Jeremiah Part 1: His Call and Ministry
Chapter 1: Jeremiah receives his calling from the Lord. He responds with humility but the Lord assures him he will be with him. He has two visions of an almond tree and a seething pot that represent what will happen to Judah. 626 during the reign of Josiah.
1.) The Lord personal knew and had an intimate relationship with Jeremiah before he was born and foreordained him to his role on earth.
"Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the enations." (Jeremiah 1:5)
"The phrase "I knew thee" comes from the Hebrew word yada, which is translated "knew" and connotes a very personal, intimate relationship."
2.) The Role of a prophet is to "root out, pull down, to destroy, throw down, build and plant."
"It would not be an easy or pleasant mission. Jeremiah was called to issue a stern, harsh rebuke and denunciation of the Jewish people (root out, pull down, destroy, throw down), but he was also to offer love and redemption to any that would listen to him (to build and to plant)."
3.) Jeremiah's two visions are metaphors for what will happen to Judah.
A branch of an almond tree. When Jeremiah said that he saw the branch of an almond tree, the Lord responded, "Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform it" (v. 12). The symbolism arises because the almond tree's branches were the first to bud in the spring, suggesting that these events would be happening soon. It is also interesting to note that Aaron's rod that miraculously budded in the wilderness was also an almond branch.
A seething pot. The Lord then showed Jeremiah a seething pot, which Jeremiah noted was facing north. This symbolized the disaster and pain which, like the contents of a boiling cauldron, would overwhelm Judah from the north. "Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land" (v. 14)."
Chapter 2: The Lord explains how Israel has gone astray. The people failed to remember the great miracles the Lord has performed for them. The Priests, lawyers and pastors all did not know God's law and prophesied through Baal. They have worshipped other gods and slain true prophets sent amongst them. 626-620 during the reign of Josiah.
1.) Israel traded their glory for that which does not profit.
"Hath a nation changed their gods, which are yet no gods? but my people have changed their glory for that which doth not profit." (Jeremiah 2:11)
2.) Israel has forsaken the fountain of living water for a broken cistern.
"For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water." (Jeremiah 2:13)
Elder Sterling W. Sill said: "Our eternal success is not like pouring water into a cistern; rather it is like opening a living spring within ourselves. Through the Prophet Jeremiah the Lord said, [Quotes Jeremiah 2:13]. And Jesus elaborated upon this idea by saying, "Unto him that keepeth my commandments I will give the mysteries of my kingdom, and [they] shall be in him a well of living water, springing up unto everlasting life" (D&C 63:23).
3.) The consequences of sin are bad and can act to correct us. We must have the fear of the Lord within us.
"Thine own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall areprove thee: know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast forsaken the Lord thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord God of hosts." (Jeremiah 2:19)
4.) Israel began to believe God was not their father, but idols were instead.
"Saying to a stock, thou art my father; and to a stone, Thou hast brought me forth: for they have turned their back unto me, and not their face: but in the time of their trouble they will say, Arise, and save us." (Jeremiah 2:27)
5.) Nothing can cleanse Israel of their sins except true repentance.
v. 22 "Wash thee with nitre [lye], and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked." The most powerful means of purification could not cleanse Judah's sins."
Chapter 3: The Lord condemns Israel and Judah for "playing the harlot" and worshipping other Gods. The Lord tells them to repent, and He will turn away his anger. 626-620 during the reign of Josiah.
Chapter 4: Jeremiah prophesies of Jerusalem's coming desolation. He warns of a lion, a dry wind, and a destroying army that will be so destructive it is as if creation itself is undone. 626-620 during the reign of Josiah.
1.) We must circumcise our hearts to the Lord or accept the covenants we make with our full heart.
"Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings." (Jeremiah 4:4)
"He also invited them to "circumcise yourselves to the Lord, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings" (v. 4). The Lord taught in numerous places in the scriptures that we must be "circumcised in our hearts"-that is, we must accept our covenants in our hearts through faith, repentance, and baptism (Deuteronomy 10:16; Jeremiah 9:25-26; Romans 2:25-29)." (Understanding Jeremiah)
2.) Jeremiah 4:10 is mistranslated. The Jewish Targums make the verse make sense:
KJV: "Then said I, Ah, Lord God! surely thou hast greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, Ye shall have peace; whereas the sword reacheth unto the soul."
