Jeremiah 11 Study Notes: The Broken Covenant
God reminds Judah of the covenant made at the exodus and declares that the people have broken it by serving Baal and other gods, so disaster is coming and Jeremiah must not pray for them. Jeremiah learns that people from his own town of Anathoth are plotting to kill him, and God promises to punish them.
General
What does the LORD say the gods Judah burned incense to will do when disaster comes (11:12)?
Answer: Give them no help at all in disaster
God reveals a plot within Judah and Jerusalem: they have gone back to their ancestors’ sins, serving other gods, so that both Israel and Judah have broken His covenant (11:9-10). He will bring a disaster they cannot escape, and when they cry out He will not listen (11:11). They will then cry to the gods they offered incense to, but those gods will not rescue them (11:12). Judah has as many gods as towns, and as many altars to Baal, a Canaanite god, as Jerusalem has streets (11:13; compare 2:28). God had long ago told Israel to go and cry to the gods they had chosen (Judges 10:13-14). Later God promises a new covenant, unlike the one they broke, in which He will write His law on their hearts (31:32-33).
- Jeremiah 11:10-13 (BSB)“They have returned to the sins of their forefathers who refused to obey My words. They have followed other gods to serve them. The house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken the covenant I made with their fathers. Therefore this is what the LORD says: ‘I am about to bring upon them a disaster that they cannot escape. They will cry out to Me, but I will not listen to them. Then the cities of Judah and the residents of Jerusalem will go and cry out to the gods to which they have been burning incense, but these gods certainly will not save them in their time of disaster. Your gods are indeed as numerous as your cities, O Judah; the altars of shame you have set up—the altars to burn incense to Baal—are as many as the streets of Jerusalem.’”Judah and Israel broke the covenant, and the gods they served will not save them.
- Jeremiah 2:28 (BSB)“But where are the gods you made for yourselves? Let them rise up in your time of trouble and save you if they can; for your gods are as numerous as your cities, O Judah.”Earlier God taunted Judah that its gods were as many as its towns, yet could not save.
- Judges 10:13-14 (BSB)“But you have forsaken Me and served other gods, so I will no longer save you. Go and cry out to the gods you have chosen. Let them save you in your time of trouble.””God once told idolatrous Israel to cry to the gods they had chosen.
- Jeremiah 31:32-33 (BSB)“It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant they broke, though I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. “But this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD. I will put My law in their minds and inscribe it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they will be My people.”God promises a new covenant, unlike the broken one, with His law written on their hearts.
Theological
In 11:12, what is said of the gods to whom Judah offered incense, once the threatened disaster arrives?
Answer: Give them no help at all in disaster
God exposes a conspiracy in Judah and Jerusalem: a return to the iniquities of the fathers and the service of other gods, so that both houses have broken His covenant (11:9-10). The sentence is inescapable disaster, with no hearing for their cries (11:11); the idols they served will provide no rescue (11:12), however numerous their gods and Baal altars (11:13; compare 2:28). The pattern recalls Judges 10:13-14, where God told idolatrous Israel to take its pleas to the gods of its own choosing. The broken covenant is the very backdrop of the promised new covenant, in which God Himself will inscribe His law on their hearts (31:32-33).
- Jeremiah 11:10-13 (BSB)“They have returned to the sins of their forefathers who refused to obey My words. They have followed other gods to serve them. The house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken the covenant I made with their fathers. Therefore this is what the LORD says: ‘I am about to bring upon them a disaster that they cannot escape. They will cry out to Me, but I will not listen to them. Then the cities of Judah and the residents of Jerusalem will go and cry out to the gods to which they have been burning incense, but these gods certainly will not save them in their time of disaster. Your gods are indeed as numerous as your cities, O Judah; the altars of shame you have set up—the altars to burn incense to Baal—are as many as the streets of Jerusalem.’”Judah and Israel broke the covenant, and the gods they served will not save them.
- Jeremiah 2:28 (BSB)“But where are the gods you made for yourselves? Let them rise up in your time of trouble and save you if they can; for your gods are as numerous as your cities, O Judah.”Earlier God taunted Judah that its gods were as many as its towns, yet could not save.
- Judges 10:13-14 (BSB)“But you have forsaken Me and served other gods, so I will no longer save you. Go and cry out to the gods you have chosen. Let them save you in your time of trouble.””God once told idolatrous Israel to cry to the gods they had chosen.
- Jeremiah 31:32-33 (BSB)“It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant they broke, though I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. “But this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD. I will put My law in their minds and inscribe it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they will be My people.”God promises a new covenant, unlike the broken one, with His law written on their hearts.
