Discovery BoxJeremiah 1:1
Context1:1 The following is a record of what Jeremiah son of Hilkiah prophesied. 1 He was one of the priests who lived at Anathoth in the territory of the tribe of Benjamin.
Jeremiah 6:8
Context6:8 So 2 take warning, Jerusalem,
or I will abandon you in disgust 3
and make you desolate,
a place where no one can live.”
Jeremiah 7:7
Context7:7 If you stop doing these things, 4 I will allow you to continue to live in this land 5 which I gave to your ancestors as a lasting possession. 6
Jeremiah 31:11
Context31:11 For the Lord will rescue the descendants of Jacob.
He will secure their release 7 from those who had overpowered them. 8
Jeremiah 32:27
Context32:27 “I am the Lord, the God of all humankind. There is, indeed, nothing too difficult for me. 9
Jeremiah 38:13
Context38:13 So they pulled Jeremiah up from the cistern with ropes. Jeremiah, however, still remained confined 10 to the courtyard of the guardhouse.
[1:1] 1 tn Or “This is a record of what Jeremiah prophesied and did”; Heb “The words [or affairs] of Jeremiah.” The phrase could refer to either the messages of Jeremiah recorded in the book or to both his messages and the biographical (and autobiographical) narratives recorded about him in the book. Since the phrase is intended to serve as the title or superscription for the whole book and recurs again in 51:64 at the end of the book before the final appendix, it might refer to the latter. The expression “The words of [someone]” is a standard introductory formula (Deut 29:1[28:69]; 2 Sam 23:1; Amos 1:1; Eccl 1:1; Neh 1:1).
[6:8] 2 tn This word is not in the text but is supplied in the translation. Jeremiah uses a figure of speech (enallage) where the speaker turns from talking about someone to address him/her directly.
[6:8] 3 tn Heb “lest my soul [= I] becomes disgusted with you.”
[7:7] 3 tn The translation uses imperatives in vv. 5-6 followed by the phrase, “If you do all this,” to avoid the long and complex sentence structure of the Hebrew sentence which has a series of conditional clauses in vv. 5-6 followed by a main clause in v. 7.
[7:7] 4 tn Heb “live in this place, in this land.”
[7:7] 5 tn Heb “gave to your fathers [with reference to] from ancient times even unto forever.”
[31:11] 4 sn Two rather theologically significant metaphors are used in this verse. The Hebrew word translated “will set…free” is a word used in the legal sphere for paying a redemption price to secure the freedom of a person or thing (see, e.g., Exod 13:13, 15). It is used metaphorically and theologically to refer to Israel’s deliverance from Egyptian bondage (Deut 15:15; Mic 6:4) and its deliverance from Babylonian exile (Isa 35:10). The word translated “secure their release” is a word used in the sphere of family responsibility where a person paid the price to free an indentured relative (Lev 25:48, 49) or paid the price to restore a relative’s property seized to pay a debt (Lev 25:25, 33). This word, too, was used to refer metaphorically and theologically to Israel’s deliverance from Egyptian bondage (Exod 6:6) or release from Babylonian exile (Isa 43:1-4; 44:22). These words are traditionally translated “ransom” and “redeem” and are a part of traditional Jewish and Christian vocabulary for physical and spiritual deliverance.
[31:11] 5 tn Heb “from the hand/power of the one too strong for him.”
[32:27] 5 tn Heb “Behold, I am the
[38:13] 6 tn Heb “Jeremiah remained/stayed in the courtyard of the guardhouse.” The translation is meant to better reflect the situation; i.e., Jeremiah was released from the cistern but still had to stay in the courtyard of the guardhouse.
