Who Wrote the Book of Jeremiah?

Jeremiah the prophet was, as early tradition maintains, the author of this book. It is an extensive collection of the prophet’s oracles opening with “The words of Jeremiah” (1:1) and stating, just before the historical epilogue of the book, “Thus far are the words of Jeremiah” (51:64). Thus, the book contains the words Jeremiah received from the Lord and includes the writings of Baruch ben Neriah, Jeremiah’s companion and scribe (36:4), to whom the prophet dictated some of his messages (36:32).

Perhaps Jeremiah, at different stages of his ministry, collected his prophecies and rearranged them in a definite pattern (cf. 25:13; 30:2; 36:2, 32). Maybe he completed the final form after he was taken hostage to Egypt (cf. 51:64), or possibly Baruch could have collected and organized Jeremiah’s writings, adding chap. 52 (from 2Kg 24:18–25:30) after Jeremiah’s death.

The text clearly states the book is “The words of Jeremiah,” and it is by and about “Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah” (Jr 1:1). He was the foremost prophet of Judah during the dark days just prior to the Babylonian destruction and captivity. His heart was broken over Jerusalem’s sin and the judgment they had brought upon themselves, and his great sorrow earned him the title “the weeping prophet” (9:1). His book is the most autobiographical and spiritually transparent of the prophetic writings. Despite his circumstances and sorrow, Jeremiah had unwavering confidence in God’s faithfulness to His people (3:23).

Jeremiah is a common name, found nine times in the OT (eg., 2Kg 23:31; 24:18; 1Ch 5:23; 12:4, 10, 13; Neh 10:2; 12:1; Jr 35:3); but this prophet is the most significant person of that name. The meaning of the name is possibly uncertain, perhaps: “the Lord throws” in the sense of laying a foundation; or “The Lord establishes.”

Jeremiah was from a priestly family, as were Moses (Ex 6:16-20), Ezekiel (Ezk 1:3), and Zechariah (Zch 1:1). Anathoth, a small village about three miles northeast of Jerusalem, was his hometown, and his father was Hilkiah, a Levite (Jr 1:1; Jos 21:15-19; 1Kg 2:26). Hilkiah was likely a descendant of Abiathar, the sole survivor of the priests of Nob (1Sm 22:20), who later was exiled by Solomon to Anathoth (1Kg 2:26). His father was probably not the same Hilkiah who discovered the law in the temple during the reign of Josiah (cf. 2Kg 22:3-14), since he was not living in Jerusalem, and because this key event is not mentioned in relation to him.

Although from a priestly family, Jeremiah does not seem to have served as a priest. But he was called to be a prophet when he was “a youth” or a young man, probably under 25, calculated from the time he began his ministry (Jr 1:6-2). The Lord commanded him not to marry, as an object lesson to the nation of the impending disaster (16:1-2). His ministry extended from the 13th year of the reign of Josiah (1:2) to the reign of Zedekiah, “until the exile” (1:3). Thus he prophesied from about 627 BC till at least 582 BC, after the fall of Jerusalem. He continued to minister to the survivors in Jerusalem and in Egypt, where he was taken against his wishes, after Gedaliah’s murder (41:2). He wrote his final prophecies in Egypt (chaps. 43–44), and according to tradition he died there by stoning.

Throughout his ministry, Jeremiah was hated, persecuted, and imprisoned for his message. He declared Jerusalem would fall to the Babylonians, as a judgment from the Lord and advised surrender to Nebuchadnezzar (18:18; 37:15; 38; 40:1). After the fall of Jerusalem, he delivered God’s message for the remnant to stay in Judah and not go to Egypt, but he was ridiculed and ignored. Jeremiah was a man of outstanding courage, who boldly and unwaveringly proclaimed the Lord’s message despite almost total national opposition.