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 PRINCETON, N. J. 
 
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A 
 
 COMMENTARY 
 
 ON THE 
 
 HOLY SCRIPTURES. 
 
 CRITICAL, DOCTRINAL AND HOMILETICAL, 
 
 WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO MINISTERS AND STUDENTS. 
 
 BY 
 
 JOHN PETEE LAKGE, D. D. 
 
 IN CONNECTION WITH A NUMBER OF EMINENT EUROPEAN DIVINES. 
 
 TRANSLATED FROM THE GERMAN, REVISED, ENLARGED, AND EDITED 
 
 BT 
 
 PHILIP SCHAFF, D.D. 
 
 ASSISTED BT AMERICAN SCHOLARS OF VARIOUS EVANGELICAL DENOMINATIONS. 
 
 VOL. XII. OF THE OLD TESTAMENT: CONTAINING JEREMIAH AND LAMENTATIONS 
 
 NEW YORK: 
 
 CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS, 
 
 1899 
 
THE ; , 
 
 BOOK 
 
 OF THE 
 
 PEOPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 THEOLOGICALLY AND HOMILETICALLY EXPOUNDED 
 
 BIT 
 
 / 
 
 Dk. c. w. eduard naegelsbach, 
 
 Pastoe in Batreuth, Bataria. 
 
 TRANSLATED, ENLARGED, AND EDITED 
 
 BY 
 
 Si^MUEL R^LFH ^SBURY, 
 
 Rector op Trinity Church, Moorestown, N. J. ' 
 
 NEW YOKK: 
 CHAELES SCRIBKER'S SONS, 
 
 1899 
 
Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1870, by 
 CHARLES SCRIBNER, 
 
 In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the Southern District 
 
 of New York. 
 
 TROWS 
 r^rNT'Nu AND bOOKBINDING COMPAKY, 
 
PREFACE BY THE GENERAL EDITOR. 
 
 Jeeemiah was the most prominent personage in a period of deepest distress and humiJiatlon 
 of the Jewish theocracy. He witnessed one by one the departure of all prospects of a reforma- 
 tion and deliverance from impending national ruin. Profoundly sympathizing with the calami- 
 ties of his people and country, he is emphatically the prophet of sorrow and affliction. The first 
 quotation from him in the New Testament is " a voice of lamentation and weeping and great 
 mourning" (Matt. ii. 17, 18). In his holy grief over Jerusalem and his bitter persecutions 
 he resembles the life of Christ. Should he, instead of David, be the author of the xxii. 
 Psalm, as HiTZia plausibly conjectures, the resemblance would even be more striking ; but the 
 superscription is against it. Standing alone in a hostile world, fearless and immovable, he de- 
 livered for forty years his mournful warnings and searching rebukes, dashed the false hopes of 
 his deluded people to the ground, counselled submission instead of resistance, denounced the 
 unfaithful priests and false prophets, and thus brought upon himself the charge of treachery 
 and desertion ; yet in the midst of gloom and darkness he held fast to trust in Jehovah, and in 
 the stormy sunset of prophecy he beheld the dawn of a brighter day of a new covenant of the 
 gospel written on the heart (xxxi. 31). He is therefore the prophet of the dispensation of the 
 Spirit (Hebr. viii. 13 ; x. 16, 17). The character and temper of Jeremiah is reflected in his 
 strongly subjective, tender, aflfecting, elegiac style, which combines the truth of history with 
 the deepest pathos of poetry. It is the language of holy grief and sorrow. Even his prose 
 is " more poetical than poetry, because of its own exceeding tragical simplicity." Jeremiah has 
 proved a sympathizing companion and comforter in seasons of individual suffering and national 
 calamity from the first destruction of Jerusalem down to the siege of Paris in our own day. 
 
 The elaborate Commentary on Jeremiah and the Lamentations, which appeared in 1868, as a 
 part of Dr. Lange's Bibel-werk, was prepared by Dr. C. W. Edward Naegelsbach, pastor in 
 Bayreuth, Bavaria, the author of a Hebrew Grammar, of several small monographs, and im- 
 portant articles in Herzog's Theol. EncyclopsEdia. 
 
 The Commentary on the Book of the Prophet Jeremiah was translated by the Rev. Samuel 
 R. AsBURY, Rector of Trinity Church, Moorestown, N. J. 
 
 The Commentary on the Lamentations was translated by the Rev. Wm. H. Hornblower, 
 D.D., of Paterson, N. J. 
 
 Considerable additions, amounting to 147 pages, were made in both works, especially the 
 latter.* Dr. Hornblower justly dissents from Dr. Naegelsbach's opinion concerning the 
 authorship of the Lamentations, and defends the old tradition which assigns it to Jeremiah. 
 
 • The German Commentary on Jeremiah has 401 (xxii. and 379), that on Lamentations 94 (xvii. and 77), both 4fi5 pages. 
 The English edition has 446 pages on the Book of Jeremiah, 196 on Lamentations, in all 642 pages. 
 
 i 
 
ii PREFACE BY THE GENERAL EDITOR. 
 
 In justice to the German author, I extract from his Preface what he says concerning hia 
 views on Biblical criticism : 
 
 " With reference to the critical principles I have adopted I ought perhaps to say something. 
 There is inconsiderate criticism ; there is also inconsiderate hostility to criticism. Between these 
 two I have endeavored to preserve the golden mean. The absolute integrity of the received text 
 cannot be maintained, and indeed is now held by none. But once granting that the original 
 has undergone corruptions, and the right of criticism is admitted in principle. Of this right, 
 however, a very unrighteous use may be made, as is the case whenever criticism sets itself in 
 opposition to the spirit in which a work was produced. Such criticism may possibly hit the 
 truth, it may discover errors, which the eye of love and reverence has failed to observe. It has 
 done undeniable service in this regard. But this effect is accidental and exceptional, not neces- 
 sary and universal. Criticism proceeding from adverse opinions will do more to render the good 
 and genuine suspicious than to purify it from spurious elements. We must correct it, not with 
 a denial of its righi per se, but on the one hand with a rejection of the principles which govern 
 the application of this right, and on the other with a rigid examination of the objective results. 
 In the latter respect it is important, above all, not to confound the eternal truth with human 
 traditional conceptions thereof. The eternal truth is not prejudiced, even though an interpola- 
 tion or a lacuna may be discovered here and there in a canonical book. Did such discoveries 
 inflict a vital injury, care would have been taken that not a single variation should creep into 
 the sacred archives. But such variations do exist in number ; there are, as we have said, un- 
 questionable distortions of the original text of greater or less extent. It is thus seen that the 
 Almighty was not concerned at a little dust, a slight rent, or a small piece of patchwork, affixed 
 by an unhallowed hand, on the hem of the majestic garment of His holy oracles. There is 
 always enough of the unassailable sacred text remaining intact, which to some may be a ' foun- 
 tain of living water,' to others the ' sword of the Spirit.' Now would it be of any advantage to 
 the good cause if we admitted no critical suspicion, but warded off every such attack at any 
 price ? Would it be well — would it be right — to ward off such attacks by artificial expedi- 
 ents ? We should thus be in danger of defending the truth, consciously or unconsciously, with 
 lies, so that the good cause would be rather injured than subserved. For thus we should under- 
 mine the citadel we were defending ; we should induce in our readers the conviction that we 
 were acting on the principle that ' the end justifies the means,' and were anxious not so much for 
 truth as for victory. I have from the first guarded, for God's and my conscience' sake, against 
 such unspiritual knight-errantry. 
 
 "And yet I consider that there is great advantage in criticism exercised with conscientious 
 care. In the first place, the good cause is thus spared the miserable testimonium paupertatis to 
 which a paltry fear of criticism exposes it, and it receives a testimonium opulentix, that is, we 
 thus testify that we know the cause we espouse to stand on an impregnable basis and to be able 
 to withstand every trial of critical fire. In the second place, we afford to ourselves a testimo- 
 nium honestatis, that is, we cause it to be understood that we have to do with the truth, and 
 will contend for it only with honorable means. In the third place, if the unquestionable, but 
 relatively insignificant, corruptions do no harm, still a knowledge of the correct text is, directly 
 for exegesis and indirectly for doctrinal theology, always of some importance. In the fourth 
 and last place, a right exercise of criticism is an exemplification of the -^TitKia rov Trh/puftaToc roS 
 Xpiarov (Eph. iv. 13) and the a'la-^TjTrjpLa yeyvfivaafieva irpbs didicpiaiv KoAoi re kuI kukov (Heb. V. 14)." 
 
 Philip Schafp. 
 New York, 40 Bible House, April, 1871. 
 
THl 
 
 PROPHET JEREMIAH 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 2 1. THE HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF JEREMIAH's PROPHETIC LABORS. 
 
 The Old Testament theocracy in its external relations suffered two disastrous shocks ; the de- 
 struction by Nebuchadnezzar and that by Titus. Both culminated in the demolition of the tem- 
 ple and the holy city, and the carrying away of the people. Each of the two catastrophes had 
 its prophet: the latter, as definitive, forming the first act of the judgment — Christ, the Judge, 
 Himself (Matth. xxiv.): the former, the prophet Jeremiah. 
 
 It is however noteworthy that Jeremiah began his dirge at a time when the sick nation ap- 
 peared to have been healed. The abomination of apostasy reached its acme m the act of Ma- 
 nasseh, the son of Hezekiah (2 Kings xxi 1-17), who placed idols and idol-altars in the temple, 
 dedicated to the exclusive worship of Jehovah. After the short reign of his like-minded son 
 Amon (2 Kings xxi. 18-25) Josiah ascended the throne of Judea, a prince of whom the book of 
 Kings declares (xxiii. 25) that neither before him nor after him was there a king like him, who 
 turned to the Lord with his whole heart, according to all the law of Moses. This pious king 
 cleansed the land from all the abominations of idolatry, and restored the worship of Jehovah 
 with a completeness which had not before existed (vers. 22-24, etc.). Unfortunately, notwith- 
 standing his earnestness and good-will, Josiah's reform was only partial. The good soil was want- 
 ing for the seed, and hence his reformation was but a sowing among thorns. He had cleansed 
 the land but not the hearts of the people (Jer. iv. 1-4. Heezog, Real-Enc. XII. S. 227) and 
 after his death the weeds shot forth again in fell luxuriance. From its geographical position the 
 theocracy was placed between two great powers, that of Egypt on the South, that of Assyria on 
 the North. Assyria was about to succumb beneath the heavy blows of the Babylonians and 
 Medes, and Pharaoh Necho, King of Egypt, regarded this as a favorable opportunity to conquer 
 Syria. If he succeeded in this, Judea would be surrounded and in constant danger of being over- 
 powered by him. Josiah attempted to repel P. Necho, and made the independence of Syria the 
 final object of his policy (see Niebuhr, Ass. u. Bab. S. 364). But he was defeated and slain at 
 Megiddo, and Necho conquered Syria as far as the Euphrates. (2 Kings xxiv. 7). In the mean- 
 time Nineveh had fallen, B. C. 606. Nabopolassar, king of Babylon, sent the army thus set at 
 liberty, under the command of his son Nebuchadnezzar, against the Egyptians, with whom a 
 decisive and victorious battle was fought at Carchemish B. C. 605-4 In the same year his 
 father died, and the youthful conqueror mounted the Babylonian throne. In Judea, after Jo- 
 siah's death, the people had elected king not the eldest but second [surviving] son, Jehoahaz, 
 probably fearing the despotic character of Jehoiakim. But Jehoahaz did not prove to be a good 
 sovereign. He did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers 
 had done (2 Kings xxiii. 32). In Riblah, where he had probably gone to treat with Necho, be 
 was taken prisoner, and was afterwards carried away as captive to Egypt, since Necho did not 
 
 1 
 
THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 desire a ruler in Jerusalem, who would pursue a national policy (2 Kings xxiii. 32, 3-i ; Jer. 
 xxii. 10-12). Jehoiakim was appointed by the Egyptian king in his place, and thus, as the 
 creature of the latter, laid under obligation to serve hira. The fears entertained as to his cha- 
 racter were realized. He ruled despotically ; his love of splendid architecture leading him to 
 oppress the people severely (Jer. xxii. 13 sqq.) ; he shed much innocent blood, (ver. 17) and served 
 idols like the ungodly kings before him. The overthrow of the Egyptian power in consequence 
 of the battle of Carchemish involved his fall also. Although Nebuchadnezzar did not immedi- 
 ately take possession of Judea, his father's death necessitating his hasty retun to Babylon, his 
 supremacy over Syria and Egypt was secured. It was four years after the ba lie, in the eighth 
 year of Jehoiakim, that he took Judea and Jerusalem (2 Kings xxiv. 1). The circumstance that 
 the book of Kings makes no mention of the battle of Carchemish indicates that this made no 
 perceptible difference in the condition of the kingdom of Judea. If Nebuchadnezzar had then 
 invaded Judea, besieged and taken Jerusalem, and carried off prisoners and booty, it would cer- 
 tainly have been mentioned. The book of Jeremiah also contains no trace of Judea having then 
 come into the actual possession of the Chaldeans. Jeremiah is always exhorting to submission. 
 Jehoiakim reigns undisturbed in his fourth and fifth year at Jerusalem (comp. Jer. xxv. and 
 xxxvi.) The fasting mentioned in xxxvi. 9, may as well have been occasioned by a danger threat- 
 ening from a distance as any other, — least probably by the burden of a foreign rule then weigh- 
 ing on the people, since there is not a syllable intimating such an occasion. I therefore agree 
 with those, who assume with Josephus [A')itiq. X. 6, 1) that Nebuchadnezzar took Jerusalem for 
 the first time in the eighth year of Jehoiakim. Comp. Duncker, Gesch. d. Alierih., I. *S'. 825, on the 
 other side Fr. R. Hasse, De Prima Neb. adv. Hierosol. expediimie, Bonn., 1856. Niebuhr, 
 Ass. u. Bab., S. 370, 373 sq. Niebuhr seems to me to make too much of the passage, Dan. i. 1, 2, 
 as well as of a notice in the Seder Olam Rabba, c. 24, and on the other hand too little of the tes- 
 timony of the book of Kings and of Jeremiah. But however this may be, Jehoiakim, as well as 
 the large majority of the people, took no heed to Jeremiah's exhortation to submit willingly to 
 Nebuchadnezzar, and the consequence was that they were compelled to do so (2 Kings xxiv. 1). 
 Three years afterwards Jehoiakim again revolted. A Chaldean army, with auxiliaries from Sy- 
 ria, Moab, and Ammon, reduced the rebellious people again to submission. At this juncture 
 Jehoiakim lost his life, but whether in consequence of the capture of the city (Josephus Antiq. 
 X. 6, 3, speaks of a voluntary admission of the Chaldeans into the city) or being taken prisoner 
 outside the walls (so Vaihinger in Herzog, Real-Enc. VI. 8. 790, as it appears, on the basis 
 of Ezek. xix. 8 sq.) is uncertain. According to the book of Kings the Chaldeans do not appear 
 to have taken the city immediately after the death of Jehoiakim, for his son Jehoiachin succeeded 
 by right of inheritance, not by the will of the Babylonian monarch. As heir to his father's obli- 
 gations he is indeed made war upon and punished, but not so severely as Zedekiah (comp. 2 
 Kings xxiv. 15 ; and xxv. 27 sq., with xxv. 6 sq. ; Jer. lii. 9-11). Whether the siege of Jerusa- 
 lem began before Jehoiakira's death or after cannot be ascertained ; certainly not long after, for 
 Jehoiachin (who had also reigned in a manner displeasing to Jehovah) only three months after 
 his accession to the throne, had to yield to the besieging forces of Nebuchadnezzar. The latter 
 carried hira, his family, the princes, the soldiers, and the smiths, all who could make or bear 
 arms, captives to Babylon. (2 Kings xxiv. 14 sq.). This was the first deportation, and did not 
 attain its object of rendering the people incapable of resistance. Nebuchadnezzar seems not to 
 have been aware of the amazing tenacity of the Jewish character, or he would have done then 
 •what he was obliged to do afterwards. He allowed the kingdom of Judah to remain, but ap- 
 pointed a king of his own choice, Mattaniah, the youngest son of Josiah. He, like Eliakim, had 
 to change his name, and perhaps with reference to the promise given in xxiii. 5, ('JP"'.^ mrr) 
 assumed that of ^H^pIV- This sounds like mockery when we read the actual history of this 
 king. He was not indeed inaccessible to better feelings, and seems to have been by no means 
 80 barbarous and cruel as Jehoiakim, but he was weak, and from dread of his too powerful no- 
 bles permitted every kind of transgression of the laws of Jehovah and injustice towards His pro- 
 phet. The whole fanatical national party of the Jews, supported by a number of false prophets, 
 united to induce him to break his oath of allegiance to the king of Babylon (Jer. xxiii. 9), and an 
 impulse to this from without also was not wanting. In Zedekiah's fourth year ambassadors came 
 
2 1- THE HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF JEREMIAH'S PROPHET LABORS. 8 
 
 from Tyre, Sidon, Ammon, Moab, and Edom (Jer. xxvii.) to consult together concerning a 
 united revolt against the Babylonian rule. Then indeed Jeremiah appears to have stayed the re- 
 volt. The same year Zedekiah made a journey to Babylon to do homage (Jer. li. 59sqq.), on 
 which occasion by a strange turn Jeremiah gave to the king's marshall his great prophecy 
 against Babylon, that he might read it to his master on the banks of the Euphrates, and then 
 sink it in the stream. But scarcely had the Jews received intelligence that Pharaoh Hophra, 
 grandson of Necho, who ascended the throne B. C. 589, was preparing to make war on Babylon 
 than they thought themselves strong enough to venture on a revolt. But Nebuchadnezzar was 
 not to be trifled with. Quickly, before the Egyptians could come up, he appeared with his army 
 before Jerusalem, in the ninth year of Zedekiah (B. C. 588). He was indeed compelled by the 
 appro.ich of the Egyptian army to raise the siege, but he succeeded in repulsing the Egyptians, 
 and Jerusalem was at once invested and sorely pressed. After being devastated by famine and 
 pestilence, the citj' was taken in the 11th year of Zedekiah. The king fled with a part of his 
 army, but was overtaken in the plain of Jericho, brought before Nebuchadnezzar at Riblah, in 
 the land of Hamath, and after his children and the captive princes of Judah had been slain in his 
 presence, his eyes were put out. He was then laden with chains, and carried to Babylon, where 
 he remained in prison till his death (Jer. lii. 11 ; 2 Kings xxv. 7). Yet it appears that towards 
 the end his imprisonment was less rigorous, and that he was honorably interred (Jer. xxxiv. 1- 
 5). A month after the capture of the city, in the 4th month of the 9th year of Zedekiah, came 
 Nebuzaradan, the captain of Nebuchadnezzar's guard, to Jerusalem, and caused the city and tem- 
 ple to be completely destroyed, and the people carried away. A few of the common people only 
 remained in the country, over whom Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, was appointed governor. 
 Concerning him see the article by Oehler in Hebzog's Beal-Enc, IV. 8. 699. To his care Je- 
 remiah, who was given his option, and preferred to remain in the country, was committed. Ge- 
 daliah was however soon afterward murdered by a certain Ishmael, a descendant of the royal fa- 
 mily, at the instigation of Baalis, King of Ammon. The remaining Jews feared the vengeance 
 of the Chaldeans, and although Jeremiah promised them safety and exemption from punishment 
 if they stayed in the country, they removed with their wives and children and whole possessions 
 to Egypt, whither the prophet was compelled to follow them. In Egypt they appear to have 
 settled in different places (xliv. 1) and to have continued the worship of the queen of heaven 
 (the Moabitish goddess, Astarte, see on vii. 18). At a festival of this deity, for which all the 
 Jews in Egypt assembled in Pathros (upper'Egypt) Jeremiah for the last time raised his pro- 
 phetic voice in warning and rebuke. From an intimation of the approaching death of Pharaoh 
 Hophra, which he gave to his countrymen, as a prophetic sign, and which we can only regard as 
 shortly preceding the death of that monarch, we may infer that he continued his prophetic la- 
 bors till towards the year B. C. 570. 
 
 If now we survey at a glance the whole character of the historical position in which Jeremiah 
 was placed, we see in him the herald of the first precursory catastrophe of the external theocracy. 
 At the same time he had also a mission to Babylon, the power which was appointed, after Egypt 
 and Assyria, to engulf the theocracy, and thus in a certain sense to be the first universal mo- 
 narchy. He was first to prepare the way for the divine mission of this power as the instrument 
 of judgment on the theocracy, and then to announce its appointed judgment, after a brief respite 
 of seventy years, and the redemption of the theocracy. This he could do only in the form of 
 that perspective fore-shortening, which is peculiar to prophetic pictures of the future, and which 
 has to be rectified by the fulfilment. Thus we may say that Jeremiah stands at that epoch in 
 universal history, at which the first precursory judgment is inflicted by worldly power on the 
 kingdom of God, and here he has to announce to both judgment and redemption; to the king- 
 dom of God first judgment and afterwards redemption, to the world first victory and glory, but 
 afterwards judgment (chaps. 1. li.). 
 
 § 2. THE PERSON AND MINISTRY OF JEREMIAH. 
 
 The name 'H^O*?' (abbreviated and later form n'rp"i' xxvii. 1 ; xxviii. 5, 10, 11, 15 ; xxix. 1 ; 
 Dan. ix. 2) is not, with Jerome and many since (comp. Neumann, Jer. v. Anai. I., 8. 8), to be 
 derived from ^n^ D^'. a rad. Dl''=Dn with the meaning of elatio, elatus, Doviini, but (accord- 
 
THE PROPHET JEPvEMIAH. 
 
 iri» to many analogies H'JD", n'"73', H'n^'IN etc.) from nO"), and the only possible meaning is 
 
 Jovajacit, projicit, dejieit or ejicit (see Hengstenbeeg, Christology, Edinb. Trand. II. p. 362). 
 It is probable, as Hengstenbeeg supposes, that the name is based on the passage Exod. xv. 1 
 
 T- TT :: T- T-T 
 
 As to his origin, Jeremiah is called (i. 1) "a son of Hilkiah, of the priests who were at Ana- 
 thoth, in the land of Benjamin." From this it is seen that he was of the sacerdotal race. It is 
 possible, but cannot be proved, that his father was the same with that high-priest Hilkiah, who, 
 in the 15th year of Josiah, found the book of the law in the temple (2 Kings xxii. 3 sq.), as 
 maintained by Clem. Alex., Jerome, Theodoret, Kimchi, Abarbanel, Eichhorn, Von 
 BoHLEN, and Umbreit. Comp. Neumann, Gommentar. S. 16 sqq. [Henderson : '' The opi- 
 nion that his father, Hilkiah, was the high priest of that name who discovered the book of the 
 law, can only have originated in the identity of name ; for if that exalted official had been his 
 
 father, he could not have failed to be designated by the appellative /^JH {niin, the high priest, 
 
 or at least |ni)ri, the priest, by way of eminence ; whereas, he is merely spoken of as belonging 
 
 to the priests who resided at Anathoth." — S. R. A.] 
 
 Anathoth, the birth-place of our prophet, is mentioned Josh. xxi. 28 ; 1 Kings ii. 26 ; Isa. x. 
 30 ; 1 Chron. vii. 60 ; Neh. ii. 32. In the Talmud the place is called HJJ' in which we may per- 
 ceive the transition to the present Anata, which, according to Robinson {Bibl. lies. II. 109, 
 comp. Zeitschr.f. d. K. d. Morgenl. II. S. 354 f.; Tobler, Topog. II. S. 395; Ritter [Palestine, 
 Gage's Transl. IV. 217 ; Stanley, Sinai and Pal, p. 212. Thomson, The Land and the 
 Book, II. 548. — S. R. A.]), is situated about three miles to the north-east of Jerusalem. This 
 agrees pretty accurately with the statement of Eusebius [Onomast, s. v.) and of Jerome (on i. 
 1 ; xi. 21 ; xxxii. 7), according to which Anathoth was three Roman miles, and of Josephus 
 {Antiquities, X. 7, 3), according to which it was twenty Roman stadia distant from Jeru- 
 salem. 
 
 According to i. 6, Jeremiah was called to the prophetic office while still young, and according 
 to i. 2 ; XX v. 3, in the thirteenth year of Josiah, therefore B. C. 627. This was the time in which 
 Josiah had commenced his work of reformation (2 Chron. xxxiv. 3), and also that in which the 
 overthrow of Syria by the united forces of the Medes and Babylonians wa? impending. Jeremiah 
 thus appeared at a moment when the chief internal and external enemies of the theocracy, ido- 
 latry and Assyria, had been sensibly checked. Apparently excellent auspices for the success of 
 his ministry ! But it is noteworthy that in his book we do not find the trace of an allusion to 
 these two circumstances. From xi. 21 it is probable that Jeremiah prophesied for a while in his 
 native place, but afterwards we find him fixed in Jerusalem, where, in the temple {e. g., vii. 2 , 
 xxvi. 1 sq.), in the gates of the city (xvii. 19), in prison (xxxii. 2), in the king's house (xxii. 1 ; 
 xxxvii. 17), and in other places (xviii. 1 ; xix. 1), by word, by writing (xxix. 1 ; xxxvi. 2), and 
 by signs (xviii. 1 ; xix. 1 ; xxvii. 2), he proclaims the word of the Lord. The first twenty-two 
 years of his ministry flow by without any special personal experiences, and the quintessence 
 only of his life at that time is preserved in the earlier prophetic sections. The year 605-4 how- 
 ever forms a turning point in the prophet's career. This was the year of the battle of Carche- 
 mish and the succession of Nebuchadnezzar to the throne, two facts which involve a new epoch 
 in history, the founding of the Babylonian universal monarchy, and its subjugation of the Jewish 
 theocracy. Jeremiah had long before, even in the commencement of his labors (i. 13), prophe- 
 sied evil to the theocracy from a people coming from the north, but he had not said that these 
 people were the Chaldeans. It has been much debated what nation Jeremiah understood by 
 these enemies to be expected from the north, and in recent times the view has been almost uni- 
 versal that they were the Scythians (see Comm. on i. 14), but it is plain that the prophet did 
 not himself know the name of the enemies announced by him. If he knew, why should he not 
 have named them ? He names them first in that most important prophetic discourse (ch. xxv ), 
 which may properly be regarded as central to, and presenting in outline, the whole of his prophe- 
 cies. The highly important events of that year had manifestly given the external historical 
 occasion to this extension of the prophet's vision. Although Nebuchadnezzar did not invade 
 
§ 2. THE PERSON AND MINISTRY OF JEREMIAH. 
 
 Judea till four years later, yet the facts of liis victory over the Egyptians and his accession to 
 the throne furnished to the prophet sufficient support for a prophetic programme, which he pro- 
 posed for the next seventy years, and which ran thus : " Since ye, inhabitants of Jerusalem and 
 Judea, to whom I have proclaimed the word of the Lord for twenty-three years from the thirteenth 
 year of Josiah, would not hear, ye shall be given into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, king of 
 Babylon, and not ye only, but Egypt, Uz, the Philistines, the Phoenicians, Edora, Moab, Am- 
 mon, the Arabians, Elamites and Medes (xxv. 19-25). Resistance to this instrument of God 
 will not avail, but lead to greater misery (xxvii. 8). Hence the only remedy for entire overthrow 
 will be voluntary submission. Those who yield will at least be allowed to inhabit the land and 
 cultivate it (xxvii. 11). For seventy years all these nations will serve the king of Babylon, but 
 at the expiration of this period the king and the land of the Chaldeans will themselves be visited 
 (xxv. 11 sq. with xxvii. 7 ; xxix. 11), and Israel will be freed from their dominion." 
 
 This is the great prophetic programme which Jeremiah proposed in the fourth year of Jehoia- 
 kim for the next seventy years ; for it is evident that he reckons the seventy years from this 
 epoch. Though he does not expressly say so, it is plain from this circumstance that from this 
 moment he regards the supremacy of Nebuchadnezzar, with remarkable distinctness, as a fait 
 accompli. Though it was not so outwardly, it was so according to the inner reality known only 
 to the prophet. To him the victory at Carchemish seemed the principle, which, as the mani- 
 festation of a divine purpose, infallibly involved all the subsequent successes of that prince. 
 Hence it was settled in his mind that from the moment of victory at Carchemish, Nebuchadnez- 
 zar, if not de facto, yet de jure, and moreover de jure divino, was lord and ruler of all the nations 
 mentioned in xxv. 11 sqq. (See the Comm. on xxv. 1-11). 
 
 In the same year Jeremiah received the command of the Lord to write out his prophecies, which 
 is evidence that his prophetic labors were about to close. The twenty-fifth chapter and the 
 chapters pertaining to it are the kernel and centre of his prophecies. Having reached this point, 
 they were ripe and ready to be committed to writing, and at the same time a final assault was 
 to be made on the hard hearts of the people by the powerful impression of all the discourses 
 combined into a single whole (xxxvi. 3, 7). This object was attained with respect neither to the 
 people nor their leaders. At this time indeed Jeremiah had many patrons among the princes, 
 and the majority seem to have been well disposed toward him. For when, after hearing the 
 great discourse (ch. vii. — x.), priests, prophets and people threatened Jeremiah with death, the 
 princes brought the people over to their side, and took the prophet into their protection from the 
 priests and prophets (xxvi. 8, 16). And when the existence of Jeremiah's writing was commu- 
 nicated to Jehoiakim, who, according to xxvi. 22, had, before this, caused the prophet Urijah to 
 be brought from Egypt and executed, the princes instructed Jeremiah and Baruch to hide them- 
 selves, without doubt, on the correct presumption that the king would cause them to be appre- 
 hended. After reading the book, the king did indeed give the order for their apprehension, " but 
 the Lord hid them " (xxxvi. 26). The writing and reading of the collected discourses passed 
 over without the desired effect, though the destruction of the book produced a slight feeling of 
 respectful awe in some of the princes. The catastrophe took place. Jehoiakim and Jehoia- 
 chin came to the miserable end predicted. Jeremiah's period of suffering began in the reign of 
 the feeble Zedekiah. The princes who had taken him under their protection from the priests and 
 prophets, now appear to be his bitterest enemies. They seem to have regarded his constant ex- 
 hortation to submit to tlie Chaldeans as in the highest degree dangerous and treasonable (xxxviii. 
 4). DuNCKER {Gesch. d. Alterth. I. 5. 831) is disposed to think that they were right. But he 
 forgets that the Jews persevered in their opposition with impenitent, criminal and superstitious 
 obstinacy (vii. 4), and that Jeremiah rebuked not their patriotism, but their ungodliness. Once 
 indeed it seemed as though they would enter on the oath of obedience to the commands of 
 their God, when, in accordance with the law, they proclaimed the emancipation of the Hebrew 
 slaves (xxxiv. 8). But their conscientiousness was only apparent: it was to subserve the inte- 
 rest of defence, and when, in consequence of the temporary withdrawal of the Chaldeans, this in- 
 terest seemed less important, the emancipation was i-evnke 1. About this time Jeremiah was ap- 
 prehended on a false pretext (xxxvii. 11), beaten and kept in close confinement until the cily was 
 taken. The king indeed was compelled repeatedly to seek counsel from the despised and hated 
 
THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 prophet (xxxvii. 17; xxxviii. 11 sq. ), but the weak monarch could accomplish nothing against 
 the will of his nobles, who cherished the fiercest resentment toward the prophet who had hum- 
 bled so severel}' their carnal disposition of pride and stubbornness. Since Jeremiah, even in 
 prison, persisted in proclaiming the decree of the Lord that Jerusalem must be given up to its 
 enemies, and that he only would escape with his life, who should surrender himself to the Chal- 
 deans, they caused him to be thrown into a pit full of slime, from which he was rescued only 
 through the intercession of a royal eunuch, Ebed-melech, the Cushite (xxxviii. 1-13]. This was 
 the lowest point in the personal sufferings of Jeremiah. How fearful they were, is evident from 
 the representation of ch. xxxviii., which, though uncomplaining, is all the more eloquent from 
 its silence. It is highly significant that it is just in this most terrible period of the prophet's 
 life, and in the midst of the immediate preparation for the entire destruction of the theocracy, 
 that we find the glorious prophecy of The Lord our Pi.ighteousness (ch. xxxiii.). In the 
 deepest affliction the Lord here also bestows the highest consolation. 
 
 Finally, in the 11th year of Zedekiah Jerusalem was taken. There seems to be a double 
 account of the fate of the prophet at this juncture. According to xxxix. 11-14, Jeremiah ap- 
 pears to have been liberated at Jerusalem, while according to xl. 1 sqq., he was first dragged in 
 chains to Rama and then set at liberty. Yet the contradiction is only apparent, for if after he had 
 been declared free by the commander he remained among the people (D^n :|'in3 3iy^l, xxxix. 
 14) he might in the confusion have been treated like the rest by the common soldiers After 
 his liberation Jeremiah betook himself to Mizpah, to Gedaliah, the governor appointed by 
 Nebuchadnezzar (xl. 1-6), but the latter being soon after murdered, the people compelled the 
 prophet to accompany them to Egypt, although he had most emphatically advised against their 
 course, as displeasing to Jehovah (xli. 17 ; xliii. 7). The Jews settled first in Tahpanhes [a 
 strong boundary-city on the Tanitic or Pelusian branch of the Nile. Hend.] Here and attain 
 in Pathros, ten years later, Egypt heard the voice of the prophet admonishing and rebuking his 
 people (xliii. 8-13; xliv.). This is the last that we learn of Jeremiah from biblical sources. 
 Further we have only traditions concerning him. Neither the time, place nor manner of his 
 death is known. It may be inferred that he lived to a great age, from the fact that he was still 
 alive about the year B. C. 570 (see | 1). It is a common assumption that at the time of his 
 call in the thirteenth year of Josiah, he was twenty years old (i. 6, "^ii^), so that in 586, the year 
 of the fall of Jerusalem, he was 61, and 16 years after was 77. But this calculation, resting on 
 a mere assumption, is only problematic. With respect to the place and manner of his death, 
 the tradition of the fathers, which has been adopted by the Romish church and fixed in the 
 Marty rologium Romanum 1 May, is that he was stoned by the people at Tahpanhes [a ■populo 
 lapidibus obrutus apud Taphnas occubuii, ibique sepultus est). Comp. Tertullian IScorp. 8, 
 coll. c. Marcion, 6, in which latter passage he says : " nulla morte virum constat neque caede p)erem- 
 tum." liiERO'N. adv. Jovin2, S7; FiViFUAi!. TT-epl Tuv ■n-po(i)7/Tup, etc. Op]:). II., pag. 239. Accord- 
 ing to another Jewish tradition, Nebuchadnezzar having subdued Egypt in the 27th year of his 
 reign, took Jeremiah and Baruch with him to Babylon (Seder Ulam Rabba, c. 26). 
 
 Greatly persecuted during his life-time, Jeremiah was as greatly honored by his fellow-coun- 
 trymen after his death. It was natural that the prophecies relating to the captivity should 
 become in an eminent degree the objects of reverence and study to the captive Jews. Comp. Dan. 
 ix. 2; 2 Chron. xxxvi. 21 ; Ezra i. 1. The destruction of the holy city and the captivity were 
 themselves the most brilliant justification of the formerly despised and hated prophet. As it 
 not rarely happens in such cases, a complete revolution gradually took place in the estimate of 
 the prophet. His person was transfigured into a purely ideal character ; multitudes of murvel- 
 lous legends contributed to his glorification (2 Mace. ii. 1 ; xv. 12-16. Comp. Herzog, Real- 
 Enc. VII. S. 245) and to his countrymen he appeared so much the greatest of all the prophets 
 that they called him o -ixxpijTijg (in which sense also Deut. xviii, 15 was interpreted) and believed 
 that he would return at the end of days. Allusions to this belief are found even in the New 
 Testament, Matt. xvi. 14; John i. 21; coll. vi. 14; vii. 40. Comp Wisd. xlix. 6-8.— Carpzov 
 Introd. P. III. C. 3, ^ 2 ; Fabricius, Codex pseudep . V. T. p. 1110 sqq. ; Bertholdt, Chrk'ol. 
 Jud. § 15, pp. 61-67 and his Eird. IV, 8. 1415 sq. ; De Wette, B'M. Dogmatik, ? 197.— Con- 
 cerning an apocryphal Jeremiah in the Hebrew language, from which the quotation Matt. 
 
{} iJ. THE PERSON AND MINISTRY OF JEREMIAH. 
 
 xxvii. 9, is alleged to have been made, see Fabric, p. 1103, etc.; Herzog, Real-Enc. XII. 
 S. 314. For a very full synopsis of the material relating to this subject, see Neumann, Jer. v. 
 Anat. Einl. I. AG?. — On the supposed influence of Jeremiah on Grecian philosophy, see espe- 
 cially Ghislerus, In proph. Jerem Comment. I. Praef. cap. 5. 
 
 From this historical sketch it may be perceived under what difficult external conditions Jere- 
 miah had to exercise his prophetic office. If we compare with these his mental constitution, 
 the task appears still more arduous. By nature of a mild and timid disposition, more of a 
 John than a Peter, a Baptist or an Elijah, he had yet to conduct a life and death struggle against 
 powerful and imbittered foes. The deep degradation of his people m the carnal lust of idolatry 
 and their almost inconceivable presuming on the privileges of the chosen race, and the seemino-ly 
 mdestructible safeguard of the T\^rv h^^T) (vii. 4), and in consequence their stiff-necked refusal 
 to obey the Lord's command to submit to the Chaldeans as the only means of escape — all this 
 Jeremiah had to combat. And as though he did not suffer enough from the enmity of his own 
 people he was also obliged to denounce, with threatening words and signs, the judgments of the 
 Lord on foreign nations (chapters xxv., xxvii. ; xlvi.-li.). Thus on all sides arose fearful hatred 
 and likewise fearful scorn of the prophet, who on his part was impelled by no other motive than 
 a most hearty love for his people, which in the hour of his deepest affliction he never renounced 
 (comp. viii. 21 sq.), on which account he is called in the second book of Maccabees, (piyMSeT^og 
 and Tvo'X7,a npoaEvxofiEvoi: -rrepl tov laov nai r^f dyiaQ TvoltuQ (xv. 14), and by Gregory Nazianz. 
 [Orat. X.) cvfiTTadearaTo-: tuv Tvpo(pr]7cdv. Comp. Ghisler, Prsef. Cap. 1. His life was exposed to 
 constant danger, his honor to constant insult (xi. 21 ; xx. 7-10 ; xxxviii. 4 ; Lam. lii. 14). Like a 
 second Job he curses the day of his birth (xx. 15), and longs to be free from the office, which 
 he accepted only with fear and trembling (xx. 9*). But the consciousness of his vocation leaves 
 him no rest. " But it was in my heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary 
 with forbearing and I could not." Comp. Hebzog, [Real-Enc. XVII. 8. 628, 634). But the 
 Lord's strength was mighty in his weakness. " For behold I have made thee this day a de- 
 fenced city and an iron pillar and brazen walls against the whole land" (i. 18). He needed 
 this the more since he was deprived of all human aid. He had not even a fellow-prophet to 
 stand by him, at least not in the time of his greatest distress. For of the prophets contempo- 
 rary with him, Zephaniah and the prophetess Huldah (2 Kings xxii. 14 ; 2 Chron. xxxiv. 22) 
 lived in the reign of Josiah, Habakkuk and Urijah (xxvi. 20) in the reign of Jehoiakim that 
 is, in the first and calmer period of his ministry. Ezekiel and Daniel indeed survived with him 
 the great catastrophe, but they lived at a distance, themselves already in exile. Jeremiah could 
 derive no support from them. 
 
 It has been correctly inferred from xvi. 2 that our prophet was unmarried, and his virginitas 
 has therefore been extolled, especially by Jerome, in his Praefatio and Gomm. on chap, xxiii. 
 We read that here and there among the people, and in earlier times among the princes (xxvi. 
 16, 24; xxxvi. 19), a favorable disposition towards him was manifested; even King Zedekiah 
 was secretly inclined to favor him, and besides these he may have had many friends, as Baruch 
 (chap, xlv.) and his brother, Seraiah (li. 59), the royal eunuch, Ebedmelech (xxxviii. 7sq. ), and 
 Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, with his son Gedaliah (xxvi. 24 ; xxxix. 14 ; xl. 5), but what were 
 these to the hostility with which he was persecuted by the great mass of the proud princes, 
 prophets, priests, and the people led by them ! We see Jeremiah standing alone in the midst of 
 that great catastrophe which forms the lowest point in the history of the Old Testament theo 
 cracy and resisting the attacks of ungodly power, not in the strength of natural ability, but 
 wholly in the strength of Him who had chosen him, against his will, to the prophetic office. 
 We behold here " the servant of God," as represented in the sphere of a prophet's personality, 
 on the highest stage of his Old Testament history. He was the type, not of John the Baptist 
 (as Hengstenbebg, Christol. Eng. Tr. II., p. 362), but of Christ, the Lord, Himself. I do not 
 mean this in the sense of the older theologians (comp. Neum. 8. 28, etc., and Ghisler, cap. 1, 
 etc., " Jerem,. Christum praefiguravitvitae puritate, innocentia, sanctitate, aerumnarum pierpessione, 
 
 * IsiDOR of Peluslum has therefore correctly styled him, TroAuTraSeVTaTos ruii' n-po^ijTii' {Epistl. Lib. I., EpCst. •2'M\ 
 Comp. Ghislgr. 
 
THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 consignatione doctnnx sicas per proprii sanguinis effusionem ") for the points of resemblance 
 which they trace are not specific, but in the sense that Jeremiah and Christ stand at two cor 
 responding epochs in history, as their divine witnesses and heralds, their inner resemblancH 
 being also manifested outwardly, as when (xi. 19) Jeremiah calls himself a sheep brought to the 
 slaughter, when he weeps over Jerusalem (xi. 1 ; xiii. 17 ; xiv. 17), and when again our Lord, 
 at the crowning point of His life, utters the opening words of Psalm xxii., the composition of 
 which by Jeremiah is opposed by nothing but the superscription. Comp. also H'iller, Neues 
 System oiler Vorbilder J. Chrisli, 1858, S. 522. 
 
 I 3. THE LITERARY CHARACTER OF JEREMIAH. 
 
 The peculiarities of his person and official work are fully reflected in the literary character of 
 our prophet. Jeremiah as an author is like a brazen wall, and at the same time like soft wax. 
 Brazen, since no power on earth could induce him to alter the tenor of his proclamation ; but 
 soft, in that we feel that a man of gentle disposition and broken heart has given utterance to 
 these powerful words. His style is wanting in the noble, bold Conciseness and concentration 
 which we so much admire in the older prophets, Isaiah and Hosea. His periods are long, the 
 development verbose. Even when he quotes the language of others, he does it in such a way 
 that it is robbed of all that is harsh or incisive, and moulded over, as it were, into a milder form. 
 " Ssepius complura epitheta adduyifur et, difficiliora velaudaciora aut fusius explicantur aut for- 
 viis aetate Jeremise usitatiorihus receptis in specifin levioreni abeunt," says Kueper {Jer. libr. ss. 
 interpr., p. xiv.). The same peculiarity is displayed in the prophet's logic. While he maintains 
 his fundamental thoughts with such undeviating monotony that the contents of his discourses 
 seem almost meagre, yet on the other hand there is such luxuriance in the development that the 
 unity and the consecutiveness of the thoughts seem to suffer. For one is not deduced logically 
 from another, but we see, as it were, a series of tableaux pass before us, of which each presents 
 the same stage and the same persons, but in the most various groupings (see my work Der 
 Proph. Jer. u. Bab. S. 32, etc.). This peculiarity of his logic refutes the objection which has 
 been made and constantly repeated, that Jeremiah springs analogically from one thing to another 
 (" non ad cerium quendam ordinem res dispositse sunt et descriptx, sed libere ab una senteiilia 
 transitur ad alteram," Matjrer). The transitions are frequently abrupt, but there is still a 
 logical progression, and the repetitions are a necessary feature of the tableauesque style. There 
 is, however, another kind of repetition very frequent in Jeremiah : — he not only quotes himself 
 very often (there is a table of these self-quotations in ray work, ^S". 128, etc.), but he likes also to 
 introduce the sayings of others. Jeremiah is especially at home in the Pentateuch, and most 
 of all in Deuteronomy. (Comp. Kueper, ut supra, and Konig, Alttest. Studien 2 Theil: das 
 Deuteronomium u. d. Prophet Jeremia). It is on account of this reproduction of the thoughts of 
 others that he has been reproached with a want of originality (see Knobel, Prophetismus der 
 Hebraeer II., S. 367). But this is as true as that he was deficient in poetry. In power he is cer- 
 tainly not equal to Isaiah. But he is not wanting in originality, for who could say that he has 
 himself produced nothing or only an insignificant amount? To lose himself in his predecessors is 
 necessary even for the most original author. As to a deficiency in poetry I point to Umbreit, 
 who says {Prakt. Comm. S. XV.) : "The most spiritual and therefore the greatest poet of the 
 desert and of suffering is certainly Jeremiah. But we have maintained yet more than this, 
 having boldly asserted that of all the prophets his genius is the most poetical." I fully sub- 
 scribe to this judgment. For assuredly universal sympathy and deep and pure emotion are the 
 qualities of a poet, and we undoubtedly find these elements of poetic inspiration, in the highest 
 degree, in the finely-strung nature of Jeremiah. The circumstances of his life caused his emo- 
 tions to be predominantly sad, hence in the whole range of human composition there is scarcely 
 a poetical expression of sorrow so thrilling as that of this prophet (viii. 23, Eng. Bib ix. 1) : 
 " 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 " Umbreit remarks {S. XIV., etc.) that 
 these words form the portrait of the prophet, and Bendemann, in painting his celebrated pic- 
 ture, .seems really to have had this passage especially in view. 
 
 It cannot he dr-nied that, in form, Jeremiah, though not discarding art altogether, has far less 
 
' 2 4. THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET. 
 
 polish than Isaiah. Jerome refers to this in his Praefatio: "Jeremias propheta sermoiie quldem 
 apud Hebraef s Isaia et Hosia et quibusdam aliis prophetis videlwr esse rusticior. Sed senslbus 
 par est, qiiippe qui eodem spiritic prophetave7'it. Forro simpUcilas eloquii a loco ei, in quo natus 
 est, accidit. Fait enim Anatotites." This charge of rusticity has, however, been exaggerated. 
 Let us also regard the counter-testimony in the word " sensibus par est," and which is given 
 still more strongly in expressions like that of SiXTUs Senensis (in Ghisler. Kap. III., etc.), 
 " sermone quidem inculto et paene subrustico, sed sensuum majestati sublimo'' —and of Cun^eus 
 [De rep. Hebr. III. 7), "Jeremias omnia majestas posita m verborum nejlectu est, adeo ilium 
 decet rustiea dictio." Finally, in respect to language, it may be remarked that the influence of 
 the Aramaic idiom on Jeremiah may be detected, but not in the degiee usually supposed. 
 Conip. Knobei,, Jeremias Qhaldaizans dissert. Vratisl., 1831 ; Haevernick, Einl. I. 1, 8. 
 231 sq.; Staehelin, Spez. Einl. in die kan. Buch. des A. T., S. 279 sq.; comp. Umbreit, S. 
 XV.-yl??,OT., etc. 
 
 I 4. THE BOOK OP THE PROPHET. 
 
 1. Concerning its origin, the book itself gives us some, but not complete, information. Ac- 
 cording to xxxvi. 2, Jeremiah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, dictated to Baruch the discourses 
 which had then been delivered. In the fifth year of Jehoiakim (xxxvi. 9) the writing was 
 finished and publicly read. Jehoiakim burned it, upon which the prophet was commanded to 
 re- write it, and this time it was severer than before. This writing consisted of prophecies which 
 had been spoken in denunciation and threateniicg against Israel. Historical and consolatory 
 passages, with prophecies against foreign nations, were excluded. This is clear both from the 
 object of the writing (comp. Comm. on xxxvi. 7) and the fate to which Jenoiakim consigned it 
 (xxxvi. 23). When the second transcription was finished, we are not informed, but it is evident 
 from i. 3, " It came [the word of the Lord to Jeiemiah] unto the end of the eleventh year of 
 Zedekiah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem cs.ptive in the fifth month," that it was after the 
 destruction of the city and the deportation of the people. For the superscription, i. 1-3, is suita- 
 ble only for a writing which contains nothing of later date than the period mentioned. But the 
 book does contain prophecies relating to the time subsequent to this epoch, which even pertain 
 to the residence of the prophet in Egypt toward the close of his life. If now it is possible that 
 Jeremiah, during the two months that he spent with Gedaliah in Mizpah (comp. on i. 2 sq.), or 
 perhaps still better (on account of the allusions to the journey to Egypt in li. 16, 36), on the way 
 to Egypt, or in Egypt itself, continued the writing begun in the fourth year of Jehoiakim to the 
 time mentioned in i. 3, and concluded it, it follows that this writing forms the main body of the 
 book, written and edited by the prophet himself, to which the superscription, i. 1-3, refers. The 
 subsequent portions of the book, though the genuine pioduction of Jeremiah, were added 
 by a later editor, who did not venture to alter the original title, though it was no longer 
 suitable. 
 
 Thus it is evident, as it seems to me, that the present form and arrangement are not those of 
 Jeremiah, for he would certainly have given the whole a title corresponding to its contents. Some 
 other circumstances, to be mentioned hereafter, also favor this view. 
 
 2. As to the arrangement or plan of the book, as we have it, it has been accused of endless 
 confusion,* and the most various theories have been broached to account for this confusion. 
 Compare, to name only the most eminent, Eichhorn, in the Repeat fur bibhsche u. morgenldnd. 
 Lit. Th. l,S. 141; Einleit. III. S. 157, etc.; Bertholdt, Einl. IV. S. 1457; Movers, De ut- 
 riiosque recensionis vatic. Jer. indole et origine. Hamb., 1837; Hitzig, Comm., S. XII. flf.; then 
 the attempts of Ewald, Umbreit (in their commentaries), Haevernick (Einl. II. 2, 8. 206 
 fF.), Keil (who follows Haevernick almost entirely, Ei)d., S. 252 fF.), Schmieder (in Ger- 
 lach's Bibelwerk), Staehelin (on the principle at the basis of the arrangement of Jeremiah's 
 prophecies, in the Zeitschr. der deutsch morqenl. Gesellsch, 1849; Heft 2 and 3, S 216 ff.; and in 
 
 * Even Luther (Preface to the prophet Jeremiah) says: "We often find some of the first part in the following chapter, 
 which happened before that in the previous chapter, wliich looks as though Jeremiah did not arrange these books hiraself, 
 but that they were composed piecemeal from his di.scourses, and compiled in a book. We must not trouble ourselves iibout 
 •lie order, or allow the want (^f order to hinder us." 
 
10 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 his Spez. Einl. in die kan. Backer des A. T., 1862, S. 260 ff.) ; Neumann {Comm S. 81 ff. and 
 S. III. ff.). In my opinion, the case is not so bad as represented, but a reasonable arrangement 
 will at once present itself, if we only take the following points into con.sideration. 1. In gene- 
 ral, the principle of chronological order is followed, but admitting, in some cases, a certain order 
 of subjects, which is sometimes suggested by external occasions (comp. ch. xxi. 1-7). 2. With 
 respect to the chronological order in particular, we have a safe guide in the fact that before the 
 fourth vear of Jehoiakim, viz., before the battle of Carchemish and Nebuchadnezzar's accession 
 to the throne, Jeremiah never mentions the latter or the Chaldeans, while after this time he 
 presents them constantly in all his discourses as appointed by God to be the instrument of His 
 judgments on Israel and the nations. Until shortly before the battle of Carchemish, Assyria 
 was at war with the Medes and Babylonians, and it was undecided which of the three would ob- 
 tain the supremacy. After the fall of Nineveh and tbe defeat of Pharaoh Necho, the star of 
 Nebuchadnezzar rose above the horizon like an all-prevailing sun. Jeremiah now knew definitely 
 that the people coming from the North (i. 13, etc.) were the Chaldeans under Nebuchadnezzar, 
 and he could no longer speak to the people without counselling submission as the only means of 
 safety. I think, then, that I may lay down this canon distinctly, that all parts of the book in 
 which the threatening enemies are spoken of generally, without mention of Nebuchadnezzar or 
 the Chaldeans, belong to the period before the fourth year of Jehoiakim, %>iz., before the time re- 
 presented in ch. XXV. as that of Jeremiah's first acquaintance with them ; while all the portions in 
 which Nebuchadnezzar and the Chaldeans are named belong to the subsequent period ; so that 
 a passage which mentions the Chaldeans and is yet dated in the beginning of the reign of Jehoia- 
 kim (ch. xxvii.), may be safely regarded as bearing a false superscription, as likewise one that is 
 dated in the reign of Zedekiah, and does not mention the Chaldeans (xlix. 34 sqq.). In the first 
 place, it is quite clear that our Hebrew recension, omitting chapters i. and lii. as introduction 
 and conclusion, falls into two principal divisions : 1. The portions relating to the theocracy (ch. 
 ii.— xlv.). 2. The prophecies against the nations (ch. xlvi. — U.). Chapter xlv., the promise given 
 to the writer of the book, the faithful Baruch, is to be regarded (as it is by Keil) as an appen- 
 dix to the first division. To attach this chapter to the second division, as Haevernick does, 
 is entirely unsuitable. The first division may evidently be divided again into two subdivisions, 
 the collection of discourses, with appendices, ch. ii. — xxxv., and the historical portions, ch. 
 xxxvi. — xliv. In speaking of a collection of discourses, it should be remarked that, according to 
 the intention of the arranger of the book, we must not always understand by a discourse one 
 which forms a rhetorical unit, but also a complexus of rhetorical and historical passages, if in its 
 fundamental thought, its form or its chronology, it presents a connected whole. In this sense our 
 collection contains eleven (or ten) discourses-, the beginning of each of which is designated by a 
 superscription (comp. iii. 6; vii. 1; xi. 1, etc.). The first two pertain to the reign of Josiah 
 (ch. ii. and iii. — vi.). It is natural that in the earliest period the proportionally smallest amount 
 of matter should be committed to writing, so that in the passages mentioned, e.specially in ch. ii., 
 only the quintessence of the discourses of the earliest period is given. The third discourse per- 
 tains to the reign of Jehoiakim (ch. vii. — x.). These two, ch. iii. — vi. and ch. vii. — x., are dis- 
 tinguished from the rest by their length, and may therefore, with ch. xxv., which is inferior in 
 length, but far superior in importance, be designated as the principal discourses. Ch. xi. — xiii., 
 which also pertain to the reign of Jehoiakim, have a common title, but only ch. xi and xii. form 
 a rhetorical whole. For ch. xiii. is entirely independent, though 6f the same date with the pre- 
 ceding, and on account of its brevity, added as an appendix. The fifth discourse, though some- 
 what inferior to the second and third, is still one of the most important. It belongs to the period 
 before the fourth year of Jehoiakim The passage xvii. 19-27 is related to the lifth discourse as 
 ch. xiii. to the fourth. I regret that liv an oversight I have not designated them in the same 
 way in the text. The seventh discourse is an account of two symbolical occurrences, to which 
 is appended that of a personal experience and the outburst of feeling thus occasioned. Although 
 these occurrences belong to different periods, before and after the fourth year of Jehoiakim, they 
 are brought together because both symbols are derived from pottery and on account of the unity 
 of the subjects. All is here brought into connection which the prophet spoke at different times 
 against the false shepherds of the people (kings and prophets). The opening passage (xxi. ]-7l 
 
§ 4. THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET. 11 
 
 though in general, as oraiio contra regem, not altogether unsuitable for this place, is doubtless 
 placed here chiefly on account of the name Pashur, which it has in common with the preceding 
 The transitional words (xxi. 11-14) seem also to be a fragment which is subjoined here not alto- 
 gether appropriately. But in what follows we have a well-ordered series of denunciations 
 against the evil kings of Judah. The first, m which no name is mentioned, seems to stand first 
 as a collective admonition, though the king addressed in ver. 2 can be no other than Jehoiakim 
 (xxii. 1-9). The second is a prophecy relating to the person of Jehoahaz. It is of earlier date 
 than that which precedes it, and is evidently an interpolation (xxii. 10-12). The third is di- 
 rected against Jehoiakim by name (xxii. 13-23). The fourth relates to Jehoiachin (xxii. 24-30). 
 As a foil to these dark pictures of the kings of the present, the prophet, by an antithesis remind- 
 ing us of ch. iii., gives us a bright picture of the King of the Messianic future (xxiii. 1-8). The 
 second part of the main discourse (xxiii. 9-40) is an earnest rebuke of the false prophets. The 
 conclusion is formed by ch. xxiv., a vision which the prophet had in the reign of Zedekiah, and 
 which is added here evidently in order that the fourth bad king Jeremiah had lived to see might 
 not fail to receive his appropriate denunciation. The ninth discourse is that highly important 
 one which Jeremiah pronounced in the fourth year of Jehoiakim after the great catastrophe 
 which made an epoch in the prophet's ministry, the battle of Carchemish and the succession of 
 Nebuchadnezzar. To this are attached a series of three historical appendices, of which the first 
 falls before the fourth year of Jehoiakim, the second in the fourth year of Zedekiah, the third 
 somewhat earlier than the preceding. All three appendices, however, relate to the conflict of the 
 true prophet (it should be noted, however, that Jeremiah is called X'^JH for the first time in 
 XXV. 2) with the false prophets. Here also is a pre-arranged antithesis. Ch. xxvi. standing be- 
 fore ch. xxvii. and xxviii. has a clear chronological basis, while ch". xxix., which in time is some- 
 what earlier than ch. xxvii. and xxviii. coming after them, has a topical basis, since thus the 
 prophet's conflict with the false prophets at home is first shown, and then his conflict with those 
 at a distance. The tenth passage occupies an independent 13p, viz., the book of consolation, 
 which consists of two discourses, with a double appendix. Ch. xxx. and xxxi., originally written 
 specially, and not as a part of the first writing, ch. xxxvi. 2-10, form a rhetorical unit, certainly 
 contemporary with ch. iii. — vi., and therefore pertaining to the reign of Josiah. The second 
 consolatory discourse consists of two separate passages, which, however, are most closely con- 
 nected. The first relates to the purchase of a field which, at the command of the Lord, Jeremiah 
 made while confined in the court of the prison, at the time of his greatest affliction. The second 
 is connected with the demolition of many houses in Jerusalem for defensive purposes. On this 
 double, gloomy background the prophet presents the most glorious Messianic salvation. It is 
 not, as I have already said, a connected discourse ; in ch. xxxii. we have first the account of the 
 purchase of land, then the prayer expressing the prophet's astonishment, then the Lord's con- 
 solatory promises. Ch. xxxiii. is, however, from beginning to end, a connected prophetic dis- 
 course. 
 
 This book of consolation is followed in chaps, xxxiv. and xxxv. by a double appendix, the se- 
 cond half of which (xxxiv. 8 — xxxv. 19) itself consists of two independent parts. The short 
 passage xxxiv. 1-7 is only a more exact account of the occurrence narrated in xxxii. 1-5, in con- 
 sequence of which Jeremiah was confined in the court of the prison, and therefore refers only to 
 the contents of chaps, xxxii. and xxxiii. The two facts however which are related in xxxiv. 8- 
 22, and xxxv. 1-19, are to be regarded as an appendix to the whole collection. For they show 
 by a striking example, the accomplished but immediately revoked emancipation of the Hebrew 
 slaves, how entirely indisposed the people of Israel were to obey the commands of their God, 
 while a contrast to this shameful disobedience is given in the example of affecting obedience af- 
 forded by the Rechabites to the command of their earthly progenitor. We thus see that the ar- 
 rangement is by no means without plan, and may in general have been made by the prophet 
 himself Only the mere juxtaposition of xxi. 1-7 for the sake of the name Pashur, and the inser- 
 tion of the heterogeneous passage xxi. 11-14 in this place, seem to betray a different hand. 
 
 With chap xxxvi. begins the second subdivision of the first main division. Historical pas- 
 sages follow each other in chronological order, which have for their subject partly personal ex- 
 periences of the prophet, and partly the history of the fatal catastrophe of the theocracy in gpiie 
 
12 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 ral. There is no difficulty here. Chap, xlv., as already remarked, is an appendix to the first 
 main division. The second part contains the prophecies against foreign nations in an order to 
 which there is nothing to object (xlvi. — li.). Chap. lii. finally forms the conclusion, which is not 
 from the prophet himself. 
 The following table may serve to facilitate a review: 
 
 I. THE INTRODUCTION, CHAP. I. 
 II. FIRST DIVISION, CHAPS. II.— XLIV. 
 
 PASSAGES RELATING TO THE THEOCRACY, WITH AN APPENDIX. CHAP. XLV. 
 
 A. FIKST SUBDIVISION. 
 
 The collection of -discourses, chaps, ii.-xxxiii. 
 With appendices. Chaps, xxxiv. and xxxv. 
 i. First discourse, chap. ii. 
 
 2. Second discourse, chaps, iii. — vi. 
 
 3. Third discourse, chaps, vii. — x. 
 
 4. Fourth discourse, chaps, xi. and xii. with appendix, chap. xiii. 
 
 5. Fifth discourse, chaps xiv. — xvii. 18. 
 
 6. Sixth discourse, chap. xvii. 19-27. 
 
 7. Seventh discourse, chaps, xviii. — xx. (the symbols taken from pottery). 
 
 8. Eighth discourse, chaps, xxi. — xxiv. 
 
 9. Ninth discourse, chap. xxv. With three appendices, chaps xxvi. — xxix. 
 
 10. The book of consolation, consisting of 
 
 a. the tenth discourse, chaps, xxx. and xxxi. 
 
 h. the eleventh discourse, chaps, xxxii. and xxxiii. With an appendix, chap, 
 xxxiv. 1-7. 
 
 11. Historical appendix to the collection — the disobedience of Israel ofi"set by the obedience 
 
 of the Rechabites, chaps, xxxiv. 8 — xxxv. 19. 
 
 B. SECOND SUBDIVISION. 
 
 Historical presentation of the most important events from the fourth year of Jehoiakim to the 
 
 close of the prophet's ministry, chaps, xxxvi. — xliv. 
 
 1. Events before the fall of Jerusalem, chaps, xxxvi. — xxxviii. 
 
 2. Events after the fall of Jerusalem, chaps, xxxix. — xliv. 
 
 Appendix to First Division, oh. xlv. The promise made to Baruch. 
 
 III. SECOND DIVISION. 
 
 « 
 
 THE PROPHECIES AGAINST FOREIGN NATIONS. CHAPS. XLVI. — LI. 
 
 1. Against Egypt, I., chap. xlvi. 2-12. 
 
 2. Against Egypt, II., chap. xlvi. 13-26. With an appendix, chap. xlvi. 27-28. 
 
 3. Against the Philistines, chap, xlvii. 
 
 4. Against Moab, chap, xlviii. 
 
 5. Against Ammon, chap. xlix. 1-6. 
 
 6. Against Edom, chap. xlix. 7-22. 
 
 7. Against Damascus, chap. xlix. 23-27. 
 
 8. Against the Arabians, chap. xlix. 28-33. 
 
 9. Against Elam, chap. xlix. 34-39. 
 10. Against Babylon, chap. 1. li. 
 
 IV. CONCLUSION, CHAP. LII. 
 
 3. The relation of the Masoretic text to the Alexandrian translation. It may here be pre- 
 mised that Jeremiah, closing his labors and probably his life in Egypt, was on this account espe- 
 cially honored by the Jews residing there. They regarded him as peculiarly their own, the 
 Egyptian prophet. (Comp. Chron. Pasch. p. 156; Fabricius, in the Cod. pseudepigr. V. T. p 
 
§ 4. THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET. 13 
 
 1108; Apocr. iV. T. p. 1111 ; Haevernick, Mnl. I. 1, S. 45, 11. 2, S. 259; Herzog, Real-Enc. 
 VII. /S". 255.) He was therefore diligently studied, and it is not improbable, as Fabricius says 
 '"Codices graecx versionis jam privata quorundam Apocryphis se delectantium studio interpolati, 
 ]am librariorum oscitaiitia manci fraudi beato Martyri fuerunt." The difference between our 
 Masoretic text and the Alexandrian version is twofold — in matter and in form. The former ex- 
 tends through the wbple booh, and consists of innumerable discrepancies, which sometimes af- 
 fect single letters, syllables and words, sometimes whole verses. The difference in form consists 
 m a different arrangement from xxv. 15 onwards, the LXX. introducing here (but in a different 
 sequence) the prophecies against the nations, so that all in the Hebrew text from xxv. 15 to ch. 
 xlv. is deferred to make room for these prophecies, and since in the LXX. these extend from 
 xxv. 15 to ch. xxxi. it follows that what in the Hebrew is from xxv. 15 to ch. xlv. is in the Greek 
 ch. xxxi. — li. It should be remarked that the LXX. does not treat ch. xlv. of the Hebrew as 
 an independent chapter, but as part of ch. li. — vers. 31-35. The following little table will exhi- 
 bit the discrepancies more clearly : 
 
 LXX. Masor. 
 
 xxv. 15 sqq. The prophecy against Elam, xlix. 34 sqq. 
 
 xxvi. " " Egypt, xlvi. 
 
 xxvii. 28. " " Babylon, 1.— li. 
 
 xxix. 1-7. " " the Philistines, xlvii. 1-7. 
 
 xxix. 7-22. 
 XXX. 1-5. 
 XXX. 6-11. 
 XXX. 12-16. " 
 
 xxxi. " " 
 
 xxxii. 
 
 xxxiii. — li. • 
 
 lii. 
 
 I was formerly of opinion that these two kinds of difference were to be judged alike, and were 
 to be traced, not to a divergence of Hebrew MSS., but entirely to the ignorance, carelessness or 
 caprice of the editor. I have now changed my view in so far that I am convinced that the case 
 is not the same with the difference in form as with that in matter. The different order is cer- 
 tainly founded on a divergence in the Hebrew originals. If we had no other testimony to this 
 than the text of the LXX., so far as this is the conscious and intended production of its author, 
 this testimony would certainly be worthless. But in the first place, the Hebrew text is itself a 
 witness, and secondly, we have in the LXX. an involuntary and impartial testimony. I believe 
 that in the Coram, on xxv. 12-14 ; xxvii. 1 ; xlix. 34, and in the introduction to the prophecies 
 against the nations, I have furnished proof that these verses (xxv. 12-14) presuppose the exist- 
 ence in their immediate vicinity of the D'^JH 'V "^30 or rather that ch. xxv. belongs to this 
 13D. I think I have shown that the peculiar expression rh AlMfi at the close of xxv. 13 (LXX.), 
 and the absence of xxvii 1 in the LXX., with the strange chronology of xlix. 34, are evidence that 
 the prophecies against the nations must at one time have had their place immediately after ch. 
 xxv. and before ck. xxvii. This rd XlAdji shows that the superscription of the prophecies 
 against Elam originally read like the rest, xlvi. 2 ; xlviii. 1 ; xlix. 1, 7. 23, 28, D'^"';?^. The pe- 
 culiar postscript to the prophecy in the LXX., however, which is no other than the missing 
 verse xxvii. 1, proves that the Alexandrian translator had an original text before him in which 
 the prophecies against the nations stood before ch. xxvii , and in such wise that the prophecy 
 against Elam was the last, as at present in the Masoretic text. But how is it that the present Ma- 
 soretic text of the prophecies against Elam no longer bears the old simple inscription dS'J^S but 
 likewise the words transposed from xxvii. 1 ? I believe that it can be explained only in this 
 way — that two originals were before the Alexandrian translator, of which one had the prophecies 
 against the nations in the old place; the other agreed with the present Masoretic recension. The 
 translator must have been guided by both. He adhered to the older recension so far as to retain 
 
 Edom, 
 
 xlix. 7-22. 
 
 Ammon, 
 
 xlix. 1-6. 
 
 Kedar, 
 
 xlix. 28-33. 
 
 Damascus, 
 
 xlix. 23-27. 
 
 Moab, 
 
 xlviii. 
 
 . 
 
 xxv. 15-38. 
 
 • 
 
 xxvi. — xlv. 
 
 , 
 
 lii. 
 
14 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 its arrangement on the whole (altering only the sequence of the prophecies against thf nations in 
 detail). From this he adopted the position of ch. xxvii. ver. 1 immediately after the prophecy 
 against Elam, while from the later text he took the nepl Allan (C3'7'j^'-7X Hebr.). The mis- 
 placement of the prophecies against the nations must therefore have taken place before the pre- 
 paration of the Alexandrian version. Its originator must have first overlooked xxvii 1, and 
 then altered it into an inscription for the prophecy against Elam, and he must also have put ch. 
 xxvi. in its present place. Since in the LXX. the superscription of ch. xxvii. is still wanting, 
 it is possible, nay, probable, that it was wanting m the later Hebrew copy of the translator. 
 The present verse, xxvii. 1, of the Hebrew text, with the wrong name of Jehoiakim, would then 
 be a later supplement. On the occasion of this error, comp. remarks on xxvii. 1. 
 
 As to the difference in matter between the Alexandrian version and the Hebrew text, I still 
 retain the conviction which I expressed in my work, Der proph. Jer. u. Bab., and in Herzog, 
 Real-Enc. VI. S. 488, that the far greater part of the discrepancies are to be explained, not by 
 a difference in the original text, but by the caprice, ignorance or carelessness of the translator. 
 Proof of this in detail may be seen in the earlier editions of De Wette's Introduction , in Kueper, 
 Jer. libr. ss. interpr. atque vindex, p. 177 ; in Haeveenick, Einl. II. 2, S. 250 ; in Wichel- 
 HAUS, De JeremisB versione Alexandrina, 1847, p. 67 ; in my work, Jer. u. Bab S. 86 ; but es- 
 pecially in Geaf. {Commentar. S. XL. sqq.^l, who, as it seems to me, by a thoroughly impartial 
 and careful investigation, has brought the matter to a conclusion. The arguments in favor of 
 the LXX. still adduced in the later edition of Bleek's Einleitung (1865, S. 491) possess no va- 
 lidity. 
 
 4. The integrity of the text has been relatively but little questioned. With respect to some 
 passages, I have been unable to avoid the suspicion of an interpolation. The chief of these are 
 the following: x. 1-16; xv. 11-14; xxv. 12-14; xxx. 23, 24; xxxix. 114; li. 15-19. Ch. Hi. 
 even according to the editor, is not to be regarded as written by Jeremiah, as follows from the 
 statement in li. 64, " Thus far the words of Jeremiah." I formerly regarded the passage 1. 43-46 
 as also interpolated, but, on closer examination, am convinced of the erroneousness of this view. 
 In reference to other passages (especially ch. xxx. — xxxiii. 1. h.), on renewed investigation, I 
 am perfectly satisfied of their authenticity. Though Jeremiah was one of the most read of the 
 prophets, his text has been handed down to us, on the whole, pure and unadulterated. 
 
 5. The book of Jeremiah occupies in the Canon the second place among the major prophets, 
 after Isaiah and before Ezekiel. This position, being the historical one, is the most natural. 
 Melito, of Sardis, and Origen (in Euseb. Hist. Eccl. IV. 26 and VI. 25) in their lists of the 
 Jewish canon make Jeremiah follow Isaiah, though between Jeremiah and Ezekiel the former 
 inserts the twelve minor prophets and Daniel, the latter (omitting the twelve minor prophets 
 altogether) only Daniel. But according to the Talmud, [Tractate Baba baira Fol. 14, b) the 
 order was : — Reguvi libri, Jeremias, Ezcchiel, Jesajas, duodecim prophetarum volumen. And 
 Elias Levita (in Masoret hammasoret Prsef. III.) testifies that this is the order in the Ger- 
 man and French MSS. This Talmudic divergence from the natural order appears to have a 
 genuine Talmudic reason. Since Jeremiah treats only of desolatio, Ezekiel first of desolatio and 
 thpn of comolatio, Isaiah only of consolatio, they wished, as the tract Baba batra informs us, to 
 connect desolationem cum desolatione and consolationem cum consolatione. For further particu- 
 lars see RosENMUELLER, Schol. Proleg. in Jerem.. p. 27; Herzog, Real-Enc. VII. S. 253; 
 Neumann, Gomm. Einl. S. 10 ; Delitzsch, Oomm. zu Jes. S. XXII. 
 
 I 5. LITERATURE. 
 
 Of the church -fathers Theodoret and Ephrem Syrus wrote complete commentaries on Jere- 
 miah. A commentary by the latter in Syriac is still extant ( To7n. II. of the Roman Edition 
 of Petrus Benedictus, 1740). Jerome commented on the first thirty-three chapters only. 
 From Origen we have only homilies. The edition of Lommatzsch gives nineteen in Greek, 
 two in the Latin translation of Jerome and some fragments. According to Cassiodorus (Lib. 
 //'V^ Dn\ cap. III.) there were forty-five homilies, which were also known to Rh.abanus Mau- 
 Bus ^according to a passage in his Praefat. in Jerem.). Comp. Lommatzsch, Prolegrj. in Tom. 
 
2 6. LITERATURE. 15 
 
 XF., of hi^ edition. Ghislerits gives a catena of the Greek and Latin fathers in his commen- 
 tary, of which hereafter. 
 
 Of Rabbinical commentaries the principal are those of Raschi, David Kimchi, Ababbanei 
 and Solomon ben Melech. 
 
 There are Roman Catholic commentaries by Rhabanus Maurus, Rupert von Deutz, 
 Thomas Aquinas, Albebtus Magnus; by Joachim Floris, Comm. in /er., Venice, 1525, and 
 Cologne, 1577 (comp. Gieseler, [Church History, Philada. Ed. II., p. 300], etc., etc., and Neander, 
 [Boston, Tr. IV. p. 291]) ; Frano. Zichemius, Cologne, 1559; Hector Pintus, Leyden, 1561, 
 1584 and 1590: Andreas Capella, Tarracona, 1586; Petrus Figueiro, Leyden, 1598; 
 Christof.de Castro (Jesuit), Pans, 1609 ; Casp. Sanctius (Jesuit), Leyden, 1618: Bened. 
 Mandina, In pr. Jer. expositiones, Neap., 1620 ; Michael, Ghislerus, In Jer. Commentarii 
 cum catena PP. grxcorwn et comm. in Lamentt. et Baruch, Leyden, 1623. (This is the most com- 
 plete commentary, and the 'nost distinguished for patristic learning, that we have on Teremiah, 
 but heavy and with a Romish bias ; comp. Fabric, Biblioth. gr. ed. Harl. Ill, p. 734). 
 
 By Protestant theologians we have the following commentaries: — Zwingli, Cornplanatio 
 Jeremiae, Ziirich, \b2,\, etc : Mart. Bucer, Compkmationes Jer. proph., Zurich, 1531 : Oeco- 
 LAMPADius, In Jeremiam irroph. comment, libri Ires, Strasburg, 1533; Bugenhagen, yli/»oto- 
 tionesin Jerem., Wittenberg, 1546; Calvin, Praelectiones in Jerem., Geneva, 1563, etc. (notes, 
 of lectures) ; Victorin Strigel, Condones Jeremiae proph. ad ebr. verUatem recognitae, etc. 
 Leipzig, 1566; Lucas Osiander, Jes. Jer. et Thr. Jerem., Tiibingen, 1578 ; Hugo Broughton, 
 Comment, in Jerem. prophetiam et Lavientationes, Geneva, 1606 ; Amandus Polanus (Prof, in 
 Basle), Comment, in Jerem. et exegesis in Tlirenos, Basle, 1608; Piscator, Herborn, 1614; 
 Joh. Hulsemann, In Jerem. el Threnos ^omme7it. posthumus, etc., Rudolstadt, 1663; Joh. 
 Forster, Comment, in Proph. Jeremiam., Wittenb , 1672 and 1699 ; Seb. Schmidt, Comm. in 
 librum prophetiarum Jeremiae, Strasburg, xo85; Jacob Alting (Prof, in Groningen, ob., 1697), 
 Comment, in Jerem. Amsterdam, 1688; Elbert Noordbeck (Pastor in Workum), Bekooptt 
 Uitlegginge van de prophetic Jeremie, Franeker, 1701 ; J. Friedrich Burscher, Versuch einer 
 kurzen Erldnterung des propheten Jeremid, etc., with a preface by Chr. A. Crusius, Leipzig, 
 1756 ; Hermann Venema, Comment, ad librum prophetiarum Jeremiae, Leuwarden, 1765 ; 
 Christ. Gottfr. Struensee, Neue Uebersetzimg der Weissagung Jeremiae, etc., Halberstadt, 
 1777 ; (the last volume of Struensee's Translations of the Prophets) ; JoH. Dav. Michaelis, 
 Observationes philolog . et crit. m Jeremiae vaticinia et Threnos, ed. Schleussner, Gottingen, 1793 ; 
 Christ. Fr. Schnurrer, Observationes ad vaticinia Jeremiae, Tiibingen, 1793 to 1794 ; A. Fr. 
 W. Leiste, Observationes in vatt. Jer. aliquot locos, Gottingen, 1794, and extended in Pott and 
 Ruperti, Sylloge Cominentt. Theologg, Vol. II., Helmst., 1801 ; Hensler, Bemerkungen iiber 
 Stellenin Jerem. Weiss., Leipzig, 1805; Eichhorn, Die heir. Propheten, 1816-19; Gaab, J. F. 
 (Prelate in Tubingen), Erkldrung schwererer Stellen in den Weissagungen Jeremiads, Tubingen, 
 1824; Taconis Roord^, Commejitarii in aliquot Jeremiae loca. Groningen, 1824; Dahler, 
 Jeremie traduit sur le texte original, accompagne de notes, Strasburg, 1825 ; Rosenmuelleb, 
 8cholien, 1826 ; Maurer, 1833 ; EwALD, Die Propheten des alien Bundes, 1840 ; Hitzig (part 
 of his K'lrzgefassie exeget. Handbuch uber das A. T), 1841, 2te Aufl. 1866; and his Die Proph. 
 Bitch des A. T ubersetzt, Leipzig, 1854; Umbreit, Praktischer Commentar, 1842; Wilhelm 
 Neumann, Jeremias von Anatot, die Weissag. imd Klagelieder ausgelegt, Leipzig, 1856-8 ; Carl 
 Heinrich Graf, Prof, in the Landeschule at Meissen, Der Proph. Jeremia erkldrt, Leipzig, 
 1862 ; Ernst Meier, Prof, in Tubingen, Die proph. BUcher des A. T. itbersetzt und erldutert, 
 Stuttgard, 1863. Comp. with respect to the literature, Carpzov, Introd. ad V. Test., edit. III. 
 p. 169 sqq. ; De Wette. Einl. fi Aufl. S. 298 ; Rosenmueller, Scholien I. S. 32. 
 
 [Works in English : — Will. Lowth, Coii\mentary upon the Prophecy and Lamentations of 
 Jeremiah, London, 1718; Ben J. Blayney, Jeremiah and Lamentations; A new transialion 
 with notes, etc., Edinb., 2d ed., 1810; Translation of Calvin's Commentary, 5 vols., Edinburgh, 
 1850; Henderson, The Book of the Prophet Jeremiah, etc., London. 1851, Andover, 1868; 
 NoYES, New Translation of the Hebrew Prophets, Boston, 4th ed., 18^8: Davidson, Introduc- 
 tion to the Old Testament, London, 1863; Ch. Wordsworth, Jeremiah, Lamentations and 
 
16 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 Ezekiel, with Notes and Introdwctions, London, 1869 ; H. Cowles, Jeremiah and Lamentations, 
 with Notes, New York, 1869.— S. R. A.] 
 
 The following works may serve as critical aids and for the exhibition of the prophet's charac- 
 ter : — Dr. IkliCH. Weber, Intempestvva lectionis eraendandx cura e Jeremia illustrata (4 Pro- 
 gramme), Wittenb., 1785, '88 and '94; -I. Andr. Mich. Nagel, Dissert in var. Icctl. 25 capp. 
 priorum Jer. ex. diiobus Codd. JISS. hebr. desumtas, Altorf, 1772; J oh. Jac. Guilcher, Ob- 
 servv. criticee in quasdam Jer. loca. in the Syynbolis Haganis, CL I; G. L. Spohn, Jer. vales e 
 versione Judseoriim Alex, emendatus, Leipzig, 1824; KuEPER, Jeremiaslibr. Sacrorum interpires 
 aique vindex Berlin, 1837 ; Movers, De utriusque recensionis vatt. Jer. indole et origine, Ham- 
 burg, 1837 ; KosTER, Die Propheten des A. u. N. B., Leipzig, 1838 ; J. L. Konig, Alttest Sttidien, 
 2 Heft, das Deuteronomiimi w. d. Proph. Jeremia, Berlin, 1839; Rodiger, Art. "Jeremia'' in 
 Ersch u. Grubers Encykl., Sect. II., Bd., 15; Caspar:, Jer. ein Zeuge f. d. Aechtheit v. Jes. 
 34, etc., in der Zeilschr. f Luth. Theol. u. Kirche, 1843 ; Wichelhaus, De Jer. versione Alex- 
 andrina, Halle, 1847; Naegelsbach, Der Prophet Jeremias und Babyloji, Erlangen, 1850; 
 Jdem. Art. " Jeremia'^ in Herzog's Real-Enc.; Niemeyer, Gharakteristik der Bibel, Bd. V. S. 
 472 ; Rods, Fuss-stapfen des Glaubens Abrahams, edited by W. F. Rods, 1838, II.. S. 281 flf. ; 
 Sack, Apologetik, S. 272, ff. ; Henqstenberg, Christologie, Aufl. II., Bd. II., S. 399 ff. ; E. 
 Meier, Gesch , d.poet. Nat-Lit. der Hebr., 1856, S. 385 ff. ; Reinke, Die Messian. JV^issagun- 
 gen bei den grossen und kleinen Proph. d. A. B., Giessen, 1859-61 ; A. Kohler, Die Wirk- 
 samkeit des Pr. Jer. wdhrend des Verfalls des jiid. Staats, in Beweiss des Glatcbens. [A. P. 
 Stanley, Jewish Church, 2d series, 2d Ed., London, 1866 ; Milman, History of the Jews, 
 Vol. I, London, 1863; Isaac Taylor, Spirit of Hebrew Poetry, pp. 277, 8, New York, 1863 ; 
 The Articles in Smith's and Kitto's Biblical Cyclopaedias. — S. R. A.] 
 
 The following practical works may also be mentioned : — Heinr. Bullinger, In Jer. Ser- 
 monem primum (6 primis ca2')p. comprehensum) condones 26, Zurich, 1557 ; Nik. Ludw. 
 Count Zinzendorf, Jer^nias ein Prediger der Gerechtigkeit ["Jeremiah, A Preacher of Right- 
 eousness"] reprinted from the second edition, Berlin, 1830 ; Heim and Hoffmann, Die vier 
 grossen Propheten erbaulich ausgelegt aus don Schriften der Reformatoren, Stuttgard, 1839 ; 
 Biblische Summarien (known under the name of " Wnrtembergische Summ.arien"), newly 
 edited by the Christian Union in North Germany, Halle, 1848 ; J. Diedrich, Die PropJieten 
 Jeremia und Ezechiel kiirz erkldrt, Neu-Ruppin, 1863; E. Huchstetter Zwolf Gleichnisse 
 aus dem Propheten Jeremia, Kirchheim U. T., 1865* [Maurkce, The Prophets a?id Kings of 
 the Old Testament, Cambridge, 1863; and the commentaries of T. Scott .and Matthew Henry. 
 — S. R. A.] 
 
 I may also mention the peculiar, long-vanished Literature of a branch of the theologia pro- 
 phetica, which set itself to the task of proving the Locos Communes of dogmatic theology by 
 the prophets. This was done either by naming the locos contained in each passage, at the close 
 of it (thus Seb. Schmidt, in his commentary, at the close of each chapter, evolves two locos 
 from almost every verse) ; or by arranging the prophetic utterances according to the scheme of 
 the dogmatic loci. Thus ex. gr. Philip Hailbrunner (Prof, in Lauingen) in his work, " Jer. 
 proph. monumenta in locos communes theologicos digesia," Lauingen, 1586, enumerates 28 locos, 
 comprising under each the appropriate passages from the prophet in a Latin translation. The 
 pame course is taken by Joh. Heinrich Majus, Prof, in Giessen, who, be.^ides a Theologia 
 prophetica ex selectionibus V. T. oraculis secundwn seriem locorum theolog. disposilis, Frank- 
 fort, a. M. 1710, edited a similarly composed Theologia Davidis, Theologia Jenajana and Theo- 
 lojid, Jeremiana (the complete title is: Theol. Jeremiana ex Jeremix valiciniis et lament.ationi- 
 bus juxta articulos fidei ordine per theses coUecta, Disput. Resp. Bened. Henr. Thering., 
 Giessen, 1703). 
 
THB 
 
 PROPHET JEREMIAH 
 
 1. THE INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Chapter I. 
 
 1. The Superscription. 
 
 I. 1-3.* 
 
 1 The words of Jeremiah, the son of Hilkiah, [onel of the priests that were [LXX., 
 
 2 dwelt] in Anathoth m the land of Benjamin, To whom the word of the Lord 
 [Jehovah] came [was communicated]' in the days of Josiah, the son of Amou, 
 
 3 king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign. It came also in the days of 
 Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh yi.-ar 
 of Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem 
 captive in the fifth month. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 * [The text of the common English Version will be retained in the prose portions of the book, with occasional corrections 
 included in brackets ; but a new rendering of the poetical portions will be given, founded on a comparison of the German 
 and English Versions with the Hebrew. — S. R. A.] 
 
 1 Ver. 2. — [Henderson : was communicated.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Ver. 1. The words of Jeremiah . . . Ben- 
 jamin. We find a similar commencement in the 
 prophetical book of Amos (i. 1) and in the Song 
 of Solomon (i. 1). Etymologically "•' '"I^T might 
 certainly be rendered historia Jeremise (De 
 Wette), compare ^"^Jf) "^^.' so frequent in the 
 
 book of Kings (1 Kings xi. 41 ; xiv. 19, 29, etc.). 
 Since, however, lliis book is not liistoric, but pro- 
 phetic, since the prophet's work consisted essen- 
 tially in preaching, since the other prophetic 
 hooks bear inscriptions denoting discourses 
 ('■'' 131. XtyO) or visions (pfH), and since finally 
 
 llie historic il narratives contained in tlie book 
 are also the words of Jeremiah (so Starke, ad h. 
 I.), it is more correct to take '131 in the sense 
 
 of " words," which it certainly has in Song of 
 Sol. i. 1. Concerning the name, origin and birth- 
 place of the prophet, see the Inlroduction. Be- 
 sides Jeremiah (and Nathan, 1 Kings iv, 5, Vide 
 Tholuck, Die Proph. imd Hire Weiss. S. 20, u 32), 
 the prophet Ezekiel (i. 3; comp. Jos. An/. X. 5. 
 1 ), and most probably Zechariah (i. 1 ; comp. 
 KoHLER, Suc/uirja, S. 9), were of sacerdotal ori- 
 gin. No special traces of his priestly descent 
 
 are found in the book of our prophet, unless we 
 reckon as such his accurate knowledge of the 
 Law, especially Deuieronomy, of which the ex- 
 position will furnish proofs in great number. 
 
 Vers. 2 and 3. To whom .... in the fifth 
 month. The subject of came in ver. 3 is word 
 of Jehovah, repeated from ver. 2. Chr. B. Mi- 
 CHAELis falsely renders in the [Lillesche Bibel : 
 idemque etiam fail prophet a. As regards the chro- 
 nological statements in vers. 2 and ;i, it should 
 first be noticed that the two kings Jehoahaz and 
 Jehoiakim are passed over, without doubt because 
 each of them reigned onlythreemonths. SinceJe- 
 remiah labored from the thirteenth year of Josiah. 
 consequently eighteen years under Josiuli, and 
 eleven years each under Jehoiakim and Zedekiah, 
 he ministered altogether, including the six 
 months under the two kings omitted, forty years 
 in the midst of the theocracy. How long after- 
 wards he labored, cannot be ascertained with 
 any certainty. Comp. Introduction and remarks 
 on xliv. 29. Since the book, as we have it, con- 
 tains not only those words of Jehovah which wei\^ 
 comiTiunicated to the prophet before the fiftu 
 month of the eleventh year of Zedekiah, but 
 others of later date (ch. xl. — xliv.), this in-crip- 
 tion does not comport with its present exieiu. 
 Accoi'iiiig to xxxvi. 32. in place of the writing 
 
 17 
 
18 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 destroyed by Zedekiah, Jeremiah prepared ano- 
 ther, which was twice as large as the first. When 
 he completed the second roll, we are not told. 
 After the destruction of Jerusalem in the fifth 
 month of the eleventh year of Zedekiah, Jeremiah 
 remained more than two months longer in the 
 country (comp. xli. 1; xlii. 7). During this 
 time, or perhaps after his arrival in Egypt 
 (comp. rems. on ii. 18, 36), he may have conti- 
 nued his writing till the time mentioned, and 
 provided it with the present inscription, vers. 
 1-3. Comp. EwALU, Die PropheUii des A. B. II. 
 S. 15. We have the contents of this writing in 
 our present book, though not in the same order. 
 ^u this point see the Introduction. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 Orioen, in his first homily on Jeremiah, re- 
 
 gards the chronological statements of the inscrip- 
 tion as a proof of the long-suffering of God. He 
 says, ^ 3, "God had pronounced judgment 
 against Jerusalem for its sins, and it was con- 
 demned to captivity. But as the time approaches, 
 the compassionate God sends this prophet under 
 the third king before the captivity. For the 
 long-sufl'ering God wished to grant them a re- 
 spite, and Jeremiah was to prophesy, so to speak, 
 the day before the captivity, as a preacher of 
 repentance, in order that the cause of the cap- 
 tivity might be removed." [" Dr. Lightfoot 
 observes that as Moses was so long with the 
 people as a teacher in the wilderness, till they 
 entered into their own land, Jeremiah was so 
 long to their own land a teacher before they 
 went into the wilderness of the heathen." M. 
 Heney.— S. R. A.] 
 
 2. The Call of the Prophet by Word and Vision (1. 4-19). 
 
 a. His choice, call and aggressive destinatioa 
 
 Chap. I. 4-10. 
 
 4, 5 Then the word of the Lord [Jehovah] came unto me/ saying, Before I 
 formed thee in the belly* I knew thee ; and before thou camest forth out of the 
 womb I sanctified [separated] thee, <ntil I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations. 
 
 6 Then said I [But 1 said], Ah,^ Lord God ! [Jehovah] behold, I cannot speak: for 
 
 7 I am a child. But the Lord [Jehovah] said unto me, Say not, I am a child : for 
 thou shalt go to* all that [wherever] I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command 
 
 8 thee thou shalt speak. Be not afraid of their faces : for I am with thee to deliver 
 
 9 thee, saith the Lord [Jehovah]. Then the Lord [Jehovah] put forth his hand 
 10 and touched my mouth. And the Lord [Jehovah] said unto me, Behold, I have 
 
 put my words into thy mouth. See, I have this day set thee over the nations and 
 over the kingdoms, to root out and to pull down [extirpate and exterminate] and 
 to destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 ver. 4.— Cod. 1092, De Rossi, Cod. D. Mosc, LXX., Vatic, Theodoret in Cod. Monac, Orioen, read vbx, misled by 
 
 T •* 
 
 the previous context. 
 
 2 Ver. 5.— Since tlie 3d pers. masc. imperf. of a strong verb witli the suffix H requires the short o in the last root-syllable 
 
 (EwALD, Ausf. ie/ir6. ?2.51, b), the Masoretes, deriving 1"li:fX from -\^% read ^IVX with the marginal note '^ TjT. 
 
 But the form comes from •M,'i (with the meaning '• to form," Exod. xxxii. 11 ; 1 Kings vii. 15), and the Chethibh is therofore 
 to be pronounced T'^^i'X. 
 
 » Ver. G.— LXX. 6 Civ {&i(nroTa. xvpie), which Spohn supposes to have arisen from S> by the fault of the transcriber; but 
 from the peculiarity of this translation, which would presuppose a derivative from riTI (Exod. iii. 14), we may judge it to 
 
 TT 
 
 have been the original. . i 
 
 * Ver. 7.— The preposition ^p might not unfitly in this connection be rendered "against" (Maurek), yet elsewhere 7j; 
 
 after ^Sh differs little in meaning from Sx, 1 Sam. xv. 20 ; ii. 11 ; comp. Neh. vi. 17 and rems. on x 1 
 
 EXEORTICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Ver. •'). Before I formed thee ... to the 
 
 nations. Observe the progre.s-s of tiiought in 
 
 the liiree clauses of this verse — 1. Before I 
 
 tormi'd thee, I knew thee: the Divine idea in eter- 
 
 U:ty lies back of the creative act in lime. Comp. 
 
 Ps. cxxxix 15. 2. Before thou camest forth from 
 the womb, 1 Knnctiji/-d thee : the instrument pre- 
 pared in accordance with the Divine idea is set 
 apart for the sacred service. Comp. Isa. xlv. 
 4: xlix. 1: Acts ix. 15; Rom. i. 1; Gal. i. 15; 
 Luke i. 15. 3. I ordained thee n, prophet to the 
 nations: it is expressly stated in what this sa- 
 cred service consists : Jeremiah is to proclaim 
 
CHAP. 1. 4-ir. 
 
 10 
 
 the word of the Lord as a prophet, not to one 
 nation only, but to the nations generally. 
 
 Ver. 6. Then said I I am a child. 
 
 Jeremiah perceives directly the difficulty and 
 danger of this Divine commission. He therefore 
 pleads his inability to speak on account of his 
 youth. By a similar plea Moses seeks to escape 
 tie Divine legation, Exod. iii. 11; iv. 10. l;^; 
 but Jonah flees from before the Lord, i. 3. — Many 
 expositors suppose that Jeremiah was then 
 twenty years ot age, but no definite age is desig- 
 nated by "l^J. The Rabbins understand by the 
 term a boy to his fourteenth year. See Buxtorf, 
 Lez. Ckald. Talm. sub voce. Maurer more cor- 
 ri-ctly concludes from the long continuance of the 
 prophet's ministry (vers. 2 and 3, coll. xl. 1 ; 
 xliii. 8j, that he could not then have passed his 
 twenty-fifth year. 
 
 Ver. 7. But Jehovah said unto me, say 
 not . . . thou shalt speak. Jehovah rebuts 
 the objection of Jeremiah at the outset, not by 
 tlie promise of His assistance, but by a categori- 
 cal diclaration of His will. He is to go where he 
 
 is sent, and speak what he is commanded. l2 in 
 itself might be taken in a personal sense [Tvphg 
 
 navrag, LXX. ). But since the following 12 nx 
 is certainly to be regarded as neuter, and as the 
 neutral signification, being the more general, in- 
 cludes the other, the former is to be preferred 
 
 = wfierever. We should also expect Dn'7j^ after 
 the verb, and from its absence conclude that 
 Itl'X is intended for an adverb of place=whither 
 (Zech. vi. 10). 
 
 Ver. 8. Be not afraid . . . saith Jehovah. 
 Their faces refers to the persons indicated 
 tmplicite in the word wherever, ver. 7. Here 
 first the Lord removes Jeremiah's scruples by the 
 promise of His protection and assistance. So 
 with Moses, Exod. iii. 12; iv. 15; comp. Ezek. 
 ii. G; Josh. i. 5; vii. 9; Judges vi. 10; Matth. 
 X. 18-20; xxviii. 20; Luke xxi. 17 ; Acts xviii. 
 9, 10. 
 
 Ver. 9. Then Jehovah put forth his hand 
 .... into thy mouth. The opposition of the 
 propliet is now broken down. The Lord was too 
 stron!5 for him. Comp. xx. 7 ; 1 Cor. ix. 10. — 
 So tlie Lord now proceeds to the solemn act of 
 inauguration. In this we distinguish two points: 
 [a) the communication of the necessary ability, 
 ver. 9 ; (6) the conferring of the commission and 
 privileges of the office. Both indicate a vigorous 
 offensive attitude of the prophet, which corre- 
 sponds to an equally strong defensive position, 
 vers. 18and 19. The first consists in the symbo- 
 lical ^ict of touching the lips. We call this act 
 symbolical in so far as the touching of the lips 
 and the words spoken were the visible and audi- 
 ble manifestation of a still deeper spiritual 
 trans iction. The Lord cannot literally have 
 put His words in the prophet's mouth: He can 
 only have given him the charism of which the 
 words were the necessary result. "Attactus oris 
 signum est notans efficaciam spiritus sancti, quippe, 
 qui digitus Dei sit, aperiens labia vunisirorum 
 vcrhi, Ps. li. 13, 14, 17: Luc xxi. 15" (Fokster). 
 The transaction is, however, to be regarded as an 
 historical objective fact, though occurring out- 
 side the sphere of physical or bodily life, and 
 
 therefore as kv Trvsviiart, or a vision. Comp. 
 Drechsler on Isa. vi. 7. We thus avoid a dou- 
 ble error. First, that which apprehends the 
 transaction as purely subjective : "as the mo- 
 ment when the presentiment first flashed clearly 
 through the soul of Jeremiah, that his prophetic 
 calling was of Divine appointment" (Ewald, 
 I Die Proph. des A. B. II. .S". 26). Secondly, that 
 [ according to which the transaction took place 
 t in the sphere of physical or corporeal existence. 
 So Starke, who, actually says that the " Son of 
 God, in pre-intimation of His blessed incarna- 
 tion, appeared to Jeremiah in a liunian form." 
 — This touching of the lips occurs several times, 
 but always with a different meaning. In Isa. vi. 
 6 it is for the purpose of expiation, in Dan. x. IG 
 for the purpose of strengthening. Here in Jere- 
 miah it is the outward form of inspiratio (f,«- 
 Tvvcvaig). For the expression "I have put my 
 word in thy mouth" (comp. almost the same ex- 
 pression in Isaiah li. 16) is, on the one hand, an 
 explanation of the act of touching the lips, on the 
 other the designation of that operation on the 
 human spirit by virtue of which "holy men of 
 God spake as they were moved by the Holy 
 Ghost" (2 Pet. i. 21). From the following verse 
 moreover we perceive that the prophet was pre- 
 pared not only for speaking, but for acting, or, 
 that his words were to be at the same time deeds, 
 real exhibitions of power. 
 
 Ver. 10. See, I have this day . . to build 
 and to plant. These words represent the sec- 
 ond part of the act of inauguration, the confer- 
 ring of authority and of the commission. Au- 
 thority is at the same time power. The prophet 
 is not only formally authorized, but rendered 
 physically capable. He is first authorized and 
 empowered to act vigorously in the ofl'ensive. 
 '^"i^'lpBri I have set thee as a TpS, i. e., over- 
 seer, administrator [hniaKo-jTog, oiKdvoiior), conse- 
 quently as my officer over the nations and kins:- 
 doms, which are my dominion and property. In 
 Tppn is also included the idea of official pleni- 
 polence, which forms the legal basis of the pro- 
 phet's ministry. The sphere in which this mi- 
 nistry is to be exercised is " the nations and the 
 kingdoms." These are not designated more ex- 
 actly, but the definite article and the plural de- 
 note that not only the kingdom of Judah, but all 
 the nations and kingdoms are meant which were 
 then present on the arena of history. They 
 are enumerated xxv. 17-26. The commission 
 which the prophet received with respect to them 
 has two sides — a positive and a negative. First, 
 he is to extirpate and exterminate (we may thus 
 express the alliteration), to destroy and to throw 
 down, but then also to build and to plant. The 
 first he does by prophesying the Divine judgment, 
 the second by the promise of Divine mercy and 
 
 grace. WT^'i corresponding to i^£3J, is used of 
 plants (xii. 14 sqq.; xxiv. 6; xlv. 4) |*riJ 
 corresponding to nj3, of buildings (xxxix. 
 8: Iii. 14; Ezek. xxvi. 9, 12). It is note- 
 worthy that the negative side is expressed by 
 four verbs, the positive by only two. With this 
 the contents of tlie book correspond, as owing 
 to the moral condition of the times, it contains 
 more threatenings and rebukes than promises of 
 
20 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 grace It is full of the former with respect to 
 Israel. The latter are found with respect to the 
 theocracy, besides in many scattered passages, 
 especially in ch. xxx.-xxxiii. With respect to 
 the heathen nations both are found especially in 
 ch xlvi.-li. It is understood that the propliet 
 was not actually to destroy and to build, but 
 only by word, whicii as spoken by God involves 
 tlie cci-tainty of the accomplishment. Analogous 
 modes of expression are found in Gen. xlix. 6; 
 Isa. vi. 10; Ezck. xxxii. 18: xliii. 3; Hos. vi. 
 5- Rev. xi. 5. — Comp. Jer. v. 14; xxiii. 29. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. There is a vocalio inimediata, which is how- 
 ever restricted to the bearers of the prophetic 
 and apostolic office. AVe know of no propliet 
 who was chosen and called by man to be a pro- 
 phet. Aaron and Elisha are only apparent ex- 
 ceptions. Comp. Exod. iv. 14-16, 27 ; 1 Kings 
 xix. IG. The apostles also were all called im- 
 mediately by our Lord: Matt. iv. 18-22; x. 1; 
 John i. 37 ; Acts ix. ; Gal. i. 1, 11 sqq. Since 
 then this vocatio immediata or extraor dinar ia is for 
 those servants and instruments, of which the 
 Lord will make use " ad fundandam ecclesiam,'" 
 :>ll those who wish to bsar office in the church 
 already founded must be called thereto rite, i. e. 
 by the hum m organ authorized for this purpose. 
 {Conf. Aujast., Art. XLV.) Comp. Budde, Instit. 
 theoi. do'pn. L. V., cap. IV., g 4. — Turrktin. 
 Inst, theol. eiencht, Loc. XVIII. , Quoest. 23. 
 
 2. The free creative act of the personal God, 
 who prepares and forms His instruments accord- 
 ing to His idea even in the womb, contradicts 
 both tlie mechanical idea of development, and a 
 one-sided traducianisin. — It is simply remarked, 
 that Catholic theologians (see Corn, a Lapide), 
 in order to obtain analogies for the immaculate 
 conception of the Virgin Mary, would conclude 
 from ver. 5 that Jeremiah was conceived without 
 
 originalsin. Neumann understands yni^lpn of 
 
 a communication of the Holy Ghost to Jeremiah 
 even before his birth. Comp. on the otlier hand 
 
 HoFMANN, Schriftbeweis, 1, S. 65. ["l^^p does not 
 
 primarily signify to be pure or holy, but to be 
 separated from a common to some special pur- 
 pose. The idea of purity, whether physical, 
 ceremonial or moral, was originated by that of 
 such separation. When, therefore, Jehovah de- 
 clares that He had sanctified the prophet before 
 his birth, the meaning is not that He had cleansed 
 ium from the pollution of original sin, or that 
 He had regenerated him by His Spirit, as some 
 have imagined, but tiiat He had separated him 
 in His eternal counsel to the work '\A which he 
 was to be engaged." Henderson. So Calvin. 
 — "In this respect, as in many others, Jeremiah, 
 who was sanctified from his mother's womb, and 
 was known, i. e. lovd, by God before he was con- 
 ceived and was made a prophet to the Nations, 
 was a figure of Christ, who was loved by the 
 Father from the licginiung .... and who was 
 the Prophet of all Nations .... (see S. Jerome 
 here and comp. S. Cyprian c. Judmo.i, I. 21 ; S. 
 Ambrosk. in P-i. 43, and Origen Homil. 1, in 
 Jer.). S. Jekomk says : ' Certe nullum piilo .imic- 
 iiorem Jereinia, qui virgu prophcta, sanctijicatusque 
 
 in utero, ipso nomine prsefigurat Dominum SalvatO' 
 rem.'' S. Jerome (who is regarded as a saint 
 and as a great doctor of the church, by the 
 Church of Rome) could not have written these 
 words if he had known anything of the dogma 
 of the Immaculate Conception (/. e. of the ori- 
 ginal sinlessness) of the Blessed Virgin, which 
 is now enforced by the Churcii of Pionic us an 
 article of faith necessary to everlasting salva- 
 tion." Wordsworth.— S. R. A.] 
 
 3. The divine call involves, 1. with respect to 
 the called, [a) the duty, to discharge the com- 
 mission received without shyness or fear of man, 
 and without regard to his own weakness, (6) the 
 privilege of the divine protection and assistance, 
 and of certain success in his work ; 2. with re- 
 spect to those for whose sake the divine com- 
 mission is given, (a) the duty of believing obedi- 
 ence, (6) the certain prospect of the realization 
 of the threatenings or promises addressed to 
 them. — ZiNZENDORF ['^Jeremiah a preacher of 
 righteousness," S. 5 of the Berlin Ed. of 1830) 
 remarks on ver. 10: "A general promise which 
 is adilressed not to court preachers and general 
 superintendents and such like only, in their ex- 
 tended dioceses, but city and village pastors may 
 a majori ad minus, safely conclude that it will 
 apply also to their rooting out and pulling down, 
 building and planting. Only [b?] faithful ! only 
 faithful !" — I note that some have sought to de- 
 rive from ver. 9 a proof of verbal inspiration, 
 hence Starke remarks : " Those sin against the 
 Holy Ghost Himself who attribute to Jeremiah a 
 rude style and solecisms, as Abarbanel, Jerome, 
 CuN->EUS [De Rep. ebr. III., 7) have done," — fur- 
 ther that Pope Innocent III., founded on ver. 
 10 his claim to the primacy over civil rulers. 
 Comp. Decret. L. I. Tit. 33, cap. sollicite (Forster). 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. This passage may be suitably employed on 
 the tenth Sunday after Trinity. It is also espe- 
 cially adapted to (Jrdiualion and Installation 
 sermons. 
 
 2. The Lord never allows His Church to lack 
 the strength which time and place demand. He 
 need not seek this or wait for it. He makes it. 
 As the Lord elsewhere chose that which was 
 foolish, weak and base in the sight of the world 
 (1 Cor. i. 19-29; Matt. xi. 25; John vii. 48; Jas. 
 ii. 5), so now he chooses one who to himself and 
 others appears too young. It is not always the 
 greybeard that is wanted (Forster). Wlien God 
 gives office He gives also understanding. — It 
 would be presumptuous to begin a great work in 
 one's own strength. It is natural tliat in view 
 of a great and difficult task one should at first 
 be afraid. (Ambrose, De officiis mininlror^mi, 1,00: 
 •' Moyses et Ilieremiax, elect i a Domino, iit oraculi 
 Dei prpcdicarent populo, quod poterant per gratiam, 
 excusdhant per verecundiam.' ) But it would also 
 be wrong if from pusillanimous desjiondoncy or 
 love of ease, one should take no heed to an evi- 
 dent call of God. 
 
 " Mark, my soul. God's word to thee. 
 And Ko iit Christ's command, 
 Where'er Tie draws tliee hasten on, 
 Wlien Jle detains tliee, stand," etc. 
 
 "The word and ;;l(irv. Lord divine. 
 Nut ours, Christ, but all are Thine, 
 
CHAP. I. 11-16. 
 
 21 
 
 Grant then Thy gracious aid to those, 
 Who swei'tly on Thy word repose." 
 
 ( \ic.. S^i.NEKKKii, in the liymn, " Abide with us, 
 Loivl .Jedu.s Clirist," etc., ver. 7). — Since the 
 caiide is not ours, but the Lord's, and we have 
 not undertaken it in our own strength, but in 
 obedience to His command, it devolves upon the 
 Lord to protect His cause and His servant. — 
 Where one receives an office from the Lord and 
 conducts it according to the Lord's purpose and 
 in His Spirit, there the Lord Himself is present 
 uitli sliieM and spear, that is, with weapuns of 
 defence and offence. — The word of the Lord even 
 in the mouth of the humblest of His servants, is 
 !i. liammer which breaks the rock in pieces, and 
 no rock is too hard or too high for it. — The work 
 in the vineyard of the Lord. It must 1. be per- 
 formed by men, whom the Lord prepares and 
 ^^'uds. It is 2. a difficult and dangerous work. 
 Bdt 3. rich in success and reward. — The office to 
 which the Lord appoints is 1. for the purpose 
 of accomplishing His will, — needs, 2. the means 
 which the Lord Himself provides. 
 
 3. Starke : — " He who is called by the Lord 
 to the office of preacher becomes indeed a sacri- 
 fice and instrument of God, in that he regards 
 only God's will and command, and must without 
 exception and without self-conceit do and pro- 
 claim that which the Lord commands him to do 
 and preach. — Since the anger of God against 
 sin and the punishment which will certainly fol- 
 low has to be declared to whole kingdoms, a 
 preacher must set their sins and the anger of 
 God awakened thereby, before governors as well 
 as subjects, the high as well as the low. — A 
 
 teacher in view of gross corruption must not 
 proceed softly ; he must break down, root out, 
 pull up and destroy. — When a teacher has by the 
 Law destroyed the kingdom of Satan in the 
 hearts of men, he must seek to build up the 
 kingdom of Christ therein by the Gospel." 
 
 [" Propheia nascitur non fit — A man is not edu- 
 cated unio a prophet, but originally formed for the 
 office. — Samuel declared a message from God to 
 Eli when he was a little child. Note, God can, 
 when He pleases, make children prophets and 
 ordain strength out of the mouths of bakes and suck- 
 lings. — If God do not deliver His ministers from 
 trouble, it is to the same effect if He support them 
 under their trouble — Earthly princes are not 
 wont to go along with their ambassadors, but 
 God goes along with those whom He sends.'' 
 Henry. — "You need not fear their /«ees — the 
 thing that timid young men are most wont to 
 fear. Think only that the Lord God is with 
 you, and let His presence be your joy and 
 strength." Cowlbs. — Nothing can sustain the 
 prophet in His outward and inward conflicts but 
 the assurance of his divine calling. — Maurice 
 says: "If Jeremiah had fancied that he was a 
 prophet because there was in him a certain apti- 
 tude for uttering divine discourses and foreseeing 
 calamities, who can tell the weariness and loath- 
 ing which he would have felt for his task when 
 it led to no seeming result, except the dislike of 
 all against or for whom it was exercised, — still 
 more when the powers and graces which were 
 supposed to be the qualifications for it, became 
 consciously feeble." — S. R. A.] 
 
 b. The Visions, Rehearsal and Programme. 
 Chap. I. 11-16. 
 
 11 Moreover the word of the Lord [Jehovah] came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, 
 
 12 what seest thou ? And I said, I see a [wakeful] rod of an almond tree. Then 
 said the Lord [Jehovah] unto me, Thou hast well [rightly] seen, for I will hasten 
 
 13 [be wakeful (Germ., wacker) concerning] my word, to perform it. And the 
 word of tlie Lord [Jehovah] came unto me the [a] second time, saying. What 
 seest thou? And I said, I see a seething [boiling] pot, and the face thereof is 
 
 14 toward [from] the north. Then the Lord [Jehovah] said unto me, Out of the 
 north an evil [calamity] shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land. 
 
 15 For lo, I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the Lord 
 [Jehovah] ; and they shall come, and they shall set every one his throne [seat] at 
 the entering of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all the walls thereof round 
 
 16 about, and against all the cities of Judah. And I will utter my judgments against 
 them^ touching [for] all their wickedness, who^ [because they] have forsaken me, 
 and have burned* incense [sacrifice] unto other gods, and worshipped the works* 
 of their own hands. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL.. 
 
 1 Ver. 16. — The form QmX for DPX i^s frecincnt in Jeromiah, ii. 3.5 ; iv. 12 ; xii. 1. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr. § 55, 3, Anux. 
 * Ver. 16. — ItyX beforp 'J?3T^' ri'fers to tlie sutlix in D"^;'"*. and since it is to be regarded as explicative, introducing s 
 
•■>■> 
 
 THE PROPHET JEUEMIAII. 
 
 more particular definition of niH, we may translate it by: that, that namely. Moreover H^"^ iiere refers to the same 
 
 TT 
 
 expression in ver. 14. 
 
 3 Ver. 10.— nOpM- Tliis Piel is frequently synonymous with the Hiphil I'DpH. (Comp. 1 Kings iii. 3 ; xi. 8 with 
 
 xxii. 44; 2 Kings xxii. 17 with 2 Chnin. xxiv. 25 Chethibli) in the wiiler sense o{ qlprinff in general. (Comp. Graf inloc.) — 
 That Jeremiah also iises the I'iel in tin' wider sense seems to tbllow from tlie fact that he uses it almost exclusively, — every 
 where indeed with the exceiition i<{ two |ilaces (xxxiii. l.S; xlviii. :5.5), where it was proper to use the otRcial terminus tech- 
 nicus. But it is not clear whrtlier tlic Pirl in Jeremiah has the wider meaning, in consequence of a grammatical confusi(jn 
 of the Hiphil with the Piel, or of a rhetorical denominatio a potiore. 
 
