From Wendy Kennett

I’d be really interested in contributors thoughts on chiasmus as a key to interpreting Jeremiah’s prophecy and its apparently haphazard structure. Joel Rosenberg in “The Literary Guide to the Bible” (Alter and Kermode eds, 1987, Harvard University Press), suggests the following :

a Historical headnote (1:1-3)
b Commission (1:4)
c “Prophet to the nations” theme introduced (1:5-10)
d Doom for Israel; poetic oracles predominate (chaps 1-10)
e Prophet cut off from Anathoth; focus on prophet’s trials and conflicts; prose predominates (11:1 – 28:17)
f Optimistic prophesies; renewal of Israel; prose brackets poetic center (chaps 29-31)
e’ Prophet returns to Anathoth; focus on prophet’s trials and conflicts; prose predominates (32:1-45:5)
d’ Doom for the nations; poetic oracles predominate (chaps 46-51)
c’ “Prophet to the nations” theme culminates (chaps 50-51)
b’ Prophet’s concluding message (51:59-64)
a’ Historical appendix (chap 52)