"The words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests that were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin: to whom the word of the Lord came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign" (Jer. 1:1,2).
This announcement, referring as it does to King Josiah, not only provides the words of introduction to the book of Jeremiah but indicates the relationship that exists between Jeremiah and the book of Deuteronomy. Josiah was deeply conscious of the importance of "the book of the law" (II Kings 22:8), found in the temple during his reign, identifying it with the traditional teaching of Moses and putting it into effect as the law of the land. The prophetic inspiration of Jeremiah was undoubtedly encouraged by Josiah 's action in instituting a sorely needed religious reformation, one Jeremiah seems to have upheld at the start (see Jer. 11:1-8).
Those who participated in the preparation and repeated editing of Deuteronomy clearly recognized the vital necessity for the Hebrew people of a thorough knowledge of their own history. In historical terms the book sets forth its message, its demand for a return to the heritage of monotheism as stressed by Moses. This theme is presented as having been recorded in one or perhaps even three main addresses of varying length given by Moses in Moab before the entry of the Israelites into Canaan under the leadership of Joshua.
