Source: https://bible.org/seriespage/jeremiah-4
Timestamp: 2019-04-20 18:20:06+00:00

Document:
A. This chapter is a series of poems on different subjects. Verses 5-31 are several independant poems about Judah's invasion.
B. Verses 1-2 describe repentance and relate to chapter 3, vv. 21-25.
C. The theme of Judah's rebellion and YHWH's judgment by foreign invasion runs through chapter 6.
"Then you should return to Me.
And in Him they will glory."
4:1 "If" Grammatically there seem to be four "ifs" or conditions in vv. 1-2. This shows the conditional nature of the covenant (i.e., "if. . .then. . .," cf. Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 27-28).
▣ "return. . .return to Me" The Hebrew root, בוש (BDB 996-1000), is used in several words, in several lines in chapters 3:1-4:2.
Notice the personal emphasis (cf. 3:1,4,7,10,19,20). Sin is more than a violation of a law code. It is a personal affront to a personal God!
3. the northern ten tribes after the split of the United monarchy in 922 b.c. They were later taken captive by Assyria at the fall of the capital, Samaria in 722 b.c.
Context must determine which meaning. This is especially hard in Jeremiah when #2 and #3 are used in isolated poems without their historical setting specified.
▣ "detested things" This is literally "abominations" (BDB 1055) and refers to idols. See Special Topic at 2:7.
▣ "and will not waver" This verb (BDB 626, KB 678, Qal imperfect, lit. "wander," cf. Gen. 4:12,14) refers to wholehearted daily activities (i.e., lifestyle).
4:2 "you will swear" This verb (BDB 989, KB 1396, Niphal perfect) refers to a verbal act of worship, much like our modern liturgies (cf. 12:16; Deut. 6:13; 10:20; Isa. 65:16). Idolaters swear by Ba'al but YHWH's people swear allegiance only to Him! This is theologically parallel to Rom. 10:9-13, which is a quote from Joel 2:32 (cf. Acts 2:21).
▣ "In truth, in justice and in righteousness" This is the content of "swear." It refers to a lifestyle response, not ritual or periodic emotional experiences. This would describe true repentance. Each of these three words carries theological meaning.
▣ "the nations will bless themselves in Him" This is a recurrent theme in Genesis (BDB 138, KB 159, Hithpael perfect, cf. Gen. 12:3; 18:18; 22:18; 26:41; 28:14). God's promises to the Patriarchs show Israel's purpose as an instrument of reaching the whole world (cf. Exod. 19:5-6; Isa. 42:6; 49:6, see Special Topic at 1:5).
This is such an important theological concept that I have included my notes from Gen. 12:3.
NRSV, Peshitta"and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed"
JPSOA"by you all the families of the earth shall bless themselves"
TEV"and through you I will bless all the nations"
TEVfootnote"All the nations will ask me to bless them as I have blessed you"
NJB"and all clans on earth will bless themselves by you"
LXX"and in you shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed"
REB"All the peoples on earth will wish to be blessed as you are blessed"
REBfootnote"All the peoples on earth will be blessed because of you"
The Niphal perfect (BDB 138, KB 159) stem is usually passive (LXX, NASB, "shall be blessed," cf. 18:18; 28:14), but in 22:18 and 26:4 the Hithpael perfect stem is used, which is reflexive ("bless themselves"). It is possible that the Hithpael denotes a continuing action through time. It is significant that God includes all nations in His promise to Abram in light of the universal rebellion of chapter 11. God chose Abraham to choose all humans made in His image (cf. Ps. 22:27; 66:4; 86:9; Isa. 66:23; 49:6; Acts 3:25; Gal. 3:8)! Also see note at 22:18.
This is really an important passage. It shows clearly God's purpose of using Abram to reach all the world. The universal promise of Gen. 3:15 is being implemented, even amidst the purposeful rebellion of Noah's children (i.e., Genesis 10 and 11). It s not only to those who show favor to Abram, but to those who will show favor to Abram's seed (i.e., the Messiah). There was/is a universal purpose in YHWH's choice of "one" to bring prophesied redemption through the special "One" of his descendants. In the big picture, this is not a text about an attitude toward Jews, but a faith response to the Jewish "promised One."
