← All Chapters The Book of Jeremiah · Chapter 11

Jeremiah 11: The Broken Covenant

God reminds Judah of the covenant they have broken, and Jeremiah learns of a plot on his life from the very men of his hometown.

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Jeremiah 11 (WEB)

1 The word that came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, saying,

2 Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem;

3 and say to them, Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel: Cursed is the man who doesn’t hear the words of this covenant,

4 which I commanded your fathers in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of the iron furnace, saying, Obey my voice, and do them, according to all which I command you: so you shall be my people, and I will be your God;

5 that I may establish the oath which I swore to your fathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, as at this day. Then answered I, and said, Amen, Yahweh.

6 Yahweh said to me, Proclaim all these words in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, saying, Hear the words of this covenant, and do them.

7 For I earnestly protested to your fathers in the day that I brought them up out of the land of Egypt, even to this day, rising early and protesting, saying, Obey my voice.

8 Yet they didn’t obey, nor turn their ear, but walked everyone in the stubbornness of their evil heart: therefore I brought on them all the words of this covenant, which I commanded them to do, but they didn’t do them.

9 Yahweh said to me, A conspiracy is found among the men of Judah, and among the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

10 They are turned back to the iniquities of their forefathers, who refused to hear my words; and they are gone after other gods to serve them: the house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken my covenant which I made with their fathers.

11 Therefore thus says Yahweh, Behold, I will bring evil on them, which they shall not be able to escape; and they shall cry to me, but I will not listen to them.

12 Then shall the cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem go and cry to the gods to which they offer incense: but they will not save them at all in the time of their trouble.

13 For according to the number of your cities are your gods, Judah; and according to the number of the streets of Jerusalem have you set up altars to the shameful thing, even altars to burn incense to Baal.

14 Therefore don’t pray for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them; for I will not hear them in the time that they cry to me because of their trouble.

15 What has my beloved to do in my house, since she has worked lewdness with many, and the holy flesh is passed from you? when you do evil, then you rejoice.

16 Yahweh called your name, A green olive tree, beautiful with goodly fruit: with the noise of a great tumult he has kindled fire on it, and its branches are broken.

17 For Yahweh of Armies, who planted you, has pronounced evil against you, because of the evil of the house of Israel and of the house of Judah, which they have worked for themselves in provoking me to anger by offering incense to Baal.

18 Yahweh gave me knowledge of it, and I knew it: then you showed me their doings.

19 But I was like a gentle lamb that is led to the slaughter; and I didn’t know that they had devised devices against me, saying, Let us destroy the tree with its fruit, and let us cut him off from the land of the living, that his name may be no more remembered.

20 But, Yahweh of Armies, who judges righteously, who tests the heart and the mind, I shall see your vengeance on them; for to you have I revealed my cause.

21 Therefore thus says Yahweh concerning the men of Anathoth, who seek your life, saying, You shall not prophesy in Yahweh’s name, that you not die by our hand;

22 therefore thus says Yahweh of Armies, Behold, I will punish them: the young men shall die by the sword; their sons and their daughters shall die by famine;

23 and there shall be no remnant to them: for I will bring evil on the men of Anathoth, even the year of their visitation.

Summary

God commands Jeremiah to proclaim the words of the covenant, the one God made with the fathers when he brought them out of Egypt, out of the iron furnace, calling them to obey his voice so that he would be their God. Jeremiah answers Amen, but the people, like their fathers, have walked in the stubbornness of their evil hearts and not obeyed, so the curses of the covenant fall on them. God reveals that a conspiracy exists among the men of Judah and Jerusalem; they have turned back to the iniquities of their forefathers and broken the covenant. Therefore he will bring disaster they cannot escape, and when they cry to their many gods, those gods will not save them. God tells Jeremiah again not to pray for this people, since he will not listen when their trouble comes. He once called them a green olive tree, beautiful with fruit, but now sets it ablaze. Then the chapter turns personal. Jeremiah learns that men are plotting to kill him, and he confesses he was like a gentle lamb led to the slaughter, unaware of their schemes to cut him off so his name would be remembered no more. Stunningly, the conspirators are the men of his own town, Anathoth, who warn him not to prophesy in the Lord's name. Jeremiah appeals to Yahweh of Armies, who judges righteously and tests the heart, and God promises to punish the men of Anathoth.

