Author: © Christian National Church of Christ

Question:
What dirges of Jeremiah led some to attribute to him the authorship of the book of Lamentations?
Answer:
Should I punish the people of Judah for doing these things?” This message is from the I should give it the punishment it deserves.” Jeremiah 9:9 ERV
I will scatter the people of Judah throughout other nations. They will live in strange nations that they and their fathers never knew about. I will send men with swords. They will kill the people of Judah. They will kill them until all the people are gone.” This is what the Lord All-Powerful says: “Now think about these things! Call for the women who get paid to cry at funerals. Send for the people who are good at that job. The people say,‘Let those women come quickly and cry for us. Then our eyes will fill with tears that flow over our eyelids like streams of water.’ “The sound of loud crying is heard from Zion: ‘We are really ruined! We are so ashamed! We must leave our land, because our houses have been destroyed. Now our houses are only piles of rock.’” Now, women of Judah, listen to the message from the Lord. Listen to the words from his mouth.Teach your daughters how to cry loudly. Each of them must learn to sing this funeral song: “Death has climbed in through our windows and has come into our palaces. Death has come to our children who play in the streets and to the young men who meet in the public places.”Jeremiah 9:16-21 ERV
God, you are the hope of Israel! You save Israel in times of trouble. But now it seems like you are a stranger in the land, like a traveler who only stays one night.
Jeremiah 14:8 ESV
I had to add this verse: Then Jeremiah lamented over Josiah, and to this day all the choirs of men and women sing laments over Josiah. They established them as a statute for Israel, and indeed they are written in the Book of Laments. As for the rest of the acts of Josiah, along with his deeds of loving devotion according to what is written in the Law of the LORD.
2 Chronicles 35:25-BSB “This offers timeless wisdom, encouraging us to build robust foundations that extend beyond the fragility of mortal existence. “

Question:
What 3 groups of religious leaders in Israel are referred to in Jeremiah?
Answer:
In the book of Jeremiah, we encounter several groups of religious and political leaders in ancient Israel. Let’s explore them:

Prophets: Jeremiah himself was a prophet, called by God to deliver messages to the people of Judah during a tumultuous period. His prophecies warned of impending judgment and called for repentance. Other prophets like Moses, Samuel, and Isaiah also played significant roles in Israel’s history, inspiring and guiding the people through their words and actions.

Kings: During Jeremiah’s time, the southern kingdom of Judah had a series of kings, some righteous and others unrighteous. Notable among them were Josiah, who initiated religious reforms, and Zedekiah, who witnessed the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonian forces. These kings held both political and religious authority.

Priests and Temple Leaders: The religious establishment included priests who served in the Temple in Jerusalem. Unfortunately, during the reign of King Manasseh, idolatry and corruption infiltrated the religious practices. Altars to false gods were erected, and innocent blood was shed. Jeremiah confronted these leaders, urging them to turn back to God, but not all heeded his warnings.

These groups intersected in complex ways, shaping the spiritual and political landscape of ancient Israel during Jeremiah’s prophetic ministry. It reads in Jeremiah 18:18 Easy to Read Version> (The People Plan Evil and Jeremiah Prays) Then the enemies of Jeremiah said, “Come, let us make plans against Jeremiah. We will always have a priest to tell us what the law says. We will still have wise men to advise us and prophets to tell us a message from God. So who needs Jeremiah? Let’s tell lies to ruin him and stop listening to what he says.”

