Archive for the ‘Jeremiah 52’ Category
Above: Icon of Ezekiel
Image in the Public Domain
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READING EZEKIEL, PART XI
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Ezekiel 21:28-32 (Anglican and Protestant)
Ezekiel 21:33-37 (Jewish, Roman Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox)
Ezekiel 25:1-7
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Oracles of divine judgment against nations are staples of Hebrew prophetic literature. For example, they populate Isaiah 13-23; Jeremiah 46-51; Amos 1:3-2:3; and Ezekiel 25-32.
Since I began this long-term project of reading the Hebrew prophetic books, roughly in chronological order, I have read the material regarding Ammon in Amos 1:13-15; Jeremiah 49:1-16; and Ezekiel 21:28-32/21:33-37 (depending on versification).
Ammon was east of the River Jordan, and bordered the territory of the tribe of Gad (Joshua 13:8-10). Ammon’s capital was Rabbath-Amman (modern-day Amman, Jordan). Sometimes the Hebrews and the Ammonites were foes (Judges 3:13; Amos 1:13-15; Zephaniah 2:8; Judges 10:6-12:7; 1 Samuel 11; 2 Samuel 10; 2 Samuel 12:26-31). Sometimes they were allies (Jeremiah 27:3). After the Fall of Jerusalem, the Ammonites supported Ishmael, the Davidic claimant who rebelled against Gedaliah (Jeremiah 40:7-41:18). Before that, however, Ammon had occupied the territory of the tribe of Gad after the Fall of Samaria (722 B.C.E.).
Ammon, as a province of the Assyrian Empire, had a native ruler most of the time in the seventh century B.C.E. During the Assyrian civil war that started in 652 B.C.E., some of the remote peoples rebelled. They endangered the security of Ammon and other Assyrian vassals. With the fall of Nineveh (612 B.C.E.), Ammon briefly regained independence. Ammon allied with the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire against common foes, those pesky Arab tribes and the Kingdom of Judah. The alliance quickly turned into Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian domination of Ammon.
The Ammonite rebellion against their Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian overlords informed the material in Ezekiel 21. The Chaldeans/Neo-Babylonians struck Judah first then came back around for Ammon. After the failed Ammonite rebellion, the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire instituted mass deportations of Ammonites and, for a time, ended sedentary settlement in Ammon. Ammon became the abode of nomads until the Persian period.
Ezekiel 25:1-7 is consistent with this history. The text of the oracle condemns Ammon for opposing Judah and siding with the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire. The fitting punishment, we read, is to fall to that empire, too.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 29, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINTS PETER AND PAUL, APOSTLES AND MARTYRS
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Above: Icon of Ezekiel
Image in the Public Domain
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READING EZEKIEL, PART X
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Ezekiel 17:1-24
Ezekiel 19:1-14
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For this post, O reader, we focus on two allegories.
Ezekiel 17 is the allegory of the eagles, the vine, and the cedar. For background, read 2 Kings 24-25; Jeremiah 21:14; Jeremiah 22:1-8, 20-30; Jeremiah 27-29; Jeremiah 34; Jeremiah 52; 2 Chronicles 36; 1 Esdras 1:43-58;
The allegory, by definition, uses symbols. The allegory tells the story of King Jehoiachin of Judah allying with Egypt against the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire, losing, and going into exile in 597 B.C.E. The allegory continues to describe King Zedekiah‘s failed rebellion, and his fate. The code of the allegory is as follows:
- The great eagle = King Nebuchadnezzar II of the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire (r. 605-562 B.C.E.) (v. 3).
- Lebanon = Jerusalem (v. 3).
- The topmost branch = Jehoiachin (r. 597 B.C.E.) (v. 3).
- The land of merchants = Babylon (v. 4).
- The native seed = Zedekiah (r. 597-586 B.C.E.) (v. 5).
- Another great eagle = Pharoah Psammetichus II (r. 595-589 B.C.E.) (v. 7).
- The vine = the Davidic Dynastry (vs. 7-8).
