OT Survey II

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• OT Survey II
• Jeremiah and Lamentations

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Jeremiah
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Author

• Jeremiah
• From a priestly family just north of Jerusalem
• A prophet to the nations (15, 10)
• More personal material than any other prophet
• Weeping Prophet
• His Mode of Operation
• Speaking (e.g., 22)
• Writing (e.g., 362, 27-28 5160)
• Acting (e.g., 131-7 191-15 321-15)

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Date

• Began in the days of Josiah ( 627 BC)
• Included two initial exiles
• 605 BC Daniel and other nobles (Dan 11-6)
• 597 BC Large scale exile, including Ezekiel (2
  Kings 2410-16 Ezek 11-3)
• Climaxed in the destruction of Jerusalem (586 BC)
• Ends with the release of Jehoiachin from prison
  ( 561 BC)

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Time Period
Judah exiled by Babylon 586 BC (also 605, 597) (2
Kgs 25)
Solomon begins building the temple 966 BC (1 Kgs
61)
Israel enters Egypt 1876 BC (Ex 1240-41)
Cyrus allows exiles to return 539 BC (Ezra 11-4)
Israel exiled by Assryia 722 BC (2 Kgs 17)
The Exodus from Egypt 1446 BC (1 Kgs 61)
Abrahams birth 2166 BC (Gen 124 215 2526
479)
Torah (Gen-Deut)
Former Prophets (Joshua-Kings)
Latter Prophets (Isaiah-Malachi)
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Time Period (cont)
Nehemiah in Jerusalem 420 BC
Cyruss decree 539 BC
Babylonian exile 586 BC
Assyrian exile 722 BC
Jeroboam II (Israel) Uzziah (Judah) 770 BC
Assyrian Defeat 701 BC
Jonah, Hosea, Amos
Isaiah, Micah
Nahum, Zephaniah, Jeremiah, Habakkuk
Ezekiel, Daniel
Haggai, Zechariah
Malachi
Joel? Obadiah?
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Time Period (cont)
Events
639 Josiah reigns 626 Call of Jeremiah 612 Fall
of Ninevah 609 Battle of Carchemish Josiah
dies Jehoahaz reigns Jehoiakim reigns 605 First
exile 597 Jehoiakim rebels Jehoiakim
dies Jehoiachin reigns Second exile Jehoiachin
imprisoned Zedekiah reigns 586 Zedekiah
rebels Jerusalem destroyed
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Canonical Review Zoomed In Again

• Isaiah
• God is holy and must judge the sinfulness of
  Israel
• God will judge the sinfulness of Israel through a
  coming nation
• A proper response to this is seen in Isaiah 6
• Improper responses include trusting in other
  nations (and other gods)
• Hezekiah exemplifies both responses thus,
  Assyria will not be the exiling nation, but
  Babylon will
• A future king will perfectly exemplify the proper
  response (the king who was there in Isaiah 6!)
• God will bring Israel out of exile, make
  atonement for their sins, and judge rebels
• God tells Israel this in advance so they will
  trust in Him

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Canonical Review Zoomed In Again

• Jeremiah
• Isaiah said Babylon was coming, Jeremiah says,
  Theyre here!
• God has determined to punish Jerusalem
  therefore, people should submit to Babylon.
• Plans to scheme around this judgment (e.g., going
  to or trusting in Egypt) will not work (didnt
  they read Isaiah?)
• A new low Instead of scheming around Gods
  judgment, the people merely disbelieve God He
  will not judge (that is the false prophets
  talking, not God!)
• God will judge the arrogant nations delighting in
  Israels fall in particular, He will judge
  Babylon itself!
• God will one day once again have compassion on
  Israel and renew covenant nay, he will make a
  NEW covenant!
• Jeremiah 52 The fall of Jerusalem

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Jeremiah and Other Revelation

• Earlier
• Isa 39 Babylon is coming! Jeremiah Theyre
  here!
• Appeal to Mosaic Covenant 111-13
• Appeal to earlier prophets 2617-24
• Later
• Inspiration for Daniels prayer (Dan 92)
• Inspiration for exiles return (2 Chr 36 Ezra 1)
• NT will pick up on idea of New Covenant
• NT will pick up on Babylons judgment

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Structure
a Oracles against Judah invasion and disaster
from the north (1-12) b Judahs exile
and suffering predicted (13-20) c Dated
messages of judgment about specific kings/groups
(21-29) d CENTER Messages of future hope
(30-33) c Dated messages of judgment about
specific kings/groups (34-35) b Judahs
fall and exile (36-45) a Oracles against the
nations invasions and disasters from the north
(46-51)
Taken from Dorsey, Literary Structure of the Old
Testament, 244.
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Major Themes

• Sovereignty of Yahweh
• Sin of Judah
• Impending Judgment
• Babylon
• Gods Instrument Submit to them!
• Will be punished
• False prophets
• Future restoration (centerpiece)
• New Covenant (remember Kings, Chronicles?)
• Jeremiahs experience (much like that of Jesus!)

