Enkidu, Jeremiah, and the Mother of Seven

A few days ago I wrote a post on “The Mother of Seven,” a study of Jeremiah 15:9. Now, Duane Smith at Abnormal Interest has written a post, “Enkidu, Jeremiah and the Mother of Seven” in which he links the harlot in Gilgamesh with the passage in Jeremiah.

Duane’s argument is provocative and deserves further study. I recommend that you visit Duane’s post and evaluate his proposal.

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Enkidu, Harlot, Jeremiah

Shaphan and His Family

In an earlier post on “The Fast of Gedaliah,” I mentioned the important role Gedaliah and the family of Shaphan played in the ministry of Jeremiah. I have always been interested in the role the Shaphanites played in the life and ministry of Jeremiah.

Because of my interest in the Shapanites, one of my students, Cesar Melgar, wrote his M.A. thesis on the role of the Shaphanites in helping Jeremiah accomplish his mission. Melgar’s thesis, “The Shaphanites: Political Allies to a Revolutionary Prophet,” studies the function of the scribe in ancient Israel and the influence of the Shaphanites in the political life of Judah.

Shaphan was a royal scribe who served under Josiah, king of Judah. Shaphan and his sons provided political support to the prophet Jeremiah and protected Jeremiah from those who opposed him, including the king, the king’s officials, the false prophets, and other officials who opposed the message and ministry of Jeremiah.

In response my post on Gedaliah, Peter Kirk commented on Shaphan’s father. Peter wrote:

Shaphan's father Azaliah (2 Kings 22:3), however, does not seem to have been a faithful Yahwist, given that he did not give his son a traditional Yahwistic name but instead named him after an animal (hyrax or rock badger). This was probably early in the long reign of Manasseh when Yahwistic names were out of fashion. At least by the time Shaphan named his son Gemariah (Jeremiah 36:10) he had become a convert to Yahwism.

I agree with Peter’s view about Azaliah. Naming children after animals was not common in Israel and was generally practiced by those who were not Israelites. Azaliah probably was one of those Israelites who had abandoned their faith during the reign of Manasseh. Even though Azaliah was not a fervent Yahwist, his son Shaphan and his children were faithful followers of Yahweh, with the exception of Jaazaniah.

James Pate wrote in his comment that Shaphan’s son Jaazaniah was not a strict Yahwist since the prophet Ezekiel criticized Jaazaniah for engaging in idolatry. Ezekiel wrote: “Before them [the idols of the house of Israel] stood seventy of the elders of the house of Israel, with Jaazaniah son of Shaphan standing among them. Each had his censer in his hand, and the fragrant cloud of incense was ascending” (Ezekiel 8:11). I will come back to Jaazaniah later.

The family of Shaphan was very influential in the political life in the last days of the monarchy in Judah. Shaphan’s son Ahikam (2 Kings 22:12) was a high government official during the reign of Josiah. He was sent to the prophetess Huldah with his father as a member of the official delegation in order to ascertain the message of the book of the law.

Gemariah, the son of Shaphan (Jeremiah 36:10) was part of Jehoiakim’s court. Jehoiakim was king of Judah and son of Josiah. When Baruch read the words of Jeremiah in the house of the Lord from the scroll which he had written at the dictation of Jeremiah, Baruch read it in the chamber of Gemariah which was in the upper court, at the entry of the New Gate of the Lord’s house (Jeremiah 36:10). Gemariah was one of the palace officials who was present when Jeremiah’s scroll was read before the king.

Elasah, the son of Shaphan, served in the government during the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah. Elasah was sent to Babylon on a diplomatic mission by Zedekiah after Zedekiah and a group of vassal nations failed in their attempt to rebel against Babylon. At the time of his journey to Babylon, Elasah carried Jeremiah’s letter to the people who were captives in Babylon (Jeremiah 29:1-3).

