Jeremiah 9-10

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. Jeremiah 9:1 sn Beginning with 9:1, the verse numbers through 9:26 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 9:1 ET = 8:23 HT, 9:2 ET = 9:1 HT, 9:3 ET = 9:2 HT, etc., through 9:26 ET = 9:25 HT. Beginning with 10:1 the verse numbers in the ET and HT are again the same.
2. Jeremiah 9:1 tn Heb “I wish that my head were water.”
3. Jeremiah 9:1 tn Heb “daughter of my people.” For the translation given here see 4:11 and the note on the phrase “dear people” there.
4. Jeremiah 9:2 tn Heb “I wish I had in the desert a lodging place [inn, or place to spend the night] for travelers.”
5. Jeremiah 9:2 tn Or “bunch,” but this loses the irony; the word is used for the solemn assemblies at the religious feasts.
6. Jeremiah 9:2 tn Heb “they are all adulterers, a congregation of unfaithful people.” However, spiritual adultery is, of course, meant, not literal adultery. So the literal translation would be misleading.
7. Jeremiah 9:3 tn The words “The Lord says” have been moved up from the end of the verse to make clear that a change in speaker has occurred.
8. Jeremiah 9:3 tn Heb “They have readied [or strung] their tongue as their bow for lies.”
9. Jeremiah 9:3 tn Heb “but not through honesty.”
10. Jeremiah 9:3 tn Heb “they go from evil to evil.”
11. Jeremiah 9:3 tn Or “do not acknowledge me”; Heb “do not know me.” But “knowing” in Hebrew thought often involves more than intellectual knowledge; it involves emotional and volitional commitment as well. For יָדַע (yadaʿ) meaning “acknowledge” see 1 Chr 28:9; Isa 29:21; Hos 2:20; Prov 3:6. This word is also found in ancient Near Eastern treaty contexts where it has the idea of a vassal king acknowledging the sovereignty of a greater king (cf. H. Huffmon, “The Treaty Background of Hebrew yada,” BASOR 181 [1966]: 31-37).
12. Jeremiah 9:4 tn Heb “Be on your guard…Do not trust.” The verbs are second masculine plural of direct address and there seems no way to translate literally and not give the mistaken impression that Jeremiah is being addressed. This is another example of the tendency in Hebrew style to turn from description to direct address (a figure of speech called apostrophe).
13. Jeremiah 9:4 tn Heb “cheating, each of them will cheat.”sn There is perhaps an intentional pun and allusion here to Gen 27:36 and the wordplay on the name Jacob there. The text here reads עָקוֹב יַעְקֹב (ʿaqob yaʿqob).
14. Jeremiah 9:5 tn Heb “their tongues.” However, this is probably not a natural idiom in contemporary English, and the tongue may stand as a part for the whole anyway.
15. Jeremiah 9:6 tc An alternate reading for vv. 5d-6b is, “They wear themselves out doing wrong. Jeremiah, you live in the midst of deceitful people. They deceitfully refuse to take any thought of/acknowledge me.” The translation which has been adopted is based on a redivision of the lines, a redivision of some of the words, and a revocalization of some of the consonants. The MT reads literally, “doing wrong they weary themselves. Your sitting in the midst of deceit; in deceit they refuse to know me” (הַעֲוֵה נִלְאוּ׃ שִׁבְתְּךָ בְּתוֹךְ מִרְמָה בְּמִרְמָה מֵאֲנוּ דַעַת־אוֹתִי). The Greek version reads literally, “they do wrong and they do not cease to turn themselves around. Usury upon usury and deceit upon deceit. They do not want to know me.” This suggests that one should read the Hebrew text as הַעֲוֵה נִלְאוּ שֻׁב׃ תֹּךְ בְּתוֹךְ מִרְמָה בְּמִרְמָה מֵאֲנוּ דַעַת אוֹתִי, which translated literally yields, “doing evil [= “they do evil,” using the Hiphil infinitive absolute as a finite verb (cf. GKC 346 §113.ff)], they are not able [cf. KBL 468 s.v. לָאָה Niph.3 and see Exod 7:18 for parallel use] to repent. Oppression on oppression [cf. BDB 1067 s.v. תֹּךְ, II תּוֹךְ]; deceit on deceit. They refuse to know me.” This reading has ancient support and avoids the introduction of an unexpected second masculine suffix into the context. It has been adopted here, along with a number of modern commentaries (cf., e.g., W. McKane, Jeremiah [ICC], 1:201) and English versions, as the more likely reading.
