¹ tc The translation reads the form as a causative (Hiphil, תַּהֲנֵף, tahanef) with some of the versions in place of the simple stative (Qal, תֶּחֱנַף, tekhenaf) in the MT.

² tn Heb “because of the lightness of her prostitution, she defiled the land and committed adultery with stone and wood.”

³ tn Or “I will forgive your apostasies.” Heb “I will [or want to] heal your apostasies.” For the use of the verb “heal” (רָפָא, rafa’) to refer to spiritual healing and forgiveness see Hos 14:4.

⁴ tn Or “They say.” There is an obvious ellipsis of a verb of saying here since the preceding words are those of the Lord and the following are those of the people. However, there is debate about whether these are the response of the people to the Lord’s invitation, a response which is said to be inadequate according to the continuation in 4:1-4, or whether these are the Lord’s model for Israel’s confession of repentance to which he adds further instructions about the proper heart attitude that should accompany it in 4:1-4. The former implies a dialogue with an unmarked twofold shift in speaker between 3:22b-25 and 4:1-4:4 while the latter assumes the same main speaker throughout with an unmarked instruction only in 3:22b-25. This disrupts the flow of the passage less and appears more likely.

⁵ tn Heb “For this is what the Lord said,”

⁶ tn Heb “daughter of my people.” For the translation given here see 4:11 and the note on the phrase “dear people” there.

⁷ tn Heb “Because of the crushing of the daughter of my people I am crushed.”

⁸ tn Heb “I go about in black [i.e., mourning clothes]. Dismay has seized me.”

⁹ tn Heb “and they have not walked in it (with “it” referring to “my law”).

¹⁰ tn Heb “their eyes are strained because there is no verdure.”

¹¹ sn Heb “Your words were found and I ate them.” This along with Ezek 2:8–3:3 is a poetic picture of inspiration. The prophet accepted them, assimilated them, and made them such a part of himself that he spoke with complete assurance what he knew were God’s words.

¹² tn Heb “Your name is called upon me.”

sn See Jer 14:9 where this idiom is applied to Israel as a whole and Jer 7:10 where it is applied to the temple. For discussion cf. notes on 7:10.

¹³ tn The words “The following events also occurred” are not in the text. They are a way to introduce the incidents recorded in 37:11-21 without creating a long complex sentence in English like the Hebrew does. The Hebrew of vv. 11-12a reads “And it was/happened while the army of the Chaldeans had taken themselves up from against Jerusalem, Jeremiah set out from Jerusalem to go to the land of Benjamin to take part…” For the rendering “temporarily withdrawn from Jerusalem” see the translator’s note on v. 5. The words “was coming” are not in the text either but are implicit and have been supplied in the translation for clarity and smoothness of English expression.

¹⁴ tn Heb “the Chaldeans.” See the study note on 21:4 for the rendering “Babylonian.” The word “forces” is supplied in the translation here for the sake of clarity.

¹⁵ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

¹⁶ sn Heb “you will not fall by the sword.” In the context this would include death in battle and execution as a prisoner of war.

¹⁷ tn Heb “your life will be to you for spoil.” For the meaning of this idiom see the study note on 21:9 and compare the usage in 21:9; 38:2; 45:4.

¹⁸ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

¹⁹ tn Heb “this thing.”

²⁰ tn Heb “is false” or “is a lie.”

²¹ sn The exiles lament the way they have been humiliated.

²² tn Heb “we have heard an insult.”

²³ tn Heb “disgrace covers our face.”

²⁴ tn Or “holy places, sanctuaries.”