Shaphan had two grandsons: Micaiah and Gedaliah. Micaiah was the son of Gemariah. Micaiah was one of the royal officials who heard Baruch read the scroll of Jeremiah in the temple. And Micaiah was the one who told the king’s officers about the message Baruch was reading to the people (Jeremiah 36:13).

Gedaliah, the grandson of Shaphan, was the son of Ahikam. Gedaliah became the governor of Judah after the destruction of Babylon in 587 B.C. Gedaliah was a friend of Jeremiah and he tried to become an intermediary between the Babylonians and the people of Judah. However, because of some opposition by members of the royal family, Gedaliah was killed by Ishmael, forcing the Babylonians to deport more people to Babylon.

The only enigma in Shaphan’s family is Jaazaniah. From Ezekiel’s passage, it seems that Jaazaniah held an important position among the elders of Judah because out of the seventy elders only he is mentioned by name as one of the leader of the elders of Judah.

Shaphan, his sons, and grandsons were prominent leaders in the reform movement sponsored by Josiah; they were friends of Jeremiah, and served with distinction as royal officials with the exception of Jaazaniah. Jaazaniah probably served under Jehoiakim and Zedekiah and this may explain his uncharacteristic behavior. The fact that one of Shaphan’s sons was the leader of a group of idolatrous people must have been very painful to Ezekiel, so much so that it forced him to recognize Jaazaniah by name.

Shaphan played an important role in the reforms of Josiah. In the eighteenth year of Josiah’s reign, the king commanded Shaphan to go to Hilkiah and collect the money the people had donated for the repairs of the temple. After Shaphan arrived in the Temple, Hilkiah, the High Priest, told Shaphan that he had found the book of the Law of God in the temple.

Shaphan read the book and took it to Josiah and read it to the king. Josiah’s reaction to the message of the book was profound. Josiah tore his garments and ordered Shaphan and his son Ahikam, together with Hilkiah and two other officials, to inquire of the Lord and ascertain his will about the book.

The delegation sent by Josiah went to Huldah, the prophetess. The reason the king’s official selected Huldah to provide an evaluation of the book is unknown. However the fact that the High Priest and the Royal Scribe went to a prophet of Yahweh to seek God’s will, reveals the importance of the prophetic word in the religious life of Israel.

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Huldah, Jeremiah, Josiah, Shaphan

The Fast of Gedaliah

Yesterday, Sunday, the Jewish people celebrated the Fast of Gedaliah. The actual day was on Saturday, the 3rd day of the Hebrew month of Tishrei, but because of the Sabbath celebration, the fast day was celebrated on Sunday.

The Fast of Gedaliah, known in Hebrew as Tzom Gedaliah, is an annual fast set aside to remember the assassination of Gedaliah, the governor of Judah after the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. The death of Gedaliah was the culmination of a series of events that began with the deportation of Jehoiachin in 597 B.C. and ended with the deportation of what remained of the population of Judah to Babylon in 582 B.C.

The Fast of Gedaliah is observed annually on the day immediately following Rosh Hashanah, on the third day of Tishrei. In Jewish Writings the fast is called “The Fast of the Seventh” (see Zechariah 8:19) in allusion to Tishrei, the seventh month in the Hebrew calendar.

Gedaliah was the son of Ahikam and the grandson of Shaphan, the secretary of king Josiah. Shaphan and the members of his family were great supporters of Jeremiah. As a result of the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple in 587 B.C., Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, killed most of the leadership of Judah and deported the royal officials and the members of the royal family to Babylon.

Nebuchadnezzar appointed Gedaliah governor of the province of Judea to rule over what remained of Judah under the protection of the Babylonian army (Jeremiah 40:5). Gedaliah established the seat of his government at Mizpah, since Jerusalem was in ruins. Gedaliah ruled over the province as a tributary of the king of Babylon.

