Discovery BoxJeremiah 1:12 
Context1:12 Then the Lord said, “You have observed correctly. This means 1 I am watching to make sure my threats are carried out.” 2
Jeremiah 5:6
Context5:6 So like a lion from the thicket their enemies will kill them.
Like a wolf from the desert they will destroy them.
Like a leopard they will lie in wait outside their cities
and totally destroy anyone who ventures out. 3
For they have rebelled so much
and done so many unfaithful things. 4
Jeremiah 31:28
Context31:28 In the past I saw to it that they were uprooted and torn down, that they were destroyed and demolished. But now I will see to it that they are built up and firmly planted. 5 I, the Lord, affirm it!” 6
Jeremiah 44:27
Context44:27 I will indeed 7 see to it that disaster, not prosperity, happens to them. 8 All the people of Judah who are in the land of Egypt will die in war or from starvation until not one of them is left.
1 tn This represents the Hebrew particle (כִּי, ki) that is normally rendered “for” or “because.” The particle here is meant to give the significance of the vision, not the rationale for the statement “you have observed correctly.”
2 tn Heb “watching over my word to do it.”
sn There is a play on the Hebrew word for “almond tree” (שָׁקֵד, shaqed), which blossoms in January/February and is the harbinger of spring, and the Hebrew word for “watching” (שֹׁקֵד, shoqed), which refers to someone watching over someone or something in preparation for action. The play on words announces the certainty and imminence of the
3 tn Heb “So a lion from the thicket will kill them. A wolf from the desert will destroy them. A leopard will watch outside their cities. Anyone who goes out from them will be torn in pieces.” However, it is unlikely that, in the context of judgment that Jeremiah has previously been describing, literal lions are meant. The animals are metaphorical for their enemies. Compare Jer 4:7.
4 tn Heb “their rebellions are so many and their unfaithful acts so numerous.”
5 tn Heb “Just as I watched over them to uproot and to tear down, to destroy and demolish, so I will watch over them to build and to plant.” The words here repeat those of 1:10 and 1:12.
6 tn Heb “Oracle of the
7 tn Heb “Behold I.” For the use of this particle see the translator’s note on 1:6. Here it announces the reality of a fact.
8 tn Heb “Behold, I am watching over them for evil/disaster/harm not for good/prosperity/ blessing.” See a parallel usage in 31:28.
