Father: This term may refer either to a physical ancestor (Good News Translation “our ancestor”) or to the founder of their group.

You shall not drink wine: In Hebrew the pronoun You is emphatic. Further, shall does not indicate a simple future tense; it is, rather, a command. This is equally true in the verse that follows.

Sons is better rendered “descendants,” for the language is inclusive.

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Jeremiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2003. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .