Jeremiah 32:33

32:33 They have turned away from me instead of turning to me. ¹  I tried over and over again ²  to instruct them, but they did not listen and respond to correction. ³ 

Jeremiah 12:16

12:16 But they must make sure you learn to follow the religious practices of my people. ⁴  Once they taught my people to swear their oaths using the name of the god Baal. ⁵  But then, they must swear oaths using my name, saying, “As surely as the Lord lives, I swear.” ⁶  If they do these things, ⁷  then they will be included among the people I call my own. ⁸ 

Jeremiah 2:33

2:33 “My, how good you have become

at chasing after your lovers! ⁹ 

Why, you could even teach prostitutes a thing or two! ¹⁰ 

Jeremiah 9:14

9:14 Instead they have followed the stubborn inclinations of their own hearts. They have paid allegiance to ¹¹  the gods called Baal, ¹²  as their fathers ¹³  taught them to do.

Jeremiah 9:5

9:5 One friend deceives another

and no one tells the truth.

These people have trained themselves ¹⁴  to tell lies.

They do wrong and are unable to repent.

Jeremiah 9:20

9:20 I said, ¹⁵ 

“So now, ¹⁶  you wailing women, hear what the Lord says. ¹⁷ 

Open your ears to the words from his mouth.

Teach your daughters this mournful song,

and each of you teach your neighbor ¹⁸  this lament.

Jeremiah 10:2

10:2 The Lord says,

“Do not start following pagan religious practices. ¹⁹ 

Do not be in awe of signs that occur ²⁰  in the sky

even though the nations hold them in awe.

Jeremiah 13:21

13:21 What will you say ²¹  when the Lord ²²  appoints as rulers over you those allies

that you, yourself, had actually prepared as such? ²³ 

Then anguish and agony will grip you

like that of a woman giving birth to a baby. ²⁴ 

Jeremiah 31:18

31:18 I have indeed ²⁵  heard the people of Israel ²⁶  say mournfully,

‘We were like a calf untrained to the yoke. ²⁷ 

You disciplined us and we learned from it. ²⁸ 

Let us come back to you and we will do so, ²⁹ 

for you are the Lord our God.

Jeremiah 31:34

31:34 “People will no longer need to teach their neighbors and relatives to know me. ³⁰  For all of them, from the least important to the most important, will know me,” ³¹  says the Lord. “For ³²  I will forgive their sin and will no longer call to mind the wrong they have done.”

[32:33]  ¹ tn Heb “they have turned [their] backs to me, not [their] faces.” Compare the same idiom in 2:27.

[32:33]  ² tn For the idiom involved here see the translator’s note on 7:13. The verb that introduces this clause is a Piel infinitive absolute which is functioning in place of the finite verb (see, e.g., GKC 346 §113.ff and compare usage in Jer 8:15; 14:19. This grammatical point means that the versions cited in BHS fn a may not be reading a different text after all, but may merely be interpreting the form as syntactically equivalent to a finite verb as the present translation has done.).

[32:33]  ³ tn Heb “But they were not listening so as to accept correction.”

[12:16]  ⁴ tn Heb “the ways of my people.” For this nuance of the word “ways” compare 10:2 and the notes there.

[12:16]  ⁵ tn Heb “taught my people to swear by Baal.”

[12:16]  ⁶ tn The words “I swear” are not in the text but are implicit to the oath formula. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[12:16]  ⁷ tn The words “If they do this” are not in the text. They are part of an attempt to break up a Hebrew sentence which is long and complex into equivalent shorter sentences consistent with contemporary English style. Verse 16 in Hebrew is all one sentence with a long complex conditional clause followed by a short consequence: “If they carefully learn the ways of my people to swear by name, ‘By the life of the Lord,’ as they taught my people to swear by Baal, then they will be built up in the midst of my people.” The translation strives to create the same contingencies and modifications by breaking up the sentence into shorter sentences in accord with contemporary English style.

[12:16]  ⁸ tn Heb “they will be built up among my people.” The expression “be built up among” is without parallel. However, what is involved here is conceptually parallel to the ideas expressed in Isa 19:23-25 and Zech 14:16-19. That is, these people will be allowed to live on their own land, to worship the Lord there, and to come to Jerusalem to celebrate the feasts. To translate literally would be meaningless or misleading for many readers.

[2:33]  ⁷ tn Heb “How good you have made your ways to seek love.”

[2:33]  ⁸ tn Heb “so that even the wicked women you teach your ways.”

[9:14]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “they have gone/followed after.” See the translator’s note at 2:5 for the idiom.

[9:14]  ¹¹ tn Heb “the Baals,” referring either to the pagan gods called “Baals” or the images of Baal (so NLT).

[9:14]  ¹² tn Or “forefathers,” or “ancestors.” Here the referent could be the immediate parents or, by their example, more distant ancestors.

