Chapter 154 of 379

Annotations for Jeremiah

The demise of the Assyrian Empire was a defining moment for the life of Judah at the end of the seventh century BC. It created a kind of power vacuum that enabled Judah to assert a degree of independence. In addition, Manasseh’s extra-long reign in Judah, longer than any other king of the Davidic line, including David himself, finally came to an end in 642 BC. He had been a vassal of the Assyrian Empire and is evaluated negatively by the prophets and historians of the Bible for his influence in favor of pagan religious practices.

Manasseh was succeeded by his son Amon, who ruled only two years. It was King Josiah (640–609 BC) who was able to take advantage of this international state of affairs. Assyria was on the decline and Babylon had not yet asserted its power in the region. Thus, Josiah was able to recover political power for Judah as well as institute important religious reforms. For almost three decades Judah enjoyed a time of progress and hope. During this time, however, Babylonia started filling the vacuum left by Assyria. In 626/625 BC, Nabopolassar defeated the Assyrian army, and he founded a new dynasty in Babylon that has become known as the Neo-Babylonian Empire. This new empire lasted until 539 BC, when Babylon surrendered to the power of the Persians.

During the reign of Nabopolassar (625–605 BC), the situation in Judah remains relatively stable. Josiah leads a religious reform movement, no doubt prompted by the finding of the Book of the Law in an abandoned corner of the temple, or perhaps the scroll was part of the foundation deposit that was typically searched out during the temple restoration process. This is the approximate time when we can suppose that Jeremiah begins his preaching.

Beginning in 612 BC, matters begin to change rapidly in the overall international situation. These in turn have a direct effect on Judah’s situation. Nineveh, the capital city of Assyria, is defeated by a coalition of Babylonians and Medes in 612 BC. For Assyria this means the beginning of a rapid decline toward oblivion. Only two years later, the Babylonians inflict another deadly blow on the Assyrians by taking control of Harran (610 BC). At this point, something critical takes place with respect to Judah. When Egypt sees Babylon’s advance in power, it makes an attempt to help the Assyrians recover Harran. The military campaign fails miserably. The Assyrian-Egyptian coalition is defeated and Harran remains firmly in Babylonian hands. At this same time, Judah commits an unfortunate and tactical error. As the Egyptian army, led by Pharaoh Necho II (610–595 BC), marches through Israel in route to Mesopotamia, King Josiah and his army try to intercept it at Megiddo. Josiah, the one king who has embodied hope for Judah, is killed by Pharaoh Necho II, and with his death Judah’s dreams and hopes dissipate into thin air. This turn of events in 609 BC no doubt affects Jeremiah and his ministry as well. The brief time of independence, growth and spiritual reform has quickly come to an end.

Pharaoh Necho II takes advantage of his victory over Judah. He immediately removes Jehoahaz, Josiah’s successor, who has ruled for only three months, and he installs Eliakim, whose name is changed to Jehoiakim. This “king” serves as a puppet king under the power of the Egyptian pharaoh. This situation, as it turns out, will not last long. Once again the Egyptians make an attempt to curb Babylon’s increasing power in the ancient Near East. And once again Egypt fails. Only five years after the defeat at Harran in 610 BC, the Egyptians suffer a major loss at the battle of Carchemish in 605 BC. Nebuchadnezzar, who succeeds Nabopolassar that very same year, leads the Babylonian army to victory and effectively affirms Babylon’s hegemony over Egypt. Nebuchadnezzar then secures his control by sundry incursions into the Syria-Palestine region.

This whole international struggle for power that has surrounded Judah leads Jehoiakim (609–598 BC) to change his loyalty back and forth between Egypt and Babylon. When Jehoiakim rebels against Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar (now king of Babylon) embarks on a military campaign and ravages Judah (598 BC). In the same time frame, Nebuchadnezzar raids the Arameans of Syria, the Moabites and the Ammonites. Jehoiakim suddenly dies and is succeeded by Jehoiachin, who rules only three months. Nebuchadnezzar has laid siege to Jerusalem, obtains the city’s surrender, and exiles the Judahite king, the queen mother, along with the skilled workers of Jerusalem. Nebuchadnezzar then proceeds to place Zedekiah as king over Judah. The end of Judah and her capital city Jerusalem is in sight.

Once again, a Judahite king decides to rebel against Babylon. Zedekiah refuses to learn from the past, succumbs to pressure from the people at large, decides to align Judah with Egypt against Babylon, and withholds tribute from Nebuchadnezzar. This is a terrible mistake. Jeremiah warns against such an alliance and is immediately thrown in prison for opposing the majority opinion. Nebuchadnezzar wastes no time in dispatching his army to put a definitive end to this constant taunting on the part of a vassal and insignificant king. He first defeats all the surrounding fortified towns (as is corroborated by the Lachish letters). He then lays siege to the city of Jerusalem. This siege is temporarily lifted when the Egyptians send an army into Palestine, but there is no record of a Babylonian battle with the Egyptians at this point.

Chronology of Jeremiah

Date

Event

686 BC

Manasseh assumes sole kingship

648 BC

Birth of Josiah

642 BC

Amon succeeds Manasseh as king

640 BC

Josiah succeeds Amon

633 BC

Josiah seeks after God ()

Cyaxares becomes king of Media

628 BC

Josiah begins reforms

626 BC

Jeremiah called to be a prophet

Nabopolassar becomes king of Babylonia

621 BC

Book of the Law found in the temple

612 BC

Nineveh destroyed

609 BC

Josiah slain at Megiddo

Jehoahaz rules three months

Jehoiakim enthroned in Jerusalem

605 BC

Babylonia defeats Egypt at Carchemish

Hostages and vessels taken to Babylon

Nebuchadnezzar becomes king of Babylonia

604 BC

Nebuchadnezzar returns to Judah to receive tribute

601 BC

Nebuchadnezzar defeated near Egypt

598 BC

Jehoiakim’s reign ends

Jehoiachin rules Dec. 9, 598, to Mar. 16, 597

597 BC

Jehoiachin deported Apr. 22

Zedekiah becomes king in Judah

588 BC

Siege of Jerusalem begins Jan. 15

587 BC

Jeremiah imprisoned ()

586 BC

July 18, Zedekiah flees ()

Aug. 14, destruction begins ()

Oct. 7, Gedaliah slain; Jews migrate to Egypt.

Go to

Soon thereafter the siege resumes. Hunger begins to seriously affect the Jerusalemites. Finally, in 586 BC the city wall is breached. Zedekiah, with a military escort, flees the scene. He is overtaken near Jericho by the Babylonian army and brought before Nebuchadnezzar, where he witnesses the killing of his sons, is blinded, and is bound in shackles and taken to Babylon. Soon thereafter, the Babylonian troops under the direction of Nebuzaradan, the captain of the Babylonian imperial guard, ravage Jerusalem. The temple, the royal palace and many homes are burned and the city walls are destroyed.

This is the sad end of Judah. Jeremiah, who was thrown into this tumultuous and ever-changing stage, witnesses the fulfillment of his prophecies in a real and unusual way. He has participated actively in all of these events in that he has not been isolated from the people or from the vicissitudes of international power struggles. ◆

Go to

Hilkiah. Not to be identified with Jerusalem’s high priest also known by this name (). one of the priests. Jeremiah was born into a priestly family. His father was a priest who exercised a number of responsibilities. The priests originally were in charge of guarding the sacred places set up by the Israelites throughout the country. Their main job was the preservation of sacred space. They accomplished this in many ways, performance of rituals being only one. Another important way was by instructing people in the Mosaic Law. Only by knowing the law, in all of its aspects (social, moral and ritual) could the people keep it and therefore avoid offending God such that his presence would be removed. Priests were therefore responsible for instructing worshipers with regard to purity regulations and ritual procedures. One of Jeremiah’s complaints throughout his prophetic ministry is that the priests are neglecting this duty. This, of course, causes great consternation in his own family, to the point that they want Jeremiah to be silenced. Anathoth. A town in Benjamin populated primarily by the descendants of the rejected priest Abiathar ().

thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah. According to a widely accepted chronology, this places the beginning of Jeremiah’s ministry around the year 628/627 BC. It is a critical time in Judah’s history, not only because of the beginning of Josiah’s reforms in 628 BC, but also because of the death of Ashurbanipal, the last successful Assyrian king, in 627 BC, and the rise of Babylon under Nabopolassar in 626 BC. Jeremiah’s ministry continues until the 11th year of the reign of Zedekiah, i.e., around 587 BC. This is also the time when the Israelites are exiled for a third time to Babylon. Thus, Jeremiah’s activity in Israel spans approximately 40 years. After these years Jeremiah continues to minister in exile in the land of Egypt. Josiah. See the article “Historical Setting of Jeremiah.”

Jehoiakim . . . Zedekiah. See the article “Historical Setting of Jeremiah.” exile. The experience of being displaced and forcibly resettled in a foreign country, where the exiles have no rights. This verse alludes to the final destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians and the subsequent deportation of many to Babylon. Jeremiah witnesses the terrible destruction of Jerusalem and sees with his own eyes people being dragged away into exile in Babylonia. The famous letters of the town of Lachish describe the final days of Jerusalem during the Babylonian siege. There are 18 letters sent by the captain of the garrison in Lachish, wherein one can read about the tension and suffering during the time of imminent defeat. Mesopotamian sources also describe the Babylonian attack on Jerusalem and the subsequent deportation of many of its inhabitants.

Before I formed you in the womb. Jeremiah was chosen and commissioned for prophetic office even before God formed him in his mother’s womb. Biblical prophets such as Moses and Samuel were marked for leadership functions from the time of their birth, so in a sense one can say that they were called while in the womb. The closest Biblical example to Jeremiah’s situation is the apostle Paul, who said that God had chosen and set him apart before he was born (). There are writings from Egypt and Mesopotamia that exhibit similar ideas and concepts. The Egyptian god Amun said of Piankhy, a pharaoh in the eighth century BC, that he had been designated ruler when he was yet unborn; the same is said of other contemporary rulers, e.g., the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal and the Babylonian king Nabonidus. This demonstrates that this was a common sort of statement to make about important people in the ancient world. What is unique in Jeremiah’s case is that the choosing by God is said to have taken place even before being conceived in his mother’s womb. However, this may just be a matter of a slightly different nuance regarding the same theme, and one perhaps should not make too much out of the difference.

the LORD reached out his hand and touched my mouth. In the Hebrew Bible the outstretched hand of God often symbolizes his power. It is possible that in this context God’s power is represented by this action as well as the act of placing God’s words in the whole being of Jeremiah. In the experience of Isaiah, one of the seraphim touched his mouth with a burning coal, thus indicating a process of cleansing and purification not only of the mouth but of the prophet’s entire being (). touched my mouth. Purification of the mouth is well attested both in Egyptian and Mesopotamian contexts. Diviner priests had to undergo mouth purification before they could appear before the gods. In fact the idols were often subject to mouth-washing so that they could be recipients of a degree of sanctity. However, in the case of Jeremiah, the Lord places his words directly in the prophet’s mouth without the prophet having to undergo a process of ritual purification.

almond tree. The Hebrew word has the same consonants as the Hebrew verb that means “to watch, be wakeful.” There is an obvious play on words here that has to do with the fulfillment of God’s word.

pot that is boiling. A boiling pot was a common sight for the prophet. The fact that it is boiling and that it is tilted toward the south indicates that danger looms in the north. from the north. Some consider that for Israel the north symbolized dark and mysterious powers. Indeed many of Israel’s problems originated in regions located to the north. As it turned out, the final destruction of Jerusalem was caused by the Babylonians, who descended upon Israel from the north. Moreover, the city of Jerusalem was most vulnerable from the north.

The throne/podium at the gate of Dan. “Their kings will come and set up their thrones in the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem” ().

Return to

thrones in the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem. In many of the walled cities of Israel the entrance to the city was the place where judicial decisions were rendered. Excavations in both Dan and Hazor have uncovered the podium in the gate where such thrones would have sat (though it is uncertain whether the image of a god sat on the throne or the king sat there to give judgment). See notes on ; ; ; .

a fortified city, an iron pillar and a bronze wall. These three images serve as metaphors for strength in this context as well as in other Biblical contexts (e.g., ). They are also present in Egyptian texts. In the Amarna letters dated to approximately the fourteenth century BC, we read that the gods and the pharaoh himself use the metaphor of a bronze wall to bestow protection on the human being. In fact, Thutmose III of Egypt used these metaphors to describe himself in such a way that he would seem invincible.

firstfruits. Refers to the first portion of a harvested crop, which was considered the best part and was thus to be set aside for the Lord. commands that Israel set apart the firstfruits of the harvest for the Lord in order to give thanks for the gift of land. According to , this first part of the harvest could only be eaten by the priests and their families. There are no exact ancient Near Eastern parallels to firstfruits. But in the Hittite “Instructions to Priests and Temple Officials” we do have injunctions regarding offerings that belong exclusively to the gods. There are severe warnings for the priests regarding taking or withholding sacrifices intended for the gods. If it occurs, death is prescribed. Other items entrusted to the Hittite priests, such as silver, gold and bronze implements, belong exclusively to the gods; the priests are only stewards of these items. This is clearly similar to the firstfruits in Israel, where certain offerings and objects belong only to God.

prophesied by Baal. The prophets of Israel have apostatized and are invoking the Canaanite god Baal. See notes on ; ; ; see also the article “

”

coasts of Cyprus. This Hebrew phrase is often translated as “the Greek islands” or “the island of Cyprus.” Kedar. Kedar was a son of Ishmael, the son of Abraham and Hagar (see note on ). The name came to designate a nomadic tribe that flourished in the Syro-Arabian desert from the eighth to the fourth centuries BC. In this context, however, Kedar in conjunction with Cyprus designates the geographic extremes of east and west. God wants messengers to go as far east and as far west as possible to find out if any other nation has changed its gods as Judah has (v. ).

Has a nation ever changed its gods? A rhetorical question that expects a negative answer. There is no evidence in the ancient Near East that a nation or a tribe exchanged their god or gods for other gods from other places. This is probably because in an open-ended polytheistic system such as we find in the ancient Near East, nations “adopted” other gods, which meant that they added another god to their pantheon (e.g., the Philistines adopted Dagon), which may then have eventually displaced in importance the former gods. There is no evidence, however, that they exchanged Dagon for a former Philistine deity.

broken cisterns. Cisterns in ancient agricultural society were dug for at least two reasons: to store grain and food, and to store rainwater. Stored rainwater was used especially during the dry season (approximately May through September). Cisterns were dug in natural rock, or the ancient Israelites at times took advantage of natural cave formations to turn them into cisterns. In many cases cisterns had to be lined with plaster to be waterproof. But in certain areas the bedrock is impermeable so that waterproofing the cistern with lime plaster was unnecessary. Cisterns could suffer cracks in the lining; therefore, water would seep out and a precious source of life was lost. Jeremiah uses the cisterns here as a metaphor to explain how Israel has abandoned Yahweh, the source of all life, and has substituted him with other gods—i.e., cracked cisterns that cannot hold water.

Is Israel . . . a slave by birth? Another rhetorical question (see note on v. ). The terminology here describes what in fact Israel is not, namely, a house-born slave. Other types of slaves would include those captured in war or exchanged for goods. But the text is not making that distinction. The point is that slaves are treated as property by invaders and therefore are subject to being taken as plunder.

towns are burned. This refers to specific campaigns of a number of Assyrian rulers who came into the Levant, including Tiglath-Pileser III (745–727 BC), Shalmaneser V (727–722 BC), Sargon II (721–705 BC), Sennacherib (705–681 BC), and Esarhaddon (681–669 BC). Since the Assyrians had no intention of occupying these towns, their practice was to burn them in order to warn against the cost of noncooperation.

Memphis. The ancient capital of Lower Egypt and hence the residence of the Egyptian kings. It is located on the west bank of the Nile River about 15 miles (24 kilometers) south of Cairo. Today it is identified with modern Mitrahineh. The Greek historian Herodotus mentions that many of Jeremiah’s contemporaries fled to this city when Judah was overtaken by the Babylonians in 587 BC. During the fourth century BC, when Alexander the Great built Alexandria, Memphis permanently lost its privileged position in Egypt. Tahpanhes. Identified with modern Tell Defneh and known by the ancient Greeks as Daphne. It is a frontier city located in the lower delta region on the caravan route that merchants took toward Israel and Mesopotamia. During Jeremiah’s time, Israelites settled there, and many sought refuge there when the Babylonians invaded Judah in 587 BC. This commercial center was built by Psammetichus I; it was an important Egyptian city for many years. cracked your skull. The verb translated “cracked” is problematic, and there are a number of other alternative translations for this Hebrew verb, including “shaved,” which typically indicates slavery or subordination. Since there is no scholarly consensus, we cannot affirm what in this context the author is referring to, or if slavery is indicated. What seems to be clear is that the act of having one’s skull cracked or head shaved suggests a change in status.

