Overview
Summary
Targum Jonathan on Jeremiah navigates the tension between divine judgment and covenant faithfulness. The new covenant prophecy (31:31-34) is rendered with striking literalism. Anti-anthropomorphism governs descriptions of God's emotional response to Israel's unfaithfulness (anger, grief, jealousy). The Messianic 'Branch' passages (23:5, 33:15) receive explicit identification. The Memra functions as the agent of both judgment and future restoration.
Notable Renderings
The call narrative (ch. 1) uses standard anti-anthropomorphic language. The new covenant (31:31-34) is remarkably literal. The Messianic Branch (23:5) is rendered as the righteous Messiah. The Temple sermons use Shekinah language. The confessions of Jeremiah receive minimal theological adjustment, preserving the prophet's raw emotion.
Theological Themes
The Memra as agent of prophetic commissioning and covenant renewal; Shekinah departure and return as the theological framework for exile and restoration; Messianic Branch theology; the new covenant as Torah internalization; anti-anthropomorphism in divine pathos.
Hebrew (MT)
בְּטֶרֶם אֶצָּרְךָ בַבֶּטֶן יְדַעְתִּיךָ
Before I formed you in the womb I knew you.
Targum (Aramaic)
ad la tzayartakh bemeiayya yeda'atakh
Targum Rendering
Before I formed you in the womb I knew you.
Jeremiah's calling is rendered literally. Divine foreknowledge is not an anthropomorphism requiring adjustment — it is an attribute of God's eternal knowledge.
Hebrew (MT)
וַיִּשְׁלַח יְהוָה אֶת־יָדוֹ וַיַּגַּע עַל־פִּי
Then the LORD put out his hand and touched my mouth.
Targum (Aramaic)
ushedar Adonai yat pitgam nvu'ateih visamkha al pumi
Targum Rendering
And the LORD sent forth the word of his prophecy and placed it upon my mouth.
God's hand reaching out and touching Jeremiah's mouth becomes 'the word of his prophecy' being placed upon Jeremiah's mouth. The physical gesture is replaced with verbal prophetic commissioning — the Word, not the hand, empowers the prophet.
Hebrew (MT)
כִּי אִתְּךָ אֲנִי נְאֻם יְהוָה לְהַצִּילֶךָ
For I am with you, declares the LORD, to deliver you.
Targum (Aramaic)
arei Memri besiyyakhah amar Adonai leshezavutakh
Targum Rendering
For my Memra is in your help, says the LORD, to deliver you.
The promise of divine presence to the prophet follows the standard Memra formula. Jeremiah's prophetic ministry is sustained by the Memra's accompaniment.
Hebrew (MT)
בָּעֵת הַהִיא יִקְרְאוּ לִירוּשָׁלַיִם כִּסֵּא יְהוָה
At that time Jerusalem shall be called the throne of the LORD.
Targum (Aramaic)
be'iddana hahi yitqerun liYerushalem kurseih diyeqara daAdonai
Targum Rendering
At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the glory of the LORD.
Jerusalem is not the LORD's throne directly but the throne of his glory (yeqar). The eschatological transformation of Jerusalem is mediated through glory-theology.
Hebrew (MT)
הֵיכַל יְהוָה הֵיכַל יְהוָה הֵיכַל יְהוָה הֵמָּה
The temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD are these.
Targum (Aramaic)
heikhela daAdonai heikhela daAdonai heikhela daAdonai innun
Targum Rendering
The Temple of the LORD, the Temple of the LORD, the Temple of the LORD are these.
The deceptive refrain is rendered literally — Jonathan preserves the irony of false confidence in the Temple's inviolability.
Hebrew (MT)
כִּי לְכוּ נָא אֶל מְקוֹמִי אֲשֶׁר בְּשִׁילוֹ אֲשֶׁר שִׁכַּנְתִּי שְׁמִי שָׁם
Go now to my place that was in Shiloh, where I made my name dwell at first.
Targum (Aramaic)
arei izelu ke'an le'atri diveShiloh di ashrei Shekhineti tamman
Targum Rendering
For go now to my place which was in Shiloh, where I caused my Shekinah to dwell there.
God's 'name dwelling' at Shiloh is rendered as 'Shekinah dwelling' at Shiloh. The destruction of Shiloh is a precedent for Shekinah departure — the Shekinah can leave a sanctuary it once inhabited.
