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..

Reading for August 11th

 Read Jeremiah 25.15-29. In 25.15-29: Cup of wrath. A symbolic action makes the prophecy of vv. 8-14 concrete. God  commands Jeremiah to act as a wine steward. But instead of serving a joyous feast, Jeremiah serves a cup of wrath to the kings of major nations and city-states around Judah. In verse 26; The final king to drink is the king of Babylon, here called Saheshach. all must drink of God's punishment. In the symbolic sphere, Judah and its enemies have already exchanged places. All that remains is for historical events to unfold. Comments or Questions..

Reading for August 10th

 Babylon's fall.

Ch. 25: This chapter closes off the first major division of the book by reaching back to ch. 1. At Last, Jeremiah acts as "prophet to the nations" (1.5, 10).

Read Jeremiah 25.1-14. In 25.1-14: Invaders will be punished. In verse 1: A narrator dates the chapter to the rules of the Judahite King Jehoiakim and Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar. That date, 605 BCE, indicates that Jeremiah has prophesied the fall of Judah to Babylon well in advance of events. His prophecy of the fall of Babylon will, therefore, prove equally reliable. In verses 3-7: Jeremiah summarizes his carer and the people's refusal to listen to his words. This refusal provoked divine anger. In verses 8-14: God presents the consequences of not listening. In verse 9: The tribes of the north, now identified as Babylon, will be God's agent of destruction. God call the Babylonian king my servant. As divine agents, the Babylonians will destroy life on an international scale. In verse 11: Judah will serve Babylon for 70 years. This number may simply mean "a long time," for Exile lasted only 50 years. In verse 14: After that time God will punish Babylon. Comments or Questions..

Reading for August 9th

 Read Jeremiah 24.1- 10. In 24.1-10: Figs. Jerusalem has been invaded, King Jehoiachin is in captivity, King Zedekiah has been appointed in his place. Jeremiah has a vision of two baskets of figs. One symbolizes survivors in Babylon; the other stands for those who have stayed in Judah or escaped to Egypt. The first basket is good; the second is rotten. The message for the survivors is that to survive they must cooperate with Babylon. Only then will they have a future. Comments or Questions..

Reading for August 8th

 Read Jeremiah 23-40. These prose verses continue to discredit the other prophets who have led the people astray. In verses 33-40: A play on words makes the same attack on the prophets. The word translated burden can also mean "oracle" or "prophetic poem." The prophets who ask for an oracle or message from god learn that they are God's burden. Comment of Questions..

Reading for August 7th

 Read Jeremiah 23.18-22. The true prophet is one who goes before God, in the council of the Lord. These prophets God did not send, and they did not speak God's words; they are false prophets. By implication, only Jeremiah is a true prophet. Comments or Questions..