Jeremiah and Lamentations

Jeremiah - the Prophet of sin and sorrow

Date

- Prophesied during the reign of Judah's last lings when the nation was falling to Babylon.

- 620-586 B.C.

Situation in Judah

- The prophet's ministry occurs during difficult and depressing times when the people of Judah refuse to repent despite his pleas to return to covenant living.

- The Babylonians have replaced the Assyrians as the world's great empire and they threaten tiny Judah.

- During the Prophet's tenure, God allows Babylon to make repeated attacks on Judah. On three occasions Jews are taken to Babylon as exiles. In the final route Jerusalem is decimated and the nation falls.

Message

- The prophet pleads with his people to repent of their sins but they do not. He is left as the lone voice of righteousness.

- More than any other prophet, he shows his personal struggles as the lone voice of God.

- The author exhibits his honesty, integrity, patience and commitment in the midst of extremely trying times when nobody will listen. He himself never lost hope in God even though he sorrowed deeply over the sinful conditions.

- Like all prophets, he challenged the people in their sin, warned of judgment by Babylon and offered hope for the future even through all the pain.

In the book of Lamentations he sorrows over Jerusalem's destruction. This book is lake an extended funeral dirge.

Audience

- The people of Judah and Jerusalem

Return to Old Testament from Jeremiah and Lamentations