16. Jeremiah 9:6 tn Or “do not acknowledge me”; Heb “do not know me.” See the note on the phrase “do not take any thought of me” in 9:3.
17. Jeremiah 9:7 tn Heb “Yahweh of armies.”sn For the significance of this title see the notes at 2:19 and 7:3.
18. Jeremiah 9:7 tn Heb “I will refine/purify them.” The words “in the fires of affliction” are supplied in the translation to give clarity to the metaphor.
19. Jeremiah 9:7 tn Heb “daughter of my people.” For the translation given here see 4:11 and the note on the phrase “dear people” there.
20. Jeremiah 9:7 tc Heb “For how else shall I deal because of the wickedness of the daughter of my people.” The MT does not have the word “wickedness.” The word, however, is read in the Greek version. This is probably a case of a word dropping out because of its similarities to the consonants preceding or following it (i.e., haplography). The word “wickedness” (רַעַת, raʿat) has dropped out before the words “my dear people” (בַּת־עַמִּי, bat-ʿammi). The causal nuance which is normal for מִפְּנֵי (mipp^ene) does not make sense without some word like this, and the combination of רַעַת מִפְּנֵי (mipp^ene raʿat) does occur in Jer 7:12 and one very like it occurs in Jer 26:3.
21. Jeremiah 9:8 tc This reading follows the Masoretic consonants (the Kethib, a Qal active participle from שָׁחַט, shakhat). The Masoretes preferred to read “a sharpened arrow” (the Qere, a Qal passive participle from the same root or a homonym, meaning “hammered, beaten”). See HALOT 1354 s.v. II שָׁחַט for discussion. The exact meaning of the word makes little difference to the meaning of the metaphor itself.
22. Jeremiah 9:8 tn Heb “They speak deceit.”
23. Jeremiah 9:8 tn Heb “With his mouth a person speaks peace to his neighbor, but in his heart he sets an ambush for him.”
24. Jeremiah 9:9 tn Heb “Should I not punish them…? Should I not bring retribution…?” The rhetorical questions function as emphatic declarations.sn See 5:9, 29. This is somewhat of a refrain at the end of a catalog of Judah’s sins.
25. Jeremiah 9:10 tn The words “I said” are not in the text, but there is general agreement that Jeremiah is the speaker. Cf. the lament in 8:18-9:1. These words are supplied in the translation for clarity. Some English versions follow the Greek text which reads a plural imperative here. Since this reading would make the transition between 9:10 and 9:11 easier, it is probably not original but a translator’s way of smoothing over a difficulty.
26. Jeremiah 9:10 tn Heb “I will lift up weeping and mourning.”
27. Jeremiah 9:10 tn Heb “for the mountains.” However, the context makes clear that it is the grasslands or pastures on the mountains that are meant. The words “for the grasslands” are supplied in the translation for clarity.
28. Jeremiah 9:11 tn The words “the Lord said” are not in the text, but it is obvious from the content that he is the speaker. These words are supplied in the translation for clarity.
29. Jeremiah 9:11 tn Heb “a heap of ruins, a haunt for jackals.”
30. Jeremiah 9:12 tn The words, “I said” are not in the text. It is not clear that a shift in speaker has taken place. However, the words of the verse are very unlikely to be a continuation of the Lord’s threat. It is generally assumed that these are the words of Jeremiah and that a dialogue is going on between him and the Lord in vv. 9-14. That assumption is accepted here.
31. Jeremiah 9:12 tn Heb “Who is the wise man that he may understand this?”
32. Jeremiah 9:12 tn Heb “And [who is the man] to whom the mouth of the Lord has spoken, that he may explain it?”
33. Jeremiah 9:13 tn Heb “and they have not walked in it [with “it” referring to “my law”].”
34. Jeremiah 9:14 tn Heb “they have gone/followed after.” See the translator’s note at 2:5 for the idiom.
35. Jeremiah 9:14 tn Heb “the Baals,” referring either to the pagan gods called “Baals” or the images of Baal (so NLT).
36. Jeremiah 9:14 tn Or “forefathers,” or “ancestors.” Here the referent could be the immediate parents or, by their example, more distant ancestors.