Hebrew (MT)
וַיהוָה אֱלֹהִים אֱמֶת הוּא אֱלֹהִים חַיִּים וּמֶלֶךְ עוֹלָם
But the LORD is the true God; he is the living God and the everlasting King.
Targum (Aramaic)
vaAdonai Elohim hu Elah qeshot hu Elah chayyin umalka de'alma
Targum Rendering
But the LORD God — he is the true God, he is the living God and the eternal King.
The confession of God's uniqueness amid idol polemic is rendered literally. Attributes like 'true,' 'living,' and 'eternal king' are non-anthropomorphic and require no adjustment.
Hebrew (MT)
כִּסֵּא כָבוֹד מָרוֹם מֵרִאשׁוֹן מְקוֹם מִקְדָּשֵׁנוּ
A glorious throne set on high from the beginning is the place of our sanctuary.
Targum (Aramaic)
kursei yeqara de'illaya min qadmai atar beit maqdashana
Targum Rendering
The throne of glory on high from the beginning is the place of our Temple.
The heavenly throne of glory corresponds to the earthly Temple. Jonathan establishes the two-tiered cosmology: the heavenly throne and the earthly sanctuary mirror each other.
Hebrew (MT)
הִנֵּה יָמִים בָּאִים נְאֻם יְהוָה וַהֲקִמֹתִי לְדָוִד צֶמַח צַדִּיק
Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch.
Targum (Aramaic)
ha yomayya atyin amar Adonai va'aqim leDavid Meshicha zakkaya
Targum Rendering
Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Messiah.
The 'righteous Branch' (tsemach tsaddiq) is rendered 'righteous Messiah' (Meshicha zakkaya). Jonathan explicitly decodes the botanical metaphor as Messianic prophecy, consistent with his treatment of Isaiah 11:1. The Branch is the Messiah.
Hebrew (MT)
וְזֶה שְּׁמוֹ אֲשֶׁר יִקְרְאוֹ יְהוָה צִדְקֵנוּ
And this is the name by which he will be called: 'The LORD is our righteousness.'
Targum (Aramaic)
veden shemeih di yiqreinnei Adonai tzidqana
Targum Rendering
And this is the name by which he shall be called: the LORD is our righteousness.
The Messiah's throne name 'YHWH-Tsidqenu' is preserved literally. Jonathan does not shy away from a name that applies YHWH to the Messianic king, though it can be read as a statement about God rather than an identification of the Messiah with God.
Hebrew (MT)
יְהוָה מִמָּרוֹם יִשְׁאָג
The LORD will roar from on high.
Targum (Aramaic)
Adonai min merom beit Shekhinteih yigbirah qaleih
Targum Rendering
The LORD from the height of the house of his Shekinah shall raise his voice.
'On high' becomes 'the height of the house of his Shekinah,' localizing the heavenly source of judgment in Shekinah cosmology. God does not 'roar' (an animal metaphor) but 'raises his voice.'
Hebrew (MT)
כִּי אָנֹכִי יָדַעְתִּי אֶת־הַמַּחֲשָׁבֹת אֲשֶׁר אָנֹכִי חֹשֵׁב עֲלֵיכֶם... מַחְשְׁבוֹת שָׁלוֹם
For I know the plans I have for you... plans for welfare.
Targum (Aramaic)
arei ana yeda'na yat chushebanayya de'ana chashiv aleikhon... chushebanei shelam
Targum Rendering
For I know the thoughts which I think concerning you... thoughts of peace.
God's knowledge of his own plans is rendered literally. Divine planning is an attribute of wisdom, not an anthropomorphism. The promise of peace/welfare is directed to the exiles.
Hebrew (MT)
וְעָבְדוּ אֵת יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיהֶם וְאֵת דָּוִד מַלְכָּם אֲשֶׁר אָקִים לָהֶם
And they shall serve the LORD their God and David their king, whom I will raise up for them.
Targum (Aramaic)
viyiphlchun qodam Adonai Elahehon viyishttam'un leMeshicha bar David malkhon di aqim lehon
Targum Rendering
And they shall serve before the LORD their God, and they shall obey the Messiah son of David, their king, whom I will raise up for them.
'David their king' is interpreted as 'the Messiah son of David, their king.' Jonathan makes the Messianic identification explicit: the future David is not the historical David resurrected but the Messiah who descends from David's line.
Hebrew (MT)
וְהָיָה אַדִּירוֹ מִמֶּנּוּ וּמֹשְׁלוֹ מִקִּרְבּוֹ יֵצֵא
Their prince shall be from themselves; their ruler shall come from their midst.