Ezekiel 17:18f and 2 Chronicles 36:13 argue that Zedekiah had violated his oath of vassalage by rebelling against King Nebuchadnezzar II, and thereby sinned against God. These texts also argue that Zedekiah earned his punishment. This position is consistent with the importance of oaths in the Bible (Genesis 24:7; Genesis 26:3, 28-31; Genesis 50:24; Exodus 13:5, 11; Exodus 20:7; Exodus 33:1; Leviticus 5:1-4; Leviticus 19:12; Numbers 5:17; Numbers 14:16, 30; Numbers 32:11; Deuteronomy 1:8, 35; Deuteronomy 6:10; Judges 11:11-40; 1 Kings 8:31-32; 1 Chronicles 12:19; 2 Chronicles 6:22-23; Psalm 16:4; Isaiah 62:8; Isaiah 144:8; Hosea 4:15; Amos 8:14; Matthew 5:36; et cetera).et cetera
Ezekiel 17 concludes on a note of future restoration (vs. 22-24). One Jewish interpretation of the final three verses holds that the construction of the Second Temple, under the supervision of Zerubbabel, of the House of David, fulfilled this prophecy (Haggai 2:20-23). That interpretation does not convince me. The prophecy concerns the restoration of the Jewish nation. My sense of the past tells me that one may not feasibly apply this prophecy to the events following 142 B.C.E. and 1948 B.C.E., given the absence of the Davidic Dynasty in Hasmonean Judea and modern Israel.
The emphasis on divine power and human weakness defines the end of Chapter 17.
Ezekiel 19, which uses the metaphors of the lion (the tribe of Judah; Genesis 49:9) and the vine (the nation of the Hebrews), is a lament for the fall of the Judean monarchy. For Ezekiel, priests properly outrank kings (34:24; 45:7-8), so Kings of Judah are “princes.” The first cub (v. 4) is King Jehoahaz of Judah (r. 609 B.C.E.). The second cub may be either King Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, or Zedekiah of Judah. The identity of the second cub is vague, but the prediction of the destruction of the monarchy of Judah is clear.
Leaders come and go. Kingdoms, empires, and nation-states rise and fall. All that is human is transitory. But God lasts forever.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 28, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT JOHN GERARD, ENGLISH JESUIT PRIEST; AND MARY WARD, FOUNDRESS OF THE INSTITUTE OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY
THE FEAST OF CLARA LOUISE MAASS, U.S. LUTHERAN NURSE AND MARTYR, 1901
THE FEAST OF SAINTS PLUTARCH, MARCELLA, POTANOMINAENA, AND BASILIDES OF ALEXANDRIA, MARTYRS, 202
THE FEAST OF SAINT TERESA MARIA MASTERS, FOUNDRESS OF THE INSTITUTE OF THE SISTERS OF THE HOLY FACE
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM AND JOHN MUNDY, ENGLISH COMPOSERS AND MUSICIANS
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This is post #2550 of BLOGA THEOLOGICA.
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Above: Map of the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire
Image in the Public Domain
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READING JEREMIAH, PART XXXIV
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Jeremiah 50:1-51:64
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Since I started reading the Hebrew prophetic books, roughly in chronological order, I have read the material related to the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire in Isaiah 13:1-14:22; 21:1-10.
Jeremiah 50 and 51 contain two oracles (50:1-46; 51:1-58) and an account of the the transportation of the scroll of the prophecy against the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire to Babylon, followed by the enactment of the curse against that empire (51:59-64). Chapters 50 and 51 also contain material from different periods. The copies I read are translations of the final draft, from after the Babylonian Exile.
The contents of the two oracles contain familiar, repeated themes:
- Babylon will fail.
- The empire will end.
- Jews will return to God and to their homeland.
- God is sovereign.
- Idolatry, hubris, and arrogance will be the downfall of the empire.
Jeremiah 51:59 provides a year for the events of 51:59-64. That year is 593 B.C.E., the fourth year of the reign of King Zedekiah of Judah. The reference to King Zedekiah’s official delegation to Babylon fits historically.
