| Former half | Relation | Latter half |
| 1 Introduction (1:1-3) 1:2 The word of the LORD first came to him in the days of Josiah, son of Amon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign, | The word of the LORD | 27 Jeremiah prays for vindication (17:14-18) 17:15"Where is the word of the LORD? Let it come to pass!" |
| 2 Jeremiah's call and commission (1:4-19) 1:7 But the LORD answered me, Say not, "I am too young." To whomever I send you, you shall go; whatever I command you, you shall speak. 1:8 Have no fear before them, because I am with you to deliver you, says the LORD. | Faith to the LORD | 26 Judah's sin and punishment (17:1-13) 17:7 Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose hope is the LORD. |
| 3 God pleads with Israel to repent (2:1-3:5) 2:6"Where is the LORD who brought us up from the land of Egypt, Who led us through the desert, through a land of wastes and gullies, Through a land of drought and darkness, through a land which no one crosses, where no man dwells?" | Exodus | 25 God will restore Israel (16:14-21) 16:14"As the LORD lives, who brought the Israelites out of Egypt"; |
| 4 A call to repentance (3:6-13) 3:12For I am merciful, says the LORD, I will not continue my wrath forever. | Mercy of the LORD | 24 Jeremiah's celibacy and message (16:1-13) 16:5For I have withdrawn my friendship from this people, says the LORD, my kindness and my pity. |
| 5 Return to Zion (3:14-18) 3:18 In those days the house of Judah will join the house of Israel; together they will come from the land of the north to the land which I gave to your fathers as a heritage. | Return to the LORD | 23 Jeremiah complains again and is reassured (15:10-21) 15:19If you repent, so that I restore you, in my presence you shall stand; |
| 6 A call to repentance (3:19-4:4) 3:21 A cry is heard on the heights! the plaintive weeping of Israel's children, Because they have perverted their ways and forgotten the LORD, their God. | Crooked road | 22 Punishment is inevitable (15:1-9) 15:7 I winnowed them with the fan in every city gate. I destroyed my people through bereavement; they returned not from their evil ways. |
| 7 Invasion and desolation of Judah threatened (4:5-31) 4:8 So gird yourselves with sackcloth, mourn and wail: | Crying out | 21 The great drought (14:1-22) 14:2 Judah mourns, her gates are lifeless; Her people sink down in mourning: from Jerusalem ascends a cry of anguish. |
| 8 The utter corruption of God's people (5:1-31) 5:6Leopards keep watch round their cities: all who come out are torn to pieces | Leopard | 20 Exile threatened (13:15-27) 13:23 Can the Ethiopian change his skin? the leopard his spots? |
| 8 The utter corruption of God's people (5:1-31) 5:8 Lustful stallions they are, each neighs after another's wife. | Neighing | 20 Exile threatened (13:15-27) 13:27 Your adulteries, your neighings, your shameless prostitutions: On the hills in the highlands I see these horrible crimes of yours. |
| 9 The imminence and horror of the invasion (6:1-30) 6:21Fathers and sons alike, neighbors and friends shall perish. | Fathers and sons perish together | 19 The linen loincloth (13:1-14) 13:14 I will dash them against each other, fathers and sons together, says the LORD; |
| 9 The imminence and horror of the invasion (6:1-30) 6:13 Small and great alike, all are greedy for gain; prophet and priest, all practice fraud. | Small and great alike | 19 The linen loincloth (13:1-14) 13:13Beware! I am filling with drunkenness all the inhabitants of this land, the kings who succeed to David's throne, the priests and prophets, and all the citizens of Jerusalem. |
| 10 Jeremiah proclaims God's judgment on the nation (7:1-15) 7:6 if you no longer oppress the resident alien, the orphan, and the widow; if you no longer shed innocent blood in this place, or follow strange gods to your own harm, 7:7 will I remain with you in this place, in the land which I gave your fathers long ago and forever. | If you listen to the LORD, you can dwell in the promised land | 18 God replies to Jeremiah (12:7-17) 12:15 But after plucking them up, I will pity them again and bring them back, each to his heritage, each to his land. 12:16 And if they carefully learn my peoples custom of swearing by my name, "As the LORD lives," they who formerly taught my people to swear by Baal shall be built up in the midst of my people. |
