Yeremia 17:22

17:22 Do not carry any loads out of your houses or do any work on the Sabbath day. ¹  But observe the Sabbath day as a day set apart to the Lord, ²  as I commanded your ancestors. ³ 

Yeremia 50:25

50:25 I have opened up the place where my weapons are stored. ⁴ 

I have brought out the weapons for carrying out my wrath. ⁵ 

For I, the Lord God who rules over all, ⁶ 

have work to carry out in the land of Babylonia. ⁷ 

Yeremia 17:24

17:24 The Lord says, ⁸  ‘You must make sure to obey me. You must not bring any loads through the gates of this city on the Sabbath day. You must set the Sabbath day apart to me. You must not do any work on that day.

Yeremia 31:16

31:16 The Lord says to her, ⁹ 

“Stop crying! Do not shed any more tears! ¹⁰ 

For your heartfelt repentance ¹¹  will be rewarded.

Your children will return from the land of the enemy.

I, the Lord, affirm it! ¹² 

Yeremia 10:9

10:9 Hammered-out silver is brought from Tarshish ¹³ 

and gold is brought from Uphaz ¹⁴  to cover those idols. ¹⁵ 

They are the handiwork of carpenters and goldsmiths. ¹⁶ 

They are clothed in blue and purple clothes. ¹⁷ 

They are all made by skillful workers. ¹⁸ 

Yeremia 25:14

25:14 For many nations and great kings will make slaves of the king of Babylon and his nation ¹⁹  too. I will repay them for all they have done!’” ²⁰ 

Yeremia 7:13

7:13 You also have done all these things, says the Lord, and I have spoken to you over and over again. ²¹  But you have not listened! You have refused to respond when I called you to repent! ²² 

Yeremia 50:29

50:29 “Call for archers ²³  to come against Babylon!

Summon against her all who draw the bow!

Set up camp all around the city!

Do not allow anyone to escape!

Pay her back for what she has done.

Do to her what she has done to others.

For she has proudly defied me, ²⁴ 

the Holy One of Israel. ²⁵ 

Yeremia 39:10

39:10 But he ²⁶  left behind in the land of Judah some of the poor people who owned nothing. He gave them fields and vineyards at that time.

Yeremia 3:24

3:24 From earliest times our worship of that shameful god, Baal,

has taken away ²⁷  all that our ancestors ²⁸  worked for.

It has taken away our flocks and our herds,

and even our sons and daughters.

Yeremia 4:18

4:18 “The way you have lived and the things you have done ²⁹ 

will bring this on you.

This is the punishment you deserve, and it will be painful indeed. ³⁰ 

The pain will be so bad it will pierce your heart.” ³¹ 

Yeremia 25:7

25:7 So, now the Lord says, ³²  ‘You have not listened to me. But ³³  you have made me angry by the things that you have done. ³⁴  Thus you have brought harm on yourselves.’

Yeremia 33:6

33:6 But I will most surely ³⁵  heal the wounds of this city and restore it and its people to health. ³⁶  I will show them abundant ³⁷  peace and security.

Yeremia 25:6

25:6 Do not pay allegiance to ³⁸  other gods and worship and serve them. Do not make me angry by the things that you do. ³⁹  Then I will not cause you any harm.’

Yeremia 48:7

48:7 “Moab, you trust in the things you do and in your riches.

So you too will be conquered.

Your god Chemosh ⁴⁰  will go into exile ⁴¹ 

along with his priests and his officials.

Yeremia 32:30

32:30 This will happen because the people of Israel and Judah have repeatedly done what displeases me ⁴²  from their earliest history until now ⁴³  and because they ⁴⁴  have repeatedly made me angry by the things they have done. ⁴⁵  I, the Lord, affirm it! ⁴⁶ 

Yeremia 44:8

44:8 That is what will result from your making me angry by what you are doing. ⁴⁷  You are making me angry by sacrificing to other gods here in the land of Egypt where you live. You will be destroyed for doing that! You will become an example used in curses ⁴⁸  and an object of ridicule among all the nations of the earth. ⁴⁹ 

Yeremia 2:18

2:18 What good will it do you ⁵⁰  then ⁵¹  to go down to Egypt

to seek help from the Egyptians? ⁵² 

What good will it do you ⁵³  to go over to Assyria

to seek help from the Assyrians? ⁵⁴ 

Yeremia 48:10

48:10 A curse on anyone who is lax in doing the Lord’s work!

A curse on anyone who keeps from carrying out his destruction! ⁵⁵ 

Yeremia 10:15

10:15 They are worthless, mere objects to be mocked. ⁵⁶ 

When the time comes to punish them, they will be destroyed.

Yeremia 51:18

51:18 They are worthless, objects to be ridiculed.

When the time comes to punish them, they will be destroyed.