Tying a stone around the scroll and sinking that scroll into the Euphrates River was a prophetic symbolic action. Seraiah ben Neriah, brother of Baruch ben Neriah, performed that task on Jeremiah’s behalf. That symbolic action enacted the curse that Babylon would sink and never rise again.
Babylon remained a major city, within the Persian Empire, for centuries. In the Hellenistic Era, however, Babylon declined. By the early Christian era, Babylon had become a village. The site, abandoned by 1000 C.E., became a source for bricks.
Above: Ruins of Babylon, 1932
Image Source = Library of Congress
Reproduction Number = LC-DIG-matpc-13231
Thus for the words of Jeremiah.
–Jeremiah 51:64b, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
So ends the Book of Jeremiah, except for Chapter 52, mostly copied and pasted from 2 Kings 24:18-25:30.
I have already covered Jeremiah 52 (as Jeremiah 52) here and (as 2 Kings 24 and 25) here and here.
Thank you, O reader, for joining me on this journey through the Book of Jeremiah. I invite you to remain with me as I move along to the Book of Lamentations.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 15, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF JOHN ELLERTON, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER AND TRANSLATOR
THE FEAST OF CARL HEINRICH VON BOGATSKY, HUNGARIAN-GERMAN LUTHERAN HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF DOROTHY FRANCES BLOMFIELD GURNEY, ENGLISH POET AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF EVELYN UNDERHILL, ANGLICAN MYSTIC AND THEOLOGIAN
THE FEAST OF SAINT LANDELINUS OF VAUX, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT; SAINT AUBERT OF CAMBRAI, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP; SAINT URSMAR OF LOBBES, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT AND MISSIONARY BISHOP, AND SAINTS DOMITIAN, HADELIN, AND DODO OF LOBBES, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONKS
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Above: Jeremiah Let Down Into the Cistern
Image in the Public Domain
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READING JEREMIAH, PART XXI
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Jeremiah 34:1-22
Jeremiah 37:1-40:6
Jeremiah 52:1-34
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The Book of Jeremiah, in which chronology is not the organizing principle for material, contains various sources, some of which contradict each other regarding details.
- You may recall, O reader, that that Jeremiah was in prison in Chapters 32 and 33, and that Jerusalem fell between 32 and 33. Yet we have jumped back in time to before the Fall of Jerusalem in Chapter 37, only to read of its fall in Chapter 39. Jerusalem had yet to fall in Chapters 34-38, as well in much of Chapter 52.
- Jeremiah 52, by the way, is nearly identical to 2 Kings 24:18-25:30.
- The accounts of Jeremiah’s incarceration disagree with each other. 37:11-16 and 38:1-13 contradict each other. Furthermore, 37:17-21 flows into 38:14-28. Also, 39:11-14 contradicts 40:1-6. Evidence of ancient cutting, copying, and pasting exists in Jeremiah 37-40. I unpack this point below, in this post.
Due to the lack of chronological organization of material in the Book of Jeremiah, we have encountered King Zedekiah (597-586 B.C.E.; see 2 Chronicles 36:11f, also) already. We have read his name in Jeremiah 1, 21, 24, 27, 28, 29, 32, and 33, not including the false prophet Zedekiah in 29:21-22. Zedekiah ben Josiah was the last King of Judah. King Josiah (r. 640-609 B.C.E.) would have rolled over in his grave to learn of the circumstances during the reigns of the last four Kings of Judah (609-586 B.C.E.)
The cause of Jeremiah’s arrest was either alleged defection to the Chaldeans/Neo-Babylonians (37:11-16) or unpopular prophecy (38:1-13). The latter explanation is consistent with 32:1-5.
The copying, cutting, and pasting of sources in Chapters 37-40 creates a confusing, mixed-up, and contradictory composite chronology.
