COMMENTARIES
ON
THE
BOOK OF THE PROPHET
JEREMIAH
AND
THE
LAMENTATIONS
BY JOHN
CALVIN
TRANSLATED FROM THE LATIN,
AND EDITED
BY THE REV. JOHN
OWEN,
VICAR OF THRUSSINGTON,
LEICESTERSHIRE
VOLUME
FIRST
The Commentaries On Jeremiah, like those on The Minor
Prophets, were delivered as Lectures In The Theological School At Geneva, taken
down by some of the Pupils, and afterwards read to Calvin, and corrected. We
find in them the production of the same vigorous and expansive mind: The Divine
Oracles are faithfully explained, the meaning is clearly stated, and such brief
deductions are made as the subjects legitimately warrant. Though the Lectures
were extemporaneously delivered, there is yet so much order preserved, and such
brevity, clearness, and suitableness of diction are found in them, that in these
respects they nearly equal the most finished compositions of Calvin as proof
that he possessed a mind of no common order.
The
Ministry Of Jeremiah extended over a large space of time from the thirteenth
year of Josiah's reign till after the final overthrow of the nation; but for how
long after that period, it is not
known.
fA1 Between the thirteenth year of Josiah and
the destruction of the city and Temple, there were about forty years.
This was a remarkable period, and Jeremiah nearly alone labored among the
people. Their sins had been for the most part the same for a long time —
for nearly two centuries, as it appears from the testimonies of his
predecessors, Amos, Hosea, Isaiah, Joel, Micah, Nahum, and Zephaniah; for these
seven had in this order preceded him. Zephaniah And Habakkuk were
probably for a time his contemporaries, the first at the commencement, and the
other near the end of his ministry. The contumacy with which Jeremiah often
charged the Jews was here evident, as they continued in their evil courses after
so many urgent remonstrances by the former
Prophets.
What an example of blindness and of
the power of superstition does the history of the Jews at this period exhibit!
No past nor present calamities, and no threatenings of still greater calamities,
and no promises of Divine favor and of temporal blessings, were sufficient to
keep them from idolatrous and immoral practices — and such practices, too,
as were plainly and explicitly condemned by that very Law which they
professed to receive! Such inconsistency might have been deemed impossible, had
it not been exemplified in the Jews: but it is an inconsistency which is still
exhibited in the conduct of many calling themselves
Christians.
As to The Style Of Jeremiah, the
opinion of the accurate and elegant Lowth is as
follows:
"Jeremiah, though not wanting either in
elegance or sublimity, is yet in both inferior to Isaiah. Jerome seems to charge
him with some measure of rusticity as to his expressions; but of this, I truly
confess, I have found no traces. In thoughts, indeed, he is somewhat less
elevated, being for the most part more loose and diffuse in his sentences, as
one more conversant with the more tender feelings, being especially capable of
expressing sorrow and sympathy. This, indeed, appears mainly in The
Lamentations, where these feelings alone predominate; but it is also often found
in his Prophecies, and particularly in the first part of his Book, which is
chiefly poetical. The middle part is nearly all historical; and the last,
consisting of six chapters, is altogether poetical, and contains several oracles
plainly expressed, in which the Prophet nearly approaches the sublimity of
Isaiah. But of the whole Book of Jeremiah, hardly the half do I consider to be
poetical." — Proel, 21.
Venema
mainly agrees with Lowth: he blames Jerome for ascribing
rusticity of diction to our Prophet, and says that he was no good judge
(peritus Judex) of such matters. Speaking of Jeremiah's style, he
says, "His diction is not so lofty and sublime as that of Isaiah, though in the
six last chapters, 46-51., it seems to me to be nearly equal to it, being no
less pure, expressive, and copious, besprinkled also with tropes and metaphors
as with lights, and fitted to move the feelings and to stimulate the heart to
repentance, for which it was designed. The Lamentations alone are sufficient to
defend Jeremiah against the charge of ignorance and rusticity; for antiquity, as
Sanctums rightly observes, has nothing more grave, more harmonious, more
expressive." Com. ad Jer., p.
8.
"He is admirably pathetic," says Scott;
"his descriptions of approaching judgments are peculiarly vivid; and his
eloquence is very vigorous and impressive, when inveighing against the shameless
audacity of the people in rebellion against
God."
Of Jeremiah as a Prophet, Henry
mentions these particulars: 1. That he was made a Prophet when young;-2.
That he continued long a Prophet;-3. That he was a reproving Prophet;-4. That he
was a weeping Prophet; — and, 5. That he was a suffering Prophet, having
been persecuted by his own nation more than any
other.
There are several references in the New
Testament to Jeremiah and to his writings. See
<400217>Matthew
2:17, 18;
<401614>Matthew
16:14;
<580808>Hebrews
8:8-13;
<581015>Hebrews
10:15-17. "These last references, "observes Scott, "are peculiarly
important; for in one of them God himself is mentioned as speaking the words
referred to; and in the other it is said, 'Whereof the Holy Ghost is a witness
to us.' This is decisive, as to the judgment of the inspired Apostles,
respecting the Book on which we now enter, and is peculiarly suited to put us on
our guard against those professed friends of the Scriptures, who speak of these
books as venerable, authentic, or genuine remains of antiquity, of great value
and high authority, but hesitate to vindicate them as divinely inspired."
Pref. to Jer.
Nothing is with any
certainty known as having been written by Jeremiah, except this Book and the
Lamentations. Ascribed to him has been a funeral song on the death of Josiah,
(<143525>2
Chronicles 35:25) which, Josephus says, was extant in his day. It has
been also said by some that he wrote the 137th Psalm (Psalm 137), and in
connection with Ezekiel, the 46th Psalm (Psalm 46). His Letter to the captives
in Babylon in the Apocrypha, appended to the book of Barite, is no doubt
spurious: its style is very different from that of
Jeremiah.
It is universally admitted that the
Chapters in this Book are not in their right order. How this has happened, none
have been able to conjecture; but the fact is evident. According to Blayney,
whose account seems correct, the twelve first chapters contain prophecies
delivered in the reign of Josiah. Those in the thirteenth, and in the following
chapters to the twentieth inclusively, were delivered in the reign of Jehoiakim.
Now begins the disorder; the twenty — first contains what was spoken in
the time of Zedekiah, the last king: and afterwards we have what was delivered
in a former reign. The kings of Judah, during Jeremiah's ministry, were these:
Josiah; Shallum or Jehoahaz, his second son; Jehoiakim, his eldest son;
Jeconiah, the son of Jehoiakim; and Zedekiah, the youngest son of Josiah.
Blayney thinks that no prophecies were delivered in the reigns of Shallum
and of Jeconiah. Then his classification may be stated as follows:-During the
reign
of
Josiah,
were delivered, chapters 1-12,
inclusively.
Shallum,
none.
Jehoiakim,
chapters 13-20, inclusively, 22, 23, 25, 26, 35, 36, 45, 46, 47, 48, and 49 to
verse 33
inclusively.
Jeconiah,
none.
Zedekiah,
chapters 21, 24, 27 -34, 37-39, 49: from verse 34 to the end, 1, and
51.
The 40-44, inclusively, were written after
the destruction of Jerusalem and the captivity of the people; and the 52, the
last, during the same time, or as it is commonly supposed, by Ezra; it is an
epitome of the progressive and final overthrow of the
kingdom.
There were several circumstances worthy
of notice, with regard to The Jews, during the ministry of
Jeremiah:
1. The means which God
employed to lead them to repentance, and to a reformation of their conduct, both
as to religion and morals: he gave them a pious and a reforming king in Josiah;
the Book of the Law was providentially discovered and widely made known; a
reformation was carried on according to its requirements, while idolatrous
practices were in a great measure put an end to; the people had also before
their eyes the awful judgment of God on their brethren, The Israelites, in
banishing them from their country; and the powerful preaching of Jeremiah
sounded in their ears.
2. The manifest
evidences of God's displeasure: their good king, Josiah, was suddenly
taken from them, no doubt as a judgment for their ingratitude; his successor,
Suallum, was, after three months' reign, taken prisoner by the Egyptians, and
the country was put under tribute; the country was visited with grievous famine,
as recorded in chap. 14.; and Jeremiah, by God's command, denounced on them the
punishment of an entire extinction as a
nation.
3. The extremely corrupted
state of the people: they were both most idolatrous and most immoral,
unfaithful to God and to man in a degree hardly credible. During Josiah's reign
they pretended to cast away their gross superstitions, but after his death they
returned to them, as it were, with increased avidity; and with these
superstitions was combined the prostration of every moral principle, and of
every natural feeling. Superstition ever destroys morality, and enfeebles all
the social and natural sympathies of men. What a picture of the effects of
superstition is given by Jeremiah in chapter
9!
4. Notwithstanding this extremely
degenerated state of things, The Jews harbored the conviction that their
ruin, as denounced by Jeremiah, was impossible. While practically denying God,
they yet rested their confidence on his promises respecting the perpetuity of
David's kingdom, and on their outward privileges; taking as unconditional what
was conditional, and regarding the mere possession of divine institutions as a
sufficient security. And in this vain confidence they were encouraged and
confirmed by false Prophets and corrupt Priests, in opposition to God's messages
by his Prophet Jeremiah, and to the plain declarations of that Law, the
authority of which they still ostensibly
acknowledged!
These things have been recorded
for our instruction.
Some of Jeremiah's
Prophecies were fulfilled in the days of many of those who heard them; such as
those which refer to the Captivity of the people, and to the destruction of the
neighboring nations by the king of Babylon. Other prophecies extend farther, to
times more remote, to the destruction of Babylon, to the restoration of the Jews
after the term of seventy years, and to the destinies of various nations. There
are also Prophecies respecting The Messiah, as The Lord Our Righteousness, The
Evangelical Covenant, The Call of the Gentiles, and final Restoration of The
Jews. So that there are in this Book some Prophecies which were soon fulfilled,
others at a more distant time, and some which are still to be fulfilled. Who but
GOD, the Sole and the Supreme Ruler of the world, and the regulator and disposer
of all events, could have announced such Prophecies? All those which refer to
the past have been fulfilled, fully and completely; and with no less certainty
shall all such as refer to what is future be in due time fulfilled. Nothing can
intercept the exercise of Divine Faithfulness; nothing can obstruct the working
of Infinite Power.
Facsimile copies of the old
Latin, French, and English title — pages follow this Preface, with a
reprint of the Dedication by Clement Cotton to the Countess Of Bedford, prefixed
to his English Translation of 1620.
J.
O.
Thrussington, September
1850.
TO THE
NOBLE
AND VERTVOVS
LADY,
THE LADY LVCIE,
COVNTESSE
of Bedford:And to the Right
Honorable and highly honored Lady, the Lady Anne Harrington,
Barrones:mercy
and peace be
multiplied.
Right Honorable: The holy Prophet Jeremiah
(according to the diuers subjects he had to work upon in his ministerial
function) is forced sometimes, with Isaiah his forerunner, to lift up his
voice like unto a Sonne of Thunder;
(<235801>Isaiah
58:1) and eftsoones, with the same Prophet againe, to altar and change the same
into the still and soft voice of a Sonne of Consolation:
(<111920>1
Kings 19:20) wherein, as God's faithful messenger, hee carries himself
faithfully: For as a Sonne of Thunder, he sharply inueyes against the
sinnes and sinners of his time, boldly denouncing God's judgements against them;
and as a Sonne of Consolation, (for their sakes whom the Lord had
appointed to bee heires of sahation,) hee sweetly preacheth Christ, mixing often
with the terrible threats of the Law the sauing promises of the Gospel; that if
any came, by the ministry of the one, to be pricked in conscience and humbled,
(<440237>Acts
2:37) he readily, like the good Samaritan, powreth in the mollifying and healing
oyle of the other to cure and reuiue them. And thus, as a wise disposer and
dispenser of the manifold secrets of God,
(<19A101>Psalm
101:1) his song (in a manner) throughout his Prophesy (like Aaron's Bels
—
<022833>Exodus
28:33) soundeth forth judgement and mercy; preaching judgement to such as were
and would be sinners in Sion,
(<233314>Isaiah
33:14) and mercy to such as he saw to be mourners in Sion.
(<236103>Isaiah
61:3). In which respects he may serue as a liuely patterne for all Preachers to
follow in their ordinary course of preaching. These Sermons of his (many of
them) doe notably sute to our times; and therefore ought to be read, and read
againe, of all estates high and low.
But for as
much as in reading the Prophets sundry difficulties are met withall, which euery
one hath not the skill of himself to dissolue, it would (as I think) be very
beneficial for such if they had an holy helper, such an one as this, ready at
hand: An interpreter; One (indeed) of a thousand,
(<183323>Job
33:23) that might help to dissolve their doubts, and unloose their hard
knots for them; that so understanding what they read, they might (by the
blessing of God) with the more ease come to profit by their reading. This hath
our Philip
(<440834>Acts
8:34-35) faithfully performed (according to that light of understanding
wherewith the Lord had extraordinarily endowed him) throughout the Prophets; and
pity it is that so great light should after a sort he buried in darkness from
many well minded Christians, onely because they are not (as they might be)
turned into our owne natiue language.
Not many
yeeres since, a Lampe (if I may so speake) began to be kindled, for giuing them
some insight into the harder passages of the Prophets, by translating this
Author's Commentaries vpon the Prophecie of Isaiah into English; but much
more cleere would the light haue now shined if thereunto had been added the
translation of all his Lectures vpon the Prophesie of Ieremiah also. For
mine owne part, seeing sufficiency of oyle hath failed me to furnish out this
second Lampe vnto the end, I haue for the present proceeded onely through the
flue first Chapters.
The which (Right Honorable)
as a testimony of that seruice and duty I owe your Honors, I have presumed (as
one ouertaken with Ahimaaz his hast, sorewhat abruptly, I confesse) to
dedicate vnto you: And if in token of your favorable acceptance thereof you
shall be pleased to suffer the same to passe vnder your Honorable names and
patronage, many may be occasioned thereby to blesse God for you, and my selfe
still to pray, that the blessing of him who was ready to perish may come vpon
you.
Your Honor's
humbly
at
commandment,
CLEMENT
COTTON.
TO
THE
MOST ILLUSTRIOUS
PRINCE,
D.
FREDERICK,
LORD PALATINE OF THE RHINE, AND
ELECTOR OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE,
ETC.,
AND HIS MOST
BENEVOLENT LORD,
JOHN
CALVIN
WISHES ALL
HAPPINESS.
As your heroic valor, Most Illustrious Prince, has
been acknowledged by superior men and competent judges, and especially your
singular piety, your labor to cherish and to promote true Religion, and uniform
moderation through life; and also your great courtesy, such as can hardly be
found in a private individual, and which I have not only known by report, but
have also myself experienced, I have long wished by some public act to testify
to posterity the high regard I entertain for you, being not satisfied with
having it only in secret. This is well known to the noble — minded Edward,
the Count or Espach, whom I have consulted on the
subject.
But to discharge this duty at this
time, not only an opportunity seems to be offered to me, but a certain necessity
appears to constrain me; for, as you have reverently embraced the sound and
orthodox doctrine concerning the Holy Supper of Christ, and have not hesitated
freely and wisely to avow the same in your dominion, so turbulent and
unreasonable men rage against you, as though you had upset all Germany! Hence
they rush headlong to assail your Highness with violent clamors; and as they
cannot prevail by authority and power, being full of presumption and insolence,
they hesitate not to vomit forth their curses, of which men in their right mind
would be ashamed; and not only so, but as it is not in their power to kill you,
they fabricate shameful rumors respecting your death, as though a plot of flies
were sufficient to darken the sun. And you, indeed, Most Illustrious Prince,
according to the magnanimity of your mind, and in accordance with the high
dignity in which God has placed you, do altogether disregard their mad conduct;
but as they so busily labor to provoke you, and at the same time bring in my
name to create an ill — will to you, I have thought it my duty, in
refuting these calumnies, to set up as a shield against them the very name which
they wish to make so odious; for certainly they are wholly unworthy that your
Highness should raise your little finger against them, or utter the smallest
word. Were I indeed disposed to expostulate with them on account of their
madness in hating so much a man who has done something for the Church of God,
and of whose labors they avail themselves with the unlearned, though they
acknowledge it not, they would have no plea for their ingratitude. While, then,
they endeavor, by bringing forward Calvinism, to affix to your Highness some
mark of infamy, they do nothing more than betray their own perversity, and also
their folly and disgrace. But if they think that they gain something among those
who are like themselves, my voice, on the other hand, in speaking of your just
praises, will, I hope, be attended to by the godly, the well — informed,
and men of calm minds and sound
judgment.
Unprincipled men of this character do
indeed pretend and loudly exclaim that they fight for God and their country; but
whether it be so, it is easy for any one to judge: and I will not indeed discuss
at large their delirious notions, as the greater part of them understand not
what they vainly talk; I will only touch briefly on the main points in which we
differ from their masters, for whom, nevertheless, I have a sincere
regard.
That we really feed in the Holy Supper
on the flesh and blood of Christ, no otherwise than as bread and wine are the
aliments of our bodies, we freely confess. If a clearer explanation is asked, we
say, that the substance of Christ's flesh and blood is our spiritual life, and
that it is communicated to us under the symbols of bread and wine; for Christ,
in instituting the mystery of The Supper, promised nothing falsely, nor mocked
us with a vain shew, but represented by external signs what he has really given
us.
Now the question rests on the mode of
communication; and hence the conflict arises, because we refuse to subscribe to
their fancy respecting a local presence. We say, that though Christ is in
heaven, yet through the hidden and incomprehensible power of his Spirit, this
favor comes to us that His flesh becomes life to us, so that we become flesh of
his flesh and bones of his bones.
(<490530>Ephesians
5:30.) By them, on the contrary, it is maintained, that except Christ comes down
on earth, there is no participation. That they may, however, get rid of the
absurdity of a local presence, it has been found necessary to fabricate the
strange notion of ubiquity; which, if we think it not possible to reconcile to
the principles of faith, we must beg them at least to pardon our ignorance. Here
we follow not our own understanding; but according to the knowledge given us
from above, we cannot comprehend that it is at all agreeable to Scripture to say
that the body of Christ is everywhere. Both Christ himself and His Apostles
clearly shew that the immensity of God does not belong to the flesh; a personal
union is what they teach; and no one, except .Eutyches, has hitherto
taught, that the two natures became so blended, that when Christ became man, the
attributes of Deity were communicated to his human nature. I am not indeed
disposed to raise an odium against them by means of a man who has been
condemned; they are yet to be reminded to think more attentively, and to
consider how contention leads astray even good, learned, and acute men, when
they are led away only by a desire to defend their own cause. Doubtless the best
and the shortest way of confronting Nestorius at the Council of Ephesus
would have been to say, that personal union communicates to two natures what is
peculiar to each: to adduce this no one thought of doing on account of its
absolute absurdity. I therefore greatly wonder that they who oppose us do not
consider into what labyrinth they plunge
themselves.
For if the infinity of God
appertains to the flesh of Christ, because God was manifested in the flesh, with
equal reason His Divinity may be said to have grieved and to have been thirsty,
and to have been subject to death, and, in short, to have died; for they cannot
escape, as it is a similar mode of reasoning. Christ, while yet a mortal,
declared that He knew not when the day of judgment would be. Does He not in
these words clearly and distinctly ascribe something to His human nature which
could not justly be ascribed to His Divinity? What they bring forward as to the
communication of properties, it is unreasonable, and what I may say without
offending them, they mistake in a matter that is very simple and plain; for to
ascribe what is peculiar to Deity to the Son of man, and again to attribute to
Deity what belongs only to humanity, is very improper and rash. To prevent the
ignorant from stumbling by blending together different things, and to take away
from the dishonest any occasion for contending, orthodox writers have called
this figure, "The communication of
properties."
fA2
What they have said of certain
expressions, has been with little thought applied to the subject. While Christ
was on earth he said that the Son of man was in heaven. That no one, ill —
informed, might think Christ's body to be infinite, it has been deemed necessary
to meet this case by a plain admonition, that on account of the unity of person
what is suitable only to Divinity has been said of the Son of man. Paul says, as
it is recorded by Luke, that God redeemed the Church by His own blood.
(<442028>Acts
20:28.) Lest no one may hence conceive that God has blood, the same admonition
ought to be sufficient to untie the knot; for as Christ was man and God, what is
peculiar to His human nature is ascribed to His Divinity. As it was the Father's
design to employ this figure of speech for the purpose of teaching the simple
and ignorant, it is absurd and even shameful to apply it for a different
purpose, and to say that the communication of properties is the real blending of
two natures.
But Christ, it is said, sits at the
Father's right hand, which is to be taken as meaning everywhere, confined within
no limits. I indeed allow that God's right hand is unlimited, and that wherever
it is there is the kingdom of Christ; which is metaphorically represented in
Scripture by the tern sitting: for whatever is declared of God is beyond
controversy to be now ascribed to Christ; and therefore to sit, which means to
govern the world, is what Christ has in common with the Father; and still more,
as the Father by Him sustains the world, rules all things by His power, and
especially manifests the presence of His grace in governing His Church, He may
be said, strictly speaking, to reign in His own person. It hence follows, that
he in a manner is everywhere; for He can be limited to no place who sustains and
protects all parts of heaven and earth, and rules and regulates by His power all
things above and below. When now I name Christ, I include the whole Person of
the only — begotten Son, as manifested in the flesh. He, I say, God and
man, is everywhere as to his authority and incomprehensible power, and infinite
glory, according to what the faithful experience by evident effects, as they
know and feel His presence. It is not then without reason that Paul declares,
that He dwells in us.
(<490317>Ephesians
3:17.) But to distort what is said of His infinite power, which is evident in
His spiritual gifts, in the invisible aid which He affords, and in the whole of
our salvation, and to apply it to His flesh, is by no means reasonable or
consistent.
I wish that many of those who are
with little reason angry with us, were at least to recall to mind that common
and notable saying used in the Papal Schools, "Christ is whole everywhere, but
not altogether."
fA3 They may repeat' it as it is in the
barbarous language of Peter Lombard, which is not pleasant to their
tender and delicate ears. It is yet wisely expressed, from whomsoever it may
have come, and I willingly adopt it. But I wonder whence is this daintiness!
Seeing the Recantation of Berengarius delights Westphalus and
those who are like him that Christ's body is broken by the teeth and digested by
the stomach — why is this sober distinction to be loathed, that Christ our
Mediator is every — where entire, but not as to His flesh, which is
confined within certain limits, while this power is infinite, and its operation
felt on earth as well as in heaven?
There are
two words commonly used, Union (unio) and Unity
(unitas;) the first is applied to the two Natures, and the second
to the Person alone. To assert the unity of the flesh and of Divinity, those
would be ashamed to do, if I am not deceived, who yet inconsiderately adopt this
absurdity; for, except the flesh differs and is distinct in its own peculiar
properties from the Divine nature, they are by blending together become one.
They, cavilling, facetiously ask, "In what region of the empyreal heaven does
Christ sit?" let them indeed enjoy these fine speculations. I am taught by the
Holy Spirit, that He is above all heavens,
(<490410>Ephesians
4:10) according to the common mode of speaking in Scripture, I call whatever is
beyond the world heaven. Hence it is enough for me, when Christ is to be sought,
that our minds are to be raised above, that they may not remain on the earth and
be entangled in gross superstitions.
This, then,
is the sum and substance of the whole controversy, which the chief leaders of
the adverse party too pertinaciously agitate, unless, indeed, we add another
subject that the wicked, as they contend, partake of the flesh and blood of
Christ no less than the true servants of God. And we indeed allow that they are
equally offered to both; and that whatever may be the difference between men,
yet God ever continues like himself the same; and that hence the difference in
those who presumptuously thrust themselves does not arise from the nature of the
sacrament. When, therefore, Christ gives his body to the unworthy, the
difference proceeds from the manner in which it is received. But we deny that
those are capable of receiving Christ whom the devil holds as his slaves, and in
whom he has his habitation. We do not, however, reject the usual mode of
speaking, that Christ is received by them sacramentally, provided absurd
interpreters pervert not the words of Augustine, in which sacramental
eating is said to be the reception of the substance without the grace; but this
is a foolish remark, and unknown to Augustine. The reason they
adduce, as it is weak, may easily be refuted. They say, that Christ came not
only for salvation to the elect, but also for condemnation to the reprobate,
because the Gospel being not received, but rejected, is the savor of death unto
death to those who perish. But who has ever heard that the participation of
Christ produces death? But if Christ be the occasion of condemnation to
unbelievers because He is rejected by them, I see not how it can be that they
procure for themselves condemnation by receiving his flesh. They answer and say,
that they are, nevertheless, closed up so as not to admit His grace. But that
they may gain credit to what they say, they must first prove their strange
notion that those who are alienated from Christ eat His flesh, while it is to
those without life destitute of its own virtue, and
empty.
I have now faithfully and plainly
explained why they who boast themselves to be the followers of Luther so hastily
contend with us at this day. For the same reason they pour forth their
execrations on Phillip Melancthon, now dead, a man who, for his
incomparable knowledge in the highest branches of literature, his deep piety,
and other endowments, deserves to be remembered by all ages, and whom they have
hitherto regarded as their leader: and it is strange, that in order to obtain
the favor of the public, they pretend to adopt that noble Confession Of
Augsburg, of which he was especially the author, and ought to be deemed its true
interpreter. I regard them as turbulent and unprincipled men, who possess no
common courtesy, and feel no shame.
But there
are those who, in this respect, are different, and observe some moderation: and
yet I have a just reason to complain, for some of them have acted so unfairly as
to give my name in what they have published in German, and to withhold it in the
Latin editions. Now this is to curse the
deaf!
But, to omit other things, I revert again
to their violent clamors, which are similar to the clamors of those frantic
zealots, mentioned by Josephus, through whose excesses a cruel war was
kindled, which involved Judea in entire ruin. (De Bell. Jude., lib. 14 et 15.)
They can find nothing more atrocious by which they can irritate your Highness,
Most Illustrious Prince, than the word Calvinism. But whence this bitter hatred
towards me it is not difficult to conjecture. For as they have thought the
shortest way to victory to be by suppressing and concealing the real state of
the case, and by dazzling the eyes of the simple, it is no wonder that they burn
with rage when the clouds of ignorance in which they securely exulted were
dissipated; and what especially drives them even to madness, is the fact, that
they find that the whole subject is fully and really known by you, so that the
doctrine, for which they triumphed while it was unknown, having obtained the
patronage of high authority, and being supported by the pious and strong defense
of a wise Prince, makes a freer progress.
It
would indeed be superfluous to exhort you, who are of yourself sufficiently
disposed, to persevere. That you may, however, disregard their impotency, and
pursue the object so happily as well as judiciously undertaken, it seems not an
useless attempt to confirm you in your course by leaving a pledge of the high
regard I entertain for you. And I thought it no act of ingratitude for your
incredible courtesy to dedicate to your renowned name my Commentaries On
Jeremiah. I indeed confess that it has not been elucidated with that care which
so excellent a Book deserves; for as I delivered the Lectures from the pulpit,
they were taken from my mouth; and I have indeed been before ashamed, that what
might have been more accurately revised and polished by a longer meditation has
come forth to light. I am also afraid lest the malevolent should accuse me of
arrogance, for having obtruded on the public discourses extemporaneous and
unwritten, and designed for a small auditory. It is easy to reply to the latter
charge, for the first volume was sent to press against my will. That I may not,
however, be without excuse, what I have to say is, that I have been led by the
judgment of others. I hear of impartial and plain readers, who declare that they
have received no small benefit from this kind of labor. And further, some think
that a good end may be attained by making known my extempore mode of
teaching, as its simplicity may cure many, who are too anxious of display, of
that vice. Though learning and aptness to teach cannot satisfy all, I have yet
carefully endeavored that Religion and Faith should not be found wanting by the
impartial and well disposed. Nor do I, indeed, fear the charge of arrogance,
when I fully avow, that I would have by no means suffered this Book to go forth
to the public had I not thought that it would be useful and profitable to the
Church of God.
But it may be that some rigid and
severe critics will deem it a present unworthy of your Highness; but relying on
your rare courtesy, Most Illustrious Prince, I hope it will be favorably
accepted. And if Jeremiah himself were now alive on earth, he would add, if I am
not deceived, his recommendation; for he would acknowledge that his Prophecies
have been explained by me not less honestly than reverently; and further, that
they have been usefully accommodated to present circumstances. I feel not,
however, over anxious to find an excuse, provided I know that I have done no
wrong, except through an excessive desire to testify the veneration with which I
regard your Highness.
But, to omit now what I
have slightly mentioned at the beginning, I should condemn myself for
ingratitude, were I not to consider myself under obligations to you for being so
ready and disposed to receive The Christian Exiles who flee to you. It is the
saying of a heathen woman, as mentioned by a poet-
" Being
acquainted with evil, I learn to aid the
miserable."
fA4
Let all who worship God and serve Christ be not
ashamed, under similar circumstances, to be at least of the same mind. As my
power of aiding is not equal to my wish, it becomes me at least to regard every
kindness shewn to them as done to myself. Thirty years have passed away since my
voluntary exile from France, because thence were exiled the truth of the Gospel,
pure Religion, and the true Worship of God. I am now become so inured to my
peregrination, that I feel no desire to return to my country. I am indeed here
so far a stranger, (though once banished, I was yet so recalled, that I never
feel ashamed,) that they deem me no more a foreigner than if I could name my
ancestors as the citizens of this place. But the more kindly God has dealt with
me, the greater concern ought I to feel for my brethren from France as well as
from Flanders: and as they have been received with the same kindness by your
Highness, this stimulates and constrains me to avow my gratitude to one so much
entitled to it.
Nor let it cause you any regret,
Most Illustrious Prince, that you have been sometimes deceived in foreigners,
and indeed in men of our language, but go on in your wonted course of
benevolence. All know how basely you have been deceived by that most audacious
and unprincipled man, at the same time vile, proud, and perfidious-in short, a
monster, made up of a mass of filthy materials, even Francis Baldwin, and
yet a skillful collector of the Civil Law. For having been in The University Of
Heidelberg, and having, under the pretext of the Gospel, been received under
your patronage, and being made a Professor of the Civil Law through your
liberality in The University Of Heidelberg, he ought to have considered himself
as altogether bound by kindness to so munificent a Prince; but he regarded his
elevation as advantageous to him to seek, after his own manner, a new situation.
Hence, as soon as hope appeared, he deserted his station, having despised the
honorable office which he had fraudulently attained, and passed over to the
enemies of true and pure Religion, the name of which he had assumed. And first
indeed (as though he retained some portion of shame) he went on stealthily in a
clandestine manner, he discussed some secret treacheries with The Cardinal of
Lorraine, into whose favor he had insinuated himself. The object of the
whole was to subvert the Churches Of France by means of a spurious doctrine and
a mixture of ceremonies. But as there appeared no reward for masked and hidden
perfidy, he not only rushed headlong into open defection, but so insolently
boasted of his wickedness, that he has surpassed similar apostates in canine
wantonness. It is however well, that the perfidy of one unprincipled man does
not stop the course of your kindness towards others; and you have some
recompense for your perseverance, for among the ornaments of your University are
to be found some foreigners well known for their high character, whom it is
unnecessary for me to name.
Though I can add
nothing to the character of your Highness, either by my praise or by the
dedication of this Work, yet I could not restrain myself from doing what I
thought to be my duty. Farewell, Most Illustrious Prince. May God enrich you
more and more with His spiritual gifts, keep you long in safety, and render your
dignified station prosperous to you and
yours.
GENEVA, July 23,
1563.
THE PRINTER TO
THE CHRISTIAN
READER,
HEALTH.
Though Readers were sufficiently reminded, when the
Lectures of the beloved and learned John Calvin, on The Minor Prophets and on
Daniel, were published, by what means and by whom they had been attained, so
that it is to no purpose to sing the same song, for so would I seem to do, were
I again to explain at large what has been before set forth; it is yet necessary,
if I am not mistaken, to add now, that these Lectures On Jeremiah and the
Lamentations were taken down by our two brethren, John Budeus and
Charles Jonville, with the same care, fidelity, and diligence as the
former Lectures, which cannot but appear to every one who will attentively read
them.
The Hebrew Text has not been inserted; and
among other things, for this reason, because it is already possessed by those
who understand the language, and to others it would be of no advantage. We were
also afraid, that by increasing the Volume and the expense, we should
unnecessarily charge the buyer.
But that I may
not be prolix and tedious, I pass by the great and manifold benefit that may be
derived from this Volume, which will appear to each one better when it is read:
for it is so replete with the precious wealth of heavenly Truth, that from it,
as from a storehouse, may be drawn the sum and substance of Religion; and so it
will no doubt be of great service to the whole Church of
God.
It remains for you, Christian Reader, to
ascribe to God alone whatever benefit you may derive from these Commentaries;
and to pray for Calvin, who well deserves this from all the godly, until he
shall at length enjoy his eternal inheritance. Make use also thankfully of this
so valuable a treasure, and judge kindly and impartially of what is cordially
presented to you.
GENEVA, July 23,
1576.
THE
PRAYER
WHICH JOHN CALVIN WAS WONT TO USE
AT THE BEGINNING OF HIS LECTURES:
MAY the Lord grant, that we may engage
in contemplating
the mysteries of
his heavenly wisdom with really increas —
ing devotion, to his glory and to
our edification. AMEN.
CALVIN'S
PREFACE
TO THE BOOK
OF
THE PROPHET
JEREMIAH.
Lecture
First.
After having explained The Twelve Minor Prophets, we
reached at length to the end of Daniel. I now undertake to explain The Book Of
Jeremiah, provided life be spared and leisure be given me. But if through God's
grace time will be allowed, there will remain still one Prophet, that is,
Ezekiel; which I hope will be undertaken by a more competent
Interpreter.
As to Jeremiah, it must be first
observed, that he commenced his office as a Prophet under Josiah, and in the
thirteenth year of his reign, who was a sincere servant of God, and yet the
state of things was then very confused: the Book of the Law was unknown; so that
every one indulged his fancy in inventing many impious forms of worship. No
doubt at a time when such liberty prevailed, there were many turbulent men
laboring to pervert the worship of God and pure doctrine, and fabricating for
themselves many absurd things. For if the priests taught rightly, they must have
derived all their knowledge from the Law: and though it is probable, that the
memory of it was not wholly lost, yet a few fragments only remained, so that
they could not with certainty learn how the Church was to be regulated according
to what had been received from above. For it is related in sacred history, that
the Book was found in the eighteenth year of Josiah,
(<143408>2
Chronicles 34:8, 15;) so that Jeremiah had been then teaching for four, and even
for five years.
Now this fact clearly proves how
great is the carelessness and sloth of men in the great concerns of Religion.
God had commanded Moses, that a copy of the Law should not only be kept
reverently and carefully in the Temple, but also by the kings themselves,
(<051718>Deuteronomy
17:18;) and there was also added a command, that the whole Law should be read to
the people at their festivals.
(<053111>Deuteronomy
31:11.) But when the kings departed from the true worship of God, no copy of the
Law was preserved by them: and at length the whole Law became as it were
extinct. No doubt this happened through the tyranny of King Manasse, who cruelly
raged against the priests and against all the other servants of God. Wherever
only a spark of religion appeared, he was intent on slaughter; so that blood, as
sacred history testifies, flowed through all the streets of Jerusalem.
(<122116>2
Kings 21:16.) It was then no wonder, if he took away from the Temple all the
copies of the Law found there, in order to extinguish all memory of true
doctrine. However, a book, which had been hid, was found, as we are told, by the
priest Hilkiah.
The first thing then to be
observed is the time when he began to teach: as religion was then so corrupted,
and every one invented errors to suit his own humor, the office of Jeremiah must
have been hard and arduous.
Secondly, the
termination of his ministry must be noticed. He says, that from that time he
pursued his office until the transmigration. He therefore continued in his
course for forty years. We shall hereafter see what hard contests he had to
undergo during his life. But had the people been teachable, he could not have
performed what God had commanded him without great pain and even weariness: for
we shall presently see what was the doctrine which he was commanded to proclaim.
As then he was assiduous in his labor for forty years, we hence perceive with
what a courageous spirit he was endued. If we further consider what storms had
been raised, calculated to cast him down from his high station, and even wholly
to drive him from the right way, more clearly still will shine forth the
invincible firmness of his mind and his zeal; for he never desisted from
executing the office committed to him.
We must
further observe, that after the city was cut off, and the inhabitants of
Jerusalem were led captives into Babylon, Jeremiah still continued to discharge
his office. He was indeed drawn into Egypt, as we learn from the end of his
Book, especially from chapter 44 (Jeremiah 44); nay, he was taken there by
force, while yet he pronounced a curse on all the Jews who sought hiding —
places in Egypt. Though he was forced to go there, yet it much lessened his
authority; for we know that ungodly men lay hold on any pretense for evil
— speaking. There was here a specious pretense; "He cursed, "they said,
"all who went to Egypt, and now where does he dwell himself? In Egypt with the
other refugees." No doubt the faith of the holy man was shaken by these
banterings: ungodliness has been wanton in all ages. There, then, after the
destruction of the city, Jeremiah was constrained to bend his course: and it may
be, that he persevered in his work and labor beyond fifty years. It is said,
that he was stoned to death, and not unlikely, for he inveighed with no less
severity against the Jews who had fled into Egypt, than against the city while
it was standing; and despair might have roused them into madness. It is hence
probable that they slew the holy Prophet, and thought this lawful because he
upbraided them with their miseries, while his object was to correct their
perverseness, which was untamable; and this they did not
consider.
I come now to The Contents of the
Book. As Isaiah and the other Prophets spent their labor almost in vain, nothing
remained for Jeremiah but briefly to announce this sentence, — " There is
now no pardon, but it is the time of extreme vengeance, for they have too long
abused God's forbearance, who has borne with them, kindly and even sweetly
exhorted them to repent, and testified that he would be exorable and propitious,
provided they returned to the right way." Since then God's kindness had been
despised by them, it became necessary for Jeremiah to fulminate against them as
men lost and in a hopeless state of perverseness. The main thing then in his
teaching was this:
"It is all over with the
kingdom and the priesthood; for the Jews have so often and in such various ways,
and for so long a time, provoked God's wrath and rejected the pious warnings of
his servants."
Isaiah also in his time used
threatenings; but we see that to mitigate what was terrible, some hope of pardon
was added whenever he spoke with severity. But after the ten tribes had been
carried into exile, and the kingdom had been visited with various calamities,
while the Jews still continued impenitent, and even hardened themselves more and
more under God's scourges, it was necessary, as I have said, that he should deal
more sharply with them. God had contended with them by Isaiah and the other
prophets; by Jeremiah and also by Ezekiel, he proved them guilty, and denounced
on them the sentence of condemnation. This difference between the teaching of
Isaiah and that of our Prophet, ought to be
noticed.
fA5 At the same time, that Jeremiah's
teaching might not be imperfect, it was God's purpose that he should be also the
herald of his grace and of the salvation promised in Christ. This exception,
however, ought to be borne in mind, that he offered them no hope of mercy until
they had suffered the punishment due to their
sins.
We now then understand what Jeremiah
mainly taught: but particulars will be better and more distinctly understood by
readers by following the course of the text. And I do not now treat in general
of what is to be found in the prophets; for this is what I have done elsewhere.
I now then say only, that Jeremiah was sent by God to proclaim to the people
their last calamity; and also to speak to them of their future redemption, and
at the same time, ever to remind them of the interposition of seventy years in
exile. I come now to the words.
CHAPTER
1
Jeremiah
1:1-3
1. The words of Jeremiah the
son of Hilkiah, of the priests that were in Anathoth, in the land of
Benjamin: 1. Verba Jercmiae filii Helkiae, ex sacerdotibus qui erant in
Anathoth, in terra Benjamin,
2.
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. 2. Nempe
(rça
explicative hic ponitur) fecit sermo Jehovae ad ipsum, in diebus Josiea,
filii Amon, regis Jehudah, decimo tertio anno regm
ejus;
3. It came also in the days
of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh ear
of Zedekiah the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem
captive in the fifth month. 3. Et fuit (hoc est, perrexit in, cursum
vocationis suae) diebus Joakim, filii Josiae, regis Jehudah, usque ad
complementum undecimi anni Zedechiae, filii Josiae, regis Jehudah, ad
transmigrationem Jerusalem, mense
quinto.
I Have said that the time,
when Jeremiah began to discharge his office of a Prophet in God's Church, is not
stated here without reason, and that it was when the state of the people was
extremely corrupt, the whole of Religion having become vitiated, because the
Book of the Law was lost: for nowhere else can be found the rule according to
which God is to be worshipped; nor can right knowledge be obtained from any
other source. It was then, at the time when impiety had by a long custom
prevailed among the Jews, that Jeremiah suddenly came forth. There was then laid
on his shoulders the heaviest burden; for many enemies must have risen to oppose
him, when he attempted to bring back the people to the pure doctrine of the law,
which the greater part were then treading under their
feet.
He calls himself the
son of
Hilkiah. The Rabbins think that this
Hilkiah was the priest by whom the Book of Moses was found five years after: but
this seems not to me probable. The conjecture also of Jerome is very
frivolous, who concludes that the Prophet was a boy when he began to prophesy,
because he calls himself
r[n
(nor,) a child, a little farther on, as though he did not use the
word metaphorically.
fA6 At what age he was called to the
prophetic office, we do not know; it is, however, probable that he was of mature
age, for it was a work of high authority; and further, had he been a youth,
doubtless such a miracle would not have been passed over in silence, that is,
that he was made a prophet before the age of
maturity.
With regard to his father, it is
nothing strange that the Rabbins have regarded him as the high priest; for we
know that they are always prone to vain boastings. Ambition possessed them, and
hence they have said that Jeremiah was the son of the high priest, in order to
add to the splendor of his character. But what does the Prophet himself say? He
declares indeed that he was the son of Hilkiah, but does not say that this was
the high priest; on the contrary he adds, that he was
from the priests who were in
Anathoth in the land of Benjamin. Now we
know that this was a mean village, not far from Jerusalem; and Jeremiah says,
that it was in the tribe of Benjamin. Its nearness to Jerusalem may be gathered
from the words of Isaiah, who says that small Anathoth was terrified.
(<231030>Isaiah
10:30) He threatened Jerusalem by saying that the enemy was
near.
"What," he says, "is your
security? Ye can hear the noise of your enemies and the groans of your brethren
from your very gates; for Anathoth is not far from you, being only three miles
distant."
Since then Jeremiah only says, that he came from
Anathoth, why should we suppose him to be the sort of the high priest? And
frivolous is what the Chaldee paraphraser adds here, that Hilkiah had
possessions in the town of Anathoth, as though it was allowed the priests to
possess land: God allowed them only what was necessary to feed their flocks. We
may then take it as certain, and what the Prophet indeed expressly declares,
that he came from the village of
Anathoth.
fA7
He further says, that he was of the
priestly
order. Hence the prophetic office was more
suitable to him than to many of the other prophets, such as Amos and Isaiah. God
took Isaiah from the court, as he was of the royal family, and made him a
prophet. Amos was in a different situation: he was taken from the shepherds, for
he was a shepherd. Since God appointed such prophets over his Church, he no
doubt thus intended to cast a reflection on the idleness and sloth of the
priests. For, though all the priests were not prophets, yet they ought to have
been taken from that order; for the priestly order was as it were the nursery of
the prophets. But when gross want of knowledge and ignorance prevailed among
them, God chose his prophets from the other tribes, and thus exposed and
condemned the priests. They ought, indeed, to have been the messengers of the
God of hosts, so as to keep the law in their lips, that the people might seek it
from their mouth, according to what is said by Malachi.
(<390207>Malachi
2:7) But as they were dumb dogs, God transferred the honor of the prophetic
office to others; but Jeremiah, as I have already stated, was a prophet as well
as a priest.
He begins in the second verse to
speak of his calling.
fA8 It would have, indeed, been to little
purpose, had he said that he came forth and brought a message; but he explains,
in the second verse, that he brought nothing but what had been delivered to him
by God, as though he had said, that he faithfully declared what God had
commanded him. For we know that the whole authority belongs entirely to God,
with regard to the doctrine of religion, and that it is not in the power of men
to blend this or that, and to make the faithful subject to themselves. As God,
then, is the only true teacher of the Church, whosoever demands to be heard,
must prove that he is God's minister. This is, then, what Jeremiah is now
carefully doing, for he says that the
word of Jehovah
was given to
him.
He had before said,
the words of Jeremiah, the son of
Hilkiah; but any one of the people might
have objected and said, "Why dost thou intrude thyself, as though any one is to
be heard? for God claims this right to himself alone." Hence Jeremiah, by way of
correction, subjoins, that the words were his, but that he was not the author of
them, but the minister only. He says, then, that he only executed what God had
commanded, for he had been the disciple of God himself, before he undertook the
office of a teacher.
As to the beginning of his
time and its termination, it has been briefly shewn, why he says that he had
been chosen a prophet in the thirteenth year of Josiah, and that he
discharged his office till the
eleventh year of Zedekiah.
Now that
Josiah is called the son of
Amon, it is doubtful whether Josiah was
properly his son. Amon began to reign in his twenty — second year, and
reigned only two years. Josiah succeeded him in the eighth year of his age. If
we number the years precisely, Josiah must have been born when Amon was in his
sixteenth year; but it does not appear likely, that Amon was a father when he
was sixteen years of age, for in this case he must have begotten a son in his
fifteenth year; as the birth must have taken place nine months after. Then
Josiah must have been begotten in the fifteenth year of Amon's age. It is hence
a probable conclusion, that he was a son by law and not by nature, according to
what is afterwards said of Zedekiah, that he was Josiah's son, because he was
his successor, while he was, as many think, his nephew, a brother's son. But it
was a common thing to call the successors of kings their sons, who were their
sons by law, and not, as I have said, by nature. It now
follows-
Jeremiah
1:4-5
4. Then the word of the Lord
came unto me, saying, 4. Et fuit sermo Jehova ad me dicendo,
5. Before I formed thee in the
belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified
thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations, 5. Antequam
formarem to in utero novi to, et antequam egressus esses e vulva sanetificavi
to, Prophetam in gentibus
constituite.
Here Jeremiah explains
more fully what he had already mentioned that he had been called from above, for
otherwise he would have presumptuously obtruded himself: for no one, as the
Apostle says, takes this honor to himself; but the call of God alone raises up
prophets and teachers to their dignity {see
<580504>Hebrews
5:4}. Hence, that Jeremiah might secure attention, he declares that he had been
called to the prophetic office, and that by the clear voice of God. For this
purpose, he says, that this word was given him,
Before I formed thee in the
womb
fA9
I knew
thee. He introduces God as the speaker,
that what he declares might be more emphatical, that it might be of more weight
and more forcible: for, if he had said simply in his own person, that he had
been made a prophet by God's voice, it would not have so much moved the hearers;
but when he brings forward God as the speaker, there is necessarily more weight
and force in what is said.
I pass by here what
might be more largely said on what is necessary in one's call, so that he may be
attended to by God's people; for no one, by his own and private right, can claim
this privilege of speaking, as I have already said, inasmuch as this is what
belongs to God alone. But I have elsewhere spoken at large on the prophetic
call; it is therefore enough now to point at such things as these as it were by
the finger: and particular discussions must be sought elsewhere; for were I to
dwell at large on every subject, my work would be endless. I will, therefore,
according to my usual practice, give a brief exposition of this
Prophet.
Jeremiah then says, that he had been
called by
God, for this end, that he might on this
account gain a hearing from the people. God declares that he knew
Jeremiah before he formed
him
in the
womb. This is not said specially of the
Prophet, as though other men are unknown to God, but it is to be understood of
the prophetic office, as though he had said, "Before I formed thee in the womb,
I destined thee for this work, even that thou mayest undertake the burden of a
teacher among the people." And the second part is a repetition, when he says,
Before thou camest forth from the
womb I sanctified thee. Sanctification
is the same as the knowledge of God: and thus we perceive that knowledge is not
mere prescience, but that predestination, by which God chooses every single
individual according to his own will, and at the same time appoints and also
sanctifies him; for no one, as Paul declares,
(<470216>2
Corinthians 2:16,) is according to his own nature fitted for the work. Since
then this fitness is the gratuitous gift of God, it is nothing strange that God
declares that he had sanctified
Jeremiah, as though he had said, "I formed thee
man in the womb, and at the same time appointed thee for this particular work;
and as it was not in thy power to bring with thee a qualification for the
prophetic office, I formed thee not only a man, but a prophet." This is the
import of the passage.
But they refine too much,
who think that the Prophet was sanctified from the womb as John the Baptist was,
for the words mean no such thing; but only that is testified of Jeremiah, which
Paul also affirms respecting himself in the first chapter of the Epistle to the
Galatians, that he was known by God before he was born. Jeremiah then was not
actually sanctified in the womb, but set apart according to God's predestination
and hidden purpose; that is, God chose him then to be a Prophet. It may be
asked, whether he was not chosen before the creation of the world? To this it
may be readily answered, that he was indeed foreknown by God before the world
was made; but Scripture accommodates itself to the measure of our capacities,
when it speaks of the generation of any one: it is then the same as though God
had said of Jeremiah, that he was formed man for this end that in due time he
might come forth a Prophet.
And no doubt the
following clause is added exegetically,
A prophet for the nations I made
thee. His sanctification, then, as I
have said, was not real, but intimated that he was appointed a Prophet before he
was born.
It however seems strange that he was
given a Prophet to the
nations. God designed him to be the
minister of his Church; for he neither went to the Ninevites, as Jonah did,
(<320303>Jonah
3:3,) nor traveled into other countries, but spent his labors only among the
tribe of Judah; why then is it said that he was given as a Prophet
to the
nations? To this I answer, that though God
appointed him especially for his Church, yet his teaching belonged to other
nations, as we shall presently see, and very evidently, as we proceed; for he
prophesied concerning the Babylonians, the Egyptians, and the Moabites; in
short, he included all the nations who were nigh and known to the Jews. This was
indeed as it were accidental: but though he was given as a Prophet especially to
his own people, yet his authority extended to heathen nations. No doubt
nations are mentioned, including many, in order that the power and
dignity of his teaching might appear more evident. It
follows-
Jeremiah
1:6-7
6. Then said I, Ah, Lord God!
behold, I cannot speak; for I am a child, 6. Et dixi,
Ahah, Domine Jehova, ecce non novi loqui, quia puer
ego.
7. 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. 7. Et dixit Jehova
ad me, Ne dicas, Puer ego (id est, sum puer,) quia ad quaecunque to
misero, ibis, et quaeunque tibi praecepero,
loqueris.
After having spoken of his
call, the Prophet adds, that he at first refused his office, and he states this
for two reasons; first, that he might clear himself from every suspicion of
rashness, for we know how much ambition prevails among men, according to what
James intimates, that many wish to be teachers,
(<590301>James
3:1) and there is hardly one who is not anxious to be listened to. Since, then,
most men too readily assume the office of teaching, and many boldly intrude into
it, Jeremiah, in order to avoid the very suspicion of rashness, informs us that
he was constrained to take the office. Secondly, he says that he refused the
office, that he might gain more esteem, and render his disciples more attentive.
But why did he refuse to obey God, when called to the prophetic function?
Because its difficulty frightened him: and yet this very reason ought to rouse
readers to a greater attention, as it no doubt awakened hearers when Jeremiah
spoke to them.
If any one asks, whether Jeremiah
acted rightly in refusing. what God enjoined? the answer is, that God pardoned
his servant, for it was not his design to reject his call, or to exempt himself
from obedience, or to shake off the yoke, because he regarded his own leisure,
or his own fame, or any similar considerations: Jeremiah looked on nothing of
this kind; but when he thought of himself, he felt, that he was wholly unequal
to undertake an office so arduous. Hence the excuse that is added is that of
modesty. We then see that God forgave his timidity, for it proceeded, as we have
just said, from a right feeling; and we know that from good principles vices
often arise. But it was yet a laudable thing in Jeremiah, that he thought
himself not sufficiently qualified to undertake the prophetic office, and that
he wished to be excused, and that another should be chosen endued with more
courage and with better qualifications. I shall proceed with what remains
tomorrow.
Prayer
Grant, Almighty God, that as thou hast
not only provided for thine ancient Church, by choosing Jeremiah as thy servant,
but hast also designed that the fruit of his labors should contilme to our age,
O grant that we may not be unthankful to thee, but that we may so avail
ourselves of so great a benefit, that the fruit of it may appear in us to the
glory of thy name; may we learn so entirely to devote ourselves to thy service,
and each of us be so attentive to the work of his calling, that we may strive
with united hearts to promote the honor of thy name, and also the kingdom of
thine only — begotten Son, until we finish our warfare, and come at length
into that celestial rest, which has been obtained for us by the blood of thine
only Son. Amen.
Lecture
Second
We mentioned yesterday the reason why Jeremiah
refused the office of teaching, even because he thought himself unequal to the
work; and for this reason he called himself a child, not in age, but in
knowledge. Hence the word "child" is to be taken metaphorically; for thereby the
Prophet confessed that he was not sufficiently qualified as to knowledge and
practice. Some, as I have said, have unwisely applied this to his age. Though
then he was of a mature age, yet he called himself a child, because of his
unskillfulness, and because he possessed not the gifts necessary for an office
so important.
fA10
Now follows the answer given to him,
Say not, I am a child; for thou
shalt go, etc. God not only predicts
here what the Prophet was to do, but declares also what he designed him to do,
and what he required from him, as though he had said, "It is thy duty to obey,
because I have the right to command: thou must, therefore, go wheresoever I
shall send thee, and thou must also proclaim whatsoever I shall command thee."
By these words God reminds him that he was his servant, and that there was no
reason why a sense of his own weakness should make him afraid; for it ought to
have been enough for him simply to obey his
command.
And it is especially necessary to know
this doctrine: for as we ought to undertake nothing without considering what our
strength is, so when God enjoins anything, we ought, immediately to obey his
word as it were with closed eyes. Prudence is justly praised by writers; and it
is what ought to be attended to by all generally; they ought to consider what
the shoulders can bear, and cannot bear. For whence is it that many have so much
audacity and boldness, except that they hurry on through extreme self —
confidence? Hence, in all undertakings, this should be the first thing, that
every one should weigh well his own strength, and take in hand what comports
with the measure of his capacity. Then no one would foolishly obtrude himself,
and arrogate to himself more than what is right. But when God calls us, we ought
to obey, however deficient we may in all things be: and this is what we learn
from what God says here, Say not,
I am a child; that is, "though thou,
indeed, thinkest thyself destitute of every qualification, though thou art
conscious of thine own weakness, yet thou shalt go, thou must go
wheresoever I shall send thee." God, then, requires this honor to be simply
conceded to him, that men should obey his commands, though the qualification
necessary to execute them be wanting. It afterwards follows —
Jeremiah
1:8
8. Be not afraid of their faces:
for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord. 8. Ne timeas a
facie ipsorum, quia tecum ego (id est, ego sum tecum) ad eripiendum to,
dicit Jehova.
We may learn from this
verse that Jeremiah, when he observed the heavy and hard conflicts he had to
undertake, was greatly disturbed; for he had not courage enough firmly and
boldly to assail enemies so many and so violent. He indeed saw, that he had to
do with a degenerated people, who had almost all departed from the law of God:
and since they had for many years shaken off the yoke, and were petulantly
exulting in their freedom, it was difficult to bring them back to obedience, and
to a right course of life. It hence appears that the Prophet was restrained by
this difficulty, so as not to venture to undertake the prophetic office. But God
applied a suitable remedy to his fear; for what does he say?
Fear not their
face. It appears, then, that when
Jeremiah said that he was a child, he had in view, as I have already hinted, the
difficulty of the undertaking; he could hardly bear to carry on contests so
severe with that rebellious people, who had now become hardened in their
wickedness. We hence see how he refused, in an indirect manner, the burden laid
on him, for he ventured, not openly and ingenuously, and in plain words, to
confess how the matter was; but God, who penetrates into the hearts of men, and
knows all their hidden feelings and motives, heals his timidity by saying,
Fear not their
face.
fA11
Now this passage shews that
corruptions had so prevailed among the chosen people, that no servant of God
could peaceably perform his office. When prophets and teachers have to do with a
teachable people, they have no need to fight: but when there is no fear of God,
and no regard for him, yea, when men are led away by the violence of their
lusts, no godly teacher can exercise his duty without being prepared for war.
This, then, is what God intimates, when he bids his Prophet to be courageous;
for he saw that there would be as many enemies as professed themselves to be the
children of Abraham.
The reason, also, for
boldness and confidence, that is added, ought to be noticed,
For I am with thee to deliver
thee. By these words God reminds the
Prophet, that there would be sufficient protection in his power, so that he had
no need to dread the fury of his own nation. It was, indeed, at first, a
formidable undertaking, when Jeremiah saw that he had to carry on war, not with
a few men, but with the whole people; but God sets himself in opposition to all
men, and says, I am with
thee,
fA12 fear not. We hence see that due honor is
then conceded to God, when being content with his defense we disregard the fury
of men, and hesitate not to contend with all the ungodly, yea, though they may
rise up in a mass against us: and were their forces and power the strongest, we
ought yet to feel assured that the defense of God alone is sufficient to protect
us. This is the full meaning of the passage. It now
follows-
Jeremiah
1:9-10
9. 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. 9. Et extendit Jehova manum suam, et tetigit os meum;
et dixit Jehova ad me, Ecce posui verba mea in ore tuo:
10. 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, to build, and to plant. 10.Vide, constitui
to (vel, praefeci) hodie super gentes et super regna, ad evellendum et ad
destruendum et ad eruendum et ad perdendum, ad aedificandum et ad
plantandum.
Here Jeremiah speaks
again of his calling, that his doctrine might not be despised, as though it
proceeded from a private individual. He, therefore, testifies again, that he
came not of himself, but was sent from above, and was invested with the
authority of a prophet. For this purpose he says, that God's words were put in
his mouth.
This passage ought to be carefully
observed; for Jeremiah briefly describes how a true call may be ascertained,
when any one undertakes the office of a teacher in the Church: it is ascertained
even by this when he brings nothing of his own, according to what Peter says in
his first canonical epistle,
"Let him who speaks,
speak as the oracles of
God,"
(<600411>1
Peter 4:11)
that is, let him not speak doubtingly, as though he
introduced his own glosses; but let him boldly, and without hesitation, speak in
the name of God. So also Jeremiah in this place, in order that he might demand
to be heard, plainly declares that the words of God were put in his mouth. Let
us, then, know, that whatever proceeds from the wit of man, ought to be
disregarded; for God wills this honor to be conceded to him alone, as it was
stated yesterday, to be heard in his own Church. It hence follows, that none
ought to be acknowledged as God's servants, that no prophets or teachers ought
to be counted true and faithful, except those through whom God speaks, who
invent nothing themselves, who teach not according to their own fancies, but
faithfully deliver what God has committed to
them.
A visible symbol was added, that there
might be a stronger confirmation: but there is no reason to make this a general
rule, as though it were necessary that the tongues of all teachers should be
touched by the hand of God. There are here two things — the thing itself,
and the external sign. As to the thing itself, a rule is prescribed to all God's
servants, that they bring not their own inventions, but simply deliver, as from
hand to hand, what they have received from God. But it was a special thing as to
Jeremiah, that God, by stretching out his hand,
touched his
mouth; it was, that he might openly shew
that his mouth was consecrated to himself. It is therefore sufficient as to the
ministers of the word, that their tongues be consecrated to God, so that they
may not mix any of their own fictions with his pure doctrine. But it was God's
will, as to Jeremiah, to add also the visible signs of the thing itself, by
extending his hand and touching his mouth.
God
having now shewn that Jeremiah's mouth was consecrated to himself, and separated
from common and profane use, proceeds to invest him with power: See, he
says, I have set thee this day
over nations and over kingdoms. By these
words God shews how reverently he would have his word received, even when
conveyed by frail mortals. There is no one who pretends not, that he desires to
obey God, but yet hardly one in a hundred really receives his word. For as soon
as he speaks, almost all raise a clamor; or if they dare not furiously, and in a
hostile manner, oppose it, we yet see how some evade it, and others secretly
oppose it. The authority, then, which God ascribes to his own word, ought to be
noticed by us: Behold, I have set
thee over nations and
kingdoms.
Farther,
by saying, See, I have set
thee, he encourages the Prophet to be
magnanimous in spirit. He was to remember his calling, and not timidly or
servilely to flatter men, or to shew indulgence to their lusts and passions:
See, he says. We may hence perceive, that teachers cannot firmly execute
their office except they have the majesty of God before their eyes, so that in
comparison with him they may disregard whatever splendor, pomp, or power there
may be in men. Experience indeed teaches us, that the sight of men, whatever
dignity they may possess, be it the least, brings fear with it. Why are prophets
and teachers sent? That they may reduce the world to order: they are not to
spare their hearers, but freely reprove them whenever there may be need; they
are also to use threatenings when they find men perverse. But when there is any
dignity connected with men, the teacher dares not to offend; he is afraid of
those who are invested with power, or who possess wealth, or a high character
for prudence, or who are endued with great honors. In such cases there is no
remedy, except teachers set God before their eyes, and regard him to be himself
the speaker. They may thus with courageous and elevated minds look down on
whatever height and pre — eminence there may be among mortals. This, then,
is the object of what God says here,
See, I have set thee over nations
and kingdoms; for he shews that there is
so much authority in his word, that whatever is high and exalted on earth is
made subject to it; even kings are not
excepted.
But what God has joined together let
no man separate.
(<401906>Matthew
19:6;
<411009>Mark
10:9) God indeed extols here his Prophets above the whole world, and even above
kings; but he has previously said,
Behold, I have put my words, in
thy mouth; so that whosoever claims such
a power, must necessarily bring forth the word of God, and really prove that he
is a prophet, and that he introduces no fictions of his own. And hence we see
how fatuitous is the boasting of the Pope, and of his filthy clergy, when they
wickedly dare to appropriate to themselves what is here said. "We are,
"they say, "above both kings and nations." By what right? "God hath thus
spoken by the Prophet Jeremiah." But these two things are to be joined together
— I have put my words in
thy mouth, and,
I have set thee over nations and
kingdoms. Now let the Pope shew that he
is furnished with the word of God, that he claims for himself nothing that is
his own, of apart from God; in a word, that he introduces nothing of his own
devices, and we shall willingly allow that he is pre — eminent above the
whole world. For God is not to be separated from his word: as his majesty shines
eminently above the whole world, yea, and above all the angels of heaven; so
there is the same dignity belonging to his word. But as these swine and dogs are
empty of all true doctrine and piety, what effrontery it is, yea, what
stupidity, to boast that they have authority over kings and nations! We, in
short, see from the context, that men are not here so much extolled, though they
be true ministers of celestial truth, as the truth itself; for God ascribes here
the highest authority to his own word, though its ministers were men of no
repute, poor and despised, and having nothing splendid connected with them. The
purpose for which this was said I have already explained; it was, that true
prophets and teachers may take courage, and thus boldly set themselves against
kings and nations, when armed with the power of celestial
truth.
He then adds,
To root up, to destroy, to pull
down, to lay waste. God seems here to
have designedly rendered odious his own word and the ministry of the Prophet;
for the word of God in the mouth of Jeremiah could not have been acceptable to
the Jews, except they perceived that it was for their safety and welfare: but
God speaks here of ruin and destruction, of cutting down and desolation. But he
subjoins, to build and to
plant. God then ascribes two effects to
his word, that on the one hand it
destroys, pulls down, lays waste,
cuts off; and that on the other it
plants and
builds.
But it
may, however, be rightly asked, why does God at first speak of ruin and
extermination? The order would have seemed better had he said first, I set thee
to
build
and to
plant,
according to what is said by Paul, who declares that vengeance was prepared
by him and the other teachers against all despisers, and against all the height
of the world, when your obedience, he says, shall be completed.
(<471005>2
Corinthians 10:5, 6.) Paul then intimates that the doctrine of the gospel is
properly, and in the first place, designed for this end — to call men to
the service of God. But Jeremiah here puts rhin and destruction before building
and planting. It then seems, as I have said, that he acts inconsistently. But we
must ever bear in mind what the state of the people was: for impiety,
perverseness, and hardened iniquity had for so long a time prevailed, that it
was necessary to begin with ruin and eradication; for Jeremiah could not have
planted or have built the temple of God, except he had first destroyed, pulled
down, laid waste, and cut off. How so? Because the Devil had erected there his
palace; for as true religion had been for many years despised, the Devil was
there placed, as it were, on his high throne, and reigned uncontrolled at
Jerusalem, and through the whole land of Judea. How, then, could he have built
there a temple for God, in which he might be purely worshipped, except ruin and
destruction had preceded? for the Devil had corrupted the whole land. We indeed
know that all kinds of wickedness then prevailed everywhere, as though the land
had been filled with thorns and briers. Jeremiah then could not have planted or
sown his heavenly doctrine until the land had been cleansed from so many vices
and pollutions. This is no doubt the reason why in the first place he speaks of
cutting off and ruin, of exterminating and eradicating, and afterwards adds
planting and building.
The heap of words
employed shews how deep impiety and the contempt of God had fixed their roots.
God might have said only, I have set thee to pull down and to destroy; he might
have been content with two words, as in the latter instance — to plant and
to build. But as the Jews had been obstinate in their wickedness, as their
insolence had been so great, they could not be corrected immediately, nor in one
day, nor by a slight effort. Hence God accumulated words, and thus encouraged
his Prophet to proceed with unwearied zeal in the work of clearing away the
filth which had polluted the whole land. We now then understand what is here
said, and the purpose of using so many
words.
fA13
But he speaks again of kingdoms and
nations; for though Jeremiah was given as a Prophet especially to his own
nation, yet he was also a Prophet to heathen nations, as they say, by accident,
according to what we shall hereafter see: and it seems that, God designedly
mentioned nations and kingdoms, in order to humble the pride of that people who
thought themselves exempt from all reproof. Hence he says, that he gave
authority to his servant, not only over Judea, but also over the whole world; as
though he had said, "Ye are but a small portion of mankind; raise not then your
horns against my servant, as ye shall do this without effect; for he shall
exercise power not only over Judea, but also over all nations, and even over
kings, as the doctrine which I have deposited with him is of such force and
power that it will stand eminent above all mortals, much more above one single
nation."
We at the same time see that though the
treachery of men constrains God to use severity, yet he never forgets his own
nature, and kindly invites to repentance those who are not wholly past remedy,
and offers to them the hope of pardon and of salvation; and this is what
celestial truth ever includes. For though it be the odour of death unto death to
those who perish, it is yet the odor of life unto life to the elect of God. It
indeed often happens that the greater part turn the doctrine of salvation to
their ruin; yet God never suffers all to perish. He therefore makes the truth
the incorruptible seed of life to his elect, and builds them up as his temples.
This is what we must bear in mind. And so there is no reason why the truth of
God should be disliked by us, though it be the occasion of perdition to many;
for it always brings salvation to the elect: it so plants them, that they strike
roots into the hope of a blessed immortality, and then it builds them for holy
temples unto God. It now follows
—
Jeremiah
1:11-12
11. 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, 11. Et (hoc est, postea) factus est
sermo Jehovae ad me (datus est mihi, fuit, ad verbum,)
dicendo, Quid tu vides, Jeremia? Et dixi, Baculum vigilis (aut,
amigdali) ego video.
12. Then
said the Lord unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform
it. 12. Et dixit Jehova ad me, Bene fecisti ad videndam (hoc est,
recte vidisti,) quia vigilo (aut, festino, vigilans ego, ad
verbum) super sermonem meum ut ipsum faciam (hoc est, ut
compleam.)
God confirms in this
passage what he had previously said of the power of his word. These two verses,
then, are to be taken as explanatory, for no new subject is introduced; but the
former part is confirmed — that the Prophets spoke not in vain, or to no
purpose, because they were invested with celestial power to plant and to build,
and, on the other hand, to pull down and to root up, according to what we have
quoted from Paul, who says that true teachers are armed with such power.
(<471005>2
Corinthians 10:5, 6) We have in readiness, he says, vengeance against all the
unbelieving, however proud they may be: and though their height may terrify the
whole world, yet we have a sword in our hands which will stay them; for God's
word has sufficient power to destroy the
rebellious.
God then proceeds with the same
subject when he says, What seest
thou, Jeremiah? He had set before him a
staff or a rod of almond, as some render the word: and
rqç,
shaked, means an almond; but as it comes from a verb which means to watch
or to hasten, we cannot fitly render it here, almond. I do not, however, deny
that the Hebrew word has this meaning. But it is written here with Kamets;
the participle which afterwards follows has Holem: we hence see what
affinity there is between the two words. The word
rqç,
shaked, an almond, is derived from the verb,
rqç,
shakad, to watch; and it has been thought that this tree is so called,
because it brings forth fruit earlier than other trees; for almonds, as it is
well known, flower even in winter, and in the coldest seasons. Now, were we to
say in Latin, I see a rod or a staff of almond; and were the answer given, Thou
hast rightly seen, for I watch, the allusion in the words would not appear, the
sentence would lose its beauty, and there would indeed be no meaning. It is
hence necessary to give another version, except we wish to pervert the passage,
and to involve the Prophet's meaning in darkness. It should be, "I see the rod,
"or the staff, "of a watcher." Let us grant that the almond is intended; yet the
tree may be called watchful, according to what etymology requires, and also the
sense of the passage, as all must see.
fA14
God then caused his servant to see
the staff of a watcher. For what purpose? The answer is given:
Thou hast rightly seen the staff
of a watcher, because I watch over my word to execute
(or, fulfill)
it.
Interpreters seem to have unwisely confined this to the punishments
afterwards mentioned: they think that what is intimated is, that the
threatenings which the Prophet announced would not be without effect, because
God was prepared to inflict whatever he would denounce. But this, as I think, is
too restricted a view; for God, I have no doubt, extols here his own word, and
speaks of its accomplishment; as though he had said, that he spoke not by his
servants, that what they said might vanish into air, or fall to the ground, but
that power would accompany it, according to what is said in
Isaiah,
"Not return shall my word
to me empty, but shall prosper in all things,"
(<235511>Isaiah
55:11)
that is, "I will cause the prophetic doctrine to take
effect, that the whole world may know that I have not spoken in vain, and that
my word is not an empty sound, but that it has real power, which in due time
will appear."
Hence I have said that these
verses ought to be connected with the last, in which God said, that he sent his
Prophet to root up and to plant, to demolish and to build. He then gives a proof
of this in other words, and says that he would
watch over his
word, that he might execute whatever he
had announced by his servants; as though he had said, "I indeed allot their
parts (so to speak) to the prophets; but as they speak from my mouth, I am
present with them to fulfill whatever I command them." In short, God intimates
that the might and the power of his hand would be connected with the word, of
which the prophets were ministers among men. Thus it is a general declaration
which refers not only to punishments, but also to promises. Rightly,
then, hast thou
seen, he says;
for I am
watching.
God does not here resign his own
office to Jeremiah, though he employs him as his teacher; for he shews that the
power to accomplish what the Prophet would declare remained with him. God indeed
does not here ascribe to Jeremiah anything as his own, or apart from himself,
but sets forth only the power of his word; as though he had said, "Provided thou
be my faithful minister, I will not frustrate thy hope, nor the hope of those
who shall obey thee; for I will fulfill whatever thou and they may justly hope
for: nor shall they escape unpunished who shall resist thee; for I will in due
time bring on them the punishment they
deserve."
He therefore uses the word to
watch, or to hasten, in order to shew that he stood ready to give effect
to his word at the appointed time. The effect does not indeed always appear to
us: it is on this account said by Habakkuk, that if prophecy delays, we are to
wait;
"for it will not be," he
says,
"beyond its time; but coming
it will come." (Habakkuk. 2:3)
God then bids us with quiet minds to wait for the
accomplishment of his word; but he afterwards adds, in order to modify what he
had said, "coming it will come;" that is, "I will accomplish and really perform
whatever my prophets have spoken by my command." So there shall be no delay, for
the suitable time depends on God's will, and not on the judgment of men. It then
follows, — but as the clock strikes, I cannot proceed farther
today.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that since thou art
pleased kindly to invite us to thyself, and hast consecrated thy word for our
salvation, — O grant that we may willingly, and from the heart, obey thee,
and become so teachable, that what thou hast designed for our salvation may not
turn to our perdition; but may that incorruptible seed by which thou dost
regenerate us into a hope of the celestial life so drive its roots into our
hearts, and bring forth fruit, that thy name may be glorified; and may we be so
planted in the courts of thine house, that we may grow and flourish, and that
fruit may appear through the whole course of our life, until we shall at length
enjoy that blessed life which is laid up for us in heaven, through Christ our
Lord. — Amen.
Lecture
Third
Jeremiah
1:13-14
13. 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. 13. Et fuit sermo Jehovae ad me secundo, dicendo, Quid tu rides?
Et dixi, Ollam ferventem ego video, facies ejus a facie
Aquilonis.
14. Then the Lord said
unto me, Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of
the land. 14. Et dixit Jehova ad me, Ab Aquilone aperietur (alii
vertunt, pendetur; alii, solvetur; erumpet, proprie)
malum super cunctos habitatores
terrae.
Jeremiah begins now to
address the people to whom he was sent as a Prophet. He has hitherto spoken of
his calling, that the authority of his doctrine might be evident: and he spoke
generally; but now he accommodates his teaching specially to the people. Hence
he says, that he had a vision, and saw a
boiling-pot,
whose face was towards the
north. By God asking, and the Prophet
answering, the design was to confirm the prediction; for if it had been only
said that he saw a boiling-pot, and if an explanation of the metaphor had been
given, there would not have been so much force and weight in the narrative. But
when God is set forth as being present, and explaining what the boiling-pot
signified, the prediction becomes more certain: and the Prophet no doubt gave
this narrative, in order to shew that God, being as it were present, thereby
proved himself to he the Author of this
prophecy.
Now the import of the whole is, that
the Chaldeans would come to overthrow the city Jerusalem, to take away and
abolish all the honor and dignity both of the kingdom and of the
priesthood.
This indeed had been previously
announced by Isaiah as well as by other prophets; but all their threatenings had
been despised. While indeed Isaiah was living, the king of Babylon had secured
the friendship of Hezekiah; and the Jews thought that his protection had been
opportunely obtained against the Assyrians. But they did not consider that the
hearts of men are ruled by the hand of God, and are turned as he pleases: nor
did they consider that they had for many years provoked God, and that he was
become their enemy. Since, then, all threatening had been despised and regarded
with derision, Jeremiah came forth and declared, that the northern nations would
come, the Assyrians as well as the Chaldeans. For we know that the one monarchy
had been swallowed up by the other; and the Chaldeans ruled over the Assyrians;
and thus it happened that the whole eastern empire, with the exception of the
Medes and Persians, had passed over to them; and with respect to Judea, they
were northward. Hence the Prophet says, that he saw a
boiling-pot,
having its face towards the north.
By the
pot many understand the king of Babylon; but they seem not rightly to understand
what the Prophet says: and I could easily disprove their interpretation, but I
shall be satisfied with a simple statement of what is true; and the meaning will
become evident as we proceed. The pot, then, as it will be presently seen more
clearly, is the nation of the Jews: I say this now, as I do not wish to heap
together too many things. They are said to be like a boiling-pot, because the
Lord, as it were, boiled them, until they were reduced almost to nothing. It is
said also, that the face of the pot was towards the north; because there, as
Jeremiah immediately explains, was the fire kindled. And the comparison is very
apposite; for when a pot is set on the fire, it boils on that side nearest the
fire, and all the scum passes over to the other side. Hence he says that it
boiled, but so that its mouth was on the north side; for there was the fire, and
there was the blowing. In short, God intended to shew to his Prophet, that the
people were like flesh which is cast into the pot, boiled, and afterwards burnt,
or reduced after a long time almost to nothing. The Prophet saw the mouth or the
face of the boiling-pot, and on the side on which it boiled it looked towards
the north; hence God, the interpreter of the vision which he presented to his
servant, answers and says, From
the north shall break forth evil on all the inhabitants of the
land, that is, of Judea. In these words
God declares, that the fire was already kindled by the Chaldeans and the
Assyrians, by which he would boil, as it were, his people like flesh, and at
length wholly consume them, as it is commonly the case, when the flesh remains
in the pot, and the fire is continually burning, and blowing is also added; the
flesh must necessarily be reduced to nothing when thus boiled or
seethed.
fA15
And thus God testifies that the fire
was already kindled in Chaldea and Assyria, which was not only to boil the Jews,
but also reduce them to nothing. And then he expresses the same in other words
— that evil would come from
the north upon all the Jews. We shall hereafter
see that there is presented here a brief summary of the truth which was
committed to Jeremiah; at least it is a summary of one half of it; for God
designed also to provide for his own elect; and he thus terrified them, that
they might be subdued, and submit to him, and not that they might abandon
themselves to despair. At the same time, this half of the prediction was —
that there was no hope of pardon, because the Jews had with extreme obstinacy
provoked God's wrath, and had so abused his patience, that their impiety could
no longer be tolerated. Hence, what other prophets had denounced Jeremiah now
confirms more strongly, and points it out, as it were, by the finger. It
afterwards follows —
Jeremiah
1:15
15. 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 against all the
cities of Judah. 15. Quoniam ecce ego voco omnes familias regnorum
Aquilonis, dicit Jehova, et venient; ponent quisque solium suum in ostio
postarum Jerosolymae, et super omnes muros ejus in circuitu, et super omnes
urbes Jehudah.
This verse contains
an explanation of the last; for God more dearly and more specifically expresses
what he had before referred to — that the evil would come from the north.
He says that he would be the sender of this evil, and speaks thus of it:
Behold, I call all the families
of the kingdoms of the north. The
prediction would not have been so effectual had not this declaration been
expressly added — that the Chaldeans would come by the authority of God;
for men are ever wont to ascribe to fortune whatever takes place: and we shall
hereafter see in the Book of Lamentations
(<250337>Lamentations
3:37, 38) that the Jews were so besotted, that in their calamities they
attributed to the events of fortune the destruction of the temple and city, and
the ruin of the kingdom. Hence God sharply expostulated with them, because they
were so blind in a matter so clear, and did not acknowledge his judgments. The
Prophet, then, after having testified that the evil would come from the north,
now adds, that this evil would by no means be by chance, but through that war
which the Chaldeans would bring on them; that God would be the chief commander,
who would gather soldiers from all parts, and prepare an army to destroy the
Jews.
The Prophet uses the word, to cry:
Behold,
he says, I will
cry to all the kindreds, or families,
etc.
fA16 God employs various modes of speaking,
when he intends to teach us that all nations are in his hand, and subject to his
will, so that he can excite wars whenever it pleases him. He says, "Behold, I
will hiss (or whistle) for the Egyptians;" and he compares them sometimes to
bees.
(<230526>Isaiah
5:26;
<230718>Isaiah
7:18.) Again, in another place he says, "Behold, I will blow with the trumpet,
and assemble shall the Assyrians." All these modes of speaking are intended to
shew, that though men make a great stir, and disturb the whole world, yet God
directs all things by his sovereign power, and that nothing takes place except
under his guidance and authority. We then see that the Prophet does not speak as
an historian; nor does he simply predict what was to be, but also adds a
doctrine or a great truth. It would have been a naked prediction only, had he
said, "An evil shall break forth from the north: "but he now, as I have already
said, performs the office of a teacher, that his prediction might be useful, and
says that God would be the chief commander in that war:
Behold,
then, I will cry to all the
families
fA17
of the kingdoms of the
north.
There was then indeed but one
monarchy; but as the self — confidence of the Jews was so great, and hence
their sottishness, so that they dreaded no evil, God, in order to arouse them,
says that he would assemble all the families of the kingdoms: and doubtless
those belonged to many kingdoms whom God brought together against the Jews. A
regard also was had to that vain confidence which the Jews entertained, in
thinking that the Egyptians would be ever ready to supply them with help. As,
then, they were wont to set up the Egyptians as their shield, or even as a
mountain, God here exposes their folly, — that trusting in the Egyptians,
they thought themselves sufficiently fortified against the power and arms of the
whole Chaldean monarchy. For these reasons, then, he mentions the
families,
and then the
kingdoms,
of the north.
It follows,
And they shall
come, and
set each
(man, literally)
his
throne
fA18at the entrance of the
gates. The Prophet here means that the
power of the Chaldeans would be such, that they would boldly pitch their tents
before the gates, and not only so, but would also close up the smaller gates,
for he mentions the doors
(ostia)
of the
gates.
fA19 And by speaking of each of them, he
meant the more sharply to touch the Jews: for they, relying on the help of
Egypt, thought themselves capable of resisting, while yet the Chaldeans, who had
conquered the Assyrians, would be irresistible. Hence he says, that not only the
army itself would encamp before the gates, but that each individual would fix
himself there, and set up his tent as in a place of safety. In short, God
intimates that the Chaldeans and Assyrians would be victorious, that they would
entirely rule and rest themselves as at their own homes, in the fields and
before the gates of the city Jerusalem. These things are afterwards more
distinctly expressed, and many circumstances are added: but God intended at
first to announce this declaration, that the Jews might know that it would be
all over with them.
He then says,
On its walls around, and on all
the cities of Judah. The Prophet here
declares, that the whole country would be laid waste, as though he had said,
"The Jews in vain trust to their own resources, and help from others, for God
will fight against them; and as the Chaldeans and the Assyrians shall be armed
by him, they shall be victorious, whatever force the Jews may oppose to them."
It follows —
Jeremiah
1:16
16. And I will utter my
judgments against them touching all their wickedness, who have forsaken me, and
have burnt incense unto other gods, and worshipped the works of their own
hands. 16. Et loquar (vel, proferam) judicia mea cum ipsis super
omni malitia eorum; quia (nam
rça
hic ponitur vice
yk
valet causalem particulam, quia) dereliquerunt me, et suffitum fecerunt
diis alienis et prostrati fuerunt (vel, se prostraverunt) coram operibus
manuum suarum.
God now assigns the
reason why he had resolved to deal so severely with the Jews. It was necessary
to teach them two things, — first, that the Chaldeans would not of
themselves come upon them, but through God, who would gather and arm them; and
secondly, that God Would not act in a cruel manner, nor forget his covenant, in
becoming a rigid avenger, but that he would thus be angry, because there was
extreme iniquity in the Jews, so that it was needful to distress and wholly to
break them down, as moderate corrections had availed nothing. God, then, after
having testified that he would be the leader in that war, now explains the
reasons why he would chastise the Jews, and shews that his conduct towards them
could not be ascribed to cruelty, inasmuch as that they had provoked him by
their impious superstitions.
Hence he says,
I will speak my judgments with
them. This is referred by many
interpreters to the Chaldeans and Assyrians, as though God would prescribe to
them what was to be decreed, as chief judges are wont to do to those who are
under them: but this exposition is strained, and confuted by what follows,
on account of their
wickedness. What, then, is to speak
judgments? It is done, when God summons the wicked before his tribunal, and
executes the office of a judge. And this mode of speaking is common in
Scripture, according to what we read at the end of this book, — The king
of Babylon spoke judgments with the King Zedekiah,
(<245209>Jeremiah
52:9) that is, he dealt judicially with him, as we commonly
say.
fA20 So now God declares that he would be the
judge of the people, as though he had said, that hitherto he had been silent,
not that the sins of the people were not known, but because he had borne with
them, in order to try whether there was any hope of repentance. But he says now
that he would become their judge, as he had found by long experience that they
were past remedy.
There is, then, to be
understood a contrast between the forbearance of God, which he had long
exercised while he dealt with the people, not as he might have justly done, but
deferred his vengeance, and the time of vengeance which was now at hand;
I will
then
speak my judgments
with the Jews; that is, "I will now ascend my
tribunal: I have hitherto abstained from exercising my right, and waited for
them to return to me; but as there is no return, and I see that they are men
wholly irreclaimable, and their disposition is so depraved that they continually
add evils to evils, I will now begin to undertake mine office, the office of a
judge." But we must bear in mind, as I have already said, the design of God in
this declaration; for it was his object to clear himself from every charge, and
from all calumnies, inasmuch as even the worst of men usually clamor against his
judgments when he chastises them. Hence he presented before them his own
judgments, as though he had said, "They shall not be able to blame me for
dealing with them in a severe and cruel manner; for however severe I may be, I
shall yet be an equitable judge." Hence he adds,
on account of all their
wickedness.
He
afterwards shews what kind of wickedness it was,
They have forsaken
me, and
burnt incense to strange
gods. The Jews had, indeed, in various
ways, provoked his vengeance; but he mentions here one kind of wickedness,
because it was the very fountain of evils, — they had departed from the
law and the pure worship of God; and yet he mentions generally
all
wickedness. The word all is not
here without meaning, "on account of all their wickedness:" for he
intimates that they were not only in one way wicked, but that they had heaped
together various sins. And then he adds, for
they have forsaken
me. Here God introduces their defection;
for it may be, as we daily see, that one offends in this thing, and another in
that, and each one for different causes may expose himself to God's judgment;
but God shews here that the Jews were become so depraved, that there was nothing
sound or pure in them: hence he charges them with
all
wickedness; and then he mentions their
defection, they have forsaken
me; as though he had said, "They have
wholly denied me; I say not that one is a thief, another an adulterer, and
another a drunkard; but they are all become apostates, they are all perjurers
and violators of the covenant: thus I am wholly forsaken by them, and they are
in every respect alienated from me." We hence see how greatly the Prophet
enhances the guilt of his own nation.
It is
afterwards added, for the sake of illustration, that they
burnt incense to strange
gods. They had fallen away from God, and
joined themselves to idolatry. He also adds this, — that they
bowed down before the works of
their own hands. The Prophet divests the
Jews of every excuse, and more fully discovers their shame and baseness, —
"they prostrated themselves before the works of their own hands." Whenever
Scripture uses these expressions, it intimates that there is extreme madness in
those men, who worship in the place of God not only the sun and moon, and other
created things, but also the idols which they form for themselves. For how is it
that they worship their own idols, except that they have formed for them a nose,
and hands, and ears? A log of wood no one worships; a piece of brass or of
silver all disregard; no one thinks a stone to be God: but when a thing is
sculptured and artificially formed by the hand of man, miserable and blind
idolaters immediately prostrate themselves; — how is this? Because they
have formed for their statues and pictures noses, eyes, and ears! hence they
themselves have made gods. We now see the meaning of the Prophet, when he says,
that the Jews bowed down before
the works of their own hands. But I pass
over such things as these lightly, as ye must be well informed on the subject
generally. It now follows —
Jeremiah
1:17
17. 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 confouml thee before them. 17. Et tu accinge
lumbos tuos et surge, et loquere ad ipsos quaecunque (vel, omnia quae)
ego mandavero tibi; ne timeas a facie ipsorum, ne to conteram (vel,
timere faciam) a facie ipsorum (est enim verbum sumptum ex eadem
radice.)
God first bids his
Prophet to be the herald of the dreadful judgment, which we have already
noticed: for it was not his purpose to speak only as it were in a corner, or
secretly, to Jeremiah, but he committed to him what he intended should be
proclaimed audibly to the whole people. It hence follows, And thou, etc.
We therefore see that the Prophet had been taught by the Lord, that he might
confidently and boldly declare what we shall hereafter see. These things should
then be connected, — that God would ascend his tribunal to execute the
vengeance he had deferred, — and also that Jeremiah would be the herald of
that vengeance he was prepared to inflict. Thou then, — an illative
is to be added here, for the copulative is to be thus taken in this place,
— Thou then; that is, as thou hast heard that I shall be now the
avenger of the people's sins, and that the time of vengeance is at hand; and
also as thou knowest that this has been told thee, that thou mightest warn them
to render them more inexcusable, — Thou
then,
fA21
gird thy
loins. We see why God addressed his
servant Jeremiah privately; it was, that he might publicly exercise his office
as a teacher.
And hence we learn, that all who
are called to rule the Church of God cannot be exempt from blame, unless they
honestly and boldly proclaim what has been committed to them. Hence Paul says
that he was free from the blood of all men, because he had from house to house
and publicly declared whatever he had received from the Lord,
(<442026>Acts
20:26, 27;) and he says in another place,
"Woe is to me if I preach
not the Gospel,
for it has been
committed to me."
(<460916>1
Corinthians 9:16)
God bids the Prophet to
gird his
loins. This is to be understood of the
kind of dress which the Orientals used and continue to use, for they wear long
garments; and when they undertake any work, or when they proceed on a journey,
they gird themselves. Hence he says,
gird thy
loins, that is, undertake this
expetition which I devolve on thee. At the same time he requires activity, so
that the work might be expeditiously undertaken.
Arise,
he says, and speak to them
whatsoever I shall command thee. In
short, God intimates in these words, that he was unwilling to proceed to
extremes, until he had still tried whether there was any hope of repentance as
to the people. He indeed knew that they were wholly irreclaimable; but he
intended to discover more fully their perverseness in bidding Jeremiah, in the
last place, to pronounce the extreme sentence of
condemnation.
He now again repeats what he had
before said, Fear not their
face. And this exhortation was very
needful, as Jeremiah undertook an office in no small degree disliked; for it was
the same as though he was an herald, to proclaim war in the name of God. As,
then, Jeremiah had distinctly to declare that it was all over with the people,
because their perverseness had been so great that God would no longer be
entreated, it was a very hard message, not likely to be attended to, especially
when we consider what great pride the Jews had. They gloried in their holy
descent, and also thought, as we shall hereafter see, that the Temple was an
impregnable fortress even against God himself. Since, then, their temper was so
refractory, it was needful that the Prophet should be more than once confirmed
by God, so that he might boldly undertake his office. The exhortation is,
therefore, repeated, Fear not
before them.
He afterwards adds,
lest I make thee to
fear. But the word
tj,
chet, means sometimes to fear, and sometimes to break in pieces. Jerome
perverts the meaning of the Prophet, by rendering the phrase, "I shall never
make thee to fear." It is indeed a godly truth, that God would give courage to
his Prophet so as to render him invincible against his enemies; and doubtless he
would exhort us in vain, were he not to supply us with fortitude by his Spirit.
This is, indeed, true; but the word
ˆp,
pen, will not allow us thus to explain the passage. What then does
God mean? We must either render the verb to break or to fear. The verb
°tja
achetak, is transitive; and either meaning would be
suitable. For God, after having bidden the Prophet to be of a courageous and
invincible mind, now adds,
"Take heed to
thyself; for if thou be timid, I will cause thee really to fear, or, I will
break thee down before them."
He then intimates, in these words, that the Prophet
ought to be sufficiently fortified, as he knew that he was sent by God, and thus
acted as it were under the authority of the highest power, and that he should
not fear any mortal man.
fA22 There is also to be understood here a
threatening, "See, if thou conductest thyself courageously I shall be present
with thee, and however formidable at the first view thy opponents may be, they
shall not yet prevail; but if thou be timid and faint —
hearted,
fA23 I will render thee an object of
contempt: thou shalt not only be timid in heart; but I will make thee to be
despised by all, so that thou shalt be contemptuously treated; for in that case
thou wilt not be worthy that I should fight for thee and supply thee with any
courage and power to put thine enemies to
flight."
We hence see what this means,
Fear not, lest I should make thee
to fear; that is, "Be of a good courage
and of a ready mind, lest thou be justly exposed to shame; and fear them not,
lest thou shouldest really fear them, and lest they should even tear thee to
pieces and tread thee under their feet: for in case thou fearest them, thou wilt
be unworthy of being supported by the strength of my
Spirit."
This passage contains a useful
doctrine, from which we learn that strength shall never be wanting to God's
servants, while they derive courage from the conviction that God himself is the
author of their calling and become thus magnanimous; for God will then supply
them with strength and courage invincible, so as to render them formidable to
the whole world: but if they be unhinged and timid, and turn here and there, and
be influenced by the fear of men, God will render them base and contemptible,
and make them to tremble at the least breath of air, and they shall be wholly
broken down; — and why? because they are unworthy that God should help
them, that he should stretch forth his hand and fortify them by his power, and
supply them, as it has been already said, with that fortitude, by which they
might terrify both the Devil and the whole world.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as thou hast
been once pleased to fortify thy servant Jeremiah with the invincible power of
thy Spirit, — O grant that his doctrine may at this day make us humble,
and that we may learn willingly to submit to thee, and so to receive and even
cordially to accept what thou offerest to us by thy servant — to sustain
us by thine hand, and that we, relying on thy power and protection, may fight
against the world and against Satan, while each of us, in his vocation, so
recumbs on thy power, as not to hesitate, whenever necessary, to expose our very
life to dangers: and may we manfully fight and persevere in our warfare to the
end, until having finished our course we shall at length come to that blessed
rest which is reserved for us in heaven, through Christ our Lord. —
Amen.
Lecture
Fourth
Jeremiah
1:18
18. For, behold, I have made
thee this day a defensed 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. 18. Et
ego,
fA24 ecce posui to hodie in urbem
munitionis (vel, munitam) in columnam (vel, fulturam) ferream, et
in murum aeneum, super totam terram, contra Reges Jehudah, contra principes
ejus, contra sacerdotes ejus, contra populum terrae
ipsius.
God supplies here his
servant with confidence; for courage was necessary in that state of trembling
which we have observed. Jeremiah thought himself unfit to undertake a work so
onerous; he had also to do and to contend with refractory men, and not a few in
number; for the whole people had already, through their ungodly and wicked
obstinacy, hardened themselves in the contempt of God. As, then, there was no
more any care for religion, and no regard manifested by the people for heavenly
truth, Jeremiah could not, diffident as he was, undertake so heavy a burden,
without being supported by the hand of God. For this reason, then, God now
declares that he would make him like
a fortified city and an iron
pillar.
fA25 Indeed, the word prop would be more
proper; for
rwm[
omud, comes from the root
dm[,
omed; and the Prophet understands by it, not a pillar that is
raised and stands by itself, but that which sustains a building or a wall. There
is no ambiguity in the meaning; for God means that his servant would be
invincible, and that whatever his enemies might devise against him, they would
not yet prevail, as we find it said in the next
verse.
Now, though this was said formerly to
Jeremiah, yet godly teachers may justly apply it to themselves, who are honestly
conscious of their Divine call, and are fully persuaded that they do nothing
presumptuously, but obey the bidding of God. All, then, who are thus confirmed
in their legitimate call from God, can apply to themselves this promise —
that they shall be made invincible against all the
ungodly.
But the particulars of this passage
deserve to be noticed. It might have seemed enough that God called his servant a
fortified
city; but he compares him also to an
iron pillar
or column, and to a
brazen
wall. This repetition only confirms what
we have explained, — that Jeremiah would be victorious, and that though
Satan might rouse many to assail him, yet the issue would be prosperous and
joyful, as he would fight under the protection of
God.
It is at the same time added,
Over the whole
land. God doubtless speaks not of the
whole world, but of the land of Judah; for Jeremiah was chosen for this purpose,
— that he might bestow his labor on the chosen people. It is then said
that he would be a conqueror of the whole of Judea. It then follows,
against the kings of
Judah. We know, indeed, that there was
only one king in Judea; but God encourages his Prophet to be firm and
persevering, as though he had said, that the course of his warfare would be
long; and he said this, that he might not faint through weariness. The meaning
then is, that the Prophet would not have to contend with one king only, but that
as soon as one died, another would rise and oppose him; so that he was to know
that there would be no hope of rest until that time had passed which God himself
had appointed. We indeed know that those who are sincerely disposed to obey, do
yet look for some definite period, when, like soldiers who have served their
time, they may obtain a discharge; but God declares here to his Prophet, that
when he had strenuously contended to the death of one king, his condition would
be nothing better; for others would succeed, with whom he would have to fight,
as the same wickedness and obstinacy would be still continued. To kings, he adds
princes
and
priests;
and, lastly, the whole
people.
When a
king forgets his office and rules tyrannically, it often happens that there are
moderators who check his passions, when they cannot wholly restrain them: we
indeed see, that the most cruel tyrants are sometimes softened by good
counselors. But God here reminds his Prophet that the state of things in Judea
would be so desperate, that ungodly and wicked kings would have counselors
endued with the same disposition. When priests are added, it might seem
still more monstrous; but the Scripture everywhere testifies, that the Levitical
priests had almost all degenerated and become apostates, so that hardly one in a
hundred shewed the least sign of religion. Since, then, that order had become
thus corrupt, it is no wonder that Jeremiah had to declare war against the
priests; and we shall hereafter see that this was done. Now the common people
might have seemed to be excusable, as there was greater simplicity among them
than among the higher orders; (for they who are elevated above others transgress
through pride or cruelty, and often allow themselves too much liberty, relying
on their own eminence; but the common people, as I have said, seemed apparently
to have more modesty;) but God here declares that impiety had so greatly
prevailed in Judea, that all, from the least to the greatest, were become
perversely wicked. It was, therefore, necessary, as I have before stated, that
the Prophet should be fully armed; for what could he have thought, had he not in
time been warned, on finding afterwards such insolence, yea, such fury in high
and low, as to constrain him to contend with God's chosen people no otherwise
than with devils? It afterwards follows —
Jeremiah
1:19
19. And they shall fight
against thee, but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with
thee, saith the Lord, to deliver thee. 19. Pugnabunt autem tecum (vel,
praeliabuntur contra to,) sed non praevalebunt tibi, quia tecum ego (quia
sum tecum,) dicit Jehova, ad to
liberandum.
God in this verse
briefly reminds his servant, that though he would be supplied with invincible
power, yet he would have great trials, so that his office would not be,
according to a common saying, a mere play. He then shews for what purpose he
would be made like a fortified city, an iron pillar, and a brazen wall, even
that he might manfully fight, and not for the purpose of keeping away all
dangers, and all fightings, and everything hard and grievous to the flesh. We,
in short, see that the promise was given for this end, — that Jeremiah,
relying on God's aid, might not hesitate to set himself against all the Jews,
and that whatever might be their fury, he might still be
courageous.
Now a profitable doctrine may be
hence gathered, even this — that whenever God promises his servants
victory over their enemies, they ought not to make this the occasion of
fostering their torpidity or idleness, but, on the contrary, of gathering
courage, so that they may proceed boldly and unweariedly in the course of their
vocation. In short, God promises to be their deliverer, but at the same time
exhorts them to resist all the assaults of their
enemies.
Hence he says,
They shall fight with thee, but
they shall not prevail, for I am with thee to deliver
thee.
fA26 From these words we see that Jeremiah
was fully armed, that he might not fear on seeing dangers surrounding him; for
God does not here declare that he would be like a wall to him to prevent him
from being assaulted, but he says that he would deliver him; as though he had
said, "Prepare thyself to suffer; for except I were thy deliverer, it would be
all over with thee, and thou mightest perish a hundred times; but there is no
reason for thee to fear any dangers amidst thousand deaths, since I am present
with thee as thy deliverer." Now follows —
CHAPTER
2
Jeremiah
2:1-2
1. Moreover, the word of the
Lord came to me, saying, 1. Et fuit sermo Jehovae ad me,
dicendo,
2. 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. 2. Vade et clama ad aures
Jerusalem, dicendo, Sic dicit Jehova, Recordatus sum tui propter misericordiam
adolescentiae tuae et dilectionem desponsationis tuae, quum me sequuta es (quum
venisti post me, profecta es post me) in deserto, in terra non
seminata.
God now mentions to his
servant the commands which he was to convey to the king and priests, and to the
whole people; for by the ears of
Jerusalem he means all its inhabitants. God
here intimates that the Jews were unworthy of being cared for by him any more;
but that he is induced by another reason not to reject them wholly, until he had
found out by experience their irreclaimable wickedness. So then he makes this
preface, I remember thee for the
kindness of thy youth, and the love of thy
espousals. In these words he shews that
he regarded not what the Jews deserved, nor acknowledged any worthiness in them,
as the reason why he was solicitous for their salvation, and endeavored to bring
them to the right way by the labors of his Prophet, but that this is to be
ascribed to his former benefits.
Some render the
words, "I remember the piety or kindness of thy youth;" and
°l
lak, may be thus taken, as it is in other places. Others omit this
word; while others consider a copulative to be understood, "I remember thee, and
the kindness of thy youth." But none, as I think, have attained to the meaning
of the Prophet: there is yet no obscurity in the words, if a preposition be
considered as being understood, so as to read thus, — that God remembered
his people for the kindness which he had shewn to them, and for the love
which he had manifested towards them from the beginning. Then the real meaning
of the Prophet I think to be this, — that God here takes away every ground
for pride and boasting from the Jews; as though he had said, that they were
worthy, they had no reason to think; but that he was still their Father, and was
therefore unwilling that the benefits he had formerly conferred upon them should
be wholly lost. There is, in short, given here a reason why God sent Jeremiah
after the other prophets; as though he had said, "It is a testimony to you of
the paternal care which I shew to you, when I send my Prophet to give you a hope
of pardon, if ye return to the right way and be reconciled to me. But how is it
that I still shew a concern for you, as ye have forgotten me, and wholly
disregarded my law? It is so, because I wish to continue my favors to you." The
kindness of thy youth
he takes in a passive sense; for he does not
mean that the Jews were kind or merciful, but that they had experienced the
kindness of God.
But the metaphor here used must
be noticed. God compares himself here to a young bridegroom, who marries a
youthful bride, in the flower of her age, and in the prime of her beauty: and it
is a manner of speaking commonly adopted by the prophets. I will not now detain
you with a long explanation, as the subject will be treated more at large in
another place.
As God, then, had espoused the
people of Israel, when he redeemed and brought them out of Egypt, he says now,
that he remembers
the people on account of that
kindness
and
love.
He sets kindness or beneficence before love. The word
rsj,
chesad, properly means a gratuitous favor or kindness,
which is shewn to the miserable, or beneficence. By the word love, God means in
many other places the gratuitous election with which he had favored the whole
people. The expression is indeed made clearer when kindness or gratuitous favor
is placed first, and then love is added: though nothing new is added, yet the
Prophet more fully shews that the people had been loved by God in no other way
than through his kindness.
fA27
Now this is a remarkable passage; for
God shews that his covenant, though perfidiously violated by the Jews, was yet
firm and immutable: for though not all who derive their descent according to the
flesh from Abraham, are true and legitimate Israelites, yet God ever remains
true, and his calling, as Paul says, is without repentance.
(<451129>Romans
11:29.) We may therefore learn this from the Prophet's words, — that God
was not content with one Prophet, but continued his favor, inasmuch as he would
not render void his covenant. The Jews indeed had impiously departed from the
covenant, and a vast number had deservedly perished, having been wholly
repudiated; yet God designed really to shew that his grace depends not on the
inconstancy of men, as Paul says in another place, for it would then presently
fail,
(<450304>Romans
3:4) and that were all men false and perfidious, God would yet remain true and
fixed in his purpose. This we learn from the Prophet's words, when it is said,
that God remembered the people on account of the kindness of their
youth.
As to
youth
and
espousals,
we may hence learn that they had been anticipated by God's kindness; for
they became in no other way connected with God than by having been chosen by
him: their espousal would not have been enjoyed by the people, had not God
anticipated them. What was Abraham? and what were all his posterity? God then
now shews, that the beginning of all blessings, and as it were the fountain, was
this, — that it pleased him to choose the people for
himself.
And the same thing is confirmed in
other words:
When,
he says, thou didst follow me
in the desert, in a land not sown. The
people, we know, did not obey God as they ought to have done, even when he had
redeemed them. Hence God does not so much in this place commend the people for
any merits of their own, but especially confirms what I have already stated,
— that he could not cast aside every care for a people whom he had once
adopted, and whom he had led through the desert, that they might be a people
separated from the rest of the world. He however concedes to them, according to
his great goodness, the praise of obedience, because they followed God through
rough ways, as though a tender young woman refused not to undergo hard and
irksome toils from love to her bridegroom. He afterwards adds —
Jeremiah
2:3
3. Israel was holiness
unto the Lord, and the first — fruits of his increase: all that
devour him shall offend; evil shall come upon them, saith the Lord. 3.
Sanctitas Israel Jehovae, primitiae frugum ejus; quicunque comederint contrahent
noxam (alii vertunt, peccabunt; sed ego potius ad poenam refero,)
malun veniet super eos (exegetice additur hoc membrum) dicit
Jehova.
God here more clearly
reprobates the ingratitude of the people: and first he enumerates his favors by
which he had bound the people for ever to himself; and secondly, he shews how
malignantly the people responded to the many blessings which they had
received.
In saying, then, that Israel was
holy, he intends it not by way of honor. It was indeed in itself an
illustrious testimony to their praise, that God had consecrated that people to
himself, that he designed them to be the first — fruits of his increase:
but we must remember that there is here an implied contrast between this great
and incomparable favor of God, and the wickedness of the people, who afterwards
fell away from that God who had been so liberal and gracious to them. According
to this view, then, does Jeremiah say, that
Israel was holiness
to God; that is, that they were separated from
all other nations, so that the glory of God shone only among
them.
He then adds, that they were the
first-fruits of his
produce. For though whatever produce the
earth may bring forth ought to be consecrated to God, by whose power it grows,
yet we know that the first — fruits were gathered and set on the altar as
a sacred food. As, then, God had commanded, under the law, the first-fruits to
be offered to him, and then given to the priests, he says here, in accordance
with that rite, that Israel were the first — fruits of his produce. For
the nations, who then everywhere dwelt, were not removed from under God's
government (as he is the creator of all, and shews himself to all as the Father
and supporter); but he passed by other nations, and chose the race of Abraham,
and for this end, — that he might protect them by his power and aid.
Since, then, God had so bound the nation to himself, how great and how strong
was the obligation under which that people was to him? Hence the more base and
the more detestable was their perfidy, when the people despised the singular
favors which God had conferred on them. We now see why the Prophet says that
Israel was holy to God, and the first — fruits of his
increase.
He also intimates that the time would
come, when God would gather to himself other nations; for in the first-fruits
the people dedicated and offered to God the whole produce of the year is
included. So then Israel was like the first-fruits, because God afterwards took
to himself other nations, which for many ages were deemed profane. But yet his
special object was to shew that the guilt of the people was extreme, as they did
not acknowledge the great favors which God had bestowed on
them.
He then adds,
Whosoever will devour him shall
be punished. Of this meaning I approve,
because the explanation immediately follows,
evil shall come on
them. God then means not that they
should be only guilty of a crime, who should devour the first-fruits, but refers
rather to punishment; as though he had said, "The profane shall not be
unpunished who shall devour the first-fruits which has been dedicated to me."
For if any had stolen the first- fruits, God would have executed a vengeance
such as sacrilege deserved. If, however, any one prefers the other explanation,
— that it would be a crime to injure Israel, or to do him any harm,
because he was under God's protection, I shall not oppose him: but the wording
of the sentence leads me to the other view, that is, that those who would injure
Israel would not only be guilty, but would not be able to escape God's
vengeance, — and why? because
evil will come upon them, saith
Jehovah.
fA28 He afterwards explains more clearly the
import of his doctrine —
Jeremiah
2:4-5
4. Hear ye the word of the
Lord, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of Israel: 4.
Audite sermonem Jehovae domus Jacob, et omnes cognationes (vel, familiae)
domus Israel:
5. 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? 5. Sic dicit
Jehova, Quid invenerunt patres vestri in me iniquitatis, quia alienati sunt a
me, et ambulaverunt (vel, profecti sunt) post vanitatem, et facti sunt
evanidi (vel,
evanuerunt)?
Here God explains
why he had referred to what we have noticed, — that he had consecrated
Israel to himself as a peculiar people, and as the first — fruits. God
often mentions his favors to us, in order to encourage our hope, that we may be
fully persuaded that whatever may happen we are ever safe, because we are under
his protection, since he has chosen us. But in this place, and in many other
places, God recounts the obligations under which the Israelites were to him,
that thence their ingratitude might become more
apparent.
Hence he says,
Hear ye the word of
Jehovah. By this preface he seeks to
gain attention; for he intimates that he was going to address them on no common
subject. Hear
ye, then,
O house of Jacob; hear all ye
families of the house of Israel; as
though Jeremiah had said, "Here I come forth boldly in the name of God, for I
fear not that any defense can be brought forward by you to disprove the justice
of God's reproof; and I confidently wait for what ye may say, for I know you
will be silent. I then loudly cry like a trumpet and with a clear voice, that I
am come to condemn you; if there is anything which ye can answer, I give you
full liberty to do so; but the truth will constrain you to be mute, for your
guilt is extremely odious and capable of the fullest proof." Hence it was that
he exhorted them to hear attentively.
Then
follows the charge: What,
iniquity have your fathers found in me, that
having forsaken me they should
walk after vanity and become vain? Here
Jeremiah charges the people with two crimes, — that they had departed from
the true God, whom they had found to be a deliverer, — and that they had
become vain in their devices; or, in other words, that they were become for no
reason apostates: for their sin was enhanced, because there had been no occasion
given them to forsake God, and to alienate themselves from him. As then God had
kindly treated them, and they themselves had shaken off the yoke, and as there
was no one whom they could compare with God, they could not have said, "We have
been deceived," — how so?
"For ye
have, he says,
followed
vanity; and vanity alone was the reason
why ye have departed from me."
fA29 I wish I could proceed farther; but I
have some business to which I was called even before the
lecture.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as thou
continuest at this day, both morning and evening, to invite us to thyself, and
assiduously exhortest us to repent, and testifiest that thou art ready to be
reconciled to us, provided we flee to thy mercy, — O grant, that we may
not close our ears and reject this thy great kindness, but that remembering thy
gratuitous election, the chief of all the favors thou hast been pleased to shew
us, we may strive so to devote ourselves to thee, that thy name may be glorified
through our whole life: and should it be that we at any time turn aside from
thee, may we quickly return to the right way, and become submissive to thy holy
admonitions, that it may thus appear that we have been so chosen by thee and
called as to desire to continue in the hope of that salvation, to which thou
invitest us, and which is prepared for us in heaven, through Christ our Lord.
— Amen.
Lecture
Fifth
WE heard yesterday God's complaint, and his
expostulation with his people. He said in short, that if they came before any
judge there were reasons sufficient to condemn their ingratitude, and that they
were without excuse, because they had gone after vanity and were become vain;
or, in other words, that they had without a cause forsaken him, and were carried
away only by their own intentions. It now follows —
Jeremiah
2:6-7
6. Neither said they, Where
is the Lord that brought us up out of the land 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? 6. Et non dixerunt, (hoc est, non
cogitarunt apud se,) Ubi est Jehova, qui eduxit nos e terra Egypti, et
proficisci fecit nos per desertum in terra solitaria (vel, vasta) et
squalida, in terra horribili et umbrae mortis; in terra per quam vir non
transtit, et in qua non habitavit
homo?
7. 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. 7.
Et introduxi vos in terram fertilem, ad comedendos fructus ejus (vel, ad
comedendum fructum ejus, in singulari,) et ubertatem ejus (ad
verbum est, ad bonum ejus;) et ingressi estis et polluistis terram meam, et
haereditatem meam posuistis in
abominationem.
The Prophet goes on
with the same subject; for God adduces here no small crime against his people,
as they had buried his favom's in oblivion. Indeed, a redemption so wonderful
was worthy of being celebrated in all ages, not only by one nation, but by all
the nations of the earth. As then the Jews had thus buried the memory of a favor
so remarkable and valuable, their base impiety appeared evident. Had they not
experienced the power and kindness of God, or had they only witnessed them in an
ordinary way, their guilt might have been extenuated; but as God had from heaven
made an unusual display of his power, and as his majesty had been manifested
before the eyes of the people, how great was their sottishness in afterwards
forgetting their God, who had openly and with such proofs made himself known to
them!
We now then understand what the Prophet
means by saying, they have not
said: for God here sharply reproves the
stupidity of the Jews, — that they did not consider that they were under
perpetual obligations to him for his great kindness in delivering them in a
manner so wonderful from the land of Egypt. By saying that they did not say,
Where is
Jehovah, he intimates that he was
present with them and nigh them, but that they were blind, and that hence they
were without an excuse for their ignorance, as he was not to be sought as one at
a distance, or by means tedious and difficult. If then this only had come to
their mind, "Did not God once redeem us?" they could not have departed after
their vanities. How then was it that their error, or rather their madness, was
so great that they followed idols? Even because they did not choose to make any
effort, or to apply their minds to seek or to inquire after
God.
Here then the Prophet meets the objection
of the hypocrites, who might have said, that they had been deceived, and had
relapsed through ignorance; for they have ever some evasions ready at hand, when
they are called to an account for their sins. But lest the Jews should make any
pretense of this kind, the Prophet here shews that they had not been through a
mistake deceived, but that they had followed after falsehood through a wicked
disposition, for they had willfully despised God and refused to inquire
respecting him, though he was sufficiently nigh
them.
This passage deserves to be especially
noticed; for there is nothing more common than for the ungodly, when they are
proved guilty, to have recourse to this subterfuge, — that they acted with
good intention, when they gave themselves up to their own superstitions. The
Prophet then takes off this mask, and shews that where God is once known, his
name and his glory cannot be obliterated, except through the depravity of men,
as they knowingly and willfully depart from him. Hence all apostates are by this
one clause condemned, that they may no more dare to make evasions, as though
they have been through more simplicity deceived: for when the matter is
examined, their malignity and ingratitude are discovered, because they deign not
to inquire, Where is
Jehovah?
And
he afterwards adds what explains this sentence. I have said that other nations
are not here condemned, but the Jews, who had known by clear experience that God
was their father. As then God had, by many testimonies, made himself known to
them, they had no pretext for their ignorance. Hence the Prophet says, that they
did not consider where God was who
brought them from the land of
Egypt, and made them to pass through the
desert. He could not have stated this
indiscriminately of all nations; but, as it has been said, the words are
addressed particularly to the Jews, who had clearly witnessed the power of God;
so that they could not have sinned except willfully, even by extinguishing,
through their own malignity, the light presented to them, which shone before
their eyes. And here, also, the Prophet amplifies their guilt by various
circumstances: for he says, not simply that they had been brought out of Egypt,
but intimates that God had been their constant guide for forty years; for this
time is suggested by the word "desert." The history was well known; hence a
brief allusion was sufficient. He, at the same time, by mentioning the desert,
greatly extols the glory of God.
But the first
thing to be observed is, that the Jews were inexcusable, who had not considered
that their fathers had been wonderfully and in an unusual manner preserved by
God's hand for forty years; for they had no bread to eat, nor water to drink.
God drew water for them from a rock, and satisfied them with heavenly bread; and
their garments did not wear out during the whole time. We then see that all
those circumstances enhanced their guilt. Then follows what I have referred to:
the Prophet calls the desert a dry or a waste land, a
dreary land, a horrible land, a
land of deadly gloom, as though he had
said, that the people had been preserved in the midst of death, yea in the midst
of many deaths: for man was not
wont to pass through that land,
nor did any one dwell in
it.
fA30 "Whence then," he says, "did salvation
arise to you? from what condition? even from death itself: for what else was the
desert but a horrible place, where you were surrounded, not only by one kind of
death, but by a hundred? Since then God brought you out of Egypt by his
incredible power, and fed you in a supernatural manner for forty years, what
excuse can there be for so great a madness in now alienating yourselves from
him?" Now this passage teaches us, that the more favors God confers on us, the
more heinous the guilt if we forsake him, and less excusable will be our
wickedness and ingratitude, especially when he has manifested his kindness to us
for a long time and in various ways.
He
afterwards adds, And I brought
you in, etc. Here Jeremiah introduces
God as the speaker; for God had, as with his hand stretched forth, brought in
the children of Abraham into the possession of the promised land, which they did
not get, as it is said in
<194403>Psalm
44:3, by their own power and by their own sword; for though they had to fight
with many enemies, yet it was God that made them victorious. He could then truly
say, that they did not otherwise enter the land than under his guidance;
inasmuch as he had opened a way and passage for them, and subdued and put to
flight their enemies, that they might possess the heritage promised to them.
I brought you
in, he says, into the land, into
Carmel. Some consider this to be the name of a place; and no doubt
there was the mount Carmel, so called on account of its great fertility. As then
its name was given to it because it was so fertile, it is nothing strange that
Jeremiah compares the land of Israel to Carmel. Some will have the preposition
k,
caph, to be understood, "I have brought you into a land like
Carmel." But there is no need laboriously to turn in all directions the
Prophet's words. It is, as I think, a common noun, meaning fruitful, and used
here to shew that the Israelites had been brought by God's hand into a fertile
land; for its fertility is everywhere celebrated, both in the Law and in the
Prophets.
fA31
That ye might eat
its fruit and its abundance; that is, "I
wished you to enjoy the large and rich produce of the land." By these words God
intimates that the Israelites ought to have been induced by such allurements
cordially to serve him; for by such liberal treatment he kindly invited them to
himself. The greater, then, the bounty of God towards the people, the greater
was the indignity offered by their defection, when they despised the various and
abounding blessings of God.
Hence he adds,
And ye have polluted my
land,
fA32
and mine heritage have ye made an
abomination; as though he had said,
"This is the reward by which my bounty towards you has been compensated. I
indeed gave you this land, but on this condition, that ye serve me faithfully in
it: but ye have polluted it." He calls it his own land, as though he had said,
that he had so given the land to the Israelites, that he remained still the lord
of it as a proprietor, though he granted the occupation of it to them. He hence
shews that they impiously abused his bounty, in polluting that land which was
sacred to his name. For the same purpose he calls it his
heritage,
as if he said that they possessed the land by an hereditary right, and yet
the heritage belonged to their Father. They ought, therefore, to have
considered, that they had entered into the land, because it had been given to
Abraham and to his children for an heritage, — by whom? By God, who was
the fountain of this bounty. The more detestable, then, was their ingratitude,
when they made the heritage
of God
an
abomination. It follows
—
Jeremiah
2:8
8. 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, 8. Sacerdotes non dixerunt, Ubi Jehova?
et qui tenebant (vel, servabant) legem (ad verbum est,
apprehendentes, vel, tenentes legem) non cognoverunt me: et pastores
perfide egerunt mecum; et prophetae prophetarunt in Baal (hoc est, per
Baal,) et post ea qua non prosunt ambulaverunt (vel, profecti
sunt).
God assails here especially
the teachers and those to whom was committed the power of ruling the people. It
often happens that the common people fall away, while yet some integrity remains
in the rulers. But God shews here that such was the falling away among the whole
community, that priests as well as prophets and all the chief men had departed
from the true worship of God, and from all
uprightness.
Now, when Jeremiah thus rebukes the
teachers and the priests and others, he does not excuse the common people, nor
extenuate the crimes, which then prevailed everywhere, as we shall see from what
follows. As many think that they set up a shield against God, when they pretend
that they are not acquainted with so much learning as to distinguish between
light and darkness, but that they are guided by their rulers, the Prophet,
therefore, does not here cast the faults of the people upon their rulers, but,
on the contrary, he amplifies the atrocity of their impiety, for they had, from
the least to the greatest, rejected God and his Law. We now, then, understand
the design of the Prophet.
fA33
We may learn from this passage how
unwise and foolish are they who think that they are in part excusable when they
can say, that they have proceeded in their simplicity and have been drawn into
error by the faults of others; for it appears evident that the whole community
was in a hopeless state when God gave up the priests and rulers unto a reprobate
mind; and there is no doubt but that the people had provoked God's vengeance,
when every order, civil as well as religious, was thus corrupt. God then visited
the people with deserved punishment, when he blinded the priests, the prophets,
and the rulers.
Hence Jeremiah now says, that
the priests did not inquire where
Jehovah was: and he adds,
and they who keep the
law, etc. The verb
çpt
taphesh, means to keep, to lay hold on, and sometimes to
cover; so that there may be here a twofold meaning, — that the priests
kept the law, — or, that they had it shut up as it were under their
keeping. It would not, however, be in harmony with the passage to suppose that
the law was suppressed by them; for God, by way of concession, speaks here
honorably of them, thought he thereby shews that they were the more wicked, as
they had no care for their office. He says, then, that they were the keepers of
his law, not that they really kept the law, as though a genuine zeal for it
prevailed among them, but because they professed this. They indeed wished to be
thought the keepers of the law, who possessed the hidden treasure of celestial
truth; for they wished to be consulted as though they were the organs of God's
Spirit. Since, then, they boasted that they kept and preserved the law, the
Prophet now more sharply rebukes them, because they knew not God himself. And
Paul seems to have taken from this place what he says in the second chapter of
the Epistle to the Romans,
"Thou who hast the form
of the law — thou who preachest against adultery, committest adultery, and
thou who condemnest idols art thyself guilty of sacrilege; for thou keepest the
law, restest in it, boastest in God, and with thee is understanding and
knowledge."
(<450220>Romans
2:20-22.)
Paul in these words detects the wickedness of
hypocrites; for the more detestable they were, as they were thus inflated with
false glory; they profaned the name of God, while they pretended to be his
heralds, and as it were his prophets. We now see that this second clause refers
to the priests, and that they are called the keepers of the law, because they
were so appointed, according to what we read in
Malachi.
fA34
He afterwards adds,
The pastors have dealt
treacherously with God. We may apply
this to the counselors of the king as well as to the governors of cities. The
Prophet, I have no doubt, included all those who possessed authority to rule the
people of God; for kings and their counselors, as well as prophets, are in
common called pastors.
And he says, that the
prophets prophesied by
Baal. The name of prophet is sacred; but
Jeremiah in this place, as in other places, calls those prophets (contrary to
the real fact) who were nothing but impostors; for God had taken from them all
the light of divine truth. But as they were held still in esteem by the people,
as though they were prophets, the Prophet concedes this title to them, derived
from their office and vocation. We do the same in the present day; we call those
bishops and prelates, and primates and fathers, who under the papacy boast that
they possess the pastoral office, and yet we know that some of them are wolves,
and some are dumb dogs. We concede to them these titles in which they take
pride; and yet a twofold condemnation impends over their heads, as they thus
impiously, and with sacrilegious audacity, claim for themselves sacred titles,
and deprive God of the honor rightly due to him. So then Jeremiah, speaking of
the prophets, does now point out those as impostors who at that time wickedly
deceived the people.
He says that they
prophesied by
Baal: they ascribed more authority to
idols than to the true God. The name of Baal, we know, was then commonly known.
The prophets often call idols Baalim, in the plural number; but when Baal
signifies a patron, when the prophets speak either of Baal in the singular
number, or of Baalim in the plural, they mean the inferior gods, who had then
been heaped together by the Jews, as though God was not content with his own
power alone, but had need of associates and helpers, according to what is done
at this day by those under the papacy, who confess that there is but one true
God; and yet they ascribe nothing more to him than to their own idols which they
invent for themselves at their pleasure. The same vice then prevailed among the
Jews, and indeed among all heathen nations; for it was the plain and real
confession of all, that there is but one supreme Being; and yet they had gods
without number, and these all were called Baalim. When, therefore, the Prophet
says here, that the teachers were ministers of Baal, he sets this name in
opposition to the only true God, as though he had said that the truth was
corrupted by them, because they passed over its limits, and did not acquiesce in
the pure doctrine of the law, but mingled with it corruptions derived from all
quarters, even from those many gods which heathen nations had invented for
themselves.
Nor does the Prophet insist on a
name; for it may have been that these false teachers pretended to profess the
name of the eternal God, though falsely. But God is no sophist: there is then no
reason for the Papists to think that they are at this day unlike these ancient
impostors, because they profess the name of the only true God. It has always
been so. Satan has not begun for the first time at this day to transform himself
into an angel of light; but all his teachers in all ages have presented their
poison, even all their errors and fallacies, in a golden cup. Though, then,
these prophets boasted that they were sent from above, and confidently affirmed
that they were the servants of the God of Abraham, it was yet all an empty
profession; for they mingled with the truth those corruptions which they had
derived from the ungodly errors of heathen
nations.
It follows,
And after those who do not profit
have they
gone.
fA35 He again, by an implied comparison,
exaggerates their sin, because they had despised him whom they had known, by so
many evidences, to be their Father and the author of salvation, whose infinite
power they had as it were felt by their own hands, and then they followed their
own inventions, though there was nothing in all their idols which could have
justly allured the people of Israel. Since, then, they followed vain and
profitless deceptions, the more heinous and inexcusable was their sin. It
afterwards follows —
Jeremiah
2:9
9. Wherefore I will yet plead
with you, saith the Lord, and with your children's children will I plead,
9. Propterea adhuc contendam (vel, disceptabo) vobiscum, dicit
Jehovah; et cum filiis filiorum vestrorum
disceptabo.
The particle
dw[
oud, yet, or still, is not without weight; for the Prophet intimates,
that if God had already punished the perfidy and wickedness of the people, he
still retained whole his right to do so, as though he had said, "Think not that
you have suffered all your punishment, though I have already severely visited
your fathers for their wickedness and obstinacy; for as ye proceed in the same
course, and as there is no moderation nor limits to your sins, I will not desist
from what I have a right to do, but will punish to the last both you and your
children, and all succeeding generations." We now then understand what the
Prophet means.
It is indeed usual with
hypocrites foolishly to cast off all fear, especially after having been once
chastised by the Lord; for they think it enough that they have suffered
punishment for their sins; and they do not consider that God moderately punishes
the sins of men to invite others to repentance, and that he is in such a way
sharp and severe as yet to restrain himself, in order that there may be room for
hope, and that they who have sinned, while waiting for pardon, may thus more
readily and willingly return to the right way. This is what hypocrites do not
consider; but they think that God on the first occasion expends all his rigor,
and so they promise themselves impunity as to the future. As for instance,
— When God chastises a city, or a country, with war, pestilence, or
famine, while the evils continue there is dread and anxiety: most of those whom
God thus afflicts sigh and groan, and even howl; but as soon as some relaxation
takes place, they shake off the yoke, and having no concern for their
wickedness, they return again as dogs to their vomit. It is hence necessary to
declare to hypocrites what we see to have been done here by Jeremiah, —
that God so visits men for their sins, that in future he ceases not to pursue
the same course, when he sees men so refractory as not to profit under his
scourges.