37. Jeremiah 9:15 tn Heb “Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel.”sn See the study notes on 2:9 and 7:3.
38. Jeremiah 9:15 tn Heb “Therefore, thus says the Lord…” The person is shifted from third to first to better conform with English style.
39. Jeremiah 9:15 tn Heb “I will feed this people wormwood and make them drink poison water.” “Wormwood” and “poison water” are not to be understood literally here but are symbolic of judgment and suffering. See, e.g., BDB 542 s.v. לַעֲנָה.
40. Jeremiah 9:16 tn Heb “fathers.”
41. Jeremiah 9:16 tn Heb “I will send the sword after them.” The sword here is probably not completely literal but refers to death by violent means, including death by the sword.
42. Jeremiah 9:16 sn He will destroy them but not completely. See Jer 5:18; 30:11; 46:28.
43. Jeremiah 9:17 tn Heb “Yahweh of Armies.”sn For the significance of this title see the notes at 2:19 and 7:3.
44. Jeremiah 9:17 tn Heb “Thus says Yahweh of Armies.” However, without some addition it is not clear to whom the command is addressed. The words are supplied in the translation for clarity and to help resolve a rather confusing issue of who is speaking throughout vv. 16-21. As has been evident throughout the translation, the speaker is not always indicated. Sometimes it is not even clear who the speaker is. In general the translation and the notes have reflected the general consensus in identifying who it is. Here, however, there is a good deal of confusion about who is speaking in vv. 18, 20-21. The Greek translation has the Lord speaking throughout with second plural pronouns in vv. 18, 21 and the absence of the first line in v. 22. It would be hard to explain how the MT arose if the Greek reflected the original text. Critical commentators such as J. Bright, W. Holladay, and W. McKane resolve the issue by dropping out the introductory formula in v. 17 and the first line of v. 22 and assigning the whole lament to Jeremiah. It seems obvious from the first plural pronouns and the content of v. 18 (and probably v. 21 as well), and from the fact that the Lord is referred to in other than the first person in v. 20, that he is not the speaker of those verses. The translation attempts to resolve the issue by having Jeremiah report the Lord’s command in v. 17 and letting the rest of the speech be essentially that of Jeremiah. It should be admitted, however, that the issue is far from resolved. Most English versions simply ignore the problem. The GNB (= TEV) is a rare exception.
45. Jeremiah 9:17 tn Heb “Consider!”
46. Jeremiah 9:17 tn Heb “Call for the mourning women that they may come and send for the wise/skilled women that they may come.” The verbs here are masculine plural, addressed to the people.
47. Jeremiah 9:18 tn The words “And I said, ‘Indeed’” are not in the text. They have been supplied in the translation to try and help clarify who the speaker is who identifies with the lament of the people.
48. Jeremiah 9:19 tn Heb “How we are ruined!”
49. Jeremiah 9:19 tn Or “For we have left…because they have thrown down….” These probably offer parallel reasons for the cries, “We are utterly ruined…disgraced!” since the reason for leaving is not simply the destruction of their houses.
50. Jeremiah 9:20 tn The words “I said” are not in the text. The text merely has, “Indeed, yes.” The words are supplied in the translation to indicate that the speaker is still Jeremiah, though he now is not talking about the mourning woman but is talking to them. See the notes on 9:17-18 for further explanation.
51. Jeremiah 9:20 tn It is a little difficult to explain how the Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) is functioning here. W. L. Holladay (Jeremiah [Hermeneia], 1:311) may be correct in seeing it as introducing the contents of what those who call for the mourning women are to say. In this case, Jeremiah picks up the task as representative of the people.
52. Jeremiah 9:20 tn Heb “Listen to the word of the Lord.”sn In this context the “word of the Lord” that they are to listen for is the word of the lament that they are to teach their daughters and neighbors.
53. Jeremiah 9:21 sn Here Death is personified (treated as though it were a person). Some have seen as possible background to this lament an allusion to Mesopotamian mythology where the demon Lamastu climbs in through the windows of houses and over their walls to kill children and babies.