- 37:17-21 interrupts the natural flow of material into 38:1-13. We read that Jeremiah was in a pit for days (37:16). We also read that Ebed-melech liberated Jeremiah from that pit. Then, in that chronology, we read that Jeremiah went to the court of the guardhouse (38:7-13), where he was in Chapters 32 and 33. Then, in this chronology, we move to 39:1-14. We read of the liberation of Jeremiah after the Fall of Jerusalem. We read that Jeremiah went to the household of Gedaliah. We read that the prophet nearly became an exile in Babylon, but that Nebuzaradan, the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian captain of the guard, freed him (40:1-6). We read that Jeremiah went to the household of Gedaliah.
- We read of no pit in the other chronology. No, we read that Jeremiah remained in the court of the guardhouse, except when King Zedekiah had him temporarily transported somewhere. In this timeline, we read that the prophet nearly became an exile in Babylon, but that Nebuzaradan, the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian captain of the guard, freed him (40:1-6). We read that Jeremiah then went to the household of Gedaliah.
34:8-2 adds another wrinkle to the last days before the Fall of Jerusalem in 586 B.C.E. We read that King Zedekiah had convinced the slaveholders of Jerusalem to free their Hebrew slaves. We also read that some slaveholders returned freed slaves to slavery, and that God strongly objected to this. Deuteronomy 15:12-15 dictates that the maximum period of slavery of a Hebrew was six years.
In context, with the temporary lifting of the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian siege, thanks to Egyptian military intervention on behalf of Judah, some slaveholders of Jerusalem thought they no longer had to live or to try to live according to divine law. Perhaps some of these slaveholders had already kept many of the Hebrew slaves for longer than six years. The liberation, therefore, was overdue. Reenslavement was morally indefensible.
34:17-22 ascribes the Fall of Jerusalem in 586 B.C.E. to divine punishment for the reenslavement of these unfortunate individuals.
A major theme in these readings is that, when people do what God says to do, they are better off. They may not necessarily be more prosperous, but they may be safer. They will not die in exile in Babylon, for example. This is an overly simplistic idea. Staying within the Book of Jeremiah alone, I cite the example of that prophet, who died in exile in Egypt (43:8-44:30). Nevertheless, actions do have consequences. People reap what they sow. Yet sometimes obeying God leads down a difficult path, as the life of Jeremiah attests.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 13, 2021 COMMON ERA
PROPER 6: THE THIRD SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST, YEAR B
THE FEAST OF SAINT SPYRIDON OF CYPRUS, BISHOP OF TREMITHUS, CYPRUS; AND HIS CONVERT, SAINT TRYPHILLIUS OF LEUCOSIA, CYPRUS; OPPONENTS OF ARIANISM
THE FEAST OF DAVID ABEEL, U.S. DUTCH REFORMED MINISTER AND MISSIONARY TO ASIA
THE FEAST OF ELIAS BENJAMIN SANFORD, U.S. METHODIST THEN CONGREGATIONAL MINISTER AND ECUMENIST
THE FEAST OF SIGISMUND VON BIRKEN, GERMAN LUTHERAN HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT, U.S. POET, JOURNALIST, AND HYMN WRITER
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Above: Jehoiakim Burns the Word of God
Image in the Public Domain
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READING JEREMIAH, PART XVI
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Jeremiah 36:1-32
Jeremiah 45:1-5
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When I taught history survey courses in colleges and universities, I told my students:
Keep your facts straight and your chronology in order.
The Book of Jeremiah does not always keep its facts straight. I have noted some examples of this already in this series of posts. I point to two examples in this post. I have more examples to point out when I get to them. I am a serious student of history; I stand by the objective reality that x either happened or did not. I make no apology for this.
The Book of Jeremiah does not keep its chronology straight, either.
- Zedekiah was the last King of Judah. He reigned from 597 to 586 B.C.E. He was the named monarch in Jeremiah 24, 27, 28, 32, 37, and 38.
- Jehoiakim, nephew of Zedekiah, reigned as the King of Judah from 608 to 598 B.C.E. Jehoiakim was the named monarch in Chapters 25, 26 (completing the story in 7 and 8, by the way), 35, and 45. The events of Chapter 35 transpired after those of Chapter 36.