 4 Ver. 16. — 'tyyo, the plural, is foumiagainonlyxliv. 8, the singular xxv. G, 7 ; xxxii.30; 2 Kings xxii. 17 ; coll. 2Chron. 
 xxxiv. 25. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 In general this section is the continuation of 
 Jeremiah's induction into the prophetic office, 
 commenced in the previous section. This con- 
 tinuation consists in this, that the Lord at once 
 causes the prophet to make a little trial or exer- 
 cise in prophetic vision, in which he shows him 
 not only the manner, but the main purport of Ihe 
 prophetic vision and announcement, /. e. the pro- 
 gramme in outline of his prophetic ministry. 
 The I wo sections thus stand in the closest reci- 
 ])rocnl relation. Whether we are to assume an 
 interval of time between them, is not clear from 
 the text, which however does not forbid the sup- 
 position of a very brief interim. 
 
 Ver. 11. Moreover . . . rod of an almond 
 tree. The question, "What seest thou?" is 
 found not only here, in ver. 13 and xxiv. 3, but 
 also in Amos vii. 8; viii. 2; Zech. iv. 2; v. 2. 
 It is the object of the inquirer to assure himself 
 that the person addressed has rightly seen, which 
 thus presupposes a certain difficulty, as well as 
 importance, in seeing correctly. Apart from the 
 objective difficulty of always perceiving the ob- 
 ject shown, which we meet with, ex. gr., in Amos 
 viii. 1\ Zech. v. 2; the subjective ability of be- 
 holding visions, the seeing power of the inner 
 eye, as it were, had to be tested. Hpl^ is the 
 almond (Gen. xliii. 11; Num. xvii. 8; Eccles. xii. 
 oj. The word comes from ^pl^, vigilavit. What 
 the cock is among domestic animals the almond 
 is among trees. It awakes first from the sleep 
 of winter: '■\fioret omnium prima inense Januario, 
 Martio vera poma maturat" says Pliny, Hist. Nat. 
 L. XVI. c. 25. — The LXX have (iaK-//plav Kapvivr/v, 
 bacuLum nuceum. It is questionable whether by 
 this they wished to designate a nut-tree-staff 
 (with a hint at the sweet kernel in a bitter shell, 
 as Theodoret and Ambkose suppose, the latter 
 in Epist. ad Marcellinam sororem, the 41st in the 
 Bened. Ed.). For, according to Heraclius 
 Ei'HESurs [Kapva eKaXovv Kal rag a/ivySdlac:, etc.), 
 Hesycuius (aapbac' a/ivySd/iag Kal imardvovi;) and 
 others (see Urusius ad h. I. cfr. Passow : Kapvov, 
 every kind of nut), l-taKrr/pia KapvLvrj may also mean 
 an almond-tree-staff, as the LXX also translate 
 
 Gen. XXX. 37, P'7 ^pO by pdft^nc Kapvtvrj (1^7 
 
 is however the proper word in Hebrew and the 
 dialects for almond-tree. See Arnold in Her- 
 ZOG, Redl-Enc., Art. Mandelhaum), and in Gen. 
 xliii. 11, at least the Cod. Vatic has Kdpva for 
 Onpt!/, while the Cod. Alex, renders tins word by 
 h/j.i}y()a/.a. — But although the language allows the 
 meaning of "almond "' for "'Pu', ii has not been 
 
 universally admitted iiere. Bugenhagen, ex. gr. 
 translates haculum alacrem or virgam vigilantem, 
 
 and expressly excludes the idea of an almond 
 tree. For in another reference he makes this 
 remarkable declaration; " Qui in hebraico nunc 
 superstilio.'iius sua puncta {gufe tamen sciunt dim 
 nan fuissc) sequunlur, faciunt hoc loco : baculuin 
 amygdalinum. Sed si hoc placet rpsis, cur noii 
 postea faciunt etiam sic: bene vidisti, quia ego 
 amygdalabor ad verbum meum " Most commenta- 
 tors admit the idea of "almond-tree " in Tpiy> 
 
 they differ only in this that some express this idea 
 in the translation as that which is in reality the 
 only one befitting the word, while the others for 
 the sake of the similarity with the following 
 
 "^Pp prefer the radical signification (vigilare). 
 The latter again are distinguished into those who 
 take ']pp=npp in the substantive sense, " watch- 
 man " (so Calvin : baculus vigilis; CEcolampad. : 
 the watchman club), and those who retain the 
 adjectival signification [vigilans, alacer). — The 
 endeavor to recommend the latter meaning by 
 the explanation, " virga viglians pro minaci, in- 
 cumbente, instur destricti gla.dii vibrata'' (Zwingli) 
 is wrecked on the difficulty of a rod alone, with- 
 out an arm to raise it or an object over which it 
 is held, being recognized as vigilans. If on the 
 other hand the staff be recognized by the pro- 
 phet as an almond-tree staff, not only is this ex- 
 plicable but the subsequent explanation is con- 
 nected easily and naturally with the idea of an 
 almond-tree. Ewald has made the thought 
 clear by the translation; A watch -staff of elder, 
 for I will watch, etc. — Theodoret says, long-suf- 
 fering is a sleep (Ps. xliv. 24; Ixxviii. Go); 
 watchfulness for vengeance an awaking. That 
 He will not sleepily delay, but will be fresh and 
 watchful to own by speedy fulfilment the word 
 spoken by the mouth of His prophet, — this is 
 what God says to the fearful, hesitating Jeremiah 
 for his comfort and encouragement. But is 
 
 Ipn Spd a branch with twigs and leaves, or a 
 stick stripped of leaves, such as is used for 
 walking with or striking? Many, like Starke 
 and Rosenmueller, favor the former view. 
 They appeal to the circumstance that otherwise 
 the staff would not be recognized as from an 
 almond-tree. Others, as Kimchi, Vatable, Seb. 
 SciiMii), Venema, Gaab, decide for the latter, 
 beino- only not agreed whether the staff is to be 
 unde°rstood as being a pilgrim's staff, a shepherd s 
 staff, or a stick for beating. I accept the latter 
 view, and take the staff to be a threati ning rod 
 of castigation, for the following reasons: 1 
 
 Although Gesenius and Fuerst derive 7p0 from 
 the root hp2 which in Ethiopic, Arabic and Syriac 
 has the meaning of "to sprout, shoot forth," the 
 word in Hebrew never has the signification of a 
 fresh, "-recn, leafy branch (not even in Jeremiah 
 
CHAP. I. 11-16. 
 
 z^ 
 
 xlviii. 17, which passage is adduced by Fuerst), 
 but always that of a stick or staff, and therefore 
 agrees at least in signification with baculus, 
 BaKTTjpia. The Hebrew expressions for a fresh 
 
 branch are nt30 (Ezek. xix. 11 sqq.), "^i^, f]j;;, 
 nO^, Ti^?- - The connection requires that au 
 instrument of chastisement be meant. The ex- 
 positors have pointed with justice to the climax: 
 rod — boiling pot. '• Qui noluerint percutiente virga 
 emendari, mittentur in ollam le.neam atque succen- 
 sam," says .Jerome. But a leafy branch is not 
 an instrument of punishment. — The objection 
 that the prophet would not then be in a condi- 
 tion to recognize the staff as from an almond- 
 tree is unfounded. He might be able to do this 
 even if we had reason to suppose that a dry 
 almnn 1 tree was shown him. To distinguish 
 betwetiii (litfereut kinds of dry wood is not difiB- 
 ciilt for a half-informed man. We must imagine 
 a staff stripped indeed of leaves and adapted for 
 striking, but yet fresh, unbarked and sappy. 
 Since it is just in its being fresh and full of sap 
 that the point lies, we may certainly presume 
 that it was an almond rod in this stage that was 
 shown to the prophet. Perhaps the recognition 
 was facilitated by the circumstance that the 
 vision occurred at a time when the sap had just 
 commenced to flow in the almond tree. 
 
 Ver. 12. Then said Jehovah ... to per- 
 form it. Venema remarks on this verse : 
 " Visum eo tendit, ut propheta experimentum suse 
 aptt/udi/iis ad munus propheticum caperet. — Bene 
 vidisti : capax ergo es visionum propheticarum." 
 There seems to be some truth in this. In the 
 other passages where the formula, What seest 
 thou ? occurs it is without the Thou hast 
 ■well seen of confirmation. When it is here said 
 to Jeremiah after his first vision there is certainly 
 something encouraging in the fact, and it may 
 not incorrectly be referred to the apprehension 
 of incapacity expressed by the prophet in ver. 6. 
 At the same time it corroborates what has been 
 remarked on TPJ2'. If it were a leafy twig, 
 
 thou hast well seen appears to be superfluous, 
 for tliere would have been no skill in distin- 
 guishing it— I will be wakeful, etc. Comp. 
 xxxi. 28, where the Lord refers expressly to 
 this passage. The paronomasia is the same as 
 between VTp and Vp (Am. viii. 2). — Observe that 
 
 we have *^3T and not T13"1. The word which 
 
 ■ t: I :|T : 
 
 the prophet has to proclaim is that of God, who 
 will not allow His own word to be dishonored. 
 The prophet need not be anxious either about its 
 impression on the hearts of men or about the 
 verification of his threatenings and promises; 
 both will verify themselves. Comp. Heb. ii. 1 ; 
 Isa. Iv. 11. 
 
 Ver. 18. And the word . . . from the 
 north. This second vision is closely related 
 to the first, both as to form and matter, we are 
 therefore not to suppose a long pause between 
 them. In form this vision is like the first, but 
 in matter it forms a climax, since, as already re- 
 marked, the boiling pot in relation to the simple 
 rod of castigalion appears to be an emblem of 
 an extreme fury of anger. There is also a pro- 
 gress here, in that the second vision, with the 
 explanation attached, plainly expresses why, how 
 
 and by whom the judgment should be inflicted 
 upon Judah. Thus far vers. 1.3-16 present an 
 outline of the whole prophecy of Jeremiah, for 
 the whole book is no more than a development 
 of the great thought here expressed: Judgment 
 upon Judah by a people coming from the north ; 
 and the consolatory portions are but exceptions, 
 like single rays of light in the prevailing dark- 
 ness of the picture. — A boiling pot, etc. Ety- 
 mologicilly it is a pot blown upon, i. e., a pot 
 brought to boiling by blowing the fire. Comp. 
 niaj nn job xli. ll. The idea of Brenz, that 
 Tp is here to be taken as = spina [spina^ quse in 
 die ine Domini ab iyne hujus succenditur) is refuted 
 by the singular. We should then expect D'TD. 
 Comp. Isa. xxxiv. 13; Hos. ii. 8; Nah. i. 10; 
 Eccles. vii. 6, in which place the word is used in 
 both meanings. The seething pot is an emblem 
 among the .\rabs of warlike fury. Comp. Rosen- 
 .■\iUELLER, ad. h. I. Most expositors understand by 
 the pot here the theocracy. The Chaldeans are 
 then the fire inflamed to a violent heat, which 
 boils the Jews in the pot (comp. Ezek. xi. 3, 7, 11 ; 
 xxii. 20), and tliat which foams over is the in- 
 habitants driven out of the holy land. So, ex. gr., 
 says (EcoLAMPADius : " Hierusalem oUie vel lebeti 
 comparatnr [ussgesotten Haffen) in qua carnales 
 homines per ignem coquantur, ut quasi spuma ebulli- 
 antur per fervorem.^' But they have been led by 
 the general similarity of these passages in Eze- 
 kiel to overlook the difi'erence. There the pot, 
 with the flesh in it and that which is to come out 
 of it, as well as the fire, are expressly distin- 
 guished from each other. In reference to our 
 passage Venema has correctly remarked : ''Nihil 
 hie de tgne, nihil de folle et sufflatione aliunde orta ; 
 simpliciter memoratur olla suffiata, quse est oUa in 
 tumorcm erecta et effervescens." And the prophet 
 certainly sees nothing more than a pot boiling 
 and foaming from the north. So that this it.sclf 
 is presented as the instrument of the severer 
 punishment, and therefore symbolizes the Chal- 
 deans. So BuGENHAGEN ( " o//a malum per Chal- 
 dxos et Assyrios Jtidmis paratum''), Venema (^''olla 
 representat regnum Chnldmum sub Nebucadnezare et 
 vasta 7Holimina coquens, et summe sese efferens, simul 
 irntum et ad omnia ahsorbenda paralum"). With 
 the opposite view of the pot is closely connected 
 the incorrect interpretation of nji3}^ 'J£30 VJ31, 
 
 * T T •• : ■ T T 
 
 If we understand by the pot the Jewish people, 
 and imagine this placed over a burning fire, 
 which, though not expressly mentioned, we as- 
 sume to be the Chaldeans, then it is natural to 
 view D'Ji) as the side of the pot turned towards 
 the fire. But it is not the side turned towards 
 the fire, but towards the prophet. For in the 
 first place in the vision there is no fire, so that 
 Wis could denote only the front of the pot, sup- 
 posing it had one. It would, secondly, be diffi- 
 cult to show that the pot (or kettle, as some 
 translate) had a side which could be expressly 
 marked as the front. Thirdly, if the opposite 
 
 view were correct we should read V 'J3 ^X niit 
 ^ ^223. For the prophet certainly sees the pot 
 from his standpoint as in the north. If now W3 
 say that the pot was placed against a fire burn- 
 ing on its northern side, the prophet from his 
 
24 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 southern standpoint would certainly he unable 
 to see the side towards the fire. I know that 
 frequently in Hebrew the terminus a quo is put 
 where we should use the terminus in quo or in 
 quern (comp. Naegelsb. Jleb. Gram-. 2d Ed., 5. 
 228), but this mode of expression is applicable 
 only wlien the object in question presents itself 
 from just that point, at which it is according to 
 our conception of it or towards which it is mov- 
 ing. In the present case, however, the side 
 turned away from the prophet and not visible to 
 111 III would be designated as that which is pre- 
 senting itself to him (from the north). We 
 therefore take D'J3 as the side turned towards 
 
 • T 
 
 and displayed to the prophet, whence according 
 to a frequent idiom (comp. Num. viii. 2 ; Ex. 
 xxviii. 25 ; Ex. xl. 44) it is designated as the 
 face of the pot, and on this account also no fur- 
 thei- emphasis is to be laid on it. It is merely 
 tlie visible side as opposed to the invisible; and 
 we therefore translate simply "and it looks from 
 the north." The He locale in njD}f, as in several 
 cases after prepositions, does not serve to indi- 
 cate the direction more definitely, Isa. xv. 10, 21, 
 
 n3ji3 and (17330 Jer. xxvii. 16, but here as in 
 
 T : •.■ - T V T • 
 
 n 7'7 appears to have lost its significance as a 
 
 particle and to be in transition to a mere pho- 
 netic substantive termination. 
 
 Ver. 14. Then Jehovah said . . . the in- 
 habitants of the land. From the north is a 
 general and indefinite expression, and it remains 
 so to the prophet until a great historical event 
 renders it sharply defined. Until the battle of 
 Carchemish a people from the north only is 
 spoken of (iv. 6; vi. 1, 22; x. 22), after the 
 battle this people appears distinctly as the Chal- 
 deans under Nebuchadnezzar (xxv. 9, etc). This 
 settles the question whether by this northern 
 nation the Chaldeans or Scythians were meant. 
 All the older expositors held the former view. 
 After Eichhorn's example (Ileb. Proph. II. 9), 
 Vox BOHLEN [Gen, S. 165), Dahler {Jeremie II. 
 81). EwALD {Proph. d. A. B. 1, S. 361, 373; II., 
 S. 9; Gesch. Isr. III. 392), Bertheau {Gesch. 
 d. I.ir. S. 361), HiTZiG and others in general, 
 as RoscH says {Zeitschr. d. morg. Ges. XV., S. 
 63G) "pretty nearly all exegetical authorities," 
 maintain the latter. Without wishing to oppose 
 that which Auolph Strauss {Valt. Zepharijse, S. 
 XV.), Tuoi.ucK [Die Proph. u. ihre Weiss., S. 94), 
 and Graf (D. proph. Jer. erkldrt, S. 16) have 
 urged in favor of the older view, especially from 
 the circumstance that the incursion of the Scy- 
 thians was made at least five years before the 
 public appearance of our prophet, I am still 
 of opinion, that Jeremiah could have had neither 
 the Scythians, nor the Chaldeans, nor any other 
 people definitely in mind. He saw only this 
 much, that a northern people would visit Judah 
 as the rod of divine discipline. What people 
 this would be, or rather what people all the 
 families of the kingdoms of the earth 
 wouM unite under their leadership, he knew not. 
 fle learned this first, as we have said, from 
 the decisive turn given by the battle of Car- 
 chemish. We shall see when we come to con- 
 sider the respective passages that where he 
 eharacLerizes this unknown people more particu- 
 
 99 . 
 
 X. 22 : 
 
 xiu. 
 
 larly (comp. iv. 11 ; v. 15; vi. 2 
 20) his description suits the Chaldeans, and that 
 afterwards when he names them (ch. xxv.) he is 
 not conscious of correcting an error. Comp. 
 Graf, S. 17, etc. — We thus come to the question, 
 how can Jeremiah call the Chaldeans a northern 
 people, since Babylon lay to the east or south- 
 east of Palestine? We are not to expect an ex- 
 act localization here, since, as we have said, 
 Jeremiah has no definite people in view. The 
 origin of the Chaldeans in the Koordish moun- 
 tains (J. D. MiCHAELis), the extension of the 
 Babylonian kingdom to the north and the con- 
 nection with it of the Medes and Assyrians 
 ((EcoLAMPADius, Grotius, and others) are not 
 to be urged as reasons for this expression of the 
 prophet. He knows only that they will come 
 against Jerusalem from the north over Dan and 
 the mountains of Ephraim (iv. 15; viii. 16). 
 At the same time it was determined that these 
 enemies belonged to the dominion not of a south- 
 ern, but of a (in relation to this) northern em- 
 pire, for which reason, after he had recognized 
 the Chaldeans, the prophet does not cease to 
 designate them as coming from the north ; xxv. 
 9, coll. Ezek. xxvi. 7. — Shall break forth, etc. 
 Vers. 14-16 contain the interpretation of the 
 second vision, ver. 14 giving its general import. 
 nn3 is used only of the opening of a closed 
 gate, but metaleptically of the dismission or ex- 
 clusion of what was enclosed by it, whether in 
 bonam partem, ex. gr. of prisoners (Isa. li. 14 ; 
 Job xii. 14), or in malum partem of a calamity, 
 as here. Zwingli remarks on this passage : 
 '■'■ hac metalepsi *■ aperiri pro prodire^ non temere 
 utuntur Latini, sed pro 'prodere' frequentius.'" 
 [Henderson: " Though more to the east than 
 to the north of Judea, the Hebrews always re- 
 present the Babylonians as living in, or coming 
 from, the north, partly because they usually ap- 
 propriated the term east to Arabia Deserta, 
 stretching from Palestine to the Euphrates, and 
 partly because that people, not being able to 
 cross the desert, had to take a northern route 
 when they came against the Hebrews, and always 
 entered their country by the northern frontier." 
 — S. R. A.] 
 
 Ver. 15. For lo . . . the cities of Judah. 
 In this verse the general idea 7^p^ is more ex- 
 actly defined. The calamity will consist in this 
 that the Lord will call all the kingdoms of the 
 north against Judah. But all is not to be em- 
 phasized. It is only meant that the (in relation 
 to Egypt) northern empire will come with its 
 whole force upon Judah. The expression "and 
 they shall set every one his throne," etc., is very 
 variously explained. Calvin understands it as 
 the arrangement for a permanent residence (" ut 
 consideant tanquam domi suse") which is entirely 
 unsuited to the connection. Others understand 
 by the throne the seat of the general, from which 
 orders are issued as well as judgments. The 
 latter have been referred either to the hostile 
 soldiers (so, ex. gr.. See. Schmid), or to Judah 
 (Starke, J. D. Michaelis, ^^ describuntur ut 
 assessor es ejus judicii, quod v. seq. informatur'"). 
 The reference to the hostile soldiery does not 
 agree with the context, the reference to Judah 
 is in so far unsuited that a throne for the pur- 
 pose ut' judging a city, is set not before the gales. 
 
CHAP. 1. 11-16. 
 
 but within the conquered city. I therefore con- 
 cur with Venema, Rosenmueller, Maurer and 
 others in the view, that the seat here is only 
 a seat for sitting upon, and that to sit down be- 
 fore a city is simply to besiege it, as in Latin 
 obsidere, and as the French say mettre le siege de- 
 vant une ville. The phrase IXDp t^'N expresses 
 that Jerusalem will be surrounded by many such 
 seats. They will be set especially before the 
 gates of Jerusalem (Hnfl prepositive, as Gen. 
 xviii. 1 ; xix. 11, etc.) because it is the metropo- 
 lis and because the siege is directed against the 
 gates, as the approaches to it. From the princi- 
 pal stations before the gates of the capital the 
 attack may be directed not only against the 
 walls of Jerusalem, but against the other cities 
 of the land. 
 
 Ver. 16. And I will utter . . . their own 
 hands. These words designate the visitation 
 threatened in the preceding verses as a divine 
 judgment, and name also the guilt which has 
 brought such a judgment upon Judah. The ex- 
 pression 3 nX D'£03tyO ^3"! signifies to discuss 
 
 rights with any one, i. e. to dispute (^causam agere) 
 between those who have equal rights (Jer. xii. 1), 
 and partly as a judge with the accused (iv. 12; 
 xxxix. 5). The expression here has the suffix 
 of a definite person, which signifies that the 
 case is not one of reciprocal rights, but entirely 
 of the rights of the Lord, for the infraction of 
 which the people are here called to account. 
 
 This discussion of the Lord with the people is 
 not to take place in words, but by the judgment 
 announced in the previous verses. ["The idea 
 conveyed by the LXX is somewhat diflFerent, and 
 I believe that it is what the original words mean, 
 "kahrjaid -rrpbg ai'Tovc /lera Kpiaeug — I will speak to 
 them with judgment. The original literally is, 
 *I will speak my judgments to them;' tnat is, I 
 will not speak words but judgments. — The verse 
 may be thus rendered — * And I will speak by my 
 judgments unto them,' etc." Calvin's Comm. I., 
 68. Tr's note.—S. R. A.] 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. In form both of these visions are objective 
 symbols, in distinction from verbal symbols (para- 
 bles, tropes, etc.) and from types. The pro- 
 phetic element is essential to the latter, but not 
 to symbols. The almond-tree staff is only an 
 objective expression of the truth that the Lord 
 is early awake to verify His truth. The seeth- 
 ing pot also is only an actual representation of 
 the judgment which is threatening Judah. The 
 circumstance that this is future is not essential. 
 While the type represents a future fact the sym- 
 bol is only the emblematic expression of a speech, 
 and may refer to the present, the past or the 
 future.^ — It may be remarked that the older the- 
 
 ologians used the expression theologia symbolica 
 in a triple sense, (a) = theologia mystica, kabba- 
 listica (comp. Budde, Inst. Dogm. p. 186), (6) =r 
 theology of the confessions or creeds, (c) as cor- 
 relative to revelatio symbolica, i. e. revelation im- 
 parted by bodily signs, in opposition to revelatio 
 simplex, which passes internally from spirit to 
 spirit (comp. Budde S. 25, etc., and Starke, 
 in loc). — Concerning the Biblical symbols, comp. 
 ZocKLER, Theologia naturalis, S. 200. [Faib- 
 baibn's Typology, passim. ''' Here is a beautiful 
 type of the Resurrection, especially the Resur- 
 rection of Christ. ' Virga Aaron quse putabatur 
 emortus, in Resurrectione Domini floruit' (S. Je- 
 rome)." Wordsworth. — S. R. A.] 
 
 2. It may be asked whether the alacritas, vigi- 
 lantia, assiduitas, diligentia Dei does not claim to 
 be regarded as a special quality in opposition to 
 the somnolentia, inertia, pigritia of men. The an- 
 swer must be in the negative. In the conception 
 of the absolute Spirit, who is at the same time 
 the absolute life, the material basis is given for 
 this vigilantia or diligentia as truly as holiness, 
 love, faithfulness, wisdom serve for the formal 
 (ethical and intellectual) basis : He that keepeth 
 Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps. Ps. cxxi. 4. 
 
 3. The justice of God demands the satisfac- 
 tion of His wounded honor (Isa. xlii. 8). The 
 divine wisdom in connection with omniscience 
 selects the instruments and fixes the time and 
 manner of the judgment. 
 
 HOMILETIOAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. [On ver. 12. " Prophets have need of good 
 eyes; and those that see well shall be commended, 
 and not those only that speak well." M. Henkt. 
 — S. R. A.] 
 
 God's justice is, 1. long-suffering: at first it 
 uses only the rod (Rom. ii. 4) ; 2. recompensing 
 zealously and severely : when the gentle chas- 
 tisement is without result, it becomes a consum- 
 ing fire (Ex. XX. 5; Ps. vii. 12; Heb. x. 31). 
 [Ambrose on Ps. xxxviii., quoted by Words- 
 worth. — S. R. A.] 
 
 2. [On ver. 16. Maurice: — "We perceive as 
 much from the words of the prophet as from 
 the history, that this idolatry has now become 
 deep and radical. — The state of mind which was 
 latent in them and which they brought forth into 
 full, conscious activity, is represented as an 
 apostate state ; not so much an adoption of false 
 gods as a denial of the true. There is a great 
 practical difference between the frivolous, heart- 
 less taste for foreign novelties, which was de- 
 nounced by the earlier prophets, and the utter 
 incapacity for acknowledging a God not appeal- 
 ing to the senses, which Jeremiah discovers in 
 his contemporaries. He boldly sets up the faith 
 of the heathen as a lesson to the Israelites, 
 ii. 10,|11."— S. R. A.] 
 
26 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 c. Repetition of the Commission and Promise as the basis of the impregnable 
 defensive position of the Prophet. 
 
 I. 17-19. 
 
 17 Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise and speak unto them all that I 
 [shall] command thee : be not dismayed [confounded] at their faces, lest I con- 
 
 18 found thee before them. For, behold, I have made [make] thee this day a de- 
 fenced city, and an iron pillar and brazen walls^ against the whole land, against'' 
 the kings of Judah, against^ the princes thereof, against^ the priests thereof and 
 
 19 against^ the people of the land. And they shall [may] fight against thee, but 
 they shall not prevail against thee ; for I am with thee, saith the Lord [Jehovah], 
 to deliver thee. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 18. — [Hendeeson : " Instead of the plural moh) vails, the singular HDn, waU, is found in twelve of De Rossi's 
 
 MSS. ; it has been originally in seven more, and is now in two by correction. It is likewise in five ancient editions, and 
 occurs in the defective form without the Van in a great number of MSS. and editions. The LXX., Targ., Syr. and Vulg. 
 all read in the singular. This form further commends itself on the ground of its being the less usual, but at the same tima 
 more appropriate in application to a singular subject." — S. R. A.] 
 
 » Ver. 18.— S is a feebler continuation of Sj7. Comp. iii. 17 ; Ps. xxxiii. 28. Naeqelsb. Gram, g 112, 8. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 In these concluding verses the general purport 
 of section (a) is first repeated: ver. 17 from 
 speak to faces, and the conclusion of ver 19, 
 reproducing the conclusion of vers. 7 and 8. Oa 
 the basis of this promise (comp. For I am with 
 thee, ver. 19), however, the prophet is assured, 
 in antithesis to the offensive position commanded in 
 vers. 9 and 10, of an equally strong defensive 
 position, and this is the new and characteristic 
 element of this concluding section. 
 
 Ver. 17. Thou therefore . . . before them. 
 A summons to set vigorously to work. The ser- 
 vant of God must be neither cowardly nor sloth- 
 ful. The expression, " gird up the loins," is 
 frequently used in a proper as well as in a figu- 
 rative sense; 1 Kings xviii. 46; 2 Kings iv. 29; 
 ix. 1; Job xxxviii. 3; Eccles. xxxi. 17; Luke 
 xii. 35; Eph. vi. 14; 1 Pet. i. 13.— Be not 
 dismayed forms a climax in relation to Be not 
 afraid, ver. 8, as in Deut. i. 21 ; Josh. x. 25. — 
 
 r>np and '"]nnx, On^JSO and OnV^'S'? correspond. 
 [This play upon words may be expressed in 
 English thus: "Be not dumbfounded before 
 them, lest thou be confounded before them." — 
 S. R. A.] Many commentators have hesitated 
 at rendering the Hiphil of ^7)11 in the primary 
 
 sense of '■\frangere, to break to pieces." They 
 have thought the threatening would be too severe, 
 " erigendus erat animus persuasione incolumitatis 
 non minis ac melu frangendus," says Sohnurrer 
 They therefore take either J3 in a reduced and 
 grammatically inadmissible sense (Bugeniiaoen: 
 quasi te (erream ; Starke, "I should terrify 
 thee;" Qrotius : nee enim timere te faciam; 
 
 ScHNURRER suppUcs "iOK^ = putans concessurum 
 
 me esse, ut tibi sit pereundem), or they understand 
 the verb in the meaning which certainly pertains 
 to the word, " to make afraid." But what sense 
 is there in this rendering: "Be not afraid be- 
 fore them, lest I make thee afraid before them"? 
 (CEcoLAjip., Maurer, Ewald). If the prophet 
 was afraid before his enemies he did not need to 
 be rendered still more so. I take ^T^T\, with 
 
 most commentators, in the sense /ran^rerg, conterere, 
 which it has in the radical signification of the 
 Kal. — to be broken in pieces, crushed (see Fuerst), 
 and which it undoubtedly has in such passages 
 as Isa. ix. 3. The threatening is not too severe. 
 Comp. 1 Cor. ix. 16, " For though I preach the 
 Gospel, I have nothing to glory of : for necessity 
 is laid upon me ; yea, woe is unto me, if I preach 
 not the gospel." From this we see that the in- 
 ward pressure which a man of God feels in con- 
 sequence of the divine operation is very strong. 
 He who should resist this divine impulse, like 
 Jonah, would be crushed by it. And it would be 
 the just punishment of that faint-hearted disdain, 
 which would reject such high honor from a 
 miserable fear of man. 
 
 Ver. 1 8. For behold . . . the people of 
 the land. I is emphatic in antithesis to thou, 
 ver. 17. Thou gird up thy loins and do thy part, 
 I will do mine, to protect thee. In the words 
 "a defenced city and an iron pillar and brazen 
 wall," the prophet is assured that for the difficult 
 offensive commission which is given him he will 
 receive a sufficient defensive equipment. Offence 
 and defence stand in exact relation to each other. 
 Reference is afterwards made to this promise, 
 in XV. 20, 21. Comp. Ps. cv. 15. — On the 
 subject-matter comp. Matt. x. 18, 19.— people 
 of the laud. This expression occurs frequently 
 
CHAP. II. 1-3. 
 
 21 
 
 in the sense of "the common people": xxxiv. 
 19; xxxvii. 2; xliv. 21; lii. 6; Ezek. vii. 27, 
 &c. It is the basis of the later Rabbinical usage 
 according to which it signifies the "unlearned 
 and ignorant" (Acts iv. 13) comp. Buxtokf. Lex 
 Rabb. s. V. Dj;. 
 
 Ver. 19. And they shall fight ... to deliver 
 thee, vj' with 7 in the sense of preevalere, Gen. 
 xxxii. 26; 1 Sam. xvii. 9; Obad. 7; Jer. 
 xxxviii. 22. — For I am with thee, comp. ver. 8. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. It is fundamentally the same sin, to labor 
 in the Lord's vin^ard without a calling, and 
 not to be willing to labor when one has been 
 called, for in both cases a man seeks his own, not 
 that which is God's. 
 
 2. " He who fears nothing and hopes nothing 
 may preach the truth. He who is unequal to 
 either of these two will act more wisely for his 
 own repose and more honorably for the truth, if 
 he keep silence." — Dr. Leidemit. 
 
 3. Behold I send you forth as lambs among 
 wolves. Luke x. 3 ; Matt. x. 16 sqq. God's 
 strength is made perfect in weakness. 2 Cor. xii. 9. 
 
 4. Fear not those who kill the body, but 
 are not able to kill the soul. Rather fear Him 
 who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 
 Matt. X. 28. God is no respecter of persons. 
 Rom. ii. 11 ; Eph. vi. 9; 1 Pet. i. 17. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. Duty and privilege of the sevants of God. 
 1. Their duly: (a) always to have their loins 
 girded, (i) to proclairr without fear of man what- 
 ever the Lord commands. 2. Their privilege : 
 — through the power of God to be obliged to 
 yield to no power on earth. 
 
 2. The Lord's requirements and promise to 
 His servants. 1. The requirement, (a) to be al- 
 ways ready for His service, (6) to accomplish 
 that which is bidden without delay. 2. The 
 promise : (a) that the Lord will be with them, 
 (b) that no earthly power will conquer them. 
 [M. Henry : " He must be quick — Arise, and 
 lose no time ; he must be busy — Arise, and speak 
 unto them, in season, out of season; he must 
 be bold — Be not dismayed at their faces. — In a 
 word he must be faithful; it is required of 
 ambassadors that they be so. In two things 
 he must be faithful. 1. He must speak all that 
 he is charged with. He must forget nothing 
 — Every word of God is weighty. He must con- 
 ceal nothing for fear of offending. 2. He must 
 speak to all that he is charged against. Two 
 reasons why he should do this. 1. Because 
 he had reason to fear the wrath of God, if he 
 should be false. 2, Because he had no reason 
 to fear the wrath of man, if he were faithful." 
 — S. R. A.] 
 
 II. FIRST DIVISION. 
 
 The Passages relating to the Theocracy, Chaps. II. — XLIV. 
 
 (with an appendix, chap, xlv.) 
 
 FIRST SUBDIVISION. 
 The Collection of Discourses, with Appendices, Chaps. II. — XXXV. 
 
 1. The First Discourse. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 This chapter contains an independent discourse ; it does not, as Graf supposes, form, with chap, iii.-vi. 
 a connected whole. For, as we shall show, chap. iii. begins a discourse clearly arranged and complete 
 in itself, which would not bear any addition either at the beginning or at the close. The present dis- 
 course is of very general import, and contains probably only the quintessence of several discourses made 
 before those in chap, iii.-vi., since it is scarcely probable that in the course of nearly two decades 
 Jeremiah only addressed this short discourse, besides chap, iii.-vi., to the people. The position at the 
 beginning, the style, the non-mention of the Chaldeans (comp. rems. on xxv. 1), besides the command 
 '■'■Go and cry in the ears of Jerusalem^' (ver. 2), and an intimation probably to be referred to the 
 timeof Josiah (ver. 35, see theComm.), all point to the commencement of Jeremiah' s prophetic ministry . 
 This seems to be contradicted by some not obscure allusions to the flight of the remaining Jews to Egypt 
 (vers. 16, 36 and 37 ; coll. chaps, xlii.— xliv). But since Jeremiah, as was remarked on i. 2, proba- 
 bly did not finish the second writing out of his book till after the destruction of Jerusalem (xxxvi. 32), 
 possibly not till his arrival in Egypt, it is possible that he then added to this earliest discourse some 
 allusions to the eventful Journey to Egypt. He may have added them to this discourse for the reason 
 that it contained some passages, the connection and purport of which especially invited such allusions 
 to the emigration to Egypt. Compare ver. 15, the predicted devastation so exactly corresponding to 
 the result, andyev. 33, the mention of the religio-political errors of the people. 
 
 After the introduction (vers. 1-3), the ever-recurring theme of complaint and threatening is treated in four 
 tableaux or acts, the particular contents of which may be designated as follows: 
 
 1. Israel's infidelity in the light of the fidelity of Jehovah and the heathen (vers. 4-13). 
 
 2. Israel' s punishment audits cause (vers. 14-19). 
 
 3. The lust of idolatry : deeply rooted, outwardly insolent, facse at last (vers. 20-28). 
 
 4. Whose is the guilt? (vers. 29-37). 
 
28 
 
 THE PUUPdhi' JELIEMIAH. 
 
 The Introduction. 
 II. 1-3. 
 
 1. And the word of Jehovah came also unto me, saying, 
 
 2. Go and cry in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, 
 Thus saith Jehovah ; I remember of thee. 
 The kindness of thy youth, 
 
 The love of thine espousals. 
 
 When thou wentest after me in the desert, 
 
 In a land that was not sown. 
 
 3. Israel is a sanctuary unto Jehovah, 
 The first-fruits of his produce : 
 All who devour him' incur guilt ; 
 
 Calamity will come upon them, saith Jehovah. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 3.— For nriX13P (Comp. Naegelsb. Gram. S. 93, Anm.) some Codd. read fJlNISH- It would be natnxal to pro. 
 nounce the consonants HhXOP which has been also done by J. D. Michaelis who refers the word to n^lll ith V^N ver. 
 2, but the reference of the suffix to Jehovah is demanded by the connection. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 These words form the introduction both to the 
 first discourse and at the same time to the whole 
 of Jeremiah's prophetic announcements. In- 
 deed, it may be said that they contain the 
 thought, which reaches far beyond the prophe- 
 cies of Jeremiah, and lies at the foundation of 
 the entire history of the theocracy, that not- 
 withstanding the revolts on the one side and the 
 punishments on the other, love is the key-note 
 of the relation between God and Israel, and the 
 Lord's inalienable property. 
 
 Vers. 1 and 2. And the word . . . not sown. 
 — It is probable that in the opening words of 
 ver. 2 Jeremiah received the command to leave 
 Anathoth and go to Jerusalem as the scene of 
 his prophetic labors. For here only is the audi- 
 ence, to which he was to address himself, desig- 
 nated thus briefly by the word "Jerusalem." 
 Everywhere else the address reads differently. 
 Comp. xvii. 19 ; xix. 3 ; xxxv. 13. — I remem- 
 ber of thee. The expression occurs in malam 
 partem Ps. Ixxix. 8; cxxxvii. 7; Neh. vi. 14; 
 xiii. 29 : in bonam partem Ps. xcviii. 3 ; cvi. 45 ; 
 cxxxii. 1 ; Neh. v. 19 ; xiii. 22, 31. In any case 
 of thee contains an emphasis which should not 
 be overlooked in the exposition. — The kind- 
 ness of thy youth. The commentators dis- 
 pute whetlicr the kindness and love of God to- 
 ward the people or that of the people toward 
 God is meant. In behalf of the former view it 
 is urged, (1) that in the following context the 
 people is described as rebellious from the first, 
 and (2) that with this the historical representa- 
 tion of the Pentateuch and other declarations 
 of Old Testament passages accord. (Comp. es- 
 pecially Hos. xi. 1 ; Ezek. xvi.) To the first ar- 
 gument it may be objected that these verses 
 form the introduction not to the second chapter 
 only, but to the whole book, and although the 
 greater part of this consists of threateiiings, or 
 rather because it does so, the prophet pljices the 
 
 assurance of God's unchangeable fidelity in the 
 foreground. Though Israel may have always 
 sinned, yet originally he was united to God in 
 love, and this fundamental relation is eternal 
 and inviolable. Comp. Rom. xi. It cannot then 
 be disputed that the infidelity of Israel was of 
 an early date (comp. from of old, ver. 20) go- 
 ing back to the pilgrimage through the desert 
 (the golden calf, and even prior to this, the 
 murmuring of the people, Exod. xv. 24; xvi. 2 ; 
 xvii. 2), but it must nevertheless be maintained 
 that the acceptance by Israel of the privileges 
 offered by the Lord, when He sent Moses, and 
 the people trustingly followed him into the Red 
 Sea and the wilderness, is to be regarded as the 
 binding of an inviolable and perpetual covenant. 
 Compare the short and significant, " and the 
 people believed," Exod. iv. 31, with Gen. xv. 6, 
 "and he believed in Jehovah"; Rom. iv. 3; Gal. 
 iii. 6. To this also point many prophetic decla- 
 rations, ex. gr. Hos. xi. 1: "When Israel was 
 a child, then I loved him, and called my son out 
 of Egypt." The period in the youth of Israel 
 at which the Lord loved the people was that in 
 which He brought them out of Egypt. For imme- 
 diately afterwards (ver. 2), it is said of them 
 that they sacrificed to Baalim, and burned in- 
 cense to graven images. But then, in that im- 
 portant moment, when the Lord delivered Israel 
 from the encircling power of Egypt, displaying 
 His might so grandly, He concluded a covenant 
 of love with Israel ; they must therefore then 
 have not only been found "worthy of love, but 
 have reciprocated His love. How sweet and 
 precious Israel's love then was to Him is ex- 
 pressed by Hosea in the splendid image of the 
 early figs, which the pilgrim finds in the desert, 
 Hos. ix. 10. So, says the Lord, He found Israel 
 in the wilderness, but alas! He has to add, 
 •i' they went to Baalpeor, and separated them- 
 selves unto their shame." The objections are 
 then unfounded which have been raised to the 
 rendering of verses 2 and 3 in the sense of Is- 
 rael's love for God, and other arguments speak 
 
CHAP. II. 1-3. 
 
 29 
 
 positively in its favor, viz. (1) 'i|7 ''i']^'^3r. This 
 
 dative has everywhere the sense of a reckoning 
 to one's account in a good or bad sense. (See 
 the passages cited above.) But since this is not 
 possible here in a bad sense, for the kindness 
 and love of the past are remembered only as 
 good, it can be meant only in a good sense. If, 
 now, Israel has a balance with Jehovah in an 
 active sense, he (Israel) must have done some- 
 thing, — performed some service. It might be 
 said that this service is in allowing himself to 
 be loved, but this is hims^elf to love. We are 
 thus brought again to this point, that Israel in 
 that opening period of his existence turned to 
 the Lord with such love that, though of momen- 
 tary duration, it sufficed to found an everlasting 
 covenant and imperishable remembrance of its 
 
 glory. We may also take Hpn in the sense of 
 " the kindness of a maiden towards her master," 
 being justified in doing so by passages like Hos. 
 vi. 4, 6. Indeed, in view of Isa. xl. 6, it 
 might not appear unsuitable to recognize in HDn 
 
 the element of loveableness, gracefulness, which 
 in itself is connected with the idea of love and 
 grace, and etymologically in gratia, x^-pie, grace ; 
 
 (2) the words '[^inx "^1^)211 favor this interpreta- 
 tion, since they represent Israel, a pilgrim 
 through the desert, walking in the footprints 
 of the Lord. Some indeed would understand 
 these words as denoting, not the obedient follow- 
 ing of the people, but the gracious precedence 
 of the divine Leader. This interpretation, how- 
 ever, is arbitrary. The text expresses only the 
 idea of following, or pushing after ; we are not 
 justified in exchanging this idea for another. 
 (3). The third verse is manifestly in favor of 
 Israel. When it is said (Graf, S. 23), " It 
 should be so, but how it became entirely other- 
 wise is shown in what follows," we reply, it has 
 not become otherwise; but on this point we shall 
 say more presently. 
 
 Ver. 3. Israel . . . come upon them. — 
 Though in the words remember of thee it is 
 implied that the kindness and love of the espou- 
 sals are now only an object of remembrance, a 
 lost joy, yet the third verse declares what a 
 permanent relation was the result of that tran- 
 sient one, an indelible character having been im- 
 pressed upon the people by that sometime con- 
 nection with their Lord. They thus became a 
 sanctuary of Jehovah, separate from the profn- 
 num vulgus of the nations. This thought is fur- 
 ther expressed by a beautiful image : Israel is 
 related to the Gentiles as the first fruits sanctified 
 unto the Lord are to the multitude of common 
 wild fruits, and as profane lips were forbidden to 
 eat the former (Exod. xxiii. 19; Num. xv. 20, sq.; 
 xviii- 12; Deut. xxvi. 1; comp. Lev. xxii. 16-26), 
 so will guilt be upon those who touch the sacred 
 first-fruits in the field of humanity. In accord 
 with this image are x. 25; 1 7; Ps. xiv. 4; Ixxix. 
 7. — All who devour, etc. Tlie instruments 
 of discipline though chosen by tlie Lord Him- 
 self, by the manner in which they execute their 
 commission, bring guilt upon themselves and 
 call for the vengeance of Jehovah, as is especially 
 set forth in reference to Babylon. Hab. i. 11 ; 
 Jer. 1. 11 ; xv. 23, 28; 11. 5 (N. B.), 8, 11, 24. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. Although in xxxi. 32 Jeremiah represents 
 the covenant made with Israel at the exodus from 
 Egypt as the worse because broken by them, and 
 that a new one in the future, to be kept faithfully 
 by the people, would be opposed to it (comp. 
 xxxii. 40; 1. 5 ; Isa. Iv. 3), and although in Rom. 
 xi. 28 ("as touching the election beloved for the 
 fathers' sake") the steadfastness of God is 
 founded entirely on the promise given by Him 
 and on the worth of the fathers in His sight, it 
 is yet evident from our passage that the entering 
 into covenant relation by Israel at the Exodus 
 was not without significance. Though the cove- 
 nant does not rest positively and in principle 
 on that acceptance, yet this latter appears to be 
 the negative condition siiie qua non. Had Israel 
 decidedly rejected Moses, had they refused to 
 follow him into the wilderness, the promise given 
 to the fathers would have been nullified. But if 
 we should say that the people were obliged to 
 believe in and follow Moses, we should injure 
 the law of freedom, and endanger the moral 
 value of human personality as well as the glory 
 of God. 
 
 2. Every important historical appearance has 
 its paradise or golden age. It is thus with hu- 
 manity in general, with Israel, with the Chris- 
 tian Church (Acts ii. 41 — iv. 37), with the Re- 
 formation, so also with single churches (Gal. 
 iv. 14), and with individual Christians. This 
 period of first, nuptial love does not, however, 
 usually continue long, comp. Rev. ii. 4. 
 
 3. As Israel is called the firstling among 
 the nations, so Christians are called the first- 
 lings of His creatures, being regenerated by 
 the word of truth (James i. 18, comp. Wie- 
 siNGER in loc, Rev. xiv. 5), in whom first that 
 life-principle is active which is to renew heaven 
 and earth. (Isa. Ixv. 17; Ixvi. 22; Rev. xxi. 1 ; 
 2 Pet. iii. 13). And since Israel as the firstling 
 of the nations is called the sanctuary of God, so 
 Christians by virtue of that principle, implanted 
 in them by word and sacrament, of true, divine, 
 eternal life, without regard to their subjective 
 constitution are dyioi, ?iyiaa/j.{voi (1 Cor. i. 2; Acts 
 XX. 32, etc.), the community of the saints, in 
 antithesis to the homo communis, i. e. natural, 
 earthly, profane humanity. Thus as the firstling 
 Israel cannot be devoured by its enemies, so 
 likewise with the Church (community of the 
 saints). Matt. xvi. 18; Luke xxi. 17; Matt, 
 xxviii. 20; Rev. xii. 5, etc. 
 
 4. ZiNZENBORF : " Jeremiah a preacher of Right- 
 eousness," [S. 148). "Behold this maiden who is 
 here described ! Listen to her leaders, Moses 
 and Aaron ! Consider the rods with which she 
 has been beaten and that unbelief and disobedi- 
 ence swept all but two away in the desert, and 
 compare that with the words, 'I remember still 
 that we were together in the wilderness,' quanire 
 bene ge^ta ; and with tiie others which we heard 
 before from Moses: ' Happy art thou, Israel: 
 who is like unto thee, people saved by Jeho- 
 vah,' (Deut. xxxiii. 29). The cause is to be 
 found in this. ' Tliou followedst me.' " 
 
 5. Idem (S. l-'SO): "In the application to the 
 people it is useful and well to show them that 
 
30 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 they also were once a maiden who ' followed ' 
 partly in the beginnings of the Gospel (see Acts 
 iv. 4), partly in the beginnings of the Reforma- 
 tion. There is an important trace of this in 
 the letter of Luther to the Elector Johann Fried- 
 rich. So it then appeared. Likewise in the 
 earlier ages of the Church, even so late as last 
 century, since certainly in the sermons of an 
 Arndt, a Joh. Gerhard, a Selnecker, a Martin 
 Heger, a Scriver, aSpener, a Schade, the people 
 still made quite another figure, and had not 
 only another form, but certainly also a different 
 feeling." 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. The period of first love (in a spiritual 
 sense). (1) In experience extremely precious. 
 
 (2) In duration relatively brief. (3) In eflFect a 
 source of everlasting blessing. — 2. The nuptial 
 state of Christ's Church in its stages. (1) The 
 first stage, first love, (2) second stage, alienation, 
 
 (3) third stage, return. — 3. The covenant of 
 Christ with His Church, (1) its ground, election, 
 (2) its condition, faith, (3) its promise, the 
 Church an indestructible sanctuary. 
 
 2. 2%e Infidelity of Israel viewed in the light of the Fidelity of Jehovah and of the Heathen. 
 
 II. 4-13. 
 
 4 Hear ye the word of Jehovah, O house of Jacob ! 
 And all the families of the house of Israel ! 
 
 5 Thus saith Jehovah, What injustice have your fathers found in me, 
 That they went far from^ me, 
 
 And followed vacuity and became vacuous ? 
 
 6 They said not : Where is Jehovah ? 
 
 Who brought us up from the land of Egypt, 
 
 Who led us through the wilderness, 
 
 A land of deserts and pits, 
 
 A land of drought and the shadow of death, 
 
 A land which no man traversed, 
 
 And where iio man dwelt ? 
 
 7 And I brought you into the gaxdien-[literally, Carmel-] land 
 To eat its fruit and its goodliness ; 
 
 But ye came and defiled my land. 
 And made my heritage an abomination. 
 
 8 The priests said not, Where is Jehovah ? 
 And those that handle the law knew me not; 
 The shepherds also rebelled against me, 
 And the prophets prophesied by Baal, 
 
 And followed those that cannot profit. 
 
 9 Wherefore I will reckon with you, saith Jehovah, 
 And with your children's children will I reckon. 
 
 10 For pass over to the isles [or countries] of Chittim, and see. 
 And send to Kedar, and well consider. 
 
 And see if there has been anything like this. 
 
 11 Has a people changed'^ gods, which yet are no gods? 
 
 But my people has changed its glory for that which cannot profit. 
 
 12 Be ye astonished, O ye heavens ! at thi?. 
 
 Be ye horrified, utterly amazed [lit., shudder and be withered away], saith Jehovah. 
 
 13 For ray people have committed two evils: 
 
 Me they have forsaken, the fountain of living waters. 
 To hew out for themselves cisterns, 
 Broken cisterns that hold no water. 
 
CHAP. II. 4-13. 
 
 31 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 5.— ''*7J?0 [from upon=froin nearj. Comp. Gen. xxxii. 12 ; Exod. xxxv. 22 ; Jer. iii. 18 ; Am. iii. 15. The Hebrew 
 
 ~ T •* 
 
 lores to consider that as cumulation, which we represent as association. 
 
 - Ver. 11. — The form TOTI seems to reqvmre the root lO', which occurs besides only in Hithpael, Isa. Ixi. 6. Since th« 
 
 . .. -T 
 
 form Ton follows directly afterwards, the present form may have originated in a mere oversight, as Olshausen bupposes 
 (2 39f.:255e. i.) 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The conduct of Israel is compared («) with the 
 conduct of Jehovah towards him (vers. 4-9) (6), 
 with the conduct of the heathen nations towards 
 their gods (vers. 10-13.) 
 
 Ver. 4. Hear ye . . . house of Israel. Al- 
 though the reformation of Josiah extended over 
 the rest of the Itingdom of Israel (2 Kings xxiii. 
 15-20; 2 Chron. xxxiv. 33), and although some 
 from the tribes of Israel were present at divine 
 service in Jerusalem (2 Chron. xxxv. 18), the 
 expression used here is too comprehensive to 
 designate these only; it includes the whole na- 
 tion. Comp. Isa. xlvi. 3; Jer. xxxi. 1. — Jere- 
 miah addresses himself not only to those who 
 are actually present, but to an ideal audience: 
 to the whole people of Israel of all times and 
 places, to all those whose common fathers had 
 incurred the guilt reproved in the following 
 verses, and bequeathed it to their descendants. 
 Comp. the address to a still greater circle of 
 ideal hearers, Deut. xxxii. 1; Isa. i. 2; Mic. i. 
 2; vi. 1, 2. 
 
 Ver. 5. Thus saith 
 
 vacuous. 
 
 Observe 
 
 the gradation: your fathers, you (vers. 7 and 9), 
 your children's children; an historical survey 
 which proceeds from the conduct of the fathers 
 in the past and present, to the fate of the chil- 
 dren in the future. The prophet by beginning 
 with "the fathers," shows that Israel's ingrati- 
 tude and disobedience was of ancient date. 
 Moreover, these fathers were not those of any 
 definite period, and therefore not as Kimchi sup- 
 poses, those who have lived since the entrance 
 into the promised land. Could those who had 
 accompanied the journey through the desert in- 
 deed speak thus? — The expression "What in- 
 iquity have your fathers found in me?" is an 
 exhibition of the condescending love of God, who 
 speaks just as though He were under obligation 
 to Israel, and they had a right to call Him to ac- 
 count. Comp. Mic. vi. 3; Isa. v. 3. Theouoret: 
 oil yap (jf KpiTT/c; Kplvei, aTOC ug {nrevd-vvag airoXoyiav 
 irpoa(pEpEi, nal iXsyx^^vai jiovTierat elri npd^ai Seov 
 mm i-npa^E. — FoUow^ed vacuity and became 
 vacuous. '^Zin are the idols (x. 15; xiv. 22; 
 
 Deut. xxxii. 21, etc.). He who devotes himself 
 to that which is nothing and vanity, becomes 
 himself vain. LXX. t/j.araiu^r/am', of which there 
 seems to be a reminiscence in Rom. i. 21. The 
 words are found reproduced verbatim in 2 Kings 
 xvii. 15. 
 
 Ver. 6. They said not ... no man dwelt. 
 — Comp. ver. 8. To ask "where is Jehovali?" is 
 to ask after Him, to seek Him. To ask after him 
 implies that He is forgotten or lightly esteemed. 
 A land of deserts HDi^, comp. 1. 12; li. 43. 
 
 T T - : ^ 
 
 ryiliy, comp. xviii. 20; Prov. xxii. 16; xxiii. 27. 
 They are pita or holes in which man and beast 
 
 sink. Comp. Rosenmuellek, ad loc. — Shadow 
 of death. Ps. xxiii. 4; Job iii. 5; xsviii. 3; 
 Isa. ix. 1; Am. v. 8. [For a similar description 
 of the Arabian desert, see Robinson, Bibl. Res., 
 II., 502.— S. R. A.] 
 
 Ver. 7. And I brought you ... an abomi- 
 nation. — NONI resumes the address of Jehovah 
 
 • TT 
 
 from ver. 5. On the subject-matter compare 
 Deut. viii. If 7Ci"^2l stood here in a merely ap- 
 pellative signification, the article would be either 
 superfluous or iusufl" 'ent. We should expect 
 
 either merely 701 J (or fruitful land, or r\1Tn /0^2 
 (in (his fruitful land) for Palestine cannot be 
 called the fruitful land Kar' i^ox'jv, since (here 
 are many others more fruitful. To ascribe a 
 demonstrative signification to the article is not 
 allowable, since it has this only in formulas like 
 
 DVn DJ73n. Ibelieve, therefore, that the Prophet 
 
 here intended Carmel for a proper name, with a 
 hint, however, at the appellative meaning. So 
 the Vulgate: in terrain Carmeli. Carmel, in this 
 reference, is contrasted with the desert, as a 
 mountain with the plain, as a fertile cultivated 
 land of forests, vineyards, gardens, and fields, 
 with the desert sand, as a place of springs with 
 the land of drought. Comp. Jerome on iv. 26. — 
 And its goodliness. This addition is not super- 
 fluous. The Van is here the climactic and in- 
 deed, Gen. iv. 4. — But ye came. After that has 
 been enumerated which the Lord did for the 
 people, we are told what the people did against 
 their Lord. Herein a comparison is instituted 
 between the conduct of Jehovah and the conduct 
 of the people. 
 
 Ver. 8. The priests said not . . . that can- 
 not profit. That which in ver. 6 was laid as a 
 reproach upon all, is now declared specially of 
 the priests. It was their especial duty to seek 
 and inquire after the Lord, comp. '"' ty"}1, Jer. x. 
 21; Ps. ix. 11; xxxiv. 5, "' ^XC?, Judges i. 1; 
 
 xxviii. 5; 1 Sam. xxii. 13; Josh ix. 14. — Who 
 handle the law, not those who decide legal 
 cases, but those who handle the book of the 
 law. We see that the handling is intended in 
 this external sense from the contrast, knew me 
 not. Comp. xviii. 18; Ezek. vii. 2(5; Mai. ii. 7. — 
 The shepherds ought to keep the flock well to- 
 gether and lead it, and how can they do this 
 when they are themselves in rebellion against 
 the chief shejiherd? Comp. x. 21 ; xii. 10; xxiii. 
 1; 1. 6. — By Baal (xxiii. 13) or through Baal, 
 that is, through the influence and inspiration of 
 Baal. It is opposed to "in the name of Jehovah" 
 xi. 21; xiv. 15; xxvi. 9, 20. Remark the anti- 
 thesis: They would be prophets, and yet are 
 the organs of falsehood, they would be leaders, 
 
 yet themselves go astray. The imperfect ^7J,'V 
 is used of a permanent quality. Comp. Naegelsb. 
 
•82 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 Gr., I 87 d. There appears, moreover, in this 
 expression, to be an allusion to 7^173 (comp. 
 especially 'hyv ^3 Isa. xliv. 9), perhaps also to 
 DTlSx xS, comp. also 1 Sam. xii. 21. 
 
 Ver. 9. Wherefore . . . wiU I reckon. — 
 The comparison of Israel's conduct in the past 
 and present, with that of Jehovah, results so 
 much to the disadvantage of the former, that in 
 the future, remote as well as proximate, only ^'l 
 litigatio is to be expected. Jehovah will now 
 prosecute His claims. Isa. iii. 13; Ivii. 16; coll. 
 Ps. ciii. 9. 
 
 Ver. 10. For pass over . . . anything like 
 this. Ver. 9 divides the two halves of the 
 strophe, belonging to both, as the statement of 
 the result. It is affixed to the first half by means 
 
 of pS, and prefixed to the second by '3. Comp. 
 Am.v.^10-12.— Chittim. The word D'ri3 or D'^^^ 
 occurs eight times in the Old Testament: Gen. x. 
 4 (1 Chron. i. 7), Num. xxiv. 24; Isa. xxiii. 1, 12; 
 Jer. ii. 10; Ezek. xxvii. 6; Deut. xi. 30. Comp. 
 1 Mace. i. 1 ; viii. 5. It is acknowledged that it 
 denotes primarily the inhabitants of the "islands 
 of the Eastern Mediterranean" (Knobel on Gen. 
 X. 4). The name seems to have been given by 
 way of preference to the island of Cyprus, the 
 ancient capital of which was Citium, (Herzog, 
 Real-Enc, III. S. 215). We have, therefore, 
 translated "X "islands" in preference to "coasts." 
 
 It is evident that Chittim, in a wider sense, de- 
 noted Greece, and even the North-western coasts 
 of the Mediterranean in general, since according 
 to Dan. xi. 30, Antiochus Epiphanes was at- 
 tacked by ships from Chittim, according to 1 
 Mace. i. 1, Alexander the Great, and according 
 to viii. 5, Perseus came from Chittim [pronounced 
 Kittim]. The Chittaeans are here the represen- 
 tatives of the West, Kedar of the East. For Ke- 
 dar, according to Gen. xxv. 13, is a son of Ish- 
 mael; Jer. xlix. 28, Kedar is reckoned with the 
 men of the East, D"lp 'J3. They are a pastoral 
 people inhabiting the Arabian desert (Isa. xxi. 
 13-17; xlii. 11; Ix. 7; Ezek. xxvii. 21 ; Ps. cxx. 
 5; Song of Sol. i. 5). The Rabbins designate 
 
 the Arabians generally by Kedar. ITp |ity 7 is 
 
 the Arabic language. Comp. Knobel on Gen. 
 xxv. 13. BuxTORF, Lex. Talm. et Rabb. p. 1976. 
 — If, in in the conditional sense as ex. gr. Exod. 
 
 iv. 1; viii. 22; Isa. liv. 15; Jer. iii. 1. Hence 
 it may also be used as an interrogative particle, 
 like DX (comp. si in French). It never occurs 
 
 in this sense, however, except in this passage. 
 The passages, Job xii. 14; xxiii. 8, which Fuerst 
 adduces, may be otherwise explained. 
 
 Ver. 11 Has a people . . . cannot profit. — 
 But my people has changed, comp. Am. viii. 
 7. — W^hich cannot profit. The idols are 
 meant, comp. rem. on ver. 8, — xvi. 19; Hab. ii. 
 18. — This is tlie second comparison unfavorable 
 to Israel which is instituted in this strophe. 
 The heathen nations who have good reason to 
 change their gods do not, but Israel, whose pre- 
 eminence over all other nations is founded in 
 their possession of the true God. exchanges Him 
 for vain idols. 
 
 Ver. 12. Be ye astonished . . . saith Je- 
 hovah. The greatness of the crime can be 
 estimated by none so well as the over-arching 
 heavens, which can behold and compare all that 
 takes place. Comp. Deut. xxxii. 1 ; Isa. i. 2. ^I^n, 
 
 to be dry, stiff, is found here only in the sense or 
 to be amazed. The imperative with o, corres- 
 ponds to the intransitive signification : transitive 
 Oin, Jer. 1. 27. 
 
 Ver. 13. For my people . . . -wrater. The 
 
 two evils are a negative and a positive. The 
 Lord, the fountain of living waters, who ofi'ered 
 Himself to them, they have forsaken, and leaky 
 cisterns they have dug, comp. xvii. 13. In the 
 physical sense the phrase is used in Gen. xxvi. 
 19; "a well of springing water." — Fountain 
 of living -water; Ps. xxxvi. 10; Prov. x. 11; 
 xiii. 14; xvi. 22. "Tdup ^uv, John iv. 10; vii, 
 
 37 sqq. — The repetition of m"lX3, cisterns, re- 
 minds us of Gen. xiv. 10. Leaky wells are 
 cisterns dug in the ground, which, having cracks 
 in them will not retain the collected rain-water. 
 
 IrD" ^1 reminds us in sense and sound of K? 
 
 • T 
 
 ^^^yr, ver 8. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. God's love is "meek and lowly of heart," 
 Matth. xi. 29, comp. 1 Cor. xiii. 4. It is not a 
 love which desires only to receive. It will take, 
 but only on the ground of that which it has 
 given. But since in giving it has done its duty, 
 in taking it demands its rights. It would reap 
 where it has sowed, and not let the devil reap 
 what God has sowed, Isa. xlii. 8; xl viii. 11. Comp. 
 Matth. xxv. 14-30. 
 
 2. Only the true is the real. Falsehood is mere 
 appearance, and all that is based on falsehood, is 
 only an apparent life. It disappears in the fire 
 of judgment, Ps. Ixii. 11; cxv. 9; cxxxii. 18. 
 
 3. When God tells us, I am doing this for thee, 
 what art thou doing for me? we cannot answer 
 Him one for a thousand. Every sin is at the 
 same time the basest ingratitude towards the 
 greatest benefactor and the most disgraceful re- 
 bellion against the truest, most gracious and 
 wisest Lord. 
 
 4. Since priests, pastors, and prophets, who 
 have been regularly inducted into office may be 
 deceivers, it is necessary to try the spirits ac- 
 cording to the criterion given in 1 John iv. 1 sqq. 
 
 5. As we read here that the heathen adhere 
 more faithfully to their false gods than Israel 
 to the true God, so is it generally confirmed by 
 experience that men, as a rule, pursue a bad 
 cause with more zeal, devotion and wisdom, than 
 a good one. Comp. the case of the unrighteous 
 steward; Luke xvi. 1-8; 1 Kings xviii. 27, 28; 
 Jer. iv. 22. 
 
 6. "His people, the nation on which He has 
 bestowed the true religion, have the fountain, 
 they can obtain water without difficulty, as much 
 as they want, but they choose in preference, 
 means difficult, new, insufficient, deceptive, re- 
 jected on trial and even in daily experience, 
 rather than be willing to do as they shou'ld. 
 Hence come the works of supererogation, the 
 many ceremonies, vows, ecclesiastical regula- 
 
CHAP. II. 14-19. 
 
 33 
 
 tions, which unquestionably are twice as difficult 
 as to follow the Saviour, and have no promise for 
 this life or for the life to come. . . . The sin is 
 twofold; (1) they do not obey the Lord. (2) 
 They will labor tooth and nail, if only they may 
 not obey Him." Zinzendorf, utsup., S. 162, 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On ii. 4 sqq. The ingratitude of man to- 
 wards God: (1) It is not to be laid to the charge 
 of God (2). It consists in this, that men (a) for- 
 get the divine benefits, (6) they adhere to idols 
 (both coarse and refined), (3). It does not remain 
 unpunished. 
 
 2. On ver. 12. ["These strongest terms in the 
 language show how intensely amazed all the 
 holy in heaven are at the monstrous folly of hu- 
 man sinning. That when men might have the 
 infinite God for their Friend, they choose to 
 have Him their enemy; that when they might 
 have Him their exhaustless portion of unmeasured 
 and eternal good, they spurn Him away and set 
 themselves to the fruitless task of making some 
 ruinous substitute: this ia beyond measure 
 amazing! Verily, sin is a mockery of human 
 reason ! It defies all the counsels of prudence and 
 good sense, and glories only in its own shame 
 and madness:" Cowles. — S. R. A]. 
 
 3. On ver. 13. All hunger and thirst is a de- 
 sire for nourishment by those elements which 
 are necessary to life. Thia brings us to the 
 question : 
 
 What can quench the thirst of the soul? 
 
 1. It cannot be quenched by drawing from the 
 broken cisterns of earthly good. 
 
 2. It can be quenched only by drawing from 
 the fountain of life, from which the soul origi- 
 nally sprang, even from God. 
 
 4. On ii. 13. "Our double sin. It consists in 
 this, that we(l) have forsaken the Lord, the living 
 fountain, and (2) have dug for ourselves cisterns 
 which hold no water." Genzken, Epistelpredig- 
 ten, 1853. — "How is it that the Lord has to say, 
 they have forsaken me, the living spring? It 
 arises from this, that the hewn cisterns please us 
 better. The creature attracts us so powerfully, 
 all that is below has such an influence on the 
 wavering heart, that it is drawn away from the 
 living spring, and finds the cistern-water of thia 
 world more to its taste than the living water, 
 the living God and His word." Hochstetter. 
 ^'■Twelve Parables from the prophet Jer." 1865, 
 S. 6, sq. [" This may be applied to every sinner : 
 qui relicto fonte fodit sibi cisternas rimosas ; and to 
 heretics : qui purum doctrmne fontem in Scripturis 
 et Ecclesia Dei deserunt et fodiunt sibi cisternas 
 coenosas falsorum dogmatum (S. Iren^us, III. 40; 
 S.Cyprian, Ep. 40; a. Lapxde). Comp. Ecclus. 
 xxi. 13, 14, and Bp. Sanderson, I. 361." Words- 
 worth. Comp. Thomson, The Land and the 
 Book, I. 443.— S. R. A.] 
 
 5. Those who have forsaken the true God, the 
 Creator of all, and serve false gods, are worthy 
 that all creatures should refuse them service. 
 Deut. xzviii. 23. Siabks. 
 
 3. IiraeVs Punishment and its Came. 
 IL 14-19. 
 
 14 "Was Israel a slave ? "Was he a house-born (slave) ? 
 Why then is he become a spoil ? 
 
 15 The young lions roar over him, 
 They raise their voice, 
 
 And they made his land desolate : 
 
 His cities were burned up^ without an inhabitant.* 
 
 16 Even the children of Noph and Tahpanhes^ 
 Will depasture the crown of thy head. 
 
 17 Did not thy forsaking* of Jehovah, thy God, procure thee this, 
 At the time when he was leading thee* in the way ? 
 
 18 And now what hast thou to do® in the way to Egypt, 
 To drink the water of the Black river [Nile] ? 
 And what hast thou to do in the way to Assyria, 
 To drink the water of the river [Euphrates] ? 
 
 19 Thine own wickedness shall correct thee. 
 And thine apostasies shall punish thee, 
 
 That thou mayest know and see' how evil and bitter it is. 
 That thou hast forsaken Jehovah thy God, 
 And that* the fear of me^ is not in thee, 
 Saith the Lord Jehovah of Hosts. 
 3 
 
84 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 15. — The Keri ^r\2f J is an unnecessary correction by the Masoretes, who here as in xxii. 6, regarded the plural at 
 
 necessary with V^J,'- But the singular may be used, in accordance with the capacity of the 3d Per. Fem. Sing., to iuTolve 
 
 an ideal plural. Naegelsb. Gr., § 105, 4, 6. Ewald, § 317, a. Whether Pin-^J is derived from HV (comp. Ewald, g 140, a. 
 
 T : • T 
 
 JoERST, 8. V. m)f) nV to kindh (Olshausen regards it as a derivative from a root 13, Lehrb. d. Hebr. Spr., 5.591), or nif J 
 
 to destroy (iv. 7 ; ix. 11 ; Isa. xxxvii. 20 ; 2 Kings xix. 25) is undecided. 
 
 » Ver. 15. — 2U'' ■" /3D. tD is not to be taken as causal but local = away from vnthout. Comp. iv. 7 ; ix. 9, 10, 11. 
 
 There are two negatives : without no inhabitant. Gesen., g 152, 2. 
 
 3Ver. 16.— The reading DJiSriil for Dnjpnn {vide Jer. xliii. 7, 8, 9; xliv. 1; xlvi. 14, DPUf njl ; Ezek. xxx. 18 
 
 OnjSnn) is probably no more than an ancient clerical error. 
 
 * Ver. 17. — The Infinitive, in accordance with its abstract signification, is regarded as feminine, and therefore has the predi- 
 cate in the fem. (comp. 1 Sam. xviii. 23) as for the same reason it frequently assumes a fem. termination, tx.gr. nj^J, riNJty. 
 4fc. Comp. N.VEOELSB. Gr., § 22, Anm. 3. 
 
 6 Ver. 17. — 'HD' 7lD 71^3. we should expect 'HD^ 7in. The participle is used in a somewhat unusual manner, as ccm- 
 
 cretum pro abstracto. . . 
 
 6 Ver. 18. — The construction is not the same as in the formula Till '^ HDi for this means : What have I and thou in 
 
 'tt • - 
 common ? The construction here, without the Vau, expresses only having to do with, having reference to. Comp. Ps. 1. 
 16 ; Hos. xiv. 9. 
 
 7 Ver. 19. — 'X'^l 'J^^1. The intended consequences are represented as a command. Comp. Ps. cxxviii. 5; Gen. xx. 7: 
 xii. 2 ; Kuth i. 9 ; Ewald, g 347, a. Naeqelsb. Gr., g 90, 2. 
 
 * Ver. 19. — TiH ''mn3 Hn is to be regarded as one conception, and as the subject, co-ordinate with "ii^t^ to the 
 predicate 101 J^l. Comp. v. 7 ; Isa. x. 15 ; xxxi. 8. This passage moreover. has this specialty, that besides the negation, 
 the preposition with the suflBx also pertains to the one conception. 
 
 9 Ver. 19. — ■'jTinS might be taken in an objective sense like 03X"lb, Qen. ix.2 (comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 64, 4:)=timor 
 
 mei. 7X would then have to be taken as a fortified 7 as it in fact occurs, ex. gr., after verbs like JHJ (Exod. xxv. 16) 
 
 7iyOJ (Isa. xiv. 10) H/JJ (1 Sam. ii. 27). But the suffix may also be regarded as the genitive of subject = terror, quern 
 
 injicio. Then the construction would be entirely like that in Job xxxi. 23, ^7X nn£3 and 7X would be taken in ita 
 
 proper sense : my fear enters not into thee. The latter view seems to me the more correct, because in this the preposition 
 receives its full significance. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 In a new picture the prophet sees Israel in the 
 form of slaves, evil entreated and dragged away 
 by enemies, their land desolated, their cities de- 
 stroyed. He asks the question: Why is this? 
 The answer is: This is the consequence of their 
 revolt from Jehovah, and their devotion to their 
 idols. 
 
 Ver. 14. "Was Israel a slave ? . . . become 
 a spoil ? Who is the interrogator? God, the 
 people, the prophet, or some other ? Not the 
 people ; for this condition of misery is still fu- 
 ture, perceived only prophetically, therefore still 
 hidden from the people. It would then also read 
 'V?^ '^J^. God also is not the questioner, for 
 He it is who is asked, and who answers, (vers. 
 17, 18). A third person at a distance cannot be 
 the interrogator, since the subject of inquiry 
 being still future is not known by him. The 
 prophet only can be the questioner. He per- 
 ceives prophetically the future calamitous condi- 
 tion of his people, and he implores from God a 
 disclosure concerning it. — As to the import of the 
 question, it cannot possibly be regarded as re- 
 quiring an affirmative answer, as Hitzio sup- 
 poses, explaining the meaning: "for is not Is- 
 rael the servant of God or son of the house?" 
 
 For, 1. We must then read xSH; 2. We must 
 then have niH' n:?;?, or '"^2^ ■ 3. r\'3 tS' 
 never signifies the son of the house, but always 
 the house-born slave in opposition to one who is 
 
 bought. Gen. xiv. 14: xvii. 12, 13, 23, 27; 
 Lev. xxii. 11. — The question must then be one 
 requiring a negative answer ; Israelis not a pur- 
 chased slave but one born in the house. But how 
 then could he be left like a mere thing for a spoil 
 to the enemy ? How far this has taken place is 
 shown in the following verse. 
 
 Ver. 15. The young lions roar . . . with- 
 out an inhabitant. This is the condition of 
 Israel which the prophet sees with prophetic 
 glance, and from which it seems to proceed that 
 Israel has ceased to be God's son (comp. Ex. iv. 22 ; 
 
 Deut. xxvi. 18; xxxii. 9sqq.). VtJ^ Graf renders 
 
 =affai7)st him, because the lion only growls Cilill 
 Isa. xxxi. 4) over prey that is slain. Strange ! 
 As though the lion could not roar for joy and 
 from a desire for more, etc. Comp. Am. iii. 4. 
 The connection requires the sense of "over," 
 since Israel appears to have already become a 
 prey ; his land is wasted, his cities destroyed. 
 On this account the inquiry is made, whether 
 then he is a slave and no longer Jehovah's first- 
 born son. The imperfect ^i^p] denotes that the 
 fact is not yet an objective reality but still per- 
 tains to the subjective conception of the pro- 
 phet. What further follows is nevertheless re- 
 presented as present or past. Comp. Naeglsb., 
 Gt. I 84, h. 
 Ver. 16. Even the children of Noph . . . 
 
 thy head. — f]j (Isa. xix. 13; Jer. xliv. 1 ; xlvi. 
 
 14, 19; Ezek. xxx. 13, 16) or ^p (only in Hos. 
 ix. 0: both forms are explained by the Egyptian 
 
CHAP II. 14-19. 
 
 35 
 
 Mon-nufi, see Arnold in Herzog Real-Enc. Art. 
 Memphis), is the Hebrew name for Memphis, the 
 ancient capital of lower Egypt. Tahpanhes 
 (Adcpvai TleXovaiai, Herod. II. 30. Tdcoi'af not 
 Td(pvat, LXX. Jer. xliii 8, 9; xliv. 1), was a 
 fortified border city to the east. In these two 
 cities especially, the Jews who fled to i^gypt 
 after the murder of Gedaliah, appear to have 
 settled (xliii. 7; xliv. 1 ; xlvi. 14).— Depasture 
 the crown, etc. Triple explanation: 1. The 
 LXX and translations dependent upon it appear 
 to have read ^-li^T or ']^i;T. For they translate 
 
 Eyvuadv ae /cat Kartnat^dv ae (the latter probably 
 KaTa a'vvEGLv). The Vulgate also has constuprave- 
 runt te usque ad verticem. 2. Most expositors up 
 to the time of the Reformation follow the Pe- 
 schito version in translating affligent, con/undent, 
 conterent. They derive the word from ^^"1 con- 
 
 fregit. 3. The only grammatically admissible 
 derivation from T\^'\ pascere, depascere is found 
 
 first (according to Seb. Schmidt) in Luther (but 
 not in his translation). He is followed by most 
 of the modern commentators. But it is deci- 
 dedly wrong to take the imperfect here in the 
 past sense, as Graf does. If a definite, past 
 fact, viz., the incursion of Shishak (1 Kings 
 xiv. 25 sq.) were alluded to, we should have the 
 perfect here. For there is no occasion to render 
 this act of depasturing as taking place in the 
 past (comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 87, 3). We are 
 rather led by the mention of Noph and Tahpanhes 
 to the conclusion that something in the future, 
 resulting from the residence of the Jews in the 
 places named (xliii. 7; xliv. 1) is alluded to. 
 We read in xlii. 15-22, that Jeremiah predicted 
 complete destruction to the Jews who were propos- 
 ing to flee from the vengeance of Nebuchadnezzar 
 into Egypt. Particularly in xliv. 12 he insists 
 that the last remnant of the fugitives in Egypt 
 would be destroyed (ver. 14, "none of the rem- 
 nant of Judah, which are gone into the land of 
 Judah to sojourn there, shall escape or remain "). 
 To this I refer the depasturing of the crown. 
 The last and only covering, the natural covering 
 of the hair, shall be taken from .Judah, he shall 
 be made entirely bald, that is, he shall be en- 
 tirely swept away : " and they shall all be con- 
 sumed," xliv. 12. [" The hair of the head being 
 held in high estimation among the Hebrews, bald- 
 ness was regarded as ignominious and hum- 
 bling." Henderson. — S. R. A.] In the mean- 
 time I confess that the definite mention by name 
 of these places is remarkable. The prophet has 
 hitherto mentioned no names. As was shown 
 abiive on i. 44 sqq , he does not yet know what 
 nation is appointed for the accomplishment of 
 the divine judgment on Judah. Why, when he 
 is ignorant of the northern enemy, should he 
 know so exactly the southern, who in compari- 
 son with the former is of almost no importance ? 
 Although I cannot agree with Ewald that vers. 
 14-17 did not originally belong here, since if we 
 divide correctly, there is no break in the connec- 
 tion, yet ver. IG may possibly be an addition 
 which the prophet himself made when writing 
 out his book the second time (xxxvi 32), after 
 the destruction of Jerusalem, in Palestine or in 
 Egypt. (Comp. Comm. on i. 3 and ii. 30, and 
 the Introduction to chapter ii). [" I render it. 
 
 'The children of Noph and Tahpanhes have joa«- 
 tured doivn the crown of thy head.' — Mem- 
 phis and Daphne, distinguished cities of Egypt, 
 are here put for Egypt herself. Jehoiakim made 
 a league with Egypt, but was subjected to severe 
 and shameful taxation. Such a process of shav- 
 ing, taxation and consequent disgrace our pas- 
 sage forcibly describes.'' Cowles. — S. R. A.] 
 
 Ver 17. Did not thy . . . leading thee in 
 the way ? The fate of the people described in 
 vers. 14-16, so directly contradictory to the filial 
 relation, is explained by their revolt from Jeho- 
 vah. Comp. iv. 18. — This, is without doubt the 
 object, forsaking, the subject. As here the 
 leader is put for the leading, so elsewhere the 
 proclaimer for the message (Isa. xli. 27), the de- 
 stroyer for the destruction (Exod. xii. 13), the 
 shooter for the shot (Gen. xxi. 16), the retractor 
 for the retraction (Gen. xxxviii. 29). Comp. 
 Naeglsb. Gr., g 50, 2; 61, 2 b, and below, ver. 
 25 ^n''0 and the remarks thereon. — The expres- 
 sion leading thee points back to led thee, 
 ver. 6. It is not then God's leading in general 
 whichismeant, but His leading through thedesert, 
 the rather, as the following verse shows that their 
 forsaking of Him was not confined to the time 
 of their pilgrimage. ["Most of the moderns 
 take nXT to be the nominative to the verb and in 
 opposition to ^3T^ and render: 'Is it not this 
 that hath procured it to thee, — thy forsaking,' 
 etc.; but the common rendering seems more ap- 
 propriate, as it includes both the agent and the 
 act, charging directly on the former the guilt 
 contracted by the latter. — By the way is meant 
 the right way, the way of the Lord ; and the 
 leading of the Jews therein denotes the whole 
 of the moral training which they enjoyed under 
 the Mosaic dispensation. In spite of every mo- 
 tive to the contrary, they forsook Jehovah as the 
 object of their fear and confidence." Hender- 
 son.— S. R. A.] 
 
 Ver. 18. And now what hast thou to do 
 in the way to Egypt ... to drink the wa- 
 ter of the river? TM^^] is in antithesis to 
 
 P'VlO n^3 ver. 17. The latter points to the 
 ancient time, the former to the present. The 
 way to Egypt according to the analogy of 
 Am. viii. 14, is not the Egyptian idol-worship. 
 We see this from the statement of its object, — to 
 drink the water of Shihor. The sense is, what 
 will the way to Egypt (or Assyria) avail thee, 
 which thou takest in order to drink the water 
 of the Nile, &c. : that is, to draw from this source 
 power and re-invigoration, i. e. to procure help 
 in Egypt (or Assyria) ? Here the question 
 arises, whether the facts experienced by the 
 prophet were the occasion of this mode of ex- 
 pression. Josiah so far from seeking to obtain 
 help from the Egyptians lost his life in contend- 
 ing against them (2 Ki. xxiii. 29; 2 Cliron. 
 XXXV. 20). He did not undertake this contest 
 as an ally of Assyria, for his object undoubtedly 
 was to prevent these powers from encountering 
 each other. Comp. the Article " .Tosia " in 
 Herzog, Real-Enc. — Subsequently, indeed (,Ter. 
 xxxvii. 5; comp. 2 Ki. xxiv. 20, and Jer. xliii.), 
 we find Jeremiah's contemporaries laying claim 
 to aid from Egypt, but at the same time the 
 
S6 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 northern empire, by which we must understand 
 Assyria, was the enemy which menaced them. 
 Hence it appears that Jeremiah does not here, 
 as in ver. 16 and probably also in ver. 3, allude 
 to definite facts of recent date, but that he has 
 in view only in general the propensity repeat- 
 edly manifested in the later history of Israel 
 since Phul to seek help from the two heathen 
 empires between which it was placed, instead of 
 from Jehovah. In this period Egypt and As- 
 syria are, as it were, two poles, which are al- 
 ways mentioned together in a stereotyped form 
 in the most various connections. (Hos. xi. 11 ; 
 Isa. vii. 28; x. 24; xix. 23 sqq.; xxvii. 13; 
 lii. 4; Ezek. xxxi.) Particularly the seeking aid 
 from Egypt and Assyria is a reproach made both 
 by the older prophets (Hos. vii. 11, "They call 
 to Egypt, they go to Assyria," xii. 2, comp. xi. 
 5) by his contemporaries (Ezek. isvi. 26 sqq. ; 
 xxiii. 2) and by Jeremiah himself elsewhere 
 (Lam. V. 6). There is therefore no reason here 
 for the inquiry whether by Assyria Jeremiah 
 meant Babylon, for he has really, at least in the 
 first intention, the true Assyria in mind. — '^intJ' 
 here as in Isa. xxiii. 3 is the Nile. The name sig- 
 nifies "the black, black-water" (Leyrer, Art. 
 Sichor in Herzog R.-Enc); hence, also, among 
 the Greeks and Romans the name Mtlaq, Melo, 
 from, the black mud of the Nile (Comp. Servius 
 
 on Virg. Georg. IV. 288 sqq. ^n. I. 745, IV. 
 246). "inj the Euphrates, as in Gen. xxxi. 21 ; 
 Exod. xxiii. 31 ; Numb. xxii. 5, &c. 
 
 Ver. 19. Thine own -wickedness shall 
 correct thee . . . Jehovah of hosts. There 
 is here a reference to vers. 17, 18. The wick- 
 edness described in these verses will correct Is- 
 rael, that is, will produce the etfects portrayed 
 in vers. 14-16, and this correction will lead Is- 
 rael to shameful but yet wholesome knowledge. — 
 
 Apostasies iJ^2W'!2) is a word used especially 
 
 by Jeremiah. Except in this book it occurs in 
 only three passages (Prov. i. 32 ; Hos. xi. 7 ; xiv. 
 5), the plural only in Jer. iii. 22; v. 6; xiv. 7. 
 With this the train of thought in this strophe 
 seems to conclude. It begins with astonishment 
 at the desolate condition of the people (ver. 14 
 to ver. 16), then explains why it must be so 
 (vers. 17, 18), and finally designates salutary 
 knowledge as the intended effect of this severe 
 discipline (ver. 19). The full form, " Saith the 
 Lord," &c., seems to denote the close of a sec- 
 tion. The following strophe, though an inde- 
 pendent tableau, is closely connected with the 
 preceding, opening a deeper insight into the 
 source of the apostasy described in vers. 17- 
 19. 
 
 3. The lust of idolatry : deeply rooted, outwardly insolent, faltt at latt. 
 
 II. 20-28. 
 
 20 For from of old thou hast broken thy yoke/ 
 Thou hast burst thy bonds, 
 
 And hast said, I will not serve. 
 For upon every high hill 
 And under every green tree 
 Thou stretchest thyself as a harlot. 
 
 21 And yet I had planted thee a noble'* vine, 
 It was wholly of genuine seed.' 
 
 But how art thou changed* with respect to me 
 Into bastards of a strange vine ! 
 
 22 For though thou wash thyself with alkali 
 And take thee much of the soap, 
 
 Yet thine iniquity is a stain before me, 
 Saith the Lord Jehovah. 
 
 23 How canst thou then say : I am not polluted, 
 I have not followed the Baalim. 
 
 Look at thy way in the valley ! 
 
 Know what thou hast done ! 
 
 A she camel, young, fast, involving her courses; 
 
 24 A wild she-ass,^ accustomed to the desert ; 
 In the desire of her soul she gasps for air, 
 Her leaping,® who can repel it ? 
 
 All, who seek her, become not weary ; 
 In her month they find her. 
 
CHAP. II. 20-28. 87 
 
 25 Guard thy foot from the loss of shoe, 
 And thy throat '' from thirst ! 
 
 But thou sayest : In vaiu ! No ! 
 
 26 For I love strangers, and after them I will go. 
 As a thief is ashamed when caught, 
 
 So the house of Israel is put to shame, 
 
 They, their kings, their princes, their priests, their prophets : 
 
 27 Who say to a block. My father thou ! 
 And to a stone. Thou hast begotten me.^ 
 
 For they turn to me the back and not the face, 
 But in the time of their calamity 
 They say. Up and deliver us ! 
 
 28 But where are thy gods which thou madest for thyself? 
 
 Let them arise, if they can save thee in the time of thy trouble. 
 For as many as thy cities 
 Are thy gods, O Judah ! 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 20.— The Masoretes take ''^'^31? and '•jlpnj as in the first person. So, also, the Chaldee and Syriac versions and 
 
 most of the Jewish expositors. As *i3yX, then, does not give a good meaning, unless with the Syriac, we arbitrarily assum* 
 
 the false gods to be objects of service, the Keri reads "li3_^N which must then be taken in the senBe—tramgredi verbum dm- 
 
 num. But neither does 13_y occur in this sense without an accusative of the object, nor does this explanation suit the foUow- 
 
 " T 
 
 ing ''2- — The Masoretic punctuation is therefore erroneous, and the words are to be punctuated as 2nd Pers. Fem. according 
 
 to the analogy of ver. 33 ; iii. 4, 5 ; iv. 19 ; xiii. 21 ; xxii. 23 ; xlvi. 11 ; Ezek. xvi. 18, 20, 22, 31, 36, 43, 44, 47, 51, etc. Comp. 
 on this form Ewald, ^ 190 c ; Olshausen, g 226, b : 232, h ; and Naegelsb. Gr. g 21. Anm. 3. 
 
 3 Ver. 21.— pi'liy only here and in Isai. v. 2. The fem. form Hpltj? Gen. xlix. 11. 
 
 8 Ver. 21.— r\I3X ^1T literally : seed of truth, t. e. genuine seed, (Comp. Prov. xi. 18), opposed to H^l^ J TBJ. 
 
 4 Ver. 21.— "IID. The passive participial form (Comp. Ewalb, § 149, f) occurs, except here, only in the fem. form miD 
 (Isai. xlix. 21) and as Keri, Jer. xvii. 13. (Chethibh '"110'.) The meaning is not doubtful,— anontaJoMs, alienated, bastard. 
 
 6 Ver. 24.— Instead of 7113, many editions read X13, which we usually find elsewhere, Qen. xvi. 12 ; Job vi. 5 ; xi. 12 • 
 xxxix. 5 ; Hos. viii. 9. — It is clear that the female is meant, both from the connection and the construction of the following 
 sentence. The masc. stands in "^121 and W32, under the immediate influence of the form X"13. but further on, the gender 
 
 which the prophet has in mind, comes to light, hence, 713X1!', etc. — The Masoretes would incorrectly read nt5'3J The 
 
 T": |T T : -' 
 
 Hebrew language is much freer with respect to gender, number, and person than our modern languages. Comp Naegelsb 
 Gr. i 60, 4. Comp. xiv. 6. 
 6 Ver. 24.— nnJXn is also an air. \ey.— There is a double root njX : I- respirare, suspirare, ejulare (Isai. iii. 26 : xix. 8), 
 
 T T-: ~ TT ■" 
 
 from which the substantive forms H'JXI iTJXP (groan, and groaning, Isai. xxix. 2 ; Lam. ii. 5) are derived. From this 
 
 T--:|- T--:|- 
 derivation we obtain for lUXH the meaning of deep breathing, snorting, catching for air, which is usually a symptom of 
 
 excited passions. II. Kal inus. Piel.=a meeting, to prepare to meet (Exod. xxi. 12) ; Pual, to be made to meet, occurrere 
 (Ps. xci.lO; Prov. xii. 21) ; Hithp. to prepare a meeting for one's self, to seek occasion (2 Ki. v. 7). — From this root is de- 
 rived njXn (Comp. njXn, Judges xiv. 4) encounter, occursus. Etymologically both are possible. The connection favors 
 
 T-:|- T-: 
 
 the latter view. 
 
 1 Ver. 25. — The Chethibh ^J'^IJ is an anomaly which is by no means to be traced back to a form p'lj for j'pj as ptyw 
 (xxi. 12) for pl'U?;; (xxii. 3), but as frequently (xvii. 23 ; xxvii. 1 ; xxix. 23 ; xxxii. 23) through an oversight, a displace- 
 ment of the mater lectionis seems to have occurred. See on xvii. 23. 
 
 8 Ver. 27.— '' jni 7\ So according to xv. 10 the Chethibh is to be spoken. The Keri lUrinS' is occasioned by D''TDJ< 
 
 but needlessly, for the sing, may be used collectively. Those who pronounce 'J^liT overlook the fact that jlX precedes 
 
 and that this second member is doubtless intended to designate the part of the mother. Wood my father,— a stone my 
 mother ! 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Israel's propensity to idolatry is ancient (ver. 
 20), deeply rooted (vers. 21, 22), yet at the same 
 time betraying itself outwardly by the most pas- 
 sionate behaviour (vers. 23-25), but finally causing 
 deep shame on account of the nothingness of its 
 objects (vers. 26-28). The connection with the 
 previous strophe is this, that here the forsaking 
 of Jehovah (ver. 17), and the wickedness and apos- 
 tasies (ver. 19), are more particularly explained. 
 
 The '3 is, therefore, to be regarded as explica- 
 tive. 
 Ver. 20. For from of old ... as a harlot. 
 
 D7ij; here as frequently (comp. Isa. xlii. 14; xlvi. 
 9; Ixiii. 16; Ps. xxiv. 7, etc.). is used of incon- 
 ceivable duration. — Israel is compared with wild 
 refnictory draught cattle ('a bullock untrained,' 
 xxxi. 18; a 'backsliding heifer,' Hos. iv. 16), 
 because they refuse the discipline and guidance 
 of the Lord (comp. v. 5; Prov. ii. 3), and are 
 obstinate in carrying out their own carnal will. 
 
THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 — I •will not serve. The second '3 is also expli- 
 cative. It forms the transition to the explana- 
 tion of the imagery employed in Hemist. a. — 
 Every high hill, etc., a frequent designation of 
 the places especially sacred to the worship of 
 nature. Comp. 1 Kings xiv. 23; 2 Kings xvi. 4; 
 xvii. 10; Isa. Ivii. 5; .Jer. iii. 6, 13; xvii. 2; 
 Ezek. vi. 13.— Stretchest thyself, n;?^ oc- 
 curs only in Isa. li. 14 of one who is bound and 
 thus bent crooked, in Isa. Ixiii. 1 of the strong 
 man, who bends proudly backwards; Jer. xlviii. 
 12 of the vessel, which we bend over in order to 
 pour from it. Hence it seems to be used in the 
 sense of TvapaKliveai^ai or inclinari of the bending 
 of the body in a woman who lies with a man. 
 Comp. J.'^3 of the man, in Job xxxi. 10. 
 
 Ver. 21. And yet I had planted thee . . 
 strange vine. — And I stands in strong anti- 
 thesis to thou, ver. 20. — The antithesis is simi- 
 lar, which Isaiah sets forth between the vine- 
 yard for which all has been done, and the pro- 
 prietor, whose hope is disappointed^ Isa. v. 1 sqq. 
 Comp. Ps. Ixxx. 9 sqq. — That we are not to 
 translate (with Ewald): "I have planted thee 
 with noble vines," as in Isa. v. 2, is clear from 
 the identity of the object of 'r\J^£3J with the sub- 
 ject of noani — Noble vine, properly reddish 
 from p^t^ splendere, subrubicundum esse, comp. 
 Isa. xi. 8 ; Zech. i. 8, and Koehler, ad loc. — 
 That the red wine was considered the nobler, 
 may be inferred from the fact that it was pre- 
 scribed for the feast of the Passover. See 
 LiGHTFOOT, ffor. Hebr. p. 478. — But how art 
 thou changed, etc. It is not inadmissible to 
 regard "'^10 as the accusative, as Gkaf, Hitziq, 
 
 and others suppose. The mere accusative fre- 
 quently stands in apposition with the object, (or 
 in passive construction with the subject, where 
 we use a preposition of motion, and the Hebrew 
 more commonly uses /, comp. '^'^'^^^ T\rl_ DV. 
 
 Am. V. 8; vi. 11 ; Isa. xxviii. 88; xxxvii. 26. See 
 Naegelsb., (rr. § 69, 3. — The absence of t lie article 
 before H'^pj is certainly abnormal, but not with- 
 out example: xxii. 26; Isa. xxxvii. 4, 17; 2 
 Sam. vi. 3. See Naeoelsb. Gr. ^ 73, 2. Anm. 
 
 Ver. 22. For though thou wash thyself 
 . . . thy iniquity is a stain before me. ''2 is 
 
 causal. Israel is to be compared with degen- 
 erate vines ; their depravation, therefore, is essen- 
 tial, since it cannot be removed by outward 
 means. — This figure of speech is based on the 
 ■work of the fuller. For simple washing is VH"* i 
 D33 properly to tread, to stamp, is the technical 
 
 expression for the work of the fuller. Hence, 
 also, we liave Piel here, comp. Naege>lsb., Gr. 
 I 41, 2; 61, 2, c. 'pS^Jil is, therefore, properly. 
 even if thou doest the luork of a fuller, comp. Mai. 
 iii. 2. The reflexive meaning is implied in 
 the connection, and is sufficiently indicated by 
 
 the following '^7. — ir\3 virpov, is a mineral, iT''^3 
 (13 among the Greeks and Romans, also called 
 nitrum) is a vegetable alkali. The former is ob- 
 tained from water, the latter from the soap-plant. 
 Comp. Winer, R. B. \V., s. v. Laugensalz. [Thom- 
 son, The Land and the Book, II. pp. 302, 303.— 
 8. R. A.] — Qj^pJ is an dTof Xeydjuevov. Some 
 
 commentators render it (=3r\3) "ingrained, in- 
 delibly engraven is thy guilt." Some render, 
 "hidden, laid up," others; "spotted, dirty, a 
 stain." The last meaning, which is certified by 
 the dialects (Aram. XOHi) macula, Wr\2 maculo- 
 
 sus) is also required by the connection. Comp. 
 Ps. li. 3, 9. 
 
 Ver. 23. How canst thou then say ? . . . 
 involving her courses. The prophet has in 
 mind an assertion actually made and often re- 
 peated by his contemporaries. This is the sense 
 of the imperfect, comp. Naegelsb., Gr. | 87, c. — 
 Thy way in the valley, N'J must mean a 
 definite valley, since hills, and not valleys were 
 the places usually appropriated by the Israelites 
 to idolatrous worship. In the vicinity of Jerusa- 
 lem there was, however, a valley celebrated as a 
 place of worship; the vale of Hinnom (vii. 31 ; 
 xxix. 2, 6; xxxii. 35; Josh. xv. 8; 2 Kings xxiii. 
 10). — That the valley might be called absolutely 
 X]jn is seen from the fact that the gate leading 
 to it was called absolutely K'jn ':yp (2 Chron. 
 xxvi. 9; Neh. ii. 18, 15), comp. Raumeb, Palas- 
 tina, 4 Aufl. S. 291.— A she-camel, etc., mD3 
 
 T : • 
 
 and n^3 stand in apposition to the subject of the 
 preceding sentence, viz., Israel. The former is 
 feminine of "133 (Isa. Ix. 6), camel-foal. The 
 (unused) root *133 signifies " to be early there," 
 hence 1133, 133 — rip^ti'? is found here only as a 
 verb. It means to " weave, cross, involve." 
 Hence Y^Tty shoestring. Gen. xiv. 28 ; Isa. v. 27. 
 
 Ver. 24. A wild she-ass . . . they find 
 her. It is clear that the female is meant both 
 from the connection and the construction of the 
 following sentence: — Accustomed to the de- 
 sert, (Job xxiv. 5; xxxix. 5), therefore, in ge- 
 neral shy, wild and unconfined. — All who seek 
 her, etc. Since they meet her half-way, there 
 is no need to weary themselves with seeking 
 her. Inhermonth, that is, in her period of heat, 
 they find her. This is the natural rendering. 
 Other artificial explanations are found in J. D. 
 MiCHAELis, Obsv., p. 17, and in Rosenmueller, 
 ad h. loc. 
 
 Ver. 25. Guard thy foot . . . after them I 
 will go. As a further proof of the intensity of 
 this proneness to idolatry (vers. 21 and 22), the 
 prophet adduces the answer of the people to all 
 warnings against it, their decided declaration 
 that they would not relinquish it. The words of 
 admonition, "Guard," etc., are not to be re- 
 garded as spoken by commission from the Lord. 
 The figure of passionate running is continued, 
 but man is now understood as the subject. — Tlie 
 construction is that of the concrete for the ab- 
 stract. Comp. 1 Sam. xv. 23, where it reads 
 "hath rejected thee from king," while afterwards 
 it is, "hath rejected thee from being king," ver. 
 26 and viii. 7; in xvi. 1, it is "from reigning." 
 Comp. further ver. 17 and 1 Kings xv. 13; Ezek. 
 
 xvi. 41. — ^rV is not of the same gender as "!) /J"]. 
 being feminine, but this variation is of no ac- 
 count. See remark on ver. 24. — We might as 
 well translate: "Hold back thy foot, to be some- 
 what unshod," as in Ps. Ixxiii. 2, 'SjT 'IDJ 
 means inclinatum aliquid sunt pedes mei. — On the 
 
CHAP. 11. 29-87. 
 
 39 
 
 general subject, comp. xxxi. 16; Prov. i. 15. — 
 As to the import of the warning, we are certainly 
 
 not to take 7J"1 withScHNURB,ER,R0SENMUELLER 
 
 and others, as in Gen. xlix. 10; Deut. xxviii. 57; 
 Ezek. xvi. 25 in the sense of crura et pudenda, 
 and the discalceatio as denudatio. The prophet 
 would merely say, 'Cease from thy mad running 
 after idols, from which nothing accrues to thee, 
 but wounded feet and a dry throat, i. e., bitter 
 injury instead of the expected advantage.' — 
 l^NU Part. Niph., from t^X' (comp. 1 Sam. xxvii. 
 1; Job vi. 26; Isa. Ivii. 10; Jer. xviii. 12) = 
 desperatum, perditum. The sense is: the warn- 
 ing is in vain. Xw No! as in Gen. xlii. 10; 
 Numb. xxii. 30, etc. — The following verses por- 
 tray the contrast between the passionate striving 
 of Israel after the favor of their gods, and the 
 results thereof. 
 
 Vers. 26 and 27. As a thief . . . deliver us. 
 Comp. Exod. xxii. 1, 6, 7. Tlie thief is ashamed 
 not merely because he is caught in his wicked- 
 ness, but because at the moment of discovery he 
 makes a ridiculous figure. Israel also plays this 
 ridiculous part when the "poodle's heart" is dis- 
 played. — Put to shame. Comp. vi. 15 ; viii. 9, 
 
 12 — Who say, D''10X, apposition to the nomen 
 determinatum without the article, as frequently in 
 the later books. See Naegelsb., Gr. § 97, 2 a. — 
 For they turn to me the Isack, etc. Thig 
 period to the end of ver. 28. shows in three clauses 
 the shameful character of idol- worship: (a) 
 they turn their back on me; (6) in the time of 
 calamity I am yet to help them ; (c) I cannot 
 then do so, but must direct them to their gods. 
 These, however, are nowhere to be found, though 
 as numerous as the cities in Israel. 
 
 Ver. 28. But where are thy gods. — O 
 Judah! This inquii-y is made of the idolaters 
 as a punishment for their having previously made 
 it in scorn of the faithful, comp. Ps. xlii. 4, 11 ; 
 Ixxix. 10; cxv. 2. — If they can save. We 
 are reminded of Deut. xxxii. 37, 38. See Kue- 
 PER, S. 6. Comp. xi. 12. The indirect interro- 
 gative sentence is best understood as dependent 
 on a verb to be supplied : let us see f For as 
 many as the cities, etc., is repeated verbatim 
 
 in xi. 13. '3 is causal. One would think they 
 could save thee, since they are so numerous. 
 The close of this strophe corresponds to tht 
 close of the preceding, (ver. 19). 
 
 5. Whose is the guilt f 
 II. 29-37. 
 
 29 Why do you contend against Me ? 
 
 Ye have, all of you, offended against Me, saith Jehovah. 
 
 30 In vain have I smitten your children, 
 Chastisement they have not accepted. 
 Your sword has devoured your prophets 
 Like a ravening lion. 
 
 31 ye generation ! see the word of Jehovah : 
 Have I been a desert, O Israel ? 
 
 Or a land of deepest night ?^ 
 
 Why do my people say : We ramble,* 
 
 No more will we come to thee ? 
 
 32 Can a virgin forget her ornaments ? — 
 A bride her girdle? 
 
 But my people have forgotten Me days without number. 
 
 33 How well trimmest thou thy way to seek love intrigue ! 
 Therefore also to wickedness thou hast accustomed^ thy waya. 
 
 34 Even on thy skirts [wings] has been found 
 The blood of the souls of poor innocents. 
 Not at the place of burglary have I found it, 
 But on all these. 
 
 35 Yet thou sayest,* I am innocent,^ 
 Surely His anger is turned from me. 
 
 Behold, I enter into judgment with thee concerning this, 
 That thou sayest : I have not sinned. 
 
 36 How goest thou asunder* much in changes of thy ways ? 
 Even by Egypt shalt thou be put to shame, 
 
 As thou hast been put to shame by Assyria. 
 
40 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 37 Also from thence'' wilt thou go forth, thy hands on thy head, 
 For Jehovah rejects thy supports, 
 And thou wilt have no success with them. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 31.— ri'SaXD is aTrof \ey. Composed of 73X0 and rf = caligo Jovx, as iT'D^nSt^ == God's flame (of 
 
 At : •.■ : - •" : - t t r.- v : - 
 
 love) Cant. viii. 6. H' serves to enhance tlie force of the expression according to the analogy of 7 J< 'Tin " great deep," 
 
 T I ■." — ; I' 
 
 Ps. xxxvi. 6. <"• nOTIp 1 Sam. xxvi. 12, 7X H'l'in 1 Sam. xiv. 15.— iT" is also punctuated ,T in connections, ei. ^., 
 
 xxvii. 1, etc. The Masoretes have given two accents to the whole word in the text, because they were uncertain as to the ety- 
 mology of the syllable H' and consequently as to its accentuation. Kimchi found n''73XO in some codices, which EwALl 
 T T • ■ : - 
 
 also accepts and translates simply "darkness" ad /WW. flU/^O Tiii. 18, coll. rT'7'''7J^. iTS'Sb. 
 
 2 Ver. 31. — 1JT1, ^1'^ only in Qen. xxvii. 40; Ps. Iv. 3; Hos. xii. 1. Radical signification rapam". We are not with 
 RoSENMUELLER to translate vagabimur. Tlie perfect is used expressly to designate an accomplished fact. 
 
 3 Ver. 33. — T\nD /• On this form comp. rem. on ver. 20.— On the double accusative comp. Ewald, § 283, c; Naegelsb, 
 Cfr., I 69, 2, c. 
 
 ■« Ver. 35. — "'3 before a direct address, as frequently, ex. gr., Josh. ii. 24 ; 1 Sam. x. 19. Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., g 109, 1, a. 
 
 6 Ver. 35.— 'JT'pJ Niph. Comp. Num. v. 28, 31. 
 
 » Ver. 36.— 'StP contracted from "'SlNn as 3nX from anXN (PrOY. viii. 17), inX from "inXK (Qen. xxxii 
 
 6), comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 10, II., Anm. 
 
 1 Ver. 37.— ni Masc. referring to the people. Comp. Naeqeisb. Gr., g 60, 3, Anm. 
 
 EXEQETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 As in the beginning of the discourse (ver. 5), 
 the prophet proceeds on the ground, that Israel's 
 revolt cannot be excused by any neglect on the 
 part of Jehovah, but Israel is alone to blame 
 (ver. 20). The Lord has allowed nothing to fail: 
 neither discipline (ver. 30), nor the necessaries 
 of life (ver. 31), not even ornament and splen- 
 dor (ver. 32). But the people have shown a 
 taste and fitness only for the service of idols 
 (ver. 33a). The consequence is two-fold: (1) 
 deep moral corruption (ver. 33 6-34) which at 
 the same time affords the most striking proof of 
 the rebellion of the people, which they boldly 
 deny (ver. 35) ; (2) the shame of the people re- 
 sulting from their political and religious wan- 
 derings (vers. 36, 37). 
 
 Ver. 29. Why do you contend . . . saith 
 Jehovah. Israel's propensity to complain of 
 the Lord was displayed even in the wilderness at 
 Meribah (Exod. xvii. 2, 3, 7), and that Jere- 
 miah's contemporaries manifested the same dis- 
 position is evident from v. 19'; xiii. 22; xvi. 10. 
 Not I, saith the Lord, towards you have failed, 
 but you towards Me, even all of you. Comp. 
 ver. 26. — The following verses enumerate what 
 the Lord has done for Israel. Three things are 
 mentioned ; first, di.'^ciplme. 
 
 Ver. 30. In vain . . . ravening lion — 
 
 XltS'j in vain, used only by Jeremiah among the 
 
 prophets, iv. 30; vi. 29; xlvi. 11. Comp. be- 
 sides, Exod. XX. 7: Deut. v. 11 ; Ps. xxiv. 4; 
 cxxxix. 20. — Dp'JS-nx cannot be taken in a 
 
 proper sense = your young men, as Hitzig 
 maintains, for Jehovah's blows were upon the 
 whole people. When we reflect that the persons 
 smitten by the Lord are those, who instead of 
 accepting chastisement, slay God's servants, and 
 further, that these same are afterwards, ver. 31, 
 addressed as generation, and previously, in ver. 
 28, as Judah, there can be no doubt that the 
 prophet lias here in view the abstract communi- 
 ties, the people being designated as their chil- 
 
 dren. Comp. V. 7; Lev. xix. 18; Joel iv. 6; 
 Zech. ix. 13. — The smiting had not the intended 
 effect (comp. v. 3) but was answered by the mur- 
 der of the prophets, 1 Ki. xviii. 4, 13 ; 2 Chron. 
 xxiv. 20 sqq. Comp. Matth. xxiii. 35, 37 ; Luke 
 xi. 47, etc. — The second fact, with which the 
 charge is indignantly repelled, is Jehovah's li- 
 beral provision for all the wants of the people. 
 
 Ver. 31. O ye generation . . . come to 
 thee ? The first words of this verse are at- 
 tached by Jerome and Maurer to the preceding 
 verse : tanquam leo vastator est hsec vestra setas. 
 But the beginning of the following sentence is 
 then altogether too bald. It is better to take 
 them as in the vocative, and the subject of the 
 following verb. On the article with the voca- 
 tive, comp. EwALD, § 327, a; Naegelsb. Gh:, g 
 71, Anm. 4. — It is disputed whether "TIT is to 
 be taken in the sense of " age, generation " 
 (EwALD : " The present people ") or in the sense 
 of " race, kind, breed." It is not clear why the 
 generation then living should be rendered so ex- 
 pressly prominent, in does not occur again, 
 at least not alone in a bad sense. But from 
 passages like vii. 29; Deut. i. 35; xxxii. 5; Ps. 
 Ixxviii. 8; Prov. xxx. 11 it is evident that the 
 word is at any rate capable of such a determina- 
 tio in malam partem. — 1X"1 See, comp. ver. 19, is 
 a stronger HJn. The word of the Lord is held 
 
 before them with the demand that they regard it. 
 — Desert, /. e., barren land, where no bodily 
 nourishment or necessaries are found. — Here 
 follows the ?A«>rf point, which the Lord has not 
 neglected ; glory and adornment. He is Him- 
 self His people's highest glory, Israel's crown of 
 glory is He (Gen. ix. 27 ; Isa. xxviii. 5). But 
 they have forgotten this emblem of royalty, 
 which causes them to rank above all other na- 
 tions. The Lord is however Israel's jewel as 
 her husband. This is the thought which sug- 
 gests the figure in ver. 32. 
 
 Ver. 32. Can a virgin forget . . . without 
 number ? D'^C'P besides only in Isa. iii. 20. 
 
 Comp. Isa. xlix. 18. Is it a girdle or a fillet? 
 Drechsler on Isa. I. c. translates " a small gir- 
 
CHAP. II. 29-37. 
 
 41 
 
 die of fine material," which unites both mean- 
 ings. — The failure then is not in this, that the 
 Lord has forgotten to make provision for the 
 adornment of His bride, but that the bride has 
 forgotten to make use of the ornament. Comp. 
 xviii. 14. — Days w^ithout number. Comp. of 
 old. ver. 20. 
 
 Ver. 33. How Tvell trimmest thou . . . 
 accustomed thy w^ays. ^'^'H cannot here 
 be rendered in the sense of bonnm simulare, ezor- 
 nare, as many of the ancients rendered, because 
 
 then the following HinX K'p^/ does not af- 
 ford a suitable meaning. It is therefore neces- 
 sary to take it in the sense of scite instituere 
 (Maurer) according to the analogy of vii. 3 ; 
 Isa. xxiii. 16; Deut. ix. 21, etc. Observe the 
 contrast: i ; people in criminal frivolity for- 
 get Jehovah, their highest glory, but with the 
 greatest diligence employ means and ways to 
 procure illicit love (with foreign nations and 
 their idols). The effects of this are shown in 
 
 what follows.— |D^ is neither = but, as De Wette 
 proposes, nor :^ 1 3n 7 (Venema, Dathe: ut con- 
 firmes malitiam, assuefacis vias tuas), but simply == 
 therefore, thus, in this way. — To ■wickedness. 
 The article before mj^T (comp. iii. 5) is gene- 
 ral. Israel has accustomed his ways not to par- 
 ticular wickedness, but to wickedness in general, 
 
 to wickedness of every kind. — H^/ to teach, to 
 
 accustom, as ^^ /» ^®^' •^4- ^^ meaning the ex- 
 pression is coincident with that in xiii. 23, "ac- 
 customed to do evil." — On the subject-matter, 
 comp. Rom. i. 24sqq. — In what follows the state- 
 ment is verified by an instance. 
 
 Ver. 84. Even on thy wings ... on all 
 these. The DJ here resumes the Ul in ver. 
 