General
True or False: In 11:14 the LORD tells Jeremiah not to pray for the people, because He will not listen when they call to Him in their disaster.
Answer: True
This is true. The LORD tells Jeremiah not to raise a cry or prayer for these people, because He will refuse to hear them when they cry to Him in their trouble (11:14). Prophets usually prayed for the people; Samuel said it would be a sin for him to stop praying for Israel (1 Samuel 12:23). Yet God gives Jeremiah this same command more than once (7:16; 14:11), and here He has already said that the disaster coming on Judah is one they cannot escape (11:11).
- Jeremiah 11:14 (BSB)“As for you, do not pray for these people. Do not raise up a cry or a prayer on their behalf, for I will not be listening when they call out to Me in their time of disaster.”The LORD forbids Jeremiah to pray for the people in their coming disaster.
- 1 Samuel 12:23 (BSB)“As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by ceasing to pray for you. And I will continue to teach you the good and right way.”Samuel shows that prophets normally prayed for the people.
- Jeremiah 7:16 (BSB)“As for you, do not pray for these people, do not offer a plea or petition on their behalf, and do not beg Me, for I will not listen to you.”God gave Jeremiah the same command earlier.
- Jeremiah 14:11 (BSB)“Then the LORD said to me, “Do not pray for the well-being of this people.”God repeats the command not to pray for the people’s well-being.
Theological
True or False: In 11:14 Jeremiah is forbidden to intercede for the people, since the LORD will not hear their cry in the time of calamity.
Answer: True
This is true. Jeremiah is barred from intercession, for the LORD will not hear when the people cry to Him in their calamity (11:14). Intercession was ordinarily part of the prophetic office, as Samuel’s resolve shows (1 Samuel 12:23), but the prohibition is repeated in 7:16 and 14:11, and here it follows the announcement of a disaster Judah cannot escape (11:11).
- Jeremiah 11:14 (BSB)“As for you, do not pray for these people. Do not raise up a cry or a prayer on their behalf, for I will not be listening when they call out to Me in their time of disaster.”The LORD forbids Jeremiah to pray for the people in their coming disaster.
- 1 Samuel 12:23 (BSB)“As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by ceasing to pray for you. And I will continue to teach you the good and right way.”Samuel shows that prophets normally prayed for the people.
- Jeremiah 7:16 (BSB)“As for you, do not pray for these people, do not offer a plea or petition on their behalf, and do not beg Me, for I will not listen to you.”God gave Jeremiah the same command earlier.
- Jeremiah 14:11 (BSB)“Then the LORD said to me, “Do not pray for the well-being of this people.”God repeats the command not to pray for the people’s well-being.
General
How did Jeremiah learn about the plot against his life (11:18-19)?
Answer: The LORD Himself made it known to him
Jeremiah says the LORD informed him and showed him what his enemies were doing (11:18). Before that he had been like a trusting lamb led off to be killed, unaware that they were planning to cut him down like a fruitful tree, so that his name would be forgotten (11:19). He turns to the LORD, the righteous Judge who tests people’s hearts and minds, asks to see the LORD repay them, and hands his case over to God (11:20; compare 17:10). Isaiah uses a similar picture of the Servant, who is led to be slaughtered as a lamb is (Isaiah 53:7). Rather than taking revenge himself, Jeremiah leaves it with God, as Paul tells believers to do (Romans 12:19). Peter uses similar language of Christ, who did not strike back but committed Himself to the One who judges justly (1 Peter 2:23).
- Jeremiah 11:18-20 (BSB)“And the LORD informed me, so I knew. Then You showed me their deeds. For I was like a gentle lamb led to slaughter; I did not know that they had plotted against me: “Let us destroy the tree with its fruit; let us cut him off from the land of the living, that his name may be remembered no more.” O LORD of Hosts, who judges righteously, who examines the heart and mind, let me see Your vengeance upon them, for to You I have committed my cause.”The LORD reveals the plot to Jeremiah, who had been unaware like a lamb, and he commits his cause to God.
- Isaiah 53:7 (BSB)“He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so He did not open His mouth.”Isaiah uses a similar image of the Servant led like a lamb to the slaughter.
- Jeremiah 17:10 (BSB)“I, the LORD, search the heart; I examine the mind to reward a man according to his way, by what his deeds deserve.”The LORD searches the heart and examines the mind, as Jeremiah appeals to Him.
