Lessons in Hope: Yirmiyahu Chapter 31
Grades: Middle School/High School
Introduction
Yirmiyahu is the prophet most associated with the destruction of the First Temple. (Interestingly, the English word “jeremiad” is an elegy or song of lament.) A great deal of the book revolves around rebuking the people of Israel for their sins of idolatry, immorality, and grievous miscarriages of social justice, and urging them to repent. Yirmiyahu foretells the destruction of the Temple and the upcoming exile to Babylonia, a fate that seems sealed. Both the elites and the people revile him; he is mocked and imprisoned, and attempts are made on his life.
Nevertheless, there are some very famous sections in the book where, following the Temple’s destruction and exile, God comforts the people, and at the end of the book, God’s vengeance is carried out on the people of Israel’s enemies. Perek 31 is one of the most famous passages of comfort; the words and images are famous. They are particularly connected to the modern Zionist movement, the ingathering of the exiles, and the return to Israel as our home.
The goals of this lesson are:
A) to understand the deeper meaning of the text, including the metaphors used
B) to help build psychosocial tools students can use to bolster their own hope
C) to provide artistic outlets for students to express their hope
Note to teachers: The italicized questions are “talking points” to be used individually or in groups. (Feel free to select the prompts that you feel will resonate with your particular group of students). Students can keep journals or jot down thoughts and then share them in groups. It could be useful to combine responses into a chart or a Google Doc and share. It could also be useful to put responses on some kind of a physical sheet that is either distributed to students or hung up in a classroom.
A. Understanding the Text of Yirmiyahu 31: 14-16
PLEASE NOTE: As of the publishing of this lesson, Sefaria has the pesukim as 15-17. In most printed versions, these pesukim are 14-16).
Note to Teachers: The entire perek is one of comfort, and teachers can certainly choose other parts of the perek to analyze. There are intertextual references to Shemot (pasuk 1), Shir HaShirim (pesukim 2-3), Yeshayahu (pesukim 4-7), and Tehillim (pesukim 8-11). Pasuk 12 is known in Israeli culture. Even a basic understanding of the text and its message conveys profound comfort and hope for the future.
Pesukim 14-16
- “A voice (or “a cry”) in Ramah is heard.” What is the potency of the disembodied voice? What does a “voice” bring to mind? What does it represent?
- “Is heard.”How does the passive “is heard” support the poignancy of the message? Who is hearing the voice?
- “Ramah” can be the name of a place or it can mean “a high place.” Which do you think it is and why? Notably, the first prophet leader—Samuel—lived in Ramah. How could the allusion to Samuel augment the vision? If the voice is heard “on high,” from where is it coming? From “down low” or also from “on high?” How do you imagine this?
- “Wailing, bitter weeping.” What does “bitter” add to the image? The verb “crying” is used twice in the verse. Why specifically crying rather than lamenting or raging?
- “Rachel is crying.” Who was Rachel? Of all of our ancestors, why do you think that the vision is about her specifically? What do you know about Rachel’s life that may be the reason why the prophet picked her specifically among our foremothers and fathers?
Note to the teacher: this may be an opportunity to remind the story of this character as well as the specifics of her burial. - “Her sons.” Who are Rachel’s sons? How are her sons’ lives the blueprint for both destruction and redemption?
- Why does Rachel “refuse” to be comforted? What does this teach us about grief?
- God tells Rachel: “Restrain your voice from crying and your eyes from shedding tears.” Why does God have to mention both of these? Is God telling her to stop crying or to cry less? Does it make a difference?
- God tells Rachel that “there is a reward for your action.” To which “action” do you think that God is referring to here? Read the Rashi on “Rachel weeping for her children” below: The Midrash Aggadah states (see Lam. Rabbah Proem 24) that the Patriarchs and the Matriarchs went to appease the Holy One blessed be He…but He was not appeased. Rachel entered and stated before Him “O Lord of the Universe, whose mercy is greater, Your mercy or the mercy of a flesh and blood person? You must admit that Your mercy is greater. Now did I not bring my rival into my house? For all the work that Jacob worked for my father, he worked only for me. When I came to enter the nuptial canopy, they brought my sister, and it was not enough that I kept my silence, but I gave her my password. You, too, if Your children have brought Your rival into Your house, keep Your silence for them.” He said to her, “You have defended them well. There is reward for your deed and for your righteousness, that you gave over your password to your sister.”
What was her “labor” according to the Midrash? How did God come to reward her? What does that tell us about how we can approach God?
- Why is “reward” something that is comforting?
- “They will return.”Who “they?” Is the return physical, spiritual, or both? How is this promise comforting to Rachel? To us?
- What does pasuk 16 add to pasuk 15? What is the “hope” that is promised? How does hope for the future comfort Rachel (and us) in the present?
- The word for hope (tikvah) and the word for a purification pool (mikveh) come from the same root. What do you think is the connection between them?
B. Building psychosocial tools to support hope
- Yirmiyahu is describing a dramatic scene, a dialogue between God and Rachel. What do the images Yirmiyahu uses— a disembodied voice, weeping, Mother Rachel, God, reward, and comfort—resonate with you? Identify some images that bring you comfort and give you hope. Can you create an “image bank” that you can draw from?
- Hope is both a general and a very personal thing. With a partner or in a small group, find out what others need/want to give them hope. How can you support hope in others?
- Yirmiyahu describes a woman bereft and grieving for her lost, beloved children. Have you ever felt like you had lost something (or someone) very precious? How do you nurture hope and faith when you—or someone you know—are in that space? What are things that have given you support and hope—your “light,” “fortress,” and faith?
- God promises Rachel that A) she will be rewarded for something she did in the past, B) that her children will return, and C) that there is hope and a future for her children. How do acts of kindness and compassion make the world a better place? How does hope for the future provide comfort in the present?
- “V’shavu banim” (“Children will return”) became a rallying cry for those wishing to reclaim the Land of Israel. What is the power of a mantra/slogan for building hope?
C. Creative Connections
Art: A. Have students create a visual representation of either scenes from this perek or an abstract representation of the emotions evoked. B. Have students design or build something that they feel would/could protect them.
Writing: A. Have students write about images/ideas that give them hope and comfort. B. Have students write about what makes them feel protected and how they can maintain that— a manual or “go to” list. C. Have students write their own psalm of hope.
Audio: A. Have students create a guided imagery/meditation audio. B. Have students choose melodies for those verses that they have connected with. C. Students can sing together/play instruments to their favorite melodies. D. Students can create playlists of different melodies with these verses.
Possible songs:
- Maccabeats – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heYPjtLykOM
- Devaykus/Abie Rotenberg – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_J3pY2LuNY4
- “V’Shavu Banim”, Maccabeats – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKVLMhTz_6A
- “Kol Beramag Nishma,” Pirchei Yerushalayim – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ekq_978y7H4
- “Minaei kolech m’bechi” – The Idan Raichel Project (Idan Raichel wrote this song based on Yirmiyahu’s prophecy in 2008, after the kidnapping of the soldiers Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2Df_eEprZw