The Babylonians put Gedaliah in charge of the men, women, and children who had not been carried into exile in Babylon. According to Jeremiah 52:16, only the poorest people of the land were left behind to work the vineyards and the fields. Jeremiah was allowed to make a choice. Nebuzaradan, the commander of the Babylonian army, said to Jeremiah:

“Today I am freeing you from the chains on your wrists. Come with me to Babylon, if you like, and I will look after you; but if you do not want to, then don’t come. Look, the whole country lies before you; go wherever you please.” However, before Jeremiah answered, Nebuzaradan added, “Go back to Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon has appointed over the towns of Judah, and live with him among the people, or go anywhere else you please” (Jeremiah 40:4-5).

After Jeremiah made his decision, the commander of the Babylonian army gave him provisions and a present and let him go. Jeremiah went to Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, at Mizpah and stayed with him and with the people who were left behind in the land.

Gedaliah’s father, Ahikam, was one of the four persons sent by King Josiah to inquire of the prophetess Huldah concerning the book of the law found in the temple by Hilkiah, the high priest. Ahikam also protected the prophet Jeremiah from the wrath of Jehoiakim, king of Judah (Jeremiah 26:24).

After Gedaliah was appointed governor of Judah, he selected Mizpah, a city in the tribe of Benjamin, as the seat of his government. Gedaliah adopted a policy of reconciliation and counseled the people to submit to the Babylonians. Jeremiah joined Gedaliah at Mizpah and the city became a refuge for many people who had fled before the coming of the Babylonian army (Jeremiah 40:11-12).

However, Gedaliah’s policy of conciliation and submission did not meet with universal approval. Ishmael, a member of the royal family of Judah, planned to assassinate Gedaliah and probably take control of the government. Ishmael was encouraged by Baalis, king of Ammon, where Ishmael had fled during the war with the Babylonians.

Johanan, the son of Kareah, warned Gedaliah of the plot against his life: “Don't you know that Baalis king of the Ammonites has sent Ishmael son of Nethaniah to take your life?” (Jeremiah 40:14). However, Gedaliah did not believe that Ishmael would kill him. What follows demonstrates the character of Gedaliah:

“Then Johanan son of Kareah said privately to Gedaliah in Mizpah: ‘Let me go and kill Ishmael son of Nethaniah, and no one will know it. Why should he take your life and cause all the Jews who are gathered around you to be scattered and the remnant of Judah to perish?’”

“But Gedaliah son of Ahikam said to Johanan son of Kareah, ‘Don't do such a thing! What you are saying about Ishmael is not true’” (Jeremiah 40:15-16). But it was true.

The assassination of Gedaliah is described in 2 Kings 25:25-26:

“In the seventh month, however, Ishmael son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, who was of royal blood, came with ten men and assassinated Gedaliah and also the men of Judah and the Babylonians who were with him at Mizpah. At this, all the people from the least to the greatest, together with the army officers, fled to Egypt for fear of the Babylonians.”

The Israelites who remained in Mizpah, in anticipation of the reprisal by the king of Babylon, fled to Egypt, forcing Jeremiah to accompany them. As a result of Gedaliah’s death, a third deportation of the people of Judah took place in 582 B.C. (Jeremiah 52:30). In addition, the province of Judah was eliminated and what remained of the territory of Judah was incorporated into the province of Samaria.

The Fast of Gedaliah is commemorated by Jewish people as a day of national calamity. The death of Gedaliah was an event “which left Judah devoid of any Jews and Jewish rule, and made the destruction of the first Temple complete.”

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Gedaliah, Jeremiah

Jeremiah 39:3 and the Nebo-Sarsekim Tablet

In his post on Nebo-Sarsekim, “ The mystery of Nabu-sharrussu-ukin,” Chris Heard makes several important points which I want to address briefly in this post.

First, Chris asks: which version is correct, the NIV or the NRSV and the NJPSV? As I mentioned in my first post, all versions struggle with the Babylonian names, so, it is doubtful that the NRSV is better than the NIV in this case. Chris asks:

would it be appropriate to use the tablet to "correct" translations like the NRSV and NJPSV that read "Samgar-nebo, Sarsekim" rather than "Samgar, Nebo-sarsekim"?

