JEREMIAH, PROPHECY OF (ante), though not arranged in the order in which it was delivered may be divided, with some degree of correctness, by the aid of time marks which some of the chapters supply. The introduction contains the title of the book, the period during which its prophecies were spoken; Jeremiah's call to the prophetical office; emblems indicating to him that the judgme As to be denounced, coming from the north, would in executed quickly and would be severe; and the exhortation to him to be diligent, faithful, and confident in the protection of God. Part I., comprising prophecies delivered during 18 years of Josiah's reign. The Lord, recounting the loving relations between himself and Isrteel, reproaches them for having forsaken him and exhorts them to return; Judah is charged with being even more guilty than Israel, Israel, exhorted to repent. is promised a time of deliverance; Judah and Jerusalem are urged to avert, by immediate repentance, the Babylonian invasion which, otherwise, would speedily come, inflicting misery on the people and desolation on the land; are warned not to believe the flattering words of false prophets, or trust to the sacredness of the temple as a ,defense against the divine judgments; are reminded of the transgres sions and idolatries of which they were guilty, notwithstanding the divine instructions and blessings; the desolation of Jerusalem and the other cities of Judah, declared; the confidence of the Jews, as possessors of the law which they transgressed, pronounced vain; Jeremiah overwhelmed with sorrow in view of the calamities which he is com pelled to foretell; the vain splendor of idols contrasted with the majesty of God; the terms of the covenant with the people, again declared; condemnation for violating them; destruction pronounced on those who threaten the prophet; Jeremiah, acknowledging the righteousness of the Lord, pleads with him concerning the apparent prosperity of the wicked. and is assured that it will soon come to an end, and that lasting peace can he obtained only by righteous obedience. Part II. Prophecies during the 11 years of Jelmiakim's reign. The destruction of the pride and grandeur of the land foretold under the emblems of it decayed girdle and of bursting wine bottles; the king and queen called on to humble themselves because of the approaching captivity of themselves and their land; a grievous famine predicted, leading to the prophet's confession of the people's sin and his entreaty for theiriergiveneSs„and followed Wite;495rratieCthat they had become incorrigible and that prayer for them could not avail; the certainty of their doom illustrated by the prohibition of marriage and of feasting; their ultimate restoration to their laud promised; confidence in man condemned and trust in God commended; Mesa lugs promised to those who hallowed the Sabbath and judgments pronounced on those who profaned it; a potter working in clay used as an emblem of God's sovereignty in averting threatened judgments when nations repent, and withholding promised blessings when they transgress; the Jews, exhorted to avert judgments from themselves by return ing to God, refuse, and conspire against Jeremiah's life; his prayer for the interposition of God against them; the breaking of a potter's vessel, in the sight of the princes and priests, as a symbol of the destruction of Jerusalem; the condemnation of Pashur, who had charge of the temple, for his arrest of Jeremiah, and the emblematic name given him signifying " Terror is around," and prefiguring the captivity of himself, his friends, and the nation; Jeremiah's appeal to God for help under the burdens of his office, followed by lamentation over the day of his bir'h; the doom of Jehoiakim and his family pro nounced; a brighter day promised in the distant future under the reign of the righteous king of the family of David, whose name shall be "Jehovah our righteousness"; judg ments threatened against false prophets; Jeremiah arrested and declared worthy of death for having proclaimed the word of the Lord against Jerusalem; the obedience of the Rechabites to their father contrasted with the the people to God; the prophecies of Jeremiah against Jerusalem burned by the king and rewritten; Nebuchad nezzar's victories foretold over Egypt, Philistia. Tyre, _Moab, Ammon, Edon), Syria,
and Kedar. Part III. Prophecies during the 11 years of Zedekiah's reign. Conquest of Persia by the Chaldeans foretold, with promise of its final deliverance; the deliverance of the first captives in Babylon and the destruction of Zedekiah and his kingdom fore told under the emblem of good and bad figs; warning to the Jews that their captivity would not be brief, with the assurance of deliverance at the end of 70 years; their return, conversion to their Messiah, and subsequent happiness, promised; the destruc tion of Babylon foretold; Jeremiah cast into a miry dungeon, and released by the king's command; Zedekiah required to choose between safety for himself and the city if he submitted to the king of Babylon, and destruction to both if he continued to resist: his continued resistance resulting in his blindness and captivity; Jeremiah released by the conqueror's command, with the offer of kind treatment in Babylon or liberty to dwell anywhere else; his choice to continue with the remnant of the people, promising them safety and blessing if they remained at home, but pronouncing their destruction if they went down to Egypt; their persistence in going down, taking him with them.
After this, in the absence of certain knowledge concerning this prophet, there are conflicting traditions that he was stoned to death by his countrymen in Egypt; that he died there, broken down with sorrow; that he returned to Judea; and that he went to Babylon and died there.