Jeremiah is the longest book in the entire Bible, coming in at a whopping 33,000 words—fully 10% longer than Psalms. That alone makes it intimidating! Not to mention the vast cultural distance between this book and us, the lack of apparent organizational scheme, and the overwhelmingly gloomy message. Put all that together and why not study this book, right?
Actually, I believe Jeremiah is the perfect book for our times. For one thing, it describes a civilization in full meltdown. Judah is crumbling right before our eyes, politically, morally, and culturally. They’ve had nothing but bad leaders for generations, including one king (Jehoiakim) who despises God but loves power and fame, and another (Zedekiah) who is too weak and foolish to lead at all. Their enemies are growing stronger on every side. Immigrants and orphans are being oppressed. Fake news has become a full industry, as false prophets are getting rich and famous churning out lies. The most fervent churchgoers are turning out to be some of the worst thieves, adulterers, and liars. Sound familiar? Maybe this book has something to offer after all!
Furthermore, we live in an excessively emotional culture—the first culture ever, as someone said, to have feelings about our feelings! In the prophet Jeremiah, we find one of the most emotional characters in the Scriptures. He’s been called “the weeping prophet,” probably because he records his tears a few times (9:1, 13:17). Plus that other book he wrote, Lamentations. But even so, it’s a far too reductionistic nickname for a guy with emotions as wide-ranging as Jeremiah’s. He isn’t just sad all the time. He’s all over the place—excited, confused, disgusted, hopeful, enraged, lonely, confident, shocked, overwhelmed, pensive, resigned, anxious, disappointed, relieved, and more. In other words, Jeremiah knows what some of you felt in the last 24 hours! But in Jeremiah—and here is the important point for us—we see a man who took all of these feelings directly to God.
Finally, let me recommend a few ways to explore this book on your own. First, read or listen to the whole book for yourself over the next few weeks. Second, watch the Bible Project’s video overview online—simply search for “Bible Project Jeremiah.” No other source I know can teach you as much about this book in 7 minutes and 15 seconds. And third, read Eugene Peterson’s superb biography of Jeremiah called Run with the Horses.