This section (Jeremiah 7:1–8:3) is an extended section of prose made up of independent accounts of events or sermons from Jeremiah’s ministry. These independent accounts have been brought together because they are connected by the theme of false worship in Judah during Jeremiah’s ministry. The key word that runs throughout the section is the Hebrew word rpr translated as place
(Jeremiah 7:4, Jeremiah 7:6, Jeremiah 7:12, Jeremiah 7:14 Jeremiah 7:20, Jeremiah 7:32, and Jeremiah 8:3).1 It is a reference to the temple, but also other places of worship.
The material most likely speaks to what was happening during the reign of Jehoiakim which started in 609 BC. According to Jeremiah 26:1, the sermon in Jeremiah 7:1–5 was delivered shortly after Jehoiakim came to the throne.2 The early years of Jehoiakim’s reign were a time of great political uncertainty in the region. The Assyrians had fallen, and Egypt and Babylon were vying for dominance. Josiah had been killed and the Pharaoh Neco had removed Jehoahaz as king of Judah and placed Jehoiakim on the throne. The main concern of ruling elite in Judah was not their status as the Lord’s covenant people, but rather picking the right political superpower as an ally. The presence of the temple in Jerusalem was simply seen as a guarantee that the Lord would keep them safe regardless of their religious or moral behaviour.3
The prose in this section is heavily influenced by the covenant language of Deuteronomy. This is not surprising as religious life in the land had always been shaped by the books of Moses. The discovery of the Book of the Law by Josiah (2 Kings 22:8–13) would also have increased the impact of Deuteronomy on Jeremiah’s preaching and writing, especially since he had grown up with this Scripture in a priestly home (Jeremiah 1:1).4
The first part of this section in Jeremiah 7:1–5 is made up of what is commonly referred to as the Temple Sermon. A shortened version of this sermon is repeated in Jeremiah 26:1–6.
The scene for Jeremiah’s sermon is set in Jeremiah 7:2, as the Lord commands Jeremiah to stand in the gate of the Lord’s house and proclaim there this word.
He is to preach his sermon in the gate of the temple in Jerusalem where people entered and where many would hear, including the priests who served there.5 The place where Jeremiah was to deliver the sermon was significant. It shows that Jeremiah was not attacking the temple itself but rather what was happening in the temple.6 The word he is to proclaim is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord.
The sermon is therefore presented as a direct word from the Lord.7 It is very probable that Jeremiah either had an official function in the temple or had taken this function on unofficially. During religious festivals in the temple, worshippers were met by a servant of the temple who would ask them to examine their moral lives as they came to take part in worship.8
1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: