Jeremiah 4:16

4:16 They are saying, ¹ 

‘Announce to the surrounding nations, ² 

“The enemy is coming!” ³ 

Proclaim this message ⁴  to Jerusalem:

“Those who besiege cities ⁵  are coming from a distant land.

They are ready to raise the battle cry against ⁶  the towns in Judah.”’

Jeremiah 16:14

16:14 Yet ⁷  I, the Lord, say: ⁸  “A new time will certainly come. ⁹  People now affirm their oaths with ‘I swear as surely as the Lord lives who delivered the people of Israel out of Egypt.’

Jeremiah 23:5

23:5 “I, the Lord, promise ¹⁰  that a new time will certainly come ¹¹ 

when I will raise up for them a righteous branch, ¹²  a descendant of David.

He will rule over them with wisdom and understanding ¹³ 

and will do what is just and right in the land. ¹⁴ 

Jeremiah 23:7

23:7 “So I, the Lord, say: ¹⁵  ‘A new time will certainly come. ¹⁶  People now affirm their oaths with “I swear as surely as the Lord lives who delivered the people of Israel out of Egypt.”

Jeremiah 31:27

Israel and Judah Will Be Repopulated

31:27 “Indeed, a time is coming,” ¹⁷  says the Lord, ¹⁸  “when I will cause people and animals to sprout up in the lands of Israel and Judah. ¹⁹ 

Jeremiah 31:31

31:31 “Indeed, a time is coming,” says the Lord, ²⁰  “when I will make a new covenant ²¹  with the people of Israel and Judah. ²² 

Jeremiah 33:14

The Lord Reaffirms His Covenant with David, Israel, and Levi

33:14 “I, the Lord, affirm: ²³  ‘The time will certainly come when I will fulfill my gracious promise concerning the nations of Israel and Judah. ²⁴ 

Jeremiah 48:12

48:12 But the time is coming when I will send

men against Moab who will empty it out.

They will empty the towns of their people,

then will lay those towns in ruins. ²⁵ 

I, the Lord, affirm it! ²⁶ 

Jeremiah 51:47

51:47 “So the time will certainly come ²⁷ 

when I will punish the idols of Babylon.

Her whole land will be put to shame.

All her mortally wounded will collapse in her midst. ²⁸ 

Jeremiah 51:52

51:52 Yes, but the time will certainly come,” ²⁹  says the Lord, ³⁰ 

“when I will punish her idols.

Throughout her land the mortally wounded will groan.

[4:16]  ¹ tn The words “They are saying” are not in the text but are implicit in the connection and are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[4:16]  ² tn The word “surrounding” is not in the text but is implicit and is supplied in the translation for clarification.

[4:16]  ³ tc Or “Here they come!” Heb “Look!” or “Behold!” Or “Announce to the surrounding nations, indeed [or yes] proclaim to Jerusalem, ‘Besiegers…’” The text is very elliptical here. Some of the modern English versions appear to be emending the text from הִנֵּה (hinneh, “behold”) to either הֵנָּה (hennah, “these things”; so NEB), or הַזֶּה (hazzeh, “this”; so NIV). The solution proposed here is as old as the LXX which reads, “Behold, they have come.”

[4:16]  ⁴ tn The words, “this message,” are not in the text but are supplied in the translation to make the introduction of the quote easier.

[4:16]  ⁵ tn Heb “Besiegers.” For the use of this verb to refer to besieging a city compare Isa 1:8.

[4:16]  ⁶ tn Heb “They have raised their voices against.” The verb here, a vav (ו) consecutive with an imperfect, continues the nuance of the preceding participle “are coming.”

[16:14]  ⁷ tn The particle translated here “Yet” (לָכֵן, lakhen) is regularly translated “So” or “Therefore” and introduces a consequence. However, in a few cases it introduces a contrasting set of conditions. Compare its use in Judg 11:8; Jer 48:12; 49:2; 51:52; and Hos 2:14 (2:16 HT).

