilltops of Ephraim:
‘On your feet! Let’s go to Zion,
    go to meet our God!’”

Ephraim/Israel will go to Zion (the temple?) to meet the Lord. Prophecies are very hard to interpret: were they fulfilled or are they going to be fulfilled? Was this prophecy about Ephraim fulfilled?

    
10-14 “Hear this, nations! God’s Message!
    Broadcast this all over the world!
Tell them, ‘The One who scattered Israel
    will gather them together again.
From now on he’ll keep a careful eye on them,
    like a shepherd with his flock.’
I, God, will pay a stiff ransom price for Jacob;
    I’ll free him from the grip of the Babylonian bully.
The people will climb up Zion’s slopes shouting with joy,
    their faces beaming because of God’s bounty—
Grain and wine and oil,
    flocks of sheep, herds of cattle.
Their lives will be like a well-watered garden,
    never again left to dry up.
Young women will dance and be happy,
    young men and old men will join in.
I’ll convert their weeping into laughter,
    lavishing comfort, invading their grief with joy.
I’ll make sure that their priests get three square meals a day
    and that my people have more than enough.’” God’s Decree.

Judah was set free from the Babylonian captivity indeed and Jeremiah didn't see it.

    
. a new covenant will be established:

31-32 “That’s right. The time is coming when I will make a brand-new covenant with Israel and Judah. It won’t be a repeat of the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took their hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt. They broke that covenant even though I did my part as their Master.” God’s Decree.

33-34 “This is the brand-new covenant that I will make with Israel when the time comes. I will put my law within them—write it on their hearts!—and be their God. And they will be my people. They will no longer go around setting up schools to teach each other about God. They’ll know me firsthand, the dull and the bright, the smart and the slow. I’ll wipe the slate clean for each of them. I’ll forget they ever sinned!” God’s Decree.


Christians understand that the new covenant happens through Jesus, the Messiah. Here, we read that the Lord will write the law, His will, in our hearts so that we walk in His ways. This is true thanks to the Holy Spirit living in us.

Jeremiah 30: Restauration with the King

 In Jeremiah 30 we read:

1-2 This is the Message Jeremiah received from God: “God’s Message, the God of Israel: ‘Write everything I tell you in a book.

3 “‘Look. The time is coming when I will turn everything around for my people, both Israel and Judah. I, God, say so. I’ll bring them back to the land I gave their ancestors, and they’ll take up ownership again.’”

The Lord says that He will bring his people (Israel and Judah) back to the Promised Land.

8 ‘It shall come about on that day,’ declares the Lord of armies, ‘that I will break his yoke from [b]their necks and will tear to pieces [c]their restraints; and strangers will no longer make [d]them their slaves. 9 But they shall serve the Lord their God and David their king, whom I will raise up for them.

Was this prophecy fulfilled in Esdras or Neheemiah ages? Although Judah (and Israel) returned to the Promised Land, they were not free. Did they serve the Lord and David their king? No. It will be fulfilled when Jesus return.

The Lord promises restoration with the King:

21 [m]Their leader shall be one of them,
And [n]their ruler will come out from [o]their midst;
And I will bring him near and he shall approach Me;
For [p]who would dare to risk his life to approach Me?’ declares the Lord.
22 ‘You shall be My people,
And I will be your God.’”

Jesus is the One who dared to risk his life to approach the Lord.

Jeremiah 29: Bless Babylon

in chapter 29, Jews were taken to Babylon. Jeremiah sent them a letter saying:

 This is the Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies, Israel’s God, to all the exiles I’ve taken from Jerusalem to Babylon:

5 “Build houses and make yourselves at home.

“Put in gardens and eat what grows in that country.

6 “Marry and have children. Encourage your children to marry and have children so that you’ll thrive in that country and not waste away.

7 “Make yourselves at home there and work for the country’s welfare.

“Pray for Babylon’s well-being. If things go well for Babylon, things will go well for you.”

8-9 Yes. Believe it or not, this is the Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies, Israel’s God: “Don’t let all those so-called preachers and know-it-alls who are all over the place there take you in with their lies. Don’t pay any attention to the fantasies they keep coming up with to please you. They’re a bunch of liars preaching lies—and claiming I sent them! I never sent them, believe me.” God’s Decree!