Yeremia 18:4

18:4 Now and then ⁵⁷  there would be something wrong ⁵⁸  with the pot he was molding from the clay ⁵⁹  with his hands. So he would rework ⁶⁰  the clay into another kind of pot as he saw fit. ⁶¹ 

Yeremia 22:13

Judgment on Jehoiakim

22:13 “‘Sure to be judged ⁶²  is the king who builds his palace using injustice

and treats people unfairly while adding its upper rooms. ⁶³ 

He makes his countrymen work for him for nothing.

He does not pay them for their labor.

Yeremia 10:3

10:3 For the religion ⁶⁴  of these people is worthless.

They cut down a tree in the forest,

and a craftsman makes it into an idol with his tools. ⁶⁵ 

Yeremia 4:3

4:3 Yes, ⁶⁶  the Lord has this to say

to the people of Judah and Jerusalem:

“Like a farmer breaking up hard unplowed ground,

you must break your rebellious will and make a new beginning;

just as a farmer must clear away thorns lest the seed is wasted,

you must get rid of the sin that is ruining your lives. ⁶⁷ 

Yeremia 18:3

18:3 So I went down to the potter’s house and found him working ⁶⁸  at his wheel. ⁶⁹ 

Yeremia 51:58

51:58 This is what the Lord who rules over all ⁷⁰  says,

“Babylon’s thick wall ⁷¹  will be completely demolished. ⁷² 

Her high gates will be set on fire.

The peoples strive for what does not satisfy. ⁷³ 

The nations grow weary trying to get what will be destroyed.” ⁷⁴ 

Yeremia 14:4

14:4 They are dismayed because the ground is cracked ⁷⁵ 

because there has been no rain in the land.

The farmers, too, are dismayed

and bury their faces in their hands.

Yeremia 29:2

29:2 He sent it after King Jeconiah, the queen mother, the palace officials, ⁷⁶  the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the metal workers had been exiled from Jerusalem. ⁷⁷ 

Yeremia 51:10

51:10 The exiles from Judah will say, ⁷⁸ 

‘The Lord has brought about a great deliverance for us! ⁷⁹ 

Come on, let’s go and proclaim in Zion

what the Lord our God has done!’

Yeremia 52:16

52:16 But he ⁸⁰  left behind some of the poor ⁸¹  and gave them fields and vineyards.

Yeremia 52:15

52:15 Nebuzaradan, the captain of the royal guard, took into exile some of the poor, ⁸²  the rest of the people who remained in the city, those who had deserted to him, and the rest of the craftsmen.

Yeremia 1:10

1:10 Know for certain that ⁸³  I hereby give you the authority to announce to nations and kingdoms that they will be ⁸⁴  uprooted and torn down, destroyed and demolished, rebuilt and firmly planted.” ⁸⁵ 

Yeremia 17:21

17:21 The Lord says, ‘Be very careful if you value your lives! ⁸⁶  Do not carry any loads ⁸⁷  in through ⁸⁸  the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day.

Yeremia 21:2

21:2 “Please ask the Lord to come and help us, ⁸⁹  because King Nebuchadnezzar ⁹⁰  of Babylon is attacking us. Maybe the Lord will perform one of his miracles as in times past and make him stop attacking us and leave.” ⁹¹ 

Yeremia 27:11

27:11 Things will go better for the nation that submits to the yoke of servitude to ⁹²  the king of Babylon and is subject to him. I will leave that nation ⁹³  in its native land. Its people can continue to farm it and live in it. I, the Lord, affirm it!”’” ⁹⁴ 

Yeremia 32:19

32:19 You plan great things and you do mighty deeds. ⁹⁵  You see everything people do. ⁹⁶  You reward each of them for the way they live and for the things they do. ⁹⁷ 

Yeremia 39:9

39:9 Then Nebuzaradan, the captain of the royal guard, ⁹⁸  took captive the rest of the people who were left in the city. He carried them off to Babylon along with the people who had deserted to him. ⁹⁹ 

Yeremia 52:18

52:18 They also took the pots, shovels, ¹⁰⁰  trimming shears, ¹⁰¹  basins, pans, and all the bronze utensils used by the priests. ¹⁰² 

Yeremia 17:16

17:16 But I have not pestered you to bring disaster. ¹⁰³ 

I have not desired the time of irreparable devastation. ¹⁰⁴ 

You know that.

You are fully aware of every word that I have spoken. ¹⁰⁵ 

Yeremia 24:1

Good Figs and Bad Figs

24:1 The Lord showed me two baskets of figs sitting before his temple. This happened after King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon deported Jehoiakim’s son, King Jeconiah of Judah. He deported him and the leaders of Judah, along with the craftsmen and metal workers, and took them to Babylon. ¹⁰⁶ 

Yeremia 25:30

25:30 “Then, Jeremiah, ¹⁰⁷  make the following prophecy ¹⁰⁸  against them:

‘Like a lion about to attack, ¹⁰⁹  the Lord will roar from the heights of heaven;

from his holy dwelling on high he will roar loudly.

He will roar mightily against his land. ¹¹⁰ 

He will shout in triumph like those stomping juice from the grapes ¹¹¹ 

against all those who live on the earth.

