603 BC - This is one of Jeremiah’s bold object lessons. Jeremiah had been preaching, at this point of his ministry, for 45 years (648-603 BC). This is not the first time Jeremiah had said these things. Jeremiah had proclaimed his message at the gates of the Temple. Jeremiah had proclaimed his message privately to individuals and to crowds at the city gates. Jeremiah had written his message and had the scrolls delivered to leaders in the priesthood, in the palace, and, even to foreign countries.

This time the Lord tells Jeremiah to do the following things in an attempt to communicate the message to the leadership of the nation of Judah.

• Go buy a clay jar
• Take some of the governmental leaders and some of the priests who are willing to go with you
• Go outside the Potsherd Gate and into the Hinnom Valley
• When you get there I will give you a message.

Jeremiah does the above and then in the presence of some leaders and some priests Jeremiah proclaims the Lord's message again, but in a new way. The message is basically this:

• A spine tingling disaster is coming
• People have turned to foreign gods
• False gods have been worshipped here in the Hinnom Valley
• Altars have been built in the Hinnom Valley
• The innocent blood of children has been sacrificed to Baal here in the Hinnom Valley
• So, the Lord will fill this Hinnom Valley with the bodies of slaughtered people from Jerusalem

Then, after these initial statements Jeremiah throws down the clay jar as a visual aid to
communicate his next words:

“I will smash this city…like the jar it cannot be fixed…this Hinnom Valley will be so full
of dead bodies that there is no more room for another dead body.”

After his meeting with the leaders and the priests in the Hinnom Valley, Jeremiah was told to take
the same message (probably without the breaking of the jar) to the Temple courts for the people to hear and think about.

The word Topheth means “the burner” and probably refers to the type of altar that was used to
burn alive the children sacrificed in the Hinnom Valley around 603 BC. (Hinnom Valley is HERE)

When Israel is at war and has defeated an enemy nation Deuteronomy 21:10-13 explains the steps an Israeli warrior must take if he “notices among the captives a beautiful woman and is attracted to her.”
If the Israeli warrior wants to marry the captive woman these are the details that must be followed:
1 - bring her to his home
2 - shave her head
3 - trim her nails
4 - give her some clean clothes
5 - let her live under your
care for a month
6 - let her mourn for a month the loss of her father and mother (basically the
fall of her culture and
the death of her family)
7 - After a month the Israeli warrior may take the
captive woman to
be his wife