Yeremia 2:30
Konteks2:30 “It did no good for me to punish your people.
They did not respond to such correction.
You slaughtered your prophets
like a voracious lion.” 1
Yeremia 11:19-21
Konteks11:19 Before this I had been like a docile lamb ready to be led to the slaughter.
I did not know they were making plans to kill me. 2
I did not know they were saying, 3
“Let’s destroy the tree along with its fruit! 4
Let’s remove Jeremiah 5 from the world of the living
so people will not even be reminded of him any more.” 6
11:20 So I said to the Lord, 7
“O Lord who rules over all, 8 you are a just judge!
You examine people’s hearts and minds. 9
I want to see you pay them back for what they have done
because I trust you to vindicate my cause.” 10
11:21 Then the Lord told me about 11 some men from Anathoth 12 who were threatening to kill me. 13 They had threatened, 14 “Stop prophesying in the name of the Lord or we will kill you!” 15
Yeremia 12:5-6
Konteks“If you have raced on foot against men and they have worn you out,
how will you be able to compete with horses?
And if you feel secure only 17 in safe and open country, 18
how will you manage in the thick undergrowth along the Jordan River? 19
12:6 As a matter of fact, 20 even your own brothers
and the members of your own family have betrayed you too.
Even they have plotted to do away with you. 21
So do not trust them even when they say kind things 22 to you.
Yeremia 18:18
Konteks18:18 Then some people 23 said, “Come on! Let us consider how to deal with Jeremiah! 24 There will still be priests to instruct us, wise men to give us advice, and prophets to declare God’s word. 25 Come on! Let’s bring charges against him and get rid of him! 26 Then we will not need to pay attention to anything he says.”
Yeremia 20:1-2
Konteks20:1 Now Pashhur son of Immer heard Jeremiah prophesy these things. He was the priest who was chief of security 27 in the Lord’s temple. 20:2 When he heard Jeremiah’s prophecy, he had the prophet flogged. 28 Then he put him in the stocks 29 which were at the Upper Gate of Benjamin in the Lord’s temple. 30
Yeremia 20:8-11
Konteks20:8 For whenever I prophesy, 31 I must cry out, 32
“Violence and destruction are coming!” 33
This message from the Lord 34 has made me
an object of continual insults and derision.
20:9 Sometimes I think, “I will make no mention of his message.
I will not speak as his messenger 35 any more.”
But then 36 his message becomes like a fire
locked up inside of me, burning in my heart and soul. 37
I grow weary of trying to hold it in;
I cannot contain it.
20:10 I 38 hear many whispering words of intrigue against me.
Those who would cause me terror are everywhere! 39
They are saying, “Come on, let’s publicly denounce him!” 40
All my so-called friends 41 are just watching for
something that would lead to my downfall. 42
They say, “Perhaps he can be enticed into slipping up,
so we can prevail over 43 him and get our revenge on him.
20:11 But the Lord is with me to help me like an awe-inspiring warrior. 44
Therefore those who persecute me will fail and will not prevail over me.
They will be thoroughly disgraced because they did not succeed.
Their disgrace will never be forgotten.
[2:30] 1 tn Heb “Your sword devoured your prophets like a destroying lion.” However, the reference to the sword in this and many similar idioms is merely idiomatic for death by violent means.
[11:19] 2 tn Heb “against me.” The words “to kill me” are implicit from the context and are supplied in the translation for clarity.
[11:19] 3 tn The words “I did not know that they were saying” are not in the text. The quote is without formal introduction in the original. These words are supplied in the translation for clarity.
[11:19] 4 tn This word and its pronoun (לַחְמוֹ, lakhmo, “its bread”) is often emended to read “in/with its sap” = “in its prime” (either לֵחוֹ [lekho] or לֵחְמוֹ [lekhÿmo]); the latter would be more likely and the מוֹ (mo) could be explained as a rare use of the old poetic third plural suffix for the third singular; cf. GKC 258 §91.l for general use and Ps 11:7 and Job 27:23 for third singular use. Though this fits the context nicely the emendation is probably unnecessary since the word “bread” is sometimes used of other foodstuff than grain or its products (cf. BDB 537 s.v. לֶחֶם 2.a).
[11:19] sn The word fruit refers contextually here to the prophecies that Jeremiah was giving, not (as some suppose) his progeny. Jeremiah was not married and had no children.
[11:19] 5 tn Heb “cut it [or him] off.” The metaphor of the tree may be continued, though the verb “cut off” is used also of killing people. The rendering clarifies the meaning of the metaphor.
[11:19] 6 tn Heb “so that his name will not be remembered any more.”
[11:20] 7 tn The words “So I said to the
[11:20] 8 tn Heb “Yahweh of armies.”
