Kindness of Your Youth

The Talmud describes the Book of Jeremiah as “kulei churbena” – it is all about the destruction (Bava Batra 14b). In light of this description Jeremiah’s first prophecy to Israel seems out of place. “Go and proclaim in the ears of Jerusalem, saying: So says the Lord, I remember for you the kindness of your youth, the love of your nuptials, when you followed me into the wilderness, into an unsown land. Israel is holy to the Lord, the first of His crop; all who devour them will be held guilty; evil shall come upon them.” (Jeremiah 2:2,3).

Visions of destruction and pain fill the Book of Jeremiah. At the same time, throughout the book, the prophet provides words of comfort and reassurance with the vision of the final redemption. But this introductory prophecy, a prophecy about Israel’s past, still calls for an explanation…