Targum: "And I said, receive my supplication, O Lord God; for, behold, the false prophets deceive this people and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying 'Ye shall have peace.'"
3.) A "dry wind" symbolizes destruction.
The scorching desert winds could devastate all crops in Palestine if they blew very long or hard. Like any such sustained, hot wind, they sucked the moisture from plants, animals, and men with terrible effect. The Lord warned them of "a dry wind of the high places in the wilderness . . . [whose purpose was] not to fan, nor to cleanse," but to dry up all living things with "a full wind" (v. 12).
Chapter 5: Jeremiah is rejected as he begins his ministry. 626 during the reign of Josiah.
1.) There was not a single righteous person (other than Jeremiah) in Israel at the time or God would have spared it.
The Lord will spare Judah if one righteous person can be found. But there were none. As with Sodom and Gomorrah, they had reached a "fullness of iniquity." "Run ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, and see now, and know, and seek in the broad places thereof, if ye can find a man, if there be any that executeth judgment, that seeketh the truth; and I will pardon it," said the Lord to Jeremiah (v. 1). There was no chance of finding one, and even if they claimed to love the Lord, "surely they swear falsely," said the Lord (v. 2).
2.) If we refuse to be corrected by the consequences of sin then destruction comes upon us.
"O Lord, are not thine eyes upon the truth? thou hast stricken them, but they have not grieved; thou hast consumed them, but they have refused to receive correction: they have made their faces harder than a rock; they have refused to return." (Jeremiah 5:3)
3.) Those who fully reject God are removed from His land to serve nations they do not know.
"Like as ye have forsaken me, and served strange gods in your land, so shall ye serve strangers in a land that is not yours." (Jeremiah 5:19)
4.) Our sins prevent God from blessing us.
"Your iniquities have turned away these things, and your sins have withholden good things from you." Jeremiah 5:25)
Chapter 6: Jeremiah says there will be no peace as the Babylonians are on their way. 609 during the reign of Josiah.
1.) False prophets proclaim peace when they should declare repentance.
"And from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely. They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace." (Jeremiah 6: 13-14)
Chapter 22: Jeremiah prophesies that Jehoahaz will not return from captivity and that Jehoiachim will die and will not be mourned or receive a proper burial. He also predicts the captivity and death of the king's son and mother. 609 during the reign of Josiah.
"Chapter 22 of Jeremiah is clearly out of place, since it was given in 609 BC (the same time as chapter 6) when Josiah's sons came to the throne. Josiah's son Jehoahaz succeeded his father on the throne, but only reigned for about three months because Pharaoh Necho took him captive into Egypt. Then he placed his brother Jehoiakim, also a son of Josiah, on the throne of Judah. Both of these sons of Josiah were very wicked, and Jeremiah's comments in chapter 22 are directed at them." (Making Jeremiah Plain)
1.) The Lord condemns those who prosper due to unrighteousness and oppressing others.
"Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that useth his neighbour's service without wages, and giveth him not for his work."
2.) Many refuse to repent when they prosper due to sin but judgment inevitably comes.
"I spake unto thee in thy prosperity; but thou saidst, I will not hear. This hath been thy manner from thy youth, that thou obeyedst not my voice." (Jeremiah 22:21)
Chapter 7: Jeremiah calls Israel one last time to repentance and tells them not to trust in the temple to save them but instead to be righteous. Israel is condemned for sacrificing their children. 608 during the reign of Jehoiakim.
1.) The Israelites believed they would not be destroyed because of the temple but only righteous behavior saves.
"They apparently believed that the Lord would protect them because of the temple, but He forewarned them that this would not save them (v. 4). Only repentance could do that. "For if ye thoroughly amend your ways and your doings; if ye thoroughly execute judgment between a man and his neighbor; If ye oppress not the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and shed not innocent blood in this place, neither walk after other gods to your hurt: Then will I cause you to dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers, for ever and ever" (vv. 5-7)." (Making Jeremiah Plain)
2.) God would not permit His temple to become a den of robbers.
"Behold, ye trust in lying words, that cannot profit. Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not; And come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We are delivered to do all these abominations? Is this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, even I have seen it, saith the Lord." (Jeremiah 7: 8-11)
3.) Israel was told to "cut their hair" as a sign of the grief that was about to come upon them.
