Chapter
1
(Verses
1 through 3) 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. It came also in the days of
Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the end of the
eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the
carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.
Thus
Jeremiah identifies himself, and tells us in what time frame the
word of the LORD came to him. It began to be revealed to him in the
thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah the son of Amon king of
Judah
, and continued until the end of the reign of Zedekiah the son of
Josiah. At that time
Jerusalem
was carried away captive to
Babylon
.
(Verses
4 through 10) Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Before
I formed thee in the belly, I knew thee; and before thou camest out
of the womb I sanctified thee, and ordained thee a prophet unto the
nations. Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am
a child. But the LORD said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou
shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command
thee thou shalt speak. Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with
thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD. Then the LORD put forth His
hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, behold, I
have put My words in thy mouth. See, I have this day set thee over
the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down,
and to destroy, and to throw down, and to build, and to plant.
The
LORD declared to Jeremiah that He had known him before he was even
conceived in his mother’s womb. In this instance, as it often
does, “know” means more than to have knowledge of. It also
carries the idea of giving recognition to someone, or something, in
this case to Jeremiah. At that time the LORD had sanctified, and
ordained Jeremiah a prophet unto the nations, or Gentiles. No doubt
this astounded Jeremiah, for he was only a child. And He reminded
the LORD that, as such, he could not speak. This does not mean that
he was too young to be able to articulate words, but that he had not
had any experience in speaking publicly, or in addressing other
people concerning such important things as the word of the LORD. But
the LORD assured him that He would supply him with the words he was
to speak, and that he, Jeremiah, would go where the LORD sent him,
and speak the message the LORD had given him. The LORD then told him
to not be afraid of those to whom he was to be sent. And to give him
confidence and assurance, the LORD reached forth his hand, and
touched Jeremiah’s mouth, declaring that He had put His words in
his mouth. He also gave Jeremiah a commission. He set him over the
nations, to tear down and destroy such as should be destroyed, and
also to build up such as should be built up.
(Verses
11 through 16) Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond
tree. Then saith the LORD unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will
hasten My word to perform it. And the word of the LORD came unto me
the second time, saying, What seest thou? And I said, I see a
seething pot; and the face thereof is toward the north. Then the
LORD said unto me, Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon
all the inhabitants of the land. For, lo, I will call all the
families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the LORD; and they
shall come, and they shall set every one his throne at the entering
of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all the walls thereof round
about, and all the cities of Judah. And I will utter My judgments
against them touching all their wickedness, who have forsaken Me,
and have burned incense unto other gods, and worshipped the works of
their own hands.
This
text, no doubt, reaches far beyond the time in which it was written.
For all the nations of the north country have not yet been gathered
against
Jerusalem
and the cities of
Judah
. True enough the Babylonians overcame
Judah
, and carried
Jerusalem
away captive. Then later the Romans destroyed the temple, and
dispersed the Jews over the world. But at the time embraced by this
prophecy, “all the families of the kingdoms of the north” will
be called to gather against
Jerusalem
and the cities of
Judah
. This must refer to the same times spoken of by both Ezekiel and
Zechariah, the time of the last great battle at
Jerusalem
. Remember that, though Jeremiah was indeed a prophet at
Jerusalem
, the LORD said, in verse 5, “I sanctified thee, and I ordained
thee a prophet unto the nations, (Gentiles, or heathen).” So this
present text concerns the Gentiles in the day that the LORD shall
call them to the great day of His judgment against them. Then He
will declare His “judgments against them touching all their
wickedness, who have forsaken Me, and have burned incense unto other
gods, and worshipped the works of their own hands.” Some will
probably say, “The nations, or Gentiles, could not have forsaken
the LORD, because He never revealed Himself to them. He only chose
the nation of
Israel
.” It would behoove them to read the first ten chapters of
Genesis. Throughout that period, of course some did not recognize
any god; but were wicked to the core. But those who recognized any
God, recognized the Lord GOD, the same One Who later revealed
Himself to the Jews. The reason why it was necessary to make the
revelation to
Israel
is that the nations had forsaken Him, and had burned incense to
other gods, and were worshipping the works of their own hands.
(Verses
17 through 19) Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and
speak unto them all that I command thee: be not dismayed at their
faces, lest I confound thee before them. For, behold, I have made
thee this day a defenced city, and an Iron pillar, and brasen walls
against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the
princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people
of the land. And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not
prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver
thee.
Having
told Jeremiah what He was going to do to the nations in the last
days, the LORD now tells him to put aside all fear of the kings,
princes, priests, and people of
Judah
. Otherwise He, the LORD, might cause Jeremiah to be confounded, or
confused, before them. But the LORD has made him as a well defended
city, an iron pillar, or walls of brass against all of them. And
though they will, indeed, fight against Jeremiah, they will not be
able to prevail against him; for the LORD will Himself deliver him.
This should give him all necessary confidence.
(Verses
1 through 4) Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying, Go
and cry in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the LORD; I
remember thee, the kindness of thy youth, the love of thine
espousals, when thou wentest after Me in the wilderness, in a land
that was not sown.
Israel
was holiness unto the LORD, and the firstfruits of his increase: all
that devour him shall offend: evil shall come upon them, saith the
LORD. Hear ye the word of the LORD, O house of Jacob, and all the
families of the house of
Israel
.
This
is the LORD’S first message to
Jerusalem
, one of remembrance. He recalls their following Him in the
wilderness. Although even at that time
Israel
was somewhat disobedient, the LORD only mentions the sweetness of
the close fellowship they enjoyed with Him.
Israel
was given His protection so that any who attempted to come against
him had evil come upon them. Thus the LORD carried them from
Egypt
all the way to The Promised Land.
(Verses
5 through 8) Thus saith the LORD, What iniquity have your fathers
found in Me, that they are gone far from Me, and have walked after
vanity, and are become vain? Neither said they, Where is the LORD
that brought us up out of Egypt, that led us through the wilderness,
through a land of deserts and of pits, through a land of drought,
and of the shadow of death, through a land that no man passed
through, and where no man dwelt? And I brought you into a plentiful
country, to eat the fruit thereof and the goodness thereof; but when
ye entered ye defiled My land, and made Mine heritage an
abomination. The priests said not, Where is the LORD? And they that
handle the law knew Me not: the pastors also transgressed against
Me, and the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after things
that do not profit.
The
question, “What have your fathers found _ _ _ _?” can receive
nothing but a negative answer. This is the strongest possible way of
declaring that they have found no fault in the LORD. The fault is in
themselves. The LORD then reminds them how He delivered them from
the bondage of
Egypt
, and led them through the wilderness. It was, indeed, a desolate
land. But the LORD brought them safely through, even to the Land He
has promised them. But when they entered that wonderful land, they
defiled it with their abominable practices. Even their priests were
not concerned about the LORD Who had been so gracious to them. Their
priests, those who handled the law, did not recognize Him, and their
prophets did not declare His word, but prophesied by Baal, an idol
god. The whole nation sought only things that were worthless.
(Verses
9 through 13) Wherefore I will yet plead with you, saith the LORD,
and with your children’s children will I plead. For pass over the
isles of Chittim, and see; and send unto Kedar, and consider
diligently, and see if there be such a thing. Hath a nation changed
their gods, which are yet no gods? But My people have changed their
glory for that which doth not profit. Be astonished, O ye heavens,
at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith the
LORD. For My people have committed two evils; they have forsaken the
fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken
cisterns, that can hold no water.
Because
of all the sins the priests, prophets, and people have committed the
LORD will yet plead with them, their children, and their
children’s children. Do not be misled by the use of the word,
“plead,” in this declaration. The LORD does not mean that He
will beg anyone to do anything. This expression is used many times
to mean that He will lay judgment upon someone. In this case, He is
going to bring judgment upon these people and their descendants for
their sins against Him. He then tells them to go to other places,
and look around, that they may know that they have done worse than
even the heathen. Although the gods of the heathen are all idols
that can do nothing, no nation has ever voluntarily abandoned its
gods, and taken up others. But
Israel
and
Judah
, whose God is the LORD, have abandoned Him to worship idols. He
likens this to a man who has a fountain of “living,” or flowing,
water, and instead of making use of it, abandons it, and digs
himself a cistern, even a broken cistern that can hold no water.
Such a move would be exceedingly foolish. But so is leaving the Lord
GOD and worshipping idols. Both acts are the epitome of foolishness.
This is such a foolish action that it is also dangerous, in fact, so
dangerous that He calls upon the heavens thus: “Be ye astonished,
O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very
desolate.”
(Verses
14 through 19) Is
Israel
a servant? Is he a homeborn slave? Why is he spoiled? The young
lions roared upon him, and yelled, and they made his land waste: his
cities are burned without inhabitant. Also the children of Noph and
Tahapanes have broken the crown of thy head. Hast thou not procured
this unto thyself, in that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, when
He led thee by the way? And now what hast thou to do in the way of
Egypt
, to drink the waters of Sihor? Or what hast thou to do in the way
of
Assyria
, to drink the waters of the river? Thine own wickedness shall
correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee: know
therefore that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast
forsaken the LORD thy God, and that My fear is not in thee, saith
the Lord GOD of hosts.
Remember
that this is all taking place after
Israel
has been carried away captive by the Assyrians. The LORD asks two
questions to bring
Israel
’s condition to the attention of
Judah
. “Is
Israel
a servant? Is he a homeborn slave? The answer to the first is,
“Yes, he is a servant.” But the answer to the second is, “No,
he was taken prisoner, carried away captive, and made a slave.”
Then He asked, “Why is he spoiled?” The answer is simple. “He
had forsaken his God, and followed after idols.” Surely this ought
to cause
Judah
to consider what he was doing. He can see that
Israel
is as desolate as if young lions had come upon all the people, and
laid waste the whole land. Not only so, but “the children of Noph
and Tahapanes have broken the crown of thy head.” These were two
cities of
Egypt
that had done damage to
Judah
. So the LORD asks, “Hast thou not procured this unto thyself, in
that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, when He led thee in the
way?” Surely they could remember that it was their disobedience
that brought this upon them. But in spite of the evil done them by
Egypt
, they are trying to get
Egypt
to help them now. They also know what Assyria has done to
Israel
. But they are now also trying to make a league with
Assyria
. This seems very foolish indeed. Not only had they received damage
from both
Egypt
and
Assyria
, but those two nations were enemies against each other. So an
agreement with either was sure to arouse the wrath of the other,
making for a very dangerous situation. Therefore their own
wickedness in trying to make deals with both nations would certainly
be discovered, and contribute to their own downfall. And it would
prove to be a very evil and bitter thing. But all of this is brought
about by one primary evil of its own. “’Thou hast forsaken the
LORD thy God, and My fear is not in thee,’ saith the Lord GOD of
hosts.”
(Verses
20 through 25) For of old time I have broken thy yoke, and burst thy
bands; and thou sadist I will not transgress; when upon every high
hill and under every green tree thou wanderest, playing the harlot.
Yet I planted thee a noble vine, wholly a right seed: how then art
thou turned into the degenerate plant of a strange vine unto me? For
though thou wash thyself with nitre, and take thee much soap, yet
thine iniquity is marked before Me, saith the Lord GOD. How canst
thou say, I am not polluted, I have not gone after Baalim? See thy
way in the valley, know what thou hast done: thou art a swift
dromedary traversing her ways; a wild ass used to the wilderness,
that snuffeth up the wind at her pleasure: in her occasion who can
turn her away? All they that seek her will not weary themselves; in
her month they shall find her. Withhold thy foot from being unshod,
and thy throat from thirst: but thou sadist, There is no hope: no;
for I have loved strangers, and after them I will go.
The
LORD reminds
Judah
that He long ago broke his yoke and bands of servitude, and
Judah
promised that he would not transgress. This, no doubt, is in
reference to the deliverance of
Israel
from the bondage of
Egypt
, and the making of the covenant with them. (See Exodus 19:1-8)
“And all the people answered together, and said, ‘All that the
LORD hath spoken we will do.’” Of course, the tribe of
Judah
was among the people who made that answer. So
Judah
did say that he would not transgress. Yet, as we follow the progress
of
Israel
, as God led them through the desert, we find that they were
continually turning away from the LORD, and following idols. In
spite of this the LORD did plant them in the
land
of
Canaan
, just as He had promised that He would. They were “a noble vine,
wholly a right seed.” How then could they become such a degenerate
people, to do, as we have seen above, such a strange thing that such
had never been before, even among the nations. There is no way that
they can make themselves clean, however much soap, or even niter,
they might use. They are beyond redemption by their own works.
Apparently, they still claim that they have not become polluted, and
have not followed idol gods. The LORD likens them to a wild ass that
goes where she pleases, when she pleases. But they are as easily
found as is that wild ass. Those who seek for her will only await
the proper season. And there she will be. Just so the LORD knows
exactly where to find
Judah
. They cannot hide from Him. He still advises them to return to Him,
“Withhold thy foot from being unshod, and thy throat from
thirst.” But their answer is, “There is no hope: no; for I have
loved strangers, and after them will I go.” This sounds very much
like the cry of many today who are following after the ways of
Satan: “This is what I want to do. And I am going to do it.”
(Verses
26 through 30) As the thief is ashamed when he is found, so is the
house of Israel ashamed; they, their kings, their princes, and their
priests, and their prophets, saying to a stock, Thou art my father;
and to a stone, Thou hast brought me forth: for they have turned
their back unto Me, and not their face: but in the time of their
trouble they will say, Arise, and save us. But where are thy gods
that thou hast made thee? Let them arise, if they can save thee in
the time of thy trouble: for according to the number of thy cities
are thy gods, O Judah. Wherefore will ye plead with Me? Ye all have
transgressed against Me, saith the LORD. In vain have I smitten your
children; they received no correction: your own sword hath devoured
your prophets, like a destroying lion.
As we
consider a thief that is caught, we understand that he may be
ashamed that he was caught; but usually he has no real shame for the
fact that he has stolen something. In fact, verse 26 down to the
semicolon, might be better understood “As the thief is brought to
shame when he is found, so is the house of
Israel
brought to shame.” From what the LORD has already said about them,
it is clear that they have no feeling of shame for what they have
done. Nevertheless it has brought shame upon them together with
their kings, princes, priests, and prophets. If they had any sense
of shame, certainly they would be ashamed. Because they have been
bowing down to pieces of wood and stone, (No matter how elaborately
carved, they are still only pieces of wood and stone.) and calling
them their father or mother. They have completely turned their backs
upon the LORD. But when they get in trouble, they will call upon Him
to save them. The LORD tells them that when they get in trouble,
they can call upon these gods they have been worshipping, and see if
they can be of any help. It seems that each city has an idol god of
its own. So there is no need for
Judah
to plead with the LORD to save them in time of trouble. He will not
hear their pleas. All the chastisement He has sent upon them has had
no effect upon them. They have even killed their prophets with the
sword. It has been as if a destroying lion had been turned loose
upon their prophets. That is, upon the prophets sent by the LORD.
They have honored their false prophets. See Matthew 23:37.
(Verses
31 through 37) O generation, see ye the word of the LORD. Have I
been a wilderness unto
Israel
? a land of darkness? Wherefore say My people, We are lords; we will
come no more unto Thee? Can a maid forget her ornaments, or a bride
her attire? Yet My people have forgotten Me days without number. Why
trimmest thou thy way to seek love? Therefore has thou also taught
the wicked ones thy ways. Also in thy skirts is found the blood of
the souls of the poor innocents: I have not found it by secret
search, but upon all these. Yet thou sayest, Because I am innocent,
surely his anger shall turn from me. Behold, I will plead with thee,
because thou sayest, I have not sinned. Why gaddest thou about so
much to change thy way? Thou also shalt be ashamed of
Egypt
, as thou wast ashamed of
Assyria
. Yea, thou shalt go forth from him, and thine hands upon thine
head: for the LORD hath rejected thy confidences, and thou shalt not
prosper in them.
The
LORD calls upon
Judah
to see, or consider, His word. If they will do this, they will see
that His covenant with them was that if they would obey His voice
indeed He would make them a kingdom of priests unto Himself. But if
they did not obey Him, He would deliver them to their enemies. Then
He questions, “Have I been a wilderness unto
Israel
? a land of darkness?” They know the answer to this. It has not
been this way; but, on the contrary, as long as
Israel
obeyed the LORD, and indeed, long after they turned from Him to the
idols they had set up, He still blessed them. But finally, after
sending prophet after prophet to warn them, He did turn them over to
their enemies, the Assyrians. With this example before them, how can
Judah
say, “We are lords, we will come no more unto Thee?” Although a
maid can hardly forget such trivial things as her ornaments, and a
bride cannot forget her attire,
Judah
, the LORD’S people, have forgotten Him for so long that the days
cannot be numbered. They have followed after the ways of wickedness
so that upon them is the blood of the poor innocent souls. It is not
hidden so that it takes secret searching to find it; but it is
“upon all these.” That is, it is all over them so as to be in
plain sight. Still they claim to be innocent, and think that His
anger will be turned away from them. But He declares, “Behold, I
will plead with thee, because thou sayest, ‘I have not
sinned.’” See I John 1:8-10. “If we say that we have no sin,
we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our
sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse
us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make
Him a liar, and His word is not in us.” This is not a new
principle at all. It was true in Jeremiah’s day, as in ours.
Therefore the LORD said that He would plead with them because they
said, “I have not sinned.” As we earlier pointed out, when the
LORD says that He will plead with anyone, He does not mean that He
is going to beg him to do something. On the contrary, it means that
He will bring judgment upon him. It is too late for their effort to
change their way to be worth anything to them. They were brought to
shame by the king of
Assyria
, at an earlier time. They made an agreement with him, and paid him
to help them against
Egypt
. He accepted the payment, but did nothing to help them. The LORD
says that they shall also have the same result in their effort to
get help from
Egypt
. The reason for this is that the LORD has rejected their
“confidences,” or their treaties with
Egypt
. Even if
Egypt
tried to help them it would still come to nothing. They will not
prosper in these efforts.
(Verses
1 through 5) They say, if a man put away his wife, and she go from
him, and become another man’s wife, shall he return unto her
again? Shall not that land be greatly polluted? But thou hast played
the harlot with many lovers; yet return unto me, saith the LORD.
Lift up thine eyes unto the high places, and see where thou hast not
been lien with. In the ways hast thou sat for them, as the Arabian
in the wilderness, and thou hast polluted the land with thy
whoredoms and with thy wickedness. Therefore the showers have been
withholden, and there hath been no latter rain; and thou hadst a
whore’s forehead, thou hast refused to be ashamed. Wilt thou not
from this time cry unto Me. My Father, thou art the guide of my
youth? Will He reserve His anger for ever? will He keep it to the
end? Behold, thou hast spoken and done evil things as thou couldest.
Here
we have a question that has been the subject of many arguments. In
fact, both of these questions are based upon God’s law, as given
to
Israel
. He does, indeed, declare that, after a man divorces his wife, and
she is married to another man, under no conditions is the first
husband to take her back as his wife, even if the second man be
dead. To do so would be an abomination to the LORD, and would cause
the land to be greatly polluted. The argument usually comes up
concerning the fact that the LORD says, “But thou hast played the
harlot with many lovers, yet return again to Me.” To some, this
seems to be a violation of His own law. What they fail to remember
is that He did not say “I have divorced you, and you have married
another.” I have been able to find no commandment in His law that
says, “A man cannot forgive his wife for committing adultery.”
This is what He has proposed to
Israel
. In spite of her multitude of adulteries, He has told her to return
to Him. He has cut off the showers and the latter rains from her, to
bring her to repentance. But she will not pay any attention to this.
But she has refused to change her ways. She shows no shame for her
wickedness. His question, in verse 4, seems not to be asking for
information, but to be emphasizing the fact that, when He has
finished the judgment He is already putting her through, she will
turn to Him with the cry, “My Father, Thou art the guide of my
youth.” Although
Israel
has said and done as much evil as she could, and He has extended His
mercy to her, He will not hold back His anger forever. There will be
punishment. In fact, He had already sent
Israel
into captivity to the Assyrians.
(Verses
6 through 11) The LORD said also unto me in the days of Josiah the
king, Hast thou seen that which backsliding
Israel
hath done? She is gone up upon every high mountain, and under every
green tree, and there hath played the harlot. And I said after she
had done all these things, Turn thou unto Me. But she returned not.
And her treacherous sister Judah saw it. And I saw, when for all the
causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her
away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister
Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also. And it came
to pass through the lightness of her whoredom, that she defiled the
land, and committed adultery with stones and with stocks. And yet
for all this her treacherous sister
Judah
hath not turned unto Me with her whole heart, but feignedly, saith
the LORD. And the LORD said unto me, The backsliding
Israel
hath justified herself more than treacherous
Judah
.
Certainly
it is obvious that the adultery under consideration here is not
physical adultery, but the turning away from the LORD to the worship
of idols. This
Israel
had done, even from the days of Jeroboam, the first king of
Israel
after the dividing of the kingdom. For some time thereafter
Judah
did maintain the worship of the Lord GOD. But she did see
Israel
following after idols. This is not to say that no one in
Judah
worshipped idols, but that officially they only recognized the
worship of Jehovah as the true religion. Having observed Israel, as
the LORD continually called upon her to return to Him, and she would
not, but was finally “divorced by Him,” that is, sent into
captivity by the Assyrians, Judah should have known better than to
follow her example. But instead she did even worse than
Israel
, worshipping stones and pieces of wood. Even after
Israel
was carried away in captivity,
Judah
did not sincerely repent, and turn back to the LORD, although she
did pretend to do so. Therefore the LORD told Jeremiah, “The
backsliding
Israel
hath justified herself more than treacherous
Judah
.” This is not to be taken to mean that
Israel
was actually in any manner justified in her sins; but that our
responsibility in anything is always in proportion to our knowledge
of the consequences thereof. And
Judah
had already seen what came upon
Israel
for her sin.
(Verses
12 through 19) Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and
say, Return, thou backsliding
Israel
, saith the LORD; and I will not cause Mine anger to fall upon you:
for I am merciful, saith the LORD, and will not keep anger for ever.
Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against
the LORD thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under
every green tree, and ye have not obeyed My voice, saith the LORD.
Turn, O backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am married unto
you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I
will bring you to
Zion
: and I will give you pastors according to Mine heart, which shall
feed you with knowledge and understanding. And it shall come to
pass, when ye be multiplied and increased in the land, in those
days, saith the LORD, they shall say no more, The ark of the
covenant of the LORD: neither shall it come into mind: neither shall
they remember it; neither shall they visit it; neither shall that be
done any more. At that time they shall call
Jerusalem
the throne of the LORD; and all nations shall be gathered unto it,
to the name of the LORD, to
Jerusalem
: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their
evil heart. In those days the house of
Judah
shall walk with the house of
Israel
, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the
land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers. But I
said, How shall I put thee among the children, and give thee a
pleasant land, a goodly heritage of the hosts of nations? And I
said, Thou shalt call Me, My Father; and shalt not turn away from
Me.
This
is God’s promise to both
Israel
and
Judah
. Although Israel has already been given into captivity and
dispersion among the nations, and He is about to turn Judah over to
the Babylonians, He first sends the message to the north country
where Israel is scattered, and at the same time it is to be
proclaimed to Judah, that there will come a day in which He will
re-gather a remnant of them to Jerusalem. First, however, they must
be brought to acknowledging their sin of departing from Him, and
worshipping other gods. When He brings them back He will give them
pastors that will be according to His heart, instead of their evil
imagination. These pastors shall be able to teach them knowledge and
understanding. When they have been brought back, and have multiplied
in the land, a strange thing will take place. Through the ages since
the LORD delivered His laws to
Israel
, they had kept them in an ark built by Moses according to the
instructions of the LORD. And this “ark of the covenant” had
been considered by them as “the center of the universe,” as we
sometimes say. But when they are restored to
Jerusalem
, “they shall say no more, ‘The ark of the covenant of the
LORD:’ neither shall it come into mind: neither shall they
remember it; neither shall they visit it; neither shall that be done
any more.” Their focus will no more be upon the ark of the
covenant of the LORD. The reason for this is that, in that day the
LORD shall be the King in
Jerusalem
, and upon Him shall they look. Not only so, but even all the
nations shall be gathered “to the name of the LORD, to
Jerusalem
.” Zechariah tells us, in Zechariah 14:16, “And it shall come to
pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came
against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the
King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles.”
Without question this is the same King mentioned in the present
text. At that time
Judah
and
Israel
shall walk together. They will no more be divided, but will be one
people. The LORD declares that “they shall come together out of
the land of the north to the land that I have given for an
inheritance unto your fathers.” This can be none other than the
land
of
Canaan
, not the gospel church, as some would like to make it. Now the LORD
asks Himself a question, “How shall I put thee among the children,
and give thee a pleasant land, a goodly heritage of the hosts of
nations?”
Israel
and
Judah
have dealt so treacherously with the LORD that it brings up this
question. But He always has the proper answer for all questions. His
answer to this one is: “Thou shalt call Me, ‘My Father;’ and
shalt not turn away from Me.” He does not say, “If you will - -
-.” There are no conditions placed upon the matter. He simply
declares that it shall be so. And so it shall be.