Nile . . . Euphrates. In this context the Euphrates is mentioned as the counterpart to the Nile; both are used metaphorically to indicate military foreign aid that Israel continually tried to obtain.

yoke. See note on . on every high hill and under every spreading tree. See note on .

choice vine. The Hebrew word used here refers to a vine of high quality that grows in the Sorek Valley, known today as the Wadi es-Sarar, located southwest of Jerusalem. This vine offers a luscious variety of deep red grapes with soft seeds. Its use here is to demonstrate that Israel, unlike Sodom, was born of good stock.

soap. A cleansing agent made by mixing the ashes of certain plants with olive oil, animal fats or water. cleansing powder. Most likely sodium carbonate, used as a dye or as a cleaning substance. It was imported from Egypt as there are no natural mineral deposits of this type in Israel.

she-camel . . . wild donkey. The young female camel is unreliable. Young camels never walk in orderly fashion and run off in any direction at the slightest provocation. It is said that a young camel never takes more than three steps in any one direction. A female donkey in heat becomes the image of that which is vulgar and almost violent. She will sniff out the urine of the male donkey and then, with a loud bray, will search and chase out the male. Both animals depict Israel as being unreliable in terms of her commitments to Yahweh as well as being a nation that desperately chases after the Baals.

wood. In their quest for other gods, the Israelites are calling out “Father” to a piece of wood. This piece of wood (or tree or wooden pole) likely represents the Canaanite Asherah, who is the female fertility symbol (see notes on ; ). If so, the words are sarcastic here. Asherah is considered the mother goddess in Canaanite texts and thus should not be addressed as “father.” This is another indication of the utter confusion that has overtaken the Israelites. stone. This term is also full of irony. Stone is the male fertility symbol. Thus, it does not have the female capacity to give birth. This male fertility symbol is connected to the Canaanite deity El, who is called “father.” El is considered the head of the Ugaritic pantheon as well as the father of the gods. On a stele discovered at Ras Shamra (ancient Ugarit), El is an elderly patriarch seated on a throne with majestic presence receiving a gift from the king of Ugarit.

have as many gods as you have towns. Israel’s neighboring countries were polytheistic; to have as many gods as towns was the norm among these nations. They generally understood their worship as being locally defined, and therefore having local patron deities was common. In this religious worldview the plurality of deities was associated with geographic locations because worshipers were required to bring their gifts to the temple. Only those who lived close could do so regularly. The gods only cared about those who could bring gifts, so each town had its own gods. See the article “

”

jewelry. Generally refers to ornaments of gold and silver that were considered important and a source of pride. Here it most likely describes the ornaments worn by a bride. See and notes.

disappointed by Egypt . . . by Assyria. It is not certain whether Jeremiah is referring to specific events or to these nations in general. By at least 732 BC, both Judah and Israel entered into a vassal relationship with Assyria. However, in the end, Assyria did not protect its vassals, but destroyed them, as they did to Israel in 721 BC and to Judah in 701 BC. In both of those cases, the vassals rebelled by not paying tribute, but even Ahaz of Judah, who had aligned himself with Assyria, found that his kingdom was not safe from them. Egypt had been unable to protect its vassals against the power of Assyria or other West Asiatic kingdoms. In the end, then, neither kingdom provided the safety or security that Judah was looking for.

hands on your head. The custom of placing one’s hands on the head was a sign of shame and humiliation (). In the broader context of the ancient Near East it seems to be a gesture that expresses deep grief and mourning.

If a man divorces his wife . . . should he return to her again? Laws in the ancient Near East generally allowed married couples to divorce. Most laws, however, greatly favored the husband, so that the initiative to divorce usually came from the man. Even so, the man had to give up his wife’s property and often had to pay an extra penalty. There are a few ancient documents that speak of a wife initiating the divorce proceedings. In general, this was discouraged; in fact, there are Old Babylonian marriage contracts that expressly forbid the wife from divorcing her husband. Jeremiah has in mind here specific divorce legislation in the Hebrew Bible, namely, . There it states that if a man divorces his wife, he may never take her back as wife if she has married another man, regardless of whether she is widowed from her second husband. In other words, the answer to the question posed here is an unequivocal no.

barren heights. Though there is much debate as to the original meaning of the Hebrew term used here, one can argue on a contextual basis that here it refers to hills that have little vegetation. They may have been areas on hills that were used as lookout points. However, in this context it probably refers to worship sites that may also have been used for the fertility cults (cf. v. ; ; see notes on ; ; ). a nomad in the desert. Nomadism was a common way of life in the ancient Near East. Groups of nonsedentary camel breeders, known as “Bedouins,” were common during the first millennium BC. In earlier times, pastoral nomadism was chosen as a way of life whereby domesticated animals were exploited by being involved in seasonal movements. For many years scholars believed there was constant tension between those who chose a more sedentary town life and those who were always on the move; however, more recently evidence has shown that there was a reasonably peaceful relationship between these two groups. In the present context, “nomad” refers to either a caravan trader or a bandit who wants to take advantage of the benefits of sedentary living.

spring rains. These rains come in early April. This does not refer to the rainy season, which generally falls during the months of December through February. Dry farming, which is the kind of farming not dependent on irrigation (as in Babylonia) or on flooding (as in Egypt), relies heavily on the regularity of these rains. The spring rains were important for the final ripening of the crop as well as to prepare the ground for the harvest. Throughout the Hebrew Bible one can perceive how important the rain was for the Israelite farmer. Grains and vegetables planted in Israel depended on natural rainfall, both in terms of quantity and timing.

certificate of divorce. Apparently in certain cases of divorce, two actions were necessary: (1) a certificate or bill of divorce had to be extended to the wife, and (2) the husband had to send the wife away. The practice of extending a certificate of divorce is well attested in the ancient Near East. The major law codes, such as the Code of Hammurapi and the Laws of Eshnunna in Mesopotamia, have extensive legislation regarding divorce procedures (see note on v. ).

committed adultery with stone and wood. This phrase is a metaphor to express what may be termed as religious or spiritual adultery (see note on ). The Israelites are prone to following other gods and thus breaking their covenant with Yahweh.

circumcise your hearts. Though it is impossible to say when and where the practice of circumcision began, it is clear that it was not an exclusive custom of the Israelites. It was practiced by many in the ancient Near East, particularly in Egypt as early as the twenty-third century BC (see the article “

”). What is new in Israel is the meaning and significance behind circumcision. Whereas for many cultures circumcision represented a rite of passage into a tribe or nation, for the Israelite males, circumcision became a sign of belonging to Yahweh. Here, however, Jeremiah refers to the practice in a metaphoric way to express that Israel ought to allow its will (heart) to belong totally to Yahweh. The prophet admonishes Israel to come under Yahweh’s control.

fortified cities. Judah at different times had a number of fortified cities—cities with walls built around them to protect them against enemy invasion (see note on ). Some cities like Lachish had double walls. During Jeremiah’s time King Josiah had rebuilt cities such as Tekoa, Arad, Azekah and even Lachish so as to make them safer. Cities or towns not fortified with walls and towers were more vulnerable to enemy attack. The Assyrian king Sennacherib (704–681 BC) boasted of having defeated and captured 46 of these fortified cities in Judah.

signal. The Hebrew term does not refer to an auditory sound such as the blowing of a horn that announces a state of emergency, or to a smoke or fire signal. Rather, it has to do with a flag or a visual signal. It most likely was some kind of a banner lifted by a pole to signal danger, distress and imminent danger. This was a signal for the people to try and reach the fortified cities for protection. Banners were used as signals and as standards for army troops throughout the ancient Near East (see notes on ; ). Many had animal figures on them. A common Assyrian figure used on banners was a moon sickle mounted on a spear.

sackcloth. This material was used as a symbol of mourning (see the article “

”). It was made out of goat or camel hair and therefore was coarse and dark in color. It was also used to make grain bags. When used in the time of mourning, it was worn around the loins and was extremely uncomfortable. Jeremiah’s call to put on sackcloth and thus begin the mourning rites seems to indicate that danger and destruction are imminent.

A scorching wind. Probably the well-known sirocco. This wind is a hot wind from the east and can be quite destructive. not to winnow. Because of the strength of the sirocco, it is not useful for winnowing the grain on the threshing floor. In Israel one can find many threshing floors where the wind was used to help separate the grain from the chaff (see note on ). The sirocco, in contrast, carried away both the grain and the chaff. Jeremiah uses this as a metaphor to warn that God’s judgment will only bring destruction. cleanse. Can also be translated “sift” and thus would refer to the same process of separating what is useful and valuable from what is useless.

announcing from Dan. Dan was the Israelite outpost farthest to the north. In fact, the boundaries of Israel were popularly expressed by the somewhat optimistic phrase “from Dan to Beersheba.” During Jeremiah’s time, Dan seems to have flourished despite the fact that it remained an undefended city during the seventh century BC. Because of its strategic location, it would be the first to see the approach of an enemy coming from the north. hills of Ephraim. South of Dan and closer to Jerusalem lays the hill country of Ephraim. It is a mountainous region that extends from Shechem to Bethel. Jeremiah uses these geographic locations in order to demonstrate that the message of danger is traveling fast across the land of Israel.

Jeremiah has taken his imagery from the creation account in . He describes in poetic imagery the reversion of creation back to its non-ordered stage, before God had done his work. The Mesopotamian epic “Erra and Ishum” is roughly similar in that it describes a reversal of Marduk’s creation of order out of the original primeval chaos. In the world-upside-down motif, all that is considered most consistent and reliable is jeopardized. The concept can be applied to the cosmic realm (the sun growing dark), the natural realm (the mountains being leveled), the political realm (empires being overthrown), the social realm (the poor becoming rich) or the animal realm (the lion and lamb together). It is often used in prophetic literature in connection with the day of the Lord and coming judgment.

the heavens above grow dark. This does not necessarily refer to an eclipse. In the context of this verse together with v. , the darkness is associated with mourning. Not only is all creation being reversed into its original non-ordered state, but the issue here seems to be that the cities are being destroyed. This destruction creates a sense of doom and darkness wherein the entire earth mourns.

dress yourself in scarlet. Scarlet clothing was considered the most sophisticated and elegant. Scarlet dye came from the female kermes insects (Coccus ilicis), which attach themselves to the leaves and branches of the kermes oak. eyes with makeup. The practice of lining the eyes with paint was common in the ancient Near East, particularly in Egypt. Painting the eyes makes them look larger. The eye paint, or “antinomy,” most likely came from a lead sulfide, which is a dark black mineral powder.

Prisoners yoked together, Abu Simbel. The yoke was a common tool used to bind animals together and sometimes was used for human prisoners as well.

Return to

yoke. A common instrument used in the ancient Near East to bind animals together as means for production. As time passed, it was also used to bind human prisoners as a means of control and punishment (). Finally, the yoke became a symbol of control, ownership, and most often political servitude (; see note on ). It seems that only here and in is “yoke” used to express the reality of Yahweh’s covenant with Israel. It is more common to speak of the yoke of Egypt. However, this may be an extension of the theology of the exodus, where being freed from slavery in Egypt did not lead to unbridled freedom but to a new kind of willing bondage to Yahweh.

lion. Wild animals such as the lion were much more prevalent in the ancient Near East than they are in modern times. The metaphor of these wild predators representing the attack of an enemy would have been readily understood in Jeremiah’s context, particularly among those who worked as shepherds. See notes on ; .

lusty stallions. Stallions, much like the female wild donkey in , cannot control their sexual appetite. Stallions do not mate for life but follow their instincts. The metaphor here describes the conduct of the Israelites.

vineyards. This Hebrew term is rare. Many scholars think it refers to “vine terraces.” This fits the context well. In Israel there are many terraced vineyards, built in such a way so that water can be stopped from running off the slope of the hills. This guarantees that the vines will get enough moisture.

They have lied about the LORD; they said, “He will do nothing!” Certainly it was a popular prophet who offered the people the hope of peace, security and resolution of the problem. Denial is the path of least resistance. There would likewise be no shortage of prophets who saw personal gain in supporting the desires of the throne on these matters and were therefore willing to represent the best interests of the king and whatever propaganda he desired to circulate. Of the prophets known in the ancient Near East, especially from this period, few would ever offer a negative prophecy.

autumn and spring rains. The autumn rains are known as the early or former rains. They begin in October and run into the winter months (known as the rainy season). These rains help soften the ground for plowing in order to plant seed. This rain also helps to fill up the cisterns that have dried up over the summer months. The spring or latter rains begin in early April; these provide the needed moisture to ripen the crops for harvest (see note on ).

Tekoa. The hometown of the prophet Amos; it was located on the road to Hebron, about ten miles (16 kilometers) south of Jerusalem. Today it is identified with Khirbet Tequa. The context here seems to point to the fact that it was on the border of arable land and at the beginning of wasteland. This suggests that Tekoa could be used as a city of refuge for those fleeing from Jerusalem. Beth Hakkerem. The precise location of this town is unknown. Some have identified it as Ramat Rahel, about two miles (3.2 kilometers) south of Jerusalem; however, this has not yet been proven. The meaning of its name is “house of the vineyard.” The town is associated with Tekoa and Bethlehem. The church father Jerome located Beth Hakkerem on a hilltop between Jerusalem and Tekoa. If this is correct, then the town would serve as a good signal location in times of enemy attack, particularly during the time of Jeremiah. Scholars more recently have suggested that Ramat Rahel was the site of an Assyrian palace that served as a center to supervise Jerusalem, the capital city of Judah during Assyrian hegemony in the ancient Near East.

siege ramps. See the article “

”

glean the remnant. stipulates that landowners may not take every last bit of the harvest. In the context of Jeremiah, this metaphor has to do with severe judgment. God is allowing the Babylonians to do what the Israelites are not allowed to do in their own fields. Babylon is given permission to devastate the land of Israel. In other words, the enemy has been given clearance to “take all” and not leave anything behind.

the trumpet. The shofar (ram’s horn). See note on .

incense. See ; see also note on ; cf. notes on ; . Sheba. Located in the southern Arabian peninsula (modern Yemen). Frankincense and myrrh came from this area as well as from the Far East. See note on . calamus. This Hebrew term comes from classical sources that speak of Calamus aromaticus and refers to an aromatic spice cane. This spice is one of the ingredients included in the anointing oil (). Perhaps this cane was imported from India. It is not to be confused with sugar cane, which spread east after the OT period.

battle formation. Mesopotamian military organization kept developing throughout the millennia. By the seventh century BC, partly because of previous reforms instituted by Tiglath-Pileser III of Assyria (c. 745–727 BC), chariots and cavalry were used as shock weapons. As time went on, the infantry gained importance alongside the chariots. There were generally three men per chariot: the driver, an archer and a shield bearer. Under King Ashurbanipal (c. 669–627 BC), a heavier chariot carrying four men was used.

roll in ashes. Sackcloth and ashes are well-known symbols of mourning both in the Biblical world and in the ancient Near East generally (see the article “

”). They are also used as signs of fasting and repentance. To roll in ashes was not common, and it adds here a dynamic element to the custom (see ).

tester of metals. The Lord depicts the prophet Jeremiah as a tester of the people. In this metaphor the people are considered the ore that Jeremiah is to evaluate. The role of a metal assayer was to test the metal by smelting, a procedure that ridded metal of its impurities (see notes on ; ). In this particular case the people of Israel fail the test and are rejected.

bronze and iron. In the ancient world silver was extracted and assayed through a process called cupellation (see note on ). In the initial smelting process silver was extracted from lead ores (galena) containing less than 1% silver in a given sample. The lead was melted in shallow vessels made of porous substances such as bone ash or clay. A bellows was then used to blow air across the molten lead producing lead oxide (litharge). Some of the lead oxide was absorbed by the bone ash, while some could be skimmed off the surface. Ideally, the silver would remain. Unfortunately, this process has many potential problems. If the temperature was too high, or if the sample contained other metals (iron, copper or tin were common), the cupellation would be unsuccessful. In this situation, when the litharge was skimmed off, rather than resulting in silver extraction, what remained was tainted silver mixed with other metals, making it unusable. This unusable product is perhaps what is referred to as “dross” (; ; see and note). Another possibility is that the text refers to the assaying process. This involved heating a sample of silver together with large amounts of lead in order to draw off the impurities. One of the possible results of the assaying process was that the quantity of lead would be insufficient to draw off the impurities, rendering the silver useless. Rather than being purified, then, the silver would be in worse shape than it was before the process. Perhaps this process is envisioned by the text and the silver becomes this useless junk.

