Jeremiah 25:2
Jeremiah 25:3
Jeremiah 25:4
Jeremiah 25:5
Jeremiah 25:6
Jeremiah 25:7
Jeremiah 25:8
Jeremiah 25:9
Jeremiah 25:10
Jeremiah 25:11
Jeremiah 25:12
Jeremiah 25:13
Jeremiah 25:14
Jeremiah 25:15
Jeremiah 25:16
Jeremiah 25:17
Jeremiah 25:18
Jeremiah 25:19
Jeremiah 25:20
Jeremiah 25:21
Jeremiah 25:22
Jeremiah 25:23
Jeremiah 25:24
Jeremiah 25:25
Jeremiah 25:26
Jeremiah 25:27
Jeremiah 25:28
Jeremiah 25:29
Jeremiah 25:30
Jeremiah 25:31
Jeremiah 25:32
Jeremiah 25:33
Jeremiah 25:34
Jeremiah 25:35
Jeremiah 25:36
Jeremiah 25:37
Jeremiah 25:38
"Jeremiah on the Ruins of Jerusalem"
(Horace Vernet, 1844)
'For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD,
'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.
-- Jeremiah 29:11
(Play beautiful related song by Marty Goetz and Misha)
Click chart to enlarge
Click chart to enlarge
Chart from recommended resource Jensen's Survey of the OT - used by permission
Jeremiah Chart from Charles Swindoll
| JEREMIAH: "PROPHET TO THE NATIONS" Sin - "I Will Punish" (Jer 9:25) Hope - "I Will Restore" (Jer 30:17) Judah & Jerusalem |
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Prophet |
Prophecies to Judah Jer 2:1-45:5 |
Prophecies to the Gentiles Jer 46:1-51:64 |
Prophet's Appendix Jer 52:1-52:34 |
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| Prophet's Commission Jer 1:1-19 |
Judah Condemned Jer 2:1-25:38 |
Jeremiah's Conflicts Jer 26:1-29:32 |
Jerusalem's Future Jer 30:1-33:26 |
Jerusalem's Fall Jer 34:1-45:5 |
Nations Condemned Jer 46:1-51:64 |
Historic Conclusion Jer 52:1-52:34 |
| Before The Fall Of Jerusalem Jer 1:1-38:28 |
The Fall Jer 39:1-18 |
After The Fall |
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| Call | Ministry | Retrospect | ||||
| Nation of Judah |
Surrounding Nations |
Future of Babylon |
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| 627-582 BC Ministered 40+ Years! |
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Map of Israel at Time of Jeremiah
Source: ESV Global Study Bible
Source: ESV Global Study Bible
Jeremiah 25:1 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah (that was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon),
- in the: Jer 36:1 Jer 46:2 2Ki 24:1-2 Da 1:1
Related Passages
Daniel 1:1 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it.
2 Kings 24:1-2 In his days Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up, and Jehoiakim became his servant for three years; then he turned and rebelled against him. 2 The LORD sent against him bands of Chaldeans, bands of Arameans, bands of Moabites, and bands of Ammonites. So He sent them against Judah to destroy it, according to the word of the LORD which He had spoken through His servants the prophets.
Jeremiah 36:1 In the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
Jeremiah 46:2 To Egypt, concerning the army of Pharaoh Neco king of Egypt, which was by the Euphrates River at Carchemish, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon defeated in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah:
The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah - This is a major prophetic message and is for the entire nation, representinga public, national warning. This chapter will go on to summarize over 20 years of Jeremiah’s preaching and declare that judgment is now unavoidable because of persistent refusal to repent.
in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah - This gives us a precise historical moment when Jehoiakim reigned (609–598/597 BC) so that his fourth year is 605 BC. This is the turning point year when Judah’s independence effectively ends. Up until this point, Judah had been a vassal state of Pharaoh Neco. But in this year world power shifts dramatically.
that was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon - This was the year of Nebuchadnezzar's victory over Egypt at the battle of Carchemish, which vaulted Babylon into "first place" at the dominant world power. And shortly after Nebuchadnezzar becomes king of Babylon upon death of his father Nabopolassar founder of the Neo-Babylonian empire who reigned from 626–605 BC. As a result of his new power, Nebuchadnezzar begins asserting control over former Egyptian territories which includes Judah.
In Israel (Judah), the accession year or partial year in which a king began to reign, was counted as his first year. In contrast, in Babylon the accession year was not counted but was treated as “year zero,” and the king’s first official year began with the next new year. As a result, Daniel records “the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim” (Daniel 1:1) using the Babylonian system, which corresponds to the fourth year in the Judean (Hebrew) method of reckoning.
