Jeremiah 2:1-37

2:1-4:4 | Jeremiah’s preparation was over. God was ready to give him the word of the LORD for the nation – first an indictment and judgment against Judah for worshiping other gods, and then a call for the people to turn from their sinful ways before it is too late.

2:2 | Israel had been unfaithful to the Lord in the wilderness even before Moses brought the law down from Sinai (Ex.32; Ezek. 20:18-21), but compared to the present, Israel’s love for the Lord when was like that of a betrothed bride for her groom (Ezek. 16:8).

2:6-8 | The people’s ingratitude moved to idolatry and then to indifference. Hearing God’s Word, the people didn’t even ask, Where is the LORD? (1:6-8). The priceless heritage of the Promised Land was ignored in favor or idolatry.

2:11 | Israel had been given the privilege of God’s glorious presence (Ex. 40:34-38). The people had known God as their Glory, and yet other nations and demonstrated greater faithfulness to their gods, which are not gods (Ps. 115:4).

2:13 | Jeremiah warned that God’s people were trying to quench their cravings for salvation and significance in the wrong places. They committed two evils by turning away from the only true source of living waters, and by creating cisterns that could hold no water – even if living water was available (John 4:14).

2:18 | Making alliances with nations like Egypt and Assyria in an attempt to thwart judgment at the hands of Babylon would not succeed. To compare these alliances to drinking their rivers reflects how these treaties were like a marriage to these nations (Prov. 5:15-16). The Israelites were trusting in foreigners rather than the Lord as their ultimate source of security. God’s presence, represented by the peaceful waters, was Judah’s real protection (Ps. 46:4-5).

2:19 | Jeremiah saw a whole generation of backslidden people who had fallen away from their godly moorings and walked away from God. One of the prominent words in the book is backsliding. It is so easy to live surrounded by religious reminders yet ignore the truth to which they point.

2:23-25 | Having turned from God, their deep desire for something beyond themselves had left them helpless before the temptation of idolatry, pursuing false gods with the same mindless and careless abandon as animals in heat.

2:26-28 | Jeremiah’s most mocking tone recalls the great confrontation between Elijah and the prophets of Baal (1 Kgs. 18:20-40).

2:31-37 | God equates the idolatry of the people with blatant sexual immorality. The value of virginity and a bride’s attire, which would not be easily forgotten, highlight the tragedy that God’s people have forgotten Him.

2:35 | The people establish their guilt with their own words, protesting their innocence here while also stating that they cannot help chasing after other gods.