Stand at the gate. Standing at the temple gate guaranteed a large audience for Jeremiah’s proclamation. Gate areas in the ancient Near Eastern world were places where much human activity and traffic took place (see notes on ; ; ; ). The particular area where Jeremiah stands is an area outside the temple called the “inner court.” We cannot be sure which gate Jeremiah is facing, but he surely has direct contact with the majority of the temple worshipers. Jeremiah chooses this place, as well as a number of city gates (e.g., the Potsherd Gate, the Benjamin Gate), to proclaim the messages he receives from God. worship. Worship in the Hebrew Bible is expressed by different terms. Two Hebrew words are essential to understand Israelite worship: one means “service” and the other designates “prostration” or “bowing down.” It is this second term that is used here, and generally refers to an attitude of veneration of God or of false gods. The temple was primarily a state sanctuary and thus was part of the royal estate. The temple was the “house of God,” and was God’s residence. It was not intended as a place of corporate worship, and worshipers were admitted in the temple courts, but not the temple itself. Sacrificial rituals were done in the courts and elsewhere. Regarding individual worship in the ancient Near East, we know that some worshipers received dreams when bowing before the image of a given deity. However, the evidence available is not explicit as to the worshiper’s activity within the temple. We do know that access into the temples of Mesopotamia was restricted.

the temple of the LORD. The triple repetition of this phrase seems to point to some kind of magical incantation that invokes protection. Perhaps this is similar to the triple expressions that appear at the beginning of Babylonian magical texts known as Maqlû. During the time of Jeremiah the people have apparently developed a kind of blind superstition regarding the temple. At least two concepts come into play at this time. (1) As long as the temple stands on Mount Zion, popular belief is that this guarantees God’s protection of Jerusalem because the temple “houses” God’s presence. (2) This belief was strongly enhanced by God’s intervention during the time of Hezekiah, when Jerusalem was saved from total destruction at the hands of the Assyrian king Sennacherib, who had placed the city under siege. This divine intervention helped nurture the ideology that the temple in Jerusalem was inviolable.

One can see a possible parallel here with the Mesopotamian concept of a city’s patron deity. Such deities in Mesopotamia were the protectors of the temple (the house of the deity) and of the city. They were taken care of by the human population and therefore were dependent on the well-being of the city for their upkeep. As long as there was an earthly abode for the deity in a given city, the city had special protection. In the case of Israel, it seems that the influence of its neighbors, as well as the interpretation of God’s divine intervention, led to the ideology known as the “inviolability of the temple,” which also then meant that Jerusalem was secure. As Jeremiah is quick to point out, this is false. Yahweh, the God of Israel, has no needs—his protection of the people of Judah is connected to their keeping of the covenant not to the sacrifices they bring.

the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow. These three categories of persons are symbolic of the most vulnerable classes of people in the ancient Near East. Ancient law codes, such as those of Ur-Nammu and the Code of Hammurapi, show a preoccupation with protecting the rights of the poor, the widow and the orphan. See note on . do not shed innocent blood in this place. This accusation was already mentioned in . There are explicit teachings in Deuteronomy against shedding innocent blood (, ; ). We cannot be sure what specific situation Jeremiah is referring to here. Probably the warning covers more than possible murders in the temple. We find out later that King Jehoiakim was responsible for shedding innocent blood (, ). He was also responsible for killing the innocent prophet Uriah (). These murders would have been politically motivated.

incense. This Hebrew term is different from the one used in (see note there). The offering of incense to the gods is a well-attested practice in religious ritual throughout the ancient Near East. The incense offered was a mixture of spices that gave off a fragrance when placed over fire. In Mesopotamia various records mention the practice of offering incense to the gods. This custom was also part of the Israelite religious ritual. Incense could be offered as a supplement to a sacrifice. It was also burned by the priests twice a day on the altar of incense in front of the veil of the Most Holy Place. The smoke created a visual screen and the fragrance was luxurious.

this house, which bears my Name. In the ancient world, naming a person or an object meant having ownership and authority over that person. The Hebrew idiom “the house that bears my Name” depicts God’s ownership of the temple. By placing his name on the temple, God declares he has legal rights over it and considers it his personal property. Here God proclaims that he cares deeply for the temple and that only he should be worshiped in this place. This is equally true in the ancient Mesopotamian context. Temples were considered private residences of the deities. The presence of the deity in the temple, as in Israel, provided protection for the worshiper because the name was powerful.

Shiloh. Identified with modern Khirbet Seilun, located north of Bethel in the heart of Ephraim. This town served as one of the premier worship places for the Israelites from the time of Joshua until the days of Samuel. For at least some of that time, the Israelites placed the ark of the covenant and the tabernacle there, and Shiloh is where God established his name in the early years of Israel’s occupation of the promised land. Archaeological excavations have shown the presence of impressive architecture that lasted until a fierce destruction that took place in the eleventh century BC, when presumably the Philistines destroyed Shiloh (cf. ). After this time, Shiloh never again served as the primary worship center. By Jeremiah’s time, Shiloh did not have a sanctuary, though there is evidence of human occupation there well into exilic times.

in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. This is most likely an idiomatic phrase that Jeremiah uses in order to emphasize that idolatrous worship is practiced everywhere in Judah (cf. , where the prophet accuses the people of Judah of being no different from their polytheistic neighbors). This kind of statement is illustrative of the extent to which the ancient Near Eastern neighbors had an influence on the belief system of the Israelites at this time.

cakes. The Hebrew word is a loanword from the Akkadian language. There is considerable evidence from places such as Mari that the Babylonians used cakes in the worship of the Assyro-Babylonian goddess Ishtar. These cakes were baked over an open fire, not in an oven. A number of clay molds for cakes from the second millennium BC have been discovered in a palace kitchen at Mari. Some have a female shape and others are star-shaped. Presumably both are representative of a female goddess. Queen of Heaven. It is impossible to state with absolute confidence that this refers to the goddess Ishtar. Yet despite scholarly debate over the years, there is no better candidate. Ishtar is the goddess of love, sexuality and war, and there certainly was Mesopotamian influence in the worship practices of Judah, particularly from the time of King Ahaz until the reign of King Zedekiah. Ishtar is said to court the god Tammuz, who in turn dies every year along with the earth during the long dry season. Ishtar then pursues her dead partner, Tammuz, who comes to life during the wet season. Note that years later Ezekiel indicts the women of Israel for sitting at the north gate of the temple and weeping for Tammuz (). Another proposed candidate from a Canaanite context is the goddess Asherah, and archaeological evidence substantiates that she was worshiped in Israel. The central issue here is that the inhabitants of Judah are worshiping the Queen of Heaven as well as Yahweh. pour out drink offerings. It was common practice to offer drink offerings (i.e., libations) to God in Israel (; , ). However, the expression here is more typical of the worship of pagan gods. There is evidence that these offerings were poured out on rooftops of houses in Jerusalem as well as on the palace rooftop.

on man and beast, on the trees . . . the crops. The parallel between man and beast is common in Scripture (e.g., ). However, the addition of trees and produce is not seen elsewhere. When Enlil, the king of the gods in Mesopotamia, brought on the flood, it was leashed upon all flesh indiscriminately. The Mesopotamian epic “Erra and Ishum” also describes devastation that took both humans and animals. On the other hand, warfare tactics often targeted the produce and the trees. Trees were chopped down for the needs of the besieging army or simply as punitive deforestation. Produce was used to supply the army, trampled underfoot or intentionally destroyed in order to cripple the economy.

eat the meat yourselves! There is a strong sense of contempt and irony here on the part of the prophet. The whole burnt offering was meant to be consumed entirely on the altar; it was not to be eaten by the worshipers (see note on ). At this point, God is so disgusted with the lack of loyalty on the part of the Israelites that the offerings mean nothing to him. They are empty of meaning and commitment. Therefore the sarcastic command to eat the meat conveys the idea that the worshipers can do whatever they please. Nothing will change, nothing will be accomplished.

Cut off your hair. Both in Israel and in many places of the ancient Near East, cutting off the hair could be a sign of mourning and lament. But the expression used here is generally used to speak of the cutting of hair as part of a consecration rite to become a Nazirite (). It seems that God is once again using irony to get his message across to the people of Judah. They may as well cut off their “consecrated” hair because their conduct in no way reflects obedience and consecration to Yahweh.

high places of Topheth in the Valley of Ben Hinnom. The Hinnom Valley (; ) has been identified with Wadi er-Rababi, which surrounds Jerusalem along the southwest. It is also referred to in the Bible as the “Valley of Ben [son of] Hinnom” (also the plural, “Valley of Benei [sons of] Hinnom”). During the monarchy in Israel, this valley became famous as the place where idolatrous practices were conducted. During Jeremiah’s time this valley also became the popular place for Baal worship, which led Jeremiah to proclaim that its name would be changed to the Valley of Slaughter. “Topheth” in this context has a sinister connotation. It designates the cultic place between the Hinnom and Kidron Valleys, where children were sacrificed to the god Molek. The exact meaning of Topheth is not known, but it is generally associated with an Aramaic word that means “oven, fireplace, hearth,” and is thought to signify the hearth where the child was placed. Regarding the identification of Molek and the practice of child sacrifice in Israel, there is much scholarly debate. There is now much evidence that Molek can be identified with Malik or Milku from Attartu, which suggests that Molek was a netherworld deity. burn their sons and daughters in the fire. Evidence for this practice outside of Scripture is rare indeed. Assyrian legal texts describe a penalty clause as “he will burn his son to Sin [a lunar deity], and his daughter to Belet-seri.” The practice of human sacrifice, including children, is also illustrated from the Phoenician city of Carthage (814–146 BC). Excavations there and Jeremiah’s condemnation of Topheth suggest that child sacrifice was practiced, albeit in extreme situations.

Proper burial was a valued practice in the ancient Near East that was essential for the deceased person’s proper entry into the netherworld. This was critical because in Mesopotamian belief the living and the dead continued in a permanent relationship and formed an ongoing community.

The cult of the dead so prevalent in the ancient Near East involved extensive preparation of the body, including washing of the body, tying the mouth shut, oiling or perfuming the body, and dressing it up in clean clothing. This concern also existed among the Israelites. Jeremiah repeatedly invokes the punishment of exposure of dead bodies through disinterment, particularly of Israelite leaders such as kings, priests and false prophets.

This kind of punishment and disturbance of the dead was also carried out by King Ashurbanipal of Assyria. In his successful eighth campaign, he desecrated the tombs of the Elamite kings and reports that in doing so he made their spirits restless and deprived them of care (i.e., offerings and libations). Jeremiah proclaims that the same desecration will happen to the tombs in Judah. ◆

Go to

the sun and the moon and all the stars . . . they have loved and served. The term “stars” here is often translated “host of heaven.” This phrase seems to refer to a celestial army composed of the heavenly bodies in the universe. While one cannot be sure of the military connotation, it is evident that spiritual powers were attributed to these bodies that inhabited the skies. Therefore, it is not surprising that the Israelites were tempted to worship these so-called deities, who were believed to control human destiny. Long before Jeremiah, astrology was an important part of second-millennium BC Babylonia. Astral divination was perfected by the Babylonians, and during the first millennium BC the interpretation of celestial omens influenced the people of Israel to the extent that it became customary to mix astral worship with the worship of Yahweh.

poisoned water to drink. Access to drinking water was crucial to any city in the ancient world and it was provided locally (i.e., there were no regional water delivery systems). This became even more critical when a city was under siege. King Ashurbanipal of Assyria (669–633 BC) declared with much pride that during his military campaign into Kedar that he had cut off the only source of water, so that many died of thirst. Others were forced to slit open their camels, their only means of transportation, and drink blood and filthy water. Certainly if the available water was poisoned, the lives of the people under siege were profoundly threatened.

snorting of the enemy’s horses is heard from Dan. For the strategic location and significance of Dan, see note on . This verse is hyperbolic language that is intended to elicit fear and change in the audience. horses. A symbol of strength. This may refer to Nebuchadnezzar’s cavalry.

vipers that cannot be charmed. The exact species of snakes mentioned here cannot be identified. Nevertheless, it can be safely assumed that they were poisonous and deadly. This is likely a metaphor that alludes to the Babylonians invading and conquering the Israelites. Poisonous snakes are mentioned elsewhere in Scripture (; ; ). The snake is also a feared reptile in Egyptian and Mesopotamian contexts. The literature from these places includes various incantations against serpents and other dangerous crawling creatures. The prophet here declares that no incantation or ritual will prevent the enemy from biting Judah. Snake incantations were among the most common in the ancient world. charmed. See note on .

The harvest is past, the summer has ended. Most scholars agree that this statement reflects a popular proverb. harvest. The Hebrew term used suggests the early grain harvest, which lasts from April to June. After this time, the ingathering of fruits begins during the summer.

balm. An exact identification is unknown. The main candidates are a resin that comes from balsam, mastic or storax. In ancient times, resins were widely used for soothing pain and for healing. In addition, many were used as a kind of perfume to counteract the smell of wounds in a state of decay. Balm was taken from the bark of a tree drop by drop. Scholars now agree that a consistent picture emerges regarding this word for balsam: it comes from Gilead in the Transjordan, is one of the main export products of Palestine and is used as medicine. Gilead. Its boundaries were never well defined, and they changed often according to political and historical circumstances. It has generally been defined as the mountainous region east of the Jordan River and reaching north as far as the Yarmuk River and south as far as the Arnon River. There is strong evidence today that balm was cultivated at En Gedi, located on the west bank of the Dead Sea, as well as at Qumran, located north of En Gedi. Juglets, jars and decanters have been found there that presumably contained balm.

Beware of your friends. This proverb implies that no one can be trusted in times of extreme wickedness. Many centuries before his time, an Egyptian pharaoh advised his son not to have “intimates.” Pharaoh Amenemhet, who died around the year 1960 BC, had experienced the betrayal of those he helped and thus told his son not to trust brother or friend.

jackals. Known as prowlers around ruins and uninhabited areas.

bitter food. A metaphor for the deep suffering and death that will engulf God’s people. The term used here has been traditionally identified with a desert shrub known as white wormwood (Artemisia herba-alba), which grows abundantly in southern Israel. It has bitter leaves used in traditional medicine. Still today certain groups living in desert areas dry the leaves to make a strong tea. In the Bible “wormwood” is used to depict sorrow ().

wailing women. This is the only certain reference in the Bible to professional mourners. Despite this, professional mourning carried out by women was a well-known practice in the ancient Near East. The professional mourning women were hired to weep loudly, chanting well-known dirges as well as improvising at times. They did this both in the streets and in homes. Pictorial evidence of this custom can be found in Egyptian reliefs and tomb paintings, which show women and girls, along with other family members, actively lamenting the dead. There is also a tenth-century BC sarcophagus from Byblos that depicts women mourning the death of King Ahiram. These drawings depict bare-breasted women beating their chests and pulling their hair, actions that demonstrate mourning (see the article “

”). The prophet Ezekiel refers to women who sit at the door of the temple of Yahweh weeping for Tammuz, a Babylonian deity (). This links with a text about Ishtar’s lament for Tammuz that mentions wailing men and wailing women. This custom was also prevalent in classical Greece and it is still practiced in the Middle East.

The lament of these verses is typical of an ancient Near Eastern lament over the defeat and destruction of a beloved city. The vocabulary and modes of expression here are similar to those used in the 2004 BC “Lament Over the Destruction of Ur,” which is composed of 11 laments that contain 436 lines. The Mesopotamian city of Ur was conquered by Kindattu, ruler of Elam. The lament speaks of the city lying in ruins with bodies lying like broken pots scattered all over the city.

uncircumcised in heart. See note on .

signs in the heavens. The Israelites were surrounded by people interested in the stars. The Babylonians are said to be the originators of astronomy and astrology. The Egyptians in the south had also developed astrology to a sophisticated degree. Behind this intricate understanding of the astral bodies lies a worldview in which celestial phenomena portend signs that can have direct and often disastrous consequences on human existence. That is why many in the ancient world lived in fear of the “signs in the heavens.”

