Jeremiah 29
OGCREVIEW OF CHAPTER THIRTEEN
I. Facts to Master
Time, place, and results of the message delivered in Chapter 26.
Verdict rendered by the princes in the case of Jeremiah (Jeremiah 26:16).
Name of the earlier prophet who prophesied against Jerusalem in the name of the Lord (Jeremiah 26:17-19).
Name of a prophet who had been slain in the reign of Jehoiakim (Jeremiah 26:20-23).
The name of the prince who intervened on behalf of Jeremiah (Jeremiah 26:24).
That which Jeremiah sent to the neighboring kings (Jeremiah 27:2-3).
Names of five countries which had sent ambassadors to Jerusalem in the fourth year of the reign of Zedekiah.
The one into whose hand God had given the world (Jeremiah 27:6).
The title which is given to the king of Babylon (Jeremiah 27:6).
The length of time during which all nations must serve Babylon (Jeremiah 27:7).
Various types of prognosticators among the nations (Jeremiah 27:9).
Those who urged Zedekiah not to serve Babylon (Jeremiah 27:14).
The predictions of the false prophets regarding the Temple vessels already taken captive (Jeremiah 27:16).
One of the important functions of a true prophet (Jeremiah 27:18).
Specific parts of the Temple yet in danger of going to Babylon (Jeremiah 27:19).
Identity of Jeconiah (Jeremiah 27:20).
Name of a prophet who confronted Jeremiah in the Temple (Jeremiah 28:1).
That which Hananiah did to Jeremiah (Jeremiah 28:10).
The fate of Hananiah (Jeremiah 28:16-17).
The two men by whose hand Jeremiah sent his letter to Babylon (Jeremiah 29:3).
The advice which Jeremiah gave to the captives in Babylon (Jeremiah 29:5-7).
Two false prophets mentioned in Jeremiah’s letter and their fate (Jeremiah 29:21-22).
The name of a priest in Jerusalem who received a letter from Babylon protesting the activities of Jeremiah (Jeremiah 29:24-28).
The fate of Shemaiah the fake prophet (Jeremiah 29:32).
II. Questions to Ponder
What was it in Jeremiah’s message that so upset his hearers? Jeremiah 26:1-7.
Was Uriah a faithful prophet? Why did not God protect him as he protected Jeremiah?
What is the gist of Jeremiah’s defense during his trial? Jeremiah 26:12-24.
Why the reference to Micah the Morashtite during the trial of ?Jeremiah 26:18.
Why does God have the right to appoint the World Ruler? Jeremiah 27:5.
What is so significant about the title My Servant? Jeremiah 27:6.
Why does God specify that the beasts of the field were given to Nebuchadnezzar? Jeremiah 27:6.
How is Jeremiah 27:7 to be harmonized with Jeremiah 25:11
Why did Jeremiah say Amen to the false prophecy of Hananiah? Jeremiah 28:6.
Summarize Jeremiah’s argument in Jeremiah 28:8-9.
Why did Jeremiah simply walk away after Hananiah took the yoke off his neck and broke it? Jeremiah 28:11.
Why did Zedekiah have to send an embassy to Babylon? Jeremiah 29:3.
Why does Jeremiah tell the captives to pray for the peace of Babylon? Jeremiah 29:7.
