Jeremiah 29:1-4

III. CORRESPONDENCE WITH THE CAPTIVES Jeremiah 29:1-32

Judging from the contents of chapter 29, the Jews in captivity in Babylon were free to correspond with their relatives and friends back in Palestine. This chapter contains two (possibly three) letters which Jeremiah sent to Babylon and alludes to several letters which were sent from Jews in Babylon to those in Jerusalem.
Jeremiah like other prophets regarded the exile in Babylon as a punishment for the sins of the nation. Yet once that exile had begun in 605 B.C. and still in greater measure in 597 B.C. Jeremiah deemed it his duty to offer encouragement to the exiles. Prophets had arisen in Babylon who were predicting a speedy end to the captivity. While Jeremiah wished to encourage those Jews in Babylon yet he was a realist. He could not allow those Jews to go on deluding themselves. As long as they thought the exile to Babylon was a mere episode to be endured and shortly to be ended there was no real incentive to repentance. The letters in this chapter are a blend of realism and idealism, of discouragement and hope;

A. The First letter to Babylon Jeremiah 29:1-23

1. Introduction to the letter (Jeremiah 29:1-4)

TRANSLATION

(1) These are the words of the letter which Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem unto those who were left of the elders of the captives, and unto the priests, the prophets, and all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried captive from Jerusalem to Babylon. (2) (This was after king Jeconiah and the queen-mother, the officers, the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen and artisans had departed from Jerusalem). (3) The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan, and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon in Babylon. The letter said: (4) Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the captives whom I caused to go captive from Jerusalem into Babylon:

COMMENTS

Jeremiah's first letter to Babylon is addressed to the residue of the elders of the captivity, the priests, the prophets and all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried captive to Babylon (Jeremiah 29:1). In the main these would be the leaders of the nation who had gone captive in 597 B.C. when Jeconiah (Jehoiachin) had surrendered to the great Babylonian monarch (Jeremiah 29:2). Why does Jeremiah speak of the residue of the elders? Perhaps many of the older leaders had perished during what must have been an arduous journey to Babylonia. The fact that Jeremiah mentions elders, priests and prophets would suggest that some sort of communal organization existed in Babylon similar to that which existed in Judah. This particular letter is intended for all segments of the population. It is an open letter.

For some unexplained reason king Zedekiah was sending an embassy to Babylon at this time. Perhaps the purpose was to carry the annual tribute to Nebuchadnezzar. The embassy consisted of, or was led by, two outstanding men. Elasah the son of Shaphan is named first. The family of Shaphan were among the most loyal friends which Jeremiah had. It was the brother of Elasah who protected Jeremiah when he was on trial for his life (Jeremiah 26:24). Since Elasah was from a God-fearing family he recognized the authority of Nebuchadnezzar whom God had appointed over all the earth (Jeremiah 27:4-14). He was no doubt more than willing to carry the letter of Jeremiah along with him to Babylon. The second member of the embassy was Gemariah the son of Hilkiah. Could this Hilkiah be the high priest who took such an active part in the reforms of king Josiah (2 Kings 22:4; 2 Kings 2 Chronicles 34, 35)? Could Gemariah have been a brother of Jeremiah (see Jeremiah 1:1)? These questions must remain unanswered. But it is likely that Gemariah too was a loyal believer. Even though the Judean leadership was by and large corrupt still there were those who bore witness for Him in the inner councils of the nation.

The letter deals with the immediate situation of the captives. The prophet offers to the captives practical advice (Jeremiah 29:5-7), warning (Jeremiah 29:8-10), and a word of hope (Jeremiah 29:11-14). Then he undertakes a refutation of the fake prophets in Babylon (Jeremiah 29:15-20) and finally makes a prediction respecting the fate of two notorious false prophets there (Jeremiah 29:21-23).