Many texts from Mesopotamia illustrate this reality. Perhaps the most developed is what is known today as the Enuma Anu Enlil, which is a series of 70 texts from the library of Ashurbanipal in Nineveh from the seventh century BC. These texts contain omens based on the appearance of the moon-god Sin as well as on numerous eclipses. Others refer to the sun-god Shamash and meteorological phenomena related to the storm-god Adad. Other omens are based on planetary phenomena, such as first and last sightings of certain planets. The Mesopotamian astrologers recognized various constellations that are the same as many of the ones recognized today. The Mesopotamians and Egyptians lived in a state of anxiety with respect to these astral signs, which they believed held power over human existence.

they cut a tree . . . a craftsman shapes it with his chisel. The manufacture of idols was common in the ancient Near East. Images of deities were hewn out of stone, carved out of wood, modeled in clay or cast in bronze (see the article “

”). Some were 4–10 inches (10–25 centimeters) high; others were life-size. Here Jeremiah refers to images chiseled out of wood and then overlaid with silver and gold and clothed in blue and purple. These idols were seen as more than merely representing a deity, but at the same time they were not identified wholly with the deity. The ancient Near Eastern person worshiped the deity they believed was present in the image, not the image itself. These statues or idols were lavishly decorated with gold and silver (v. ). Gold was the more valuable metal. It was either beaten with a hammer into thin sheets, since it is a relatively soft metal, or it was melted and cast into a given shape. Silver, by contrast, is hardly ever found pure; it had to be extracted from its ore by smelting with the help of bellows (see note on ). These idols were given life status; i.e., one might say that the god became present in the idol through a specific ritual of consecration known as the opening of or washing of the mouth (see note on ). Some of these deities were depicted anthropomorphically; others were not. Nevertheless they all had to be cared for in terms of food, clothing and other such needs.

scarecrow. This Hebrew word occurs only here in the OT. This was as close to an image that Israel was allowed to make. Thus, the “sacred” idols are diminished to the status of scarecrows, no more powerful than palm fronds twisted around a pole. They certainly inspired no fear.

Tarshish. Its exact identification is still a matter of debate. Josephus, the first-century Jewish historian, identified Tarshish with Tarsus in Cilicia (modern Turkey). Others suggest Carthage in North Africa as a possible location, while yet others prefer Ezion Geber in the Red Sea area. Perhaps the strongest candidate is the Phoenician colony Tartessus in southern Spain, near Gibraltar. A relatively recent discovery lends credence to the identification of Tarshish with the precious metal silver. Two Hebrew ostraca were discovered that belong to the same time period (Iron Age), though of unknown provenance. One of them records the command of a king that silver from Tarshish be given to the house of Yahweh. Uphaz. Its exact location is unknown. also mentions it as a source of gold. Some suggest that it could be Ophir, also mentioned as an important source of gold. Once again the discovery of an ostracon sheds light on this matter. An eighth-century BC sherd found at Tel Qasile (modern Tel Aviv) bears the following inscription: “Ophir gold to Beth-horon, 30 shekels.” dressed in blue and purple. We cannot know the exact shades of these colors, but they appear to be particularly indicative of royalty and divinity. These two Hebrew terms are also used to describe the drapery of the tabernacle and temple (; ). Elsewhere these colors are associated with the wealthy and powerful of society. The dyes were quite expensive and most likely came from shells or mollusks that attached themselves to rocks on the Phoenician coast. The less expensive dyes came from vegetables.

wind from his storehouses. This image is used elsewhere in Scripture (; ), where the primordial rain, lightning, snow, hail and wind are in Yahweh’s storehouses. These meteorological elements are often unleashed by God’s breath (wind) either as divine blessing or divine judgment. They can also defeat Israel’s enemies. Note that the idea of divine storehouses is not a common imagery in the ancient Near East—the metaphor is only known from the Bible.

haunt of jackals. See note on .

iron-smelting furnace. This is a metaphor for Israel’s experience in Egypt, where God’s people endured many years of slavery (cf. also ). Furnaces at this time varied in size and shape and were made either of brick or stone. In this particular metaphor iron is smelted. This furnace should not be confused with a blast furnace such as is used today. Iron has a very high melting point—about 2,800°F (1,538°C). Technology available during Jeremiah’s time did not allow such a high temperature. But the ancient Israelites could achieve a temperature of 2,012°F (1,100°C), which is enough to get the iron to a softer, semisolid form that can then be forged. Initially one might see a negative use of this metaphor and think only of the suffering and anguish that God’s people experienced in Egypt. Yet the process of smelting is not necessarily destructive; rather, in general it is a constructive process. Therefore, one can understand the metaphor as being positive in the sense that the experience of slavery in Egypt forged a people who could endure difficult circumstances and be transformed by them.

flowing with milk and honey. This stereotypical phrase alludes to a fertile land and should not be taken literally. It is used in the Bible to speak of the land of Canaan in positive terms (e.g., ; ). One can suggest that this phrase was part of a ritual that expressed thanksgiving every year when the firstfruits were offered to God. The use of such a phrase was not uncommon in the ancient Near East. In an Egyptian literary text attributed to Sinuhe from the second millennium BC, the land is described in similar fashion. There it is evident that Sinuhe had a strong love for the Egyptian country. Also, the Ugaritic Baal Cycle speaks of the heavens raining olive oil and dry stream beds flowing with honey.

altars . . . to that shameful god Baal are as many as the streets of Jerusalem. Jeremiah again resorts to hyperbole in order to give force to his argument. He claims that the people are so immersed in Baal worship that it seems that at every corner a Baal shrine exists. It is true that in the ancient Near East many towns had numerous shrines throughout the residential areas where people could stop and engage in a religious ritual. Most of these would have some kind of an altar where incense could be burned (see note on ).

consecrated meat. Much of the meat that was consumed in Israel was connected to the sacrificial system and was therefore eaten in specified areas in the temple. Consecrated meat would refer to meat that was used under such circumstances. The irony here is that even as they sit in the temple precincts and partake of a sacral meal, they discuss their wickedness in the table conversation.

thriving olive tree with fruit beautiful in form. The olive tree adorned with leaves was a common sight in Israel. It is often used as a metaphor for an abundant and satisfied life. It conjures up images of health, growth, beauty and prosperity. This is how God once had defined Israel. This picture is also a common one in Egypt. Amenemope (second millennium BC) describes the wise as trees planted in the garden that flourish and double their yield; the fruit is sweet and the shade is pleasant. In contrast are the fools, who are characterized as trees planted indoors; they wither and are only good for burning as trash.

Anathoth. See note on . threatening to kill you. The threat on Jeremiah’s life likely has its origin in Jeremiah’s support of Josiah’s reform, which had resulted in the village sanctuary at Anathoth being closed down. This would not sit well with Jeremiah’s priestly family or with his friends. Do not prophesy. Known written prophecies from the ancient Near East contain mostly positive prophecies because negative ones would not generally have been preserved in writing (it was largely the court that produced the documents). Prophecy was largely an oral exercise. People in the ancient world believed that the pronouncement of the prophecy gave it efficacy. Therefore, if they could just prevent the prophet from speaking, the prophecy would lose its power. Killing Jeremiah would be one way to prevent Jeremiah’s prophecy from being fulfilled.

He will not see what happens to us. In the ancient world it was believed that people suffered because the gods became offended and began to ignore and neglect them (see notes on ; ; ). The land therefore languished and the god would have no awareness of what happened to the people. His attention was elsewhere. These gods typically did not send judgment, they just withheld blessing or even took away protective spirits. This left the people vulnerable to all the worst circumstances. Here Jeremiah is also reflecting the idea that Yahweh has abandoned the people and is no longer even aware of their desperate situation.

thickets by the Jordan. This phrase can also be translated the “Pride of Jordan.” “Thickets” translates a Hebrew word that generally means “height.” The area known as the Pride of Jordan comprises the section of wooded undergrowth on either side of the Jordan River between the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea. It is the lowest spot in the Jordan rift, where the Jordan swells and overflows into a jungle-like thicket of reeds, bushes and trees. In this area one can find thickets of tamarisk, willow, poplar, oleander, cane and reeds. There is evidence that lions ruled in these forest areas until the thirteenth century AD. Other beasts inhabited this area as well, such as the wild boar, leopard, jackals, hyenas, desert rats and otters. This was a dangerous place for human beings.

speckled bird of prey. This is a difficult verse to understand. In fact, many scholars consider that this text does not refer to a bird at all, but to a hyena and its lair. This has support from the Septuagint (the pre-Christian Greek translation of the OT), the Talmud, and usage in other Semitic languages. Nevertheless, the evidence is not conclusive. One can still retain the reading of “bird” and understand the word “speckled” as being something negative. If so, then just as Judah has been savage toward God, she herself will now be treated as prey by her enemies. Whether one speaks of hyenas or birds of prey, the underlying issue is that Judah has behaved in such a manner that it deserves to be punished by enemies who are characterized as creatures who feast on their prey.

This style of literature is common in the literary genre of prophetic literature. These symbolic action reports include the following: the Hebrew prophet is commanded to carry out a task, that behavior is then reported, and the report of said task then is followed by an interpretation. In Jeremiah’s case we have a number of situations that qualify as this kind of symbolic action report in which the prophetic message is accompanied by an illustrative action. Jeremiah is commanded to take and bury a loin cloth (), to smash a clay jar (), to wear an ox yoke (), to buy a field () and to bury large stones (), among others. There is also a symbolic action that takes place in the visionary world: Jeremiah is commanded to take a cup from the hand of Yahweh that is filled with Yahweh’s wrath ().

Ezekiel, a younger contemporary of Jeremiah, also uses this medium frequently. His sign acts include making a map of Jerusalem on a brick (), lying on his side (), eating exiles’ rations (), and shaving his hair (), just to name a few.

Symbolic action reports are present in other ancient Near Eastern contexts. Prophets in the ancient Near East, particularly from Mari in Mesopotamia, sometimes accompanied their prophecies with a symbolic action. In texts discovered at Mari, we have a letter from Yaqqim-Adad, the governor of the city of Saggaratum, sent to King Zimri-Lim (c. 1775–1761 BC). In that letter Yaqqim-Adad reports that the prophet asked for a live lamb, tore it apart and ate its raw meat in public. In this way the prophet warned that a pestilence would break out in the land. ◆

Go to

linen belt. It is impossible to know precisely which of two kinds of loincloths is intended in this context. The first option comes from a Canaanite depiction—a simple wrapper that did not pass between the legs. A second option is provided by an Egyptian depiction of Syrians wearing a garment made up of narrow strips of overlapping cloth that did pass through the legs. These garments could be made of different materials, such as leather, wool or linen. Two important aspects of this garment need to be underlined. First, this is a garment that clings to the body; it is not like a girdle worn over clothing. Second, the finest cloth mentioned here (“linen”) symbolizes what Israel meant to Yahweh, particularly as Israel is remembered in .

Perath. Generally speaking, it designates the Euphrates River in Mesopotamia. The distance between Anathoth and the Euphrates River is approximately 362 miles (582 kilometers). This would mean two long, round-trip journeys for Jeremiah. Note that the other uses of “Perath” are either accompanied by the word “river” or by a qualifying term such as “Babylon” or “Carchemish.” This is the only place where “Perath” occurs without any qualifier. A good alternative to the Euphrates River can be found about four miles (6.4 kilometers) northeast of Anathoth, at a site known as Parah, modern-day Khirbet Farah and the nearby spring Wadi Farah (cf. “Parah” in ). The short distance to Parah makes the symbolic action carried out by Jeremiah much more viable and powerful.

wineskin. There is much discussion as to whether this Hebrew term is not better translated “jar,” “jug,” or “wine flask,” and ample evidence exists to support such a translation. However, changing the image does not solve the matter of interpreting this difficult verse. We suggest Jeremiah is perhaps quoting a proverb to catch the audience’s attention. He says something that really does not mean anything or is noncommunicative, and this serves to jolt the audience out of their apathy.

queen mother. The queen mother often exercised considerable power. With respect to this verse, the queen mother likely refers to Nehushta, the mother of the young King Jehoiachin (). Jehoiachin occupied the throne for three months before he was taken into captivity by the Babylonians in 597 BC. Evidence is lacking as to whether the power and office of the queen mother was strictly defined and institutionalized. Nevertheless we know from many Mesopotamian, Egyptian and Hittite sources that the role of the queen mother was important. The wife of Zimri-Lim, king of Mari during the second millennium BC, was influential with respect to administrative details. Likewise, Naqia-Zakutu, wife of Sennacherib, king of Assyria (705–681 BC), was instrumental in securing the accession of her son Esarhaddon (681–669 BC). This role seems to have gained power particularly when the son or grandson of the queen was named king at an early age and the husband of the queen had already died. In Judah, we surmise that a queen mother could be removed from “office.” In we read that queen mother Maakah was removed by her grandson Asa, king of Judah, because of her cultic offenses. Clearly this queen mother had high rank and official prerogatives. There is little evidence for such an office in the northern kingdom of Israel, though the names of at least two queen mothers—Zeruah () and Jezebel ()—have been preserved. See note on . crowns. The royal crown in Judah was most likely a gold circlet or diadem worn over a turban and adorned with a precious stone or stones. In the ancient Near Eastern context many different types of headdress were worn by the kings. A common one in Assyria was a conical-shaped cap that was embroidered and also decorated with precious stones. The Old Babylonian royal headgear was more of a rounded cap, whereas the Neo-Babylonian one was a cap that came to a point at the top. Egypt used crowns of varying shapes and forms, though all of them symbolized royal authority. In Jeremiah’s context this verse suggests that the time has come when King Jehoiachin (who ruled for three months in 598–597 BC) and his mother will have to relinquish the crown.

Negev. This term normally referred to the large desert area south of Judah. In this context, however, it likely denotes the portion of southern Judah dotted with towns and garrisons running from Bethlehem to Beersheba, with Hebron in the middle. It is unclear to what extent these cities came under attack by Babylon in 597 BC, but the ostraca from Arad suggest that Edom posed a threat to them.

Can an Ethiopian change his skin . . . ? An Ethiopian is an inhabitant of Cush, a term that designates an area south of Egypt that corresponds primarily to modern-day Sudan and perhaps portions of modern-day Ethiopia. The question asked by the prophet here is obviously a rhetorical question. But a possible answer to the question may be found in an ancient Egyptian text from the fifth century BC known as the “Instructions of Onchsheshonqy,” which indicates that no Nubian (i.e., Cushite) can lay off his skin. The answer to the question, implicit in the formulation of the question, is that it is absolutely impossible for such a thing to happen. a leopard its spots? This is a parallel question to the previous one. Once again the impossibility of something taking place is phrased by means of a rhetorical question. A similar kind of impossibility is expressed in a text of Aramaic proverbs known as the Words of Ahiqar. These texts come from a Jewish community that lived for a time in Egypt around the fifth century BC. One of these didactic texts contains a conversation between a leopard and a goat in which the leopard offers to give his skin to the goat so that it can keep warm. The goat replies that the leopard’s real intention is to take away the goat’s skin.

pull up your skirts over your face that your shame may be seen. This is a powerful and somewhat violent description of what will happen to Judah. This does not refer to women being taken into captivity, nor does it refer to Judah not being able to see because its face is covered. Rather, God will uncover Judah’s nakedness before the enemy and allow the enemy to ravage her. The word “shame” here is a euphemism for private parts. God will expose Judah’s private parts, thus rendering her vulnerable to the enemy.

cisterns. See note on .

jackals. See note on .

fast. There was only one annual national day of fasting in Israel instituted by OT law, namely, the fasting done on the Day of Atonement, primarily as a sign of repentance. But voluntary fasting was done in a variety of circumstances, either individually or nationally. Realities such as drought, famine, sickness, death, imminent enemy invasion, or other life-threatening circumstances led the people of Israel to practice fasting. Such fasting, of course, was intended to influence God to intervene on their behalf. Fasting was often accompanied by other behavior such as lying on the ground, putting on sackcloth and ashes, weeping, tearing of clothes, and, last but not least, prayer. Fasting was often done in the context of mourning (see notes on ; ; see also the article “

”). In ancient Near Eastern society, fasting was not as prevalent as in Israel. A reading of texts such as the “Curse of Agade,” the Gilgamesh Epic, and the Ugaritic Baal Cycle shows that fasting generally took place only in the context of mourning.