 ~ T 
 
 33 b. The special fact is introduced by the 
 same particle as the general statement. In Ger- 
 man " ndmlich" [videlicet, namely] would be used. 
 ^13 is used here, as frequently of the skirts, 
 
 (wings) of a coat, 1 Sam. xxiv. 6; Hagg. ii. 12; 
 Zech. viii. 23, etc. — Has been found. The plu- 
 ral '^^?J is explained thus, (1) an ideal plural is 
 contained in Dl, namely, the idea of innocent 
 blood, in which sense D'OI is usually employed 
 (the sing, ex.gr. .Jer. xix. 4; Lam. iv. 13). The 
 same construction in Ezek. xxii. 13, comp. 
 Naeoelsb. Gr., | 61, 2, e, (2) with connected sub- 
 jects the predicate may be governed in number 
 by the main grammatical or logical idea. So 
 also here the conception of the multiplicity of 
 what has been stained by blood may have 
 determined the number of the predicate. Comp. 
 Naegelsb. Gr., g 105, 6. — Not at the place, 
 etc. n^pnp occurs only in Exod. xxii. 1 (2), and 
 our passage may be explained by this. "If a 
 thief be found breaking up [or at the place of 
 burglary) and he be smitten and die, he (the 
 doer) shall incur no guilt." Jeremiah alludes to 
 this both in words and sense. The Lord has 
 /ound the blood of the murdered (and we may 
 here understand the blood of the prophets, ver 
 30) not in the place of the crime committed by 
 them. In this case their murderers would accord- 
 
 ing to the law quoted above, be without guilt. 
 But he says, "On all these have I found it." 
 These words have given much trouble to the com- 
 mentators. Disregarding the circumstance that 
 the LXX, the Syriac and Arabic translations in- 
 stead of nSx read n'7X, and therefore translate 
 
 , _ V T-' 
 
 enl naarj Spvt or sub quacunque arbore, and that 
 Jerome combines the two renderings: "m om- 
 nibus istis quse, supra mrmoravi, sive sub quercu,^' 
 having in mind the often denounced hill-worship 
 (comp. ver. 20), — omitting those interpretations 
 which are based on a wrong reading we mentioa 
 only three proposed by eminent modern com- 
 mentators : (1) EwALD translates after Abak- 
 banel, "not in the murderer's den found lit, 
 but on all these, viz., summits." The objection 
 to this is, that the word does not signify " deu 
 of murderers," and that the reference to Exod. 
 xxii. 1 (2) is wholly ignored. (2) Venema, Dathe, 
 VoQEL, Gaab, Maurer, Umbreit and others 
 attach the final clause to the next verse and take 
 7j; in the sense of " notwithstanding — notwith- 
 standing all this \ 10U sayest." ihis rendering 
 leaves both the '3 and the Vau cons, before 
 ■''nOXn without any satisfactory explanation. 
 (3) Graf: " not for the sake of a crime didst 
 thou kill the poor ones, but on account of all 
 this," i. e. because they stood in the way of thy 
 harlotry and opposed thy revolt. But it must be 
 objected to this that we cannot say, " not at the 
 breaking in hast thou met them (Graf takes 
 D'nxVD as 2d person), but on account of all 
 this." For here the verb "met" does not suit 
 the second clause of the sentence. We should 
 have to supply a suitable verb " hast thou killed 
 them," which would be arbitrary, because the 
 author, if he had this verb in mind, could not 
 have omitted it. The whole question seems to 
 me to turn on the correct rendering of /Tlf^nO, 
 namely, not as burglary in general, but the 
 place of burglary. It is well known that sub- 
 stantives with D [Mem loci) have this meaning, 
 EwALU, § 160 b. — In the original passage Exod. 
 xxii. 1, we may indeed translate " at the break- 
 ing in," but in the text, where it is not the 
 seizure of the thief, but the subsequent disco- 
 very of blood-stains, which is spoken of, the 
 place of burglary must be meant. Traces of 
 blood are subsequently discovered, not at a bur- 
 glary, but at the place where the surprised thief 
 was wounded. If this is the correct rendering 
 of this word, the final clause must also designate 
 a place. If we consider that in the first clause 
 the Lord has rebuked Israel for the murder of 
 the innocents, it is appropriate that in the second 
 He should bring a proof of this heavy charge. 
 This proof is afforded in this way; — the Lord says 
 He found the blood of the slain not in places 
 where they had commuted burglary, but on the 
 persons of those He addresses. Thus " on all 
 these " refers back certainly to thy skirts, but 
 only indirectly. n7X refers primarily to per- 
 sons. We may suppose that the prophet pointed 
 with his hand to his hearers. — In spite of this 
 flagrant proof of guilt, Israel is so bold as to 
 continue to maintain his innocence, and darea 
 even to boast that the divine anger is already 
 turned away from him, 
 
42 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 Ver. 35. Yet thousayest . . . not sinned. 
 
 2^ 'nX. The translation of the LXX., anooTpa- 
 <l>^Tai and of the Vulgate, aversatur would suit 
 very well in the connection, if it were gramma- 
 tically justifiable. As the words read they make 
 declaration of a fact, not a wish. ■:jX=nothing 
 but, only, i. e. sure, certain. Comp. Gen. xxvi. 
 9 • xxix. 14, etc. — To what historical fact this 
 erroneous assumption of Israel refers, it is diffi- 
 cult to say ; perhaps to the narrative of 2 Ki. 
 xxiii. 26 (observe also the resemblance of the 
 words). Josiah's reforms might have given rise 
 to the idea that the wrath of the Lord formerly 
 threatened (comp. 2 Ki. xxii. 17) was now turned 
 away from Judah. The people are here assured 
 that this was not the case, because the reform 
 was more outward than inward (at least among 
 the masses).— I enter into judgment. Comp. 
 i 16 ; XXV. 31. He who denies the sin he has 
 committed adds to his guilt and provokes a new 
 manifestation of the divine judgment. 
 
 Vers. 36 and 37. How goest thou? ... no 
 
 success with them. StX (in Aramaic Sl« 
 frequently = "^^H) has in Hebrew throughout the 
 meaning of to melt, dissolve, go asunder. So 
 of yielding to a misfortune (Prov. xx. 14), of the 
 flowing away of water (Job xiv. 11), of the run- 
 ning out of the means of subsistence (1 Sam. 
 ix. 7), of the disappearance of power (Deut. 
 
 xxxii. 36). The infinitive TS^lt^ designates not 
 the end but the mode of the going asunder : 
 quid diffluis mutando viam f The h is the particle 
 of the Infin. modalis. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., | 
 95, e. On the meaning comp. iii. 13. — As vers. 
 34' and 35 are dependent on ver. 33 b, so vers. 
 36 and 37 on 33 a. The inquiry, " how trim- 
 mest thou thy ways?" is resumed here more 
 definitely. — In respect to the historical bearing 
 of the passage, as we have already remarked on 
 Ter. 18, it is not known that Josiah ever sought 
 aid from the Egyptians. From the time of Je- 
 hoiakim, who was an Egyptian vassal (2 Kings 
 xxiii. 33 sqq.), much aid was continually sought. 
 To this ver. 36 may refer. The expression "also 
 from thence wilt thou go forth," seems even to 
 imply a residence in Egypt. Comp. on ver. 1(3. 
 As was remarked on this passage we admit the 
 possibility of Jeremiah's having made this addi- 
 tion on the completion of his second writing. 
 Comp. Graf, ad Zoc— HI Masc. referring to the 
 people. Comp. Naegelsb. Or. ^ 60, 3, Anm. — 
 It appears as if the story of Tamar and Absa- 
 lom hovered before the prophet's mind. Comp. 
 KuEPER, S. 55; 2 Sam. xiii. 19, ''Est ibi nostra 
 nanus, in qua nos parte dolemus" (Bugenhagen). 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On ii. 14: "Whoever makes himself a ser- 
 vant of sin makes himself also a servant of pun- 
 ishment, for sticks and cudgels are for a bad 
 servant. Malitiie comes individua est miseria." 
 Cramer. 
 
 2. On ii. 14: ''■ Peccalum ex hominibus liberis 
 facit miserrimos servos ; ex filiis Dei mancipia di- 
 aboli." Seb. Schmidt. — " Is then Israel a ser- 
 
 vant or a bondman ? So that get him who may, 
 except the one father, whose son he is, he may 
 starve him ? A noble question to lead the souT 
 to reflect what it is ; a subject on which Joh. 
 Arndt much labored and in which Fr. Richter 
 of Halle lived altogether. He wrote a book on 
 
 the exceeding nobility of the soul We can 
 
 also form an idea from his poems, ' The soul is 
 born to enjoy, something that is divine,' — ' Hc"iy 
 bright the Christian's inner life." — ' how hap- 
 py are the souls,' etc., how important this subject 
 was to him. And it is a great subject even if 
 we leave aside all exaggerated mystical or still 
 more loftily conceived ideas. It is enough that 
 we are ' His workmanship, created in Christ 
 Jesus unto good works.' We must indeed be 
 ashamed, and a preacher may well grieve his 
 whole life long (as Spener is said to have done), 
 that our glory is so departed." Zinzendorf. 
 
 3. On ver. 17: Sin is the destruction of a 
 people, Prov. xiv. 34. But the Lord is not wil- 
 ling that any be lost but that all should come to 
 repentance (2 Pet. iii. 9). He therefore chasti- 
 ses them, not to destroy them, but by bodily suf- 
 ferings to save the soul (1 Pet. iv. 1). 
 
 4. On ver. 15 : " The sins of men, especially of 
 God's people, strengthen the arm of their ene- 
 mies, encourage them to their hurt (Judith v. 
 22)." Stakke. 
 
 5. On ver. 16: "If God wishes to chastise 
 His people He usually employs the ungodly for 
 this purpose (Deut. xxviii. 49, 50)." Idem. 
 
 6. On ver. 16: " It often happens that those 
 redound to the injury and destruction of the 
 ungodly, from whom they have promised them- 
 selves the greatest help (Judges xv. 3)." Idem. 
 
 7. On ver. 17: What a man soweth that will 
 he also reap (Gal. vi. 7). They sow wind and 
 reap the whirlwind (Hos. viii. 1). "What 
 they've done, that they've won." Bullinoee. 
 Comp. Micah vii. 9. 
 
 8. On ver. 19: '' Sanitatis initium immo dimi- 
 dium est agnoscere morbum." Seb. Schmidt. 
 
 " O si ista videremus 
 Quantum flere deberemus." 
 
 Thom. Aquinas. 
 
 9. On ver. 20: Although the Lord's yoke is 
 easy (Matt. xi. 29), it seems intolerable to our 
 flesh, and we would rather sacrifice our children 
 to Moloch and cut ourselves with knives and 
 lancets (1 Kings xviii. 28) than bow to the chas- 
 tisement of the Spirit and renounce carnal free- 
 dom. 
 
 10. On ver. 21 : " Peccata tarn contra sanam 
 hominis naturam sunt quam labruscse contra natu- 
 ram bouse vitis." Seb. Schmidt. 
 
 11. On ver. 21 : Whatever comes from God's 
 hand is good and welcome. Man was originally 
 
 nox J^^T 7X12. He bore no principle of cori-up- 
 tiori within him. This came from without. 
 Ilenue such depravity has become possible [ac- 
 tual, S. R. A.], as oti its side renders necessary 
 a complete remoulding (regeneration) of man. 
 
 12. On ver. 22: "We gee in nature that af- 
 fected beauties, which are intended either to hide 
 deformities or give new adornments not proper 
 to the person, only render one uglier than be- 
 fore." Zinzendorf. 
 
 13. On ver. 25: [" The passage suggests that 
 
CHAP. II. 29-37. 
 
 4S 
 
 in many cases the plea of despair is not half 
 honest. The heart takes it up simply as an 
 apology for rushing madly and headlong into 
 sin To quiet conscience and to seem to lend 
 soiiK' ear to reason, men try and even pretend to 
 think there is no longer any hope from God, and 
 heni;p that they may as well get all the good 
 fro Ml sin they can while they can get any." 
 Cowi..;-;.— S. R. A.] 
 
 14. On ver. 26: " It often occurs in the office 
 of a preacher that he sees poor humanity in its 
 nakedness. He must be on his guard that he 
 use his victory with moderation and in such a 
 way that the souls ashamed may see more hearty 
 love and compassion than tyranny and assump- 
 tion. . . . There ought not to be mere Hildebrands 
 or mere Henry Fourths ; a village schoolmaster 
 may also show to one of his scholars that he is 
 more concerned about his own authority than 
 the pupil's salvation; and this has no better 
 eflfact on the youth than his penance in the court 
 at Canossa had on the Emperor Henry IV." 
 
 ZiNZENDORF. 
 
 15. On ver. 28. Necessity teaches prayer. 
 Necessity compels men to cast away all false 
 props and to stay themselves on Him, who alone 
 endures everlastingly. Yet this may be done 
 with insincerity, merely for outward advantage. 
 Then will God say : He who will not serve Me, 
 but will only serve himself with Me, has nothing 
 to hope from Me. He may serve himself with 
 those whom only he wishes to serve. 
 
 16. On ver. 30: Mich. Ghislerus, in his com- 
 mentary, discusses the question at length : — In 
 how far it may be said that the Lord has smitten 
 Israel in vain, since the means which God uses 
 always correspond exactly to the end in view, 
 and therefore the application of means without 
 the attainment of the object is inconceivable. 
 He answers in the words of Petrus a Figueira : 
 " Dicitur autem Deus frustra percussisse quantum 
 ad finem extrinsecum, qui erat emendatio percus- 
 sorum, non quantum ad internum, qui erat ipse- 
 met. Idea enim percutiebat eliam eos, quos sciebat 
 non recepiuros disciplinam nee emendationem, ut 
 omnibus se bonum medicum, bonumque parentem de- 
 monstraret, utpote omnia faciendo ad xgrotorum sa7ii- 
 tatem et filiorum disciplinam necessaria. At que 
 quoad hunc finem non frustra percussit, sed finem 
 conseculus est." Ghislerus more correctly dis- 
 tinguishes between a. percussio ffratix and a, pei-- 
 cussio Justitife, the former for salvation, the latter 
 for judgment. We must, indeed, say that the 
 strokes of God are relatively, but not absolutely 
 in vain. If they do not attain the end of conver- 
 sion, they show at least that God has done His 
 part, which is the meaning also of this passage; 
 and they serve for "a testimony against them." 
 Comp. Gal. iii. 4. 
 
 17. On ver. 30. In order that the divine chas- 
 tisement may have the desired result, it is neces- 
 sary that man enter into the divine purpose, /. e., 
 that he understand what God would say to him, 
 and whereto He would move him, and that he 
 also hear and obey. This is to accept the chas- 
 tisement. To accept chastisement is a sign of 
 wisdom (Prov. viii. 10: xix. 20), while not to 
 accept it is a sign of folly (Prov. i. 7; iii. 11, 
 12; V. 12, 23; xiii. 18; xv. 32. Comp. Ps. 1. 17; 
 Isa. i. 5). 
 
 18. On "Ye generation," ver. 31. "That 
 is not to be denied, which Paul says to the Cre- 
 tans, they are altogether koko. •&rii)ia. This ap- 
 plies sometimes to whole nations, sometimes to 
 certain cities and places. Servants of Christ, 
 who have fallen in such places where their 
 hearers are of a bad sort, experience it indeed." 
 ZiNZENDORF. — Ou " Havc I been a desert." etc. 
 "Where God bestows most benefits, there He re- 
 ceives the least gratitude." Foerster. 
 
 19. On ver. 32. The children of this world are 
 wiser in their generation than the children of 
 light (Luke xvi. 8). — A virgin who forgets her 
 bridal ornaments might be compared to the fool- 
 ish virgins who forgot their oil (Matth. xxv. 1), 
 nay, she is even worse than these. 
 
 20. On ver. 33, a. Not only zealous, but clever 
 and inventive is man in evil, but lazy and un- 
 skilful for good; comp. iv. 22. 
 
 21. On ver. 33, 6. ^■^eipovcnv fj^r] xPVoto. 
 ofiLXiai Kunai. (1 Cor. xv. 33). Every man is as 
 his God. Everything, which is called a god, is 
 inimical to the true God, therefore also to the 
 absolute idea of the True and the Good. All 
 kinds of idolatry, therefore, whether gross or 
 refined, must demoralize men. 
 
 22. On ver. 35, a. Men frequently from ob- 
 stinacy and pride will not confess their sins. 
 Comp. 1 John i. 8. But Zinzendorf [Pred. d. 
 Ger. S., 184) remarks with justice on this pas- 
 sage: "It is not so absolutely obstinacy and 
 wickedness, hypocrisy, dogmatism; but men 
 really come by many sins in such a way that 
 they do not know them. As that savage at Co- 
 penhagen who killed his comrade and was 
 severely wounded, thought that he should die 
 for such a legitimate cause (for the other had 
 insulted him)." 
 
 23. On vers. 36 and 37. " Serus post poenam luc- 
 tus. Sero sapiunt Phryges, si tamen vere sapiant, 
 non sero sapiunt." See. Schmidt. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On ver. 14-19. Israel's slavery an emblem 
 of the universal human slavery of sin: (1) In 
 both it is not original. (2) In both cases it is 
 self-incurred. (3) In both it is severely punished. 
 (4) In both the punishment is the means of sal- 
 vation. [1. "The nature of sin; it is forsaking 
 the Lord as our God. 2. The cause of sin : it is 
 because His fear is not in us. 3. The malignity 
 of sin, it is an evil thing and a bitter. 4. Tlie fatal 
 consequences of sin. 5. The use and application 
 of all this — repent of thy sin." Henry. — S. R. A.]. 
 
 2. On ver. 17. Penitential sermon: on a retro- 
 spect of the past three things are manifest. (1) 
 The goodness of God who sought to lead us in 
 the right way. (2) Our disobedience, in for- 
 saking the Lord our God. (3) God's justice, in 
 not allowing our rebellion to go unpunished. 
 
 3. On ver. 19. The evils of the present time 
 are (1), The consequences of sin (not natural 
 accessity, not chance, not tlie effect of an over- 
 powering evil influence), (2) Means of salvation 
 from sin, since by them we learn that [a) sin is 
 ruinous deception. (6) godliness is life and salva- 
 tion. 
 
 4. On ver. 20. The endeavor to cast off" the 
 yoke of God is (1) an ancient one (the angels. 
 
44 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 the apostasy, Israel), (2) a ruinous one; for (a) 
 it deprives us of true freedom : (b) it renders us 
 the servants of powers hostile to God and de- 
 structive to ourselves. 
 
 5. On vers. 21-25. The sinful corruption of 
 humanity is (1) not original, but (2) very deep. 
 (3) It cannot be denied away; (4) it cannot be 
 removed by external means. 
 
 6. On vers. 26-28. How ruinous a course it is 
 to trust in a creature: (1) who on account of 
 his weakness leaves us disgracefully in the lurch: 
 (2) we thus insult God and lose His help. 
 
 7. On vers. 29-32. When man quarrels with 
 God, the fault is always on the side of man (Ps. 
 li. 6). For (1) God chastises us, but we do not 
 obey : (2) He bestows on us the necessaries of 
 life, but we do not thank Him: (3) He makes us 
 partakers of the highest glory, but we reject it 
 with disdain. 
 
 8. On ver. 31. "Havel been a desert," ete., 
 there is extant a homily of Origen on this text, 
 the third of his homilies on Jeremiah. His 
 fundamental thought is, God is a desert to none. 
 This is true (1) in reference to all men (comp. 
 Matth. V. 45) (a) in a bodily, (6) in a spiritual 
 regard. For He was always a fruitful land to 
 Israel, (a) when He blessed them and punished 
 the heathen, (6) when He blessed the heathen and 
 
 punished them, (c) even when He allowed the 
 church of Christ to pass from the Jews to the 
 heathen. — ["An unjust imputation repelled by 
 Jehovah. To an ingenuous mind God never ap- 
 pears so irresistible as when He addresses His 
 creatures in the language of tender expostula- 
 tion. Christians treat God as a wilderness (1) 
 when they are reluctant to serve Him, (2) when 
 they seek their happiness in the world. The 
 ground of complaint is in them, not in God." 
 Payson.— S. R. A.] 
 
 9. On ver 32. "What is the adornment of 
 clothes compared with the imperishable adorn- 
 ment of the righteousness of Christ! Food for 
 moths and worms, and nothing more. Shall such 
 a perishable adornment be so dear to thy heart 
 that thou never forgettest to put it on when thou 
 art going out, or when thou preparest thyself 
 for church on Sunday: but the imperishable 
 adornment be so unimportant that thou art ever 
 forgetting it, even though so frequently spoken 
 to concerning it? No, be followers of the apostle 
 Paul, Phil, iii." Hochstetteb. "Twelve Para- 
 bles from the prophet Jeremiah," S. 9. 
 
 10. On ver. 35. Obstinate impenitence. (1) 
 It is blind to its own guilt. (2) It blasphemes 
 God, accusing Him of unjust anger. (3) It will 
 not escape just punishment. 
 
 THE SECOND DISCOURSE. 
 
 (chapters III. -VI.) 
 
 This discourse, according to iii. 6, belongs to the reign of Josiah, and moreover, according to iii. 4, 10; 
 iv. 1 to the period of his reformation, which occupied from the twelfth to the eighteenth year of his reign. 
 (2 Chron. xxxiv. 3, 8; xxxv. 19). Since Jeremiah began his ministry in the \Zth year of Josiah, 
 this discourse pertains to the period from the I'ith to the I8th year of Josiah, consequently to the 
 commencement of his ministry. Its position at the beginning of the book corresponds, therefore, eny 
 tirely to the historical date of its composition. 
 
 The discourse falls into two main divisions and a conclusion. It may be arranged as follows : — 
 
 I. FIKST MAIN DIVISION (CHAPTER III. 1. IV. 4.) 
 
 The Call to Return, ^iW. 
 
 1. Basis: — Notwithstanding Deut. xxiv. 1-4, a return is possible, iii. 1-6. 
 
 2. The call to return in the past, iii. 6-10. 
 
 3. The call to return in the future, iii. 11-25. 
 
 4. The call to return in the present, iv. 1-4. 
 
 II. SECOND MAIN DIVISION (CHAPTER IV. 5. — VI. 26.) 
 
 Threatening of Punishment on Account of their Neglect to Return. 
 
 1. Description of the judgment to be expected, iv. 5-31. 
 
 2. Proof of its justice by an enumeration of causes, chap. v. 
 
 8. Recapitulation, consisting of a combination of the call to return, the announcement 
 of punishment, and the ground of punishment, vi. 1-26. 
 
 III. CONCLCSION. OBJECT AND EFFEffiT OF THE DISCOURSE, (CHAPTER VI. 27-30). 
 
CHAP. III. 1-5. 
 
 46 
 
 FiEST Division (chapter hi. 1 — iv. 4). 
 
 The Call to Return, 2W. 
 
 1. Basis : — Notwithstanding Deut. xxiv. 1-4, a return is possible. 
 
 Ill, 1-6. 
 
 1 .... therefore, if a man dismiss his wife, 
 And she go from him and become another man's, 
 Will he return to her again ? 
 
 Would not such a land be desecrated ? 
 
 But thou hast whored it with many paramours, 
 
 Yet return to me, saith Jehovah. 
 
 2 Raise thine eyes to the hills^ and see ; 
 Where hast thou not been lain with T 
 
 By the roads thou satest for them like an Arab in the desert, 
 And desecratedst the land by thy whoredom' and wickedness. 
 
 3 And the showers were withheld. 
 And there came no latter rain : 
 But thou hadst the brow of a harlot, 
 And wouldst not be ashamed. 
 
 4 Hast thou not henceforth cried* to me, my Father ! 
 Thou, the companion of my youth ! 
 
 5 Will he then everlastingly mark,^ 
 And always bear a grudge ? 
 Behold, thus didst thou speak, 
 
 And didst the evil and didst prevail.* 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 2. — [Literally "bare heights" as Hitzig renders. Blatney incorrectly translates "open plains." — S. R. A.] 
 
 2 Ver. 2. — rOy^ N7 Per verecundiam the Masoretes always put for this the corresponding form from 2D^ Deut 
 xxviii. 30 ; Isa. xiii. 16 ; Zech. xiv. 2. [" A few MSS. and the Soncin. Edition also exhibit r\23\!/-" — Henderson]. 
 
 3 Ver. 2. — Tn-1JT a plural formation like DTl^jn, which occurs besides only in Num. xiv. 33, analogous to D'HOIA 
 frequent in Ezekiel, ch. xvi. (vers. 15, 22, etc.), and ch. xxii. (vers. 7, 8, etc.). Comp. Naegelsb. Or., g 48, 4. 
 
 * Ver. 4. — On the form TlXlp and ''r\T31, comp. rem. on ii. 20. 
 
 tIt -ITT 
 
 6Ver. 5.— To ^br and "lOB^'' suppl. 13X- Comp. ver. 12 ; Ps. ciii. 9. 
 
 • Ver. 5.— -On the form 7D1j^1 (for 'ID-ini)- Comp. EWAiD, g 191 6. [Notes translates this line, "but doest evil with 
 
 T ~ • : — 
 
 all thy might," but comp. Exeg. rem. — S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 That these verses belong not to chapter ii. but 
 to the following discourse, and indeed form its 
 basis, is evident from the following reasons : 1. 
 The fundamental thought of the previous strophe 
 was that Israel had incurred misfortune not by 
 Jehovah's fault but by his own. 2. It is shown 
 in ch. iii. 6-11 that hitherto neither Israel nor 
 Judah has been obedient to the call " return." 
 In vers. 12-25 it is shown that in the distant fu- 
 ture they will obey this call ; in ch. iv. — vi. that 
 if the people do not obey the call made to them 
 now, in the present, they must expect severe pu- 
 nishment, to be inflicted by a people from the 
 North. Since then the basis of the thought de- 
 veloped in iii. 1-5 is that the return of apostate 
 Israel is brought into connection with the regu- 
 lation of the Mosaic law, according to which a 
 woman who had been divorced and married to 
 
 another man, could not return to her former hus- 
 band, it is manifest that ch. iii. 1-5 attach them- 
 selves to what follows, and not to the previous 
 
 section. That "ION/ in ver. 1 does not mili- 
 tate against this, will be shown immediately, and 
 that this strophe serves as the basis of what fol- 
 lows will be clear from the explanation of 2W). 
 Ver. 1. . . . therefore : If a man dismiss his 
 wife . . . yet return to me, saith Jehovah. 
 
 The various explanations of "^DX/ may be di- 
 vided into two classes. 1. The LXX. and the 
 translations and commentaries which follow it, 
 (of the later Comm. also Gulcherus in Symb. 
 Hagan., CI. 1, Fasc. 1) omit it altogether. The 
 character of the LXX. renders it probable that 
 this omission was founded not on MS. evidence, 
 but in mere caprice. 2. It is connected with the 
 preceding, viz., DND, ii. 37, by Kimchi, Abab- 
 
46 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 BANEL, Luther, Bugenhagen, (Ecolampadius, 
 Vatable, Tremelli, Muenster, Stakke, Mau- 
 KER and HiTZiG. It is opposed to this connection, 
 
 (a) tliat the contents of this verse are as hetero- 
 geneous willi the previous verse as they are ho- 
 mogeneous with the following, as already shown; 
 
 (b) that IDX^ is separated from DNO by a 
 sentence, so that it would be intolerably harsh 
 to connect them. 3. Most commentators explain 
 
 it by the aid of an ellipsis before 1DN7, supply- 
 
 ina; 1DX', '' "ID^'I, 'h l^', noX ; so the Vul- 
 gate and the Roman Catholic divines; also Ra- 
 
 SCHI, ZWINGLI, BULLINGER, SeB. ScHMIDT, De 
 
 Wette, Rosenmuelleu, etc. But all these sup- 
 plementations are arbitrary and unexampled. 
 
 An idea, on which '^OX'7. depends as a more 
 particular definition, would no more be unex- 
 pressed in Hebrew, than one before "therefore" 
 in English. To render this clear we have be- 
 gun the translation of this verse thus " . . there- 
 fore." The passages Josh. xxii. 11 ; Jud. xvi. 
 2; Isa. ix. 8; xliv. 28 are indeed quoted as ana- 
 logous. But in the passages in Joshua and 
 Isaiah, the idea which serves as a point of sup- 
 port is not wanting, though only implied (comp. 
 Naegelsb. § 9.5, e). The passage in Judges 
 might be appealed to if a corruption of the text 
 were not very much to be suspected. 3. Calvin 
 
 And Venema seek to render *^08<7. i° such a 
 sense that it need not depend on the foregoing. 
 Calvin translates indeed dicendo, but would take 
 this in the sense of par manure de dire or of po- 
 sito casu. Venema modifies this interpretation, 
 rendering "if it is said, ' and regarding it as 
 the antecedent to which "saith Jehovah " at the 
 close of the verse, corresponds: — " If it is said. 
 Will a man return? etc. — yet saith Jehovah, thou 
 hast been lewd, yet return to Me." But leaving 
 
 out of account that "^DX? would then be su- 
 perfluous, this absolute use of it is quite uude- 
 monstrable. 5. J. D. Michaelis, Ewald and 
 
 Graf acknowledge that this isolated ^DX7 is a 
 
 grammatical anomaly, and therefore declare the 
 text to be corrupt. They assume that either be- 
 fore nnxS a formula like 'Sx '" ^21 'n;i 
 has dropped out, or that the date in ver. 6, after 
 
 which 10X7 contrary to rule, is wanting, should 
 be transposed to this place. The latter would 
 seem to be the most probable. [Henderson ren- 
 ders Further, which seems to be an evasion of the 
 difficulty. The English Editor of Calvin sug- 
 gests that 7 be rendered according to, "Ac- 
 cording to what is said," but as Wordsworth 
 notes, this phrase is the universal formula for 
 introducing a message from God; and he there- 
 fore regards it as used by the prophet to inti- 
 mate that what he is uttering is a quotation from 
 the Law of the Lord. Cowles renders " Say- 
 ing " and connects it with the preceding context. 
 Blayney, " whilst thou snyest." Noyes, " it is 
 said." — S. R. A.] — jH is here, as frequently, 
 used in a liypothetical sense, comp. Exod. iv. 1 ; 
 viii. 22; Levit. xxv. 20; Isa. liv. 15. The fol- 
 
 lowing contains a partial verbal reference to 
 Deut. xxiv. 1-4, where it is said, that a woman 
 who has been divorced and married again, can- 
 not when released from her second marriage by 
 separation or death, again become the wife of 
 her first husband, since this would be an abomi- 
 nation before the Lord, and increase the moral 
 corruption of the land, ^jn in an intransitive 
 sense (comp. XDCD Levit. xviii. 25) as in Isa. 
 xxiv. 5 ; Ps. cvi. 38 = prqfanari, to be dese- 
 crated. The LXX. reads ov niav&ijaETai f) ywri 
 kKEivri ; probably in connection with the previous 
 translation /u?) avjiKdfnpei TcpoQ avrSv ; which 
 change without doubt was intended to render this 
 sentence accordant with the subsequent applica- 
 tion (return to me). The Syrohexapla trans- 
 lation however follows the Hebrew, and Grabe 
 in his edition reads ij yij. So also Spohn. Both 
 are certainly wrong. — PUT with accus. of the 
 person is found also in Ezek, xvi. 28. Most of 
 the ancients (with the exception of the LXX. ave- 
 Ka/iTTE^, Ar. et revertereris? Theodor. tnavrieiQ. 
 Victor. Presb., Trwf enicTTpiipEig Tvpdg /ue) ; render 
 
 '7X 2Wy as imperative ; the moderns (Maurer, 
 HiTziG, Ewald, Umbkeit, Neumann, Graf) as 
 interrogative. I decidedly regard the first as 
 correct. As I have shown above it is the funda- 
 mental idea of the whole discourse that Israel is 
 to return to his Lord. The adherents of the 
 more recent interpretation also find themselves 
 compelled, to avoid contradiction, to take the 
 question not as a negation but as expressing 
 wonder, which is not logically admissible ; for 
 why should the Lord wonder concerning that 
 which, according to what follows, is His definite 
 wish? The vau is therefore to be taken as ad- 
 versative — " although in accordance with legal 
 regulations, I ought not to receive you, yet I 
 say, Return to me." The appeal to the passage 
 in the law belongs to the domain rather of pro- 
 phetic rhetoric than of morals ; for the command 
 refers to a physical relation, which does exist 
 between Jehovah and His people. If however 
 we interpret this relation spiritually, we prove 
 too much, for every sin is spiritual adultery. 
 When it was remarked above that this strophe 
 forms the introductory basis of the discourse, it 
 was meant that in this strophe, (a) an apparent 
 hindrance, (b) a false presumption is removed 
 which might stand in the way of a true return. 
 The apparent hindrance is the legal regulation 
 which is removed by an authoritative decree 
 (vers. 1-3 a). The false presumption is that 
 pseudo-conversion, which took place under Jo- 
 siah, and which consisted in this, that the peo- 
 ple sought to deceive themselves and others with 
 fine words, which their deeds proved to be lies 
 (vers. 3 6-5). 
 
 Ver. 2. Raise thine eyes . . . and vsricked- 
 ness. These words furuish the actual proof of 
 "thou hast played theharlot," etc., ver. 1. — Hills. 
 Comp. "high mountain," Isa. xiii. 2. Mons 
 culmine phinu.t. silva non conlcc/ii.s. 
 
 Vt-r. 3. And the show^ers w^ere withheld 
 . . . wouldest not be ashamed. The first 
 hemistich i-et'iilus the objoctiou that Israel com- 
 mitted this wickedness unreproved, comp. ii. 30. 
 The divine displeasure was rendered palpable by 
 the withholding of the necessary rain (v. 25; 
 
CHAP. III. 1-5. 
 
 47 
 
 coll. iv. 18; ii. 19), but Israel refused to be 
 brought by this chastisement to perceive, confess 
 and repent of his sin. With the boldness of a 
 harlot who not only does not confess that she has 
 done wickedly, but does it besides as though she 
 had a claim to the recognition of her services, — 
 with such boldness does Israel speak in a con- 
 fident and affectionate tone to the Lord, and even 
 ventures on a gentle reproach for undeserved 
 severity. While ver. 2 expresses a subordinate 
 thought which merely defines more particularly 
 a point in ver. 1, and to which ver. 3 a is attached 
 as a corollary, vers. 4, 5 express the second main 
 thought of the strophe, to which ver. 3, b servea 
 as a transition. 
 
 Ver. 4. Haat thou not henceforth cried 
 to me . . . the companion of my youth? — 
 Henceforth appears to refer to the time when 
 the people recognized the divine anger in the 
 withholding of the rain, for then they at once 
 became, at least in words, friendly and officious. 
 But it is not equivalent to IKD. from times of old. 
 
 We are thus led to conjecture that the three 
 facts, withholding of rain, hypocritical conver- 
 sion of the people, and this prophecy, were con- 
 temporaneous. This is also confirmed by a com- 
 parison of the dates in i. 2 and 2 Chron. xxxiv. 
 8. According to the latter passage Josiah began 
 in the twelfth year of his reign "to purge Judah 
 and Jerusalem," while according to Jer. i. 2, 
 our prophet commenced his ministry in the 13th 
 year of Josiah. Now, since according to iii. 6, 
 the present discourse belongs at any rate to the 
 time of Josiah, and from its position and con- 
 tents, probably to the beginning of Jeremiah's 
 prophetic labors, the prophet doubtless, as Chr. 
 B. MicHAELis, RosENMUELLER, HiTzio and Graf, 
 have also perceived, describes in vers. 4 and 5 
 the conduct of the people in the time of Josiah's 
 reformation, to which there is also a very dis- 
 tinct allusion in ver. 10. The prophet, there- 
 fore, says henceforth, because really even at 
 the time when he proclaimed this divine message, 
 such voices were still heard from the midst of 
 the people. We need not, therefore, render it 
 in the sense of haud ita pridem, nor shall cry, in 
 the future. On companion of my youth, 
 comp. Prov. ii. 17. 
 
 Ver. 5. Will he then everlastingly mark ? 
 . . . prevail. In these words of the first hemis- 
 tich is a slight reproach. It is as though Isi-ael's 
 misfortune was due to the pertinacious anger of 
 Jehovah. — The sense of the second half of the 
 verse is this: — the acts of the people are in contra- 
 diction to their words, that the latter were not 
 honestly meant, but were false and deceptive. 
 Observe the antithesis of saidst and didst. 
 Comp. a similar want of uprightness on the part 
 
 of proverbial character (comp. 1 Sam. xxvi. 25), 
 it is evident that the idea of a struggle lies at 
 the basis of the antithesis mentioned, and didst 
 prevail intimates that the struggle will be de- 
 cided in favor of the evil. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. That a man live a second time with a wo- 
 man whom he has divorced, and who has been 
 the wife of another man, is regarded as an 
 abomination which corrupts the land. In what 
 does this abomination consist? Not that the 
 woman has previously been the wife of another, 
 for then a divorced woman is not permitted to 
 marry the second time, and all marriages of 
 widows would be an abomination. In this case 
 then the abomination must consist in this, that 
 the man takes back a woman who had first been 
 his wife, but afterwards another's. Not the 
 series A-fB-f C, etc., is forbidden, but the series 
 A4-B-(-A. But why is this ? Michaelis, (i/o*. 
 Rechte., 1 S. 241, 2), after his manner seeks the 
 ratio legis in this, that if the re-marriage were 
 permitted, the second husband's life would not 
 be safe, should the old love be revived, or that 
 the chastity of the woman would not be safe, her 
 feminine modesty not being easily able to resist 
 the advances of one to whom she had formerly 
 yielded. But this is superficial talk. The 
 matter must lie deeper than this, and be founded 
 in the laws of a higher corporeality, which are 
 still far too little known to us. It is remarkable 
 that according to the Koran (Sur. II., 226), a 
 man is at liberty to take back a divorced wife 
 only in case she has been in the meantime the wife 
 of another man. Comp. Michaelis, Mos. Rechte., 
 I. S. 237. 
 
 2. " Quodlibet igitur studendum 
 ut 
 
 of the people, ii. 35. — '73'ir»2 didst prevail, is 
 here used as in xx. 7, 9. Comp. Gen. xxxii. 28; 
 1 Sam. xxvi. 25; 1 Kings xxii. 22. It is strange 
 here that the preceding verbs do not appear to 
 involve the idea of effort, as is the case in the 
 
 other passages and as the meaning of Sd' (to be 
 grown, to be able, to set through) seems to re- 
 quire. But leaving out of account that HB';^ and 
 ly following one another, seem to have a sort 
 
 Quodlibet igitur studendum unicuique est, 
 evitetur peccatum sicut fornicatio, quia per pec- 
 catum quodlibet qusedam cum aliqua creaturarum 
 admit titur for nicatio, per quam membra Christi fiunt 
 membra iniquitatis, duoque fiunt in came una." 
 Ghislerus. 
 
 3. "How great is the goodness of God, when 
 the sinner wilfully thrusts Him away from 
 him, yet God receives him again into His favor 
 when he truly repents! Ezek. xviii. 21, 22." 
 Starke. 
 
 4. '■'■ Reverter e ad ms et mundaberis, reparaberis, 
 si confundaris tibi et refundaris mihi." AuausriN. 
 contra Faustum, I. 15, i. f. 
 
 5. "The feeling of need to call God Father 
 and beseech Him to save, is not an infallible 
 sign of true penitence, Isa. xxvi. 16." Starke. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 The mercy of God to sinners is, — 1. On the one 
 side endless (the prohibition of re-marriage with 
 a former wife, who has been married to another, 
 — the sinner is not dismissed, but is voluntarily 
 apostate, sin is not a conjugal, but an adulter- 
 ous relation, — still the Lord is ready to receive 
 the sinner back); 2. On the other hand limited, 
 in so far that it is connected st«-ictly with the 
 fulfilment of a condition (not a hypocritical re- 
 turn with fine words, but only sincere, earnest 
 return, with fruits meet for repentance, can ren- 
 der us partakers of His grace). 
 
48 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 2. 7^e call to return in the Past. 
 III. 6-10.* 
 
 6 The Lord [Jehovah] said also unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast 
 thou seen that which backsliding^ Israel hath done ? She hath gone up upon every 
 
 7 high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath played the harlot. And 
 I said after she had done all these things. Turn thou unto me ! But she returned 
 not. And her treacherous sister [Faithless, her sister] Judah saw it. 
 
 8 And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adul- 
 tery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce ;^ yet her treacherous* sis- 
 
 9 ter Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also. And it came to pass* 
 through the lightness [correctly : cry] of her whoredom, that she defiled the land,® 
 
 10 and committed adultery with stones and with stocks [wood]. And yet for [notwith- 
 standing] all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not turned to me with her whole 
 heart, but feignedly [hypocritically ; lit. in falsehood] saith the Lord [Jehovah]. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 * [As this passage presents no signs of poetry I 'nave followed Blaynet, Notes, and Henderson in giving it the form of 
 prose. Umbreit prints it in parallelisms, while Wordsworth renders not only these verses but the whole chapter as prose. 
 — S. R. A.1 
 
 * Ver. 6. — n3tyO rejection, revolt, apostacy, the abstract for the concrete ; comp. Naegelsb. 6r., § 19, 1. The word in 
 
 T \ : 
 this sense is peculiar to this chapter; comp. viii. 11, 12. Comp. also viii. 5. 
 
 3 Ver. 8. — nTirr'TS. The plural here only, comp. Deut. xxiv. 1, 3 ; Isa. 1. 1. 
 T '. • : 
 
 * Ver. 8.— mj3 is related to miJ3 as 331ty (vers. 14, 22) to riDK'D. On the form comp. Naegelsb. dr., g 47, 1; 
 
 T" T T T T '- : 
 
 EWALD, ? 188, b. 
 
 5 Ver. 9. — riTll here as in 1 Sam. xiii. 22 : xxv. 20, and elsewhere, stands for TTV Comp. Naegelsb. Cfr., ? 88, 7, Anm. 
 
 6 Ver. 9.— I'lXrrnX njnni, a frequent paratactlc construction. Comp. I'im 1iyj7'31i Gen. xxii. 24. Comp. 
 NAEaELSB. 6r., g 87, 7 ; ? ill, 1 b.' ' 
 
 EXEQETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The theme of this strophe is " Return unto 
 Me" (ver. 7, comp. ver. 10). It is however 
 shown how this call hitherto, in the past, has 
 been heeded, or rather not heeded, by Is- 
 rael and Judah. The main regard of the pro- 
 phet is naturally directed to Judah. Israel 
 serves only as a foil ; on the background of the 
 transgression of Israel, which should have served 
 for a warning to Judah, the sin of the latter 
 stands out still more glaringly. 
 
 Ver. G. And Jehovah . . . played the har- 
 lot. If as cannot be disputed there is a close 
 connection between this strophe and the pre- 
 ceding, it is evident that this inscription is not 
 in place. For it would indicate the beginning 
 of a larger section, while here, on the contrary, 
 there is intimate connection. The greater sec- 
 tion begins at ver. 1. The isolated and puzzling 
 
 *irDX7 requires a sentence before it, where then 
 this inscription belongs. The reason of its 
 transposition from ver. 1 may be, as Graf sup- 
 poses, that ver. 10 contains an evident allusion 
 to the reformation of Josiah. But he overlooks 
 the fact that such an allusion is contained also 
 in vers. 4 and 5. — Upon every high moun- 
 
 tain. Comp. ver. 13; ii. 20.— "'jmi. If this is 
 not the 2d Pers. Fern., which would be possible 
 only by a violent change of person, the forma- 
 tion is to be explained either according to the 
 
 analogy of 'Cpptt'O (Jer. xlvii. 7) as an Arama- 
 isni (comp. Ewald, | 191, c, and Anm.) or ac- 
 cording to the analogy of ''HTpP (Jer. xviii. 23) 
 
 as a n 7~ formation with prominence of the ra- 
 dical Yod (comp. Ewald, g 221, c). Olshausew 
 [S. 510, A7im.) at once assumes an error. 
 
 Ver. 7. And I said . . . sister Judah saw- 
 it. It is not necessary, with Graf and others to 
 
 take "1QJ<1 in the sense of "I thought," and 
 2Vdr\ as 3d Pers., since the Lord not only 
 thought this but really said it to Israel. This "Re- 
 turn to Me " is the underlying theme of all pro- 
 phetic admonition (Jer. xxxi. 20). In this passage 
 it is emphatic. It points back to the Yetreturn 
 to me in ver. 1, and with the following return- 
 ed not represents the main thought of the sec- 
 tion. In form D1K?n is like SdiP in ver. 5 — 
 And Faithless, her sister Judah. To take 
 miJlS as subst. absir. corresponding to riD-ltyO 
 = faithlessness, would form a fine parallelism; 
 but we should then expect mi:i3. The form 7lDj5 
 
CHAP. III. 6-10. 
 
 49 
 
 with firm 1 (11^3 even or HT'i'a only here and 
 
 in ver. 10) designates everywhere else only cow 
 creta. Comp. Ewald, | 152, 6. The position 
 of the word and the absence of the article seem 
 to intimate that it is intended for a proper name, 
 and we have therefore written it with an initial 
 capital. — The Keri ^")n] is unnecessary, nxini 
 does not indeed occur elsewhere, but nj-t^jl does 
 (1 Sam. xvii. 42 ; 2 Ki. v. 21 ; Job xlii. 16 ; 
 Ezek. xviii. 14, Keri, 28) ; and ns<"}31 (1 Sam. 
 X. 14) leaving out of account the analogous forms 
 of other verbs, ex.gr. nK;T;ni, Jer. xxxii. 20; 
 
 xxxvi. 5, 26, etc. — The question whether it is 
 to be translated "and Judah saw it," or whe- 
 ther the object seen is contained in the follow- 
 ing sentence beginning with '3 depends on the 
 other, whether the following >*^N1 is genuine 
 
 and original. 
 
 Ver. 8. (A.nfl C saw) . . , played the har- 
 lot also. The construction: "I saw, that I, 
 because she played the harlot, had dismissed Is- 
 rael, and I gave her a bill of divorce, and Judah 
 feared not," is not so devoid of meaning, as Qbaf 
 supposes, if we change the paratactic mode of 
 expression into the syntactic. The main object 
 of saw^ is feared not, All that lies between 
 has the force of a parenthetical clause of adver- 
 sative signification: "And I saw, that, although 
 I had dismissed Israel, and given her a bill of 
 divorce, yet Judah feared not" Comp, Nae- 
 OELSB. CrT , § 111', 1, Anm. But at all events the 
 connection of verses 7 and 8 is interrupted in a 
 very awkward way by And I saw. Verse 7 
 concludes in this way, that Judah had seen how 
 Israel had not returned at the call of Jehovah, 
 and then ver. 8 designates as the object of the 
 divine seeing what, according to the conclusion 
 of the whole course of thought, vers. 8 b, 9, 10, 
 must he the object seen by Judah. For the pro- 
 phet draws a parallel between the behaviour of 
 Israel and of Judah. Israel, first apostate, is 
 called tc repent, but returns not and is rejected. 
 Judah sees this and — also does not return. It is 
 evidently in this connection very essential that 
 Judah should have perceived not only the im- 
 penitence 01 Israel, but also the punishment he 
 thus incurred. The very sight of this destruc- 
 tive judgment should have brought Judah to sin- 
 cere repentance Judah's seeing the impeni- 
 tence, but not the judgment, the latter being as- 
 cribed tc the; Lord, introduces an inappropriate 
 element intc the connection, although we cannot 
 say that an incorrect idea would be thus origi- 
 nated, li hcwevei we omit the words, and I 
 saw. we have a perfectly clear and satisfactory 
 connection The critical authorities indeed give 
 no safe support tc its rejection. Only Jerome 
 omits the word, but whether on MS. evidence, 
 may be questioned He is followed by Luther 
 in his translation, and Gulcher. Symb. Bag., 
 CI. 1. Fasc. 1 The LXX. Chaldee and Arabic 
 versions certainly found it in their copies of the 
 original But the Syriac appears to have read 
 ^'."'^•J the same word twice, and this Ewald re- 
 gards as the correct reading. — If ><"1>{1 is an 
 error it is at any rate a very ancient one. Ac- 
 cording to the rule of preferring the more diffi- 
 cult reading, it is certainly safer to retain it, al- 
 4 
 
 though it is easy to conceive a reason for its 
 insertion. If we strike it out, the words "her 
 sister ludah saw " belong to the following sen- 
 tence, and the second hemistich of ver. 7 con- 
 sists merely of the words "But she returned 
 not." The brevity of this clause may have been 
 the occasion of connecting the words "and 
 Faithless," etc., with ver. 7, but then it became 
 necessary to introduce a verb in the beginning of 
 ver. 8, as N'lXI or NIDI. — For all the causes. 
 
 "?^ before nnx and "IK'N after it, are found 
 here only. Elsewhere nni< is always con- 
 nected with a following genitive (Gen. xxi. 11, 
 25; xxvi. 32. Exod. xviii. 8) or with sufiSxes 
 (Josh. xiv. 6) i'^ expresses the multitude of 
 the adulteries (hence Graf suitably translates 
 " alldieweilen " = for all the causes). "It^X is 
 rendered necessary to the connection of nnx 
 with a finite verb. As a relative particle in the 
 widest sense, (Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., g 80, 1) 
 it involves here the meaning of eo quod, thereby 
 that, (on the ground of all the occasions that 
 have been afforded thereby, that, etc. ) 
 
 Ver. 9. And it came to pass . . . with 
 wood. 7p is elsewhere always written plene. 
 On account of this unusual defective manner of 
 writing the ancient translations seem to have de- 
 rived the word from SSp; for the Vulgate 
 translates " facilitate fornicationis sum contamina- 
 vit terram; LXX. /cat eyevEro e'lc oMev y iropvEia 
 "■v-r^r, Arab., '■'■fuit fornicatio ejus cum nihilo ;" 
 Chald. " levia videbantur idola in o cults ejus." — 
 But this defective manner of writing is not a 
 sufficient reason for departing from the primary 
 meaning (comp. Gen. xxvii. 22), nor is this in 
 
 itself doubtful. Only we must not take Sp in 
 the sense of "report" (Gen. xlv. 16), but the 
 prophet means to say that so far as the land 
 extends, so far also whoredom with idols, as a 
 heaven-crying sin, defiles the land (comp. Gen. 
 iv. 10). It may not be objected to this, that the 
 cry for the vengeance of heaven does not defile 
 the land, for this cry is not an immediate, but 
 a mediate provocation of the divine justice ; 
 that is, by their very impudent appearance 
 (this is their cry), their sin challenges the 
 justice of God. — As to the construction with the 
 accusative, we need neither to read ^JHill with 
 Ewald, nor to strike out ilX with Graf. For 
 the intransitive verb may be taken in a passive 
 sense, and accordingly, as the passive, may have 
 an accusative of the proximate object which may 
 be regarded as dependent on an ideal transitive, 
 ^jn is to be desecrated (comp. Fubrst), therefore 
 properly rendered et profanatum est terram. This 
 pro/anatum est is, however, properly no more 
 than profanare in a passive-perfect statement ; 
 et factum est profanare terram. Comp. ^T '?X 
 ■^^^lI"^?? (^ Sam. xi, 25; coll. 1 Sam. viii. 6: See 
 Naegklsb. Gr., ^69, Anm. 1; | 100, 2.) Cer- 
 tainly pxn ^Jnn may also be said (Ps. cvi. 38.) 
 Ver. 10. Further, notwithstanding all 
 this . . . but hypocritically, saith Jehovah. 
 — If we should refer the words "Further," etc., to 
 what immediately precedes, they would retain 
 
oO 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 no meaning, for it is absurd to say that Judah 
 in spite of lier idolatry had yet not repented. 
 They refer rather to ver. 8, a, where it was said 
 that the Lord had repudiated Israel. On this 
 account a double accusative thought is added; 
 (1) "feared not," etc., ver. 8 b.; (2) "notwith- 
 standing all this," ver. 10. Although .Judah had 
 witnessed the punishment of Israel, she did two 
 things; first, she continued the whoredom of 
 idolatry, and then sought to appease Jehovah 
 by a hypocritical conversion, by which the pro- 
 phet apparently alludes to the reformation of 
 Josiah, which was entered on in earnest by the 
 king, but not by the people. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. God in His judgments has in view not 
 merely those who are primarily affected by 
 them, but those who witness them also. If the 
 latter do not allow themselves thus to be warned, 
 their guilt increases just in the proportion that 
 the judgment might have been an impulse and a 
 help to repentance. Comp. 2 Kings xvii. 18; 
 Prov. xxviii. 14; 1 Cor. x. 6, 11 ; 2 Pet. ii. 4-6, 
 (vTrdSeiyfxa ^sTCkdvTuv aaefislv te^eikuc, ver. 6. ) 
 
 2. "Blessed is he who is rendered wise by the 
 losses of others." Cramer. Comp. Jer. xviii. 
 6-8: Zech. i. 3. 
 
 3. Ghislbrus remarks that the present pas- 
 sage has been frequently interpreted allegori- 
 cally. Thus the Abbot Jo.\chim de Flore {ob. 
 1202, Commentary on Jeremiah, printed at 
 Venice, 1525, and Cologne, 1577), interprets it 
 of the Greek and Roman church (comp. Herzog's 
 Real-Enc, VI. S., 713). Nicolaus de Lyra in- 
 terpreted it of the rich monastic orders, and the 
 
 mendicant friars; Cardinal Hugo (deSt.Caro, one 
 of the inquisitors of the Abbot Joachim, o6. 1263), 
 of the "illiterati et sseculares pravi," and of the 
 " improbi reliffiosorum et clericorum et literatorum." 
 
 4. Origen also treats of this passage (iii. 6-10) 
 in his fourth homily on Jeremiah (in Jerome it 
 is the fourteenth). He understands by Israel, 
 the whole Jewish people, and by Judah, the Gen- 
 tile church which, in spite of the judgments in- 
 flicted on Israel before their eyes, had in the 
 course of time fallen into many sins and errors. 
 
 5. Ephrem Syrus emphasizes the encourage- 
 ment contained in ver. 7 ("Return to me "), when 
 he says (Tom. 1. In threnis de div. retributione, ac- 
 cording to Ghisler.), "Otniseranda anima quous- 
 que torpescis et de salute animuvi despondes? Quam 
 veniam in die judicii assequeris, quuni salvator per 
 prophetam exclamet dicens : ad me reverterel'" 
 
 6. On ver. 10. Though the reform of Josiah 
 was only a pseudo-revival, it furnishes us with 
 the means of judging how deep a genuine revival 
 must go. If thy right eye ofl"end thee, pluck 
 it out and cast it from thee (Matth. v. 29; xviii. 
 8, 9- Markix. 43-48). 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. The severity and ,the goodness of God in 
 His dealings with the Jewish nation (Rom. xi. 
 22): (1) His severity in His judgments upon 
 Israel; (2) His goodness in His constantly re- 
 peated invitations to return (ver. 7.) 
 
 2. The difl"erence between false and true re- 
 pentance. (1) False repentance; (a) its ground 
 — servile fear; [b) its effect — external reform. 
 
 2) True repentance ; (a) its ground — love to God ; 
 b) its eflfect — honest fruits of sanctification. 
 
 3. The call to Return in the Future (iii. 11-25.) 
 a. How and whom God will call, 
 m. 11-17. 
 
 11 And Jehovah said to me, Apostasy Israel 
 Has justified her soul before Faithless Judah. 
 
 12 Go and cry these words to the north, and say. 
 Return' Apostasy Israel, saith Jehovah. 
 
 I will not lower my face^ against you, 
 For I am merciful, saith Jehovah, 
 I do not bear a grudge for ever.* 
 
 13 Only acknowledge thy sin, 
 
 That thou hast transgressed against the Lord thy God, 
 
 And hast run hither and thither to the strangers under every green tree, 
 
 And ye have not heeded my voice, saith Jehovah. 
 
 14 Return, apostate children, saith Jehovah, 
 
 For I am your husband* and take you one from a city, 
 And two from a tribe and bring you towards Zion. 
 
 15 And give you pastors after my heart. 
 
 And they shall pasture you with understanding^ and judgment.® 
 
CHAP. III. 11-17. 
 
 51 
 
 16 And it shall come to pass, when ye shall multiply, 
 And spread in the land in those days, saith Jehovah, 
 
 It will no more be said, Ark of the covenant of Jehovah ! 
 And it will no more come to mind,' 
 Nor will they remember it or esteem it ; 
 Also they will not make it again 
 
 17 At that time Jerusalem will be called Jehovah's throne , 
 And all the nations shall gather to it, 
 
 To the name of Jehovah, to Jerusalem, 
 
 And will no more follow the perverseness of their evil heart. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 [Ver. 11. — Blatney, Notes and Henderson, render vers. 11, 12 as prose. — S. R. A.] 
 
 8 [Ver. 12. — Henderson renders : I will not continue to frown upon you. — Notes : I will not turn a frowning face upoi 
 you.— S. R. A.]. 
 
 3 Ver. 12.— nSIE'i apart from the assonant n^tyO the paragogic He is neyer attached to forms with vowel terminations. 
 
 T \ : 
 Comp. Naegelsb. Gr. § 23 , Anm. 5 
 
 *[Ver. 14. — HiTziG, Umbreit and others, translate "lord, master." Henderson and Notes follow De Wette, Gesenius 
 and others in rendering " I have rejected you ;" Notes also renders, " yet will I receive you again." — S. R. A.]. 
 
 » Ver. 15.— nj^T nom.verbaU. Comp. Exod. ii. 4; Isa. xi. 9; xxviii. 9. 
 
 • Ver. 15. — b'iltyn Inf. abs., with substantive meaning as Prov. i. 3 ; xxi. 16 ; Dan. i. 17. On the ace. adverb. Comp. 
 
 ■■ ■ T 
 
 Naegeisb. Gr., ? 70, k. 
 
 7 Ver. 16. — ^31. The Kal with 3 here only; the Hiphil is so construed in Ps. xx. 8; Am. vi. 10; Isa. xlviii. 1, analo- 
 gously to the construction of verba sentiendi with 3. Comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., g 112, 5, a. On 3*7" 7j? TViy"- Comp. li 
 50; Isa. IxT. 17. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The purport of this and the following strophe 
 points evidently to the future. We find the call 
 
 ^2W, nS'K' here also, addressed in the first in- 
 stance to the Israel of the ten tribes, then to the 
 whole people ; but he who calls has the conscious- 
 ness, that no longer, as hitherto, is he preaching 
 to deaf ears. The times are changed. Israel 
 repents, and a period opens before him of un- 
 anticipated outward and spiritual glory. The 
 prophet comprises in his view first the past and 
 the future, then the present, for the same rea- 
 son that he treats of the present so much more 
 at length; he has the present Israel most at 
 heart; it is his object to subordinate the Past and 
 the Future as means. Before, therefore, he en- 
 ters in detail into the present condition of things, 
 he seeks by brief and significant intimations con- 
 cerning the past and future, to make an impres- 
 sion on the hearts of his hearers. 
 
 Ver. 11. And Jehovah . . . Judah. It re- 
 sults from the preceding section that Judah, be- 
 sides the aids afi'orded by the temple and the 
 legitimate royalty, had also the example of Israel 
 before her as a powerful impulse to amendment. 
 The consequence of leaving these advantages un- 
 employed, is that Israel appears more righteous 
 than Judah. Comp. Ezek. xvi. 51, 52, the reverse 
 of the expression, KaraapiviLv, Matth. xii. 41, 
 coll. ver. 1^7. This point, favorable to Israel, 
 serves the prophet as a point of support for a 
 consolatory prophecy which is addressed pri- 
 marily to Israel. 
 
 Ver. 12. Go and cry these words toTwards 
 the north . . . I. do not bear a grudge for 
 ever. — Go and cry, comp. ii. 2. — To'wards 
 the north. Comp. ver. 18. The prophet is to 
 cry towards the north because Israel was carried 
 captive into Assyria, towards the north. Comp. 
 
 xvi. 15; xxiii. 8; xxxi. 8. — Lower my face, 
 comp. Gen. iv. 5, 6. The expression denotes 
 that lowering of the countenance, which is ac- 
 companied by the look which Homer portrays in 
 the expression vir66pa Iduv. — Bear a grudge, 
 comp. ver. 5. 
 
 Ver. 13. Only acknowledge . . . heeded 
 my voice. The only condition of the grace 
 promised in ver. 12 is acknowledgment of sin. 
 The prophet of course means that fruitful ac- 
 knowledgment which includes corresponding 
 action, comp. Luke xii. 10, 11. — "'ITSm, comp. 
 
 ii. 23, 25, 36 {'h]P)) \lit. scattered (thy ways)]. 
 
 Ver. 14. Return . . . tow^ards Zion. The 
 
 old call in a new form. No longer Apostasy 
 Israel is addressed (so Israel alone is called, 
 comp. ver. 6), but apostate children. This 
 not only sounds more comprehensive, but seems 
 besides in ver. 22, to be the common designation 
 of both halves of the people. Observe further, 
 that the following strophe, ver. 18, begins at 
 once with the declaration that Judah and Israel 
 would come together. This seems to be the per- 
 formance of the command given them in ver. 
 14. Finally in vers. 14 and 17, the possession of 
 Zion and Jerusalem is spoken of. Should Judah 
 be excluded from this possession? Evidently 
 then the prophet in vers. 11-13. turns first to 
 Israel, who had the preference, because less was 
 given him ; but, although he does not expressly 
 name Judah, wishing to excite her to emulation 
 by the promise of salvation apparently addressed 
 to Israel alone (comp. napa^tjlovv, Rom. xi. 14), 
 yet in substance the pictures of the two kingdoms 
 in the prophetic perspective, pass impercepti- 
 bly into one another, vers. 14-17. This strophe 
 is thus preliminary to the following, in which the 
 union of Israel and Judah is the fundamental 
 
 idea. — For I am your husband, etc., 7^3 (as 
 verb, denom. ^^to be Lord, possessor, especially 
 
02 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 a spouse, to take a wife), is certainly elsewhere 
 construed with an accusative (Isa. xxvi. 13 ; liv. 1 ; 
 
 Ixii. 4), or with S (1 Chron. iv. 22). But the con- 
 struction with 3 is possible, because the verbs of 
 ruling (comp. Gen. iii. 16; Deut. xv. 6; Judges 
 Tiii. 22) are thus connected. The explanation 
 of KiMCHi, ScHLEUSSNER, ScHNURRERaud Others, 
 
 who would take 7^3 here as in xxxi. 32, ac- 
 cording to the doubtful analogy of the Arabic 
 (See Hengstenberq, ChristoL, II., S. 41G), in 
 the meaning "to be disgusted, to disdain," is 
 admissible neither here nor in xxxi., 32 [vide 
 ad loc), and the less in this place, that we are 
 obliged to take '3 in the sense of although. It 
 
 is also grammatically incorrect to take ^T\l^l in 
 the sense of the future, as some do, following the 
 example of the LXX. [KaTaKvpiemuv/j.uv). Rather 
 does the Lord ground His promise of blessing on 
 the fact that He is Israel's husband, and has 
 never ceased and never will cease to be so. Comp. 
 the remarks on ii. 1-3. — One from a city, etc. 
 EiCHHORN, EwALD, Graf Understand this: "and 
 even if so few fulfil the condition of true return," 
 (named in ver. 13). But to the ear it would 
 then be definitely stated that only a few would 
 return. We should then also expect the anti- 
 thesis of HDO, ni3X r\"'3 or £33^?. The expres- 
 sions city and tribe (comp. Gen. x. 5; xii. 3; 
 Ps. xxii. 28; xcvi. 7), intimate rather that the 
 prophet has the cities and tribes of the heathen 
 in view. He would evidently indicate the great 
 scattering of Israel, cast out among the heathen, 
 and would say that great as this scattering was, 
 if ex. ffr., there were only one Jew in a city, or 
 only two in a whole nation; yet these members 
 of the holy family, almost vanishing amid the 
 mass of the heathen, should not be forgotten. 
 Thus also KiMCHi and Rosenmueller. [Notes 
 and Henderson.] 
 
 Ver. 15. And give you pastors . . . under- 
 standing and judgment. The promise that 
 Israel shall be gathered out of his dispersion 
 (ver. 14) contains an allusion to the final period, 
 and this point is now brought out more clearly. 
 Pastors after God's heart can be those only, who 
 are no longer as hitherto (comp. Hos. viii. 4), 
 governed inwardly or outwardly by the spirit 
 of the world, but who allow themselves to be 
 guided by the Spirit of God alone, and are there- 
 fore fit instruments for the realization of God's 
 kingdom upon earth. There is here an unmis- 
 takable allusion to David, the man after God's 
 own heart (1 Sam. xiii. 14; Acts xiii. 22), and 
 at the same time the representative of the idea 
 of God's kingdom in its earthly realization 
 (2 Sam. vii.), as well as to Solomon, who next 
 after David, prayed for and received wisdom 
 and judgment from God (2 Chron. i. 10, 11). 
 The explanation of the older commentators, who 
 understand by the pastors, Zerubbabel, Joshua, 
 Ezra, or the Apostles and their successors, may 
 have this much of truth in it that the return 
 under Zerubbabel or the Christian Church may 
 be numbered among the beginnings of the ful- 
 fillment of this promise. At any rate we must 
 understand spiritual as well as worldly pastors 
 
 (TToi/iti'tx 2-aioi>). Comp. x. 21; xxiii. 4; Ezek. 
 xxxiv. 23 ; John x. 1. 
 
 Vers. 16 and 17. And it shall come to 
 pass . . . evil heart. These verses portray in 
 a few but expressive traits the character of that 
 future epoch. Its characteristic feature will be 
 this, that in the place of a merely representa- 
 tive there will be a real and therefore, exten- 
 sively and intensively, an infinitely active pre- 
 sence of God. The pastors of understanding 
 and judgment will bring about a period of pros- 
 perity to which it is an essential element, that 
 Israel from the little heap, which according to 
 ver. 14 it will be on its return to the land, will 
 become as to numbers a respectable nation. 
 Comp. xxiii. 3, 4; Isa. xlix. 18-21; liv. 1-3. 
 As in the beginning of the human race, as the 
 basis of all further steps towards the attainment 
 of its destiny, the command was given to be 
 fruitful aud multiply (H")' ^13, Gen. i. 28 ; ix. 
 
 1), of which we are reminded by the sound of 
 the words here (DD'^SI 131^), and as the family 
 of Jacob in Egypt had first to develop into a 
 great people before it could be the receptacle of 
 the fundamental revelation of the kingdom, so 
 according to this passage the Israel of the future 
 is first to become numerous, in order to be fitted 
 for the concluding and perfected revelation of the 
 kingdom. — In those days. Though connected 
 with the preceding by the accents, which make a 
 pause at niD' DNJ, these words belong, at any 
 
 rate in meaning to it will no more be said. 
 
 They correspond to "'3 as turn to a previous 
 quando. — Ark, etc., is not the accusative of the 
 object dependent on say, but an exclamation; 
 and the latter word, therefore, is not to name, to 
 mention, but to say, to speak. The word " ark of 
 the covenant " will no more be heard, because 
 the thing itself and every thought of it will have 
 disappeared. The ark will not be an object of 
 desire or remembrance. In consequence of this 
 it will no more be looked for or sought, as some- 
 thing that is missed (1 Sam. xx. 6; xxv. 15; 
 Isa. xxxiv. 16; 1 Chron. xiii. 3) and still less 
 prepared anew. — Will not make it. Luther : 
 they will no longer sacrifice there, but TW}} occurs 
 
 in this meaning without an object-accusative 
 only at a very late period (2 Ki. xvii. 32), and it 
 is not credible that the prophet should designate 
 this important idea by an expre-^sion so easily 
 misunderstood. The Chaldee, Raschi, Grotius 
 and others render " and it shall no more take 
 place," but they difi"er among themselves in refer- 
 ence to what shall no more take place. They thus 
 resort to arbitrary supplementations (the taking 
 of the ark i^to battle 1 Sam. iv. 11 ; ca quic 
 nunc in bello fieri solent ; the previously stated). 
 The only natural subject is ark. — Jehovah's 
 throne. The period when the ark is lacking, 
 described in ver. 16, does not represent a retro- 
 grade but a progressive interval. What the ark 
 has hitherto been to Jerusalem (Exod. xxv. 18- 
 22; Numb. vii. 89; Ps. Ixxx. 2; xcix. 1) Jeru- 
 salem is now to be in relation to the nations. 
 All .Jerusalem is now to be the throne of the 
 Lord. The prophet's glance penetrates to the 
 remotest distance, without distinguishing the 
 progressive stages into which the final period 
 itself is divided. While thus this prophecy on 
 
CHAP. III. 11-17. 
 
 53 
 
 one hand reminds us of Micah iv. (coll. Isa. ii. 2 
 sqq.; Zech. viii. 20; Jer. xxxi. 6. Comp. Casp. 
 Micah der Morasth. S. 453), on the other hand it 
 reminds us of Rev. xxi. — The dechiration of this 
 passage that Jerusalem itself will be the throne 
 of God is covered by the declaration of the 
 Apocalypse that the New Jerusalem will be the 
 tabernacle of God with men (xxi. 3) as the 
 earth was in the beginning (Gen. iii.), and as 
 the glory of Melchisedek consists in his being 
 the representative of tliat original relation to 
 God. Comp. tlie article in Herzog, Real-Eiic. 
 on Melchisedek, IX., S. 303. Comp. also Ezek. 
 xlviii. 35 ; Joel iv. 17. The correspondence of 
 the Jerusalem of this passage with the New Je- 
 rusalem is further intimated by what is said in 
 Rev. xxi. 22, 23, that the latter will have no 
 lemple, neither sun nor moon, but all these the 
 Lord Himself will be to it. The analogy of this 
 declaration with that in Jeremiah concerning 
 the absence of the ark is strikingly evident. 
 Comp. Tholuck, Die Propheten und ihre Weiss. 
 S. 154 and 194. — This analogy is finally con- 
 firmed by the declaration that all the heathen 
 will assemble in the name of God at Jerusalem, 
 for a similar declaration is made in Revelation, 
 on the basis of many prophetic passages (Isa. 
 Ix. ; Ixvi. 18 sqq. ; Zech. xiv. 16 ; Zeph. iii. 9, 
 10; comp. Rom. ix. 24-26; x. 18-20) of the 
 New Jerusalem in xxi. 24, 26. — To the name. 
 The expression is supported by the passages 
 Exod. XX. 21; Deut. xii. 5, 11 : coll. 1 Kings 
 viii. 16 sqq. ; 2 Chron. vi. 5 sqq., where even 
 the first earthly sanctuary is lesignated as the 
 residence of the name of Jehovah. As the pre- 
 position /X designates the direction in space, so 
 
 7 before D117 designates the object of the coming; 
 to Jerusalem, however, cannot be the bare re- 
 petition of the idea in it (HiTzia) any more 
 than the addition of a later hand, for it renders 
 the sense more difficult, instead of more easy, 
 on which account the absence of the word in 
 the LXX and the Syriac is evidently due to the 
 critics. We can regard it only with Hengsten- 
 
 BBKG as the more exact definition of '"' OK/7, be- 
 fore which "lU'X is to be supplied. It has then 
 a causative sense; not Jerusalem is the object 
 of the assembling of the nations, but the name 
 of the Lord, which belongs to Jerusalem, and 
 Jerusalem only in so far as the name of the Lord 
 was inseparably connected with it. — And will 
 no more follow, etc. The expression n^TiJ^ 
 DS"* is found on the basis of Deut. xxix. 18, 
 
 T ■ 
 
 also in Ps. Ixxxi. 13, and in Jer. vii. 24 ; ix. 13 ; 
 xi. 8; xiii. 10; xvi. 12; xviii. 12; xxiii. 17 — 
 in all these places of Israel. It has nothing in 
 
 itself which requires this limitation, it may 
 therefore be used also in a wider sense, so that 
 the heathen, in so far as Jerusalem is also their 
 centre, may be reckoned together with Israel. 
 All then, Israel and the heathen, will finally lose 
 their stony heart and receive a heart soft and 
 filled with the Spirit (Ezek. xi. 19; xxxvi. 26), 
 and not outwardly only but witli the whole heart 
 will they be subject to the Lord and His king- 
 dom. — If we once more look over this strophe 
 we are struck above all by the sublimely rapt 
 progress of the prophet's discoui'se from the 
 circumstances of the present to the remotest 
 future. The prophet proceeds from the compa- 
 rison of the Judah of the present with the Israel 
 in a certain sense belonging already to the past. 
 This comparison issues favorably to Israel. Thus 
 a prophecy is called forth which sets in prospect 
 before Israel the highest material and spiritual 
 prosperity. With this two questions are con- 
 nected. Since the realization of this prosperity 
 is connected with the condition of Israel's con- 
 version, the question arises. Will this conversion 
 take place? and when? The prophetic gaze can 
 in the inconceivably distant ages perceive no 
 element of religious or political restoration in 
 the Israel of the ten tribes, as these are in fact 
 unknown even to the present day. It must then 
 be reserved for the final period (D'^D'H IT'inx 
 Mic. iv. 1) to bring back the lost ten tribes to 
 the light, — thelight of knowledge and of salvation. 
 But here another question also arises. Will not 
 Judah also participate in this light of know- 
 ledge and salvation ? These two questions then : 
 What will become of Judah ? and How is it as to 
 the conversion required in ver. 13 ? still wait 
 for a solution. We may indeed read this solution 
 from ver. 14 between the lines. But the sublime 
 haste of the prophet's flight hindered him from 
 giving it in express words ; he adds it therefore 
 in the following strophe. 
 
 (Special dissertations on this passage by Los- 
 CANus, Frankfort, 1720; Zickler, Jena, 1747; 
 Frischmuth, Jena). 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. ["Here is a great deal of Gospel in these 
 verses, both that which was always gospel, God's 
 readiness to pardon sin, and to receive and en- 
 tertain returning, repenting sinners, and those 
 blessings which were in a special manner re- 
 served for gospel-times, the forming and found- 
 ing of the gospel-church by bringing into it the 
 children of God that were scattered abroad, the 
 superseding of the ceremonial law, and the 
 uniting of Jews and Gentiles, typified by the 
 uniting of Israel and Judah in their return out 
 of captivity." Henry. — S. R. A.] 
 
64 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH, 
 
 b. Supplement of the preceding, stating more exactly who is called and how the call is received. 
 
 III. 18-25. 
 
 18 In that day the house of Judah and the house of Israel shall walk together, 
 And shall come with each other from the north country 
 
 Into the land which I have given your fathers for an inheritance. 
 
 19 And I said : How will I put thee among the children, 
 And give thee a pleasant land, 
 
 The most glorious inheritance among the nations ! 
 And further I said, My Father thou wilt call me,* 
 And wilt not turn away behind me. 
 
 20 But ! Was ever a woman faithless to her lover, 
 So were you faithless towards me, 
 
 house of Israel, saith Jehovah. 
 
 21 A cry is heard on the hills. 
 
 The weeping supplication of the children of Israel ; 
 That they have perverted their way, 
 Have forgotten Jehovah, their God. 
 
 22 Return, ye apostate children, 
 
 1 will heal" your apostasies ! 
 Behold, we come' to thee, 
 
 For thou art Jehovah, our God. 
 
 23 As certainly as hills are false, 
 Mountains an empty sound,* 
 
 So certain is the salvation of Israel 
 With Jehovah our God. 
 
 24 Shame however hath devoured the gains of our fathers from our youth, 
 Their sheep and their oxen. 
 
 Their sons and their daughters. 
 
 25 Let us lie in our shame. 
 And our disgrace cover us, 
 
 That we have sinned against Jehovah our God, 
 We and our fathers from our youth to this day. 
 And have not heeded the voice of Jehovah our God. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 19. — The Masoretes would read 'XIpH and '^I^H on account of ^r}''K'X and !J7, but unnecessarily. [" The 
 
 Keri are founil in the ti'xt of upwards of tliirty MSS., and in some of the earlier editions, and would seem to deserve the 
 preference, on the ground of ^JX in tlie .singular occurring immediately before. The LXX, Arab., and Syr., however, have 
 
 * T 
 
 read ilX'^pp the present textual reading." Henderson. — S. R. A.] 
 
 2 Ver. 22. — On the exchange of the forms I'K? and iTT) comp. Ewald, § 142, c ; 198, 6 ,• Olshausen, § 233.— In reference 
 to X3"^ and riDT comp. Jer. vi. 14, coll. viii. 11 ; xix. 11 ; li. 9. The Masoretes approve of the Chethibh here, while they 
 correct it in xi.x. 11, because here the vowel ])ronunciation is correct (1 Pers. with Heparag.) but not in xix. 11. 
 
 3 Ver. 22. — -1 jr\X instead of Oi^n J< (Comp. Naegelsb. Gr. § 10, 11, Anm. from XJIX. comp. Isa. xxi. 12), and this instead 
 
 T T T T T T 
 
 of ;yr\X: comp. Olsuausen, § 233 b; Bw.^ld, g 198, h. 
 
 ■ T 
 
 * Ver. 23. — ["On the authority of thirty-six MSS. and others in the margin, two early editions, the LXX., Arab., Hexa- 
 plar, Syr., the Pcshito, Aq., Symn., Vulg. Tion should be pointed JIOH in the construct." Henderson. In the render- 
 ing Henderson and Notes follow the A. V.; Blaynev has " Surely hills are lies, the tumult of mountains ;" Hitzio, "for a 
 deception from the hills is the host of mountains;" Umbreit, " Verily ! a lie is become from the hills, the tumult of the 
 mountains." — S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This strophe evidently consists of two parts, 
 of which tlie first (ver. 18-19) treats of the par- 
 ticipation of Judali in the prosperity promised to 
 
 Israel, the second (vers. 2y)-'lo) of the conversion 
 of both as one which satisfies all demands. 
 
 Vers. 18. In that day an inheritance. 
 
 Reference to the last siiophe. Comp. at that 
 time ver. 17. — together, in the sense of heaping 
 so tliat those are designated as upon one another, 
 
CHAP. III. 18-25. 
 
 55 
 
 j9f whom we should speak as together, with each 
 other, is frequent: Gen. xxviii. 9; xxxii. 12; 
 Exod. xii. 9; xxxv. 22; Amos iii. 15; Job 
 
 xxxviii. 32. We see also that 7jk^ is to be re- 
 garded as a preposition from the following 
 sentences where their coming in company is 
 manifestly the result of their meeting together. 
 The promise of a reunion of the exiles from Ju- 
 dah and Jerusalem, and their return in company 
 to the land of their fathers is found also, — to 
 mention only the principjil passages, in Hos. ii. 
 2 ; Isa. xi. 11 ; Jer. xxx. and xxxi. ; 1. 4, 5 ; 
 Ezek. xxxvii. 15-17. — It forms an essential ele- 
 ment in the glorious picture of the future, which 
 prophecy presents by the announcement of a 
 glorious restoration of Israel to Canaan after 
 long humiliation and dispersion. To the origi- 
 nal passages Levit. xxvi. 42-45; Deut. xxx. 1- 
 10 ; xxxii. 36-43 follows a long series of pro- 
 phetic declarations, of which the most important 
 are Ps. Ixxii.; Isai. ii. 2-4; iv. 2-6: ix. 1-6; 
 Chap. xxiv. sqq; Ix. sqq ; Jer. xxix. 10-14; 
 xxx.,-xxxiii. ; Ezek. xxxiv. 23-25; Joel iv. 16; 
 Am. ix. 8; Ob. 17-21; Mic. iv. 5; Zeph. iii. 
 14-20 ; Zech. ii. 4, sqq. viii. 7 sqq ; ix. 9 sqq. 
 X. 8sqq. — Comp. Auberlen, der proph. Daniel, S. 
 391 sqq. — Hebart, The Second Visible Coming of 
 Christ, {Die Zweite, etc. Erlangen. 1850. S. 70, 
 84, etc.) 
 
 Ver. 19. And I said . . behind me. If 
 above, in the concluding remark on the preced- 
 ing strophe, we have correctly defined its rela- 
 tion tovers. 18-25, it follows that ver. 18 does 
 not belong to the foregoing, and that vers. 19 and 
 20 are not connected as thesis and antithesis, as 
 most modern commentators would have it. The 
 reasons for this view are the following: (1) ver. 
 18 seems then entirely isolated. Graf says: 
 "Only in passing is a glance cast in this verse 
 at the final destiny of Judah." But the destiny 
 of Judah demands more than a passing glance. 
 Either an elucidation concerning the fate of 
 Judah must be interwoven with the contents of 
 the preceding discourse, or Judah must be spoken 
 of in appropriate measure in a special section. 
 (2) According to the view which I combat, there 
 is a hiatus between verses 18 and 19. With 
 ver. 19, the discourse proceeds to an entirely 
 new subject, the relation of which to the preced- 
 ing can be designated neither by a separative 
 nor by a connective particle. The Vau before 
 OJX accordingly appears not only superfluous, 
 but interruptive. (3) If vers. 19 and 20 are so 
 'connected that the former declares the expectation 
 cherished by Jehovah, the latter the sad non- 
 fulfilment of this expectation, the discourse 
 makes a spring from ver. 20 to ver. 21 which 
 could not be more abrupt. No one would then 
 expect the delightful continuation of the dis- 
 course after ver. 20. Suddenly and without 
 preparation we are met by the description of 
 Israel's penitence. In short, verses 19 and 20 
 do not then at all agree with what follows, and 
 since they are equally severed from what pre- 
 cedes, they appear to be a wholly needless and 
 interruptive interpolation. It will therefore be 
 correct to attach ver. 19 closely to ver. 18, as a 
 short but satisfactoi'y description of the condi- 
 tion of the entire Israelitish people after their 
 
 return to the land of their fathers. In the form 
 of an objection, which is subsequently removed, 
 ver. 20 then forms an appropriate transition to 
 the second subject, concerning which, as re- 
 marked above, the prophet had to pronounce in 
 this strophe. The emphatic "'JJX, "I,"ontb 
 one hand forms an antithesis to Israel an 
 Judah in ver. 18, and on the other brings out the 
 importance of the promise here given — Not a 
 man, but /, Jehovah, declare this. TIIDK is. 
 neither future, as ex. gr. Seb. Sch.midt supposes, 
 nor is it a narrative preterite, so as to refer to 
 a definite event in the past, as ex. gr., Abarbanel 
 reads, referring it to the exodus from Egypt. It 
 simply presents this declaration of God as an 
 accomplished fact. It asserts that there is a 
 divine decree of the afterwards designated im- 
 port. But thus this import is absolutely guaran- 
 teed, for the Lord's word is true, and what He 
 says is certain (Ps. xxxiii. 4). The strange addi- 
 tion, ytvoLTo Kvpie, which the LXX. make after 
 Kal iyi) elna, may be explained by the circum- 
 stance, as we may gather from Theodoret, that 
 they understood "'JJX not of God but of the pro- 
 phet, and since I put thee among the chil- 
 dren could not possibly be uttered by the pro- 
 phet, they supplied him vfiih vf ovds ex propriis.— 
 The explanation of this expression of reception 
 among the children, agrees well with that view 
 of the connection which has been rejected by us, 
 although it is still strange even according to 
 this view, that ver. 20 should pass over to an- 
 other picture. We should expect that the Israel- 
 ites, in view of the gracious purpose of God 
 expressed in ver. 19, would be designated as 
 disobedient children (comp. Isai. i. 2), and not 
 as a faithless spouse. We render the expression 
 with the Chaldee, Bdgenhagen, Luther, Cla- 
 Rius, Grotius, Schmidt, Venema, Hitzig in the 
 sense of bestowing a rich paternal benediction. 
 On the importance of such benediction, compare 
 the remarks on ver. IG; Kueper {S. 9,) calls this 
 a benedictio vers theocratica. Israel and Judah, ac- 
 cording to ver. 14, having returned in small num' 
 bers must before all become a numerous people. 
 The promise in ver. 16, made primarily to Israel, 
 is here presented to the view of both. — Venema 
 mentions, that they say also in Dutch, jemant in- 
 
 kinderen setten. Comp. J^K'''3 TV\^ in salute poiiere, 
 Ps. xii. 6. — a pleasant land. Comp. Ps. cvi. 
 24; Zech. vii. 14. — a most glorious inheri- 
 tance. It is a question whether to derive 
 niN32; from N3y or from 'JV. Both are gram- 
 matically possible. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr. S. 106; 
 Olshausen, I 145, 6; Ewald, § 186 e; ^ 55, e. 
 
 Comp. D'N3V (Gazelles) 1 Chron. xii. 8; and 
 r\iXDi* (in the same meaning) Song of Sol. ii. 7; 
 iii. 5. — It is of no account that the form occurs 
 elsewhere only as St. constr. from N^i' (Exod. 
 xii. 41 ; 1 Kings ii. 5), and that '3i' in the sense 
 of decus does not occur elsewhere in the plural, 
 since for the sake of a play upon words the pro- 
 phet might employ an unusual expression. The 
 juxtaposition of the singular and plural to form 
 a climax, is also, as is well known, not infre- 
 quent; Eccles. i. 2; Ezek. xvi. 7. Comp. 
 Naegelsb. Gr. § 61, 3. The decision is the more 
 difiicult since the meaning in both cases is tha 
 
56 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 «ame (Maurer). Most commentators preferring 
 the more normal form decide in favor of the de- 
 rivation from X3:;. Yet I would prefer the deriva- 
 tion from OX. Since the juxtaposition of 
 mN3i* "3X seems more pregnant and forcible 
 than the flat and tautological D'U nUX3:f. Be- 
 sides which the Holy Land is elsewhere called 
 "•3^ ]'")«, Ezek. XX. 6, 15; Dau. xi. 16, 41.— 
 "lONI we translate: "And further I said," for 
 from the first divine decree flows a second of 
 this import, that Israel will not only receive but 
 show himself worthy of receiving. That which 
 Israel spoke before (ver. 4) in hypocritical pre- 
 tence, will be presented in the future, which the 
 Prophet has in view, in glorious reality. 
 
 Ver. 20. But! Was ever woman faithless 
 to her lover? . . . O house of Israel! saith 
 Jehovah. In these words the Lord Himself 
 raises a protest against the promise given to 
 Judah and Israel in verses 18 and 19. How 
 shall such glory be imparted to this people, who 
 have hitherto been distinguished only for their 
 infidelity ? JDN is taken by many, ex. gr. Fuerst 
 [Handwb. s. v.) Ewald, {Lehrb. S. 273,) in a 
 relative signification^ so as, entirely so as. But 
 there is no example of this meaning and it is not 
 necessary that there should be here a particle 
 of contingency or comparison. (Comp. Isai. Iv. 
 9; coll. vers. 10, 11). We therefore take {DX 
 (which like '^*:5 may from the meaning "tantum, 
 only " obtain an affirmative as well as a restric- 
 tive sense) here=zbut, however, which meaning it 
 undoubtedly has in Ps. xxxi. 23; Ixxxii. 7; Isai. 
 xlix. 4; Zeph. iii. 7. Since the prophet in this 
 strophe has in view the period of re-united Israel, 
 Israel or house of Israel is to be taken in 
 these verses to 4, 2, not in the restricted sense 
 of ver. 6 sqq. but in the wider sense mentioned. 
 (Comp. Isai. i. 3, etc.) 
 
 Ver. 21. A cry is heard on the hills .... 
 forgotten Jehovah, their God. With dra- 
 matic vividness the penitent people are now 
 brought forward to refute the exception taken in 
 ver. 20, in such a way that ver. 21 designates 
 their appearance in general outlines, ver. 22 
 the call to the people to repent, repeated from 
 ver. 14; and in the following verses it is shown 
 by the verba ipsissima of the people, how they re- 
 sponded to this call. — On the hills. These 
 high places which had formerly been the seats of 
 wickedness (see ver. 2) are now the scenes of 
 penitence, comp. vii. 29. 
 
 Ver. 22. Return, ye apostate children . . . 
 for thou art Jehovah, our God. The same 
 callus iu ver. 14, from which we see that this pas- 
 sage is closely connected with that. The ques- 
 tion; Will the people respond to the call? there 
 obtruded itself. Here it is satisfactorily an- 
 swered. It might be asked why the words 
 "Return, etc," do not come before ver. 21. But 
 this verse is only to describe the disposition of 
 the people towards repentance, their general 
 penitence. Israel was indeed formerly " faith- 
 less" (ver. 20), but now they acknowledge their 
 sin and are able to obey the call, should it again 
 be heard as before (ver 22, a) in a manner well- 
 pleasing to God. (ver. 22, b-25)— I will heal, 
 etc. The thought is from Hos. xiv. 5. In the 
 connection of heal with the plural it seems to 
 
 be implied that the Lord will both pardon th«|f 
 single acts, and remove the evil root. 
 
 Ver. 23. As certainly as the hills are 
 false . . . Jehovah, our God. Yfithoui Dagesh 
 forte r\1J73Jp would mean the priests' caps, 
 
 since the word occurs in this sense only ; Exod. 
 xxix. 9; xxviii. 40; xxxix. 28; Levit. viii. 13. 
 But what have these to do here ? The Masoretes 
 have therefore punctuated the J with Dag. forte, 
 iu order thus to secure the meaning of " hills." 
 Now the explanation of the |0 prepares new 
 difficulties. The ancient translators ignore this 
 iD altogether, and yet take the rest in the sense 
 of colles. The later commentators (if they do 
 not with LuD. de Dieu take D''")n =offerre, i. e. 
 
 victimas) either supply jD before D'^H or alter 
 TliOn into X'^'OT} Besides this they difl"er very 
 widely in determining the meaning of tlDH. — 
 It seems to me that the prophet understood the 
 word ni^3J0 in the sense of "hills," and chose 
 it for the sake of its secondary meaning. Al- 
 though the word occurs in the Old Testament 
 only in the sense of " priests' caps," yet "hills" 
 was the original meaning from which the other 
 was developed, the word being transferred on 
 account of the hill-like shape of the caps. Now 
 as ex. gr. the word for weapon in German 
 (Gewehr) has gradually assumed the meaning of 
 musket, but might be used in its original and 
 more general sense in a manner intelligible to 
 every German, so here the prophet has employed 
 a word restricted by usage to a special meaning, 
 in its original signification in such a way that 
 at the same time he intended an allusion to the 
 secondary sense. Not the hills are the deceivers, 
 but the priests, of whom Elijah on this account 
 slew a great number (1 Kings xviii. 40). In 
 |1Dn which means tumult, strepitus, there may be 
 an allusion to the bacchanalian noise of the un- 
 chaste idol-worship. Comp. Am. v. 23 — "lp.t?^7 
 like V.W1 has become an adverb and signifies 
 false, deceptive, useless. (Levit. v. 24; xix. 12; 
 1 Sam. XXV. 21 ; Jer. v. 2; vii. 9: viii. 8 ; xxvii. 
 15; Zech. v. 4; MaL iii. 5). JJX is taken by 
 the commentators both times in the affirmative 
 sense, (iv. 10; viii. 8). It appears to me that 
 this doubling includes also the idea of reciprocal 
 
 relation (comp. n3~n3, '}^l^-V?) ■ as certainly 
 as the hills are vanity and nothing, so certainly 
 is Israel's salvation in Jehovah, their God. 
 
 Ver. 24. Shame, however . . their sons 
 and their daughters. Not merely as vanity 
 and nothing, but as positively injurious are the 
 idols opposed to the real saving power of Jeho- 
 vah. The Vau at the beginning of this verse 
 corresponds especially to the last clause of ver. 
 23, as containing the main thought, and is ac- 
 cordingly adversative=AoM'ei>er. P\U2Tt. From 
 11, 13; Hos. ix. 10 we see that ^1^3 is here 
 
 placed in parallelism with 7;?3. Kimchi re- 
 marks that in ancient names composed with nt^D 
 the place of this word is afterwards supplied by 
 
 hi;2. Hence for nty^-tJ^'K 2 Sam. ii. 8 ; S^IS'X 
 1 Chron. viii. 83. For h'^^y_ Judges vi. 32' 
 
CHAP. III. 18-25. 
 
 67 
 
 n^31^ 2 Sam. xi. 21. From all this we see that 
 the abstract DJif^ is to be regarded primarily as 
 
 an ironical synonym of /J^3. the chief deity. 
 From what, however, is ascribed in this passage 
 
 to nE'S the prophet cannot have had merely 
 Baal in mind but also the other idols. All these 
 have from the youth not of the spealier, but of the 
 people generally (comp. the golden calf, Exod. 
 xxxii., and Baal Peor, Num. xxv.), devoured the 
 substance of the fathers, in part immediately by 
 sacrifices which were not due to them as to the 
 Lord, in part mediately by the judgments which 
 such apostasy brought upon the people. 
 
 Ver. 25. Let us lie . . . the voice of Jeho- 
 vah, our God. As vers. 22-24 contain acknow- 
 ledgment and confession, so ver. 25 contains 
 shame and sorrow. As the penitent seats him- 
 self in dust and ashes (Job xlii. 6 ; Dan. ix. 3), 
 so they casting themselves down in the feeling 
 of their shame, would lie before the Lord, and 
 as the penitent clothes himself in sackcloth (1 
 Kings xxi. 27: 2 Kings vi. 30; xix. 1, 2,) or 
 veils his face (Exod. iii 6; 2 Sam. xv. 30), so 
 would they, deeply feeling their disgrace, hide 
 their countenance before the Lord (comp. the 
 publican, Luke xviii. 13). The entire guilt 
 which the people had incurred from their youth 
 up ( ii. 2 ; Hos. xi. 1) is according to the scale 
 of Ps. xxxii. 5, to be expiated. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On ver. 21. Although Paul in Gal. vi. 4, 5, 
 says that every one should prove his own work, 
 that he may have praise in himself and not in 
 another, and that every one will have his own 
 burden, yet we read on the other hand that the 
 people of Nineveh and the Queen of Sheba will 
 in the day of judgment condemn the yeved of 
 Christ's contemporaries (Matt. xii. 41, 42; 
 comp. ver. 27; 11, 21, etc.). The apparent con- 
 tradiction is dispelled when we consider that 
 Paul in the Epistle to the Galatians urges the 
 absolute standard against those who desire to 
 find in the faults of others a mantle for their own, 
 that is, that every one will be judged above all 
 and essentially according to that which he is in 
 and of himself. Christ Himself, however, in the 
 passages cited applies the relative standard to 
 those who, in the blindness of their pride, believe 
 themselves beyond comparison better than all 
 others. To these it is said that a comparison may 
 certainly be made, but that it will result to their 
 disadvantage, since the guilt which they have in- 
 curred, notwithstanding the most favorable cir- 
 cumstances, will serve for a ground of mitigation 
 for others, who have sinned in less favorable cir- 
 cumstances, (av£KT6TEpov earai, Matt. xi. 22, 24). 
 
 2. '■^ Erubesce Sidon, ait mare. Quasi enim per 
 vocem maris ad verecundian Sidon adduciiur, quando 
 per comparaiionem vitse ssecularium atque in hoc 
 mundo fluctuantium ejus, quimunitus et quasi stabilis 
 cernitur, vita reprobafur." Gregor M. in Isidor. 
 Hisp. Vide Ghisler. S. 289. 
 
 3. On vers. 12, 13. The grace of God is an 
 open door to every one who knocks with the fin- 
 ger of penitence, 1 John i. 8-10. '^Erranti medi- 
 cina confessio — Cessat vindicta divina, si confessio 
 frsecurrat humana." Ambros. 
 
 4. Ghislerus. " Deus sol hominis et homo sol 
 Dei. Quod Deus sit sol hominis, indicatur eo, quod 
 peccatores metaphora designati sint aquilonis. Ut 
 enim ah aguilone sol sensibilis, ita a peccatoribus 
 Deus, sol jusiitix longe est. Quod antem homo 
 quodammodo sit et Dei sol, indicat ipsemet Deus, 
 dum ait: reverttre aversatriz Israel et non avertam 
 faciem meam a vobis ( Vulg.). Significat enim 
 ad hominem se habere ut heliotropium ad solem ; 
 convertente homine se ad Deum, coni>ertit statim et 
 se Deus ad ilium ; eoque non se avertente, nee Deua 
 faciem suam ab illo avertit." 
 
 5. On ver. 14. "God in proof of his mercy 
 keeps his covenant, which men have broken by 
 their sins, as strictly and securely, as though 
 they had never broken it. Ezek. xviii. 22." 
 Starke. 
 
 6. On ver. 15. Donatur, fato non decidit arbort 
 mysta. 
 
 A teacher true never falls from a tree. 
 But comes by divine authority. 
 
 M. G. Albrecht. Hierarch. Eccl. Cap. 10. 
 
 7. On ver. 16. " The ceremonial law and cus" 
 torn must have an end, and the ark of the cove- 
 nant, as only a shadow of good things to come, 
 must also cease to be (Heb. x. 1). It is therefore 
 only a rabbinical fiction, that people still derive 
 consolation from the second book of Maccabees 
 (ii. 5), as though the ark of the covenant were 
 somewhere in a mountain and would eventually 
 be found, for the true ark of the covenant, which 
 is found again, is Jesus Christ, the true Messiah 
 typified by the Ark." Cramer. The manner in 
 which Jeremiah here speaks of the ark of the 
 covenant is moreover so extraordinary that we 
 may apply to it the words of Matthew xvi. 17. 
 Flesh and blood have not revealed it unto thee, 
 but my Father in heaven. The ark at that time 
 in the reign of Josiah was again regarded with 
 the greatest reverence (comp. 2 Chron. xxxv. 3 ; 
 III. Esd. i. 3, 4). What a divinely lofty and 
 distant view must the prophet have had to be 
 able to treat the ark as he here does, as some- 
 thing of small account! 
 
 8. The view that this prophecy was fulfilled by 
 the return under Zerubbabel and Ezra is opposed 
 by the fact (1), that not even the whole of Judah, 
 not to speak of the whole of Israel then returned 
 (of the latter a few at most : comp. Heezoo Real- 
 Ene. XIV. S. 773; I. S. 651); (2), that not 
 even Judah had then returned to the Lord, not 
 to speak of the conversion of the heathen. Ita 
 fulfilment by the founding of the Christian 
 church is contradicted by the fact, (1) that the 
 reunion of Judah and Israel had not yet taken 
 place, the latter people must still be regarded as 
 unknown (comp. Herzoo, Real-Enc. I. S. 651 ; 
 XVII. iS". 284): (2) that Israel in general has reject- 
 ed the Lord and refused to enter the Christian 
 church (comp. Rom. chap. xi. -xii.): (3) that the 
 heathen have indeed begun to turn to the name of 
 the Lord and to the Jerusalem that is above (Gal. 
 iv. 26), but that this has taken place neither in 
 such measure nor in such a manner that we can 
 recognize in it the complete fulfilment of that 
 which this passage declares of the conversion of 
 all nations and the removal of their hardness of 
 heart. We must therefore still wait for the com- 
 plete fulfilment of this prophecy. The argument 
 
68 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 of Bertheau in his essay, "The Old Testament 
 prophecies of Israel's imperial glory in his own 
 land," {'■'■Die Alttest., Weiss, etc" In Jahrb. f. 
 deutsche Theol. IV. 2, 4; V. 3,) which he urges 
 from the point of view that many prophecies 
 remain unfulfilled, because men on their part 
 have not fulfilled the required conditions, is not 
 applicable here, for in ver. 20, sqq., it is express- 
 ly said that Israel will comply most satisfactorily 
 with the single condition imposed by the Lord, 
 (ver. 13). 
 
 9. On vers. 18 and 19. As the separation of 
 the kingdom of Israel from the kingdom of Judah 
 may be regarded as the type of the denomina- 
 tional divisions in Christendom, so the reunion 
 here promised may be regarded as a type of all 
 true union. This must always rest on a double, 
 negative and positive, basis: (1) on the funda- 
 mental return of both from the false ground on 
 which they have been standing (typified by the 
 common exit of both tribes from the north coun- 
 try, the land of captivity) : (2) on unreserved 
 sincere devotion to the Lord, who is for both the 
 only source of life and truth, (typified in the 
 words "My father, wilt thou call me, etc." ver. 
 19). The result of this will be a condition of 
 glorious prosperity in the church (typified in the 
 first clause of ver. 19). 
 
 10. On vers. 20-25. The peculiarities of true pe- 
 nitence meet us plainly in this section : it proceeds 
 from the inmost heart (the weeping supplication 
 of the people, ver. 21, as well as their deep 
 shame evince this, ver. 25). It is free from all 
 false penitence, which proceeds merely from 
 the feeling of the disadvantageous consequences 
 of wickedness. Its principle is rather sorrow at 
 having grieved God by the rejection of His holy 
 love. This is intimated by the second clause of 
 ver. 21. True penitence, finally, is made known 
 by the honest fruits of repentance. These are 
 here set forth in the words " I will heal your 
 apostasies " ver. 22, and by the detestation of 
 evil, and yearning for the Lord, which are ex- 
 pressed in vers. 24, 25. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On ver. 11. " To what reflections should 
 the declaration of Scripture give rise, that the 
 divine judgment is determined by the compari- 
 son of men with each other ? 1. We should re- 
 flect that it is impossible for us to institute this 
 
 comparison with perfect justice ourselves. 2. 
 We should therefore draw from comparison with 
 others occasion neither for despair nor false com- 
 fort. 3. We should rather allow this comparison 
 to be a motive to severe self-discipline. 
 
 2 On ver. 12. Reformation sermon by Lohe 
 (7 Predigten. Niirnberg, 1884, S. 49). 1. The 
 reformation was a return ; 2. a return is neces- 
 sary now; 3. it is now possible. 
 
 3. On verses 12 and 13, God's call to repent- 
 ance, (a) its ground (I am merciful) ; (b) its 
 object (to obtain grace): (c) its condition (ac- 
 knowledge thy sin). 
 
 4. On ver. 15. (Text for an installation ser- 
 mon). The evangelical pastorate ; (a) its stan- 
 dard, (after my heart); (b) its task, (to feed 
 them with doctrine and wisdom). 
 
 5. On vers. 16 and 17. The true worship of 
 God. (John iv. 21-24). 1. It is not connected 
 with any outward forms or ceremonies. 2. It 
 consists, (a) in the direction of the inmost heart 
 to God (assembling at the throne of the Lord), 
 (b) in the evidence of this direction of the heart 
 in a holy walk (to walk no more according to 
 the thoughts of the wicked heart). 
 
 6. On vers. 18 and 19. The conditions of true 
 union, 1. common return from sin and error 
 (Judah and Israel come together from the north), 
 2. common return to the source of life and truth 
 (the inheritance of the fathers — dear father! — 
 will not depart from me). 
 
 7. On vers. 21 and 22. How does a nation 
 worthily keep the yearly fast? 1. When it hum- 
 bles itself before God in hearty repentance of its 
 sins. 2. When it believingly hears the call of the 
 Father of eternal grace. 3. When it heartily re- 
 turns to the Lord, its God. — From an anon, ser- 
 mon. 
 
 8. Vers. 21-25 (Text for a penitential discourse) 
 True repentance. 1. Its form (crying and weep- 
 ing, ver. 21). 2. Its subject — primary, for- 
 getting God (ver. 21) and sinning against Him 
 (ver. 25) — secondary, the destruction come upon 
 us in consequence of the deception of sin, (ver. 
 23, sqq.). 3. Its object (salvation in God). — 
 Comp. the fifth homily of Origen on Jer. iii. 21- 
 iv. 8. — On ver. 22. Comp. the Confirmation Ser- 
 mon of Dr. F. Arndt in his work, " The Chris- 
 tian's pilgrimage through Life" ("Z>er Christen 
 Ptlgerfahrt,'" etc. Halle, 1865) on the subject. 
 " The gracious hours of life at and after confir- 
 mation." 
 
 4. The call to return in the Present. 
 IV. 1-4. 
 
 If thou returnest, O Israel, saith Jehovah, 
 Return unto Me. 
 
 And if thou puttest away thine abominations out of my sight. 
 Then waver not,' 
 But swear ' As Jehovah liveth ! ' 
 In truth and justice and righteousness, 
 
CHAP. IV. 1-4. 
 
 59 
 
 So that the nations bless themselves in him,* 
 
 And boast of him. 
 
 For thus saith Jehovah to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, 
 
 Break up your fallow-ground* 
 
 And sow not among thorns. 
 
 Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, 
 
 And take away the foreskin of your heart. 
 
 Ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem ; 
 
 Lest my fury break forth like fire. 
 
 And burn, and there be no quencher, — 
 
 On account of the wickedness of your doings. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 1. — [Blatnet renders " thou shalt not be removed from before me." Movers and Hitzig also connect the word« 
 "out of my sight "with what follows: neque a facie nua oberraveris. Henderson and Notes following De Wette, hav« 
 " Thou shalt not be a fugitive (wanderer)." Umbreit renders as in the text. — S. R. A]. 
 
 2 ViT 2.— 13 ipi3nni The Perfect with Faw ccmsec, expresses intended result. Comp. Naegelsb. O. g. 84, h. sqq. [Tho 
 usual rendering is the simple future]. 
 
 3 Ver. a.— [Blatnet renders well " Break up your ground in tillage." The German Commentators have Brechet eiKh 
 Neubruch for which we have no exact equivalent. — S. R. A]. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The fundamental thought of the whole dis- 
 course (Return) is distinctly stamped on the 
 head of this section. True and honest conver- 
 sion is the indispensable condition of present 
 life. All that the prophet has previously said, 
 partly in severe rebuke, partly in friendly in- 
 vitation, was to serve as an exhortation to 
 procure an entrance into this life. If the people 
 do not heed this exhortation, they fall inevitably 
 under the just judgment of God. 
 
 Ver. 1. If thou returnest . . Tvaver not. 
 These words point back to iii. 7 and 10. The call 
 "Return to me " according to iii. 7, had been ad- 
 dressed to Israel in vain. Judah on the other 
 hand, according to iii. 10, had been obedient to the 
 call "Return," but not to the "to me," for their 
 return was not hearty but hypocritical. We 
 have shown above that by this is meant the re- 
 form of Josiah. A hypocritical return is the 
 same as one which is not to the Lord, for the 
 hypocrite avoids indeed the forms in which his 
 sins have hitherto been manifested, but he does 
 not turn positively with his heart to the Lord. 
 The Lord does not therefore allow the conversion 
 occasioned by the reformation under Josiah to 
 be regarded as unto Him. And hence the pro- 
 phet thus addresses the people: if you would 
 answer the call " R,eturn to me" (iii. 7), it must 
 not be done by a return " with falsehood " which 
 is no return to vie at all, but by such a conver- 
 sion as may be truly thus designated. — Comp. 
 Hos. vi. 14. An example of such a conversion, 
 "not unto the Lord" is also the reformation of 
 Jehu, 2 Kings ix. x. Comp. especially 2 Kings 
 X. 31. In the reformation of Josiah, Judah did 
 outwardly put away their abominations out of 
 God's sight (2 Kings xxiii. 4 sqq.) but they were 
 far from directing their hearts fixedly and alone 
 to God. Instead of this they wavered, wishing 
 partly to serve the Lord and partly also their 
 idols. Comp. Zeph. i. 5. How ambiguous the 
 conduct of the people must then have been is 
 clear from 2 Kings xxii. 14 sqq.; xxiii. 25-27; 
 2 Chron. xxxiv. 22-28. Comp. Herzog, Real- 
 Enc. VII. 36. — In translating HIJ by " waver" 
 
 I appeal to the radical signification of the word, 
 "to oscillate," by virtue of which it is used of the 
 waving of a reed (2 Kings xiv. 15), the flapping 
 of wings (Ps. xi. 1; Prov. xxvi. 2), of the wan- 
 dering of a fugitive (Gen. iv. 12) and of the 
 shaking of the head, (Jer. xviii. 16; Ps. xliv. 15). 
 From the meaning of commiserari which it has in 
 several places (Jer. xvi. 5; xlviii. 17, etc.) it is 
 evident that the word is also capable of being 
 transferred to the sphere of spiritual relations. 
 
 Ver. 2. But swear . . . and boast of him. 
 In swearing by Jehovah in truth, justice and 
 righteousness is included not only that they 
 swear the truth (Lev. xix. 12; Num. xxx. 3; 
 Jer. v. 2 coll. Matt. v. 33) but also that they 
 swear by Jehovah alone and not also by idols, 
 as according to Zeph. i. 5. they then did. To 
 refer 13 to Israel, and then to assume either a 
 change of person or a quotation from Gen. xviii. 
 18, (coll. xii. 3; xxii. 18; xxvi. 4; xxviii. 14) or to 
 read ^2 (as ex.gr. E. Meier) is arbitrary. The 
 reference to God is perfectly justified by the con- 
 nection. The moral course of Israel is to win 
 over the heathen to God, who is the source of 
 that power by which they pursue this course (1 
 Pet. iii. 1, 2), as on the other hand the sin of 
 Israel is designated as causing the heathen to 
 blaspheme (Rom. ii. 24, coll. Ezek. xxxvi. 20, 23). 
 As in Isai. Ixv. 16, so also here l'3 113nn signi- 
 fies to recognize God as the source of all bless- 
 ing, and therefore to seek all blessing only 
 through him. "And boast of him," refers to the 
 possession of the desired blessing. For they 
 justly boast in a dispenser of blessing, who 
 causes those who bless themselves in his name 
 to appear really blessed. Comp. Isai. xli. 16; Jer. 
 ix. 22, 23; Ps. xxxiv. 3; cv. 3. 
 
 Ver. 3. For thus saith Jehovah . . sow 
 not among thorns. "'2 here is not causative 
 but explicative. The words return unto Me, 
 w^aver not and sw^ear by Jehovah in truth 
 are so explained in what follows as to show 
 plainly that the prophet has in view the hypo- 
 critical half-heartedness with which the people 
 submitted to the reformation of Josiah. Break 
 up your fallow-ground is from Hos. x. 12. 
 Israel is not to sow on the unemployed field of 
 
60 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 his heart, but to break it up, as is done with wild 
 land, which is cleansed from weeds only by deep 
 and repeated ploughing. It was just in this that 
 the people failed in Josiah's reformation. It 
 was a sowing among thorns. Comp. Luke viii. 7. 
 Ver. 4. Circumcise yourselves to the 
 Lord . . your doings. Circumcision to the Lord 
 is opposed to that which is done only in accord- 
 ance with outward ordinance or custom. The 
 latter is done merely on the body, the former on 
 the heart also, of which sin is the real defiling 
 foreskin. Comp. Levit. xxvi. 41 ; Jer. ix. 25, coll. 
 Exod. vi. 12 (iv. 10); Jer. vi. 13. The expres- 
 sion "take away the foreskin of your heart" is 
 a reminiscence from Deut. x. 16; xxx. 6. Comp. 
 KuEPER, S. 10.— Men of Judah and inhabi- 
 tants of Jerusalem, a frequent formula in Jere- 
 miah (Comp. xi. 2, 12; xvii. 20; xviii. 11; xxv. 
 2; XXXV. 17, etc.) in which a certain prerogative 
 of the citizens of Jerusalem is recognizable. 
 Comp. viii. 1; xiii. 13; xix. 3.— My fury, etc. 
 Comp. Am. v. 6 ; Jer. vii. 20.— The words on 
 account of the wickedness, etc. (coll. xxi. 
 22 ; xxiii. 2 ; xxvi. 3 ; xliv. 22) are from Deut. 
 xxviii. 20. The prophet in these words prepares 
 the way for the transition to the second main 
 division. Israel obeys not the call, the fury 
 of the Lord must therefore break forth. The 
 manner in which this will take place is described 
 in section second. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On ver. 1. Mere turning from earthly things 
 without positive returning to God, the pole of 
 the soul, is not true repentance. So long as 
 the prodigal son, after the loss of all earthly 
 goods, had not formed the resolution of return- 
 ing to his father, he was not yet in a penitent 
 condition. A man, who should denounce this 
 or that sin, but yet not devote himself wholly 
 and decidedly to God, would thus give no 
 guarantee of the genuineness or permanence of 
 his conversion. Comp. what is said of following 
 
 Jesus, Matt. xix. 16 ; Luke ix. 69 sqq. For re- 
 pentance to be honest, it must have the right 
 object, i. e. it must be towards God. — Ceamer. 
 
 2. On ver. 2. Swearing by Jehovah involves the 
 acknowledgment of His deity. For no one would 
 swear by Him who was not convinced that He is 
 the witness of truth and the avenger of false- 
 hood. But when one swears by others he robs 
 God of His glory and gives it to idols; Isa. xlii. 8. 
 
 3. On ver. 3. Rooting out weeds from the field 
 of the heart is the most difficult part of repent- 
 ance. Many would receive the gospel gladly if 
 they were permitted to leave the thorns and sow 
 the seed of the gospel among them. Comp. 
 Matt. vi. 24 ; 1 Ki. xviii. 21. 
 