Still,
therefore, he says: this threat no doubt
exasperated the minds of the nation: for as they dared to clamor against God, as
we find in many places, and said that his ways were thorny, they spared not the
prophets, and this we shall hereafter see: they indeed gave the prophets an
odious character; and what? "These prophets," they said, "chatter nothing else
but burdens, burdens, as though God ever fulminated against us; it would be
better to close our ears than to be continually frightened by their words." It
must then have been a severe thing to the Jews, when the Prophet said,
Still God will contend with
you. But it was needful so to
do.
Let us then learn from this passage, that
whenever God reproves us, not only in words, but in reality, and reminds us of
our sins, we do not so suffer for one fault as to be free for the future, but
that until we from the heart repent, he ever sounds in our ears these words,
Still God will contend with
you: and a real contention is meant; for
Jeremiah speaks not of naked doctrine, but intimates that the Jews were to be
led before God's tribunal, because they ceased not to provoke his
wrath:
fA36 and he declares the same thing
respecting their children and the third generation. It afterwards follows
—
Jeremiah
2:10-11
10. For pass over the isles
of Chittim, and see; and send into Kedar, and consider diligently, and see if
there be such a thing: 10. Nempe (vel, nam) transite ad insulas
Chittim (Graeciae, hoc est, ad omnes regiones transmarinas,) et videte,
et in Kedar (hoc est, in oppositam partem, nempe versus Aratbiam)
mittite, et considerate diligenter, et videte, an factum sit sicut hoc
(id est, an factum sit aliquid
simile:)
11. Hath a nation
changed their gods, which are yet no gods? but my people have
changed their glory for that which doth not profit, 11. An
mutaverit gens deos, et ipsi non sunt dii? et populus meus mutavit gloriam suam
in id quod non prodest.
Here, by a
comparison, he amplifies the wickedness and ingratitude of his own nation,
— that they had surpassed in levity all heathen nations; for he says that
all nations so agreed in one religion, that each nation followed what it had
received from its ancestors. How then was it that the God of Israel was
repudiated and rejected by his own people? If there was such persistency in
error, why did not truth secure credit among them who had been taught by the
mouth of God himself, as though they had been even in heaven? This is the drift
of the Prophet's meaning, when he says,
Go into the islands of Chittim,
and send into
Kedar.
He
mentions Greece on one side, and the East on the other, and states a part for
the whole. The Hebrews, as we have seen in Daniel, called the Greeks Chittim,
though they indeed thought that the term belonged properly to the Macedonians;
but the Prophet no doubt included in that term not only the whole of Greece and
the islands of the Mediterranean, but also the whole of Europe, so as to take in
those parts, the whole of France and Spain. There is indeed some difference made
in the use of the word; but when taken generally, it was understood by the
Hebrews, as I have said, to include France, Spain, Germany, as well as Greece;
and they called those countries islands, though distant from the sea, because
they carried on no commerce with remote nations: hence they thought the
countries beyond the sea to be islands; and the Prophet spoke according to what
was customary.
fA37
He then bids them to
pass into the
islands, southward as well as northward;
and then he bids them, on the other hand, to send to explore the state of the
East, Arabia as well as India, Persia, and other countries; for under the word
Kedar
he includes all the nations of the East; and as
that people were more barbarous than others, he mentions them rather than the
Persians or the Medes, or any other more celebrated nation, in order more fully
to expose the disgraceful conduct of the Jews. Go then, or
send,
to all parts of the world, and see and
diligently
consider, see and see again; as though
he said, that so great was the stupidity of the Jews, that they could not be
awakened by a single word, or by one admonition. This then is the reason why he
bids them carefully to inquire, though the thing itself was very plain and
obvious. But this careful inquiry, as I have said, was enforced not on account
of the obscurity of the subject, but for the purpose of reproving the
sottishness of that perverse nation, which must have been conscious of its gross
impiety, and yet indulged itself in its own
vices.
Hence he says,
Yea, pass over unto the
islands; and then he adds,
see whether there is a thing like
this; that is, such a monstrous and
execrable thing can nowhere be found. An explanation follows,
No nation has changed its gods,
and yet they are no gods; that is,
religion among all nations continues the same, so that they do not now and then
change their gods, but worship those who have been as it were handed down to
them by their fathers. And
yet, he says,
they are no
gods. If it had been only said, that no
nation has changed its gods, the impiety of Israel would not have been so
grievously exposed; but the Prophet takes it for granted, that all the nations
were deceived and led away after fictitious gods, and yet remained constant in
their delusions. Now, God does not set this forth as a virtue; he does not mean
that the constancy of the nations was worthy of praise in not departing from
their own superstitions; but, compared with the conduct of the chosen people,
this constancy might however appear as laudable. We hence see that the whole is
to be thus read connectively, — "Though no nation worships the true God,
yet religion remains unchangeable among them all; and yet ye have perfidiously
forsaken me, and you have not forsaken a mere phantom, but your
glory."
He sets here the favor of God in
opposition to the delusions of false gods, when he says,
My people have changed their own
glory. For the people knew, not only
through the teaching of the law, but also by sure evidences, that God was their
glory; and yet they departed from him. It is then the same as though Jeremiah
had said, that all the nations would condemn the Israelites at the last day,
because their very persistency in error would prove the greater wickedness of
the Jews, inasmuch as they were apostates from the true God, and from that God
who had so clearly manifested to them his
power.
Now, if one asks, whether religion has
been changed by any of the nations? First, we know that this principle prevailed
everywhere, — that there was to be no innovation in the substance of
religion: and Xenophon highly commends this oracle of Apollo, — that those
gods were rightly worshipped who have been received by tradition from ancestors.
The devil had thus bewitched all nations, — "No novelty can please God;
but be ye content with the usual custom which has descended to you from your
forefathers." This principle then was held by the Greeks and the Asiatics, and
also by Europeans. It was therefore for the most part true what the Prophet says
here: and we know that when a comparison is made, it is enough if the
illustration is for the most part,
epi< to<
polu<, as Aristotle says, confirmed by custom
and constant practice. We hence see that the charge of levity against the Jews
was not unsuitably brought by Jeremiah, when he said, that no nation had changed
its gods, but that God had been forsaken by his people whose glory he
was; that is, to whom he had given abundant reasons for
glorying. fA38
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that since thou
hast made thyself known to us in so plain a manner, not only by thy law and
prophets, but also by thine only — begotten Son, that the knowledge of thy
truth ought to have already struck deep roots in us, — O grant, that we
may continue firm and constant in thy holy vocation, and make continual progress
in it, and ever hasten forward to the goal: and do thou so humble us under thy
mighty hand, that we may know that we are paternally chastised by thee, and
profit under thy discipline, until being at length purified from all our vices
we shall come to enjoy that immortal life, which has been made known to us by
Christ, when we shall be able fully to rejoice in thee. —
Amen.
Lecture
Sixth.
Jeremiah
2:12
12. Be astonished, O ye
heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith the
Lord. 12. Obstupescite coeli super hoc, et expavescite, desolamini
(vel, arescite) valde, dicit
Jehova.
When the Prophet saw that he
had to do with besotted men, almost void of all reason, he turned to address the
heavens: and it is a way of speaking, common in the Prophets, — that they
address the heaven and the earth, which have no understanding, and leave men
endued with reason and knowledge. This they were wont to do in hopeless cases,
when they found no disposition to learn.
Hence
now the Prophet bids the heavens
to be
astonished
and to be
terrified
and to be reduced as it were unto
desolation;
as though he had said, "This is a wonder, which almost confounds the whole
order of nature; it is the same as though we were to see heaven and earth mixed
together." We now then perceive the meaning of the Prophet: for by this
representation he intended to shew, how detestable was the impiety of the
people, since the heavens, though destitute of reason, ought justly to dread
such a monstrous thing.
As to the words, some
render them, "Be desolate, ye heavens," and then repeat the same: but as
µmç
shemem, means to be astonished, the rendering I have given
suits the present passage better, "Be astonished, ye heavens, for this," and
then, "be ye terrified and dried up;" for:
brj
chareb, signifies to become dry, and sometimes, to be
reduced to a solitude or a waste.
fA39 It afterwards follows: —
Jeremiah
2:13
13. For my people have
committed two evils; they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and
hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water, 13.
Certe (vel quia) duo mala fecit populus meus, Me dereliquerunt fontem aquarum
viventium, ut foderent sibi puteos (vel, cisternas,) cisternas contritas (vel,
confractas,) quae non continent
aquas.
If a reason is given here why
the Prophet had bidden the heavens to be astonished and terrified, then we must
render the words thus, "For two evils have my people done:" but I rather think
that the preceding verse is connected with the former verses. The Prophet had
said, "Go to the farthest lands, and see whether any nation has changed its
gods, while yet they are mere inventions." I think then the subject is closed
with the exclamation in the preceding verse, when the Prophet says, "Be
astonished, ye heavens." It then follows, "Surely, two evils have my people
done," even these, — "they have forsaken me," — and then, "they
sought for themselves false gods." When any one forsakes an old friend and
connects himself with a new one, it is an iniquitous and a base conduct: but
when there is no compensation, there is in it united together, folly, levity,
and madness. If I despise what I know to be profitable to me, and embrace what I
understand will be to my hurt, does not such a choice prove madness? This then
is what the Prophet now means, when he says, that the people had sinned not only
by departing from the true God, but also by going over, without any
compensation, unto idols, which could confer no good on
them.
He says that they had done
two
evils: the first was, they
had forsaken
God; and the other, they had fallen away
unto false and imaginary gods. But the more to amplify their sin, he makes use
of a similitude, and says that God is a
fountain of living
waters; and he compares idols to
perforated or broken cisterns,
which hold no
water.
fA40 When one leaves a living fountain and
seeks a cistern, it is a proof of great folly; for cisterns are dry except water
comes elsewhere; but a fountain has its own spring; and further, where there is
a vein perpetually flowing, and a perennial stream of waters, the water is more
salubrious and much better. The waters which rain brings into cisterns are never
so wholesome as those which flow from their own native vein: and when the very
receptacles of water are full of chinks, what must they be but empty? Hence then
God charges the people with madness, because he was forsaken, who was a fountain
and a fountain of living waters; and further, because the people sought
unprofitable things when they went after their idols. For what is to be found in
idols? some likeness; for the superstitious think that they labor not in vain,
when they worship false gods, and they hope to derive some benefit. There are
then some resemblances to the true in false religions; and hence the Prophet
compares false gods to wells, because they were made hollow, suitable to hold
water; but there was not a drop of water in them, as they were broken
cisterns.
We now perceive what the Prophet
meant, — that we cannot possibly be free from guilt when we leave the only
true God, as in him is found for us a fullness of all blessings, and from him we
may draw what may fully satisfy us. When therefore we despise the bounty of God,
which is sufficient to make us in every way happy, how great must be our
ingratitude and wickedness? Yet God remains ever like himself: as then he has
called himself the fountain of living waters, we shall at this day find him to
be so, except he is prevented by our wickedness and neglect. But the Prophet
adds another crime; for when we fall away from God, our own conceits deceive us;
and whatever may appear to us at the first view to be wells or fountains, yet
when thirst shall come, we shall not find a drop of water in all our devices,
they being nothing else but dry cavities. It follows —
Jeremiah
2:14-17
14. Is Israel a servant? is
he a home — born slave? why is he spoiled? 14. An servus Israel? An
(vel, si) genitus domi? (hoc est, an verna? accipiunt enim puerum, domi natum
pro verna:) quare factus est in
praedam?
15. The young lions
roared upon him, and yelled, and they made his land waste: his cities are
burnt without inhabitant. 15. Super eum rugient (vel, rugiunt) leones
(alii vertunt, catulos leonum, et soepe significat minores leones hoc nomen sed
ubi adjungitur reliquis, ubi autem solum ponitur, ego semper interpretor
generaliter pro leonibus,) miserunt vocem suam; posuerunt terram ejus in
vastitatem; urbes ejus exustae sunt (vel, destructae, nam,
XXX
tandem valet atque hoc loco) absque
habitatore.
16. Also the children
of Noph and Tahapanes have broken the crown of thy head. 16. Etiam filii
Noph (hoc est, Mempheos, vocant enim Hebroei Noph urbem quae fuit olim
metropo!is Egypti) et Thaphanes (vel, Thaphis, ut vertunt Grraeci) frangent tibi
verticem.
17. Hast thou not
procured this unto thyself, in that thou hast forsaken the Lord thy God, when he
led thee by the way? 17. An non hoc fuit tibi, deserere tuum, (hoc est,
quod deserueris) Jehovam Deum tuum, quo tempore ducebat to per
viam.
These verses are to be read
together; for the Prophet first shews that Israel was not as to his original
condition miserable, but that this happened through a new cause, and then he
mentions the cause. He then first asks,
whether Israel was a servant or a
slave? God had adopted them as his
people, and had promised to be so bountiful to them as to render them in every
way happy; and what was more, as a proof of their happiness, he said, In thee
shall all nations be blessed.
(<011203>Genesis
12:3;
<012218>Genesis
22:18;
<012604>Genesis
26:4;
<012814>Genesis
28:14.) We then see what was the original condition of Israel; they excelled all
other nations, because they were God's peculiar people, they were his heritage,
they were a royal priesthood.
Hence the Prophet,
as though astonished at something new and strange, asks this question,
Is Israel a
servant? He was free beyond all nations;
for he was the first — born son of God: it was therefore necessary to
inquire for the cause why he was so miserable; for he says afterwards, that
lions roared against him, and
sent forth their voice; he says, that
their cities were
burnt, or destroyed; he says, that their
land was reduced to desolation; and at length he adds,
Has not this done these things to
thee? This again is put as a question,
but it is doubly affirmative, for it takes away every doubt: "What do you say is
the cause why you are so miserable? for all are hostile to you, and you are
exposed to the wrongs of all: whence can you say has all this proceeded, except
from your own wickedness?" We now see what the Prophet
means.
But that what he says may be more clear,
we must remember that he reminds the people, by way of reproach, of the benefits
which God had conferred on them. As then the children of Abraham had been
honored with so many singular favors that they had the preeminence over all the
world, this dignity is now referred to, but only for the purpose of exposing
their base conduct, as though he had said, "God did not deceive you, when he
promised to be bountiful to you; his adoption is not deceptive nor in vain:
hence you would have been happier than all other nations, had not your own
wickedness rendered you miserable." We now see for what end the Prophet asked,
Is Israel a servant or a
slave? They were indeed on an equality
with other people, as they were by nature; but as they had been chosen by God,
and as he had favored them with that peculiar privilege, the Prophet asks,
whether they were servants, as though he had said, "What is it that prevents
that blessedness to appear among you, which God has promised? for it was not
God's design to disappoint you: it then follows that you are miserable through
your own fault."
fA41
And by saying,
Why is he become a
prey, he intimates that except Israel
had been deprived of God's protection, they would not have been thus exposed to
the caprice of their enemies. They were not then become a prey except for this
reason, because God had forsaken them, according to what is said in the song of
Moses,
"How should one chase a
thousand, and ten should put to flight as many thousands, except God had given
us up as captives, except we had been shut up by his hand."
(<053230>Deuteronomy
32:30.)
For Moses in that passage does also in an indirect
manner remind the people how often and how wonderfully God had given them
victories over their enemies, and thus he leaves it to their posterity, when in
distress, to consider how the change came that one should chase a thousand; that
is, how could it be, that they, possessing great forces, should yet be put to
flight by their enemies; for they were not wont to turn their backs, but to
conquer their enemies: it then follows, that they were made captives by God, and
not by the men who chased them. So also here the Prophet shews, that Israel
would not have been made a prey, had they not been deprived of God's
assistance.
He afterwards adds,
Over him roar the
lions. The Prophet seems not simply to
compare the enemies of Israel to lions on account of their cruelty, but also by
way of contempt, as though he had said, that Israel found that not only men were
incensed against them, but also wild beasts: and it is more degrading when God
permits us to be torn by the beasts of the field. It is then the same, as though
he had said, that Israel were so miserably treated, that they were not only
slain by the hands of enemies, but were also exposed to the beasts of prey. And
then he adds, they have sent
forth their voice; which is the same as
to say, that Israel, whom God was wont to protect by his powerful band, were
become the food of wild beasts, and that lions, as it were in troops, were
roaring against them.
He then adds, without a
metaphor, that his land was laid
waste, and
his cities burnt without an
inhabitant. This language cannot be
suitably applied to lions or to any other wild beasts; but what he had
figuratively said before, he now explains in a plain manner, and says, that the
land was desolate, that the cities were cut off or burnt up. Now this, as we
have said, could not have been the case, had not Israel departed from God, and
had been on this account deprived of his
help.
fA42
By way of amplification he adds,
Also the sons of Noph and of
Tephanes shall for thee break the head,
or, the crown of the head. We shall hereafter see that the Israelites were
wont to seek help from the Egyptians. The particle
µg,
gam, may be thus explained, "Not only those who have been hitherto
professed enemies to thee, but even thy friends, in whose help thou didst
confide, shall turn their power against thee and break for thee thy head." Some
think that their degradation is here enhanced, because the Egyptians were an
unwarlike people; and ancient historians say that men there followed the
occupations of women; but as this is not mentioned in Scripture, and as the
Egyptians are not thus spoken of in it, I prefer to follow the usual
explanation, that the Egyptians, though confederate with Israel, would yet be
adverse to them, and had been so already. By the
head,
some understand the chief men among the people of Israel: but we may render
it thus, they will break for thee
the head, as we say in our language,
Ils to romperont la tete, or, Ils to frotteront la tete; and this,
in my judgment, is the real meaning.
fA43
Now follows the cause; the Prophet,
after having shewn that Israel were forsaken by God, now mentions the reason why
it so happened, Has not this done
it for thee? Some read in the second
person, "Hast thou not done this for thee?" but the meaning is still nearly the
same. More probable, however, is the rendering which others have given, "Has not
this happened to thee, because thou hast forsaken Jehovah thy God?" Jeremiah, in
short, teaches us that the cause of all the evils was the defection of the
people, as though he had said, "Thou hast concocted for thyself all this evil;
then must thou swallow it, and know that the blame cannot be cast on God; for he
would have been faithful to thee, except thine impiety had prevented him. God
has not, indeed, chosen thee in vain, nor has he in vain preferred thee to other
nations; but thou hast rejected his kindness. Thy condition then would have
never been as it is, hadst thou not procured thine own ruin." How so? "Because
thou hast departed from thy God."
And he further
exaggerates this sin by saying,
At the time when he led thee in
the way. To lead in the way, is rightly
to govern, so as to make people happy. The Prophet then shews, that the people's
perfidy and defection were without excuse in rejecting the worship of their God,
for they were happy during the time they served him. Had they been in various
ways tempted, or tried, they might have reigned some pretense. "We thought
ourselves deceived in hoping in the true God, for he concealed his favor from
us; we were therefore compelled by necessity. There ought at least some
indulgence to be shewn to our levity; for we could have formed no other
conjecture but that God had removed far from us." The Prophet meets this
objection, as he does in the fifth verse, "What iniquity have your fathers found
in me?" and, as it is done in another place,
"My people, what have I
done to thee, or in what have I been troublesome to thee?"
(<330604>Micah
6:4)
for God in that passage shews that he was prepared to
defend his own cause, and to clear himself from whatever the people might object
to him. So also he does in this place, "I have led thee," he says, "in the way;"
that is, "Thou didst live happily under my government, and yet I could not
retain thee by my goodness while I kindly treated thee; and thou knewest that
nothing could be better for thee than to continue under my protection; but thou
hast determined to go over into the service of idols. Now what excuse hast thou,
or what pretense is left thee?" We hence see, that the sin of the people is
greatly enhanced, for they were induced by no temptation or trial to forsake
God, but through mere perfidy gave themselves up to idols: and a confirmation of
this verse follows —
Jeremiah
2:18
18. 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? 18. Et nunc quid
tibi ad viam Egypti, ut bibas aquas Nili? et quid tibi ad viam Assur, ut bibas
aquam fluminis? (Nempe,
Eeuphratis.)
As I have just
stated, the Prophet confirms what I said, — that the people could not
ascribe the cause of their evils to others; for they ought to have imputed to
themselves whatever they suffered; and at the same time their sin was doubled,
because they looked here and there for vain remedies, and thus accumulated for
themselves new causes of misery; for they ought to have acknowledged no other
remedy for their evils except reconciliation with God. If, for instance, any one
being ill knew the cause of his disease, and instead of adopting the true remedy
had recourse to some vain expedients injurious to his recovery, is he not deemed
worthy to die for having willfully despised what might have healed him, and for
indulging himself in what is deceptive and fallacious? The same thing does
Jeremiah now reprove in the people of Israel. "If you carefully inquire," saith
God, "how it is that you are so miserable, you will find that this cannot be
ascribed to me, but to your own sins. Now, then, what ought you to have done?
what remedy ought you to have sought, except to reconcile yourselves to me, to
seek pardon from me, and to strive to correct your wickedness? I would then have
immediately healed you; and had you come to me, you would have found me the best
physician. And why do you now act in a way quite contrary? for you run after
vain helps; now you flee to Egypt, then you flee to Assyria; but you will gain
nothing by these expedients." We now understand the object of the Prophet. For
after having proved the people to be guilty of impiety, and shewn that the evils
which they suffered could be ascribed neither to God nor to chance, nor to any
such causes, he now shews to them, that the one true remedy was to return into
favor with God; but that it was an evidence of extreme madness to run now to
Egypt, and then to Assyria.
Now this reproof is
supported by history; for the people had at one time the Assyrians as their
enemies, and at another the Egyptians; and the changes were many. God employed
different scourges to awaken the sottishness of the people; at one time, he
whistled for the Egyptians, as we shall presently see; at another, he blew the
trumpet in Assyria: so that the Israelites might know that they could never be
safe without being under the government of God. But all these things being
overlooked, such was the blindness of the people, that when they were assailed
by the Assyrians, they fled to Egypt and sought aid from the Egyptians, and
entered into a treaty with them; afterwards, when a change occurred, they sought
a treaty with the Assyrians, and also bought it at a high
price.
This madness is what the Prophet now
reprobates, when he says, What
hast thou to do in the way of Egypt?
that is, "What advantage dost thou gain? How great is thy folly, since thou
knowest that God is angry with thee, and that thou art suffering many evils? God
is adverse to thee, and yet thou thinkest nothing of reconciliation. Thy healing
would be to flee to God and to be reconciled to him; but what dost thou now do?
Thou fleest to the Assyrians and to the Egyptians. How wretched is thy
condition, and how great is thy folly in thus wearying thyself without any
advantage!"
Now we may learn from this passage,
that whenever God chastises us for our sins, we ought to seek a remedy, and not
to rest in those vain comforts which Satan often suggests; for such charms
introduce drowsiness, and healable diseases are by such means rendered fatal.
What then ought we to do? We ought, as soon as we feel the scourges of God, to
seek to return into favor with him; and not in vain shall be our effort. But if
we look around us in all directions for help, our evils shall not be lessened
but increased. To drink the waters of the Nile, and to drink the waters of
Euphrates, is nothing else but to seek aids here and
there.
He indeed alludes to the legations which
had been sent; for they who went to Egypt drank of the waters of the Nile, and
others of Euphrates. He yet speaks metaphorically, as though he had said, "God
was ready to help thee, hadst thou betaken thyself to his mercy as thine asylum;
but having neglected him, thou thoughtest it more advantageous to have such aids
as Egypt and Assyria could bring. Thou thus seekest drink in remote countries,
while God could give thee waters." And he seems to refer to the similitude which
he had shortly before used: he had called God the fountain of living waters; as
though he had said, "God is to thee a refreshing and perennial fountain, and
there would be abundance of waters for thee wert thou satisfied with him; but
thy desire is to drink the waters of the Nile, and the waters of the
Euphrates."
fA44 We now then perceive the meaning of the
Prophet.
He, no doubt, speaks of the waters of
the Nile and of the Euphrates, because both those nations abounded apparently in
wealth and power and in military forces. As, then, the people of Israel trusted
in such auxiliaries, the Prophet here reproves their ingratitude, because they
were not content with God's help, though that was not so visible and
conspicuous. God, indeed, has help sufficient for us; and were we content with
him alone, no doubt an abundance of good things would to a full satisfaction be
given to us; and as he is not wearied in doing good, he would supply us with
whatever is desirable: but as we cannot see his beneficence with carnal eyes, we
are therefore carried away after the allurements of the world. We may hence
learn that we are not to seek drink either from the Nile or from the Euphrates,
that is, from the enticing things of the world, which make a great shew and
display; but that we are, on the contrary, to drink from the hidden fountain
which is concealed from us, in order that we may seek it by faith. It now
follows —
Jeremiah
2:19
19. Thine own wickedness shall
correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee: know therefore, and see,
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, 19. Castigabit to malitia tua, et aversiones tuae, (vel,
defectiones tuae) poenam de to exigent; et cognosces et scies, quod malum et
amarum tuum derelinquere (ad verbum, hoc est, quod reliqueris) Jehovam
Deum tuum, et quod timor meus super to non fuerit, dixit Dominus Jehova
exeercitum.
Here again, the Prophet
confirms what I have before stated, — that the people would at length
find, willing or unwilling, what it was to deport from God; as though he had
said, "As thou hast not hitherto learnt by so many evidences, that thy perfidy
is the cause of all thy evils, God will heap evils on evils, that thou mayest at
length know, even against thy will, that thou receivest, a reward due to thy
wickedness." This is the sum of the whole.
But
he says first, chastise
thee shall thy
wickedness, as though he had said, that
though God ascended not his tribunal, nor put forth his hand to punish the
people, yet judgment would be evident in their very sins. And this is much more
powerful, and has greater weight in it than if the Prophet had said only, that
God would inflict on the people a just punishment;
thy
wickedness, he says,
shall chastise
thee; and a similar mode of speaking is
adopted by Isaiah;
"Stand;" he says,
"against thee shall thy
wickedness,"
(<230309>Isaiah
3:9;
<235912>Isaiah
59:12)
as though God had said, "If I were even to be silent
and not to take upon me the office of a judge, and if there were no other
accuser, and no one to plead the cause, yet stand against thee will thy
wickedness, and fill thee with shame." To the same purpose is what is said here,
thy wickedness
fA45
shall chastise
thee.
But we
must consider the reason why the Prophet said this. There were then, we know,
complaints in the mouths of many, — that God was too rigid and severe.
Since then they thus continually clamored against God; the Prophet repels such
calumnies, and says that their wickedness was sufficient to account for the
vengeance executed upon them. He says the same of their
turnings
aside;
fA46 but what he had said generally before,
he now expresses more particularly, — that the people had withdrawn
themselves from the worship of God and obedience to him. He therefore points out
here the kind of wickedness of which they were guilty, as though he had said
that there was no need of an accuser, of witnesses, or of a judge, but that the
defections of the people alone would sufficiently avail to punish
them.
He afterwards adds,
Thou shalt know and see how
wicked and bitter it is to forsake Jehovah thy
God. These are words hard in their
construction; but we have already explained the meaning; "Thy forsaking," or thy
defection, means, "that thou hast forsaken thy God."
And my fear was not
on, or,
in
thee. Here, again, the Prophet points
out as by the finger the sins of the people. He had before spoken of their
turnings aside; but he now mentions their defection, — that the people had
plainly and openly departed from the true God. They, indeed, ever continued some
kind of worship in the Temple: but as the whole of religion was corrupted by
many superstitions, and as there was no fidelity, no sincerity; and as they
mingled the worship of idols with that of the true God, they had dearly departed
from God, who is jealous of his honor, according to what is in the law, and
allows of no rivals.
(<022005>Exodus
20:5;
<023414>Exodus
34:14) We now then perceive the meaning of the
Prophet.
He says,
Thou shalt know that it is an
evil and a bitter thing, etc. This must
be applied to punishment; and he repeats what he had said before, — that
the evils which the people then suffered did not happen by chance, and that as
they were overwhelmed with many bitter sorrows, the cause was not to be sought
afar off, for their bitterness, and whatever calamities they endured, flowed
from their impiety. Thou shalt
then
know
by the reward itself; even experience will
convince thee what it is to depart from God; and he says,
from Jehovah thy
God, or, to forsake Jehovah thy God.
For, if God had not made known his grace to the Israelites, their perverseness
would not have been so detestable; but since they had found God to be a Father
to them, and since he had so bountifully treated them, having been pleased to
enter into a covenant with them, their wickedness was
inexcusable.
And afterwards the person is
changed, And my fear was not in
thee. Here at length the Prophet
intimates, that they were destitute of every sense of religion; for by the fear
of God is meant reverence for his name. Men often fall, we know, through
mistake, and are deceived by the craft of Satan; and when made thus miserable
they are to be pitied. But the Prophet shews here that the people were wholly
undeserving of pardon. How so? Because there was no fear of God in them. "You
cannot," he says, "object and say, that you have been deceived, or make any
pretense by which you may cover your wickedness: it is evident that you have
acted shamelessly and basely in forsaking thy God, for there was no fear of God
in you.
fA47 He subjoins at last,
saith Jehovah of
hosts: by which words the Prophet
secures more authority to what he had announced; for what he had said must have
been very bitter to the people: and many of them, no doubt, according to their
usual manner, shook their heads; for we know how insolent were most of them.
Hence the Prophet here openly declares, that he was not the author of what he
had said, but only the proclaimer; that it proceeded from God, and that he had
spoken nothing but what God himself had commanded.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as thou hast
hitherto shewn to us so many favors, since the time thou hast been pleased to
adopt us as thy people, — O grant, that we may not forget so great a
kindness, nor be led away by the allurements of Satan, nor seek for ourselves
inventions, which may at length turn to our ruin; but that we may continue fixed
in our obedience to thee, and daily call on thee, and drink of the fullness of
thy bounty, and at the same time strive to serve thee from the heart, and to
glorify thy name, and thus to prove that we are wholly devoted to thee,
according to the great obligations under which thou hast laid us, when it had
pleased thee to adopt us in thine only — begotten Son. —
Amen.
Lecture
Seventh
Jeremiah
2:20
20. For of old time I have
broken thy yoke, and burst thy bands; and thou saidst, I will not
transgress; when upon every high hill, and under every green tree, thou
wanderest, playing the harlot, 20. Quia a seculo
confregi,
fA48 jugum tuum, disrupi vincula tua; et
dixisti, Non serviam (vel, non transgrediar, est enim duplex
lectio;) quia super omnem collem excelsum, et super omnem arborem frondosam
tu discurristi meretrix.
As there
are two readings in Hebrew, two meanings are given; for some think the verb to
be,
db[
obed, and others,
rb[
ober, the two letters being very similar. If we read, "I will not
pass over," or, I will not transgress, the sense is, "When I broke thy yoke;"
that is, "When I delivered thee from the tyranny of Egypt, then thou didst
pledge thy faith to me." The covenant then made between God and the Israelites
was mutual; for as God received them under his protection, when he became, as it
were, their patron, so they, on the other hand, promised to submit to his
authority. If we take this reading, the passage is an expostulation; as though
God condemned here the people, for their ingratitude and perfidy. But the
Prophet seems to mean another thing; and therefore I prefer the other reading,
"I will not serve:" and yet I reject what interpreters have alleged; for this
passage, I have no doubt, has been perverted. The prevailing exposition has been
this, "I will not serve idols;" and they who seemed endued with some judgment
did not see that this sense is unsuitable, and strained, or too far —
fetched: and it may have been, and it seems to me probable, that for this reason
the letter has been changed; for all gave this explanation, "Thou hast said, I
will not serve idols:" but it is wholly a strained
comment.
Now, on the contrary, I think that God
here complains that the liberty which he had given to his people was turned into
licentiousness: and this view is exactly suitable, as it is evident from the
context, — For from old
time have I broken thy yoke and
burst thy bonds: therefore thou
hast said, (the
w
here is an illative,) I will not
serve; that is, "When thou oughtest to
have devoted thyself to me, who had become thy Redeemer, thou thoughtest that
liberty to do thine own will was granted thee." And then the proof given of this
is in every way appropriate, for
on every high hill, and under every shady tree, didst thou run here and there
like a harlot. Then God shews that his
redemption had been ill bestowed on the ungodly, who made a bad use of their
privilege; for hence it was that they gave themselves up to all kinds of
lasciviousness.
If any one prefers the other
reading, I will not contend with him; and then the sense is, "I have long ago
shaken off thy yoke, and burst thy bands; and thou hast said, (he speaks of the
people as of a woman, for the feminine gender is used; and this is done, because
God sustained the character of a husband towards that people; and whenever he
accused them of defection, it was as though a husband charged an unchaste wife
with the crime of adultery,) thou
hast then
said to
me, that is, promised to me that thou
wouldest not transgress;" or, in other words, "thou hast promised to be faithful
to me, and pledged mutual chastity." Then the particle,
yk,
ki, which is commonly a causative, is to be taken here, according to its
meaning in some other parts of Scripture, as an adversative,
Yet on every high hill and under
every shady tree, thou didst run here and there like
harlots, who are seeking
lovers.
But as I have already said, it seems to
me more probable that God is here expostulating with the people, because they
availed themselves of the favor of liberty as an occasion for licentiousness and
wantonness: and thus the whole passage reads well, and every clause is most
suitable, consistent the one with the
other.
What God says, that he had
broken the yoke
and
burst the
bands, is confined by some to their
first redemption: but I approve of what others say, — that the Prophet
speaks here of many deliverances. We indeed know that the people were brought
out of Egypt but once; but when they were afterwards oppressed, he stretched
forth his hand to deliver them: God then had from old time, but at various
periods, shaken off the yoke of the people; for this is evident from the book of
Judges. As, then, the people were not made free, except through God's kindness,
who redeemed them, ought they not to have devoted themselves to the service of
their Redeemer? For on this condition, and for this end, they were redeemed by
God, — that they might consecrate themselves wholly to him. God then now
condemns the people for their ingratitude, because they thought that the yoke
was shaken off, that they might be, as we shall hereafter find, like untamable
wild beasts.
That what the Prophet means may be
more evident to us, let us remember what Paul teaches us in the sixth chapter of
his Epistle to the Romans (Romans 6), — that while we serve sin we are
free from righteousness; for we go astray after our lusts, and are restrained by
no bridle: but when God really sets us free from the miserable bondage of sin,
we begin to be his servants, and the servants of righteousness; for being freed
from sin we become the servants of righteousness: and this is the end of our
redemption. But many turn the favor of God into an occasion for licentiousness,
and thus abandon themselves, as though there was no law and no rule for a holy
and upright life. God complains that this was the case with the people of
Israel: Thou hast said, I will
not serve. "It is base ingratitude, that
thou hast not in the first place regarded me as thy Redeemer; and that in the
second place thou hast not considered that I dealt so kindly with thee for this
very purpose — that thou mightest be mine: for he who has been redeemed by
another's kindness is no longer his own." God had redeemed that people; and
redemption brought with it an obligation, by which the people were bound
willingly to submit to God as their Ruler and King.
Thou hast
then
said, I will not
serve. Thus God complains that his favor
had been ill bestowed on the people, because they had abused their liberty, and
turned it into lasciviousness.
fA49
And the reason that is subjoined more
fully explains the meaning, for
thou didst run here and there as a harlot, on every high hill and under every
shady tree. For we know that the
Israelites, whenever they departed from God, had some particular places, on
hills and under trees, as though greater sanctity were there than anywhere else.
And at this day the case is the same with the Papists; for the devotion, or
rather the diabolical madness, by which they are carried away, is of a similar
kind. "O! this place, they say, "is more favorable to devotion than another;
there is in it more sanctity." Of the same opinion were the Israelites: for they
thought that they were nearer heaven when they went up to a mountain; they also
thought that they had a more familiar intercourse with God when concealed under
shady trees. And we see that the same folly has ever bewitched all heathen
nations: for they imagined that God was nigher them on hills, and thought that
there was some hidden divinity in fountains and under the shades of trees. As,
then, this superstition had long prevailed among the Israelites, God here
reproves them, because they ran here and
there.
But we must further notice the
comparison: he says, that they were like harlots, who, having cast off all
shame, run here and there, not only because they burn with insane lust, but are
also carried away by their own avariciousness.
Thou,
harlot, he says,
didst run here and there
on all the high hills, and under all the shady
trees; as though he had said, "This is what I have effected in delivering thee!
thou thinkest that unbridled liberty has been granted thee! Hence, then, it is
that thou art become so wanton as to follow thy base lusts." It follows
—
Jeremiah
2:21
21. Yet I had planted thee a
noble vine, wholly a right seed: how then art thou turned into the degenerate
plant of a strange vine unto me? 21. Et ego plantavi to vineam electam
(vineam nobilem, vel, exquisitam, hoc enim significat nomen,
qrwç,)
totam fidele semen (hoc est, semen probum); et quomodo conversa es mihi
degenerationes vitis alienae?
God
here confirms what is said in the last verse; for he condemned the Israelites
for having perversely run here and there after their superstitions, when yet
they had been redeemed for this end, — that they might be ruled by the
hand of God. Hence he says, I
planted thee as a choice vine; that is,
"When I redeemed thee from thine enemies, I did not give thee permission thus to
prostitute thyself without any restraint, without any shame; for I planted thee
as a choice vine."
The metaphor is well known,
and often occurs; for God frequently compares his Church to a vine. He calls it
generally his heritage, or his land; but as vines excel other possessions, (for
they are usually preferred to pasture lands, or to cultivated fields,) as then
vines are the most valuable property, God hereby testifies how highly he values
his Church; for he calls it his vine rather than his pasture or his field, when
he speaks of it. So he does in this place, "I did not deliver thee from Egypt,
that I might afterwards throw aside every care of thee; but my purpose was, that
thou shouldest strike roots, and become an heritage precious to me, as an
exquisite and a noble vine. I, therefore,
planted thee a generous
vine,
qrwç
shurek, that thou mightest bring me forth
fruit."
Then he says,
a wholly right
seed;
fA50 that is, "I planted thee for this end,
— that thou mightest produce fruit acceptable and pleasant to me." God
regards here his own grace, and not the character of the people; for that
people, as it is well known, was never a true seed: but God here shews the
purpose for which he had redeemed the people, which was, that they might be like
a choice vine. How
then? he adds. God speaks here of their
corruptions with wonder, for the indignity was such as was enough to astonish
all men: how then art thou turned
to me into degenerations! So I render
µwrws
surim, though the word is not in common use in Latin: but it is enough for
me if we understand the meaning of the Prophet. The word is derived from
rws
sur, to turn aside, or back. We ought to say then correctly, "into
turnings aside." But as this would be obscure, when the vine is spoken of, I
have not hesitated to fix on another word:
How then art thou turned to me
into the degenerations of a strange vine! Some
give this version, "into useless branches of grapes:" but I know not whence they
have taken the words. I wish to keep to what is more genuine, — that the
vine, which ought to have been fruitful, had so degenerated that it produced
nothing, as we shall find in another place, but wild
grapes.
fA51 And he calls them the turnings aside of
a strange vine, which ceases to be the choice vine,
qrwç,
shurek, and is turned to a wild vine, which produces nothing but
sour or bitter fruit: and in the last place, as it brought forth nothing useful,
God justly calls it a strange vine. It follows
—
Jeremiah
2:22
22. For though thou wash thee
with nitre, and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked before
me, saith the Lord God. 22. Etiam si lveris to nitro (ut vertunt,)
et multiplicaveris tibi borith (alii exponunt, herbam fullonum;
alii, saponem; quod ad rei summam spectat, nulla est ambiguitas,
quoniam intelligit Deus nullo artificio, nullis herbis posse maculas populi
purgari,) impressa est (vel, insculpta est, vel, signata,
ut alii vertunt) iniquitas tua coram facie mea, dicit Dominus
Jehova.
We have already seen, and
the Prophet will often repeat the same thing, — that the people were
become so refractory that they would not willingly give way to any reproofs; for
they were almost all of such a hard front, and so obdurate in their wickedness,
that they dared insolently to raise objections against the prophets; whenever
they severely reproved them: "What! Are not we God's holy people? Has he not
chosen us? Are we not the holy seed of Abraham?" It was therefore necessary for
the prophets to apply a hard wedge to a hard knot, as they commonly say. As,
then, the Israelites were like a knotty wood, it was necessary to strike hard
their obstinacy.
On this account Jeremiah now
says, Even if thou wert to wash
thyself with nitre, and multiply to thee borith, yet thine iniquity would be
before me marked; that is, "Ye effect
nothing when ye set forth various pretences for the sake of excusing your
impiety: wash yourselves, but your iniquity remains marked before me." The
Prophet speaks in the person of God, that he might add more weight to the
denunciation he pronounced on the Israelites, and by which he reduced to nothing
their self — flatteries, according to what has been already
stated.
By nitre and borith they removed stains
in cloth; and hence borith is often mentioned in connection with fullers. But
there is no need of a laborious inquiry, whether it was an herb or dust, or
something of that kind; for as to what is meant, it is generally agreed that the
Prophet teaches us by this metaphor, — that hypocrites gain nothing by
setting up their pretences, that they may escape, when God condemns them. Hence
he says, that all their attempts would be vain and fruitless. How so? Because
their iniquity remained unwashed; that is, because they could not remove by
washing what is imprinted. Spots or stains can indeed be cleansed or washed away
by soap or other things; but when the stain is inward, and imprinted within,
washing will avail nothing, for the marks are so deep that some more efficacious
remedy must be adopted. So now the Prophet says, that the stains were imprinted,
and therefore could not be washed away or cleansed by soap or
borith.
fA52
But the Prophet says, that the
stains were
marked, or stamped,
before
God; for it was a common thing with the
Israelites to clear themselves from every blame; nay, so great was their
audacity, that they openly opposed the prophets, as though some great wrong was
done to them; and they called the prophets accusers and slanderers, Hence he
says, Thine iniquity is stamped
before
me?
fA53 that is, "However thou mayest by
self — flatteries deceive thyself, and hidest thy sins before the world,
yet thou gainest nothing; for in my sight thine iniquity ever remains
stamped." He afterwards adds
—
Jeremiah
2:23
23. 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. 23. Quomodo dices (hoc est, quomodo dicis; nam futurum
tempus saepe accipitur apud Hebraeos pro acu continuo, quomodo igitur
dicis) non sum polluta, post Baalim non profecta sum? Vide vias tuas in
valle, cognosce quid feceris dromedaria velox corripiens vias suas (vel,
circumiens, nam deducitur vox ista a corrigia
calceamenti).
Jeremiah goes on
here with his reproof, and dissipates the clouds of hypocrites, under which they
thought themselves to be sufficiently concealed: for hypocrites, when they
allege their fallacious pretences, think themselves already hidden from the eyes
of God and from the judgment of all men. Hence the Prophet here sharply condemns
this supine self — security, and says, How darest thou to boast that thou
art not
polluted? How darest thou to say, that
thou hast not walked after
Baalim? that is, after strange gods. I
have already said, that by this word were meant inferior gods: for though the
Jews acknowledged one Supreme Being, yet they sought for themselves patrons; and
hence arose, as it is usual, a great number of gods. The superstitious never
lapsed into that degree of impiety and madness, but that they ever confessed
that there is some supreme Deity; but they added some inferior gods. And thus
they had their Baalim and patrons, like the Papists, who call their patrons
saints, for they dare not in their delusions to call them gods. Such was the
sophistry of the Jews.
How
then, he says, canst thou excuse
thyself, and say, that thou hast
not walked after Baalim?
See, he adds,
thy ways, see what thou hast done
in the valley, and know at length
that thou hast been like a swift
dromedary. The Prophet could not have
fully expressed the furious passions which then raged in the Jews without
comparing them to dromedaries: and as he addresses the people in the feminine
gender, the female dromedary is mentioned. I consider that she is called swift,
not only on account of the celerity of her course, but on account of her
impetuous lust, as we shall presently see.
Now
this passage teaches us, that the people had become so hardened, that they
insolently rejected all reproofs given them by the prophets. Their impiety was
openly manifest, and yet they ever dared to allege excuses, for the purpose of
shewing that the prophets unjustly condemned them. Nor are we to wonder that
such contumacy prevailed in that ancient people, since at this day we find that
the Papists, with no less perverseness, resist the clear light of truth. For
however gross and shameful their idolatry appears, they yet think that they
evade the charge by merely saying, that their statues and images are not idols,
and that the people of Israel were, indeed, condemned for inventing statues for
themselves, but that they did this, because they were prone to superstition.
Hence they cry against us, and say, that the worship which prevails among them
is unjustly calumniated. We see, and even children know, that under the Papacy
every kind of superstition prevails; and yet they seek to appear innocent, and
free from every blame. The same was the case formerly: and as the temple
continued, and the people offered sacrifices there, and as some kind of religion
remained, whenever the prophets reproved the impious corruptions, which were
blended with and vitiated the pure worship of God, and which were called
adulteries, as they everywhere declare, "What!" they said, "Do we not worship
God?" This very perverseness is what the Prophet now condemns by saying, How
darest thou to say, I
am not polluted, I have not walked after Baalim?
So the Papists say at this day, "Do we not
believe in one God? Have we devised for ourselves various gods? Yet they rob God
of all his power, and dishonor him in a thousand ways: and at the same time they
assert against us, with a meretricious mouth and an iron front, that they
worship the one true God.
fA54 The case was exactly the same with the
Jews: but the Prophet here proves their boasting to be vain and grossly false,
See,
he says, thy ways in the valley;
see what thou, a swift dromedary, hast done.
As they could not be overcome by reasons, their willfulness being so great,
the Prophet compares them to wild animals: "Ye are," he says, "like lascivious
dromedaries, which are so carried away by lust, that they forget everything
while pursuing their own courses." It follows
—
Jeremiah
2:24
24. 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. 24. Onager (sed adhuc retinet foemineum genus,
foemina igitur onagri) assueta deserto, in appetitu animae sum (hoc est, pro
desiderio, vel, cupidine animae suae colligens ventura occasionis suae (vel,
occursus sui) quis inde reducet eam? Quisquis persequitur earn non fatigabitur,
in mense suo inveniet eam.
As
Jeremiah had called the people a dromedary, so he now calls them a wild ass:
"Thou," he says, "art both a dromedary and a wild ass." For when a wild ass has
caught the wind according to her desire, that is, when she has pantingly sought
it, and has caught the wind of her occasion, that is, such as may chance to be;
for he meant to shew, by this expression, that there is no choice made by
beasts, no judgment shewn, no moderation exercised; — when, therefore, she
has caught the
wind, wherever chance may take her, no
one can restrain her from her
impetuous course; and he who pursues her
will in vain fatigue himself,
until he finds her in her
month.
By these
words the Prophet intimates the untamable madness of the people, that they could
not by any means be restrained, being like a wild ass, which cannot be tamed nor
divested of its wildness, especially when she has caught the wind. For were she
shut in, bolts might do something, so as to prevent her headlong course: but
when a wild ass is free, and allowed to ramble over hill and dale, when she
catches the wind, and catches it according to her desire; that is, when she can
wander here and there, and nothing prevents her from rambling in all directions,
— when such a liberty is allowed to wild animals that they catch the wind,
and the wind of occasion; that is, any wind that may chance to be, there is no
reason, as the Prophet seems to intimate, in wild beasts, nor do they keep
within any due bounds. When any one of us undertakes a journey, he inquires how
far he can go in one day, he avoids weariness, and provides against it as far as
he can, and after having fixed the extent of his journey, he thinks of a resting
— place; and he also makes inquiries as to the right way, and the best
road. The case is different with wild animals; for when they begin to run, they
go not to Lyons or to Lausanne, but abandon themselves to a blind impulse: and
then when they are fatigued, they cease not to proceed in their course, for lust
hurries them on. We now perceive the design of the
Prophet.
He then adds,
Who can bring her
back? As though he had said, that the
people could not be stopped or brought back to anything like moderation, for a
wildness, yea rather a complete madness, had taken an entire possession of
them.
fA55
It afterwards follows,
There is no reason for any one to
weary himself, he will at length find her in her
month. All interpreters agree that this
month is to be taken for the time of foaling. When the wild asses are in foal,
and the time of parturition draws nigh, they are then restrained by their
burden, and may be easily caught, as they retain not their previous swiftness,
for they carry a burden. The Prophet then says, that the people were like wild
asses, for they could be restrained by no instruction, and nothing could bridle
their excesses; but that the time of parturition must be waited
for.
Let us now see how this similitude applies
to the people. The verse contains two parts. The first shews, as I have already
said, that the people could not be turned by any warnings, nor would they obey
any counsels, but were carried away by their insane passions, as it were by the
wind of occasion, or any wind that might blow. This is the first part. Now as
the obstinacy of the people was so great, God here declares to hypocrites, that
the time would come when he would put a restraint on them, and break down their
impetuous infatuation. How? The time of parturition would come; that is, "when
ye shall have done many iniquities, your burden will stop and restrain you." And
he intimates, that it would be the time of his judgment; as though he had said,
"you must be dealt with not as sane men, endued with a sound mind; for ye are
wild beasts which cannot be tamed." What, then, remains to be done? As the wild
ass is weighed down with her burden when the time of parturition approaches, so
I will cause you at length to feel the burden of your iniquities, which will be
by its weight intolerable; and though your perverseness is untamable, yet my
hand will be sufficient to restrain you; for I shall break you down, as ye will
not bend nor obey my instruction." We now, then, understand the import of the
similitude, and how applicable it was to the case of the people; the use of
which ought to be learnt, also, by us in the present day. The rest
tomorrow.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that, as it pleased
thee, when thou didst deliver us from the tyranny of Satan, to lay on our necks
thy yoke: — O grant, that we may be influenced by the spirit of docility,
and of obedience, and of meekness, and willingly submit ourselves to thee
through the whole course of our life, so that thou mayest gather from us the
fruit of thy redemption: and may we so renounce sin that we may devote ourselves
to thy service, and become the servants of righteousness, until having finished
the course of our warfare, we shall be gathered into that blessed rest. which
has been obtained for us by the blood of thine only — begotten Son.
— Amen.
Lecture
Eighth
Jeremiah
2:25
25. Withhold thy foot from
being unshod, and thy throat from thirst; but thou saidst, There is no hope: no;
for I have loved strangers, and after them will I go. 25. Prohibe pedem
tuum a discalceare (hoc est, ne discalceeris) et guttur tuum a siti
(quanquam alii existimant esse nomen substantivum
ãjy,
et mihi placet; ita vertendum erit, Prohibe pedem tuum a discalceatione
et guttur tuum a siti;) et dixisti, Acturm est; non, quia dilexi alienos, et
post illos ambulabo.
The words of
the Prophet, as they are concise, may appear at the first view obscure: but his
meaning is simply this, — that the insane people could by no means be
reformed, however much God might try to check that excess by which they were led
away after idols and superstitions. In the first clause, God relates how he had
dealt with the people. All the addresses of the prophets had this as their
object — to make the people to rest contented under the protection of God.
But he employs other words here,
Keep thy
foot, he says,
from unshodding, and thy throat
from thirst. For whenever there was any
danger they ran, now to Egypt, then to Assyria, as we have already seen. Hence
God complains of their madness, because they obeyed not his wise and salutary
counsels. Had God bidden them to run here and there, either to the east or to
the west, they might have raised an objection, and say, that the journey would
be irksome to them; but he only commanded them to remain still and quiet. How
great, then, was their madness, that they would not with quietness wait for the
help of God, but weary themselves, and that with no benefit? Isaiah says nearly
the same thing, but in other words; for he expostulated with them, because they
underwent every kind of weariness, when they might have been protected by God,
and be in no way wearied.
We now, then,
comprehend the design of the Prophet: for God first shews that the people had
been admonished, and that in time; but that they were so taken up with their own
perverse counsels, that they could not endure the words of the prophets. It was
the highest ingratitude in them, that they refused to remain quiet at home, but
preferred to undergo great and severe labors without any advantage, according to
what is said by Isaiah in another place,
"This is your rest, but
ye would not."
(<233015>Isaiah
30:15.)
There is no one who desires not rest and peace; nay,
all confess that it is the chief good, which all naturally seek. The Prophet
says now, that it was rejected by the people of Israel. It hence follows, that
they were wholly insane, for they had lost a desire which is by nature implanted
in all men. The Prophet, then, does not here simply teach, but reminds the Jews
of what they had before heard from Isaiah, and also from Micah, and from all the
other prophets. For God had often exhorted them to remain quiet; and the Prophet
now upbraids them with ingratitude, because they gave way to their own mad
folly, and rejected the singular benefit offered them by
God.
Let us then know that the Prophet states
here what others before him had taught,
Keep
back, he says,
thy foot from
unshodding. Some render the last word,
"from nakedness," because they wore out their shoes by long journeys; but this I
think must be understood of what was commonly done, for they were wont to make
journeys unshod: keep
then
thy foot from being
unshod,
fA56 and thy throat from
thirst. We know that thirst is very
grievous to men: hence the Prophet here reproves the madness of the people,
— that they were so seized with the ardor of an impious passion, that they
willfully exposed themselves to thirst even by long journeys. As then God
required nothing from the people but to ask his counsel, their sin was doubled
by their unwillingness to obey his salutary direction. A plausible excuse, as I
have already said, might have been alleged, had God dealt in a hard and severe
manner with the people; but as he was ready kindly and graciously to preserve
them in a complete state of quietness, no kind of excuse remained for
them.
It then follows,
Thou hast said, There is not a
hope, no. The Prophet shews here, as to
the people, how perverse they were; for they obstinately rejected the kind and
friendly admonitions which had been given them. They say first,
There is not a
hope, or, it is all over; for
çay
iash, in Niphal, means to despair, or, to be out of hope. It may be
rendered, "It is weariness;" and this would not be unsuitable, if taken in this
sense, "I have thoughtlessly tormented myself more than enough, so that
weariness itself induces me to rest." No. The Prophet speaks concisely in
order to express more strikingly the refractory conduct of the people. By
saying, "There is not a hope," it is the same as though he had said, that they
spurned all exhortations; and then he adds, No. There is no verb put
here; but an elliptical expression, as I have said, is more forcible to set
forth the ferocity of the people.
fA57
Isaiah expostulated with them in
another way, and blamed them, because they did not say, "There is not a hope."
(<235710>Isaiah
57:10.) Thus Isaiah and Jeremiah seem to be inconsistent; for our Prophet here
reproves the people for saying, "There is not a hope;" and Isaiah, for not
having said so. But when the Jews expressly answered, according to this passage,
"There is not a hope," they meant that the prophets spent their labor in vain,
as they were determined to follow their own course to the last. Hence by this
expression, "There is not a hope," is set forth the extreme perverseness of the
people; and he shews that no hope of repentance remained, since they said openly
and without any evasion that it was all over. But Isaiah reproved the people for
not saying, that there was not a hope, because they did not acknowledge after
long experience that they were proved guilty of folly: for after having often
run to Egypt and then to Assyria, and the Lord having really taught them how
ill-advised they had been, they ought to have learnt from their very
disappointments, that the Lord had frustrated their expectations in order to
lead them to repentance. Justly then does Isaiah say, that the people were
extremely besotted, because they ever went on in their blind obstinacy, and
never perceived that God did set many obstacles in their way, in order to compel
them to go back and to cast aside all their vain hopes, by which they deceived
themselves. We hence see that there is a complete agreement between the two
prophets, though their mode of speaking is
different.
Jeremiah then introduces the people
here as saying expressly, and thus avowing their own perverseness,
There is not a
hope; as though they said, "Ye prophets
do not cease to stun our ears, but vain and useless is your labor; for we have
once for all made up our minds, and we can never be brought to revoke our
resolution." But what does Isaiah say? He reproves the madness of the people,
that having been so often deceived by the Egyptians as well as by the Assyrians,
they did not understand that they ought by such trials and experiments to have
been brought back to the right way, but continued obstinately to follow their
own wicked counsels. As to the passage before, we perceive what the Prophet
means, — that God had kindly exhorted the Jews to rest quiet and dependent
on his aid; but that they were not only stiff-necked, but also insolently
rejected the kindness offered to them.
It then
follows, For I have loved
strangers, and after them will I go.
Here he exaggerates the sin of the people, for they gave themselves up to
strangers; and he retains the similitude which we have already observed. For as
God had taken the people under his own protection, so the obligation was mutual:
both parties were connected together as by a sacred bond, as the case is between
a husband and his wife; as he pledges his faith to her, so she by the law of
marriage is bound to him. Jeremiah here retains this similitude, and says that
the people were like the basest strumpet, for they would not hear the voice of
their husband, though he was willing and anxious to be reconciled to them. Now,
a wife must be wholly irreclaimable when she spurns her own husband, who is
ready to receive her into favor, and to forgive her all the wickedness she may
have done. The Prophet then shews, that there was in the people so great and so
hopeless an impiety, that they closed their ears against God who kindly exhorted
them to repent; and worse still, they shamelessly boasted that they were
resolved to worship idols and their own fictions, and to reject the only true
God. It follows —
Jeremiah
2:26
26. 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, 26. Sicut pudor (vel,
probrum) furi, cum deprehensus est, ita pudefacti sunt domus Israel, reges
eorum, principes eorum, et sacerdotes eorum et prophetae
eorum.
Some render the words in the
future tense, "So ashamed shall be the house of Israel," etc.; and they think
that the Prophet is speaking here of the punishment which was impending over the
people: but I explain the words as they are, — that the impiety of the
people was so gross, that there was no need formally to prove it, as it was so
very palpable. Hence the Prophet compares the Jews to open thieves, as though he
had said, that hypocrites among that people gained nothing by their evasions and
subterfuges, for their impiety was quite public: they were like a thief when
caught, who cannot deny nor hide his crime. Hence he says that they were caught,
as they say, in the very act; that is, their flagitious deeds were so
conspicuous, that whatever objections they might raise, they could not clear
themselves, but their baseness was known to all. We now then perceive what the
Prophet means. We have before seen that the people had recourse to many excuses,
but Jeremiah shews here, that they attained nothing by their evasions, except
that they more fully discovered their own effrontery, for their dishonesty was
evident to all; it was so manifest that they could not cover it by any cloaks
and pretences.
fA58
Nor does he speak only of the common
people; but he condemns kings,
princes, priests, and
prophets,
as though he had said, that they were become so corrupt from the least to
the greatest, that having cast off all shame, they openly shewed a manifest and
gross contempt for God by following their own inventions and superstitions. And
yet the Jews no doubt attempted by many excuses to defend themselves; but God
here shakes off all those fallacious pretexts, by which they thought to cover
their flagitious deeds, and says that they were notwithstanding manifestly
thieves.
The Prophet had said before, that the
Jews made a different declaration; and now he condemns their effrontery: but
there is no inconsistency as to the meaning. The Jews denied that they were
apostates and guilty of perfidy, or that they had forsaken the worship of God;
they denied this in words; but the Prophet, in now proclaiming their
shamelessness, does not refer to words; for they had ready at hand their false
pretensions, as it has been already stated: but the Prophet now takes the fact
itself as granted, and says that they wickedly and perversely resisted God, so
that their wickedness and obstinacy were past all remedy. It now follows
—
Jeremiah
2:27-28
27. 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. 27. Dicentes ligno,
Pater meus tu (hoc est, tu es pater meus,) et lapidi, Tu genuisti me
(si legamuss per
y,
si autem per
w,
Tu genuisti nos;) quia verterunt mihi cervicem (dorsum, alii vertunt, vel,
posteriora,) et non faciem: in tempore autem calamitatis suae dicent (hoc
est, dicunt,) Surge et serva
nos.
28. 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. 28. Et ubi sunt dii tui, quos fecisti tibi? Surgant, an servent to
tempore mali tui (hoc est, afflictionis tuae, sicuti prius;)
quia secundum numerum urbium tuarum fuerunt dii tui,
Jehudah.
The Prophet here confirms
what he had before said of the perverse wickedness of the people. He shews that
he had not said without reason, that their sins were extremely gross, and could
not be excused by any evasions: for they
say,
he adds, to the wood, Thou art my
father, and to the stone, Thou hast begotten,
me. By these words the Prophet shews,
that idolatry was so rampant among the people, that they openly ascribed to
their statues, made of wood or stone, the honor due to the only true
God.
But the Prophet points out here what is
especially to be detested in idolatry, and that is, the transferring of the
honor, due to God, to statues, not only as to the external act by bending the
knee before them, but by seeking salvation from
them.
And this is what we ought particularly to
notice: for the Papists at this day, though they prostrate themselves before
their pictures and statues, do not yet acknowledge themselves guilty of
idolatry, when such a charge is brought against them. They say that they worship
the statues, not with the honor due to God, but with such honor as a servant
renders to his master.
fA59 They think that they thus exculpate
themselves. But were we to grant what they allege, they yet cannot deny but that
they address prayers and supplications to statues. As then they ask the very
statues to save them, whatever sophistry they may adopt, it is altogether
nugatory: for the prophets condemn not merely the outward gesture, the bowing
down, and other ceremonious acts, as they are called, when they condemned
idolaters. What then? They condemned them, because they said to
statues, Thou art my
Father; that is, because they ascribed
the power, which belongs only to God, to statues made of wood or stone. It is
indeed certain, that the Jews never sunk into so great a depth of sottishness as
expressly to profess that gods of wood and stone were equal to the true God, and
they never said any such thing. Yet the Prophet did not calumniate them, in
ascribing what is here said to them: but as it is clearly evident from other
places, the Prophet regarded their thoughts rather than their words: for the
Jews professed the same thing as the Papists of the present day, when they
prostrated themselves before their statues; they said that they worshipped the
only true God and sought salvation from him; and yet they thought that the power
of God was inherent in the statues themselves: hence they said,
Thou art my father, Thou hast
begotten me. The case is the same with
the Papists of the present day. When any one prostrates himself before the
statue of Catherine or of Christopher, he says, "Our Father." When he justifies
himself in doing this, he says that it is done in honor to the one true God: and
yet thou runnest blindly, now to one statue, and then to another, and muttcrest,
"Our Father." There is not the least doubt but that the superstition which now
prevails under the Papacy, is even more gross than that which prevailed among
the Jews. But to say nothing of the Papists, because they mutter, "Our Father,"
before their statues, there is no doubt but that when they present their prayers
to statues, they consider God's power to be in
them.
We must now, then, bear in mind, that the
Jews were not only condemned, because they burnt incense and offered sacrifices
to idols, but because they transferred the glory of God to their statues, when
they asked salvation from them. And as this was not done in express words, the
Prophet here brings to light their impious thoughts; for they did not raise up
their minds and thoughts to God, but turned them to their
statues.
It afterwards follows,
They have turned to me the neck
fA60 and not the
face. In these words, God again confirms
what he had before said, that the apostasy or defection of the people was more
manifest than what could be disguised by any colorings. He then adds,
Yet
(the
w is
to be taken here adversatively)
in the time of their affliction,
they will say, Arise, and save us. God
here complains that the Jews most strangely abused his kindness; for they came
to him when any grievous calamity constrained them. "What have I to do with
you?" he says, "Ye are wholly devoted to your idols, ye call them your fathers,
and ascribe to them the glory of your salvation, when things go on peaceably
with you; but when your idols in time of distress give you no aid, then ye
return to me and say, Arise, and
save us; but, since idols are your
fathers, and ye expect salvation from them, I shall have nothing to do with you;
be contented with your idols, and trouble me no more, for I have been forsaken
by you."
And hence he adds,
Where are your gods?
Here God laughs to scorn the false confidence
by which the Jews deceived themselves:
Where are your gods, which you
have made for yourselves? Let them arise, let us see whether they will help you
in the time of your distress. We now understand
what the Prophet means: for he shews that the people acted in a most strange
manner; for they worshipped idols when they were in safety, and afterwards would
have God to be bound to them; and yet they denied the true God when they fell
away unto idols. He then shews that they could expect no aid from God; for they
robbed him of his own power when they devised idols for themselves. But we must
ever remember what he said, that false gods were counted as fathers and authors
of salvation by the people.
The same thing is,
no doubt, done at this day under the Papacy; for the Papists have their patrons;
and when they find that their foolish superstitions can do nothing for them,
they would have God to help them, and yet they leave nothing to him: after
having taken away all his glory, and divided it as a spoil among dead saints,
they would then have God to be their helper. But we see what God's answer to
them is, "Where are your gods?" etc.
Now this
truth is of use to us; and we hence learn, that we are not to wait until we are
really, and in the last state of despair, compelled to acknowledge that our
labors have been useless, while we hoped and prayed for help from idols; but
that we ought to come directly to God himself for aid in our
distress.
God proceeds farther with the sarcasm
or the derision which he has employed,
Where are thy gods? Let them now
arise that they may help thee; that is,
— let them try their utmost whether they can aid thee.
According to the number of thy
cities have been thy gods, O Judah. As
the people were not satisfied with one God, every city chose a patron for
itself. "Since, then, innumerable gods are invoked by you, how comes it that
they do not help you?" We hence see that the unbelief of the people is here
sharply reproved; for they did not acquiesce in God alone, but sought to procure
for themselves gods without number: there were many cities in the tribe of
Judah, and there were as many patrons. The one true God would have been fully
sufficient for them, and would have brought them complete deliverance whenever
needed; but the one true God they despised, and every city devised a god for
itself. "Since ye trust," he says, "in such a multitude,
let them now arise, that they may
succor you; for I, who am one, am
despised by you." We now understand what the Prophet means also in this part. It
afterwards follows —
Jeremiah
2:29
29. Wherefore will ye plead
with me? ye all have transgressed against me, saith the Lord. 29. Cur
litigatis mecum omnes impie agentes in me (vel, perfide)? dicit
Jehova.
Jeremiah concludes here his
previous subject: he says that the Jews gained nothing by alleging against God
that they were innocent, and by thinking that they could by mere words escape
his judgment, and not only by doing so, but also by hurrying on to such a degree
of presumption as to challenge God himself, and to seek to prove him guilty. But
God answers them in one word, and says, that they were perfidious. The meaning
then is, that the Jews ill consulted their own interest in hardening themselves
in their obduracy; for God would hold them fully convicted of impiety, so that
they in vain alleged this or that as an
excuse.
fA61
Now this passage deserves especial
notice: for we know how prone we are by nature to hypocrisy; and when God
summons us to his tribunal, hardly one in a hundred will acknowledge his guilt
and humbly pray for forgiveness; but the greater part complains, nay almost all
murmur against God, and still more, they gather boldness, and proudly dare to
challenge and defy God. Since, then, hypocrisy thus prevails in us and is deeply
fixed in the hearts of almost all, and since hypocrisy generates insolence and
pride against God, let us remember what the Prophet says here, — that all
who dispute against God gain nothing by their excuses, because he will at length
detect their defection and perfidy. It then follows
—
Jeremiah
2:30
30. In vain have I smitten your
children; they received no correction: your own sword hath devoured your
prophets, like a destroying lion. 30. Frustra (vel, in vanum) castigavi
filios tuos, correctionem non receperunt; voravit gladius vester prophetas
vestros quasi leo vastator.
Some
expound the beginning of this verse as though the meaning were, — that God
chastised the Jews on account of their folly, because they habituated themselves
to falsehoods: but the latter clause does not correspond. There is therefore no
doubt but that God here expostulates with the Jews, because he had tried to
bring them to the right way and found them wholly irreclaimable. A similar
expostulation is found in Isaiah,
"In vain," he says, "have
I chastised you; for from the sole of the foot to the crown of the head there is
no
soundness."
(<230106>Isaiah
1:6)
There God shews that he had tried every remedy, but
that the Jews, being wholly refractory in their spirit, were wholly incurable.
Jeremiah speaks now on the same subject: and God thus exaggerates the wickedness
of the people; for he testifies that he had tried whether they would be taught,
not only by words, but also by scourges and chastisements, but that his labor in
both instances had been in vain. He spoke before of teaching, "Keep thy foot
from being unshod, and thy throat from thirst." The Prophets, then, had exhorted
the Jews by God's command to rest quietly. This teaching had been useless and
unfruitful. God now adds, that he had tried in another way to bring them back to
a right mind; but this effort had been also useless and in vain:
In vain have I chastised you; for
ye have not received
correction.
But
he speaks of
children,
in order to shew that the whole people were unteachable: for though lusts
boil more in youth, yet their obduracy is not so great as in the old; as he who
has through his whole life hardened himself in the contempt of God, can hardly
be ever healed and be amended by correction; for old age is of itself morose and
difficult to be pleased, and the old also think, that wrong is in a manner done
them when they are reproved: but when the insolence and obduracy of the young
are so great that they reject all correction, it is more strange and monstrous.
The Prophet then shews that there was nothing sound or right in that people,
since their very children refused
correction.
fA62
We now perceive his object, —
that, as God had sent his prophets, and as their labor availed nothing, he now
shews, that not only the ears of the people had been deaf to wholesome teaching,
but that they were hard — necked and untamable; for he had tried to
correct them by scourges, but effected nothing. It follows,
their sword has devoured the
prophets. But I cannot finish
now.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that since thou, in
thy paternal kindness, daily invitest us to thyself, we may not harden ourselves
against thy holy and salutary admonitions: and whenever thou chastisest us with
scourges, may we not become obdurate against thee, but learn humbly to submit to
thy word, and receive thy chastisement, and so profit by both, that we may not
be exposed to the extreme judgment which thou denouncest on the obstinate; but
may we, on the contrary, open a way for thy paternal goodness, so that thou
mayest kindly deal with us, until thou receivest us into that blessed rest which
has been prepared for us in heaven, through Jesus Christ our Lord. —
Amen.
Lecture
Ninth
IN yesterday's lecture, God complained that he had
spent labor in vain in chastising the children of Israel; for they were of a
nature utterly untamable and refractory, incapable of being improved. Hence he
says, "I have in vain endeavored by punishments to bring you back to the right
way." But he now exaggerates their crime of obduracy, as they not only had
rejected wholesome instruction, but had also shed innocent blood, and persecuted
as their enemies the prophets who had been sent to them from above, in order to
promote their wellbeing. God then condemns them here not only for perverseness,
but also for cruelty; for he says, that he had not gained his object in leading
them to repentance, and also, that they had not only been refractory and
incorrigible, but that they had besides cruelly raged against the prophets: and
Jerusalem, we know, had been a slaughter — house where many of the
prophets had been killed.
Some explain the
passage of false teachers, as though the Prophet had said, that it was to be
ascribed to the wickedness of the people, that prophets, who were false and
mendacious, suffered just punishment; and they lay hold on one word, even
because they are called their prophets. Hence Jerome says, that
they were said to be your, and not my prophets; as though God thus denied
that he had given them any commission. But this view is forced and
strained.
We must, then, understand the meaning
to be what I have stated, — that when God used means to heal the vices of
the people, the very prophets, the ministers of salvation, were cruelly slain by
the people. And this exposition best suits the expressions which follow,
as a devouring
lion. For God says, that the Jews raged
against the prophets, as though they had entered a forest full of lions. It now
follows —
Jeremiah
2:31
31. 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? 31. Generatio, vos vidite verbum Jehovae, an deserturn fui Israel?
an terra caliginis? Quare dixerunt populus meus (hoc est, dixit, sed plurali
utitur, quia est nomen collectivum) dominati sumus (alii, recessimus,) non
veniemus amplius ad to.
The prophet
assumes the character, no doubt, of one in astonishment, that he might render
the sin of the people more detestable: for he speaks as one astonished,
generation! The word,
rwd,
dur; as it is well known, means an age. It is then the same as if he had
said, "On what time are we fallen? or in what an age do we now live?" We now
then perceive the import of the word. Then he adds,
See ye the word of
Jehovah. The word, see, seems not
to be suitable; for he ought to have said, "Attend to, "or "hear." But he bids
them to see, and most appropriate is the term; for he does not require the
people to hear, but, on the contrary, to know, as though he had said, "See ye
yourselves what this is which the Lord declares." And he emphatically says,
µta
atem, "ye yourselves." For the Jews might have been deservedly
condemned by all nations, were they brought into judgment. But the Prophet
shews, that however blind they were, they might see with their own eyes what the
Lord now says. He does not refer to instruction, but to a fact, as though he had
said, "The Lord by me expostulates with you; and though there should not be
present any witnesses or a judge or an umpire, ye yourselves are able to
understand and know the whole matter." We hence see how fitly the Prophet
speaks, when he bids them to see
the word of
Jehovah.
fA63
For he immediately adds,
Have I been a desert to
Israel? He makes the Jews themselves the
umpires and judges of the cause, whether they had not experienced the bounty of
God and had forsaken him, according to his former complaint, when he said that
God was the fountain of living waters, and that they had dug for themselves
broken cisterns. Hence he says, "How has it happened that ye have departed from
me? Have I in vain promised to be bountiful and kind to you? Did I disappoint
you or your expectation, while ye served me? Since then I had not been to you a
dark and a gloomy land, a land without the light of the sun; but as abundance of
blessings had ever been found in me, how has it been that you have departed from
me?"
He afterwards mentions another crime, Why
has my people said, We are
lords. The verb
wndr,
redenu, is variously explained by interpreters. Some derive
it from
rdy,
ired, to descend, and think that the
y,
iod, is supplied by a point. But these differ in their views: some refer
to the calamities with which the Jews had been visited, and others to their
apostasy. The first give this explanation, "We have descended;" that is, "We
have been oppressed with calamities, what then can we gain by calling on God,
since our affairs are in so hopeless a state?" The second draw forth another
meaning, "We have gone back;" that is, "There is no reason for the prophets to
stun our ears by their clamors, for we have once for all resolved never to
return to God; we have wholly renounced him; away with him, let him begone
together with his exhortations, for we will not attend to them." Both these
expounders think it to be the language of despair: but we perceive how they
differ; the first apply "descend" to the calamities of the people, and the
second to their perfidy, because they had bidden adieu, as it were, to God, and
wished not to have any farther intercourse with
him.
But there are others who take the word more
grammatically: for
hdr,
rede, and
dwr,
rud, signifies to be lord, or to rule. I therefore prefer the view of
those who render the word, We are
lords. Some take the verb in a passive
sense, but I know not for what reason: and the comment of others is very
diluted, "We have kings and counselors." I consider it to be the language of
pride and of vain boasting: for the Jews thought themselves to be kings,
according to what Paul says of the Corinthians,
"Ye are rich, ye have
reigned without us, and I would ye did reign."
(<460408>1
Corinthians 4:8.)
The Corinthians, being inflated with pride on account
of the opulence of their city, despised the simplicity of the Gospel; they
looked for refined things, and were much addicted to novelties. Hence Paul,
seeing that they despised the grace of God, ironically reproved them, and said,
that they wished to be rich and to be kings without him, to whom yet as an
instrument they owed everything. The same vice is what Jeremiah now condemns in
that people, We are lords, we
will not come to thee; as though he had
said, "Your happiness has hitherto proceeded from me; for whatever you have
been, and whatever has been given you, ought to be ascribed to me and to my
bounty: but now without me (for God himself speaks) ye are kings, but by what
right and by what title? What have you as your own?
Why then has my people said, We
will come no more to thee?" We now understand
the real meaning of the Prophet.
As to the
subject itself, he in the first place, as I have already said, is in a manner
astonished at the wickedness of the people, as at something monstrous. Hence he
exclaims, O generation!
as though he had said, that what he saw was
incredible. Then he immediately adds,
see ye yourselves the word of
Jehovah, This was much more severe, than
if he had summoned them before God's tribunal; for he thus proved that their
wickedness was extremely gross; for they had, without any cause, nay, without
any pretext, and without shame, renounced God, who had been so bountiful towards
them. He also in an indirect manner reproved them, because they refused to be
instructed; for he commanded them to look on the fact itself, inasmuch as they
were deaf, or having ears they closed them against all instruction; for, as we
have said, he calls away their attention from the word to the fact itself, and
this is what interpreters have not
observed.
Then follows an upbraiding, —
that God had not been a desert to
them; but, as the Prophet had before
shewed, abundance of all blessings had flowed to them so as fully to satisfy
them. Since then God had enriched them through his blessing, their sin in
departing from him was thereby more
increased.
In the last part of the verse God
expostulates with them on their ingratitude, because they thought themselves to
be lords. They were indeed a royal priesthood, but it was through God's favor.
They did not reign through their own right, they did not reign because they had
attained power through their own valor or efforts, or through their own merits
or their own good fortune; how then? only through the favor of another. Though
then they were kings only on the condition of being subject to the supreme King,
yet they wished to reign alone, that is, according to their own pleasure; and
thus trod under their feet the favor of God. It is with this wickedness then
that the Prophet charges them. And the end of the verse is of the same import,
we will come no more to
thee; as though they stood in no need of
God's aid; for they thought that they could supply themselves with whatever was
necessary to support them. As then they were inflated with much pride, they
despised the favor of God, as though they stood in no need of the aid of
another. It follows —
Jeremiah
2:32
32. Can a maid forget her
ornaments, or a bride her attire? yet my people have forgotten me days
without number, 32. An obliviscetur puella ornamenti sui? Sponsa
ligaminum suorum (ad verbum; alii vertunt, murenulas; alii,
torques; sed nomen hoc deducitur a
rçq,
quod est ligare; apud nos possemus vertere tressures proprie?)
populus autem meus (nam vau debet resolvi in adversativam
particulam) oblitus est mei diebus innumeris (quibus non est numerus,
ad verbum.)
God here
confirms what is said in the last verse, and would make his people ashamed,
because they valued him less than girls are wont to value their ornaments. The
necklaces of young women are indeed nothing but mere trifles, and yet we see
that girls are so taken with them through a foolish passion, that they value
such trinkets more than their very life. "How then is it, "says God, "that
my people have forgotten
me? Is there to be found any such
ornament? Can anything be found among the most valuable jewels and the most
precious stones which can be compared with
me?"
God shews by this comparison how perverted
the minds of the Jews were, when they renounced and rejected a benefit so
invaluable as to have God as their Father, and to be prosperous under his
dominion; for nothing necessary for a blessed life had been wanting to them as
long as they continued the recipients of that paternal favor, which God had
manifested towards them, and wished to shew to them to the end. As then they had
found God to have been so bountiful, must they not have been more than mad, when
they willfully rejected his favor? while yet young women commonly set their
thoughts and affections strongly and permanently on such trifles as are of no
value.
fA64 But the Prophet designedly used this
similitude, that he might introduce what is contained in the next verse: his
object was to compare the Jews to adulterous women, who being led away by
unbridled lust, follow wanton lovers. As then he intended to bring this charge
against the Jews, he spoke expressly of the ornaments of young women; and hence
it follows —
Jeremiah
2:33
33. Why trimmest thou thy way
to seek love? therefore hast thou also taught the wicked ones thy
ways. 33. Cur bonificas (id est, paras, concinnas) vias tuas ad
quaerendum amorem? itaque etiam pravitates docuisti in viis
tuis.
This verse is differently
explained: but the Prophet simply means; that the Jews were like lascivious
women, who not only despise their husbands at home, but ramble here and there in
all directions, and also paint their faces and seek for themselves all the
charms of wantonness. He says that the Jews had acted in this way; and hence he
says that they made beautiful
their ways. The verb in Hebrew has a
wide meaning: it means to prepare, to conciliate favor. But its import here is,
as though the Prophet had said, "Why dost thou disguise and paint thyself like
strumpets, who use many artifices to allure young men and to inflame their
lusts? why then dost thou undertake so much labor to gain a meretricious hire?"
We shall hereafter see why he says this; for he upbraids them for applying to
the Assyrians and the Egyptians.
It was a common
thing with the Prophets to compare the people to lovers; for the Jews, while
they ought to have been firmly attached to God, (like a chaste woman, who does
not turn her eyes here and there, nor gad about, but has respect to her husband
alone,) thought to seek safety now from the Assyrians, then from the Egyptians.
This sinful disposition is then what the Prophet here condemns; and hence he
speaks of them metaphorically as of an adulterous woman, who despises her
husband and rambles after any she can find, and seeks wanton and silly young men
in all places, and subjects herself to the gratification of all. We now then
understand what the Prophet means.
The words
must be noticed: he says, Why
makest thou fine thy ways? But he refers here
to the care which a wanton woman takes to adorn her person, as though he had
said, "Why dost thou thus prepare thyself? and why dost thou seek for thyself
what is splendid and elegant, that thy appearance may deceive the eyes of the
simple?" For the Jews might have remained safe and secure under God's
protection, and might have been so without any calamity. As a husband is content
with the beauty of his wife, and seeks no adventitious and refined elegancies;
so God required nothing from that people except fidelity, like a husband, who
requires chastity in his wife. The meaning then is, — "As a wife, really
attached to her husband, has no need to undergo much labor, for she knows that
her own native beauty pleases him, nor does she labor much to gain the heart of
her husband, for the best recommendation is her chastity; so ye might have lived
without any trouble by only serving me and keeping my law: but now what is your
chastity? ye are like wanton women, who labor to gain the hearts of adulterers;
for as they burn with lust, so there is no end nor limits to their attempts to
seek embellishments; and they torment themselves, only that they might attach
adulterers to themselves. Such then are ye (says God;) for ye spend much care
and labor in seeking for yourselves strange
lovers."
He afterwards adds,
Therefore thou hast also taught
lewdnesses. He alludes to the words he
had before used, Thou hast made
fine (or fair)
thy
ways: and now he says,
thou hast also taught
wickednesses by thy ways. He declares
that the Jews were worse than the Assyrians and the Egyptians, as a lascivious
woman is far worse than all the adulterers whom she captivates as her paramours.
For when a young man is not deceived, and the devil does not apply the fagot, he
may continue chaste and pure; but when an impudent and wanton woman entices him,
it is all over with him. The Prophet then says, that the Assyrians and the
Egyptians were innocent when compared with his own nation. How so? "Because they
have been led away," he says, "by your allurements, like young men, who are
destroyed by the fallacious ornaments of strumpets; for it is the same as though
they had fallen into snares: the evil then has proceeded from you, and the fault
lies with you.
fA65
We now understand the Prophet's
meaning: for he condemns the Jews, because they afforded an occasion of evil
both to the Assyrians and to the Egyptians, while they of their own accord
sought their favor. It now follows
—
Jeremiah
2:34
34. 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, 34. Etiam in alis tuis repertus est sanguis
animarum pauperum innocentum; non in suffossione repertae erant, sed super
omnibus his (alii vertunt quia in onmibus illis; et particula est causalis, sed
tamen hic adversative debet resolvi, quemadmodum multis
locis.)
The Prophet repeats, as I
think, what he had before said, — that the wickedness of his nation was
incorrigible; for they repented not when warned, but on the contrary raged like
wild beasts against the Prophets and religious teachers. Those interpreters are
mistaken who think that the savage cruelty of the Jews in general is here
condemned; and all are of this opinion. But the Prophet no doubt enhances this
evil, by saying, that the Jews were not only obstinate in their vices, but also
raged furiously against the Prophets. Hence he shews again, that God had used
all remedies to heal the Jews, but without effect, for what better medicine
could have been offered than for the Prophets to reprove the people and to shew
to them how wickedly they had departed from God? God then wished thus to correct
the vices of his own people; but so far was he from effecting anything, that at
Jerusalem and through the whole of Judea, the Prophets were slaughtered, and the
whole land was filled with and polluted by their
blood.
Hence he says,
Even in thy wings has been found
the blood of the souls of the poor
innocents. He calls the borders of
garments wings. He seems to say, that these slaughters were not hid, for the
Jews were besprinkled with blood to the very extremities of their garment; as
though he had said, "There is no cause for me to deal sharply with you in this
instance; for your filthiness is most apparent: ye have not only been rebellious
against my teaching, but ye have also cruelly murdered my prophets. If ye ask,
Where these slaughters are to be found? Even in your wings, on the borders of
your garments; so that your crimes are fully known." We now perceive what the
Prophet means.
We must also notice the import of
the particle
µg,
gam, also, or even. Their cruelty was worse and more nefarious,
because they thus rose up against their own physicians; for the prophets, as it
has been said, were the ministers of their safety. As then they thus raged
against God's favor so as to murder his prophets, it became still more evident,
that they were utterly irreclaimable.
He
afterwards adds what serves for a confirmation.
They have not been found in
digging under. Some give another
explanation; but their opinion is right who think, that the Prophet alludes to
what is said by Moses in
<022202>Exodus
22:2, — that if a thief should be found in digging under, (or
undermining,) he might be killed with impunity: for he who thus breaks through
into the houses of others, is equal to a robber in audacity; and he ought to be
counted not only a thief, but also as one guilty of manslaughter and felony. God
then says, that the Prophets, who had been slain by the Jews, had not been
found in digging
up, that is, had not been found guilty
of any crime, either of robbery or of murder: for he mentions a particular act,
instead of the general crime. But it has been
on account of all these
things; that is, "because they boldly
dared to reprove you, because they severely condemned your vices, because they
discovered your baseness, because they were enemies to your perfidy and to your
sins: as then the prophets had thus by the divine Spirit carried on war with
your sins, they have on this account been murdered by
you.
fA66
We see how well the whole passage
reads, provided it be applied to the prophets only. It was not indeed the object
of Jeremiah to condemn murders generally among the Jews, but to shew that they
were the enemies of the prophets, because they were opposed to every good and
sound counsel, and were incapable of receiving instruction. The mistake of other
expounders is hereby made evident: for in the last clause they touch neither
heaven nor earth. It follows
—
Jeremiah
2:35
35. 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, 35. Et dixisti (hoc est,
dixisti tamen; nam copula hic accipitur pro tamen,) certe (nam
yk
causalis particula hic audaciam notat, vel illam jactantiam plenam
impudentiae, ut auderent asserere Iudaei se esse innoxios, certe) ego sum
munda (ego sum innocens;) tantum recedat furor ejus a me: Ecce ego judico to
(vel, contendam tecum in judicio,) quia dixisti, non
peccavi.
The Prophet here shews that
the Jews were possessed of such a brazen front, that they could not be led by
any admonitions to feel any shame. Though then they were like adulterous women,
and though they gave meretricious hire to such as they ran to in all parts, and
though also they had murdered the prophets and the pious ministers of God, yet
they boasted, as persons conscious of no evil, that they were
innocent.
Thou hast yet
said; that is, "How darest thou to
pretend to be innocent, since thou art proved to be guilty, not by allegations,
but by manifest and glaring proofs?" In short, the Prophet shews that the
condition of the people was past remedy, for they would not receive any
admonition; nay, they dared, as it were with the front of brass, obstinately to
boast that they were innocent: Thou hast said, (he still speaks of a woman, in
the feminine gender,) Thou hast
yet said, surely I am clean. Thus
hypocrites not only excuse themselves, and allege vain pretences, but dare to
come forth publicly, and to fly as it were above the clouds, elated by their own
self — confidence. "Who will dare to allege anything against me?" Thus
hypocrites willfully and impertinently challenge all the servants of God and
seek by their own presumption to close the mouth of all. The Prophet now
condemns this petulancy in the Jews; for though they were manifestly proved
guilty, yet they boastingly asserted that they were innocent. Only
(°a,
ak, I take here to mean only) depart, etc. The Prophet upbraids
the Jews with another crime, — that they said, that wrong was done to them
by God in seeking to bring them to a right mind by punishment and by reproofs.
For God, as it is well known, had inflicted many punishments on the Jews, and
had also added serious reproofs. He tried by these means to find out whether
they were capable of being healed. What did they say? "I am innocent; and God is
angry with me without a cause.
Let him remove his anger from
me;" that is, "only let not God deal
severely with us, nor use his supreme authority, and we shall be able to prove
our innocency." Thus ungodly men, when urged with severe warnings, vomit forth
their blasphemies against God, — "O what can I do? I know that I am not
able to resist; God fights with a shadow when he afflicts me; his violence I
must indeed bear though he may overwhelm me; yet he doeth me wrong: but were he
to deal justly and fairly with me, I could prove that I do not deserve these
evils." Such then was the language of the Jews, —
only depart let his fury from
me, we could then shew that we are just,
or at least excusable.
Now also in this part we
perceive the design of the Prophet: it was to shew, that the Jews not only dared
dishonestly and proudly to claim innocency for themselves, but hesitated not to
contend with God, and to intimate that he with too much severity oppressed them,
and did not treat them justly, but announced a cruel sentence for the purpose of
overwhelming
them.
Behold,
he says, I will judge
thee, because thou hast said, I have not
sinned. Some give this version, "I
judge, or, condemn thee." But there is here no doubt a contrast between
the fury of God and his judgment. The people said, that God was too rigorous;
this was his fury: God now mentions his judgment. "There is no reason," he says,
"for you to allege such a pretext as this, as it will vanish into nothing; for I
will in judgment contend with you;" that is, "I will really prove that I am a
just judge and not a tyrant, that I execute just punishments and according to
the law, and that I am not like a man in anger, who takes vengeance on his
enemies and does so precipitantly and rashly: I will shew," he says, "that I am
a just judge."
We may hence gather a profitable
instruction. Let it in the first place be observed, that nothing is so
displeasing to God as this headstrong presumption, that is, when we seek to
appear innocent, while our own conscience condemns us. Then in the second place
observe, that all who thus perversely rebel and strive dishonestly and
shamelessly to defend their own vices, contend at the same time with God: for
false excuses have ever this tendency — to charge God with unjust
severity. But we see what such men gain for themselves; for God shews that he
will be at length their judge, and that he will openly discover the vices of
those who thought that they could excuse themselves by evasions and by false
charges against himself. They then who thus obstinately resist God, must at
length, according to what the Prophet declares, come to this end, — that
they will be constrained to acknowledge that God has not been too violently
angry with them, but has only executed a just
punishment.
fA67
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that since we are
loaded with so many vices, and provoke thee so often, yea, daily and in ways
innumerable, — O grant, that we may not at last become hardened against
thy godly admonitions, but be teachable and submissive and in time repent, lest
our wantonness and hardness should constrain thee to put forth thy powerful hand
against us; but as we have hitherto experienced thy patental kindness, so may we
in future be made partakers of it, and thus become more and more accustomed to
bear thy yoke, until having at length completed our warfare, we shall come to
that blessed rest, which has been provided for us in heaven, through Christ our
Lord. — Amen.
Lecture
Tenth
Jeremiah
2:36
36. Why gaddest thou about so
much to change thy way? thou also shalt be ashamed of Egypt, as thou wast
ashamed of Assyria. 36. Quid discurris tantopere ad mutandum vias tuas?
Etiam ab Egypto pudefies, sicuti pudefacta es ab
Assur.
The Prophet goes on with the
same subject. He had said before that the people were like an unfaithful wife,
who having left her husband rambles here and there to gratify her lusts. For
this view he now gives the reason; for he might have appeared to treat the
people too severely, had not the fact been pointed out as it were by the finger;
and this he does now. He says, that they ran here and there, not in a common
manner, but in a way to render evident their shameful levity, such as is seen in
strumpets, who without any shame seek either adulterers or
fornicators.
But I have already briefly shewn
what the Prophet means: When any danger was nigh, the Jews sought aid, now in
Egypt, then in Assyria. Yet they knew that this was forbidden them; not that it
was in itself an evil or a bad thing to seek help from neighbors; but because it
was God's will that the safety and security of that people should be dependent
on him only; for he had taken them under his safeguard. As then the Jews were
God's dependents, they ought to have acquiesced in his protection. When they
wandered here and there, it was an evidence of unbelief; and what they
attributed to the Egyptians or to Assyrians, they took away from their own God,
who had promised that their safety would be the object of his care. Hence he
compares these movements to wanton levity; they were like those of strumpets,
who ramble in all directions. Now a strumpet must be wholly shameless, when she
thus seeks the gratification of her lust: for harlots often wait for the coming
of lovers; but when they ramble everywhere, they are altogether abominable. This
then is what the Prophet now means, that is, that the Jews ran here and there;
and thus it was, that they
changed their
ways.
There
remains indeed often in harlots some natural love; but it is a proof of a
brutish, shameless, and monstrous lust, when a woman seeks the company of any
one she may see, or when a man lusts after any woman he may meet with. When
there is such a shamelessness as this, it appears that no modesty remains, nor
even what is natural; for as I have already said, it ought to be deemed
monstrous, when a woman is inflamed with lust at the sight of any one. And yet
this lewdness is what the Prophet reprobates in the Jews when he says, that they
ran here and there to change
their ways: so that their love never
continued, but they lusted after any they met with; nay, they went here and
there to allure them. This subject is spoken of oftener and more at large by
Ezekiel; and we shall find this comparison used also in other parts of this
book. But it is enough for me to mention briefly the design of the
Prophet.
fA68
He then adds,
Ashamed shalt thou also be of the
Egyptians, as ashamed thou hast been of the
Assyrians. Before the time of Hezekiah,
the Jews had made a treaty with the Assyrians against the Syrians and the
Israelites, as it is well known; and then against the Egyptians; for soon after
a war arose between them and the Egyptians, who had been their confederates, and
changing their policy, they went for help to Assyria. They afterwards reconciled
themselves to their ancient enemies; but this second treaty also turned out
unhappily. Hence the Prophet says, that the end would be the same with what they
had before experienced. God had indeed chastised their ungodly defection when
they went to Assyria. He now says, that no better success would attend the help
of the Egyptians than what attended the help of the Assyrians. The Jews, we
know, were ever subjected to plunder, and suffered more loss from their
associates than from their open enemies. It was the just reward of their impiety
and defection. God then declares that he would be the avenger of this second
defection, as he had been of the former. It follows
—
Jeremiah
2:37
37. 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. 37. Et jam ab hoc (ab
hac re, hoc est, propter hoc scelus) egredieris, et manus tuae super
caput tuum, quia detestatur Jehova confidentias tuas, et in illis non prospere
tibi succedet.
He expresses more
clearly what he had said of the shameful character of his own nation, —
that the Jews, who thought that their safety would be secured by the Egyptians,
were seeking their own entire ruin. This seemed to them indeed incredible; for
as the Egyptians were neighbors, and as the Jews then only feared the Assyrians
and Chaldeans, who were afar off, they thought that they had the best prospect:
"What! our enemies are distant from us twenty or thirty days' journey; and those
who are prepared to help us will be soon with us at the shortest warning." Hence
the Jews thought, as we have said, that they were quite safe. But the Prophet
here declares, that they were greatly mistaken; for on account of this
wickedness, that is, because they trusted in their unlawful and accursed treaty,
and promised themselves peace from their enemies, or thought that they could
easily overcome them; on this
account, he says,
thou shalt go
forth: but nothing could have been less
credible to the Jews than what the Prophet said; for as the Egyptians opposed
themselves as a wall against the Chaldeans, and were deemed unassailable, who
could have otherwise thought but that the Jews would be preserved quiet in their
own country? But he says, Go
forth shalt thou, and thine hands on thy
head.
fA69
By this gesture he means extreme
despair; for women did either strike or extend their arms when any great
calamity happened, as we see it done often in the present day; for when a woman,
not able to keep within due bounds, either loses a husband, or expects some very
great calamity, she beats her breast, or raises up her hands, according to what
is said here. Jeremiah then mentions this gesture as an evidence of extreme
despair; as though he had said, "The treaty which fills the Jews with so much
confidence shall be so far from being advantageous to them, that it will, on the
contrary, bring on them utter ruin and
disgrace.
fA70 But the reason which follows ought
especially to be observed,
because abhor does Jehovah thy
confidences. The Prophet here shews why
he had spoken so severely. It might have appeared that he spoke hyperbolically
when he said, that the people were like an abandoned harlot, who rambled here
and there in all directions: but the reason here given ought to have been
sufficient to take away all evasions, and that is, that they foolishly trusted
in those fallacious helps which they knew were condemned by God. Had this been
permitted by God, they would not have been so severely reprimanded; but as God
had forbidden them to flee to the Egyptians, it was in the first place a
disallowed confidence; and in the second place, they thus despised the aid of
God, and cast aside, as it were, all his promises: for as their hearts were
fixed on the Egyptians, and as they thought that their safety would be secured
by them; so their prayer to God became not only cold, but almost wholly
extinguished.
We hence see that the Prophet did
not exceed due limits when he spoke against the Jews with so much displeasure,
and condemned them in such reproachful terms; for they had transferred the glory
due to God to the Egyptians, when they considered them to be the authors of
their safety; and they had thus despised the promises of God, so that there was
no attention given to prayer:
Abhor, then, does Jehovah thy
confidences.
fA71
He then adds,
Thou shalt not prosper in
them. It ought to be carefully observed,
that whatever we resolve to do that is not approved by God, cannot possibly
succeed; for God will subvert all our hopes. Let us then know that here is set
before us the punishment of all unbelievers, who, being not content with God's
protection, wander after vain and false objects of trust, and prefer to have men
propitious to them rather than God himself. Now follows —
CHAPTER
3
Jeremiah
3:1
1. They say, If a man put away
his wife, and she go from him, and become another man's, shall he return unto
her again? shall not that land be greatly polluted? but thou hast played the
harlot with many lovers; yet return again to me, saith the Lord. l.
Dicendo, si dimiserit vir uxorem suam, et profecta ab eo, fuepit viri alterius,
(id est, transierit ad alium virum) an revertetur ad eam adhuc? Annon
pollutione polluta est terra in hoc? et tu scortata es cum sociis multis;
revertere tamen ad me, dicit
Jehova.
Many regard this verse as
connected with the last, and thus read them connectedly, "God hates false
confidences, because he says, "etc. But this seems not to me to be suitable; for
Jeremiah brings before us here a new subject, — that God seeks to be
reconciled to his people, according to what a husband does, who desires to
receive into favor an unchaste wife, and is ready to grant her full pardon, and
to take her again as a chaste and faithful wife. This verse, then, cannot be
connected with the foregoing, in which, as we have seen, the people are
condemned. The word
rmsl
lamer, means the same, as I think, as when we say in French,
par maniere de dire, or as when it is commonly said, "Suppose a case."
For the Prophet does not here introduce God as the speaker, but lays before us a
common subject, with this preface,
rmal,
lamer, that is, "Be it so, that a man divorces his wife, and she becomes
allied to another husband, can she again return to her first husband? This is
not usually done; but I will surpass whatever kindness there may be among men,
for I am ready to receive thee, provided thou wilt in future observe conjugal
fidelity, and part with thy adulteries and
adulterers."
fA72
As to the main point, there is here
no ambiguity: for God shews that he would be reconciled to the Jews, provided
they proceeded not obstinately in their sinful courses. But in order to set
forth more fully his mercy, he uses a comparison which must be a little more
attentively considered. He had before said that he held the place of a husband,
that the people occupied the station of a wife; and then he complained of the
base perfidy of the people, who had forsaken him, and said that they had acted
like a wife who, having despised her husband, prostituted herself to such
adulterers as might happen to meet her: but he now adds, "Behold, if a man
dismisses his wife, and she becomes the wife of another, he will never receive
her again." And this was forbidden by the law. "But I am ready, "he says, "to
receive thee, though I had not given thee the usual divorce at my pleasure, as
husbands are wont to do who repudiate their wives, when there is anything
displeasing in them." It is not a simple comparison, as many think; (I know not
whether all think so, for I have not read any who seem to understand the true
meaning;) for God does not simply compare himself to a husband who has
repudiated his wife for adultery; but as I have already said, there are here two
clauses. The Jews were then wont to divorce their wives even for slight causes,
and for no cause at all.
Now, God speaks thus by
Isaiah,
"Shew me the bill of your
mother's
divorcement,"
(<235001>Isaiah
50:1)
as though he had said, "I have not repudiated your
mother." For if any one then departed from his wife, the law compelled him to
take some blame on himself; for what was the bill of divorcement? It was a
testimony to the wife's chastity; for if any one was found guilty of adultery,
there was no need of divorcement, as it was a capital crime.
(<032010>Leviticus
20:10;
<052222>Deuteronomy
22:22.) Hence adulteresses were not usually divorced; but if any woman had
conducted herself faithfully towards her husband, and he wished to repudiate
her, the law constrained him to give her the bill of divorcement: "I repudiate
this wife, not because she hath broken or violated the bond of marriage, but
because her manners are not agreeable, because her beauty does not please me."
Thus the husbands were then commanded to take some of the blame on themselves.
Hence the Lord says by Isaiah,
"Shew me the bill of your
mother's divorcement;"
as though he had said, "She has departed from me; she
has broken the bond of marriage by her fornications; I am not then in fault for
being alienated from you."
God then does not
mean in this place, that he had divorced the people; for this would have been
wrong and unlawful, and could not have been consistent with the character of
God. But as I have already said, there is here a twofold comparison. "Though a
husband should fastidiously send away his wife, and she through his fault should
be led to contract another marriage, and become the partner of another, as
though in contempt of him, he could hardly ever bear that indignity, and become
reconciled to her: but ye have not been repudiated by me, but are like a
perfidious woman, who shamefully prostitutes herself to all whom she may meet
with; and yet I am ready to receive you, and to forget all your base conduct."
We now then understand the import of the
words.
In the second clause there is a
comparison made from the less to the greater. For the return into favor would
have been easier, if the repudiated wife had afterwards become acceptable to
him, though she had become the wife of another; but when an adulteress finds her
husband so willing of himself, and ready to grant free pardon, it is certainly
an example not found among mortals. Thus we see that God, by an argument from
the less to the greater, enhances his goodness towards the people, in order to
render the Jews the less excusable for rejecting so pertinaciously a favor
freely offered to them.
But it may be asked, why
the Prophet says, By pollution
shall not this land be polluted, or,
through
this? I shall speak first of the words,
and then refer to the subject. Almost all give this version, "Is not that land
by pollution polluted." But I know not what sense we can elicit by such a
rendering, except, it may be, that God compares a divorced wife to the land, or
that he, by an abrupt transition, transfers to the land what he had said of a
divorced wife, or rather that he explains the metaphor which had been used. If
this sense be approved, then the copulative which follows must be rendered as a
causative, which all have rendered adversatively, and rightly too, "But thou." I
then prefer to read
ayhh,
eeia, by itself, "by this;" that is, when a wife returns again to her
first husband, after having married another; for the law, as we have said,
forbad this; and the husband must have become an adulterer, if he took again the
wife whom he had repudiated. Liberty was granted to women by divorce; not that
divorce was by God allowed; but as the women were innocent, they were released,
for God imputed the fault to the husbands. And when the repudiated wife married
another man, this second marriage was considered legitimate. If, then, the first
husband sought to recover the wife whom he had divorced, he violated the bond of
the second marriage. For this reason, and according to this sense, the Prophet
says, that the land would by this become polluted; as though he had said, "It is
not lawful for husbands to take back their wives, however ready they may be to
forgive them; but I require no other thing but your return to
me."
As to the words, we now see that the
Prophet does not say without reason, "By this;" that is, when a woman unites
herself to one man, and then to another, and afterwards returns to her first
husband; for society would thus be torn asunder, and also the sacred bond of
marriage, the main thing in the preservation of social order, would be
broken.
It is added,
But thou hast played the harlot
with many
companions.
fA73 What we have before observed is here
confirmed, — that the people had been guilty, not only of one act of
adultery, but that they were become like common strumpets, who prostitute
themselves to all without any difference; and this is what will be presently
stated. Those whom he calls companions or friends were rivals. He says,
Yet return to me, saith
Jehovah: by which he intimated, —
" Pardon is ready for thee, provided thou
repentest."
An objection may, however, be here
raised, — How could God do what he had forbidden in his law? The answer is
obvious, — No other remedy could have been given to preserve order in
society when men were allowed to repudiate their wives, except by adding this
restraint, as a proof that God did not favor their levity and changeableness. It
was thus necessary, for the interest of society, to punish such men as were too
morose and rigid, by withholding from them the power of recovering the wives
whom they had dismissed. It might otherwise have been, that one changed his love
the third day, or in a month, or in a year, and demanded his wife. God then
intended to put this restraint on divorce, so that no man, who had put away his
wife, could take her again. But the case is very different as to God himself: it
is therefore nothing strange that he claims for himself the right of being
reconciled to the Jews on their repentance. It follows
—
Jeremiah
3:2
2. 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 whoredomes, and with thy wickedness, 2. Tolle oculos tuos ad
loca excelssa (hoc est, ad colles,) et vide ubi non scortata fueris; super vias
(vel, juxta vias) sedisti illis (hoc est, ad illos captandos,) quemadmodum Arabs
in deserto; et polluisti terraim scortationibus tuis et malitia
tua.
As the Prophet had charged the
Jews with being wanton in a loose and promiscuous manner, as it is the case with
abandoned women, after having cast away all shame, that they might not evade the
charge and object, that they were not conscious of any crime, he makes them in a
manner the judges themselves,
Raise
up, he says,
thine eyes to the high places and
see; that is, "I bring forward witnesses
sufficiently known to thee; there is no hill in the land where thou hast not
been connected with idols." We have already said, and we shall find the same
thing often mentioned by this Prophet, — that superstitions are deemed
idolatries by God. But it was a customary thing with the Jews to ascend high
places, as though they were there nearer to God. This is the reason why the
Prophet bids them to turn their eyes to all the hills: See, he says,
whether is there any hill free from thy fornications. For as strumpets seek
hiding — places to perpetrate their obscenities, so the Jews sought hills
as their brothels. And thus their impiety was the more execrable as they went
forth openly, and especially as they wished their flagitious acts to be seen at
a distance, ascending, as they did, elevated places; but strumpets, having found
adulterers or paramours, are wont to seek some secret retreats. The Prophet then
cuts off from the Jews every occasion for evading the charge, when he bids them
to raise up their eyes to the high places; for when they prostrated themselves
before their idols, it was the same as when strumpets commit acts of
adultery.
And he adds, that they
sat by the ways, as the Arabian
in the desert. He again repeats what we
have before observed, — that the Jews were not led away by the enticement
of others to violate the conjugal pledge which they had given to God, but were,
on the contrary, moved by their own wantonness, so that they of themselves
sought base and filthy gratifications, he had before said, "Thou hast corrupted
others by thy wickedness;" and now he confirms the same, "Thou hast sat, he
says, "by all the ways." This also is what is done by vile strumpets, who, as it
has been said, have lost all shame. But the Prophet enhances this crime by
another comparison, As an Arabian
in the desert, who lies in wait for
travelers, that he may rob and kill them: thus hast thou
sat by the
ways.
fA74
We then see here a double comparison;
one taken from strumpets, who having in time past made gain, when they find
themselves neglected, besiege the ways, and offer themselves to any they may
meet with. This is the first comparison; the other is, that they were like
robbers, who lie in wait for travelers; as though he had said, that the
Chaldeans and Egyptians were excusable when compared with the Jews, because they
had been drawn by their wicked arts into illicit treaties, like a traveler who
passing by is enticed by a robber, — " What art thou but a helpless man;
but if thou joinest me, and engagest to be my companion, there is the best
prospect of gain, and new spoils will fall into our hands daily." Such a robber
is twice and three times more wicked than the other. So also, the Prophet says
of the Jews, that they were like old robbers, who had become hardened in
intrigues, in plunders, and in every kind of wickedness, and had enticed to
themselves both the Egyptians and the Assyrians. It afterwards follows
—
Jeremiah
3:3
3. Therefore the showers have
been withholden, and there hath been no latter rain; and thou hadst a whore's
forehead, thou refusedst to be ashamed, 3. Et prohibitae sunt pluviae, et
serotina non fuit; et frons mulieris meretricis fuit tibi, recusasti
erubescere.
Jeremiah proceeds with
his severe reproof, — that the Jews were wholly given to wickedness, for
they had altogether devoted themselves to superstitions, and also to unlawful
alliances, and had in both instances despised God. He now shews how great and
how strong was their obstinacy.
Restrained,
he says, have been the rains,
there has not been the latter rain; yet the front of a harlot has been
thine; as though he had said, that the
Jews had not in any degree been subdued by punishment. It was a most atrocious
wickedness to give no ear to pious warnings, when the prophets continually cried
to them, and endeavored to restore them to the right way. That they thus
hardened themselves against the addresses of the prophets, was a proof of the
greatest impiety. But God tried also to restore them to himself by punishments,
and those very heavy. He punished them with sterility; and the drought of which
the Prophet speaks was no doubt so uncommon, that the Jews might perceive, had
they a particle of a sound mind, that God was at war with them. It often happens
that not a drop of rain fails from heaven; for we see that many summers are hot
and dry: there is no doubt but that God then reminds us of our sins and exhorts
us to repent. But as familiarity makes us to overlook God's judgments, he
sometimes punishes us in a new and unusual manner. I doubt not then but that the
Prophet, by saying, Restrained
have been rains from them, refers to some
extraordinary instance of God's vengeance, whereby the Jews might have
perceived, except they were extremely besotted, that God was opposed to and
displeased with them.
fA75
The import of what is said is,
— that the Jews had not only run here and there through a mad impulse,
according to their own wills and inclinations, but that they had also been
checked by evident judgments, since God had from heaven openly shewed himself to
be the vindicator of his own glory, and as there had been so great a drought,
that it appeared clear that the curse of the law had been fulfilled towards
them,
"I will make heaven iron
to you, and the earth
brass."
(<032619>Leviticus
26:19)
As to the latter rain, we have said elsewhere that by
this word is meant the rain which falls just before harvest; and it is called
"latter" with reference to the harvest. For, as there is great heat in those
eastern parts, they want rain before the harvest commences; the extreme heat of
the sun would otherwise scorch up the grain. Hence, they especially look for the
latter rain, which comes shortly before harvest — time. The other rain, in
September and October, is called, on account of the sowing — time, a
seasonable rain; for it soaks and moistens the seed, that it may strike roots
and gather rigor and strength. The object is to shew, that God had from heaven
given to the Jews manifest tokens of his displeasure, and yet without any
benefit; for they had the front of a harlot, and felt no shame; that is, they
were moved by no judgments of God, and could not bear to be
corrected.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as thou hast
been once pleased not only to adopt us as thy children, but also to unite us to
thyself by the bond of marriage, and to give us a pledge of this sacred union in
thine only — begotten Son, — O grant, that we may continue in the
faith of thy Gospel, and so honestly keep the pledge given to thee, that thou
mayest also shew thyself to us as a Husband and as a Father, and that we may to
the end find in thee that merciful kindness which is needful to retain us in the
holy fear of thy name, until we shall at length enjoy fellowship with thee in
thy celestial kingdom, through Christ our Lord. — Amen.
Lecture
Eleventh
Jeremiah
3:4
4. Wilt thou not from this time
cry unto me, My father, thou art the guide of my youth? 4. An non
posthac clamabis ad me, Pater mi, dux adolescentiae meae tu
es?
God, after having set forth the
wickedness of his people, and severely reproved them as they deserved, now
kindly invites them to repentance,
Wilt thou not say to me
hereafter, he says,
My
Father! Some incorrectly render the
words, "Wilt thou say to me, My Father," as though God would reject what they
said: and they give the meaning, — that the Jews would act dishonestly in
thus glorying in God's name, from whom they were so alienated. But very
different is the meaning of the Prophet: for God mitigates the severity of the
reproof which we have observed, and shews that he would be ready to be
reconciled to them, if they repented: nay, he waits not for their repentance,
but of his own accord meets and allures these perfidious apostates: "What!" says
God, "shall there be no more any union between us?" For God expresses here the
feeling of one grieving and lamenting, when he saw the people perishing; and he
seems anxious, if possible, to restore them.
It
is with this design that he asks, "Will they not again call on me as their
Father and the guide of their youth?" And by this periphrastic way of speaking,
he intimates that he was the husband of that people; for most tender is that
love which a youth has for a young virgin in the flower of her age. God, then,
makes use now of this comparison, and says, that he still remembered the love
which he had manifested towards his people. In short, he shews here that pardon
was ready, if the people sought reconciliation; and he confirms the same thing
when he adds —
Jeremiah
3:5
5. 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, 5. An observabit in seculum? an custodiet in perpetuum?
Ecce, loquuta es, et perpetrasti malitias (vel, scelera) et
potuisti.
God shews that it was the
fault of the Jews, that he did not receive them into favor. And here he takes
the argument from his own nature, and speaks of himself in the third person; and
it is the same as though the Prophet had interposed this reasoning, "God is not
inexorable, for he is as ready to forgive as he is long — suffering: now,
then, what prevents you from living happily again under his government? for he
will spare you, provided he finds in you genuine repentance." We now then see,
what the Prophet means here: for as God had kindly exhorted the people to
repent, the Prophet speaks now generally of God's own nature, — that
he keeps not for ever, nor
reserves
perpetually.
These
words, when put alone, mean that he does not cherish vengeance, and in our
language we imitate the Hebrews, Il lui garde. This garde,
when put without anything added to it, means, as I have said, that vengeance
is cherished within. But nothing is more contrary than this to the nature of
God. It hence follows, that the Jews had no obstacle in their way, except that
they shunned God, and that being addicted to their own vices, they were
unwilling to receive the pardon that was freely offered to
them.
As to the second clause, it admits of
being explained in two ways. We may regard an adversative particle to be
understood, "though thou hast spoken and hast done, "etc.; as if God had said,
that he would be propitious to the Jews, however atrociously they might have
sinned. But another view is more simple, — that God here complains that
there was no hope of amendment, as they had become hardened in their vices,
"Thou hast spoken," he says, "thou hast done, and thou hast been able." And
interpreters further vary in their views: for the copulative is explained by
some as a particle of comparison, in the sense of
rçak,
keasher, "according to what thou wert able, thou hast done
wickedness." But others take the words more simply and more correctly, as I
think, "Thou hast been very strong;" that is, thou hast exerted all thy power,
so that thou hast put forth all thy strength in doing evil, as we say in Latin,
pro virili, with all thy might; that is, as far as thy capacity extended,
thou hast devoted thyself to
wickedness.
fA76
I therefore give this explanation:
God had before put on, as it were, the character of one in grief and sorrow, and
kindly exhorted the people to repent, and testified that he would be ready to
pardon them, and at the same time shewed in general that he would be propitious,
as he is by nature inclined to mercy. After having set forth these things, he
now adds, that he despaired of that people, because they gloried in their own
wickedness: for to speak and to do means the same as if he had said, that the
people were so impudent, that they boasted of their rebellion against God, and
dared to call darkness light; for the superstitious, we know, glory against God
without any shame. Now, such was the state of the people; for God, by his
prophets, condemned this especially in them — that they had corrupted the
pure worship of the law; but they with a meretricious front dared to set up
against him their own devotions and good intentions, as they are commonly
called. As then, they thus presumptuously defended their wicked deeds, God here
complains that they were in no way healable, and so he leaves them as past
remedy. This I regard as the real meaning of the Prophet: and of similar import
is the verb
lkwt,
tucal; "thou hast put forth all thy might," he says, that is, thou
hast observed no limits in sinning, but, on the contrary, hast given thyself up
to unbridled licentiousness. It now follows
—
Jeremiah
3:6-8
6. 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. 6. Et dixit Jehova ad me in diebus
Josiae regis, An vidisti quid fecerit aversatrix (alii vertunt, rebellis)
Israel? Profecta est ipsa super omnem montem excelsum, et subtus omnem arborem
frondosam, et scortata est
illic:
7. 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. 7. Et dixi, Post facere ipsam (hoc est,
postquam fecit omnia haec,) Ad me revertere (alii in tertia persona reddunt,
Revertatur;) et non reversa est: et vidit perfida ejus soror
Jehudah.
8. 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. 8. Et vidi, quod super his
omnibus (hoc est, quod propter haec, nempe
twda
significat occasiones vel causas,) quia scortata erat rebellis Israel, dimiserim
ipsam (repudiaverim,) et dederim librum repudiorum ejus (repudii ejus) illi, et
non timuit perfida Jehudah soror ejus, et scortata est etiam
ipsa.
Here the Prophet enters on a
new discourse: he relates what God had committed to him, and mentions the time,
even in the reign of Josiah. It is indeed well known, that the land was then
cleansed from superstitions; for that pious king labored to restore the true
worship of God, and to remove all the filth and defilements, by which the temple
and the whole of religion had been corrupted. He strenuously exerted himself,
and no doubt there was an improved appearance of religion throughout the land;
but we shall see that a great portion of the people were under the influence of
hypocrisy and deceit., as it is usually the case when rulers seek to support the
pure worship of God, and to free it from all corruptions; for there are many
hypocrites, who for a time dissemble, while the same antipathy to God still
remains. Such was then the condition of the
people.
And this ought to be carefully observed;
for Jeremiah might have appeared to have dealt somewhat too sharply and
rigorously with his own nation, as reform was in the mouth of all, according to
what we find to be the case with many now, who having left the superstitions of
the Papacy, seemed at first to embrace the doctrines of the Gospel, but all now
wish to be satisfied with any kind of reformation; at the same time, they shake
off the yoke of Christ and can bear submission to no discipline: in short, their
object, is to subvert all order; and yet they boldly claim to be the advocates
of reformation, whenever their impiety is reproved. This was no doubt the
contest which Jeremiah had to carry on, the same with that by which the Lord
tries his servants at this day. He therefore says, that he received this
commission in the days of
Josiah, that is, when that king was
laboring to establish the pure worship of God, and no one dared to oppose; for
we find that God was then worshipped by the whole people without any external
corruptions.
But what is contained in this
commission? Hast thou
seen, he says,
what apostate Israel hath
done? God here compares the ten tribes
with the tribe of Judah, with whom was united, as it is well known, the half
tribe of Benjamin: he then compares Israel with the tribe of Judah, "Do you not
see what rebellious Israel hath done?" But he introduces the kingdom of Israel,
as well as the kingdom of Judah, under the character of women; for God, as it
has already appeared, represents himself as the husband of his people. He then
says that he had two wives, even Israel and Judah. God had indeed espoused to
himself the whole seed of Abraham by one contract; but Jeremiah speaks here in a
popular manner. Though the Israelites had departed from God, yet he had not
wholly rejected them. The kingdom of Israel had then become adulterous; but God
for a time bore with that sin, so that the covenant, in part, remained. For this
reason he acknowledges as his wives both Israel and Judah. Hence he says, "Hast
thou not seen what estranged Israel hath done?" The word
hbçm,
meshibe, is derived from
bwç,
shub, which signifies, both to return and to depart; and Jerome
everywhere renders it aversatrix, one who turns aside, or is
estranged.
fA77 But some render it "rebellious;" we
might say more correctly in French, debauchee.
She
went, he says, on
every high hill, and under every
shady tree, and there played the harlot.
In short, God complains that the ten tribes had violated the sacred bond of
marriage, when they prostituted themselves to idols, even on all high hills and
under all shady trees: for as I have already said, they chose those places as
though there was some holiness both on mountains and under shades of
trees.
He afterwards adds,
Yet I
said; God here states, that he had long
suspended his judgment before he punished the people of Israel. He then extols
here his patience, that he had not immediately visited the Israelites as they
deserved, but bore with them and for a long time waited to see whether they
could be reclaimed: I
said, then,
after she had done all these
things, Return to me. If we read in the
third person, the sense will be the same, "I hoped indeed that they would return
to the right way, though they had thus fallen away, yea though they had denied
me by an impious defection, and had become alienated from the faith and from
piety." But I am more inclined to another view, — that God here records
the fact, that he had recalled to himself the ten tribes by his servants the
Prophets, though they had by their many crimes provoked his wrath. Here then God
shews how perverse the Israelites had been; for he had tried to restore them, if
possible, to himself, but had spent all his labor in vain. I thus explain,
I
said, of the prophetic instruction:
"Though then the Israelites had plunged themselves into impieties, I yet ceased
not to try whether they could be restored to me." He intimates, in short, that
he had been unlike those husbands, who will not be reconciled to their wives,
burning with jealousy, because they see that they had been exposed to so much
disgrace. God then shews that though the Israelites had departed from him, he
yet sent his prophets, and of his own free will sought reconciliation with them,
but that they had refused to return.
fA78
He then adds,
See did
she, that is, the whole kingdom of
Judah, that, for al1 this, because the
rebellious Israel had played the
harlot, etc. We shall hereafter find the
design of this comparison; for he amplifies the sin of the kingdom of Judah,
inasmuch she had time enough to observe what he now relates, and was able to see
it at a distance as it were from a watchtower; yet she saw it without any
advantage. God then intended to shew how great was the hardness of the Jews, who
had seen the defection of the ten tribes, and had seen how severely they had
been reproved by the prophets.
He then says,
And I
saw. As he had said that the kingdom of
Judah had seen what happened to Israel, so he now says, that he had seen both,
See
then did
I. Now, what does he declare that he had
seen? Even that Judah had played the harlot; for he now speaks of Judah as of a
woman. Then God says, that it was not a thing hid from him that Judah had
surpassed the crimes of her sister, not through ignorance or deception, but
through deliberate wickedness: See, he says,
did
I, that notwithstanding
all these
things, she
played the
harlot. He thus explains more fully what
he had briefly touched upon before. He had said, that Judah had seen, but this
on account of its brevity might have appeared ambiguous: he therefore explains
it more at large; "See did
Judah that I gave a bill of divorcement to her
sister, because she had played the harlot; and yet she feared not;" that. is,
she thought not of repenting, when she had such a striking example of vengeance
set before her eyes.
But it may be here asked,
how could it be said that a bill of divorce had been given to the Israelites,
when he denies by the Prophet Isaiah that he had given it?
(<235001>Isaiah
50:1.) But the Prophet here takes another view of the subject; for he does not
speak here of the bills of divorce, such as were usually given, when a husband
repudiated a wife who had been chaste and faithful; but he speaks of that lawful
divorce, when a woman, convicted of adultery, is liable to a capital punishment.
God then by his prophet Isaiah denies that he had given a bill of divorcement;
but he says here that he had given it, because he had repudiated an adulterous
woman. It was not indeed at that time customary among the Jews to divorce an
adulteress, for she was led to execution. But we have seen at the beginning of
the chapter that there is a difference between God and husbands. As then God did
not deal, as he might have justly done, with the Israelites, and did not execute
a capital punishment, as he might rightly have done, and what was usually done,
he says that he had given a bill
of divorce, that is, that he had
repudiated that people. But by the bill of divorce he means exile; for when the
ten tribes were banished, it was the same as though God openly shewed that he
had no connection with that people: as long as they continued in the holy land
and in the promised inheritance, some kind of union remained; but when they were
dispersed here and there, and every sort of worship had ceased among them, and
also when the very kingdom of Israel had no longer an existence, God had then
divorced them.
See then
did her sister
Judah, and she
feared
not. It was indeed an instance of great
insensibility, not to learn wisdom at the expense of others; and it is a
complaint found everywhere in the prophets, — that the Jews were not
stimulated to repentance, while God spared them, and at the same time set before
them examples which ought in all reason to have terrified them. For what ought
they to have considered, but that God would punish those many transgressions by
which they provoked his wrath, since he had not spared their brethren? They saw
that the kingdom of Israel had been abolished, and yet all of them derived their
origin from the same father, even Abraham: how was it then that they so
heedlessly despised God's judgment, which had been for a long time before their
eyes? Hence he complains that they
feared
not. It now follows
—
Jeremiah
3:9
9. And it came to pass, through
the lightness of her whoredom, that she defiled the land, and committed adultery
with stones and with stocks. 9. Et factum est a velocitate (vertunt
tam Hieronymus quam alii interpretes, facilitatem; nomen deductum est a
llq,
quod significat interdum esse velocem; hic levitas notatur, vel petulantia,
factum est, igitur, a levitate, aut petulantia) scortationum
ejus, ut pollueret terram (vel, contaminaret; alii vertunt,
peccare faceret; sed Hieronymus ubique fere reddit hoc verbum per
contaminare, neque male quadrat,) et scortata est cum lapide et cum
ligno.
Here the Prophet completes
his charge, — that so far was it that the punishment which God had
inflicted on the Israelites, had any effect on the tribe of Judah, that she
surpassed by her levity and lustfulness the whoredomes of her sister.
She has
polluted, he says,
the
land, or made the land to sin, that is,
rendered the land guilty. It is indeed what greatly exaggerates the crime, when
it is said that the land became guilty or contaminated. The land, we know, was
in itself pure, and could contract no pollution from the vices of men; but that
the impiety of men might be exhibited the more detestable, the land is said to
have been contaminated by them:
Or, it may be
said that the land was made guilty. How so? The reason why they are said to have
contaminated the land or to have made it guilty or to have implicated it in
their own vices, he gives in these words, she has
played the harlot with stone and
with
wood.
fA79 Of this metaphor of playing the harlot
it is not necessary now to speak; for we have said already, that this similitude
is often repeated, because God had united that people to himself and bound them
to him, as it were, by the sacred bond of marriage. Hence whenever the people
departed from the pure worship of God, they were justly said to have played the
harlot, for they violated their pledged faith: as simplicity of faith is
spiritual chastity, so apostasy is that shamelessness and perfidy, when a wife
becomes unfaithful to her husband by following adulterers. It afterwards follows
—
Jeremiah
3:10
10. And yet for all this her
treacherous sister Judah hath not turned unto me with her whole heart, but
feignedly, saith the Lord. 10. Atque etiam in tote hoc (vel, in
his onmibus) non reversa est ad me perfida (vel, fraudulenta:
dgb
est fraudare) sorer ejus Jehudah in toto corde suo, sed in
mendacio, inquit Jehova.
