The Book of Jeremiah - A Commentary 9780802875846
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English Pages [1333] Year 2021
Table of contents :
Title Page
Copyright
Contents
Series Editor’s Preface
List of Abbreviations
Select Bibliography
Maps
Introduction
I. Background
A. Josiah, Jehoiakim, Zedekiah, and the Fall of Jerusalem
B. Yahweh’s Message Came
II. Unity of Composition
A. The Three Horizons
B. The Composition of Jeremiah and the Composition of the Gospels
C. The Persian Period: A Fourth Horizon?
D. Disunity of Composition (A Fifth Horizon)
E. The Torah, the Prophets, and the Psalms
F. Was Jeremiah a Historical Figure?
III. Authorship and Date
A. Jeremiah as Poet
B. Jeremiah as Preacher
C. Jeremiah as Crusader
D. Jeremiah as Persuader
E. Jeremiah and His Curators as Anthologists
IV. Place of Origin, Occasion, and Destination
V. Canonicity
A. The Scroll as Message from Yahweh
B. The Scroll and the Scriptures
C. The Jeremiah Scroll in the Canons of Judaism and of the Church
VI. The Hebrew Text
A. The Two Versions
B. Behind the Masoretic Text
VII. Theology
A. The God of Israel
B. The Israel of God
C. The Nations
D. The Present, the Past, and the Future
VIII. Main Themes and Their Implications
A. Theology Embodied: Jeremiah as Subject
B. Theology Imaged
C. Theology of a Both-and Character
IX. Analysis of Contents
A. Jeremiah 1–25
B. Jeremiah 25–52
Text and Commentary
Prologue: An Introduction to the Scroll (1:1–19)
A. Preface (1:1–3)
B. Jeremiah Gives an Account of His Commission (1:4–10)
C. Jeremiah Reports a Message from Yahweh: He Is Going to Do What He Has Said (1:11–12)
D. Jeremiah Reports a Second Message from Yahweh: He Intends to Bring Disaster on Judah, and Jeremiah Must Be Bold (1:13–19)
I. Part One: Confrontation, Exhortation, Warning (2:1–6:30)
A. Mostly Confrontation (2:1–37)
1. A Wistful Remembering (2:1–8)
2. An Extension to the Argument (2:9–13)
3. An Explanation of Israel’s Becoming Plunder (2:14–20b)
4. The Defilement (2:20c–25)
5. The Shameful Community (2:26–31a)
6. The Shaming to Come (2:31b–37)
B. Mostly Exhortation: Turning and Turning Back (3:1–4:4)
1. The Impossible Possibility? (3:1)
2. The Implausibility (3:2–5)
3. Judah’s Faulty Turning (3:6–10)
4. The Implausible Model (3:11–18)
5. The Explicit Urging (3:19–25)
6. Make It Genuine (4:1–4)
C. Mostly Warning: The Whole Country Desolate (4:5–31)
1. It’s War (4:5–18)
2. Formless and Empty (4:19–31)
D. Mostly Confrontation (5:1–31)
1. The Universal Deceptiveness (5:1–9)
2. The Foreign Service (5:10–19)
3. The Way People Became Big and Wealthy (5:20–31)
E. Mostly (Final) Warning (6:1–30)
1. Sanctify a Battle (6:1–8)
2. Strip the Vine (6:9–15)
3. Put Things in Place to Trip People (6:16–21)
4. All Around Is Terror (6:22–26)
5. Reject Silver (6:27–30)
II. Part Two: Twenty More Years (7:1–24:10)
A. Part 2a: Exhortations and Exchanges (7:1–10:25)
1. Five Exhortations, Confrontations, and Warnings about Worship (7:1–8:3)
a. About the Temple (7:1–15)
b. About Whether It’s Possible to Pray (7:16–20)
c. About Yahweh’s Priorities (7:21–28)
d. About an Ultimate Sacrifice (7:29–34)
e. About Looking to the Sun, the Moon, and the Stars (8:1–3)
2. Three Exchanges (8:4–9:26[25])
a. The Opening Challenge and Exchanges between Yahweh and Judah (8:4–20)
b. Exchanges between Yahweh and Jeremiah (8:21–9:16[15])
c. Exchanges between Yahweh and Judah and the Closing Challenge (9:17–26[16–25])
3. Another Exhortation and Another Exchange (10:1–25)
a. An Exhortation about Images (10:1–16)
b. An Exchange between Yahweh and Judah (10:17–25)
B. Part 2b: Jeremiah’s Arguments (11:1–13:27)
