Jeremiah 1 - Outline of Jeremiah (Book Notes menu page)
Please read the Introduction to Jeremiah before beginning the study (if you have not already done so).
 
I. The call of the prophet during the reign of Josiah (ch. 1)
A. The man and his times, v.1-3
 
B. The Lord's purpose for, and call of, Jeremiah (v.4-5)-
Before I formed thee, in the belly...
I knew thee, before thou camest forth out of the womb... (cp. Psa 139:13-16)
When does human life begin? at birth? at conception?
or, in eternity past, in the mind of God?
I sanctified thee...- ie., I set you apart for my service.
I ordained thee...- ie., I determined your specific role, and placed you in it:
"a prophet unto the nations"- Jeremiah would address Judah and the Gentile powers.
cp. Paul's calling, Gal 1:15-16 (separated... called... that I might preach...)
Jeremiah's name means "whom Jehovah has appointed."
 
C. An inadequate man learns that sufficiency is of God, v.6-10 (cp. 2Cor 3:5)
I am a child.- ie., a youth, a young man
See this word in Ex 33:11 (referring to Joshua) and also in Zech 2:4 (where an angel is told to speak to Zechariah).
Jeremiah was not saying that he was too young, but that he was inexperienced.
I cannot speak.- Jeremiah's protest reminds us of Moses.
But he raises a very different issue. (Moses distrusted his ability to speak. "I am not eloquent," Ex 4:10). Jeremiah says, in effect, "I am inexperienced, without standing in the community, having no authority to merit a hearing." Timothy had similar concerns (1Tim 4:12).
Say not I am a child... for I will send thee... whatsoever I command thee... I am with thee...
...I have put my words in thy mouth... I have set thee over the nations...
  • The authority of the messenger is in the One who sends him.
    (cp. Mat 28:18,19..."All power is given unto me... Go ye, therefore...")
  • The authority of the message is in the One whose Word it is.
    (cp Mat 28:20a... "whatsoever I have commanded you...")
be not afraid of their faces... I am with thee...
  • The assurance of the messenger is the Presence of the Lord.
    (cp. Mat 28:20b... "I am with you alway...")
  • The assurance of the message is the Power of the Lord to fulfill His Word.
    (cp. Mat 28:18... "all power is given unto Me...")
the LORD... touched my mouth... I have put my words in thy mouth... (cp. Isa 6:7; 51:16)
Because the Words which Jeremiah would speak were not his own, but God's Word, they could not fail. Rather, they would be fulfilled, both for judgment (root out, pull down, destroy) and for restoration (build, plant).
 
D. Confirmation and Commissioning of Messenger and Message, v.11-19
  1. The sign of an almond rod- v.11-12
    (A vision given to illustrate and confirm God's call to Jeremiah.)
    • the rod of an almond {HB= shaqed} tree - The first tree to bloom in the spring.
      The Hebrew word means "awake."
      Jeremiah's message would sound an alarm to the spiritually sleeping nation.
    • I will hasten {HB= shoqed, watch over} my word to perform it.-
      cp. Num 17:8, Aaron's rod had appeared as dead as all the others (Num 17:1-7), but the Lord made it to bud, blossom, and bring forth almonds.
      Though men disregard and discard God's Word as dry and dead, God will bring His purposes into being.
  2. The sign of a seething pot- v.13-16
    (Another vision, illustrating and confirming God's call to Jeremiah)
    • a seething pot... its face toward the north...-
      This was a picture of the cauldron of trouble that was about to overflow Judah in the form of Babylon (cp. Jer 39:1,2). Assyria, which had taken the northern kingdom of Israel captive about a hundred years earlier, was directly north. But Assyria was no longer a threat, having been displaced by Babylon, as a world power. Babylon was actually east of Israel. But geography would require their armies to approach from the north.
    • they shall set their thrones... in the gates of Jerusalem- cp. Jer 39:3
    • I will utter my judgments... - Nine hundred years earlier, the Lord, through Moses, had warned Israel of the consequences of forsaking Him and giving themselves to the abominable practices of the ungodly nations around them. He would send a series of judgments, which (if they did not repent and turn back to Him) would culminate in their dispersion, from their land (see Lev 26:15-39; Deu 28:20). Because they had not heeded His warning, He was about to command the execution of His previously stated judgments.
  3. Jeremiah is sent on his mission- v.17-19
    • gird up thy loins - ie., Gather up the skirts of your robes to prepare for a difficult task. cp. 1Pet 1:13
    • I have made thee a defenced city... an iron pillar... brasen walls...-
      The Lord would enable Jeremiah to stand immovable, and unassailable in the face of opposition and persecution. cp. 1Cor 15:58
    • against the whole land... against the kings of Judah... against the princes... against the people.-
      Jeremiah would stand against everyone.
         (cp. Rev 2:13, Antipas {lit., "against all"} my faithful martyr.)
      However, the Lord would preserve and deliver Jeremiah from his enemies.
         (May we, likewise, stand as the Lord's faithful witnesses. Php 1:27-30).

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