Why not, if in this case the NRSV is wrong? In the past I have taken the NRSV against the NIV, but in this case I take the NIV against the NRSV. Even Chris leans “toward the NIV against the NRSV and NJPSV on the translation of the list of officials’ names.”

Second, Chris is puzzled with the presence of two Nergal-sharezers in Jeremiah 39:3. Since these two Nergal-sharezers have different titles, they probably were two different people working for the king of Babylon.

Third, Chris warns us that maybe the Nebo-Sarsekim of the clay tablet may not be the same Nebo-Sarsekim of Jeremiah 39:3. This is a fair assumption because if there were two Nergal-sharezers in Babylon, it is also possible that there was more than one Nebo-Sarsekim.

Many of the other issues raised by Chris have been addressed by Jack R. Lundbom in his commentary, Jeremiah 37-52 (The Anchor Bible; New York: Doubleday, 2004), 84-85.

Below I quote Lundbom’s comments in full. All the emphases are his; the abbreviations from works cited are quoted as they appear in the commentary. Those who want to read the works cited by Lundbom should consult his commentary. Lindbom wrote:

Nergalsharerer the Samgar, Nebusanechim the Rab-saris, Nergalsharezer the Rab-mag. Difficulty in rendering these Babylonian names shows up already in the Versions, which betray uncertainty about components and a general unawareness that names are followed by titles. What we have are three names with titles (Bogaert 1990: 317), the same number–but not all the same persons–as in v 13. If one were to read MT's hyphenated samgar-nebu as a separate name, which is possible (= Akk Sinmagir-Nabu), the names and individuals would then be four: Nergal-sharezer, Samgar-nebu, Sarsechim the Rab-saris, and Nergal-sharezer the Rab-mag (compare RSV, NJV, and NJB). But a contemporary cuneiform text suggests that samgar is a title for Nergal-sharezer (see below), leaving nebu a component of the following name. The samgar-nebu of MT is then incorrect.

Nergalsharezer the Samgar. Nergalsharezer is a Hebraicized form of Akk Nergal-sar-usur (Neriglissar). This individual, or else Nergalsharezer the Rab- mag cited here and in v 13, is likely the one who later seized the throne from Nebuchadrezzar's successor, Amelmarduk, and reigned from 560 to 556 B.C. (Bright 1965: 243; 1981: 352-53). Hebrew samgar (=Akk simmagir [sin-magir]) is the title of a high official, or else a place-name (CAD 15: 272-73; AHw 2: 1045). The consensus now is that samgar belongs with the prior name, which in Akk yields either Nergal-sar-user, the Sin-magir (high official), or Nergal- sar-user from Sin-magir (Bewer 1925-26). An individual so designated has come to light in "The Court of Nebuchadnezzar” document (ANET 308), where also the Nebuzaradan mentioned in vv. 9-14 is listed. Some commentators (Giesebrecht; Rudolph; Bright; Holladay; Jones; McKane) suggest that the two Nergalsharezers are only one person, but that view is to be rejected. These are two individuals with the same name (Kimhi), cited here with different titles in order to distinguish one from the other.

Nebusarsechim the Rab-saris. The now-expanded name of Nebusarsechim has support in LXX's Nabousachar. The component in MT is "Nebu" (as in Nebuchadrezzar), not "Nebo," as appears in Isa 46:l. Both are equivalent to Akk Nabu (= god). The Rab-saris ("chief of the eunuchs") is another title for a high state official.

Nergalsharezer the Rab-mag. The term rab-mag is a Hebraicized form of Akk rab mugi, the title of a high military official (mugu in CAD 10/2:171; Ahw 2:667; KB [3rd ed.]; its meaning, at least here, is not “chief astrologer/sootsayer” (pace BDB, 550; NJB). The term has turned up in an economic memoradum from the Sippar temple records (BM 49656:3), where the Nabopolassar’s accession reference is made to “the accountant of the rab magu” (Wiseman 1956:94).