54. Jeremiah 9:22 tn Or vv. 21-22 may read, “‘Death has climbed…city squares. And the dead bodies of people lie scattered…They lie scattered…but has not been gathered.’ The Lord has told me to tell you this.” Or, “For death will climb…It will enter…It will take away…who gather in the city squares. So tell your daughters and neighbors, ‘The Lord wants you to say, “The dead bodies of people lie scattered…They lie scattered…has not been gathered.”’” The main causes of ambiguity are the particle כִּי (ki) introducing v. 21 and the verb form דַּבֵּר (dabber) at the beginning of v. 22. כִּי may be interpreted as introducing a causal sentence giving Jeremiah’s grounds for the commands of v. 19, in which case the verbs would best be understood as prophetic perfects (as in the second alternate translation). Or it may be interpreted as introducing the content of the lament the women are to teach their daughters and neighbors (as in the translation adopted and in the first alternate translation). The form דַּבֵּר may be interpreted as a Piel masculine singular imperative addressed to Jeremiah (as in the first alternate translation, where it is placed at the end for the sake of clarity) or as a Piel infinitive absolute either explaining what the woman are to teach their daughters and neighbors (as in the second alternate translation; cf. GKC 341 §113.h, i for this use of the infinitive absolute) or as equivalent to an imperative addressed to the women, telling them to tell their daughters and neighbors the reason for the lament, i.e., the Lord’s promise of widespread death (cf. GKC 346 §113.bb for this use of the infinitive absolute). The translation chosen has opted for v. 21 as the content of the lament and v. 22 as the further explanation that Jeremiah has the women pass on to their neighbors and daughters. This appears to this interpreter to create the least confusion and dislocation in the flow of the passage.
55. Jeremiah 9:23 sn It is not always clear why verses were placed in their present position in the editorial process of collecting Jeremiah’s sermons and the words the Lord spoke to him (see Jer 36:4, 32 for reference to two of these collections). Here it is probable that vv. 23-26 were added as a further answer to the question raised in v. 12.
56. Jeremiah 9:23 tn Or “Strong people should not brag that they are strong.”
57. Jeremiah 9:23 tn Heb “…in their wisdom…in their power…in their riches.”
58. Jeremiah 9:24 tn Or “fairness and justice, because these things give me pleasure.” Verse 24 reads in Hebrew, “But let the one who brags brag in this: understanding and knowing me, that I, the Lord, do faithfulness, justice, and righteousness in the earth, for/that I delight in these.” It is uncertain whether the Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) before the clause “I delight in these things” is parallel to the כִּי introducing the clause “that I, the Lord, act…,” or whether it is causal, giving the grounds for the Lord acting the way he does. In light of the contrasts in the passage and the emphasis that Jeremiah has placed on obedience to the covenant and ethical conduct in conjunction with real allegiance to the Lord, not mere lip service, it is probable that the clauses are parallel. For the use of כִּי to introduce clauses of further definition after a direct object, as here, see GKC 365 §117.h and see BDB 393 s.v. יָדַע Qal.1.a. For parallels to the idea of Yahweh requiring these characteristics in people, see Hos 6:6, Mic 6:8.
59. Jeremiah 9:25 tn Heb “Behold!”
60. Jeremiah 9:25 tn Heb “punish all who are circumcised in the flesh.” The translation is contextually motivated to better bring out the contrast that follows.
61. Jeremiah 9:26 tn Heb “all those who are cut off on the side of the head who live in the desert.” KJV and some other English versions (e.g., NIV “who live in the desert in distant places”; NLT “who live in distant places”) have followed the interpretation that this is a biform of an expression meaning, “end or remote parts of the [far] corners [of the earth].” This interpretation is generally abandoned by the more recent commentaries and lexicons (see, e.g. BDB 802 s.v. פֵּאָה 1 and HALOT 858 s.v. פֵּאָה 1.β). It occurs also in 25:33; 49:32.
62. Jeremiah 9:26 tn Heb “For all of these nations are uncircumcised.” The words “I will do so” are supplied in the translation to indicate the connection with the preceding statement.sn Circumcision as a mere external cutting of the flesh is contrasted here with it as a sign of commitment to the covenant and the God of the covenant. The people of these nations practiced circumcision, but not as a sign of the covenant. The people of Israel engaged in it as a religious practice, but without any obedience to the covenant that it was a sign of, or any real commitment to the Lord.
