Jeremiah 44

This chapter belongs to the latter part of the book of Jeremiah, which deals with events after the fall of Jerusalem. In Jeremiah 43, the remnant ignored Jeremiah's warning and went down to Egypt, taking him with them. This chapter records Jeremiah's final prophecy, delivered there.

Outline

• Verses 1–6 The word of the Lord comes to the people of Judah living throughout Egypt. It reminds them that Jerusalem and the cities of Judah were laid waste because the people burned incense to other gods.
• Verses 7–14 The Lord warns that if they continue burning incense in Egypt, they will be cut off by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence, and that none will return except those who escape.
• Verses 15–19 A crowd of men and women refuses. They claim that they had plenty while they burned incense to the queen of heaven, but that disaster came upon them after they stopped.
• Verses 20–23 Jeremiah counters that this very incense burning was the cause of the disaster.
• Verses 24–30 God says, "surely perform your vows," and declares that the people of Judah in Egypt will be destroyed. As a sign, He foretells that Pharaoh Hophra will be given into the hand of his enemies.

Key Verses

• Jeremiah 44:17 "to burn incense unto the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her": Here the people interpret the cause of their disaster in exactly the opposite way.
• Jeremiah 44:28 "shall know whose words shall stand, mine, or theirs": This expresses the heart of the chapter, that history will reveal whose word is true.

People and Places

• Jeremiah: The prophet who continued to prophesy even after being taken to Egypt.
• Pharaoh Hophra: The king of Egypt at the time.
• Zedekiah and Nebuchadnezzar: Mentioned in verse 30 as a precedent for judgment.
• Migdol, Tahpanhes, Noph, and Pathros: Regions of Egypt where the people of Judah had scattered. Noph is identified as Memphis, and Pathros as southern (Upper) Egypt.

Points for Reflection

• Many regard the queen of heaven as a goddess of the ancient Near East; she also appears in Jeremiah 7.
• Some interpreters read "since we left off" in verse 18 as referring to the period after the reforms of Josiah.
• Hophra is known to have later lost his throne and been killed.
• The account that Jeremiah was stoned to death in Egypt is a later tradition and does not appear in the biblical text.
• Although this chapter is not directly quoted in the New Testament, it is sometimes read in connection with the themes of the remnant and idolatry.