He goes on
with the same subject, — that the Jews were not moved by any fear when
they saw the dreadful vengeance executed on their brethren on account of their
sins. Her perfidious
sister, he says,
returned not to
me, that is, after so many warnings by
the prophets and such an example of punishment. He however adds an explanation,
— she turned not with her
whole heart, but feignedly and
falsely.
fA80
The Prophet anticipates here such
objections as the Jews might have alleged, "What! thou deniest that we have
returned! Is not the whole land cleansed from idolatries? Is not God worshipped
according to the requirements of the law? Is there any more an altar seen under
the shades of trees or on hills?" As then they might have thus evaded the charge
as they usually did, the Prophet obviates such an evasion and says, "Though they
have ill appearance given some tokens of repentance, yet they have only put on a
disguise and have acted falsely towards God; for there is no integrity in them."
We now more clearly see why he had before specifically mentioned the time of
Josiah; for the Jews then returned feignedly to God: there was in the king and
in a few a right feeling, but in the rest dissimulation only. God then in a few
words shews, that he cares not for that reformation which is false and feigned,
but that he requires a genuine feeling within: hence he thus concludes
—
Jeremiah
3:11
11. And the Lord said unto me,
The backsliding Israel hath justified herself more than treacherous
Judah. 11. Et dixit Jehova ad me, justificavit animam suam aversatrix
Israel prae fraudulenta Jehuda (vel, perfida, semper est
hdgb.)
We
now see more clearly for what purpose Jeremiah compared the ten tribes with the
kingdom of Judah; it was done in order to shew that the Jews, who wished to be
deemed far more holy than others, were yet more perfidious and deserved a
heavier punishment, because they acted so deceitfully with
God.
It may be here asked, why he pronounces the
Jews worse than the Israelites, while they still continued in a sort of middle
state of things. We indeed know that the kingdom of Judah was become so corrupt,
that hardly any religion remained there; yet the temple was still standing and
the priesthood still existed at Jerusalem. But the Prophet condemns the Jews
more than the Israelites for other reasons, even because they ought to have
become wise through the calamities of others, and they ought to have been
confirmed in true religion when they saw their brethren falling away from the
pure worship of God: these things they ought to have maturely considered. It was
this supine sottishness that rendered them worse than all their brethren, and
also their pride, the chief cause of their condemnation, for they boasted that
they remained perfect, while the ten tribes had become degenerated. These were
the reasons why he says that Israel, though a perfidious woman, was yet more
righteous than her sister Judah.
The language
indeed is not to be strictly taken when it is said, that she
justified her
soul; for God does not here excuse the
Israelites, nor does he free or absolve them from guilt, (for he had severely
punished them;) but this way of speaking is commonly used by the prophets;
— Sodom was righteous in comparison with Jerusalem; and Tyre and Sidon
were just when compared with the Jews.
(<261647>Ezekiel
16:47, 48.) Justified
then
has she her
soul,
fA81 even the
treacherous
or the apostate Israel, in
comparison with the perfidious Judah;
that is, for the reasons which I have stated. The obstinacy of the Jews was
greater and less excusable: the external worship of God, which they had
retained, ought to have been a bridle to check them; and they had also seen how
severe a judge God had been towards the ten tribes; but the judgments of God
they despised, and derived no benefit from them.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that since thou
hast deigned to adopt us as thy people, and to unite us to thyself in thine only
— begotten Son, — O grant, that we may continue pure and chaste in
our obedience to thy Gospel, and never turn aside to those corruptions which
disunite that sacred bond of union, which has been confirmed between us by the
blood of thy Son, but that we may so persevere in serving thee, that our whole
life and all our actions may be evidences of that holy calling, by which is laid
up for us the hope of eternal salvation, until we shall at length come into the
possession of that kingdom which has been obtained for us by so great a price,
and there enjoy the fruit of our faith, sincerity, and perseverance, through
Christ our Lord. — Amen.
Lecture
Twelfth
Jeremiah
3:12
12. 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 I will not keep anger for ever. 12.
Vade et clama (hoc est, cum clamore intona) sermones hos versus
Aquilonem, et dic, Revertere rebellis Israel, dicit Jehova: non, non faciam
incumbere (cadere, ad verbum) iram meam (alii vertunt,
faciem meam; sed metaphorice slgnificat iram) in vos, quia
clemens ego, dicit Jehova, non servabo in
seculum.
The Prophet, after having
shewn that the tribe of Judah deserved a heavier punishment than the ten tribes,
and having mentioned the cause, that they had seen their brethren severely
chastised and were not moved, now turns his discourse to the Israelites
themselves, or the ten tribes, and promises that God would be propitious to
them. The kingdom of Israel had now been overthrown, and the people had been
banished into Assyria, Persia, and Media. They had been scattered, and the name
of the kingdom had been obliterated. The land had been often laid waste and the
kingdom partly existed, as four tribes only were first driven to exile; but at,
length the very name of a kingdom ceased to exist, and they were all, as I have
said, led away into captivity. Hence the Prophet is bidden to address his words
towards the north; for though the greater part of the people dwelt then in the
east, yet as they had been banished by the Assyrians, God had a regard to the
capital of the monarchy in bidding the Prophet to address those whom the enemies
had led away to the north.
Cry, then, not
so much on account of the distance of the place, but that the Jews, who were
deaf, might hear him crying; for the Prophet was bidden to speak not only for
the sake of the Israelites, but that through them he might set before the Jews
the mercy of God, if only they returned to a sound mind. Now the import of the
whole is, — that though the Israelites had been rebellious and had turned
away from God, yet pardon was ready for them, if they returned. What the Prophet
means by the word return, we have already in part explained, and we shall
have to speak on the subject more fully elsewhere. He then requires repentance,
and promises that God would be propitious to them in case they returned to
him.
He afterwards adds,
I will not make my
face, or rather, my wrath,
to fall upon
you; for this latter meaning is the most
appropriate. God had already severely punished their sins; for what can happen
to a people more grievous than to be banished from their own country, and then
to be oppressed by cruel tyranny? They yet suffered a heavier punishment; for
the worship according to the Law had been taken away from them, they had been
repudiated by God, they had lost that glory by which they thought that they
excelled all other nations in having been chosen as God's peculiar people. All
these things had been entirely lost. In what sense then does God declare that he
would not be angry with them? By this way of speaking the Prophet simply means,
that God would not be irreconcilable, as though he had said, "My wrath shall not
dwell, or shall not he upon you; but I will mitigate the punishment which I have
inflicted." Hence I do not disapprove of Jerome's rendering, "I will not make
steady," (firmabo;) though when he adds "face, "he does not
sufficiently set forth the meaning of the Prophet. But this may be admitted, "I
will not make steady my wrath upon you;" that is, "My wrath shall not lie or
dwell on your heads, so as wholly to overwhelm you." God's wrath had already
fallen upon them, but in such a way that there was still some hope of
deliverance. God then denies, that the calamities, by which he had chastised
their sins, would be fatal, for he would withdraw his hand and not pursue them
to the last extremity.
The meaning then is,
— that if the people returned to God they would obtain pardon, because God
of his own free will invited them and promised that the punishment which he had
inflicted on account of their sins, would be only for a
time.
fA82
God further confirms this truth by
mentioning what his nature is,
for merciful am I, and I will not
retain wrath for ever. The promise was
special in case the people returned; God now adds a general truth by way of
confirmation, — that he was disposed to shew mercy, and that he would
readily forgive for his mercy's sake. Since God then is such, and cannot deny
himself, there is no reason why a sinner should despair and thus close up the
way, that he should not in his penitence implore God's
mercy.
We may hence gather a profitable
doctrine, — that whenever unbelief lays hold on our minds, so that we
cannot apply to our benefit the promises of God, this should ever be remembered
by us — that God is merciful. As God then is so gracious, that he reserves
not wrath for ever, but that it is only for a time, we ought to entertain hope;
and corresponding with this is what is said in the Psalms,
"A moment is he in
his wrath;
and life is in
his goodness and mercy,"
(<193005>Psalm
30:5;)
as though he had said, that God's wrath soon passes
away, provided we repent, but that he shews his mercy through all ages; for this
is what is meant by the word "life." He then goes on
—
Jeremiah
3:13
13. 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. 13. Tantnm modo (vel, atqui)
cognosce iniquitatem tuam, quia adversus Jehovam Deum tuum scelerate egisti, et
dispersisti (vel, dissipasti, aut, prostituisti) vias tuas
alienis, sub omni arbore frondosa, et vocem meam non audivisti, inquit
Jehova.
God lays down here a
condition, lest hypocrites, relying on his goodness, should become more and more
hardened, and yet think that he is bound as it were to them; for they usually
reason thus, — "God is so kind that he recalls us to himself, and of his
own free will invites even sinners; we may therefore easily settle matters with
him." Thus hypocrites by false thoughts' delude themselves, thinking that they
can elude God, since he seeks nothing else but to restore sinners to himself.
Hence with the promise of favor there ought ever to be connected an exhortation
to repentance. God then reminds here the Israelites, that they were greatly
deceived, if they thought they could without any difficulty obtain
pardon.
Hence he says,
know thine
iniquity. The particle
°a,
ak, may be rendered only, or but, or yet. I prefer the second meaning,
but; for an exception, as I have said, is here added, lest the Israelites
slumbered in their vices, if they persuaded themselves that God was, as it,
were, in their power and subject to their will. We hence see that the Prophet,
modifying what he had said, introduces this sentence,
"But
in the meantime
know thine
iniquity, otherwise thou canst expect no
peace with God." Then these words follow,
because thou hast acted wickedly
against Jehovah thy God. By these words
the Prophet proves that the Israelites were guilty, lest they supposed that they
could by evasions escape the wrath of God; for we know that often, even those
who are conscious of their guilt, are not willing to confess their sins; and it
is strange that men are so besotted as ever to contend with God. On this account
the Prophets, when they exhorted the people to repent, at the same time brought
to light their sins. Were there in men frankness and honesty, there would be no
need thus to charge them; but as they either boldly deny their sins, or are so
callous as to be moved by no fear, it is necessary to prick them sharply and
even deeply to wound them. This is what the Prophet now does;
Thou,
he says, hast done wickedly
against thy God; as though he had said,
"I do not now in vain remind thee to own thy sins, for God himself condemns
thee: think not thou that thou canst gain anything by thy
subterfuges."
He mentions also particulars, that
he might come into closer quarters with them,
Thou hast
dispersed, he says, or scattered,
thy ways to strangers, under
every shady tree. He again compares the
Israelites to strumpets, who commonly so prostitute themselves, that they ramble
from one place to another, invite and allure all they meet with. The Prophet
then says, that the Israelites had thus dispersed themselves. He speaks
delicately on an indelicate subject. But what he means is, that the Israelites
were not content with one kind of superstition or with one idol, but blended
together as many superstitions as they could, and borrowed false notions from
all quarters: they were like a rambling strumpet, who prostitutes herself to all
men indifferently. And strangers
he calls all their fictitious gods; for as I
have often said, they ought to have regarded him as their husband. When
therefore the Israelites turned away to other gods, they became like a woman,
who leaves her husband and prostitutes herself to any she can find. It is indeed
a most common thing for those who forsake the true worship of God to seek for
themselves various errors from all quarters, and to abandon themselves
unreservedly to all kinds of superstitions.
He
at length adds, And thou hast not
hearkened to my voice. By this fact the
Prophet enhances their sin; for they had been instructed in the doctrine of the
law, and understood the right way of salvation: how then was it that they thus
polluted themselves with so many superstitions? It could not have been
attributed to ignorance. It was then their manifest rebellion against God. The
Prophet then shews that they had been disobedient and intractable, and that they
had relapsed into idolatry and pernicious errors, because they had shaken off
the yoke of God, and suffered not themselves to be ruled and guided by his
word.
fA83
We now then perceive the meaning of
this verse: God first requires a confession of sins from the Israelites;
and thus he sets forth how available that return would be which he had
previously mentioned; for until a sinner knows his sinfulness, he will never
really and from the heart return to God, as the beginning of repentance is the
confession of guilt. He then proves them to have been guilty, that he
might cut off from them every pretense for evasion. He mentions in the third
place specific sins, that he might hold them as it were fast bound, even
that they had polluted themselves with superstitions, and that they had become,
not only like an adulterous woman who follows another man, but also like filthy
strumpets, who run here and there and make no difference between men known or
unknown. He shews in the last place, that all this happened through mere
obstinacy; for they had cast aside every regard for God, though he had given
them his law, and sent the prophets as its faithful interpreters, so that they
understood what God approved and what was just and right. The reason then why
they went astray was, that they closed their ears to God's word, and suffered
not themselves to be ruled by it, but became wholly unteachable. Let us go on
—
Jeremiah
3:14
14. 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. 14.
Revertimini filii rebelles, dieit Jehova, quoniam ego maritus vester (vel,
dominatus sum in vobis, ut alii vertunt; alii, taedio affectus
sum in vobis; dicemus postea de hoc verbo,) et assumam vos, unum e
civitate, et duos e familia (vel, cognatione, vel, tribu,) et
addueam vos in Sion.
Jeremiah
repeats the same thing in other words; but God by so many words shews clearer
how ready he would be to grant pardon, provided the Israelites really repented.
It would have been enough for God to testify once, that he would be
reconcilable, but seeing that they were slow and hard to believe, he proceeds in
the same strain. It is a wonderful forbearance and kindness that God, finding
his favor neglected, and as it were rejected through the sloth of men, should
yet persevere, and invite them again and again. What man would thus patiently
bear the loathing of his favor and kindness? But we see that God does not
immediately reject the tardy and the slothful, but adds new stimulants that he
might at length move them, though this may seem more than necessary. How great
is our torpidity? Were not God daily to urge us, how little attention would any
of us give to his admonitions? It is, therefore, no wonder that he, pardoning
our tardiness, should again and again invite us to repentance; which we find is
done continually in the Church.
This, then, is
the reason why the Prophet now repeats the same thing,
Return,
now, ye rebellious
children; for he had said before,
"Return, thou rebellious Israel." He then adds,
For I am a husband to
you. Some regard
l[b
bol, in the sense of being wearied, when found as here,
µkb
ytl[b bolti bekem, "I have
been wearied by you:" but this meaning does not comport with this
passage.
fA84 More correctly, then, have others
rendered the words, "I am lord to you: "but this lord is not to be taken
indefinitely as in Latin, for it properly means a husband, who is a lord to his
wife. God, then, no doubt, continues the same comparison, that of a marriage,
which has already been often mentioned; for he charges the Israelites with
adultery, because they had departed from him. Hence it is that he says,
I am your
husband. He had previously said, "Though
a person, when he repudiates his wife, and she be married to another, will never
again be reconciled to her; yet I am ready to forgive your perfidy and
wantonness: only observe chastity hereafter, and I will deal kindly with you."
Similar is this passage, "I am your husband," though I have repudiated you. He
had, indeed, said, that he had given them a bill of divorce, and thus testified,
as by a public document, that there was no longer any connection between him and
that people, for exile was a kind of divorce; but he says now, "I am your
husband; for though I have been grievously offended with you, because you have
broken your pledged faith, I yet remain in the same mind, so as to be ready to
be your husband."
We now, then, perceive the
real meaning of the Prophet: despair might have laid hold on the Israelites so
as to dread that access to which the Prophet had invited them; but that no
terror might hinder them to repent, God here declares that he would become their
husband, and that he had not forgotten that relationship with which he had once
favored them. The sum of what he says is, "I have once embraced you with the
love of a husband; ye have, indeed, become alienated from me, but return, and I
am ready to forgive and to receive you, as though ye had always been faithful to
me."
Again will I take
you, he says; and then he adds,
one from a city, two from a
family. Deserving of especial notice is
this passage; for God shews that they were not to wait for one another, and
also, that though the whole body of the people rotted in their sins, yet a few
would return to him, and that he would be reconciled to them. This was a point
most necessary to be taught; for God's covenant was in common with the whole
seed of Abraham; they might then have concluded that the covenant was extinct,
except he gathered together the whole people; for he had not chosen one or two
or a hundred or a thousand, but all the seed of Abraham. Since then the promise,
without exception, was common, to all, any one might thus reason, "What
connection have I with God, except as one born of the race of Abraham? but I am
not alone, for we are all the children of Abraham: yet I see that none turn to
God, so I must perish with the rest of the people." Now, that this thought
should not hinder the godly, he says, "I will take one from a city, two from a
family;"
fA85 that is, "If one only come to me from a
city he shall find an open door; if two only from a tribe come to me, I shall
receive them." We now apprehend the design of the
Prophet.
Interpreters, indeed, explain one from
a city as meaning, that though the multitude should perish, yet God would not
deny forgiveness to three or four; but they teach not what is especially worthy
of notice, that two or three are mentioned, because this thought, as it has been
said, might have perplexed them, that is, that they had been all in common
chosen as a holy people.
What is here taught may
be useful to us in the present day. For we see many foolishly excluding
themselves from the hope of salvation, and seeking no access to God, because
they have a regard to one another, and the great mass hold them entangled. How
is it under the Papacy, that so many pertinaciously resist God? even because
they think themselves safely hid in the multitude. We also find among us that
some are an hindrance to others. Let this truth be ever remembered, that when
God stretches forth his arms, he is ready to receive, not only all, were they
with one consent to come to him, but also two or three, even from one city, or
from a whole people.
He adds,
I will cause you to come to
Zion. This had been once said before:
God intimates that their exile would be temporary, that the Israelites would
again be made partakers of his inheritance, if they returned to God in sincerity
and truth. It follows
—
Jeremiah
3:15
15. And I will give you pastors
according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding,
15. Et dabo vobis pastores secundum cor meurn, et pascent vos scientia
et intelligentia (hoc est, scienter et
prudenter).
Here God promises that
he would so provide for the salvation of his people after their return from
exile, that they should not again perish. But the cause of God's vengeance ought
to be observed, which is expressed in the fifth chapter of Isaiah, "My people,"
he says, "have been led captive, because they had no knowledge; therefore the
grave has widened its soul or its
throat.
fA86 He then says, that the cause of the
people's ruin was, because instruction had ceased among them, and pastors had
become mute dogs or robbers. Here, on the other hand, God declares that he would
give them faithful pastors, who would discharge in a befitting manner their
office. I, indeed, allow, that under this term are included faithful and wise
magistrates; but he especially refers to prophets and priests, whose office it
is in particular to reform idolatry.
fA87
We hence learn that the Church cannot
continue without having faithful pastors to shew the way of salvation. The
wellbeing of the Church then is secured, when God raises up true and faithful
teachers to proclaim his truth: but when the Church is deprived of sound
teachers, all things soon fall into ruin. For God, no doubt, intimates by this
promise that he would not only be the deliverer of his people, so as to restore
them from exile, but that he would be also their perpetual guardian after the
people had returned to their own country. It hence follows, that the Church of
God is not only begotten by means of holy and godly pastors, but that its life
is also cherished, nourished, and confirmed by them to the end. As it is not
enough for civil order to be once set up, except the magistrates continue in
their office, so nothing is more ruinous to the Church than for God to take away
faithful pastors. It cannot indeed be, that people will return to God, unless
prophets be first sent: but God speaks here of a continued course of
instruction, and of a well regulated government in the Church, as though he had
said, "I will not only give you prophets to lead you from your wanderings to me,
and to restore you to the way of salvation, but I will also continually set over
you sound and faithful teachers." But we must notice, that those who preside
cannot rightly discharge their office unless they are endued with wisdom. God
also intimates his paternal love, when he says, that good pastors would be dear
to him. It afterwards follows
—
Jeremiah
3:16
16. 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 to mind, neither shall they remember it, neither shall they visit it,
neither shall that be done any more. 16. Et erit, cum
multiplicati fueritis et fructificaveritis (vel, creveritis) in terra
diebus illis, dicit Jehova, non dicent amplius, Arca foederis Jehovae, et non
ascendet in cor, et non recordabuntur ejus, et non visitabunt, et non fiet
amplius.
Interpreters have perverted
this verse, for none of them have understood the design of the Prophet. The
Jews, for the most part, have adduced frigid and far — fetched glosses,
— that they would no more bring out to battles the Ark of the Covenant, as
no enemy would invade their land. They think then that a peaceable state is
promised to the people, as they would be constrained by no hostile force to
carry the Ark of the Covenant here and there. But we clearly see that the words
mean no such thing: it is then a comment wholly foreign to the subject. Others
say, that what is said must be applied to the time of the Messiah, and none even
of the Jews deny this; for it afterwards follows, that the Israelites would
return with the tribe of Judah. This had not yet been fulfilled; it hence
follows, that the Prophet here predicts of the kingdom of Christ. But the Jews,
while allowing this, do not understand that anything is said of the abrogation
of legal ceremonies; it has yet been thought by almost all Christians, that the
Prophet here teaches us, that when Christ should come, an end would be put to
all the shadows of the law, so that there would be no more any Ark of the
Covenant, as the fullness of the Godhead would dwell in
Christ.
This indeed is a view which seems
plausible, but the meaning of the Prophet, as I think, is wholly different: for
he refers here to that divorce or division which had for a long time existed
between the kingdom of Judah and the kingdom of Israel. Though the kingdom of
Israel, as to the number of its men, largeness of territory and wealth, was more
flourishing and prosperous than the kingdom of Judah; yet there remained these
advantages to the Jews, — that they had a Temple built according to God's
command, — that its place had been chosen by God, — that they had
the Ark of the Covenant as a symbol of God's presence. Hence there was
contention between the kingdom of Judah and the ten tribes: the Israelites were
elated on account of their number and their riches, and other temporal
advantages; and the Jews gloried in their Temple and the Ark of the Covenant.
And what now does the Prophet say? He declares that such would be the concord
between the Israelites and the Jews, that the Jews would no more say, "The Ark
of the Covenant," "The Temple of God;" for God would be present with them all.
And the Prophet proceeds to confirm more fully what I have just said: it is
therefore necessary to add the two following verses. He then says
—
Jeremiah
3:17-18
17. At that time they shall
call Jerusalem the throne of the Lord; and all the 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. 17. Tempore illo vocabunt
Jerusalem solium Jehovae, et congregabuntur ad eam omnes gentes ad nomen
Jehovae, Jerusalem dico; et non ambulabunt posthac (vel, amplius) post
duriciem (alii vertunt, obstinationem; est etiam interdum cogitatio,
twrrç,
post duriciem) cordis sui
malam.
18. 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. 18. In diebus illis venient domus Jehudah cum domo
Israel, venient simul e terra aquilonis ad terram, quam dedi in haereditatem
patribus vestris (vel, quam dedi possidendam jure haereditario patribus
vestris.)
We now understand more
clearly what I have already said, — that the Prophet promises here that
there would be concord between the ten tribes and the kingdom of Judah, when
both returned from exile; as though he had said, that their condition would be
better than it ever had been; for the seed of Abraham had been torn as it were
asunder; and the people whom God intended that they should continue in a holy
union had become divided in the most shameful manner. We indeed know that there
had been inveterate hatred between the Jews and the Israelites. As then there
had been such disgraceful division for a long time between the children of
Abraham, the Prophet now shews what would be the fruit of exile; for after
having been for a time chastised by the Lord, they would return to their own
country, not to entertain the same emulation as had existed, but to unite
together in calling on God, in order that the Jews might be as brethren to the
Israelites, and the Israelites might cultivate mutual concord with the tribe of
Judah.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as thou at
this day mercifully sparest us, when yet in various ways we provoke thy
displeasure, — O grant, that we may not harden ourselves against thy
chastisements, but that thy forbearance may lead us to repentance, and that also
thy scourges may do us good, and that we may so truly turn to thee, that our
whole life may testify that we are in our hearts changed; and may we also
stimulate one another, that we may unite together in rendering obedience to thy
word, and each of us strive to glorify thy name, through Christ Jesus our Lord.
— Amen.
Lecture
Thirteenth
WE began yesterday to explain what the Prophet means,
when he says, that there would be no more a remembrance of the Ark of the
Covenant after the return of the Israelites into their country and their
increase in it, even because there would be no discord among them as there had
been before they were led into exile. For the ten tribes, we know, worshipped
God after their own manner, as they had departed from the pure and simple
teaching of the law. The Prophet then means, that they would all be the
worshippers of the only true God, and that there would be among them such an
unity of faith, that the Jew would not call God his God only, and that an
Israelite would not desire for himself another God. Hence he adds,
It shall not ascend on the
heart; that is, such a thought shall no
more come into their minds; and
they shall not remember
it; that is, no monuments of their
ancient disunion shall exist any more among them; and
they shall not visit
it, which means, they shall no more come
stealthily into Jerusalem who may wish to offer sacrifices to God; and in short,
he says, No such thing shall be
done.
fA88
Then he says,
At that time called shall be
Jerusalem the throne of Jehovah. The
Prophet may appear inconsistent with himself by saying that
Jerusalem
would be
the throne
of God, and yet that the Jews would make no
mention of the Ark of the Covenant: but the two clauses wholly agree, for he
means that Jerusalem would be the seat and habitation of the eternal God,
without any dispute being raised among them. The Israelites before their exile
boasted that they retained the worship of the true God, and so magnificent was
the display, and so great the pomp, that Jerusalem was quite obscure as to any
external splendor. But the Prophet says that this distinction would no longer
exist, and that the Israelites would no more contend with the Jews, for all
would allow Jerusalem to be the sanctuary of God; as though he had said, "Pure
religion shall flourish among them all without exception, such as had not done
before." And this passage he more clearly confirms by the words which follow:
—
Assemble into it shall
all nations to the name of Jehovah; or,
on account of the name of Jehovah
(l,
lamed, is here instead of a causal particle) shall all nations assemble
at Jerusalem.
fA89 We see that there is nothing doubtful in
these words, for the Prophet distinctly declares, that the worship of God, such
as the Law required, would attain such esteem, that all nations would be ready
to embrace whatever would be taught by the Jews. But by all nations we are to
understand strictly the ten tribes, as they are called many nations in several
places. If any one prefers to extend the meaning, let him enjoy his own
opinion.
As I have said yesterday, the Jews
think that the time of the Messiah is described here, because what Jeremiah
promises has never been fulfilled; for there was no assembling of nations when
the Jews returned from exile to their own country, as the Jews alone returned at
that time. Hence they conclude that this passage can be explained in no other
way than by referring it to the kingdom of Messiah; which, indeed, I confess to
be true. But as that return and restoration of the people was a prelude of
Christ's kingdom, the prophets ever begin at that time whenever they prophesy of
the Church being renewed. It is indeed true, that the restoration of the whole
world was to be looked for through the coming of Christ; yet God began to
restore his Church, when he stretched forth his hand to the Jews, and when they
built the city and the temple; which was necessary to be done before Christ came
forth. But as to this passage, whether by nations we understand the ten tribes,
or both kingdoms, or all nations indiscriminately, the meaning of the Prophet is
equally clear, which is this, — that the Church would become larger than
before, when God restored the people, and that God would then cause true
religion to flourish, unaccompanied with envy and
strife.
What follows confirms the opinion, that
the passage is to be explained of the two kingdoms,
Walk,
he says, shall they no more after
the evil hardness of their own
heart.
fA90 It was not usual to speak thus of
heathen nations, who had ever been strangers to the teaching of the Law. As
this, then, can only be specifically applied to the Jews and Israelites, that
explanation is the most to be approved, which makes all nations to mean the ten
tribes, or the whole people.
Then is added, what
is of the same meaning, In those
days shall come the house of Judah with the house of
Israel. It hence appears, that the
Prophet speaks of the posterity of Abraham and not of other nations; for he adds
this verse as explanatory. It might, indeed, have been asked, "What does this
mean, All nations shall come?" To this he answers, "The house of Israel shall
unite with the house of Judah;" that is, there shall be no more hatred between
these two nations, for they shall acknowledge one another as brethren, and know
that they have arisen from the same source, and that they ought to be one
people. In short, the Prophet explains in this verse what he had said before.
And we ought especially to notice what he adds,
Come shall they together from the
land of the north into the land which I have given to be possessed by their
fathers. The Jews had not yet gone into
exile; the Prophet said this to them while they were quiet, as it were, in their
own nest at Jerusalem, and in the country around; nor could he convince them of
what they afterwards found to be true to their great loss, — that an exile
was nigh them, like that which they then saw had happened to their brethren, the
Israelites. But yet the Prophet spoke of them, as though they had been exiled
and dwelt like the Israelites in the north country;
Come
together., he says,
shall they from the land of
the
north.
fA91
They might have objected and said,
"We are as yet enjoying our own inheritance, and no one can drive us hence, for
it cannot be that God shall be deprived of his own temple, as he has chosen for
himself a perpetual habitation among us." Such words were no doubt clamorously
spoken by them. But the Prophet here repels their vain confidence, and says,
that their only hope of deliverance was in looking forward to the restoration
which the Lord would grant them after they had been for a time banished from
their country. Now the Prophet here sets forth to them the benefit which would
arise from exile, in order that they might bear with more submission the
punishment they were to endure: for they might have a hundred times despaired,
had they no hope that this exile would be only for a time, and that they would
again be gathered together with their brethren the Israelites. It now follows
—
Jeremiah
3:19
19. 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. 19. Et ego dixi, Quomodo ponam to in filios, et dabo tibi
terram desiderii (hoc est, desiderabilem,) haereditatem cupiditatis
fA92 (hoc est, quae concupiscitur,)
exercitus gentium? Et dixi, Pater mi, clamabis ad me, et a me non recedes (de
post me, ad verbtum,
yrjam.)
It
is not my purpose to mention all the expositions of this verse; but it is enough
to shew what seems to be the meaning of the Prophet. Whenever I touch on
opinions which I disapprove, this I feel constrained to do, because when they
present the appearance of truth, readers may be deceived by them: but when the
truth itself is sufficiently conspicuous, I am not disposed to spend labor in
refuting the opinions of others.
What, then, the
words of the Prophet mean is this, — God here asks, How was it possible
that the race of Abraham could again be propagated since it was nearly dead? The
answer is, It shall be, when thou wilt
call me Father, and turn not away
from me. The question was asked, that
the Jews might feel as though their condition was past remedy. And doubtless,
since they had so greatly and so obstinately provoked God by their wickedness,
they might have seemed to have become wholly lost. God then assumes here the
character of one filled with astonishment, as though he had said, "Ye are,
indeed, in a state of despair, there is no hope of your salvation; but yet, as
it is my purpose again to restore you, I wish now to find out a way, by which
your race may again be propagated." How, then, is this to be done? He shews that
the only thing required was, to call him Father, not with the mouth, but really
with the heart.
We now, then, perceive the
meaning of the Prophet: for he humbles the Israelites by thus ascribing
astonishment to God, as though it was a thing very difficult to be done; but at
the same time he gives them hope, because salvation was prepared for them,
provided they called on God with a sincere heart, and acknowledged him as their
Father, and that perseveringly, without ever turning aside from him. In short,
God intimates that the Israelites were like dead men, and that their salvation
was hopeless, without a resurrection, he yet promises them salvation on this
condition, — that they called on him and did this, not with a double
heart, nor by a sudden impulse, such as soon vanishes away; for he says,
Thou shalt not turn aside from
me; that is, "Be always obedient to me,
and I will prove that I shall not be called in vain a Father by you." It follows
—
Jeremiah
3:20
20. Surely as a wife
treacherously departeth from her husband, so have ye dealt treacherously with
me, O house of Israel, saith the Lord. 20. Certe (subaudienda est
particula sicut) perfideagit mulier a socio
suo
fA93 (hoc est, perfide agit cum
marito, ubi ab ipso discedit, vel, se alienat,) sic perfide egistis in
me, domus Israel, inquit Jehovah.
He
confirms the first clause of the preceding verse: for he had said that it could
hardly be that the Jews would recover what they had lost, and be formed again a
new people; and he shews the reason, — because they were like an
adulteress, as he had before stated. But he did not yet wish to take away every
hope; only he insists on this, that they were seriously to consider their sins,
in order that they might become displeased with themsalves, and flee to God's
mercy for refuge. Nor did he do this so much for their sake, as for the sake of
the people among whom he dwelt. For he had respect, as it has been often stated,
especially to the Jews, who had become so hardened in their vices as not to
think that this example, by which God intended to terrify them, so as to bend
their hard hearts to repentance, belonged to them. Hence it was for this reason
that God so severely reproved Israel; for he had said before, that the Jews were
still worse. He afterwards subjoins
—
Jeremiah
3:21
21. 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. 21. Vox super excelsa audita est, fletus precationum filiorum
Israel; quia perverterunt viam suam, obliti sunt Jehovae Dei
sui.
What I have stated becomes now
more evident, — that the case of the Israelites is here set before the
Jews, that the perverse, whom God had spared, might know that the same
punishment impended over them, except they returned in due time to him: for the
Prophet declares, that the Israelites were weeping and in tears, because they
had departed from their God, and violated their faith pledged to him. For what
purpose did he do this? That the Jews, who indulged themselves in their own
pleasures, might be awakened, and be convinced, that except they anticipated
God's judgments, the same tears and the same weeping were prepared for them. The
Israelites, indeed, did not as yet thus weep and shew signs of true repentance;
for the Prophet does not here commend their feeling or their piety, but
intimates, that they were thus severely afflicted, because they had forsaken
their God.
A
voice, he says,
was heard on high
places, 'that is, It was everywhere
sufficiently known how cruelly the Israelites were oppressed by their enemies.
Now they cried, then they called themselves the most wretched of men: why was
this lamentation? Because they
had perverted their ways. It is, then,
the same as though he had said, — that it was a monstrous perverseness in
the Jews, that being warned by the punishment of their brethren, they did not
repent: for the calamity which happened to the Israelites filled all men with
terror. That kingdom had, indeed, flourished for a long time; but the land had
been emptied of its inhabitants, and was occupied by wild beasts, until some
were sent from Persia and other parts in the East to cultivate it. How could a
land so pleasant and so fruitful have become like a desert? Even because God had
so predicted:
"Ye have neglected," he
says, "my Sabbaths, and your land shall rest, and it shall no more be wearied by
you."
(<032634>Leviticus
26:34, 35.)
It was an awful sight; and nations, far and wide,
were able to see how great must have been the impiety of that people, on whom
God had taken such dreadful vengeance. Were not the Jews, who had this solitude
before their eyes, and this devastation of the land, extremely stupid in
overlooking all this?
We now see the design of
the Prophet, when he says, A
voice on high places was heard, as
though the Israelites cried on the tops of mountains. And he adds,
the weeping of the supplications,
etc.: but he does not mean, that they were
prayers which arose from faith; but simply that they were such lamentations as
betokened misery and wretchedness. In giving a reason, the Prophet mentions not
what the Israelites confessed, but only shews the cause why they so deeply
deplored their calamities; it was, because they had
perverted their ways, and
forgotten Jehovah their
God.
fA94 He afterwards adds
—
Jeremiah
3:22-23
22. Return, ye backsliding
children, and I will heal your backslidings. Behold, we come unto thee;
for thou art the Lord our God. 22. Revertimini, filii rebelles;
sanabo transgressiones vestras. Ecce, nos venimus ad to, quia Jehova Deus
noster.
23. 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. 23. Certe fallacia a collibus, multitudo montium; certe in Jehova
Deo nostro sans Israel.
God here
exhorts the Israelites to repent, that by their example he might move the Jews.
The benefit of what is here taught might indeed have reached to the miserable
captives and exiles; but as Jeremiah was especially the teacher of his own
nation, he labored chiefly no doubt for their advantage, as we have before
stated. God then here declares, that he would be reconcilable to the Israelites,
how grievously soever they had sinned, he afterwards introduces them as
answering,
Behold,
we return, or we shall come
to thee: for the Prophet speaks here of
the future conversion of the ten tribes.
It is
then a dialogue between God and the Israelites. God himself freely invites them
to repent:
Return,
he says, ye rebellious
children; and then he promises to be a
physician to heal their diseases:
I will heal thy
transgressions; that is, I will blot out
thy sins, and absolve thee from guilt. God then undertakes to do these things;
first, to stimulate the Israelites to repentance, and then to give them the hope
of pardon: and he says that a remedy was provided for them, except they hardened
themselves. Now, the Israelites, on the other hand, make this answer,
Behold, we shall come to
thee. Here Jeremiah condemns the
obstinacy of his own nation, by saying, that the Israelites, when thus kindly
invited by God, would not be perverse, but would, on the contrary, be tractable
and obedient. This indeed was not fulfilled, when a liberty to return was given
to the people, except in the case of a few, who had a right feeling, and
preferred the glory of God to their temporal advantages. But the number was
small; nor was it a matter of surprise; for God had not previously said, without
reason, that if one came from a city, and two from a tribe, he would be
received, though others continued fixed in their perverseness. However this may
have been, God here intimates that the Israelites would not be so refractory as
not to obey his admonition when the hope of pardon and salvation would be
presented to them: and this is mentioned, that the perverseness of the Jews
might appear more detestable.
But some think
that the Israelites are here upbraided, because they hypocritically pretended
that they always sought God. Hence they elicit this meaning, "Ye indeed say,
Behold, we return to thee, thou
art our God;" as though he condemned
their hypocrisy, because they falsely alleged that they always sought him. But
this view seems to me foreign to the intention of the Prophet. Hence I doubt not
but that Jeremiah sets before the Jews, as in a picture, what ought to have
constrained them not to persist so obstinately in their sinful courses:
"Behold," he says, "God is prepared to receive into favor your brethren, who are
undone and past all hope; and when they shall hear God's voice kindly and
graciously inviting them to himself, they will doubtless return: why then do not
ye obey?"
And in the same sense is to be taken
what follows, Surely, deceit is
from the hills, and the multitude of
mountains, or, from the multitude of
mountains, as the letter
m is
to be repeated. Here the Prophet more fully expresses the evidence of their
repentance, as though he had said, "We have been deceived by the hills and the
multitude of mountains; we thought that there would be more defense from a large
number of gods than if we worshipped one God: this deception has led to ruin.
Let then all these deceits be now discarded; for we shall be content with the
only true God." In short, the Israelites confess, in these words, that they had
been drawn into ruin by the worst of errors, while they sought many gods, and
did not acquiesce in the one true God.
Then they
add, for surely in Jehovah our
God is salvation. They set here the one
true God in opposition to all their idols, as though they had said, that the
cause of all their evils was, that they did not continue in the service of the
one true God, but wandered after a multitude of Gods. We hence see that these
two things cannot possibly be connected, — to worship the true God,
— and to seek for ourselves various other gods, and to form vain hopes, as
they do, who are not satisfied with the only true
God.
fA95 It follows
—
Jeremiah
3:24
24. For shame hath devoured the
labor of our fathers from our youth; their flocks and their herds, their sons
and their daughters, 24. Et pudor (vel, probrum) voravit laborem
patrum nostrorum a pueritia nostra, oves eorum et pecora eorum, filios eorum et
filias eorum.
They confirm more
fully the same complaint, — That God had by manifest proofs shewed the
sins of the nation; for he had consumed their labor, that is, whatever they had
acquired by labor. He also adds sheep and cattle, and then
sons and
daughters. He does not indeed ascribe
this consumption to God; but the mode of speaking is more emphatic, when he
says, Shame has consumed the
labor of our fathers from our childhood: for by
shame
he understands wickedness, of which they ought
to have been ashamed. The meaning then is, that all the evils they had endured
could in no other way be accounted for, inasmuch as the whole was to be ascribed
to their wickedness. Our
shame,
then,
fA96 that is, our wickedness,
has consumed the labor of our
fathers. It follows
—
Jeremiah
3:25
25. 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. 25. Jacuimus in pudore nostro, et operuit nos
ignomina nostra; quoniam cum Jehova Deo nostro scelerate egimus, nos et patres
nostri, a pueritia nostra, et ad hunc diem usque; et non audivimus vocem Jehovae
Dei nostri.
As the Israelites say
here nothing new, but continue the same subject, I propose only to touch briefly
on the words, lest I should be too tedious. They say then that they were
lying in their miseries; and why?
because they had dealt wickedly
with God. We see that they are
explaining what they had confessed, — even that the labor of their fathers
had been consumed by their shame, that is, by their wickedness; and they ascribe
to themselves what might have been put to the account of their fathers, because
they knew that they were heirs to their iniquity.
We have
lain, they say,
in our
shame.
fA97 They here shortly confess that they were
deservedly miserable, that they could not accuse God of cruelty, as that he
afflicted them too severely. How so? because they were lying in their own
shame,
and their own disgrace
covered them; as though they said, that the
cause of all their evils was to be found in their sins, and that it was not to
be sought anywhere
else.
Because we and our
fathers, they say,
have done
wickedly. By these words they intimate
that they had acted thus, not for a day only, but had been so perverse, that
from early life they had imbibed the iniquity of their fathers, and thus added
evils to evils. They had said before, that the labor of their fathers had been
consumed from their childhood, thereby signifying the continuance of their
punishment; for God had not for a day chastised them, but had often repeated his
scourges, and yet without any benefit. Now they add,
"As we have from our childhood
dealt wickedly towards our God, so also
he has warned us from our childhood to return to him; and it has been our fault
that we have not returned, for he called us; but as we were obstinate, so also
God has justly executed on us his
vengeance."
They afterwards say,
even to this
day; by which they confirm what I have
already stated, — that they had been so perverse as not to cease from
their vices. At the same time he points out the source of all their wickedness:
they hearkened not to the voice
of Jehovah. Had they gone astray, and
had God been silent, their fault might have been extenuated; but as God had
daily sent prophets to them, who never ceased to cry in their hearing, and yet
they continued deaf, their perverseness in their sinful courses was inexcusable.
We then see that their sin was increased by the circumstance, that they refused
to hear the voice of God; as though he had said, that God had done his part in
calling them back from the way of ruin, but that they had been so obstinate as
to disregard his favor, and that they thus justly suffered, not only for their
impiety, but also for their ingratitude and perverse
wickedness.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as we cease
not, though favored with many blessings, to provoke thee by our misdeeds, as
though we avowedly carried on war against thee, — O grant, that we being
at length warned by those examples, by which thou invitest us to repentance, may
restrain our depraved nature, and in due time repent, and so devote ourselves to
thy service, that thy name through us may be glorified, and that we may strive
to bring into the way of salvation those who seem to be now lost, so that thy
mercy may extend far and wide, and that thus thy salvation, obtained through
Christ thine only — begotten Son, may be known and embraced by all
nations. — Amen.
CHAPTER
4
Lecture
Fourteenth
Jeremiah
4:1
1. 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. 1. Si
reverteris Israel, dicit Jehova, ad me revertere (vel, apud me quiesce;)
et si abstuleris abominationes tuas a facie mea, et non fueris vagus (alii,
et non migrabis.)
The Prophet no
doubt requires here from the people a sincere return to God, inasmuch as they
had often pretended to confess their sins, and had given many signs of
repentance, while they were acting deceitfully with him. As then they had often
dealt falsely with God and with his prophets, Jeremiah bids them to return to
God without any disguise and in good faith. With regard to what is here
substantially taught, this is the Prophet's meaning; but there is some ambiguity
in the words.
Some read thus, "If thou
returnest, Israel, to me, saith Jehovah, "connecting "to me,
yla,
"with the first clause, then they read separately
"bwçt,
teshub, thou shalt rest;" and so they think that what follows is the
repetition of the same thing, "If thou wilt take away thine abominations
from before me, thou shalt not migrate;" that is, I will not cast thee out as I
have threatened. Others take the verb
bwçt,
teshub, in the same sense, (for it is the same verb repeated,) "If thou
wilt return, Israel, return to me." The Prophet doubtless bids the Israelites to
return to God in sincerity, and without any disguise, and not to act falsely
with him, as they had often done.
I have as yet
mentioned only what others have thought; but, in my judgment, the most suitable
rendering is, "If thou wilt return, Israel, rest in me, "arrete toi, as
we say in French. Rest
then
in
me; and then a definition is given,
If thou wilt take away thine
abominations (for the copulative is to be taken
as expletive or explanatory) from
my sight, and wilt not wander. What some
of those I have referred to have given as their rendering, "If thou wilt return
to me, Israel, thou shalt rest," I wholly reject, as it seems forced: but I
allow this reading, "If thou wilt return, Israel, thou shalt rest in me;" or
this, "If thou wilt return, Israel, return to me;" for the difference is not
great. The Prophet here evidently condemns the hypocrisy which the Israelites
had practiced; for they had often professed themselves as ready to render
obedience to God, and afterwards proved that they had made a false profession.
Since then deceit and emptiness had been so often found in them, the Prophet
demands here, in the name and by the command of God, that they should in truth
and sincerity return to him.
If this reading be
approved, "Israel, return to me," the intimation is, that they ever took
circuitous courses, that they might not return directly to God: for it is usual
with hypocrites to make a great show of repentance and at the same time to shun
God. If then we follow this reading, the Prophet means this, "Israel, there is
no reason for thee hereafter to think that thou gainest anything by boasting
with thy mouth of thy repentance; return to me; know that thou hast to do
with God, who is not deceived, as he never deceives any: return then faithfully
to me, and let thy conversion be sincere and in no way
deceptive."
But if the verb,
bwçt,
teshub, be taken in the other sense, there would be no great difference
in the meaning; "If thou wilt return, Israel, thou shalt rest in me;" that is,
thou shalt hereafter have nothing to do with idols and with thy perverted ways.
Thus the Prophet briefly shews that the return of Israel would be nothing,
except they acquiesced in God alone, and wandered not after vain objects, as
they had often done. And with this view corresponds what follows, "Even if thou
takest away (for the copulative, as I have said, is to be taken as explanatory)
thine abominations from my sight, and wilt wander no more,
dwnt
alw, vela tanud." For the vice which
Jeremiah meant especially to condemn was this, — that Israel, while
pretending a great show of religion, yet vacillated and did not devote
themselves with all their heart to God, but were changeable in their purpose.
This vice then is what Jeremiah justly condemns; and hence I am disposed to
embrace this view "Israel, if thou wilt return, rest in me;" that is, continue
constantly faithful to me: but how can this be done? "Even if thou wilt take
away thy abominations, and if thou wilt not wander;" for thy levity and
inconstancy hitherto has been well
known.
fA98
Whatever view we may take, this
passage deserves to be noticed as being against hypocrites, who dare not openly
to reject prophetic warnings; but while they shew some tokens of repentance,
they still by windings shun the presence of God. They indeed testify by their
mouth that they seek God, but yet have recourse to subterfuges: and hence I have
said that this passage is remarkably useful, so that we may know that God cannot
be pacified by those fallacious trifles which hypocrites bring forward, but that
he requires a sincere heart, and that he abominates all dissimulation. It is
therefore expressly said, If thou
wilt take away thy abominations from my
sight. For hypocrites ever regard
display and seek to be approved by men, and are satisfied with their
approbation; but God calls their attention to himself. It must at the same time
be observed, that he cannot be deceived; for he is the searcher of hearts. It
follows —
Jeremiah
4:2
2 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. 2. Et jurabis, vivit
Jehova, in veritate, in judicio et in justitia; et benedicent se in eo gentes et
in eo gloriabuntur.
Here the Prophet
goes on with the same subject; for he denudes these flatteries, by which they
thought that God could be pacified: for when they had his name in their mouth,
they thought it sufficient for their defense, — "What! do we not call upon
God? do we not ascribe to him his due honor, when we swear by his name?" There
is in the Prophet's words a part given for the whole; for swearing is to be
taken for the whole of God's worship. When therefore the Israelites made a
profession of God's name, they thought themselves absolved from all
guilt.
Hence the Prophet says,
Thou shalt swear truly
in the name of God; that is, "Ye are
indeed self — confident, because an external profession of religion seems
to you to be a sort of expiation, whenever ye seek to contend with God: ye boast
that you are Abraham's seed, and swear by the name of God; but ye are
sacrilegious, when ye thus falsely profess God's name."
Swear
then, he says,
in
truth.
We
hence see how the words of the Prophet harmonize together: he had said, that
Israel had hitherto dealt falsely with God, because they had not performed what
in words they had promised, for they went astray; and now he adds, that it
availed the Israelites nothing, that they openly called on God and shewed
themselves to be his people by an external worship: this, he says, is nothing,
except ye worship God in truth
and in judgment and in
righteousness.
Truth
is no doubt to be taken here for integrity, as
we shall see in the fifth chapter: it is the same as though he had said, that
God is not rightly worshipped, except when the heart is free from all guile and
deceit; in short, he means that there is no worship of God without sincerity of
heart. But the truth, of which the Prophet speaks, is especially known by
judgment and
righteousness; that is, when men deal
faithfully with one another, and render to all their right, and seek not their
own gain at the expense of others. When therefore equity and uprightness are
thus observed by men, then is fulfilled what is required here by the Prophet:
for then they worship not God fallaciously, nor with vain words, but really shew
that they do, without disguise, fear and reverence
God.
What follows is variously explained by
interpreters; but the Prophet, I have no doubt, does here indirectly reprove the
Israelites, because God's name had been exposed to many reproaches and
mockeries, when the heathens said, that there was no power in God to help the
Israelites, and when the people themselves expostulated with God, as though they
had a just cause for contending with him, — "What! God has promised that
we should be models of his blessing; but we are exposed to the reproaches of the
heathens: how can this be?" Since then the Israelites thus deplored their lot,
and cast the blame on God, the Prophet gives this answer,
Bless themselves shall the
nations and glory in him. Some refer
this to the Israelites, but not correctly. It had indeed been said to Abraham,
"In thy seed shall all nations be blessed," or, shall bless themselves. But this
blessing had its beginning, as it is here noticed by the Prophet. For we must
look for the cause or the fountain of this blessing: how could the nations bless
themselves through the seed or the children of Abraham, except God, the author
of the blessing, manifested his favor towards the children of Abraham? Very
aptly then does the Prophet say here,
Then bless themselves in God
shall all the nations, and in him shall they
glory; that is, "Ye are to be blamed,
that God's curse is upon you and renders you objects of reproach to all people,
and also, that heathens disdain and despise the name of God: for your impiety
has constrained God to deal more severely with you than he wished; for he is
ever ready to shew his paternal clemency. What then is the hindrance, that the
nations bless not themselves in God and glory in him? that is, that pure
religion does not flourish through the whole world, and that all nations do not
come to you and unite in the worship of the only true God? The hindrance is your
impiety and wickedness; this is the reason why God is not glorified, and why
your felicity is not everywhere celebrated among the nations." We now perceive
the meaning of the Prophet, — that the Jews groundlessly imputed blame to
God, because they were oppressed by so many evils; for they had procured for
themselves all their calamities, and at the same time gave occasion to heathens
to profane God's name by their
reproaches.
fA99 It follows
—
Jeremiah
4:3
3. For thus saith the LORD to
the men of Judah and Jerusalem, Break up your fallow ground, and sow not among
thorns. 3. Quoniam sic dicit Jehova viro Jehudah (hoc est,
Judaeis) et Jerosolymae, Novate vobis novale, et ne seminetis super
spinas.
The Prophet still pursues
the same subject; for he reproves the hypocrisy of the Israelites, because they
sought to discharge their duty towards God only by external ceremonies, while
their hearts were full of deceits and of every kind of impiety and wickedness.
Hence he says, that God required this from the Jews, — to
plough again the fallow, and not
to sow among thorns.
It is a most suitable
comparison; for Scripture often compares us to a field, when it represents us as
God's heritage; and we have been chosen by God as a peculiar people for this end
— that he may gather fruit from us, as a husbandman gathers produce from
his fields. We can indeed add nothing to what God is; but there is a fruit which
he demands; so that our whole life is to be devoted to his glory. God then would
not have us to be idle and fruitless, but to bring forth some fruit. But what is
done by hypocrites? They sow; that is, they shew some concern, yea, they pretend
great ardor, when God exhorts them to repent, or when he invites them. They then
make a great bustle; yet they mar everything by their own mixtures, the same as
though one scattered his seed among thorns: but it will be of no avail thus to
cast seed among thorns; for the ground ought to be well cleared and prepared.
Hence God laughs to scorn this preposterous care and diligence, in which
hypocrites pride themselves, and says, that they busy themselves without any
advantage; for it is the same, as though an husbandman had wholly lost his seed;
for when the ground is full of briers and thorns, the seed, though it may grow
for a time, cannot yet bring forth fruit. For this reason God bids the
Israelites to plough the
fallows;
fA100 as though he had said, that they
were like a rough ground, which is full of thorns, and that therefore there was
need of unusual and by no means a common cultivation; for when thorns and briers
grow in a field, of what benefit will it be to cast seed there? Nay, a field
cannot be well prepared by the plough alone, so that it may produce fruit; but
much labor is also necessary, as is the case with fallow ground, which is called
essarter in our language.
The Prophet
then intimates that the people had become hardened in their vices, and that they
were not only full of vices, like a field left uncultivated for two years; but
that their vices were so deep, that they could not be well cleared away by
ploughing alone, except they were drawn up by the roots, as they were like
thorns and brambles, which have been growing in a field for many years. We hence
see, that not only impiety and contempt of God, and other sins of the people of
Israel, are referred to by the Prophet, but also their perverseness; for they
had so hardened themselves for many years in their vices, that there was need
not only of the plough, but also of other instruments to tear up the thorns, to
eradicate those vices which had formed deep roots. As then, he had before warned
them, that they would labor in vain except they returned to God with sincerity
of heart and acquiesced in him; so here he bids them to examine their life, that
they might not cast away their seed, like hypocrites, who formally acknowledge
their sins. Hence he bids them wholly to shake off their vices, which were hid
within, according to what they do, who tear up thorns and briers in a field,
which has been long neglected, and left without being cultivated. It now follows
—
Jeremiah
4:4
4 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. 4. Circumcidimini Jehovae, et
auferte praeputia cordis vestri, viri Jehudah et incolae Jerusalem; ne
egrediatur tanquam ignis furor meus, et accendatur, et nemo extinguat, propter
(a facie, ad verbum) malitiam actionum
vestrarum.
The Prophet expresses
here more clearly what he had before said metaphorically or by a figure; for he
had bidden them to eradicate their vices, according to what is usually done by
breaking up the fallow ground; but now dropping that figure, he clearly shews
what was to be done, and yet the clause contains what is figurative. He calls
their attention to circumcision, which was a symbol of renovation, as though he
had said, — That they sufficiently understood what they were to do, except
they were wholly unteachable; "For why, "he says, "has circumcision been
enjoined? Does not God by this symbol shew, that if a man rightly aspires after
true religion, he ought to begin by putting off all the evil propensities of his
flesh? Is he not to deny himself, and to die as it were both to himself and to
the world? for circumcision includes all this." Then the Prophet shews that the
Israelites had no excuse, that they went not astray through mistake or through
ignorance; but they were acting perversely and deceitfully with God; for
circumcision, by which they had been initiated into God's service, sufficiently
taught them, that God is not rightly nor faithfully served, except when men deny
themselves.
We now then see what the Prophet
meant by these words, when he bids them to be circumcised to God, and to
take away the foreskin of their heart:
Be ye
circumcised, he
says, to
Jehovah. Circumcision was their great
boast; but only before men; for nothing but ambition and vanity ruled in them,
while they openly exulted and boasted that they were God's holy and peculiar
people. Hence the Prophet bids them not to value what was of no importance, but
to become circumcised to Jehovah; that is, he bids them not to seek applause
before the world, but seriously to consider that they had to do with God. And
hence he adds, Take away the
foreskin of your heart, as though he had
said, "When God commanded the seed of Abraham to be circumcised,
(<011710>Genesis
17:10-12,) it was not his object to have a small portion of skin cut off, but he
had regard to something higher, even that ye should be circumcised in
heart."
The Prophet, in short, teaches us here
what Paul has more clearly explained,
(<450229>Romans
2:29,) even this, — that the letter is of no value before God, but that
the spirit is what he requires: for Paul in these words means, that the external
sign is worthless, except accompanied by the reality within; for the literal
circumcision mentioned by Paul is merely the external rite; in the same manner
baptism with us may be called the letter, when there is no repentance and faith.
But the spirit, or spiritual circumcision, is the denial of self; it is
renovation, and in a word, that true conversion to God, of which the Prophet
speaks here. Nor has Moses been silent on this point; for in the tenth chapter
of Deuteronomy he shews that the Jews greatly deceived themselves, if they
thought that they did all that God required, when they were circumcised in the
flesh; "Circumcise, "he says, "your hearts to the Lord." He indeed reminds us in
another place, that this is altogether the work of God; but though God
circumcises the heart, yet this exhortation, that men are to circumcise
themselves, is not superfluous: and the same is the case with baptism; for when
Paul exhorts the faithful to fear God and to lead a holy life, he refers to
baptism. It is yet certain that men do not bestow on themselves what God
signifies by the sign of baptism; but he counsels them to seek from God the
grace of his Spirit, that they might not in vain be sealed by the external rite
of baptism, while destitute of its reality. When therefore the Prophet bids the
Israelites to take away the
foreskin of their heart, it is the same
as though he had said, that they were indeed liberal enough with regard to
ceremonies and outward worship, but that these were empty masks unless preceded
by a right disposition within.
And he addresses
the Jews, and also the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for they thought that they far
excelled the Israelites, on whom God had inflicted so grievous a punishment. He
then shews that the tribe of Judah, nay, that the very inhabitants and citizens
of Jerusalem were not better than others, and that they could not be exempted,
as it were, by privilege, except they returned to a right mind, except they
seasonably and from the heart repented.
He then
adds, Lest my fury go forth like
fire. The Prophet here expressly
declares, that the Jews were not to wait until God came forth as an avenger; for
then, he says, if, would be too late to repent: in short, he bids them to
anticipate in due time the judgment of God; for if once his fury went forth, it
would burn like fire so as to consume them, and there would be no extinguishing
of it. But if they repented, he holds forth to them the hope of pardon; for the
fury of God had not yet gone forth.
He
afterwards subjoins, On account
of the wickedness of your
deeds.
fA101 By these words the Prophet again
reproves them sharply, and shews that they gained nothing by their evasions; for
when God ascends his tribunal and begins to execute his vengeance, then all vain
excuses will come to an end, such as, that they deserved no such thing, or, that
the atrocity of their sins was not great: "God, "he says, "will, with his own
hand, teach you how grievous has been the atrocity of your vices; he will not,
then, deal with you in words." It then follows
—
Jeremiah
4:5-6
5. 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 defensed
cities. 5. Nuntiate (vel, promulgate) in Jehudah, et Jerusalem
facite audire, (hoc est, publicate,) et dicite et clangite tuba in terra;
vocate, colligite et dicite, Congregamini, et intremus civitates
munitas.
6. Set up the standard
toward Zion: retire, stay not: for I will bring evil from the north, and a great
destruction. 6. Tollite signum (vel, vexilium) in Sion;
congregamini (vel, confugite; alii vertunt, viriliter agite,
deducunt enim hoc verbum ab
zz[,
sed plures sequuntur diversum sensum ab
zz[,
quod est fugere, vel, se colligere metus causa,) ne stetis
(vel, non stabitis,) quoniam malum ego accerso (venire facio) ab
aquilone, et contritionem
magnam.
Jeremiah treats his own
people here with more severity, for he saw that they were refractory, and so
obstinate in their vices, that they could not by wise counsels be restored to
the way of safety. Hence he addresses them here as men wholly irreclaimable, and
to whom instruction proved useless. But though according to the manner of the
prophets, he sounds a trumpet for the sake of filling them with terror, he seems
yet to speak tauntingly, when he bids them to
proclaim in
Judah, and
to publish in
Jerusalem; as though he had said, When
distress shall seize you, you will then by experience perceive that God is angry
with you: though to — day ye believe not my warnings; yet that God may
not, indeed, by a violent hand, bring you back to himself, and as ye seek
evasions for yourselves, ye shall sound the trumpet, and proclaim, "The enemies
are coming, and are nigh at hand; let, therefore, every one flee to Jerusalem,
and enter into the city, and resort unto Zion: "that is, "If we cannot secure
our safety in the city, we shall at least be safe in the fortress of Sion." But
God, he says, brings an evil on
you from the north; and whatever ye may
think will be for your safety will be wholly useless. It is, however, proper,
especially to regard the Prophet as God's herald proclaiming war; and that
though he exults over their perverseness, he yet declares that such would be
everywhere the terror, that they would seek safety by
flight.
Sound,
he says, in Judah, and
publish, or proclaim,
in
Jerusalem,
(wdygh,
egidu, announce, literally.) He speaks not here for the same purpose as
Joel did,
(<290101>Joel
1:1, 15,) when he bade them to sound the trumpet; for the latter exhorted the
people to repent; but Jeremiah, as I have already said, tauntingly reproves here
the people for their obstinacy and perverseness; as though he had said, "I see
what ye will do, when God's vengeance shall come upon you, that ye may not even
then repent; for ye will sound the trumpet through the whole land, 'Let all
resort to Sion;' as though ye could resist there your enemies, and preserve your
lives." He does not, then, bid them to sound the trumpet, but, on the contrary,
shews what they would do.
Some improperly give
this rendering, "Fulfill ye, "but the common version is, "Assemble yourselves."
But interpreters seem not to me to have regarded the etymology of the word; for
it is of the same meaning in Hebrew as when we say, Amassez-vous, Gather
yourselves. And say, Be ye
assembled, and let us go into fortified
cities. It will, indeed, be announced to
you to seek hiding — places to protect you from the assaults of your
enemies; if so, Raise a banner in
Sion, and flee; but God will at the same
time bring evil
on you
from the
north.
The
words
wdm[tAla,
al-tomedu, may be explained in two ways, — "Stand not," that is,
"Hasten quickly," as it is the case with those in extreme fear; or, "Ye shall
not stand," that is, "Though ye may seek a firm position on Mount Sion, ye shall
not yet be able to continue there." The first exposition appears to me the best,
as it is more suitable to the context.
fA102
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as we cease
not daily to alienate ourselves from thee by our sins, and as thou yet kindly
exhortest us to repent, and promisest to be appeasable and propitious to us,
— O grant, that we may not perversely go on in our sins, and be ungrateful
to thee for thy great kindness; but that we may so return to thee, that our
whole life may testify that our repentance has been unfeigned, and that we may
so acquiesce in thee alone, that the depraved lusts of our flesh may not draw us
here and there, but that we may continue fixed and immovable in our purpose, and
so labor to obey thee through the whole course of our life, that we may at
length partake of the fruit of our obedience in thy celestial kingdom, through
Jesus Christ our Lord. — Amen.
Lecture
Fifteenth
Jeremiah
4:7
7. 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. 7. Ascendit leo ex densitate sua (hoc est,
ex oculto loco,) et vastator gentium profectus est; egressus est e loco sue
ad ponendum (ut ponat) terram tuam in vastitatem, urbes tuae perdentur, ut non
sit habitator.
The Prophet more
fully declares the import of the threatening which we briefly considered
yesterday; for God said in the former verse, that he would
bring an evil from the
north; and the kind of evil it was to be
he now describes, and compares the king of Babylon to a lion; and afterwards,
without a figure, he calls him the
destroyer of
nations.
By
the similitude of lion he means that the Israelites would not be able to resist;
and when he adds that he would be the desolator of nations, he intimates that
they would perish with the rest: for if Nebuchadnezzar was sufficiently able to
destroy many nations, how could the Jews escape a similar calamity?
He shall
come, he says,
the desolator of
nations. But he uses the past tense
throughout, in order to shew the certainty of the prediction, and thus to shake
secure men with fear, who had become torpid in their hypocrisy; for they would
have otherwise deemed all threatenings as nothing: for as long as God spared
them, they despised his judgment, and promised themselves impunity in their
sins. Hence the Prophet, in order to awake them, set the matter before them, as
though Nebuchadnezzar had already come with a strong and powerful army to lay
waste Judea; for he says, that a lion had
ascended from his hiding —
places: but the term for the last word
means an entangled density, as when trees are entwined together, or when a place
is filled with thorns.
fA103
But the similitude is most suitable,
because the Jews never thought that the king of Babylon would come forth from
places so remote; for the passing through was difficult, and the expedition
attended with great toil: yet the Prophet says, that the lion would come from
his recesses, and that nothing would hinder him from breaking forth and coming
to the open country. He at last concludes by saying, that the
cities would be laid
waste,
fA104
so as to be without an
inhabitant. It now follows
—
Jeremiah
4:8
8. For this gird you with
sackcloth, lament and howl: for the fierce anger of the Lord is not turned back
from us. 8. Super hoc accingite vos saccis, plangite et ululate; quia non
aversus est furor irae Jehovae a
nobis.
The Prophet seems not yet to
exhort his own nation to repent: a more gracious doctrine will presently follow;
but here he only reminds them that a most grievous mourning was nigh at hand;
for he saw that they were hypocrites, immersed in their own delusions, and could
not be assailed by any fear. Hence he says, that they were greatly mistaken, if
they thought themselves safe while God was angry with
them.
Gird yourselves in
sackcloth, he says,
lament and
howl; and then follows the reason,
because the fury of God's wrath
was not turned away from them. We indeed know,
that the ungodly are wont to make God subservient to themselves, as though they
could by their perverseness turn aside or drive afar off his judgment, and
restrain, as it were, his hand from acting. As, then, hypocrites are insolent
towards God, the Prophet says expressly that the fury of his wrath was not
turned away: and thus he warns them, that they would be in every way miserable
until they were reconciled to God.
We now
understand the design of the Prophet; for he confirms what the last verse
contains, when he said that a lion had come forth, and that a desolator was
already nigh; yea, he confirms what he had said, for there was no hope to them
without having God propitious, and he declares that God was angry. Hence it
follows, that all things would prove infelicitous to
them.
Jeremiah
4:9
9. 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. 9. Et erit die illo, dicit Jehova, peribit cor Regis et cor
procerum, et obstupescent sacerdotes, et prophetae mirabuntur (vel, attoniti
erunt).
As the royal dignity still
continued with the Jews, though their power was greatly diminished, they,
relying on that distinction, hoped that they had a sufficient protection: hence
it was, that they were not moved by any denunciation; for the royal power, which
remained not altogether secure, and yet so in some degree, was to them like a
shield. We also know what pride filled the courtiers; for they extolled their
kings, and thus made a show of their prudence and magnanimity. Since, then, this
foolish notion of the chief men respecting their king, and their delusive
boasting, deceived the Jews, the Prophet says,
In that day perish shall the
heart of the king, and the heart of the
princes.
By
heart
he no doubt means the understanding or the
mind, as the word is to be taken in many other places. Moses
says,
"God has not yet given
you a heart to
understand."
(<052904>Deuteronomy
29:4.)
The Latins also call men "hearted"
(cordatos) who excel in intelligence and
wisdom.
fA105 So, then, the Prophet shews, that it
was a vain and deceptive fancy for the people to expect that the king would be
an invincible defense to them; for "the king, "he says, "shall then be deprived
of understanding and reason; and the counselors, who lay claim to understanding,
shall be found then to be wholly foolish: there is, then, no ground for that
vain confidence which deceives you." The Prophet briefly intended to shake off
that false confidence, by which the Jews were inebriated, when they thought that
there was a sure safety in the intelligence of the king and
princes.
He says the same thing respecting the
priests as well as the prophets, as much glory belonged to the priestly order;
for the tribe of Levi had not taken that honor to itself, but God himself had
set priests over the people. Hence an opinion prevailed, that the priests could
not be without understanding and wisdom. With regard to the prophets, Jeremiah
no doubt conceded the name to impostors, who falsely professed the name of God;
and this way of speaking is common in the writings of the prophets. He does not,
then, mean those true and faithful ministers of God, who duly executed their
office, but those who boasted of the name and title: and he says of these, that
they would be
astonished.
fA106
He, in short, deprives the people of
that false confidence, through which they hardened themselves, so as not to fear
God's judgment.
But this passage is entitled to
special notice, because it shews that God's grace is not to be tied either to
ranks of men or to titles. The prophetic office had always been in high repute;
nor was the priestly without honor, for it was founded on God's command; but
Jeremiah nevertheless declares, that there would be no understanding in the
priests and in the prophets, because they would become stupefied and astonished.
And with regard to the king, we know that he was the representative of Christ;
and yet he pronounces the same thing of the king, and also of his counselors,
— that they would be made blind by the just vengeance of God, so as not to
see anything. he afterwards adds
—
Jeremiah
4:10
10. 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. 10. Et dixi, Ha,
ha, Domine Jehova, certe decipiendo decepisti populum hunc et Jerosolymam,
dicendo, Pax erit vobis; et pertigit gladius usque ad animam (tamen pertigit,
nam hic copula vice adversativae
ponitur).
Some so
understand this passage as though the Prophet brought forward what was said by
the people; for all the most wicked, when oppressed by God's hand, usually cast
the blame on him, and in their complaints contend and dispute with him. Hence
they think that the Prophet here, not in his own person, but in that of the
whole people, speaks thus: "O Lord, what can this be? thou surely hast deceived
us." Others give somewhat a looser explanation, that the Prophet here indirectly
expostulates with God, because he had suffered the false prophets to flatter the
people so as to stupefy the minds of all. But a different meaning is what I
approve of: the Prophet, I think, tauntingly exposes those false adulations, by
which the prophets had caused the ruin of the miserable Jews, by promising them
God's forgiveness, and by ever announcing favorable
predictions.
God no doubt rendered the Jews
their just reward, when he suffered them to be deceived by impostors: we,
indeed, know that the world is ever afflicted with this disease, — that
they seek flatteries, as God upbraids them by Micah:
"Ye seek prophets who
promise to you an abundant harvest, an abundant vintage."
(<330211>Micah
2:11)
Since, then, the Jews wished their vices to be
spared, and not only disliked their faithful and severe reprovers, but also
hated them, they had deserved to be thus dealt with: it was God's will that many
impostors should assume the prophetic name. Thus it happened, that the Jews
thought that their peaceable condition would be perpetual; and this, as I have
said, is usual with hypocrites. Now the Prophet, in a biting strain, exposes
here these deceptions, and says,
Ah, ah, Jehovah! surely thou hast
deceived this people: for the Prophet
does not speak in the person of the people, nor does he complain, that God
permitted so much liberty to false prophets; but he derides these impostors as
well as the people. And further, as they were all deaf, he turns to God, as
though he had said, "Behold, Lord, worthy of this reward are they, who have
sought flatteries, and have not attended to the holy warnings of thy servants:
as, then, no kind of correction was what they could endure, let them now begin
to learn that they have been deceived by others rather than by
thee."
fA107
We then see that the Prophet
ridicules that stupidity in which the Jews had been so long asleep; and the
simple meaning is, that he turned to God:
I have said, O Lord Jehovah,
surely thou hast deceived this people.
"Surely" is to be taken in an ironical
sense; that is, "It now really appears that they have been deceived; but by
whom? They wish, indeed, to throw the blame on thee; but they are justly
chargeable with foolish credulity, so that they, whom the false prophets have
deceived, have been rightly dealt with." What they said was,
Peace shall be to
you.
This
never came from the mouth of God; for Jeremiah daily thundered and threatened
approaching ruin; for he was like a celestial herald, who filled every place
with terror; but he was not heard: and at the same time the Jews praised the
false prophets, who soothed them with various promises. We hence perceive, that
God had not spoken peace to them; but that the Jews, not only willingly, but
with avidity, laid hold on those things by which the false prophets sought to
gratify them.
He afterwards adds,
And reached has the sword unto
the soul; that is, "Yet we are now
destroyed by fatal evils." The Prophet here indirectly sets before them those
delusive flatteries with which the Jews pleased themselves, and shews that they
would at length really find how falsely they pretended the name of God. It
follows —
Jeremiah
4:11-12
11. 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, 11. In tempore illo dicetur populo huic (hoc est, de
populo hoc;
l
enim hic accipitur pro
b,)
et de Jerusalem, ventus siccus (alii transferunt, vehementem)
in excelsis deserti (in deserto, ad verbum,) versus viam filiae
populi mei, non ad spargendum, neque ad
purgandum;
12. Even a full
wind from those places shall come unto me: now also will I give sentence
against them. 12. Ventus plenior illis veniet mihi: nunc etiam ego loquar
judicia cum illis (hoc est, proferam judicia cum
illis.)
Jeremiah proceeds with the
same prediction: he says, that a terrible
wind
was coming, which would not only disperse
or clear away, but dissipate and overthrow all things. He then
expresses how great and how grievous would be the calamity which he had before
mentioned. He compares it to dry or and wind; for
jx,
tsach, sometimes means "clear," and sometimes "arid," as the greatest
dryness is found on high places. He means, no doubt, here the wind, which is
violent, and disturbs the whole atmosphere, when there are no clouds, and where
no trees impede its course. Hence, he speaks of high and desert places. It is
the same as though he had said, that so great would be the violence of God's
vengeance, and so irresistible would be the eruption, that it would be like a
violent wind when it passes through high regions and through dry land or desert
places. He says, Towards the way
of the daughter of my people; as though
he had said, — that the course of the wind would be such as to bear
directly on Judea. The mode of speaking here used is well known to all who are
in any degree acquainted with the writings of the prophets. "The daughter of my
people, "means the people themselves.
Come,
then, shall wind
towards
Judea.
He then adds,
Not to scatter nor to
cleanse. Husbandmen are wont to winnow
the corn when taken from the thrashing — floor, that the chaff may be
carried away by the wind: but the Prophet says, that this wind would not be to
clear away or scatter the chaff; for it will be, he says, a very
vehement
wind. He means, in short, that God would
shew so much displeasure towards the Jews, that he would no longer chastise them
in a moderate degree, or use any moderation, as he had done previously; for God
had already often punished the Jews, but had hitherto acted the part of a
physician, having endeavored to heal the vices of the people. As, then, these
corrections had been without fruit, the Prophet now says, that God's wrath would
now come, not to cleanse as before, nor to scatter the chaff, but to consume
everything among the people. Hence he adds (for the two verses are connected
together) a fuller
wind, or one more complete,
shall come
to them. Some read, "from these places, "so
they render
m;
but it is rather to be taken as noting the comparative degree, — that this
wind would be much rougher and more violent than other winds which usually clear
the land or scatter away the chaff, and separate it from the corn:
come,
then, shall a much more
violent
wind.
And
come, he says,
unto
me. God, I doubt not, speaks here. Some
think that the Prophet here represents the whole body of the people; and they
consider them as saying, that there would come a wind which would rush on
themselves. But this is too strained; and further, this explanation is disproved
by the context: nor can what follows be applied to the Prophet,
I will now pronounce judgments
against them. Here then God, in his
office as a judge, declares that a wind was nigh, by which he would dissipate
and overthrow the whole of Judea, and would no more cleanse it. And thus he
shews, that the Chaldeans would not of themselves come, but would be sent to
execute his orders; as though he had said, — that he would be the author
of those calamities which were impending over the Jews:
come,
then, shall wind unto
me; that is, it will be ready to obey my
orders.
And he adds at last, by way of an
exposition, I will then speak
judgments with them. To speak judgments
is to execute the office of a judge, or to call to judgment, or to summon men to
declare their cause, as kings are said to speak judgments when they constrain
the guilty to render an account, of themselves. God briefly intimates, that he
had hitherto exercised great forbearance towards the Jews; but that as he found
that his indulgence availed nothing, except that they became more and more
ferocious, he declares, that he would now become their judge to punish their
wickedness.
fA108 He afterwards adds
—
Jeremiah
4:13
13. 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. 13. Ecce tanquam nubes
ascendet, et tanquam turbo currus ejus; celeriores aquilis equi ejus: vae nobis,
quia perditi sumus.
The Prophet here
concludes the prediction which referred to the dreadful vengeance that was
coming; and he mentions here several similitudes, such as might rouse the Jews
and constrain them to fear. He says, that the
chariots
of God would
come as clouds and as a
whirlwind; and then that his
horses
would be
swifter than
eagles.
As
to the clouds, the whirlwind, and the eagles, (for the import of the three
similitudes is the same,) the Prophet no doubt intended thus to set forth the
quickness of God's vengeance; but yet there is some difference. We see how
clouds
suddenly arise and spread over the whole
heaven; and thus it happens when a
whirlwind
is in the air. Hence when he compares God's
chariots to clouds and the whirlwind, it is the same as if he had said, that the
beginning of the calamity would be sudden, because God would unexpectedly arise,
after having been apparently asleep for a long time. But when he says, that
God's horses
would be
swifter than
eagles, he means, that it would be easy
for God, when once he had begun, to destroy the whole of Judea, as it were in a
moment, or at least in a very short time; for we know how swift is the flying of
the eagle; but he says, that the
horses
of God would be
swifter than the
eagles.
We now understand the Prophet's
meaning: for when the Jews derided the threatenings of the Prophets, they
tauntingly used such a language as this, — " O! we shall, at least in the
meantime, feast cheerfully and joyfully; these Prophets will not allow us a
truce for one hour; but yet many years will pass away before the evil overtakes
us." We find profane men in our day, who in like manner trifle with God: and
when they cannot wholly despise what God threatens, they yet delay the time, and
think that they gain something by putting off the day of vengeance. This, then,
was the reason why the Prophet said, that God's chariots would ascend, as clouds
arise suddenly, and then as a whirlwind in clear sky, and lastly, in a manner
swifter than the eagles, even in their swiftest
course.
The Prophet, in the last place,
exclaims, in the name of the whole people,
Woe to us! for we are
lost.
fA109 He speaks here concisely, that
he might shew that the false prophets, as well as the people, were going astray
to their own ruin, while they were asleep in their vices, and thought their
insensibility would escape punishment. He hence exclaims, that though all were
then seized with stupor, the people themselves were yet lost. It at length
follows —
Jeremiah
4:14
14. O Jerusalem, wash thine
heart from wickedness, that thou mayest be saved. How long shall thy vain
thoughts lodge within thee? 14. Munda a malitia cor tuum, Jerusalem, ut
salva sis: quousque manebunt in medio tui cogitationes vanitatis tuae?
(alii vertunt, doloris tui; alii, concupiscentiae tuae;
alii, iniquitatis, ac si esset
°nw[.)
Here
now the Prophet expressly and avowedly exhorts the people to repent. By bidding
Jerusalem to wash from wickedness
her heart, that she might be
saved,
he shews that there was no remedy, except the Jews were reconciled to God;
and that this could not be, except they repented of their sins. He had said
before, that while God was angry they could not but perish; he now confirms the
same thing, — that thou
mayest be saved, wash thine heart from
wickedness; as though he had said, that
there was war between the Jews and God, and that salvation could by no means be
hoped for, since God was armed for their destruction, and shewed himself a judge
to punish their vices: he at the same time reminds them of the true way of
repentance; it was by washing their heart from wickedness. For hypocrites ever
seek to appease God by external rites and observances; but the Prophet shows
that God cannot be pacified, except they from the heart return to him. He then
means that the beginning of true repentance is an inward feeling. We now
perceive what the Prophet means.
But they reason
foolishly who maintain that repentance is the cause of salvation, because it is
said, "That thou mayest be saved, wash thy heart from wickedness:" and the
Papists lay hold on such passages to set up free — will; and they hold
that sins are abolished and punishment remitted through satisfactions made by
us. But this is extremely absurd and frivolous. For the Prophet is not speaking
of the cause of salvation; but, as I have said, he simply shows that men are
extremely thoughtless when they expect a peaceable condition, while they carry
on war with God, and when he is armed to execute vengeance on them. We are not
then to inquire here, whether a sinner delivers himself from God's hand by his
repentance: but the Prophet had only this one thing in view — that we
cannot be safe and secure, except God be reconciled to us. He further shews,
that God will not be propitious to us, except we repent, and that from the heart
or from a genuine feeling within.
He then adds,
How long shall remain within thee
the thoughts of thy vanity? He here touches on
the hypocrisy of his own nation; and he in effect says, that whatever excuses
they might make, they were yet proved guilty before God, and that their evasions
were frivolous, because God penetrated into the inmost recesses of their hearts.
He indeed speaks most suitably, for he had to do with hypocrites who thought
that their outward performances pacified God; and they also thought that when
they alleged their evasions they ought to be forgiven, as they could not be
condemned by earthly judges. The Prophet derides these delusive thoughts,
How long shall thoughts of vanity
remain within thee? that is, "Though the whole
world were to absolve thee, what yet would it avail thee? For vain thoughts
remain in the midst of thee, that is, in the recesses of thy heart; and God
knows them, for nothing is hid from him. There is then no reason for you to
think that ye will gain anything by your outward display or your excuses; for
God is the searcher of hearts. Let not these thoughts continue within
thee."
He calls them the thoughts of
vanity.
The word,
ˆwa,
aun, means sometimes substance, but, it also means power, and sometimes
grief, and sometimes vanity or trouble. The Prophet means here, I have no doubt,
trouble or vanity. But some expound it as signifying lust; but I know not
whether it can be so taken. Either of the two foregoing meanings may suit the
passage, though vanity seems the best,
How
long, then,
shall thoughts of vanity remain
within thee? that is, by which thou deceivest
thyself: for when God suspended his vengeance, the Jews thought that they had
escaped from his hand.
fA110 They might, at the same time, have been
called the thoughts of trouble or sorrow from the effect; for how could it have
been otherwise, but they must have found that they had procured a heavier
judgment for themselves, by trifling with the indulgence and forbearance of God?
Too strained is the explanation given by some, who render the words, "thoughts
of grief, "because the Jews had done many wrongs to their neighbors, and caused
them unjust vexations. I therefore doubt not but that the Prophet refers to
those deceptive hopes, by which the Jews grew more perverse against God, so as
not to fear any punishment.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that since thou art
pleased daily to invite us to repentance, and since our own conscience is a
witness, how we have in various ways provoked thy vengeance, — O grant,
that we may not remain obstinate in our sins, nor harden our minds by perverse
delusions, but suffer ourselves to be subdued by thy word, and so offer
ourselves to thee with a pure and sincere heart, that our whole life may be
nothing else but a striving for that newness which thou requirest; so that,
being consecrated to thee in mind and body, we may ever labor to glorify thy
name, until we be made partakers of that glory, which has been obtained for us
by the blood of thy only — begotten Son. — Amen.
Lecture
Sixteenth
Jeremiah
4:15
15. For a voice declareth from
Dan, and publisheth affliction from mount Ephraim. 15. Quia vox
annuntians e Dan, et promulgans cladem (vel, poenam) e monte Ephraim
(alii vertunt, iniquitatem
ˆwa).
The
Prophet again repeats what he had said, — that the Jews were given up, on
account of their perverseness, to final ruin; for they had so often and for so
long a time provoked God, and had not attended to pious admonitions, when God by
his servants the prophets offered pardon to them on their repentance. But the
whole passage, which I shall now explain, gives a lively representation of the
ruin that was at hand; for we see that in this verse there is a scene presented
to us, as the Prophet sets before our eyes what could not be fully expressed in
words.
A
voice, he says,
declares from Daniel
This was the extreme border on the north He had
before said, that an evil was coming from that quarter, that is, from the north;
for God had chosen the Chaldeans as the executors of his vengeance: hence he
says, "a voice is heard from Dan;" not that there was an army already prepared
to attack the Jews, but Jeremiah speaks here by the prophetic spirit; and he
sets the event as present before the Jews, who thought not that so grievous an
evil was nigh. For we said yesterday, that when God for a time spares
hypocrites, they become more hardened, and with haughty contempt deride his
prophets. When, therefore, Jeremiah saw that he had to do with blocks, he deemed
it necessary to use figurative language, which exhibited to them more clearly
that the judgment, which the Jews imagined they had no reason to fear, was near
at hand: hence he says, a voice
is heard from
Dan.
And
proclaims
ˆwa,
aun, that is, trouble, or punishment, or ruin. The other rendering, to
which I have referred, is not suitable. The word
ˆwa,
aun, does indeed properly signify iniquity; but it is to be taken here
for punishment.
fA111 But whenever the Prophets use this
term, they intimate that evil is not inflicted by God except for just causes;
and they remind us that its source or fountain is to be found in the wickedness
of men. Ruin
then was coming from
Mount Ephraim
which was near the tribe of Judah and also
Jerusalem. But it was the same as though Jeremiah had said, that God was now
thundering from heaven, and that it would be of no avail to the Jews to close
their ears: for though they were even deaf, yet God's vengeance would soon come
to light, accompanied with dreadful noise. It follows
—
Jeremiah
4:16
16. 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. 16.
Memorate in gentibus (vel, ad gentes,) ecce promulgate super Jerusalem,
obsessores veniunt e terra longinqua, et mittunt super urbes Jehudah vocem
suam.
The beginning of this verse is
variously explained. Some read, "Remember ye the nations, "and think that the
Prophet says this, because many of the nations were heralds of that vengeance of
God, which the Jews despised, as they thought that what the true heralds of God
declared were mere fables. They therefore take the meaning of this passage, as
though Jeremiah sent the Jews to the nations, intimating that they were unworthy
that God should send them his usual teachers. But as the verb is in Hiphil, we
ought rather to read,
Rehearse
it: and some give this explanation, "Rehearse, "or tell, "of the nations;" that
is, "Announce that the Chaldeans are hastening to lay waste the land, to pull
down the cities of Judah and to destroy the people." But there is a third
meaning which, in my judgment, comports better with the passage. He literally
says, Rehearse it to the nations;
behold, proclaim against Jerusalem: for as the
Prophet saw that he spent his labor in vain on that stupid people, who had
become so hardened in their perverseness, that they were wholly inattentive and
unteachable, he turned his address to the nations, and said, "Rehearse it to the
Gentiles;" as though he had said, "I have long ago reminded this people, that
God had other teachers; but what have we gained by our labor, except that the
people become continually worse: since then it is so, now he says, 'Declare it
to the nations concerning Jerusalem;' let the Jews hear nothing more of their
ruin, but let God's vengeance on them be made known to the heathens." There is
nothing strained or obscure in this explanation; and it is wholly consonant with
the prophetic style.
fA112
He then deigned no longer to favor
his own nation with heavenly truth; because this would have cast what was holy
to the dogs; but he directs his discourse to the heathens, as though he had
said, "There is more knowledge in the blind and unbelieving than in the chosen
people of God." This does not shew but that he afterwards continued a long time
in the discharge of his office; for the prophets, inflamed with zeal for God,
often threatened the people with utter ruin, and afterwards performed their
charge and tried whether they, of whom they seemed to despair, were
healable.
He says that
besiegers would come from a far
country. Some render
µyrxn,
netserim, keepers; and they think that Jeremiah alludes to
Nebuchadnezzar, because his captains would come to destroy Jerusalem and to
demolish the cities of Judah. But I prefer to render the word "besiegers."
Though some think that
rxn,
netser, sometimes means to destroy or lay waste; yet the other meaning
seems more suitable, as it appears evident from the next verse. To render it
keepers, seems to be frigid; though this is what is done almost by all. I render
it "besiegers," — Come
then
shall
besiegers; for
rxn,
netser, means not only to keep, but also to shut up in a strait place.
Come,
he says, shall besiegers from a
far country. He used these expressions, that
the people might not promise themselves impunity, as it has been before stated,
through the forbearance of God: for when God deferred his vengeance, they
thought themselves relieved from all fear. Hence he says, that though the enemy
was not as yet present, though they did not as yet hear the sound of the coming
enemy, God at the same time did not threaten them in vain; for he would in an
instant send for those from a distant land, who would execute his
vengeance.
What follows,
they shall send forth their voice
against the cities of Judah, is added, in order
that the Jews might know that they could by no hindrances prevent God from
bringing quickly the Chaldeans to terrify their cities by their sound. What he
indeed means is the shout by which soldiers rouse one another to fight: but as
this is commonly done as a sign of victory, he intimates that it was all over
with the Jews; for the soldiers had as it were already uttered their triumphant
shoutings.
fA113 It follows
—
Jeremiah
4:17
17. As keepers of a field, are
they against her round about; because she hath been rebellious against me, saith
the Lord. 17. Sicuti custodes (est aliud nomen quam prius
µyrmç,)
agri erunt super eam in circuitu; quia me exacerbarit, dicit
Jehova.
He intimates here that there
would be no escape to the Jews when God brought the Chaldeans, for every egress,
all the ways, would be closed up, so that they could not migrate to another
land. It is the same as though he had said, that such a calamity was nigh them
that they could not escape it by exile, it is indeed a sad thing when men flee
away naked as from the fire, and seek a place among strangers, and live there in
misery and want; but the Prophet declares here, that so grievous was the
punishment prepared for the Jews, that it would not indeed be possible for them
to save themselves by expatriation and flight, for God would close up every
avenue, and would as it were set guards to prevent any to
depart.
He afterwards assigns a reason for this,
Because they have made me
angry.
fA114 The Prophet again shews that God dealt
not cruelly with the Jews, nor that they were visited by chance with so many and
so grievous calamities, but that they suffered justly, for they had provoked the
wrath of God. It would indeed have availed the Jews but little that they dreaded
an approaching evil, except they acknowledged that God was punishing them for
their perverseness. Hence the reason is stated: it was mentioned, that the Jews
might know that these calamities were brought on them by God's hand. And for the
same purpose is what follows
—
Jeremiah
4:18
18. 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. 18. Via tua et actiones tuae
fecerunt hoc tibi; haec malitia tua, quoniam amarum, quoniam pertigit ad cor
tuum (vel, quamvis amarum sit, et quamvis pertigerit ad cor
tuum.)
As I have just said, the
Prophet confirms what he had declared, — that the Jews would not have to
suffer, according to what is commonly said, an adverse fortune, but would be
summoned by God to judgment, in order that being touched with the fear of God,
they might repent, or at least, though destroyed as to the flesh, they might
yet, being humbled, obtain pardon and be saved as to the
Spirit.
He therefore says, that their
deeds had done this
for them; as though he had said, "There is no
reason for you to blame God, or your adverse fortune, as ye are wont to do, and
as all the heathens also do; for your own deeds have procured for you these
calamities. Thus God will perform his office of a judge; and whatever may happen
to you is to be ascribed to your own wickedness." And to the same purpose is
what he adds, This is thy
wickedness. In short, the Prophet shews, that
the Jews in vain transferred their calamities to this or that cause, for the
whole blame was in themselves; they procured for themselves their own ruin by
their impiety and evil deeds.
In the second
clause of the verse, [gn yk rm
yk, ki mer, ki nego, etc., the Prophet
intimates, that however bitter might be to them what they were to endure, and
however it might penetrate into the inmost heart, it was yet to be ascribed to
themselves. For hypocrites are wont in their lamentations to cast the blame on
God, or at least to complain of fortune. The Prophet anticipates these evasions,
by shewing that however bitter might be what the Jews had to endure, and that
though God should pierce them through and penetrate to their very bowels and
hearts, yet they themselves were the authors of all their
calamities.
fA115 He then adds
—
Jeremiah
4:19
19. 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. 19. Viscera mea, viscera mea doleo, parietes cordis mei (ad
verbum, hoc est, praecordia mea,) cor meum tumultuatur mihi (hoc
est, intra me;) non tacebo, quoniam vocem tubae (vel, clangorem
tubae) audivit (vel audivisti) anima mea; et clamor belli auditus est
(vel, clamourem belli audivit anima
mea.)
Some interpreters think that
the Prophet is here affected with grief, because he saw that his own nation
would soon perish; but I know not whether this is a right view. It is indeed
true, that the prophets, though severe when denouncing God's vengeance, did not
yet put off the feelings of humanity. Hence they often bewailed the evils which
they predicted; and this we shall see more clearly in its proper place. The
prophets then had two feelings: when they were the heralds of God's vengeance,
they necessarily forgot their own sensibilities; but this courage did not
prevent them from feeling sorrow for others; for they could not but sympathize
with their brethren, when they saw them, even their own flesh, doomed to ruin.
But in this place the Prophet seems not so much to mourn the calamities of the
people, but employs figurative terms in order to awaken their stupor, for he saw
that they were torpid, and that they neither feared God nor were touched with
any shame. Since then there was so much insensibility in the people, it was
necessary for Jeremiah and other servants of God to embellish their discourses,
so as not simply to teach, but also forcibly and strongly to rouse their dormant
minds.
He therefore says,
My bowels, my bowels!
We shall see that the Prophet in other places
thus laments, when he speaks of Babylon, of Edom, and of other enemies of his
people, and why? The Prophet was not indeed affected with grief when he heard
that the Chaldeans would perish, and when God declared to him the same thing
respecting other heathen nations, who had cruelly persecuted the holy people;
but since thoughtless men, as I have said, take no notice of what God from
heaven threatens them with, it is necessary to use such expressions as may rouse
them from their torpor. So I interpret this place: the Prophet does not express
his own grief for the calamities of his people, but by the prophetic spirit
enlarges on what he had previously said; for he saw that what he had stated had
no effect, or was not sufficient to rouse their minds.
My bowels!
he says. He had indeed grief in his bowels, for
he was a member of the community; but we now speak of his object or the purpose
he had in view in speaking thus. It is not then the expression of his own grief,
but an affecting description, in order that what he had said might thoroughly
rouse the minds of those who heedlessly laughed at the judgment of
God.
He then adds,
My heart
tumultuates, or makes a noise: the verb means
to resound, and hence it is metaphorically taken for tumultuating. He speaks of
the palpitation of the heart, which takes place when there is great fear. But he
calls it noise or tumult, as though he had said, that he was not now master of
himself, so as to retain a calm and tranquil mind, for God smote his heart with
horrible dread. He afterwards adds,
I will not be silent, for the
sound of the trumpet has my soul heard, or
thou, my soul, hast heard, and
the clamor of battle; for the word
hmjlmchme,
is to be thus taken here. He says that he would not be silent because this
clamor made a noise in his heart. We hence conclude that he grieved not from a
feeling of human sorrow, but he did that which he had been bidden to do by God;
for he had been chosen to be the herald of God's vengeance, which was nigh,
though not dreaded by the Jews.
fA116
Some think that soul is here to be
taken for the prophetic spirit, for trumpets had not yet sounded, nor was yet
heard the clamor of battle. They therefore suppose that there is to be
understood here a contrast, that Jeremiah did not perceive the noise by his
ears, but in his heart. But I know not whether this refinement may be fitly
applied to the Prophet's words. I therefore think that Jeremiah means, that he
spoke in earnest, because he saw God's vengeance as though it were already made
evident. And this availed not a little to gain credit to what he had stated, so
that the Jews might know that he did not speak of himself, nor act a part as
players do on the stage. They were then to know that he did not relate what God
had pronounced, but that he was God's herald in such a way, that he heard in his
soul or heart, to his great terror, the tumult of war and the sound of the
trumpet. It follows —
Jeremiah
4:20
20. Destruction upon
destruction is cried; for the whole land is spoiled: suddenly are my tents
spoiled, and my curtains in a moment. 20. Afflictio super afflictionem
vocata est; quoniam perdita est omnis terra subito; perdita (vel,
destructa, est idem verbum) sunt tabernacula mea, repente cortinae
meae.
He pursues the same subject,
but amplifies the dread by a new circumstance, — that God would heap evils
on evils, so that the Jews would in vain hope for an immediate relief. By
saying, A calamity upon a
calamity, he means that the end of one evil
would be the beginning of another. For it is what especially distresses
miserable men, when they think that their evils will continue long. They indeed
imagined that God would be satisfied with an evil that would be soon over, like
a storm or a tempest: and when an alleviation appeared, they would have thought
that they had suffered enough and would have returned again to their old ways
and derided God as though they had escaped from his hands. For this reason the
Prophet declares, that their calamities would for a long time continue, so that
no end to them could be hoped for, until the Jews were wholly destroyed. By
saying that calamities were
called,
or summoned, he briefly reminds them, that God would sit on his tribunal, and
that after inflicting light punishment on men for their sins, he would add
heavier punishment, and that when he found their wickedness incurable, he would
proceed to extremities, so as wholly to destroy those who could not be
reclaimed. Called
then
has been distress upon
distress: and how was this?
Perished has the whole
land; and then,
my tabernacles have been suddenly
destroyed, in an instant destroyed has been my
curtains.
fA117
It is thought that the Prophet here
compares strongly fortified cities to tents and curtains, in order to expose the
foolish confidence with which the Jews were proudly filled, thinking that their
cities were a sufficient protection from enemies. It is then supposed that the
Prophet here deprives them of their vain confidence by calling these cities
tents. There are also those who think that he alludes to his own city Anathoth,
or to his own manner of life. It is indeed true that Jeremiah speaks often in
other places as a shepherd; that is, he uses common and free modes of speaking.
It would not then be unnatural to suppose, that he put on the character of a
shepherd when he spoke of tents. Both these views may however be combined,
— that he used a language common among shepherds, — and that he
shews that it was a mere mockery for the Jews to think that they could easily
escape, as they had on their borders many fortified cities capable of resisting
the attacks of their enemies. But no less suitable view would be this, —
That no corner would be safe; for their enemies would penetrate into the most
retired places and destroy the smallest cottages, which might be resorted to as
hiding — places.
He says
suddenly,
and in an
instant, in order that the Jews might not
promise themselves any time for negotiating, and thus procrastinate, and think
that they would have time enough to make their peace with God. It follows
—
Jeremiah
4:21
21. How long shall I see the
standard, and hear the sound of the trumpet? 21. Usquequo videbo
vexillum? audiam vocem (vel, clangorem)
tubae?
He concludes that part of his
discourse, which, as we have said, he embellished with figurative terms, in
order more fully to rouse slow and torpid minds: but he confirms what he said at
the beginning of the last verse
(<240420>Jeremiah
4:20)
"Distress has been summoned
upon distress."
He indeed repeats in other words the same thing,
How long shall I see the
standard, he says,
and hear the sound of the
trumpet? that is, "You are greatly deceived, if
ye think that your enemies, after having for a short time marched through the
land, will return home: for the evil of war will for a long time afflict you,
and God will protract your calamities, so that the sound of trumpets will
continue, and the standard will often, and even every day, be
exhibited."
We now then perceive the Prophet's
meaning: He first shews, that though their enemies were afar off, they would yet
come suddenly, and that the horses of God would be, according to what he said
yesterday, swifter than eagles. He afterwards refers to the continued progress
of the war; for it was necessary to shew to the Jews, that as they had long
heedlessly despised God, so his vengeance would not be momentary, but would lie
on them, so as to be without end.
Now we ought
to know that at this day there is no less dullness than among the Jews. It is
therefore not enough to summon the ungodly and the wicked before God's tribunal,
but such metaphorical language ought to be employed as may strike terror, and
constrain them to fear, though they may endeavor in every way to harden their
own consciences and stupefy themselves, so as to be capable of easily despising
God. It is then necessary, that at the present day the servants of God should
also speak more strongly and vehemently, that they may rouse hypocrites and the
obstinate from their torpor. It then follows
—
Jeremiah
4:22
22. 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. 22. Quoniam stultus populus meus, me non cognovit; filii
insipientes ipsi, et non intelligentes ipsi (sunt;
hmj
demonstrativum pronomen ponitur vice verbi:) astuti ipsi (vel, sapientes) ad
malum; sed ad benefaciendum non
intelligunt.
The Prophet again
teaches us, that the cause of these evils arose from the people themselves, and
was to be found in them, so that they could not transfer it to anybody else.
Hence he says, My people are
foolish. He speaks here in the person of God;
for it immediately follows, Me
have they not known: this could not have been
said by Jeremiah. God then complains here of the folly of his people; whom he so
calls, not by way of honor, but that he might double their reproach; for nothing
could have been more disgraceful than that the people, whom God had chosen as
his peculiar inheritance, should be thus demented: for why had God chosen the
seed of Abraham as his adopted children, but that they might be as lamps,
carrying through the world the light of salvation?
"What people in the
world, "says Moses, "are so noble, who have gods so near them?" He says also,
"This is thy knowledge and wisdom."
(<050406>Deuteronomy
4:6, 7.)
God then shews here that it was a monstrous thing,
which all should regard with abhorrence, that his people should be foolish; as
though he had said, "Can it be that a people whom I have chosen for myself, and
with whom I have deposited the covenant of eternal salvation, whom I have
instructed by my word — that this people should so madly ruin
themselves?"
The
people,
then, are
foolish,
because they have not known
me. He here expresses what was the cause of the
foolishness or blindness of the people, even because they did not know God; for
the knowledge of him is true wisdom. Now God thus shews that the madness of the
people was inexcusable. How so? because he had made himself so familiarly known
to them, that the Israelites had no occasion to ask, as Moses says, Who shall
ascend into heaven, or who shall descend into the deep? for the word was set
before them.
(<053012>Deuteronomy
30:12-14.) As, then, God had so kindly manifested himself to the Jews, he justly
complains that he was not known by them.
There
are then here two things to be noticed; first, the kind of madness that is here
mentioned, — the people did not know God. And we hence learn that then
only are we wise when we fear God, and that we are always mad and senseless when
we regard him not. This is one thing. Secondly, we must know that no excuse of
ignorance or mistake was allowed to that people, for God had made himself known
to them. And this may be applied to us: God will justly upbraid us at the last
day, that we have been foolish and mad, if we are without the knowledge of him;
for we have the means, as I have said, of knowing him; and there is no excuse
that we can plead for our ignorance, since God has not spoken to us in an
obscure manner. God in these words accused the Jews of ingratitude, and of
deliberate wickedness, because they knew him not. But since God has at
this day made himself more fully known to us, it is, as I have said, a heavier
condemnation to us, and our punishment will thus be doubled, if we know not God,
who is so kind to us, and deals with us so
graciously.
Then he adds, that they were
foolish
children, and
not
intelligent. The antithesis in Hebrew is more
emphatical than in Greek and Latin; for to say, "He is foolish, and not wise,
"would be in Greek and Latin frigid, as the last clause would be weaker than the
former. But in Hebrew it is different; for in this way is conveyed the idea,
that they were so foolish that not even the least portion of a sound mind
remained in them. Even those who are foolish and senseless do yet retain some
knowledge, however small it may be: hence they say, that the foolish often speak
what is suitable. But the Prophet means another thing, — that the Jews
were not only senseless and stupid, but that they were so destitute of all
knowledge, that they were like stones or brute animals, and that they had not a
particle of sound mind or of rational knowledge remaining in
them.
fA118 The rest we shall defer to another
time.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that since thou
hast not only once kindled among us the light of celestial truth, but also
invitest us daily to partake of the salvation which has been set before us,
— O grant, that we may not close our eyes, nor render deaf our ears, nor
harden ourselves in our sins, but that as thou ceasest not continually to call
us to thyself, so we may earnestly strive to hasten to thee, and to persevere in
the course of our holy calling, so that we may draw nearer daily to its end,
until thou receivest us at length into that celestial kingdom, which has been
obtained for us by the blood of thine only-begotten Son. —
Amen.
Lecture
Seventeenth
Jeremiah
4:23-26
23. I beheld the earth, and,
lo, it was without form, and void; and the heavens, and they had no
light. 23. Vidi terram, et ecce vasta et deformis, et coelos, et nulla
lux eorum:
24. I beheld the
mountains, and, lo, they trembled, and all the hills moved lightly. 24.
Vidi montes, et ecce contremiscentes (contremiscebant), et omnes colles
movebantur:
25. I beheld, and,
lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled. 25.
Vidi, et ecce nullus homo, et omnes aves coelorum evolaverant:
26. 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. 26. Vidi, et ecce
regio foecunda (vel, carmelus) desertum, et omnes urbes ejus destructae a
facie Jehovae, et a facie excandescentiae irae
ejus.
The Prophet in this passage
enlarges in a language highly metaphorical on the terror of God's vengeance,
that he might rouse the Jews, who were stupid and careless: nor is the
repetition in vain, when he says four times, that he looked. He might
have spoken of the earth, heaven, men, and fertile places in one sentence: but
it is the same as though he had turned his eyes to four different quarters, and
said, that wherever he looked, there appeared to him dreadful tokens of God's
wrath, and which threatened the Jews with utter ruin. Nor is it a wonder that
the Prophet is so vehement; for we know that men would have heedlessly received
all threatenings, except they were violently roused. And this mode of teaching
ought to be well known to us; for all in any degree acquainted with the writings
of the prophets, must know that they especially pursued this course, in order to
rouse hypocrites, and the despisers of God, who, with a stiff neck and a
hardened heart, were not moved by any apprehension of punishment. But this
passage is remarkable above most others: we ought therefore to consider the
import of the Prophet's words.
He says first,
that he looked on the earth, and that it was
wht,
teu, and
whb,
beu. He employs the very words which Moses adopted in his history of the
creation; for before any order was introduced, he says that the earth was
wht,
teu, and
whb,
beu, that is, waste and unformed chaos; and it had no beauty pleasing to
the eye.
fA119 It is the same as though He had said,
that the order, which had been so beautifully arranged, had now disappeared
through God's wrath, and that there was nothing but confusion everywhere. Thus
he amplifies the atrocity of their sins; as though he had said, that men had
become so fallen, that they had changed the whole form of the world, and blended
heaven and earth together, so that now there was no distinction between things.
As to the heavens, he says, that there was
no light
in them: he intimates that the light of the
sun, moon, and stars, was in a manner extinguished, because men were unworthy to
enjoy such a kindness from God; and as though the sun and moon were ashamed to
be witnesses of so many sins and vices.
We now
then apprehend what Jeremiah chiefly means in the first verse: He says, that
he looked on the
earth, and that nothing appeared in it but
dreadful chaos and waste, there being no form nor beauty; for the Jews had by
their sins subverted the order of nature and the creation of God. And he says,
that he looked on the
heavens, and that they had
no
light; for the Jews had deserved to be deprived
of that benefit which God had designed the sun and the moon to convey: and it is
indeed a singular instance of God's kindness, that he has made such noble
objects to be of such service to us. The Prophet, in short, means that such
awful tokens of God's wrath appeared in heaven and on earth, as though the whole
world had been thrown into confusion. This mode of speaking often occurs in the
other prophets, especially in
<290202>Joel
2:2. Though the words are hyperbolical, yet they do not exceed what is suitable,
if we take to the account the extreme insensibility of men: for except God arms
heaven and earth, and shews himself ready to take away all the blessings with
which he favors mankind, they will, as we have lately said, laugh to scorn all
his threatenings.
Jeremiah descends afterwards
from heaven to mountains, and says that they
trembled,
and that all the hills
moved or shook; some say, destroyed, but I know
not for what reason, for the Prophet no doubt confirms the same thing by another
phrase: and as he had said, that mountains trembled, so he also adds, that hills
shook; and this is the proper meaning of the verb. Now the reason why he speaks
of mountains and hills is evident; for a greater stability seems to belong to
them than to level grounds, inasmuch as mountains are for the most part stony,
and have their roots most firmly fixed in rocks. Were indeed the whole world to
be thrown into confusion, the mountains seem to be so firmly based that no
commotion could affect them: but the Prophet says, that they
trembled,
and that the hills
shook.
What
he saw the third time was solitude; for he says that there were
no
men, and that all
birds
had fled away. The principal ornament of the
world, we know, consists of men and of living creatures. For why was the earth
made so productive, that it brings forth fruits, so many and so various, except
for the sake of men and of animals? Though, then, the earth appears very
beautiful on account of its trees, herbs, and every kind of fruit, yet its
principal ornaments are men and animals. By stating a part for the whole, the
Prophet, by mentioning birds, includes all earthly animals: he says then, that
the earth was emptied of its inhabitants.
What
he saw the fourth time was this — that the
fertile land
was turned into a
desert.
I indeed think that Carmel is to be taken here as meaning the place. That part
of the holy land, we know, received its name from its fertility: Carmel means
any rich and fruitful spot of ground. But, as I have just said, the mount was so
called because it abounded in all kinds of produce; for there were on it
fruitful pastures and fertile fields, and every part of it was remarkably
pleasant and delightful. I am therefore inclined to consider Carmel itself to be
meant here; and my reason is, because he immediately adds, that its
cities
were
destroyed;
and this can be more fitly applied to Carmel than generally to all fruitful
regions. As to myself, I think that the Prophet speaks of Carmel; and yet he
alludes to what the word means.
fA120 Even in this verse he mentions a part
for the whole, as though he had said, that Carmel, which excelled in fertility,
had become like a desert. When Isaiah speaks of the renovation of the Church, he
says,
"The desert shall be as
Carmel, "
(<233215>Isaiah
32:15)
as though he had said, that the blessing of God would
be so abundant through the whole world, that deserts would bear fruit like
Carmel, or those regions which are remarkable for their fertility. But Jeremiah,
speaking here of a curse, says, that
Carmel
would be like the
desert;
and that all its cities
would be demolished, even
at the presence of Jehovah, and
by the great heat of his
wrath.
Some
render
ˆwrj,
charun, fury: and this kind of language is not without its use; for men,
as we have said, except God terrifies them as it were by thunders, will sleep
and will not perceive his judgment, so that all threatenings become useless to
them. This is the reason why Scripture speaks so often of the fury or of the
great heat of God's wrath. Either of the two words might indeed be sufficient;
either
ˆwrj,
charun, which means fury or great heat; or
ãa
aph, which signifies anger or wrath. Why then are both mentioned? because it is
necessary, as I have said, to tear in pieces our hardness as with hammers; for
otherwise God could never turn us to fear him. This repetition then ought to
avail for the purpose of subduing the perverseness of our nature; not that these
turbulent feelings belong to God, as it is well known; but as we cannot
otherwise conceive how dreadful his vengeance is, it is necessary that he should
be set before us as one who is angry and burning with wrath: in a like manner,
eternal death is described to us under the metaphor of
fire.
Now, as to the sum of what is here said,
the Jews at that time no doubt enjoyed great abundance and indulged their
pleasures; in short, they were fully pleased with their condition. But the
Prophet here declares that he saw at a distance what these blind Jews did not
see, even God's vengeance approaching, which would deprive them of that
abundance, on account of which they were so swollen with pride, and which would
reduce them all into such a state of desolation that nothing would remain above
or below, but a disordered confusion, such as existed before nature was brought
to order, when the earth was not separated from the heavens, and there was only
a confused mass, including all the elements, and without any light. He
afterwards adds —
Jeremiah
4:27
27. For thus hath the Lord
said, The whole land shall be desolate; yet will I not make a full
end. 27. Quia sic dicit Jehova, Desolata erit (vasta, perdita erit) tota
terra; et finem (vel, consumptionem) non faciam (atque tunc copula
resolvetur in adversativam, non tamen consumptionem
faciam.)
The Prophet briefly
explains here what he understood by the four things which he had seen and of
which he had spoken. He then declares, as it were in the person of God, that
there would be a dreadful desolation throughout Judea; Wasted, he says, shall be
the whole land, or, in the whole land there shall be desolation. Some explain
what afterwards follows, as though he mitigated the severity of his language.
Hence, as they think, a mitigation is added, which was to relieve the faithful
with some hope of mercy, lest they should wholly despond. And indeed were he to
threaten only he might fill a hundred worlds with terror. Lest then despair
should so overwhelm the faithful as to restrain them from fleeing to God for
mercy, it is often added by way of mitigation, that God would not consume the
whole land.
The word
hlk,
cale, sometimes means perfection, but in most places, consummation; for
the verb signifies to perfect and to consume, and for the same reason. Though
these two things seem inconsistent, yet what is consumed is said to be
perfected, for it comes to an end. If this explanation is approved, we now see
the reason why he declares that he would not make a consummation, with whatever
severity he might punish the sins of his people; it was, that some hope might
remain for the faithful, so that they might not be wholly discouraged; which
would have been the case had not God promised to be propitious and mindful of
his covenant.
Some perhaps may approve of
reading the sentence as a question, and think that the object is to beat down
the pride of the ungodly, and to dissipate the boasting of those who relied on
the hope of impunity; as though he had said, "Do ye still deny that I shall make
a consummation?"
Now, though the former
exposition contains a richer truth, yet I prefer to take
hlk,
cale, as signifying an end, as though he had declared that he would
observe no moderation in executing his
vengeance:
fA121 and a similar language occurs in the
next chapter. The real meaning then is, — that God would to the end carry
on his work of desolation. The prophets indeed do not always speak alike when
they announce God's judgments. Sometimes they denounce ruin where none seems to
be safe; yet God ever preserves some hidden seed, as it is said in
<230109>Isaiah
1:9; where also it appears evident what the prophets understood by making a
consummation. For God there threatens and says,
"Behold I will make a
consummation;" yet he afterwards adds, "The consummation shall bring forth
fruit,"
that is, what remained of the consummation. The
prophets elsewhere compare the Church of God to olive — trees when shaken,
or to vines after vintage,
(<231706>Isaiah
17:6;
<232413>Isaiah
24:13;) for some grapes ever remain which escape the eyes of the gatherers; so
also, when the olive — trees are shaken, some fruit remain on the highest
branches. Thus God says, that the consummation he makes in his Church is like
the vintage or the shaking of olive — trees, when some fruit remain and
escape the eyes of the gatherers. We now perceive what the Prophet means,
— that there would be the ruin of the whole people, so that they would
have neither a name nor existence as a body; which thing also happened, when
they were driven as exiles into Babylon; for the people, as a civil community,
then ceased to exist, so that there was an end made of
them.
I indeed allow that God's threatenings
cannot avail for our salvation, unless connected with the promise of pardon, so
that being raised up by the hope of salvation we may flee to him: for as long as
we deem God inexorable, we shun every access to him; and thus despair drives us
into a rage like that of fiends. Hence it is that the reprobate rage so much
against God, and make a great clamor: and they would willingly thrust him from
his throne. It is therefore necessary that a hope of salvation should be set
before us, so that we may be touched with repentance: and as this promise is
perpetual, whatever may happen, even if earth and heaven were mixed together,
and ruin on every side were filling us with dread, we must still remember that
there will be ever some remnant according to the passages we have referred to in
the first and tenth chapters of Isaiah. But as the people were not prepared to
receive consolation, the design of the Prophet here is different, for he only
mentions punishment. He afterwards adds
—
Jeremiah
4:28
28. 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. 28. Super hoc lugebit terra, et nigrescent (vel, caligine
aut nigredine obducti erunt) coeli desursum (nescio tamen an posset
verti, a transgressione; nam
l[m
significat etiam transgredi et inquietare;) quia 1oquutus sum; cogitavi
et non poenituit, et non convertar ab
hoc.
Jeremiah proceeds here with the
same subject, and still introduces God as the speaker, that what is said might
produce a greater effect. For
this, he says,
the land shall
mourn. The mourning of the land is to be taken
for its desolation; but he refers to what he had said before. He does not speak
of the inhabitants of the land; for they who thus explain the passage, diminish
much the force of the expression; for the Prophet here ascribes terror and
sorrow to the very elements, which is much more striking than if he said, that
all men would be in sorrow and grief. The same also must be thought of the
heavens. Indeed, the latter clause proves that he does not speak of the
inhabitants, but of the land itself, which, though without reason, seems yet to
dread God's vengeance. And thus the Prophet upbraids men with their
insensibility; for when God appeared as judge from heaven, they were not touched
with any fear. Mourn
then
shall the land, and covered shall
be the heaven with darkness; that is, though
men remain stupid, yet both heaven and earth shall feel how dreadful God's
judgment will be.
He afterwards adds,
Because I have
spoken. Some consider
rça,
asher, what, to be understood between this sentence and the following
verb: "Because I have spoken what I have purposed, and I have not repented." But
the concise phrase is not unsuitable: God first intimates, that he had
pronounced the sentence, which would remain firm and unchangeable; as though he
had said, "I have once for all declared by my servants what I will do." For the
prophets, we know, were the heralds of God's vengeance: and as their doctrine
was often despised, so at this day also the world obstinately rejects it; and as
it often now derides all threatenings, so it happened then. But Jeremiah
introduces here God as the speaker, as though he had said, "My servants have
been despised by you; but they have said nothing but what I have commanded them:
I am therefore the author of that sentence by which you ought to have been moved
and roused." In this sense it is that God testifies that he had spoken; for he
transfers to himself what the Jews thought proceeded from the prophets, and
hence supposed that they were at liberty to regard as nothing what the prophets
pronounced against them: "I myself am He," says God, "who has spoken." So that
we must understand a contrast here between God and the prophets; as though he
had said, that the Jews in vain slumbered in their sins, because they thought
they had to do only with mortals, since God himself had commanded his servants
to denounce the ruin that was despised.
But that
they might not think that God had thus spoken to cause a false alarm, (for
hypocrites flatter themselves with this pretense, that God does not speak
seriously, but that he frightens them with bugbears, as children are wont to
be,) he says, that he had purposed. He had said before that he had
spoken, that is, by his prophets; but what he means now by this word is, that
the predictions which he had made known as to their destruction proceeded from
his own secret counsel: "This," he says, "has been decreed by
me."
He then adds,
It has not repented me, and I
will not turn from it. He briefly shews, that
the Jews were now given up to death, that they might not think that God could be
pacified as long as they followed their vices; for God had decreed to destroy
them; and he had not only declared this by his prophets, but had also resolved
within himself to do so. By the term repent, is to be understood a change; for
God cannot, strictly speaking, repent, as nothing is hid from him; but he
speaks, as I have lately stated, after a human manner: and every ambiguity is
removed by the next phrase, when he says,
I will not turn from
it, that is, "I will not retract my
sentence."
fA122 It follows
—
Jeremiah
4:29
29. 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 dwell
therein. 29. A voce equitis et jaculantis arcu fugiet omnis civitas;
penetrabunt (vel, ingredientur) in densitates (alii, in nubes;
µyb[
significat densitates, ut sunt loca arboribus perplexa,
significat etiam nubes; potius hic existimo accipi pro nubibus, quia
sequitur,) ascendent in rupes (postea:) omnis civitas relicta erit,
et nullus vir habitabit in illis.
By
saying, that at the voice
or sound of
horsemen and
bowmen, there would be an universal flight, he
means, that the enemies would come with such impetuosity, that the Jews would
not dare to wait for their presence, but would flee here and there before they
were attacked: for the word voice or sound, no doubt, is set here in
opposition to wounds. They did swell, we know, with amazing pride; hence the
Prophet ridicules that false confidence by which they were so inebriated as not
to dread God's judgment: "The sound alone of enemies," he says, "will frighten
you; so that all the cities, being left by their inhabitants, will easily fall
into their hands, for walls will not defend themselves; nay, the gates will be
open." Flee then will every
city; that is, all the cities will have
recourse to flight. Then it follows,
Ascend will they into the
clouds, or into thicknesses: this may be
applied to the enemies, to shew that they would be so nimble and active as to
fly, as it were, to the clouds, and climb the highest rocks. But I prefer to
connect this sentence with the former, as intimating, that to ascend the clouds
would not be too arduous for the Jews in their anxious flight. Inasmuch as the
tops of mountains were often covered with thick trees, in order to form a dark
shade, this passage may mean, that they fled to such places. However this may
have been, the Prophet here, no doubt, refers to such high situations. Hence,
the meaning would be more evident if we retain the word, clouds. As to what is
intended, we see that that is clear; which is, that the enemies of the Jews
would in swiftness be equal to the eagles while pursuing them; or, what is more
commonly thought, that the terror felt by the Jews would be so great, that in
their flight they would not seek recesses nigh at hand, but would flee to the
highest tops of mountains, and hide themselves there among the trees, as though
they had climbed into the clouds. They would
ascend into craggy
rocks, as they could not think themselves
otherwise safe from the attacks of their
enemies.
fA123
He then adds, that
every city
would be
forsaken,
so that no one
would
dwell in
them. We see that the Prophet had ever this in
view — to rouse the Jews, who had deaf ears and stony hearts, so that they
felt no concern for their own calamities, and even boldly despised God, as
though they had made a covenant with death, according to what is said in another
place.
(<232815>Isaiah
28:15.) He afterwards subjoins
—
Jeremiah
4:30
30. 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. 30. Et tu perdita
(aut, vastata) quid facies? Quamvis to induas coccino, quamvis to ornes
ornamentis auri (vel, monilibus aureis, ut alii vertunt,) quamvis
distinguas fuco (aut, stybio, ut alii vertunt,) oculos tuos,
frustra to decorabis (ad verbum, pulchrificabis;) abominabuntur to
amatores tui, animam tuam
quaerent.
The Prophet boldly
ridicules the Jews, in order to cast down their pride and haughtiness. It was
indeed his object to check that pride with which they were elated against God.
The Prophet could not have done this without assuming a higher strain than
usual, and by rendering his discourse more striking by using metaphorical words.
It is indeed the language of derision; he exclaims,
What wilt thou do, thou wretched
one? The Jews had hitherto been inflated with
contempt towards God, and their high spirits had not been subdued. Since, then,
their haughtiness continued untamed, the Prophet cries out and says, "Thou
wretched, what wilt thou do?" as though he had said, "In vain do they flatter
themselves and promise themselves aid from this and from that quarter, for their
condition is past any remedy."
fA124
He afterwards adds, Though,
etc.; for so I consider the connection of the verse; and they seem right to me
who do not separate the words of the Prophet. But the view which others take
appears frigid, "Who now adornest thyself, who now clothest thyself in scarlet,
who adornest thyself with ornaments of gold, who paintest thy eyes black." To no
purpose do they introduce the relative, for it renders the meaning of the
Prophet different from what it really is.
These
parts follow one another, and the principal verb is found in these words,
In vain dost thou adorn
thyself; and the particle
yk
is to be rendered
"though."
There are those who consider
ceremonies to be intended, as hypocrites think that they are by these protected
against God's judgment: but this view is unsuitable and wholly alien to what is
here set forth. It is indeed true, that ceremonies are to hypocrites dens of
thieves, as we shall hereafter see,
(<240711>Jeremiah
7:11;) but the Prophet in this place refers to meretricious ornaments; for the
people, as it had before appeared, were become like an adulterous woman. God had
formed with them as it were a marriage — contract; they had violated it;
and this perfidy was like the defection of an adulteress, who leaves her husband
and wanders here and there, and lives as a prostitute. As then harlots, for the
purpose of enticement, are wont to dress themselves elegantly, to paint their
faces, and to use other allurements, the Prophet says, "In vain wilt thou adorn
thyself; though thou puttest on scarlet, though thou shinest with gold even from
the head to the feet, yet all this will be superfluous and useless; and though,
in addition to all this, thou paintest thy
face,
fA125 it will yet avail thee
nothing."
Now, we know whom he understands by
lovers, even the Egyptians and the Assyrians. For the Jews, when oppressed by
the Egyptians, were wont to seek help from the Assyrians; and again, when
attacked by the Assyrians, they became suppliants to the Egyptians. The prophets
compared this sort of conduct to that of strumpets; for whenever they courted
the aid of either of these parties, they broke the bond of marriage, by which
they were connected with God, and perfidiously violated their pledged faith.
Hence, the Prophet says, "Even if the Egyptians promise wonderful things to
thee, as a lover allured by thy beauty and by thy meretricious ornaments, yet
they will deceive thee; and if the Assyrians shew themselves ready to bring aid,
they also will disappoint thy hope: so that thou shalt be like a destitute
strumpet, reduced to extreme want." I cannot finish today: I must therefore
defer the rest until to-morrow.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that though we are
torpid in our vices, we may yet be attentive to these examples of thy wrath, by
which thou designest to warn us, so that we may learn by the misery of others to
fear thee: and may we be also attentive to those threatenings, by which thou
drawest us to thee, as thou failest to allure us by thy kindness: and may we, in
the meantime, feel assured that thou wilt ever be propitious and merciful to all
miserable sinners, who will from the heart seek thee and sincerely and
unfeignedly repent; so that we may contend with our vices, and with real effort
strive to deliver ourselves from those snares of Satan which he ever spreads for
us, in order that we may more freely devote ourselves altogether to thee, and
take such delight in thy righteousness, that our object and aim through the
whole course of our life may be to please thee, and to render our services
approved in Christ Jesus our Lord. — Amen.
Lecture
Eighteenth
WE stated, yesterday, what the Prophet meant by the
scarlet clothing, by the golden ornaments, and by the
painting, which he mentions, even those delusive crafts, which the
princes and the people employed in forming confederacies; for they ever acted
perfidiously. But it was also said, that the Prophet refers to the spiritual
marriage which God had formed with the people of Israel; for a kind of adultery
was committed, when they sought foreign alliances; as they thus denied God,
being not satisfied with his protection. As a wife considers herself
sufficiently protected by her husband, so the Israelites ought to have depended
on God only: but inasmuch as they ran here and there, following their own
vagrant desires, the Prophet justly compares them to adulterous
women.
But he says, that they would be an
abomination to their
lovers;
and not only so, but that both the Egyptians and the Assyrians, in whom they
foolishly trusted, would be their worst enemies:
Hate
thee, he says,
shall thy
lovers;
fA126
yea, they will seek thy
life; that is, those aids, by which thou
thinkest to become safe and secure, will be for thy destruction. It then follows
—
Jeremiah
4:31
31. 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. 31. Certa vocem parturientis
audivi, afflictionem (vel, anxietatem) quasi puerperae (vel,
parientis primogenitum; nam proprie hoc significat nomen)
vocem filiae Sion; lugebit (vel, conqueretur, vel,
ingemiscet,) scindet (vel, extender, ut alii vertunt, vel,
confliget) manus suas: Vae nunc mihi, quia defecit anima mea propter
interfectos (alii active, propter
interfectores.)
By these words
Jeremiah confirms what the latter part of the preceding verse contains: nor was
it for the sake of elucidating his subject that he enlarged on it; but when he
saw his own nation so hard and almost like stones, he employed many words and
set forth in various ways what he might have expressed in one sentence: and what
he taught would have been often coldly received, had he not added exhortations
and threatenings. It was on this account that he now expresses in other words
what he had previously said, I
have heard, he says,
the voice as of one in
labor. This hearing, no doubt, is to be
taken consistently with the representation which had been made to him; for
Jeremiah could not hear in a way different from others; but he speaks according
to the discovery made to him of the approaching judgment of God, which was then
unheeded by the people; and he had this discovery, that he might by such a
representation as this make it known to them. He then says, that he had
heard,
as though he had witnessed already all that was to come. He then exaggerates
the evil; for he puts distress,
hrx,
tsere, instead of "voice,"
lwq,
kul; and then he mentions, as an instance of greater pain, a woman
bringing forth her first — born, instead of a woman in labor. Then
Jeremiah means, that final ruin was nigh that people who could not then be
restored from their sinful courses; but he intimates, as also the Spirit speaks
in other places, that their destruction would be sudden; while they would be
saying, Peace and security, sudden destruction would come upon them.