63. Jeremiah 9:26 tn Heb “house of Israel.”
64. Jeremiah 9:26 tn Heb “And all the house of Israel is uncircumcised of heart.”
65. Jeremiah 10:1 tn Heb “house of Israel.”
66. Jeremiah 10:2 tn Heb “Do not learn the way of the nations.” For this use of the word “ways” (דֶּרֶךְ, derekh) compare, for example, Jer 12:16 and Isa 2:6.
67. Jeremiah 10:2 tn Heb “signs.” The words “that occur” are supplied in the translation for clarity.sn The Hebrew word translated here as “things that go on in the sky” (אֹתוֹת, ʾotot) refers to unusual disturbances such as eclipses, comets, meteors, etc., but also to such things as changes in position of the sun, moon, and stars in conjunction with the changes in seasons (cf. Gen 1:14). The people of Assyria and Babylonia worshiped the sun, moon, and stars, thinking that these heavenly bodies had some hold over them.
68. Jeremiah 10:3 tn Heb “statutes.” According to BDB 350 s.v. חֻקָּה 2.b it refers to the firmly established customs or practices of the pagan nations. Cf. Lev 20:23; 2 Kgs 17:8. Here it is essentially equivalent to דֶּרֶךְ (derekh) in v. 1, which has already been translated “religious practices.”
69. Jeremiah 10:3 sn This passage is dripping with sarcasm. It begins by talking about the “statutes” of the pagan peoples as a “vapor” using a singular copula (הוּא, hu’, “it,” functioning as subject for an understood verb) and singular predicate. Then it suppresses the subject, the idol, as though it were too horrible to mention, using only the predications about it. The last two lines read literally: “for a tree from the forest, one cuts it down, a work of hands of a craftsman with the chisel.”
70. Jeremiah 10:4 tn The pronoun is plural in Hebrew, referring to the parts.
71. Jeremiah 10:5 tn Heb “And it is not in them to do good either.”
72. Jeremiah 10:6 tn The words “I said” are not in the Hebrew text, but there appears to be a shift in speaker. Someone is now addressing the Lord. The likely speaker is Jeremiah, so the words “I said” are supplied in the translation for clarity.
73. Jeremiah 10:6 tn The form that introduces this line has raised debate. The form מֵאֵין (meʾen) normally means “without” and introduces a qualification of a term expressing desolation, or it means “so that not” and introduces a negative result (cf. BDB 35 s.v. II אַיִן 6.b). Neither of these nuances fit either this verse or the occurrence in v. 7. BDB 35 s.v. II אַיִן 6.b.γ notes that some have explained this as a strengthened form of אַיִן (ʾayin), which occurs in a similar phrase five other times (cf., e.g., 1 Kgs 8:23). Though many, including BDB, question the validity of this solution, it is probably better than the suggestion that BDB gives of repointing to מֵאַיִן (meʾayin, “whence”), which scarcely fits the context of v. 7, or the solution of HALOT 41 s.v. I אַיִן, which suggests that the מ (mem) is a double writing (dittograph) of the final consonant from the preceding word. That would assume that the scribe made the same error twice (also in v. 7) or was influenced the second time by the first erroneous writing.
74. Jeremiah 10:6 tn Heb “Great is your name in power.”
75. Jeremiah 10:7 tn Heb “Who should not revere you…?” The question is rhetorical and expects a negative answer.
76. Jeremiah 10:7 tn Heb “For it is fitting to you.”
77. Jeremiah 10:7 tn Heb “their royalty/dominion.” This is a case of substituting the abstract “royalty, royal power” for the concrete “kings” who exercise it.
78. Jeremiah 10:8 tn Or “Those wise people and kings are…” It is unclear whether the subject is the “they” of the nations in the preceding verse, or the wise people and kings referred to there. The text merely has “they.”
79. Jeremiah 10:8 tn Heb “The instruction of vanities [worthless idols] is wood.” The interpretation of this line is a little uncertain. Various proposals have been made, most of which involve radical emendation of the text. For some examples see J. A. Thompson, Jeremiah (NICOT), 323-24, fn 6. However, this is probably a case of the bold predication discussed in GKC 452 §141.d, some examples of which may be seen in Ps 109:4 (“I am prayer”) and Ps 120:7 (“I am peace”).