Babylon was an evil country, however, the Lord's message to his people was to make Babylon their new home and pray for Babylon’s well-being. That is the message to us today in respect to our evil country. But, Babylon was not the end:

10-11 This is God’s Word on the subject: “As soon as Babylon’s seventy years are up and not a day before, I’ll show up and take care of you as I promised and bring you back home. I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.

12 “When you call on me, when you come and pray to me, I’ll listen.

13-14 “When you come looking for me, you’ll find me. “Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed.” God’s Decree. “I’ll turn things around for you. I’ll bring you back from all the countries into which I drove you”—God’s Decree—“bring you home to the place from which I sent you off into exile. You can count on it.

I am a pilgrim in Brazil. What are my possessions here? My real country is in New Jerusalem.

Interestingly, Shemaiah sent a message to the leaders, specailly the priest, saying in name of the Lord:

26 “The Lord has made you priest instead of Jehoiada the priest, to be the overseer of the house of the Lord for every insane person who prophesies, to put him in the stocks and in the iron collar. 27 So now, why have you not rebuked Jeremiah of Anathoth who prophesies to you, 28 seeing that he has sent word to us in Babylon, saying, ‘[l]The exile will be long; build houses and live in them, and plant gardens and eat their [m]produce’?”’”

Shemaiah spoke in the name of the Lord denying that the Jewish people should make Babylon their new home. It was very tempting to believe in Shemaiah, but the Lord told Jeremiah:

30-32 “Send this Message to the exiles. Tell them what God says about Shemaiah the Nehelamite: Shemaiah is preaching lies to you. I didn’t send him. He is seducing you into believing lies. So this is God’s verdict: I will punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his whole family. He’s going to end up with nothing and no one. No one from his family will be around to see any of the good that I am going to do for my people because he has preached rebellion against me.” God’s Decree.

Jeremiah 28: Hananias contradicts Jeremiah

 Chapter 28 continues 27. In chapter 27, Jeremiah preached with a yoke in his neck that countries would be subjugated by the king of Babylon. In chapter 28, Hananiah - son of Azzur, a prophet from Gibeon - said, in the temple of the Lord:

2-4 “This Message is straight from God-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel: ‘I will most certainly break the yoke of the king of Babylon. Before two years are out I’ll have all the furnishings of God’s Temple back here, all the things that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon plundered and hauled off to Babylon. I’ll also bring back Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim king of Judah and all the exiles who were taken off to Babylon.’ God’s Decree. ‘Yes, I will break the king of Babylon’s yoke. You’ll no longer be in harness to him.’”

Jeremiah didn't believe in this message because it contradicted what he had already spoken. Jeremiah replied:

5-9 ... The old prophets, the ones before our time, preached judgment against many countries and kingdoms, warning of war and disaster and plague. So any prophet who preaches that everything is just fine and there’s nothing to worry about stands out like a sore thumb. We’ll wait and see. If it happens, it happens—and then we’ll know that God sent him.”

Hananiah had no fear to the Lord, then:

10-11 At that, Hananiah grabbed the yoke from Jeremiah’s shoulders and smashed it. And then he addressed the people: “This is God’s Message: In just this way I will smash the yoke of the king of Babylon and get him off the neck of all the nations—and within two years.”

12-14 Later, sometime after Hananiah had smashed the yoke from off his shoulders, Jeremiah received this Message from God: “Go back to Hananiah and tell him, ‘This is God’s Message: You smashed the wooden yoke-bars; now you’ve got iron yoke-bars. This is a Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies, Israel’s own God: I’ve put an iron yoke on all these nations. They’re harnessed to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. They’ll do just what he tells them. Why, I’m even putting him in charge of the wild animals.’”

15-16 So prophet Jeremiah told prophet Hananiah, “Hold it, Hananiah! God never sent you. You’ve talked the whole country into believing a pack of lies! And so God says, ‘You claim to be sent? I’ll send you all right—right off the face of the earth! Before the year is out, you’ll be dead because you instigated sedition against God.’”

