Week 21 - Jeremiah 10-14, John 20 (May 21-27)

Notes

JEREMIAH 10: IDOLS

3,400-year old Canaanite figurine found in a field by 7 year-old Ori Greenhut at Tel Rehov, Israel.

https://lukechandler.wordpress.com/2016/03/08/new-canaanite-idols-discovered/

Confronting God's people with their sins, was a primary role of a prophet.  Each prophet is addressing a certain set of behaviors, and you will notice that some of them are more focused on transgressions of morality and justice, while others are more focused on faithfulness in worship.  Jeremiah belongs to that latter category.  While Jeremiah does indict his audience for moral transgressions ( see Jeremiah 5:28 and elsewhere), he is more focused on idolatry and false worship.  Read below for the nature and practice of Idolatry in the ancient world from the IVP Bible Backgrounds Commentary:

Idols came in a variety of shapes and sizes in the ancient near east. They were typically carved of wood and overlaid with hammered-out sheets of silver or gold. Basically human in appearance, they had distinctive, even formalized poses, clothing and hair-styles. Images of deity in the were where the deity became present in a special way, to the extent that the cult statue became the god (when the god so favored his worshipers), even though it was not the only manifestation of the god. Rituals were performed to bring the god to life in its idol. As a result of this linkage, spells, incantations, and other magical acts could be performed on the image in order to threaten, bind or compel the deity. The idols then represent a world-view, a concept o deity that was not consistent with how Yahweh had revealed himself. The idol was not the deity, but the deity was thought to inhabit the image and manifest its presence and will through the image. The images (idols) of deities in Mesopotamia were fed, dressed and even washed daily. Food sacrifices were brought to the deity on a daily basis (and were no doubt eaten by the temple technicians). Other attendants were required to dress and undress the statue and still others were employed to wash the statue and transport it in times of celebration.

The depth of the Idolatry problem in Judah is described in stark terms in chapter 11

13 You, Judah, have as many gods as you have towns; and the altars you have set up to burn incense to that shameful god Baal are as many as the streets of Jerusalem.’

A Surprising command: “do not pray…”

(Jeremiah 7:16) “So do not pray for this people nor offer any plea or petition for them; do not plead with me, for I will not listen to you.”

(Jeremiah 11:14) “Do not pray for this people or offer any plea or petition for them, because I will not listen when they call to me in the time of their distress.

(Jeremiah 14:11) Then the Lord said to me, “Do not pray for the well-being of this people.

Twice in this week’s reading (and once in last week’s) Jeremiah is given a command that may have prompted a double-take when you were reading through. ‘do not pray for this people.’ In doing so, God is depicting just how far down the path of unfaithfulness his people have gone. They are beyond the point of avoiding the earthly consequences of their sin so God warns his prophet that praying for their deliverance would be a waste of time. Consider that the reign of Josiah (king of Judah) and the beginning of Jeremiah’s ministry were concurrent. During Josiah’s reign there is a revival of faithfulness in Judah when the king discovered the book of the law in the temple and reads it and purges the nation of all of their Idols. But even this revival would not change God’s mind about Judah’s fate and the consequences of the sins that they had piled up. It was, however, not without effect. God delays the coming wrath until after the lifetime of Josiah (and the reformed/obedient generation he influenced) because of their repentance. This promise is made in 2nd chronicles 34

22 Hilkiah and those the king had sent with him went to speak to the prophet Huldah, who was the wife of Shallum son of Tokhath, the son of Hasrah, keeper of the wardrobe. She lived in Jerusalem, in the New Quarter.

23 She said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Tell the man who sent you to me, 24 ‘This is what the Lord says: I am going to bring disaster on this place and its people—all the curses written in the book that has been read in the presence of the king of Judah. 25 Because they have forsaken me and burned incense to other gods and aroused my anger by all that their hands have made, my anger will be poured out on this place and will not be quenched.’ 26 Tell the king of Judah, who sent you to inquire of the Lord, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says concerning the words you heard: 27 Because your heart was responsive and you humbled yourself before God when you heard what he spoke against this place and its people, and because you humbled yourself before me and tore your robes and wept in my presence, I have heard you, declares the Lord. 28 Now I will gather you to your ancestors, and you will be buried in peace. Your eyes will not see all the disaster I am going to bring on this place and on those who live here.’”

JEREMIAH: faithful amongst false prophets

We see Jeremiah lamenting the presence of many false prophets in Judah in chapter 14

13 But I said, “Alas, Sovereign Lord! The prophets keep telling them, ‘You will not see the sword or suffer famine. Indeed, I will give you lasting peace in this place.’” 14 Then the Lord said to me, “The prophets are prophesying lies in my name. I have not sent them or appointed them or spoken to them. They are prophesying to you false visions, divinations, idolatries and the delusions of their own minds.

Not only are there false prophets out there giving conflicting messages to Jeremiah’s own but he himself is being persecuted as a false prophet. This week we read of God protecting Jeremiah from an assassination attempt in chapter 11 by revealing his enemies’ plans to him ahead of time. Here is how the situation is described:

21 Therefore this is what the Lord says about the people of Anathoth who are threatening to kill you, saying, “Do not prophesy in the name of the Lord or you will die by our hands”—

It seems like these people are treating Jeremiah* as the false prophet instead of the many false prophets that Jeremiah complains to God about in Chapter 14.

“Elsewhere in scripture those who prophesied falsely were legally put to death. Prophecy was a vocation employed thorughout the Ancient Near East, but capital punishment for false prophecy is known primarily from Israel. Nevertheless the men of Anathoth have not suggested that Jeremiah’s prophecies are false. Their threats seek simply to silence him. Speaking a prophecy was a means of effectuaing it, so they believe tht by silencing him, they can prevent the disasters he is announcing from taking place”

IVP Bible Backgrounds Commentary p. 652

John 20: Mary At the tomb

The nearest of kin would remain home mourning for seven days; Mary Magdalene, who might have grieved as much as the family, might have remained inside had it not been necessary to complete the work left unfinished due to the sabbath (19:42). But Jewish mourners as well as pagans were often known to visit tombs within the three days after the burial.

The first day of the week began at sundown on what we would call Saturday night, so the sabbath had ended hours before she approaches the tomb; going out at night, however, was rare. Although not coming at night, Mary does not wait till full light of dawn; that she would approach the tomb before daylight demonstrates her eager devotion to Jesus. Disk-shaped stones were often rolled in front of the entrances of tombs and were so heavy that they frequently required several men to roll them away.

Keener, Craig S.. The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament (p. 309). InterVarsity Press.

John 20: The witness of a woman

John records Mary Magdelene as the first witness to the resurrected Jesus

16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”).

Check out this note from the Handbook of Christian Apologetics (Kreeft & Tacelli 2003, p. 77)

A little detail, seldom noticed, is significant in distinguishing the Gospels from myth: the first witnesses of the resurrection were women. In first-century Judaism, women had low social status and no legal right to serve as witnesses. If the empty tomb were an invented legend, its inventors surely would not have had it discovered by women, whose testimony was considered worthless. If, on the other hand, the writers were simply reporting what they saw, they would have to tell the truth, however socially and legally inconvenient.