[17:22]  ¹ tn Heb “Do not carry any loads out of your houses on the Sabbath day and do not do any work.” Translating literally might give the wrong impression that they were not to work at all. The phrase “on the Sabbath day” is, of course, intended to qualify both prohibitions.

[17:22]  ² tn Heb “But sanctify [or set apart as sacred] the Sabbath day.” The idea of setting it apart as something sacred to the Lord is implicit in the command. See the explicit statements of this in Exod 20:10; 31:5; 35:2; Lev 24:8. For some readers the idea of treating the Sabbath day as something sacred won’t mean much without spelling the qualification out specifically. Sabbath observance was not just a matter of not working.

[17:22]  ³ tn Heb “fathers.”

[50:25]  ⁴ tn Or “I have opened up my armory.”

[50:25]  ⁵ tn Heb “The Lord has opened up his armory and has brought out the weapons of his wrath.” The problem of the Lord referring to himself in the third person (or of the prophet speaking on his behalf) is again raised here and is again resolved by using the first person throughout. The construction “weapons of my wrath” would not convey any meaning to many readers so the significance has been spelled out in the translation.

[50:25]  sn The weapons are the nations which God is bringing from the north against them. Reference has already been made in the study notes that Assyria is the “rod” or “war club” by which God vents his anger against Israel (Isa 10:5-6) and Babylon a hammer or war club with which he shatters the nations (Jer 50:23; 51:20). Now God will use other nations as weapons to execute his wrath against Babylon. For a similar idea see Isa 13:2-5 where reference is made to marshaling the nations against Babylon. Some of the nations that the Lord will marshal against Babylon are named in Jer 51:27-28.

[50:25]  ⁶ tn Heb “the Lord Yahweh of armies.” For an explanation of this rendering and the significance of this title see the study note on 2:19.

[50:25]  ⁷ tn The words “of Babylonia” are not in the text but are implicit from the context. They have been supplied in the translation to clarify the referent.

[50:25]  sn The verbs in vv. 22-25 are all descriptive of the present but, all of this is really to take place in the future. Hebrew poetry has a way of rendering future actions as though they were already accomplished. The poetry of this section makes it difficult, however, to render the verbs as future as the present translation has regularly done.

[17:24]  ⁸ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[31:16]  ⁹ tn The words “to her” are not in the text but are implicit from the context. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[31:16]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “Refrain your voice from crying and your eyes from tears.”

[31:16]  ¹¹ tn Heb “your work.” Contextually her “work” refers to her weeping and refusing to be comforted, that is, signs of genuine repentance (v. 15).

[31:16]  ¹² tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[10:9]  ¹³ tc Two Qumran scrolls of Jeremiah (4QJer^a and 4QJer^b) reflect a Hebrew text that is very different than the traditional MT from which modern Bibles have been translated. The Hebrew text in these two manuscripts is similar to that from which LXX was translated. This is true both in small details and in major aspects where the LXX differs from MT. Most notably, 4QJer^a, 4QJer^b and LXX present a version of Jeremiah about 13% shorter than the longer version found in MT. One example of this shorter text is Jer 10:3-11 in which MT and 4QJer^a both have all nine verses, while LXX and 4QJer^b both lack vv. 6-8 and 10, which extol the greatness of God. In addition, the latter part of v. 9 is arranged differently in LXX and 4QJer^b. The translation here follows MT which is supported by 4QJer^a.

[10:9]  ¹⁴ tn This is a place of unknown location. It is mentioned again in Dan 10:5. Many emend the word to “Ophir” following the Syriac version and the Aramaic Targum. Ophir was famous for its gold (cf. 1 Kgs 9:28; Job 28:16).

[10:9]  ¹⁵ tn The words “to cover those idols” are not in the text but are implicit from the context. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[10:9]  ¹⁶ tn The words “They are” are not in the text. The text reads merely, “the work of the carpenter and of the hands of the goldsmith.” The words are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[10:9]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “Blue and purple their clothing.”

[10:9]  ¹⁸ sn There is an ironic pun in this last line. The Hebrew word translated “skillful workers” is the same word that is translated “wise people” in v. 7. The artisans do their work skillfully but they are not “wise.”

[25:14]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “make slaves of them.” The verb form here indicates that the action is as good as done (the Hebrew prophetic perfect). For the use of the verb rendered “makes slaves” see parallel usage in Lev 25:39, 46 (cf. BDB 713 s.v. עָבַד 3).

[25:14]  ²⁰ tn Heb “according to their deeds and according to the work of their hands.” The two phrases are synonymous; it would be hard to represent them both in translation without being redundant. The translation attempts to represent them by the qualifier “all” before the first phrase.

[7:13]  ²¹ tn This reflects a Hebrew idiom (e.g., 7:25; 11:7; 25:3, 4), i.e., an infinitive of a verb meaning “to do something early [or eagerly]” followed by an infinitive of another verb of action. Cf. HALOT 1384 s.v. שָׁכַם Hiph.2.

