Ezekiel 5:1-17

5:1 “As for you, son of man, take a sharp sword and use it as a barber’s razor. ¹  Shave off some of the hair from your head and your beard. ²  Then take scales and divide up the hair you cut off. 5:2 Burn a third of it in the fire inside the city when the days of your siege are completed. Take a third and slash it with a sword all around the city. Scatter a third to the wind, and I will unleash a sword behind them. 5:3 But take a few strands of hair ³  from those and tie them in the ends of your garment. ⁴  5:4 Again, take more of them and throw them into the fire, ⁵  and burn them up. From there a fire will spread to all the house of Israel.

5:5 “This is what the sovereign Lord says: This is Jerusalem; I placed her in the center of the nations with countries all around her. 5:6 Then she defied my regulations and my statutes, becoming more wicked than the nations ⁶  and the countries around her. ⁷  Indeed, they ⁸  have rejected my regulations, and they do not follow my statutes.

5:7 “Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: Because you are more arrogant ⁹  than the nations around you, ¹⁰  you have not followed my statutes and have not carried out my regulations. You have not even ¹¹  carried out the regulations of the nations around you!

5:8 “Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: I – even I – am against you, ¹²  and I will execute judgment ¹³  among you while the nations watch. ¹⁴  5:9 I will do to you what I have never done before and will never do again because of all your abominable practices. ¹⁵  5:10 Therefore fathers will eat their sons within you, Jerusalem, ¹⁶  and sons will eat their fathers. I will execute judgments on you, and I will scatter any survivors ¹⁷  to the winds. ¹⁸ 

5:11 “Therefore, as surely as I live, says the sovereign Lord, because you defiled my sanctuary with all your detestable idols and with all your abominable practices, I will withdraw; my eye will not pity you, nor will I spare ¹⁹  you. 5:12 A third of your people will die of plague or be overcome by the famine within you. ²⁰  A third of your people will fall by the sword surrounding you, ²¹  and a third I will scatter to the winds. I will unleash a sword behind them. 5:13 Then my anger will be fully vented; I will exhaust my rage on them, and I will be appeased. ²²  Then they will know that I, the Lord, have spoken in my jealousy ²³  when I have fully vented my rage against them.

5:14 “I will make you desolate and an object of scorn among the nations around you, in the sight of everyone who passes by. 5:15 You will be ²⁴  an object of scorn and taunting, ²⁵  a prime example of destruction ²⁶  among the nations around you when I execute judgments against you in anger and raging fury. ²⁷  I, the Lord, have spoken! 5:16 I will shoot against them deadly, ²⁸  destructive ²⁹  arrows of famine, ³⁰  which I will shoot to destroy you. ³¹  I will prolong a famine on you and will remove the bread supply. ³²  5:17 I will send famine and wild beasts against you and they will take your children from you. ³³  Plague and bloodshed will overwhelm you, ³⁴  and I will bring a sword against you. I, the Lord, have spoken!”

Ezekiel 12:3-16

12:3 “Therefore, son of man, pack up your belongings as if for exile. During the day, while they are watching, pretend to go into exile. Go from where you live to another place. Perhaps they will understand, ³⁵  although they are a rebellious house. 12:4 Bring out your belongings packed for exile during the day while they are watching. And go out at evening, while they are watching, as if for exile. 12:5 While they are watching, dig a hole in the wall and carry your belongings out through it. 12:6 While they are watching, raise your baggage onto your shoulder and carry it out in the dark. ³⁶  You must cover your face so that you cannot see the ground ³⁷  because I have made you an object lesson ³⁸  to the house of Israel.”

12:7 So I did just as I was commanded. I carried out my belongings packed for exile during the day, and at evening I dug myself a hole through the wall with my hands. I went out in the darkness, carrying my baggage ³⁹  on my shoulder while they watched.

12:8 The word of the Lord came to me in the morning: 12:9 “Son of man, has not the house of Israel, that rebellious house, said to you, ‘What are you doing?’ 12:10 Say to them, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: The prince will raise this burden in Jerusalem, ⁴⁰  and all the house of Israel within it.’ ⁴¹  12:11 Say, ‘I am an object lesson for you. Just as I have done, it will be done to them; they will go into exile and captivity.’

12:12 “The prince ⁴²  who is among them will raise his belongings ⁴³  onto his shoulder in darkness, and will go out. He ⁴⁴  will dig a hole in the wall to leave through. He will cover his face so that he cannot see the land with his eyes. 12:13 But I will throw my net over him, and he will be caught in my snare. I will bring him to Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans ⁴⁵  (but he will not see it), ⁴⁶  and there he will die. ⁴⁷  12:14 All his retinue – his attendants and his troops – I will scatter to every wind; I will unleash a sword behind them.

12:15 “Then they will know that I am the Lord when I disperse them among the nations and scatter them among foreign countries. 12:16 But I will let a small number of them survive the sword, famine, and pestilence, so that they can confess all their abominable practices to the nations where they go. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”

Ezekiel 12:1

Previewing the Exile

12:1 The word of the Lord came to me:

Ezekiel 15:1

Burning a Useless Vine

15:1 The word of the Lord came to me:

Ezekiel 15:1

Burning a Useless Vine

15:1 The word of the Lord came to me:

Ezekiel 15:1

Burning a Useless Vine

15:1 The word of the Lord came to me:

Ezekiel 11:1

The Fall of Jerusalem

11:1 A wind ⁴⁸  lifted me up and brought me to the east gate of the Lord’s temple that faces the east. There, at the entrance of the gate, I noticed twenty-five men. Among them I saw Jaazaniah son of Azzur and Pelatiah son of Benaiah, officials of the people. ⁴⁹ 

Ezekiel 11:1

The Fall of Jerusalem

11:1 A wind ⁵⁰  lifted me up and brought me to the east gate of the Lord’s temple that faces the east. There, at the entrance of the gate, I noticed twenty-five men. Among them I saw Jaazaniah son of Azzur and Pelatiah son of Benaiah, officials of the people. ⁵¹ 

Isaiah 20:2-4

20:2 At that time the Lord announced through ⁵²  Isaiah son of Amoz: “Go, remove the sackcloth from your waist and take your sandals off your feet.” He did as instructed and walked around in undergarments ⁵³  and barefoot. 20:3 Later the Lord explained, “In the same way that my servant Isaiah has walked around in undergarments and barefoot for the past three years, as an object lesson and omen pertaining to Egypt and Cush, 20:4 so the king of Assyria will lead away the captives of Egypt and the exiles of Cush, both young and old. They will be in undergarments and barefoot, with the buttocks exposed; the Egyptians will be publicly humiliated. ⁵⁴ 

Jeremiah 13:1-14

An Object Lesson from Ruined Linen Shorts

13:1 The Lord said to me, “Go and buy some linen shorts ⁵⁵  and put them on. ⁵⁶  Do not put them in water.” ⁵⁷  13:2 So I bought the shorts as the Lord had told me to do ⁵⁸  and put them on. ⁵⁹  13:3 Then the Lord spoke to me again and said, ⁶⁰  13:4 “Take the shorts that you bought and are wearing ⁶¹  and go at once ⁶²  to Perath. ⁶³  Bury the shorts there ⁶⁴  in a crack in the rocks.” 13:5 So I went and buried them at Perath ⁶⁵  as the Lord had ordered me to do. 13:6 Many days later the Lord said to me, “Go at once to Perath and get ⁶⁶  the shorts I ordered you to bury there.” 13:7 So I went to Perath and dug up ⁶⁷  the shorts from the place where I had buried them. I found ⁶⁸  that they were ruined; they were good for nothing.

13:8 Then the Lord said to me, ⁶⁹  13:9 “I, the Lord, say: ⁷⁰  ‘This shows how ⁷¹  I will ruin the highly exalted position ⁷²  in which Judah and Jerusalem ⁷³  take pride. 13:10 These wicked people refuse to obey what I have said. ⁷⁴  They follow the stubborn inclinations of their own hearts and pay allegiance ⁷⁵  to other gods by worshiping and serving them. So ⁷⁶  they will become just like these linen shorts which are good for nothing. 13:11 For,’ I say, ⁷⁷  ‘just as shorts cling tightly to a person’s body, so I bound the whole nation of Israel and the whole nation of Judah ⁷⁸  tightly ⁷⁹  to me.’ I intended for them to be my special people and to bring me fame, honor, and praise. ⁸⁰  But they would not obey me.

13:12 “So tell them, ⁸¹  ‘The Lord, the God of Israel, says, “Every wine jar is made to be filled with wine.”’ ⁸²  And they will probably say to you, ‘Do you not think we know ⁸³  that every wine jar is supposed to be filled with wine?’ 13:13 Then ⁸⁴  tell them, ‘The Lord says, “I will soon fill all the people who live in this land with stupor. ⁸⁵  I will also fill the kings from David’s dynasty, ⁸⁶  the priests, the prophets, and the citizens of Jerusalem with stupor. ⁸⁷  13:14 And I will smash them like wine bottles against one another, children and parents alike. ⁸⁸  I will not show any pity, mercy, or compassion. Nothing will keep me from destroying them,’ ⁸⁹  says the Lord.”

Jeremiah 18:2-12

18:2 “Go down at once ⁹⁰  to the potter’s house. I will speak to you further there.” ⁹¹  18:3 So I went down to the potter’s house and found him working ⁹²  at his wheel. ⁹³  18:4 Now and then ⁹⁴  there would be something wrong ⁹⁵  with the pot he was molding from the clay ⁹⁶  with his hands. So he would rework ⁹⁷  the clay into another kind of pot as he saw fit. ⁹⁸ 

18:5 Then the Lord said to me, ⁹⁹  18:6 “I, the Lord, say: ¹⁰⁰  ‘O nation of Israel, can I not deal with you as this potter deals with the clay? ¹⁰¹  In my hands, you, O nation of Israel, are just like the clay in this potter’s hand.’ 18:7 There are times, Jeremiah, ¹⁰²  when I threaten to uproot, tear down, and destroy a nation or kingdom. ¹⁰³  18:8 But if that nation I threatened stops doing wrong, ¹⁰⁴  I will cancel the destruction ¹⁰⁵  I intended to do to it. 18:9 And there are times when I promise to build up and establish ¹⁰⁶  a nation or kingdom. 18:10 But if that nation does what displeases me and does not obey me, then I will cancel the good I promised to do to it. 18:11 So now, tell the people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem ¹⁰⁷  this: The Lord says, ‘I am preparing to bring disaster on you! I am making plans to punish you. ¹⁰⁸  So, every one of you, stop the evil things you have been doing. ¹⁰⁹  Correct the way you have been living and do what is right.’ ¹¹⁰  18:12 But they just keep saying, ‘We do not care what you say! ¹¹¹  We will do whatever we want to do! We will continue to behave wickedly and stubbornly!’” ¹¹² 

Jeremiah 19:1-15

An Object Lesson from a Broken Clay Jar

19:1 The Lord told Jeremiah, ¹¹³  “Go and buy a clay jar from a potter. ¹¹⁴  Take with you ¹¹⁵  some of the leaders of the people and some of the leaders ¹¹⁶  of the priests. 19:2 Go out to the part of the Hinnom Valley which is near the entrance of the Potsherd Gate. ¹¹⁷  Announce there what I tell you. ¹¹⁸  19:3 Say, ‘Listen to what the Lord says, you kings of Judah and citizens of Jerusalem! ¹¹⁹  The Lord God of Israel who rules over all ¹²⁰  says, “I will bring a disaster on this place ¹²¹  that will make the ears of everyone who hears about it ring! ¹²²  19:4 I will do so because these people ¹²³  have rejected me and have defiled ¹²⁴  this place. They have offered sacrifices in it to other gods which neither they nor their ancestors ¹²⁵  nor the kings of Judah knew anything about. They have filled it with the blood of innocent children. ¹²⁶  19:5 They have built places here ¹²⁷  for worship of the god Baal so that they could sacrifice their children as burnt offerings to him in the fire. Such sacrifices ¹²⁸  are something I never commanded them to make! They are something I never told them to do! Indeed, such a thing never even entered my mind! 19:6 So I, the Lord, say: ¹²⁹  “The time will soon come that people will no longer call this place Topheth or the Hinnom Valley. But they will call this valley ¹³⁰  the Valley of Slaughter! 19:7 In this place I will thwart ¹³¹  the plans of the people of Judah and Jerusalem. I will deliver them over to the power of their enemies who are seeking to kill them. They will die by the sword ¹³²  at the hands of their enemies. ¹³³  I will make their dead bodies food for the birds and wild beasts to eat. 19:8 I will make this city an object of horror, a thing to be hissed at. All who pass by it will be filled with horror and will hiss out their scorn ¹³⁴  because of all the disasters that have happened to it. ¹³⁵  19:9 I will reduce the people of this city to desperate straits during the siege imposed on it by their enemies who are seeking to kill them. I will make them so desperate that they will eat the flesh of their own sons and daughters and the flesh of one another.”’” ¹³⁶ 

19:10 The Lord continued, ¹³⁷  “Now break the jar in front of those who have come here with you. 19:11 Tell them the Lord who rules over all says, ¹³⁸  ‘I will do just as Jeremiah has done. ¹³⁹  I will smash this nation and this city as though it were a potter’s vessel which is broken beyond repair. ¹⁴⁰  The dead will be buried here in Topheth until there is no more room to bury them.’ ¹⁴¹  19:12 I, the Lord, say: ¹⁴²  ‘That is how I will deal with this city and its citizens. I will make it like Topheth. 19:13 The houses in Jerusalem and the houses of the kings of Judah will be defiled by dead bodies ¹⁴³  just like this place, Topheth. For they offered sacrifice to the stars ¹⁴⁴  and poured out drink offerings to other gods on the roofs of those houses.’”

