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JEREMIAH 12

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PARAGRAPH DIVISIONS OF MODERN TRANSLATIONS

(The parentheses represent poetic literary units)

NASB NKJV NRSV TEV NJB
Jeremiah’s Prayer Jeremiah’s Question The Prosperity of the Wicked Jeremiah Questions the Lord Jeremiah’s First Personal Lament
(11:18-12:6)
12:1-4
(1-4)		 12:1-2
(1-2)		 12:1-3
(1-3)		 12:1-4
(1-4)		 12:1-4
(1-4)
  12:3-4
(3-4)		      
    12:4a    
  The Lord Answers Jeremiah 12:4b-5
(4b-5)		    
12:5-6
(5-6)		 12:5-6
(5-6)		   12:5-6
(5-6)		 12:5-6
(5-6)
    12:6    
God’s Answer   Yahweh Laments His Ravaged Inheritance The Lord’s Sorrow Because of His People God’s Lament
12:7-13
(7-13)		 12:7-9
(7-9)		 12:7-13
(7-13)		 12:7-13
(7-13)		 12:7-13
(7-13)
  12:10-13
(10-13)		 The Neighboring Peoples: Their Judgment and Salvation The Lord’s Promise to Israel’s Neighbors Judah’s Neighbors
12:14-17 12:14-17 12:14-17 12:14-17 12:14-17

READING CYCLE THREE (see
“Bible
Interpretation Seminar”)

FOLLOWING THE ORIGINAL AUTHOR’S INTENT AT PARAGRAPH LEVEL

This is a study guide commentary, which
means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the
light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not
relinquish this to a commentator.

Read the chapter in one sitting. Identify the subjects (reading cycle #3). Compare
your subject divisions with the five translations above. Paragraphing is not inspired, but it is
the key to following the original author’s intent, which is the heart of interpretation. Every
paragraph has one and only one subject.

WORD AND PHRASE STUDY

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: JEREMIAH 12:1-4
1Righteous are You, O Lord, that I would plead my case with You;
Indeed I would discuss matters of justice with You:
Why has the way of the wicked prospered?
Why are all those who deal in treachery at ease?
2You have planted them, they have also taken root;
They grow, they have even produced fruit.
You are near to their lips
But far from their mind.
3But You know me, O Lord;
You see me;
And You examine my heart’s attitude toward You.
Drag them off like sheep for the slaughter
And set them apart for a day of carnage!
4How long is the land to mourn
And the vegetation of the countryside to wither?
For the wickedness of those who dwell in it,
Animals and birds have been snatched away,
Because men have said, “He will not see our latter ending.”

12:1 “Righteous” See SPECIAL
TOPIC: RIGHTEOUSNESS.

▣ “are You” YHWH is righteous which denotes His justice. This is one aspect of His character.

SPECIAL
TOPIC: CHARACTERISTICS OF ISRAEL’S GOD (OT)

▣ “I would plead my case with You” This chapter has three poetic strophes. The first
two (Jer. 12:1-4; 5-6) are part of Jeremiah’s first confession starting in Jer. 11:18. It is presented as a court
case (as is Jeremiah 2).

Jeremiah almost seems to border on blasphemy in his dialog with God, therefore, the
two Jewish exegetists in the Middle Ages, Rashi and Kimchi, try to explain away Jeremiah’s hard words. Rashi
says that he asked God to know God’s ways, while Kimchi says he asked because the prophet was confused. To
me the depth of Jeremiah’s emotions directed toward God are a sign of their deep interpersonal relationship. I
believe God prefers our heartfelt thoughts to false piety!

▣  “Why has the way of the wicked prospered?

Why are all those who deal in treachery at ease” These are in a Hebrew
synonymous parallel relationship (see
SPECIAL TOPIC: HEBREW
POETRY). This is a major theological question because it seems to be exactly opposite to the Mosaic Law
and Psalm 1. Humans have always struggled with the unfairness of life (cf. Job. Psalm 73; Habakkuk;
Mal. 3:13-15). Psalm 37:7-9 is a good summary of the Bible’s advice in this area.

12:2 “You have planted them” YHWH created a nation out of the seed of Abraham
(cf. Gen. 12:1-3; 15:12-21). He created/planted (cf. Jer. 11:17) them to be a light to the world, but
they became evil and reflected the character of the fallen world instead of YHWH (cf Ezek. 36:22-38).