17 Prophet Hananiah died that very year, in the seventh month.

I wonder why Hananiah confronted Jeremiah: did he believe in his false message? did he wish to be a prophet as his father was? did he want fame? Whatever was his motives, his end was tragic.

Jeremiah 27: Jeremy in the middle of an assembly of nations

 In Jeremiah 27 we read:

 1-4 Early in the reign of Zedekiah son of Josiah king of Judah, Jeremiah received this Message from God: “Make a harness and a yoke and then harness yourself up. Send a message to the kings of Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, and Sidon. Send it through their ambassadors who have come to Jerusalem to see Zedekiah king of Judah. Give them this charge to take back to their masters: ‘This is a Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel. Tell your masters:

5-8 “‘I’m the one who made the earth, man and woman, and all the animals in the world. I did it on my own without asking anyone’s help and I hand it out to whomever I will. Here and now I give all these lands over to my servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. I have made even the wild animals subject to him. All nations will be under him, then his son, and then his grandson. Then his country’s time will be up and the tables will be turned: Babylon will be the underdog servant. But until then, any nation or kingdom that won’t submit to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon must take the yoke of the king of Babylon and harness up. I’ll punish that nation with war and starvation and disease until I’ve got them where I want them.

The ambassadors of Edom, Moab and other nations were gathered in Jerusalem. I suppose that they were discussing how to fight against Babylon. Imagine Jeremiah entering in the assembly with a yoke in his shoulders saying that they should surrender or die, claiming that the Lord of the Universe is supporting Babylon.

9-11 “‘So don’t for a minute listen to all your prophets and spiritualists and fortunetellers, who claim to know the future and who tell you not to give in to the king of Babylon. They’re handing you a line of lies, barefaced lies, that will end up putting you in exile far from home. I myself will drive you out of your lands, and that’ll be the end of you. But the nation that accepts the yoke of the king of Babylon and does what he says, I’ll let that nation stay right where it is, minding its own business.’”

The false prophets along with spiritualists (perhaps aligned with fortunetellers from other countries) were saying that they should not give in. It is common to think that the majority is right, but in this case not.

Jeremiah 26: Jeremiah was almost stoned to death.

 In Jeremiah 26, Jeremiah preaches:

4-6 “Say to them, ‘This is God’s Message: If you refuse to listen to me and live by my teaching that I’ve revealed so plainly to you, and if you continue to refuse to listen to my servants the prophets that I tirelessly keep on sending to you—but you’ve never listened! Why would you start now?—then I’ll make this Temple a pile of ruins like Shiloh, and I’ll make this city nothing but a bad joke worldwide.’”

The reaction was extremely negative:

-9 Everybody there—priests, prophets, and people—heard Jeremiah preaching this Message in the Temple of God. When Jeremiah had finished his sermon, saying everything God had commanded him to say, the priests and prophets and people all grabbed him, yelling, “Death! You’re going to die for this! How dare you preach—and using God’s name!—saying that this Temple will become a heap of rubble like Shiloh and this city be wiped out without a soul left in it!”

All the people mobbed Jeremiah right in the Temple itself.

Jeremiah was confident that his message was from the Lord, so he says:

12-13 Jeremiah spoke next, publicly addressing the officials before the crowd: “God sent me to preach against both this Temple and city everything that’s been reported to you. So do something about it! Change the way you’re living, change your behavior. Listen obediently to the Message of your God. Maybe God will reconsider the disaster he has threatened.

14-15 “As for me, I’m at your mercy—do whatever you think is best. But take warning: If you kill me, you’re killing an innocent man, and you and the city and the people in it will be liable. I didn’t say any of this on my own. God sent me and told me what to say. You’ve been listening to God speak, not Jeremiah.”

Some of the respected leaders thought better:

17-18 Then some of the respected leaders stood up and addressed the crowd: “In the reign of Hezekiah king of Judah, Micah of Moresheth preached to the people of Judah this sermon: This is God-of-the-Angel-Armies’ Message for you:

“‘Because of people like you,
    Zion will be turned back into farmland,
Jerusalem end up as a pile of rubble,
    and instead of the Temple on the mountain,
    a few scraggly scrub pines.’

