Overview of the Book of Jeremiah

The overview of the week for this Sunday is the book of Jeremiah. Jeremiah is known as the weeping prophet.

He also wrote the book of Lamentations. Jeremiah was both a prophet and a priest, and his ministry began in the 7th century

B .C. and spanned a period of over five decades. The book of Jeremiah, I think, has to be one of the most negative books in all of the

Bible because the theme of his preaching was warning and judgment. Jeremiah declared that if the people did not repent, then

God would bring destruction upon the nation. The Jews obviously didn't want to hear this, and because they didn't want to hear it, they persecuted the prophet

Jeremiah. They preferred instead to listen to the false prophets who spoke only good words, who preached peace, peace, when there was no peace.

Jeremiah was despised for preaching the word of God. He was threatened, tried for his life, put in stocks, and thrown into a pit, among other things.

Jeremiah mainly addressed the southern kingdom of Judah, but at times he addressed other nations as well.

Chapter 1 begins with Jeremiah's call, chapter 1, verse 4. Then the word of the

Lord came to me, saying, Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. Before you were born,

I sanctified you. I ordained you a prophet to the nations. Jeremiah then responds to the

Lord and says, I can't preach, I can't speak, for I am just a youth. I'm too young.

And the Lord responded and said, He said, Do not say that I am a youth, for you shall go to all to whom

I send you, and whatever I command you, you shall speak. Do not be afraid of their faces, for I am with you to deliver you, says the

Lord. A very significant part of Jeremiah's prophecy is found in chapter 31, where he speaks of the new covenant.

So it's interesting, in the Old Testament scriptures, the new covenant is prophesied.

So in conclusion, unfortunately, the nation did not heed his message.

Judgment came, the first temple, Solomon's temple, was destroyed as Jerusalem fell to the

Babylonians in the year 586 or 587 BC. The people were then carried away captive into Babylon for 70 years.