A crisis of faith often occurs when individuals or nations deal with crisis. When what we perceive as the rock bottom ground of our being is shattered. Wars such as the one we’re in the middle of right now destabilizes long held assumptions about security and trust. The same happened 2,600 years ago when the refugees of Judah confronted their shattered past, shakey present and unknown future.
In who/what do they trust?
Few chapters in the Hebrew Bible are as puzzling as this one - which is why it’s one of my top favorites. Despite its authors’ presumed purpose of extolling the virtues of patriarchy and the power of YHWH over other deities - what actually happens here is a powerful testament to the popularity of the pagan path that has always enjoyed mass appeal among the Hebrews and Judeans - especially after their old God was little help when war demolished their reality. This is the chapter that reminds us that despite so many attempts by male-centric religious leaders and scribes - the Divine Feminine was, is and will be the central core of trust for many nations - including the Jews.
Jeremiah begins chapter 44 with yet another rant at the tired refugees now settled in Egypt -- the only reason the destruction happened is that they worshiped other gods instead of YHWH. He has made this claim on multiple occasions through the decades of his largely failed prophetic role.
Now that they are in Egypt, apparently in a place called Pathros - and the local lore seduces the Judeans into pouring libations to the local goddesses and gods - he tries to discourage them again.
But this time - the people rebel, and talk back. They are tired of Jeremiah -- and might just be over their old god, too.
They rise, led by the women and deliver the following protest:
וַיַּעֲנ֣וּ אֶֽת־יִרְמְיָ֗הוּ כׇּל־הָאֲנָשִׁ֤ים הַיֹּֽדְעִים֙ כִּֽי־מְקַטְּר֤וֹת נְשֵׁיהֶם֙ לֵאלֹהִ֣ים אֲחֵרִ֔ים וְכׇל־הַנָּשִׁ֥ים הָעֹמְד֖וֹת קָהָ֣ל גָּד֑וֹל וְכׇל־הָעָ֛ם הַיֹּשְׁבִ֥ים בְּאֶרֶץ־מִצְרַ֖יִם בְּפַתְר֥וֹס לֵאמֹֽר׃ הַדָּבָ֛ר אֲשֶׁר־דִּבַּ֥רְתָּ אֵלֵ֖ינוּ בְּשֵׁ֣ם יְהֹוָ֑ה אֵינֶ֥נּוּ שֹׁמְעִ֖ים אֵלֶֽיךָ׃ כִּי֩ עָשֹׂ֨ה נַעֲשֶׂ֜ה אֶֽת־כׇּל־הַדָּבָ֣ר ׀ אֲשֶׁר־יָצָ֣א מִפִּ֗ינוּ לְקַטֵּ֞ר לִמְלֶ֣כֶת הַשָּׁמַ֘יִם֮ וְהַסֵּֽיךְ־לָ֣הּ נְסָכִים֒ כַּאֲשֶׁ֨ר עָשִׂ֜ינוּ אֲנַ֤חְנוּ וַאֲבֹתֵ֙ינוּ֙ מְלָכֵ֣ינוּ וְשָׂרֵ֔ינוּ בְּעָרֵ֣י יְהוּדָ֔ה וּבְחֻצ֖וֹת יְרוּשָׁלָ֑͏ִם וַנִּֽשְׂבַּֽע־לֶ֙חֶם֙ וַנִּהְיֶ֣ה טוֹבִ֔ים וְרָעָ֖ה לֹ֥א רָאִֽינוּ׃ וּמִן־אָ֡ז חָדַ֜לְנוּ לְקַטֵּ֨ר לִמְלֶ֧כֶת הַשָּׁמַ֛יִם וְהַסֵּֽךְ־לָ֥הּ נְסָכִ֖ים חָסַ֣רְנוּ כֹ֑ל וּבַחֶ֥רֶב וּבָרָעָ֖ב תָּֽמְנוּ׃
But the people answered Jeremiah—all the men who knew that their wives made offerings to other gods; all the women present, a large gathering; and all the people who lived in Pathros in the land of Egypt:
“We will not listen to you in the matter about which you spoke to us in the name of YHWH.
On the contrary, we will do everything that we have vowed —to make offerings to the Queen of Heaven and to pour libations to her, as we used to do, we and our ancestors, our kings and our officials, in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem. For then we had plenty to eat, we were well-off, and suffered no misfortune.