Jeremiah 29:1-4
III. CORRESPONDENCE WITH THE CAPTIVES Jeremiah 29:1-32
Judging from the contents of chapter 29, the Jews in captivity in Babylon were free to correspond with their relatives and friends back in Palestine. This chapter contains two (possibly three) letters which Jeremiah sent to Babylon and alludes to several letters which were sent from Jews in Babylon to those in Jerusalem. Jeremiah like other prophets regarded the exile in Babylon as a punishment for the sins of the nation. Yet once that exile had begun in 605 B.C. and still in greater measure in 597 B.C. Jeremiah deemed it his duty to offer encouragement to the exiles. Prophets had arisen in Babylon who were predicting a speedy end to the captivity. While Jeremiah wished to encourage those Jews in Babylon yet he was a realist. He could not allow those Jews to go on deluding themselves. As long as they thought the exile to Babylon was a mere episode to be endured and shortly to be ended there was no real incentive to repentance. The letters in this chapter are a blend of realism and idealism, of discouragement and hope;
A. The First letter to Babylon Jeremiah 29:1-23
- Introduction to the letter (Jeremiah 29:1-4)
TRANSLATION
(1) These are the words of the letter which Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem unto those who were left of the elders of the captives, and unto the priests, the prophets, and all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried captive from Jerusalem to Babylon. (2) (This was after king Jeconiah and the queen-mother, the officers, the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen and artisans had departed from Jerusalem). (3) The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan, and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon in Babylon. The letter said: (4) Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the captives whom I caused to go captive from Jerusalem into Babylon:
COMMENTS
Jeremiah’s first letter to Babylon is addressed to the residue of the elders of the captivity, the priests, the prophets and all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried captive to Babylon (Jeremiah 29:1). In the main these would be the leaders of the nation who had gone captive in 597 B.C. when Jeconiah (Jehoiachin) had surrendered to the great Babylonian monarch (Jeremiah 29:2). Why does Jeremiah speak of the residue of the elders? Perhaps many of the older leaders had perished during what must have been an arduous journey to Babylonia. The fact that Jeremiah mentions elders, priests and prophets would suggest that some sort of communal organization existed in Babylon similar to that which existed in Judah. This particular letter is intended for all segments of the population. It is an open letter.
For some unexplained reason king Zedekiah was sending an embassy to Babylon at this time. Perhaps the purpose was to carry the annual tribute to Nebuchadnezzar. The embassy consisted of, or was led by, two outstanding men. Elasah the son of Shaphan is named first. The family of Shaphan were among the most loyal friends which Jeremiah had. It was the brother of Elasah who protected Jeremiah when he was on trial for his life (Jeremiah 26:24). Since Elasah was from a God-fearing family he recognized the authority of Nebuchadnezzar whom God had appointed over all the earth (Jeremiah 27:4-14). He was no doubt more than willing to carry the letter of Jeremiah along with him to Babylon. The second member of the embassy was Gemariah the son of Hilkiah. Could this Hilkiah be the high priest who took such an active part in the reforms of king Josiah (2 Kings 22:4; 2 Chronicles 34, 35)? Could Gemariah have been a brother of Jeremiah (see Jeremiah 1:1)? These questions must remain unanswered. But it is likely that Gemariah too was a loyal believer. Even though the Judean leadership was by and large corrupt still there were those who bore witness for Him in the inner councils of the nation.
The letter deals with the immediate situation of the captives. The prophet offers to the captives practical advice (Jeremiah 29:5-7), warning (Jeremiah 29:8-10), and a word of hope (Jeremiah 29:11-14). Then he undertakes a refutation of the fake prophets in Babylon (Jeremiah 29:15-20) and finally makes a prediction respecting the fate of two notorious false prophets there (Jeremiah 29:21-23).
Jeremiah 29:5-7
- Practical advice for the captives (Jeremiah 29:5-7)
TRANSLATION
(5) Build houses and settle down. Plant gardens that you may eat their fruit. (6) Take wives and beget sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters in order that you may increase in number and not diminish there. (7) Seek the peace of the city to which I have deported you, and pray on behalf of it unto the LORD; for your welfare depends on its welfare.
COMMENTS
No information is available regarding when Jeremiah sent this letter to Babylon. The likelihood is that the letter dates to the time shortly after the deportation of 597 B.C. No doubt the exiles were finding it hard to adjust to their new surroundings in Babylonia. They were in the midst of a people who spoke a different language, had strange customs, and worshiped different gods. False prophets arose who predicted a speedy return within two years. Many were expecting the momentary overthrow of Babylon and were making no effort to accommodate themselves to the new situation. Jeremiah had some inspired counsel for the exiles. Basically he encourages them to settle down for a long captivity. He urges them (1) to build permanent houses: (2) plant gardens; (3) take wives; (4) beget sons and daughters; (5) seek the peace of the city; and (6) pray for it.[240] They are to make Babylon their homeland for the next seventy years and be loyal subjects of the government. They are to live as nearly as possible normal, peaceable lives. They should pay no heed to the dangerous agitators among them who viewed quiet submission as treasonous capitulation.