19:14 Then Jeremiah left Topheth where the Lord had sent him to give that prophecy. He went to the Lord’s temple and stood ¹⁴⁵  in its courtyard and called out to all the people. 19:15 “The Lord God of Israel who rules over all ¹⁴⁶  says, ‘I will soon bring on this city and all the towns surrounding it ¹⁴⁷  all the disaster I threatened to do to it. I will do so because they have stubbornly refused ¹⁴⁸  to pay any attention to what I have said!’”

Jeremiah 25:15-38

Judah and the Nations Will Experience God’s Wrath

25:15 So ¹⁴⁹  the Lord, the God of Israel, spoke to me in a vision. ¹⁵⁰  “Take this cup from my hand. It is filled with the wine of my wrath. ¹⁵¹  Take it and make the nations to whom I send you drink it. 25:16 When they have drunk it, they will stagger to and fro ¹⁵²  and act insane. For I will send wars sweeping through them.” ¹⁵³ 

25:17 So I took the cup from the Lord’s hand. I made all the nations to whom he sent me drink the wine of his wrath. ¹⁵⁴  25:18 I made Jerusalem ¹⁵⁵  and the cities of Judah, its kings and its officials drink it. ¹⁵⁶  I did it so Judah would become a ruin. I did it so Judah, its kings, and its officials would become an object ¹⁵⁷  of horror and of hissing scorn, an example used in curses. ¹⁵⁸  Such is already becoming the case! ¹⁵⁹  25:19 I made all of these other people drink it: Pharaoh, king of Egypt; ¹⁶⁰  his attendants, his officials, his people, 25:20 the foreigners living in Egypt; ¹⁶¹  all the kings of the land of Uz; ¹⁶²  all the kings of the land of the Philistines, ¹⁶³  the people of Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, the people who had been left alive from Ashdod; ¹⁶⁴  25:21 all the people of Edom, ¹⁶⁵  Moab, ¹⁶⁶  Ammon; ¹⁶⁷  25:22 all the kings of Tyre, ¹⁶⁸  all the kings of Sidon; ¹⁶⁹  all the kings of the coastlands along the sea; ¹⁷⁰  25:23 the people of Dedan, Tema, Buz, ¹⁷¹  all the desert people who cut their hair short at the temples; ¹⁷²  25:24 all the kings of Arabia who ¹⁷³  live in the desert; 25:25 all the kings of Zimri; ¹⁷⁴  all the kings of Elam; ¹⁷⁵  all the kings of Media; ¹⁷⁶  25:26 all the kings of the north, whether near or far from one another; and all the other kingdoms which are on the face of the earth. After all of them have drunk the wine of the Lord’s wrath, ¹⁷⁷  the king of Babylon ¹⁷⁸  must drink it.

25:27 Then the Lord said to me, ¹⁷⁹  “Tell them that the Lord God of Israel who rules over all ¹⁸⁰  says, ¹⁸¹  ‘Drink this cup ¹⁸²  until you get drunk and vomit. Drink until you fall down and can’t get up. ¹⁸³  For I will send wars sweeping through you.’ ¹⁸⁴  25:28 If they refuse to take the cup from your hand and drink it, tell them that the Lord who rules over all says ¹⁸⁵  ‘You most certainly must drink it! ¹⁸⁶  25:29 For take note, I am already beginning to bring disaster on the city that I call my own. ¹⁸⁷  So how can you possibly avoid being punished? ¹⁸⁸  You will not go unpunished! For I am proclaiming war against all who live on the earth. I, the Lord who rules over all, ¹⁸⁹  affirm it!’ ¹⁹⁰ 

25:30 “Then, Jeremiah, ¹⁹¹  make the following prophecy ¹⁹²  against them:

‘Like a lion about to attack, ¹⁹³  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. ¹⁹⁴ 

He will shout in triumph like those stomping juice from the grapes ¹⁹⁵ 

against all those who live on the earth.

25:31 The sounds of battle ¹⁹⁶  will resound to the ends of the earth.

For the Lord will bring charges against the nations. ¹⁹⁷ 

He will pass judgment on all humankind

and will hand the wicked over to be killed in war.’ ¹⁹⁸ 

The Lord so affirms it! ¹⁹⁹ 

25:32 The Lord who rules over all ²⁰⁰  says,

‘Disaster will soon come on one nation after another. ²⁰¹ 

A mighty storm of military destruction ²⁰²  is rising up

from the distant parts of the earth.’

25:33 Those who have been killed by the Lord at that time

will be scattered from one end of the earth to the other.

They will not be mourned over, gathered up, or buried. ²⁰³ 

Their dead bodies will lie scattered over the ground like manure.

25:34 Wail and cry out in anguish, you rulers!

Roll in the dust, you who shepherd flocks of people! ²⁰⁴ 

The time for you to be slaughtered has come.

You will lie scattered and fallen like broken pieces of fine pottery. ²⁰⁵ 

25:35 The leaders will not be able to run away and hide. ²⁰⁶ 

The shepherds of the flocks will not be able to escape.

25:36 Listen to the cries of anguish of the leaders.

Listen to the wails of the shepherds of the flocks.

They are wailing because the Lord

is about to destroy their lands. ²⁰⁷ 

25:37 Their peaceful dwelling places will be laid waste ²⁰⁸ 

by the fierce anger of the Lord. ²⁰⁹ 

25:38 The Lord is like a lion who has left his lair. ²¹⁰ 

So their lands will certainly ²¹¹  be laid waste

by the warfare of the oppressive nation ²¹² 

and by the fierce anger of the Lord.”

Jeremiah 27:2-22

27:2 The Lord told me, ²¹³  “Make a yoke ²¹⁴  out of leather straps and wooden crossbars and put it on your neck. 27:3 Use it to send messages to the kings of Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, ²¹⁵  and Sidon. ²¹⁶  Send them through ²¹⁷  the envoys who have come to Jerusalem ²¹⁸  to King Zedekiah of Judah. 27:4 Charge them to give their masters a message from me. Tell them, ‘The Lord God of Israel who rules over all ²¹⁹  says to give your masters this message. ²²⁰  27:5 “I made the earth and the people and animals on it by my mighty power and great strength, ²²¹  and I give it to whomever I see fit. ²²²  27:6 I have at this time placed all these nations of yours under the power ²²³  of my servant, ²²⁴  King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. I have even made all the wild animals subject to him. ²²⁵  27:7 All nations must serve him and his son and grandson ²²⁶  until the time comes for his own nation to fall. ²²⁷  Then many nations and great kings will in turn subjugate Babylon. ²²⁸  27:8 But suppose a nation or a kingdom will not be subject to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. Suppose it will not submit to the yoke of servitude to ²²⁹  him. I, the Lord, affirm that ²³⁰  I will punish that nation. I will use the king of Babylon to punish it ²³¹  with war, ²³²  starvation, and disease until I have destroyed it. ²³³  27:9 So do not listen to your prophets or to those who claim to predict the future by divination, ²³⁴  by dreams, by consulting the dead, ²³⁵  or by practicing magic. They keep telling you, ‘You do not need to be ²³⁶  subject to the king of Babylon.’ 27:10 Do not listen to them, ²³⁷  because their prophecies are lies. ²³⁸  Listening to them will only cause you ²³⁹  to be taken far away from your native land. I will drive you out of your country and you will die in exile. ²⁴⁰  27:11 Things will go better for the nation that submits to the yoke of servitude to ²⁴¹  the king of Babylon and is subject to him. I will leave that nation ²⁴²  in its native land. Its people can continue to farm it and live in it. I, the Lord, affirm it!”’” ²⁴³ 

27:12 I told King Zedekiah of Judah the same thing. I said, ²⁴⁴  “Submit ²⁴⁵  to the yoke of servitude to ²⁴⁶  the king of Babylon. Be subject to him and his people. Then you will continue to live. 27:13 There is no reason why you and your people should die in war ²⁴⁷  or from starvation or disease! ²⁴⁸  That’s what the Lord says will happen to any nation ²⁴⁹  that will not be subject to the king of Babylon. 27:14 Do not listen to the prophets who are telling you that you do not need to serve ²⁵⁰  the king of Babylon. For they are prophesying lies to you. 27:15 For I, the Lord, affirm ²⁵¹  that I did not send them. They are prophesying lies to you. If you ²⁵²  listen to them, I will drive you and the prophets who are prophesying lies out of the land and you will all die in exile.” ²⁵³ 

27:16 I also told the priests and all the people, “The Lord says, ‘Do not listen to what your prophets are saying. They are prophesying to you that ²⁵⁴  the valuable articles taken from the Lord’s temple will be brought back from Babylon very soon. ²⁵⁵  But they are prophesying a lie to you. 27:17 Do not listen to them. Be subject to the king of Babylon. Then you ²⁵⁶  will continue to live. Why should this city be made a pile of rubble?’” ²⁵⁷  27:18 I also told them, ²⁵⁸  “If they are really prophets and the Lord is speaking to them, ²⁵⁹  let them pray earnestly to the Lord who rules over all. ²⁶⁰  Let them plead with him not to let the valuable articles that are still left in the Lord’s temple, in the royal palace, and in Jerusalem be taken away ²⁶¹  to Babylon. 27:19 For the Lord who rules over all ²⁶²  has already spoken about the two bronze pillars, ²⁶³  the large bronze basin called ‘The Sea,’ ²⁶⁴  and the movable bronze stands. ²⁶⁵  He has already spoken about the rest of the valuable articles that are left in this city. 27:20 He has already spoken about these things that King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon did not take away when he carried Jehoiakim’s son King Jeconiah of Judah and the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem away as captives. ²⁶⁶  27:21 Indeed, the Lord God of Israel who rules over all ²⁶⁷  has already spoken ²⁶⁸  about the valuable articles that are left in the Lord’s temple, in the royal palace of Judah, and in Jerusalem. 27:22 He has said, ‘They will be carried off to Babylon. They will remain there until it is time for me to show consideration for them again. ²⁶⁹  Then I will bring them back and restore them to this place.’ I, the Lord, affirm this!” ²⁷⁰ 

Hosea 1:2-9

Symbols of Sin and Judgment: The Prostitute and Her Children

1:2 When the Lord first spoke ²⁷¹  through ²⁷²  Hosea, he ²⁷³  said to him, ²⁷⁴  “Go marry ²⁷⁵  a prostitute ²⁷⁶  who will bear illegitimate children conceived through prostitution, ²⁷⁷  because the nation ²⁷⁸  continually commits spiritual prostitution ²⁷⁹  by turning away from ²⁸⁰  the Lord.” 1:3 So Hosea married ²⁸¹  Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim. Then she conceived and gave birth to a son for him. 1:4 Then the Lord said to Hosea, ²⁸²  “Name him ‘Jezreel,’ because in a little while I will punish ²⁸³  the dynasty ²⁸⁴  of Jehu on account of the bloodshed ²⁸⁵  in the valley of Jezreel, ²⁸⁶  and I will put an end to the kingdom ²⁸⁷  of Israel. ²⁸⁸  1:5 At that time, ²⁸⁹  I will destroy the military power ²⁹⁰  of Israel in the valley of Jezreel.”

