Jeremiah 6:25

6:25 Do not go out into the countryside.

Do not travel on the roads.

For the enemy is there with sword in hand. ¹ 

They are spreading terror everywhere.” ² 

Jeremiah 46:5

46:5 What do I see?” ³  says the Lord. ⁴ 

“The soldiers ⁵  are terrified.

They are retreating.

They have been defeated.

They are overcome with terror; ⁶ 

they desert quickly

without looking back.

Jeremiah 49:29

49:29 Their tents and their flocks will be taken away.

Their tent curtains, equipment, and camels will be carried off.

People will shout ⁷  to them,

‘Terror is all around you!’” ⁸ 

Jeremiah 20:4

20:4 For the Lord says, ‘I will make both you and your friends terrified of what will happen to you. ⁹  You will see all of them die by the swords of their enemies. ¹⁰  I will hand all the people of Judah over to the king of Babylon. He will carry some of them away into exile in Babylon and he will kill others of them with the sword.

Jeremiah 20:10

20:10 I ¹¹  hear many whispering words of intrigue against me.

Those who would cause me terror are everywhere! ¹² 

They are saying, “Come on, let’s publicly denounce him!” ¹³ 

All my so-called friends ¹⁴  are just watching for

something that would lead to my downfall. ¹⁵ 

They say, “Perhaps he can be enticed into slipping up,

so we can prevail over ¹⁶  him and get our revenge on him.

[6:25]  ¹ tn Heb “For the enemy has a sword.”

[6:25]  ² tn Heb “Terror is all around!”

[46:5]  ³ tn Heb “Why do I see?” The rendering is that of J. A. Thompson (Jeremiah [NICOT], 685, 88) and J. Bright (Jeremiah [AB], 301; TEV; NIV). The question is not asking for information but is expressing surprise or wonder (see E. W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech, 951).

[46:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “oracle of the Lord.” This phrase, which is part of a messenger formula (i.e., that the words that are spoken are from him), are actually at the end of the verse. They have been put here for better poetic balance and to better identify the “I.”

[46:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “Their soldiers.” These words are actually at the midpoint of the stanza as the subject of the third of the five verbs. However, as G. L. Keown, P. J. Scalise, and T. G. Smothers (Jeremiah 26-52 [WBC], 291) note, this is the subject of all five verbs “are terrified,” “are retreating,” “have been defeated,” “have run away,” and “have not looked back.” The subject is put at the front to avoid an unidentified “they.”

[46:5]  ⁶ tn Heb “terror is all around.”

[49:29]  ⁵ tn Or “Let their tents…be taken….Let their tent…be carried…. Let people shout….”

[49:29]  ⁶ sn This expression is a favorite theme in the book of Jeremiah. It describes the terrors of war awaiting the people of Judah and Jerusalem (6:25), the Egyptians at Carchemish (46:5), and here the Kedarites.

[20:4]  ⁷ tn Heb “I will make you an object of terror to both you and your friends.”

[20:4]  ⁸ tn Heb “And they will fall by the sword of their enemies and [with] your eyes seeing [it].”

[20:10]  ⁹ tn It would be difficult to render accurately the Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) that introduces this verse without lengthening the English line unduly. It probably means something like “This is true even though I…,” i.e., the particle is concessive (cf. BDB s.v. כִּי 2.c). No other nuance seems appropriate. The particle is left out of the translation, but its presence is acknowledged here.

[20:10]  ¹⁰ tn The phrase translated “Those who would cause me terror are everywhere” has already occurred in 6:25 in the context of the terror caused by the enemy from the north and in 20:3 in reference to the curse pronounced on Pashhur who would experience it first hand. Some have seen the phrase here not as Jeremiah’s ejaculation of terror but of his assailant’s taunts of his message or even their taunting nickname for him. But comparison of this passage with the first two lines of Ps 31:13 (31:14 HT) which are word for word the same as these two will show that it refers to the terror inspired by the plots of his enemies to do away with him. It is also clear from the context of that passage and the following context here that the “whispering of many” (the literal translation of “many whispering words of intrigue against me) refers to intrigues to take vengeance on him and do away with him.

[20:10]  ¹¹ tn Heb “Denounce and let us denounce him.” The verb which is translated “denounce” (נָגַד, nagad) does not take an accusative object of person as it does here very often. When it does it usually means to inform someone. The only relevant passage appears to be Job 17:5 where it means something like “denounce.” What is probably involved here are the attempts to portray Jeremiah as a traitor (Jer 26:10) and a false prophet (see his conflict with Hananiah in Jer 28).

[20:10]  ¹² tn Heb “the men of my peace [who are concerned about my welfare].” For this phrase compare Ps 41:9 (41:10 HT); Jer 38:22. It is generally agreed that irony is being invoked here, hence “so-called” is supplied in the translation to bring out the irony.

[20:10]  ¹³ tn Heb “watching my stumbling [for me to stumble].” Metaphorically they were watching for some slip-up that would lead to his downfall. Compare the use in Pss 35:15 and 38:17 (38:18 HT).

[20:10]  ¹⁴ tn All the text says literally is “Perhaps he can be enticed so that we can prevail over him.” However the word “enticed” needs some qualification. As W. McKane (Jeremiah [ICC], 1:479) notes it should probably be read in the context of the “stumbling” (= “something that would lead to my downfall”). Hence “slipping up” has been supplied as an object. It is vague enough to avoid specifics as the original text does but suggests some reference to “something that would lead to my downfall.”