"Jeremiah 7:29 "Cut off thine hair." In Hebrew society, hair was considered a crown (Hebrew nezer), and for that reason it was not cut short. To have one's hair cut was a symbol of grief. To illustrate the grief that was coming to them, the Lord said, "Cut off thine hair, O Jerusalem, and cast it away, and take up a lamentation on high places; for the Lord hath rejected and forsaken the generation of his wrath." (Making Jeremiah Plain)
4.) There comes a point at which God tells His servants to no longer pray for people who are fully ripe in wickedness.
"Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to me: for I will not hear thee." (Jeremiah 7:16)
5.) God condemns Israel for sacrificing their children in Tophet to Moloch.
"In the Hebrew Bible, Tophet or Topheth is a location in Jerusalem in the Valley of Hinnom, where worshipers engaged in a ritual involving "passing a child through the fire", most likely child sacrifice. Traditionally, the sacrifices have been ascribed to a god named Moloch." (Wikipedia)
"And they have built the high places of Tophet, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire; which I commanded them not, neither came it into my heart." (Jeremiah 7:31)
Chapter 8: Jeremiah gives the reasons for Israel's pending judgment and declares the harvest has passed and Israel is not saved. 608 during Jehoiakim.
1.) Wickedness in Judah is total.
The Lord observed that "every one from the least even unto the greatest is given to covetousness, from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely." "Therefore will I give their wives unto others, and their fields to them that shall inherit them [their conquerors]." (Jeremiah 8:10)
2.) There is a season within which we must earn salvation.
"The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved." (Jeremiah 8:20)
3.) There would be no balm in Gilead that could heal the wounds about to come upon Israel.
Gilead was famous for its healing ointment. But for the hurt that was about to come upon Judah there would be no healing ointment, or medication available to help them. "For the hurt of the daughter of my people am I hurt; I am black; astonishment hath taken hold on me," Jeremiah said. "Is there no balm in Gilead; is there no physician there? why then is not the health of the daughter of my people recovered?" This was a symbolic way of saying that their national wounds would not be healed. Their suffering would be total and lasting." (Jeremiah 8: 21-22) (Making Jeremiah Plain)
Chapter 9: Jeremiah weeps for the fate that awaits Jerusalem. The Lord says that all of Israel is deceitful and wicked and that He will scatter them amongst the heathen. 608 during Jehoiakim.
1.) God expects His people to keep His law and will scatter them abroad if they do not.
And the Lord saith, Because they have forsaken my law which I set before them, and have not obeyed my voice, neither walked therein; But have walked after the imagination of their own heart, and after Baalim, which their fathers taught them: Therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will feed them, even this people, with wormwood, and give them water of gall to drink." (Jeremiah 9: 13-15)
2.) We should not glory in our human capacities or worldly resources but in our knowledge of and trust in God.
"Thus saith the Lord, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the Lord which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the Lord." (Jeremiah 9: 23-24)
Chapter 10: Jeremiah speaks on the vanity of idol worship and says Jehovah is the only true and living God. Idols are made from human hands and are not capable of good or evil and did not create the earth. 607 during Jehoiakim.
Chapter 11: Jeremiah's townsmen seek his life and the people of Israel and Judah reject Jeremiah's warnings. 607 during Jehoiakim.
1.) Covenants wit the Lord are accompanied by blessings but also curses.
"While there were many blessings associated with the covenant, there was also a curse. Moses had clearly spoken both blessings and curses to them before they entered, and Joshua had rehearsed them after they had obtained the land. And so now, "Cursed be the man that obeyeth not the words of this covenant" (v. 3). Because they had rejected the covenant, they would now be destroyed according to the promises Moses had "protested" [admonished] unto them (vv. 6-8)." (Making Jeremiah Plain)
Sidney B. Sperry said, "Jeremiah's warning was in vain. The Lord pointed out to him that there was a conspiracy among the Jews and that they had turned back to the iniquities of their forefathers. Their gods were as numerous as their cities, and the number of altars set up to Baal was according to the number of streets in Jerusalem."