Jeremiah 25:2 which Jeremiah the prophet spoke to all the people of Judah and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying,
- Jer 18:11 19:14,15 26:2 35:13 38:1,2 Ps 49:1,2 Mk 7:14-16
Which Jeremiah the prophet - This emphasizes his divine authority as God's appointed and Spirit empowered mouthpiece, for as Yahweh declared in Jer 1:9 “Behold, I have put My words in your mouth.
Spoke to all the people of Judah and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying - Spoke indicates a public, formal, authoritative message from God. All the people of Judah refers to the entire nation. One wonders how those in the cities outside Jerusalem heard but presumably they somehow heard his message, because God would not want anyone not hearing this critical warning. Notice the repetition of ALL, which signifies there will be no one who can use the excuse that they are ignorant of God's warning.
Jeremiah 25:3 “From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, even to this day, these twenty-three years the word of the LORD has come to me, and I have spoken to you again and again, but you have not listened.
- thirteenth: Jer 1:2 1Ki 22:3 2Ch 34:3,8
- I have spoken to you again and again: Jer 25:4 7:13 11:7 29:19 35:15 44:4 Ge 22:3 Ex 8:20 Ps 81:13 Isa 55:2 Mk 1:35 Joh 8:2,47 2Ti 4:2
Related Passages:
2 Chronicles 36:15 The LORD, the God of their fathers, sent word to them again and again by His messengers, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place;
Acts 7:51+ You men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears are always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did.
JEREMIAH'S PERSISTENT
PROCLAMATION FOR 23 YEARS
From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, even to this day these twenty-three years - This marks the beginning of Jeremiah’s ministry. Jeremiah has been warning Judah since about 627 BC. And even to this day is about 605 BC so he preached during reigns of Josiah, Jehoahaz (3 months) and Jehoiakim (about 4 years). Yes, different kings but with the same message and the same refusal and rejection. Jeremiah's "long windedness" was a reflection of God's long patience. It is worth noting that Jeremiah preached during a time of outward reform under Josiahand yet the people’s hearts were largely unchanged.
the word of the LORD has come to me - Jeremiah stresses the words he has been speaking are not his words but God's words, His special revelation. Truth was not hidden.
and I have spoken to you again and again - Literally this is "rising early and speaking" year after year, day after day to His chosen people. This speaks of persistence, urgency and faithfulness to fulfill the job Yahweh had given him. Jeremiah was a wonderful illustration of 2Ti 4:2 "preach the word; be ready in season and out of season (WHETHER CONVENIENT OR NOT); reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.."
but - Here is the sad term of contrast.
You have not listened - O yes, they heard Jeremiah's voice and probably got tired of hearing that strident voice. The problem was the Words from God via Jeremiah went in one ear and out the other and never effectively took root in their hearts. To not listen is another way of saying they did not respond to or obey the warnings they heard. The issue was not lack of information but was hardness of heart and stiffness of necks (Acts 7:51+) Notice that the fact that many who heard had grown up under Josiah's reforms shows that there was only superficial reform in many of the people, not genuine transformation, which explains the immediate and rapid spiritual decline after Josiah's death. What is the upshot? Divine judgment was fully warranted!
Jeremiah 25:4 “And the LORD has sent to you all His servants the prophets again and again, but you have not listened nor inclined your ear to hear,
- all His servants:
- again and again: Jer 7:25 11:7 26:5 29:19 32:33 35:14,15 44:4,5 2Ch 36:15,16
- you have not listened nor inclined your ear to hear: Jer 25:3,7 Jer 7:24-26 Jer 11:8-10 Jer 13:10,11 Jer 16:12 Jer 17:23 Jer 18:12 Jer 19:15 Jer 22:21 Jer 36:31 Zec 7:11,12 Ac 7:51,52 Heb 12:25
Related Passages:
Jeremiah 7:24-26 “Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but walked in their own counsels and in the stubbornness of their evil heart, and went backward and not forward. 25 “Since the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt until this day, I have sent you all My servants the prophets, daily rising early and sending them. 26 “Yet they did not listen to Me or incline their ear, but stiffened their neck; they did more evil than their fathers.
GOD'S PERSISTENT
GRACE AND PATIENCE
And the LORD has sent to you all His servants the prophets again and again (“rising early and sending”) - Notice that the prophets did not belong to themselves but belonged to God and existed for His service (cf believers today as His bondservants, His possession - 1Pe 2:9, 1Co 6:19,20). Prophets during this time that we know about include Jeremiah, Uriah, Huldah, Zephaniah and likely Habakkuk. The point is that God was actively, intentionally reaching out to His chosen people. His grace would precede His judgment but would not preclude it if there was no reception.
but you have not listened - He reiterates the same indictment from Jer 25:3. They heard! They chose to reject what they heard!
nor inclined your ear to hear - This is a stronger expression which describe that willful, intentional refusal to give their attention to God's words. One might depict it as two levels, one of not listening and then one of not even trying to listen. In other words, in spite of this sustained and compassionate prophetic effort, the people refused not only to listen but even to incline their ear, showing a deliberate and hardened resistance to God’s word.