(<520503>1
Thessalonians 5:3.) And so the Prophet now declares, that the Jews in vain
hardened themselves against God, as though their ruin was not approaching, for
their sorrow would come suddenly. As a woman may be cheerful at meat or at her
leisure, and may be suddenly seized with the pain of labor, so also the Prophet
shews, that the Jews had no reason to think that they could escape God's
vengeance by a false confidence, for their destruction would come upon them
unexpectedly.
He sets forth at the same time, as
already said, the greatness or the extremity of their grief by this similitude,
The voice of the daughter of
Sion, who complains, etc.; for the
relative may be here added. Some take the verb to be in the second person, "Thou
wilt lament and extend, "or rend, "thy hands;" but this is not suitable, because
the third person is immediately used, "thy hands." Then what he says is, that
the voice of the daughter of Sion
would be an evidence of her extreme grief, for
she would lament; and he adds, at the same time, the smiting of the hands. This
verb is variously rendered; but as
çrp,
peresh,
means properly to rend or to divide, I think the Prophet expresses the
posture of a woman in grief; for she usually smites her hands together and as it
were divides them by putting the fingers between one another. Some render the
word "expand, "for the hands are divided when raised up. As to what is meant,
there is nothing ambiguous in the Prophet's words; for his object is to shew,
that God's vengeance would be so dreadful, that the Jews would lament, not in an
ordinary measure, but like women, when in the extreme pain of
labor.
He then concludes by saying,
Woe to me, for failed has my soul
on account of murderers. Here the
Prophet intimates, that all the rest were blind in the midst of light, yet God's
judgment, which the ungodly and wicked laughed at, or at least disregarded, was
seen clearly by him. His
soul, he says,
fainted for the
slain; and yet no one had hitherto been
slain: but by this mode of speaking, he shews, that he had as it were before his
eyes what was hid from others, and hence their hearts were not
affected.
fA127 Now follows —
CHAPTER
5
Jeremiah
5:1
1. 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. 1. Circuite per vias
(alii vertunt, inquirite, vel, explorate, vel,
investigate per vias) Jerusalem, et videte, agedum, (hic enim
an
est hortantis, proximo versu debuit verti nunc, vae nunc mihi,) et
cognoscite, et inquirite, in vicis ejus (in compitis ejus,) an invenietis virum,
an erit quifaciat judicium (hoc est, rectitudinem,) qui quaerat
veritatem, et parcam illi.
In this
verse, as in those which follow, God shews that he was not too rigid or too
severe in denouncing utter ruin on his people, because their wickedness was
wholly incurable, and no other mode of treating them could be found. We, indeed,
know that it is often testified in Scripture, that God is patient and waits
until sinners repent. Since then God everywhere extols his kindness, and
promises to be merciful even to the worst if they repent, and since he of his
own accord anticipates sinners, it may appear strange that he rises with so much
severity against his own Church. But we know how refractory the ungodly are; and
hence they hesitate not to expostulate with God, and willfully accuse him, as
though he treated them with cruelty. It is then for this reason, that God now
shews that he was not, as it were, at liberty to forgive the people; "Even if I
would, "he says, "I could not." He speaks, indeed, after the manner of men; but
in this way, as I have said, he shews that he tried all expedients, before he
had recourse to extreme severity, but that there was no remedy, on account of
the desperate wickedness of the people. And this is what the words fully
express.
Go
round,
fA128 he says,
through the streets of Jerusalem,
and see, I pray, and know; inquire through all the
cross-ways. Jeremiah might have said in
one sentence, "If one man be found in the city, I am ready to forgive: "but God
here permits the whole world to inquire diligently and carefully what was the
state of the holy city, which ever gloried in that title. But he now, as also in
the next verse, speaks of Jerusalem. He had spoken also of the neighboring
cities; but as the holiness of the whole land seemed then to have its seat and
habitation at Jerusalem, God here addresses that city, which as yet retained
some appearance of sanctity, and excelled other cities. He then says,
Inquire, see, know, look, whether
there is a man, etc. He allows here all men to
form a judgment, as though he had said, "Let all be present, since the Jews seek
to create an ill-will towards me, and complain of too much rigor, as though I
treated them unhumanly; let all who wish come as judges, let them inquire, ask,
make a thorough search; and when it shall be found out that there is not in it
even one just man, what else can be done, but that the city must be destroyed?
for what can be done to the abandoned and irreclaimable, except I execute my
judgment on them?"
We now understand the
Prophet's object; for he intended here to shut the mouths of the Jews, and to
expose their slanders, that they might not clamor against God or blame his
judgment, as though it exceeded the limits of moderation: and he shews also,
that though God was disposed to pardon, there was yet no place for pardon, and
that his mercy was excluded by their untamable obstinacy, since there was not
one man in Jerusalem who had any regard for
uprightness.
Here, however, a question may be
started, Why does Jeremiah say that no good man could be found, since he himself
was at Jerusalem, and his friend Baruch, and some others, an account of whom we
shall hereafter find? There were then in the city some true servants of God, and
some as yet remained who had true religion, though the number was small. It
appears then that the language is
hyperbolical.
But we must observe, that the
Prophet here speaks of the people to the exclusion of the faithful. That this
may appear more evident, we must remember a passage in the eighth chapter of
Isaiah,
"Seal the law and bind
the testimony for my
disciples,"
(<230816>Isaiah
8:16;)
where it appears that God saw that he sent his
Prophet in vain, and that his labors were spent in vain among a people wholly
irreclaimable. Hence he says, "Bind the testimony and seal the law among the
disciples." We see that God gathered as it were together the few in whom
remained any seed of true religion, yea, in whose hearts any religion was found.
They were not then numbered with the people. So now Jeremiah did not consider
Baruch and a few others as forming a part of that reprobate people; and he
speaks, as it has been stated, of the community in general; for there were some
separated from the rest, not only by the secret counsel of God, but according to
the judgment that had been pronounced. He hence truly declares, that there was
not one just man.
We ought also to consider with
whom he was then contending. On the one side were the king and his counselors,
who, inflated with the promises, which they perverted, did not think it possible
that the throne of David would fall.
"This is my rest for ever
— As long as the sun and moon shall be, they shall be my witnesses in
heaven, that thy seed shall never fail."
(<19D214>Psalm
132:14;
<198937>Psalm
89:37, 38.)
With such words were they armed. But as hypocrites
falsely claim God's promises, so these unprincipled men boasted that God was on
their side. Jeremiah had also to fight with another party, as we shall hereafter
see, that is, with a host of false prophets; for there was a greater number of
them, as is ever to be found in the world. The whole priestly order was corrupt,
and openly carrying on war with God; and the people were nothing better.
Jeremiah then had to contend with the king and his counselors, with the false
prophets, with the ungodly priests, and with the wicked people. So he says, that
there was not one man among them who engaged himself in appeasing God's
wrath.
To
seek judgment
is the same thing as to labor for uprightness:
for the word
fpçm,
meshephet means rectitude, or equity, or the rule of acting justly. He
says then, that there was no one who practiced what was just; that there was no
one who sought the
truth. Truth, as in a verse that
follows, is to be taken for integrity, honesty; as though he had said, that all
were given to falsehoods and frauds and crafts. It was therefore impossible that
God should have been propitious to the city; for the relative
h
after
l,
being of the feminine gender, cannot be otherwise applied than to Jerusalem. God
then says, that he would be merciful to it, if there could be found a just man
among the king's counselors, or among the priests, or among the prophets: but
they had all united together in opposition to everything just and right. It
follows —
Jeremiah
5:2
2. And though they say, The Lord
liveth; surely they swear falsely. 2. Etsi, vivit Jehova, dixerint, ob id
in vanum (vel, fallaciter)
jurabunt.
This is added by way of
anticipation; for the Jews, as it is well known, thought that they had a cover
for all their vices, inasmuch as they had God's name continually in their
mouths. Since then they professed to worship the God of Abraham, they thought
that this pretext was sufficient to cover all their wickedness. The Prophet
obviates this objection, and shews that this disguise was of no avail, because
in thus using God's name, they profaned it: and he goes still further; for he
shews that the Jews, not only in common practice, were wholly destitute of the
fear of God, but that when anything of a religious kind appeared among them, it
was sacrilegious; and this is far worse than when God's name is forgotten, and
wretched men allow themselves a full license in sinning, as though they could
not conceal their wickedness: for when they openly provoke God, and as it were
dishonor him to his face, how detestable and how monstrous is their impiety!
This then is what Jeremiah sets forth,
Though they say, Live does
Jehovah, yet in this they swear
falsely.
We
now perceive the Prophet's meaning: In the first place, he takes away from
hypocrites their vain confidence in thinking that God would be propitious to
them, provided they avowed his name, without considering how precious God's name
is, but regarding it as nothing to swear carelessly by his name: but the Prophet
not only condemns the hypocrisy of the Jews, but, as I have said, he enhances
their wickedness; for they hesitated not to profane God's sacred name, and to
carry on, as it were, an open war with him, by abusing his name in
swearing.
By mentioning,
Live does
Jehovah, he refers to the words which
the godly also use when they make an oath; for when they appeal to the living
God, it is the same thing as though they stood before his tribunal; and at the
same time said, that they knew that though God may defer his vengeance, yet an
account must be given, because he ever lives. Thus the godly acknowledge that
there is nothing gained by delay, in case God suspends his vengeance, if they
swear falsely. But the Prophet, as I have already said, applies this to
hypocrites, who seemed to ascribe great honor to God, for nothing is more
specious than their words: gall indeed was in their heart, while honey was on
their lips. Hence the Prophet derides this false pretense, and says, "Even when
they swear most solemnly as to the words used, and shew a high concern for
religion, nevertheless they swear falsely." Some render
ˆkl,
lacen, surely, or certainly; but the meaning will be plainer, if we
render it "nevertheless."
fA129 It follows
—
Jeremiah
5:3
3. 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. 3.
Jehova, oculi tui annon ad veritatem? Percussisti eos, et non doluerunt;
consumpsisti eos, et renuerunt suscipere disciplinam (vel, correctionem;)
obduraverunt facies suas magis quam petram (vel, lapidem, magis quam
saxum;) renuerunt converti (vel,
redire.)
Some give a strained
exposition of the beginning of the verse, or rather pervert it, as though the
Prophet had said, that God would not turn his eyes from what was right, because
he would rigidly execute his vengeance on his people. But Jeremiah goes on here
with the same subject, for there is no importance to be attached to the division
of the verses. They who have divided them have often unknowingly perverted the
meaning. The divisions then are not to be heeded, only the number is to be
retained as a help to the memory; but as to the context, they often are a
hindrance to readers; for it is preposterous to blend things which are separate,
and to divide what is connected. This remark has just now occurred to me, and it
is necessary, as this place calls for it; for the Prophet, after having said
that the Jews were perfidious and guilty of duplicity, and destitute of all
integrity, immediately adds, But the eyes of God
regard
fidelity; as though he had said, that
they in vain pretended to avow God's name, and made a shew of religion by
ceremonies and by an outward display; for God searches the heart, and cares
nothing for those external masks by which men's eyes are
captivated.
The Prophet very significantly turns
his discourse to God, to shew that he was wearied in addressing the people, for
he saw that he prevailed nothing with the obstinate; for had there been any
teachable spirit in the Jews, he would no doubt have exhorted them to practice
integrity. He might have said, "They are mistaken who swear falsely in God's
name, and persuade themselves that he will be their Father; for his eyes regard
fidelity and uprightness of heart." This would have been a regular way of
proceeding, and this mode of teaching would have been most suitable: but
Jeremiah abruptly breaks off his address, and leaves his own people; "O God, "he
says, "thy eyes look on fidelity;" as though he had said, "What more can I have
to do with this wretched people? I address words to rocks and stones: therefore
I bid you adieu, and shall have no more to do with you; I will now turn to God."
We now see how much more forcible and striking is this turning from the people
to God, than if the Prophet continued his address to the Jews, and sought to
instruct them: for he now shews that he was broken down with weariness; for he
saw that his labor was useless, and that all whom he had addressed were
altogether refractory: nor did he, at the same time, intend to speak these words
at random, and to no purpose; nay, his object was more sharply to touch those
who were stupid, by letting them know that he left off addressing them, because
he had no hope respecting them.
But what I have
said elsewhere ought to be borne in mind, — that the Prophets did not
write all that they preached, but collected the substance of what they had
delivered to the people; and this collection now forms the prophetic books.
There is therefore no doubt but that Jeremiah had spoken at large on repentance,
— that he had exposed the sins of hypocrites, — that he had denuded
the fallacious pretences of the people, — and that he had severely
reproved their obstinacy. But after having done all these things, he found it
necessary to desist from pursuing his course, for he saw that no fruit could be
hoped from his labors and his preaching. Now, when the Jews knew this, they
ought to have been deeply affected; and this ought to be the case with us now,
when we see that God's Spirit is provoked by our perverseness; and as this is a
dreadful thing, it is what ought more than anything else to touch our hearts.
Consider what it is: God daily invites us most kindly to himself; but when he
sees that our hearts and heads are so extremely hard, he leaves us, because we
grieve his Spirit, as it is said by Isaiah.
(<236310>Isaiah
63:10.) It was not, then, an usual or common mode of teaching which the Prophet
adopted; but it was calculated to have more effect than plain instruction; for
he shews that the wickedness of the people could no longer be
endured.
Jehovah,
he says, thine eyes, are they
not on the truth? In this address to God there
is an implied contrast between God and men. The most wicked, we know, flatter
themselves while they can retain the good opinion and applause of the world; and
as long as they continue in honor, they slumber in their vices. This foolish
confidence is what the Prophet evidently exposes; for he intimates that the eyes
of God are different from those of mortals: men can see a very little way,
hardly three fingers before them; but God penetrates into the inmost and the
most hidden recesses of the heart: and the Prophet speaks thus of God's eyes, in
order to shew how worthless are the opinions of men, who regard only a splendid
outward appearance. By truth, the Prophet means, as in the first verse,
integrity of heart. Hence without reason do they philosophize here, who seek to
prove from this passage that we are made acceptable to God by faith only; for
the Prophet does not speak of the faith by which we embrace free reconciliation
with God, and become members of Christ. The meaning indeed is in no way obscure,
which is this — that God cares not for that external splendor by which men
are captivated, according to what is said in
<091607>1
Samuel 16:7,
"Man sees what appears
outwardly; but God looks on the heart."
There the Holy Spirit expresses the same thing by
"heart" as he does here by fidelity or "truth." For Samuel shews that David's
father was mistaken, because he brought forward his sons who excelled in their
outward appearance: "Man sees, "he says, "what appears outwardly; but God looks
on the heart."
We now understand the true
meaning of the Prophet, — that though hypocrites flatter themselves, and
the whole world encourage them by their adulations, all this will not avail
them; for they must at last come before the tribunal of God, and that before God
truth only will be approved and honored.
He
afterwards adds, Thou hast
smitten them, and they have not grieved.
The Prophet reproves here the hardness of the people; for they had been
smitten, but they repented not. Experience, as they say, is the teacher of
fools; and it is an old proverb, that fools, when corrected, become wise. Both
poets and historians have uttered such sayings. Since, then, the Jews had such a
perverse disposition, that even scourges did not lead them to repentance, it was
an evidence of extreme wickedness. And thus the Prophet here confirms what he
had said before, that God would be merciful to them, if one just man could be
found in the city: he confirms that declaration when he says, "Thou hast smitten
them, but they have not grieved." The Jews, no doubt, groaned under their
scourges; yea, they howled and poured forth grievous complaints: for we know how
petulantly they spoke evil of God. They then had grieved; but grief here is to
be taken in a special sense, according to what Paul says of repentance, that its
beginning is grief or sorrow.
(<470709>2
Corinthians 7:9, 10.) In this sense it is that the Prophet says here, that they
who had disturbed minds grieved not, for they did not feel that they had to do
with God. He then means by this word what another Prophet means, when he says,
that they did not regard the hand of him who smote them.
(<230913>Isaiah
9:13.) For he does not say that they were so senseless as not to feel the
strokes; but that the hand of God was not seen by them; and yet this is the
principal thing in our sorrow. For if we blindly and violently cry out in our
troubles, and cry, Wo, a hundred times, what is it all? our lamentations are
only those of brute animals: but when we regard the hand of him who smites us,
our grief then is of the right kind. Jeremiah says, that the Jews did not grieve
in this manner, for they did not perceive that they were justly chastened by
God's hand.
He afterwards enlarges on the
subject, Thou hast consumed them
he says,
and they refused to receive
correction. By saying that they had been
consumed,
he proves them guilty of extreme perverseness; for when God lightly chides
us, it is no great wonder if, through our tardiness and sloth, we are not
immediately roused; but when God doubles his strokes, yea, when he not only
smites us with his rods, but draws his sword to consume us entirely; yea, when
he thus deals with us, and executes his vengeance by terrible judgments, if then
we are still torpid in our sins, and feel not how dreadful it is to endure his
judgments, must we not be indeed wholly blinded by the devil? This is then the
stupor which the Prophet now deplores in the Jews; for not only were they
without a right feeling of grief when God smote them, but when they were even
consumed, they did not receive or admit correction. And in this second clause he
shews what we have already said, — that the grief he speaks of is not to
be taken for any sort of grief, but of that which regards God's judgment, and
proves that we fear him.
He adds,
They have hardened their faces as
a rock, and lastly,
they have refused to
return. The Prophet means, that the Jews
were not only refractory, but that they were also without any shame. If, indeed,
they had given every evidence of being ashamed, it would have been still
useless, except there was, as we have said, an integrity of heart. But it often
happens, that even the worst, though inwardly full of impiety and of contempt
towards God, and of perverseness, do yet retain some measure of shame. In order
to shew that the Jews had arrived to extreme impiety, the Prophet says, that
they had hardened their
faces, that is, that they were wholly
without shame; for they had cast away everything like reason, and made no
difference between right and wrong, between honesty and baseness. As, then, they
had put off every human feeling, he says that nothing remained to be done, but
that God, as he had previously declared, should execute on them extreme
vengeance. And he repeats what he had said, — that they
refused to
turn. He means, that they sinned and
went astray, not through mistake or want of knowledge, but that they disregarded
their own safety through willful and deliberate wickedness, and that they
knowingly and avowedly rejected God, so that they would not endure either his
teaching or his corrections.
fA130
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as the devil
ceases not to soothe us by his allurements, so that we may become torpid and
stupefied, — O grant, that thy word may so shine in our minds and hearts
that we may not grow torpid in darkness; and do thou also so rouse us by thy
Spirit, that we may attend to those warnings of thy prophets, by which thou
wouldest bring us to the right way, that we may not perish; and may we so
assiduously exercise repentance through the whole course of our life, that we
may ever be displeased with ourselves on account of our sins; and may we judge
ourselves daily, that we may turn away from us thy wrath, until having at length
finished our warfare, which we have to carry on continually with our sins, we
shall come to that blessed rest which has been procured for us in heaven, by
Jesus Christ our Lord. — Amen.
Lecture
Nineteenth
Jeremiah
5:4-5
4. 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. 4. Et ego dixi, Certe (alii
vertunt, forsan,
°a)
pauperes sunt hi, stulte egerunt, quia non cognoscunt viam Jehovae, judicium Dei
sui:
5. 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. 5. Ibo ad optimates (ad magnos, ad
verbum) et loquar apud eos; quia ipsi cognoscunt viam Jehovae
judicium Dei sui: atque ipsi fregerunt jugum, ruperunt
vincula.
Some think that the Prophet
here makes an excuse for the people, and, as far as he could, extenuates their
fault; but they are greatly mistaken. For there is no doubt but that he, by this
comparison, more clearly shews how past remedy was then the state of things. The
sum, then, of what he says is, — that corruptions so prevailed, not only
among the multitude, but also among the chief men, that there remained no
soundness, as they say, from the head to the sole of the foot. Nearly the same
thing, only in other words, is stated by Isaiah in the twenty-eighth chapter;
for after having spoken generally against the people, he assails the leading
men, and says that they were inebriated no less than the common people, that
they were inebriated with wine and strong drink. But the meaning is, that they
were like drunken men, because they felt no shame, while they abandoned
themselves to deeds the most disgraceful.
To the
same purpose is what Jeremiah says here, when he declares, that he thought that
they were the poor who had thus sinned, and obscure men and of no repute; but
that he had found the same thing among the chief men as among the common people.
He might, indeed, have only said, "Not only the lowest orders, the multitude,
are become corrupt, but also the chief men, who ought to have excelled the
rest." But much more striking is the comparison, when he says, "It may be, that
these miserable men have thus sinned because they understood not the law of God,
nor is it a matter of wonder; but greater integrity will be found in the chief
men." By speaking thus the Prophet brings the reader into the midst of the
scene, and shews to him that not only all the people were guilty, but also the
priests and the prophets, and the chief men in the state. The design of the
Prophet is thus evident.
I
said, he says, not that he thought so;
for he saw that all things were in such a disorder, that nothing better could be
hoped from the chief men than from the common people. This was clearly seen by
the Prophet: but, as I have said, he wished to shew here, by a striking
representation, how wretched was the condition of the whole people. He says,
Surely.
The particle
°a,
ak, is an affirmative, or, as in the next verse, an adversative. Some,
indeed, take it here in the sense of
ylwa,
auli, perhaps, or, it may be; and regard it as signifying a concession,
"Let us grant this," he says; "they are the poor, they are of no account, they
are as it were the offscourings, who have thus sinned: it is nothing strange, if
they conduct themselves thus foolishly, for
they know not the way of Jehovah,
nor the judgment of their
God."
fA131
The law was, indeed, given to all
without any difference; so that the common people had no excuse. But this evil
has prevailed almost in all ages, — that few attend to the teaching of the
law; for there is no one who is not inclined to shake off this yoke. The common
people, indeed, think that they have some excuse for neglecting it, because they
have no leisure, and are not born for high stations. The Prophet then speaks
according to this prevailing opinion; but he does not extenuate their fault who
pleaded ignorance as an excuse, because they had not been taught in schools;
for, as it has been said, God intended his law for the whole people without
exception.
By
the way of Jehovah and the
judgment of God, the Prophet means the
same thing: such a repetition is very common in Hebrew. God, in prescribing to
us the rule of life, shews to us the way in which we are to walk: our life,
indeed, is like to a course; and it is not God's will that we should run at
random, but he sets before us the goal to which we are to proceed, and also
directs us in the only way that leads to it. For it is the office of the law to
call us back from our wandering, and to lead us to the mark set before us. Hence
the law is called the way of
Jehovah; and
judgment,
tpçm,
meshephet, as it was said yesterday, means rectitude, or a rule of life.
What he calls in the first clause the
law of
Jehovah, he calls in the second the
judgment of
God. And thus he shews that they were
inexcusable, who made the objection that they were miserably ignorant, and knew
nothing; for it was God's purpose to shew to them, no less than to the most
learned, how they were to live.
He now adds,
I will go to the
great. By the great he meant the priests
and the prophets, as well as the king's counselors, and the king himself.
I will
go,
fA132 then, he says,
to the great, and will speak to
them. It is the same as though he had
said, that everywhere his labor was in vain, for not only he spoke to the deaf
when addressing the illiterate vulgar, but also when addressing the chief men. I
have said, that the Prophet did not make the inquiry as one doubtful, but his
purpose was to make the chief men ashamed of themselves, and also to confirm
what he had said before, — that not one just and upright man could be
found in Jerusalem.
For they
know, he says, etc. He declares the same
thing in the same words. But we must ever remember, that the Prophet did not
believe this; but he speaks of it as a thing that appeared probable: for who
could have then thought that there was so much ignorance in the chief men? for
they were in great esteem among the people. Since then the opinion prevailed,
that all those who were rulers were well acquainted with the law, Jeremiah
speaks according to what was commonly thought, and says, that they knew the
way of
Jehovah.
He
afterwards adds, But
(for
°a,
ak, is to be taken here adversatively, and its proper meaning is, nay or
but) they have alike broken the yoke, they have burst the bonds; that is,
"If any one thinks that the rulers are better than the common people, he is much
deceived; for I have proofs enough to shew that their conduct is the same; they
have broken the yoke of God no less than the most ignorant." By this repetition
he more fully confirmed their defection, and at the same time reminded them how
shameful it was, that prophets, priests, and rulers, who occupied the first
places in the state, had become so unbridled in their vices. It follows
—
Jeremiah
5:6
6. Wherefore a lion out of the
forest shall slay them, and a wolf of the evenings 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. 6. Propterea percussit eos leo e sylva; lupus solitudinum
(alii per
twbr[
intelligunt vesperas, quia deducunt ab
br[
quod significat vesperum; ita vertunt, lupus vesperinus) vastavit eos; pardus
(alii vertunt, pantheram) vigilans super urbes eorum; quisquis egredietur,
discerpet (vel, lacerabit;) quoniam multiplices sunt iniquitates eorum, auctae
sunt defectiones ceorum.
Here, at
length, God shews that he was moderate in his judgments, so that the wicked in
vain charged him, as it is usual with them, with too much
rigor.
Some render the words in the past tense,
and think the sense to be, that the Prophet reminds the Jews that they had not
been afflicted without reason by so many evils, as they had deserved heavier
punishments. But another view may be taken; for we know that in Hebrew the
tenses often change; and I am inclined to regard the future tense as intended;
for the Prophet seems not here to record what they had already suffered, but to
remind them of the heavy punishment that was awaiting them.
Smite
them
shall the lion from the
forest.
The
wolf
is called the wolf of
solitudes,
because of his coming forth from the desert. Some render the words, "the wolf of
the evening;" and this may be allowed. We indeed know, that in other places
hungry wolves are called the wolves of the evening; for after having sought
their prey in the day — time, and finding none, they become in the evening
almost mad, and their hunger causes them to run furiously in all directions.
This explanation, then, may be admitted. But as he says first, that the lion
would come from the forest, it is more probable that the wolf is described as
coming from the desert.
fA133 As to the general import of the passage
there is not much difference.
He mentions here
three wild beasts — the lion, the wolf, and the leopard. By these wild
beasts he understands no doubt the enemies, who would shortly attack them with
the greatest cruelty. It is indeed true that the Jews, before the time in which
Jeremiah spoke to them, had been afflicted with many evils; for God had not
punished them only once, but had given them frequent warnings; and had there
been any hope of repentance, they might have still continued in safety, though
considerably reduced. But Jeremiah seems to predict future punishment: he
therefore refers, not only to the Egyptians and the Assyrians, but also to other
enemies. For that people, we know, were hated by all their neighbors, and had
suffered grievous wrongs even from their own kindred. Since, then, many nations
were hostile to the Jews, it is nothing strange that the Prophet enumerates here
three sorts of wild beasts; as though he had said, that enemies would come from
every quarter, who would, like lions, wolves, and leopards, vent their fury on
them, because they had so often, and for so long a time, provoked God's wrath.
At the same time, God does here check those false complaints which are wont to
be often alleged by the wicked, and shews that he is a righteous Judge, and that
the punishments he inflicted could not be blamed by the Jews: and it was for
this purpose that he used the particle,
Wherefore
—
zkAl[,
ol-kan.
He also adds,
A leopard shall
watch, that he may
tear
all who shall go out of
the
cities. This language is no doubt
metaphorical; and what he means is, that when the enemies would occupy the land,
the Jews would be shut up in their cities, and would not venture to go forth,
for dangers would await them everywhere.
At the
end of the verse he repeats again, and speaks more fully of what he meant by
"Wherefore
—
zkAl[,
"at the beginning of the verse;
fA134 for he says,
Because multiplied have their
transgressions, and increased have their
defections. By these words he further
proves what he had said, that God is a righteous judge, even when he seems to be
too severe: for it could not have been otherwise, but that he must have visited
with extreme vengeance a people so abandoned and irreclaimable. Nor does he only
call them wicked, and apostates, but he says that their
iniquities,
fA135 or evil deeds, were
many,
and that their defections
had
increased.
And by the last expression he amplifies their guilt: for though
[çp,
pesho,
does not mean simply to offend, but to act wickedly; yet to fall away from
God is a baser and a more atrocious sin. We hence learn, that such was the
wickedness of the Jews, that it could not be corrected by common means or
moderate punishment. He afterwards adds
—
Jeremiah
5:7
7. 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. 7. Quomodo super hoc parcam
tibi (hoc est, parcerem, nam debet resolvi futurum tempus in modum potentialem,
quomodo, inquit, parcerem tibi super hoc?) Filii tui dereliquerunt me, et
jurarunt in non Deo: ego autem saturavi eos, et scortati sunt (tamen scortati
sunt;) et domus meretricis congregaverunt se (vel, in domum meretricis, ita
subaudienda erit litera
b
servilis.)
There is here what
rhetoricians call a conference: for God seems here to seek the judgment of the
adverse party, with whom he contends, on the cause between them, though it was
sufficiently clear; and this is a proof of confidence. When advocates wish to
shew that there is nothing doubtful or obscure, they thus deliberate with the
opposite party, — "Why, I will propose the matter privately to yourself;
have you anything to say? Even if you were at liberty to determine the question,
would not reason compel you to pronounce such a judgment as this?" So now God
shews that he was constrained, as it were, by necessity to inflict on the Jews a
most severe punishment, and intimates that he was not, as it were, at liberty to
do otherwise. "If I am, "he says, "the judge of the world, is it possible that
they can escape unpunished, who thus openly provoke me? Should I not expose to
ridicule my glory? and should I not also divest myself of my own power? I should
cease to be what I am, and in a manner deny myself, were I not to punish a
people so wicked and irreclaimable." We now perceive the Prophet's
meaning.
Some consider
w,
vau, to be understood, and take
ya,
ai, for
ˆya,
ain, and read thus, "I will not spare thee for this." But as there is no
reason to make any change, and many agree in the view that has been given, I
prefer to follow what has been most commonly received. The meaning of
ya,
ai, in Hebrew is "where;" but it also means "how: "and here it is to be
understood, not of place, but of manner, "How could I for this be propitious to
you?"
We see how God, as it were, deliberates
with the opposite party, and even appeals to them for judgment, "Say now, were I
to allow you so much liberty and power as to decide the question, could I, who
am the judge of the world, spare you who are guilty of such
vices?"
Thy sons have forsaken
me. This was the first sin: and when God
complained that he was forsaken, he intimated that the people had willfully, and
from deliberate wickedness, cast off the yoke; for the same thing could not have
been said of heathens. It is indeed true, if we have regard to the beginning,
that all may be charged with defection, for God had revealed himself to the sons
of Adam and of Noah; and when they fell away into superstitions, they became
apostates. But the defection of the Jewish people was much more recent, and less
to be borne: nay, when they boasted that they were God's people, who could have
alleged the pretense of ignorance? We now then see what the Prophet means when
he says, that God had been forsaken by the
people.
He then adds,
They have sworn by a no-
god. He means, by stating a part for the
whole, that the worship of God was become corrupt and vitiated: for swearing, as
it was stated yesterday, is a part of God's worship. Whenever we swear by God's
name, we profess that we are under his power, and that we cannot escape if we
swear falsely: we also ascribe to him his glory as the God of truth; and we
further testify that nothing escapes him, or is hid from his view. Hence, by
saying here that the Israelites
swore by a no-
god, he means that God was deprived of
his own right. They were indeed guilty of other sins; but, as it has been
stated, the Prophet includes under one kind all the superstitions which then
prevailed among the people. It was then the same as though he had said, that
they worshipped idols and gods, whom they had devised for
themselves.
He adds a circumstance which
enhanced their guilt, I have
filled them, he says,
and they have committed
adultery. There is here a striking
alliteration, which must not be omitted, he had said,
ˆ[bçy,
ishbon, "they have sworn;" and now he says,
[bça,
ashbo, "I have filled them." The only difference is in a point; when
placed on the left side of
ç,
shin, the word means to fill, and when on the right, to
swear.
fA136 The Prophet then says, that they had
sworn
to another God, and yet had been
filled.
God shews here how base and disgraceful had been the ingratitude of the
people; for they had been filled to the full with all blessings, and yet they
did not acknowledge their own God, who had been to them a Father, so kind and
bountiful: I have filled
them, he says,
and they have committed
adultery.
Now
this passage teaches us, that they who go astray, when allured by God's paternal
kindness and bounty, are on that account the more unworthy of pardon. When men
grow wanton against God, while he is kindly indulging them, they no doubt
treasure up for themselves wrath against the day of wrath, as Paul tells us in
<450205>Romans
2:5. Let us then take heed, lest we indulge ourselves, while God is, as it were,
indulging us; and lest prosperity should lead us to wantonness: but let us learn
to submit ourselves willingly to him, even because he thus kindly and sweetly
invites us to himself; and when he shews himself so loving, let us learn to love
him.
He says, that they
committed
adultery. This may be taken
metaphorically: but as in the next verse he inveighs against their vagrant lusts
and adulteries, this phrase may be taken in its literal sense. I yet think that
adultery here is to be understood figuratively, as meaning that they had no
spiritual chastity, inasmuch as they did not give God his own glory. He further
says, And at the house of the
harlot have they assembled together. The
word "house" may be taken in the nominative case, as the Jews might have been
called the house of the harlot; as though the Prophet had said, that all
Jerusalem and Judea were like brothels. But some consider
b,
beth, to be understood, so that they assembled themselves, as it were, at
the house of a harlot; and that he thus alludes to the temple. And it is a mark
of great shamelessness, when many adulterers or wanton men assemble in one
house; for most are ashamed of their adulteries, so that they endeavor to hide
their baseness: but when they come together in troops, as though under an
uplifted banner, it is a proof that there is no shame, but that they thus
disregard all decency, like brute beasts. The most suitable meaning then is,
that they are said to have assembled together in brothels, because they gloried
in their own superstitions and
sacrileges.
fA137 It follows
—
Jeremiah
5:8
8. They were as fed
horses in the morning: every one neighed after his neighbor's wife. 8.
Equi saginati (alii vertunt, armati, intelligunt phaleratos)
mane surgentes (alii vertunt, trahentes, deducunt a
°çm,
sed rectius alii deducunt a
µkç,
et nomen esse existimant;) quisque ad uxorem proximi sui hinnit
(est quidem futurum tempus, sed significat continuum
actum.)
Jeremiah comes now, I
think, to the second table, and mentions one kind of evil; but his object was to
shew that there was no chastity, no faithfulness, no honesty in that people. He
therefore compares them to wanton and lustful horses, and thus exposes their
infamous conduct. Had he said that every one did lie in wait for the bed of his
neighbor, it would have been a heinous crime; but when he calls their lust
neighing,
and calls them
horses,
and those well
fed,
and who rise early
after they are filled, he doubtless shews that
such was their incontinence, that they were not only wanton and adulterous, but
that they were worse and more base, for they differed nothing from lustful
horses, and horses well fed. Some read the last word "armed, "deducing it from
ˆwy
izan, which means to be armed; and others
derive it from
ˆwz,
zun, which signifies to eat, and hence they take
ˆzwm,
muzan, for food. There is indeed no doubt but that it means here "fed,
"or fat; for why should he call them armed horses? What some say, that they rose
early after having committed adultery, in order to exhibit their disgrace, and
to boast of their vices, is too far-fetched. What is meant is, that they were
strong horses, and active, and that they rose up early after having been well
fed.
fA138
We now then understand the Prophet's
object: the sum of the whole is, — that there was no chastity among the
Jews, for they gave themselves up to wanton lusts, not only like adulterers and
whoremongers, but like lascivious horses. Nevertheless, as we have said, he
includes here, under incontinency, thefts, frauds, rapines, and all vices of
this kind; for he no doubt charges the Jews as guilty of transgressing against
the second table of the law. He afterwards adds
—
Jeremiah
5:9
9. Shall I not visit for these
things? saith the Lord: and shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation
as this? 9. An non super his (vel, super hoc) visitabo (vel,
non visitarem,) dicit Jehova? et an in gente quae talis est (quae secundum
hanc) non se ulciscetur anima
mea?
God again holds, as it were, a
conference with them, and for this purpose, — that he might check all
their complaints and close their mouths, lest they should object and say, that
they were too severely treated. That this objection then might be removed, God
repeats that he could not pardon such atrocious sins. And this principle is
adopted, that it was impossible not to punish such wicked men who would not
repent. For since God is the Judge of the world, he can no more surrender his
judgment than his essence. As, then, the majesty of God and his office of a
Judge are inseparably connected, the Prophet concludes, that what the Jews
thought was impossible, that is, that they could escape unpunished, and yet
continue to provoke God, as it were, by open war, with their dreadful sins:
Should I not then visit for this,
saith Jehovah?
Here is introduced the name
of Jehovah. An earthly judge may pardon the ungodly and the worst of men; but
this cannot be done by God; for whenever God pardons, he leads sinners to
repentance: so that he never suffers sins to be unpunished. For he who repents
becomes his own judge, and thus anticipates God's judgment. Where then there is
true conversion, God shews no indulgence to sins. But when persistency in sins
is such, that they who are warned despise all instruction, it is impossible that
God should forgive; as in that case he would renounce his own glory, which can
never be. Should I not then visit
for this, saith
Jehovah?
And on such a
nation as this should not vengeance my soul take?
God speaks here after the manner of men, for he
seeks no vengeance; and when he speaks of his soul, even this is not strictly
suitable to him; but there is here nothing obscure; for what is meant is, that
he is at enmity with wickedness, as it is said in
<190505>Psalm
5:5, that he cannot bear iniquity. Since it is so, it follows that he must
either be thrust from his celestial throne, or punishment must be inflicted on
the wicked, who remain perverse and set no end nor bounds to their sins.
Whenever then delusion creeps over us and Satan seeks by his allurements to lead
us to forget God's judgment, let this come to our minds — that God would
not be God, except he were to punish sins. It is then necessary that he should
punish sins or be displeased with us: but, as it has been said, he cannot be
inconsistent with himself or dissimilar in his nature, since no change can take
place in him. Either then his hand is stretched out to punish our sins, or his
judgment must be anticipated by us. And how can this be done? By learning to
bring sentence against ourselves, by becoming displeased with our
sins.
When therefore our conversion will be of
this kind, then God will be merciful to us; and thus he will not pardon our
sins, as though he approved of them, or as though he did not exercise his office
as a judge. But as I have said, what is here taught is rightly addressed to
those who are either refractory, or whom Satan renders so stupid and forgetful,
that they call not themselves to an account; in short, what is here said will
render the ungodly, who go on in their perverseness, inexcusable, or it will
awake those who are healable, that they may judge themselves, and not wait until
God stretches forth his hand to execute extreme punishment.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as we are at
this day inclined to those vices, to which we learn thine ancient people were
too much given, — O grant, that we, being governed by thy Spirit, may not
harden ourselves against those thy holy warnings, by which thou daily reprovest
us and our sins, but that we may be teachable and obedient: and as we have
hitherto too much resisted thee and carried on war with thy justice, may we
learn to fight with ourselves and with our sins, and rely on thy word, until we
gain the victory, and at length attain that triumph, which has been prepared for
us in heaven by Jesus Christ our Lord. — Amen.
Lecture
Twentieth
Jeremiah
5:10
10. 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. 10. Ascendite muros ejus et diruite (vel,
dissipate;) et consumptionem ne feceritis (vel potius, finem;)
auferte propagines ejus (vel, ramos, vel, dentes murorum, ut
alii vertunt, vel, pinnas,) quia non sunt
Jehovae.
Here God by the mouth of
his Prophet addresses the enemies of his people, whom he had appointed to be the
ministers of his vengeance: and this was usual with the prophets, when they
sought more effectually to rouse and more sharply to touch the hearts of men;
for we know how great is their indifference when God summons them to judgment.
As then Jeremiah saw that simple instruction availed but little, he used this
mode of speaking. He then in the person of God addresses the Chaldeans, and bids
them to come to attack Jerusalem. The prophets often speak thus, — "Hiss
will God for the Egyptians," or, "Sound shall the trumpet, and he will send for
the Chaldeans."
(<230526>Isaiah
5:26;
<230718>Isaiah
7:18.) But the representation is more effectual to penetrate into the hearts of
men, when the Prophet at God's command assembles enemies as a celestial herald
and bids them what to do, even to destroy the whole
city.
He says first,
Ascend ye her
walls. By which words he intimates, that
the Jews in vain boasted of the height of their walls, for God would make their
enemies to ascend them, so that the entrance would not be difficult. They hoped
indeed that they
were safe, because the city was well fortified.
Hence he says, that they were deceived; and he exposes their folly, for their
walls would not protect them.
He afterwards
adds, An end do not
make. This sentence is explained in two
ways. Some take it in a good sense, as though God mitigated the extremity of
their punishment, according to the meaning which some attach to the words in the
last chapter; for though God in that passage terrified the Jews, yet they
consider that by way of mitigation this was added, "I will not yet make a
consummation," that is, there will be some remaining. And the prophets are wont
thus to speak, when they intend to shew that some seed will ever remain, so that
the Church shall not wholly be destroyed. Thus also do the same interpreters
explain this passage, as though God had said, that the ruin of Jerusalem would
be such that the Church would still continue, for there would be no
consummation. But others take
hlk,
cale, as signifying an end: and this meaning is more suitable; for God in
this verse severely threatens the Jews with destruction. It is no objection,
that it is said elsewhere, that the consummation would not be complete; for it
is quite evident that the prophets do not always adopt the same mode in
speaking: when they denounce vengeance on the reprobate, they leave no hope; and
so this mode of speaking often occurs, "I will make an end:" but when they
address the faithful, they moderate the severity of their threatenings by
saying, "God will not make a consummation." I am therefore disposed to take
their view, whom regard consummation here as signifying an end; and
llk,
calal, means to finish. The meaning then is, "Demolish the city, and let
there be no end, "that is, destroy it
entirely.
fA139
To the same purpose is what
immediately follows, Take away
her shoots, or her branches, or the
teeth of her walls, as some render the word. I think, however, that the Prophet
refers to the width of the walls in their foundations; for we know that walls
are so built, that the foundation is wider than the upper structure. The word
which the Prophet uses, means shoots, which spread far and wide. They who render
it, the wings of the walls, seem not to me to understand what the Prophet means;
for he speaks not here of the top of the walls, but of the foundations, as
though he had said, "Overthrow or demolish from the foundation the walls of the
city: "and why? They are not
Jehovah's, he adds. The Jews were
inflated with this empty confidence, — that they were safe under the
protection of God; for they imagined that God was the guardian of the city,
because the sanctuary and the altar were there. Hence the Prophet declares, that
the walls or the foundations were not
God's.
fA140 Nor could it have been objected, that
it is said elsewhere, that the city had been founded by the Lord: God had indeed
chosen his habitation and his throne there; but on this condition — that
the people should faithfully worship him. When Jerusalem was made a den of
thieves, God departed thence, according to what is said by Ezekiel in chapter 14
(Ezekiel 14). Here then the Prophet reproves that foolish confidence, by which
the Jews deceived themselves, when they thought that God was in a manner bound
never to forsake the defense of the city. He denies that their walls and
foundations were God's; for the Jews by their sins had so polluted the whole
place, that God could not dwell in such filth. It follows
—
Jeremiah
5:11
11. For the house of Israel and
the house of Judah have dealt very treacherously against me, saith the
Lord. 11. Quoniam transgrediendo transgressi sunt in me domus Israel et
domus Jehudah, dick Jehova.
The verb
dgb,
begad, means to deceive, to act perfidiously. God then charges the Jews
here with perfidy, because they had revolted from him: for he does not only
complain that they had in some measure sinned against him, and that he was
therefore offended with them, but he charges them with general defection. Hence
he says, that both the Israelites and the Jews had become perfidious and
apostates. The people, we knew, were now divided into two kingdoms: and though
Jeremiah had been given especially as a teacher to the tribe of Judah, it was
yet his duty to labor also for the Israelites. The kingdom of Israel was now in
some measure fallen, for four tribes had been driven into exile, and the kingdom
was dismembered and feeble. He yet wished to do all the good he could to the
remnant. Hence he says here, that they were wicked apostates, for they had
acted perfidiously
towards
God.
fA141 And as this charge was heinous, and
might have deeply wounded their minds, he ascribes to God what the Jews would
have hardly endured as coming from him; and says, thus
saith
Jehovah, as though he had said, "There
is no reason for you to contend with me, as though I had dealt severely with
you: contend with God himself, since he it is who declares that you are all
perfidious." He afterwards adds
—
Jeremiah
5:12
12. They have belied the Lord,
and said, It is not he; neither shall evil come upon us; neither shall we
see sword nor famine: 12. Negarunt Jehovam (alii vertunt, mentiti
sunt Jehovae,) et dixerunt, Non est, et non veniet super nos malum; et gladium
et famem non videbimus.
He expresses
more clearly and fully what he had previously said. Their perfidy was, that they
had denied
God. I do not wholly reject what others
have said, that they lied to God: but as
b is
here used after
çjk,
I cannot see that it means to lie. It ought to have been in that case,
wçjk,
hwhyl
cacheshu La-Jeve: but as it is
hwhyb,
Be-Jeve, I doubt not but that he simply declares that they denied
God; and the context seems to require this meaning; for he immediately adds,
that they said there was no
God.
fA142 This certainly was not to lie to God,
but to reject him as one who did not exist. As then the sense would be less
significant, were we to say, that they lied to God, I am inclined to take the
other meaning, that they
denied
God; that is, that they wholly disregarded him or sought to erase the
remembrance of him.
The reason which follow
requires special notice: They
have said, He is not. To render this
more clear, he says, that they boasted of impunity. It seemed, no doubt, to
exceed credibility, when the Prophet said that God was denied by the Jews; but
that they might not evade the charge, he continued it,
they have said, He is
not. We are further to consider why he
brought against them so grievous and so atrocious a charge: it was, because they
boasted that they should be free from the punishments which the prophets had
threatened.
We then see what Jeremiah alleges
against them, even their contempt and also their perverseness. They felt
themselves safe notwithstanding the prophetic threatenings. The Prophet says,
this is nothing less than wholly to deny God. Were we judges, this declaration
might appear too severe: but let us pause, and acquiesce in what the Holy Spirit
has pronounced.
And this is a remarkable
passage, whence we may learn how abhorred by God is their indifference, who
harden themselves against his threatenings, and wholly disregard his judgment.
For if we acknowledge him as God, his power as a judge ought not to be taken
away. What does God's name mean? Doubtless they who imagine that God remains
quiet in heaven and enjoys his leisure and his rest, though they may not in
words deny God, yet treat him with mockery: there is in them at the same time no
religion and no thought of a divine being. Let us then carefully notice this
passage, in which the Prophet testifies that God is denied by us, except we be
moved by his threatenings; for the torpidity in which we indulge ourselves, when
God denounces his judgment on us, is the same as the denial of him; nor is there
anything by which they can extenuate their sin who thus despise the vengeance of
God. For the Holy Spirit has once for all declared, that all who trifle with the
prophets do in their hearts say, that there is no God, inasmuch as they deprive
him of his power and of his office, and leave him only a naked essence; nay,
they make him only a creature of the imagination or a mere
phantom.
We now then understand the meaning of
the Prophet: he more fully explains the perfidy with which he had charged the
Jews; for he says that they
denied
God, and
said, He is
not; and they proved that they did all this,
for they did not believe the evil to be at hand which the prophets had
announced. It afterwards follows
—
Jeremiah
5:13
13. And the prophets shall
become wind, and the word is not in them: thus shall it be done unto
them. 13. Et Prophetae erunt in ventum, et sermo non est in eis; sic fiet
illis.
The Prophet goes on with the
same subject; and this passage is worthy of especial notice, as it commends to
us in no common way the public preaching of the truth. For what can be imagined
more abominable than to deny God? yet if his word is not allowed to have
authority, it is the same as though its despisers attempted to thrust God from
heaven, or denied his existence. We hence see how the majesty of God is, as it
were, indissolubly connected with the public preaching of his truth. The design
of this verse is the same, in which Jeremiah refers to the contempt manifested
by the people.
He introduces the Jews as saying,
The prophets shall become wind,
there is not in them the word, and the
evil with which they have threatened us,
shall come upon their own
heads. It may have been, that the Jews
did not openly give vent to such a blasphemous language; but so gross was the
contempt they shewed towards the prophets, that this impiety was sufficiently
conspicuous in their whole life. It was not then without reason that the Prophet
charged them with so base an impiety, that they said, that the prophets would
become wind. The same is the case now; the greater part, when God thunders and
gives proofs of his vengeance by his servants, ridicule everything, and
heedlessly cast away every fear, — "Oh, they are mere words; for the
preachers fulminate boldly and terribly in the pulpit; but the whole vanishes,
and whatever they denounce on us will fall on their own heads." We see at this
day that many ungodly and profane men use such a bantering language as this.
Though it might not have been, as I have said, that the Jews dared thus openly
to shew their contempt towards God; yet the Holy Spirit, who extends his
authority over the hearts, minds, and feelings of men, justly charged them with
this gross impiety. It may also be learnt from other places, that they made such
advances in audacity, that they hesitated not to treat with scoffs the
threatenings announced by the prophets. However this may have been, the Prophet
sets forth by a striking representation how great was the contemptuous
perverseness of the people towards God: for there is here a vivid description,
by which he sets as it were before our eyes how impious the Jews had become;
inasmuch as they dared openly to assault the prophets and willfully to charge
them with declaring what was vain,
The
prophets, they said,
shall become
wind; and farther,
There is not in them the
word.
By
these words the Jews denied that the prophets were to be believed, however they
might pretend God's name, for they boasted falsely that this or that was
committed to them from above. Thus it was, as we see, that every instruction was
trodden under foot, and the same we find to be the case in the present day; for
what reverence is manifested anywhere for God's word? This passage then ought to
be especially noticed by us; for it shews as in a mirror to what extent of
audacity and madness men will break forth when they begin to discredit God's
word.
They afterwards add,
Thus shall it be done to
them; or, "May it be thus done to them;"
for some regard the words as an imprecation, as though the wicked had said, "Let
the prophets find to their own destruction what the sword, the famine, and the
pestilence are; as they cease not continually to stun our ears with these
terrible things, may they themselves experience these scourges of God." But we
may retain the form of the verb,
Thus shall it be done to
them;
fA143 as though they set themselves in
opposition to God's servants, and pretended that they were God's prophets, "Oh!
we have a prophecy too: they terrify us by announcing the sword, the famine, and
the pestilence; we can in our turn retaliate on them, and declare that the
pestilence, the war, and the famine are nigh them; for what authority have they
thus to assail us? Have we not authority to do the same to them?" We now then
perceive what is meant in this last clause. It now follows
—
Jeremiah
5:14
14. Wherefore thus 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. 14. Ergo
sic dicit Jehova, Deus exercituum, Quia protulistis verbum hoc: Ecce ego dabo
verba mea. (vel, ponam verba mea) in ore tuo quasi ignem (vel, in
ignem,) et populus hic, lignum, et vorabit
eos.
God shews here how intolerable
to him was their wantonness in despising the prophets, through whom he would
have himself attended to. Though Christ did not refer to this passage, when he
said,
"He who hears you hears
me,
and he who despises you
despises me,"
(<421016>Luke
10:16)
yet it contains an eternal law; for God's will from
the beginning has been, that his servants should be obeyed, as though he himself
had come down from heaven. Hence the Jews dealt no less contumeliously with God
in despising his prophets, than if they had dared to treat God himself with
contempt. God then now shews how much he abhorred that madness, through which
they rendered void all the labors of his
servants.
Therefore thus saith
Jehovah, the God of hosts. Jeremiah made
this preface, that he might more effectually rouse the Jews; for if he had
omitted Thus saith
Jehovah, and had begun thus, "Because ye
have announced this word, behold, as fire shall be the word of God, "his
doctrine would have been objected to, and treated with contempt. But now, by
alleging the name of God, and that not simply, but by adorning it with a high
attribute, and calling him "the God of hosts, "he makes known his power in order
to strike them with fear. He then says, "Thus saith Jehovah, the God of hosts,
Because ye have spoken this
word, "etc. Here he changes the persons
often; and it behooved him to do so, that there might be more force and point in
what he said. He ought to have said in the third person, "Because they have
spoken thus, Behold, I will make my words in thy mouth, "etc.: but he now
addresses the people, and then he turns to his servant Jeremiah. He therefore
says, "Ye have indeed spoken thus;" that is, "Ye have scoffingly spoken, as
though my prophets had nothing but the empty sound of words;"
Behold,
he says, I will make my words
in thy mouth like fire, (he thus
addresses the Prophet,) and this
people shall be
wood, and
the fire
shall devour
them.
God
compares his own word to fire, not as in other places, nor for the same reason;
but this similitude has a particular meaning, — that the prophetic word
would consume the people as fire consumes dry wood or straw. In other places the
word of God is called fire, because it kindles the hearts of men, because it
cleanses or burns the filth within. But he treats not here of the benefit or the
fruit which the faithful derive from God's word: but God declares only that the
doctrine of the Prophet would prove fatal to the people; and hence he expressly
says, "I make my words in thy mouth like fire." Had he said, "Behold, my words
shall be like fire, and this people shall be stubble, "it would not have been
sufficiently expressive. But as the people had been accustomed to scoff and say,
"Ah! what are these prophets, and what are their words? they beat the air only;"
as then the Jews had been wont to speak in this manner, he now replies to them,
and says, "I will make my words in thy mouth like fire;" that is, Thy tongue
alone shall be more than sufficient to destroy the whole people. Jeremiah
teaches here the same thing with Paul, when he said,
"We have vengeance in
readiness against all altitude which rises against the gospel."
(<471004>2
Corinthians 10:4, 5)
For it has ever been an evil, common to all ages,
either to neglect, or wholly to despise the servants of God. When Paul saw that
the gospel was despised by many, he said that he and other ministers had
vengeance in readiness; as though he had said, "As many words as we speak shall
be so many swords to slay all the ungodly; and though their hardness now reject
the judgment of God, their perverseness shall avail them nothing. Let them now
then know that there is so much power in my word, as though God were openly to
put forth his hand from heaven, as though he were to dart forth his lightnings."
The same thing is what Jeremiah means here,
Behold,
he says, I will make my words
in thy mouth fire; that is, there will
be so much power in thy words, that the ungodly shall know to their own loss
that thou art the executioner of my
vengeance.
This passage ought to be carefully
observed by us, lest by our ingratitude we shall so provoke God's wrath against
us, as that his word, which is destined for our food, shall be turned to be a
fire to us. For why has God appointed the ministers of his gospel, except to
invite us to become partakers of his salvation, and thus sweetly to restore and
refresh our souls? And thus the word of God is to us like water to revive our
hearts: it is also a fire, but for our good, a cleansing, and not a consuming
fire: but if we obstinately reject this fire, it will surely turn to answer
another end, even to devour us, and wholly to consume
us.
But he says that this people would be
wood:
as the ungodly set up an iron front against God, they think they can thus
drive to a distance his vengeance; the Prophet now laughs to scorn this madness,
and says that they would be like wood or straw. It follows
—
Jeremiah
5:15
15. 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 understandest what they say. 15. Ecce ego adduco super vos
gentem e longinquo, domus Israel, dicit Jehova; gentem duram (hoc est,
quae dura erit, quia sequitur
awh,)
gentem quae est e seculo, gentem cujus non tenebis (vel, cognosces)
linguam (nam relativum est
w)
et non audies quid loquatur.
The
Prophet shews here how the people would become like straw or dry wood; for God
would bring a sure calamity which they did not fear. But the context is to be
here observed: the Prophet had said, that the word in his mouth would be like
fire; he now transfers this to the Assyrians and Chaldeans. Now these things
have the appearance of being inconsistent; but we have already shewn that all
the scourges of God depended on the power of his word: when, therefore, the city
was cut off by the Assyrians and Chaldeans, then the fire from the mouth of
Jeremiah broke forth to destroy the city and the
people.
In short, Jeremiah intimates, that when
the enemies came, no account was to be made of their strength nor of their
forces, and that they would not bring with them any aids for the war, but that
there would be the execution of what he had said, of what had proceeded from his
mouth; for we shall elsewhere see that he was sent by God to besiege the city;
but with what forces? He was alone and unarmed; this is true; but this siege was
not understood by the wicked and reprobate, yet it was not without its effect;
for as the Prophet spoke, so God executed what had proceeded from his mouth. We
hence see that the Chaldeans proceeded as it were from the mouth of the Prophet,
like willing enemies, who throw darts to demolish the walls of a city, who east
stones and upset the walls by warlike engines, or like those who at this day use
other warlike machines, by which they demolish cities. What then are all these
instruments of war? They are the fire which God casts forth by the mouth of his
servants; and the truth which had been declared by them, has accompanying it all
those engines of war which can destroy not only one city and one people, but the
whole world, when it shall so please
him.
I
bring then
upon you a nation from
far. We have said elsewhere why the
Prophet refers to long distance, even because the Jews thought that there was no
danger nigh them from nations so remote, as though we were to speak of the Turks
at this day, "Oh! they have to fight with other nations: let those who are near
them contend with the Turks, for we may live three or four ages in quietness."
We see such indifference prevailing in the present day. Hence the Prophet, in
order to deprive the Jews of this vain confidence, says that this nation was
near at hand, though coming from remote
quarters.
He says that they were a
hard,
or a strong
nation,
and a nation from
antiquity. He means not simply that it
was brave through age, but that it was hard and ferocious; for he says
afterwards that they were all
µyrbg,
geberim, that is, valiant. He then calls it a hard nation, because it was
cruel, and he afterwards mentions the barbarity of that nation. But he says
first that it was from
antiquity: for it generates spirits more
ferocious, when a nation has ruled for a long time, and from a period out of
memory: this very antiquity is wont to inflate the minds of men with pride, and
to render them more ferocious. He says then, that it was from
antiquity.
He
afterwards speaks of its barbarity:
Thou wilt
not, he says,
understand its language, nor wilt
thou hear what it
speaks.
fA144 By language, we know, not only
words, but also feelings are communicated. Language is the expression of the
mind, as it is commonly said, and it is therefore the bond of society. Had there
been no language, in what would men differ from brute beasts? One would
barbarously treat another; there would indeed be no humanity among them. As then
language conciliates men one towards another, the Prophet, in order to terrify
the Jews, says that that nation would be barbarous, for there would be no
communication made with it by means of a language. Hence it followed that there
would be no pity to spare the conquered, no, not if they implored a hundred
times; nor could they be heard, who were miserable, and such as might obtain
some favor, if they were understood.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that though thou
mightest justly condemn us at this day for the gross and wicked impiety, which
thou didst formerly condemn by the mouth of thy Prophet in thine ancient people,
— O grant, that we may not proceed in our obstinacy, but learn with
pliable minds, and in true docility of heart, to submit to thy word, so that it
may not turn to our ruin, but that we may by experience find it to be appointed
for our salvation, so that being inflamed with a desire for true religion, and
also cleansed from the filth of depraved affections and of carnal lusts, we may
devote ourselves wholly to thy service, until having put off the flesh and all
its filth, we shall at length attain to that perfect purity, which is set before
us in thy gospel, and be made partakers of thy eternal glory in Christ Jesus our
Lord. — Amen.
Lecture
Twenty-First
Jeremiah
5:16
16. Their quiver is as
an open sepulcher, they are all mighty men. 16. Pharetra ejus
tanquam sepulchrum apertum; omnes
fortes.
The Prophet had already
threatened the Jews with the vengeance of God, and had said that the ministers
and executioners of it would be the Chaldeans: he now continues the same
subject, and says that their quiver would be like an
open
sepulcher. The nations of the East, we
know, made much use of arrows and darts, for they had no pitched battles; but
they pretended a flight, and then suddenly turning, they hurled their darts and
arrows against their enemies. The Prophet then had a regard to this mode of
fighting, when he says that their quivers would be like open sepulchres. It may
seem at first sight an unnatural comparison; but it is the same as though he had
said, that they would be so skillful in throwing arrows as to destroy all who
met them.
fA145
And he adds, that they would be all
strong,
that the people might know that it would not be a slight conflict: in short,
it is the same as though he had said, that this war would be a certain ruin to
the Jews, in which they should all perish. He afterwards adds
—
Jeremiah
5:17
17. 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. 17. Et vorabit messem tuam et panem tuum; vorabunt filios tuos et
filias tuas; vorabunt greges tuos et armenta tua; vorabunt vitem tuam et ficum
tuam; ad inopiam redigent urbes munitionum tuarum, in quibus tu confidis, per
gladium.
He continues to speak in a
similar way of the cruelty of their enemies; as though he said that victory was
already in their hand, for they were the scourges of God. He does not then set
before the Jews the troubles of war, but speaks of them as conquered; and he
only shews that the Chaldeans would be cruel in the use they would make of their
victory. He takes it as granted that the Chaldeans would be conquerors, for they
would come armed from above: and he makes this addition, — that they would
act cruelly and in an unusual manner towards the vanquished
Jews.
Hence he says,
They will eat
(it will eat, for he changes the number, though
the sense remains the same
fA146)
thine harvest and thy bread; that is,
all that thou gatherest shall become a prey to thine enemies; for by harvest and
bread he means every kind of provision. Then he adds,
thy sons and thy
daughters, which was still worse; it is
indeed hard to be deprived of food, but it is still more dreadful for parents to
see their children slain before them. The Prophet however says, that such would
be the barbarity of their enemies, that they would not spare even boys and
girls. He further mentions herds
and flocks; and then he adds the
vine
and
the
fig-tree; as though he said, nothing
would be safe among the Jews, for their enemies would plunder everything, and
that being not content with meat and drink, they would kill their very infants.
And further, as the Jews had fortified cities, and were on that account insolent
towards the prophets, their vain pride is here brought down; for he says, that
their fortified cities
would be reduced to
poverty;
and he adds, in which thou
trustest. All these, he says, shall fall
by the
sword;
for this last word,
brjb,
becherab, applies to the whole verse, and to each part of it; as though
he had said, "By the right of the sword shall the conquerors lay waste thy whole
country, even all thy possessions; yea, and they shall slay thy sons and thy
daughters." It follows
—
Jeremiah
5:18
18. Nevertheless in those days,
saith the Lord, I will not make a full end with you. 18. Atque etiam in
diebus illis dicit Jehova, non faciam vobiscum finem (alii vertunt,
consumptionem.)
Different views
may be taken as to the meaning of this verse; but the greater part of
interpreters think that a hope is here given to the faithful; yea, nearly all
are of this opinion; indeed I know not any one who takes another view. They then
think that God moderates here what he had previously said, and that he gives
some ground of hope to his servants, lest they should imagine that the Church
would be so reduced as to have no seed remaining: and
hlk,
cale, as it was said yesterday, is often taken in this sense. But when I
now carefully consider the context, I feel constrained to take another view,
even this — that God here enhances the severity of his vengeance. And the
particle
µg,
gam, "also, "or even, favors this view; as though he had said, "Think not
that it will be all over when your enemies shall thus plunder you of all your
possessions, deprive you of your children, and reduce you to extreme want; for
ye shall not by any means be thus freed from all evils, as I shall pursue my
vengeance still further." There will hereafter follow promises to moderate
threatenings, that the hearts of the faithful may not despond: but in this place
the Prophet, I have no doubt, introduces God as a Judge, executing vengeance, as
though there was no place for mercy.
Then
also,
he says; for the particle
µg,
gam, is inhansive and emphatic; Then
also, in those
days; that is, "When your enemies shall
strip your land of its produce, and of all its animals, and of its inhabitants,
I shall not even then cease to pursue you:
I will not make an end with
you, for there will still remain scourges, when
ye shall think that rest is given to you, and that the end of evils and of all
calamities had come." In this manner is God wont to deal with the impenitent;
for such is their perverseness, that being smitten they become more and more
hardened, and champ the bit, according to the old proverb. And hence is their
hardness, because they think that God is, as it were, disarmed when he has
punished them for their sins. He therefore declares that he has in his power
different kinds of punishment and different ways of
punishing.
fA147 And to the same purpose is what follows
—
Jeremiah
5:19
19. 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. 19. Et erit quum dixeritis, Quare fecit Jehova Deus noster nobis
omnia haec? Tunc dices illis, Sicuti dereliquistis me et serviistis diis
alienorum (alieni, ad verbum, sed est enallage numeri) in terra vestra; sic
servietis alienis (subaudiunt alii interpretes deos, sed pervertunt sensum
Prophetae) in terra non vobis (hoc est, in terra quae non erit
vestra.)
It hence appears that what
I have said is true, — that the Prophet did not soften what was severe in
the threatenings which we have noticed, but that he treated the Jews according
to their perverseness; for he saw that they were untamable; and the Spirit had
taught him that such would be their obstinacy, that until they were wholly
broken down, they would not bend their necks to receive the yoke. He further
assigns the cause here, that they might not contend with God, as hypocrites are
wont to do, whenever God sharply chastises them; for they murmur against him,
and complain and demand reasons why he treats them so severely, as though they
were wholly innocent. As, then, hypocrites made such complaints, the Prophet
here replies to them.
It shall
be, he says,
when ye shall
say: he addresses the Jews in the person
of God. He then immediately turns God's address to himself,
Why has Jehovah our God done to
us all these things? He ascribes here to
hypocrites what is ever in their mouths whenever they are summoned to judgment;
for they are so well prepared to contend, as though their cause was the best
that could be; and, could God be constrained to render an account, they would
prove him guilty of cruelty and of immoderate rigor. We hence see how
graphically the Prophet describes refractory men, who will not yield nor
acknowledge their fault, but with an iron front rise up against God: and the
same thing we find in other passages in the prophets, especially in the first
chapter of Malachi; for there the Prophet often repeats the words of the people,
"In what? In what? What means this?" So also here Jeremiah says,
When ye shall say, Why has
Jehovah done all these things to us? as though
they were innocent: for the reprobate, as though they had washed away all their
sins by having wiped their mouths, boldly come forth and demand a reason why God
chastises them. So also in this place they hesitate not to call God their God,
as though they had not denied God, according to what we have seen yesterday. For
so gross an impiety prevailed among them, that they imagined that all things
were ruled by chance, and that God unjustly punished them. Though then they had
perfidiously forsaken God, yet the Prophet here, in order to expose their
petulancy, introduces them here as saying that they regarded God as connected
with
them.
Then,
he says, thou shalt
say. God one while addresses the people,
and at another time the Prophet. When, therefore, they shall begin thus to
murmur, then thou mayest reply,
Because ye have forsaken
me. That what was said might have more
weight, God would have the Prophet to speak in his name, "because ye have
forsaken me, "as though Jeremiah did not himself say the words, but God by his
mouth; and have served the gods
of the alien, that is, of aliens,
in your
land. God shews here briefly what the
Jews deserved; and he thought it sufficient to mention one kind of sin only. We
shall see elsewhere, as we have often seen, that they were in other respects
wicked and guilty before God. But the Prophet observes brevity here, and charges
them only with one sort of sin.
Ye shall serve
tyrants, he says,
in a strange
land, who shall cruelly oppress you,
because ye have served
their
gods in your own
land.
God
reproves them here for having abused his kindness; for he had expelled the
heathen nations from Canaan, and gave that land, which was so pleasant and
fruitful, as an inheritance to them, so as to be to them a perpetual rest. God
called the land his own rest, because he protected the Jews there, and appointed
them as the legitimate heirs of the land even to the end of the world. Hence he
says now, your
land. The reminding them of this
kindness was doubtless intended to amplify their guilt; for they possessed the
land by the best title, though they had not acquired it
themselves.
In your
land, he says,
ye worshipped
gods; he does not say, "strange gods,
"but "the gods of the stranger, "or of strangers. The prophets often speak thus;
they call them the gods of the strangers, or of strange people: but the
expression is emphatical; for it was very base and less excusable for the Jews,
while they had God dwelling among them, to seek gods here and there, and as it
were to entreat heathens for gods, and say, "Give us your gods." It was then
this base conduct that the Prophet now points out as with the finger,
Because ye have served the gods
of strangers.
He afterwards adds,
Ye shall serve
strangers; he does not mean, as I think,
strange gods; and it seems to me that those who introduce "gods" here, pervert
the meaning.
fA148 He speaks of tyrants, according to what
is said elsewhere,
"I had given you my good
laws, which if any one keeps he shall live in them; and ye would not obey: I
will therefore give you laws which are not good,"
(<262021>Ezekiel
20:21, 25:)
that is, "I will lay on you a tyrannical yoke, and
conquerors, and those barbarians whose language shall be unknown to you, shall
plunder you and your possessions, because ye have been disobedient and
unteachable." It follows
—
Jeremiah
5:20-21
20. Declare this in the
house of Jacob, and publish it in Judah, saying, 20. Nuntiate hoc in domo
Jacob, et promulgate (ad verbum, audire facite) in Jehudah,
dicendo,
21. Hear now this, O
foolish people, and without understanding; which have eyes, and see not; which
have ears, and hear not: 21. Audite agedum hoc, popule stulte et absque
corde; oculi illis, et non vident; aures illis, et non audiunt (et non audient,
ad verbum.)
The Prophet
confirms what he had said, lest the Jews should think that they were only
terrified by words, and not dread the consequences. Hence he says,
Declare
this. The Prophet, no doubt, alludes to
a custom which prevailed; for wars were usually proclaimed by heralds. Enemies
did not immediately march forth, but they proclaimed war that the cause might
appear just. Hence God here declares, that he had spoken in earnest by the mouth
of Jeremiah, as though war had been in the usual manner proclaimed, and armed
enemies were already nigh at
hand.
Declare ye
then
this;
and what is it? Hear, O
foolish people, etc. Here he first reproves the
Jews and Israelites for their stupidity, because they were even without common
sense; for the heart in Hebrew means the mind or understanding, as we have seen
elsewhere. He then says, that this people were destitute of all understanding.
He first calls them fatuous
or foolish; but as many are slow and heavy and
yet not without common sense, he adds that they were a people
without heart
or understanding. He seems indeed to add by way
of correction, that they had eyes and ears: but his object was ironically to
enhance what he had said, and to shew that they were stupid, and no less so than
blocks of wood or stones. How so? "Ye have ears and eyes, "he says, "but ye
neither see nor hear."
fA149
He no doubt alludes to the idols to
which they had become devoted: for it is said in
<19B508>Psalm
115:8, that those who made idols were like them, as well as those who trusted in
them; for it had been previously said, that idols had ears but heard not, and
eyes but saw not. Jeremiah then indirectly condemns the Jews here for having
become so stupid in their superstitions as to be like dead idols: for there is
in an idol some likeness to man; it has various members but no understanding. So
also he says, the Jews had eyes and ears and the external form of men; but they
were at the same time no less stupid than if they were stones or blocks of wood.
Now follows the proclamation
—
Jeremiah
5:22
22. 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 thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar,
yet can they not pass over it? 22. An me non timebitis, dicit Jehova? an
a facie mea non contremiscetis? Qui posui arenam terminum mari, statutum seculi
aeternum, et non praeteribit illud (vel, terminum illud; quidam enim
ad proximum referunt, alii ad prius,) et movebunt se et non praevalebunt, et
tumultuabuntur (vel, resonabunt) fluctus ejus (istud
wylg
extendunt ad duo verba,) et non transgredientur ipsum (non transilient,
est idem verbum quod paulo ante
usurpavit.)
God shews here why
he had said that the people were foolish and without understanding. It was
indeed a monstrous stupidity, not to fear at the presence of God, since even
inanimate elements obey his bidding: and he takes the sea especially as an
example; for there is nothing more terrific than a tempestuous sea. It appears
as if it would overwhelm the whole world, when its waves swell with so much
violence. No one can in this case do otherwise than tremble. But the sea itself,
which makes the stoutest to tremble, quietly obeys God; for however furious may
be its tossings, they are yet under restraint. Now, if any inquires how this is,
it must be confessed to be a miracle which cannot be accounted for; for the sea,
we know, as other elements, is spherical. As the earth is round, so also is the
element of water, as well as the air and fire. Since then the form of this
element is spherical, we must know that it is not lower than the earth: but it
being lighter than the earth shews that it stands above it. How then comes it
that the sea does not overflow the whole earth? for it is a liquid, and cannot
stand in one place, except retained by some secret power of God. It hence
follows, that the sea is confined to its own place, because of God's
appointment, according to what is said by Moses,
"Let the dry land," said
God, "appear,"
(<010109>Genesis
1:9:)
for he intimates that the earth was covered with
water, and no part of it appeared, until God formed the sea. Now the word of
God, though it is not heard by us, nor resounds in the air, is yet heard by the
sea; for the sea is confined within its own limits. Were the sea tranquil, it
would still be a wonderful work of God, as he has given the earth to be the
habitation of men: but when it is moved, as I have said, by a tempest, and
heaven and earth seem to blend together, there is no one, being nigh such a
sight, who does not feel dread. Hence then the power of God, and his dread
might, appear more evident when he calms the turbulent
sea.
We now see the scope of the Prophet's
words: He shews that the Jews were monsters, and unworthy not only to be counted
men, but even to be classed with brute animals; for there was more sense and
understanding in the tempestuous and raging sea than in men, who seemed endued
with reason and understanding. This is the design of the
comparison.
But as it was a heavy complaint, the
Prophet asks a question, Will ye
not fear me? As though God had said, "What do
you mean? How is it that I am not feared by you? The sea obeys me, and its fury
is checked by my secret bidding; for I have once for all commanded the sea to
remain within its own limits, and though it may be violently agitated by storms
and tempests, it does not yet exceed my orders. Will not you men, endowed with
reason, fear me? will you not tremble at my presence?" And he says, that he had
set the sand
to be
the boundary of the
sea: and this is much more expressive
than if he had said that he had set boundaries to the sea; for the sand is
movable and driven by a small breath of wind, and the sand is also penetrable.
Were there rocks along all the shores of the sea, it would not be so wonderful.
Had God then restrained the violence of the sea by firm and strong mounds, the
keeping of it within its limits might be ascribed to nature; but what firmness
is there in sand? for a little water thrown on it will soon penetrate through
it. How then is it, that the sea, when tossed by violent storms, does not remove
the sand, which is so easily shifted? We hence see that this word is not in vain
introduced. And there is a similar passage in
<183811>Job
38:11, where God, speaking of his infinite power, says among other
things,
"Hitherto shalt thou
come, but no further:"
for doubtless no storm arises, except when it pleases
God. He might indeed keep the sea in the same quiet state; but he does not do
so: on the contrary, he gives it as it were loose reins, but he says, "Hitherto
shall it come." When therefore high mountains seem to threaten all mortals, and
the earth seems nigh an overthrow, then suddenly the impetuous waves are
repressed and become calm.
And he adds,
A perpetual
ordinance. It is indeed true that the
sea sometimes overflows its limits; for many cities, we know, have been
swallowed up by a flood; but still it is rightly said, that it is a
perpetual ordinance
or decree, that God confines the sea within its
own limits. For whenever the sea overflows a small portion of land, we hence
learn what it might do without that restraint, mentioned here by Jeremiah and in
the book of Job. We hence learn, that there is nothing to hinder the sea from
overflowing the whole earth, but the command of God which it obeys. In the mean
time the perpetuity of which the Prophet speaks remains generally the same: for
though many storms arise every year, yet the fury of the sea is still quieted,
but not otherwise than by the command of God. True then is this — that the
sea has prescribed limits, over which its waves are not permitted to pass. And
hence he says, Move themselves
and not prevail shall its waves; and
again,
Resound,
or tumultuate shall they, and
shall not pass
over.
fA150
We now apprehend the design of this
verse: God complains, that there was so much madness and stupidity in the
people, that they did not obey him as much as the sea, even the stormy sea. He
then condemns here the Jews, as though they were monsters; for nothing can be
more contrary to nature than for the tempestuous sea to have more understanding
than man, created in God's image and endued with reason. He then adds
—
Jeremiah
5:23
23. But this people hath a
revolting and a rebellious heart; they are revolted and gone. 23. Atqui
populo huic fuit cor perversum et rebelle; deflexerunt et
abierunt
Here the previous verse is
completed; for what is said here is connected with the question which we have
noticed. But God now proves more clearly why he adduced what he said of the sea.
The copulative
w,
vau, is to be taken here as an adversative, and to be thus rendered,
But this people have a perverse
heart: for
rrws,
surer, means "perverse;" some render it "revolting, "but
improperly; for it appears from many other passages that it is something more:
besides, the other meaning is more suitable to the context here; for he says
first, that the people had a
perverse
heart;
fA151 and then, that they had a
rebellious
or an untamable heart. He no doubt compares the
obstinacy with the obedience of the sea, or sets one in contrast with the other,
and conveys simply this truth, that there was more fury and stupidity in that
people than in the raging sea.
And he proves
that the people had a perverse heart by the effect; for they had
fallen away and
departed. Had he said only that they had
fallen away, the proof would not have been so complete; but by adding "departed,
"he points out their obstinacy; as though he had said, that their corruption was
permanent, like settled diseases, which can be healed by no remedies.
They have then fallen away and
departed; that is, "I could not bring
them back." God had indeed often tried by his servants to restore them to a
right course; but their perverseness only discovered itself more and more, and
shewed itself to be irreclaimable; for they
departed,
so that there was no prospect of repentance. It follows
—
Jeremiah
5:24
24. 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. 24. Et non dixerunt in corde suo, Timeamus agedum Jehovam, Deum
nostrum, qui dat pluviam et imbrem matutinum et serotinum (diximus de his
verbis alibi) tempore suo; hebdomadas perpetuas messis (hoc est,
ad messem) custodit nobis.
The
Prophet in other words proves here that the Jews had been justly charged
with perverseness: he says, that it did not come to their minds, that they did
not think, to fear God. We hence see that all that is said is designed to shew,
that the people were no less senseless and stupid, than if they were lifeless
elements; nay, that there was more stupidity and more furious madness in their
hearts than in any created thing.
To
say in the heart
means in Hebrew to weigh, to consider. We
should say in Latin, "It did not come to their minds," (non venit illis in
mentem;) that is, "Have they not been so void of common sense, that
this thought did not come to their minds, or did not occur to them,
Let us fear the
Lord?" And here he takes away every
pretense of ignorance, that they might not object and say, that they did not
worship God through error or want of knowledge: "But ye had eyes," he says, and
ye had ears, and all the faculties belonging to men; God gave you rain; there
has been no year in which the earth did not bring forth its fruit for you; when
ye eat bread, does not the bounty of God occur to your minds? and yet ye
consider not that he ought to be worshipped." We hence see that he takes away
every excuse for their ingratitude by saying, that they had been inattentive to
those blessings, which were seen by the eyes, and felt by the hands, and touched
by every part of the body. But of the rest we must speak
to-morrow.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that since thou
daily invitest us to thyself with so much kindness and benevolence, and since
thy word continually sounds in our ears, — O grant, that we may not become
deaf through the depravity of our flesh, but be attentive to hear the doctrine
of salvation, and become so teachable and obedient, that we may be willing to be
turned wherever thou pleasest, and to be guided in the way thou pointest out to
us, until we shall at length reach that blessed rest, which has been prepared
for us in heaven by Jesus Christ our Lord. — Amen.
Lecture
Twenty-Second
Yesterday was exhibited the senselessness of those
who were not induced by God's blessings to serve him. The Prophet indeed
mentioned the benefits which God usually bestows on the good and the bad without
distinction, — that he gives rain and spring and autumn, and so regulates
all the year as to ripen all the fruit; for by the
appointed weeks
he only means, that God so arranges the
different parts of the year, that what men sow comes to maturity; and the word
reserve,
or keep, is intended to shew the same thing. For it is the same as though he
had said, "The seasons through the whole year are so changed, that there is a
regular succession of suitable weather
preserved."
We now then understand the Prophet's
object: He shews that the Jews had been extremely thoughtless; for they did not
regard the paternal favor of God as to their daily food, so as to be thereby
moved to worship and serve Him. Paul, also, when addressing heathens, adduced
this reason,
"God," he says, "never
left himself
ajma>rturon,
without a testimony; for he gave rain and fruitful
seasons,"
(<441417>Acts
14:17)
that is, he so arranged the seasons, that the care he
takes of mankind may be thus seen as in a mirror. But it was the Prophet's
object here to condemn the Jews for their ingratitude, because they did not
consider how bountifully God had ever dealt with them and beyond what was
common. For he had not only in an ordinary way allured them to himself by his
benefits; but his object had been to attach them to himself by singular and
unusual means. Since then he had shewn to them singular favors, the more base
was their ingratitude; for they did not consider, that the many benefits which
God conferred on them, were so many motives or allurements, by which he bound
them as it were to himself.
We now then see the
Prophet's meaning, when he says,
They have not said, "Let us fear
Jehovah, who gives us rain; that is, the
vernal rain and the rain that precedes the harvest, and that also
in its
season. For hence God's providence
shines forth, because the rain follows when the husbandmen have sown; and it
supplies the earth with moisture; and then before the fruit ripens, God renders
it plump by latter rain. And for the same purpose is added this,
Who reserves the appointed
weeks, (literally, the weeks of
ordinances;) and he says, that they are the weeks
of the
harvest.
fA152 It now follows
—
Jeremiah
5:25
25. Your iniquities have turned
away these things, and your sins have withholden good things from
you. 25. Iniquitates vestrae averterunt haec, et scelera vestra
prohibuerunt bonum a vobis.
Inasmuch
as hypocrites, according to what has been said before, often reply to God, and
bring this and that objection, the Prophet here checks what they might have
alleged; for he says that God's beneficence had been restrained by them, and
that it was indeed their fault that it did not flow to them. For they might have
thus objected, "Thou indeed preachest well respecting God's paternal bounty,
because he supplies us with food; but the heat at one time burns our corn, the
unseasonable rains at another time destroy our provisions: in a word, there is
nothing certain, but all things are in a state of disorder." That he might
therefore obviate this objection, he says, that it was on account of their
wickedness and depravity, that God did not so regulate every part of the year as
to allow them to see with their eyes his continued
bounty.
This passage is worthy of special
notice: for God's paternal favor does not so continually shine forth in our
daily sustenance, but that many clouds intercept our view. Hence it is, that
ungodly men think that the years are now barren and then fruitful through mere
chance. We indeed see nothing so regulated in every respect in the world, that
the goodness of God can be seen without clouds and obstructions: but we do not
consider whence this confusion proceeds, even because we obstruct God's access
to us, so that his beneficence does not reach us. We throw heaven and earth into
confusion by our sins. For were we in right order as to our obedience to God,
doubtless all the elements would be conformable, and we should thus observe in
the world an angelic harmony. But as our lusts tumultuate against God; nay, as
we stir up war daily, and provoke him by our pride, perverseness, and obstinacy,
it must needs be, that all things, above and below, should be in disorder, that
the heavens should at one time appear cloudy, and that continuous rains should
at another time destroy the produce of the earth, and that nothing should be
unmixed and unstained in the world. This confusion then, in all the elements, is
to be ascribed to our sins: and this is what is meant by the Prophet. Though
indeed the reproof was then addressed to the Jews, we may yet gather hence a
lesson of general instruction.
These two things
are then both true, — that God is not without a testimony as to his
beneficence, for he gives rain, he gives suitable seasons, he renders the earth
fruitful, so as to supply us with food, — and also, that heaven and earth
are often in great disorder, that many things happen unseasonably, as though God
had no care for us, because we provoke him by our sins, and thus confound and
subvert the order of nature. These two things then ought to be viewed as
connected together: for in the ordinary course of nature we may see the
inconceivable bounty of God towards mankind; but as to accidental evils, the
cause ought to be considered, even this — because we do not allow God to
govern the world in a regular and consistent order, but as far as we can we
disturb and confound his providence. We hence see how suitably the Prophet has
added this truth — that the iniquities of the people had turned
away the beneficence of God.
fA153 It afterwards follows
—
Jeremiah
5:26
26. For among my people are
found wicked men: they lay wait, as he that setteth snares; they set a
trap, they catch men. 26. Quia inventi sunt (aut, inveniuntur) in
populo meo scelerati; aspicient (hoc est, astute observabunt)
secundum ponere laqueos (hoc est, ac si decipulas tenderent;) perditionem
locant, in qua homines capiant.
What
the previous verse contains is here confirmed, — that the Jews, through
their own fault, had deprived themselves of God's favor. It was necessary to do
this; for otherwise they would have had some answer to give, inasmuch as
hypocrites, being so perverse, do not easily yield. Hence the Prophet confirms
what he had said, — that there were
wicked
men among God's people. But this ought not to
be confined to some among them, as it is done by interpreters, who seem not to
explain quite correctly what the Prophet meant. For he does not reprove or
condemn some only; but he says that the people, whom God had chosen, were
wicked.
It is then a general condemnation of the whole people, when he says, that
there were found wicked
men among God's people; as though he had said,
"The wicked are not to be sought among heathens, but iniquity so reigns among
the elect people, that there is in them nothing sound, nothing
pure."
When he says
found,
I understand his meaning to be, found guilty, or convicted: for he means
that their sins were not secret, so that they could escape by evasions; but he
says that they were found, as thieves are found, according to a common saying,
in the very act of stealing. The Prophet then intimates that there was no need
of long dispute, as though the Jews could find out some excuse, for they were
manifestly guilty. But it was much more disgraceful that they should be found
wicked, than that the blind and unbelieving should be found so; for God had
adopted them as his people on this condition — that holiness and purity of
life should prevail among them. Since then they were not only sinners, but
µy[çr,
reshoim, wholly impious and wicked, it was, as I have said, a far more
atrocious thing. And thus he takes away from them every pretense for
evasion.
He afterwards urges still farther his
charge, and says, that every one
looked, or espied, for this is the
meaning of the verb
rwç,
shur. He indeed changes the number, but the sense is not rendered thereby
more obscure: and to look here, is to lie in wait. Then
look,
or lie in wait, did every one, as though they were laying snares as fowlers
do. He then says, that they were furnished with
snares,
by which they dragged men into destruction, after having caught
them.
fA154 What is particular is here mentioned
for what is general: for the Prophet meant to shew that there was then no
faithfulness nor integrity among the people, for every one by frauds and wicked
crafts oppressed the simple. Since then they were so perfidious one towards
another, he fitly compares them to fowlers, who by their snares entrap the
simple birds: but he explains this more clearly in what follows
—
Jeremiah
5:27
27. As a cage is full of birds,
so are their houses full of deceit: therefore they are become great, and
waxen rich. 27. Sicuti cavea plena est ave (hoc est, avibus,) sic
domus eorum plenae sunt fraude: propterea aucti sunt et
ditati.
Jeremiah goes on with the
same subject. He made use, as we have said, of a similitude taken from fowling:
he now applies this similitude to the Jews, — that
their houses
were
full of fraud, as the cage
(some render it
basket
fA155)
is full of
birds: for fowlers, when they go for
game, carry with them either bags or cages or baskets. So then Jeremiah says,
that they collected plunder on every side, so that their houses were full of
frauds: but by fraud he means spoils, which they acquired by unjust
means. It may at the first view seem an obscure language; but if we take the
word
hmrm,
mereme, in a passive sense, there will be nothing ambiguous. The Prophet
then does not use a language strictly correct when he says, that their houses
were full of deceit or fraud; but they were full of spoils which they had
acquired by deceit and fraud. Hence, what he means by fraud were the plunders by
which they had become rich, as he afterwards
explains.
We now perceive, that the meaning of
the Prophet is, — that there was no longer a proof required, that the Jews
circumvented the helpless and the poor, for their houses were filled with such
spoils as made evident their wickedness: they had scraped together their riches
by depriving the helpless and the poor of their substance. And hence he adds,
By this have they increased and
become rich. It is probable that they
gloried in their wealth, like thieves, whose trade is to plunder: for when they
increased, they thought themselves raised above all danger. They were like
courtiers, who by rapines and frauds and tyrannical violence, draw to themselves
from all quarters the possessions of others, so that one got annually sixty
thousands and another a hundred thousands; and then they became the more
ferocious, because they thought that they could not be called to an account,
being blinded by the splendor of their riches. But the Prophet here derides this
besotted glorying, and says, "Behold, they are become great in the world, and
they would have themselves to be on this account exalted;"
increased have
they, he says,
and become
rich; that is, "If any one will now
search their houses, he will indeed find many things by which they make a
display before the eyes of the simple; but they are nothing but rapines,
plunders, frauds, spoils, thefts, and, in a word, robberies." This is what he
simply means. He afterwards adds
—
Jeremiah
5:28
28. 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. 28. Impinguati sunt (nam
wnmç
deducitur ab oleo, perfusi sunt pinguedine,
si Latine et proprie reddere velimus,) postea nitent (vel, sunt
candidi, alludit ad pingues et bene saginatos, quorum cutis est nitida;)
etiam excedunt (vel, quamvis excesserint) verba impii (hoc est,
scelera impiorum:) causam non judicant, causam pupilli, et prosperantur; et
judicium pauperum non judicant.
Here
the Prophet reproves those who were high in dignity, station, and wealth, and
who wished at the same time to be deemed inviolable, because they were the
rulers of the people. He had spoken before generally, but now he assails the
higher orders, the king's counselors, the priests, the judges, and all endowed
with authority. He says, that they were swoln with
fatness,
that they were
shining,
though they had
exceeded,
etc. We see how he confirms what he had briefly referred to; for as
they protected themselves under the pretense of being rich, that they might not
be called to an account, he says, by way of concession, "I allow that ye are
bright and splendid, and indeed that ye are all over gold; but whence is this
splendor? whence is this specious appearance, which dazzles the eyes of the
simple? Ye are bright, ye are fat, though ye have surpassed the words of the
impious, that is, the ways, the doings, and the designs of the impious." He
means, in short, that it was of no avail to the wicked, that by their aspect
they terrified people, that they gained great respect by their riches, and made
men afraid of them: the Prophet admits that they had honors, wealth, splendor,
repute, dignity, and such things; but he says, at the same time, Ye
have surpassed all the doings of
the wicked
fA156. And then he brings this charge
against them, that they did not
judge
judgment.
It
hence appears that the Prophet was not dealing with the common people nor with
private individuals; but that he openly and avowedly reproved the king's court
and the judges. "They judge not judgment, "he says; which means, that they had
no care for executing justice, but suffered thefts and robberies to go
unpunished: and he still enhances their guilt and says,
They judge not the judgment of
the fatherless. Pity towards young
orphans is often found in those who are otherwise cruel; for that age,
especially when deprived of all protection, touches our feelings in a peculiar
manner. Since then young orphans were plundered with impunity, and found no
defense from the judges, their dishonesty appeared most
glaringly.
And he says, that they yet
prospered.
He again repeats, by way of concession, what he had before intimated,
— that it was a foolish and vain pretense, that they openly boasted of
their wealth, honors, and fortunes. How is this, he says?
They prosper; but yet they judge
not the judgment of the poor, that is,
they help not the poor, but dissemble and connive at all the wrongs done to
them. We now then see that he exposes to view the wickedness of the people, so
that not even the principal men should be able to hide themselves; for the Lord
shews that they had wholly neglected their duties, and were even destitute of
all humanity. It afterwards follows
—
Jeremiah
5:29
29. Shall I not visit for these
things? saith the Lord: shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as
this? 29. An super hoc non visitabo dicit Jehova? an in gente quae talis
est, non se ulciscetur anima mea?
He
repeats what we have before noticed, so there is no need of an explanation. But
the repetition is not without its use; for the Jews had become so torpid, that
all reproofs and threatenings were regarded with indifference. Hence God rouses
them with great vehemence, Shall
I not, he says,
visit for these things?
He takes it for granted, that we ought to be
fully persuaded, that he is the judge of the world. It is the proper office of a
judge to punish the wicked, and also to relieve the helpless and the oppressed,
and to check the audacity of those who allow themselves every liberty. God then
reasons here from his own nature and office, as though he had said, "Since I am
God, can I suffer so much impiety and wantonness to prevail unpunished among my
people?" Then he adds —
On such a nation as this,
shall not avenged be my soul?
God transfers here to himself, as we have said
elsewhere, what does not strictly belong to him; but it is the same as though he
had said, "There is no one among earthly judges so void of feeling as to bear
such indignities; for when the judge sees that he is treated with contempt by
the wicked, is he not provoked?"
Avenged then shall be my
soul; as though he said, that he is not
so soft, or so slothful, or so careless, as not to take vengeance on such wanton
contempt. It follows
—
Jeremiah
5:30-31
30. A wonderful and horrible
thing is committed in the land; 30. Stupor (vel, res stupenda) et
foeditas in terra (vel, res pudenda;
r[ç,
unde nomen deductum est, significat proprie cogitare vel reputare; sed
videtur per antiphrasin Deus hoc loco, ut aliis quibusdam, notare rem
prodigiosam, quae non cadit sub sensum humanum, quasi diceret hoc non posse
concipi neque apprehendi hominis mente; scio hoc posse videri novum, sed tamen
subest optima ratio, ut mihi videtur. Postea
addit.)
31. 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 thereof? 31.
Prophetae prophetant in mendacio, et sacerdotes dominantur per manum ipsorum
(vel, accipiunt in manus suas,) et populus meus voluit ita (hoc est,
ita vult et appetit:) et quid facietis in novissimo
ejus?
The Prophet, being not
satisfied with the reproof which we have observed, speaks still more strongly
against the wickedness of the people. He then says, that so deplorable was their
state as to make all to feel amazed.
A stupendous
thing, he says, has happened, which
exceeds all human conception, and cannot be comprehended. By the two words he
uses, he intimates that the impiety of the people could not be expressed in
words or could not be conceived by the mind; for it was a monstrous thing. This
is the meaning.
fA157
Let us now see what was this
monstrous thing which the Prophet here refers to, and which he abhorred.
The
prophets, he says,
prophesy
falsely. It was no doubt enough to make
all astonished, when these impostors assumed the name of prophets at Jerusalem,
where God had chosen his habitation and his sanctuary: how great and how base a
profanation was it of God's name? There were indeed at that time impostors
everywhere, who boasted that they were God's prophets, who in many places passed
as oracles the delusions of Satan; but to see the ministers of the devil in the
very sanctuary of God, (which was then the only one in the world,) even in the
very city where he had, as it has been said, his habitation and dwelling, was a
monstrous thing, which ought to have made all men astonished. It is indeed a
detestable thing under the Papacy, when monks and similar unprincipled men
ascend the pulpit, and there most shamefully pretend that they are the true
prophets of God, and faithful teachers; but still it would be doubly monstrous,
were any among us to corrupt pure doctrine with their errors and infect the
people with their superstitions. It was not then without reason that Jeremiah
introduced his subject by saying, that it was an astonishing thing and hardly to
be conceived, when prophets
prophesied
falsely.
He
then adds, Priests receive into
their hands; so some render the words:
but there may be a twofold meaning. Sampson is said in
<071409>Judges
14:9, to have received into his hands honey from the lion, and the same verb is
found there: but as it means also to rule, to govern, the exposition most
suitable to this place is, — that the priests ruled by the means of the
false prophets. At the same time, if any one takes the other view, — that
the priests received into their hands, that is, that they gathered and
accumulated gifts from all quarters, the meaning would not be
unsuitable.
fA158
However this may be, the Prophet
evidently shews that there was a mutual collusion between the false prophets and
the priests. The false prophets, he says, deceive the people by their
flatteries, and what do the priests? It was their duty to oppose them:
they
receive, he says,
into their
hands; that is, they are satisfied, for
they see that these fallacies bring gain to them, and therefore they easily
assent to what is taught by the false prophets. The same thing is to be seen at
this day under the Papacy: the monks flatter the people and prop up the whole
system of Popery; and hence these unprincipled men call themselves the chariots
of the Pope; for the Pope is carried as it were on four wheels — the four
mendicant orders. And this they boast, when they wish to shew what adepts they
are in lying. The Pope then is carried by the four wheels of the mendicants. We
see how he has honored and daily honors these mendicants with privileges, and
why? Because they prop up his tyranny. Such was at that time the state of the
people; the priests took their prey, and the false prophets snatched also a part
of it, like these hungry dogs at this day; who yet do not act so oppressively as
the Pope: they lick as it were his seat, like dogs; while he and his mitered
bishops devour the fattest spoils. The meaning then, that they received into
their hands, is not unsuitable.
But when we
consider the main drift of the passage, it is more in harmony with it to say,
that the priests ruled by their
means; for without the false prophets
they could not have retained their influence over the people; they must have
been repudiated by them all. Since then they ruled by their means, there was a
mutual collusion between them.
He then adds,
And my people have wished it to
be so. The common people, no doubt,
exculpated themselves, as they do at this day, who hold forth this excuse as
their shield, "O, we are not learned, we have never been in school, and what can
we do but to follow our bishops?" Thus, then, at this day, the lower orders, the
multitude, seek to cast off every blame from themselves. But the Prophet says
here, that the people loved
to have things so. And, doubtless, we shall
find that to be ever true which is said in
<051303>Deuteronomy
13:3, that when false prophets come, it is for the purpose of trying God's
people, whether they from the heart love God. It is then his object to try our
religion, whenever he gives loose reins to impostors and false prophets: for
every one who truly loves God will be preserved by his Spirit from being led
away by such deceivers. When, therefore, ignorant men are deluded, it is certain
that they are justly punished for their neglect and contempt of God, because
they have not been sufficiently attentive to his service; yea, because they have
wished for impostors, according to what has been also often said by the monks,
"The world wishes to be deceived, let it be deceived in the name of the devil."
These impostors have become so shameless, as to boast that they are the
ministers of Satan to deceive men. However, that common saying has been found
true; for the world is never deceived except with its own consent, and
willingly; for those who are the most ignorant close their eyes against clear
light, and shun God as much as they can, and seek to hide themselves in
darkness, according to what Christ says,
"Whosoever committeth sin
hateth the light."
(<430320>John
3:20)
The Prophet adds in the last place,
And what will ye do at
last, or at the end of it? Some omit the
pronoun
h,
he;
and others apply it to the false prophets and the priests; but the Prophet,
I have no doubt, refers to Jerusalem,
What will ye do at the end of
it? For we know that as Jerusalem had
been founded by God's hand, and while it had him as its protector and guardian,
it was safe; but this was a false confidence, when they despised God and gloried
in their wickedness.
What,
then, he says, will ye do at
the end of it? as though he had said, "You
deceive yourselves, if you think that this city will be perpetual; for its
overthrow is nigh at hand: what then will ye do, when the city itself shall bc
destroyed, except that you shall be all destroyed together with
it?" fA159
Prayer
Grant, Almighty God, that since we have
been hitherto extremely deaf to thy many exhortations, and also to those
threatenings by which thou hast sharply stimulated us to repentance, — O
grant, that this perverseness may not always remain in us, but that we may at
length submit to thee, not only for a short time, but continually, so that we
may to the end devote ourselves wholly to thee, and thus glorify thy name, that
we may at last become partakers of that glory, which has been procured for us by
the blood of thy only — begotten Son. — Amen.
CHAPTER
6
Lecture
Twenty-Third
Jeremiah
6:1
1. 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. 1. Congregamini filii Benjamin e medio
Jerusalem, et in Thekua clangite tuba, et Bethhacherem tollite signum; quia
malum visum est ab Aquilone et afflictio
magna.
WE have already seen that
oftentimes punishment is not only mentioned by this Prophet as being nigh at
hand, but is also set as it were before our eyes; and we have shewn the reason
for this, — because men are not only deaf, but wholly thoughtless,
whenever God threatens them. As reproofs make no impressions, and even
threatenings are not sufficient to arouse and awake them, it is necessary to set
before them vivid descriptions, and to represent the event as present. Jeremiah
continues this mode of teaching; he addresses the tribe of Benjamin; for one
half of Jerusalem was in the territory of that tribe; And as he was from
Anathoth, he addresses his own people and kindred rather than others, as he
could use greater freedom. Had he directly reproved the Jews, they might not
have so well borne with him; but as he begins with his neighbors, the tribe of
Benjamin, it became more easy to bear his
reproofs.
Some understand the words, "Be ye
assembled, and flee;" others read, "Go ye in haste, "but for what reason I know
not. I do not think that flight is meant here; but I rather regard the Prophet
as ironically encouraging the citizens of Jerusalem and their neighbors to go
forth, as it is usual, to meet their enemies; and this we may easily learn from
the context: Be
ye
assembled,
he says, from the midst of
Jerusalem; that is, Be aroused and go forth.
And he indirectly condemns their indulgences, for they had been lying as it were
in the bosom of their mother. Like infants in the womb, the Jews were not
apprehensive of any danger; they indulged themselves, and were wholly secure and
thoughtless. Hence he says, "From the midst of Jerusalem be ye
assembled."
fA160
Then he says,
Blow ye the trumpet in
Tekoa. They were wont, no doubt, when any
danger was at hand, to blow the trumpet in that town; and then the citizens of
Jerusalem went forth in large bodies to resist their enemies: for the Prophet
follows the usual custom, and speaks as of things well known.
And set up a sign
on the house of Haccerem,
µrkh.
No doubt this place was so called, because many forces were planted there. It
means literally the house of the vineyard. It is, indeed, a proper name; but its
etymology ought to be borne in mind; for as vines were usually planted on hills,
it is probable that this place stood high; and a sign might have been thence
given to many around. He therefore says, "Set up a sign,
taçm,
meshat, a word derived from
açn,
nesha, which is also found here: but some interpreters render it "fire"
or bonfire; others "banner;" and others "tower." They who render it tower or
citadel have no reason in their favor; for towers could not have been suddenly
raised up. But it is probable, as I have already said, that thence a sign was
given to those around, as from a watch — tower, whenever there was any
cause of fear. I am therefore inclined to take the word as meaning a sign; for
the word "banner" would have been too restricted. Literally it is, "Elevate an
elevation." The word "sign, "then, is the most
suitable.
fA161
For an
evil, he says,
from the north has
appeared.
fA162 The Prophet points out whence ruin
would soon come, even from the Chaldeans, for God had appointed them as the
ministers and the executioners of his vengeance in destroying Jerusalem and the
whole tribe of Judah. We hence see what the Prophet means: he ridicules the
Jews, who were asleep in their vices, promising to themselves impunity, and
despising all the judgments of God: "Be now assembled, "he says, "from the midst
of Jerusalem;" as though he said, that they could not be safe in the city,
without going forth to meet their enemies: "Blow ye the trumpet in Tekoa;" and
then he adds, "Let the inhabitants of Bethhaccerem, "that is, of the house of
the vineyard, "set up signals; for an evil is nigh at hand, and a great
distress;" from whom? from the Chaldeans. The prediction was more likely to be
believed, when he thus pointed out their enemies, as it were, by his finger. It
afterwards follows —
Jeremiah
6:2-3
2. I have likened the daughter
of Zion to a comely and delicate woman. 2. Quietae (alii
vertunt, speciosam; sed alter sensus melius quadrat, quietae
igitur) et delicatae similem feci filiam
Sion.
3. 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. 3. Super eam venient
pastores et greges eorum, figent adversus eam tabernecula sua in circuitu;
pascent vir ad manum suam (hoc est, quisque ad locum
suum).
As the place, where the
Prophet was born, was pastoral, he retained many expressions derived from his
education; for God did not divest his servants of every natural endowment when
he appointed them to teach his people. Hence the Prophet here speaks according
to notions imbibed in his early age and childhood. The daughter of Sion, he
says, is like a quiet maid, that is, one dwelling at leisure and enjoying
herself; and yet she would be exposed to many indignities, for come shall
shepherds, and around fix their tents; and the whole country would be subjected
to plunder. But it is doubtful whether the Prophet says, that the daughter of
Sion might be compared to a maid, tender and delicate, dwelling at ease and
cheerful, or whether he means, that rest had been for a time granted to the
people. There seems, indeed, to be no great difference, though there is some,
between the two explanations.
If we take the
verb,
ytymd,
damiti, in the sense of comparing, as interpreters do, then it is the
same as though the Prophet had said, "I seem to see in the state of Jerusalem
the image of a tender and delicate maid." Thus Jeremiah speaks in his own name.
But the sentence may be more fitly applied to God, — that he had made the
daughter of Sion quiet for a time, and had given her peace with her enemies, so
that she lived at ease and cheerfully.
Though
these two views differ, yet the subject itself is nearly the same. The Prophet,
no doubt, condemns here the Jews for their extreme torpidity, inasmuch as they
had wholly misapplied the quietness granted them by God. He then proves that
they were very thoughtless and stupid in thinking that their tranquillity would
be perpetual, for it was God's favor, and only for a time. Hence he says, that
the Jews were until that very day like a tender maid. For though the country of
the ten tribes had been laid waste, and all had been driven away into exile, yet
the kingdom of Judah continued safe. They had, indeed, been plundered by
enemies, but in comparison with their brethren they had been very kindly
treated. This, then, is the reason, why he says that they were like a maid
delicate and tender.
fA163
But he afterwards adds,
Come shall
shepherds, etc.; that is, there is no ground
for the Jews to deceive themselves, because God has hitherto spared them, and
restrained the assaults of enemies; for now shall
come
shepherds. He keeps to the same metaphor;
"come, "he says, "shall shepherds, "together with their flocks; that is, come
shall leaders of armies with their forces. But I have already reminded you, that
the Prophet here has a regard to the city where he had been born, and adopts a
pastoral language. Come
then
shall shepherds with their
flocks; fix shall they their tents, and feed shall each in his
place, he means that the whole of Jerusalem
would be so much in the power of enemies, that each one would freely choose his
own part or his own portion; for when there is any fear, then the shepherds
gather their flocks, that they may assist one another; but when everything is in
their own power, they move here and there as they please. This free acting then
intimates, that the Jews would have no strength, and would be helped by no aid;
but that the shepherds would surround the whole city and besiege it: every one,
he says, would be in his own place.
fA164 It follows
—
Jeremiah
6:4-5
4. 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. 4. Sanctificate super eam
proelium; surgite et ascendamus meridie: vae nobis, quia inclinavit dies, quia
extensae sunt umbrae
vespertinae.
5. Arise, and let us
go by night, and let us destroy her palaces. 5. Surgite et ascendamus
noctu, et demoliamur palatia
ejus.
The Prophet leaves here the
similitude he had adopted; for he does not now speak of shepherds, but expressly
describes the enemies, as coming with great force, and furiously attacking and
laying waste both the city and the whole of Judea. He was before like God's
herald, proclaiming war; but he now, by a sort of personification, introduces
the Chaldeans encouraging one another to fight.
Sanctify,
he says, war against
her. So the Hebrews speak; for in all ages
wars, we know, were proclaimed by a solemn rite. God, no doubt, has implanted
this feeling in all nations, that no wars should be suddenly undertaken, and
that no arms should be taken up except for a lawful reason: for the proclamation
of war was a testimony, that they did not contend with one another but for
causes just and necessary. It is indeed true, that wars have been often
undertaken rashly, and for no just causes; but yet it was God's will that this
custom should remain and continue in use, in order to take away excuse from men
given to cruelty, or led by ambition to disturb the world and harass others.
This then is the reason for this manner of speaking,
Sanctify
war; it is the same as though they declared and
proclaimed a just war by a solemn ceremony. It was according to the common
practice that the Prophet spoke when he said,
Sanctify war against
her, as we say in our language, Sommez
— la.
Then follows the readiness of
the enemies, yea, their incredible quickness, for he shews that they were
extremely swift, Arise ye, and
let us ascend at mid-day. But they who come to
assail a city do so usually in the morning. When the heat prevails, it is not a
suitable time, for the heat of the sun debilitates the body. Then enemies rest
when night comes, except an unexpected advantage should offer itself: but having
been refreshed, they rise early with recruited strength for fighting; they scale
the walls or assail the city by other means, or beat down the walls by warlike
instruments: but to begin the work at mid-day, when a city is to be attacked, is
by no means usual. Hence the Prophet intimates, that so ripened was God's
judgment, that the Chaldeans, after having come to the walls of the city, would
not wait, no, not even a few hours.
Arise ye, and let us ascend at
mid-day.
He
then subjoins, Alas for us, for
declined has the day, and the evening shadows are
extended. He employs a military language; for
soldiers, we know, are for the most part fierce and barbarous, and never speak
in moderate terms. They have ever in their mouths, "Alas for us!" or they use
some other words, reproachful either to God or to men. The Prophet then
expresses the words of the soldiers; for he describes the Chaldeans, and
represents, as I have said, to the Jews the scene as present, that he might
dissipate their delusions, in which they were wholly asleep.
Alas,
then, for
us!
for declined has
already
the
day, already
have the evening shadows
extended: they who have added, "Too far,"
because they had declined more than usual, have mistaken the meaning of the
Prophet. It is the same as though he had said, "Already the night is nigh, and
why should we give over? and why do we not make such an impetuous assault as to
take the city in a moment?" This is the real meaning of the
words.
He afterwards adds,
Arise ye, and let us ascend in
the night; that is, "As we cannot take the city
in six hours, (from mid-day to night were six hours, for they divided the day
into twelve hours, and the first hour began at the rising of the sun, and the
twelfth hour closed the day,) as then we cannot take the city in six hours, let
us attack it in the night." We see here how graphically is described the extreme
ardor of their enemies; for they were urged on by the hidden power of God; and
this is what Jeremiah intended to
express.
fA165 He afterwards adds
—
Jeremiah
6:6
6. 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. 6. Quia sic dicit Jehova exercituum, Excidite ligna et fundite
super Jerusalem aggerem (alii vertunt, balistam; sed nomen aggeris hic
melius convenit;) ipsa est urbs visitationis (hic variant
interpretes, et quidem exercitati in lingua Hebraea sic depravant sensum
ut piqeat referre quid ipsi ausi sunt scribere,) tota oppressio (vel,
rapina; nam qç[
significat rapere, rapina ergo) in
medio ejus.
The Prophet now points
out the cause why a near calamity awaited both the city and the whole of Judea.
Two things were necessary to be done: as the Jews had hardened themselves in
their thoughtlessness, so that they disregarded all the threatenings of the
prophets, it was necessary to expose and reprove this stupidity. This is what
the Prophet has hitherto done. But the other thing needful to be done was, to
make the Jews to know that they had not to do with the Chaldeans or other
nations, but with God himself, with whom they had for a long time carried on
war. The Prophet then, after having set before the eyes of his own kindred the
calamity which was then nigh at hand, shews now that God was its
author.
Thus saith Jehovah of
hosts. He reminds them here of the judgment of
God, lest they thought that they could overcome their enemies, even if they
fought with the greatest ardor and the greatest courage, for they could not
overcome God. Thus
then
saith
the God
of
hosts; as though he had said, "The Chaldeans
will indeed bring their forces, which shall be great and strong; but the contest
will be now with God, whom ye have so often and for a long time and so
pertinaciously provoked." Thus
then
saith
now the God
of
hosts,
—
Cut ye down
wood; that is, "The Chaldeans will not of
themselves attack you, but they will fight for God, and serve him as hired
soldiers." As we have seen elsewhere that God blows the trumpet, and sends by a
hiss for whomsoever he pleases; so also he says now that the Chaldeans would
carry on war under the authority and banner of God. Command them then did God to
cut down wood and to cast up a
mound. We indeed know that warlike engines were
made of timber, but the most suitable word here, as it is evident, is
mound.
It follows,
She is the city of
visitation. Jeremiah shews here that God would
justly act towards the Jews, though with much severity, because they had nearly
become putrid in their vices; for this reason he calls it the
city of
visitation. They therefore who render the
words, "that it may be laid waste, "or, "it is laid waste, "misconceive the
meaning; and indeed they touch neither heaven nor earth, for they consider not
the Prophet's design, but only dwell on the words. But it is certain, that
Jerusalem is called the city of visitation, because God had exercised long
patience and suspended punishment, until the ripened time of vengeance came, so
that it could no longer be endured, inasmuch as it had become more and more
corrupt through the forbearance of God. It is, he says, the
city of
visitation; that is, "The time of extreme
vengeance is now come; for I have tried all means to see whether there was any
hope of repentance; but I now find that she is wholly irreclaimable. She is then
the city of visitation; its ruin cannot be suspended any
longer."
The Prophet obviates here, as I have
already said, all those complaints which the Jews were ever ready to make; for
they were wont to murmur when any severity appeared, and say, "God deals cruelly
with us; where is his covenant? where is that paternal kindness which he has
promised to us?" As then the Jews were wont thus to expostulate with God, the
Prophet says that it was the city
of visitation, and the whole of it, and not a
part only. As then there was nothing pure in it, he says that it could no longer
be spared: and he adds one kind of evil; but stating a part for the whole, he
means (as it is said elsewhere,
<240711>Jeremiah
7:11) that Jerusalem was a den of thieves: he therefore says that it was full of
rapines,
and that oppression
was in its very
bowels.
fA166 It follows
—
Jeremiah
6:7
7. 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. 7. Sicuti scaturire
facit puteus aquas suas (hoc est, sicuti scaturiunt aquae ex fonte,
vel, puteo,) sic scaturire fecit malitiam suam; violentia et deceptio
(aut, vastatio) audita fuit in ea coram facie mea assidue, dolor et
percussio (alii vertunt, plagam; sed nomen percussionis melius
convenit.)
The Prophet enlarges
on what he had said in the last verse; for he had shewn, by mentioning one kind
of evil, that Jerusalem was a den of thieves, as oppression dwelt in the midst
of it. But he now, by a comparison, amplifies his former statement, and says,
that violence, oppression, devastation, grief, and smiting, streamed forth like
waters from a fountain. It is possible for many vices to break out from a place,
but repentance afterwards follows; but when men cease not, and heap vices on
vices, it then appears that they swell with wickedness, and even burst with it,
as they cannot repress it: they are like a fountain, which ever bubbles up, and
cannot contain its own waters. We hence see the object of the
Prophet.
The word
rwb,
bur, means a fountain, and
rab,
bar, means also a fountain, or a well, and they are no doubt synonymous:
and hence appears the mistake of a very learned man among the Hebrews, who makes
a difference between the two, and says that the first is a cistern, which
receives waters, but has no streaming. That this is false appears from the words
of the Prophet; for a cistern does not cast forth
water.
But with regard to what is taught, we
sufficiently understand that what the Prophet means is, — that the Jews
had so given up themselves to their vices, that they were ever contriving some
new way of doing evil, as waters never cease to stream forth from the fountain;
and it is a proof, as I have said, that a nation is wholly irreclaimable, when
there is no cessation from evil deeds, when there is no intermission of
injuries, when men ever indulge in their vices; and as the Jews could not deny
that such was the atrocity of their wickedness, the Prophet again assumes the
name of God, and says, Heard have
been oppressions, and
smitings are before
me; as though he had said, "They will gain
nothing by evasions, for if they make a hundred excuses before men, it will be
wholly useless to them when they shall come before God's tribunal." And he again
adds the adverb
dymt,
tamid, continually, which answers to the perpetual streaming of
waters.
fA167 It follows
—
Jeremiah
6:8
8. Be thou instructed, O
Jerusalem, lest my soul depart from thee; lest I make thee desolate, a land not
inhabited. 8. Erudire Jerusalem, ne discedat (vel, avellatur)
anima mea abs to; ne ponam to desertum (vel, solitudinem) et terram
inhabitabilem (hoc est, quae non
habitatur.)
Though the Prophet had
spoken as though there was no remedy for the evils of Jerusalem, he yet exhorts
it to seek peace with God, and addresses men past remedy in his name. It is then
the same as though God was stopping in the middle course of his wrath, and
saying, "What is to be done? Shall I destroy the city which I have chosen?" He
then attributes here to God a paternal feeling, as we also find in several other
places: God appeared as unwilling to proceed to extreme rigor in punishing his
people.
"Alas! I will now take
vengeance on mine enemies,"
he says
by Isaiah.
(<230124>Isaiah
1:24)
He called them enemies, and justly too; for as it was
said before, they ceased not to carry on war against him; but he spoke with
grief: "Alas! must I take vengeance on mine enemies; I would, however, willingly
spare them, were it possible." God is not indeed subject to grief or to
repentance; but his ineffable goodness cannot be otherwise expressed to us but
by such mode of speaking. So also, in this place, we see that God as it were
restrains himself; for he had previously commanded the enemies to ascend quickly
the walls, to overturn the towers, and to destroy the whole city; but now, as
though he had repented, he says,
Be
instructed,
fA168
Jerusalem; that is, "Can we not yet be
reconciled?" It is like the conduct of an offended father, who intends to punish
his son, and yet desires to moderate his displeasure, and to blend some
indulgence with rigor. Be
then
instructed;
that is, "There is yet room for reconciliation, if thou wishest; provided thou
shewest thyself willing to relinquish that perverseness by which thou hast
hitherto provoked me, I will in return prove myself to be a
father."
There is no doubt but the object of the
threatenings of the prophets was to lead the people to know their sins, and
suppliantly to seek pardon; for why were the unbelieving threatened, except that
God thereby proved whether they were healable? It is indeed true that the
reprobate are known by God, and that God does not try or seek to find what is in
their hearts, as though he did not know their obstinacy; but as I have already
said, God speaks here after the manner of men: and he also shews what is the end
of teaching, which is to lead men to repentance; and this cannot be done without
giving them the hope of pardon and reconciliation. The Prophet thus briefly
shews here for what purpose he had hitherto so dreadfully threatened the Jews,
even to lead them at length to
repentance.
Lest torn shall be
my soul from
thee.
fA169 Here God more clearly shews that he was
as yet restrained by love. He alludes no doubt to a similitude which we have
observed in another place; for God sustains the character of a spouse to his
Church; and hence he shews, that he had not yet divested himself of that love
which a husband has towards his wife. For a husband, when grievously offended at
his wife, cannot immediately throw aside his conjugal affection; some feeling of
this kind will ever remain. And we have seen in the fourth chapter, that God
surpasses all husbands in kindness; for he says there, "When a repudiated wife
has found another husband, will the former receive her again? Return to me, thou
harlot, return to me, thou strumpet and adulteress, and I am ready to pardon
thee." It is the same course that God pursues here, "Be instructed, Jerusalem,
lest my soul wholly depart from thee;" as though he had said, "Even though I am
now angry, and have resolved severely to punish thy perfidy and rebellion, I
shall yet be reconciled to thee, provided thou returnest." And it is added,
Lest I make thee a desolate land,
a land
uninhabited.
The
Prophet in short shews in this verse, that however grievously offended God was
with his people, there was yet a hope of pardon; for he would be propitious to
the people, if they turned and humbly confessed their sins, and sought to return
into favor with him. It follows
—
Jeremiah
6:9
9. Thus saith the LORD of hosts,
They shall thoroughly glean the remnant of Israel as a vine: turn back thine
hand as a grape gatherer into the baskets. 9. Sic dicit Jehova
exercituum, Racemando racemabunt quasi vitem reliquias Israel; reduc
(vel, redire fac) manum tuam quasi vindemiator ad canistra (alii
vertunt, ad ramos.)
God here
confirms the former statement, as though he had said, that he dreaded a sight so
sad and mournful, which yet the Jews disregarded. He then shews, that he did not
in vain exhort the Jews, even though late, to repent, for he foresaw how
dreadful would be their calamities. Hence he says,
Thus saith Jehovah of hosts,
Gleaning they shall glean; for the word here
does not mean to gather the vintage, but to glean, grapiller, after the
vintage. As after the harvest the poor follow and gather ears of corn here and
there, until nothing remains in the field; so also in vintages when there is a
gleaning, nothing remains. Hence God in the law forbade the vineyards to be
gleaned, that there might be something left for the poor.
(<031910>Leviticus
19:10;
<052421>Deuteronomy
24:21.) But he says here, "Gleaning they shall glean as a vine;" he speaks not
of the people but of the remnant.
The ten tribes
had been plundered, and at length their whole country had been laid waste, most
of them had been led into exile, but a few had sought hiding — places for
a time: and he says that they were like gleanings: "though, "he says, "there be
a few grapes, yet these shall follow." In short, the Prophet sets before the
Jews that vengeance of God, which was known already to them as much as to the
Israelites, the ten tribes: and yet he shews that God's vengeance was not
completed, for there were still a few remaining, a gleaning: "What then shall
come of you? What indeed! ye have seen that your brethren have been plundered,
ye have seen that they and their children have been slain; ye have seen that all
kinds of cruelty have been exercised towards them; and yet after the name of
Israel has been obliterated, and their country now deserted, has become a waste,
God will still punish the remnant, and ye shall see that his judgment will
shortly overtake them; and what do ye, wretched beings, yet look for? and how
great is your torpidity, which never comes to an end? why do you not seek to be
reconciled to God, when such an opportunity is offered to
you?"
We now then apprehend the Prophet's
object. And then he says, Return
thy hand as a vintager to the baskets; that is,
"Behold the vintagers, they stimulate one another; so that there is no end of
gleaning, as they ever return to their baskets, until they gather everything,
until there remains not a grape on the
vine." fA170
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that since thou
kindly invitest us to repentance, and urgest us also by setting before us
examples of thy wrath, — O grant, that we may not continue perversely
disobedient, but render ourselves tractable and submissive to thee, so that we
may not meet with that dreadful severity which thou didst threaten to thine
ancient people, but anticipate the wrath which thou didst formerly denounce on
them; and may we thus with a pious heart return to thee, that we may find by
experience that thou art ever a propitious Father to sinners, whenever with a
sincere heart and without dissimulation they return to thee, through Christ
Jesus our Lord. — Amen.
LECTURE
TWENTY-FOURTH
Jeremiah
6:10
10. 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. 10. Ad quem loquar? et quem contestabor ut
audiant? Ecce incircumcisa auris eorum, et non poterunt attendere; ecce verbum
Jehovae fuit illis opprobrio? non acquieverunt in eo (hoc est, non
oblectati sunt;
˜pj
significat capere oblectationem, Ils n'y ont prins nul
plaisir.)
The Prophet here shews
there was no reason for him to labor any longer in trying to reform the people,
for he spoke to the deaf. He had said before, according to our lecture
yesterday, that God was still ready to be reconciled to the Jews, if they
repented; but now, referring to himself, he says that his words were wholly
lost. Hence he asks a question as respecting a thing strange or unexpected.
To
whom, he says,
shall I speak? and to whom shall
I protest? He had indeed, as we found
yesterday, exhorted the people to repent: but there is nothing inconsistent in
all this; for he wished, as far as he could, to secure, the safety of the
people. Even God had commanded this; and it was his will, as it was yesterday
stated, that a testimony should be borne, that it was not his fault, according
to what had been taught, that he was not reconciled to the
people.
We now then see that the whole passage
harmonizes; for Jeremiah performed his office in trying to find out whether the
people were healable; but when he saw that such were their obstinacy that it
allowed of no remedy, he exclaims as one astonished,
To whom shall I speak? and to
whom shall I protest? The meaning is, that the
people were so given up to impiety, that the prophets spent their labor in vain
while endeavoring to reform them. And the first clause he confirms by another,
To whom shall I protest?
He intimates that they had despised not only
what had been plainly taught them, but also protestations, which possess much
greater power. He means that their wickedness could be cured by no remedies,
that they had not only rejected plain truth and serious warnings, but had also
perversely resisted solemn
protestations.
That they may
hear, he says. He intimates, that though
he had faithfully performed his office, yet his labor was without any fruit, for
all the Jews were deaf. Hence he adds,
Behold, uncircumcised is their
ear. This metaphor is common in the
prophets. The uncircumcised ear is that which rejects all true doctrine. An
uncircumcised heart is that which is perverse and rebellious. But we ought to
understand the reason of this: as circumcision was an evidence of obedience, so
the Scripture calls those uncircumcised who are unteachable, who cast away every
fear of God and all sense of religion, and follow their own lusts and desires.
But to be thus called was greatly disliked by the Jews; for circumcision gave
them no common ground of confidence, since it was the symbol and pledge of
adoption, and since they knew that they were thereby separated from other
nations so as to be called God's holy people. But the Prophet divested them of
this vain conceit by calling them uncircumcised in heart and ears, for they had
dealt perfidiously with God when they promised to be obedient to his
will.
The external sign was of itself nothing,
when the end was disregarded. It was God's will to consecrate his ancient people
to himself by circumcision: but when they became satisfied with the visible sign
only, there was no longer the reality, and God's covenant was profaned. It is
the same at this day with respect to baptism; they who wish to be deemed
Christians, boast of it, while at the same time they shew no fear of God, and
while their whole life obliterates the true character of baptism. It is hence
evident, that they are sacrilegious, for they pollute what is holy. And for this
reason Paul calls the letter [the outward rite] of circumcision, a sign without
the reality.
(<450227>Romans
2:27.) So at this day baptism may be called the letter in all the profane, who
have no regard to its design: for God receives us into his Church on the
condition that we are the members of Christ, and that being ruled by his Spirit
we renounce the lusts of our flesh. But when we seek under the cloak of baptism
to associate God with the Devil, it is a most detestable sacrilege. Such was the
stupid presumption of the Jews. This was the reason why the prophets so often
charged them with being uncircumcised in hearts and ears: "Ye are God's holy
people; give a proof of this: ye indeed boast that you have been circumcised;
surely, the cutting off of a small pellicle does not satisfy God; shew that your
hearts and ears have been circumcised: but uncircumcision remains in your
hearts, and it remains in your ears; ye are then
heathens."