But ever since we stopped making offerings to the Queen of Heaven and pouring libations to her, we have lacked everything, and we have been consumed by the sword and by famine.
Jeremiah 44:15-18
Who is the Queen of Heaven and what is the meaning of their powerful claim?
The worship of this deity was already quotes, in detail, in the previous chapter of this people’s lives, when Jeremiah speaks to them in the name of YHWH, at the entrance to the temple in Jerusalem:
“Don’t you see what they are doing in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? The children gather sticks, the fathers build the fire, and the mothers knead dough, to make cakes for the Queen of Heaven, and they pour libations to other gods, to vex Me.” (7:17-18)
Apparently, they had no intention of stopping worshiping Her then - and they are still doing it now. Who is this powerful deity?
According to most scholars, she is not just a goddess but in fact, the moon. Although later traditions claim that she is Venus, the star of dawn. The Assyrians and Babyloians called her Ishtar.
So what is happening here is a display of religious schism. The refugees in Egypt bring up a strong point, at least from their perspective: They claim that for the many generations who observed her cult, their lives were good. What changed was the religious reforms of Josiah, beginning in 622 B.C.E, supported by Jeremiah. The reform was brutal - the goddess cult was suppressed, and only then disaster followed, culminating in the destruction of the kingdom.
Real or not, it is a powerful and problematic paradigm that challenges the very assumption that Jeremiah - and the YHWH movement, tried to reinforce.
What is astounding is that this chapter, validating the centrality of the goddess, made it intact into the Bible. You’d think they would want to repress this ancient stuff? And what is further fascinating is that this seems to be the beginning of the end for Jeremiah -- this would be his last speech, and his last interaction with the people he was destined to serve.
Rabbi Benny Lau explores this dramatic moment that indicates the almost final scene in Jeremiah’s life:
“Jeremiah concludes his prophecy with a sign: “Let this be your sign — declares YHWH — that I will punish you in this place, that you may know that My words will be fulfilled against you for evil” (44:29).
These seem to be Jeremiah's last words. It is the only time he uses a sign, and this perhaps encapsulates his entire prophetic career. Never, not even in his final prophecy, does his audience believe him. The Torah describes the prophet who uses signs to try to convince the people to serve other gods:
“If a prophet, or one who foretells by dreams, appears among you and gives to you a sign or demonstration. And the sign or wonder that he told you of comes true, and he says: Let us follow other gods, which you have not known, and let us worship them — you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer, for YHWH, your God, is testing you to find out whether you love Him with all your heart and soul” (Deut. 13:2-4).
Jeremiah knows his words will not be heeded. The only thing left to do is to anchor them in a sign that will prove that everything he has said is from God. With this dreadful statement, he exits the prophetic stage.”
Whether she is the moon, or Venus, mother earth or mother mary - She is still among us, mysterious, maternal, majestic and meaningful to so many in so many different ways. While religious wars in names of violent gods continue rupturing reality, we turn to this chapter with the clarity of context - they have always been debates about divinity, we are heirs of Hebrew lore that honored this feminine presence, and she is on the rise again, perhaps to help us get beyond the binaries of patriarchal male-dominated religious dogma and bring us, once again, to safer shores?
TODAY:
Join me to talk about
Jeremiah & the Queen of Heaven, A Conversation about the Ancient Hebrew Goddess of Compassion
The book of Jeremiah is a literary masterpiece, painting evocative images crafted into metaphors of nuance and power. But what most stands out in Jeremiah is his vivid rendering of the agony of an abandoned heart.
Rev. Elizabeth M. Edman
Next Below the Bible Belt Zoom Live Conversation with Rabbi Amichai
October 18, 5pm ET
As we wrap up our long journey with the Prophet Jeremiah, during these difficult of war, and as witnesses to the tragic fall of Jerusalem in this biblical narrative, we get to ponder and ask some big questions. Some of these were heard among the survivors and the refugees of Jerusalem’s destruction, some still echo today. What do we learn from these chapters about the ways we face our own big questions and keep cultivating hope?
And who is this goddess of care that our ancestors speak for?
Join the Free Zoom Conversation with your questions and thoughts:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88915392821
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