- Jeremiah 39 and 52 cover the Fall of Jerusalem in 586 B.C.E. Off-screen, so to speak, the city fell between Chapters 32 and 33, and before 10:23-25.
The Book of Jeremiah is messing with my head. The beginning should come before the middle, which should precede the end. Linear story-telling has its virtues.
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In 608 B.C.E., Eliakim ben Josiah came to the throne of Judah as Jehoiakim, succeeding a deposed and exiled brother, Jehoahaz ben Josiah (r. 609 B.C.E.). Both brothers were vassals of Pharoah Neco II (reigned 610-595 B.C.E.). During the reign of Jehoiakim, the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire replaced Egypt as the power to which Judah’s monarch served as a vassal. Jehoiakim was also a tyrant who had prophets who spoke inconvenient truths arrested and executed circa 608 B.C.E. Intervention spared the life of Jeremiah from Jehoiakim’s wrath (Jeremiah 26). Yet, circa 608 B.C.E., Uriah ben Shemaiah died for saying what Jeremiah proclaimed (Jeremiah 26).
The events of Jeremiah 36 occurred in 605 B.C.E. That year, Jeremiah had no access to the Temple. Therefore, he sent his scribe, Baruch ben Neriah, in his place. The scribe used the words of divine judgment and the invitation to repent. These words met with a chilly reception. King Jehoiakim burned the scroll.
The LORD now says of Jehoiakim, king of Judah: No descendant of his shall sit on David’s throne; his corpse shall be thrown out, exposed to heat by day, frost by night. I will punish him and his descendants for their wickedness; upon them, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the people of Judah I will bring all the evil threats to which they will not listen.
–Jeremiah 36:30-31, The New American Bible–Revised Edition (2011)
King Jehoiakim’s reign ended in 598 B.C.E.
- He may have died peacefully in his sleep, in his palace (2 Kings 24:6). “He rested with his forefathers” usually indicated a peaceful death.
- He may have become a prisoner in the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire (2 Chronicles 36:6; 1 Esdras 1:40).
- He may have died in battle, outside the walls of Jerusalem. His corpse may have remained unburied, a sign of disgrace and disrespect (Jeremiah 22:19; 36:30-31).
Despite the prophecy, a son of Jehoiakim succeeded him. King Jehoiachin/Jeconiah/Coniah reigned for about three months in 597 B.C.E. before becoming a prisoner in the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire (2 Kings 24:8-17; 2 Kings 25:27-30; 2 Chronicles 36:9-10; 1 Esdras 1:43-46).
Above: Baruch Writing Jeremiah’s Prophecies
Image in the Public Domain
Turning to Jeremiah 45, we remain in 605 B.C.E., according to the text.
God commanded Jeremiah to tell Baruch ben Neriah:
Thus said the LORD: I am going to overthrow what I have built, and uproot what I have planted–this applies to the whole land. And do you expect great things for yourself? Don’t expect them. For I am going to bring disaster upon all flesh–declares the LORD–but I will at least grant your life in all the places where you may go.
–Jeremiah 45:4-5, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
This work exacted a heavy toll on Jeremiah and his scribe. The divine promise of not getting killed in the line of duty applied to the prophet, also (Jeremiah 1:19). Ebed-melech, another ally of Jeremiah, had a divine guarantee of his life, too (Jeremiah 39:18). Despite this divine promise, being Jeremiah or one of his allies was risky.
One may not want to hear God say to one:
And do you expect great things for yourself? Don’t expect them.
Baruch, of course, went to Egypt with Jeremiah (43:6).
Some interpretive difficulties arise in Jeremiah 45.
- The text dates the prophecy to 605 B.C.E.
- Yet Chapter 45 follows exile in Egypt for Jeremiah and Baruch, and flows thematically from Chapter 44.