- Romans 12:19 (BSB)“Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but leave room for God’s wrath. For it is written: “Vengeance is Mine; I will repay, says the Lord.””Believers leave vengeance to God rather than avenging themselves.
- 1 Peter 2:23 (BSB)“When they heaped abuse on Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats, but entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.”Christ entrusted Himself to the One who judges justly instead of retaliating.
Theological
According to 11:18-19, how did Jeremiah come to know of the conspiracy against him?
Answer: The LORD Himself made it known to him
Jeremiah attributes his knowledge of the plot wholly to divine disclosure: the LORD informed him and showed him their deeds (11:18). Until then he was like a trusting lamb on its way to be killed, ignorant of the scheme to fell him like a fruitful tree and erase his name (11:19). He appeals to the LORD as righteous Judge who tries hearts and minds, and commits his cause to Him (11:20; compare 17:10). Isaiah 53:7 offers a similar image of the Servant, who is led to be slaughtered as a lamb is. Jeremiah’s prayer leaves vengeance with God rather than seizing it, as Paul commends (Romans 12:19); Peter uses similar language of Christ, who did not retaliate but committed Himself to the righteous Judge (1 Peter 2:23).
- Jeremiah 11:18-20 (BSB)“And the LORD informed me, so I knew. Then You showed me their deeds. For I was like a gentle lamb led to slaughter; I did not know that they had plotted against me: “Let us destroy the tree with its fruit; let us cut him off from the land of the living, that his name may be remembered no more.” O LORD of Hosts, who judges righteously, who examines the heart and mind, let me see Your vengeance upon them, for to You I have committed my cause.”The LORD reveals the plot to Jeremiah, who had been unaware like a lamb, and he commits his cause to God.
- Isaiah 53:7 (BSB)“He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so He did not open His mouth.”Isaiah uses a similar image of the Servant led like a lamb to the slaughter.
- Jeremiah 17:10 (BSB)“I, the LORD, search the heart; I examine the mind to reward a man according to his way, by what his deeds deserve.”The LORD searches the heart and examines the mind, as Jeremiah appeals to Him.
- Romans 12:19 (BSB)“Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but leave room for God’s wrath. For it is written: “Vengeance is Mine; I will repay, says the Lord.””Believers leave vengeance to God rather than avenging themselves.
- 1 Peter 2:23 (BSB)“When they heaped abuse on Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats, but entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.”Christ entrusted Himself to the One who judges justly instead of retaliating.
General
What picture does 11:16 use for what Judah once was and the judgment now coming on her?
Answer: A fine olive tree set ablaze
God asks what right His beloved people have to be in His house when they have done so many wicked things, and whether holy sacrificial meat can turn away their ruin (11:15). The answer is no: worship without obedience could not protect them (compare 7:9-10). God had called Judah a thriving olive tree with lovely fruit, but now He will burn it with a great roar, and every branch will burn (11:16). The LORD who planted them has announced disaster because they provoked Him by offering incense to Baal (11:17). A psalm uses the olive tree as a picture of a person blessed in God’s house (Psalm 52:8), and Isaiah calls Israel the vineyard the LORD planted (Isaiah 5:7).
- Jeremiah 11:15-17 (BSB)“What right has My beloved in My house, having carried out so many evil schemes? Can consecrated meat avert your doom? When you are wicked, then you rejoice. The LORD once called you a flourishing olive tree, beautiful with well-formed fruit. But with a mighty roar He will set it on fire, and its branches will be consumed. The LORD of Hosts, who planted you, has decreed disaster against you on account of the evil that the house of Israel and the house of Judah have brought upon themselves, provoking Me to anger by burning incense to Baal.””God’s beloved cannot rely on sacrifices; the olive tree He planted will be burned for its Baal worship.
- Jeremiah 7:9-10 (BSB)“Will you steal and murder, commit adultery and perjury, burn incense to Baal, and follow other gods that you have not known, and then come and stand before Me in this house, which bears My Name, and say, ‘We are delivered, so we can continue with all these abominations’?”Judah trusted in the temple while practicing idolatry and wickedness.
- Psalm 52:8 (BSB)“But I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in the loving devotion of God forever and ever.”The flourishing olive tree pictures a person blessed in God’s house.
- Isaiah 5:7 (BSB)“For the vineyard of the LORD of Hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are the plant of His delight. He looked for justice, but saw bloodshed; for righteousness, but heard a cry of distress.”Isaiah also calls Israel and Judah the planting of the LORD.
Theological
Which image in 11:16 depicts both Judah’s former blessing and her coming judgment?
