544 TRANSLATION, NOTES, AND COMMENTSmy covenant be broken with David, my servant, so there would not be for him a
son reigning on his throne. On the protasis-apodosis argumentative form
("If ... then ... "),which recurs in vv 25-26, see Note for 4: 1-2. Day and night
were established on the first day of Creation (Gen 1:5), and here Yahweh states
that he is in covenant with them. Reference must be to Gen 8:22 (Rashi) and
the Noachian covenant following in Gen 9:8-17. The continuance of the
Davidic covenant (2 Sam 7:12-16) is argued on the basis of Yahweh's (prior)
covenant with creation in Ps 89:20-38[Eng 89: 19-37].
you could break. Hebrew taperO. GL (diaskedasthesetai), T, and Vg translate a
singular Hophal passive(= ttlpar, "it could be broken"), which is what appears
in v 21. But Aq, Symm, and Theod have active plural forms. The assumption
here is that people are unable to break the Creation covenant, but they could
break and did break the Sinai covenant ( 11:1 O; 31:32).
my covenant of the day. Hebrew berftf hayyom. A construct chain with the
construct form taking a suffix, which is unusual (cf. Lev 26:42; Num 25: 12; and
GKC § 128d). See again v 25.
daytime. Hebrew yomam. This rare substantive form, which occurs again in
v 2 5, was used in the poetry of 15 :9. The adverbial yomam ("by day") occurs
in 31:35.
also with the Levitical priests, my ministers. The covenant made with the Le-
vitical priests (Num 25:11-13) is here added to the Davidic covenant, which
occurred also in the prior oracle (vv 17-18). The term "Levitical priests" is a
reversal of the usual order: halwfyyfm hakkohanfm, "the Levites, the priests"
(see Note for 33:18).
- As ... so. Hebrew 'aser ... ken. The use of 'aser instea<l of kn'aser for
the comparison was noted already by D. N. Lord (1854: 22). See also Isa 54:9.
For the more usual ka'a8er ... ken construction, see Jer 13:11; 31:28; and
32:42.
As the host of heaven cannot be numbered and the sand of the sea cannot be
measured. These comparisons of magnitude are familiar from the promise to
Abraham about his descendants (Gen 15:5; 22:17; 26:4; 32:12) but strange
when applied to the descendants of David and Aaron (Lust 1994: 43). The
"host of heaven" ($eba' hassamayim) refers to the sun, moon, and stars (8:2;
Deut4:19; 17:3).
who minister to me. Hebrew mesarete 'otf. This rendering of a participle in
the construct state before an accusative is more unusual grammar (cf. GKC
§ ll 6g).
- And the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah. See v 19 for this superscrip-
tional form. - 'Have you not seen what this people has said: "The two families that Yah-
weh chose-now he has rejected them," so they have spurned my people from be-
ing any longer a nation before them?' It is unclear whether the quotation is self-
reproach or a reproach from some other nation. "This people" (ha<am hazzeh)
probably refers to the people of Judah (cf. 4:10-11; 5:14, 23; 6:19; 7:33). But
note the plural verb, "they have said" (dibberO). With Jerusalem now in ruins,