[9:5]  ¹³ tn Heb “their tongues.” However, this is probably not a natural idiom in contemporary English and the tongue may stand as a part for the whole anyway.

[9:20]  ¹⁶ tn The words “I said” are not in the text. The text merely has “Indeed, yes.” The words are supplied in the translation to indicate that the speaker is still Jeremiah though he now is not talking about the mourning woman but is talking to them. See the notes on 9:17-18 for further explanation.

[9:20]  ¹⁷ tn It is a little difficult to explain how the Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) is functioning here. W. L. Holladay (Jeremiah [Hermeneia], 1:311) may be correct in seeing it as introducing the contents of what those who call for the mourning women are to say. In this case, Jeremiah picks up the task as representative of the people.

[9:20]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “Listen to the word of the Lord.”

[9:20]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “Teach…mournful song, and each woman her neighbor lady…”

[10:2]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “Do not learn the way of the nations.” For this use of the word “ways” (דֶּרֶךְ, derekh) compare for example Jer 12:16 and Isa 2:6.

[10:2]  ²⁰ tn Heb “signs.” The words “that occur” are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[13:21]  ²² tn Or perhaps more rhetorically equivalent, “Will you not be surprised?”

[13:21]  ²³ tn The words “The Lord” are not in the text. Some commentators make the enemy the subject, but they are spoken of as “them.”

[13:21]  ²⁴ tn Or “to be rulers.” The translation of these two lines is somewhat uncertain. The sentence structure of these two lines raises problems in translation. The Hebrew text reads: “What will you do when he appoints over you [or punishes you (see BDB 823 s.v. פָּקַד Qal.B.2 for the former, Qal.A.3 for the latter)] and you, yourself, taught them over you friends [or chiefs (see BDB 48 s.v. I אַלּוּף 2 and Ps 55:13 for the former and BDB 49 s.v. II אַלּוּף and Exod 15:15 for the latter)] for a head.” The translation assumes that the clause “and you, yourself, taught them [= made them accustomed, i.e., “prepared”] [to be] over you” is parenthetical coming between the verb “appoint” and its object and object modifier (i.e., “appointed over you allies for rulers”). A quick check of other English versions will show how varied the translation of these lines has been. Most English versions seem to ignore the second “over you” after “you taught them.” Some rearrange the text to get what they think is a sensible meaning. For a fairly thorough treatment see W. McKane, Jeremiah (ICC), 1:308-10.

[13:21]  ²⁵ tn Heb “Will not pain [here = mental anguish] take hold of you like a woman giving birth.” The question is rhetorical expecting a positive answer.

[31:18]  ²⁵ tn The use of “indeed” is intended to reflect the infinitive absolute which precedes the verb for emphasis (see IBHS 585-86 §35.3.1f).

[31:18]  ²⁶ tn Heb “Ephraim.” See the study note on 31:9. The more familiar term is used, the term “people” added to it, and plural pronouns used throughout the verse to aid in understanding.

[31:18]  ²⁷ tn Heb “like an untrained calf.” The metaphor is that of a calf who has never been broken to bear the yoke (cf. Hos 4:16; 10:11).

[31:18]  ²⁸ tn The verb here is from the same root as the preceding and is probably an example of the “tolerative Niphal,” i.e., “I let myself be disciplined/I responded to it.” See IBHS 389-90 §23.4g and note the translation of some of the examples there, especially Isa 19:22; 65:1.

[31:18]  ²⁹ tn Heb “Bring me back in order that I may come back.” For the use of the plural pronouns see the marginal note at the beginning of the verse. The verb “bring back” and “come back” are from the same root in two different verbal stems and in the context express the idea of spiritual repentance and restoration of relationship not physical return to the land. (See BDB 999 s.v. שׁוּב Hiph.2.a for the first verb and 997 s.v. Qal.6.c for the second.) For the use of the cohortative to express purpose after the imperative see GKC 320 §108.d or IBHS 575 §34.5.2b.

[31:34]  ²⁸ tn Heb “teach…, saying, ‘Know the Lord.’” The indirect quote has been chosen for stylistic reasons, i.e., to better parallel the following line.

[31:34]  ²⁹ sn This statement should be understood against the background of Jer 8:8-9 where class distinctions were drawn and certain people were considered to have more awareness and responsibility for knowing the law and also Jer 5:1-5 and 9:3-9 where the sinfulness of Israel was seen to be universal across these class distinctions and no trust was to be placed in friends, neighbors, or relatives because all without distinction had cast off God’s yoke (i.e., refused to submit themselves to his authority).

[31:34]  ³⁰ tn The Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) that introduces this clause refers to more than just the preceding clause (i.e., that all will know the Lord) but to all of vv. 31-34a (See BDB 474 s.v. כִּי 3.c).