▣ "in Him they will glory" The verb (BDB 237, KB 248) is Hithpael imperfect, denoting ongoing action. Followers of YHWH glory/boast in knowing Him and Him alone (cf. 9:23-24). Notice the wonderful, universal implications of Isa. 45:20-25, especially v. 25b! Biblical faith is a personal relationship with the one true God!
Because of the evil of your deeds."
4:3-8 This strophe is a warning and call for repentance. Notice the commands.
In light of YHWH's warning of judgment (vv. 4c-f), He calls for the proclamation of invasion and action (vv. 5-8).
Finally, in light of the coming judgment, they are called on to grieve.
Why? "The fierce anger of the Lord" is coming (cf. 4:26; 12:13; 25:37,38; 30:24; 49:37; 51:45) and He will not change His mind (cf. v. 28).
4:3 "to the men of Judah and to Jerusalem" This shows the collective call to individual repentance, which characterizes Jeremiah and Ezekiel (i.e., Ezekiel 18). Biblical faith is corporate but it is entered into by individual choice.
▣ "Break up your fallow ground" Verse 3 relates to the agricultural practice of preparing ground for seed. The rabbis use the illustration that our minds are like a plowed field, ready for seed and what one lets in through the eyes and ears falls on that prepared ground. What we think and then dwell on becomes who we are!
Repentance is plowed, good ground, ready for fellowship and obedience in a daily walk with God.
▣ "My wrath go forth like fire" This is a recurrent metaphor (cf. 17:4; 21:12).
▣ "with none to quench it" See Isa. 1:31; 66:24; Amos 5:6; Matt. 3:12; Mark 9:43,48.
See the word study gehenna in the following Special Topic.
SPECIAL TOPIC: Where Are the Dead?
6Lift up a standard toward Zion!
9It shall come about in that day," declares the Lord, "that the heart of the king and the heart of the princes will fail; and the priests will be appalled and the prophets will be astounded."
4:5 "Blow the trumpet" This is the word shophar. It was used as a call to war or for religious observances. Verses 5-9 form a poem of a watchman.
4:6 "evil from the north" This was a symbol of evil because it was the route of invasion for the Mesopotamian powers (i.e., Assyria, Babylon, Persia, cf. 1:14,15; 6:1,22; 10:22; 50:3; Isa. 41:25).
4:7 "a destroyer of nations has set out" This is literally "struck his tents." It refers to Nebuchadnezzar II of Neo-Babylon, who took Judah into exile in 605, 597, 586, 582 b.c., as Assyria did Israel in 722 b.c.
4:9 "in that day" This phrase was a way of referring to the special future day of YHWH's visitation (cf. v. 11a). It can be for blessing or judgment, here judgment.
▣ "the king. . .the princes. . .the priests. . .the prophets" This refers to those leaders who rejected Jeremiah's message (cf. 1:18; 2:8,26; 5:31; 6:13; 8:1,10; 13:13; 14:18; 23:33-34). Judah had no godly leaders!
▣ Notice the parallel verbs.
The leadership (civil and religious) will utterly fail and not know what to do in light of the invasion. Their eyes have been blinded by idolatry and false prophets (cf. v. 10); they cannot find YHWH! As the leaders go, so go the people!
10Then I said, "Ah, Lord God! Surely You have utterly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, 'You will have peace'; whereas a sword touches the throat."
4:10 "Surely You have utterly deceived this people" Verse 10 is a comment from Jeremiah to YHWH about the message of the false prophets. Jeremiah speaks bluntly and honestly to God (cf. 12:1; 15:17-18; 20:7-9). This false message of hope and deliverance from invasion was what the false prophets were preaching in God's name (cf. 6:14; 8:11; 14:13; 23:16-17; 28:1ff). God let this occur but the speaker and hearer are responsible!
One more possibility in understanding this difficult phrase is that the people were clinging to Isaiah's prophecies about the invulnerability of Jerusalem (cf. Isaiah 36-39). Jeremiah would have to remind them that Isaiah's promises were also based on a conditional covenant model (i.e., "if. . .then. . .," cf. vv. 1-2). Judah did not obey the covenant, therefore, its curses, not its promises, were what they would reap (cf. Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 28-29).
▣ "throat" This is the word nephesh (BDB 659, cf. Gen. 2:7 [of man] and 2:19 [of animals]). It basically means the life on this planet that breathes (related to the Hebrew word for "breath").