This verse expands the indictment beyond Jeremiah alone to a long history of prophetic appeals, thereby demonstrating that Judah’s coming judgment was the result of prolonged and willful rejection of abundant divine revelation.
Jeremiah 25:5 saying, ‘Turn now everyone from his evil way and from the evil of your deeds, and dwell on the land which the LORD has given to you and your forefathers forever and ever;
- Turn: Jer 18:11 35:15 2Ki 17:13,14 Isa 55:6,7 Eze 18:30 33:11 Jon 3:8-10 Zec 1:4,5 Lu 13:3-5 Ac 26:20 Jas 4:8-10
- for: Jer 7:7 17:25 Ge 17:8 Ps 37:27 105:10,11
THE HEART OF THE
PROPHETIC MESSAGE
Saying - This word connects what follows directly with verse 4, introducing the content of the prophet's repeated message.
Turn now everyone from his evil way and from the evil of your deeds - The command is to return, repent, turn back and has both a note of urgency and of individual responsibility. From his evil way refers to one's lifestyle, direction of life. describes their specific evil acts and actions. The former (way) deals with the internal (heart) and the latter (deeds) with the external behavior.
and dwell on the land - In God's amazing grace, He gives them a promise attached to their repentance. In the context of impending exile, this means they could continue to live securely in the Promised Land.
Which the LORD has given to you and your forefathers forever and ever - This points back to God's giving of the covenant promises (including the land) to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Their repentance would not "earn" this gift but it would allow them to enjoy the blessings of the gift. Forever and ever speaks of God’s original intent for permanent possession of the land for Israel. However, their enjoyment of the land was conditional on their obedience. This truth goes back to Moses' words in Deuteronomy 28:63-64
“It shall come about that as the LORD delighted over you to prosper you, and multiply you, so the LORD will delight over you to make you perish and destroy you; and you will be torn from the land where you are entering to possess it. 64 “Moreover, the LORD will scatter you among all peoples, from one end of the earth to the other end of the earth; and there you shall serve other gods, wood and stone, which you or your fathers have not known.
REPENTANCE VERSES: 2Ki17:13 ,2 Ch30:6 ,Pr1:23 ,Isa22:12 ,Je25:5 ,Eze14:6, 18:31 , 33:11, Da4:27 , Ho14:2 , Joel2:12 , Mal3:7, Mt3:2, Lu13:2,v3, Ac3:19, 8:22,17:30, 26:20
Jeremiah 25:6 and do not go after other gods to serve them and to worship them, and do not provoke Me to anger with the work of your hands, and I will do you no harm.’
- Jer 7:6,9 35:15 Ex 20:3,23 De 6:14 8:19 13:2 28:14 Jos 24:20 1Ki 11:4-10 14:22 2Ki 17:35
and do not go after other gods to serve them and to worship them, and do not provoke Me to anger with the work of your hands, and I will do you no harm
Jeremiah 25:7 “Yet you have not listened to Me,” declares the LORD, “in order that you might provoke Me to anger with the work of your hands to your own harm.
- that ye: Jer 7:18,19 32:30-33 De 32:21 2Ki 17:17 21:15 Ne 9:26 Pr 8:36
Yet you have not listened to Me,” declares the LORD, “in order that you might provoke Me to anger with the work of your hands to your own harm
Jeremiah 25:8 “Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘Because you have not obeyed My words,
Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘Because you have not obeyed My words,
Jeremiah 25:9 behold, I will send and take all the families of the north,’ declares the LORD, ‘and I will send to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, My servant, and will bring them against this land and against its inhabitants and against all these nations round about; and I will utterly destroy them and make them a horror and a hissing, and an everlasting desolation.
- I: Jer 1:15 5:15,16 6:1,22-26 8:16 Lev 26:25-46 De 28:45-50 Pr 21:1 Isa 5:26-30 10:5 39:7 Hab 1:6-10
- Nebuchadrezzar: Jer 27:6 40:2 43:10 Isa 13:3 44:28 45:1 Eze 29:18-20
- against: Jer 25:17-26 27:3-8 Eze 26:7 29:19 30:10,11
- an astonishment: See on ch. Jer 18:16 24:9 1Ki 9:7,8
behold, I will send and take all the families of the north,’ declares the LORD, ‘and I will send to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, My servant, and will bring them against this land and against its inhabitants
and against all these nations round about; Judah, however, wouldn’t be the only nation to suffer at the hands of the Babylonians, for “all these nations round about” (Je25:9) would also be punished; among them the nations listed in [25:18-25 27:3]. In one way or another, these nations were confederate with Judah against Babylon, but God’s command was that the nations submit to Nebuchadnezzar.
and I will utterly destroy them and make them a horror and a hissing, and an everlasting desolation.