We now then see the meaning of the
Prophet, and also the reason why Scripture speaks so much of the uncircumcision
of the hearts and ears, and it was this, — to prove the Jews guilty of
profaning that sign, which ought to have been a pledge of their adoption, and to
have served as a profession of a new life.
It
was not to lessen their guilt that Jeremiah said,
They could not attend
or give ear. If any one objects and asks,
"Ought it to be deemed a crime that they could not attend?" The Prophet, as I
have said, did not extenuate their guilt, but on the contrary shewed that they
were so sunk in their vices, that they were not masters of themselves; as the
case is with a drunkard, who is not in his right mind; but as he has contracted
this vice of intemperance, his going astray or his ignorance is in no way
excusable. So also the Prophet says, that the Jews could not attend to the word
of the Lord, because they had surrendered themselves up to the Devil, so that
they were become his slaves; as Paul says of those who were without the grace of
God, that they were sold under sin,
(<450714>Romans
7:14;) and the Scripture says elsewhere the
same.
In short, Jeremiah here teaches us, that
such was the habit of sinning contracted by the Jews, that they were no longer
free to do what was right; for the Devil led them here and there at his
pleasure, as though they were bound in his chains. And thus he sets forth their
depravity as hopeless. Even Aristotle, though he is of no authority as to the
power of the will, for he holds free-will, (he knew nothing of original sin and
of the corruption of nature,) yet allows that those who are otherwise wholly
free cannot do what is right, when they become so hardened in their vices, that
intemperance,
ajkra>teia,
rules in them: for intemperance is a tyrant, which so subdues all the feelings
and senses of men, that all liberty is destroyed. We now then see what the
Prophet had in view: he meant not that the Jews sinned, because they had not the
power to resist; but because they had so plunged themselves into the abyss of
wickedness, that they had sold themselves as it were to the Devil, who held them
fast bound, and furiously drove them along as he
pleased.
And this we learn more fully from what
follows; for he says, Behold, the
word of Jehovah has been to them a reproach; and it has not pleased
them, or they have not delighted in it;
for ˜pj
means to take delight in a thing. The Prophet now
more clearly shews, that the fault was in the Jews themselves, because they had
despised God. Whence then was the impotence of which he had spoken? Even from
their licentiousness, because they deemed God and his prophets as nothing.
Since, then, their minds were thus hardened so as impiously to despise the
truth, it followed that they could not hear and attend, inasmuch as they were
deprived of all right knowledge. Whence was this? Even because they had closed
their eyes and deafened their ears, and given themselves up altogether to the
Devil, so that he led them into every kind of madness. In short, he shews at the
end of the verse what was the beginning of all their evils, even because the
word of God did not please them, that is, because they had cast aside
every care for true religion, because they were not pleased when the prophets
came and offered to them the favor of God. As then the truth had become unsavory
to them, so that they rejected it, when it ought to have been especially
delightful to them, so it happened that they became wholly stupid and void of
all judgment and reason; and hence also came the uncircumcision of the ears of
which mention has been made.
fA171 It follows
—
Jeremiah
6:11
11. Therefore I am full of the
fury of the Lord; I am weary with 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. 11. Ergo indignatione (vel, ira) Jehovae repletus sum
(copula hic ponitur vice illativae particulae, nisi adversative resolvere
libeat, atqui, vel, ego autem) et laboravi continendo, ad effundendum
super parvulum in compitis (hoc est, in publico, foris,) et super
consilium juvenum (µyrwjb
sunt proprie electi, nam
rjb
est eligere; sed ita vocantur juvenes, qui sunt in flore aetatis)
similiter: quoniam etiam vir cum uxore capientur, senex cum pleno
dierum.
The prophet here rises
higher; for it was not enough simply to set forth the truth to refractory men,
but it was necessary to stimulate them even sharply, and sometimes to wound
them, for they could not otherwise be roused, so great was their hardness. Hence
the Prophet proceeds in the same strain with what we observed yesterday; and he
declares that he was full of the
indignation of God. This may be taken passively
and actively, — that the Prophet was indignant with holy zeal, because he
undertook the cause of God, — or, that he dreaded the judgment, which the
Jews nevertheless in no way heeded. But he speaks here no doubt according to the
inspiration of the Holy Spirit, as though he said, that he did not announce what
his own mind suggested, but what was dictated by the Spirit of God. This
indignation is, in short, to be applied to what was taught, as though he had
said, "If I address you with great vehemence, think not that as a man I forget
moderation, being influenced by wrath; but the Spirit of God leads and impels
me. Whatever indignation then is found in my language, whatever vehemence and
sharpness and menacing, all this is from God's Spirit, and not from my own
feelings as a man." It was on this account that he says, that he was filled with
the indignation of God.
What follows confirms
this statement; for he says, that he was
wearied with
restraint; as though he said, that so
great was the impulse of God's wrath, that it could not be withheld from
breaking out into vehemence. And hence we learn, as I have said, that the
Prophet declares no other thing than that he was not moved by his own
indignation, or by any feeling of his own nature, but that he of necessity
followed where he was led by the hidden influence of God's Spirit, lest what he
taught might be despised; for the Jews had long accustomed themselves to use
their taunts and to say, that they were not to be frightened like children. That
the Jews then might not thus trifle, Jeremiah declares, that he was so
filled
with the
indignation of
God, that he could contain himself no longer,
but must denounce on his own kindred what God had committed to his charge. As we
shall elsewhere see the same mode of speaking, and in more express terms, I
shall proceed without making any farther
remarks.
He afterwards says,
I shall pour it
out, etc. He no doubt continues the same
subject. He then says, that since he could no longer suppress the vengeance of
God, whose herald he was, he would now
pour it
out, and that upon
the
children, he says,
in the
streets. He doubtless means by these
words that there was nothing pure among the people, for the very children were
involved in the same guilt. Since, then, impiety so prevailed that even children
in their tender age were not exempt from it, it was an evidence of a hopeless
condition. This is what the Prophet means by saying, that he would pour wrath
upon children. Then he adds, upon
the assembly, etc. The word
dws,
sud, means a congregation, or an assembly; and it means also counsel. But as
the Prophet speaks of streets, there seems to be a contrast between streets and
counsels, as though he said, that children playing in the streets were without
any counsel or understanding: but still I include with them the old and the
grown up men, for they are all exposed to God's judgment. He then adds,
the counsel of young
men; for there is more discretion and
prudence in young men grown up to maturity. The Hebrews do not call youths of
fifteen
µyrwjb,
bachurim, but men of full and mature age; and the word is derived from a
verb which means to choose. They then who are in the flower of their age are
called
µyrwjb,
bachurim, because they are endued with discretion, and do not play in the
streets like children. The Prophet then says, that God's wrath would now be
poured forth on children, and also on men grown up to the age of twenty or
thirty.
For the
husband, he says,
with his wife shall be taken, the
aged with the full of days. Some think
that the full of days
was the decrepit: but by
ˆqz,
zaken, I understand the aged, and by the full of days, all those already
grown into maturity, as those from fifty to eighty may be so called. He means,
in short, that no one would be exempt from suffering God's vengeance, as impiety
had pervaded all stations, ranks, and
ages.
fA172 It follows
—
Jeremiah
6:12
12. 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. 12.
Et volventur (quasi per circuitum, haec est propria significatio,
vertentur) domus eorum ad alienos, agri et uxores similiter; quia extendam
manum meam super habitatores terrae, dicit
Jehova.
One kind of vengeance only
he mentions, — that the Jews would be deprived of their land, which they
thought would ever remain in peace to them. Inasmuch as it had been
said,
"This is my rest for
ever, here will I dwell,"
(<19D214>Psalm
132:14)
they imagined that they could not be driven out of
it: and they entertained the thought, that their dwelling in the land of Canaan
was as certain as that of the sun and moon in the heavens. As then they deceived
themselves by this foolish confidence, the Prophet says, that there would be a
change, that God would transfer their houses to foreign
nations.
He then mentions their
fields
and their
wives.
All this seemed incredible to the Jews: but it was necessary to denounce on
them so dreadful a vengeance, that they might at length be awaked. And then he
subjoins the reason why: For
God will extend his hand. The Prophet here
reprobates their obstinacy, because it made God their enemy; as though he had
said, that there was no cause for them to think that the possession of the land
would be undisturbed, for God was offended with them. Whence, indeed, did the
possession of the land come to them, except from God's gratuitous favor? Now, if
God was adverse to them, what hope remained for them? We now, then, see that the
Prophet at the end of the verse mentions the cause, that the Jews might know
that what he said of the transfer of their houses, lands, and wives to others
was not incredible. It follows
—
Jeremiah
6:13
13. 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. 13. Quia
a parvo eorum usque ad magnum eorum omnis (vel, quilibet) con cupiscit
cupiditatem (hoc est, cupidus est lucri, vel, addictus avaritiae;)
et a propheta usque ad sacerdotem quilibet operatur mendacium (hoc est,
fraudulenter agit.)
The Prophet
now again declares, that it was nothing strange that God resolved to deal with
so much severity with that people, and to execute on them extreme vengeance; for
no part was whole and sound, but impiety had pervaded all ranks. It might,
indeed, be ascribed to the young, as well as to the old, for he says,
From the small to the
great; but I prefer to understand the
first clause of the poor and the lower orders, and the second of the higher
ranks, who excelled in power and wealth among the people. He says, then, that
contempt of God and every kind of wickedness prevailed, not only in one part but
in the whole community, so that there was no soundness from the head to the
soles of the feet. We now, then, perceive what the Prophet means by saying,
From the small to the
great.
fA173
And this appears still clearer from
the end of the verse, where he says,
From the prophet to the
priest. He amplifies here what he had
said of the small and the great. Hence we see, that by the great he understands
not those of mature or advanced age, but such as were in dignity and honor, who
were in esteem on account of their wealth or of other endowments. So also, on
the other hand, he does not call those
small
who were young, but such as were despised, who
were of the lowest order, and formed as it were the dregs of society: for as I
have said, he amplifies what he had said, by adducing the prophets and the
priests. Even though the king and his court were extremely wicked, yet some care
for religion ought to have prevailed among the prophets and the priests; there
ought at least to have been among them some decency; for they were appointed for
the purpose of carrying light for others. As, then, even these were apostates,
and had degenerated from the true worship of God, what could have been found
among the rest of the people?
We now, then, see
that the mouth of the ungodly was here closed, so that they could not
expostulate with God or blame his severity, for they had all arrived at the
highest pitch of impiety, inasmuch as the prophets and the priests were no less
corrupt than the common people.
By saying that
all coveted
covetousness, he refers to frauds and
base gain; in that he includes every kind of
avariciousness.
fA174 By saying that the
priests and the prophets wrought
falsehood, or acted fraudulently, he
means the same thing, but in other words, even that there was no integrity in
those teachers who ought to have been leaders to the blind: for God had ordained
them that they might, as I have said, carry light to all others and shew them
the way of salvation. It follows
—
Jeremiah
6:14
14. They have healed also the
hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when
there is no peace. 14. Et sanarunt plagam filiae populi mei super
levitate (hoe est, super nihilo, de nihilo,) dicendo, Pax, pax, et non
pax.
This is to be applied to the
prophets and priests alone; they not only corrupted the people by their bad
example, but also shook off every fear of God, and by their impostures and false
boasting took away every regard and respect for the teaching of the true
prophets. He then says, that they
healed to no
purpose, or with levity or
slightness,
fA175
the wound of the
people. He says, by way of concession,
that they had healed the wounds of the people: but it was no cure, when the evil
was increasing. They were like the unskillful, who by rashly applying false
remedies, cause inflammation, even when the disease is not serious; or like
those who are only bent on easing pain, and cause the increase of the disease
within, which is the more dangerous as it is more hidden. This is not to heal,
but to kill. But the Prophet, as I have said, concedes to them the work of
healing, and then states the issue, — that they were executioners and not
physicians. They have
healed, he says,
the wound of my
people: He takes the words, as it were,
from their mouth, "Ye are verily good physicians! for by your flatteries ye have
soothed my people: there was need not only of sharp medicine to stimulate and to
cause pain, but also of caustics and of amputations; but ye have only applied
lenients. This is your way of healing! ye have thus healed the wound of my
people, even by plasters and ointments to drive inward the disease; but what has
been the effect?"
He then immediately shews what
sort of healing it was: It was saying,
Peace,
peace. The evil we know is an old one,
common almost to all ages; and no wonder, for no one wishes otherwise than to
please himself; and what we observe daily as to the ailments of the body, is the
same as to the diseases of the soul. No sick person willingly submits to the
advice of his physician, if he prohibits the use of those things which he
desires: "What am I then to do? it were better to die than to follow this
advice." And then, if the physician bids him to take a bitter dose, he will say,
"I would rather a hundred times endure any pain than to drink that draught." And
when it comes to bleeding and other more painful operations, as caustics and
things of this kind, O the sick man can stand it no longer, and wishes almost
any evil to his physicians. What then experience proves to be true as to bodily
diseases, is also true, as I have said, as to the vices of the mind. All wish to
deceive themselves; and thus it happens that they wish for such prophets as
promise them large vintages and an abundant harvest, according to what is said
by the Prophet Micah:
"Behold," says God, "ye
wish to have prophets who will speak to you of rich provisions and of every kind
of affluence; and ye do not wish them to prophesy evil; ye would not have them
to denounce on you the punishment which you fully deserve."
(<330211>Micah
2:11)
As, then, the despisers of God wished to be soothed
by flatteries, and reject the best and the most salutary remedies, hence God has
from the beginning given loose reins to Satan, and hence impostors have gone
forth, whose preaching has been,
Peace,
peace; but to no purpose; for there is
nothing real in such healing, for the Lord says,
there is no
peace.
The
bolder any one is who professes to heal, if he be unskillful, the more
disastrous will be the issue. Hence the Prophet shews that the cause of the
extreme calamity of the Jews was, because they were deceived by their own
priests and teachers. He does not at the same time, as it has been elsewhere
observed, excuse them, as though the whole blame belonged to their false
teachers. For how was it that the false prophets thus fascinated them? Even
because they knowingly and willfully destroyed themselves; for they would not
receive honest and skillful physicians: it was therefore necessary to give them
up to such as killed them. It follows
—
Jeremiah
6:15
15. Were they ashamed when they
had 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. 15. An confusi sunt
(vel, an puduit eos,) quia abominationem patrarunt? etiam non puduit eos
(hoc est, nihil prorsus in ipsis fuit pudoris) etiam erubescere
nescierunt: propterea cadent inter cadentes, in tempore visitationis eorum
ruent, inquit Jehova.
Jeremiah turns
now his discourse to the whole people. In the last verse he reproved only the
priests and the prophets; he now speaks more generally, and says, that they had
put off all shame. "Behold," he says, "they are sufficiently proved guilty,
their wickedness is manifest, and yet there is no shame. Their disgrace is
visible to heaven and earth; angels and all mortals are witnesses of their
corruption; but they have such a meretricious front that they are touched by no
sense of shame." He means, in these words, that the wickedness of the people was
past all remedy; for they had arrived to that degree of stupor, of which Paul
speaks, when he calls those
ajphlghko>tav,
who were obstinate in their vices, who saw no difference between right and
wrong, between white and black.
(<490419>Ephesians
4:19.)
This, then, is what the Prophet means
when he says, Have they been
ashamed? But a question is much more
emphatical, than if it was a simple reprobation or affirmation. They have not
been even ashamed, he says. In their very shame, they knew not what it was to be
touched by any shamefacedness. This may be classed with those reproofs, by which
they had not been subdued; as though he had said, "Efforts having been made to
expose their effrontery, in not humbling themselves under the hand of God; they
shall therefore fall among the
fallen;" that is, "I will dispute no
longer with them, nor contend in words, but will execute on them my judgment."
Fall,
then, shall they among the
fallen; as though he had said, "I have
more than sufficiently denounced war on them: had they been healable it would
have availed to their conversion, that they had been so often warned; and still
more, that I have so sharply stimulated them to come to me: but I will now no
more employ words, on the contrary, I will execute my vengeance, so that the
calamity which they have derived may devour
them."
fA176
They shall wholly
fall, he says,
in the day of their
visitation. From this second clause we
understand more clearly what it is or what he means when he speaks of falling
among the fallen, which is, that they should wholly fall, when God would come as
it were with a drawn sword to destroy them, having been wearied with giving them
so many warnings.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that inasmuch as
thou seekest daily to restore us to thyself, and so arrangest thy word, as now
kindly to allure us, and then to reprove us severely, and even to drive us by
threatenings, — O grant, that we may not be altogether unteachable; but so
rule us by the spirit of meekness, that we may submit ourselves to thee and to
thy holy word, and be so terrified by the fear of thy judgment as yet ever to
taste of the sweetness of thy mercy, so that we may cleave to thee in Christ thy
Son, until we shall at length fully know that thou art our Father, and enjoy the
fruit of our adoption in the same Christ Jesus our Lord. —
Amen.
Lecture
Twenty-Fifth
Jeremiah
6:16
16. 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. 16. Sic dicit Jehova, State super vias, et
videte, et inquirite de semitis seculi (hoc est, antiquis) quaenam via
sit recta; et ambulate in ea, ut inveniatis requiem animae vestrae: et dixerunt,
Non ibimus (vel, non
ambulabimus.)
The Prophet teaches us
here that the fault of the people could not be extenuated as though they had
sinned through ignorance; for they had been warned more than necessary by God.
The same sentiment is found in Isaiah,
"This is your rest; but
they would not hear."
(<232812>Isaiah
28:12.)
But our Prophet more at large condemns the Jews; for
God had commanded them to stand
in the ways, to
look
and to
inquire respecting all the old
paths. He uses a similitude: and we
ought not to doubt respecting the way, since it has been shewn to us by
the mouth of God. But the impiety of the people is exposed and reproved, because
they did not so much as open their eyes, when God shewed them the way and
allowed them a free choice: for he introduces God here, not strictly as one who
commands, but as one who shews so much indulgence, that the people were free to
choose the way they approved and thought best. When God deals so kindly with
men, and so condescendingly sets before them what is useful and expedient, it is
the basest ingratitude to reject such kindness on God's
part.
We now then understand the Prophet's
design in saying, that God had commanded them to stand in the ways and to
consider what was best to be done. Consider, he says, and
ye shall find
rest, that is, that ye may find rest
(for the copulative here denotes the end)
to your
souls.
fA177 Here the Prophet means, that it
remained only with the Jews to secure prosperity and a quiet state; for if they
had obeyed the counsel of God, rest would have been provided for them: in short,
he means, that they were miserable through their own willfulness; for God had
set before them the prospect of a happy condition, but this favor had been
despised by them, and wantonly despised, as these words intimate,
And they said, We will not walk
in
it.
We
see that the people's perverseness is here discovered; because they might have
otherwise objected and said, that they had been deceived, and that if they had
been in time warned, they would have obeyed good and wise counsels. In order to
cut off this handle, Jeremiah says, that they from deliberate wickedness had
rejected the rest offered them by God:
they have said, We will not walk
in it. This resolution deafly shews that they
obstinately remained in their sins; so that the rest, which was within their
reach, was not chosen by them.
This passage
contains a valuable truth, — that faith ever brings us peace with God, and
that not only because it leads us to acquiesce in God's mercy, and thus, as Paul
teaches us,
(<450501>Romans
5:1,) produces this as its perpetual fruit; but because the will of God alone is
sufficient to appease our minds. Whosoever then embraces from the heart the
truth as coming from God, is at peace; for God never suffers his own people to
fluctuate while they recumb on him, but shews to them how great stability
belongs to his truth. If it was so under the Law and the Prophets, as we have
seen from Isaiah, how much more shall we obtain rest under Christ, provided we
submit, to his word; for he has himself promised it, "Come unto me all ye who
labor and are heavy laden, and I will refresh you." And ye shall find rest, he
says here, to your souls. This passage then serves to commend this celestial
truth, that it avails to pacify consciences, so that there is no perplexity nor
doubt. It follows —
Jeremiah
6:17
17. Also I set watchmen over
you, saying, Hearken to the sound of the trumpet. But they said, We will
not hearken. 17. Et constitui super eos speculatores, ut
attenderent
fA178 ad vocem (hoc est, clangorem)
tubae: et dixerunt, Non
attendemus.
This is an explanation
of the last verse, yet not simply so; for the Prophet by a similitude aggravates
the obstinacy of the people, who were not only deaf to the Prophet's
admonitions, but would not be roused by the sound of the trumpet, nor even
attend to it. The sound of the trumpet ought to have penetrated into their minds
more than anything else for two reasons, — because it was louder than any
voice of man, — and also, because we do not usually hear the trumpet
sounding, except when war is at hand, or when there is the fear of
war.
We hence see why the Prophet, after having
announced his message, mentions the sound of the trumpet; as though he had said,
that not only the prophets were despised, while teaching the people, but that
the sound of the trumpet, announcing the approach of war, was not attended to by
them. The stupidity of the people, and not only their stupidity, but as I have
said, their perverseness also, was more fully proved, than if the Prophet had
simply said, that they had resolved not to hear. It now follows
—
Jeremiah
6:18-19
18. Therefore hear, ye
nations, and know, O congregation, what is among them. 18.
Propterea audite gentes, et cognosce coetus quid in ipsis futurum
sit.
19. 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. 19. Audi, terra, Ecce ego adduco malum (hoc est, cladem) super
populum hunc, fructum cogitationum ipsorum, qui ad verba mea non fuerunt
attenti, et legem meam spreverunt (ad verbum, et legem meam spreverunt in
ipsa; sed non est ambiguus sensus, quod scilicet vel abjecerint vel
spreverint, vel pro nihilo duxerint; verbum hoc significat rejicere et spernere,
significat etiam reprobare; jam semel hoc usus est Propheta et saepius
utetur.)
He turns now to address
the nations, which had never heard anything of true religion. But the design of
the apostrophe was, to make the Jews ashamed of their insensibility and
deafness, for more attention and understanding were found among heathen nations.
This was surely very great shame: the Jews had been plainly taught by the Law
and by the Prophets, God had continued morning and evening to repeat the same
things to them, that the nations, who had never heard the prophets and to whom
the Law had not been given, should still be endued with more understanding and
judgment than the Jews — this was very shameful and really monstrous. Thus
the Prophet's design was to expose their disgraceful conduct by addressing the
nations, and saying, Hear, ye
nations.
Then
he says, Know, thou
assembly. The words used are
y[d,
doi, and
hd[,
ode; and though the letters are inverted, there is yet an alliteration by
no means ungraceful. With regard to the meaning, the Prophet shews that he found
no disciples among the elect people, for they were like brute beasts or stones
or trunks; he therefore turned to address the nations, as he despaired of any
fruit to his labors among the Jews: ye
nations,
then, hear, and know, thou
assembly, (the reference is to any
people,) what shall be to
them. Some interpreters apply this to
their vices, and give this version, "What their state is, "or, "What
atrocious vices prevail and reign among them." But I prefer to apply it to their
punishment, though I do not contend for this view, as there is a probability in
favor of the other. But the Prophet seems here to send for the nations, that
they might be witnesses of the just vengeance of God, because the people's
impiety had become irreclaimable. "Hear then what shall be done to them." He had
threatened the Jews as he had done before, and as he will often do hereafter;
but his design in this place was to reproach them for being so intractable; for
he expected that his labors would produce more fruit among the nations than
among them.
fA179
He then adds,
Hear, thou
earth. This is general, as though he
said, "Hear ye, all the inhabitants of the earth:
"Behold, I am bringing an evil on
this people. He would have directly
addressed the Jews, had they ears to hear; but as their vices and contempt of
God had made them deaf, it was necessary for him to address the earth. Now, God
testifies here that he should not act cruelly in visiting with severity this
people, as he would only reward them as they deserved. The sum of what is said
then is, that however grievous might be the punishment he would inflict, yet the
people could not complain of immoderate rigor, for they should only receive what
their works justly deserved. But Jeremiah not only speaks of their works, but he
mentions the fruit of their
thoughts; for they concocted their
wickedness within, so that they did not offend God through levity or ignorance.
By
thoughts,
then, he means that daily meditation on evil, to which the Jews had
habituated themselves. So then their interior wickedness and obstinacy are here
set forth.
He afterwards adds,
Because they have not to my words
attended, and for nothing have they esteemed my
law. We ever see that the guilt of the Jews was
increased by the circumstance, that God had exhorted them by his servants, and
that they had rejected all instruction. That they then would not hearken, and
that they counted the law and instruction as nothing, made it evident that their
sin could not by any pretense be excused; for they knowingly and openly carried
on war with God himself, according to what is said of the
giants.
We may learn from this passage, that
nothing is more abominable in the sight of God than the contempt of divine
truth; for his majesty, which shines forth in his word, is thereby trampled
under foot; and further, it is art extreme ingratitude in men, when God himself
invites them to salvation, willfully to seek their own ruin and to reject his
favor. It is no wonder then that God cannot endure the contempt of his word; by
which his majesty, as I have said, is dishonored, and his goodness, by which he
would secure the salvation of men, is treated with the basest ingratitude. He
afterwards adds —
Jeremiah
6:20
20. To what purpose cometh
there to me incense from Sheba, and the sweet cane from a far country? your
burnt offerings are not acceptable, nor your sacrifices sweet unto
me. 20. Ad quid hoc mihi thus e Sabeis venit, et calamus bonus e terra
longinqua? holocausta vestra non sunt ad beneplacitum (hoc est, non
placent, neqne grata sunt,) et sacrificia vestra non sunt suavia (aut,
jucunda) mihi.
The Prophet here
replies to those hypocrites, who thought that they made an expiation when they
had offered incense and sacrifices, as though that was all that was necessary in
serving God: and hence we shall hereafter see, that the Temple had become the
den of thieves; for when they sedulously offered incense every day and performed
other ceremonies, they thought that God was pacified. Thus hypocrites ever mock
God with their fopperies and regard God as extremely cruel, when not satisfied
with external display. This was a perpetual evil, with which the prophets had to
contend: and hence the notion is often found referred to by our
Prophet,
"I desired not
sacrifices; I commanded not your fathers, when I stretched forth my hand to
bring them out of Egypt, to offer burnt — offerings to me, but only to
obey my
voice,"
(<240721>Jeremiah
7:21, 22)
So we find in other prophets: the Psalmist
says,
"If I hunger, I will not
tell thee,"
(<195012>Psalm
50:12)
It is said also by Micah,
"What does God require of
thee, but to humble thyself before him? He seeks not thousands of rams nor
thousands of oxen from thy herds,"
(<330607>Micah
6:7)
And we see at this day, that men cannot be rightly
taught, except we carry on war against that external splendor with which they
will have God to be satisfied. As then men deceive themselves with such trifles,
it is necessary to shew that all those things which hypocrites obtrude on God,
without sincerity of heart, are frivolous trumperies. This is the import of what
is here taught.
There is, then, no doubt but
that the Jews punctually offered their sacrifices, and observed the legal rites.
All this might have appeared very commendable; but God gives this answer,
To what purpose does frankincense
come to me from the Sabeans, and a sweet
cane.
fA180 (that is, odoriferous)
from a far country?
Thus the Prophet here anticipates hypocrites,
that he might not leave them — what they might have objected: for while
they spent a large sum of money on their forms of worship, they thought that God
was as it were bound to them: and where they also bestowed much labor, they
supposed that their' toil could not be superfluous or useless. And under the
Papacy we observe the same thing: when any one builds a splendid church, and
adorns it with gold and silver and supplies it with rich furniture, and then
provides a revenue for saying masses, he thinks that lie holds in his hands all
the keys of the kingdom of heaven, so that he can push in even against the will
of God. Similar is the madness of the Papists, when they undertake pilgrimages:
when they labor and toil, they think that every step they take must be numbered
before God, and that God would be unjust, were he not to approve of what is
offered to him with so much trouble. Such was also the conceit of the Jews. As
their incense, brought from the Sa-beans, that is, from the east, even from
Persia, , was precious, and cost a considerable sum of money, they wished that
this should be deemed a satisfaction for all their sins; and they looked for the
same benefit from the cane: as the most odoriferous cane was bought at, a high
price, they expected
that it would be of account before God, and
that it would avail to compensate for their punishment. This is the folly which
God here treats with contempt. "What are they to me, "he says, "your expenses? I
indeed count as nothing all that ye spend in buying incense and sweet cane." And
then he speaks of the Sabeans and of a far
country.
He afterwards adds,
Please me do not your burnt
— offerings, and your sacrifices are not
acceptable. Under one kind Jeremiah
includes the whole worship according to the law; and yet it had been divinely
appointed: this is indeed true, but for another purpose. Fasting does not of
itself displease God; but it becomes an abomination to him, when it is thought
to be a meritorious work, or when some holiness is connected with it. The same
is true as to sacrifices; for they who sought to pacify God by victims robbed
Christ of his honor: it was to transfer the favor, which comes from Christ, to a
calf or to a goat: and what a sacrilege was this, and how abominable? When,
therefore, the Jews set such a high value on their sacrifices, they sought first
childishly to trifle with God, as though these were expiations to pacify him;
and then to offer burnt — offerings, to slay an animal, for pacifying God,
was to change his nature; and lastly, it was, as I have said, to rob Christ of
his honor: for expiation is to be sought by no other means than through his
blood, by which we are cleansed from every stain through the Holy Spirit, who
sprinkles it on our hearts. But when this was attributed to sacrifices, they
substituted the victim, or the ram, for Christ, according to what has been
stated.
Now there ought to have been in
sacrifices the exercise of the duty of repentance: but when they became more and
more hardened, and thought that by their ceremonies they obtained a greater
license to sin, and that God required no more from them, as though they had
settled matters with him, they completely neutralized the design of God: for
sacrifices, as it has been already said, had been enjoined for this end, —
that they might exercise penitence.
We now then
see that this answer given by Jeremiah was not in vain, — that their
sacrifices did not please God. There is a severer language used elsewhere,
— that God nauseated them, that he was wearied in bearing them, that he
was constrained to be troubled with them, while they thus profaned his name.
(<230114>Isaiah
1:14.) The meaning here is the same, — that God never required sacrifices
for their own sake, but for another end; and also, that all external rites are
of themselves mere trumperies and mockeries, nay, a profanation of God's name;
so that they could not pacify him, but, on the contrary, provoke his wrath. It
follows —
Jeremiah
6:21
21. Therefore thus saith the
Lord, Behold, I will lay stumbling blocks before this people, and the fathers
and the sons together shall fall upon them; the neighbor and his friend shall
perish. 21. Propterea sic dicit Jehova, Ecce pono huic populo
offendicula, et offendent (nam sunt ab eadem radice et nomen et
verbum) patres et filii similiter; vicinus et socius ejus
peribunt.
Here God, in plain words,
declares what vengeance he would execute on the people. He says first, that he
would lay for them stumbling
blocks. He no doubt compares the
judgments which were nigh to nets or traps; for the Jews hoped to escape. He
therefore says, that they would be ensnared: "Wherever ye go, "he says, "ye
shall meet with those nets by which God will catch you:
Fall,
therefore, shall both fathers
and sons, the neighbor and his
friend."
He
means by these words, that however they might conspire together, they would yet
be exposed to the same punishment. For when sons follow the examples of their
fathers, they think themselves innocent; and also when any one has many
associates, he thinks himself safe in his licentiousness. As, then, consent or
society hardens the ungodly, so that they fear not the wrath of God, the Prophet
on this account includes sons with their fathers, and a neighbor with his
friend, as those who were to perish together, and without any difference. The
word "stumbling blocks" is indeed metaphorical; but in the next verse the
Prophet speaks without a figure, and says
—
Jeremiah
6:22-23
22. 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. 22. Sic dicit Jehovah, Ecce populus
veniet e terra Aquilonis, et gens magna excitabitur e lateribus
terrae:
23. 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. 23. Arcum et hastam (alii vertunt,
clypeum) apprehendent; crudeles erunt et non parcent; vox eorum quasi mare
tumultuabitur, et super equos ascendent; erunt dispositi sicuti vir ad proelium,
super to, filia Sion.
It was no
useless repetition when the Prophet said so often that God said. He might
have said only, "Behold, a nation shall come from the north;" but he premises by
saying that he derived this message from God, and not only so, but he introduces
God as the speaker, that his message might be more impressive. In the former
verse he had also said, Thus
saith Jehovah, and elsewhere: but he now
repeats the same words, that the holy name of God might more powerfully rouse
their
minds.
Behold,
he says, a people shall come
from the land of the north. For forty
years Jeremiah ceased not to proclaim war against the Jews, and also openly to
name their enemies: we yet see that so much preaching was without fruit. This
was dreadful indeed: but we may thus see, as it were in a mirror, how great is
our hardness and stupor, and how great is our fury and madness against God. He
then designates here the Chaldeans as a
northern
nation, and says that it was a
great
nation: and yet he shews, that the
Chaldeans would not of themselves come; it
shall be
roused, he says. This act is to be
applied to God; for though ambition and avarice impelled the Chaldeans to lay
waste nations and lands far and wide, yet that war was carried on under the
guidance of God himself: he armed and impelled the Chaldeans, and used them as
the scourges of his wrath. We may learn this from the verb
rw[y,
iour, "shall be roused;" and he says, from
the sides of the
earth,
fA181 for they came from a distant
country. But the Prophet means, that there would be nothing to hinder the
Chaldeans from entering Judea, and from destroying and putting to flight the
people, and from demolishing the city and the
temple.
He adds other particulars, in order more
fully to render the Chaldeans objects of dread:
They shall lay
hold, he says,
on the bow and the
lance. They who render the last word
shield, do not sufficiently attend to the design of the Prophet. For there is no
mention here made of defense; but it is the same as though the Prophet had said,
that they would come furnished with bows and spears, that they might shoot at a
distance. The word
ˆwdyk,
kidun, means a spear and a
lance;
fA182 and it means also a shield: but in this
place the Prophet, I doubt not, means a spear; as though he had said, "They will
strike at a distance, or near at hand."
He
afterwards adds, that they would be cruel, according to what Isaiah says,
when he speaks of the Persians and Medes,
"They will covet neither
gold nor silver,"
(<231317>Isaiah
13:17)
and yet they were a rapacious people. This is indeed
true; but the Prophet meant both these things, that as the Persians and Medes
were to be the executioners of divine vengeance, they would come with a new
disposition and character, despising gold and silver, and other kinds of spoil,
and seeking only blood. And they
will shew, he says,
no
mercy; and then he
adds, their voice shall make an
uproar, or sound,
like the
sea. He touches, I have no doubt, on the
stupor of the people in not attending to the voice of God; for the teaching of
Jeremiah had for many years sounded in their ears: Isaiah and others had
preceded him; but the people had continued deaf. He says now, "Ye shall
hereafter hear other teachers; they will not warn you, nor give you counsel, nor
be satisfied with reproofs and threatenings, but they will come like a tempest
on the sea; their voice shall
make an
uproar."
He
adds, Ascend shall they on
horses,
fA183
and be set in order as a man
for war; that is, "Thou, Jerusalem,
shalt find that thou wilt have to do with military men." The Prophet means, in
short, that the Jews most foolishly trusted in their own strength, and thus
heedlessly despised the threatenings of the prophets. But as their security was
of this kind, he says that they would at length really find out how stupid they
had been, for the Chaldeans would come with dreadful violence, prepared for war
— against whom? Against
thee, he says,
O daughter of
Sion. I cannot proceed further, on
account of some other business.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as we cease
not daily to give thee occasion of offense, and as thou ceasest not, in order to
promote our salvation, to call us to the right way, — O grant, that we may
be attentive to thy voice, and suffer ourselves to be reproved by it, and so
submit ourselves to thee, that we may continually go on towards the mark to
which thou invitest us, and that having at length finished our course in this
life, we may enjoy the fruit of our obedience and faith, and possess that
eternal inheritance which has been obtained for us by Jesus Christ our Lord.
— Amen.
Lecture
Twenty-Sixth
Jeremiah
6:24
24. We have heard the fame
thereof: our hands wax feeble: anguish hath taken hold of us, and pain,
as of a woman in travail. 24. Audivimus famam ejus, dissolutae sunt manus
nostrae, angustia apprehendit nos, dolor tanquam
parturientis.
Jeremiah proceeds in
the same strain; for he sets before the eyes of the Jews the judgment of God,
and draws them, as it were against their will, into the middle of the scene. And
this was done by the prophets, as it has been already said, because by plain
words they could not move the hearts of the people on account of their contempt
of God, and of the long obduracy in which they had settled. Hence he says, that
heard
had been the
report
of the enemy, and that immediately
dissolved
had their
hands.
When the Prophet spoke, the Jews did not think that their enemies were so
near. But the phrase is to be thus explained: "As soon as ye shall hear the
report, your hands shall be relaxed, and lay hold on you shall
distress."
The similitude of a woman in travail
is often found in Scripture; and what is to be understood in most places is
sudden and unexpected pain: but in this place the Prophet refers rather to the
violence of pain; though the other meaning, which I have just stated, is not to
be excluded; for it is probable, that when he saw that the hardness and
obstinacy of the people were so great, he adopted this similitude, in order to
shew, that however heedlessly they despised the punishment due to them, it could
not yet be avoided, as it would seize them suddenly like that of a woman in
childbearing. He afterwards adds
—
Jeremiah
6:25
25. Go not forth into the
field, nor walk by the way; for the sword of the enemy and fear is
on every side. 25. Ne exieritis in agrum, et per iter ne ingrediamini;
quia gladius hostis, terror undique (vel, in circuitu,
bybsm.)
He
confirms the previous verse. For the Jews, as it has been said, regarded all
threatenings as nothing: it was hence necessary that they should be taught, not
by words only, but be constrained to fear, by having the scene set before their
eyes, that being thus constrained they might at least entertain some fear on
account of the nearness of God's vengeance. The Prophet then denounces war, and
speaks as though they were already besieged,
Go ye not
forth, he says,
into the
field, etc.,
for the terror of the enemy
and
fear is on every
side;
fA184 not that the Chaldeans were
already laying waste Judea, or that they had even departed from their own
country. But we have briefly explained the design of the Prophet: he intended
thus vehemently to deal with a hardened and obstinate people, that they might
know that he spoke seriously to them, and that his threatenings would not be
evanescent. It follows
—
Jeremiah
6:26
26. 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. 26. Filia populi mei, accingere sacco,
voluta to in pulvere, luctum unigeniti fac tibi, planctum amaritudinum; quia
repente veniet vastator super
nos.
The Prophet seems to use more
words than necessary; for in a clear matter he appears to extend his discourse
too far: but we must consider the design which has been mentioned; for he could
not rouse the Jews without urging the matter on them with great vehemence. Known
and sufficiently common is the term, "daughter of my people, "as applied to the
whole community. Daughter of my
people, he says,
be thou girded with sackcloth,
and roll thyself in the dust. It is
doubtful whether the Prophet exhorts them to repent, or whether he denounces
mourning on the irreclaimable and the hopeless; for ashes and sackcloth are
often mentioned, when there is no hope of conversion or of repentance. However,
if this view be approved, I will not object, that is, that the Prophet still
makes the trial, whether the Jews would return to a sane
mind.
Make thee a
mourning, he says, as for
an
only-begotten. Thus the Hebrews speak of
the greatest and bitterest mourning: for when any one loses an only son, he
grieves far more for his death than if he had many children; for when some
remain, some comfort still remains; but when one is wholly bereaved, a greater
grief, as I have said, is felt by parents. For this reason the Hebrews call it a
mourning for an only
son, when things are in a hopeless state. He
afterwards adds, the mourning of
bitternesses, signifying the same thing;
because suddenly shall come upon
us the
waster.
If
repentance be thought to be intended here, we know that sackcloth and ashes are,
of themselves, of no account before God, but that they were formerly evidences
of repentance when God's wrath was humbly deprecated; and hence the prophets
often designated the thing signified by the sign. We must yet remember what Joel
says, that hearts, and not garments, are to be rent.
(<290213>Joel
2:13.) But the prophets assume this principle as granted, that we are not to
deal falsely with God, but with sincerity. Then by sackcloth and ashes they did
not understand false protestations, as it is said, but real manifestations of
what they felt, when really and from the heart they sought God's mercy. But as
the Prophet seems here to assume the character of a herald, denouncing war, I
know not whether repentance is what is here meant. So then I rather understand
him as saying, that nothing but extreme mourning remained for the Jews: and
hence he says, that destroyers would
suddenly come
upon them; for they had for many years so
misused the forbearance of God, that they thought that they could sin with
impunity. As, then, they had long indulged this false confidence, the Prophet
made use of this word, "suddenly,"
µatp,
petam. He adds
—
Jeremiah
6:27
27. I have set thee for
a tower and a fortress among my people, that thou mayest know and try
their way. 27. Arcem posui to in populo meo, munitionem (vel,
propagnaculum) ut cognoscas et probes vias ipsorum (viam
ipsorum.)
The Prophet says, that he
was set
by God as a
watchtower,
which was also fortified, that he might observe the wickedness of the people. In
order to gain more authority for his prophecy, he introduces God as the speaker.
He had spoken hitherto in his own person; but now God himself comes forth, and
says, I have made thee a citadel.
Jerome renders the last word "probation." The
verb
ˆjb,
becken, means to prove; and Jeremiah uses the verb in this verse, "that
thou mayest prove their way." But as the word
rxbm,
mebezar, "fortress, "follows, we cannot take the word here otherwise than
as meaning a citadel or rampart. I therefore have no doubt but that a citadel
for watching is what is meant; as though God had said, that his Prophet was like
a watchtower, from which might be seen at one glance whatever was done far and
wide: for we cannot see far from a plain, but they who are located high can see
to a great distance.
But the word
fortress
is also added: for it behooved Jeremiah to
watch without fear, and not to be exposed to the threats, calumnies, or clamors
of the people. Jeremiah intimates that two things are required in God's
servants, even knowledge and undaunted courage; for it was not enough for the
prophets to see clearly what was needful, except they were firmly prepared to
discharge their office. Both these things seem to be included, when he says,
that he was set as a
watchtower, and also as a
fortress.
Why
was he thus set? That thou mayest
know, he says,
and prove their
way. Let us now see what was the
intention of this. The Prophet no doubt here claims power and credit to himself,
that he might not only freely but authoritatively reprove the people: for
objections, we know, were ever in their mouths, that they might be at liberty to
despise the Prophet's teaching, as though it did not proceed from God. This then
was the reason why God here declares that Jeremiah was like a citadel, and that
a fortified one; he was made so, that he might observe and know the way of the
people. Hence it followed, that however obstinately they might defend
themselves, it availed them nothing; for Jeremiah was endued with the highest
authority, even that which was divine, in order to perform his office of a judge
in condemning them: for it immediately follows
—
Jeremiah
6:28
28. They are all
grievous revolters, walking with slanders: they are brass and iron; they
are all corrupters. 28. Omnes perversi perversorum ambulantes in
obtrectatione (dicemus postea de hac voce;) aes
(aut, chalybs, ut alii vertunt,) vel ferrum; omnes
perditores (vel, corruptores)
sunt.
The Prophet now shews what he
found the Jews to be, whose manners and proceedings he had been commanded to
observe. Had he said this at first, either the fury of the people would have
been kindled, or his judgment would have been treated with contempt: but when
God shewed what he had known through his servant, it had more weight, and then
the fury of the people was also repressed, when they understood that it would
avail them nothing to fight against God.
He
says, that they were all the
apostates of apostates, or the transgressors of
transgressors. Some read
yrs,
sari, with a
ç,
shin, and render the words, "the princes of transgressors." But I adopt
the first as the more approved reading. They who read "princes, "elicit a
meaning from the words which appears strange, but not the true one: they say
that they were the princes of transgressors, because the people were no better
than their rulers, and because servants imitated their masters in all kinds of
wickedness. But this, as all must see, is a strained meaning. Why then should
anything be changed, since the sentence, as it is, has a most suitable meaning?
They are then called the apostates of apostates, or the transgressors of
transgressors, µyrrs
yrs, sari sarerim. The Hebrews, we
know, express the superlative degree by doubling the word, as, the heaven of
heavens, the holy of holies, the God of gods. He then says, that they were not
only wicked, but most wicked, who had reached the extreme point of depravity.
For when impiety reaches its summit, then justly may men be called the apostates
of apostates. This, I have no doubt, is what the Prophet
means.
He afterwards adds, that they
walked in
slander. The same mode of speaking, if I
mistake not, is found in
<031916>Leviticus
19:16,
"Go not," or walk not,
"among thy people with slander."
Yet this phrase may be otherwise explained, that is,
that they walked in calumnies, or that they perverted everything. But in this
place, the word slander, seems too feeble, as the Prophet, in my judgment, means
more, even the audacity of the people, so that they allowed themselves every
liberty in sinning, and thus walked in their own
wickedness.
He adds,
Brass and iron
fA185 Many render the words, "Brass
mixed with iron;" that is, that the noble and the vulgar were mingled together,
so that there was a common consent among them. Of this meaning I do not wholly
disapprove: but as it is rather refined, I know not whether it be well —
founded. I therefore prefer to regard this as designating their hardness: They
were like brass and iron, for they were inflexible. The Prophet then after
having called them transgressors who had alienated themselves from God, and
after having said, that they walked in their own depravity, now adds, that they
were untamable, not capable of any improvements; and hence he compares them to
brass and iron.
He at last adds, that they were
all
corrupters. This, as I think, is to be
referred to their habits: for thus are enemies called, who plunder everything,
and commit all excesses. But they are corrupters here, who not only like thieves
plunder the goods of all, but who are leaders to others in wickedness: so that
all things were in confusion, as it is wont to be said, from the head to the
feet.
fA186 He afterwards adds
—
Jeremiah
6:29
29. The bellows are burned, the
lead is consumed of the fire; the founder melteth in vain: for the wicked are
not plucked away. 29. Exaruit (consumptum est) sufflatorium
(vel, follis) ab igne; integrum plumbum, frustra conflavit conflator
(vel, excoxit excoctor) quia (nam copula hic pro causali particula
ponitur, quia) mali non sunt purgati (vel, et, tamen
adversative, non sunt consumpti; uterque sensus non male
quadrabit.)
He says, that the
bellows
was consumed by
the fire
and without any advantage. The whole sentence
is metaphorical. Interpreters refer it simply to what was taught; and hence they
consider the mouth of the Prophet to be the bellows, by which the fire was
kindled. So the meaning would be, — that the Prophet was as it were burnt,
through his incessant crying, like the bellows, which by being continually used
is at length consumed, especially when the fire burns fiercely. They then
suppose that the Prophet complains that his throat had dried up, like the
bellows, which being burnt by the fire can no longer do its work. But what if we
refer this to the punishments and judgments by which God had chastised his
people, and yet without benefit? For so he complains in the first chapter of
Isaiah, and in other places.
"In vain, "he says, "have
I chastised thee:"
and Jeremiah has before said,
"In vain have I chastised
my children; they have not received correction."
(<240230>Jeremiah
2:30)
So also it is said by Isaiah,
"Alas! vengeance must I
take on my enemies,"
(<230124>Isaiah
1:24)
but to what purpose? He afterwards adds, that it was
without any benefit, because their wickedness was
incurable.
The first meaning, however, is not to
be rejected, for it was not unsuitable to say, that the tongue of the Prophet
was worn out with constant crying, that his throat was nearly dried up. But I
approve more of what I have just stated. Let each make his own choice. If we
consider prophetic teaching to be here intended, we may also draw another
meaning, — that the Prophet's mouth was consumed by God's terrors; for it
was like burning, whenever God threatened the people with final destruction. The
Prophet then does not without reason say, that his throat was burnt by fire,
even the threatenings of God.
He afterwards
adds, that the lead was
entire. This sentence rather favors the
view, that Jeremiah is speaking of the judgments by which God sought to humble
the people and to lead them to repentance; for it cannot be suitably applied to
doctrine or teaching, that the lead was unmixt. By lead I understand dross. Some
consider it to be silver, and say that lead was mixed with silver, in order that
the silver might more easily be melted. As I am not skillful in that art, I
cannot say whether this is done or not. But the Prophet says that the lead was
unmixt; that is, that nothing was found but dross and
filth.
He then adds,
In vain has the melter melted,
for evils have not been purged away;
that is, the dross had not been removed so as to leave behind the pure
metal. He means, in short, that there was nothing but dross and filth in the
people, and not a particle of pure silver. It hence followed, that they had been
as it were in vain melted. Now, this applies more fitly to punishment than to
teaching, as all must see. I hence do not doubt but that the Prophet shews here,
that the Jews were not only wicked and apostates and despisers of God, but were
also so obstinate that God had often tried in vain to purify them. And it is a
kind of speaking, we know, which occurs often in the prophets and throughout
Scripture, that God is said to melt, to purge, to refine men, when he chastises
them. But the Prophet says that there was only filth in that people, that lead
was found, and that they were not melted. And hence we learn how great was their
hardness: though they were tried by fire, they yet melted not, but continued in
their perverseness.
fA187 He afterwards adds
—
Jeremiah
6:30
30. Reprobate silver shall
men call them, because the LORD hath rejected them. 30. Argentum
reprobatum (contemptibile) vocarunt
fA188 ipsos (hoc est, vocabunt:) quia
sprevit (vel, reprobavit) ipsos
Jehova.
Jeremiah concludes his
subject by saying, — that if the Jews had been cast a hundred times into
the furnace, they would not be improved, as they would never become softened on
account of their hopeless obstinacy. He uses the word silver, by way of
concession; for they were not worthy of that name, and we have already seen that
there was nothing soft or tender in them.
But
the prophets often conceded some things to hypocrites; yet not without some
appearance of a taunt, as the case seems to be here. The Jews wished to be
regarded as silver, and to appear as such: "Let them then be silver, "that is,
"Let them claim the name, by boasting themselves as the holy seed of Abraham;
but they are a reprobate silver;" according to what we say, Faux or faux
argent; which yet is neither silver nor gold; but the words are used not in
their strict meaning, and we afterwards shew that what we have so called is not
silver. Even so does the Prophet say, "They are silver in their own esteem, and
take pride in the title: but they are a
reprobate
silver." How so?
For Jehovah has rejected
them. He shews that it belongs to God to
pronounce sentence on men, and that they gain nothing by their vain flatteries,
and by securing some esteem in the world: for God alone is the true judge. The
Prophet then shews that the Jews were a reprobate silver, in order that they
might know that they in vain gloried, while they boasted themselves to be God's
people and heritage. Now follows —
CHAPTER
7
Jeremiah
7:1-4
1. The word that came to
Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, 1. Sermo qui datus fuit Jeremiae (qui
factus fuit ad Jeremiam, qui datus fuit, ad verbum) a Jehova,
dicendo,
2. 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. 2. Sta in porta domus Jehovae (hoc est, Templum,) et clama
illic hunc sermonem (hoc est, vociferare hunc sermonem, vel, cum
clamore prefer,) et dicas, Audite sermonem Jehovae cunctus Jehudah, qui
ingredimini per has portas, ut adoretis
Jehovam:
3. 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. 3. Sic dicit Jehova exercituum, Deus Israel,
Bonas facite vias vestras et studia vestra, et habitabo vobiscum in hoc
loco;
4. Trust ye not in lying
words, saying, The temple of the Lord, The temple of the Lord, The temple of the
Lord, are these. 4. Ne confidatis vobis (hoc est, ne vobis
fiduciam ponatis, vel, adjiciatis vobis fiduciam) ad verba mendacii,
dicendo, Templum Jehovae, Templum Jehovae, Templum Jehovae
sunt.
Here the Prophet gives a short
account of the sermon, in which he severely reproved the people, because his
labor had been useless, though he had sharply and severely reproved them. He
says then, that he had a command from above to
stand at the gate
of the Temple. This was indeed usually done by
the prophets: but God seems to have intended that this reproof should be heard
by all. He says further, that he was commanded to address the
whole
tribe of
Judah.
It
is hence probable, and what may be easily concluded, that this discourse was
delivered on a feast — day, when there was the usual assembly of the
people. He could not indeed have made this address on other days; for then the
inhabitants of the city only frequented the Temple. But on the feast —
days they usually came from the neighboring towns and from the whole country to
celebrate God's rightful worship, which had been prescribed in the law. Since
then Jeremiah addressed the whole tribe of Judah, we hence conclude, that he
spoke not only to the inhabitants of the city, but also to the whole tribe,
which came together to keep the feast —
day.
Now the object of his sermon was, to exhort
them seriously to repent, if they wished God to be reconciled to them. So the
Prophet shews, that God did not regard their sacrifices and external rites, and
that this was not the way, as they thought, of appeasing him. For after they had
celebrated the feast, every one returned home, as though they all, after having
made an expiation, had God propitious to them. The Prophet shews here, that the
way of worshipping God was very different, which was to reform their
lives.
Make
good, he says,
your ways and your doings, then
will I dwell in this
place.
fA189 This promise contains an implied
contrast; for the Prophet intimates, that the people would not long survive,
unless they sought in another way to pacify God. "I will dwell, "he seems to
say, — in this place, when your life is changed." It then follows on the
other hand, "God will drive you into exile, except you change your life: in vain
then do you seek a quiet and happy state through offering your sacrifices. God
indeed esteems as nothing this external worship, except it be preceded by inward
sincerity, unless integrity of life accompanies your profession." This is one
thing.
Then the Prophet comes closer to them
when he says, Trust ye not in
words of falsehood. For had not this been
expressly said, the Jews might, according to their usual way, have found out
some evasion: "Have we then lost all our labor in celebrating our festivals with
so much diligence, in leaving our homes and families to present ourselves before
God? We have spared no expense, we have brought sacrifices and spent our money;
and is all this of no value before God?" For hypocrites always magnify their
trumperies, as we find in the fifty-eighth chapter of Isaiah, where they
expostulated with God, as though he were unkind to them, "We have from day to
day sought the Lord." To this the Lord answered, "In vain ye seek me from day to
day and search for my ways." Hence the Lord disregarded that diligence with
which hypocrites sought to render him propitious without real sincerity of
heart. It is for the same purpose that the Prophet now adds,
Trust ye
not, etc. It is an anticipation in order to
prevent them from making their usual objection, "What then? Has the Temple been
built in vain?" But he says, "Is not God worshipped here in vain? They are
words of
falsehood, when religious sincerity is
absent."
We hence see that external rites are
here repudiated, when men seek in a false way to gain favor before God, and seek
to redeem their sins by false compensations, while yet their hearts continue
perverse. This truth might be enlarged upon, but as it often occurs in the
prophets, I only notice it shortly. It is enough to regard the main point,
— that while the Jews were satisfied with the Temple, the ceremonies and
the sacrifices, they were self — deceivers, for their boasting was
fallacious: "the words of falsehood" are to be taken as meaning that false and
vain glorying in which the Jews indulged, while they sought to ward off God's
vengeance by external rites, and at the same time made no effort to return into
favor by ameliorating their life.
With regard to
the expressions The
Temple, etc., some explain them thus, —
they were "words of falsehood, "when they said that they came to the Temple; and
so the supplement is, "when they said that they came, "for the pronoun
demonstrative is plural.
fA190 Hence they understand this of the
people; not that the Jews called themselves the Temple of God, but that they
boasted that they came to the Temple and there worshipped God. But I rather
agree with others, who explain this of the three parts of the Temple. There was,
we know, the court, then the Temple, and, lastly, the interior part, the Holy of
holies, where was the Ark of the Covenant. The prophets often speak of the
Temple only; but when they spoke distinctly of the form of the Temple, they
mentioned the court, as I have said, where the people usually offered their
sacrifices, and then the holy place, into which the priests entered alone; and,
lastly, the secret place, which was more hidden, and was called the Holy of
holies. It seems then that this passage of the Prophet is to be understood as
meaning that the people said that the court, the Temple, and the interior part,
were the Temples of God, as though they had a triple
Temple.
But we must observe the design of the
Prophet, which interpreters have omitted. The Prophet then made this repetition
especially, because the Temple was as it were a triple defense to hypocrites,
like a city, which, when surrounded, not by one, but by three walls, is deemed
impregnable. Since, then, the Jews exalted their Temple, consisting of three
parts, it was the same as they set up a triple wall or a triple rampart against
God's judgments! "We are invincible; how can enemies come to us? how can any
calamity reach us? God dwells in the midst of us, and here he has his
habitation, and not one and single fort, but a triple fort; he has his court,
his Temple, and his Holy of holies." We now then understand why the Prophet made
this repetition, and used also the plural number.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as we so abuse
thy forbearance, that thou art constrained by our depravity to deal sharply with
us, — O grant, that we may not be also hardened against thy chastisements,
but may we with a submissive and tractable neck learn to take thy yoke, and be
so obedient to thy government, that we may testify our repentance, not for one
day only, and give no fallacious evidence, but that we may really prove through
the whole course of our life the sincerity of our conversion to thee, by
regarding this as our main object, even to glorify thee in Christ Jesus our
Lord. — Amen.
Lecture
Twenty-Seventh
Jeremiah
7:5-7
5. For if ye thoroughly amend
your ways and your doings; if ye thoroughly execute judgment between a man and
his neighbor; 5. Certe si bonas faciendo bonas feceritis vias vestras
(bonificando bonificaveritis, ad verbum, si ita vertere liceret)
et studia vestra; si faciendo feceritis judicium inter virum et inter
proximum ejus;
6. 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: 6.
Peregrinum, pupillum et viduam non oppresseritis; et sanguinem innoxium non
effuderitis in hoc loco; et post deos alienos non ambulaveritis in malum vobis
(in malum vestrum;)
7. Then will
I cause you to dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers, for
ever and ever. 7. Tunc habitare faciam vos in hoc loco, in terra quam
dedi patribus vestris, a seculo usque in
seculum.
Interpreters do not agree
as to the meaning of this passage. Some render
µa
yk, ki am, "But rather, "or, "But." I indeed
allow that it is so taken in many places; but they are mistaken who read
µa
yk, ki am, as one word; for the Prophet, on
the contrary, repeats what he had said, and that is, that God would not be
propitious to the Jews except their life proved that they had really repented.
The words are sometimes taken as one in Hebrew, and mean "but;" yet in other
places they are often taken as separate words, as we found in the second
chapter, "Though thou washest thyself with nitre;" and for the sake of emphasis
the particle "surely, "is put before "though." But in this place the Prophet
simply means, that the Jews were deceived in seeking to prescribe a law for God
according to their own will, as it belongs only to him either to approve or to
reject their works. And this meaning is confirmed by the latter part of the
verse, for we read not there
µa
yk, ki am, but
µa,
am; "If by doing ye shall do judgment;" and then in the same form he
adds, "If ye will not oppress the stranger, the orphan, and the widow;" and at
last he adds, "Then (a copulative I allow is here, but it is to be taken as an
adverb) I will make you to dwell in this
place."
The purport of the whole is, —
that sacrifices are of no importance or value before God, unless those who offer
them wholly devote themselves to God with a sincere heart. The Jews sought to
bind God as it were by their own laws: he shews that he was thus impiously put
under restraint. He therefore lays down a condition, as though he had said, "it
belongs to me to prescribe to you what is right. Away, then, with your
ceremonies, by which ye think to expiate your sins; for I regard them not, and
esteem them as nothing." What then is to be done? He now shews then, "If you
will rightly order your life, ye shall dwell in this
place."
For yesterday the Prophet exhorted the
people to repent; and he employed the sentiment which he now repeats. He
commanded the people to come to God with an upright and pure mind; he afterwards
added another sentence, "Trust not in words of falsehood, saying, The Temple of
the Lord, "etc. He now again repeats what he had said, "If ye will make your
ways good." He shews now more clearly that no wrong was done to the people when
God repudiated their ceremonies; for he required a pure heart, and external
rites without repentance are vain and useless. This then is what the Prophet had
in view: "Though God seems to treat you with great severity, he yet promises to
be kind to you, if you order your lives according to his law: is this unjust?
Can the condition which is proposed to you by God be liable to any calumnies, as
though God treated you cruelly!" This then is the meaning of the
Prophet.
If ye will make good
your ways, that is, if your life be
amended; and if ye will do
judgment, etc. He now comes to
particulars; and first he addresses the judges, whose duty it was to render to
every one his right, to redress injuries, to pronounce what was just and right
when any contention arose. If
then, he says,
ye will do justice between a man
and his neighbor, that is, if your
judgments be right, without favor or hatred, and if no bribes lead you from what
is right and just, while pronouncing judgment on a case between a man and his
brother. Then he adds, if ye will
not oppress the stranger and the orphan and the
widow. This also belonged to the judges:
but God no doubt shews here generally, that injustice greatly prevailed among
the people, as he condemns the cruelty and perfidy of the judges
themselves.
As to strangers and orphans and
widows, they are often mentioned; for strangers as well as orphans and widows
were almost destitute of protection, and were subject to many wrongs, as though
they were exposed as a prey. Hence, whenever a right government is referred to,
God mentions strangers and orphans and widows; for it might hence be easily
understood of what kind was the public administration of justice; for when
others obtain their right, it is no matter of wonder, since they have advocates
to defend their cause, and they have also the aid of friends. Thus every one who
defends his own cause, obtains at least some portion of his right. But when
strangers and orphans and widows are not unjustly dealt with, it is an evidence
of real integrity; for we may hence conclude, that there is no respect of
persons among the judges. But as this subject has been handled elsewhere, I only
touch on it lightly here.
And
if ye will not shed, he says,
innocent blood in this
place. Here the Prophet accuses the
judges of a more heinous crime, and calls them murderers. They had, however, no
doubt some plausible pretences for shedding the blood of the innocent. But the
Prophet, speaking here in the name of God and by the dictates of his Spirit,
overlooks all these as altogether vain, though the judges might have thought
them sufficient excuses. By saying,
in this
place, he shews how foolish was their
confidence in boasting of God's worship, sacrifices, and Temple, while yet they
had polluted the Temple with their cruel
murders.
fA191
He then passes to the first table of
the law, If ye will not walk
after foreign gods to your evil. By
stating a part for the whole, he condemns every kind of impiety: for what is it
to walk after alien gods but to depart from the pure and legitimate worship of
the true God and to corrupt it with superstitions? We see then what the Prophet
means: he recalls the Jews to the duty of observing the law, that they might
thereby give a veritable evidence of their repentance: "Prove, "he says, "that
you have repented from the heart." He shews how they were to prove this, even by
observing the law of God. And, as I have said, he refers to the first Table by
stating a part for the whole. As to the second Table, he mentions some
particulars which were intended to shew that they violated justice and equity,
and also that cruelty and perfidiousness, frauds and rapines, prevailed greatly
among them.
Then follows the latter part,
Then I will make you to
dwell,
fA192 etc. God sets this clause in opposition
to the false confidence of the people, as though he had said, "Ye wish me to be
propitious to you; but mock me not by offering sacrifices without sincerity of
heart, without a devout feeling; be consistent; and think not that I am pacified
by you, when ye come to the Temple with empty display, and pollute your
sacrifices with impure hands. I therefore do not allow this state of things; but
if ye come on the condition of returning into favor with me, then I will make
you to dwell in this place and in
the land which I gave to your fathers." The
last part of the verse, from age
to age, ought to be connected with the
verb, "I will make you to dwell,
"ytnkç,
shekanti, "I will make you to dwell from age to age, "that is, As your
fathers dwelt formerly in this land, so shall you remain quiet in the same, and
there shall be to you a peaceable possession; but not in any other place. We
must bear in mind the contrast which I noticed yesterday; for he indirectly
denounces exile on the Jews, because they had contaminated the land by their
vices, and gloried only in their sacrifices. It now follows
—
Jeremiah
7:8
8. Behold, ye trust in lying
words, that cannot profit. 8. Ecce, vos fiduciam adjicitis ad verba
mendacii (vel, fiduciam vobis ponitis super verbis mendacii,) quae
profectu carent.
He again teaches
what we observed yesterday, — that the glorying of the Jews was foolish,
while they boasted of the Temple and of their sacrifices to God. He calls their
boastings the words of falsehood, as we have explained, because they wholly
turned to a contrary end what God had instituted. It was his will that
sacrifices should be offered to him in the Temple — to what purpose? To
preserve unity of faith among the whole people. And sacrifices, what was their
design? To shew the people that they deserved eternal death, and also that they
were to flee to God for mercy, there being no other expiation but the blood of
Christ. But there was no repentance, they were not sorry for their sins; nay, as
we shall presently see, they took liberty to indulge more in them on account of
their ceremonies, which yet ought to have been the means of leading them to
repentance. They were then the words of falsehood when they separated the signs
from their ends. The reality and the sign ought indeed to be distinguished the
one from the other; but it is an intolerable divorce, when men lay hold on naked
signs and overlook the reality. There was in the sacrifices the reality which I
have now mentioned: they were reminded by the spectacle that they were worthy of
eternal death; and then, they were to exercise penitence, and thus to flee to
God's mercy. As there was no account made of Christ, no care for repentance, no
sorrow for sins, no fear of God, no humility, it was an impious separation of
what ought to have been united.
We now then more
clearly see why the Prophet designates as words of falsehood, that false
glorying in which hypocrites indulge, in opposition to God, when they would have
him satisfied with naked ceremonies. Hence he adds, that they were words that
could not
profit, as though he had said, "As ye
seek to trifle with God, so he will also frustrate your design." It is indeed
certain that they dealt dishonestly with God, when they attempted to satisfy his
judgment by frigid ceremonies. He therefore shews that a reward was prepared for
them; for they would at length find, that no fruit would come from their false
dealings. It follows
—
Jeremiah
7:9-11
9. Will ye steal, murder, and
commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after
other gods whom ye know not; 9. An furari, occidere, adulterium
committere, jurare falso (hoc est, pejerare) suffitum offerre Baal,
ambulare post deos alienos, quos non
cognoscitis?
10. 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? 10. Et venientes et stantes coram
facie mea in domo hac (hoc est, in hoc templo,) super quam (vel,
super quod) invocatum est nomen meum, dicetis, Liberati sumus ad faciendum
(ut faciamus) omnes abominationes
istas.
11. 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. 11. An spelunca latronum facta est domus
haec (vel, templum hoc,) super quam invocatum est nomen meum, in oculis
vestris? Etiam ego ecce video, dicit
Jehova.
The meaning seems to be
suspended in the first verse, when he says,
Whether to steal, to kill, and to
commit adultery, etc.; but there is nothing
ambiguous in the passage. For though there is something abrupt in the words, we
yet infer this to be the meaning, "Will you steal, "etc.? Verbs in the
infinitive mood, we know, are often to be considered as verbs in the future
tense: "Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, burn incense to Baal, "etc.?
The Prophet shews how foolishly the Jews sought to make an agreement with God,
so that they might with impunity provoke him by their many vices. When they
entered the Temple, they thought him to be under a necessity to receive them, as
though that was a proper reconciliation. But the Prophet exposes this folly. For
what can be more absurd than that God should allow men to commit murders,
thefts, and adulteries, with impunity? Hypocrites do not in words express this;
but when they make external ceremonies a sort of expiation, and seek by such
means to bury their sins, do they not make God their associate? Do they not make
him a partaker, as it were, with them, when they would have him to cover their
adulteries? When they take sacrifices from their plunders, to expiate their
crimes, do they not make him a participator in their robberies? The Prophet,
therefore, plainly condemns hypocrites in this place, because they acted most
contumeliously towards God, in implicating him in their own vices, as though he
was the associate of thieves, murderers, and
adulterers.
Will you
steal, he says, and then,
will you kill, commit adultery,
and swear falsely? These four sins are against
the Second Table, in which God forbids us to steal, to kill, to commit adultery,
and to deceive our neighbors by false swearing. These four vices are mentioned,
in order that the Prophet might shew that all the duties of love were wholly
disregarded by the Jews. He then adds things which belong to the First Table,
even the offering of incense to
Baal, and the
walking after alien
gods, which yet were unknown to them. By
these two clauses he proves their impiety. He mentions one kind of idolatry,
— that they offered incense to Baal. The Prophets often refer in the
plural number to Baalim, regarded by the Jews as advocates, by whose
intercession, as they thought, they gained favor with God; as the case is at
this day under the Papacy, whose Baalim are angels and dead men: for they regard
them not as gods, but think that by employing these as advocates they conciliate
God, and obtain his favor. Such was the superstition which prevailed among the
Jews. But the Prophet here includes all idols under the word Baal. There is
afterwards a general complaint, — that God was neglected, and that they
had perfidiously departed from him, for they
walked after alien
gods; and he exaggerates the crime by
saying that they were
unknown.
The
Prophet, no doubt, intimates here a contrast with the sure knowledge, which is
the basis of true religion: for God had given evident proofs of his glorious
power by many miracles, when the Israelites were redeemed; and he had afterwards
confirmed the same by many blessings; and the law had been proclaimed,
accompanied with many signs and wonders.
(<022018>Exodus
20:18;
<050522>Deuteronomy
5:22, 23.) Hence the Jews could not have pleaded involuntary error, for after so
many proofs there could have been no excuse on the ground of ignorance. Now, as
to alien gods, how came they to know that they were gods? There was no proof,
they had no reason to believe them to be so. We hence see how grievously wicked
were the Jews; for they had departed from the worship of the true God, who had
made himself known to them by many miracles, and who had confirmed the authority
of his law, so that it could not be questioned, and they had gone after unknown
gods!
The Prophet now adds,
Ye
come, that is, after ye have allowed
yourselves to steal, and to murder, and to commit adultery, and to corrupt the
whole worship of God, — at last,
Ye come and stand before me in
this temple. God proceeds with the same
subject; for it was not only his purpose in this place to condemn the Jews as
murderers, and thieves, and adulterers, but he proceeds farther, even to shew
their shameless effrontery in coming with an unblushing front and entering the
Temple, as though they were the true worshippers of God. "What do you mean, "he
says, "by this? Ye bring with you murders, and thefts, and adulteries, and
abominable filth; ye are contaminated with the most disgraceful things: by and
bye ye enter the Temple, and think that you are at liberty to do anything."
Similar is the language we find in the first chapter of Isaiah, verses 12 and 15
(<230112>Isaiah
1:12, 15): God complains there that they trod the pavement of his Temple, and
brought hands polluted with blood. So also in this place,
Ye
come, he says, intimating his
detestation, and ye stand before
me in this Temple. Though God was not
inclosed in that Temple, yet we know that the Ark of the Covenant was the symbol
of his presence. Hence, we often meet in the law with this expression, "Ye shall
stand before me." Here then, God shews that it was a detestable and monstrous
thing, that the Jews dared to rush into his presence, when polluted and
contaminated with so many vices.
And he adds,
In this house, on which is called
my name, that is, which has been
dedicated to me; for to call God's name on the Temple, means nothing else, but
that the Temple was consecrated to him, so that he was there worshipped. When
God is truly worshipped, they who seek him find that he himself is present by
his grace and power. As then God had commanded the Temple to be built for him,
that he might there be worshipped, he says his name was there called, that is,
according to its first and sacred appointment. Absurdly indeed did the Jews call
on his name, for there was in them no religion, no piety: but according to God's
institution, his name was called upon in the Temple, as he had consecrated it to
himself. Hence God reminds them of the first institution, which was holy and
ought to have continued inviolable: "Know ye not, that this place has been
chosen by me, that my name might be there invoked? Ye stand before me in the
holy place, and ye stand polluted; and though polluted, not with one kind of
vices, but my whole law has been violated by you, and my Tables despised, ye yet
stand!" We hence see the design of the Prophet: for he condemns the effrontery
and frowardness of the Jews, because they thus dared to rush into God's presence
in all their pollutions.
And
ye say, he adds, that is, while standing
in the Temple; ye say, O, we are
freed to do all these abominations; that is,
"Ye think that the Temple is a covert for you to hide all your vices; and so ye
think, that you have escaped from my hand, as though no account is any more to
be made of your sins, my Temple being regarded by you as an asylum, under whose
shade ye take shelter." It is indeed certain, that the Jews did not thus speak;
for had they been asked whether their life was abominable, they would have
denied it to be so. He speaks of the fact itself, and he speaks in the person of
God, and according to his command. He therefore condemns hypocrites for thinking
themselves freed, because they came to the Temple, and for thinking that all
those abominations which he had mentioned, their impiety towards God and their
injustice towards their neighbors, would be
unpunished.
fA193
He afterwards adds,
Is this house, which is called by
my name, a den of robbers? This is the
conclusion of the passage, which contains an amplification of their vices. For
the Prophet had allowed the Jews to form a judgment, as though he had been
discussing an obscure or doubtful subject, "Behold, be ye yourselves judges in
your own case; is it right for you to steal, to murder, and to commit adultery?
and then to come into this Temple, and to boast that impunity is granted to you
as to all your evils?" This indeed ought to have been enough; but as the
obstinacy and stupor of the Jews were so great, that they would not have given
way without being most fully and in various ways proved guilty, the Prophet adds
this sentence, Is this house,
which is called by my name, a den of robbers?
that is, "Have I chosen this place for myself,
that ye might worship me, in order that ye might be more licentious than if
there was no religion? For what purpose is religion? Is it not that men may by
this bridle restrain themselves, that they may not be libertines? For surely the
worship and fear of God are the directors of equity and justice. Now, would it
not be better to have no Temple and no sacrifices, than that men should take
more liberty to sin by making their ceremonies as an excuse? Away then with your
ceremonies: conscience shews that it is a wretched thing to oppress or injure a
neighbor; all are constrained by common sense to own that adultery is a filthy
and a detestable thing; and men think the same of rapines and murders. As to
superstitions, when they are seen as such, all are constrained to allow the
worship of God ought to be preserved in its purity. Well then, had there been no
Temple among you, this truth must have been impressed on your minds, —
that God ought to be worshipped in purity. Now, because the Temple has been
built at Jerusalem, because ye offer sacrifices there, ye are thieves, ye are
adulterers, ye are murderers; and ye think that I am in some sort blind, that I
am no longer the avenger of so many and of such atrocious evils. A den of
robbers then is my house become to you." But this sentence is to be read
interrogatively, "Can it be, that this Temple, this sanctuary, is become a den
of robbers?"
fA194
But we must consider the import of
the comparison: Robbers, though they are most audacious and wholly savage, do
not yet dare openly to use their sword; they dare not kill helpless men. Why?
they fear the punishment allotted to them by the laws; they are cautious. But
when they seize on men in some hidden place, then they take more liberty in
their robberies; they kill men, and then take their property. We hence see that
dens and hidden places have in them more safety for robbers. The comparison then
is most suitable, when the Prophet says that the Jews made the Temple of God the
den of robbers: for had there been no Temple, some integrity might have
remained, secured by the common feeling of men. But when they covered their
baseness with sacrifices, they thought that they thus escaped all
judgment.
And hence, Christ applied this
prophecy to his time; for the Jews had even then profaned the Temple. Though
they presumptuously and falsely called on God's name, they yet sought the Temple
as an asylum for impurity. This folly Christ exposed, as the Prophet had
done.
He afterwards adds,
Even I, behold I see, saith
Jehovah. Jeremiah here no doubt touches
ironically on the false confidence with which the Jews deceived themselves: for
hypocrites seem to themselves to know whatever is necessary. And hence also it
is, that as they think themselves to be acute, they are bolder and more
presumptuous in contriving deceitful schemes, by which they seek to delude God
and men. And hence the Prophet here tauntingly touches them to the quick, by
intimating that they wished to make God as it were blind,
Even I, behold I
see, he says. It would not yet be
sufficiently evident how emphatical the phrase is, were it not for a similar
passage in
<232915>Isaiah
29:15,
"I also am wise." The
Prophet had said, "Woe to the crafty and the wise, who have dug pits for
themselves."
He there condemns ungodly men, who thought that they
could somehow by their falsehoods deceive God; which seems to be and is
monstrous: and yet it is an evil which commonly prevails among men. For hardly a
man in a hundred can be found who does not seek coverings to hide himself from
the eyes of God. This is the case especially with courtiers and clever men, who
assume to themselves so much clear-sightedness, that God sees nothing in
comparison with them. The Lord therefore, by Isaiah, gives this answer, "I also
am wise: if ye are wise, allow me at least some portion of wisdom, and think not
that I am altogether foolish." So also in this place, "Before my eyes, this
house is made a den of robbers;" that is, "If there be any sense in you, does it
not appear evident that you have made a den of robbers of my Temple? and can I
be yet blind? If you think that you are very clear-sighted, I also do see, saith
the Lord."
We hence see what force there is in
the particle
µg,
gam, also, and in the pronoun
ykna,
anoki, I, and in
hnh,
ene, behold; for these three words are heaped together, that God might shew
that he was not unobservant, when the people so audaciously ran headlong into
all kinds of vices, and sought by their falsehoods to cover his eyes, that he
might not see anything.
fA195
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as thou
buildest not at this day a temple among us of wood and stones, and as the
fullness of thy Godhead dwells in thine only — begotten Son, and as he by
his power fills the whole world, and dwells in the midst of us, and even in us,
— O grant, that we may not profane his sanctuary by our vices and sins,
but so strive to consecrate ourselves to thy service, that thy name through his
name may be continually glorified, until we shall at length be received into
that eternal inheritance, where will appear to us openly, and face to face, that
glory which we now see in the truth contained in thy gospel. —
Amen.
Lecture
Twenty-Eighth
Jeremiah
7:12-14
12. 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. 12. Nempe ite nunc
(vel, agedum) in locum meum, qui erat in Silo, ubi habitare feci nomen
meum initio, et videte quid fecerim illic propter malitiam populi mei
Israel.
13. 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; 13. Et nunc quia fecistis omnia opera haee (id est, quia
imitati estis Israelitas) dicit Jehovah, et loquutus sum ad vos mane surgens, et
quum loquerer, non audistis, et inclamarem vos, non
respondistis.
14. 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 to your fathers, as I have done to
Shiloh. 14. Faciam igitur domui huic, in qua (super quam) invocatum est
nomen meum, de qua vos fiditis (in qua vos confiditis, sequitur postea
relativum) et loco, quem dedi vobis et patribus vestris, sicuti feci
Silo.
The Prophet confirms by an
example what he said yesterday, — that the Jews deceived themselves in
thinking that they were covered by the shadow of the Temple, while yet they
disclosed themselves, and when the whole world were witness of their impious
rebellion. He therefore mentions what had before happened. The Ark of the
Covenant, as it is well known, had long rested in Shiloh. Now the Temple did not
excel in dignity on its own account, but on account of the Ark of the Covenant
and the altar. It was indeed splendidly adorned; but the holiness of the Temple
was derived from the Ark of the Covenant, the altar, and the sacrifices. This
Ark had been in Shiloh.
fA196 Hence Jeremiah shews how foolish were
the Jews in being proud, because they had among them the Ark of the Covenant and
the altar, for the first place, where sacrifices had been offered to God, was
not preserved in safety. This is the import of the
whole.
But he did not in vain say,
Even go to
Shiloh. The
yk,
ki, here, though commonly a causal particle, seems to be taken as
explanatory. If yet it be viewed only as an affirmative, I do not object, "Well,
go to Shiloh." But the language in this case is ironical, "Ye glory in the
Temple; forsooth! go to Shiloh." And God calls it his place —
my
place, in order that the Jews might
understand that it had nothing superior in itself. The Ark of the Covenant had
indeed been removed into Mount Sion, and there God had chosen a perpetual
habitation for himself; but the other place was superior as to antiquity. This
is the reason why he calls it "my place, "and adds,
Where I made my name to
dwell, that is, where I designed the Ark
to be: for the Ark of the Covenant and the altar, with all their furniture, were
properly the name of God; nor was it by chance that all the tribes had placed
the Ark in Shiloh; but it was God's will to be there worshipped for a time.
Hence he says, that the place was sacred before Jerusalem; and therefore he says
at the
first,
hnwçarb,
berashune; that is, the Shilomites are not only equal with you, but
antiquity brings them a greater honor: if then a comparison is made, they excel
you as to what is ancient.
See, he says,
what I did to that place for the
iniquity of my people Israel. He calls here
Israel his people, not for honor's sake, but that he might again remind the Jews
that they were only equal to the Israelites; and yet that it profited all the
tribes nothing, that they were wont to assemble there to worship
God.
fA197 For when we reason from example, we
must always see that there be no material difference. Jeremiah then shews that
the Israelites were equal to the Jews, and that if the Jews claimed a
superiority, the claim was neither just nor right, for Israel were also the
people of God, inasmuch as it was God's will to fix there the Ark of the
Covenant, that sacrifices might be there offered to him; and then antiquity was
in its favor, for it was a holy place before it was known that God had chosen
Mount Sion as a situation for his Temple.
Hence
he draws this conclusion, Now,
then, as ye have done all these works,
that is, as ye have become like the Israelites,
therefore,
etc. But he first amplifies their crime, — that they had not only
imitated the wickedness of the twelve tribes, but had also perversely despised
all warnings, I spake to
you, he says,
and rose up
early. By this metaphor he intimates,
that he was as solicitous for preserving the kingdom of Judah, as parents are
wont to be for the safety of their children: for as a father rises early to see
what is necessary for his family, so also God says, that he rose early, inasmuch
as he had been assiduous in exhorting them. He appropriates to his own person
what properly belonged to his prophets: but as he had roused them by his Spirit
and employed them in their work, he justly claims to himself whatever he had
done by them as his instruments: and it was an exaggeration of their guilt, that
they were slothful, nay, stupid, when God sedulously labored for their
safety.
He adds,
I spoke, and ye heard
not; I cried
to you, and ye did not
answer, he inveighs more at large
against their hardness; for had he only once warned them, some pretense might
have been made; but as God, by rising early every day, labored to restore them
to himself, and as he had not only employed instruction, but also crying, (for
by crying he doubtless means exhortations and threatenings, which ought to have
produced greater effect upon them,) there appeared in this contumacy the highest
degree of mad audacity. The meaning is, — that God had tried all means to
restore the Jews to a sound mind, but that they were wholly irreclaimable; for
he had called them not only once, but often; and he had also endued his prophets
with power to labor strenuously in the discharge of their office: he had not
only shewed by them what was useful and necessary, but he had
cried,
that is, had employed greater vehemence, in order to correct their
tardiness. Since then God, in using all these means, could effect nothing, what
remained for them was miserably to perish, as they willfully sought their own
destruction.
Therefore,
he says, I will do to this
house, which is called by my name, etc.
He anticipates, no doubt, all objections, as though he had said, "I know what
you will say, — that this place is sacred to God, that his name is invoked
here, and that sacrifices are here offered: all these things, he says, are
alleged to no purpose, for in Shiloh also was his name invoked, and he dwelt
there. Though then ye foolishly trust in this place, it shall not yet escape
that judgment which happened to the former place." He adds,
which I gave to you and to your
fathers. Be it so; for this is to be
considered as a concession; and at the same time objections are anticipated, in
order that the Jews might understand that it availed them nothing, that God had
chosen to build his sanctuary on Mount Sion; for the object was to promote
religion. But as the place was converted to a wholly different purpose, and as
God's name was there shamefully profaned, he says, "Though I gave this place to
you and your fathers, yet nothing better shall be its fate than the fate of
Shiloh."
fA198 It follows
—
Jeremiah
7:15
15. And I will cast you out of
my sight, as I have cast out all your brethren, even the whole seed of
Ephraim. 15. Et projiciam vos a facie mea, sicuti projeci omnes fratres
vestros, totum semen Ephraim.
He
concludes the former verse. The Prophet had indeed sufficiently explained
himself; but this confirmation was necessary for a people so refractory. He then
alleges nothing new, but only shews that there would be no defense to his own
people against God's vengeance any more than to the Israelites: and hence he now
calls them their
brethren,
as he had previously said that they were his people; for the state of the
ten tribes was the same, until it had pleased God to remove the Ark of the
Covenant to Mount Sion, that he might have his throne in the tribe of Judah. All
the children of Abraham were indeed equal; but the Israelites were superior in
number and in power. And he says,
the whole
seed. This is significantly added; for
the Jews had with them only the half of the tribe of Manasse. The ten tribes had
perished; in nothing could they exalt themselves; and they were in this respect
inferior, because they were only one tribe and half, and the ten tribes were
larger in number.
fA199
He calls them the
seed of
Ephraim, because of their first king,
and also because that tribe was more illustrious than the other nine tribes. And
in the Prophets Ephraim is in many places named for Israel, that is, for that
second kingdom, which yet flourished more in wealth and power. We now perceive
the meaning of the Prophet.
But we may hence
learn this important truth, — that God had never so bound himself to any
people or place, that he was not at liberty to inflict punishment on the impiety
of those who had despised his favors, or profaned them by their ingratitude and
their sins. And this ought to be carefully noticed; for we see that it is an
evil as it were innate in us, that we become elated and proud whenever God deals
bountifully with us; for we so abuse his favors as to think that more liberty is
given us, because God has bestowed on us more than on others. But there is
nothing more groundless than this presumption; and yet we become thus insolent
whenever God honors us with peculiar favors. Let us therefore bear in mind what
is taught here by the Prophet, — that God is ever at liberty to take
vengeance on the ungodly and the
ungrateful.
Hence also it appears how foolish is
the boasting of the Papists; for whenever they bring against us the name of the
apostolic throne, they think that God's mouth is closed; they think that all
authority is to be taken away from his word. In short, they harden themselves
against God, as though they had a legitimate possession, because the gospel had
been once preached at Rome, and because that place was the first seat of the
Church in Italy as well as in Europe. But God never favored Rome with such a
privilege, nor has he said that his habitation was to be there. If the Pope and
his adherents had what the Jews then possessed, (which really belonged to Mount
Sion,) who could bear their fury, I say not, their pride? But we see what
Jeremiah says of Mount Sion, of which yet it had been said,
"This is my rest for
ever; here will I dwell,
because I
have chosen it."
(<19D214>Psalm
132:14)
Go
now, he says,
to
Shiloh. Now, since Shiloh and Jerusalem,
and so many celebrated cities, where the gospel formerly flourished, have been
taken away from us, it is not to be doubted, but that a dreadful vengeance and
destruction await all those who reject the doctrine of salvation, and despise
the treasure of the gospel. Since then God has shewn by so many proofs and
examples that he is not bound to any places, how stupid is their madness who
seek, through the mere name of an apostolic seat, to subvert all truth and all
fear of God, and whatever belongs to true religion. Let us now proceed
—
Jeremiah
7:16
16. 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. 16. Et tu ne ores pro populo hoc, et ne
eleves pro ipsis clamorem et precationem, et ne occurras (intercedas; est
enim translativum verbum, nam
[np
significat obviam ire, sed accipitur pro intercedere, ne ergo
intercedas) apud me, quia non exaudiam
to.
God, in order to exonerate his
servant from every ill — will, forbids him to pray for the people. This
might have been done for the sake of the Prophet, as well as of the whole
people; for no doubt Jeremiah regarded the ruin of his own nation with great
grief and sorrow: as we shall see elsewhere, he had not divested himself of all
human feelings. He was doubtless anxious for the safety of his brethren, and he
condoled with the miserable, when he saw that they were already given up to
destruction. But God strengthens him, that he might courageously discharge his
office; for pity has often melted the hearts of men so as not to be able, as
they ought, to perform their office. Jeremiah might have been more tardy or more
temperate in denouncing God's vengeance, had not all impediments, which checked
his alacrity, been removed. Hence then he is bidden to divest himself of
sympathy, so that he might rise above all human feelings, and remember that he
was set a judge over the people, or a herald to denounce their final doom. There
is yet no doubt but that God had respect to the people also, — to make it
known to them that Jeremiah was constrained to perform his part, however
unpleasant it might be to him. Hence, as I have said, he was thus relieved from
the charge of ill-will, lest he should exasperate his own nation while treating
them with so much
severity.
Pray
not, he says,
for this
people; and then,
Raise not up a
prayer. Some read, "Take not up a
prayer." The verb
açn,
nesha, properly means to raise up. We have spoken of this phrase
elsewhere; for there are two different ways of speaking when prayer is the
subject. The Scripture sometimes says of the faithful, that they cast a prayer
before God; and thus is set forth their humility, when they come as suppliants,
and dare not lift upwards their eyes, like the publican, of whom Christ speaks.
(<421813>Luke
18:13.) We are then said to cast a prayer before God, when we humbly seek
pardon, and stand before him with shame and self — reproach. We are also
said, for another reason, to raise up a prayer; for when our hearts sink and
ascend not to God in faith, it is certain that our prayers are not real: hence
the faithful, on account of the fervor of their desire, are said to raise up
their prayers. Even so the meaning is here,
Raise not up for them a cry and a
prayer.
Then he
says, Intercede not, for I will
not hear
thee.
fA200 There is yet no doubt but that the
Prophet, as we shall see, continued in his prayers; but still as one knowing
that the safety of the city and kingdom would no longer be granted by God: for
he might have prayed for two things, — that God would reverse his decree;
and this he was forbidden to do; — and, that God would be mindful of his
covenant in preserving a remnant; and this was done; for the name of the people,
though the city and the Temple were destroyed, has never been obliterated. Some
people then survived, though without any distinction or renown. And hence at the
restoration of the Church God calls its subjects a new people, as in
<19A219>Psalm
102:19,
"A people who shall be
created," that is, a new
people,
"shall praise the
Lord,"
as though he intimated that the Babylonian exile
would be the ruin of his ancient people. God has, however, preserved a remnant,
as Paul says in Romans 10 and Romans 11. So for the whole body of the people,
and for the kingdom, the Prophet was not to pray, because he knew that it was
all over with the people. But on this subject we shall speak more at large in
another place. It follows
—
Jeremiah
7:17-19
17. Seest thou not what they
do in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 17. An non
rvides tu quid ipsi faciant in urbibus Jehudah et in compitis
Jerusalem?
18. 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. 18. Filii colligunt
ligna, et patres accendunt ignem, et mulieres ad ponendum ut faciant placentas
Reginae coelorum, et fundant (libent) libamina diis alienis, ut me provocent ad
iram.
19. Do they provoke me to
anger? saith the LORD: do they not provoke themselves to the
confusion of their own faces? 19. An me ipsi ad iram provocant, dicit
Jehova? an non seipsos ad erubescentiam facierum
suarum?
Here God shews first why he
ought to be implacable towards the people: for the command to the Prophet not to
pray for them seems at the first hearing to be very severe; and it might have
been objected and said, "What if they repent? Is there no hope of pardon?" God
shews that they were past remedy — How so? He says,
Dost thou not see?
Here he refers the examination of the cause to
his servant Jeremiah; as though he had said, "There is no reason for thee to
contend with me; open thine own eyes, and consider how they have fallen; for
children gather wood, and fathers
kindle the fire, and
women knead
dough." Some render the last words,
"Women are busy with the paste;" but literally, "they set the dough,
"la
paste. God intimates here shortly, that
the whole people were become corrupt, as though they had wickedly conspired
together, so that men, women, and children, were all led away into idolatry as
by a mad impulse; for he speaks here only of their superstitions. He had before
charged them with adulteries, murders, and plunders; but he now condemns them
for having wholly profaned God's worship, and at the same time shews the fruit
of their impiety — that they all strove to outdo one another by an insane
rivalship.
The
children, he says,
gather
wood. He ascribes the collecting of wood
to the young; for it was a more laborious work. As then that age excels in
strength, they collected wood; and
the fathers kindled the
fire: the women, what did they do? They
were busy with the meal. Thus no part was neglected. "What then is to be done?
and what else can I do, but wholly to cut off a people so wicked?" Then he says,
that they may make
µynwk,
cunim, which is translated "cakes, "and this is the most common
rendering. Some think that kindling is meant, deriving the word from
hwk,
cue, which means to kindle. But I prefer the opinion of those who derive
the word from
ˆwk,
cun, which is to prepare, as cakes are things prepared. I do not then
doubt, but that cakes are meant here, as it appears also from other places. The
second interpretation I regard as too
refined.
fA201
With regard to the word
tklml,
lamelcath, many consider the letter
a
left out, and think that "works" are intended. In this case
m
would be a servile: but others consider it a radical, and render the word,
"Queen;" which appears to me probable; though I do not wholly reject what some
hold that the workmanship of the heavens is here meant. Some understand the
stars, others the sun, and others the moon: let every one enjoy his own opinion.
However, I think, that if the workmanship of the heavens be meant, the whole
celestial host is to be included, as the Scripture thus calls all the stars. But
if "the Queen of the heavens" be adopted, then I am inclined to think that the
moon is intended: and we know how much superstition has ever prevailed among
most people as to the worship of the moon. Hence I approve of this meaning. Yet
I readily admit that all the stars, not one only, may be here designated, and
called the work or the workmanship of the heavens. And the Jews, we know, were
very much given to this madness: for as the sun was considered by the Orientals
as the supreme God, when the Jews became enamoured with this error, they also
thought that some high and adorable divinity belonged to the sun: they turned
also afterwards to the stars; and this absurdity is often referred to in the Law
and also in the Prophets.
fA202
It is then added,
That they may pour forth
libations to foreign gods, to provoke me to
wrath. When God complains of being
provoked, it is the same as though he had said, that the Jews now openly carried
on war with him, — " They sin not through ignorance, nor is it unknown to
them how much they offend me by these profanations; but it is as it were their
object and design to provoke me and to carry on war with me by these acts of
impiety."
He then subjoins,
Do they provoke me, and not
rather to the shame of their own faces? God
here intimates, that however reproachfully the Jews acted towards him, they yet
brought no loss to him, for he stood in no need of their worship. Why then does
he so severely threaten them? Because he had their sins in view: but yet he
shews that he cared not for them nor their sacrifices, for he could without any
loss be without them. Hence he says, that they sought their own ruin, and
whatever they devised would fall on their own heads. They seek to provoke me;
they shall know with whom they have to do." It is like what is said by the
Prophet Zechariah, "They shall know whom they have pierced: I indeed continue
uninjured; and though they provoke me as much as they can, I yet despise all
their wickedness, for they cannot reach me; they can neither hurt me nor take
anything from me." But he says,
they provoke themselves,
that is, their fury shall return on their own
heads; and hence it shall be, that
their faces
shall be
ashamed. fA203
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as we are
inclined not only to superstitions, but also to many vices, we may be restrained
by thy word, and as thou art pleased daily to remind us of thy benefits, that
thou mayest keep us in the practice of true religion, — O grant, that we
may not be led astray by the delusions of Satan and by our own vanity, but
continue firm and steady in our obedience to thee, and constantly proceed in the
course of true piety, so that we may at length partake of its fruit in thy
celestial kingdom, which has been obtained for us by the blood of thine only
— begotten Son. — Amen.
Lecture
Twenty-Ninth
Jeremiah
7:20
20. 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 shall not be quenched. 20. Propterea
sic dicit Dominus Jehova, Ecce ira mea et furor meus (vel,
excandescentia, nam verbum hoc significat) conflata est super
locum hunc, super hominem et super animal (brutum; alii vertunt,
jumentum, bestiam,) super arborem agri, et super fructum terrae; et ardebit,
et nullus extinguet.
Jeremiah
proceeds still with the same subject, and explains more at large what we have
noticed in the preceding lecture, that the ruin of Mount Sion and of the Temple
was nigh at hand, according to what God had before done to Shiloh, where the Ark
had long been kept. But that his threatening might have more weight, he
introduced God as the speaker,
—
Behold,
he says, my wrath, even mine
indignation, has been poured down on this
place. He refers to the metaphor he had
before used; and hence is confirmed what I then said, — that God spoke not
of prophetic teaching, but of the punishments which he had already inflicted and
was prepared to inflict. On this account he says, that
his
wrath, or vengeance (the cause is put
for the effect) had been poured
down on the city Jerusalem, so as to bring
destruction on the cattle as well as men, and also on the fruit of the land. It
is indeed certain that brute animals, as well as trees and the productions of
the earth, were innocent; but as the whole world was created for man and for his
benefit, it is nothing strange that God's vengeance should extend to innocent
animals and to things not endued with reason: for God does not inflict
punishment on brute animals and on the fruits of the earth, except for the
purpose of shewing, by extending the symptoms of his wrath to all the elements,
how much displeased he is with men. The whole world, we know, bears at this day
in some measure the punishment which Adam deserved: and hence Paul says, that
all the elements labor in pain, aspiring after a deliverance; and he says also,
that all creatures have been subjected to corruption, though not willingly, that
is, not through their own fault, but through the sin and transgression of man.
(<450820>Romans
8:20-22.) It is no wonder, then, that God, wishing to terrify men, should daily
set before their eyes the various forms of his vengeance as manifested towards
animals, as well as trees and the fruits of the
earth.
The meaning then is, — that God was
so angry, that he purposed to destroy, not only the Jews, but the land itself,
in order that posterity might know how grievously they had sinned, against whom
God's just vengeance had thus kindled. There is therefore no need for us
curiously to inquire why God shewed his displeasure towards trees and brute
animals: for it is enough for us to know that God does not in a strict sense
punish brute animals and trees, but that this is done on account of man, that
such a sad spectacle may fill them with fear. He afterwards adds
—
Jeremiah
7:21-24
21. Thus saith the Lord of
hosts, the God of Israel; Put your burnt offerings unto your sacrifices, and eat
flesh. 21. Sic dicit Jehova exercituum, Deus Israel, Holocausta vestra
addite super victimas vestras et comedite
carnem.
22. 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: 22. Quia non loquutus
sum cum patribus vestris, et non praecepi illis quo die eduxi eos e terra Egypti
super verbis (hoc est, rationibus, nam
rbd
proprie significat rationem Latine; Hebraei enim ita passim usurpant hanc
vocem, sicuti Latini rationem, super rationibus ergo) holocaustorum et
victimae:
23. 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. 23. Quin potius (sed
µa
yk est adversativa particula, hoc est, hae duae
voces ponuntur loco adversativae, sed) verbum hoc praecepi illis, dicendo,
Audite vocem meam, et ero vobis in Deum, et vos eritis mihi in populum, et
ambulabitis in omni via (hoc est, in tota via) quam mandavero vobis, ut bene sit
vobis.
24. But they hearkened
not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in the counsels and in the imagination
of their evil heart, and went backward, and not forward. 24. Et non
audierunt, et non inclinarunt aurem suam, et ambulaverunt in perplexis consiliis
(proprie accipitur in malam partem) et in pravitate (vel,
duritia) cordis sui mali, et fuerunt retro, et non ad
faciem.
The Prophet here taunts the
Jews for being so sedulous in their attention to sacrifices, while they had no
care for piety. Hence he says by way of ridicule, "Offer your sacrifices, and
accumulate burnt-offerings and victims, and eat flesh." The last clause proves
that God regarded as nothing their sacrifices, and that nothing was acceptable
to him, though the Jews spent much money and spared no labors. God then shews
that all these things were nothing to him;
eat
flesh, he says, which means, "Ye
sacrifice to yourselves, not to me." There is here a contrast implied; for when
they did eat flesh, there was the legitimate service of God, provided sacrifices
were duly offered; but God here excludes himself, as though he had said, "These
things belong not at all to me; for when ye bring sacrifices, your object is to
feast: eat, then, and stuff your stomachs; nothing of this belongs to
me."
fA204
The import of the whole is, —
that the feasts which the Jews celebrated were profane, though they pretended
the name of God, and wished them to be deemed sacred.
Eat
then
flesh;
that is, "I repudiate your sacrifices; it is to no purpose that ye cover
your iniquities by the shadow of the Temple; for your pollutions restrain me
from accepting what ye pretend to offer to me." By saying,
Add sacrifices to
victims, he means, that though they
sacrificed every animal in the land, it would be all to no purpose; for, as I
have said, in offering sacrifices to God their object was to get a feast,
inasmuch as they did not regard the right
end.
The Prophet therefore adds,
I spoke not to your fathers, nor
commanded them, in the day I brought them forth from the land of Egypt,
concerning sacrifices or burnt — offerings: but this only I commanded
them, to hear my voice, and to walk in all the way which I commanded them.
Jeremiah seems to have condemned sacrifices too
much; for we know they were designed for certain purposes: they were intended to
promote penitence; for when an animal was killed at the altar, all were reminded
that they were guilty of death, which the animals underwent instead of men.
Hence God did thereby represent to the Jews, as in a mirror, the dreadful
judgment they deserved; and the sacrifices were also living images of Christ;
they were sure pledges of that expiation through which men are reconciled to
God. Jeremiah then seems here to speak too contemptibly of sacrifices; for they
were seals of God's grace, and had been instituted to lead men to repentance.
But he speaks according to the ideas of those who had strangely vitiated the
worship of God; for the Jews were sedulously attentive to sacrifices, and yet
neglected the main things — faith and repentance. Hence the Prophet here
repudiates sacrifices, because these false worshippers of God had adulterated
them; for they were only intent on external rites, and overlooked their design,
and even despised it.
We know that it was God's
will from the beginning to be worshipped in a spiritual manner; and he has not
changed his nature in our day. As then at this day he approves of no other than
a spiritual worship, as He is a Spirit,
(<430424>John
4:24) so also under the Law he was to be worshipped with a sincere heart.
Absurdly then did the Jews offer their sacrifices, as though they could thereby
appease God: and this is the reason why the prophets inveighed so pointedly
against sacrifices. God says that he nauseated them, that he was wearied with
them, that his name was thereby polluted,
(<230114>Isaiah
1:14) he says also, that to sacrifice was the same as though one killed a dog,
an unclean animal, and as though one killed a man.
(<236603>Isaiah
66:3.)
"What are your offerings
and sacrifices to me."
he says by Amos. Such declarations occur everywhere
in the Prophets; we are told that sacrifices were not only of no account before
God, but that they were filthy things which he abominated; that is, when the
things signified were separated from the signs. This then is the reason why
Jeremiah here wholly rejects sacrifices: he complains that God's worship was
violated and profaned; and it was so, because the Jews presented to God mere
shadows instead of realities.
But still he seems
to have exceeded due limits; as he says of God, that he gave no command
respecting sacrifices: for before the law was published, God had ordered
sacrifices to be offered to him; as, for instance, the passover; for the pascal
lamb, as it is well known, was a sacrifice; and he had also spoken of sacrifices
before the people were liberated. Moreover, after the law was given, a
priesthood was established among the people, as Moses clearly shews. Further
still, we see with what care regulations have been given as to sacrifices. Why
then is it here said, that he spoke nothing respecting sacrifices? Even because
God regards not sacrifices in themselves. He therefore makes a distinction
between external signs and spiritual worship; for the Jews, as it has been
already said, had by their corruptions so subverted what God had instituted,
that he would not acknowledge what they did as having been commanded by him. And
if we take the words as they are, they are wholly true, — that God had
commanded nothing respecting mere sacrifices, or sacrifices for their own sake.
This distinction solves every difficulty; that is, that God never delighted in
sacrifices themselves, that it was never his will to be served with mere
external rites, that burnt — offerings, victims, incense, and things of
this kind, were of themselves regarded by him of no value. Since, then,
sacrifices did not please God, except on account of the end designed, it remains
a clear truth, that God commanded nothing respecting sacrifices: for his design
only was to remind the Jews of their sin, and also to shew to them the way of
reconciliation. We hence see that God had not from the beginning required mere
sacrifices, for he required them for a certain end. It is the same as though we
should say at this day, that God regards not fasting. We yet know that fasting
is commended to us, but not on account of itself. We now understand the meaning
of the Prophet.
fA205
Now, this passage contains a very
useful doctrine, and which ought the more to be observed by us, as the neglect
of it introduces dreadful darkness. They under the Papacy think that God is duly
and in the best manner worshipped, when they accumulate many pompous exhibitions
of ceremonies; nor can they be persuaded that all this is altogether frivolous.
How so? Because they think of God according to their own fancies and
disposition. And yet all the Papal ceremonies are the inventions of men: for
they derive no authority either from the Law or from the Gospel. And since God
has so severely reprobated ceremonies, which yet he had appointed for a purpose
which was overlooked, what can be thought at this day of the foolish inventions
of men, when there is the some impiety in the people as was formerly in the
Jews? For when the Papists perform their trumperies, when the monks and the
sacrificing priests fill the churches with their noises, when they practice
their childish mummeries, and when they delight themselves with music and
incense, they think that God is satisfied, however full of obscenities and
filthiness their whole life may be: they are hardened in that false confidence,
by which the Jews were inebriated. We ought, therefore, with special care, to
notice this doctrine, — that God so approves of spiritual worship, that he
esteems all other things as nothing; that is, when unconnected with sincerity of
heart.
I spoke not
then to
your fathers, nor commanded them
in the day I brought them forth from the land of
Egypt, etc. The Prophet calls the
attention of the Jews to the first condition of the Church; for though God had
made his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, yet he then only formed or
framed for himself a Church when the Law was promulgated. Hence God at that time
showed what pleased him, and prescribed certain things, which were in future to
be inviolably observed: and as the Jews violated the rule given them, the
Prophet concludes that God was corruptly and absurdly worshipped by them. This
is the reason why he expressly speaks here of the deliverance granted to the
fathers. There follows afterwards a clearer explanation, which removes all
ambiguity: for God subordinates sacrifices to obedience. Yet sacrifices are a
part of obedience: very true; but as the people were to be subject to the whole
law, it hence follows, that the worship of God was mutilated by them, when there
was no care for true piety. We now then, no doubt, understand the meaning of the
Prophet, and see at the same time the reason why God so expressly rejected
sacrifices: for what God has connected, it is not in the power of man to
separate.
(<401906>Matthew
19:6;
<411009>Mark
10:9.) This rending of things is impious. As the Jews had separated sacrifices
from their right and legitimate end, whatever they did was a sacrilege and a
profanation.
That we may now more fully
comprehend this doctrine, we must remember this principle — that the basis
of true religion is obedience. For unless God shines on us with his word, there
is no religion, but only hypocrisy and superstition; as the case is with
heathens, who, though they busy themselves much and with great diligence, yet
loose all their labor, and uselessly weary themselves, for God has not shewn to
them the right way. In short, true religion may always be distinguished from
superstition by this mark — If the truth of God guides us, then our
religion is true; but if any one follows his own reason, or is led by the
opinion and consent of men, he forms for himself superstition; and nothing that
he does will please God. This is one thing.
Now,
in the second place, let us see what God chiefly requires from those who are his
servants. Being fully convinced of this truth — that God cannot be truly
served, except we obey his voice, we must consider, as I have said, what God
commands us to do. Now, as he is a Spirit, so he demands sincerity of heart.
(<430424>John
4:24.) We also know that God so comes to us, that he would have us to trust
wholly in his gratuitous goodness, that he would have us to depend altogether on
his paternal kindness, that he would have us to call on him, and to offer him
the sacrifice of praise. Since, then, God has expressly required these things in
his word, it is certain, that all other modes of worship are rejected by him as
vitious; that is, when there is no faith, when there is no prayer and praise:
for these hold the first place in true and legitimate
worship.
This one passage is sufficient to put
an end to all the contentions which are now in the world. For if the Papists
admitted that obedience is of more account with God than all sacrifices,
(<091522>1
Samuel 15:22,) we might easily agree. They might afterwards debate every article
of faith; but there would be in the main an agreement between us, were they to
submit simply and unreservedly to the word of God. But we see how pertinaciously
they insist on this point — that we are not to stand on God's word, nor
acquiesce in it, because there is in it nothing certain. Hence they regard the
doctrine of the Fathers, and what they call the perpetual consent of the
Catholic Church, as of more value than the Law and the Prophets and the Gospel.
They dare not indeed to contend on this ground; and so far they act wisely: for
if the disputes between us are capable of being removed, as I have said, by
God's word, we could easily overcome them. But while they, fostering their own
blindness, strive to extinguish the light, and willfully envelop themselves in
darkness, let us follow what God's Spirit shews to us here, — that the
main part of true and right worship and service is to hear God speaking, and to
regard obedience of more account than all offerings and sacrifices, according to
the passage we have quoted from
<091522>1
Samuel 15:22.
He afterwards adds,
I will be to you a God, and ye
shall be to me a people; and ye shall walk in all the way which I shall shew to
you, that it may be well with you. The
Prophet confirms what I have already said, that if we would obey God, we must
consider what he commands. Now God omits no part of true worship: we shall then
never go astray from true religion, if only we render ourselves teachable.
Whence then is it, that men diligently labor and profit nothing, except that
they are deaf to God's voice? for as it has been already often said, God has not
only spoken generally, and in various ways, of obedience, but has clearly and
distinctly taught what he approves. Our obedience then will please him, if only
we learn what he would have us to do.
And at the
same time he adds, that this condition was mentioned to the Jews, that it
would be well with
them, if they only obeyed God. Hence
their perverseness is more fully detected; for they willfully sought to be
miserable, and procured for themselves their own destruction: for a happy life
was offered to them, provided only they submitted to God. Since they refused
this, who does not see that they willfully gave themselves up to misery, as
though they wished to provoke God's anger, and did so designedly? for it
immediately follows
—
They hearkened not nor
inclined their ear. Here the Prophet
shews, that the Jews did not then begin to be rebellious against God and his
word; for they imitated the impious contumacy of their fathers: and he dwells on
this more at large. He now says, "I gave no command about sacrifices, but only
this one thing I required of your fathers, to obey me."
They hearkened
not, he says. What could have been a
juster demand than that they should obey God? How great, then, and how base an
indignity it was, to reject his authority? Nay, still more, they
inclined not the
ear: for by this phrase the Prophet
means not only a contempt of his word and indifference, but their obstinacy and
willfulness, inasmuch as they had hardened themselves against God. Hypocrites
do, indeed, sometimes incline the ear, and wish to know what is said, and in
some measure consider it: but the Prophet here sets forth as it were the insane
contumacy of the Jews, for they
inclined
not, no, not even
the ear
to God speaking to
them.
He afterwards adds, that they
walked in their tortuous
counsels, and also,
in the wickedness of their evil
heart.
fA206 This comparison aggravates their sin,
— the Jews preferred to follow their own humor rather than to obey God and
his commands. Had anything been set before them, which might have deceived them
and obscured the authority of the law, there would have been some excuse: but
when there was nothing to prevent them from obeying the command of God, except
that they followed their own foolish imaginations, they were wholly inexcusable.
For what excuse could they have made? That they wished to be wiser than God! How
great a madness was this, and how diabolical? But the Prophet leaves them
nothing but this vain excuse, which doubled their guilt. They thought, no doubt,
that their heart was well fitted for the purpose: but he does not here allow
them to judge, but distinctly condemns them as they
deserved.
We ought to take particular notice of
this passage; for the majority of men at this day set up their own fictions
against God's word. The Papists indeed pretend antiquity; they say that they
have been taught by their ancestors; and at the same time they plead councils
and the ordinances of the fathers: but yet there is not one of them, who is not
addicted to his own figments, and who does not take the liberty, nay, an
unbridled license, to reject whatever he pleases. Moreover, if the origin of the
whole Papal worship be considered, it will appear, that those who first devised
so many strange superstitions, were only impelled by audacity and presumption,
in order that they might trample under foot the word of God. Hence it is, that
all things are become corrupt; for they brought in all the strange figments of
their own brains. And we see that the Papists at this day are so perversely
fixed in their own errors, that they prefer themselves and their own trumperies
to God. And the same is the case also with all heretics. What then is to be
done? Obedience, as I have said, is to be held as the basis of all true
religion. If, then, on the other hand, we wish to render our worship approved by
God, let us learn to cast aside whatever is our own, so that his authority may
prevail over all our reasons.
Let us further
notice how detestable a sacrilege it is, to follow the wickedness of our heart
rather than to obey God, when he shews to us, as by the finger, the way of
salvation. Let us also observe, that nothing will then do us good, though we may
seem to ourselves to be very wise, and praise ourselves in our folly; for God
declares here that our heart is evil whenever we turn aside from his pure
word.
He says, that they
were behind and not
before. By this phrase he intimates that
the Jews turned the back, that they might not look at him or go forward. For
when one promises to be our leader to conduct us in the way, we immediately turn
our eyes to him; but when we turn our back, it is a proof of our contempt. And
thus God complains of his people, that he was despised by them; for they had not
only been deaf to the prophetic teaching and admonitions, but had also turned
their faces another way, as a proof of a contumacy still worse, so that they
forsook him, and as it were bade him to be
gone.
fA207 This is the import of the last
sentence. We shall proceed to-morrow.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as thou hast
at this day so clearly revealed to us thy will that there can remain no pretense
of ignorance, we may on that account submit to thee with a freer and more ready
mind, and that we may not only incline our ears to thee, but also so attend to
thee with all our hearts, that we may desire no other thing than to make our
whole life approved by thee: and as we cannot but turn aside, through our
obstinacy and wickedness, from the right way, do thou so enlighten us by the
Spirit of wisdom and knowledge, that we may strive to embrace whatever thou hast
been pleased to prescribe to us in thy word, so that when the course of this
life shall be finished, we may at length reach the goal, and partake of the
fruit of our obedience, and enjoy that eternal inheritance, which thine only
— begotten Son has procured for us by his own blood. —
Amen.
Lecture
Thirtieth
Jeremiah
7:25-26
25. 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: 25. Ab eo die quo egressi sunt patres vestri e terra Egypti
usque ad diem hunc misi ad vos omnes servos meos prophetas, quotidie mane
surgendo et mittendo:
26. Yet
they hearkened not unto me, nor inclined their ear, but hardened their neck:
they did worse than their fathers. 26. Et non audierunt me, et non
inclinaverunt aurem suam; et (pro sed) obdurarunt cervicem suam, perverse
egerunt prae patribus suis.
God
complains of the perverse wickedness of the people, — that he had lost all
his labor in endeavoring to lead them to repentance, not only in one age, but
that the children succeeded their fathers in their corruptions, and that thus
the imitation had become perpetual. This might indeed appear as an extenuation
of their fault; they might have pleaded as the Papists at this day do; who have
no pretext more specious, than when they bring against us the Fathers and
antiquity. But God shews in this place and elsewhere that the children are not
excused by the examples of their fathers; but on the contrary, that it is an
aggravation of the crime, when men thus harden themselves, and think that a
continued indulgence in vices avails them for a precedent; for God does not thus
permit himself to be deprived of his own right. This passage then deserves
particular notice; for God not only condemned those who were then living and
whom Jeremiah addressed, but also connected with them the dead, in order to
prove their greater obstinacy, as impiety had been as it were handed down from
one age to another.
From the
day, he says,
in which your fathers came forth
from the land of Egypt unto this day, have I sent to
you, etc. We know how intractable the
people had been from the beginning; for they did all they could to reject Moses,
the minister of a favor so remarkable and invaluable. And after their
deliverance, they were continually either clamoring against God, or openly
contending with Moses and Aaron, or running into gross idolatry, or giving loose
reins to their lusts; in short, there was no end to their course of sinning: and
yet Moses daily endeavored to restore them to obedience. It was this great
contumacy that God now refers to; and he says, that the Israelites did not then
begin to be disobedient, but that they had ever been of such a disposition as
not to bear to be corrected, as he will tell us hereafter. It was not necessary
here to adduce examples to shew that the people had been indomitable; for this
was evident from sacred history. It was enough to remind them, that the hardness
and obstinacy of the fathers had descended to their children, so that they might
know that they were twofold and treblefold guilty before God, for they had
imitated the perverseness which God had before severely punished; nor was it
unknown to them how God had brought judgments on their fathers. It was therefore
to provoke God most wantonly, when they overlooked and disregarded such dreadful
vengeances as he had executed on their progenitors. We shall hereafter see
similar declarations; nay, this way of speaking occurs everywhere in the
prophets, that is, that their race had been from the beginning perverse and
rebellious, and that they had also in all ages despised the favor of God and
obstinately resisted the prophets.
But God
reminds them here, that from the day they came forth from the land of Egypt he
had never ceased to speak to them even to
the time
of Jeremiah: this his perseverance greatly
aggravated the sin of the people. Had God spoken only once, it would have been
sufficient for their condemnation: but inasmuch as he had borne with their
perverse conduct, and never ceased from day to day kindly to call them to
himself and to promise them pardon and to offer salvation to them —
inasmuch then as God had thus persevered, the more fully discovered was the
irreclaimable impiety of the people. We indeed know how dreadful a punishment
must await those who dare thus to abuse the forbearance of God and openly to
scorn his word, when he invites them a hundred or a thousand times to
repentance.
He afterwards adds, that he had
sent all his
servants,
fA208 etc. In the same sense is to be
taken the universal particle,
lk,
cal, "all." Had God sent only one prophet, there would have remained no
excuse for the Israelites; but as he had continually sent one after another, to
train them up like an army, how great was their madness to despise so large a
number? We indeed know that there were never wanting prophets among the people,
as Moses had promised in the eighteenth chapter of Deuteronomy. As then God had
dealt bountifully with the people, so that prophets had never ceased but
continually succeeded one another, hence surely the baseness of their impious
obstinacy became more evident; for they had not despised God only for one day,
nor disregarded one prophet, or two or three, but resisted all the prophets,
though they had been sent in great number.
I
sent, he says,
all my
servants.
Then
he adds,
daily.
This is mentioned for the same purpose, even to shew that God had never been
wearied, and that they had resisted as it were designedly his goodness, while he
was incessant in kindly exhorting them to repentance. He says,
by rising early and
sending. As we have said elsewhere, the
verb
µkç,
shecam, properly means to rise early. God here commends the authority of
prophetic instruction by ascribing to himself what is done by men. With him,
indeed, as we all know, there is no change; hence the expression,
to rise
up, as applied to him, is not strictly
true; but what he commanded his servants to do, he transfers, as we have said,
to himself, in order that he might more sharply reprove the ingratitude of the
people; as though he had said, that he had been most carefully attentive to
secure their salvation, but that they had been torpid and wholly
indifferent.
We may hence learn a useful
doctrine, — that God rises to invite us, and also to receive us, whenever
his word is proclaimed among us, by which he testifies to us his paternal love.
God then not only employs men to lead us to himself, but comes forth in a manner
himself to meet us, and rises early as one solicitous for our salvation. This
commendation of divine truth may be of great benefit to the faithful, and induce
them to recumb confidently and with tranquil minds on God's promises; for they
are the same as though God himself had spoken them to us. But here is also
reproved the impiety of those who slumber and sleep, while God thus watches in
order to promote their salvation, and who lend not an ear, when he rises early
to come to them in order to draw them to
himself.
He afterwards subjoins,
And they hearkened
not. There is here a change of person;
for he said in the last verse, "your fathers," "I sent to you;"
but now he says, They hearkened
not, nor inclined their ear. It is
indeed true, that the reference is to the fathers; but in the next verse God
includes the people who were then living. There is then no doubt but that it was
an evidence of indignation, that he changed the person, and that he was wearied
in addressing them, for he saw that he spoke in vain to a stupid people: and
this will appear evident from the next verse.
They hearkened
not, he says,
nor inclined their
ear. The words we have already
explained: the Jews are here precluded from having any excuse on the ground of
error or ignorance; for they had refused to be taught, they would not attend,
but on the contrary made deaf their cars. And he says also, that they
hardened their
neck; by which their perverseness is
still more fully expressed: they designedly as it were despised God, and carried
on war even with his favor and kindness. And he concludes by saying, that they
had done worse than their
fathers. He had said, "your fathers;"
but now, "their fathers." We hence see that the sentence is changed, for God
knew that he could produce no effect on them, as we find by what follows
—
Jeremiah
7:27
27. Therefore thou shalt speak
all these words unto them; but they will not hearken to thee: thou shalt also
call unto them; but they will not answer thee. 27. Et dices illis omnia
verba haec, et non audient to (vel, non auscultabunt tibi,) et clamabis
ad eos, et non respondebunt
tibi.
Here is seen more clearly what
I have stated, — that the Jews were not addressed, because they had no
ears. Here then God addresses his Prophet and says, "The children will be like
their parents: for thou shalt indeed bear the commands which I give thee, but it
will be without any advantage; for they
will not
hear, and when thou
callest to
them, they
will not
answer." It was a most grievous trial to
the Prophet to know that his words would pass away with the air and produce no
good. What was to be expected but that God's wrath would thus be still more
kindled against the people? The Prophet then must have had his mind greatly
depressed; for he doubtless labored for the good of his own nation; and we shall
hereafter see how sad he was when he understood that their final ruin was at
hand. But, as we have said elsewhere, the prophets were influenced by two
feelings: for they did not divest themselves of all human affections, inasmuch
as they loved their own nation and felt great sorrow, when God declared that he
was coming to execute judgment: but this sympathy and sorrow did not prevent
them from executing, in a bold manner, and with unshaken zeal, what God had
committed to them. Thus then the prophets had feelings to condole with their own
kindred, and at the same time were enabled to surmount whatever might check or
hinder them from performing their office. Jeremiah did thus condole with his own
nation, when he knew that shortly ruin would overtake them; but yet he felt
bound to execute what God had bidden him to do, and to obey his
call.
However bitter therefore was the
declaration, Thou shalt speak to
them, but they will not hear, yet
Jeremiah went forth; for he knew that he must obey God's command, whatever might
be the issue. The same resolution ought to be formed at this day by all the
faithful ministers of God. They ought to strive as far as they can to promote
the salvation of the people; but still when they see that their doctrine
succeeds not as they wish, and that it is the savor of death to the whole world,
they ought nevertheless to follow their course: why? because they are always a
sweet and good savor to God, whatever may be the event. God then declares to his
servant what would be the issue, in order that he might not cease to execute his
office with invincible courage, even if no fruit appeared. It was also his
purpose to shew before the time to the people their perverseness, if there was
possibly any hope, or at least, that he might doubly prove them to be
unhealable. It was further his design to consult the good of those few who
cherished true religion in their hearts, though the multitude were running
headlong to their own ruin.
In like manner at
this day it is necessary thus to sustain the souls of the faithful; for while
the ungodly rave against God, and while almost the whole world is seized with
this madness, what would become of the godly, had they not this fact to think
of, — that it is nothing new for hypocrites, who boast that they are God's
people and his Church, to reject his grace and to regard as nothing his
servants. This truth then is serviceable to us at this day, and may be applied
in the same way, so that our minds may not despond nor vacillate, when we see
the majority of those, whom God addresses by his servants, heedless and deaf.
Thou shalt speak to
them, he says,
all these
words.
He
says not without a reason, All
these words; for if the Prophet had only
briefly declared to them what he had heard from God's mouth, he might have
discharged his office with less weariness; but when he had often repeated what
had been committed to him, it was not done without great trouble and sorrow; for
as we have said at the beginning, he spent his labor on the people, not for one
year or for ten years; for he preached to them for twenty, thirty, forty years,
and pursued his course even beyond that time. When he saw the truth of God thus
rejected by the people, how could he otherwise than feel weariness at times? It
is therefore not in vain intimated, as I have said, that he was chosen, that he
might try, not only for one day, or for a few months or years, whether he could
recover the people to the way of salvation, but that he was to go on through all
obstacles, so as not to faint, whatever might take place.
They will not hear
thee, he says: and further,
—
Thou shalt call to
them, and they will not answer thee.
This also, which God foretells him, is emphatical, — that if the
Prophet called most loudly, (as Isaiah is bidden to do,
(<235801>Isaiah
58:1,) and in his person all teachers,) and called even to hoarseness, yet he is
told they would not answer. This shews still more fully their perverseness; for
they were not only deaf to God's voice and neglected plain teaching, but also
disregarded the most vehement exhortations, he then adds
—
Jeremiah
7:28
28. 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. 28. Et dices ad eos, Haec gens, quae non audierunt vocem Jehovae
Dei sui, et non receperunt disciplinam; periit veritas et excisa est ab ore
eorum.
God shews now that he must
act in a new way. The first duty of teachers is to set forth the will of God, to
shew what is right, and then to exhort, if plain teaching proves not sufficient.
But God intimates here that he was under the necessity to change his manner,
because they were wholly irreclaimable.
Thou shalt
then
say
this as the last thing; as though he had said,
"I indeed wished to try, whether they were capable of being improved, and have
employed thee for this purpose: after having long borne with them, knowing by a
long trial that thy labor is useless, thou shalt say to them, "I bid you adieu
at last." For what is the meaning of these words,
This is a nation which heard not
the voice of its God, except that the
Prophet, after long trials, knew that he was neither to teach nor exhort them?
It is not to be doubted but that God referred to the Jews themselves; for it was
his object to expose their impious perverseness. He yet comforted his servant;
for he hence knew, that though he could do no good to his hearers, yet his labor
was acceptable to God and not without its fruit: for the truth of God is not
only fruitful in the salvation of men, but also in their perdition.
(<470215>2
Corinthians 2:15, 16.) God then shews, that there would be no loss to his
servant, even though the Jews repented not; for he would be their judge, and
denounce by the highest authority their
destruction.
We now perceive the design of the
Holy Spirit, in saying, Thou
shalt at length say,
This is a nation which has
not hearkened to the voice of its God:
for the Prophet is not bidden here to address the Jews, but to pronounce on
them a sentence, that the whole world might know how base and detestable had
been their contumacy, and how abominable their impiety; for the whole nation had
refused to hear The word nation
seems here to be taken in a bad sense: it is
indeed in many places to be taken for "people;" but in other places Scripture
sets
µywg,
guim, in opposition to God's chosen people. And perhaps this word has
been used, that the Jews might know that they in vain gloried in their own
dignity. He shews that they did not excel other nations, for they were
themselves of the same class, a nation.
This is a
nation, he says,
which has not hearkened to the
voice of Jehovah their
God.
fA209 In saying this he doubtless
amplified their crime; for as God had made himself plainly known to the Jews,
they could not pretend ignorance nor plead any doubt respecting what the
prophets taught. As then they had designedly rejected their own God, they hence
became more obviously guilty and abominable.
He
afterwards adds, They have not
received correction, he points out the
very source of rebellion, — they were unwilling to undertake the yoke.