19 “Did King Hezekiah or anyone else in Judah kill Micah of Moresheth because of that sermon? Didn’t Hezekiah honor him and pray for mercy from God? And then didn’t God call off the disaster he had threatened?

“Friends, we’re at the brink of bringing a terrible calamity upon ourselves.”

After this reflection, Jeremiah was not killed:

24 But in Jeremiah’s case, Ahikam son of Shaphan stepped forward and took his side, preventing the mob from lynching him.)

Jeremiah 25: Does the king of Babylon serve the Lord?

 The chapters of Jeremiah are not organized in a chronological way. This chapter begins with:

1 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah (that was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon),

Thus, as he reigned in 609–598 BC (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jehoiakim), it must have been written in 605 BC.

2 Jeremiah the prophet delivered the Message to all the people of Judah and citizens of Jerusalem:

3 From the thirteenth year of Josiah son of Amon king of Judah right up to the present day—twenty-three years it’s been!—God’s Word has come to me, and from early each morning to late every night I’ve passed it on to you. And you haven’t listened to a word of it!

4-6 Not only that but God also sent a steady stream of prophets to you who were just as persistent as me, and you never listened. They told you, “Turn back—right now, each one of you!—from your evil way of life and bad behavior, and live in the land God gave you and your ancestors, the land he intended to give you forever. Don’t follow the god-fads of the day, taking up and worshiping these no-gods. Don’t make me angry with your god-businesses, making and selling gods—a dangerous business!

Jeremiah began to preach 23 years before, that is -605-23 BC = -628 BC. He preached to people to repent. Even today, people follow the god-fads of the day and worshiping these no-gods (specially using social media, internet, etc.), but Jeremiah warned about the bad consequences of it.

7 “You refused to listen to any of this, and now I am really angry. These god-making businesses of yours are your doom.”

8-11 The verdict of God-of-the-Angel-Armies on all this: “Because you have refused to listen to what I’ve said, I’m stepping in. I’m sending for the armies out of the north headed by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, my servant in this, and I’m setting them on this land and people and even the surrounding countries. I’m devoting the whole works to total destruction—a horror to top all the horrors in history. And I’ll banish every sound of joy—singing, laughter, marriage festivities, genial workmen, candlelit suppers. The whole landscape will be one vast wasteland. These countries will be in subjection to the king of Babylon for seventy years.

Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon is called servant of the Lord, but does he really worship the Lord? No, even though he is evil, he will serve the Lord.

12-14 “Once the seventy years is up, I’ll punish the king of Babylon and the whole nation of Babylon for their sin. Then they’ll be the wasteland. Everything that I said I’d do to that country, I’ll do—everything that’s written in this book, everything Jeremiah preached against all the godless nations. Many nations and great kings will make slaves of the Babylonians, paying them back for everything they’ve done to others. They won’t get by with anything.” God’s Decree.

The king of Babylon will be punished by the Lord. The Lord is righteous and in his sovereignty, even the evil serves Him.

Jeremiah 24: two destines.

 Jeremiah 24 was written when Zedekiah was king:

1  After Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had taken into exile Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and the officials of Judah with the craftsmen and metalworkers from Jerusalem and had brought them to Babylon, the Lord showed me: behold, two baskets of figs placed before the temple of the Lord.

We read about good figs and bad figs. The good figs are those that surrender to the Babylonians and go to Babylon. The bad figs are those that decide to stay or flee to Egypt. We read about the good figs:

 7 I will also give them a heart to know Me, for I am the Lord; and they will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me wholeheartedly.

 We read about the bad figs:

 9 I will make them an object of terror and an evil for all the kingdoms of the earth, as a disgrace and a proverb, a taunt and a curse in all the places where I will scatter them. 10 And I will send the sword, the famine, and the plague upon them until they are eliminated from the land which I gave to them and their forefathers.

Interestingly, king Zedekiah is seen as a bad fig:

8 ‘But like the bad figs which cannot be eaten due to rottenness,’ indeed, this is what the Lord says, ‘so will I give up Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials, and the remnant of Jerusalem who remain in this land, and the ones who live in the land of Egypt.

while the book of Jeremiah finishes with:
Jeremiah 52: 33 So Jehoiachin put off his prison garments. And every day of his life he dined regularly at the king's table, 34 and for his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king, according to his daily needs, until the day of his death, as long as he lived.
showing that Jehoiachin found favor in the eyes of the Lord.