80. Jeremiah 10:9 tc Two Qumran scrolls of Jeremiah (4QJer^a and 4QJer^b) reflect a Hebrew text that is very different than the traditional MT from which modern Bibles have been translated. The Hebrew text in these two manuscripts is similar to that from which LXX was translated. This is true both in small details and in major aspects where the LXX differs from MT. Most notably, 4QJer^a, 4QJer^b and LXX present a version of Jeremiah about 13% shorter than the longer version found in MT. One example of this shorter text is Jer 10:3-11 in which MT and 4QJer^a both have all nine verses, while LXX and 4QJer^b both lack vv. 6-8 and 10, which extol the greatness of God. In addition, the latter part of v. 9 is arranged differently in LXX and 4QJer^b. The translation here follows MT, which is supported by 4QJer^a.
81. Jeremiah 10:9 tn This is a place of unknown location. It is mentioned again in Dan 10:5. Many emend the word to “Ophir” following the Syriac version and the Aramaic Targum. Ophir was famous for its gold (cf. 1 Kgs 9:28; Job 28:16).
82. Jeremiah 10:9 tn The words “to cover those idols” are not in the text but are implicit from the context. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.
83. Jeremiah 10:9 tn The words “They are” are not in the text. The text reads merely, “the work of the carpenter and of the hands of the goldsmith.” The words are supplied in the translation for clarity.
84. Jeremiah 10:9 tn Heb “Blue and purple their clothing.”
85. Jeremiah 10:9 sn There is an ironic pun in this last line. The Hebrew word translated “skillful workers” is the same word that is translated “wise people” in v. 7. The artisans do their work skillfully but they are not “wise.”
86. Jeremiah 10:11 tn Aram “The gods who did not make…earth will disappear…” In conformity with contemporary English style, the sentence is broken up in the translation to avoid a long, complex English sentence.
87. Jeremiah 10:11 tn This verse is in Aramaic. It is the only Aramaic sentence in Jeremiah. Scholars debate the appropriateness of this verse to this context. Many see it as a gloss added by a postexilic scribe that was later incorporated into the text. Both R. E. Clendenen (“Discourse Strategies in Jeremiah 10, ” JBL 106 [1987]: 401-8) and W. L. Holladay (Jeremiah [Hermeneia], 1:324-25, 334-35) have given detailed arguments that the passage is not only original but the climax and center of the contrast between the Lord and idols in vv. 2-16. God gives Israel a message for the nations in the lingua franca of the time. Holladay shows that the passage is a very carefully constructed chiasm (see accompanying study note). This fact argues that “these” at the end is the subject of the verb “will disappear,” not an attributive adjective modifying heaven. He also makes a very good case that the verse is poetry and not the prose that it is rendered in the majority of modern English versions.sn This passage is carefully structured and placed to contrast the Lord, who is living and eternal (v. 10) and made the heavens and earth (v. 12), with the idols, who did not and will disappear. It also has a very careful, concentric structure in the original text where “the gods” is balanced by “these,” “heavens” by “from under the heavens,” and “the earth” by “from the earth.” In the very center, “did not make” is balanced and contrasted by “will disappear.” The structure is further reinforced by the sound play/wordplay between “did not make” (Aram לָא עֲבַדוּ [laʾ ʿavadu]) and “will disappear” (Aram יֵאבַדוּ [yeʾvadu]). This is the rhetorical climax of Jeremiah’s sarcastic attack on the folly of idolatry.
88. Jeremiah 10:12 tn The words “The Lord is” are not in the text. They are implicit from the context. They are supplied in the translation here because of possible confusion about who the subject is due to the parenthetical address to the people of Israel in v. 11. The first two verbs are participles and should not merely be translated as the narrative past. They are predicate nominatives of an implied copula intending to contrast the Lord, as the one who made the earth, with the idols, which did not.
89. Jeremiah 10:13 tn Heb “At the voice of his giving.” The idiom “to give the voice” is often used for thunder (cf. BDB 679 s.v. נָתַן Qal.1.x).
90. Jeremiah 10:13 tn Heb “from the ends of the earth.”
91. Jeremiah 10:13 tn Heb “he brings out the winds from his storehouses.”
92. Jeremiah 10:14 tn Heb “Every man.” But in the context this is not a reference to all people without exception but to all idolaters. The referent is made explicit for the sake of clarity.
