Comments on Jeremiah’s "Confessions"

Comments on Jeremiah’s "Confessions"

Confession #1: 11:18-23

The way Jeremiah now reads, this passage is the first of Jeremiah's confessions, the first of several heartfelt passages throughout the book where, speaking in first person, he presents his case to Yahweh. Here Yahweh has evidently revealed to Jeremiah (through some means or another) a plot against the prophet's life. This is quite possibly the first major threat to Jeremiah's life, and it brings with it a great insult. These were "men of Anathoth" plotting against Jeremiah, and Anathoth was Jeremiah's hometown!¹ And, as J. A. Thompson points out, "for any man of Israel, rejection by his society was a great grief."²

Moreover, these men make reference to destroying the "tree and its fruit," so that "his name be remembered no more." They no doubt meant that since Jeremiah had yet to marry and have offspring, by killing him they would end his line, which Thompson rightly calls "a tragic end for a man of Israel, for whom descendents demonstrated the divine blessing on his life."³

The people of Anathoth must have found Jeremiah's prophecies appalling and embarrassing to resort to murder. Because he prophesied the words of Yahweh, he was a disgrace to his home. "Little wonder," says Thompson, "that he fled to God in dismay and despair."⁴ As far as he was concerned, Yahwah was the reason he faced this problem; it was therefore Yahweh's responsibility to resolve the problem.

We see here the establishment of what we are going to call the "whining" theme. Jeremiah feels victimized and downtrodden, an unfair recipient of the injustice of the wicked, due entirely to his faithfulness in proclaiming the word of the Lord. The Lord, therefore, ought to turn the tables and deliver justice. And, in this case, he is probably afraid. If home is not safe, where is?

Yet, as in Job and some of the Psalms, we see a full confidence in God's ability to render justice. The very fact that he beseeches God, "let me see your vengeance upon them" indicates that he knows Yahweh is able to exact that vengeance. Jeremiah displays a confidence that has been slightly rattled, like a child when someone tells him something other than what his parents taught him. The child goes to his parents and says "isn't it so? Bob said it wasn't so, go tell him it's so." Reality is showing Jeremiah a different concept of justice than the concept he had believed God upheld, so he goes to God and says, "Aren't you just? Those men are wicked. Well?"

In this first of Jeremiah's laments, God gives a response that Thompson calls "decisive,"⁵ one that must have satisfied Jeremiah's longing for certain justice. God assures Jeremiah of justice, promising a severe punishment for these wicked men, remarkably strong in its thoroughness. Yahweh very rarely punishes so completely. When He says "Not even a remnant will be left," this is serious stuff.

Confession #2: 12:1-6

The occasion of this lament is unsure. Perhaps Jeremiah was feeling overwhelmed, perhaps he was impatient with God's apparently delayed justice, or perhaps he was just whining (again) about his mistreatment. Most likely it was not a specific event, but rather the culmination of Jeremiah's observations on the sad unfairness of life. In any event, its premise fundamentally addresses the problem of theodicy: "Why does the way of the wicked prosper? | Why do the faithless live at ease?" Jeremiah addresses a problem with the world that believers in God must address even today -- sometimes the wicked flourish, while the righteous are downtrodden, yet God promises justice. "Instead of the wicked," writes Thompson, "it was Jeremiah, the man called by God and the faithful servant of God, who was suffering."⁶

Jeremiah minces no words, bringing his "case" (legal terminology) before God, and requesting that God "drag them [the wicked] off like sheep to be butchered!" The "lamb to the slaughter" simile shows up again, but this time as an ideal for the fate of the wicked. Perhaps Jeremiah wanted lex talionis, an eye for an eye, and since the wicked had made him the helpless lamb, he felt God ought to do the same to them.

The tone of this lament seems a little more impatient. Certainly the words are strong, addressing God as though He were not holding up His end. In v. 1 Jeremiah displays again his love of justice, which may have been strengthened by the apparent dearth of said justice. Consistent with his love of justice is his focus on true worship; he is truly upset by fakes. Jeremiah points out false worship (cf. his well-known "temple sermon"), saying "You are always on their lips | But far from their hearts." This alone was enough, in Jeremiah's view, for them to be punished.

We must here mention that an Old Testament mindset pays little attention to an afterlife. When Jeremiah beseeched God for justice, he was not asking for a "final judgement" after the end of his life, or the world. He did not have a modern Christian's assurance of such a final judgement. Justice in his day was much more immediate. The Proverbs are full of this practical justice -- live righteously, and your life on Earth will be blessed. When the wicked were flourishing, this was seen as a serious problem in God's application of justice, and Jeremiah felt that God's reputation was at stake, and He ought to do something about it.