Jeremias 23: against the false prophets

 Jeremias 23: against  the false prophets

In Jeremiah 23 we read:

1 “Woe to the shepherds who are causing the sheep of My pasture to perish and are scattering them!” declares the Lord. 2 Therefore this is what the Lord, the God of Israel says concerning the shepherds who are [a]tending My people: “You have scattered My flock and driven them away, and have not been concerned about them; behold, I am going to call you to account for the evil of your deeds,” declares the Lord.

The Lord is against the leaders who are not taking care of His people.

3 “Then I Myself will gather the remnant of My flock out of all the countries where I have driven them, and bring them back to their pasture, and they will be fruitful and multiply. 4 I will also raise up shepherds over them and they will [b]tend them; and they will not be afraid any longer, nor be terrified, nor will any be missing,” declares the Lord.

The Lord will gather his people and raise up shepherds that really care.

5 “Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord,
“When I will raise up for David a righteous [c]Branch;
And He will reign as king and [d]act wisely
And do justice and righteousness in the land.
6 In His days Judah will be saved,
And Israel will live securely;
And this is His name by which He will be called,
‘The Lord Our Righteousness.’

The Lord will raise up the Messiah that will reign wisely and do justice.

10 For the land is full of adulterers;
For the land mourns because of the curse.
The pastures of the wilderness have dried up.
Their course is evil
And their might is not right.
11 “For both prophet and priest are defiled;
Even in My house I have found their wickedness,” declares the Lord.
12 “Therefore their way will be like slippery paths to them,
They will be driven away into the gloom and fall down in it;
For I will bring disaster upon them,
The year of their punishment,” declares the Lord.

Prophet and priest should guide the people to the Lord, but they are defiled, wick. The Lord condemns them.

14 Also among the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen a horrible thing:
The committing of adultery and walking in deceit;
And they strengthen the hands of evildoers,
So that no one has turned back from his wickedness.
All of them have become to Me like Sodom,
And her inhabitants like Gomorrah.

16-17 A Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies:

“Don’t listen to the sermons of the prophets.
    It’s all hot air. Lies, lies, and more lies.
They make it all up.
    Not a word they speak comes from me.
They preach their ‘Everything Will Turn Out Fine’ sermon
    to congregations with no taste for God,
Their ‘Nothing Bad Will Ever Happen to You’ sermon
    to people who are set in their own ways.

We must discern who is preaching the Lord's word and who is lieing.

25-27 “I know what they’re saying, all these prophets who preach lies using me as their text, saying ‘I had this dream! I had this dream!’ How long do I have to put up with this? Do these prophets give two cents about me as they preach their lies and spew out their grandiose delusions? They swap dreams with one another, feed on each other’s delusive dreams, trying to distract my people from me just as their ancestors were distracted by the no-god Baal.
30-31 “I’ve had it with the ‘prophets’ who get all their sermons secondhand from each other. Yes, I’ve had it with them. They make up stuff and then pretend it’s a real sermon.

32 “Oh yes, I’ve had it with the prophets who preach the lies they dream up, spreading them all over the country, ruining the lives of my people with their cheap and reckless lies.

“I never sent these prophets, never authorized a single one of them. They do nothing for this people—nothing!” God’s Decree.

35-36 “Instead of claiming to know what God says, ask questions of one another, such as ‘How do we understand God in this?’ But don’t go around pretending to know it all, saying ‘God told me this . . . God told me that. . . . ’ I don’t want to hear it anymore. Only the person I authorize speaks for me. Otherwise, my Message gets twisted, the Message of the living God-of-the-Angel-Armies.

37-38 “You can ask the prophets, ‘How did God answer you? What did he tell you?’ But don’t pretend that you know all the answers yourselves and talk like you know it all. I’m telling you: Quit the ‘God told me this . . . God told me that . . . ’ kind of talk.