The Nebo-Sarsekim Tablet was found among financial records unearthed in the ancient city of Sippar. It is not a coincidence that, according to Lundbom, the title of Nergalsharezer the Rab-mag and the name of Nebuzaradan also appear in documents found in the temple at Sippar.

Chris has a point: the Nebo-Sarsekim of the tablet may not be the same Nebo-Sarsekim of Jeremiah 39:3. But one thing is sure: the name Nebo-Sarsekim is not a name invented by some post-exilic theologian writing an invented history of Israel.

Previous posts on this topic::

The Book of Jeremiah and A New Archaeological Discovery

The Nebo-Sarsekim Tablet

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Archaeology, Babylon, Jeremiah, Nebo-Sarsekim, Michael Jursa

The Nebo-Sarsekim Tablet

In my previous post on the Nebo-Sarsekim Tablet, I mentioned that Nebo-Sarsekim was the same individual mentioned in Jeremiah 39:3.

Peter Kirk alerted me to an article in The Telegraph that provides a photo and a full translation of the tablet.

According to the article in The Telegraph, the full translation of the
tablet reads as follows:

(Regarding) 1.5 minas (0.75 kg) of gold, the property of Nabu-sharrussu-ukin,the chief eunuch, which he sent via Arad-Banitu the eunuch to [the temple]Esangila: Arad-Banitu has delivered [it] to Esangila. In the presence of Bel-usat, son of Alpaya, the royal bodyguard, [and of] Nadin,son of Marduk-zer-ibni. Month XI, day 18, year 10 [of] Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon.

The tablet is dated to the 10th year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, 595 B.C.E., two years after the deportation of Jehoiachin, King of Judah. This date is very important. As Peter wrote:

Also the date on the tablet, the tenth year of Nebuchadnezzar, is two years after Nebuchadnezzar first sacked the temple in Jerusalem and took all the gold from it, 2 Kings 24:13. So the gold mentioned in this tablet could well have been Nebo-Sarsekim's share of the spoil from Jerusalem.

Credits:

I want to thank Peter Kirk for leading me to the article in The Telegraph.

The translation of the Nebo-Sarsekim Tablet appeared in The Telegraph.

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Archaeology, Babylon, Jeremiah, Nebo-Sarsekim, Nebuchadnezzar

The Book of Jeremiah and A New Archaeological Discovery

According to the book of Jeremiah 39:1-3, in the ninth year of Zedekiah, king of Judah, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, the army of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem and besieged the city.

Two and a half years later, that is, in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, the Babylonians broke through the walls of the city and Jerusalem fell. When Jerusalem fell, the officers of the Babylonian army came in and sat in triumph at the Middle Gate.

The versions differ in translating the names of the officers of the Babylonian army. The following are some of the translations of Jeremiah 39:3:

The English Standard Version (ESV)

Jeremiah 39:3 Then all the officials of the king of Babylon came and sat in the middle gate: Nergal-sar-ezer, Samgar-nebu, Sar-sekim the Rab-saris, Nergal-sar-ezer the Rab-mag, with all the rest of the officers of the king of Babylon.

The King James Version (KJV)

Jeremiah 39:3 And all the princes of the king of Babylon came in, and sat in the middle gate, even Nergalsharezer, Samgarnebo, Sarsechim, Rabsaris, Nergalsharezer, Rabmag, with all the residue of the princes of the king of Babylon.

The New American Bible (NAB)

Jeremiah 39:3 All the princes of the king of Babylon came and occupied the middle gate: Nergal-sharezer, of Simmagir, the chief officer, Nebushazban, the high dignitary, and all the other princes of the king of Babylon....

