(This DRAFT study has been done fairly quickly, without the further guide of commentaries. I hope to improve on it later.)
Jeremiah 6:1-5, Shepherds pitch tents in Zion
"Flee for safety, people of Benjamin!
Flee from Jerusalem!
Sound the trumpet in Tekoa!
Raise the signal over Beth Hakkerem!
For disaster looms out of the north,
even terrible destruction.
I will destroy the Daughter of Zion,
so beautiful and delicate.
Shepherds with their flocks will come against her;
they will pitch their tents around her,
each tending his own portion."
"Prepare for battle against her!
Arise, let us attack at noon!
But, alas, the daylight is fading,
and the shadows of evening grow long.
So arise, let us attack at night
and destroy her fortresses!"
Destruction for Benjamin and Judah comes from the north. The beautiful city of Jerusalem will be destroyed, to the poiint that the bedouin shepherds will roam the grounds and pitch their tents within her.
An attack comes. Maybe at noon. Maybe at dusk.
Jeremiah 6:6-8, Violence and destruction
This is what the LORD Almighty says:
"Cut down the trees
and build siege ramps against Jerusalem.
This city must be punished;
it is filled with oppression.
As a well pours out its water,
so she pours out her wickedness.
Violence and destruction resound in her;
her sickness and wounds are ever before me.
Take warning, O Jerusalem,
or I will turn away from you
and make your land desolate
so no one can live in it."
Jerusalem will be besieged. Violence will come to Jerusalem, unless the people repent and return to God.
Jeremiah 6:9-12, Hand stretched out
This is what the LORD Almighty says:
"Let them glean the remnant of Israel
as thoroughly as a vine;
pass your hand over the branches again,
like one gathering grapes."
To whom can I speak and give warning?
Who will listen to me?
Their ears are closed so they cannot hear.
The word of the LORD is offensive to them;
they find no pleasure in it.
But I am full of the wrath of the LORD,
and I cannot hold it in.
"Pour it out on the children in the street
and on the young men gathered together;
both husband and wife will be caught in it,
and the old, those weighed down with years.
Their houses will be turned over to others,
together with their fields and their wives,
when I stretch out my hand
against those who live in the land,"
declares the LORD.
The land will be gleaned like the vines, with hands gathering gapes and then passing through the vine to get more grapes. God has warned the people, but they have not listened and so the assault is coming. Still, a remnant is mentioned....
Jeremiah 6:13-15, A deep wound, mistreated
"From the least to the greatest,
all are greedy for gain;
prophets and priests alike,
all practice deceit.
They dress the wound of my people
as though it were not serious.
`Peace, peace,' they say, when there is no peace.
Are they ashamed of their loathsome conduct?
No, they have no shame at all;
they do not even know how to blush.
So they will fall among the fallen;
they will be brought down when I punish them,"
says the LORD.
All are greedy and deceitful. The sin is serious and deep, yet the "wound" of sin is dressed as if it were a mere scratch. The people, says YHWH, do not even know how to blush in shame.
Jeremiah 6:16-17, "We will not listen!"
This is what the LORD says:
"Stand at the crossroads and look;
ask for the ancient paths,
ask where the good way is,
and walk in it,
and you will find rest for your souls.
But you said, `We will not walk in it.'
I appointed watchmen over you
and said, `Listen to the sound of the trumpet!'
But you said, `We will not listen.'
But you said, `We will not listen.'
The people refuse t walk in the ancient ways of Moses. They do not listen to the warnings of the watchmen nor the soundings of the trumpets.
Jeremiah 6:18-20, Displeasing sacrifices
Therefore hear, O nations;
observe, O witnesses,
what will happen to them.
Hear, O earth:
I am bringing disaster on this people,
the fruit of their schemes,
because they have not listened to my words
and have rejected my law.
What do I care about incense from Sheba
or sweet calamus from a distant land?
Your burnt offerings are not acceptable;
your sacrifices do not please me."
The people may brag about their commercial success, importing incense and calamus, but their sacrifices are dishonoring to God and He is not pleased.
Jeremiah 6:21, Obstacles
Therefore this is what the LORD says:
"I will put obstacles before this people.
Fathers and sons alike will stumble over them;
neighbors and friends will perish."
The people will discover that obstacles have been placed in their paths.
Jeremiah 6:22-24, A great and cruel army
This is what the LORD says:
"Look, an army is coming from the land of the north;
a great nation is being stirred up from the ends of the earth.
They are armed with bow and spear;
They are armed with bow and spear;
they are cruel and show no mercy.
They sound like the roaring sea
as they ride on their horses;
they come like men in battle formation
to attack you, O Daughter of Zion."
We have heard reports about them,
and our hands hang limp.
Anguish has gripped us,
pain like that of a woman in labor.
A great and horrible army approaches, planning to attack Zion. those who hear this respond in anguish and pain.
Jeremiah 6:25-26, Enemy in the fields
Do not go out to the fields
or walk on the roads,
for the enemy has a sword,
and there is terror on every side.
O my people, put on sackcloth
and roll in ashes;
mourn with bitter wailing
as for an only son,
for suddenly the destroyer will come upon us.
The people are warned about venturing too far from their house -- the enemy is in the fields and the woods. The people should be mourning in sackcloth and ashes.
Jeremiah 6:27-30, A tester comes
"I have made you a tester of metals
and my people the ore,
that you may observe
and test their ways.
They are all hardened rebels,
going about to slander.
They are bronze and iron;
they all act corruptly.
The bellows blow fiercely
to burn away the lead with fire,
but the refining goes on in vain;
the wicked are not purged out.
They are called rejected silver,
because the LORD has rejected them."
Hardened rebels come, an army that will test the people of Israel. The Assyrian army will be like a refiner's fire, purging the dross. The "silver" of Israel is rejected.
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