Jeremiah 8
8
Death Chosen over Life
1Here is what Yahweh says: “At that time, they will desecrate the graves of Jerusalem and bring out the bones of the kings of Judah, the bones of its princes, the bones of the priests, # 8:1 Possibly, the priests of Baal and occultic worship. the bones of the false prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of the city. 2They will spread them out before the sun and the moon and all the stars of heaven, which they loved and served. They went after cosmic powers, inquired of them, bowed down before them in adoration, and worshiped them. Because they did these things, their bones will not be buried but will become fertilizer for the ground. # 8:2 Or “dung on the ground.” This was fulfilled during the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians. See Jer. 39:1–18; 2 Kings 25:1–26; 2 Baruch 2:24. 3However, I will leave some of these evil people alive and banish them to other places. Yet all the survivors will prefer death over life. # 8:3 In other words, it will be even worse for the survivors who are taken in captivity and scattered abroad. See Deut. 28:64–68; 30:19–20; Lam. 4:9. For I, Lord Yahweh, Commander of Angel Armies, have spoken.”
Stubbornness of Heart
4“Jeremiah, say to the people, ‘Yahweh says:
“ ‘Don’t people get back up when they fall down? # 8:4 God was reminding them that they still could repent and come back to him, for no matter how far people have fallen and strayed from God, mercy triumphs over judgment.
Don’t they turn around when they take the wrong road?
5So why have you, the people of Jerusalem,
continually refused to turn back to me?
Why do you cling so tightly to your deception # 8:5 That is, to their false gods.
instead of coming home to me?’ ”
Jeremiah’s Description of Their Sin
6I have listened carefully to what they say,
but nothing they say is right.
No one is sorry about his sin,
saying, “What have I done wrong?”
Everyone keeps on going his own way,
like a war-horse plunging headlong into battle.
Yahweh Warns Those Who Mislead Others
7“Even the stork # 8:7 The stork is seen by some as a symbol of godliness and kindness, being known for its love and care for its offspring. The Hebrew word for “stork” shares a root word with the word for “loving-kindness” (Hb. chesed). in the skies
knows her season of migration.
And migratory birds—the turtledove, # 8:7 The dove is the most mentioned bird in the Bible. The sound of the turtledove signals a change of season, appearing in Israel in early spring. See Song. 2:12. Turtledoves have no bile and they mate for life; during their life together, they cooperate in nest-building labor and in raising their young. These habits make them beautiful symbols of love and faithfulness. Two turtledoves could be a replacement for a lamb sacrifice (see Lev. 12:8). Mary and Joseph offered two turtledoves in Jerusalem at Christ’s birth (see Luke 2:22–24). the swallow, # 8:7 The swallow is noted for its grace and swiftness of flight. It appears suddenly every spring and has been recognized by the early church as a symbol of the resurrection of Christ. The swallow is also known as “the bird of freedom,” for it is next to impossible to catch and keep in captivity. See Ps. 84:3; Isa. 38:14. and the crane # 8:7 The crane is a bird recognized in the Near East as a “sentinel bird,” for they take turns at night watching for intruding enemies. —
instinctively take flight
according to the times I have set for them,
but my people pay no attention
to the orders # 8:7 Or “rules,” “ordinances,” “regulations,” or “instructions.” Yahweh was saying, “Dumb birds obey what I set in place for them, but my ‘wise’ people do not.” The birds don’t even have a direct instruction; they instinctively follow God’s orders. But the people have the explicit instructions through the law and are still more disobedient than the birds. of Yahweh.
8How dare you say, ‘We are wise,
because we have the law of Yahweh?’ # 8:8 Luther translated this clause: “and [we] have the Holy Scriptures before us [und haben die heilige Schrift vor uns].”
Look! The scribes teach lies about the law. # 8:8 There is a misconception that the scribes were only copyists of the sacred text. However, the scribes (Hb. soperim) were more than mere copyists. They transmitted the truth of God and likely had a teaching influence among the people. Both Jeremiah and Jesus warned us about the teaching of the scribes. By the time of the New Testament, the scribes had become the go-to people to discuss the nuances of the Tanakh (Old Testament). The scribes are mentioned as the “teachers” or “scholars” of the law (see Mark 1:22); they were rabbis and official leaders of the people, along with the Pharisees. They had become the religious scholars of their day. Jesus taught very much unlike the scribes (see Matt. 7:28–29).
They have made the law itself into a lie! # 8:8 Or “Behold, the lying pen of the scribes!” The scribes “claimed to be the legitimate interpreters” of the written law. “Their confidence in the written page prevented them from accepting the word of Yahweh spoken through the prophets” (see John A. Thompson, The Book of Jeremiah, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament, [Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1980]). Scholarship is a gift, but like all gifts, it can be misused. Jesus repeatedly warned his followers to beware of the “experts of the law” (scribes; Luke 20:41 and footnote) who had distorted God’s Word to fit their desires. He compared their teachings, along with that of the Pharisees, to leaven (or “yeast”; Matt. 16:5–12; Mark 8:14–21; Luke 12:1). See Mark 12:38–40; Luke 20:45–47.