2. Jeremiah's hometown and family tried to destroy him. The Lord brought vengeance upon them.
"The people of Anathoth (his hometown) sought to destroy him. They declared unto him, "Prophesy not in the name of the Lord, that thou die not by our hand" (v. 21). For this, the Lord promised to "punish them: the young men shall die by the sword; their sons and their daughters shall die by famine: And there shall be no remnant of them: for I will bring evil upon the men of Anathoth" (vv. 22-23)." (Making Jeremiah Plain)
Chapter 12: Jeremiah's family turns against him and Jeremiah asks the Lord why the wicked prosper. 607 during Jehoiakim.
1.) The wicked may prosper in the short-term but desolation ultimately came upon Israel.
"Still, sometimes it can be discouraging to see no punishment following wickedness, and to see no obvious reward following righteousness. "Wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper? wherefore are all they happy that deal very treacherously?" Jeremiah asked the Lord. Like a healthy plant that grows and brings forth fruit, they prosper even while the Lord is not at all in what they think, say and do (their mouth and reins) (v. 2). All the while, someone like Jeremiah, whom the Lord has watched and tried thoroughly, continues to be harassed, jailed, and threatened with death." (Making Jeremiah Plain)
"How canst thou contend with horses?" The Lord gave a vivid answer that advised Jeremiah to be thankful that things are not yet worse for him. If he has a hard time dealing with the "footmen" of evil, how can he "contend with horses"? (people of greater evil and danger). "If the smallest evils to which thou art exposed cause thee to make so many bitter complaints, how wilt thou feel when, in the course of thy prophetic ministry, thou shalt be exposed to much greater, from enemies much more powerful? . . . If thou have sunk under small difficulties, what wilt thou do when great ones come?" (Adam Clarke, Bible Commentary, 6 vols. [n.d.], , 4:287).
Chapter 13: Jeremiah tells Jehoiakim and his queen that Judah will be utterly destroyed and scattered for their wickedness and rejection of God. 607 during Jehoiakim.
1.) Can a leopard change his spots?
"No. And neither will Israel turn from her well-entrenched sins. If the king and queen protest, asking, "Why will these things come upon us?" Jeremiah is to answer, "For the greatness of thine iniquity are thy skirts discovered, and thy heels made bare"-a figure of speech meaning that their most private and vulnerable parts, as a nation, will be laid bare. "Can the Ethiopian [a black man] change his skin, or the leopard his spots?" (v. 23). Clearly no, and one might more reasonably expect those things to happen than that these wicked people of Judah will "do good, [when they are so] accustomed to do evil" (v. 23) (Make Jeremiah Plain)
2.) Jeremiah is told to act out what will happen to Judah.
"The marred girdle. The Lord commanded Jeremiah to put a linen girdle on his loins and journey to the Euphrates, a distance of 300-400 miles, and hide it in a hole in a rock. After many days the Lord then told him to go and retrieve his girdle. When he dug it up "the girdle was marred, it was profitable for nothing" (v. 7). The Lord explained: "After this manner will I mar the pride of Judah, and the great pride of Jerusalem" (v. 9)." (Making Jeremiah Plain)
Chapter 17: Jeremiah teaches the people to hollow the Sabbath day and they will be saved. 607 during Jehoiakim.
1.) Judah had become so wicked they had engraven their sinfulness upon their hearts with a pen of iron.
"The sin of Judah is written with a pen of iron, and with the point of a diamond: it is graven upon the table of their heart, and upon the horns of your altars." (Jeremiah 17:1)
2.) Who we trust determines whether we are blessed or cursed. To trust in God is to be blessed.
"Thus saith the Lord; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord. For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited." (Jeremiah 17:5-6)
"Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit." (v. 7-8)
3.) The Lord searches the heart and our innermost thoughts and desires and rewards us accordingly.
"I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings." (Jeremiah 17:10)
"In ancient times, kidneys (hidden inside our torso, or loins) were assumed to be the seat of our emotions, feelings, and affections. "Reins" is related to our literal kidneys. However, "reins" can also be used figuratively in reference to our innermost component (again, emotions, feelings, affections; mind)." (Link)
4.) Those who seek riches unrighteously will suddenly lose them. They are like birds sitting on eggs that won't hatch.
"As the partridge sitteth on eggs, and hatcheth them not; so he that getteth riches, and not by right, shall leave them in the midst of his days, and at his end shall be a fool." (Jeremiah 17:11)
5.) We are not to do any burdensome work on the Sabbath but are to serve God only. If Israel keeps the Sabbath it will remain forever but if it doesn't the God will destroy it.