(Verses
20 through 25) Surely as a wife treacherously departeth from her
husband, so have ye dealt treacherously with Me, O house of
Israel
, saith the LORD. A voice was heard upon the high places, weeping
and supplications of the children of
Israel
: for they have perverted their way, and they have forgotten the
LORD their God. Return, ye backsliding children, and I will heal
your backslidings. Behold, we come unto Thee; for Thou art the LORD
our God. Truly in vain is salvation hoped for from the hills, and
from the multitude of mountains: truly in the LORD our God is the
salvation of
Israel
. For shame hath devoured the labour of our fathers from our youth;
their flocks and their herds, their sons and their daughters. We lie
down in our shame, and our confusion covereth us: for we have sinned
against the LORD our God, we and our fathers, from our youth even
unto this day, and have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God.
The
LORD declares that the action of the house of
Israel
(this includes both
Israel
and
Judah
) has been just as that of a wife who leaves her husband, and goes
into prostitution. The remainder of this text seems to look forward
to the time of the restoration of
Israel
. It seems to be their repentance from, and confession of their
sins. There is a great amount of weeping and praying heard. And it
is that of the children of
Israel
, because they have perverted their way and forgotten the LORD their
God. The LORD’S answer to them is, “Return, ye backsliding
children, and I will heal your backslidings.” In spite of all they
have done against Him, the LORD is still merciful to them. Then they
reply to Him, “Behold, we come unto Thee for Thou art the LORD our
God. Truly in vain is salvation hoped for from the hills, and from
the multitude of mountains: truly in the LORD our God is the
salvation of
Israel
.” Remember how the LORD said that He would “put them among the
children, and give them a goodly heritage of the hosts of
nations.” This fulfills that.
Israel
continues her confession. They have sinned against the LORD their
God, and have been brought to shame because of it. Their fathers
have lost everything they had because of it, not only their wealth,
but also their children. Because of their sins the children of
Israel
declare, “We lie down in shame, and our confusion covereth us.”
That is, they have no rest from it day or night. And all of it is
brought about because they have sinned against the LORD their God,
both they and their fathers. This sin has been going on from
generation to generation. None of them have obeyed the LORD their
God. This confession seems to very closely fit us today. We have not
yet been brought to shame as were they. But that can only be
ascribed to the mercy of God. It is not for lack of guilt on our
part.
(Verses
1 and 2) If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith the LORD, return unto
Me: and if thou wilt put away thine abominations out of My sight,
then shalt thou not remove. And thou shalt swear, The LORD liveth,
in truth, in judgment, and in righteousness; and the nations shall
bless themselves in Him, and in Him shall they glory.
Even
as the LORD speaks to “
Israel
,” we are to understand that He is speaking to
Judah
, because
Judah
was a son of
Israel
; and at the time of this writing, the nation of
Israel
had already been taken captive by the Assyrians, leaving
Judah
as the only remaining representative of
Israel
. He tells them that if they will return to Him, not in pretence,
but in truth, and will put away their abominations, they will not
“remove,” or be taken captive. If they will take a true oath
that the LORD is the living God, and will do judgment and
righteousness, not only they, but the nations also will “bless
themselves in Him, and in Him shall they glory.” But, alas, we
shall find that they did not do that, but continued on after their
own imagination.
(Verses
3 through 9) For thus saith the LORD to the men of
Judah
and
Jerusalem
, Break up your fallow ground, and sow not among thorns. Circumcise
yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart,
ye men of
Judah
and inhabitants of
Jerusalem
: lest My fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench
it, because of the evil of your doings. Declare ye in
Judah
, and publish in
Jerusalem
; and say, blow ye the trumpet in the land: cry, gather together,
and say, Assemble yourselves, and let us go into the defenced
cities. Set up the standard toward
Zion
: retire, stay not: for I will bring evil from the north, and a
great destruction. The lion is come up from the thicket, and the
destroyer of the Gentiles is on his way; he is gone forth from his
place to make thy land desolate; and thy cities shall be laid waste,
without an inhabitant. For this gird you with sackcloth, lament and
howl: for the fierce anger of the LORD is not turned back from us.
And it shall come to pass at that day, saith the LORD, that the
heart of the king shall perish, and the heart of the princes; and
the priests shall be astonished, and the prophets shall wonder.
This
is a call to the men of
Judah
and
Jerusalem
that they should turn sincerely to the LORD, because of the judgment
that is coming upon them. The LORD tells them to “break up your
fallow ground, and sow not among thorns.” Fallow ground is not
what we called “new ground,” when, as a child I was working in
farming. New ground is that from which the forest has just been cut
that it may be cultivated. Fallow ground is that which has been
cultivated, but has been left idle for a while. In such a case, some
thorns may have sprung up on it. So the LORD tells these men of
Judah
and
Jerusalem
to break up this fallow ground, before sowing it in whatever crop
they might use. Do not sow among the thorns. If one should sow among
the thorns, the thorns would soon choke out whatever crop he did get
to come up, and all his effort would be wasted. The way to break up
the fallow ground of which He speaks is to “circumcise yourselves
to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart.” Obviously
He is not speaking of circumcision in the flesh. Instead, the
meaning is that they must repent of their sins, and turn
wholeheartedly to the LORD. If they do not, His fury will break
forth like a fire, and burn so that there is no way to quench it.
The occasion of its coming thus upon them is their sins. In verses 5
through 7, He tells them to prepare for the battle, for it is
already on its way. They should sound the alarm, and rush into the
defenced cities. Though they set up the standard toward
Zion
, they will still have to retire from it, and not stay there;
because He will bring an evil from the north, that will be great
destruction. This is not something that can be diverted by some
action on their part. Verse 7 is so clear that any effort to explain
it further is only useless. “The lion is come up from his thicket,
and the destroyer of the Gentiles is on his way; he is gone forth
from his place to make thy land desolate; and thy cities shall be
laid waste, without an inhabitant.” Since this is the situation,
it is time for mourning, as signified by clothing oneself with
sackcloth. It is time for great mourning, because the anger of the
LORD has not been turned away from
Judah
and
Jerusalem
. In spite of the LORD’S warning to them, they have given Him no
heed. And now the destruction is determined, and will not be turned
away. In the day of this great destruction, everyone, including
king, princes, priests, and prophets, will be overcome with fear and
astonishment.
(Verses
10 through 14) Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! surely Thou hast greatly
deceived this people and
Jerusalem
, saying, Ye shall have peace; whereas the sword reacheth unto the
soul. At that time shall it be said to this people and to Jerusalem,
A dry wind of the high places in the wilderness toward the daughter
of My people, not to fan, nor to cleanse, even a full wind from
those places shall come unto Me: now also will I give sentence
against them. Behold, he shall come up as clouds, and his chariots
shall be as a whirlwind: his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe
unto us! For we are spoiled!
As
the prophet realized that the destruction of
Judah
and
Jerusalem
was fixed, and would not be turned aside. He first thinks that the
LORD has deceived the people by promising them deliverance from the
destruction that he now sees is surely coming. He apparently
overlooks the fact that deliverance was promised only if they
sincerely turned away from their idols to the LORD, and repented of
their sins. And this they had not done. And neither were they about
to do so. The sword was already reaching for them. When it actually
arrives, a message shall be given to
Judah
and
Jerusalem
. That message is, “A dry wind of the high places in the
wilderness toward the daughter of my people, not to fan, nor to
cleanse, even a full wind from those places shall come unto Me: now
also will I give sentence against them.” That is, the LORD is
calling a wind from the high places of the desert, not for the
purpose of cooling, or giving comfort to the people, and neither to
cleanse them. Instead, it is a full wind, or a strong wind, for the
purpose of bringing desolation upon them. Therefore He will give
sentence against them. Verse 13 describes the enemy that this wind
represents. His army shall be as many as the clouds, and his
chariots will be as a whirlwind. The whirlwind to which He refers is
not the little weather phenomenon we often see during dry weather,
that often picks up small debris from the fields, and whirls it
around slowly up in the air. In reality, it is a storm, such as a
tornado, or a hurricane. And this one will do great damage. His
horses are swifter than eagles. It will be a time of great distress.
Jeremiah exclaims, “Woe unto us! For we are spoiled!” He can see
that there is ruin ahead.
(Verses
14 through 18) O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness, that
thou mayest be saved. How long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within
thee? For a voice declareth from Dan, and publisheth affliction from
mount
Ephraim
. Make ye mention to the nations; behold, publish against
Jerusalem
, that watchers come from a far country, and give out their voice
against the cities of
Judah
. As keepers of a field are they against her round about; because
she hath been rebellious against Me, saith the LORD. Thy way and thy
doings have procured these things unto thee; this is thy wickedness,
because it is bitter, because it reacheth unto thine heart.
Certainly
the LORD knows that
Jerusalem
will not heed His advice to her; but, nevertheless, He calls upon
her to wash, or cleanse, her heart from wickedness, that she might
be saved from this terrible desolation that has been determined. He
asks, “How long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee?” When
the LORD asks a question, it is never to learn something, for He
knows all things. His question is for the purpose of calling
Jerusalem
’s attention to the hopelessness of such vain thoughts. There is a
declaration of affliction, from Dan, and from
mount
Ephraim
, that is also to be published to the nations. This affliction is to
be upon
Jerusalem
. Watchers have come from a far country, and given their voice
against her and the cities of
Judah
. Because of their rebellion against the LORD, they are kept in as a
field with keepers all around it. A slight re-arranging of verse 18
might make it a little more easily understood. “Because this, your
wickedness is bitter, and reaches unto your heart, your way and your
doings have brought this upon you.”
(Verses
19 through 22) My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very heart;
my heart maketh a noise in me; I cannot hold my peace, because thou
hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.
Destruction upon destruction is cried; for the whole land is
spoiled: suddenly are my tents spoiled, and my curtains in a moment.
How long shall I see the standard, and hear the sound of the
trumpet? For My people is foolish, they have not known Me; they are
sottish children, and they have none understanding: they are wise to
do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.
Verses
19 and 20 seem to be the lament of Jeremiah concerning the
destruction that is coming upon
Judah
and
Jerusalem
. He is troubled throughout his being because of the alarm for war
that he hears. He can see that the whole land is to be desolate, and
everything he, or anyone else there has, is to be destroyed. The
LORD answers with a question, “How long shall I see the standard,
and hear the sound of the trumpet?” This does not indicate that He
does not know how long this battle will rage. It simply calls
attention to the fact that it will be a long siege, and very
destructive. Then He gives the reason for it all. His people, whom
He had chosen, had delivered from Egyptian bondage, had led through
the wilderness, had established in The Promised Land, and raised up
to be a great nation, were so foolish that they did not know, or
recognize, Him. “They are wise to do evil, but to do good they
have no knowledge.” This last sentence fits all of us even today,
unless He gives us grace and understanding. Without that, we are no
better than they, and are in grave danger.
(Verses
23 through 28) I beheld the earth, and lo, it was without form, and
void; and the heavens, and they had no light. I beheld the
mountains, and, lo, they trembled, and all the hills moved lightly.
I beheld, and, lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the
heavens were fled. I beheld, and, lo, the fruitful place was a
wilderness, and all the cities thereof were broken down at the
presence of the LORD, and by His fierce anger. For thus hath the
LORD said, The whole land shall be desolate; yet will I not make a
full end. For this shall the earth mourn, and the heavens above be
black: because I have spoken it, I have purposed it, and will not
repent, neither will I turn back from it.
Some
things in this text turn us, in our minds, back to the beginning of
the book of Genesis. But it seems to be the vision of Jeremiah
concerning the total devastation that was to come upon
Judah
and
Jerusalem
for their terrible wickedness in turning away from the LORD of
hosts, to worship and serve idols. The land will be reduced to the
same desolation that reigned before the LORD brought light upon the
earth. Yet the LORD declares that He will not make a full end. That
is He will not completely destroy His people, though He will bring
terrible desolation upon them for their sins. Since He has spoken
this, and has purposed it He will not turn away from it. But it
shall come just as He has declared it.
(Verses
29 through 31) The whole city shall flee for the noise of the
horsemen and bowmen; they shall go into thickets, and climb up upon
the rocks: every city shall be forsaken, and not a man shall dwell
therein. And when thou art spoiled, what wilt thou do? Though thou
clothest thyself with crimson, though thou deckest thee with
ornaments of gold, though thou rentest thy face with painting, in
vain shalt thou make thyself fair; thy lovers will despise thee,
they will seek thy life. For I have heard a voice as of a woman in
travail, and the anguish as of her that bringeth forth her first
child, the voice of the daughter of Zion, that bewaileth herself,
that spreadeth her hands, saying, Woe is me now! For my soul is
wearied because of murderers.
Thus
the LORD declares that the whole city,
Jerusalem
, and, indeed, every city of the land shall be forsaken of her
citizens, as they try to find safety in the thickets, and upon the
rocks. The devastation shall be such that there will be no
inhabitants left in the cities. He asks what they will do when they
are thus spoiled. It will do them no good to dress in their finest
attire, and try to paint up their faces, as women often do in an
effort to make themselves look more beautiful than they naturally
are. No one will be attracted to them by these efforts. In fact all
will be so greatly against them that they will be trying to bring on
greater sorrow by killing them. Instead of being loved, and
receiving sympathy from their former friends, they will be despised
by all. As this comes upon them there will be a great wailing from
“the daughter of
Zion
,” such as a woman in travail with her first child might make. And
she will say, “Woe is me now! for my soul is wearied because of
murderers.”
(Verses
1 and 2) Run ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, and see
now, and know, and seek in the broad places thereof, if ye can find
a man, if there be any that executeth judgment, that seeketh the
truth; and I will pardon it. And though they say, The LORD liveth;
surely they swear falsely.
The
LORD is here speaking. He declares that, if a man can be found,
either in the streets of
Jerusalem
, or in the broad, or open, places thereof, that executes judgment,
or is even seeking the truth, He will pardon it. Probably “it,”
in this declaration, refers to
Jerusalem
. Remember that the LORD told Abraham that if ten could be found
righteous in the whole city of
Sodom
, He would spare the city. Now He says that if one man can be found
in
Jerusalem
who executes judgment and seeks the truth, He will pardon the whole
city. Then He says, “And though they say, ‘The LORD liveth;’
surely they swear falsely.” Certainly, He is not saying that the
statement, “The LORD liveth,” is false; but that when they say
it, they do not believe it; and therefore they swear falsely. This
is His indictment of the while city.
(Verses
3 through 6) O LORD, are not Thine eyes upon the truth? Thou hast
stricken them, but they have not grieved; Thou hast consumed them,
but they have refused to receive correction: they have made their
faces harder than a rock; they have refused to return. Therefore I
said, Surely these are poor; they are foolish: for they know not the
way of the LORD, nor the judgment of their God. I will get me unto
the great men, and will speak unto them; for they have known the way
of the LORD, and the judgment of their God: but these have
altogether broken the yoke, and burst the bonds. Wherefore a lion
out of the forest shall slay them, and a wolf of the evening shall
spoil them, a leopard shall watch over their cities! Every one that
goeth out thence shall be torn in pieces: because their
transgressions are many, and their backslidings are increased.
As
Jeremiah considers the situation, he asks a question, more for
emphasis than for information. He knows that the LORD’S eyes
always behold the truth. In this instance, the truth to which he
refers is that in spite of all the chastisements the Lord has
already sent upon
Judah
and
Jerusalem
, they have made no effort to turn back to Him. Instead they have
continued on in their evil ways, as if they were totally unaware of
the correction. As he realized this, the prophet came to the
conclusion that these whom he was observing were just the poor and
foolish ones of
Jerusalem
. And therefore they knew neither the way of the LORD nor the
judgment of their God. And for that reason they had broken off His
yoke, and burst the bonds that bound them to Him. He then concluded
that he would have better success if he went to the great men of the
city, and talked with them; “for they have known the way of the
LORD, and the judgment of their God.” As we continue through
Jeremiah’s writing, we shall see that he had no better success
with the great men than with the poor and foolish. Now he declares
that because of the present condition of those he has observed, they
are soon to experience some extremely great affliction. In verse 6
his reference to the lion and the leopard are, probably, not to be
considered as meaning the actual animals, but the Babylonians, whose
ferocity was comparable to these animals. By them the whole land
would be laid completely desolate. .and all this was coming upon
them because of their transgressions and backslidings.
(Verses
7 through 9) How shall I pardon thee for this? Thy children have
forsaken Me, and sworn by them that are no gods: when I had fed them
to the full, they then committed adultery, and assembled themselves
by troops in the harlots’ houses. They were as fed horses in the
morning: every one neighed after his neighbor’s wife. Shall I not
visit for these things? saith the LORD: and shall not My soul be
avenged on such a nation as this?
Since
“natural adultery” often goes hand in hand with false religion,
it may be under consideration in this text, as is also “spiritual
adultery.” For the LORD definitely condemns both. But it seems
that the primary reference is to the “spiritual adultery,”
forsaking the LORD, and worshipping false gods. This has been the
theme from the beginning of this prophecy. This people had so given
themselves to the worship of idols that they wanted to worship every
one they heard of, just as a prostitute will go with any man she
can, and a “womanizing” man will go with every woman he can. The
LORD asks, “Shall I not visit for these things?- - - and shall not
My soul be avenged on such a nation as this?” Surely He will
punish such. And this is true today, just as it was in Jeremiah’s
day.
(Verses
10 through 18) Go ye up upon her walls, and destroy; but make not a
full end: take away her battlements; for they are not the LORD’S.
For the house of
Israel
and the house of
Judah
have dealt very treacherously with Me, saith the LORD. They have
belied the LORD, and said, It is not He; neither shall evil come
upon us; neither shall we see the sword nor famine. And the prophets
shall become wind, and the word is not in them: thus shall it be
done unto them. Wherefore saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye
speak this word, behold, I will make My words in thy mouth fire, and
this people wood, and it shall devour them. Lo, I will bring a
nation upon you from far, O house of
Israel
, saith the LORD: it is a mighty nation, it is an ancient nation, a
nation whose language thou knowest not, neither understanndest what
they say. Their quiver is an open sepulchre, they are all mighty
men. And they shall eat up thine harvest, and thy bread, which thy
sons and thy daughters should eat: they shall eat up thy flocks and
thine herds: they shall eat up thy vines and thy fig trees: they
shall impoverish thy fenced cities, wherein thou trustedst, with the
sword. Nevertheless in those days, saith the LORD, I will not make a
full end with you.
Notice
the similarity of the LORD’S command to the destroyers in verse 10
and His promise to
Israel
in verse 18. Although He is sending this desolation and captivity
upon
Israel
and
Judah
, He will not make a full end of them. He will reserve a remnant.
This He has promised in all the afflictions of
Zion
. Every prophet who has spoken of their destruction has declared
that the LORD will spare a remnant. Those He sends against
Jerusalem
are to tear down her battlements, for they are not the LORD’S. His
battlements are never to be torn down. He can, and sometimes does,
temporarily remove them, when He is sending chastisement upon His
people. But none beside Him can remove them. The reason He is
sending these enemies against
Jerusalem
is that both the house of
Israel
and the house of
Judah
have dealt falsely against Him. When He has sent word that He will
bring chastisement upon them, they have said, “It is not He,
neither shall evil come upon us; neither shall we see the sword nor
famine.” That is they have denied that the word He has sent is
from Him. They declare that His prophets do not have the word of the
LORD, but are only speaking words of no meaning, as if it were only
the wind blowing. Thus they belie the LORD. He says that, Because
they do this, He will make His word in the mouth of Jeremiah to be
fire that shall devour them. Then He describes the people He will
send against them. They are an ancient nation, and a very mighty
one. The people of
Israel
and
Judah
cannot even understand their language. And they are all mighty men.
“Their quiver is an open sepulchre.” That is, they do not waste
their arrows, but are so accurate with their bows that there quivers
seem to just be open graves waiting for their victims. These enemies
will come upon them, and when they do, they shall eat up and destroy
everything upon which the people have depended. But even then The
LORD will reserve a remnant. He will not make a full end.
(Verses
19 through 24) And it shall come to pass, when ye shall say,
Wherefore doeth the LORD our God all these things unto us? Then
shalt thou answer them, Like as ye have forsaken Me, and served
strange gods in your land, so shall ye serve strangers in a land
that is not yours. Declare this in the house of Jacob, and publish
it in
Judah
, saying, Hear now this, O foolish people, without understanding;
which have eyes, and see not; which have ears, and hear not: fear ye
not Me? saith the LORD: will ye not tremble at My presence, Which
have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree,
that it cannot pass it: and though the waves toss themselves, yet
they cannot prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over
it? But this people hath a revolting and a rebellious heart; they
are revolted and gone. Neither say they in their heart, Let us now
fear the LORD our God, That giveth rain, both the former and the
latter, in his season: He reserveth unto us the appointed weeks of
the harvest.
When
all of this shall come upon the people, and they shall ask,
“Why?” as people so often do when calamity comes upon them, the
Prophet is to tell them that, just as they have served strange gods
in their land, so shall they serve strangers in a land that is not
theirs. Then the LORD tells Jeremiah to make a declaration to them,
to all of them, both the house of Jacob and the house of
Judah
. They are a people who have eyes but cannot see, and ears but
cannot hear. First the question must be asked. “Since the LORD is
so great that he has set the sand as the boundary of the sea, and it
cannot pass over it, no matter how much it may toss and roar, do
they not fear Him?” but there is only a negative answer. Their
heart is rebellious, and they have completely revolted against Him,
and gone after idols. They do not even say in their hearts, and
certainly not to others, “Let us now fear the LORD our God, That
giveth rain, both the former and the latter, in his season: He
reserveth unto us the appointed weeks of the harvest.” They will
not even admit that it is He Who gives them this blessing.
(Verses
25 through 29) Your iniquities have turned away these things, and
your sins have withholden good things from you. For among My people
are found wicked men: they lay wait, as he that setteth snares; they
set a trap, they catch men. As a cage is full of birds, so are their
houses full of deceit: therefore they are become great, and waxen
rich. They are waxen fat, they shine: yea, they overpass the deeds
of the wicked: they judge not the cause, the cause of the
fatherless, yet they prosper; and the right of the needy do they not
judge. Shall I not visit for these things? saith the LORD: shall not
My soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
The
LORD declares that the iniquities of the people have cut off these
good things from them. Even among the LORD’S people are found
wicked men. His people are not accused of being wicked. But among
them are some that are wicked. These wicked ones are continually
setting traps and snares, not for birds and beasts of the field, but
for men. Their houses are filled with deceit just as a cage is
filled with birds. By these wicked works they have become great, or
exalted, and rich. “They are waxen fat, they shine,” is a
metaphor taken from cattle. When they get fat their coat of hair
actually does shine. And as these wicked ones become rich, their
wealth shines forth before the other people, and this usually
results in others honoring them for being so successful. Today we
often hear the remark, when one is very successful, “He surely
must be doing right.” While it may be that he is doing right, his
success is no indication of it. He has never promised His servants
riches in this world. Their glory is reserved for the world to come.
These wicked ones will not judge the cause of the fatherless or the
needy, two characters whom the LORD has always commanded us to take
care of. Yet they prosper. So the LORD asks, “Shall I not visit
for these things? - - - shall not My soul be avenged on such a
nation as this?” He will indeed visit, and that with the rod, for
such. And His soul will be avenged on such a nation. Of that, we can
be sure.
(Verses
30 and 31) A wonderful and horrible thing is committed in the land;
the prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their
means; and My people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the
end?
Not
only is this a horrible thing, but it is also a wonderful, or highly
unusual thing. It is so unusual that it called forth this command
from the LORD, “Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be ye
horribly afraid, be very desolate,” Chapter 2, verse 12. This
people have changed their God, the living God, for idols that can do
nothing. And because of this their prophets only speak lies, and
their priests rule according to their wealth: and the people love to
have it so. Therefore the LORD asks, “What will ye do in the end
thereof?” It certainly is high time to consider what will be the
final outcome of such.
Chapter
6
(Verses
1 through 8) O ye children of Benjamin, gather yourselves to flee
out of the midst of
Jerusalem
, and blow the trumpet in Tekoa, and set up a sign of fire in
Bethhaccerem: for evil appeareth out of the north, and great
destruction. I have likened the daughter of
Zion
to a comely and delicate woman. The shepherds with their flocks
shall come unto her; they shall pitch their tents against her round
about; they shall feed every one in his place. Prepare ye war
against her; arise, and let us go up at
noon
. Woe unto us! for the day goeth away, for the shadows of the
evening are stretched out. Arise, and let us go up at night, and let
us destroy her palaces. For thus hath the LORD of hosts said, Hew ye
down trees, and cast a mount against
Jerusalem
: this is the city to be visited; she is wholly oppression in the
midst of her. As a fountain casteth out her waters, so she casteth
out her wickedness: violence and spoil is heard in her; before Me
continually is grief and wounds. Be thou instructed, O Jerusalem,
lest My soul depart from thee; lest I make thee desolate, a land not
inhabited.