1. Another Confrontation and Warning, about the Pledge (11:1–17)
2. Three Exchanges (Protests and Responses) (11:18–12:17)
a. A Lamb Led to Slaughtering/I Will Attend to Them (11:18–23)
b. Why Does the Path of Faithless People Succeed/How Will You Compete with Horses? (12:1–6)
c. I Have Abandoned My House/I Will Again Have Compassion (12:7–17)
3. Five More Warnings (13:1–27)
a. About Name, Praise, and Splendor (13:1–12a)
b. About Ruin or Devastation (13:12b–14)
c. About Exaltedness (13:15–17)
d. About the Flock (13:18–22)
e. About Exposure (13:23–27)
C. Part 2c: Drought, Hunger, Sword (14:1–17:27)
1. Four More Exchanges (Protests and Responses) (14:1–15:21)
a. The Dearths, the Plea, and the Response (14:1–12)
b. The Prophets (14:13–18)
c. The Wound and the Threat (14:19–15:9)
d. The Persecutors (15:10–21)
2. Confrontations and Warnings: This Country and Domain (16:1–17:11)
a. Joy and Favor Suspended Here (16:1–13)
b. Restoration, Cleansing, and Revelation Here(16:14–21)
c. Forfeit Here (17:1–11)
3. Another Exchange: Three Ironies (17:12–27)
D. Part 2d: Concerning Plans and Counsels (18:1–20:18)
1. The Potter: When Your Decisions Can Make a Difference (18:1–23)
a. Jeremiah and the Potter: Yahweh’s Flexible Plans (18:1–12)
b. A Verse Postscript: Yahweh’s Assessment of Judah (18:13–17)
c. A Protest Responding to What Has Preceded: An Ultimate Prayer (18:18–23)
2. The Pot: And When It’s Too Late (19:1–20:18)
a. Jeremiah, the Decanter, and Yahweh’s Counsel (19:1–13)
b. A Story Postscript: The Reaction and the Identity of the Invader (19:14–20:6)
c. Protests Responding to What Has Preceded: Two Ultimate Prayers (20:7–18)
E. Part 2e: On Kings and Prophets (21:1–24:10)
1. About Kings (and Their People) (21:1–23:8)
a. Zedekiah (and the City) (21:1–10)
b. David’s Household (and the City) (21:11–22:9)
c. Three Kings (22:10–30)
d. A Good Shepherd, a Faithful Shoot, a New Exodus (23:1–8)
2. About Prophets (and Their People) (23:9–24:10)
a. About Prophets (23:9–40)
b. Two Lots of Figs (24:1–10)
An Interim Conclusion (25:1–38 [LXX 25:1–13; 32:1–24])
A. A Climactic Warning (25:1–14)
B. The Chalice (25:15–29 [LXX 32:1–15])
C. The Prophecy (25:30–38 [LXX 32:16–24])
III. Part Three: The Die Cast and the Possibility of Restoration (26:1–36:32)
A. Part 3a: Stories about Prophets (26:1–29:32 [LXX 33:1–36:32])
1. How Jeremiah Almost Lost His Life (26:1–27:1a [LXX 33:1–24])
2. Jeremiah Bids Judah Submit to the Babylonians (27:1b–22 [LXX 34:2–22])
3. How Hananiah Lost His Life (28:1–17 [LXX 35:1–17])
4. Jeremiah Bids the Exile Community to Settle Down (29:1–32 [LXX 36:1–32])
B. Part 3b: At Last, A Focus on Hope (30:1–33:26)
1. Introduction to the Document (30:1–4 [LXX 37:1–4])
2. A Reversal for Zion (30:5–31:1 [LXX 37:5–38:1])
a. Trembling Terminated (30:5–11)
b. You Deserve Your Injuries, but I Will Heal (30:12–17)
c. A Restored City and Relationship (30:18–31:1)
3. A Reversal for Ephraim (31:2–22 [LXX 38:2–22])
a. Building and Planting (31:2–6)
b. Redeeming and Restoring (31:7–14)
c. Turning and Compassion (31:15–22)
4. A Reversal for Israel and Judah (31:23–40 [LXX 38:23–40])
a. The Renewal of Blessing (31:23–26)
b. New Sowing (31:27–28)
c. Present Redress (31:29–30)
d. A New Pledge (31:31–34)
e. Israel’s Permanence (31:35–36)
f. Israel’s Security (31:37)
g. The City’s Rebuilding (31:38–40)
5. The Acquisition of Land (32:1–44 [LXX 39:1–44])
a. The Background (32:1–5)
b. Jeremiah Acquires Some Land (32:6–15)
c. Jeremiah Quizzes Yahweh (32:16–25)
d. Yahweh Replies: First, the Bad News (32:26–35)
e. Yahweh Replies: Second, the Good News of Reaffirmation (32:36–41)
