Jeremiah 42:7-17 – God’s Regret

Summary

God expresses regret regarding the excessive behaviors of the Babylonians in their execution of judgment against Israel.

Analysis

Jeremiah 40-44 are set in the aftermath of the fall of Jerusalem. They narrate various features of the governorship of Gedaliah (appointed by the Babylonians in 587 B.C.E.) and the anarchy that follows upon his assassination by anti-Babylonian zealots. These chapters show how first one group and then another (which went down to Egypt and took Jeremiah with them) were eliminated as possible remnants for a new beginning for Israel. The only hope for Israel lies with the "remnant" in Babylon.

The basic issue faced in Jeremiah 42 is whether a key remnant, which stayed in the land after the destruction of Jerusalem, should proceed to Egypt. Jeremiah's counsel was for them to stay in the land and seek to rebuild it. They request a word of God from Jeremiah regarding their future. God's word in Jeremiah 42:10-12 has a very positive tone and outlook. If they remain in the land, God will build and plant them.

God's reason that informs this word is startling: God is sorry for bringing the disaster (the fall of Jerusalem) upon them! What does it mean for God to express regret? While various suggestions have been made, the most convincing is that it carries the sense of genuine divine regret (as in Genesis 6:5-6). The point is that the judgment and its painful effects proved to be more severe than God had intended. That is to say, the Babylonians far exceeded the divine mandate in the devastation they caused and made the land and the people a waste. God will pass judgment on them for their excessiveness (Jeremiah 25:12-14; 50-51; Isaiah 47). The language of Zechariah 1:15 puts it well: "while I was only a little angry, they made the disaster worse." God does not remove the divine self from responsibility for the choice of the means that resulted in an imperfect execution of the mandate.

• Jeremiah 1:1-3
  The Historical Setting of the Preaching and the Book
• Jeremiah 1:4-19
  The Call of Jeremiah
• Jeremiah 3:1-5
  Does God Break the Law?
• Jeremiah 4:19-31
  Personal Anguish at Creational Devastation
• Jeremiah 7:1-15
  The Temple Sermon
• Jeremiah 8:18-9:1
  Is There No Balm in Gilead?
• Jeremiah 9:10-19
  The Lament of God
• Jeremiah 9:23-24
  On Boasting
• Jeremiah 11:18-12:6
  A Lamb Led to the Slaughter
• Jeremiah 13:20-27
  The Violence of Female Metaphors
• Jeremiah 14:1-15:9
  Repentance That Comes Too Late
• Jeremiah 15:10-21
  More Laments from Jeremiah
• Jeremiah 18:1-12
  The Potter and the Pots
• Jeremiah 20:7-18
  Jeremiah’s Final Lament
• Jeremiah 23:1-8 and 33:14-16
  The Righteous Branch
• Jeremiah 26:1-19
  Jeremiah’s Arrest and Release
• Jeremiah 28:1-17
  Jeremiah and Hananiah, the False Prophet
• Jeremiah 29:1-23
  Jeremiah’s Letter to the Exiles: Seek the Welfare of the City
• Jeremiah 30:1-22
  Be Not Afraid, I Am with You and I Will Save You
• Jeremiah 31:1-6
  I Have Loved You with an Everlasting Love
• Jeremiah 31:31-34
  The New Covenant
• Jeremiah 32:1-44
  Is Anything Too Hard for God?
• Jeremiah 33:14-26
  Unconditional Promises
• Jeremiah 36:1-22
  The Scrolls of Jeremiah
• Jeremiah 48:29-39
  The Tears of God
• Jeremiah 52:31-34
  A Future for Israel