[7:13]  ²² tn Heb “I called to you and you did not answer.” The words “to repent” are not in the text but are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[50:29]  ²³ tn For this word see BDB 914 s.v. III רַב and compare usage in Prov 26:10 and Job 16:12 and compare the usage of the verb in Gen 49:23. Based on this evidence, it is not necessary to emend the form to רֹבִים (rovim) as many commentators contend.

[50:29]  ²⁴ tn Heb “for she has acted insolently against the Lord.” Once again there is the problem of the Lord speaking about himself in the third person (or the prophet dropping his identification with the Lord). As in several other places the present translation, along with several other modern English versions (TEV, CEV, NIrV), has substituted the first person to maintain consistency with the context.

[50:29]  ²⁵ sn The Holy One of Israel is a common title for the Lord in the book of Isaiah. It is applied to the Lord only here and in 51:5 in the book of Jeremiah. It is a figure where an attribute of a person is put as a title of a person (compare “your majesty” for a king). It pictures the Lord as the sovereign king who rules over his covenant people and exercises moral authority over them.

[39:10]  ²⁶ tn Heb “Nebuzaradan, the captain of the royal guard.” However, the subject is clear from the preceding and contemporary English style would normally avoid repeating the proper name and title.

[3:24]  ²⁷ tn Heb “From our youth the shameful thing has eaten up…” The shameful thing is specifically identified as Baal in Jer 11:13. Compare also the shift in certain names such as Ishbaal (“man of Baal”) to Ishbosheth (“man of shame”).

[3:24]  ²⁸ tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 25).

[4:18]  ²⁹ tn Heb “Your way and your deeds.”

[4:18]  ³⁰ tn Heb “How bitter!”

[4:18]  ³¹ tn Heb “Indeed, it reaches to your heart.” The subject must be the pain alluded to in the last half of the preceding line; the verb is masculine, agreeing with the adjective translated “painful.” The only other possible antecedent “punishment” is feminine.

[25:7]  ³² tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[25:7]  ³³ tn This is a rather clear case where the Hebrew particle לְמַעַן (lÿma’an) introduces a consequence and not a purpose, contrary to the dictum of BDB 775 s.v. מַעַן note 1. They have not listened to him in order to make him angry but with the result that they have made him angry by going their own way. Jeremiah appears to use this particle for result rather than purpose on several other occasions (see, e.g., 7:18, 19; 27:10, 15; 32:29).

[25:7]  ³⁴ tn Heb “make me angry with the work of your hands.” The term “work of your own hands” is often interpreted as a reference to idolatry as is clearly the case in Isa 2:8; 37:19. However, the parallelism in 25:14 and the context in 32:30 show that it is more general and refers to what they have done. That is likely the meaning here as well.

[33:6]  ³⁵ tn Heb “Behold I am healing.” For the usage of the particle “behold” indicating certainty see the translator’s note on 1:6. These are the great and hidden things that the Lord promised to reveal. The statements in v. 5 have been somewhat introductory. See the usage of הִנְנִי (hinni) after the introductory “Thus says the Lord” in Jer 32:28, 37.

[33:6]  ³⁶ sn Compare Jer 30:17. Jerusalem is again being personified and her political and spiritual well-being are again in view.

[33:6]  ³⁷ tn The meaning and text of this word is questioned by KBL 749 s.v. עֲתֶרֶת. However, KBL also emends both occurrences of the verb from which BDB 801 s.v. עֲתֶרֶת derives this noun. BDB is more likely correct in seeing this and the usage of the verb in Prov 27:6; Ezek 35:13 as Aramaic loan words from a root meaning to be rich (equivalent to the Hebrew עָשַׁר, ’ashar).

[25:6]  ³⁸ tn Heb “follow after.” See the translator’s note on 2:5 for this idiom.

[25:6]  ³⁹ tn Heb “make me angry with the work of your hands.” The term “work of your own hands” is often interpreted as a reference to idolatry as is clearly the case in Isa 2:8; 37:19. However, the parallelism in 25:14 and the context in 32:30 show that it is more general and refers to what they have done. That is likely the meaning here as well.

[48:7]  ⁴⁰ sn Chemosh was the national god of Moab (see also Numb 21:29). Child sacrifice appears to have been a part of his worship (2 Kgs 3:27). Solomon built a high place in Jerusalem for him (1 Kgs 11:7), and he appears to have been worshiped in Israel until Josiah tore that high place down (2 Kgs 23:13).

[48:7]  ⁴¹ sn The practice of carrying off the gods of captive nations has already been mentioned in the study note on 43:12. See also Isa 46:1-2 noted there.

[32:30]  ⁴² tn Heb “that which is evil in my eyes.” For this idiom see BDB 744 s.v. עַיִן 3.c and compare usage in 18:10.

[32:30]  ⁴³ tn Heb “from their youth.”

[32:30]  sn Compare Jer 3:24-25; 11:21. The nation is being personified and reference is made to her history from the time she left Egypt onward (cf. 2:2).