Here then he excludes all those plausible pretences by which the Jews might
cloak their impiety, as hypocrites are ever wont to do. Hence he declares that
they had been unteachable, for they had refused correction. The word
rswm,
musar, often means chastisement; but generally signifies every kind of
training. As the subject here is teaching, the Prophet means that they were
willfully blind, for they would not be taught; Now this is the extremity of
wicked perverseness, that is, when men become so degenerated, that they
willfully assimilate themselves to brute beasts by rejecting the yoke of
God.
He then subjoins, that
truth,
or faith, had
perished.
The word
hnwma,
amune, may be taken in two senses. Some refer it to what belongs to God,
as meaning religion, or faith: or piety. But the Prophet seems to take it in a
larger sense, as signifying what is sincere; for they acted perfidiously towards
men as well as towards God. The word then is to be taken simply as meaning
integrity, as though he had said, that nothing true or sincere remained in them,
but that they were so corrupt that they mocked God and deceived men, and that
nothing but dissimulation prevailed among them. This meaning is confirmed by
what follows, that it is cut off
from their
mouth.
fA210 We hence learn that their perfidy is
condemned because they acted falsely; and as their heart was full of duplicity,
so also was their tongue. He intimates, in short, that there was no hope as to
their repentance; for had they promised a hundred times to God to be teachable
and obedient, and shewed before the world any appearance of integrity, their
promises would have passed off into mere fallacies and deceptions. He then adds
—
Jeremiah
7:29
29. 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. 29. Tonde comam tuam et projice et attolle super excelsa
lamentationem; quid reprobavit (vel, vilipendit; sed verbum reprobandi
magis placet hoc loco) Jehova, et reliquit aetatem indignationis
suae.
Here again Jeremiah exhorts
his own people to lament; and he uses the feminine gender, as though he called
the people, the daughter of Sion, or the daughter of Jerusalem. He then,
according to a common mode of speaking, calls the whole people a
woman.
fA211
He first bids her to
shave off the
hair. The word
rzn,
nesar, means the hair, derived from the Nazarites, who allowed their hair
to grow: and there may be here a striking allusion to the Nazarites who were
sacred to God; as though he had said, "This people are profane, and therefore
ought to have nothing in common with the Nazarites." Hence also is derived
rzn,
nesar, a crown. Though then the word means the hair, yet the allusion is
not to be overlooked, — that this people, rejected by God, are bidden to
cut off and to throw away the hair. After the throwing away of the hair there
was to be great lamentation;
Raise,
he says, on high places a
lamentation. This may seem to be an
exhortation to repentance: but as we have seen elsewhere, though the prophets
often gave the people the hope of pardon and reconciliation, yet in this place
the Prophet no doubt denounces a final judgment, and is a herald of lamentation,
because the prevailing impiety was irreclaimable. He does not then perform here
the duty of a teacher, but in a hostile manner denounces ruin: for it
immediately follows
—
For rejected hath
Jehovah and forsaken the generation of his
wrath. The word
rwd,
dur, means an age, not time, but men of the same age: as we call that our
generation which now lives in the world, and that which is dead the generation
of our fathers, and what succeeds us the next generation. It is indeed true,
that the Israelites in every age were worthy of a similar vengeance; but God no
doubt shews here, that his vengeance was at hand, for he had long borne with the
perverse conduct of the people, and suspended his judgment. As then vengeance
was now to be executed, the Prophet calls that age the age of God's wrath; for
we know that the genitive case in Hebrew has often such a meaning as this. Then
the age of his wrath means the age or generation devoted to extreme vengeance;
for their wickedness against God was extreme, as long as he treated them with
forbearance. The longer then he had deferred his judgment, the heavier
punishment was at hand. It afterwards follows
—
Jeremiah
7:30
30. 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. 30. Quoniam fecerunt
filii Jehudah malum in oculis meis, dicit Jehova: posuerunt abominationes suas
in domo, super quam invocatum est nomen meum, ad polluendam
ipsam.
Lest the Jews should murmur
and complain that God was too rigorous, the Prophet adds, that they were not
given up to destruction without the justest reasons. How so? They had
done
evil. To do evil here means, that they
had not offended in one thing, but had given themselves up to wickedness and
evil doings. It is the same as though he had said, that they were so corrupt
that they were wholly inured to the doing of evil, and had by long use
contracted evil habits; for they continually provoked God. But as they flattered
themselves, the Prophet reminds them here of God's judgment: "It is enough, "he
says, "that the Judge condemns you; for if ye see not your wickedness nor
acknowledge your sin, yet this will not avail you; for God declares that you are
guilty in his sight."
We see that there is an
implied contrast between the sight of God and the delusions by which hypocrites
soothed themselves, while they made evasions or perversely excused their sins,
or sought to escape by circuitous windings. God then shews that his own sight,
or knowledge, is sufficient, how blind soever man may be, and however the whole
world may connive at their sins.
He adds one
kind of sin, that they had set up
their abominations
fA212 in the Temple. This refers to
superstitions. But as we have seen elsewhere, and shall often have to observe,
the Prophets frequently reproved sins by mentioning only one sin for the whole.
Then what was especially wicked in the people he states, and that was, that the
Temple was polluted
with superstitions. We have already said, that
it was an intolerable sacrilege to pollute the Temple with abominations, which
was then the only true Temple in the world: for it was God's will that
sacrifices should be offered to him in that one place; and he had carefully
described everything necessary for a right worship. When, therefore, the Jews
polluted that very Temple, how abominable was such a profanation? It was not
then without reason that the Prophet brings forward what was especially wicked
in the people, — that God's house was polluted with superstitious and many
spurious ceremonies, and that there his whole worship was vitiated. The rest
to-morrow.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that since thou so
constantly invitest us, daily and even hourly, to thyself, we may not give thee
occasion to complain, as of thy people of old, that we are deaf and thus neglect
thy holy admonitions, but that we may be teachable and submissive to thee, and
that, as thou risest early, we may also be ready to meet thee, and be obedient
to thee, not only for one day, but persevere through life in the same course,
until at length we shall reach that blessed rest, prepared for us in heaven by
Jesus Christ our Lord. — Amen.
Lecture
Thirty-First
Jeremiah
7:31
31. And they have built the
high places of Tophet, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to
burn their sons and their daughters in the fire; which I commanded them
not, neither came it into my heart. 31. Et aedificavit excelsa Topheth,
quae in valle filii Hinnom, ut comburerent filios suos et filias suas igni; quod
non mandavi, et non ascendit super cor
meum.
Jeremiah in this verse also
inveighs against those superstitions by which the Jews had corrupted the true
and pure worship of God. He says, that they had
builded high
places, which was prohibited in the law.
(<032630>Leviticus
26:30.) Now God, as it has been before said, prefers obedience to all
sacrifices,
(<091522>1
Samuel 15:22:) hence the Prophet justly condemned them, that they forsook the
Temple and built for themselves high places or groves, and also
altars.
He then mentions one particular place,
even Tophet in the valley of
Hinnom. The prophets, in order to render
the place detestable, no doubt designated the infernal regions by
tpt,
Tophet, and µnh
ayg, gia enom. For when Isaiah speaks, in
the thirtieth chapter, of the eternal punishment of the wicked, he mentions
Tophet, which is the same word as we find here. As to the
valley of
Hinnom, it is called in Greek Gehenna,
and is taken to designate eternal death, or the torments which await all the
wicked. In a similar manner the word Paradise is metaphorically taken for the
blessed state and for the eternal inheritance; for God so placed man at first in
that eastern garden, that he might in a manner protect him under his own wings.
As then the blessing and favor of God shone on that place where Adam first
dwelt, that it might be a certain image of celestial life and of true happiness,
so they called the glory, prepared for all God's children in heaven, Paradise.
So also on the other hand the prophets called hell
µnh
ayg, gia enom, in order that the Jews might
detest those impious and sacrilegious modes of worship by which their fathers
had polluted themselves. And for the same reason they call hell, Tophet. The
ancients also say, that it was a place in the suburbs of the city. They were not
wont then to assemble afar off for the sake of these abominations, since the
place was within sight of the Temple, and they knew that there was the only true
altar approved by God, and that it was not lawful to offer sacrifices anywhere
else. Since they knew this, and God had set such a place before their eyes, the
greater was their madness, when they preferred a filthy spot in which to worship
God according to their own will, or rather according to their own
wantonness.
Of this so great an audacity
Jeremiah now complains: They
builded for themselves high
places, in Tophet, even
in the
valley. He introduces the word son;
but it is called ayg
µnh, gia enom, the valley of Hinnom;
whence comes the word Gehenna, as we have already
said.
He adds,
that they might burn their sons
and their daughters. It was a horrible
and prodigious madness for parents not to spare their own children, but to cast
them into the fire; for they must have been so seized with a diabolic fury as to
divest themselves of all human feelings: and yet they had a plausible reason, as
they supposed; for it was a zeal worthy of all praise to prefer God to their own
children. When therefore they cast their children into the fire, this kind of
zeal might have deceived the simple; and to this was added a pretext derived
from example, for Abraham was prepared to sacrifice his own son. But it hence
appears what men will do when they are led away by an inconsiderate zeal; for
from the beginning of the world the source of all superstitions has been this,
— that men have devised for themselves various modes of worship, and have
given themselves the liberty to seek a way of their own to pacify
God.
As to the pretended example, they were so
blind as not to distinguish between themselves and Abraham; for he was commanded
to offer his son,
(<012202>Genesis
22:2;) but they, without any command, attempted to do the same thing; this was
extreme presumption. As to Abraham, he obeyed God; and he could not have been
led astray, when he knew that such a sacrifice was approved by God. But when the
Jews emulated his zeal, it was an extreme folly; and they were especially
culpable, because they neglected God's command and wholly disregarded it. They
were, however, so far carried away by their own wantonness as to cast their own
children into the fire, and under the pretense of piety: so great and so savage
a cruelty prevailed among them. We hence perceive that there is no end of
sinning, when men give themselves up to their own inventions; for God surrenders
those to Satan, that they may be led by the spirit of giddiness and of madness
and of stupidity. Let us therefore learn ever to regard what God approves: and
let this be the very beginning of our inquiry, whenever we undertake anything,
whether God commands it; and this course ought especially to be observed with
regard to his worship; for, as it has been already stated, religion is
especially founded on faith, and faith is based on the word of God: and hence it
is here added —
Which I
commanded them not, and which never came to my
mind. This reason ought to be carefully
noticed, for God here cuts off from men every occasion for making evasions,
since he condemns by this one phrase, "I have not commanded them," whatever the
Jews devised. There is then no other argument needed to condemn superstitions,
than that they are not commanded by God: for when men allow themselves to
worship God according to their own fancies, and attend not to his commands, they
pervert true religion. And if this principle was adopted by the Papists, all
those fictitious modes of worship, in which they absurdly exercise themselves,
would fall to the ground. It is indeed a horrible thing for the Papists to seek
to discharge their duties towards God by performing their own superstitions.
There is an immense number of them, as it is well known, and as it manifestly
appears. Were they to admit this principle, that we cannot rightly worship God
except by obeying his word, they would be delivered from their deep abyss of
error. The Prophet's words then are very important, when he says, that God had
commanded
no such thing, and that it never came to his
mind; as though he had said, that men assume too much wisdom, when they devise
what he never required, nay, what he never knew. It is indeed certain, that
there was nothing hid from God, even before it was done: but God here assumes
the character of man, as though he had said, that what the Jews devised was
unknown to him, as his own law was
sufficient.
Now, as the words Tophet and Gehenna
were so stigmatized by the prophets, we may hence learn how displeasing to God
is every idolatry and profanation of his true and pure worship: for he compares
these notorious places in which the Jews performed so sedulously their
devotions, to the infernal regions. And hence at this day, when the Papists
boast of what they call their devotions, we may justly say, that there are as
many gates, through which they throw themselves headlong into hell, as there are
modes of worship devised by them for the purpose of conciliating God. It follows
—
Jeremiah
7:32
32. 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. 32. Propterea, Ecce dies veniunt, dicit Jehova,
et non dicetur (hoc est, quibus non dicetur) Topheth et vallis filii
Hinnom, sed vallis occisionis; et sepelient Topheth, quia non erit
locus.
The Prophet denounces a
punishment, though the Jews thought that they deserved a reward. The case is the
same with the Papists at this day, who thoughtlessly boast, when they heap
together many abominations; for they think that God is bound as it were by a
law, not to overlook so much diligence. But the Prophet shews how grossly
deceived they are who worship God superstitiously, without the authority of his
word; for he threatens them here with the heaviest judgment, —
Called no
more, he says,
shall it be Tophet, nor The
valley of the son of Hinnom; but The valley of slaughter shall it be
called; for the whole land was to be
filled with slaughters.
He adds,
Bury shall they
there, for elsewhere
there will be no
place.
fA213 He intimates that so great would be the
slaughters, that Jerusalem would not contain the dead: hence, he says, graves
will be made in Tophet; and many also will be slain there. A dead body, we know,
was unclean by the Law; and it was not lawful to offer sacrifices to God near
graves.
(<041911>Numbers
19:11, 16.) The Prophet then shows, that when the Jews foolishly consecrated
that place to God, they committed a dreadful profanation, for that place was to
be wholly filled with dead bodies, and polluted also by the slaughter of men. We
hence see what the superstitious do when they follow their own devices —
that they provoke God's wrath; for by the grievousness of the punishment we may
form a judgment as to the degree in which God abominates all false modes of
worship, which men devise without the warrant of his law; for we must ever
remember this principle, I
commanded it not, nor hath it ever come to my
mind. It follows
—
Jeremiah
7:33
33. And the carcasses of this
people shall be meat for the fowls of the heaven, and for the beasts of the
earth; and none shall fray them away. 33. Et erit cadaver populi
hujus in cibum avi coelorum (avibus) et bestiae terrae (hoc est, bestiis)
nec erit qui absterreat (hoc est, qui terrore
abigat.)
Jeremiah threatens them
with something more grievous than death itself, — that God would impress
the marks of his wrath even on their dead bodies. It is indeed true what a
heathen poet says,
"That the loss of a
grave is not great," (Virgil, aeneid;)
but we must on the other hand remember that burying
has been held as a sacred custom in all ages; for it was a symbol of the last
resurrection. Barbarous then were the words, "Give me a stick, if you fear that
birds will eat my dead body;" as the cynic, who had ordered his body to be cast
into the field, derided what was said in answer to him, "The wild beasts and
birds will devour thee:" "Oh," said he, "let me have a stick, and I will drive
them away;" intimating by such a saying, that he would then be without any
feeling; but he shewed that he entertained no hope of immortality. But it was
God's will that the custom of burying should prevail among all nations, that in
death itself there might be some evidence or intimation of the last
resurrection. When therefore the Prophet declares here and in other places that
the Jews would be without a burial, he doubtless enhances the vengeance of
God.
We indeed know that some of the most holy
men had not been buried; for the prophets were sometimes exposed to wild beasts
and birds: and the whole Church complains in
<197902>Psalm
79:2, that the dead bodies of the saints were exposed and became food for birds
and wild beasts. This has sometimes happened; for God often mixes the good with
the evil in temporal punishments, as he makes his sun to rise on the good and
the evil: but yet of itself and for the most part, it is an evidence of a curse,
when a man's body is cast away without any
burial.
It is this then that the Prophet means
when he says, The carcase of this
people shall be meat for the birds of the air and for the beasts of the earth,
and there will be none to terrify
them;
fA214 that is, there will be no one to
perform the humane office of driving the beasts away, the very thing which
nature itself would lead one to do. If any one now objects and says, that in
this case the faithful could not be distinguished from the reprobate, the answer
is plainly this, — that when the honor of a burial is denied to the
faithful, God will become the avenger. But this does not prove that God does not
in this way inflict a visible punishment on the reprobate, and thus expose them
to reproach by whom he has been despised. He afterwards adds
—
Jeremiah
7:34
34. 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. 34. Et cessare faciam ex urbibus
Jehudah et ex compitis Jerusalem vocem gaudii et vocem laetitiae, vocem sponsi
et vocem sponsae; quia in vastitatem erit (hoc est, redigetur)
terra.
He still continues the same
subject; for he denounces on the Jews the punishment which they had deserved. He
more fully expresses what he mentioned in the last verse respecting the shameful
and dreadful barbarity that would follow the slaughter; for the whole country
would not only be harassed by the enemy, but wholly laid waste: for when sounds
of joy and gladness cease, all places are filled with lamentations; and when no
marriages are celebrated, it is a sign of
devastation.
But by marriage, the Prophet,
stating a part for the whole, understands whatever was necessary for the
preservation of society; it is the same as though he had said, "There shall be
now no marrying:" for without marriages the human race cannot continue. Hence
this cessation would be the same, as though he had said, that they would be
wholly regardless of all those things necessary to perpetuate mankind. He thus
adds nothing new, but expands what we have before observed, — that the
whole land would be filled with dead bodies, and that there would be such
lamentation as to deter men from all their usual and ordinary habits: he
afterwards shews more fully the same thing.
CHAPTER
8
Jeremiah
8:1-2
1. 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: 1. In die
illo, dicit Jehova, extrahent ossa regum Jehudah et ossa principum ejus, et ossa
sacerdotum, et ossa prophetarum, et ossa civium Jerosolymae (habitantium,) e
sepulchris suis;
2. 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 2. Et expendent coram sole et luna et toto exercitu coelorum, quae
dilexerunt (nam relativum neutrum comprehendit et solem et lunam et
exercitum; vel, si magis placeat vertere, quos exercitus dilexerunt,) et
quibus servierunt, et post quos ambularunt, et quos quaesierunt, et coram quibus
prostrati sunt (hoc est, se inclinarunt;) neque colligentur, et non
sepelientur, in stercus in terrae superficie
erunt.
I Have said that Jeremiah
repeats in the first verse what he had before said, — that the Jews would
be deprived of their graves, in order that there might be on the dead a mark of
God's vengeance; as though he had said, that after having been destroyed by the
hand of enemies, they would have their punishment extended farther by having
their dead bodies exposed to the wild beasts and birds. The faithful, as I have
said, suffer no loss, when burial is denied them; but yet they do not disregard
burial, inasmuch as it is a badge of the resurrection. Though God suffers them
to be involved in this disgrace with the reprobate, yet this does not hinder but
that God should execute his vengeance on the wicked by such a temporal
punishment as turns to a blessing to the faithful. It is therefore no unmeaning
denunciation, when the Prophet says that the time was at hand, when their bones
would be taken out of their graves.
He mentions
the bones of kings, and of
priests, and of prophets, and of the whole
people. The kings thought that as soon
as they were hid in their graves, their dead bodies would be deemed sacred: the
same notion prevailed as to rulers, priests, and prophets: but he says that no
grave would be untouched or free from the outrage of enemies; and thus he shews,
that the city would be rooted up from its foundations. Were the city to remain
safe, the graves would be spared. Hence this punishment could not have been
inflicted, without the very foundations of the city being dug up by the enemies.
In short, he points out here a dreadful and final overthrow; and at the same
time he shews the reason why God would manifest such severity towards the
Jews.
It was, because they
served the sun, and the moon, and
the stars. It was God's just vengeance,
that their bones should be taken from their graves, in order that the sun and
moon and all the stars might be witnesses of his judgment. By these words
Jeremiah indirectly reprobates the senselessness of the people for thinking that
they performed an acceptable service to the sun and moon. He therefore says,
that all the stars and the planets would become as it were spectators of the
vengeance which God would execute; as though he had said, that the whole
celestial host would approve of that punishment; for nothing is more detestable
to creatures, than when the glory of their Maker is ascribed to them. It is
indeed true that the sun, moon, and stars are without sense or reason; but the
Prophet here attributes reason to them, in order that he might shake off from
the Jews that stupidity in which they hardened themselves, while they thought
that they were rendering to the sun an acceptable service. At the same time he
alludes, as it appears also from other places, to the punishment inflicted on
adulterers: for when a harlot is drawn out and led forth in contempt and
disgrace in the presence of her adulterers, it is deemed a most just punishment.
And thus as the Jews had as it were committed adultery with the sun and the moon
and the stars, so the Prophet says here, that their disgrace and baseness would
be made manifest in the sight of the sun, and the moon, and the
stars.
He says,
which they have
loved. He no doubt alludes to the blind
ardor by which idolaters were possessed, when they zealously pursued their
illicit devotions; for it was a species of an unbridled and mad passion, as it
appears from other places; for no fornicator burns with a more impetuous lust
after a woman, than idolaters do, when Satan dazzles their eyes and fascinates
their hearts. Of this impure love then does the Prophet now speak; and at the
same time, he indirectly condemns the Jews for having alienated themselves
without a cause from God, who was their legitimate husband. There is indeed
nothing less tolerable than for men thus perfidiously to forsake God, when he
has invited them to himself, and contracted as it were with them a holy and an
inviolable marriage.
He afterwards adds,
whom they have
served. This was still more base; they
devoted themselves to the work of serving the sun, the moon, and the stars. He
mentions in the third place, that they
walked after
them. God had shewn them the right way,
and had commanded them to follow him: but they forsook God, says the Prophet,
and followed the stars of heaven. He states in the fourth place, that they
sought
them. By this he refers to their perverseness.
Some render the word "consulted," of which I do not approve, for it is strained
and far-fetched.
fA215 The Prophet, I doubt not, denotes here
the persevering attention of the Jews to the objects of their worship; for they
followed their idols not by a sudden and momentary impulse, but they resolutely
devoted themselves to them and became as it were fixed in their wicked purpose.
And he says in the last place, that they
prostrated themselves
before them. This was the way in which they
served them. It is an evidence of reverence when men prostrate themselves before
their idols; and thus they serve them, for it is an act of worship. The Prophet
might indeed have sufficiently expressed in one sentence the impiety of the
people; but he joins together several sentences for the sake of amplification,
in order that he might render more evident the ingratitude of the people in
seeking for themselves unknown gods, and in setting up false and fictitious
modes of worship, rather than to render obedience to the only true God and to
acquiesce in his law, which is a certain rule, and never leads any
astray.
fA216
He afterwards adds,
They shall not be gathered, nor
be buried; for dung shall they be on the face
or surface
of the
land. He confirms what he had said of
the punishment before mentioned, — that they had acted disdainfully
towards God, and had prostrated themselves before their idols, so after death
they would be made base and detestable, so that the mind would revolt at such a
hateful sight. This is the meaning. It follows
—
Jeremiah
8:3
3. 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. 3. Et eligetur (ad verbum esset, electa est) mors (sed
debet resolvi in futurum tempus) prae vita ab omnibus reliquiis, quae
residuae erunt ab hac prava natione (a natione hac mala) in omnibus locis ubi
residui fuerint, ad quae expulero eos (ad quae illuc; sed
µç,
est supervacuum,) dicit Jehova
exercituum.
He intimates in this
verse, that all survivors would be doubly miserable, as it would be better for
them to die at once than to pine away in unceasing evils: for they who give
another meaning to the words, seem not to understand the design of the Prophet.
The import then of the passage is, — that however dreadful God's judgment
would be, when slaughters everywhere prevailed, and dead bodies were drawn out
which had been previously buried, yet all this would be a slight punishment in
comparison with what God would inflict on the rest, such as remained alive: and
he also intimates that their life would be more miserable than death itself,
yea, than ten deaths.
That those then who would
escape death might not think that they gained any advantage, the Prophet says,
Chosen shall be death before life
by all the residue. We hence learn how
grievous was to be God's vengeance; for nothing would be better or more
desirable than to undergo death at once, as life would be nothing else but a
continued languor and torment. Expected then
will be death
in
all places
in which there shall be survivors,
where I shall drive
them. He mentions a reason for this
twofold misery, — they would not be allowed to live in their own country,
but would become aliens, — and they would find in their exile God's hand
against them, and as it were following them
everywhere.
fA217
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as thou
terrifiest us daily with thy judgments, and as it is needful for our sloth to be
stimulated, and for our corruption to be thus corrected, — O grant, that
we may be moved by thy threatenings, and at the same time suffer ourselves to be
kindly invited by thee, and make such progress in thy word, that, being
terrified by threatenings, we may also readily and willingly obey whenever thou
in a paternal manner callest us to thyself, and labor in every way to devote
ourselves wholly to thee, by subduing the corrupt affections of our flesh, so
that nothing may hinder us to be submissive to thy will, until we shall at
length enjoy the rest of that eternal inheritance, which thou hast promised to
us in Christ Jesus our Lord. — Amen.
Lecture
Thirty-Second
Jeremiah
8:4-5
4. Moreover thou shalt say
unto them, Thus saith the LORD; Shall they fall, and not arise? shall he turn
away, and not return? 4. Et dices ad eos, Sic dicit Jehova, An qui
ceciderunt non resurgent? si quis aversus fuerit non
revertetur?
5. Why then is
this people of Jerusalem slidden back by a perpetual backsliding? they hold fast
deceit, they refuse to return. 5. Quare rebellis est populus hic
Jerosolymae rebellione perpetua? (forti, ad verbum;) adhaeserunt
fraudi (vel, apprehenderunt fraudem,) noluerunt
reverti.
Though God had reminded his
Prophet of the event, yet he still invites the Jews to repentance; not that
there was any hope of restoring them to a right mind, (for he had said that they
were wholly irreclaimable,) but that their perverseness might be less excusable;
and it was also his object to afford some relief to the small number of the
godly who still remained; for they had not all fallen away into impiety, though
the great body of the people had become corrupt. God then, partly to aggravate
the sin of the ungodly, and partly to provide for his faithful people, exhorts
those to repentance, who were yet wholly intractable. And here we ought to
consider that God's goodness, when abused, brings a much heavier judgment. God
does here in a manner contend with the wickedness of his people, by setting
before them the hope of pardon, if they
repented.
Thou shalt
then
say to
them; that is, "Though I have already
testified to thee that thy labor would be in vain, yet thou shalt not give over
thy work." Shall they who have
fallen rise again? This sentence is variously
explained; the greater part of interpreters confine it to the Jews only, "Shall
the Jews who have fallen rise again?" As to the second clause, some give this
explanation, "If Israel returns, will not God also return?" that is, from his
wrath, or, "Will he not be propitious?" Or, "If Israel turns away, will not God
also turn away?" Others understand both parts of the sentence of the people, "If
the people have once turned away, will they not yet return to God?" For the verb
bwç,
shub, has contrary meanings; it means, to fall away, to rebel, to go
back; and it means also to return. But after having maturely considered the
words and the design of the Prophet, I think it to be a general statement, as
though he had said, "When any one falls, he immediately thinks of recovering his
fall; when any one deviates from the right course, being warned of his going
astray, he immediately looks for the road. This is what is usually done, what
then means this so great a stupidity, that the people of Jerusalem do not
repent, when yet they ought to have long ago acknowledged their fall and their
wanderings?"
Whoever will impartially consider
the discourse of the Prophet must see that this is the real meaning; for, in the
second of these verses, he says,
Why is this people of Jerusalem,
etc.; he now first speaks, as it clearly
appears, of the people. It then follows that the former verse ought not to be
applied to the people; but it contains only a general statement. In short,
Jeremiah condemns here the madness of the people, because they followed not the
example of those who have either fallen or deviated from the way by mistake. For
it is what is naturally implanted in all, that they do not willingly perish in
their misfortunes. He then who falls immediately strives to rise again; and he
who leaves the right way, tries if possible to return to it again. This then is
what the most foolish will do; why then, says Jeremiah, do not this people
imitate such an example? He therefore shews by this comparison, that their
conduct was monstrous; for they obstinately adhered to their vices, and never
thought that there was a hope of reconciliation if they from the heart returned
unto God. And he emphatically mentions
Jerusalem;
for had such obstinacy prevailed among the Chaldeans or the Egyptians, it
would indeed have been inexcusable; but not so strange as among a people to whom
the law had been given, and to whom God had plainly revealed the way of
salvation. When, therefore, this people so hardened themselves as to reject all
warnings, was it not monstrous?
fA218
Then he says, that they were
rebellious with a pertinacious
rebellion; that is, that they forsook God not
only through levity or want of thought, or some sudden impulse, but so
pertinaciously, that the prophets spent their labor in vain in teaching and
exhorting them. Hence he calls it a
strong
rebellion, though the word may be taken
here as in other places in the sense of
perpetual.
And he assigns the cause, because they
laid hold on
deception, that is, they adhered fast to
deception. But the Prophet means by deception, not that by which a neighbor is
deceived or circumvented, but hypocrisy, by which men so blind themselves, that
they are unwilling either to attend to God's word, or to open their eyes to see
the light. When, therefore, men through willful obstinacy bury themselves in
darkness, they may be said to lay
fast hold on
deception.
fA219
David says, in
<193202>Psalm
32:2, that the man is blessed in whose spirit there is no guile: he entertains
no guile, as we commonly do. Now, to entertain guile is to possess a deceitful
heart. He had before said that they are blessed whose sins are forgiven and to
whom iniquity is not imputed: he adds by way of explanation, provided there be
no guile in the spirit; and why? Because wicked men seem to themselves to be
blessed, for they perceive not their own misery, because they are enveloped in
their own coverings: and this is the guile of which David speaks. According to
the same meaning, our Prophet says, that those
laid fast hold on
deception, who were so involved in
darkness or so blinded by their lusts, as to seek to deceive God; but they
deceive themselves. This then is the cause why those whom God corrects and
chastises feel no penitence; for they are willfully blind, they close their eyes
and deafen their ears, and seek to be deceived by the devil; they attend not to
the holy warnings given them for their salvation. If then, we wish to be healed
of our vices, let us ever begin in this way, — let us carefully examine
our thoughts and our motives, and not please ourselves nor deceive ourselves by
empty flatteries, but strive to shake off whatever is reprehensible and vicious.
The very beginning of true repentance is to renounce all deceptions and
fallacies and to seek the light, which can alone discover to us our evils. It
afterwards follows —
Jeremiah
8:6
6. 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 the
battle. 6. Attendi et audivi, non loquentur recte; nemo est quem
poeniteat (ad verbum, non vir poenitens super malo suo; sed sensus
clarior est, nemo est quem poeniteat) malitiae suae, dicendo, Quid feci?
omnis vertitur (ad verbum pro omnes vertuntur) ad cursos suos, sicut
equus ruit (ad verbum, inundat; sed metaphorica est locutio; Sicut
ergo equus praeceps ruit) in
praelium.
These words may be
considered as spoken by God himself, — that he from heaven examined the
state of the people; but it is more suitable to regard them as spoken by the
Prophet; for he was placed, as it were, in a watch — tower in order to
observe how the people acted towards God. He now testifies, that having seen
their pursuits and their doings, he saw nothing that was right. The people ought
to have been more touched by these words. We indeed know how ready we are
naturally to lay hold on any pretences, when we wish to continue quiet in our
dregs. So the greater part are wont to object and say, "O, indeed, thou
reprovest me, but inconsiderately; for thou knowest not what is in my heart."
Hence the Prophet says, that he had carefully examined what sort of people they
were, and that he spoke of what was well known to him, and fully seen by him,
—
I have
heard, he says,
and attended; but they speak not
rightly. He means, that so far were the
Jews from repenting truly and sincerely, that they did not even with their
mouths profess to do so. It is less to confess sins than really to amend; but
the Prophet says, that they did not even say what was right. It hence follows,
that they were very far from having any serious thoughts of repentance, since
they were so wanton with their tongues, or at least afforded no evidence of
sorrow.
He then adds, that there was
no one who repented,
saying, etc. This clause is explanatory,
for Jeremiah proves here more clearly that they did not
speak
rightly, for they did not say,
What have I
done? But he says first, that there was
no one who repented of his
wickedness. He afterwards shews, that
what is first necessary for repentance is, that the sinner should call himself
to an account; for as long as we rest secure in our sins, it is impossible for
us to repent, It is hence necessary that every one should examine himself, so as
to call himself to an account, and in a manner to summon himself before God's
tribunal. We then see that men can never be brought to repentance, except they
set their own evils before their eyes, so as to feel ashamed, and to ask
themselves, as it were in great fear, What have we done? for this question is an
evidence of terror. Many, we know, formally own their sins; but this is useless,
for afterwards such an acknowledgement vanishes without producing any benefit.
Then real repentance necessarily requires that the sinner should not only be
displeased with himself, should not only be ashamed, but that he should also be
filled with terror at his own sins; for this is what is meant by the inquiry,
What have I
done? for it implies
astonishment.
We now perceive the meaning of the
Prophet's words: he says, that he did not inconsiderately reprove the people,
but that he found such perversity in them that no one
spoke
rightly, that no one repented, because
they did not consider what they were, nor examined their own lives, but slept
securely in their sins.
He pursues the same
subject when he says, that all
turned to their own courses, that is, to
their own lusts. But by the word "courses" the Prophet means impetuous
movements; as though he had said, that the Jews were so precipitant in following
their lusts, that they in a manner ran headlong after them; and he compares them
to horses rushing into battle. We know with what impetuosity horses advance when
they hasten to battle; for they seem to fly, to cut the air, and to dig the
ground with their hoofs. Thus the comparison is exceedingly suitable, when the
Prophet says that the Jews were so impetuous in pursuing their lusts, that they
rushed on, not less precipitantly than war — horses when advancing to
battle. It now follows
—
Jeremiah
8:7
7. 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. 7. Etiam ciconia in coelis cognoscit tempora sua, et turtur et
hirundo (alii vertunt, picam; sed nomen hirundinis est aptius,
quemadmodem statim patebit,) et grues observant tempus itineris;
populus autem meus non cognoscit judicium
Jehovae.
Here again Jeremiah
condemns the shameful insensibility of the people, — that they had less
wisdom than birds, not endued with reason and understanding. He then says, that
the Jews were more foolish than cranes, swallows, and storks. He no doubt deeply
wounded the feelings of the people by so severe a reproof; but it was necessary
thus sharply to reprehend the despisers of God; for it appears evident by these
words, that they were become exceedingly hardened in their vices. No wonder,
then, that the Prophet declares that they were more silly than cranes and
swallows. Isaiah also exposes the same sort of madness, when he says that the ox
knew his own master, and the ass his master's crib, but that God was not known
by his people.
(<230103>Isaiah
1:3.) Now Isaiah made the Jews worse than oxen and asses, because these brute
animals possess something like memory, so that they keep to their own manger and
crib. So now Jeremiah, speaking of storks, etc., says,
—
Behold, the
stork
knows the time in which it ought to migrate from one country to another; and
the same is observed by swallows
and
cranes.
fA220 For at stated times they seek a
warmer climate; that is, they leave a cold country, that they may escape the
severity of winter; and they afterwards know the time in which they are to
return. As, then, the birds of the air observe their seasons, how is it that my
people do not
consider
the judgment
of God? By mentioning the
heavens,
he no doubt alludes to the constant flying of birds, the birds having hardly
any rest, for they continually rove through the air. Since, then, there is so
much wisdom in birds, which yet the air wafts here and there, how comes it, that
a people, who dwell quietly at home, who can leisurely meditate on God's law
— how comes it that this people understand nothing? We hence see that
there is an import in the word heavens which has not been noticed.
Readers may yet have their doubts; for it is nothing strange that birds in the
heavens should have a clearer view, as they come nearer the sun and the element
of fire: but different seems to have been the Prophet's object; which was to
shew, that though birds labor as it were continually, they yet contrive to know
the suitable time for going and returning. Hence, then, is exaggerated more
fully the insensibility of that people, who, while sitting leisurely at home,
did not consider what God did set before
them.
The particle
µg,
gam, even, is emphatical;
Even the
stork, he says. What means this, that
birds, though not possessed of understanding, do yet know their time?
But my
people, etc. By saying "my people, "the
Prophet no doubt intended more clearly to set forth their wickedness. For, as I
have before said, such blindness in heathens would not have been so strange; but
as they were the holy and peculiar people of God, it was far more shameful and
monstrous that they knew not his
judgment.
Christ uses other words in condemning
the Pharisees for not attending to the time of their visitation; for he says,
"Ye are wont to conclude what will be the state of the heavens in the morning;
for if the sky be red in the evening, ye say, It will be fine to — morrow;
and ye know the signs of future and approaching rain: ye possess, he says,
judgment sufficiently acute in external things, which conduce to the benefit of
the present life; yet ye know not the time of your visitation, and still ye seek
signs: but were ye attentive, God would shew to you in a way clear enough, and
as it were by the finger, that the time of deliverance which ye pretend to
expect is now nigh at hand." But the Prophet reproves the Jews in a severer
strain, when he says that there was more fatuity and madness in them than in
birds. They know
not, he says,
the judgment of
Jehovah, though it had been shewn to
them many times, and for a long season.
But some
one might have objected and said, "No wonder if we perceive not God's judgment,
for his judgments are a great deep; and since these exceed what we can
comprehend, there is no reason to find fault with us." But the Prophet speaks
not here of hidden judgments, which elude the comprehension of men, but of
punishments, of which they had been so often warned. Since, then, they were so
blind as not to see what was clear and evident, the Prophet justly says that
they were more foolish than cranes, and the other birds which he mentions. It
follows —
Jeremiah
8:8
8. 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. 8. Quomodo dicetis
(pro dicitis; significat continuum actum) sapientes nos
(hoc est, nos sumus sapientes,) et lex Jehovae nobiscum est (vel,
penes nos, melius:) certe ecce frustra aptavit stylum (vel,
calamum) scriptor; frustra sunt
seribae.
Interpreters think that the
Prophet here directs his words to the priests, and the false prophets, and the
other chiefs of the people, because they proudly arrogated to themselves the
knowledge of the law: but what is said may be no less extended to the whole
people; for, as we shall presently see, all of them, from the least to the
greatest, no doubt boasted that they were sufficiently wise. I hence think that
the Prophet here inveighs against the whole body of the people; for all, almost
without exception, rejected his teaching, as we see also to be done at the
present day; for who is there that can bear to be admonished and reproved? All
say that they are wise enough: "Oh! do you think that I am a child?" or, as it
is commonly said, "Do you think that I am a goose? I know how I am to live, and
I am not without reason." Thus the rudest and the most ignorant set up their own
wisdom and sharpness of wit against God and his prophets. Such audacity and
ferociousness prevailed no doubt in the time of Jeremiah. For when he sharply
reproved them, they were ready with their answer, — " Oh! thou treatest us
as though we were barbarians, as though God's law was unknown to us, as though
we had not been taught from our childhood how we are to live: does not God dwell
in the midst of us?" Since, then, the Jews did set up as it were this shield
against the doctrine of the Prophet, he attacks them here with great vehemence,
—
How say ye, We are
wise? He afterwards describes the kind of
wisdom which they claimed, The
law of God is with us: and doubtless, to attend
to God's law is the way of becoming really wise. Had they justly boasted that
they had the law, the Prophet would not have brought against them the charge,
that they were doubly foolish. But as they falsely made this pretense, he says
to them, How? and here he asks a question as to what was very strange, "How are
you so foolish, "he says, "that ye think yourselves wise, as though the law of
God were with you? Surely, if so, in vain has the law been written; for ye shew
by your whole life that you have never known anything of what God by the law
commands and sets before us, and what the design of it
is."
Thus Jeremiah shows by their life that
there was no ground for their foolish boasting; for they gave no evidence of
their wisdom. It is indeed necessary for those who seek to be God's disciples to
bring forth some fruit: but as there was among them so much impiety, so much
contempt of God, and as, in short, their whole life proclaimed them to be wholly
insane, he says, In vain has he
prepared his pen, even the writer of the
law; and in vain have been the
scribes, that is, the teachers; for by
scribes, in the second place, he understands
teachers.
fA221
I explain this passage somewhat
different from other interpreters; for there seems to be implied a kind of
irony, as we commonly say, Il faut bruler tous les livres. Hence Jeremiah
derides their folly, in saying that they knew how they were to live, because the
teaching of the law prevailed among them. "If it be so, "he says, "what is God's
law? Doubtless, nothing, as the whole of its teaching must in this way be deemed
as nothing." We now then see that the Jews are here reproved as false, for they
claimed the law, as though it were a shadow without a body, and possessed not a
particle of right knowledge. He afterwards adds
—
Jeremiah
8:9
9. 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? 9. Pudefacti sunt sapientes,
territi sunt et capti sunt
(tjt
significat proprie frangere, vel, conterere, sed transferter ad
animum, et tunc significat terrere; dicit igitur esse territos, deinde
illaqueatos; postea adjungit causam, nempe,) quia respuerunt in verbo
(sed b
est supervacuum, verbum ergo)
Jehova (reprobarunt, vel repudiarunt,) et sapientia quid illis
(prodest, subaudiunt quidam interpretes; alii vertunt, et quid est in
ipsis sapientiae? Ego autem aliter accipio, ut statim
dicam.)
He says now that the
wise were ashamed, and
astonished, and ensnared. By which words
he means, that the Jews gained nothing by their craftiness, while they arrogated
to themselves wisdom, and under this pretense rejected all admonitions, and
sought to be spared.
"This wisdom, "he says,
"avails you nothing, for God, as it is said in another place, will take you
unawares."
(<232914>Isaiah
29:14;
<460119>1
Corinthians 1:19.)
Ashamed,
then, he says, are they; not that they were then ashamed; for be said
before, in
<240615>Jeremiah
6:15, and will state the same presently, that they were so hardened that they
could not be made ashamed, nor be made to
blush:
fA222 but he here denounces a punishment,
which was soon to overtake them; as though he had said, "Ye have now an iron
front, and think that ye can elude God and his servants with impunity; but God
will take you unawares, and will so shake off the masks under which you hide
yourselves, that your disgrace shall be made manifest to all." This is the
meaning.
For the same purpose he says, "Ye are
now secure, but God will shortly fill you with such terror, that he will make
you greatly
astonished."
He intimates, then, that nothing would benefit them while they took delight in
their vices, and increasingly hardened themselves; for God would deprive them of
their craftiness, and cast them down with terror, however secure and perverse
they were now.
By the third word he sets forth
the manner in which they would be treated: God would have his snares by which he
would take them. He alludes to the subterfuges in which those hypocrites trust,
who proudly oppose God, while they think that by their arts they can escape in
this or that way, and often devise some new schemes by which they may deceive
God. Hence the Prophet, alluding to their perverse cunning, says, that God would
be as it were a fowler, who would ensnare them, and hold them
captive.
He afterwards assigns the reason,
Because they had
repudiated, or despised or
rejected,
fA223 (for the verb means all these things,)
the word of
Jehovah. And he uses a demonstrative
particle,
Behold,
that they might not, as usual, make any evasions: "The thing, "he says, "is
sufficiently known, and even children can be judges of your impiety, that you
have rejected the word of Jehovah." He draws hence this inference,
What does wisdom avail them?
or, What is their wisdom? Either of these
meanings may be admitted, They were wise to no purpose, while they provoked God
by their impious contempt. "I hate the wise who is not wise for himself, "is an
old proverb. As then the Jews ill consulted their own benefit, by rejecting the
word of God, in which their safety was involved, the Prophet justly alleges,
that their wisdom availed them nothing. Others read, "What is their wisdom,
"when there is no fear of God? And doubtless it ever remains a truth, that the
fear of God is the beginning and the chief part of wisdom.
(<200107>Proverbs
1:7;
<200910>Proverbs
9:10;
<19B110>Psalm
111:10.) Since then they had basely despised God's word, rightly does the
Prophet ask, "What is their wisdom?" But there is a third meaning which is
suitable, even this, And wisdom,
what to them? So it is literally, — What
is wisdom to them? He still speaks to them ironically, as though he said, "They
are indeed wise, but in their own esteem; they have therefore no need of being
taught: What then is wisdom to them!" The meaning is, that they were so swollen
with pride that they received no instruction. How so? They refused wisdom
through the false conceit with which they were inflated. Let, however, every one
choose for himself; my object is to shew what I mostly approve. There will be no
lecture to — morrow, as a consistory is to be held.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that since thou
ceasest not daily to rouse us, as also our sloth requires continual warnings,
— O grant, that we may not be unteachable, and that our perverseness may
not hinder us to return immediately and willingly to thee, from whom we have,
through our own fault, alienated ourselves: and may we not only feel some desire
to repent, but persevere so constantly in the exercise of penitence, that
through the whole course of our life we may contend with our lusts, until having
at length subdued them all, we shall reach the goal which has been set before
us, and enjoy in heaven that eternal inheritance, which has been procured for us
by the blood of thine only — begotten Son. — Amen.
Lecture
Thirty-Third
Jeremiah
8:10
10. Therefore will I give their
wives unto others, and their fields to them that shall inherit
them: for every one from the least even unto the greatest is given to
covetousness, from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth
falsely. 10. Propterea dabo uxores eorum alienis, et agros eorum
possessoribus; quia a parvo usque ad magnum omnes cupiditatem concupiverunt
(vel, cupiditate concupiverunt;) a propheta usque ad sacerdotem omnes
egerunt fallaciter.
GOD here
threatens punishment, because he found that he effected nothing, and that he had
to do with an obstinate people, having before tried whether they were
reclaimable. Having seen that exhortations were of no avail, he now comes to
extreme severity, I will
give, he says,
their wives to strangers.
He sets forth, by a particular instance, the
evils which usually accompany wars: and nothing is more distressing than when
the wife is snatched away from her husband; for if husbands had their option,
they would prefer instant death than to bear such a disgrace. Jeremiah then
shews that the most atrocious thing that happens to conquered nations was nigh
the Jews, — that their men would be deprived of their wives. He afterwards
says the same thing of their fields; God declares that he would give the
fields to their possessors.
By this mode of speaking he intimates, that
they would be deprived of their fields, not for a short time, but
perpetually.
There is, indeed, a contrast here
implied: for it sometimes happens, that enemies prevail and plunder everything;
but yet they take no long possession of the fields, for a change succeeds: but
when he calls enemies possessors, he means that there would be such a calamity,
that the Jews would for a long time, even for their life, be banished from their
country, and would lose their possessions. They thought that the land was so
given to them, that it could never be taken from them: and doubtless the Lord
would have never expelled them, had they not defiled it with their pollutions;
but as they had polluted it by their sins, they deserved to be banished from it.
So the Prophet shews that their confidence was absurd, in thinking that they
would be the perpetual inheritors of that land: "Succeed you, "he says, "shall
others, who shall possess it as it were by an hereditary right." We now perceive
the Prophet's meaning.
He afterwards mentions
the reason why God had resolved to deal so severely with them,
For they
are, he says,
from the least to the greatest
given up to
avarice.
fA224 He means that no equity prevailed among
the people; for under one kind of sin he includes all frauds and plunders, and
every kind of injustice. He then says, that every one was addicted to his own
gain, so that they practiced mutual wrongs without any regard to what was right
and just.
He then enlarges on the subject and
says, that all, from the prophet
to the priest, acted deceitfully. There
is here also a part mentioned for the whole. But Jeremiah in various ways sets
forth the wrongs by which men harassed one another. Nor does he exclude violence
when he speaks of fraud; but it is the same as though he said, that they, being
forgetful of what was right, practiced fraud of every kind. It was, indeed, a
dreadful thing, that there remained no rectitude or justice in the prophets and
the priests, who ought to have carried light for others, and to have shewn to
them the right way, as God had constituted them to be the leaders of the people.
Since, then, even these acted deceitfully, there must have been among the common
people the most disgraceful injustice. Hence the Prophet shews by these words,
that God could not be charged with too much rigor, as though he treated the
people cruelly; for there was such a mass of wickedness, that it could no longer
be borne. It follows
—
Jeremiah
8:11
11. For they have healed the
hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there
is no peace. 11. Et curarunt vulnus filiae populi mei super nihilo,
dicendo, Pax, pax; et nulla pax.
THE
Prophet repeats what we have noticed in the sixth chapter: but it was necessary
to reiterate often, to the deaf and the slothful, what had already been
forgotten, or what had not touched their hearts. As these things have been
already explained, I shall now only refer briefly to the main
points.
He no doubt condemns here the priests
and the prophets. He spoke before generally of the whole people, "from the
least," he said, "to the greatest." But as for the sake of amplifying, he had
expressly mentioned the prophets and the priests as given to fraudulent
dealings, he now in an especial manner condemns them, not only for grievously
offending God, but also for deceiving others by their flatteries, as though they
were allowed to sin with impunity. It is, indeed, an inexcusable crime in those,
who ought to lead others, to be no less wicked than the common people; for they
not only by their example, but also by their doctrine, corrupt the whole
community, and thus they increase the evil twofold. It was therefore an
intolerable impiety, when they were so presumptuous as to spread those
falsehoods, by which they led the people to despise God and his law. Hence he
says, that they healed the wound
of the people, while God was yet shewing tokens
of his wrath. And he speaks, as it has been said elsewhere, by way of
concession, as though he had said, that they were very foolish physicians in
applying plaisters to cover the wrath of
God.
fA225
Behold,
he says, they have healed the
wound of my people, saying,
Peace,
peace. By mentioning the word twice the
Prophet shews more clearly how supine was their security; for they deceived the
people not only once, but proceeded obstinately in the work of deceiving the
wretched people by their false promises. He adds,
When there was no
peace. This may be taken in two ways,
— that God by the event exposed their madness, — or, that when there
was no prosperity, they still fallaciously promised peace. As God elsewhere
complains that the prophets flattered the people, so he does here: such
sentences we have already often explained. He then adds
—
Jeremiah
8:12
12. 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. 12. An pudor (est
enim interrogative hoc legendum, sicuti capite sexto diximus, subaudienda igitur
est particula, An; An ergo pudefacti sunt) quod abominationem
patrarunt? etiam in pudore non pudifacti sunt, et erubescere non noverunt;
propterea cadent inter cadentes; in tempore visitationis ipsorum impingent
(vel, corruent,) dicit
Jehova.
The Prophet in these words
shews still more clearly that they were wholly irreclaimable; for they had
divested themselves of every shame. It is no doubt a proof of a wickedness past
all remedy, when no shame remains. This verse has been also explained in the
sixth chapter; it forms the fifteenth verse. But we must bear in mind the design
of the Prophet. It is then briefly this, — to shew that the wickedness of
the people was unhealable, and for this reason, because they had an iron
front.
Hence he asks,
Have they been ashamed, because
they have committed abomination? as though he
had said, "They have been proved guilty of wickedness, can they be made to feel
any shame?" To this he answers,
Even in their shame they are not
ashamed. The particle
µg,
gam, even, is emphatic, Then the meaning may be thus given, — that
when God brought against them their shameful conduct, and proved them guilty, so
that they could not escape by any evasion — that when they were thus
convicted, they yet had no feeling of shame. At the same time, this passage may
be explained as referring to what is commonly called actual conviction; for they
were well — nigh consumed with miseries, through their untamable
perverseness, while contending with God's judgment.
Even
then
in shame itself they had no
feeling of
shame.
Added
is the reason, They know not how
to blush. By this want of shame, then,
Jeremiah proves that they were men past remedy. And on this account he adds,
Fall therefore shall they among
those who fall, and in the time of their visitation they shall
perish, or stumble. By these words he
intimates that they were no longer to be reasoned with, and that God's vengeance
would be just in wholly destroying them, for he had in vain spoken to them, he
had in vain contended with them, he had in vain tried to bring them to the right
way. The import of the whole then is, — that the only thing that remained
for them was destruction; for they had without shame rejected all instruction
and every warning.
And he says,
among the
fallen, because every one, as it is
commonly the case, encouraged others in their contempt of God, and in their
perverseness. When therefore they saw others to be like themselves, they
entertained hope of impunity; and hence they were allured to sin by this
deception. On this account the Prophet says, that ruin was nigh them all.
They shall
fall, he says,
among the
fallen,
fA226 and stumble in the
time of their visitation. He shews that God had
fixed a day in which they were to be destroyed. But if he deferred the time,
there was no reason for them to think that it would be to their advantage; for
they would by their obstinacy procure for themselves a heavier judgment. In
short, though God might spare them for a time, yet the Prophet warns them, that
this would avail them nothing, as God's time of visitation was fixed. Then
follows a confirmation
—
Jeremiah
8:13
13. 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 that I have given them
shall pass away from them. 13. Colligendo colligam (vel, perdendo
perdam,) dicit Jehova: non uvae in vite (vel, botri,) et non ficus in
ficulnea; et folium decidet, et dabo illis, transibunt (hoc est, quae
dedere illis transibunt ab
ipsis.)
He confirms, as I have said,
what he had declared in the last verse, tie had said, that there would be the
ruin of the whole people: for the same purpose he now adds,
Destroying I will destroy
them. The verb
ãsa,
asaph, properly means "to collect, "but metaphorically, "to destroy;" as
we say in our language, Trousser; Je les trousserai tous ensemble. And
hence it more fully appears, that the Prophet explains what he had said, that
destruction was nigh them all, so that none would remain, that is, with regard
to the people as a body, as a community; for God ever preserved a remnant. We
have, indeed, said elsewhere, and we shall have to notice the same thing often
again, that the prophets, regarding the people as a body, threatened them all
with destruction; but when they addressed the elect, and the faithful, they
added a modification: Destroying
I will then
destroy
them.
He
afterwards shews the manner: No
grapes
shall be on
the
vines, and
no figs on the fig —
trees. The word for "fig" means the
fruit as well as the tree, as it is well known. And that he might more fully set
forth God's vengeance, he says, that the very leaves would wither. The meaning
is, that God would soon come as an avenger, however securely the Jews might be
resting in their sins: and he shews the kind of vengeance that awaited them,
— that God would deprive them of all sustenance and support; by mentioning
a part for the whole, he includes everything necessary for life. He speaks not
of wine, and of corn, and of oil; but by figs and grapes, as I have said, he
comprehends every kind of sustenance; and even the leaves would wither and
fall.
In the second place, he adds,
Even, what I shall give them
shall pass away from them. Some apply
this to the fruit in the granaries and cellars, as though he had said, "Even if
they should have provisions in their storehouses and cellars, and be furnished
with plenty, all this shall yet avail them nothing, for it shall be all taken
away; for to pass away has often this meaning; and the
m,
mem, affixed, is the same as though it was
µhm,
meem, from them. Others render the words, "they shall pass over them;"
but this is too strained. They refer to the precepts granted to the Jews, which
they had rendered void or neglected: but this cannot suit the passage. And as to
the first explanation, it seems to me too limited. I therefore take this to be
the meaning, — " Even if the grapes and figs come to maturity, yet what
they shall consider as already prepared shall be taken away." The Prophet then
means, that there would be various ways by which the Jews would be reduced to
penury and want; for either the enemies would rob them of their grapes and figs,
or he himself would send sterility; or, when they thought their provisions
secured to them, they would not yet be allowed to enjoy them. This is the import
of the whole.
fA227 It follows
—
Jeremiah
8:14
14. 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. 14. Ut quid nos
sedemus? congregate vos, et ingrediamur urbes munitas (urbes munitionis, ad
verbum,) et quiescamus illic: certe Jehova Deus noster silere nos
(vel, quiescere nos) fecit, et potavit nos a quis venenatis
(vel, aquis fellis; nam
çar,
significat fel et venenum;) quia impie egimus contra
Jehovam.
This verse, and those which
follow, are explained in different. ways; but I will briefly shew the meaning of
the Prophet. I have no doubt but that he speaks here in the name of the whole
people. The Prophet, then, in these words, represents what occupied their minds,
and the counsels which the Jews adopted: and further, there is no doubt but that
he shews in these words that they, as hypocrites are wont to do, had recourse to
expedients, by which they thought they could protect themselves from God's
wrath. For they who think that the Prophet spoke his own sentiments are greatly
mistaken: on the contrary, he relates here the purposes which the Jews formed;
and at the same time he reproves their hardness in turning here and there, and
in thinking that they could turn aside the judgment of God; for hypocrites,
unless constrained, never ascend to the first cause; that is, they never
acknowledge nor regard the hand of him who strikes them, as it is said in
another place.
(<230913>Isaiah
9:13.) They indeed feel their evils, and seek to apply remedies; but they stop
at the nearest reliefs, without seeking to pacify God and to return into favor
with him; and when the smallest hope is given them, they think themselves to be
safe, if they betake themselves to this or that
hiding-place.
This feeling is what the Prophet
describes: Why do we sit?
or, "Why do we rest?" But the word here means
to sit still: Why do we
then
sit still?
as though they had accused themselves of sloth
or idleness: "What means this our slothfulness? we sit still in the villages,
which are exposed to the violence of enemies:
gather
then yourselves, and let us
enter
into fortified cities; we shall rest there."
They thought that they should be safe, if they entered into fortified cities.
Then, on the other hand, Jeremiah shews how foolishly they trusted to such
refuges.
Surely,
he says, our God hath made us
silent. He had said before
µçAhmdnw,
vanudame-shem, "and we shall there rest." The verb, means to rest,
and to be silent. He repeats the same word,
"Surely,
our God hath made us to be silent;" but in a different sense. There is then
a striking allusion in the verb
hmd,
dame, or the sameness of sound. "Jehovah hath made us to be silent, "or
to rest; or, he hath cut us off, for in Hiphil, it has this
meaning.
fA228
We hence see, that on the one hand
is declared what might have given some comfort to the Jews, for there were
fortified cities which might have protected them from the assaults of enemies;
but, on the other hand, the Prophet shews that they were greatly mistaken, for
God would make them to rest in a different manner, as he would reduce them to
nothing; for the dead are said to rest, or to be silent. In short, he means a
quiet state when speaking in the name of the people; but he refers to
destruction when speaking by God's command.
He
afterwards confirms the same thing in a metaphorical language,
God will give them the waters of
gall, or, poisoned waters: and he adds,
Because they have acted impiously
against Jehovah. We may learn from this
last part, that the Prophet is now performing the duty of his office. The people
indeed never willingly allowed that they were suffering punishment justly due to
their sins; but the Prophet here reproves them for hoping to be safe by fleeing
to fortified cities, as though God could not follow them there. He then says
that God's vengeance would closely pursue them, and that wherever they fled,
they would still be exposed to evils, for they carried with them their
impieties, which would draw upon them the wrath of God. It follows
—
Jeremiah
8:15
15. We looked for peace, but no
good came; and for a time of health, and behold trouble! 15.
Expectando
fA229 pacem (vel, ad pacem) et non
bonum; ad tempus sanationis, et ecce terror (aut,
turbatio.)
He explains his meaning
more clearly in this verse, — that the Jews in vain flattered themselves,
while they entertained vain hopes. He then says that there was no reason for
them to deceive themselves; for were they to promise themselves peace a hundred
times, ruin would still be nigh them, and that though they hoped for a time of
healing, terror would assail them. We hence see that in the last verse his
purpose was to shew how foolish the people were, who thought that they would be
safe by means of the remedies which seemed to be at hand, though they despised
God's judgment. It follows
—
Jeremiah
8:16
16. 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. 16. A Dan auditus est
fremitus equorum ejus, a voce hinnituum robustorum ejus tremefacta est (vel,
contremuit) tota terra; quia venient (nam copula hic resolvi debet in
causalem particulam) et comedent terram et plenitudinem (vel,
copiam) ejus, urbem et habitatores
ejus.
He says,
Heard has been the snorting of
horses from Daniel Dan was on the extremities,
as it is well known, of the land of Canaan. Some think that the loudness of the
noise is intended, as it was heard from such a distance in the holy city itself;
but I know not whether this can be gathered from the words of the Prophet. The
simpler and the correcter meaning then is, that though Jerusalem rested
securely, they were not yet in a quiet state on the borders of the land, for
they were disturbed by the snorting of the enemies' horses.
From Dan
then
has been heard a
snorting. When the inhabitants of a city
indulge in pleasures, while the borders of the land are assailed by enemies, it
might be pertinently said to them, "Why do ye here live at your ease? your
neighbors and your brethren are exposed to the assaults of enemies: war
therefore ought to be waged in your land, though it has not yet reached your
gates and your walls." So the Prophet speaks here: "From Dan has been heard the
snorting of his horses." The relative "his" may be applied to the Assyrians; for
the Hebrews often use relatives without antecedents. But it is more probable
that Jeremiah refers to the first mover of the war, even God; as though he had
said, — " God will send forth hostile armies, which will disturb the
borders of your land." He then calls them the horses of God; for the Chaldeans
did not wage that war, but under the authority of God, as we have often seen,
and shall have to notice often again.
Then he
says, At the noise of the
neighings of his strong ones, etc. He
calls the horses "strong,
"µyryba,
abirim; and as he had not described them, he now does so.
Trembled,
he says, has the land at the
noise of the neighings of his strong ones.
As he mentions the neighings of horses, we must understand "strong" as
referring to the horses themselves.
Come,
he says, shall they, and
shall devour the land and its fullness, the city and its
inhabitants. Here is an irregularity as
to the number; for he puts city for cities, as he threatens not only Jerusalem,
but also the neighboring cities. Whatever then might be the abundance in the
land, the enemies would devour it; and he says also, that they would devour the
cities and their inhabitants. It follows
—
Jeremiah
8:17
17. For, behold, I will send
serpents, cockatrices, among you, which will not be charmed, and they shall bite
you, saith the Lord. 17. Quia ecce ego mitto in vos serpentes, regulos
(quidam tamen subaudiunt copulam, serpentes et regulos) quibus nulla erit
incantatio, et mordebunt vos, dicit
Jehova.
He increases their terror by
another comparison, — that not only enemies would violently attack them,
but that their bitings would be venomous. He had spoken of horses, and mentioned
their violent onsets; but he now expresses another thing, — that the Jews
would have to carry on war with
vipers
and
basilisks.
The Prophet no doubt only meant to shew that they could not possibly escape;
for as from serpents men can hardly escape, especially when they are numerous,
and assail them on every side, so he intimates, that the war would be fatal to
the Jews, when attacked by serpents and
vipers.
They shall bite
you, he says,
and for them
there will be
no
incantation; that is, by no means can
they be driven away from you. If one asks, Can serpents be driven away by
incantations? the answer is, — that the Prophet here does not refer to
what is true, but speaks according to the common opinions of men. It has been
thought in all ages, that serpents can be driven away by incantations, or be
killed, or be deprived of the power of hurting. "The deadly snake, "says Virgil,
in Eclo. viii., "is dissolved in the meadows by singing." What that heathen poet
has said has been believed also by other nations; and as I have already said, it
has been a commonly received opinion that serpents may be charmed. As then it
was a common belief, the Prophet says, "If ye think that these serpents can be
turned away, and the hurt that proceeds from them, ye are greatly deceived; for
there will be for them no incantation." There is also a mention made of
incantation in
<195806>Psalm
58:6: but as I have already said, the prophets accommodate their words to the
comprehension of men. The Prophet does here also indirectly reprove the Jews, by
comparing their false resources to incantations, as though he had said, —
" Ye think that ye can soothe your enemies by flatteries and bribery, so that
they may not hurt you; and ye also think that ye have ready at hand various
means by which you may avert the evils which impend over you: in vain, he says,
ye deceive yourselves with such hopes; for all your incantations as to these
serpents shall be to no purpose, and wholly
useless."
We now then perceive the Prophet's
intention, and see that by this figure he ironically derides the crafty measures
of the people, and all the remedies which they thought they had in readiness
when assailed by their enemies. It follows
—
Jeremiah
8:18
18. When I would comfort
myself against sorrow, my heart is faint in me. 18. Roborate meum
(vel, quum vellem roborare me) super dolorem, super me cor meum infirmum
est.
Interpreters explain
differently the word
ytyglbm,
mebelgiti. Some take
m,
mem, in the sense of
b,
beth; but others, with whom I agree, regard it as a servile, deriving the
word from
glb,
belag; and this letter is prefixed to it to shew that it is a noun. The
t,
tau, also at the end, is a
servile.
fA230
The Prophet then means, that he
sought strength in his
sorrow, but that his
heart was
weak. He no doubt, I think, sets forth
in this verse the perverse character of the people, — that they sought
through their obstinacy to drive away every punishment. This could not indeed be
referred to himself, or to those who were like him, as we know how fearful are
God's servants with regard to his wrath; for as the fear of God prevails in
their hearts, so they are easily terrified by his judgment; but hypocrites and
wicked men ever harden themselves as far as they can. They then strengthened
themselves against God, and thought in this way to be conquerors. Since they
thus perversely contended with God, the Prophet sets forth here the great
hardness of the people: I
would, he says,
strengthen myself in my
sorrow;
but my heart is within me
weak; that is, "In vain are these
remedies tried; in vain have ye hitherto endeavored to strengthen yourselves,
and have sought fortresses and strongholds against God; for sorrow will at
length prevail, as the Lord will add troubles to troubles, so that ye must at
length succumb under them."
He means the same
when he says, his heart
was within him
weak:
"I have, "he says, "been oppressed with sorrow, when I thought I had strength
enough to resist." For thus the ungodly think manfully to act, when they madly
resist God; but at length they find by the event that they in vain seek thus to
strengthen themselves; for our heart, he says, will become within us weak, and
debility itself will at last oppress and overwhelm us.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that since we have
been abundantly taught by ancient examples how insane they are who bend not
under thy threatenings, and repent not in due time while thou invitest them to
repentance, — O grant, that we may wholly give up ourselves to be
disciplined by thee, and that we may not only bear with submissive minds to be
chastised, but also learn by thy warnings to return without delay to thee, and
that we may so remain in obedience to thee, that with unceasing perseverance we
may fight under thy banner, until having at length finished our warfare, we
shall enjoy that blessed rest which has been prepared for us by Christ our Lord.
— Amen.
Lecture
Thirty-Fourth
Jeremiah
8:19
19. 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? 19. Ecce vox clamoris filiae populi mei a terra longinqua, An
Jehova non est in Sion? an rex ejus non est in ea? Quare provocarunt me ad iram
in suis sculptilibus? in vanitati-bus
aiieni?
The Prophet in this verse
assumes different characters: he first denounces ruin, which, though near, was
not yet dreaded by the people; he then represents the people, and relates what
they would say; in the third place, he adds an answer in God's name to check the
clamors of the people.
When he says that the
daughter
of his
people
uttered a
cry,
he is to be understood as referring to a future time; for the Jews as yet
continued perversely in their sins, and ridiculed all threatenings, and regarded
as nothing what was said by the prophets. Jeremiah then does not mean that his
own nation cried, as though they dreaded future calamities, (for they were
heedlessly secure;) but he condemns their indifference, as though he had said,
"Ye indeed do now indulge your own delusions, and think that your felicity is to
be perpetual; but in a short time your cry will be heard." The words,
From a distant
land, interpreters apply to the
Chaldeans and Assyrians, as though the Prophet had said, "Ye hope for a
perpetual rest, because your enemies are far from you; hence distance and delay
in marching produce this security in you; for it seems not to you credible that
your enemies shall make such a journey, except with much expense and much
trouble; but in this opinion you are deceived; for though the Chaldeans and the
Assyrians are far distant from you, yet they shall soon come and constrain you
to utter a cry: ye cannot now bear the warnings of the prophets, my voice ye
cannot endure; but God will constrain you to utter a different voice, for ye
shall cry, but without any avail."
This meaning
is not without reason on its side: if then the Prophet's words be thus taken, I
offer no objection; for hypocrites derive confidence from the present appearance
of things; when they see that there is quietness on every side, they fear no
danger; when God threatens them, and shews not immediately his rods, they
ridicule or despise them.: thus have we seen in other
places.
But another meaning is not unsuitable,
— that Jeremiah describes the lamentations of the people in exile, after
having been driven into Chaldea and Assyria:
The
voice, then,
of the daughter of my people from
a distant
land;fa231
that is, after having been deprived of their country, they will then begin
to cry, and for this reason, because they wished the prophets to give them rest,
and refused to bear any reproofs. Appropriate also is this view; but I prefer
the former, — that the people would shortly find out how foolishly they
deluded themselves, when God by his servants threatened them with ruin and
destruction: and hence he uses the demonstrative particle, "Behold:"
Behold,
he says, the voice of
crying; and yet great was the silence
then at Jerusalem: for though in their pleasure they uttered some voices, yet as
to weepings and lamentations the whole city was silent. The Prophet then refers
to what was hidden. But God usually acts in this way, as he afterwards executes
suddenly his judgment; for when the wicked say, Peace, peace, destruction comes
and suddenly overwhelms them.
(<520508>1
Thessalonians 5:8.)
He adds in the second place,
Is not Jehovah in Sion? Is not
her king in her? The Prophet no doubt
expresses here the complaints of the people on finding themselves overwhelmed
with so many and so great evils, without receiving any aid from heaven. For
hypocrites ever expostulate with God; and as they consider that they are
unjustly chastised, they reject every instruction, and avoid it as much as they
can; in short, they seek stupidity, that. they may deceive themselves with vain
delusions. As then it is usual with hypocrites to reject every apprehension of
God's wrath, Jeremiah strikingly describes their contumacy,
"Is not Jehovah in Sion? Is not
her king in her?" For they accused God of
falsehood, as though he had deceived them, since he had promised to be the
defender of the city, and of the whole land. As then they thought that God was
bound to them by this promise, they daringly raged against him, "What means
this? for God has chosen this place, where Abraham's race might worship him; it
has been as it were his earthly kingdom: but now what can this mean, that
enemies are coming here? Can God ever permit them to do so? This is not
possible, except God himself be overcome."
We
hence see the import of the Prophet's words; for he here imitates the perverse
language of the people, and recites the words which he knew most of them used.
We have before found him addressing them,
"Trust not in words of
falsehood, saying, The temple of Jehovah, the temple of Jehovah, the temple of
Jehovah,"
(<240704>Jeremiah
7:4;)
for they were wont perversely to allege against God,
the temple, and to regard it as a shield to ward off every evil. In the same way
the Prophet says now, "Is not God
in Sion?" and then,
"Is not her king in
her?" The Jews were not only persuaded that God
would be propitious to them, but they doubted not of their own safety, while
they could turn their eyes to their king. They therefore uttered these words, as
though they were beyond the chance of danger: for we know what God had declared
respecting the kingdom, that it would continue for ever: So long as the sun and
moon shall be in heaven, shall remain the seat of David, and his posterity
flourish.
(<198936>Psalm
89:36, 37.) Hence they connected the king with God; as though they had said,
"Here is God worshipped, and his power dwells in the temple; the king also, whom
he has set over us, is a sure pledge of his favor; and the perpetuity of his
kingdom has been promised to us: it then follows, that either God is untrue, and
that we have been deceived with vain promises, or that our enemies will come in
vain; for when they shall make every effort, God, who is the guardian of our
safety, will easily drive them away."
At the
first view this seems to be an evidence of faith, as the people seemed persuaded
that they should be safe and secure under the protection of God, and as they
turned their eyes to that kingdom, which was a remarkable exhibition of God's
presence: for as David was a type of Christ, and also his posterity, no other
refuge could have been sought by the faithful than that which is here described.
But we know how hypocrites swell with vain confidence, while yet they are wholly
destitute of faith, and how they become wantonly insolent whenever God threatens
them, as though they held him bound at their will. As then the ungodly are wont
thus to abuse the name of God, it is no wonder that they imitate the language of
his true servants: but yet they are wholly different. How so? They lay hold on
the promises, but they have no faith nor repentance. "This is my rest for ever:
it then follows that we shall be ever safe, for God cannot be overcome by any
force of arms, by any onset of enemies; since he has taken us under his
protection, what have we to fear?" But, at the same time, they despised God and
all his teaching.
We hence see how foolish was
the boasting of that people, since they wholly despised the holy name of God,
and did swell only with wind, inasmuch as they were altogether destitute of
faith and piety. We must also ever keep in mind what I have already said,
— that the Jews not only entertained this vain confidence, but also
presumptuously rose up against God, as though he had deceived them, having
promised that Sion would be his perpetual rest: they now ask him, why he did not
defend the city, as he dwelt in Sion? and why was not the king their protection,
since it had been said, "So long as the sun and moon shall be in heaven, shall
remain the throne of David?" Now follows God's
answer.
Why
then have they provoked me
with their carvings, and the vanities of the
foreigner? Here God retorts their false
complaints. We hence learn, that in the last clause the contumacy of the people
is what is set forth by Jeremiah: they raged against God, because he did not aid
them in time. God shews how absurdly they complained against him, and accused
him:
Why,
he says, have they provoked
me?
"They
say now that they are forsaken, because there is no faithfulness in me: I
have not betrayed them, nor forsaken them, but they have forsaken
me."
We now perceive the meaning of the Prophet. We observe, indeed, that the
passage is abrupt, for the Prophet assumes different characters; but as to what
is meant there is nothing doubtful.
God says,
that he was provoked with
carvings: it hence follows, that the
temple was polluted. God had indeed promised to dwell in the temple, but on a
certain condition, provided he was faithfully, and in a legitimate manner,
worshipped there; but the people with their pollutions had defiled the temple.
God then shews that there was a just cause why he had departed, according to
what is set forth more fully in the tenth chapter of Ezekiel: God shews to his
servant in that vision that he had left the temple, and for this reason, —
because his holiness could not be blended with ungodly and filthy profanations.
He first mentions
carvings
generally, and then he adds,
the vanities of the
foreigner: and here he amplifies the sin
of the people, because they borrowed here and there from foreigners such
superstitions as were unknown to their fathers, as though they wished to banish
God from the temple, and from the whole
land.fa232
It follows —
Jeremiah
8:20
20. The harvest is past, the
summer is ended, and we are not saved. 20. Transiit messis, finita est
aestas, et nos non sumus
servati.
The Prophet shews now in
the name of the people what was the hindrance. At the time Jeremiah spoke, the
Jews confidently boasted that God was their defender; and they did not
think that the Chaldeans were preparing for an expedition. But as they were
inflated with false confidence, the Prophet here recites what they would
presently say, Passed has the
harvest, ended has the summer, and we have not been
saved; that is, "We thought that the
associates, with whom we have made alliances, would at length come to our aid;
and we have in this respect been deceived." In saying, that the harvest had
passed, some think that they expected help from the Egyptians after they had
gathered their corn into barns; for there is then more leisure, and then also
there are provisions for the army. But the Prophet seems to include the whole
time suitable for carrying on war; as though he had said, "What will become of
us at last? for if the Egyptians intended to bring help, they would have done so
at the suitable time of the year; but passed has the harvest, and the summer has
ended: will they come now, when the severity of winter constrains them to keep
at home?."
It is the same as though they had
said, "There is no hope of aid either from the Egyptians or from other
confederates, for the seasonable time is gone by." There was nothing less
credible to the Jews at that time; for as it; has elsewhere appeared, they
doubted not but that the Egyptians would bring them aid, and supply them with
help instead of God: but the Prophet intimates, that whatever the Egyptians
might have promised would be in vain, and wholly useless, that the people would
at length find out by experience that their promises were mere trumperies, yea,
impostures and deceits. In short, he describes in the name of the people (that
what he said might be more emphatical) what they would soon find out, though
they would not believe it at that time. It follows —
Jeremiah
8:21
21. For the hurt of the
daughter of my people am I hurt; I am black; astonishment hath taken hold on
me. 21. Super contritione filiae populi mei contritus sum, obtenebratus
sum, stupor (nam
µmç
est stupere et attonitum esse; stupor ergo) apprehendit
me.
As the hardness of the people
was so great, that the threatenings we have observed did not touch them, the
Prophet now ascribes to himself what he had before attributed to them.
We then see how the Prophet varies his mode of speaking; but it was
necessary, for he was at a loss to find a way to address them sufficiently
strong to penetrate into their stony and even iron hearts. We need not wonder,
then, that there are so many figurative terms used by the Prophet; for it was
needful to set before them God's judgment in various ways, that the
people might be awakened out of their torpid
state.
He then says, that he was
bruised for the
bruising of his people. He was no doubt
ridiculed by most of them: "Oh! thou grievest for thine own evils; it is
well and prosperous with us: who has asked thee for this pity? Think not, then,
that thou canst gain any favor with us, for we are contented with our lot. Weep
rather for thine own calamities, if thou hast any at home; but suffer us at the
same time to enjoy our pleasures, since God is propitious and indulgent to
us." Thus then was the Prophet derided; but yet he warns the
obstinate people, that they might be less excusable: he says, that he was
rendered
black; for sorrow brings blackness with
it, and makes dark the face of man: it is a metaphorical expression. He says at
last, that he was
astonishedfa233
The astonishment with which he was seized he no doubt sets down as being the
opposite of the people's torpor and insensibility, for they had no fear for
themselves. It follows —
Jeremiah
8:22
22. Is there no balm in Gilead?
is there no physician there? why then is not the health of the daughter of my
people recovered? 22. An resina (aut, balsamus) non est in Gilead? an
medicus non illic est? nam cur non ascendit sanitas filiae populi
mei?
The Prophet intimates in these
words that the slaughter of the people would be so fatal that they would in vain
seek remedies; as though he had said, that the disease would be incurable, and
altogether deadly. The people, no doubt, ever devised for themselves many kinds
of aids, according to what is commonly done; for ungodly men, when any danger
appears, look around them on all sides; and when they think that they can be
protected by any kind of assistance, or by any of the means they contrive, they
rest secure and free from every trouble. Hence the Prophet, that he might dispel
such vain confidences, says that there
would be no
rosin to heal their diseases. The rosin
is a liquid which flows, not from every tree, but from the pine, and trees of
that kind.
We may conclude from this
passage, as well as from other passages, that the best and the most valuable
rosin was found in that part of Judea, called Gilead. Indeed the whole of Judea
produced rosin; but as it was more abundant in Gilead, and as that rosin was
more odoriferous and more powerful, he expressly mentions that place. The word
yrx
tsari, means also balsam: and as to this let each follow his own opinion,
for the Jews themselves do not altogether agree. They who render it
"treacle" wholly depart from the meaning, and offer what is
absurd; for we know that treacle is made up of several ingredients: now rosin is
not any sort of gum, but a thick liquid, as I have said, which belongs to trees;
and from it comes rosin, and mastic, and other things; for the liquid becomes
thick after it has flown from the trees.
He says
then, as one astonished, Is there
not rosin in Gilead? Is there not a physician
there? But the Prophet foretells here by
the Spirit, that there would be such a destruction as could not by any means be
avoided, that the disease would be incurable. For why, he says,
does not health come to the
daughter of my people? The reason is
added, because healing could not be expected by the people; not that the Jews
perceived this, for, on the contrary, they boasted, as I have said, of their
perfect safety. But the Prophet here declares that a deadly disease was at hand,
which would inevitably destroy the
wickedfa234
Afterwards follows —
CHAPTER
9
Jeremiah
9:1
1. 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! 1. Quis ponet caput meum aquas, et oculum
meum fontem lachrymarum? et deflebo die et nocte (hoc est, dies et
noctes) interfectos filiae populi
mei.
He follows the same subject.
During times of tranquillity, when nothing but joyful voices were heard among
the Jews, he bewails, as one in the greatest grief, the miseries of the people;
and being not satisfied with this, he says, Who will set, or make,
my head
waters,
and my eye a fountain of
tears? He intimates by these words, that
the ruin would be so dreadful that it could not be bewailed by a moderate or
usual lamentation, inasmuch as God's vengeance would exceed common bounds, and
fill men with more dread than other
calamities.
The meaning is, that the destruction
of the people would be so monstrous that it could not be sufficiently bewailed.
It hence appears how hardened the Jews had become; for doubtless the Prophet had
no delight in such comparisons, as though he wished rhetorically to embellish
his discourse; but as he saw that their hearts were inflexible, and that a
common way of speaking would be despised, or would have no weight and authority,
he was constrained to use such similitudes. And at this day, there is no less
insensibility in those who despise God; for however Prophets may thunder, while
God spares and indulges them, they promise to themselves perpetual quietness.
Hence it is, that they ridicule and insult both God and his servants, as though
they were too harshly treated. As then, the same impiety prevails now in the
world as formerly, we may hence learn what vehemence they ought to use whom God
calls to the same office of teaching. Plain teaching, then, will ever be deemed
frigid in the world, except it, be accompanied with sharp goads, such as we find
employed here by the Prophet fB1
He adds —
Jeremiah
9:2
2. 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. 2. Quis statuet me in deserto, in diversorio (alii, tugurium,
vertunt; sed nescio an reperiatur
ˆwlm
in hoc sensu) viatorum? et relinquam populum meum et discedam ab
illis; quia omnes adulteri, conventus transgressorum (vel,
perfidorum; nam
µydgb
sunt perfidi et apostatoe, ut alibi
vidimus.)
Here the Prophet
entertains another wish: He had before wished that his head were waters, that he
might shed tears, and he had wished his eyes to be the fountains of tears; but
now, after having duly considered the wickedness of the people, he puts off
every feeling of humanity, and as one incensed, he desires to move elsewhere,
and wholly to leave the people; for their impiety had so prevailed that he could
no longer live among them. It is indeed certain that the Prophet had no common
grief, when he perceived that God's dreadful vengeance was not far distant: it
is also certain that he was moved and constrained by their detestable conduct to
desire to be removed elsewhere. But he speaks not only for his own sake; for he
regards his own nation, and expresses his feelings, that he might more
effectually touch their hearts. We must then understand, that so great was the
sympathy of the Prophet, that he was not satisfied with shedding tears, but that
he wished that his whole head would flow into fearn It appears, also, that he
was so moved with idignation, that he wished wholly to leave his own people.
But, as I have said, his object was to try whether he could restore them to the
right way.
He then shews, in this verse, that
the Jews had become so detestable, that all the true servants of God wished to
be removed far away from them: Who then will set me in the desert?
He seeks not for himself another country; he desires not to dwell in a
pleasant situation, or that some commodious asylum should be offered to him? but
he desires to be placed in the desert, or in the lodging of travelers. He speaks
not of those lodgings or inns, which were in villages and towns; but of a
lodging in the desert; according to what is the case, when a long and tedious
journey is made through forests, some sheds are formed, that when a traveler is
over — taken by the darkness of night, he might be protected by
some covering, and not He down in the open air. It is of this kind of lodging
that the Prophet speaks: then he no doubt means a shed; but as to the word, we
may retain, as I have said, its proper meaning. What is meant is, that to dwell
in the desert alllong wild beasts was better than to be among that abominable
people. By expressing this wish he inflamed no doubt the fury of the whole
people, or at least of most of them; but it was necessary thus forcibly to
address them: as they submitted to no kind and wholesome warnings and counsels,
they were to be forcibly stimulated and urged by such reproofs as
these.
I will leave my
people. This had an emphatic, bearing;
for delightful to every one is his native soil, and it is also delightful to
dwell among one's own people. As then the Prophet wished to be removed into the
desert,, and to leave his own people, all his relatives and the nation from
which he sprang, and to depart frora them, it follows that they nmst have come
to extremities.
And the reason is added,
For all are
adulterers. I take the word
µypanm
menaphim, adulterers, in a metaphorical sense, as meaning all those who
had departed from God, and abandoned themselves to ungodly superstitions, or
those who had become so vitiated and corrupt as to retain no integrity. He does
not then call them adulterers, because they were given to whoredoms, but because
they were immersed in all kinds of defilements. He afterwards calls them an
assembly of apostates, or of perfidious men. The word
rx[,
otsar, means to prohibit, to restrain: hence the noun
trx[
ostaret, means a summoned assembly, when, according to an oath or laws,
men are forced to meet; and after the assembly is proclaimed, they dare not
depart. Then the Prophet by this word points out the consent and union that
existed among that people, as though he had said, that they no less clave to
their sins, that if by a solemn rite or authority or ordinance they had been
summoned together and were prohibited to depart. We hence see that he
condemns the impious consent that was among the people, and also their
pertinacity; for they could by no means be restored to a right mind. And for
this reason he calls them also
µydgb
begadim, transgressors; for by this word the Hebrews mean, not every kind
of sinners, but those who are wholly wicked: and hence the prophets, when, they
speak of apostates and revolters, ever call them
µydgb,
begadim, as in this passage.
fB2 I shall not proceed
farther.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that since thou
hast been pleased that the prophetic writings should be preserved for our use,
that they may continually excite us to repentance, and that since thou stiffest
up daily those who urge us by their exhortations, and draw us, as it were by
force, to repent, — O grant, that there may not be in us such perverseness
as we see existed in thine ancient people; but that we may render ourselves
teachable, and be so moved by thy threatenings, as to anticipate thy judgment,
lest we, mistaking thy forbearance, should at length be visited with that dread,
described to us by thy servant Jeremiah, but that we may, on the contrary, find
thee to the end to be not only a reconcilable but also a most merciful Father,
until we shall at last enjoy a fuller knowledge of thy goodness in thy celestial
kingdom, through Jesus Christ our Lord. — Amen.
LECTURE
THIRTy-FIFTH
Jeremiah
9:3
3. 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. 3. Et jaculati sunt lingua (quidam vertunt, Et jaculare
fecerunt; alii, intenderunt linguas suas) arcum suum ad mendacia (alii
vertunt, arcum mendacii; sed male;) et non ad veritatem roborati sunt
(aut, invaluerunt) in terra; quia a malo ad malum egressi sunt, et me non
cognoscunt, dicit Jehova.
Jeremiah
confirms what he had said of the near destruction of the people; for, as we have
said, the Jews ridiculed threatenings while they thought themselves far from
every danger. But the Prophet shews, from the nature of God himself, that they
must necessarily perish in a short time; for since God is the judge of the
world, and as they were continually advancing in impiety and wickedness, they
could no longer be tolerated. This is the
meaning.
He first says, that they
stretched their tongues as a bow
for falsehoods. The verb
°rd,
darek, means to walk, and often occurs in this sense; but; it means also
to stretch, to bend, and is frequently applied to bows. As it is here in Hiphil,
some take it in a transitive sense. It ought in this case to have
y,
iod; but such defect is often found in other places. This sense is the most
suitable; that is, that they shot with their tongues falsehood as with a bow.
Others improperly construe
rqç,
shikor, in the genitive case, as though he had said, "the bow of
falsehood, but this gives no meaning; and therefore "the bow of falsehood"
cannot be admitted here. The sense is, that they shot falsehood with their
tongue as with a bow, or that they made their tongue to go to falsehood, or that
they stretched their tongue like a bow for falsehood. If the last
rendering be approved, — that they stretched their tongue, etc.,
then the Prophet compares their tongues to bows and falsehoods to arrows. As to
the subject itself, there is no difference, whether we read that they shot lies
with their tongues, or that they stretched their tongues for lies: for the
Prophet simply means that their tongues, as he will hereafter tell us, were so
pointed that they pierced one another with slanders and falsehoods, as though
one stretched a bow and shot an arrow. He then intimates, that all their words
were deadly, for they were intent on slanders and falsehoods, so that there was
no intercourse without a mortal wound.
He then
adds, that they were not strong
for the truth. Some read, "They have
been strong, but not for the truth;" others, "They have been strong as to
the truth," or for the truth: but I think that the Prophet's meaning is
different, — that having checked the truth, they took more liberty for
themselves, as though he had said that they triumphed when all faithfulness and
rectitude were destroyed; for by the word,
hnwma
amune, the Prophet no doubt means that fidelity by which men ought to carry
on their concerns one with another. Since, then, there was no uprightness among
them, he says, that they marched forth as victorious when they trod under foot
what was just and right. It is indeed a proof of extreme impiety, when men,
trampling upon faithfulness and equity, allow themselves every kind of
licentiousness. Some give this explanation, — that they ruled, not through
their faithfulness or virtues, for they had crept into and obtained honors by
wicked and deceitful arts. And it. is indeed certain that the Prophet directs
his discourse, not against the common people, but against the chief men, who had
attained their power by frauds. But I am satisfied with the view that I have
already given, — that they had become strong because there was no
truth, as when we say that the blind rule in darkness, when everything is in
confusion. The meaning is, that they were not only given up to their sins, but
that they also triumphed over fidelity and justice, by allowing themselves every
liberty, as there was no one who dared to say a word to restrain them. He says,
that they thus became strong through the whole land; for he sets forth
here the deplorable state of the people in general; as though he had said,
"There is no hope of deliverance left, for truth and faithfulness are
everywhere oppressed."
fB3
An explanation follows, — that
they proceeded from evil to
evil; that is, they obstinately went on
in their evil doings; for to go forth means the same as to pass. They then
passed from evil to
evil; that is, when they had done one
evil, no repentance entered their hearts, so as to turn back; but they continued
their wickedness, and aceunrelated evils on evils. We now then understand what
the Prophet means; for he sets forth their pertinacity in evil deeds, and at the
same time shews that there was no evidence of amendment, for they passed from
one bad deed to another like
it.
And me have they not
known, saith Jehovah. He shews here what
is the source of all evils; they had cast aside every knowledge and every
thought of God. We indeed know that when God is really known, his fear must
necessarily influence our hearts; and the knowledge of God begets reverence and
a regard for religion. It is indeed true, that God is somewhat known by even the
ungodly and the wicked, and that they have some notions respecting him; but it
is no more than an empty knowledge. When indeed we are fully persuaded that God
is the judge of the world, and when we have also a knowledge of his goodness and
paternal favor, we necessarily fear him and spontaneously and willingly worship
and serve him. Ignorance of God, then, is a kind of madness which carries men
headlong to every sort of impiety. On this account, God complains that he was
not known by the people, for the fear of him was not in them. It follows —
Jeremiah
9:4
4. 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. 4. Et vir a socio
suo cavete (hoc est, caveat; ad verbum, custodiat se; caveat
igitur sibi quisque a socio,) et super omni fratre (ad verbum) ne
confidatis (hoc est, nemo confidat proprio fratre;) quia omnis frater
supplantando supplantat, et omnis socius fraudulenter
incedit.
In this verse the Prophet
describes the extreme wickedness of the people. For though sometimes thefts,
robberies, frauds, slaughters, perjuries, sorceries prevail, yet some regard for
near relations remains; but it is monstrous when all relative affections are
destroyed. As then, even in the most wicked, there remain some natural
affections, called storgoe by philosophers, it follows, that men depart
wholly from nature and become wild beasts, when these no longer exist. This is
the import of what is here said.
There is a
similar passage in
<330705>Micah
7:5, 6. The idea is there indeed more fully expanded; for the Prophet
adds,
"From her who sleeps in
thy bosom guard the doors of thy mouth; for the son lies in wait for his father,
and the daughter delivers up her mother to death; and the chief enemies of man
are his own domestics."
The prophets then mainly agree in shewing, that there
was no humanity left among flmm; for the son, forgetful of his duty, rose up
against his father, and every one was perfidious towards his own friend, and a
brother spared not his own
brother.
Let a man
then
guard
himself. This is not an admonition, as
though the Prophet exhorted men to be wary; but he only shews that there was no
fidelity; for every one was perfidious and unfaithful towards his own friend,
and even a brother acted unjustly towards his own brother. It hence follows,
that the Jews are charged with being natural monsters; for they were deservedly
objects of detestation, when they cast aside every care for their own blood, and
as far as they could, destroyed everything like humanity. He says that brothers
by supplanting supplanted, that is, craftily deceived and circumvented
their own brothers. The verb bq[
okob, is to be taken mttaphorically; it is
derived from the heel of the foot, and means to oppress the simple by secret
arts. He says also, that all friends acted fraudulently. Of this kind of
speaking we have spoken on
<240628>Jeremiah
6:28; for we found there the same complaint; and the Prophet then said the Jews
were like iron and brass, because they had hardened themselves so as to be
capable of any cruelty. This sort of speaking often occurs, when the word
lykr,
rekil, is connected with the verb
°lh
elak; and they who are the most learned in the language say, that this
word is never found in Scripture but in connection with the verb to go or to
walk. They hence conclude that some particular person is meant, that is, one who
goes about veiled or deceitfully, and rambles and runs here and there, that he
may find some opportunity of deceiving and cheating. It cannot be taken here for
slandering, as we have also stated on chapter the sixth: it is too unmeaning. It
is found indeed in this sense in
<031916>Leviticus
19:16,
"Go not about a slanderer
among thy people;"
where some render it a whisperer. But the Prophet no
doubt condemns here the frauds and deceitful crafts, by which they deceived
and cheated one another: for
lkr,
recal signifies a merchant; and as it is often the case that
traders act cunningly and practice crafty artifices, the Hebrews call that man
lykr
racal, fraudulent and wickedly crafty, whose object is to deceive
and cheat. And we see that this is the meaning in this place, as it designates
those who circumvented one another: for the Prophet says, that they were foolish
who trusted in brothers or friends; and he gives the reason, because brothers
supplanted one another, and friends went about fraudulently. It follows —
Jeremiah
9:5
5. And they will deceive every
one his neighbor, and will not speak the truth: they have taught their tongue to
speak lies, and weary themselves to commit iniquity. 5. Et vir
proximo sue (socio) mentitur (hoc est, quisque; nam
çya
ponitur indefinite apud Hebroeos pro nota universali; quisque ergo
proximum suum circumvenit, nempe mendacio; nam
lth
significat mentiri,) et veritatem non loquitur; docuerunt linguas suas loqui
mendacium (hoc est, linguas suas formarunt ad mendacia,) male agere
fatigati sunt (hoc est, male agendo
fatigantur.)
Jeremiah goes on with
the same subject. He says that fidelity had so disappeared among the Jews, that
every one endeavored to deceive his neighbor. Hence it followed, that they were
withhout any shame. Some sense of shame at least remains among men, when they
have to do with their own friends; for though they may be wholly given to gain,
and to indulge in falsehoods, yet when they transact business with friends, they
retain some regard for equity, and shame checks their wickedness: but when there
is no difference made between friends and strangers, it follows that their
character is become altogether brutal. This is what the Prophet
meant.
And he adds, that they
spoke not the
truth. He now says that they were liars,
not in this or that particular business; but that they were perfidious and
deceitful in everything. This clause then is not to be limited to some special
acts of fraud; but it is the same as though he had said, that they knew not what
truth was, or what it was to act with good faith and to speak honestly to their
neighhours; for they were wholly imbued with deceits, and no truth could come
out of their mouth.
And for the same purpose he
says, that they had taught their
tongues to speak falsehood. The
expression in this clause is stronger; for he means that they were wholly given
to deceit, as by long use they had formed their tongues for this work. The
tongue ought to be the representative of the mind, according to the old saying;
for why was the tongue formed, but in order that men may communicate with one
another? For the thoughts are hidden, and they come forth when we speak with
each other. But the Prophet says that the order of nature was by them inverted,
for they had taught their tongues
to lie. We also hence learn that they
had no fidelity whatever; for their very tongues had been taught to deceive: as
when one by practice has learnt anything, it is what he does readily; so when
the tongues are formed by continual use and inured to lying, they can do nothing
else.
He says at last, that they
wearied themselves with evil
deeds. This is indeed an hyperbolical
language; but yet the Prophet very fitly sets forth the deplorable state of the
people, — that they practiced the doing of evil even to weariness. As when
any one is seized with some foolish lust, he spares no labor and does himself
much harm, but feels not his wearied state as long as he is engaged, for his
ardor dementares him: so he says now, that they were wearied in doing evil. When
a hunter pursues the game, he undergoes much more labor than any common workman,
or any husbandman. We see that even kings and courtiers, while hunting, are so
blinded, that they see no danger nor feel any weariness. So we find that men
given to pleasure, when lust draws them here and there, feel no concern for the
greatest weariness. According to this sense then the Prophet says, that they
were wearied in doing evil, as though he had said, that they were so devoted to
wickedness, that the pleasure of doing evil wholly blinded them and made them
mad.
fB4
We now perceive the Prophet's meaning:
He confirms, as I have said, what he had stated before. He had threatened the
people with utter ruin; they were secure and heedless, and despised all his
denuncitations. He now shews, from God's nature and office, that ruin was nigh
them, though they feared it not and thought themselves abundantly safe. But if
God be the judge of the world, as it will be hereafter proved, how is it
possible for him to connive perpetually at so great wickedness? And to shew this
he also adds —
Jeremiah
9:6
6. Thine habitation is in
the midst of deceit; through deceit they refuse to know me, saith the
Lord. 6. Tu habitas in dolo (hoc est, inter homines dolosos;
nam subaudiendum est nomen, quemadmodum soepe alibi vidimus genitivum casum
poni pro epitheto, et subaudiri nomen substantivum; Tu igitur habitas
inter homines dolosos;) in dolo renuunt cognoscere me, dicit
Jehova.
The Prophet here introduces
God as the speaker, that the Jews might know that they had not to do with mortal
man. For they might, according to their usual perverseness, have raised this
objection, "Thou indeed severely condemnest us, and treatest us reproachfully;
but who has made thee our judge?" Lest then they should think that the words
which he had hitherto declared, were the words of man, he interposes the
authority of God,
Thou,
he says, dwellest in the
midst of a deceitful
people.
But
we must observe that this admonition to the Prophet was necessary for two
reasons. For when God searches the minds and hearts of men by his word,
ministers of the word are necessary to exercise this jurisdiction, men endued
with wisdom, understanding, and prudence. The word, says the apostle, is like a
two — edged sword, or it is one that cuts on both sides, for it penetrates
into the hearts and thoughts of man and into their very marrow.
(<580412>Hebrews
4:12.) We also know what Paul says,
"When an unbeliever comes
into your assembly, his conscience is searched; so that he will be constrained
to fall down and to give glory to God."
(<461424>1
Corinthians 14:24, 25.)
To the same purpose is this saying of
Christ,
"When the Spirit
is come, He will judge the
world,"
(<431608>John
16:8)
for by the Spirit He means the preaching of the
Gospel. It is then necessary that the ministers of the word, in order that they
may faithfully and profitably perform their office, should be taught to
understand the deceits and subterfuges by which men are wont to deceive. As then
there are many hidden things in the hearts of men, he who would effectually
teach must know that the innermost recesses of the heart must be probed and
searched. The Prophet had heard from God that the people, over whom He was
appointed, were fallacious and filled with guiles and frauds: Thou, He
says, dwellest in the midst of a deceitful people; as though he had said,
"Thou hast to do with dishonest men, who not only openly betray their
wickedness, but also deceive when they pretend any repentance or profess
obedience to God: that they may not therefore weaken or cajole thy resolution by
their deceptions, settle it in thy mind that thou wilt have to contend with
their wiles." This is one reason.
There is
another reason; for as God's servants ought to know their wiles, which they are
bidden to reprove, so there is need of courage and perseverance, lest hypocrisy
should dishearten them: for such a thought as this may occur to the minds of
God's servants, "What shall I do? for hidden to me are the thoughts of
men: now the truth ought to penetrate into the whole soul; but I know not what
lies hid within in any one." Thus pious teachers might be weakened in
their efforts and disheartened, or wholly discouraged, unless God supported
them. It was then for this reason that Jeremiah was expressly told, that He had
to do with a deceitful and false
people.
fB5
He afterwards adds,
Through guile they refuse to know
me. God had before complained, that he
was not known by the people; but he now exaggerates their crime by saying, that
they craftily evaded every light, as though he had said, that they could not
plead ignorance or any levity; for through guile, says God, they refuse to know
me. As they wholly flattered themselves with deceptions, they designedly
extinguished, as far as they could, the light. By guile then he means that
obstinate craftiness by which the people cast aside every in:struction. It
afterwards follows —
Jeremiah
9:7
7. Therefore thus saith the Lord
of hosts, Behold, I will melt them, and try them: for how shall I do for the
daughter of my people? 7. Propterea sic dicit Jehova exercituum, Ecce ego
examinabo eos (vel, conflabo; ad verbum, examinans, vel,
conflans,) et probabo eos; nam quomodo agerem cum filia (ad verbum,
a facie filiae) populi
mei?
Jeremiah, speaking in God's
name, concludes that the chastisement, of which he had spoken, was necessary;
And what I have already said appears more clearly from this verse, — that
he brings to light their sins, that they might know that they could not escape
God's hand, who is a just avenger of wickedness; for they had extremely provoked
him by their petulance and
obstinacy.
I will
try or melt them, he says,
and I will prove
them. As they put on a false color, he
says that there was a trial needful, as when any one shews copper or any other
metal for gold, he is disproved by trial. Any impostor might otherwise sell
dross for silver: the spurious metal, that is passed as gold or silver, must be
proved; it must be cast into the fire and melted. As then the Jews thought that
they had honest pretences to cover their baseness, God gives this answer, that
he had yet a way to discover their deceitfulness, and as it were tells them,
"The goldsmith, when any one brings dross for silver, or copper for gold,
has a furnace, and he tries it; so will I try and melt you; for you think
that you can dazzle ray eyes by false pretences: this will avail you nothing."
In short, God intimates that he had means ready at hand to discover their
deceitfulness, and that thus their hypocrisy would be of no advantage to them,
as his judgments would be like a furnace. As then stubble or wood, cast into the
furnace, is immediately burnt, so hypocrites cannot endure God's judgment. They
indeed at first exhibit some brightness, until God tries them; but their deceits
must eventually be discovered; and they themselves will be consumed when they
come to be really proved. This is the
meaning.
And the reason is added,
For how should I do with the
daughter of my people? This may be applied to
Jeremiah himself; but it would be a strained meaning. He then continues, I have
no doubt, to speak in God's name;
How
then
should I
do, or act,
with the daughter of my people?
God speaks here as one deliberating; and thus
he more fully proves the Jews guilty; for since he admits them as judges or
counsellors, they could give no other reply. We hence see that this question is
very emphatic; for the Prophet intimates, that except the Jews were beyond
measure stupid, they could no longer flatter themselves in their sins, so as to
demand to be otherwise treated by God, as they had in so many ways and with
s.uch perversity procured vengeance for
themselves.
fB6
But we hence learn that it is right
that judgment should begin at the house of God, as it is elsewhere said.
(<600417>1
Peter 4:17.) God indeed will not pass by anytliing without punishing it: hence
the heathens must at last stand before his tribunal. But as he is nearer to his
Church, their impiety, who profess themselves to be as it were his domestics, is
less tolerable, as though he had said, "I have chosen you to be my peculiar
people, and have taken you under my care and protection; when ye become
intractable, what remains for me to do, but to try you, as ye act so
unfaithfully towards me." It follows —
Jeremiah
9:8
8. Their tongue is as an
arrow shot out; it speaketh deceit; one speaketh peacably to his neighbor
with his mouth, but in heart he layeth his wait. 8. Sagitta tracta (ut
quidam vertunt; alii, occidens) lingua eorum; mendacium loquitur; os ejus
pacem ad proximum loquetur, et in medio sui (hoc est, intra viscera sua,
intus) ponet insidias.
The Prophet
again complains of the deceitfulness of their tongues; and he compares them to
deadly, or drawn out arrows. Gold is said to be drawn out, when refined by
repeated meltings; so also arrows, when sharpened, are more piercing. The
Prophet then says, that their tongues were like deadly or sharpened arrows: how
so? because they ever spoke guile, by either slandering or circumventing others.
But the expression is general; and the Prophet no doubt meant to include all
modes of deceiving.
For it afterwards follows,
With the mouth they speak
peace; that is, every one professed
friendship, and his words were honey; and yet
within he did set up,
or concealed intrigues. Here in other
words he sets forth their perfidy; for the tongue and the heart differed. They
shewed by the tongue what was different from the sentiment of the heart. Hence
he says, that they set up
treacheries in the midst of them, or in
their hearts, while they spoke
peace with the mouth, that is, pretended
brotherly kindness.
fB7 At last he repeats again what he had said
before,
(<240509>Jeremiah
5:9) —
Jeremiah
9:9
9. Shall I not visit them for
these things? saith the Lord: shall not my soul be avenged on such a
nation as this? 9. An super hoc non visitabo eos, dicit Jehova? an in
gente quae talis est (quae est sicut haec) non se ulciscetur anima
mea?
We have already met with this
verse; it will therefore be enough briefly to refer to what it contains. God
shews here, that except he denied himself he must necessarily punish the Jews.
How so? He takes it as granted that he is the judge of the world: he had said
that the Jews were not only become wicked in one thing, but were so given up to
all kinds of wickedness, that they wearied themselves; what then was to be done?
God would not have acted in a manner worthy of himself, nor preserved
consistency, had he not punished such men; for he must have changed his nature,
had he not hated such a perverse nation. But he speaks after the manner of men
when he mentions vengeance; for we know that no passions belong to God, as it
has been often stated: but as he hates wickedness, so he is said to execute
vengeance, when he appears as a judge and chastises those by whom he has been
provoked to wrath.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as we cease
not by our sins to provoke thee more and more, we may at least be warned by thy
threatenings and the words of thy prophets, and may not continue obstinate in
evil nor pertinaciously resist thy will, but that we may on the contrary learn
to anticipate thy judgment and thus receive thy corrections, so that our sins
may be hated by us, and that we may become judges of ourselves, in order that we
may obtain pardon, and that having obtained it we may not doubt ever to call on
thee as our Father, until thou at length gatherest us unto that blessed
inheritance, which has been procured for us by the blood of thine only Son.
— Amen.
Lecture
Thirty-Sixth
Jeremiah
9:10
10. 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
heavens and the beast are fled; they are gone. 10. Super montes tollam
(vel assumam) fletum et lamentationem, et super pascua (vel, loca
amoena; alii vertunt, tuguria) deserti planctum; quia vastata sunt
(alii vertunt, incensa;) ita non sit vir transiens, et non audiunt vocem
pecudum; ab ave coelorum (hoc est, ab avibus) usque ad bestiam migrarunt,
abierunt.
The Prophet had exhorted
others to lament and to bewail. He now comes forth as though none had ears to
attend to his admonition. As then he himself undertakes to mourn and to lament,
he no doubt indirectly condemns the insensibility of the whole people. He saw by
the spirit of prophecy, that all the rest thought what he said incredible and
therefore fabulous. For though the kingdom of Judah was at that time much
wasted, and the kingdom of Israel wholly fallen, they yet continued secure and
heedless when they ought to have expected God's vengeance every day, and even
every hour. Since then there was such insensibility in the people, the Prophet
here prepares himself for lamentation and
mourning.
I will take
up, he says,
mourning and lamentation for the
mountains. The words may be explained,
"I will take up mourning, which shall ascend as far as the mountains;"
but the cause of mourning seems rather to be intended; for it immediately
follows, and weeping for the
pastures of the desert. Had not this
clause been added, the former meaning might be taken, that is, that mourning
would be so loud as to penetrate into the mountains or ascend into the highest
parts. But as Jeremiah connects the two clauses, for
the
mountains, and
for the pastures of the
desert, the other meaning is much more
appropriate, — that the confidence of the people was very absurd, as they
thougilt themselves beyond danger, dwelling as they did on the plains; for the
enemies, he says, shall leave nothing untouched; they shall come to the
mountains and to the pastures of the desert. It hence follows, that they were
foolish who promised themselves quietness on the plains, where the enemy could
easily come.
We now then understand the
Prophet's meaning: he sets here his own fear and solicitude in contrast with the
stupor of the whole people. I
will raise, he says,
weeping and lamentation for the
mountains: but others remained secure
and thoughtless in their pleasures. He then shews, that while they were blind,
his eyes were open, and he saw the coming ruin which was now at hand. And he
sets the mountains and pastures of the desert in opposition to the level
country. For when a country is laid waste, we know that still a retreat is
sought on mountains; for enemies dread ambushes there, and access is not easy
where the roads are narrow. Then the Prophet says, that even the mountains would
not be beyond the reach of danger, for the enemies would march there: he says
the same of the pastures of the desert. We hence learn how absurd was their
confidence who thought themselves safe because they inhabited the plain country,
which was the most accessible.
As to the word
twan
naut, it comes from
hwn
hue, which means to
dwell.
fB8 He then takes
twan
haut, as signifying pleasant places, or pastures. Some render it sheds or
cottages. David uses the same word in
<192302>Psalm
23:2, in speaking of God's favor to him, who was pleased to become his
shepherd:
"He makes me to
lie down," he says, "in pleasant places."
But the Prophet no doubt means pastures here. And he
calls them the pastures of the
desert. The word
rbdm
midbar, we know, is taken to designate not only waste and sterile places,
but also a mountainous country. Though then the richest pastures were on
mountains, yet the Jews were wont to call them deserts: there is therefore
nothing absurd in saying, the pleasant places or pastures of the desert. But we
must bear in mind the contrast, of which I have reminded you: for he intended to
condemn the foolish confidence of the people, who thought that they were
dwelling in safety, when yet they were exposed to enemies, and had no means to
repel or retard their
progress.
Because they are
laid waste, He says. This word may be
taken in another sense, "burnt up;" but it is not suitable here. He says then
that these places are laid waste,
so that no one passed through. He means
that mountains would not only be without inhabitants, but would be so deserted
and solitary that there would be none passing over them. There would then be
none to frequent them. It hence follows, that there would be no inhabitants, He
then adds, that no voice of
cattle was
heard;
as though he had said, that their enemies would take away as their spoil
whatever should be found there: for the wealth of mountains consists in cattle;
for there is neither sowing nor reaping there; but inhabitants of mountains get
their living and whatever is necessary to support life, from flesh and skin and
milk and cheese. When therefore the Prophet declares that there would be no
voice of cattle, it is the same as though he had said, that the mountains would
become altogether uninhabited, for their enemies would take away all the cattle
found there.
He then adds,
From the bird of the heavens to
the earthly beast they shall migrate and
depart.
fB9 Here he seems again indirectly to
reprove the insensibility of the people, as though he had said, that the birds
would feel it to be the judgment of God, while yet men were wholly insensible;
and that there would be a similar feeling in brute animals; as though he had
said, that there would be more understanding in birds and animals than in the
Jews, who had not only been created in the image of God, but had also been
enlightened as to the truth of salvation; for shine among them did the truth of
God in the law. Hence the Prophet shews that this stupidity was most shameful;
for they were as stupid as if they had no thought and no understanding, while
yet birds acknowledged the vengeance of God, and brute animals were terrified by
it. We now perceive the meaning of the Prophet. It follows
—
Jeremiah
9:11
11. And I will make Jerusalem
heaps, and a den of dragons; and I will make the cities of Judah
desolate, without an inhabitant. 11. Et ponam Jerusalem in acervos, in
locum draconum; et urbes Jehudah ponam vastitatem, ut non sit
habitator.
The Prophet comes now
toJerusalem and the neighhouring cities. He said before, that ruin would reach
the mountains and the farthest recesses; but he says now,
I will turn Jerusalem into
heaps. This seemed incredible, for it
was a well fortified city, and also full of inhabitants to defend it: we know
besides that the Jews were in confederacy with the kingdom of Egypt. This
denunciation then was extremely unwelcome to the Jews. But though they thought
themselves hitherto safe, yet the Prophet set before their eyes their final
destruction. They indeed regarded it as a fable; but they found too late, that
the despisers of God gain no advantage in hardening· themselves against his
threatenings. We shall meet with this verse again; I shall therefore now pass
over it lightly.
He says, that it would be
hereafter a place for dragons; as though he had said, that it would be no
longer inhabited. He declares the same respecting the cities of Judah, —
that they would all be a waste. We hence see how courageous and
persevering a mind was Jeremiah endued with, that he dared to preach thus in the
midst of the city, and to set himself in opposition to the king and his
counsellors, and to the whole people, who wished to be soothed with flatteries,
and who had been thus treated by the false prophets. As then Jeremiah was thus
bold, as a celestial herald, to denounce on them this dreadful calamity, we
hence learn that he was endued with the power of God, and that he did not speak
as one commissioned by men; for had he not been sustained by God's power, he
must have been a hundred times disheartened, nor would he have dared to speak a
word. This invincible courage seals his doctrine; ibr we hence with certainty
learn, that it proceeded from God, because the wonderful power of the ttoly
Spirit was evident. He afterwards adds —
Jeremiah
9:12
12. 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? 12. Quis vir
prudens ut intelligat hoc? (ad verbum, et intelligens,) et ad quem
loquutum est os Jehovae, ut annunciet quare perierit terra, vastata sit instar
deserti, ut nemo transeat? (rb[
ylbm absque transeunte, ad
verbum.)
Here the Prophet
reproves more sharply the insensibility of the people, because none attended to
the judgments of God; for though they were apparent, no one considered them. The
question arose from astonishment; for it was like something dreadfully
monstrous, that so few among the people knew that God would be the punisher of
crimes so apparent to all. Had they a particle of understanding, they must have
known that a dreadful calamity was nigh at hand, since they continued in so many
ways to provoke God. And now that the labor of the Prophet, after having said
what ought to have roused them all, had been all in vain; was not this doubly
monstrous? For he had spent a long time, and had never ceased to cry; and yet
all were deaf, nay, his teaching was treated with
contempt.
Hence is his astonishment, when he
says, Who is a wise man?
he intimates that there was hardly one in a
hundred whom the fear of God influenced. It must then be remembered, that the
Prophet complains of the few number of those who perceived:, that it could not
be but that God would shortly put forth his hand to punish the wickedness which
then everywhere prevailed. But yet he exhorts all the faithful children of God
to disregard the nmltitude, and to gather courage, and to make more account of
God's word than of the contumacy of them all. There are then two things in this
sentence; for the question means, that few could be found among the people who
were wise, and who applied their minds and thoughts to consider the miserable
state of the people; but, on the other hand, he intimates that it is true wisdom
in God's faithful servants, not to despond, and not to follow the nmltitude. He
then intimates that they are alone truly wise who consider God's judgments
before He openly executes them. There is a similar sentence in Psalm 107:
43; for the Prophet, after having spoken of God's judgments, which are visible
through the whole world, exclaims,
"Who is a wise man, that
he may understand these things?"
as though he had said, that though the works of God,
which evidence both his goodness and his judgment, might indeed be observed in
every part of the world, yet that all were blind. The Prophet then by this
exclamation reprobates the insensibility of men, who overlook God's judgments,
though they are apparent before their eyes. So also the same thing is meant in
this place, Who is a wise
man? But we must further notice the second
thing, to which I have referred, namely, that all the faithful are here
encouraged, as the Prophet teaches us, that this is the rule of wisdom, —
to open our eyes to see God's judgments, which are hid from the world: while
others are drawn away by their lusts or sunk in their stupor, the Prophet
teaches us, that we are wise, when we duly consider, as I have already said,
what the Lord has made known to us in his word. Hence it follows, that all the
wise men of this world are foolish, who so harden themselves, that they do not
perceive in God's word what is yet open to their eyes.
Who
then
is a wise man, and he will
understand these things?
He afterwards adds,
To whom has the mouth of Jehovah
spoken to declare this? He complains here that
there were no prophets. He said, at the beginning of the verse, that there were
none wise, because all heedlessly despised the threatenings and judgments of
God: now in the second place he adds, there were none to arouse the careless
people who were asleep in their sins. But by this sentence he claims
authority for himself; for though he was without associates and assistants, he
yet intimates that his teaching was not, on that account of less value:
"Be it," he says, (for he speaks by way of concession,) "be it,
that there is no prophet to recall the people from their sins, to exhort them to
repent, to terrify the ungodly: however this may be, yet the Lord has appointed
me to teach and to exhort the people." We hence see that the Prophet claims for
himself full and complete authority, though he alone denounced God's vengeance.
Many indeed then boasted that they were prophets; but they were only false
flatterers. When the Prophet saw that many abused the name, and did not perform
the office faithfully and sincerely, he set himself in opposition to them all;
as though he had said, "It is enough that the Lord has commanded me to do this;
I therefore denounce on you this calamity, which ye heedlessly disregard,
because false teachers deeeive you by their mischievous
adulations."
Who will
declare, he says,
why the land is to
perish, and to be
laid waste like the desert, so
that there should be no inhabitant? We
may apply this to two periods. For when Jeremiah spoke, the kingdom was yet
standing, and, as I have said, the Jews were not so subdued as to humble
themselves before God: they were therefore still indulging themselves in their
sins. Now whence did this indulgence proceed, except from their prosperous
condition? Yet the Prophet says that the land had perished, and justly so; but
he says this, because he did not judge of the people's state according to what
it appeared then to be, but according to the judgment which he saw by the
prophetic spirit was impending over them. And we may extend this farther; as
though Jeremiah had said, "When God shall have so chastised this people,
that there may be as it were a visible monument of celestial wrath; there shall
yet be then no prophets to remind them whence these evils have proceeded." This
indeed we know was the case, when the city was partly burnt and partly
demolished, and the temple pulled down: the contumacy of the people was so
great, that their hearts were stone, and their minds iron. There was then a
monstrous hardness in that calamity. They indeed cried for their evils; but no
one perceived that God was executing what he had denounced for so many years.
For Jeremiah, as we have said, exercised his office of teaching for a long time:
but before he began, Isaiah had already been were out; and before Isaiah, Micah
had prophesied. Though, however, threatenings had been renewed daily for a
hundred years, and terrors had been announced, yet there was no one who
attended.
fB10
This passage, then, may be thus
explained, — That when threatenings should appear by the effect not to
have been announced in vain, yet the people would even then be insensible, for
no one would attend to nor consider God's judgment: they would all indeed feel
their evils, but no one would regard the hand of him who smote them, as it is
said in another place.
(<230913>Isaiah
9:13.) Either meaning may be allowed; but, as I think, the Prophet here deplores
the hardness and contumacy of the people at that time; as though he had
said, that there were none who considered God's judgments, and that there was no
prophet to rouse those who were torpid. But yet, as it has been stated, he thus
intimates, that he had sufficient authority, though he had no associate or
assistant; for he had been chosen by God, and had been sent to carry this
message. It follows —
Jeremiah
9:13-15
13. And the Lord saith,
Because they have forsaken my law which I set before them, and have not obeyed
my voice, neither walked therein; 13. Et dixit Jehova, Quia dereliquerunt
legem meam, quam posui coram ipsis (ad faciem ipsorum, ad verbum,) et non
audierunt vocem meam, et non ambulaverunt in ea (hoc est, secundum
ipsam;)
14. But have walked after
the imagination of their own heart, and after Baalim, which their fathers taught
them: 14. Et ambulaverunt post cogitationes (vel, post contumaciam; nam
utroque modo vertunt hoc nomen, post cogitationes ergo) cordis sui, et post
Baalim, quos docuerunt patres
ipsorum:
15. Therefore thus 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. 15.
Propterea sic dicit Jehova exercituum, Deus Israel, Ecce ego cibans (cibabo)
populum hunc ameritudine, et potabo aquis veneni (vel, venenatis; alii vertunt,
aquis fellis; nam
çar
utrumque significat.)
Jeremiah
now confirms what I have stated, and more fully explains it, — that though
no teacher or a disciple was found in the land, yet there was sufficient power
in God's word alone, and that his judgment depended not on the will or the
perceptions of men. After having then complained that all were foolish, and that
there were no prophets to reprove their security and indifference, he adds,
Thus saith
Jehovah. Here he sets God in opposition
to all men, to the king and his courtiers, as well as to the common people. Who
then is a wise man? as though He looked around him; and there was no man who
considered. he was then in suspense; and afterwards he said, "There is no
prophet to rouse them from their usual stupor." He remained still in suspense;
and then he turned to God and said, "But Jehovah has spoken;" that is,
"Be it, that they are like brute beasts, though they arrogate to themselves
great wisdom; nevertheless God speaks, and we ought to be satisfied. We ought
then to be silent, and to make no stir; though no one approves, though no one
attends to God speaking, there is yet sufficient authority and power in his
voice alone." We now then more fully understand the Prophet's design: He had
said that all men were stupid, and that there was no prophet; and now, on the
other hand, he shews that God was not silent nor
asleep.
Thus saith Jehovah,
Because this people
have forsaken my
law, etc. He shews that the cause of all
evils was a departure from God's law. No one was willing to confess this, and
all the prophets were silent; yet Jeremiah says here, that the cause was to be
asked of God why he so grievously afflicted the people. But he takes as granted
what was most true, that God was not without reason displeased with the chosen
people. It hence then follows, that they were apost, ates, and had forsaken the
law: God would not have otherwise so severely punished them. Though then no one
perceived the cause of their evils, though no one shewed it, yet God himself
ought to have been attended to, who said, that they had
forsaken the
law.
He
then adds, Which l have set
before their face. Here he takes away
every pretense for ignorance; for they might have objected and said, that
the doctrine of the law was obscure, and that they were deceived through want of
knowledge. The Prophet anticipates this objection by saying, that the law was
set before them; that is, that they were abundantly taught what was right, what
pleased God; so that they now in vain and even falsely pleaded ignorance; for
they went astray wilfully by closing their eyes against clear light., For this
is what he means by saying that the law was set before their face: and it is
what Moses often repeats,
"Behold, I have set
before
thee,"
(<051132>Deuteronomy
11:32, and elsewhere:)
and this he said, that the people might not seek for
themselves vain excuses for ignorance, as they were wont to
do.
But while we are not to overlook this
circumstance, we may yet hence learn this general truth, — that the law of
God is not so obscure but that we may learn from it what is right. When,
therefore, Moses is quoted, and the prophets are added as interpreters, there is
no ground for us to evade, or to make the excuse, that the truth is too hidden
or profound; for the law is set before our face, that, the will of God may be
made known to us. Whosoever then can read and hear what God has revealed once to
the world by Moses and the prophets is inexcusable; for we are taught here, and
in other places, that it is a mere perverseness in all who hear the law, when
they do not obey: I have set the
law, he says,
before their
face.
And
he adds, And they have not
hearkened to my voice, and have not walked in
it. He defines what it is not to hearken
to his voice: for even hypocrites pretend to hear, and nod with their ears like
asses; but as they obey not God when he speaks, it is evident that they are
deaf. Hence He says that they walked not in his
voice,
fB11 that is, that they obeyed not his voice.
He hence concludes that they were deaf; for their life ought to have testified
that they had heard the voice of God speaking to
them.
He then
adds, And they have walked after
the hardiness, or obstinacy, or
imaginations, of their own
heart.
fB12 He opposes the imaginations, or
hardness of the heart, to the voice of God, as we find in other places, where
contrary things are stilted, that is, what men's minds devise, and what God
shews by his word to be right; for there is no less contrariety between the rule
of right living and the imaginations of men, than there is between fire
and water. Let us therefore know, that our life cannot be rightly formed except
we renounce our own imaginations, and simply obey the voice of God: for
as soon as we yield the least to our own imaginations, we necessarily turn aside
from the right way, which God has made known to us in his word. This contrast,
then, between the law of God and the imaginations or the obduracy of men ought
to be carefully noticed.
He then more clearly
explains how they had sinned, and
after
Baalim.
fB13 The Prophet here adds nothing
new; but by specifying one thing he shews how the Jews followed their own
imaginations, by giving themselves up to profane superstitions. What indeed must
happen to men, when they forsake God, and allow themselves to follow their own
thoughts? what but error and superstition, yea, the abyss of all errors? In
short, the Prophet in this clause intended to cut off every occasion for
subterfuges; for the Jews, like hypocrites, who sophistically deal with God,
might have made this evasion, and said, "Why dost thou object to us our
imaginations? what are these imaginations?" Baalim, he says, "Ye
have devised idols far yourselves in addition to the only true God; it is
hence quite evident, that having forsaken God's word, ye have followed your own
imaginations." He adds to Baalim,
as their fathers have taught
them: the relative
rça,
asher, is to be taken for
k
caph, as.
fB14 I shall speak of this clause
tomorrow.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as thou hast
not only testified what is right by the Law and the Prophets, in order that we
may form our life in obedience to thy will, but hast also made more fully
known to us by thy Gospel what is perfect righteousness, — O grant,
that being ruled by thy Spirit, we may surrender ourselves altogether to thee,
and so acquiesce in thy Word alone, that we may not deviate either to the right
hand or to the left, but allow thee alone to be wise, and that acknowledging our
folly and vanity, we may suffer ourselves to be taught by thy Word, so that we
may really prove that we are truly obedient to thee, until having at length
completed the course of this life, we shall reach that heavenly rest which has
been obtained for us by the blood of thine only-begotten Son. —
Amen.
Lecture
Thirty-Seventh
We explained yesterday what the Prophet said
respecting the Jews, that though no one considered the reason why God so
severely afflicted them, yet they could not escape in this way, and that they in
vain set up the shield of iglnorance, for God had often declared that he
abominated their superstitions. Though then they were all blind, and no. prophet
shewed to them the cause of their evils, yet Jeremiah said, that this alone was
sufficient — that God had spoken, and would again speak to them. He said
that they were not submissive to God's authority, but walked after the hardness
of their own heart, and after Baalim. He added, that they had been
thus taught by their
fathers. By this clause he exaggerated
their sin; for they did not then begin for the first time to sin, but became
obstinate in their vices.
We may learn from this
passage how foolishly the Papists now glory in imitating the fathers: for they
think that examples stand for laws; nay, they hesitate not to oppose. God's
authority by what has been done by men. But we see that such an excuse is not
only frivolous, but that thereby the crime is doubled; for more excusable is.
the ignorance of one year, or of a short time, than when there is a long
obstinate persistency in it, and when children, after having embraced
abominations, received from their fathers, hand them down to their
posterity.
He at length concludes that God would
take vengeance, but speaks in a figurativle language,
I will feed them with
bitterness. The word
hn[l
lone, is rendered "wormwood;" but as this is a wholesome herb, I prefer to
render it "bitterness."
fB15 It is never found in a good sense, and
therefore unsuitable to the nature of wormwood, which is often mentioned by
Moses: and the other prophets
(<051918>Deuteronomy
19:18;
<053232>Deuteronomy
32:32;
<580215>Hebrews
2:15.) Hence I am inclined to adopt a general term, "bitterness." He then
adds, I will give them poisonous
waters to
drink;
fB16 as though God had said that he
would execute a dreadful vengeance, so that it would appear in the meat and
drink given them, which yet were remarkable testimonies of his paternal kindness
towards them: for we cannot eat a crumb of bread nor drink a drop of water,
except God's goodness, and the care which he takes for our safety, shines upon
us. Hence is that awful imprecation in
<196922>Psalm
69:22, 23,
"Turned let their table
be into an offense."