The
tribe of Benjamin had remained with the tribe of
Judah
when the Northern kingdom,
Israel
, and the Southern kingdom,
Judah
divided at the time of Rehoboam and Jeroboam. Benjamin had remained
with
Judah
all the while. Now the LORD says to the children of Benjamin that,
it is time for them to flee out of
Jerusalem
, blow the trumpet, and set up the signal fire, for there is to come
from the north a great destruction. Then He says that He has likened
“the daughter of
Zion
,”
Jerusalem
, to a beautiful and delicate woman. She is so attractive that the
shepherds bring their flocks, and pitch their tents around her,
quietly feeding their flocks. But that is all over. It is time for
war to be brought against her. First the enemy says, “Let us go up
at
noon
.” But apparently there is some delay, for the cry goes forth,
“Woe unto us! for the day goeth away, for the shadows of the
evening are stretched out.” Then comes the command, “Arise, and
let us go by night, and let us destroy her palaces.” Even if the
attack is delayed until night, it will still be made. And the first
attack is to be against her palaces. The commission for this war is
of the LORD. He has given the order, “Hew ye down trees, and cast
a mount against
Jerusalem
: this is the city to be visited.” The reason for this attack is
that
Jerusalem
has become so evil that there is nothing left in her but oppression.
Her wickedness, violence and spoil, pour forth from her just as
waters come forth from a fountain. The LORD declares that grief and
wounds (caused by her) are continually before Him. So He speaks a
message to her: “Be thou instructed, O Jerusalem, lest My soul
depart from thee; lest I make thee desolate, a land not
inhabited.” Thus He calls upon her to receive instruction, that
is, take heed to the warning he has given. Otherwise there is a
danger that His soul will depart from her. That is, He will
completely turn away from her, and make her desolate, that there
shall be no one left living in the land.
(Verses
9 through 17) Thus saith the LORD of hosts, They shall throughly
glean the remnant of
Israel
as a vine: turn back thine hand as a grape gatherer into the
baskets. To whom shall I speak, and give warning, that they may
hear? Behold, their ear is uncircumcised, and they cannot hearken:
behold, the word of the LORD is unto them a reproach; they have no
delight in it. Therefore I am full of the fury of the LORD; I am
weary of holding in: I will pour it out upon the children abroad,
and upon the assembly of young men together: for even the husband
with the wife shall be taken, the aged with him that is full of
days. And their houses shall be turned unto others, with their
fields and wives together: for I will stretch out My hand upon the
inhabitants of the land, saith the LORD. For from the least of them
even unto the greatest of them every one is given to covetousness;
and from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely.
They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of My people
slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace. Were they
ashamed when they committed abomination? Nay, they were not at all
ashamed, neither could they blush: therefore they shall fall among
them that fall: at the time that I visit them they shall be cast
down, saith the LORD. Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and
see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk
therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We
will not walk therein. Also I set watchmen over you, saying, Hearken
to the sound of the trumpet. But they said, We will not hearken.
The
LORD says that those He is sending against
Judah
and
Jerusalem
will throughly, or completely, glean the remnant of the vine of
Israel
. Now, the
kingdom
of
Israel
had already been carried away captive by the Assyrians, who left a
few of the inhabitants in the land. But these who are about to come
will glean even that remnant. Since they are being sent against
Judah
, and are yet going to thus glean the remnant of
Israel
, one can but wonder just how great will be the desolation of
Judah
. Now the LORD asks, “To whom shall I speak, and give warning,
that they may hear?” Then, as we consider the answer He gives to
this question, we understand that there is none to whom the warning
can be effectively spoken. They cannot hear, and the word of the
LORD is to them a reproach. They want nothing to do with it. This is
a terrible situation. Even the LORD’S chosen nation has become so
alienated from Him that they consider it a reproach to even consider
His word. They have no desire for it, and take no delight in it if
it is spoken to them. This has ever been the way the matter stands
with the world, insofar as the gospel is concerned. How then can any
hear and heed it unless, and until the LORD opens their hearts,
minds, and ears to hear it? Because of this condition among the
people of His chosen nation, the LORD declares that He is full of
fury, and weary of holding it in. The time has come for Him to pour
it forth. Neither youth nor age will exempt anyone from receiving
it. Neither male nor female will be spared. He will stretch out His
hand upon all the inhabitants of the land. He declares that, from
the least to the greatest of them they are all given to
covetousness, and even the prophets and priests all deal falsely. To
make matters worse, they are telling the people that they shall have
peace, so that they can go on in their present way of doing. But
even now there is no peace. And surely there is no peace ahead for
them in the path they are following. He then declares that they are
so far gone in the way of wickedness that they have no shame, they
cannot even blush, or be embarrassed. And because of this He, the
LORD, will visit them with punishment, and they shall be violently
thrown down. He then gives them this instruction, “Stand ye in the
ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and
walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls.” But even
such a promise falls upon deaf ears. They say, “We will not walk
therein.” Then He set watchmen over them, who called upon them to
listen to the trumpet, the alarm for battle. But their answer to
this was, “We will not hearken.” In spite of all the warnings
the LORD had in His mercy sent upon them, they would have none of
it.
(Verses
18 through 25) Therefore hear, ye nations, and know, O congregation,
what is among them. Hear, O earth: behold, I will bring evil upon
this people, even the fruit of their thoughts, because they have not
hearkened unto My words, nor to My law, but rejected it. To what
purpose cometh there to Me incense from
Sheba
, and sweet cane from a far country? Your burnt offerings are not
acceptable, nor your sacrifices sweet unto Me. Therefore thus saith
the LORD, Behold, I will lay stumblingblocks before this people, and
the fathers and the sons together shall fall upon them; the neighbor
and his friend shall perish. Thus saith the LORD, Behold, a people
cometh from the north country, and a great nation shall be raised
from the sides of the earth. They shall lay hold on bow and spear;
they are cruel, and have no mercy; their voice roareth like the sea;
and they ride upon horses, set in array as men for war against thee,
O daughter of
Zion
. We have heard the fame thereof: our hands wax feeble: anguish hath
taken hold of us, and pain, as of a woman in travail. Go not forth
into the field, nor walk by the way; for the sword of the enemy and
fear is on every side.
Notice
that this message is not just to
Judah
and
Jerusalem
; but the LORD also calls upon the nations, or Gentiles, and even
the whole earth to witness the fact that He is going to bring upon
this people the fruit of their thoughts. Since their thoughts are
continually evil, He will bring evil upon them. The evil they have
done is that they have rejected His words and His law: and the evil
He will bring upon them is destruction and captivity. He tells them
that their sacrifices are of no avail. They are not pleasing to Him,
even when incense is brought from
Sheba
, and sweet cane from a far country, to be offered to Him. He will
therefore lay stumbling blocks before them so that father and son,
and neighbor and his friend shall all fall upon them, and perish.
Then He again describes the nation He will bring against them.
Verses 24 and 25 seem to be the answer of the people to this
warning. They have heard the fame of this nation, and even that has
filled everyone with such fear that they can do nothing. Pain has
taken hold on them as it does a woman in childbirth. They are afraid
to even go out into the field, or walk along the road. There is no
place safe from the fear of the enemy.
(Verses
26 through 30) O daughter of my people, gird thee with sackcloth,
and wallow thyself in ashes: make thee mourning, as for an only son,
most bitter lamentation: for the spoiler shall suddenly come upon
us. I have set thee for a tower and a fortress among My people, that
thou mayest know and try their way. They are all grievous revolters,
walking with slanders: they are as brass and iron; they are all
corrupters. The bellows are burned, the lead is consumed of the
fire; the founder melteth in vain: for the wicked are not plucked
away. Reprobate silver shall men call them, because the LORD hath
rejected them.
It
seems that we have two speakers in this text. Verse 26 seems to be
Jeremiah’s speech to
Jerusalem
, begging her to repent of her wickedness, in the hope that the LORD
will turn away His wrath, and save her from the destruction He has
already pronounced upon her. It is urgent that she do so, for the
spoiler is at hand, and shall suddenly come upon her. Then the LORD
tells Jeremiah that He has set him among His people as t tower and a
fortress to defend them, and that he may know and try their way.
Then He gives another description of the people. They are all so
vile that the analogy He uses concerning them is, that even though
they, as silver should be put in the refiner’s fire, and the lead
all melted away, all would be in vain. For even then the wicked
would not all be separated from them. So men shall call them
“reprobate silver,” or counterfeit silver, because they are
rejected of the LORD.
(Verses
1 through 7) The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
Stand in the gate of the LORD’S house, and proclaim there this
word, and say, Hear the word of the LORD, all ye of Judah, that
enter in at these gates to worship the LORD. Thus saith the LORD of
hosts, the God of Israel, Amend your ways and your doings, and I
will cause you to dwell in this place. Trust ye not in lying words,
saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The temple
of the LORD are these. For if ye throughly amend your ways and your
doings; if ye throughly execute judgment between a man and his
neighbor; If ye oppress not the stranger, the fatherless, and the
widow, and shed not innocent blood in this place, neither walk after
other gods to your hurt; then will I cause you to dwell in this
place, in the land that I gave to your fathers, for ever and ever.
Although
the LORD had already told
Judah
that He would not turn away from His anger, but would send
destruction upon them, He yet commissions Jeremiah to give them a
message of mercy. If they will turn from these idols, repent of
their sins, and worship and serve the LORD, He will cause them to
continue living in the land. They have been trusting in false words,
or sayings. They are trusting that since the temple of the LORD is
in Jerusalem, He will take care of them, no matter what they do. It
seems that there are many today who think that if they will go to
church, and give of their time and money to its many projects, They
can do as they please about how they live, and He will continue to
bless them. This was false in Jeremiah’s day, and it is false
today. He tells
Judah
that they must thoroughly amend their ways, and work works of
righteousness if they are to receive His blessing, and be spared the
desolation He has already told them He will send upon them. But the
promise remains. If they will heed His warning, He will spare them.
(Verses
8 through 16) Behold, ye trust in lying words that cannot profit.
Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and
burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not;
and come and stand before Me in this house, which is called by My
name, and say, We are delivered to do all these abominations? Is
this house, which is called by My name, become a den of robbers in
your eyes? Behold, even I have seen it, saith the LORD. But go ye
now unto My place which was in Shiloh, where I set My name at the
first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness of My people
Israel. And now, because ye have done all these works, saith the
LORD, and I spake unto you, rising up early and speaking, but ye
heard not; and I called you, but ye answered not; therefore will I
do unto this house, which is called by My name, wherein ye trust,
and unto the place which I gave to you and your fathers, as I have
done to Shiloh. And I will cast you out of My sight, as I have cast
out all of your brethren, even the whole house of Ephraim. Therefore
pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for
them, neither make intercession to Me: for I will not hear thee.
Here
the LORD again turns to
Judah
with a description of what they have been doing. He lays quite a
charge against them. They are trusting in a completely false
doctrine, “lying words that cannot profit.” Notice all the evils
He says they do, and then come before Him in His temple, and declare
that they are “delivered to do all these abominations.” That is,
they say that all these things are allowed them by the LORD. That
sounds very much like what these homosexuals are always crying
today. They say, “The LORD loves us as much as He does anyone
else, and it is all right for us to live any way we want to.” No
doubt His answer to
Judah
will also answer these today. “Is this house, which is called by
My name, wherein ye trust, become a den of robbers in your eyes?”
That is, do you think that you can hide under the umbrella of the
church, and My name, and be safe while practicing such things?”
Then He refers them to
Shiloh
, the place where the ark of the covenant was once placed, and where
the LORD placed His name at that time. He destroyed Shiloh for the
wickedness of the people of
Israel
. So surely this ought to serve as a lesson for these. Since these
have followed in the same way that
Israel
had gone, and in spite of the many warnings He has given them,
refuse to give any heed to Him, He will destroy this place just as
he did
Shiloh
. He will cast them out of his sight just as He did the whole nation
of
Israel
. Since literally, nothing can escape the sight of God, we have to
understand this as that He will not look favorably upon them. So He
tells Jeremiah to make no prayers, cries, nor intercessions for this
people, because He will refuse to “hear” any intercession for
them. He has determined His course toward them, and will not deviate
from it.
(Verses
17 through 20) Seest thou not what they do in the cities of
Judah
and in the streets of
Jerusalem
? The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the
women knead their dough to make cakes to the queen of heaven, and to
pour out drink offerings unto other gods, that they may provoke Me
to anger. Do they provoke Me to anger? saith the LORD: do they not
provoke themselves to the confusion of their own faces? Therefore
thus saith the Lord God; Behold, Mine anger and My fury shall be
poured out upon this place, upon man, and upon beast, and upon the
trees of the field, and upon the fruit of the ground; and it shall
burn, and not be quenched.
The
LORD calls the attention of Jeremiah to what the people of
Judah
were doing. It was not just a matter of the men, or the women doing
these abominations. It was a family affair. Even the children were
engaged in it. They gathered the wood, the fathers kindled the fire,
and the women made the cakes, to be offered in sacrifice to the
queen of heaven. And , not satisfied with this, they also poured
drink offerings to other gods. They were wholly given to idolatry..
It seemed that it was their intent to provoke the LORD to anger. He
asks if this is what they accomplished. Then He answers the question
with still another. “Do they not provoke themselves to the
confusion of their own faces?” Though the LORD may indeed be angry
with them for this, they are the ones who shall suffer the real
damage for it. So He declares that he will pour out His anger and
his fury upon this place. It will be upon man, beasts, forests, and
fields. Nothing shall escape. And when it is thus poured out, it
shall not be quenched.
(Verses
21 through 28) Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Put
your burnt offerings unto your sacrifices, and eat flesh. 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: 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. But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in
the counsels and imagination of their evil heart, and went backward,
and not forward. Since the day that your fathers came forth out of
the land of Egypt unto this day I have even sent unto you all My
servants the prophets, daily rising up early and sending them: yet
they hearkened not unto Me, nor inclined their ear, but hardened
their neck: they did worse than their fathers. Therefore thou shalt
speak all these words unto them; but they will not hearken to thee:
thou shalt also call them; but they will not answer thee. But thou
shalt say unto them, This is a nation that obeyeth not the voice of
the LORD their God, nor receiveth correction: truth is perished, and
is cut off from their mouth.
The
LORD tells them to put their burnt offerings with their sacrifices,
and eat the flesh. That is, do not offer it to Him. This signifies
that they may as well eat it, because He will not accept a sacrifice
from them. Then He reminds them that He said nothing to them about
sacrifices and offerings at the time when He brought them out of the
land
of
Egypt
. Instead His command was that they obey His words. See Exodus
19:5-9 for the LORD’S covenant with them immediately after He
delivered them from the Egyptians. It is to this He refers in verse
23. The laws of sacrifices and offerings was not given until later.
The only condition set forth at this time was their obedience to His
word. And they declared that they would do everything He said to
them. Verse 24 gives the sad commentary on their lack of obedience.
“But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in the
counsels and imagination of their evil heart, and went backward, and
not forward.” From that time on, He has continued to call upon
them to obey Him. He has sent his servants the prophets to warn them
of the dangers they faced. But they would not give heed. And now
these to whom He is speaking have hardened their necks, and done
worse than their fathers. He commands Jeremiah to “speak all these
words unto them,” but He also warns him that they will not give
any heed to what he says. Still he is to declare to them that they
are a people who will not obey the voice of the LORD their God, and
will not receive correction. They have no truth in them.
(Verses
29 through 31) Cut off thine hair, O Jerusalem, and cast it away,
and take up a lamentation on high places; for the LORD hath rejected
and forsaken the generation of His wrath. For the children of
Judah
have done evil in My sight, saith the LORD; they have set their
abominations in the house which is called by My name, to pollute it.
And they have built the high places of Tophet, which is in the
valley
of
Hinnom
, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire; which I
commanded them not, neither came it into My heart.
So He
calls upon
Jerusalem
to cut off her hair and throw it away, and get up on the high
places, and make a great lamentation, “for the LORD hath rejected
and forsaken the generation of His wrath.” Since He has both
rejected and forsaken them, there can be no hope that He will turn
His anger aside, and withhold the punishment He has declared. Then
He tells of some of the abominations they have set up. They have
built the high places, or altars, of Tophet, a place in the
valley
of
Hinnom
, for the purpose of burning their children as sacrifices to idol
gods. This had long been a common practice of some of the nations
around
Judah
, and now they also have followed this abomination. All of this is
totally foreign to anything the LORD has ever commanded them.
(Verses
32 through 34) Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD,
that it shall no more be called Tophet, nor the valley of the son of
Hinnom, but the valley of slaughter: for they shall bury in Tophet,
till there be no place. And the carcases of this people shall be
meat for the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the earth; and
none shall fray them away. Then will I cause to cease from the
cities of
Judah
, and from the streets of
Jerusalem
, the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the
bridegroom, and the voice of the bride: for the land shall be
desolate.
Because
of all these abominations, the LORD will bring such desolation to
this place that the only name that will be suitable for it is “the
valley of slaughter.” There will they bury the dead until there
will be no more place for a grave. So the corpses will be left out
for the fowls of the air and the beasts of the fields and forests.
And complete desolation shall reign over
Jerusalem
.
Chapter
8
(Verses
1 through 3) At that time saith the LORD, they shall bring out the
bones of the kings of Judah, and the bones of his princes, and the
bones of the priests, and the bones of the prophets, and the bones
of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, out of their graves.: and they
shall spread them before the sun, and the moon, and all the host of
heaven, whom they have loved, and whom they have served, and after
whom they have walked, and whom they have sought, and whom they have
worshipped: they shall not be gathered, nor be buried; they shall be
for dung upon the face of the earth. And death shall be chosen
rather than life by all the residue of them that remain of this evil
family, which remain in all the places whither I have driven them,
saith the LORD of hosts.
The
picture set before us is not so hard to understand, when we realize
that the manner of burial among the Jews was not the same as is ours
of today. In those days, for the greater part, graves were not just
holes in the ground, into which the dead bodies were placed, and the
earth thrown back into the holes to cover them. Instead, although
they were holes, or caves dug in the ground, often in the sides of
hills, and made large enough that the remains of a loved one might
be placed therein, and a stone placed over the entrance of the cave.
After the body had been there for a sufficient time for the flesh to
decay away from the bones, the bones were often taken up, and placed
in a special box, and either replaced in the cave in a prepared
place for same, or in some other location, and other bodies could be
placed in the same “grave.” Thus it would be a much simpler
matter to take up all the bones of the dead, and bring them forth,
for bones were all that was left, and they had been carefully
preserved. The LORD says that these people whom He will send against
Judah will take up the bones of the kings, princes, priests,
prophets, and the inhabitants (the common people) of Jerusalem, and
spread them out on the ground before the sun, moon, and all the
hosts of heaven (the stars) which they have worshipped and served.
And these bones shall not be gathered up, but left out on the face
of the earth as if they were dung. For people who were so careful to
preserve the bones of their ancestors, this is a terrible calamity.
And in the places where the LORD is going to drive these people, all
the remnant of this evil family will, because of their suffering,
desire death rather than life. This is spoken by the LORD of hosts,
and cannot fail.
(Verses
4 through 12) Moreover thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the
LORD; Shall they fall, and not arise? shall He turn away, and not
return? Why then is this people of
Jerusalem
slidden back by a perpetual backsliding? They hold fast deceit, they
refuse to return. I hearkened and heard, but they spake not aright:
no man repented him of his wickedness, saying, What have I done?
Every one turned to his course, as the horse rusheth into battle.
Yea, the stork in the heaven knoweth her appointed times; and the
turtle and the crane and the swallow observe the time of their
coming; but My people know not the judgment of the LORD. How do ye
say, We are wise, and the law of the LORD is with us? Lo, certainly
in vain made He it; the pen of the scribes is in vain. The wise men
are ashamed, they are dismayed and taken: lo, they have rejected the
word of the LORD; and what wisdom is in them? Therefore will I give
their wives unto others, and their fields unto them that shall
inherit them: for every one from the least unto the greatest is
given unto covetousness, from the prophet even unto the priest every
one dealeth falsely. For they have healed the hurt of the daughter
of My people slightly, saying, Peace, peace, when there is no peace.
Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? Nay, they
were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush: therefore shall
they fall among them that fall: in the time of their visitation they
shall be cast down, saith the LORD.
The
LORD gives Jeremiah a further message to the inhabitants of
Jerusalem
. First we have a question. “Shall they fall, and not arise?”
This is similar to the questions the Apostle Paul asked concerning
the cutting off of
Israel
from the gospel. And the answer to this is similar to his answer to
the questions he asked. No, they are not to fall so that they can
never arise: for the LORD will reserve for Himself a remnant, and He
will restore them, as he many times promised. Now is asked the
question, “Why then is this people of
Jerusalem
slidden back by a perpetual backsliding?” The answer to this is
that, they adamantly hold on to deceit, and will not return to the
LORD. The LORD says that He listened carefully, but they did not
speak the truth, nor did any one even show any repentance for his
wickedness. Instead they went on in the same course they had
followed, just as a horse will go steadfastly into the very face of
battle. They do not even have the wisdom to consider what they are
doing. He mentions several birds that are known to migrate at
certain seasons, the stork, the turtle, (turtle dove,) the crane,
and the swallow. All of these know their time for migration. But the
LORD’S people do not know the judgment of the LORD. They are even
less wise than the birds of the air. It seems that giving them the
law was in vain, and although the scribes continue to make copies of
it, no one follows it. The wise men among them are put to shame, and
are totally confused, because the people have all rejected the word
of the LORD. So what wisdom can there be in them? So the LORD has
determined to give their wives, and their property to others. It
seems a little strange to us to say that He will give their wives to
someone else. But in those days, and among people of that region,
wives were often considered as nothing more than the property of
their husbands. It will be remembered that king Saul gave his
daughter, who was one of David’s wives, to another man. So for
that time, and region, this does not seem so strange. The LORD will
do this in punishment for the people for their wickedness. For they,
from the least unto the greatest, were wholly given to covetousness.
And this included their prophets and their priests, who were all
dealing falsely. They have “slightly healed,” or given false
hope to the people of the LORD, by crying “Peace, peace,” when
there is no peace at all. And after committing these abominations,
they were not ashamed of their false declarations. They were so
reprobate that they could not even blush, they had no shame. Because
of this, the LORD declares “Therefore shall they fall among them
that fall: in the time of their visitation they shall be cast
down.” He will violently throw them down.
(Verses
13 through 17) I will surely consume them, saith the LORD: there
shall be no grapes on the vine, nor figs on the fig tree, and the
leaf shall fade; and the things I have given them shall pass away
from them. Why do we sit still? Assemble yourselves, and let us
enter into the defenced cities, and let us be silent there: for the
LORD our God hath put us to silence, and given us water of gall to
drink, because we have sinned against the LORD. We looked for peace,
but no good came; and for a time of health, and behold, trouble! The
snorting of his horses was heard from Dan: the whole land trembled
at the sound of the neighing of his strong ones; for they are come,
and have devoured the land, and all that is in it; the city, and
those that dwell therein. For, behold, I will send serpents,
cockatrices, among you, which will not be charmed, and they shall
bite you, saith the LORD.
The
LORD declares that He will surely consume, or bring to desolation,
this people, because of their wickedness. He will destroy all of
their crops, and take away from them all the good things He has
already given them. In verses 14 through 16, it seems that the
prophet is advising the people to take refuge in the defenced
cities, and be very quiet, because the LORD has put them to silence.
They had hoped for peace. (That is what their prophets and priests
had promised them.) But instead they have come to a time of trouble.
The enemy has already come as far as to the tribe of Dan, and the
snorting of his horses can already be heard. So trouble is already
upon them. Then the LORD says that he will not only send this great
army upon them, but also serpents to bite them. Not only Has He sent
men to fight with and overcome them, but He has even turned nature
against them also.
(Verses
18 through 22) When I would comfort myself against sorrow, my heart
is faint in me. Behold, the voice of the cry of the daughter of My
people because of them that dwell in a far country: Is not the LORD
in
Zion
? Is not her King in her? Why have they provoked Me to anger with
their graven images, and with strange vanities? The harvest is past,
the summer is ended, and we are not saved. For the hurt of the
daughter of My people am I hurt; I am black; astonishment hath taken
hold on Me. Is there no balm in
Gilead
; is there no physician there? Why then is not the health of the
daughter of My people recovered?
This
text apparently is to show the LORD’S love for His people.
Although we commonly consider the LORD, since He is Divinity, unable
to be sorrowful. But He shows Himself as if He were a man. And as
such He is in the greatest of sorrow because of the terrible things
He must send against the very nation which He has chosen as His
peculiar people on the earth. With all the wonderful blessings he
has given them from the day He led them out of
Egypt
until the present, how could they so turn away from Him as to make
such punishment necessary. He is their King. And is He not still
there, that they can turn to Him, and He will pardon their
iniquities? But they will not obey His voice. Therefore “The
harvest is passed, the summer is ended.” That is the time for
repentance is gone, and they must face that which He is about to
send upon them. He has such great sorrow for them that astonishment
has taken hold of Him. Then He asks if there is no balm, and no
physician in
Gilead
.
Gilead
was known as a center for healing in those days. Its use here is
really a reference to Himself. Is He not still present? Surely He
is. Then why is not the health of His people recovered? The answer
is that they will not heed His warning to them. This is quite a
different picture of the LORD from what we usually have in our mind.
We often find descriptions of Him, as he is angry, and sets forth
His wrath against sinners. But we seldom think of anything causing
Him sorrow. Surely, if He can feel one emotion, He can also feel
another. But in spite of this, He remains with “no variableness,
neither shadow of turning.”
