Jeremiah, Lamentations (NIV Application Commentary | NIVAC)

by J. Andrew Dearman

Publisher:

Zondervan

, 2002

Overview

The books of Jeremiah and Lamentations can’t be separated from the political conditions of ancient Judah. Beginning with the righteous king Josiah, who ushered in a time of glorious but brief religious reform, Jeremiah reflects the close tie between spiritual and political prosperity and disaster, between the actions and heart of Judah and her kings and their fortunes as a nation.

While few of us today have any firsthand understanding of what it means to live in a theocracy, the central theme of Jeremiah and Lamentations remains clear and still holds true: God first, politics second. The words, prayers, and poems of “the weeping prophet” serve to realign us with God’s priorities, turning us from evil and encouraging us to pursue God and his ways. With emotion and spiritual depth, these prophetic writings beckon us toward a spiritual integrity that can still affect the course of individuals and nations today.

Key Features

• Treats all the elements of traditional exegesis
• Compares the original context and the contemporary context
• Engages contemporary life and culture

Contents

Top Highlights

“What is ‘new’ about the new covenant is not the covenant partner but the quality of the community created by God’s amazing acts.” (Page 287)

“Being rejected by one’s contemporaries is deeply painful, and the human toll it takes is evident in the prophet’s candid language.” (Page 162)

“Book of Consolation. Jeremiah notes that the future of the people in exile rests on God’s ‘gracious promise’ (v. 10; lit., God’s ‘good word’). In verse 11 the gracious promise is described as plans God has for the people, plans for a ‘prosperity’ (šalom, peace) that provides a future and ‘hope’ (tiqwa). A tangible element to the future consists in the restoration of the people to their homeland. The restoration, however, is predicated on their seeking God with their whole heart.” (Page 262)

“This chapter also finds itself a part of the scriptural witness to God’s people who are addressed as pilgrims, as wandering people, even as aliens, whose true home is with the Lord. From the perspective of the New Testament, God’s people are both ‘at home’ as members of the body of the risen Christ (regardless of their geographical location) and ‘in transit’ as they live out their witness in this age (regardless of their geographical location).⁶ The exiles in Babylon have not been ejected from their place among God’s people; rather, they have been called to reconsider their place in God’s economy in light of new temporal circumstances. Here potentially is a bridge to any generation of God’s people.” (Pages 263–264)

“By analogy she/they are also like animals in heat who are unrestrained in seeking a mate.” (Page 60)

Praise for the Print Edition

This is the pulpit commentary for the twenty-first century.

—George K. Brushaber, president, Bethel College and Seminary

The NIV Application Commentary meets the urgent need for an exhaustive and authoritative commentary based on the New International Version. This series will soon be found in libraries and studies throughout the evangelical community.

—James Kennedy, Senior minister, Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church

It is encouraging to find a commentary that is not only biblically trustworthy but also contemporary in its application. The NIV Application Commentary will prove to be a helpful tool in the pastor’s sermon preparation. I use it and recommend it.

—Charles F. Stanley, pastor, First Baptist Church of Atlanta

Product Details

• Title: Jeremiah, Lamentations
• Author: J. Andrew Dearman
• Series: NIV Application Commentary
• Publisher: Zondervan
• Print Publication Date: 2002
• Logos Release Date: 2010
• Pages: 496
• Era: era:contemporary
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
• Subjects: Bible. O.T. Jeremiah › Commentaries; Bible. O.T. Lamentations › Commentaries
• ISBNs: 9780310283454, 9780310206163, 9780310872832, 0310283450, 0310206162, 0310872839
• Resource ID: LLS:NIVAC24JE
• Resource Type: Bible Commentary
• Metadata Last Updated: 2022-10-05T17:06:42Z

About J. Andrew Dearman

John Andrew (Andy) Dearman is director and associate dean for Fuller Texas and professor of Old Testament. Dr. Dearman joined Fuller’s faculty in 2009 after several years of connection to the seminary, including teaching as an adjunct professor at two regional campuses. Before coming to Fuller, he taught Old Testament at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary for 27 years, serving as its academic dean from 1997 to 2003. Additionally, Dearman spent time on faculty at Louisiana State University and has served as a visiting professor at the Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany; Stellenbosch University, South Africa; the University of South Africa; and Justo Mwale Theological College, Zambia. A respected archaeological researcher, he has held staff positions on archaeological surveys and excavations in Israel and Jordan. Dearman has written several books, including Jeremiah and Lamentations (NIV Application Commentary series, 2002), The Land that I Will Show You: Essays on the History and Archaeology of the Near East in Honor of J. Maxwell Miller (editor and contributor, 2001), Religion and Culture in Ancient Israel (1992), Harper’s Bible Pronunciation Guide (editor and contributor, 1989), Studies of the Mesha Inscription and Moab (editor and contributor, 1989), and Property Rights in the Eighth-Century Prophets: The Conflict and Its Background (1988). Dearman serves on the editorial board of the NIV Application Commentary series by Zondervan, and is currently writing a commentary on Hosea for the New International Commentary on the Old Testament series. Additionally, he is a part of two ongoing Bible translation projects, contributing to translation for The Voice (Thomas Nelson) and serving as a translation editor for the Common English Bible (Abingdon). Dearman, who also holds an honorary ThD from the Reformed Theological Academy of Debrecen in Hungary, is a member of the Society of Biblical Literature and the American Schools of Oriental Research, and is an honorary member of the Old Testament Society of Southern Africa. He is ordained as a teaching elder in the Presbyterian Church (USA).