| 11 The people's disobedience (7:16-8:3) 7:25 From the day that your fathers left the land of Egypt even to this day, I have sent you untiringly all my servants the prophets. 7:26 Yet they have not obeyed me nor paid heed; they have stiffened their necks and done worse than their fathers. | People don't listen to prophet | 17 Jeremiah complains to God (11:18-12:6) 11:21 Therefore, thus says the LORD concerning the men of Anathoth who seek your life, saying, "Do not prophesy in the name of the LORD; else you shall die by our hand." |
| 12 The prophet perversity of the whole nation (8:4-9:5) 8:19(Why do they provoke me with their idols, with their foreign nonentities?) | Rage of the LORD against idolatry | 16 Israel and Judah have broken the covenant (11:1-17) 11:17 The LORD of hosts who planted you has decreed misfortune for you because of the evil done by the house of Israel and by the house of Judah, who provoked me by sacrificing to Baal. |
| 13 The prophet mourns for the people (9:6-25) 9:10 I will turn Jerusalem into a heap of ruins, a haunt of jackals; The cities of Judah I will make into a waste, where no one dwells. (9:10) | Destruction of the cities of Judah | 15 The coming exile (10:17-25) 10:22 To turn the cities of Judah into a desert haunt of jackals. (10:22) |
| Former half | Relation | Latter half |
| 1 Introduction (1:1-3) 1:2 The word of the LORD first came to him in the days of Josiah, son of Amon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign, | The words of the LORD | 14 Idolatory has brought ruin on Israel (10:1-16) 10:1 Hear the word which the LORD speaks to you, O house of Israel. (10:1) |
| 2 Jeremiah's call and commission (1:4-19) 1:9 Then the LORD extended his hand and touched my mouth, saying, See, I place my words in your mouth! | Mouth of the LORD | 13 The prophet mourns for the people (9:6-25) 9:11 Who is so wise that he can understand this? Let him to whom the mouth of the LORD has spoken make it known: |
| 3 God pleads with Israel to repent (2:1-3:5) 2:5Went after empty idols, and became empty themselves? | Going after empty idols | 12 The prophet perversity of the whole nation (8:4-9:5) 8:19(Why do they provoke me with their idols, with their foreign nonentities?) |
| 4 A call to repentance (3:6-13) 3:9 Eager to sin, she polluted the land, committing adultery with stone and wood | Rage of the LORD caused by betrayal | 11 The people's disobedience (7:16-8:3) 7:18 The children gather wood, their fathers light the fire, and the women knead dough to make cakes for the queen of heaven, while libations are poured out to strange gods in order to hurt me. |
| 5 Return to Zion (3:14-18) 3:18 In those days the house of Judah will join the house of Israel; together they will come from the land of the north to the land which I gave to your fathers as a heritage. | If you repent, you can dwell on the land of ancestors | 10 Jeremiah proclaims God's judgment on the nation (7:1-15) 7:7 will I remain with you in this place, in the land which I gave your fathers long ago and forever. |
| 6 A call to repentance (3:19-4:4) 3:25 Let us lie down in our shame, let our disgrace cover us, | Shamed | 9 The imminence and horror of the invasion (6:1-30) 6:15 They are odious; they have done abominable things, yet they are not at all ashamed, they know not how to blush. Hence they shall be among those who fall; in their time of punishment they shall go down, says the LORD. |
| 6 A call to repentance (3:19-4:4) 3:21Because they have perverted their ways and forgotten the LORD, their God. | The way of the LORD | 9 The imminence and horror of the invasion (6:1-30) 6:16Stand beside the earliest roads, ask the pathways of old Which is the way to good, and walk it; thus you will find rest for your souls. |