[240] C. Paul Gray calls this the first admonition in the Old Testament to pray for one’s enemies.
Jeremiah 29:8-10
- A warning to the captives (Jeremiah 29:8-10)
TRANSLATION
(8) For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Let not the prophets that are in your midst, and your diviners as well, deceive you, and do not hearken to your dreams which you cause to be dreamed. (9) For they are prophesying to you falsely in My name; I have not sent them (oracle of the LORD). (10) For thus says the LORD: When seventy years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you and I will fulfill for you My good word to bring you back unto this place.
COMMENTS
In Jeremiah 29:8-9 Jeremiah points to three agents likely to lead the captives astrayprophets, diviners and dreams. False prophets promising a speedy deliverance had arisen in Babylon as well as in Jerusalem. Their object was to lead the people to dissatisfaction and revolt. The diviners were echoing the same optimistic prognostications as the prophets. Diviners are those who use external objects to discover what the future holds. Several different forms of definition are mentioned in and condemned by the Old Testament.[241] It is therefore impossible to determine what particular form of the occult art had been appropriated by the Jewish diviners in Babylon. Dreams of early emancipation were also dangerous to the captives. The unusual phrase dreams which you caused to be dreamed indicates that the supply was created by a demand for dreams of this nature.[242] The people wished to be deceived; they preferred darkness to light. So they caused or made the prophets to tell them encouraging dreams.
[241] E.g., rhabdomancy, the use of sticks and arrows, and hepatascopy, examination of the liver of animals, are mentioned in Ezekiel 21:21. Astrology is also a form of divination.
[242] E. H. Plumptre, Jeremiah, AIL Old Testament Commentary for English Readers, Charles John Ellicott, editor (New York: Cassell, 1901), V, 98.
Jeremiah agreed with the prophets and diviners that the Lord would eventually visit His people and deliver them from bondage. But in the view of Jeremiah this deliverance would come only after the seventy years which God had prescribed for the duration of the Babylonian world empire. For the exiles to continue to believe in the delusion of speedy return from Babylon would have defeated the disciplinary objective of the captivity. Therefore Jeremiah insists that a full seventy years must run their course before God intervenes on behalf of His people (Jeremiah 29:10).
Jeremiah 29:11-14
- A word of hope for the captives (Jeremiah 29:11-14)
TRANSLATION
(11) For I know the plans which I am making for you (oracle of the LORD)plans of peace and not calamity, to give to you a future and hope. (12) When you call upon Me and come and pray unto Me I will hearken unto You. (13) When you seek Me you will find Me. When you seek Me with all your heart (14) then I will be found by you (oracle of the LORD). I will reverse your fortunes and will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you (oracle of the LORD), and I will cause you to return unto the place from which I sent you into exile.
COMMENTS
Since the explicit declaration that the exile is to last seventy years probably would have caused discouragement and doubt in the hearts of the captives, Jeremiah quickly adds in Jeremiah 29:11-14 a note of hope. God assures them that His thoughts toward them are for their peace and wellbeing and not their destruction. I know the thoughts that I think toward you! The pronoun in the Hebrew is emphatic. God knows His plan and purpose even when men are unable to comprehend and fathom the circumstances of life. The exiles needed to hear this. They needed to realize that their captivity was not an accident but was part of God’s plan for them as a people. No matter how tragic their seventy-year sojourn in Babylon seemed, they must believe that the entire episode was for their ultimate good and well-being.
God assures the people through His prophet that He will give to them a latter end and hope (ASV margin). They do have a future as a people. Though they were at present exiles in a foreign land, though their homeland was yet to be devastated by the hated Babylonians (Jeremiah 29:16-19), God still had a wonderful purpose for His people. Wrapped up in the words -Clatter end and hope are all the blessings of the Messianic salvation.