The false prophet (of false teacher) is eager to show that he received a special revelation from the Lord ( I had a dream! God told me this...). As the false teacher wants to be well seen by people, he says whatever they want to listen. They ruin lives with their lies.

Jeremiah 22: a counter example - Jehoiakim

 In Jeremiah 22, Jeremiah says hard words to a king. At first, it seems to continue Jeremiah 21; in this case, the king would be Zedekiah, but in verse 18 we read:

18 Therefore this is what the Lord says regarding Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah:

King Jehoiakim lived before Zedekiah, thus chapter 22 must be written before chapter 21.
This chapter shows how king Jehoiakim didn't fear the Lord. Judah was in middle of two powerful countries: Babylon and Egypt. Jehoiakim succeeded his brother Jehoahaz. Both were sons of Josiah, a good king. Jehoahaz was imprisioned by Necho II from Egypt and placed Jehoiakim as king of Judah. We read:

NASB 10 Do not weep for the dead or mourn for him,
But weep deeply for the one who goes away;
For he will never return
Or see his native land.

or:

MSG 10 Don’t weep over dead King Josiah.
    Don’t waste your tears.
Weep for his exiled son:
    He’s gone for good.
    He’ll never see home again.
11-12 For this is God’s Word on Shallum son of Josiah, who succeeded his father as king of Judah: “He’s gone from here, gone for good. He’ll die in the place they’ve taken him to. He’ll never see home again.”


So, Jeremiah must have written this before Jehoahaz/Shallum death in Egypt (in fact, he never returned to Judah), when his brother Jehoiakim was in charge of Judah. Jeremiah writes:

13-17 “Doom to him who builds palaces but bullies people,
    who makes a fine house but destroys lives,
Who cheats his workers
    and won’t pay them for their work,
Who says, ‘I’ll build me an elaborate mansion
    with spacious rooms and fancy windows.
I’ll bring in rare and expensive woods
    and the latest in interior decor.’
So, that makes you a king—
    living in a fancy palace?
Your father got along just fine, didn’t he?
    He did what was right and treated people fairly,
And things went well with him.
    He stuck up for the down-and-out,
And things went well for Judah.
    Isn’t this what it means to know me?”
        God’s Decree!
“But you’re blind and brainless.
    All you think about is yourself,
Taking advantage of the weak,
    bulldozing your way, bullying victims.”


Josiah did what was right and treated people fairly and the Lord rewarded him as things went well with him. However, Jehoiakim was blind and brainless thinking in himself, taking advantage of the weak.

    
18-19 This is God’s epitaph on Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah:
    “Doom to this man!
Nobody will shed tears over him,
    ‘Poor, poor brother!’
Nobody will shed tears over him,
    ‘Poor, poor master!’
They’ll give him a donkey’s funeral,
    drag him out of the city and dump him.

The life of Jehoiakim is a warning: "repent and live!".

Jeremiah 21: Pashur asks Jeremiah to pray for God intervention.

In Jeremiah 21 we read:

 1-2 God’s Message to Jeremiah when King Zedekiah sent Pashur son of Malkijah and the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah to him with this request: “Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, has waged war against us. Pray to God for us. Ask him for help. Maybe God will intervene with one of his famous miracles and make him leave.”

Pashur was the one who whipped and incarcerated Jeremiah. Now, the king Zedekiah sent him with another priest to ask Jeremiah to pray for salvation from the arm of king Nebuchadnezzar. Perhaps, a more normal Christian would pray for this but:

3-7 But Jeremiah said, “Tell Zedekiah: ‘This is the God of Israel’s Message to you: You can say good-bye to your army, watch morale and weapons flushed down the drain. I’m going to personally lead the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans, against whom you’re fighting so hard, right into the city itself. I’m joining their side and fighting against you, fighting all-out, holding nothing back. And in fierce anger. I’m prepared to wipe out the population of this city, people and animals alike, in a raging epidemic. And then I will personally deliver Zedekiah king of Judah, his princes, and any survivors left in the city who haven’t died from disease, been killed, or starved. I’ll deliver them to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon—yes, hand them over to their enemies, who have come to kill them. He’ll kill them ruthlessly, showing no mercy.’