Chapter
9
(Verses 1 through 6) Oh that my head were
waters and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and
night for the slain of the daughter of my people! Oh that I had in
the wilderness a lodging place of wayfaring men; that I might leave
my people, and go from them! For they be all adulterers, an assembly
of treacherous men. And they bend their tongues like their bow for
lies: but they are not valiant for the truth upon the earth; for
they proceed from evil to evil, and they know not Me, saith the
LORD. Take ye heed every one of his neighbor, and trust ye not in
any brother: for every brother will utterly supplant, and every
neighbor will walk with slanders. And they will deceive every one
his neighbor, and will not seek the truth: they have taught their
tongue to speak lies, and weary themselves to commit iniquity. Thine
habitation is in the midst of deceit; through deceit they refuse to
know Me, saith the LORD.
In
verses 1 and 2, It seems that Jeremiah is completely overcome with
sorrow because of the terrible condition in which his people now
are, and the desolation that is coming upon them. He feels that as
sorrowful as he is, he is still not weeping enough for them. He
wishes that his head were waters, and his eyes a fountain of tears,
and that he might weep day and night, continuously, for the slain of
Jerusalem
. Then he wishes that he had a place of lodging in the wilderness,
that he could leave his people, and take up lodging there. His
people are all so evil that he desires to leave them, and go
completely away from them. Even the LORD has declared that they are
all fully given to lying, and have no regard for the truth. They are
continually going from one evil to another, and do not know the
LORD. The LORD warns them to take heed, or be careful, everyone of
his neighbor and his brother, for they will all betray their brother
and their neighbor, and walk with slanders, or slanderers. They will
not speak the truth, but have taught their tongues to lie. That is,
they have deliberately practiced lying. And they wear themselves
down hunting for more evil to do. They dwell in the midst of lies,
and refuse to consider the LORD.
(Verses
7 through 11) Therefore thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will melt
them, and try them; for how shall I do for the daughter of My
people? Their tongue is an arrow shot out; it speaketh deceit: one
speaketh peaceably to his neighbor with his mouth, but in heart he
layeth his wait. Shall I not visit them for these things? saith the
LORD: shall not My soul be avenged on such a nation as this? For the
mountains will I take up a weeping and wailing, and for the
habitations of the wilderness a lamentation, because they are burned
up, so that none can pass through them; neither can men hear the
voice of the cattle; both the fowl of the heaven and the beast are
fled; they are gone. And I will make
Jerusalem
heaps, and a den of dragons; and I will make the cities of
Judah
desolate, without an inhabitant.
As
the LORD says, “I will melt them, and try them,” the simile is
that of melting down silver to separate the dross from it. He has
used this thought before. See Chapter 6, verses 29-30. Then He asks,
“How shall I do for the daughter of My people?” He is greatly
concerned for them; but He is not asking for information. Rather, He
is calling attention to what He has determined to do. And He gives a
description of them in verse 8. They are so filled with evil that
their tongues are like arrows already shot out. That is, as soon as
their tongues move, they speak deceit. They will, with words speak
peaceably and kindly to a neighbor, while at the same time they are
in their hearts setting a trap for him. And, apparently, this is the
way all of them act, not just one or two. Certainly then He will
visit them with punishment for this, and He will avenge His soul on
such a nation as this. It seems that verse 10 is Jeremiah’s
lamentation for
Judah
and
Jerusalem
for the desolation that is coming upon them. This lamentation seems
to cover, not the people, but the land itself. He will take up a
lamentation for the mountains and the habitations of the wilderness,
because everything is burned up, and there is no one left to pass
through the area. Men can no more hear the cattle, primarily because
both are gone. Men, cattle, birds of the heaven, and the beasts of
the fields and the forests are all gone.
Jerusalem
will be destroyed so that it is only heaps of rubbish, and a den of
dragons. And the cities of
Judah
will have no inhabitants. They will all have been taken into
captivity.
(Verses
12 through 16) Who is the wise man, that may understand this? And
who is he to whom the mouth of the LORD hath spoken, that he may
declare it, for what the land perisheth and is burned up like a
wilderness, that none passeth through? And the LORD saith, Because
they have forsaken My law which I set before them, and have not
obeyed My voice, neither walked therein; but have walked after the
imagination of their own heart, and after Baalim, which their
fathers taught them: Therefore saith the LORD of hosts, the God of
Israel; Behold, I will feed them, even this people, with wormwood,
and give them water of gall to drink. I will scatter them also among
the heathen, whom neither they nor their fathers have known: and I
will send a sword after them, till I have consumed them.
The
LORD’S first question seems to be for the purpose of strongly
declaring that there is no man that can fully understand what has
caused the people to continue on in their evil ways to the point
that the LORD would bring upon them such destruction and desolation
as this. Then He signifies by His next question that only a man to
whom the LORD has directly spoken can even declare this terrible
situation to the people. Even then, no doubt, it is so horrible that
they will not understand it. But it seems that it must be declared.
And apparently Jeremiah is the man chosen to declare it. What has
brought it all upon them is that they have forsaken the law of the
LORD, which He set before them, and have refused to walk in it.
Instead they have followed their own wicked imagination, and Baalim,
the idols of the nations around them. They were taught by their
fathers to do this. So the practice is of long standing; but it was
not taught them by the LORD. Because of all this, the LORD declares
that He will feed them “with wormwood, and give them water of gall
to drink.” Wormwood is not wood, and neither does it have anything
to do with worms, except that it was once used as a treatment for
worms. It is a very bitter substance, and may sometimes be a little
toxic. Gall is also extremely bitter. So the usage of these two
items in this statement is to show that the LORD will bring upon
these people extremely bitter suffering because of their sins. He
declares that He will scatter them among the heathen whom neither
they nor their fathers have known. It is not one of the local
nations that will be brought against them, but a totally strange and
foreign nation. In addition to this, He will send the sword after
them until they are consumed. This is indeed a terrible prospect.
(Verses
17 through 22) Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Consider ye, and call
for the mourning women, that they may come; and send for cunning
women, that they may come: and let them make haste, and take up a
wailing for us, that our eyes may run down with tears, and our
eyelids gush out with waters. For a voice of wailing is heard out of
Zion
, How are we spoiled! We are greatly confounded, because we have
forsaken the land, because our dwellings have cast us out. Yet hear
the word of the LORD, O ye women, and let your ear receive the word
of His mouth, and teach your daughters wailing, and every one her
neighbor lamentation. For death is come up into our windows, and is
entered into our palaces, to cut off the children from without, and
the young men from the streets. Speak, Thus saith the LORD, Even the
carcases of men shall fall as dung upon the open field, and as the
handful after the harvestman, and none shall gather them.
In
Jeremiah’s time it was customary to have professional mourners,
often women, who would come and make great lamentation and wailing
at funerals, or other times of great calamity. These are the ones
the LORD directs the people to call because of the great disaster He
will bring upon them. This is the time of such great affliction that
these women should teach their daughters and their neighbors
lamentation. It is a time when death will be at the very windows,
and in their palaces “to cut off the children from without, and
the young men from the streets. There will be so many dying that
their bodies cannot all be buried, but will be left upon the ground,
where they fall, and will be considered no more than dung. None
shall attempt to gather them up.
(Verses
23 and 24) Thus saith the LORD, Let not the wise man glory in his
wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the
rich man glory in his riches: but let him that glorieth glory in
this, that he understandeth and knoweth Me, that I am the LORD Which
exercise loving kindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth:
for in these things I delight, saith the LORD.
This
is a declaration which we today should consider as well as those to
whom it was written. Certainly, the LORD is not saying that we
should not be thankful for any wisdom, physical strength, or wealth
with which He has blessed us. But we ought not ever feel boastful
about it, or think that it makes us better than someone else. If we
are to take great delight in anything, let it be that the LORD has
given us knowledge of Him, and an understanding of His word and
ways. Let us rejoice that He has made known to us that it is He Who
exercises loving kindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth.
This is far better than natural wisdom, physical strength, and
riches combined. Because this is that in which the LORD delights.
(Verses
25 and 26) Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will punish
all them that are circumcised with the uncircumcised; Egypt, and
Judah, and Edom, and the children of Ammon, and Moab, and all that
are in the utmost corners, that dwell in the wilderness: for all
these nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are
uncircumcised in the heart.
This
is a simple declaration that the Day of Judgment is coming for all
the world. The LORD will not only punish the uncircumcised nations,
the Gentiles, but His judgment will be upon
Judah
and
Israel
also. Although
Judah
and
Israel
are circumcised in the flesh, they are no more circumcised in the
heart than are the Gentiles. So all will bear the same judgment. All
will be punished.
(Verses
1 through 7) Hear ye the word which the LORD speaketh unto you, O
house of
Israel
: thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not
dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at
them. For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree
out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the
axe. They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with
nails and with hammers, that it move not. They are upright as the
palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they
cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither
is it in them to do good. Forasmuch as there is none like unto Thee,
O LORD; Thou art great, and Thy name is great in might. Who would
not fear Thee, O King of nations? For to Thee doth it appertain:
forasmuch as among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their
kingdoms, there is none like unto Thee.
Now
the LORD calls upon the house of
Israel
, (and this includes
Judah
,) to hear, or pay heed to, the word that He is speaking unto them.
The first thing He tells them is that they are not to learn the ways
of the heathen, and not to be overcome (dismayed) by the signs of
heaven. That is, they are not to be frightened as they behold the
various phenomena of the heavens, such as eclipses, comets,
“shooting stars,” or other such sights, and start worshipping
the hosts of heaven. These are the customs of the heathen, but they
are all vanities. So also is their custom of making images, and
bowing down to them as gods. A workman will go to the forest, and
cut down a tree. Then he will hew it into some shape that He has
imagined. Next, he will cover it with silver and gold, and fasten it
in some place with a hammer and nails, so that it cannot fall. Then
he will call it a god, and worship it. He does not consider that it
is nothing but a piece of wood, no matter how ornately he has
carved, and decorated it. It will sit upright like the palm tree,
only because it is fastened in place. But it could not even sit up
by its own strength. And it cannot move. The only manner in which it
can reach another location is that someone carry it, for it has no
life of its own. It is still nothing but a piece of wood; and it can
do neither evil nor good. So there is no reason to fear it. In
contrast, the LORD is so great that He created the heaven, the
earth, and all that is therein; and He will also bring all things to
the end He has purposed. Therefore who would not fear Him? He is the
King of nations; and it is right that men fear Him. In this manner
fear pertains to Him. There is none like Him in all the kingdoms of
the earth. In fact, neither is there any to be found even in heaven
that can be compared to Him.
(Verses
8 through 17) But they are altogether brutish and foolish: the stock
is a doctrine of vanities. Silver spread into plates is brought from
Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz, the work of the workman, and of the
hands of the founder: blue and purple is their clothing: they are
all the work of cunning men. But the LORD is the true God, He is the
living God, and an everlasting King: at His wrath the earth shall
tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide His indignation.
Thus shall ye say unto them, The gods that have not made the heavens
and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth, and from under
these heavens. He hath made the earth by His power, He hath
established the world by His wisdom, and hath stretched out the
heavens by His discretion. When He uttereth His voice, there is a
multitude of waters in the heavens, and He causes the vapors to
ascend from the ends of the earth, He maketh lightnings with rain,
and bringeth forth the wind out of His treasures. Every man is
brutish in his knowledge: every founder is confounded by the graven
image: for his molten image is falsehood, and there is no breath in
them. They are vanity, and the work of errors: in the time of their
visitation they shall perish. The portion of Jacob is not like them:
for He is the former of all things; and
Israel
is the rod of His inheritance: The LORD of hosts is His name.
This
is still a contrast between the LORD of hosts and the gods of the
heathen. At this point we shift back to the idols of the heathen.
The man who regards them is of no more understanding than the brute
beasts of the forest; they are nothing but foolishness. The very
doctrine of such is a doctrine of vanities. Those who make them have
silver plate shipped to them from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz, far
distant points. And with this silver and gold they overlay these
idols. But they are still only the work of men’s hands. They might
even dress them up with blue and purple clothing. But they are no
better off. They are only the work of cunning men. But that is not
the case with the LORD. He is the living (or life-giving) God. Not
only is this true for the present; but He is also the Eternal King.
He is the same forever. Even the earth trembles at His wrath; and
the nations cannot abide His indignation. Therefore give this
message to the heathen. “The gods that have not made the heavens
and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth, and from under
these heavens.” In contrast, the LORD has by His power created all
things, and by His wisdom established them. When He speaks all
things of nature move to bring about exactly what He has purposed,
from the rising of the vapors from the earth to the pouring down of
the rain from the clouds. The winds and the lightning come at His
command. There is none like Him. The knowledge and wisdom of every
man is no more than that of the brute beasts. Every maker of graven
images is confused by the image. For it is nothing but falsehood.
There is no life or breath in it, and is nothing but worthlessness.
Even making it was an error; and it will surely perish. But this is
not true of “the Portion of Jacob.” He is from before anything
else ever existed, for it was He Who made all things. The LORD of
hosts is His name, and
Israel
is the measure of His inheritance.
(Verses
17 and 18) Gather up thy wares out of the land, O inhabitant of the
fortress. For thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will sling out the
inhabitants of the land at this once and will distress them, that
they may find it so.
The
action mentioned here reminds me of something we used to do, when I
was growing up on a farm. We bought fertilizer for our crops in
cloth sacks. And when a sack was just about emptied, we would catch
that sack by its two bottom corners, and holding them securely,
sling out what might remain of the fertilizer. Thus the LORD says
that he will “sling out the inhabitants of the land.” That is,
He will take them out with violence. So they should gather up
whatever they have, and be ready for that calamity. It will be for
them a great distress.
(Verses
19 through 22) Woe is me for my hurt! My wound is grievous: but I
said, Truly this is a grief, and I must bear it. My tabernacle is
spoiled, and all my cords are broken: my children are gone forth of
me, and they are not: there is none to stretch forth my tent any
more, and to set up my curtains. For the pastors are become brutish,
and have not sought the LORD: therefore they shall not prosper, and
all their flocks shall be scattered. Behold, the noise of the bruit
is come, and a great commotion out of the north country, to make the
cities of
Judah
desolate, and a den for dragons.
As
Jeremiah considers what the LORD is going to bring upon
Judah
, he can see his children perishing so that he is left alone, with
all the cords of his tent broken, and none to help him set it up
again. The reason for all of this is that the pastors, the priests
who were to be to the people as shepherds are to flocks of sheep,
had all become as brute beasts, with no wisdom, and no desire to
seek the LORD. Under such conditions there is no way they can
prosper. Their flocks will surely be scattered. And even now he can
hear the noise of this great commotion as it comes upon
Judah
and
Jerusalem
. When it has come the cities of
Judah
will be desolate, and fit for nothing except dens for dragons.
(Verses
23 through 25) O LORD, I know that the way of man is not in himself:
it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps. O LORD, correct
me, but with judgment; not in Thine anger, lest Thou bring me to
nothing. Pour out Thy fury upon the heathen that know Thee not, and
upon the families that call not on Thy name: for they have eaten up
Jacob, and devoured him, and consumed him, and have made his
habitation desolate.
This
is Jeremiah’s prayer, as he considers the terrible desolation the
LORD is about to bring upon
Judah
and
Jerusalem
. First he confesses that man is not capable to direct his own way.
This does not mean that man does not try to direct his way; but that
he does not have sufficient wisdom to direct it in the right way,
the way of truth. Without the LORD, he is sure to go astray. Not
only was that true in Jeremiah’s day, but it is still so in ours.
Then he asks the LORD to correct him, or set him straight, but with
judgment, and not in anger. If it were done in anger, Jeremiah would
be brought to non-existence. And so it would be with us today. That
is why we always ask the LORD foe mercy, for only in His mercy can
we stand. Then he asks the LORD to pour out His fury upon those who
have not known the LORD, and those who have so devoured Jacob that
he is left desolate.
(Verses
1 through 5) The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
Hear ye the words of this covenant, and speak unto the men of Judah,
and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and say thou unto them, Thus
saith the LORD God of Israel; Cursed be the man that obeyeth not the
words of this covenant, which I commanded your fathers in the day
that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, from the iron
furnace, saying, Obey My voice, and do them, according to all which
I command you: so shall ye be My people, and I will be your God:
that I may perform the oath which I have sworn unto your fathers, to
give them a land flowing with milk and honey, as it is this day.
Then answered I, and
said, So be it, O LORD.
The
LORD here gives Jeremiah another message for “the men of
Judah
, and the inhabitants of
Jerusalem
.” The first point made in this message is that every man who
fails to obey this covenant is cursed. And this is the same covenant
to which they agreed when He delivered them from the hand of the
Egyptians. See Exodus 19:5-9. The LORD declares that this covenant
was for the purpose of performing to them the oath He had sworn to
their fathers, that He would give them a land “flowing with milk
and honey.” And this He had done, as they could see even at the
time in which He was speaking to them. To this Jeremiah answered
“So be it, O LORD.”
(Verses
6 through 10) Then the LORD said unto me, Proclaim all these words
in the cities of
Judah
, and in the streets of
Jerusalem
, saying, Hear ye the words of this covenant, and do them. For I
earnestly protested unto your fathers in the day that I brought them
up out of the land of Egypt, even unto this day, rising early and
protesting, saying, Obey My voice. Yet they obeyed not, nor inclined
their ear, but walked every one in the imagination of their evil
heart: therefore will I bring upon them all the words of this
covenant, which I commanded them to do; but they did them not. And
the LORD said unto me, A conspiracy is found among the men of
Judah
, and among the inhabitants of
Jerusalem
. They are turned back to the iniquities of their forefathers, which
refused to hear My words; and they went after other gods to serve
them: the house of
Israel
and the house of
Judah
have broken My covenant which I made with their fathers.
The
LORD thus commissioned Jeremiah to proclaim all the words of this
covenant to the people of
Judah
and
Jerusalem
. Although He had continually reminded them of this covenant, both
the blessings for obedience, and the penalties that were added for
disobedience, they refused to obey Him. And because they had refused
to obey He is about to bring upon them all devastation He has
declared. But there is a conspiracy among them; and in it they have
turned back, not to the LORD, but to the iniquities of their
forefathers, who instead of obeying the LORD turned to follow after
idols, and worship and serve them. So they too have broken His
covenant, just as did their fathers.
(Verses
11 through 14) Therefore thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will bring
evil upon them, which they shall not be able to escape; and though
they shall cry unto Me, I will not hearken unto them. Then shall the
cities of
Judah
and the inhabitants of
Jerusalem
go, and cry unto the gods unto whom they offer incense: but they
shall not save them at all in the time of their trouble. For
according to the number of thy cities were thy gods, O Judah; and
according to the number of the streets of
Jerusalem
have ye set up altars to that shameful thing, even altars to burn
incense unto Baal. Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither
lift up a cry or prayer for them: for I will not hear them in the
time that they cry unto Me for their trouble.
Because
of their refusal to obey the LORD, He will bring upon them evil that
they can in no way escape. They may cry unto the LORD, but He will
not listen to their cries. Then they will cry to the idols they have
been worshipping, and, of course, they cannot help them. They have a
different god for each city of
Judah
, and an altar to Baal for each street of
Jerusalem
. But none of these can help them at all. And the LORD commands
Jeremiah to make no prayer or cry for them; for such will be
completely in vain. He will not hear any prayer for them in the time
of their trouble.
(Verses
15 through 17) What hath My beloved to do in Mine house, seeing she
hath wrought lewdness with many, and the holy flesh hath passed from
thee? When thou doest evil, then thou rejoicest. The LORD called thy
name, a green olive tree, fair, and of goodly fruit: with the noise
of a great tumult He hath kindled fire upon it, and the branches of
it are broken. For the LORD of hosts, that planted thee, hath
pronounced evil against thee, for the evil of the
house of
Israel
and of the house of
Judah
, which they have done against themselves to provoke Me to anger in
offering incense unto Baal.
Although
Israel
and
Judah
have been the beloved of the LORD, they have turned away from Him
and served so many other gods that, He asks, “What place do you
yet have in My house?” They are often likened to the wife of the
LORD. But now they are likened to an adulterous wife, one who has
completely turned to prostitution instead of living with her
husband. Therefore she should have no more place in His house. He
had likened her to “a green olive tree, fair and of goodly
fruit.” But now her branches are broken off, and He has kindled a
fire upon her. The same LORD Who planted her, and protected her, has
turned against her, and will bring evil upon her, “for the evil of
the house of
Israel
and of the house of
Judah
, which they have done against themselves to provoke Me to anger in
offering incense unto Baal.” Notice that the evil they have done
is actually evil against themselves, as it always is when we provoke
the LORD to anger. When His anger is aroused, it does not damage
Him. The one receiving the damage is he who has provoked Him. This
we should always keep in mind.
(Verses
18 through 20) And the LORD hath given me knowledge of it, and I
know it: then Thou shewedst me their doings. But I was like a lamb
or an ox that is brought to the slaughter; and I knew not that they
had devised devices against me, saying, Let us destroy the tree with
the fruit thereof, and let us cut him off from the land of the
living, that his name may be no more remembered. But, O LORD of
hosts, that judgest righteously, that triest the heart, let me see
Thy vengeance on them: for unto Thee have I revealed my cause.
Thus
Jeremiah declares that the LORD has shown him all of these things,
and has caused him to know them. But still, as concerning the depth
of the wickedness of the people he was ignorant. He no more realized
that they had made a conspiracy to kill him, than the lamb or ox
that is brought to the slaughter knows that he is about to be slain.
When he discovers this, he prays that the LORD will let him see His
vengeance upon them. This may seem a little strange to us, since our
Lord has told us to love our enemies, and to pray for them. But
remember that under the law, the prevailing idea was, “An eye for
an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.” At the same time this is so
reminiscent of what our Lord Jesus faced at the end of His earthly
mission, that one might even think it a prophecy of Him, as the
Sanhedrin plotted His death. He did indeed reveal His cause to the
Father, and He saw the Father’s vengeance upon His enemies.
(Verses
21 through 23) Therefore thus saith the LORD of the men of Anathoth,
that seek thy life, saying, Prophesy not in the name of the LORD,
that thou die not by our hand: therefore thus saith the LORD of
hosts, Behold, I will punish them: the young men shall die by the
sword; their sons and their daughters shall die by famine: and there
shall be no remnant of them: for I will bring evil upon the men of
Anathoth, even the year of their visitation.
Anathoth
was the city from which Jeremiah came. So these men who were
threatening him were from his “home town.” They were also the
ones seeking to kill him; but the LORD had promised him, in chapter
1, verse 19, that He would defend him from those who would fight
against him. Now He tells Jeremiah that He will punish these men.
Their young men, those old enough to go to war, will be killed by
the sword, while their children, both sons and daughters shall be
killed by the famine. He will not even reserve a remnant of these
men of Anathoth in the day of their punishment.
(Verses
1 through 4) Righteous art Thou, O LORD, when I plead with Thee: yet
let me talk with Thee of Thy judgments: Wherefore doth the way of
the wicked prosper? Wherefore are all they happy that deal very
treacherously? Thou hast planted them, yea, they have taken root:
they grow, yea they bring forth fruit: Thou art near in their mouth,
and far from their reins. But Thou, O LORD, knowest me: Thou hast
seen me, and tried mine heart toward Thee: pull them out like sheep
for the slaughter. How long shall the land mourn, and the herbs of
every field wither, for the wickedness of them that dwell therein?
The beasts are consumed, and the birds; because they said, He shall
not see our last end.
Although
Jeremiah knows that the LORD is righteous in all His works and ways,
he is still puzzled about some things. He desires the LORD to
enlighten him on some questions that still trouble many today. The
whole matter actually boils down to, “Why are the wicked who would
do me harm permitted to prosper, while I suffer at their hands,
although the LORD knows that I am striving to serve Him?” and
“How long will the LORD let the land suffer for the wickedness of
the wicked?” Jeremiah can see the whole land desolate because of
the wickedness of the wicked, and it disturbs him greatly.
(Verses
5 and 6) If thou hast run with the footmen, and they have wearied
thee, then how canst thou contend with horses? And if in the land of
peace, wherein thou trustedst, they wearied thee, then how wilt thou
do in the swelling of
Jordan
? For even thy brethren, and the house of thy father, even they have
dealt treacherously with thee; yea, they have called a multitude
after thee: believe them not, though they speak fair words unto
thee.
This
is the LORD’S answer to Jeremiah’s questions. As can readily be
seen, the LORD does not answer him in the manner in which most of us
want to be answered. His answer seems to come down to two things.
First, It is really none of our business why the LORD permits things
to be as they are. We can only acknowledge that He has a right and a
purpose in all He does. And second, Things may get much worse before
they get better. In Jeremiah’s case they were sure to get worse.
He was only experiencing that necessary to prepare him for what was
to come. Though the LORD had promised to defend Jeremiah, He had
told him that the people would fight against him. If they did not,
he would need no defense against them. The trouble Jeremiah had
already faced was only his brethren and they of his father’s house
as they fought against him. But they had, by their action, called a
whole multitude against him. So the LORD tells him to believe
nothing they say, even if they do try to make him think they are his
friends.