Genuine conversion of the people will be both a result of the seventy years of captivity and a prerequisite for deliverance from captivity (Jeremiah 29:12-14). The captivity must last seventy years in order to effect the change in the moral and spiritual disposition of the people depicted in these verses. The old rebellious generation would die and a new generation would arise which would turn to God. Return to the homeland would only be possible when they seek the Lord with all of their heart. God would answer their prayer and bring them back to the land of their birth. In other words when the people are restored to God, they will be restored to their homeland. Just as predictions of disaster are conditional upon whether the people persist in their evil, so are the promises of God dependent upon repentance. The dire and dreary circumstances of the captivity gave the Jewish people an opportunity to learn trust and reliance upon God. God often brings His people into difficult places so that they might learn to cast themselves upon Him.
Jeremiah 29:15-20
- Refutation of the false prophets in Babylon (Jeremiah 29:15-20)
TRANSLATION
(15) Because you have said, The LORD has raised up for us prophets in Babylon(16) Surely, thus says the LORD unto the king who sits upon the throne of David, and unto all the people who dwell in this city, your brethren who did not go out with you into captivity(17) Thus says the LORD of hosts: Behold, I am about to send against them the sword, famine and pestilence, and I will make them like rotten figs which are so bad they cannot be eaten. (18) And I will pursue them with sword, famine and pestilence; and I will make them an object of terror to all the kingdoms of the earth, a curse, an astonishment, a hissing and a reproach among all nations where I have driven them, (19) because they did not hearken unto MY words (oracle of the LORD) when I earnestly and persistently sent My servants the prophets; but you did not obey (oracle of the LORD). (20) But as for you, hear the. word of the LORD, all you captives, whom I have sent from Jerusalem to Babylon.
COMMENTS
Jeremiah’s correspondence with the captives was not appreciated. Some felt that the prophet from Anathoth was meddling where he had no business. God has raised up for us prophets here in Babylon, they protested. We have no need to hear from would-be prophets in Jerusalem! (Jeremiah 29:15). The captives much preferred the messages they were getting from their own prophets in Babylon. These deceivers continued to generate false hope by assuring the Jews that they would shortly be returning to their homeland. It was imperative that Jeremiah shatter this delusion. If the captives only could realize the agony which the inhabitants of Jerusalem were shortly to endure at the hands of the Babylonians they would not want to return home immediately. Sword, famine and pestilence would come upon the land in the not-too-distant future. Using a figure he used earlier (Jeremiah 24:2-10) Jeremiah likens the inhabitants of Jerusalem to rotten figs which are good for nothing but to cast out (Jeremiah 29:17). The nations of the world would see the terrible calamity which would befall Judah and they would shutter with fear and hiss or whistle in amazement. Thus instead of promising a speedy return of the Jews already in Babylon, Jeremiah declares that there would be further deportations of Jews from the homeland. In view of what would shortly befall Jerusalem, the exiles should be thankful that they had been spared the horrors of the last days of Jerusalem.
Jeremiah relates to the captives in Babylon what he had been preaching in the streets of Jerusalem. The inhabitants of Judah must be punished because they had refused to hearken to the words of the Lord spoken by the prophets (Jeremiah 29:19). In the sudden shift from third to second person in Jeremiah 29:19, Jeremiah includes those who read the letter in the charge of disobedience to God. He then pleads with the captives to hear the genuine word of the Lord (Jeremiah 29:20): Those in Judah have refused to hear; then you in Babylon give heed to the word of God.
Jeremiah 29:21-23
- The fate of two notorious false prophets (Jeremiah 29:21-23)
TRANSLATION
(21) Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab the son of Kolaiah and concerning Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, who are continuing to prophesy to you a falsehood in My name: Behold, I am about to give them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he will smite them before your eyes. (22) A curse shall be derived from them by all the captives of Judah who are in Babylon, saying, May the LORD make you like Zedekiah and Ahab which the king of Babylon roasted in the fire, (23) because they have done folly in Israel, and. have committed adultery with the wives of their neighbors, and they have spoken a word in My name falsely, which I had not commanded them. But I know this, and am a witness to it (oracle of the LORD).
