Bible Overview is a wonderful resource for anyone interested in Bible study. Each month we feature a book of the Bible (in order) by Bible scholar and lecturer, Mary Jane Chapin Chaignot. This month's entry is the Book of Jeremiah, named for the person who is considered to be one of the foremost prophets in the Old Testament. In the Hebrew Bible, like Isaiah, this book is also found in the second division, known as The Prophets. It chronicles one of the darkest moments in Israelite history - the dismantling of the nation with the fall of Jerusalem. Not only does the book shed valuable light on those events, but it has also been highly instrumental in shaping subsequent theological thought. If you want to read some of the history previous to this selection, you can find the earlier books in our archives. The Bible Time-Line is another quick reference for locating individuals or specific books. We encourage readers to share their Bible Study success stories on this site. Email us at overview@biblewise.com to be included on next month's site.

Jeremiah

It has been held that in times of great need, God raises up great individuals to meet that need and to provide leadership for his people during their time of crisis. Jeremiah would have been that person during the seventh century BCE. It was a time of great political and religious upheaval, not just in Israel, but also throughout the ancient Near East. Jeremiah ministered to a people who witnessed the disintegration and fall of mighty Assyria, only to see the rise of Babylon - an even worse master who methodically worked to depopulate the land. Indeed, many commentators feel that the book cannot be understood apart from the historical events that were taking place at that time. This task is made ever more difficult, however, due to the fact that the book of Jeremiah is not chronologically arranged.

Historically, Jeremiah received his prophetic call in the year 627BCE, when King Josiah was in his thirteenth year. This is thought to be the same year that Ashurbanipal, the last strong Assyrian King, died. The death of the Assyrian king led to chaos and a rapid decline in Assyrian power in that they quickly lost control of their far-flung empire. Although Josiah was only twenty-one at the time, he was eager to capitalize on this fortuitous incident and was ready to lead Judah toward independence from Assyria. He was already in the midst of many internal reforms and ratcheted them up even more after finding the Book of Deuteronomy during the temple reconstruction of his eighteenth year. Even though Josiah was successful in breaking away from the Assyrians, he was never able to achieve real independence because Egypt and Babylon were also poised to exploit the collapse of the Assyrian entity. Unfortunately, Judah was strategically and precariously located in the buffer zone between them. Josiah lost his life in a battle with Egypt in 609 BCE. His successor, Jehoiakim, played a dangerous game of international roulette between Egypt and Babylon, which culminated in the invasion by Babylon in 587 BCE.

Though this book is more autobiographical than most, it is better to think of it as a collection of memoirs, written by someone long after the fact, which might explain some of the confusion over chronology. Adding to the confusion, however, is the fact that while scholars agree that Jeremiah received his call in 627 BCE, they don't know if he was an infant or a young man at that time. He might have been newly born or as old as twenty. Those arguing that he was a young man during Josiah's reforms also feel that he was profoundly influenced by those reforms. Jeremiah's earliest task was to warn the people about an imminent invasion from the north. He was so convinced of this inevitability that he recommended Judah immediately become a vassal of Babylon, hoping to stave off an attack. Needless to say, his prophetic words fell upon deaf ears despite his relentless efforts. Included in this book, then, are some of the most somber, saddest, anguished words in all of the Old Testament. Jeremiah was not an impersonal prophet bearing the word of God to a disloyal people. He was also a member of that community, and he tried his hardest to be a mediator for the people as well. Oftentimes, his sorrow showed through as he bared his soul to God, and prayed a suffering prayer.

In the end, he was taken against his will to live out his days in Egypt - a terrible irony considering how much he despised them and how often he warned kings about alliances with them. The title of the book, of course, is derived from its purported author, Jeremiah. Scholars agree, however, that like the previous books, there were many writers and much editing was done to this material, which we refer to as the Book of Jeremiah.

There are at least eight divisions: The call of Jeremiah 1:19; Divine Judgment on Judah and Jerusalem 2:1-25:38; The Controversy with False Prophets 26:1-29:32; The Book of Consolation 30:1-33:26; Historical Information re Jehoiakim and Zedekiah 34:1-39:18; Jeremiah after the Fall 40:1-45:5; Oracles against the Nations 46:1-51:64; The Fall of Jerusalem 52:1-34.

Bibliography

Brueggemann, Walter. "Jeremiah, 1-25. To Pluck Up, To Tear Down." International      Theological Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm B Eerdmans, 1984.

Davidson, Robert. "Jeremiah." Daily Study Bible Series. Philadelphia, PA:      Westminster Press, 1984.

Harrison, R.K. "Jeremiah & Lamentations." Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries.      Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1973.

Herbert, A.S. "Jeremiah - 26-52." The Cambridge Bible Commentary. Great Britain:      Cambridge University Press, 1975.

Thompson, J.A. "The Book of Jeremiah." The New International Commentary on      the Old Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm B Eerdmans, 1980.