| 7 Invasion and desolation of Judah threatened (4:5-31) 4:10 "Alas! Lord GOD," they will say, "You only deceived us When you said: Peace shall be yours; for the sword touches our very soul." | Misunderstanding about peace | 8 The utter corruption of God's people (5:1-31) 5:12"Not he-- No evil shall befall us, neither sword nor famine shall we see. 5:13 The prophets have become wind, and the word is not in them. May their threats be carried out against themselves!" |
| Former half | Relation | Latter half |
| 14 Idolatory has brought ruin on Israel (10:1-16) 10:5 Fear them not, they can do no harm, neither is it in their power to do good. (10:5) | Disasters | 27 Jeremiah prays for vindication (17:14-18) 17:16 Yet I did not press you to send calamity (17:16) |
| 15 The coming exile (10:17-25) 10:20 My sons have left me, they are no more (10:20) | The captivity | 26 Judah's sin and punishment (17:1-13) 17:4 I will enslave you to your enemies in a land that you know not (17:4) |
| 16 Israel and Judah have broken the covenant (11:1-17) 11:4 which I enjoined upon your fathers the day I brought them up out of the land of Egypt, that iron foundry, saying: Listen to my voice and do all that I command you. | Exodus | 25 God will restore Israel (16:14-21) 16:14"As the LORD lives, who brought the Israelites out of Egypt"; |
| 17 Jeremiah complains to God (11:18-12:6) 11:22I am going to punish them. The young men shall die by the sword; their sons and daughters shall die by famine. | Sword, famine | 24 Jeremiah's celibacy and message (16:1-13) 16:4Sword and famine will make an end of them, |
| 18 God replies to Jeremiah (12:7-17) 12:12 Upon every desert height brigands have come up. | Robbery | 23 Jeremiah complains again and is reassured (15:10-21) 15:13 Your wealth and all your treasures I will give as spoil. In recompense for all your sins throughout your borders, |
| 19 The linen loincloth (13:1-14) 13:14 I will dash them against each other, fathers and sons together, says the LORD; I will show no compassion, I will not spare or pity, but will destroy them. | Completely destroyed | 22 Punishment is inevitable (15:1-9) 15:3 Four kinds of scourge I have decreed against them, says the LORD: the sword to slay them; dogs to drag them about; the birds of the sky and the beasts of the earth to devour and destroy them. |
| 20 Exile threatened (13:15-27) 13:22For your great guilt your skirts are stripped away and you are violated. | Punishment of sin | 21 The great drought (14:1-22) 14:10The LORD has no pleasure in them; now he remembers their guilt, and will punish their sins. |
| Former half | Relation | Latter half |
| 28 Hallow the sabbath day (17:19-27) 17:27 But if you do not obey me and keep holy the sabbath, if you carry burdens and come through the gates of Jerusalem on the sabbath, I will set unquenchable fire to its gates, which will consume the palaces of Jerusalem. | If you don't obey, you will be destroyed | 41 Jeremiah's prophecies in the temple (26:1-19) 26:4If you disobey me, not living according to the law I placed before you 26:5 and not listening to the words of my servants the prophets, whom I send you constantly though you do not obey them, 26:6 I will treat this house like Shiloh, and make this the city which all the nations of the earth shall refer to when cursing another. |
| 29 The potter and the clay (18:1-17) 18:4 Whenever the object of clay which he was making turned out badly in his hand, he tried again, making of the clay another object of whatever sort he pleased. | Breaking object of clay | 40 The cup of God's wrath (25:15-38) 25:34like choice rams you shall fall. |
| 30 A plot against Jeremiah (18:18-23) 18:18It will not mean the loss of instruction from the priests, nor of counsel from the wise, nor of messages from the prophets. And so, let us destroy him by his own tongue; let us carefully note his every word." | People don't listen to prophet | 39 The Babylonian captivity foretold (25:1-14) 25:4 Though you refused to listen or pay heed, the LORD has sent you without fail all his servants the prophets |