93. Jeremiah 10:14 tn Or “nothing but a phony god”; Heb “a lie/falsehood.”
94. Jeremiah 10:14 tn Heb “There is no breath in them.” The referent is made explicit so that no one will mistakenly take it to refer to the idolaters or goldsmiths.
95. Jeremiah 10:15 tn Or “objects of mockery.”
96. Jeremiah 10:16 tn The words “The Lord who is” are not in the text. They are supplied in the translation for clarity. For the significance of the words after them see the study note that follows.sn In the phrase the inheritance of Jacob’s descendants, “inheritance” could be translated “portion.” Applied to God here, the phrase has its background in Joshua’s division of the land of Canaan (Palestine), where each tribe received a land portion except the tribe of Levi, whose “portion” was the Lord. As the other tribes lived off what their portion of the land provided, the tribe of Levi lived off what the Lord provided, i.e., the tithes and offerings dedicated to him. Hence to have the Lord as one’s portion, one’s inheritance, is to have him provide for all one’s needs (see Ps 16:5 in the context of vv. 2, 6, and Lam 3:24 in the context of vv. 22-23).
97. Jeremiah 10:16 tn Heb “The Portion of Jacob.” “Descendants” is implied, and is supplied in the translation for clarity.
98. Jeremiah 10:16 tn Heb “And Israel is the tribe of his possession.”
99. Jeremiah 10:16 tn Heb “Yahweh of Armies.”sn For this rendering of the name for God and its significance see 2:19 and the study note there.
100. Jeremiah 10:17 tn Heb “you who are living in/under siege.” The pronouns in this verse are feminine singular in Hebrew. Jerusalem is being personified as a single woman. This personification carries on down through v. 19, where she speaks in the first person. It is difficult, however, to reflect this in a meaningful translation without being somewhat paraphrastic like this.
101. Jeremiah 10:18 tn The meaning of this last line is somewhat uncertain: Heb “I will cause them distress in order that [or with the result that] they will find.” The absence of an object for the verb “find” has led to conjecture that the text is wrong. Some commentators follow the lead of the Greek and Latin versions which read the verb as a passive: “they will be found,” i.e., be caught and captured. Others follow a suggestion by G. R. Driver (“Linguistic and Textual Problems: Jeremiah,” JQR 28 [1937-38]: 107) that the verb be read not as “they will find” (יִמְצָאוּ [yimtsaʾu] from מָצָא [matsaʾ]) but “they will be squeezed/ drained” (יִמְצוּ [yimtsu] from מָצָה [matsah]). The translation adopted assumes that this is an example of the ellipsis of the object supplied from the context (cf. E. W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech, 8-12). For a similar nuance for the verb “find” = “feel/experience” see BDB 592 s.v. מָצָא Qal.1.f and compare the usage in Ps 116:3.
102. Jeremiah 10:19 tn The words “And I cried out” are not in the text. It is not altogether clear who the speaker is in vv. 19-25. The words of vv. 19-20 would best be assigned to a personified Jerusalem who laments the destruction of her city (under the figure of a tent) and the exile of her citizens (under the figure of children). However, the words of v. 21, which assign responsibility to the rulers, do not fit well in the mouth of the people but do fit Jeremiah. The words of v. 22 are very appropriate to Jeremiah, being similar to the report in 4:19-20. Likewise, the words of v. 23, which appear to express man’s incapacity to control his own destiny and his resignation to the fate which awaits him, in the light of v. 24 seem more appropriate to Jeremiah than to the people. There has been no indication elsewhere that the people are resigned to their fate or willing to accept their punishment. Though the issue is far from resolved, a majority of commentators see Jeremiah as the speaker, so identifying himself with their fate that he speaks as though he were this personified figure. It is not altogether out of the question, however, that the speaker throughout is personified Jerusalem, though no known commentator takes that view. For those who are interested, the most thorough discussion of the issue is probably found in W. McKane, Jeremiah (ICC), 1:230-35, especially 233-35. Rendering the pronouns throughout as “we” and “our” alleviates some of the difficulty, but some speaker needs to be identified in the introduction to allay any possible confusion. Hence I have opted for what is the majority view.