David also complained, when describing the barbarous
cruelty of his enemies, that they gave him gall to drink: and we shall hereafter
see what Jeremiah says; for in speaking. of his enemies, he says that they had
conspired to put him to death, and said,
"Let us set wood for his
bread."
(<241119>Jeremiah
11:19)
By these words then Jeremiah intended to express the
dreadful vengeance of God; for he would not onty deprive the Jews of his
benefits, but also turn their bread into poison, and their water into
bitterness.
We now then perceive the Prophet's
meaning; and at the same time we must observe the expression,
the God of
Israel. The foolish boasting, that they
were the descendants of Abraham, and that they were a holy people, chosen by
God, always deluded the Jews. In order then to check their glorying, the Prophet
says, float the God who spoke to them was the God whose name they falsely
professed, and that he was the God who had chosen the children of Abraham as his
peculiar people. It follows —
Jeremiah
9:16
16. I will scatter them also
among the heathen, whom neither they nor their fathers have known; and I will
send a sword after them, til I have consumed them. 16. Et dispergam eos
inter gentes, quas non noverunt ipsi, neque patres eorum, et mittam post eos
gladium, donec consumpsero ipsos.
As
he had said that the Jews were following what theyhad received from their
fathers,so he says now that God would
scatter them among
nations,which had been unknown to them
and to their fathers. He then alludes to their mischievous tradition; for the
fathers had imbued their children with ungodly errors, and had withdrawn them
from God, that their doctrine might become altogether familiar to them. There is
then a contrast to be noticed between the knowledge with which the fathers had
inebriated their children, and their ignorance of the language of the
nations.
And then as he had said, that they were
walking after the hardness of their own heart and after Baalim, he says,
I will send a sword after
them. We hence see that the Prophet in
both clauses alludes to the defection of which he had spoken. And he adds,
Until I shall have consumed
them; and this is added, that they might
not promise themselves a temporary or a moderate chastisement. Jeremiah then
declares, that as they had abused God's forbearance, destruction was nigh them,
and that God would contimle to consume them, until he had wholly destroyed them.
It follows —
Jeremiah
9:17-18
17. 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: 17. Sic dicit
Jehova exercituum, Attendite et votate lamentatrices, ut veniant, et ad peritas
mittite ut veniant:
18. 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. 18. Et festinent et tollant
super nos luctum, et descendant oculi nostri in lachrymas, (alii vertunt,
descendant cum lachrymis, vel, emittant lachrymas,) et palpebrae
nostrae defluant in aquas.
In this
passage, as in many others, the Prophet endeavors by a striking representation
really to touch the hearts of his people, for he saw that they were extremely
refractory, insensible, and secure. Since then the threatenings of God were
either wholly despised, or had not sufficiently moved the hearts of the people,
it was necessary to set forth God's judgments as present. Therefore the Prophet
gives a striking description of what takes place in times of mourning. At the
same time he seems to condemn indirectly the Jews for not knowing, through God's
word, that there was a calamity at hand: for God's word ought indeed to be like
a mirror, by which men ought to see God's goodness in his promises and also his
judgment in his threatenings. As then all prophecies were deemed as fables by
the people, it was not without some degree of derision that he addressed them in
this manner, —
Hearken ye,
and call for mourners, that
they may come. An absurd and a foolish
custom has prevailed almost in all ages to hire women as mourners, whom they
called proeficoe; they were employed to mourn for others. Heirs no doubt
hired these foolish women, in order to shew their reigned piety; they spoke in
praise of the dead, and shewed how great a loss was their death. The Prophet
does not commend this custom; and we ought to know that Scripture often takes
similes from the vices of men, as from filth and dirt. If then any one concludes
from these winds of Jeremiah, that lamentations at funerals are not to be
condemned, this would be foolish and puerile. The Prophet, on the contrary, does
here reprove the Jews, because they heedlessly disregarded all God's
threatenings, and were at the same time soft and tender at those foolish
exhibitions, and all mourned at the sight of those women who were hired to
lament; as the case is at this time, when a faithful teacher reprobates the
prevailing folly of the Papists. For when the unprincipled men, who occupy the
pulpits under the Papacy, speak with weeping, though they produce not a syllable
from God's word, but add some spectacle or phantom, by producing the image of
the Cross or some like thing, they touch the feelings of the vulgar and cause
weeping, according to what actors do on the stage. As then the Papists are
seized as it were with an insane feeling, when their deceivers thus gesticulate,
so a faithful teacher may say to them, "Let any one come and set before
your eyes the image of a dead man, or say, that you must all shortly die and be
like the earcase shewn to you, and ye will cry and weep; and yet ye will sot
consider how dreadful God's judgment is, which I declare to you: I shew to you
faithfully from the law, from the prophets, and from the Gospel; how dreadful is
God's vengeance, and set before you what ye deserve; yet none of you are moved;
but my doctrine is a mockery to you, and also my reproofs and threatenings: go
then to your prophets, who shew you pictures and the like trumperies." So the
Prophet says now, "I see that I can do you no good; the Lord will therefore give
you no teachers but women." Of what sort? Even such, he says, as lament, or are
hired to mourn.
We now then perceive why the
Prophet speaks of hired women. Attend ye, he says; and why? They ought
indeed to have been attentive to or to understand (for
ˆb
ben, means properly to understand, and in Hithpael it signifies to
consider) his words; but as he saw that he was ridiculed or despised, and that
all the threatenings which proceeded from God were esteemed as fables, he now
says, "Consider ye and
call for your lamenters: — as I
see such perverseness in you, be taught at least by those women who are commonly
invited to lament, and who sell their tears!"
Send,
he says, for the skilfu1,
that they may come. By these words he
intended more clearly to express, that the calamity which the people feared not
was not far distant.
Let
them, he says,
take up for us a wailing, and let
our eyes come down to tears, and let our eyelids flow down into
waters. These are hyperbolical words,
and yet they do not exceed the intensehess of the coming vengeance: for it was
not in vain that he said at the begSnning of the chapter, "Who will make my head
waters, and my eyes a fountain of tears?" As then the greatness of the calamity
could be expressed by no words, the Prophet was constrained to adopt these
hyperbolical expressions: Let
them then
take up for us a wailing, that
our eyes may come down to tears: and
this he said, because he saw that he was heard with dry eyes, and that the
people disregarded what had been denounced:, when yet all ought to have been
smitten with fear, from the least to the greatest. As then the Prophet saw that
their contempt was so brutal, he says, that when lainenters came, there would
then be the time for wailing, not indeed the seasonable time; but it is the same
as though he had said, that the Jews would then find out how insensible they had
been, in not having in due time considered the judgment of
God.
fB17 It follows —
Jeremiah
9:19
19. 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. 19. Quia vox luctus audita est ex Sion, Quomodo perditi (aut,
vastati) sumus? pudefacti valde? quia dereliquimus terram, quia projecerunt
habitacula nostra (quidam subaudirent, projecerunt
nos.)
We have said before, that when
Jeremiah addressed the people in these words, they were still in a tolerably
good condition, so that the king had confidence in his own resources; and his
counsellors also thought that some aid would come to them from Egypt, and the
people were likewise deceived. But the Prophet speaks of future events and
points out as by the finger the evils which were as yet concealed from the view;
for he could not otherwise teach with any authority, as he had to do with men of
iron hearts. As then he saw that his teaching had no effect, and was wholly
disregarded by men so slothful, he felt it necessary to form his style so as to
touch their feelings.
On this account he says,
that a voice was heard, a voice
of wailing from Sion; where yet all
exulted with joy. Then he adds,
How have we been destroyed! and
made greatly ashamed! The Jews thought
this a fable, until they found by experience that they had been extremely hard
and obstinate: but this really happened. Though they were then indulging in
their pleasures, he yet proclaims lamentations to them, as though they were
already destroyed: A
voice, he says,
has been
heard, as though the Jews were bewailing
the calamity, respecting which they thought the Prophet was fabling, for no
danger was yet apparent.
But in order, as I have
said, to condemn the hardness of their hearts, he represents them in another
character, as bewailing their ruinous condition, and saying,
We have left the
land; in which however they thought
their dwelling would be perpetual; for they boasted that they could never be
excluded, as it had been declared,
"This is my rest
for ever, here will I dwell, for I have chosen
it."
(<19D214>Psalm
132:14.)
As then God had testified that it would be a quiet
habitation to his people, they thought that they were fortified by a triple wall
and rampart, and that the city was altogether unassailable. But Jeremiah
represents them as saying, that they had left their own land, that is, that they
had been drawn and driven into exile. Then he adds,
because they have cast us
out. This seems to refer to their
enemies who had cast them out, that is, pulled down their dwellings. Some take
dwellings to be the nominative case to the verb,
"Our dwellings have cast us
out."
fB18 But the first meaning reads
better: I therefore consider the sense to be simply this, — that they were
cast out and that their houses were destroyed by their enemies. It follows
—
Jeremiah
9:20-21
20. 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: 20. Itaque
audite mulieres sermonem Jehovae, et percipiant aures vestrae sermonem oris
ejus, et docete filias vestras luctum, et unaquaeque (mulier, ad verbum) sociam
(vel, propinquam) suam
planctum:
21. 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. 21. Quia ascendit mors
in fenestras nostras, intravit in palatia nostra ad excidendum infantem e platea
(e via publica) electos (hoc est adolescentes, etiam in flore oetatis et vigore)
in compitis.
He proceeds with the
same subject, but adopts another figure. He then somewhat changes the
comparison; for he had bidden them before to hire women to excite to mourning by
fictitious tears, but he now addresses women in general; as though he had said,
that such would be the mourning, that hired lamentations would not be
sufficient, for the calamity would touch all hearts, and that mercenary wailing
would not be real.
Hear,
he says, ye
women.
Why
he addresses women may be accounted for in two ways: the softness of women more
easily leads them to weep; there may be also here an indirect condemnation of
the men, that they were deaf and so hardened that no threatenings terrified
them. But the first seems to be the most suitable reason here, provided we still
understand that real mourning is opposed to reigned mourning. Then Jeremiah
passes from the particular to the general; that is, after having spoken of hired
women, he now includes all women; for lamentation would prevail in every city,
and also in every house: Hear then,
ye women, the word of
Jehovah.
And
he adds, and let your ears
receive the word of his mouth. He
mentions on the one hand the mouth of God, and on the other the ears
of women. It seems indeed a redundancy, but the repetition is not
superfluous. Had he said only, "Let your ears hear the word of his mouth," there
would have been a redundancy; but he spoke before only of the word of God, and
hear ye; now he adds, the mouth of God, and the ears of women. The
Prophet no doubt intended to rebuke that hardness which we have often noticed.
The word of God was deemed of no moment; hence he says, the mouth of God:
as though he had said, "God speaks with you as it were from mouth to mouth: for
though he employs my labor, I am yet but his instrument; so that you may easily
find out that I declare nothing presumptuously, but faithfully deliver
what I have received from him." We hence see how emphatical is this repetition,
which may seem at first sight to be superfluous. The same emphasis belongs to
the ears of women; it is as though he had said, that they had been
hitherto extremely indifferent, and that it was time for their ears to be
attentive.
He adds,
And teach your
daughters; as though he had said, that
such would be the wailing, that it would reach not only the old and the
middle-aged, but even young girls, as yet rude and ignorant.
And let every
one, he says,
teach her neighbor
lamentation. In short, the meaning is,
that no women, old or young, would be exempt from this mourning, as all would be
implicated in a common sorrow; for God's judgment would reach every age, sex,
and order of men, and would also penetrate into every
house.
And by way of explanation he adds,
For death has ascended into our
windows. There is here a kind of
derision; for the Jews, as it has been said, had falsely promised to themselves
a perpetual impunity; and therefore the Prophet adopts here a most suitable
comparison. For as they sleep securely, who with closed doors seem to themselves
to be beyond the reach of danger; so the Jews at that time despised God and all
his judgments, as though the doors of their houses were closed. Hence the
Prophet says, that death had entered in
through the
windows; and he thus derides their folly
for thinking that they could escape the hand of God, because their gates were
shut, as though. God's power could not ascend above the clouds nor enter through
their windows, when the doors were closed. In short, he intimates that the doors
would not be opened by God; for though he might not be disposed to break them,
he could yet immediately ascend into the windows. We now apprehend the Prophet's
design in saying, that death had entered through the
windows.
And what he adds respecting
palaces bears the same import; as though he had said, "Were our houses
even fortified, and were they not. only commodious habitations, but made like
citadels, yet God could not be excluded; for his power can penetrate through the
highest and the thickest walls, so that a palace is to him like the weakest and
frailest cottage." We hence see that by this comparison he checks that
foolisll confidence by which the Jews had deceived themselves, and by which they
were as yet inebriated. Death
then
has ascended into our
windows,
etc.
He then
adds, To cut off the
young, or children,
from the public ways, and the
youths from the
streets.
fB19 By these words he sets forth the
dreadfulness of the calamity; for the youths would not be able to defend
themselves by their own strength; for by
µyrwjb,
bechurim, he means the most robust. Even these would not be able to repel
the onset of their enemies; though in the flower of their age, yet their rigor,
however strong, would not protect them, nor would children and infants be
spared. We see that two things are here set forth by the Prophet, — that
the assaults of their enemies would be so violent, that young men would in vain
resist them, as their vigor would avail them nothing, — and then that such
would be the cruelty of their enemies, that no regard would be shewn for age,
for they would put to death even infants newly born. It follows —
Jeremiah
9:22
22. Speak, Thus saith the Lord,
Even the carcases of men shall fall as dung upon the open field, and as the
handful after the harvest-man, and none shall gather them. 22.
Loquere, Sic dicit Jehova, Cadet cadaver hominis, tanquam stercus in superficie
agri, et tanquam manipulus a tergo messoris, et nemo
colligens.
Though Jeremiah continues
the same subject, he yet introduces a preface, — that he had been
commanded to declare what he says here; for on account of the strangeness of the
event, the prophecy seemed incredible. He might, indeed, have proceeded with the
subject, and omitted the words,
"Thus saith
Jehovah," and have begun thus: "Fall
shall the carcase of man," etc. But, as I have said, this prophecy seemed to
the greatest part as worthless, as though it was a fable: it was therefore
necessary to introduce these words, — that he came forth furnished with
God's command; and he at the same time shews that he introduced nothing of his
own, but that God himself spoke. We now perceive why these few words were
introduced.
fB20
He afterwards says, that the
carcases of men
would be cast forth
as
dung. He speaks by way of reproach, as
though he had said, that all would without honor be laid prostrate by their
enemies. And he adds a similitude,
They shall
fall, he says,
on the face of the
field, that is, everywhere through all
the fields shall they fall as
dung, which is cast forth, and which
excites nausea by its sight and by its odor. Thus the Prophet here denotes
foetor and a deformed sight by the comparison of dung: yet we know with what
pride were they then filled. This threatening then was to them very
disagreeable; but as they flattered themselves in their vices, it was the more
necessary to treat them roughly; for thus ought hypocrites to be dealt with, who
indulge their own delusions: the more boldly they rise up against God, the more
violently ought they to be east down, so that they may at length humble
themselves under the mighty hand of God.
He adds
another comparison, As a
handful, etc. Jerome renders it "hay."
If
dym[
omid, were found elsewhere in this sense, I would willingly adopt this
meaning; but I rather think that it means those ears of corn which are not
gathered while the reapers collect their handfuls. They do not, indeed, leave
complete handfuls, nor east them away; but it happens, through carelessness,
that a few ears escape them. Then the Prophet says, that the Jews would be like
those ears of corn which the reapers pass by and leave behind; and there is no
one afterwards to gather them: and those ears of corn which thus remain in the
field either rot of themselves, or are devoured by cattle or wild beasts. He
then means, that there would be no residue of the people, for all, from the
least to the greatest, would be given up to
destruction.
This is the meaning; and at the
same time he expresses contempt; for when reapers do not collect the whole
produce of the field, there are still the poor, who gather the ears of corn; but
when they are trodden under foot, and when there is no one to gather them, it
betokens contempt; and this is what the Prophet intended to express. It now
follows —
Jeremiah
9:23-24
23. 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: 23. Sic dicit Jehova, Ne
glorietur sapiens in sapientia sua, et ne glorietur fortis in fortitudine sua;
ne glorietur dives in divitiis
suis:
24: But let him that
glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the Lord
which exercise loving-kindness, judgement, and righteousness, in the earth; for
in these things I delight, saith the Lord. 24. Sed in hoc glorietur qui
gloriatur cognoscendo et sciendo me, quod ego sum Jehova, faciens misericordiam,
(vel, clementiam) judicium et justitiam in terra; quia in his complacuit mihi,
dicit Jehova.
This is a remarkable
passage, and often found in the mouth of men, as other notable sentences, which
are known as proverbial sayings: but yet few rightly consider how these words
are connected with the previous context. Hence there are many who are
satisfied with a simple explanation, as though it were a subject abruptly
introduced, and as though the Prophet commenced something new; and they confine
themselves to those words: and thus they misrepresent the meaning of the
Prophet, or at least diminish much of the force of what is
taught.
The Prophet no doubt has a regard to
what has gone before. He saw, as I have often said, that he addressed the deaf;
for the Jews were so swollen with false confidence, that the word of God was
regarded worthless by them. As then some were proud for their riches, and others
thought themselves more prudent than that they could by any means be taken, and
others thought themselves so fortified by wealth and power, that they could
easily resist any evil, — as then the minds of all were possessed with so
much pride, the Prophet, in order to confirm what he had said, declares here
that men foolishly gloried, while they set up their riches, or their strength,
or their wisdom, in opposition to God; for all these things would vanish away
like smoke.
We now then perceive why the Prophet
forbids here any to glory except in God alone, and how the passage ought not to
be deemed as abrupt, but connected with what he said, when he denounced
destruction on the Jews, which yet they dreaded not, because they were
filled with this ungodly and foolish conceit, — that they had more than a
sufficient protection in their own strength, or riches, or wisdom. The rest
to-morrow.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that since thou
settest before our eyes so many evils and vices by which we have provoked thine
anger against us, and yet givest us the hope of pardon if we repent, — O
grant us a teachable spirit, that we may with becoming meekness attend to thy
threatenings, and be in such a way territlcd by them as not yet to despair of
the mercy offered to us, but seek it through thy Son: and as he has once for all
pacified thee by shedding his blood, so cleanse thou us also by thy Spirit from
all our pollutions, until we at length stand immaculate before thee in that day
when Christ shall appear for the salvation of all his people. —
Amen.
Lecture
Thirty-Eighth
We began yesterday to explain what the Prophet means,
when he forbids men to glory either in wisdom, or in strength, or in riches. The
meaning is, that all are greatly deceived who think themselves blessed while
alienated from God. We have also noticed the reason why he speaks of wisdom,
strength, and riches, even this, — because it is a vice innate in all
mortals to be proud of their own excellency. Whatever we think valuable ought to
be acknowledged as received from God. If then all the excellency we have is
God's gift, it is very strange that we do not learn humility when God thus binds
us to himself; but that, on the contrary, we abuse his bounty by making it the
occasion of pride. This ingratitude has nevertheless ever prevailed in the
world. This then is the reason why the Prophet here reduces to nothing all the
boastings of the world. There were among the Jews some rich, others excelled in
wisdom, and others in power: thus it happened, that heavenly truth was of no
value in their esteem. As then some trusted in their riches and not. in God, and
others in their wisdom, and others in their valor, the Prophet here declares
that all the glory they arrogated on account of God's temporal gifts, was all
nothing. It remained then for the Jews to consider, that all such confidences
would avail nothing against God's judgment.
But
we may hence learn a general truth; and Paul no doubt had a regard to this
passage in
<460131>1
Corinthians 1:31. He teaches us there, that God chooses what is foolish in the
world, that he might thus shame the wisdom of the world, and that he chooses
what is weak, that he might upset the strength of the world; and then he adds,
That whosoever glories must glory in God alone. He doubtless took this passage
from the Prophet; and yet he does not only speak there of strength of body, nor
of riches, nor of worldly wisdom; but includes also righteousness, and whatever
is deemed valuable or honorable among men. His object, then is to annihilate
every glory that belongs to the flesh, that the mercy of God alone may shine
forth. Hence I said, that though the Prophet mentions only three things, yet a
generaal doctrine may hence be suitably drawn; for what is said of wisdom,
strength, and riches, may and ought to be applied to that false conceit of
righteousness with which hypocrites swell. We shall now consider the
words.
Thus saith Jehovah, Let
not the wise glory,
etc.
fB21 By way of concession he calls those wise
who were without the fear of God, which yet we know is the beginning of wisdom.
(<19B110>Psalm
111:10;
<200107>Proverbs
1:7.) But the Prophet speaks according to the common opinion; and the meaning
may be thus given, "Let; not him who seenas wise to himself glory in his
own wisdom:" and so the other words may be understood. It is then added,
But let him who glories, glory in
this, etc. It appears from the second
verse, that men are not so stripped of all glory, that they may be down in
disgrace; but that they may seek a better glory, for God detights not in the
degradation of men. But as they arrogate to themselves more than what is right,
and even inebriate themselves with delusions, he strips them naked, that after
having known that all they think they have, either from nature, or from
themselves, or from other creatures, is a mere phantom, they may seek true
glory.
He afterwards adds,
In understanding and knowing
me. Though by these two word the Prophet
means the same thing, yet they are not used without a design; for as men
despised the knowledge of God, it was necessary to remind them, that to know God
is the chief part of perfect wisdom. He therefore intended to correct the
mischievous error under which almost the whole world labors; for while all
attend to wxrious pursuits, the knowledge of God is neglected. We see with what
ardor every one pursues his own fancies, while hardly one in a hundred deigns to
spend half an hour in the day in seeking the knowledge of God. And there is also
another evil, a false opinion, which proceeds from pride, — that to know
God is a common thing. We hence perceive why the Prophet has employed these two
words to designate the same thing; it was to rouse more fully the attention of
men; for he saw that almost all were torpid and indifferent on a subject which
is justly entitled to the labor of a whole life; nay, were a hundred lives given
us, this one thing would be sufficient to engage our attention. But, as it has
been said, what ought to be preferred to all other things is despised and
neglected.
He afterwards adds,
That I am Jehovah, who doeth
judgment. By calling himself Jehovah, he
doubtless excludes all those devices which then engaged the attention of the
Jews; for the whole land was corrupted by so many superstitions, that the name
of the only true God was unknown. They all, indeed, professed to worship the God
of Abraham, who had delivered to them his law by the hand of Moses; but as many
errors were mingled with the true doctrine, God was deprived of his own honor.
It was, then, God's will that he should be so known as to appear alone supreme,
and to be alone as it were kept in view. But the explanation which follows ought
to be carefully observed; for had he said only, "Let every one who glories,
glory in the knowledge of me, that I am Jehovah," it would, indeed, have been a
plain truth, but not sufficiently persplcuous or evident; for the minds of men
might have been in suspense, and they might have said, "What does this mean? or,
why is it, that God regards the knowledge of himself to be so important? They
might also have supposed that it was quite enough to confess him to be the only
true God. Hence God here reminds the Jews of his own divine perfections, that
they might really know that he is God, and that they might not ascribe to him an
empty name. It was for this reason that I have said, that these words,
who doeth mercy and judgement and
justice, ought to be carefully
observed.
We see at this day, under the Papacy,
that the name of God is presumptuously gloried in: there is no one who is not
ready boldly to declare that he worships the one true God, and yet they profane
his name; for they afterwards rob God, and bestow the spoils on the dead. This
passage then teaches us, that the name of God of itself would be of no
importance, if stripped of his power and perfections. Hence we have then only
the true knowledge of God, when we not only acknowledge him to be the creator of
the world, but when we also fully believe that the world is governed by him, and
when we further understand the way in which he governs it, that is, by
doing mercy and judgment and
justice.
Now,
the first thing respecting God is, that we should acknowledge him to be
beneficient and bountiful; for what would become of us without the mercy of God?
Therefore the true and right knowledge of God begins here, that is, when we know
him to be merciful towards us. For what would it avail us to know that God is
just, except we had a previous knowledge of his mercy and gratuitous goodness?
We cannot know God without knowing ourselves. These two things are connected.
Now, if any examines himself, what will he find but what will make him to
despair? Thus, whenever God is thought of, we feel a dread, and despair in a
manner swallows us up. In short, all avoid God, except the sweetness of his
grace allures them. Why? Because, as I have said, there is nothing but what
brings misery to us, and a cause of dread. Hence Jeremiah, while bidding men to
glory in the knowledge of God, has not in vain given the first and the highest
place to his mercy.
He afterwards adds,
Judgement and
justice. When these two words are joined
together, they denote perfect government; that is, that God defends his faithful
people, aids the miserable, and delivers them when unjustly oppressed; and also
that he restrains the wicked, and suffers them not to injure the innocent at
their pleasure. These then are the things which the Scripture everywhere means
by the two words, judgment and justice. The justice of God is not to be taken
according to what is commonly understood by it; and they speak incorrectly who
represent God's justice as in opposition to his mercy: hence the common proverb,
"I appeal from justice to mercy." The Scripture speaks otherwise; for justice
is to be taken for that faithful protection of God, by which he defends and
preserves his own people; and judgment, for the rigor which he exercises
against the transgressors of his law.
But, as I
have already said, judgment and justice, when found together, are to be taken
for that legitimate government, by which God so regulates the affairs of the
world, that there is nothing but what is just and right: and hence is confirmed
more fully what I have already stated, that he not only speaks generally, but
intends also to remove the evils which then stood in the way, and prevented the
Jews from rightly receiving either promises or threatenings; for a false glory
inebriated them all, inasmuch as one thought his riches to be like an invincible
fortress; another, his wisdom; and the third, his strength. As then they were
full of vain pride, and thus despised God and his heavenly truth, it was
necessary to bring them to order, and even wholly to strip them, that they might
know that they were not to glory in anything but in the knowledge of
God.
Now, the knowledge mentioned here produces
two fruits, even faith and fear; for if we are fully, persuaded that there is
propitiation with God, as it is said in
<19D004>Psalm
130:4 we recumb on him, and hesitate not to flee to him, and to place our
salvation in his hand. This is one thing. Then faith brings fear, as it is said
in the psalm referred to,
"There is propitiation
with thee, that thou mayest be feared."
But the Prophet here distinctly refers to these two
things; for God, by expressing his will to be known as being merciful, doubtless
encourages us to exercise faith, so that we may call on him witIx tranquil
minds, and not doubt but he is propitious to us; for he looks not on what we
are, in order to repay to us wlmt we deserve, but deals graciously with us
according to his mercy: and by saying that he doeth judgment and
justice, he intimates, that these two things ought to dispose and turn
our hearts to fear and reverence. At the same time, when God declares that he
doeth justice, He supplies us with a reason for confidence; for he thus
promises to be the guardian of our salvation: for, as I have said, his justice
is not to render to every one his just reward, but is to be extended further,
and is to be taken for his faithfulness. As then God never forsakes his own
people, but aids them in due time, and restrains the wicked, he is on this
account called just: we hence can then more securely, and with quieter minds,
recumb on him, when we know that his justice is such, that he will never leave
us destitute of help whenever necessary.
He
afterwards adds, For in these I
delight, saith Jehovah. This refers to
men; as though God had said, that he hated all who pass by the knowledge of his
mercy, judgment, and justice, and become ferocious and elated with a vain hope
on account of riches, or of strength, or of wisdom, according to what is said in
<19E710>Psalm
147:10,
"The strength of a horse
pleases not God, nor is he delighted with the legs of a man;"
as though he had said, that God hates that confidence
by which men presumptuously extol themselves, while they think their life and
their safety to be in their own hand. So also, in this passage, there is a
contrast to be understood between the knowledge of God's mercy, judgment, and
justice, and the wisdom, strength, riches, and the foolish glorying, by which
men are inflated, when they seek in these their
happiness.
fB22
We now also more clearly see what I
have before said, — that not only condemned in these words is the boasting
of human power, and the glowing in wisdom and in wealth, but that men are wholly
stripped of all the confidence they place in themselves, or seek from the world,
in order that the knowledge of God alone may be deemed enough for obtaining
perfect happiness. For the Prophet shews, with sufficient clearness, that all
men without God are miserable: it hence follows, that they are not otherwise
happy but in him. Then the way and manner is to be added. How are we made happy
in God? Even by knowing his mercy towards us, and then by delivering up
ourselves to his defense and protection, and by suffering ourselves to be ruled
by him, and by obeying also his law, because we fear his judgment. This passage
might indeed be more fully handled; but it is enough for me, according to my
custom, to point out the main things. It now follows
—
Jeremiah
9:25-26
25. Behold, the days come,
saith the Lord, that I will punish all them which are circumcised
with the uncircumcised; 25. Ecce dies veniunt, dicit Jehova, ut visitem
(ad verbum, et visitabo) super omnem circumcisum in
praeputio.
26. 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. 26. Super Egyptium (vel, super Egyptum; tam de
terra quam de hominibus potest accipi) et super Jehudah, et super Edom, et
super omnes filios Amon, et super Moab, et super omnes finitos in angulo
(alii vertunt, attonsos comam, sed nulla ratio apparet) habitantes
in deserto; quia omnes gentes incircumcisae (vel, praeputiatae) et tota
domus Israel praeputiati sunt corde (vel,
incircumcisi.)
The Prophet,
after having removed the obstacle which he saw hindered the Jews from reverently
receiving the truth of God, now speaks more sharply, and performs the office of
a herald in denouncing the vengeance which was at hand:
Behold,
he says, come shall the
days, in which
I will visit all the
uncircumcised in
uncircumcision.
This
passage admits of two meanings. Some interpreters take as distinct these two
words,
lwm
mul, the circumcised,
hlr[b,
beorle, in uncircumcision; as though Jeremiah had said, "I will visit the
Jews, who are circumcised, as well as the heathen nations, who are
uncircumcised," Others read them jointly, — that God threatens vengeance
on the Jews and Gentiles, because they were circumcised, and still retained
uncircumcision. The passage may however be thus suitably explained, — that
there was a mixture, which corrupted the sacredness of circumcision, and made it
like the uncircumcision of the Gentiles; as though it were thus expressed, "I
will visit the circumcised with the uncircumcision," that is,
promiscuously and without any difference, as we say in our language, Pele
mele. For it follows afterwards, that
all were uncircumcised in
heart; that is, all the Jews. We hence
see that the Prophet makes circumcision and uncireumcision the same, and that he
intended to render profane the sacred symbol of adoption;but he had reference to
the Jews, who, being degenerated, thus adulterated God's covenant, and at the
same time violated circumcision, so that in differed nothing from
uncircumcision. I therefore think, that the Jews are classed with the
Gentiles, so that he ascribes even to them uncircumcision:
I will
then
visit all the circumcised with
the uncircumcision; that is, the
circumcision of each is vain, and is like
uncircumcision.
However this may be, the Prophet
here denounces ruin, not only on the Jews, but also on the Egyptians and on
other neighboring nations; but he yet speaks to his own people, for his word was
not destined for the Egyptians, nor for the Idumeans and the Moabites. But as
the Jews were wont to have recourse to the Egyptians, when any danger arose from
the Assyrians and Chaldeans, the Prophet here connects the Egyptians with the
Jews, and for the same reason, the other nations. We indeed know that the
Idumeans and the Moabites were most hostile enemies to the Jews; but as the
state of things changed, they were at one time their enemies, at another their
friends; and when they saw that the Chaldeans extended their power, they saw
also that they were exposed to plunder, and hence it happened that they
willingly helped the Jews. Since then the Hebrews hoped that their neighbors on
every side would aid them, the Prophet says that a visitation was nigh them all:
and hence is confirmed what I have already said; for he distinguishes not the
Jews from the Egyptians and other nations; but, on the contrary, as they had
made alliances with them, he intends to unite them in one body:
I will
visit, he says,
the circumcised with the
uncircumcision. For the Jews did not
bear in mind that God was the protector of their safety, and that they had been
set apart by him from other nations. He names the circumcised together with the
uncircumcision, because the Egyptians, the Idumeans, the Ammonites, and the
Moabites, were deemed circumcised on account of the covenant they had made with
the Jews; and the Jews were deemed uncircumcised, because they had forsaken God,
and thus profarted themselves.
It is indeed true
that the Idumeans were circumcised, for they were the descendants of Esau, and
had no doubt retained this external symbol; but their circumcision was
altogether a mockery, as Esau had departed from the Church of God. The
circumcision of the elect people was in itself efficacious; but as they had
alike fallen into superstitions, they were like the uncircumcised, according to
what Paul says, — that the letter of the circumcision, that is, the
external rite, was nothing. We hence see that there is no common propriety in
the Prophet's words, when he denounces vengeance on the Jews as well as on the
Egyptians, and names the circumcised with the uneircumcision; for the latter had
uncircumcision, the former circumcision, and thus they had blended profane and
sacred things together, so that there was nothing pure or uncorrupted: and hence
he mentions Egypt, Judah,
Edom, the
children of Ammon,
and
Moab.
We have before stated why he enumerated all these nations; he did so,
because they expected help from one another, so that they all despised
God.
He afterwards adds,
And all the extreme ones in a
corner. The word
˜q,
kots, means the end; hence they take
µyxwxq,
kotsutsim, here for extremities: and
hap
pae, signifies a corner, and an end. We might then, if propriety of
language would bear it, render the words thus, "the cornered in the corner." But
the meaning is by no means ambiguous, which is, that though the Moabites and
others had hidden recesses, they could not be exempt from the calamity. God's
vengeance shall come, says Jeremiah, into their farthest corners, where they
think that they dwell in safety. And what follows is explanatory,
the inhabitants of the
wilderness, or, those who dwell in the
wilderness. He thus shews what he meant by
hap
yxwxq kotsutsi pae, the extremities, of the
corner. For when people inhabit remote places, they regard themselves on that
account safer, being secure in their hiding — places: this confidence the
Prophet derides; and he says that punishment would reach them
also.
fB23
He then adds,
For all the nations are
uncircumcised, and the whole house of Israel is uncircumcised in
heart. By saying, that all nations
were uncircumcised, he doubtless includes the Israelites, and thus by way of
reproach he takes away from the chosen people their peculiar distinction; as
though he had said, that Israel was so mixed with the nations, that they only
made a part of them: the Jews would have otherwise denied, that they deserved to
be classed with the Gentiles; but the Prophet deprives them of every excuse, and
says that they were but one nation, having no difference:
All these nations
then
are
uncircumcised. And so
h
He, before
µywg
guim, nations, may be taken as a demonstrative pronoun, and not a
relative, "All these nations." He had spoken not only of the Egyptians
and the Idumeans and of other neighboring nations, but had also mentioned Judah.
He then says, "All these nations are uncircumcised:" and as I have already said,
he condemns Israel, because they differed nothing from the nations, though God
had consecrated them to himself; for there was an entire mingling, which made
them all equal.
But as some objection might
still be alleged, he says, the Jews are
uncircumcised in
heart. He had indeed already included
them in the nations; but it was necessary to insist more on this point, for
circumcision might have been pleaded by them. Hence the Prophet says, that
though they had the visible symbol in the flesh, they were yet uncircumcised in
heart, and ought therefore to be classed with the nations. We see how sharply he
reproves them: though he separates them from other nations, he yet shews that
they justly deserved to be numbered with them; for God cares not for the
external symbol, but regards the chief thing, the circumcision of the
heart.
It is a common thing with Moses and the
Prophets to call an unrenewed heart, uncircumcision, and to say that the people
are uncircumcised in heart: for circumcision, while an evidence of free
salvation in Christ, at the same time initiated the Jews into the worship and
service of God, and proved the necessity of a new life; it was in short a sign
both of repentance and of faith. When, therefore, the Jews presented only the
sign, they were justly derided by Moses and the prophets; for they seemed as
though they sought to pacify God by a thing of nought, without regarding the
end. The same is the case now when we boast of baptism alone, and are at the
same time destitute of repentance and faith: our boasting is absurd and
ridiculous. And hence Paul calls the external rite, when the sign is separated
from its reality and substance, the letter of the circumcision; and on the other
hand he calls that the true circumcision, which is in secret and in the spirit.
We may also say the same of baptism, — that the literal baptism avails
hypocrites nothing, for they receive only the naked sign: and therefore we must
come to the spirit of baptism, to the thing itself; for the interior power is
renovation, when our old man is crucified in us, and when we rise again with
Christ into newness of life.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as thou hast
revealed to us in thy Gospel how guilty and miserable we are, we may learn to
loathe ourselves, ard so He down confounded and despairing on account of the
sins and guilt we have contracted, as yet to know that true glory is offered to
us, and that we can be made partakers of it, if by true faith we embrace thy
only-begotten Son, in whom is offered to us perfect righteousness and salvation:
And grant also that we may so cleave to Christ, and so receive by faith his
blessings, that we may be able, not only before the world, but also against
Satan and death itself, to glory in thee, that thou alone art just and wise and
strong; and may thy strength and justice and wisdom shine forth upon us in our
iniquity and ignorance and infirmity, until we shall at length reach that
ruiness of glory, which has been prepared for us in heaven by Christ our Lord.
— Amen.
A TRANSLATION
OF
CALVIN'S VERSION
OF
JEREMIAH
CHAPTERS
1—9
CHAPTER
1
1 The
words of Jeremiah, the son of Hilkiah, one of the priests who were in
Anathoth, in the land of
Benjamin:
2 Even
the word of Jehovah came to him in the days of Josiah, the son of Amon, The king
of Judah, in the tenth year of his
reign;
3 And
it came in the days of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, the king of Judah, to the
end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, the king of Judah, to
the transmigration of Jerusalem in the fifth
month.
4 And
the word of Jehovah came to me, saying,
—
5 Before
I formed thee in the womb, I knew thee; Before thou camest forth from the womb,
I sanctified thee; A prophet to the nations have I made
thee.
6 And
I said, — Ah! Lord Jehovah, Behold, I know not how to speak, for I am a
child.
7 And
Jehovah said to me, — Say not, I am a child; For wheresoever I send thee,
thou shalt go; And whatsoever I command thee, thou shalt
say:
8 Fear
not their face, for I am with thee, To deliver thee, saith
Jehovah.
9 And
Jehovah extended his hand and touched my mouth; and Jehovah said to me, —
Behold, I have put my words in thy
mouth;
10 See,
I have set thee today Over nations and over kingdoms, To pull down and to
destroy, To root up and to demolish, To build and to plant.
(1:47)
11 Then
the word of Jehovah came to me saying, What seest thou, Jeremiah? And I
said, The rod of a watcher is what I
see.
12 Then
Jehovah said to me, Thou hast rightly seen, for I watch over my word to do
it.
13 And
the word of Jehovah came to me again, saying, What seest thou? And I said, A pot
boiling is what I see; its face is towards the
north.
14 And
Jehovah said to me, — From the north shall break forth an evil On all the
inhabitants of the
land:
15 For
behold, I am calling all the families Of the kingdoms of the north, saith
Jehovah; And they shall come, and set shall each his throne, At the
entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, And on all its walls around, And on all the
cities of
Judah:
16 And
I will execute my judgments on them For all their wickedness; Because they have
forsaken me, And have burnt incense to strange gods, And bowed down to the works
of their own hands.
(1:58)
17 Thou
then, gird thy loins and arise, And speak to them whatsoever I command thee;
Fear not their face, Lest I dismay thee before
them.
18 And
I, behold I have made thee this day A fortified city, an iron pillar, And a
brazen wall, as to the whole land, Against the kings of Judah, Against his
princes, against his priests, Against the people of the
land:
19 And
they shall fight with thee, But shall not prevail over thee, For with thee am I,
saith Jehovah, to deliver thee.
CHAPTER
2
1 And
the word of Jehovah came to me, saying,
—
2 Go
and cry in the ears of Jerusalem, Saying, Thus saith Jehovah, — I remember
thee for my kindness to thine youth And my love at thy espousal,
When thou didst follow me in the desert, In a land not sown.
(1:70)
3 Holiness
was Israel to Jehovah, The first-fruits of his increase: Whosoever devour
him shall be punished, Evil shall come upon them, saith
Jehovah.
4 Hear
the word of Jehovah, ye house of Jacob, And all the families of the house of
Israel:
5 Thus
saith Jehovah, — What iniquity did your fathers find in me? For they
alienated themselves from me, And walked after vanity, and became vain;
(1:75)
6 And
they said not, "Where is Jehovah, Who brought us out of the land of Egypt, And
led us through the wilderness, In a land waste and rugged, In a land horrible
and deadly, In a land through which none passed, And in which no man dwelt?"
(1:79)
7 And
I brought you into a fertile land, To eat its fruit and its abundance; But ye
entered and polluted my land, And my heritage have ye made an
abomination:
8 The
priests said not, "Where is Jehovah?" And they who handled the law, knew not me;
And the pastors dealt treacherously with me, And the prophets prophesied by
Baal, And after things which did not profit, they
walked.
9 Therefore
still will I contend with you, saith Jehovah; And with your children's children
will I
contend.
10 For
pass over to the isles of Chittim, and see; And to Kedar send, and consider
diligently; And see whether such a thing as this has been done
—
11 Has
a nation changed its gods, Though they are no gods? Yet my people have changed
their glory Unto that which does not
profit.
12 Be
astonished, ye heavens, at this, and terrified, Be ye wholly desolated, saith
Jehovah:
(1:92)
13 Surely,
two evils have my people done, — Me have they forsaken, the fountain of
living waters, And dug have they for themselves cisterns, Broken cisterns, which
hold no
waters!
14 Is
Israel a servant? Is he one born in the house? Why is he become a
prey?
15 Over
him roar the lions, They have raised their voice; They have made his land waste;
His cities are burnt up, Without an
inhabitant.
16 Even
the children of Noph and Thaphanes Do break thy
crown.
17 Hast
thou not done this for thyself, By forsaking Jehovah thy God, While he was
leading thee in the
way?
18 And
now what hast thou to do in the way to Egypt, That thou mightest drink the
waters of the Nile? And what hast thou to do in the way to Assyria, That thou
mightest drink of the water of the
river?
19 Chastise
thee shall thine own wickedness, And thy apostasies, they shall punish thee; And
thou shalt understand and know, That it is an evil and a bitter thing for thee
To have forsaken Jehovah thy God, And that my fear has not been in thee, Saith
the Lord, Jehovah of
hosts.
20 For
of old have I broken thy yoke, Have I burst thy bands; But thou hast said, "I
will not serve;" For on every high hill and under every shady tree Hast thou
rambled like a harlot.
(1:107)
21 I
indeed planted thee a choice vine, Altogether a good seed; How then art thou
turned to me A degenerated foreign
vine!
22 Even
though thou washest thyself with nitre, And multipliest to thee the herb of the
fuller; Yet imprinted is thine iniquity Before my face, saith the Lord
Jehovah.
23 How
canst thou say, "I am not polluted, After Baalim have I not gone?" See thy ways
in the valley, Know what thou hast done, — Thou swift dromedary,
traversing her ways,
—
24 A
wild she-ass, used to the desert, In her own lust snuffing up the wind she meets
with: Who can thence bring her back? Whosoever seeks her, needs not weary
himself; In her month will he find her.
(1:118)
25 Keep
thy foot from being unshod, And thy throat from thirst: Yet thou hast said, "It
is all over, No, for I have loved strangers, And after them will I
go."
26 As
there is shame to a thief when caught, So ashamed shall be the house of Israel,
Their kings and their princes, Their priests and their prophets,
—
27 Who
say to the wood, "My father art thou;" And to the stone, "Thou hast begotten
me:" For they have turned to me the back, not the face; But in the time of their
calamity they say, "Arise and save
us."
28 But
where are thy gods, Which thou hast made for thyself? Let them arise, if they
can save thee In the time of thy calamity; For according to the number of thy
cities Have been thy gods, O
Judah!
29 Why
do ye contend with me? Ye have all dealt perfidiously with me, saith
Jehovah.
30 In
vain have I chastised your children; Correction they received not; Devoured has
the sword your prophets, As a destroying
lion.
31 O
generation! see ye the word of Jehovah; Have I been a desert to Israel, or a
land of darkness? Wherefore have my people said, — "We have ruled, we will
come no more to thee."
(1:135)
32 Can
a maid forget her ornaments, A spouse her attire? But my people have forgotten
me, Days without
number.
33 Why
trimmest thou thy ways to seek love? Thou hast even thus taught wickedness by
thy
ways.
34 Even
in thy skirts is found The blood of the souls of the poor innocents; Not in
digging under have they been found, But on account of all these things:
(1:143)
35 Yet
thou hast said, "Surely I am clean; Only let his fury depart from me." Behold I
will contend with thee in judgment, Because thou hast said, "I have not
sinned."
36 Why
ramblest thou so much to change thy ways? Even of Egypt shalt thou be ashamed,
As thou hast been ashamed of
Assyria.
37 Even
now for this thou shalt go forth, And thine hands on thine head; For abhorred
hath Jehovah thy confidences, And in them thou shalt not prosper.
(1:151)
CHAPTER
3
1 It
is said, when a man puts away his wife, And she goes from him to another man,
Shall he return to her again? Would not the land be thus greatly polluted? But
thou hast played the harlot with many friends; Yet return to me, saith
Jehovah.
2 Raise
thine eyes to the high places, And see where thou hast played the harlot: By the
ways thou didst sit for them, As the Arabian in the desert; And polluted hast
thou the land With thy whoredoms and thy
wickedness.
3 Restrained
therefore have been the showers, And the late rain has not been; Yet the front
of a strumpet has been thine, Thou hast refused to be
ashamed.
4 Wilt
thou not hereafter cry to me, — "My Father, the guide of my youth art
thou?
5 Will
he keep wrath for ever? Will he reserve it perpetually?" Behold, thou
hast spoken, And hast done evils with all thy might.
(1:162)
6 And
Jehovah said to me in the days of Josiah the king, — Hast thou seen what
the apostate Israel has done? She went on every high mountain And under every
shady tree, And played there the
harlot:
7 And
I said, after she had done all these things, "Return to me; " but she returned
not; And see this did her perfidious sister
Judah.
8 And
I saw, that when for all these things, Because rebellious Israel had played the
harlot, I had dismissed her and given her a bill of divorce, Yet fear did not
her perfidious sister Judah, But went and played also the harlot.
(1:166)
9 And
it happened through the levity of her whoredom, That she polluted the land, And
played the harlot with stone and with
wood.
10 And
yet after all this, returned to me Has not her perfidious sister Judah, With her
whole heart, but feignedly, saith
Jehovah.
11 And
Jehovah said to me, — Justified herself has apostate Israel Rather than
perfidious
Judah:
12 Go
and publish these words towards the north, And say, Return, rebellious Israel,
saith Jehovah; I will not let fall my wrath upon you, For I am merciful, saith
Jehovah; I will not keep it for
ever:
13 But
know thine iniquity, That against Jehovah thy God thou hast acted wickedly, And
prostituted thy ways to strangers Under every shady tree; (1:176) And to my
voice thou didst not hearken, saith
Jehovah.
14 Return,
ye rebellious children, saith Jehovah; For I am your husband; And I will take
you, one from a city, And two from a family, and bring you to
Sion;
15 And
will give you pastors according to my heart, And they shall feed you with
knowledge and
understanding.
16 And
it shall be, when ye shall multiply and increase In the land, in those days,
saith Jehovah, That they will no more say, — "The ark of the covenant of
Jehovah;" And it shall not come to mind, And they shall not remember nor visit
it; Even this shall not be done any more.
(1:185)
17 At
that time they shall call Jerusalem, The throne of Jehovah; And assemble to it
shall all nations, For the name of Jehovah, even to Jerusalem; And walk shall
they no more After the evil hardness of their own hearts.
(1:186)
18 In
those days shall come The house of Judah with the house of Israel; Together
shall they come from the land of the north, To the land which I have given For
an inheritance to your
fathers.
19 But
I said, How shall I put thee among the children, And give thee the desirable
land, The heritage coveted by hosts of nations? And I said, "My Father," shalt
thou call me, And from me thou wilt not depart.
(1:189)
20 Surely
as a woman deals perfidiously with her partner, So hast thou dealt perfidiously
with me, O house of Israel, saith
Jehovah.
21 A
voice on high places was heard, The weeping of the prayers of the children of
Israel; Because they had perverted their way, And forgotten Jehovah their
God.
(1:192)
22 "Return,
ye rebellious children, I will heal your transgressions." "Behold we come to
thee, For thou art Jehovah our
God:
23 Surely
deceit is from the hills, From the multitude of mountains; Surely,
in Jehovah our God Is the salvation of Israel.
(1:194)
24 Even
shame hath devoured the labor Of our fathers, from our youth, Even their sheep
and their cattle, Their sons and their
daughters.
25 We
have lain down in our shame, And our reproach hath covered us, Because with
Jehovah our God We have dealt wickedly, we and our fathers, From our childhood
even to this day, (1:196) And have not attended to the voice of Jehovah our
God."
CHAPTER
4
1 If
thou wilt return, Israel, saith Jehovah, Return to me; Even if thou wilt take
away Thine abominations from my sight, And wilt not wander:
(1:199)
2 And
thou shalt swear, "Live does Jehovah, In truth, in judgment, and in
righteousness;" Then bless themselves in him shall nations, And in him shall
they glory.
(1:202)
3 For
thus saith Jehovah To the men of Judah and to Jerusalem, — Plough again
the first ploughing, And sow not among
thorns:
4 Be
ye circumcised to Jehovah, And take away the foreskin of your heart, Ye men of
Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem; Lest my fury go forth like fire, And burn
that none may quench it; On account of the evil of your
doings.
5 Proclaim
ye in Judah, And publish in Jerusalem, and say, "Sound the trumpet in the land;"
Call, assemble, yea, say, — "Be assembled, and let us enter into fortified
cities;"
6 Raise
the standard in Sion; Flee, stay not, for an evil do I bring From the north,
even a great ruin.
(1:208)
7 Ascended
has the lion from his thicket, And the waster of nations is gone forth; He is
come forth from his place, To make thy land a waste; Thy cities shall be
destroyed, So as to be without an
inhabitant.
8 For
this gird yourselves with sackcloth, Lament and howl; for turned away from us Is
not the fury of Jehovah's
wrath.
9 And
it shall be in that day, saith Jehovah, That perish shall the heart of the king,
And the heart of the princes; And amazed shall be the priests, And the prophets
shall be astonished.
(1:212)
10 Then
I said, Ah! Lord Jehovah! Surely, deceiving thou hast deceived This people and
Jerusalem, by saying, "Peace shall be to you;" Yet reached has the sword to the
soul.
(1:214)
11 At
that time it shall be said To this people and to Jerusalem, — A dry wind
from the heights of the desert Shall be towards the way of the daughter
of my people, Not to fan nor to
cleanse;
12 A
wind stronger than this shall come for me; Now also will I pronounce judgments
on them.
(1:217)
13 Behold
as clouds shall he ascend, And as a whirlwind his chariots; Swifter than eagles
his horses: Woe to us! for we are
lost.
14 Cleanse
from evil the heart, Jerusalem; That thou mayest be saved: How long will remain
within thee The thoughts of vanity!
(1:221)
15 For
a voice proclaims from Dan And publishes ruin from Mount
Ephraim.
16 Rehearse
it to the nations; Behold, publish against Jerusalem, — Besiegers come
from a remote land, And raise over the cities of Judah their
voice;
17 As
keepers of the field they shall be over her around; Because she hath provoked
me, saith
Jehovah.
18 Thy
way and thy doings have done this for thee; This is thy wickedness, though it be
bitter, Though it reaches to thy heart.
(1:227)
19 My
bowels! my bowels! I am in pain; The walls of my heart! My heart is in a tumult
within me; I will not be silent, for the sound of the trumpet Has my soul heard,
And the clamor of war has it heard.
(1:229)
20 Calamity
on calamity is cried; For destroyed is the whole land; Suddenly destroyed are my
tents, In an instant my
curtains.
21 How
long shall I see the standard — Shall I hear the sound of the
trumpet?
22 Because
foolish are my people, Me have they not known; Sottish children are they, And
they are not intelligent; Acute are they for evil, But how to do good they know
not.
23 I
beheld the land, and lo, it was waste and without form; And the heavens, and
they had no
light:
24 I
beheld the mountains, and lo, they trembled; And all the hills were
shaking:
25 I
beheld, and lo, there was no man, And every bird of the heavens was
fled:
26 I
beheld, and lo, Carmel was a desert; And all its cities were destroyed, At the
presence of Jehovah, At the presence of the burning of his
wrath.
27 For
thus saith Jehovah, Laid waste shall be the whole land; But an end will I not
make.
28 For
this mourn shall the land, And black shall become the heavens above; For I have
spoken, I have purposed, And will not repent nor be turned from
this.
29 At
the voice of the horseman and of the bowmen, Flee shall the whole city; They
shall penetrate into thick clouds, They shall ascend into rocks; Every city
shall be forsaken, And no man shall dwell in them.
(1:245)
30 And
thou, wretched one, what wilt thou do? Though thou puttest on crimson, Though
thou deckest thyself with ornaments of gold, Though thou adornest with paint
thine eyes, In vain wilt thou decorate thyself; Hate thee will thy lovers, Thy
life will they
seek.
31 Surely,
the voice of one in travail have I heard, The distress as of one giving birth to
a first-begotten, The voice of the daughter of Sion; Who mourns, who spreads her
hands, — "Wo to me now! for fainted has my soul On account of murderers."
(1:251)
CHAPTER
5
1 Go
round through the streets of Jerusalem, And see, I pray, and know, Inquire also
in its cross-ways, Whether ye shall find a man, Whether there be any, who doeth
judgment, Who seeketh the truth, And I will spare it.
(1:252)
2 Though
they say, "Live does Jehovah;" Yet in this they swear
falsely.
3 Jehovah!
are not thine eyes on the truth? Thou hast smitten them, But they have not
grieved; Thou hast consumed them, But they have not received correction: They
have made their faces harder than a rock, They have refused to
return.
4 But
I said, Surely the poor are these; They have acted foolishly, Because they knew
not the way of Jehovah, The judgment of their
God:
5 I
will go to the great and speak to them, For they know the way of Jehovah, The
judgment of their God: But these have altogether broken the yoke, They have
burst the
bonds.
6 Therefore
smite them shall the lion from the forest, The wolf of the desert shall spoil
them, The leopard shall watch over their cities; Whosoever goeth out shall be
torn: For manifold are their transgressions, Increased are their
defections.
7 How
for this shall I spare thee? Thy children have forsaken me, And have sworn by
one that is not a god; When I fully satisfied them, they committed adultery, And
at the house of the harlot they
assembled:
8 Fed
horses! rising early in the morning, Every one at his neighbor's wife
neigheth.
9 Should
I not for these things visit? saith Jehovah, And on such a nation as this Shall
not my soul be
avenged?
10 Ascend
her walls and demolish, But an end make not; Take away her foundations, For they
are not
Jehovah's:
11 For
by transgressing they have transgressed against me, The house of Israel and the
house of Judah saith
Jehovah.
12 They
have denied Jehovah and said, "He is not, and come on us shall no evil; Yea, the
sword and the famine we shall not
see:
13 And
the prophets shall be wind, For the word is not in them: Thus shall it be done
to
them."
14 Therefore,
thus saith Jehovah, the God of hosts, — Because you have uttered this
word, Behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, And this people wood, And
it shall devour
them:
15 Behold
I will bring on you a nation from far, O house of Israel, saith Jehovah, A
strong nation, an ancient nation, A nation whose language thou knowest not, And
understandest not what it says:
(1:286)
16 Their
quiver is like an open sepulcher, All of them are
valiant;
17 And
they will devour thy harvest and thy bread; They will devour thy sons and thy
daughters, They will devour thy flocks and thy herds, They will devour thy vine
and thy fig-tree; To want shall they reduce thy fortified cities, To which thou
trustest, by the
sword:
18 But
even in those days, saith Jehovah, I will not make with you an
end.
19 And
it shall be, when ye say, "Why hath Jehovah our God done to us All these
things?" that thou wilt say to them, — As ye have forsaken me, And served
foreign gods in your land, So shall ye serve foreigners in a land not your
own.
20 Declare
this in the house of Jacob, And publish it in Judah, saying,
—
21 Hear
this, I pray, Ye foolish people and void of heart, Who have eyes and see not,
Who have ears and hear
not:
22 Will
ye not fear me? saith Jehovah; Will ye not at my presence tremble? Who have set
the sand a bound to the sea, By a perpetual decree that it cannot pass it;
Though its waves rage, yet they cannot prevail; Though they roar, yet they
cannot pass over
it.
23 But
this people hath a perverse and rebellious heart; They have turned aside and
departed:
24 And
they have not said in their heart, — Let us now fear Jehovah our God, Who
giveth rain, both the early And the latter shower in its season, Who keeps to us
the appointed weeks of
harvest.
25 Your
iniquities have prevented these things, And your sins have restrained good from
you.
26 For
found among my people are the wicked; They look, as though they would set
snares; A trap they set, in which they catch men.
(1:303)
27 As
a cage is full of birds So their houses are full of fraud: Therefore they are
increased and become
rich;
28 They
are become fat, they shine; They even surpass the deeds of the wicked: The cause
they judge not, The cause of the fatherless, yet they prosper; And the judgment
of the poor they judge not.
(1:306)
29 Shall
I not for this visit, saith Jehovah? On such a nation as this Shall not my soul
be
avenged?
30 A
monstrosity and baseness is in the
land!
31 The
prophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule by their means; (1:309) And my
people wish it to be so: But what will ye do at the end of it?
CHAPTER
6
1 Be
assembled, ye children of Benjamin, From the midst of Jerusalem, And in Tekoa
sound the trumpet; In Beth-haccerem also set up a sign; For evil is seen from
the north, And great
distress.
2 To
a quiet and delicate woman Have I likened the daughter of
Sion:
3 To
her shall come shepherds and their flocks; They shall pitch their tents near her
around, Feed shall each in his own
place.
4 Prepare
ye war against her: "Arise ye, and let us ascend at mid-day; Alas for us! for
declined has the day, For extended are the evening
shadows:
5 Arise,
and let us ascend in the night, And let us demolish her palaces."
(1:319)
6 For
thus saith Jehovah of hosts, — Cut ye down wood, And form against.
Jerusalem a mound; It is a city of visitation, Entire oppression is in the midst
of
her:
7 As
a fountain casts out its waters, So she casts out her wickedness; Violence and
plunder is heard of in her; Before me continually is grief and
smiting.
8 Be
thou instructed, O Jerusalem, Lest my soul be torn from thee, Lest I make thee a
desert, A land not
inhabited.
9 Thus
saith Jehovah of hosts, — By gleaning they shall glean, as a vine, The
remnant of Israel: Turn back thine hand, As a grape-gatherer into the baskets.
(1:326)
10 To
whom shall I speak and protest, That they may hear? Behold, uncircumcised is
their ear, And they cannot hear; Behold, the word of Jehovah is to them a
reproach; They delight not in
it.
11 Of
Jehovah's indignation therefore am I full, I am wearied with refraining To pour
it on the children in the streets, And on the assembly of young men also; For
the husband with his wife shall be taken, The aged with the full of
days:
12 And
turned shall be their houses to aliens, Their fields and their wives in like
manner; For I will stretch out my hand On the inhabitants of the land, saith
Jehovah:
13 For
from the least to the greatest of them, Every one is given to covetousness; And
from the prophet to the priest, Every one acts
deceitfully;
14 And
healed have they the wound Of the daughter of my people slightly By saying,
"Peace, peace," when there was no peace.
(1:336)
15 Were
they ashamed, that they had done abomination? Even of shame they were not
ashamed, And how to blush they knew not: Fall therefore shall they among the
fallen; At the time of their visitation They shall perish, saith Jehovah.
(1:339)
16 Thus
said Jehovah, — Stand in the ways and see, Inquire also concerning the old
paths, Which is the right way, and walk ye in it, That ye may find rest to your
soul: And they said, "We will not walk in
it."
17 I
also set over them watchmen, That they might, attend to the sound of the
trumpet; But they said, "We will not
attend."
18 Hear
therefore, ye nations, And know, thou assembly, what shall be to
them:
19 Hear,
thou land; behold I bring an evil On this people, the fruit of their thoughts;
Because to my words they have not hearkened, And my law have they
despised.
20 To
what purpose is this to me? Incense cometh from Sheba, And the sweet came from a
far country; Your burnt-offerings are not acceptable, And your sacrifices are
not pleasant to
me.
21 Therefore
thus saith Jehovah, — Behold, I lay before this people stumblingblocks;
And stumble shall fathers and sons alike; Neighbor and friend, they shall
perish.
22 Thus
saith Jehovah, — Behold, a people shall corns from the north country, And
a great nation shall be roused From the sides of the
earth:
23 On
the bow and spear shall they lay hold; They are cruel and will not spare; Their
voice, like the sea, will roar, And on horses shall they mount; Arrayed shall
they be as men for war, Against thee, O daughter of
Sion.
24 We
have heard its fame; Relaxed are our hands, Anguish has laid hold on us, The
pain as of one in
travail.
25 Go
not forth into the field, Nor walk by the way; For the sword of the enemy
Is a terror on every
side.
26 Daughter
of my people! gird on sackcloth, And roll thyself in the dust; Make thee
mourning, as for an only son, Most bitter lamentation; For suddenly shall come
on thee the
spoiler.
27 A
tower have I made thee to my people, — A fortress; that thou mightest know
And try their
ways:
28 All
are entire apostates, Walking in detraction; Brass and iron are they; All
of them are corrupters.
(1:358)
29 Burnt
are the bellows by the fire, Entire is the lead, In vain has melted the melter;
For the wicked have not been
refined:
30 Reprobate
silver shall they call them, Because rejected them has Jehovah
(1:360)
CHAPTER
7
1 The
word which came to Jeremiah from Jehovah, saying,
—
2 Stand
in the gate of the house of Jehovah, And proclaim there this word, and say,
— Hear the word of Jehovah, all ye Judah, Who enter through these gates to
worship
Jehovah:
3 Thus
saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, — Make good your ways and your
doings, And I will dwell with you in this
place:
4 Trust
not in words of falsehood, by saying, "The temple of Jehovah, the temple of
Jehovah, The temple of Jehovah, are these buildings."
(1:364)
5 Surely,
if by making good ye make good Your ways and your doings, If by doing ye do
judgment Between man and his
neighbor,
6 If
the stranger, the orphan and the widow, Ye oppress not, and innocent blood Ye
shed not in this place, And after strange gods Ye walk not to your hurt,
—
7 Then
will I cause you to dwell in this places In the land which I gave to your
fathers, For ever and
ever.
8 Behold,
ye trust in words of falsehood, Which are without
profit.
9 Will
ye steal, kill, and commit adultery, Swear falsely, burn incense to Baal, And
walk after alien gods, Whom ye do not
know;
10 And
come and stand before me in this house, Which is called by my name, and say, "We
have been made free To do all these abominations?"
(1:373)
11 Is
this house, called by my name, Become a den of robbers in your eyes? Even I,
behold I see, saith
Jehovah.
12 But
go now to my place in Shilo, Where I made to dwell my name at first, And see
what I did there, For the wickedness of my people
Israel:
13 And
now, because ye have done All these works, saith Jehovah, And I spoke to you,
rising early, And when I spoke, ye heard not, When I called you, ye answered
not;
14 I
will therefore do to this place, Which is called by my name, In which ye trust
— Even to the place which I gave to you And to your fathers, as I did to
Shilo;
15 And
I will cast you out from my presence, As I have cast out all your brethren, The
whole seed of
Ephraim.
16 And
thou, pray not for this people, And raise not for them a cry and a prayer, And
intercede not with me; For I will not hear thee.
(1:384)
17 Seest
thou not what they do in the cities of Judah And in the streets of
Jerusalem?
18 Children
gather wood, And fathers kindle a fire, And women knead a dough, To make cakes
for the queen of heaven; And they pour libations to alien gods, That they may
provoke me to wrath!
(1:387)
19 Do
they provoke me to wrath, saith Jehovah? Is it not to the shame of their own
faces?
20 Therefore
thus saith the Lord Jehovah, — Behold my wrath, even my fury, It shall be
poured on this place, Upon men and upon beast, Upon the tree of the field and
the fruit of the land; And it shall burn, and none shall quench
it.
21 Thus
saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, — Your burnt-offerings add to
your sacrifices, And eat ye the
flesh:
22 For
I spoke not to your fathers, Nor commanded them in the day, In which I brought
them out of the land of Egypt, Concerning burnt-offerings and
sacrifices;
23 But
this is what I commanded them, saying, — "Hear my voice, And I will be to
you a God, And you shall be to me a people; And walk ye in all the ways Which I
have commanded you. That it may be well with
you:
24 Yet
they heard not, nor inclined their car; But walked in perverse counsels, In the
wickedness of their own evil heart, And went backward and not
forward.
25 From
the day in which your fathers came out From the land of Egypt, to this day, Have
I sent to you all my servants, the prophets, Every day rising early and sending
them:
26 Yet
they heard not nor inclined their ear, But hardened their neck; They have acted
more perversely than their
fathers.
27 Thou
also shalt say to them all these words, But they will not hear thee; And thou
shalt call to them, But they will not answer
thee:
28 Therefore
say to them, — This is a nation, Which have not hearkened to the voice Of
Jehovah, their God, And have not received correction: Perished has the truth,
And cut off has it been from their
mouth.
29 Shave
off thy hair and cast it away, Raise on the heights a lamentation; Nor rejected
thee has Jehovah; And forsaken hath he the generation of his
wrath:
30 For
the children of Judah have done evil Before mine eyes, saith Jehovah; They have
set their abominations in the house, On which my name is called, to pollute
it;
31 And
they have built the high places of Tophet, Which is in the valley of the son of
Hinnom, To burn their sons and their daughters in the fire; Which I have not
commanded, Nor has it ever come into my
heart.
32 Therefore,
behold the days come, saith Jehovah, That it shall no more be called Tophet, And
The valley of the son of Hinnom, But, The valley of slaughter; And they shall
bury in Tophet, For elsewhere there will be no
place:
33 And
the carcasses of this people shall be for meat To the birds of heaven and to the
beasts of the earth; And there will be none to frighten
them:
34 And
to cease will I make, from the cities of Judah And from the streets of
Jerusalem, The voice of joy and the voice of gladness, The voice of the
bridegroom and the voice of the bride; For to a waste shall the land be
reduced.
CHAPTER
8
1 In
that day, saith Jehovah, they shall bring forth 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 citizens of Jerusalem, Out of their
graves;
2 And
they shall spread them before the sun, And the moon, and all the host of heaven,
Which they have loved and served, And after which they have walked, And which
they have sought, And before which they have bowed themselves; They shall not be
gathered nor buried; For dung on the face of the land shall they
be:
3 And
chosen shall be death, Rather than life, by all the residue, Who shall remain of
this wicked nation, Who shall remain in all the places Where I shall drive them,
saith Jehovah of
hosts.
4 Thou
shalt also say to them, Thus saith Jehovah, — Shall not they who have
fallen rise again? If any one turns aside shall he not
return?
5 Why
rebel does this people at Jerusalem With a perpetual rebellion? They have held
fast deceit, They have refused to
return.
6 I
hearkened and heard; they will not speak aright; There is no one who repents of
his wickedness, And says, "What have I done?" Every one turns to his own course,
Like a horse who rushes into battle.
(1:425)
7 Even
the stork in the heavens knows its times; The turtle also, and the swallow and
the crane, Observe the time of their journey; But my people know not the
judgment of
Jehovah.
8 How
say ye, "We are wise And the law of Jehovah is with us:" Surely, behold in vain
Hath the writer prepared his pen, In vain are the
scribes!
9 Ashamed
are the wise, terrified and taken; Behold the word of Jehovah have they
rejected; And wisdom, what is it to them!
(1:432)
10 I
will therefore give their wives to aliens, And their fields to inheritors; For
from the least even to the greatest, Every one is given to covetousness; From
the prophet even to the priest, All have acted
deceitfully;
11 And
healed have they the wound Of the daughter of my people slightly, By saying,
"Peace, peace," when there was no
peace.
12 Had
they shame, that they had done abomination? Even of shame they were not ashamed,
And how to blush they knew not: Fall therefore shall they with the fallen; At
the time of their visitation They shall perish, saith
Jehovah.
13 Destroying,
I will destroy them, saith Jehovah; No grapes shall be on the vine, And
no figs on the fig-tree; The leaf also shall fall, And what I gave them shall
pass from
them.
14 Why
do we sit still? Assemble ye, And let us enter into fortified cities, And let us
rest there: Surely, Jehovah our God hath made us silent, And given us waters of
gall to drink: Because we have sinned against Jehovah.
(1:442)
15 We
looked for peace, but there was no good; For time of healing, but behold
terror.
16 From
Dan is heard the snorting of his horses; At the sound of the neighing of his
strong ones, Tremble does the whole land; For they will come and devour The land
and its abundance, The city and its
inhabitants.
17 For
behold, I will send among you Serpents and basilisks, Which will not be charmed;
And they shall bite you, saith
Jehovah.
18 I
would strengthen myself against grief: But within me my heart is
weak.
19 Behold
the voice of the crying Of the daughter of my people from a far country! "Is not
Jehovah in Sion? Is not her king within her?" — Why have they provoked me
to wrath With their images, with foreign
vanities?
20 Past
has the harvest, ended is the summer, And we have not been saved!
(1:452)
21 For
the hurt of the daughter of my people I am hurt, I am become black; Astonishment
has laid hold on
me.
22 Is
there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? For why is not restored
The healing of the daughter of my people! (1:456)
CHAPTER
9
1 Who
will make my head waters And mine eye a fountain of tears! Then would I bewail,
day and night, The slain of the daughter of my
people.
2 Who
will set me in the desert, In the lodging of travelers! Then would I leave my
people And depart from them: For all of them are adulterers, An assembly of
perfidious
men.
3 And
they shoot lies with their tongue as with a bow; But not for truth are they
strong in the land; For from evil to evil they proceed; (1:462) And me they know
not, saith
Jehovah.
4 And
every one of his friend take ye heed, And in a brother trust ye not; For every
brother by supplanting will supplant, And every friend walks
fraudulently:
5 And
a man deceives his neighbor, And the truth he speaks not; They have taught their
tongues to speak falsehood; With doing evil they weary
themselves.
6 Thou
dwellest in the midst of deceit; Through deceit they refuse To know me, saith
Jehovah.
(1:469)
7 Therefore
thus saith Jehovah of hosts, — Behold, I will try them, and will prove
them; For how should I deal With the daughter of my
people?
8 A
sharpened arrow is their tongue, Falsehood it speaks; His mouth speaks peace to
his neighbor, But within he sets up
intrigues.
9 For
this shall I not visit, saith Jehovah, On such a nation as this Shall not my
soul be
avenged?
10 For
the mountains will I raise up weeping and wailing, For the pastures of the
wilderness, lamentation; Because they are laid waste, So that there is not a man
passing through, And they hear not the voice of cattle; From the bird of heaven
to the beast. Have they fled, have they departed.
(1:475)
11 I
will also make Jerusalem heaps, A place for dragons; And the cities of Judah
will I make a waste, So that there shall be no
inhabitant.
12 Who
is a wise man to understand this? And to whom has Jehovah's mouth spoken, That
he may declare why the land is to perish — Is to be laid waste like the
desert, So that no man should pass through?
(1:480)
13 Then
Jehovah said, — Because they have forsaken my law, Which I have set before
them, And hearkened not to my voice, Nor walked according to
it;
14 But
walked after the imaginations Of their own hearts, and after Baalim, As their
fathers taught
them;
15 Therefore,
thus saith Jehovah of hosts, The God of Israel, — Behold, I will feed this
people with bitterness, And will give them the water of gall to
drink;
16 I
will also scatter them among the nations, Whom they have not known nor their
fathers, And I will send after them the sword, Until I shall have consumed
them.
17 Thus
saith Jehovah of hosts, — Attend ye and call for the mourning women, That
they may come, And send for those who are skillful, That they may
come.
18 And
let them hasten and make a wailing for us, That our eyes may let fall tears, And
our eyelids drop down waters.
(1:489)
19 For
a voice of wailing is heard from Sion, "How we are wasted! How greatly shamed!
Because we have left the land, They have cast down our
dwellings."
20 Therefore
hear, ye women, the word of Jehovah, And let your ears receive the word of his
mouth, And teach your daughters wailing, And each one her friend
lamentation:
21 For
come up is death to our windows, It has entered into our palaces, To cut off the
infirm from the street, The young men in the broad places.
(1:493)
22 Speak,
thus saith Jehovah, fall shall the carcasses of men As dung on the face of the
field, And as the handful after the reaper, And none gathering
it.
23 Thus
saith Jehovah, — Let not the wise glory in his wisdom, And let not the
brave glory in his courage, Let not the rich glory in his
riches;
24 But
in this let him glory who glorieth, In understanding, and in knowing me, That I
am Jehovah, who doeth mercy, Judgment and righteousness in the land; For in
these things I delight, saith Jehovah.
(1:502)
25 Behold
the days are coming, saith Jehovah, That I will visit every one circumcised,
Who is in uncircumcision,
—
26 Egypt
and Judah and Edom, The sons of Ammon and Moab, And all those who are in extreme
recesses, Who dwell in the wilderness; For all these nations are uncircumcised,
And the whole house of Israel, They are uncircumcised in heart.
Footnotes
ftA1
According to an ancient tradition, mentioned by Jerome and others,
Jeremiah was stoned to death by the Jews at Tahpanhes in Egypt, (see Jeremiah
43:8) shortly after their removal there, subsequent to the destruction of
Jerusalem. So that he did not live long after that event: it may be two or three
years.
ftA2
,Idioma>twn
koinw>nian, which may be rendered " The
communication of peculiarities."
Ed.
ftA3
"Christus ubique totus est, sed non totum." Lib. 3,
Senten. dist.
22.
ftA4
Non ignora mali, miseris succurrere
disco.
ftA5
Scott says that Jeremiah " entered upon the
prophetic office almost seventy years after the death of Isaiah."
Ed.
ftA6
The word does not properly mean a " child, " as in our version, or "
puer, " as rendered by Calvin, but a youth, or rather a
young man. Abraham's trained servants were thus called,
<011424>Genesis
14:24, and his servant who dressed the calf for the angels,
<011807>Genesis
18:7, and his " young men" who accompanied him to Mount Moriah,
<012205>Genesis
22:5. Joshua had this name given him, when he was attending Moses at the
tabernacle,
<023311>Exodus
33:11. It is rendered "
(newterov)-a
youth or a young man, " by the Septuagint. The most probable thing
is, that he was, not as Adam Clarke supposes, about 14, but a young man
verging on maturity. The length of time during which he prophesied, would lead
us to conclude that he was young when he was appointed to his
office.
There are two remarkable resemblances
between Jeremiah and Moses. They both made an excuse for declining the office to
which God called them, and made a similar excuse. The other resemblance is what
Lightfoot has noticed, that Moses was a teacher of the people for
forty years before they entered the land of Canaan, and that Jeremiah was
their teacher for forty years before they were banished from it and
driven into
exile.-Ed.
ftA7
The reasons alleged against Jeremiah being the son of the high priest are by no
means conclusive: indeed, all the circumstances being considered, the
probability is in favor of that supposition. The family of the high priest
resided no doubt at Anathoth; what is said in
<110226>1
Kings 2:26, respecting Abiathar, is a proof of this. That the high priest
resided at Jerusalem during the term of his office forms no objection; nor is
the genealogy of the high priests as given in
<130601>1
Chronicles 6:1-17, any objection; for though in verse 13, Azariah is said to be
the son of Hilkiah, yet Jeremiah might have been one of his younger sons. Most
commentators agree indeed with Calvin, -Gataker, Henry, Scott,
Blayney, etc.; but they adduce no satisfactory reasons, sufficient to
invalidate the opinion of the Rabbins and the intimation contained in the
Targum: and this opinion is what the translators of the Geneva Bible have
adopted. Ed.
ftA8
The second verse begins with
rça
which Calvin renders " nempeeven, " and takes it in an exegetic sense:
but this is not its meaning. Our version is no doubt correct, " to whom;" though
there is no preposition before it, it is yet found before the personal pronoun "
to him, " that comes afterwards. It is an idiom of the language, and the very
same exists in Welsh, in which the version is literally the same with the
Hebrew a relative pronoun without a preposition followed by a personal pronoun
with a preposition profixed to it. It would be literally in English, " whom the
word of Jehovah came to him." The Welsh also retains the peculiarity of the
Hebrew, in having prepositions prefixed to pronouns and attached to them, though
this is not the case generally with nouns,
Yr hwn y daeth gair
Jehova atto.
The verb too, as in the Hebrew, precedes its
nominative; " came" is before " the word of Jehovah." It is rather singular that
the Septuagint have rendered this relative by
"wJs
— as," which shews that the Hebrew idiom was not understood by them.
—
Ed.
ftA9
More strictly, "in the inside," or belly,
ˆfb.
The specific term for womb is in the next sentence,
µjr.-Ed.
ftA10
The words admit of two meanings.
Rbd
yt[dyAal-I have not known word, or, I know not
word. The phrase may signify, I have no word to say, or, I know not how to say a
word. The first meaning is what the context seems to countenance. The answer
given to him refers to his two objections-that he had no word to say, and that
he was a young man. The last is first answered, according to the usual mode of
writing adopted by the prophets, " To every one whom I shall send thee to, thou
shalt go;" and then the first objection is removed, " and everything that I
shall command thee, thou shalt speak." The answer goes on, and refers to the
points in the same order, " Fear not;" and then to remedy the want complained
of; Jehovah is represented as putting his words in his mouth, so that he might
have what was necessary for him to say. God promised courage though he was
young, and gave him a message to deliver: thus his two objections were
removed.
We meet with a similar phrase in
<240615>Jeremiah
6:15;
<240812>Jeremiah
8:12, which is, literally, " and shame they know not."
-Ed.
ftA11
The proper rendering is, "Fear not before them," or, on their account:
ynms
is invariably a preposition, before, from before, because of, on account of,
for, by, through;
<050221>Deuteronomy
2:21;
<021419>Exodus
14:19;
<050719>Deuteronomy
7:19;
<240613>Jeremiah
6:13; and it is often, though not always, so rendered in our version. The very
same phrase is found in
<061106>Joshua
11:6, and rendered, "Be not afraid, because of them;" and also in this book,
Joshua 41:18, "They were afraid of them." It may, indeed, be rendered, "Fear
them not," or, "Be not afraid of them." To introduce "face" or "faces" is by no
means right. Gataker's rendering is, "Fear not before them;" and
Blayney's, "Be not thou afraid because of
them."-Ed.
ftA12
"Earthly kings and sovereigns," observes Gataker on this verse, "are not
wont to go with those whom they send on embassage; God goeth along with those
whom he sends, and is by his powerful protection, at all times and in all
places, present with them."
-Ed.
ftA13
The whole of this verse is arranged according to the usual manner of the
Prophets. The word " nations" comes first, and then " kingdoms." Three lines
follow; the first word in each line refers to "kingdoms," and the last to "
nations." The
w,
vau, in the second line is omitted in many copies, and there seems to be
no need of it; and it is not true what Blayney says, that there are MSS.
which supply the
w
before the last line, though it be supplied by the Septuagint. To
preserve the distinct meaning of each verb, I offer the following rendering:
-
See, I have set
thee this day
Over
nations and over
kingdoms,
To root up,
and to break down,
To
destroy, and to
erase,
To build up,
and to plant.
He was to root up kingdoms, and to break down
nations; then he adds stronger words, for he was to destroy, or wholly to
destroy kingdoms, and to erase or to obliterate nations. The reason for the
repetition is well stated by Calvin. As to his other work, two
words only are used: he was to build up kingdoms, and to plant nations. A
nation, of course, exists before a kingdom, and this order is observed in the
second line; but the order, as it is usual with the sacred writers, not only of
the Old, but also of the New Testament, is then reversed. See an instance in
<451009>Romans
10:9, 10, where indeed the true order is given last, the ostensible act being in
the first instance stated, and then the principle from which it
proceeds.-Ed.}
ftA14
The word is rendered " a rod of almond" by the Septuagint, the Arabic
version, and Theodotion; and also by Piscator, Drusius, Grotius,
and Blayney; and " the rod of the watcher" by Sym.,
Aq., and the Vulgate. The latter is no doubt more suitable
in a translation. Some conclude, from what is related in Numbers 17., that the
head of each tribe carried a wand or a staff made of the almond tree as a token
of watchfulness: if so, the probability is, that this wand was presented to the
view of the Prophet. It being a well-known emblem of watchfulness, and called
perhaps the watchful rod or staff, it was most suitable to the purposes here
designed. The verb
dqç
does not mean to hasten, but to watch, or to be awake. Then the version of the
passage would be the following:
-
11. And the word of
Jehovah came to me, saying, " What seest thou, Jeremiah?" and I said, " The rod
of a watcher is what I
see."
12. Then Jehovah said
to me, " Thou seest rightly, for I am watching over my word to do it."
-Ed.
ftA15
Most agree with Calvin, that the pot means the Jewish nation; so the
learned Gataker in the Ass. Ann., Grotius, Henry, and
Scott. There is some difference as to " its face." The first of
these authors, followed by the two last, thinks that the face means the front of
the fire or the hearth, and therefore the front of the pot. This face or front
was towards the north, signifying that the fuel and the blowing would be from
that quarter, as it is afterwards stated. As to the metaphor, the pot, or
cauldron, see
<261103>Ezekiel
11:3, 7; 24:3, 5.
The version of the Geneva
Bible is, " I see a seething-pot looking out of the north;" and the Chaldean
army is regarded as the pot: and Blayney, following the marginal reading
of our version, has given a similar rendering, " and the face thereof is turned
from the north." But
ynpm
is a preposition, and rendered often, "from before," and, "before," (see note on
verse 8;) and to say that its face was before the north means the same as
towards the north: and this is the rendering of Jun. and Trem.,
and Piscator, " versus
Aquilonem."
"The boiling-pot" is a pot "kindled
under-uJpokaio>menon,"
by the Sept. The literal rendering of
jwpn
rys is, " a pot blown, " meaning the fire under it.
It was a pot set on a fire that was blown, and the front of it was toward the
north, from whence the blowing came. The same word as a noun is used by Jeremiah
in
<240629>Jeremiah
6:29, and signifies an instrument for blowing, and is rendered " bellows" in our
version. It was then a pot set on a fire that was blown, which intimated the
severe calamities which the Jews were soon to endure, as Grotius
observes.-Ed.
ftA16
Perhaps the more literal rendering would be, "I will call to," or for. The
version of Septuagint is,
"sugka>lw-I
will summon;" of Vatablus, "invitabo-I will invite;" of Piscator,
"vocabo-I will call;" and of Blayney, "I will call for."
-Ed.
ftA17
They are called " families, " say some, because kings are called fathers;
but probable it is a mode of speaking retained from primitive times, as we find
that those called " families" in
<011203>Genesis
12:3, are called "nations" in
<012218>Genesis
22:18.-Ed.
ftA18
The original word,
ask,
not only means a throne, but a seat; see
<090109>1
Samuel 1:9;
<090418>1
Samuel 4:18; and
<120410>2
Kings 4:10, where it is rendered in our version "a stool." Grotius
renders it here "praetorium castrense-a camp's tent." The "throne" is derived
from the
Septuagint.-Ed.
ftA19
Literally it is "The opening of the gates." The preposition at is not
in the original; and the word in some other places is found without it. See
<011911>Genesis
19:11;
<014317>Genesis
43:17. The preposition
ejpi<
is given by the Septuagint,
"ejpi< ta<
pro>qura-at or in the vestibules, " etc. We have
the fulfillment of this expressly recorded in
<243903>Jeremiah
39:3. The idea suggested by Adam Clarke, that they would sit as judges in
the gates, as these were the courts of justice, is evidently not intended here;
for they would also fix their tents or their seats by or on the walls, and in
all the cities of Judah. The latter portion of the verse may be thus rendered,
-
And they shall
come, and set, each his
seat,
At the entrance
of the gates of
Jerusalem,
And on all
its walls around,
And
on all the cities of Judah.
The description betokens an entire possession of the
whole
land.-Ed.
ftA20
The idea conveyed by the Septuagint is somewhat different, and I believe
that it is what the original words mean,
"lalh>sw pro<v aujtou<v
meta< kri>sewv-I will speak to them with
judgment." The original literally is, " and I will speak my judgments to them;"
that is, I will not speak words but judgments: or, I will not address them with
words, but with actual judgments. Then in the following words the reason is
assigned. The verse may be thus rendered,
-
16. And I will speak by my
judgments to them, On account of all their wickedness, Because they have
forsaken me, And have burnt incense to strange gods, And have bowed down to the
work of their own hands.
It is better to retain
the outward act as expressed by the last verb, " bowed down." or, more
literally, " bowed down themselves, " as the verb is in the reflective mood,
than to adopt the abstract term " worshipped." So the verb is rendered in the
second commandment,
<022005>Exodus
20:5;
<050509>Deuteronomy
5:9.
The first, line is rendered by Grotius,
"Proedicam illis decreta mea-I will declare to them my decrees, "
that is, by Jeremiah and others, -by Jun. and Trem., "I will speak
my judgments against them," that is, by the prophets, -by Henry. "
I will pass sentence upon them,"-by Blayney, "I will pronounce my
judgments against them;" and Scott gives the same view. But Gataker
says, "It seems rather to import an efficacious and actual decree that God
would, in his own appointed time, pass upon them, and put in execution by the
Chaldeans." Hence he renders the phrase like Henry, "I will pass
sentence, " or, " give judgment, upon
them."-Ed.
ftA21
This is correctly given, only the
w
need not be rendered "then" or "therefore." It is an instance of the nominative
absolute, or of the anticipative case, -
And thou, gird thy
loins,
And arise, and
speak to them
All
that I shall command thee.
"And as for thee," by Blayney, is very tame
and prosaic. The version of the Geneva Bible is, "Thou, therefore, trusse
up thy loyns."
-Ed.
ftA22
It is true that the primary meaning of the verb here used is, to be broken, or
to be broken down, to be broken in pieces. It is applied to the breaking of a
bow, and to the breaking down of images,
<090204>1
Samuel 2:4;
<245002>Jeremiah
50:2; and to the breaking down of nations,
(<230803>Isaiah
8:3;
<233031>Isaiah
30:31.) Such is its meaning when applied to what is material and visible; but
when applied to the mind or spirit, it means to be dispirited, daunted,
terrified, or dismayed,
<121926>2
Kings 19:26;
<240809>Jeremiah
8:9. It is here first in a passive sense, and then in Hiphil, as in
<183134>Job
31:34; and in
<244937>Jeremiah
49:37, -
Be not dismayed at
them,
Lest I cause
thee to be dismayed before them.
or,
Be not terrified by
them,
Lest I terrify
thee before them.
Blayney gives to the verb first its secondary
meaning, and then its primary, " Be not thou afraid of them, lest I should
suffer thee to be crushed before them." How crushed before them? By whom? And to
say that there is no threat included in the last line is singular, as words
could hardly be framed to express it more
distinctly.
The Targum expresses the
meaning of the first line, "Restrain not thyself from rebuking them." Grotius
renders the last line, "Ne ego to perterrefaciam coram illis-lest I terrify
thee before them;" which seems to be its best
rendering.-Ed.
ftA23
Cotton, the old translator, has rendered it very strikingly, "If thou
quailest," expressing the two words in
one.-Ed.
ftA24
We find here nearly the same form or mode of speech as at the beginning of the
previous verse, "And I, behold I have made thee," etc.: and Blayney
renders it so here, though not in the preceding
instance.-Ed.
ftA25
There is the preposition
l
before "city," "pillar," and "wall." It is an idiom. The full meaning is, "I
have made thee to be for a fortified city." The same idiom exists in
Welsh, the preposition yn is used, which implies that the verb
to be is understood. But it is not necessary to retain the preposition in
a language in which a similar idiom does not exist. The Septuagint render
the preposition by
"wJv-as,"
and Jun. and Trem., by "velut-as," or like. And such
a word would be suitable in our language, -
And I, behold I
have made thee this
day
Like a city that
is fortified,
And
like a pillar of
iron,
And like a wall
of brass,
With regard
to the whole land,
To
the kings of Judah, to its
princes,
To its
priests, and to the people of the land.
"To" here means in opposition to-he was to stand
opposed to the kings, etc., as a fortified city, etc. "Wall" is plural in the
received text; but many MSS., the Septuagint, the Syriac, the
Targum, and the Vulgate, have it in the singular number, which
seems most
suitable.-Ed.
ftA26
It ought to be, "For with thee will I be, to deliver thee;" for the verb to
be, being understood, it must be put in the same tense with the other verbs
in the passage: and such is the rendering of
Blayney.-Ed.
ftA27
Though most of modern commentators, Grotius, Gataker, Blayney, Scott, Adam
Clarke, etc., give the same view of this verse with Calvin, yet the
probability is, and something more than the probability, that the sense in which
it was taken by the ancients is the correct one; which is the sense given in our
version, and adopted by Henry. A literal rendering of the verse is
sufficient to shew its meaning,
-
2. Go and cry in the ears of
Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith Jehovah,- I remember, with regard to thee, The
kindness of thy youth, The love of thy espousals, Thy coming after me in the
desert, Through a land not sown.
"Thy coming,
or, walking after me, " stands in the same relation to " remember" as the
two preceding words: this is plainly the construction; and this construction
determines the meaning of the foregoing lines. Our version is quite wrong in
rendering
°l,
"thee;" it ought ever to be rendered as above, when the verb, as here, is
followed by an accusative case. See
<032645>Leviticus
26:45;
<197908>Psalm
79:8;
<19A645>Psalm
106:45.
What has led commentators, no doubt, to
divert this passage from its right meaning was their impression that more is
here ascribed to Israel than their history warrants. But this is not the only
instance in which their former conduct is contrasted with their latter conduct.
This is done in
<390205>Malachi
2:5, as to the priests. The object here is to set forth the difference between
the people when brought out of Egypt, and following God's guidance in the
wilderness, and their conduct at the time of Jeremiah. They were indeed very far
from being what they ought to have been in the first instance, but their
deportment in Jeremiah's age was incomparably
worse.-Ed.
ftA28
Blayney considers this verse as referring to Israel in ancient times, and
as spoken by God: hence he renders the last words, "said Jehovah." The first
part seems to declare what Israel was, and the other appears to be the language
of God respecting them,-
Holy was Israel to
Jehovah,
The
first-fruits of his
produce:
"All his
devourers shall be deemed
guilty,
Evil shall
come to them," said Jehovah.
The verb
µça
is rendered
"plhmmelh>sousi-shall
offend," by the Septuagint, as in our version, and by Grotius;
"trespass," by Gataker; and, "guilty of a trespass," by
Blayney. The contradiction of guilt is what is meant, as the punishment
is announced in the next words. See
<19A514>Psalm
105:14,
15.-Ed.
ftA29
The literal rendering of this verse is as follows,
-
5. Thus saith Jehovah, What have
your fathers found in me? Oppression? For they have gone far from me, And have
followed after vanity, And have become vain.
The
word
lwç,
oppression, injustice, or tyranny, is so placed in the sentence that it cannot
be construed with "what." The word "vanity" means often an idol, and it is so
considered here by the Targum, by Piscator, Grotius, Gataker, and
others. It is often found in the plural, "vanities," as it is here in the
Septuagint; see
<053221>Deuteronomy
32:21;
<111626>1
Kings 16:26;
<193106>Psalm
31:6: but it is here the poetical singular. They "became vain," that is,
foolish, sottish, having no more sense or reason than their idols, as idolaters
are represented in
<19B508>Psalm
115:8. Their senselessness is set forth in the next verse. An idol is especially
called "vanity," because it can do no good and avails nothing: deluded
imagination alone gives it all its efficacy and power. Samuel gives a true
account of idols,
<091221>1
Samuel 12:21. But as long as the devil deceives and deludes the world, idols and
images will be in repute, though they are in themselves wholly useless and
worthless, while yet they prove ruinous to the souls of
men.-Ed.
ftA30
Though the general import of this verse is given, yet the version is not very
accurate. I offer the
following-
And they have not said,
" Where is Jehovah, Who brought us up from the land of Egypt, Who led us in the
wilderness, Through a land of waste and of the pit, Through a land of drought
and of the shadow of death, Through a land in which no man traveled, And no
human being dwelt there?"
The word "pit" is used
poetically, the singular for the plural, and correctly rendered "pits" in our
version. It is probably an allusion to the practice of digging pits and covering
them over, in order to catch wild beasts; and the word is used here only to
express hidden dangers. "The shadow of death" means a barren dreariness. After
"land," in the last line but one,
rça
is supplied by three MSS., and by the Septuagint, though by no means in
character with the Greek language; but the idiom of the Hebrew requires it, and
is no doubt the true reading. I have rendered
µda
in the last line, after Blayney, "human being." The five last lines are
thus given by the Septuagint, -
Who conducted you
in the wilderness,
In
a land unknown and inaccessible
(ajba>tw|)
In
a land without water and barren
(ajka>rpw|-fruitless)
In
a land through which no man
passed,
And no son of
man inhabited there.
The word "barren" is rendered more literally by
Theodotion, "skias
qana>tou-of the shadow of
death."-Ed.
ftA31
That the word means a fruitful field or country is evident from
<231018>Isaiah
10:18;
<231610>Isaiah
16:10;
<240426>Jeremiah
4:26, etc. there was also a city bearing this name, situated in the tribe of
Judah,
<061555>Joshua
15:55, and also a mountain belonging to the tribe of Manasseh,
<061926>Joshua
19:26.-Ed.
ftA32
"And ye came" is left out. The same verb
in a causative sense is used at the beginning of the verse, rendered, "I
brought." It would be more striking to retain the same verb, and not to use "
but when" in the latter instance, as in our
version,-
And I caused you to come
into a fruitful land, To eat its fruit and its rich produce; And ye came and
polluted my land, And made mine heritage an
abomination.
The whole runs thus much better,
and has the conciseness of poetry: and the idea intended to be conveyed is more
apparent-God caused them to come, and they
came.-Ed.
ftA33
It appears that the Prophet has already condemned the people in the foregoing
portion of this chapter. In
<240118>Jeremiah
1:18, we find the different classes thus arranged-kings and princes, priests,
the people of the land. At the beginning of this chapter, he addresses the
people-the whole community, and here he names the priests, and the pastors,
i.e., in the state, including kings and princes. Thus he reverses
the order according to the common usage of Scripture: but to these are added
here, prophets, because they were the spiritual pastors, as kings and princes
were the
civil.-Ed.
ftA34
Perhaps no better word can express the verb here used than that of our
versions., "handle"-"they that handle the law," that is. explain and teach it.
To "handle the harp," is to play on it,
<010421>Genesis
4:21; to "handle war," is to carry it on,
<043127>Numbers
31:27; to "handle the our," is to ply with it,
<262729>Ezekiel
27:29; and to "handle the bow," is either to use it, or to know how to use it,
<300215>Amos
2:15. They who handled the law were evidently those who undertook to explain and
teach it to others. To lay hold on, seems to be the primary meaning of the verb,
and that either for a good or a bad purpose. "The Scribes," observes Scott,
"who undertook to expound the Scriptures, did not understand
them."-Ed.
ftA35
Some say that idols are referred to; and
others, as Calvin think that the false gods are intended: the meaning is
the same; only the context seems more favorable to the latter idea. The
Septuagint have a neuter adjective, " After what is
profitless-ajnwfelou~s-have
they gone." The verb for profit is plural; and if we take
al
only as a negative, both the antecedent and relative are omitted: but
al
here, and in
<240211>Jeremiah
2:11, and in other places, is evidently a noun or a pronoun, signifying
none or nothing: and like neb, none, in Welsh, it is
either singular or plural, according to the verb in connection with it. It
precedes here a verb in the plural number, and in
<240211>Jeremiah
2:11, in the singular. The relative is often understood both in Hebrew and in
Welsh before future verbs, and in both languages especially when the
present time or act is intended. In the present instance, both languages may be
considered to be literally the same. The Hebrew, word for word, may be thus
rendered in Welsh:
Arol neb a lesant y
rhodiasant.
After
none (who) profit have they walked.
That is, After none who can do them good have they
gone.-Ed.
ftA36
Gataker thinks that it was verbal
pleading: "It is as if he had said, 'I have argued the case with your
forefathers already, let me debate the matter a little further with you, and let
your posterity also consider well what I now say, ' (see
<053119>Deuteronomy
31:19, 31.) And so is the same word afterwards used for debating the case or
pleading, verse 29
(<240229>Jeremiah
2:29)." Henry, Adam Clarke, and Blayney, take the same view; but
Scott seems to agree with Calvin. The verb
bwr,
followed as it is here by
ta,
ever means a verbal dispute or contention. See
<042013>Numbers
20:13;
<161311>Nehemiah
13:11, 17; Proverb 25:9;
<234509>Isaiah
45:9.-Ed.
ftA37
Parkhurst doubts whether the word
µyya,
rendered islands, has ever strictly that meaning. He renders the singular,
ya,
a settlement, a habitation, and refers to
<182230>Job
22:30;
<232006>Isaiah
20:6; and says, that the plural, in
<234215>Isaiah
42:15, ought to be rendered "habitable places," and not "islands," as in our
version. It may be rendered here, "countries," as by
Blarney.-Ed.
ftA38
"Their glory" are by some considered to be
God himself, and not the glory, that is, the honor, dignity, and greatness which
he bestowed on the people, as Calvin here intimates: but the latter is
more consistent with what follows, which literally is, "for nothing that
profits:" for the
al
here, as in
<240208>Jeremiah
2:8, is evidently a noun, or a pronoun. The comparison here is between what God
gives and what false gods give; the comparison before was between God himself
and the false gods. God gives glory, renders his people great and illustrious;
but the false gods give nothing that profits, that really benefits, or does any
good.-Ed.
ftA39
Blarney, following the Septuagint,
renders the verbs as in the third person plural. "The heavens are
astonished," etc.; but it is better to take them as being in the second person
in the imperative mood, as both Aquila and Symmachus do. Similar
passages are so construed, see
<230102>Isaiah
1:2. There is alliteration in the two first words, as though we said in our
language, "Heave, ye heavens:" and there is a gradation in the expressions-be
astonished-be horrified-be wholly wasted, or consumed, or dried
up,-
Astonished be ye, the heavens,
for this, And be horrified, Be ye wholly wasted, saith
Jehovah.
The alteration in the last verb, in
accordance with the Syriac,
wdrj,
which means to "tremble," instead of
wbrj,
though proposed by Secker and approved by Horsley, is by no means
necessary, and countenanced by no MSS. Nor is the emendation of Blarney,
in conformity with the Septuagint, to be at all approved. These
alterations are not only unnecessary, but destroy the expressive and striking
character of the passage. Learned men are sometimes led too much by an
innovating spirit.-Ed.
ftA40
Blarney innovated here, because he
seemed not rightly to distinguish between the two words that are here used. Both
are rendered " cisterns" in our version; but they are two distinct words, though
they are similar, and mean similar or the same things. The first is
twrab,
pits, and the other is
trab
in our received text, but ought evidently to be
twrb,
or, as in one MS.,
trwb,
which means "wells" or pools. The first is a feminine noun, the last is a
masculine noun; and hence we find that the adjective added here to the last word
is masculine, as in other places, see
<050611>Deuteronomy
6:11;
<142610>2
Chronicles 26:10;
<160925>Nehemiah
9:25; while the first is accompanied with adjectives in the feminine gender. The
verse may be thus rendered,-
For
two evils have my people done,- Me have they forsaken, the fountain of living
waters; In order to dig for themselves pits, Broken wells, which cannot hold
water.
It is singular that Adam Clarke
should say that these cisterns were "vessels in put together," since they
were pits dug in the ground to receive
rain-water.-Ed.
ftA41
The difficulty of understanding this passage has arisen from not considering the
questions in a negative sense, as implying a strong denial-"Is Israel a servant
(or, rather a slave)?" No, by no means. "Is he one begotten in the house," that
is, in a state of bondage? No, by no means. Then the following question comes
naturally; since he is neither a purchased slave, nor a slave born in the house,
"why has he become a prey?" That there were two sorts of slaves of this kind is
evident from many parts of Scripture. See
<011712>Genesis
17:12,
<011723>Genesis
17:23,
<011727>Genesis
17:27;
<022104>Exodus
21:4; Leviticus 22: l1. This is the view taken evidently in our version, by
Jun and Trem., Piscator, Gataker, Grotius, Henry, and
Scott.
Blarney renders the two
first lines thus,-
Is Israel a
slave? or if a child of the household, Wherefore is he exposed to
spoil?
He considers "the child of the household"
to be the son and the heir, as Isaac was, and refers to
<480407>Galatians
4:7. Horsley coincides with him. But the usus loquendi gives no
countenance to this view, while it confirms the other. To refer to
filiusfamilias in Latin is to no purpose. "The child of the house," as
the expression literally is, and similar phrases, ever mean in Scripture those
who were born slaves in a
family.-Ed.
ftA42
The verse literally is as
follows,-
Over him shall young
lions roar; They have uttered their
voice,
And have made his land a
waste; His cities are grown over with grass, Without an
inhabitant.
The verb in the first line is
future, the other verbs are in the past tense; and Blarney thinks that
they are so put to denote the certainty of what is said, as it is often done by
the prophets: and this is rendered probable by what is contained in
<240407>Jeremiah
4:7, where the same judgment is spoken of. The verb
htxn,
in the received text, ought evidently to be
wtxn,
according to the Keri and twenty MSS.; and so we find it in
<240910>Jeremiah
9:10. Our version and Calvin give it the idea of "burning;" but according
to Leigh and Parkhurst, its meaning is, to shoot forth, to produce
grass, or to grow over with grass, as the case is with ruined cities; and the
words connected with it here and in other places seem to favor this meaning. It
is rendered in our version, "laid waste, " in
<240407>Jeremiah
4:7, and "desolate" in
<244619>Jeremiah
46:19.-Ed.
ftA43
There have been many expositions of this
latter clause, which may be seen in the Assembly's Annotations, which were
written, as to Isaiah and Jeremiah, by the learned Gataker. He
gives the preference to the idea, that the crown of the head means the best and
the principal part of the land, and to break the crown means the plunder of this
portion. See
<232804>Isaiah
28:4. This seems to correspond in meaning with the previous verse. It was the
opinion of Blarney that an allusion is prophetically made to the slaying
of Josiah by the Egyptians. The words literally
are,
They shall break thee, the
crown of the head.
"The crown of the head" seems
to be explanatory of "thee;" it might then be
rendered,-
They shall break thee,
even the crown of thy head.
The Septuagint
mistook one letter for another, and took the verb to be,
°w[dy,
"they knew thee," instead of
°w[ry
"they shall break thee;" but what they made the last word to be, it is hard to
know, for they rendered it, "and searched thee." The Vulgate has followed
the Septuagint; and the idea is a very indecent one: and there is nothing
in the context to favor it. The Targum's paraphrase is this, "They shall
slay thy brave men, and plunder thy riches;" which countenances the idea
evidently conveyed by the figurative terms of the
Hebrew.
The next verse literally rendered is as
follows,-
Is not this what thou
wilt do for thyself, By thy forsaking of Jehovah thy God, At the time he was
leading thee in the way?
The first verb is no
doubt future, whether it be rendered in the second or third person. The sentence
may be rendered in Welsh without "Is," or the relative "what," and word
for word,-
Ai nid hyn a wnai i'th
hun? And the future is understood as the present. Blayney's version is, Shall
not this be done unto thee, Because thou hast forsaken Jehovah thy God, At the
time that he led thee in the
way?-Ed.
ftA44
No doubt this is the peculiar import of the
passage, as though the Prophet had said, "What good to thee is to travel to
Egypt to drink the waters of Sihor, a muddy river, (as the word imports;) and
what good to thee is to travel to Assyria to drink the waters of the river,
while thou hast at home a fountain of living, pure and perennial waters?" So
Gataker considers the drift of the passage:-"To drink the water of Nilus
in Egypt is put here for to seek help and relief there: but he delivereth it in
these terms, as if he should say, that they could have nothing to do there, or
no errand thither, unless it were to drink of the puddle water of that river,
when they had, or might have had, as good, yea, far better than that, nearer at
hand, at home. See
<241814>Jeremiah
18:14; so
<120103>2
Kings 1:3." Then the plainest version would be
thus,-
And now, what hast thou to
do with a journey to Egypt, That thou mightest drink the waters of Sihor? And
what hast thou to do with a journey to Assyria, That thou mightest drink the
waters of the river?
The comparison evidently is
between the waters of Sihor and of the river Euphrates, and the living waters.
As in other parts of Scripture the Euphrates is no doubt meant by the river,
though here, as in
<198011>Psalm
80:11, and
<230720>Isaiah
7:20, the article
h is
not prefixed to
it.-Ed.
ftA45
Blarney renders it "adversity." That
the word sometimes means that, is true, but most commonly wickedness; and this
is the sense required by the context: it must be that which corresponds in
character with the word that follows-apostasy, or turning aside. " Wickedness"
is the meaning sanctioned by all the early versions, as well as
modern.-Ed.
ftA46
The word is singular in all the early
versions. It is rendered
"apostasy-ajpostasi>a,"
by the Septuagint, and, "turning aside-aversio," by the
Vulgate. Though there is no MS. in favor of the singular, yet the
verb connected with it is in that number. The true reading no doubt is according
to the versions, confirmed as it is by the number of the
verb.-Ed.
ftA47
The verse literally is as
follows,-
19.Chastise thee shall
thy wickedness, And thy apostasy, it shall correct thee; Know then and see, That
evil and bitter shall be Thy forsaking of Jehovah thy God; And my fear is not in
thee, Saith the Lord, Jehovah of hosts.
The
future is spoken of. They were warned; they were to know and see, or consider,
that the forsaking of God, "the apostasy," would be afflictive and bitter: and
then the cause of the "wickedness" first mentioned is stated, no "fear" of God.
How "wickedness" was to chastise them, and "apostasy" to correct them, is
signified,-they would turn out to be "evil"-afflictive-hurtful, and
"bitter"-grievous-painfully distressing. Hence Grotfius's exposition
cannot be right-"Thy wickedness shall be a proof that thou art justly punished."
The reference is to the very evils and miseries to which their "wickedness" and
"apostasy" would inevitably lead them. Their foreign alliances were eventually
the means of their degradation and misery; and in seeking them, they forsook God
as their protector; and by adopting idols, they forsook him as the object of
their worship.-Ed.
ftA48
On the authority of the Septuagint and
of the Vulgate, Blarney has rendered this verb and the following in the
second person, "thou hast broken, " etc. There is no MS. that has this reading
except one, and that as to the first verb only. The Targum and the
Syriac retain the first person; but the Arabic the second. There
is no necessity of a change, as Blarney intimates, arising from the
usus loquendi; see
<242802>Jeremiah
28:2;
<230904>Isaiah
9:4. Jerome followed the Septuagint; but all modern versions have
adopted the Hebrew text. Horsley gives this
version,-
20. Verily of old time I
broke thy yoke, I burst thy bands asunder; Yet thou saidst, I will not obey:
Verily, upon every high hill, And under every green tree, Thou layest thyself
along, playing the strumpet.
Blarney
having proposed to amend the last line, the Bishop justly says, "The text wants
no correction." The verb
h[x
found only here, and in
<244812>Jeremiah
48:12, and in
<235114>Isaiah
51:14;
<236301>Isaiah
63:1, means, according to Buxtorff and Leigh, to wander, to
ramble, to travel up and down, and in a transitive sense, to cause to travel, or
to migrate; but, according to Parkhurst, to stretch out, to lie along,
and transitively to cause to be stretched out, that is, to throw down. The first
meaning is more suitable to the passages referred to above. It is here a
participle, preceded by a pronoun, "thou," the way in which a present act is
commonly expressed in Hebrew. The line may then be thus
rendered,-
Thou ramblest, playing
the strumpet.
The Targum gives the
meaning, though not the right tense, "Thou didst worship
idols."-Ed.
ftA49
The received Text has
db[,
to serve, and the Keri,
rb[,
to transgress. In favor of the latter there are about 30 MSS., while the rest of
those examined by Kennicott (in all 198, 71 examined throughout, and 127 on
particular parts) retain the former verb, and also all the early versions, the
Septuagint, the Syriac, the Arabic, and the
Vulgate. The Targum only has the latter. Piscator,
Jun. and Trem., Capellus, Blarney, and Horsley
decide with Calvin in favor of the former; while Munster and
Gataker side with our version and that of Geneva, in which the
latter has been adopted. Clearly the former has the weight of authority: and the
contrast, too, is striking, "I have broken thy bonds of slavery; but thou hast
refused to serve or obey me." The former part of this verse is of the same
purport with
<240206>Jeremiah
2:6, and the latter with
<240225>Jeremiah
2:25. The verse begins with
yk,
rendered "for" in our version, by Calvin, and many others, but "surely"
by Blarney, and "verily" by Horsley. It is omitted in the
Vulgate. Were it rendered "though," the meaning would be more
evident,-
Though from old time I
had broken thy yoke, I had burst thy bands asunder; Yet thou hast said, "I will
not obey:" For on every high hill and under every green tree Thou ramblest,
playing the
strumpet.-Ed.
ftA50
The word means not only the seed of
vegetables, but whatever forms that from which anything grows. It is applied as
a verb to the planting of shoots or cuttings in
<231710>Isaiah
17:10. The proper rendering here would
be,-
The whole of it a genuine
plant (or shoot).
What is rendered "choice
vine,"
qrwç
is the yellow vine; the best was so called, because it produced wine of that
color.-Ed.
ftA51
Much difference exists as to the literal meaning of this clause, though the
general meaning is quite evident. None of the early versions are the same. The
word
yrws
is rendered, "into bitterness-eijv
pikri>an," by the Septuagint; "thou hast
rebelled," by the Syriac; "into what is corrupt-in pravurn," by the
Vulgate; "thou hast declined from my fear," by the Targum.
Blarney takes it as a verb in the imperative mood, and renders the two lines
thus,-
Yet how I find thee changed!
Depart, O vine of spurious growth.
But there is
a harshness and incongruity in this version that renders it inadmissible.
Besides "vine of spurious growth" is not the meaning of the words used, for it
is "a foreign vine," that is, a heathen vine; which contains an allusion to the
idolatry which had been imported from heathen
nations.
It is most probable that
yrws,
or in full,
µyrws,
means degenerate shoots or branches, as Parkhurst thinks. To turn aside,
to decline, to degenerate, seems to be the most common meaning of the verb.
There would in this case be a congruity in the whole
verse,-
And I myself had planted
thee a choice vine, The whole of it a genuine plant; How then art thou become to
me The degenerate shoots of a foreign vine?
The
plant was of the best kind, but the shoots or the branches had become
degenerated, such as a foreign or heathen vine
produced.-Ed.
ftA52
What we call "nitre" is different from the
"nitron" here mentioned. The verb, from which the noun is derived, means to
loosen, to set free: and hence the article called nitron dissolves in water, and
loosens and washes away spots and stains. Borith was an herb, which,
being burnt, and its ashes dissolved in water, had a strong cleansing
power.-Ed.
ftA53
The verb rendered "stamped" is only found
here in Niphel, but, as a participial noun, it seems to mean gold stamped or
marked to shew its genuineness. See
<194509>Psalm
45:9;
<202512>Proverbs
25:12. A stain or spot is not what it signifies, as given by the Septuagint
and the Vulgate, nor "blot," according to Blarney; but it refers to
the stamp or mark imprinted on a hard metal, such as gold: and this idea alone
corresponds with the other parts of the verse. A stain, a spot, or a blot, might
be cleansed by abstergents, but not a mark stamped on a
metal,-
But thou washest thyself
with nitron, And multipliest for thyself fuller's ashes: Stamped is thine
iniquity before me, Saith the Lord
Jehovah.-Ed.
ftA54
"The Jews, it seems," says Loath, "had
found out distinctions, whereby to reconcile the worship of the true God with
those religious rites which they paid to the deities of the heathen, called here
Baalim. These, they pretended, were only inferior demons or spirits, or the
souls of men departed, and might be worshipped in subordination to the supreme
God." Scott adds to this quotation this just remark, "This, and nothing
better, can the Papists urge in excuse of their manifest idolatry in worshipping
saints and angels"
-Ed.
ftA55
The grammatical anomalies at the beginning of
this verse are satisfactorily removed by Parkhurst, and what he has
proposed is approved by Horsley. He considers
hrp
to be the female dromedary, he derives
dml
from
dm,
measure, or extent, with a
l
prefixed, and regards
hçpn
as the true reading, being that of the Keri, and of the largest number of
MSS. This verse and the preceding are to be thus
connected,-
23. How canst thou say,
" I have not been polluted, After Baalim have I not walked!" See thy way in the
valley, Know what thou hast done,- Like a swift dromedary which winds about her
courses,-
24.A female which, in the
wide space of the wilderness, Through the desire of her natural instinct, Snuffs
up the wind she meets with: Who can turn her back? All who seek her, Let them
not weary themselves; In her month they shall find
her.
By "winding about her courses," or tracks,
or ways, is meant running in this and in that direction, and not in a straight
course. The word, as a noun, denotes the string or latchet by which the ancients
fastened their sandals, and which they twined round the feet. "The wind
she meets with," is literally, "the wind of her meeting." The Septuagint
and the early versions have departed widely from the original; the
Vulgate comes nearest to it; nor is the Targum far
off-Ed.
ftA56
That the word means to be barefooted, or
without shoes, is clear from
<232002>Isaiah
20:2-4, and also from
<101530>2
Samuel 15:30: and it is nowhere else found except here. It being here a noun, it
signifies literally barefootedness. They are here exhorted not to travel for aid
to foreign lands, so as to wear out their shoes and thus become barefooted. This
was said in contempt, in order to pour ridicule on their folly in seeking
foreign aid.-Ed.
ftA57
It has been disputed whether the negative
"no," refers to the advice given at the beginning of the verse, or to the
immediately preceding word. The latter is the most natural. The word
çawn
is a participle, as in
<180626>Job
6:26. The verse may be thus
rendered,-
25. Keep thy foot from
being bare And thy throat from thirst; But thou hast said, " Hopeless! No; For I
have loved strangers, And after them will I
go."
The first part implies that they were
pursuing a useless course. The insolent answer was, "Is it hopeless? By no
means." The Septuagint omit the negative, and have only
"ajndriou~mai-I
will act manfully;" and this version has been followed by the Syriac and
Arabic. The Vulgate has, "desperavi, nequaquam faciam-I
have despaired, I will by no means do so." The most literal rendering is
given above, and affords the best and the most suitable
meaning.
To confess that it was a hopeless thing
to attempt to reform them, is not so appropriate, as to deny it to be hopeless
to have recourse to foreign alliances: which seems to be the import of the
passage. This is the view which Gataker seemed most inclined to take; and
he mentions this rendering, "Should I despair? No." To the same purpose is the
version of Jun. and Trem. But Grotius, Henry,
and Adam Clarke, agree with the explanation of
Calvin.-Ed.
ftA58
The verb rendered "is ashamed," is in the
past tense in Huphal, and means "made ashamed," or, "confounded," as rendered,
by the Targum and the Vulgate. The Septuagint have
converted it into the future tense, and so have the Syriac and the
Arabic, which have been followed by most modern versions, and by
commentators. If we rightly view the whole passage, we shall see reason to take
this verb as we find it, in the past tense. The verse is an answer, as it were,
to what is contained in the latter part of the previous verse, by a reference to
what had already taken place as to the people of Judah; and the 30th verse
(<240230>Jeremiah
2:30) countenances the past tense. This and the following verse may be thus
rendered,-
26.As a thief is ashamed
when he is found out, So made ashamed have been the house of Israel, They, their
kings, their princes, Their priests and their
prophets;
27.Who have said to the
wood, "My father art thou," And to the stone, "Thou hast begotten me." Though
they have turned to me the back and not the face; Yet in the time of their
calamity, They say, "Arise and save us."
The
participles in Hebrew are regulated as to their tense by the verbs in the
passage. Hence
µyrma
in
<240227>Jeremiah
2:27, is to be in the same tense with the previous verb. The future in the last
line is to be in the present, as it expresses what was commonly done. Then what
was usually said to them is mentioned in the following
verse,-
28.But where are thy gods,
which thou hast made for thyself? Let them arise, if they can save thee In the
time of thy calamity: For according to the number of thy cities Have been thy
gods, O Judah.
Blayney has kept to the
past tense as to the last line, and also as to the beginning of
<240226>Jeremiah
2:26.-Ed.
ftA59
The words employed by Calvin are the
technical terms, latria and dulia, the fictions of the Papists.
The first means specifically worship, and the second, service, obedience. The
verb
douleu>w
in the New Testament is never used in the sense of worshipping or adoring, but
of serving and obeying: but to bow to images or to kiss them, is an act of
adoration, and not of
service.-Ed.
ftA60
The "neck" here means evidently the hinder
part, for it is in contrast with " face;" and the word generally means the
hinder part. Hence it is properly rendered here "back" in our version and by
Blayney, and so by the Targum and the early versions, except the
Syriac, which retains the hinder part of the neck. We have no single
word, except it be nape, which denotes the back part of the neck. There is one
in Welsh, " gwegil, " and so in Latin, " cervix, " and in
Greek,
ajuch<n.
But the Septuagint have adopted here
"nw~ta-backs."-Ed.
ftA61
The verb rendered "plead" in our version, is
followed by
la,
against or in opposition to. There are two other instances,
<072122>Judges
21:22;
<183313>Job
33:13. Our version in Job is, "Why dost thou strive against him?" The most
suitable rendering of this passage
is,
Why should ye contend against
(or, with) me?
Then follows a fact sufficient to
put an end to all contention,-
All
of you have rebelled against me, Saith
Jehovah.
The primary idea of
[çp
is, to go, to pass, to march on. See
<232804>Isaiah
28:4. Its meaning depends on the preposition which follows it. Followed by
l[,
over, it means to transgress, it being a going or passing over the
limits set by the law,
<280801>Hosea
8:1,-by
m,
to go from, to revolt, to apostatize,
<120822>2
Kings 8:22,-and by
b,
to go against, to rebel, as in this passage. Hence the noun has attained various
meanings-transgression, apostasy, and rebellion. Its precise meaning in any case
is to be determined by the context. Gataker and Blayhey render the
verb here the same,-
All of you
have rebelled against me, saith Jehovah.
The
early versions vary. The Septuagint have
"hjsebh>sate-ye
have acted impiously," the Syriac, "ye have denied me,"-the
Arabic, "ye have sinned against me,"-and the Vulgate, "ye have
forsaken me." The general idea is the same, but the specific one is that of
rebelling against
God.-Ed.
ftA62
Blayney renders the word
"instruction." The Septuagint have
"paidei>an-discipline:
"the Syriac, Vulgate, and the Targum are the same; but the
Arabic has "instruction-eruditionem." The strict meaning of the word
rswm,
is restraint, check, discipline, correction. Not to receive restraint or
correction, is not to be thereby improved or reformed, but to proceed in the
same course, see
<240503>Jeremiah
5:3. The word has also a secondary meaning, instruction, as the effect of
correction, see
<360307>Zephaniah
3:7. But here it clearly means
correction.-Ed.
ftA63
The beginning of this verse literally is "The
age, ye," that is, "Ye of this age," or generation. He was speaking before more
especially of the preceding age. He now appeals to the people of that
generation,-
Ye of this age, see,
spoken hath Jehovah,- Have I been a wilderness to Israel, Or a land of darkness?
Why have they said, even my people, "We have ruled, we will no more come to
thee?"
The above rendering of the latter part of
the first line is favored by the Septuagint, "Hear ye the word of the
Lord; thus saith the Lord." The Arabic is the same. The Vulgate
has, "See the word of the Lord,"-and the Syriac, "Hear the word of
the Lord.' Blayney renders thus, "Behold ye the cause of Jehovah."
Gataker takes "see" in the sense of considering, "See, "or seriously
consider, "the word of the Lord." The particle
µa
after
h,
may be rendered "or," as in the Syriac. See
<060513>Joshua
5:13. The word
hylpam
is found in two MSS.,
hlypam,
which seems to be the true reading, countenanced by the Targum, and all
the early versions, except the Vulgate, which has "serotina-lateward."
Darkness is a common metaphor for wretchedness and misery "We have ruled" is the
literal rendering of
wndr,
and there is no other reading. The Septuagint gives the same meaning,
though the form is different, "We shall not be lorded
over-ouj
kurieuqhso>meqa." The Arabic is the same.
It is the language of proud independence. The Targum, the Vulgate,
and the Syriac have mistaken the verb for
wndry,
which means, to descend, to come down, to bring down. Blayney gives the
correct idea, "We are our own masters, "which Horsley approves. The
preterite in Hebrew often includes the present; so the full meaning is, "We have
ruled and do
rule."-Ed.
ftA64
The second word,
hlk,
is rendered "sponsa-a bride," in our version, by Calvin and Blayney,
and so by the Vulgate, Syriac, and the Targum, but by the
Septuagint,
"parqe>nov-a
virgin:" and Parkhurst says that it never means a bride. The version then
ought to be,
Can a maid forget her
ornaments, A virgin her bands?
That the word
µyrçq
means bands of some kind is evident, as the verb signifies to bind, to join
closely. Bands or bandage for the
breast-sthqodesmi>da,
is the version of the Septuagint; the Arabic and the Vulgate
are the same. Parkhurst considers that "head-bands" are meant. The
word is found also in
<230320>Isaiah
3:20; where the Septuagint render it
"daktuli>oiv-rings,"
and the Targum, "murenulas-chains," which were of gold, and worn around
the neck. For any practical purpose it is only necessary to know that they were
embellishments which young women delighted in: and women in every age are too
fond of such things, and men too; but the case is introduced here only for the
sake of
illustration.-Ed.
ftA65
The exposition of this verse is no doubt
materially correct. The words have been variously rendered, On the first clause
there is a general agreement, The verb "taught" in the second, is in the first
person in the received text; and to this reading Blayney gives the
preference, and thus renders the
line,-
Therefore also have I taught
calamities thy ways.
That is, "that God had
directed calamities where to find them." But this, is rather a remote idea. In
favor of the second person, "thou hast taught, "are several MSS., all the early
versions and the Targum; and it is what has been by most adopted. "The
wicked ones" of our version is a rendering not countenanced by any of the
ancient versions, nor by the Targum; all render it evil or evils or
wickednesses.-Ed.
ftA66
Our version of this text seems on the whole
the best. "Blood,"
µd,
is to be taken here in a collective sense, as the verb to which it belongs is
plural. Instead of "poor innocents, "it ought rather to be "the innocent poor,
"as the noun in Hebrew generally precedes its adjective. "Found" is in the first
person, and there is no different reading, and it is so in the Septuagint,
and the Vulgate, though the Syriac and Arabic give the
second person, and the Targum the third person plural, as Calvin
does. The last word is rendered "these" in the Vulgate and the
Targum; but "oak" in the Septuagint, the Syriac, and the
Arabic, and adopted by Blayney, but disapproved by Houbigant
and Horsley. As to the word, rendered in our version, "secret
search," the early versions have pit, pits, or ditches, and so the
Targum. Blayney renders it "a digged hole, "of which Horsley
approves; and he refers, as an illustration, to
<031713>Leviticus
17:13, and to
<262407>Ezekiel
24:7. The word means digging, and seems to be used here metaphorically for
searching; there is no need of adding "secret" to
it,-
Also in thy skirts has been
found The blood of the souls of the innocent poor: Not by searching have I found
it, But upon all these (i.e., skirts.)
The
reference is to what is said in
<240230>Jeremiah
2:30, where the Jews are charged with the killing the prophets. As to "the
blood, "we find a similar passage in
<262407>Ezekiel
24:7, 8.-Ed.
ftA67
The literal rendering of this verse is as
follows:-
35. And thou hast said,
"Verily I have been innocent; Surely turned away has he his anger from me: "
Behold I will contend in judgment with thee, On account of thy saying, "I have
not sinned."
The Septuagint have rendered
the second line, "Let his anger be turned away from me;" the Vulgate and
the Arabic are the same. The Syriac is, "therefore he turns away
his anger from me." "Turned away is his anger, "is the Targum, Piscator,
Jun. and Trem. Blayney renders
it,-
Surely his wrath shall turn
from me.
There is no reason for construing the
verb in the future tense, or in the imperative mood. It is in the past tense,
and there is no other reading. The claim of innocency is made on the supposition
that God had turned away his displeasure. Hence the declaration that
follows-that God would contest the matter-would bring it as it were into trial,
as the verb here when in Niphal
means.-Ed.
ftA68
The idea of gadding, or of running here and
there, is not countenanced by any of the early versions. The notion of vileness
or degradation is what the versions convey. The Vulgate
is,-
Quinn vilis factus es
nimis, iterans vias tuas! How extremely worthless art thou become, iterating thy
ways!
The other versions are nearly of the same
general import. Blayney's version
is,-
Why wilt thou make thyself
exceedingly vile, In repeating over again thy
ways?
Modern critics have considered the verb to
be
lza,
and not
lz.
It no doubt may be either. As shame is threatened at the end of the verse, the
latter verb is the most
suitable,-
Why shouldest thou
become wholly degraded By repeating thy course? Even by Egypt shalt thou be put
to shame, As thou hast been put to shame by
Assyria.