It is almost endearing how Jeremiah points out to God, "Moreover, the people are saying, 'He will not see what happens to us.'" This seems like a strong hint that God ought to show them that He does see, that He is in fact the all-seeing all-powerful God in which Jeremiah has placed confidence.

Now let us examine God's response. His response here is very different from His response to Jeremiah's first lament, and I'm sure Jeremiah found it very unsatisfactory. In God's first response, He promises the utter destruction of the wicked. This time He doesn't mention the wicked at all, instead merely gives Jeremiah a warning. "It will get worse," He basically says, "so quit whining and buck up." Thompson describes God's response as "vigorous metaphors," and is eloquent in describing the first of them:

The first metaphor is concerned with athletic prowess. If running a footrace had worn the prophet out, how would he hope to vie with horses? In this context running with men seems to refer to Jeremiah's encounters with other prophets. The other prophets, false prophets in Jeremiah's eyes, seem to have given him a 'good run' and to have provided strong opposition. But he had yet to compete with horses.⁷

Interestingly, God never mentions the wicked, while his first response was entirely assurance of the wicked's impending judgment. We might suggest, reading between the lines, that God had given Jeremiah assurance and the prophet did not need further reassurance; God's earlier word must still stand. "God's words to Jeremiah," observes Thompson, "were a warning to him both to be on his guard and to prepare for more severe trials yet to come."⁸ In human terms, this is an unsatisfactory response, because it doesn't answer the question asked. But it does show a parental concern for the prophet, warning him of danger.

Confession #3: 15:10-11

This is a short but intense lament, where Jeremiah wishes he'd never been born. Thompson points out that "to curse the day of his birth was tantamount to a rejection of his very mission" -- a very strong lament. Rather than focusing on the wicked, this lament is very inwardly focused. As opposed to his earlier charges that Yahweh make good on His promise of justice, this is more of a wallowing, Jeremiah feeling at war with the world and for no apparent reason. And in this case, when Jeremiah is feeling truly low, God answers Jeremiah, this time offering further reassurance of his earlier promise, and including this time a personal promise: "I will deliver you." God reminds Jeremiah of his earlier promise of future justice, and of the purpose in his calling. God's varying responses make these confessions truly an interesting study. Jeremiah says much of the same "whining" things, but God's responses differ, while always displaying a concern for His prophet.

Confession #4: 15:15-21

This is Jeremiah's most dangerous lament, and the only one which earns a rebuke from God. His previous feeling of worldly oppression grows bitter and turns outward towards God. The oppression is all for His sake, and in a sense God is answerable for it, so he grows impatient with Yahweh's delayed justice. His earlier righteous love of justice becomes entangled in his embittered sense of self-pity. Both laments are tied together.

Jeremiah briefly outlines his history, making his case, pointing out that he "never sat in the company of revelers," he "suffer[s] reproach." His lament culminates with the plea, "Why is my pain unending..? Will you be to me like a deceptive brook, like a spring that fails?" This after his earlier prophecies about the people of Israel digging broken cisterns (pursuing false gods) rather than drinking from the spring (following Yahweh).

It is remarkable that despite his bitterness towards God, Jeremiah turns to God to make his lament. Often, bitterness leads to a lack of communication. But as a pastor named Frank Logue once said, "God can deal with our anger better than our silence."

The response Yahweh gives may have satisfied Jeremiah. The prophet was clearly upset, and his laments to this point seemed intent on provoking Yahweh to action. Getting a rebuke from Yahweh was a kind of action, plus it provided Jeremiah with a direction. "If you repent," begins Yahweh, "I will restore you." And again, "If you utter worthy, not worthless words, you will be my spokesman." Yahweh goes on to describe how he will strengthen and aid Jeremiah in his calling, concluding with a promise of redemption: "I will save you from the hands of the wicked, and redeem you from the grasp of the cruel."

Jeremiah really gets off pretty easy. The rebuke was not very strong, couched in a conditional promise of restoration, and full of direction for the future. God's responses thus far have all been directed towards the future, while all Jeremiah's responses have been focusing on the present. Maybe sometime soon Jeremiah will get the picture. Also of note is the fact that God again mentions the wicked, but here He does not discuss their destruction. Yahweh promises not that He will punish the wicked, but rather that he will deliver Jeremiah from them.