Do . . . idols . . . bring rain? Do the skies . . . send down showers? Like most people from the ancient Near East, the Israelites viewed seasonal climate as coming from the four winds, which were derived from the four corners of the earth. God not only controlled the winds, but created them. The north wind was associated with cold conditions, dispersing rain and snow. The south wind was at times the bringer of the sirocco (see note on ). The east wind brought a dry wind from the wilderness. The west wind came in from the Mediterranean Sea and was described as the “father of rain.” It is clear in this verse that the common Israelite would have thought it absolutely ridiculous to imagine that the skies rained all by themselves. As in the rest of the ancient Near East, the Israelites believed that weather did not happen independent of deity.

because of what Manasseh . . . did. The mention of Manasseh’s actions in this context is ominous. This king occupied the throne of Judah more years than did even King David, the founder of the Davidic dynasty. Manasseh encouraged the people to engage in idolatrous practices and even ordered the reconstruction of many pagan cultic centers that his own father, Hezekiah, had destroyed. This elicited the anger of the prophets like Jeremiah. Consequently, according to the prophets of the Hebrew Bible, the fall and final destruction of Jerusalem and the kingdom of Judah was caused primarily by the rebellious leadership and aberrant behavior of Manasseh.

winnow them with a winnowing fork. Once grain is harvested in Israel, it is threshed and then winnowed. This is done by throwing the harvested grain into the air with a winnowing fork so that the heavier grains fall to the threshing floor while the chaff is blown away by the gentle wind. Based on winnowing forks still in use during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries in Palestine and Syria, one can suggest that the fork used in antiquity was made out of wood, was about six feet (1.8 meters) tall, and had five or six prongs. Jeremiah here uses the process of winnowing as a metaphor for judgment and destruction. This idea is perhaps intensified by the use of the word “fork,” which in Hebrew is derived from a verbal root that means “to scatter.” In the minds of the hearers, this term may conjure up the idea of dispersion and exile, which in fact is what the Israelites experienced. In the Ugaritic Baal Cycle, winnowing is also used as a metaphor of punishment. In this case Mot, the god of death, cries against Baal, saying that because of Baal, Mot has lost face and has been cut up with a sword, burnt with fire, ground with a millstone and winnowed with a sieve. In other texts, the goddess Anat, who longs for Baal, seizes Mot, splits him with a sword, and winnows him with a sieve.

midday. Noon was considered the most secure time of the day. Most battles began at daybreak so as to take advantage of as much daylight as possible. In the present case (see also ), the enemy is so confident that it can attack at any time. They can let half the day go by and still be sure of victory. To attack at noon would be a total surprise, so the use of “midday” here expresses the idea of unexpectedness. The enemy of Israel will launch a surprise attack at the most unexpected time of the day. destroyer. Represents the Chaldean army, which is being prepared by God to attack his people. This is not the same word as used for the destroying angel in the Passover episode (), but it is used of the military operations conducted by the Lord in ; .

It seems that here iron represents the enemy, while the prophet Jeremiah is characterized by iron and bronze. The suggestion is that the enemy (iron) cannot prevail over a much stronger Jeremiah (iron-bronze). iron from the north. Most likely refers to a high grade Pontus iron. Pontus is located in northeast Asia Minor on the Black Sea (part of Hittite country). Already in the thirteenth century BC Shalmaneser I, the king of Assyria (1264–1234 BC), mentions the Hittite Empire as a good source of iron.

a fortified wall of bronze. Excavations at Balawat (ancient Imgur-Enlil), a palace located about ten miles (16 kilometers) from Nimrud, show that Shalmaneser III, king of Assyria (858–824 BC), erected gates capped with bronze. The bronze bands are decorated in relief by hammering from behind.

Proper burial was an important value in ancient Israel as well as in the entire ancient Near East (see the article “Exposure of the Dead”). When the prophet wants to speak of judgment and punishment, he threatens the people with the exposure of dead bodies—either by denying proper burial or by malicious disinterment.

In many cases lack of a proper burial was considered a curse, which contained three elements: (1) the body will be left unburied; (2) it will serve as food for the birds and the beasts; (3) it will be refuse on the face of the earth. A popular belief was that a person who was not interred properly remained restless until he or she was properly laid to rest. This is illustrated by a text in the Gilgamesh Epic, where the question is asked regarding the state of a corpse that is cast out into the open steppe. The answer given is that the spirit of that corpse finds no rest in the netherworld. In the vassal treaties of Esarhaddon, king of Assyria (681–669 BC), one finds curses that mention the threat of filling up the plains with corpses whose flesh will be food for eagles and vultures.

In addition to proper burial, it was considered important to fulfill certain mourning rites on behalf of the dead. This may have been influenced by forms of ancestor cult worship prevalent in the ancient Near East. This is illustrated by certain Ugaritic texts. Even though Leviticus expressly prohibits certain rites, it is evident that the Israelites did practice mourning rites such as rending garments, putting on sackcloth, shaving the hair, and even cutting the body (see the article “

”). They also took part in a sort of death-cult banquet known as the marzeah (see note on ). ◆

Go to

funeral meal. This Hebrew term (marzeah) occurs in only one other place in the Hebrew Bible ( [“feasting”]). However, its cognates in other ancient Near Eastern languages and cultures are well known. In an Ugaritic text that speaks of El’s divine feast, the term denotes a banquet where excess drinking and feasting were the norm. That text, others from Elephantine (Egypt), and inscriptions in Punic, Nabatean and Palmyrene (though from different time periods) suggest that marzeah describes an institution of sorts or an association of members who periodically dedicate themselves to feasting and drinking either for a joyful moment or for the mourning of the dead. Though we cannot be sure what was involved in this Israelite practice, funerary rites tend to remain the same over centuries. We do know that God forbade Jeremiah to participate in these banquets as well as in other social activities such as getting married or even participating in marriage ceremonies.

no one will cut themselves or shave their head for the dead. The Torah prohibited the Israelites to engage in these mourning rites (; ). Yet there is ample evidence that they were practiced in Israel (; ). The reason for this kind of behavior may be due to a belief in the powers held by the spirits of the dead. cut themselves. slashing one’s body was part of Baal worship (cf. the confrontation between Elijah and the prophets of Baal in ). See note on . shave. Studies have shown that shaving rites are flexible and can function in different ways: as a rite of separation (; ), as a rite of aggregation (; ), and as a purification process in certain ritual contexts (). Each case must be analyzed separately. But the underlying similarity is that shaving signals a change in status and serves to publicly announce that change.

they are not gods! See notes on ; .

iron tool. The Hebrew term used here should not be confused with the one mentioned in , which speaks of writing with ink on papyrus. The instrument noted here is a stylus used to engrave metal and stone. flint point. Some think this is not a separate tool but the hard stone attached to the iron tool. What seems clear is the prophet’s intention. He compares Israel’s heart to an extremely hard surface such as metal or stone. These were used as writing surfaces in antiquity. horns of their altars. Refers to four protrusions that arise at the four corners of many ancient altars (), though their significance or use is unknown. Altars of this kind have been found both in Canaanite and wider ancient Near Eastern contexts. Some consider that these projections may have been used to help in binding the victim and in securing the wood to the altar. In certain cases the horns served as a kind of protective device for a person accused of murder. That person could grasp on to the horns and receive a measure of protection from accusers, though it did not always work this way (). The prophet Amos, in order to illustrate the reality of imminent destruction, speaks of the horns of the altar being cut off and falling to the ground ().

Asherah poles. These are most probably wooden poles, though they could also refer to live trees. They represent the Canaanite mother-goddess Asherah, who is the symbol of fertility (see note on ). Though these were forbidden for the Israelites, they often mixed worship of Yahweh with other ancient fertility symbols. Asherah poles were often placed alongside altars that were designated for the worship of Yahweh (see notes on ; ). high hills. See note on .

wastelands. The Arabah, an area in Israel that comprises the area south of the Sea of Galilee on both sides of the Jordan River, continuing south beyond the Dead Sea, and extending southwest toward the head of the Gulf of Aqaba. Most of this region lies below sea level, and thus it is a depression that lies between two sections of higher ground. salt land. Land that is completely barren, such as what is found in the vicinity of the Dead Sea. Land whose level of salinity is high is useless for agriculture, which conjures up memories of Sodom and Gomorrah (). In the Tigris-Euphrates region, a process of progressive salinity took place between the third and second millennium BC. This meant that as time went on, the percentage of salinity in the vicinity of the Persian Gulf was so great that the soil was no longer suitable for agriculture and had to be abandoned.

The translation of this verse is difficult, and there is no scholarly consensus regarding the exact meaning of the verbs used in the first line of this proverb. partridge. In the region of Palestine, the partridge lays eggs in shallow nests on exposed ground, making the eggs vulnerable to predators, which either eat them or crush them. Both male and female partridges sit on the eggs that the female has laid. There are at least two kinds of partridges Jeremiah may have had in mind: the black francolin partridge, which inhabits the marshy areas of Israel, Syria and Jordan; and the sand partridge, which lives in desert and semidesert regions of Israel, Jordan and the Sinai peninsula. The meaning of the proverb in this verse depends considerably on the translation. Perhaps the idea is the danger of complacency. The partridges, male and female, watch over the eggs but can never be sure all of them will hatch because of the precarious situation wherein they are laid. The same is true of the man who gains riches through unjust means.

the LORD, the spring of living water. “Living” water refers to running water in contrast to stagnant or contaminated water that gathers in cisterns or pools.

Gate of the People. Lit. “Gate of the Sons of the People.” The exact location of this gate cannot be determined. “Sons of the People” is somewhat confusing. In other contexts this expression characterizes the common people. But here it speaks of the kings of Judah going in and out of this gate. Some have suggested that it may refer to one of the temple gates, comparing this passage to . Perhaps the most significant concept is that Jeremiah, as a prophet, goes to where the people are. He does not wait in a temple or expect the people to approach him. other gates of Jerusalem. During this time Jerusalem had many outer gates, as well as inner gates that protected the temple. On other occasions Jeremiah was sent to the Potsherd Gate () and the Temple Gate (). The gates of the city of Jerusalem were busy places where people passed through continuously, bringing in merchandise or going to the gate areas to purchase things. These areas were also used to discuss and decide civil and legal cases in the city (see notes on ; ; ; ). It is difficult to ascertain how many gates existed during Jeremiah’s time. In Nehemiah’s time, at least 11 gates are mentioned by name.

The regions mentioned in this verse provide a kind of panoramic view of Judah’s territory. the territory of Benjamin. Just north of Jerusalem. Benjamin and Judah are the two tribes that make up the southern kingdom of Israel. the western foothills. The Shephelah (Lowlands); they lie to the west and southwest of Jerusalem, going as far as the Philistine plains. the hill country. Goes a bit to the north of Jerusalem and mostly south, including the Hebron heights. the Negev. Lies farther south than the “hill country”; it is that arid desert land where Beersheba and other boundary towns are found.

Model of potter at work. See note on .

Kim Walton. The Oriental Institute Museum, University of Chicago.

Return to

potter’s house. This image is a familiar one for Jeremiah. If we judge from the amount of pottery pieces lying all over archaeological sites in Israel, pottery was a well-known craft. In the ancient Near East, handmade pottery was crafted as early as 8500 BC, which corresponds to the Neolithic period (c. 9000–4300 BC). Pottery is a valuable instrument in helping archaeologists date historical events as well as archaeological discoveries. The kind of clay, the shape, decoration, kinds of handles and colors are all used to develop a chronology and dating system. The potter’s house, or workshop, must have been a rather large place. It included various instruments as well as different areas of work. It had to have a potter’s wheel, a space for treading, a kiln, a field for storing vessels and a dump for those pieces the potter discarded. The potter also needed a good source of water, which could be either a nearby stream or cistern.

wheel. Lit. “two stones.” Excavations done at places such as Tel Miqne-Ekron have turned up seventh-century BC wheels made out of stone. The potter’s wheel has been in existence since approximately the fourth millennium BC. In Jeremiah’s time there were two varieties: a slow wheel, or tournette, and a fast wheel. The one mentioned in this context is most likely the fast wheel. It consists of two disks or stones joined by a vertical axis. The lower one functions like a flywheel and is spun by the potter’s feet. (In Sirach 38:29 we read, “So it is with the potter, sitting at his work, turning the wheel with his feet” [NEB].) This causes the upper disk or stone to rotate as well. The clay is placed on the upper disk and is shaped by the hands of the potter. As explained in this parable, often during the process of “throwing” the clay, some defect appears either in the nature of the clay or in the design of the object. The potter then squeezes the developing object into a shapeless mass of clay and begins the process of creating the clay vessel over again.

Virgin Israel. This title is used only two other times in Jeremiah (, ; cf. ). Outside of Jeremiah it appears only once more in the Prophets, in . This term designates the entire people of God, and in this context it seems to be used in an ironic sense. The term “virgin” here most likely describes a young woman of marriageable age who is still under the legal supervision of her father. In Ugaritic texts, a cognate term is used as an epithet of the goddess Anat. In some texts she is referred to as the virgin warrior and the valiant widow. We cannot be sure exactly what this means, but it does not refer to virginity in the modern sense of the word, for according to the Ugaritic texts Anat has had sexual intercourse on more than one occasion.

snow of Lebanon. Probably refers to the range of high mountains in the Anti-Lebanon range. Many of these mountains are snowcapped most of the year. The highest mountain in Lebanon is called Qurnat as-Sawda, and the snow does not melt away on this mountain until late August.

roads not built up. A paved road was one that was built up. Paving was an expensive undertaking. In Babylon, dirt and gravel were used to build up the roadbed. Then bricks were laid in asphalt to form a foundation. Finally, limestone slabs were laid on top, and the crevices again were filled with asphalt. This process was only affordable on the most prominent streets in a city. Excavated examples occur in Palestine as early as the Middle Bronze period. Cobblestone streets using pebbles and pottery shards set in clay were the norm. Sometimes they were coated with a lime plaster. There is no evidence of paved country roads during this period. Even an unpaved road, however, could be built up with dirt so that water flowed off it to the sides. The alternative was a road that had simply been traveled often enough to cut a path. These were etched into the terrain and tended to gather water and become mud holes.

pit. Used as a trap to catch animals. Many of these were dug in the desert in order to trap game. However, archaeological excavations show that pits were dug for other uses as well: storing pottery, burying garbage, and making temporary kinds of prisons. This term may be used in a figurative sense here.

jar. Hebrew baqbuq, which helps in identifying the kind of jar or earthenware jug referred to here. Most scholars agree that the jug Jeremiah buys is an expensive, ring-burnished decanter that functions as a carafe. It is 4–10 inches (10–25 centimeters) high and has a heavy body with a narrow neck. The handle is attached to the neck and rim. It is used for storing liquids, and its distinctive narrow neck emits a gurgling sound. The term baqbuq sounds much like the gurgling sound of liquid coming out of the jug.

Valley of Ben Hinnom. This is one of the valleys that surrounds Jerusalem. It is located on the south side of the city and joins the Kidron Valley at the southeastern corner of the city (see note on ).

eat the flesh of their sons and daughters. Both in Israel and in the ancient Near Eastern context, eating human flesh was only done under dire circumstances. Scripture testifies that in the cities of Samaria () and Jerusalem (; ) during times of siege or famine, human flesh was eaten (see notes on ; ). Josephus writes that such atrocities also occurred during the Roman siege of Jerusalem. A similar curse to the one recorded here in Jeremiah can be found in the Vassal Treaties of Esarhaddon, king of Assyria (681–669 BC).

just as this potter’s jar is smashed. The imagery here is one of destruction for the Israelites and their capital city, Jerusalem. This kind of image was common in the ancient Near East. In Egypt during the Middle Kingdom period (c. 2106–1786 BC), the Egyptians practiced magical cursing against their present or potential enemies by inscribing pottery bowls with the names of their enemies and then smashing them. This served as poignant symbolic action, similar to Jeremiah’s actions here. In the “Lament Over the Destruction of Sumer and Ur,” the people who are defeated are described as being smashed as if they were clay potsherds.

burned incense on the roofs to all the starry hosts. The roofs of houses in the ancient Near East were flat and were used as living spaces. The roof served as a natural place to offer incense as an act of worship (see ; ). In Tablet III of the Assyrian version of the Gilgamesh Epic, Ninsun (the mother of Gilgamesh) goes up to the roof to offer incense to the sun-god, Shamash. This same practice seems to be alluded to in the Keret epic from Ugarit, which probably comes from the thirteenth century BC. In Josiah tears down altars that previous kings erected on the rooftops of houses. Further evidence of this practice is found in excavations carried out at Ashkelon, which brought to light the results of the Philistine city’s destruction at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, in 604 BC. Archaeologists have discovered remnants of incense burners that at one time were located on house roofs.