Question:
What dirges of Jeremiah led some to attribute to Him the authorship of the book of Lamentations?
Answer:
It reads in Jeremiah 9:9:21 Easy-to-Read Version
Should I punish the people of Judah for doing these things?” This message is from the Lord. “You know I should punish a nation such as this. I should give it the punishment it deserves.” I, Jeremiah, will cry for the mountains. I will sing a funeral song for the empty fields, because all the animals were taken away. No one travels there now. The sounds of cattle cannot be heard. The birds have flown away, and the animals are gone. The Lord says, “I will make the city of Jerusalem a pile of garbage. It will be a home for jackals. I will destroy the cities in the land of Judah, so no one will live there.” Is there a man who is wise enough to understand these things? Is there someone who has been taught by the Lord? Can anyone explain his message? Why was the land ruined? Why was it made like an empty desert where no one goes? The Lord answered, “It is because the people of Judah stopped following my teachings. I gave them my teachings, but they refused to listen to me. They did not follow my teachings. The people of Judah lived their own way. They were stubborn. They followed the false god Baal. Their fathers taught them to follow those false gods.” So the Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel, says, “I will soon make the people of Judah eat bitter food and drink poisoned water. I will scatter the people of Judah throughout other nations. They will live in strange nations that they and their fathers never knew about. I will send men with swords. They will kill the people of Judah. They will kill them until all the people are gone.” This is what the Lord All-Powerful says: “Now think about these things! Call for the women who get paid to cry at funerals. Send for the people who are good at that job. The people say, ‘Let those women come quickly and cry for us. Then our eyes will fill with tears that flow over our eyelids like streams of water.’ “The sound of loud crying is heard from Zion: ‘We are really ruined! We are so ashamed! We must leave our land, because our houses have been destroyed. Now our houses are only piles of rock.’” Now, women of Judah, listen to the message from the Lord. Listen to the words from his mouth. Teach your daughters how to cry loudly. Each of them must learn to sing this funeral song: “Death has climbed in through our windows and has come into our palaces. Death has come to our children who play in the streets and to the young men who meet in the public places.”

Question:
What classical expressions has Jeremiah given?
Answer:
They should bandage the wounds my people have suffered, but they treat their wounds like small scratches. They say, “It’s all right, everything is all right.” But it is not all right!

Jeremiah 8:11 Easy-to-Read Version

A black man cannot change the color of his skin,
and a leopard cannot change its spots.
In the same way, Jerusalem, you cannot change and do good.
You always do bad things.

Jeremiah 13:23 Easy-to-Read Version

Before he showed me this, I was like a gentle lamb waiting to be butchered. I did not understand that they were against me. They were saying this about me: “Let us destroy the tree and its fruit! Let us kill him! Then people will forget him.”

Jeremiah 11:19 Easy-to-Read Version

“People will not use this saying anymore: ‘The parents ate the sour grapes, but the children got the sour taste.’
Jeremiah 31:29 Easy-to-Read Version

Surely there is some medicine in Gilead. Surely there is a doctor in Gilead. So why are the wounds of my people not healed?

Jeremiah 8:22 Easy-to-Read Version

This is what you should say: “The Lord says, ‘Dead bodies will lie in the fields like dung. Their bodies will lie on the ground like grain a farmer has cut. But there will be no one to gather them.’
” Jeremiah 9:22 Easy-to-Read Version

Question:
Why does Jeremiah warn against putting too much trust in:

“The Temple of The Lord”‘ in Jeremiah 7:4?
Answer:
Perhaps the deliverance described in 2 Kings 18:13-19 NIV> In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah’s reign, Sennacherib king of Assyria attacked all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them. So Hezekiah king of Judah sent this message to the king of Assyria at Lachish: “I have done wrong. Withdraw from me, and I will pay whatever you demand of me.” The king of Assyria exacted from Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold. So Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the temple of the Lord and in the treasuries of the royal palace. At this time Hezekiah king of Judah stripped off the gold with which he had covered the doors and doorposts of the temple of the Lord, and gave it to the king of Assyria. “Sennacherib Threatens Jerusalem” 17-19> The king of Assyria sent his supreme commander, his chief officer and his field commander with a large army, from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. They came up to Jerusalem and stopped at the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Washerman’s Field. They called for the king; and Eliakim son of Hilkiah the palace administrator, Shebna the secretary, and Joah son of Asaph the recorder went out to them. The field commander said to them, “Tell Hezekiah: “‘This is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says: On what are you basing this confidence of yours? and verse 36 & 37> But the people remained silent and said nothing in reply, because the king had commanded, “Do not answer him.” Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah the palace administrator, Shebna the secretary, and Joah son of Asaph the recorder went to Hezekiah, with their clothes torn, and told him what the field commander had said. “ and celebrated in (For the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. According to alamoth. A song.) Psalm 46:1-11 Easy to Read Version> God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging. There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day. Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall; he lifts his voice, the earth melts. The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Come and see what the Lord has done, the desolations he has brought on the earth. He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire. He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. “Had led to the popular belief that Jerusalem could never be taken.”