 4. On ver. 4. We Christians also know of a 
 double circumcision, a bodily and a spiritual, 
 which however are not related to each other, as 
 the bodily and spiritual circumcision of Judaism. 
 For according to Col. ii. 11 baptism corresponds 
 to conversion as the Tvepiro/n^ dxEiponotTjrd^, as 
 the aKeKSvaig tov a^juarog rijg aapKdg. Thus the 
 sacrament of baptism is the spiritual and bodily 
 basis of the nepirofi^ Tijq KapSiag, which is spoken 
 of in Phil. iii. 3, coll. Rom. ii. 29 ; vi. 1 sqq. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. Orioen treats this passage in his peculiar 
 style in his fifth homily on Jeremiah. Vide S. 
 149 and 164 sqq., ed. Lommatzsch. 
 
 2. On ver. 3. " We Christians also, like the 
 Jews, love to sow under the hedges. We allow the 
 divine word to be strewn on the field of our heart, 
 we hear and read God's word on week-days and 
 Sundays, but we also allow the thickets of evil 
 passions and sinful habits to grow on." — Hoch- 
 STETTER, 12 Parables (12 Gleichnisse, etc., S. 10). 
 
 3. True repentance consists (a) in decided 
 turning away from evil (not sowing among the 
 thorns but breaking up new ground) ; (b) in de- 
 cided turning to God (positive devotion to God 
 alone, ver. 1, so that He alone is served and 
 worshipped, yer. 2). 
 
CHAP. IV. 5-10. 6\ 
 
 SECOND DIVISION 
 
 Chap. IV. V.-VI. 26. 
 
 Threatening of punishment for neglecting to return. 
 
 The call, ^^ return" was unheeded. The prophet, therefore now proceeds to announce the punishment. He 
 does this in three sections : in the first (chap, iv.) he announces the approaching calamity; in the se- 
 cond (chap. V.) he shows particularly its causes in the moral corruption of the people ; in the third 
 (chap. vi. 1-26) he recapitulates the main thought of the discourse, adding to the repeated proof of 
 the incorrigibility of the people, a repealed admonition and a threatening of still severer judgments 
 
 Description of the expected judgment (Chap. iv. 5-31). 
 
 1. This is described as future under a triple emblem (iv. 5-18). 
 
 a. The first emblem : the Lion. 
 
 IV. 5-10. 
 
 5 Declare it in Judah and publish it in Jerusalem, 
 And speak — and blow the trumpet in the land, 
 Cry with a loud voice and say : 
 
 Assemble yourselves, that we may go into the fortified citicB. 
 
 6 Raise banners towards Zion, 
 ¥lee ! stand not ! 
 
 For I am bringing calamity from the North, 
 And great destruction. 
 
 7 A lion cometh up from his thicket,^ 
 
 And a destroyer of nations hath broken up. 
 
 He is come forth from his place 
 
 To make thy land a desert : 
 
 Thy cities shall be desolate,^ — without inhabitant. 
 
 8 For this gird on sackcloth, lament and howl ! 
 
 For the heat of Jehovah's anger hath not turned from us. 
 
 9 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith Jehovah, 
 
 The heart of the king shall fail and the heart of the princes, 
 The priests shall be amazed and the prophets full of horror. 
 
 10 And I said : Ah Lord Jehovah, 
 
 Surely thou hast prepared^ deception for this people and Jerusalem, 
 
 Saying : " ye shall have peace," 
 
 And yet the sword reacheth even to the soul.* 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 7.— USp with Dag. forte, to emphasize the sharpening from '13D (Ewald, § 255, d.) or ^30 (OlSHAUSEN, g 155, b.| 
 The word is an-af' \ey. Comp. the related forms from 7j3D I^ai. ix. 17; x. 34; Gen. xxii. 13; Ps. Ixxiv. 5. 
 
 2 Ver. 7. — nyyn is certainly Kal from n}f J. which must here be taken in an intransitive sense. Comp. ix. 11; laaL 
 
 TV- T T 
 
 xxxvii. 26 ; 2 Kings xix. 25. 
 8 Ver. 10.— Ktj;n with S as in xxix. 8; 2 Kings xviii. 29. 
 * Ver. 10.— [Or even to the life, as Hendeeson, etc.—S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Ver. 5. Declare it in Judah . . . fortified 
 
 cities. The pi-ophet speaks, and indeed as the 
 mouth of God. This is seen from the '3JX. "I." 
 ▼er. 6. The persons addressed are primarily 
 
 those who dwell on the border, who are to 
 inform those in the interior, even as far 
 as the capital, of the invasion of the enemy. 
 That which is declared is not the command to 
 blow the trumpet, and to cry "assetnble," etc. 
 For why should not those first addressed them- 
 selves at once cry to their next neighbors, "as- 
 
62 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 semble," etc.? Accordingly all that comes after 
 the general sentence, "declare — Jerusalem," is 
 only introductory to "assemble." Thus it is 
 evident that the Chethib ^i'pjpi is not incorrect, 
 and the Keri, which is followed by the ancient 
 commentators and many MSS. is therefore un- 
 necessary. "Assemble," etc., should have come 
 after the first ^"1?N). But the prophet (1) ac- 
 cording to well-known linguistic usage adds an 
 accompanying circumstance paratactically, (2) 
 he distributes the command to cry into three 
 parts, of which the two first refer to the form, 
 the last to the contents. — On the construction 
 comp. xiii. 18; 1 Sam. ii. 3; Naegelsb. Or. 
 § 95, g. Anm. 
 
 Ver. 6. Raise banners towards Zion . . . 
 great destruction. The signal is to be so 
 arranged that it will indicate to the inhabitants 
 the direction of flight. V]}"!} only in the Hiphil 
 =to fly to (Exod. ix. 19), and to make flight, 
 i. e. to flee (thus only besides here in vi. 1 ; Isa. 
 X. 31). — Prom the north points back to i. 13, 
 14. Compare the remarks there made. 
 
 Ver. 7. A lion cometh up . . . without 
 inhabitants. The enemy is here represented 
 by the emblem of a lion as in xlix. 19; 1. 44, 17. 
 — Without inhabitant. Comp. ii. 15, and 
 the remarks thereon. 
 
 Ver. 8. For this gird on . . . turned from 
 us. This last sentence points back to ii. 35. 
 The people had expected a return of God to 
 graciousness on the ground of their hypocritical 
 return under Josiah. 
 
 Yer. 9. And it shall come to pass . . . full 
 
 of horror. After the prophet in ver. 8 has 
 summoned them to general lamentation, he de- 
 scribes the effect of the calamity on those who 
 are called by their position to provide means 
 and ways of defence ; they are helpless, and 
 
 lose their presence of mind. 37 in the sense of 
 
 understanding, ex. gr. Prov. xxviii. 26 ; xv. 32 ; 
 Hos. iv. 11 ; vii. 11 ; Jer. v. 21. Comp. De- 
 LiTzscH, Psychol. IV., ^ 12. — Shall be amazed. 
 Comp. Ezek. iv. 17; Job xvii. 9; xviii. 20. 
 
 Ver. 10. And I said . . . even to the soul. 
 The prophet here declares what impression was 
 made by the denunciatory prophecy upon him- 
 self, after he had previously in ver. 9 described 
 the impression which its fulfilment will make on 
 the chiefs of the people. This denunciatory 
 prophecy does not at all harmonize with that 
 earlier and exceedingly glorious one in ch. iii. 
 12-25. This was correctly perceived by Jerome, 
 who says: " Quia supra dixerat: in illo tempore 
 vocabunt Jerusalem solium Dei, etc. (iii. 17), et nunc 
 dicit : peribit cor regis (ver. 9), turbatur propheta 
 et in se Deum putat esse mentitum ; nee intelligit, 
 illud multa, post tempora repromissum, hoc autem 
 vicino futurum tempore." — Following the exam- 
 ple of Theodoret very many commentators 
 refer prepared deception to the false pro- 
 phets, coll. 1 Kings xxii. 22. But is it conceiv- 
 able that a true prophet like Jeremiah would 
 have traced back false prophecy so directly to 
 the Lord? Comparison with 1 Pet. i. 11 ren- 
 ders it conceivable that Jeremiah may himself 
 have been deceived as to the difl'erence of the 
 times. 
 
 b. The Second Emblem : the Tempest, 
 IV. 11-13. 
 
 11 About this time it will be said to this people and Jerusalem, 
 A hot wind of the bare heights in the deserts 
 
 Comes thence against the daughters of my people — 
 Not to winnow and not to cleanse. 
 
 12 With full cheeks comes a wind to me from those. 
 Now will I also contend with them. 
 
 13 Behold, as clouds he ascends, 
 And as the stormwinds his chariots, 
 Swifter than eagles are his horses. 
 Woe to us, for we are destroyed ! 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Ver. 11. About this time . . . not to 
 cleanse. As the invasion of the lion-like 
 enemy, so also the approach of the destructive 
 desert-wind is to be announced in Jerusalem. 
 The prophet alludes to the custom of signalizing 
 those who are threatened by a hurricane or flood. 
 ^"^T {Ace. loci, xxxix. 4) seems also to point to 
 this. nV (besides here also in Isa. xviii. 4 ; 
 
 xxxii. 4 ; Song of Sol. v. 10) if we compare the 
 
 words radically related to it {T\XVi Isa. v. 13 ; 
 
 nn'ny Ps. ixviii. 7; D-n'n:; Neh. iv. 7; mmnv 
 
 Isa. Iviii. 11), appears to unite tbe meanings 
 calidus, candidus, aridus, and to designate the 
 brilliant clearness of the air heated by the hot- 
 wind. So also Jerome {yentus urens), Aquila. 
 {ventus fulgoris), Symmachus {v. sestus). On the 
 position of nV between the nomen regens and 
 rectum, comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 63, 4 f. — Bare 
 
CHAP. IV. 14-18. 
 
 63 
 
 heights. Comp. iii. 2, 21. The bare rocky 
 mountains of the eastern desert are meant, over 
 which the dry, hot east wind blows (D""lp the 
 "wind of the wilderness," Jer. xiii. 24). Comp. 
 Winer, R-B-W., s. v. Winde. The expression 
 is found also in xii. 12. — Not to winnow, 
 etc. It is not one of the winds, which is favor- 
 able to human industry, but a hostile, destruc- 
 tive wind. 
 Ver. 12. With full cheeks . . . contend 
 
 •with them. N70 here is fundamentally the 
 
 same as in ver. 5 and xii. 6. The idea of "full" 
 we are accustomed to apply to wind only as ex- 
 pressed in the translation. As hot w^ind de- 
 notes the quality so full denotes the quantity — 
 from those refers to bare heights. The 
 Lord says, the ^vind comes to me, because 
 
 it is in His service. '/ is Dat. commodi. — I also 
 
 refers to ii. 5, 29. The prophet of Israel accord- 
 ing to these passages really contended with the 
 Lord. Comp. the remarks on ii. 29. The sense 
 is this : after they have presumed to contend 
 with the Lord (or, to use His pretended fault as 
 a pretext of revolt, comp. xliv. 18), He contends 
 with them, i. e. He punishes them, and His in- 
 strument is he, who is understood by the wind. 
 Comp. i. 16. 
 
 Ver. 13. Behold as clouds . .•. we are 
 destroyed. The prophet still retains his em- 
 blem in the region of the air, but he modifies it. 
 The total impression of the hostile masses is 
 now compared with threatening storm-clouds, 
 the chariots in the rapidity of their motion and 
 power of their impetus are like the storm-blast, 
 the riders are like swift eagles. The prophet 
 seems to have had Hab. i. 8 generally in mind 
 Comp. KuEPEK, S. 76. 
 
 c. The Third Emblem : the Keepers. 
 IV. 14-18. 
 
 14 Wash thy heart from wickedness, Jerusalem, 
 In order that thou mayest be delivered. 
 
 How long do tny sinful thoughts tarry within thee ? 
 
 15 For a loud call sounds from Dan, 
 
 A message of misfortune from Mount Ephraim. 
 
 16 Announce it to the nations ! 
 Behold, call it out over Jerusalem : 
 
 Watchmen [Besiegers] are coming from a distant land, 
 They raised their cry over the cities of Judah. 
 
 17 For like keepers of a field are they over her from all sides, 
 For against me hath she rebelled, saith Jehovah. 
 
 18 Thy walk and thy works bring this upon thee ; 
 
 This is thy wickedness, that a bitter thing (comes upon thee), 
 That it reaches even to thine heart. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL, 
 
 The first emblem was from the animal king- 
 dom, the second from the region of the air, the 
 third is taken from the sphere of human life. 
 The third appeals most strongly to the moral 
 consciousness of the people ; this calamity is 
 held up before them as the punishment of their 
 sin, and acknowledgment and renunciation of 
 this as the only means of escape. 
 
 Ver. 14. \Vash thy heart . . . tarry w^ithin 
 thee? — Wash [Cleanse]. Comp. ii. 22. — 
 Comp. the beginning and end of the strophe: 
 th«» idea of wickedness forms the frame-work. 
 
 It is quite unnecessary to take \{i^, with Vat- 
 able and others, as causative. Comp. N.\egelsb. 
 Gr. \ 105, 4 b. "njix from |1X in the sense of 
 tin, while PX, ver. 15, means calamity. Comp. 
 Gen. XXXV. l8; Deut. xxvi. 14; Ps. Iv. 4. 
 
 Ver. 15. For a loud call . . . Ephraim. It 
 
 is high time to comply with the admonition con- 
 tained in ver. 14 (comp. "how long," etc.), for 
 the news is already received of the approach of 
 the avenger. The prophet's mention of Dan 
 and Mount Ephraim is a confirmation of the 
 view expressed concerning from the north in 
 i. 14. Comp. the remarks there made. 
 
 Vers. 16 ami 17. Announce it to the na- 
 tions . . . saith Jehovah. ^"I'^rri verbally : 
 cause 1111 to the nations, that is, cause that these 
 reflecting upon it are deeply impressed by the 
 significance of the fact. From the meaning, to 
 penetrate, to bore in (comp. Fuerst, Handwb.), is 
 developed the meaning of to remember, which is 
 the common one, to consider, to reflect (Lam. i. 9; 
 Ps. ciii. 14; Job vii. 7). This call to the nations 
 is made only incidentally, not with a' friendly 
 purpose, but only to denote the greatness and 
 importance of the event. The invasion of this 
 enemy is .-oinething so great that it cannot be 
 
64 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 cried out loud enough, and this the rather since 
 the nations round about Israel are implicated 
 with them. Comp. ch. xxv. — It is therefore un- 
 necessary to follow HiTzio as he follows the 
 
 LXX. KiMCHi and others, in taking *? z=from or 
 E. Meier and others in rendering D'U =: tribes 
 (of Israel). — The business of watchmen, keepers 
 of a field, is iTsnnlly to protect from robbery and 
 violence, feut the prophet has such keepers in 
 mind who do not remove their gaze from him to 
 whom it is directed, as, ex. gr., those who beset 
 a fox, a weasel or a polecat, so that the animal 
 may either perish in his hole or be killed when 
 he comes out. In short the prophet here means 
 the same thing as he expressed in i. 15 by set- 
 ting seats before the gates. Comp. 2 Sam. xi. 
 
 16, "I'JI^n-Sx liOt!^; Jer. v. 6; vi. 25.— These 
 raised their cry, etc. It is announced to Jeru- 
 salem, that the cry of these keepers has already 
 
 sounded over the other cities of Judah. Jerusa- 
 lem alone is still in the power of the enemy. 
 Hence it is also said in ver. 17 that they are 
 over her from all sides. — As in the beginning of 
 the strophe, ver. 14, the exhortation to repent- 
 ance as the only means of escape is prominent, 
 so in ver. 17 b and ver. 18 is ungodliness as the 
 self-inflicted cause of the punitive judgments. 
 
 Ver. 18. Thy walk and thy works . . . 
 reaches even to thy heart. Comp. ii. 19. — 
 Both this parallel passage and the parallelism in 
 the verse itself prove that hemistich 2 is a sub- 
 jective sentence (comp. Naegelsb. Gr. \ 109, 1). 
 The two sentences with for represent the sub- 
 ject, this thy w^ickedness is the predicate. 
 The bitter thing which comes upon thee is no- 
 thing more than thine own wickedness, here 
 developing its own true nature. — The conclusion 
 of the strophe reminds us of ver. 10, and in 
 such a way as to show that the prophet intended 
 a similarity in diversity. 
 
 2. Tht Prophet Hears and Sees the Enemy Present. 
 IV. 19-26. 
 
 19 My bowels, my bowels ! Cramp' in the chambers' of the heart! 
 My heart palpitates ! I cannot be silent, 
 
 For the trumpet's sound thou hearest,' my soul, 
 The cry of battle. 
 
 20 Blow upon blow is reported, 
 For desolated is the whole land ; 
 Suddenly my huts are desolated, 
 In a twinkling my tents. 
 
 21 How long shall I see the banner. 
 Hear the sound of the trumpet ? 
 
 22 For my people are foolish, they know me not; 
 Silly children are they and undiscerning: 
 They are wise to do evil. 
 
 But doing good they understand not. 
 
 23 I look at the earth and behold— desolation and emptiness! 
 And up towards heaven, and its light is gone. 
 
 24 I look at the mountains and behold they quake,* 
 And all the hills are shaken. 
 
 25 I look and behold, man is gone, 
 And all the birds of heaven are fled. 
 
 26 I look and behold, the fertile field has become a waste, 
 And all its cities are desolated^ — 
 
 Before Jehovah, before the fury of his anger. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 19.— nSiniX- TheformoftheChethibh PlS-iniN is a grammatical anomaly and therefore certainly incorrect. Th» 
 Keri reads nS'niX. Thishowevcr would mean: 1 wait, expect {2 Sam. xviii. 14 ; Mic.vii. 7), which does not well suit the con- 
 nection. The reading nb-inX or hStIX which is expressed in the LXX, and is found in very many MSS. and editions 
 
 T T T ■ T It 
 
 (Steph., Jos. AthiaS., Bibl. Mant.) should therefore he preferred. 7:in (or /Tli comp. FuERST, s. v.) is to twht one.'fi self, to 
 quiver with pain, grief or terror. Comp. v. 3; Jizek. xxx. 16. — As to the construction we may (a) divide after '_J?D, 
 
 nSinx, "^h 'p, '3 Snoin (so graf), or (b) after yo, rhmn, 'S-noin, K?"\nK (see hitzm, e. meier), (c) 'j^d, 
 
 ^3*7, 07> l!/"inX- I would give the preference to the last division, since 7in declared of 37~mT'p (the expression here 
 
CHAP. IV. 27-31. 
 
 65 
 
 only) designates very appropriately the cramp of the heart, while HOiri D 7 evidently denotes the palpitaticm of the heart. 
 The cohortative form in H/inN as in Hj^DtJ'X. ver. 21, is not to be insisted on. Conip. Naegelsb. Gr. J 89, 3 a. 
 
 2 Ver. 19. — r\1Tp is the accusative of more exact definition. Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr. J 70 f. 
 
 3 Ver. 19. — Tl^OtJ', 2 Pers. fern. Comp. ii. 20, 33 ; ili. 4, 5. Ewald, Hitziq, E. Meier, read with the Cod. Regiomont. 
 
 : — T 
 1- n^Dti', which is unnecessary. [Comp. Green's Heb. Gr. J 86, 6.] 
 
 * Ver. 24. — D'E'J^T. On the absence of the subject comp. Naegelsb. Gr. § 97, 1, a Ann. 
 
 B Ver. 26.— :|yj^p Niph. from rr\J- Comp. Nah. i. 6. LXX. : e/iAjr6irvpio-/ix«»'ai, confounded with ^HVJ, ix- 9- 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This entire strophe describes the desolation 
 of the country from the standpoint of the pre- 
 sent. The prophet places himself in spirit in 
 that mournful future, and describes in the live- 
 liest colors what he hears, sees and feels, as one 
 who is present. 
 
 Ver. 19. My bovrels . . . cry of battle. 
 LXX.: TTiv noikiav fiav aXyC). So also the authors 
 of the Syro-Hexapla. Hitziq has "my belly." 
 The prophet in these and the following verses 
 describes in a most drastic style the physical 
 sensation which is produced by the immediate 
 perception of the calamity. — Passages related in 
 subject are Isa. xvi. 11; xxi. 2-4; Jer. xlviii. 
 36. — I cannot be silent (comp. Hab. i. 13 ; Job 
 xli. 4) expresses that the prophet would relieve 
 the inward pain, which he has just described, by 
 speech. He does this by enumerating the occur- 
 rences which have so excited him. — The expres- 
 sion : hearest thou, my soul, seems to inti- 
 mate that the prophet heard it not with the 
 outward but the inward ear. 
 
 Ver. 20. Blow upon blow is reported . . . 
 my tents. The exposition, which, following the 
 Chaldee and Syriac, takes XTpJ for mpj (de- 
 struction meets destruction) is not correct, be- 
 cause the prophet in vers. 20 and 21 mentions 
 what he hears, while in ver. 23 sqq. he relates 
 what he sees. If, moreover, we consider that the 
 prophet is here speaking of messages or signals, 
 which report disasters, we see that the existence 
 of a middle point is presupposed, to which these 
 reports of misfortune proceed. We shall not 
 then err, if we refer ver. 20 to the laying waste 
 of the country surrounding the capital. 
 
 Ver. 21. How long shall I . . . trumpet. 
 DJ the signal, ver. 6. Although this is seen it is 
 
 mentioned among the things which the prophet 
 hears because it also brings news, or » message. 
 
 Ver. 22. For my people are foolish . . 
 they understand not. This verse contains 
 the answer to the question of the prophet, how 
 long ? Still long, is the answer of course, for 
 the people are still as they were. So Kimchi. 
 — With Hemist. 2 comp. ii. 8 ; Mic. vii. 3. 
 
 Vers. 23-26. I look at the earth . . . fury 
 of his anger. T^'Nl four times repeated shows 
 plainly that the prophet would here render ex- 
 pressly prominent what he has seen, in antithe- 
 sis to vers. 19 and 20, where he narrates what 
 he has heard. But there is also a climax in the 
 progress from the one to the other. While that 
 which the prophet hears is only the herald and 
 preliminary stage of the main catastrophe, in 
 vers. 23-26 he portrays the condition of the 
 country after the occurrence of this catastrophe. 
 In spirit he beholds in the place of the once so 
 fruitful land a dismal waste, over which the 
 heavens veil themselves in mourning, and with 
 which even lifeless and unintelligent creatures 
 sympathize. — Ver. 23, reminds us of Gen. i. 2, 14, 
 and therefore presupposes the existence of this 
 passage. The land has, as it were, returned to 
 chaos. Comp. Isa. xxxiv. 11. — The fruitful 
 field a waste [lit., the Carmel the desert], a 
 free reminiscence from Isa. xxxii. 15; xxix. 17. 
 That Carmel here denotes not the mountain, 
 but the fruitful field (comp. ii. 7), follows (a) 
 from the connection, which declares the desola- 
 tion not of a small strip, but of the whole coun- 
 try, (6) from all its cities, which evidently 
 cannot be referred to that single mountain but 
 only to the whole land. The article before 
 Carmel and waste has a general significance, 
 not a waste, but the waste had the fruitful field 
 become, that is, the genus Carmel had passed 
 over into the genus desert. Comp. Naegelsb. 
 Gr. § 71, 4. — Before, etc. Comp. xxiii. 9; 
 XXV. 37. — On the general subject compare Joel 
 ii. 10 ; iv. 15 ; Nah. i, 5 ; Isa. xiii. 10, 13 ; Ps. 
 xviii. 8. 
 
 3. The Judgment is Irrevocably Determined, but it aims not at Absolute Destruction, 
 
 IV. 27-31. 
 
 27 For thus hath Jehovah spoken : 
 The whole land shall be waste, 
 
 But I will not utterly make an end of it. 
 
 28 For this the whole land keeps lamenting, 
 
 And the heaven above wears the garment of mourning ; 
 For this namely, that I have spoken and determined,^ 
 And I repent not, nor draw back from it. 
 6 
 
66 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 29 
 
 30 
 
 31 
 
 Before the tumult of the horsemen and archers 
 
 The whole city is fled, 
 
 They are in their hiding-places, up on the rocks ; 
 
 The whole city is abandoned, not an inhabitant therein. 
 
 But thou, destroyed one,'^ what art thou doing? 
 
 That thou clothest thyself in purple, 
 
 That thou puttest on cloth of gold, 
 
 That thou rendest thine eyes with paint? 
 
 In vain dost thou beautify thyself; 
 
 Thy lovers despise thee, they seek thy soul. 
 
 For I hear a cry like that of a parturient,* 
 
 The call of anguish, like one who bears for the first time: 
 
 The voice of the daughter of Zion, 
 
 Who panteth and spreadeth forth her hands : 
 
 Woe is me, for my soul succumbs* to the murderers ! 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 28. — E. Meier reads ^flST instead of "'^731. But the Masoretic reading being the more difScult has the presnmp' 
 
 tion of genuineness. 
 
 2 Ver. 30. — [Noyes translates correctly ad sensum, " destined to perish." — S. R. A.] 
 
 3 Ver. 31.— nVin, Part, like D''pi3 in Zech. x. 5, D''Dip in 2 Ki. xvi. 7, etc. Fuerst s. v. S^PI ; Ewald, g 151, 6. 
 
 * Ver. 31. — [Henderson : My soul fainteth because of murderers ; Notes, more freely : I am dying of murderers.— 
 S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The theme of this strophe is contained in ver. 
 27. This has two parts : 1. The destruction is 
 founded in an irrevocable divine decree. This 
 is the main point which is expressed still more 
 emphatically, vers. 28, 29, and in ver. 30, etc., 
 placed in the light of a contrast (what can Isra- 
 el's feeble attempts effect in opposition to the 
 divine counsel?). 2. The second point, "but I 
 will not utterly make an end," is briefly stated 
 and not further discussed, but is for this purpose 
 twice repeated in the course of the prophecy, 
 V. 10, 18. 
 
 Ver. 
 
 For thus hath Jehovah spoken 
 
 . . . make an end of it. The certainty of the 
 statement in the previous strophe is found in the 
 fact that Jehovah has thus spoken. — I vyill not 
 utterly, etc., is, as we have said, a briefly stated 
 parenthetical thought, which is only to give a 
 correct limitation to the declaration of the first 
 clause. Comp. Levil. xxvi. 44. 
 
 Ver. 28. For this the whole land keeps 
 lamenting . . . draw back from it. Comp. 
 Hos, iv. 3, whence the words '"NH '73Xn are 
 taken. — This refers to the following I have 
 spoken. The mourning posture of the earth 
 and heavens mentioned in ver. 23 sqq. is here 
 designated as the result of a divine decree. Not 
 by chance, nor by the power of idols, did it take 
 place, but by the power of the Lord. It should 
 moreover be remarked that this strophe forms 
 the transition to the following section, in which 
 also the cause of the judgment is spoken of, but 
 in another sense. While here only the immediate 
 cause, the causa efficiens, of the calamity is men- 
 tioned, the prophet in what follows goes more 
 deeply into the matter and designates the cor- 
 ruption of the people as the immediate, deepest 
 provocative cause. — That is a repetition of for 
 
 this. LXX., 6l6tl kTiokrjGa koI ov nETavorjau, 
 upfiTjaa Kal ovk aKoarpiipu an' avTfjq. We must 
 first take spoken independently. Then the 
 external announcement which is made to men 
 through the prophet, is set over against the in- 
 ner cause, which has a positive (determined) 
 and a negative side (repent not). The last 
 point is designated also by nor draw back 
 from it, in order that the prophet may connect 
 this declaration of God with the same made by 
 Israel (iii. 7 sqq.; iv. 1). 
 
 Ver. 29. Before the tumult . . . not an 
 inhabitant therein. This verse seems to in- 
 terrupt the connection. Yet it may be justified 
 as a brief and condensed description of the 
 calamity which has been described at length in 
 the previous strophes, and only hinted at in ver. 
 28. We might regard it as the explanation of 
 from it, with which ver. 28 closes. On the 
 neutral rendering of this Vide Naegelsb. Gr., 
 I 60, 6 b. — It is not necessary to render (with 
 
 Graf and others) '\''^T\~i2:z=z every city. It is, 
 as the rule requires, the ^chole city. But the 
 prophet understands the whole city, supposing 
 this to be the general fate of all the cities. This 
 collective rendering explains also therein in 
 the plural.— DOJT are obscure hiding-places. 
 
 D'S^) comp. Job XXX. 6. 
 
 Ver. 30. But thou, destroyed one . . . 
 seek thy soul. n-HE' (comp. ^hy\_ '!|£3J, Ps. 
 Ixxiii. 2, inclinatum aliquid pedes mei) is to be 
 rendered as neuter : Thou, as good as destroyed, 
 a thing devoted to destruction. The expression 
 is contemptuous. Vide Naegelsb. Gr,, § 60, 4. 
 [Green's Gr., § 275, 5]. — It can neither mean: 
 if thou art destroyed, for then Israel can no more 
 paint ; nor : if thou shall be attacked, for the 
 word does not mean to attack. (Comp. mnty. 
 P.O. cxxxvii. 8). The prophet has in view the 
 
CHAP. IV. 27-31. 
 
 67 
 
 present attempts of Israel to procure assistance 
 by coquetting with foreign nations (comp. ii. 
 18, 36, 37), whiclr. are foolish in opposition to 
 the decree of Jehovah, solemnly announced in 
 ver. 28, according to wliich Israel is already 
 destroyed. — Thine eyes •with paint. The 
 effect of paint is to make the eyes look not only 
 more fiery, but larger. Comp. Herzog's Rcal- 
 Enc, Art. Schminke. XIII. /S. G07 [Smith, Diet. 
 II., 657]. — - Kino'S ix. 30; Ezek. xxiii. 40. 
 
 Ver. 31. For I hear a cry . . . my soul 
 succumbs to the murderers. — For refers to 
 seek thy soul. On this account Israel cries : 
 Wo is me, I succumb to the murderers. 31 6. — 
 
 '7 nS'i^ constr. prsegnans ; my soul is weary, i. e. 
 as one who succumbs to murderers. Comp. 
 Naeqblsb. Gr., g 112, 7. [Green, 156, 1]. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On ver. 10. It is not here a matter for con- 
 sideration, how God may be said to deceive men 
 (comp. 1 Kings xxii. 20; Job xii. 24; 2 Thess. 
 ii. 11), for it was only the opinion of the prophet, 
 who here interrupts the discourse revealed to 
 him by the expression of a subjective view, just 
 as Paul in 1 Cor. vii. 10, 12, 25, 40, inserts his 
 view of the 2.6yog avpiov. 
 
 2. On ver. 14. Akistotle (De partibus animal. 
 II. 4) and Pliny {Hist. nat. XI. 37) remark that 
 the heart alone of all the internal organs will not 
 bear any injury. The latter says "solum cor vis- 
 cerum vitiis non maceratur, nee supplicia vitse trahit; 
 Isesumque mortem illico affert." The heart also in 
 a spiritual sense will not bear the least injury, 
 as the fall shows. Yet though every sin is a 
 death-germ, a poison, yet all poison is not equally 
 rapid in its effects. Bernhard of Clairvaux says 
 in his Sermo de triplici genere cogitationum nostrarum 
 [sub fin.) as follows: "Et primum quidem genus co- 
 gitationum otiosarum soil, ad rem non pertinentium 
 lutum est, sed lutum simplex, id est non inhserens, nee 
 foetens, nisi forte diutius immoreiur in nobis, et per 
 incuriam ac negligentiam nostram in allerum genus 
 <:ogitationum vertatur, quod quotidie experimur. Dum 
 enim otiosa tamquam minima spernimus, ad turpia 
 atque inhonesta dilabimur. Secundum vera cogilatio- 
 num genus non lutum simplex, sed viscosum ac limo- 
 sum est. Nam tertium quidem sic cavendum est, 7ion 
 tamquam lutum aut limus, sed tamquam immundissi- 
 mum ac foetidissimum ccenum.'" He explains what 
 he understands by this tertium genus in the words : 
 '^Dico autem cogitationes illas immundas penitus et 
 foelidas, quse ad luxuriam, ad invidiam et vanam 
 gloriam pertinent, cseteraque vitia detestanda." — He 
 furtlier says of tlie conflicts with sinful thoughts: 
 '■'■Quid ergo agendum, cum limosa cogitatio nientem 
 subierit f Plane exclamandum nobis est cum sancto 
 Jacobo : Ruben, primogenito meus, non crescas, as- 
 cendisii enim cubile patris tui (Gen. xlix. 3). Ruben 
 enim carnalis atque sanguinea hujus modi concupis- 
 centia est, quse tunc cubile nostriim ascendit, cum non 
 solum memoriam tangit cogitatione, sed et ipsum vo- 
 luntatis stratum ingreditur et polluit prava cogita- 
 tione.'' Ghisler. 
 
 3. On ver. 22. (They are wise to do evil, but 
 do not understand well-doing.) The Israelites 
 are here designated as children of the world, for 
 
 it is the manner of the world to be wise in worldly 
 matters, but foolish in spiritual, as our Lord say* 
 (Luke xvi. 8) the children of this world are wiser 
 in their own generation than the children of light 
 in theirs, and Paul (1 Cor. ii. 14) says the na- 
 tural man perceiveth nothing of the Spirit of God, 
 for it is foolishness to him, and he cannot know 
 it, for it must be spiritually discerned. — The blind 
 man understands nothing about color. Every 
 one is at home in his own element. But this is 
 the greatest misery that the world knows, that 
 man, the image of God, is not at home in His 
 house, but in the Devil's, and that the greatest 
 labor the world knows, scarcely suSices to bring 
 him back into his Father's house. 
 
 4. On ver. 27. How wonderfully do the anger 
 and love of God here touch ! How proportion- 
 ate appear both ! How is one the limit of the 
 other ! -God does not so love that He cannot be 
 angry ; and He is not so angry that He cannot 
 love. He leaves room for His anger in order 
 that justice may be preserved and the sinner re- 
 formed. Thus His anger is also guided by love, 
 yea, in a certain sense it is a manifestation of 
 love. Comp. Schoberlein, Grundlehren des Heils, 
 S. 50, 51. "Anger is the energy of love towards 
 the sinner, the expression, namely, of its pain, 
 that he himself has become untrue to his better 
 self, and he who cannot be angry has no hearty 
 love for this true I of another. . . . For the 
 very reason that God in holy self-preservation 
 places Himself in opposition to him, man is not 
 really forsaken of God, but love is still with him 
 in the might of its anger." Jer. x. 24 ; xxx. 11; 
 xlvi. 28; Isai. xxvii. 8. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. The first eight verses of this chapter are part 
 of the text of the fifth homily of Origen (the 
 whole text is Jer. iii. 21 — iv. 8). 
 
 2. Forster remarks: "exversu 31 haberi po- 
 test concio in funere mulieris, quse in partu, velpost 
 partum obiit." 
 
 3. True repentance is 1, a true return from 
 evil (not a sowing among remaining thorns, not 
 a merely external circumcision, but a circumci- 
 sion of the heart and removal of abominations) ; 
 2. a true return to God (right and holy swearing, 
 as a symptom of right and holy disposition) ; 3. 
 a source of blessing for ourselves and others 
 (thou shalt not be exiled — the heathen shall be 
 blessed in thee). 
 
 4. On ver. 10. Warning against false peace. 
 This is 1. a lie, for men say there is peace when 
 the sword reaches even to the soul; 2. a misfor- 
 tune, for it will disappoint the heart of those who 
 cherish it. 
 
 5. On ver. 22. Since Scripture distinguishes 
 a wisdom that is from above from a wisdom that 
 is from below (James iii. 13-18), the question 
 arises, wherein consists the difi"erence between 
 the two ? 1. The wisdom from below is a wi.sdom 
 in evil doing (a. unbelief, b. destruction, a. of 
 self, p. of others — consequently absolute folly); 
 Wisdom from above is wisdom in well-doing (a. 
 faith, b. observing God's word in love — conse- 
 quently blessing). 
 
68 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH, 
 
 II. Demonstration of the justice of the judgments by the enumeration of their causes, 
 
 (Chap. V. 1-31.) 
 
 The prophet enumerates these by first denouncing the universal corruption, especially in reference to the want 
 of njlOX. Vers. 1-6 he shows that truth and faith have entirely disappeared from public life; vers. 
 7-9 that nJIDN is wanting in conjugal relations ; vers. 10-18 that none of this is any longer found 
 in the sense of faith in God; vers. 19-24 he describes the idolatry resulting from unbelief; vers. 25- 
 29 the deception and rude violence connected therewith; vers. 30, 31 finally he comprises all in a 
 brief survey, in which the main points of this sad condition are set forth. The section contains six 
 strophes of unequal length. 
 
 1. Universal want of truth and faith in public life. 
 
 V. 1-6. 
 
 1 Run through the lanes of Jerusalem and see, 
 And ascertain and search in her streets, 
 Whether ye find one, whether there be one, 
 Who doeth right and asketh after truth — 
 And I will pardon her, 
 
 2 And though they say "As Jehovah liveth," ; 
 Even thus they swear falsely. 
 
 3 Jehovah, thine eyes, look they not for fidelity ? 
 Thou hast smitten them, but it pained them not. 
 
 Thou destroyedst them, — they refused to receive correction; 
 They made their faces harder than a rock, 
 They refused to return. 
 
 4 And I said : These are only the poor ! 
 They are stultified !' 
 
 For they know not the way of Jehovah, 
 
 The judgment of their God. 
 6 I will go^ to the great and speak with them, 
 
 For they know the way of Jehovah, 
 
 The judgment of their God. 
 
 Yet they have broken the yoke among them, 
 
 They have torn asunder the cords. 
 6 Therefore the lion from the forest slayeth them, 
 
 The wolf of the deserts* rendeth them,* 
 
 The leopard lurks by their cities ; 
 
 Every one who goes out is torn in pieces ; 
 
 For many are their misdeeds, great their apostasies.^ 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 4.— ^SnU from SlX used only in Niphal. Num. xii. 11 ; Isai. xix. 13; 1. 36. The meaning ia to lecome S'lXr 
 fools, to be stnltified, to act foolishly. 
 
 2 Ver. b.—"^ HdSn, Comp. Naegelsb. Gr. ?112, ,5 6. 
 
 8 Ver. 5.— [De Wette, Henderson, Noyes render: an evening-wolf; Blatnet has: a wolf of the plains.— S. R. A.] 
 « Ver. 6.— mnt!/'' for QIK?^ (Prov. xi. .3, Keri). Comp. Ewald, g251, c; Olshausen, g243, a. [Green, Gr. ?141, 1.]. 
 * Ver. 6. — [Blatney, Noyes, IIenderson render: their apostasies (rebellions) are increased. — S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Ver. 1. Run through the lanes ... I will 
 pardon her. Tliisversii coiitnins the theme not 
 merely of this strophe, but in a certain degree of 
 
 the whole chaptei-. For the statements here of 
 the universality of the corruption apply not only 
 to the moral deficiency which is denounced in 
 this strophe, but to all the sins of the people af- 
 terward enumerated. And in the second place 
 the lack of honesty is the root of all the rest. — 
 
CHAP. V. 7-9. 
 
 63 
 
 Run through, comp. Am. viii. 12 ; Zech. iv. 
 10. — her streets, comp. Gen. xviii. 23 sqq. — 
 right — truth. Since the prophet uses these two 
 words in conjunction with each other, since in 
 ver. 2 the unreliableness of the oath sworn in Je- 
 rusalem forms the contrast to the truth demanded, 
 since further this moral deficiency is first desig- 
 nated as the most striking, manifesting itself in 
 all the lanes and streets of the city, this being 
 followed in the ensuing strophes by the more 
 special sins against truth, we must understand 
 the former word of "right, justice" (comp. Gen. 
 xviii. 19 ; Exod. xxiii. 6 ; Job viii. 3) as the ba- 
 sis of all trade and intercourse, the guarantee of 
 all security of life and property, but the latter as 
 "truth and faith," without which no public life 
 can exist. The asker after truth cannot be he, 
 who seeks it in others, for why should he in such 
 a deficiency? but one who seeks it for its own 
 sake, that he may have it and practise it him- 
 self. 
 
 Ver. 2. And though they say .... swear 
 falsely. There may have been many diiferent 
 kinds of swearing in use (comp. Matth. v.34sqq. ). 
 The formula '•"' "'11 was at any rate regarded as 
 the most sacred and binding. But even the oath 
 
 thus made was broken. — p 7. The passages which 
 are adduced for the meaning "nevertheless, yet " 
 (Isai. vii. 14 ; x. 24 ; xxvii. 9) are uncertain. 
 We must therefore retain the original meaning 
 (in reference to such a condition, this being the 
 case)=eye« thus. The expression of identity ; — 
 an oath by Jehovah and a false oath are with 
 them the same thing. 
 
 Ver. 3. Jehovah, thine eyes . . refused to 
 return. The explanation of Hitzig (are not 
 thine eyes true, reliable, do they not see cor- 
 rectly? Ps. xvii. 2) does not suit the connection. 
 What ground would the prophet have for op- 
 posing such a supposition, as that the Lord 
 had erred? It is evidently declared that the 
 Lord seeks truth, in contrast with the declaration 
 in ver. 1 that among the Israelites none asks af- 
 ter truth. After in ver. 2 he had shown by a 
 striking example, to what a degree truth and 
 faith were lacking in this people, he shows in 
 ver. 3 how contrary this was to the will of the 
 Lord. For (a) the Lord seeks njIDX, (as to the 
 
 sense comp. Ps. liii. 8 ; as to the construction 
 
 the 7 here is used after a verb of motion to be 
 
 supplied, as it frequently is, after such actual 
 
 verbs, instead of /K, where the idea not of 
 
 "into" but of "up to" is to be expressed : 1 
 Sam. X. 26; 2 Sam. xix. 9; Ruth i. 8, etc.); (b) 
 the Lord has sought by severe and manifold 
 chastisements to bring the people to HJ^IDX, but 
 in vain. Comp. ii. 29 sqq. From which it is 
 clear how the Lord regarded this quality. It is 
 on this account that this idea stands at the head 
 of this section, as its fundamental thouglit, as 
 will also be seen in the ensuing explanation of 
 the single strophes. — In they refused to re- 
 turn we have the fundamental thought of the en- 
 tire discourse (see on iii. 1 sqq.) 
 
 Ver. 4. And I said: these are only the 
 poor . . . the judgment of their God. Tha 
 prophet interrupts his address to the people by 
 communicating an objection which he him- 
 self made to the Lord. It is thus presupposed 
 that the prophet was not at the moment of speak- 
 ing first made acquainted with the judgment of 
 the Lord concerning the moral condition of the 
 people, as contained in vers. 1-3, but that he was 
 previously aware of the divine purpose, so that 
 he had time to go and make investigations among 
 the higher circles of the people, the result of 
 which he presents in ver. 5. These are only 
 the poor; poor is the subject, these is the 
 predicate: it is only the poor to which the pre- 
 vious description applies. 
 
 Ver. 5. I -will go to the great . . torn asun- 
 der the cords. — With them. Comp. i. 16 ; 
 ii. 35 ; iv. 12.— Yet they. The particle ^X 
 
 stands here also in a restrictive sense. It is as 
 though the prophet would say : I also really 
 went ; only the success did not meet my expec- 
 tation, they had, etc. Comp. Deut. xviii. 20 ; 1 
 Sam. xxix. 9. — The great were the worst. They 
 had burst all bands asunder. Comp. ii. 20. 
 
 Ver. 6. Therefore the lion . . , great theii 
 apostasies. The prophetic perfect — the pro- 
 phet beholds the future as though it were past. 
 Comp. Naegelsb. Or. § 84, g. — The •wolf of 
 the deserts. There are two explanations of 
 this. 1. The Chald., Vulg., Syr., after Hab. i. 
 8; Zeph. iii. 3 render the evening-wolf (coll. 
 Ps. civ. 20). To this is opposed (a) the parallel- 
 ism with from the forest, (6) the plural ; since 
 this never occurs elsewhere as the plural of ^"^J^t 
 nor is it at all here in place. Therefore most 
 commentators take (2) ni^^J^ as the plural of 
 713*1^, the steppe, desert: the desert-wolf. — Fot 
 many, comp. xxx. 13, 14, — On the subject* 
 matter comp. Exod. xzvi. 22. 
 
 2. Their infidelity in marriage, in marriage with Jehovah as in human marriages. 
 
 V. 7-9. 
 
 What reason^ have I to pardon^ thee ? 
 Thy children leave me and swear by that which is no God. 
 And I bound them in allegiance,* 
 But they committed adultery 
 And rushed* into the harlot's house. 
 
70 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 8 Fat stallions,* dissolute are they ; 
 
 Every one neighs after his neighbour's wife. 
 
 9 Should I not punish such as these ? saith Jehovah ; 
 
 Or should not my soul avenge itself on a people like this? 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 7. — r>in ^X can only mean grammatically: in reference to what? why? [Green, Gr., ^75,2.] — TlfsS comp. 
 
 Naegelsb. dr., g 17, 3 ; ? 53, 1 ; Ewald, g 326, a. Olshausen, 222, e. [Green, g 231, 4, a]. 
 
 - Ver. 7.— n wDN (for which the Keri has n^DN as in ver. 1) certainly did not, as Hitzig supposes, arise from niboS, 
 
 but the ancient form (Rosenm.) is retained as being the more solemn (Neumann). Comp. Olsh. g 238, a. Anm. [Green, Gr., 
 g 125, 1]. 
 
 3 Ver. 7.— DriTX j^OK^XV Many Codices and Editions, as given by De Rossi, read j;''3tyX- By far the majority of the 
 translators and commentators follow this reading : LXX., Vulg., Chald., Syr., Arab., Jerome, Theodoret, Raschi, Kimchi, 
 Luther, Calvin, Bugenhaoen, Oecolamp., Forster, Seb. Schmidt, Muenster, Grotius. Venema, the English Bible, J. D. 
 MicHAELis, RosENMUELiER, EwALD, Umbreit, Meier. The former reading is a-dopted, after the example of some of the Rab- 
 bins, only by Zwingli, Ch. B. Michaelis, Gaab {^=e.arnest petition, adjuvare,) Hitzig (divine assistance in human marriage) 
 Maurer, Neumann {and I made them, swear ; namely, /a?seZ!/^=a judgment of obduracy. Jer. vi. 9), Graf. [Blatney, Notes 
 and Henderson follows the former. Henderson : though I supplied them abundantly. — S. R. A.] 
 
 * Ver. 7. — -mun' for which the LXX. and Codd. 578, 575 read, according to De Rossi imUfl', noLTeKvovTo, diversa- 
 T : • T : • 
 
 banfur is used as in Mic. iv. li in the sense of: to penetrate sharply, to rush in, which comes easily from the radical meaning 
 ineidere. [Others render : gather.] 
 
 6 Ver. 8. — Chethibh D'' JT-1D, Keri D^ JTVD ; tlie former Hoph. from nj, the latter Pual from |I\ Neither of these roots 
 
 occurs in Hebrew. The form of the Keri can be brought only by a wide and circuitous process to afford a tolerable meaning : 
 \y is regarded as the primitive root of UX {to weigh, hence D'JTXO) ; the Part. Pual would then^weighed : — it is however 
 taken as^provided with ponderibus (strong genitals), probe vasati. — It is simpler to retain the Chethibh. J^f from which JIJO. 
 cibus, alimenium (Gen. xlv. 23; 1 Chron. xi. 23) has also in the dialects the sense of nourish (comp. Dan. iv. 9), D''D1D 
 
 D'JIIO ^'I'S therefore well-nourished, fat horses. The word is perhaps chosen in allusion to njll. D'^t^O ^^ been va- 
 
 ■T T • : - 
 
 riously explained (^D'O'Sli'D hy the Rabbins; O'DK^D, trahentes, i. e., genitalia, emissarii, by Jerome, the Chald., etc.: 
 
 Ewald reads DOt^D which according to the Arabic is said to denote "lewd," etc.). The simplest derivation is that from 
 
 T}D'iy which indeed does not occur in Hebrew, but yet seems assured by the dialects and by njK' in the sense "to err, to 
 
 T T TT 
 
 rove " (ii. 23). So most of the recent commentators. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 1. What reason . . into the harlot's house. 
 
 This strophe is an exact parallel to the preceding. 
 As the beginning of the first strophe (ver. 1) 
 presupposes a request for forgiveness, so does 
 ver. 7. There it was : when you find one, who 
 asks after truth, I will pardon. Here it is: How 
 can I pardon ? Thy children have forsaken me. 
 There the chief reason for not pardoning was 
 the lack of truth in public life. Here, indeed, 
 the word PIJWX is not mentioned, but the sub- 
 
 T v: 
 
 stance is the same, only in a different, more 
 restricted sphere. The breach of conjugal fideli- 
 ty, first in a theocratic and then in a human 
 sense, is also a proof of the lack of fidelity. As 
 finally ver. 6 ends with a threatening of punish- 
 ment, so does ver. 7. The three, 7-9, thus form a 
 whole, complete in themselves, a tableau after the 
 usual type of the strophes of this prophet. — and 
 sv^ore, etc., corresponds exactly to ver. 2. There 
 their breach of fidelity was rebuked, because 
 they swore falsely by .Jehovah, — here, because 
 they swore by tliose who were no gods (comp. 
 ii. 11; Deut. xxxii. 17, 21). — And I bound 
 them, etc. I believe that the difficulty in this 
 sentence is solved if we transpose the paratactic 
 mode of speecli into the syntactic : and althowjh I 
 had allowed them to swear (had bound them by 
 oath and allegiance) yet they committed adul- 
 tery. The form of the word does not contradict 
 this view, as Graf supposes. We must not. bow- 
 ever, think that this allowing to swear refers to 
 the restoration of the Jeliovah-cultus, eff"ected by 
 Josiah's reformation. For although that rifor- 
 
 mation, begun in the 12th year of Josiah, and 
 ended in the 18th (2 Chron. xxxiv. 3, 8), as fre- 
 quently remarked, did not result in an honest re- 
 turn, yet it is not to be supposed that Jeremiah, 
 during the period to which this discourse cer- 
 tainly belongs, had to complain of public idola- 
 try. In saying " thy children have forsaken me 
 and sworn by no gods" the prophet has in view 
 not the events of that period, but of the whole 
 past history of the people. In the course of this 
 history, from the Exodus onward, it often enough 
 happened that the people fell into idolatry, and 
 were received again by the Lord into covenant 
 with Him. Comp. e. g., the repeated aposta- 
 sies in the wilderness (Exod. xxxii.; Numb, xxv.), 
 and the renewal of the covenant in Avboth Moab 
 (Deut. xxix. 1); further, the continuance of the 
 idolatrous cult, even after the capture of the Holy 
 Land, and the repetition of the covenant under 
 Joshua (Josh. xxiv. 13, sqq). With reference to 
 this and other facts of the past {e. g., 1 Sam. 
 vii.; 1 Kings xviii.): Jeremiah may well say: 
 "thy children forsook me . . . and I let them 
 swear, and they committed adultery," etc., which 
 according to our syntactic mode of expression is 
 equivalent to : "although after their apostasy, 
 to guard against another, I bound them by oath 
 and allegiance, yet still again they committed 
 adultery." Comp on this paratactic mode of 
 expression the remarks on iii. 8 and N aeoelsbach 
 Gr. ^ 111, 1, Anm. This explanation combines 
 these advantages, that («) it is supported by 
 the more difficult and critically, more secure 
 reading, — {b) it agrees with the grammar, and 
 (c) with the connection. For in the latter re- 
 spect it is clear that the prophet very suitably 
 
CHAP. V. 10-18. 71 
 
 opposes the idol-oaths to the Jehovah-oath, and 
 thus develops a chain of proofs of the faithful- 
 ness of God, and the unfaithfulness of the people, 
 
 which place the latter in the clearest light. 
 
 Rush into the harlot's house. That these 
 words have a double sense, passing imperceptibly 
 from the religious to the physical sphere of 
 thought, is evident from a comparison of what 
 precedes and follows- The justification of this 
 mode of expression is found in the well-known 
 mingling of unchastity with the idolatrous na- 
 
 ture-worship. Comp. Herzog, Real-Enc, Artt. 
 Astarte and Baal [Smith, Diet. I., 123, 145].— 
 The harlot's houses are accordingly, if not ex- 
 clusively yet preferentially the idol-temples, so 
 far as these were at the same time places of 
 spiritual and carnal adultery. Comp. Herzog 
 I. 199. 
 
 Ver. 9. Should I not punish . . . such a 
 people as this. This verse is repeated, ver. 
 29 and ch. ix. 8. As already remarked, its con- 
 tents denote the conclusion of a strophe. 
 
 3. The Treachery of Unbelief. 
 V. 10-18. 
 
 10 Scale her walls' and destroy, 
 
 But make not utterly an end of her ! 
 
 Hew off her branches, 
 
 For they are not Jehovah's. 
 
 11 For they have been faithless towards me. 
 
 House of Israel and house of Judah, saith Jehovah. 
 
 12 They have denied Jehovah, and said : 
 
 " He is not — and calamity will not come upon us ; 
 Nor sword and famine shall we behold. 
 
 13 And the prophets are become wind 
 And the word is not in them : 
 
 So will it happen to them."^ 
 
 14 Therefore thus saith Jehovah, the God of hosts : 
 
 Because ye speak this word, n 
 
 Behold, I make my word fire in thy mouth, 
 And this people wood, and it shall devour them. 
 
 15 Behold, I bring upon you a people from afar, 
 
 house of Israel, saith Jehovah. 
 
 A mighty nation it is, an ancient nation it is, 
 A nation whose language thou knowest not, 
 And understandest not what it speaketh. 
 
 16 Its quiver is like an open sepulchre, — 
 They are all heroes — 
 
 17 And it devours thy harvest and thy bread. 
 They devour thy sons and thy daughters, — 
 It devours thy sheep and thy cattle ; 
 
 It devours thy vine and thy fig-tree, — 
 
 It destroys thy fortified cities. 
 
 In which thou trustest, with the sword. 
 
 18 But even in these days, saith Jehovah, 
 
 1 will not make an utter end of you. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 10.—^\)^^^ (not to be confounded with flllE?, waves, Ezek. xxvii. 25) occurs here only, ^hj? denotes the idea 
 
 of " walls " in general, as in Hemistich 2, of the walls of a vineyard (comp. Isai. v.). A wall is elsewhere ')>i'^ PI. nillty, 
 
 whichmoreoveroccur8onlyinJobxxiv.il. The Plural nilK' is formed like D'O' from Q)\ D"'K'XT from I^XI, U'"\V 
 
 from "l''_y (comp. Olsh. g 151, Anm.) TTnV with 3 is not, as Uitzig asserts, to mount on something. The idea of the 
 
 T T ; 
 
 preposition is most variously modified by the connection, so that it denotes into (1 Kings xii. 18; 2 Kings xix. 28; Jer. 
 xlviii. 18); upon (Deut. v. 5) through, over (Ezek. xiii. 5) etc. To read with E. Meier rfjlllt!? is therefore unnesessary 
 ftnd already forbidden by V^V. 
 
72 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 2 Ver. 13.— [" This Bentence is left out in the LXX. the Syriac and the Ara))ic, but retained by the Tulg. : Heec ergo ev«- 
 nient iUis — These things shall therefore come to them. This meaning the original will hardly bear. The reference seems 
 to be to the prophet's becoming wind, being so proved by the event." Note by Eng. Ed. of Calvin.— S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 That these verses form a strophe is seen not 
 only from the unity of the contents, but also from 
 the concordance of the commencement and the 
 close. The whole strophe is only a picture in 
 detail of the brief sketch in ver. 10a, "de- 
 stroy, but not utterly." — It is further evident 
 that the fundamental thought of the strophe de- 
 pends on ver. 1 ; that the people are wanting in 
 n:iOX is clear from the fact that they deny Je- 
 hovah, and consequently do not believe the word 
 of His prophets. 
 
 Ver. 10. Scale her walls ... for they are 
 not Jehovah's. The image of a vine in an un- 
 walled vineyard suggests the expression. — The 
 phrase for they are not Jehovah's involves 
 the idea of depravation. Comp. ii. 21. 
 
 Ver. 11. For they have been faithless 
 toward me . . . saith Jehovah. The threat- 
 ening of punishment repeated in a new form fol- 
 lows the fundamental declaration " Israel has 
 been faithless towards the Lord." The prophet 
 says this of both kingdoms, though the kingdom 
 of Israel was no longer in existence. We see 
 that he still has always in view the entire past 
 history of the people. Comp. the remarks on 
 ;;''3l!^K1 at ver. 7. — Faithless (comp. iii. 7 sqq.) 
 is evidently in antithesis to truth, vers. 1 and 3. 
 It is a word of general signification, and would 
 not in itself afford a new, specific element. It is 
 therefore more particularly defined in what fol- 
 lows. 
 
 Ver. 12. They have denied Jehovah . . . 
 shall we behold. It is here declared that they 
 injured the truth in such a manner by their 
 faithlessness, that they virtually denied the ex- 
 istence of Jehovah. — have denied, Josh. xxiv. 
 27 ; Isai. lix. 13. Comp. Prov. xxx. 9. The 
 sense of this is explained unmistakably by He 
 is not. If Jehovah is not, there is no possibi- 
 lity of a judgment to be effected by Him. 
 
 Ver. 13. And the prophets ... so will it 
 happen to them. It is the necessary conse- 
 quence of Jehovah's non-existence that the word 
 prophesied in His name is regarded as nothing, 
 or as wind. When it is said, the prophets are be- 
 come wind, the reference is of course not to their 
 persons, but only to their prophetic ministry : 
 qua prophets they will prove to be mere wind- 
 bags. IS'in might certainly be rendered as a 
 finite verb (comp. Hos. i. 2) and the article with 
 the signification of Nota relationis (Gen. xxi. 3 ; 
 Isai. Ivi. 3; Josh. x. 24; 1 Chron. xxvi. 28; 
 xxix. 17; EwALD, ^ 331 b; Naeoelsb. Gr., §71, 
 5, Anm. 3). [Green's Or. § 24-5, 5 6.] The 
 sense would then be : he who speaks is not 
 in them, that is, what they say, they say en- 
 tirely of themselves. But ^3"1 might also be 
 a nominal form {ad f. np3) although this does 
 not occur elsewhere. [Vid. Fherst, .9. v.). 
 The meaning would then be: the speaker, the pro- 
 phetic spirit. The LXX.: 'A6yoq Kvplov. Both are 
 grammatically possible, the sense in both cases 
 
 being the same. — So ■will it happen to them. 
 As they threaten us, so may it happen to them- 
 selves ; let their empty threatening fall back upon 
 themselves. 
 
 Ver. 14. Therefore thus saith Jehovah . . 
 and it shall devour them. Provoked by the 
 bold declaration of unbelief in the word of the 
 prophet, vers. 12, 18, the Lord here puts in the 
 mouth of His prophet an emphatic repetition of 
 the denunciatory prophecy, which from i. 13 on- 
 wards forms the focus of his prophetic announce- 
 ment for the proximate future. Because Israel 
 will not believe the word of the prophet, this 
 word is to be equipped with the highest energy 
 of a real active force. Comp. i. 9, 10. — The sud- 
 den change of person in in thy mouth should 
 not offend. Comp. ver. 19, and Naegelsb. Gr., 
 § 101» 2 Anm. 
 
 Vers. 15-17. Behold I bring upon you . . 
 with the sw^ord. This passage has its root in 
 Deut. xxviii. 49 sqq. Comp. Isai. v. 26; Hab. i. 
 6 ; Am. vi. 14 ; Vid. Kueper., S. 12, etc. — from 
 afar. Comp. iv. 16. — House of Israel is here 
 used as a common name, ii. 26; iii. 20, 21, 23; 
 iv. 1, etc. — The prophet heaps all the predicates 
 on the people appointed to Inflict the punishment 
 which might cause them to appear terrible in the 
 highest degree to the Israelites; they are coming 
 from a distance, all sympathetic disposition to 
 spare is therefore distant from their hearts ; they 
 are an ancient people (jri'X of streams = un- 
 conquerable, ever-flowing, Deut. xxi. 4 ; Ps. 
 Ixxiv. 15, — of rocks, mountains, mountain-fast- 
 nesses = firmly founded, immovable. Numb, 
 xxiv. 21; Mic. vi. 2; Jer. xlix. 19 — designates 
 
 firmly-rooted, impregnable power; — oVl^D ''13 
 
 designates ancient nobility and the hard- 
 hearted and ruthless pride called forth by it) ; 
 further, they speak a foreign, unintelligible 
 language (from Deut. xxviii. 49): their quiver 
 is on account of its form compared with an 
 open grave — that the quiver has not a recep- 
 tive but an aggressive relation may have been 
 overlooked by the poet. — All the necessaries 
 of life will be devoured by the enemy (the de- 
 vouring of the children seems to be based on a 
 reminiscence of Deut. xxviii. 53, where, how- 
 ever, it is said, that the Israelites will devour the 
 flesh of their own children. Comp. Kueper, S. 
 12, 13; — moreover the prophet may have taken 
 
 SdK in the more general sense, (comp. x. 25) ; — 
 the fortified cities, in which Israel trusted (Deut. 
 xxviii. 52) shall be destroyed (Mai. i. 4) with the 
 power of the sword (sword as in the phrase "fire 
 and sword" being employed for warlike imple- 
 ments generally, comp. Lev. xxvi. 6). — What peo- 
 ple it is which is called to accomplish this, the 
 prophet is not yet aware. Comp. the remarks 
 above on i. 13 sqq. If he had known the name of 
 the people, why should he not have mentioned 
 it ? To think of the Scythians because they once 
 made an incursion through Palestine, and because 
 there is a Scythopolis in the valley of the Jordan 
 (comp. Herzoq, Real-Enc. XIV. S. 170), is ab- 
 surd. We can at most suppose that the prophet 
 
CHAP. V. 19-24. 
 
 73 
 
 borrowed from the Scythian invasion some tints 
 for the coloring of his picture. Moreover the 
 whole description applies also to the Babylonians. 
 These especially, according to Gen. x. and xi., 
 might be regarded as an ancient people, even if 
 we assume from Isai. xxiii. 13 that the Chaldeans 
 were a younger branch grafted into the old stock. 
 [Henderson : — " The antiquity ascribed to the 
 invaders has special respect to the Chaldeans, a 
 nation originally inhabiting the Carduchian 
 mountains and the northern parts of Mesopota- 
 mia, but who had immigrated into the Babylonian 
 territory, where they had a settlement allotted 
 them ; and being, like all mountaineers, distin- 
 guished for their bravery, doubtless composed 
 the most formidable part of the invading army. 
 See my comment on Isai. xxiii. 13. From its 
 being affirmed that the Jews would not under- 
 
 stand the language of this people, it follows that 
 after they left their original abodes, they must 
 have retained their native tongue, which was in 
 all probability the mother of the present Kur- 
 dish, — a language totally different from any of 
 Semitic origin, but showing much affinity with 
 the ancient Persic." — S. R. A.] 
 
 Ver. 18. But even in those days ... an ut- 
 ter end of you. Comp. iv. 27 and ver. 10, and the 
 remarks on the latter passage. — Make an end 
 is decidedly connected with the accusative, Nah 
 
 i. 8; Neh. ix. 31; — with 3 Jer. xxx. 11; xlvi 
 
 28 — decidedly with ns«t="with" in this pas 
 
 sage ; — when it occurs elsewhere: Jer. xxx. 11 
 xlvi. 28 ; Ezek. xi. 13 ; xx. 17 ; Zeph. i. 18 '; 
 it is uncertain whether flX is a Nota Accus, or a 
 preposition. 
 
 4. Infidelity from blindness of heart and ingratitude. 
 V. 19-24. 
 
 19 And it shall come to pass, when ye say : 
 
 For what cause doth Jehovah our God all these things to us ? — 
 So shalt thou say to them : 
 
 As ye have forsaken me, and served strange gods in your land, 
 So shall ye serve strangers in a land that is not yours. 
 
 20 Announce it in the house of Jacob, 
 And publish it in Judah : 
 
 21 Now hear it, ye people, foolish and without understanding, 
 Who have eyes and see not, ears and hear not ! 
 
 22 Will ye still not fear me ? saith Jehovah, 
 Or will ye not tremble before me. 
 
 Who have placed the sand for a boundary to the sea, 
 As an everlasting barrier, which it will not pass ? 
 And though they rage, they can do nothing, — 
 And though they roar, its waves, they come not over it 1 
 
 23 But this people have an apostate and rebellious heart ; 
 They have revolted and are gone. 
 
 24 And say not in their hearts : 
 We will fear Jehovah, our God, 
 
 Who giveth rain, the early and the latter rain in its season, 
 Who secureth to us the weeks as harvest-tide. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The main object of this section (chap, v.) is to 
 present before the people the causes of this puni- 
 tive judgment, as is especially evident in the be- 
 ginning of this strophe. For the question' (ver. 
 19): Why doth the Lord all this to us? would 
 then refer to the whole, if vers. 14 to 17 did not 
 present the principal object in the prophetic per- 
 spective. This question is therefore only a turn, 
 in order to proceed to the main purpose of the 
 section from another side. As, however, accord- 
 ing to ver. 1-3, the lack of HJIDX is the chief 
 
 cause of the jtidgment, so also in this strophe 
 it is only a new species of this which is adduced: 
 apostasy to the idols in consequence of mad 
 blindness, which recognizes not Jehovah as the 
 Almighty Creator, and hence denies Him the 
 thanks which are due to Him as the Author of 
 the most precious gifts of nature. The strophe 
 falls into two parts: 1. Cause of the punitive 
 judgment, ver. 19 (forsaking of Jehovah and 
 idolatry) ; 2. Cause of this forsaking a double 
 one: {a) being without lieart (vers. 20-22); (6) 
 an apostate and rebellious heart (vers. 23 and 
 24). 
 
 Ver. 19. And it shall come to pass . . . 
 
THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 that is not yours. — On the change of the 
 
 person (nOJ<P — P"1DX1) vide supra, on ver. 14. 
 
 Vers. 20 and 21. Announce it in the house 
 of Jacob . . . ears and hear not. — House of 
 Jacob frequently designates the whole people 
 {f. g-, in Numh. xxiii. 7; Deut. xxxii. 9; Jer. 
 X. 25 ; Am. vi. 7), but here, as elsewhere [e. 
 g. Isai. ix. 7; xvii. 4; Mic. i. 5), the kingdom 
 of Israel, partly for the sake of the antithesis to 
 Judah, partly on account of vers. 11 and 15. 
 This in reality exists no longer as such, but 
 ideally it is still ever present to the spirit of the 
 prophet, and indeed with the more justice since 
 its constituent parts were still in existence, though 
 as membra disjecta. Observe that in chap. iii. 
 Jeremiah sharply and emphatically distinguishes 
 Israel and Judah, because he is speaking of the 
 past and the distant future ; in ch. iv. he uses in 
 ver. 1 the conjoint appellation, but in what fol- 
 lows, having the present in view he turns to Ju- 
 dah and Jerusalem only (vers. 3, 4, 6, 6, 10, 11, 
 14, 16, 31) ; in ch. v. he still addresses Jerusalem 
 in ver. 1, but in what follows (vers. 11, 15) the 
 entirety of the people is more prominent in his 
 mind, quite naturally, since he has to present the 
 causes of the judgment predicted by him, which 
 carry him back into the remote past. He could 
 not then possibly restrict what he says in ver. 21 
 sqq. to Judah, for it all applies with equal force 
 to Israel. — Foolish and without under- 
 standing. Comp. iv. 22 ; Hos. vii. 11. Have 
 eyes, etc. Comp. Deut. xxix. 3 ; Isai. vi. 9, 10; 
 Ezek. xii. 2. The apostasy of the people is here 
 explained by their spiritual blindness and dulness 
 generally, and this appears to have come upon 
 them, because notwithstanding the grand dis- 
 plays of His power they had witnessed, they 
 feared not the Lord. 
 
 Ver. 22. Will ye still not fear me . . . they 
 come not over it. From the connection the 
 prophet cannot intend an exhortation, but only 
 the confirmation of a fact. It is thus not so much : 
 Will ye not fear me then? as : Ye fear me not there- 
 fore. — The wide ocean with the immense body of 
 its waves is an emblem of the wildest and most 
 irresistible force of nature. And yet the Lord is 
 strong enough to control this violence. Comp. 
 Job xxxviii. 8-11; Ps. xxxiii. 7; Prov. viii. 29. 
 [The sea is also an emblem of the world, and its 
 waves of the turbulence of the nations, which are 
 yet under divine control. Comp. Ps. xciii. 3, 4. 
 Henostenberg on John vi. 16-21. — S. R. A.] — 
 They rage, comp. xlvi. 7, 8 ; 2 Sam. xxii. 8 ; 
 Ps. xviii. S; subject — its V7aves. — Can do no- 
 thing. Comp. iii. 6; xx. 11 ; Isai. xvi. 12 ; Job 
 xzxi. 23 
 
 Ver. 23. But this people . . . are gone. 
 
 How can a people be impelled by the greatness 
 of God's works to fear Him, who are not moved 
 to such fear by His goodness-? He whom the 
 love of God wins not, is not won by His omnipo- 
 tence, for the former is the stronger. The con- 
 nection is therefore this, that vers. 23 and 24 in- 
 troduce a new element of their unfaithful dispo- 
 sition, which has at the same time a causal re- 
 lation to that which was previously mentioned in 
 
 vers. 21, 22. The Vau in DVh^ is adversative : I 
 
 T- t: 
 
 ask, Will ye still not fear? but to this question I 
 can obtain no satisfactory answer, because this 
 people is both apostate and rebellious. — 
 These last named predicates are stronger than 
 those in ver. 21, for those were negative, while 
 these are positive. They are not only insensible 
 and dull, but positively hostile. They can not — 
 and what is worse — they will not. There is no 
 occasion in the text to take and are gone aa 
 forming a climax (comp. Judges iv. 24; Gen. iii. 
 8). It rather corresponds to have revolted aa 
 its positive side: they break loose from the Lord 
 and go away into the unmeasured distance, whi- 
 thersoever their heart impels them. 
 
 Ver. 24. And say not in their hearts ... as 
 harvest-tide. — We ^vill fear [Let us fear — 
 Henderson] corresponds to the not fear me, 
 ver. 22 : neither the grandeur nor the kindness 
 of God's works move them to fear Jehovah. — The 
 rain is an emblem of blessing. Comp. iii. 3. — 
 
 DtJ'J is the general term, as we may perceive from 
 Lev. xxvi. 4 (Djnj;3 Uymi "i^D^])- The double 
 Vau before T\'\V (early rain, October to Decem- 
 ber) and K'IpbD (the latter rain, in the spring, 
 before the harvest) is disjunctive=re< — et. Comp. 
 Naeqelsb. Gr. §110, 3. The Masoretes, not 
 understanding this, would strike out the first 
 Vau, but unnecessarily. — Secureth. The fruit- 
 fulness of the year depends on the regularity of 
 the rainy seasons. Comp. Deut. xi. 14 ; 1 Sam. 
 xii. 17, 18: Raumer, Faldst. 4 Atijt. S. 90— [ Vid. 
 LiGHTFooT, XII. p. 71]. — The weeks as har- 
 vest-tide are the seven weeks of harvest from 
 Easter lo Whitsuntide [Passover to Pentecost] 
 (Exod. xxiii. 16; xxxiv. 22; Numb, xxviii. 26; 
 Deut. xvi. 9, 10, 16). They are called thus be- 
 cause the beginning and the close of the (princi- 
 pal) harvest was determined by the two festivals 
 as by fixed boundary-lines. The "^'Vp^ ^"'PP 
 
 (harvest-tide) correspond to the DvlJ^'pn 
 feverlasting barrier), ver. 22. 
 
 5. Infidelity as deceit and violence. 
 V. 25-29. 
 
 25 Your transgressions hindered such things, 
 Your sins withheld the good from you. 
 
 26 For godless [men] are found among my people ; 
 They lurk, like fowlers crouch ; 
 
CHAP. V. 30-31. 
 
 75 
 
 They set traps, they catch men. 
 
 27 As a cage is full of birds 
 
 So are their houses full of unrighteous wealth. 
 Therefrom they are become great and rich. 
 
 28 They are fat, they shine, they overflow with iniquities : 
 
 In justice they settle not the affairs of the orphan, and prosecute them; 
 And the rights of the poor they procure not. 
 
 29 Should I not punish such, saith Jehovah, 
 
 Should not my soul avenge itself on a nation like this ? 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Ver. 25 is closely connected with the previous 
 strophe, but in such wise that it evidently does 
 not belong to it, but conducts to a new passage. 
 It involves in a certain measure a contradiction 
 to the preceding. While in ver. 24 it was de- 
 clared : they say not, let us fear the Lord, who 
 gives us rain, etc., it is here said that Jehovah 
 had not given them rain because of the sins of the 
 people. And these sins are now so specified in 
 what follows, that we see the prophet would con- 
 firm by new facts the fundamental thought of the 
 section that HJIOX has departed from Israel. 
 Moreover the end here reverts to the beginning. 
 For when he here speaks of the ruling of the 
 no^p, and of the unrighteousness of those in 
 power it is evident that the phrase " any one 
 doing right or seeking truth," in ver. 1, is ho- 
 vering before his mind. Ver. 29 shows by its 
 identity with ver. 9, that it is the conclusion of 
 the stroplie, and thus in its structure this strophe 
 entirely resembles that in vers. 7-9, which like- 
 wise begins and ends with a reference to the di- 
 vine judgment. 
 
 Ver. 25. Your transgressions . . . from 
 you. Comp. iii. 3; iv. 18. Wlien the prophet 
 here, as in iii. 3, refers to the withholding of the 
 rain as past, he certainly had definite facts in 
 view (f. (/., 1 Kings xvii. ; Am. iv. sqq.) and 
 would intimate that the Lord not merely will 
 punish, but already has punished, by which a 
 guarantee is afforded of the infliction of the ex- 
 pected judgment. 
 
 Ver. 26. For godless men are found . . . 
 
 they catch men. '^W^ is to be regarded a4 
 impersonal : it is lurked. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., 
 §101, 2.— D'i:?1jT -jiyj. Comp. Naegelsb. G!r., 
 I 95, 2. [Green's Gr., § 139, 2.— S. R. A.] 
 (Hil-ID 13^3 Prov. X. 25).— ri'ntyo, destroyer gQ- 
 nerally (Exod. xii. 13; Ezek. xxi. 36), here spe- 
 cially, on account of 3'2fn, destructive snares. 
 
 Ver. 27. As a cage is full of birds . . . be- 
 come great and rich. HOIO is evidently the 
 antithesis of riJ^IDX. At the same time the 
 
 T V; 
 
 word is to be taken as abstr. pro concr.^res fraude 
 
 parfse, as /DJ/ Ps. cv. 4; Eccles. ii. 19; comp. 
 
 Naegelsb. Gr., § 59, 1. From riches gained by 
 deceit is developed violent injustice. 
 
 Vers. 28 and 29. They are fat . . . nation" 
 like this. Being fat is not all:. luxury pro- 
 duces lust, it runs over like a seething pot, and 
 that with iniquities [niatters of wickedness : 
 Henderson] (J^"^"'^?)! involving the ideas of res 
 and verhum) which are afterwards enumerated. 
 "^2^ is construed as a verb of fulness with the 
 
 accusative, like ^jH, Joel iv. 18. Comp. Nae- 
 gelsb. Gr., § 69, 2, a. — They settle not. 
 Comp. Ps. X. 18; xliii. 2; Gen. xxx. 5; Jer. 
 xxii. 16. — and prosecute them, might certain- 
 ly be rendered grammatically=//m/' they prosper 
 [Henderson]. But then the plural is strange 
 and the sense is flat. Therefore it is better to 
 regard it as the positive side of settle not = 
 and they carry them through. — Ver. 29, comp. 
 ver. 9. 
 
 6. Comprehensive conclusion. 
 V. 30, 31. 
 
 30 Fear and horror have happgned in the land ; 
 
 31 The prophets prophesy falsely. 
 And the priests rule by their hand,^ 
 And my people love to have it so : 
 
 But what will they do when the end of the song comes ? 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 i ^^'■- "^^- — [" The LXX. and the Vulgate have 'Anrl the priests have aiiplauded with their own hands,' and the Targuin 
 
 And the priests have blessed their liands.' Both menu tlip same thincr I?] tliou-li tlie wurd.s are different ; and Blayney [and 
 Boothroyd] gives the same meaning;. 'And the jirii-sts liave (.•on.-iiin-il witli fliein." ilniisi.KY says the wnnis Iit.-rai|y are 
 'And the priests go down according to their hands ;' that is, he adds, ' tli.' i)riests 5;.. wliirli wiv th i ■ > ;• 1 • ••• ' ■ , 
 
T6 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 the priests are directed by them.' — When followed by 7J7 as here, the preposition never means according to, as HorsleI 
 renders it, but ever, upon, toward or against, and mostly ' upon.' See Ex. ix. 9 ; Numb. iv. 9 ; Ps. vii. 10 ; Ixxii. 6. There- 
 fore 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, etc. Note by Eng. ed. 
 of Calvin, I. p. 309.— S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 These verses express the result of the exami- 
 nation instituted by the prophet into the moral 
 condition of the people, viz., that it was horribly 
 bad in all ranks of life. While ver. 30 has re- 
 ference to the entire section, ver. 31 refers espe- 
 cially to vers. 4 and 5. 
 
 Ver. 30. Fear ... in the land.— Pear. Comp. 
 Deut. xxviii. 37; 2 Kings xxii. 19; Jer. xix. 8; 
 XXV. 9, f?c.— horror, a horrible thing, xxiii. 14. 
 Comp. xviii. 13; Hos. vi. 10. 
 
 Ver. 31. The prophets . . . when the end 
 of the song comes. The prophets are first 
 mentioned as the medium of all knowledge which 
 determines to action. Comp. xx. 6 ; xxix. 9. 
 The priests ought to have been a corrective to 
 the misleading of the prophets, comp. Mai. ii. 7 ; 
 Ezek. vii. 26. Instead of this they made profit 
 by them. — T'l^ or n'-^J^ apart from its local 
 signification, is a priestly terminus technicus, which 
 means ad latus = under inspection, by appoint- 
 ment (1 Chron. vi. 16; xxv. 2, 3, 6 ; 2 Chron. 
 xvii. 15, 17; xxiii. 18; xxix. 27; Ezr. iii. 10). 
 So here. For an instance of such corrupting in- 
 fluence exercised by the prophets on the priests, 
 see Jer. xxix. 24-32. — The corruption of the 
 priests and prophets should in the last instance 
 be rebuked by the sound sense of the people. 
 But no. The people love to have it so. They do 
 not cause a reaction but co-operate. — When 
 the end of the song comes, or in reference 
 to its end. The fem. suflf. must be regarded as 
 mental (ver. 20, comp. Naegelsb. Gr., ^ 60, 6 b) 
 and to be referred in general to the totality of the 
 condition described by the prophet. The sense 
 is : What will you do when the present condition 
 enters upon its last stage of development, or as 
 we say, when the end of the song comes? Comp. 
 Isai. X. 3 ; Hos. ix. 6. [Lightfoot, XII. p. 550. 
 — S. R. A.] 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On ver. 1. "The wicked world has in the 
 pious andbelieving a noble treasure and defence" 
 (Gen. xviii. 32); Lange. — Even Zoar is pre- 
 served for the sake of Lot, (Gen. xix. 20sqq.) — 
 Comp. Isai. xxxvii. 35. — Ghislerus reminds us 
 of a story which Pliny relates (vol. xxxv. cap. 
 10) of King Demetrius, who retired from the city 
 of Rhodium, because he could not take it on its 
 only accessible side without destroying some ce- 
 lebrated paintings of Protogenes. 
 
 2. ZiNZENDORF here relates (.S'. 198) a story 
 of M. Joh. Christoph Schwedler, ob. 1730. 
 "Once when in the church at Wiese (Silesia) 
 they were singing before the communion ' I will 
 say to thee Farewell,' at the words 'Thy sinful, 
 wicked living, pleases me not at all,' such an 
 Elias-like zeal seized upon him, that raising his 
 voice above the organ and the choral of a thou- 
 sand voices, he cried out in tones of thunder, 
 ' For God's sake what are you singing? What 
 
 does not please you? The Lord Jesus does not 
 please you. To him ye must say : Thou pleasest 
 us not, then you would speak the truth ; but you 
 do say, the world.' — When now all, convicted by 
 their consciences, sat there in grief and tears, 
 and few knew how this happened to them, he 
 said: ' Now, if it be thus as it should be, let him 
 to whomsoever your sinful life has become of- 
 fensive, confess it in the name of the Lord,' 
 whereupon this verse was wept rather than 
 sung." 
 
 3. On ver. 3. Origen says in his sixth homily, 
 of which the text is Jer. v. 3-5, " If now thou 
 wilt that the beams of God's eye rest upon thee, 
 embrace the virtues. So will it be with thee ac- 
 cording to this ' the eyes of the Lord look for 
 faith.' And if thou art such an one that the 
 eyes of the Lord shine upon thee, then wilt thou 
 say, 'the light of thy countenance rose upon us, 
 Lord,' Ps. iv. 7." — " He asks for returns and 
 that too in cash. This is the fund to which he 
 applies and on which he depends. Words are of 
 no value to him. But just this is the complaint: 
 Faith is rare among the. children of men (Ps. 
 xii. 2) ; 'it is not every man's possession,' as it 
 is there said. In these days preachers might ex- 
 claim with Isaiah: who believes? (Isai. liii. 1), 
 And Abraham pleads with the Lord for Sodom on 
 condition of five righteous persons being found 
 in it (Gen. xviii)." Zinzendorf. — '■'■ Ecceverbera 
 desuper et flagella non desunt, et trepidatio nulla, 
 nulla for mido est. Quid ai non intercederet rebus 
 humanis velista censura?" Cyprian, ad Dcmeiria- 
 num. — '■'■ Hand grave est plagis affici, sed plagu me- 
 liorem non fieri gravissimum est." Gregor. Nazianz. 
 
 4. On vers. 4 and 6. "A preacher has no more 
 miserable and ignorant hearers than the respec- 
 table. While they are spelling their way back 
 to the cross, and are getting so far as to know 
 how to learn that we are saved alone by the 
 grace of the Lord Jesus, till we get them so far 
 as to understand that the command of the New 
 Test, is to believe, and all that morality can lug 
 about for eighty years is gone with a word : Son, 
 be of good courage, thy sins are forgiven thee, — 
 the ignorant would have been able to do it thrice. 
 Enough has been said to show that a teacher greatly 
 deceives himself, if he seeks among the respecta- 
 ble that comfort in his office, which he does not 
 meet with among the common people." Zinzen- 
 DORF. S. 12, 13. Comp. S. 65, 66 ; 1 Cor. i. 
 26, 27. 
 
 5. On ver. 13. " Yes, the prophets are gossips. 
 How does this sound and whence comes the say- 
 ing? It sounds somewhat distinguished, and a 
 teacher may draw it upon himself. Almost the 
 whole body has incurred this, tliiit they are reck- 
 oned with afterwards, and because after their 
 discourse one has been able to do away with it by 
 head work, he has finally come to the conclusion: 
 the pastors are gossips ; and the precious trea- 
 sure of the public testimony is much calumni- 
 ated. Whoever is grieved on account of the 
 teachers, let him reflect that this arises not so 
 much from the fault of the hearers as of the 
 
CHAP. V. 30-31. 
 
 77 
 
 teachers. I will assure him : As soon as the 
 words of the Lord become fire in his mouth, the 
 hearers become wood, and criticism is at an end, 
 and feeling comes and savor comes, be it unto 
 life or unto death. From that time the preacher 
 is in earnest, and laughter is forbidden by the 
 hearers themselves." Zinzendorf, S. 18, 14. 
 
 6. On ver. 15 sqq. " The prophet takes his di- 
 rection from God's unchangeable calendar, as it 
 was composed by Moses : Deut. xxviii. 49. 
 Therefore he could well prognosticate how it 
 would terminate with his disobedient people. It 
 is of use, that we diligently peruse such an ever- 
 enduring calendar, and ever have it before our 
 eyes. For it is more certain than all other prog- 
 nostications can be." Cramer. 
 
 7. On vers. 21, 22. "Hear, ye mad people, that 
 have no understanding ! Will ye not fear me ? 
 This is a glorious discovery of the omnipotence 
 and majesty of God. If, however, men see one, 
 they see all ; but they have no ears to hear until 
 the whole is changed. But that men are so se- 
 cure and think not of Him who allows them to 
 live so securely, this is indeed an insane busi- 
 ness." Zinzendorf, S. 202. 
 
 8. On ver. 24. "0 man, as often as thou put- 
 test bread into thy mouth, reflect, that God by 
 this means of nourishment would bring thee to 
 Himself. Cling not also to carnal bread, but let 
 thy immortal soul be satisfied by God." Starke. 
 
 9. [On ver. 25. " This passage is worthy of 
 special note : 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 pro- 
 ceeds, 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 obe- 
 dience 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, 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 hea- 
 vens 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 as- 
 cribed 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." Calvin. 
 — S. R. A.] 
 
 10. On ver. 28. Zinzendorf remarks on the 
 words "and they prosper" that the chief cause 
 of the condemnation of the rich man (Luke vi. 
 19 sqq.) was that he was prospered in all things 
 in this world. He consequently received his 
 good things in this life and fared sumptuously 
 every day. Comp. Ps. xxxvii. 35; Luke vi. 25; 
 Jas. v. 1 sqq. 
 
 11. On ver. 28. "It would be better for one 
 
 to have the Turkish emperor with all his army 
 for an enemy than a poor widow with her father- 
 less orphans. For the widow's tears are water 
 which rises above all the mountains and then falls 
 again and washes away all her enemies into 
 hell." Luther. Comp. Wisd. xxxv. 18-21. 
 
 12. On ver. 31. "My people like it so. Like 
 sought, like found. The people wish to have 
 false preachers and get them, and a blind man 
 leads the blind until both fall into the ditch, 
 Luke vi. 39." Cramer. — "How will it be at 
 last ? We finally become as accustomed to dis- 
 order as disorderly people, and the more every- 
 thing goes to ruin, the less concerned are we. 
 There is, perhaps, however, still an uncompro- 
 mising servant or old friend of our Father, who 
 is constantly repeating the little word to us : 
 How will it be ? How will it end at last ? This 
 is the peculiar office of the teacher, and nobody 
 likes to hear him." Zinzendorf, S. 203. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On ver. 3. Lord, thine eyes look for 
 faith. Why does God impose faith as the only 
 condition of salvation ? 1. Because faith gives 
 the greatest glory to God. 2. Because it is at the 
 same time the easiest and most difficult exercise 
 of the human heart. For (a) to believe, i. e., to 
 accept God's grace as a free gift, every one is, 
 and must be, able to do. (6) He who can do it, 
 has vanquished himself at the one point and 
 won all. 
 
 2. [On ver. 4. "All sin proceeds from some 
 misapprehension of God. (1) Skeptical humor 
 as to God's particular Providence, and inspection 
 over all events. (2) Disbelief that He is con- 
 cerned about the moral good or evil actions of 
 men. (3) Abuse of the doctrine of God's fore- 
 ordination, and (4) of His mercy. But (1) God's 
 mercy will not interfere with His justice. (2) 
 The execution will be no less severe than the 
 threatening. (3) God will not accept less than 
 He requires in the Gospel." Dr. S. Clarke. — 
 S. R. A.] 
 
 3. On ver. 11. Obstinate unbelief. 1. Its na- 
 ture : it denies God and therefore despises {a) 
 God's word, (6) those who proclaim it. 2. Its 
 punishment: the tables are turned; (a) the unbe- 
 liever, before fire, now becomes wood, (6) the 
 word of God, before regarded as wood, becomes 
 fire. 
 
 4. On ver. 19. "Why doth the Lord our God 
 all these things to us? Three answers to this 
 one question : 1. John xiii. 7, What 1 do, thou 
 knowest not now, etc. 2. Matth. xx. 15, Is it not 
 lawful for me to do what I will? etc. 3. James i. 
 12. Blessed is the man that endureth temptation, 
 etc. Floret, 1863. 
 
 6. On vers. 21, 24. Of the fear of God. 1. 
 Motives from without, {a) God's displays of 
 power, (6) His displays of grace. 2. Inner con- 
 ditions: {a) That we open our eyes and ears, (6) 
 that we allow ourselves to be impelled by that 
 which we see and hear. 
 
 6. On ver. 24. (Harvest [Thanksgiving] ser- 
 mon). The harvest-blessing: 1. From whom it 
 comes. 2. To whom it leads. 
 
 7. On ver. 24. It is the Lord who faithfully 
 guards the harvest forces. This truth calls for 
 
78 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 1. humility and trust in the sowing of earthly 
 eeed; 2. confidence in working in this world; 
 3. hope in the interment of bodies in the earth. 
 V. 11. Trenk, Gesetz und Zeugniss (Law and Tes- 
 timony), Apr. 1860, S. 226. 
 
 8. On ver. 24. The call which the present year's 
 harvest makes on the hearts of men. It is, Fear 
 the Lord. For 1, without Him all labor and toil 
 is in vain ; 2. He does not allow Himself to be in- 
 
 terfered with in His government ; 3. He gives 
 and blesses without respect to our deserts and in 
 spite of our sins. Floret, 1863. 
 
 9. On vers. 30 and 31. A cry of warning in a pe- 
 riod of universal apostasy. 1. The condition of 
 the people is shocking and abominable, for (a) the 
 leaders of the people misguide them, (6) the peo- 
 ple wish to be misled. 2. The consequences corre- 
 spond to the guilt (comp. vers. 25, 14sqq., 6). 
 
 III. Recapitulation, consisting of a combination of the points already presented: 
 the call to return, announcement of punishment and its reasons. 
 
 (Chap. VI. 1-26). 
 
 1. Exhortation to flee from Jerusalem. 
 
 VI. 1-8. 
 
 1 Flee, ye children of Benjamin, out of Jerusalem, 
 And in Blow (Tekoa) blow the trumpet. 
 
 And over the vineyard (Beth-hakkerem ) erect the signal,' 
 For calamity threatens from the north and great ruin. 
 
 2 Thou art like the meadow, the tenderly cared for, 
 O daughter of Zion. 
 
 3 Against her shall come shepherds and their flocka 
 And pitch their tents against her round about, 
 And depasture each his spot. 
 
 4 Sanctify war against her ! 
 "Arise, let us go up at noon ! 
 Wo to us, for the day has turned. 
 
 For the shadows of evening are lengthening. 
 
 5 Arise, and let us go up in the night 
 xiud destroy her palaces !" 
 
 6 For thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth, 
 
 Fell her trees,^ and raise a rampart* against Jerusalem I 
 
 She is the city of which it is ascertained 
 
 That nothing but rude violence is found in her. 
 
 7 As a spring^ poureth forth its waters 
 So she poureth forth her wickedness. 
 Injustice and desolation are heard of in her, 
 Sickness and wounds are continually before me. 
 
 8 Be warned, O Jerusalem, lest my soul be forced from thee, 
 Lest I make thee desolate, a land uninhabited. 
 
 ders 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 1.— [" It is singular that the Sept. render this in ch. iv. 6, ' Haste ye,' and here 'Be ye strong.' The Targum ren- 
 it ' migrate ' or, remove ye. The idea of assembling it never has.— Where Blatnet got the phrase, ' Retire in a body ' 
 
 it is difficult to say.'' Ed. of Calvix.— S. R. A.] ,_ , ^ i, j • j , ^i, t> u 
 
 2 Ver. 1. — [" The word has no connection with ' Are,' as mentioned in our version, which has been derived from the Rab- 
 bins. Blaynet'8 rendering is ' light up a fire— beacon,' but the words admit of no such meaning." Ed. of Calvin.— S. R. A.] 
 
 3 Ver. 6.— nV y is not to be regarded as a fem. collective form (comp. HJT) which does not occur elsewhere, but H is 
 
 T •- T T 
 
 the suffix without niappik, as frequently (Exod. ix. 18 ; Num. xv. 28 ; Ps. xlviii. 14 ; Ew. § 247, d ; OlSH. § 40, c ; Naeoelsb. 
 \ 44, 4, Anm.) Tlie LXX. Vulg. Syr. and several Oodd. in De Rossi also express the suffix. 
 
 4 Ver. 6.— nS'^6 'nSt:' is tlie standing mode of expression, so mucli so that nS/D occurs only in this connection, 2 
 Sam. XX. 1.5 ; 2 Ki.'xix. 32^ Isai. xxxvii. 33; Ezck. iv. 2; xvii. 17 ; xxi. 27 ; xxvi. 8; Dan. xi. 15. 
 
 i Ver. 7.— It 18 probable that ^'13 here stands for 1K3. as the Masoretes suppose to have happened, vice versa, in 2 Sam. 
 
CHAP. VI. 1-8. 
 
 79 
 
 xxiii. 15, 16, 20. This is also proved by the lem. suffix iu Pl'D'O- For 113, pit is masc, while 1{<2 is fern. This change of 
 
 T '.* • ■ 
 gender between the noun and the suffix is probably also the ground of the Keri T3) which does not occur elsewhere. On 
 
 the construction comp. v. 16, and Naegelsb. Or., g 95, 2. 
 
 EXEQETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 That. vers. 1-8 form a strophe is seen partly 
 from their close connection (ver. 6 traces the un- 
 dertaking of the besiegers to a divine command), 
 partly from the fact that the eight verses con- 
 tain the complete cycle of the fundamental 
 thought of the prophet, announcement of judg- 
 ment, statement of reasons (vers. 6 and 7) and call 
 to reform (ver. 8). At the same time however a 
 climax is evident on a comparison with the pre- 
 ceding context. For the prophet here sees the 
 judgment upon Jerusalem so near its accomplish- 
 ment that he already earnestly admonishes to 
 flight those who live to the south of this city. 
 
 Ver. 1. Flee, ye children of Benjamin . . 
 great ruin. — Flee, comp. iv. 6. — Children 
 [sons] of Benjamin is explained without doubt 
 by the circumstance that Benjaminites formed a 
 part (probably the principal part. Comp. Graf, 
 Winer, R W. B., s. v., Jerusalem) of the inha- 
 bitants of Jerusalem. According to the original 
 settlement of boundaries (Josh. xv. 8; xviii. 16) 
 Jerusalem belonged entirely to Benjamin. But 
 even before David's time it was inhabited by Ju- 
 deans (Josh. xv. 63) and Benjaminites (Judg. i. 
 21). Since David's time, being the capital of the 
 whole country, it also belonged to the whole 
 people (comp. Raumer, Paldst. S. 339) and 
 doubtless had inhabitants from all the tribes, 
 which would not however exclude Judeans and 
 Benjaminites from forming the bulk of the po- 
 pulation. Jeremiah's mentioning only the lat- 
 ter may be explained by the fact that he himself 
 was of the tribe of Benjamin (i. 1). — From 
 [from the midst] is an antithesis to tOTvards 
 Zion, iv. 6. While there they were called upon 
 to flee to Jerusalem, where at first they would 
 find safety, now they are exhorted to flee fro7n 
 Jerusalem. — V'^P'^ (to blow, blow, Germ, stossen, 
 
 Stoss. Comp. the place named Stoss in Appen- 
 zell, Switz.) is mentioned partly for the sake of 
 the paronomasia and partly because it is a pro- 
 minent point to the south of Jerusalem; for after 
 the capital, the bulwark of the South, has fallen, 
 this also is threatened and must think of flight. 
 Tekoa lay 9 to 12 m. p. south from Jerusalem. 
 It is mentioned in 1 Sam. xiv. 2; Am. i. 1, etc. 
 Jerome says on this passage, " Thecuam quoque 
 viculum esse in monte situm, et 12 millibus ab Hiero- 
 solymis separatum qiiotidie oculis cerninius." Ac- 
 cording to Robinson (II. 406) [Thomson, The 
 Land and the Book, II. p. 424] the place is still 
 called Tekua, and is situated on a mountain co- 
 vered with ruins. — For a similar paronomasia 
 Vid. Mic. i. lOsqq. — D^3n~r\''3 is mentioned 
 
 only here and in Neh. iii. 14. Jerome testifies 
 that it was a considerable elevation, near to Te- 
 koa. — According to Pococke it is the Frank 
 mountain, "an insulated, lofty cone." Comp. 
 Raumer, Palast., S. 223. [Robinson, Bibl. Res. 
 II., pp. 174, 182-184. Ritter, Geog. III., p. 
 96. — S. R. A.] ^?<?'0 from its radical meaning 
 
 of elatio obtains a variety of derivative significa- 
 tions. See the Lexicons. Here as in Judg. xx. 
 88, 40, it denotes the sign raised high aloft, (else- 
 where DJ). — For calamity, comp. iv. 6. 
 
 Ver. 2. Thou art like the meadow . . . 
 daughter of Zion. The passage is difficult, 
 and has been very variously explained. HIJ is 
 
 taken in the sense of "meadow " (Luther, Neu- 
 mann) ; habitatrix (Venema) ; shepherdess (Seb. 
 Schmidt). Most commentators render it = 
 niXJ (Song of Sol. ii. 14; iv. 3; vi. 3) pulchra, 
 
 formosa. HJ^J^O from JIJ^ delicate vixit (Pual 
 
 here only) is without doubt = delicate habita, 
 which is always well cared for, spared, never 
 roughly handled, comp. nJJJ^p Deut. xxviii. 56; 
 
 Isai. xlvii. 1. — Ti'DI 1. assimilavi (Vulg., Kim- 
 CHi, Abarb., Pagn., Tremell., Piscator, etc.); 
 2. similis facta es (Syr.); 3. similis sum (Seb. 
 Schmidt) ; 4. periisti mihi (Venema) ; 5. as fair 
 and luxurious have I imagined the daughter of 
 Zion (derived from the meaning " to compare," 
 comp. Song of Sol. ii. 17 ; viii. 14; Fuerst) ; 6. 
 the fair and luxurious — I mean the daughter of 
 Zion — to her come, etc. (Ewald, Meier) ; 7. I 
 make still (Neumann), exterminate (so most re- 
 cent commentators). The connection requires 
 without doubt the meaning of gay, well-tended 
 and well-preserved meadow. For after, in ver. 
 1, a grievous calamity in general is set in imme- 
 diate prospect before Jerusalem, we see from ver. 
 3 more particularly that this calamity will con- 
 sist in a visitation of rough shepherds, who will 
 ruthlessly depasture and desolate Jerusalem with 
 their flocks. In contrast with its later condition, 
 Jerusalem before its desolation can be repre- 
 sented under no more suitable figure than that 
 of a meadow well-preserved and tended by its 
 owner with special predilection. HIJ designates 
 
 not only a visitation generally, but also a pasto- 
 ral visitation in particular [caula cum pascuo, 
 Fuerst), as is clear from Job viii. 6; coll. Zeph. 
 ii. 6. Comp. HIXJ Jer. ix. 9; xxiii. 10; xxv. 
 36. noi is indisputably = similis fuit (Ps. 
 Ixxxix. 7; cii. 7; cxliv. 4, etc.) It is usually 
 construed with y (seethe passages cited) or with 
 Sn (Ezek. xxxi. 8). But that it may also have 
 the subject compared, without a preposition, in 
 the nominative is seen from Ezek. xxxii. 2, 
 where it reads ri''P'7J W']l T33, i. e., a lion 
 among the nations art thou compared. Comp. 
 Isai. xxxviii. 13. The meanings of Niphal and 
 Kal intrans. here, as frequently, coincide. The 
 construction is explained thus, that HO^, HDIJ 
 
 '^ T T T : • 
 
 properly signify: to be as a comparison, as a 
 thing compared; Egypt is (in Ezek. 1. c.) com- 
 pared; i.e., by way of comparison, figuratively 
 designates, a lion. Israel (in this passage) is as 
 a figure or comparison a meadow — 'f^'p^ I take 
 
 as the Syriac did, according to the frequent 
 usage in Jeremiah (comp. on ii. 20) as 2 Pers. 
 Fem. — The Masoretes have not added in tlie Keri 
 
80 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 the regular form here as in the other passages, 
 which may be explained by the circumstance 
 that they took TCDT as the 1st person. The ar- 
 ticle before HU is generic as in iv. 25; comp. 
 Naeoelsb., § 71, 4, a. — 1 before njij^on is ep- 
 exegetical = and indeed, comp. Naegelsb. Gr., 
 \ 111, 1 a. 
 
 Ver. 3. Against her shall come shep- 
 herds . . . each his spot. The enemies are 
 compared with shepherds, who break in with 
 flocks and ruthlessly depasture and tread down. 
 Comp. Mic. V. 4, 5. — And pitch their tents, 
 etc., comp. i. 15. — T side, place, spot. Comp. 
 Lev. ii. 17; Deut. xxiii. 13; Isai. Ivi. 5. 
 
 Ver. 4. Sanctify war against her . . the 
 shadows of evening are lengthening.— 
 Sanctify as in Joel iv. 9; Mic. iii. 5; Zeph. i. 
 7 ; Jer. xxii. 7 ; li. 27. The expression refers 
 to the solemn ceremonies attending the procla- 
 mation and commencement of war. Comp. Ezek. 
 xxi. 26 sqq. — This and the following are calls 
 made from the midst of the enemy. — The expres- 
 sions exhibit the zeal of the enemy with dramatic 
 liveliness. This zeal is so great that the unfa- 
 vorable time of the day even cannot detain them. 
 At noon, when the heat usually compels all to 
 rest they depart, and when the evening comes 
 they deplore it, but instead of going to rest pre- 
 pare at once for the assault. — Has turned. 
 Comp. Ps. xc. 9, [all our days turn away]. 
 
 Ver. 5. Arise, and let us go up . . . de- 
 8troy her palaces. r>UpTX is translated by 
 ScHNURRER and EwALD, here and in ix. 20, by 
 lofty buildings, in order to comprise the fortifica- 
 tions. But here, as frequently, the expression 
 denotes the final object, the completion of the 
 work of destruction. Comp. Jer. xvii. 27 ; Am. 
 i. 4. 
 
 Ver. 6. For thus saith Jehovah . . found 
 in her. The besieging of Jerusalem by its ene- 
 mies is not a baseless, vain undertaking. It rests 
 on a double, solid ground: 1. Immediately on a 
 divine command (^jT)3) ; 2. mediately on the un- 
 godliness of Israel, which provokes the ven- 
 geance of Jehovah (njl p^;r nS^ to ver. 7, fin.) 
 . — Fell her trees is evidently an allusion to Deut. 
 XX. 19, 20, where it is commanded that Israel 
 when they besiege a city, are not to cut down all 
 the trees for the purposes of the siege (walls and 
 machines. — Comp. Winer, R. W. B., and Herzog 
 Real-Em. Art. Festungen). Here the enemy is 
 commanded to do the exact contrary. Thus it 
 is rendered evident how savage the enemy is and 
 what Israel has to expect. The latter are so un- 
 godly that the enemy is excused from those con- 
 siderations which were imposed on the Israelites 
 themselves in war. If this passage is thus based on 
 Deut. XX. 19, 20, we are then justified in regarding 
 n!f J^ ^r\'\2 as a verbal reminiscence. — The follow- 
 ing sentence is construed in three ways: 1. Ihcc 
 ilia urbs — punitur quantaquanta est — oppressio in ca ; 
 2. hsec est urbs in quam aniinadvertitur, — tota ilia 
 oppressio in ea ; 3. urbs ista — exploralum est, quod 
 non est nisi oppressio in ea. — Of these interpreta- 
 tions the first must be unconditionally rejected, 
 
 for T\13 is as unnecessary with "IpSH, as it is 
 necessary to what follows. The second is the 
 
 tionum, pi!?;; H^J and n|") p3 piil}?. 
 
 continually be- 
 
 most generally adopted. But the abrupt HpiJn 
 is flat; we expect a stronger word and the im- 
 perfect, since the visitation is impending. I 
 therefore prefer the third interpretation, adopted 
 by Abarbanel and Seb. Schmidt. Since 
 '\Dp=ezplorare (comp. Ps. xvii. 18; Job vii. 18) 
 Ipipn may well mean exploratu7n est. This agrees 
 excellently with what follows : that their inward 
 part is full of thoughts of violence is confirmed by 
 the fact that they well forth these like a spring its 
 waters ; the cry thereof is heard, the efi'ects there- 
 of are visible (ver. 7). Levit. v. 28 also evidently 
 hovered before the mind of the prophet. Since 
 there only besides the Hophal occurs, though 
 with another meaning ; so there also is found 
 
 the idea of pK^J?. For the restoration is there 
 alluded to of that which any one has appropri- 
 ated by violence {'Q'py) or by illegal retention of 
 
 property entrusted to him. Though the thought 
 in general is a very different one, yet a compa- 
 rison of this passage explains (a) why the pro- 
 phet here designates the sin of Israel as p^V 
 
 (b) the choice of the singular word 1P.3n ; also 
 
 (c) the article in T'J^n is satisfactorily explained, 
 if the prophet refers to a former utterance. 
 
 n3Tp3 [>py Tn2 is a confusio duarum construe- 
 
 , pK?;; nhi 
 
 Ver. 7. As a spring 
 fore me. — The Inf. "^^pH points to a root lip, 
 
 from which besides only ''/^"}p. (2K;ingsxix. 24; 
 Isai. xxxvii. 25). The following Hlpn presup- 
 poses a root T^p, from which no verbal form oc- 
 curs in the Old Test. Yet by virtue of the rela- 
 tionship of the verbs "-IJ^ and '•}?}? it not rarely 
 lisippens that the same word derives forms from 
 both conjugations. Comp. Ewald, ^ 114, a. — 
 The interpretation is difficult of "^'pH, mpn 
 
 and 113. "lip means: to dig (2 Kings xix. 24), 
 
 but *Tlp means (after 1p. nipO, coUlness, IP 
 
 fresh), to be cold, fresh. The meaning to pour 
 forth therefore seems to suit neither the one nor 
 the other of these two roots. Hence after the 
 example of the LXX. and Jerome many com- 
 mentators have interpreted the passage thus : 
 "As the cisterns keep their water cool, so Jeru- 
 salem keeps its wickedness constantly fresh " 
 (Graf). This rendering seems to be supported 
 by "113 meaning not spring, but pit, cistern. I can- 
 not nevertheless regard this explanation as cor- 
 rect ; for 1. the connection is opposed to it, ac- 
 cording to our explanation, but also aside from 
 this are heard of and before me afterwards 
 require the meaning of to bring forth, reveal. 2. 
 Although the root "lip in the single passage 
 , where it occurs has the meaning to dig, yet even 
 in this place it is used of digging for water, and 
 must include a reference to springing water, 
 
 while the only noun derived from it is "llpO, 
 which certainly does not denote a pit or cistern, 
 but a spring or fountain, since, as it is generally 
 used only in a poetic and figurative sense (comp. 
 fountain of blood, Levit. xii. 7; xx. 18 ; fountain 
 of tears, Jer. viii. 23) it expresses the idea of a 
 
CHAP. VI. 9-15, 
 
 81 
 
 spring in its highest and most original sense. 
 Accordingly tlie meaning of to sprhig, to pour 
 
 forth, is certainly not ascribed to '^^'D'H without 
 
 reason. As to "^13, it certainly does in itself de- 
 note a pit or cistern. But in the later books it 
 also designates a pit, in which water is spring- 
 ing, a well-spring (puleus) : Prov. v. 15; Eccles. 
 xii. 6. — Injustice and desolation [Violence 
 and spoil] is a standing formula : xx. 18 ; Ezek. 
 xlv. 9; Am. iii. 10; coll. Hab. i. 3 — are heard 
 (comp. Isai. Ix. 18) and the following before me 
 are explained by the preceding poureth forth, 
 as all three members of the sentence afford proof 
 of the fact ascertained, ver. 6. — In are con- 
 
 tinually before me there is a climax; not only 
 are deeds of violence heard of, but their most 
 palpable effects are continually being witnessed. 
 Ver. 8 Be warned, O Jerusalem ... a land 
 uninhabited. Here also as above (iii. 1, 7, 12- 
 22; iv. 1, 3, 4, 14, etc.) the prophet uses the 
 threatening of punishment as a support for a call 
 to repentance. The Lord's heart is still towards 
 Jerusalem, though it is to be feared that it will be 
 alienated from the stifF-necked, impenitent peo- 
 ple, ypn from j;|T (to be thrust away, to turn 
 away) occurs only in the imperfect, while the 
 perfect forms are formed from j)pj. Comp. Ezek. 
 xxiii. 17, 18. "^ 
 
 2. The prophet is compelled by an inward pressure to announce the judgment of extermination^ notwithstand- 
 ing the unwillingness to hear on account of the universal horrible corruption. 
 
 VI. 9-15. 
 
 9 Thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth : 
 
 They shall glean the remnant of Israel as a vine. 
 
 Turn again and again thine hand' as a grape-gatherer to the baskets. 
 
 10 To^ whom shall I speak and testify, that they may hear? 
 Behold their ear is uncireumcised, and they cannot hearken. 
 Behold the word of Jehovah is a mockery to them ; 
 
 They have no delight in it. 
 
 11 But I am full of the fury of Jehovah, 
 I cannot longer restrain myself.' 
 Pour out over the child in the street 
 And over the company of youths together ; 
 For both man and wife shall be taken, 
 The aged with him that is full of days. 
 
 12 And their houses shall come to others, 
 Fields and wives together, 
 
 For I will stretch out my hand against the inhabitants of the land, 
 Saith Jehovah. 
 
 13 For from the least to the greatest all are given to covetousness, 
 And from the prophet to the priest they practice deceit. 
 
 14 And healed the hurt of the daughter* of my people most slightly, 
 Saying : Peace, Peace ! And there is no peace. 
 
 15 They are put to shame,® for they wrought abominations, 
 Yet they blush not, nor^ know how to be ashamed.^ 
 Therefore will they fall with them that fall. 
 
 At the time that I visit them, they will be overthrown, 
 Saith Jehovah. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 9.— "IT" 3tJfn- It is quite unnecessary with Uitzig and Graf to explain the suflSx Tt by the reduplication of th» 
 following 3 (in "nifil^). The discourse is rather dramatically vivid as in vers. 3-6.— ^t^H is to turn back as the grape-ga- 
 therer does his hand with respect to the basket, therefore=to turn again and again. 
 
 " Ver. 10. — 7_j; here as frequently in Jer. (comp. xix. 15; xxv. 2 ; xxvi. 15; xxvii. 19; xxviii. 8; xliv. 20) has almost 
 the meaning of 7X, except that here the proximate idea of hostility may be detected in it. 
 
 * Ver. 11. — [Henderson : I am weary of containing it ; the A. V. better : I am weary of holding in.] Comp. Isai. i. 14 ; 
 Jer. ix. 4 ; xv. 6. 
 
 * Ver. 14. — [" r\2, daughter, is omitted in thirty-eight MSS. and twenty-four printed editions. The combination 
 
82 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 'SV r\2, *^ daughter of my people, however, meaning the people themselves, is not foreign to Jeremiah. See chap. Till 
 21, 22." Henderson.— S. R. A.] 
 
 6 Ver. U.— nbpj-bj; comp. "ipi^-Sj^ (Lev.v.22), in^^S;^ (Ps. xxxi. 24). 
 
 6 Ver. 15. — [Henderson trausliites; They ought to have been ashamed. He says: "Verbs in Heb. express sometimes, 
 not the action, but the duty or obligation to perform it. Comp. iti'^'^X"? TK'X, which ought not to be done. Gen. xx. 9. 
 *"10ty\ should keep, Mai. ii. 7."— S. R. A.] 
 
 'r'Ver. 15.— x"? DJ— X^ DJ=neither— nor. Comp. Naegelsb. 6?r. g 110, 3. ^ 
 
 8 Ver. 15.— D'SdH elsewhere Niph. (viii. 12 ; xxxi. 19). The Hiphil here as in ^t^'^in. 
 
 EXEGETIOAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This strophe reproduces with some modification 
 one side of the fundamental thought of the dis- 
 course : under a new figure (that of gleaning) the 
 prophet announces the entire destruction of the 
 people (ver. 9). Here however the thought oc- 
 curs to him that he is really speaking in vain, be- 
 cause nobody wishes to hear him (ver. 10). This 
 objection is removed by the fact that the prophet 
 cannot be silent. He therefore gives free course 
 to the prophetic impulse to pour out upon the 
 whole people the fulness of the divine wrath (vers. 
 11, 12), which they have so richly deserved by 
 their sins, (pre-eminently of covetousness, deceit 
 and shamelessness, vers. 13-15). 
 