Pashhur. Jeremiah refers to more than one Pashhur (; ). The name probably had its origin in Egypt (meaning Son of Horus) and would have been common in Jeremiah’s time. The Pashhur mentioned here is chief officer in the temple in Jerusalem, which makes him second in rank to the high priest. The name has been found inscribed on an ostracon discovered at the Arad sanctuary. It also appears in an ostracon dated to the eighth or seventh century BC from Aroer.

stocks. The meaning of the Hebrew term is uncertain. This term also appears in and seemingly derives from the linguistic root that means “to turn, change, distort.” Presumably this instrument of punishment was used to hold the body in a bent or stooped position. But in the same term is translated “prison” (lit. “house of stocks”). This suggests that the term may refer to a prison or guardhouse rather than to a kind of torture device. Upper Gate of Benjamin. Not to be confused with the city’s other gate named the Benjamin Gate (; ). The Upper Gate may have been a temple gate located at the north of the city. Some suggest that it may be the same as the “New Gate” (; ).

king of Babylon. This is the first mention of Babylon and its king in Jeremiah. The foe of the north is no longer a mystery. This prophecy is not dated, so we do not know how it fits into the events of the time. Historically speaking, Babylon had not been a major player in the ancient Near Eastern power struggle since about the middle of the second millennium BC. Its rise to power did not happen until the battle of Carchemish in 605 BC, when Egypt was decisively defeated and Assyria ceased to exist as a nation.

mighty warrior. It was common in the ancient Near East to view the gods as cofighters in important battles. Victories in battles are often attributed to the gods. See the article “

”

heart and mind. Lit. “kidneys and heart.” In ancient Hebrew anthropology, the “kidneys” were considered to be the seat of emotions, affection and hidden motives. This is equivalent to the popular concept of heart today. Note that in Hebrew thought, “heart” is the center of the person’s will or mind (see note on ). In Ugaritic texts the kidneys seem to have the ability to instruct; in Mesopotamian texts that function is more associated with the liver.

Cursed be the day I was born! In the Mesopotamian epic “Erra and Ishum” the governor of the city that is being destroyed is portrayed as expressing to his mother a wish that he had been stillborn or obstructed in the womb so that he would not have been born to this destiny. See note on .

Zedekiah. His original name was Mattaniah. Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, changed Mattaniah’s name to Zedekiah. Once he conquered Jerusalem and exiled King Jehoiachin, along with his queen mother, Nebuchadnezzar placed Zedekiah as king over Judah. By changing Mattaniah’s name Nebuchadnezzar in effect stated that he had ownership and authority over Zedekiah. The action of naming somebody or something in the ancient Near East implies power over that individual. Zedekiah was only 21 years old when he was placed on the throne. He ruled for about 11 years (597–586 BC). At the end of his rule, Jerusalem was defeated again by Nebuchadnezzar, and Judah as an independent nation came to an end. Zedekiah is known to have been a weak and incompetent king. See the article “Historical Setting of Jeremiah.” the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah. This priest is an associate to Seraiah and perhaps is the successor to Pashhur son of Immer, who placed Jeremiah in the stocks (see notes on ). After the fall of Jerusalem, Zephaniah and Seraiah are taken together with others before Nebuchadnezzar at Riblah. There he executes both of them. The name Zephaniah has turned up in ostraca from various places such as Arad and Jerusalem. It has also been found on jar stamps from Lachish that date to the eighth and seventh centuries BC.

Nebuchadnezzar. This is the first time he is mentioned in Jeremiah. He ruled in Babylon during what is called the Neo-Babylonian period (c. 626–539 BC). In the Hebrew Scriptures, “Babylon” and “Babylonians” are sometimes termed “Chaldea” and “Chaldeans” (e.g., ). The Chaldeans are the Babylonians who ruled during the Neo-Babylonian period. Nebuchadnezzar (605–562 BC), along with his father Nabopolassar (626–605 BC), was most instrumental in bringing the Babylonian Empire to its maximum expression of power. The Babylonians were able to overcome the Assyrians in 612 BC by defeating Nineveh and were also able to curb Egypt’s power so that Egypt’s army had to remain within its boundaries and not attempt to control Syria and Israel. attacking us. Nebuchadnezzar comes to attack Jerusalem because the incompetent king Zedekiah has decided to withhold tribute and place his trust in an Egyptian pharaoh. Nebuchadnezzar does not tolerate this kind of ambivalence. After defeating a number of surrounding towns, Nebuchadnezzar and his army lay siege to Jerusalem and by 587/586 categorically defeat and conquer it, just as Jeremiah has announced.

besieging you. A city that is victim of a siege experiences tremendous anguish and despair. When the food supplies are gone from within the city, there is no possibility of going outside the city to get food, nor is there any chance that food can be brought in. Thus, famine begins to break out within the city walls. This is aggravated by the fact that many people who normally live outside the city walls crowd into the city, creating a greater need for food and space. The situation becomes extremely critical when a water source is cut off. Exceptional cities like Jerusalem and Megiddo had camouflaged tunnels that went from within the city to the water source. This certainly helped for a period of time. However, sooner or later these were discovered, and once deep thirst is installed within the city, defeat and sure death are near. See the article “

”

forests. This Hebrew term most likely refers not to literal forests of trees that surround the city of Jerusalem but to royal buildings within Jerusalem. describes a royal palace that was decorated with so much cedar that it was named the “Palace of the Forest of Lebanon (). This image of destruction is again repeated in , .

Do what is just and right . . . to the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow. See notes on ; ; ; .

this palace will become a ruin. The same kind of situation and similar language can be found in a text from approximately the eighth century BC. The various tablets that are used to reconstruct this text (the Mesopotamian epic “Erra and Ishum”) come from Assyria and Babylonia. Erra, also known as Nergal, is the god who has authority over both wild and domestic animals. At one point he threatens to unleash wild animals from the mountains and surrounding areas so they can devastate and ravage the city. The city will then become a ruin.

Gilead. It was on the east side of the Jordan River. The northern limits of Gilead were vague, and the east was bounded by desert. summit of Lebanon. Refers to its forests (see ). Both Gilead and Lebanon were known for the lush productivity of their forests.

fine cedar. See notes on v. ; ; ; ; .

him who is exiled. The king of Judah referred to here is most likely Shallum, the son of Josiah. Shallum took the throne name Jehoahaz. The prophet is advising the people not to mourn Josiah anymore, but to mourn the exiled king, Jehoahaz, who will no longer see the homeland. Jehoahaz ruled only three months (609 BC). He was exiled by Pharaoh Necho II to Egypt, where Jehoahaz died. His death is considered much more disgraceful than his father’s death in battle at the hand of the Egyptians.

builds his palace. This may be a reference to a rebuilding and enlargement of Solomon’s palace by Jehoiakim, or it may refer to another palace altogether. At Ramat Rahel a number of structures have been found possibly dating to the time of Jehoiakim. There, a large collection of stamped jar handles bearing the phrase, “belonging to the king” have been found from this period. people work for nothing. Since the king needed to pay a heavy tribute to Egypt, he may have engaged in forced labor for the project. Forced labor without compensation is reminiscent of practices during Solomon’s time (see note on ) and of practices periodically observed in both Egypt and Babylonia as a form of taxation (see notes on ; ).

panels it with cedar. Cedar paneling was considered the most luxurious and expensive material that could be used. It was used almost exclusively in palaces and temples. red. This Hebrew word is also used in . The red paint comes from either red oxide or from red ocher (hematite). The use of the red color seems to have been prevalent in Mesopotamian decoration of important buildings. An example of this can be seen at Tel Barsip in an Assyrian provincial palace dated to the eighth or seventh century BC. This palace had wall decorations painted on them with various colors, including bright red.

Jehoiakim. See the article “Historical Setting of Jeremiah.”

burial of a donkey. Jeremiah is so upset with King Jehoiakim because of his ridiculous architectural projects and his lack of justice that Jeremiah prophesies a most dishonorable burial for the king. In fact, it is no burial at all, for dead donkeys generally received no burial. Not receiving a proper burial was a terrible curse both in Israel and in the ancient Near East in general (see notes on ; ; ; see also the articles “Exposure of the Dead,” “Proper Burial”).

Lebanon. Here it is indicative of the mountainous region far to the north. This is different from the expression used in v. , where Lebanon is a metaphor for the cedar-paneled palace in Jerusalem. Bashan. In the Transjordan highlands north of Gilead; this is also a mountainous region (see note on ). Abarim. A Moabite mountain region that lies to the southeast; this range includes Mount Nebo (). Though these three geographic areas may or may not refer to places of mourning, it seems clear that they are intended to demonstrate that Jerusalem’s lament will be heard everywhere.

signet ring. See note on . When Yahweh pulls off Jehoiachin’s signet ring, it is a sign of rejection. Yahweh does not accept or validate the king’s authority.

Branch. This Hebrew term appears in the Messianic passages such as ; , attributed to Zerubbabel. Most consider it a technical term referring to a rightful heir of an established dynastic line—in Israel, a future Davidic king who would restore the monarchy. A similar usage has been found in a Phoenician votive inscription honoring Melqart found on Cyprus and dating to the early third century BC. There it refers to a legitimate “branch” of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt. The Dead Sea Scrolls from Qumran do not use the term in a Messianic sense, but the kingship sense does occur in Ugaritic and Assyrian texts. Tiglath-Pileser III is described as the shoot, or scion, of the city of Baltil (i.e., Assur) who brings justice to his people. a King who will . . . do what is just and right. A parallel is found in the reform declarations commonly made by Babylonian kings. Zedekiah issued such a proclamation in 588 BC (see note on ).

prophets of Samaria . . . prophesied by Baal. It is difficult to identify these prophets of Samaria. Perhaps Jeremiah has in mind the prophets of Baal who were so active during Ahab’s reign (874–853 BC). Alternatively, when the Assyrians exiled many of the Israelites of the northern kingdom, they brought in other peoples to mix in with the remaining population. This would have created fertile ground for syncretistic religious ideas and practices.

council of the LORD. There are two ways to read this phrase. First, it may refer to the prophets who stood in God’s presence to receive a divine message. We know that earlier Jeremiah stood in such a council (). But there the issue seems to refer to those who are not true prophets and who deceive the people. To stand in the council of the Lord is to serve as a kind of royal messenger who has been transported to the council of the Lord by way of a vision (). It is the true prophet who has been privileged with this opportunity and been given the responsibility to proclaim the word of the Lord. Second, it may be understood in light of other Biblical texts and in the context of Mesopotamian religious texts. The idea of a council or assembly of the gods is found early in Mesopotamian literature. See the article “

”

storm. The Hebrew term refers to a kind of swirling wind accompanied by rain. It may even refer to a kind of tornado, though these are rare and occur only near the coast. The kind of storm wind mentioned here was common during the rainy season. Both this wind and the sirocco (see note on ) are metaphors for destruction, devastation and punishment in the Hebrew Bible.

a God nearby . . . a God far away. “Nearby” and “far away” may combine the aspects of a locally involved patron deity and a powerful cosmic deity, respectively. Few gods in the ancient world would have been believed to fit this profile.

I had a dream! Dreams were one of the standard means for receiving messages from a god in the ancient Near East (see Jacob in ; Joseph in ; Nebuchadnezzar in ; ). Dreams appear in Old Babylonian omen texts along with the reports of the examination of sheep livers; anomalies in the weather, in births or in animals; and other presumed signs of divine will. These portents were taken quite seriously and studied. The professional priesthood in both Mesopotamia and Egypt included instruction in the interpretation of dreams and other omens (see note on ).

The Babylonian Chronicle, 605 to 594 BC, mentions the exile of Jehoiachin.

Return to

Jehoiachin. Also called Jeconiah and Coniah, he was the king of Judah whom Nebuchadnezzar captured when Jerusalem was defeated by the Babylonians in 597 BC. Jehoiachin became king at the age of 18 and ruled for three months. Nebuchadnezzar exiled Jehoiachin along with his mother, wives, officials, craftsmen, smiths and others. While in Babylon Jehoiachin was well taken care of. In a Babylonian text from that time we read that “Yaukin, king of Judah and his five sons received rations.” At some point Jehoiachin was thrown in prison, but later (561 or 560 BC) he was released from prison by King Awel-Marduk (562–560 BC). This Babylonian king gave Jehoiachin a place of privilege and allowed him to eat at the royal table. This may have generated unwarranted Messianic expectations among the Israelites. Nebuchadnezzar. See note on ; see also the article “Historical Setting of Jeremiah.” baskets. The Hebrew word is generally the word for a cooking pot—a deep, round-bottomed, two-handled receptacle. figs. They are rich in sugar and were essential to a good diet in antiquity. They were eaten fresh or dried, pressed into cakes, or preserved. They were also used for medicinal purposes, particularly as a laxative and a tonic (see note on ).

Tomb painting in Nebamun’s estate garden depicts a woman gathering figs. Thebes, Egypt, c. 1350 BC.

Kim Walton. The British Museum.

Return to

In this vision, which is similar to the visions of the almond branch and the boiling pot (), Jeremiah sees two baskets of figs in front of the temple. The good figs in the one basket symbolize the Israelites exiled to Babylon in 597 BC. These will turn back to the Lord and be able to return to their homeland. The bad figs in the other basket symbolize those who have resisted Nebuchadnezzar and stayed behind in Jerusalem, including King Zedekiah and his officials. This vision contradicts the popular notion held in Jerusalem that those who stayed in the city were the privileged ones.

ripen early. The fig tree produces two annual crops. The first one generally takes place in May and early June; the second one, which comes under the category of “summer fruits,” takes place in August-September.

Zedekiah. See note on ; see also the article “Historical Setting of Jeremiah.”

fourth year of Jehoiakim . . . which was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar. Determining the exact date of the fourth year of the reign of Jehoiakim and synchronizing it with the first year of Nebuchadnezzar requires knowing how chronology worked in the ancient Near East. This has to do with what is known as the accession year of a king to the throne. Jehoiakim’s accession period is most likely from about September, 609 BC to April, 608 BC; thus, “the fourth year of Jehoiakim” can be either 605 or 604 BC. This date needs to be coordinated with “the first year of Nebuchadnezzar.” According to the historical texts from Babylonia, Nebuchadnezzar began his reign in September, 605 BC and his accession period went from that date until March-April, 604 BC. Therefore, his first year of rule would not have begun until April, 604 BC. On this basis, the date recorded in this verse is 604 BC. This was an important year since it was immediately after Nebuchadnezzar defeated the Egyptians in the battle of Carchemish (see note on ; see also the article “Historical Setting of Jeremiah”). This meant that Syria and Palestine were now much easier prey for the Babylonian army.

my servant Nebuchadnezzar. This kind of language sometimes misleads people to think that at this point Nebuchadnezzar is a worshiper of Yahweh. However, this is not the case. At different times in Biblical history the enemies of Israel who came to carry out God’s judgment on Israel are called God’s servants, insofar as they were fulfilling God’s plan by punishing Israel; in no way is it indicative of a heart turned toward Yahweh. Note too that Cyrus, who was not exactly an enemy but who had power over the Israelites, is also seen in this light ().

the sound of millstones and the light of the lamp. The grinding of flour was done with millstones. Without this activity, daily sustenance was jeopardized. If one encountered a town with no sound coming from millstones, it meant something was radically wrong. Life was at stake. One generally heard the sound of millstones in the morning, announcing the coming of another day of life. The absence of that sound was considered a curse in the ancient Near East. A vassal treaty of Esarhaddon king of Assyria (681–669 BC) contains a curse that threatens the vassal with the cessation of the sound of the grinding stone. The millstone and the lamp together symbolize domestic life in its regular daily cycle. The millstone is heard in the mornings, and the lamp burns at night. The presence of both signals joy because normality prevails. Their absence speaks of danger, devastation and death.

seventy years. As with many numbers in the Hebrew Bible, 70 should be understood for its rhetorical value rather than as a simple quantification. In the ancient Near East this number is stereotyped and refers to an approximate time span. In , e.g., it is used as the number of years for a full life. In Isaiah we read that Tyre will be forgotten for 70 years (). This same 70-year motif appears in an Esarhaddon (king of Assyria 681–669 BC) inscription that speaks of a period of 70 years in which Babylon will lie destroyed. The number 70 can also make reference to a specific span of time. The period of 70 years was approximately from the destruction of the temple in 587 BC to its rededication in about 515 BC. It also represents the amount of time from the initial subjugation of Israel under Nebuchadnezzar in 605 BC to the return from exile by Cyrus’s decree in 535 BC.

cup filled with the wine of my wrath. Jeremiah receives another vision with a special divine message. A possible scenario is of a banquet with all the nations present. Jeremiah is the cupbearer and takes the wine of wrath from Yahweh and serves it to the nations. The cup mentioned here is a drinking vessel made out of clay and usually overlaid with gold or silver for royal use (it could also be a receptacle more like a shallow wine bowl).

These verses describe the various nations to whom Jeremiah will give the cup filled with the wine of God’s wrath. Beginning in Egypt (v. ), Jeremiah proceeds to cover a wide geographic region. After Egypt the cup is given to all the kings of Uz (v. ). The exact location of Uz is still a matter of dispute; it most likely refers to a place in northwest Arabia between Dedan and Edom, even though in the Hebrew Bible it is also associated with other locations, such as Syria and Edom (; ).

