Jeremiah14

Jeremiah 14 opens with a lament over a severe drought in Judah, causing widespread suffering among people and animals. Jeremiah intercedes, acknowledging the people's sin but appealing to God's name and covenant. However, the Lord declares He will not hear their prayers due to their persistent wandering and warns against false prophets who promise peace, stating they and their followers will perish by sword and famine. Jeremiah continues to mourn the impending judgment and again pleads for God's mercy, affirming His sole power over creation.
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The Great Drought

1
This is the word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah concerning the drought: ​
2
“Judah mourns and her gates languish. Her people wail for the land, and a cry goes up from Jerusalem. ​
3
The nobles send their servants for water; they go to the cisterns, but find no water; their jars return empty. They are ashamed and humiliated; they cover their heads. ​
4
The ground is cracked because no rain has fallen on the land. The farmers are ashamed; they cover their heads. ​
5
Even the doe in the field deserts her newborn fawn because there is no grass.
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Wild donkeys stand on barren heights; they pant for air like jackals; their eyes fail for lack of pasture.”

Acknowledgment of Sin and Prayer for Mercy

7
Although our iniquities testify against us, O LORD, act for the sake of Your name. Indeed, our rebellions are many; we have sinned against You. ​
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O Hope of Israel, its Savior in times of distress, why are You like a stranger in the land, like a traveler who stays but a night? ​
9
Why are You like a man taken by surprise, like a warrior powerless to save? Yet You are among us, O LORD, and we are called by Your name. Do not forsake us!

The LORD Rejects the People's Prayer

10
This is what the LORD says about this people: “Truly they love to wander; they have not restrained their feet. So the LORD does not accept them; He will now remember their guilt and call their sins to account.” ​
11
Then the LORD said to me, “Do not pray for the well-being of this people. ​
12
Although they may fast, I will not listen to their cry; although they may offer burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Instead, I will finish them off by sword and famine and plague.” ​

Jeremiah Intercedes Regarding False Prophets

13
“Ah, Lord GOD!” I replied, “Look, the prophets are telling them, ‘You will not see the sword or suffer famine, but I will give you lasting peace in this place.’” ​
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“The prophets are prophesying lies in My name,” replied the LORD. “I did not send them or appoint them or speak to them. They are prophesying to you a false vision, a worthless divination, the futility and delusion of their own minds. ​
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Therefore this is what the LORD says about the prophets who prophesy in My name: I did not send them, yet they say, ‘No sword or famine will touch this land.’ By sword and famine these very prophets will meet their end! ​
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And the people to whom they prophesy will be thrown into the streets of Jerusalem because of famine and sword. There will be no one to bury them or their wives, their sons or their daughters. I will pour out their own evil upon them. ​

Jeremiah’s Lament and the People’s Final Plea

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You are to speak this word to them: ‘My eyes overflow with tears; day and night they do not cease, for the virgin daughter of my people has been shattered by a crushing blow, a severely grievous wound. ​
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If I go out to the country, I see those slain by the sword; if I enter the city, I see those ravaged by famine! For both prophet and priest travel to a land they do not know.’”
19
Have You rejected Judah completely? Do You despise Zion? Why have You stricken us so that we are beyond healing? We hoped for peace, but no good has come, and for the time of healing, but there was only terror. ​
20
We acknowledge our wickedness, O LORD, the guilt of our fathers; indeed, we have sinned against You.
21
For the sake of Your name do not despise us; do not disgrace Your glorious throne. Remember Your covenant with us; do not break it. ​
22
Can the worthless idols of the nations bring rain? Do the skies alone send showers? Is this not by You, O LORD our God? So we put our hope in You, for You have done all these things. ​

Study Notes for Jeremiah 14

Verse 1

This chapter introduces a specific prophecy concerning a severe drought (dearth), which was understood as a direct covenant curse (Deut. 28:23-24) resulting from Judah’s persistent idolatry.

Verse 2

The 'gates thereof languish' describes the complete paralysis of civil life; the city gates were the centers for commerce, justice, and social gathering.

Verse 3

The failure of the nobles to find water, even sending their servants (little ones) to distant pits, illustrates the extreme societal breakdown and desperation caused by the famine.

Verse 4

The shame of the plowmen underscores the completeness of the agricultural disaster; the inability to work the land signified that the foundation of the economy and life itself had failed.

Verse 7

This is Judah’s first lament, acknowledging their sin while immediately appealing to God’s honor and reputation ('thy name’s sake') as the basis for receiving mercy.

Verse 8

The people challenge God, asking why He acts like a temporary guest or a 'stranger' rather than the ever-present Savior and protector of Israel.

Verse 10

God’s response indicates that their repentance is superficial; though they lament, their hearts still 'love to wander' into idolatry, meaning their formal rituals are rejected.

Verse 11

This is the second of three times (cf. 7:16; 11:14) that God explicitly forbids Jeremiah from interceding for Judah, signaling that the divine decision for judgment is final and irreversible.

Verse 12

God rejects their religious rituals (fasts, burnt offerings) because they are offered without genuine obedience or repentance, emphasizing that justice precedes ritual acceptance.

Verse 13

Jeremiah attempts to mitigate the judgment by shifting the blame to the false prophets, who were actively misleading the people by promising 'assured peace' (*shalom*).

Verse 14

The LORD condemns the false prophets sharply, noting that their messages are based on self-deception and unauthorized 'divination,' not divine command.

Verse 15

The punishment is perfectly fitting: those who promised safety from the sword and famine will themselves be consumed by those very curses.

Verse 16

A terrible aspect of the judgment is the lack of burial, which was considered the ultimate societal disgrace and a sign of utter rejection in the ancient Near East.

Verse 17

Jeremiah is commanded to embody the divine grief, weeping continually for the destruction of the 'virgin daughter of my people,' an image emphasizing Judah’s vulnerability and former status.

Verse 19

The people’s second lament questions God’s utter rejection, highlighting the painful contrast between their expectation of 'peace' and the reality of inescapable 'trouble.'

Verse 21

Appealing to the 'throne of thy glory' (likely the Temple in Jerusalem), they argue that destroying Judah and the Temple would bring disgrace upon God’s name among the surrounding nations.

Verse 22

This final verse serves as a powerful confession of monotheism, affirming that Yahweh alone controls creation (rain) and rejecting the 'vanities of the Gentiles' (idols), concluding their desperate plea with renewed commitment.

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