Discovery BoxJeremiah 4:2 
Context4:2 You must be truthful, honest and upright
when you take an oath saying, ‘As surely as the Lord lives!’ 1
If you do, 2 the nations will pray to be as blessed by him as you are
and will make him the object of their boasting.” 3
Jeremiah 9:3
Context“These people are like soldiers who have readied their bows.
Their tongues are always ready to shoot out lies. 5
They have become powerful in the land,
but they have not done so by honest means. 6
Indeed, they do one evil thing after another 7
and do not pay attention to me. 8
1 tn Heb “If you [= you must, see the translator’s note on the word “do” later in this verse] swear/take an oath, ‘As the
2 tn 4:1-2a consists of a number of “if” clauses, two of which are formally introduced by the Hebrew particle אִם (’im) while the others are introduced by the conjunction “and,” followed by a conjunction (“and” = “then”) with a perfect in 4:2b which introduces the consequence. The translation “You must…. If you do,” was chosen to avoid a long and complicated sentence.
3 tn Heb “bless themselves in him and make their boasts in him.”
4 tn The words “The
5 tn Heb “They have readied [or strung] their tongue as their bow for lies.”
6 tn Heb “but not through honesty.”
7 tn Heb “they go from evil to evil.”
8 tn Or “do not acknowledge me”; Heb “do not know me.” But “knowing” in Hebrew thought often involves more than intellectual knowledge; it involves emotional and volitional commitment as well. For יָדַע meaning “acknowledge” see 1 Chr 28:9; Isa 29:21; Hos 2:20; Prov 3:6. This word is also found in ancient Near Eastern treaty contexts where it has the idea of a vassal king acknowledging the sovereignty of a greater king (cf. H. Huffmon, “The Treaty Background of Hebrew yada,” BASOR 181 [1966]: 31-37).
