Comments on Jeremiah 20

     This chapter recounts events surrounding a particular
historical event where Jeremiah was persecuted for doing his job
of prophet.  Pashur the Temple chief priest doesn't like what
Jeremiah has to say (v. 1).  He has him beaten and thrown in
stocks (v. 2).  And then Jeremiah curses him for it along with
all of Judah (v. 3-6).  Afterwards, Jeremiah goes on into a
terrible lament wherein he says his friends have all turned on
him, and the calling of the Lord has been a terrible burden to
bear (v. 7-13).  He then goes on into something of a self-pitying
lament, which sounds very Job-like, wishing that he was never
born (v. 14-18).

     When reading this lament we have to take into account all of
the things the chapter addresses.  While the main subject is a
confrontation between him and Pashur, the lament makes it clear
that is just symptomatic of many of his relationships with people
of late.  And, the curses hurled out at Pahur are mixed with
curses generally condemning Judah and Jerusalem as well.  So,
while Jeremiah is apparently depressed and unhappy about his
personal condition and suffering, there is the whole backdrop of
the impending destruction of all of Jerusalem as well.  Jeremiah
sees this as a reality while most others see it as a fiction.  He
knows the destruction is about to happen and how bad it will be. 
That has got to be a factor affecting his mood at this point.

v6  Pashur being a Temple priest probably was of Aaronic descent,
as was Jeremiah (while he may not have been, it appears that even
in times of apostasy the social structure was such that the
priestly class maintained its claims to temple worship regardless
of who the worshiped subject was, cf. 2 Kings 16:14-16).  It is
clear from this verse that Pashur and his cronies are false
prophets.  However, we do not know if they have utterly abandoned
the Lord for the present monarchy's idolatries.  It is safe to
assume they have though given their ability to have Jeremiah
taken, beaten, and thrown in the stocks.  Given the monarchy's
idolatry (take for example the case in 26:20-24 where a prophet
is taken and killed under king Jehoiakim's rule) and the priest's
exercise of power, we can safely assume they are allies and
therefore idolatrous as well.  

     From Jeremiah's lament in v. 10 we almost have to wonder if
Pashur and Jeremiah were not friends previously, and Pashur is
now being characterized as one of those friends who have turned
on him.



Copyright © 2002 by S. Kurt Neumiller <kurtn@cybcon.com>.  All rights 
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