Yeremia 8:10

8:10 ¹ So I will give their wives to other men

and their fields to new owners.

For from the least important to the most important of them,

all of them are greedy for dishonest gain.

Prophets and priests alike,

all practice deceit.

Yeremia 31:32

31:32 It will not be like the old ²  covenant that I made with their ancestors ³  when I delivered them ⁴  from Egypt. For they violated that covenant, even though I was like a faithful husband to them,” ⁵  says the Lord. ⁶ 

Yeremia 37:17

37:17 Then King Zedekiah had him brought to the palace. There he questioned him privately and asked him, ⁷  “Is there any message from the Lord?” Jeremiah answered, “Yes, there is.” Then he announced, ⁸  “You will be handed over to the king of Babylon.” ⁹ 

Yeremia 40:9

40:9 Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam and grandson of Shaphan, took an oath so as to give them and their troops some assurance of safety. ¹⁰  “Do not be afraid to submit to the Babylonians. ¹¹  Settle down in the land and submit to the king of Babylon. Then things will go well for you.

Yeremia 41:8

41:8 But there were ten men among them who said ¹²  to Ishmael, “Do not kill us. For we will give you the stores of wheat, barley, olive oil, and honey we have hidden in a field. ¹³  So he spared their lives and did not kill ¹⁴  them along with the rest. ¹⁵ 

Yeremia 42:5

42:5 They answered Jeremiah, “May the Lord be a true and faithful witness against us if we do not do just as ¹⁶  the Lord sends you to tell us to do.

[8:10]  ¹ sn See Jer 6:12-15 for parallels to 8:10-12. The words of Jeremiah to the people may have been repeated on more than one occasion or have been found appropriate to more than one of his collection of messages in written and edited form. See Jer 36:4 and Jer 36:28 for reference to at least two of these collections.

[31:32]  ² tn The word “old” is not in the text but is implicit in the use of the word “new.” It is supplied in the translation for greater clarity.

[31:32]  ³ tn Heb “fathers.”

[31:32]  sn This refers to the Mosaic covenant which the nation entered into with God at Sinai and renewed on the plains of Moab. The primary biblical passages explicating this covenant are Exod 19–24 and the book of Deuteronomy; see as well the study note on Jer 11:2 for the form this covenant took and its relation to the warnings of the prophets. The renewed document of Deuteronomy was written down and provisions made for periodic public reading and renewal of commitment to it (Deut 31:9-13). Josiah had done this after the discovery of the book of the law (which was either Deuteronomy or a synopsis of it) early in the ministry of Jeremiah (2 Kgs 23:1-4; the date would be near 622 b.c. shortly after Jeremiah began prophesying in 627 [see the note on Jer 1:2]). But it is apparent from Jeremiah’s confrontation with Judah after that time that the commitment of the people was only superficial (cf. Jer 3:10). The prior history of the nations of Israel and Judah and Judah’s current practice had been one of persistent violation of this covenant despite repeated warnings of the prophets that God would punish them for that (see especially Jer 7, 11). Because of that, Israel had been exiled (cf., e.g., Jer 3:8), and now Judah was threatened with the same (cf., e.g., Jer 7:15). Jer 30–31 look forward to a time when both Israel and Judah will be regathered, reunited, and under a new covenant which includes the same stipulations but with a different relationship (v. 32).

[31:32]  ⁴ tn Heb “when I took them by the hand and led them out.”

[31:32]  ⁵ tn Or “I was their master.” See the study note on 3:14.

[31:32]  sn The metaphor of Yahweh as husband and Israel as wife has been used already in Jer 3 and is implicit in the repeated allusions to idolatry as spiritual adultery or prostitution. The best commentary on the faithfulness of God to his “husband-like” relation is seen in the book of Hosea, especially in Hos 1-3.

[31:32]  ⁶ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[37:17]  ⁷ tn Heb “Then King Zedekiah sent and brought him and the king asked him privately [or more literally, in secret] and said.”

[37:17]  ⁸ tn Heb “Then he said.”

[37:17]  ⁹ sn Jeremiah’s answer even under duress was the same that he had given Zedekiah earlier. (See Jer 34:3 and see the study note on 34:1 for the relative timing of these two incidents.)

[40:9]  ¹⁰ tn The words “so as to give them some assurance of safety” are not in the text but are generally understood by all commentators. This would be a case of substitution of cause for effect, the oath, put for the effect, the assurance of safety (NJPS translates directly “reassured them”).

[40:9]  ¹¹ tn Heb “Chaldeans.” See the study note on 21:4 for explanation.

[41:8]  ¹² tn Heb “But there were ten men found among them and they said.” However, for the use of “were found” = “be, happened to be” see BDB 594 s.v. מָצָא 2.c and compare the usage in 41:3.

[41:8]  ¹³ tn This sentence is a good example of the elliptical nature of some of the causal connections in the Hebrew Bible. All the Hebrew says literally is “For we have hidden stores of wheat, barley, olive oil, and honey in a field.” However, it is obvious that they are using this as their bargaining chip to prevent Ishmael and his men from killing them. For the use of “for” (כִּי, ki) for such elliptical thoughts see BDB 473-74 s.v. כִּי 3.c.

[41:8]  ¹⁴ tn Or “So he refrained from killing them”; Heb “he refrained and did not kill them.”

[41:8]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “in the midst of their brothers/fellow countrymen.”

[42:5]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “do according to all the word which.”