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JEREMIAH • CHAPTER 21
Jeremiah 21
Jerusalem's final decades, prophetic opposition, Babylon, covenant failure, lament, judgment, and the promise of restoration.
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Jeremiah 21
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1
The word which came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, when king Zedekiah sent to him Pashhur the son of Malchijah, and Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah, the priest, saying,
2
“Please inquire of Yahweh for us; for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon makes war against us. Perhaps Yahweh will deal with us according to all his wondrous works, that he may withdraw from us.”
3
Then Jeremiah said to them, “Tell Zedekiah:
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‘Yahweh, the God of Israel says, “Behold, I will turn back the weapons of war that are in your hands, with which you fight against the king of Babylon, and against the Chaldeans who besiege you outside the walls; and I will gather them into the middle of this city.
5
I myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and with a strong arm, even in anger, in wrath, and in great indignation.
6
I will strike the inhabitants of this city, both man and animal. They will die of a great pestilence.
7
Afterward,” says Yahweh, “I will deliver Zedekiah king of Judah, his servants, and the people, even those who are left in this city from the pestilence, from the sword, and from the famine, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those who seek their life. He will strike them with the edge of the sword. He will not spare them, have pity, or have mercy.” ’
8
“You shall say to this people, ‘Yahweh says: “Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death.
9
He who remains in this city will die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence; but he who goes out and passes over to the Chaldeans who besiege you, he will live, and he will escape with his life.
10
For I have set my face on this city for evil, and not for good,” says Yahweh. “It will be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will burn it with fire.” ’
11
“Concerning the house of the king of Judah, hear Yahweh’s word:
12
House of David, Yahweh says,
‘Execute justice in the morning,
and deliver him who is robbed out of the hand of the oppressor,
lest my wrath go out like fire,
and burn so that no one can quench it,
because of the evil of your doings.
‘Execute justice in the morning,
and deliver him who is robbed out of the hand of the oppressor,
lest my wrath go out like fire,
and burn so that no one can quench it,
because of the evil of your doings.
13
Behold, I am against you, O inhabitant of the valley,
and of the rock of the plain,’ says Yahweh.
‘You that say, “Who would come down against us?”
or “Who would enter into our homes?”
and of the rock of the plain,’ says Yahweh.
‘You that say, “Who would come down against us?”
or “Who would enter into our homes?”
14
I will punish you according to the fruit of your doings, says Yahweh;
and I will kindle a fire in her forest,
and it will devour all that is around her.’ ”
and I will kindle a fire in her forest,
and it will devour all that is around her.’ ”
PROPHETIC
Where this chapter fits
Jeremiah uses prophetic or apocalyptic language shaped by political crisis, judgment, hope, symbolic imagery, and expectations about God's action in history.
Chapter numbers were added long after the biblical books were written.
Read this chapter together with what comes immediately before and after it.
ANCIENT TEXT, MODERN QUESTIONS
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Scientific claims should be compared with science.
Moral claims should be examined morally.
Theological claims require theological and philosophical argument.
QUESTIONS WORTH ASKING
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What kind of literature is this?
Narrative, poetry, prophecy, law, letters, wisdom, and apocalypse communicate differently.
What historical evidence matters?
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What are the strongest competing interpretations?
Compare serious Jewish, Christian, academic, and skeptical readings rather than caricatures.
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