Biblical Hebrew Forum

[RHutchin AT aol.com]

In Jeremiah 7, we find--
21   Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Put your burnt 
offerings unto your sacrifices, and eat flesh. 
22   For I spake not unto your fathers, nor commanded them in the day that I 
brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings or 
sacrifices: 
23   But this thing commanded I them, saying, Obey my voice, and I will be 
your God, and ye shall be my people: and walk ye in all the ways that I have 
commanded you, that it may be well unto you. 

In context of the chapter, Israel seems to have reduced worship of God to the 
giving of the specified offerings and sacrifices as one might pay a tax.  We 
might conclude that the writer, in the above verses, does not mean to argue 
that God did not actually command that offerings and sacrifices be given but 
that God required much more than just offerings and sacrifices.  God required 
obedience of which the giving of offerings and sacrifices were a consequence.

The translations differ on v 22, with some emphasizing this idea while others 
do not.  A literal translation of the verse seems awkward.  Can someone 
explain how v 22 should be translated and why?

Roger Hutchinson
RHutchin AT AOL.com