Jeremiah 25 marks a pivotal moment in the prophet’s ministry. It summarizes 23 years of preaching (from Josiah’s thirteenth year to the fourth year of Jehoiakim) and issues the clearest declaration yet of the coming Babylonian captivity. Jeremiah reminds the people that he had faithfully spoken “persistently” (WEB: “rising up early and speaking”) but they “have not listened” (v. 3).

The Hebrew phrase shakam w’dabber conveys diligence and intentionality. God was not silent, indifferent, or reactive. He sought His people through repeated prophetic warnings. Yet Judah hardened themselves. As J.A. Thompson notes, “Jeremiah’s entire career is framed by the people’s refusal to hear,” a refusal that climaxes in this chapter with God’s decree of seventy years of exile.

The message is devastating: because Judah refused to turn from idolatry, injustice, and covenant-breaking, God would “take all the families of the north” and bring Nebuchadnezzar against them, declaring him “my servant” (v. 9). This title shocks the reader.

Nebuchadnezzar—violent, pagan, ruthless—is described as Yahweh’s instrument. In Hebrew, ‘avdî (“my servant”) typically refers to kings like David or prophets like Moses, yet here it underscores God’s sovereignty over even hostile nations. As Walter Brueggemann writes, “Jeremiah’s theology is unflinching in its conviction that Yahweh governs history, even the actions of empires that do not know Him.” Babylon is not acting autonomously; it is wielded by the hand of the Lord to accomplish divine judgment.

God raises kings and he dethrones kings. God “makes his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust (Matt. 5:45). In all circumstances, God is absolutely sovereign over all of creation. He is the creator we are the created. He is the necessary being and we are the contingent being. He is infinite and we are finite. There is no one like our God!

The decree that Judah will serve the king of Babylon seventy years (v. 11) is not merely symbolic but deeply theological. The number seventy reflects a full, complete period of judgment—long enough to break the nation’s pride, cleanse the land of its sabbath neglect (cf. 2 Chron. 36:21), and prepare for a new beginning. Scholars debate whether seventy is literal or literary.

John Bright argues that “seventy years functions as a theological horizon—a lifetime—signifying the end of one generation and the beginning of another.” Either way, the message is unmistakable: exile is certain, prolonged, and purposeful. God is both just and patient, allowing a long discipline that leads to ultimate restoration (cf. Jer. 29:10–14).

Yet the chapter does not stop with Judah. Beginning in verse 15, God instructs Jeremiah to take “the cup of the wine of wrath” and make “all the nations” drink. In Hebrew, the word for wrath (ḥēmâ) conveys heat, burning, and divine passion against sin. The imagery recalls Isaiah 51:17 and foreshadows Revelation 14:10—this is the global expression of God’s justice.

Nations such as Egypt, Uz, Philistia, Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, Sidon, Arabia, and Babylon itself are listed. No empire is exempt. Babylon may be God’s temporary tool, but it too will drink the cup. Derek Kidner captures the tension: “Babylon is both the rod in God’s hand and the object of His judgment; the arrogance of nations never cancels the holiness of God.” Jeremiah 25, therefore, expands the horizon from Judah’s sin to the universal accountability of every people and kingdom under the rule of God.

The cup metaphor intensifies as God declares that judgment will roar from on high “like those who tread grapes” (v. 30), a familiar image of crushing weight and unstoppable force. The Hebrew verb sha’ag (“roar”) evokes a lion’s roar, signaling the terror and inescapability of divine intervention.

The shepherds—Israel’s leaders—will wail because judgment begins with them (v. 34). Charles Feinberg notes, “The shepherd imagery heightens the tragedy; those meant to protect the flock are the first to fall under the storm.” Jeremiah is not merely predicting geopolitical events; he is unveiling a cosmic moral order where God holds every person, pastor, king, and nation accountable.

Yet woven into this chapter is a thread of hope. Even though God will make Judah a “horror, an astonishment, a hissing” (v. 9), He also promises that when the seventy years are completed, He will punish Babylon and restore His people. Discipline has an end. Judgment has a boundary. God’s wrath is not arbitrary but redemptive, meant to purify, not annihilate. As Brueggemann points out, “Exile is not God’s last word; it is the necessary milieu for newness.” In the same way a surgeon cuts to heal, God wounds His people that they might return to Him renewed.