(Verses
7 through 13) I have forsaken Mine house, I have left Mine heritage;
I have given the dearly beloved of My soul into the hand of her
enemies. Mine heritage is unto Me as a lion in the forest; it crieth
out against Me: therefore have I hated it. Mine heritage is unto Me
as a speckled bird, the birds round about her are against her; come
ye, assemble all the beasts of the field, come to devour. Many
pastors have destroyed My vineyard, they have trodden My portion
under foot, they have made My pleasant portion a desolate
wilderness. They have made it desolate, and being desolate it
mourneth unto Me; the whole land is made desolate, because no man
layeth it to heart. The spoilers are come upon all high places
through the wilderness: for the sword of the LORD shall devour from
the one end of the land even to the other end of the land: no flesh
shall have peace. They have sown wheat, but shall reap thorns: they
have put themselves to pain, but shall not profit: and they shall be
ashamed of your revenues because of the fierce anger of the LORD.
The
temple of the LORD in
Jerusalem
was indeed the LORD’S house, and
Israel
, including
Judah
and
Jerusalem
, is many times said to be the LORD’S heritage. Now He has
forsaken His house, and left His heritage. He has already sent
Israel
into captivity, and declared the judgment of captivity against
Judah
and
Jerusalem
. In effect, He has forsaken His house and left His heritage, in
that He has already pronounced the sentence against them, and
declared that He will not turn away from that decree. In spite of
His great love for them, He has delivered them into the hand of
their enemies. He gives us two similes to describe His heritage at
this point. First, she is like a lion of the forest that cries out
against Him. As we look back at the numerous evils she has done, we
can readily see the likeness. Although He had brought
Israel
out of the Egyptian bondage, led them through the wilderness, set
them up in the
land
of
Canaan
, and developed them into a great nation, they still turned away
from Him to worship and serve false gods. For this He has brought
heavy punishment upon them. He will no longer even listen to their
cries for help. Then He likens them to a “speckled bird.” Many
have tried to consider this phrase as a “badge of honor” for the
LORD’S people. Many years ago someone wrote a song about “The
Great Speckled Bird.” And for a while it was very popular, even
among people who claimed to love the LORD. Nevertheless, it is not
here used as a compliment, any more than is “a lion of the
forest” in the preceding verse. Scholars say that this phrase
should have been translated, “taloned bird,” instead of
“speckled bird,” that is, a bird of prey. And this would
certainly agree with the simile of the lion of the forest. All the
other birds have been turned against her. And the LORD calls for all
the beasts of the field to come and devour (her). The reason for her
being in such a terrible condition is that her pastors, (or priests)
who should have been taking care of her, have really been destroying
her. And now she is only a desolate wilderness, with no man to care.
Now the spoilers shall come up, and the sword shall devour the land
from one end to the other, so that no one shall have any peace. The
LORD says, “They have sown wheat, but shall reap thorns: they have
put themselves to pain, but shall not profit.” This refers to
Israel
, not to the spoilers. They shall be ashamed of what they receive
for their labor, because the fierce anger of the LORD is turned upon
them.
(Verses
14 through 17) Thus saith the LORD against all mine evil neighbors,
that touch the inheritance which I have caused My people Israel to
inherit; Behold, I will pluck them out of their land, and pluck out
the house of Judah from among them. And it shall come to pass after
I have plucked them out I will return, and have compassion on them,
and will bring them again, every man to his land. And it shall come
to pass, if they will diligently learn the ways of My people, to
swear by My name, The LORD liveth; as they taught My people to swear
by Baal, then shall they be built in the midst of My people. But if
they will not obey, I will utterly pluck up and destroy that nation,
saith the LORD.
After
all the terrible judgments He has pronounced upon
Judah
, the LORD declares that He will judge the nations that perform the
very judgments against them that He has decreed. He will “pluck
out the house of
Judah
from among them.” When He does this, He will have compassion upon
the house of
Judah
, and will bring them all back to the land He had given them. He
makes a promise to these nations that when He does this, any from
these nations that will diligently learn the ways of His people,
(not the evil ways they have followed, and by which they have
brought upon themselves this great punishment, but the ways He has
taught them,) and will take the true oath, “The LORD liveth,” as
they had taught His people to swear by Baal, shall be built up in
the midst of His people. But any nation that will not do this, shall
be utterly destroyed. Compare this with Zechariah 14:16-19.
(Verses
1 through 11) Thus saith the LORD unto me, Go and get thee a linen
girdle, and put it upon thy loins, and put it not in water. So I got
a girdle according to the word of the LORD, and put it upon my
loins. And the word of the LORD came unto me the second time,
saying, Take the girdle that thou hast got, which is upon thy loins,
and go to
Euphrates
, and hide it there in a hole of the rock. So I went, and hid it by
Euphrates
, as the LORD commanded me. And it came to pass after many days,
that the LORD said unto me, Arise, go to
Euphrates
, and take the girdle from thence, which I commanded thee to hide
there. Then I went to
Euphrates
, and digged, and took the girdle from the place where I had hid it:
and, behold, the girdle was marred, it was profitable for nothing.
Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Thus saith the LORD,
After this manner will I mar the pride of
Judah
, and the great pride of
Jerusalem
. This evil people which refuse to hear My words, which walk in the
imagination of their heart, and walk after other gods, to serve
them, and to worship them, shall even be as this girdle, which is
good for nothing. For as the girdle cleaveth to the loins of a man,
so have I caused to cleave to Me the whole house of Israel and the
whole house of Judah, saith the LORD; that they might be unto Me for
a people, and for a name, and for a praise, and for a glory: but
they would not hear.
There
may be some debate in the minds of some as to whether or not this is
something that Jeremiah was called upon to do, and did, or was a
vision the LORD gave him, in which he did these things. When we
consider the distance from
Jerusalem
to the
Euphrates
at its nearest point, two round trips to that point would have taken
a considerably long time. However, whether done in a factual manner,
or in a visionary way, this was for the purpose of impressing upon
Jeremiah’s mind just how useless the house of
Israel
and the house of
Judah
had become in spite of the care the LORD had bestowed upon them.
(Verses
12 through 14) Therefore thou shalt speak unto them this word; Thus
saith the LORD God of
Israel
, Every bottle shall be filled with wine: and they shall say unto
thee, Do we not certainly know that every bottle shall be filled
with wine? Then shalt thou say unto them, Thus saith the LORD,
Behold, I will fill all the inhabitants of this land, even the kings
that sit upon David’s throne, and the priests, and the prophets,
and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, with drunkenness. And I will
dash them one against another, even the fathers and the sons
together, saith the LORD: I will not pity, nor spare, nor have
mercy, but destroy them.
Now
the LORD gives Jeremiah a message to deliver to Judah., “Every
bottle shall be filled with wine.” The people apparently think
that he is speaking of filling wine bottles with wine. So their
answer sounds a little sarcastic; “Do we not certainly know that
every bottle shall be filled with wine?” But this is not the real
message. It is that the LORD is going to send drunkenness upon all
the inhabitants of the land, not drunkenness as produced by drinking
too much wine, but that of having all wisdom removed from them so
that they will have no sound judgment about anything, but will be
destroyed by the calamity He is sending upon them. And when this
takes place, He will have no pity on them. He will show neither pity
nor mercy to them.
(Verses
15 through 21) Hear ye, and give ear; be not proud: for the LORD
hath spoken. Give glory to the LORD your God, before He cause
darkness, and before your feet stumble upon the dark mountains, and,
while ye look for light, He turn it into the shadow of death, and
make it gross darkness. But if ye will not hear it, my soul shall
weep in secret places for your pride; and mine eye shall weep sore,
and run down with tears, because the LORD’S flock is carried away
captive. Say unto the king and to the queen, Humble yourselves, sit
down: for your principalities shall come down, even the crown of
your glory. The cities of the south shall be shut up, and none shall
open them:
Judah
shall be carried away captive all of it, it shall be wholly carried
away captive. Lift up your eyes, and behold them that come from the
north: where is the flock that was given thee, thy beautiful flock?
What wilt thou say when He shall punish thee? For thou hast taught
them to be captains, and as chief over thee: shall not sorrows take
thee as a woman in travail?
Again
the LORD calls upon
Judah
to listen to His warning, and give glory to Him before He brings
upon them the darkness of the drunkenness He has already mentioned.
Jeremiah declares that if they will not hear, or heed, this warning,
he will be left to weep for them in secret places, because they, the
LORD’S flock, will be gone, they will be carried away captive. He
is then to call upon the king and the queen to humble themselves,
for they are about to lose their kingdom; it is about to be carried
away captive. Then where will be their “beautiful flock,” the
people who have been entrusted to them? What will they say when all
this is done? Sorrow will come upon them like a woman in childbirth.
(Verses
22 through 27) And if thou say in thine heart, Wherefore come these
things upon me? For the greatness of thine iniquity are thy skirts
discovered, and thy heels made bare. Can the Ethiopian change his
skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are
accustomed to do evil. Therefore will I scatter them as the stubble
that passeth away by the wind of the wilderness. This is thy lot,
the portion of thy measures from Me, saith the LORD; because thou
hast forgotten Me, and trusted in falsehood. Therefore will I
discover thy skirts upon thy face, that thy shame may appear. I have
seen thine adulteries, and thy neighings, the lewdness of thy
whoredom, and thine abominations on the hills in the fields. Woe
unto thee, O Jerusalem! wilt thou not be made clean? When shall it
once be?
If
there is any question in the minds of either the king and queen or
the people, concerning why these things are coming upon them, the
answer is, “For the greatness of thine iniquity.” There is no
other reason. They can blame none but themselves. These people have
so long accustomed themselves to doing evil that they are no more
able to turn away from their iniquities than an Ethiopian is able to
turn himself from a black man into a white man, or a leopard is able
to shed his spots, and become of one solid color.. Because of this
the LORD will scatter them as the wind scatters stubble. This is
what the LORD has now allotted
Judah
, because they forgot Him, and trusted in falsehoods. He has seen
all their wickedness, and will bring all this punishment upon them.
So he declares a woe upon
Jerusalem
, and asks, “Wilt thou not be made clean?” This question
signifies that
Jerusalem
does not even want to be made clean. The final question is, “When
shall it once be?” That is, when will they ever be brought to
repentance, and made to want to be clean? This question only He can
answer. And He has declared that that time also shall come.
(Verses
1 through 6) The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah concerning
the dearth.
Judah
mourneth, and the gates thereof languish; they are black unto the
ground; and the cry of
Jerusalem
is gone up. And their nobles have sent their little ones to the
waters: they came to the pits, and found no water; they returned
with their vessels empty; they were ashamed and confounded, and
covered their heads. Because the ground is chapt, for there was no
rain in the earth, the plowmen were ashamed, they covered their
heads. Yea, the hind also calved in the field, and forsook it,,
because there was no grass. And the wild asses did stand on the high
places, they snuffed up the wind like dragons, their eyes did fail,
because there was no grass.
As
with all the terrible desolation Jeremiah has already described,
this is what the LORD has shown him that will come to pass. It is
what he is seeing in his vision, and not what has already come upon
the land. And as he tells the people what is coming, they becoming
angry at the message, want to kill the messenger, which we all know
is very foolish. But as Jeremiah sees these things in his visions,
he continues to speak to the people, and warn them to turn back to
the LORD, that He may turn away such from them. What he sees in this
vision is such a great drought that the water supply for the city,
instead of becoming scarce, is totally gone, When they go to the
water pit for water they come back with empty vessels, and are so
confused that they cover their heads in shame. We have seen how that
the ground will crack open in some places during dry weather. This
drought is so great that the ground is cracked open in every
direction as skin will sometimes do when badly chapped. There is no
rain at all. So those who plow the fields are as confused as were
those who went for water. They too cover their heads in shame. Even
the wild deer, when they give birth to their young leave them
because there is no grass and no food of any kind for them. And the
same is true of even the wild asses, which usually thrive in dry
areas. In short, it is such a drought that both man and beast are in
grave danger.
(Verses
7 through 9) O LORD, though our iniquities testify against us, do
Thou it for Thy name’s sake: for our backslidings are many; we
have sinned against Thee. O the hope of
Israel
, the Saviour thereof in time of trouble, why shouldest Thou be as a
stranger in the land, and as a wayfaring man that turneth aside to
tarry for a night? Why shouldest Thou be as a man astonied, as a
mighty man that cannot save? Yet Thou, O LORD, art in the midst of
us, and we are called by Thy name; leave us not.
This
is Jeremiah’s prayer to the LORD. He confesses that
Israel
’s sins are all the witness needed against them to prove that they
are backsliders and sinners. But since they are called by the name
of the LORD, and He is their only hope, he begs Him to save them for
His name’s sake, not for theirs. Certainly, they are not worthy of
being saved. But if He doesn’t, it might seem to the people around
that He is not able to save them; and thus He would appear as one
who only turns aside to tarry for a night, and not the great
immutable God that He is. People might think He had become confused,
and was unable to do what He set out to do.
(Verses
10 through 12) Thus saith the LORD unto this people, Thus have they
loved to wander, they have not refrained their feet, therefore the
LORD doth not accept them; He will now remember their iniquity, and
visit their sins. Then said the LORD unto me, Pray not for this
people for their good. When they fast, I will not hear their cry;
and when they offer burnt offering and oblation, I will not accept
them: but I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and
by the pestilence.
The
LORD gives His answer to the prayer of Jeremiah. We often hear
someone complain that the LORD has not answered his prayer for this,
or that. Perhaps, he was not
listening when He did answer, for He does not always give the answer
we would like. In this case, no doubt, the answer was very
unpleasant. He declared that this people had so loved to wander,
that they had not kept their feet in the paths He had commanded them
to walk in. And this had continued so long that now He will not
accept them. Instead, He has determined to remember their iniquity,
and visit, or punish, their sins. He tells Jeremiah not to pray for
them for any good things, because He will not hear their cry. No
matter what kind of sacrifice they offer, He will not accept it or
them. He has determined to consume them with the sword, the famine,
and the pestilence.
(Verses
13 through 16) Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, the prophets say
unto them, Ye shall not see the sword, neither shall ye have famine;
but I will give you assured peace in this place. Then the LORD said
unto me, the prophets prophesy lies in My name: I sent them not,
neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they
prophesy unto you a false vision and divination, and a thing of
nought, and the deceit of their heart. Therefore saith the LORD
concerning the prophets that prophesy in My name, and I sent them
not, yet they say, Sword and famine shall not be in this land; By
sword and famine shall those prophets be consumed. And the people to
whom they prophesy shall be cast out into the streets of
Jerusalem
because of the famine and the sword; and they shall have none to
bury them, them, their wives, nor their sons, nor their daughters:
for I will pour their wickedness upon them.
Jeremiah,
possibly, to try to plead the cause of the people, as not being
totally responsible for their condition since the prophets had told
them that the LORD said they would not see the sword nor famine, but
would give them assured peace in this land, tries to plead with the
LORD for them. But the LORD’S answer sets forth what He will do to
these false prophets who have prophesied lies in His name, when He
has neither sent them nor spoken to them. Not only will he bring the
sword and the famine upon them, but also upon all who have been
deceived by them. They will all be destroyed, leaving none to even
bury them. This applies not only to the men, but also to their wives
and children. Thus we see what a terrible price people have to pay
for even listening to false prophets. Today, we need to study the
word of the LORD, not as something that men may interpret to fit
whatever ideas they want to set forth, but as THE WORD OF GOD, which
is to be believed exactly as written, unless the context shows it to
be symbolic, and gives the key for its interpretation.
(Verses
17 through 22) Therefore thou shalt say this word unto them: Let
mine eyes run down with tears night and day, and let them not cease:
for the virgin daughter of my people is broken with a great breach,
with a very grievous blow. If I go forth into the field, then behold
the slain with the sword! And if I enter into the city, then behold
them that are sick with famine! Yea, both the prophet and the priest
go about into a land that they know not. Hast Thou utterly rejected
Judah
? Hath Thy soul loathed
Zion
? Why hast Thou smitten us, and there is no healing for us? we
looked for peace, and there is no good; and for the time of healing,
and behold trouble! We acknowledge, O LORD, our wickedness, and the
iniquity of our fathers: for we have sinned against Thee. Do not
abhor us, for Thy name’s sake, do not disgrace the throne of Thy
glory: remember, break not Thy covenant with us. Are there any among
the vanities of the Gentiles that can cause rain? Or can the heavens
give showers? Art not Thou He, O LORD our God? therefore we will
wait upon Thee: for Thou hast made all things.
Verses
17 and 18 are the message the LORD has given Jeremiah for the people
of
Judah
. He is to declare to them that the time of weeping is come. They
will not be pardoned, and the desolation shall not pass them by. But
such desolation shall come upon them by the sword and the famine
that if one goes into the field all he will see is the carnage of
battle. And if he goes into the city he will see only those stricken
by the famine. Whoever is not taken by these, even to the prophet
and the priest, shall be taken to a land foreign to him, one about
which he knows nothing. This brings forth from Jeremiah another
prayer. In it he acknowledges the sins of both the present
generation and those of their fathers, and asks if the LORD has
utterly rejected
Judah
, and hated
Zion
. He prays that the LORD, for His own name’s sake, and to prevent
disgrace to “the throne of His glory” remember them, and break
not His covenant with them. Then, through some questions, he
declares that there is none among “the vanities,” or idols of
the Gentiles that can give rain, or even showers. The LORD is the
only One Who can do such. And therefore they will wait for Him, He
it is Who has made all of these things.
(Verses
1 through 5) Then said the LORD unto me, Though Moses and Samuel
stood before Me, yet My mind could not be toward this people; cast
them out of My sight, and let them go forth. And it shall come to
pass, if they say unto thee, Whither shall we go forth? Then shalt
thou tell them, Thus saith the LORD; Such as are for death, to
death; and such as are for the sword, to the sword; and such as are
for the famine, to the famine; and such as are for the captivity, to
the captivity. And I will appoint over them four kinds, saith the
LORD: the sword to slay, and the dogs to tear, and the fowls of the
heaven, and the beasts of the earth, to devour and destroy. And I
will cause then to be removed into all kingdoms of the earth,
because of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah king of
Judah
, for that which he did in
Jerusalem
. For who shall have pity upon thee, O Jerusalem? Or who shall
bemoan thee? Or who shall turn aside to ask how thou doest?
When
we look back at the many times Moses made intercession for the
people of Israel, and the LORD turned away the punishment He said He
would send upon them, and, in many instances, had already begun
against them, we might think that, surely, the LORD would accept his
prayer for these people. And Samuel also had been a very faithful
servant of the LORD, and had also made intercession for
Israel
. But He now says that if both of these servants stood before Him,
pleading for this people it would be of no avail. His mind could not
be toward this people. So He gives the command, “Cast them out of
My sight, and let them go forth.” Then He tells Jeremiah that if,
and when, they ask him where they are to go, his answer is to be,
“Such as are for death, to death; and such as are for the sword,
to the sword; and such as are for the famine, to the famine; and
such as are for the captivity, to the captivity.” This certainly
is not a very pleasant answer. He further declares that He will
appoint over them four different manners of death, “the sword to
slay, and the dogs to tear, and the fowls of the heaven, and the
beasts of the earth to devour and destroy.” Then for those that
are left, there is the captivity, for He will remove them into all
the kingdoms of the earth. This is to be done “because of Manasseh
the son of Hezekiah king of
Judah
, for that which he did in
Jerusalem
.” For more details of what he did, read II Kings 21:1-18. With
such a reason for the desolation that He will send upon
Jerusalem
, none will have any pity on her, or be in sorrow for her, or even
ask about her welfare.
(Verses
6 through 9) Thou hast forsaken Me, saith the LORD, thou art gone
backward: therefore will I stretch out My hand against thee, and
destroy thee; I am weary with repenting. And I will fan them with a
fan in the gates of the land; I will bereave them of children, I
will destroy My people, since they return not from their ways. Their
widows are increased unto Me above the sand of the seas: I have
brought upon them against the mother of the young men a spoiler at
noonday: I have caused him to fall upon it suddenly, and terrors
upon the city. She that hath borne seven languisheth: she hath given
up the ghost; her sun is gone down while it was yet day: she hath
been ashamed and confounded: and the residue of them will I deliver
to the sword before their enemies, saith the LORD.
Now
the LORD tells
Jerusalem
why she is to be in such a deplorable condition that none will have
pity upon her, or even inquire after her welfare. She has forsaken
Him, and turned away from Him. She has gone completely backward to
all that He has commanded her. For that reason He will stretch forth
His hand against her, and destroy her. When He says that He is weary
with repenting, he is not saying that their repenting of their sins
has wearied Him. On the contrary, He is weary of warning them of the
judgment He is about to bring upon them, and then turning away from
it because they plead for mercy, and promise to forsake their sins,
a promise which they never fulfill. Now He will “fan them with a
fan.” He is not speaking of giving them comfort by sending a
breeze to cool them when they are suffering from the heat. Instead
He is calling their attention to a scene with which they were
familiar, that of threshing small grain. It was common practice to
loosen the grain from the chaff by either laying it out on the
floor, and beating it with a stick, or tying an ox to a stake,
laying out the grain in the path he would have to travel as they
drove him round and round the stake to which he was fastened. In
either case, the heavier chaff was taken up and thrown aside, and
the grain, with the lighter chaff was taken up for further cleaning.
Then a large fan, called a “winnowing fan,” was used to blow
away the chaff. This is the fan to which the LORD refers. He will
fan away the chaff from among His people. In this instance, that
will require bereaving them of their children, and destroying many
of them. There will be many widows in the land because of the
destruction He will bring upon
Jerusalem
. Her calamity will be such that it will appear that “her sun is
gone down while it is yet day.” She will be as a woman who has had
seven children, but they are all taken away in one day; and she is
left completely bewildered at what has taken place. The residue of
the people will be delivered to the sword of their enemies.
(Verses
10 through 14) Woe is me, my mother, that thou hast borne me a man
of strife and a man of contention to the whole earth! I have neither
lent on usury, nor men have lent to me on usury; yet every one of
them doth curse me. The LORD said, Verily it shall be well with thy
remnant; verily I will cause the enemy to entreat thee well in the
time of evil and in the time of affliction. Shall Iron break the
northern iron and the steel? Thy substance and thy treasures will I
give to the spoil without price, and that for all thy sins, even in
all thy borders. And I will make thee to pass with thine enemies
into a land which thou knowest not: for a fire is kindled in Mine
anger, which shall burn upon you.
Verse
10 seems to be a declaration of Jeremiah’s feelings as He realizes
that this message he is to deliver to Judah and Jerusalem will cause
all the people to hate him, and turn against him, as if he were
their creditor who was charging exorbitant interest on the money
they had borrowed from him, or someone who had borrowed from them,
and would not repay the loan. He has done neither; but the result is
as if he had. Now the LORD continues His address to
Judah
and
Israel
. He declares that it shall be well with the remnant of them in the
time of their trouble and affliction. He will cause their enemy to
treat them well. He does not tell them that there will be no
captivity for them, but that they shall mot be mistreated in it,
although all their substance and treasure shall be given to the
spoil. That is, it shall be taken away. And they will be made to go
with their enemies into a land that will be strange to them, because
the fire has been kindled in His anger, and it will burn upon them.
(Verses
15 through 18) O LORD, Thou knowest: remember me, and visit me, and
revenge me of my persecutors; take me not away in Thy longsuffering:
know that for Thy sake I have suffered rebuke. Thy words were found,
and I did eat them; and Thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing
of my heart: for I am called by Thy name, O LORD God of hosts. I sat
not in the assembly of mockers, nor rejoiced; I sat alone because of
Thy hand: for Thou hast filled me with indignation. Why is my pain
perpetual, and my wound incurable, which refuseth to be healed? Wilt
Thou be altogether unto me as a liar, and as waters that fail?
Here
Jeremiah prays to the LORD. He realizes that the LORD knows all
things, but he still reminds Him that it is for His sake that he has
suffered rebuke. And here “rebuke” means more than oral
reprimand. It includes threats upon his life, and even attempts to
fulfill those threats. So he prays that the LORD will revenge him of
his persecutors. Then he tells how that he has rejoiced in the words
of the LORD, and has not taken part with the mockers, but has kept
to himself because of the hand of the LORD which is upon him. The
terrible condition of his people has filled him with pain that will
not go away. And since the LORD has told him that He will be his
defense, and this pain will not go away or be improved, he asks if
the LORD is going to be unto him as one who does not tell the truth,
or as waters that dry up just when they are needed.. The things he
has suffered have caused doubts to creep into his mind; and he wants
some assurance.
(Verses
19 through 21) Therefore thus saith the LORD, If thou return, then
will I bring thee again, and thou shalt stand before Me: and if thou
take forth the precious from the vile, thou shalt be as My mouth:
let them return unto thee; but return not thou unto them. And I will
make thee unto this people a fenced brasen wall: and they shall
fight against thee, but they shall not prevail against thee: for I
am with thee to save thee, saith the LORD. And I will deliver thee
out of the hand of the wicked, and I will redeem thee out of the
hand of the terrible.
