CHAPTER XXVI
INTRODUCTORY
"I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be My people."- Jeremiah 31:1
IN this third book an attempt is made to present a general view of Jeremiah's teaching on the subject with which he was most preoccupied-the political and religious fortunes of Judah. Certain (30, 31, and, in part, 33) Chapter s detach themselves from the rest, and stand in no obvious connection with any special incident of the prophet's life. These are the main theme of this book, and have been dealt with in the ordinary method of detailed exposition. They have been treated separately, and not woven into the continuous narrative, partly because we thus obtain a more adequate emphasis upon important aspects of their teaching, but chiefly because their date and occasion cannot be certainly determined. With them other sections have been associated, on account of the connection of subject. Further material for a synopsis of Jeremiah's teaching has been collected from Chapter s 21-49, generally, supplemented by brief references to the previous Chapter s. Inasmuch as the prophecies of our book do not form an ordered treatise on dogmatic theology, but were uttered with regard to individual conduct and critical events, topics are not exclusively dealt with in a single section, but are referred to at intervals throughout. Moreover, as both the individuals and the crises were very much alike, ideas and phrases are constantly reappearing, so that there is an exceptionally large amount of repetition in the Book of Jeremiah. The method we have adopted avoids some of the difficulties which would arise if we attempted to deal with these doctrines in our continuous exposition.
Our general sketch of the prophet's teaching is naturally arranged under categories suggested by the book itself, and not according to the sections of a modern treatise on Systematic Theology. No doubt much may legitimately be extracted or deduced concerning Anthropology, Soteriology, and the like; but true proportion is as important in exposition as accurate interpretation. If we wish to understand Jeremiah, we must be content to dwell longest upon what he emphasised most, and to adopt the standpoint of time and race which was his own. Accordingly in our treatment we have followed the cycle of sin, punishment, and restoration, so familiar to students of Hebrew prophecy.
NOTE SOME CHARACTERISTIC EXPRESSIONS OF JEREMIAH
This note is added partly for convenience of reference, and partly to illustrate the repetition just mentioned as characteristic of Jeremiah. The instances are chosen from expressions occurring in Chapter s 21-52. The reader will find fuller lists dealing with the whole book in the "Speaker's Commentary" and the "Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges." The Hebrew student is referred to the list in Driver's "Introduction," upon which the following is partly based.
1. "Rising up early": Jeremiah 7:13; Jeremiah 7:25; Jeremiah 11:7; Jeremiah 25:3-4; Jeremiah 26:5; Jeremiah 29:19; Jeremiah 32:33; Jeremiah 35:14-15; Jeremiah 44:4. This phrase, familiar to us in the narratives of Genesis and in the historical books, is used here, as in 2 Chronicles 36:15, of God addressing His people on sending the prophets.
2. "Stubbornness of heart" (A.V. imagination of heart): Jeremiah 3:17; Jeremiah 7:24; Jeremiah 9:14; Jeremiah 11:8; Jeremiah 13:10; Jeremiah 16:12; Jeremiah 18:12; Jeremiah 23:17; also found Deuteronomy 29:19 and Psalms 81:15.
3. "The evil of your doings": Jeremiah 4:4; Jeremiah 21:12; Jeremiah 23:2; Jeremiah 23:22; Jeremiah 25:5; Jeremiah 26:3; Jeremiah 44:22; also Deuteronomy 28:20; 1 Samuel 25:3; Isaiah 1:16; Hosea 9:15; Psalms 28:4; and in slightly different form in Jeremiah 11:18 and Zechariah 1:4.
"The fruit of your doings": Jeremiah 17:10; Jeremiah 21:14; Jeremiah 32:19; also found in Micah 7:13.
"Doings, your doings," etc., are also found in Jeremiah and elsewhere.
4. "The sword, the pestilence, and the famine," in various orders, and either as a phrase or each word ocurring in one of three successive clauses: Jeremiah 14:12; Jeremiah 15:2; Jeremiah 21:7; Jeremiah 21:9; Jeremiah 24:10; Jeremiah 27:8; Jeremiah 27:13; Jeremiah 29:17-18; Jeremiah 32:24; Jeremiah 32:36; Jeremiah 34:17; Jeremiah 38:2; Jeremiah 42:17; Jeremiah 42:22; Jeremiah 44:13.
"The sword and the famime," with similar variations: Jeremiah 5:12; Jeremiah 11:22; Jeremiah 14:13; Jeremiah 14:15-16; Jeremiah 14:18; Jeremiah 16:4; Jeremiah 18:21; Jeremiah 42:16; Jeremiah 44:12; Jeremiah 44:18; Jeremiah 44:27. Cf. similar lists, etc., "death. sword. captivity," in Jeremiah 43:11: "war. evil. pestilence," Jeremiah 28:8.
5. "Kings. princes. priests. prophets," in various orders and combinations: Jeremiah 2:26; Jeremiah 4:9; Jeremiah 8:1; Jeremiah 13:13; Jeremiah 24:8; Jeremiah 32:32.
Cf. "Prophet. priest. people," Jeremiah 23:33-34. "Prophets. diviners. dreamers. enchanters. sorcerers," Jeremiah 27:9.