The New International Version (NIV)

Jeremiah 39:3 Then all the officials of the king of Babylon came and took seats in the Middle Gate: Nergal-Sharezer of Samgar, Nebo-Sarsekim a chief officer, Nergal-Sharezer a high official and all the other officials of the king of Babylon.

The New Living Translation (NLT)

Jeremiah 39:3 All the officers of the Babylonian army came in and sat in triumph at the Middle Gate: Nergal-sharezer of Samgar, and Nebo-sarsekim, a chief officer, and Nergal-sharezer, the king's adviser, and many others.

Note how the versions deal with the names:

The ESV has four officers: Nergal-sar-ezer, Samgar-nebu, Sar-sekim the Rab-saris, and Nergal-sar-ezer the Rab-mag.

The KJV has six officers: Nergalsharezer, Samgarnebo, Sarsechim, Rabsaris, Nergalsharezer, and Rabmag.

The NAB has two officers: Nergal-sharezer, of Simmagir, the chief officer, and Nebushazban, the high dignitary.

The NIV has three officers: Nergal-Sharezer of Samgar, Nebo-Sarsekim a chief officer, and Nergal-Sharezer a high official.

The NLT has three officers: Nergal-sharezer of Samgar, Nebo-sarsekim, a chief officer, and Nergal-sharezer, the king's adviser.

Of these translations, only the NIV and NLT seems to be correct. Most scholars today believe that Samgar is the name of a place and that Nebo-Saserkim is the name of one of the army officers. The NIV and NLT follow the Septuagint. The Septuagint translates the name of the army officer as Nabusachar.

This reading is now confirmed by the translation of a new clay tablet found in the British Museum. The following is an excerpt of the news release published by Timesonline.com:

The British Museum yesterday hailed a discovery within a modest clay tablet in its collection as a breakthrough for biblical archaeology - dramatic proof of the accuracy of the Old Testament.

The cuneiform inscription in a tablet dating from 595BC has been deciphered for the first time - revealing a reference to an official at the court of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, that proves the historical existence of a figure mentioned in the Book of Jeremiah.

This is rare evidence in a nonbiblical source of a real person, other than kings, featured in the Bible.

The tablet names a Babylonian officer called Nebo-Sarsekim, who according to Jeremiah xxxix was present in 587BC when Nebuchadnezzar "marched against Jerusalem with his whole army and laid siege to it".

The cuneiform inscription records how Nebo-Sarsekim lavished a gift of gold on the Temple of Esangila in the fabled city of Babylon, where, at least in folk tradition, Nebuchadnezzar is credited with building the Hanging Gardens, one of the Seven Wonders of the World. British Museum staff are excited by the discovery. Irving Finkel, assistant keeper in the Department of the Middle East, said: "A mundane commercial transaction takes its place as a primary witness to one of the turning points in Old Testament history. This is a tablet that deserves to be famous."

The discovery was made by Michael Jursa, associate professor at the University of Vienna, on a routine research trip to the museum. "It's very exciting and very surprising," he said. "Finding something like this tablet, where we see a person mentioned in the Bible making an everyday payment to the temple in Babylon and quoting the exact date, is quite extraordinary."

Since 1991, Dr Jursa has been visiting the museum to study a collection of more than 100,000 inscribed tablets - the world's largest holdings. Although they are examined by international scholars daily, reading and piecing together fragments is painstaking work and more than half are yet to be published.

Cuneiform is the oldest known form of writing. During its 3,000-year history it was used to write about 15 languages including Babylonian, Assyrian, Hittite and Urartian. A wedged instrument - usually a cut reed - was used to press the signs into clay. This gave the writing system its name, "cuneiform", or wedge-shaped.

There are only a small number of scholars worldwide who can read cuneiform script. One of them is Dr Jursa, who told The Times yesterday that the British Museum tablet was so well preserved that it took him just a couple of minutes to decipher.

This one - which is 2.13 inches (5.5cm) wide - was acquired by the British Museum in 1920. Dr Jursa said: "But no one realised the connection. They didn't really read it."

