2. Warnings about apostasy and its consequences chs. 7-10

This is another collection of Jeremiah's prophecies that have in common the theme of Judah's departure from God and the consequences of that apostasy.

 Aspects of false religion 7:1-8:3

All the messages in this section deal with departure from the Lord in religious practices, either in pagan rites or in the perversion of the proper worship of Yahweh that the Mosaic Law specified. All the material in this section fits conditions in Judah after 609 B.C., when Jehoiakim began allowing a return to pagan practices after the end of Josiah's reforms. Another feature of this section is the large amount of prose material it contains, much more than the preceding section (chs. 2-6). The common theme is worship, and the key word is "place,"though this word refers to different things in different verses (vv. 7:3, 7, 12, 14, 20, 32; 8:3).¹⁶²From their contents we may surmise that these messages were undoubtedly responsible for much of the antagonism that Jeremiah received from the Judahites (cf. 26:7-24).

 Incorrigible Judah 8:4-10:25

The twin themes of Judah's stubborn rebellion and her inevitable doom tie this section of miscellaneous messages together. The section contains mostly poetic material, and the prophecies bear the marks of Jehoiakim's early reign (perhaps shortly after 609 B.C.).

 The consequences of breaking the covenant chs. 11-13

This section provides an explanation for God's judgment on His people: the Judahites broke the Mosaic Covenant. It also contains two laments that portray the tragedy of the situation and the Lord's reluctance to send judgment. The final sub-section contains a symbolic action that pictures the horror of the people's sin.

 Laments during a drought and a national defeat 14:1-15:9

Evidently droughts coincided with the Babylonian invasions from the north. Most commentators believe that the droughts and the defeat that this section describes took place at about the same time because of what Jeremiah wrote.