Confession #5: 17:12-18

Confession #5 is something of a triumph. Particularly after the direction the last lament took, this is a refreshing change. Gone is the whiny self-pitying tone we've seen until now. Gone is the myopic focus on his own sufferings. "All who forsake you will be put to shame," declares Jeremiah confidently, looking toward the future for once. His focus, as often is the case (and probable occasion) for these laments, is the wicked, but we now see a new focus on Yahweh coming in alongside his focus on the wicked. "Those who turn away [the wicked]," declares Jeremiah, "will be written in the dust [future outlook], for they have forsaken the LORD, the spring of living water [no longer the deceptive brook]."

Jeremiah displays that same concern that God's justice is not presently evident (he's suffering and the wicked are not, yet he serves God and they do not), but now that he is finally understanding the future emphasis of God's justice, he is far less whiny. "There is an underlying confidence in Yahweh here," observes Thompson.⁹ This confession is perhaps the best example of Jeremiah's unwavering faith in God's existence and his power to affect all things in the world.

Significantly, Yahweh gives no response. Perhaps He smiled. Since Jeremiah begins to reflect Yahweh's ideas in this confession, Yahweh perhaps felt no need to offer those ideas to Jeremiah again.

Confession #6: 18:18-23

This confession is a reaction to the plots of the people to kill Jeremiah. Here Jeremiah reiterates his newfound confidence in Yahweh's future justice, while demonstrating his continuing concern at the success of the wicked. He here requests, "hear what my accusers are saying!" and follows their words with his requests for justice. His idea of justice is very stark. "Give their children over to famine," he asks. "Let their wives be made childless and widows; let their men be put to death... let a cry be heard from their houses." Jeremiah is asking for judgement on all aspects of the families; men, women and children, displaying the same "focus on the family" that shows up elsewhere (cf. 7:18). Thompson also mentions that "famine, death by the sword in battle, bereavement, and screams of terror were all concomitants of an enemy invasion," pointing out Jeremiah's sometime references to the "foe from the north."¹⁰

Some have observed that the plots against him indicate that his message is being heard and understood. Jeremiah reminds God of his service and, after venting a bit in anger that people actually want to kill him for doing what is right, he hands the wicked over to God.

Again, Yahweh offers no spoken response to this confidence, or if He did, it was not necessary for the readers of Jeremiah.

Confession #7: 20:7-13

Jeremiah's near bitterness surfaces again in this confession; it begins with strong words to Yahweh: "you deceived me" and expresses his feelings on the unfairness of his persecution for Yahweh's sake. "The word of the LORD has brought me insult and reproach all day long," he whines. The word of Yahweh which delights him in the end brings him only torment, and he is quite frustrated by this. He feels succored into the role of prophet against his will and against what is good for him.

The prophet's call is very poignantly described in this confession: "If I say, 'I will not mention him,'" says Jeremiah, "his word is like a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot." These are very colorful words presenting a powerful picture of the divine call.

Jeremiah was consistently in a position of conflict, particularly with Yahweh. Thompson is eloquent on this matter:

He was engrossed in controversy with Yahweh. His sensitive nature was deeply hurt by the ridicule and sarcasm with which his preaching was received by the people. But he could do no other because of his deep commitment to his prophetic vocation. He was under a profound compulsion to expose the nation's rejection of Yahweh and his covenant. Yet he loved his own people deeply. Little wonder that deep emotional tensions and conflicts arose within him which led him at times to give expressions to the intense feeling which is found in these poems.¹¹

Despite Jeremiah's frustration, his faith in God remains unshaken. He still believes in the future downfall of the wicked, saying "they will fail and be utterly disgraced." Perhaps his confident statements are a hopeful reminder to Yahweh, for Jeremiah longs to live to see God's justice. "Let me see your vengeance upon them," he asks again.

Unlike his earlier requests for vengeance, this confession concludes with praise, a ray of light at the end of the storm.

Confession #8: 20:14-18

In these words the spirit of the weeping prophet is laid bare at one of his particularly low moments. Unable to curse his actual parents,¹² he curses all the circumstances surrounding his birth. "Cursed be the day I was born!" he begins. He curses the man who told his father "A child is born to you" and wishes he had been killed at birth. Thompson remarks on Jeremiah's pitiless curse of an innocent man: "such an expression must owe more to literary convention that to actual hatred of an innocent man, but well shows the intensity of Jeremiah's despair."