In
answer to Jeremiah’s prayer, the LORD speaks to him. He promises
that if Jeremiah shall return to Him, He will bring him again, and
have him stand before Him. That is, if he will put away these doubts
that are causing him to wonder if the LORD will keep His word, the
LORD will give him recognition as His servant. Also if he will
“take forth the precious from the vile,” he will be to the
people as the mouth of the LORD. In this case, the precious are
those among the people that fear the LORD. They Jeremiah is, by
faithfully declaring the word of the Lord, to lead forth from among
the vile, the very ones who are the cause of the LORD’S sending
such great judgments upon the people. But there is a caution he must
observe. He must not return to them, but let them return to him.
When he does this, the LORD will fulfill His promise which He made
to him in verses 18 and 19 of Chapter 1. He declares that He will
deliver him out of the hand of the wicked, and redeem him out of the
hand of the terrible. The wicked among the people of
Jerusalem
and
Judah
did indeed try to kill him; but the LORD delivered him from them.
And when
Jerusalem
was taken captive, Jeremiah was permitted to remain in
Judah
.
Chapter
16
(Verses
1 through 9) The word of the LORD came also unto me, saying, Thou
shalt not take thee a wife, neither shalt thou have sons or
daughters in this place. For thus saith the LORD concerning the sons
and concerning the daughters that are born in this place, and
concerning their mothers that bare them, and concerning their
fathers that begat them in this land; they shall die of grievous
deaths; they shall not be lamented; neither shall they be buried;
but they shall be as dung upon the face of the earth: and they shall
be consumed by the sword, and by famine; and their carcases shall be
meat for the fowls of heaven, and for the beasts of the earth. For
thus saith the LORD, Enter not into the house of mourning, neither
go to lament nor bemoan them: for I have taken away My peace from
this people, saith the LORD, even lovingkindness and mercies. Both
the great and the small shall die in this land: they shall not be
buried, neither shall men lament for them, nor cut themselves, nor
make themselves bald for them: Neither shall men tear themselves for
them in mourning, to comfort them for the dead; neither shall men
give them the cup of consolation to drink for their father or their
mother. Thou shalt not also go into the house of feasting, to sit
with them to eat and to drink. For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the
God of Israel; Behold, I will cause to cease out of this place in
your eyes, and in your days, the voice of mirth, and the voice of
gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride.
The
LORD tells Jeremiah to not take a wife, and to not try to raise a
family in this place, because the children that are born here,
together with their parents, will die horrible deaths, and not even
be buried or lamented. Their bodies will be left on the face of the
earth for the fowls of the air and the beasts of the fields to
consume. He further commands him to stay away from both the house of
mourning and the house of mirth. He is to make no lamentation for
the dead; and neither are the bereaved to be comforted in any way.
It was not commanded of the LORD, but some of the people had taken
up the pagan practices of making cuts in their flesh, and pulling
out their hair, for those who had died. These practices would no
longer be carried on. Neither would anyone even give them the “cup
of consolation” to drink for their father or their mother. All
kindness and consideration for their grief would be discarded. On
the other hand, all the sounds of joy and gladness would be taken
away. In the day of their affliction all things will be desolate
indeed.
(Verses
10 through 13) And it shall come to pass, when thou shalt shew the
people all these words, and they shall say unto thee, Wherefore hath
the LORD pronounced all this great evil against us? or what is our
iniquity? Or what is our sin that we have committed against the LORD
our God? Then shalt thou say unto them, Because your fathers have
forsaken Me, saith the LORD, and have walked after other gods, and
have served them, and have worshipped them, and have forsaken Me,
and have not kept My law; and ye have done worse than your fathers;
for, behold, ye walk every one after the imagination of his evil
heart, that they may not hearken unto Me: Therefore will I cast you
out of this land into a land that ye know not, neither ye nor your
fathers; and there shall ye serve other gods day and night; where I
will not shew you favour.
The
LORD tells Jeremiah that after he has told the people all this
message, they will still ask what is the reason for the LORD’S
pronouncing such a great punishment upon them. They cannot see what
it is that they have done that is great enough to deserve such. This
seems to be what is wrong with most of us today. We try to measure
ourselves against those around us, which the Apostle Paul tells us,
in II Corinthians
10:12
, is not wise. In such measuring, we are not using the perfect
standard; and we therefore cannot attain to the perfect answer. The
LORD tells Jeremiah what the answer is to their questions. First,
their fathers have sinned in departing from the LORD, and
worshipping and serving other gods. And as is always the case, they
have done worse than their fathers. This is a natural tendency in
all humanity. Unless every action or movement is measured by the
perfect measure of God’s law, each succeeding one is a little
worse than the one before it. One of the simplest proofs of this is
found in a trade in which I was active for about fifty years,
carpentry. One can lay out, and cut out a pattern exactly as he
wants it for the rafters of a house. And if he uses this same
pattern for each rafter, all will fit as they should. But if he
marks the first one by the pattern, and marks the next one by that
rafter instead of the pattern, and continues throughout the project,
using the last cut rafter for the pattern of the next, when he gets
to the last one he will find that it will not fit the original
pattern at all. So it is with us if we try to use those around us
for our pattern. Our Lord Jesus is the only pattern that will
successfully serve us. Anyone, or anything else will lead us astray.
So it was with
Judah
and
Jerusalem
. They had compared themselves one to another, and could therefore
not see that they had done so badly. But the result of their action
was that they had done worse than their fathers, and now each was
following the imagination of his own evil heart, and would not heed
the warning of the LORD. For this the LORD declared that He would
cast them out of this land into a land that neither they nor their
fathers had known; and there they would serve other gods night and
day. And while they were doing this the LORD would show them no
favor at all.
(Verses
14 through 18) Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD,
that it shall no more be said, The LORD liveth, that brought up the
children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; but, The LORD liveth,
that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north,
and from all the lands whither He had driven them: and I will bring
them again into their land that I gave to their fathers. Behold, I
will send for many fishers, saith the LORD, and they shall fish
them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt
them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes
of the rocks. For Mine eyes are upon all their ways: they are not
hid from My face, neither is their iniquity hid from Mine eyes. And
first will I recompense their iniquity and their sin double, because
they have defiled My land, they have filled Mine inheritance with
the carcases of their detestable things.
Here
we again have the promise of the LORD that He will bring
Israel
again to the land He gave to their fathers. Since the people of
Israel
were brought up out of the
land
of
Egypt
, the basic declaration of their praise to Him has been, (and it
still is) “The LORD liveth, that brought up the children of
Israel
out of the
land
of
Egypt
.” This was to them the greatest thing He had ever done. But the
days are coming, (And that time is still in the future.) when that
saying shall give place to an even greater declaration of His power.
“The LORD liveth, that brought up the children of
Israel
from the land of the north, and from all the lands whither He had
driven them.” This He
has promised; and this He will do. He knows where each one of them
is, and where each one will be at the time He brings this to pass.
So He will send for them at His time. Notice carefully verse 16.
“Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the LORD, and they
shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they
shall hunt them out from every mountain, and from every hill, and
out of the holes of the rocks.” He said “I will send” these
fishers and hunters. He did not say that He would have someone else
send anyone. Since they are not hidden from Him, and he sees all
their ways. It follows that He will direct those He sends so that
they will know where to fish and to hunt, that they may be
successful in this work. Some may think that this is a prophecy of
the preaching of the gospel throughout the world. But if it is, it
is surely the most misplaced verse in the entire Bible. Verses 14
and 15 unquestionably present the promise of the LORD to bring back
the children of
Israel
to the land He gave to their fathers. This was not the gospel
church, but the
land
of
Canaan
, a geographic location. And verses 17 and 18 certainly refer to the
same people and the same place. There is therefore no excuse for
trying to apply verse 16 to anything other than the children of
Israel
and the bringing them back to their land, which was of the LORD
promised to Abraham in perpetuity. Just as the LORD’S eyes are
upon all their ways, and they are not hidden from His face, so
neither is their iniquity hidden from Him. Because of this, before
He fulfills the promise He has just made to them, He will recompense
their iniquity and their sin double. They cannot be passed over
without any penalty, because they have defiled the LORD’S land. It
must be remembered that the land, though given to them as a home,
still belongs to the LORD; and to defile it is also to insult the
LORD. And this cannot be tolerated. “They have filled Mine
inheritance with the carcases of their detestable and abominable
things.” That is the sin that must be expiated before they can be
brought back. That this restoration embraces more than the releasing
of Judah from the Babylonian captivity is clear from the fact that
they are not just to be brought back from Babylon, but, “from the
land of the north, and from all the lands whither He had driven
them.”
(Verses
19 through 21) O LORD, my strength and my fortress, and my refuge in
the day of affliction, the Gentiles shall come unto Thee from the
ends of the earth, and shall say, Surely our fathers have inherited
lies, vanity, and things wherein is no profit. Shall a man make gods
unto himself, and they are no gods? Therefore, behold, I will this
once cause them to know, I will cause them to know My hand and My
might; and they shall know that My name is The LORD.
Jeremiah
declares that the LORD is his strength, his fortress, and his refuge
in the time of affliction. Then he says that the Gentiles shall come
to the LORD from the ends of the earth, and confess to Him that the
things their fathers have inherited, and have also left for them,
are “lies, vanity, and things wherein is no profit.” No doubt
this refers primarily to
the idols they have worshipped, together with their manner and
customs of worshipping them. For they will ask, “Shall a man make
gods unto himself, and they are no gods?” This seems very similar
to what Zechariah says in Zechariah 14:16. It might, possibly, be
applied to the conversion of the Gentiles to the gospel. But its
primary reference seems to be to the fact that after the great
battle Zechariah describes all the nations that are left will come
up to Jerusalem year after year to worship the King, and to keep the
feast of Tabernacles. The LORD declares that at this one time He
will cause the Gentiles to know, or recognize, His hand and His
might. They shall also know that His name is The LORD.
Chapter
17
(Verses
1 through 4) The sin of
Judah
is written with a pen of iron, and with the point of a diamond: it
is graven upon the table of their heart, and upon the horns of their
altars; whilst their children remember their altars and their groves
by the green trees upon the high hills. O My mountain in the field,
I will give thy substance and all thy treasures to the spoil, and
thy high places for sin, throughout all thy borders. And thou, even
thyself, shalt discontinue from thine heritage that I gave thee; and
I will cause thee to serve thine enemies in the land which thou
knowest not: for ye have kindled a fire in Mine anger, which shall
burn for ever.
The
LORD declares that the sin of
Judah
is so deeply established that it cannot be erased. Even today we
often hear the expression, “It is written in stone,” when
something is thought to be so established that it cannot be changed.
It is as if their sin were engraved in stone with a diamond pointed
iron pen. It cannot be erased. It is engraved on both their heart
and the horns of their altars. It is not only a secret thing of
their heart, but is flaunted in public by their worship of idols.
Wherever they find a green tree on a high hill, or wherever they can
plant a grove on a high hill, they set up an altar to some false
god. So the LORD declares that he will give all the substance and
all the treasure of these, as well as all the “high places” in
their borders, to the spoil. He will also send them into captivity
in a strange land, because they have kindled a fire in His anger
that can not be extinguished.
(Verses
5 through 8) Thus saith the LORD; Cursed is the man that trusteth in
man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the
LORD. For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not
see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the
wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited. Blessed is the man
that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. For he shall
be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots
by the river, and shall not see when the heat cometh, but her leaf
shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought,
neither shall cease from yielding fruit.
The
LORD turns from His declaration against
Judah
, to set forth His promise to humanity. He tells us what can be
expected by both the disobedient and the obedient. The disobedient,
those who turn away from God, and put their trust in the power of
man, will be like the heath in the desert. It will wither away, and
not even “see when good cometh.” That is, the heat of the desert
dries it up so that even if, and when, a shower comes, it will not
be there to receive it. This is the curse upon those who trust in
the power of man, instead of the LORD. But there is a blessing to
the man who trusts in the LORD, and whose hope is the LORD. He will
be like a tree that grows beside the waters, and spreads its roots
by the river. Although the drought will surely come, it will still
have a bountiful supply of water to keep it refreshed and green,
bearing its fruit in spite of the drought. He does not promise that
those who trust in Him will not have trouble, but that they shall be
sustained in the time of trouble. This is the blessing we desire.
(Verses
9 through 11) The heart is deceitful above all things, and
desperately wicked: who can know it? I the LORD search the heart, I
try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and
according to the fruit of his doings. As the partridge setteth on
eggs, and hatcheth them not; so he that getteth riches, and not by
right, shall leave them in the midst of his days, and at his end
shall be a fool.
Verse
9 is often taken out of its context and quoted, with no further
follow-up. This is a great mistake, not only with this verse, but
with any other scripture. What the LORD is here doing is showing
that, although the heart is so deceitful and wicked that no man can
know it, He is able to see into, and understand its deepest and
darkest recesses. He is therefore able to give to every man
according to his ways, and according to his works. They are never
hidden from Him. If a partridge sits on eggs that never hatch, she
has wasted her time. The LORD says that a man who amasses wealth by
any means except those that are right, or honest, is just as big a
fool as is the partridge that sits on eggs that will not hatch. He
shall leave them in the midst of his days. Whether he is taken away
from them in what we might think of as the midst of his days, or
not, it will be long before he has enjoyed them as long as he would
like, for he never wants to give them up. We have all heard the
saying, “There are no pockets in shrouds.” So, if a man spends
his whole life in the pursuit of wealth, he is just as foolish as
the partridge that sits on the eggs that will not hatch.
(Verses
12 through 14) A glorious high throne from the beginning is the
place of our sanctuary. O LORD, the hope of
Israel
, all that forsake Thee shall be ashamed, and they that depart from
me shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken the
LORD, the fountain of living waters. Heal me, O LORD, and I shall be
healed; save me, and I shall be saved: for Thou art my praise.
Jeremiah
declares that the place of our sanctuary, which is the LORD, is a
glorious high throne. He is the hope of
Israel
; and all that forsake Him shall be ashamed. Then he. speaking in
“first person,” continues. “And they that depart from me shall
be written in the earth, because they have forsaken the LORD, the
fountain of living waters.” No doubt he is considering what the
LORD has already told him in Chapter 15, verse 19. “If thou
return, then will I bring thee again, and thou shalt stand before
Me: and if thou take forth the precious from the vile, thou shalt be
as My mouth: let them return unto thee; but return not thou unto
them.” So if they departed from him, they were also departing from
the LORD; and they were to be recorded in the earth as having
departed from the “LORD, the fountain of living waters.” Another
way of saying what he has said in verse 14 is, “The only way I can
be healed is that You heal me; and the only way I can be saved is
that You save me: for You are my praise.” His only hope is in the
LORD, and the LORD is the only One Whom he will praise. Certainly we
ought all to agree with this.
(Verses
15 through 18) Behold, they say unto me, Where is the word of the
LORD? let it come now. As for me, I have not hastened from being a
pastor to follow Thee: neither have I desired the woeful day; Thou
knowest: that which came out of my lips was right before Thee. Be
not a terror unto me: Thou art my hope in the day of evil. Let them
be confounded that persecute me, but let me not be confounded: let
them be dismayed, but let not me be dismayed: bring upon them the
day of evil, and destroy them with double destruction.
Jeremiah
complains that the people are taunting him, and saying, “Where is
the word of the LORD? let it come now.” That is, they do not
believe that it will come. They think he is prophesying falsely to
them. He tells the LORD that he had not sought the office of
prophet. Remember that when the LORD called him for this work, he
protested that he could not do this work, for he was only a child.
But the LORD insisted that he do what He had told him to do. Not
only had he not wanted this office, but neither did he desire the
woeful day of which he was commissioned to tell them. None of it was
of his desire, or his making. But he had faithfully spoken to them
the words that the LORD had commanded him. So he prays that the
LORD, Who is his hope in the day of evil, will not make Himself a
terror to him, but will instead bring upon the disobedient those
evils He has declared, but exempt him, Jeremiah, from them, since he
has only been the messenger of the LORD in this, and may He bring
double destruction upon those who ridicule His word.
(Verses
19 through 25) Thus said the LORD unto me; Go, and stand in the gate
of the children of the people, whereby the kings of Judah come in,
and by which they go out, and in all the gates of Jerusalem; and say
unto them, Hear ye the word of the LORD, ye kings of Judah, and all
Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, that enter in by these
gates: Thus saith the LORD; Take heed to yourselves, and bear no
burden on the sabbath day, nor bring it in by the gates of
Jerusalem; neither carry forth a burden out of your houses on the
sabbath day, neither do ye any work, but hallow ye the sabbath day,
as I commanded your fathers. But they obeyed not, neither inclined
their ear, but made their neck stiff, that they might not hear, nor
receive instruction. And it shall come to pass, if ye diligently
hearken unto Me, saith the LORD, to bring no burden through the
gates of this city on the sabbath day, to do no work therein; then
shall there enter into the gates of this city kings and princes
sitting upon the throne of David, riding in chariots, and on horses,
they, and their princes, the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of
Jerusalem: and this city shall remain for ever.
Here
the LORD refers the people to only one of His commandments, that of
keeping the sabbath day holy. He declares that if they will only do
this, He will spare
Jerusalem
forever. This is the commandment that made the children of
Israel
unique. Of all the heathen nations around them none observed a
sabbath. But the LORD commanded
Israel
to keep the seventh day holy. On it they were to do no work at all,
not even so much as lighting a fire, or bearing any burden. Of
course, they did with this commandment as they did with all the
rest. They completely laid it aside, and followed the way of the
nations around them. The LORD declares to them that if they will
keep it holy as he had commanded them, He will give them kings and
princes to sit upon the throne of David, and will spare the city of
Jerusalem
forever.
(Verses
26 and 27) And they shall come from the cities of
Judah
, and from the places about
Jerusalem
, and from the
land
of
Benjamin
, and from the plain, and from the mountains, and from the south,
bringing burnt offerings, and sacrifices, and meat offerings, and
incense, and bringing sacrifices of praise, unto the house of the
LORD. But if ye will not hearken unto Me to hallow the sabbath day,
and not bear a burden, even entering in at the gates of
Jerusalem
on the sabbath day; then will I kindle a fire in the gates thereof,
and it shall devour the palaces of
Jerusalem
, and it shall not be quenched.
These
two verses show quite a contrast between the reward of obedience and
that of disobedience. Although
Judah
had done so much evil that the LORD had pronounced all this great
desolation upon her, He still sets before her the promise that if
she will be obedient in this one thing, He will turn aside all the
evil He had pronounced against her. Certainly, He knew that she
would not be obedient, for He knows all things. But so far as she
was concerned, the offer was before her. On the other hand, if she
did not obey, there was nothing left her but this terrible
destruction. And there would be no escape.
Jerusalem
would be destroyed.
Chapter
18
(Verses
1 through 10) The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
Arise, and go down to the potter’s house, and there will I cause
thee to hear My words. Then I went down to the potter’s house,
and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. And the vessel that he
made was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again
another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it. Then the
word of the LORD came to me, saying, O house of
Israel
, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the LORD. Behold, as
the clay in the potter’s hand, so are ye in My hand, O house of
Israel
. At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning
a kingdom, to pluck up, and to pull down, and to destroy it; if that
nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will
repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them. And at what
instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom,
to build and to plant it; if it do evil in My sight, that it obey
not My voice, then I will repent of the good, wherewith I said I
would benefit them.
When
we carefully examine this text, we find some principles set forth
that may seem somewhat strange to us, primarily because most whom we
have heard speak concerning it, have a tendency to go too far in one
direction, or the other. It is, essentially, the same lesson the
Lord set forth in Matthew 11:20-26. That lesson is that although God
is completely sovereign in all His works and ways, man has a
responsibility to do His commandments. Here He taught Jeremiah that
lesson by sending him to the house, or workshop, of the potter.
While the potter was in the act of making a vessel of clay on the
wheel, it was marred in his hands. We are not told why it was
marred; but just that it was marred. Then the potter took the clay
he had used in that vessel, and from it fashioned “another vessel,
as seemed good to the potter.” Surely, this picture is clear
enough. We do not know what marred the first vessel, but we do know
that the potter made the new vessel as pleased him. So the final
vessel is according to the will of the potter, and is made by his
power. From this the LORD brings forth to Jeremiah a lesson. First,
the house of
Israel
is in His hands as was the clay in the hands of the potter. At this
point some will immediately say, “Surely, then, He could have kept
them from turning away from Him to the idol gods they served. And
since He did not do that, they could not help doing what they
did.” This sounds like an easy way out. In the present age it is
very popular to relieve everyone of his responsibility, no matter
what he does. This, however, is not the Lord’s way. If one will
read carefully the above referenced text from Matthew, he will find
that those who did not believe the Lord were charged with great
enough responsibility that they will be in worse condition than
Sodom and Gomorrah in the Day of Judgment, while, at the same time,
the Father had kept these things hidden from the wise and prudent,
and had revealed them unto babes. Since these things were hidden
from them, the next question is, “How could they believe in those
things that were hidden from them?” So, we can only come to the
conclusion that although God is in all things completely sovereign,
yet man is responsible for his actions. Admittedly, we are not wise
enough to understand such deep things. Therefore we must assume that
it is our responsibility to do whatsoever the Lord has commanded us,
and leave the hidden things to Him. In the present text He says,
“At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning
a kingdom, to pluck up, and to pull down, and to destroy it; if that
nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will
repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them. And at what
instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom,
to build and to plant it; if it do evil in My sight, that it obey
not My voice, then will I repent of the good, wherewith I said I
would benefit them.” Again, although God is sovereign in all His
ways, the responsibility of the action of a nation, a kingdom, or an
individual, rests upon that nation, kingdom, or individual. All of
this brings us back to what is said in two scriptures. (Ecclesiastes
12:13-14) “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: ‘Fear
God, and keep His commandments:’ for this is the whole duty of
man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret
thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.” And (Micah 6:8)
“He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD
require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk
humbly before thy God?” This
Judah
and
Jerusalem
had not done; and neither were they going to do so. In spite of the
warning of the LORD, they continued on in their wickedness.
(Verses
11 through 17) Now therefore go to, speak to the men of
Judah
, and to the inhabitants of
Jerusalem
, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I frame evil against you, and
devise a device against you: return ye now every one from his evil
way, and make your ways and your doings good. And they said, There
is no hope: but we will walk after our own devices, and we will
every one do the imagination of his evil heart. Therefore thus saith
the LORD; Ask ye now among the heathen, who hath heard such things:
the virgin of
Israel
hath done a very horrible thing. Will a man leave the snow of
Lebanon
which cometh from the rock of the field? Or shall the cold flowing
waters that come from another place be forsaken? Because My people
hath forgotten Me, they have burned incense to vanity, and they have
caused them to stumble in their ways from the ancient paths, to walk
in paths, in a way not cast up; to make their land desolate, and a
perpetual hissing; every one that passeth thereby shall be
astonished, and wag his head. I will scatter them as an east wind
before the enemy; I will shew them the back, and not the face, in
the day of their calamity.
The
LORD sends another warning to the men of
Judah
and the inhabitants of
Jerusalem
, declaring that He is devising evil against them, and calling upon
them to mend their ways. But they refuse, saying that there is no
hope, and therefore they will continue on as they have been, each
following the imagination of his own evil heart. He tells them to
go, and inquire among the heathen to see if they can find anyone who
has ever heard of such a horrible thing as they are doing. He likens
it to a man leaving a place where there is a plentiful supply of
cold flowing water, and trying to find a place that suits him
better. In such an arid country as most of
Israel
is, this would be considered a horrible act, one that is utterly
foolish. But that is the equivalent of what
Judah
and
Jerusalem
have done. They have forgotten Him, the One true and living God, and
turned away to idols that cause them to stumble away from the old
paths that He laid out for them, and wander in a path that has not
even been “cast up,” or built up as a road. They are actually
stumbling through the wilderness without a path to follow. In so
doing, they are bringing upon their land all the desolation He has
pronounced upon them. And in the day of their calamity He will show
them no pity.
(Verses
18 through 23) Then said they, Come, and let us devise devices
against Jeremiah; for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor
counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, and let
us smite him with the tongue, and let us not give heed to any of his
words. Give heed to me, O LORD, and hearken to the voice of them
that contend with me. Shall evil be recompensed for good? for they
have digged a pit for my soul. Remember that I stood before Thee to
speak good for them, and to turn away Thy wrath from them. Therefore
deliver up their children to the famine, and pour out their blood by
the force of the sword: and let their wives be bereaved of their
children, and be widows; and let their men be put to death; let
their young men be slain by the sword in battle. Let a cry be heard
from their houses, when Thou shalt bring a troop suddenly upon them:
for they have digged a pit to take me, and hid snares for my feet.
Yet, LORD, Thou knowest all their counsel against me to slay me:
forgive not their iniquity, neither blot out their sin from Thy
sight, but let them be overthrown before Thee; deal thus with them
in the time of Thine anger.
Here
we have the reaction of the people against the message Jeremiah had
delivered to them, and their reaction to him as the messenger. Then
we have Jeremiah’s prayer to the LORD against them. The people
accused Jeremiah of lying, because he had told them that their
priests had forsaken the law of the LORD, the counsel of their wise
men had been turned to foolishness, and their prophets were speaking
lies instead of the word of the LORD, This had so enraged them that
they, not only were refusing to listen to him, but were ready to
kill him because of his prophecy. So He prays to the LORD against
them. Certainly, no one would have any trouble in understanding this
prayer. We might be a little taken aback by the terrible things he
asks the LORD to do to them. But we must remember that this prayer
was according to the prevailing principle of “A tooth for a tooth,
and an eye for an eye,” instead of the instructions our Lord Jesus
has given us of loving our enemies, and praying for those who
despitefully use us. He has asked for utter destruction upon them.
