The Babylonian World - Historia Antigua

— Baruch A. Levine —
as coming “from a far-off land, from Babylonia.” So in Jeremiah, they are first and
foremost “a nation from afar” ( Jer 4: 6, 16; 5: 15; cf. Hab 1: 8). A variant identification
views the Babylonians as coming from the north, reflecting the ancient route of march
from Mesopotamia to the Levant ( Jer 1: 13–15; 3: 18; 4: 6–7; 6: 1; 10: 22; 13: 20).
The Babylonian forces are described as a lion, a destroyer of nations. His horses
are swifter than eagles. He is a powerful nation, speaking a strange tongue; his quiver
is an open grave. His stirrings in the northland cause great commotion, a gathering
storm ( Jer 4: 7, 13, 15–16, 20; 5: 6; 10: 22). Especially poignant is the description
in Jer 6: 22–25:
Behold, an army is coming from the northland,
A vast nation is stirring up from the corners of the earth.
They hold both bow and lance; he is cruel, they show no mercy.
The sound of them roars like the sea, and they ride on horses.
To the man, he is arrayed for battle against you, O daughter Zion.
When we heard of his doings, our arms went limp;
Anxiety gripped us; pangs like those of a woman in childbirth.
Do not go out into the field, nor walk along the road.
For the enemy has swords; there is terror all around.
In Jer 8: 16 the people are urged to take refuge in fortified towns:
From Dan is heard the neighing of his horses.
From the shouting sounds of his cavalrymen the whole earth trembled.
They came and devoured the land and everything in it,
Every town and those who dwell in her.
As the battle scenes become focused on Jerusalem, we encounter descriptions of
conditions in the capital. There are repeated references to the proverbial triad of
pestilence, war and famine; to the many dead; to conflagrations, and to the felling
of trees. In Jeremiah 39 and 52, both parallels of 2 Kings 25: 1–21, the final destruction
of Jerusalem is described in graphic detail, and mention is made of Jeremiah’s treatment
by the conquerors. This dovetails in a curious way with his harsh treatment by
Zedekiah and the Judean officials.
Jeremiah’s policy toward the Babylonians
Here is what Herbert Huffmon has to say on the subject of Jeremiah’s prophetic
outlook:
Jeremiah is not to be characterized as pro-Babylonian, though many of his
contemporaries so viewed him, but as pro-Israel. This stance did not demand
political independence. The survival of God’s people Israel at that time meant,
for Jeremiah, submission to God theologically and submission to Babylonia
politically . . . Jeremiah sought the continuation and revival of God’s people.
(Huffmon 1999: 267, with deletion)
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