 Ver. 9. Thus saith Jehovah .... to the 
 baskets. Not hastily but carefully is the divine 
 judgment executed: thorough work is done, as in 
 gleanijig (Isai. xxiv. 13; Ob. 5; Jer. xlix. 9). 
 These words seem also to refer to a precept of 
 the Law, namely, to that which expressly forbade 
 the Israelites to glean (Levit. xix. 10 ; Dent. xxiv. 
 21). The case is the same here as with FeU 
 her trees, ver. 6. This gleaning does not of 
 course contradict what was said in iv. 27; v. 10, 
 18. — I will not utterly make an end. Even 
 in gleaning something may be left. Comp. Isai. 
 
 vi. 11 sqq.; Zech. xiii. 8, 9. — DwDy? here only. 
 EwALD, HiTZiG, Graf, Meier, appealing to 
 
 D'StS^ Isai. xviii. 5 coll. D'^nSn Song of Sol. v. 
 
 11, D';)DJD Song of Sol. vii. 9,' would give it the 
 
 meaning of " branches, tendrils," which they 
 also regard as favored by the connection, since 
 T Til'n denotes to turn the hand against any one 
 
 with a hostile intention (comp. Am. i. 8; Isai. i. 
 23; Ps. Ixxxi. 15). But in the first place the 
 plucking of grapes is not a hostile act, but a 
 kindness to the vine. Secondly, the connection 
 requires the idea of repetition, so that the phrase 
 must not be taken in the sense of the passages 
 cited, but much more according to the analogy of 
 Ps. Ixxii. 10; 2 Kings iii. 4; xvii. 3; as to turn 
 back again and again. Thirdly, the mention of the 
 basket portrays much more vividly the fate of the 
 grapes than the mention of the branch would; for 
 the former sets before usthe grapes asdefinitively 
 separated from the vine. Fourthly, the linguistic 
 relations are in favor of the rendering " basket," 
 
 for the word most nearly related, /D, decidedly has 
 
 this meaning (Gen. xl. 16. 17 : Levit. xxix. 8). 
 
 Ver. 10. To whom shall I speak . . . de- 
 light in it. After in ver. 9 he has presented to 
 their view the extremity to which they would be 
 reduced, the objection occurs to the prophet that 
 
 all his speaking is in vain. — nncironmcised 
 is used in the Old Test, of the ear in this place 
 only. In the New Test. comp. Acts vii. 51. Of 
 the heart, Levit. xxvi. 41 ; Deut. x. 16; Jer. ix. 
 25 ; Ezek. xliv. 7, 9. Of the lips, Exod. vi. 12, 
 30. We see from and they cannot hearken 
 that it designates a substantial incapability, 
 which, however, is guilty, as hardness of heart 
 and perversity. Amockery, comp. xx. 7, 8. 
 
 Ver. 11. But I am full of the fury . . . full 
 of days. The objection raised in ver. 10 is re- 
 moved by the impossibility of keeping silence. 
 On the subject coinp. xx. 9. — The prophet feels 
 as though the Lord's fury were his own, and he 
 is so full of it that it is with him as in Matth. xii. 
 34 [out of the abundance of the heart, e<c.]. — 
 Pour, etc. The change of the person is here just as 
 in Turn, etc., ver. 9. The Lord, whose fury he 
 cannot restrain, calls to him to pour it out. With 
 EwALD then to change to "^i^^ is quite unneces- 
 sary. The fury shall be poured over the whole 
 people, irrespective of sex or age. Comp. xviii. 
 21 ; Lam. ii. 21. — On company of youth comp. 
 
 XV. 17. — nD^' is to be taken in the wider sense= 
 ...... 
 
 to be caught, comp. Josh. vii. 15. — \pt is the aged 
 
 man without respect to.his vigor, the'man "full 
 of days " is he who is superannuated and de- 
 crepit. 
 
 Vers. 12, 13. And their houses . . . prac- 
 tice deceit.- Comp. viii. 10 sqq. — ^3DJ as in 
 
 1 Kings ii. 15 ; Numb, xxxvi. 7, 8. The prophet 
 seems to be thinking of this latter passage in the 
 same antithetical way, as of the passages from 
 the Law in vers. 6 and 9. Comp. also Deut. xxviii. 
 30. — I w^ill stretch. Comp. xv. 6. — In ver. 13 
 begins a repeated enumeration of the sins of the 
 people as forming a motive for the fury described 
 in ver. 11. The faults of covetousness, deceit 
 and wantonness which smothered shame, are 
 here rendered protniueut. It seems as though 
 the prophet as in ch. v. has still in mind the an- 
 tithesis of njIDN — given to covetousness. 
 
 The prophet seems to have thought of Isai. Ivi. 
 11. Comp. KuEPER, S. 144. The same expres- 
 sion also in Prov. i. 19; xv. 27; Hab. ii. ©; 
 Ezek. xxii. 27. 
 
 Ver. 14. And healed the hurt . . no peace. 
 This is the deceit, or at least one and a very im- 
 portant kind of deceit, which the priests and 
 prophets practised, that they designated (as was 
 certainly to their material interest) the course 
 adopted by the people and the princes as true 
 and saving. Comp. xiv. 14 sqq.; xxiii. 9-40; 
 xxvii. 14, 15; xxviii 1-10 — healed is intended 
 ironically. The aorist denotes that they have 
 done this hitherto. — And there is no peace. 
 Comp. Mic. iii. 5 ; Ezek. xiii. 10 and supra, iv. 10. 
 
CHAP. VI. 16-26. 83 
 
 Ver. 15. They are put to shame . . -will be 
 overthrown, saith Jehovah, ty'^in (comp. 
 ▼iii. 9; x. 14, etc.) means likewise to make a 
 shameful figure, as yo^lT}, to make fat, i. e., to 
 
 become fat, rS/*?) to bring forth whiteness, i. e., 
 to become white. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr. § 18, 3. 
 — They are put to shame, says the prophet, be- 
 cause those false predictions of peace have al- 
 ready been frequently falsified. And this could 
 
 not be otherwise, since their prophecy was an 
 abomination. The Lord therefore in respect to 
 them does just the contrary of that which He does 
 in respect of true prophecy (i. 12). — But not- 
 withstanding this, that they were put to shame, 
 yet they were not ashamed. — Not know how 
 reminds us of Isai. Ivi. 11. — fall with them, etc. 
 When the victims of their false guidance fall, 
 they will not, as they have hoped, escape scot- 
 free, but will be overthrown. Comp. the expres- 
 sion in li. 49. 
 
 3. Because Israel would not hear the prophet announces to all lands and nationt the impending judgment, 
 
 to be executed by a people from the north. 
 
 VI. 16-26. 
 
 16 Thus has Jehovah spoken : 
 Stand in the ways^ and look around 
 
 And inquire for^ the paths of ancient times, 
 
 Which is the way of salvation f 
 
 And walk therein and find a resting place* for your souls ! 
 
 But they said : We will not walk therein. 
 
 17 Then I set^ watchmen over you, saying : 
 " Hearken to the sound of the trumpet !" 
 But they said : We will not hearken thereto. 
 
 18 Therefore hear, ye nations, 
 
 And know, O congregation, what is among them. 
 
 19 Hear, O earth ! Behold I bring evil upon this people, 
 The fruit of their counsels. 
 
 For they have not heeded my words, 
 And ray law — they despised it.® 
 
 20 To what purpose should incense come to me from Sheba, 
 And the sweet cane from a far country ? 
 
 Your burnt offerings are not grateful to me. 
 And your sacrifices are not pleasant to me. 
 
 21 Therefore thus saith Jehovah : 
 
 Behold I lay stumbling-blocks against the people, 
 And the fathers and sons together shall fall over them ; 
 The inhabitant and his companion shall perish.' 
 
 22 Thus saith Jehovah : Behold, a people comes from the north country. 
 And a great nation arises from the ends of the earth. 
 
 23 Bow and lance they bear. 
 
 Cruel are they and have no mercy. 
 
 Their voice roars like the sea, 
 
 And they ride upon horses, 
 
 Equipped as a man for war, against thee, thou daughter of Zion. 
 
 24 We have heard the report of them ; feeble are our hands, 
 Anguish has seized us, and trembling as a parturient. 
 
 25 Go not forth into the field, nor walk in the way. 
 For the sword of the enemy® — fear on every side. 
 
 26 Daughter of my people, gird thee in sackcloth, 
 And wallow thyself in ashes. 
 
 Make mourning as for an only son — bitter lamentation ; 
 For suddenly will the destroyer come upon us. 
 
84 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 * Ver. 16. — D'3'n~ 7j^ no J? comp. iii. 2 ; Isai. xlix. 9, where likewise the article is wanting. In iii. 2 the wordc 
 
 D'£)^) VTX are also without the article, although in meaning they are definite. Comp. Gesen. gl09; Naeoelsb. Or. 
 
 ■ T : ' V V 
 §71,3. 
 
 2 Ver. 16. — 31£3n ^^1 (via boni, not bona, on account of the following HS)- Comp. Ps. cxxxix. 24. 
 
 - I . . . . ^ 
 
 8 Ver. 16.— Sxty with S, Gen. xxvi. 7 ; xxxii. 30. 
 
 * Ver. 16.— :|X:;d^- Comp. Naegelsb. Gr. § 90, 2.— j;ij"in. Comp. Matth. xi. 29. 
 
 6 Ver. 17.— T\10''pni- The perfect is abnormal, and is a sign of the later idiom. Comp. Ewald, § 343, c. 2. 
 
 * Ver. 19. — On the construction comp. Naegelsb. Gr. J 88, 7, c, et supra, iii. 9. 
 
 7 Ver. 21. — For -n^X' the Keri has -"nDNI because the Masoretes connected ^J^'^) pU? as the subject with 
 y^^2, which is however unnecessary and unjustifiable. 
 
 8 Ver. 25.— To translate : the enemy hath a sword [as Henderson] is very flat. Better 2^vh C^Uii) 3"in, and as sub- 
 ject co-ordinate with the following "11 JD [for the sword of the enemy and fear are, etc.]. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr. J 67, 2. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This last strophe of the discourse forms two 
 parts. In the first part (vers. 16-20) the pro- 
 phet shows the genesis of the calamity. The 
 Lord had at first kindly directed Israel in the 
 right way (ver. 16), but when they had refused 
 to walk in it, He had solemnly threatened them 
 with His punishment (ver. 17). Since they re- 
 garded not this also, He turns now with His an- 
 nouncement of punishment to all nations, calling 
 them as it were to witness to the justice of His 
 cause (vers. 18, 19). He refutes a nugatory ob- 
 jection of Israel's (ver. 20). In the second part 
 the merited destruction is announced to the peo- 
 ple of Israel directly (vers. 21-26), first in gene- 
 ral (ver. 21), then its execution is described in 
 detail (vers. 22-25), so that (a) the nation from 
 the North is again mentioned as the instrument 
 of this execution, with more particular features ; 
 (6) the experience of the punishment is presented 
 in the words of the suffering people. Finally the 
 prophet calls upon the people to do that which 
 alone remains to them, namely, to humble them- 
 selves in deepest mourning. 
 
 Ver. 16. Thus has Jehovah spoken . . . 
 ■V7e \vill not walk therein. "lOX compared 
 with the progress of time in ver. 17 sqq. is to be 
 regarded as preterite. — As the absence of the ar- 
 ticle is not to be pressed, we translate : stand in 
 the ways, i. e., not in any or some, but in all. 
 They are to compare by examination all the 
 ways (^^^. here as in Ps. cxxxix. 24; Am. viii. 
 
 14 = religion, cultus). A criterion is at the same 
 time given them, by which to recognize the right 
 way, viz., antiquity. The oldest is the true re- 
 ligion. Let then* examine the different religions 
 of the primitive period, in order to find the oldest 
 among the old ways, which is then the way of 
 good or well-being. 
 
 Ver. 17. Then I set vratchmen over you 
 . . . •we will not hearken thereto. — Watch- 
 men, used frequently by the prophet for seers 
 and Warners. Comp. Ezek. iii. 17; xxxiii. 7, 
 coll. Isai. xxi. 11, 12; Jer. xxxi. 6. — Hearken 
 to the sound, etc. Observe the climax : after 
 Israel liad rejected the friendly admonition in 
 ver. 16, tlie prophets standing on the walls like 
 watchmen must strike wholesome terror into 
 their hearts by sounding the trumpet of their de- 
 nunciatory prophecies. But even this is in vain. 
 
 The words hearken, etc., may be regarded as 
 spoken by Jehovah or by the prophets them- 
 selves; for even the latter might admonish the 
 Israelites to respect the warning, which they 
 brought to them. Yet this admonition certainly 
 seems more appropriate in the mouth of Jehovah. 
 Comp. ii. 25. 
 
 Ver. 18. Therefore hear, ye nations . . . 
 what is among them. After the Lord had 
 found among the Israelites a hearing neither for 
 friendly admonition nor for severe warning. He 
 turns to the other nations, in order that theym&y 
 learn Jehovah's judgment on His people and its 
 true motives. — Concerning mj7 opinions are 
 much divided. According to the connection and 
 the unquestioned Masoretic reading it can mean 
 neither testimony (Aqu. ) nor troop (Hitzig) nor 
 congregation in the sense of the Israelites, for an 
 address to the whole or a part of the Israelite 
 nation would form a most violent interruption 
 in the parallelism and connection. I do not see 
 why it should not denote the totality of the hea- 
 then nations, united as it were into a grand jury. 
 It is true, no passage can be produced, where 
 m^ has exactly this meaning, but it is a word 
 of such general signification, that it may fairly 
 have this sense. For if in Judg. xiv. 8 it signi- 
 fies a swarm of bees, in Job xv. 34 and Ps. xxii. 
 16 an assembly of the wicked, and in Numb. xvi. 
 5, the company of Korah, no one can say that it 
 may not in certain circumstances be used of the 
 assembly of the heathen. Since now according 
 to the idea of the connection previously stated, 
 the prophet turns in ver. 18 right diligently to 
 the heathen, because Israel would not hear him, 
 m^^ can denote no other than the totality of the 
 
 heathen in antithesis to the single nations, who 
 were addressed as D^i-in; tluis singuH et omites. 
 
 At the same time it is not improbable, that m^ 
 (comp. n^^in ad judicium citare, Jer. xlix. 19; 
 1. 44) might also designate a "Judicialis conven- 
 tus" (so Venema, Rosenm., J. D. Mich.) — The 
 phrase D3"1^X~r\X is also variously interpreted. 
 
 Some (Leiste, Rosenm.) translate: quse i7iiisfa- 
 ciam, which presupposes an impossible ellipsis ; 
 Ewald would read n3 instead of D3, Graf 
 changes into D3 'ni;'n ^tyX-i;n^ I find no dif- 
 ficulty in the text, as it exists. The heathen as- 
 sembled, as it were for a jury, are first to know 
 what thoughts Israel cherishes within. For this 
 
CHAP. VI. 16-26. 
 
 85 
 
 purpose a glance into their heart is afFor Jed them 
 by what is said in vers. 16 and 17. On the ba- 
 sis of this state of the facts it is then disclosed to 
 them in ver. 19, what tlie Lord will bring as a 
 punishment upon Israel. In I bring evil upon, 
 upon is in antithesis to among in ver. IS. 
 
 Ver. 19. Hear, O earth! . . they despised 
 it. — Hear, etc., forms a climax in relation to 
 ver. 18: the whole earth is called to witness. 
 Comp. Deut. xxxii. 1 (coll. xxx. 19; xxxi. 28 j ; 
 Mic. i. 2; vi. 1, 2 ; Isai. i. 2. After the Lord 
 has granted a glance into the heart of Israel, He 
 shows the punishment which is the result of this 
 inward condition, and which is therefore desig- 
 nated as the fruit of their counsels (comp. 
 iL 19; iv. 18). 
 
 Ver. 20. To what purpose should incense 
 
 . . . are not pleasant to me. njU? the aro- 
 matic resin of a tree not yet definitely ascer- 
 tained. Comp. Exod. xxx. 31 ; Levit. ii. 1, etc. ; 
 Isai. Ix. 6; Herzog, Real-Em. XVII. S. 602; 
 XII. S. 504.— N::^ (not to be confounded with 
 K3p, i. e., Meroe) is the tribe and home of the 
 Sabseans in Southern Arabia. Comp. Isai. Ix. 6; 
 Ezek. xxvii. 22; Joel iv. 8; Ps. Ixxii. 15. — 
 3iOn T^:p^ comp. Exod. xxx. 23 {Um T\:pj ; 
 
 Isai. xliii. 24; Ezek. xxvii. 19; Song of Sol. iv. 
 14 =: calamus, the root of which was used in the 
 preparation of the anointing oil. Vid. Wineh, 
 R. W. B., Art. Kalamus. — In these words the 
 Lord meets an objection of the Israelites to the 
 effect that they had not failed in outward wor- 
 ship. The sense of the reply coincides with 1 
 Sam. XV. 22; Mic. vL 8; Isai. i. 11 sqq. ; Ps. 1. 
 
 8sqq.; li. 18, etc. — The juxtaposition of flwiy 
 and DTI^I is also found in several of the pas- 
 sages mentioned, comp. Jer. vii. 21 ; Dkechsler, 
 Jes. I. S. 6.3. 
 
 Ver. 21. Therefore thus saith Jehovah 
 . . . and his companion shall perish. After 
 the refutation of the vain objection in ver. 20 
 the ];)rophet turns again to the people of Israel. 
 He seems to presuppose that the people excited 
 to jealousy by vers. 18 and 19, (comp. Rom. xi. 
 14) in opposition to their former disinclination 
 even to hear the Lord, yet at least answer him. 
 The answer is indeed worth nothing, and there- 
 fore now follows a direct announcement of judg- 
 ment, addressed to the Israelites themselves, first, 
 inthisverse21,in5'fweraZ.-StumbIing-blocks. 
 Comp. Isai. viii. 14; Ezek. iii. 20. 
 
 Ver. 22. Thus saith Jehovah . . ends of 
 the earth. This and the following verses spe- 
 cify the calamity announced generally in ver. 
 21. For the third time the executioner is men- 
 tioned as a mighty nation from the North. 
 (Comp. It. 6 sqq. ; v. 15 sqq.) — The passage "- ' 
 
 repeated and applied to Babylon in I. 41-43.^ 
 ^X TIDI'' extrema terrse. Comp. Isai. xiv. 13, 15; 
 Jer. XXV. 32; xxxi. 8, etc. 
 
 Ver. 23. Bows and lances they bear . . . 
 against thee, thou daughter of Zion. Comp. 
 Ilab. i. 7. — Like the sea. Comp Isai. v. 30; 
 xvii. 12; xxiv. 14. — On the question what na- 
 tion, see the remarks above on i. 14. — Equip- 
 ped as a man for war. The singular attach- 
 ing to cruel are they. On the change of num- 
 ber, comp. EwALD, ^ 317, 6. As a man can nei- 
 ther denote 07ie man, nor a hero. Rather do 
 equipped and against thee (as the accents 
 also denote) belong together and as a man for 
 war declares how this preparation is made ; not 
 as a woman for peaceful labor, but as a man for 
 war, is the enemy equipped against Zion. 
 
 Vers. 24 and 25. We have heard the re- 
 port . . . fear on every side. A description 
 of the feeling which Israel experiences on the 
 incursion of the enemy, so that vers. 22, 23 on 
 the one hand, and vers. 24 and 25 on the other 
 correspond to each other as objective and sub- 
 jective, or as cause and effect. — Anguish. 
 Comp. iv. 31; xlix. 24; L 43. — Trembling as, 
 etc. Comp. Ps. xlviii. 8; Mic. iv. 9; Jer. xxii. 
 28; 1. 43. — Ver. 25 is also related to ver. 24 as 
 the effect to the cause: the not venturing out of 
 Jerusalem is the consequence of what has been 
 heard. The personification of Jerusalem as a 
 
 woman lies at the basis of the forms ''NIfri, O/A 
 for which the way is prepared by as a parturi- 
 ent, and continued by daughter of my people 
 ver. 26. — Pear on every side, Ps. xxxi. 14; 
 Jer. XX. 3, 10; xlvi. 5; xlix. 29; Lam. ii. 22; 
 see especially remarks on xx. 10. 
 
 Ver. 26. Daughter of my people . . come 
 upon us. — Gird thee, etc., comp. iv. 8,— wal- 
 low, comp. XXV. 34; Mic. i. 10; Ezek. xxvii. 30. 
 — Mourning, etc. Comp. Am. viii. 10 ; Zech. 
 xii. 10. — Bitter lamentation. Comp. xxxi. 
 15; Hos. xii. 15. — The prophet in conclusioa 
 advises Jerus.alem to do the only thing that re- 
 mains to her ; repent in sackcloth and ashes 
 (comp. Isai. Iviii. 5; Jer. xxv. 34; Ezek. xxvii. 
 30; Dan. ix. 3) and deep, sincere mourning. 
 For their sins or their destruction ? Doubtless 
 for both. For the former is occasioned by peni- 
 tence, the latter by inevitable destruction. Peni- 
 tence and mourning can no longer ward off the 
 destruction (as might have been possible before, 
 comp. iv. 1-4; xiv. 6, 8). The prophet indeed 
 expresses this in the words " for suddenly will 
 the destroyer come upon us." But though the 
 calamity cannot be warded off by penitence and 
 mourning it may yet be thus mitigated, and the 
 way may be thus prepared for subsequent resto- 
 ration. 
 
86 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 4. Conclusion: object and result of the Discourse. 
 VI. 27-30. 
 
 27 I have set thee a prover^ among my people, the ore/ 
 That thou mayest know and prove their way. 
 
 28 They are all arch traitors/ slanderers* — brass and iron ; 
 Profligate are they all !* 
 
 29 The bellows glows/ out of its fire comes — lead ; 
 In vain one' melts and melts, 
 
 The base® are not separated. 
 
 30 Reprobate silver they are called, 
 For Jehovah has reprobated them. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 1 Ver. 27.— tins (on the form comp. Ewald, gl52, 6) [Green's Gr. g 1S5, 2, c] occurs here only. It i8=|n3 (xi. 20; 
 
 xvii. 10). 
 
 a Ver. 27.— 1>f3D, Dubell., Gaab, Mauber, iriTziG=n:f30, »• «•, without gold, '^)ip being equivalent to ^^3 (Job 
 
 xxxvi. 19) and 3 unreduplicated as in T'H^'O (Judges viii. 2).' Ewald, Meier would punctuate 13f3p (Separator) [Hen- 
 derson : an explorer!. Yet both are unnecessary, if we take ^^f 30 itself in the meaning of "l^fS (Job xxii. 24) ^}^3 (Job 
 
 T : • ■■■-'. T : . 
 
 xxxvi. 19) '^H'^ji (Job xxii. 24) as also 3^30 is used as of like meaning with 3n3 (2 Chron. xxxv. 4), pi^DD with pi^p 
 
 (Gen. XV. 2, 3 ; Zeph. ii. 9), £3i3ty D with QDU (Exod. vi. 6 ; vii. 4, etc.), SpC'Ip with Ipp (according to its radical meaning), etc. 
 
 1X3D would aocordingly=1V3, abscissum, a piece, in the sense of a piece of ore cut off (comp. Fuerst, s. v. 1^3 and ^)f 30). 
 
 1 would however prefer not to make "^^30 dependent on JIJIS, from which it is remotely, but on ''0^, with which it is 
 
 immediately connected. The construction is then as in HOI '^3'IT (Ezek. xvi. 27), 3'in IH /JH (Bzek. xviii. 7). Comp, 
 
 Naegelsb. Gr. § 63, 4, g. 
 
 3 Ver. 28.— □"'T^'lD 'ID is so expressed by the Vulg., Syr., Chald. and Aquila that it is evident they read 'Tjy, which 
 
 is ,^lso actually found in Cod.^Regiom. I. .and H. as well as in 22 Coild. of Kenn'ioott and in 18 of De Rossi. This reading 
 may have been occasioned by the unusual construction and the similarity of the passages Isai. i. 23 ; Hos. ix. 15. The con- 
 struction is however not unusual in this, as substantives are not rarely thus connected. Comp. D''"13^ 13JLN C /^H 73n 
 etc. rid. Naegelsb. Or. § 61, 3.— nO moreover may be (comp. n;rn "Ip, 1 Kings xx. 43; xxi. 4) Part. Kal from 
 110, so that from this form a double Part. Kal would be formed. [IlENnKRSON : desperate revolters.j 
 
 * Ver. 28.— ^3"! ''D^'H- Comp. ix. 3; Ezek. xxii. 9. On the construction Vid. Naegelsb. ffr. § 70, 6. [Henderson 
 
 renders : conversant with destruction. — S. R. A.] 
 
 6 Ver. 28.— DTITIE'D. Comp. Isai. i. 4 (on the direct causative signification of the Hiphil=to do apemicious thing. 
 Vid. N.'^GELSB. Cr. § 18, 3). . . ^ ,*,.„• 
 
 6 Ver. 29.— "in J Niph : from Tin (st> most of the older translators and commentators) can mean only : the bellows is 
 
 DO fire is red hot (Uitzig). This meaning is required by the connection, for it is to be declared, that an extreme degree of 
 heat was .applied, which is here denoted l)y the burning of the bellows. But even this degree of heat has extracted nothing 
 from the ore but— lead. The other explanation from inJ (ankdat) is indeed well founded on the uoinmal forms 
 
 — T 
 
 *in J, n^nj, I'n J. ''"t it gives an unsatisfactory sense ; for it is not declared generally that the bellows worki, but that 
 it has done^ite best. 'The Chethibh must be pronounced DHtJ'XO and presupposes a noun TXdii. whicli does not occur, but 
 
 T T V " ' T *•' 
 
 is formed quite normally. [Henderson : "inj ™'iy either be the root of the verb, to snort, and designed in this place to ex- 
 press the sound produced by the continued blowing of the bellows ; or it may be the Niphal of "lin, ^ hum. The former 
 best suits the connection. Thus SIichaelis, Rosenmueller, Dahler, De Wette, Soholz and Umbreit.— S. R. A.] 
 
 ' Ver. 29.— C112f ^IX- The third plur. sing, is employed to denote an independent subject— on«. Comp. Naegelsb. 
 
 Or. a 101, 2. 6. 
 
 8 Ver. 29. — D'J,*^ never denotes the dross directly. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The prophet's sermon by no nipans aimed at a 
 general conversion, it wus rather to serve only 
 as a touch-stone. By it a separat ing process was 
 to be instituted, by which it would be decided 
 
 which was good and which base metal (ver. 27). 
 Unfortunately the great mass proved to be com- 
 mon brass (ver. 28) In the smelting-process 
 also (past and future) the same result is pre- 
 sented. In two further figures which express 
 essentially the same thing, the Lord compares 
 Israel with a piece of ore, which in the fire pro- 
 
CHAP. VI. 27-30. 
 
 87 
 
 duces lead, and again with one which contains 
 silver, but unhappily so mixed, that the base 
 cannot be separated from the true metal (vers. 29 
 and 30). 
 
 Ver. 27. I have set .... their way. The 
 people are denominated the ore, because their 
 value is to be ascertained by the process of as- 
 saying. The term (IV^D) is also doubtless 
 
 chosen with reference to i. 18, where it is used 
 of the prophet [a fortified (tried) city]. The na- 
 tion is also tried, not as a fortress, but as ore 
 which is yet to be proved. 
 
 Ver. 28. They are . . . all. — Slanderers. 
 The prophet here as elsewhere (comp. remarks 
 on vers. 13sqq.), in thus particularizing appears 
 to have had the eighth commandment in mind. 
 Comp. Luther's explanation: to betray, to back- 
 bite, or to make an evil report. — Brass and 
 iron. These words state, still figuratively, the 
 result of the proving, ver. 27 : the ore contains 
 not gold or silver, but only base metal. 
 
 Ver. 29. The bellows glows . . . separated. 
 The bellows glows or is on fire. This refers of 
 course to Israel : their fire is the fire in which 
 they are melted, the fire of affliction, both of the 
 past, the present and the future. Even the se- 
 verest trials of affliction can produce from this 
 people nothing but lead. It is seen that the pro- 
 phet proceeds to a related figure, as immediately 
 afterwards he also makes application of a third. 
 The first figure represents the prophet as a trier 
 of metals, who first takes the rough ore in hand 
 in order mineralogically to distinguish its con- 
 stituent parts. In the second figure the ore is 
 exposed to fire, in order in this way to ascertain 
 its metallic value. The result is lead. I find 
 accordingly that the Keri DH li'^fO, however ex- 
 plained, is an entirely necessary alteration. — 
 In what follows the prophet makes use of a third 
 figure. Israel is here definitely presented as 
 silver ore. But in the smelting-places it appears 
 that the silver is so mingled with the stone that 
 the production of clear pure silver is impossible. 
 Israel therefore remains — refuse, impure silver, 
 which, as unfit for noble uses, the Lord rejects. — 
 base [wicked]. The prophet passes from the 
 figurative to the literal mode of speaking. 
 
 Ver. 30. Reprobate silver . . . Jehovah has 
 reprobated them. — The conclusion is sad. But 
 this reprobate silver is not Israel in general, but 
 only the Israel of the present time. Comp. iii. 
 11-25; iv. 27: v. 10, 18. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On ver. 1 sqq. "It is very difficult to be- 
 lieve the preaching of God's anger and punish- 
 ment, for we look at tbe powerful assistance, the 
 watchmen, the towers and fortresses, and trust 
 in them. But fortresses here, fortresses there! 
 These cannot withstand human force, let alone 
 the calamity which comes from God Himself." 
 Cramer. 
 
 [On ver. 2. M.Henry: " The more we indulge 
 ourselves in the pleasures of this life, the more 
 we disfit ourselves for the troubles of this life." 
 On ver. 4. "It is good to see how the counsel and 
 decree cf God are pursued and executed in the 
 devices and designs of men, even theirs that 
 know Him iiot, Isai. x. 6, 7." — S. R. A.] 
 
 2. On ver. 6. "This is the strongest and most 
 dangerous mining-powder of cities and for- 
 tresses, when sin, shame, vice and wantonness 
 get the upper hand. For instance, Sodom and 
 Gomorrah." Cramer. 
 
 8. On ver. 7. "Sin cries, rises and stinks up 
 to heaven, so that God and the angels are obliged 
 to shut mouth, nose and ears. Compare Gen. 
 xviii. 20; Jon. i. 2." Forster. 
 
 4. On ver. 9. "God has two kinds of vintage: 
 one is in grace, when He plucks His glorious 
 grapes, the fruits of good works, and says: 'De- 
 stroy it not, for there is a blessing in it ' (Isai. 
 Ixv. 8). But where He finds only poisonous ber- 
 ries (Isai. v. 2) and is as one who gleans in the 
 vineyard (Mic. v. 14) He employs other vintagers 
 with iron gloves, and presses them out in His 
 anger (Rev. xiv. 20) till neither stem nor stalk is 
 left." Cramer. 
 
 5. On ver. 10. "Patience! Perhaps it is not 
 long since the preaching was begun. But in the 
 beginning it is just so with one. When one year 
 or forty accustomed to office, things are more 
 tractable, God grant, not too comfortable. We 
 must tell our storj' with a simple heart, as it is. 
 We must be violent enough to gain a hearing. 
 This joyful, honest, ever-enduring testimony of 
 the truth, which is in us, will excite attention ia 
 time, and moreover never returns void (Isai. Iv. 
 
 11)." ZiNZENDORF. 
 
 6. On vers. 10, 11. "Drawofi'thy shoes, for the 
 place whereon thou standest is holy ground, 
 Exod. iii. 5. Moses, Elijah, Elisha, David, the 
 prophet before the altar at Bethel, our Jeremiah 
 in particular, and Paul, the evangelical Apostle, 
 used the severest and most feeling methods 
 against the mockers of their religion in the least 
 and the greatest, and it is evident that God will 
 not allow Himself to be mocked. Freely as the 
 heart is treated, and little the violence that God 
 does to it, yet the creature is often cut short 
 when it oomes to testifying. For there is a great 
 diSerence between respect and love. Love is a 
 grace, but respect is in accordance with a crea- 
 ture's nature; it is imbued in every one. For 
 the devil himself, if his hands are bound in the 
 least (as then more is granted him than any 
 other), when it comes to respect — must 'trem- 
 ble ' (Jas. ii. 19). The Lord teach the wit- 
 nesses the right measure, that their threatenings 
 and the feelings of men suitably concur, and that 
 it may be with every witness for religion as with 
 John, whom King Herod feared and heard him." 
 
 ZiNZENDORF. 
 
 7. On ver. 14. How beautiful are the feet of 
 them that announce true peace ! (Isa. Iii. 7 ; 
 Nah. ii. 1.) In like measure destructive are the 
 feet of those who preach false peace. The latter 
 are Satan, who transforms himself into an angel 
 of light (2 Cor. xi. 14). 
 
 8. On ver. 16. " There are two kinds of joa<re». 
 Some are the ancients, some the young. Of the 
 young fathers Asaph says (Ps. Ixxviii. 8): that 
 they were not as their fathers, a stubborn and re- 
 bellious generation (comp. Ezek. xx. 18). But 
 as regards the ancient, original fathers, Abra- 
 ham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, David, the Evangelists, 
 Apostles and such like, these are the true fathers, 
 who preserve God's word for us, that by means 
 of it we may follow them, and ask after th« 
 
88 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 former ways. Thus we go right and safely." 
 Ckamer. 
 
 9. Ou ver. 16. "5«c arripiunt Papicolse semitas 
 antiquas, indeque nobis persuadere conaniur, u( et 
 nos semitas antiquas quxramus, i. e., ut reUgione 
 Lutherana valere j'ussa nos adjungamus ecclesise 
 papisticsR, quam omnium antiquissimam nusquam 
 non superbe. jactilant. Sed nos ipsis 1. obvertimus 
 illudlgnatii : nobis vera antiquitas est Jesus Chr istus, 
 cui nolle obedire munifestum est exitium. 2. Argu- 
 mentum, quod isthmc consarcinare satagunt, hunc in 
 viodum invertimus : ea ecdesia pro vera habenda, 
 guse omnium antiquissima. Atqui nostra — est an- 
 tiquissima. Ccepit enim mox ab initio mundi in 
 Paradiso cum Protevangelio (Gen. iii. 15, coll. xv. 
 6) : Romanensium vero ecdesia, sicut ipsi haud diffi- 
 tentur, circa a Chr. 606 coepit. Ergo." Fobster. 
 
 10. On ver. 16. " Those are the honest knaves, 
 who tell the prophet to his face: we will not do 
 it ( Jer. xliv. 16). But such the Lord will honestly 
 punish. For the servant, who knew his Lord's 
 will and did it not, shall suffer double stripes 
 (Luke xii. 47)." Cramer. 
 
 11. [Calvin: On ver. 19. "We may learn 
 from this passage that nothing is more abomina- 
 ble in the sight of God than the contempt of di- 
 vine truth: for His majesty, which shines forth 
 in His word, is thereby trampled under foot ; 
 and further, it is an extreme ingratitude in men 
 when God Himself invites them to salvation, 
 wilfully to seek their own ruin and to reject His 
 favor." On ver. 20. "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 show that all those things which 
 hypocrites obtrude on God, without sincerity of 
 heart, are frivolous trumperies." — S. R. A.] 
 
 12. On ver. 27 sqq. "When goldsmiths wish 
 to purify the silver, they add lead to it. When 
 preachers would try their hearers, they must 
 apply the law. The fire is God's word (Jer. 
 xxiii. 29), the bellows the Holy Spirit in the 
 mouth of the teacher, the metals the hearers, of 
 which some are objectionable, others are unob- 
 jectionable." Cramer. 
 
 13. On ver. 27. As Christ is called a sign 
 which shall be spoken against, that the thoughts 
 •f many hearts may be revealed (Luke ii. 34, 
 35), the power dwells in His word generally to 
 compel men to separation and decision. For no 
 one can remain neutral towards Him long. He 
 is a touchstone which makes manifest the real 
 condition of the heart, whether the man is of God 
 ornot of God, Heb. iv. 12; John viii. 47. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. Vers. 6-8 may serve for the text of an ex- 
 hortation to repentance. On the punitive jus- 
 tice of God. 1. AVith what it threatens us. 2. 
 Why it threatens us. 8. How this threatening 
 can be averted. 
 
 2. On vers. 6 and 7. "We find such fountains 
 of evil in our own perverted hearts. Original 
 sin is the true fountain of evil, from which from 
 childliood up much water of obstinacy, disobedi- 
 ence, indolence, envy, falsehood is poured forth. 
 ^nd such water flows every year more abundant- 
 
 ly. Soon also flows the water of vanity, of im- 
 purity and excess, of reviling and cursing. How 
 does man help himself? Either he will not al- 
 low others to observe what wickedness comes 
 from his heart, and hides his sins, or he is him- 
 self grieved that so much sin flows from his 
 heart, and begins to stop the flow, i. e., he makes 
 good resolves and proposes no more to commit 
 the old sins. But lo ! the streams break forth 
 again, and the fountain of a depraved heart 
 ceases not to flow. Again others allow the 
 stream free course and pollute the city and the 
 country with their sins, as the Jewish people 
 did. Where is help to be found against this 
 fountaia of a depraved heart ? In the fountain 
 of which Zechariah prophesies, xiii. 1." Hoch- 
 STETTER, 12 Parables from theproph. Jer., S. 12, 13. 
 
 3. [TiLLOTSON onver. 8. 1. The infinite good- 
 ness and patience of God towards a sinful peo- 
 ple, and His great unwillingness to bring ruin 
 upon them. 2. The only proper and effectual 
 means to prevent the misery and ruin of a sinful 
 people. 3. The miserable case and condition of 
 a people when God takes off His affection from 
 them."— S. R. A.] 
 
 4. On vers. 11, 12. The double trouble of a 
 preacher of the truth. 1. From without, (a) in- 
 disposition to hear, (b) scorn. 2. From within, 
 irresistible necessity of announcing the word of 
 the Lord. 
 
 5. On vers. 13-15. Warning against false pro- 
 phets: 1. Their course: they teach false worship, 
 i. e., they lead not to God but away from Him, by 
 (a) being silent as to the real inconvenient truth, 
 (6) putting the conscience to sleep by a falsehood. 
 2. Their motive: covetousness, selfishness (ver. 
 13). 3. Their end: they are put to shame (ver. 15). 
 
 6. On ver. 14. [Chalmers: "The evils of 
 false security. 1. It is not based on the mercy 
 offered by God. 2. It casts an aspersion on the 
 character of God. 3. It is hostile to the cause of 
 practical righteousness." — Spdrgeon : " I have 
 heard of a city missionary who kept a record of 
 two thousand persons who were supposed to be 
 on their death-bed but recovered, and whom he 
 should have put down as converted persons, had 
 they died ; and how many do you think lived a 
 Christian life afterwards out of the two thou- 
 sand ? Not two. Positively he could only find 
 one who was found to live afterwards in the fear 
 of God. Is it not horrible that when men and 
 women come to die they should cry, ' Comfort, 
 comfort!' and that hence their friends conclude 
 that they are children of God, while after all 
 they have no right to consolation, but are intru- 
 ders on the enclosed grounds of the blessed God?" 
 — S. R. A.] 
 
 7. Onver. 15. [South: " Shamelessness in sin 
 the certain forerunner of destruction. 1. What 
 shame is more effectual than law. 2. How men 
 cast off shame. 3. The several degrees of shame- 
 lessness. 4. Reasons why shamelessness is so 
 destructive. 6. The destruction by which it pro- 
 cures the sinner's ruin." — S. R. A.] 
 
 8. On ver. 16. Which is the good way? That 
 which has 1, the right starting-point (the one, 
 unalterable, ancient truth) ; 2 the right ending 
 (rest for the soul). [Doolittle has a sermon 
 with tins text on the theme, " Popery a novelty," 
 and (Jalamy has two on the Trinity ! — S. R. A.] 
 
CHAP. VII. 1-7. 
 
 89 
 
 9. On ver. 16. New Year's Sermon. What 
 does a retrospect of the ways of the past year 
 show us? 1. That they have been under God's 
 wondrous guidance ; 2. that they were intended 
 to be only ways of salvation for our soul ; 3. that 
 we have often said, we will not walk in them ; 
 4. that we should care best for our salvation, if 
 we would henceforth walk in the good ways of 
 God. Floret, 1863. 
 
 10. On vers. 18-21. The righteous judgments 
 
 of God. 1. They do not shun publicity, but rather 
 appeal to the moral sense of the whole world. 
 2. They bring upon men their merited recom- 
 pense. 3. They can be averted, not by outward 
 worship, but by honest submission to God's word 
 (vers. 19, 20). 
 
 11. On vers. 27-30. The word of truth a touch- 
 stone for the human heart. 1. The good are at- 
 tracted by it ; 2. the bad turn away and are r«« 
 jected. 
 
 3. THE THIRD DISCOURSE. 
 
 Chaps. VII.— X. 
 
 The time of this discourse may be determined pretty accurately f since ch. xxvi. gives us information eon- 
 cerning the historical circumstances in which the discourse was delivered. We learn from it that in the 
 beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim Jeremiah received from Jehovah the commission to place himself 
 in the fore-court of the temple, and to announce to all the Jews who had come to worship (comp. xxvi. 
 2 with vii. 2) that if they continued to act in opposition to the repeated admonitions of the prophets 
 (xxvi. 5, and vii. 13, 25) the Lord would make the temple like Shiloh, (comp. xxvi. 3-13 with vii. 
 3-14). Since the enemies who are to execute this judgment are still designated generally as a people 
 coming from the North (comp. viii. 16), and not yet definitely as the Chaldeans, the discourse must 
 have been delivered before the fourth year of Jehoiakim. Comp. infra on xxv. 1, The place which 
 the discourse occupies in the book is therefore in accordance with the principle of chronological a/r- 
 rangement. 
 The contents of the discourse may be distinguished as follows : 
 
 Main thought : Indictment of the people on account of their three prevailing vices, 
 
 w^ith threatening of punishment. 
 
 I. FIRST CHARGE. 
 
 I. HTPOCBITICAIi MINGLING OF THE WORSHIP OF JEHOVAH WITH IDOLATBT, AND 
 
 OTHER MORAL ABOMINATIONS. 
 
 VII. 1— VIII. 3. 
 
 1. Fundamental: the fundamental requirement and promise, vii. 1-7. 
 
 2. Their demoralizing trust in the outward temple-service. Admonitory reference to Shiloh, vii. 8-16. 
 
 8. The hypocrisy of the worship of Jehovah, boasted of in ver. 4sqq. is evinced by the idolatry practised 
 elsewhere. Thus the nation is provoking a severe and inevitable judgment, vii. 16-20. 
 
 4. Refutation of the objection that the Lord Himself commanded the outward temple-service, vii. 21-28. 
 
 5. The abomination of idolatry in the highest degree a most evident proof of the hypocrisy of the people. 
 Beginning of retribution, vii. 29-34. 
 
 6. The fulfilment of retribution corresponding to the idol abominations, viii. 1-3. 
 
 II. SECOND CHARGE. 
 
 THEIR RUINOUS PERSISTENCE IN EVIL. 
 
 VIII. 4-23. 
 
 7. Hieir stiff-necked impenitence and its punishment, viii. 4-12. 
 
 8. Further portrayal of the visitation announced in ver. 12, viii. 13-17. 
 
 9. Continuation : The visitation ends with the carrying away captive of Israel, to the inexpressible grief of 
 the people and the prophet, viii. 18-23. 
 
 III. THIRD CHARGE. 
 
 THE GENERAL ENTIRE ABSENCE OF TRUTH AND FAITH. 
 
 IX. 1-21. 
 
 10. Description of the prevailing deceit, ix. 1-8. 
 
 11. First punishment: Desolatio7i of the land and dispersion of the people, ix. 9-15. 
 
 12. Second punishment : Death snatching away an innumerable sacrifice, ix. 16-21. 
 
90 
 
 THE PllOPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 IV. CONCLUSION. 
 IX. 22-25 ; X. 16-25. 
 
 13. llie only means of escape and the reason why it is not used, ix. 22-25. 
 
 14. The beginning of the end of retribution : Command to the people to retire; Lament of the desolated 
 
 land; last watch-cry of the prophet : the enemy is here, x. 17-22. 
 
 15. Consolatory glance into the future, x. 23-25. 
 
 I. FIRST CHARGE. 
 
 THE HYPOCEITICAL MINGLING OF THE SERVICE OF JEHOVAH WITH IDOLATRY AND OTHEB 
 
 MORAL ABOMINATIONS. 
 
 VII. 1— VIII. 3. 
 
 1. Fundamental: the fundamental requirement and promise. 
 
 VII. 1-7. 
 
 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 of Judah, 
 
 Who have entered at these gates to worship Jehovah. 
 
 3 Thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth, the God of Israel ; 
 Amend your ways and your doings. 
 
 So will I cause you to dwelP in this place. 
 
 4 Trust^ not to* those lying words : 
 
 " The Lord's temple, the Lord's temple, the Lord's temple is this."* 
 
 5 But amend your ways and your doings ! 
 
 If ye execute judgment between every man and his neighbor, 
 
 6 Oppress not stranger, orphan and widow, 
 And shed not innocent blood in this place, 
 And go not after other gods to your destruction; 
 
 7 So will I cause you to dwell in this place, 
 In the land which I gave to your fathers, 
 From everlasting to everlasting.* 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 3. — ["The Piel or intensive form of the verb must here have a continuative force, or it must have a permissive 
 eignificatioD. There is no example of the simple signification <o dioeW attaching to this conjugation, so that the rendering 
 of the Vulgate, which Blaynet adopts : I will dweUwith you is not sustained ; comp. ver. 12." Henderson. — S. R. A.] 
 
 2Ver. 4.— DdS after inOJi^ (comp. ver. 8) is Dat. ethicus. Comp. 2 Ki. xviii. 21, 24; Cant. ii. 17; Naeqelsb. Gr. 
 
 i 112, 5, 6. ■ ^ , ■ ■ , , 
 
 3 Ver. 4.— 1"^3^-7X. More frequently n£33 is followed by 3 or 7J^ (vers. 8, 14) but 7N is not unfrequent, Jud. xx. 
 
 ...... ~ f. ; — .. 
 
 36 ; 3 Ki. xviii. 22 ; Isai. XT.xvi. 7, etc. 
 * Ver. '" 
 6 Ver. 
 
 * Ver. 4. — [Lit. : are these]. 
 
 r. 7. — [Or : forever and ever]. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The prophet begins with frieudly admonition 
 and promise. In ver. 3 be briefly states in ad- 
 vance the fuiidatnental requirement and promise. 
 Vers. 4-7 continue this theme by opposing to 
 false confidence in the apparently infallible ob- 
 jective guarantee of salvation in the possession 
 of the outward temple (ver. 4) exhortation to po- 
 sitive (ver. 5) and negative (ver. 6) fulfilment of 
 the true subjective condition of salvation, after 
 which however the promise, which includes all 
 further salvation for Israel, is repeated more at 
 
 length. We easily recognize in this strophe the 
 outlines of the whole discourse, for these exhor- 
 tations correspond, if not in order in contents, 
 exactly with the following exhortations and 
 threatenings, the latter having also for their 
 subject pseudo-worship of Jehovah, idolatry, im- 
 penitence, falsehood, deceit, violence, and finally 
 exile. 
 
 Vers. 1, 2. The word •which came ... to 
 v7orship Jehovah. A similar introductory 
 formula is found in xi. 1 ; xviii. 1 ; xxi. 1 ; xxv. 
 1; XXX. 1; xxxii. 1; xxxiv. 1; xxxv. 1; xl. 1 ; 
 xliv. 1. — In the gate of the house. If we 
 compare xxvi. 2, where the historical particulars 
 
CHAP. VII. 1-7. 
 
 91 
 
 relating to this discourse are given, we see that 
 Jeremiah delivered it in the fore-court (comp. 
 xix. 14). Further information is derived from 
 xxxvi. IC, where it is said that Baruch read the 
 book of the words of Jeremiah " in the chamber 
 of Gemariah, in the higher court, at the entrance 
 of the new gate." Now since this new gate is 
 the same under which the princes called Jeremiah 
 to account for this very discourse (xxvi. 10), it is 
 highly probable that the gate spoken of was not 
 that which formed the main eastern entrance of 
 the outer court (Ezek. xi. 1), but one of the gates 
 which led from the outer into the inner or upper 
 court. From this point the prophet could view 
 the whole assembly of the people in the outer 
 court, as well as the gates leading from without 
 into it. — All ye of Judah. A great festival to 
 Jehovah must have brought the whole people to- 
 gether, for they had not sunk into that state of en- 
 tire alienation, which, ex. gr. prevailed under Ma- 
 nasseh, when they no longer worshipped the God 
 of their fathers (2 Kings xxi. 2), but now they 
 served other gods together with Him (ver. 6). 
 
 Ver. 3. Thus saith Jehovah . . . dwell in 
 this place. These words express as to form the 
 theme of the strophe, but at the same time also 
 as to matter the positive main thought of the 
 whole discourse, which however retires in what 
 follows for the reason stated in vers. 24-28. — IJ^T 
 
 ways and 7 7jfc^p_ doings are distinguished like 
 habitus and actus, the former denoting the inward 
 inclination or disposition of the heart (comp. v. 
 16), the latter the outward fruits in the life (iv. 
 13; xviii. 11; xxvi. 13; xxxii. 19). — Cause to 
 dwell. Comp. Numb. xiv. 30. — This place. 
 The temple is meant primarily as the centre of 
 the theocracy. Comp. ver. 6, where the dese- 
 cration of the holy places by the shedding of in- 
 nocent blood is emphasized (2 Kings xxi. 16 ; 
 xxiv. 4; Matth. xxiii. 35), and then ver. 7, where 
 this place and the land are distinguished, and ver. 
 13, where DIpD is distinguished from Shiloh and 
 
 taken in the more restricted sense of the holy 
 places of worship. 
 
 Ver. 4. Trust not . . . temple is this 
 
 An example of similar threefold repetition is 
 found in xxii. 29 ; Isai. vi. 3 coll. 2 Sam. xix. 1 
 For the sense comp. Mic. iii. 11. — T\DT\. Without 
 
 this word /D^H would be the subject, and the 
 only meaning would be: templum est, i.e., we 
 
 have God's temple. With this word /^''H is pre- 
 dicate, and the former the subject, and the dif- 
 ference in the sense is this, that it is not the ex- 
 istence, the possession of the temple generally, 
 which is declared, but the concrete objects, to 
 which the predicate applies, are indicated. We 
 ■lUst therefore render this HSn deiKTiKug. The 
 
 plural has been variously explained. The Chal- 
 dee refers the threefold repetition to the three 
 main forms of worship and their appearance 
 thrice iu the year; Joseph Kimchi to the three 
 divisionsof the temple-building (court, sanctuary 
 and holy of holies) ; Menocuius ( Vul. Neumann, 
 S. 439) to the Jewish nation itself, coll. 1 Cor. iii. 
 16, 17 ; Venema and others to the temple and 
 priests, and with reference to Xin'rii^X (Ps. cii. 
 28) finds also in HiSn the meaning of continu- 
 ance and immutability. — In a purely linguistic 
 view tTB'il would apply best to the people, and 
 the thought, that the people as the temple of God 
 were safo from all danger to themselves or the 
 sanctuary, would suit the connection. But the 
 mention of the sanctuary at Shiloh (vers. 12 and 
 14) requires that in ver. 4 also the temple-edifice 
 be referred to. Comp. especially ver. 14. — No- 
 thing further then remains but to refer n^H to 
 
 the various parts of the temple; not merely the 
 three divisions of the edifice proper, but also the 
 other parts — walls, gates, courts, halls, etc. Still 
 however the plural is remarkable, and a satis- 
 factory explanation of it a desideratum. At any 
 rate we perceive that it was a prevalent delusion 
 among the people that the temple could not be 
 destroyed, because it was Jehovah's. Three 
 times is this emphatically repeated. And by the 
 temple all else seemed to be secured. Neumann 
 rightly calls attention to the circumstance that 
 the people make use of the prouder expression 
 
 vDTI only, while the prophet speaks only of 
 
 Vers. 5-7. But amend your w^ays . . from 
 everlasting to everlasting. Not the outward 
 temple with its service ensures the favor of Je- 
 hovah, but the service, which is ofi^ered in His 
 temple by sanctified hearts and which manifests 
 itself in works of righteousness. That such 
 works as are here (vers. 5 and 6) enumerated 
 pertain especially to the Old Testament "right- 
 eousness," which is opposed not to grace but to 
 violent unrighteousness, is proved by many pas- 
 sages : Ps. V. vii. ix. X. xi. xii. xv. xvii. ; Jer. x. 
 24, 25; xxii. 3-17; Isai. i. 17, etc. Comp. Or- 
 TLOPH on the idea of PHl^, e^c, inRuDELS.u.GuER. 
 
 1860, III. S. 403.— TPhe '?« before UtIJJ'n is 
 quite abnormal, and there is no other instance 
 of it. Graf correctly supposes that it owes its 
 origin to the similarly sounding sentence, xxii. 
 8. — To your destruction. Comp. xxv. 7. — 
 From everlasting (comp. ver. 26) belongs to 
 dw^ell. Israel is to inhabit the land given to the 
 fathers, from the original epoch (vi. 16; Ps. xxiv. 
 7) at which they took possession of it even to the 
 remotest future. Comp. on xzv. 6. 
 
92 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 2. Demoralizing trust in the outward temple-service. Admonitory reference to Shilok. 
 
 VII. 8-15. 
 
 8 Behold, ye trust in such lying words to your hurt. 
 
 9 To steal, murder, commit adultery,^ 
 Swear falsely and burn incense to Baal, 
 And follow other gods which ye know not, — 
 
 10 And then ye come'^ and stand before me in this house, 
 Which is called by my name: and say: 
 
 We are delivered — to do all these abominations? 
 
 11 Is then this house which bears my name 
 Become a den of robbers in your eyes ? 
 Behold ! even I have seen it, saith Jehovah. 
 
 12 For go now to my place which was in Shiloh 
 Where I caused my name to dwell at the first, 
 And see what I have done to it 
 
 On account of the wickedness of my people Israel ! 
 
 13 And now, because ye do all these works, saith Jehovah, 
 And I spoke to you most urgently,' but ye heard not. — 
 I called to you, but ye gave no answer, — 
 
 14 Therefore I do to the house which bears my name 
 In which ye put your trust, 
 
 And the place which I gave to you and your fathers, 
 As I did to Shiloh. 
 
 15 And I cast you out from my presence, 
 As I cast out all your brethren, 
 
 The whole seed of Ephraim. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 9.— Similar infinitive constructions are found in Isai. xxi. 5 ; xxii. 13 ; lis. 4 : HoB. iT. 2. Comp. NaeQEIBB. Gt. 
 92,2 b. . . -r 
 
 2 Ver. 10. — On the transition from tiie infinitive to the finite verb, comp. Naegelsb. Gr. g 99, 3. 
 8 Ver. 13.— DDiyn. Comp. ver. 25 ; xxix. 19 ; and Naegelsb. Gr. g 93 f. [Green, Gr. g 282]. 
 
 pie is suflScient to procure absolution after the 
 practice of the most heinous abominations and 
 license for new crimes, by which course the tem- 
 ple is turned into a place of security and con- 
 cealment for robbers. The question expresses 
 indignant amazement: What? Steal, murder, 
 commit adultery, etc. ? Such wickedness ye do, 
 and then ye come, etc. — Incense to Baal, comp. 
 xi. 13, 17. — And follow other gods which 
 ye know not is taken verbatim from Deut. xi. 
 28; coll. xiii. 14. Comp. xix. 4; xlix. 3. 
 
 Ver. 10. And then ye come ... all these 
 abominations? The question is continued to 
 
 ^37^3, for it is this which is the object of the di- 
 vine indignation, that the people can unite such 
 moral contrasts. — Stand before me. The ex- 
 pression has the collateral idea of serving; comp. 
 Deut. X. 8 ; 1 Kings i. 2 ; xvii. 1 ; xviii. 15 ; 2 
 Kings iii. 14; v. 16; Jer. xl. 10; Ezek. xliv. 15, 
 etc. — Which is called by my name. This 
 expression corresponds to put my name upon 
 [nomen indere, imponere), Numb. vi. 27 ; 1 Kings 
 ix. 3, 5; comp. Exod. iii. 18; v. 3; Deut. xii. 5, 11; 
 xxviii. 10; 2 Sam. xii. 28; Jer. vii. 30; xxxii. 
 34; xxxiv. 15. — We are delivered. The peo- 
 ple regard their standing before God, their ser- 
 vice in the temple as an unfailing means of re- 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Vers. 8-11 state that Israel did not follow the 
 exhortation given in ver. 3 sqq., but regarded 
 the external place of grace as though it were a 
 spot where one only needed to present himself in 
 order to be delivered from all the evil conse- 
 quences of sin, — so that the sanctuary was mis- 
 used and became a den of robbers. The Lord dis- 
 pels this allusion as to the infallible power to save 
 of the supposed irrevocably chosen place of grace 
 by pointing to Shiloh : as it is with this, so will 
 it be with the temple and J erusalem (vers. 12-15). 
 
 Ver. 8. Behold, ye trust ... to your hurt. 
 The statement corresponds to the warning in ver. 
 4, and affirms that this was not heeded by Israel. 
 "To your hurt" depends on "trust." It is a 
 litotes. The delusion causes injury in a twofold 
 way, by demoralizing the people and thus ren- 
 dering them ripe for the divine judgment. Comp. 
 Isai. xliv. 10. 
 
 Ver. 9. To steal, murder . . . which ye 
 know not. These words in connection with 
 vers. 10, 11, designate the first effect of that hurt- 
 ful confiileiice. Tlie people, considering salva- 
 tion as unconditionally guaranteed by the temple, 
 fall into the delusion, that presence in the tem- 
 
CHAP. VII. 16-20. 
 
 98 
 
 moving all their guilt in a convenient external 
 manner. The word therefore means : we are saved, 
 freed from all the guilt and punishment of sin. 
 Comp. Luke iii. 8. — Many commentators take 
 
 IJ'Dy as^Secawse; \iQca.\xsQ ye have done these abo- 
 minations? (ironical.) Others^althouffh. The 
 language will allow neither. It is the secondary 
 object of their temple-service which is indicated. 
 The primary, immediate object is expressed in 
 ^jS^f J : they wish to purify themselves from their 
 guilt. But as they do not use the right means 
 for this, so also they are not actuated by the right 
 motive, — it is not that they may henceforward 
 hate and abandon their sin, but that like a sow 
 they may return with the more gusto to their 
 wallowing in the mire (2 Pet. ii. 22). 
 
 Ver. 11. Is then this house . . saith Jeho- 
 vah. In these words the prophet discovers to 
 the people the very heart of their proceeding: 
 with such usage the temple is not a place of sal- 
 vation, but a refuge for robbers where they purify 
 themselves from the blood and filth of their evil 
 deeds, so as to be the readier for new ones. — 
 Even I. This perception is confirmed ironi- 
 cally, but in a double sense. First by this word, 
 secondly by act. In so far namely as the Lord 
 treats the sanctuary at Jerusalem like that at 
 Shiloh, He causes it to be understood that He re- 
 gards it as a nest of robbers. That first point 
 results from the evident reference of I have 
 seen it to in your eyes, the second from the 
 following For, ver. 12. 
 
 Ver. 12. For go now . . my people Israel. 
 In these words it is explained how far the Lord 
 actually regards the temple as a deu of robbers: 
 we learn that He will treat it as He did Shiloh. 
 
 For is accordingly to be referred not to ver. 12 
 only, but to all that follows. The prophet thus 
 sliows llie second calamitous effect (ver. 8) of 
 those lyiug words (ver. 4). — To my place. 
 This denotes the place as such, the spot on which 
 the sanctuary stood, not the latter itself. On 
 this spot nothing more was now to be seen of the 
 sacred dwellings and vessels which once adorned 
 it. A proof is thus furnished that when the Lord 
 has once selected a place for His dwelling upon 
 earth He is not irrevocably bound to this place 
 to all eternity. Whether the city of Shiloh was 
 then destroyed or not, and whether some ruins 
 of the former sanctuary remained to testify of its 
 previous existence, is a matter of indifference. 
 Shiloh was still standing in the reign of Jero- 
 boam I, (1 Kings xi. 20 ; xii. 15 ; xiv. 2) and Je- 
 remiah mentions it as though it were still in ex- 
 istence (xli. 5). Comp. Gkaf, ad loc. — HERzoa's 
 Real-Ennjc. XIV. S. 369. ["Dr. Robinson found 
 its ruins under the name of Seihin on his way 
 from Jerusalem to Shechem." Henderson.] 
 
 Vers. 13-15. And now, because ye do . . . 
 the whole seed of Ephraim. The apodosis 
 begins with ver. 14. With respect to the transi- 
 tion from the infinitive to the finite verb, see 
 Gr.\mmatical rems. on ver. 9. — U2^T\. Comp. 
 ver. 25; xxix. 19; and Naegelsbach, Gr. ^ 93,/ 
 [Green's Gr. ^ 282].— The place. The prophet 
 cannot mean the whole country, any more than 
 in vers. 3, 6, 7. As in ver. 12, it is the spot oa 
 which the house stands. This spot of earth is 
 the hallowed and hallowing centre of the whole 
 country, on which all other dwelling-places are 
 founded. Comp. Exod. iii. 5. — For Ephraim aa 
 a designation of the ten tribes vide Hos. iv. 17; 
 Isai. vii. 2, etc. 
 
 8. The hypocrisy of the worship of Jehovah, boasted of in ver. 4 sqq. , is evinced by the idolatry practisti 
 elsewhere. Thus the nation is provoking a severe and inevitable judgment. 
 
 VII. 16-20. 
 
 16 And as to thee, pray not for this people, 
 And make not a cry and supplication for them, 
 Nor intercede with me ; for I will not hear thee. 
 
 17 Seest thou not what they are doing 
 
 In the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem ? 
 
 18 The children gather wood and the fathers kindle the fire, 
 
 And the women knead the dough, to make cakes for the queen of the heavens, 
 And pour out libations to other gods, to aggrieve me. 
 
 19 Do they aggrieve me ? saith Jehovah. 
 
 Do they not themselves to their own shame? 
 
 20 Therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah : 
 
 Behold, my anger and my fury is poured out in this place, 
 On the men and the cattle. 
 
 And on the trees of the field and the fruits of the land. 
 That it may burn and not be extinguished. 
 
94 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 How fixedly the judgment announced in vers. 
 14, 15 is determined upon by Jehovali, is evinced 
 by tliis, that tlie propliet is forbidden to inter- 
 pose with any plea (ver. 16). The motive of this 
 seemingly harsh decree is indicated by reference 
 to the idolatry still in full course in the cities of 
 Judah and Jei'usalem, and which forms a gloomy 
 offset to that pseudo- Jehovah-worship mentioned 
 in ver. 4. This idolatry may be directed prima- 
 rily against Jehovah, but it will prove at last 
 self-destructive to Israel (vers. 19, 20). 
 
 Ver. 16. And as to thee I will . . . not hear 
 thee. jEROMf; remarks that ^'^ sanctorum preces 
 Dei iris possunt resistere, Ex. xxxii. 10 sq.; Ps. 
 cvi. 30; Numb. xvi. 46 sq." Comp. I John v. 16 — 
 
 n^T with nSsn is frequent, ex. gr., Ps. xvii. 1 ; 
 l^Kings viii. 28, etc. — This verse is repeated xi. 
 14; xiv. 11. 
 
 Vers. 17 and 18. Seest thou not what they 
 are doing ... to aggrieve me. The motive 
 of the severe prohibition in ver. 16. — The queen 
 of the heavens is mentioned besides only in 
 xliv. 17, 18, 19, 25. The form, which in Hebrew 
 indeed has general analogies (ex. gr. Jl^^J) but 
 does not otherwise occur, bespeaks the foreign 
 origin of the phiase as of the thing. The ex- 
 pression "heaven's-queen" points to the worship 
 of the stars, and indeed the moon as the feminine 
 potence (together with the sun as the masculine) 
 appears not seldom under this name. It is called 
 by Apuleius [Metaph. XI. init.) directly regina 
 cceli, and in Horace {Carm. Secul. 35) we find 
 the words: Siderum regina bicornis audi Luna 
 puellas. For more on this subject consult Abr. 
 Calov. Diss, de Selenolatria Viteb. 1680 (also in 
 Thes. theol. philoL, Vol. I. p. 808 sqq.). To the 
 further question, what deity is represented by 
 the moon, we can only answer that since it, as the 
 female principle of fructification, corresponds to 
 the sun-god Baal as the male principle, the femi- 
 nine deity corresponding to Baal, i. e., Astarte, 
 must be represented by the moon. Herodian 
 (V. 6, 10) says expressly, Ohpaviav ^oiviKeg 'Aarpo- 
 dpxvv (Grsecism for Astarte) bvo/LtdCovai., aehjvr/v 
 eIvul ^Dmvte^. Comp. Hebod. III. 8^ — On the 
 Carthaginian inscriptions [Insc. Karth. 8), 
 
 ^?.'?.?n (=^?^P ID). «• «M the -S^riW, ^}i^, Tavaig, 
 
 the Asiatic, originally Egyptian Artemis ap- 
 pears as the feminine opposite of jiDll 7j|^3. This 
 is certainly no longer the original Phoenician 
 Astarte, but a later modification with unchaste 
 cultus, and probably admixture of star-worship. 
 Comp. 2 Kings xxi. 3 ; xxiii. 4; Jer. xix. 18.^ 
 Comp. Creuzer, Symbol. II. Kap. 4, § 1, 2, 3, 
 6 ; Appendix on the Cnrthag. religion, § 3. For 
 the less recent literature on this passage consult 
 RosENMUBLLER. — The D''J^ (xliv. 19) are proba- 
 bly the Egyptian confection Neideh ( Vid. Hitzio 
 ad hoc I. and Fuerst H. W. B. s. v. J-13). Ac- 
 cording to the n^'^fj^n?, xliv. 19, it is not im- 
 probable that the cakes were in the form of a 
 moon; compare the cakes oifered to Artemis as 
 the moon-god in Athens under the name of ae- 
 ?.!/L'ac ( Vid. Graf ad loc). — On the heathen cus- 
 tom of celebrating the new moon with fires kin- 
 dled in the streets and sweet cakes, comp. Spen- 
 cer, De Legg. Hebr. ritual. L. III. Diss. IV. Cap. 
 3. — The etymology of |^ is uncertain. It is 
 most probably derived from ]\2, to prepare. Is it 
 not perhaps connected with ]VJp (Am. v. 26) t 
 
 With this adoration of the queen of heaven may 
 have been connected as a later remnant the wor- 
 ship of the Collyridians, who existed in Arabia in 
 the 4th century, and gave divine honors to the 
 Virgin Mary, offering her little cakes of bread 
 [nollvpig), Vid. Epiph. Hxr. 79. — And pour out 
 libations. The infinitive here may ci-tainly 
 depend on the to ( /) before make (riViT;* ) (comp. 
 Naegelsb. Gr. § 112, 8). But it must also be 
 remarked that the Inf. 'ij'Dn is used by Jeremiah 
 
 in a very peculiar manner absolutely: xix. 13; 
 xiv. 19 (where the 7 perhaps from oversight 
 stands instead of in vers. 17 and 18). At any 
 rate it designates the drink-oflFerings pertaining 
 to the meat-oifering of cakes. 
 
 Vers. 19 and 20. Do they aggrieve me ? . . . 
 that it may burn and not be extinguished. 
 — On aggrieve comp. Ezek. xxxii. 9. — them- 
 selves. Dmx reciprocal (comp. Naegelsb. Gr. 
 
 I 81, h). — fury is poured out (comp. Nah. i. 6). 
 — In this place. The divine anger is poured 
 out immediately in the centre of the Theo- 
 cracy (7N) and from thence immediately over the 
 whole land (S^). 
 
 21 
 22 
 
 23 
 
 4. Refutation of the objection that the Lord Himself commanded the outward temple terviee. 
 
 VII. 21-28. 
 
 Thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth, the God of Israel : 
 Take your burnt offerings with the sin offerings and eat flesh. 
 For I spoke not with your fathers in the day that I brought* them out of Egypt, 
 Nor commanded them concerning burnt offerings and slain offerings. 
 But this I commanded them : " Hearken to my voice, 
 That I may be your God, and you my people. 
 
CHAP. VII. 21-28. 
 
 95 
 
 And walk in all the ways that I command you, 
 That it may be well with you." 
 
 24 But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, 
 And walked after their own counsels ^ — 
 
 In the hardness of their evil heart, 
 
 And turned to the back and not to the face.' 
 
 25 From the day that your fathers went out of the land of Egypt, 
 To this day I send you all my servants, 
 
 The prophets, zealously and unremittingly. 
 
 26 But they hearkened not to me, nor inclined their ear. 
 
 But they stiffened their neck and acted more wickedly than their fathers. 
 
 27 And though thou speakest to them all these words. 
 Yet will they not hearken unto thee ; 
 
 And though thou callest to them, 
 Yet will they not answer thee. 
 
 28 Therefore shalt thou say unto them : 
 This is the people that has not hearkened 
 To the voice of Jehovah, their God, 
 Nor accepted chastisement. 
 
 Truth is vanished and eradicated from their mouth. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 22.— ["A vast number of MSS., three of the early editions, and all the versions read, with the Keri, 'N^V IH instead 
 of N*'Vin." Henderson.— S. R. A.] 
 
 2 Ver. 24.— niVj^DS is stat. ahsol. and therefore not co-ordinated with the following nillK'. but the following 
 
 sentence forms a sort of apposition to it : They walked in counsels !— in hardness of their heart. Comp. Naegelsb. 
 Gram. § 66. 
 
 3 Ver. 24.— [Blatnet, Umbreit, Henderson render : and went (drew, turned) backward, and not forward. Noyes and 
 HlTZlG : turned the back and not the face. — S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The hypocritical people might appeal to the 
 fact that their outward temple service was in ac- 
 cordance with the precepts of the Law. To this 
 however it is opposed, that from the beginning 
 the Lord directed His chief regard not to exter- 
 nal worship, but to the obedience of the heart, 
 and to this gave the promise of prosperity (vers. 
 21-23). But the people never observed this re- 
 quirement of the Lord, though He caused it to be 
 repeated often and urgently by the prophets (vers. 
 24-26). They will close their ears even to the 
 exhortation of Jeremiah, and thus call down upon 
 themselves the judgment of incorrigibility (vers. 
 27. 28). 
 
 Ver. 21. Thus saith Jehovah . . . and eat 
 flesh. — Take, ^£30 (comp. Isai. xxix. 1), may 
 
 he derived from ^D' or HSD. (Comp. Isai. xxx. 1; 
 Numb, xxxii. 14). The primary idea seems to be 
 "to scrape, scratch, sweep," from which are -de- 
 rived the meanings both of to sweep up or together 
 (comp. also Deut. xxxii. 23) and to scrape off 
 
 (Isai. vii. 20) and sweep away (Ps. xl. 15). 7j|^ 
 
 also stands after the word in the passages cited. 
 Comp. iii. 18. — And eat flesh, an expression of 
 contempt : throw all your sacrifices and burnt-of- 
 ferings together and devour them as meat. Comp. 
 Ti. 20. 
 
 Vers. 22 and 23. For I spoke not .... 
 may be •well with you. When the Rabbins 
 emphasize in the day, etc , or when others ap- 
 pealing to Levit. i. 2, etc. find in this passage an in- 
 
 dication of the voluntariness of the oflFerings, or 
 at least of the view that only voluntary oflFerings 
 are here spoken of, Graf is certainly right in de- 
 signating such points as subtleties. But to find 
 in the passage a proof that Jeremiah was ignorant 
 of any legal enactments with respect to sacrifices 
 at the time of the Exodus, since in his time the mid- 
 dle books of the Pentateuch, which owed their ori- 
 gin to Ezra, were not in existence, as Graf does, 
 following HiTZiG and others (comp. especially his 
 latest work. On the historical books of the Old Test., 
 Leipzig, 1866), is a proceeding for which there is 
 no ground either in those books, in the writings 
 of the preexilic prophets generally (comp. only 
 •ex.gr.. Am. iv. 5 with Levit. vii. 13 ; Hos. iv. 7-9 
 with Levit vi. 18^ xxvi. 26), or in this particular 
 passage. For it is indeed true that the words 
 that I may be your God>and you my people 
 (the substance of which is found in Exod. vi. 7 coll. 
 Deut. xxix. 12) are a verbal quotation from the 
 certainly peculiar 26th chapter of Leviticus (ver. 
 12), that the next line likewise resembles almost 
 word for word Deut. v. 33 (the expression in all 
 the ways occurs in this sense only in this pas- 
 sagf» of Deut.), finally that that it may be well 
 with you al-<o is exclusively Deutornnomic (v. 
 16, 26 ; vi. 18 ; xii. 25, 28 ; xxii. 27). But (1.) the 
 book of Deuteronomy presupposes tlie preceding 
 book.s of the Pentateuch and cannotbe understood 
 without them. Thus it is explained that precepts 
 relating to the sacrifices do not here occur except 
 in a summary (Deut. xii. 6, 11, 13, 14, 27) or modi- 
 fied form, according to the circumstances (comp. 
 Deut. xii. 15 with Levit. xvii. 2 sqq.). (2) 
 If this passage is to be understood in a literal 
 
98 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 sense, as by Hitzig and Graf, the prophet 
 would declare not only something incredible in 
 itself, but also what would be in the highest 
 degree prejudicial to the assumed post-exilic com- 
 position of the middle books of the Pentateuch. 
 For how could these place the origin of the sacri- 
 ficial enactments in the period of the exodus, if 
 prophetic utterances like this and Am. v. 25 ex- 
 pressly contradict it? (3) As in Exod. xvi. 8 
 the words "Your murmurings are not against 
 us, but against Jehovah," declare not that the Is- 
 raelites did not murmur at all against Moses and 
 Aaron (which is expressly maintained in ver. 2), 
 but only that the sin of murmuring against Moses 
 and Aaron vanislied in comparison with the sin 
 which they committed in their murmuring against 
 the Lord Himself, — as Hos. vi. 6 likewise denies 
 pleasure in sacrifices not absolutely but only 
 relatively, in so far that it does not enter into 
 comparison with the pleasure of the Lord in true 
 piety (comp. Gen. xxxii. 29; Iv. 8; 1 Sam. viii 
 7) — so also in this passage the negation has a 
 rhetorical, not a logical significance (comp. 
 Winer, Gramm. N. T. Sprachidioms | 58, 7). 
 Thtts those commentators are right who find here 
 this meaning, that the whole of the enactments 
 relating to sacrifices do not enter into considera- 
 tion in comparison with the importance of the 
 moral Law. Comp. the parallel passages: — 
 Isa. V. 11; Iviii. 3 sqq. ; ixvi. 3; 1 Sam. xv. 
 22; Mic. vi. 6-8; Ps. xl. 7 sqq.; Ps. 1.; Ps. li. 
 18, 19; Prov. xxi. 27; Matt. ix. 13. The ex- 
 pression: I will be your God and ye shall be my 
 people, is found with special frequency in Jere- 
 miah: xi. 4; xxiv. 7; xxx. 22; xxxi. 1, 33; 
 xxxii. 38. Almost as frequently in Ezekiel: xi. 
 20; xiv. 10; xxxvi. 28; xxxvii. 23, 27. Twice 
 also in Zechariah: ii. 15; viii. 8. 
 
 Ver. 24. But they hearkened not . . . 
 back not face. — In the hardness of their 
 heart, comp. Deut. xxix. 18; Jer. iii. 17. — In 
 
 general comp. xi. 8 ; Ps. Ixxxi. 13. — "ymvh VTV) 
 MJV Comp. ii. 27. Literally: — they came to the 
 back and not to the face, viz., from the stand- 
 point of Jehovah. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 69, 3, 
 as to the substantives back and face taking the 
 place of adjectives or participles. 
 
 Vers. 25, 26. From the day . . . more 
 
 wickedly than their fathers. — JdS comp. ver. 
 
 7. — n7tJ'X1. Vau constr. after a definition of time. 
 Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 88, 7. — Comp. xi. 7; xxv. 
 4; xxvi. 5: xxix. 19; xxxv. 15; xliv. 4. — Alone 
 
 DV never means "daily." But with an infinitive 
 construction it represents the idea "day" in 
 
 the dame sense as D3tyn the idea "early," i. e., 
 
 the sending has taken place day by day, daily 
 and always early, {. e., not sleepily, dilatorily, 
 but diligently and unremittingly, comp. besides 
 Gr. I 93, h.— On ver, 26 comp. Deut. x. 16; 
 Jer. xvii. 23; xix. 15. 
 
 Vers. 27, 28. And though thou speakest 
 to them . . . from their mouth. There is a 
 
 reason here for "'11 Although the word is also 
 used of Israel without a bad side-meaning (comp. 
 Exod. xix. 6: Josh. iii. 17; iv. 1; x. 3), yet we 
 never find mri'' "'U, but always '■'' DJ^. "'U is there- 
 fore chosen here to designate Israel as a com- 
 mon, profane nation. Comp. Isa. i. 4. — The pro- 
 phet is to pronounce the judgment of incorrigi- 
 bility on Israel as the basis of the announcement 
 of judgment which comes afterwards. On HJIOX 
 
 comp. V. 3, and the entire chapter. Truth or 
 fidelity, is substantially lost: it is therefore no 
 longer in their mouth. The prophet alludes to 
 what was said in ver. 4: even though they take 
 the words upon their lips, these are but empty 
 sounds. For he whose heart is empty can avail 
 nothing with his mouth. 
 
 The abomination of idolatry in the highest degree a most evident proof of the hypocrisy of the people. 
 
 .Beginning of retribution. 
 
 VII. 29-34. 
 
 30 
 
 31 
 
 29 Shear off thy hair and cast it away, 
 
 And raise on the heights a wailing, 
 
 For Jehovah hath rejected and forsaken the generation of his wrath. 
 
 For the children of judah have done that which is evil in my sight, saith Jehovah. 
 
 They have set their abominations in the house, 
 
 Which bears my name, to pollute it. 
 
 And they have built the high places of Tophet, 
 
 Which is in the valley oi'Ben-Hinnom. 
 
 To burn their sons and daughters in the fire ; 
 
 Which I commanded not, neither did it come into my mind. 
 32 Therefore behold ! the days are coming, saith Jehovah, 
 
 That it will no more be called Tophet and vale Ben-Hinnom, 
 
 But the valley of slaughter: 
 
 And they will bury in Tophet, because there is no room. 
 
CHAP. VII. 29-34. 
 
 97 
 
 33 And the carcases of this people shall be for food 
 To the birds of heaven and the beasts of earth, 
 And there will be none to scare them away. 
 
 34 And I will cause to cease from this city of Judah, 
 And from the streets of Jerusalem, 
 
 The voice of gladness and the voice of joy, 
 
 The voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride ; 
 
 For the land shall become a desolation. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 How little the appeal of the Israelites to the 
 chosen place of mercy, and to their observance 
 of the ritual, could help them (ver. 29) the pro- 
 phet shows by setting forth their desecration of 
 the sanctuary by Baal-worship, and their infrac- 
 tion of the Law by abominable practices which 
 were directly forbidden in it (vers. 30, 31). Thus 
 it is rendered most clearly manifest what shame- 
 ful hypocrisy was concealed under the Jehovah- 
 worship boasted of in ver. 4. 
 
 The rejection consequently announced in ver. 
 29 will consist in this, that the places in the vale 
 of Hinnom hitherto considered sacred will be 
 places of slaughter and burial, and that still a 
 large number of unburied corpses will afford food 
 for the beasts; the further consequence of which 
 will be, that the land, bereft of its inhabitants, 
 will become a barren waste (vers. 31-34). 
 
 Ver. 29. Shear off thy hair . . . generation 
 of his ■wrath. "^IJ is properly crown: here it is 
 used of the hair as the natural adornment of the 
 head, comp. Numb. vi. 19. The cutting off of 
 the hair was a sign of mourning, xvi. 6 ; xlviii. 
 37; Isa. xv. 2; Mic. i. IG, etc. Comp. Herzog, 
 Real-Enc. XVI., S. 363. [Henderson:— "Je- 
 rusalem is here addressed under the image of a 
 female, who, in the depth of her grief for the 
 loss of her children, deprives her head of its 
 chief ornament, and betakes herself to the hills 
 to bewail her bereavement." Henry after Blat- 
 ney: — "The word is peculiar to the hair of the 
 Nazarites, which was the badge and token of 
 their dedication to God, and it is called their 
 crown. Jerusalem had been a city, which was 
 a Nazarite to God, but must now cut off her hair, 
 must be profaned, degraded and separated from 
 God, as she had been separated to Him. It is 
 time for those who have lost their holiness to lay 
 aside their joy." — S. R. A.] — On the feminine 
 form in 'T-l, etc. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 60, 7. — 
 
 On the heights. Comp. iii. 21 ; ix. 9. — genera- 
 tion of his v?^rath. Comp. Isa. x. 6 ; Prov. 
 xxii. 8. 
 
 Ver. 30. For the children of Judah ... to 
 pollute it. — in my sight, does nut depend on 
 have done, but on that •which is evil. Comp. 
 Jud iii. 7, 12, etc., and Naegelsb. Gr., ^ 112, 5 
 b, (where moreover we must understand it in a 
 physical sense [Isa. xiv. 16] as distinguished 
 from the ^pirituat sense. Gen. xxviii. 8, etc). — 
 Their abominations. Tliat Jeremiah refers 
 to the abominable practices of Manasseh (2 Kings 
 xxi. 4-7) has been fully proved by Graf. I will 
 only add that Jehoiakim represents the relapse 
 into the principle forsaken by Josiah, and that 
 this explains why responsibility for the sins of 
 
 7 
 
 Manasseh is attributed to him and his contem- 
 poraries (2 Kings xxiv. 3; Jer. xv. 4), on which 
 account also in this passage the abominations are 
 spoken of as though they had been committed by 
 Jehoiakim himself. This passage is repeated in 
 xxxii. 34. 
 
 Ver. 31. And they have built . . . come 
 into my mind. PtiD3 is not merely high places, 
 but in a derivative sense every place of worship 
 erected for idolatrous service, or every building 
 for that purpose, as is proved by passages like 
 2 Kings xxiii. 15, where the n03 is distinguished 
 from the altar in it, and is burnt, — Ezek. xvi. 16, 
 where high places are mentioned as composed of 
 garments. Here also they are not the altars 
 alone, but the places x>f worship with the altars. 
 There appear to have been several such places 
 in Tophet, this being intimated by the expression 
 
 D'Nptan nah Jer. xlx. 13. Tophet, as is well 
 
 known, was a place in the valley of Ben-Hinnom, 
 where the horrible sacrifices of children (comp. 
 Selden, De Diis Syr. Syntagm. I. 6) were of- 
 fered to Baal (xix. 5 — with which Molech, xxxii. 
 35, is parallel, comp. Levit. xviii. 21 ; xx. 2-5; 
 
 1 Kings xi. 7 ; 2 Kings xxiii. 10). But the de- 
 rivation of the word is uncertain. Some (Lors- 
 BACH, Gesen., Hitzig, Ewald, Fl'erst, and 
 others) appeal to Isa. xxx. 33 in favor of the 
 rendering ;?Zfirce of burning, deriving it from '\r\= 
 3J^ to burn. Others (Winer, Bottcher, Graf, 
 Pressel) finding their support in Job xvii. 6, 
 give the word the meaning of sputum, abomina- 
 tion, horror, from the Chaldee ^1P=/o speiv out. 
 HoFMANN (in Weiss, u. Erf., II., 125) suggests 
 the not improbable derivation from T]nb and gives 
 it the meaning of pit. A decision on this point 
 is as difficult as with reference to the vale Ben- 
 Hinnom. The situation of this valley is indeed 
 fixed, as it is certain it was to the south of Jeru- 
 salem, but the views are various as to its exact 
 location. Comp. Herzog, Real-Enc, IV. S. 710. 
 — There is not perfect agreement even as to the 
 name of the valley, the ancients regarding Hin- 
 nom as a proper name, of the moderns some de- 
 riving it from DHJ (by transposition=the valley 
 
 of wailing, so IIitzig and Graf), and" others 
 from pn=pj< (with the same meaning, so Bot- 
 tcher, De Inf., I. S. 82, 83). Were the valley- 
 only the vale of Hinnom, as in Josh. XV. 8; xviii. 
 IH; Neh. xi. 30, or the vale Beni-Hinnom (as in 
 
 2 Kings xxiii. 10 only, Chethibh) the apellative 
 signification would have nuich in its favor. But 
 as the name Vale Ben-Hinnom is the most fre- 
 quent and certainly the original (Josh. xv. 8; 
 xviii. 16; Jer. vii. 31, 32; xix. 2, 6; 2 Chr. 
 xxviii. 3; xxxiii. 6), the derivations given above 
 are very insecure, and it is most advisable to re- 
 
98 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 tain the old interpretation.— To burn. Two 
 passages coincide with this almost word for 
 word: xix. 5 and xxxii. 35. In the latter pas- 
 sage, instead of this expression, we find to cause 
 to pass through, which shows that it is not to be 
 understood literally as Maimonides and other 
 Jewish commentators suppose, but as an euphem- 
 iam. — The words ichich I commanded not repeated 
 in all three passages (comp. iii. 10), intimate 
 that this custom was relatively a new one. Al- 
 though the worship of Molech (the Ammonitish) 
 is attributed even to Solomon (1 Kings xi. 7), 
 yet the abomination of burning children was 
 first introduced into Judah by Ahaz (2 Kings 
 xvi. 3). Comp. Movers, Phoen. I., S. 327 sqq.— 
 In the Pentateuch this cult was forbidden, Deut. 
 xii. 30; xviii. 10. 
 
 Vers. 32-34. Therefore behold \ the days 
 are coming ... a desolation. The place of 
 worship, held sacred by the idolatrous Jews, but 
 in fact desecrated, shall even for them be forever 
 polluted. That this would be accomplished by a 
 massacre on the spot, is not stated in the text. 
 This would not have polluted it forever, as we 
 read of Josiah that he polluted the places of ido- 
 latrous worship either by the burning of human 
 bones (2 Ki. xxiii. 16, 20) or by filling them up 
 -with these (ver. 14) or the reverse, by strewing 
 
 the ashes of the idols on the graves (ver. 6). At 
 any rate he must have defiled Tophet (ver. 10) 
 and other places (vers. 8, 13) in the same way. 
 Here then also the pollution is caused by the in- 
 terment, and the name "valley of slaughter" is 
 connected with it only in so far that the vale is 
 used as a place of burial only in consequence of 
 the want of room, resulting from the great 
 slaughter (comp. xix. 11; Ezek. ix. 7). But 
 even thus a great number of corpses will remain 
 unburied, which will be food for beasts (comp. 
 Deut. xxviii. 26, whence ver. 33 is taken verba- 
 tim, and Jer. xvi. 4 ; xix. 7 ; xxxiv. 20). — None 
 to scare, etc. Comp. Levit. xxvi. 6 ; Deut. 
 xxviii. 2(3; Mic. iv. 4; Nah. ii. 12; Zeph. iii. 
 li; Jer. xxx. 10; xlvi. 27. The further result 
 of the slaughter is depopulation, the cessation of 
 every sign of normal human existence, complete 
 desolation of the land. (xvi. 9 ; xxv. 10, 11, 
 coll. xxxiii. 11). [Henderson: — "In ver. 34, 
 reference is made to the joyous processions in 
 which the bride and bridegroom are led through 
 the streets, accompanied by bands of singers and 
 musicians, which are common in many parts of 
 the East, and even among the Jews in some parts 
 of Europe. See my Biblical Researches and 
 Travels in Russia, p. 217."— S. R. A.] 
 
 6. Fulfilment of retribution corresponding to the idol-abominations. 
 
 VIII. 1-3. 
 
 At this time, saith Jehovah, they shall bring^ 
 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, 
 And they shall spread them out to the sun. 
 And to the moon, and to all the host of heaven. 
 Which they loved and which they served and followed, 
 And which they sought and worshipped ; 
 They shall not be gathered, nor buried ; 
 They shall be dung on the surface of the earth. 
 And the whole remnant of the survivors of tbis wicked race 
 Shall prefer' death to life in all places of the survivors^ 
 Whither I have driven them, saith Jehovah Zebaoth. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 1.— Instead of !|N''i*V1 the Masoretes would omit the 1, as they perceived that neither aa consecutive nor as copu- 
 lative is it in place, while in accordance with the-constanfusage we should expect it to be followed by the perfect. Comp. 
 NAEOEi-sn. Gr., g 840. Yet in such cases the imperfect with Van cnpalat. is not witliout example ; comp. Exod. xii. 3. 
 
 a Ver. 3.— in3J1 comp. Prov. xxi. 3. N.\eoelsb. Gr., g 100, 4. 
 
 3 Ver. 3.— D'lkXty^n. If we do not with Hitziq and Graf reject this word as resting on a clerical error, we must ex- 
 plain it with Maurer and De Wette as the repetition of the noun instead of the pronoun, so that the article stands before 
 ttie coDBtruct state in an emphatic almost pronominal signification : in alt those places. Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., § 71, 5 Anm. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICi^L. 
 
 It is dlear from the contents that this strophe 
 is closely connected with the preceding. Death 
 is to come in a new form, as it were, in those who 
 
 are already dead. The bones of the buried shall 
 be disinterred and strewed in the face of the 
 stars, their powerless deities, shall become stink- 
 ing ordure (vers. 1, 2). And the surviving rem- 
 nant will long for death as a benefit (ver. 3). 
 Vers. 1, 2. At this time, saith Jehovah . . 
 
CHAP. VIII. 1-8. 
 
 99 
 
 surface of the earth. Of the motive of the 
 disinterment the prophet says nothing. He liad 
 certainly no idea of its being the search for booty 
 (Jerome, Hitzig, [Henderson]). He has in mind 
 only the punitive justice of God. — His before 
 princes is to be referred to the kings, viz., the 
 princes of each king or kingdom, or of the crown. 
 Comp. xxiv. 8; xxv. 19; xxxiv. 21. We should 
 have expected in reference to Judah tlmr princes, 
 as in Isai. iii. 4; Hos. vii. 16; ix. 15. — Spread 
 them out. Observe the irony. The stars look 
 powerlessly down on ihe bones of their worship- 
 pers — while these send up a stench ! — Gathered. 
 Comp. xvi. 4 ; xxv. 33. — For the subject-matter 
 compare 2 Sam. xxi. 12 sqq. 
 
 Ver. 3. And the whole remnant . . saith 
 Jehovah. The discourse concludes with a part- 
 ing glance at the survivors, who are the most un- 
 fortunate of all. Comp. xxv. 26. — On the sub- 
 ject-matter comp. xxiv. 8 sqq. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On vii. 1. The exhortation which Jeremiah 
 here addresses to his contemporaries is, as Chry- 
 sosTOM remarks, substantially the same as that 
 of John the Baptist to the Jews of his time: 
 " Bring forth therefore fruits — meet for repen- 
 tance, and begin not to say within yourselves, 
 we have Abraham to our father; for I say unto 
 you that God is able of these stones to raise up 
 children unto Abraham." But there is a diflFer- 
 ence between trusting in descent from Abraham, 
 and in the stone Sanctuary at Jerusalem. For 
 as the tabernacle and the sanctuary at Shiloh 
 have disappeared, so the temple built by Solo- 
 mon and the ark of the covenant itself ; and even 
 the temple re-erected without the ark was de- 
 stroyed a second time by Titus and not rebuilt, 
 though according to the testimony of Josephus 
 (Bell. Jud. VI. 2, 1) the mad resistance of the 
 Jews was chiefly based on the idea that Jerusa- 
 lem being the city of God was in no danger of 
 destruction. Now while the sacred places and 
 buildings for worship, from the tabernacle to the 
 temple of Herod, were destroyed, never to be re- 
 built (comp. iii. 16 T;; nt^;;;;. vh) the descent 
 
 from Abraham, in spite of all temporary rever- 
 sions, retains its eternal signiticance, as the 
 Apostle Paul shows in Rom. xi., where he says, 
 *' If the first fruit be holy, the lump is also holy, 
 and if the root be holy so are the branches. . . . 
 If some of the branches have been broken oflF on 
 account of unbelief, yet they may be grafted in 
 again. . . . For according to the Gospel, he says, 
 I regard them as enemies, but according to the 
 election, they are beloved for the fathers' sake. 
 For the gifts and calling of God are without re- 
 pentance." If now to trust in descent from 
 Abraham is in so far foolish and unjustifiable, as 
 it does not prevent partial destruction of the na- 
 tion, to trust in the outward sanctuary, con- 
 structed of earthly material, is still less justifi- 
 able, for this has no guarantee of continuance ; 
 it may indeed suffer total destruction without 
 endangering the foundations of the theocracy. 
 Just as unjustifiable as this confiilence of the 
 Jews in an earthly sanctuary as the chosen place 
 of divine presence and blessing is every analo- 
 
 gous confidence of the Christian church in a real 
 or supposed divinely chosen earthly substratum 
 of tokens of blessing, whether it be a place, office 
 or race. All the places consecrated by the pre- 
 sence of the Lord and the ministry of His apos- 
 tles have been destroyed and given up to the abo- 
 mination of desolation : Jerusalem with the Mt. 
 of Olives and Golgotha, Bethlehem, Nazareth, the 
 whole of Palestine, Asia Minor and Greece, be- 
 came Christian and yet fell a prey to the cres- 
 cent. All the less may Rome count on perpe- 
 tuity, since the chair of Peter rests not on di- 
 vine but on arbitrary human institution. So also 
 the legitimate ruling families of Europe, who so 
 fondly imagine, that they are irrevocably chosen, 
 should never forget that the Lord not only ap- 
 points but deposes kings. (Comp. Dan. iv. 32 ; 
 V. 21). 
 
 2. Petrus Q.'VLATiNua [de Arc. cath. ver. v. 
 10) remarks (according to Ghisler.) that some 
 Rabbins refer the lying word of the thrice re- 
 peated iyT\ to the false hope of those who sup- 
 pose that a third temple will yet be built. But 
 this hope is not a false one. It certainly will not 
 be realized in the erection of a third sanctuary 
 of stone but in that spiritual body of which we 
 must regard Ezekiel's temple as the type. Comp. 
 B.\LMER-RiNCK, on the prophet Ezekiel's vision 
 of the temple, Basel, 1858, and my review of this 
 work in Reul. Rep. 1860, H. IIL S. 151, 2. This 
 is not of course to say that the thrice repeated 
 word does not really refer to the third temple. 
 
 3 "If God has not His temple and abode in the 
 heart, that (wiz., that thou hast an outward tem- 
 ple or house of God) will avail thee nothing." 
 Mic. iii. 11, 12. Starke. 
 
 4. " The words ' this is the Lord's temple ' 
 might properly be written on the hearts of be- 
 lievers," 1 Cor. iii. 16; Gen. xxviii. 17. St.-vrke. 
 
 5. " It is a heathenish delusion and false con- 
 fidence to suppose that God is bound to any place 
 or spot, as the Trojans thought because they had 
 the temple of Pallas in their city it could not be 
 taken, and in the present day the manner of the 
 Papists is to bind Christ to Rome and the chair 
 of Peter, and then defiantly maintain ' I shall 
 never be moved' (Ps. x. 6). For, they say, the 
 ship of Peter may sink a little, but not altoge- 
 ther. Then the only point that is deficient is this, 
 that they are not the ship of Peter, but rather an 
 East Indianman with a cargo of Indian apes and 
 such like foreign merchandize, pearls, purple, 
 silk, brass, iron, silver, gold, incense, lead, that 
 I hey may carry on simony and make merchan- 
 dize of religion, and deceive the whole world 
 (Rev. xviii. 11 sqq.)." Cramer. 
 
 6. On vii. 9-11. Necessary as the doctrine of 
 the church is in the organic system of Christian 
 doctrine it may become dangerous, if the church 
 is regarded one-sidedly as an objectively saving- 
 institution, and the subjective conditions of its 
 operation are undervalued. For then it is re- 
 garded as alone necessary to salvation, and not 
 only in the sense that this virtue is ascribed ex- 
 clusively to one particular church in opposition 
 to another, but also in the sense of supposing 
 thnt the cliurch alone, ms an objective institution, 
 is tlie means of s;ilvation, a man needing to do 
 notliiiig more tlian to enter into a passive rela- 
 
103 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 tion to the church, i. e., without conscious resis- 
 tance [obex). From this alone saving church 
 there is but one step to the infallibly saving, i. e., 
 to that, of which a passive member cannot be 
 lost, however much lie may steal, murder, com- 
 mit adultery, swear falsely, etc. Where this rui- 
 nous delusion prevails men enter the church, per- 
 form the ceremonies, wipe their mouths, and say 
 
 aalvi sumus (IJ7XJ). But thus the church of 
 Christ becomes a den of robbers. 
 
 7. On vii. 16. "This may serve to comfort 
 you, for God thus testifies to the power of prayer, 
 that it would stand in His way so that He could 
 not go on. Therefore He had first of all to for- 
 bid the prophet from praying. Thus also He says 
 to Moses (Exod. xxxii. 10) 'Let Me alone that 
 My wrath may burn against them.' So much 
 may a believing prayer accomplish." Cramee. 
 
 8. On vii. 22, 23. In Ps. li. 16, 17, we read 
 " For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I 
 give it : thou delightest not in burnt-ofi"ering. 
 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit : a 
 broken and a contrite heart, God, thou wilt 
 not despise." Had sacrifices and burnt-oflferings 
 been positively displeasing to God, He would 
 have forbidden them. But they must have been 
 pleasing to Him even as types of the sacrifice on 
 Golgotha. They displease Him only when He is 
 to accept them instead of .a broken and contrite 
 heart. The sacrifices have thus a two-fold sig- 
 nificance; objectively as types, and in so far as 
 God beholds in every sacrifice that of Christ, they 
 are pleasing to Him — subjectively, as the offer- 
 ing of man. But when in this relation God is to 
 be satisfied with the fat and blood of an animal 
 instead >of the spiritual ablatio cordis, the sacri- 
 fice is displeasing. Thus as the sacrifice is on 
 the one hand pleasing, on the other displeasing, 
 Jeremiah might say that God did not speak of 
 sacrifices, though on the other Jiand it is admit- 
 ted, that He did speak of them. 
 
 9. On vii. 26. "It is an evil consolation, and 
 one of the greatest exercises of the witnesses, 
 when they are treated with such indifference, 
 that they are not opposed, but also receive no 
 real attention. Then is Satan most firmly seated, 
 and his business best established when he has 
 induced such a state of indifference. Phlegm in 
 religion, patience in hearers (a sign that they 
 are inured to blows) is an incurable evil. So 
 long as they are calumniated, persecuted, mocked, 
 the witnesses still have a handle. But the time, 
 when one preaches and no one rises, is a misera- 
 ble epoch for the ministry. Yet it must be en- 
 dured, for it is either not general or a teacher is 
 usually free. For because the Lord ' spews out 
 of His mouth ' such men and such times of le- 
 thargy are heralds of the overflowing of the di- 
 vine judgments, and especially of the removal of 
 the candlestick from its place, there is generally 
 a new period for the teachers, and they become 
 elsewhere a ffreal nation (Exod. xxxii. 10) " Zin- 
 
 ZENDORF. 
 
 10. On vii. 33. ^'Charitati Christians et legi na- 
 turse consentaneum est, ut hominum cadavera terra 
 obruantur, undc Augiistinus [De Cw. D. I. 13); non 
 contemnenda et abjicienda sunt corpora ju.'storum et 
 fidelium, qaibus tanquam organis et vasis siiis <id om- 
 nia bona opera spiritus sanctus fiiit usus." Forstek. 
 
 HOMILBTICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On vii. 1-3. [Henry: — "Note: (1) Even 
 those that profess religion have need to be 
 preached to, as well as those that slyS without. 
 
 (2) It is desirable to have opportunity of preach- 
 ing to many together. Wisdom chooses to cry 
 in the chief place of concourse, and as Jeremiah 
 here, in the opening of the gates, the temple gates. 
 
 (3) When we are going to worship God, we have 
 need to be admonished to worship Him in the Spi- 
 rit, and to have no confidence in the flesh. Phil. iii. 
 3."— S. R. A.] 
 
 2. On vii. 3-7. The doctrine of the Church. 1. 
 The church externally or as an external ordi- 
 nance. 1. What is this external ordinance? 
 (Word, sacrament, office). 2. How far is this 
 external ordinance necessary ? 3. What reasons 
 have we to be on our guard respecting it? (ver. 
 4. It may be overestimated). — II. The church 
 internally. 1. It is essentially a community of 
 saints and true believers. {^'Congregatio sancto- 
 rum et vere credentium.'' Conf. Aug. Art. VIII.) 
 2. Its existence is manifested, a. in the holy walk 
 of its members (vers. 3, 5, 6) ; b. in the blessings 
 of the Divine presence (vers. 3 and 7). 
 
 3. On vii. 8. [Henry: — "The privileges of a 
 form of godliness sive often the pride and confi- 
 dence of those that are strangers and enemies to 
 the poiL-er of it. It is common for those that are 
 furthest from God to boast themselves most of 
 their being near to the church." — S. R. A.] 
 
 4. On vii. 8-15. An earnest warning against 
 merely external ecclesiasticism. I. Its essence 
 is: false confidence in the unconditional saving 
 etiicacy of ft supposed or real sanctuary (vers. 8, 
 10). 11. lis consequences are: 1. Demoraliza- 
 tion (vers. 9, 10). 2. Desecration of the holy 
 (ver. 11). 3. Destruction of the offenders (vers. 
 12-15). 
 
 5. On vii. 16. On Intercession. 1. When it is not 
 in place (compare this verse with 1 John v. 16). 
 2. When it is in place. 3. What it can accomplish. 
 
 [Henry: — "See here (1). That God's prophets 
 &re praying men. (2). That God's praying pro- 
 phets have a great interest in heaven, how little 
 soever they have on earth. (3). It is an ill omen 
 for a people when God restrains the spirits of 
 His ministers and people from praying for them. 
 (4). Those that will not regard good ministers' 
 preaching cannot expect any benefit by their 
 praying. If you will not hear us when we speak 
 from God to you, God will not hear us when we 
 speak to Him for you." — S. R. A.] 
 
 6. On vii. 18. [Henry: — "Let usbe instructed 
 even by this bad example in the service ol our 
 God. (1) Let us honor Him with our substance. 
 (2). Let us not decline the hardest service, nor 
 disdain to stoop to the meanest, for none shall 
 kindle a fire on God's altar for naught. (3). Let 
 us bring up our children in the acts of devotion; 
 let them, as they are capable, be employed in 
 doing something toward the keeping up of reli- 
 gious exercises." — S. R. A.] 
 
 7. Onvii. 22, 23. Of the true service of God. I. 
 Its nature (1) not outward ceremonies, but (2) 
 walk according to the divine commands. II. Its 
 reward. (1 will be your God, that it may be 
 well with you). 
 
CHAP. VIII. 4-12. 101 
 
 8. On vii. 24-29. Of disobedience to God's word. 
 I. Its cause is, (1) not neglect on the part of 
 God to make known His word to men (ver. 25). 
 (2) Not tlie imperfect performance of his duties 
 by the preacher (ver. 27) but (3) the hardness 
 of men's hearts, who (a) walk only after the 
 thoughts of their heart, and therefore (6) do not 
 hear, do not believe, (ver. 28) do not wish to im 
 prove. II. Its consequence is (1) increasing 
 moral corruption (vers. 24, 26) and (2) rejection 
 on the part of God (ver. 29) 
 
 2. When it hardens itself in unbelief against 
 God's word and voice (vers. 26 and 27). 3. 
 When in spite of the divine judgment it departs 
 the more into sin (vers. 26, 28). — The people Is- 
 rael a warning example for the present race in 
 view of the prevailing unbelief of the times. 
 Tueir example is admonitory, 1. with respect to 
 their ingratitude for God's gracious visitations ) 
 2. with respect to their opposition to the true 
 friends of the nation ; 3. with respect to their 
 frivolity in view of inevitable destruction. (Dr. 
 
 9. On vii. 25-28. The sad characteristics of an Gr.) — Let the remembrance of our calling serve 
 unbelieving epoch. 1. Contempt of the preach- , to awaken us. To this end let us consider. 
 ing of the divine word. 2. StiflF-neckedness in re- | 1. What is our calling ? 2. How does the Lord call 
 spect to the visitations of divine chastisement. | us ? 3. How long does He call us? 4. How 
 
 3. Increase of wickedness in spite of all the 
 warnings of the past. (Lie. Clauss). — When is 
 a people ripe for destruction? 1. When it de- 
 spises the visitations of divine grace (ver. 25). 
 
 have we answered Him? 5. What will be the 
 end of our calling ? (Z. — : GeseU u. Zeugnias, 
 Juni. 1860, S. 339). 
 
 II. SECOND CHARGE : their ruinous peesistbnob in BVa. 
 
 VIII. 4-23. 
 
 1. Their stiff-necked impenitence and its punishment. 
 
 VIII. 4-12. 
 
 4 And say to them : Thus saith Jehovah : 
 Do men^ fall and rise not up again? 
 
 Or does one turn away and not return again? 
 
 5 Why then does this people, Jerusalem, 
 Turn away'' with a perpetuaP apostacy ? 
 They hold fast to error,* wish not to return. 
 
 6 I inclined myself and listened : 
 
 They speak that which is worth nothing. 
 There is none who repents of his wickedness 
 And who says : what have I done ? 
 They are alP turned away in their courses. 
 Like a mad® stallion in the battle. 
 
 7 Even the stork in the air knoweth his seasons, 
 
 The turtle-dove, swallow and crane keep the time of their coming, 
 But my people know not the judgment of Jehovah. 
 
 8 How say ye then, We are wise, 
 And the law of Jehovah is with us? 
 
 Behold ! surely the lying style of the writer has brought forth only lies. 
 
 9 The wise men are put to shame, 
 Confounded and taken are they. 
 
 Behold ! they have despised Jehovah's word, 
 What wisdom,^ however, is among them? 
 
 10 Therefore^ will I give their wives to others, 
 Their fields to the conquerors, 
 
 For from the least to the greatest they are all bent on gain ; 
 From the prophet to the priest they all practise deceit, 
 
 11 And healed the hurt of the daughter of my people most slightly, 
 Saying, Peace, peace ! when there is no peace. 
 
102 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 12 They are put to shame, for they have committed abomination ; 
 Yet they blush not, nor understand to be ashamed. 
 Therefore shall they fall with the falling, 
 At the time of their visitation will they be overthrown, 
 Saith Jehovah. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Yer. 4. l'73'n- Tbe indefinite subject in Hebrew may be expressed as here by the 3d pers. «T the plural or of the si*- 
 
 eular. Comp. Naeoelsb. Gr.. § 101, 2. — On the disjunctive question comp. Gr. g 107, 4. [Blatnet, Noyes, Umbreit, etc. ren- 
 der as in the text: Henderson has: Shall they fall ; but incorrectly, for as Hitzig says, the Jews cannot be the subject in 
 
 2 Ver. 5.— riD^liy (not 713311^, xxxi. 21; xlix. 4, nor n!3!3Hy, iii. 14, 22) is to be regarded according to Ewald, ^ 
 
 188 ft, as a verbal form, and in a directly causative sense = to make a turn. Comp. rems. on xxxi. 21.— This people is not 
 in the relation of a genitive to tlie following Jerusalem, as is evinced by the form, but the latter is in simple apposition to 
 the former. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr. J OG. [Henderson : this people of Jerusalem]. 
 
 3 Ver. 5.— n-i' J (adject, denomin. ad formam ^3^. ■^^^. Comp. N. Gr., g 42, o, S. 87) is an dw. key. The meaning is 
 
 derived from piJ perfectio, absolutio = perfeetus, absoltUiis. 
 
 4 Ver. 5. ri'Oljl (comp. xiv. 14, Keri; xxiii. 26; Zeph. iii. 13; Ps. cxix. 118) must here according to the connection 
 
 be rendered in a passive sense = error. 
 
 6 Ver. 6.— ,"1^3 is literally : its entirety. From the singular sufBx we perceive that the nation is regarded as a single 
 
 individual. Comp.' Ewald, § 286, e. 
 
 6 Ver. 6. ciJJIty used originally of streaming water (comp. Isai. xxx. 28; Ixvi. 12; Ezek. xiii. 11, 13); in the trans- 
 ferred sense of the running of a horse here only (comp. effuso cursa, fuga effusior in Livy). [All the English translations 
 render : as a horse rushes into the battle. — S. R. A.] 
 
 7 Ver. 9. nO~r\ODn [lit- '■ t'l^ wisdom of what]? sapientia cujus ? Comp. xliv. 28 ; Gen. xxiv. 33 ; Naegelsb. Gr., 
 
 's Ver. 9.— ["The LXX. omit these three verses with the exception of the first two lines of the 10th. The repetitious 
 character of many parts of the book of Jeremiah leaves no reason to dovibt that the repetition here of chap. vi. 12-15 is ge- 
 nuine Theodotion and the Hexaplar Syriac supply the omission of the LXX." Henderson.— S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The second point in the charge concerns the 
 impenitent obduracy with which the people, true 
 to their often censured character (comp. Exod. 
 xxxii. 9: xxxiii. 3, 5; xxxiv. 9; Deut. ix. 6, 
 13; X. 16; xxxi. 27 coll. Jer. v. 3; Isai. xlviii. 
 4; Ezek. ii. 4; iii. 7) persist in the perverse 
 course they have adopted (vers. 4-7). To be 
 sure they will not admit that they have adopted 
 a false course. They maintain on the contrary 
 (comp. vii. 21sqq.) that they are in the right 
 way, because they are not lacking in instruction 
 or knowledge of the law of God (ver. 8). But 
 the prophet does not allow this to pass. He 
 traces their imagined wisdom to the deception 
 of their false leaders, of whom he predicts that 
 with their pseudo-sophy they must be put to 
 shame (ver. 9), and then he again announces to 
 all in the words of a former discourse the judg- 
 ment of God for their manifold wickedness (vers. 
 10-12). This strophe contains the main thought 
 of this chapter, i. e., of the second part. The 
 two following strophes describe only the parti- 
 cular features of the punishment. 
 
 Vers. 4. .5. And say to them . . ■wish not 
 to return. The simple introduction by and say- 
 shows that what follows is closely connected with 
 the preceding. The meaning of 311^ is here, the 
 first time to turn, to make any kind of n turn 
 (comp. Josh. xix. 12, etc.), the second time to re- 
 turn. — It is evident that the prophet had hoped 
 that Israel would have returned in view of his 
 previous representations. No one who falls re- 
 mains lying on the ground, and no one perse- 
 veres in the course he has taken without turning 
 to one side or another, how then is it that Israel 
 •0 obstinately persists in his perverse ways ? 
 
 The answer is given in ver. 6. By the manner 
 in which the prophet emphasizes the idea of turn- 
 ing we are forcibly reminded of iii. 1-4; iv. — 
 Wish not to return, comp. v. 8 ; Hos. xi. 5. 
 
 Ver. 6. I inclined myself . . . stallion in 
 the battle. It is best to regard this as an an- 
 swer to the question why ? in ver. 5. In order 
 to be able to give the Lord a correct answer, the 
 prophet listens. For thus he may be able to 
 learn the true secret thoughts of their hearts. 
 The information he thus obtains is not comfort- 
 ing; from their speeches he learns only the ra- 
 dically corrupt condition of their hearts, closed 
 against all knowledge of the right. Hence their 
 obduracy. — They do not speak that which is 
 right, i. e., they not only are silent with respect 
 to the right, but they speak that which is not 
 right, which is false. Comp. Gen. xlii. 11, 19, 
 81, 33, 84, and Exod. x. 2'.); 2 Ki. vii. 9; 
 Prov. XV. 7; Isai. xvi. 6; Jer. xxiii. 10; xlviii. 
 80. — Their conduct corresponds to their words; 
 there is none who repents.. — 31^ stands in oppo- 
 sition to the 2^^ desired in vers. 4 and 5, with 
 a certain irony; they are not wanting in 'ZW 
 turn, but they practise it only in the sense sf aver- 
 tere. This they certainly pursue witli the great- 
 est ardor. They turn away in their entirety. — 
 in their courses. The plural form is explained 
 by the collective idea of the noun, to which all 
 refers. This plural gives a satisfactory sense, 
 and it is therefore unnecessary to alter it as the 
 Keri does according to xxiii. 10. As to the mean- 
 ing : the word in 2 Sam. xviii. 27 has the mean- 
 ing of violent running, hunting, chasing. This 
 meaning is suitable to Jer. xxii. 17; xxiii. 10, 
 and is also demanded by the connection here. 
 They turn them in this sense, that witli violent 
 haste they pursue their chosen path. 
 