Question:
What command to Jeremiah brings to mind the case of Diogenes walking the streets of Athens with a lantern in broad daylight, looking for an honest man?
Answer:
The Lord says, “Walk the streets of Jerusalem. Look around and think about these things. Search the public squares of the city. See if you can find one good person, one who does honest things and who searches for the truth. If you find one good person, I will forgive Jerusalem.
Jeremiah 5:1 Easy-to-Read Version

Question:
What historical character may have been in Jeremiah’s mind as he longed for “a wayfarer’s’ lodging place” in the desert? It reads in Jeremiah 9:2 Easy to Read Version> If only I had a place in the desert a house where travelers spend the night so I could leave my people. I could go away from them, because they are all unfaithful to God. They have all turned against him.
Answer:
Elijah did find such a retreat. It reads in 1 Kings 19:4-9 Easy-to-Read Version> and walked for a whole day into the desert. Then he sat down under a bush and asked to die. He said, “I have had enough, Lord! Take my life. I am no better than my ancestors. “Then Elijah lay down under the bush and went to sleep. An angel came to him and touched him. The angel said, “Get up and eat!” Elijah looked around, and by his head there was a cake that had been baked over coals and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then went back to sleep. Later the Lord’s angel came to him again, touched him, and said, “Get up and eat! If you don’t, you will not be strong enough to make the long trip.” So, Elijah got up. He ate and drank and felt strong. Then Elijah walked for 40 days and nights to Mount Horeb, the mountain of God. There Elijah went into a cave and spent the night. Then the Lord said to him, “Elijah, why are you here?”

Question:
What ethical standards does God hold before His people?
Answer:
Jeremiah 9:24. But let him that glorifies— To glory in a thing is to depend on it as the means or cause of procuring happiness. But there can be no happiness but in being experimentally acquainted with that God who exercises loving-kindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth.

Question:
What passage is a classical description of the conditional nature of prophecy?
Answer:
“O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter has done? declares the Lord. Behold, like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel. If at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom, that I will pluck up and break down and destroy it, and if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I intended to do to it.
Jeremiah 18:6-8 English Standard Version

Question:
What passage describes the forms of idolatry seen by the Jews of Diaspora?
Answer:
This is what the Lord says: “Don’t live like people from other nations. Don’t be afraid of special signs in the sky. The other nations are afraid of what they see in the sky. But you must not be afraid of them. The customs of other people are worth nothing. Their idols are nothing but wood from the forest. Their idols are made by workers with their chisels. They make their idols beautiful with silver and gold. They use hammers and nails to fasten their idols down so that they will not fall over. The idols of the other nations are like a scarecrow in a cucumber field. They cannot walk. They cannot talk, and the people must carry them. So don’t be afraid of their idols. They cannot hurt you. And they cannot help you either.” Lord, there is no one like you. You are great! Your name is great and powerful! Everyone should respect you, King of all the nations. You deserve their respect. There are many wise men among the nations, but not one of them is as wise as you. All the people of the other nations are stupid and foolish. Their teachings come from worthless wooden statues. They use silver from the city of Tarshish and gold from the city of Uphaz and make their statues. Carpenters and metalworkers make the idols. They put blue and purple clothes on them. “Wise men” make these “gods.” But the Lord is the only true God. He is the only God who is alive. He is the King who rules forever. The earth shakes when he is angry. The people of the nations cannot stop his anger. The Lord says, “Tell them this message: ‘These false gods did not make heaven and earth. They will be destroyed and disappear from heaven and earth.’”
Jeremiah 10:2-11 Easy-to-Read Version