[32:30]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “the people of Israel.” However, since “people of Israel” has been used in the preceding line for the northern kingdom as opposed to the kingdom of Judah, it might lead to confusion to translate literally. Moreover, the pronoun “they” accomplishes the same purpose.

[32:30]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “by the work of their hands.” See the translator’s note on 25:6 and the parallelism in 25:14 for this rendering rather than referring it to the making of idols as in 1:16; 10:3.

[32:30]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[44:8]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “the works of your hands.” Here the phrase is qualified by the epexegetical לְ (lamed) + infinitive, לְקַטֵּר (lÿqatter, “by sacrificing [to other gods]”). For further discussion on the use of this phrase see the translator’s note on 25:6.

[44:8]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “a curse.” For the meaning of this phrase see the translator’s note on 24:9 and see the usage in 24:9; 25:18; 26:6; 29:22.

[44:8]  ⁴⁹ tn Verses 7b-8 are all one long, complex sentence governed by the interrogative “Why.” The Hebrew text reads: “Why are you doing great harm to your souls [= “yourselves” (cf. BDB 660 s.v. נֶפֶשׁ 4.b[6])] so as to cut off [= destroy] from yourselves man and woman, child and baby [the terms are collective singulars and are to be interpreted as plurals] from the midst of Judah so as not to leave to yourselves a remnant by making me angry with the works of your hands by sacrificing to other gods in the land of Egypt where you have come to live so as to cut off [an example of result rather than purpose after the particle לְמַעַן (lÿma’an; see the translator’s note on 25:7)] yourselves and so that you may become a curse and an object of ridicule among all the nations of the earth.” The sentence has been broken down and restructured to better conform with contemporary English style. An attempt has been made to retain an equivalent for all the subordinations and qualifying phrases.

[44:8]  sn What is being threatened is not the total destruction of a remnant of Judah. Jeremiah recognizes those who have been carried off to Babylon as well as other places as seeds for a new beginning (e.g., 24:5-6; 29:14; 30:3). But he denies here that any of those who have gone to Egypt and are continuing to practice idolatry will be among them. All of them will be cut off (i.e., destroyed) from the midst of Judah so that not a remnant of them will be left.

[2:18]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “What to you to the way.”

[2:18]  ⁵¹ tn The introductory particle וְעַתָּה (vÿ’attah, “and now”) carries a logical, not temporal, connotation here (cf. BDB 274 s.v. עַתָּה 2.b).

[2:18]  ⁵² tn Heb “to drink water from the Shihor [a branch of the Nile].” The reference is to seeking help through political alliance with Egypt as opposed to trusting in God for help. This is an extension of the figure in 2:13.

[2:18]  ⁵³ tn Heb “What to you to the way.”

[2:18]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “to drink water from the River [a common designation in biblical Hebrew for the Euphrates River].” This refers to seeking help through political alliance. See the preceding note.

[48:10]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “who withholds his sword from bloodshed.” This verse is an editorial aside (or apostrophe) addressed to the Babylonian destroyers to be diligent in carrying out the work of the Lord in destroying Moab.

[10:15]  ⁵⁶ tn Or “objects of mockery.”

[18:4]  ⁵⁷ tn The verbs here denote repeated action. They are the Hebrew perfect with the vav (ו) consecutive. The text then reads somewhat literally, “Whenever the vessel he was molding…was ruined, he would remold…” For this construction see Joüon 2:393-94 §118.n and 2:628-29 §167.b, and compare the usage in Amos 4:7-8.

[18:4]  ⁵⁸ sn Something was wrong with the clay – either there was a lump in it, or it was too moist or not moist enough, or it had some other imperfection. In any case the vessel was “ruined” or “spoiled” or defective in the eyes of the potter. This same verb has been used of the linen shorts that were “ruined” and hence were “good for nothing” in Jer 13:7. The nature of the clay and how it responded to the potter’s hand determined the kind of vessel that he made of it. He did not throw the clay away. This is the basis for the application in vv. 7-10 to any nation and to the nation of Israel in particular vv. 10-17.

[18:4]  ⁵⁹ tn The usage of the preposition בְּ (bet) to introduce the material from which something is made in Exod 38:8 and 1 Kgs 15:22 should lay to rest the rather forced construction that some (like J. Bright, Jeremiah [AB], 121) put on the variant כַּחֹמֶר (kakhomer) found in a few Hebrew mss. Bright renders that phrase as an elliptical “as clay sometimes will.” The phrase is missing from the Greek version.

[18:4]  ⁶⁰ tn Heb “he would turn and work.” This is an example of hendiadys where one of the two verbs joined by “and” becomes the adverbial modifier of the other. The verb “turn” is very common in this construction (see BDB 998 s.v. שׁוּב Qal.8 for references).

[18:4]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “as it was right in his eyes to do [or work it].” For this idiom see Judg 14:3, 7; 1 Sam 18:20, 26; 2 Sam 17:4.