- Nevertheless, as I keep repeating, chronology is not the organizing principle in the Book of Jeremiah. Structurally, the Book of Jeremiah reminds me of certain movies by Atom Egoyan, the acclaimed Canadian movie director. Egoyan does not favor linear story-telling; he often has three timeframes running in his movies, and cuts from one timeframe to another one periodically. For proper understanding of The Sweet Hereafter (1997) and Ararat (2002), for example, one needs to watch at least three times.
- The translation of the end of 45:5 varies. TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985) goes one way, with, “…but I will, at least, grant you your life.” The New American Bible–Revised Edition (2011) goes another way, with, “…but I will grant you your life as spoils of war….”
And do you expect great things for yourself? Don’t expect them.
God’s reward to Jeremiah, Baruch, and Ebed-melech was survival in a terrifying time.
That does not seem like much of a reward, does it? Yet, as St. Teresa of Calcutta said, God calls people to be faithful, not successful. This is a difficult teaching. I struggle with it. Maybe you do, too, O reader. I read that Jeremiah and Baruch did.
By human standards, Jeremiah was a failure. He was on the outs with authorities. His message convinced few people. He died in involuntary exile in a land where he had warned people not to go. And, by human standards, Jeremiah dragged Baruch down with him.
Yet, thousands of years later, faithful Jews and Christians utter the names of Jeremiah and Baruch with respect. Many Jews and Christians still study and read the Book of Jeremiah. The faithful legacy of Jeremiah and Baruch endures.
By that standard, Jeremiah and Baruch succeeded.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 12, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF EDWIN PAXTON HOOD, ENGLISH CONGREGATIONALIST MINISTER, PHILANTHROPIST, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF CHRISTIAN DAVID JAESCHKE, GERMAN MORAVIAN ORGANIST AND COMPOSER; AND HIS GRANDSON, HENRI MARC HERMANN VOLDEMAR VOULLAIRE, MORAVIAN COMPOSER AND MINISTER
THE FEAST OF ENMEGAHBOWH, EPISCOPAL PRIEST AND MISSIONARY TO THE OJIBWA NATION
THE FEAST OF JOSEPH DACRE CARLYLE, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF MILTON SMITH LITTLEFIELD, JR., U.S. PRESBYTERIAN AND CONGREGATIONALIST MINISTER, HYMN WRITER, AND HYMNAL EDITOR
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Above: Jeremiah
Image in the Public Domain
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READING JEREMIAH, PART I
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Jeremiah 1:1-3
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The first three verses of the Book of Jeremiah identify the prophet, his father, the prophet’s hometown, and the timeframe of his prophetic ministry.
Jeremiah (“YHWH will exalt”) ben Hilkiah hailed from Anathoth, about three and a half miles northeast of Jerusalem. The father, Hilkiah, was a priest. Hilkiah and Jeremiah were outside of the priestly establishment in Jerusalem. Therefore, this Hilkiah was not the high priest Hilkiah (2 Kings 22:3-23:37) who found the scroll of Deuteronomy in the Temple, brought that scroll to King Josiah (r. 640-609 B.C.E.), and participated in Josiah’s religious reformation.
Hailing from Anathoth was significant. Anathoth was one of the cities assigned to Levitical priests in Joshua 21:18. After the death of King David, King Solomon had exiled the priest Abiathar (1 Samuel 22:20-22; 1 Samuel 23:6, 9; 1 Samuel 30:7; 2 Samuel 8:17; 2 Samuel 15:24, 27, 29, 35; 2 Samuel 17:15; 2 Samuel 19:11; 2 Samuel 20:25; 1 Kings 1:7, 19, 25, 42; 1 Kings 2:35; 1 Kings 4:4; 1 Chronicles 15:11; 1 Chronicles 18:16; 1 Chronicles 24:6; 1 Chronicles 27:34; Mark 2:26) to Anathoth for supporting Adonijah in the struggle for succession (1 Kings 2:26-27). Jeremiah, therefore, was also a member of a priestly family. He understood the ancient traditions of Israel, as well as the foundational character of the covenant in the life of Israel.
