Jeremiah 29:4-14. A Prophetic Lesson for Modernity?

Abstract

The prophetic text of Jeremiah 29:4-14 is not strictly theological, but very concrete and immediately applicable. It is a social, cultural, and political program, appropriate for the new realities – the people of Israel, who would be taken into Babylonian captivity. Unlike the experience of Egyptian captivity, Babylonian slavery would be characterized by more leniency on the part of the authorities, a real chance for the Israelites to survive as a nation, and even to assert themselves as a people united around the same values. This research aims to identify and enhance the relationship between the biblical past, characterized by the history of the chosen people under divine providence, and modernity. This relationship is facilitated by the topical nature of the biblical message, which, although referring to the times of biblical antiquity, is full of meaning and significance for contemporaneity, if we believe that ancient history is another one of God's pedagogical lessons for us.