Voices

  • Yahweh (the LORD) — The covenant God who recalls the bond made at the Exodus, pronounces its curses on a people who broke it, and pledges to vindicate his persecuted prophet.
  • Jeremiah — The prophet who proclaims the covenant and then, like a gentle lamb led to slaughter, discovers a plot on his life and entrusts his cause to the righteous Judge.
  • The men of Anathoth — The people of Jeremiah's own hometown who conspire against him, warning him not to prophesy in Yahweh's name lest he die by their hand.

Key Verse

Jeremiah 11:19 (WEB)

But I was like a gentle lamb that is led to the slaughter; and I didn’t know that they had devised devices against me, saying, Let us destroy the tree with its fruit, and let us cut him off from the land of the living, that his name may be no more remembered.

Lessons Learned

  • God holds his people to the covenant they freely entered and repeatedly broke.
  • Idols multiply but cannot save when trouble finally comes.
  • Faithful servants of God may face opposition even from those closest to them.
  • When wronged, we can entrust our cause to the God who judges righteously and tests the heart.
  • God remembers his covenant. He calls them to “hear the words of this covenant” given when he led them from “the iron furnace” of Egypt (Jeremiah 11:3-4, WEB). God's commitments and his expectations endure.
  • Idols fail in the hour of need. Their many gods “will not save them at all in the time of their trouble” (Jeremiah 11:12, WEB). False refuges abandon us precisely when we need help most.
  • Faithfulness can provoke hostility. Jeremiah was “like a gentle lamb that is led to the slaughter” (Jeremiah 11:19, WEB), opposed even by his own townsmen, foreshadowing the Lamb of God.
  • We can leave vengeance to the righteous Judge. Jeremiah appeals to “Yahweh of Armies, who judges righteously, who tests the heart” (Jeremiah 11:20, WEB). We commit our cause to God rather than repay evil ourselves.
  1. What covenant does God call the people to remember, and how have they responded to it?
  2. Why will the people's many gods be unable to help them in trouble?
  3. How does Jeremiah describe himself when he learns of the plot, and who are the conspirators?
  4. How does Jeremiah respond to those who seek his life, and what does that model for us?
  5. When you face opposition for doing right, how can you entrust your cause to God rather than retaliate?
  1. God calls them to the covenant made at the Exodus, to obey his voice so he would be their God (11:3-4). Like their fathers, they have walked in the stubbornness of their hearts and broken it, so the covenant's curses now come upon them.
  2. When disaster comes they will cry to the gods to whom they burn incense, but those gods will not save them at all (11:12). Idols have no power to deliver; trusting them leaves people helpless in the day of trouble.
  3. Jeremiah says he was like a gentle lamb led to the slaughter, unaware of the schemes against him, and learns the plotters are the men of his own town, Anathoth (11:19, 21). The betrayal comes from those who should have supported him, anticipating the suffering of Christ.
  4. Rather than plotting revenge, Jeremiah appeals to Yahweh of Armies, who judges righteously and tests the heart, revealing his cause to God (11:20). He models entrusting injustice to the righteous Judge instead of taking matters into his own hands.
  5. This is a personal-application question. Invite members to recall opposition they have faced for doing right, and how they might commit it to God. As leader, point to Jesus, who when reviled did not revile in return but entrusted himself to the One who judges justly (1 Peter 2:23).

Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible (WEB), the King James Version (KJV), and the American Standard Version (ASV), all of which are in the public domain.