1:6 She conceived again and gave birth to a daughter. Then the Lord ²⁹¹  said to him, “Name her ‘No Pity’ (Lo-Ruhamah) because I will no longer have pity ²⁹²  on the nation ²⁹³  of Israel. For ²⁹⁴  I will certainly not forgive ²⁹⁵  their guilt. ²⁹⁶  1:7 But I will have pity on the nation ²⁹⁷  of Judah. ²⁹⁸  I will deliver them by the Lord their God; I will not deliver them by the warrior’s bow, by sword, by military victory, ²⁹⁹  by chariot horses, or by chariots.” ³⁰⁰ 

1:8 When ³⁰¹  she had weaned ‘No Pity’ (Lo-Ruhamah) she conceived again and gave birth to another son. 1:9 Then the Lord ³⁰²  said: “Name him ‘Not My People’ (Lo-Ammi), because you ³⁰³  are not my people and I am not your ³⁰⁴  God.” ³⁰⁵ 

Hosea 3:1-5

An Illustration of God’s Love for Idolatrous Israel

3:1 The Lord said to me, “Go, show love to ³⁰⁶  your wife ³⁰⁷  again, even though she loves ³⁰⁸  another man ³⁰⁹  and continually commits adultery. ³¹⁰  Likewise, the Lord loves ³¹¹  the Israelites ³¹²  although they turn to other gods and love to offer raisin cakes to idols.” ³¹³  3:2 So I paid fifteen shekels of silver and about seven bushels of barley ³¹⁴  to purchase her. 3:3 Then I told her, “You must live with me many days; you must not commit adultery or have sexual intercourse with ³¹⁵  another man, and I also will wait for you.” 3:4 For the Israelites ³¹⁶  must live many days without a king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred fertility pillar, without ephod or idols. 3:5 Afterward, the Israelites will turn and seek the Lord their God and their Davidic king. ³¹⁷  Then they will submit to the Lord in fear and receive his blessings ³¹⁸  in the future. ³¹⁹ 

Hosea 12:10

12:10 I spoke to the prophets;

I myself revealed many visions; ³²⁰ 

I spoke in parables ³²¹  through ³²²  the prophets.”

[5:1]  ¹ tn The Hebrew word occurs only here in the OT.

[5:1]  ² tn Heb, “pass (it) over your head and your beard.”

[5:3]  ³ tn Heb “from there a few in number.” The word “strands” has been supplied in the translation for clarification.

[5:3]  ⁴ sn Objects could be carried in the end of a garment (Hag 2:12).

[5:4]  ⁵ tn Heb “into the midst of” (so KJV, ASV). This phrase has been left untranslated for stylistic reasons.

[5:6]  ⁶ sn The nations are subject to a natural law according to Gen 9; see also Amos 1:3-2:3; Jonah 1:2.

[5:6]  ⁷ tn Heb “she defied my laws, becoming wicked more than the nations, and [she defied] my statutes [becoming wicked] more than the countries around her.”

[5:6]  ⁸ sn One might conclude that the subject of the plural verbs is the nations/countries, but the context (vv. 5-6a) indicates that the people of Jerusalem are in view. The text shifts from using the feminine singular (referring to personified Jerusalem) to the plural (referring to Jerusalem’s residents). See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 1:73.

[5:7]  ⁹ tn Traditionally this difficult form has been derived from a hypothetical root הָמוֹן (hamon), supposedly meaning “be in tumult/uproar,” but such a verb occurs nowhere else. It is more likely that it is to be derived from a root מָנוֹן (manon), meaning “disdain” (see L. C. Allen, Ezekiel [WBC], 1:52). A derivative from this root is used in Prov 29:21 of a rebellious servant. See HALOT 600 s.v. מָנוֹן.

[5:7]  ¹⁰ sn You are more arrogant than the nations around you. Israel is accused of being worse than the nations in Ezek 16:27; 2 Kgs 21:11; Jer 2:11.

[5:7]  ¹¹ tc Some Hebrew mss and the Syriac omit the words “not even.” In this case they are being accused of following the practices of the surrounding nations. See Ezek 11:12.

[5:8]  ¹² tn Or “I challenge you.” The phrase “I am against you” may be a formula for challenging someone to combat or a duel. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 1:201-2, and P. Humbert, “Die Herausforderungsformel ‘h!nn#n' ?l?K>,’” ZAW 45 (1933): 101-8. The Hebrew text switches to a second feminine singular form here, indicating that personified Jerusalem is addressed (see vv. 5-6a). The address to Jerusalem continues through v. 15. In vv. 16-17 the second masculine plural is used, as the people are addressed.

[5:8]  ¹³ tn The Hebrew text uses wordplay here to bring out the appropriate nature of God’s judgment. “Execute” translates the same Hebrew verb translated “carried out” (literally meaning “do”) in v. 7, while “judgment” in v. 8 and “regulations” in v. 7 translate the same Hebrew noun (meaning “regulations” or in some cases “judgments” executed on those who break laws). The point seems to be this: God would “carry out judgments” against those who refused to “carry out” his “laws.”

[5:8]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “in the sight of the nations.”

[5:9]  ¹⁵ tn Or “abominable idols.”

[5:10]  ¹⁶ tn In context “you” refers to the city of Jerusalem. To make this clear for the modern reader, “Jerusalem” has been supplied in the translation in apposition to “you.”

[5:10]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “all of your survivors.”

[5:10]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “to every wind.”

[5:11]  ¹⁹ tn The meaning of the Hebrew term is primarily emotional: “to pity,” which in context implies an action, as in being moved by pity in order to spare them from the horror of their punishment.

[5:12]  ²⁰ sn The judgment of plague and famine comes from the covenant curse (Lev 26:25-26). As in v. 10, the city of Jerusalem is figuratively addressed here.

[5:12]  ²¹ sn Judgment by plague, famine, and sword occurs in Jer 21:9; 27:13; Ezek 6:11, 12; 7:15.

[5:13]  ²² tn Or “calm myself.”

[5:13]  ²³ tn The Hebrew noun translated “jealousy” is used in the human realm to describe suspicion of adultery (Num 5:14ff.; Prov 6:34). Since Israel’s relationship with God was often compared to a marriage this term is appropriate here. The term occurs elsewhere in Ezekiel in 8:3, 5; 16:38, 42; 23:25.

[5:15]  ²⁴ tc This reading is supported by the versions and by the Dead Sea Scrolls (11QEzek). Most Masoretic Hebrew mss read “it will be,” but if the final he (ה) is read as a mater lectionis, as it can be with the second masculine singular perfect, then they are in agreement. In either case the subject refers to Jerusalem.

[5:15]  ²⁵ tn The Hebrew word occurs only here in the OT. A related verb means “revile, taunt” (see Ps 44:16).

[5:15]  ²⁶ tn Heb “discipline and devastation.” These words are omitted in the Old Greek. The first term pictures Jerusalem as a recipient or example of divine discipline; the second depicts her as a desolate ruin (see Ezek 6:14).

[5:15]  ²⁷ tn Heb “in anger and in fury and in rebukes of fury.” The heaping up of synonyms emphasizes the degree of God’s anger.

[5:16]  ²⁸ tn The Hebrew word carries the basic idea of “bad, displeasing, injurious,” but when used of weapons has the nuance “deadly” (see Ps 144:10).

[5:16]  ²⁹ tn Heb “which are/were to destroy.”

[5:16]  ³⁰ tn The language of this verse may have been influenced by Deut 32:23.

[5:16]  ³¹ tn Or “which were to destroy those whom I will send to destroy you” (cf. NASB).

[5:16]  ³² tn Heb, “break the staff of bread.” The bread supply is compared to a staff that one uses for support. See 4:16, as well as the covenant curse in Lev 26:26.

[5:17]  ³³ tn Heb “will bereave you.”

[5:17]  ³⁴ tn Heb “will pass through you.” This threat recalls the warning of Lev 26:22, 25 and Deut 32:24-25.

[12:3]  ³⁵ tn Heb “see.” This plays on the uses of “see” in v. 2. They will see his actions with their eyes and perhaps they will “see” with their mind, that is, understand or grasp the point.

[12:6]  ³⁶ tn Apart from this context the Hebrew term occurs only in Gen 15:17 in reference to the darkness after sunset. It may mean twilight.

[12:6]  ³⁷ tn Or “land” (ASV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).

[12:6]  ³⁸ sn See also Ezek 12:11, 24:24, 27.

[12:7]  ³⁹ tn The words “my baggage” are not in the Hebrew text, but are implied from the context.

[12:10]  ⁴⁰ tc The nearly incoherent Hebrew reads “The prince is this burden (prophetic oracle?) in Jerusalem.” The Targum, which may only be trying to make sense of a very difficult text, says “Concerning the prince is this oracle,” assuming the addition of a preposition. This would be the only case where Ezekiel uses this term for a prophetic oracle. The LXX reads the word for “burden” as a synonym for leader, as both words are built on the same root (נָשִׂיא, nasi’), but the verse is still incoherent because it is only a phrase with no verb. The current translation assumes that the verb יִשָּׂא (yisa’) from the root נָשִׂיא has dropped out due to homoioteleuton. If indeed the verb has dropped out (the syntax of the verbless clause being the problem), then context clearly suggests that it be a form of נָשִׂיא (see vv. 7 and 12). Placing the verb between the subject and object would result in three consecutive words based on the root נָשִׂיא and an environment conducive to an omission in copying: הַנָּשִׂיא יִשָּׁא הַמַּשָּׂא הַזֶּה (hannasi’ yisha’ hammasa’ hazzeh, “the Prince will raise this burden”).

[12:10]  ⁴¹ tc The MT reads “within them.” Possibly a scribe copied this form from the following verse “among them,” but only “within it” makes sense in this context.

[12:12]  ⁴² sn The prince is a reference to Zedekiah.

[12:12]  ⁴³ tn The words “his belongings” are not in the Hebrew text but are implied.

[12:12]  ⁴⁴ tc The MT reads “they”; the LXX and Syriac read “he.”

[12:13]  ⁴⁵ tn Or “Babylonians” (NCV, NLT).

[12:13]  ⁴⁶ sn He will not see it. This prediction was fulfilled in 2 Kgs 25:7 and Jer 52:11, which recount how Zedekiah was blinded before being deported to Babylon.

[12:13]  ⁴⁷ sn There he will die. This was fulfilled when King Zedekiah died in exile (Jer 52:11).

[11:1]  ⁴⁸ tn Or “spirit.” See note on “wind” in 2:2.

[11:1]  ⁴⁹ sn The phrase officials of the people occurs in Neh 11:1; 1 Chr 21:2; 2 Chr 24:23.

[11:1]  ⁵⁰ tn Or “spirit.” See note on “wind” in 2:2.

[11:1]  ⁵¹ sn The phrase officials of the people occurs in Neh 11:1; 1 Chr 21:2; 2 Chr 24:23.

[20:2]  ⁵² tn Heb “spoke by the hand of.”

[20:2]  ⁵³ tn The word used here (עָרוֹם, ’arom) sometimes means “naked,” but here it appears to mean simply “lightly dressed,” i.e., stripped to one’s undergarments. See HALOT 883 s.v. עָרוֹם. The term also occurs in vv. 3, 4.

[20:4]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “lightly dressed and barefoot, and bare with respect to the buttocks, the nakedness of Egypt.”

[13:1]  ⁵⁵ tn The term here (אֵזוֹר, ’ezor) has been rendered in various ways: “girdle” (KJV, ASV), “waistband” (NASB), “waistcloth” (RSV), “sash” (NKJV), “belt” (NIV, NCV, NLT), and “loincloth” (NAB, NRSV, NJPS, REB). The latter is more accurate according to J. M. Myers, “Dress and Ornaments,” IDB 1:870, and W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah (Hermeneia), 1:399. It was a short, skirt-like garment reaching from the waist to the knees and worn next to the body (cf. v. 9). The modern equivalent is “shorts” as in TEV/GNB, CEV.

[13:1]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “upon your loins.” The “loins” were the midriff of the body from the waist to the knees. For a further discussion including the figurative uses see, IDB, “Loins,” 3:149.