"Course," or way, means here a
proceeding, and to repeat it is to pursue a course similar to what had been
previously
adopted.-Ed.
ftA69
There are three other expositions of the
words rendered by Calvin, "on this account." One is that of our version,
"from him;" the second is, "from hence," i.e., from Egypt,
adopted by Piscator, Grotius, and Blayney; and the third is, "from
here," i.e., from this place, their own land; which, as
Gataker says, is probably "the genuine sense:" it is a threatening, that
they were to be led into captivity. The rendering of the Septuagint is,
"ejnteu~qen-from
hence," or from this place; of the Vulgate, "ab ista-from that," meaning,
evidently Egypt; of the Syriac and Targum, "ex hoc-from this;" and
of Arabic, "illinc-from thence." The particle
hz
is "this," and not
"that."-Ed.
ftA70
"The gesture" mentioned here, a striking
example of, we find in
<101319>2
Samuel 13:19. Many consider the
w
here as having the meaning of "with," and render the line as Blayney
does,-
With thy hands upon thy
head.
But more consistent with the genius of the
language is to regard the auxiliary verb to be
understood,-
And thy hands shall be
on thy head.
There is a similar phrase in
<233510>Isaiah
35:10, which ought to be rendered
thus,-
And everlasting joy shall be
upon their heads.-Ed.
ftA71
The verb for "abhor" is
µam,
which means to reject, that is, with disdain and contempt; and the same when
followed by
b,
though often rendered "despise" in our version. It is rendered "reject, "without
the
b,
in
<091523>1
Samuel 15:23;
<240729>Jeremiah
7:29; and "despise" being followed by
b in
<070938>Judges
9:38;
<240430>Jeremiah
4:30. The early versions and the Targum mostly differ, and none of them
give the specific meaning of the verb, except that the Septuagint give
its meaning when not followed by
b,
"ajpw>sato-has
rejected." The whole verse may be thus
rendered,-
37.Also from this place
shalt thou go forth, And thy hands shall be on thy head: For rejected has
Jehovah those in whom thou trustest, And thou shalt not prosper by
them.
It is not correct to render
°yjfbm,
"thy confidences;" for the word means "thy confided ones, "it being a Huphal
participle. The Syriac renders it, "those who afford thee
confidence-fiduciam tibi praebentibus." Blayney's version is, "the
objects of thy trust;" and he translates the verb, "reprobated." That this is
its meaning when followed by
b is
evident from
<240630>Jeremiah
6:30.-Ed.
ftA72
The word at the beginning of this verse has
puzzled most, the form being so unusual. It is left out by the Septuagint,
the Syriac, and the Arabic. The Vulgate has
"vulgo dieitur-it is commonly said." But
l
means at times "according to;" and it may be so rendered
here,-
According to what is said,
If a man sends away his wife, And she goes from him and becomes another man's,
Is he to return to her again? Polluted, shall it not be polluted, even that
land? But thou hast played the harlot with many friends, Yet return to me, saith
Jehovah.
The particle
ˆh
in the first line is Chaldee for
µa;
it is so rendered by the Targun and the early versions. The pronoun
ayhh
after "land" cannot be rendered as Calvin proposes; it agrees in gender
with "land." It is singular that the Septuagint, the Vulgate, and
the Arabic, have "woman" instead of "land;" yet the Syriac and
Targum retain "land: "but in them all this pronoun is construed with the
noun. Gataker takes "land" here, and in
<052404>Deuteronomy
24:4, as meaning "the state, "the community, and refers to
<043533>Numbers
35:33;
<19A638>Psalm
106:38;
<232405>Isaiah
24:5.-Ed.
ftA73
The Septuagint, the Syriac, and
the Arabic, have by a mistake rendered the word "pastors" or shepherds;
but the Vulgate has "lovers, "which our version and Blayney have
adopted. But the word means companions, friends, intimates, neighbors.
Gataker renders it
"mates."-Ed.
ftA74
Gataker suggests another idea,-that
the reference is made to the Arabian traders, who fix their tents in the
wilderness to wait for the merchants. Blayney renders the lines
differently,-
Lift up thine eyes
upon the open plains, and see; Where hast thou not been defiled in the highways?
Thou hast sat waiting in them like an Arabian in the
desert.
To render
µypç,
"open plains," is without authority; it means "craggy eminences, "or elevated
places. See
<042303>Numbers
23:3;
<234118>Isaiah
41:18;
<241406>Jeremiah
14:6. The division, too, is arbitrary. "The ways," or highways, connects better
with the following verb; and
µhl
is not "in them, "but to or for them, that is, her lovers, mentioned in the
preceding verse. Our version is the most suitable, with which that of Calvin
corresponds.
"Arabian" is rendered "crow" by
the Septuagint, the Syriac, and the Arabic; "robber" by the
Vulgate, but "Arabian" by the Targum. It is true that the word for
a crow is from the same root, but the iod attached to it shews it to be a
proper name. Where the Vulgate got the word "robber, "it is hard to
know.-Ed.
ftA75
It is usual to render the
w
before "restrained," "therefore;" but the sentence will read better, connected
as it is with the latter part of the previous verse, by giving it its most
common meaning,-
And restrained
have been the showers, And the latter rain has not been; Yet the front of a
wanton woman hast thou had, Thou hast refused to be made
ashamed.
This last verb is in the Infinitive
Huphal. It means in Hiphil, to make ashamed; and then in Huphal, to be made
ashamed. The Targum expresses thus the general sense of the last line,
"Thou hast been unwilling to humble thyself." The rest of the verse is rendered
almost literally. The Septuagint and the Arabic wander very far
from the Hebrew. The Vulgate is a literal version, and the Syriac
is nearly so, only it connects "wickedness, "in the last verse, with
restrained, thus,-
And for thy
wickedness have been restrained the dews.
And it
is not improbable but that this was the original
reading.-Ed.
ftA76
This and the preceding verse have been
variously explained. The view given by Calvin has been most commonly
adopted; but it is hardly consistent with a literal rendering of the original,
which I consider to be as
follows,-
4.Hast thou not from this
time called to me, " My Father, the guide of my youth art
thou:
5.Will he reserve wrath for
ever, Or keep it to the end?" Behold, thou hast so spoken, And hast done evils
and persevered.
"From this time," that is, the
time spoken of before, when the people followed idolatry. During this time, they
called God their Father, and promised themselves the remittance of his
displeasure. They said this, and yet followed their superstitions. This is the
view which Gataker seemed most disposed to take. Horsley thus
paraphrases the last line,-
" Thou
hast persisted incorrigibly in doing evil."
The
Septuagint give "called," in the past tense; the Vulgate, in the
imperative, "voca-call;" the Syriac, the Arabic, and the
Targum, in the future tense, "Wilt thou not call," etc. The received text
has
ytarq,
which is no doubt wrong; the iod is not found in very many MSS., and all
the early versions agree in giving the verb in the second person. The same is to
be said of
ytrbd,
it ought to be
trbd,
though Horsley prefers the former; but neither the early versions nor the
context favor it. The phrase
ht[m
is rendered by the Septuagint,
"wJs
oijko>n-as a house," and by the Arabic,
"ut filia-as a daughter." How such mistakes could have been made, it is
difficult to say. The Syriac has "hereafter;" and the Targum,
"from this
time."-Ed.
ftA77
It is correctly rendered as a noun, for had
it been an adjective or a participle, it would have followed the word Israel.
Literally it is, "the
apostates,"-
Hast thou seen what
she did, the apostates Israel?
Or, it may be
rendered, "the backslider Israel," though the word is deficient, having no
feminine
termination.-Ed.
ftA78
The difficulty at the beginning of the eighth
verse may be removed either by adopting
haraw,
as in two MSS., and taking the verb to be in Hiphil, or
artw,
as in one MS., as a repetition of the former verb, according to the
Syriac. It is left out in the Vulgate. But it is
most suitable to the context to take the verb to be in Hiphil. Then the passage
would read thus,-
6.Hast thou not
seen what she did, the apostate Israel? Go did she on every high hill and under
every green tree, And play there the
harlot:
7.And I said, after she had
done all these things, "To me return;" but she returned not: And see this did
the hypocrite, her sister
Judah:
8.And I caused her to see,
that on all these accounts, As adultery the apostate Israel would commit, I
dismissed her, and gave to her The bill of her divorcement; Yet fear not, did
the hypocrite Judah, her sister, But went and played the harlot, even
herself.
"On all these accounts," or, for all
these reasons, refers to several things-the first apostasy-God's invitation-and
Israel's refusal. God caused Judah to see these things by his prophets, but
Judah feared not. The word
hdgb,
hypocrite, or the perfidious one, is a feminine participle, used as a noun. It
is explained in the tenth verse by "feignedly" or falsely. Hypocrites would be
the correct rendering. It is rendered by the Septuagint,
"faithless-asu>nqetov,"-by
the Vulgate, "prevaricatress-praevaricatrix, "and by the Targum,
"falsifier" or
cheat.-Ed.
ftA79
This verse may be thus
rendered,-
And it was, that through
the report of her fornication, She polluted the land; And she committed adultery
with stone and wood.
There is no instance of
lq,
in the sense of swiftness, etc., being used as a noun. It is the Chaldee for
lwq,
voice, fame, report. Gataker paraphrases the words thus, "by her
notorious fornication." The early versions and the Targum all differ.
Excessive addiction to idolatry is evidently what is spoken
of.-Ed.
ftA80
This verse stands connected, not with the
preceding, but with the
eighth,-
Yea, even for all this,
Return to me did not the hypocrite, Her sister Judah, with all her heart, But in
falsehood, saith Jehovah.
"In falsehood," or, by
dealing falsely, as it may be taken by a participle preceded by a
preposition.-Ed.
ftA81
This is the literal expression, but the
word
çpn
is often taken for oneself, and ought often to be so rendered. See
<043005>Numbers
30:5;
<181804>Job
18:4;
<190702>Psalm
7:2; God is said to swear by his soul, that is, by himself,
<300608>Amos
6:8-
Then said Jehovah to me,-
Justified herself hath apostate Israel, More than the hypocrite
Judah.
Manifest and open apostasy is more honest
than the double dealing of hypocrites, who combine God's worship with idolatry;
nor is it so hateful to
God.-Ed.
ftA82
12.Go and proclaim these words
towards the north, and say,- Return, apostate Israel, saith Jehovah; I will not
cause my wrath to fall on you, For merciful am I, saith Jehovah; I will not
reserve it for ever.
That
ynp,
commonly rendered "face," means sometimes wrath or anger, is evident, see
<192109>Psalm
21:9;
<250416>Lamentations
4:16. God is said to have his face against the wicked,
<193416>Psalm
34:16, and to make his face to shine on his people,
<198003>Psalm
80:3. This accounts for the word being taken sometimes, as it were, in a bad
sense: He has an angry as well as a smiling
face.
The rendering of the Septuagint is,
"I will not set firm
(sthriw~)
my face upon you," of the Vulgate, "I will not turn away my face from
you," of the Syriac and Arabic, "I will not harden my face against
you," and of the Targum, "I will not send my wrath upon you." The last
comes nearest to the Hebrew.
Blayney's
version is a paraphrase,-
I
will not look down upon you with a lowering brow; and so is his version of the
last line,- I will not keep displeasure in view for
ever.
Our version in both instances is much to
be
preferred.-Ed.
ftA83
But yet know thine iniquity, That
against Jehovah thy God hast thou rebelled; For thou hast diversified thy ways
for strangers, Under every green tree; And to my voice ye hearkened not, saith
Jehovah.
The word
°a
is rendered by the early versions and the Targum, But, or But yet, or
Nevertheless, "Verum," "Verumtamen." The third line is thus explained by
Parkhurst, "Thou hast run after various heathen nations in their
several idolatries." And this they did, while they refused to attend to
the voice of God. To attend to, rather than to obey, is what is meant. So the
Vulgate and the Syriac, "My voice ye heard not," or, as the
former, "thou didst not
hear.-Ed.
ftA84
Nor is there an instance of such a meaning.
Literally it is, "For I have been married with (or to) thee." When this verb is
followed by
k,
as in
<243132>Jeremiah
31:32, this is its meaning; but when followed by
l,
as in
<130422>1
Chronicles 4:22, it means to rule, to exercise dominion. The Vulgate is,
For I am thy husband." The Targum gives the meaning, "For I have chosen
you." The Septuagint went astray, "For I will rule over
you."-Ed.
ftA85
The word is taken sometimes in a limited
sense, and means what we understand by family: but it has here evidently a more
extended meaning, and signifies a tribe, a community; for it includes more than
a city. Such is its meaning in
<240803>Jeremiah
8:3; and in Amos 3:l, it comprehends the whole community of Israel. It is
rendered "ejk
patria~v,-from a tribe," by the Septuagint,
but improperly; "kindred, "by the Vulgate and the Targum.
It no doubt means sometimes kindred, but not evidently in this
place.-Ed.
ftA86
Rather, "itself;" for the word often rendered
soul, has sometimes this meaning. See note on Jeremaih
3:11.-Ed.
ftA87
Blayney, following the Targurn,
renders pastors "rulers," and feed, "rule:" but this is to interpret and not
to translate, as the words have never strictly these meanings, though what are
sometimes to be understood by pastors are rulers, and by feeding, ruling or
governing. But the interpretation in this instance seems not to be correct, and
for the reason here assigned by Calvin. It is indeed the opinion
of Henry, Scott, Adam Clarke, and others, that both civil and
ecclesiastical pastors are intended; and if so, "knowledge" may be applied to
the latter, and "wisdom" to the former. The Septuagint have omitted
"wisdom," and retain only "knowledge." The Targum has "knowledge and
wisdom;" the Vulgate, "knowledge and doctrine;" the Syriac,
"knowledge and prudence;" and Blayney, "knowledge and discretion."
The verb
h[r
means "to feed on, "as in
<234420>Isaiah
44:20, or, as here, to "feed with." It means also to "feed itself" as a beast
does,
<231107>Isaiah
11:7.
ftA88
The literal rendering of this verse I
conceive to be the
following,-
16.And it shall be,
that ye shall multiply And be fruitful in the land. In those days, saith
Jehovah, they shall no more say,- " The Ark of the Covenant of Jehovah;" And it
shall not come to their mind, Nor shall they mention it, nor visit it; And not
made shall it be any more.
The two first lines
seem connected with the former verse. There is a gradation in the three last
lines,-It shall not be thought of, much less mentioned or named, as given by the
Septuagint,-still less be visited,-and much less still, be made. This
gradation is destroyed by Blayney by rendering the first
line,
Nor shall it be the delight
of their heart;
literally it is, "And it shall
not ascend on the heart." The "heart" means often in Hebrew the mind; and "to
come to mind" is the idea; it would not be thought of. The phrase occurs in this
book in two other places,
<240731>Jeremiah
7:31;
<244421>Jeremiah
44:21; and, not to think, or, not to come to mind, is the most suitable meaning,
as it is given in our version. The purpose of this kind of gradation is to
render the thing more certain and indisputable, so that there might be no room
for doubt.-Ed.
ftA89
This seems to be the best rendering.
Blayney leaves out the word "Jerusalem;" but for no sufficient reason.
The whole verse is as follows:-
In that day call
shall they Jerusalem, " The throne of Jehovah;" And gathered into it shall be
all the nations, For the name of Jehovah, even to Jerusalem; And they shall no
more walk after the resolutions of their wicked heart.—
Ed.
ftA90
"Evil" is connected with "hardness;" but it
belongs properly to "their heart." The word rendered "hardness" is
twrrç
a plural noun, found eight times in Jeremiah; here, and in
<240724>Jeremiah
7:24;
<240914>Jeremiah
9:14;
<241108>Jeremiah
11:8;
<241310>Jeremiah
13:10;
<241612>Jeremiah
16:12;
<241812>Jeremiah
18:12;
<242317>Jeremiah
23:17; and twice elsewhere,
<052919>Deuteronomy
29:19;
<198112>Psalm
81:12. It is so variously rendered by the Septuagint, that they evidently
did not understand its specific meaning;
ejnqumh>mata,
thoughts, devices; ta<
a]resta, things pleasing or agreeable;
pla>nh,
wandering. These words are used for it in Jeremiah. The Vulgate ever
renders it "pravitas-pravity-wickedness." The Targum uniformly renders it
"cogitatio-thought or imagination." The latter word is used in our version,
(except in
<198112>Psalm
81:12, "lust,") with a marginal reading "stubbornness." The Syriac and
Arabic vary as much as the Septuagint, "appetites, lusts, will,"
etc. To "walk after" precedes it in most instances except in
<241812>Jeremiah
18:12, where it is preceded by "doing." Now to "do the hardness of the heart,"
is no suitable expression; nor is "imagination" or "stubbornness" anything
better. It can be derived from no verb which means to think or to imagine, or
which has any connection with depravity or wickedness, or with appetites or
lusts. Nor can we derive it from
hrç,
which those do who render it "stubbornness;" for that will suit the passage
referred to in
<241812>Jeremiah
18:12. It must then come from
rç,
to direct, to regulate, to rule, to exercise authority. It occurs three times in
a reduplicate form; as a participial noun in
<170122>Esther
1:22, and as a verb and a participle in Hithpael in
<041613>Numbers
16:13, where it is applied in the sense of making oneself a prince or a tyrant.
The literal meaning of the noun then is, in the plural number, predominances,
domineerings, arbitraments; and it may be rendered determinations, resolutions,
predominant influences or inclinations. "Walk shall they no more after the
resolutions of their wicked heart." It is used in
<240724>Jeremiah
7:24, in apposition with "counsels," being evidently a stronger word: it seems
to mean resoluteness or resolvedness, a full determination, a willful decision.
Parkhurst renders it, "the ruling
principles."-Ed.
ftA91
Calvin uses the verb "venient, "shall
come, twice: but the first verb is to walk, and expresses the associating of
Judah with Israel, or their union. The words
are,-
In those days walk will the
house of Judah with the house of Israel, And come shall they together from the
land of the north, To the land which I made their fathers to
inherit.
They would be first united, and then
advance together to their own
land.-Ed.
ftA92
Calvin takes the word in its Chaldee
meaning;
ybx
means in Hebrew, elation, splendor, glory; but in Chaldee, desire, what is
desired; and this suits the passage best, "The inheritance of desire to hosts of
nations;" that is, The inheritance desired by hosts of nations;" This is the
meaning preferred by Gataker. I would render the whole verse
thus,-
19.But I, said have I, "How
shall I put thee among the children, And give thee the land of delight, The
inheritance desired by hosts of nations?" Said have I also, "My Father shalt
thou call me, And from me thou wilt not turn
away."
When the pronouns are given before verbs
in Hebrew, as
ykna
I, here, they are ever emphatical. "But I," or, "as for me," or, "even I have
said."-Ed.
ftA93
Blayney, contrary to all the early
versions, construes the word
h[rm
with woman, "a wicked woman." "Friend," or associate, or partner, is here
evidently put for husband; a thing commonly done in other languages. Our common
version of this verse is by no means correct: the preposition
m is
not always "from," but sometimes "with." So
here,-
Surely, as a woman deals
perfidiously with her partner, So perfidiously against me have ye
dealt,
O house of Israel, saith
Jehovah.-Ed.
ftA94
The verse may be thus
rendered,-
21.A voice on the high
places! Heard is the weeping, the supplications Of the people of Israel; Because
they had perverted their way, Had forgotten Jehovah their
God.
Instead of "high places," Blayney
has "plains;" but there is no satisfactory reason for the change. As the
verb in Hebrew commonly precedes its nominative, the construction adopted above
is the most suitable to the character of the
language.-Ed.
ftA95
The literal rendering of these two verses is
the following:-
22.Return, ye
apostate children, I will heal your apostasies.- Behold us! We come to thee; For
thou art Jehovah our
God:
23.Surely, in vain are the
hills, The multitude of mountains; Surely, in (or through) Jehovah our God Is
the salvation of Israel.
The word rendered
"apostate," does not mean "rebellious," but such as turn away, i.e., from
God; and the word for "apostasies" means the same, being from the same root. The
m
before the word for "hills," is not a preposition, as it is commonly taken, but
a formative: so it appears from all the versions. Blayney conjectures
that it belongs to the former word, and makes it
µyrqçl;
but then he does not account for the
l
prefixed to it. There is no different reading. The Septuagint is,
eijv yeu~dov h=san oiJ
zounoi<-for a lie were the hills. The
Vulgate, Syriac, and Arabic, are materially the
same.-Ed.
ftA96
Rather, "And the shame,"
i.e., the idol-worship, referred to in the preceding verse;
the article
h is
prefixed to the noun. This is the view taken by Gataker and
Blayney. See
<241113>Jeremiah
11:13;
<280910>Hosea
9:10.-Ed.
ftA97
Calvin seems to have followed the
Septuagint in rendering the verb in the past tense. The Vulgate
and Syriac retain the future of the original; but the Targum
gives the present, and rightly so, as the future in Hebrew is often to be so
taken. It is the same in Welsh, the future conveys the meaning of the
present. This distich might in that language be rendered exactly according to
the Hebrew, and the future would be understood as expressing what the present
state of things is,-
Gorweddwn yn
ein cywilydd, A gorchuddia ni ein gwarth.
But in
English the present must be used, as it is the confession of the penitent when
returning to God,-
We lie in our
shame, And cover us does our disgrace, Because against Jehovah our God Have we
sinned, we and our fathers, From our childhood even to this day; And we have not
hearkened To the voice of Jehovah our
God.-Ed.
ftA98
The best rendering is that which connects "to
me" with the former clause: the end of the verse, as Grotius observes,
proves this. If they returned to God, they were to return from captivity; and if
they cast away their abominations, they were not to be vagabonds or to wander
any more. This seems to be the meaning. The
w
before
al
in the last clause is left out in ten MSS., and in the Vulgate, Targum,
and Syriac. The verse then would be as
follows,-
1. If thou wilt return,
Israel, saith Jehovah, to me, Thou shalt be restored, (that is, from captivity:)
If thou wilt remove thy abominations from my sight, Thou shalt not be a
wanderer.-Ed.
ftA99
This is a very lucid and satisfactory
exposition. The import of the passage is very clearly given. A simpler version
may be made, and such as will exhibit the meaning more plainly. When two vaus
occur, they may often be rendered, when and then: so
here,-
2. When thou shalt
swear, "Live does Jehovah," In truth, in judgment, and in righteousness; Then
call him blessed shall nations, And in him shall they
glory.
To swear is to avow Jehovah as our God.
The verbs "bless" and "glory" are both in Hithpael, which has commonly a
reciprocal sense, but not always. See
<197217>Psalm
72:17;
<19A503>Psalm
105:3. This and the preceding verse belong to the last
chapter.-Ed.
ftA100
Literally, "Plough for yourselves the
ploughing, "or, the plough-land; or, "Fallow for yourselves the fallow." They
were not to sow a land once ploughed; but they were to plough
again.-Ed.
ftA101
Rather, "On account of the evil of your
doings." Their doings were evil or wrong, both as to God and man. Impiety seems
to be the special evil intended, as their defection from God had been more
particularly referred
to.-Ed.
ftA102
These two verses contain a very spirited
address, in a style truly
poetical,-
5. Announce ye in Judah,
And in Jerusalem publish, and say,- Yea, sound the trumpet in the land,
Proclaim, do it fully, and say,- " Be assembled, and let us enter into fortified
cities;
6. Raise a banner towards
Sion; Hasten ye, stay not: " For an evil am I bringing from the north, And a
great destruction.
The people of Judah were
summoned to enter into fortified cities, and Mount Sion was to be the resort of
the inhabitants of Jerusalem: "Hasten ye,
"speu>sate-hasten,
Septuagint. This is the meaning of
z[
in Hiphil. See
<020919>Exodus
9:19;
<231031>Isaiah
10:31. In
<240601>Jeremiah
6:1, it is translated "Gather yourselves to flee;" but "hasten," or remove
vigorously or quickly, would be the best
rendering.-Ed.
ftA103
The word "thicket, "in our version, correctly
expresses it; a tangled wood, where trees cross and entwine with each
other.-Ed.
ftA104
"Laid waste" is the Chaldee sense; but the
verb means in Hebrew to germinate, to produce grass, to grow over with grass as
ruined cities do. The words which follow, "without an inhabitant, "shew that
this meaning suits here,-
Thy
cities shall grow over with grass, without an
inhabitant.
The Targum
is,
Thy cities shall be
desolate without an
inhabitant.-Ed.
ftA105
Though the most common meaning of
bl,
heart, is what is here stated, yet it means also strength, firmness, courage.
See
<052002>Deuteronomy
20:2, 3;
<101710>2
Samuel 17:10;
<192214>Psalm
22:14;
<197326>Psalm
73:26. And this meaning is most suitable to this
passage.-Ed.
ftA106
The verse is as
follows,-
And it shall be in that
day, saith Jehovah, That perish shall the heart of the king And the heart of the
princes, And confounded shall be the priests, And the prophets shall be
astonished.
"Confounded," that is, like persons
at their wit's end, not knowing what to do, or what course to take.
"Astonished," or amazed, that is, at witnessing the reverse of what they had
prophesied; being filled with stunning and stupefying
amazement.-Ed.
ftA107
There are various expositions of this verse:
but the simpler and the plainer mode would be to take
rma
as a noun, word, speech, saying, with an auxiliary verb, which is commonly
omitted in Hebrew. The connection with the foregoing would be obvious and
natural,-
And the saying will be,
"Alas! Lord Jehovah, Surely, deceiving thou hast deceived This people and
Jerusalem, By saying, 'Peace shall be to you;' And reach does the sword even to
the soul."
This would be the language of such as
believed the false prophets, and considered them as sent by
God.
But Lowth, Henry, Venema, Scott, and
others, take this view,-that God had permitted or suffered the people to be
deceived by the false prophets. It is said that this verb in Hiphil, as the case
is here, has sometimes this meaning, and Lowth refers, as instances, to
<236317>Isaiah
63:17, and also to
<19B910>Psalm
119:10;
<201003>Proverbs
10:3. But the sentiment of the passage in this case would not be very
suitable: for, according to this view, the cause of the Prophet's grief is, that
God had suffered the people to be deceived.
"It
shall be said," in the next verse, seems to be put in contrast with this
"saying." Instead of what would be commonly said of the people, God reminds them
of what he would cause to be said and
effected.-Ed.
ftA108
The Septuagint version of these two
verses is as foreign to the original as it can well be; and the Syriac
and Arabic are nearly the same. The Vulgate gives a fair
version; and the meaning, as given by the Targum, is nearly the same. The
latter part of the 11th and 12th are thus rendered by
Blayney,-
A wind that
scorcheth the plains in the wilderness, [Shall come] toward the daughter of my
people, Not to winnow, nor to
cleanse;
12. A full wind for a
curse shall come at my bidding; Now even I will proceed judicially with
them.
Horsley differs as to the 11th
verse, and renders it thus,-
The
wind that scorcheth the craggy rocks of the wilderness Taketh its course against
the daughter of my people, Not for winnowing or
cleansing.
The reason assigned for rendering
hlam
for a curse, "and not "from those places, "as in our version, is, because
the enemy did not come from that quarter. But this may be avoided, if we
consider "as" or "like" to be understood before wind, which is no uncommon thing
in Hebrew. To refer "those" or these to the winds implied in winnowing and
cleansing, as Calvin does, and also Gataker and others, is not
satisfactory, I would propose the following
version,-
The dry wind of the
cliffs in the wilderness Is advancing against the daughter of my people, Not to
winnow, nor to cleanse;
12. As
a full wind from these, it shall come for me: Then will I myself pronounce
judgments on them.
The word
°rd,
as Horsley takes it, is a verb, or rather a participle; and it is usual
in Hebrew to put a participle in the first clause, and in the second a verb, as
here, in the future tense. The verb means to come upon, so as to tread down or
subdue,
<070521>Judges
5:21;
<072043>Judges
20:43;
<199113>Psalm
91:13. "The effect of this wind is not only to render the air extremely hot and
scorching, but to fill it with poisonous and suffocating
vapors."-Blayney.-Ed.
ftA109
Rather, "We have been wholly wasted, "or
desolated. The verb is in a reduplicate form, and signifies an entire waste or
desolation,-
13. Behold, like
clouds will he ascend, And like a whirlwind will be his chariots, Swifter than
eagles his horses: " Woe to us! for we have been wholly
wasted."
The mixture of the tenses is intended
to shew the certainty of the event. Or we may consider the last line as
containing what would be said after the coming of the enemy. What they would
have to say was to acknowledge their entire
desolation.-Ed.
ftA110
The word means also iniquity, wickedness: and
this is the sense in which the Vulgate and the Targum have taken
it, and also Blayney, "the devices of thine iniquity: "and this
corresponds more with the former part of the verse. The whole is as
follows,-
14. Wash from evil thine
heart, O Jerusalem, that thou mayest be saved: How long shall lodge within thee
The thoughts of thy
wickedness,
Or,
Thy
wicked thoughts.
The word for "wash" here,
according to Parkhurst, is ever applied to express a thorough washing,
the washing away of what is inherent, such as the dirt of linen and of clothes:
and he says, that there is another word,
˜jr,
which is used when the washing of the surface of anything is intended, such as
the washing of hands. "Shall lodge,"-it is no objection that this is singular,
and the "thoughts" plural. It is an idiom: the same exists in Welsh: and
in no other form would this sentence be rendered in that language. The present
translation is incorrect, as the verb is taken to be in the second person, and
applied to Jerusalem; which cannot be, as in that case it must have been in the
feminine gender. The correct rendering would
be,-
Pa hyd y hetya o'th fewn Dy
feddyliau drygionus!
If the verb had followed
its nominative case, it would have been in the same number; but as it
precedes it, it is singular while the noun is
plural.-Ed.
ftA111
The first meaning of the word is iniquity,
wickedness; and as the fruit or the effect of wickedness is affliction,
distress, misery, it is sometimes taken to express the latter idea. It may be
rendered here,
distress.-Ed.
ftA112
The verb in the first sentence followed by
l is
found in
<300610>Amos
6:10; where it clearly means "to make mention of, "or simply, to mention. So it
may be rendered here, "Make ye mention of the nations, "or, Mention the nations,
that is, for the sake of frightening the Jews. He had before referred to the
voice from Dan, etc.; he now commands the invading nations to be proclaimed as
approaching. The meaning is not, as Blayney, as well as Calvin,
renders the phrase, "Proclaim ye unto the nations, "but, "Proclaim the nations,
"as approaching, according to what is afterwards
stated.-Ed.
ftA113
To make this verse consistent with the
context, I render it as
follows,-
Mention ye the nations,
(and say,) "Behold them!" Repeat at Jerusalem, " The watchers are coming
from a distant land, And shall raise against the cities of Judah their
voice."
It is not improbable that
l[
here means "over," and that the "voice" means a triumphant shout, as
Calvin seems to have thought. Then we may give this
rendering,-
And shall raise over
the cities of Judah their
shout.-Ed.
ftA114
Calvin has followed the Vulgate and the Syriac. The
Septuagint and Arabic have, "thou hast neglected me, "which is
very wide from the original. "Rebel" is the rendering of the Targum,
which is the Hebrew, and there is no other reading. Literally it
is,
For against me hath she
rebelled, saith Jehovah.
And this is the
rendering of
Blayney.-Ed.
ftA115
Blayney, contrary to all the early
versions, renders
hla,
"a curse, "instead of "these, "but there is no sufficient reason for the change.
It is difficult to see what is the precise idea intended in our version as to
the latter part of the verse. The meaning given by Calvin seems to be this,-that
though the visitation was bitter and reached to the heart, it was yet to be
ascribed to their wickedness. Blayney's version is
this,-
Such is thy calamity; for it
is bitterness;
for it is a plague
even unto thy heart.
The latter words are taken
as explanatory of the calamity. The word
h[r
does indeed mean sometimes a calamity; but all the early versions, as well as
the Targum, render it here "wickedness." Hence the most suitable rendering would
be,-
Such is thy
wickedness!
Though bitter, though
reaching to thy heart.
That
yk
may be rendered "though" is evident from
<061718>Joshua
17:18; and it ought to be so rendered in
<023409>Exodus
34:9; and in other places. But we may take the first
yk
in its primary sense, surely, certainly, truly, and
the second as a causative, for, because; an instance of a similar kind we meet
in
<021317>Exodus
13:17: the first yk
precedes an adjective, and is rendered "Although;"
and the second
yk,
a verb, and is rendered "for." Then our version would
be,-
Such is thy wickedness (that
is, its effect)! Surely, bitter; for it reaches to thy
heart.-Ed.
ftA116
Remarkably concise and striking are the words of this
verse,-
My bowels! my bowels! I am
in pain! O the enclosures of my heart! Turbulent is my heart within me; I will
not be silent; for the sound of the trumpet Have I heard; my soul, the shout of
battle.
To change the person of the verb, "I am
in pain," or in labor, as it literally means, as Blayney does, destroys
the force and the vehemence of the passage; and all the early versions retain
the first person. "The enclosures," literally "the walls," that is, what
encloses or surrounds the heart, he mentions first the bowels, then what
surrounds the heart, and afterwards the heart itself: and his pain was like that
of a woman in travail. Being in this state, he resolved not to be silent but to
declare their danger to the
people.-Ed.
ftA117
The literal reading may be
thus,-
Breach upon breach has
happened; For laid waste has been the whole land; Suddenly laid waste have been
my tents, In a moment my curtains.
He relates
what he had seen in a vision, and therefore represents the whole as past. The
verb
arq
in Niphal as here, as well as in Kal, means sometimes to happen, to befall, to
take place. The Syriac and the Targum give it here this meaning;
and Blayney has adopted the
same.-Ed.
ftA118
The specific meaning of the terms used
in this verse is not given in our version, nor by Calvin, nor by
Blayney. The following, as I apprehend, is a literal
version,-
For stupid are my
people, Me they do not know; Foolish children are they, And undiscerning
are they; Wise are they to do evil, But how to do good they know
not.
"Stupid,"
lywa,
is one grossly ignorant, so as to be without knowledge, and not capable of
knowing how to do good, or what is the good to be done. The last line explains
the two first. Then "foolish,"
µylks,
are the perverse, or the perverted, who are foolish through a perverted mind,
who are said in the next line to be undiscerning, and who, as in the line which
follows, had wisdom enough to do evil. They were stupidly ignorant, and
perversely foolish. They were ignorant as to good, and wise as to evil; but this
their wisdom was
folly.-Ed.
ftA119
These two words are viewed as synonymous by
some, and the versions render them often by the same terms. As to the first,
wht,
there can be no doubt as to its meaning, for it occurs about twenty times, and
in all these places the idea of emptiness is chiefly conveyed: hence it is most
commonly rendered in our version, vain, vanity, in vain, nought, etc.,
<091221>1
Samuel 12:21;
<234017>Isaiah
40:17;
<234518>Isaiah
45:18;
<234904>Isaiah
49:4. It is improperly rendered "without form, "in
<010102>Genesis
1:2, and "confusion" in
<233411>Isaiah
34:11. When applied to the earth, as in
<010102>Genesis
1:2, it imports emptiness, as it was then unfurnished either with productions or
with any inhabitants. This appears evident from
<234518>Isaiah
45:18, "He created it not in vain, "rather, "not empty did he create
it-harb
whtAal;" "he formed it to be inhabited, "or more
literally, "for a habitation he formed it." As to the other word,
wwb,
it only occurs three times,
<010102>Genesis
1:2;
<233411>Isaiah
34:11; and here. As the former evidently means emptiness, this may be taken to
mean confusion or chaos, according to Symmachus,
"sugkecume>nh,-confused."
Then the right rendering here would
be,-
23. I looked on the land, And
behold emptiness and confusion; And towards the heavens, And they were
without their light.
It is not the earth, but
the land of Judea is what is meant. The whole passage being so striking, shall
be here given,-
24. I looked at the
mountains, And, behold, they were shaking, And all the hills made quick
motions:
25. I looked, and, behold,
there was no man; And every bird of heaven had fled
away:
26. I looked, and, behold,
Carmel a desert; And all its cities had been demolished By the presence of
Jehovah, By the indignation of his wrath.
The
whole is represented as already done. The Prophet speaks of what he had seen in
the vision.-Ed.
ftA120
All the early versions, as well as the
Targum, retain the word "Carmel." Blayney renders it "the fruitful
field."-Ed.
ftA121
All the early versions and the Targum
favor the former view, as they all render the sentence, "Yet a consummation I
will not make." Gataker mentions another explanation, "I will not yet
make a full end" with you; that is, I will punish you yet farther: and reference
is made to
<240518>Jeremiah
5:18. This view is adopted by Blayney and Scott. But the former
view is no doubt the right one; for this is the meaning of the phrase as found
in other places; see
<243011>Jeremiah
30:11; where it is clear that
hç[
hlk is wholly to destroy. See also
<160931>Nehemiah
9:31;
<261113>Ezekiel
11:13;
<262017>Ezekiel
20:17;
<340109>Nahum
1:9. The meaning then is, "Yet I will not make an entire destruction."
Henry takes this view, and Lowth seems to prefer it. Indeed the
phrase has no other meaning wherever it is
used.-Ed.
ftA122
The latter part is very
concise,-
Because I have said, I
have purposed, And have not repented, And I will not turn from
it.
The turning refers to what he had said, and
repentance to the purpose. Blayney followed the Septuagint, and
changed the order of the words, and thus destroyed the right connection of the
passage, and the common parallelism of the language. We may also notice this
passage as an instance of what is often found both in the Old Testament, and
also in the New,-that when two or more things are consecutively stated, the most
obvious, the most apparent, is mentioned first, and then the most hidden, or
what is in order previous. Purpose is first in order, but speaking is first
mentioned.-Ed.
ftA123
The verbs in this are all in the past tense,
as in some former instances. The Prophet had already seen in a vision what he
here states,-
At the voice (or
sound) of the rider and of the handler of the bow, Flee did every city; They
went into thickets, and into cliffs they climbed; Every city was forsaken, And
dwell in them did no man.
The word for
"thickets" means sometimes "clouds." The verb signifies to be dense, thick,
gross, bulky: but the plural noun means a thick wood, as well as a thick or
dense mass of vapors, which form clouds. It is rendered
"a]lsh,-forests,
"by the Septuagint and Syriac; and "sylvas-woods," by the
Targum.-Ed.
ftA124
The words "thou wretched, "or, more commonly,
"thou spoiled, "are left out in the Septuagint and Arabic, and are
retained in this sense by the Vulgate, Syriac, and the
Targum. But, as Blayney justly says, it is a rendering that is not
correct. "Thou, "as in the received text, is feminine, and "spoiled" is
masculine. The Keri and many MSS. have
ta
instead of
yta;
and
dwdç,
as Blayney supposes, is not a passive participle, but a verb in the
infinitive mood, used as a noun. So he gives this
version,-
And against spoiling what
wilt thou do?
The word "spoiled," or wasted, may
indeed refer to "every city," mentioned in the former verse, and the word for
city is masculine. We may then render
thus,-
And the city being wasted,
what wilt thou do?
"The city" may be
deemed as the poetical singular for the
plural.-Ed.
ftA125
The Septuagint, the Vulgate,
and the Targum give this
rendering,-
"Though thou paintest
with stibium thine eyes."
The Hebrew literally
is, as it is rendered by
Blayney,-
Though thou
distendest with paint thy eyes.
The verb
[rq,
means first to rend, to divide, and then to divide in the sense of distending or
enlarging. Large eyes were considered a beauty, and women used a sort of paint,
or rather powder, for the purpose of enlarging them. See Lowth's note on
<230316>Isaiah
3:16, and Parkhurst under the word
°p.-Ed.
ftA126
Rather,-
Rejected
thee have paramours.
This is the meaning of the
verb when followed as here by
b.
See note on
<240237>Jeremiah
2:37. The word for paramours means not lovers, but lewd or mad lovers. The verb
is rendered "to dote upon,"
<262312>Ezekiel
23:12.-Ed.
ftA127
This latter part is differently taken by
most. It is considered to be the confession of the daughter of Sion. The whole
verse is remarkably striking,-
For
the voice as of one in travail have I heard, The distress as of one giving birth
to a first-born, The voice of the daughter of Sion; Who pants for breath,
who spreads her hands,- "Wo now to me, For melted has my soul because of
murderers."
It is a common thing in Hebrew to
omit the relative "who, "before a verb in a future tense, especially when
it means the present time. The scene is described as present. The passage might
be expressed in Welsh without the relative. "Who pants for
breath," is rendered by Horsley, "that draweth her breath short;" and he
adds, "The passage is a most affecting picture of the last struggles of a woman
expiring in labor."-Ed.
ftA128
Our version is, "Run ye to and fro," which
has been taken from the
Septuagint-peridru>mete;
but this is a more correct rendering. The Vulgate is "circuite-go
round;" the Syriac is the same. "Streets" were the narrow ones, the
lanes; and what Calvin renders "the cross-ways, "and our version "broad
places, "were the wide streets, or the squares. In the former the poor people
lived, and in the latter the great people, the chief men of the city. The
examination was to extend to all the inhabitants. First, it takes place as to
the poor in the lanes, and afterwards among the higher orders in the wide
streets. The whole verse might be thus
rendered,-
1. Go ye round through
the narrow streets of Jerusalem, And see, I pray, and know; Yea, seek in the
broad streets; If ye can find a man, if there be any, Who doeth justice,
who seeks faithfulness, Then will I spare
it.
The
w
after µa
may be often rendered "Then;" and this passage
requires it to be so rendered. "That I may pardon her" is Blayney's
version; but this hardly corresponds with the former part; "If," and "that,"
form no
connection.-Ed.
ftA129
There are many MSS. which have
ˆka,
"surely, "but ˆkl
may also be so rendered; yet, as "nevertheless" is
its meaning, in
<241614>Jeremiah
16:14, and other places, it may be so taken here. The Septuagint must
have read ˆk
al, and the sentence is a question, "Do they not
thus swear falsely?" But the early versions favor the present reading; and it
gives a suitable meaning,-
And
though "Live does Jehovah, "they say, Nevertheless falsely do they
swear.
The verbs are in the future tense, but
used to express present acts, as is the case often in Hebrew, and also very
commonly in Welsh. The words in the latter language might be expressed
exactly as in the former, and be understood as speaking of what is
present,-
Ac er "Byw yw Jehova" a
ddywedant,
Etto yn gelwyddog y
tyngant.-Ed.
ftA130
The literal rendering of this verse is as
follows,-
Jehovah! thine eyes, are
they not on faithfulness? Smitten them hast thou, but they have not
grieved; Thou hast consumed them,-they have refused to receive correction;
Harder have they made their faces than a rock; They have refused to
return.
The "truth" here, and in the first
verse, is regarded by Calvin and most commentators, as faithfulness
towards men. But a right view of the context will shew that it refers to
fidelity towards God. Of what does the preceding verse speak? Of unfaithfulness
towards God-swearing falsely in his name; that is, making a false and
hypocritical profession of him; and in this verse they are described as refusing
to return to him. In the fifth and sixth verses they are represented as having
"broken the yoke, "and as having apostatized from him; and in the seventh their
going after other gods is expressly
mentioned.
The word "judgment" has been taken in
the same way, but not, in my view, agreeably to the context. To do judgment, is
to do what is just and right; and "the way of Jehovah, "and "the judgment of
God, "in the next verse, are the same, and hence put in apposition; the word
"nor, "in our version, being improperly introduced. The way of the Lord is the
way he has prescribed in his word; and it is called his judgment, because it is
what he has determined and ordained, or what is just and right. God had not only
revealed his law, but had also appointed and ordained it for the people of
Israel. His law is called a way, because it points out the course which we are
to take; and it is his judgment, because it is what God has determined, fixed,
and appointed. Hence in the fifth verse they are said to have broken the yoke
and burst the bonds. The yoke was the law, and the bonds were those of loyalty
and obedience; or they were the bonds of justice, such as were justly ordained
and imposed on
them.-Ed.
ftA131
It is better to take
°a
here and in the next verse as an affirmative,
Truly, surely, doubtless. Blayney, as well as Calvin, render
wlawn,
"have acted foolishly." The verb occurs in three other places,
<041211>Numbers
12:11;
<231913>Isaiah
19:13;
<245036>Jeremiah
50:36. To be, or to become, foolish, or rather stupid, sottish, or stupidly
ignorant, seems to be its meaning. It is here opposed to knowledge; and
evidently refers to the state of the mind, and not to the conduct. Their
sottishness was their idolatry. This is the special sin referred to throughout
the passage,-
Then I said,
Doubtless, the poor are these, they have become stupid, For they have not
known the way of Jehovah, The judgment of their
God.-Ed.
ftA132
Literally it is, "I will go for myself,"-an
idiomatic form of speech. The Welsh is exactly the same, af rhagof;
which means, I will go forth; but it cannot be literally expressed in
another language. After the verb, as in Hebrew, there is a preposition prefixed
to "me."-Ed.
ftA133
The word, as found here, is never used for
the evening; it ever means the desert, or uncultivated plains. The plural
termination of the word, when it means the evening, is
µyA-,
and not
twA-,
as here. See
<042201>Numbers
22:1;
<060510>Joshua
5:10;
<243905>Jeremiah
39:5. In these verses it is rendered "plains;" they were evidently uncultivated,
and might properly be called deserts. The Vulgate and the Targum
have led commentators astray as to this word. The Septuagint have
completely misunderstood it, and have rendered the sentence, "The wolf even to
the houses (e[wv tw~n
oijkiw~n) has destroyed them." The version of
Blayney is, "The wolf of the plains: "and he says in a note, that they
were "unenclosed commons." used for sheepwalks, which were commonly "infested
with wolves."-Ed.
ftA134
This illative, "wherefore," or therefore, or,
for this cause, is both retrospective and anticipative. It is a reason given for
what is contained in the latter part of the last verse, and for what is
contained in the last words of this verse; it anticipates the particle "because"
before
"multiplied."-Ed.
ftA135
It is rendered
"ajsebei>av-impieties,
"by the Septuagint; "prevarications" by the Vulgate;
"rebellions" by the Targum. It does not mean "iniquities, "but
willful violations of the law in matters connected with God's worship and
service. The other word means apostasies, defections from God, rendered by the
Septuagint,
"ajpostro>faiv-turnings
away, "and so by the Vulgate and the Targum. They were defections
to various forms of idolatry. Their idols increased in number. The Septuagint
render the last sentence thus, "They have become strong
(i]scusav)
in their turnings away." The Vulgate and the Targum are the same.
The Verb µx[
means an increase in quality or in quantity. But
both verbs may be rendered here as
transitives,-
Because they have
multiplied their transgressions, They have strengthened (or increased) their
apostasies.-Ed.
ftA136
This has been done by the Punctuists, and is
no part of the
language.-Ed.
ftA137
The last line may be rendered
thus,-
And the house of the harlot
they crowd.
The verb for "crowd" seems here to
be transitive, though it be intransitive in
<330501>Micah
5:1.-Ed.
ftA138
The literal rendering of this verse, and
countenanced by ancient versions, is as
follows,-
Horses well fed!
libidinous have they become; They neigh, every one at the wife of his neighbor.
Both Venema and Blayney agree in giving this
meaning.
It does not seem, when the whole
context is viewed, that adultery here is to be taken in its literal sense. It is
spiritual adultery, that is, idolatry, that is referred to throughout the
chapter. Besides, the comparison in this verse is such, that its application is
more suitable to idolatrous acts than to those which are adulterous. The same
may be said of what is found in the preceding verse,-that they crowded the house
of the harlot. This is not so much the case in adultery as in idolatry, when
people fill their idolatrous temples. A simile is sometimes carried beyond what
is actually the case, in order to convey a right idea of what it is intended to
illustrate. When they are said to be like well-fed stallions, and neighing at
the wives of their neighbors, the purpose was to shew with what intense ardor
they were devoted to idolatry: and the degrading comparison was no doubt made in
order to pour contempt on their mad propensity: it was like the impetuous
instinct of an animal, uncontrolled by any reason, persuasion, or
remonstrance.-Ed.
ftA139
See Note on
<240427>Jeremiah
4:27.
ftA140
It is true the word means shoots or branches;
but as the root means to spread, it evidently signifies here battlements,
bulwarks, or ramparts. It is rendered
"uJposthri>gmata-props,
pillars," by the Septuagint; "propagines-shoots," by the Vulgate;
"foundations," by the Syriac and Arabic; and "palaces, or
towers, by the Targum. Our version has the most suitable
word-"battlements." Blayney has "branches, "and thinks that the cities of
Judea are meant; but this is not suitable to the
context.-Ed.
ftA141
The verb
dgb,
when followed by b
as here, means to deal deceitfully, perfidiously,
or treacherously, with one. See
<022108>Exodus
21:8;
<070923>Judges
9:23;
<250102>Lamentations
1:2. It may be rendered here to
dissemble,-
For they dissembling
have dissembled with me, The house of Israel and the house of Judah, saith
Jehovah.
As the verb is repeated, if we render
it "to act perfidiously, "instead of repeating the words, to give them their
force and meaning, we must say,
For
they have dealt most perfidiously with me.
To
"deal unfaithfully," as rendered by Blayney, is too feeble an expression.
To "prevaricate" is the word used by the Vulgate, and the same by the
Septuagint and the
Targum.-Ed.
ftA142
According to all the instances in which the
verb occurs, followed by
b,
its meaning is what Calvin states, though not so rendered uniformly in
our version. The verb, followed by
b,
occurs elsewhere five times,-Leviticus, 6:2, 3;
<062427>Joshua
24:27;
<180818>Job
8:18;
<235913>Isaiah
59:13;
<280902>Hosea
9:2. In
<030603>Leviticus
6:3, hb
çjkw, ought to be rendered, "and denieth
it;" and so the verb ought to be, rendered in the previous verse, "and deny to
his neighbor his deposit, etc. It is rendered here "lied to the Lord" by the
Septuagint and the Targum; and "denied the Lord" by the Vulgate
and the Syriac, and so also by Piscator, Venema, and
Blayney. The denial seems to have been as to the Lord speaking in his
prophets. Calvin appears to have gone too far in saying that they denied
his existence. The expression which follows, "Not he, "means that he was not in
the prophets. The import is correctly given in our version, "It is not he, "that
is, who speaks in the prophets. The verse might be literally given
thus,-
12. And they deny Jehovah,
And say, "It is not he, And come upon us shall not evil, And the sword
and the famine we shall not see."
Then the
following verse, which is a continuation of what they said, proves clearly what
the meaning of this is,-
13. "And
the prophets shall be wind, For the word is not in them: Thus shall it
happen to
them,"
or,
Thus
shall it be done to them.
That is, they shall be
found out to be like the wind, having spoken nothing real, such as shall be
accomplished. Indeed the last line may be translated
thus,-
Thus shall he do to (or,
deal with) them.
The reference in this case is
to God, who, they thought, would render abortive, or turn as it were into wind,
what the prophets had threatened. Their blindness and presumption appear to us
to have been
extreme.-Ed.
ftA143
This sentence is left out in the
Septuagint, the Syriac, and the Arabic, but retained by the
Vulgate,-" Haec ergo evenient illis-These things shall therefore come to
them." This meaning the original will hardly bear. The reference seems to be to
the Prophets becoming wind, being so proved by the
event.-Ed
ftA144
The verb
[mç
here is not merely to hear, but to hear
effectually, that is, so as to understand. It has this meaning in other places;
see Deuteronomy 38:49;
<121826>2
Kings 18:26. The whole verse may be thus
rendered,-
15. Behold, I am
bringing upon you a nation from far, O house of Israel, saith Jehovah,- A
nation, strong it is, A nation, from antiquity it is, A nation,
thou wilt not know its language, Nor understand what it
speaks.
The third, fourth, and fifth lines, as
well as the first of the next verse, are left out in the Septuagint, but
retained by the Vulgate, Syriac, and the Targum. The two first
render the word for "strong, " "robustam, "and the last by "fortis-brave."
Blayney renders it "strong, "which is no doubt its
meaning.-Ed.
ftA145
The idea intended is capaciousness. The grave
is represented as never satisfied, ready to receive any number. See
<202720>Proverbs
27:20; 30:16; Habakkuk. 2:5. The Chaldean quiver would be so large as to contain
a vast quantity of arrows, as though it was an open
grave.-Ed.
ftA146
According to the Hebrew, the verbs, except
the second, are all in the singular number. The Septuagint have
pluralized them, but the singular is retained by the Vulgate, the
Targum, and the Syriac. It is the "nation" described in the 15th
verse. The second verb may be rendered in a passive sense, and the meaning will
be more appropriate,-
And it will
devour thy harvest and thy food, Devoured shall be thy sons and thy daughters;
It will devour thy sheep and thy ox, It will devour thy wine and thy fig-tree;
It will wholly desolate thy fortified cities, In which thou trustest, by the
sword.
The language used here, and in the 15th
verse, is remarkably like that of Moses in
<052848>Deuteronomy
28:48-52. The second line may be deemed parenthetic. It is better to preserve
the poetic singular in sheep, ox, vine, and fig-tree. As it is a reduplicate
verb, entire desolation is intended, and that by the "sword" in destroying all
the occupants of fortified cities. Venema, and others, as well as
Calvin, connect the "sword" with all the preceding clauses; but this is
not necessary, nor is it indeed
suitable.-Ed.
ftA147
See note on
<240427>Jeremiah
4:27. Even if the design pleaded for by Calvin be admitted, there is no
necessity to give the expression a meaning different from what it has in other
places,-
Yet even in those days,
saith Jehovah,
I will not make with
you a completion,
that
is,
I will not wholly destroy
you.
It depends on the context what the bearing
of this may be, while the sentence itself retains the same meaning. "I will not
wholly destroy you, for I intend to preserve a Church for myself, he might also
say, "I will not wholly destroy you, for I have other punishments in reserve for
you: "and the latter, as Calvin maintains, seems to be the purport of the
expression in this passage. Still the words themselves have the same
meaning.-Ed.
ftA148
The last clause has been improperly omitted
in the Arabic: it is found in the other versions. The word for
"strangers" is different from that connected with "gods." They served "the gods
of the alien, "or, of the heathen: they would have to serve "strangers, "or,
foreigners, in a land not their own. As they had adopted the religion of
heathens, they would have to submit to the dominion and tyranny of
heathens: and as they did the former in their own land, they would have to do
the latter in a foreign land. Thus their idolatry would expel them from their
own country, and subject them to the tyranny of those from whom they derived
their idolatry. Thus God often makes the tempters of his people (if they
succeed) to be their
tormentors.-Ed.
ftA149
It is better to retain the future tense, as
their obstinacy is thereby more fully expressed; the whole verse may be thus
literally rendered,-
Hear, I pray,
this, Ye perverse people and without understanding,- Eyes they have, but they
will not see, Ears they have, but they will not
hear.
The "this" which they were to hear is
contained in the next verse. The two last lines are only explanatory of the
preceding. They were "without understanding, "for they would not see, though
they had eyes; and they were "perverse, "or perversely foolish, for they would
not hear, though they had ears. When two things are mentioned and afterwards
referred to, the prophets usually explain the last, and then the first, as the
case is here. The two last lines may be included in a
parenthesis.-Ed.
ftA150
The reference seems to be to the decree or
ordinance, and not to the boundary: therefore "transgress" is the most suitable
word. I would render the verse
thus,-
22. Should you not fear me?
saith Jehovah; Ought you not at my presence to tremble? Who have set the sand a
boundary to the sea.- An ordinance perpetual, and it transgresses it not; Though
toss themselves and prevail not, and roar do its waves, Yet it does not
transgress it.
The future tense in Hebrew may be
often rendered subjunctively or potentially, and especially in questions. The
non-transgressor is the sea-the non-transgressor of the decree, notwithstanding
the tumult of its waves. "An ordinance perpetual" is rendered
"pro>stagma
aijw>nion-an everlasting command, by the
Septuagint,-" praeceptum sempiternum-a sempiternal precept, "by the
Vulgate and the Targum,-and "lege perpetua-by a perpetual law, "by
the Syriac. A perpetual ordinance is the version of
Blayney.-Ed.
ftA151
It is true that the idea of perverseness is
conveyed by this word; but it means one bent on turning away from God. To turn
away, or to apostatize, is its primary meaning, as in the latter clause of this
verse; but here it is a participle in a reduplicate form, which has ever an
expansive meaning. It means here either a heart continually turning away from
God, or a heart resolutely determined to turn away from him. The last seems to
be the meaning, as it appears to correspond with the next
line,-
But in this people has been
a heart, Thoroughly revolting and disobedient; They have revolted and gone
away.
When they turned away from God or
revolted, they were remonstrated with and exhorted to return; but they
disobeyed; hence their thorough revolt and their going
away.-Ed.
ftA152
Blayney, following the Septuagint
and the Vulgate, has rendered the latter clause
thus,-
A sufficiency of the
appointed things of harvest he secureth to
us.
But the Targum agrees with our
version; and Gataker, Grotius, Venema, and others, take the same view,
which is more expressive and more accordant with the
passage,-
The weeks, the appointed
seasons of harvest,
He preserves
for us.
The word
twqj,
means what is established, fixed, ordained, or appointed, as to time, place,
course, portion, or law; and it is here, not in regimine, but in apposition with
"weeks."-Ed.
ftA153
There is a correspondence between the terms
here used, and those in the last verse. Their iniquities had turned aside,
or diverted from their right course, the appointed seasons; and their
sins had restrained the good, the seasonable rain which had been
given them. As it is commonly the case in the prophets, the last thing mentioned
in the previous verse, is the first thing referred to here, and then what is
antecedently
mentioned.-Ed.
ftA154
There is a grammatical difficulty connected
with the word rwçy
The Septuagint, and the Syriac and
the Arabic, omit the word, and the Vulgate renders it in the
plural number, as if it was
wrwçy,
which Blayney adopts. Venema renders it "upright" or just, and
considers the root to be
rçy
and refers to
<330704>Micah
7:4, when the upright is said to be" sharper than a thorn hedge, "that is, such
as were counted or ought to have been "upright." The reference here is evidently
to the judge, who assumed the office of an upright one. See verse 28. The
literal version would then be as
follows,-
For found among my people
are the unjust; The upright is like the setter of snares; They have set
up entrapping, Men they catch.
Thus all the
parts correspond, and what is said corresponds with
<240528>Jeremiah
5:28. The verb rendered "set up, "means to settle, to constitute, to establish;
the office of the upright, that is, of the judge, was set up as an office for
entrapping, he being like a setter of snares. The "unjust" among the people, as
stated here, were the judges; the word,
[çr
is the perverter of justice, and stands in contrast
with
qdx,
who acts
justly.-Ed.
ftA155
It is so rendered in
<300801>Amos
8:1, 2. This was no doubt a wicker-basket or cage for birds, to keep them, and
not a trap-cage, as suggested by the Septuagint and Vulgate
versions. The Targum is, "the house of feeding." The comparison is
between a cage full of birds, which had been caught by snares, nets, or traps,
and houses filled with spoils, which had been procured by frauds. And were
"full" rendered "filled, "as it might be, there would be no need of the metonymy
supposed to be in the word "fraud,
"-
As the cage is filled with
birds, So their houses are filled by means of fraud: Hence they have
become great and grown
rich.-Ed.
ftA156
Expounders differ as to the meaning of these
words. They are partly omitted by the Septuagint and Syriac. The
Vulgate is, "et praeterierunt sermones meos pessime-and they have passed
by my words very haughtily." The Targum is a loose version, "They have
also transgressed the words of the law, they have done what is evil." Such
meanings do not correspond with the context. The words literally are, "They have
passed over (or, by) the words of wrong;" but as the term for "words" often
means things, affairs, matters, the version may be, "matters of wrong, "or wrong
things. These "matters of wrong" are afterwards specified, as will be seen in
the following version,-
28. They
have become fat, they have shined: Moreover, they have passed by matters of
wrong; The cause they have not defended- The cause of the orphan, yet have they
prospered; And the right of the meek have they not
pleaded.
The word "moreover, "may be rendered
"though, "as Blayney does, (see
<160601>Nehemiah
6:1:) but the rest of the sentence is not so well
rendered,-
Though they have gone
beyond the claims of the wicked.
He conceived
that the meaning is, that they granted to the wicked man more than he claimed,
while they denied justice to the orphan and the poor. But what is more accordant
with the words is, that he states here what he afterward specifies. It is not
properly the "poor" who are meant, but the quiet, the humble: for the poor,
strictly speaking, had not much to lose; hence the judges were not bribed to
allow them to become a prey to dishonest
men.-Ed.
ftA157
The words literally
are,-
Amazement and horribleness
has been done in the land.
That is, what
occasioned both had been done, or what ought to have filled all with the feeling
of amazement and
horror.-Ed.
ftA158
The Septuagint and the Vulgate
have, "And the priests have applauded with their own hands;" and the
Targum, "And the priests have helped their hands." Both mean the same
thing, though the words are different: and Blayney gives the same
meaning, "And the priests have concurred with them." Horsley says that
the words literally are, "And the priests go down according to their hands;"
that is, he adds, "the priests go which way their bands permit; i.e., the
priests are directed by them." Though the points lead us to regard
wdry
as future from
hdr,
to bear rule; yet the context requires it to be in the past tense, as the
previous verb is so, and that which follows: and therefore it must be
dry,
to come down, to descend. When followed by
l[,
as here, the preposition never means "according to, "as Horsley renders
it, but ever, upon, toward or against, and mostly "upon." See
<020919>Exodus
9:19;
<041109>Numbers
11:9;
<190716>Psalm
7:16;
<197206>Psalm
72:6. Therefore the literal rendering is
this,-
And the priests have
descended upon their hands.
An idiomatic
expression, which seems to mean, that the priests assisted the prophets,
according to what is expressed by the Targum. "Hand" signify labor,
efforts; the priests joined their efforts to those of the prophets. To "concur
with them" is too feeble: the line may be
rendered,-
And the priests have
aided them.-Ed.
ftA159
The "it" refers rather to the "strange and
horrible thing" which had been done in the
land,-
But what will ye do at the
end of it?
That is, when this dreadful thing
shall come to an end, when the prophets, encouraged by the priests and approved
by the people, shall be found liars, what then shall you do? The Septuagint
render the last words by
"meta<
tau~ta-after these things, "referring evidently to
the particulars just mentioned, the acts of the prophets, priests, and people:
but the same thing is meant. Then in the next chapter he reminds them of the
approaching destruction, which the false prophets
denied.-Ed.
ftA160
See note on
<240406>Jeremiah
4:6. The meaning of the verb is, no doubt, to haste, or to hasten. It is
singular that the Septuagint render it in
<240406>Jeremiah
4:6, "Haste ye," and here, "Be ye strong." The Targum renders it
"migrate," or, remove ye. The idea of assembling it never has. The line rightly
rendered is,-
Hasten, ye sons of
Benjamin, from the midst of Jerusalem.
Where
Blayney got the phrase, "Retire in a body, "it is difficult to
say.-Ed.
ftA161
"Raise ye a sign
(sh>meion)"
is the Septuagint and the Targum; "Raise ye a banner (vexillum)"
is the Vulgate and the Syriac. The word has no connection with
"fire, "as mentioned in our version, which has been derived from the Rabbins.
Blayney's rendering is, "light up a fire-beacon;" but the words admit of
no such meaning. It is a general expression, and may be rendered, "Raise ye a
signal;" there is no definition as to what the signal was to
be.-Ed.
ftA162
Literally, "For evil is seen from the north."
So the Vulgate and the Targum. The verb in Kal, Niphal, and
Hiphil, is rendered "look" in our version. See
<011928>Genesis
19:28;
<070528>Judges
5:28;
<052615>Deuteronomy
26:15. But in Niphal, as it is found here, it may be rendered passively, "is
seen;" and also in
<198512>Psalm
85:12; and in Cant. 6:10, and in most other places. Blayney renders it,
"is seen coming onwards, "which is a
paraphrase.-Ed.
ftA163
Calvin, with our version, has followed the Vulgate and the
Syriac in this verse. Both the Septuagint and the Targum
are widely different. The former have, "And taken away shall be thy height,
daughter of Sion;" the latter, "Fair and delicate, how hast thou corrupted thy
ways? Therefore confounded is the assembly of Sion." The Arabic is the
same with the Septuagint, only it has "pride" instead of "height"
(tou[yov)
Some have viewed the two first words as substantives, and have rendered the
verse thus,-
To a pasture and a delightful
habitation Have I likened the daughter of Sion. Disposed to this view were
Gataker and Lowth. But what Blayney has said is true, that
whenever the verb here used has the sense of likeness, it is followed by a
preposition. Besides, the two first words are not substantives but adjectives,
as the form, especially of the last, clearly shews. The verb
ytymd
has in various passages the sense of thinking,
counting, esteeming, regarding; as the result of comparing things together. See
<072005>Judges
20:5;
<170413>Esther
4:13;
<194809>Psalm
48:9. There is a passage in
<263202>Ezekiel
32:2, which is like the present, only the verb there is in Niphal; its literal
rendering I consider to be the following: "The young lion of the nations art
thou deemed, "or, thought to be. The literal rendering of this verse is as
follows,-
Home-resident and
delicate,
Have I deemed the
daughter of Sion.
She was so regarded by God.
Not like other nations, migratory, she had a home allotted to her by God
himself; and she was nursed and sustained with all tenderness, like a delicate
person. But owing to her sins, foreigners, as stated in the next verse, would
come and take possession of her house, and deprive her of her
enjoyments.-Ed.
ftA164
There is evidently a w
or a
y
wanted before the second verb in this verse. The Septuagint and the
Syriac read with
w,
and the Targum with
y.
The same is the case with the third verb,
w[r;
but there are two MSS. which have the
w
here, with which the Septuagint, the
Syriac, and the Targum agree. Then the version would
be,-
To her shall come shepherds
and their flocks, And pitch by her their tents around, And they shall feed,
every one in his border.
"To pitch against her"
seems improper: the proposition
l[
means by or near, as well as
against. And dy
does not mean properly place, but
side or border. It is indeed rendered place often in our
version. See
<040217>Numbers
2:17;
<052312>Deuteronomy
23:12;
<235605>Isaiah
56:5, 11; and in
<235708>Isaiah
57:8, "quarter." The ancient versions differ; the word seems not. to have been
understood. It is rendered by the Septuagint, "by his hand;" by the
Vulgate, "those under his hand; and by the Targum, "his
neighbor."-Ed.
ftA165
These two verses seem to have been the language of the enemies on their march
towards Jerusalem. When men go to a chief city from any quarter, it is always
ascending. When on their march, they encouraged one another to ascend by
mid-day, as
b
may be rendered, but the day declined before they reached the city; then they
encouraged each other to continue their march in the
night,-
Proclaim ye against her
war: Rise, and let us ascend by mid-day.- Alas for us! for declined has the day,
For extended have become the shadows of the evening: Arise, and let us ascend by
night, And destroy her palaces.
The last word is
rendered "foundations" by the Septuagint,-" houses" by the
Vulgate,-and "palaces" by the Targum. This is an instance of the
loose way in which the versions were often
made.
To "sanctify war, "is not to prepare it,
but to proclaim it, as Calvin says, by a solemn
ceremony.-Ed.
ftA166
The two last lines may be thus
rendered,-
She, the city, to be
visited is the whole of
it:
Oppression is in the midst of
it.
The verb
dqph
is an infinite Niphal. Some, not perhaps without
reason, have rendered the first line, "For thus has Jehovah of hosts
said."-Ed.
ftA167
The verse, literally rendered, is as
follows:-
7. As cast forth does a
spring its waters, So cast forth is her wickedness: Violence and plunder are
heard of in her; Before me continually are wounding and
smiting.
The first verb is in Hiphil, the second
is in Huphal. "Violence" was the visible act; "plunder" or spoiling was the
object or the motive; "wounding" was the effect; "smiting" was the cause. Such
is often found to be the way of stating things observed by the
Prophets.
Blayney renders the two last
words "sickness and smiting, "and adds, that the two words are a Hendiadis, and
signify "sickness occasioned by blows." The true reason for the order is what
has been stated: it is according to what is commonly done in Scripture; what is
found often is not the progressive, but the retrogressive
order.
The Septuagint and the
Targum have strangely rendered this verse in a manner wholly inconsistent
with the context; nor are the other versions much better. The Hebrew is plain
enough.-Ed.
ftA168
Or, "Be warned, "or, "Be reformed." The verb in Niphal is found in four other
places,
<032623>Leviticus
26:23;
<190210>Psalm
2:10;
<202919>Proverbs
29:19;
<243118>Jeremiah
31:18, and rendered reformed, instructed, corrected, and chastised. It is the
same as to receive correction and to become
reformed.-Ed.
ftA169
Or, "Lest forced shall be my soul from thee." The verb means to drive, to
thrust, to force. To "depart, "as rendered by the ancient versions, and by our
version, is too weak, and is not the idea; and still worse is "alienated, "as
rendered by Blayney. It intimates God's unwillingness, as it were, to
give up his chosen people, according to what Calvin
observes.-Ed.
ftA170
Blayney's version is,-
Turn
again thine hand, like a grape-gatherer, unto the
baskets.
"That is, Take thou again into thine
hand, and begin the work of gathering or gleaning anew." He takes it as God's
address to the Chaldeans, in which they are exhorted repeatedly to return and to
carry away captives the remaining inhabitants. But this does not comport with
the simile of the vintager returning the hand to the baskets. It seems to be a
command to put in safe custody those whom they took or gleaned, as a vintager,
who, when he plucks a grape or a cluster, puts it safely in a basket to be
carried away. The "hand" is put here for what the hand holds-the grapes or
clusters. It is then the same as though he had said, "Lay up, as a vintager,
what you glean, in baskets." The Jews were gathered, not to be destroyed, but to
be carried away into captivity. This seems to have been the intimation
here,-
Return thine hand, like a
vintager, unto the baskets.
That is, Throw not
away what you gather, but let the hand, that is stretched forth to reach the
grapes, bring back what it gleans into the baskets. The Vulgate is, "Turn
(converte) thine hand as a vintager to his basket." The Septuagint. Turn
ye
(ejpistre>yate)
as a vintager to his basket." The Syriac is the same with the
Vulgate, except that it has "gleaning" instead of "basket." The
Arabic corresponds with the Septuagint. The Targum has an
unintelligible
paraphrase.-Ed.
ftA171
This is a remarkable verse, and shews, as Calvin explains, the degraded
and corrupt state of the nation in a very striking
manner,-
To whom shall I speak, And
protest, so that they will hear? Behold, uncircumcised is their ear, So that
they cannot hearken; Behold, the word of Jehovah Has become to them a reproach,
They delight not in it.
"A reproach" is to be
the subject of reproach: the word of God by his prophets was despised and
treated with contempt. This was the visible and palpable effect, but the cause
was, that they had no delight in it or love for
it.
ftA172
There are two or three points in this verse differently explained. The fury or
indignation of Jehovah has been viewed as the message which the Prophet had to
deliver, which strongly expressed God's displeasure. See
<240109>Jeremiah
1:9, and
<242009>Jeremiah
20:9. The verb for pouring forth is either in the imperative or in the
infinitive mood. The Vulgate and the Syriac render it as an
imperative; but the Septuagint, the Targum, and the Arabic
give it, as in our version, in the future indicative, the first person.
Venema follows the Vulgate: but Blayney takes it to be in
the imperative mood; which seems most consistent with the whole of the passage.
The view of most as to "the old" and "the full of years" is, that the first is
mature old age, and that the second is the last stage of life, the age of
decrepitude. The full of days is "one" as Blayney says, "who has arrived
at the full period of human life;" and hence "Abraham, Isaac, David, and Job are
said to have died full of years, or of days." See
<236520>Isaiah
65:20. Though the general meaning is given in our version, yet the more literal
I conceive to be the
following,-
But with the wrath of
Jehovah have I been filled; I am weary of restraining to pour it forth On
the child in the street, And on the assembly of young men also; Yea, both man
and woman shall be taken, The aged and the full of
days.
It is unusual to have two infinitives
following one another: but the Welsh is capable of expressing the Hebrew
literally,-
Blinais ymattal
dywallt.
Nothing can express the original more
exactly. It is better to say "man and woman, "as Gataker proposes, than
"husband and wife;" for the object is to shew, that all, including every age and
both sexes, were to be visited with
judgment.-Ed
ftA173
"From the small of them even to the great, "Septuagint; "From the less to
the greater, "Vulgate; "From the least of them even to the greatest of
them, "Targum, Syriac, and Arabic. The last is the best. The
positive degree is often put in Hebrew for the superlative. See
<320305>Jonah
3:5.-Ed.
ftA174
The words literally are "gaining gain, "rendered in
<200119>Proverbs
1:19, and
<201527>Proverbs
15:27, "greedy of gain." The Septuagint give only a general idea,
"performed unlawful things;" the Vulgate has, "given to avarice;" the
Targum, "gape after riches." The prevailing sin of all ranks was
covetousness; and the special sin of the priests and prophets was falsehood:
they taught falsely. The verse may be thus
rendered,-
For from the least of
them to the greatest of them, His all is to gain; And from the prophet to
the priest, His all is to act
falsely.
"His all" means all his object, or all
that he
did.-Ed.
ftA175
The words hlqn
l[-" with what is worthless, "or base, or
contemptible, are rendered,
"ejxouqenou~ntev-regarding
as nothing," or despising, by the Septuagint; "cum ignominia-with
reproach" or contempt, by the Vulgate and Arabic; "illusione-by
illusion, by the Syriac; and "with false words, "by the Targum.
The same phrase occurs in
<240811>Jeremiah
8:11. The whole verse is there omitted by the Septuagint; the Vulgate
has ad ignominiam-to reproach; the Arabic, "in jocos-for
sport; the Syriac, "nugis-with trifles;" but the Targum is the
same as here. None give the same version but the last. In the Complutensian
Edition, which has this verse in
<240811>Jeremiah
8:11, the Greek version is evidently a version of the
Vulgate.
The idea of "slightly, "or
"superficially, "as rendered by Blayney, is not countenanced by any of
the foregoing versions, nor can the original words bear this meaning. The word
hlqn,
is found as a Niphal participle, and applied to man, as a despised,
contemptible, or worthless
being,-<091823>1
Samuel 18:23;
<201209>Proverbs
12:9;
<230305>Isaiah
3:5;
<231614>Isaiah
16:14. But here it refers to the means used for healing, which, according to all
the versions, was something contemptible, worthless, useless, and which is
afterwards named, being no more than saying, Peace, peace, when in fact there
was no peace.
And healed have they
the bruise Of the daughter of my people with what is worthless, Saying, "Peace,
peace;" and there was no
peace.-Ed.
ftA176
The Syriac is the only version that puts the first verb in an
interrogatory form. "They have been confounded, "is the Septuagint and
Vulgate; and similar is the rendering of the Arabic and the
Targum. The verb, taken literally, it being in Huphal, may be rendered,
"They have been put to shame, "or have been made to be ashamed; that is, they
had been exposed to shame; but this shame they felt not, according to what
follows. Their previous evils were enough to make them feel ashamed; but they
had not that effect: hence entire ruin is denounced on them at the end of the
verse. The rendering of the whole is as
follows,-
15. Exposed to shame have
they been, Because abomination have they wrought: Neither with shame are they
ashamed, Nor how to be abashed do they know; Therefore fall shall they with the
fallen; At the time when I shall visit them, They shall perish, saith
Jehovah.
There is no necessity to make this
verse and the 12th of chap. 8
(<240812>Jeremiah
8:12) the same in every particular, as Blayney attempts to do. Both
passages are the same in meaning, with a little variety in some of the words.
The particle
µg,
repeated, may be rendered by, either and nor. See
<042305>Numbers
23:5. The verb µylkh
is an infinitive Huphal. It is rendered as an
infinitive by the Vulgate. "They shall perish, "which is according to the
Septuagint, the Syriac, and the Arabic, is literally, "They
shall be made to
stumble."-Ed.
ftA177
Blayney renders the word for "rest,"
[wgrm,
"restoration;" but his long note is not satisfactory. It is rendered, strangely
enough, by the Septuagint,
"purification-aJgnismo<n;"
but by the Vulgate, "refreshment-refrigerium;" and by the Syriac
and Targum, "rest-requiem;" which seems to be its meaning, especially
here, as it stands in contrast with the false peace promised by the false
prophets.
The representation is that of
travelers, who, when doubtful as to the right road, are to stand, that
is, to stop, to look, and also to inquire. There were several old
paths before them, but they were to inquire which was the good way, and
to walk in it. This was what Jehovah by his prophets had exhorted the people to
do, who had false prophets among them; but they refused to do so. It is a
relation of what God had
done,-
Thus has Jehovah said,-
"Stand ye by the ways and look, And ask, as to the paths of old, Where that
is, the good way; And walk ye in it, And ye shall find rest to your
souls:" But they said, "We will not walk in
it."
There were many paths of old, or of
antiquity, as there are still; but there was one good way, the way of God's
word. That the way is old is no proof that it is good. Error's ways are as old
as the way of
truth.-Ed.
ftA178
There are several MSS. which have
w before this verb, and
such no doubt was the copy of Calvin. But all the versions render the
verb as an imperative, as no doubt it
is-Ed.
ftA179
The version of the Septuagint is wholly inconsistent with the drift of
the passage. The other ancient versions are materially according to our version.
Several MSS. read w[dw
for
y[dw;
and this renders the meaning much better. Then
hd[
is "testimony" as well as "assembly, "which appears
here very much without meaning. The two verses would then be as
follows,-
18. Therefore hear, ye
nations, And know the testimony which is against
them;
19. Yea, hear thou
earth,- Behold, I am bringing an evil on this people, The fruit of their own
devices, Because to my words they have not hearkened; And my law, they have ever
rejected it.
The preposition
b is
found after the verb, to testify, and is even rendered to or against;
and coming after the substantive, testimony, it ought to be rendered the
same.-Ed.
ftA180
It is rendered "cinnamon" by the Septuagint and Arabic, "a sweet
smelling reed" by the Vulgate, and "an aromatic reed" or cane by the
Syriac and Targum. The literal rendering of the verse is as
follows,-
20. For what purpose is
this done to me? Incense, from Sheba it comes, And the precious reed,
from a distant land: Your burnt-offerings, they are not acceptable, And
your sacrifices, they are not pleasing to
me.
The reed or cane was dried and powdered, and
formed a part of the incense. The latter is mentioned first, and then one of its
ingredients. Sheba and the distant land are the same. The same order is to be
observed in the burnt-offerings and sacrifices; the finished act first, and then
the previous act of presenting a
sacrifice.-Ed.
ftA181
The ancient versions render it, "from the end, or ends, or extremities, of the
earth."-Ed.
ftA182
It is rendered "a spear, "or a lance, by the Septuagint, the Syriac,
and the Arabic; but improperly "a shield" by the Vulgate and
the Targum. It is not true that it ever means a shield. It was a short
spear or javelin. "It is evident, "says Parkhurst, "that this word
signifies neither the larger spear nor the shield, because it is distinguished
from both. See
<091706>1
Samuel 17:6; 41:45;
<183923>Job
39:23."-Ed.
ftA183
Literally it is, "And on horses shall they ride." Then the following line is,
referring to the nation in verse
21,-
Set in order it shall be,
like a man for war, Against thee, daughter of Sion. Then the next verse
refers to the same, the nation,- Heard have we the report of it; Relaxed have
become our hands, Distress has laid hold on us, The pain like that of one in
travail.
The effect is first stated, the
relaxation of the hands; then the cause, the distress and anguish they
felt.-Ed.
ftA184
This is addressed to the daughter of Sion: hence the verbs are in the singular
number. There is no need for the change which Calvin, and also
Blayney, adopt, though countenanced by the Keri, and some MSS.,
for the same is addressed in the next
verse,-
Go thou not forth to the
field, And in the way walk not; For the enemy has a sword, Terror is on
every side.
"For the enemy, "etc., literally,
"For sword is to the
enemy."-Ed.
ftA185
"Their impudence resembles brass, and their obstinacy may be compared to
iron."-Lowth.
ftA186
This verse and the preceding have been
amended, and for the most part conjecturally, by Blayney, and though with
the approbation of Horsley, yet with no satisfactory reasons. That the
Prophet was made as it were a fortress, appears from
<240118>Jeremiah
1:18: and there is here an evident allusion to that, though his being made a
watchtower, or a watchman occupying such a place, was for a different purpose.
The two verses I thus render,-
27.
A watchtower have I given thee among my people, A fortress, that thou mightest
know and try their way; Then we are told what he had found them to be,- All of
them are the apostates of apostates, Companions of the slanderer; Brass
and iron are all of them, Corrupted are
they.
"The apostates of apostates," mean
thorough, confirmed apostates, as "servant of servants" means the basest:
"companions," etc., is literally, "Walkers with, "etc. "All of them, "clearly
belong to "Brass and iron, "as "they" follows "corrupted." The ancient versions
are not satisfactory, and the Targum is paraphrastic; but they give the
general meaning. "Prover" or "examiner" is what the versions give for
"watchtower." "Fortress" is omitted in the Septuagint, the Arabic,
and the Targum, and is rendered "strong" by the Vulgate.
"The apostates" is left out by the Septuagint and the Arabic,
and is rendered "princes" by the Vulgate, Syriac, and the
Targum. For "companions of the slanderer, "the Septuagint
and Arabic have "walking
perversely-skoliw~v;"
the Syriac and Targum, "walking with guile-cum dolo;" and the
Vulgate, "walking fraudulently-fraudulenter." The word
lykr,
"slanderer" is found in five other places,
<031916>Leviticus
19:16;
<201113>Proverbs
11:13; 20:19;
<240904>Jeremiah
9:4;
<262209>Ezekiel
22:9. In the first three passages it is rendered in our version "a talebearer,
"but more correctly, a slanderbearer, or, as Parkhurst renders it, "a
trader in slander." It does not mean "a sharper, "as Blayney thinks.
The passages in Proverbs are inconsistent with such an idea. There is no
passage where it may not be rendered "a slanderer, "except
<262209>Ezekiel
22:9; where it evidently means
"slander."-Ed.
ftA187
The true reading of the third word in this verse is
µt
çam, according to the Keri, many
MSS., the Septuagint and the Vulgate; and
µt
sometimes means "consumed." Pliny says that
they formerly used lead to separate the dross from the silver, as they use
quicksilver now. Then the verse is to be thus
rendered,-
Burnt has been the
bellows by the fire, Consumed has been the lead; In vain has been the
melting of the melted, For their evils have not been
separated.
They had been in the furnace, but the
lead intended to separate the dross from the silver, was consumed, and the
melting did not succeed, for their evils, or their vices, were not separated
from them. Hence in the next verse they are called reprobate
silver.-Ed.
ftA188
The ancient versions, except the Syriac, render this in the imperative
mood, "vocate-call ye them." So also the Targum, and Blayney has
adopted the same,-
Reprobate silver
call ye them, For reprobated (or, rejected) them has
Jehovah.
-Ed.
ftA189
Though the ancient versions, except the Vulgate, render the verb to
dwell, as an Hiphil, "cause to dwell, "as in our version, yet Blayney, as
well as Calvin, follows the Vulgate, "And I will dwell with you in
this place: "which seems more accordant with the context. Their boast was that
God was dwelling with them, as the temple was his temple. Then when Shiloh, in
<240712>Jeremiah
7:12, is referred to, God says that he set his name there: and no doubt the same
thing is meant
here.-Ed.
ftA190
The difficulty in the construction is removed by Blayney, who renders
yrbd
as a participle, as it is in some other places,
<190506>Psalm
5:6:
<193803>Psalm
38:3;
<196311>Psalm
63:11. His version is,-
Trust ye
not in those who speak falsehood, saying,- The Temple of Jehovah, the Temple of
Jehovah, The Temple of Jehovah, are these.
The
Septuagint, the Syriac, and the Arabic, have "the Temple of
the Lord" only twice, and the verb is in the singular number, "The Temple of the
Lord, the Temple of the Lord it is." The verb is the same in the Vulgate,
only the words, as in Hebrew, and also in the Targum, are repeated
thrice. The paraphrase of the latter is rather singular,-" Trust not in the
words of the prophets of falsehood, who say, Before the Temple of the Lord ye
worship, before the Temple of the Lord ye sacrifice, before the Temple of the
Lord ye offer praise; three times a year ye appear before
him."
"These" mean, as Gataker thinks,
these places or buildings; and Lowth and Blayney think the same.
The repetition seems to denote the frequency with which the Jews used the words:
they continually boasted of having God's Temple among them. "The Prophet, "says
Henry, "repeats it, because they repeated it upon all occasions. It was
the cant of the times. If they heard an awakening sermon, they lulled themselves
asleep again with this, 'We cannot but do well, for we have the Temple of the
Lord among us.' It is common for those that are farthest from God to boast
themselves most of their being near to the
Church."-Ed.
ftA191
What is to be understood by innocent blood in not only murder, nor principally;
but the offering of innocent infants to Moloch, referred to in the 31st verse of
this
chapter.-Ed.
ftA192
Calvin departs here from his former rendering in verse 3d. The words mean
the same, "Then will I dwell with you." So the
Vulgate.-Ed.
ftA193
The three foregoing verses admit of a different construction, though the general
meaning continues the same. It is usual to consider the words in the ninth verse
as verbs in the infinitive mood; but they are participles, and stand connected
with the previous verse. The Targum render them as personal nouns,
"thieves, murderers, "etc.: but they are in Hebrew in the singular number, the
collective singular being often employed in that language. The passage may be
thus rendered,-
8. Behold, ye trust
in words of falsehood to no
profit,-
9. The thief, murderer,
and adulterer, And the false swearer and incense-burner to Baal, And the walker
after foreign gods, Whom ye have not
known;
10. And ye come and stand
before me In this house, on which is called my name, And ye say, "We are freed
To do all these
abominations,"
Or,
And
ye say, "He has made us free To do all these abominations." Blayney,
following the Syriac, has rendered the words,- And say, Deliver us,
that we may practice all these abominations.
But
what is most consistent with the passage is to consider the sentence as
declarative, and not as a prayer. They considered themselves freed from guilt
when they had offered their sacrifices. They thought themselves then at liberty
to be immoral and also to be idolatrous. We might think such a state of
blindness and infatuation impossible; but it has existed among those calling
themselves Christians, and it exists now. Gataker mentions a common
saying among ignorant Papists of the same import with what is said here, "We
must sin to be shriven, and shriven to sin." The turning of the grace of God
into lasciviousness is the same
thing.-Ed.
ftA194
It is to be observed that one only of the vices mentioned in verse 9 is here
referred to, the first in the catalogue. But as the Temple was the den of
thieves, so it was also made the asylum of murderers, adulterers, and of
idolaters. It seems then, that the Jews thought that by sacrifices they
purchased immunity not only for theft, murder, adultery, false swearing, but
also for idolatry, and that having sacrificed they were free to commit all these
evils. How unaccountably strange is the conduct of deluded
man!
The words "Which is called by my name, "are
literally, "Which called is my name upon it, "an idiomatic mode of speaking,
with which the Welsh exactly
corresponds,-
Yr hwn y gelwir fy
enw arno.
The pronoun relative without a
preposition is afterwards followed by a pronoun substantive with a preposition
prefixed.-Ed.
ftA195
The verb is in the past tense,-
I
also, behold, seen have I, saith Jehovah.
That
is, He had seen all they did. If anything be put after "seen, "it should be
"these things, "and not "it;" for the reference is to the particulars before
mentioned. See
<191014>Psalm
10:14;
<260812>Ezekiel
8:12.-Ed.
ftA196
This was in the tribe of Ephraim, between Bethel and Shechem,
<072119>Judges
21:19, about twenty-five miles north of Jerusalem. The Ark had been there more
than 300 years. It did not return there after it was brought forth in the war
against the Philistines. The place afterwards declined, and its ruinous state
became a proverb. See
<061801>Joshua
18:1;
<197860>Psalm
78:60;
<242606>Jeremiah
26:6,
9.-Ed.
ftA197
Blayney thinks that the reference is not to the ruinous condition of Shiloh,
immediately subsequent to the time when the Ark was removed thence, but to the
devastation occasioned by the captivity of the ten tribes, which was a recent
occurrence, this reason is, because they were then directed to go and see the
place. But if the place had ever continued in a ruinous state, and was so at
that time, there was every propriety in saying, "Go now and see it." Besides,
the argument is not so complete, as when its dilapidated state, occasioned by
the sins of the people, when the Ark was thence removed, is referred to. "It is
probable, "says Henry, "that the ruins of that once flourishing city were
yet remaining: however, they might read the history of it, which ought to affect
them as if they saw the
place."-Ed.
ftA198
The literal rendering of the two verses is as
follows:-
13. And now, as ye have
done all these doings, saith Jehovah, And as I have spoken to you, rising
early and speaking, And ye have not hearkened, And I have called you, and ye
have not answered;
14. I will also
do to the house, On which my name is called, In which ye trust, and to the
place, Which I gave to you and to your fathers, According to what I did to
Shiloh:
"The house" was the Temple, "the place"
was the city: both are threatened with destruction. Then he says in the next
verse, "And I will cast you from my presence." The Temple and the city were to
be destroyed like Shiloh; and they (" you") were to be dealt with as
their brethren, the ten tribes, who had been driven into
exile.-Ed.
ftA199
This is hardly correct. The reference is to the state of the Jews at that time.
The Jews were formed of two tribes, Judah and Benjamin. They were joined, after
the captivity of Israel, by several of the remnants both of Ephraim and
Manasseh, and of the other tribes.
(<143409>2
Chronicles 34:9.) There is indeed mention made of some from the tribes of
Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon, coming to worship at Jerusalem in the reign of
Asa; but we do not read that they settled
there.-Ed.
ftA200
There are here three things forbidden; their distinctive character is not
correctly given in our version nor by Calvin. I render the verse
thus,-
And thou, be not an
intercessor for this people, Nor raise for them a cry and a supplication, Nor
make an entreaty to me, For I will not hear
thee.
That is, "Undertake not their cause as one
who intercedes or mediates between a judge and a criminal, nor cry suppliantly
for mercy, nor entreat me to be favorable to them." He was not to be for them an
intercessor, nor a deprecator of evils, nor a solicitor of favors. All the
versions render the passage
loosely.-Ed.
ftA201
The ancient versions (the Arabic excepted) and the Targum render
the word, cakes-placentas. It is only found elsewhere in
<244419>Jeremiah
44:19.-Ed.
ftA202
The Septuagint render the words here, "the host of heaven, "and in
<244417>Jeremiah
44:17 and 19, "the queen of heaven." The Vulgate in the three places,
renders them "the queen of heaven, "-the Targum, "the star of heaven,
"-and the Syriac, "the army of heaven, "in the two first places, but in
the last, "the queen of heaven." There are several MSS., in the three places,
which insert the
a,
so as to make the word "work, "or workmanship: but this change has evidently
arisen from the Septuagint. But this word is never used to designate the
work of the visible heavens: the word used in that case is
hç[m.
See
<190803>Psalm
8:3;
<191901>Psalm
19:1;
<19A225>Psalm
102:25; Psalm 163:5. Our version and the Vulgate are no doubt right. But
what is intended by the queen of heaven is not the moon; for the word commonly
used for the moon is always masculine, and the word generally used for the sun
is commonly feminine. This may appear strange; but so it is. In South Wales the
word for sun is always feminine, but in North Wales,
masculine.
In
<050419>Deuteronomy
4:19, the sun, the moon, and the stars, as constituting the host of heaven, are
mentioned together: these the first, as including all the rest, seems to be
intended. Instead of "queen, "we should say in our language, "the king of the
heavens." We do not read that the Jews worshipped the moon; but the worship of
the sun among them is specifically referred to and mentioned. See
<122311>2
Kings 23:11;
<260816>Ezekiel
8:16. The Israelites adored the sun under the name of Baal, which was the
Chemosh of the Moabites, and the Moloch of the
Ammonites.-Ed.
ftA203
The verb rendered "provoke, "means to disturb, to disquiet, to cause an
annoyance, to irritate,-
Is it I
they are annoying, saith Jehovah? Is it not themselves, to the confusion of
their own faces?
They were not disturbing, as it
were, the repose of God, but their own. They could do no hurt or annoyance to
God, but they were annoying and injuring themselves; and this would turn out to
their own shame and
confusion.-Ed.
ftA204
The meaning is not so plain as it might have been made: the burnt-offerings were
all consumed by fire; but a part of the peace-offerings and of other offerings
was eaten. See
<030109>Leviticus
1:9; and
<030711>Leviticus
7:11-16. Then God says, by way of contempt, "Add your burnt-offerings to your
other offerings, and thus you will have your appetites gratified." Some derive
the verb rendered "Add, "from
hps,
which means to sweep together; and "collect
together-sunaga>gete,"
is the Septuagint; "heap together" is the Syriac. This comports
better with the contemptuous strain of the
passage,-
Your burnt-offerings
sweep together To your sacrifices, and eat
flesh.-Ed.
ftA205
This exposition is ingenious and plausible, and all that is said is perfectly
true: but it may be doubted whether it be the way to account for the mode of
speaking here adopted. It is usual in Scripture, when two things are mentioned,
and the one is of little or no importance in comparison with the other, to state
the first negatively.
"Labor
not, "says our Savior, "for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat
which endureth unto everlasting
life."
<430627>John
6:27.
But it may be, that the reference here is
specifically to the day in which the Israelites were delivered; for on
that day, or at that particular time, (for the word day is not to be
taken in its strict meaning,) obedience to his voice was the only thing which
God required. See
<021526>Exodus
15:26.
Venema thinks that reference is
here made, not to the institution of sacrifices, but to the ground of the
covenant. Sacrifices were not the condition of the covenant, but obedience. God
did not say, "If you sacrifice to me, I will be your God;" but, "If you obey my
voice, I will be your God, and you shall be my people." When the law was
delivered on Mount Sinai, there was no mention of
sacrifices.-Ed.
ftA206
The words are literally,-
And they
walked in the counsels,-
In the
resolutions of their evil heart.
They not only
devised their own ways, but resolved to walk in them. They formed
their own counsels, and made resolutions to follow them, and they were the
counsels and resolutions of a disordered and perverted heart. In rendering the
last word "wickedness, "Calvin has followed the Vulgate; and our
version, "imagination, "is the Targum. It is omitted in the
Septuagint, and "desires" in Syriac. See note on Jeremiah
3:17.-Ed.
ftA207
The words are,-
And they were for
behind, and not for before them;
which seem to
mean, that they were bent on turning back to their own ways rather than to go on
in the ways of God. The version of the Septuagint is, They were for
things behind, and not for things before; the Syriac and Arabic,
"They retrograded and did not advance, "or go forward. The allusion seems
not to be, as Blayney thinks, to refractory oxen under the yoke; but to
those travelers who, when shewn the right way, go back instead of going forward.
And this was especially true of the Israelites, who, after having left Egypt,
wished often to return, instead of going forward to Canaan. Hence it is said,
that they were going back to their old ways, and not going forward in the way
which God bad pointed out to them. The phrase in
<240227>Jeremiah
2:27, is of another kind, and ought not to be confounded with
this.-Ed.
ftA208
The former part of this verse would better connect with the former verse, than
with this sentence. There is the copulative
w,
"and," before the verb "sent." The sending of the prophets is mentioned in
addition to the first command given to them. The passage may be thus
rendered,-
And they went backward
and not forward,
25. From the day
in which your fathers came forth From the land of Egypt, to this day: And I sent
to you all my servants the prophets, Every day rising early and
sending;
26. Yet they hearkened not
to me, Nor inclined their ear, But hardened their neck; They have been more
wicked than their fathers.
Such is the
connection in all the ancient versions and in the Targum. The verb,
rendered "they have been more wicked, "or "done worse, "is omitted by the
Septuagint and the Syriac; but retained by the Vulgate and
the Targum, and is found wanting in no
MS.-Ed.
ftA209
Our version is wrong, "obeyeth not;" for the charge against them is, that they
did not attend or give ear to God's voice: they would not hear it any
more than the Papists at this day. This is evident from the previous
verse.-Ed.
ftA210
All the ancient versions and the Targum render
hgwma
by
pi>stiv,
fides-faith, fidelity or faithfulness. The first verb, "perished" or lost, is
omitted by the Septuagint and Arabic, but is retained by the
Vulgate, Syriac, and the Targum. The second verb is stronger than
the first; faithfulness was lost from the mouth, yea, it was completely
separated from it.
Lost is
faithfulness, yea, wholly separated from the
mouth.
ftA211
The emendations of Houbigant, adopted by Blayney, are by no means
to be approved; for without the authority of any MSS. or versions, he changes
the gender of these verbs in succession. It is a common thing in the prophets to
call the people the daughter of Sion: and probably they are here so addressed,
because the hair is an ornament to a female, and to cut it off is a token of
deep
distress.-Ed.
ftA212
The word means what is unclean and filthy, "their filthy things." They were the
idols which were introduced into the Temple. They did this evil "before his
eyes, "or in his presence, as the Temple was his habitation. They brought idols
as it were into his very presence, and thereby literally violated the first
commandment, which expressly forbad them to have other gods before him or in his
presence. By what means did they evade this explicit command? In the same way as
the Church of Rome justifies idolatry,-that idols are helps to devotion: but God
regards them as
abominations.-Ed.
ftA213
This is the meaning according to all the ancient versions and the Targum.
The Syriac is, "for want of place." Gataker gives the same
meaning. Our version follows Pagninus, and is substantially adopted by
Blayney both here and in
<241911>Jeremiah
19:11. Literally it is, "From no place, "that is, "From there being no place,
"as Calvin says
elsewhere.-Ed.
ftA214
The poetical singular is used throughout the
verse,-
And the carcase of this people shall be
for meat To the bird of heaven and to the beast of the earth, And there will be
no
terrifier.—Ed.
ftA215
Though it be improper to render the word "consult;" yet the meaning is the same:
they sought them, that is, their counsel and direction. They sought them in all
emergencies. "To inquire of the Lord, "in
<012522>Genesis
25:22, is literally "to seek the Lord;" and "to inquire of God," in
<021815>Exodus
18:15, is literally "to seek God." Indeed, to inquire of or to ask, that is,
counsel, seems to be the most common meaning of the word. "Sought, "is the
Vulgate and Targum,-" consulted, "is the Syriac,-and
"cleaved to, "is the Septuagint and Arabic; and this is the idea
of
Calvin.-Ed.
ftA216
It would be better to render
hnwma
before the verbs here as an adverb, because, as,
or inasmuch as. There is a pronoun following every
verb,-
2. And they shall expose
them to the sun, And to the moon, and to all the host of heaven: As they had
loved them, and as they had served them, And as they had walked after them, And
as they had sought them, And as they had bowed down to them, They shall not be
gathered, nor buried; For dung on the face of the land shall they
be.
The order here is from the principle to the
action, and not the contrary, as is often the case: love-service-walking
according to the rules prescribed-seeking counsel-and
worshipping.—Ed.
ftA217
The literal rendering of this verse is as
follows,-
And chosen shall be death
rather than life by all the remnant,- Who shall remain of this wicked
family, In all the places of such as shall remain, Whither I shall have
driven them, Saith Jehovah of hosts.
Blayney
justly observes, that the participle in the second line is in apposition
with "remnant, "as explanatory of it, and is not to be put in the genitive case,
as in our version. A similar construction is found in
<242408>Jeremiah
24:8. But there is no sufficient authority or reason for omitting the same
participle after "places, "as is done by Blayney. Such repetitions are
common in the
prophets.-Ed.
ftA218
Most agree in this view,-Gataker, Venema, Henry, Lowth, Blayney, and
Scott. All the versions favor this view, giving two different meanings to
bwç,
repeated in the last clause, except the Syriac, which gives this version,
"Though they ought to repent, they yet do not
repent."-Ed.
ftA219
The idea of revolt or apostasy is given by the ancient versions to the verb used
at the beginning of the verse, and also to the noun which follows, and not that
of rebellion, as by Calvin. The same meaning is given by Gataker,
Venema, and Blayney; and they consider that Jerusalem is in
apposition with "this people, "in this manner,-Why has this people, Jerusalem,
Revolted with perpetual revolt? As it has been already observed, the verb
bwç,
with all its derivations, means strictly to turn, but is used in the
sense of turning to or from, that is, of returning or of departing. The context
is our guide. It can hardly be supposed to have these two meanings in the same
passage. All agree in giving it the idea of returning, at the end of the fourth
verse, and at the end of this verse, the fifth; and in the three other instances
in which it occurs here, they give it the idea of turning away or departing. I
am disposed to think that it has the first meaning throughout the passage. I
would render these two verses
thus,-
4 Thou shalt also say to
them, Thus saith Jehovah,- Do men fall and not rise again? Does any one
return and not return?-
5.
Why,-often have this people returned, Jerusalem is returning
continually!- They hold fast deceit, they have refused to
return.
The hypocrisy of the people is the
subject: they pretended to return, but did not really return; they were
deceitful. It is a sort of a dialogue. The beginning of the next verse is an
answer to the end of this,-
6. I
hearkened and heard, "No: "thus they say: Yet no man has repented of his
evil,- Saying, What have I done? Every one returns to his own course, Like a
horse rushing into battle.
The charge of
refusing to return was negatived. —
Ed.
ftA220
It is curious the variety as to the names of birds in this verse, as given in
the ancient versions: Vulgate; kite-turtle-swallow-stork; Septuagint,
stork-turtle-swallow-sparrows; Syriac, stork-turtle-crane-swallow;
Arabic, crane-turtle-swallow-birds; and the Targum is,
stork-turtle-crane-swallow. The names in our versions seem to be the most
correct, and are adopted by Venema and
Blayney,-stork-turtle-crane-swallow; the same with the Syriac and
the Targum—
Ed.
ftA221
The latter part of this verse has another meaning according to the ancient
versions. They are substantially to this
purport,-
Behold, surely to deceive
is what the false pen of the scribes has
done.
The Vulgate, with which the rest
materially agree, is as
follows,-
Verily, falsehood has the
false pen of the scribes wrought.
As a proof of
this it is added in the next verse, that those who pretended to be wise were
made ashamed, etc. That the reference is made to the false glosses of the
scribes, the expounders of the law, is confirmed by verse 11. I render the whole
verse thus,-
8. How can ye say,
"Wise are we, And the law of Jehovah is with us?" Indeed!-Behold,
to deceive Has the deceptive pen of the scribes
served.
He ironically admits that they had the
law; but he refers to the false interpretation of the teachers; and in the next
verse he mentions the effect on the pretended wise, and the fact
as to God's law,-
9. Ashamed have become the
wise, They have been dismayed and ensnared: Behold, the word of Jehovah have
they despised; And wisdom, what have they!—
Ed.
ftA222
It would be better to consider the shame in this verse as referring to
the people, and the want of shame in
<240812>Jeremiah
8:12, as applied to the teachers, the scribes, the false interpreters of the
law, who promised peace, while there was no
peace.-Ed.
ftA223
The verb is here followed by
b:
see note on
<240237>Jeremiah
2:37.
ftA224
It would be more suitable to render "for" because, as it is explanatory of
ˆkl,
"for this, "or, for this reason, at the beginning of the verse. This illative,
and others too, are often used
anticipatively,-
For this reason,
give will I Their wives to strangers, their fields to inheritors; Because from
the least even to the greatest, Ever one covets gain; From the prophet even to
the priest, Every one practices
deception.-Ed.
ftA225
See note on Jeremiah
6:14.
ftA226
This may be differently understood. There are here throughout the passage two
parties spoken of,-the people, and the priests together with the prophets. The
"wise" men, in
<240809>Jeremiah
8:9, made ashamed were the people deluded by the priests and prophets. Those who
felt no shame, mentioned in this verse, though their words proved false, were
the priests and prophets: and hence we see the import of this expression here,
that they were appointed to fall with the fallen, that punishment would reach
them as well as the people.
This verse is
somewhat different from the fifteenth of the sixth chapter, and may be thus
rendered,-
12. Have they been
ashamed, Because they have done abomination? Even with shame they are not
ashamed, And how to blush they know not: Therefore fall shall they with the
fallen; At the time of their visitation They shall perish, saith
Jehovah.
The "abomination' was the perversion of
the law so as to justify idolatry and all kinds of
wickedness.-Ed.
ftA227
The verse may be thus
rendered,-
13. I will gather their
ingathering, saith Jehovah: No grapes shall be on the vine, And no figs
on the fig-tree, Even the leaf shalt fade away; For I will give these
to those who shall pass through
them.
God threatens the Jews with the
deprivation of the fruits of the earth. He would gather their fruits by means of
their enemies, such as would pass through them; and there would be no limits for
them. As to the last line, it is a common thing in Hebrew to leave out the
relative "who" before a verb in the future tense. So it is in
Welsh-
Canys rhoddav y
rhain iddynt hwy a dramwyant
trwyddynt.
The most literal and the most
suitable to the context is this
rendering.-Ed.
ftA228
The verb hmd
means, to be silent, to be reduced to silence; and
the silence is that of inactivity, or of weakness, or of death. The silence of
inactivity seems to be the meaning in the first instance, and the silence of
weakness in the second: "Let us be silent, "or, let us rest; "God hath made us
silent, "or, made us feeble, or, reduced to nothing our
strength:-
14. Why do we sit still?
be ye assembled, And let us go into fortified cities, And let us be silent
there; For Jehovah our God has reduced us to silence; And he has given us to
drink the water of hemlock, Because we have sinned against
Jehovah.
That
çar
is "hemlock, "or some poisonous herb, is evident
from
<281004>Hosea
10:4. "The water" seems to be the juice in this instance-" the juice of
hemlock." It is rendered "the water of gall,
u[dwr
colh~v," by the Septuagint, and the same by
the Vulgate; "bitter waters, "by the Syriac; "water of bitterness,
"by the Arabic; "the cup of malediction, "by the Targum. "Water of
hemlock" is the rendering of
Blayney.
Horsley renders the third
and the fourth line as follows:-
And let us
there sit in despair, Since the Lord our God hath brought us to despair.—
Ed.
ftA229
The word is
hwq,
hoping, or longing, rendered by all the ancient versions, as though it were in
the first person plural. It may be taken as a
noun,-
The hope was for peace, but there was no
good! For a time of healing, but behold terror!—
Ed.
ftA230
The ancient versions and the Targum all differ as to the meaning of this
word; and it is difficult to make the original to agree with any of them. The
word, as in the received text, is a verbal noun from Hiphil, with a iod
affixed to it, and is either a personal noun in the feminine gender, "my
consoler, "or "strengthener, "meaning his own soul,-or a common noun, "my
consolation, "or "strength, "meaning God. But Schultens, regarding the
verb as signifying to smile or to laugh, and thinking that it means here the
laugh of misery or of contempt, renders it "O thou (i.e., the
daughter of Sion) that grinnest at me for pain, "and sayest, "within me the
heart is sick." The Targum seems to favor this view, as it mentions the
division of the people. Blayney, according to several copies, divides the
word thus, ytyg
ylbm, and considers the one as a negative, and the
other a verbal noun from
hhg,
to heal, and renders the verse
thus:-
Sorrow is upon me past my
remedying,
My heart within me is
faint.
Still the simplest way, and the most
suitable to the passage, is to take the word as a common noun, signifying
consolation, comfort or strength, and to consider the words as addressed to
God,-
My strength! within me is
sorrow, Within me is my heart
faint.
"Faint, "that is, through grief. It is
rendered "grieve, "or "is sorrowful, "by all the ancient versions and the
Targum.-Ed.
fta231
Literally it is, "The voice of the shout of the daughter of my people,"
four words in succession, and three in regimine by juxtaposition. The Welsh
is exactly the same, "Llev gwaedd merch vy mhobl" — Voice shout
daughter my people. —
Ed.
fta232
The meaning of this verse is viewed by some differently. Their exile is
considered as referred to at the beginning of the verse, "from a distant land,"
— or literally, "from the land of the remote ones." All the versions
render the preposition "from," and not "because of," as in our version. The
Prophet contemplates them as in banishment, and relates what they would say, and
what answer God had for them: and they seem to have been thus contemplated to
the end of the chapter, —
19.Behold the voice of the cry of
the daughter of my people From the land of the remote ones, — "Was
not Jehovah in Sion? Was not her king within her?" "Why! they
provoked me with their carved images, With the vanities of the
foreigner."
Then follows the continuation of the
cry in exile, —
20. "Passed
has the harvest, Ended has the summer, And we have not been
saved!"
The "King," in verse 19, is "Jehovah" in
the former line. "The vanities of the foreigner" were idols: they were vanities,
because they could do nothing, neither good nor evil. What made them gods were
the imaginations of the infatuated and superstitious. The gods of many now are
nothing better. Every notion of God is false but what is consistent with his
word. The Socinian god is not the true God; it is the fiction of a perverted
mind. Nor is the god of the thorough Papists anything better, nor the god of the
Pharisee. —
Ed.
fta233
To keep throughout the metaphorical character of this verse, it ought to be
rendered thus, —
For the
bruising of the daughter of my people I was bruised, I became black; Desolation
possessed me.
But taking the words as applied to
the mind, divested of metaphor, we must render them thus, —
For the sorrow of the daughter of
my people I sorrowed, I mourned; Astonishment possessed
me.
And this "astonishment" he explains in the
next verse: there were means of restoration, and yet the people were not
restored; at this he was astonished. —
Ed.
fta234
As the whole passage, from the 19th verse, is
anticipative, and represents the ease of the Jews in captivity, this verse is to
be viewed in the same light, and rendered in the past tense, —
22.Was there not balm in Gilead?
Was there not a healer there?
Why
then has not succeeded The recovery of the daughter of my
people?
Whether balm or rosin be meant, it makes
no great difference; its healing virtues had become proverbial; and in this
sense it is to be taken here. Kimchi held that it was balm or balsam,
which Josephus reports was first brought to Judea by the Queen of Sheba.
But the tree which produced
yrx,
was not an exotic, but indigenous in Judea, as it appears from
<013725>Genesis
37:25, and 43:10; and it grew especially in Gilead, as it appears from this
passage and from chap. 46:11. Bochart maintained that rosin is meant by
the word, the gum drawn from the Terebinthus or the turpentine tree, which
possesses strong healing virtues. It is rendered,
"rJhti>nh
— rosin," by the Septuagint, the Vulgate, and the Arabic;
and "cera — wax," by the Syriac. "Healer," or physician, is
rendered
"ijatro<v
— healer," by the Septuagint, and "medicus," by the
Vulgate, Syriac, and Arabic. It appears that Gilead was not only
celebrated for its healing gum, but also for its medical
men.
The balm was the word of God, and the
healer who applied it was the prophet or the
teacher.
Perhaps the most literal rendering of
the first two lines is the following, and the most suitable to express
astonishment, —
The balm, not in
Gilead!:
Verily, a
healer, not there! — Ed.
ftB1
This verse is connected by some with the last chapter: and it seems to belong to
it. It forms in all the Hebrew MSS. the 23d verse of the preceding chapter
(<240802>Jeremiah
8:23). The phrase,
ˆtyAym,
"who will give," means a wish, "O that my head," etc., or "May my head,"
etc. The Septuagint, the Vulgate, the Arabic, and the
Targum express it literally, "Who will give;" but the Syriac has,
"O, I wish my head were turned into water." —
Ed.
ftB2
This verse may be rendered thus,
—
O that I, had in the desert
the lodging of travellers, Then I would go away from them; For all of them
are adulterers, A company of
hypocrites.
He preferred living in the temporary
sheds of travellers, erected in the desert, rather than to live among his own
people. How intolerably wicked they must have been! A company, or an assembly, a
multitude: the word need not be deemed as retaining its primary idea. The
meaning is, that the whole community, the whole people, were hypocrites; they
pretended to worship and serve God, and at the same time were idolaters and
treacherous and immoral in their conduct. The word for "hypocrites" is
derived from one that means a garment, a cloak, a covering; and the verb means
to act under a cover, to act deceitfully, or falsely, or hypocritically, or
perfidiously. It is rendered "deceivers" by the Septuagint,
"prevaricators" by the Vulgate, "liars" by the Syriac,
"falsifiers" by the Targum, and "perfidious dealers" by
Blayney. — Ed.
ftB3
The ancient versions differ in rendering the
first clauses of this verse: "They have bent their tongue like a bow; falsehood
and not truth has prevailed over the land," Septuagint; — "And
they have stretched their tongue like a bow of falsehood, and not of truth;
they have become strong in the land," Vulgate; — "Their tongue as
with their own bow have they shot; by falsity and perfidiousness they have
become great in the land," Syriac; — "Their tongues for falselhood
have they bent, as a bow; and prevailed has perfidy over the land," Arabic.
Blayney makes a conjectural emendation, and Houbigant and Horsley
make another; but neither is necessary. The literal version is as follows,
—
And they bend their tongue,
their lying bow; And not for truth are they strong in the
land.
"Their lying bow," or "their bow of
falsehood;" it was a bow by which they shot lies; they employed their tongues
for this purpose. —
Ed.
ftB4
The whole verse may he thus rendered,
—
And they deceive, every one
his neighbor, And the truth they speak not; They have taught their tongue the
word of falsehood; With perverting have they wearied
themselves.
The verb for "deceive" means to
mock, to trifle with, to play the fool with. Their object was to befool their
neighbors by cheating and deceiving them. "The word," or the matter, "of
falsehood," is falsehood itself, or sheer falsehood. The Vulgate and the
Syriac's version is, "They have taught their tongue to speak falsehood."
To teach the tongue false-hood, was to habituate it to tell lies. The last line
is differently rendered. The Septuagint deviates far from the original.
The version of the Vulgate is, "They have labored to act unjustly;" and
this comes near the meaning; only "to act unjustly" is rather to act
pervertingly: they wrested and turned everything from its right course and
meaning; and they labored in perverting things, until they wearied themselves.
Falsehood requires more labor than truth. —
Ed.
ftB5
Houbigant, Horsley, and Venema
have suggested emendations as to this verse, derived in some measure from
the Septuagint. A part of the first word,
°tbç,
is connected by the Septuagint with the former verse; for it is divided
into
bçand
°t
As to this division the preceding authors agree; but they differ as to the
construction, though mainly the same in sense. The most probable is that of
Venema, for he only divides the word, and gives this
version,
Burst forth does robbery
upon robbery, deceit, on deceit; They refuse to know me, saith
Jehovah.
Burst forth, or boil —
exoestuat, is certainly not the meaning of
bç
which signifies to return, to turn, to restore, etc. Then the rendering would
be,
Return does guile for guile,
deceit for deceit.
The first word is rendered
"usury —
to>kov"
by the Septuagint, but
°t
means guile or fraud. See
<191007>Psalm
10:7; Psalm 55:12; Psalm 72:14. The meaning is, that their dishonest dealings
were reciprocal: the cheats cheated one
another.
Our version agrees with the Vulgate
and the Syriac, and is adopted by Blayney: and he concludes
from the end of this verse, that the speaker from the 2d verse is not the
Prophet, but God; who, adopting the language of man, intimates his wish to leave
a people so wicked. But this conclusion is not necessary; for the prophets often
introduce sentences of this kind. —
Ed.
ftB6
All the ancient versions (except the Vulgate) and the Targum read,
as though
tb
"daughter," were
t[r
"wickedness," as in
<240712>Jeremiah
7:12. Both Houbigant and Horsley adopt this reading; and the first
gives the meaning of "thus" to
°ya,
and not "how." Then the verse would
be,
Therefore thus saith Jehovah of
hosts, — Behold I will melt them that I may try them; For thus will I do
because of the wickedness of my people.
The
rendering of the last line, according; to the received text, might be this,
which is nearly the Vulgate,
—
For how should I deal
otherwise with the daughter of my
people?
The passage runs better in this way,
than according to the proposed emendation. —
Ed.
ftB7
The word,
fjwç,
means "killing" or slaying; see
<012210>Genesis
22:10; Genesis 37:31;
<021206>Exodus
12:6. Its primary meaning, as Parkhurst thinks, is to shed, or to drain
off, either blood from animals, or juice from grapes, or gold from dross.
But it is used in the sense of slaying. The Septuagint and the Vulgate
render it here, wounding,"
—
A killing arrow is
their tongue; Deceit it speaks; With his mouth does one speak peace
to his neighbor, But in his heart he sets an ambush for
him.
Literally, "his ambush," that is, the
ambush of which he is the object. This form of speech is often in Hebrew.
See
<182810>Job
28:10. "Penit ei insidias" is the Vulgate. Blayney gives a paraphrase,
not a version, —
But inwardly
will he resolve to fall upon him by
surprise.
The future tense here, as in many
other instances, is used as a present tense, and designed to shew the habitual
practice of the people. The same is done in the Welsh language: the future tense
is continually used to express a present action. —
Ed.
ftB8
It is not from this root, but from
hwa,
to desire, in Niphal,
hwan
to be desirable. The noun means desirable or pleasant places or
spots. See
<192302>Psalm
23:2;
<242537>Jeremiah
25:37;
<290119>Joel
1:19. — Ed.
ftB9
The whole verse is as follows,
—
10. For the mountains will
I raise weeping and wailing, And for the pleasant places of the desert, a
lamentation; For they are desolate, without any one passing through, And they
hear not the voice of cattle; From the bird of heaven even to the beast, They
have migrated, they have gone away.
The
"pleasant places" were "desolate;" and "in the mountains" no "voice of
cattle" was heard. No one "passing through" explains the desolation. The word is
improperly rendered, "burnt up," in our version and by Blayney. It was
used before in the sense of desolation,
<240407>Jeremiah
4:7; and it ought to be so rendered in
<240215>Jeremiah
2:15. In the last line, the migration refers to birds, and the going away to the
beasts. In none of the ancient versions is this distinction intimated. —
Ed.
ftB10
Somewhat a different view may be taken of
this verse, as it will appear from the following version,
—
Who is the man that is
wise, And he will understand this, — And to whom the mouth of Jehovah has
spoken, And he will declare it, — Even why destroyed is the land,
Made waste like the desert, without a
traveler.
The wise man is the same with him to
whom God had spoken: and what he had to understand and to declare was the reason
why the land was destroyed. Then in the next verse God himself, by the mouth of
his prophet, makes this known. "Made waste" is rendered "burnt up" by
theSeptuagint and the Vulgate, but desolated, or desolate, by
the Targum, Syriac, and Arabic; and no doubt rightly, as "without
a traveler," or one passing through, explains what is meant: in like manner,
"without an inhabitant," in the preceding verse, is an explanation of "the
cities of Judah" being made "desolate," or rather, entirely desolate. —
Ed.
ftB11
"Voice" is for God's word; and so the
Targum renders it: they did not walk in, or according to, his
word. — Ed.
ftB12
See Note on
<240317>Jeremiah
3:17, 18.
ftB13
It is supposed that the Israelites made a
difference between this word and God: they allowed but one God, but introduced
Baalim, or inferior gods, and worshipped them. They tried to evade the
charge of idolatry, by alleging that Baalim were mediators. But no excuse of
this kind was admitted, as God everywhere imputed idolatry to them.
Notwithstanding this example, and the distinct declaration of Scripture,
that there is but one God and one Mediator,
(<460805>1
Corinthians 8:5, 6;
<540205>1
Timothy 2:5,) the error, the awful error of praying to saints, etc., as
mediators, has prevailed in the Christian Church! —
Ed.
ftB14
It makes no difference as to the meaning, but
the true construction of this clause is as follows,
—
Which their fathers have
taught them.
The verb "to teach," in Hebrew as
well as in some other languages, admits of two objective cases. —
Ed.
ftB15
But the reason why this herb is mentioned is
its bitterness, — and not its wholesome effects. It was hence chosen to
designate what is afflictive and distressing. This appears from.
<200504>Proverbs
5:4, "bitter as wormwood." —
Ed.
ftB16
See note on Jeremiah
8:14.
ftB17
I render the verses thus,
—
17.Thus saith Jehovah of
hosts, bethink yourselves; And call for mourning women, that they may come;
Yea, for the skillful send, that they may
come,
18.And hasten, and raise for
us a wailing, That our eyes may pour forth tears, And our eyelids drop down
waters. —
Ed.
ftB18
The true version is that given by Blaney and approved by Horsley,
—
Because they have
thrown down our habitations.
The ancient
versions differ, but none give the meaning of our version, which is that of
Junius and Tremelius. The whole verse is in the past tense: things
are represented as having already taken place:
—
For the voice of wailing
has been heard from Sion,-- "How have we been plundered! We have been put to
great shame; For we have left the land, For they have thrown down our
habitations."
The people are set forth as
assembled in Jerusalem, having been made to quit the land, their dwellings
having been pulled down. —
Ed.
ftB19
The objection, that there is an inconsisteney
in saying that death entered through the windows to cut off children from the
street, disappears, when we consider that the Jews thought themselves safe
because their gates were dosed and their city fortified. Be it so, says the
Prophet, yet death will enter, if not through the gates, yet through the
windows, and through our towers, and it will destroy the children who play in
our streets, and our young men assembled in the squares and the wide places of
our city. That those collected at Jerusalem are here meant, is evident from the
nineteenth verse. Then, in the next verse, he refers to those who still
continued in the country. And this accounts for the change made in the sentence,
which has puzzled some expounders, and induced them to propose emendations. The
verse may be thus rendered,
—
For climbed has death
through our windows, It has come through our towers, To cut off the child from
the street, The young men from the broad
streets.
Though the gates were closed, yet death
came in, not only through windows, or any openings there might have been, but
also through strong towers. —
Ed.
ftB20
Blayney and some others connect
rbd
with the former verse, and, on the authority of the Septuagint, leave out
"thus saith Jehovah." The Vulgate and the Targum retain the text
as we have it, and the Syriac omits only the first word; and there is no
MS. in favor of what has been proposed; and the meaning, as here represented by
Calvin, is so evident, that no change is at all necessary,
—
22. Speak, Thus saith
Jehovah, Fall also shall the carcase of man, Like dung on the face of the field,
Or like an handful of corn after the reaper, And without any to gather
it.
This would be the fate of such as
remained in the country, whilst the greatest part had fled into Jerusalem. It is
by keeping this distinction in view that the whole passage, from verse the
seventeenth, may be rightly understood. —
Ed.
ftB21
The next sentence is, "the valiant in his
valor:" so the Vulate; but by the Septuagint "the strong
(ijscuro<v)
in his strength;" by the Syriac, "the giant in his strength." The
Targum gives this paraphrase of the verse, "Thus saith the Lord, Let not
Solomon, the wise son of David, delight in his wisdom; nor Sampson, the valiant
son of Manoah, delight in his valor; nor Ahab, the rich son of Omri, delight in
his riches." It is military valor that is probably meant. They thought that they
had wisdom in counsel, valor in defense, and wealth to procure aid, or to carry
on war. —
Ed.
ftB22
Blayney and Venema agree with Calvin in thinking that
"these" refer to such men as knew God and trusted in him, and not to "these"
things, the mercy, judgment, and justice before mentioned. The versions and the
Targum are ambiguous, like the Hebrew, except the Vulgate, in
which "these" is in the neuter gender, referring to things, and not to men. I
would render the verse thus,
—
But in this let him
glory who glories, That he understands, and that he knows me, —
That I am Jehovah, Who doeth mercy, judgment, and justice in the land; For in
these have I delighted, saith Jehovah.
"Me"
is left out in the Septuagint, the Syriac, and the Arabic.
"That he knows me" is only a more clear enunciation of the previous words,
"that he understands:" what he understands or knows is then stated, "That I am,"
etc. "Judgment," when connected with justice, seems to refer to what the law
forbids; and "justice," to what the law enjoins. See
<235601>Isaiah
56:1, where the command is, to "keep" or observe "judgment," and to "do" or
execute "justice." God doeth judgment in that he doeth nothing wrong, contrary
to what is right and just; and he doeth justice in the defence of what is right
and just, and in making good what he hath promised. Judgment regards the
negative part of the law, and justice the active part. In Jeremiah 22:3, we find
both words, "judgment and justice," or righteousness. Then, as it is usual with
the prophets, the last is described first, "delivered is the spoiled:"
afterwards judgment is set forth, it does "no wrong," etc. But it is only when
the two words occur together that they have these specific meanings; for both,
occurring separately, have a much wider import. They are used together more than
twenty times. —
Ed.
ftB23
The exposition of the phrase given in this section is inconsistent with all the
ancient versions and the Targum: it is what has been given by modern
rabbins. "The shaven around the face," is the Septuagint; "the shaven as
to the hair," the Vulqate and the Targum; and to the same purpose
is the Syriac and Arabic. The word
hap
is used in
<031927>Leviticus
19:27, with distinct reference to the side or corner of the
head, and of the beard; and the Israelites were forbidden to imitate the nations
who shaved off those parts. Parkhurst renders the phrase (which occurs
also in
<242523>Jeremiah
25:23, and in
<244932>Jeremiah
49:32) "trimmed on the sides," that is, of the head; more literally, "the shaven
on the side," that is, of the head, or, "on the corner," that is, of the beard.
It was a phrase, though defective, yet no doubt well understood, as it is the
case in other languages. The design of mentioning these seems to have been to
class together such as had been expressly separated. I propose the following as
the version of the two verses,
—
25. Behold the days are
coming, saith Jehovah, That I will visit every one circumcised, Who is in
uncircumcision, —
26.The
Egyptians and Judah, Edom also and the children of Ammon and Moab, And all the
shawm on the side of the head, Who dwell in the desert; For all these
nations are uncircumcised; And all the house of Israel, — They are
uncircumcised in heart.
It is justly
remarked by Horsley that the nations here mentioned practiced
circumcision. They were hence circumcised, and yet in uncircumcision; and the
Jews were like them: and the last line explains this apparent contradiction:
they had the outward but not the inward circumcision. —
Ed.