[11:20] sn For the significance of the term see the notes at 2:19 and 7:3.
[11:20] 9 tn Heb “
[11:20] 10 tn Heb “Let me see your retribution [i.e., see you exact retribution] from them because I reveal my cause [i.e., plea for justice] to you.”
[11:21] 11 tn Heb “Therefore thus says the
[11:21] 12 tn Heb “the men of Anathoth.” However, this does not involve all of the people, only the conspirators. The literal might lead to confusion later since v. 21 mentions that there will not be any of them left alive. However, it is known from Ezra 2:23 that there were survivors.
[11:21] 13 tc The MT reads the 2nd person masculine singular suffix “your life,” but LXX reflects an alternative reading of the 1st person common singular suffix “my life.”
[11:21] 14 tn Heb “who were seeking my life, saying…” The sentence is broken up in conformity with contemporary English style.
[11:21] 15 tn Heb “or you will die by our hand.”
[12:5] 16 tn The words “The
[12:5] 17 tn Some commentaries and English versions follow the suggestion given in HALOT 116 s.v. II בָּטַח that a homonym meaning “to stumble, fall down” is involved here and in Prov 14:16. The evidence for this homonym is questionable because both passages can be explained on other grounds with the usual root.
[12:5] 18 tn Heb “a land of tranquility.” The expression involves a figure of substitution where the feeling engendered is substituted for the conditions that engender it. For the idea see Isa 32:18. The translation both here and in the following line is intended to bring out the contrast implicit in the emotive connotations connected with “peaceful country” and “thicket along the Jordan.”
[12:5] 19 tn Heb “the thicket along the Jordan.” The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
[12:5] sn The thick undergrowth along the Jordan River refers to the thick woods and underbrush alongside the Jordan where lions were known to have lived, and hence the area was considered dangerous. See Jer 49:14; 50:44. The
[12:6] 20 tn This is an attempt to give some contextual sense to the particle “for, indeed” (כִּי, ki).
[12:6] sn If the truth be known, Jeremiah wasn’t safe even in the context of his own family. They were apparently part of the plot by the people of Anathoth to kill him.
[12:6] 21 tn Heb “they have called after you fully”; or “have lifted up loud voices against you.” The word “against” does not seem quite adequate for the preposition “after.” The preposition “against” would be Hebrew עַל (’al). The idea appears to be that they are chasing after him, raising their voices along with those of the conspirators to have him killed.
[12:6] 22 tn Heb “good things.” See BDB 373 s.v. II טוֹב 2 for this nuance and compare Prov 12:25 for usage.
[18:18] 23 tn Heb “They.” The referent is unidentified; “some people” has been used in the translation.
[18:18] 24 tn Heb “Let us make plans against Jeremiah.” See 18:18 where this has sinister overtones as it does here.
[18:18] 25 tn Heb “Instruction will not perish from priest, counsel from the wise, word from the prophet.”
[18:18] sn These are the three channels through whom God spoke to his people in the OT. See Jer 8:8-10 and Ezek 7:26.
[18:18] 26 tn Heb “Let us smite him with our tongues.” It is clear from the context that this involved plots to kill him.
[20:1] 27 tn Heb “chief overseer/officer.” The translation follows the suggestion of P. C. Craigie, P. H. Kelley, J. F. Drinkard, Jeremiah 1-25 (WBC), 267, based on the parallel passage in 29:26-27 where this official appears to have been in charge of maintaining order in the temple.
[20:1] sn Judging from a comparison of this passage with Jer 29:26-27 and that passage in turn with 2 Kgs 25:18, Pashhur held an office second in rank only to the high priest. He was in charge of keeping order in the temple and took offense at what he heard Jeremiah saying.
[20:2] 28 tn Heb “And Pashhur son of Immer, the priest and he [= who] was chief overseer [or officer] in the house of the
[20:2] 29 tn The meaning of this word is uncertain. It occurs only here, in 29:26 where it is followed by a parallel word that occurs only there and is generally translated “collar,” and in 2 Chr 16:10 where it is preceded by the word “house of.” It is most often translated “stocks” and explained as an instrument of confinement for keeping prisoners in a crooked position (from its relation to a root meaning “to turn.” See BDB 246 s.v. מַהְפֶּכֶת and KBL 500 s.v. מַהְפֶּכֶת for definition and discussion.) For a full discussion including the interpretation of the ancient versions see W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah (Hermeneia), 1:542-43.
[20:2] 30 sn A comparison of Ezek 8:3 and 9:2 in their contexts will show that this probably refers to the northern gate to the inner court of the temple. It is called Upper because it was on higher ground above the gate in the outer court. It is qualified by “in the
[20:8] 31 tn Heb “speak,” but the speaking is in the context of speaking as a prophet.