[13:1]  ⁵⁷ tn Or “Do not ever put them in water,” i.e., “Do not even wash them.”

[13:2]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “according to the word of the Lord.”

[13:2]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “upon your loins.” The “loins” were the midriff of the body from the waist to the knees. For a further discussion including the figurative uses see R. C. Dentan, “Loins,” IDB 3:149-50.

[13:3]  ⁶⁰ tn Heb “The word of the Lord came to me a second time, saying.”

[13:4]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “which are upon your loins.” See further the notes on v. 1.

[13:4]  ⁶² tn Heb “Get up and go.” The first verb is not literal but is idiomatic for the initiation of an action.

[13:4]  ⁶³ tn There has been a great deal of debate about whether the place referred to here is a place (Parah [= Perath] mentioned in Josh 18:23, modern Khirbet Farah, near a spring ’ain Farah) about three and a half miles from Anathoth which was Jeremiah’s home town or the Euphrates River. Elsewhere the word “Perath” always refers to the Euphrates but it is either preceded by the word “river of” or there is contextual indication that the Euphrates is being referred to. Because a journey to the Euphrates and back would involve a journey of more than 700 miles (1,100 km) and take some months, scholars both ancient and modern have questioned whether “Perath” refers to the Euphrates here and if it does whether a real journey was involved. Most of the attempts to identify the place with the Euphrates involve misguided assumptions that this action was a symbolic message to Israel about exile or the corrupting influence of Assyria and Babylon. However, unlike the other symbolic acts in Jeremiah (and in Isaiah and Ezekiel) the symbolism is not part of a message to the people but to Jeremiah; the message is explained to him (vv. 9-11) not the people. In keeping with some of the wordplays that are somewhat common in Jeremiah it is likely that the reference here is to a place, Parah, which was near Jeremiah’s hometown, but whose name would naturally suggest to Jeremiah later in the Lord’s explanation in vv. 9-11 Assyria-Babylon as a place connected with Judah’s corruption (see the notes on vv. 9-10). For further discussion the reader should consult the commentaries, especially W. Holladay, Jeremiah (Hermeneia), 1:396 and W. McKane, Jeremiah (ICC), 1:285-92 who take opposite positions on this issue.

[13:4]  ⁶⁴ sn The significance of this act is explained in vv. 9-10. See the notes there for explanation.

[13:5]  ⁶⁵ tc The translation reads בִּפְרָתָה (bifratah) with 4QJer^a as noted in W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah (Hermeneia), 1:393 instead of בִּפְרָת (bifrat) in the MT.

[13:6]  ⁶⁶ tn Heb “Get from there.” The words “from there” are not necessary to the English sentence. They would lead to a redundancy later in the verse, i.e., “from there…bury there.”

[13:7]  ⁶⁷ tn Heb “dug and took.”

[13:7]  ⁶⁸ tn Heb “And behold.”

[13:8]  ⁶⁹ tn Heb “Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying.”

[13:9]  ⁷⁰ tn Heb “Thus says the Lord.”

[13:9]  ⁷¹ tn In a sense this phrase which is literally “according to thus” or simply “thus” points both backward and forward: backward to the acted out parable and forward to the explanation which follows.

[13:9]  ⁷² tn Many of the English versions have erred in rendering this word “pride” or “arrogance” with the resultant implication that the Lord is going to destroy Israel’s pride, i.e., humble them through the punishment of exile. However, BDB 144-45 s.v. גָּאוֹן 1 is more probably correct when they classify this passage among those that deal with the “‘majesty, excellence’ of nations, their wealth, power, magnificence of buildings….” The closest parallels to the usage here are in Zech 10:11 (parallel to scepter of Egypt); Ps 47:4 (47:5 HT; parallel to “our heritage” = “our land”); Isa 14:11; and Amos 8:7. The term is further defined in v. 11 where it refers to their special relationship and calling. To translate it “pride” or “arrogance” also ruins the wordplay on “ruin” (נִשְׁחַת [nishkhat] in v. 7 and אַשְׁחִית [’ashkhit] in v. 9).

[13:9]  ⁷³ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[13:10]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “to listen to my words.”

[13:10]  ⁷⁵ tn Heb “and [they follow] after.” See the translator’s note at 2:5 for the idiom.

[13:10]  ⁷⁶ tn The structure of this verse is a little unusual. It consists of a subject, “this wicked people” qualified by several “which” clauses preceding a conjunction and a form which would normally be taken as a third person imperative (a Hebrew jussive; וִיהִי, vihi). This construction, called casus pendens by Hebrew grammarians, lays focus on the subject, here calling attention to the nature of Israel’s corruption which makes it rotten and useless to God. See GKC 458 §143.d for other examples of this construction.

[13:11]  ⁷⁷ tn The words “I say” are “Oracle of the Lord” in Hebrew, and are located at the end of this statement in the Hebrew text rather than the beginning. However, they are rendered in the first person and placed at the beginning for smoother English style.

[13:11]  ⁷⁸ tn Heb “all the house of Israel and all the house of Judah.”

[13:11]  ⁷⁹ tn It would be somewhat unnatural in English to render the play on the word translated here “cling tightly” and “bound tightly” in a literal way. They are from the same root word in Hebrew (דָּבַק, davaq), a word that emphasizes the closest of personal relationships and the loyalty connected with them. It is used, for example, of the relationship of a husband and a wife and the loyalty expected of them (cf. Gen 2:24; for other similar uses see Ruth 1:14; 2 Sam 20:2; Deut 11:22).

[13:11]  ⁸⁰ tn Heb “I bound them…in order that they might be to me for a people and for a name and for praise and for honor.” The sentence has been separated from the preceding and an equivalent idea expressed which is more in keeping with contemporary English style.

[13:12]  ⁸¹ tn Heb “So you shall say this word [or message] to them.”

[13:12]  ⁸² tn Heb “Every wine jar is supposed to be filled with wine.”

[13:12]  ⁸³ tn This is an attempt to render a construction which involves an infinitive of a verb being added before the same verb in a question which expects a positive answer. There may, by the way, be a pun being passed back and forth here involving the sound play been “fool” (נָבָל, naval) and “wine bottle” (נֶבֶל, nebel).

[13:13]  ⁸⁴ tn The Greek version is likely right in interpreting the construction of two perfects preceded by the conjunction as contingent or consequential here, i.e., “and when they say…then say.” See GKC 494 §159.g. However, to render literally would create a long sentence. Hence, the words “will probably” have been supplied in v. 12 in the translation to set up the contingency/consequential sequence in the English sentences.

[13:13]  ⁸⁵ sn It is probably impossible to convey in a simple translation all the subtle nuances that are wrapped up in the words of this judgment speech. The word translated “stupor” here is literally “drunkenness” but the word has in the context an undoubted intended double reference. It refers first to the drunken like stupor of confusion on the part of leaders and citizens of the land which will cause them to clash with one another. But it also probably refers to the reeling under God’s wrath that results from this (cf. Jer 25:15-29, especially vv. 15-16). Moreover there is still the subtle little play on wine jars. The people are like the wine jars which were supposed to be filled with wine. They were to be a special people to bring glory to God but they had become corrupt. Hence, like wine jars they would be smashed against one another and broken to pieces (v. 14). All of this, both “fill them with the stupor of confusion” and “make them reel under God’s wrath,” cannot be conveyed in one translation.

[13:13]  ⁸⁶ tn Heb “who sit on David’s throne.”

[13:13]  ⁸⁷ tn In Hebrew this is all one long sentence with one verb governing compound objects. It is broken up here in conformity with English style.

[13:14]  ⁸⁸ tn Or “children along with their parents”; Heb “fathers and children together.”

[13:14]  ⁸⁹ tn Heb “I will not show…so as not to destroy them.”

[18:2]  ⁹⁰ tn Heb “Get up and go down.” The first verb is not literal but is idiomatic for the initiation of an action. See 13:4, 6 for other occurrences of this idiom.

[18:2]  ⁹¹ tn Heb “And I will cause you to hear my word there.”

[18:3]  ⁹² tn Heb “And behold he was working.”

[18:3]  ⁹³ 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.

[18:4]  ⁹⁴ 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]  ⁹⁵ 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]  ⁹⁶ 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]  ⁹⁷ 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]  ⁹⁸ 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.

[18:5]  ⁹⁹ tn Heb “Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying.”

[18:6]  ¹⁰⁰ tn This phrase (literally “Oracle of the Lord”) has been handled this way on several occasions when it occurs within first person addresses where the Lord is the speaker. See, e.g., 16:16; 17:24.

[18:6]  ¹⁰¹ tn The words “deals with the clay” are not in the text. They are part of an elliptical comparison and are supplied in the translation here for clarity.

[18:7]  ¹⁰² tn The word “Jeremiah” is not in the text but it is implicit from the introduction in v. 5 that he is being addressed. It is important to see how the rhetoric of this passage is structured. The words of vv. 7-10 lead up to the conclusion “So now” in v. 11 which in turns leads to the conclusion “Therefore” in v. 13. The tense of the verb in v. 12 is very important. It is a vav consecutive perfect indicating the future (cf. GKC 333 §112.p, r); their response is predictable. The words of vv. 7-10 are addressed to Jeremiah (v. 5) in fulfillment of the Lord’s promise to speak to him (v. 2) and furnish the basis for the Lord’s words of conditional threat to a people who show no promise of responding positively (vv. 11-12). Verse six then must be seen as another example of the figure of apostrophe (the turning aside from description about someone to addressing them directly; cf., e.g., Ps 6:8-9 (6:9-10 HT). Earlier examples of this figure have been seen in 6:20; 9:4; 11:13; 12:13; 15:6.

[18:7]  ¹⁰³ tn Heb “One moment I may speak about a nation or kingdom to…” So also in v. 9. The translation is structured this way to avoid an awkward English construction and to reflect the difference in disposition. The constructions are, however, the same.

[18:8]  ¹⁰⁴ tn Heb “turns from its wickedness.”

[18:8]  ¹⁰⁵ tn There is a good deal of debate about how the word translated here “revoke” should be translated. There is a good deal of reluctance to translate it “change my mind” because some see that as contradicting Num 23:19 and thus prefer “relent.” However, the English word “relent” suggests the softening of an attitude but not necessarily the change of course. It is clear that in many cases (including here) an actual change of course is in view (see, e.g., Amos 7:3, 6; Jonah 3:9; Jer 26:19; Exod 13:17; 32:14). Several of these passages deal with “conditional” prophecies where a change in behavior of the people or the mediation of a prophet involves the change in course of the threatened punishment (or the promised benefit). “Revoke” or “forgo” may be the best way to render this in contemporary English idiom.

[18:9]  ¹⁰⁶ sn Heb “plant.” The terms “uproot,” “tear down,” “destroy,” “build,” and “plant” are the two sides of the ministry Jeremiah was called to (cf. Jer 1:10).

[18:11]  ¹⁰⁷ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[18:11]  ¹⁰⁸ sn Heb “I am forming disaster and making plans against you.” The word translated “forming” is the same as that for “potter,” so there is a wordplay taking the reader back to v. 5. They are in his hands like the clay in the hands of the potter. Since they have not been pliable he forms new plans. He still offers them opportunity to repent; but their response is predictable.

[18:11]  ¹⁰⁹ tn Heb “Turn, each one from his wicked way.” See v. 8.

[18:11]  ¹¹⁰ tn Or “Make good your ways and your actions.” See the same expression in 7:3, 5.

[18:12]  ¹¹¹ tn Heb “It is useless!” See the same expression in a similar context in Jer 2:25.

[18:12]  ¹¹² tn Heb “We will follow our own plans and do each one according to the stubbornness of his own wicked heart.”

[19:1]  ¹¹³ tn The word “Jeremiah” is not in the text. Some Hebrew mss and some of the versions have “to me.” This section, 19:1–20:6 appears to be one of the biographical sections of the book of Jeremiah where incidents in his life are reported in third person. See clearly 9:14 and 20:1-3. The mss and versions do not represent a more original text but are translational or interpretive attempts to fill in a text which had no referent. They are like the translational addition that has been supplied on the basis of contextual indicators.

[19:1]  ¹¹⁴ tn Heb “an earthenware jar of the potter.”

[19:1]  ¹¹⁵ tc The words “Take with you” follow the reading of the Syriac version and to a certain extent the reading of the Greek version (the latter does not have “with you”). The Hebrew text does not have these words but they are undoubtedly implicit.