The Lord wants that the people understand that they must surrender to the Chaldeans, otherwise they will die:

8-10 “And then tell the people at large, ‘God’s Message to you is this: Listen carefully. I’m giving you a choice: life or death. Whoever stays in this city will die—either in battle or by starvation or disease. But whoever goes out and surrenders to the Chaldeans who have surrounded the city will live. You’ll lose everything—but not your life. I’m determined to see this city destroyed. I’m that angry with this place! God’s Decree. I’m going to give it to the king of Babylon, and he’s going to burn it to the ground.’
 
The Lord wants justice from the king:

11-14 “To the royal house of Judah, listen to God’s Message!
    House of David, listen—God’s Message to you:
‘Start each day by dealing with justice.
    Rescue victims from their exploiters.
Prevent fire—the fire of my anger—
    for once it starts, it can’t be put out.

Jeremiah 20: The prophet praises the Lord after being persecuted

 
Jeremiah 20 begins with him suffering for preaching doom:

1-5 The priest Pashur son of Immer was the senior priest in God’s Temple. He heard Jeremiah preach this sermon. He whipped Jeremiah the prophet and put him in the stocks at the Upper Benjamin Gate of God’s Temple. The next day Pashur came and let him go. Jeremiah told him, “God has a new name for you: not Pashur but Danger-Everywhere, because God says, ‘You’re a danger to yourself and everyone around you. All your friends are going to get killed in battle while you stand there and watch.

Jeremiah prays to the Lord:

7-10 You pushed me into this, God, and I let you do it.
    You were too much for me.
And now I’m a public joke.
    They all poke fun at me.
Every time I open my mouth
    I’m shouting, “Murder!” or “Rape!”
And all I get for my God-warnings
    are insults and contempt.
But if I say, “Forget it!
    No more God-Messages from me!”
The words are fire in my belly,
    a burning in my bones.
I’m worn out trying to hold it in.
    I can’t do it any longer!
Then I hear whispering behind my back:
    “There goes old ‘Danger-Everywhere.’ Shut him up! Report him!”
Old friends watch, hoping I’ll fall flat on my face:
    “One misstep and we’ll have him. We’ll get rid of him for good!”

However, Jeremiah is confidant that the Lord is by his side:

11 But God, a most fierce warrior, is at my side.
    Those who are after me will be sent sprawling—
Slapstick buffoons falling all over themselves,
    a spectacle of humiliation no one will ever forget.

This confidence, makes him praise the Lord:

13 Sing to God! All praise to God!
    He saves the weak from the grip of the wicked.
   

Jeremiah 19: Doom to Valley of Ben-hinnom

 In Jeremiah 19 we read:

1-2 God said to me, “Go, buy a clay pot. Then get a few leaders from the people and a few of the leading priests and go out to the Valley of Ben-hinnom, just outside the Potsherd Gate, and preach there what I tell you.
3-5 “Say, ‘Listen to God’s Word, you kings of Judah and people of Jerusalem! This is the Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel. I’m about to bring doom crashing down on this place. Oh, and will ears ever ring! Doom—because they’ve walked off and left me, and made this place strange by worshiping strange gods, gods never heard of by them, their parents, or the old kings of Judah. Doom—because they have massacred innocent people. Doom—because they’ve built altars to that no-god Baal, and burned their own children alive in the fire as offerings to Baal, an atrocity I never ordered, never so much as hinted at!

6-9 “‘And so it’s payday, and soon’—God’s Decree!—‘this place will no longer be known as Topheth or Valley of Ben-hinnom, but Massacre Meadows. I’m canceling all the plans Judah and Jerusalem had for this place, and I’ll have them killed by their enemies. I’ll stack their dead bodies to be eaten by carrion crows and wild dogs. I’ll turn this city into such a museum of atrocities that anyone coming near will be shocked speechless by the savage brutality. The people will turn into cannibals. Dehumanized by the pressure of the enemy siege, they’ll eat their own children! Yes, they’ll eat one another, family and friends alike.’


The Lord declares doom to the Valley of Ben-Hinnom where strangers gods were worshiped. Children were burned in fire alive as offerings to Baal. The Lord is holy and He wants a holy people. He is punishing the atrocities made on that place.