103. Jeremiah 10:19 tn Heb “Woe to me on account of my wound.” The words “woe to” in many contexts carry the connotation of hopelessness and of inevitable doom (cf. 1 Sam 4:7, 8; Isa 6:5), hence a “deadly blow.” See also the usage in 4:13, 31; 6:4 and the notes on 4:13. For the rendering of the pronouns as “we” and “our” here and in the verses to follow see the preceding note.
104. Jeremiah 10:19 tn Some interpret this as a resignation to the punishment inflicted and translate, “But I said, ‘This is my punishment, and I will just need to bear it.’” This is unlikely given the meaning and usage of the word rendered “sickness” (חֳלִי, kholi), the absence of the pronoun “my,” and the likelihood that the particle אַךְ (ʾak) means “only” rather than “indeed” (cf. BDB s.v. אַךְ 2.b and compare its usage in v. 24).sn What is being referred to here is the feeling, encouraged by the false prophets, that the ill fortunes of the nation were just temporary setbacks and everything would soon get better (cf. 6:14; 8:11).
105. Jeremiah 10:20 tn Heb “My tent has been destroyed and my tent cords have been ripped apart.” For a very similar identification of Jeremiah’s plight with the plight of the personified community, see 4:20 and the notes there.
106. Jeremiah 10:20 tn Heb “my children have gone from me and are no more.”sn What is being referred to is the exile of the people of the land. This passage could refer to the exiles of 605 b.c. or 597 b.c. but more probably anticipates the exile of 588 b.c., since the “tent,” (i.e., the city) is pictured as torn down. The picture of devastation and desolation here should be contrasted with that in Isa 54:2-3.
107. Jeremiah 10:21 tn Heb “the shepherds.”
108. Jeremiah 10:21 tn Heb “They have not sought the Lord.”sn The idiom translated sought the Lord’s advice quite commonly refers to seeking the Lord’s guidance through a prophet. See for example Exod 18:15; 1 Sam 9:9; 1 Kgs 22:8. It would not exclude consulting the law.
109. Jeremiah 10:21 tn Heb “all their flock (or “pasturage”).”sn This verse uses the figure of shepherds for rulers, and that of sheep for the people ruled. It is a common figure in the Bible. See Ezek 34 for an extended development of this metaphor.
110. Jeremiah 10:22 tn Heb “The sound of a report, behold, it is coming.”
111. Jeremiah 10:22 tn Heb “coming, even a great quaking.”
112. Jeremiah 10:22 sn Cf. Jer 6:22.
113. Jeremiah 10:23 tn Heb “Not to the man his way.” For the nuance of “fate, destiny, or the way things turn out” for the Hebrew word “way,” see Hag 1:5, Isa 40:27 and probably Ps 49:13 (cf. KBL 218 s.v. דֶּרֶךְ 5). For the idea of “control” or “hold in one’s power” for the preposition “to,” see Ps 3:8 (cf. BDB 513 s.v. לְ 5.b[a]).
114. Jeremiah 10:23 tn Heb “Not to a man the walking and the establishing his step.”
115. Jeremiah 10:24 tn Heb “with justice.”
116. Jeremiah 10:24 tn The words, “to almost nothing” are not in the text. They are implicit from the general context and are supplied by almost all English versions.
117. Jeremiah 10:25 tn Heb “know you.” For this use of the word “know” (יָדַע, yadaʿ) see the note on 9:3.
118. Jeremiah 10:25 tn Heb “tribes/clans.”
119. Jeremiah 10:25 tn Heb “who do not call on your name.” The idiom “to call on your name” (directed to God) refers to prayer (mainly) and praise. See 1 Kgs 18:24-26 and Ps 116:13, 17. Here “calling on your name” is parallel to “acknowledging you.” In many locations in the OT “name” is equivalent to the person. In the OT, the “name” reflected the person’s character (cf. Gen 27:36; 1 Sam 25:25) or his reputation (Gen 11:4; 2 Sam 8:13). To speak in a person’s name was to act as his representative or carry his authority (1 Sam 25:9; 1 Kgs 21:8). To call someone’s name over something was to claim it for one’s own (2 Sam 12:28).
120. Jeremiah 10:25 tn Heb “have devoured Jacob.”
121. Jeremiah 10:25 tn Or “have almost completely destroyed them”; Heb “they have devoured them and consumed them.” The figure of hyperbole is used here; elsewhere Jeremiah and God refer to the fact that they will not be completely consumed. See for example 4:27; 5:10, 18.