16November, 2009

Jeremiah, The Weeping Prophet Jeremiah has many lament about being a prophet and the consequences of that, which lead to him admitting that he is first and foremost a devout servant of the Lord. In Jeremiah's prayer he accounts lamenting the burdens of being a prophet of the Lord and sings the praises of the lord. (Jer. 20:7-13). He accuses God of a sort of trickery and entrapment with the use of verbs like overpowering and enticing. He uses these words to show actions that were taken against him in order to deceive him into becoming a prophet. Succeeding his lamentations Jeremiah claims But the LORD is with me like a dread warrior; therefore my persecutors will stumble, and they will not prevail.(Jer. 20:11). In making this claim Jeremiah displays a devout trust in the Lord. Within the overall gospel narrative this passage is a representation of all the lamentations of Jeremiah and the end of his doubts. This passage presents a struggle, by Jeremiah, to maintain faith in God and then concludes with his absolute resolve towards his faith. This passage is a poetic cry from Jeremiah in the form of a prayer. He doubts the Lords reliability and laments being his prophet. In saying O LORD, you have enticed me....you have overpowered me Jeremiah insinuates that God tricked him into becoming a prophet and that he never stood a chance at avoiding it. Also when Jeremiah says that the Lord has prevailed it is like he is saying he was in a contest with God for his freedom. These phrases and words are used because it is only Jeremiah speaking so there is only one perspective from the passage. His feelings, like remorse and solitude, are the only ones that can be interpreted and thus would be expected to skew the story. On the contrary, because the whole story is a monologue by Jeremiah, it is clear that he is the main focus. This is because Jeremiah simply relates what he laments instead of telling a narrative story. He is the one speaking, but he is obviously in inner turmoil which indicates the story may not be completely accurate. The shift from the objective view to the first person story teller is significant. The story is

more constrained than before considering the omniscient perspective that allows the reader to know what happens everywhere is gone. The reader is only allowed to know what Jeremiah says instead of his actions and the actions of others. Without the inclusion of other characters actions and their speaking the story is made more about Jeremiah and his current state than the narrative itself. The passage being a prayer changes the meaning as well. As a prayer it is more likely that the story was passed down form person to person and then finally written down and thus lost most of its credibility in a sense of accuracy but retain credibility in the sense that the states of the characters was how it is told. Regardless of how much the story itself is change like word usage and the actions of the people, Jeremiah's emotional state is still conveyed with accuracy. Furthermore, as it is Jeremiah speaking to God and not to anyone else it is a passage about his doubts and his faith rather than the actions taken by a person in doubt and their punishment. The section is set to follow Jeremiah's encounter with Pashhur.(New Century p. 271). Before his prayer Jeremiah was sent to Topheth where he began to deliver the Lords prophecy. Pashhur heard Jeremiah delivering a grim prophecy to the people of Topheth and struck Jeremiah then put him in the stocks until the next morning. Jeremiah told Pashhur that the Lord has named him Terror-allaround(Jer. 20:3). Pashhur's friends and family would be defeated by their enemies while he had to watch unable to do anything. It is unclear as to what made Jeremiah begin to pray to the Lord but, it may have been his night in the stocks. Jeremiah cries out in prayer when he is released from the stocks because he feels the Lord has abandon him or that he cannot trust the Lord anymore. The poem in vv. 7-10 is the familiar cry of outrage and suffering directed at the deity because of the persecuted state in which the speaker finds himself.(Jeremiah p.398). In verse seven it is clear he laments being a prophet because he says things like you have enticed me and I was enticed(Jer.20:7). This means that he was in some way persuaded or tricked into becoming a prophet. Also he says You have overpowered me(Jer.20:7). This points in a direction of being forced rather than him having any choice. Finally Jeremiah's statement I have become a laughingstock all day long; everyone mocks me.(Jer. 20:7)