Jeremiah 25:10 ‘Moreover, I will take from them the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones and the light of the lamp.
- ake from: Heb. cause to perish from, Es 3:13 7:4 8:11
- voice of mirth: Jer 7:34 16:9 33:10,11 Isa 24:7-12 Eze 26:13 Ho 2:11 Rev 18:22,23
- the sound: Sir J. Chardin remarks, that in the East, every where in the morning may be heard the noise of the mills, which often awakens people; for they generally grind every day just as much as may be necessary for the day's consumption. Where, then, the noise of the mill is not heard in the morning, nor the light of the candle seen in the evening, there must be an utter desolation. Ec 12:2-4
Moreover, I will take from them the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones and the light of the lamp
Jeremiah 25:11 ‘This whole land will be a desolation and a horror, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years.
- seventy: This prophecy was delivered in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, and began to be accomplished immediately; and it was exactly seventy years from this time to the proclamation of Cyrus for the return of the Jews. Jer 25:12 2Ch 36:21,22 Isa 23:15-17 Da 9:2 Zec 1:12 7:5
This whole land will be a desolation and a horror, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years
25:11 seventy years. The beginning and end points of the prophesied seventy year Babylonian captivity of the Jews are in question, because of the unsettled state of the Babylonian and Medo-Persian chronologies of this period, as well as the several stages of deportation into Babylon and the several stages of return from exile under Ezra and Nehemiah. No matter how this period is calculated in detail, however, it is certainly of a seventy year order of magnitude (approximately 606-536 B.C.).
he Babylonian captivity lasted 70 years (605-536 B.C.) evidently because this was the number of seventh-year rests for the land the Jews failed to observe. (I.e., over a period of 490 years they failed to keep the law and let the land lie fallow every seventh year. See notes on Lev. 25:2-7 and 2 Chron. 36:14-21.)
Jeremiah 25:12 ‘Then it will be when seventy years are completed I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation,’ declares the LORD, ‘for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans; and I will make it an everlasting desolation.
- when: Jer 29:10 2Ki 24:1 Ezr 1:1,2 Da 9:2
- that I: Jer 25:14 50:1-51:64 De 32:35-42 Isa 13:1-14:32 21:1-17 46:1-47:15 Da 5:1-31 Hab 2:1-20 Rev 18:1-24
- punish: Heb. visit upon, See on ch. Jer 23:2
- perpetual: Jer 50:3,13,23,39,40,45 51:25,26,62-64 Isa 13:19 14:23 15:6 Isa 20:1-6 47:1 Eze 35:9
Then it will be when seventy years are completed I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation,’ declares the LORD, ‘for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans; and I will make it an everlasting desolation.
For the first time, Jeremiah shared the “secret” that the Captivity in Babylon would last seventy years (Jer. 25:11ff; 29:10; see Dan. 9:1ff). One reason God determined a period of seventy years was that the land might enjoy the rest that the Jews had denied it (2 Chron. 36:20–21; Lev. 25:3–5). The law of the Sabbatical Year had been ignored for nearly 500 years!
king of Babylon. God sometimes uses pagan kings and peoples to punish his own people when they depart from His will. Thus, Nebuchadnezzar was called "my servant" (Jeremiah 25:9), even though he was wicked and idolatrous. Eventually he was punished (Daniel 4) and finally his grandson Belshazzar, who inherited his kingdom, was slain and the kingdom of Babylon itself conquered by the Medo-Persians (Daniel 5:30,31).
Vs. 25:12 The Medes and Persians captured Babylon in 539 B.C. See notes on 50:13 and Dan. 5:30.
Jeremiah 25:13 ‘I will bring upon that land all My words which I have pronounced against it, all that is written in this book which Jeremiah has prophesied against all the nations.
- hath: See on ch. Jer 1:5,10 Da 5:28,31 Rev 10:11
I will bring upon that land all My words which I have pronounced against it, all that is written in this book which Jeremiah has prophesied against all the nations.
Jeremiah 25:14 (For many nations and great kings will make slaves of them, even them; and I will recompense them according to their deeds and according to the work of their hands.)’”
- many: Jer 27:7 50:9,41 51:6,27,28 Isa 14:2 45:1-3 Da 5:28 Hab 2:8-16
- I: Jer 50:29-34 51:6,20-27,35-41 Ps 137:8 Isa 66:6 Rev 18:20-24
For many nations and great kings will make slaves of them, even them; and I will recompense them according to their deeds and according to the work of their hands
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