JEREMIAH
Author:
Jeremiah was a priest from the village of Anathoth. He began his public ministry at the age of 20, during the 13th year of the reign of King Josiah (626 BC), and his service continued for more than 40 years. By nature he was gentle and had a tender heart, but he was very courageous when God asked him to preach harsh messages and warn of coming judgment on the people. So, though loved by God, he became unpopular with men. The whole nation rejected both him and God’s message through him. It is no wonder that he is known as “the weeping prophet”. Sometimes he found his responsibility as God’s prophet very hard to bear, and longed to escape from it (Jer 20:9). But in the face of much persecution and sorrow he continued in this ministry, and by the grace of God stood as an “iron pillar” and like “bronze walls” (Jer 1:18).
Date:
Sometime about 580 BC.
Themes:
In the year 586 before Christ the armies of Babylon came, captured Jerusalem, and took many of its people into exile in Babylon. Up to then Jeremiah, with compassion and tears, had warned the people and pled with them to turn to God in repentance. When they refused to listen, he made God’s message known to them: They would be in Babylonia for seventy years and then return to Jerusalem and Judah. He also revealed to them the new covenant that God would make with Israel, and the just judgments that would fall on Babylon and certain other nations. There are many lessons in this book for God’s servants today. In many ways Jeremiah was an ideal person to show what a true servant of God should be like. The following verses speak of the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ: Jer 23:5; 30:4-11; 31:31-34; 33:15-18.
Contents:
God calls Jeremiah to his work 1:4-19
Israel’s sin and ingratitude 2:1—3:5
Israel’s unfaithfulness, God’s continuing love 3:6—4:4
Prophecy of coming destruction from Babylon 4:4—6:30
Judah’s dishonesty and corruption 5:1-13
Judah’s false religion 7:1-31
Punishment for false religion 7:32—8:17
Jeremiah’s sorrow 8:18—9:2
God’s sorrow 9:3-26
The true God compared with the people’s idols 10:1-16
The coming destruction and Jeremiah’s prayer 10:17-25
Judah had broken God’s covenant 11:1-17
Sinners plot to murder Jeremiah 11:18-23
Jeremiah’s complaint and God’s answer 12:1-17
The sign of the linen belt 13:1-11
Warning about captivity 13:15-27
The drought and God’s message 14:1—15:14
Jeremiah’s prayer and God’s promise 15:15-21
God’s message to the unmarried prophet 16:1—17:18
Warning regarding the Sabbath 17:19-27
God’s message at the potter’s house 18:1—19:15
God the potter 18:5-6
The temple officer has Jeremiah beaten 20:1-6
Jeremiah’s complaint 20:7-18
King Zedekiah’s request, God’s reply 21:1-14
Evil kings condemned 22:1-30
Evil shepherds and the righteous Branch 23:1-8
Deceitful prophets 23:9-40
Two baskets of figs 24:1-10
Prophecy concerning the 70 years of exile 25:1-14
The cup of God’s anger 25:15-38
Priests and prophets want to kill Jeremiah 26:1-24
Object lesson with a yoke: Judah to serve Babylon 27:1-22
A false prophet named Hananiah 28:1-17
Jeremiah’s letter to the Jews in Babylon 29:1-23
Judgments against the false prophet Shemaiah 29:24-32
God promises to bring Israel back from exile 30:1—31:30
The New Covenant 31:31-40
Jeremiah buys a field; God’s message about it 32:1-44
Future blessing for Israel 33:1-26
God warns King Zedekiah 34:1-7
Slaves and God’s message 34:8-22
The obedient Rechabites, disobedient Judah 35:1-19
King Jehoiakim burns Jeremiah’s writings 36:1-32
Jeremiah in prison 37:1-21
Jeremiah in a well 38:1-13
Zedekiah removes Jeremiah from the well
and questions him 38:14-28
Jerusalem is captured 39:1-18
Jeremiah is freed 40:1-6
Governor Gedaliah is killed 40:7—41:3
Wicked Ishmael 41:4-15
The Jews take Jeremiah and go to Egypt 41:16—43:13
Warnings to the Jews in Egypt 44:1-30
God’s message to Baruch 45:1-5
Prophecies about the nations 46:1—51:64
About Egypt 46:1-28
About Philistia 47:1-7
About Moab 48:1-47
About the Ammonites 49:1-6
About Edom 49:7-22
About Damascus 49:23-27
About Kedar and Hazor 49:28-33
About Elam 49:34-39
About Babylon 50:1—51:64
The fall of Jerusalem again recorded 52:1-34
Judah’s fall and captivity 52:1-30
Jehoiachin’s liberation in Babylon 52:31-34