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Jeremiah Chapter Sixteen

1. The Lord provides Jeremiah with his next instructions (Jer. 16:1-9).
   1. No marriage life or family life for him (vv.1-4).
   2. No attending of funerals (vv.5-7).
   3. No attending of parties (vv.8-9).
2. The Lord provides Jeremiah with a response to deliver to Jerusalem’s question of “why?” The explanation is given in generational terms (Jer. 16:10-13).
   1. The Captivity Generation represents the worst apostasy up to that point—outdoing the Exodus Generation, the Wilderness Generation, the Give us a King Generation, and the Fall of Samaria Generation (Jer. 16:12-13 cf. 7:26).
   2. Even greater evil will be manifest by the Crucifixion Generation (Mt. 23:36; 27:25; Acts 2:40) and the Antichrist Generation (Mt. 10:23; 24:13-14,34).
3. The promise of restoration is given in comparison with—and superior to the Exodus (Jer. 16:14-21).
   1. The regathering is the work of fishermen and hunters (v.16).
   2. The regathering transpires after the double-discipline is applied (vv.17-18).
   3. Jeremiah’s song will be restored Israel’s song—we have been serving empty idols (vv.19-20).
   4. The Lord’s song will be the song He tried to teach them in the Exodus (v.21).

Jeremiah Chapter Seventeen

1. The Lord tries the heart (Jer. 17:10; cf. 1st Sam. 16:7; Prov. 16:2; 21:2; 24:12; Lk. 16:15) and has found Judah guilty (Jer. 17:1-4).
2. The Lord describes two men—one cursed and one blessed (Jer. 17:5-8).
3. The heart is a fallen wreck as the result of sin, and incapable of serving God (Jer. 17:9-18).
   1. More deceitful than all else (Jer. 17:9a).  עָקֹב ‘aqōb ^#6121: deceitful, sly; fr. עָקַב ‘āqab ^#6117: to supplant, overreach, attack at the heel.  Cf. יַעֲקֹב ya‘^aqōb ^#3290: Jacob, heel holder (Gen. 25:26).
   2. Desperately sick (Jer. 17:9b).  אָנַשׁ ’ānash ^#605: to be weak, sick, incurable; Rel. to אֱנָשׁ ’^enāsh ^#606 & אֱנׄושׁ ’^enowsh ^#582: man, human being, mankind.
   3. Only the Lord can know our heart, and redeem our heart (Jer. 17:9c,10).
      1. The throne and sanctuary of the Lord has been established from the beginning (Jer. 17:12).
      2. Forsaking the Lord and His provision of living water is the lost estate of sick, deceitful man (Jer. 17:13).
      3. Healing and salvation is entirely the work of God (Jer. 17:14).
      4. Once saved, the believer clings to the Lord for his daily provision and protection (Jer. 17:15-18).
4. Jeremiah is given a Sabbath message to deliver at the city gate (Jer. 17:19-27).
   1. Isaiah had previously addressed this issue (Isa. 56:2; 58:13).
   2. Nehemiah will later address this issue (Neh. 13:15-22).
   3. The Pharisees will totally pervert this issue (Jn. 5:10-18).

Jeremiah Chapter Eighteen

1. Jeremiah was assigned a field trip to the potter’s house for the purpose of receiving the full impact of the Lord’s next message (Jer. 18:1-6).
   1. The Lord delayed giving His message to Jeremiah, until he had seen the potter remake a spoiled vessel into another vessel for his own pleasure (vv.3-4).
   2. The Lord instructs Jeremiah that He is the potter, and Israel is the clay (vv.5-6; cf. Isa. 45:9; 64:8; Rom. 9:21).
2. The Lord described His procedures in delivering messages to nations (Jer. 18:7-17).
   1. Hostile messages (v.7) may produce repentance (v.8).
   2. Encouraging messages (v.9) may be followed by apostasy (v.10).
   3. The Lord’s hostile message to Jerusalem (v.11) failed to produce any repentance (v.12).
   4. The Lord described His astonishment at the appalling condition of Israel (vv.13-17; cf. Jer. 2:9-13).
3. Even while the Lord was teaching Jeremiah, the people of Jerusalem were determining to ignore anything that Jeremiah had to say (Jer. 18:18).
4. Jeremiah surrendered his enemies into the hands of the Lord for the execution of His vengeance (Jer. 18:19-23).

Jeremiah Chapter Thirty-Five

1. Chapter 35 is one of Jeremiah’s earliest messages, during the reign of King Jehoiakim (Jer. 35:1).
2. The Lord instructs Jeremiah to bring the Rechabites into the temple, and give them wine to drink (Jer. 35:2).
   1. רֵכָב rekāb ^#7394: rider, charioteer.
   2. The Rechabites were a clan within Israel that were forbidden to consume alcohol, or settle down in permanent dwellings (Jer. 35:6-7).
   3. This prohibition was a human requirement laid down under laws of establishment principles of family & nationalism (Jer. 35:8-10).
   4. Jonadab, the son of Rechab, was the founder of this clan (2nd Kgs. 10:15-23).
3. The Lord used the faithfulness of the Rechabites to establishment life obedience as an illustration of Israel’s faithlessness to spiritual life obedience (Jer. 35:12-19).