Bible Study Jeremiah 11
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Jeremiah 11 · WEB

The Broken Covenant and the Plot Against Jeremiah

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The word that came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, saying,
2"Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
3Tell them, 'Yahweh, the God of Israel says: "Cursed is the man who doesn't hear the words of this covenant,
4which I commanded your fathers in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of the iron furnace, saying, 'Obey my voice and do them, according to all which I command you; so you shall be my people, and I will be your God;'
5that I may establish the oath which I swore to your fathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, as it is today."'" Then I answered, "Amen, Yahweh."
6Yahweh said to me, "Proclaim all these words in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, saying, 'Hear the words of this covenant and do them.
7For I earnestly protested to your fathers in the day that I brought them up out of the land of Egypt, even to this day, rising early and protesting, saying, "Obey my voice."
8Yet they didn't obey, nor turn their ear, but everyone walked in the stubbornness of their evil heart. Therefore I brought on them all the words of this covenant, which I commanded them to do, but they didn't do them.'"
9Yahweh said to me, "A conspiracy is found among the men of Judah and among the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
10They have turned back to the iniquities of their forefathers, who refused to hear my words. They have gone after other gods to serve them. The house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken my covenant which I made with their fathers."
11Therefore Yahweh says, "Behold, I will bring evil on them which they will not be able to escape; and they will cry to me, but I will not listen to them.
12Then the cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem will go and cry to the gods to which they offer incense, but they will not save them at all in the time of their trouble.
13For according to the number of your cities are your gods, Judah; and according to the number of the streets of Jerusalem you have set up altars to the shameful thing, even altars to burn incense to Baal."
14"Therefore don't pray for this people. Don't lift up cry or prayer for them; for I will not hear them in the time that they cry to me because of their trouble."
15"What has my beloved to do in my house, since she has done vile deeds with many, and the holy flesh has passed from you? When you do evil, then you rejoice."
16Yahweh called your name, "A green olive tree, beautiful with good fruit." With the noise of a great storm he has set it on fire, and its branches are broken.
17For Yahweh of Armies, who planted you, has pronounced evil against you, because of the evil of the house of Israel and of the house of Judah, which they have done to themselves in provoking me to anger by offering incense to Baal.
18Yahweh gave me knowledge of it, and I knew it. Then you showed me their doings.
19But I was like a gentle lamb that is led to the slaughter. I didn't know that they had devised plans against me, saying, "Let's destroy the tree with its fruit, and let's cut him off from the land of the living, that his name may be no more remembered."
20But, Yahweh of Armies, who judges righteously, who tests the heart and the mind, I will see your vengeance on them; for I have revealed my cause to you.
21"Therefore Yahweh says concerning the men of Anathoth, who seek your life, saying, 'You shall not prophesy in Yahweh's name, that you not die by our hand;'
22therefore Yahweh of Armies says, 'Behold, I will punish them. The young men will die by the sword. Their sons and their daughters will die by famine.
23There will be no remnant to them; for I will bring evil on the men of Anathoth, even the year of their visitation.'"
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Summary

Jeremiah 11 records God's command that Jeremiah proclaim the words of the Sinai covenant throughout Judah and Jerusalem, reminding the people that obedience was the condition of their relationship with God. Despite God's persistent appeals from the Exodus onward, the people have stubbornly refused to listen and have multiplied idols — as many gods as they have cities. God declares that inescapable judgment is coming and forbids Jeremiah from interceding for the people. The chapter closes with a shocking revelation: the men of Jeremiah's own hometown, Anathoth, are conspiring to kill him for prophesying in Yahweh's name, but God promises to punish them severely.

Themes

  • Covenant faithfulness and its violation — God's repeated call to obey and the people's persistent refusal
  • The futility of false gods — idols cannot save in the day of disaster, yet Judah multiplies them endlessly
  • Rejection of the prophet — even Jeremiah's own townspeople plot to silence and kill him for speaking God's word
  • Divine justice — God's righteous judgment on covenant-breakers and on those who persecute his messenger

Key verses

  • Jer 11:11 — “Behold, I will bring evil on them which they will not be able to escape; and they will cry to me, but I will not listen to them.”
  • Jer 11:19 — “But I was like a gentle lamb that is led to the slaughter. I didn't know that they had devised plans against me, saying, 'Let's destroy the tree with its fruit, and let's cut him off from the land of the living, that his name may be no more remembered.'”
  • Jer 11:20 — “But, Yahweh of Armies, who judges righteously, who tests the heart and the mind, I will see your vengeance on them; for I have revealed my cause to you.”
  • Jer 11:4 — “Obey my voice and do them, according to all which I command you; so you shall be my people, and I will be your God.”

Context & background

The covenant Jeremiah is commanded to proclaim almost certainly connects to King Josiah's reforms (around 621 BC), when the Book of the Law was discovered in the temple and Josiah led Judah in renewing its covenant with Yahweh (2 Kings 22-23). Despite those reforms, the people's obedience proved shallow and short-lived. Anathoth, Jeremiah's hometown, was a Levitical city located about three miles northeast of Jerusalem in the territory of Benjamin (modern Anata in the West Bank, Palestine). The plot against Jeremiah by his own neighbors and possibly relatives (see Jeremiah 12:6) foreshadows the broader pattern of persecution he would endure throughout his ministry. Jeremiah's description of himself as "a gentle lamb led to the slaughter" (11:19) strikingly anticipates the language of the Suffering Servant in Isaiah 53:7.

Cross-references

  • 2 Kings 22:8-13 — The discovery of the Book of the Law under Josiah, the likely background for the covenant renewal Jeremiah proclaims
  • Deuteronomy 27:26 — "Cursed is he who doesn't confirm the words of this law" — the covenant curse Jeremiah invokes
  • Isaiah 53:7 — "He was led as a lamb to the slaughter" — echoing Jeremiah's self-description in 11:19
  • Jeremiah 12:6 — The revelation that even Jeremiah's own family members have turned against him, extending the Anathoth conspiracy
  • Jeremiah 7:16 — An earlier command forbidding Jeremiah from praying for the people, repeated here in 11:14

Check your reading

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  1. Observe

    What covenant terms does Yahweh remind the people of in v. 4?

  2. Observe

    Who plots against Jeremiah's life (v. 21)?

  3. Interpret

    What does Yahweh's prohibition against praying for the people (v. 14) mean?

  4. Interpret

    What does Jeremiah's self-description as "a gentle lamb led to the slaughter" (v. 19) signify?

  5. Apply

    What modern "as many gods as cities" (v. 13) substitutes do people multiply today?

  6. Apply

    How does Jeremiah's persecution by his own community encourage one facing conflict for obedience?

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