[22:13]  ⁶² sn Heb “Woe.” This particle is used in laments for the dead (cf., e.g., 1 Kgs 13:30; Jer 34:5) and as an introductory particle in indictments against a person on whom judgment is pronounced (cf., e.g., Isa 5:8, 11; Jer 23:1). The indictment is found here in vv. 13-17 and the announcement of judgment in vv. 18-19.

[22:13]  ⁶³ tn Heb “Woe to the one who builds his house by unrighteousness and its upper rooms with injustice using his neighbor [= countryman] as a slave for nothing and not giving to him his wages.”

[22:13]  sn This was a clear violation of covenant law (cf. Deut 24:14-15) and a violation of the requirements set forth in Jer 22:3. The allusion is to Jehoiakim who is not mentioned until v. 18. He was placed on the throne by Pharaoh Necho and ruled from 609-598 b.c. He became a vassal of Nebuchadnezzar but rebelled against him, bringing about the siege of 597 b.c. in which his son and many of the Judean leaders were carried off to Babylon (2 Kgs 23:34–24:16). He was a wicked king according to the author of the book of Kings (2 Kgs 23:37). He had Uriah the prophet killed (Jer 26:23) and showed no regard for Jeremiah’s prophecies, destroying the scroll containing them (Jer 36:23) and ordering Jeremiah’s arrest (Jer 36:23).

[10:3]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “statutes.” According to BDB 350 s.v. חֻקָּה 2.b it refers to the firmly established customs or practices of the pagan nations. Compare the usage in Lev 20:23; 2 Kgs 17:8. Here it is essentially equivalent to דֶּרֶךְ (derekh) in v. 1, which has already been translated “religious practices.”

[10:3]  ⁶⁵ sn This passage is dripping with sarcasm. It begins by talking about the “statutes” of the pagan peoples as a “vapor” using a singular copula and singular predicate. Then it suppresses the subject, the idol, as though it were too horrible to mention, using only the predications about it. The last two lines read literally: “[it is] a tree which one cuts down from the forest; the work of the hands of a craftsman with his chisel.”

[4:3]  ⁶⁶ tn The Hebrew particle is obviously asseverative here since a causal connection appears to make little sense.

[4:3]  ⁶⁷ tn Heb “Plow up your unplowed ground and do not sow among the thorns.” The translation is an attempt to bring out the force of a metaphor. The idea seems to be that they are to plow over the thorns and make the ground ready for the seeds which will produce a new crop where none had been produced before.

[18:3]  ⁶⁸ tn Heb “And behold he was working.”

[18:3]  ⁶⁹ sn At his wheel (Heb “at the two stones”). The Hebrew expression is very descriptive of the construction of a potter’s wheel which consisted of two stones joined by a horizontal shaft. The potter rotated the wheel with his feet on the lower wheel and worked the clay with his hands on the upper. For a picture of a potter working at his wheel see I. Ben-Dor, “Potter’s Wheel,” IDB 3:846. See also the discussion regarding the making of pottery in J. L. Kelso, “Pottery,” IDB 3:846-53.

[51:58]  ⁷⁰ sn See the note at Jer 2:19.

[51:58]  ⁷¹ tn The text has the plural “walls,” but many Hebrew mss read the singular “wall,” which is also supported by the ancient Greek version. The modifying adjective “thick” is singular as well.

[51:58]  ⁷² tn The infinitive absolute emphasizes the following finite verb. Another option is to translate, “will certainly be demolished.”

[51:58]  ⁷³ tn Heb “for what is empty.”

[51:58]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “and the nations for fire, and they grow weary.”

[14:4]  ⁷⁵ tn For the use of the verb “is cracked” here see BDB 369 s.v. חָתַת Qal.1 and compare the usage in Jer 51:56 where it refers to broken bows. The form is a relative clause without relative pronoun (cf., GKC 486-87 §155.f). The sentence as a whole is related to the preceding through a particle meaning “because of” or “on account of.” Hence the subject and verb have been repeated to make the connection.

[29:2]  ⁷⁶ tn This term is often mistakenly understood to refer to a “eunuch.” It is clear, however, in Gen 39:1 that “eunuchs” could be married. On the other hand it is clear from Isa 59:3-5 that some who bore this title could not have children. In this period, it is possible that the persons who bore this title were high officials like the rab saris who was a high official in the Babylonian court (cf. Jer 39:3, 13; 52:25). For further references see HALOT 727 s.v. סָרִיס 1.c.

[29:2]  ⁷⁷ sn See 2 Kgs 24:14-16 and compare the study note on Jer 24:1.

[51:10]  ⁷⁸ tn The words “The exiles from Judah will say” are not in the text but are implicit from the words that follow. They are supplied in the translation to clearly identify for the reader the referent of “us.”