 "Ver. 7. Even the stork . . the judgment 
 
CHAP. VIII. 4-12. 
 
 loa 
 
 of Jehovah. What nTOn is, is very uncer- 
 tain, since the distinctive marks mentioned in 
 Old Testament passages (Levit. xi. 19 ; Deut. 
 xiv. 18; Ps. civ. 17; Job xxxix. 13; Zech. v. 
 9) suit several birds, on which account (apart 
 from the fact that the LXX. translate sometimes 
 itrotp, sometimes tpwSiSc or TreXeKdv, the Targu- 
 mists and Talmudists XnilH Kn^T milvus albus, 
 vide BuxTORF, Lex. Chald., p. 528) modern com- 
 mentators are divided between "heron" (So Bo- 
 chart, Gesen., Rosenm., Fuerst in his concord- 
 ance, EwALD, Meier, and others) and "stork" 
 (Winer, Fuerst Lex., Graf and others). Since 
 the derivation from Tpn plus is the most natu- 
 ral and the designation of the stork as avis pia is 
 very general (comp. avTnreAapyelv, although in 
 single cases the filial piety of the heron is also 
 celebrated, jElian, Anim. III. 23), I give my 
 preference in this instance to the meaning stork. 
 — "lin is the turtle-dove. That it is migratory in 
 the East (comp. the American migratory pigeon) 
 may be inferred also from Song of Sol. ii. 11, 
 12. Comp. Winer, R. W. B. s. v.— ■nj;ri D1D1. 
 The meaning of these words is uncertain. Both 
 words occur besides only in Isai. xxxviii. 14. — 
 There it reads ^VD^N |3 lUj; D103. There 
 the asyndeton is in favor of rendering 1U^ as 
 the predicate or in apposition to D^D, but in the 
 present passage the \ is opposed to it. Neither 
 the dialects nor the early translators and com- 
 mentators afford us any secure data. In order 
 to deal fairly with both passages, we must take 
 one of the two words in a sense which would 
 allow it to be rendered both as in opposition and 
 as an independent word, as, for example, we 
 ma,j sa,y felis leo or felis et leo. Perhaps DO (for 
 which the Keri and Palestinian could read D'p) 
 is an onomatopoeticum or imitation of the natu- 
 ral sound (Venetian Zysilia = swallow. Vide 
 Rosenm.) and in this sense the name of the ge- 
 nus and species at the same time (comp. felis- 
 felis). At any rate the prophet wishes to say 
 that the irrational animals punctually obey the 
 natural law which prescribes their return into a 
 certain country, while Israel seems not even to 
 know the rule instituted by Jehovah for their 
 moral action. — But my people. Comp. Isai. i. 
 3 ; Jer. v. 4, 5. 
 
 Ver. 8. How say ye then . . . only lies. 
 To the charge at the close of ver. 7 the prophet 
 supposes the people to reply: We are wise, 
 etc.; just as what is said in vii. 21 sqq., presup- 
 poses an appeal of the people to their observance 
 of the ceremonial law, so here also the assertion 
 is put into their mouth that they were well in- 
 structed in the law. It may be inquired whether 
 D'ODn is here used in a general sense, or whe- 
 ther it contains an allusion to those who from 
 the age of Solomon constituted a particular class 
 of the supporters and promoters of culture by 
 the side of the priests and prophets. (Comp. 
 Bruch, Weisheits-Lehre der Hebr'der, Strassb., 
 1851, S. 48). Jeremiah himself (xviii. 18) names 
 wise men together with priests and prophets. 
 But Ezekiel in the parallel passage vii. 26, uses 
 elders for wise men, and generally it might be dif- 
 ficult to prove that in Jeremiah and elsewhere, 
 (especially in Prov. i. 6 ; xiii. 20 ; xv. 12 ; xxii. 
 
 17 ; xxiii. 24), they appear as a special class and 
 not rather as specially gifted men of every class 
 and calling, as Solomon also was a DOn, and 
 with him men of the priestly and levitical orders 
 (1 Ki. V. 9-11). Observe also that it is said not: 
 wise men are among us, but, wise men are we. — 
 
 That min must designate the Torah in the sense 
 
 of the Pentateuch cannot be maintained, for the 
 word occurs frequently in a more general signi- 
 fication, ex.gr., Isai. ii. 3; viii. 16. Certainly 
 the word would have to be rendered in the nar- 
 rower sense if hemistich 2 were to be translated: 
 truly (|3X comp. iii. 23 ; iv. 10) the lying style 
 
 of the scribes has made it a lie. But on the other 
 hand 1, to supply the suffix is not a matter of 
 course, as it must be if the want of the suffix 
 (which is certainly frequent, comp. Naegelsb. 
 Gr., ^ 78, 2, Anm.) is to appear justified. 2, 
 
 Dnsb, scribes in the sense of those who spin a 
 web of human inventions around the word of 
 God is of later date. Ezra, as is well known, was 
 
 the first 13D (comp. Ezra vii. 6, 11) but not in 
 
 a bad sense, for the evil practices of the scribes 
 were only a corruption of the praiseworthy la- 
 bors commenced by him (comp. Herzog, R.-Enc. 
 
 XIII. S. 733, etc.) Since the verb HK?;; is de- 
 cidedly used in an absolute sense = to make, to 
 ivork, (Exod. v. 9 ; xxxi. 4 ; 1 Ki. v. 30 ; xx. 40 ; 
 Ruthii. 19; Prov. xiii. 16; xxxi. 13) this pas- 
 sage can mean only : behold! he has worked for a 
 lie, i. e., has done lying work, the pen of the 
 scribe has produced lies. Scribes indeed occur 
 almost up to the time of Jeremiah only as State- 
 officials (Judges v. 14 ; 2 Sam. viii. 17 ; xx. 25 ; 
 2 Ki. xii. 11; xix. 2, etc.), but Baruch also is 
 called a scribe (Jer. xxxvi. 26, 32), and since the 
 canonical writings set before us the picture of a 
 literary activity in a good sense, why may they 
 not also have given us one in a bad sense ? False 
 prophets labored with their word in opposition 
 to the word of the true prophets, why might they 
 not do the same with their writings ? Jeremiah 
 here presupposes a literary activity which desig- 
 nated its productions as the directions of Jeho- 
 vah, but not in truth. For what was thus writ- 
 ten in the name of Jehovah, and doubtless with 
 an appeal to the law, was human invention and 
 lies. Comp. Isai. x. 1. 
 
 Ver. 9. The wise men are put to shame 
 . . whatwisdomhowever is among them? 
 The prophet for every •' abuse of the name of 
 God" declares the divine punishment. They 
 are put to shame with their tcachirig and prophecy. 
 The false scribes had evidently flattered the peo- 
 ple and promised them good days to come. 
 (Comp. infra ver. 11, and vi. 14; xxiii. 9 ; Ezek. 
 xiii.). The contrary, says Jeremiah, will be the 
 case, to their shame and their hurt. — Put to 
 shame, comp. on ii. 26. — The wise here are 
 not identical with those to whom the predicate 
 wise is applied in ver. 8. For while the latter 
 refers to all Israel, the former refers only to the 
 scribes. These are called wise men, not because 
 they formed a special class, but because they 
 boasted of special insight into religious things. — • 
 Confounded, etc. Comp. xlviii. 1 ; 1. 2. Be- 
 cause they have despised the word of the Lord 
 
lOi THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 and substituted their own wisdom, it will come 
 to the light that they know nothing. 
 
 Vers. 10-12. Therefore will I give their 
 wives . . . saith Jehovah. These verses refer 
 not to the false prophets aloue but to all those pre- 
 viously mentioned in common. They announce 
 both to the whole people, who were addressed in 
 vers. 4-7, and to their perverse leaders, to whom 
 vers. 8 and 9 refer, their common, public, and out 
 
 9). But nevertheless we see that this passage is 
 a quotation and is not here in its original posi- 
 tion. For ver. 10 is a contracted form of vi. 12, 
 13. Here also the sequence of thought is not 
 
 quite correct, the causal ""3 following the illative 
 particle JJ /. But that a copyist did not trans- 
 pose the passages, but the prophet himself re- 
 peated with freedom his former utterance, is seen 
 
 Wiirdly palpable punishment, and in so far form , from the little alterations which betray a repro- 
 tbe necessary conclusion of tlie strophe. This i duction from memory as well as the hand of an 
 announcement is made in the form of a quota- author making free use of his own property, in 
 tion, these three verses being a repetition of vi. vers. 10, 11, 12 (comp. x. 15; xi. 23; xxiii. 12, e^c). 
 
 12-15. As it is the leaders of the people, the 
 priests and prophets who are there spoken of 
 (vi. 13-15), the verses suit this place very well, 
 
 On the repetitions in Jeremiah see the table in 
 Naeoelsb.: Jer. u. Bab. S. 128. — Comp. besides 
 the excellent refutation of Hitziq's view as to 
 
 particularly as ver. 11, and healed, etc., so well ■ the interpolation of this passage in Geaf, S. 135. 
 proves the shaming of the false prophets (ver. | 
 
 2. Further portrayal of the visitation announced ill yet, 
 VIII. 13-17. 
 
 13 I will sweep^ them utterly away, saith Jehovah. 
 There were no grapes on the vine, 
 
 No figs on the fig-tree, 
 
 The land was withered. — 
 
 So I gave to them'* those who shall overrun them. 
 
 14 " What is then the ground on which we remain ? 
 Assemble, let us go into the fortified cities and perish' there ? 
 For Jehovah, our God, has allowed us to perish 
 
 And given us water of poison to drink ; 
 For we have sinned against Jehovah. 
 
 15 We hoped* for blessing but no good came — 
 For a time of healing,^ and behold terror !" 
 
 16 From Dan is heard the snorting of his horses, 
 
 At the sound of the neighing of his stallions the whole earth trembles. 
 And they came and devoured the land and what was in it. 
 The city and those that dwelt therein. 
 
 17 For behold, I send among you serpents, 
 Basilisks, against which no charm avails,— 
 These shall bite you, saith Jehovah. 
 
 TEXTUAL AKD GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 13. — flDN from tlOK, DS'DX from ri.iQ desinere, Hiph. ^nem imponere, consumere. As iu tl-iQ at the same 
 
 time the idea of storm is contained (comp. HlJ^D, procella) this compound evidently signifies to sweep away in a stnrm. The 
 toDnection of two verbs, having roots of ilifferent or similar sound, in this construction frequently occurs. Comp. xlviii. 9 ; 
 Isai. xxviii. 28, and especially Zc-pli. i. 2, 3; where we find the same connection as in this passage (Naeoelsb. Gr., g 93, d. 
 Anm.) The Hiph. fl'On occurs only iu these three passages. 
 
 2 Ver. 13. — The ancient rendering, occurring in the Chaldee and Syriao: and I recompmsed to them that which they trans- 
 gressed, is harsh and opposed especially hy the difficulty of thus satisfactorily explaining the suflSx. — The explanation pre- 
 ferred by most modern conimentator.s: and 1 give them up to those who come over them — has against it, (1) that JPXI 
 
 must be made into TpXI which besideB is not a normal construction, comp. the remarks on 1K'2fV1 ver. 1; (2) that 
 DnS must be translated not " to them " but " to those," (3) that the suffix must be supplied to IptH, which, as was re- 
 marked on T\\if}/, <;iin only take place where this supplementation is a matter of course, 
 
 T T 
 
 3 Ver. 14.— nonjl. This form follows the Aramaic formation with reduplication of the flrat radical. Oomp. ^Di^] 
 Deut. xxxiv. 8 ; IDT Ps. xxxi. 78 ; Job xxix. 21. Comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., § 31, Anm. Olsh. g 243, d. 
 
 * Ver. 15.— n?p W- abs. Comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., § 92, 2, 6. 
 6 Ver. 15. — 713*^0 instead of N31D- Comp. ver. 11. 
 
CHAP. VIII. 13-17. 
 
 105 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This strophe is entirely occupied with the fur- 
 ther portrayal of the visitation which is an- 
 nounced in ver. 12. The object of the discourse, 
 the visitation, appears under various images, ac- 
 cording to the use of literal or figurative lan- 
 guage. The speakers are also changed several 
 times. First the Lord announces that He will 
 sweep them away in the storm as unfruitful wi- 
 thered plants. Then they must themselves an- 
 nounce that they wish to flee into the fortified 
 cities but without the hope of escape. For they 
 themselves feel and express that they bear their 
 death within them, as it were, the Lord Himself 
 having given ihem poison-water as a punishment 
 for their sins, and instead of healing they find 
 (in the cities) only terror. (Vers. 14, 15). For 
 they already perceive the approach of the enemy 
 from the North (ver. 16 a), which the prophet con- 
 firms, describing in blunt words the sad end as 
 already begun (ver. 16 b). At last the Lord Him- 
 self again speaks, and returning to the figurative 
 mode of speech compares the threateiiiag ene- 
 mies witli serpents of the poisonous kind, for 
 whose bite there is no remedy (ver. 17). 
 
 Ver. 13. I will sweep them . . . overrun 
 them. In what follows the motive of this pun- 
 ishment is presented. Israel is an unfruitful vine 
 and fig-tree, a withered branch. The same figure 
 in Ps. i. 3; Jer. xvii. 7; Isai. i. 30; v. 2; Mic. vii. 
 1 ; Luke xiii. 8. — I regard the words I will 
 sweep them utterly away as a general state- 
 ment of what follows. In this the Lord Himself 
 accounts for the genesis of this declaration. He 
 relates that he instituted an investigation, the re- 
 sult of which was that Israel was like an unfruit- 
 ful, withered tree. In consequence of this He de- 
 termined that they should be swept away by a 
 storm : then I gave to them those who shall overrun 
 them. (Comp. Isai. viii. 8; Dan. xi. 10, and Jer. 
 V. 22; xxiii. 9). In overrun is evidently an al- 
 lusion to whirlwind, to which sweep points, 
 and the verse forms a sort of circle, the end return- 
 ing to the beginning. The plural overrw?* intimates 
 that in reality a number of persons would repre- 
 sent this storm. Comp. ver. 16. — The certainly 
 peculiar expression tJ^.S^I for then I appointed for 
 them, hung over them, is explained by supposing 
 that the prophet intended a play upon the words 
 
 njxn, D":xn. 
 
 Vers. 14, 15. What is then the ground on 
 ■which w^e remain? . . . and behold terror. 
 
 The people themselves relate how that which was 
 determined in the secret counsels of Providence 
 was actually carried out. The prophet portrays 
 how the people, seized by the foreboding of 
 threatening destruction, felt themselves insecure 
 in their abodes, and concluded to flee to the for- 
 tified cities.- nD~7j.* csLMsal z=z to hy? Comp. ix. 
 
 11; Job xiii. 14. Yet I would take 7^ at the 
 
 same time as local: on what? on what insecure 
 ground are we sitting? I endeavored tocxpi'css 
 this double sense in the translation. — Assem- 
 ble, ftc, taken verbatim from iv. 5. The people 
 thus do something to which the Lord had previ- 
 ously summoned them by His prophet, but to 
 
 follow this advice now will not avail, since they 
 so long openly transgressed the holy will of God, 
 as revealed in His law. In all their measures 
 for flight they have this consciousness: there is 
 no help, we are already lost. — And perish 
 there. Not to be saved, but only to perish 
 somewhat later, to obtain a little respite, do they 
 flee to the cities. — For Jehovah, etc. They 
 know that their destruction is already deter- 
 mined upon, and that they bear death, as it were, 
 in tueir bodies into the cities. This is the sense 
 of given us water of poison, etc. Comp. ix. 
 14; xxiii. 15, and xxv. 15, 17; Lam. iii. 15; Ps. 
 Ix. 5. On tyxi comp. Winer, R. W. B., s. v. 
 Gift. — Vain therefore is also the hope, which they 
 still maintain, because every man hopes while 
 he lives. This passage is repealed in xiv. 19. 
 
 Ver. 16. From Dan . . that dwelt therein. 
 Hemistich a states the cause of the terror, again re- 
 ferring to a former declaration (iv. 16; vi. 22, 
 23). It appears that these words belong still to 
 the speech of the Israelites, at least these may 
 thus speak, since the words contain only the de- 
 scription of what was then perceived. But he- 
 mistich b describes the future as though it had 
 already taken place. This could be done only 
 
 by the prophet ; lSjX'1 1N3_'1 are therefore pro- 
 phetic aorists. Comp. N.vegelsb. Gr. J 88, 5. 
 [Green's Gr. § 262, 4.— S. R. A.] — The pro- 
 phet interposes with and they came, etc., to say 
 that the terror was not au empty one, but that the 
 enemy thus announced had really come. The 
 singular suffixes refer to the enemy represented 
 as a single person. Comp. iv. 13. — T'SX of 
 horses, xlvii. 3; 1. 11. 
 
 Ver. 17. For behold, I send . . . saith Je- 
 hovah. The discourse is now again figurative 
 and Jehovah speaks Himself, as in the beginning 
 of the strophe, ver. 13. We might compare a 
 strophe like this with the variations of a musical 
 theme. The more frequently the theme changes 
 its form, the more impression does it make, the 
 more ways of entrance are opened to it. That 
 this verse has the character of a conclusion ia 
 seen, (a) from the return to the beginning, (6)from 
 the climax, which is expressed in the figure of 
 serpents inaccessible to all charms. This con- 
 tains the idea of the most intensive destruction, 
 excluding all possibility of healing. Since this 
 is the main thought of the verse ''3 is best re- 
 ferred to ver. 16, b. : — Thus is it, for, etc. The 
 Lord Himself confirms the words of the prophet. 
 This verse has moreover a striking resemblance 
 to Gen. xlix. 17, and it would not be impossible 
 that the prophet, reminded by the mention of 
 D;in of the prophecy concerning him, makes use 
 of the images there employed for his description 
 
 of the enemy coming from Dan. — '^i'^^ (Isai. xi. 
 
 8; lix. 5; Prov. xxiii. 32) and ^3X (Isai. xiv. 
 
 20) so called probably a silnlardo (so Gesen. 
 Thes., Fuerst, Drechsler) are regarded by 
 most modern commentators, following in this 
 Aquila and the Vulgate (the LXX. vary) as the 
 basilisk, a small, exceedingly poisonous kind of 
 viper. On no charm, etc., comp. Ps. Iviii. 6, 
 6, [4, 5]. 
 
106 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH, 
 
 8, Continuation: The visitation ends with the carrying away captive of Israel, to the inexpressible grief oj 
 
 the people and of the prophet. 
 
 VIII. 18-23. 
 
 18 O my comfort' in the sorrow ! 
 My heart within me is faint. 
 
 19 Hark ! a cry of my people from distant' lands : 
 
 " Is Jehovah not in Zion, or her king not in her ?" ^ 
 
 " Why have they provoked me to anger with their images, 
 
 With their foreign vanities ?" 
 
 20 " The harvest is past, the fruit-gathering is over, 
 And we are not saved !" 
 
 21 For the wound of the daughter of my people am I wounded,* 
 I go mourning ; horror hath seized me. 
 
 22 Is there no balsam in Gilead ? 
 Is there no physician there ? 
 
 Why then proceeds not the healing of the daughter of my people? 
 
 23 O that mine head were waters,* 
 And mine eye a fountain of tears, 
 That I might weep day and night 
 
 For the slain of the daughter of my people ! 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Yer_ ig. JTJ''^30 is aT"? Aey.— The radix J73 illuminate, beam upon, (in Arabic of the rising sun) occurs only in 
 
 Hiphil: Am. v. 9; Ps. xxxix. 13; Jobix. 27; x. 20. It is formed like jT'3T0 (multitude, fulness, increase, Levit. xxiii. 
 37), n'J^'^O {pastio, flock, Jer. xxiii. 1), r\^2W0 (copy. Numb, xxxiii. 52). Comp. Olsh. § 218, a. The meaning is there- 
 fore : beaming, enlightening, exhilaration. [Hexdersos renders : my exhilaration within me is sorrow. Notes, with a 
 better sense: where is consolation for my sorrow?— S. R. A.] The construction with ^p_ (comp. Am. v. 9) appears to be 
 founded on the radical meaning , beam on sorrow ! The suffix of the first person refers to the whole, which is to be re- 
 garded as a single conception, in like manner as in 7131 '^31^. IJ/ 'pHD, comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., § 63, 4, g. According to 
 
 the Keri and even according to the Ghethibh of several codices of Kennicott and De Rossi we should read TCJ ' 73D in 
 two words, which readina; the LXX. seem to follow (xai Sii^ovTai v^ti? afiara fier' oSui/rj;) yet without its being possible to 
 give to this ■'iT'J a satisfactory meaning. For many other ex.p] miti.jiis, comp. xiosENMOELLER. 
 
 2 Ver. 19.— The form D'pmD is found besides only in Isai. xxxiii. 17. 
 
 3 Ver. 21.— ^3I!;n Hopli. here only. The Niph in this sense is frequent, ex. gr., Jer. xxiii. 9, 
 * [Ver. 23.— In the A. V. this verse is ix. 1, but not in the Hebrew.— S. R. A.] 
 
 of the prophet: the cause of his sorrow is the 
 misery of his people (ver. 21) being hopeless (ver. 
 22), wherefore nothing remains for the prophet 
 but to bewail this misery witli endless weeping 
 (ver. 23). Observe also in this strophe the dra- 
 matic character of the change in persons. 
 
 Ver. 18. O my comfort . . . is faint. Comp. 
 the Text. ANuUuAM.rems. — In the words within 
 me is contained the idea of the Aeat-'_y heart, which 
 is felt as an oppression or burden. Comp. Ps. xlii. 
 6, 7, 12; xliii. 5; cxlii. 4; coll. xxxix. 4; Lam. 
 i. 20. 
 
 Ver. 19. Hark! a cry . . foreign vanities. 
 The prophet beliolds Israel in txih;. Their eyes 
 are still turned towards Zion as the chosen abode 
 of the God of Israel (comp. Ps. xiv. 7; xx. 3; 
 cxxviii. 5; cxxxiv. 3; Isai. xxxvii. 32, etc.) but 
 it appears that He has forsaken it. Comp. Mic. 
 iv. '.). — Tills painful (juestion is answered by the 
 Lord Hiu)self, who continues and accounts for this 
 impression. The expression provoked to angvr 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This strophe, in which the nameless grief of 
 the prophet at the destruction of his people is 
 expressed in simple but highly poetical words, 
 serves for the elucidation and completion of the 
 previous one. In that the manner of the de- 
 struction, which the Northern enemy was to in- 
 flict, was not distinctly designated; at the most 
 ver. 13 contained a dim intimation of a threat- 
 ening captivity. That this will be the punish- 
 ment of the people, is now distinctly expressed 
 in this strophe. In deep sorrow (ver. 18), tiie 
 prophet tells us that he has heard from distant 
 lands the mournful question of his people, whe- 
 ther .Jehovah is no longer in Zion (ver. 19, a). 
 To this the answer of the Lord is: This is the 
 punishment of idolatry (ver. 10, h). — New la- 
 mentation of the people : respite after respite and 
 no salvation! (Ver. 20). — Finally the wailing 
 
CHAP. VIII. 18-23. 
 
 107 
 
 with their images reminds us of Deut. xxxii. 21 ; 1 
 Ki. xvi. 13, 26. Comp. Jer. xiv. 22; Ps. xxxi. 7. 
 
 Ver. 20. The harvest is passed . . . not 
 saved. Period after period elapses witiiout 
 help coming (comp. Isai. lis. 9). Without ob- 
 serving ver. 19, a, or the time when this dis- 
 course was composed, most of the ancient com- 
 mentators refer these words to the vain expecta- 
 tion of Egyptian help, which presupposes 2 Ki. 
 xxiv. 1 ; or to that which is expressly announced 
 in Jer. xxxvii. 5. On the other hand Schnurber 
 correctly remarks that the expression has some- 
 what of a proverbial character. Eveh those who 
 are in exile still hope, as is also intimated in ver. 
 19 b, but still in vain. 
 
 Vers. 21, 22. For the wound . . the daugh- 
 ter of my people. — I go mourning. Comp. iv. 
 28 ; xiv. 2. The prophet is inwardly broken, and 
 to this corresponds his outward appearance. 
 — The prophet tells us in ver. 22 why the wound 
 of his people causes him so much pain: it is not 
 only a very dangerous one, as is clear from all 
 that precedes, but also, which is the worst, no 
 one heals it. It is as though Gilead no longer 
 possessed any balsam, or any man skilful in the 
 application of it, though the balsam was espe- 
 cially, according to Pliny [Hist. Nat., XII. 54) 
 exclusively, to be found in Palestine. The ques- 
 tion : " Is there no balsam," e^c, has then the 
 meaning; Is Israel wanting in that which was 
 given to him in preference to all other nations? 
 It is plain that the prophet here alludes to the 
 relation of Israel to Jehovah, as the peculiar 
 " glory of the land." (Gen. xliii. 11, song = 
 
 best fruits, of the land). Whether '"^V is pre- 
 cisely the resin of the balsam-plant, which else- 
 where is called Dii'3, Dt^S. or UW2, is uncertain. 
 
 T T 
 
 Comp. Winer, R. W.B. s. v. Balsam. It is men- 
 tioned as a remedy also in Jer. xlvi. 11 ; li. 8, as 
 an article of commerce. Gen. xliii. 11 ; Ezek. 
 xxvii. 17. — Is there no physician there? 
 Graf would not refer there to Gilead, bec;iuse 
 it is not known that physicians were fetched 
 from thence. But we may well suppose that la 
 the land of the balsam the use of it was best 
 understood. The prophet therefore wishes only 
 to say : Is there then in Israel, where the true 
 medicina salutis is found, no one who understands 
 how to make the application of it ? He silently 
 answers this question in the negative, and gives 
 the reason for it in what follows. — The heal- 
 ing. The same expression in xxx. 17 ; xxxiii. 
 6; 2 Chron. xxiv. 13; Neh. iv. 1. Comp. Isa. 
 Iviii. 8. The expression "bandage" does not 
 suit in all these passages, but "healing " does 
 everywhere. Comp. Rosenm. ad loc. 
 
 Ver. 23. O that mine head . . . daughter 
 of my people. The poetiy of suffering is 
 presented most touchingly in these brief but 
 thrilling words. It is' the wish of the propliet 
 that the whole interior of his head migiit dis- 
 solve into water, so that his eyes might be inex- 
 haustible fountains of tears. For all he can do 
 is to weep, and this is his only comfort. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On ver. 4. "In this consists our human 
 blindness in spiritual matters, that he who has 
 
 fallen cannot imagine he has fallen, he who errg 
 will not be convinced that he errs. For the na- 
 tural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit 
 of God : for they are foolishness unto him, 1 
 Cor ii. 14." Cramer. — '■'Labi humanum est, re- 
 surgere Christianum, nolle resurgere diabolicum." 
 
 FoRSTER. 
 
 2. On ver. 6. " The people will still go astray 
 more and more, they hold so fast to their false 
 worship that they will not be turned away, and 
 this because they have no proper place : because 
 they have the service of God in reserve only au 
 pis aller, it does not so much concern them 
 whether they lie or steal, whether they go right 
 or wrong, they do not wish to go anywhere." 
 
 ZiNZENUORF. 
 
 3. On ver. 7. " God opens to us the book of 
 nature not only that we may behold as in a mir- 
 ror the divine wisdom and omnipotence, but that 
 we may also take thence good examples of dis- 
 cipline and improvement. Isa. i. 3; Prov. vi. 6. 
 For if we behold such examples in nature we 
 ought surely to be ashamed that irrational crea- 
 tures are so willing and obedient, and do that 
 for which they are created, but we men (who 
 were made in His image and sealed with the 
 Holy Ghost on the day of redemption) are so 
 opposed, rebellious and disobedient to Him. 
 This will certainly, in the case of no amend- 
 ment, lead to a devilish bad ending." Crajier. 
 
 4. On ver. 5. '■' Manifeste docet nos, malUiam 
 noil esse opus naturse, sed voluntatis (^n-poaipeaeuir)." 
 Theouoret. 
 
 5. On ver. 7. "Chrysostom, homil de Turture 
 seu de virtute : turturem dicit omnem castam ecclcsi- 
 aiu, hirundinem vero Joannem hominuia amutorem, 
 cicadam autem eloquentissimum Paulum, ecclesix 
 organum." Ghislerus. 
 
 6. On ver. 8. " Jeremiah finds some of those 
 also among us, who (according to this descrip- 
 tion of the theologians of his country) either 
 deduce propositions from the Scriptures which a 
 child may see are not so, or make up sentences 
 and bring them to the people, and when they 
 are asked: Where is that in the Bible? reply 
 unabashed : there is much in the Bible that is 
 no longer applicable! or, All that is true is not 
 in the Bible." Zi.nzendokf. 
 
 7. On ver. 9. Ghislerus here remarks that 
 the concionatores bene praedicanles sed male operan- 
 tes are put to shame and judged by the progress 
 in wisdom and virtue of their hearers. He ad- 
 duces a passage from the 18th Sermon of Ber- 
 nard on the Song of Solomon, where it is said 
 that the preacher should be concha not canalis. 
 '■'■Hie pxne siinul et recipit et refundlt ; ilia vera 
 donee implcatur exspectat, et sic quod superabundat 
 sine sua damno communicat." 
 
 8. On ver. 13. Compare here Luke xiii. 6 sqq. 
 and the New Year's hymn of Rambach, "One 
 yenr after another comes," especially ver. 3. 
 " Hew down, said He, the barren tree," etc. 
 
 9. On ver. 14. " Despair is the last point to 
 which God in His just judgments allows the 
 godless to fall (Matt, xxvii. 4, 5). Despairing 
 men know indeed God's just judgment concern- 
 ing them, but not so that they are penitent for 
 their sins (Gen. iv. 13, 14)." Starke. 
 
 10. On ver. 16. In accordance with the view 
 widely extended among the church fathers and 
 
108 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 supported by Gen. xUx. 17 (see Delitzsch ad. h. 
 I.), that the Antichrist should proceed from Dan 
 (comp. also Levit. xxiv. 11 and the supposed 
 origin of Judas Iscariot from the tribe of l)an). 
 Iren^us {Adv. Hier. V. 30) remarks on this pas- 
 sage : " Jeremias non solum subitaneum Antichristi 
 adventum sed et tribum, ex quo veniet, manifestavit 
 dicens ; ex Ban audiemus vocem velocitatis equorum 
 ejus, etc. Et propter hoc non adnumeratur tribus 
 hxt in Apocalypsi (vii. 5-8) cum his quse salvan- 
 tur." 
 
 11. On ver. 16. "As the snorting of the 
 horses sounded long before in the ears of the 
 prophet, so shall the voice of Christ forever 
 sound in our ears : ' Arise ye dead and come to 
 judgment.'" Cramer. 
 
 12. On ver. 17. " Frustra ad Deum preces fun- 
 dunt adversus serpentem antiquum qui Dei prsecepta 
 contemserint." Ghislerus. 
 
 13. On ver. 21. "Our connection with those 
 who hear us continually is so full, so intimate, 
 so tender, no one can understand it who has not 
 experienced it. We get love, we get somewhat 
 from the heart, which was broken for its ene- 
 mies, and which could cry even on the cross : 
 Father, forgive them, they know not what they 
 
 do." ZiNZENDORF. 
 
 14. On ver. 22. «' A pastor of a separatistic 
 spirit cannot make many things whole, and it 
 will be better for him to testify in earnest for the 
 building up of those whom he would rather see 
 pulled down. — He who will help his religion must 
 regard it not as a Babylon, but as a broken Zion, 
 and this from his heart ; then he asks for salve 
 and help, then he mourns for the hurt of Joseph." 
 
 ZiNZENDORF. 
 
 15. On ver. 22. "iVore solum in prsesenti loco, 
 aed et in multis aliis testimoniis scripturarum inveni- 
 mus resinam Galaadpro poenitentia poniatque medi- 
 camine, mirarique nunc Deum, quare vulnera Jeru- 
 salem, nequaquam curata sint, et necdum cicatrices 
 obduxerint cutem, eo quod non sint prophetse nee 
 sacerdotes, quorum debeant curari medicamine.^' 
 Jerome. 
 
 16. On ver. 23. The tears of Jeremiah are a 
 ^irelude and type of the tears which the Lord 
 wept over Jerusalem. Luke xix. 41. As the 
 blood of Abel cried to heaven so do these tears, 
 and it is here tirst truly manifest how ruinous it 
 is for men when the servants of God exercise 
 their office among them not with joy but with 
 sighs (Heb. xiii. 17). 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On vers. 4-9. An earnest admonition to all 
 who know that they are walking in perverse 
 ways. They are admonished 1. to uprightness. 
 They are (a) not to palliate their sins, (6) least 
 of all to palliate them by a false interpretation 
 of the divine word, either a. themselves or ft. 
 allow others to do it (vers. 8, 9). — 2. To speedy 
 return, for (a) he who returns betimes may be 
 helped (ver. 4 the falling, the erring, ver. 7 the 
 migratory birds) ; (6) but he who wilfully per- 
 sists goes to ruin (ver. 6, the mad stallion). 
 [Henry : Those who persist in sin oppose 1. the 
 dictates of reason (vers 4 and 5), 2. the dictates 
 
 of conscience (ver. 6), 3. the dictates of Provi- 
 dence (the judgment of the Lord, ver. 7), 4. the 
 dictates of the written word (vers. 8 and 9). — 
 S. R. A.J 
 
 2. On vers. 4-7. God's complaint of the im- 
 penitence of His people. 1. How far this ap- 
 plies to us; 2. what should awaken us to repent- 
 ance ; 3. what true repentance is. Brandt. 
 Epistelpredigten. 
 
 3. On vers. 10-13. Signs of the decline and 
 fall of a nation. 1. Avarice reigns. 2. Priests 
 and prophets teaching false worship, hush up and 
 deceive the people with false comfort. Deacon 
 Hauber, in Palmer's Casual-Reden. 2te Folge. 
 I. Stutfgardt, 1860. 
 
 4 On vers. 18-23. In times of great distress 
 in the church this text gives us occasion to con- 
 sider I. Zion's complaint. This is 1. (in its sub- 
 ject) (a) general (ver. 19, a), (b) special, of the 
 true servants of the church (vers. 21, 23); 2. 
 (in its object) directed (a) to being (for the mo- 
 ment) forsaken (ver. 19 b), {b) to the delay of 
 help (ver. 20). II. Zion's guilt (ver. 19 b). 
 III. Zion's salvation. This is conditioned (a) by 
 the presence of the true means of salvation 
 (word and sacraments), (6) by the true applica- 
 tion of the same. 
 
 5. On vers. 20-22. The question of the divine 
 word in our harvest-complaint and the answer 
 of the divine word to our harvest-question. 1. 
 Our harvest-complaint runs thus : the harvest is 
 past, the summer is ended and no help is come 
 to us. Then God's word asks thee: (a) What is 
 at fault ? Is it not thy sin ? (b) Is it really true 
 that there was no help for thee ? 2. Our harvest 
 question runs: Is there then no salve in Gilead? 
 Or is there no physician there? Why then is 
 not the daughter of my people healed? To this 
 the word of God answers : (a) yes, salve and 
 physician are there. The salve is the word of 
 the fathers and the physician is thy Lord. (6) 
 It is because the salve and the physician are not 
 employed that our people are not healed. Flo- 
 ret, 1862. 
 
 6. [On ver. 20. 1. Every person who still re- 
 mains in sin may at the close of the year use- 
 fully adopt this lamentation. 2. A season of 
 religious revival is also eminently a time of har- 
 vest, and such as lose this season may usefully 
 adopt this lamentation. 3. Another situation to 
 which this melancholy reflection is peculiarly 
 liable is that of a dying sinner. Dwight — " There 
 is in this text I. The acknowledgment of oppor- 
 tunity. II. The confession of neglect. III. 
 The anticipation of doom." J. W. W.— S. R. A.] 
 
 7. [On ver. 22. I. Sin prevails as a disease. 
 It is (a) hereditary, (6) pervading, (c) vital and in- 
 veterate, {d) deceitful, (e) often painful, (/) mortal. 
 II. There is a physician. III. How then does 
 tins condition exist? Because men are (a) in- 
 sensible of need, (6) disposed to procrastinate, 
 (c) will not take the remedy simply. Dr. A. 
 Thomson, of Edinburgh. — S. K. A.] 
 
 8. [On ver. 23. " The same word in Hebrew 
 signifies both the eye and a fountain, as if in 
 this land of sorrows our eyes were designed 
 rather for weeping than seeing." Henry. — S. 
 R. A.] 
 
CHAP. IX. 1-8. 
 
 109 
 
 III. THIRD CHARGE : the general entire absence op truth and i aith. 
 
 IX. 1-21. 
 
 1. Description of the prevailing deceit. 
 
 IX. 1-8. 
 
 1 O that I had* in the desert a travellers' lodge, 
 That I might leave my people and go from them : 
 For they are all adulterers, a gang of knaves, 
 
 2 And bend^ their tongue as their bow of deceit ; 
 And not by truth do they prevail in the land, 
 But proceed from wickedness to wickedness : 
 But Me they knew not, saith Jehovah. 
 
 3 Guard ye every one against his neighbor, 
 And trust no brother ; 
 
 For every brother practices deceit, 
 And every neighbor slanders. 
 
 4 One overreaches^ another, and truth they speak not ; 
 They taught their tongues to speak lies, 
 
 And weary themselves to commit iniquity.* 
 
 5 Thy habitation is in the midst of deceit f 
 
 And through deceit they refuse to know Me, saith Jehovah. 
 
 6 Therefore thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth : 
 Behold, I melt them and try them ; 
 
 For how should I act in view of the daughter of my people ? 
 
 7 A deadly arrow® is their tongue, they speak deceit ; 
 With the mouth they speak'' to their neighbor peaceably, 
 But in the heart^ they lay snares. 
 
 8 Should I not visit them for such things? saith Jehovah, 
 Or should not my soul avenge itself on a people like this ? 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 1.— ''Jjri'~''D- Comp. P8. Iv. 7, and Naeoelsb. Gr., ? 78. 
 
 2 Ver. 2.— The Masoretes punctuate OTI"! (the form like ?p3"T'1_ 1 Sam. xiv. 22 ; xxxi. 2 ; ^13nr> Job sis.. 3) pro- 
 bably because they regarded the Hiphil as causative. But for various reasons {Vid. Exeg. and Crit.) it is better with 
 HlTZlG, Graf and Meier to suppose that the reading, which corresjiouds to the consonants, !|3"^T1 i* the original and 
 
 correct. i i i i 
 
 3 Ver. 4.— nnri'- Comp. lljMnj"^ Job xiii. 9, and ^r\TV 1 K^i- 2iviii. 27. Xhe forms may be Piel from ^Hn or Hiphil 
 
 from SSr^. Comp. Olsh. g 257. Ewa'ld, § 127, (^. 
 
 * Ver!^4.— nU'n ('"• 21) Inf- constr., as n^n Ezek. xxi. 15, ^2X\ Hos. vi. 9.— Comp. Ewald, g 238, c; Olshausen, 
 
 gl91, 5. 
 
 5 Ver. 6. — Graf has rightly declared against the alteration of the text, while Ewald, appealing to the LXX., proposes 
 
 nD1D3 nD"liD IJiriS 'nh 2W ^InSj. The Infinitive HSK' is frequently used with suflBxes ; Ps. xxvii. 4; cxxxix. 2; 1 
 
 Ki. v'iii.'sO; Ruth ii. 7,'e<c. 
 
 6 Ver. 7.— Instead of the Chethibh \fiT\W jugulans, throttling, killing, the Keri would read riinE? which elsewhere 
 
 occurs only with 3riT (1 Kings x. 16, 17 ; 2 Chron. ix. 15) and seems to denote gold beaten thin. Although from this the 
 
 TT 
 
 meaning " pointed " may be derived, which is also expressed by the Syriac and Chaldee, yet it is better to adhere to the 
 reading of the text and to translate, a deadly murderous arrow. 
 
 ' Ver. 7. — T31. The change of number is analogous to the frequently occurring change of person. Comp. Oram, g 101, 
 Anm. 
 
 8 Ver. 8.— mx. The suffix is most naturally referred to the subject like that of IB'^pS ver. 8. Vide v. 9,29. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 As the main thought of the preceding chapter 
 was contained in vers. 4-9 so the main thought 
 
 of the present is found in vers. 1-8. The rest is 
 added as a sequel. As in ch. viii. the stiiF-necked 
 impenitence of Israel is censured, so here (as the 
 third charge) their falseness in every relation. 
 The two following strophes (vers. 9-15 and vera. 
 
110 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 16-21) relate to the punishment threatened by 
 God. In vers. 1-8 the prophet portrays the want 
 of fidelity and trust, the falseness, malicious de- 
 sire to defame, which was prevalent among his 
 contemporaries (vers. 1-5) and which would 
 compel the Lord to subject them to the punish- 
 ment of a severe melting and refining process, 
 (vers. 6-8). 
 
 Ver. 1. O that I had in the desert ... a 
 gang of knaves. On travellers' lodge comp. 
 xiv. 8. Living with his godless countrymen is 
 so intolerable to the prophet that he would pre- 
 fer the scanty protection of a tent erected in the 
 desert to his present residence. [Henderson 
 supposes the discomfort of a caravanserai to be 
 alluded to. — S. R. A.] — Adulterers. The vio- 
 lation of conjugal fidelity or of the fidelity due 
 to a neighbor by the invasion of his conjugal 
 rights was censured by the prophet in the se- 
 cond discourse, in the passage where he re- 
 proaches the Israelites with their violations of 
 
 faith, V. 7, 8. — HJj, he who acts secretly [Vide, 
 Fuerst) who deals in falsehood, deceit and trea- 
 chery in general. This reproach also is found 
 in ver. 11. 
 
 Ver. 2. And bend their tongue . . . saith 
 Jehovah. The imperfect with Vau consecu- 
 tive here designates not a single act, but oft re- 
 curring acts, from which this course is to be un- 
 derstood as habitual; this case is therefore to be 
 numbered among those in which the imperfect 
 with Vau consec. is used to designate a perma- 
 nent quality. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 88, 9. — 
 According to the Masoretes we must read: they 
 caused their tongue to tread the bow of deceit. 
 In this way the tongue would not be compared 
 to a bow, (which might appear unsuitable to the 
 Masoretes), but to an archer, and the bow would 
 then be a purely ideal conception, a figure for 
 the means and instrument of the intellectual ac- 
 tivity connected with the tongue. But this would 
 be a very artificial mode of expression. Since 
 the tongue is elsewhere compared with a sword, 
 (Ps. Ivii. 4; Ixiv. 3) and an arrow {infra ver. 7) 
 it may also be compared with a bow and in Fs. 
 Ixiv. 3 this is the fundamentalconception. — bow 
 is used as a simile in apposition with tongue. 
 Comp. Ps. xxii. 13; xi. 1. Naegelsb. Gr., ^ 72, 
 4. — IDeceit may according to the sense be re- 
 ferred either to 6ewc? or 6ow, but on account of 
 its position it is better to refer it to the latter. 
 On the construction comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 63, 
 4, g. — And not by truth. The prophet has 
 especially the rulers in view. Comp. Ps. xii. 4, 
 
 nj^rDX7 diflfercnt from v. 3 ; 7 here indicates the 
 
 T •.• : 
 
 norm us in D-JII/dS, ^y))i^h Vid. Naegelsb. Gr., 
 
 T : • - T : - - ' 
 
 ^112, 5, b. — On 'wickedness to w^ickedness. 
 Comp. XXV. 32. 
 
 Ver. 3. Guard ye . . slanders. Comp. Mic. 
 ?ii. 5, 6. — On every brother, etc. Comp. Nae- 
 
 gelsb. Gr., § 82, 1.— JpJT" 3p;r. Since this verb 
 in Kal occurs besides only in Gen. xxvii. 3G and 
 Hos. xii. 4, both times of Jacob (it is found in 
 Piel in Job xxxvii. 4) it is certainly probable that 
 the prophet, speaking here of the deceit prac- 
 tised by one brother towards another, had this 
 early instance in view (Gen. xxv. 29 sqq. ; xxvii. 
 
 35). — 17(1"' 70*^ go about for tale-bearing. Vide 
 supra vi. 28. 
 
 Ver. 4. One overreaches another . . . 
 to commit iniquity.— They taught. Comp. 
 
 ii. 33. The Niphal of TMO signifies elsewhere 
 "to be weary, disgusted with a thing" (vi. 11; 
 XV. 6 ; XX. 9). This meaning does not suit here. 
 The connection requires the meaning to weary 
 one's self. Comp. Gen. xix. 11 ; Isai. xvi. 12. 
 
 Ver. 5. Thy habitation . . saith Jehovah. 
 The verse has this object, to describe the rela- 
 tion of the deceitful race to the prophet and to 
 Jehovah. They surround the prophet so that he 
 dwells as the only honest man among deceivers 
 (comp. Ps. cxx.); from the Lord however they 
 turn away, the lying spirit rules them in such 
 wise (comp. Gen. xxvii. 35: xxxiv. 13) that they 
 know nothing of God and desire not to know Him. 
 (Comp. V. 3). 
 
 Ver. 6. Therefore . . daughter of my peo- 
 ple. A corruption so deeply rooted and so 
 widely extended can be removed only by a pro- 
 cess of entire melting, which will certainly be 
 grievous but will also refine. Comp. vi. 27, etc. 
 — I'X has by no means always a negative sense, 
 
 (as for example Gen. xliv. 34, quomodo ascende- 
 rcm? i. e., non ascendain) but as often a decidedly 
 positive meaning, ver. 18, 2 Sam. i. 25, 27; how 
 do ye advise me? 1 Kings xii. 6. So the Lord 
 here asks, how He should act, if not as already 
 indicated? He would say, there is nothing else 
 remaining but to do this. — After 'J3D to supply 
 r\^^, with reference to iv. 4; vii. 12, appears to 
 
 me unnecessary, for 'J3D is used in a causative 
 sense even immediately before names of persons. 
 Comp. iv. 26 ; xxiii. 9. In both these passages 
 it is also evinced by an explanatory addition that 
 it is to be tuken in a causative sense. 
 
 Vers. 7, 8. A deadly arrow^ ... on a peo- 
 ple like this. It might appear strange that the 
 prophet, after he had properly concluded with 
 ver. 6, should repeat the main point of the charge. 
 But he evidently intended to conclude with the 
 words repeated from v. 9, 29, in order to indicate 
 by this conclusion that he had the section of his 
 former discourse, so closely related to this, (ch. 
 5) in view. The words of the eighth verse could 
 not however follow immediately on ver. 6. The 
 words them for such things would thus obtain 
 a false reference. The prophet was therefore 
 compelled again to mention the sins of the 
 people. 
 
CHAP. IX. 9-15. 
 
 Ill 
 
 2. First punishment : Desolation of the land and dispersion of the people. 
 
 IX. 9-15. 
 
 9 On the mountains let me raise a weeping and wailing, 
 And on the pastures of the desert a lamentation, 
 For they are desolated, without a man to pass through them ; 
 And hear no longer the lowing of the cattle. 
 From the fowl of the heavens to the beast they are fled — ^gone ! 
 
 10 And I will make Jerusalem a heap of stones, 
 The dwelling of jackals ; 
 
 And the cities of Judah I will make desolate 
 Without an inhabitant, 
 
 11 Who is the man who is wise and understands this? 
 
 And who is he to whom the mouth of Jehovah has spoken, 
 
 That he may declare such things ? 
 
 Why was the land destroyed 
 
 And laid waste as a desert without a man to pass through it? 
 
 12 And Jehovah said : 
 
 Because they have forsaken My law which I set before them, 
 And have not heard My voice, nor walked according to it ; 
 
 13 But walked after the perversity of their heart, 
 
 And after the Baalim which their fathers have taught them ; 
 
 14 Therefore thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth, God of Israel : 
 Behold ! I give to them, this nation. 
 
 Wormwood to eat and poison water to'*drink. 
 16 And I scatter them among nations 
 
 Whom neither they nor their fathers have known ; 
 And send after them the sword till I extirpate them. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The preceding strophe contained the main 
 thought of the chapter; description of the want 
 of truth and faith among the people. As already 
 remarked, to this are attached two additional 
 strophes, which are occupied with the judgment 
 provoked by that moral corruption. The con- 
 nection of this strophe with the preceding is ef- 
 fected by vers. 6 and 8, declaring how the Lord 
 would try and purify the people and avenge Him- 
 self upon them. Verses 9 and 10 describe ac- 
 cordingly the desolation of the land ordained as 
 a punishment; vers. 11-13 again set forth the 
 main causes of the moral corruption (ver. 12 ne- 
 gatively, ver. 13 positively) ; vers. 14 and 15 show 
 us the fate of the inhabitants driven from the 
 lands, and serve therefore to supplement the 
 figure contained in verses 9 and 10. 
 
 Vers. 9, 10. On the mountains . . . make 
 
 desolate without an inhabitant. 1)1 may 
 
 grammatically and according to the connection 
 designate both the place and the object. Comp. 
 in the latter reference ix. 17 ; Ezek. xxvi. 17 ; 
 Am. V. 1. Yet it would be flat and prosaic lo re- 
 strict *?J^ to the object. The poetic liveliness of 
 the style requires us to refer it to the place 
 
 (comp. iii. 21) and the object at the same time. 
 — inyj properly they are burnt, singed, and then 
 generally desolated. Comp. ver. 11 and the re- 
 mark on ii. 15. Compare besides xlvi. 19; 2 
 Kings xxii. 13, 17; Neh. i. 3 ; ii. 17.— With- 
 out a man, e<c. Comp. ver. 11, Zeph. iii. 6; 
 Ezek. xxxiii. 28. — fled, etc. Comp. iv. 25 ; 1. 3. 
 ■ — And I •will make, etc. Sudden change of 
 subject. Jehovah Himself announces that not 
 only the country but the cities, Jerusalem before 
 all, shall be desolated. — heap of stones. Comp. 
 Ii. 37. — D'Ji]} (comp.x. 22; xlix. 33; Isai. xxxiv. 
 
 13; XXXV. 7; xliii. 20) and D;\S (Isai. xiii. 22) 
 both mean jackals. Comp. Ges. Thes. S. 39, 
 1457, 1511. — Make desolate. Comp. ii. 15; 
 iv. 17; xxxiii. 10; xlvi 19; 11. 29, etc. 
 
 Vers. 11-13. Who is the man . . . have 
 taught them. These three verses present the 
 motive of the prospective desolation. It might 
 be supposed that after what was said in vers. 1- 
 8 this question would be superfluous. But we 
 must not lose sight of the tableauesque character 
 of Jeremiah's style. Thus this strophe, besides 
 the new elements contained in vers. 9 and 10, 14 
 and 15, presents also the old elements in a modi- 
 fied form. The real root of this moral corrup- 
 tion is here indicated, viz., that Israel had turned 
 from the Lord and to idols. — Who is he, etc. 
 These worda remind us of Hos. xiv. 9. It is only 
 
112 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 the wise man who knows, only he to whom the 
 Lord has spoken, who tells the truth. The pro- 
 phet presupposes that the correct knowledge of 
 the true cause of the destruction (ver. 9) is not 
 such an easy matter. The unspiritual sense 
 seeks the cause everywhere but where it is really 
 to be found. To it external accidental circum- 
 stances are at fault. To seek the reason in them- 
 selves, in the perversity of their own hearts, does 
 not occur to the foolish Israelites. Hence it is 
 that not Israel but the Lord answers in ver. 12. 
 Among Israel there was none so wise as to know 
 the reason. The Lord is obliged to declare it. — 
 This and the sufiBx in such things point back 
 to vers. 8 and 9; — to whom expresses in the 
 form of a direct question in what relation that 
 which was previously said is to be understood. 
 It is knowledge of the reason, namely, which is 
 treated of. — Hfl^J points back to ^ri}f3, ver. 9, 
 and is to be taken in the same sense. — Allusions 
 to passages in Deuteronomy are here frequent. 
 Comp. Deut. iv. 8; xi. 32 ; xxviii. 15; Jer. xxvi. 
 4; xliv. 10. — According to it refers back to 
 my law. In ver. 12 the negative reason for the 
 judgment coming upon the land is stated ; in 
 ver, 13 the positive. — Walked. Comp. iii. 17; 
 
 vii. 24; Deut. xxix. 18. — Baalim. Comp. ii. 8, 
 23; Deut. iv. 3. — On taught comp. xii. 16; 
 Deut. xi. 19. 
 
 Vers. 14, 15. Therefore thus saith Jeho- 
 vah . . . extirpate them. — With therefore 
 the prophet proceeds to the statement of the con- 
 sequences, naming first the consequences which 
 the sins mentioned in vers. 12, 13 will bring upon 
 the men, and afterwards those mentioned vers. 
 
 9, 10, on the land. — HJ^ 7 and K'N"! occur together 
 in Deut. xxix. 17; Am. vi. 12; Lam. iii. 19. 
 Wormwood was considered poisonous by the an- 
 cients, but in the biblical use it is its bitterness 
 which is prominent. Comp. Am. v. 7 ; Prov. v. 4 ; 
 Lam. iii. 15. — On poison-water, comp. viii. 14. 
 Our words are repeated, xxiii. 15. — To them, 
 this nation. The anticipation of a noun by a 
 pronoun is frequent in Jeremiah: xxvii. 8; xxxi. 
 2; xli. 2, 3; xliii. 11 ; xlviii. 44; li. 56. Comp. 
 EwALD, I 309, c, Naegelsb. Gr., § 77, 2.— 
 neither they nor their fathers, etc. Comp. 
 Deut. xxviii. 36, 64; Lev. xxvi. 33; Jer. xvi. 13; 
 xvii. 4. That till I extirpate them is not to 
 be understood absolutely, is seen from passages 
 like iv. 27 ; v. 10, 18 coll. Lev. xxvi. 44. 
 
 3. Second Punishment: death snatches away an innumerable sacrifice. 
 
 IX. 16-21. 
 
 16 Thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth : Consider ye, 
 
 And call for mourning women,' that they may come,* 
 And send for the skilful ones, that they appear ; 
 
 17 And hasten, and raise a v^^ailing^ over us, 
 That our eyes may run* with tears. 
 And our eyelids overflow with water. 
 
 18 For — loud wailing is heard from Zion : 
 
 " How are we spoiled ! We are greatly confounded ; 
 
 For we have forsaken the land, 
 
 For they have thrown down our dwellings " 
 
 19 Hear then, ye women, the word of Jehovah, 
 And let your ear receive the word of his mouth, 
 And teach your daughters^ a song of lamentation, 
 And [teach ye] one another a dirge ! 
 
 20 For death cometh in through our windows, 
 It enters into our palaces, 
 
 To exterminate the child from the street. 
 The youths from the free places. 
 
 21 [Speak : Thus saith Jehovah :] 
 
 And the carcases of men fall like dung* on the field, 
 And like sheaves behind the reaper 
 When there is none to gather them. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 16.— mjJl'pO here ouly. Comp. besides Ezek. xxxii. 16, and Winer, jB. W. B., art. Leichen. 
 
 2 Ver. 16.— nr Xinr^, Pa. xlv. 17 ; 1 Sam. x.7 (Chethibh)— rUXlUI^ i3 the more frequent form, comp. ex. gr., Gen. xxx. 
 
 T ■.■ : ■'■''' 
 
 »8; 1 King3 iii. Hi; Isii. xlviii. 3. 
 
CHAP. IX. 16-21. 
 
 113 
 
 S Ver. 17.— njBfni (the same form in Ruth i. 14 ; Zech. v. 9) for rUXtiTI (Ruth i. 9) for which also nj^XtST^ (Ezek. 
 
 ixiii. 49). Comp. Olsh.', J 239; Gesen., § 74 : ^rm. 4. 
 
 * Ver. 17.— njTini designates the iuteuded etfect. ComiJ. Naegelsb. Gr., g 89, 3, 6. 2.— Oq the accusative construction. 
 
 Comp. xIt. 17 ; Lam'. iii.'48 ; Joel iv. 18 ; N. Gr., J 69, 2 a. 
 
 5 Ver. 19.— On the suffix in DDJiX and DD'mj3, comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § GO, 5. [Green, Gr , I 220, 1 6.] 
 
 - Ver.21.— *o'T occurs only iu the passages, Ps. Ixxxiii. 11 ; Jer. viii. 2; xvi. 4; xxv. 33, and in figurative language. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 In connection with the close of the preceding 
 strophe, the prophet sets forth another element 
 of the punishment, viz., the fruitful harvest, 
 which the sword would yield. He does this by 
 even now calling for the mourning-womeu to la- 
 ment over the /i<<i<re destruction of Zion and the 
 dispersion of the people (vers. 16-18): but not 
 content with this, he also calls upon all other 
 women, as by divine command, to instruct their 
 daughters and one another in the art of wailing, 
 for death will summoa his victims in masses. 
 
 Vers. 16, 17. Consider ye . . . overflow^ 
 ■with water. — Consider is emphatic (comp. ii. 
 10; xxiii. 20; xxx. 24) for what is required is 
 something unusual. Usually mourning-women 
 are called to weep over those who are already 
 dead, and therefore others than those who call 
 them. Here they are to raise their wailing over 
 those very persons who call them, and over their 
 future destruction. — Skilful. Since wail.ng 
 does not require wisdom in the higher sense, 
 and as the expression '-wise women" is not 
 proved to be a technical term for mourning-women 
 (as sagefemme for midwife), the word must denote 
 only those who are skilful, experienced, in gene- 
 ral, comp. X. 9, and "skilful of lamentation," Am. 
 V. 16. [Comp. also Matt. ix. 23, and Thomson, 
 The Land and the Book, I., p. 146. — S. R. A.] 
 
 Vers. 18, 19. For loud vyailing ... a dirge. 
 The prophet feigns a kind of vision: the Israel- 
 ites perceive, not with their bodily but spiritual 
 ear, a loud wailing. This is future, and it is 
 they who wail. The subject of lamentation is: 
 we are destroyed (iv. 13), put to shame (li. 51), 
 have been obliged to forsake the land, because 
 the enemy has thrown down our dwellings. So 
 I render, with Raschi, Rosenmuller, Graf and 
 
 others, since '^ylp is not merely to throw away, 
 
 but also to throw to the ground (Job xviii. 17; 
 Ezek. xix. 12), and of the throwing down of a 
 dwelling is expressly used in Dan. viii. 11. — 
 
 Hear them. The second ''3 introduces a second 
 
 reason for the wailing commanded in ver. 18. 
 Ver. 18 speaks only of destruction and exile in 
 general. But dirges presuppose particular cases 
 of death. Therefore in vers. 19, 20itis added, that 
 the destruction and deportation will result in the 
 death of many. This is introduced in this way: 
 the mourning-women in the divine commission 
 are further commanded to instruct not only their 
 daughters, but also the other women in the art 
 Df wailing, for on account of the unusual num- 
 ber of deaths, a much larger number of mourn- 
 ers than usual will be required. The wailing of 
 ver. 17 is not to be raised, therefore, because the 
 women received the command contained in ver. 
 19, but because they received this command for 
 the reason given in vers. 20, 21. 
 
 i 
 
 Vers. 20, 21. For death cometh in . . . 
 when there is none to gather them. Death 
 will not, as an enemy lurking without, attack 
 those only who venture out to him, but will as- 
 sault the people, penetrating into all their houses 
 to fetch his sacrifices. The figure is like that in 
 Joel ii. 9. — From the street. While death 
 strangles the children and youths in the houses, 
 he has at the same time takeu thorn from the 
 street and the places. — The words speak, thus 
 saith Jehovah, are very disturbing. They in- 
 terrupt the close connection, which according to 
 the sense and the construction there is between 
 and the carcases, etc., and ver. 20; they are 
 wanting in the LXX., and the whole manner of 
 expression is foreign to Jeremiah. For the im- 
 perative lin does not occur once in Jeremiah, 
 
 either in the addresses of God to the prophet or 
 elsewhere, and Jeremiah never says ^-''DNJ T\2. 
 
 He also never places ^''"DXJ before, but always 
 after the beginning, like the Latin inquam, or at 
 the close of the address. — And the carcases, 
 etc. These words we read in 2 Kings ix. 37 of 
 the corpse of Jezebel. Comp. Ps. Ixxxiii. 11 ; Jer. 
 viii. 2; xvi. 4; xxv. 33. — The stricken will lie 
 like sheaves behind the reaper, but there is to be 
 this diiference, that while the sheaves are col- 
 lected and taken home, the dead bodies will lie 
 in the field unregarded. Compare the figure of 
 the sheaves, Mic. iv. 12. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On ver. 1. O that I had in the desert, 
 
 etc. "So it sounds here and there when the ser- 
 vant of the Lord comes from confession, from 
 church, from the sick, from pastoral visitation, 
 on the great fast-day, on tite third festival-day, 
 on almost every Sunday afternoon. A beautiful 
 character of a witness when he needs nothing but 
 a little spot in the desert, no improvement, no 
 great management, when it is not necessary to 
 say, 'Alas, my heart is whelmed with grief ! and 
 whence can 1 obtain relief?' When no one sits 
 by him who presses upon him. The desert was 
 to retain Jeremiah in connection with his people. 
 He wished there to zveeptor them." Zinzendorf. 
 
 2. On ver. 2. " They proceed from one 
 ■wickedness to another — punished with the 
 sins, which are susj^ended over them .... a poor 
 sold people who know not how to raise their ran- 
 som-money. We must tell them, and tell them 
 again, whence it is to be fetched." Zinzendorf. 
 
 3. On ver. 3. " Guard ye p", ery one against 
 his friend, and trust not even his brother. 
 Tliis is the Hohbesii jus naturse." Zinzendorf. 
 '■'■Hoc loco utendum est in tempore persecutionis et 
 anguslise,, quando aut rara, aut nulla fides est; 
 quaiido nee fratri, nee proximo credendum est, et ini- 
 mici hominis domes tici ejus, quando juxla evangelium 
 tradet pater fil turn et filius patrem, et dividentur duo 
 in tres et tres iw duo (Matt. x. 34 sqq.)" Jerome. 
 
114 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 4. On ver. 4. " Laborant homines loqui menda- 
 cium, nam veritatem, tola facilitate loquerentur. llle 
 enim laborat, qui fingit quod dixit. Namquiverum 
 vult dicere non laborat. Ipsa Veritas sine labore 
 loquitur. Ipsum mendacium hominum est labor la- 
 bioruin ipsorum (Ps. vii. 14)," Augustxn., Enarr. 
 in Ps. cxxxix. [Henry: — "They are wearied 
 with their sinful pursuits, but not weary of them. 
 The service of sin is a perfect drudgery ; men 
 run themselves out of breath in it ; and put them- 
 selves to a great deal of toil to damn their own 
 souls."— S. R. A.] 
 
 5. On ver. 11. "We are not to search with 
 culpable curiosity into the causes of divine judg- 
 ment which God has hidden from us. But if God 
 Himself discovers them to us, we should ponder 
 them well and apply them as best we may (vi. 
 17, 18)." Starke. 
 
 6. On ver. 11. It is always an important part 
 of true wisdom to recognize the object of the di- 
 vine chastisement. At Jericho (Josh, vii.) it was 
 made known by an extraordinary revelation that 
 the ban of sacrilege was resting upon Israel, and 
 the lot further brought to light the author of the 
 crime. But this mode of revelation is not the 
 usual one. When punishment is the direct and 
 immediate consequence of sin, ex. gr., when sick- 
 ness follows on dissipation, and poverty on lazi- 
 ness and negligence, then every one who wishes, 
 may easily see, whither the chastisement tends. 
 But often the connection between sin and pun- 
 ishment is more remote and secret, although it is 
 never an artificial and arbitrary, but always an 
 organic and necessary one. Then is the time, 
 
 : in all humility and honesty to examine one's self 
 I in order to learn "why the land is laid waste." 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On vers. 1-6. This text njight serve as a 
 foundation in cases where a preacher has occa- 
 sion to speak to his congregation on separation 
 from the world, etc. He might especially draw from 
 it arguments in favor of such separation. Comp. 
 Rev. ii. 2, oh Siivr) fiaardaac KaKovq. — As a coun- 
 terpoise might be applied, Heb. xii. 3 ; 2 Tim. 
 ii. 24. — A servant of the Lord is to be ave^iKaicoc 
 and a/LE^iKUKoc. 
 
 2. On ver. 3. On the various stages in the con- 
 dition of security. 1. Of evil rising into act. 2 
 Of rising from one sin to another. Brandt: 
 Altes und Neues in extemporirb. EntwUrfen, Niirn- 
 berg, 1829, 1, 2. 
 
 3. On vers. 7-9. The double object of the di- 
 vine judgments. 1. Restoration of the right 
 (ver. 9). 2. Improvement of men (ver. 7, to 
 melt and try). 
 
 4. On vers. 12-16. On the connection of tem- 
 poral evil with our sins. Such a connection (1) 
 undoubtedly exists, and should be (2) recognized 
 and (3) announced by us (that is, not passed 
 over in silence, but openly expresssed). 
 
 5. On vers. 20 and 21 (to be used in times 
 when death snatches many away). Death as a 
 destroying angel: 1. Whosendshim: 2. Where- 
 fore he is sent: 3. How we may protect our- 
 selves against him. 
 
 IV. CONCLUSION: (IX. 22-25; X. 17-25.) 
 1. The only means of escape, and the reason why it is not used. 
 
 IX. 22-25. 
 
 22 Thus saith Jehovah: 
 
 Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, 
 Nor let the strong man glory in his strength, 
 Nor let the rich man glory in his riches. 
 
 23 But let him that glorieth glory' in this, 
 To be wise^ and to know me — 
 
 That I am Jehovah — who exercise mercy. 
 Judgment and righteousness on the earth ; 
 For in these do I delight, saith Jehovah. 
 
 24 Behold ! the days are coming, saith Jehovah, 
 That I will punish every circumcision in foreskin :' 
 
 25 Egypt and Judah and Edom, and the children of Ammon and Moab, 
 And all with shorn hair [-corners] who dwell in the desert ; 
 
 For all the people are uncircumcised, 
 
 The whole house of Israel is uncircumcised at heart. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 1 Ver. 23.— Sbnnrsn. Comp. NAE0E13B. Gr., § 101, 2 c. 
 
 9 Ver. 23.— bDt^/ri- The preposition is omitted, as frequently : Isa. xlviii. 16 ; xxTili.6; Ixi. 7. Comp. N. (Jr., 272,2; 112,4 
 * Ver. 24. — [A. V. : The circumcised with the uncircumcised.] 
 
CHAP. IX. 22-25. 
 
 115 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL, 
 
 The prophet introduces the concluding part of 
 his discourse with a general moral reflection, the 
 object of which is to present the only means of 
 escape from such fearfully threatening dangers, 
 viz., a living and truly productive knowledge of 
 the Lord (vers. 22, 23). Unfortunately the prophet 
 is at the close of the strophe (vers. 24, 25) com- 
 pelled to acknowledge the mournful fact that 
 such a true knowledge of God by the people Israel 
 was not to be expected, since they were a people 
 of uncircumcised heart, and were therefore, 
 notwithstanding their bodily circumcision, es- 
 sentially like the uncircumcised heathen nations. 
 From this it is evident that the passage (vers. 
 22-25) can be dispensed with neither from the 
 inner connection nor the connection with the 
 preceding context, and we should not therefore 
 be justified in regarding it (with Graf) as a later 
 addition. 
 
 Vers. 22, 23. Let not the 'wise man . . . 
 delight. As the things in which they are not 
 to glory, wisdom, strength (power), riches, are 
 certainly mentioned, because they appear above 
 all to the natural man as the most desirable, 
 comp. 1 Kings i. 13, where in substance these 
 three ideas are placed in juxtaposition, with 
 2 Chron. ix. 22 ; Job xii. 18. But at the same 
 time the prophet has doubtless in view actual cir- 
 cumstances and declarations previously made by 
 him. The inclination of his hearers presump- 
 tuously to boast of external carnal advantages 
 was censured by him in the seventh chapter 
 (comp. vers. 4, 8, 10, 14, 24, 26, 28) ; that the 
 Jews glo''ied in their wisdom is expressly stated 
 in viii. 8, 9. The mention of strength seems to 
 point back to ix. 2, and riches remind us of v. 
 26-28. The wisdom in which they are not to glory 
 is not that which is called "better than strength" 
 in Eccles. ix. 16, and which is essentially identi- 
 cal with that recommended in ver. 23, but it is 
 worldly wisdom, which though it boast of enjoy- 
 ing divine direction, in truth rejects the word of 
 God, and is therefore put to shame (viii. 8, 9,) 
 against which also a warning is given in Prov. 
 iii. 5, in the words, "Trust in Jehovah with all 
 thine heart, but on thine own understanding rely 
 thou not." — Strength is both physical strength 
 (Ps. cxlvii. 10, .Job xxxix. 19) and power (2 Kings 
 X. 34, XX. 20.) — Every man must have something 
 in which to glory, i. e., which he esteems as his 
 highest blessing and honor (without self-esteem) 
 comp. Isai. li. 16; 1 vJor. i. 31 ; 2 Cor. x. 17. — 
 Me must depend on knows alone, or also on 
 to be wise (understand) (Ps. Ixiv. 10; cvi. 7.) 
 1 prefer the latter. Wise then does not, as Graf 
 assumes, contradict the beginning of ver. 22, but 
 only opposes the true to the false wisdom. For 
 in these, etc., is not the fundamental statement, 
 but the explanation of the general 'ni?. Comp. 
 Naegelsb. Gr ^ 109, 1 a. — God is to be known as 
 the eternally existent, therefore the only true 
 God, who exercises mercy, judgment and right- 
 eousness on the earth. There is an antithesis 
 here to strength, etc., ver. 22 ( ix. 2; v. 26 sqq.) 
 But he who has learned to know the Lord as such, 
 acts accordingly. Mercy is not in opposition to 
 justice and righti "^ness as sometimes in Chris- 
 
 tian usage, but mercy is the root of righteousness, 
 i. e , the disposition which does not with brute 
 force trample upon the poor and weak, but with 
 kindness and love secures to them their rights, 
 and thus blessing and salvation. Comp. rems. on 
 vii. 5, 6. Ps. cxlv. 17. 
 
 Vers. 24, 25. Behold! the days are 
 coming . . . uncircumcised at heart. All here 
 primarily depends on the explanation of the ex- 
 pression n7"^;^3 7lD^ circumcision in fore- 
 skin. The explanations all circumcised on the 
 foreskin (LXX. and Vulg.) and all the circumcised, 
 together with those ivho have the foreskin (Tkemell., 
 Pisc, RosENM.) neither suit the connection, nor 
 can they be justified grammatically. The expla- 
 nation of HiTziQ, Graf, [Henuerson, Noyes, 
 Blayney,] according to which circumcised in fore- 
 skin is equivalent to tmcircumcised (Hitziq com- 
 pares "a knife without a handle and to which 
 the blade is wanting ") imputes nonsense to the 
 prophet. Grammatically the words can mean 
 only : to circumcise in foreskin, i. e., circum- 
 cision, which is yet connected only with the fore- 
 skin, therefore no true circumcision. In favor 
 of this explanation is 1. That the prophet men- 
 tions Judah among these nations. If it cannot 
 be denied of this nation, that its circumcision 
 was connected with the foreskin, the same must 
 apply, though in a different sense, to the others. 
 2. If the prophet wished to mention only abso- 
 lutely Mwcircumcised nations, why has he men- 
 tioned particularly these ? He might then have 
 omitted Judah, and mentioned all others in pre- 
 ference to these. The selection is evidently in- 
 tentional. All these nations are either notoriously 
 or — on account of their affinity of race with 
 Israel — at least probably circumcised. The 
 former was the case with the Egyptians ( Herod. 
 II. 36, 104). If circumcision was practiced only 
 among the higher castes of the Egyptians 
 (Winer, R. W. B. Art. ''Beschneidung") this 
 would be another reason for the prophet to reckon 
 the nation generally among the " circumcised in 
 foreskin." The HNi) "'}fi:;p were undoubtedly 
 
 circumcised. For it is evident from xxv. 23 ; 
 xlix. 28, 32, that by this phrase Arabian tribes, 
 especially the Kedarenes, are understood, of 
 which Herodotus (III. 8) reports that they nepi,- 
 rpOKaXa Keipovrac, nepi^vpovvTeg tovc Kpordipovc 
 which was forbidden to the Jews (Levit. xix. 27 ; 
 xxi. 5). The Kedarenes, however, were de- 
 scended from Ishmael (Gen. xxv. 13; comp. 
 Herzog, R-Enc. 1, (S. 463) who was circumcised 
 by Abraham (Gen. xvii. 23) and among whose 
 descendants the practice of this rite is continued 
 even to this day, not by order of Mohammed (the 
 Koran nowhere enjoins circumcision, comp. Mi- 
 CHAELis, Mos. Recht. § 184) but as an ancient 
 sacred custom. If now it cannot also be proved 
 of the Edomites, Ammonites and Moabites (Gen. 
 xix. 37, 38) that they had circumcision (John 
 Hyrcanus gave the Edomites the alternative 
 either of abandoning their country or accepting 
 circumcision, and they chose the latter. Joseph. 
 Antiqu. XIII. 9, 1) yet Jeremiah must have 
 reckoned them among the circumcised. Whether 
 he erred in this or not is another question. There 
 is of course the possibility that the usage may 
 have prevailed at his time among them also and 
 
116 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 afterwards declined, as even among the Israelites 
 this law was by no means always punctually fol- 
 lowed (Josh. V. 2, sqq. Comp. Herzoq. R-Enc. 
 II. iS. 108). — In short the juxtaposition of Judah 
 and two other undoubtedly circumcised nations 
 with three whose circumcision on account of 
 their origin is possible and indeed highly pro- 
 bable, but not proved, shows that according to 
 
 the intention of the prophet the expression (/ID 
 
 H/I^D) is to be taken in the sense, which as we 
 have shown above, is alone grammatically admis- 
 sible. — With this also accords the causal sentence 
 "for all the nations," e^c. It is entirely un- 
 necessary to regard the article as a retrospective 
 pronoun==all these nations. The prophet really 
 wishes to say that all the nations of the heathens 
 are uncircumcised, from which however it follows 
 that those previously mentioned are so. If these 
 are uncircumcised in spite of a circumcision, 
 which from the standpoint of the theocracy must 
 appear an unjustifiable imitation of the sacred 
 sign of the covenant, and the whole house of 
 Israel, including Judah, is uncircumcised at 
 heart, it is explained why the Lord named 
 Judah's and the other nations' circumcision — in 
 foreskin. From this it further results that an 
 improvement of Judah in the sense of ver. 23 is 
 not to be expected, whence finally it follows that 
 Judah is exposed to the judgment of the Lord as 
 well as those other nations. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On ix. 22, 23. "Paul says. He that glorieth, 
 let him glory in the Lord (2 Cor. x. 17), and 
 Jesus, This is life eternal that they might know 
 Thee that Thou art the only true God and Jesus 
 Christ, whom Thou hast sent (John xvii. 3). 
 This is to glory, as though one should say, God 
 be praised, I am right well and sound. To be 
 sound in the faith is to have the knowledge of 
 Jesus Christ, to maintain it, to grow in it. This 
 is to prosper. To be silent concerning grace 
 from humility is an affectation. To make a great 
 noise of good works as our own, is ridiculous. 
 For grace produces them, the power of God 
 dwelling in us. We do nothing and should do 
 nothing if it were left to us; but the work of 
 God in us, that we believe, is not to be passed 
 over in silence, moroseness, and ingratitude. 
 What a noise do the humble saints in the Revela- 
 tion make of their grace, freedom, priesthood, 
 royal dignity, victory, redemption (chap, iv., v., 
 vii., xii., xiv., xv., xvii , xix.). There is also 
 nothing any longer secret when we bear His 
 name on our forehead. that the whole earth 
 were full of our glorying in the Lord! '0 that 
 we were able, our songs so high to raise. That 
 all the country round, might echo with His 
 praise.' The world and false theology recom- 
 mend in this respect a certain silence, which 
 shows that they do not know which is their pro- 
 per sphere. And against them it is best to con- 
 tend reab'ter by manifestation of the Spirit and of 
 power. Let your light so shine before men that 
 they may glorify the Father in heaven (Matt. v. 
 
 16)." ZiNZENDORF. 
 
 2. On ix. 23, "Qui fideliter et obedienter vivit, 
 
 non de ipsa ohedientia tamquam de sua non accepta 
 bono ezlollatur, sed qui gloriatur, in Domine fflori- 
 etiir. In ullo enim gloriandum, quando nostrum ni- 
 hil sit." AuGUSTiN : De bono Fer sever. Cap. xiv. 
 7. Comp. HiLARTUs, Enarr in Ps. lii. 3. 
 
 3. On ix. 23. ^ Qui gloriatur, in Domine glor- 
 ietur. Hoc est Christum pascere, hoc est Christo pas- 
 cere, in Christo pascere, prieter Christum sibi non pas- 
 cere." AvGVSTiTi : De Pastoribus. Cap. xiii. 9. 
 
 4. On ix. 23. "Videte quomodo nobis abstulil 
 gloriam, ut darel gloriam ; abstulil nostrum ut daret 
 suam ; abstulil inanem, ut daret plenam ; abstulil 
 nutantem, ut daret solidam." Anselm. Comment, 
 in 1 Cor. i. 31. 
 
 5. On ix. 24, 25. "Like brothers, like caps. 
 If the circumcised and uncircumcised are alike 
 good and pious, they will not unfairly be pun- 
 ished in like manner." Cramer. 
 
 6. On ix. 24, 25. "A clear testimony that the 
 holy sacraments procure nothing joe?- opus opera- 
 turn, for the work's sake. For the Jews were in- 
 deed circumcised in the flesh, but this was to be 
 a sign to them of righteousness, that they should 
 be spiritually circumcised in faith and good 
 works. But since such spiritual circumcision 
 did not follow, and they remained uncircumcised 
 at heart, the other fleshly circumcision helped 
 them not, but redounded instead to their sin." 
 Cramer. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On vers. 22, 23. (Luther, vers. 23, 24). 
 The Christian's highestand true glory. It consists 
 in 1. Believing in the Lord; 2. Living in the 
 Lord; 3. Working for the Lord; 4. Suffering 
 for the Lord's sake. (Florey: Trost und Mah- 
 nung an Graben, 1. Bandchen, S. 151). 
 
 2. On vers. 22, 23. The true knowledge of God 
 I. Its nature (not dead science, but living experi- 
 ence) ; 2. its fruit, a. the highest blessing (mercy, 
 justice and righteousness in Jesus Christ) ; 6. 
 the highest honor (he who has it will not be put 
 to shame as he who glories in the flesh). 
 
 3. On ver. 22. [Eng. Vers. Ver. 23. Bp. 
 Bull: — Examples of the folly of glorying (or 
 trusting) in wisdom, might or riches: — Solomon, 
 Samson and Ahab. — S. R. A]. 
 
 4. On ver. 23. [Eng. Vers. ver. 24. Abp. Til- 
 lotson: — 1. The wisest and surest reasonings in 
 religion are grounded on the unquestionable per- 
 fections of the divine nature [ex. gr. belief in 
 Divine Providence and veracity). 2. The nature 
 of God is the true idea and pattern of perfection 
 and happiness. — S. R. A.]. 
 
 5. On ver. 23. " The Christian's self-glorying. 
 
 1. Evil self-glorying keep far from thee ; 2. If 
 thou wilt glory, glorify thyself in the Lord." 
 Gezetz. u. Zeugniss. 1860, Jan. 
 
 6. On vers. 25, 26. Circumcision ns a figure of 
 the relation of man to God. 1. Tlit' three stages 
 of circumcision, uncircumcised, outwardly cir- 
 cumcised, truly circumcised, correspond to the 
 three stages of being without God, serving God 
 outwardly, serving God in spirit and in truth. 
 
 2. As external circumcision without that of 
 the heart is equivalent to uncircumcision, so the 
 outward service of God without the inward is 
 equivalent to no service at all. 
 
CHAP. X. 1-5. 117 
 
 LATER ADDITION : Warning against Idolatry. 
 X. 1-17. 
 a. The nothingness of idols. 
 X. 1-5. > 
 
 1 Hear the word, which Jehovah has spoken to you,^ house of Israel ! 
 
 2 Thus saith Jehovah : To the way of the heathen accustom^ yourselves not, 
 
 And be not affrighted at the signs of Heaven, because the heathen are affrighted 
 at them ; 
 
 3 For the institutions of the nations — breath are they ! 
 For as a forest tree have they been cut out, — 
 
 For the work* of the hands of the artificer, with an axe.* 
 
 4 With gold and silver they adorn it, 
 
 With nails and hammers they fasten them, that it totter not. 
 
 5 They are as the pillars in a cucumber-field and speak not; 
 They must be borne,® for they walk not. 
 
 Fear them not, for they do no harm. 
 But also to do good is not in their power.* 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Movers (De TJtr. Rec. Jer. p. 43) was the first to deuy the authenticity of the section x. 1-16. After careful examina- 
 tion I have come to the following result: 1. That the passage breaks the connection cannot be doubted. For ix. 22-25 and 
 X. 17-25 joined to each other form an appropriate, orderly, progressive conclusion to the great discourse of the prophet. 
 Comp. the introductory remarks on ix. 22-25 and x. 17-25. This warning against idolatry to those who had just been 
 rebuked for the most wanton idolatrous abominations (vii. 17 sqq. ; 30 sqq.) is exceedingly surprising, particularly as the 
 expression, '■ accustom yourselves not," ver. 2, presupposes either a nation unspotted by idolatry or a nation purified from 
 it, which however exposes itself to new temptations. The view of J. D. Michaelis and Kueper, that the ten tribes already 
 carried away into Assyria are here addressed (on account of "house of Israel," ver. 1), is no improvement, for the inter- 
 ruption of the connection still remains. When Keil {Einl. X 256) says that the section affords only the foundation to that 
 which Jeremiah has said in ix. 22-25 on the glorying of Israel and his equality with the uncircumcised heathen, and that 
 the deeper ground of their idolatry is thus discovereil to tlie people and the necessity of their being scattered among 
 the heathen (ix. 15) proved, one might almost suppose that he had not read the passage with the necessary attention, for 
 there is not a trace of reproach which would be thus brought upon Israel : throughout there is not a word on the inner 
 spiritual condition of the people. At most we should conclude from ver. 2 that this was presupposed to be a good one. 
 All which Keil designates as the object of this paseage has been given by the prophet in part long before, and in part in 
 •vers. 24 and 25, for the uncircumcised heart is indeed the deepest ground of all the inner and outer corruption which the 
 prophet so deeply bewails.— 2. As to the language, I find in the first three verses some traces of Jeremiah's idiom, but not 
 so decisively as to feel compelled on their account to admit Jeremiah to be the author. The formula f "13T "It^X "^^IH 
 
 is certainly .Teremiah's (comp. xlv. 1 ; xlvi. 13 ; 1. 1), but in Jeremiah it stands only at the commencement of the larger 
 sections. In the midst of the context, as here, it is striking, the more so as it is further extended by ^ WDt!'- — 10 7 is no- 
 
 where else, even in Jeremiah, construed with 7X, but with ^^ (xiii. 21), though very frequently he uses 1^ and 7X as 
 synonymous (comp. on DD'?^ ver. 1) wherefore also Graf on xiii. 21 supposes that 7_J^ in this passage is written "as so 
 frequently" for Sx.— The verb r\n (ver. 2) occurs in the Old Test. 55 times, in Jeremiah 20 times, from which it is clear 
 that relatively it is used most frequently in this prophet.— r\1pn (ver. 3) is the more usual form in Jer.; besides here it is 
 found 5 times (v. 24 ; xxxi. 35 ; xxxiii. 25 ; xliv. 10, 23), D'pri only twice (xxxi. 36 and xxxii. 11, here perhaps after Deut. 
 V. 28. But the first form is as much used as the latter.— TXO (ver. 6) is a current word in Jer., but used so absolutely, 
 iimply as a negation, it is found neither in Jer. nor elsewhere. Comp. the exposition. Dmp3 Hi', ver. 15, is the only 
 expression which would speak decidedly in favor of the Jer. authorship, if the possibility of imitation were excluded. 
 (Comp. Jer. viii. 12 ; xlvi. 21 ; 1. 27 and 'i^ JlJt;' xi. 23 : xxiii. 12 ; xlviii. 44). Apart from these few forms which corres- 
 pond to Jeremiah's usage, without being exclusively his or being raised above the suspicion of imitation, there are a rela- 
 tively large number of expressions, which are in part a7ra| Aeyojaei'a, on which however we lay no stress (the Pi- ^HS^'') 
 
 ver. 4; ririX"' ver. 7 ; rinN3 in the meaning MnS ver. 8; :|'7D:3'' ib^d.; riOX Cn^X ver. 10 ; C^^Hj^H ver. 15) and in 
 part do not occur elsewhere in Jer., but take the place of other usual expressions. To these belong ^'pTO ver. 9 ; tJ'O?. 
 nSori, ?0J*1X ver. 9 (Jer. uses for the latter nj3 xii. 1; xxxvi. 24; xli. 5; xliii. 12; HO xiii. 25); ^21^ ver. 12; nj^^H 
 and □'DE' jitDJ tbici. (the latter expression jobix. 8; Isa. xl. 22; xiii. 5 ; xliv. 24 ; xlv. 12; li. 13; Ixvi. 12 ; Ps. civ. 2; 
 Zech. xii.^2) : D''Xii'3 (comp. on the other hand Ps. cxxxv. 7) OIO and I^JO ver. 13; SoiJ ver. 14 ; (Jer. always says 
 
 , • • : I T T T T •.■•.• 
 
 TOii viii. 19 ; 1. 38 ; li. 47, 52), Ijpj in the sense of nDDO ver. 14 (:]p J in Jer. is always libatio, vii. 18 ; xix. 3 ; xxxii. 29 ; 
 
 xliv.^17 sqq.) , Thr\ and \2T\^ ver.'lC. 
 
118 
 
 THE I'^.OPiiET JEREMIAH. 
 
 From all this might well proceed some suspicion as to the authenticity of the passage vers. 1-16. In opposition t» 
 Movers, Hitzig and De Wette, Ouat has fully sliown that the supposed Isaiah II. could not be the author (S. 171 Anm.), 
 althovigh many relations are not to be denied. Who was the author and when and by whom the addition was made can 
 scarcely be ascertained. 
 
 2 Ver. 1. — 7^ in DD' 7 V is used here, as frequently in Jeremiah, as synonymous with 7X (comp. the exchange of the 
 
 two in xi. 2; xviii. 11 ; xxiii. 3.") : xxv. 2; xxvii. 19 ; xxxvi. 31 ; xliv. 20; besides xxv. 1 ; xxvi. 1.5 ; xxxv. 1.5 ; xlii.l9 coll. 
 Hos. xii. 11). 
 
 3 Ver. 2. — ^3 7 with 7X liere only. But it is found in xiii. 21 with the synonymous 7!^. Comp. Gkat on this passage. 
 
 — With ^ and the following subst., Deut. iv. 10 ; xiv. 23 ; xvii. 19 ; Ps. xviii. 35 ; cxliv. 1. With 7 and the following inf., 
 
 Deut. xviii 9 ; Isa. xlviii. 17 ; Jer. xii. 16 ; Ezek. xix. 3, 6 ; Ps. cxliii. 10. 
 
 * Ver. 3. — nb^lTD is the accusative of the object. Comp. 1 Kings xviii. 32 : " he built the stones to an altar." (N.^eqelsb. 
 6r. § G9, 3). — As r\S3 denotes not to hew but only to fell, the object designated is not the immediate but remote end of the 
 
 - T 
 
 activity. 
 
 sVer. 3. — 'i^fj;;^ is found only in Isa. xliv. 12 in a similar connection. The connection and the dialects are both in 
 T -: |- 
 favor of the meaning of axe. In Arabic the corresponding word designates a cutting instrument. Comp. Aram. HJfn 
 
 metere. The prefix 3 may depend on nt^yO or on in^3, or on both. The latter is the more probable since in fact the 
 
 •.■-:|- t: 
 
 axe is the instrument which serves for felling and hewing. Comp. Isa. xliv. 14. 
 
 6 Ver. 5.— X^ltl'r for -INtiT. Comp. Ewald, § 194 6 ; Olsh. § 38 b, Anm. g ; 265 «. 
 
 .T- : |T- 
 
 I Ver. 5.— OniX for DflX. Comp. rems. on i. 16. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 According to ver. 2 the object of this passage 
 is to warn Israel from the worship of idols. In 
 this behalf first the nothingness of idols, the 
 dead work of men, is shown (vers. 1-5). Then 
 the incomparable greatness of Jehovah and in 
 contrast with the origin of the idol images His 
 overwhelmingly impressive self-existence and 
 power, in view of which the adoration of empty 
 idols appears disgraceful folly, are set forth as 
 the source of all great phenomena in nature and 
 history (vers. 6-16). 
 
 Vers. 1, 2. Hear the word . . . affrighted 
 at them. Ij^^, way. Comp. v. 4, 5. It is 
 
 simply = religion, cultus. On this account and 
 from what follows (ver. 3 sqq.) the "signs of the 
 heaven" cannot be passing and chance signs, be 
 they constellations (Hitzig), or comets, dark- 
 ness, etc. (RosENM., Graf), but only permanent 
 signs which are connected with permanent wor- 
 ship, and affrighted is to be understood not of 
 the momentary impression excited by an extra- 
 ordinary phenomenon, but only of the constant 
 religious terror manifesting itself in the ordinary 
 worship (comp. Mai. ii. 6, and ^^3, Gen. xxxi. 
 
 42, 53). Were we to take affrighted in the 
 former sense it would signify either an emphasis 
 on the point of terror: ye may feel joy at favor- 
 able signs but ye are not to be terrified at sup- 
 posed unfavorable signs — which would be a con- 
 tradiction and at the same time confirm the 
 superstition — or it would be: ye are not to con- 
 ceive of the signs of heaven as under the influ- 
 ence of higher powers and therefore indifferent 
 to human life, which would be a warning against 
 astrology not in correspondence with the con- 
 nection. In accordance with the subsequent 
 warning against the worship of images idolatry 
 only can be here spoken of, which renders not 
 merely the extraordinary, but above all the ordi- 
 nary signs of the heavens the object of adora- 
 tion. The expression "signs" would refer 
 less to the destination determined by the stars, 
 Gen. i. 14, than to the ancient constellations 
 (Job ix. 9), as whose signs appear the stars which 
 form them (comp. the twelve signs of the Zodiac, 
 
 2 Kings xxiii. 5). — Because the heathen, 
 
 etc., is not the argument of the author against 
 idolatry — this does not come till ver. 13 — but a 
 statement of the reason, from the soul of the 
 Israelites, why this service has so much that is 
 seductive for them. This causal sentence cor- 
 responds to "accustom yourselves not." The 
 learning and becoming accustomed is the effect 
 of the example. How dangerous this was to the 
 Israelites we learn from the warnings : Exod. 
 xxiii. 24, 32, 38; Lev. xviii. 3; Deut. vii. 1 sqq. 
 Comp. Judges ii. and iii. — '3 here=because. 
 
 Comp. Naegelsb. Gr. | 110, 1. 
 
 Ver. 3. For the institutions of the na- 
 tions . . . with an axe. — The institutions, 
 
 cKc, stand in unutliesis 10 tli _■ (..i-iiiiiiinces of Je- 
 hovah, Lev. xviii. 3, 4. — Breath are they [lit.: 
 is it]. The singular of the pronoun appears to 
 involve a contemptuous collective sense=all that 
 trash. Comp. ver. 8 ; Ewald, § 319, c ; Josh, 
 xiii. 14. — The nothingness of the deities which 
 are here identified with the idol-images, is clear 
 from their origin. If we trace the origin of the 
 idol we find that the artificer found it as a tree 
 standing among others in the forest, and as 
 adapted to his purpose cut it down. — On the 
 subject in cut out comp. Naegelsb. Gr. ^ 101, 
 2 b. As to the object it is formally undefined, 
 but from the connection is clearly recognizable 
 as the idol. — Second stage : the forest tree be- 
 comes a work of art in the hands of an artificer 
 and by the aid of an axe. 
 
 Ver. 4. "With gold and silver . . . that it 
 totter not. Third stage : adornment with pre- 
 cious metals (Isa. xxx. 20; xl. 19). Fourth 
 stage: fastening on the place of exhibition (Isa. 
 xii. 7). — Fasten them. Observe the change 
 of number. (Comp. Naegelsb. Gr. § 105. 7, 
 Anm. 2). With these words the construction 
 passes into the plural. Comp. ver. 5. The sub- 
 ject of p'B"' is ideal, namely the idea of the 
 fastened derived from Dilpin"'.— Comp. xlvi. 6, 7. 
 
 Ver. 5. They are as the pillars ... is not 
 in their power. — Pillars in a cucumber 
 field. Jerome : insiniililtidinerii palmse fahricata 
 sunt. Syr.; tanquam palmie surd erectse, in which 
 lOh is taken according to analogy from "lOn 
 
CHAP. X. 6-16. 
 
 11& 
 
 and Judges iv. 5, but HtypO is very freely trans- 
 lated. Others, following Kimchi's example take 
 iph=nin''r^, columna (Joel iii. 3; Song of Sol. iii. 
 6) and D'lnpn (Jer. xxxi. 21) ; H^pO however 
 =turned work (Exod. xxv. 18; xxxi oj; xxxvii. 
 7, 17, 22 ; Numb. viii. 4 ; x. 2 coll. Isa. iii. 24). 
 The comparison is strange. More satisfactory 
 is the explanation proposed by Movers, Fuerst 
 {H. W. B., S. 781), Graf, according to which 
 
 njJ'piD, as in Isa. i. 8, signifies a cucumber field 
 and Ton the scarecrows, or more correctly the 
 priapus-pillars erected as such. These priapus- 
 pillars are elsewhere ridiculed as useless watch- 
 guards (comp. Epist. Jerem. ver. 70 : oianep h 
 aiKVJjpdTif) npojiaaKdviov ov6ev (p'vTiaaaov oiirug e'lalv 
 ol deot avTuv. Comp. Passow, s. v., npofiaoKaviov, 
 Selden de Diis Syriis, p. 300). — They must b* 
 borne. Comp. Isa. xlvi. 7. 
 
 h. The idols contrasted with Jehovah. 
 X. 6-16. 
 
 6 None is like Thee,^ O Jehovah! 
 
 Great art Thou, and great is Thy name in might. 
 
 7 Who should not fear Thee, Thou King of nations? 
 For unto Thee is it due.'' 
 
 For among all the wise men of the nations. 
 
 And in all their dominion there is none like Thee. 
 
 8 But altogether they are stupid^ and become fools :* 
 Vain instruction ! It is wood !^ 
 
 9 Silver plates are brought from Tarshish and gold from Uphaz, 
 The work of the smith and the hands of the smelter ; 
 
 Blue and red purple is their raiment, 
 Artists' work are they all. 
 
 10 But Jehovah is truly God, 
 
 He is a living God, and an everlasting King : 
 Before His anger the earth trembleth, 
 And the nations cannot endure His wrath. 
 
 11 Ye shall therefore say unto them : The gods. 
 Which have not made heaven and earth,^ 
 
 Shall vanish away from the earth xmder the heaven, 
 
 12 Who made the earth by His power. 
 Established the world by His wisdom. 
 
 And by His understanding spread out the heavens. 
 
 13 At the sound of His voice a heaving of waters in the heavens, 
 He bringeth up vapors from the ends of the earth ; 
 
 He produceth lightnings with the rain. 
 
 And bringeth the wind out of His storehouses. 
 
 14 Stupid are all men there without understanding ; 
 All the founders of idol-images are put to shame. 
 
 For a lie is their casting, and there is no spirit in them. 
 
 15 For they are vapour and work of deceit ;' 
 In the time of their visitation they perish. 
 
 16 Not like these is the portion of Jacob ; 
 
 For He forms all things and Israel is the stock of His inheritance : 
 Jehovah Zebaoth is His name. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 6. — ^TO3 TNO is remarkable. Venema supposes a transposition of the D from DPIX at the close of yer. 6, m 
 
 hjrpothesis to which we can have recourse only in extreme cases, especially as the initial ami final O are different in form. 
 Neumann vvuuld take ['NO in u causiil suu.sc, Ipiit 1. it would be scarcelj' appropriate to designate the Lord as great merely ia 
 
 mparison with other great ones; 2. rx*D niust also then be taken as causal in ver. 7. Neumann indeed does this, but 
 
 thus he obtains only a linguistic monstrosity, which condemns itself and also his rendering of the word. Hitzig would 
 
120 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 read TNO, as in xxx. 7, and with similarity of thought we should certainly expect similarity of expression. But might 
 
 ■we not just as well require TNO to be read in xxx. 7, as in this place 1 The expression, from whence Thy like? is at least 
 
 quite unusual. In this sense we elsewhere always find 'O (Deut. iii. 24; iv. 7; 2 Sam. xxii. 32; 2 Kings xviii. 35 ; Ps. xviii. 
 
 32; Ixxvii. 14; Mic. yii. 18 and the passages adduced by HiTZiG himself Ps. xxxv. 10; Ixxi. 19) while ^X or ri'X occurs 
 
 only in an ironical negative sense (ex.gr. Ps. xlii. 4; Ixxix. 10; cxv. 2; Jer. ii. 27), or in the sense of earnest search (Jer. 
 ii. 6, 8 ; 2 Kings ii. 14;, but TXO never occurs in that sense. — f'XO occurs frequently in Jeremiah, more frequently than 
 
 in any other author of the Old Testament. — The preposition |0 is in this connection used evidently sometimes in a causal sense 
 
 (vii.32: xix. 11; Isa. 1.2; Ezek.xxxiv. 8), but mostly in a negative sense=away from, without. Two negatives thus united do 
 not make an affirmative, but strengthen the negation. Comp. Naeoelsis. Gr., g lOG, 5 ; Gesen. g 152, 2. Everywhere, however, 
 except here, ?D depends on a preceding verb or noun, and indeed for the most part mediately, so that the preposition is to 
 
 be considered as depending on an idea of existence {conatrnctio pnegnans) latent in the verb (or noun). Comp. Isa. vi. 11; 
 Jer. iv. 7; xx. 9; xxxii. 4a; xxxiii. 10, 12; xxxiv. 22 ; xliv. 22; xlvi. 19; xlviii. 9; Ii. 29,37; Ezek. xxxiii. 28 ; Zeph. ii. 
 5 ; iii. 6. In Jer. v. 9 only is this idea of existence explicitly present. — That in this place rxo stands so abruptly is very 
 
 remarkable and contrary to the usage of Jeremiah. 
 
 2 Ver. 7.— nr*X'' from HN' (which occurs only in this single form and place) = PIN], decorum, consentaneum fuU, 
 
 T |tt 1 r TT 
 
 Isai. Iii. 7 ; Ps. xciii. 5 ; Song of Sol. i. 10. On the feminine in the impersonal sense, comp. Naegelsb. Gr. g 60, 6, 6. 
 
 *Ver. 8. — niO^ comp. vers. 14 and 21. Elsewhere occur only the participial forms □''1J.'3 (Ps. xciv. 8; Ezek. xxi. 
 36) and MIJ^SJ (Isai. xix. 11). The meaning, according to the analogy of 1J?3, T^^»3=6ardMni, stolidum, esse. 
 
 * Ver. 8.-1^03''). The verb here only— meaning (comp. 703 rD2) stultum, stupidum esse. 
 
 6 Ver. 8. — [Blatnet renders : the very word itself being a rebuker of vanities ; Notes better : Most vain is their confi- 
 dence; it is wood — with the note, " Lit. <7ieir doctrine, their instruction: i. e.,th.a,t in which they are taught to confide." 
 Henderson has : The tree itself is a reproof of vanities. — S. R. A.] 
 
 6 Ver. 11.— XpTX is a harsher form of XV 1i<. Comp. Ecerst, S. W. B. 1, S. 142. Buxtorf, Lex. Chald. p. 228. n7X 
 It:- "t : - . t V •• 
 
 is again Hebrew and is referred by the LXX. to X'DU? but by most commentators to XTl/X- 
 
 T - : - T •.•: 
 
 ' Ver. l^.—W^P^^r\ TWyO- The noun here only, the verb Gen. xxvii. 12 ; 2 Chron. Xixvi. 16. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Vers. 6 and 7 contain the theme of the strophe : 
 Jehovah is the highest, there is none like Him, 
 all the world should fear Him. It is stupidity 
 which opposes this truth, says ver. 8. The im- 
 propriety of this opposition is proved by the ex- 
 position of what idols really are. On the other 
 hand the right of Jehovah maintained in ver. 7 
 is proved by the exposition of His attributes and 
 works, vers. 10, 12, 13. From this exposition it 
 is evident how well-founded on the one hand is 
 thejudgment pronounced against this opposition 
 (vers. 14, 15), and on the other hand the justice of 
 Jehovah and the welfare of the people who serve 
 Him. (ver. 16.) 
 
 Vers. 6 and 7, None is like thee . . . none 
 like thee. — In might is to be referred both to 
 Thou and Thy name. Since the latter in rela- 
 tion to the former can designate only the name 
 in the objective sease, the renown, glory, in 
 might is equivalent to in manifestation of might, 
 comp. xvi. 21. — Who should not negative ex- 
 pression for the positive, — all must fear Thee. 
 — For among all. Seb. Schmidt here rightly 
 calls attention to the fact that '3 here is to be 
 
 regarded as local not partitive, because otherwise 
 God would be compared with men : among all 
 the wise men and in the whole circuit of their 
 dominion, therefore in the whole domain of their 
 wisdom and might, no God is found like unto 
 Jehovah. Comp. Caspabi, Micha der Morastite, 
 S. 13 flF. 
 
 Ver. 8. But altogethet ... it is wood. That 
 which really is does not correspond to that which 
 ought to be. The entirety of the heathen (r\nX3 
 x=un&, Targum Jon. NIHS; the meaning in one 
 contradicts the connection) feareth not the Lord, 
 as it becomes them. This is to say, they are 
 Stupid as brutes. — Vain instruction ! It is 
 
 •wood ! If with Graf we should construe these 
 words like 3 a, we should develop the meaning 
 that wood is wooden. But since this could not 
 possibly be meant in the figurative sense, in 
 which we use the word wooden, we should be 
 obliged to take it literally, which, however we 
 interpreted 1D1D, would yield only nonsense. 
 Accordingly V^ cannot be the predicate of 1D1D. 
 We must therefore regard the latter as a decla- 
 ration made absolutely, with pregnant brevity, an 
 exclamation which represents a sentence. — Since 
 
 the radical meaning of /^H is breath, vanitas, 
 we are perfectly justified by passages likeEccles. 
 i. 2; V. 6; xii. 8, in taking the plural in this 
 sense, although an adhesion to the derived mean- 
 ing (idols) may certainly be contained in the 
 words 'Tl 1D1D is theTe{ore=institutio vanitatum, 
 
 in the double sense of vain instruction and that 
 which treats of vanities. At the same time the 
 author may have had in mind an opposition to the 
 "chastisement of Jehovah" {''' IDIO) (Deut. xi. 
 
 2 ; Prov. iii. 11 ; Job v. 17). — Whatever also in idol 
 doctrine is declared great and glorious of the 
 idols is all vain lies and deceit. For the idol is 
 wood ! This points back to ver. 3, and at the 
 same time declares in contradiction of what fol- 
 lows, that, though the idols may be ornamented 
 with precious metals and material, the heart is 
 still always wood. X^H is used here, as in ver. 
 3, collectively with a contemptuous side-meaning. 
 Ver. 9. Silver plates are brought . . . ar- 
 tists' work are they all. 'D ^03 beaten 
 
 silver, therefore silver plates, comp. Gen. i. 6-8; 
 Numb. xvii. 3, 4. I do not think that these and 
 the following words are to be regarded as a con- 
 tinuation of It is wood or are brought, as 
 forming a relative sentence. For ver. 8 compared 
 with vers. 3, 4, is evidently intended to express 
 that the idol is wood, a common material, and 
 that the more precious metals, etc. are only the 
 
CHAP. X, 1-16. 
 
 121 
 
 shell which covers the base kernel. The thought 
 therefore that the idol is wood, silver and gold is 
 remote from the connection. For what object 
 silver and gold are brought from a great distance 
 is not expressly stated, but is understood from 
 the context, and especially from ver. 4. — Tar- 
 tessus in Spain is mentioned as producing silver 
 in Ezek. xxvii. 12. — The name I31X occurs be- 
 
 T 
 
 sides only in Dan. x. 5, where T31K ^f}?. is spoken 
 of. There are three views with respect to it: 1. 
 Uphaz is designated as a real locality, and Boch- 
 ART {Phaleg. II. 27], supposes it to be Tabrobana 
 (Ceylon) where according to Ptolemy (VII. 4) 
 there was a river and harbor Phasis; (HiTzioand 
 FuERST, H. W. B. S. 87) a place in Yemen (comp. 
 Usal, Gen. x. 27; Ophir, Sheba, Ps. xlv. 10; 1 
 Chron. xxix. 4; Ps. Ixxii. 15); in which case 
 Uphaz may be regarded either as a compound of 
 1X=1K and T3 i. e. gold coast, or = Vipa9a (Hy- 
 
 phasis) ; 2. Uphaz is regarded as incorrectly 
 written for TfliX. So the Chaldee and Syriac, 
 Theodoret and many of the moderns; 3. T2Wp 
 is taken to be identical with I£31D purgatum 
 (Part. Hoph. from HD 1 Kings x. 18, Vid. 
 
 FuERST, Cone. p. 895). But since, 1. The hypo- 
 thesis of a scriptural error is opposed to the 
 critical principle of preferring the more difficult 
 reading; 2. Tartessus is designated only as a 
 land of silver never of gold (with the exception 
 of the general and later passage. Mace. viii. 3); 
 3. The East is elsewhere generally represented 
 as the home of gold (comp. Havila, Gen. ii. 11, 
 12; Ophir, Sheba, Mi «M/>ra) — and finally, 4. The 
 connection of the passage requires the thought 
 that the materials of the idols were brought from 
 the most distant and opposite places. I am in 
 favor of regarding Uphaz as a definite locality to 
 be sought in the East, although it is not possible 
 now to determine its position more exactly. — 
 The ■work of the smith is in apposition with 
 
 silver and gold. — n/pri blue, pj'lN red pur- 
 ple, comp. Exod. xxvi. 31, 36; xxvii. 16; xxviii. 
 8, 15, 33. — Artists' [lit. skilful ones] comp. ix. 
 16 ; Isai. xl. 20. 
 
 Ver. 10. But Jehovah... endure his wrath 
 In contrast to the merely imaginary deity of 
 the idols, Jehovah is designated as the true 
 God (r\DX in apposition, comp. Naegelsb. Gr. 
 § 66) in contrast to their lifelessness as the living 
 
 (D"n adject, comp. ii. 13 ; the plural as in Deut. 
 V. 23; 1 Sam. xvii. 26; Jer. xxiii. 36 coll.; Josh, 
 xxiv. 19; Isai. xxxvii. 4, 17. Vide Naegelsb. Gr. 
 I 105, 4, a) in contrast to their powerlessness 
 finally as the eternal governor (comp. Exod. xv. 
 18; Ps. X. 16; Ixvi. 7; xciii. 1 sqq.; xcvii. 1). 
 Before such a mighty God the earth trembles 
 (Exod. xix. 16 sqq.; Ps. Ixviii. 9; xcvii. 6; Nah. 
 i. 5) and the nations are not in a condition to 
 hold or to bear the fulness of His anger (the 
 figure is that of a vessel which is burst by the 
 liquid poured into it. Matt. ix. 17 ; comp. Jer. 
 ii. 13). 
 
 Ver. 11. Ye shall therefore say . . . under 
 the heaven. Houbiq\nt, Venema, D.\the, 
 Blayney, Dodeklein, Rosenmueller, Mauher, 
 EwALD, Graf, [Henderson — S. R. A.] and others 
 declare this verse to be a gloss which has crept | 
 
 into the text. Even Neumann {S. 549 Anm.) in- 
 clines to this view. I must also decide in its 
 favor. For 1. Since we must suspect the au- 
 thenticity of vers. 1-10, 12-16, we have no in- 
 terest in maintaining that of this verse, but a 
 reason is afforded for the insertion of the verse 
 just here. To the marginal gloss of a second a 
 third might have added a second gloss in a foreign 
 language. He would not have ventured to make 
 such an irrelevant addition to the text of the 
 prophet. Both glosses have in later times been 
 unjustifiably admitted into the text. Jeremiah 
 would certainly not have interrupted a Hebrew 
 discourse by a Chaldee interpolation, when he 
 elsewhere never uses this language, not even iu 
 the letter to the exiles, ch. xxix. The reasons 
 which have been adduced in favor of their au- 
 thenticity are specious only. They may be found 
 in Neumann, S. f»47, sqq. [ Vide a,\so Eng. Trans, 
 of Calvin, II. p. 31, n.—S. R. A.]. 2. The verse 
 breaks the connection in the most abrupt manner. 
 Ver. 12 is by this verse suspended in the air, 
 while without it, ver. 12 is connected quite regu- 
 larly with ver. 10. The assumption of a paren- 
 thesis also (J. D. Michaelis) does not avail. For 
 then the verse must be a necessary, not inter- 
 ruptive supplement to ver. 10, or preparation for 
 ver. 12, neither of which is the case. 
 
 Ver. 12. "Who made the earth . . . the hea- 
 vens — Who made (i^^lP) is in apposition to 
 
 the main idea of ver. 10: Jehovah Elohim. The 
 absence of the article before such a participle 
 standing in apposition after a JVom. determ. is 
 frequent. Comp. ii. 27 ; Ps. ix. 12 ; civ. 2-4 ; 
 Zech. xii. 1. Vide Naegelsb. Gr. \ 97, 2, a. — 
 The contents of vers. 12 and 13 serve by the enu- 
 meration of facts as a confirmation of ver. 11, 
 comp. ch. xxvii. 5; xxxii. 17. — established, 
 etc. comp. Ps. Ixv. 7; Ixxxix. 12; xciii. 1. — 
 spread out, etc. comp. civ. 2 ; Isai. xl. 22 ; 
 xliv. 24; Ii. 13; Zech. xii. 1. 
 
 Ver. 13 At the sound .... storehouses. 
 This verse, with the exception of the beginning 
 is found in Ps. cxxxv. 7. — Sound of his voice. 
 It is not necessary with Ewald to take this for 
 
 "710 ST\7h, or with MAURERfor I'^'lp nnS, or with 
 
 HiTZiQ to make Jion depend on IDH as the ob- 
 ject. For the words mean simply ad vocem, 
 quam edit. We are not then to take JHJ in the 
 general sense (on the noise which His giving 
 makes) but in the special sense which lies at the 
 root of the expression 7ip3 jJ^J (xii. 8 ; Ps. xlvi. 
 7; Ixviii. 34) i. e., "to make a noise, sound with 
 the voice." That the thunder is meant is evident 
 from the context. Thunder, lightning, clouds, 
 rain and storm are mentioned as the essential 
 constituents of a tempest, comp. xi. 16. 
 
 Vers. 14 and 15. Stupid are all . . . they 
 perish. In contrast to the living power of God 
 the vanity of the idols is again set forth. AVhile 
 before Jehovah, when He arises, all trembles and 
 is afraid, the worshippers of idols are by these 
 merely — put to shame. The two members of ver. 
 14 a, stand in the relation of explicative, not of 
 synonymous parallelism. The second is the ex- 
 planation and more exact definition of the first. 
 A change of reading therefore (mx into DDFIJ 
 
122 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 or of the usual meaning of the word (D^'l=^arte 
 factum, idol-image) is unnecessary. "^Jl^^ we 
 take in the explicative sense=to appear stupid, 
 to prove so, comp. Isai. xix. 11; Ewald, § 123, 
 b. r>^!|0 v?ithout insight, comp. Naegelsb. Gr. 
 g 112, 5, d. — Men appear in the entire naked- 
 ness of their stupidity, in so far as they are put 
 to shame by their idols, which are not God, but 
 dead castings. — "Work of deceit. The sense 
 is: a work by which they themselves are stulti- 
 fied and put to shame who make it. 
 
 Ver. 16. Not like these ... is his name. 
 The worshippers of .Jehovah are yet again com- 
 prised with the idolaters, Jehovah is opposed to the 
 idols, and the whole force of the demonstration 
 
 is concentrated into the significant name of th« 
 true God. The first hemistich falls into two 
 members. 1. Not like these is the portion of Jacob. 
 The expression portion of Jacob reminds us 
 of Deut. xxxii. 9 ; Ps. xvi. 5. Observe how by 
 this expression Jehovah and His servants are 
 aptly comprised together. 2. Again the first sen- 
 tence has a double basis: as former of all things 
 Jehovah is not like the idols, and as those who 
 have this God for their portion and inheritance 
 the Israelites are not like the heathen. — Stock 
 of his inheritance. Comp. Deut. iv. 20; Ps. 
 Ixxiv. 2. — On the relation of this passage to li. 
 19, and of the Hebrew original of the Alexan- 
 drian translation, consult Naegelsb. Jeremia u. 
 Bab. S. 93, 131. 
 