11In that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, "A scorching wind from the bare heights in the wilderness in the direction of the daughter of My people-not to winnow and not to cleanse, 12a wind too strong for this-will come at My command; now I will also pronounce judgments against them.
Woe to us, for we are ruined!"
4:11 "A scorching wind" This refers to the sirocco desert winds, often used in the OT as aa metaphor for judgment (i.e., "not to winnow, and not to cleanse," cf. v. 12).
▣ "from the bare heights" This was the physical locality of Ba'al worship (cf. 2:20; 3:2,6; 4:11; 7:29; 14:6; 17:2; Isa. 57:7; Deut. 12:2).
▣ "not to winnow" The wind will be too strong and too hot for harvesting grain. The last item, "cleanse," probably refers to the process of separating the husk from the grain.
4:12 "at My command" God sent these judgments; they were carried out by Mesopotamian pagan nations! There are consequences to covenant disobedience (cf. Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 28-29)!
4:13 This is a metaphorical description of God's judgment (i.e., lines a-c) and the results.
16Report it to the nations, now!
Because she has rebelled against Me,' declares the Lord.
How it has touched your heart!"
4:14 "Wash your heart" This verb (BDB 460, KB 459, Piel imperative) is an allusion to washing a soiled garment, which is a metaphor for repentance and cleansing (cf. Ps. 51:2,7; Isa. 1:16). It is a call, like Ezekiel 18, for an individual to turn back to YHWH and change his ways (cf. vv. 3-4).
▣ "That you may be saved" The Hebrew verb (BDB 446, KB 448) has two connotations.
Both are needed for Judah to avert YHWH's coming judgment!
▣ "wicked thoughts" Maybe this is best illustrated by 13:27.
4:15 "voice. . .from Dan" This was the farthest northern tribe in Palestine. The tribe of Dan, in unbelief, moved from its tribal allocation in the south (cf. Josh. 19:40-48) to the north (cf. Judges 18). The phrase "from Dan to Beersheba" became a way to denote the whole Promised Land (cf. Jdgs. 20:1; I Sam. 3:20; II Sam. 3:10; 17:11; 24:2; II Chr. 30:5; Amos 8:14).
▣ "Mount Ephraim" This refers to the central mountainous (i.e., hill country) region of Palestine, which was the tribal allocation of Ephraim (cf. Josh. 17:15; 19:50; 20:7). The mountains of Ebal and Gerizim (i.e., Samaria) were in this region.
Dan and Ephraim fell to the Assyrians in 722 b.c. Now that destruction would come to Judah and Jerusalem (cf. vv. 16-17) and the northern invaders were close!
4:16 This verse starts with two commands to make known YHWH's coming judgment to Judah.
The voice from Dan (v. 15) (1) tells the invaders (or the surrounding nations to Judah) they are close to Jerusalem and (2) tells Jerusalem that the invaders are close to them!
▣ "Besiegers come from a far country" The verbal (BDB 665, KB 718, Qal active participle) in this context has the meaning of "besiege" (BDB 666, #5, cf. Isa. 1:8; Ezek. 6:12). It usually is translated "enemies." The UBS Handbook (p. 133) suggests advanced scouts of the Babylonian army.
4:17 "Like watchmen of a field" I must admit that I do not understand this phrase in this context. TEV takes it to mean watchmen that surround a field ready to harvest. But here they guard against any persons escaping the besieged city.
The UBS Handbook (p. 134) suggests that the imagery is connected to the "tents" (booths) of the agricultural watchmen with the army tents of the invaders.
▣ "Because she has rebelled against Me" Notice the personal affront that YHWH feels! It is not just the violation of His covenant, but the rebellion against Him, Him as husband, Him as King, Him as the only God! Possibly 5:20-29 describes the attitude best.
The verb "rebelled" (BDB 598, KB 632, Qal perfect) is also found in 5:23; Lam. 1:18,20 (twice); and 3:42. However a synonym (BDB 833, KB 981) is used in 2:8,29; 3:13; 33:8; Lam. 3:42.