And, indeed, that is exactly what the LORD had already said He would
bring upon them. So, no doubt, his prayer was according to the will
of God.
Chapter
19
(Verses
1 through 6) Thus saith the LORD, Go and get a potter’s earthen
bottle, and take of the ancients of the people, and of the ancients
of the priests; and go forth into the valley of the son of Hinnom,
which is by the entry of the east gate, and proclaim there the words
that I shall tell thee, and say, Hear ye the word of the LORD, O
kings of Judah, and inhabitants of Jerusalem; Thus saith the LORD of
hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will bring evil upon this place,
the which whosoever heareth, his ears shall tingle. Because they
have forsaken Me, and have estranged this place, and have burned
incense in it to other gods, whom neither they nor their fathers
have known, nor the kings of Judah, and have filled this place with
the blood of innocents; They have built also the high places of
Baal, to burn their sons with fire for burnt offerings unto Baal,
which I commanded them not, nor spake it, neither came it into My
mind: therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that this
place shall no more be called Tophet, nor The valley of the son of
Hinnom, but the valley of slaughter.
The
LORD commands Jeremiah to take a bottle of earth, made by the
potter, get some of the old men, “ancients,” of the people, and
of the priests, and take them down to the valley of the son of
Hinnom, which is just down from the east gate of
Jerusalem
. There he is to tell these men who have gone with him the message
the LORD has given him. He calls upon them to hear the word of the
LORD. Then he begins with the message from the LORD. The first item
of it is that the LORD is going to bring such great evil upon this
place that just to hear of it will cause the ears of the hearer to
tingle. The reason for this evil is that the people of
Judah
and
Jerusalem
have forsaken Him, and have committed such horrible sins. They have
come down to this place to burn incense to idol gods, and here they
have built altars to Baal. Upon these altars they have burned their
sons as sacrifices to Baal, such a horrible sin that the LORD says
it had never even come into His mind. They have followed this
abominable practice so long that they have “filled this place with
the blood of innocents.” So He is going to send such evil upon
this place that even its name will be changed. “This place shall
no more be called Tophet, nor The valley of the son of Hinnom, but
The valley of slaughter. As He continues on, He will tell us why its
name will be thus changed.
(Verses
7 through 9) And I will make void the counsel of
Judah
and
Jerusalem
in this place; and I will cause them to fall by the sword before
their enemies, and by the hands of them that seek their lives: and
their carcases will I give to be meat for the fowls of the heaven,
and for the beasts of the earth. And I will make this city desolate,
and an hissing; every one that passeth thereby shall be astonished
and hiss because of all the plagues thereof. And I will cause them
to eat the flesh of their sons and the flesh of their daughters, and
they shall eat every one the flesh of his friend in the siege and
straitness, wherewith their enemies, and they that seek their lives,
shall straiten them.
The
LORD continues to tell them what He will bring upon them. He will
bring upon them such slaughter that there will be no place for
burial, and none to bury the dead. Much of this will be in this
valley, and will be the cause of its name‘s being changed to The
valley of slaughter. The dead shall be left for the fowls of the
heaven and the beasts of the earth to eat. The people who survive
will be in such dire straits that they will become cannibals, and
will even eat their own children, as well as their friends.
(Verses
10 through 13) Then shalt thou break the bottle in the sight of the
men that go with thee, and shalt say unto them, Thus saith the LORD
of hosts; Even so will I break this people and this city, as one
breaketh a potter’s vessel, that cannot be made whole again: and
they shall bury them in Tophet, till there be no place to bury. Thus
will I do unto this place, saith the LORD, and to the inhabitants
thereof, and even make this city as Tophet: and the houses of
Jerusalem, and the houses of the kings of Judah, shall be defiled as
the place of Tophet, because of all the houses upon whose roofs they
have burned incense unto all the host of heaven, and have poured out
drink offerings unto other gods.
The
LORD instructs Jeremiah to break the bottle he has brought. This he
is to do “in the sight of the men” he has brought with him.
Their attention is to be specially called to this act. And when he
does this, he is to declare to them that thus the LORD will break
Jerusalem
, so that it cannot be repaired. This He will do by bringing death
upon the inhabitants, and devastation upon the buildings and houses
of the city. All of this is to come upon them because they have
burned incense to the host of heaven upon the roofs of the houses,
and have poured drink offerings to other gods thereupon.
This is the punishment for their sin.
(Verses
14 and 15) Then came Jeremiah from Tophet, whither the LORD had sent
him to prophesy; and he stood in the court of the LORD’S house,
and said to all the people, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of
Israel; Behold, I will bring upon this city and upon all her towns
all the evil that I have pronounced against it, because they have
hardened their necks, that they might not hear My words.
Having
finished the demonstration the LORD commanded him to make before the
men he took with him to Tophet, Jeremiah comes back into Jerusalem,
enters the court of the temple, stands there, and declares the word
of the LORD to all the people. The LORD has spoken, and He will
bring all this desolation which He has declared upon
Jerusalem
and all the towns round about her, because the people have refused
to heed His message to them.
Chapter
20
(Verses
1 through 6) Now Pashur the son of Immer the priest, who was also
chief governor in the house of the LORD, heard that Jeremiah
prophesied these things. Then Pashur smote Jeremiah the prophet, and
put him in the stocks that were in the high gate of Benjamin, which
was by the house of the LORD. And it came to pass on the morrow,
that Pashur brought forth Jeremiah out of the stocks. Then said
Jeremiah unto him, The LORD hath not called thy name Pashur, but
Magormissabib. For thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will make thee a
terror to thyself, and to all thy friends; they shall fall by the
sword of their enemies, and thine eyes shall behold it: and I will
give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall
carry them captive into Babylon, and shall slay them with the sword.
Moreover I will deliver all the strength of this city, and all the
labours thereof, and all the precious things thereof, and all the
treasures of the kings of
Judah
will I give into the hand of thine enemies, which shall spoil them,
and carry them to
Babylon
. And thou, Pashur, and all that dwell in thine house shall go into
captivity: and thou shalt come to
Babylon
, and there thou shalt die, and shalt be buried there, thou, and all
thy friends, to whom thou hast prophesied lies.
Here
Jeremiah gives account of an incident that took place because of his
prophesying. Pashur, who was chief governor of the temple was
evidently very displeased that Jeremiah would prophesy such things
as he had concerning
Jerusalem
and
Judah
. So he tried to take out his anger on the messenger. This is
something that we find often practiced by humanity. What we need to
remember is that, if the message is true, punishing the messenger
will not change it; and if it is not true, time will prove its
fallacy: so there is no reason for anger against the messenger. But
Pashur had never learned this lesson. It is unclear whether the
expression, “Then Pashur smote Jeremiah the prophet,” means that
Pashur actually hit Jeremiah with his fist, or some weapon, or
whether he simply “smote him” with his authority as the chief
governor of the temple, and put him in the stocks. Perhaps, he did
both. Jeremiah was left in the stocks until the next day, at which
time Pashur had him released. At this time Jeremiah said to Pashur,
“The LORD hath not called thy name Pashur, but Magormissabib.”
The name “Pashur” would translate to, “most noble,” in
English; but, according to scholars, “Magormissabib” would
literally mean “terror let loose,” or “terror all around.”
And in this instance it is more important than “Pashur,” because
it is what the LORD has called him. Jeremiah then proceeds to tell
Pashur what the LORD is going to bring upon him and all his friends
for the lies he has prophesied to them. Along with them, He will
also deliver “all the strength of this city, and all the labours
thereof, and all the precious things thereof, and all the treasures
of the kings of
Judah
, into the hand of their enemies.” Nothing is to be exempt from
this. All will be carried to
Babylon
. Pashur and all his friends will, not only be carried to
Babylon
, but they shall also die and be buried there.
(Verses
7 through 13) O LORD, Thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived:
Thou art stronger than I, and hast prevailed: I am in derision
daily, every one mocketh me. For since I spake, I cried out, I cried
violence and spoil; because the word of the LORD was made a reproach
unto me, and a derision daily. Then I said, I will not make mention
of Him, nor speak any more of His name. But His word was in mine
heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with
forbearing, and I could not stay. For I heard the defaming of many,
fear on every side. Report, say they, and we will report it. All my
familiars watched for my halting, saying, Peradventure he will be
enticed, and we shall prevail against him, and we shall take our
revenge on him. But the LORD is with me as a mighty terrible One:
therefore my persecutors shall stumble, and they shall not prevail:
they shall be greatly ashamed; for they shall not prosper: their
everlasting confusion shall never be forgotten. But, O LORD of
hosts, that triest the righteous, and seest the reins and the heart,
let me see Thy vengeance on them: for unto Thee have I opened my
cause. Sing unto the LORD, Praise ye the LORD: for he hath delivered
the soul of the poor from the hand of the evildoers.
This
is a prayer of Jeremiah to the LORD. He feels that the LORD has
deceived him; but, in reality, he has deceived himself, by
misinterpreting what the LORD has said to him. Indeed the LORD has
told him that He will defend him against the people. But He also
told him that the people would fight against him. Somehow, he must
have become confused, and thought that the LORD would not let them
do anything evil to him. This the LORD did not promise. But Jeremiah
is greatly discouraged. In fact, he became so discouraged that he
decided to quit making mention of the LORD, and quit speaking in His
name. However, he found this harder than he had expected, because
the word of the LORD was in his heart as “a burning fire shut up
in his bones,” and he was so worn out from holding it back that he
could not continue to do so. All around him people were defaming
him, and just waiting for him to speak, that they might have
occasion to fight against him. As he considers this, he realizes
that the LORD is with him, and will take care of him. He is assured
that the LORD will bring all his enemies down, and make their
confusion everlasting so that it will never be forgotten. And he
prays to that end. Then he seems to revive, and praises the LORD for
deliverance from his enemies.
(Verses
14 through 18) Cursed be the day wherein I was born: let not the day
wherein my mother bare me be blessed. Cursed be the man who brought
tidings to my father, saying, A man child is born unto thee; making
him very glad. And let that man be as the cities which the LORD
overthrew, and repented not: and let him hear the cry in the
morning, and the shouting at noontide; because he slew me not from
the womb; or that my mother might have been my grave, and her womb
always great with me. Wherefore came I forth out of the womb to see
labour and sorrow, that my days should be consumed with shame?
This
would certainly remind one of many things Job said while enduring
the affliction sent upon him. And like that said by Job, it is
completely vain. It is only the complaint of one so overwhelmed with
sorrow that he cannot think rationally. However, we should not try
to judge him too harshly. None of us knows what he may be brought to
say, when faced with such suffering and sorrow. We can only pray
that the LORD will keep us from such experiences; or if not, that he
will give us grace to bear it without such great complaints. We can
certainly be brought to the place that we will wonder why we were
permitted to live to see the things that we do. In such cases, all
we can do is to pray to the LORD for mercy. Asking such questions as
“Why will the LORD permit this to be?” is never profitable. May
we remember that the hidden things belong to God, and those that are
revealed belong to us and to our children.
Chapter
21
(Verses
1 and 2) The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, when
Zedekiah sent unto him Pashur the son of Melchiah, and Zephaniah the
son of Maaseiah the priest, saying, Inquire, I pray thee, of the
LORD for us; for Nebuchadrezzar maketh war against us; if so be that
the LORD will deal with us according to all His wondrous works, that
he may go up from us.
Zedekiah
was the king of
Judah
at this time. He sent messengers, Pashur and Zephaniah, to Jeremiah
to ask what was the word of the LORD concerning Nebuchadrezzar king
of
Babylon
, and his army. He was hoping that the LORD would cause them to go
away, and leave
Judah
alone. He did appear to recognize the fact that his only hope was
that the LORD would deal with them according to His wondrous works,
instead of according to their merits.
(Verses
3 through 7) Then said Jeremiah unto them, Thus shall ye say to
Zedekiah: Thus saith the LORD God of Israel; Behold, I will turn
back the weapons of war that are in your hands, wherewith ye fight
against the king of Babylon, and against the Chaldeans, which
besiege you without the walls, and I will assemble them into the
midst of this city. And I Myself will fight against you with an
outstretched hand and with a strong arm, even in anger, and in fury,
and in great wrath. And I will smite the inhabitants of this city,
both man and beast: they shall die of a great pestilence. And
afterward, saith the LORD, I will deliver Zedekiah king of Judah,
and his servants, and the people, and such as are left in this city
from the pestilence, from the sword, and from the famine, into the
hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those that seek their
life: and he shall smite them with the edge of the sword; he shall
not spare them, neither have pity, nor have mercy.
This
certainly is not the message Zedekiah wanted to hear. But it is
clear enough that there could be no misunderstanding of its meaning.
There was to be no deliverance. Not only would the LORD permit the
Babylonians to overthrow
Judah
and
Jerusalem
, but He would join the fight on the side of the Babylonians instead
of that of
Judah
. There would be war, pestilence, and famine in the land. And those
who were not killed by these would be taken into captivity. There
would be neither pity nor mercy for them.
(Verses
8 through 10) And unto this people thou shalt say, Thus saith the
LORD; Behold, I set before you the way of life, and the way of
death. He that abideth in this city shall die by the sword, and by
the famine, and by the pestilence: but he that goeth out, and
falleth to the Chaldeans that besiege you, he shall live, and his
life shall be unto him for a prey. For I have set My face against
this city for evil, and not for good, saith the LORD: it shall be
given into the hand of the king of
Babylon
, and he shall burn it with fire.
Not
only did the LORD give Jeremiah a message for King Zedekiah, but one
also for the people of
Judah
. That message was that, if they wished to save their lives, they
must go out of the city to their enemies, and surrender to them.
Even then the only promise to them was that their lives would be
spared. There was no promise of their homes, or their wealth, being
spared. The city was to be burned with fire.
(Verses
11 through 14) And touching the house of the king of Judah, say,
Hear ye the words of the LORD; O house of David, thus saith the
LORD; Execute judgment in the morning, and deliver him that is
spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor, lest My fury go out like
fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your
doings. Behold, I am against thee, O inhabitant of the valley, and
rock of the plain, saith the LORD, which say, Who shall come down
against us? who shall enter our habitations? But I will punish you
according to the fruit of your doings, saith the LORD: and I will
kindle a fire in the forest thereof, and it shall devour all things
round about it.
Having
given a message to the king’s messengers, and one to the people of
Judah
, the LORD now tells Jeremiah to declare one to “the house of
David.” That is, to the legal representatives of
Judah
, such as the judges. He declares to them that unless they execute
proper judgment “in the morning,” that is, begin it immediately,
and deliver the oppressed from the oppressor, His fury shall cover
the land like a fire, and none can quench it. Their evil is so great
that it must be stopped immediately, or it will be too late. We
sometimes hear well meaning, but poorly informed people say that it
is never too late for the LORD. So far as its being too late for
Him, in that it renders Him unable to do anything, certainly it
never is. But when He has already determined a matter, and declared
it, He will not change His decree. And in that manner it is too
late. He declares that although they do not believe that anyone can
come against them, and enter their habitation, He is against them,
and will punish them according to their own deeds. And the fire he
will kindle “shall devour all things round about it.” When He
does this, their habitation is certainly doomed.
Chapter
22
(Verses
1 through 9) Thus saith the LORD, Go down to the house of the king
of Judah, and speak there this word, and say, Hear the word of the
LORD, O king of Judah, that setteth upon the throne of David, thou,
and thy servants, and thy people that enter in by these gates: Thus
saith the LORD; Execute ye judgment and righteousness, and deliver
the spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor: and do no wrong, do no
violence to the stranger, the fatherless, nor the widow, neither
shed innocent blood in this place. For if ye do this thing indeed,
then shall there enter in by the gates of this house kings sitting
upon the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, he, and
his servants, and his people.
It
sometimes seems amazing that the LORD would show such mercy upon a
people that had for such a long time turned so far from Him, as had
the people of
Judah
. Although He has declared that He will send terrible destruction
upon them, and has further said that there is nothing that can turn
Him away from His wrath against them, He still sets before them the
promise that if they will only heed His word, and execute judgment
and righteousness, by delivering the oppressed from the oppressor,
and rightly judging the cause of the stranger, the fatherless, and
the widow, and refrain from shedding innocent blood, He will prolong
their peace and tranquility so that the kingdom will continue on and
on. The succession of
Judah
’s kings shall continue unbroken. Not only shall the kings
continue, but their servants and their people shall also have peace.
Certainly He knows that they will not heed his word. But that does
not change the fact that He has set this promise before them.
(Verses
5 through 9) But if ye will not hear these words, I swear by Myself,
saith the LORD, that
this house shall become a desolation. For thus saith the LORD unto
the king’s house of
Judah
: Thou art Gilead unto Me, and the head of
Lebanon
: yet surely I will make thee a wilderness, and cities which shall
not be inhabited. And I will prepare destroyers against thee, every
one with his weapons: and they shall cut down thy chosen cedars, and
cast them into the fire. And many nations shall pass by this city,
and they shall say every man to his neighbor, Wherefore hath the
LORD done this unto this great city? Then they shall answer, Because
they have forsaken the covenant of the LORD their God, and
worshipped other gods, and served them.
Thus
the LORD gives the other side of His promise, a warning that if they
do not heed His warning, and obey His word, He will bring utter
destruction and desolation upon them. He declares that
Judah
is as dear to Him as Gilead, and the head of
Lebanon
. But that will not stand between them and the punishment He has
pronounced upon them. Notice that He does not say that their enemies
shall come upon them, and He will sit idly by while they cause this
destruction. Instead He declares, “I will make thee a wilderness,
and cities which are not inhabited. And I will prepare destroyers
against thee.” It will all be of His making. Some may wonder at
this. And some will even declare that the LORD is so kind and loving
that He would never do such terrible things. But He has declared
that He will do this; and His word stands. He now gives us the
reason why He will do this. It is that many people may know that He
is chastising them for their great sin of turning away from Him to
worship and serve idol gods. When we look around us, and see all the
idols professed Christians are serving today, the question comes up
immediately, “What can we expect, if we do not repent?”
(Verses
10 through 13) Weep ye not for the dead, neither bemoan him: but
weep sore for him that goeth away: for he shall return no more, nor
see his native country. For thus saith the LORD touching Shallum the
son of Josiah king of Judah, which reigned instead of Josiah his
father, which went forth out of this place; he shall not return
thither any more: but he shall die in the place whither they have
led him captive, and shall see this land no more.
The
LORD commands Jeremiah to not weep for those who die; but to weep
sorely for those who are taken captive. For those who are taken away
will not come back. This is not to say that the remnant of
Judah
will not return: the LORD has already promised that they shall. But
the individuals that are taken away will not come back. The
captivity will last all of their lifetime. He specifically mentions
one Shallum the son of Josiah king of
Judah
. He had already been taken away. And the LORD said that he would
never return. Instead he would die in the place to which they had
taken him, and never see his native land again.
(Verses
13 through 19) Woe unto him that buildeth his house by
unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that useth his
neighbor’s service without wages, and giveth him not for his work;
That saith, I will build me a wide house and large chambers, and
cutteth him out windows, and it is ceiled with cedar, and painted
with vermillion. Shalt thou reign, because thou closest thyself with
cedar? Did not thy father eat and drink, and do judgment and
justice, and then it was well with him? He judged the cause of the
poor and needy; then it was well with him: was not this to know Me?
saith the LORD. But thine eyes and thine heart are not but for thy
covetousness, and for to shed innocent blood, and for oppression,
and for violence, to do it. Therefore thus saith the LORD concerning
Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of
Judah
; They shall not lament for him, saying, Ah my brother! or Ah
sister! They shall not lament for him, saying, Ah lord! or, Ah his
glory! He shall be buried with the burial of an ass, drawn and cast
forth beyond the gates of
Jerusalem
.
Shallum
was the first of the sons of Josiah who reigned in the place of
Josiah after his death. He had now been taken away captive; and the
LORD has told us that he will never return to his native land.
Jehoiakim, another son of Josiah, became king after Shallum was
taken away. So, now the LORD sends this message concerning him. He
begins it by pronouncing
a woe upon the man that builds up his own fortune at the expense of
others, and forces others to work for him without wages. Then He
asks if he thinks he can reign because he has great wealth. He calls
attention to the fact that what enabled Jehoiakim’s father to
reign was his rendering righteous judgment. But it is not so with
Jehoiakim. Instead, his eyes and his heart are so wicked that all
they can consider are covetousness, shedding innocent blood,
oppressing the poor, and doing violence. Because of this he is going
to die in
Jerusalem
, be dragged out of the city, and buried like an ass, with no one to
lament for him.
(Verses
20 through 30) Go up to
Lebanon
, and cry, and lift up thy voice in
Bashan
, and cry from the passages: for all thy lovers are destroyed. I
spake unto thee in thy prosperity; but thou sadist, I will not hear.
This hath been thy manner from thy youth, that thou obeyedst not My
voice. The wind shall eat up all thy pastors, and thy lovers shall
go into captivity: surely then shalt thou be ashamed and confounded
for all thy wickedness. O inhabitant of
Lebanon
, that makest thy nest in the cedars, how gracious shalt thou be
when pangs come upon thee, the pain as of a woman in travail! As I
live, saith the LORD, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim king of
Judah were the signet upon My right hand, yet would I pluck thee
thence; and I will give thee into the hand of them that seek thy
life, and into the hand of them whose face thou fearest, even into
the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of the
Chaldeans. And I will cast thee out, and thy mother that bare thee,
into another country, where ye were not born; and there ye shall
die. But to the land whereunto they desire to return, thither shall
they not return. Is this Coniah a despised broken idol? Is he a
vessel wherein is no pleasure? Wherefore are they cast out, he and
his seed, and are cast into a land which they know not? O earth,
earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD. Thus saith the LORD, Write
ye this man childless, a man that shall not prosper in his days: for
no man of his seed shall prosper, sitting upon the throne of David,
and ruling any more in
Judah
.
Not
only is this word to
Jerusalem
and
Judah
, but it is also to be declared even in
Lebanon
and Bashan, showing that it affects every part of
Israel
. Such desolation is to come upon them that although they may have
set themselves up as great and wealthy people, they will be brought
down to such desolation that they will be as a woman in the pains of
childbirth. The cedars of Lebanon were legendary as the tallest
trees in all that area. So the reference to their making their nest
in the cedars actually has to do with their being so highly exalted
in their own minds. They think themselves great enough that none can
bring them down. But the LORD declares that He will indeed bring
them low. Then He speaks of Coniah the son of Jehoiakim, who became
king upon the death of Jehoiakim. They might think him to be so
important that he could be considered the signet on the right hand
of God. But this is not the LORD’S judgment of him. And even if it
were, He still declares that He will deliver him into the hands of
Nebuchadrezzar and the Chaldeans, who shall take both him and his
mother away as captives to the
land
of
Babylon
. And he shall never return to
Judah
. Then He calls upon the earth to hear the word he is speaking. And
the fact that He calls three times upon the earth to hear his word,
underscores the importance of the message. This man, Coniah, no
matter how many children he may have had, is to be written as
childless, because no man of his seed shall prosper. None shall sit
upon the throne of David, and rule any more in
Judah
.
Chapter
23
(Verses
1 through 4) Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the
sheep of My pasture! saith the LORD. Therefore thus saith the LORD
God of
Israel
against the pastors that feed My people; Ye have scattered my flock,
and driven them away, and have not visited them: behold, I will
visit upon you the evil of your doings, saith the LORD. And I will
gather the remnant of My flock out of all countries whither I have
driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they
shall be fruitful and increase. And I will set up shepherds over
them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be
dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, saith the LORD.
“Pastor,”
as used in the scriptures, means ,”shepherd,” and is usually a
reference to the one who is the overseer of the LORD’S people,
just as a shepherd is the overseer of a flock of sheep. And that is
its use in this text. The LORD declares a woe upon those pastors, in
this case the priests, who scatter, or drive apart, His people. They
are the ones who should be feeding His people. And perhaps, they
are; but the food with which they are feeding them is not that with
which the LORD would have them fed. These pastors have scattered His
flock, and have made no effort to gather them together again.
Instead, they have been engaged in doing evil themselves, and
causing the people to do the same. This is what is bringing on the
great punishment the LORD is going to send upon them. But even now
the LORD’S promise reaches far beyond the present chastisement He
has declared. He will gather them out of all the countries whither
He has driven them. This certainly has reference to more than their
return from the Babylonian captivity. It reaches to “all countries
whither I have driven them.” He declares that He “will bring
them again to their folds, and they shall be fruitful and
increase.” Not only so, but He “will set up shepherds over them
which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed,
neither shall they be lacking.”
(Verses
5 through 8) Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will
raise unto David a righteous branch, and a King shall reign and
prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In His
days
Judah
shall be saved, and
Israel
shall dwell safely: and this is His name whereby He shall be called,
THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. Therefore, behold, the days come, saith
the LORD, that they shall no more say, The LORD liveth, Which
brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; but, The
LORD liveth, Which brought up, and which led the seed of the house
of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries whither I
had driven them; and they shall dwell in their own land.