9The know-it-alls will be shamed, terrorized, and trapped.
They walked away from the word of Yahweh,
so wisdom walked away from them.
10Therefore I will give their wives to other men
and their fields to those who will take over the land. # 8:10 See Deut. 28:30.
From the smallest to the greatest,
they are all greedy for corrupt profits; # 8:10 Or “they all shave off profit [taking their cut].”
priest and prophet alike, they all practice deceit.
11And they # 8:11 “They” refers to the prophets and priests, who are speaking later in this verse and again in vv. 14–15. treat the wounds of my beloved people # 8:11 Or “daughter of my people.”
as though they were scratches.
‘Don’t worry,’ they say. ‘Peace, everything is well,’
when there is no peace, and nothing is well.
12They have acted shamefully,
and have committed abhorrent acts,
yet they feel no shame.
They don’t know how to blush.
Surely, they will fall among the fallen,
and stumble when I deal with them,” says Yahweh.
The Remedy Forsaken
13Yahweh says:
“I will surely make an end of them.
There will be neither cluster on the vine
nor figs on the fig trees—
even the leaves have withered. # 8:13 The day after entering triumphantly into Jerusalem, Jesus cursed a fig tree, and it withered. This was, in part, a sign to Jerusalem, taken from this passage in Jeremiah, that they were like the generation of Jeremiah’s day. It was a sign to them that their end was near. See Matt. 21:1–21.
I gave them a good harvest, but it escaped from them.” # 8:13 The Hebrew of this sentence is uncertain.
The Voice of Hopelessness
14Why are we just sitting here?
Let’s band together and go inside our walled cities
and await our death,
since Yahweh our God has condemned us to die.
He has given us our bitter poison to drink, # 8:14 That is, the “bitter poison” of the cup of judgment.
for we have sinned against him.
15We had hoped for peace and prosperity,
but no blessing came.
We had hoped for a time of healing,
but we were overtaken by sudden terror!
16The snorting of his # 8:16 Most believe the horses were the cavalry of the advancing army of Nebuchadnezzar (see 4:13; 6:22–23). Others believe “his” refers to God. horses is heard from Dan.
At the sound of the cries of his stallions,
the whole land quakes. # 8:16 See Jer. 4:24; Heb. 12:25–28.
They have entered to completely devastate the land,
Jerusalem, # 8:16 Or “the city.” and its inhabitants.
Yahweh Sends Snakes and Vipers
17“For look! I am sending slithering snakes to bite you—
venomous vipers # 8:17 The Hebrew word for “viper” (tsipʿon) is nearly the same as the word used for enemies coming from the “north [Hb. tsapon]” (see 4:6; 6:1, 22–23). See also Num. 21:4–9; Amos 5:19. that cannot be charmed,” declares Yahweh.
Jeremiah’s Heart Is Crushed
18My joy has vanished, # 8:18 Or “my brightness [shining] has vanished.” The Hebrew text is somewhat problematic and uncertain. Many translations, starting with Jerome and including the Septuagint, render this “My grief [weeping] is incurable.”
grief grips my soul,
and I am sick at heart.
19Listen! I hear my beloved people # 8:19 Or “I hear the daughter of my people.”
crying out in despair throughout the land: # 8:19 Or “from a distant land” (i.e., from their place of exile).
“Is Yahweh no longer in Zion?
Is her King not dwelling within her?”
“So why have they provoked me to anger with their carved images
and with their foreign, phony gods?” # 8:19 Or “foreign nothings.”
20“Summer has ended,
the harvest is past,
and still we are not saved!”
21I am broken over the brokenness of my dear people. # 8:21 Jeremiah fully identified with the suffering of his people. True prophetic ministry enters into the emotional life of God’s people and is able to “celebrate with those who celebrate, and weep with those who grieve” (Rom. 12:15).
I mourn # 8:21 Or “I am dark,” a figure of speech for wearing the dark clothes of mourning and grief. all day long.
Horror has gripped me.
22Is there no healer # 8:22 Biblical Hebrew has no noun for a doctor, only for a healer. Jeremiah’s two questions were meant to be answered with a yes. We do have a healer named Jesus, whose love and mercy become a soothing ointment to our souls. in Gilead?
Is there no medicine # 8:22 Or “balm” (Hb. tsori). It is likely a reference to a resin harvested from the balsam tree, much like maple syrup taken from the maple tree. Balm was known as a fragrant, soothing medicine, and balm from Gilead was presumably known for its superior quality. It was traded by merchants and used as gifts (see Gen. 43:11; Ezek. 27:17). Recent excavations at both En Gedi and Qumran have uncovered small clay jugs dating back to Jeremiah’s time, which are thought to have contained balm (see Philip J. King, Jeremiah: An Archaeological Companion [Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1993], 113, 153–54). there?
Why then have the people I love not been healed? # 8:22 Or “So why has new skin [flesh] not arisen [over the wound] of the daughter of my people?”
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