[20:8] 32 tn Heb “I cry out, I proclaim.”
[20:8] 33 tn Heb “Violence and destruction.”
[20:8] sn The words “Violence and destruction…” are a synopsis of his messages of judgment. Jeremiah is lamenting that his ministry up to this point has been one of judgment and has brought him nothing but ridicule because the
[20:8] 34 tn Heb “the word of the
[20:9] 35 tn Heb “speak in his name.” This idiom occurs in passages where someone functions as the messenger under the authority of another. See Exod 5:23; Deut 18:19, 29:20; Jer 14:14. The antecedent in the first line is quite commonly misidentified as being “him,” i.e., the
[20:9] 36 tn The English sentence has again been restructured for the sake of English style. The Hebrew construction involves two vav consecutive perfects in a condition and consequence relation, “If I say to myself…then it [his word] becomes.” See GKC 337 §112.kk for the construction.
[20:9] 37 sn Heb “It is in my heart like a burning fire, shut up in my bones.” In addition to standing as part for the whole, the “bones” for the person (e.g., Ps 35:10), the bones were associated with fear (e.g., Job 4:14) and with pain (e.g., Job 33:19, Ps 102:3 [102:4 HT]) and joy or sorrow (e.g., Ps 51:8 [51:10 HT]). As has been mentioned several times, the heart was connected with intellectual and volitional concerns.
[20:10] 38 tn It would be difficult to render accurately the Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) that introduces this verse without lengthening the English line unduly. It probably means something like “This is true even though I…,” i.e., the particle is concessive (cf. BDB s.v. כִּי 2.c). No other nuance seems appropriate. The particle is left out of the translation, but its presence is acknowledged here.
[20:10] 39 tn The phrase translated “Those who would cause me terror are everywhere” has already occurred in 6:25 in the context of the terror caused by the enemy from the north and in 20:3 in reference to the curse pronounced on Pashhur who would experience it first hand. Some have seen the phrase here not as Jeremiah’s ejaculation of terror but of his assailant’s taunts of his message or even their taunting nickname for him. But comparison of this passage with the first two lines of Ps 31:13 (31:14 HT) which are word for word the same as these two will show that it refers to the terror inspired by the plots of his enemies to do away with him. It is also clear from the context of that passage and the following context here that the “whispering of many” (the literal translation of “many whispering words of intrigue against me) refers to intrigues to take vengeance on him and do away with him.
[20:10] 40 tn Heb “Denounce and let us denounce him.” The verb which is translated “denounce” (נָגַד, nagad) does not take an accusative object of person as it does here very often. When it does it usually means to inform someone. The only relevant passage appears to be Job 17:5 where it means something like “denounce.” What is probably involved here are the attempts to portray Jeremiah as a traitor (Jer 26:10) and a false prophet (see his conflict with Hananiah in Jer 28).
[20:10] 41 tn Heb “the men of my peace [who are concerned about my welfare].” For this phrase compare Ps 41:9 (41:10 HT); Jer 38:22. It is generally agreed that irony is being invoked here, hence “so-called” is supplied in the translation to bring out the irony.
[20:10] 42 tn Heb “watching my stumbling [for me to stumble].” Metaphorically they were watching for some slip-up that would lead to his downfall. Compare the use in Pss 35:15 and 38:17 (38:18 HT).
[20:10] 43 tn All the text says literally is “Perhaps he can be enticed so that we can prevail over him.” However the word “enticed” needs some qualification. As W. McKane (Jeremiah [ICC], 1:479) notes it should probably be read in the context of the “stumbling” (= “something that would lead to my downfall”). Hence “slipping up” has been supplied as an object. It is vague enough to avoid specifics as the original text does but suggests some reference to “something that would lead to my downfall.”
[20:10] sn There is an interesting ironical play on words here with the earlier use of these same Hebrew words in v. 7 to refer to the
[20:11] 44 sn This line has some interesting ties with Jer 15:20-21 where Jeremiah is assured by God that he is indeed with him as he promised him when he called him (1:8, 19) and will deliver him from the clutches of wicked and violent people. The word translated here “awe-inspiring” is the same as the word “violent people” there. Jeremiah is confident that his “awe-inspiring” warrior will overcome “violent people.” The statement of confidence here is, by the way, a common element in the psalms of petition in the Psalter. The common elements of that type of psalm are all here: invocation (v. 7), lament (vv. 7-10), confession of trust/confidence in being heard (v. 11), petition (v. 12), thanksgiving or praise (v. 13). For some examples of this type of psalm see Pss 3, 7, 26.