From Uz, Jeremiah goes on to the coastal area to cover the Philistine cities such as Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron and Ashdod (v. ). Gath, an important Philistine city, is missing from this list, perhaps because it was destroyed years earlier in 711 BC by the Assyrian king Sargon II (721–705 BC). Jeremiah then moves on to the Transjordan, where he goes from south to north, encountering Edom, Moab and Ammon (v. ). He then returns to the coastline north of the Philistine cities to cover Phoenicia, including the cities of Tyre and Sidon (v. ).

We cannot be absolutely sure who the “kings of the coastlands across the sea” are (v. ). They could be the kings of the island of Cyprus and other islands in the Mediterranean. But they could also include Carthage in North Africa and islands off the coast of Spain. This judgment may be an extension of the one reserved for Phoenicia. Jeremiah proceeds south, across northern Arabia to the caravan centers of Dedan, Tema (an oasis) and Buz (v. ). From here Jeremiah travels to Zimri (whose location is unknown), Elam and Media (v. ), which are located in southwest Iran. Since not every place can be mentioned, Jeremiah concludes with “all the kingdoms on the face of the earth” (v. ). This summary excludes Babylon, which will be considered in the next sentence.

the king of Sheshak. The king of Babylon; he is the last to drink from the cup of God’s wrath. “Sheshak” spells “Babylon” using a code called atbash, which interchanges the letters of a name with an equivalent one in the Hebrew alphabet. It works like this: The last letter of the Hebrew alphabet is substituted by the first; the penultimate is substituted by the second, and so on. If this were done in English, the letter z would be represented by the letter a, the letter y would be substituted by the letter b, etc. If one takes the consonants of the name Sheshak (sh-sh-k) and uses the code described here, one ends up with b-b-l. The combination of these three consonants yields the name Babylon. A similar case occurs in , where the atbash (“Leb Kamai”) is used for Chaldea (see the on ). The purpose of atbash is to hide the identity of an enemy. This kind of a cipher could not be used in Akkadian (the language of Mesopotamia), for that language is based not on an alphabet but on a system of syllables.

shout like those who tread the grapes. Treading grapes was done by foot. This usually took place at the end of a harvest season and was generally associated with celebration and tumult. Those who treaded grapes sang loudly and shouted as they worked. This singing was often accompanied by musicians. There are pictures of Egyptian men treading grapes who are accompanied by musicians.

Early in the reign of Jehoiakim. Since Jehoiakim’s accession year was from about September, 609 BC to April, 608 BC (see note on ), his first complete regnal year began in April, 608 BC. Mesopotamia used a postdating accession year system, in which the accession year is not counted as the first year of rule. Egypt, for most of its history, used a non-accession year system, whereby there was no accession year computed. The first year of rule began the day the pharaoh took office. Israel began with the non-accession system but later on (under influence of Assyrian and Babylonian rule) adopted the accession year system, as here.

Shiloh. See note on .

You must die! When Jeremiah finishes speaking the word he has received from God, the priests, the prophets and all the people seize him and threaten his life. One senses the power of the spoken word here. Jeremiah’s opponents take his words seriously. This is because in the ancient Near East not only is the prophet the channel for divine messages but in the act of speaking the message the prophet unleashes the divine action. Therefore, if the prophet has said something that the authorities or the ones in power dislike, they will want to silence him. King Esarhaddon of Assyria (681–669 BC) gave written instructions to his vassals that if they heard of an evil plan that would go against the authorities—whether it be from family, friends, prophet, ecstatic, dream interpreter, or any other—they were to report it immediately.

Moresheth. The hometown of the prophet Micah. It is located near the Philistine town of Gath. In fact, in it is called “Moresheth Gath.” It has been identified with modern-day Tell Judeideh, which is a site in the low western hills. It is only about six miles (9.6 kilometers) northeast of Lachish. Excavations at this site have brought to light remains from the time of Micah (c. 737–699 BC) and Jeremiah (c. 627–580 BC). Hezekiah king of Judah. He ruled over Judah primarily during the last quarter of the eighth century BC, about 100 years before the time of Jeremiah. He came to the throne when he was 25 years old. Hezekiah instituted a religious reform in Judah, getting rid of the “high places” and the “sacred stones” (; see note there) that were forbidden by Deuteronomic law; he also launched a campaign to refurbish the temple. Politically speaking, Hezekiah sought independence from Assyria. This led to a military response by the Assyrian king and his army. In the so-called annals of Sennacherib, we read that this Assyrian king (705–681 BC) launched a military campaign against Judah. Sennacherib had laid siege to 46 of Hezekiah’s strong cities. The text then goes on to say that Sennacherib made Hezekiah a prisoner in his city “like a bird in a cage.” See .

Uriah son of Shemaiah. The name of this prophet was common in Judah during this time. It shows up repeatedly on ostraca (such as those at Lachish) and seals.

burial place of the common people. We cannot be sure if Uriah is left unburied (see note on ). But we do know that he was placed without proper ceremony in a less-than-desirable location. According to the burial grounds for the common people were located in the Kidron Valley, the area between the temple and the Mount of Olives. This area contains graves to this day.

Early in the reign of Zedekiah. The Hebrew Masoretic text, which is the “standard” text used for most translations of the Hebrew Bible, has “Jehoiakim” here. But Zedekiah is mentioned in the rest of the chapter. In ch. the narrator says that “in . . . that same year, the fourth year” of Zedekiah’s reign (), a confrontation between Hananiah and Jeremiah takes place. Based on these facts, it is possible that in the name “Jehoiakim” should read “Zedekiah” and that the phrase “early in the reign” designates Zedekiah’s fourth year in power. See note on ; see also the article “Historical Setting of Jeremiah.”

yoke. This yoke that Jeremiah wears is most likely not the entire yoke placed on oxen in antiquity but only the collar formed by the cords and yoke pegs. See note on .

Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre and Sidon. Envoys from these five neighboring nations come to Jerusalem to conspire with Zedekiah against Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. A domestic rebellion that took place in Babylon against Nebuchadnezzar in 595–594 BC may have sparked hopes that these smaller nations could get rid of the Babylonian yoke. Note that Egypt does not participate in this meeting; this may be one of the reasons this rebellion never materializes. Another possible reason may be that the king heeds Jeremiah’s advice to submit to Babylonia willingly.

outstretched arm. See notes on ; .

my servant Nebuchadnezzar. See note on . Nebuchadnezzar. See note on . make even the wild animals subject to him. The yoke symbolizes the subjection of domesticated animals. In this prophetic text, even the wild animals will be placed under the power of the Babylonian king. There are numerous Assyrian reliefs from the time of King Ashurbanipal (669–633 BC) that depict the hunting and subduing of wild animals such as lions and onagers. These are intended metaphorically to demonstrate the king’s victories over his enemies.

your prophets, your diviners, your interpreters of dreams, your mediums or your sorcerers. Jeremiah addresses those who represent these professions who are not residing in Jerusalem but in the neighboring nations. prophets. Those responsible to speak, proclaim and articulate the message received directly from the deity (see the article “

”). diviners. Those involved not so much in predicting the future but in the process of prognostication by reading omens, shaking arrows, casting lots and examining the entrails of sacrificial animals. They do this in order to advise the king. dreams. Accepted as a medium for divine revelation (see note on ). mediums. We do not have specific information that distinguishes them from sorcerers or diviners, though presumably they are responsible for making contact with the dead. sorcerers. Those more identified with magic, incantations and spells (see note on ). For further information on these professions, see note on .

articles from the LORD’s house. Most likely refers to the furnishings that belonged to the temple. Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had looted the temple when he defeated Jerusalem in 597 BC, taking its most valuable gold vessels (). Other accessories were carried off 11 years later (see for a list of the temple’s furnishings). Prophets such as Hananiah raised the hopes of priests and others by saying that the vessels would soon be returned.

the pillars. Most likely the two bronze pillars placed at the entrance of the vestibule of Solomon’s temple (see note on ), called Jakin and Boaz (). the bronze Sea. This was a large bronze basin that was probably placed in the courtyard of Solomon’s temple (see note on ). movable stands. These were smaller basins probably used to wash sacrificial animals (see note on ).

Jehoiachin. See notes on ; .

They will be taken to Babylon. In the ancient Near East, when an army defeated an enemy, they generally destroyed as much as they could. But it was also common procedure to loot the temple and take away sacred objects. This happened to Jerusalem when it was defeated by Nebuchadnezzar.

early in the reign of Zedekiah. Though there is some question as to the exact time frame mentioned here (see notes on ; ), most agree this event occurred in 594–593 BC. This verse also mentions that it takes place “in the fifth month.” The reason for mentioning this fact may be that Hananiah’s death happens in the seventh month of the same year (v. ). Hananiah son of Azzur. Hananiah is a prophet who represents the Jerusalem prophets, who are against Jeremiah and his message. As with previous names mentioned, Hananiah is a common name in Judah at this time. Gibeon. A Benjamite town located close to Anathoth, Jeremiah’s hometown. It is identified with el-Jib, which lies about six miles (9.6 kilometers) north of Jerusalem. Much like Anathoth, Gibeon was a priestly town and a major cultic site (see note on ).

broke it. Since Jeremiah only used the yoke collar formed by the cords and yoke pegs (see note on ), what is being broken are the yoke pegs that hold the yoke in place on either side of the neck of the ox. Given the language that is used both here and in ch. regarding the yoke, it is unlikely that the crossbar of the yoke was broken.

yoke of iron. The mention of replacing the broken “wooden yoke” with an iron yoke certainly has dramatic effect. This obviously points toward a much harsher kind of servitude that will be imposed on Judah. This kind of metaphor is reminiscent of the curse articulated in : “Because you did not serve the LORD your God joyfully . . . you will serve the enemies the LORD sends against you. He will put an iron yoke on your neck until he has destroyed you.” It should be clarified that a literal iron yoke would not have been at all practical because of its excessive weight.

control over the wild animals. See note on .

letter. This Hebrew term can refer to any document no matter what it is written on. Here it likely refers to a letter written on papyrus. It would be rolled into a scroll and then sealed. Jeremiah sends this letter to those who were exiled to Babylon in 597 BC. The letter is carried from Jerusalem to Babylon by a traveling merchant or a Babylonian messenger. We have ample evidence of this custom in the ancient Near East. Nineteen letters discovered at Lachish and dated approximately from 589 to 586 BC serve as a good illustration of the practice of writing and sending letters at this time. Nebuchadnezzar. See note on ; see also the article “Historical Setting of Jeremiah.” exile. The defeat of Jerusalem in 597 BC and the exile of the city’s leaders are recorded in various historical documents from Judah (e.g., ) and Mesopotamia (e.g., the Babylonian Chronicle). See notes on ; .

Jehoiachin. See notes on ; . queen mother. See note on . the skilled workers and the artisans. Cf. . They would be useful to Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon. They represent a class of people economically well positioned in society. They were also able to assist in building projects that were very important to the Babylonian king. Moreover, the absence of these people in Judah weakened Judah’s possibilities of gaining independence. Deporting important members of a society was not practiced only by the Babylonian kings. Earlier the Assyrian kings Esarhaddon (681–669 BC) and Ashurbanipal (669–633 BC) exiled skilled workers from Egypt. In a text known as “The Prisms of Esarhaddon and Ashurbanipal,” there is a long list of deported workers such as physicians, coppersmiths, goldsmiths, cart wrights, bakers, fishermen, and many others.

Zedekiah. See note on ; see also the article “Historical Setting of Jeremiah.”

When seventy years are completed. See note on .

stocks. See note on . neck-irons. This Hebrew term only occurs once in the Hebrew Bible, and its meaning is not clear. The translation “neck-iron” comes from a cognate term in Jewish Aramaic. Given our speculation regarding the meaning of “stocks” in (see note there), we can suggest that a neck-iron is also a restraining device that would serve to display, punish and humiliate a prisoner.

book. The Hebrew word (translated “letter” in ) is not a book in the modern sense of the word, but refers to any document whatever its form. Given the time period and the geographic context of this written record, this most likely refers to a scroll (see the article “

”).

Your wound is incurable. This expression seems to be a common curse both in the Hebrew Bible and in Mesopotamia. According to , if the people of God disobey the stipulations of their covenant, they will suffer the kind of punishment Egyptians experienced at the time of the exodus. In fact, there will be no cure for the sickness that will plague them (). A similar situation is described in the Code of Hammurapi (c. 1792–1750 BC), where a curse is pronounced to the effect that a person might be smitten with an incurable malady, which no physician is able to understand.

All your allies. Jehoiakim of Judah had been put on the throne by the Egyptians in 609 BC, and he remained loyal to them until Nebuchadnezzar’s domination made that impossible. After the fall of Ashkelon to Nebuchadnezzar in 604, Jehoiakim paid tribute to Babylon for a few years. But when Nebuchadnezzar failed in his attempted invasion of Egypt in 601, Jehoiakim again sided with Egypt and stopped sending the yearly tribute east. Thus in 597 when Nebuchadnezzar undertook his punitive raid against Jerusalem, Egypt was the principal ally on whom Judah relied. Later that year, Nebuchadnezzar put Zedekiah on the throne. Zedekiah almost immediately began meeting with a coalition of the small western states to stand together against Nebuchadnezzar (see note on ). In 595 BC, a new pharaoh, Psammetichus II, took the throne of Egypt. He enjoyed an early military success against the Nubians in the south, and one papyrus reports that his success was celebrated with a victory tour in Palestine. Therefore, though Egypt was not the instigator of the alliance, there was cause to expect their support against Babylon. It is uncertain which nations were actually part of the alliance when it finally took shape. As it turned out, Egypt’s army was routed in their confrontation with the Babylonians in 588 BC (see note on ), and it would appear, based on , that allies such as the Edomites threw their support to Babylon when it became clear that Jerusalem was about to fall. Only Ammon and Tyre of the western states became objects of Nebuchadnezzar’s wrath.

storm. See note on .

Virgin Israel. In this case the personification of Israel does not appear to be with ironic overtones. See note on . timbrels. See the article “

”

gather them from the ends of the earth. This stock phrase alludes to the dispersion of God’s people. “From the ends of the earth” is a phrase similar to the one found in (cf. ; cf. also , where a number of nations are mentioned, such as Assyria, Lower Egypt, Upper Egypt, Cush, Elam, Babylonia, Hamath, and the islands of the Mediterranean). the ends of the earth. Refers to the farthest corners of the earth as it was known at that time. It is also common to find that rulers in Mesopotamia are described as having dominion over the four corners of the earth.

beside streams of water. Israel is full of streams, but they are not always full of water. Rainfall is generally limited to the months of October through February. For the rest of the year, these “wadis” (stream beds) are dry, and thus they are often used as walking paths.

distant coastlands. In different contexts this stock phrase can refer to the Greek islands (), Crete (), Phoenician colonies, or Cyprus (). But in this context, in addition to all of these places, the phrase seems somewhat akin to “the ends of the earth” (v. ) in that it refers to the outer limits of the then-known world. Such areas are indicated on a small clay tablet known as the Babylonian world map dating to about this time. It pictures a disk-shaped landmass surrounded by the distant outlying regions.

the grain, the new wine and the olive oil. These three products are the principal staples of life in Palestine. They form a kind of triadic formula throughout Deuteronomy (; ; ; ; ; ; see also , ). grain. Can refer either to wheat or barley—the main field crops in Biblical times. The harvest of these crops extended over a period of seven weeks.

Ramah. Means “heights”; it is a matter of much debate as to whether the term here refers to a specific place or to any elevation. There was a town by this name, and it is generally identified with modern er-Ram, located about four miles (6.4 kilometers) north of Jerusalem. Others identify it with modern Ramallah, which lies about 7.5 miles (12 kilometers) north of Jerusalem. Ramah became famous during the time of the judges in Israel, for both Deborah and Samuel were associated with the place (; ). The situation of anguish at Ramah may be due to its strategic location. After the destruction of Jerusalem, Ramah may have served as a kind of staging place for those prisoners taken into exile. The connection between Ramah and Rachel is a matter of scholarly debate. One possible explanation hinges on the location of Rachel’s tomb. If indeed it lies in the vicinity of Ramah, in the place known as Zelzah, then the connection seems logical.

breast. The Hebrew word is better rendered “thigh.” The action of hitting one’s thigh in Israel was a sign of pain, repentance or sorrow (). The same kind of expression seems to have been used in the second millennium BC in Mesopotamia. In a text known as the Descent of Ishtar, we find the expression “she struck her thigh and bit her finger.” In the context, this action expresses pain and disgust.

