Discovery BoxJeremiah 9:23
Context“Wise people should not boast that they are wise.
Powerful people should not boast that they are powerful. 2
Rich people should not boast that they are rich. 3
Jeremiah 17:11
Context17:11 The person who gathers wealth by unjust means
is like the partridge that broods over eggs but does not hatch them. 4
Before his life is half over he will lose his ill-gotten gains. 5
At the end of his life it will be clear he was a fool.” 6
[9:23] 1 sn It is not always clear why verses were placed in their present position in the editorial process of collecting Jeremiah’s sermons and the words the
[9:23] 2 tn Or “Strong people should not brag that they are strong.”
[9:23] 3 tn Heb “…in their wisdom…in their power…in their riches.”
[17:11] 4 tn The meaning of this line is somewhat uncertain. The word translated “broods over” occurs only here and Isa 34:15. It is often defined on the basis of an Aramaic cognate which means “to gather” with an extended meaning of “to gather together under her to hatch.” Many commentators go back to a Rabbinic explanation that the partridge steals the eggs of other birds and hatches them out only to see the birds depart when they recognize that she is not the mother. Modern studies question the validity of this zoologically. Moreover, W. L. Holladay contests the validity on the basis of the wording “and she does hatch them” (Heb “bring them to birth”). See W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah (Hermeneia), 1:498, and see also P. C. Craigie, P. H. Kelley, J. F. Drinkard, Jeremiah 1-25 (WBC), 229. The point of the comparison is that the rich gather their wealth but they do not get to see the fruits of it.
[17:11] 5 tn The Hebrew text merely says “it.” But the antecedent might be ambiguous in English so the reference to wealth gained by unjust means is here reiterated for clarity.