"Thus saith the Lord; Take heed to yourselves, and bear no burden on the sabbath day, nor bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem; Neither carry forth a burden out of your houses on the sabbath day, neither do ye any work, but hallow ye the sabbath day, as I commanded your fathers." (Jeremiah 17: 21-22)
"If they would do this, the Lord promised to keep Judah's kings on the throne "for ever" (vv. 23-25). They would also be prospered as a nation, being enabled to bring offerings to the temple from all over the lands of Benjamin and Judah (v. 26). But if not, their land and their city of Jerusalem would be burned (v. 27)." (Making Jeremiah Plain)
Chapter 18: Jeremiah says that he has prayed that God will bless Israel but no longer as they want to kill him. He now prays that God will destroy Israel for their wickedness. 607 during Jehoiakim.
1.) God is like a potter, and we are like clay in His hand.
"O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the Lord. Behold, as the clay is in the potter's hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel." (Jeremiah 18:6)
Chapter 26: Jeremiah stands in the court of the temple and calls Judah to repentance. Angry mobs accuse Jeremiah of treason, but his life is spared. Another prophet named Urijah is killed by Jehoiakim. 607 during Jehoiakim.
1.) Some prophets are killed (Urijah) while some are preserved (Jeremiah).
"The prophet Urijah is put to death. Jeremiah was not the only true prophet among the people. There was "also a man that prophesied in the name of the Lord, Urijah the son of Shemaiah of Kirjath-jearim, who prophesied against this city and against this land according to all the words of Jeremiah" (v. 20). He also was sought by King Jehoiakim, his princes, and the people "to put him to death: but when Urijah heard it, he was afraid, and fled, and went into Egypt" (v. 21). Nevertheless, "Jehoiakim the king sent men into Egypt . . . and they fetched forth Urijah out of Egypt, and brought him unto Jehoiakim the king; who slew him with the sword, and cast his dead body into the graves of the common people" (vv. 22-23). Jeremiah avoided this fate with the help of "Ahikam the son of Shaphan," who protected him so "that they should not give him into the hand of the people to put him to death" (v. 24)." (Making Jeremiah Plain)
Chapter 19: Jeremiah condemns Judah for sacrificing their children to Baal and says that evil will come upon them. He prophesies of a great slaughter and the city will become desolate. During the siege, they will eat the flesh of their children to survive. 607 during Jehoiakim.
Chapter 20: Pashur abuses Jeremiah and throws him in prison. Jeremiah prophesies that Pashur and all of Judah will die in captivity. 607 during Jehoiakim.
1.) The Spirit burned within Jeremiah prompting him to do God's will.
"The Spirit burned within Jeremiah to do the Lord's will. He said unto the Lord, "Thou hast deceived [should be 'enticed' or 'persuaded'] me, and I was [enticed]" because "thou art stronger than I, and hast prevailed" (v. 7). But because he had done the Lord's will in calling Judah to repentance, he said, "I am in derision daily, every one mocketh me. For since I spake, I cried out, I cried violence and spoil" (v. 8). When he considered "not mak[ing] mention of him [the Lord], nor speak any more in his name . . . his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones . . . and I could not stay" (v. 9)." (Jeremiah 20: 7-9) (Making Jeremiah Plain)
2.) Jeremiah despairs and wishes he was never born.
"Becoming discouraged at this point, Jeremiah lamented, "Cursed be the day wherein I was born: let not the day wherein my mother bare me be blessed. Cursed be the man who brought tidings to my father, saying, A man child is born unto thee; making him very glad" (vv. 14-15). He wished that he had been slain "from the womb" [at birth], or that he had died inside his mother "that my mother might have been my grave," because he "came . . . forth out of the womb to see labour and sorrow, that my days should be consumed with shame" (vv. 16-18)." (Jeremiah 20 - 14-18)
Chapter 35: Jeremiah contrasts the righteousness of the Rechabites with the wickedness of the Jews. He says they have kept their covenant not to drink alcohol, but Israel has not kept their covenant so will be destroyed. 607 during Jehoiakim.
Chapter 14: The Lord brings a drought upon Jerusalem and Jeremiah pleads for Judah, but the Lord tells him not to pray for them because it is too late. 605 during Jehoiakim.
1.) The Lord warns of false prophets who say they are sent by God but are not.
