Reading for August 18th

 Read Jeremiah 29.21-32. In verses 21-23: Two false prophets among the exiles, Ahab and Zedekiah, will die like Hananiah under the deuteronomistic curse (Duet 18.20). In verses 24-32; Shemaiah, one of the exiles, writes to the high priest in Jerusalem that he should silence Jeremiah. Jeremiah curses him as a false prophet like Hananiah. Comments or Questions..

Reading for August 17th

 Read Jeremiah 29.1-20. In 29.1-32: Letters. From Jerusalem, Jeremiah writes letters to the exiles and responds to a letter about him. The letters to the exiles present Jeremiah as the authority about the exiles' survival. In verse 3: Supporters of Jeremiah serve as couriers. The exiles are not to resist Babylonian rule, but to live there in normal domestic relations and to seek the welfare of the city where they are held captive. In verse 10: After 70 years, probably a symbolizing a longtime, their relationship with God will be restored, and they will return to the land. Comments or Questions..

Reading for August 16th

 Read Jeremiah 28.1-17. The conflict of prophetic messages narrows down to a conflict between two prophets of Judah, Hananiah and Jeremiah. In competing symbolic actions the two men wear yokes to enact and make concrete the prophetic messages. Jeremiah wears a wooden yoke to signify captivity by Babylon. In verse 10: Hananiah breaks Jeremiah's yoke as an attempt to say the opposite. In verses 12-14: Jeremiah returns later with an unbreakable iron yoke. In verse 17: Hananiah's death a year later indicates he was a false prophet preaching his own words, not divine revelation (Deut 18.20). Comments or Questions..

Reading for August 15th

 Read Jeremiah 27.12-22. The prophets of Judah also oppose the true word of God in a dispute about the Temple vessels. These sacred items had been deported to Babylon in 997 BCE, and the prophets expect them  to be restored to Judah quickly, implying that Babylonian rule will not last long. Comments or Questions..

Reading for August 14th

 Yokes

In chs. 27-28: Jeremiah's conflict with other prophetic groups is the subject of these two chapters. Three stories increasingly narrow the conflict from an international disagreement to a personal dispute bteween two prophets.

Read Jeremiah 27.1-11. Jeremiah tells the nations that God has placed their lands under the control of Babylon and Nebuchadnezzar, my servant (v. 6). Their prophets have a contrary view. In verse 11: Those who refuse to serve Babylon will be put under the yoke. Comments or Questions..

Reading for August 13th

 HOW THE NATION WILL SURVIVE

In Chs. 26-52: The first book (chs. 1-25) accused Judah pf infidelity, promised destruction and exile, and defended God from accusations of injustice. The second "book" (chs. 26-52) presents stories and poems that reveal how to survive the period after the nation's fall to Babylon. No longer is repentance to avert the disaster the primary concern. The book's audience lives with the community's failure to repent. They themselves must repent and endure. Jeremiah companion Baruch also appears in this part of the book. Baruch has been traditionally been named as the writer of the stories about Jeremiah, particularity in chs. 37-45. The exilic period was a time of great conflict about how to survive. This book insists that survival requires continued submission to Babylon, repentance, and obedience as set out in the book of Jeremiah. Chs. 26-29: Prophet discord: These chapters set forth disputes about which prophetic vision of the future will ensure the nation's survival.

Read Jeremiah 26.1-24. In 26.1-24: Jeremiah on trial. This chapter shows that Jeremiah faced great conflict but that he is the true prophet and, hence, is to be heeded. In verses 1-6: This chapter refers to Jeremiah's Temple sermon (7.1-8.3) and summarizes it. What is of interest here, however, is the community's response to the sermon. Some accept it; priests, prophets and King Jehoiakim reject it. Some of the leaders put Jeremiah on trial. In verse 12: Jeremiah responds to charges by claiming that it was God who sent me. The trial concludes with a declaration of Jeremiah's innocence. In verses 17-23: Some elders present examples of other prophets who spoke judgments against Jerusalem. In verses 18-23: King Hezekiah received the message of the prophet Micah, whereas the current king Jehoiakim, rejected the words of the prophet Uriah and had him killed. In verse 24: Mysteriously, Ahikam rescues Jeremiah from death. The story blames the king for rejecting prophetic word and invites the book's readers to join Jeremiah's supporters. It presents Jeremiah as a model of fidelity who, while in the hands of captors, remains faithful and rescued from peril. Comments or Questions..

Reading for August 12th

 Read Jeremiah 25.30-38. In 25.30-38: The lion. God is a roaring lion who will devour the nations that have destroyed Judah. Comments or Questions..