SPECIAL TOPIC: YHWH’S ETERNAL
REDEMPTIVE PLAN

▣ “You are near to their lips

But far from their mind” They had religion but not relationship
(cf. Isa. 29:13; Ezek. 33:30-33; Rom. 2:17-29; 2 Tim. 3:5).

12:4 “You know me, O Lord“ The Hebrew word “to know” emphasizes
intimate personal relationship (cf. Gen. 4:1; Jer. 1:5). Jeremiah was confident that God knew his motives
and his heart (cf. Ps. 139:1,23).

SPECIAL TOPIC: KNOW

▣ “Drag them off” The last two lines of Jer. 12:3 have two parallel IMPERATIVES.

  1. “drag them off” ‒ BDB 683, KB 736, Hiphil IMPERATIVE
  2. “set them apart” (lit. “sanctify”) ‒ BDB 872, KB 1073, Hiphil IMPERATIVE

Both call on God (IMPERATIVES OF REQUEST) to actively judge the
wickedness of His own people (cf. Amos 3:2; 1 Pet. 4:17).

Jeremiah is much like David (i.e., some Psalms, note Ps. 139:19-22); he is very forceful in his request
for vengeance.

▣ “How long is the land to mourn” Judah’s wickedness causes the curses of Leviticus 26 and
Deuteronomy 27-28 to fall on Palestine (cf. Hosea 4:1-3). The land of milk and honey has no produce nor flocks! This
is exactly the opposite of what YHWH wanted to do!

The same question, “how long,” was also asked by Isaiah in Isa. 6:11-13! Judgment
is coming on God’s covenant people.

The sin of Adam and Eve brought about the disruption of the normal cycles of nature
(cf. Rom. 5:12-21; 8:18-25). This is not the world God intended it to be (see John W. Wenham, The
Goodness of God and The Enigma of Evil: Can We Believe in the Goodness of God).

SPECIAL TOPIC: THE FALL

▣ “Because men have said, ‘He will not see our latter ending'” This line can have two meanings.

  1. the prophets are giving a false message of peace and prosperity (cf. Jer. 5:31)
  2. the Judean people do not believe YHWH will act against them because of
    1. Abrahamic covenant
    2. the presence of the temple (cf. Jeremiah 7)

There are two textual issues.

  1. who does “he” refer to
    1. Jeremiah ‒ “he” (ambiguous, UBS Text Project, p. 213, gives it a “C” rating)
    2. God ‒ LXX, NRSV, TEV, NJB, REB
  2. how to translate the last words
    1. our ways (ארחותנו) ‒ LXX, NJB, REB
    2. our latter end (אחריתנו) ‒ MT, NASB, NKJV, JPSOA
    3. our fate ‒ NRSV

The NET Bible (p. 1323) adds an interesting thought that this line may relate to Deut. 32:20.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: JEREMIAH 12:5-6
5“If you have run with footmen and they have tired you out,
Then how can you compete with horses?
If you fall down in a land of peace,
How will you do in the thicket of the Jordan?
6For even your brothers and the household of your father,
Even they have dealt treacherously with you,
Even they have cried aloud after you.
Do not believe them, although they may say nice things to you.”

12:5-6 God is telling Jeremiah (cf. TEV, JPSOA footnote), if you cannot handle the
pressure from your hometown, how are you going to handle the pressure from Jerusalem? In reality,
God is saying, Jeremiah, are you too impatient or too sensitive? If you think this is bad now, you
have seen nothing yet! Problems cause us to depend on God — trials are for training (cf. Heb. 5:8)!

SPECIAL TOPIC: WHY DO
CHRISTIANS SUFFER?

12:6
NASB   ”Even they have cried aloud after you”
NKJV   ”yes, they have called a multitude after you”
NRSV   ”they will pursue you in full cry”
TEV   ”they join in the attacks against you”
LXX   ”they too shouted; they were gathered behind you”
JPSOA   ”they cry after you as a mob”
Peshitta   ”yea, they also have gossiped about you”

The MT is ambiguous. The context suggests that after he preached, they
(his hometown tribal friends and relatives) chased after him condemning him loudly.