"Then the Lord said unto me, the prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart." (Jeremiah 14:14)
2.) Jeremiah is told not to pray for Judah as it is too late for them. Jeremiah had plead for God to punish the sinners but once he saw it happen, he asked for mercy.
The Lord's answer was firm. "This people . . . have they loved to wander, they have not refrained their feet, therefore the Lord doth not accept them; he will now remember their iniquity, and visit their sins" (v. 10). "Then said the Lord unto me, Pray not for this people for their good. When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and an oblation, I will not accept them: but I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence" (vv. 11-12).
Chapter 15: The Lord tells Jeremiah that not even Moses or Samuel could plead for Israel. He says that four faits await the people: death, battle, famine and captivity. The Lord is particularly angry concerning the sin of King Manasseh. 605 during Jehoiakim.
1.) The Sin of King Manasseh explained.
"Many will be slain with the sword and devoured by dogs, fowls of the air, and beasts (v. 3). Others will be "removed into all kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah king of Judah, for that which he did in Jerusalem" (v. 4).
This has reference to King Manasseh (2 Kings 21:1-7), who, not so many generations before this, did "that which was evil in the sight of the Lord," by adopting "the abominations of the heathen, whom the Lord cast out before the children of Israel" (v. 2) He restored all the "high places" that his father Hezekiah had destroyed-rearing up altars for Baal, and making groves for the sensual rites of Ashtaroth worship-and worshiping "all the host of heaven, and served them" (v. 3). Even worse, he built altars to Baal in the house of the Lord, and "altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord" (vv. 4-5). He also offered up his own son as a sacrifice to Molech by making him "pass through the fire" (v. 6). He also "observed times, and used enchantments, and dealt with familiar spirits and wizards: he wrought much wickedness in the sight of the Lord" (v. 6). This wicked king "shed innocent blood very much, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another" (v. 16), making him perhaps the most wicked king who ever ruled Judah." (Making Jeremiah Plain)
2.) There comes a point at which the Lord will no longer allow repentance and His judgments take effect.
"Thou hast forsaken me, saith the Lord, thou art gone backward: therefore will I stretch out my hand against thee, and destroy thee; I am weary with repenting." (Jeremiah 15:6)
3.) The Lord promises to protect Jeremiah amidst His judgments on Judah.
"Jeremiah lamented that his life had become that of "a man of strife and a man of contention to the whole earth!" Though he had done no harm to anyone, "yet every one of them doth curse me" (v. 10). The Lord promised him that "it shall be well with thy remnant" (something that the wicked would not enjoy), and "I will cause the enemy to entreat thee well in the time of evil and in the time of affliction" for the rest of Judah (v. 11). All the rest of Judah will be taken as a spoil by her conquering enemies "into a land which thou knowest not: for a fire is kindled in mine anger, which shall burn upon you" (vv. 12-14)." (Jeremiah 15: 10-14) (Making Jeremiah Plain)
These promises were literally fulfilled because Jeremiah was not taken into Babylon. He went into Egypt and probably died there a few years later.
Chapter 16: Jeremiah is forbidden to marry, mourn for or attend any feasts in Israel at this time. 605 during Jehoiakim.
Chapter 25: Jeremiah prophesies that Judah will be in captivity in Babylon for 70 years. The Lord will punish all heathen nations as well who will drink the cup of war. 605 during Jehoiakim.
1.) God judged all the nations at the time which led to constant warfare and destruction.
"For, lo, I begin to bring evil on the city which is called by my name, and should ye be utterly unpunished? Ye shall not be unpunished: for I will call for a sword upon all the inhabitants of the earth, saith the Lord of hosts. Therefore prophesy thou against them all these words, and say unto them, The Lord shall roar from on high, and utter his voice from his holy habitation; he shall mightily roar upon his habitation; he shall give a shout, as they that tread the grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth." (Jeremiah 25: 29-30)
Chapter 36: Jeremiah is forced into hiding so has scribe, Baruch, write down his prophecies and declare them unto the people and to the king. The King burns the scroll the words are written on so Jeremiah has Baruch write them down again. Jehoiakim is cursed for rejecting the Lord and his prophets and will die. 605 during Jehoiakim.
Chapter 45: The Lord comforts Jeremiah's scribe, Baruch, and promises that his life will be spared. 605 during Jehoiakim.