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Jeremiah 21

14 verses

TL;DR

God declares that Jerusalem will be devastated by war, famine, pestilence, and will be delivered into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, warning that staying in the city means death while leaving may preserve life.

Summary

Jeremiah 21 presents a stark prophetic judgment upon Jerusalem. The king of Judah, Zedekiah, sends envoys to Jeremiah seeking God’s help against Babylonian forces, but God responds that He will turn their weapons against them and gather them into the city to punish them. He declares that the inhabitants will suffer pestilence, famine, and death by sword, and that the city will ultimately fall into Babylonian hands and be burned. Yet a conditional offer appears: those who flee from the siege may survive, although they will become prey to the Chaldeans. The passage ends with a harsh admonition to the House of David, warning that divine judgment will burn as unquenchable fire.

Outline
  1. 1. Zedekiah seeks Jeremiah’s intercession; 2. God pronounces judgment: pestilence, famine, sword, city’s destruction; 3. Conditional survival for those who flee; 4. Warning to the House of David and final wrathful declaration.
Themes
Divine judgment and wrathConditional mercyThe futility of political alliancesDestruction of Jerusalem
Keywords
JudgmentDestructionFaminePestilenceSwordFireOutstretched handHouse of David
People
JeremiahZedekiahPashurMelchiahZephaniahMaaseiahNebuchadrezzar
Places
JerusalemCity (Jerusalem)ValleyRock of the plainForest
Things
weapons of warpestilenceswordfaminefireoutstretched handjudgment
Key Verses
  • Jeremiah 21:6: God’s declaration of pestilence as the instrument of judgment.
  • Jeremiah 21:9: Conditional survival: stay = death, leave = chance to live.
  • Jeremiah 21:12: Explicit call for the House of David to deliver the oppressed, lest wrath burn.
Questions
  • Why does God promise that those who flee will live, yet still calls them prey?
  • What does the imagery of fire in the forest signify about divine wrath?
  • How does this passage reflect the relationship between political action and divine judgment?
  • In what ways does the warning to the House of David parallel earlier admonitions?
  • What does the conditional offer reveal about hope amid catastrophe?
Sentiment

negative
The chapter conveys impending doom, divine wrath, and a bleak view of Jerusalem’s fate.