Chapter 5: A Nation’s Rebellion and Its Consequences

(31 Pesukim)

1. Search for Righteousness in Jerusalem (5:1-5)

The chapter opens with a call to search for righteousness in Jerusalem, yet none is found.
“Walk through the streets of Jerusalem—look, observe, and search in its squares. If you can find even one person who acts with justice and seeks truth, then I will forgive the city.”
Even when they swear “As Hashem lives,” they swear falsely.
The people resist correction, and harden their hearts against repentance.
Even the leaders are corrupt: Yirmiyahu first assumes the people are foolish only because they are poor and uneducated, not knowing God’s way or His laws. Hoping for better, he turns to the leaders—the “great ones”—expecting them to understand God’s path. But instead, the leaders too have rebelled: all of them have broken the yoke and torn off the bonds, rejecting discipline and responsibility just like the common people.

Punishment of lions and wolves: Wild beasts—lion, wolf, leopard—will ravage cities due to many transgressions.
Adultery: Hashem asks, “Shall I forgive you for this?” as the children forsake Him, swear by no-Hashems, commit adultery, and gather in the house of a harlot. “Like armed horses, they would arise early; they would make noise, each one over his friend’s wife.”

Hashem declares: “Shall I not punish for these things?” and “Shall My soul not wreak vengeance for such a nation?”
Their nation will face destruction, though not total annihilation—its “roots” will be removed because they no longer belong to Him.
Both Israel and Judah have been unfaithful, denying God’s presence and insisting that no harm will come to them. They dismiss warnings of judgment, claiming that the prophets speak only empty words.
Because of their denial and treachery, the consequences they rejected will come upon them.
“I place My words in your mouth like fire, and this people will be as wood, to be consumed by them.”
A Nation from Afar: Hashem warns of a mighty nation coming from afar to punish Israel for its sins. This nation, whose language cannot be understood, will devastate harvests, livestock, and fortified cities.
“And he will devour your harvest and your bread; they will devour your sons and your daughters; he will devour your flocks and your cattle; he will devour your vines and your fig trees; he will impoverish your fortified cities upon which you rely, with the sword.”
Not complete annihilation: During that time, Hashem declares that He will not bring you to an end.

Why Hashem did so: The people will one day ask why God brought misfortune upon them. They will be told it is because they abandoned God and served foreign powers, and therefore they will now become servants in a foreign land.
Foolish and blind: God instructs that this message be proclaimed to the people of Jacob and Judah: they are called foolish and lacking understanding, blind and deaf to what is before them. “Foolish people without understanding; they have eyes yet they do not see, they have ears yet they do not hear.”
Hashem’s Power: God reminds them of His power, demonstrated by setting the sea’s boundary with sand, which the waters cannot cross. Despite such wonders, the people have remained stubborn and rebellious, turning away from God.
Ingratitude Dspite The Blessing of Rain: The Israelites are described as foolish and rebellious, failing to fear Hashem despite His blessings of rain and harvests.
Their fault: Their sins have brought calamity and withheld goodness.

The chapter concludes with an indictment of the leaders and people, who oppress the poor, prioritize riches, and turn away from righteousness.
Hashem again asks: “Should these actions not be addressed with appropriate consequences? For such conduct, is it not justified to seek redress?”
An appalling and horrible thing has occurred: false prophecy, corrupt priesthood, and the people love it so. The haunting question: “What shall you do in the end thereof?”