▣ “Do not believe them” The VERB (BDB 52, KB 63) is
a Hiphil JUSSIVE. Be careful of the flattery of wicked people
(cf. Jer. 9:8; Ps. 28:3; Pro. 26:23,25). Kind words often hide an agenda (cf. Ps. 12:6-8)! The
self centeredness of the Fall is a perennial flower.

It seems that Jer. 12:6, lines 1-3, relates to negative things said and done
against Jeremiah by his hometown. However, the last line deals with their flattery!

SPECIAL
TOPIC: BELIEVE, TRUST, FAITH AND FAITHFULNESS IN THE OT

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: JEREMIAH 12:7-13
7“I have forsaken My house,
I have abandoned My inheritance;
I have given the beloved of My soul
Into the hand of her enemies.
8My inheritance has become to Me
Like a lion in the forest;
She has roared against Me;
Therefore I have come to hate her.
9Is My inheritance like a speckled bird of prey to Me?
Are the birds of prey against her on every side?
Go, gather all the beasts of the field,
Bring them to devour!
10Many shepherds have ruined My vineyard,
They have trampled down My field;
They have made My pleasant field
A desolate wilderness.
11It has been made a desolation,
Desolate, it mourns before Me;
The whole land has been made desolate,
Because no man lays it to heart.
12On all the bare heights in the wilderness
Destroyers have come,
For a sword of the Lord is devouring
From one end of the land even to the other;
There is no peace for anyone.
13They have sown wheat and have reaped thorns,
They have strained themselves to no profit.
But be ashamed of your harvest
Because of the fierce anger of the Lord.”

12:7-13 This is written in a characteristic poetic form which has three beats followed by two
beats, denoting a funeral dirge or lament. The VERBS, all mostly PERFECTS, denote
a completed action. YHWH’s attitude is set on judgment because Judah’s attitude is set on sin! In this
section God is described as a broken-hearted husband (i.e., “I have come to hate her,” Jer. 12:8). This is
very similar to Jer. 8:18-9:16 and Hos. 11:8,9.

One wonders if Jer. 12:7-8 is theologically related to Jer. 12:5-6. As Jeremiah was
painfully and loudly rejected by his own hometown, YHWH is rejected by His own. As Jeremiah’s
hometown “cries” against him, YHWH’s people “roar” against Him. It is possible that Jer. 12:6, line 3,
is a hunting metaphor, if so, then the animals searching prey in Jer. 12:9 are a literary parallel.

Notice the series of covenant terms used by God to describe Judah:

  1. “My house” (cf. Jer. 11:15; Hosea 8:1; 9:15)
  2. “My inheritance” (cf. Jer. 12:7,8,9; 2:7; 50:11)
  3. “Beloved of My soul” (cf. Jer. 11:15)
  4. “My vineyard” (cf. Isaiah 5)
  5. “My pleasant field” (cf. Jer. 3:19)

12:7 Notice the parallelism of. Jer. 12:7. YHWH has

  1. forsaken ‒ BDB 736, KB 806, Qal PERFECT
  2. abandoned ‒ BDB 643, KB 695, Qal PERFECT
  3. given ‒ BDB 678, KB 733, Qal PERFECT

His people into the hand (see
SPECIAL TOPIC: HAND) of foreign invaders!

12:8-9 YHWH has rejected them because

  1. they became as a lion to Him, Jer. 12:8 (see
    SPECIAL TOPIC: LIONS IN THE OT)
  2. they became as a bird of prey, Jer. 12:9

The result is that YHWH’s love, mercy, and care have changed to “hate” (cf. Hos. 9:15; Amos 6:8).

SPECIAL TOPIC: GOD
DESCRIBED AS HUMAN

12:9 “My inheritance like a speckled bird of prey to Me” The interpretive question is about the word
“speckled” (BDB 840, KB 997), which is found only here. It can denote colored (BDB 840, cf. Jdg. 5:30), therefore,

  1. hyena (LXX, REB)
  2. speckled bird of prey (NRSV, NKJV, Peshitta)

JPSOA translates the phrase as “like a bird of prey [or] hyena” (cf. NJB). The LXX
translates it as “a hyena’s cave.” The UBS Text Project gives “speckled” an A Rating, but suggests
translating it as (“is my heritage to me) a hyena’s lair (with birds of prey [hovering] all about it,” p. 214).
This is how REB translates it. The consonants are the same in #1 and #2, only vowels are different.