It was unearthed from the ancient city of Sippar, where there was a huge sun temple, just over a mile from modern-day Baghdad. It was part of a large temple archive excavated for the British Museum in the 1870s.

Dr Jursa, who made the discovery while conducting research into officials at the Babylonian court, said that the tablet recorded Nebo-Sarsekim's gift of gold to the temple - a gift so large that it would be comparable in value today to the cost of a large townhouse.

On hearing of the discovery yesterday, Geza Vermes, the eminent emeritus professor of Jewish studies at the University of Oxford, said that such a discovery revealed that "the Biblical story is not altogether invented". He added: "This will be interesting for religious people as much as historians."

It is great day when archaeological findings confirm what we already knew: that the events and people in the Bible have a true historical background.

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Archaeology, Babylon, Jeremiah, Nebuchadnezzar

Jeremiah 1:1-10: The Call to Preach

Every pastor is a prophet, and every prophet is a pastor. What distinguishes a minister as a prophet is not the prophet’s criticism of society, even though prophets were critics of their society. And, it is not that prophets preached judgment and condemnation, even though they did. What distinguishes a minister as a prophet is the call of God to speak on behalf of God.

There are two words used in the Bible to describe a prophet. The first word is found in the Old Testament. It is the Hebrew word nabi. The word nabi is translated “prophet” in English, but in Hebrew the word means “one who is called.”

The second word is found in the New Testament. It is the word prophetes, which in English is translated as “prophet.” The word prophetes is composed of two Greek words: pro and phetes. In English, the word prophetes means “to speak on behalf of” someone.

Pastors are prophets. They are prophets because they have a call from God to proclaim the word of God to a lost world. They are prophets because in their ministry they speak on behalf of God.
In describing the call to preach, I have chosen the call of the prophet Jeremiah to illustrate a pastor’s ministry and to emphasize what is involved in being a minister of God.

The most important thing in the ministry is knowing that one has been called of God. In the Old Testament, a prophet was not “called of God,” but rather, the prophet was “sent by God.” Speaking about false prophets, the Lord said: “I did not send the prophets, yet they ran” (Jeremiah 23:21).

Jeremiah 1:1-10 is a narrative that introduces the call experience of Jeremiah, a man from Anathoth. The elements that are present in the call experience of Jeremiah are also present in the call experience of every minister.

First, a minister is in the ministry because of a direct call from God. The ministry is not a job, it is a vocation, and unless someone is called by God to preach God’s word, that person has no place in the ministry.

The Lord said to Jeremiah: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you” (v. 5). Every pastor has an intimate relationship with God. The word “to know” refers to a special relationship between God and Jeremiah. It was the same word used to describe the relationship between God and Israel. The Lord said to Israel: “You only have I known of all the families of the earth” (Amos 3:2). And when Israel failed God, God lamented that there was no knowledge of God in the land. Thus when God said that he knew Jeremiah, God was emphasizing his personal commitment to Jeremiah.

God knows every person whom he calls into the ministry and the Lord has a personal interest in their ministry. Because God called them and cares for them, he is also committed to their success as ministers.

Second, a minister is set apart for a special work. God said to Jeremiah: “before you were born, I set you apart” (v.5). The expression “to set apart” in Hebrew means “to make it holy.” God sets a person apart for ministry, for special work. In the Bible, anything or anyone who belonged to God was holy, set a part for God’s use.

God also sets apart people and gives them special tasks. All believers are holy people; we are set apart for God’s special use. We, as believers, are set apart from the world to become a special people, a holy people.

Prophets had two very important functions as people called by God. First, a prophet acted as an ambassador for God. God told Jeremiah: “I appointed you as a prophet to the nations” (v.5). One is appointed by God in the same way an ambassador is appointed by the president. Jeremiah was appointed to represent God and to speak on behalf of God to all the nations.

