Jer 17 | TNotes | STEP | Summary for Jer 17:1-4: 17:1-4 The families of Judah were committed to Baal worship; once again, the Lord listed the sins that justified their judgment. 17:1 A stone mason used an iron chisel or a diamond point to permanently inscribe images and texts on stones. Idol worship had so hardened the thoughts, emotions, and will of the people that it seemed impossible for them to change. • In Old Testament times, the corners of ... altars had projections called “horns” (e.g., Exod 27:1-2 ). According to covenant rules, when an animal sacrifice was offered, blood was applied to these horns. How Baal worshipers treated them is unknown.

Summary for Jer 17:1-4: 17:1-4 ^a The families of Judah were committed to Baal worship; once again, the Lord listed the sins that justified their judgment. 17:1 ^b A stone mason used an iron chisel or a diamond point to permanently inscribe images and texts on stones. Idol worship had so hardened the thoughts, emotions, and will of the people that it seemed impossible for them to change.

• In Old Testament times, the corners of ... altars had projections called “horns” (e.g., Exod 27:1-2 ^c). According to covenant rules, when an animal sacrifice was offered, blood was applied to these horns. How Baal worshipers treated them is unknown.
17:2 ^d Asherah poles were cut from trees and erected near altars dedicated to Baal, the Canaanite storm god. Asherah was the Canaanite goddess who symbolized the fertility of moist ground that could produce crops. Ritual sex was performed near these altars to cause rain to fall, seeds to sprout, and plants to grow. A tree growing near an altar could also represent this fertility goddess. The people of Judah were so depraved that parents encouraged their children to join them in these rituals.
17:3 ^e The Lord’s holy mountain was the Temple Mount in Jerusalem; wealth and treasures were stored there.
17:4 ^f The wonderful possession, the Promised Land, would slip from Judah’s hands when the people were taken as captives to Babylon.
Summary for Jer 17:5-10: 17:5-10 ^g This meditation on the folly of trusting in humans is contrasted with the wisdom of trusting in the Lord. 17:5 ^h Trust is the disposition of the heart that results in obedience (cp. 11:4 ⁱ; Deut 27:15-26 ^j).
17:6 ^k The people of Judah would be utterly helpless in the time of calamity because they had switched their trust from the Lord to human capabilities. The people of Judah would be just like shrubs in the desert that are stunted because they lack water.
Summary for Jer 17:7-8: 17:7-8 ^l Those who trust in the Lord, like trees planted along a riverbank, will have abundant resources and be well prepared to meet the vicissitudes of life.

• Water represents the law of the Lord (cp. Ps 1 ^m; Ezek 47:1-12 ⁿ; Rev 2:1-2 ^o).
Summary for Jer 17:9-10: 17:9-10 ^p By nature, the human heart is deceitful and desperately wicked. Only the Lord really knows how bad it is.
Summary for Jer 17:11-18: 17:11-18 ^q Jeremiah affirmed that he had learned this lesson and did indeed trust in the Lord.
Summary for Jer 17:11-13: 17:11-13 ^r Jeremiah commended the Lord’s faithfulness to his people, in contrast to the fate awaiting those who turned away from the Lord. 17:11 ^s Jeremiah cited a general principle (cp. Ps 73 ^t) that was not necessarily universal (Job 21:27-33 ^u): Those who have gained wealth by unjust means eventually lose those riches.
17:12 ^v God’s faithful people worship the sovereign Lord, not money.
Summary for Jer 17:14-18: 17:14-18 ^w Jeremiah asked that since he had been faithful to the Lord, the Lord would rescue him from his persecutors and give him healing, salvation, and vindication. 17:14 ^x Only the Lord can heal and save, so praises are due to him alone.
17:15 ^y Jeremiah’s predictions had not yet come true, so the people treated him with scorn; they might have even called him a false prophet (cp. Deut 18:21-22 ^z).
17:16 ^aa Because he was faithful, Jeremiah appealed to the Lord for vindication.
17:17 ^ab Jeremiah had a natural fear of the coming national disaster, so he turned to the Lord for protection.
17:18 ^ac Jeremiah wanted his persecutors to experience the shame and dismay they deserved, the very feelings that he was experiencing (17:15 ^ad).
Summary for Jer 17:19-27: 17:19-27 ^ae Motivated by greed, the people of Jerusalem were violating the sanctity of the Sabbath day (see Exod 20:8-11 ^af; Deut 5:12-15 ^ag). If they observed the Sabbath, they would lose income from trade. The Lord spelled out the reasons why they should keep the Sabbath holy.
Summary for Jer 17:19-20: 17:19-20 ^ah The Lord instructed Jeremiah to go from gate to gate where business was transacted and confront the offenders face to face, beginning with the king.
Summary for Jer 17:21-22: 17:21-22 ^ai Trading on the Sabbath was wrong and had to be stopped. The Sabbath was not a time to buy and sell, but was established in the Sinai covenant as a holy day (Exod 29:8-11 ^aj; 31:12-17 ^ak) when the people of Israel were to rest and honor the Lord.
17:23 ^al they did not listen or obey: The people probably considered the Sabbath too costly to observe, so they ignored it or overlooked its violations.
Summary for Jer 17:24-25: 17:24-25 ^am The Lord was willing to give the people a chance to change their ways. By choosing to obey God, the people could enjoy unending peace and the continuation of the kingdom and the city of Jerusalem.

• The promise of chariots and horses represented the Lord’s blessing.
17:26 ^an If the people repented, the Lord’s blessings would extend to the towns of Judah and Benjamin.

• The western foothills stretched north and south between the coastal plain of the Mediterranean Sea and the hill country, where Jerusalem rested.

• The Negev was the desert that stretched from Beersheba southward to the Gulf of Aqaba. People from all these areas would come with their offerings to worship the Lord in his Temple.
17:27 ^ao I will set fire to these gates: This event occurred in 586 BC (2 Kgs 25:9 ^ap).