 2. Beginning of the end of the retribution : Command to the people to retire ; Lament of the desolated 
 land; last watch-erg of the Prophet: the enemg is here! 
 
 X. 17-22.1 
 
 17 Pick up thy bundle* from the earth, thou that sittest' in distress ! 
 
 18 For thus saith Jehovah : Behold ! 
 
 I sling away the inhabitants of this land at this once, 
 And bring them into straits, that they may find it so. 
 
 19 Wo is me for my hurt! My wound is incurable.* 
 
 But I say : this is now my suffering and I will bear it. 
 
 20 My tent is laid waste and all my cords are broken.^ 
 My children forsake me and are never here. 
 
 There is none to pitch my tent and set up my curtains , 
 
 21 For the pastors are become stupid and seek not Jehovah. 
 
 Hence they have effected nothing prudent and their whole flock is dispersed. 
 
 22 Hark, a message comes and great tumult out of the north country, 
 That the cities of Judah are to become a desolation, 
 
 For the habitation of jackals. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 This strophe apart from the general relationship which it bears to chh. vii.ix., also has many particular points of con- 
 nection with this passage, especially with viil. 13 sqq. Comp. ver. ITwith viii. 14— _I?Vlp, ver. ISwith "iriDStyn vii. 15.— 
 
 1-13K/ ver. 19 with vUi. 21.— ''JK:f'' ver. 20 with ■IJDi;/ i^- 18.— j'li):; X^^J?. '^^''- ^^ ^'*^ '*'"'• 1^.— njl DIE'S ver. 22 
 
 2 Ver. iV.— n^J3 (aT Acy) from _jrj3= the bowed together, twisted together, pack, bundle. On 'iJDX comp. Olsh. 
 
 T T : ~ T * : • 
 
 3'ver. 17.— The Keri jn^UT is superfluous. Comp. xxii. 'IS; Gen. xlix. 11; Hos. x. 11; Olsh. g 123, d.: Naeqelsb. 
 
 Cfr. g 43, 1. On the construct state before prepositions, comp. lb. g 63, 4 c. [Henderson renders : inhabiters of the siege.] 
 
 * Ver. 19.- nSn J (OLSn.^ns. g 2G6, a). Comp. xiv. 17 ; xxx. 12. [Hendersox : My stroke is grievous.] 
 6 Ver. 20. — [Henderson : all my tent pins aru plucked up, but without reason. — S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 After by ix. 25 it is affirmed that the last and 
 only means of safety is despised the prophet now 
 in vers. 17 and 18 addresses a command to the 
 people to remove into exile. The now desolated 
 land is hereupon introduced as lamenting its 
 misfortune and its causes (vers. 19-21). At last 
 the prophet announces, as a herald or watchman 
 
 on the lookout, that the enemy (long predicted 
 and called to execute judgment) is present (ver. 
 22). 
 
 Ver. 17. Pick up thy bundle . . . dis- 
 tress. It is the prophet who speaks. — 1*."????= 
 from the earth, away from the ground, for here 
 we have to do not with the retirement of the pos- 
 sessors from the country, but only of the hasty 
 gathering up of the few eflfects, which a poor ex- 
 ile might take with him. The word "bundle" 
 
CHAP. X. 23-25. 
 
 123 
 
 has therefore a contemptuous side-meaning. — In 
 distress. The prophet speaks this of the people 
 already severely distressed by the enemy in the 
 cities whither they have fled, viii. 14. Comp. xix 
 9; lii. 5. 
 
 Ver. 18. For thus saith Jehovah . . . may 
 find it so. .Jehovah Himself is now introduced 
 as speaking, to give a reason for tlie command in 
 ver. 17. — Since the time of the Judges the people 
 had often been oppressed by foreign enemies within 
 their borders, now they are to be dragged far 
 away into banishment, comp. Isa. xxii. 17 — 
 
 That they may find it so. 1N2fD^ |;'dV This 
 
 expression, which has been very variously inter- 
 preted is explained most easily by remembering, 
 a. its relation to bring into straits, b. the ease of 
 supplying the indeiinite object "it" (Naegelsb. 
 Gr., ^ 78, 2 Anm.), c. the close connection of the 
 ideas "to find" and "to know." With respect to 
 the latter, I refer especially to Eccles. viii. 17 
 (and I saw that man cannot find all God's work, 
 that is done under the sua; though a man labor 
 to seek [it], yet he finds it not, and though a wise 
 man think to know [it], yet can he not find it). 
 Comp. also Jer. xvi. 21. — He who is driven into 
 straits must go whither he is driven. So God by 
 afiliction drives Israel into such straits that they 
 must find, i. e., know what it is above all neces- 
 sary and desirable for them to know, that great 
 "it," namely, which though unnamed, is well 
 understood. Chap. Isa. xliii. 20; Hos. ix. 7. 
 
 Vers. 19 and 20. Wo is me . . . set up my 
 curtains. That both these verses are the words 
 of the country personified, is seen from "my 
 •hildren," etc., in ver. 20, for neither the prophet 
 
 says this, nor the people, who are identical with the 
 children and not forsaken, but forsaking. — And 
 I say. In these words also we have a proof 
 that the land is the speaker. For the words ex- 
 press no consciousness of guilt, but a comfort, 
 which the innocent land alone could find, in the 
 fact that a calamity is laid upon it, which must 
 be borne. At the same time we perceive in these 
 words the first gleam of hope in a future deliver- 
 ance. For men speak thus composedly only when 
 they know that they will not have to bear per- 
 petual but only transient suflEering. Comp. v. 4. 
 Also the suffixes of the Isfc Pers. in ver. 20 are 
 in favor of the land as the speaker. — Forsake 
 me. Comp. Gen. xliv. 4; Numb. xxxv. 26; 
 Naegelsb. Gr., I 70, b. 
 
 Ver. 21. For the pastors are become stu- 
 pid . . . dispersed. The land is the speaker: 
 1. on account of "'3; 2. because the metaphor of 
 pastoral life is continued ; 8. because in the 
 mouth of the land this statement does not appear 
 as the repetition of things which have been al- 
 ready frequently said, but as it were a confirma- 
 tory testimony from an impartial witness. — Be- 
 come stupid. Comp. ver. 8, — effect nothing 
 prudent. The meaning is to eff"ect that which 
 is prudent, sensible and in so far also prosptjr- 
 ous, comp. XX. 11; Prov. xvii. 8. 
 
 Ver. 22. Hark, a message . . . jackal. — 
 These words are, as it were, a last watch-cah 
 and signal which denotes (comp. i. 14; iv. 6; vi. 
 1, 22; viii. 16) that the enemy so frequently an- 
 nounced is present. — For a habitation, comp. 
 ix. 10. 
 
 3. Comolatory glance into the future. 
 X. 23-25. 
 
 23 I know, Jehovah, that not to man belongs his way, 
 It is not in man that walketh to direct his steps.^ 
 
 24 Correct me, Jehovah, but only as it is just. 
 
 Not in thine anger, lest thou bring me to nothing. 
 
 25 Pour out thy wrath on the nations that know thee not, 
 And on the nations that call not on thy name ; 
 
 For they have devoured Jacob, yea they consumed and destroyed him, 
 And his pasture have they laid waste. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 ^ Ver. 23. — v^ |'3nV Prom the LXX. (ouSe ovrjp Tropeuo-erai koI KaTopdunrei nopeCav avTov) and the Vulgate (necviri est, 
 tit amhulet et dirigat gressus stios), we might conclude that they read jOm ^ /H, if we might assume any exactness in 
 these translations, and if it were not evident from the Chaldee (jpnoi 7"X"i qui ambalat et dirigit), and the Syriac, that 
 they also read ^/D- It is impossible to justify the Tau grammatically, when it stands before the infinitive. EvenEWALD 
 has accomplished nothing by reference to § S-l-l, a. Gaab, by transposing the Vau, would read 13 7(1, which is an equally 
 unusual construction, and gives a feeble sense. The easiest way would be to read T^H 7) 'f the very facility of this reading 
 did Qot stand in its way. The general meaning is clear, but we must abandon for the present an exact determination of th« 
 word. 
 
V2i 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 These verses form a very appropriate conclu- 
 Bion. They iuvolve an huiiust confession of sin 
 in view of the numerous charges of the discourse. 
 To the threatenings of punishment, however, cor- 
 responds the petition to punish not too severely, 
 not in anger, but to pour out the fury on tlie 
 heathen nations; the basis of which petition is 
 the theocratic hope that Israel cannot be wholly 
 rejected, but there must in the future be a day 
 of grace for them, and vengeance on their ene- 
 mies. The prophet must be regarded as the 
 speaker, but as speaking not in his own name, 
 but in that of the people. 
 
 Ver. 23. I know . . . his steps. Man has 
 not the power to determine how and where he 
 will go. Comp. Ps. xxxvii. 23; Prov. xvi. 1, 9; 
 
 xix. 21.— '^Hn is taken by HiTZiG=perishable, 
 mortal. And the word, according to passages 
 like Ps. xxxix. 14; Iviii. 9; cix. 23; Job xix. 10, 
 cannot be denied this meaning. But since the 
 most natural sense: it is not for man, so long as 
 he walks, to determine his course — seems equally 
 appropriate, the word may be regarded as having 
 a double sense, or, as uniting both these meanings. 
 Vers. 24 and 25. Correct me . . . and his 
 pasture have they laid waste. In ver. 23 
 the thought is implicitly contained that Israel 
 had wished in his own strength to walk in his 
 own way contrary to the will of God. He now 
 sees how greatly he has sinned and submits to 
 the necessary and merited punishment, praying 
 only for the utmost possible mildness and forbear- 
 ance. The final conversion and re-acceptance of 
 the people is thus set forth as prospective. — As 
 is just, comp. XXX. 11; xlvi. 28. As was re- 
 marked on vii. 5 ; ix. 23, justice in the Old Testa- 
 ment is not opposed to grace, but to brutal vio- 
 lence. The antithesis of pH^ is not to TpH, but 
 
 to V'"^;^ the violence (p'^j?) exercised toward the 
 poor, the stranger, orphan and widow. In con- 
 trast to this he who consciously maintains the 
 straight line of justice appears fairly disposed 
 and mild, not making his subjective desires his 
 law, but submitting himself to the objective law. 
 Accordingly this as it is just, which evidently 
 has its antithesis in the following: in thine an- 
 ger, also involves the idea of mildness, because 
 justice in contrast to that anger which is ite own 
 law, and respects no other, appears like mild- 
 ness. It must be granted that this dualistic con- 
 ception of God as just towards Israel, but wrath- 
 ful towards the heathen, is not that of the New 
 Testament. That it is the genuine Old Testa- 
 ment view is shown by passages like Ps. vi. 2; 
 xxxviii. 2; Ixxix. (where in vers. 6 and 7 our 
 ver. 24 is reproduced); cxxxvii. 8. Observe, 
 moreover, how the prophet here turns the tables. 
 To Israel, now being severely punished, he pre- 
 sents the prospect of grace, but before the hea- 
 then, who are now God's instruments in the pun- 
 ishment of Israel, is.complete destruction. Comp. 
 Isa. xlvii. 6; Hab. i. 11 ; iii. 8-12, and Jer. 1. and 
 li., especially 1. 10 sqq. — The repetition and ac- 
 cumulation of verbs in 25 b, is to portray graphi- 
 tally the rage of the enemies, comp. li. 84. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On ver. 6. There cannot be two highest Be- 
 ings, or there would be noue. In the idea of the 
 Absolute is involved that of uniqueness. Poly- 
 theism has therefore no highest Being in the ab- 
 solute sense. Where, however, traces of such 
 are found, polytheism is about either to rise to 
 monotheism (comp. Friedrich Naegelsbach, 
 nachhom. Theol. S. 140), or to dissolve into pan- 
 theism. 
 
 2. "Who shall not fear thee? etc., ver. 7, 
 Ghislerds remarks: " (S*. Remigius, Episc. Rhe- 
 mensis ex hoc loco probat, multos ex geiitibus credidisse 
 et placuisse Deo, additque in hoc multo magis diet 
 Deum gentium, quoniam multo plures credunt in eum 
 ex gentibus, quam ex Judseis.^' Comp. Rom. ii. 14, 
 15, and Tholuck ad h. I. — John i. 4 {16yoq a-n-ep- 
 /laTiKdg). 
 
 8. Augustine remarks on the Infinity of God, 
 de Trin., V. 1. "I7itelligimus Deum sine qualitate 
 bonum, sine quantitate magnum, sine indigentia cre- 
 atorein, sin" stluprxsentem, sine habitu omnia con- 
 tinentem, sine loco uhique totum, sine tempore sempi- 
 ternum, sine ulla sui mutalione mutabilia facientem 
 nihilque patientem." 
 
 4. On ver. 10. In hemist. a, a proof of the 
 Trinity has been repeatedly found. So ex. gr., 
 Hailbrunner (Jer. proph. monumenta in locos 
 comm. Theol. digesta, Lauingen, 1586, page 38), 
 FoRSTER {S. 61), and among the moderns Neu- 
 mann (<?. 547). The latter says . . . "the passage 
 afl"ord3 a sure testimony of the trinitarian view 
 of God in the Old Testament; the truth of the 
 Spirit, the life of the Father, the kingdom of the 
 Son, comprising in themselves the fulness of all 
 emanations of the divine existence in opposition 
 to heathen superstition." But against this it may 
 be urged that in opposition to the multiplicity of 
 idols the author had to set forth not the trinity, 
 but the unity of the divine nature, as he has done 
 in vers. 6 and 7, and that his purpose here (ver. 
 10) is merely to contrast the false gods with the 
 true, the dead with the living, the powerless with 
 the Almighty. That the contrast is exhibited in 
 three points, we are not indeed to regard as ac- 
 cidental, but to explain it rather by the general 
 significance of the number three, than by the 
 purpose of intimating the Trinity. 
 
 5. On ver. 14: ^^All men are fools. Ye fools 
 and blind, says our Saviour (Matt, xxiii). Such 
 a word, spoken in season takes hold and pro- 
 duces conviction; but it must be administered 
 with spirit and fire; for if it is only human 
 words to men, they will make a quarrel out of 
 
 them." ZiNZENDORF. 
 
 6. On ver. 14 (A lie is their casting). This 
 applies not only to the idols which men make of 
 earthly materials, but to all self-made idols of 
 the heart. The carnal mind, which tends down- 
 wards, feels annoyed by the nearness of God, 
 and seeks therefore at all times to escape from 
 it. But since man cannot do without God, he 
 makes himself a god or gods, as he wants them. 
 Whether these gods are visible and palpable 
 images, or the abstract forms of speculation, the 
 words of the text always apply to them; they 
 are a lie, and there is no spirit in them. Ac- 
 cordingly there is heathenism enough in the 
 
CHAP. X. 23-25. 
 
 125 
 
 midst of Christianity, and it may be asked, which 
 is worse, the new or the old ? 
 
 7. On ver. 16. What perfect historical reality 
 and peisoiiality is here! A creator of the uni- 
 verse stands before us, one therefore, who has 
 called all things into existence by His free, per- 
 sonal will, and who at the same time as the liv- 
 ing personal Head of all the spirits governing 
 the world is infinitely exalted above every limi- 
 ted local deity. But at the same time the re- 
 lation of this Deity to the world is not an ab- 
 stract, and general, but a living and personal 
 relation. For this God primarily holds immediate 
 personal intercourse with one nation of the earth, 
 as a father with his son, and He is this nation's 
 greatest treasure and inalienable property, as on 
 the other hand the nation belongs to Him as the 
 object of His free personal election, which none 
 may dispute or annul. 
 
 8. On ver. 19 (I must bear it). " I pray all 
 teachers for God's sake, that they reflect and err 
 not, that they do not, in order to retain their liv- 
 ing, repeat these words of Jeremiah, and cover 
 up their laziness, ill-success, frivolity, their own 
 unfruitfulness and selfishness, with the excuse, 
 ♦ this is my plague.' no, what we should call 
 a plague is burdens of a hundred-weight, from 
 which we long to be freed, which crush us al- 
 most to death; persons from whom we would flee 
 as a bird from a cage; a pressure under which 
 we are martyred with shame, and yet have no 
 permission to depart. These lead one finally, 
 after mauy struggles and cries unto the Lord for 
 his dismission, and after an answer of absolute 
 denial, to say in calmness: I believe this is now 
 my plague, and I must bear it." Zinzendorf. 
 
 9. On ver. 20. "The jealousy of the Saviour 
 is so strict, that He will have His children di- 
 rected to Him (Isa. xlv. 11), and the idea of the 
 pastoral office with which some good teachers are 
 infected, of regarding and treating souls as their 
 souls, sheep as their sheep, children as their chil- 
 dren, is in the highest degree opposed to His will. 
 Hence He often, for a just judgment, does not al- 
 low their joy in souls to last, but lets them see and 
 conclude more of their decline and less of their 
 success, than there really is. For He will not 
 give His glory to another, and the teachers are not 
 Christ, but sent by Him, before ffem." Zinzendorf. 
 
 10. On ver. 21. " .\s sheep must either starve 
 or be led to filthy and poisonous pasture, if their 
 shepherds are fools, who do not know how to 
 manage sheep, so is this much moj-e the case in 
 the spiritual pastorate." Cramer. 
 
 11. On ver. 23. " The steps of every man are 
 ordered by the Lord, what man understands His 
 way? (Prov. xx. 24). And every man's way is 
 right in his own eyes, but the Lord alone maketh 
 the hearts certain (Prov. xxi. 2). Therefore we 
 must pray: Lord, make known to me the way in 
 which I should walk, for after Thee is my desire. 
 Teach me to do Thy will, for Thou art my God; 
 let Thy good Spirit guide me in a plain path{Ps. 
 cxliii. H-10)." Cramer. 
 
 12. On ver. 23. '• Cerium est, nos velle, cum vo- 
 lumus, sed ilk facit, ut velivitm honum, de quo dic- 
 tum est, quod prxparatur voluntas a Domino (Prov. 
 viii. 3-5 sec. Sept.) Certum est. nos facere, cam fa- 
 cimua, sed ille facit, ut faciamus prxhendo vires cffi- 
 iacissimas voluntati, qui dixit ; faciam ut in juslifi- 
 
 cationibus meis ambuletis et judicia mea observetia 
 (Ezek. xxxvi. 26, 27)." Augustin. De grat. et 
 lib. arbitr. Cap 16. 
 
 13. On ver. 24. " There is a beautiful distinc- 
 tion between the suffering and punishment of 
 the pious and the ungodly, which consists in modo 
 et in fine. For when God chastises the pious He 
 does it not with anger and fury, bui as a discreet 
 and kind father or teacher may discipline his son 
 and disciple, without ill-humor. Thus also God 
 does with His children. He does it, not that He 
 may bring them to nothing, but that they may 
 not esteem themselves innocent (xxx. 11). On 
 the other hand he makes an end of the ungodly, 
 and they must drink up the dregs (Ps. Ixxv. 
 8)." Cr.^mer. 
 
 14. On ver. 25. " Quseri potest hie, an contra 
 infidcles, ut hodie sunt Turcse et Judsei, orandum ? 
 Orandum est contra eos et pro i-s. Contra eos, quate- 
 nus pcrseqmintur ecclesiam, pro w.t, quatenus ecclesiam 
 non persequuntur, ut convertantur, quemadmoduiii fit 
 tn Litania ; forgive our enemies, persecutors and 
 slanderers, and turn their hearts." Foester. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. [On ver. 7. Saurin: — Fear maybe 1. Ter- 
 ror. 2. A disposition to render God all the wor- 
 ship He requires, to submit to all the laws He im- 
 poses, to conceive all the emotions of admiration, 
 devotedness and love, which the eminence of His 
 perfections demands. 3. A disposition which 
 considers Him as alone possessing all that can 
 contribute to our happiness and misery. In the 
 last sense (which is meant here) God is the only 
 object of fear ; for 1. God is a being whose will 
 is self-efficient; 2. the only being who can act 
 immediately on spiritual souls ; 3. the only be- 
 ing who can make all creatures concur in His 
 designs."— S. R. A.] 
 
 2. On ver. 10. There are three main forms of 
 idolatry : 1. Polytheism, which does not deny the 
 predicates of deity, but attributes ihem to false 
 subjects. — 2. Pantheism, which denies the sub- 
 jects and the predicates. — 3. Deism, which con- 
 fesses the subject but denies the predicates. — 
 These errors are opposed in ver. 10, from which 
 we derive the theme: — The Scriptural doctrine 
 of God in opposition to the errors of idolatry. — • 
 This teaches us to know God, 1. as the true, real 
 God in opposition to those who attribute the di- 
 vine properties to imaginary false gods ; 2. as 
 the living God in opposition to those who repre- 
 sent God as a mere all-pervading force ; 3. as 
 the eternal King, in opposition to those who re- 
 present God only as a transient work-master, 
 and not as the ever active ruler of the world. 
 
 3. There isa homily of Origen (Horn. VIII. ed. 
 Lomjiatzsch) on vers. 12-14, in which by the earth 
 
 he understands the body, by 73r> [o'lKovfievi]) the 
 
 soul, by the heavens the spirit. The clouds (mist) 
 ver. 13 from the ends of the earth are the saints 
 whom God has chosen from the least of the earth. 
 
 4. On vers. 14-16. It is manifest that the task 
 of religion is not to make God, but to receive 
 Him, who is, in faith. Every manufactured god 
 is an idol, be it a visible one made with hands, 
 or an invisible one made only in thought. The 
 latter kind of idolatry is alas ! very prevalent 
 
126 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 among us Christians. For a warning against 
 such ruinous heresies, and for the confirmation 
 of our faith in the God, whom as Christians we 
 ought to serve, we institute on the basis of the 
 text, a comparison between the manufactured 
 gods and the God, of whom the Scriptures teach 
 us. I. The manufactured gods, 1. are deceit, 
 etc., vers. 14, b; 15, a. 2. They perish when 
 they are visited (in the day of divine judgment 
 upon tbem they vanish into nothing). 8. Those 
 who made them are with all their skill put to 
 shame. II. The God, of whom the Holy Scrip- 
 tures teach us. 1. He is not a lifeless deceptive 
 image, for He has created all things, the visible 
 and the invisible (Jehovah Zebaoth). 2. Being 
 the source of all life He cannot perish. 3. Those 
 who serve Him are not put to shame, for He is 
 their treasure, as they again are His heritage 
 (He is not only infinitely exalted above time and 
 •pace, t)ut infinitely near us, His children). 
 
 5. On ver. 10. From these words of the pro- 
 phet we may learn what it is in great affliction 
 and sorrow of heart to bow under the mighty hand of 
 God. It is 1, that a man recognize the suffering 
 as his suffering, i. e., (a) as that which he has him- 
 self prepared, (6) as tliat which is right for him, 
 i. e., not too heavy and not too light, but exactly 
 corresponding to its beneficent purpose; 2, that 
 they suffer willingly, (a) in patience, (6) in hope. 
 
 6. On ver. 23. Theme: Man proposes, God 
 disposes. This is 1, a humbling of our pride, 2, 
 a strong support of our hope. 
 
 Note. — Forster remarks that these words 
 may serve for the text of a concio valedictoria. 
 
 7. On ver. 25. Theme: How we should behave 
 under the chastisements of God. 1. We should 
 humbly submit to them as necessary and whole- 
 some means of improvement. 2. We should be 
 certain that they will not then transgress those 
 bounds nor proceed to our destruction. 
 
 4. FOURTH DISCOURSE. 
 
 (Chapters XL— XII.) 
 
 WITH AN APPENDIX. CHAP. XIII. 
 
 The three chapters xi.-xiii. are headed in common by a longer superscription (xi. 1) such as those with which 
 Jeremiah is accustomed to introduce the greater sections. A similar one occurs again in xiv. 1. But 
 chaps, xi. and xii. only form a connected whole, as will hereafter be shown. In the passage xii. 14, 
 where the prophet speaks of the wicked neighbors by which the inheritance of Israel was assailed, an 
 allusion has been found to the event reported in 2 Kings xxiv. 2 and the time of composition of this dis- 
 course determined accordingly. {So Dahler, Maurer, Hitziq, Umbreit, Graf). The discourse 
 would accordingly pertain to the end of the reign of Jehoiakim. But m this case Jeremiah must have 
 named the Chaldeans as the instruments of punishment, as he does without exception in all the dis- 
 courses delivered after the battle of Carchemish. The fact that the Chaldeans are not mentioned is a 
 sure sign that the discourse ivas delivered before the date mentioned, which falls in the fourth year of 
 Jehoiakim (xxv. 1 ; xlvi. 2). Since now in the lifetime of Josiah a violation of covenant in the degree 
 with tvhich the people are reproached in xi. 9-13 {observe especially ver. 13) is not to be thought of, and 
 the three months' reign of Jehoahaz is scarcely worth consideration, we are referred to the first 
 years of Jehoiakim, consequently the same period to which the preceding discourse (ch. vii. 10) belongs. 
 If what is said in xii. 9 sqq. of wicked neighbors has some reference to 2 Kings xxiv. 2 it can only be 
 that we may perceive in the latter the at least partial fulfilment of the former. Comp. the comments on 
 xii. 14. — Ch. xiii. is not connected with chaps, xi. and xii. It forms a well-compacted whole, the 
 time and-origin of which may be perceived partly from itssilence ivith respect to the Chaldeans, and partly 
 from what is said concerning the pride of the king. It must likewise belong to the first years of Jehoia- 
 kim. Comp. the preliminary remarks ore ch. xiii. The principle of chronological arrangement is here 
 also perceptible. 
 
 tliat xii. 7-17 is not a later addition, as Mauree, Hitziq and Graf suppose, is evident, as it seems to 
 me, from the structure of the loliole. 
 
 The fundamental thought of the discourse is : 
 
 The contrast of the covenant and conspiracy. 
 
 (nn3 and It^^p...) 
 
 1. Reminder of the recent renewal under Josiah of the covenant between Jehovah and the people, xi. 1-8. 
 
 2. First stage of the conspiracy ; entire Israel, instead of keeping the covenant with Jehovah, conspires 
 
 against Ilim, xi. 9-13. 
 
 3. Puni.thmerU of the conspiracy an inevitable, severe judgment, xi. 14-17. {Appendix to the previous 
 
 strophe). 
 
 4. Second stage of the conspiracy : the plot of the Anatoiites, xi. 18-23. 
 
 6. Third stage of the conspiracy : the plot in the prophet's own family, xii. 1-6. 
 
 6. The conspiracy of Israel punished by the conspiracy of the neighbors against them, xii. 7-13. 
 
 7. Solution of all antitheses by the final union of all in the Lord, xii. 14-17. 
 
CHAP. XI. 1-8. 
 
 127 
 
 Chapter XI. 
 1. Reminder of the recent renewal under Josiah of the Covenant between Jehovah and the people. 
 
 XI. 1-8. 
 
 1 The word which came to Jeremiah from Jehovah, saying : 
 
 2 Hear ye the words of this covenant, 
 And speak ye to the men of Judah, 
 And to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 
 
 3 And say to them : Thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel : 
 Cursed^ be the man who hears not the words of this covenant, 
 
 4 Which I commanded to your fathers 
 
 In the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, 
 
 And out of the iron furnace, saying, 
 
 Hearken ye unto my voice and do them [my commands] 
 
 According to all that which I command you ; 
 
 So shall ye be my people and I will be your God ; 
 
 5 To perform the oath which I swore to your fathers; 
 
 To give them a land flowing with milk and honey, as it is this day. 
 And I said. Amen, Jehovah I 
 
 6 And Jehovah said unto me. 
 
 Proclaim all these words in the city of Judah 
 
 And in the streets of Jerusalem, saying, 
 
 Hear ye the words of this covenant and do them ! 
 
 7 For I testified to your fathers on the day* 
 That I brought them out of the land of Egypt, 
 Evea to this day urgently and unceasingly : 
 Hearken ye unto my voice ! 
 
 8 But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear. 
 
 And went, every man in the hardness of his wicked heart ; 
 And I brought upon them all the words of this covenant. 
 Which I commanded them to keep ; but they kept them not. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 iTer. 3. — i-l "IIIX ver. 3, and the corresponding ?"3X, ver. 5, remind us of Deut. xxvii. 15aqq., especially ver. 26.— 
 IRON FURNACE is found only in Deut. iv. 20 and (as a quotation) in 1 Ki. viii. 51. ^'\ lj;n is not exclusively yet especially pe- 
 culiar to Deut., since besides Gen. xliii. 3 ; Exod. six. 21, '21 it occurs in the Pentateuch only Deut. i v. 26 ; viii. 19 ; xxx. 10 ; 
 xxxi. -If, ; xxxii. 46. — HITIiy ver. S, is found in the Pentateuch only in Deut. xxix. 18. Also the expressions so shall ye bt 
 
 my people, ver. 4, and a land flowing, etc., are not indeed peculiar to, but very common in Deuteronomy. (Comp. in reference 
 to the former Exod. vi. 7 ; Levit. xxvi. 12 ; and Deut. iv. 20 ; vii. 6 ; xiv. 2 ; xxvi. 18; xxix. 9 ; xxix. 12, — in reference to 
 the latter Exod. iii. 8, 17, and Deut. vi. 3 ; xi. 9 ; xxvi. 9, 15 ; xxvii. 3 ; xxxi. 2U). 
 
 2 Ver. 7. — QV2 we should expect QTD- The former is perhaps occasioned by DV3, ver. i. 
 
 EXEGETIOAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This strophe forms the basis of the discourse. 
 It must therefore, to be understood, be rendered 
 in closest connection with what follows. It re- 
 lates how the Lord once (in the 18th year of king 
 Josiah, 2 Kings xxii.), after the discovery of the 
 book of the law, admonished to the observance of 
 the covenant formed between him and their fa- 
 thers, and especially according to the standard 
 of the 5th book of the Torah, both on the whole 
 (yers. 1-5) and particulars («. e., by repeated pro- 
 clamation in the cities of Judah and streets of 
 Jerusalem, vers. 6-8) indicating both the blessed 
 consequences of covenant-fidelity (vers. 4 and 5) 
 and the ruinous consequences of infidelity (ver. 
 8). In so far as Ter. 10 relates the breach of the 
 
 covenant so expressly enjoined in this strophe it 
 is seen that this injunction must have been made 
 previously, that therefore this strophe gives a 
 representation of a past fact. But so far as the 
 strophe reports only this inculcation of the cove- 
 nant it is clear that it points to something later 
 than its redintegration. 
 
 Vers. 1 and 2. The word ■which came , . . 
 and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. The 
 superscription is like vii. 1. — Hear, etc. Since, 
 as previously remarked, what follows is to be re- 
 garded as the narrative of a fact which occurred 
 in foi-mer times, hear does not refer to the con- 
 tents of the word proclaimed in ver. 1, but of an 
 earlier word. Ver. 1 refers therefore to the 
 whole discourse, and before hear is to be sup- 
 plied an introductory formula leading back to 
 the real time of this inculcation of the cove- 
 
128 
 
 THE PROPHET JERExMIAH. 
 
 naut. The subject of hear is most probably 
 according to ver. 6, tlie people of Judab aud Je- 
 rusalem. The words stand at the head as a 
 general call of awakening and admoniiioa. 
 Dn"12Tl, LXX., Kal XaX//C£ig, which recommends 
 the reading Di"\13'11. But according to the read- 
 ing of the text it is the priests, elders aud pro- 
 phets, who in 2 Kings xxii. 1 ; 2 Chron. xxxiv. 29, 
 are expressly mentioned as participating in the 
 covenant. There are as it were three concentric 
 circles. The smallest represents Jeremiah, who 
 would bring home to the people the importance 
 of keeping the. covenant. But it cannot be de- 
 nied that the want of an express designation of 
 the subject is remarkable. Perhaps the brevity 
 of the expression may be thus explained that the 
 prophet wished to give mere hints, knowing that 
 these would be sufficient to recall to the mem- 
 ory of his hearers the former more extended 
 discourses. — The -words of this covenant. 
 The pronoun this designates the covenant as one 
 before their eyes and well-known. Comp. this 
 passage with 2 Kings xxii. and xxiii. ; 2 Chron. 
 xxxiv. ( Vid., especially 2 Kings xxiii. 3, coll. 
 xxii. 13; xxiii. 2 ; 2 Chron. xxxiv. 30), and there 
 can be no doubt that by the words this cove- 
 nant in vers. 2, 3, 6, 8, is meant that, the ar- 
 chives of which were contained in the book found 
 by Hezekiah. The expression is found besides 
 only in Deut. (v. 3; xxix. 13). The expression, 
 •words of the covenant, besides 2 Kings xxiii. 
 2 ; 2 Chron. xxxiv. 30, is found only Deut. xxviii. 
 69 ; xxix. 8, and in Jer. xxxiv. 18. This passage 
 also (to anticipate) contains several references to 
 Deuteronomy, from which it follows that the cove- 
 nant-record, which both Jeremiah in this pas- 
 sage and the authors of the books of Kings and 
 Chronicles (2 Kings xx. and xxiii. ; 2 Chron. 
 xxxiv.) have in view, is to be understood at least 
 primarily and especially to be Deuteronomy. — 
 Men of Judah. Comp. rems. on iv. 4. On the 
 exchange of '7X and 7^, see rems. on x. 1. 
 
 Vers. 3-5. And say to them 
 
 Amen, 
 
 Jehovah! Jeremiah receives the special com- 
 mission to present before the people the impor- 
 tance of keeping the covenant: cursing and bles- 
 sing being dependent on it. While in vers. 3, 5, 
 the discourse seems to be addressed to the whole 
 of the people, it turns in vers. 6-8, to the par- 
 ticular portions. Further, while the prophet in 
 vers. 3-5 holds before the people the divine curse 
 and blessing, he seeks in vers. 6-8 to make an 
 impression on them by pointing to the fulfilment 
 of the curse already taken place on their diso- 
 bedient fathers. — In the day, etc. Comp. vii. 
 22; xxxiv. 13. — The pronoun them is to be re- 
 ferred to the plural conception of commands im- 
 plied in according to all, comp. Naegelsb. 
 Gr., ^ 61, 1. — To perform the oath. In order 
 to realize the existence of the oath, comp. Deut. 
 viii. 18, coll. ; xxvii. 26. — Amen, Jehovah is, 
 as remarked, a quotation from Deut. xxvii. 15 
 sqq The prophet gives it to be understood by 
 this A?nen, that he has understood the allusion 
 contained in cursed, ver. 3. 
 
 Vers. 6-8. And Jehovah said unto me . . . 
 but they kept them not. The prophet here 
 reads the commission given him in the 18th year 
 of Josiah, to make known the words of the cove- 
 nant by reading them not only in the central 
 sanctuary (comp. 2 Kings xxiii. 1-3), but also by 
 repeated readings in the cities of Judah and the 
 streets of Jerusalem. The prophet may have 
 accompanied king Josiah on his circuit, which is 
 spoken of in 2 Kings xxiii. 15-20. Since it was 
 the making known of a written document, the 
 proclamation is most probably meant in the 
 
 sense of reading, as N'^D generally signifies to 
 read aloud; comp. 2 Kings xxii. 8, 10, 16; xxiii. 
 2; Jer. xxxvi. 6, 8, 10, 13, e^c— For I testi- 
 fied. Comp Ps. 1. 7, and the previously cited 
 passages of Deut. — urgently. Comp. vii. 13, 25. 
 — But they hearkened not. Comp. vii. 24.i- 
 hardness. Comp. rems. on iii. 17. ' 
 
 2. Entire Israel, instead of keeping the covenant with Jehovah, enters into conspiracy against Him. 
 
 XI. 9-13. 
 
 9 And Jehovah said unto me, 
 
 A conspiracy is found among the men of Judah, 
 And among the citizens of Jerusalem. 
 10 They are returned to the sins of their fathers. 
 Who scorned to hear my words ; 
 And are gone after other gods, to serve them. 
 The house of Israel, and the house of Judah 
 Have broken the covenant which I made with their fathers. 
 Therefore thus saith Jehovah, Behold ! 
 I bring upon them evil, from which they cannot escape ; 
 And they will cry to me, but I will not hear them. 
 And the cities of Judah and citizens of Jerusalem shall go. 
 And cry to the gods to which they burn incense. 
 But help them — this they will not at the time of their calamity. 
 
 11 
 
 12 
 
CHAP. XI. 14-17. 
 
 12§ 
 
 13 For as the number of thy cities are thy gods, O Judah I 
 And as the number of the streets in Jerusalem 
 Have ye set up altars of shame, 
 Even altars to burn incense unto Baal, 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The Lord has made a covenant with the people, 
 but when the people are regarded now (at the time 
 when Jeremiah thus speaks), there is no longer 
 any trace of it (the covenant made in the reign of 
 Josiah) tobefound, but only conspiracy. The pro- 
 phet shows the existence of such a conspiracy in 
 three stages: 1, in the entire people of Israel 
 (vers. 9, 10) ; 2, among the people of Anathoth 
 (vers. 18-23) ; 3, in the prophet's own family (xii. 
 1-6). — In this strophe the existence of such con- 
 spiracy among the people in general is just stated 
 (vers. 9 and 10), then its punishment is an- 
 nounced, (ver. 11) which will be of such a nature 
 that the gods will be unable to deliver from it 
 (ver. 12), though Judah and Jerusalem worship 
 so large a number of them (ver. 13). 
 
 Vers. 9 and 10. A conspiracy is found . . . 
 ■which I made w^ith their fathers. On is 
 found (X3fOJ), comp. ii. 34; v. 26. 1K'p=con- 
 
 spiracy against the rightful Lord, in opposition 
 
 to the covenant (r>n3) which is in accordance 
 with right and duty. In such conspiracies the 
 time of the kings was especially rife (comp. 1 
 Kings xvi. 20; 2 Kings xii. 20; xiv. 19; xv. 15, 
 30; xvii. 4), as generally a disposition to con- 
 spire is attributed to the Jews (comp. Drechsler 
 on Isa. viii. 12; Acts xxiii. 12 sqq.). — The ex- 
 pression DK' presupposes the covenant mentioned 
 in ver. 1 sqq., and proves that this section is to 
 be regarded as a reminder of a past fact. — 
 House of Israel, etc. A comprehensive sur- 
 vey : not merely Judah and Jerusalem (ver. 9), 
 but Israel and Judah have broken the covenant. 
 Vers. 11-13. Therefore thus saith Jehovah 
 ... to burn incense to Baal. Announce- 
 ment of punishment. — For gives the reason and 
 explanation of the declaration of ver. 12, that 
 Israel will take refuge with the idols. This may 
 happen because they have idols in numbers, and 
 offer to them numerous acts of worship. — as the 
 number. Comp. ii. 28. — altars of shame. 
 Comp. rems. on iii. 24; Hos. ix. 10 
 
 3. The punishment of the conspiracy is an inevitable and severe judgment. 
 
 XL 14-17. 
 
 14 Therefore pray not thou for this people, 
 Nor raise for them crying and supplication ; 
 
 For I hear not, if they cry unto me on account of their calamity. 
 
 15 What has my beloved to do in my house? 
 To practise it — the enormity ? 
 
 Will crying and holy flesh take away from thee thy hurt ?^ 
 Then mayest thou exult ! 
 
 16 " Green olive-tree, splendid with goodly fruit," 
 Thus did Jehovah call thy name. 
 
 Amid rattling thunder he set fire to it ; 
 And they broke — its branches. 
 
 17 And Jehovah Zebaoth, who planted thee, 
 Hath pronounced evil against thee 
 
 " On account of the wickedness of the house of Israel and the house of Judah 
 Which they practised to their own hurt,'^ 
 Provoking me and burning incense to Baal." ' 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 15.— The text here is certainly corrupt; 1, because, as it reads at present, it affords no intelligible meaning; 2, 
 because the ancient translations indicate other readings. D"'3"^n especially is unintelligible, whether we connect it with 
 
 what goes before or after. The LXX. translate /htj cvxal koI Kpea ayia a(f>e\ov<Ti.v airo aov ra? Kaxta? <tov. They seem then 
 to have read D'llJn as some suppose, or more probably D'^TH (Bdxtorf, Maurer, Graf). This latter word, indeed, oc- 
 curs only in Ps. xxx.i. 7 in the expression inhi^ '51 : t>ut since the word is formed quite regularly (comp. pn, '2\ TJ/, «<«•) 
 the plural U'l^ (instead of D'ill, which elsewhere is certainly the form exclusively used : comp. Olsh., §156), being analo- 
 gous to the forms 'j;-!, 'JP, efc , since further Hil, also vii. 16; xi. 14; xiv. 12, coll. Ps. xvii. 1 ; 1 Ki. viii. 28, etc., signifies 
 
 supplication, prayer, and is translated in xi. 14; xiv. 12 by the LXX. SeTjcrw, since finally the idea of "beseeching, crying," 
 corresponds exactly to DNTp. I regard it as most probablo that D'JI was the original word in this place, but that th» 
 T :It 
 
 9 
 
130 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 •word, either purposely, because it does not occur elsewhere, or by mistake, was changed into the slightly differing form 
 
 O'i'l. If tlie question begins with □''iliri, the following 1 in '■1 "M^^^ is entirely in place.— tj;ib-1ty3 is found also in 
 
 •XT - : •.• I - : 
 
 Hagg. ii. 12 of the flesh of saoriflce. and scM-ms here especially to indicate the TTnlnraiiit'n or burnt-ofi'iTings, in which the flesh 
 of the animal is burnt (Levit. ij. Tlie tullowiiii; words also are scai-i-ely iulrlli-ilil ■ without an altrratimi of the text. We, 
 therefore, after the example of -many commentators, either render .113^'" as Hiph. (like OIT'''-'!^- Fi'de tw toe), or read 
 
 ^'^2^\ '^e connect '2 after tSj.'O (LXX., Ewald, Meier, etc ), and obtain the sense, Will t'h;/ prayers and sacrifices take 
 
 away thy loickedness (nj^T has the double sense^ln and punishment) from thee f The thought then corresponds exactly 
 
 to the close of ver. 14. 
 
 fBL.\yNF.Y renders : Shall vows and holy flesh be allowed to come from thee ? When thou art malignant, shalt thou then 
 rejoice? Notes and Henderson, adhering to the text, render, the former: While many pollute it with wickedness? — The 
 holy flesh shall pass away from thee. For when thou doest evil, thou rejoicest ; the latter : Committing as she doth the 
 manifold enormity? And the holy flesh hath passed away from thee, etc. It seems, however, strained to render this ex- 
 pression " pass away " of their sacrifices being unacceptable to God. — S. R. A.] 
 
 2 Ver. 17. — [Henderson: Which they committed against themselves.] 
 
 » Ver. 17.— On the infinitives 'JDj^DnS, IDpS- Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., \ 95, e. 
 
 EXEQETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This section is closely attached to the pre- 
 ceding as an appendix. In ver. 11 it was said 
 that a punishment of Israel was determined upon, 
 which they coald not escape. For neither will 
 the Lord hear their cries, nor the idols be able 
 to help them. — The thought I hear not (Ver. 11 
 6), is further explained in this strophe : 1. The 
 Lord will not even hear the prophet (ver. 14 a) ; 
 2, nor the people (ver. 14 h) even though they 
 offer prayers and sacrifices in His temple (ver. 
 15). Although the Lord even acknowledges Is- 
 rael to be a beautiful olive-tree which He Him- 
 self planted, yet He must adhere to His determi- 
 nation to punish on account of the wickedness 
 which Israel has practised (vers. 16 and 17). 
 
 Vers. 14 and 15. Therefore pray not thou 
 . , . then mayest thou exult. At first the 
 Lord explains that the intercession of the pro- 
 phet will be of no avail in the same words as in 
 yii. 16 coll. xiv. 11. He then says that the peo- 
 ple's own supplication to avert the calamity will 
 be in vain. This he elucidates in ver. 14, by 
 showing that this beseeching, though offered in 
 the temple and with sacrifices, is only a deceptive 
 mask, under which is hidden the object of con- 
 tinuing in sin. T'T is not Jehovah nor the pro- 
 phet, but the people, this being imperatively de- 
 manded by the sense of the question. What has 
 my beloved to do in my house? can be asked 
 only of such a beloved, whose appearance in the 
 house of the Lord is not welcome. This can be 
 Israel alone, who, although in themselves and 
 originally the beloved of Jehovah, have yet been 
 so estranged from Him, that the question may be 
 fairly asked, what this faithless beloved (now 
 ironically so called) has to do in the house of the 
 Lord ? The expression appears to be based on 
 Deut. xxxiii. 12, where Benjamin, in evident al- 
 lusion to his dwelling in the vicinity of the na- 
 tional sanctuary, is called the beloved of Jehovah. 
 Comp. besides Isa. v. 1: Ps. Ix. 7; cviii. 7; 
 cxxvii. 2. — The answer to the question is: To 
 practise it. . . the enormity. As to the con- 
 struction of these words, the anticipation of the 
 object by a pronoun is nothing unusual. Comp. 
 xxvii. 8; li. 56; 1 Sam. ix. 13; Naegelsb., Or., 
 § 77, 2. — But why this anticipation here? It 
 presupposes that the object has been already 
 mentioned, or is generally known. Now this 
 nSTJp, by which not any wickedness, but in ac- 
 cordance with the question, the hypocritical 
 
 pseudo-worship of Jehovah is to be understood, 
 has not been mentioned in the discourse hither- 
 to. But in rhetorical vivacity the prophet pre- 
 supposes as known, that which, now as before, 
 deeply troubles him, and which by the initial 
 words of the verse he has indicated with suf- 
 ficient plainness. The thought and the expres- 
 sion recall unmistakably (as Maurer remarks) 
 vii. 10: "and then ye come and stand before me 
 in the house which bears my name, and say, we 
 are hidden — to do all these abominations." As 
 here (vii. 10) the head of the wickedness is 
 foundin this, that Israel regard the temple-service 
 as a sort of sow-washing (2 Pet. ii. 22), to which 
 they betake themselves, not to purify themselves 
 thoroughly, but only to make room for fresh filth, 
 so in this passage the prophet says that Israel has 
 nothing to do in the house of the Lord, but "to 
 do it, the wickedness," namely, that described in 
 chap, vii , which, under the appearance of wish- 
 ing to be fri'ed from sin, only hides the object of 
 more completely committing it. Accordingly 
 nraiD is here to be taken in the sense in which it 
 
 T • : 
 
 most frequently occurs, viz., in that of evil de- 
 sign, of purposed, conscious wickedness (Ps. x. 
 2; xxi. 12; cxxxix. 20; Job xxi. 27, etc.). The 
 more full-sounding form (comp. Olsh. \ 133) has 
 a rhetorical reason, as also the rarer sufiix forms 
 following ''p. This double form, (which does not 
 occur elsewhere in Jeremiah) may both in itself 
 and in its accumulation, be for the purpose of 
 rhetorical effect and more particularly that of 
 irony. With this agrees the distinctly ironical 
 expression, then mayest thou exult, which 
 bears reference to -what has my beloved? etc., 
 that is, to the manner in which the proud and 
 secure people appeared in the temple. Not now, 
 the prophet means to say, but then may you ex- 
 ult, when your prayers and sacrifices have helped 
 you. 
 
 Vers. 16 and 17. Green olive-tree . . . in- 
 cense to Baal. Tlie occasion of the thought, 
 prayers, etc. will not avert thy calamity. This 
 will be on this account, viz., that the Lord, though 
 He acknowledges Israel to be a beautiful olive- 
 tree, planted by Himself, has determined to de- 
 stroy him. The parable of the olive-tree in re- 
 ference to Israel is found also in Ps. lii. 10 [8]; Isa. 
 xvii. 6; xxiv. 13; Hos. xiv. 6. — Amid rattling, 
 
 etc., \>^Y>) comp. on x. 13. — n/IDH synonymous 
 with port, besides only in Ezek. i. 24. The pro- 
 phet compares the catastrophe threatening Israel 
 to a tempest. — Set fire, etc., comp. xvii. 27; xxi. 
 
CHAP. XI. 18-23. 
 
 131 
 
 14; xliii. 12; xlix. 27; 1. 32; Am. i. 14.— They 
 broke. Since an intransitive meaning of the origi- 
 nal word cannot be proved, we must regard as the 
 subject either (by a rapid transition from figure 
 to reality) the enemies, or it is to be derived 
 from another root ^J^l, the radical meaning of 
 which is tuiiiiiJtnari, agitari, concitari (comp. 
 FuERST, H. W. B and Concord, s. v.) The for- 
 mer is to be preferred, since lire is not followed 
 by a mere shaking but a breaking of branches, 
 — And Jehovah Zebaoth, etc. If in and 
 they broke we perceived a partial transitioa I 
 
 into the sphere of reality (namely, in respect ta 
 the subject), here we perceive the transition ta 
 be complete. It is declared in plain words that 
 the Lord has pronounced the judgment of con- 
 demnation on Israel, (xix. 15; xxvi. 19). In the 
 word planted only, which contains a corrobo- 
 rative point, as it traces not only the name but 
 also the existence of the beautiful olive tree to 
 God (comp. ii. 21) is the figure still retained. Oa 
 practised to their own hurt, comp. vii. 19; 
 xliv. 3. 
 
 2. Second stage of the conspiracy : the plot of the Anathothites. 
 
 XI. 18-23. 
 
 18 And Jehovah instructed me and I learned. 
 Then didst thou show me their doings. 
 
 19 But I was as a tame sheep, that is led to the slaughter, 
 
 And remarked not, that they had had thoughts concerning me : 
 
 " Let us destroy the tree with its fruit, 
 
 And extirpate him from the land of the living, 
 
 That his name may no more be mentioned." 
 
 20 But Jehovah Zebaoth judges with justice ; 
 He tries the reins and heart. 
 
 I shall see thy vengeance on them, 
 For on thee have I devolved my cause. 
 
 21 Therefore this saith Jehovah of the men of Anathoth, 
 Who sought after thy life, saying : 
 
 " Prophesy not in the name of Jehovah, 
 That thou die not^ by our hand " — 
 
 22 Therefore thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth : 
 Behold, I visit them, 
 
 The young men shall die by the sword ; 
 
 Their sons and their daughters shall die of famine. 
 
 23 And there shall be no remnant of them, 
 
 For I will bring calamity on the men of Anathoth 
 In the year of their visitation.^ 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 21. — On tho construction of niOil X71 comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., g 89, 3 6. 
 
 T : 
 
 2 Ver. 22. — ifl' JM^fJ is not the accusative of the object bnt of the time. Comp. x. 15 Dmp3 flVS rHsNDEBSON ren- 
 
 T t\\: *•• : 
 aers it as the former: the year, etc. — S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The prophet here also evidently speaks of a 
 oonspiracy, and of one which existed in a nar- 
 rower circle (the city of Anathoth), Ver. 18 
 opens with the declaration that in what follows 
 a fact will be communicated, of which the pro- 
 phet received intelligence only from the Lord. 
 In ver. 19 it is stated that this fact consisted in 
 a plot against the life of the prophet. In ver. 20 
 the prophet expresses his hope that the Lord will 
 avenge him. Vers. 21-23 announce the ven- 
 geance of the Lord in response. 
 
 Vers. 18 and 19. And Jehovah instructed 
 me . . . nt more be mentioned. The con- 
 
 nection with 1 shows that the following verses 
 are closely connected with the preceding. The 
 construction in ver. 18 a is like xx. 7 a. By 
 instructed me the prophet gives the Lord the 
 gloi-y and preintimates at the same time that it 
 was something secret. — Their doings declares 
 that this consisted in an act of wicked men. — 
 Tame, comp. iii. 4; 2 Sam. xii. 3. [Hender- 
 son: — A lamb that has been tamed so as to be 
 familiar and play with children. One such is 
 commonly to be found in the house of the Arab. 
 — S. R. A.] — With its fruit. Hitzio would 
 read in73 in its uip (comp. Dent xxxiv. 7 ; 
 Ezek. xxi. 3) because DPI/ signifies corn, not 
 the fruit of a tree. But the idea of the product 
 
132 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 afforded by the tree such as serves for food is 
 here essential. Comp. ver. 21 b. Since, as it is 
 
 acknowledged Dn? originally meant food in ge 
 neral (comp. Gen. xlvii. 12; Isai. Ixv. 25; Job 
 xxviii. 5; Prov. xxvii. 27) we here also under- 
 stand by it the edible product of the tree. This 
 is certainly the fruit in opposition to the sap, 
 wood, leaves, etc. On 3 =zzz cum comp. Naegelsb. 
 
 Gr. I IK, 5, a. 
 
 Vers. 20 23. But Jehovah Zebaoth . • in 
 the year of their visitation. Ver. 20 is re- 
 peated almost verbatim in xx. 12 coll. xvii. 10. 
 
 — Tries. The prophet appeals for a confirmation 
 of his innocence to the omniscient God. — 'jTSj. 
 The form according to Piel, from PI/J. The 
 connection however requires the meaning " to 
 shove, to roll," which is also favored by the ana- 
 logy of the passages, Ps. xxii. 9; xxxvii. 5-, 
 Prov xvi. 3, comp. Ewald, § 121, a. — prophesy 
 not. Comp. Am. ii. 12; vii. 13. Doubtless the 
 plot was to perform the unsuccessful threatening. 
 — In ver. 22 the introductory formula is repeated 
 after the interruption. — I v^ill bring cala- 
 mity, comp. xix. 16; xxiii, 12. 
 
 5. Third stage of the conspiracy : the plot in the prophefs own family. 
 
 XII. 1-6. 
 
 Thou maintainest justice, O Jehovah, when I plead with thee. 
 Only on matters of judgment will I speak with thee. 
 Why is the way of the wicked prosperous ? 
 Why do all live in peace, who practise knavery ? 
 Thou hast planted them and they have taken root ; 
 They grow up, they also bear fruit : 
 Thou art near in their mouth, but far from their reins. 
 But thou, O Jehovah, knowest me, 
 Regard me and prove my heart towards thee : ^ 
 Pluck them out as sheep to the slaughter,^ 
 And set them apart for the day of execution. 
 How long shall the land mourn. 
 And the green of the whole plain wither? 
 From the wickedness of those who dwell in it, 
 Beast and bird are consumed f 
 For they say, he shall not see our end. 
 If thou hast run with footmen and they wearied thee, 
 How mayest thou contend^ with the horses ? 
 And in a land of peace thou wast secure. 
 But how wilt thou do in the pride of Jordan ? 
 For even thy brethren and the house of thy father. 
 Even they have practised knavery towards thee ; 
 Even they with a loud cry* have pursued thee. 
 Trust them not when they speak good to thee. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 3.— 'npx depends on '^. The meaning is as in 2 Sam. xvi. 17 ; Zech. vii. 9. 
 
 2 Ver. 4.— nniJD- On the construction comp. Naeoeisb. Gr , g l(i.'>, 4 6. 
 
 » Ver. 5.— n^nnjl TipUel. Comp. .xxii. 15; Gesen. g 5.5, 5; Ew.\li), g 122a; Olsh. §256 a. 
 
 * Ver. 6.— kS aa adverb (Nah. i. 10) = pleru, plena vooe. Comp. iv. 5, 12. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This strophe attaches itself closely to the pre- 
 ceding, proving conspiracy even in the narrow- 
 est circle, in the family of the prophet, where it 
 was tlie least to be expected. After the prophet 
 had given the Lord to understand his dissatisfac- 
 
 tion that the ungodly, of whom ch. xi. treats, 
 still pursue their course in safety (vers. 1, 2) and 
 after he has expressed the hope of his justifica- 
 tion and their destruction (ver. 3) the more con- 
 fidently, that these people infect the air, as it 
 were, with the poisonous breath of their unbe- 
 lief, and render the land uninhabitable (ver. 4), 
 the Lord answers him: If even the enmity of 
 
CHAP. XII. 1-6. 
 
 133 
 
 those at a distance is so intolerable, what wilt 
 thou do when the members of thine own family 
 treacherously waylay thee (vers. 5 and 6) ? 
 
 Vers. 1-3. Thou maintainest justice . . . 
 day of execution. The prophet (compare Jo- 
 nah before Nineveh) has waited in vain for the 
 performance of the threatenings pronounced i.i 
 xi. 11-21, etc. He now ventures to speak to tlu 
 Lord concerning it. He knows that the Lor 1 
 will maintain the right (comp. Ps. li. 6; Job ix. 
 2, 3 sqq. ; xxxix. 32 ; Rom. iii. 4 ; ix. 20) he will 
 only therefore inquire into His judgments (i. IG; 
 iv. 11) in order to receive illumination. On ^X 
 
 comp. V. 5. Bring forth fruit, reference to xi 
 17, 18. Comp. Ps. xxxvii. 35. — Near, etc. Re- 
 futation of the objection that these people serve 
 Jehovah. It is only lip-service, while their 
 hearts are alienated (Isai. xxix. 13; Matth. xv. 
 8). The prophet on the other hand can appeal 
 for the rectitude of his disposition to the know- 
 ledge of the Searcher of hearts, whom, moreover, 
 for the sake of perfect satisfaction, he invites to 
 a renewed observation and trial of his heart. — 
 Pluck them out. On the subject matter comp. 
 Job xxi. 27 sqq. ; Ps. vii., ix., x., xi., Ixxiii. ; Mai. 
 iii. 13 sqq., etc. — pilj comp. vi. 29. — set them 
 apart. Comp. vi. 4; xxii. 7; li. 27; Isai. xiii. 3. 
 In the words pluck them, etc., Jeremiah has ex 
 pressed what in his opinion is to be done to the un- 
 godly (comp. Ps. xlix. 15 sqq.) In what follows he 
 supports this opinion from another point of view. 
 Ver. 4. How long shall the land mourn 
 . . . not see our end. In this verse a contra- 
 diction has been found to the preceding, and Hit- 
 ziQ would therefore strike out the verse here and 
 insert it at xiv. 1-9. But Graf correctly re- 
 marks that the wicked (ver. 1) also appear as 
 guilty in the curse of barrenness, as this cala- 
 mity is ever regarded as a divine punishment 
 (iii. 3; v. 24, 25; xiv. 2 sqq. ; xxiii. 10; Hos. 
 iv. 3). I add to this, that it is not single wicked 
 individuals who are designated as the authors of 
 the adversity of all their fellow-citizens, but that 
 the " inhabitants of the land," the men generally 
 (as in fact in xi. 9 the whole population is ac- 
 cused) are considered guilty of the destruction 
 of innocent irrational creatures. 2. That by the 
 sentence for they say, etc., their unbelieving 
 scorn of the divine word proclaimed by the pro- 
 phet is especially represented as the cause of this 
 curse which has come upon the whole land. 
 "When in ver. 1 it is said " the way of the un- 
 godly is prosperous ; all they live in peace who 
 practise knavery," this is to be understood rela- 
 tively. In the midst of the national calamity it 
 is comparatively still well with them. — We 
 shall not see. The subject must be the pro- 
 
 phet. H'^nx ii the last, extreme end, the final 
 fate (comp Isai. xlvi. 10). Wlien they say that 
 the prophet will not see their extremity, their 
 final fate, they mean that they will survive him, 
 that he wiil perish before them. Comp. on the 
 subject v. 18. [Henderson: — "I take this to be 
 iuipersonal: No one shall see mir end; that is, it 
 shall not be realized, we shall not be destroyed. 
 The worldly Jews flattered themselves that they 
 might securely pursue their ungodly course, dis- 
 believing all the predictions of calamity uttered 
 by the prophet."— S. R. A.] 
 
 Vers. 5 and 0. If thou hast run -with the 
 footmen . . vrhen they speak good to thee. 
 To the question of the prophet (vers. 1, 2) the 
 Lord makes no other answer than this: the 
 power of the ungodly, of which thou complainest, 
 is not the worst. Still worse is threatening 
 thee, the enmity of the members of thine own fa- 
 mily. Hei-e is evidently the point of the climax 
 begun in xi. 9, the conspiracy of his associates 
 in the nation, the town and the family. The last 
 is the most deplorable. — In a land, etc. Instead 
 of -wast secure, nL313, Hitzig would read 11^13 
 fleeing. The expression would certainly be more 
 correct. But the structure of the second member 
 is not like that of the first. Here it is not ad- 
 mitted that the prophet has hitherto had an evil 
 experience. The Lord says, thy condition hither- 
 to has been comparatively secure, as of a man who 
 lives in a peaceful country. The attacks previ- 
 ously made left thee in a condition of security 
 compared with what is before thee. It is evi- 
 dent that here there is a«limax, the second mem- 
 ber of the sentence being stronger than the first. 
 — Pride of Jordan, ("-'n pxj^) Hitzig, Meier, 
 Graf understand by this the bank of the Jordan 
 overgrown with trees and tall reeds (comp. Rau- 
 MER, Paldst. IV. Aufi. S. 68), which according to 
 Jer. xlix. 19; 1. 44; Zech. xi. 3 serves for the 
 residence of lions (comp. Kohler, Sack. II. S. 
 109). Since nothing is known of inundations of 
 the Jordan as particularly extensive and dan- 
 gerous, this explanation may be correct, though 
 tiie expression in itself (comp. Job xxxviii. 11) 
 might certainly be used of inundations. In ver. 
 G we perceive the traces of a conspiracy ; on the 
 one hand behaviour intended to awaken confi- 
 dence, on the .other HJS, treachery which mani- 
 fests itself in this, that behind the back of him 
 who is threatened ('J'^.l!'!? designates absence, 
 removal to such a distance, as to be out of hear- 
 ing of a call) they loudly cry and agitate against 
 him. — On the subject matter comp. Matth. x. 36; 
 xiii. 57. 
 
134 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 6. The conspiracy of Israel punished by the conspiracy of the neighbors against them, 
 
 XII. 7-13. 
 
 7 I have forsaken my house, repudiated my heritage; 
 
 I have given the desire of my soul into the hands of her enemies. 
 
 8 My heritage is become to me as a lion in the forest ; 
 It has roared against' me, therefore have I hated it. 
 
 9 Is my heritage to me a parti-colored bird ?'^ Birds round about it ? 
 Go, assemble ye all the beasts of the field, 
 
 Fetch* them to devour. 
 
 10 Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard. 
 
 They have trodden under foot my ground property. 
 
 Have made the ground property of my desire a barren waste. 
 
 11 They* have made it a desert, it mourneth towards me as a desert. 
 Desolated was the whole land, for there was no one who took it to heart. 
 
 12 On all the heights in the desert are come spoilers : 
 
 For Jehovah has a sword, which devours from land's-end to land's-end. 
 There is no flesh that can find means to escape. 
 
 13 They have sown wheat and reaped thorns ; 
 
 They have tormented themselves and will profit nothing : 
 So then — ye shall be ashamed of your revenue* 
 Before the fierceness of Jehovah's wrath. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 8. — The expression 7lp3 jjlj is found also in Ps. xlvi. 7. Oomp. rems. on x. 13. 
 
 2 Ver. 9. — [Henderson : a speckled bird of prey. Notes following the LXX. : a rapacious beast, a hyena; BlatniT: th« 
 ravenous bird Tseboa. — S. R. A.] 
 
 3 Ver. 9. — On VnH as an imperative form comp. Olsh. §256 6, S. 568. 
 
 T •• 
 * Ver. 11. — The subject of nDC is formally undetermined (= they, comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 101, 2) but from the conneo 
 T T .... 
 
 tion it is the previously mentioned enemies. Observe the play upon words HDty, nODK?, nODIi?, HfStl'J, Ua- The 
 
 TT tt: t": t-t t 
 
 last is used with reference to T\0'O, while HOOK'S HiDtJ? corresponds to ^VS V Dty xS. 
 
 TT TT.:-TT "— T 
 
 6 Ver. 13. — It is not necessary to read QriTIXOnOi after the LXX. The change of person need not offend (comp. 
 Naeqelsb. Gr., g 101, Anm.) nor the emphatic Vau before the imperative (comp. rems. on ii. 19). 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 As the undertakings of the conspirators against 
 the prophet were virtually against the Lord also, 
 80 the prophet's action is a symbol of the judg- 
 ment which the Lord will inflict in larger and 
 severer measure. Therefore what is said in vers. 
 7 and 8 of abandoning house and heritage ap- 
 plies at the same time to the prophet who leaves 
 his paternal house in Anathoth, and to the Lord 
 who forsakes Israel. The positive punishment, 
 however, which will consist in the combination 
 of many enemies against Israel (vers. 9-11) cor- 
 responds exactly to that triple combination 
 against tlie Lord and His propliet, spoken of in 
 x\. 9 — xii. 6. 
 
 Vers. 7 and 8. I have forsaken my house 
 . . . have I hated it. After what, iiccording 
 to ver. G, his house has inflicted upon him, noth- 
 ing is more natural than he should leave it. It 
 is, therefore, a matter of course, to regard the 
 prophet himself as the subject of the verb have 
 
 forsaken. But in the course of the speech it 
 certainly becomes evident that Jehovah is the 
 forsaker and Israel the forsaken and abandoned 
 house (ver. 9 sqq.). Zwingli and Bdgenhagen 
 regard vers. 7 and 8 as the words of the prophet. 
 The former considers that Jehovah begins to 
 speak at " Go." I am of opinion, as already re- 
 marked, that the words are to be understood as 
 having a double reference. The prophet declares 
 that he has forsaken his father's house in Ana- 
 thoth, that he has abandoned his heritage, hia 
 beloved, to the hands of those, who from enmity 
 towards its possessors would abuse it. Yea, he 
 has been compelled to hate and shun his heritage, 
 since it has become hostile to him, and no longer 
 afl"ords him any security. He, whose life the 
 inmates of the house were seeking, was most 
 threatened in the very house, which he was in- 
 habiting with them. He therefore says tlmt his 
 heritage has become to him as a lion, which one 
 meets in the forest ; and that he does not fear 
 the lion without reason, is seen from the fact that 
 it has roared against him, in which is an evi- 
 
CHAP. XII. 14-17. 
 
 135 
 
 dent allusion to " with a loud cry have pursued 
 thee," ver. 6. At the same time, as all the com- 
 mentators recognize, these words are perfectly 
 applicable to Jehovah. The point of connection 
 is this, that the inimical relation of the prophet 
 and his house is only a symptom of the enmity 
 which Israel, as an entire nation, cherish towards 
 the Lord their God. Hence it results, that the 
 perfects in this entire passage are not altogether 
 prophetic perfects. For they are based on the 
 fact that the prophet is obliged to speak of that 
 ■which has occurred between himself and his 
 house as of past facts. He cannot, ex. gr., speak 
 otherwise in vers. 7 and 8, than I have forsaken, 
 repudiated, given, hated. But since this, at the 
 same time, refers to Jehovah, these in so far still 
 future facts are expressed by praeterites, which 
 yields the meaning that the action of the prophet 
 as emblematical includes the action of Jehovah. 
 Hence it is, that in accordance with the main 
 fact in vers. 7 and 8, the whole discourse is pre- 
 sented as in past time. In so far as the words 
 of ver. 7 refer to Jehovah, we may apply my 
 house to the temple (comp. vii. 2-10, etc.), and 
 my heritage to the people of Israel (comp. 
 Deut. xxxii. 9), while the desire of my soul 
 (nni], OTT. /ley., comp. xi. 15; Ps. Ixxxiv. 2) re- 
 fers to the whole. 
 
 Ver. 9. Is my heritage ... to devour. — 
 That D]j? is a bird of prey, or collectively, 
 
 birds of prey, is placed beyond doubt by Gen. 
 XV. 11; Isa. xviii. 6; Ezek. xxxix. 4; Jobxxviii. 
 7. This meaning is therefore assured for this 
 passage and Isa. xlvi. 11. — V}^'^, according to 
 ;r3X, D'Jtr^y, Judges V. 30 (comp. Aram, j;?^ tin' 
 
 gere) can signify only the colored, variegated, as, 
 from Jerome and the Syriac downwards, most of 
 
 the commentators translate it: this parti-colored 
 bird, which appears in their midst, is attacked 
 by the other birds. Comp. the vouchers in Hitziq 
 
 — '^ to me, is not equivalent to in relation to me, 
 but merely expresses interest [Dat. ethicus). 
 Whether the H in the second tO'^H is an article 
 
 or interrogative is doubtful. Grammatically the 
 latter is preferable, but the former accords best 
 with the sense. Olshausen, | lOU, 1, maintains 
 that it is grammatically admissible Taken as a 
 question, it expresses astonishment (comp. vii. 
 9). — Go is affirmative and confirmatory: yea, 
 not only the birds, all birds {i. e., all nations) 
 shall fall upon the heritage of the Lord. 
 
 Ver. 10. Many pastors ... a barren waste. 
 The same matter in a new form. Comp. vi. 3; 
 Mic. V. 4, 5. — The ground property of my 
 desire, comp. iii. 19. 
 
 Vers. 11 and 12. They have made it a 
 desert . . . find means to escape. Not only 
 the inhabited country, but the plains which 
 serve for pasturage with their hills (comp. iii. 2, 
 21 ; xiv. 6), are laid waste, so that the devouring 
 sword has swept through the whole land from 
 one end to the other (comp. vi. 25; xxv. 29, xlvi. 
 10, 14). 
 
 Ver. 13. They have sown wheat . . . Je- 
 hovah's wrath. Total result: — No harvest, 
 labor is vain, — weakness, shame. The thought 
 is not, what a man soweth that shall he reap, 
 but what a man soweth he shall not reap, the 
 harvest shall fail, all the labor expended shall 
 be lost. Of course it is a material harvest alone 
 which is spoken of, comp. Deut. xxviii. 30 sqq. ; 
 Isa. Ixv. 21, 22; Ixii. 8. — On tormented them- 
 selves, comp. X. 19: Ezek. xxxiv. 4, 21. — On 
 profit comp. Isa. xlviii. 17. 
 
 7. Solution of all antitheses by the final union of all in the Lord. 
 
 XII. 14-17. 
 
 14 Thus saith Jehovah against all my neighbors,^ the wicked, 
 
 Who attacked the inheritance which I gave to Israel, my people, to possess : 
 
 Behold I pluck them forth out of their land, 
 
 And the house of Judah I will pluck forth out of their midst. 
 
 15 And it shall come to pass, after I have plucked them out, 
 I will again have compassion upon them, 
 
 And bring them back'* every man to his heritage and every man to his land. 
 
 16 And it shall come to pass, if they learn the way of my people, 
 To swear by my name ' Jehovah liveth,' 
 
 As they have taught my people to swear by Baal : 
 Then shall they be built in the midst of my people. 
 
 17 But if they hear not, I will utterly pluck up 
 And destroy such a nation, saith Jehovah. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 14. — 'J^tJ?, transition to the first person, as in xiv. 15. The connection with the preceding strophe is unmistak»> 
 
 ble. Comp. nSnJ and \fJT\l with nSnj and t^£3J, ver. 7, sqq. 
 T-:|- - T T-: |- - T 
 
 2 Ver. 15.— On 3!|ij;X Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., ? 95, g., Anm. 
 
136 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Even in these concluding words the funda- 
 mental idea is evidently that of association. The 
 conspiracy of the nations against the covenant 
 people who have conspired against their Lord 
 (xi. 9; xii. 6) has for its first consequence, that 
 the two are associated in punishment (ver. 14). 
 But afterward when they have made common 
 cause in penitence, and turning to the Lord, they 
 are to be equally regarded in their redemption 
 and re-establishment (ver. 16). In this only is 
 there dissimilarity, that in the heathen nations a 
 possibility of disobedience and consequent total 
 destruction is assumed, which is not the case 
 with respect to Israel (ver. 17). 
 
 Ver. 14. Thus saith Jehovah . . . pluck 
 forth out of their midst. The enemies who, 
 according to ver. 9, combine against Israel, are 
 here seen to be chiefly their neighbors; comp. 2 
 Kings xxiv. 2, to which passage, however, I refer 
 not as the occasion, but as the, at least, partial 
 fulfilment of our prophecy. The Syrians, 
 Moabites and Ammonites, are here mentioned, 
 and in Ps. cxxxvii. 7 the Edomites also, as auxili- 
 aries of the Chaldees in the work of Judah's de- 
 struction. — Judah and the neighboring nations 
 will meet the same fate, because they have both 
 sinned against Jehovah: Judah directly, the 
 others indirectly; for what they did against Ju- 
 dah, was against Judah's God. — Out of their 
 midst refers to the geographical position of Ju- 
 dah, and at the same time to ver. 9. — The carry- 
 ing away of Judah involves their liberation from 
 the attacks of their neighbors. Comp. besides 
 XXV. 15 sqq. 
 
 Vers. 15-17. And it shall come to pass 
 . . . destroy such a nation, saith Jehovah. 
 Every nation shall be brought back (comp. 
 xlvi. 26; xlviii. 47 ; xlix. 6, 39), therefore also 
 Israel. Consequently they are alike in this. — 
 The highest and most glorious stage of the asso- 
 ciation is this, that the nations will be one among 
 themselves and with Judah in the true worship 
 of Jehovah, which is expressed as swearing by 
 His name alone (comp. iv. 2 ; v. 7 ; Deut. vi. 13; 
 X. 20). In this is, at the same time, given the 
 unity of God with men; He in them, they in Him 
 (John xvii. 21, 23). It is noteworthy that the na- 
 tions are to be built ('c)J^ ^1^3) in the midst 
 of my people. Before Israel was in their 
 midst (vers. 7, 9); now (hey are in the midst of 
 Israel. Israel is now not merely the ideal, but 
 the real stock which bears all. (Comp. Rom. xi. 
 17 sqq. — Isa. xlv. 22 sqq.; Ivi. 1 sqq.; Ixv. and 
 Ixvi.). — In this only a dissimilarity between Is- 
 rael and the nations comes fairly to light, that 
 the possibility of resistance to the loving purpose 
 of God is presupposed of the latter, but not of the 
 former (comp. xxx. 10, 11). — On learn the 
 ■ways, comp. x. 2; ii. 33. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On xi. 3. "The curse of the Law excites 
 anger, but the curse of the covenant abashes. I 
 have seen an atheist tremble at the words 'If 
 any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him 
 be anathema (1 Cor. xvi. 22).' He remarked it 
 
 himself, and sought to excuse himself by saying 
 'it was niotus involuntarii.' But it was the 
 words of the covenant. Thou shalt Idve." Zinzen- 
 
 DORF. 
 
 2. On xi. 5. ' 'Hic tt ai6ev/ia latet et pro minis- 
 tris verbi, et pro eorum auditoribus. Ministri exem- 
 plo prophetse monentur, ut similem in officio promti- 
 tudinem et animi alacritatem Deo prohmt, quemad- 
 modum etiam de Jesaja legitur, vi. 8. Auditores 
 hie docentur, ut de voluntale Dei ex verba moniti 
 in corde suo dicant ; amen, promti et parati ad obe- 
 dientiam verba prsestandam." Forster. 
 
 3. Onxi. 14. "Intercession for all men has good 
 reason for it in the love which is due to one's 
 neighbor, and it is also commanded, 1 Tim. ii. 1, 
 2, but on the part of those who offer it, a certain 
 order is required so that it may be heard (Luke 
 xiii. 8, 9; John ix. 31)." Lanoii Op. bibl. 
 
 4. On xi. 15. "It is a snare to a man to blas- 
 pheme the holy, and after that to seek vows 
 [after vows to make inquiry] (Prov. xx. 24). 
 For that is the manner of hypocrites, to offer St. 
 Martina penny and then steal a horse; and 
 when they have opposed God and His word 
 to the utmost, to turn afterwards to sacrifices, 
 fasting and alms, and wish thus to exculpate 
 themselves." Cramer. 
 
 5. On xi. 16, 17. "God has appointed us to be 
 trees of righteousness, plants of the Lord for His 
 glory (Isa. Ixi. 3). He, however, who bringeth 
 not forth good fruit, is hewn down and cast into 
 the fire (Matt. vii. 19)." Cramer. ["Every sin 
 against God is a sin against ourselves, and so 
 it will be found sooner or later." Henry. — 
 S. R. A.] 
 
 6. On xi. 18. "Although the human heart can- 
 not be fathomed (Jer. xvii. 9), yet nothing can 
 be hidden from God, and He frequently reveals 
 secret counsels, so that they are known and 
 manifest, as in the case of Absalom and Ahithophel 
 (Isa. viii. 10). Therefore do nothing in secret, 
 in the hope that it will remain hidden, for the 
 birds of heaven carry the voice, and the winged 
 repeat it (Eccles. x. 20)." Cramer. 
 
 7. On xi. 20. "The first New Testament ven- 
 geance was executed on the cross, when an evil- 
 doer who had mocked at Jesus, cringed on the 
 cross, and asked for a gracious remembrance. 
 The Lamb of God could scarcely wait the time of 
 vengeance: To-day, said He, shalt thou be with 
 Me in Paradise. According to this may the Jer- 
 emiahs of our times, the preachers of righteous- 
 ness, take the measure of their holy desire for 
 vengeance." Zinzendorf. ["It is a comfort, 
 when we are wronged that we have a God to 
 commit our cause to; and our duty to commit it 
 to Him, with a resolution to acquiesce in His de- 
 finite sentence; to subscribe and not prescribe to 
 Him." Henrt.— S. R. A.] 
 
 8. Onxi. 20. "A teacher is advised to say 
 this if he can, ' I have ceased to concern myself 
 about myself.' Dr. Luther says, 
 
 Once I grasped too many thinga : — 
 
 None staid ; they all had wings : 
 
 But since I've weary grown. 
 
 And all away have thrown. 
 
 Not one from me has flown. 
 
 And do you ask, how can it be thus ? — 
 
 Because I've cast my all on Jesus. 
 
 Messengers and servants, who concern them- 
 
CHAP. XII. 14-17. 
 
 137 
 
 selves about their own injuries must have bad 
 masters." Zinzendorp. 
 
 9. On xi. 22. When the people will not endure 
 the rod of Christ's mouth, with which He smites 
 the earth (Isai. xi. 4), item His rods Beauty and 
 Bands (Zech. xi. 7), God sends one with the sword 
 to preach, which is followed by the i-ed spice, and 
 then we see what the smooth preachers have ef- 
 fected (Isai. XXX. 10)." Cramer. 
 
 10. On xii. 1. " But can we conceive anything 
 more humane and gracious than our dear Lord? 
 We know beforehand that we are wrong ; we do 
 not doubt that He does all well, but it yet op- 
 presses us. We should like to make a clean 
 breast of it. Where shall we find one with whom 
 we could do this? The fly on the wall, the do- 
 mestic, the child, that comes in our way ? As- 
 suredly not! Straight to our Lord, the eternal 
 and living God, with all our ill-humor, doubt, 
 care, scruples ! Pour out your heart before Him 
 
 (Ps. Ixii. 8)." ZiNZENDORF. 
 
 11. On xii. 1-3. "It is a common grievance, 
 to live and experience that the ungodly are 
 prosperous and the godly are unfortunate (Ps. 
 xxxviii. 20; Ixxiii. 12; Job xxi. 7; xxxi. 2), 
 against which David wrote the xxxvii. Ps. Have 
 recourse to the testimony that there is another 
 life, when the tables will be turned and the evil 
 will be recompensed with evil and the good with 
 good (Isai. Ixv. 13)." Cramer. 
 
 12. On xii. 3. " The prosperity of the ungodly 
 should exhoi't them to repentance by the long- 
 sufl'ering of God (Rom. ii. 4). But when even 
 this does not avail, there are still people of this 
 world, who have their portion in this life, who 
 fill only their belly (Ps. xvii. 14) and carry 
 nothing away. What profit then is there to them 
 even if they had the whole world, and sufi'er in- 
 jury to their souls (Matth. xvi. 26. The rich 
 man in Luke xvi. 23)." Cramer. 
 
 18. On xii. 4. " It is strange that even in the 
 people of God the Epicurean opinion has found 
 acceptance, that God sits idly in the heavens, 
 caring nothing about what goes on below, doing 
 neither that which is good nor that which is 
 evil, (Zeph. i. 12), seeing not what men do (Ezek. 
 viii. 10, ix. 9), and that future things are 
 altogether hidden both from him and his prophet. 
 So powerful is the devil among the children of 
 unbelief." Cramer. 
 
 14. On xii. 4. ^'■Tales hodie sunt Epicuri de grege 
 porci, quibus ssRpe est in ore, the devil is not so 
 black, hell is not so hot, as the parson in the pul- 
 pit makes out. Sed his historia divitis epulonis 
 occinenda (Luke xvi). Namibi — Christ puts forth 
 his hand into hell-fire, snatches a brand out 
 therefrom, and holds it in the face of all Epi- 
 cureans, as though He would say, Smell, smell, 
 how hot hell-fire is." Forster. 
 
 15. On xii. 5. "I have heard that an able 
 preacher, when he had to deliver a trial sermoii 
 for the position of court-preacher, took this text. 
 The exposition is plain. No servant of the Lord 
 should long for more respectable, rich, discreet, 
 sociable hearers. Let every one approve him- 
 self thoroughly in all changes, and be sure of 
 his cause and lean not to his own understanding." 
 
 ZiNZENDORF. 
 
 16. On xii. 6. " Many must add to this, wife, 
 child, colleague, domestics, and whatever more 
 
 the Saviour mentions, which may be against a 
 man. One is often offered by his mother to the 
 dear God [i. e. dedicated to the pastoral office) 
 but in an altogether different sense ; and when 
 he afterwards walks as becomes him, according 
 to the gospel of Christ, those are his bitterest 
 enemies, who hoped that he might comfort them 
 in all their travail, and who not only do not gain 
 anything from his labors as a witness, but must 
 bear the shame and ridicule, that their son, 
 brother, cousin, husband, father, friend, etc. will 
 yet render them all unfortunate." Zinzendorf. 
 
 17. On xii. 7, sqq. "They are sweet worda 
 and beautiful names with which the Lord bap- 
 tizes and names His city, and it is so hard for it 
 to be punished by God for its sins that we are 
 long in learning to consider our own account." 
 (Rom. xi. 21). Cramer. 
 
 18. On xii. 7, sqq. "The heart of a believer 
 is God's most cherished abode, but if man cor- 
 rupt it with wilful sin, God must forsake this 
 house." (Isai. lix. 2). Starke. 
 
 19. On xii. 10, sqq. "A servant of the Lord 
 who should follow on twelve hirelings or wolves 
 may depend on this, that he will find nothing else 
 than a house, a vineyard of the Lord, but a de- 
 secrated house, an uprooted vineyard, in which 
 many preparations are needed before he can pro- 
 ceed to his regular work." Zinzendorf. 
 
 20. On xii. 14, sqq. "The Christian church 
 has a triple consolation. 1. That its enemies will 
 be punished; 2. That God again has mercy oa 
 it; 3. That it also converts a part of its enemies 
 and gathers them into its little flock of believers." 
 Cramer. 
 
 21. On xii. 16. "Some time since I found in the 
 so-called Herrnhut lot-book for the year 1737 the 
 words in the vision of Isaiah, lix. 17: Thy de- 
 stroyer and they that made thee waste shall go 
 forth of thee ! Under them were these two 
 lines, 'let them rather remain and attach them to 
 us.' This is what Jeremiah says ; they may yet 
 come out right. — Paul has confirmed it by his 
 example. Within three days he was a persecutor, 
 a false teacher, a poor sinner, a justified sinner, 
 a witness, an apostle. With joy would I bestow 
 the same happiness on every one of those, whom 
 I at this moment cannot regard otherwise than 
 as the enemies of the cross of Christ." Zinzen- 
 dorf. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. Onxi. 1-10 there is extant ahomily of Orioen 
 (the 9th in Lommatzsch's ed.) likewise on xi. 18- 
 xii. 9 (the 10th) and on xii. 11-xiii. 1 (the 11th.) 
 
 2. Forster remarks that xi. 19, 20 accords 
 with Matth. xxii. 15 sqq. (XXIII. Sunday after 
 Tr.) and that the persecution of Jeremiah cor- 
 responds to the sufferings of the Lord. Like- 
 wise tluit xii. 2 bears relation to Luke xvi. 19 
 sqq. (I. Sund. after Trin.) and xii. 7 to Acts vi. 
 8 sqq. (St. Stephen's day, Sunday after Christ- 
 mas), and to Luke xix. 4*1 sqq. (X. after Trin.) 
 
 3. On xi. 16, 17. The divine election is never 
 intended to be a license from all discipline. In- 
 deed when men break the covenant, the Lord in- 
 terposes with punishment, which may proceed to 
 instantaneous destruction, tiurely God's gifts 
 and calling are without repentance. If th« 
 
133 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 branches cut ofif abide not in unbelief they shall 
 be grafFed in; for God is able to graflF them in 
 again, Rom. xi. 23, 29. 
 
 4. On xi. 21. That which the people of Ana- 
 thoth say here to .Jeremiah, the people of this 
 world say everywhere and at all times to the 
 preachers of the truth. Comp. 2 Tim. iv. 3, 4. 
 It is important then to preach the word, to be 
 instant in season and out of season ; to reprove, 
 rebuke, exhort, with all long-suffering and doc- 
 trine (2 Tim. iv. 2). 
 
 6. On xii. 5. It is not becoming that we pre- 
 
 scribe to God, to what extent He shall lay bur- 
 dens upon us. Our patience and steadfastness 
 are as ehistic and extensible as our faith is firm 
 and rock-like (Petrine, Matth. xvi. 18). 
 
 6. On xii. 14-17. When mankind depart from 
 God they lose the boud of unity and of peace. 
 They are divided then into parties, which con- 
 tend with and exterminate each other. But 
 when these have again united themselves with 
 the Lord, the unity of the members is restored. 
 Therefore there is liberty, equality and frateiv 
 nity only in the Lord. 
 
 CHAPTER Xm. 
 
 Since the foregoing discourse is complete in itself, it is not correct to say that ch. xi.-xiii. /orwj "a whoUy 
 one prophetic discourse "(Graf, S. 174). Cliap. xiii. on the contrary is an independent portion, but 
 contemporaneous with the preceding. For although the cleft in the rock by the river Euphrates in- 
 volves an obscure intimation of the place of exile, the enemies from the North are still spoken of indefi- 
 nitely (comp. on ver. 20). This portion therefore belongs to the period before the fourth year of Je- 
 hoiakim. The reign of Jehoiakim is also indicated in what is said of the pride of the great, and espe- 
 cially of the King, ver. 12 sqq. — Comp. on the despotism of Jehoiakim, Comni. on xxii. 13-19. 
 
 As to the purport of this passage — it is a reproof of pride. Comp. ver. 9, "/ will mar the pride of Judah 
 and the pride of Jerusalem, for it is great ;^^ ver. 2, ''bottle," and the interpretation given of it ; ver. 
 15, "be not proud ;" ver. 17, ''for your pride ;" ver. 18, "humble yourselves, sit down." — 
 The reproof is however addressed to the people in a threefold gradation — first the pride of the chosen 
 people generally (ver. 9, Judah and Jerusalem) is rebuked under the figure of a destroyed girdle. This 
 is then done with respect to the particular orders enumerated in ver. 13, which are represented under 
 the figure of drunken pitchers breaking each other; finally the prophet humbles the pride of the high- 
 est, the king and the king's mother (ver. 18) and the form of the concrete mother of the country gradu- 
 ally passes over into the abstract, i. e., ideal, person of the daughter of Zion [Jerusalem, ver. 27). 
 There are thus three strophes : 
 
 1. Vers. 1-11. The entire chosen nation a destroyed girdle. 
 
 2. Vers. 12-17. The particular orders broken pitchirs. 
 
 8. Vers. 18-27. The father and mother of the country humbled, driven away, insulted. 
 
 1. The entire chosen nation a destroyed girdle. 
 XIII. 1-11. 
 
 1 Thus saith the Lord [Jehovah] unto me, Go and get [buy] thee a linen girdle, 
 
 2 and put it upon thy loins and put it not in water. So I got [bought, procured] a 
 [the] girdle according to the word of the Lord [Jehovah], and put it on my loins. 
 
 3 And the word of the Lord came [was communicated] unto me the second time, 
 
 4 saying : Take the girdle that thou hast got [bought, procured], which is upon thy 
 loins, and arise, go to Euphrates [Phrath] and hide it there in a hole [cleft] of the 
 
 5 rock. So [And] I went and hid it by Euphrates [in Phrath, or on the Phrath] as 
 
 6 the Lord [Jehovah had] commanded me. And it came to pass after many days, that 
 the Lord [Jehovah] said unto me, Arise, go to Euphrates [Phrath] and take 
 
 7 [fetch] the girdle from thence, which I commanded thee to hide there. Then I 
 went to Euphrates [Phrath] and digged, and took the girdle from the place where 
 I had hid it, and behold, the girdle was marred [spoiled] ; it was profitable [good] 
 
 8 for nothing. Then the word of the Lord [Jehovah] came unto me, saying : 
 
 9 Thus saith Jehovah : 
 
 Thus will I spoil the pride of Judah, 
 And the pride of Jerusalem, which is great. 
 10 This wicked people, who refused to hear my words. 
 Who walked in the hardness of their heart, 
 And went after other gods to serve them and to worship them, 
 They shall even be as this girdle, which is good for nothing. 
 
CHAP. XIII. 1-11. 
 
 131 
 
 11 For as a girdle lies around the loins of a man, 
 
 So have I laid around myself the whole house of Israel, 
 And the whole house of Judah, saith Jehovah, 
 That they may be to me for a people. 
 For a name, for praise, and for beauty ; 
 But they hearkened not. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Vers. 1 and 2. Go and buy thee a girdle . . 
 on my loins. The reason why the prophet was 
 to buy a girdle appears in ver. 11. As of all parts 
 of the clothing the girdle is that which fits most 
 closely, so Israel of all nations is the most closely 
 connected with Jehovah. And as a beautifully 
 ornamented girdle serves to adorn a man (comp. 
 Hebzoq, Real-Enc, V. S. 407 ; VII. 717) so the 
 Lord thought to put on Israel as an armament. 
 The prophet was to buy a linen girdle without 
 doubt, because the sacred garments of the priests 
 were linen (comp. Exod. xxviii. 40; Herzog, R.- 
 Enc. VII. S. 714) and because Israel was to be a 
 holy, priestly nation (Exod. xix. 6). On the 
 question why the prophet was not to put the gir- 
 dle in water there has been much debate. 
 Graf's view that the girdle was to be preserved 
 from the injurious effects of the water, and kept 
 new and undamaged, refutes itself. For no da- 
 mage would be done to a linen girdle by wash- 
 ing, but it would rather be renewed. The pro- 
 hibition to put the girdle in water evidently pre- 
 supposes that the prophet would have washed 
 the girdle when it became dirty. But this was 
 not to be done. It was to remain dirty. As a 
 dirty girdle it was to be taken to the Euphrates. 
 Since now the girdle denotes the people, it was 
 thus to be set before their eyes what was im- 
 pending over them as having become unclean, 
 and yet long borne by the Lord in their filth. So 
 RosENMULLER and Maurkr. 
 
 Vers. 3-7. Take the girdle . . . profitable 
 for nothing, mi) is in Jeremiah always the 
 
 Euphrates, xlvi. 2, 6, 10; li. 63, though in ch. 
 xlvi. we always find ri^S'^HJ. Now it is incon- 
 ceivable that Jeremiah made the long journey 
 to the Euphrates twice "merely to show that a 
 linen girdle is destroyed by lying a long time in 
 the damp." Therefore flli) is said by some to 
 
 be a water-gap (]'?3) near Jerusalem (Ewald), 
 
 by others an abbreviation of r>13X (Bochart, 
 
 Venema, Hitzig), by others again the whole is 
 regarded as merely an allegorical narrative 
 (Stabudlin, Neue Beitr. zur Erl. d. bihl. Proph. 
 Gott., 1791, S. 129 sqq., Graf). But I do not 
 see why the words may not be regarded as his- 
 torical truth, if only we do not apply the stand- 
 ard of the paltry present to the great past. Was 
 it too much for a prophet to make a long journey 
 in order to set visibly before the eyes of his 
 people their impending fate ? Tliere are indeed 
 narratives of such a kind as bear in themselves 
 the necessity of a parabolic interpretation, ex.gr. 
 when Jeremiah in xxv. 10 sqq. says that he took 
 the wine cup of fury fi-nm the hand of the Lord 
 and Cijused Jerusalem with all the cities of Judah, 
 Pharaoh and many other kings and princes to 
 
 drink of it. But where this is not the case we 
 must be on our guard against transferring our 
 standard of the suitable, or of the morally and 
 physically possible to those times. I therefore 
 do not perceive why the account in Hos. i. ; 
 Ezek. iv. 5 is less real than what we read in 
 Jer. xix. 1 sqq. ; xxvii. 2; Isa. xx. o. And here 
 also Jeremiah may have really made a double 
 journey to the Euphrates for the most palpable 
 warning of his people. But let us not expect 
 that Jeremiah will trouble himself to affirm in 
 many words what great result he accomplished 
 by these journeys. He who relates so simply, 
 without even an exclamation, how he was thrown 
 into the miry pit (ch. xxxviii.) might here also 
 leave it to his readers to estimate the importance 
 of the facts. 
 
 [Henderson : — "On the authority of the LXX., 
 Vulg. and other ancient versions, it has been 
 taken for granted, that by JT13 here the river 
 
 Euphrates is to be understood. That the name 
 is elsewhere employed to designate that river is 
 beyond dispute. Not reckoning the present verse, 
 it occurs fifteen times with this application, but 
 except in three instances. Gen. ii. 14; 2 Chron. 
 XXXV. 20 ; Jer. li. 63, it never stands alone, but 
 always has ^^J, river, attached to it. Indeed 
 the same must have taken place Gen. ii. 14 if 
 that word had not been used immediately before 
 m3, so that this passage ought not to be taken 
 into account. With respect to Jer. li. 63 also, 
 there was no necessity for employing the quali- 
 fying noun, as Seraiah is supposed to be at 
 Babylon at the time to which reference is there 
 made, consequently in the closest contact with 
 the Euphrates. It seems not a little strange, 
 therefore, that the name siiould appear not fewer 
 than four times in the present verse without the 
 use of the qualifying term, if that river had 
 really been intended. This circumstance appears 
 to have struck the LXX., whose text, ver. 7, ex- 
 hibits Tov ^{'(ppaTTjv TTora/iiov. Ewald, who re- 
 jects the Euphrates, renders the word by Fluss- 
 vfer (bank of the river) and thinks that it may 
 be used of fresh or sweet water rivers generally, 
 or that it may express the same as the Arab. 
 
 2j^ i> a rent in the land formed by water. 
 
 I prefer the solution proposed by Bochart, and 
 adopted by Venema, Dathe and Hirzin, th.it r\"li) 
 is here only an abbreviation of m3N, Ephrath, 
 
 which appears to have been the original name 
 of Bethlehem and its vicinity, and most com- 
 monly appears with the paragogic H— HmSK, 
 
 Ephratha. The aphaeresis of the prosthetic K 
 is not without examples. — The whole extent of 
 the prophetic journey therefore was only about 
 six miles northward of Jerusalem. There at 
 Bethlehem, he was to hide the girdle in a fissure 
 
140 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 of i'*2^'I!> '^* '■°<^*> some well-known rock in the 
 vicinity of that town. Why he was especially 
 sent to that place it is impossible to say, except 
 that it may have been that the use of the term 
 Prath might lead the Jews, when the symbolical 
 actions came to be understood by them, to think 
 of the Euphrates, to which they were to be car- 
 ried away captive, as designated by the same 
 name."— S. R. A.] 
 
 Vers. 8-11. Then the word . . . but they 
 hearkened not. Observe in vers. 9 and 10 
 the relation of this parable to that which fol- 
 lows, of the pitchers. The girdle signifies the 
 entirety of the people, the pitchers the indivi- 
 duals o'f all ranks. Hence in ver. 9, " the pride 
 of Judah and Jerusalem," and in ver. 10, «' this 
 evil people," ia spoken of, while in ver. 13 all 
 
 ranks are enumerated. The meaning of the de- 
 struction of the girdle in the cleft of the rock i3 
 declared in vers. 9 and 10 : pride shall be brought 
 low, the chosen people shall become as a girdle, 
 which is profitable for nothing. And certainly, 
 though there was a partial return from exile, yet 
 with the captivity in Babylon ceased the exist- 
 ence of Israel as an independent State with com- 
 pact national unity. Observe in ver. 9 the 
 doubling of the strong word tlXJ, pride, with 
 the addition SID, great. The main thought of 
 
 the passage is thus emphasized. — In the words, 
 for a name, for a praise, etc., there appears to 
 be an allusion to Exod. xxviii. 2, where it is said 
 of the holy garments of Aaron that they should 
 be "for glory and for beauty." 
 
 2. The particular orders — broken pitchers. 
 XIII. 12-17. 
 
 12 Therefore [And] thou shalt speak unto them this word : Thus saith the Lord 
 [Jehovah the] God of Israel, Every bottle [vessel, pitcher] shall be filled with 
 wine ; and they shall [will] say unto thee, Do we not certainly know that every 
 
 13 bottle [pitcher] shall be filled with wine? Then shalt thou say unto them, Thus 
 saith the Lord [Jehovah] : 
 
 Behold, I fill all the inhabitants of this land, 
 
 And the kings who sit for David on his throne, 
 
 And the priests and the prophets and all the citizens of Jerusalem with drunkenness, 
 
 14 And dash them one against another. 
 
 And the fathers and sons together, saith Jehovah. 
 
 1 will not spare, nor have pity, nor be merciful, 
 So as not to destroy them. 
 
 15 Hear ye and attend 1 Be not high-minded ! For Jehovah hath spoken. 
 
 16 Give to Jehovah, your God, the glory, 
 Before he causes darkness. 
 
 And your feet stumble on mountains of twilight. 
 
 And ye wait for light, but he turneth it^ into dark shadow. 
 
 And change if^ into cloudy night. 
 
 17 But if ye hear it' not, my soul will weep in secret for your pride 
 And mine eyes shall weep sore and run down with tears,* 
 
 That the flock of Jehovah is carried away captive. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 ^ Ver. 16.— riDty refers to "^IX, which is used as a feminine besides only in Job xxxvl. 32. Comp. Ewaid, g 174 c 
 
 2 Ver. 10.— The Chothibh n't!?! f'H" jTiV' '^ foolisii. 
 
 8 Ver. IT.— ni 1? Ot!/r> referable to ver. 1.5. The feminine suflSx in a neuter sense. Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., § 60, 6 h. 
 * Ver. 17.— On the construction, comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., g 69, 2 a.; Jer. ix. 17 ; xiv. 17 ; Lam. i. 16 ; iii. 48. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Ver. 12. Announcement of tlie punitive judg- 
 ment under a new figure, that of pitchers to be 
 filled, which is not understood by the people. 
 Jehovah explains the figure, vers. 18, 14. Ad- 
 monition of the prophet to follow the warning 
 of Jehovah, vers. 15-17. 
 
 Ver. VI. Therefore thou shalt speak . . . 
 shall be filled with wine. After the decla- 
 ration, in the words "they would not hear," ver. 
 11, tliat the symbolical action had been unsuc- 
 cessful, a new attempt is set on foot by a visible 
 parable to make an impression on the people. 
 The first symbolical act was intended to bring 
 the thoughts of God home to the people in an 
 analytical way, the new parable takes a syntheti- 
 
CHAP. XIII. 18-27. 
 
 141 
 
 cal form. The short sentence, "every bottle 
 shall be filled with wine," is set at the head of 
 an obscure, mysterious problem. The people 
 express their understanding of the sentence in 
 the most natural physical sense, but with the 
 silent assumption (we knew that before, no one 
 need tell us that. Comp. Gen. xliii. 7) that this 
 interpretation is not satisfactory. The Lord 
 therefore develops His meaning more particu- 
 larly in what follows. 
 
 Vers. 13 and 11. Then shalt thou say unto 
 them . . . destroy them. It should first be 
 observed that in the three parts of this discourse 
 (ch. xiii.) there is a climax, in so far as the first 
 part (vers. 9, 10) is addressed to the mass of 
 the people, without distinction of the particular 
 orders, the second part specifies these orders 
 with evident emphasis on the favored classes, 
 the third part applies to the king and the king's 
 mother alone (ver. 18). The prominence of the 
 higher classes in the second part is doubtless 
 connected with the purport of the parable. They 
 are compared with earthen pitchers. [Hendek- 
 SON : " These bottles are frequently of a large 
 size. On entering the city of Tiflis, in 1821, the 
 author found the market-place full of such bot- 
 tles, consisting of the, skins of oxen, calves, etc., 
 distended with wine. — It is from this custom that 
 our English word hogshead is derived — that term 
 being a corrupt pronunciation of ox-hide." — 
 But HiTZiG renders wiuQ-piichers, earthen vessels 
 or pots. — S. R. A.] (Comp. Jer. xlviji. 12; Isa. 
 XXX. 14; Lam. iv. 2). These pitchers are bel- 
 lied, to a certain extent swollen, but internally 
 they are hollow and empty and moreover of 
 frangible material. They are therefore an ex- 
 cellent emblem of that carnal aristocratic pride 
 to which there is no corresponding inner merit. 
 That this is the prophet's meaning is clear from 
 the emphatically prefixed Be not high-mind- 
 ed (^najJl-Sx), ver. 15, and from pride (HjJ), 
 ver. 17. — What a suitable punishment for such 
 men, who are like pitchers, to be filled with wine 
 0f intosication ! |n32^, drunkenness, desig- 
 
 nates the immediate subjective effect of the wine 
 of fury (comp. xxv. 15; Isa. xxviii. 7; li. 17; 
 Ps. Ix. 5), of which the further objective effect 
 is collision and breaking to pieces. The Midi- 
 anites (Judges vii. 22) and the Philistines (1 Sam. 
 xiv. 20), who exterminated each other, were 
 also seized by a spirit of intoxication. If not 
 in this sense, yet in that of mutual hatred, re- 
 ciprocal oppression and injury in general, the 
 
 prophet applies D'ili'aj, dash them, to the 
 
 Israelites. But when a kingdom is divided 
 against itself it cannot stand, Mark iii. 24. — The 
 plural kings in ver. 13, intimates that not merely 
 the then reigning king, but several, one after 
 another (as the majority of the kings contempo- 
 rary with Jeremiah were evil-disposed) were in- 
 cluded in this category. The addition, who 
 sit for David (comp. xxii. 4), sets forth that 
 very element on which the pride of these kings 
 especially rested. (Comp. 2 Sam. vii.). 
 
 Vers. 1-5 and 17. Hear ye and attend . . . 
 carried away captive. The prophet inter- 
 poses as a mediator with an earnest admonition 
 to observe the divine warning. On high-minded 
 comp. the foregoing remarks. — For Jehovah 
 hath spoken, viz., every bottle, etc., ver. 12. — 
 Give glory. Comp. Josh. vii. 19. It is op- 
 posed to be proud. — Cause darkness. Comp. 
 Ps. cv. 28; cxxxix. 12. According to the con- 
 nection it is easiest to regard God as the subject. 
 — Stumble, reference to dash together, ver. 
 14. — Dark mountains are more than stones of 
 stumbling. The prophet imagines them to be 
 wandering in a mountainous country and in a 
 dark ravine. Comp. Ps. xxiii. 4. — In secret 
 places. The prophet will retire from the pub- 
 licity, in which he has hitherto lived and labored, 
 into solitude, in order that he may give way to 
 his sorrow. — Weep in contrast with drunken- 
 ness, ver. 13 : the prophet's eyes will overflow 
 with tears. — Flock. Comp. ver. 20; Zech. x. 
 3. Even the disobedient people continue to be 
 the Lord's flock. 
 
 3. The father and mother of the country humbled, driven away, insulted. 
 
 XIII. 18-27. 
 
 18 Say to the king and the princes, sit down low,^ 
 
 For fallen is your chief ornament,^ your glorious crown! 
 
 19 The cities of the south are shut up, and no man openeth them; 
 Judah is carried away' wholly, carried away completely.* 
 
 20 Lift up your eyes and see who are coming from the north. 
 Where is the flock that was given thee, thy beautiful flock? 
 
 21 What wilt thou say, when he sets over thee those,^ 
 
 Whom thou hast thyself drawn® to thee for friends, as chief?* 
 Will not pangs seize thee as a parturient woman T 
 
 22 And if thou sayest in thy heart, why have these things happened to me?- 
 For the greatness of thy iniquity are f,hy skirts discovered,* 
 
 Thy heels abused.'" 
 
142 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 23 "Will a Cushite change liis skin, or a leopard his spots ? 
 
 Then shall ye also be able to do good, ye accustomed to evil-doing ! 
 
 24 Therefore I will scatter them as the stubble," 
 That hasteth away^^ before the wind of the desert. 
 
 25 This is thy lot, thy measured^^ portion from me, saith Jehovah, 
 Because thou didst forget me and trust in falsehood. 
 
 26 Therefore I also have discovered thy skirts from before, 
 That'* thy shame may be seen : — 
 
 27 Thy adulteries and ardent neighings, the enormity of thy unchastity — 
 On the hills in the field have I seen thy abominations ! 
 
 Wo to thee, O Jerusalem ! Wilt thou not be cleansed — still after how long ! 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 I Ver. IS. — On the construction camp. Naeqelsb. Gr., g 95, Anm. 
 
 * Ver. 18. — □D'mC'XTO. Thus punctuated the word is found here only. On the derivation comp. OlSH. g 197, e, <S 
 
 374. The meaning is : that which is found at the head or on the head. (Comp. r\l7J13 Ruth iii. 4, 7, 8, 14). Elsewhero 
 
 T : ~ 
 we find (occurring only in this form) VmC'X'^'D, Gen. xxviii. 11, 18; 1 Sam. xix. 13, 16, etc.: and (erroneously punctuated) 
 
 T -: " : 
 'nti'NID, 1 Sam. xxvi. 12. — That which is found on the head is the ornament, which is more particularly designated as the 
 
 crown. On the sing. masc. ^"V comp. Naegelsb. Gr. g 105, 4 6, 3. 
 
 3 Ver. 19.— nb jn. Comp. Lev. xxv. 21 ; xxvi. 34 ; 2 Ki. ix. 37 (Chethibh) : Ewald, g 194 a ; OWH., g 226 6, S. 449. 
 
 * Ver. 19.— D'DlSiy adjective=D''7K' integer. Comp. Am. i. 6, 9. 
 
 " T 
 
 6 Ver. 21. — Since there is no nominative to TpS"", either mentioned or implied, in the connection, it must be either the 
 ideal-general subject (One), or Jehovah, which in sense amounts to the same thing. All the commentators recognize a 
 parenthesis as beginning with j'lXV But some conclude this with DHX (Gaab), others with ^7^^ (Hitzio, Graf), others 
 with D'3 vX (EiCHHORN, De Wette, Umbreit). It is opposed to the first rendering that then the sense of ''ms 7 remains 
 indefinite, to the second, that then the parenthesis is either superfluous, if we consider T7j^^T7N, or as incorrectly in- 
 troduced by 1, if "VlV is to be considered sts=adversum te (Vulg., Hitzig). It would then need to be ^2- I therefore agree 
 
 : '• - T I 
 
 with those who conclude the parenthesis with D'flvX. Then pXI is sentence of condition with an adversative meaning 
 
 (comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 109, 4 e) which in its entirety is to be regarded as the object of Tpj)'. The meaning of this verb 
 is that which occurs frequently : to set, ordain over one (comp. xv. 3). 
 
 « Ver. 21. — nQ7=to accustom, to train, of beasts (xxxi. 18 ; Hos. x. 11), of men (x. 2). In the latter passage it is con- 
 strued with 7 X for which we here have jp, which prepositions, as frequently remarked, are often used as synonymous by 
 
 Jeremiah (comp. on x. 2). — The construction with a double accusative is similar to ii. 33, only here it is a double accusa- 
 tive of person, since it is not said : thou teachest them intimacy, liut as intimates, which is to be regarded as a prolepsis and 
 to be included in the cases enumerated in Naegelsb. Gr. g 69, 3. 
 
 7 Ver. 21. — tj;Xl7, the thought is the same as in Lam. i. 5. 
 
 8 Ver. 21.— mS nC?X, mulier partus; elsewhere mSV (comp. vi. 24; xxii. 23 ; xlix. 24), HI/ besides only in 2 Ki. 
 
 T" T- 
 
 xix. 3 ; Isa. xxxvii. 3; Hos. ix. 11. 
 
 9 Ver. 22.— OJI ibjj. Comp. Nah. iii. 5. 
 
 10 Ver. 22.— The Niph. ^Don J hero only. Comp. xxii. 3. The captive driven before the enemy is exposed both to shame 
 
 and abuse. [Henderson : " The reason why the heels are particularly mentioned, seems to be that the sandal was fastened 
 by a strap or thong which came round above the lieel to the instep. As the sandal was not so easily removed as the skirt 
 was turned up, hence the appropriate selection of the verb DDPt, to tear ofl",or do anything with violence. Both parts of 
 
 ~ T 
 
 the description literally apply to those who were removed into a state of expatriation by a victorious army." — S. R. A.] 
 
 II Ver. 24.— U/p stubble. Comp. Ps. Ixxxiii. 14 : Isa. xli. 2 ; xlvii. 14. 
 
 12 Ver. 24.— m"lS "l^lj^, literally stubble, which is related to the wind as going along, which runs from the wind. 
 That "^^^J,' also signifies discedere, dbire, auferri is seen from passages like Ruth ii. 8 : 2 Chron. xviii. 23 ; Ps. Ixxii. 7 ; Ezek. 
 
 xlviii. 14. Comp. T3J? VD, Isa. xxix. .5. 
 
 18 Ver. 25.— inD~r\3D- In Job xi. 9 also rnD is to be derived from HD, with the meaning menmra=T\1l:^. Comp. 
 
 Olsh., 1 139, S. 208 ; Fuerst., Cone. S. 616, s. v., ID. Therefore it is not necessary to render ID here=wpi>er garment, with 
 
 reference to Rutli iii. 15 (coll. Ps. xi. 6; Isa. Ixv. 6), [as Hitzig does, declaring that 10 never means ?nensMra. Henderson: 
 
 " As the noun is here parallel with hl1J>. the lot, which was specially employed in determining portions of land, it seems 
 
 T 
 
 preferable to explain it of such measurements." — S. R. A.] 
 
 H Ver. 26.— "):yx is causal. Comp. Josh. iv. 23 ; 1 Ki. viii. 33 ; Zech. i. 15. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The discour.se of the prophet still rising higher, 
 is now addressed to the king and his mother, thus 
 
 to the heads of the State (comp. on ver 13). He 
 announces humbling of pride (ver. 18), overthrow 
 of power anil exile (ver. 19). Enemies fi-om the 
 iiortli (ver. 20), whose friendship was formerly- 
 sought, will bring this about to the extreme 
 
CHAP. XIII. 18-27. 
 
 14.^ 
 
 misery of the subjects (ver. 21), as a punishment 
 for their sins (ver. 22). And since Israel is cor- 
 rupt to the core, an amelioration on their part is 
 not to be expected (ver. 24), wherefore the Lord 
 must also scatter them to the winds (ver. 24), and 
 as a just punishment of their wickedness (vers. 
 25-27 a), deliver them up to inconceivable woe 
 (ver. 27 6). The address, which at first has 
 the king and his mother alone in view (vers. 18, 
 19), passes over gradually more to the latter 
 (vers. 20-22), and at last (since the king's mother 
 may easily be regarded as the mother of the 
 country and representative of the mother-coun- 
 try) to the entirety of the nation (vers. 23-27), 
 the end of the discourse thus returning to the 
 beginning (comp. vers. 9 and 10). 
 
 Vers. 18 and 19. Say to the king . . . 
 
 carried aw^ay completely. — ni'3J is the 
 
 queen-mother, who had precedence in rank over 
 the many chosen women of the harem. There- 
 fore the book of Kings (with two exceptions) al- 
 ways mentions with the name of the king, that 
 of his mother. — Comp. xxix. 2 ; 1 Kings xv. 12; 2 
 Kings X. 13 (2 Chron. xv. 16). — Sit down. Here, 
 also, the prophet attacks worldly pride. — Of 
 the south. As the enemy comes from the north, 
 the siege of the cities of the south is a sign that 
 the capital is surrounded, and that flight to the 
 south, is no longer possible. [Henderson fol- 
 lowing HiTZiQ, more correctly refers this to the 
 complete desertion of the cities, — "the inhabi- 
 tants having all been carried away into cap- 
 tivity, and not so much as one left to open the 
 gates to a traveler." — S. R. A]. 
 