This kind of bitter lament, regretting that he had ever lived, is one that humanity has expressed in some form or another through the ages. In colloquial terms, life sucks. A lot of the time the equasion of life adds up to a negative, which led the prophet Jeremiah to ask God why he was ever born. "To this poignant question Yahweh gave no answer," Thompson concludes. "But what answer could he give?"¹³

General reflections

Jeremiah's confessions all stem from Jeremiah's commitment to justice. Much of his lamentation is requesting that God make good on his word, that He prove to the people that the wicked will see judgement. While he would often assume a bit of a whiny tone, his laments by and large were not concerned solely with his own trouble. His desire for vengeance on the wicked stemmed from his indignation that people should behave contrary to the covenant and thrive, that those whose worship was false should find life so pleasurable. He was offended on behalf of himself, yes, but at the center he was offended on behalf of Yahweh. "It was not simply a matter of wounded pride demanding revenge," states Thompson, "but rather of Jeremiah's profound identification with Yahweh and the demands of the covenant."¹⁴

I was once asked by a Bible teacher, "do we have any rights?" And after much discussion, the teacher eventually argued that no, as Christians we do not. As Americans we are extended rights, but as Christians we know that we do not deserve any of God's mercies, from our eternal celestial future to our next breath. We are given them, not as our due, but as a gift. One cannot claim the right to a gift. The teacher's point was that if this mindset inundates our lifestyle, we will extend grace more readily and take offense at much less, since we really have no rights to be infringed. I thus found it interesting to see Jeremiah's perpetual indignation with the wicked, for their wickedness and its affront to Yahweh, which happened to take the form of persecuting the Lord's spokesman.

I mentioned above the notion that God would prefer our anger to our silence. I think we must qualify this with an understanding of one's relationship to Yahweh. In human relationships, close friends and loved ones are permitted to express frustrations and anger, since there is an understanding and a knowledge that such expressions are tempered by (or even a result of) love. One simply does not express anger to a stranger (at least not without presenting a very poor image). Jeremiah's laments are permissible because he had a close relationship with Yahweh. Indeed, Thompson claims that "only one who walked intimately with God would dare to speak as Jeremiah did."¹⁵

A further lesson we can learn from Jeremiah's voicings of his battles with despair and his prophetic call is the way he sank into bitterness. When Jeremiah's laments were focused mostly on his own sufferings, Yahweh became the caretaker reneging on his pledge, the guardian who failed to guard, the judge who was unrighteously lenient. Bitterness turns us towards worthless words.

It is only natural for mortal humanity to desire God's justice in the present. Jeremiah certainly wanted to "see" God's vengeance on the wicked. And I feel similarly at times; I want the final judgement to happen on a daily basis. But we, as modern Christians, have the assurance of that final judgement, not just in God's response to our first and third laments (and Jeremiah's, incidentally) but in the New Testament as well. We therefore have much less "right" to be impatient with the problem of theodicy.

The last reflection I will mention has to do with insecurity. Jeremiah was assured from his very first lament of the destruction of the wicked, without even a remnant left to them. Yet he kept asking God for the destruction of the wicked, despite that first assurance. Yahweh did not always answer him, certainly not always about the wicked, and when he did, it was usually to turn Jeremiah's attention toward the future (whether He was saying "it will get worse" or "I will deliver you"). But I think this insecurity is true of all of us. We believe what we see, and want ressurance of what we can't see. We don't see God's justice yet, so we want reassurance. Mothers are notorious for asking their children about details several times, just to make sure. Lovers want (maybe need?) to hear "I love you" over and over from their beloved, as though needing some kind of reassurance of something they already know. I believe Jeremiah's laments were mostly this kind of seeking reassurance. He never evidenced lack of confidence in God's ability to render justice, nor in His concept of justice itself. His laments were merely entreaties for reassurance of God's justice in his present, something I believe it is permissible for all believers to do. Provided we be on our guard against bitterness, and our focus remains on the future more than wallowing in our own insecurity, it is perfectly permissible (albeit unneccessary) for Christians to seek reassurance from God.

Footnotes

1 Interesting that some have drawn a parallel between Jeremiah and Christ due to the "lamb led to the slaughter" reference (cf. Isa. 53:7), and here we see Jeremiah rejected by his hometown, as Christ was rejected in Nazareth. Anathoth and Nazareth even sound similar...
2 Thompson, J. A. The Book of Jeremiah. William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company: Grand Rapids, MI. 1980. p. 350.
3 Ibid.
4 Ibid.
5 Ibid., 352.
6 Ibid., 354.
7 Ibid., 355.
8 Ibid., 356.
9 Ibid., 425.
10 Ibid., 442.
11 Ibid., 458.
12 "To curse either God or one's parents was a capital offense in Israel." (Thompson, 464)
13 Ibid., 464
14 Ibid., 442.
15 Ibid., 458.