[16:14]  ⁸ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.” The Lord has been speaking; the first person has been utilized in translation to avoid a shift which might create confusion.

[16:14]  ⁹ tn Heb “Behold the days are coming.”

[23:5]  ¹³ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[23:5]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “Behold the days are coming.”

[23:5]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “a righteous sprig to David” or “a righteous shoot” (NAB).

[23:5]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “he will reign as king and act wisely.” This is another example of the use of two verbs joined by “and” where one becomes the adverbial modifier of the other (hendiadys). For the nuance of the verb “act wisely” rather than “prosper” see Amos 5:13; Ps 2:10 (cf. BDB 968 s.v. שָׂכַל Hiph.5).

[23:5]  ¹⁷ sn This has been the constant emphasis in this section. See 22:3 for the demand, 22:15 for its fulfillment, and 22:13 for its abuse. The ideal king would follow in the footsteps of his illustrious ancestor David (2 Sam 8:15) who set this forth as an ideal for his dynasty (2 Sam 23:3) and prayed for it to be true of his son Solomon (Ps 72:1-2).

[23:7]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[23:7]  ²⁰ tn Heb “Behold the days are coming.”

[31:27]  ²⁵ tn Heb “Behold days are coming!” The particle “Behold” is probably used here to emphasize the reality of a fact. See the translator’s note on 1:6.

[31:27]  ²⁶ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[31:27]  ²⁷ tn Heb “Behold, the days are coming and [= when] I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of people and of animals.” For the significance of the metaphor see the study note.

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

[31:31]  ³² tn Or “a renewed covenant” (also in vv. 22-23).

[31:31]  ³³ tn Heb “the house of Israel and the house of Judah.”

[33:14]  ³⁷ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.” For the first person form of address see the translator’s notes on vv. 2, 10, 12.

[33:14]  ³⁸ sn This refers at the very least to the promises of Jer 23:5-6, 7-8; 30:3; 31:27, 31 where the same formula “The time will certainly come (Heb “Behold the days are coming”)” occurs. Reference may also be to the promises through the earlier prophets of what is alluded to here, i.e., the restoration of Israel and Judah under a Davidic ruler and the revival of the offerings (cf. Hos 1:10-11; 3:4-5; Amos 9:11-12; Isa 11:1-5, 10-16; Jer 30:9, 21 for the former and Jer 31:14; 33:11 for the latter).

[48:12]  ⁴³ tn Heb “Therefore, behold the days are coming, oracle of Yahweh, when I will send against him decanters [those who pour from one vessel to another] and they will decant him [pour him out] and they will empty his vessels and break their jars in pieces.” The verse continues the metaphor from the preceding verse where Moab/the people of Moab are like wine left undisturbed in a jar, i.e., in their native land. In this verse the picture is that of the decanter emptying the wine from the vessels and then breaking the jars. The wine represents the people and the vessels the cities and towns where the people lived. The verse speaks of the exile of the people and the devastation of the land. The metaphor has been interpreted so it conveys meaning to the average reader.

[48:12]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[51:47]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “That being so, look, days are approaching.” לָכֵן (lakhen) often introduces the effect of an action. That may be the case here, the turmoil outlined in v. 46 serving as the catalyst for the culminating divine judgment described in v. 47. Another possibility is that לָכֵן here has an asseverative force (“certainly”), as in Isa 26:14 and perhaps Jer 5:2 (see the note there). In this case the word almost has the force of “for, since,” because it presents a cause for an accompanying effect. See Judg 8:7 and the discussion of Isa 26:14 in BDB 486-87 s.v. כֵּן 3.d.

[51:47]  ⁵⁰ tn Or “all her slain will fall in her midst.” In other words, her people will be overtaken by judgment and be unable to escape. The dead will lie in heaps in the very heart of the city and land.

[51:52]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “that being so, look, days are approaching.” Here לָכֵן (lakhen) introduces the Lord’s response to the people’s lament (v. 51). It has the force of “yes, but” or “that may be true.” See Judg 11:8 and BDB 486-87 s.v. כֵּן 3.d.

[51:52]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”