Feeling the Heat Jeremiah complains to the Lord how the wicked prosper, yet he suffers for obeying God. The Lord answers him with less than encouraging words: “If you have raced with men on foot    and they have worn you out,    how can you compete with horses?If you stumble in safe country,    how will you manage in the thickets by the Jordan? Your relatives, members of your own family—    even they have betrayed you;    they have raised a loud cry against you.Do not trust them,    though they speak well of you. Jeremiah 12:5-6 If Jeremiah thought life had been hard so far, it was only going to get harder […]

Good and Bad From the time I brought your ancestors up from Egypt until today, I warned them again and again, saying, “Obey me.” But they did not listen or pay attention; instead, they followed the stubbornness of their evil hearts. So I brought on them all the curses of the covenant I had commanded them to follow but that they did not keep. … Therefore this is what the Lord says: ‘I will bring on them a disaster they cannot escape. Although they cry out to me, I will not listen to them. Jeremiah 11:7-8, 11 I’ve been mentioning little-used Hebrew words in my recent posts. Today I’m going to […]

No Sense There’s a word repeated three times in this chapter that rarely occurs elsewhere in the Bible: “senseless” (NIV) or “stupid” (ESV). (See Jeremiah 10:8, 14, 21) This Hebrew verb (בער) can be translated in its noun form as cattle or livestock (ex: Number 20:4). I interpret this to mean that it describes how these animals act. “You’re acting like a dumb animal!” doesn’t sound like a compliment. Jeremiah compares idols to “a scarecrow in a cucumber patch” (Jeremiah 10:5). They can’t walk or talk or do anything. Is that worth dedicating one’s allegiance? Wouldn’t it make more sense […]

Refinery Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty says:“See, I will refine and test them,    for what else can I do    because of the sin of my people? Jeremiah 9:7 The words “refine” (tzaraf) and “test” (bachan) are metallurgy terms. They are each used a couple dozen times. Another example of them being paired together: For you, God, tested [bachan] us;    you refined [tzaraf] us like silver. Psalm 66:10 Refining ore involves melting it down. The impurities are burned off. Rock or other substance is separated from it. Then its quality is tested. There are other words translated “test” (nisa, like when God tested Abraham in Genesis 22) […]

Leftovers There’s one word that caught my attention in the Hebrew in this week. Wherever I banish them, all the survivors of this evil nation will prefer death to life, declares the Lord Almighty. Jeremiah 8:3 I want to focus on the word translated “survivors”. Strangely, it’s two words in Hebrew which could be translated “the remnant [that] is remaining”. They are different forms of the same word, which feels redundant. The Hebrew word שְּׁאֵרִית֙ (she’arit; noun form) means that which remains or is left (over). The same root word is used in Isaiah 7:3 for the name of Isaiah’s son, Shear-Jashub, which means, […]

I decided to focus on a single verse this week: This is what the Lord says: “Stand at the crossroads and look;    ask for the ancient paths,ask where the good way is, and walk in it,    and you will find rest for your souls.    But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’ Jeremiah 6:19 Analyzing the Hebrew, there are two “pathy” words present: דֶּ֫רֶךְ (derek, crossroads and way) and נְתִיבָה (nitivah, path). They seem to be synonyms. The former is used over 700 times while the latter is only used a couple dozen times. They can refer to a literal road or path or a metaphorical […]

The pending judgement still looms large as Jeremiah continues. Jeremiah 5:1 hints back to Abraham and Lot in Genesis 18:23-33. Abraham asks if God would destroy the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah if there were some number of righteous people found within them (talking the Lord down to ten in good Middle Eastern bargaining fashion). This feels similar. The word rendered “honesty” or “truth” here is אֱמוּנָ֑ה (emunah) in Hebrew, but typically is translated “faith/faithfulness”. The Hebrew mindset doesn’t separate thoughts/beliefs (faith) from actions (faithfulness). The Lord is searching for at least one person in Jerusalem who is faithful, […]

In the previous chapter, God called his people to repentance. This chapter confronts them with the consequences of continuing to turn away from him. Verses 23-26 have a rhythmic structure “I looked…and behold!…” repeated four times. They hint back at Genesis 1, unmaking creation. Describing the earth as “formless and empty” in verse 23 is the same phrase as Genesis 1:2. There was a lack of light (Genesis 1:3). Birds are fleeing in verse 25 (Genesis 1:20-21). The term “fruitful land” (v. 26) is a different word than what is used in Genesis 1. However, you may still find it […]

The Lord continues in this chapter to describe how his people have been unfaithful to him, comparing them to a prostitute going after other lovers (other gods), which is reminiscent of the book of Hosea, where God commands the prophet to marry a prostitute as a demonstration. In both cases, while God is heartbroken by his bride’s unfaithfulness, he nevertheless calls them back to repentance. Think about it: he wants them back! Despite their betrayal, he continues to give them a chance to turn back to him until the very end. The Hebrew is שׁ֣וּבוּ (shuvu – a plural imperative, […]