| 31 The broken earthenware jug (19:1-15) 19:8 I will make this city an object of amazement and derision. Because of all its wounds, every passer-by will be amazed and will catch his breath. | Object of horror | 38 The good and the bad figs (24:1-10) 24:9 I will make them an object of horror to all the kingdoms of the earth, a reproach and a byword, a taunt and a curse, in all the places to which I will drive them. |
| 32 Jeremiah persecuted by Pashhur (20:1-6) 20:6 You Pashhur, and all the members of your household shall go into exile. To Babylon you shall go, you and all your friends; | Pseudo prophet | 37 False prophets of hope denounced (23:9-40) 23:25 I have heard the prophets who prophesy lies in my name say, "I had a dream! I had a dream!" |
| 33 Jeremiah denounces his persecutors (20:7-18) 20:12 O LORD of hosts, you who test the just, who probe mind and heart, | Justice of the LORD | 36 Restoration after exile (23:1-8) 23:6This is the name they give him: "The LORD our justice." |
| 34 Jerusalem will fall to Nebuchadrezzar (21:1-14) 21:7 After that, says the LORD, I will hand over Zedekiah, king of Judah, and his ministers and the people in this city who survive pestilence, sword, and famine, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, into the hands of their enemies and those who seek their lives. | Handed over to king of Babylon | 35 Exhortation to repent (22:1-30) 22:25 I will deliver you into the hands of those who seek your life; the hands of those whom you fear; the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and the Chaldeans. |
| Former half | Relation | Latter half |
| 41 Jeremiah's prophecies in the temple (26:1-19) 26:9 Why do you prophesy in the name of the LORD: 'This house shall be like Shiloh,' and 'This city shall be desolate and deserted'?" | Being desolate and deserted | 54 Healing after punishment (33:1-18) 33:10 Thus says the LORD: In this place of which you say, "How desolate it is, without man, without beast!" and in the cities of Judah, in the streets of Jerusalem that are now deserted, without man, without citizen, without beast, there shall yet be heard |
| 41 Jeremiah's prophecies in the temple (26:1-19) 26:8 When Jeremiah finished speaking all that the LORD bade him speak to all the people, the priests and prophets laid hold of him, crying, "You must be put to death! | Arrested Jeremiah | 54 Healing after punishment (33:1-18) 33:1 The word of the LORD came to Jeremiah a second time while he was still imprisoned in the quarters of the guard: |
| 42 Death of Uriah (26:20-24) 26:21 When King Jehoiakim and all his officers and princes were informed of his words, the king sought to kill him (26:21) | Sins of the kings | 53 God's assurance of the people's return (32:26-44) 32:32 for all the wickedness the Israelites and Judeans, with their kings and their princes, their priests and their prophets, the men of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem (32:32) |
| 43 The sign of the yoke (27:1-22) 27:5 It was I who made the earth, and man and beast on the face of the earth, by my great power, with my outstretched arm | Power of the LORD | 52 Jeremiah prays for understanding (32:16-25) 32:17 Ah, Lord GOD, you have made heaven and earth by your great might, with your outstretched arm |
| 44 Hananiah opposes Jeremiah and dies (28:1-17) 28:3 Within two years I will restore to this place all the vessels of the temple of the LORD which Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, took away from this place to Babylon | Prophecy of salvation | 51 Jeremiah buys a field during the siege (32:6-15) 32:15 Houses and fields and vineyards shall again be bought in this land |
| 45 Restoration promised (29:1-23) 29:10 Only after seventy years have elapsed for Babylon will I visit you and fulfill for you my promise to bring you back to this place | The day of the Lord's mercy | 50 Jeremiah is imprisoned (32:1-5) 32:5 Zedekiah shall be taken to Babylon. There he shall remain, until I attend to him |
| 46 The letter of Shemaiah (29:24-32) 29:32 I will therefore punish Shemaiah, the Nehelamite, and his offspring | Punishment against descendants | 49 A new covenant (31:27-40) 31:29 In those days they shall no longer say, "The fathers ate unripe grapes, and the childrens teeth are set on edge," |