Answer: A fine olive tree set ablaze
The oracle asks what right God’s beloved has in His house after so many wicked schemes, and whether consecrated meat can avert her doom (11:15), exposing the same false confidence in ritual as 7:9-10. The LORD had named Judah a thriving olive tree with beautiful fruit, but He will kindle it with a great roar and its boughs will burn up (11:16). The One who planted them has decreed disaster for their Baal worship (11:17). The olive tree elsewhere pictures blessing in God’s house (Psalm 52:8), and Isaiah’s vineyard song likewise names Israel the LORD’s planting (Isaiah 5:7).
- Jeremiah 11:15-17 (BSB)“What right has My beloved in My house, having carried out so many evil schemes? Can consecrated meat avert your doom? When you are wicked, then you rejoice. The LORD once called you a flourishing olive tree, beautiful with well-formed fruit. But with a mighty roar He will set it on fire, and its branches will be consumed. The LORD of Hosts, who planted you, has decreed disaster against you on account of the evil that the house of Israel and the house of Judah have brought upon themselves, provoking Me to anger by burning incense to Baal.””God’s beloved cannot rely on sacrifices; the olive tree He planted will be burned for its Baal worship.
- Jeremiah 7:9-10 (BSB)“Will you steal and murder, commit adultery and perjury, burn incense to Baal, and follow other gods that you have not known, and then come and stand before Me in this house, which bears My Name, and say, ‘We are delivered, so we can continue with all these abominations’?”Judah trusted in the temple while practicing idolatry and wickedness.
- Psalm 52:8 (BSB)“But I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in the loving devotion of God forever and ever.”The flourishing olive tree pictures a person blessed in God’s house.
- Isaiah 5:7 (BSB)“For the vineyard of the LORD of Hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are the plant of His delight. He looked for justice, but saw bloodshed; for righteousness, but heard a cry of distress.”Isaiah also calls Israel and Judah the planting of the LORD.
General
What did the people of Anathoth demand of Jeremiah, on threat of death (11:21)?
Answer: Stop prophesying as the LORD’s messenger
The plotters were the people of Anathoth, Jeremiah’s own town, where he is introduced as a priest (1:1). They were seeking his life and told him that if he kept prophesying in the LORD’s name, they would kill him (11:21). God answers with judgment: the sword will kill their youths, their children will die of famine, and none of them will be left when their time of punishment comes (11:22-23). At his call God had promised that enemies would fight Jeremiah but not overcome him (1:19). Amos also condemned those who ordered the prophets to stop prophesying (Amos 2:12), and Jesus later said that a prophet is not welcomed in his own hometown (Luke 4:24).
- Jeremiah 11:21-23 (BSB)“Therefore this is what the LORD says concerning the people of Anathoth who are seeking your life and saying, “You must not prophesy in the name of the LORD, or you will die by our hand.” So this is what the LORD of Hosts says: “I will punish them. Their young men will die by the sword, their sons and daughters by famine. There will be no remnant, for I will bring disaster on the people of Anathoth in the year of their punishment.””The people of Anathoth threaten Jeremiah, and the LORD pronounces their punishment.
- Jeremiah 1:1 (BSB)“These are the words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests in Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin.”Jeremiah is introduced as one of the priests in Anathoth.
- Jeremiah 1:19 (BSB)“They will fight against you but will never overcome you, since I am with you to deliver you,” declares the LORD.”God promised Jeremiah that his opponents would not overcome him.
- Amos 2:12 (BSB)““But you made the Nazirites drink wine and commanded the prophets not to prophesy.”Israel was condemned for commanding the prophets not to prophesy.
- Luke 4:24 (BSB)“Then He added, “Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in his hometown.”Jesus said that no prophet is accepted in his hometown.
Theological
According to 11:21, what did the people of Anathoth insist on under threat of killing Jeremiah?
Answer: Stop prophesying as the LORD’s messenger
The conspirators are from Anathoth, the town where Jeremiah is introduced among the priests (1:1). They seek his life and threaten death if he continues to prophesy in the LORD’s name (11:21). The LORD responds with judgment: sword for their youths, famine for their children, and no remnant when their appointed punishment comes (11:22-23). The verdict vindicates the promise of Jeremiah’s call that his opponents would not prevail against him (1:19). Silencing the prophets is a standing sin of Israel (Amos 2:12), and Jesus’ saying that no prophet is welcome in his hometown describes the same pattern (Luke 4:24).