[51:10]  ⁷⁹ tn There is some difference of opinion as to the best way to render the Hebrew expression here. Literally it means “brought forth our righteousnesses.” BDB 842 s.v. צְדָקָה 7.b interprets this of the “righteous acts” of the people of Judah and compares the usage in Isa 64:6; Ezek 3:20; 18:24; 33:13. However, Judah’s acts of righteousness (or more simply, their righteousness) was scarcely revealed in their deliverance. Most of the English versions and commentaries refer to “vindication” i.e., that the Lord has exonerated or proven Israel’s claims to be true. However, that would require more explanation than the idea of “deliverance” which is a perfectly legitimate usage of the term (cf. BDB 842 s.v. צְדָקָה 6.a and compare the usage in Isa 46:13; 51:6, 8; 56:1). The present translation interprets the plural form here as a plural of intensity or amplification (GKC 397-98 §124.e) and the suffix as a genitive of advantage (IBHS 147 §9.5.2e). This interpretation is also reflected in REB and God’s Word.

[52:16]  ⁸⁰ tn Heb “Nebuzaradan, the captain of the royal guard.” However, the subject is clear from the preceding and modern English style would normally avoid repeating the proper name and title.

[52:16]  ⁸¹ tn Heb “poor of the land.”

[52:15]  ⁸² tn Heb “poor of the people.”

[1:10]  ⁸³ tn Heb “See!” The Hebrew imperative of the verb used here (רָאָה, ra’ah) functions the same as the particle in v. 9. See the translator’s note there.

[1:10]  ⁸⁴ tn Heb “I appoint you today over nations and kingdoms to uproot….” The phrase refers to the Lord giving Jeremiah authority as a prophet to declare what he, the Lord, will do; it does not mean that Jeremiah himself will do these things. The expression involves a figure of speech where the subject of a declaration is stated instead of the declaration about it. Compare a similar use of the same figure in Gen 41:13.

[1:10]  ⁸⁵ sn These three pairs represent the twofold nature of Jeremiah’s prophecies, prophecies of judgment and restoration. For the further programmatic use of these pairs for Jeremiah’s ministry see 18:7-10 and 31:27-28.

[17:21]  ⁸⁶ tn Heb “Be careful at the risk of your lives.” The expression with the preposition בְּ (bet) is unique. Elsewhere the verb “be careful” is used with the preposition לְ (lamed) in the sense of the reflexive. Hence the word “soul” cannot be simply reflexive here. BDB 1037 s.v. שָׁמַר Niph.1 understands this as a case where the preposition בְּ introduces the cost or price (cf. BDB 90 s.v. בּ III.3.a).

[17:21]  ⁸⁷ sn Comparison with Neh 13:15-18 suggests that these loads were merchandise or agricultural produce which were being brought in for sale. The loads that were carried out of the houses in the next verse were probably goods for barter.

[17:21]  ⁸⁸ tn Heb “carry loads on the Sabbath and bring [them] in through.” The two verbs “carry” and “bring in” are an example of hendiadys (see the note on “Be careful…by carrying”). This is supported by the next line where only “carry out” of the houses is mentioned.

[21:2]  ⁸⁹ tn The verb used here is often used of seeking information through a prophet (e.g., 2 Kgs 1:16; 8:8) and hence many translate “inquire of the Lord for us.” However, it is obvious from the following that they were not seeking information but help. The word is also used for that in Pss 34:4 (34:5 HT); 77:2 (77:3 HT).

[21:2]  ⁹⁰ tn The dominant spelling of this name is actually Nebuchadrezzar which is closer to his Babylonian name Nebu kudduri uzzur. An alternate spelling which is found 6 times in the book of Jeremiah and 17 times elsewhere is Nebuchadnezzar which is the form of the name that is usually used in English versions.

[21:2]  sn Nebuchadnezzar was the second and greatest king of Babylon. He is known in the Bible both for his two conquests of Jerusalem in 597 b.c. (2 Kgs 24:10-17) and 587 b.c. (2 Kgs 25:1-7) and for his having built Babylon the Great (Dan 4:28-30).

[21:2]  ⁹¹ tn Heb “Perhaps the Lord will do according to his miracles that he may go up from against us.”

[21:2]  sn The miracles that they may have had in mind would have included the Exodus, the conquest of Jericho, the deliverance of Jehoshaphat (2 Chr 20:1-30), etc., but predominant in their minds was probably the deliverance of Jerusalem from Sennacherib in the times of Hezekiah (Isa 37:33-38).

[27:11]  ⁹² tn Heb “put their necks in the yoke of.” See the study note on v. 2 for the figure.

[27:11]  ⁹³ tn The words “Things will go better for” are not in the text. They are supplied contextually as a means of breaking up the awkward syntax of the original which reads “The nation which brings its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and subjects itself to him, I will leave it…”

[27:11]  ⁹⁴ tn Heb “oracle of the Lord.”

[32:19]  ⁹⁵ tn Heb “[you are] great in counsel and mighty in deed.”

[32:19]  ⁹⁶ tn Heb “your eyes are open to the ways of the sons of men.”

[32:19]  ⁹⁷ tn Heb “giving to each according to his way [= behavior/conduct] and according to the fruit of his deeds.”