The superscription also defines the period during which Jeremiah prophesied: from the thirteenth year (627 B.C.E.) of the reign (640-609 B.C.E.) of King Josiah of Judah through “the eleventh year of King Zedekiah,” “when Jerusalem went into exile in the fifth month” (586 B.C.E.). We read in Chapters 39-44 that Jeremiah prophesied after the Fall of Jerusalem, too. The list of kings names Josiah, Jehoiakim, and Zedekiah. That list omits Jehoahaz/Jeconiah/Shallum and Jehoiachin/Jeconiah/Coniah. Yet, as the germane note in The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition (2014), points out, few of the prophecies in the Book of Jeremiah date to the reign of King Josiah.
Jeremiah prophesied during a turbulent and difficult period of decline–mostly after the fall of the Assyrian Empire (612 B.C.E. and before the Fall of Jerusalem (586 B.C.E.). In the wake of King Josiah’s death, Judah had become a vassal state of Egypt. Pharaoh Neco II had chosen the next two Kings of Judah. Jehoahaz/Jeconiah/Shallum (2 Kings 23:31-35; 2 Chronicles 36:1-4; 1 Esdras 1:34-38) had reigned for about three months before becoming a prisoner in Egypt. Then Neco II had appointed Eliakim and renamed him Jehoiakim (r. 608-598 B.C.E.; 2 Kings 23:36-24:7; 2 Chronicles 36:5-8; 1 Esdras 1:39-42). Jehoiakim was always a vassal while King of Judah. After being the vassal of Neco II of Egypt for about three years, he became a vassal of the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire in 605 B.C.E. He died a prisoner in that empire.
Two more Kings of Judah reigned; both were vassals of the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire. Jehoiachin/Jeconiah/Coniah (2 Kings 24:8-17; 2 Kings 25:27-30; 2 Chronicles 36:9-10; 1 Esdras 1:43-46) reigned for about three months before going into exile in that empire. The last King of Judah was Zedekiah, born Mattaniah (2 Kings 24:18-25:26; 2 Chronicles 36:11-21; 1 Esdras 1:47-58). He reigned from 597 to 586 B.C.E. The last events he saw before Chaldean soldiers blinded him were the executions of his sons.
The Book of Jeremiah is one of the longest books in the Hebrew Bible; it contains 52 chapters. The final draft is the product of augmentation and editing subsequent to the time of Jeremiah himself. In fact, Jeremiah 52 is mostly verbatim from 2 Kings 24:18-25:30. Also Jeremiah 52:4-16 occur also in Jeremiah 39:1-2, 4-10. Chronology is not the organizing principle of material in the Book of Jeremiah; jumping around the timeline is commonplace. For example, the Fall of Jerusalem (586 B.C.E.) occurs between Chapters 32 and 33, as well as in Chapters 39 and 52. Some ancient copies are longer than other ancient copies. None of the subsequent augmentation and editing, complete with some material being absent from certain ancient copies of the book surprises me, based on my reading about the development of certain Biblical texts. I do not pretend that divinely-inspired authors were mere secretaries for God.
Rabbi Abraham J. Heschel made a germane and wonderful point in The Prophets, Volume I (1962), viii:
The prophet is a person, not a microphone. He is endowed with a mission, with the power of a word not his own that accounts for his greatness–but also with temperament, concern, character, and individuality. As there was no resisting the impact of divine inspiration, so at times there was no resisting the vortex of his own temperament. The word of God reverberated in the voice of man.
The prophet’s task is to convey a divine view, yet as a person he is a point of view. He speaks from the perspective of God as perceived from the perspective of his own situation. We must seek to understand not only the views he expounded but also the attitudes he embodied: his own position, feeling response–not only what he said but also what he lived; the private, the intimate dimension of the word, the subjective side of the message.
Those paragraphs applied to all the Hebrew prophets. They applied to Jeremiah with greater poignancy than to the others, though.
I invite you, O reader, to remain with me as I blog my way through the book of the “weeping prophet.”