- Jeremiah 11:21-23 (BSB)“Therefore this is what the LORD says concerning the people of Anathoth who are seeking your life and saying, “You must not prophesy in the name of the LORD, or you will die by our hand.” So this is what the LORD of Hosts says: “I will punish them. Their young men will die by the sword, their sons and daughters by famine. There will be no remnant, for I will bring disaster on the people of Anathoth in the year of their punishment.””The people of Anathoth threaten Jeremiah, and the LORD pronounces their punishment.
- Jeremiah 1:1 (BSB)“These are the words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests in Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin.”Jeremiah is introduced as one of the priests in Anathoth.
- Jeremiah 1:19 (BSB)“They will fight against you but will never overcome you, since I am with you to deliver you,” declares the LORD.”God promised Jeremiah that his opponents would not overcome him.
- Amos 2:12 (BSB)““But you made the Nazirites drink wine and commanded the prophets not to prophesy.”Israel was condemned for commanding the prophets not to prophesy.
- Luke 4:24 (BSB)“Then He added, “Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in his hometown.”Jesus said that no prophet is accepted in his hometown.
General
According to 11:7-8, how did the forefathers respond to God’s repeated warnings to obey Him?
Answer: Each one followed his own stubborn, evil heart
Jeremiah is to carry the covenant message through Judah’s towns and Jerusalem’s streets (11:6). From the exodus until Jeremiah’s day, God had warned His people over and over to obey Him. Yet they refused to hear; each one did what his own hard, evil heart wanted, so God brought on them the curses the covenant had warned of (11:7-8). Jeremiah later says the same about the prophets God sent again and again, who were ignored (7:25-26). The book of Kings describes Israel and Judah stiffening their necks against God’s warnings (2 Kings 17:13-14), and Moses had foretold that disobedience would bring the covenant curses (Deuteronomy 28:15).
- Jeremiah 11:7-8 (BSB)“For from the time I brought your fathers out of the land of Egypt until today, I strongly warned them again and again, saying, ‘Obey My voice.’ Yet they would not obey or incline their ears, but each one followed the stubbornness of his evil heart. So I brought on them all the curses of this covenant I had commanded them to follow but they did not keep.””God warned the fathers repeatedly, but each followed his own stubborn heart, and the covenant curses came.
- Jeremiah 7:25-26 (BSB)“From the day your fathers came out of the land of Egypt until this day, I have sent you all My servants the prophets again and again. Yet they would not listen to Me or incline their ear, but they stiffened their necks and did more evil than their fathers.”God sent prophet after prophet, yet the people would not listen.
- 2 Kings 17:13-14 (BSB)“Yet through all His prophets and seers, the LORD warned Israel and Judah, saying, “Turn from your wicked ways and keep My commandments and statutes, according to the entire Law that I commanded your fathers and delivered to you through My servants the prophets.” But they would not listen, and they stiffened their necks like their fathers, who did not believe the LORD their God.”Israel and Judah ignored God’s warnings through the prophets and stiffened their necks.
- Deuteronomy 28:15 (BSB)“If, however, you do not obey the LORD your God by carefully following all His commandments and statutes I am giving you today, all these curses will come upon you and overtake you:”Moses foretold that disobedience would bring the covenant curses.
Theological
How does 11:7-8 characterize the forefathers’ response to God’s persistent warnings?
Answer: Each one followed his own stubborn, evil heart
The covenant summons is to be proclaimed throughout Judah’s towns and Jerusalem’s streets (11:6). The history it recites is one of persistent divine warning, from the exodus to the present, met by persistent refusal: they would not hear, but each walked in the hardness of his own wicked heart, and so God enacted the covenant curses (11:7-8). The indictment matches 7:25-26 and the narrative verdict of 2 Kings 17:13-14, and it fulfills the sanction announced in Deuteronomy 28:15. The root of the failure lies in the heart itself: the stubbornness of each one’s evil heart (11:8).
- Jeremiah 11:7-8 (BSB)“For from the time I brought your fathers out of the land of Egypt until today, I strongly warned them again and again, saying, ‘Obey My voice.’ Yet they would not obey or incline their ears, but each one followed the stubbornness of his evil heart. So I brought on them all the curses of this covenant I had commanded them to follow but they did not keep.””God warned the fathers repeatedly, but each followed his own stubborn heart, and the covenant curses came.
- Jeremiah 7:25-26 (BSB)“From the day your fathers came out of the land of Egypt until this day, I have sent you all My servants the prophets again and again. Yet they would not listen to Me or incline their ear, but they stiffened their necks and did more evil than their fathers.”God sent prophet after prophet, yet the people would not listen.