Virgin Israel. See note on .

sacred mountain. This is an honorific title for the city of Jerusalem (see especially ; ; ; ; ; ; ). It was customary in the ancient Near East to consider that a deity’s residence was on a mountain height. It was considered an expression of that god’s sovereignty and role as dispenser of fertility. As such, the heavenly residence (temple) should be modeled by the earthly temple. Jerusalem lies on an elevated place surrounded by valleys, and thus it was natural to consider it the dwelling place of God.

The parents have eaten sour grapes. This was a well-known proverb in Jeremiah’s time, probably repeated many times both in Judah and among the exiles in Babylon. The idea of corporate responsibility for sin and the possibility that children pay for the sin of previous generations finds an interesting parallel in a Neo-Assyrian prayer in which the supplicant seeks release from the effect of sins committed by grandparents, parents or even siblings.

write it on their hearts. The idea of writing divine revelation on the human heart was not a strange image for the ancient inhabitant of Judah because of the practice of extispicy in the surrounding cultures. Extispicy is the practice whereby diviners seek an answer to a question posed to a deity by examining the appearance of the entrails of a specially slaughtered young ram (see the article “

”). The underlying concept is that the divine message is written on the liver, lungs, colon or heart of the animal. The appearance of the entrails is interpreted after the dissection of the carcass. The vocabulary used by Jeremiah here is similar to that used in extispicy omens found in Mesopotamian literature. Jeremiah proclaims that whereas in the past the hearts of the Israelites were inscribed with sin (see and note), now a new covenant will be written on those hearts. In such a case the metaphor of writing on the heart suggests a context of revelation: God’s law will be revealed by Israel as they live out its principles.

In Mesopotamia the “Tablet of Destinies” contained the decrees that were the foundation for all that happened on earth. The people took omens seriously because they believed that these decrees were mirrored in the heavenly bodies, in the behavior of animals and even in the entrails of animals. The assumption is that a divine decree is binding for all time. In the Babylonian creation epic Enuma Elish, the gods proclaim that Marduk’s “word shall not be challenged” and his “decree shall not be altered.” Similarly, in the wisdom sayings of the Egyptian Amenemope about justice, he states that “judgment belongs to the divine assembly, verdicts are sealed by divine decree.” In the Ugaritic Baal Cycle, the goddess Anat, in her attempt to flatter the chief god El, tells him that his “decrees are wise” and his “wisdom endures forever.” Occasionally, a text will refer to a god’s decree as “evil,” as in the Atrahasis epic (a flood story), but still these commands are carried out because of the lordship the ancient gods are said to have over creation. For the reigns of kings related to the endurance of the cosmos, see note on .

While Yahweh is capable of measuring the heavens (see note on ) and is intimately familiar with the foundations of the earth, these are beyond the reach of any human endeavor. The various creation epics from Mesopotamia (the Atrahasis epic, the Enuma Elish) describe the establishment of the heavens and the earth, the ordering of the universe and the charges given to each god to regulate his/her sphere of influence. Thus the knowledge of the heavens and the nether regions belongs only to the divine. There is no instance in which any human succeeds in quests to gain such knowledge (the heroes Gilgamesh and Adapa come the closest, but they are limited by their mortality). The mysteries and prerogatives of election are exclusive to Yahweh just as the mysteries and prerogatives of the cosmos are.

These verses are a kind of description of the boundaries of Jerusalem. It is suggested that these reflect the boundaries as they existed in Nehemiah’s time, though there is no scholarly consensus as to the extent of Nehemiah’s Jerusalem.

Tower of Hananel. Seems to have been located at the northwest corner of the temple complex. This probably is the area where the Babylonians breached the fortifications to enter into the city. This tower was later replaced by the Antonia Fortress of Herod. Corner Gate. On the west or northwest side of the city. It was probably located about 180 yards (165 meters) west of the Ephraim Gate and thus at approximately the same place where the present Jaffa Gate is situated. This means that here we have the rebuilding of the northwest side of the city.

hill of Gareb . . . turn to Goah. In this description of the boundaries of Jerusalem (see note on vv. ), the walking tour takes us counterclockwise toward the south. The exact locations of the two hills mentioned here are not known. Given the information we do have, Gareb is probably on the southwest and Goah on the southeast of the city. This places Goah somewhere in the Valley of Ben Hinnom (see notes on ; ).

Kidron Valley. See note on . Horse Gate. On the east wall of the city and therefore toward the northern end of the Kidron Valley. There is some doubt as to whether this gate was situated directly east of the southeast corner of the temple complex, or whether it was farther south. It is presumed that horses would have come through this gate into the palace. This is also the gate where Athaliah was killed ().

tenth year of Zedekiah . . . eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar. Once again we face a difficult chronological problem (see note on ). We have already explained the different dating systems used in the ancient Near East and how Israel seems to have changed its custom under Babylonian rule (see note on ). By means of synchronistic chronology it seems likely that the 10th year of Zedekiah and the 18th year of Nebuchadnezzar is 587 BC. It must be admitted that difficulties remain in trying to solve the chronological mysteries present in the ancient Near Eastern dating systems.

besieging Jerusalem. The siege of Jerusalem is described in detail in chs. . The mention of the siege here probably refers to the final siege begun in February, 587 BC. The initial siege may have started as early as 588. However, Egypt attempted a final attack against Babylon in order to curb Babylon’s invasion and thus forced a temporary lifting of the siege on Jerusalem. Once the Babylonians effectively controlled this Egyptian resurgence, they pressed fully against Jerusalem. The city fell about a year later. courtyard of the guard. Situated within the premises of the king’s palace. Jeremiah is in protective custody but enjoys a great degree of freedom. He is able to conduct a business transaction (i.e., the purchase of property), preach and receive visitors. These quarters are much more comfortable than the vaulted cell in a dungeon (see note on ) or the empty cistern (see note on )—confinement situations that Jeremiah later experiences.

Anathoth. See note on . as nearest relative it is your right and duty to buy it. According to Israelite law, land belonged to the family and was not to be bought or sold as an investment commodity. We do not know for sure why Jeremiah’s cousin Hanamel is forced to sell his property. He no doubt belongs to the same priestly family as Jeremiah. Hanamel may have become poor because of the political and economic conditions in Judah at this time. But he may have wanted to get rid of property since at this time it would have little value because of the Babylonian siege. Regardless of the reason, a next of kin has the privilege and duty of buying the property so that it remains in the extended family (; see note on ). We suspect that Hanamel first offers it to other family members, who have first rights, but they decide not to purchase land under Babylonian control. When it is offered to Jeremiah, he immediately becomes what is known in Biblical tradition as the “redeemer.” He “redeems” the land so that it will remain in the family. Needless to say, this is a ridiculous time to buy property. But the prophet of God follows through with his responsibility as a member of the covenant community.

courtyard of the guard. See note on v. .

weighed out. Balances to measure weights were used early in the development of civilization. Archaeological excavations reveal that the Egyptians developed balances and used them much more than did the Mesopotamians. These balances originally consisted of two pans suspended by cords from a beam that in turn was suspended by a cord in its center. These were then improved by placing a standard in the center. Before coinage was introduced in the mid-seventh century BC in Asia Minor, monetary value was determined by weighing ingots or scraps of precious metals on these balances. seventeen shekels of silver. During the seventh century BC, silver was used in the ancient Near East as a mode of payment. An average Israelite shekel weighed about 11.5 grams (0.4 ounces). Thus, the price of Hanamel’s field was approximately 200 grams (7 ounces) of silver. This would be the equivalent of about a year and a half of income for the regular laborer. We should not speculate on the price of the land purchased. We do not know current values of property, nor do we know the size of the field Jeremiah purchases. Presumably land values would have been depressed because of the siege against Jerusalem and its imminent destruction.

In the ancient Near East, two copies of a deed were written up on papyrus or parchment. A single sheet was used—the top half for the main copy and the bottom half for the duplicate copy. The top half was rolled, signed, sealed and designated as “the sealed deed of purchase.” The copy (the bottom half) was kept open so that it could be used for future reference if needed. The sealing was done as a precautionary measure so that the original deed could not be altered or tampered with, and thus there could be no questions regarding the original text.

The practice of writing up duplicate copies is illustrated by documents found at Elephantine in Egypt. These documents come from the fifth century BC and are written in Aramaic and Greek by members of a Jewish community that settled there after Jerusalem was destroyed by the Babylonians.

In transactions in Ugarit from the fourteenth to twelfth centuries BC, many land purchases followed the same procedure seen in . Witnesses were present at the signing and the document was sealed. ◆

Pottery jar from Qumran. Baruch () was to place the sealed and unsealed deeds in a clay jar, similar to this one.

Kim Walton. The Oriental Institute Museum, University of Chicago.

Go to

signed and sealed the deed. A land transaction was basically carried out in four steps: writing the document, signature of witnesses, sealing the document and storing the document. (On ancient deeds, see the article “Title Deeds in the Ancient Near East.”) Baruch, the scribe, was to place the sealed and unsealed deeds in a clay jar (vv. ); this would serve somewhat as a modern safety deposit box. This storage custom is illustrated by the many documents found near Qumran. The well-known Dead Sea Scrolls were stored in clay jars. In addition, these leather scrolls were wrapped in linen cloth for further protection.

Baruch son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah. This is the first mention of Baruch in Jeremiah (see note on ). Here his responsibilities are to write, tie up and seal Jeremiah’s deed of purchase, and then protect it by placing it in a clay jar.

flowing with milk and honey. See notes on ; .

siege ramps. See the article “

”

burning incense on the roofs. See note on .

sacrifice their sons and daughters. See notes on ; ; ; ; .

The Hebrew text of these verses is difficult to understand, partly because of technical terms not common in the Hebrew Bible. Whatever we may say regarding these verses will be provisional and based on some archaeological discoveries, particularly at Lachish and Jerusalem.

It was common at this time to build houses either into the wall of the city or right next to it. It is known that those who lived “in the wall” were generally the poor people, who by default lived in the most dangerous and vulnerable place of the city. In this context one can suggest that these houses were considered by the powerful in the city to be “disposable,” so that they were torn down to defend against the siege ramps built up by the enemy on the outside of the city wall (see the article “

”). It may well be the case that some of these houses were also used as army barracks, makeshift hospitals and burial places. Most burial places were outside of the city, but the enemy had control of the surroundings at this point.

Evidence from excavations at Lachish suggests that a counter-ramp was built inside the city in order to strengthen the walls against the Assyrian ramp constructed outside the city wall. This inside ramp was about 120 yards (110 meters) long and rose up over the original wall to a height of 3 yards (2.75 meters). Excavations at Jerusalem also suggest that the Babylonians built a siege ramp on the eastern slope that overlooked the Kidron Valley. The Babylonians probably availed themselves of precarious houses built on the outside terraces of the city wall.

towns of the hill country. They provide a panoramic view of the land (see note on ).

Branch. See note on .

Aerial view of Lachish.

Return to

It is difficult to date precisely the events narrated in vv. . Obviously a siege on Jerusalem is in process. One chronology suggests that the siege began as early as the summer of 588 BC. But it is also possible that it did not begin until 587. Another matter to consider is whether the events here happen before the Egyptian advance against the Babylonian army, which caused a temporary lifting of the siege, or after this reprieve for Jerusalem (see note on ). The best one can suggest, based on the tenor of the passage, is that these events take place toward the end of the siege when Zedekiah and the people of Jerusalem are getting desperate.

all the kingdoms . . . were fighting against Jerusalem. Babylon had conquered many nations by this time. It was customary for a victor to obligate the defeated nations to sign a treaty whereby they would lend military help to the sovereign nation whenever it was needed (see note on ). It is evident in this text that Nebuchadnezzar had enlisted support from all his vassal kings to fight against Jerusalem. Jerusalem by itself did not stand a chance against such a powerful enemy force.

funeral fire. This funeral rite must not be confused with cremation of a body, nor is this burning done in order to mask odors coming from a diseased or partially decayed body. The practice described here may be associated with a custom that can be archaeologically corroborated from around the middle of the eighth century BC. It involved the building of an artificial mound over the ground (called a tumulus). This tumulus was shaped like a truncated cone with a flat top and steep slopes. The ones found and excavated on the ridges west of Jerusalem were 20 feet (6 meters) high and 150 feet (45.7 meters) in diameter. It seems as if these tumuli were used to burn incense and perfumes as a ritual that accompanied the body’s internment. This was done most likely to honor the wealthy and royalty. It was also practiced among the Assyrian kings (see note on ).

Lachish. One of the most important cities in Judah during the seventh and early sixth centuries BC. It was one of two fortified cities that guarded the Shephelah (lowlands) border. See notes on ; . Azekah. A fortress city much like Lachish. The site is located about 11 miles (17.7 kilometers) north of Lachish and 18 miles (29 kilometers) southwest of Jerusalem.

Relief of the siege of Lachish.

Return to

proclaim freedom for the slaves. King Zedekiah (597–586 BC) initiates a covenant with the inhabitants of Judah in which he proclaims the release of all Hebrew slaves. Initially one is tempted to associate this action with the Jubilee Year release legislated in (or the Sabbatical Year release legislated in ; ). Though this may be true, it is also possible that this release during the Babylonian siege is intended to add numbers to the army in this time of national emergency. Slaves were normally not drafted into the army. Releasing them under conditions of siege made them eligible for being drafted. In an interesting letter from Mari dated to about 1765 BC, King Hammurapi declares the general release of slaves and merchants in order to strengthen his army when Babylon is under enemy attack.

Every seventh year each of you must free any fellow Hebrews. While this text seems to refer specifically to the Sabbatical Year legislation present in the Torah (; ), which is different from the Jubilee Year (), we cannot be sure of the connection between these two regulations in the Torah. In the Sabbatical Year legislation, any Hebrew slave who works for a period of six years is eligible to be freed in the seventh year. Note too that Zedekiah’s proclamation of freedom in the previous verses does not seem to be connected to the Sabbatical Year because he proclaims freedom for all slaves during the same year, irrespective of the number of years they have worked as slaves.

the calf they cut in two. The ritual of severing an animal’s body as part of a covenant-making ceremony is found only here and in (see the article “

”). Ancient Near Eastern parallels from the Old Babylonian Mari letters and the eighth-century BC Aramaic text of the Sefire Treaty between Abban and Yarimlim both describe cutting an animal in two. The symbolic aspect of this type of sacrifice is to provide a graphic picture of what would happen to the covenant breaker. When the landowners of Judah took back their debt-slaves after the Egyptian invasion had temporarily lifted the siege of Jerusalem, they broke their solemn oath to Yahweh and laid themselves open to horrendous punishment.

army of the king of Babylon, which has withdrawn from you. This certainly refers to the Egyptian incursion into Canaan in order to limit Babylon’s power in the area. The Babylonians are forced to lift the siege temporarily (see note on ), but Jerusalem’s fate is sealed.

What we know about the clan of the Rekabites comes only from this text. According to the information here, they formed a kind of subculture within the Israelite society, and they claimed to be following the instructions of their ancestor Jehonadab son of Rekab. This ancestor was a zealous supporter of Jehu, who had invited Rekab to witness the final extermination of Ahab’s royal house and the violent purge of Baal worship (). One Biblical source traces their origins to the Kenites (), which in turn leads us to the possibility that they were originally a guild of craftsmen dedicated to working with metal.

For many years scholars assumed, based on , that the Rekabites lived a nomadic or seminomadic life free from alcohol. According to the instructions of Jehonadab, the Rekabites were not to build houses but had to live in tents—rules that seem to constitute the essence of nomadism. In this sense they would indeed be considered a subculture in that there was generally conflict between those who chose a nomadic or seminomadic lifestyle and those who chose a more settled existence based on an agricultural way of life.

More recently, however, scholars have offered alternative suggestions as to the lifestyle of the Rekabites. Some of the suggestions are:

1. They actually resided in permanent settlements in the hills of Judah.

2. They were a guild of itinerant craftsmen who made chariots and weaponry.

3. They were prophets who linked up with the itinerant lifestyle of Elijah.

In the final analysis, whether the Rekabites were a nomadic group or not, this is not what concerns Jeremiah. The prophet does not appeal to them because he endorses their lifestyle. Rather, he presents them as an example of true obedience and faithfulness. They have shown that they have been much more obedient and faithful to their ancestor Jehonadab than Judah has been to Yahweh.

This is why Jeremiah lifts them up as an example for Judah. The Rekabites receive a promise from Jeremiah (), and it is worthy of note that a descendant of the Rekabites is mentioned as one who helps in the rebuilding of Jerusalem (). This may or may not be evidence that the Rekabites survive the Babylonian exile. ◆

Go to

↑ Back to top