Discovery BoxJeremiah 23:10
Context23:10 For the land is full of people unfaithful to him. 1
They live wicked lives and they misuse their power. 2
So the land is dried up 3 because it is under his curse. 4
The pastures in the wilderness are withered.
Jeremiah 46:12
Context46:12 The nations will hear of your devastating defeat. 5
your cries of distress will echo throughout the earth.
In the panic of their flight one soldier will trip over another
and both of them will fall down defeated.” 6
Jeremiah 51:5
Context51:5 “For Israel and Judah will not be forsaken 7
by their God, the Lord who rules over all. 8
For the land of Babylonia is 9 full of guilt
against the Holy One of Israel. 10
[23:10] 1 tn Heb “adulterers.” But spiritual adultery is clearly meant as also in 3:8-9; 9:2, and probably also 5:7.
[23:10] 2 tn For the word translated “They live…lives” see usage in Jer 8:6. For the idea of “misusing” their power (Heb “their power is not right” i.e., used in the wrong way) see 2 Kgs 7:9; 17:9. In the original text this line (really two lines in the Hebrew poetry) are at the end of the verse. However, this places the antecedent too far away and could lead to confusion. The lines have been rearranged to avoid such confusion.
[23:10] 3 tn For the use of this verb see 12:4 and the note there.
[23:10] 4 tc The translation follows the majority of Hebrew
[46:12] 5 tn Heb “of your shame.” The “shame,” however, applies to the devastating defeat they will suffer.
[46:12] 6 tn The words “In the panic of their flight” and “defeated” are not in the text but are supplied in the translation to give clarity to the metaphor for the average reader. The verbs in this verse are all in the tense that emphasizes that the action is viewed as already having been accomplished (i.e., the Hebrew prophetic perfect). This is consistent with the vav consecutive perfects in v. 10 which look to the future.
[51:5] 9 tn Heb “widowed” (cf. BDB 48 s.v. אַלְמָן, an adjective occurring only here but related to the common word for “widow”). It is commonly translated as has been done here.
[51:5] 10 tn Heb “Yahweh of armies.” For an explanation of this rendering see the study note on 2:19.
[51:5] 11 tn Or “all, though their land was…” The majority of the modern English versions understand the land here to refer to the land of Israel and Judah (the text reads “their land” and Israel and Judah are the nearest antecedents). In this case the particle כִּי (ki) is concessive (cf. BDB 473 s.v. כִּי 2.c[b]). Many of the modern commentaries understand the referent to be the land of the Chaldeans/Babylonians. However, most of them feel that the line is connected as a causal statement to 51:2-4 and see the line as either textually or logically out of place. However, it need not be viewed as logically out of place. It is parallel to the preceding and gives a second reason why they are to be destroyed. It also forms an excellent transition to the next lines where the exiles and other foreigners are urged to flee and not get caught up in the destruction which is coming “because of her sin.” It might be helpful to note that both the adjective “widowed” and the suffix on “their God” are masculine singular, looking at Israel and Judah as one entity. The “their” then goes back not to Israel and Judah of the preceding lines but to the “them” in v. 4. This makes for a better connection with the following and understands the particle כִּי in its dominant usage not an extremely rare one (see the comment in BDB 473 s.v. כִּי 2.c[b]). This interpretation is also reflected in RSV.
[51:5] 12 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 50:29.