| 47 Distress and salvation of Jacob (30:1-24) 30:22 You shall be my people, and I will be your God. | Becoming people of the LORD | 48 The joyful return of the exiles (31:1-26) 31:1 At that time, says the LORD, I will be the God of all the tribes of Israel, and they shall be my people. |
| Former half | Relation | Latter half |
| 55 Covenant with David (33:19-26) 33:21 then can my covenant with my servant David also be broken, so that he will not have a son to be king upon his throne, and my covenant with the priests of Levi who minister to me. | Descendants of David is not ruined | 81 Jehoiachin favored in captivity (52:31-34) 52:31 In the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin, king of Judah, on the twenty-fifth day of the twelfth month, Evil-merodach, king of Babylon, in the inaugural year of his reign, took up the case of Jehoiachin, king of Judah, and released him from prison. |
| 56 Death in captivity predicted for Zedekiah (34:1-7) 34:3 Neither shall you escape his hand; rather you will be captured and fall into his hands | Captivity | 80 The destruction of Jerusalem (52:12-30) 52:28 the people whom Nebuchadnezzar led away captive |
| 57 Treacherous treatment of slaves (34:8-22) 34:21 Zedekiah, too, king of Judah, and his princes, I will hand over to their enemies, to those who seek their lives, to the soldiers of the king of Babylon who have at present withdrawn from you. | Prophecy / fulfillment to Zedekiah | 79 The reign of Zedekiah (52:1-11) 52:9 The king, therefore, was arrested and brought to Riblah, in the land of Hamath, to the king of Babylon, who pronounced sentence on him. |
| 58 The Rechabites commended (35:1-19) 35:17I will bring upon Judah and all the citizens of Jerusalem every evil that I threatened; | Disaster of the LORD | 78 Jeremiah's command to Seraiah (51:59-64) 51:64Thus shall Babylon sink. Never shall she rise, because of the evil I am bringing upon her. |
| 58 The Rechabites commended (35:1-19) 35:6 "We do not drink wine," they said to me: "Jonadab, Rechab's son, our father, forbade us in these words: 'Neither you nor your children shall ever drink wine. | Prophetic action by others | 78 Jeremiah's command to Seraiah (51:59-64) 51:63 When you have finished reading this book, tie a stone to it and throw it in the Euphrates, 51:64 and say: |
| 59 The scroll read in the temple (36:1-32) 36:3 Perhaps, when the house of Judah hears all the evil I have in mind to do to them, they will turn back each from his evil way, so that I may forgive their wickedness and their sin. | Forgiveness of sin | 77 Judgment on Babylon (50:1-51:58) 50:20 In those days, at that time, says the LORD: They shall seek Israels guilt, but it shall be no more, and Judahs sins, but these shall no longer be found; for I will forgive the remnant I preserve. |
| 60 Jeremiah is imprisoned (37:1-21) 37:1 Coniah, son of Jehoiakim, was succeeded by King Zedekiah, son of Josiah; he was made king over the land of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. | Others select king | 76 Judgment on Elam (49:34-39) 49:38 My throne I will set up in Elam and destroy from there king and princes, says the LORD. |
| 61 Jeremiah in the cistern (38:1-13) 38:3 Thus says the LORD: This city shall certainly be handed over to the army of the king of Babylon; he shall capture it. | Prophecy about punishment by Babylon | 75 Judgment on nations (47:1-49:33) 49:30 Flee! leave your homes, hide in deep holes, you that live in Hazor, says the LORD; For counsel has been taken against you, a plan has been formed against you (Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon). |
| 62 Zedekiah consults Jeremiah again (38:14-28) 38:17Thus says the LORD God of hosts, the God of Israel: If you surrender to the princes of Babylon's king, you shall save your life; this city shall not be destroyed with fire, and you and your family shall live. | Prophecy of not destroying | 74 Babylonia will strike Egypt (46:13-28) 46:28 You, my servant Jacob, never fear, says the LORD, for I am with you; I will make an end of all the nations to which I have driven you, But of you I will not make an end: I will chastise you as you deserve, I will not let you go unpunished. |
