(This DRAFT study has been done fairly quickly, without the further guide of commentaries. I hope to improve on it later.)
Jeremiah 5:1-2, One honest person
"Go up and down the streets of Jerusalem,
look around and consider,
search through her squares.
If you can find but one person who deals honestly
and seeks the truth,
I will forgive this city.
Although they say, `As surely as the LORD lives,'
still they are swearing falsely."
Jeremiah is told to go into the streets of Jerusalem and look for one honest person. This parallels a Greek tale of Diogenes seeking an honest man. Both here in Jeremiah's prophecies and in the tale of Diogenes, we see a statement about the ease in which people can slide into dishonesty.
Jeremiah 5:3-5, Correction refused
O LORD, do not your eyes look for truth?
You struck them, but they felt no pain;
you crushed them, but they refused correction.
They made their faces harder than stone
and refused to repent.
I thought, "These are only the poor;
they are foolish, for they do not know the way of the LORD,
the requirements of their God.
So I will go to the leaders and speak to them;
surely they know the way of the LORD,
the requirements of their God."
But with one accord they too had broken off the yoke
and torn off the bonds.
It turns out, says Jeremiah, that this is not really an issue of ignorance, but one of genuine stubborn resistance to correction.
Jeremiah 5:6, Predators
Therefore a lion from the forest will attack them,
a wolf from the desert will ravage them,
a leopard will lie in wait near their towns
to tear to pieces any who venture out,
for their rebellion is great
and their backslidings many.
The result of this stubbornness will be devastation, as if animal predators lie at the margins of the villages.
Jeremiah 5:7-9, Lusty stallions
"Why should I forgive you?
Your children have forsaken me
and sworn by gods that are not gods.
I supplied all their needs,
yet they committed adultery
and thronged to the houses of prostitutes.
They are well-fed, lusty stallions,
each neighing for another man's wife.
Should I not punish them for this?" declares the LORD.
"Should I not avenge myself on such a nation as this?
The people act like mere animals, following their desires, like "lusty stallions" going after a mare in heat. Doesn't this bring judgment, asks YHWH.
Jeremiah 5:10-13, "He will do nothing!"
"Go through her vineyards and ravage them,
but do not destroy them completely.
Strip off her branches,
for these people do not belong to the LORD.
The house of Israel and the house of Judah
have been utterly unfaithful to me," declares the LORD.
They have lied about the LORD;
they said, "He will do nothing!
No harm will come to us;
we will never see sword or famine.
The prophets are but wind
and the word is not in them;
so let what they say be done to them."
The people have ignored YHWH and claim that He does not act.
Jeremiah 5:14-17, A distant nature comes to devour you
Therefore this is what the LORD God Almighty says:
"Because the people have spoken these words,
I will make my words in your mouth a fire
and these people the wood it consumes.
O house of Israel," declares the LORD,
"I am bringing a distant nation against you--
an ancient and enduring nation,
a people whose language you do not know,
whose speech you do not understand.
Their quivers are like an open grave;
all of them are mighty warriors.
They will devour your harvests and food,
devour your sons and daughters;
they will devour your flocks and herds,
devour your vines and fig trees.
With the sword they will destroy the fortified cities in which you trust.
Because of this stubborn rebellion, a distant nation will come to devour Israel.
Jeremiah 5:18-19, A time of service
"Yet even in those days," declares the LORD,
"I will not destroy you completely.
And when the people ask, `Why has the LORD our God done all this to us?'
you will tell them, `As you have forsaken me
and served foreign gods in your own land,
so now you will serve foreigners in a land not your own.'
The people will be sent to serve another nation, but they will not be completely destroyed.
Jeremiah 5:20-25, Reason to fear
"Announce this to the house of Jacob and proclaim it in Judah:
Hear this, you foolish and senseless people,
who have eyes but do not see,
who have ears but do not hear:
Should you not fear me?" declares the LORD.
"Should you not tremble in my presence?
I made the sand a boundary for the sea,
an everlasting barrier it cannot cross.
The waves may roll, but they cannot prevail;
they may roar, but they cannot cross it.
But these people have stubborn and rebellious hearts;
they have turned aside and gone away.
They do not say to themselves, `Let us fear the LORD our God,
who gives autumn and spring rains in season,
who assures us of the regular weeks of harvest.'
Your wrongdoings have kept these away;
your sins have deprived you of good.
The people should fear God. It is He who controls even the sea. (See Job 38:8-11.) He reigns in chaos. He provides the bounty of the regular seasons, the autumn and spring reigns that serve their harvests. But He can pull all of that away.
Jeremiah 5:26-31, Wicked hunters
"Among my people are wicked men
who lie in wait like men who snare birds
and like those who set traps to catch men.
Like cages full of birds, their houses are full of deceit;
they have become rich and powerful
and have grown fat and sleek.
Their evil deeds have no limit;
they do not plead the case of the fatherless to win it,
they do not defend the rights of the poor.
Should I not punish them for this?" declares the LORD.
"Should I not avenge myself on such a nation as this?
"A horrible and shocking thing has happened in the land:
The prophets prophesy lies,
the priests rule by their own authority,
and my people love it this way.
But what will you do in the end?
In Israel there are wicked people who exploit the poor. They become rich while setting traps for men. These injustices will be judged; the poor will be avenged. In support of these injustices are prophets who tell lies and priest who make up their own rules -- and the people love them for that.
But this injustice will eventually end. This is the message of Jeremiah.
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