Jeremiah

🏛️ Historical context

He preached from King Josiah's reign to the destruction of Jerusalem by Babylon (587 BC). The kings trusted in Egypt and in the temple as a charm, while practising injustice.

🔙 Background

After Josiah's reform Judah returns to idolatry. God calls Jeremiah when he is very young.

🧭 Structure of the book

⭐ Key events and teachings

1. 1His call: "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you" (1:5)
2. 2Sermon against false trust in the temple (ch. 7)
3. 3Jeremiah's "confessions", his inner struggle (ch. 11-20)
4. 4Letter to the exiles: "Seek the welfare of the city" (ch. 29)
5. 5The new covenant written on the heart (31:31-34)
6. 6Jeremiah thrown into a cistern (ch. 38)

🏷️ Main themes

📖 Verses to memorize

• Jeremiah 1:5Before I formed thee in the bowels of thy mother, I knew thee: and before thou camest forth out of the womb, I sanctified thee, and made thee a prophet unto the nations.
• Jeremiah 17:7Blessed be the man that trusteth in the Lord, and the Lord shall be his confidence.
• Jeremiah 29:11For I know the thoughts that I think towards you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of affliction, to give you an end and patience.
• Jeremiah 31:3The Lord hath appeared from afar to me. Yea I have loved thee with an everlasting love, therefore have I drawn thee, taking pity on thee.
• Jeremiah 31:33But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel, after those days, saith the Lord: I will give my law in their bowels, and I will write it in their heart: and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

💭 For reflection

• Where do I place false security, as Judah did in the temple?
• What is the new covenant Jesus seals at the Last Supper?

Jeremiah, called when young, announces the fall of Jerusalem and suffers persecution for his faithfulness. In the midst of disaster, he promises a new covenant written on the heart.