COMMENTS
Two of the leading prophets in Babylon are singled out for special attention by Jeremiah. Nothing more is known of Ahab and Zedekiah than what is here recorded. Jeremiah makes two serious accusations against them. First, he accuses them of prophesying lies in the name of the LORD (Jeremiah 29:21). Then he accuses them of committing adultery (Jeremiah 29:23). Loose theology often is accompanied by loose morality. Jeremiah indicates that these two scoundrels would be delivered into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar who would roast them in a fiery furnace. The Babylonian king no doubt regarded their oracles as treasonous. This allusion to execution by fire brings to mind three brave Hebrew young men whom Nebuchadnezzar attempted to execute in this manner when they refused to bow to a golden image (Daniel 3:6 ff.). Ahab and Zedekiah would be remembered, but not as prophets. Their names would become part of a gruesome formula of imprecation which angry men would hurl at one another (Jeremiah 29:22). God Himself has taken note of the sins of these two hypocrites and He will see to it that they receive their just due (Jeremiah 29:23),
Jeremiah 29:24-29
B. A Letter from Babylon Jeremiah 29:24-29
TRANSLATION
(24) And concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite you shall say, Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Because you have sent in your name letters unto all the people which are in Jerusalem and unto Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah, the priest, and unto all the priests, saying, The LORD has made you priest instead of Jehoiada the priest, to be chief overseer of the house of the LORD for every mad man when he prophesies that you might place him in the stocks and the collar. (27) And now why have you not rebuked Jeremiah from Anathoth who is prophesying to you? (28) For he has sent unto us in Babylon, saying, It is long! Build houses and settle down and plant gardens that you may eat their fruit. (29) And Zephaniah the priest read this letter in the presence of Jeremiah the prophet.
COMMENTS
The letter of Jeremiah to the captives in Babylon stirred up a great deal of hostility. One of the false prophets there, Shemaiah by name, sent letters to Jerusalem in an attempt to have Jeremiah silenced. In one letter Shemaiah urged Zephaniah, a leading priest in Jerusalem, to imitate his illustrious predecessor Jehoiada who had taken bold action in executing the idolatrous prophets (2 Kings 11:1-20). Shemaiah feels that action should be taken against the frenzied, mad prophets who were roving around the Temple area. Of course he has Jeremiah particularly in mind (Jeremiah 29:27). Jeremiah is regarded as a madman simply because he held a minority opinion with regard to the duration of the captivity (Jeremiah 29:28). It is to the credit of Zephaniah that he did not yield to the pressure which Shemaiah tried to bring against him. He seems to have been sympathetic towards Jeremiah and actually showed him the letter (Jeremiah 29:29).
Jeremiah 29:30-32
C. A Second Letter to Babylon Jeremiah 29:30-32
TRANSLATION
(30) And the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah, saying, (31) send unto all the captives, saying, Thus says the LORD concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite: Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you, though I did not send him, and he has caused you to trust a falsehood; (32) therefore thus says the LORD: Behold, I am about to bring punishment upon Shemaiah the Nehelamite and upon his seed; he shall not have a male descendant dwelling among this people, and he shall not look with pleasure on the good which I shall do for My people (oracle of the LORD), for he has spoken rebellion against the LORD.
COMMENTS
Jeremiah received an oracle from the Lord concerning Shemaiah and proceeded to send a second letter to the captives. In it he affirms that the Lord will punish Shemaiah for perpetuating the delusion of a short captivity and encouraging the Jews there to rebel against Babylon. The punishment is two-fold: (1) Shemaiah would be deprived of descendants to carry on his name, and (2) he would not live to see the restoration of the people to their own land at the end of the seventy years of captivity (Jeremiah 29:32).