Jeremiah 11 is a chapter about a broken covenant, a warning to Judah and Jerusalem, and a prophet who discovers that his own neighbors are plotting against him. These questions suit a small group, a Sunday class, or a personal study. Each set moves from what the text says, to what it means, to how a reader might live it.
Jeremiah 11 at a Glance
The chapter opens with God telling Jeremiah to proclaim the terms of the covenant made with the ancestors who came out of Egypt. Judah has returned to other gods, so God announces disaster that prayer will not avert, and even tells Jeremiah not to intercede for the people. The middle section compares Judah to a green olive tree that is set on fire, and then Jeremiah reveals that the men of Anathoth have plotted to kill him for speaking. The chapter ends with God’s judgment on those men.
Use the chapter in three movements: the covenant and its breaking (verses 1-13), the consequences and the prohibition on prayer (verses 14-17), and Jeremiah’s personal exposure to plots and God’s answer (verses 18-23).
Observation Questions
Begin here so the group stays close to the words on the page before anyone offers an interpretation. Ask the questions slowly, let silence sit for a moment, and invite several people to answer before the leader comments.
Jeremiah 11:4
Which I commanded your fathers in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of the iron furnace,’ saying, ‘Obey my voice, and do them, according to all which I command you; so you shall be my people, and I will be your God…
(WEB)
This verse states the heart of the covenant, the call to obey God’s voice so that a relationship can be shared. Reading it early sets the frame for everything that follows in the chapter.
Jeremiah 11:8
Yet they didn’t obey, nor turn their ear, but everyone walked in the stubbornness of their evil heart. Therefore I brought on them all the words of this covenant, which I commanded them to do, but they didn’t do them.’”
(WEB)
Here the people’s failure is named plainly, showing how a stubborn heart resists even repeated warnings. It helps the group see why judgment is announced.
Jeremiah 11:16-17
16 The LORD called your name, “A green olive tree, beautiful with goodly fruit.” With the noise of a great roar he has kindled fire on it, and its branches are broken. 17 For the LORD of Armies, who planted you, has pronounced evil against you, because of the evil of the house of Israel and of the house of Judah, which they have done to themselves in provoking me to anger by offering incense to Baal.
(WEB)
The olive tree image is one of the most striking in the chapter, and reading it aloud lets the contrast between beauty and fire be felt. It anchors the discussion of how sin can undo what once flourished.
Jeremiah 11:19
But I was like a gentle lamb that is led to the slaughter. I didn’t know that they had devised plans against me, saying, “Let us destroy the tree with its fruit, and let us cut him off from the land of the living, that his name may be no more remembered.”
(WEB)
This verse gives a glimpse of Jeremiah’s vulnerability and innocence, which deepens the emotional weight of the chapter. Reading it reminds the group that the prophet himself was suffering.
Jeremiah 11:20
But, the LORD of Armies, who judges righteously, who tests the heart and the mind, I will see your vengeance on them; for to you I have revealed my cause.
(WEB)
Jeremiah’s appeal to the righteous judge is a model of entrusting injustice to God. Reading it prompts reflection on how we handle our own grievances before the Lord.
Memory Verse for Jeremiah 11
A Closing Prayer for the Group
Father, we come before you aware that we have often walked in the stubbornness of our own hearts. Thank you that you have pleaded with us patiently and called us back again and again. Give us ears to hear your voice and the courage to do what you command. Where we have been tempted to turn to other things for security, draw us back to your covenant faithfulness. When others oppose us for speaking or living the truth, help us entrust our cause to you, the righteous judge who knows the heart. Make us fruitful and rooted, that our lives may honor you. Amen.
