Reading for September 29th

 Read Jeremiah 52.17-34. In verses 17-23: The capture of the sacred Temple vessels by the Babylonians underscores the end of worship life in the land. In verses 28-30: The numbers of exiles are provided, but their historical accuracy is in doubt. In verses 31-34: King Jehoiachin, also imprisoned in Babylon, survives and is restored to the table, though not yet released. The scene of the king's survival may offer a glimmer of hope to the exiles for whom the king's survival with dignity may show the way into the future. This book has been about the survival in the face of overwhelming catastrophe. If Jeremiah's words of judgment were fulfilled, then his words of hope will triumph as well. Comments or Questions

Reading for September 28th

THE END

Ch. 52: The prose conclusion to the book reports the end of national life in Judah, but neither God nor Jeremiah appear in it. The purpose of this bleak report may be to describe the fulfillment of Jeremiah's prophetic word. The setting is the Exile, when Babylonian defeat is far from sight. The chapter is nearly identical to the account of Judah's fall that concludes the book of Kings (2 Kings 24.18-25.30). The narrative divides into six short scenes.

Read Jeremiah 51.1-16. In verses 1-3: King Jehoiakim and Zedekiah angered God, and Judah and Jerusalem were expelled from his presence. In verses 4-11: Zedekiah's failed escape and the tragedy of his capture and imprisonment and death suggest the possible fate awaiting Judah. In verses 12-16: The people are deported and divided with the poor remaining in the land. Comments or Questions..

Reading for September 27th

 Read Jeremiah 51.59-64. In a symbolic act written in prose, Baruach's brother Seraiah, goes to Babylon under Jeremiah's directions.There Seraiah is to read the scroll containing prophecies against Babylon aloud, attach a stone to the scroll and sink it in the Euphrates River. Like the sinking scroll, so will Babylon sink from it high position. This symbolic act embodies the divine will. It needs only to come to fulfillment. Comments or Questions..

Reading for September 26th

 Read Jeremiah 51.45-58. Again God calls the exiles to depart and save themselves. In verse 46: They must overcome their fears, which are being caused by rumors among them. In the future God will destroy Babylon. In verses 47-48: The cosmos will participate in the celebration. In verse 50: It is urgent that the exiles should not linger but remember that God is in Jerusalem. In verses 50-58: An imaginative portrayal of the attack ends the poetry of the book. There is a cry, smashing, crashing, for the destroyer has come against Babylon. Her leaders will be drunk, asleep, never to wake. Comments or Questions..

Reading for September 25th

Read Jeremiah 51.34-44. More accusations describing Nebuchadnezzar's violence against the people of Zion accumulate. Babylon and its God, Bel, will be drunk and engorged. The superpower is ugly and out of control with its destruction of others. Comments or Questions.. 

Reading for September 24th

 Read Jeremiah 51.24-33. War preparations continue and God promises Babylon, the destroying mountain, that will be attacked. Comments or Questions..

Reading for September 23rd

 Read Jeremiah 51.15-23. In verses 15-19: A hymn, perhaps representing the voice of the exiles, praises the Creator, wise and understanding, who made the earth and maintains it natural processes. Compare to the Creator, the idols are worthless. They are lifeless gods of the gold-smith. In verses 20-23: Eight times the Creator says to his weapons or his armies, I smash with you, creating a rhythmic beat of destruction. Smashed will be the nations, peoples, animals, and rulers. Comments or Questions..