[39:9]  ⁹⁸ tn For the meaning of this phrase see BDB 371 s.v. טַבָּח 2 and compare the usage in Gen 39:1.

[39:9]  ⁹⁹ tc The translation is based on an emendation of the text which leaves out “the rest of the people who were left” as a double writing of the same phrase at the beginning of the verse. Some commentators emend the phrase “the rest of the people who were left” (הַנִּשְׁאָרִים וְאֶת יֶתֶר הָעָם, hannish’arim vÿ’et yeter ha’am) to read “the rest of the craftsmen who were left” (וְאֶת יֶתֶר הָאָמוֹן הַנִּשְׁאָרִים, vÿ’et yeter ha’amon hannish’arim) on the basis of the parallel in Jer 52:15 (which does not have הַנִּשְׁאָרִים, hannish’arim). However, it is easier to explain the phrase as a dittography of the phrase at the beginning (which is exactly the same except הָעִיר [ha’ir] follows it). The text is redundant because it refers twice to the same group of people. The Hebrew text reads: “And the rest of the people who were left in the city and the deserters who had deserted to him and the rest of the people Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, carried into exile to Babylon.” The text has also been divided up to create two shorter sentences to better conform with contemporary English style.

[52:18]  ¹⁰⁰ sn These shovels were used to clean the altar.

[52:18]  ¹⁰¹ sn These trimming shears were used to trim the wicks of the lamps.

[52:18]  ¹⁰² tn Heb “with which they served (or “fulfilled their duty”).”

[17:16]  ¹⁰³ tc Heb “I have not run after you for the sake of disaster.” The translation follows the suggestion of some ancient versions. The Hebrew text reads “I have not run from being a shepherd after you.” The translation follows two Greek versions (Aquila and Symmachus) and the Syriac in reading the word “evil” or “disaster” here in place of the word “shepherd” in the Hebrew text. The issue is mainly one of vocalization. The versions mentioned are reading a form מֵרָעָה (mera’ah) instead of מֵרֹעֶה (mero’eh). There does not appear to be any clear case of a prophet being called a shepherd, especially in Jeremiah where it is invariably used of the wicked leaders/rulers of Judah, the leaders/rulers of the enemy that he brings to punish them, or the righteous ruler that he will bring in the future. Moreover, there are no cases where the preposition “after” is used with the verb “shepherd.” Parallelism also argues for the appropriateness of this reading; “disaster” parallels the “incurable day.” The thought also parallels the argument thus far. Other than 11:20; 12:3; 15:15 where he has prayed for vindication by the Lord punishing his persecutors as they deserve, he has invariably responded to the Lord’s word of disaster with laments and prayers for his people (see 4:19-21; 6:24; 8:18; 10:19-25; 14:7-9, 19-22).

[17:16]  ¹⁰⁴ tn Heb “the incurable day.” For the use of this word see the note on 17:9.

[17:16]  ¹⁰⁵ tn Heb “that which goes out of my lip is right in front of your face.”

[24:1]  ¹⁰⁶ sn See 2 Kgs 24:10-17 (especially vv. 14-16). Nebuchadnezzar left behind the poorest people of the land under the puppet king Zedekiah. Jeconiah has already been referred to earlier in 13:18; 22:25-26. The deportation referred to here occurred in 597 b.c. and included the priest Ezekiel.

[25:30]  ¹⁰⁷ tn The word “Jeremiah” is not in the text. It is supplied in the translation to make clear who is being addressed.

[25:30]  ¹⁰⁸ tn Heb “Prophesy against them all these words.”

[25:30]  ¹⁰⁹ tn The words “like a lion about to attack” are not in the text but are implicit in the metaphor. The explicit comparison of the Lord to a lion is made at the end of the passage in v. 38. The words are supplied in the translation here for clarity.

[25:30]  sn For the metaphor of the Lord going forth against his enemies like an attacking lion see Jer 49:19; 50:44; Isa 31:4 in all of which the Lord comes against the nations in defense of his people. In Hos 5:14 the metaphor is turned against his own people. The figure of a lion ravaging people has already been used in Jer 4:7 of the enemy from the north (Babylon).

[25:30]  ¹¹⁰ sn The word used here (Heb “his habitation”) refers to the land of Canaan which the Lord chose to make his earthly dwelling (Exod 15:13) and which was the dwelling place of his chosen people (Jer 10:25; Isa 32:18). Judgment would begin at the “house of God” (v. 29; 1 Pet 4:17) but would extend to the rest of the earth (v. 29).

[25:30]  ¹¹¹ sn The metaphor shifts from God as a lion to God as a mighty warrior (Jer 20:11; Isa 42:13; Zeph 3:17) shouting in triumph over his foes. Within the metaphor is a simile where the warrior is compared to a person stomping on grapes to remove the juice from them in the making of wine. The figure will be invoked later in a battle scene where the sounds of joy in the grape harvest are replaced by the sounds of joy of the enemy soldiers (Jer 48:33). The picture is drawn in more gory detail in Isa 63:1-6.