Modern believers can see themselves in Jeremiah 25. Many experience seasons that feel like “exile”—times when God allows discipline, pruning, or disruption to break spiritual complacency. The message is not that God has abandoned us, but that He is working through the discomfort to restore faithfulness. The seventy-year horizon reminds us that some spiritual lessons unfold slowly. Transformation requires patience, humility, and trust. And just as Babylon was God’s instrument of discipline, God still uses unexpected means; circumstances, hardships, losses, setbacks—to draw us back to Himself. What seems destructive may actually be the greenhouse of spiritual renewal.

The cup of wrath, too, has a modern parallel. While believers are not under divine wrath because Christ drank the cup for us (cf. Matthew 26:39), the world still lives with the consequences of rebellion—violence, pride, and injustice. Jeremiah’s message reminds us that no nation, culture, or leader stands outside God’s authority. Empires rise and fall, but the kingdom of God endures forever. Babylon, Rome, Athens, London, Washington—every kingdom eventually drinks the cup of accountability.

Ultimately, Jeremiah 25 reveals a God who is holy, sovereign, just, and astonishingly patient. He warns, He disciplines, He holds nations accountable, and yet He preserves a remnant for restoration. For the believer today, this chapter calls us to humility, repentance, and hope. God takes sin seriously, but He takes redemption just as seriously. Exile is never the end of the story. The God who oversees the seventy years is the same God who restores His people with a future and a hope.

Small Group Discussion Guide — Jeremiah 25

Session Title:

“Seventy Years and the Cup of Wrath: When God Disciplines, Warns, and Restores”

Big Idea:

Jeremiah 25 announces God’s judgment on Judah and the nations, but also reveals His sovereignty, patience, and plan to restore His people after discipline.

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1. Opening Question

Have you ever gone through a long season of difficulty that later turned out to be a time where God refined you or taught you something important?

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2. Passage Reading

Read Jeremiah 25:1–38 aloud (WEB translation works well).

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3. Observation Questions (What does the text say?)

• What timeframe does Jeremiah describe in verses 1–3?
• What reasons does God give for the impending judgment?
• How is Nebuchadnezzar described, and why is this surprising?
• What does God say about the seventy-year exile?
• What imagery is used for God’s judgment on the nations?
• What is the significance of the “cup of wrath”?

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4. Interpretation Questions (What does it mean?)

• Why does Jeremiah emphasize that the people “did not listen”?
• How can God call Nebuchadnezzar “my servant” even though he is a pagan king?
• What is the theological meaning of the seventy years of exile?
• How does the metaphor of the cup deepen our understanding of divine judgment?
• Why does God judge not only Judah but all the surrounding nations?

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5. Application Questions (How should we respond?)

• Are there areas where we ignore God’s Word and “do not listen,” like Judah did?
• When has God used a difficult season as discipline that later led to growth?
• How can we trust God’s sovereignty even when He uses unexpected means (people, losses, circumstances)?
• In what ways does this chapter remind us to take sin and repentance seriously?
• How does Christ drinking the “cup” for us change how we read Jeremiah 25 today?

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6. Prayer Focus

• Thankfulness for God’s patience
• Repentance where needed
• Trust in God’s sovereignty during hard seasons
• Intercession for nations and leaders
• Hope in God’s promise to restore

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7. Memory Verse for the Week

Jeremiah 25:11 —
“This whole land will be a desolation… these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years.”

(Sets up the theme of discipline and restoration.)

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Preaching Outline / Sermon Notes — Jeremiah 25

Title:

“When God Speaks for 23 Years: The Warning, the Judgment, and the Hope”

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I. God’s Faithful Warning (vv. 1–7)

• Jeremiah has preached persistently for 23 years
• Israel “did not listen” — disobedience over time becomes hardened
• Hebrew note: shakam w’dabber (God rose early to speak)

Application: God still speaks through His Word repeatedly.

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II. God’s Sovereign Judgment (vv. 8–11)

• God will summon Nebuchadnezzar as “my servant”
• Judgment is certain and long-lasting
• Seventy years = a full generational discipline

Application: God is sovereign even over rulers and global events.

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III. The Cup of Wrath (vv. 15–29)

• A global scope — every nation drinks the cup
• Babylonia included
• Imagery: wine, wrath, staggering, trembling

Application: Sin has consequences. Christ drank the cup on our behalf.

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IV. God Judges Shepherds and Nations (vv. 30–38)

• Judgment begins with leaders (“shepherds”)
• God roars like a lion — moral order established
• No one is exempt from accountability

Application: Leadership carries responsibility; nations answer to God.

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V. Hidden Hope Behind the Judgment (cf. v. 12; Jer. 29:10)

• After seventy years, restoration comes
• God disciplines, but never abandons
• Exile purifies and prepares

Application: God’s judgment aims for redemption, not destruction.