| 63 The fall of Jerusalem (39:1-14) 39:4 When Zedekiah, king of Judah, saw them, he and all his warriors fled by night, | Soldier flees | 73 Judgment on Egypt (46:1-12) 46:5 What do I see? With broken ranks They fall back; their heroes are routed, They flee headlong without making a stand. Terror on every side, says |
| 64 Jeremiah, set free, remembers Ebed-melech (39:15-18) 39:18 I will make certain that you escape and do not fall by the sword. Your life shall be spared as booty, because you trusted in me, says the LORD. | Prophecy about saved person | 72 A word of comfort to Baruch (45:1-5) 45:5but your life I will leave you as booty, wherever you may go. |
| 65 Jeremiah is released (40:1-6) 40:2"The LORD, your God, foretold the ruin of this place. 40:3 Now he has brought about in deed what he threatened; because you sinned against the LORD and did not obey his voice, this fate has befallen you. | Punishment of sin | 71 Denunciation of persistent idolatry (44:1-30) 44:2You have seen all the evil I brought on Jerusalem and the other cities of Judah. Today they are ruins and uninhabited, 44:3 because of the evil they did to provoke me, |
| 66 Jeremiah with Gedaliah the governor (40:7-16) 40:7the king of Babylon had given Gedaliah, son of Ahikam, charge of the land, | Surrender to Babylon | 70 Jeremiah warns of judgment (43:8-13) 43:10I will send for my servant Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and bring him here. He will set his throne upon these stones which I, Jeremiah, have sunk, and stretch his canopy over them. |
| 67 Insurrection against Gedaliah (41:1-18) 41:16 Then Johanan, son of Kareah, and all his army leaders took charge of the remnant of the people, both the soldiers and the women and children with their guardians, whom Ishmael, son of Nethaniah, had brought away from Mizpah after he killed Gedaliah, son of Ahikim. From Gibeon, 41:17 they retreated to the lodging place of Chimham near Bethlehem, where they stopped, intending to flee into Egypt. | Escape to Egypt | 69 Escape to Egypt (43:1-7) 43:7 Against the LORD'S command they went to Egypt, and arrived at Tahpanhes.... |
| Former half | Relation | Latter half |
| 55 Covenant with David (33:19-26) 33:26 For I will change their lot and show them mercy. | Mercy | 68 Jeremiah advises survivors not to migrate (42:1-22) 42:12 I will grant you mercy, so that he will be sorry for you and let you return to your land. |
| 56 Death in captivity predicted for Zedekiah (34:1-7) 34:4you shall not die by the sword. | Ruler is killed by a sword | 67 Insurrection against Gedaliah (41:1-18) 41:2 Ishmael, son of Nethaniah, and the ten who were with him, rose up and attacked with swords Gedaliah, son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon had made ruler over the land; and they killed him. |
| 57 Treacherous treatment of slaves (34:8-22) 34:10 All the princes and the others who entered the agreement consented to set free their male and female servants, so that they should be slaves no longer. But though they agreed and freed them, 34:11 afterward they took back their male and female slaves whom they had set free and again forced them into service. | Treatment for the poor person | 66 Jeremiah with Gedaliah the governor (40:7-16) 40:7 When the army leaders who were still in the field with all their men heard that the king of Babylon had given Gedaliah, son of Ahikam, charge of the land, of men, women, and children, and of those poor who had not been led captive to Babylon, |
| 58 The Rechabites commended (35:1-19) 35:17I will bring upon Judah and all the citizens of Jerusalem every evil that I threatened; because when I spoke they did not obey, when I called they did not answer. | Because people don't obey to the LORD, they are punished | 65 Jeremiah is released (40:1-6) 40:2 When the captain of the bodyguard took charge of Jeremiah, he said to him, "The LORD, your God, foretold the ruin of this place. 40:3 Now he has brought about in deed what he threatened; because you sinned against the LORD and did not obey his voice, this fate has befallen you. |
