Jeremiah 2:30

2:30 “It did no good for me to punish your people.

They did not respond to such correction.

You slaughtered your prophets

like a voracious lion.” ¹ 

Jeremiah 26:21-23

26:21 When the king and all his bodyguards ²  and officials heard what he was prophesying, ³  the king sought to have him executed. But Uriah found out about it and fled to Egypt out of fear. ⁴  26:22 However, King Jehoiakim sent some men to Egypt, including Elnathan son of Achbor, ⁵  26:23 and they brought Uriah back from there. ⁶  They took him to King Jehoiakim, who had him executed and had his body thrown into the burial place of the common people. ⁷ 

Jeremiah 26:1

Jeremiah Is Put on Trial as a False Prophet ⁸ 

26:1 The Lord spoke to Jeremiah ⁹  at the beginning of the reign ¹⁰  of Josiah’s son, King Jehoiakim of Judah.

Jeremiah 19:1-3

An Object Lesson from a Broken Clay Jar

19:1 The Lord told Jeremiah, ¹¹  “Go and buy a clay jar from a potter. ¹²  Take with you ¹³  some of the leaders of the people and some of the leaders ¹⁴  of the priests. 19:2 Go out to the part of the Hinnom Valley which is near the entrance of the Potsherd Gate. ¹⁵  Announce there what I tell you. ¹⁶  19:3 Say, ‘Listen to what the Lord says, you kings of Judah and citizens of Jerusalem! ¹⁷  The Lord God of Israel who rules over all ¹⁸  says, “I will bring a disaster on this place ¹⁹  that will make the ears of everyone who hears about it ring! ²⁰ 

Jeremiah 19:10

19:10 The Lord continued, ²¹  “Now break the jar in front of those who have come here with you.

Jeremiah 19:14

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 ²²  in its courtyard and called out to all the people.

Matthew 23:34-37

23:34 “For this reason I ²³  am sending you prophets and wise men and experts in the law, ²⁴  some of whom you will kill and crucify, ²⁵  and some you will flog ²⁶  in your synagogues ²⁷  and pursue from town to town, 23:35 so that on you will come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Barachiah, ²⁸  whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. 23:36 I tell you the truth, ²⁹  this generation will be held responsible for all these things! ³⁰ 

Judgment on Israel

23:37 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, ³¹  you who kill the prophets and stone those who are sent to you! ³²  How often I have longed ³³  to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but ³⁴  you would have none of it! ³⁵ 

Matthew 26:47-50

Betrayal and Arrest

26:47 While he was still speaking, Judas, ³⁶  one of the twelve, arrived. With him was a large crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent by the chief priests and elders of the people. 26:48 (Now the betrayer ³⁷  had given them a sign, saying, “The one I kiss is the man. ³⁸  Arrest him!”) ³⁹  26:49 Immediately ⁴⁰  he went up to Jesus and said, “Greetings, Rabbi,” and kissed him. ⁴¹  26:50 Jesus ⁴²  said to him, “Friend, do what you are here to do.” Then they came and took hold ⁴³  of Jesus and arrested him.

John 7:32

7:32 The Pharisees ⁴⁴  heard the crowd ⁴⁵  murmuring these things about Jesus, ⁴⁶  so the chief priests and the Pharisees sent officers ⁴⁷  to arrest him. ⁴⁸ 

John 8:20

8:20 (Jesus ⁴⁹  spoke these words near the offering box ⁵⁰  while he was teaching in the temple courts. ⁵¹  No one seized him because his time ⁵²  had not yet come.) ⁵³ 

John 11:57

11:57 (Now the chief priests and the Pharisees ⁵⁴  had given orders that anyone who knew where Jesus ⁵⁵  was should report it, so that they could arrest ⁵⁶  him.) ⁵⁷ 

[2:30]  ¹ tn Heb “Your sword devoured your prophets like a destroying lion.” However, the reference to the sword in this and many similar idioms is merely idiomatic for death by violent means.

[26:21]  ² tn Heb “all his mighty men/soldiers.” It is unlikely that this included all the army. It more likely was the palace guards or royal bodyguards (see 2 Sam 23 where the same word is used of David’s elite corps).

[26:21]  ³ tn Heb “his words.”

[26:21]  ⁴ tn Heb “But Uriah heard and feared and fled and entered Egypt.”

[26:22]  ⁵ sn Elnathan son of Achbor was one of the officials who urged Jeremiah and Baruch to hide after they heard Jeremiah’s prophecies read before them (Jer 36:11-19). He was also one of the officials who urged Jehoiakim not to burn the scroll containing Jeremiah’s prophecies (Jer 36:25). He may have been Jehoiakim’s father-in-law (2 Kgs 24:6, 8).

[26:23]  ⁶ tn Heb “from Egypt.”

[26:23]  ⁷ sn The burial place of the common people was the public burial grounds, distinct from the family tombs, where poor people without any distinction were buried. It was in the Kidron Valley east of Jerusalem (2 Kgs 23:6). The intent of reporting this is to show the ruthlessness of Jehoiakim.

[26:1]  ⁸ sn Beginning with Jer 26 up to Jer 45 the book narrates in third person style incidents in the life of Jeremiah and prophecies (or sermons) he gave in obedience to the Lord’s commands. Baruch is the probable narrator, passing on information gleaned from Jeremiah himself. (See Jer 36:4, 18, 32; 45:1 and also 32:13-14 where it is clear that Baruch is Jeremiah’s scribe or secretary.) Chapters 26-29 contain narratives concerning reactions to Jeremiah’s prophecies and his conflict with the prophets who were prophesying that things would be all right (see, e.g., 14:14-15; 23:21).