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Jeremiah and Jesus(see Expositors Bible
Commentary)

• Matt 1613-14 Who do people say that the Son of
  Man is?" And they said, "Some say John the
  Baptist and others, Elijah but still others,
  Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.
• Similar historical settings Jerusalem about to
  fall
• Both foretold temples destruction
• Both wept over Jerusalem
• Both condemned commercialism of temple worship
• Both accused of political treason
• Both tenderhearted, knew loneliness
• Both enjoyed unusual fellowship with God

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Purpose

• Though Yahweh used Babylon to judge Judah and
  Jerusalem because of her sin, a day would come
  when Babylon herself would be judged and Israel
  would be restored beyond her former glory.

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New Covenant (Jer 3131-34)

• Remember the former prophets, God renewed
  covenant with Israel several times.
• But, in the end, God refused to have further
  compassion on them.
• However, this covenant will not just be a
  renewal it will be truly new in another sense
  It will no longer be external rather, God will
  write His law on their heart!
• Does the church benefit from this covenant?

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70 Years Prophecy

• Jeremiah 2511-12
• Nations will serve Babylon for 70 years
• Babylon will be punished at end of 70 years
• Prophecy given in 605 BC, year of the first exile
  (251)
• Jeremiah 2910
• Israel will be brought back at end of 70 years
• Part of a letter to second group of exiles (292)
• Daniel 92
• Desolation of Jerusalem end after 70 years
• Read Jeremiahs prophecy in the first year of
  Darius the Mede (91)
• 2 Chronicles 3621-22
• Days of desolation lasted 70 years
• Land enjoyed its sabbaths for 70 years
• Cyrus fulfilled Jeremiahs word via proclamation

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70 Years Prophecy (continued)

• Dates
• 612 Ninevah falls to Babylon
• 609 Egypt and Assyria defeated by Babylon at
  Carchemish
• 605 First exile of Judah (Daniel)
• 597 Second exile of Judah (Ezekiel)
• 586 Third exile of Judah, destruction of
  Jerusalem
• 539 Cyrus defeats Babylon, allows Judahite
  returnees
• 516 New temple completed
• One possibility
• 586 516 Destruction of Jerusalem until
  rebuilding of temple
• But, Babylon being punished (Jer 25) and return
  (29) ends the 70
• It seems the end should be the destruction of
  Babylon
• Two possibilities
• 605 536 Assume destruction of Babylon and
  later return
• 609 539 It is 70 years for Babylon (Jer
  2910) and Daniel seems to asking God to act
  now (Dan 92, 15-19)

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Lamentations
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Title

• Talmud Lamentations
• LXX Tears
• Hebrew How!
• How lonely sits the city that was full of
  people! (Lam 11)
• How the Lord has covered the daughter of Zion
  with a cloud in His anger! (Lam 21)
• How dark the gold has become, how the pure gold
  has changed! (Lam 41)

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Lamentations and Other Revelation

• Validates the truthfulness of previous prophets
  (e.g., Zephaniah)
• before the day of the LORDs anger comes upon
  youPerhaps you will be hidden in the day of the
  LORDs anger (Zeph 22-3).
• There was no one who escaped or survived in the
  day of the LORDs anger (Lam 222).
• Job wrestles with individual suffering
  Lamentations revisits Israels most painful
  memory (House, 483) and tries to explain it,
  find hope.
• Followed by Esther which shows that God has not
  utterly rejected Israel (Lam 522)

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Acrostic

• Chapter 1 3 lines/stanza, 1st line acrostic
• Chapter 2 3 lines/stanza, 1st line acrostic
• Chapter 3 3 lines/stanza, all lines acrostic
• Chapter 4 2 lines/stanza, 1st line acrostic
• Chapter 5 1 lines/stanza, no acrostic pattern!

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Structure

• Chapter 1 Destruction of Zion
• Chapter 2 Yahweh as the destroyer
• Chapter 3 Complaint and hope
• Chapter 4 Results of the destruction
• Chapter 5 Prayer How long?

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Major Themes

• Judgment
• God as the judge (not Babylon!) (e.g., 15)
• Reasons for (e.g., 46)
• Pain of (e.g., 211)
• Future Hope (321-32)
• Israels enemies
• Their arrogance (e.g., 360-63)
• Their future punishment (e.g., 421-22)

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Purpose

• To express and explain Israels suffering and to
  provide hope for the future in the midst of her
  suffering.

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Next Week
Ezekiel