This is a complaint which indicates he regrets being a prophet which makes him a laughingstock all day long. Because of the unfortunate actions taken against him by Pashhur the night before (being struck and then stuck in the stocks until morning), one could discern Jeremiah was in a poor state and questioning why he is doing what he is doing. Jeremiah goes on to express his anger in prophesying without reserve. The word of the LORD has become for me a reproach and derision all day long.(Jer 20.8). Jeremiah is saying that he is not accepted by his people anymore. They scorn him and regard him with contempt because he is a prophet and they do not believe his prophecies. Jeremiah laments because he is torn between his friends and family and his God. Because he chooses God he loses the companionship of his people but if were to choose his peoples companionship he would undoubtedly be punished by God. He is an outcast because of his prophecies which he is, regrettably, compelled to tell - If I say, I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name, then within me there is something like a burning fire(Jer. 20:9). Jeremiah is in a terrible position being torn between being with his people or speaking the word of God to them and others. This causes Jeremiah to once again lament and detest his current situation because he once again has had his choice taken away from him. Finally, Jeremiah is in danger because of his prophecies. All my close friends are watching for me to stumble.(Jer. 20:10). He believes his friends are waiting for him to have a moment of weakness or for him to be vulnerable. He is afraid that they are attempting to entice him, the very thing he has already accused God of doing. For I hear many whisperings...Perhaps he can be enticed, and we can prevail against him, and take our revenge on him.(Jer. 20:10) Jeremiah may or may not be paranoid but he does not feel like he can trust anyone. Jeremiah is lamenting his prophesying since he thinks he was enticed to do it and people are trying to entice him again. According to The New Interpreter's Bible two fundamental issues of the lament are present: the experience of deceit and the question of who will prevail. These issues are are identified by the repetition of the word entice (New Interpreter p. 726). The word entice is used by Jeremiah but in two different ways. First it is used to represent the experience of deceit for because Jeremiah feels that the Lord has forsaken him. Later it is used

maliciously by Jeremiah to tell the reader what he hears in whispers. This is the question of who will prevail. It questions whether Jeremiah or his enemies will win in the end. Both time the word is being used to describe an injustice or ill intention toward Jeremiah and both time it is Jeremiah who accuses someone else of distrust or deception. The second use entice leads Jeremiah to his realization that the Lord is always with him and helps him to regain his trust in the Lord. But the LORD is with me like a dread warrior; therefore my persecutors will stumble...(Jer. 20:11). This is a display of Jeremiah's faith in the Lord after it is renewed. Jeremiah began by lamenting being a prophet and lamenting the Lord for giving him prophecies. Here the issue of Jeremiah's devotion is no longer in question because he is saying, with confidence, that his enemies will fail and will fall while he stands tall and does not stumble. Another example of this is O LORD...for to you I have committed my cause.(Jer. 20:12). He lamented being the laughingstock all day and being the outcast of his people but now he is proud to proclaim he is committed to serving the Lord. At the end of this passage Jeremiah begins to spread the word of the Lord once again and completely stops lamenting things Sing to the LORD; praise the LORD! For he has delivered the life of the needy from the hands of evildoers. (Jer. 20:13). In complete devotion, Jeremiah preaches to the people attempting to persuade them back to the Lord and away from their evil ways. He gave them the prophecy which told them if they continue to disobey the Lord they would be punished. Jeremiah has delivered the word of God to the people who caused him grief and torment. He does so without lamenting due to his faith in the Lord, knowing that anyone who spurn and reject either his prophecy or the Lord will be punished. Because of this I think the reader is meant to sympathize with Jeremiah. The reader sympathizes with Jeremiah in a sense that they understand how confused he would have been. He was unable to make the choice of prophesying or not and having that decision effect his relationship with his friends and family. Also by prophesying he doomed himself to a life of solitude outside his people, who turned their backs on him and on God. This passage displays the uselessness of lamenting rather than acceptance, placing blame rather

than taking responsibility, and trust rather than distrust. It is a blunt reflection of the weakness of all people and of the responsibilities we lament. It shows that eventually there will be drawbacks to life that we must deal with ourselves, not point fingers or place blame. Also there are no easy solution to our hard problem so there is no reason to look for them. It does not help to complain or wait for things to get better. Like when Jeremiah felt that he had been enticed by God, he could have kept his faith in God and trusted the Lord to not abandon him. Instead, he began to lament his situation. He was regretting not being closer to the people even though they were not faithful to the Lord and were committing evil acts. Instead of feeling bad for himself because the people made him an outcast, he could have accepted that he was doing the right thing and that they were the ones who were wrong to be the way they were. This passage also shows the ease of losing your faith because of hardship. After being thrown in the stocks Jeremiah begins to lament parts of his life. He laments becoming a prophet and all his duties because things go wrong for him. Also he begins to even lament his birth. When he laments his birth Jeremiah takes everything he had lamented up until that point to a higher level. When he did that he was indicating the ultimate regret. The indications that everybody should remain absolutely faithful and devout to God are almost overwhelmed by his lamenting. In regretting so much Jeremiah almost forgets that the Lord is always with him.

Works Cited

Carroll, Robert P. Jeremiah a commentary. Philadelphia: Westminster P, 1986. Jones, Douglas R. The New Century Bible Commentary Jeremiah. Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Co., 1992. 271-272. Peterson, David L., Gene M. Tucker, and Christopher R. Seitz. The New Interpreter's Bible Isaiah Ezekiel (Volume 6). New York: Abingdon P, 2001. 726-728.