[26:1]  ⁹ tn The words “to Jeremiah” are not in the Hebrew text. They are added by the Old Latin (not the Vulgate) and the Syriac versions. They are implicit, however, to the narrative style which speaks of Jeremiah in the third person (cf. vv. 7, 12). They have been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[26:1]  ¹⁰ tn It is often thought that the term here is equivalent to a technical term in Akkadian (reshsharruti) which refers to the part of the year remaining from the death or deposing of the previous king until the beginning of the calendar year when the new king officially ascended the throne. In this case it would refer to the part of the year between September, 609 b.c. when Jehoiakim was placed on the throne as a puppet king by Pharaoh Necho (2 Kgs 23:34-35) and April, 608 b.c. when he would have been officially celebrated as king. However, it will be suggested below in conjunction with the textual problems in 27:1 and 28:1 that the term does not necessarily refer to this period.

[19:1]  ¹¹ 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]  ¹² tn Heb “an earthenware jar of the potter.”

[19:1]  ¹³ 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]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “elders” both here and before “of the people.”

[19:2]  ¹⁵ 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]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “the words that I will speak to you.”

[19:3]  ¹⁷ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[19:3]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies, the God of Israel.”

[19:3]  ¹⁹ 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]  ²⁰ 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.

[19:10]  ²¹ 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.

[19:14]  ²² 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.”

[23:34]  ²³ tn Grk “behold I am sending.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[23:34]  ²⁴ tn Or “scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.

[23:34]  ²⁵ sn See the note on crucified in 20:19.

[23:34]  ²⁶ tn BDAG 620 s.v. μαστιγόω 1.a states, “of flogging as a punishment decreed by the synagogue (Dt 25:2f; s. the Mishna Tractate Sanhedrin-Makkoth, edited w. notes by SKrauss ’33) w. acc. of pers. Mt 10:17; 23:34.”

[23:34]  ²⁷ sn See the note on synagogues in 4:23.

[23:35]  ²⁸ sn Spelling of this name (Βαραχίου, Baraciou) varies among the English versions: “Barachiah” (RSV, NRSV); “Berechiah” (NASB); “Berachiah” (NIV).

[23:36]  ²⁹ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[23:36]  ³⁰ tn Grk “all these things will come on this generation.”

[23:37]  ³¹ sn The double use of the city’s name betrays intense emotion.

[23:37]  ³² tn Although the opening address (“Jerusalem, Jerusalem”) is direct (second person), the remainder of this sentence in the Greek text is third person (“who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her”). The following sentences then revert to second person (“your… you”), so to keep all this consistent in English, the third person pronouns in the present verse were translated as second person (“you who kill… sent to you”).

[23:37]  ³³ sn How often I have longed to gather your children. Jesus, like a lamenting prophet, speaks for God here, who longed to care tenderly for Israel and protect her.

[23:37]  ³⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[23:37]  ³⁵ tn Grk “you were not willing.”

[26:47]  ³⁶ tn Grk “behold, Judas.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[26:48]  ³⁷ tn Grk “the one who betrays him.”

[26:48]  ³⁸ tn Grk “The one I kiss is he.”

[26:48]  ³⁹ sn This remark is parenthetical within the narrative and has thus been placed in parentheses.

[26:49]  ⁴⁰ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

[26:49]  ⁴¹ sn Judas’ act of betrayal when he kissed Jesus is especially sinister when it is realized that it was common in the culture of the times for a disciple to kiss his master when greeting him.

[26:50]  ⁴² tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[26:50]  ⁴³ tn Grk “and put their hands on Jesus.”

[7:32]  ⁴⁴ sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.

[7:32]  ⁴⁵ tn Or “The common people” (as opposed to the religious authorities like the Pharisees).

[7:32]  ⁴⁶ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:32]  ⁴⁷ tn Or “servants.” The “chief priests and Pharisees” is a comprehensive term for the groups represented in the ruling council (the Sanhedrin) as in John 7:45; 18:3; Acts 5:22, 26. As “servants” or “officers” of the Sanhedrin their representatives should be distinguished from the Levites serving as temple police (perhaps John 7:30 and 44; also John 8:20; 10:39; 19:6; Acts 4:3). Even when performing “police” duties such as here, their “officers” are doing so only as part of their general tasks (see K. H. Rengstorf, TDNT 8:540).

[7:32]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “to seize him.” In the context of a deliberate attempt by the servants of the chief priests and Pharisees to detain Jesus, the English verb “arrest” conveys the point more effectively.

[8:20]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[8:20]  ⁵⁰ tn The term γαζοφυλάκιον (gazofulakion) can be translated “treasury” or “treasure room” in this context. BDAG 186 s.v. 1 notes, “It can be taken in this sense J 8:20 (sing.) in (or at) the treasury.” BDAG 186 s.v. 2 argues that the occurrences of this word in the synoptic gospels also refer to the treasury: “For Mk 12:41, 43; Lk 21:1 the mng. contribution box or receptacle is attractive. Acc. to Mishnah, Shekalim 6, 5 there were in the temple 13 such receptacles in the form of trumpets. But even in these passages the general sense of ‘treasury’ is prob., for the contributions would go [into] the treasury via the receptacles.” Based upon the extra-biblical evidence (see sn following), however, the translation opts to refer to the actual receptacles and not the treasury itself.

[8:20]  ⁵¹ tn Grk “the temple.”

[8:20]  ⁵² tn Grk “his hour.”

[8:20]  ⁵³ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[11:57]  ⁵⁴ tn The phrase “chief priests and Pharisees” is a comprehensive name for the groups represented in the ruling council (the Sanhedrin) as in John 7:45; 18:3; Acts 5:22, 26.

[11:57]  ⁵⁵ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[11:57]  ⁵⁶ tn Or “could seize.”

[11:57]  ⁵⁷ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.