458 TRANSLATION, NOTES, AND COMMENTSis better repointed to the adjective, de)eba (Hitzig; Rudolph; McKane; cf.
BDB, 178).- At this I awoke and looked around, and my sleep was pleasant to me. This
verse is singular in the book and taken by many to be a later add-on (Duhm;
Peake; Cornill; Volz; Weiser; Rudolph; Hyatt; Bright; Holladay). Perhaps it
means to echo the sentiments of Ps 126:1: "When Yahweh restored the for-
tunes of Zion, we became like those who dream." The prophet has to be the
speaker (Rashi; Kimi.ii; Calvin; T adds "The prophet said"), although this cre-
ates a problem since Jeremiah elsewhere expresses himself strongly against
revelations mediated through dreams (23:25-32). One might get around the
problem by saying that this was a nocturnal "vision" (Jones; cf. Zech 4:1), but
since it comes during sleep, for all practical purposes it is a dream. The verse
has interesting parallels in extra biblical sources. Oppenheim ( 1956: 229) cites
an Assyrian text (Cyl. AX: 70-71) in which Ashurbanipal, after hearing good
news from all battle fronts, says: "(When I was) in (my) bed my dreams were
very pleasant, and, in the morning, I overheard only nice words (said by other
persons)." In other texts Oppenheim points out how evil dreams oppress and
frighten individuals, so much so that they pray to their god, "Make my dream
pleasant" (1956: 230). He says that in the dream report, which appears in a
strictly conventionalized frame, there is often a section at the end referring to
the reaction of the dreaming person ( 1956: 187). Here in the present verse,
whatever its provenance, the point seems to be that the dream of a restored
Jerusalem and Judah was a pleasant one, and upon waking, Jeremiah was faced
with a harsher reality, making the dream all the more sweet. It is also Jere-
miah's response to the word from Yahweh. Bonhoeffer found this verse mean-
ingful, quoting it in his Letters and Papers from Prison ( 1971: 131).
and my sleep was pleasant to me. Hebrew usenatf <areba lf. The verb <rb
means "to be pleasing" (6:20).
MESSAGE AND AUDIENCE
In the present oracle, Yahweh tells a remnant audience in Judah-also Juda-
hites abroad-that when the nation's fortunes are restored people will again say
of Jerusalem, "May Yahweh bless you, righteous pasture, 0 holy mountain."
The audience if it knows these words will wonder if they will ever be spoken
again. Yahweh says that Judahites in this future time shall reinhabit the land,
farmers and shepherds together. Yahweh will saturate the thirsty and fill the
hungry with food in abundance.
This audience, or a later one, then hears a word of response from Jere-
miah. He says that after hearing these heavenly words he awoke, looked
around, and his sleep seemed particularly pleasant. Small wonder! This ideal
future compared to present reality was doubtless as unbelievable to him as to
everyone else.
The oracle can be dated any time after the destruction of Jerusalem in 586
B.C. Jeremiah's response could date from the same time, or later. Nothing,