The enemies described here seem to refer to the surrounding nations which
were a part of the mercenary army of Neo-Babylon (cf. 2 Kgs. 24:2).

▣ The last two lines of Jer. 12:9 have three IMPERATIVES which are the
consequences of covenant violations (cf. Deut. 28:64). The birds and beasts shall eat the flesh
of the fallen of Judah (cf. Jer. 7:33; 15:3; 16:4; 19:7; 34:20; Ps. 79:2; Isa. 18:6; 56:9).

  1. go ‒ BDB 229, KB 246, Qal IMPERATIVE
  2. gather ‒ BDB 62, KB 74, Qal IMPERATIVE
  3. bring ‒ BDB 87, KB 102, Hiphil IMPERATIVE

12:10 “Many shepherds have ruined My vineyard” “Shepherds” refers to the spiritual leaders
of Judah (cf. Jer. 2:8; 10:21; Ezek. 34:1-10). But, because of the context, it could refer to foreign alliances (cf. Jer. 6:3).

12:11 “it mourns before Me

 The whole land has been made desolate” There is a repetition of the
root שמס (BDB 1031, cf. Jer. 12:10, line 4).

  1. a FEMININE SINGULAR NOUN ‒ BDB 1031
  2. a FEMININE SINGULAR ADJECTIVE ‒ BDB 1031
  3. a Niphal PERFECT VERB ‒ BDB 1030, KB 1563)

The NASB Study Bible (p. 1075, footnote) mentions that in Jer. 12:11 there are
seven “s” sound words and seven “n” sound words.

SPECIAL TOPIC: HEBREW POETRY

▣ Here again (cf. Jer. 12:4) is the theological emphasis on the land (personified) being
affected by human sin (cf. Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 27-28; Rom. 5:12-21; 8:18-22).

▣ “Because no man lays it to heart” This line can have one of two orientations.

  1. Judah sinned and did not repent so the land suffered (cf. Isa. 42:25).
  2. There was no righteous person to intercede on Judah’s behalf (cf. Jer. 5:1; Isa. 59:16; Ezek. 22:30).

12:12 “On all the bare heights in the wilderness” This could refer to

  1. judgment coming from the desert winds, cf. Jer. 4:11-13
  2. the place of Ba’al worship, cf. Jer. 2:20; 3:2,6; 17:2; Deut. 12:2-3
  3. invaders capturing the “caravan trails” (see NASB, NJB footnote) or passes
    (heights, BDB 1046, cf. Jer. 14:6) through the Judean highlands

▣ “a sword of the Lord is devouring” Remember, this was not
the power of the foreign invaders or their gods, but the punishing power of YHWH (cf. Jer. 51:15-23; Isa. 10:5).

▣ “There is no peace for anyone” This may be a play on the message of the false prophets
who said “Peace, peace” (cf. Jer. 8:11). The term “anyone” is literally “all flesh” and could refer to animals
and humans. All were suffering because of Judah’s idolatry.

SPECIAL TOPIC: PEACE (OT)

12:13 “They have sown wheat and have reaped thorns” There have been three ways to understand this.

  1. The farmers sowed but because of the invasion there was no one to work the fields so weeds
    and thorns flourished (cf. Lev. 26:16; Deut. 28:38).
  2. There was a series of drought seasons (cf. Jer. 12:4; 14:2-4).
  3. Human effort without God will come to naught (cf. Ps. 108:12; 127:1-2).

▣ “But be ashamed of your harvest” This is a Qal IMPERATIVE
(BDB 101, KB 116) which refers to their idolatry. They were reaping the results of willful, continual
covenant violations (cf. Jer. 11:20; 17:10).

SPECIAL TOPIC: SHAME

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: JEREMIAH 12:14-17
14Thus says the Lord concerning all My wicked neighbors who strike at the inheritance with which I have endowed My people Israel, “Behold I am about to uproot them from their land and will uproot the house of Judah from among them. 15And it will come about that after I have uprooted them, I will again have compassion on them; and I will bring them back, each one to his inheritance and each one to his land. 16Then if they will really learn the ways of My people, to swear by My name, ‘As the Lord lives,’ even as they taught My people to swear by Baal, they will be built up in the midst of My people. 17But if they will not listen, then I will uproot that nation, uproot and destroy it,” declares the Lord .