- 2 Kings 17:13-14 (BSB)“Yet through all His prophets and seers, the LORD warned Israel and Judah, saying, “Turn from your wicked ways and keep My commandments and statutes, according to the entire Law that I commanded your fathers and delivered to you through My servants the prophets.” But they would not listen, and they stiffened their necks like their fathers, who did not believe the LORD their God.”Israel and Judah ignored God’s warnings through the prophets and stiffened their necks.
- Deuteronomy 28:15 (BSB)“If, however, you do not obey the LORD your God by carefully following all His commandments and statutes I am giving you today, all these curses will come upon you and overtake you:”Moses foretold that disobedience would bring the covenant curses.
General
In 11:3-4, what did God require of the forefathers when He rescued them from Egypt, promising they would be His people?
Answer: Obey God and do all that He commanded
The LORD tells Jeremiah to announce the terms of the covenant, God’s binding agreement with Israel, to Judah and Jerusalem (11:1-2). A curse rests on anyone who disobeys it. When God brought Israel out of Egypt, which He calls an iron furnace, He told them to obey Him and carry out all His commands, so that they would belong to Him and He would be their God (11:3-4). This fulfilled His oath to give the fathers a rich and fruitful land, and Jeremiah answers with Amen, agreeing to the word (11:5). Moses had set out the same curse (Deuteronomy 27:26) and the same picture of Egypt as an iron furnace (Deuteronomy 4:20). Paul later quotes that curse to show that no one can be put right with God by keeping the law, since no one keeps all of it (Galatians 3:10).
- Jeremiah 11:3-5 (BSB)“You must tell them that this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: Cursed is the man who does not obey the words of this covenant, which I commanded your forefathers when I brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of the iron furnace, saying, ‘Obey Me, and do everything I command you, and you will be My people, and I will be your God.’ This was in order to establish the oath I swore to your forefathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, as it is to this day.” “Amen, LORD,” I answered.”God restates the covenant’s curse, command, and promise, and Jeremiah answers Amen.
- Deuteronomy 27:26 (BSB)“‘Cursed is he who does not put the words of this law into practice.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’”Moses commanded a curse on whoever does not keep the law, with all the people to answer Amen.
- Deuteronomy 4:20 (BSB)“Yet the LORD has taken you and brought you out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be the people of His inheritance, as you are today.”Moses described the rescue from Egypt as being brought out of an iron furnace.
- Galatians 3:10 (BSB)“All who rely on works of the law are under a curse. For it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.””Paul quotes the covenant curse to show that law-keeping cannot justify anyone.
Theological
According to 11:3-4, what was the covenant’s requirement, attached to the promise that Israel would be God’s people?
Answer: Obey God and do all that He commanded
Jeremiah is charged to proclaim the terms of the Sinai covenant to Judah and Jerusalem (11:1-2). Its sanction is a curse on the disobedient; its stipulation, given when God rescued Israel from Egypt, the iron furnace, is obedience to all His commands; its promise is the covenant formula that they would be His people and He their God (11:3-4). God’s purpose was to confirm His oath of the land to the patriarchs, and Jeremiah assents with Amen (11:5), the response Moses required of all the people when the law’s curse was proclaimed (Deuteronomy 27:26). The iron-furnace image comes from Deuteronomy 4:20. Paul cites the same covenant curse to prove that everyone who depends on law-keeping stands condemned, since none continues in everything the law demands (Galatians 3:10).
- Jeremiah 11:3-5 (BSB)“You must tell them that this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: Cursed is the man who does not obey the words of this covenant, which I commanded your forefathers when I brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of the iron furnace, saying, ‘Obey Me, and do everything I command you, and you will be My people, and I will be your God.’ This was in order to establish the oath I swore to your forefathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, as it is to this day.” “Amen, LORD,” I answered.”God restates the covenant’s curse, command, and promise, and Jeremiah answers Amen.
- Deuteronomy 27:26 (BSB)“‘Cursed is he who does not put the words of this law into practice.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’”Moses commanded a curse on whoever does not keep the law, with all the people to answer Amen.
- Deuteronomy 4:20 (BSB)“Yet the LORD has taken you and brought you out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be the people of His inheritance, as you are today.”Moses described the rescue from Egypt as being brought out of an iron furnace.
- Galatians 3:10 (BSB)“All who rely on works of the law are under a curse. For it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.””Paul quotes the covenant curse to show that law-keeping cannot justify anyone.