[19:1]  ¹¹⁶ tn Heb “elders” both here and before “of the people.”

[19:2]  ¹¹⁷ sn The exact location of the Potsherd Gate is unknown since it is nowhere else mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. It is sometimes identified with the Dung Gate mentioned in Neh 2:13; 3:13-14; 12:31 on the basis of the Jerusalem Targum. It is probably called “Potsherd Gate” because that is where the potter threw out the broken pieces of pottery which were no longer of use to him. The Valley of Ben Hinnom has already been mentioned in 7:31-32 in connection with the illicit religious practices, including child sacrifice, which took place there. The Valley of Ben Hinnom (or sometimes Valley of Hinnom) runs along the west and south sides of Jerusalem.

[19:2]  ¹¹⁸ tn Heb “the words that I will speak to you.”

[19:3]  ¹¹⁹ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[19:3]  ¹²⁰ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies, the God of Israel.”

[19:3]  ¹²¹ sn Careful comparison of the use of this term throughout this passage and comparison with 7:31-33 which is parallel to several verses in this passage will show that the reference is to the Valley of Ben Hinnom which will become a Valley of Slaughter (see v. 6 and 7:32).

[19:3]  ¹²² tn Heb “which everyone who hears it [or about it] his ears will ring.” This is proverbial for a tremendous disaster. See 1 Sam 3:11; 2 Kgs 21:12 for similar prophecies.

[19:4]  ¹²³ tn The text merely has “they.” But since a reference is made later to “they” and “their ancestors,” the referent must be to the people that the leaders of the people and leaders of the priests represent.

[19:4]  ¹²⁴ sn Heb “have made this city foreign.” The verb here is one that is built off of the noun and adjective which relate to foreign nations. Comparison may be made to Jer 2:21 where the adjective refers to the strange, wild vine as opposed to the choice vine the Lord planted and to 5:19 and 8:19 where the noun is used of worshiping foreign gods. Israel through its false worship has “denationalized” itself in its relation to God.

[19:4]  ¹²⁵ tn Heb “fathers.”

[19:4]  ¹²⁶ tn Heb “the blood of innocent ones.” This must be a reference to child sacrifice as explained in the next verse. Some have seen a reference to the sins of social injustice alluded to in 2 Kgs 21:16 and 24:4 but those are connected with the city itself. Hence the word children is supplied in the translation to make the referent explicit.

[19:5]  ¹²⁷ tn The word “here” is not in the text. However, it is implicit from the rest of the context. It is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[19:5]  ¹²⁸ tn The words “such sacrifices” are not in the text. The text merely says “to burn their children in the fire as burnt offerings to Baal which I did not command.” The command obviously refers not to the qualification “to Baal” but to burning the children in the fire as burnt offerings. The words are supplied in the translation to avoid a possible confusion that the reference is to sacrifices to Baal. Likewise the words should not be translated so literally that they leave the impression that God never said anything about sacrificing their children to other gods. The fact is he did. See Lev 18:21; Deut 12:30; 18:10.

[19:6]  ¹²⁹ tn This phrase (Heb “Oracle of the Lord”) has been handled this way on several occasions when it occurs within first person addresses where the Lord is the speaker. See, e.g., 16:16; 17:24; 18:6.

[19:6]  ¹³⁰ tn Heb “it will no longer be called to this place Topheth or the Valley of Ben Hinnom but the Valley of Slaughter.”

[19:7]  ¹³¹ sn There is perhaps a two-fold wordplay in the use of this word. One involves the sound play with the word for “jar,” which has been explained as a water decanter. The word here is בַקֹּתִי (vaqqoti). The word for jar in v. 1 is בַקְבֻּק (vaqbuq). There may also be a play on the literal use of this word to refer to the laying waste or destruction of a land (see Isa 24:3; Nah 2:3). Many modern commentaries think that at this point Jeremiah emptied out the contents of the jar, symbolizing the “emptying” out of their plans.

[19:7]  ¹³² sn This refers to the fact that they will die in battle. The sword would be only one of the weapons that strikes them down. It is one of the trio of “sword,” “starvation,” and “disease” which were the concomitants of war referred to so often in the book of Jeremiah. Starvation is referred to in v. 9.

[19:7]  ¹³³ tn Heb “I will cause them to fall by the sword before their enemies and in the hand of those who seek their soul [= life].” In this context the two are meant as obvious qualifications of one entity, not two. Some rearrangement of the qualifiers had to be made in the English translation to convey this.

[19:8]  ¹³⁴ sn See 18:16 and the study note there.

[19:8]  ¹³⁵ tn Heb “all its smitings.” This word has been used several times for the metaphorical “wounds” that Israel has suffered as a result of the blows from its enemies. See, e.g., 14:17. It is used in the Hebrew Bible of scourging, both literally and metaphorically (cf. Deut 25:3; Isa 10:26), and of slaughter and defeat (1 Sam 4:10; Josh 10:20). Here it refers to the results of the crushing blows at the hands of her enemies which has made her the object of scorn.

[19:9]  ¹³⁶ tn This verse has been restructured to try to bring out the proper thought and subordinations reflected in the verse without making the sentence too long and complex in English: Heb “I will make them eat the flesh of their sons and daughters. And they will eat one another’s flesh in the siege and in the straits which their enemies who are seeking their lives reduce them to.” This also shows the agency through which God’s causation was effected, i.e., the siege.

[19:10]  ¹³⁷ tn The words “And the Lord continued” are not in the text. However, they are necessary to take us clearly back to the flow of the narrative begun in vv. 1-2 and interrupted by the long speech in vv. 3-9.

[19:11]  ¹³⁸ tn Heb “Thus says Yahweh of armies.” For this title see the study note on 2:19. The translation attempts to avoid the confusion of embedding quotes within quotes by reducing this one to an indirect quote.

[19:11]  ¹³⁹ tn The adverb “Thus” or “Like this” normally points back to something previously mentioned. See, e.g., Exod 29:35; Num 11:15; 15:11; Deut 25:9.

[19:11]  ¹⁴⁰ tn Heb “Like this I will break this people and this city, just as one breaks the vessel of a potter which is not able to be repaired.”

[19:11]  ¹⁴¹ sn See Jer 7:22-23 for parallels.

[19:12]  ¹⁴² tn This phrase (Heb “Oracle of the Lord”) has been handled this way on several occasions when it occurs within first person addresses where the Lord is the speaker. See, e.g., 16:16; 17:24; 18:6.

[19:13]  ¹⁴³ tn The words “by dead bodies” is not in the text but is implicit from the context. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[19:13]  ¹⁴⁴ tn Heb “the host of heaven.”

[19:14]  ¹⁴⁵ tn Heb “And Jeremiah entered from Topheth where the Lord had sent him to prophesy and he stood in the courtyard of the Lord’s temple.”

[19:15]  ¹⁴⁶ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies, the God of Israel.”

[19:15]  ¹⁴⁷ tn Heb “all its towns.”

[19:15]  ¹⁴⁸ tn Heb “They hardened [or made stiff] their neck so as not to.”

[25:15]  ¹⁴⁹ tn This is an attempt to render the Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) which is probably being used in the sense that BDB 473-74 s.v. כִּי 3.c notes, i.e., the causal connection is somewhat loose, related here to the prophecies against the nations. “So” seems to be the most appropriate way to represent this.

[25:15]  ¹⁵⁰ tn Heb “Thus said the Lord, the God of Israel, to me.” It is generally understood that the communication is visionary. God does not have a “hand” and the action of going to the nations and making them drink of the cup are scarcely literal. The words are supplied in the translation to show the figurative nature of this passage.

[25:15]  ¹⁵¹ sn “Drinking from the cup of wrath” is a common figure to represent being punished by God. Isaiah had used it earlier to refer to the punishment which Judah was to suffer and from which God would deliver her (Isa 51:17, 22) and Jeremiah’s contemporary Habakkuk uses it of Babylon “pouring out its wrath” on the nations and in turn being forced to drink the bitter cup herself (Hab 2:15-16). In Jer 51:7 the Lord will identify Babylon as the cup which makes the nations stagger. In v. 16 drinking from the cup will be identified with the sword (i.e., wars) that the Lord will send against the nations. Babylon is also to be identified as the sword (cf. Jer 51:20-23). What is being alluded to here in highly figurative language is the judgment that the Lord will wreak on the nations listed here through the Babylonians. The prophecy given here in symbolical form is thus an expansion of the one in vv. 9-11.

[25:16]  ¹⁵² tn There is some debate about the meaning of the verb here. Both BDB 172 s.v. גָּעַשׁ Hithpo and KBL 191 s.v. גָּעַשׁ Hitpol interpret this of the back and forth movement of staggering. HALOT 192 s.v. גָּעַשׁ Hitpo interprets it as vomiting. The word is used elsewhere of the up and down movement of the mountains (2 Sam 22:8) and the up and down movement of the rolling waves of the Nile (Jer 46:7, 8). The fact that a different verb is used in v. 27 for vomiting would appear to argue against it referring to vomiting (contra W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah [Hermeneia], 1:674; it is “they” that do this not their stomachs).

[25:16]  ¹⁵³ tn Heb “because of the sword that I will send among them.” Here, as often elsewhere in Jeremiah, the sword is figurative for warfare which brings death. See, e.g., 15:2. The causal particle here is found in verbal locutions where it is the cause of emotional states or action. Hence there are really two “agents” which produce the effects of “staggering” and “acting insane,” the cup filled with God’s wrath and the sword. The sword is the “more literal” and the actual agent by which the first agent’s action is carried out.

[25:17]  ¹⁵⁴ tn The words “the wine of his wrath” are not in the text but are implicit in the metaphor (see vv. 15-16). They are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[25:18]  ¹⁵⁵ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[25:18]  ¹⁵⁶ tn The words “I made” and “drink it” are not in the text. The text from v. 18 to v. 26 contains a list of the nations that Jeremiah “made drink it.” The words are supplied in the translation here and at the beginning of v. 19 for the sake of clarity. See also the note on v. 26.

[25:18]  ¹⁵⁷ tn Heb “in order to make them a ruin, an object of…” The sentence is broken up and the antecedents are made specific for the sake of clarity and English style.

[25:18]  ¹⁵⁸ tn See the study note on 24:9 for explanation.

[25:18]  ¹⁵⁹ tn Heb “as it is today.” This phrase would obviously be more appropriate after all these things had happened as is the case in 44:6, 23 where the verbs referring to these conditions are past. Some see this phrase as a marginal gloss added after the tragedies of 597 b.c. or 586 b.c. However, it may refer here to the beginning stages where Judah has already suffered the loss of Josiah, of its freedom, of some of its temple treasures, and of some of its leaders (Dan 1:1-3. The different date for Jehoiakim there is due to the different method of counting the king’s first year; the third year there is the same as the fourth year in 25:1).

[25:19]  ¹⁶⁰ sn See further Jer 46:2-28 for the judgment against Egypt.

[25:20]  ¹⁶¹ tn The meaning of this term and its connection with the preceding is somewhat uncertain. This word is used of the mixture of foreign people who accompanied Israel out of Egypt (Exod 12:38) and of the foreigners that the Israelites were to separate out of their midst in the time of Nehemiah (Neh 13:3). Most commentators interpret it here of the foreign people who were living in Egypt. (See BDB 786 s.v. I עֶרֶב and KBL 733 s.v. II עֶרֶב.)

[25:20]  ¹⁶² sn The land of Uz was Job’s homeland (Job 1:1). The exact location is unknown but its position here between Egypt and the Philistine cities suggests it is south of Judah, probably in the Arabian peninsula. Lam 4:21 suggests that it was near Edom.

[25:20]  ¹⁶³ sn See further Jer 47:1-7 for the judgment against the Philistines. The Philistine cities were west of Judah.

[25:20]  ¹⁶⁴ sn The Greek historian Herodotus reports that Ashdod had been destroyed under the Pharaoh who preceded Necho, Psammetichus.

[25:21]  ¹⁶⁵ sn See further Jer 49:7-22 for the judgment against Edom. Edom, Moab, and Ammon were east of Judah.

[25:21]  ¹⁶⁶ sn See further Jer 48:1-47 for the judgment against Moab.

[25:21]  ¹⁶⁷ sn See further Jer 49:1-6 for the judgment against Ammon.