There
can be no doubt that this is a prophecy of the coming of our Lord
Jesus the Christ. But it reaches beyond His first coming, to the
time of His return. Presently, He is in that “far country” to
which He went to receive His kingdom, as He showed in one of His
parables. According to the scriptures, He is now seated at the right
hand of the Father, awaiting the time for Him to return and gather
up all His redeemed, instead of presently reigning on the earth, as
some like to portray Him. As the Apostle Paul told the Corinthians,
when rebuking them for their feeling that they were reigning now
with the Christ, “I would to God ye did reign, that we also might
reign with you.” All his teaching shows that he expected to reign
with the Christ, but not now. That is to come later. The primary
reference of the present text is to the return of our Lord Jesus at
the re-gathering of
Israel
and
Judah
. At that time He will reign in
Jerusalem
; and
Judah
and
Israel
shall dwell safely there. He is, and forever will be, THE LORD OUR
RIGHTEOUSNESS. In that day, as great as the memory is of the
LORD’S bringing up the children of
Israel
from the
land
of
Egypt
is, it will be replaced by a greater. They will then say, “The
LORD liveth, Which brought up, and Which led the seed of the house
of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries whither I
had driven them.” And in that day they shall dwell in their own
land. This is one of those promises that cannot be, at the will of
man, taken from
Israel
and
Judah
, and given to the gospel church. The LORD made this promise to
Israel
and
Judah
, and it shall stand as given. It is upon the faithfulness of God to
the promises he has made to them that we find reason to be confident
that He will also do what He has promised us. The doctrine of taking
His promises to
Israel
and
Judah
, and trying to give them to the gospel church, that is, replacing
them with the gospel church, started in the Roman Catholic Church,
and is the basic tenet of the Nazi Party, and all anti- Semitic
orders in the world. But His word still stands.
(Verses
9 through 15) Mine heart within me is broken because of the
prophets; all my bones shake; I am like a drunken man, and like a
man whom wine hath overcome, because of the LORD, and because of the
words of His holiness. For the land is full of adulterers; for
because of swearing the land mourneth; the pleasant places of the
wilderness are dried up, and their course is evil, and their force
is not right. For both prophet and priest are profane; yea, in My
house have I found their wickedness, saith the LORD. Wherefore their
way shall be unto them as slippery ways in the darkness: they shall
be driven on, and fall therein: for I will bring evil upon them,
even the year of their visitation, saith the LORD. And I have seen
folly in the prophets of
Samaria
; they prophesied in Baal, and caused My people
Israel
to err. I have seen also in the prophets of
Jerusalem
an horrible thing: they commit adultery, and walk in lies: they
strengthen also the hands of evildoers, that none doth return from
his wickedness: they are all of them unto Me as
Sodom
, and the inhabitants of
Gomorrah
. Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts concerning the prophets;
Behold, I will feed them wormwood, and make them drink the water of
gall: for from the prophets of
Jerusalem
is profaneness gone forth into all the land.
Jeremiah
is completely overcome by his vision of the evils done by the
prophets and the false prophecies they have proclaimed, and because
of the word of the LORD against them and the people because of these
evils. He says that the land is full of adulterers. No doubt there
was much adultery in the land, for that was sometimes a part of the
ritual of worshipping some of the idols after which
Judah
had gone. However, what is mostly under consideration is their
leaving the LORD, and worshipping idols, whether actual physical
adultery was committed, or not. Also “the land mourneth because of
swearing.” This could refer to the excessive use of profanity
among the people, or it might be a reference to their constant
swearing of allegiance to these idols, possibly both. At any rate,
it has corrupted the whole land so that to him it seems that all the
pleasant places of even the wilderness have been destroyed. Their
whole course is evil, and their force is not directed in the right
way. The problem is not to be laid only upon the prophets, nor only
on the priests, but upon both. For the LORD declares that He has
found their wickedness in His house. Because of this He will make
their way “as slippery ways in the darkness.” A slippery way is
hard enough to follow even with plenty of light; so in a slippery
way in the darkness they cannot hope to stand. Consequently they
will certainly fall, because the LORD will Himself bring evil upon
them. He declares that He has seen the folly of not only the
prophets of
Samaria
whom He has already sent into captivity, but also that of the
prophets of
Jerusalem
. They have done such evil that He considers them as
Sodom
and
Gomorrah
. And everyone knows what He did to those cities. So far as those
prophets are concerned, He will “feed them with wormwood, and make
them drink the water of gall,” two of the most bitter things
known. Because it is from these prophets that profaneness has gone
forth into all the land.”
(Verses
16 through 22) Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Hearken not unto the
prophets that prophesy unto you: they make you vain: they speak a
vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the LORD.
They say still unto them that despise Me, The LORD hath said, Ye
shall have peace; and they say unto every one that walketh after the
imagination of his own heart, No evil shall come upon you. For who
hath stood in the counsel of the LORD, and hath perceived and heard
His word? Who hath marked His word, and heard it? Behold, a
whirlwind of the LORD is gone forth in fury, even a grievous
whirlwind: it shall fall grievously upon the head of the wicked. The
anger of the LORD shall not return, until He have executed, and till
he have performed the thoughts of His heart: in the latter days ye
shall consider it perfectly. I have not sent these prophets, yet
they ran: I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied. But if
they had stood in My counsel, and had caused My people to hear My
words, then they should have turned them from their evil way, and
from the evil of their doings.
Here
the LORD commands the people to stop listening to the prophets that
have been prophesying to them, because they are prophesying only
their own imagination, and not His word. None of them has ever
“stood in His counsel,” or even heard His word. They could not
have heard Him, because He has not spoken to them, and neither has
He sent them. Yet they ran, and prophesied. Therefore the LORD is
sending forth His anger against them, and it shall not return until
it has accomplished his purpose. “In the latter days ye shall
consider it perfectly.” After His anger has accomplished his
purpose they will thoroughly consider it, and understand it. If
these prophets had stood in the counsel of the LORD, and had spoken
His word truthfully to the people, they would not now be in the
terrible condition in which they are. They would have turned away
“from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings.
(Verses
23 through 29) Am I a God at hand, saith the LORD, and not a GOD
afar off? Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see
him? saith the LORD. I have heard what the Prophets said, that
prophesy lies in My name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed.
How long shall this be in the heart of the prophets that prophesy
lies? yea, they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart; which
think to cause My people to forget My name by their dreams which
they tell every man to his neighbor, as their fathers have forgotten
My name for Baal. The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a
dream; and he that hath My word, let him speak My word faithfully.
What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the LORD. Is not My word like
fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in
pieces?
This
text is filled with very important questions. The first is one that,
evidently, these prophets had never considered. Or, if they had,
they had come up with the wrong answer. “’Am I a God at hand,’
saith the LORD, ‘and not a God afar off.’” There can be no
doubt that He is just as powerful afar off as He is at hand. He is
the great GOD Who created the heaven and the earth, together with
everything in both. In reality, He is never afar off, but is great
enough to be present everywhere at the same time. So, certainly none
can hide in a place so secret that He cannot see him. He then says
that He has heard the prophets that are prophesying lies in His
name. They dream something, and declare that it is the word of the
LORD, when the LORD has not spoken. They are only prophesying the
deceit of their own hearts. They have been so long turned after Baal
that they have even forgotten the name of the LORD. So His word to
them is, “The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream; and
he that hath My word, let him speak My word faithfully. What is the
chaff to the wheat?” When wheat is threshed, the whole purpose is
to separate the chaff from the wheat, because the chaff is
worthless. The analogy is that the word of the LORD, like the wheat,
is valuable, and should be carefully cared for, while the dream,
being only a dream, is worthless like the chaff, and should be
discarded. Then He asks, “Is not My word like a fire? - - - and
like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?” Surely it is. It is
by His word that He created all things; and it is by His word that
He will bring all things to their purposed end. So it is time to lay
aside the dreams of men, and listen to the word of God.
(Verses
30 through 32) Therefore behold, I am against the prophets, saith
the LORD, that steal My words every one from his neighbour. Behold,
I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that use their tongues,
and say, He saith. Behold, I am against them that prophesy false
dreams, saith the LORD, and do tell them, and cause My people to err
by their lies, and by their lightness; yet I sent them not, nor
commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all,
saith the LORD.
The
LORD continues to declare His opposition to the prophets, and to
give His reasons for such. When He says that they “steal My words
every one from his neighbor,” He does not mean that He has given
His word to some, and others steal it; but that a prophet will from
his own evil heart speak something, and others will declare it to be
the word of the LORD, which it is not, but the people think they
have heard the LORD’S word, when it is only someone’s
imagination. He is against such, and those who practice it. These
prophets are only telling their dreams, and passing them off to the
people as the word of God. That same evil seems to be very common
today. Now, as then, it causes His people to err. He declares that
such shall not profit this people. And certainly it will not profit
us today.
(Verses
33 through 36) And when this people, or the prophet, or the priest,
shall ask thee saying, What is the burden of the LORD? thou shalt
then say unto him, What burden? I will even forsake you, saith the
LORD. And as for the prophet, and the priest, and the people, that
shall say, The burden of the LORD, I will even punish that man and
his house. Thus shall ye say every one to his neighbour, and every
one to his brother, What hath the LORD answered? and, What hath the
LORD spoken? And the burden of the LORD shall ye mention no more:
for every man’s word shall be his burden; for ye have perverted
the words of the living God, of the LORD of hosts our God.
We
notice, in some of the writings of the prophets, the expression,
“the burden of the LORD,” is often used. And, evidently, it was
much in use by the prophets of
Judah
in their prophesying, although their prophecies were not the word of
the LORD, but their own imagination. So the LORD says that this
expression is to be used no more, whether by a prophet, by a priest,
or by the common people. Whatever a man says will be his own burden,
and not chargeable to the LORD. If one wishes to know the word of
the LORD, he is to ask, “What hath the LORD answered?” or
“What hath the LORD spoken?” They have been perverting the word
of the LORD by their habit of saying, “The word of the LORD,”
when it is only the dream of a man.
(Verses
37 through 40) Thus shalt thou say to the prophet, What hath the
LORD answered thee? and What hath the LORD spoken? But since ye say,
The burden of the LORD; therefore thus saith the LORD; Because ye
say this word, The burden of the LORD, and I have sent unto you,
saying, Ye shall not say, The burden of the LORD; therefore, behold,
I, even I, will utterly forget you, and I will forsake you, and the
city that I gave to you and your fathers, and cast you out of My
presence: and I will bring an everlasting reproach upon you, and a
perpetual shame, which shall not be forgotten.
This
may to some seem a very little thing to cause the LORD to place such
condemnation upon those guilty of continuing this practice. But the
principle of it is just as great as that of refusing to obey His
commandment, “Thou shalt not kill.” The principle is that He has
commanded them to stop using this expression; and they have
dishonored Him by refusing to obey His command. It brings to mind
something that we find in The New Testament. (James 4:13-17) “Go
to now, ye that say, Today or tomorrow we will go into such a city,
and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: whereas
ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It
is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and them
vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the LORD will, we shall
live, and do this, or that. But now ye rejoice in your boastings:
all such rejoicing is evil. Therefore to him that knoweth to do
good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.” Just as James has
warned us to remember always to say, “If the Lord will, we shall
live, and do this, or that,” and follows that with the reminder
that “to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it
is sin,” So the LORD has warned these people to stop saying,
“The burden of the LORD,” and He has told them the consequence
of their sin of not doing what He has commanded. Both of these
things are, of themselves, little. But when they are the
commandments of the LORD, both become very great. And they carry
great consequences. He says to the people of
Judah
, “Therefore, behold, I, even I, will utterly forget you, and I
will forsake you, and the city that I gave unto you and your
fathers, and cast you out of My presence: and I will bring an
everlasting reproach upon you, and a perpetual shame, which shall
not be forgotten.” What greater punishment could be pronounced
upon them?
Chapter
24
(Verses
1 through 3) The LORD shewed me, and, behold, two baskets of figs
were set before the temple of the LORD, after that Nebuchadrezzar
king of Babylon had carried away Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim king
of Judah, and the princes of Judah, with the carpenters and smiths
from Jerusalem, and brought them to Babylon. One basket had very
good figs, even like the figs that are first ripe: and the other
basket had very naughty figs, which could not be eaten, they were so
bad. Then said the LORD unto me, What seest thou Jeremiah? And I
said, Figs; the good figs, very good; and the evil, very evil, that
cannot be eaten, they are so evil.
All
the inhabitants of
Jerusalem
were not taken away captive at the same time. One group of them were
taken along with Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim the king of
Judah
. And it was some time before the others were taken. After those
with Jeconiah were taken, the LORD showed Jeremiah a vision of two
baskets of figs set before the temple of the LORD. This was done to
show him what the LORD had purposed concerning the people of
Jerusalem
. One of these baskets was filled with very good figs, as if they
were the firstripe fruit. But the other basket had no good figs at
all. Instead, they were so bad that they were not fit to be eaten.
When the LORD asked Jeremiah what he saw, he answered, “Figs; the
good figs, very good; and the evil, very evil, that cannot be eaten,
they are so evil.” This prepares us for the message the LORD is
about to give to Jeremiah.
(Verses
4 through 7) Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Thus
saith the LORD, the God of Israel, Like these good figs, so will I
acknowledge them that are carried away captive of Judah, whom I have
sent out of this place into the hands of the Chaldeans for their
good. For I will set Mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring
them again to this land: and I will build them, and not pull them
down; and I will plant them, and not pluck them up. And I will give
them an heart to know Me, that I am the LORD: and they shall be My
people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto Me with
their whole heart.
Many
people do not like the doctrine that the election of God is based
solely upon Himself, and no other. But in this chapter it is set
forth as clearly as it is possible to say it.
No doubt, the people that were left in
Judah
after these were carried away, for a while thought themselves far
better off than those who were carried away. But the LORD declares
that He had these carried away for their own good. It is evident
that they were no better than those who were left. For the LORD
says, “And I will give them an heart to know Me, that I am the
LORD,” signifying that at the time of their being carried away
they had no such heart. Their heart was just as evil as that of
their brethren who were left in
Judah
. But the LORD declared that not only would He give them a heart to
know him, but he would also set His eyes upon them for good, that He
would bring them again to
Judah
, that He would build them up, and not pull them down, and that he
would plant them, and not pluck them up. None of this is predicated
upon anything that they might do, but only upon His word. He also
declares that they shall be His people, and he will be their God.
And they shall return to him with their whole heart. He will bring
all this about, with no conditions set forth for them to fulfill.
All these things are works that He will do. Thus they will be as the
good figs.
(Verses
8 through 10) And as the evil figs, which cannot be eaten, they are
so evil; surely thus saith the LORD, So will I give Zedekiah the
king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem, that
remain in this land, and them that dwell in the land of Egypt: and I
will deliver them to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth
for their hurt, to be a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse,
in all places whither I shall drive them. And I will send the sword,
the famine, and the pestilence, among them, till they be consumed
from off the land that I gave unto them and to their fathers.
This
is the other side of the situation. Just as the LORD made choice of
those already carried away to
Babylon
, that He might do them good, so He had determined that those still
in the land, and even those who had fled to
Egypt
, should be scattered into all the nations of the earth, for their
hurt. He would cause them to be a reproach, a proverb, a taunt, and
a curse, in all the places whither He would drive them. Then, to cap
the matter, He would send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence,
to completely destroy them from the land He had given to them and
their fathers.
Chapter
25
(Verses
1 through 7)The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people
of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of
Judah, that was the first year of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon;
the which Jeremiah the prophet spake unto all the inhabitants of
Judah, and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, From the
thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, even unto
this day, that is the three and twentieth year, the word of the LORD
hath come unto me, and I have spoken unto you, rising early and
speaking; but ye have not hearkened. And the LORD hath sent unto you
all His servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them; but
ye have not hearkened, nor inclined your ear to hear. They said,
Turn ye again every one from his evil way, and from the evil of your
goings, and dwell in the land that the LORD hath given unto you and
to your fathers for ever and ever: and go not after other gods to
serve them, and to worship them, and provoke Me to anger with the
works of your hands; and I will do you no hurt. Yet ye have not
hearkened unto Me, saith the LORD; that ye might provoke Me to anger
with the works of your hands to your own hurt.
It
may be a little difficult to keep track of the chronology of the
various visions Jeremiah was given, unless care is taken to notice
Jeremiah’s own statements concerning it. At the beginning of this
book, in Chapter 1, verses 2 and 3, he told us that “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. It came also in the days of
Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the eleventh year of
Zedekiah the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the carrying away of
Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.” We have, in Chapter 21,
found some things that were in the time of Zedekiah. Then, in
Chapter 24, the word of the LORD comes after the carrying away of
Jeconiah, and those that were taken with him. Now he takes us back
to the beginning of the coming of the word of the LORD to him, and
brings us down to what was the present with him, which was ten years
later than the beginning. All this time, as the word of the LORD
came to him, he proclaimed it to the people of
Judah
and
Jerusalem
, warning them to forsake their false gods, and turn to the LORD,
lest they suffer the consequences the LORD declared upon them. Not
only had he proclaimed this message to them, but all the prophets of
the LORD had been sent unto them with this same message. When he
speaks of his “rising up early, to speak to them, and of the
LORD’S “rising up early” to send the prophets, the meaning is
that he had been diligent in speaking the word of the LORD to them,
and the LORD had given diligence to sending the prophets.
Nevertheless, with all this, the people would not give heed to the
word of the LORD, whether delivered by Jeremiah, or one of the other
prophets. So they, by their refusal to hear, and by their evil
works, have provoked the LORD to anger. And this shall be to their
own hurt.
(Verses
8 through 11) Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, Because ye
have not heard My words, Behold, I will send and take all the
families of the north, saith the LORD, and Nebuchadrezzar the king
of Babylon, My servant, and will bring them against this land, and
against the inhabitants thereof, and against all these nations round
about, and will utterly destroy them, and make them an astonishment,
and an hissing, and perpetual desolations. Moreover I will take from
them the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the
bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones,
and the light of the candle. And this whole land shall be a
desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the
king of
Babylon
seventy years.
Now
the LORD speaks, and declares that because of their refusal to hear
His word, He will bring total devastation upon them. He speaks of
Nebuchadrezzar, (or Nebuchadnezzar, as it is sometimes spelled,) as
His servant. This may seem strange to some; but it is a common usage
in the scriptures. When Isaiah was declaring the judgment of God
against
Israel
and
Judah
as He was about to send the Assyrians against them, he quotes the
LORD as saying, “O Assyrian, the rod of Mine anger, and the staff
in their hand is Mine indignation. I will send him against an
hypocritical nation, and against the people of My wrath will I give
him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread
them down like the mire of the streets.” (Isaiah 10:5-6) The LORD
makes use of whomsoever He will, even the wicked, when it suits Him,
to carry out His purpose. Thus even the wicked are His servants in
such matters. The desolation that the LORD will send upon
Judah
will be so great that all the signs of life shall cease in the city.
There will not even be the light of a candle. This desolation shall
continue for a period of seventy years. During that time they shall
serve the king of
Babylon
.
(Verses
12 through 14) And it shall come to pass, when seventy years are
accomplished, that I will punish the king of
Babylon
, and that nation, saith the LORD, for their iniquity, and the land
of the Chaldeans, and will make it perpetual desolations. And I will
bring upon that land all My words which I have pronounced against
it, even all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah hath
prophesied against all the nations. For many nations and great kings
shall serve themselves of them also: and I will recompense them
according to their deeds, and according to the works of their own
hands.
Here
the LORD declares that the duration of the Babylonian captivity
shall be seventy years. And history bears witness that it did last
that long. This pertains to “the good figs” of Chapter 24, those
who were taken to
Babylon
. It does not, necessarily, apply to “the evil figs, which cannot
be eaten, they are so evil.” The LORD said He would remove them
into all the nations of the world, and would destroy them with the
sword, the pestilence, and the famine. When the seventy years have
been finished, the LORD will bring punishment on the very ones He
has used to bring chastisement upon
Judah
. All the evils that are written in this book against
Judah
and
Jerusalem
shall be turned loose upon the Babylonians and the Chaldeans to
destroy them. In Verse 14 he says that those nations who have served
themselves of them (the captives from
Judah
) shall be recompensed according to their deeds and the works of
their hands.
(Verses
15 through 26) For thus saith the LORD God of
Israel
unto me; Take the wine cup of this fury at my hand, and cause all
the nations, to whom I send thee, to drink it. And they shall drink,
and be moved, and be mad, because of the sword that I will send
among them. Then took I the cup at the LORD’S hand, and made all
the nations to drink, unto whom the LORD had sent me. To wit,
Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, and the kings thereof, and the
princes thereof, to make them a desolation, an astonishment, an
hissing, and a curse; as it is this day; Pharaoh king of Egypt, and
his servants, and his princes, and his people; and all the mingled
people, and all the kings of the land of Uz, and all the kings of
the land of the Philistines, and Ashkelon, and Azzah, and Ekron, and
the remnant of Ashdod, Edom, and Moab, and the children of Ammon,
and all the kings of Tyrus, and all the kings of Zidon, and the
kings of the isles that are beyond the sea, Dedan, and Tema, and Buz,
and all that are in the utmost corners, and all the kings of Arabia,
and all the kings of the mingled people that dwell in the desert,
and all the kings of Zimri, and all the kings of Elam, and all the
kings of the Medes, and all the kings of the north, far and near,
one with another, and all the kingdoms of the world, which are upon
the face of the earth: and the king of Sheshach shall drink after
them.
In
Jeremiah’s vision, the LORD gave him a cup filled with the wine of
His fury, and ordered him to present it to the kings, princes, and
people of all the nations of the world, and commanded him to make
them drink of it. This is to signify that He, the LORD, will bring
all nations to judgment and desolation. This, without question,
looks forward to the great battle of Armageddon as shown in
Revelation 16:13-16, when all nations of the world shall be gathered
to that great battle. In that day the LORD shall bring all nations
to desolation. Apparently, the purpose of giving all the names of
the peoples and nations is to show that this does indeed cover all
the earth.
(Verses
27 through 31) Therefore thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the
LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Drink ye, and be drunken, and spue,
and fall, and rise no more, because of the sword which I will send
among you. And it shall be, if they refuse to take the cup at thine
hand to drink, then shalt thou say unto them, Thus saith the LORD of
hosts; ye shall certainly drink. For, lo, I begin to bring evil on
the city which is called by My name, and should ye be utterly
unpunished? Ye shall not be unpunished: for I will call for a sword
upon all the inhabitants of the earth, saith the LORD of hosts.
Therefore prophesy thou against them all these words, and say unto
them, The LORD shall roar from on high, and utter His voice from His
holy habitation; He shall mightily roar upon His habitation; He
shall give a shout, as they that tread the grapes, against all the
inhabitants of the earth. A noise shall come even to the ends of the
earth; for the LORD hath a controversy with the nations, He will
plead with all flesh; He will give them that are wicked to the
sword, saith the LORD.
The
LORD declares that if anyone of these refuse to drink of the wine of
His fury, it will be of no avail. He will be forced to drink it. He
asks if these nations are to escape punishment, after He has already
initiated punishment against the city that is called by His name.
The answer is that they certainly shall not escape, for He will call
for a sword upon all the inhabitants of the earth. Verse 30 seems to
be a reference to the treading of the winepress of the wrath of God
as mentioned in Revelation 14:20, and Isaiah 63:1-6. when, in verse
31, He says, “He will plead with all flesh,” it is not to be
thought that He will “beg” anyone to do anything, as we
sometimes understand to be the meaning of “plead.” Rather it
will be as explained in the last segment of that verse. “He will
give them that are wicked to the sword.”
(Verses
32 and 33) Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Behold, evil shall go forth
from nation to nation, and a great whirlwind shall be raised up from
the coasts of the earth. And the slain of the LORD shall be at that
day from one end of the earth even to the other end of the earth:
they shall not be lamented, neither gathered, nor buried; they shall
be dung upon the ground.
This
text seems to be clear enough without any explanation. In that day
it will be as if a great tornado, or hurricane covered the earth.
And the slain will be from one end of the earth to the other, with
none left to either lament the dead, or to gather them, and bury
them.
(Verses
34 through 38) Howl, ye shepherds, and cry; and wallow yourselves in
the ashes, ye principal of the flock: for the days of your slaughter
and of your dispersions are accomplished; and ye shall fall like a
pleasant vessel. And the shepherds shall have no way to flee, nor
the principal of the flock to escape. A voice of the cry of the
shepherds, and an howling of the principal of the flock, shall be
heard: for the LORD hath spoiled their pasture. And the peaceable
habitations are cut down because of the fierce anger of the LORD. He
hath forsaken His covert, as the lion: for their land is desolate
because of the fierceness of the oppressor, and because of His
fierce anger.
The
LORD speaks of the people as a flock of sheep, and their prophets
and priests as shepherds. He calls upon these shepherds, and the
principal of the flock, their leaders, to howl, to cry, and to
wallow themselves in the ashes for their sorrow, because the time
that had been given them before their slaughter and dispersion has
run out. There will be no more delay. The shepherds will have no way
to flee, and none can escape The LORD has spoiled their pasture.
This destruction is from Him. His anger has destroyed their
peaceable habitations. Just as a lion leaves his covert, and stalks
his prey, so has the LORD come forth in His anger to make the land
desolate.
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