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 6, 2021 COMMON ERA
PROPER 5: THE SECOND SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST, YEAR B
THE FEAST OF FRANKLIN CLARK FRY, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA AND THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA
THE FEAST OF SAINT CLAUDE OF BESANÇON, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST, MONK, ABBOT, AND BISHOP
THE FEAST OF HENRY JAMES BUCKOLL, AUTHOR AND TRANSLATOR OF HYMNS
THE FEAST OF JOHANN FRIEDRICH HERTZOG, GERMAN LUTHERAN HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM KETHE, PRESBYTERIAN HYMN WRITER
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Above: Israeli Stamp of Jonah
Image in the Public Domain
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READING JONAH
PART II
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Jonah 2:1-10 (Protestant and Anglican)
Jonah 2:2-11 (Jewish, Roman Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox)
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The Book of Jonah tells us that a “big fish,” not a whale, swallowed Jonah. Avoid fixating on the species of aquatic life, O reader. The essence of these verses pertains to other issues.
I begin with two Hebrew words.
- Jonah 2:1/2:2 (depending on versification) tells us that the big fish “swallowed” Jonah. The Hebrew verb for “to swallow” has only negative connotations in the Bible. It occurs, in the context of death, in Exodus 15:12 and in Numbers 16:30, 32, and 34. In Jonah 2:1/2:2, however, swallowing prevents death.
- Jonah 2:10/2:11 (depending on versification) tells us that the big fish “vomited” Jonah onto terra firma. The story tells us that the big fish could not stomach Jonah. The Hebrew verb for “to vomit” also occurs in Jeremiah 51:44. The Chaldeans/Neo-Babylonians had consumed/swallowed various nations in 51:34. They were about to consume/swallow Judah in Chapter 52. Jeremiah 51:44 tells us that God would force the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire to “vomit” what it had “swallowed.” One may assume reasonably that the author of the Book of Jonah may have been familiar with the Book of Jeremiah.
The prayer of Jonah derives from various Psalms. This part of the text is of different authorship than the rest of the Book of Jonah. Certain details of the composite prayer contradict details of Jonah 1. The Book of Jonah is pious fiction, after all. I quote Phyllis Trible, writing in The New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume VII (1996):
Appearing between the genuine worship of the sailors and the Ninevites, the psalm offers counterfeit piety from loquacious Jonah.
(The Ninevites repented in Jonah 3.)
Counterfeit piety is ubiquitous, unfortunately. It is the stock and trade of many people from a host of professions and a range of ideas. Perhaps one needs to look no farther than into a mirror to see a practitioner of counterfeit piety. The Biblical standard in this matter is to know a tree by its fruits. Fruits do not lie. The proof is in the pudding. And actions speak louder than words.
In Christian terms, I think of a bumper sticker. It reads,
JESUS, SAVE ME FROM YOUR FOLLOWERS.
The supreme irony of that plea is that one does not need saving from Christ’s actual followers. One needs no deliverance from people who obey the Golden Rule. The list of atrocities and other sins many people have committed and/or continue to continue to commit in the name of God is long and disturbing. It is a record of counterfeit piety.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
NOVEMBER 10, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT LEO THE GREAT, BISHOP OF ROME
THE FEAST OF ELIJAH P. LOVEJOY, U.S. JOURNALIST, ABOLITIONIST, PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER, AND MARTYR, 1837; HIS BROTHER, OWEN LOVEJOY, U.S. ABOLITIONIST, LAWMAKER, AND CONGREGATIONALIST MINISTER; AND WILLIAM WELLS BROWN, AFRICAN-AMERICAN ABOLITIONIST, NOVELIST, HISTORIAN, AND PHYSICIAN
THE FEAST OF LOTT CARY, AFRICAN-AMERICAN BAPTIST MINISTER AND MISSIONARY TO LIBERIA; AND MELVILLE B. COX, U.S. METHODIST MINISTER AND MISSIONARY TO LIBERIA
THE FEAST OF ODETTE PRÉVOST, FRENCH ROMAN CATHOLIC NUN, AND MARTYR IN ALGERIA, 1995
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BLOGA THEOLOGICA 
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