Jeremiah 11

Jeremiah 11:1-13

Section 4. YHWH Deprecates The Disloyalty Of His People To The Covenant, And Demonstrates From Examples Their Total Corruption, Revealing That As A Consequence Their Doom Is Irrevocably Determined, Something Then Represented By Jeremiah By Means Of Prophetic Symbolism (Jeremiah 11:1 to Jeremiah 13:27). Commencing with the regular opening phrase ‘The word that came to Jeremiah from YHWH –’ (Jeremiah 11:1), YHWH deprecates His people’s disloyalty to the covenant, and demonstrates from examples their total corruption, making clear that as a consequence their doom is irrevocably determined. This is followed by a symbolic action by Jeremiah, together with its interpretation, which reveals the certainty of their expulsion from the land. The section then closes with a woe expressed against Jerusalem.

Jeremiah 11:16-12

YHWH Had Planted His People As A Green Olive Tree Abundant In Fruit, But Will Now Break Off Its Branches Returning Evil Consequences On Them For Their Evil Deeds. These Words Produce A Reaction Against Jeremiah In His Home Town Of Anathoth So That They Determine To Slay Him And Consequently He Asks YHWH Why He Allows The Wicked To Continue, Only To Learn That They Will Do Even More Wicked Things Than These (Jeremiah 11:16 to Jeremiah 12:6). The picture of Israel/Judah as a green olive tree is found elsewhere in Hosea 14:6 (note the emphasis on its branches); Psalms 52:8; Psalms 128:3; Romans 11:17-28. But he informs them that YHWH Who had planted them will now denude them of their fruitful branches and has pronounced evil against them, because of their evil behaviour.These words infuriate the men of Anathoth, Jeremiah’s home town, who determine that they too will ‘destroy the tree with its fruit’ (Jeremiah 11:19), but in this case they are referring to Jeremiah, against whom they have devised schemes of murder. Jeremiah, taken totally by surprise by these schemes (he was after all a prophet of YHWH and should have been seen as sacrosanct, and he felt that he was only ‘doing his job’), thus sees himself as like a pet household lamb which finds itself to its total surprise unexpectedly led out to the slaughter (Jeremiah 11:19). YHWH, however, assures Jeremiah that He will in the future punish them severely for their behaviour. He is then remonstrated by Jeremiah on the very grounds that having planted them so that they have taken root and brought forth fruit, although only hypocritically, they are still being allowed by Him to continue on in their hypocrisy, bringing devastation on the land and the life within it (Jeremiah 12:2; Jeremiah 12:4). And he calls on Him to takethemout as sheep for the slaughter (Jeremiah 12:3), instead of the little pet lamb (Jeremiah 11:19).

In response to these words he is called on to be patient, and is warned by YHWH that this hatred of him by his relatives is only a beginning. It is an indication that he will yet face even greater hardship than this.

Jeremiah 11:18-20

The Reaction Of The People Of His Hometown Anathoth Is To Seek To Warn Off Jeremiah With Threats Of Death, At Which He Appeals To YHWH (Jeremiah 11:18-20). Jeremiah 11:18‘And YHWH gave me knowledge of it, and I knew it,Then you showed me their doings.’But all this was known to Jeremiah, because YHWH had made it known to him, and had made known to him the doings of the people, which was why he in his turn spoke to the people. In fact he was so certain of his God-ordained ministry and his sanctity as a God-appointed prophet of YHWH that he did not even consider the effect that his words might have on the people. But as we now learn, they did not like it, and began to scheme his death.Jeremiah 11:19‘But I was like a gentle lamb,Which is led to the slaughter,And I did not know that they had devised schemes against me,Saying, “Let us destroy the tree with the its fruit,And let us cut him off from the land of the living,That his name may be no more remembered.”The result was that he was completely taken by surprise when he learned, possibly from a disciple or a well-wisher, that they were plotting to get rid of him. He depicts this in a touching simile. Most families had a pet lamb who lived in the house with the family, beloved of the children and feeling perfectly secure, for it was common practise (see 2 Samuel 12:3), as it would be later among the Arabs. But at some stage this little petted lamb would be taken totally by surprise and find itself being led to the slaughter as the equivalent of the fatted calf.

It would never have believed that it could come to this! And it was such surprise that Jeremiah felt.

He had felt that at least in his own home town he would be appreciated for what he was.But he discovered in one way or another that many in Anathoth were in fact plotting his death. They had taken up his picture of the destroyed olive tree and applied it to him. So, they asked each other, according to Jeremiah YHWH was going to destroy them like a fruitful olive tree by an invader was He? Well, let Jeremiah have some of his own medicine. He would now in his turn be destroyed like a tree with its fruit, and be cut off from the land of the living so that his name was no more remembered (he was unmarried and without children). Let him see how he liked it..Jeremiah 11:20‘But, O YHWH of hosts, who judges righteously,Who tries the heart and the mind,I will see your vengeance on them,For to you have I revealed my cause.’Shaken and greatly disturbed (it is possible that this was not long after the martyrdom of Uriah - Jeremiah 26:20-24) Jeremiah was freshly awakened to just how sinful the people had become in that they would even destroy YHWH’s prophet (who were usually seen as sacrosanct in Judah), and calls on YHWH to judge the situation before Him.

He ‘reveals his cause’ to Him, and calls on Him to ‘try the heart and mind’, both of himself and of the people. He knows that there can be only one verdict.

The people will be found guilty, and will be suitably punished.This verse is found repeated almost word for word (with a few slight changes) in Jeremiah 20:12. Compare also the similar ideas in Jeremiah 17:10. It is a recurrent theme.

Jeremiah 11:21-23

YHWH Declares The Death Sentence Against Anathoth (Jeremiah 11:21-23). Jeremiah 11:21-22‘Therefore thus says YHWH concerning the men of Anathoth, who seek your life, saying, “You shall not prophesy in the name of YHWH, that you die not by our hand.” Therefore thus says YHWH of hosts,YHWH’s response was to pronounce His verdict against the men of Anathoth who had threatened Jeremiah with death if he prophesied in the name of YHWH. The double repetition of ‘thus says YHWH’ confirms the emphasis and certainty of fulfilment of the verdict.Jeremiah 11:22-23“Behold, I will punish them.The young men will die by the sword,Their sons and their daughters will die by famine,And there will be no remnant to them,For I will bring evil on the men of Anathoth,Even the year of their visitation.”The sentence is one of death against the whole households of the would be murderers. Their young men of fighting age would die by the sword, their other young men and women would die through famine, no remnant of them would remain. For the year when YHWH would visit His judgment on the men of Anathoth was coming, and it would take the form of evil being brought on them in the form of devastating invasion. Thus the young men would die defending their homeland, and the famine would be at least partly the result of the marauding activities of the enemy, destroying them by fire after taking possession of such supplies of food as they required for their own use.