4:18 The invasion, destruction, and exile of the covenant people from the covenant land and city was their own fault. YHWH only gave them what they had sown (cf. Job 34:11; Ps. 28:4; 62:12; Pro. 24:12; Eccl. 12:14; Jer. 17:10; 32:19; Matt. 16:27; 25:31-46; Rom. 2:6; 14:12; I Cor. 3:8; II Cor. 5:10; Gal. 6:7-10; II Tim. 4:14; I Pet. 1:17; Rev. 2:23; 20:12; 22:12).
▣ "How bitter" This is the result of their rebellion (cf. 2:19; Amos 8:10). Note Job 20:11-16; sin tastes good initially but becomes poison and brings death!
Their idolatry had spread into their very being (i.e., heart). They were sinful through and through!
19"My soul, my soul! I am in anguish! Oh, my heart!
But to do good they do not know."
4:19-22 This shows the way God truly feels (v. 22) about bringing judgment to Judah (cf. Hos. 11:8-9).
▣ "soul" The term "soul" means "bowels" (BDB 588). The ancient Hebrew thought the seat of the emotions was in the lower viscera (BDB 589 #5).
The terms "soul" and "heart" are repeated for intensity.
NKJV"I am pained in my heart"
TEV"I can't bear the pain"
1. חול - BDB 296, KB 297, Qal cohortative, "writhe"
2. יחל - BDB 403 KB 407, Hiphil cohortative, "wait"
This information is from OT Parsing Guide (revised) by Beall, Banks, and Smith, p. 546. The UBS Text Project and AB do not even mention the option.
▣ "The sound of the trumpet" The JPSOA notes that the MT has "you, O my being, hear," but by a change of vocalization, yields, "I hear the blare of horns" (p. 931).
4:20 "tents. . .curtains" The phrase "in an instant" (רגע, BDB 921), with revocalization, can be translated "torn to shreds" (cf. LXX, NEB). This would fit the parallelism better.
The UBS Handbook (p. 137) suggests that "tents" and "curtain" could be a reference to the temple in Jerusalem.
4:21 The "standard" and "the trumpet" are military signaling devises, here of the invaders (cf. v. 19).
4:22 This verse shows God's disappointment in His covenant people in strong metaphors of irony.
Notice how they are described in 5:21.
4:23-26 This strophe uses original creation in its chaotic state (i.e., formless and void, cf. Gen. 1:2; "the heavens, and they had no light" before Gen. 1:3) with the destruction caused by foreign (Mesopotamian) invasion.
As creation was originally without human habitation, so now the Promised Land is without human habitation. This is not to be taken literally; there were always some Israelites and Judeans not taken captive, but the land looked/seemed empty! (cf. v. 27).
Also notice the literary structure of "I looked. . ." (BDB 55, KB 65, Qal perfect) used four times.
4:25 "all the birds of the heavens had fled" This may refer to the fact that even the carnivorous birds have left because there is no more food (i.e., those killed in battle or invasion).
Yet I will not execute a complete destruction.
And I will not change My mind, nor will I turn from it."
30And you, O desolate one, what will you do?
"Ah, woe is me, for I faint before murderers."
4:27 "Yet I will not execute a complete destruction" This refers to hope amidst judgment (cf. 5:10,18; 30:11; 46:28)!
4:28 This verse speaks of the determined judgment of God (cf. 23:20; 30:24; Num. 23:19). There is a greater purpose in the discipline of His covenant people (see Special Topic at 1:5). His discipline, in reality, was a sign of His love. He would not let them continue in their waywardness (i.e., Heb. 12:5-13).
Verse 28 personifies YHWH's creation (i.e., earth and heaven). The first two created things mourn over the coming judgment of Palestine, and especially of Jerusalem and the temple (possibly v. 20c and d).
4:29 This verse describes what happened when an invading army swept across the land, and smaller unwalled cities were defenseless and had to abandon their homes and shops. They tried to hide or seek the shelter of a walled city.
4:30 This is an allusion to Judah as a harlot. Her lovers are the foreign powers with whom she makes political alliances.
4:31 This allusion switches to birth pains. But not to bring forth life, but death! Judah's idolatry and covenant breaking have resulted in destruction, death, and exile!
1. List the four conditions God demanded to show repentance (vv. 1-2).
2. How many separate poems are there in chapter 4?
3. Briefly express in your own words the central idea that chapter 4 is trying to convey.

References: v. 
 v. 
 v. 
 v. 
 v. 
 v. 
 v. 
 v.