12:14-17 This is an extremely important section which deals not only with the judgment
on the surrounding nations which have participated in or benefitted from the Babylonian invasion
of Judah, but also the hope of their incorporation one day into the people of God. This is a
wonderful passage which shows clearly that God desires all humans to be a part of His
covenant people. See SPECIAL TOPIC: YHWH’S
ETERNAL REDEMPTIVE PLAN.

There is a repeated use of “uprooted” (BDB 684, KB 737), the opposite of “planted” (see 1:10).

  1. surrounding nations will be uprooted, Jer. 12:14
  2. Judah will be uprooted, Jer. 12:14
  3. after uprooting them YHWH will have compassion (BDB 933, KB 1216, Piel PERFECT), Jer. 12:15
  4. if they will not listen then He will uproot
    1. that nation, Jer. 12:17
    2. uproot and destroy it, Jer. 12:17

12:14 “all My wicked neighbors who strike at the inheritance” We know from history that nations
like Edom and probably some of the other surrounding nations (i.e., Ammon, Jer. 49:1; Moab, Zech. 2:8-11)
became mercenaries in the Babylonian army, and even participated in the siege of Jerusalem and its plunder.

▣ “Behold I am about to uproot them” This is a metaphor used quite often in the book
of Jeremiah to describe the work of the prophet (cf. Jer. 1:10; 18:7).

12:15 “I will again have compassion on them; and I will bring them back” This is a tremendous
statement of hope of restoration, not only for Judah, but for Gentiles as well. This universal theme
is found several times in the book of Jeremiah, 3:17,19; 4:2; 16:19; 48:47; 49:6,39. This reflects the
recurrent universal theme of the prophet Isaiah (cf. Jer. 2:2-4; 12:4-5; 19:16-25; 25:6-9; 42:6-12; 45:22-23;
49:5-6; 51:4-5; 56:6-8; 60:11-14).

SPECIAL TOPIC: YHWH’S
ETERNAL REDEMPTIVE PLAN

12:16 “they will really learn the ways of My people, to swear by My name” The use of YHWH’s name
was part of the regular worship liturgy of the temple (cf. Jer. 4:2; Deut. 6:13; 10:20; Isa. 65:16; Joel 2:32;
Acts 2:21; Rom. 10:9-13).

Notice that the Lord’s compassion (Jer. 12:15) is conditional on “if they will really learn the ways of My people.”

  1. “really learn” ‒ this is the intensified form of an INFINITIVE ABSOLUTE and
    an IMPERFECT VERB from the same root (BDB 540, KB 531, cf. Isa. 42:6; 49:6)
  2. notice Judah’s faith was meant to be a light and learning for the nations (cf. Ezek. 36:22-38)

SPECIAL TOPIC: CALL ON THE NAME

▣ “As the Lord lives” This reflects the covenant name for God, YHWH, from
the Hebrew VERB “to be,” Exod. 3:14.

SPECIAL TOPIC: NAMES FOR DEITY, D.

▣ “to swear by Baal” See
SPECIAL TOPIC: FERTILITY
WORSHIP OF THE ANE

▣ “they will be built up in the midst of My people” The VERB “build”
(BDB 124, KB 139, Niphal PERFECT) is used several times to describe Jeremiah’s ministry
(cf. Jer. 1:10; 18:9; 24:6; 30:18; 31:4,28; 32:31; 33:7; 42:10; 45:4). It can be used in a positive or negative way.

12:17 The conditional nature of biblical covenants is repeated (i.e., Deut. 30:1-10).

SPECIAL TOPIC: COVENANT

▣ “uproot” This is an INFINITIVE ABSOLUTE and a PERFECT VERB of
the same root (BDB 684, KB 737), which denotes intensity. YHWH is abrogating His covenant with Abraham’s seed! In
their idolatry they could not reveal YHWH to the nations (cf. Ezek. 36:22-36). God’s people had forgotten their evangelistic purpose!

 

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