| 59 The scroll read in the temple (36:1-32) 36:26 but commanded Jerahmeel, a royal prince, and Seraiah, son of Azriel, and Shelemiah, son of Abdeel, to arrest Baruch, the secretary, and the prophet Jeremiah. But the LORD kept them concealed. | Saved by the LORD | 64 Jeremiah, set free, remembers Ebed-melech (39:15-18) 39:17 But on that day I will rescue you, says the LORD; you shall not be handed over to the men of whom you are afraid. |
| 60 Jeremiah is imprisoned (37:1-21) 37:8 The Chaldeans shall return to the fight against this city; they shall capture it and destroy it with fire. | Chaldeans destroy the city with fire | 63 The fall of Jerusalem (39:1-14) 39:8 The Chaldeans set fire to the king's palace and the houses of the people, and demolished the walls of Jerusalem. |
| 60 Jeremiah is imprisoned (37:1-21) 37:21Thus Jeremiah remained in the quarters of the guard. | Jeremiah in quarters of the guard | 63 The fall of Jerusalem (39:1-14) 39:14 had Jeremiah taken out of the quarters of the guard, and entrusted to Gedaliah, son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, to be brought home. |
| 61 Jeremiah in the cistern (38:1-13) 38:2He who remains in this city shall die by sword, or famine, or pestilence; but he who goes out to the Chaldeans shall live; his life shall be spared him as booty, and he shall live. | Surrendering person survives | 62 Zedekiah consults Jeremiah again (38:14-28) 38:17If you surrender to the princes of Babylon's king, you shall save your life; this city shall not be destroyed with fire, and you and your family shall live. 38:18 But if you do not surrender to the princes of Babylon's king, this city shall fall into the hands of the Chaldeans, who shall destroy it with fire, and you shall not escape their hands. |
| 61 Jeremiah in the cistern (38:1-13) 38:13But Jeremiah remained in the quarters of the guard. | Jeremiah in quarters of the guard | 62 Zedekiah consults Jeremiah again (38:14-28) 38:28 Thus Jeremiah stayed in the quarters of the guard till the day Jerusalem was taken. |
| Former half | Relation | Latter half |
| 68 Jeremiah advises survivors not to migrate (42:1-22) 42:12 I will grant you mercy, so that he will be sorry for you and let you return to your land. | Mercy of Babylon's king | 81 Jehoiachin favored in captivity (52:31-34) 52:31Evil-merodach, king of Babylon, in the inaugural year of his reign, took up the case of Jehoiachin, king of Judah, and released him from prison. |
| 69 Escape to Egypt (43:1-7) 43:7 Against the LORDS command they went to Egypt, and arrived at Tahpanhes.... | Judah is exiled from promised land | 80 The destruction of Jerusalem (52:12-30) 52:28 the people whom Nebuchadnezzar led away captive |
| 70 Jeremiah warns of judgment (43:8-13) 43:10I will send for my servant Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and bring him here. He will set his throne upon these stones which I, Jeremiah, have sunk, and stretch his canopy over them. | King of Babylon destroys throne | 79 The reign of Zedekiah (52:1-11) 52:9 The king, therefore, was arrested and brought to Riblah, in the land of Hamath, to the king of Babylon, who pronounced sentence on him. |
| 71 Denunciation of persistent idolatry (44:1-30) 44:2Today they are ruins and uninhabited, | Desolated ruins | 78 Jeremiah's command to Seraiah (51:59-64) 51:62O LORD, you yourself threatened to destroy this place, so that neither man nor beast should dwell in it, since it would remain an everlasting desert. |
| 72 A word of comfort to Baruch (45:1-5) 45:3"Alas! the LORD adds grief to my pain; I am weary from groaning, and can find no rest": | Suffering and fatigue | 77 Judgment on Babylon (50:1-51:58) 51:58The toil of the nations is for nothing; for the flames the peoples weary themselves. |
| 73 Judgment on Egypt (46:1-12) 46:5Terror on every side, says the LORD! | From four sides | 76 Judgment on Elam (49:34-39) 49:36 I will bring upon Elam the four winds from the four ends of the heavens: |
| 74 Babylonia will strike Egypt (46:13-28) judgment on Egypt | Prophecy about ruin of nations | 75 Judgment on nations (47:1-49:33) judgment on nations |