Daily Devotions
Jeremiah
"The letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent"
Text: Jeremiah 29:1
A LETTER OF ENCOURAGEMENT
The occasion was an earlier deportation of captives to Babylon that Nebuchadnezzar ordered when he conquered Judah. Jeremiah had warned that this would happen. His words had fallen on deaf ears then. He wrote to the captives in Babylon to encourage them.
“Now these are the words of the letter
that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem
to the remainder of the elders who were carried away captive—
to the priests, the prophets, and all the people
whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away captive
from Jerusalem to Babylon.
(This happened after Jeconiah the king, the queen mother,
the eunuchs, the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen,
and the smiths had departed from Jerusalem.)”
Jeremiah 29:1-2
1. “Now these are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the remainder of the elders who were carried away captive—to the priests, the prophets, and all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon”
a) The recipients of Jeremiah’s letter:
i) The elders
ii) The priests
iii) The prophets
b) All the people:
i) The king
ii) The princes
iii) Nobles
2. “This happened after Jeconiah the king, the queen mother, the eunuchs, the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the smiths had departed from Jerusalem”
a) The royal family included the following:
i) Jeconiah
ii) The queen mother
iii) The eunuchs
iv) The princes
b) Others
i) The craftsmen
ii) The smiths
These were skilled artisans. Nebuchadnezzar could make use of their skills in Babylon.