Ministers are God’s ambassadors. Their assignment may not be to a specific nation, but to a specific state, a specific city, or a specific community. Ministers represent God in their community in the same way Jeremiah represented God before Israel and before Babylon.

Second, a prophet acted as a representative of God. The prophet Jeremiah had been “set apart” by God. “Set apart” means “holy.” The prophet was a holy person. God commanded his people: “You shall be holy; for I the Lord your God am holy” (Leviticus 19:2). Because the prophet represents a holy God, the prophet is a holy person who lives a holy life. Not a perfect life, because only God is perfect. A holy life means a life set apart.

That is the only way a minister can be effective in the ministry. Ministers must learn how to live a life that is completely dedicated to God and to his cause. The word “sanctify” is the same word translated to “set apart” or to “make holy.” Because Jesus desired that his disciples would learn how to live a holy life, he had to set himself apart, he had to sanctify himself for his work. Jesus said: “And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth” (John 17:19). Jesus also said: “Sanctify them by the truth: your word is truth” (John 17:17).

“Your word is truth.” The ministry of those who are called by God is focused on the word of God. It is through God’s word that people are made holy, set apart for God’s work. This is why Jeremiah’s ministry was a ministry of the word of God.

When Jeremiah heard God’s call to the ministry, Jeremiah objected. He said: “Ah, Sovereign Lord, I do not know how to speak; I am only a child” (v. 6).

“I do not know how or what to speak, for I am only a child.” In Hebrew the word “child” does not mean a little boy; it means someone who has little experience. What Jeremiah was saying was this: “Oh Lord, why do you call me to preach, when I do not know what to say.”

The proclamation of the word is the key factor of the ministry of those who are called. The minister must preach the word of God every week. Sunday after Sunday, week after week, the minister must be ready to proclaim the word of God. But the question is: what to preach?

Different people deal with this problem in different ways. Some pastors go to the Internet and get a sermon every week. This, I say, is the poorest way of preaching God’s word. I doubt that Jeremiah would search the Internet for a word from God. Other pastors buy books of sermons and preach them every week. These sermons outlines are very popular today. Hundreds of books are written every year providing sermons for busy pastors. Everything comes included, even the illustrations.

But if you read the book of the prophet Jeremiah, he would be against this practice of preaching other people’s sermons. In Jeremiah 23:29-30 the Lord said: “Is not my word like fire, says the LORD, and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?” God’s word has power: it is like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces.

How does a prophet prepare to preach? A prophet receives the word directly from God. When God called Jeremiah to preach, God also equipped Jeremiah to preach: “Then the Lord reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, ‘Now, I have put my words in your mouth’” (v. 9).

Because ministers have been called by God and because he has appointed them to speak on his behalf, God himself will put his words in their mouth and they will speak on behalf of God. This is the ministry that God has given to ministers: the ministry of the word of God.

If ministers want to be effective as ministers of Jesus Christ, if they want to speak on behalf of God, then they must allow God to put his words in their mouths. There are several things ministers must do to succeed in their ministry.

God said: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you.” God knows those whom he called. In turn, ministers must know God. Ministers must be good students of the word of God. When they study, God will teach them. Ministers must be people of prayer. When they pray, God will speak to them the things they must proclaim.

God said: “Before you came forth out of the womb, I sanctified you.” God has sanctified those whom he has called; he has set them apart. Now, ministers must take seriously the words of Jesus. Jesus said: “For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified” (John 17:19).

For the sake of the people under their care, ministers must sanctify themselves, they must live holy lives. Ministers must allow their life to reflect the holiness and the love of God. Ministers must learn to love their people in the same way God loves them. Ministers must serve their people that their people might be sanctified by the truth, the word of God.

Ministers must focus their ministry on the word of God. They must preach God’s word with power. They must teach God’s word with enthusiasm. God’s word to Joshua should be a guide to those who are called to be ministers of God: “Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful” (Joshua 1:8).

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Divine Call, Jeremiah, Ministers, Ministry, Pastors