f. Yahweh Replies: Third, the Good News about Land (32:42–44)
6. Some Vital Afterthoughts (33:1–26 [LXX 40:1–13])
a. I Will Bring Healing and Purification to Judah and Ephraim (33:1–9)
b. Rejoicing and Praise Will Again Resound in Jerusalem (33:10–11)
c. Flocks Will Pasture Again All Over the Country (33:12–13)
d. David and the Levites Will Have Their Successors Ministering for Ephraim and Judah (33:14–18)
e. Those Promises Are as Sure as Yahweh’s Pledge with Day and Night (33:19–22)
f. Yahweh Will Keep His Commitment to the Offspring of Jacob and of David (33:23–26)
C. Part 3c: Stories Implying a Reversion to Reality (34:1–36:32 [LXX 41:1–43:32])
1. A Threat and a Promise from the Time of Zedekiah (34:1–7 [LXX 41:1–7])
2. A Story about Zedekiah and a Threat from His Time (34:8–22 [LXX 41:8–22])
3. A Reminder About the Rechabites and a Promise from Their Time (35:1–19 [LXX 42:1–19])
4. A Story about Jehoiakim and a Threat from His Time (36:1–32 [LXX 43:1–32]
IV. Part Four: The Calamity and the Aftermath (37:1–45:5 [LXX 44:1–51:35])
A. Part 4a: Last Chances, Calamity, and a Footnote for Ebed-melech (37:1–39:18 [LXX 44:1–46:18])
1. Zedekiah Consulting Jeremiah; Jeremiah Locked Up (37:1–21 [LXX 44:1–21])
2. Jeremiah Locked Up; Zedekiah Consulting Jeremiah (38:1–28a [LXX 45:1–28a])
3. The City Falls, and the Fates That Follow (38:28b—39:14 [LXX 45:28b—46:14])
4. A Footnote Message for Ebed-melech (39:15–18 [LXX 46:15–18])
B. Part 4b: The Aftermath, and Missed Chances (40:1–44:30 [LXX 47:1–51:30])
1. A New Start at Mizpah, the Watchtower (40:1–12 [LXX 47:1–12])
2. Things Begin to Fall Apart (40:13–41:18 [LXX 47:13–48:18])
3. Yahweh’s Direction Given and Rejected (42:1–43:13 [LXX 49:1–50:13])
a. The Judahites Ask for Direction (42:1–6)
b. Yahweh Gives Them Direction, Promises, and Warnings (42:7–18)
c. Yahweh Gives Them a Rebuke (42:19–22)
d. The Judahites Reject the Message (43:1–3)
e. They Move to Egypt (43:4–13)
4. A Final Confrontation, Exhortation, and Warning (44:1–30 [LXX 51:1–30])
5. A Footnote Message for Baruch (45:1–5 [LXX 51:31–35])
V. Part Five: Messages about Other Peoples (46:1–51:64 [LXX 26:1–31:44])
A. Part 5a: Introduction, and Egypt (46:1–28)
1. Introduction; and Before the Battle of Carchemish (46:1–12 [LXX 26:1–12])
2. Before Nebuchadrezzar’s Invasion of Egypt (46:13–24 [LXX 26:13–24])
3. Two Encouraging Footnotes (46:25–28 [LXX 26:25–28])
B. Part 5b: Neighbors and Distant Peoples (47:1–49:39)
1. Philistia (47:1–7 [LXX 29:1–7])
2. Moab (48:1–47 [LXX 31:1–44])
a. Moab Broken (48:1–10)
b. Retrospect and Prospect (48:11–17)
c. What Has Happened? (48:18–25)
d. Wine and Arrogance (48:26–32)
e. Worship Replaced by Wailing (48:33–39)
f. An Eagle, a Trap, a Fire (48:40–46)
g. But Disaster Is Not the End (48:47)
3. Ammon (49:1–6 [LXX 30:1–5 or 17–21])
4. Edom (49:7–22 [LXX 29:8–23 or 30:1–16])
5. Damascus (49:23–27 [LXX 30:12–16 or 29–33])
6. Kedar and Hazor (49:28–33 [LXX 30:6–11 or 23–28])
7. Elam (49:34–39 [LXX 25:14–19])
C. Part 5c: Babylon, and Three Conclusions (50:1–51:64)
1. Introduction (50:1 [LXX 27:1])
2. The Fate of Flock, Lions, and Shepherds (50:2–20 [LXX 27:2–20])
3. Challenges That Yahweh Accepts (50:21–32 [LXX 27:21–32])
4. Threats That Yahweh Repeats (50:33–46 [LXX 27:33–46])
5. The Faithful and Powerful God (51:1–19 [LXX 28:1–19])
6. The Shatterer Shattered (51:20–33 [LXX 28:20–33])
7. Zion’s Lament (51:34–44 [LXX 28:34–44])
8. So Be Mindful of Jerusalem and of Babylon (51:45–58c [LXX 28:45–58c])
9. Conclusion (51:58d [LXX 28:58d])
10. The Story of the Scroll, and Another Conclusion (51:59–64 [LXX 28:59–64])
Epilogue (52:1–34)