[25:22]  ¹⁶⁸ map For location see Map1 A2; Map2 G2; Map4 A1; JP3 F3; JP4 F3.

[25:22]  ¹⁶⁹ sn Tyre and Sidon are mentioned within the judgment on the Philistines in Jer 47:4. They were Phoenician cities to the north and west of Judah on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in what is now Lebanon.

[25:22]  ¹⁷⁰ sn The connection with Tyre and Sidon suggests that these were Phoenician colonies. See also Isa 23:2.

[25:23]  ¹⁷¹ sn Dedan and Tema are mentioned together in Isa 21:13-14 and located in the desert. They were located in the northern part of the Arabian peninsula south and east of Ezion Geber. Buz is not mentioned anywhere else and its location is unknown. Judgment against Dedan and Tema is mentioned in conjunction with the judgment on Edom in Jer 47:7-8.

[25:23]  ¹⁷² tn For the discussion regarding the meaning of the terms here see the notes on 9:26.

[25:24]  ¹⁷³ tc Or “and all the kings of people of mixed origin who.” The Greek version gives evidence of having read the term only once; it refers to the “people of mixed origin” without reference to the kings of Arabia. While the term translated “people of mixed origin” seems appropriate in the context of a group of foreigners within a larger entity (e.g. Israel in Exod 12:38; Neh 13:3; Egypt in Jer 50:37), it seems odd to speak of them as a separate entity under their own kings. The presence of the phrase in the Hebrew text and the other versions dependent upon it can be explained as a case of dittography.

[25:25]  ¹⁷⁴ sn The kingdom of Zimri is mentioned nowhere else, so its location is unknown.

[25:25]  ¹⁷⁵ sn See further Jer 49:34-39 for judgment against Elam.

[25:25]  ¹⁷⁶ sn Elam and Media were east of Babylon; Elam in the south and Media in the north. They were in what is now western Iran.

[25:26]  ¹⁷⁷ tn The words “have drunk the wine of the Lord’s wrath” are not in the text. They are supplied in the translation for clarity at the end of the list to serve as a transition to the next sentence which does not directly mention the cup or the Lord’s wrath.

[25:26]  ¹⁷⁸ tn Heb “the king of Sheshach.” “Sheshach” is a code name for Babylon formed on the principle of substituting the last letter of the alphabet for the first, the next to the last for the second, and so on. On this principle Hebrew שׁ (shin) is substituted for Hebrew ב (bet) and Hebrew כ (kaf) is substituted for Hebrew ל (lamed). On the same principle “Leb Kamai” in Jer 51:1 is a code name for Chasdim or Chaldeans which is Jeremiah’s term for the Babylonians. No explanation is given for why the code names are used. The name “Sheshach” for Babylon also occurs in Jer 51:41 where the term Babylon is found in parallelism with it.

[25:27]  ¹⁷⁹ tn The words “Then the Lord said to me” are not in the text. They are supplied in the translation for clarity, to connect this part of the narrative with vv. 15, 17 after the long intervening list of nations who were to drink the cup of God’s wrath in judgment.

[25:27]  ¹⁸⁰ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies, the God of Israel.”

[25:27]  ¹⁸¹ tn Heb “Tell them, ‘Thus says the Lord….’” The translation is intended to eliminate one level of imbedded quotation marks to help avoid confusion.

[25:27]  ¹⁸² tn The words “this cup” are not in the text but are implicit to the metaphor and the context. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[25:27]  ¹⁸³ tn Heb “Drink, and get drunk, and vomit and fall down and don’t get up.” The imperatives following drink are not parallel actions but consequent actions. For the use of the imperative plus the conjunctive “and” to indicate consequent action, even intention see GKC 324-25 §110.f and compare usage in 1 Kgs 22:12; Prov 3:3b-4a.

[25:27]  ¹⁸⁴ tn Heb “because of the sword that I will send among you.” See the notes on 2:16 for explanation.

[25:28]  ¹⁸⁵ tn Heb “Tell them, ‘Thus says the Lord…’” The translation is intended to eliminate one level of imbedded quote marks to help avoid confusion.

[25:28]  ¹⁸⁶ tn The translation attempts to reflect the emphatic construction of the infinitive absolute preceding the finite verb which is here an obligatory imperfect. (See Joüon 2:371-72 §113.m and 2:423 §123.h, and compare usage in Gen 15:13.)

[25:29]  ¹⁸⁷ tn Heb “which is called by my name.” See translator’s note on 7:10 for support.

[25:29]  ¹⁸⁸ tn This is an example of a question without the formal introductory particle following a conjunctive vav introducing an opposition. (See Joüon 2:609 §161.a.) It is also an example of the use of the infinitive before the finite verb in a rhetorical question involving doubt or denial. (See Joüon 2:422-23 §123.f, and compare usage in Gen 37:8.)

[25:29]  ¹⁸⁹ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies.”

[25:29]  ¹⁹⁰ tn Heb “Oracle of Yahweh of armies.”

[25:30]  ¹⁹¹ tn The word “Jeremiah” is not in the text. It is supplied in the translation to make clear who is being addressed.

[25:30]  ¹⁹² tn Heb “Prophesy against them all these words.”

[25:30]  ¹⁹³ 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]  ¹⁹⁴ 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]  ¹⁹⁵ 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.

[25:31]  ¹⁹⁶ tn For the use of this word see Amos 2:2; Hos 10:14; Ps 74:23. See also the usage in Isa 66:6 which is very similar to the metaphorical usage here.

[25:31]  ¹⁹⁷ tn Heb “the Lord has a lawsuit against the nations.” For usage of the term see Hos 4:1; Mic 6:2, and compare the usage of the related verb in Jer 2:9; 12:1.

[25:31]  ¹⁹⁸ tn Heb “give the wicked over to the sword.”

[25:31]  ¹⁹⁹ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[25:32]  ²⁰⁰ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies.”

[25:32]  ²⁰¹ tn Heb “will go forth from nation to nation.”

[25:32]  ²⁰² tn The words “of military destruction” have been supplied in the translation to make the metaphor clear. The metaphor has shifted from that of God as a lion, to God as a warrior, to God as a judge, to God as the author of the storm winds of destruction.

[25:33]  ²⁰³ sn The intent here is to emphasize the large quantity of those who are killed – there will be too many to insure proper mourning rites and proper burial.

[25:34]  ²⁰⁴ tn Heb “Wail and cry out, you shepherds. Roll in the dust, you leaders of the flock.” The terms have been reversed to explain the figure.

[25:34]  ²⁰⁵ tn The meaning of this line is debated. The Greek version does not have the words “lie scattered” and it reads the words “like broken pieces of fine pottery” (Heb “like choice vessels”; כִּכְלִי חֶמְדָּה, kikhli khemdah) as “like choice rams” (כְּאֵילֵי חֶמְדָּה, kÿ’ele khemdah); i.e., “the days have been completed for you to be slaughtered and you will fall like choice rams.” The reading of the Greek version fits the context better, but is probably secondary for that very reason. The word translated “lie scattered” (תְּפוֹצָה, tÿfotsah) occurs nowhere else and the switch to the simile of “choice vessels” is rather abrupt. However, this section has been characterized by switching metaphors. The key to the interpretation and translation here is the consequential nature of the verbal actions involved. “Fall” does not merely refer to the action but the effect, i.e., “lie fallen” (cf. BDB 657 s.v. נָפַל 7 and compare Judg 3:25; 1 Sam 31:8). Though the noun translated “lie scattered” does not occur elsewhere, the verb does. It is quite commonly used of dispersing people and that has led many to see that as the reference here. The word, however, can be used of scattering other things like seed (Isa 28:25), arrows (2 Sam 22:15; metaphorical for lightning), etc. Here it follows “slaughtered” and refers to their dead bodies. The simile (Heb “ fallen like choice vessels”) is elliptical, referring to “broken pieces” of choice vessels. In this sense the simile fits in perfectly with v. 33.

[25:35]  ²⁰⁶ tn Heb “Flight [or “place of escape”] will perish from the shepherds.”

[25:36]  ²⁰⁷ tn Heb “their pastures,” i.e., the place where they “shepherd” their “flocks.” The verb tenses in this section are not as clear as in the preceding. The participle in this verse is followed by a vav consecutive perfect like the imperatives in v. 34. The verbs in v. 38 are perfects but they can be and probably should be understood as prophetic like the perfect in v. 31 (נְתָנָם, nÿtanam) which is surrounded by imperfects, participles, and vav consecutive perfects.

[25:37]  ²⁰⁸ tn For this meaning of the verb used here see HALOT 217 s.v. דָּמַם Nif. Elsewhere it refers to people dying (see, e.g., Jer 49:26; 50:30) hence some see a reference to “lifeless.”

[25:37]  ²⁰⁹ tn Heb “because of the burning anger of the Lord.”

[25:38]  ²¹⁰ tn Heb “Like a lion he has left his lair.”

[25:38]  ²¹¹ tn This is a way of rendering the Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) which is probably here for emphasis rather than indicating cause (see BDB 473 s.v. כִּי 1.e and compare usage in Jer 22:22).

[25:38]  ²¹² tc Heb “by the sword of the oppressors.” The reading here follows a number of Hebrew mss and the Greek version. The majority of Hebrew mss read “the anger of the oppressor.” The reading “the sword of the oppressors” is supported also by the parallel use of this phrase in Jer 46:16; 50:16. The error in the MT may be explained by confusion with the following line which has the same beginning combination (מִפְּנֵי חֲרוֹן [mippÿne kharon] confused for מִפְּנֵי חֶרֶב [mippÿne kherev]). This reading is also supported by the Targum, the Aramaic paraphrase of the OT. According to BDB 413 s.v. יָנָה Qal the feminine singular participle (הַיּוֹנָה, hayyonah) is functioning as a collective in this idiom (see GKC 394 §122.s for this phenomenon).

[27:2]  ²¹³ tn There is some disjunction in the narrative of this chapter. The introduction in v. 1 presents this as a third person narrative. But the rest of the passage reports the narrative in first person. Thus the text reads here “Thus the Lord said to me…” In vv. 12, 16 the narrative picks up in first person report and never indicates that Jeremiah carried out the command in vv. 2-4 that introduces the message which he repeats in summary form himself to Zedekiah. The report is thus an “unedited” first person report. This may create some confusion for some readers, but it is best to leave it in first person here because of the continuation in vv. 12, 16.

[27:2]  ²¹⁴ sn The yoke is a common biblical symbol of political servitude (see, e.g., Deut 28:48; 1 Kgs 12:4, 9, 10). From the context of 1 Kgs 12 it is clear that it applied to taxation and the provision of conscript labor. In international political contexts it involved the payment of heavy tribute which was often conscripted from the citizens (see, e.g., 2 Kgs 15:19-20; 23:34-35) and the furnishing of military contingents for the sovereign’s armies (see, e.g., 2 Kgs 24:2). Jeremiah’s message here combines both a symbolic action (the wearing of a yoke) and words of explanation as in Jer 19:1-13. (See Isa 20:1-6 for an example outside of Jeremiah.) The casting off of the yoke has been used earlier in Jer 2:20, 5:5 to refer to Israel’s failure to remain spiritually “subject” or faithful to God.

[27:3]  ²¹⁵ map For location see Map1 A2; Map2 G2; Map4 A1; JP3 F3; JP4 F3.

[27:3]  ²¹⁶ sn The nations of Edom, Moab, and Ammon were east of Judah. They were sometimes allies and sometimes enemies. The nations of Tyre and Sidon were on the sea coast north and west of Judah. They are best known for their maritime trade during the reign of Solomon. They were more commonly allies of Israel and Judah than enemies.

[27:3]  ²¹⁷ tn Heb “send by means of them” [i.e., the straps and crossbars made into a yoke] to…through.” The text is broken up in conformity with contemporary English style. Many English versions ignore the suffix on the end of “send” and find some support for this on the basis of its absence in the Lucianic Greek text. However, it is probably functioning metonymically here for the message which they see symbolized before them and is now explained clearly to them.

[27:3]  ²¹⁸ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[27:4]  ²¹⁹ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies, the God of Israel.”

[27:4]  ²²⁰ tn Heb “Give them a charge to their masters saying, ‘Thus says Yahweh of armies, the God of Israel, “Thus you shall say unto your masters…”’” The sentence is broken up in conformity with contemporary English style.