Targum (Aramaic)
vihavei rabrehon minnehon uMeshikhon mibeinehon yitgeli
Targum Rendering
And their great one shall be from among them, and their Messiah shall be revealed from their midst.
The ruler 'coming from their midst' becomes the Messiah 'revealed from their midst' (yitgeli). The Messiah does not merely appear — he is revealed, using the same theology of divine disclosure applied throughout Jonathan.
Hebrew (MT)
כִּי הָיִיתִי לְיִשְׂרָאֵל לְאָב
For I am a father to Israel.
Targum (Aramaic)
arei Memri havat leYisrael le'abba
Targum Rendering
For my Memra has been a father to Israel.
God's fatherhood of Israel is mediated through the Memra. Even the most intimate relational metaphor is expressed through the Word, maintaining the Memra as the mode of all divine-human relationship.
Hebrew (MT)
הִנֵּה יָמִים בָּאִים נְאֻם יְהוָה וְכָרַתִּי אֶת בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל... בְּרִית חֲדָשָׁה
Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel.
Targum (Aramaic)
ha yomayya atyin amar Adonai ve'agzar im beit Yisrael... keyam chadatt
Targum Rendering
Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make with the house of Israel... a new covenant.
The new covenant prophecy is rendered with striking literalism. Jonathan does not qualify, restrict, or reinterpret 'new covenant' (keyam chadatt). This is the verse cited in Hebrews 8:8-12 as fulfilled in Christ. The targum's literalism here is remarkable given its tendency to interpret elsewhere.
Hebrew (MT)
נָתַתִּי אֶת תּוֹרָתִי בְּקִרְבָּם וְעַל לִבָּם אֶכְתְּבֶנָּה
I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts.
Targum (Aramaic)
eittein yat oraiti begevvehon ve'al libbehon ikhtevinnah
Targum Rendering
I will put my Torah in their inward parts, and upon their heart I will write it.
The Torah internalization is rendered literally. The new covenant does not replace Torah but internalizes it. Jonathan's treatment suggests the new covenant is Torah-centered renewal, not Torah abolition.
Hebrew (MT)
כִּי אֶסְלַח לַעֲוֺנָם וּלְחַטָּאתָם לֹא אֶזְכָּר עוֹד
For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.
Targum (Aramaic)
arei ashbiq lechovehon ulechotehon la edkar tub
Targum Rendering
For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.
The climax of the new covenant: divine forgiveness and the end of sin-remembrance. Jonathan renders this literally, preserving the unconditional promise of forgiveness that defines the new covenant.
Hebrew (MT)
בַּיָּמִים הָהֵם וּבָעֵת הַהִיא אַצְמִיחַ לְדָוִד צֶמַח צְדָקָה
In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David.
Targum (Aramaic)
beyomayya ha'innun uve'iddana hahi atzammach leDavid Meshicha detzidqa
Targum Rendering
In those days and at that time I will cause to sprout for David a Messiah of righteousness.
The second Branch prophecy in Jeremiah is also rendered as 'Messiah of righteousness' (Meshicha detzidqa). The agricultural metaphor of sprouting is preserved alongside the Messianic identification.
Hebrew (MT)
וְזֶה אֲשֶׁר יִקְרָא לָהּ יְהוָה צִדְקֵנוּ
And this is the name by which it will be called: 'The LORD is our righteousness.'
Targum (Aramaic)
veden di yitqerun lah min qodam Adonai bidqayin yitaseyan lana
Targum Rendering
And this is the name by which she [Jerusalem] will be called: 'Before the LORD our righteousness will be accomplished for us.'
While 23:6 applied the name to the Messianic king, 33:16 applies it to Jerusalem. Jonathan renders the city's name as a theological statement: before the LORD, righteousness is accomplished. The name YHWH-Tsidqenu has both personal (Messianic) and civic (Jerusalem) applications.
Hebrew (MT)
כִּי אִתְּךָ אָנִי נְאֻם יְהוָה לְהוֹשִׁעֶךָ
For I am with you, declares the LORD, to save you.
Targum (Aramaic)
arei Memri besiyyakhah amar Adonai leshezavutakh
Targum Rendering
For my Memra is in your help, says the LORD, to save you.
The concluding promise to Jacob/Israel uses the standard Memra-help formula. Even amid oracles against the nations, God's relationship with Israel is Memra-mediated.