[27:5]  ²²¹ tn Heb “by my great power and my outstretched arm.” Again “arm” is symbolical for “strength.” Compare the similar expression in 21:5.

[27:5]  ²²² sn See Dan 4:17 for a similar statement.

[27:6]  ²²³ tn Heb “have given…into the hand of.”

[27:6]  ²²⁴ sn See the study note on 25:9 for the significance of the application of this term to Nebuchadnezzar.

[27:6]  ²²⁵ tn Heb “I have given…to him to serve him.” The verb “give” in this syntactical situation is functioning like the Hiphil stem, i.e., as a causative. See Dan 1:9 for parallel usage. For the usage of “serve” meaning “be subject to” compare 2 Sam 22:44 and BDB 713 s.v. עָבַד 3.

[27:7]  ²²⁶ sn This is a figure that emphasizes that they will serve for a long time but not for an unlimited duration. The kingdom of Babylon lasted a relatively short time by ancient standards. It lasted from 605 b.c. when Nebuchadnezzar defeated Necho at Carchemish until the fall of Babylon in 538 b.c. There were only four rulers. Nebuchadnezzar was succeeded by his son, Evil Merodach (cf. 52:31), and two other rulers who were not descended from him.

[27:7]  ²²⁷ tn Heb “until the time of his land, even his, comes.” The independent pronoun is placed here for emphasis on the possessive pronoun. The word “time” is used by substitution for the things that are done in it (compare in the NT John 2:4; 7:30; 8:20 “his hour had not yet come”).

[27:7]  ²²⁸ tn Heb “him.” This is a good example of the figure of substitution where the person is put for his descendants or the nation or subject he rules. (See Gen 28:13-14 for another good example and Acts 22:7 in the NT.)

[27:8]  ²²⁹ tn Heb “put their necks in the yoke of.” See the study note on v. 2 for the figure.

[27:8]  ²³⁰ tn Heb “oracle of the Lord.”

[27:8]  ²³¹ tn Heb “The nation and/or the kingdom which will not serve him, Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, and which will not put its neck in the yoke of the king of Babylon, by sword, starvation, and disease I will punish [or more literally, “visit upon”] that nation, oracle of the Lord.” The long complex Hebrew sentence has been broken up in conformity with contemporary English style and the figures interpreted for the sake of clarity. The particle אֵת, the sign of the accusative, before “which will not put…” is a little unusual here. For its use to introduce a new topic (here a second relative clause) see BDB 85 s.v. אֵת 3.α.

[27:8]  ²³² tn Heb “with/by the sword.”

[27:8]  ²³³ tc The verb translated “destroy” (תָּמַם, tamam) is usually intransitive in the stem of the verb used here. It is found in a transitive sense elsewhere only in Ps 64:7. BDB 1070 s.v. תָּמַם 7 emends both texts. In this case they recommend תִּתִּי (titi): “until I give them into his hand.” That reading is suggested by the texts of the Syriac and Targumic translations (see BHS fn c). The Greek translation supports reading the verb “destroy” but treats it as though it were intransitive “until they are destroyed by his hand” (reading תֻּמָּם [tummam]). The MT here is accepted as the more difficult reading and support is seen in the transitive use of the verb in Ps 64:7.

[27:9]  ²³⁴ sn Various means of divination are alluded to in the OT. For example, Ezek 21:26-27 alludes to throwing down arrows to see which way they fall and consulting the shape of the liver of slaughtered animals. Gen 44:5 alludes to reading the future through pouring liquid in a cup. The means alluded to in this verse were all classified as pagan and prohibited as illegitimate in Deut 18:10-14. The Lord had promised that he would speak to them through prophets like Moses (Deut 18:15, 18). But even prophets could lie. Hence, the Lord told them that the test of a true prophet was whether what he said came true or not (Deut 18:20-22). An example of false prophesying and the vindication of the true as opposed to the false will be given in the chapter that follows this.

[27:9]  ²³⁵ sn An example of this is seen in 1 Sam 28.

[27:9]  ²³⁶ tn The verb in this context is best taken as a negative obligatory imperfect. See IBHS 508-9 §31.4g for discussion and examples. See Exod 4:15 as an example of positive obligation.

[27:10]  ²³⁷ tn The words “Don’t listen to them” have been repeated from v. 9a to pick up the causal connection between v. 9a and v. 10 that is formally introduced by a causal particle in v. 10 in the original text.

[27:10]  ²³⁸ tn Heb “they are prophesying a lie.”

[27:10]  ²³⁹ tn Heb “lies will result in your being taken far…” (לְמַעַן [lÿma’an] + infinitive). This is a rather clear case of the particle לְמַעַן introducing result (contra BDB 775 s.v. מַעַן note 1. There is no irony in this statement; it is a bold prediction).

[27:10]  ²⁴⁰ tn The words “out of your country” are not in the text but are implicit in the meaning of the verb. The words “in exile” are also not in the text but are implicit in the context. These words have been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[27:11]  ²⁴¹ tn Heb “put their necks in the yoke of.” See the study note on v. 2 for the figure.

[27:11]  ²⁴² 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]  ²⁴³ tn Heb “oracle of the Lord.”

[27:12]  ²⁴⁴ tn Heb “I spoke to Zedekiah…according to all these words, saying.”

[27:12]  ²⁴⁵ sn The verbs in this verse are all plural. They are addressed to Zedekiah and his royal advisers (compare 22:2).

[27:12]  ²⁴⁶ tn Heb “put their necks in the yoke of.” See the study note on v. 2 for the figure.

[27:13]  ²⁴⁷ tn Heb “with/by the sword.”

[27:13]  ²⁴⁸ tn Heb “Why should you and your people die…?” The rhetorical question expects the answer made explicit in the translation, “There is no reason!”

[27:13]  ²⁴⁹ tn Heb “…disease according to what the Lord spoke concerning the nation that…”

[27:14]  ²⁵⁰ tn The verb in this context is best taken as a negative obligatory imperfect. See IBHS 508 §31.4g for discussion and examples. See Exod 4:15 as an example of positive obligation.

[27:15]  ²⁵¹ tn Heb “oracle of the Lord.”

[27:15]  ²⁵² sn The verbs are again plural referring to the king and his royal advisers.

[27:15]  ²⁵³ tn Heb “…drive you out and you will perish, you and the prophets who are prophesying lies.”

[27:16]  ²⁵⁴ tn Heb “don’t listen to the words of the prophets who are prophesying to you….” The sentence has been broken up for the sake of English style and one level of embedded quotes has been eliminated to ease complexity.

[27:16]  ²⁵⁵ sn This refers to the valuable articles of the temple treasury which were carried off by Nebuchadnezzar four years earlier when he carried off Jeconiah, his family, some of his nobles, and some of the cream of Judean society (2 Kgs 24:10-16, especially v. 13 and see also vv. 19-20 in the verses following).

[27:17]  ²⁵⁶ tn The imperative with vav (ו) here and in v. 12 after another imperative are a good example of the use of the imperative to introduce a consequence. (See GKC 324-25 §110.f and see Gen 42:18. This is a common verb in this idiom.)

[27:17]  ²⁵⁷ tn According to E. W. Bullinger (Figures of Speech, 954) both this question and the one in v. 13 are examples of rhetorical questions of prohibition / “don’t let this city be made a pile of rubble.”

[27:18]  ²⁵⁸ tn The words “I also told them” are not in the text, but it is obvious from the fact that the Lord is spoken about in the third person in vv. 18, 19, 21 that he is not the speaker. This is part of Jeremiah’s own speech to the priests and the people (v. 16). These words are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[27:18]  ²⁵⁹ tn Heb “the word of the Lord is with them.”

[27:18]  ²⁶⁰ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies.”

[27:18]  ²⁶¹ tn Heb “…speaking to them, let them entreat the Lord…so that the valuable articles…will not go to Babylon.” The long original sentence has been broken up for the sake of English style.

[27:19]  ²⁶² tn Heb “Yahweh of armies.” For the significance of this title see the note at 2:19.

[27:19]  ²⁶³ tn The words “two bronze” are not in the text. They have been supplied in the translation to help identify the referent.

[27:19]  ²⁶⁴ tn The words “the large bronze basin called” are not in the text. They have been supplied in the translation to help identify the referent.

[27:19]  ²⁶⁵ tn The words “movable bronze” are not in the text. They have been supplied in the translation to help identify the referent. See the study note for further reference.

[27:20]  ²⁶⁶ tn 27:19-20 are all one long sentence in Hebrew. It has been broken up for the sake of English style. Some of the sentences still violate contemporary English style (e.g., v. 20) but breaking them down any further would lose the focus. For further discussion see the study note on v. 21.

[27:21]  ²⁶⁷ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies, the God of Israel.” For the significance of this title see the note at 2:19.

[27:21]  ²⁶⁸ sn Some of the flavor of the repetitive nature of Hebrew narrative is apparent in vv. 19-21. In the Hebrew original vv. 19-20 are all one long sentence with complex coordination and subordinations. I.e., all the objects in v. 19 are all objects of the one verb “has spoken about” and the description in v. 20 is one long relative or descriptive clause. The introductory “For the Lord…has already spoken” is repeated in v. 21 from v. 19 and reference is made to the same articles once again, only in the terms that were used in v. 18b. By this means, attention is focused for these people (here the priests and the people) on articles which were of personal concern for them and the climax or the punch line is delayed to the end. The point being made is that the false prophets are mistaken; not only will the articles taken to Babylon not be returned “very soon” but the Lord had said that the ones that remained would be taken there as well. They ought rather pray that the Lord will change his mind and not carry them off as well.

[27:22]  ²⁶⁹ tn This verb is a little difficult to render here. The word is used in the sense of taking note of something and acting according to what is noticed. It is the word that has been translated several times throughout Jeremiah as “punish [someone].” It is also used in the opposite of sense of taking note and “show consideration for” (or “care for;” see, e.g., Ruth 1:6). Here the nuance is positive and is further clarified by the actions that follow, bringing them back and restoring them.

[27:22]  ²⁷⁰ tn Heb “oracle of the Lord.”

[1:2]  ²⁷¹ tn The construct noun תְּחִלַּת (tékhillat, “beginning of”) displays a wider use of the construct state here, preceding a perfect verb דִּבֶּר (dibber, “he spoke”; Piel perfect 3rd person masculine singular) rather than a genitive noun. This is an unusual temporal construction (GKC 422 §130.d). It may be rendered, “When he (= the Lord) began to speak” (cf. ASV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, TEV, and most other modern English versions, all of which are similar). This time-determinative was not correctly understood by the LXX or by the KJV: “The beginning of the word of the Lord.”

[1:2]  ²⁷² tn The preposition בְּ (bet) on בְּהוֹשֵׁעַ (bÿhoshea’) is an instrumental use of the preposition (BDB 89 s.v. בְּ III.2.b): “by, with, through Hosea” rather than a directional “to Hosea.” This focuses on the entire prophetic revelation through Hosea to Israel.

[1:2]  ²⁷³ tn Heb “the Lord.” This is redundant in English, so the pronoun has been used in the translation (cf. TEV, NLT).

[1:2]  ²⁷⁴ tn Heb “to Hosea.” The proper name is replaced by the pronoun here to avoid redundancy in English (cf. NIV, NCV, NLT).

[1:2]  ²⁷⁵ tn Heb “Go, take for yourself” (so NRSV; NASB, NIV “to yourself”). In conjunction with the following phrase this means “marry.”

[1:2]  ²⁷⁶ tn Heb “a wife of harlotries.” The noun זְנוּנִים (zÿnunim) means “prostitute; harlot” (HALOT 275-76 s.v. זְנוּנִים). The term does not refer to mere adultery (cf. NIV; also NCV, TEV, CEV “unfaithful”) which is expressed by the root נַאַף (na’af, “adultery”; HALOT 658 s.v. נאף). The plural noun זְנוּנִים (zénunim, literally, “harlotries”) is an example of the plural of character or plural of repeated behavior. The phrase “wife of harlotries” (אֵשֶׁת זְנוּנִים, ’eshet zénunim) probably refers to a prostitute, possibly a temple prostitute serving at a Baal temple.

[1:2]  ²⁷⁷ tn Heb “and children of harlotries.” However, TEV takes the phrase to mean the children will behave like their mother (“your children will be just like her”).

[1:2]  ²⁷⁸ tn Heb “the land.” The term “the land” is frequently used as a synecdoche of container (the land of Israel) for the contained (the people of Israel).

[1:2]  ²⁷⁹ tn Heb “prostitution.” The adjective “spiritual” is supplied in the translation to clarify that apostasy is meant here. The construction זָנֹה תִזְנֶה (zanoh tizneh, infinitive absolute + imperfect of the same root) repeats the root זָנַה (zanah, “harlotry”) for rhetorical emphasis. Israel was guilty of gross spiritual prostitution by apostatizing from Yahweh. The verb זָנַה is used in a concrete sense to refer to a spouse being unfaithful in a marriage relationship (HALOT 275 s.v. זנה 1), and figuratively meaning “to be unfaithful” in a relationship with God by prostituting oneself with other gods and worshiping idols (Exod 34:15; Lev 17:7; 20:5, 6; Deut 31:16; Judg 8:27, 33; 21:17; 1 Chr 5:25; Ezek 6:9; 20:30; 23:30; Hos 4:15; Ps 106:39; see HALOT 275 s.v. 2).

[1:2]  ²⁸⁰ tn Heb “from after.”

[1:3]  ²⁸¹ tn Heb “so he went and took” (וַיֵּלֶךְ וַיִּקַּח, vayyelekh vayyiqqakh; so NAB, NRSV).

[1:4]  ²⁸² tn Heb “to him.” The referent (Hosea) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:4]  ²⁸³ tn Heb “I will visit.” The verb פָּקַד (paqad, “to visit”) has a very broad range of meanings: (1) “to pay attention to; to look at” (a) favorably: to look after; to provide for; to care for; (b) unfavorably: to seek vengeance for; to punish for; (2) militarily: (a) “to muster; to enroll”; (b) “to inspect; to review”; (3) leadership: (a) “to rule over; to oversee”; (b) Hiphil: “to appoint an overseer” (see BDB 823 s.v. פָּקַד; HALOT 955-58 s.v. פקד). In this context, the nuance “to punish” or “to take vengeance” (see 1b above) is most appropriate. Cf. KJV, ASV “I will avenge”; NAB, NASB, NRSV “I will punish.”

[1:4]  ²⁸⁴ tn Heb “house” (so NAB, NRSV); NCV “family”; CEV “descendants.”

[1:4]  ²⁸⁵ tn The plural form of דָּם (dam, “blood”) refers to “bloodshed” (BDB 196 s.v. דָּם 2.f). This is an example of a plural of abnormal condition (GKC 400 §124.n). The plural is used to represent natural objects which are found in an unnatural or abnormal condition. The plural is used because the natural object is normally found as a whole or in one unit, but in the abnormal condition the object is found in many parts. Normally, blood is contained as a whole within the body. However, when a brutal murder occurs, blood is shed and literally spilled all over the place. Cf. NIV “the massacre”; TEV, CEV, NLT “the murders.”

[1:4]  ²⁸⁶ tn Heb “I will visit the bloodshed of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu.”

[1:4]  ²⁸⁷ tn Heb “the kingdom of the house of Israel” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV). This has been simplified in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[1:4]  ²⁸⁸ sn The proper name יִזְרְעֶאל (yizré’e’l, “Jezreel”) sounds like יִשְׂרָאֵל (yisra’el, “Israel”). This phonetic wordplay associates the sin at Jezreel with the judgment on Israel, stressing poetic justice.

[1:5]  ²⁸⁹ tn Heb “In that day” (so NIV; NAB, NRSV “On that day”).

[1:5]  ²⁹⁰ tn Heb “I will break the bow” (so NAB, NRSV). The phrase “break the bow” (וְשַׁבָרְתִּי אֶת־קֶשֶׁת, véshavarti ’et-qeshet) is figurative. The term קֶשֶׁת (qeshet, “bow”) frequently refers to the warrior’s weapon (2 Sam 22:35; Ps 18:35; Job 20:24; Hos 2:20; Zech 9:10; 10:4). The reference to the warrior’s bow is a synecdoche of specific (bow) for general (military weaponry or power; see HALOT 1155 s.v. קֶשֶׁת 3). The noun קֶשֶׁת is used figuratively for “power” several times (e.g., Gen 49:24; 1 Sam 2:4; Jer 49:35; Job 29:20; Ps 37:15; BDB 906 s.v. 1.e).

[1:6]  ²⁹¹ tn Heb “Then he said”; the referent (the Lord) does not appear in Hebrew, but has been specified in the translation for clarity. Many English versions specify the speaker here (KJV “God”; ASV “Jehovah”; NASB, NIV, NRSV “the Lord”).

[1:6]  ²⁹² sn The negative particle לאֹ (lo’, “no, not”) and the root רָחַם (rakham, “compassion”) are repeated in 1:6, creating a wordplay between the name Lo-Ruhamah (literally “No-Pity”) and the announcement of divine judgment, “I will no longer have pity on the nation of Israel.”

[1:6]  ²⁹³ tn Heb “house”; cf. TEV, NLT “the people of Israel.”

[1:6]  ²⁹⁴ tn The particle כִּי (ki) probably denotes cause (so NCV, TEV, CEV) or result here (GKC 505 §166.b; BDB 473 s.v. כִּי 3.c).

[1:6]  ²⁹⁵ tn The verb נָשָׂא (nasa’, “to take away”) frequently denotes “to forgive” meaning to take away sin (BDB 671 s.v. נָשָׂא 3.c). The construction נָשׂא אֶשָּׂא (naso’ ’esa’, “I will certainly take away,” infinitive absolute + imperfect of the same root) repeats the root נָשָׂא for rhetorical emphasis, stressing the divine resolution not to forgive Israel.

[1:6]  ²⁹⁶ tn The phrase “their guilt” does not appear in Hebrew, but is supplied in the translation for clarification. The ellipsis of the accusative direct object of נָשׂא אֶשָּׂא (naso’ ’esa’, “I will certainly take away”) is an example of brachyology. The accusative “guilt” must be supplied frequently with נָשַׂא (see BDB 671 s.v. נָשָׂא 3.c; e.g., Num 14:19; Isa 2:9; Ps 99:8). Many recent English versions simplify this to “forgive them” (e.g., NASB, NIV, NCV, NRSV, TEV, NLT).

[1:7]  ²⁹⁷ tn Heb “house”; cf. NCV, TEV, NLT “the people of Judah.”

[1:7]  ²⁹⁸ tn The word order in this line is rhetorical, emphasizing the divine decision to withhold pity from Israel but to bestow it on Judah. The accusative direct object, which is introduced by a disjunctive vav (to denote contrast), appears before the verb: וְאֶת־בֵּית יְהוּדָה אֲרַחֵם (vé’et-bet yéhudah ’arakhem, “but upon the house of Judah I will show pity”).

[1:7]  ²⁹⁹ tn Heb “by war” (so NAB, NRSV, TEV); KJV, NASB, NIV “battle.”

[1:7]  ³⁰⁰ sn These military weapons are examples of the metonymy of adjunct (the specific weapons named) for subject (warfare).

[1:8]  ³⁰¹ tn The preterite וַתִּגְמֹל (vatigmol, literally, “and she weaned”) functions in a synchronic sense with the following preterite וַתַּהַר (vattahar, literally, “and she conceived”) and may be treated in translation as a dependent temporal clause: “When she had weaned…she conceived” (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV). Other English versions render this as sequential with “After” (NAB, NIV, TEV, NLT).

[1:9]  ³⁰² tn Heb “Then he said”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity. As in v. 6, many English versions specify the speaker here.

[1:9]  ³⁰³ tn The independent personal pronoun אַתֶּם (’attem, “you”) is a plural form, referring to the people of Israel as a whole. To make this clear TEV translates this as third person: “the people of Israel are not my people” (cf. CEV, NLT).

[1:9]  ³⁰⁴ tn The pronominal suffix on the preposition לָכֶם (lakhem, “your”) is a plural form, referring to the people of Israel as a whole.

[1:9]  ³⁰⁵ tc The MT reads לֹא־אֶהְיֶה לָכֶם (lo’-’ehyeh lakhem, “I will not be yours”). The editors of BHS suggest emending the text to לֹא־אֱלֹהֵיכֶם (lo’-’elohekhem, “I will not be your God”). The emendation creates a tighter parallel with the preceding אַתֶּם לֹא עַמִּי (’attem lo’ ’ammi, “you are not my people”). Because of a lack of external evidence, however, the reading of the MT should be retained.

[3:1]  ³⁰⁶ tn Heb “Go again! Love!” Cf. NAB “Give your love to.”

[3:1]  ³⁰⁷ tn Heb “a woman.” The probable referent is Gomer. Some English translations (e.g., NIV, NLT) specify the referent as “your wife.”

[3:1]  ³⁰⁸ tc The MT vocalizes אֲהֻבַת (’ahuvat) as a construct form of the Qal passive participle and takes רֵעַ (rea’) as a genitive of agent: “who is loved by רֵעַ.” However, the ancient versions (LXX, Syriac, Vulgate) all vocalize אֲהֻבַת as an absolute form of the Qal active participle, and take רֵעַ as the accusative direct object: “who loves רֵעַ.” The English translations consistently follow the MT. The editors of BHS suggest the revocalization but with some reservation. For discussion of the vocalization, see D. Barthélemy, ed., Preliminary and Interim Report on the Hebrew Old Testament Text Project, 5:230.

[3:1]  ³⁰⁹ tn The meaning of the noun רֵעַ (rea’) is debated because it has a broad range of meanings: (1) “friend,” (2) “lover,” (3) “companion,” (4) “neighbor,” and (5) “another” (HALOT 1253-55 s.v. II רֵעַ; BDB 945-46 s.v. II רֵעַ). The Hebrew lexicons favor the nuance “lover; paramour” here (HALOT 1255 s.v. 2; BDB 946 s.v. 1). Most scholars adopt the same approach; however, a few suggest that רֵעַ does not refer to another man, but to her husband (Hosea). Both approaches are reflected in English translations: NASB “a woman who is loved by her husband”; NIV “though she is loved by another”; NAB “a woman beloved of a paramour”; KJV “a woman beloved of her friend”; NJPS “a woman who, while befriended by a companion”; TEV “a woman who is committing adultery with a lover”; CEV “an unfaithful woman who has a lover.”

[3:1]  ³¹⁰ tn Heb “love a woman who is loved of a lover and is an adulteress.”

[3:1]  ³¹¹ tn Heb “like the love of the Lord.” The genitive after the construct functions as a subjective genitive.

[3:1]  ³¹² tn Heb “sons of Israel” (so NASB); KJV “children of Israel”; NAB “people of Israel.”

[3:1]  ³¹³ tn Heb “they are lovers of cakes of raisins.” A number of English translations render this literally (e.g., ASV, NAB, NASB, NRSV).

[3:2]  ³¹⁴ tc The LXX reads “a homer of barley and a measure of wine,” a reading followed by some English translations (e.g., NRSV, NLT).

[3:3]  ³¹⁵ tn Heb “and you will not be for”; NIV “be intimate with.”

[3:4]  ³¹⁶ tn Heb “sons of Israel” (so NASB); KJV “children of Israel”; NAB “people of Israel” (likewise in the following verse).

[3:5]  ³¹⁷ tn Heb “David their king”; cf. NCV “the king from David’s family”; TEV “a descendant of David their king”; NLT “David’s descendant, their king.”

[3:5]  ³¹⁸ tn Heb “his goodness”; NLT “his good gifts.”

[3:5]  ³¹⁹ tn Heb “in the end of the days.” Cf. NAB, NASB, NIV, NCV, NLT “in the last days.”

[12:10]  ³²⁰ tn Heb “I myself multiplied vision[s]”; cf. NASB “I gave numerous visions.”

[12:10]  ³²¹ tn There is debate whether אֲדַמֶּה (’adammeh, Piel imperfect 1st person common singular) is derived from I דָמָה (damah, “similitude, parable”) or II דָמָה (“oracle of doom”). The lexicons favor the former (BDB 198 s.v. I דָּמָה 1; HALOT 225-26 s.v. I דמה). Most translators favor “parables” (cf. KJV, RSV, NASB, NIV, NJPS), but a few opt for “oracles of doom” (cf. NRSV, TEV, CEV).

[12:10]  ³²² tn Heb “by the hand of”; KJV, ASV “by the ministry of.”