 Vers. 20-22. Lift up your eyes . . . thy 
 heels abused. The circumstance that the 
 princess is mentioned immediately before, and 
 that ver. 20 b appears to refer to the shepherds 
 of the people (the ideal person of the people is 
 represented as wife, mother, daughtei", but never 
 as shepherdess), appears to me to indicate that 
 the prophet has made use of the feminine forms 
 
 'K'}, 'XK? (lift up and see), with primary refer- 
 ence to princess: — thou hast thyself drawn, 
 ver. 21, also seems to favor this. For such acts 
 always proceeded especially from the heads of 
 the people, and how powerful the influence of 
 the princesses was, is shown in Maachah, the 
 mother of Asa (1 Kings xv. 13), Jezebel (1 Kings 
 xvi. 31 sqq.), and Athaliah (2 Kings xi.). The 
 sudden change of number is not unusual. Comp. 
 Naegblsb. Gr., § 105, 7. Anm. 2. — As certainly 
 as the prophet means by those coming from the 
 north the same enemies, of which he has already 
 spoken ini. 14, 15; iv. 6, etc., so certain is it also, 
 that he does not know definitely what northern 
 people were meant ; comp. remarks on i. 14. 
 Thus it is also declared that this prophecy must 
 have been delivered before the fourth year of Je- 
 hoiakim. For from this year (comp. chap. xxv. ) 
 Jeremiah knows definitely that the nation is the 
 Chaldeans. — What wilt thou say, ver. 21. It 
 having been said of the ruling pair in the pre- 
 vious verse, that they are to lose their flock, it is 
 here added by way of climax, that tbey will them- 
 selves come under the dominion of others, and 
 indeed of those whose friendsiiip might rather 
 have been expected from the previous relations 
 of the kings of Judah towards them. This can- 
 
 not, indeed, be said of Jehoiakim, for although 
 he had not engaged in direct hostilities against 
 the king of Babylon (his revolt, 2 Kings xxiv. 1, 
 must have taken place after the battle of Car- 
 chemish, and therefore long after this prophecy), 
 he was yet a creature of his opponent Pharaoh 
 Nechoh (2 Kings xxiii. 34). But of his pre- 
 decessors, from Ahaz onward (comp. 2 Kings 
 xvi. 7 sqq.), most of them had entered into more 
 or less intimate relations with the northern em- 
 pire, partly as seeking aid from it (comp. on ii. 
 18, 36), partly as introducing among themselves 
 the forms of religion there prevailing (comp. 
 Manasseh, 2 Kings xxi. 3 ; Amon, lb. xxi. 20; 
 Zeph. i. 5 coll. 2 Kings xxiii. 5, 11 sqq.), partly at 
 least like Hezekiah in an apparently innocuous, 
 but really fatal display of courtesy. If with this 
 we take into account the relations of the Jewish 
 kings to Assyria, as well as to Babylon, we are 
 justified, both by the words of this passage, which 
 speaks only generally of |i£32^0 D'N^, and the in- 
 ner unity of those empires (comp. the name As- 
 shur, transferred to the Babylonian and Persian 
 monarchy; 2 Kings xxiii. 29; Ezr. vi. 22). 
 
 Vers. 23-27. Will the Cushite . . . after 
 how^ long! There might still be a means of es- 
 cape — Reform. But this is not to be expected, 
 because evil-doing has become the people's se- 
 cond nature. Comp. v. 3; vi. 10, 13-15, 27 sqq. ; 
 viii. 4-7 ; ix. 24, 25. — Therefore I also. Ver. 
 26. The declaration of cause and consequence 
 are entwined after the manner of a chain in 
 vers. 23-27 ; ver. 23 cause, vers. 24, 25 a, con- 
 sequence ; ver. 25 b, repeated cause; ver. 26, 
 consequence; ver. 27 a, cause again; ver. 27 
 b, the final consequence. Yet since I have 
 discovered thy skirts, evidently points back 
 to ver. 22, where the same is said of the enemy, 
 there is in the words, Therefore I also, not 
 merely the antithesis to thou didst forget 
 me, ver. 25, but also the thought : whatever the 
 enemy does to thee is done according to my will; 
 I am He who does it. — From before. Jeremiah 
 quotes here only Nah. iii. 5, which passage also 
 refers back to Isa. xlvii. 1-3 (comp. Kueper, S. 
 136, Strauss on Nahum, S. 95). — Graf strangely 
 
 maintains that '^'J3~7j^ cannot mean " over thy 
 face;" that the expression never has this mean- 
 ing. I refer only to 1 Kings xviii. 7, 39. But 
 I also believe that the meaning face is not to be 
 insisted upon, but that D'Ji3 here as frequently 
 (comp. i. 13) signifies the fore-part. — Still after 
 how long! Jeremiah had maintained in ver. 
 23 the incorrigibility of the people. From the 
 conclusion of ver. 27 it is seen, that he under- 
 stands this only of the Israel of the present. In 
 the future, though far distant, he sets forth in 
 prospect the purification of the people, comp. iii. 
 18 sqq. ; xii. 14 sqq. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On xiii. 1-11. The Lord has put on Israel 
 as a girdle for His own adornment and for Israel's 
 highest glory. This figure is unquestionably one 
 of the most precious which the Scripture employs 
 to represent the mystery of election. Elsewhere 
 Israel is called Jehovah's inheritance (Deut. iv. 
 20 , vii. 6), His wife and His beloved bride (Hos. 
 
144 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 ii. 16 sqq. ; Jer. ii. 2), his first-born son (Exod. 
 iv. 22), His servant, (Isa. xli. 8), His flock (Jer. 
 xiii. 17), his vineyard (Isa. v. 7), his signet-ring 
 (Hagg. ii. 23. Vid. Kohler, S. 114). Like the 
 last emblem, the girdle also denotes the closest 
 intimacy, indispensable service, a valuable orna- 
 ment. But great as is the love which the Lord 
 thus shows to Israel in calling them His girdle, 
 as great is the severity with which he declares, 
 that the honor thus received will not save them 
 from destruction. Let every particular Christian 
 church mark this ! However closely it may be 
 attached to the Lord, this saves it neither from 
 internal corruption, nor from external judgment, 
 comp. Luke iii. 8, 9. Not this or that particular 
 church, but the whole church only has the promise 
 of infallibility (John xvi. 13) invincibility and 
 permanent existence. (Matt. xvi. 18). 
 
 2. On xiii. 17. "This is a good advice. In the 
 words of a hymn, ' when witnesses have sown 
 God's word, they water it with prayer and many 
 thousand tears.' In one hour more grace is 
 drawn by weeping from God the lover of life, 
 who allows Himself to be implored, and who 
 hearkens to the voice of His servants; and 
 hearts, which feel the tears of their lover, are 
 thus brought nearer to their object in a quarter of 
 an hour, than could be accomplished by three 
 sermons . . . 'Everything is born in pain.' . . 
 When ye can do no more, ye witnesses, go and 
 weep and moisten your seed, then you will come 
 again with joy bringing your sheaves with you." 
 ZiNZENDORF. Preces et lacrimx sunt arma ecclesim. 
 
 3. On xiii. 18. "When the enemies are at the 
 gate, the plague in the city or the village, and 
 there is no escape, and human help there is none, 
 then it is of some use for preachers to speak to 
 their princes out of tune ; at other times they 
 would be regarded as insolent. . . . Sometimes 
 God's witnesses are clothed with an authority 
 which no one understands, but all feel. Jeho- 
 ram's visit to Elisha was for the purpose of de- 
 capitating him, and a polite conversation was 
 the result, (2 Kings vi. 30 sqq.)" Zinzendorf. 
 
 4. On xiii. 18. "A preacher is not to take 
 court-soup and robes of grace and leave the 
 hare's head unstript, but put salt even into He- 
 rod's wounds." FoRSTER from a sermon of Ce- 
 liCH, 3 Dom. Adv. 
 
 5. [On ver. 23. "Inveterate habits are justly 
 regarded as a second nature ; but being moral 
 in their character, instead of extenuating they 
 aggravate the guilt of those who are the subjects 
 of them. Strong, therefore, as is the physical 
 reference here made, it can with no propriety be 
 employed in support of the physical impossibility 
 of moral reformation." Henderson. — "Learned 
 men in our age do not rightly refer to this pas- 
 sage, when they seek to prove that there is no 
 free-will in man; for it is not simply the nature 
 of man which is spoken of here, but the habit 
 that is contracted by long practice. Aristotle, 
 a strong advocate of free will, confesses that it 
 is not in man's power to do right, when he is so 
 
 immersed in his vices as to have lost a free 
 choice (7 Lib. Ethicon) and this also is what ex- 
 perience proves. We hence see that this pas- 
 sage is improperly adduced to prove a sentiment 
 which is yet true and fully confirmed by many 
 passages of Scripture." Calvin. — S. R. A.] 
 
 IIOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On xiii. 1-11. "God has cast off His first 
 people, the whole house of Judah and the house 
 of Jerusalem . . God has put on us as a girdle in 
 their stead. For He has not thrown away the 
 girdle and remained naked, but has woven Him- 
 self another. This girdle is the church from the 
 heathen. It should know that as God spared not 
 the former, much more will He not spare it, when 
 it sins and is not worthy of God's loins. But he 
 who is joined to the Lord is one spirit (1 Cor. vi. 
 17) in Christ Jesus, to whom be glory and domi- 
 nion forever. Amen." Origen, Horn. XI. 6. 
 
 2. On xiii. 12-17. Exhortation to repentance: 
 The earthen wine-pitchers of the prophet Jeremiah. 
 1. What they signify (the proud yet perishable 
 world); 2. What will be their fate (vers. 14, 17); 
 3. What is the means of escaping this fate (vers. 
 15 and 16). 
 
 3. [On ver. 17. " Pride the great hindrance to 
 the reception of the word. Pride will not seek 
 1, the knowledge of God. Pride (a) will not 
 brook a rival : (6) is unwilling to be taught, (c) 
 is unwilling to use the means of knowledge, [d) 
 is unwilling to pray ; 2, the favor of God ; 3, 
 likeness to God ; 4, communion with God." Pat- 
 son on Ps. X. 14. — S. R. A.] 
 
 4. On xiii. 23 sqq. The expression in ver. 
 23 opens up to us a comfortless perspective. But 
 with God nothing is impossible (Matth. xix. 26). 
 The conclusion of ver. 27 shows us that a puri- 
 fication, though slow and successive is possible, 
 in that we obtain a point of support without 
 ourselves, (Archimedes), and a new principle of 
 life in Christ Jesus. [On ver. 23. I. The great 
 difficulty of reforming vicious habits, or of 
 changing a bad course, arises 1, from the gene- 
 ral nature of habits ; 2, from the particular na- 
 ture of bad habits ; 3, the natural and judicial 
 consequences of the great progress and long con- 
 tinuance of a bad course. II. This difi&culty is 
 not desperate, but there is some ground of hope 
 and encouragement. 1. There is left even in 
 the worst of men a natural sense of the evil and 
 unreasonableness of sin. 2. Very bad men when 
 they have any thought of becoming better are 
 apt to conceive some good hopes of God's grace 
 and mercy. 3. Who knows what man thoroughly 
 roused and startled may resolve and do ? 4. The 
 grace and assistance of God when sincerely 
 sought is never to be despaired of. Tillotson. — 
 S. R. A.] 
 
 5. [Jer. Taylor uses ver. 26 as the text of a 
 sermon on the invalidity of a death-bed repent- 
 ance. — S. R. A.] 
 
CHAP. XIV. 1-9. 246 
 
 THE FIFTH DISCOURSE. 
 
 (Chap. XIV.— XVII. 18). 
 
 A fearful drought gives the prophet occasion to offer a hearty and touching intercession for his people. Thi. 
 twice-repeated decisive refusal of his petition, based on the revolt of the people (xiv. 10 coll. iii. 3) 
 compels him to take into view his own situation, rendered exceedingly dangerous in consequence of his 
 prophetic ministry, and then also to present before the people the sad prospect, that from the present 
 calamity which is not spoken of after xiv. 22, there is no hope of escape, but that far worse, even a 
 fearful punitive judgment ending in captivity, is impending. 
 
 As to the time of composition no data are furnished by the mention of the drought (comp. rems. on xiv. 1). 
 That it was before the fourth year of Jehoiakim, and therefore before the decisive turning point in the 
 history of the theocracy and in Jeremiah's prophecies, is evident from the circumstance, already urged, 
 that nowhere in the discourse is the enemy mentioned as known. Twice only and in passages critically 
 suspicious, are the northern iron (xv. 12) and the north country as the place of exile (xvi. 15) men- 
 tioned. On the other hand there are many traces that the discourse cannot have originated long before 
 the fourth year of Jehoiakim or the discourse preserved in ch. xxv. The prophet, when he delivered 
 this discourse, must have been a long time in office. For the hatred against him has become as much 
 deeper as more general (xv. lOsqq.): he is mocked, because the fulfilment of his prophecy is so long 
 delayed (xvii. 15): he moreover complains of the endless duration of his sufferings (xv. 18), while on 
 the other hand he represents to the Lord that he has obtained universal recognition as a prophet of Je- 
 hovah (xv. 16). The command not to take a wife (xvi. 2) further indicates that the prophet, who at 
 his calling was only a ^J/J (i. 6, 7) has in the meantime reached a mature age. The words " this 
 once" also (xvi. 21) seem to indicate that the great catastrophe was very near. It is also seen that 
 this discourse must belong to the same period as ch. xiii. Gomp. the introduction to the fourth dis- 
 course. 
 
 The attempts to ascribe different parts of the discourse to different periods (comp. Graf, S. 208, 9) are 
 rendered abortive by the fact that it is a well-compacted whole, as will be seen from the following ta- 
 ble of contents. 
 
 FIRST MAIN DIVISION. 
 
 THE TWICE REPEATED INTERCESSION OF THE PROPHET CONCERNING THE DROUGHT, AND ITS TWICE RE- 
 PEATED REJECTION. 
 
 XIV. 1— XV. 9. 
 
 1. The first petition, xiv. 1-9. 
 
 2. The first refusal, xiv. 10-18. 
 
 3. The second petition, xiv. 19-22. 
 
 4. The second refusal, xv. 1-4. 
 
 5. Further portrayal of the sad fate which is impending over the thus rejected nation, xv. 5-9. 
 
 SECOND MAIN DIVISION. 
 
 THE CONSEQUENCES OF REFUSAL WITH RESPECT TO THE PERSON OF THE PROPHET AND INSTEUCTIOIT 
 
 CONCERNING HIS FURTHER COURSE. 
 
 XV. 10— XVI. 9. 
 
 1. Complaint and petition of theifprophet on account of the consequences of the refusal with respect to his 
 
 own person, xv. 10-18. 
 
 2. Tranquilizing and consolatory answer of the Lord, xv. 19-21. 
 
 3. Instructions how the servant of the Lord should conduct himself among the people on whom the 'Judg- 
 
 ment has fallen, xvi. 1-9. 
 
 THIRD MAIN DIVISION. 
 
 REASON OF THE REJECTION AND ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE CAPTIVITY. 
 
 XVI. 10— XVII. 4. 
 
 1. Idolatry is the cause of the removal into exile, xvi. TO-15. 
 
 2. More particular description of the removal announced in xvi, 13, xvi. 16-18. 
 
 3. Refutation of the objection (xvi. 10) that the people had committed no sin by their idolatry, xvi. 19 -21. 
 
 4. Refutation of the objection (xvi. 10) that the people generally had not served idols, xvii. 1-4. 
 
 10 
 
146 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 XVII. 5-18. 
 
 1. Retrospective glance at the deep roots of the corruption, xvii. 5-13. 
 
 2. Petition of the prophet for the safety of his person and the honor of his official ministrations, xvil 
 
 1J:-18. 
 
 FIRST MAIN DIVISION. 
 
 THE TWICE REPEATED INTERCESSION OF THE PROPHET CONCERNING THE DROUGHT, AND ITS TWICE UI- 
 
 PEATED REJECTION. (XIV. 1 XV. 9.) 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 1 . The first petition. 
 XIV. 1-9. 
 
 1 The word which came to Jeremiah concerning the drought^ : 
 
 2 Judah mourns and her gates are in trouble, 
 Covered by mourning'^ even to the earth ; 
 And the cry of Jerusalem goes up. 
 
 3 And their mighty ones have sent their mean ones' for water. 
 They came to the cisterns, found no water ; 
 
 Returned with their vessels empty. 
 
 Ashamed and confounded are they and cover their heads. 
 
 4 On account of the ground, which is dismayed, because there was no rain in the land, 
 The husbandmen are ashamed and cover their heads, 
 
 5 For the hind also in the field has brought forth 
 And — forsaken,* for there is no green thing there. 
 
 6 And the wild asses stand on the high places, 
 They gasp for air like the jackals. 
 
 Their eyes have failed, for there is no herb there. 
 
 7 Though our sins testify against us, O Jehovah, 
 Act^ for thine own name's sake ; 
 
 For many are our apostasies, against thee have we sinned, 
 
 8 O thou Hope of Israel, his deliverer in distress ; 
 Why wilt thou be as a stranger in the land, 
 
 Or as a traveller who pitches (his tent) for the night? 
 
 9 Why wilt thou be as a man taken by surprise," 
 As a warrior who can give no help? 
 
 Yet thou art in our midst, O Jehovah ! 
 And we bear thy name ; forsake us not !'' 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 1.— JinVDn may be the plural of Hll^D Jer. xvii. 8, which undoubtedly signifies drought, in case 711^3 Ps- 
 
 IX. 10; x.l is to be Otherwise rendered. Comp. mnt^^ from mnc^- The plural does not necessarily imply many 
 
 things, as Graf supposes. In Uebrew all things which have extension in time or space (comp. D''3E'ri, D'' 7^r>3, etc. 
 
 Naegelsb. Gr., § 61, 2, c) may be in the plural. The word means a drought, which extends through a plurality of moments 
 (perhaps also of points of space). I HiTZio : The phiral stands here aU designandam diuturnam, continuationem siccitatis, Ch. 
 B. Mich.— S. R. A.] 
 
 » Ver. 2.— >.7 mp Const, prxf/nans. Comp. Naegelsb. Gh:, §112, 7. 
 
 9 Ver. 3.— The form ^1^'}; is found here only, and xlviii. 4 in the Chethibh. Elsewhere Tj^Jf. 
 
 * Ver. 5.-2)]^), comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 62, 2, a; Exod. viii. 11 ; Gen. xli. 43 ; Jer. xxxii. 33, 44. 
 
 5 Ver. 7.— On Htyj^ comp. reras. on xviii. 23. 
 
 6 Ver. 9. — Dm J an. Aey., since ScnuLTENS, is by most commentators derived from the Arabic (dahama=^to fall upon, 
 
 surprise). 
 
 ' \ er. 9. — 1 jn jn~7X literally ne deponas, dejieias nos (comp. Num. xix. 9). From this are developed the meanings r«- 
 Unqwre (Gen. xlii. 33) and deserere. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL, 
 
 A fearful drought prevails in the land. Pro- 
 ceeding from the whole to the particulars, from 
 
 the higher to tlie lower, the prophet shows how 
 the whole of .Judah and .Jerusalem mourns (ver. 
 2), how the rulers of the people send out their 
 subjects in vain for water (ver. 3), how the hus- 
 bandmen also in like distress stand in like con- 
 
CHAP. XIV. 10-18. 
 
 147 
 
 sternation. Passing to the beasts he describes 
 how the terrible thirst conquers even the mater- 
 nal feeling of the hind (ver. 6) and how the wild 
 asses seek the heights in order to obtain some 
 mitigation at least from stronger currents of air 
 (ver. 6). To this the prophet attaches a hearty 
 prayer that the Lord will not have regard only 
 to the acknowledged sins of Israel, but for the 
 sake of His own glory (ver. 7), will no longer act 
 towards His people as a stranger, who will not 
 help (ver. 8), or as one who has become power- 
 less and cannot help (ver. 9 a), but as one who is 
 near, their shield and Father, and who accord- 
 ingly will not forsake His people (ver. 9 6). 
 
 Ver. 1. The word which . . drought. Con- 
 traction of two sentences into one, the predicate 
 of the main sentence having been attracted by the 
 subordinate sentence and become its predicate, 
 so that the subject of the subordinate sentence 
 becomes the predicate. Comp. the same con- 
 struction xlvi. 1 ; xlvii. 1 ; xlix. 34. — Most com- 
 mentators following the example of Jerome un- 
 derstand this of a future drought, which they 
 believe to be intimated in 2 Kings xxv. 3. The 
 connection is, however, opposed to deferring the 
 drought to the future, as well as that the his- 
 torical accounts contain no data for the determi- 
 nation of any real time. 
 
 Vers. 2-4. Judah mourns . . . cover their 
 heads. — Gates = those assembled in the gates. 
 Comp. Isai. iii. 26 ; xiv. 31 ; Ruth iii. 11. — In 
 dark, mourning-attire they seat themselves on 
 the ground. Isai. iii. 26; Jer. viii. 21; Ps. 
 XXXV. 14. — The cry of Jerusalem goes up, 
 in contrast to covered to the earth. — They do 
 not send their private servants, but. as it is a 
 matter of general interest, mean, common peo- 
 ple generally. — T\r\T\, dismayed, is a relative 
 sentence (comp. Isai. li. 1. Naegelsb. Gr., ^ 80, 
 6, 1). r\n, dismayed, forms a climax with 
 
 E'13 ashamed (comp. Fuerst, H. W. B. s. v.) 
 and can therefore be used of impersonal objects 
 like the latter. Comp. li. 47; Isai: xxiv. 23; 
 Joel i. 10. — The husbandmen are ashamed, 
 etc. Comp. Joel i. 11. 
 
 Vers. 5 and 6. For the hind also ... no 
 herb there. It is not necessary to take '3 
 
 [with HiTZiG and Henderson. — S. R. A.] in the 
 
 insecure sense of Tea. It is causal: what is said 
 of the distress of the men is confirmed by the dis- 
 tress of the beasts. — Forsaken. The hind is ce- 
 lebrated by the ancients for her tender maternal 
 aifection (Bochakt, Hieroz, P. I., L. III., Cap. 
 17) to which may be added, that she is said to 
 bring forth with ditficulty (comp. Ps. xxix. 9 ; 
 Job xxxix. 1). — Like the jackals. Hitzio and 
 Graf suppose that jackals cannot be meant here, 
 
 but that D'jr5 must stand for TilH (comp. Ezek. 
 xxix. 3 ; xxxii. 2) = sea monsters. But I do 
 not see why the open, panting wolf-jaws (the 
 jackal like the wolf belongs to the canine spe- 
 cies) should not serve for a comparison in a case 
 like the present. Comp. ii. 24. — Their eyes 
 have failed. Comp. Job xi. 20; Lam. ii. 11. 
 [Henderson: — The wild asses betake themselves 
 to the heights in order to discover some supply. 
 They are very sharp-sighted, and travellers in 
 the desert often avail themselves of their appear- 
 ance, knowing that there must be herbage and 
 water in the vicinity. — S. R. A.] 
 
 Vers. 7-9. Though our sins . . forsake us 
 not! — Act for Thy name's sake (comp. ver. 
 21) i. e., though we cannot ask that thou 
 shouldest interpose actively for our sake, yet 
 do it in behalf of Thine own glory, which is 
 pledged partly for the sake of the election, part- 
 ly for the sake of Thy renown among other 
 nations. Comp. Num. xiv. 13-16 ; Deut. v. 28, 
 29; Ezek. xx. 14; Ps. cix. 21.— Pitches (his 
 tent). HiTzia supposes, that the traveller 
 does not trouble himself with a tent. But tra- 
 veller (n!?i*) is collective, (comp. nn")X, the 
 caravans). These certainly take tents with them. 
 I do not think therefore that HDJ is = to de- 
 
 TT 
 
 viate from the way, to turn in (for the night). 
 In this sense "^^D is elsewhere always used. 
 (Gen. xix. 2; Judges iv. 18; xv. 19, etc.) I sup- 
 ply with the elder commentators wHN, his tent 
 (comp. Gen. xii. 8). — Yet thou art in our 
 midst (comp. x. 21) i. e., thou art constantly and 
 
 permanently with us (antithetic to "IJ ver. 8). — 
 
 We bear thy name, we are called the people 
 of Jehovah. Comp. Exod. v. 3 ; Deut. xxviii. 10, 
 coll. Jer. vii. 10. 
 
 A The First Refusal. 
 XIV. 10-18. 
 
 10 Thus saith Jehovah to this people: 
 
 They loved so to wander, their feet they restrained not ; 
 
 Jehovah moreover hath no pleasure in them ; 
 
 Now he will remember their guilt and visit their sin. 
 
 11 Then said Jehovah unto me : 
 
 Pray not on behalf of this people for good. 
 
 12 Though they fast, I hearken not to their cry. 
 
 And though they offer holocausts and oblations, I have no pleasure in thems 
 But by the sword, by hunger and pestilence I consume them 
 
148 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH 
 
 13 
 
 14 
 
 And I said : 
 
 Ah, Lord Jehovah ! Behold the prophets say to them, 
 " Ye will not see the sword, and famine will not come to you, 
 For I will give you assured peace in this place." 
 And Jehovah said unto me : 
 The prophets prophesy falsehood in my name, 
 I have not sent them nor commissioned them, 
 Nor have I spoken to them ; 
 False vision and divination and nothingness 
 And the deceit' of their heart they prophesy to you. 
 15 Therefore thus saith Jehovah concerning the prophets, 
 Who prophesy in my name though I have not sent them, 
 And who say, There shall be no sword or famine in this land: 
 By the sword and by famine shall these prophets perish. 
 And the people to whom they prophesy 
 Shall lie cast out in the streets of Jerusalem, 
 By reason of the famine and the sword • 
 And will have none to bury them. 
 Them, their wives, their sons and their daughters : 
 And I pour out over them their wickedness. 
 And thou shalt say to them this word : 
 
 Mine eyes shall flow with tears day and night and cease not, 
 For the virgin daughter of my people^ is stricken with a grievous stroke. 
 With a wound very incurable. 
 
 If I go forth into the field, behold ! the slain with the sword, 
 If I return to the city, behold ! the tortures^ of famine ! 
 For even prophet and priest go into the country and know nothing. 
 
 16 
 
 17 
 
 18 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 14. — The forms 7I7X and HWIH here only, everywhere else Jl'D^H) 7' /K- 
 
 2Ver. 17.— 'j; O n'7in3- Comp. Na'egelsb. Or., §64, 4; Isa. xxxvii. 22. 
 
 3 Ver. 18. — ''K1 bnH) sufferings, torments. Comp. xvi. 4 ; Deut. xxix. 21 ; Ps. ciil. 3 ; 2 Chron. xxi. 19. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The Lord answers the prophet's petition, that 
 in the description of the thirst-stricken beasts 
 he only describes the conduct of the idolatrous 
 people and has thus himself shown the reason 
 why the Lord must punish them (ver. 10). 
 Therefore he (the prophet) may cease his inter- 
 cession (ver. 11), and the people their ceremo- 
 nies, for their destruction by famine, sword and 
 pestilence is determined upon (ver. 12). There- 
 upon the prophet ventures to interpose in behalf 
 of the people from another side. He calls at- 
 tention to the fact that the prophets have sus- 
 tained the people in their errors by false pro- 
 mises (ver. 13). Upon this the Lord declares 
 them to bo false prophets (ver. 14), and pro- 
 nounces their destruction (ver. 15). Moreover 
 the same destruction is impending over the people 
 who believe in tliem (ver. 16), from which it is 
 seen that the prophet has accomplished nothing 
 by his intervention. The wound is incurable 
 (ver. 17) ; everywhere in the country, as he 
 wanders hither and thither, the prophet meets 
 with death in its most terrible forms. He learns 
 that neither prophet nor priest is any longer in 
 a condition to propitiate the Lord, or avert the 
 ealamity from the people (ver. 18). 
 
 Ver. 10. Thus saith Jehovah . . . their 
 
 sin. The commentators mistake the conneotioa 
 of this verse with the preceding, when they 
 
 overlook, that in \2, thus, the Lord refers to the 
 description of the animals tormented with thirst 
 (vers. 5 and 6), and finds in it a description of 
 the passionate, ungovernable lust of the people 
 for idolatry, the true, final cause of the ruin 
 now come upon Israel. As the hind, impelled 
 by her desire for refreshment, abandons her 
 newly born young in order to seek for food, so 
 Israel forsakes the Lord in order to satisfy his 
 lust for idolatry. As the wild-ass runs to the 
 high places, in order there, with wide-open jaws, 
 to drink in at least a cooler breath of air, so 
 Israel pants for idols. We are justified in this in- 
 terpretation the rather as the prophet has previ- 
 ously used essentially the same emblems of idola- 
 try. In ii. 24 he compared idolatrous Israel with 
 the wild-ass, who (there indeed in theheatof sexu- 
 al impulse) gasps for breath (comp. xiv. 6). Wan- 
 dering (J^IJ) is there also censured in the people, 
 as a symptom of their lust for idols, as in those 
 who cannot restrain the foot (comp. ii. 25). In 
 ver. 10 a, then there is a statement of the rea- 
 son, why He is compelled to refuse, as He does 
 in ver. 10 b, the petition of the prophet (ver. 7 
 sqq.). This second half of the verse is more- 
 over taken verbatim from Hos. viii. 13; ix. 9. 
 Vers. 11 and 12. Then said Jehovah . . . 
 
CHAP. XIV. 19-22. 
 
 149 
 
 I consume them. To this denial the Lord 
 adds by way of climax as before (vii. 16) a pro- 
 hibition of further intercession, at the same 
 time announcing that the people also will accom- 
 plish nothing by the ceremonies of divine wor- 
 ship, which train of thought we found also in 
 xi. 14 sqq. — For good. Comp. Deut. xxviii. 
 
 II ; XXX. 9; Jer. xxi. 10 ; xxiv. 5. 6. 
 
 Vers. 13-lG. And I said . . . pour out over 
 them their •wickedness. — Assured peace 
 [lit., peace of truth]. Comp. right seed, ii. 
 21. So here genuine, lasting, secure prosperity. 
 Comp. Isa. xxxix. 8 ; Jer. xxxiii. ti. In general 
 comp. vi. 14 ; iv. 10. — Divination (Op.p.) is 
 used here in a bad sense, as almost always, 
 comp. Numb, xxiii. 23; 1 Sam. xv. 23; Ezek. 
 xiii. 6, 23, etc. — With the description, cast out 
 in the streets, comp. viii. 2 ; xvi. 4 ; xxv. 33. 
 — I -will pour out, etc. Comp. ii. 19; Hos. 
 ix. 15. 
 
 Vers. 17 and 18. And thou shalt say to 
 them . . . know nothing. Tlie formula in 
 ver. 17 never introduces greater sections. It 
 occurs verbatim as here only in xiii. 12. Here 
 certainly at the beginning of a strophe. But 
 there is nothing in the tenor of the words to 
 prevent their being used wherever a definite 
 single word is to be marked. Comp. xxviii. 7. — 
 
 Let mine eyes, etc. As before (viii. 23 ; xiii. 
 17), th« prophet here expresses the thought that 
 nothing but weeping is left for him. — Stroke, 
 etc. Comp. X. 19; xxx. 12. — For even pro- 
 phet, etc. The prophet evidently wishes to say, 
 that he has looked about everywhere, both in 
 the country and the city, but has found only 
 symptoms of irretrievable destruction. This 
 moreover was not only his conclusion, for all 
 the priests and prophets who. like him, had 
 gone into the country, had also learned that 
 there was nothing more to be done, so that it 
 
 must be said of them : IJJT' Vh, i. e. non sapiunt 
 (comp. Ps. Ixxiii. 22 ; Job xxxiv. 2), they know 
 nothing. — "ino occurs only in Gen. xxxiv. 10, 
 21 ; xiii. 31, as a finite verb, is contrasted in 
 these passages with the Accusative and signifies 
 at any rate not simply to go directly out, but 
 (after the manner of business-people) to go hither 
 and thither (commeare, E/iTTopevecr^at). Here thea 
 at any rate we must suppose a journeying di- 
 rected to several points. The /N is explained 
 by Jerusalem's being considered as the central 
 point from whicii they went now this way now 
 that way. The omission of the article befors 
 yMi is not uncommou (comp. on ill. 2.) 
 
 3. The Second Petition. 
 Xiy. 19-22. 
 
 19 Hast thou utterly rejected Judah, or has thy soul disgust at Zion? 
 Why then hast thou smitten us and there is no cure for us ? 
 
 We hoped for peace but there came nothing good ; — 
 For a time of healing, and behold terror ! 
 
 20 We acknowledge, O Jehovah, our wickedness. 
 
 The guilt of our fathers, that we have sinned against thee. 
 
 21 Reject us not for thy name's sake ; 
 Disgrace not the throne of thy glory ; 
 
 Hold in remembrance, break not thy covenant with us. 
 
 22 Are there then among the vain deities of the heathen rain-dispensers ? 
 Or will the heaven [itself] give rain ? 
 
 Art not tliou He, Jehovah, our God ? 
 
 And our hope because thou hast made all these things? 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The prophet is not easily turned from his in- 
 tercession. He here begins again the second 
 time. He asks the Lord why He has rejected 
 Judah and Zion (ver. 19). He then adduces 
 three reasons why this cannot be. 1. Israel ac- 
 knowledges his sins (ver. 20); 2. Jehovah must 
 help for His own glory and for the sake of the 
 covenant (ver. 21) ; 8. There is no other dispen- 
 ser of rain and of blessing than He (ver. 22). 
 
 Ver. 19. Hast thou utterly . . . terror. 
 ^ nil? repetition from viii 16. 
 
 Vers. 20, 22. We acknowledge . . . made 
 all these things. As in ver. 7, so also here 
 (ver. 20), the prophet supports his petition on 
 the confession of sin. Therefore he likewise 
 adds, as in ver. 7, an appeal to the Lord's own 
 honor. Hence he further strengthens his ap- 
 peal by urging (a) that Zion's destruction would 
 disgrace the throne of the Lord Himself, in so 
 far as Zion in part is the throne of the Lord, 
 and in part conceals Him in its midst (comp. on 
 xvii. 12); (h) he reminds the Lord of the co\-^'- 
 nant made with Israel, which is to be kept, not 
 to he broken. Comp. xi. 1 sqq. ; Lev. xxvi. 11, 
 12, which passage seems to have been in the 
 
150 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 prophet's mind. — From ver. 22 we perceive 
 plainly the connection with the first petition, 
 ver. 1 sqq. — Art not thou He? Xin is never 
 a simple copula, not even in Eccles. (comp. i. 17 
 with ii. 13). Here it is demonstralive, i. e. re- 
 ferring to the previously mentioned idea of 
 rain-dispenser. Thou alone art He, who art at 
 the same time our God and the object of our 
 hope. God alone is the rain-dispenser, for He 
 
 has made all things. Comp. .Job v. 10 ; xxxviii. 
 25, 26. — For thou hast made is the basis of 
 Thou art he ; — our God, etc., is therefore a 
 
 parenthesis. Comp. Naegklsb. Gr. | 80, 3 
 
 [Henderson: " Fromtlie commencement of ver. 
 19 to the end of the chapter the people are in- 
 troduced as doing what the prophet was forbid- 
 den to do on their behalf." — S. E. A.] 
 
 CHAPTER XV. I 
 
 4. The Second Refusal, 
 XV. 1-4. 
 
 1 And Jehovah said unto me : 
 
 If Moses and Samuel stood before me, 
 
 Yet my soul is not inclined towards this people : 
 
 Away with them from my presence ! Out with them ! 
 
 2 And if they say to thee : Out whither shall we go ? — 
 Then say to them : Thus saith Jehovah : 
 
 He who is for death to death, he for the sword to the sword. 
 
 And he who is for famine to famine, and he for captivity to captivity. 
 
 3 And I appoint over them four kinds, saith Jehovah : 
 The sword to kill and the dogs to tear, 
 
 The birds of heaven and the beasts of the field to devour and to destroy. 
 
 4 And I make them a horror^ to all kingdoms of the earth, 
 
 On account of Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah, king of Judah, 
 And on account of what he did at Jerusalem. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 4. — Here and in Ezek. xxiii. 46 HI y T is found without marginal reading, but in Isa. xxvili. 19 the older form 7^V^'f. 
 
 t"^:- tt: 
 
 In the other places (besides those quoted in .Jeremiah also 2 Chron. xxix. 8), where Ewald (comp. g 53, h) would read nj!1T 
 (scarecrow, sport [of chance]) there is always the Keri TW^h Except in Isa. xxviii. 19, the word occurs only as the desig- 
 
 T — ;~ 
 nation of the terminus in quern after f flj or before riTI- The root T?^r has both in the Hebrew (it occurs in the Old Test. 
 
 1 - T TT 
 
 only in Eccl. xii. 3; Esth. v. 9 ; Hab. ii. 7) and in the dialects (comp. Dan. v. 19; vi. 27) the meaning of violent motion, 
 commotion. Hence H^'II is commotion, quaking, horror. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The second petition is refused with a decisive- 
 ness which allows of no repetition and the peo- 
 ple are rejected from the presence of the Lord 
 (ver. 1), but not to a definite place, for they are 
 delivered up to destruction in the most various 
 forms (ver. 2), and to destroyers of the most 
 terrible kinds (ver. 3), so tliat tlieir destruction 
 will excite tlie horror of all nations; but all this 
 will correspond to the seed of abomination which 
 Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah, scattered in 
 Judah (ver. 4). 
 
 Ver. 1. And Jehovah said . . . out "with 
 them! Moses is an intercessor, Exod. xvii. 11 
 sql)[.; xxxii. 11 sqq.; Numb. xiv. 13; Ps. cvi. 
 23.— Samuel in 1 Sam. vii. 8 ; viii. 6; xii. 16-23; 
 XV. 11 ; Ps. xcix. 6; Ecclus. xlvi. 16. Comp. Her- 
 EOG, Real-Enc. XIII. S. 398. — Noah, Daniel and 
 
 Job are mentioned in a similar manner in Ezek. 
 xiv. 14; and in later times Jeremiah himself in 
 2 Mace. XV. 14. ^The object of away, according 
 to the preceding context, and to whither shal] 
 we go ? ver. 2, can be no other than the people. 
 Vers. 2 and 3. And if they say ... to de- 
 stroy. The question, w^hither shall we go ? 
 presupposes the thought of a mere banishment. 
 It is declared in what follows that far worse than 
 tills is meant. — He who is for death. A fear- 
 ful destructive blow is to follow, which causes 
 the people to be scattered and drives individuals, 
 without selection or respect of persons, into the 
 hands of the agents of death. — Death, with 
 sword, famine and captivity, is evidently the re- 
 latively spontaneous death by disease or pesti- 
 lence C^^.)' wherefore the latter word is also 
 used with the other in xiv. 12; Ezek. xiv. 21; 
 xxxiii. 27 ; comp. Jer. xliii. 11. — Ver. 3 fortifies 
 this judgment of destruction, by declaring it in 
 
CHAP. XV. 5-9. 
 
 151 
 
 a. certain measure permanent. For and I ap- 
 point declares that Israel is to be placed as it 
 were under the jurisdiction of these four de- 
 structive forces, as also in Ezek. xiv. 21 it is ex- 
 pressly said that the Lord will send His " four 
 sore judgments — the sword and the famine and 
 the noisome beast and the pestilence," upon 
 Jerusalem. — Kinds, ninaU'D. Comp. '^^1, the 
 four generations, Prov. xxx. 11 sqq. Since the 
 four instruments here mentioned correspond to 
 the four kinds of destruction mentioned in ver. 
 2, it is evident that ver. 3 bears to ver. 2 not a 
 logical but rhetorical relation. The sword more- 
 over repre8ent3 the judgment on the living, the 
 
 three others the judgment on the dead. Comp. 
 xiv. IG; Deut. xxviii. 26. 
 
 Ver. 4. And I make them ... at Jerusa- 
 lem. Repetition of the first half of the verse 
 xxiv. 9; xxix. 18; xxxiv. 17. The expression 
 is taken from Deut. xxviii. 25. Concerning Ma- 
 nasseh comp. 2 Kings xxi. 1-17; xxiii.26; xxiv. 
 3. The biblical accounts dismiss the long reign 
 of this king with remarkable brevity. We ob- 
 tain the impression that this is the effect of a 
 certain reluctance to recall this name, which re- 
 presents the darkest portion of the history of Ju- 
 dah, an epoch which is to be regarded as the 
 concentration and end of all ungodliness. 
 
 5. Further description of the sad fate impending over the refected nation. 
 
 XV. 5-9. 
 
 6 For who will have pity on thee, O Jerusalem ? 
 Or who will have sympathy for thee ? 
 Or who will turn aside to wish thee well ? 
 
 6 Thou hast rejected me, saith Jehovah, [and] wentest backwards.* 
 Then I stretched out my hand against thee and destroyed thee : 
 I was weary of repenting. 
 
 7 And I winnowed them out with a fan 
 At the gates of the land ; 
 
 I orphaned, I destroyed my people, — 
 
 For they had not turned them from their ways. 
 
 8 Their widows are become to me more than the sand of the sea. 
 
 I brought them over the mother of the chosen^ the spoiler at noon-day ; 
 I caused to fall on her sudden anguish^ and terror. 
 
 9 She who bore seven is exhausted ; 
 She breathed out her soul [expired] ; 
 Her sun went down while it was yet day ; 
 
 She was ashamed and confounded [put to shame] ; 
 But the residue I will give to the sword. 
 Before their enemies, saith Jehovah. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 6.— oSn "linX. The imperfect is frequently used to designate a fact often repeated in the past. Comjj. Naw- 
 •ELSE. Gr., § 87, f. J . T, 
 
 2 Ver. 8.— [A. V. " I have brought upon them against the mother of the young men a spoiler at noon-day ;' Boothrotd: 
 
 " against their mother city, a chosen one that spoileth," etc. Hexberson :— " The words 1in3 P^~7;^ (ver. 8) have been 
 
 very differently construed. Nor is the difficulty which they present by any means easy of solution, however simple the 
 
 words may be in themselves. LXX. inX iiriTepa veauitTKovi. Some compare the phrase D'J3 1^ DX the mother imth her 
 
 children [Syr., Arab., C. B. Mich., Ewald, etc.— S. R. A.] but the position of the preposition before and not after DN Tenders 
 
 such construction untenable. Others take "I^FIS DX to be in the construct state: the mother of the young man [Chalp., 
 
 KiMCHi, J. D. Mich., Hitzio, cfc.— S. R. A.] or regarding the nouns as collectives : the mothers of the young mw [De Wette, 
 Maurer, Rorenmueller. etc..—'&. R. A.] hut neither of these affords a suitable sense. .Takchi, Capellus^ Castalio. Ue Uieu, Uoe- 
 DERLEIN, EiOHHORN, Dahler, Consider DK motlier, to mean the metropolis, as 2 Sam. xx. 19, and nSN ^ cam- vm. 1. ine word 
 
 is thus used on Phoenician coins. Comp. the Arab. 1, the Greek ^r,Tr,p ; Callin. Fragm., 112 ; and the Latin mater, Flor. 
 
 iii. 7, 18 ; Ammian, xvii. 13 ; Gesenius, in voc. The objection of Schnurrer, that it wants the article is of little force, as the 
 prophets sometimes omit it for the sake of condensation. See Isai. .xxi. 12, and Nordheimer S Gr., II. p. 13, note. This, on 
 the whole, as the text now stands, is the preferable interpretation." — S. R. A.] ..«_...., j- ,, 
 
 3 Ver. 8— D'ini'3 has tlie meaning of unusual, unexpected. Comp. vi. 4; Am. viu. 9.— I";; av. \ey. radically re- 
 lated to 11V, TV = cnarctatio, angor. 
 
152 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 After the definite refusal in vers. 1-4, the pro- 
 phet can declare only that there is no further 
 prospect of pity or succor for Jerusalem (ver. 5). 
 The people having rejected the Lord, He rejects 
 them, and will not as before retract this deter- 
 mination (ver. 6). Winnowed out of the coun- 
 try, Israel is bereaved of his men and sons (vers. 
 7-9 a) ; and the enemy will come with the sword 
 after the fugitive remnant (ver. 9 b). 
 
 Ver. 5. For who will take pity ... to 
 wish thee well. From vers. 1-4 it follows with 
 absolute certainty that Jehovah will no longer 
 help, and that therefore Israel is inevitably lost. 
 ■"^I, For, implies a reference to this thought. No 
 longer any escape! If the Lord will not, who 
 else will have pity on the people? (Isai. li. 19 ; 
 Nah, iii. 7). Who indeed will even ask how they 
 
 are? (Dl/iy; i\X0 properly z:= to ask after one's 
 good health, to greet, Gen. xliii. 27 ; Exod. xviii. 
 7; Judges xviii. 15, etc.) The thought seems 
 to be thus implied, that still less will any one do 
 duglat for the welfare of the people, or any longer 
 intercede for them as the prophet has done (xiv. 
 7 sqq. ; 19 sqq.). — Turn aside. "IID is here, as 
 frequently, to deviate from the direct, proposed 
 way, in order to turn to some other object, with 
 which, as here, the idea of taking trouble may be 
 connected. Ruth iv. 1 ; 1 Ki. xx. 39 ; Exod. iii. 3. 
 Ver. 6. Thou hast rejected me ... of re- 
 penting. The reason for the declaration in ver. 
 
 5, that Israel is irretrievably lost, is stated in ver. 
 
 6, and more particularly in ver. 7 sqq. The rea- 
 son first given, in ver. 6 a, is objective, it being de- 
 clared what Israel has done to draw upon himself 
 such a punishment. The words then I stretched 
 to repenting express the subjective reason, i. e., 
 they declare what facts on the part of the speaker 
 (i.e., of God) are presented as caM.sase^'c*e72<es of de- 
 struction. The prseterite £3X1, etc., is not strange; 
 as the apostasy is an already accomplished fact, 
 so also is the hostile position which God assumes 
 towards it. The " stretched-out arm," which is 
 so often mentioned as Israel's saving arm (Deut. 
 iv. 34; V. 15; xxvi. 8, etc.), signifies the hostile 
 position of God towards the enemies of the peo- 
 ple. Elsewhere the stretching out of the hand 
 frequently designates the declaration of war, or 
 the command to use force; 1 Ki. xiii. 4; Jobxv. 
 25; Isai. V. 25; ix. 11; x. 4 ; Jer. vi. 12 ; li. 25; 
 Ezek. vi. 14; xiv. 9, 13, etc. — Perhaps also the 
 assonance of £0N1 to i^X is intended. — Destroyed 
 thee is a summary intimation of the import of 
 the gesture I was w^eary, etc., a more particu- 
 lar definition, in so far as it declares that the de- 
 struction will no longer be deferred as hereto- 
 fore by a gracious "repenting." Comp. iv. 28; 
 vi. 11 ; Isai. i. 14 
 
 Vers. 7-9. And I w^inno^ved them . . be- 
 fore their enemies. I do not think with Graf 
 that I'lxn ""I^E^ is to denote the uttermost lands 
 of the earth. How then could 2 be used? The 
 preposition retains its proper meaning, if as in 
 Nah. iii. 13 we understand the exits of the land. 
 The Lord winnows so powerfully that as the chaff 
 flies out over the threshing-floor, so Israel flies 
 out through the exits of the land to a distance. — 
 Had not turned, etc., is a causal sentence. — In 
 vers. 8 and 9 the prophet uses similar colors to 
 those in xiv. IG, 17. Comp. xi. 22; xviii. 21. — 
 The words "I!in3 DX, variously interpreted by the 
 
 commentators, are most easily explained by the 
 
 antithesis to the subsequently mentioned ^1.7.; 
 T\^'2WT\. Even the strongest women, both those 
 
 who have borne distinguished warriors, and 
 those who have had numerous sons, shall perish. 
 Without insisting on the singular in TlPli I be- 
 lieve that it includes the idea of quality, as 71^31^ 
 does of quantity. (Comp. 1 Sam. ii. 6). — [Hen- 
 derson: — "By the 'young spoiler' [text 'de- 
 stroyer'] is meant Nebuchadnezzar II., who, 
 when his father was old and infirm, had part of 
 the Chaldean army committed to him, and after 
 defeating Pharaoh Necho at Carchemish marched 
 forward against Jerusalem and captured it. The 
 attack being made at noon indicates the unexpect- 
 edness by which it was characterized, that being 
 the time of day when, owing to intense heat, mi- 
 litary operations are carried on with less vigor." 
 — HiTzio: "The description in ver. 8 points to a 
 lost battle ; and on this hypotliesis all the single 
 features of the picture in vers. 7-9 may be brought 
 into one point of view, so as to present one event. 
 The author then refers to the battle of Megiddo, 
 the more probably (2 Ki. xxiii. 29) as the figure 
 of the sun setting in bright daylight might then 
 be founded on the eclipse which took place in 
 that valley 30th Sept., A. D. 610. (Vid. Thenius 
 on 2 Ki.)"— S. R. A.]— Breathed, etc., nnSJ. 
 From Job xxxi. 39 the meaning of the word ex- 
 spirare seems plain. The rendering " to sigh " 
 is too feeble in this connection. — Her sun, the 
 sun of her life, and the happiness (comp. Mai. 
 iii. 20 ; Ps. Ixxxiv. 12) which she had in her sons 
 is gone down. 71X3 as in Gen. xv. 17; 2 Sam. 
 
 ii. 24; Mic. iii. 6. M Tj^J, comp. the previous 
 "at noon-day." — And confounded. ^1 TMff}2. 
 The reference to the mother is to be preferred; 
 for the sun itself does not suff'er shame, but those 
 who by the setting of the sun are reduced from the 
 condition of an honored mother to the wretched 
 state of a bereaved and childless one. In Isai. 
 xxiv. 23 it is the sun and moon themselves which 
 must pale before a more brilliant star. — Deliver 
 to the sw^ord. Comp. Mic. vi. 14. 
 
CHAP. XV. 10-18. 153 
 
 SECOND MAIN DIVISION. 
 
 THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE REFUSAL WITH RESPECT TO THE PERSON OF THE PROPHET AND INSTRUO 
 
 TIONS CONCERNINO HIS FURTHER COURSE (XV. 10 XVI. 9). 
 
 1. Complaint and petition of the prophet on account of the consequences of the refusal with respect to 
 
 his person. 
 
 XV. 10-18. 
 
 10 Wo unto me, my mother, that thou hast borne me, 
 
 A man of strife and a man of contention to the whole land : 
 I have not borrowed nor lent, yet all curse me.^ 
 
 11 Jehovah said : Verily, I distress thee* for thy good, 
 Verily the enemy shall approach thee imploringly* 
 In the time of calamity and in the time of distress. 
 
 12 Will then iron break iron from the north and brass? 
 
 13 Thy substance and thy treasures will I give up for spoil, not for hire,* 
 But on account of all thy sins and in all thy borders. 
 
 14 And I take thee* with thine enemies into a land that thou knowest not. 
 For a fire® is kindled in my nostrils which shall burn over you.* 
 
 15 Thou knowest it, O Jehovah, remember me, 
 And visit me, and avenge me of my persecutors ; 
 Sweep me not away by' thy long suffering ; 
 Know that for thy sake I have suffered reproach. 
 
 16 Thy words were offered and I devoured them, 
 
 And thy words* were to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart. 
 For I bear thy name, O Jehovah, God of Zebaoth. 
 
 17 I sat not in the assembly of the joyful, nor was merry. 
 
 Before thy hand I sat solitary, for thou hast filled me with indignation. 
 
 18 Why then has my pain become perpetual,® 
 And my wound helpless,^" that will not heal ? 
 Art thou then become to me as a deceitful brook," 
 As precarious water ? 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 10.— ''Jl77p0 T\12- This wholly abnormal form (comp. Olsh., § 206 6) which as forma mixta has been vari- 
 ously explained, is evidently due, as J. D. Michaelis, Hitzig, Graf, Meier have recognized, to a wrong division. It should 
 read "'J^77p Dn73- The attraction of the Q to the following word may have been occasioned by the circumstance that 
 the form ending with it is not found elsewhere (similar formation D372) Deut. i. 22. Comp. DHniX Ezek. xxiii. 45, 47; 
 Dnr\X Oen. xxxii. 1 ; xix. 8). The 1st Pers. DH v3 however is found iii 2 Sam. xxiii. 6. 
 
 2 Ver. 11. — ?Tr\nt!? X7 DX. The Chetbibh may be read nnilK? (who attack thee, anomalous inf. Kal. from "T1K', 
 as Hitzig), ?im"ltJ? (solvendo ie, Rosenmueller), ?ir\-ntJ' (initium tuum, Gesen.), firil'IK' solutio tua sc. erit, Winee), 
 ^i^nty (in different meanings : confirmabo te or exhilarabo te, J. D. Michaelis ; firmaho te, Maurer, Ewald ; I do thee in- 
 jury, I oppress thee, Gesen., Thesaur., Meier). The Keri is ^'jT'li;/ Piel from T}'^^! which verb occurs besides only in 
 
 Job XXX vii. 3 (disputed in the latter place) and is said to signify to loosen like the Aram. NIK/ (comp. Dan. ii. 22; iii. 25; 
 
 T : 
 Ezr. V. 2). [So Henderson. — S. R. A.] The old translators vacillate and alter arbitrarily. Vulg., Targ., Raschi, Kimchi 
 
 read ^n'lK/ for ^jT'^NE' (comp. 1 Chron. xii. 38 ; Olsh., S. 70 and 412), which they regard as = reliquise tuss or finis tuus 
 thy remnant, thy exit, for which however r\^"inX always stands elsewhere. [A. V. : it shall be well with thy remnant]. 
 I agree with Gesenius in his Thesaurus and Meier. The scriptio defect, is no objection. Comp. ex.gr. 'nnjy Nah. i. 12; 
 'jnDS^ Song of Sol. iv. 9. "lljy meatus torsit, cmvtorsit. Hence llti^, of)prMsor (Pa. viii. 3 ; xxvii. 11; liv. 7), TtJ' cloud 
 (contortum) 7112/ torques, n'^tyTtl' catena. The Lord tells the prophet for his consolation that the oppression will eventu- 
 ate in favor of his best interests. Comp. vor. 19 sqq., 31D7 besides only in xxxii. 39. Elsewhere HDICD/ (xiv. 11; xxi. 
 10 ; xxiv. 5, 6 ; xxxix. 16 ; xliv. 27). 
 
154 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 • Ver. 11. — ^1 'nj^J3n- 3 J?J3 signifies in vii. IG ; xxvii. 18 ; Job xxi. 15 ; Ruth i. 16 to apply to one, press one with 
 
 petitions. Accordingly Hiphil here quite regularly = to cause such application, urging, although the Hiph. is elsewhere used 
 in the sense of the Kal. (Isai. liii. 12 ; lix. 16 ; Jer. .xxxvi. 25). 
 
 * Ver. 13. — "ITIO^ X^- There is probably here a corruption of the text. In the parallel passage xvii, 3 we read after 
 
 jnX tbe words ySoj^Sj^ flXCOn^ ITIDJ. Since now y^D^ might very easily become TTIDS, especially if we 
 
 consider the difficulty of this word, it is very natural to perceive in the latter a corruption of the formt-r. The uumeau- 
 
 ingness of .he sentence then led to the addition of j<7 which is wanting in the LXX. The author of the gloss might also 
 have had in mind passages like Isai. xlv. 13 ; Hi. 3 ; Iv. 1. What occasioned the deviation from xvii. 3 it is difficult to tell. 
 At any rate, if the words are to yield any sense, the first 1 must be rendered by "and indeed " (comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 111, 
 
 1), and T7l3J~7D^1 he referred to the first section of the verse. 
 
 6 Ver. 14.— TIIDJ^m. Iq xvii. 4 we have TmDj7ni, which is also given by the LXX., Syr., Chald. The Hiphil from 
 
 "13^^ is evidently a corruption, but in the gloss the genuine text, and therefore to be retained, although no commentator 
 
 has yet been able to give a satisfactory explanation of it. From n^T X 7 we see that the people (at any rate with the 
 previously mentioned treasures) is regarded as the object. — Comp. ix. 15. 
 
 6 Ver. 14.— jyx~'3, etc. The words are taken verbatim from Deut. xxxii. 22, while in xvii. 4 we have Dnmp {transit. 
 
 aa in Isai. 1. 11; Ixiv. 1). For DDwJ^ we find in xvii. 4 more appropriately oSiy Ht?. 
 
 t Ver. 15.— S as in HJ^IDnSJ ix. 2 ; ^agK'fab, xxx. 11. Comp. Isai. xi. 3 ; xxxii. 1. 
 
 8 Ver. 16.— y 131. The Chethibh t-ji^i is quite impertinent. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., J 105, 4 6, 3. 
 
 9 Ver. 18. — n)f J- Subst. (comp. Ps. Ixxiv. 3 ; 1 Chron. xxix. 11) == perpetuitas. Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., I 74. 
 
 10 Ver. 18.— He/uX, comp. xxx. 15 ; Isa. xvii. 11 ; Mic. i. 9. 
 
 11 Ver. 18.— 373X. Comp. Mic. i. 14. It is the opposite of jn'N 7ni D>3ut. xxi. 4; Am. v. 24. Comp. Bxod. 
 T : - It" — 
 
 xiv. 27. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 After a sorrowful lament of the prophet, that 
 without any fault of his, all curse him (ver. 10), 
 follows (if vers. 11-14 are genuine) first a com- 
 forting assurance from the Lord, that all will 
 accrue to his advantage and that even his ene- 
 mies in their distress will turn to him as suppli- 
 ants (ver. 11); and then a description of this 
 distress : it comes as iron from the North which 
 cannot be broken by other iron or brass (ver. 12) ; 
 all wealth in all the borders of Israel will be 
 plundered on account of tlieir sin (ver. 13), and 
 the people will be carried away into a strange 
 land in consequence of the violent and inex- 
 tinguishable anger of Jehovah (ver. 14). In 
 vers. 15-18 follows a further address of the pro- 
 phet to the Lord, which, by the words "Thou 
 knowest it," may possibly be connected with 
 ver. 12, but may also be connected with ver. 10. 
 The prophet prays the Lord for His gracious in- 
 terposition, for vengeance on his enemies, for 
 long-sufiFering forbearance, since he is indeed 
 suffering for God's sake (ver. 15). He grounds 
 his petition further on his willing devotion to the 
 Lord as His instrument (ver. 16), and his having 
 walked worthy of this great honor (ver. 17). 
 In conclusion another lament of the prophet: 
 Why is there then for me no cure, no recreation? 
 (ver. 18). 
 
 Ver. 10. Wo unto me ... all curse me. 
 Had the intercession of the prophet in eh. xiv. 
 been heard, his lot, in so far as it depended on 
 his countrymen, would have been more agreeable. 
 But now that so stern a refusal has been given 
 he sees the whole fury of the people discharged 
 upon his person. The mention of the cahimity 
 of the mother, vers. 8 and 9, reminds the pro- 
 phet of his own mother, not however to lament 
 on her account, but on his own, that he was ever 
 born. Comp. xx. 14; Job iii. u; 1 Mace. ii. 7. 
 — Lending and boi-rowing cause most law-suits. 
 The prophet neither receives loans from others 
 
 (ntJ^J, Isa. xxiv. 2), which as a bad debtor he did 
 
 not repay, nor does he himself lend money 
 (3 nE'J, Deut. xxiv. 11, H^J creditor, exactor, Ps. 
 cix. 11), which as a stern creditor he calls in 
 with rigor. — Observe the contrast between the 
 accusations, which according to ver. 10 were 
 universally raised against the prophet, and the 
 touching petitions, which he, xiv. 7-19, offers 
 for his people. He thus gives a reply to those 
 accusations, which causes their unrighteousness 
 most distinctly to appear. 
 
 Ver. 11. Jehovah said ... in time of dis- 
 tress. The formula Jehovah said C^' IDX) 
 
 ~ T 
 
 thus prefixed is found besides only in Jer. xlvi. 
 25, and in no other propliet. I cannot agree 
 with Graf, who in xlvi. 25 would attach it to 
 
 the preceding context. (Comp. np£3 ''P^^')- We 
 cannot then say that this position of the formula 
 is a proof of the spuriousness or corruption of 
 the text. — The Lord presents to the prophet's 
 view a second pleasing turn in his affairs : even 
 his opponents, who now press him in a hostile 
 way, shall then be brought to press him with 
 supplications, because they perceive their only 
 salvation to be in his intercession. This is more 
 particularly explained in ver. 12. 
 
 Ver. 12. Will then iron . . . brass ? The 
 words are very variously construed. The most 
 simple construction, which agrees well with the 
 
 context, is to take the first iron, 7T13, as the 
 nominative, and the two following as in the ob- 
 jective case. Will then iron, i. e. any other 
 iron, brought by men, break the northern iron or 
 brass? That the northern iron is the northern 
 empire (xiii. 20) is clear. The most celebrated 
 iron and steel manufacture among the ancients 
 was that of the Chalybeans in Pontus, of whom 
 Strabo says, o'l 6s vvv XaX^aloi XdlvfiEC tu naV.aihv 
 G)pn/ini;ovTo, XII. p. 826. Comp. J. D. Michaelis. 
 Observv. phil. et crit., in Jer., Ed. Schleusner, 
 p. 136. [Comp. Winer, R.-W.-B., II. ^S". 512; 
 Smith, Bibl. Diet., II. p. 1376.— S. R. A.]. It 
 
CHAP. XV. 10-18. 
 
 153 
 
 is accordingly quite suitable to represent this 
 northern nation itself under the iigure of the 
 strongest iron. The connection with the pre- 
 ceding is this : thine enemies among the people 
 will yet turn to thee as their only refuge, when 
 they have learned their inability to master the 
 northern iron. For the fulfilment see xxxvii. 3 ; 
 xlii. 2 sqq. 
 
 Vers. 13 and 14. Thy substance . . . burn 
 over you. These verses are evidently intended 
 to give a plainer description of the distress, 
 merely intimated in ver. 11, and briefly and ob- 
 scurely described in ver. 12. The words are, 
 however, taken from xvii. 3, 4, where they are 
 found in the more original form and proper con- 
 nection. — Not for hire. The thought occurs 
 similarly only in Ps. xliv. 12. In this passage, 
 however, it is the selling of the people, not of 
 their property and treasures, which is spoken 
 of. It is also a question whether in Ps. xliv. 12 
 the selling is to be understood in a literal sense 
 :^thou causest thy people to be sold into slavery 
 by their conquerors at a mean price (comp. Joel 
 iii. 8, 11, 12: Vaihinger on Ps. xliv. 12). Since 
 now it is doubtful whether the thought that God 
 sells His people for nothing or without return is 
 biblical, and still more doubtful whether it may 
 be said God sells the treasures of His people for 
 nothing, the view gains in probability that there 
 is here a corruption of the text. Comp. the 
 Textual Note 4. 
 
 Verses 11 and 12 contain in themselves nothing 
 to lead us to doubt their integrity, nor do they 
 in the connection form an incongruous element. 
 Ver. 11 contains a preliminary tranquilization 
 of the prophet, ver. 12 a more particular charac- 
 terization of the distress intimated in ver. 11, 
 and the reason of approach imploringly, etc. 
 — Thou kno'west, in ver. 15, may be con- 
 nected with ver. 12, in the sense : I cannot in- 
 deed conceive how that is possible, but Thou 
 Lord knowest it. For since vers. 11 and 12 con- 
 tain the words of the Lord to the prophet, " Thou 
 knowest it " cannot be an appeal by the prophet 
 to the divine testimony, but only for the purpose 
 of self-tranquilization. But on the other hand 
 it cannot be denied, that this interruption in the 
 prophet's lament is the more remarkable, as 
 Jeremiah afterwards continues in ver. 15 as 
 though he had received no consolation (comp. espe- 
 cially ver. 18) and the consolatory statements 
 of ver. 11 recur in ver. 19 sqq. For these verses 
 also declare that the affliction will accrue to the 
 honor and welfare of the prophet and that the 
 enemies will yet be compelled to apply to him. 
 This is also favored by tlie perfect appropriate- 
 ness with which ver. 15 is connected with ver. 
 10. The prophet had in ver. 10 protested his 
 innocence, for which in ver. 15 he appeals to the 
 Omniscient as a witness. Verses 13 and 14 bear 
 in a much higher degree the stamp of spurious- 
 ness. For 1. They prolong in an unnecessary 
 manner (as mere filling out of the portrayal of 
 the previously intimated distress) the interrup- ' 
 tion of the connection ; 2. They are a mere quo- 
 tation from xvii. 3, 4 and textually corrupt, with 
 which it accords, that they contain an address 
 to the people which does not suit the connection; 
 3. The words Thou know^est, ver. 15, are then 
 disconnected, for neither can they be referred to 
 
 the close of ver. 14 nor to vers. 13 and 14 to- 
 gether, since these verses contain neither the 
 words of the prophet, nor anything which ap- 
 peared incredible to the prophet. 
 
 Ver. 15 a. Thou knowest it . . . thy long- 
 suffering. On thou knowest it vid. supra; 
 comp. Ps. xl. 10 ; Ezek. xxxvii. 3. — And visit 
 me, Ipa is frequently used of a gracious visita- 
 tion of God after a period of disfavor: Gen. xxi. 
 1; Esod. iii. IG ; iv. 31; Ruth i. 16; Ps. viii. 
 5,6; Isa. xxiii. 17, etc. Comp. Ps. cvi. 4. — • 
 
 Avenge, etc. ""D ''7 Dpjm properly=avenge 
 Thee for my good upon my enemies. This con- 
 struction here only. Comp. 1 Sam. xxiv. 13; 
 Numb. xxxi. 2. — By thy long-suffering. Since 
 the prophet is not himself conscious of having 
 deserved the divine anger, the long-sufi'ering can 
 be referred only to the enemies: "Suffer not 
 that in consequence of the delay of Thy ven- 
 geance I be swept away of my enemies." 
 
 Vers. 15 6-17. Know that . . . filled with 
 indignation. In these words the prophet pre- 
 sents the grounds on which he expects help from 
 the Lord. He first prays the Lord to consider 
 that he is suS"ering for His (the Lord's) sake. 
 Comp. Ps. Ixix. 8 (Zeph. iii. 18). He then appeals 
 to the willingness with which he offered himself 
 as the Lord's organ, and his life in accordance 
 with his high calling. — Thy Twords, etc. The 
 prophet did not excogitate what he was to pro- 
 claim but found it, it was offered to him. The 
 found is according to Old Test, usage frequently 
 that which is present of itself in opposition to 
 that which one has produced or procured by his 
 own activity. Comp. Gen. xix. 15; 1 Sam. xxi. 
 4; XXV. 8. — Devoured. As in Ezek. ii. 8; iii. 
 3 coll. Rev. X. 9, 10, he designates by eating the 
 eager complete reception of them into the mind. 
 The commentators refer to Plautus, Aulul. III. 
 6, 1, nimium lubenter edi sermonem tuum. — For I 
 bear, etc. The word of the Lord may then have 
 become the joy of his heart because it effected 
 that "the name of Jehovah was named over 
 him " (comp. rems. on vii. 10), i. e. that he 
 was designated as a prophet of Jehovah in op- 
 position to the prophets of the idols (comp. tlie 
 prophets of Baal, 1 Kings xviii. 19; 2 Kings x. 
 19). This designation was to him an honorary 
 title of the highest value. But by this it is not 
 excluded that the word of the Lord in itself was 
 already a cause of rejoicing to him. — I sat not. 
 The prophet here describes how his life exter- 
 nally had been spent in accordance with the 
 prophetic calling. He had avoided the society 
 of idle, pleasure-seeking men, he had sat in 
 solitude, the feeling of being divinely possessed 
 as well as the sorrow caused by the predominant 
 objects of his vision, viz. human sin and divine 
 punishment, rendering him incapable of taking 
 part in the proceedings of the merry. — Before 
 thy hand. The expression " hand " designates 
 the divine operation as immediate and irresisti- 
 ble. Comp. Isa. viii. 11; Ezek. iii. 14; viii. 1; 
 xi. 5 ; xxxvii. 1, etc. — For thou hast filled me, 
 etc. The prophet is filled with indignation and 
 anger by what he beholds in consequence of the 
 divine operation. He cannot possibly be angry 
 with God. Rather is he full of the divine wrath 
 (vi. 11) at the sin of men and at the necessity 
 
156 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 of punishing them. Moreover we see from ver. 
 16 that indignation is not the only feeling of the 
 prophet, nor the only reason which detained 
 him from the society of men. He was in part too 
 divinely troubled, in part too joyful in God, to 
 feel at home in such society. [Henderson: 
 "The hilarity which the prophet had experienced 
 was not that of the ungodly, who at their festive 
 meetings treated divine things with scorn. With 
 these he had had no fellowship, but because of 
 the faithful communication of his inspired mes- 
 sages he had been expelled from society and 
 made the object of their fiercest indignation. 
 The occurrence of "indignation" with "hand" 
 in this verse has generally induced the suppo- 
 sition that by the latter the aiflicting power of 
 God is intended; but it seems more in accord- 
 ance with the bearing of the connection to re- 
 
 gard the expression as designed to convey the 
 idea of powerful divine impulse or prophetical 
 inspiration. Conip. Ezek. i. 3; iii. 14, and fre- 
 quently. Thus Vatabhis, Clarius."— S. R. A.] 
 
 Ver. 18. Why then . . . precarious water. 
 The prophet concludes with an exclamation of 
 hopelessness. After what he could declare of 
 himself in vers. 16 and 17 he thought he had 
 some claim for protection and consolation. But 
 there is no prospect of this. As in despair he 
 therefore inquires, Why is this ? — According to 
 the sense the whole verse must be rendered as a 
 question, and why therefore be referred to the 
 second section of the verse. — Precarious. Comp. 
 Isa. xxxiii. 16. [" On Tindals objections to 
 this passage, see Waterland, Scripture Vindicated, 
 p. 245." Wordsworth. — S. R. A.] 
 
 2. The Lord's tranquilizing and consolatory answer. 
 XV. 19-21. 
 
 19 Therefore thus saith Jehovah : 
 
 If thou return, I will cause thee again to stand before me ;^ 
 
 And if thou bring forth the precious without the base, thou shalt be as my mouth.* 
 
 They shall return to thee, but thou shalt not return to them. 
 
 20 And I will make thee to this people a brazen wall, a strong one ; 
 And they will contend against thee, but not prevail over thee ; 
 For I am with thee to deliver 
 
 And to preserve thee, saith Jehovah. 
 
 21 And I preserve thee from the hand of the wicked. 
 And redeem thee from the might of the violent. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 10.— •^a'K^XI, etc. The construction is lilse 1^ ^N"lp\ "'S^'pn xS, Isa. xlvii. 1, 5. Comp. NAEaELSB. Gr. I 
 
 95, g, Anm. 
 
 2 Ver. 19.— '33, Kaph veritatis. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr. g 112, 5 c. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The Lord answers the prophet by promising 
 him anew, together with a mild correction and 
 on the condition of blameless purity, the honor 
 of being permitted to serve Him as His organ 
 (ver. 19 a). He then promises the return to him 
 of his enemies (ver. 19 b), inexpugnable firmness 
 (ver. 20), protection and deliverance from all 
 dangers (ver. 21). 
 
 Ver. 19. Therefore thus . . . return to 
 them. — If thou return. In these words there 
 is evidently a gentle reproof. In the preceding 
 context, especially ver. 18, the prophet had al- 
 lowed himself to be carried away into doubt of 
 the fidelity and trustworthiness of the Lord. In 
 this there was an element of alienation from the 
 Lord. Without entering on a confutation or ac- 
 cusing the prophet directly of his departure, 
 he gives him to understand that such a depar- 
 ture has taken place only by the conditional 
 
 sentence, " If thou return." For turning back 
 presupposes a turning away. Comp. iv. 1. — To 
 stand before me, in the sense of mediatorship, 
 which at the same time includes the honor of a 
 servant and of one who stands very near his 
 Lord: xv. 1; xviii. 20; xxxv. 19; xl. 10. — 
 Bring forth, etc. From the context such a 
 bringing forth only can be spoken of as on the 
 one hand is opposed to the blameworthy utter- 
 ances of the prophet in ver. 18, and as on the 
 other hand qualifies him to be the Lord's mouth. 
 N'yin is therefore to be taken in the sense in 
 which it occurs, ex. gr. in Job xv. 13, which pas- 
 sage has in general a remarkable resemblance to 
 the present. Then jO is aivaij from, far from, 
 
 loithout. Comp. x. 14 ; Job xi. 15 ; xxi. 9. Vid. 
 Naegelsb. Gr. | 112, 5 d. — On the subject-mat- 
 ter comp. Exod. iv. 16. — They, etc. The triumph 
 of a witness of the truth consists in this that his 
 opponents finally agree to his testimony. Comp. 
 Prov. xvi. 7. 
 
 Vers. 20 and 21. And I w^ill . . . violent. 
 
CHAP. XVI. 1-9. 
 
 1G7 
 
 The Lord confirms the prophet in his office and 
 His promise in the same words in which He had 
 assured him of both in the beginning, i. 18, 19. 
 — Brazen •wall. [" The Roman Poet felt some- 
 thing of the great truth contained in these divine 
 words, when he said, 
 
 '/Tin miirus aheneiis esto, 
 jVtl conscire sibi, nulla pallescere culpa.' 
 
 (HORAT. 1. 
 
 R. A.] 
 
 Epist, i. 60)." Wordsworth. — S. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 3. Instructions as to the conduct of tM Lord's servant among the people who have incurred judgment. 
 
 XVI. 1-9. 
 
 1 The word of Jehovah came also unto me, saying, 
 
 2 Thou shalt not take to thee a wife. 
 
 Nor shalt thou have sons and daughters in this place : 
 
 3 For thus saith Jehovah of the sons and of the daughters born in this place, 
 And of their mothers that bare them. 
 
 And of their fathers that begat them in this land : 
 
 4 Miserable deaths^ shall they die, 
 They shall not be mourned nor buried ; 
 
 They shall become dung on the surface of the earth ; 
 And by sword and famine shall they perish ; 
 
 And their carcases shall serve for food to the fowls of heaven and the beasts of tha 
 earth. 
 
 5 For thus saith Jehovah : Enter not into the house of mourning,* 
 And go not to bewail them or to commiserate them ; 
 
 For I have taken my peace from this people, saith Jehovah, — 
 The loving-kindness and the mercy. 
 
 6 Both great and small shall die in this land ; 
 
 They shall not be buried and men will not mourn them. 
 Nor cut themselves, nor make themselves bald for them: 
 
 7 Nor will men break bread^ for them in mourning, 
 To console them concerning the dead ; 
 
 Nor will they present them the cup of consolation, 
 Concerning father or mother. 
 
 8 Aud also thou shalt not go into the house of feasting [lit. drinking], 
 To sit with them to drink and to eat. 
 
 9 For thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth, the God of Israel : 
 
 Behold, I take away from this place before your eyes and in your days, 
 
 The voice of joy and the voice of gladness, 
 
 The voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. i. — □'N7nn 'niDD [literally, deaths of diseases], different liinds of death in torment. Comp. Jer. xiv. 18 [tht 
 sick (pining) of famine]. rilOD here only and in Ezek. xxviii. 9 ; comp. 'JllO, Ezek. xxviii. 10. 
 
 2 Ver. .5. — n*TO n'3. HTTO occurs besides oiil.v in Am. vi. 7 (in the construct state, HTTO- Comp. Olsh. § 198, a. b. 
 S. 376, 7), in the latter place with the meaning of jubilation. The root HT"!, which does not occur in the Hebrew, ha* ac- 
 
 — T 
 
 cording to the dialects (Arab, marsih, vox rehcmens) the meaning of loud crying, be it for joy or sorrow. 
 
 3Ver. 7.— D"13 interchangeably with iy^!^ (Lam. iv. 4:)=frangere, dividere. With Dil/ Isa. Iviii. 7. Here DH? ia 
 
 -T -T 
 
 ■wanting, but is found in some cudd. of Kennicott. The LXX. and Jerome also express it. At any rate the bread, correspond- 
 ing to the cup of consolatio.i, is intended, which in EzjIc. xxiv. 17, 22 is called D'u^J^? DH?; IIos. ix. -1 Q'JIX DH/. 
 The suuixes in ionj/ as in V3X and I^X refer to the idea present, not in the words but in the mind of the mourner 
 (Comp. EWALD, 2 318 a). 
 
158 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 . The prophet (in xv. 10) had cried to his mother 
 in complaint: Why hast thou borne me? He 
 had explained in ver. 17 that he lived alone and 
 far from all society of cheerful men. The Lord 
 had thereupon in vers. 19-21 consoled him and 
 promised him protection and deliverance. But 
 the great national calamities should nevertheless 
 continue. Hence both the complaint of the pro- 
 phet in ver. 10 and his separation in ver. 17 are 
 approved. Yea, it is added in confirmation that 
 he is not even to take a wife and beget children 
 (xvi. 2), for these would not escape the universal 
 calamity of death (vers. 3 and 4),— further that 
 he is not to go into any house of mourning or 
 give any token of sympathy in the cases of death, 
 in order to indicate that the dead will remain 
 without burial or mourning ; — finally that he is 
 not to go into any house of feasting, in order to 
 indicate that all joy, especially all nuptial re- 
 joicing, will cease. 
 
 Vers. 1-4. The word . . . beasts of the 
 earth. The prohibition to marry is closely con- 
 nected with the complaint of the prophet in ver. 
 10 : let it not be that thy children charge thee as 
 thou hast charged thy mother. Comp. viii. 2 
 xxvi. 33. — With the sword, comp. xiv. 12, 15 
 xliv. 12, 27. — Become food. Comp. vii. 33 
 xix. 7 ; xxxiv. 20. 
 
 Vers. 5-7. For thus saith . . . father or 
 
 mother. The connection of ver. 4, with ver. 5 
 sqq., is as follows: the inhabitants shall perish 
 miserably and lie unburied, for it is the com- 
 mand of the Lord that the prophet go into no 
 house of mourning, i. e., it is the divine purpose 
 to decree tliat punishment of which the command 
 to the prophet is only the outward sign. The 
 ground of this purpose is that God has withdrawn 
 His favor from the people. (For I have taken, 
 etc.). — Commiserate. Comp. xv. 5; xxii. 10; 
 Job ii. 11; xlii. 11. — For I have taken, etc. 
 Comp. Joel ii. 10; iv. 15; Gen. xxx. 23. — Lov- 
 ing-kindness. Comp. Hos. ii. 21 ; Zech. vii. 9. 
 — Cut. make bald, customs forbidden by the 
 law ( Vid. Lev. xix. 28; Deut. xiv. 1), but which 
 were, however, practised. Comp. xli. 5 (xlviii. 
 37). nn"lp [baldness] is mentioned with especial 
 
 frequency: Isa. xxii. 12; Ezek. vii. 18; Am. 
 viii. 10; Mic. i. 16. Comp. Ewald, Alterthumer 
 d. V. Isr. \_Jeiviish Antiquities] S. 22-5; Saalschuetz, 
 Mos. Recht., S. 380.— They shall not break 
 bread [A. V., " tear themselves." Comp. Textual 
 Notes]. — The cup of consolation, comp. 
 Prov. xxxi. 6, 7. 
 
 Vers. 8 and 9. And also thou shalt not . . . 
 voice of the bride. In this relation also the 
 absence of the prophet is to indicate that joyful 
 festivals are things denied by the Lord. — Before 
 your eyes. This calamity will not just come 
 upon a later generation, but upon the present. — 
 Voice of the bridegroom. Comp. vii. 34 ; 
 XXV. 10. 
 
 THIRD MAIN DIVISION. 
 
 REASON OF THE REJECTION AND ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE CAPTIVITY (XVI. 10 — XVII. 4). 
 
 1. Idolatry the cause of the removal into exile. 
 XVI. 10-15. 
 
 10 And it shall come to pass, when thou shalt shew [declarest to] this people all 
 these words, and they shall say unto thee, Wherefore hath [doth] the Lord [Je- 
 hovah] pronounced [denounce] all this great evil against us ? or what is our in- 
 iquity ? or what is our sin that we have committed^ against the Lord [Jehovah] 
 our God ? 
 
 11 Then shalt thou say unto them : 
 
 Therefore, because your fathers have forsaken me, saith Jehovah, 
 And went after other gods, and served tbera and worshipped them, 
 And have forsaken me and not kept ray law ; 
 
 12 And ye have done still worse'^ than your fathers, 
 
 Since ye walk.^ every one according to the hardness of his evil heart. 
 That ye hearken not unto me ; — 
 
 13 Therefore I cast you away out of this land 
 
 Into the land that ye have not known, ye and your fathers ; 
 And there ye shall serve the* other gods day and night, 
 Because^ I will shew you no favour." 
 
 14 Therefore behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, 
 When it shall no more be vsaid: As Jehovah liveth, 
 
 Who brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt ; 
 
CHAP. XVI. 16-18. 
 
 159 
 
 15 But : As Jehovah liveth, 
 
 Who brought up the children of Israel from the land of the North, 
 
 And from all lands whither he had driven them : 
 
 And I bring them back into their land, that I gave to their fathers. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 10. — 1 JXDH ItJ'X. The nota relationis may be regarded as apronoun in the accusative, because it is said— KDH 
 nXWn, Exod. xxxii. 31 ; comp. Lev. iv. 3 ; Deut. xix. 15. 
 ^2 Ver. 12.— M Dn;r"in. Comp. N.iegelsb. Gr., § 95^ c. 
 
 8 A'er. 12.— ^1 J1 D3 Jill, causal sentence. Comp. N.4.EGELSB. Gr., § 110, 1, e. 
 
 * Ver. 13. — The i"\N before D'n'7X in this passage may have this reason, that the word may be regarded as determinate 
 in itself. Comp. N.^eqelsb. Gr., § 68, 1. Anm. 1. 
 
 5 Ver. 13.— xS-1ii^N. ItyX is causal here as in xiii. 25. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., 2 110, 1. 
 
 6 Ver. 13.— nyjn oil-- ^ey- 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The grounds of the punitive judgment de- 
 scribed in the previous context are stated in this 
 way, that the prophet is commanded to answer 
 the people when, assuming an air of innocence, 
 they inquire into these grounds (ver. 10): be- 
 cause your fathers forsook me and served other 
 gods (ver. 11), and ye moreover have done worse 
 (ver. 12), therefore I cast you forth into a strange 
 land, where you may serve those gods; and will 
 show you no more favor (ver. 13). To this are 
 added two verses repeated in xxiii. 7, 8, in which 
 it is declared that the oath by Jehovah who 
 brought Israel out of Egypt, will be changed into 
 the oath by Jehovah who brought Israel out of 
 the north country. If these verses are genuine 
 here, their object must be adouble one: 1. Con- 
 firmation of the threatening pronounced in ver. 
 13. 2. Mitigation of the harsh utterance at the 
 close of ver. 13, by the prospect of future deliver- 
 ance. This strophe, moreover, forms the argu- 
 ment of the third division, for the three following 
 strophes serve only to describe more in detail, 
 and to elucidate some points in the first. 
 
 Vers. 10-13. And it shall come to pass 
 , . . shew you no favour. This mode of 
 speech, viz., the hypothesis of a question of the 
 people and answer to it, is found v. 19; xiii. 22. 
 — Therefore that your fathers, etc. Comp. 
 vii. 24-28; ix. 11-15; xi. 7, sqq. — Hardness. 
 Comp. iii. 17; ix. 13; xviii. 12. — that ye 
 hearkened not. Comp. xvii. 23; xviii. 10; 
 xix. 15 ; xiii. 13. — Therefore I cast, etc., comp. 
 
 xxii. 26, 28.— Into the land. The article ia 
 explained by the prophet's reference to what has 
 been already said(xv. 14). — And ye shall serve. 
 What was before sin is now punishment. The 
 prophet has in view Deut. iv. 28 ; xxviii. 36, 64. 
 — Day and night. The servants' toil consists in 
 this, that they must attend to tlieir service day 
 and night. — Because I •will shew. This 
 causal sentence refers not to the first clause of 
 the verse, which is circumstantially founded on 
 the preceding context from ver. 10, but on the 
 second. Because Jehovah has withdrawn His 
 favor, they have to seek help of their idols. 
 Vers. 14 and 15. Therefore behold . , . 
 
 gave to your fathers, jjp?, therefore, at the 
 
 beginning of ver. 14 is entirely in place. On 
 this very account, because Israel, according to 
 ver. 13, were to be cast away into a foreign land, 
 the form of oath is to be correspondingly altered. 
 Accordingly the purport of vers. 14 and 15 is 
 primarily not consolatory, but sad. It confirms 
 the declaration concerning the captivity. In so 
 far, and because Jeremiah frequently quotes him- 
 self, as well as because interruptions of a pro- 
 phecy of sorrowful import by consolatory pros- 
 pects also frequently occur (comp. iv. 27 ; v. 10, 
 18), these verses may well be genuine here. I 
 bring back is then connected with I cast away 
 in ver. 13. Moreover that the words, even if 
 transferred by Jeremiah himself, are in their 
 original position in xxiii. 7, is clear from the con- 
 nection, as well as from "the more peculiar and 
 concrete form of the -ext " (Hitziq) of this passage. 
 
 More particular description of the removal announced in xvi. 13. 
 
 XVI. 16-18. 
 
 16 Behold I send for^ many fishers,^ saith Jehovah, who shall fish them.' 
 After that I send for many hunters, who shall hunt them 
 
 Down from every mountain, and from every hill, 
 And from out of the clefts of the rocks. 
 
 17 For my eyes overlook all their ways; they are not hidden from me, 
 Nor is their iniquity concealed from mine eyes 
 
160 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 18 And I recompense the first time d.'uble their iniquity and sin, 
 
 Because they have desecrated my land with tlie circases of their monsters. 
 And have filled mine inheritance with their abominations.* 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 16. — 7 n /ly is ised here with the meaning of " to send for, cause to be brought," exactly as in xiv. 3 in the ex- 
 pression D"3 7 IP /C'. It is, therefore, quite a mistake to assume an Aramaism here as in xl. 2 (comp. 2 Chron. xvii. 7 ; Ezr. 
 
 viii. 16), or, to refer to entirely different passages, as 1 Kings xx. 7. Even Numb. xxii. 40, cannot be compared. 
 
 2 Ver. 16. — D'J^I- The word occurs besides only in Isa. xix. 8 and Ezek. xlvii. 10, in the former place iu the form □'' J^^, 
 
 •T- 'T- 
 
 in the second D'jn, without any proposed alteration of reading in the Keri. In the present passage the Keri probably pro- 
 ceeds from the endeavor to produce uniformity with D'T'lf. 
 
 ■ T " 
 
 3 Ver. 16.— □1J''11 an. Key. — FuERST and Ewald (g 127, a) would explain J"T as an abbreviation of J'ln. But why 
 ihould there not be a root with a weak. ^ as middle radical ? Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., j) 37 ; Olsu. J 233 d, S. 486. 
 
 « Ver. 18.— As k'7D is not construed with 3, we must connect with IX^D only Dn'jlU^im (comp. ii. 7 ; xliv. 22). 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This strophe serves only to describe more fully 
 the facts announced in ver. 13, Therefore I 
 cast you, etc. The deportation is to take place, 
 as it were, according to the rules of art. The 
 enemies are therefore compared to fishermen v?ho 
 fish out a lake, and with hunters who exterminate 
 the wild animals from a hunting-district, even 
 from the most effectual covers (ver. 16). So also 
 the hiding of the Israelites will not avail, for all 
 their ways are so manifest to the Lord that their 
 iniquity lies displayed before His eyes (ver. 17). 
 And so He recompenses to them for the first time 
 double their sin by banishment from the land 
 which they have desecrated by their idolatries. 
 In this it is implied that in case of a second pro- 
 vocation, God's punitive justice will apply a still 
 higher measure than that of double retribution. 
 
 Vers. 16-18. Behold . . . abominations. — 
 Many hunters. The reason why the adjective 
 maiii/ is used, is that the prophet means to say: 
 then again I send for many, viz., hunters. — Hunt- 
 ers is, therefore, epexegetical. That D'3"1 is here 
 used as a numeral (as in Ps. Ixxxix. 51 ; Prov. 
 xxxi. 2'J ; 1 Chron. xxviii. 5 ; Neh. ix. 28j, is 
 less probable. From vers. 17 and 18 it is evi- 
 dent that fisher and hunter were not to bring to- 
 gether the Israelites out of exile, but to drive 
 them out of their own land. — As it follows from 
 '3, ver. 17, the figure declares that no conceal- 
 
 ment will profit them. As fishers and hunters, 
 who proceed according to the rules of their art, 
 know how to drive out the animals from all their 
 hiding-places, so will the enemies do with the 
 Israelites. The former will see through all the 
 plans and measures of the latter and defeat 
 them, for they are revealed to them by God, be- 
 fore whose sight those measures equally with the 
 sins of Israel lie bare and exposed. Comp. xxiii. 
 
 24; xxxii. 19.— njlt^X"), first time. [Hender- 
 son, following HiTZiG, etc., renders " pre- 
 viously." — S. R. A.] The explanation accord- 
 ing to which this word is referred to ver. 15 
 (HiTzio, EwALD, Umbreit), would be perfectly 
 satisfactory if it did not leave unregarded the evi- 
 dently intended antithesis to rut^D double. 
 This requirement can be met satisfactorily with- 
 out any alteration of the text (as attempted by 
 Graf, according to Isai. Ivi. 7), if we recognize 
 that the prophet assumes the possibility of a se- 
 cond visitation. Then he would say: for this 
 first time double will be recompensed (Isai. Ixi. 
 7; Zech. ix. 12), but in case of repetition a much 
 severer measure will be rendered : — as in reality 
 the second destruction by the Romans was total 
 in comparison with the first merely partial one. 
 — Because, etc. The punishment has an inner 
 relation to the sin: they have desecrated the land 
 and rendered it uninhabitable, they must there- 
 fore leave it. 
 
 3. Refutation of the objection (xvi. 10) that the people had committed no sin by their idolatry, 
 
 XVI. 19-21. 
 
 19 Jehovah, my strength and my fortress, 
 And my refuge in the day of distress ! 
 
 " To thee will the heathen come from the ends of the earth, and will say : 
 
 Falsehood only have our fathers inherited, 
 
 Vapour, and there is none among them that profiteth. 
 
 20 Should a man make himself gods? And they are not gods!" 
 
 21 Therefore behold I teach them this once, 
 
 And teach them to know my hand and ray might, 
 And they shall know that my name [is] Jehovah. 
 
CHAP. XVII. 1-4. 
 
 161 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Having in vers. 14-18 given a confirmation and 
 further description of the judgment threatened 
 in ver. 13, the prophet in the two following stro- 
 phes, xvi. 19-21, and xvii. 1-4 goes back to xvi. 
 10, where it is said that the people deny having 
 sinned against Jehovah. This denial may have 
 a double meaning. First it may be intended to 
 declare that it is not a sin to serve other gods, 
 together with Jehovah. Secondly, the meaning 
 may be that the fact itself that Israel served other 
 gods is disputed. To this denial in the first sense 
 the prophet replies by directing his glance into 
 the proximate future, in which the heathen will 
 perceive what Israel has failed to perceive, viz., 
 that the gods are vanity, that Jehovah is alone 
 God, and that therefore idolatry is sin (vers. 19, 
 20). Now since Israel might and should long 
 ago have perceived that which even the heathen 
 will perceive at last, but did not do so, Jehovah 
 ■will bring this truth to their knowledge by a 
 thoroughly incisive lesson (ver. 21). 
 
 Vers. 19 and 20. O Jehovah my strength . . . 
 not gods. Since the prophet addresses the Lord 
 as my strength, etc., and then says that the 
 heathen, after they have perceived the nothing- 
 ness of the idols, will all come to this Lord, he 
 includes himself, as it were, together with the 
 heathen, among the believers in Jehovah, but 
 excludes Israel from this communion, until in- 
 structed by the judgments they recognize their 
 errors, and obtain the same saving knowledge. — 
 My strength. Comp. Ps. xxviii. 7, 8; lix. 17; 
 2 Sam. xxii. 3. — Heathen \_lit., nations. — S. R. 
 A.] Even this word shows that it is not the 
 tribes of Israel that are meant. (Meier). — 
 Falsehood only. Comp. x. 14; li. 17. — Our 
 fathers inherited. The expression is still 
 stronger than if it had been we inherited. The 
 tradition is false from the very beginning. — Pro- 
 fiteth. Comp. Isai. xliv. 10; Jer. ii. 8, 11. — 
 Should a man. The words of the heathen in 
 which they themselves set forth the vanity of the 
 
 idols. Manufactured gods are on this very ac- 
 count no gods. The sentence and they are not 
 gods is to be taken in a causal sense. Comp, 
 Naegelsb. Gr., § 109, 4. 
 
 Ver. 21. Therefore behold . . . my name 
 Jehovah. From the connection the prophet's 
 object cannot be to give instruction concerning 
 the future conversion of the heathen. He only 
 wishes, by the good which he says of the heathen, 
 to set the folly of Israel in a cleaj'er light. We are 
 therefore after the sentences " 1 come to thee," 
 and " the heathen will come to thee" to supply: 
 but Israel comes not to thee. There is a refe- 
 rence to this thought in therefore. Because Is- 
 rael has not the knowledge which he might long 
 have had, as well as, or better than the heathen 
 will have it in the future, the Lord will this once 
 impart it to them. — This once (comp. x. 18) like 
 the first time in ver. 18, refers to the impend- 
 ing first catastrophe of the theocracy by the Chal- 
 deans. Israel is to feel the hand of the Lord, 
 and thus learn to understand the significance of 
 His name. The prophet evidently alludes to 
 Exod. iii. 14. We perceive in what sense the 
 understanding of the name is meant, from the 
 words "I will teach them to know {i. e., to ex- 
 perience, to feel) My hand and My might," in 
 
 comparison with the expression /JH, which is 
 used of the idols in ver. 19. By that visitation, 
 namely, will Jehovah manifest Himself as the 
 Really Existent (this point from the connection is 
 evidently here brought into the foreground) in 
 opposition to the non-existent deities, and thus 
 bring Israel to the consciousness that he has cer- 
 tainly sinned in worshipping other gods together 
 with Jehovah. Comp. Isai. Iii. 6, coll. Jer. 
 xxiii. 27; Exod. vi. 3. 
 
 ["This passage (xvi. 19 — xvii. 14) is appointed 
 as the Haphtorah, or Proper Prophetical Lesson, 
 to Lev. xxvi. 3 — xxvii. 34, where God declares 
 the vanity of idols, and the blessings of faith, re- 
 pentance and obedience." Wordsworth. — S 
 R. A.] 
 
 Chapter XVII. 
 4, Refutation of the objection (xvi. 10) that the people had not generally served idols. 
 
 XVII. 1-4. 
 
 The sin of Judah is written with an iron stylus/ 
 Graven with a diamond point on the tablet of their heart, 
 On the horns of their altars ; 
 As their children remember their altars, 
 
 And their images of Baal^ by^ the green trees, by the high hills. 
 My mountain together with* the fields, 
 Thy substance and all thy treasures will I give up to spoil, 
 Thy heights! — for thy sin in all thy borders. 
 
 And thou shalt withhold thy hand from tho inheritance which I have given thee; 
 And I cause thee to serve thy enemies in a land that thou knowest not : 
 For ye have kindled a fire in my nostrils that shall burn forever. 
 11 
 
162 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 1. — f 13y. This word, which occurs besides only in Deut. xxi. 12 is the nail, unguis, hut since the finger-nail 
 
 cannot be used for the engraving of ineffaceable writing, the word must mean a sharp, cutting instrument in general, in 
 correspondence with the fundamental meaning of the root (= incidere, insculpere. Comp. Aram. T3£3). 
 
 - Ver. 2.— [A. V. : their groves ; De Wette : their Astartes (but comp. Exeget. iVofes).— S. R. A.] 
 
 3 Ver. 2. — Explanations which render 7J? as local = with, together with ( 7);X, R. Sal.), or cumulative = una cum 
 
 (Seb. Schmidt and others) are aa unsatisfactory as the reading VJ^-^S, which is found in the Chald., Syr., and in 16 Codd. 
 
 of Kennicott and 9 of De Rossi. 
 
 < Ver. 3. — 3 = in the midst, but in the sense of accompaniment, together with. Comp. xi. 19 ; Naegelsb. Gr., J 
 
 112, 5, o. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The denial of having sinned against Jehovah 
 (xvi. 10) must mean that the fact of idolatry is 
 denied. Against such a bold and shameless as- 
 sertion the prophet rises here with visibly in- 
 creasing indignation. He says that the sin of 
 Judah is certified, and as it were, recorded in 
 the archives, viz. (a) in their own conscience, in 
 ■which the memory of their idolatrous abomina- 
 tions is fixed like an ineifaceable brand, and (b) 
 externally, on the horns of the altars, where the 
 blood of the slaughtered children adheres as an 
 equally ineCFaceable memorial (ver. 1). These 
 two testimonies were just as deep and inextin- 
 guishable to them, the actors present, as to the 
 children the impression of that horrible cult 
 which had snatched away so many from their 
 midst would remain unforgetable. And so deep 
 •was this impression, that the mere sight of green 
 trees and high hills was sufficient to refresh it 
 continually (ver. 2). On the basis of the facts 
 thus certified, the prophet repeats the announce- 
 ment of the divine punishments, which will con- 
 sist in plunder of substance, desolation of the 
 land, according to the analogy of the year of re- 
 lease, and deportation into an unknown land 
 (vers. 3 and 4). 
 
 Vers. 1 and 2* The sin of Judah . . high 
 hills. Origen (Horn. XVI. ed. Lommatzsch., S. 
 301), IsiD. Hisp. {De Pass. Dom., ch. 22). Ghis- 
 LER {ad h. I.) by Judah here understand Judas 
 Iscariot. — Iron stylus. Comp. Job xix. 24. — 
 diamond-point, TOi^, which occurs besides, 
 in this sense, only in Ezek. iii. 9; Zech. vii. 12, 
 appears to designate especially the diamond, 
 which serves as a pointed cutting instrument, 
 
 * The LXX. does not contain verses 1-4. Without doubt 
 Jerome is correct in saying, /or.sttaK pepercerunt populo suo. 
 Orioen in the Hexapla gives under asterisks the following 
 translation, which he found in other ti'anslators : Ver. 1. 
 Afxapria 'lovSa yeypaTTTat. ei' ypac^ttw (rtfir^pai, €V oi'u;(t a6a- 
 fiavTiVu, eyKCKO^aiifievr] e'iri Toil crr^Oovf T^S xapSiai avToiv, 
 Ka\ T019 Kepa<Tt. rati' BvaiatTTqpittiv avrdv. 
 
 Ver. 2. 'WviKOL avap.vr](r9ia<ri.v oi vio\ ainuiv to. Oy<ria(rT>)pta 
 avritv Ka'i tA aAo>) axniiiv eirl ^uAou &a<reo%, ejrl Povfioiv juere- 
 wpuiv, opiitiv iv aytttpC}. 
 
 Ver. 3. \(T\vv crou Ka\ -navra^ ^T^travpou^ trov ct9 irpovo^iriv 
 Ouo'co, tA vi^i7Aa aov ^v afxapria fv na<TL Toi? opioid trov, 
 
 Ver. 4. Kai a<j>at.pr)9Ti<7tTai. (al. a(/)atpeS)jo-j}), Ka'i TandViuBij- 
 aerai (al. Tan-eii/we^o-j;) anb t^s KATjpoKO/xias trov, ^s fSuixa. 
 <rot, Kai ava^i^dtrta (re ef roi<; e\9pol^ aov ev tjj yfj fj ovk ey- 
 fus' OTt iriip iyKeKaviTTaL if T(i Ov/jliZ fj-ov, eu? atwco; Kavu- 
 6ri<TeTai.. Tdoe Ae'yei /cu'pios. Thus in Montfaucon, Hex- 
 apl. Tom. II., p. 210.— EusEnins als<j, Dem. Er. X. ."J (comp. 
 ii. i'jy, communicates the words, remarkingthat he found them 
 if Tan Tuiv AoiTru)!/ ipixiji/evTuif eicfidcrecri, en ^leTft napaSoaeu^ 
 a<TTepi<rKu)v iv Toi<; aKpi^icn tuiv napO. Tois O. avTiypaitj>ot.<;. 
 Drusids remarks that in nnnnuUis codd. gracis et in uno 
 VaticaTio Uguntur sub asUriscis. 
 
 since everywhere else (Isai. v. 9 ; vii. 23-25 ; ix. 
 17; X. 17 ; xxvii. 4) it is used in the meaning of 
 "thorn." Comp. Herzog, Real-Enc. III., S. 
 642; Winer, R.-W.-B. I., S. 284.— On the ta- 
 blet, etc. Passing momentary events make only 
 a superficial impression. But whatever has ex- 
 ercised a long-continued and intensive activity 
 is deeply graven. In opposition to the assertion 
 (ver. 10) that Israel has not sinned against the 
 Lord, the prophet points to the continuance of 
 idolatry among the people, and the deep, inex- 
 tinguishable traces, which it has left behind. 
 These are double; of an external and internal 
 sort. Internally is the conscience, the remem- 
 brance, the whole spiritual habitus, which keeps 
 before Israel the fact of the long practised idola- 
 try. Externally are the idol-altars, with the 
 blood of the children offered upon them, crying 
 towards heaven, which testify of the sin to all the 
 world. It is therefore audacity on the part of 
 the people to pretend that they have forgotten 
 the fact. The expression write on the table of the 
 heart is found also in Prov. iii. 3 ; vii. 3. — horns 
 of the altars. That the idol-altars are meant 
 is evident 1, from the plural, for there was but 
 a single altar of Jehovah (J. D. Michaelis) ; 2, 
 from the connection, for Israel's sin was to be 
 read only on the idol-altars, not on the altar of 
 the Lord, — or on the latter only in so far as they 
 had perhaps used it for idolatrous worship 
 (comp. 2 Chron. xv. 3 ; Winer, s. v. Brandopfe- 
 raltar). The altars in ver. 2 are doubtless also 
 those of the idols, and identical with those men- 
 tioned in ver. 1. — On the horns of the altar of 
 burnt ofiFering and the sprinkling of these with 
 the blood of the guilt oflfering, comp. Exod. xxvii. 
 2 (colL Ps. cxviii. 27); xxix. 12; Lev. iv. 18, 25, 
 30, 34; viii. 15; ix. 9. That the idol-altars also 
 had such horns is clear from Am. iii. 14. Comp. 
 AViNER, R.-W.-B. s. V. Uorner. — Their altars, 
 lit., your altars. On the change of persen comp. 
 rems. on v. 14; xii. 13. — remember. We may 
 reject at the outset the ungrammatical explana- 
 tions which either take 3=7 (so that their 
 
 children remember, Lutheh, Zwingle, substan- 
 tially C.vlvin) or understand God as the subject 
 of remember (Seb. Schmidt, Clericus, Ch. 
 B. Michaelis). All those interpretations are 
 at least very harsh, which regard the Jews as 
 the subject, {ut recordantiir filiorum stiorum ita al- 
 iarium, etc., i. e., their altars are as dear to their 
 hearts as their children, R. Salomo, D. Kimchi, 
 AbarbaneI/, DioDATUs, Maurer ; remembering 
 their cliildren, they remember also the altars on 
 wliich ihey offered them, Hitzig) or which take 
 
CHAP. XVII. 1-4. 
 
 1G8 
 
 3 in the sense of because, if, (Jerome, Chald., 
 Arab., and many later) or which find the apodo- 
 sis in ver. 3 (Ewald, Umbreit). Since in ver. 
 1 there is evidently likewise the idea of a monu- 
 mentum, a record assuring a perpetual remem- 
 brance, the reciprocal relation of vers. 1 and 2 
 is indicated at the outset. There is a third me- 
 morial of the sin denied by the Israelites, the 
 testimony of which is the more unexceptionable 
 as it proceeds from the mouth of children (Ps. 
 viii. 8; Malth. xxi. 16): the remembrance by 
 the children of that horrible worship to which so 
 many from their midst fell a sacrifice. The pro- 
 phet points to an effect of that horrid ritual, 
 which is not indeed elsewhere expressly testified, 
 but is in itself entirely natural. Why should not 
 Moloch have been the terror of the Israelitish 
 children, when there was such real and sad 
 ground for it, as is wanting in other bugbears 
 wliich terrify the children of the present day ? — 
 Thsir children is therefore the subject of re- 
 member, and the construction is as ex. gr., v. 26; 
 vi. 7. Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., \ 95, 2. — Images, 
 
 ate. The CT^X are the masculine images of Baal 
 [notof Astarte, as Henderson. — S.R. A.] (comp. 
 1 Ki. xiv. 23; 2 Ki. xvii. 10; xxiii. 14, etc.) as 
 r\niJ'N are primarily and in general the images 
 
 corresponding to the female principle of Baal. 
 What was their form is still undecided, also 
 ■whether they had special relation to the service of 
 Moloch. Should thelatternotbe the case, yet their 
 relation to the murderous rites of child-sacrifice 
 is beyond a doubt. For children were offered to 
 Baal in all his forms, comp. vii. 31 ; xix. 5; xxxii. 
 35. Herzog, Real-Enc. I. S. 638; IX., S. 715.— 
 
 By the green trees, yV'^- Hitzig and Graf 
 rightly take 7j! here in a causal sense connecting 
 it with remember, not with altars. If the 
 place was to be designated where the altars and 
 images stood, we cannot conceive why the pro- 
 phet should write "on green trees," and deviate 
 from the stereotyped form of "under every green 
 tree." It is accordingly more probable tliat it 
 is to express that the mere sight of green trees 
 and higli hills awoke in the Israelite children the 
 remembrance of those terrible altars and images. 
 
 We can certainly show no passage in which 7^' 
 is used, after a verb of remembrance, of that 
 which occasioned the remembrance. But all those 
 
 passages are analogous in which i]^ designates 
 
 the occasioning circumstances in general, ex. gr.. 
 Gen. xxvi. 7, 9 ; Ps. xliv. 32 ; 1 Sam. iv. 13. 
 
 Comp. niD-"?^, Jer. ix. 11 ; Job xiii. 14. 
 
 Ver. 3. My mountain . . in all thy borders. 
 
 The words mti/D 'Tin are either connected with 
 the preceding context in various ways (Jerome : 
 Sacrijicantes iii agro ; Syr. ; in monkbus ei in 
 deserlo ; Chald. : Super montes in agro ; Arab. : 
 i7imontibus el in agris ; R. Salomo, Abarbanel, 
 KiMCHi : mons mi, qui in agro es, as a desig- 
 nation of Jerusalem, to which the previous con- 
 text is addressed ; Zwingli : ut filii recordaniur 
 ararum . . . collium, montirim et agrorum; Ewald, 
 Meier: ■TliS'n ''7."^n as in apposition to m^'^J), 
 or with the following, when it is either rendered 
 
 as in the vocative, and Zion, as the high place of 
 the country kch' h^oxr/v, or Israel as sacrificing on 
 mountains, or fleeing to mountains (Calvin), is 
 understood by it, or it is connected with thy 
 heights (Luther), or as an accusative with thy 
 substance [montem meuni una cum agro . . . 
 daho, Gesenius, Gaab, Rosenmueller, Umbreit). 
 Hitzig calls attention to xviii. 14.; xxi. 13, where 
 Zion is designated as HE/ "112f and itJ^'Sn 11^. 
 But here the connection is quite different. In 
 this place the prophet would evidently say that 
 all property, movable and immovable, divine 
 and human, dedicated to the service of God and 
 the service of idols will be given up to plunder 
 on account of their intensive (vers. 1, 2), as ex- 
 tensive and universally diffused sin (in all thy 
 borders). For this reason also I do not believe 
 that mountain is to be rendered as in the voca- 
 tive. It is rather accusative, dependent on I 
 will give, and the explanation already men- 
 tioned as that of Gesenius, Gaab, Rosenmueller 
 and Umbreit, is the correct one. The mountain 
 of the Lord also is desecrated ; it therefore, in 
 so far as it contains property that can be so 
 treated, will also, like the fruitful field, be given 
 up to plunder. The prophet says fields, be- 
 cause he wishes to designate only the land, which 
 produces substance and treasures, or things that 
 may be plundered. Thy substance and all, 
 etc., is a more particular explanation of my 
 mountain. It tells us how a mountain and 
 fields can be plundered. Thy substance, thy 
 treasures have primary reference to fields. But 
 that also which the mountain contained belonged 
 in a certain respect to the people, and they were 
 likewise despoiled of it. On the subject comp. 
 xxvii. 16; xxviii. 3; lii. 17 sqq. — Thy heights 
 is in antithesis to my mountain. Even the 
 sanctuaries dedicated to the idols were to be ob- 
 jects of spoliation. It is clear that thy heights 
 is governed by give, but its abrupt position is 
 strange. If we could connect exclusively with 
 for thy sin, this difficulty would be removed. 
 But not only the high places, but all that has 
 been previously mentioned is given up on account 
 of their sin. Syrus and the Arabic (MS. Oxon), 
 omit thy heights altogether. Hitzig translates 
 "for atonement," comparing Zech. xiv. 17; Deut. 
 xxix.l l,and with respect to the construction, Deut. 
 xxi. 29. But the expression in all thy borders 
 would then be quite feeble and superfiuous. 
 Graf after Gesenius, De Wette and others: — 
 Thy heights with the sin cleaving thereto I give 
 up. But was it necessary to guard against the 
 thought that the Lord would give up the heights 
 without the sin, or that He would omit the latter? 
 How is such a separation of the heights and the 
 sin even conceivable? Thy heights may then 
 be regarded as an emphatic asyndeton. — For 
 thy sin. Comp. Mic. i. 5; 2 Kings xxiv 3 — In 
 all thy borders. This addition corresponds 
 exactly to the previously stated extent of the 
 punishment: Since the sin has been universally 
 diffused, so all the possessions in the whole land 
 will be made the means of punishment. 
 
 Ver. 4. And thou shalt . . . forever. In 
 this verse "jDI causes the only difficulty. It haa 
 been either entirely passed over (Syrus, Arab., 
 Luther), or explained in a more or lees forced 
 
164 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 manner, as unfreely (Vatable), by thy iniquity, 
 naked and bare, alone (so Jerome, on the gi-ound 
 
 of which EwALD would alter to T13^). But it is 
 evident that Jeremiah had in view Deut. xv. 2, 
 3. This has been recognized by many exposi- 
 tors. Some {ex. gr., Seb. Schmidt, Rosenm.) 
 supply, therefore, ^7' from Deut. xv. 2. J. D. 
 MicuAELis was the first to suppose that ^T alone 
 Bhould be read. Graf expresses this distinctly, 
 and without doubt correctly. For on the one hand 
 fj3?, however interpreted, yields no satisfactory 
 meaning. On the other hand the expression 
 p T (SO'Cf, withhold thy hand, etc., corres- 
 ponds perfectly to the connection. The year of 
 release (comp. Deut. xv. 1-13), so called from the 
 ntaOK', the release of the debtor from the oppres- 
 sive hand of the creditor, coincides with the Sab- 
 batic year (comp. Exod. xxiii. 10, 11; Xevit. xxv. 
 1-7), in which the land is to remain uncultivated 
 (comp. Saalschdetz, Mos. Recht., S. 162 ff . ; 
 Herzoq, R-Unc. XIII., S. 204 ff.). The state of 
 
 desolation, in which the land will be in conse- 
 quence of the destined exile of the people is in 
 Lev. xxvi. 24, 25 expressly compared with that 
 Sabbatic year, or year of release, and is called 
 
 the Sabbath-time of the land (n'r\h3Kf). In 2 
 Chron. xxxvi. 21 (comp. 3 Esdr. i. 58) it is ex- 
 pressly set forth that the Babylonian captivity 
 was the fulfilment of the divine word proclaimed 
 by Jeremiah, according to which the land was 
 
 promised its holiday {7)^^\20). But in no other 
 place than this does Jeremiah intimate this 
 thought. If now it is undoubted that this pass- 
 age, with reference to Deut. xv. 2 coll. Lev. 
 xxvi. 34, 35, designates the exile as a period of 
 release for the land, we cannot avoid perceiving 
 in ^31 an altered form of the ']!'' of Deuteronomy. 
 On I cause thee to serve, vide supra, on xv. 
 14. — For ye have kindled, etc. The words 
 are a free quotation from Deut. xxxii. 22, while 
 those in xv. 14, at least in their first part, agre* 
 verbatim with the original passage. 
 
 CONCLUSION (xvii. 5-18). 
 
 1. Retrospective glance at the deep roots of the corruption. 
 
 XVII. 5-13. 
 
 6 Thus saith Jehovah : Cursed the man, who trusts in men, 
 And makes flesh his arm, and whose heart departs from Jehovah. 
 
 6 He will be like one forsaken^ in the desert 
 And will not see when good comes, 
 
 And will dwell in the arid places in the wilderness, 
 In a land salt and uninhabited. 
 
 7 Blessed the man who trusts in Jehovah, 
 And whose confidence Jehovah is ! 
 
 8 He is like a tree planted by water, 
 
 And which stretches forth^ its roots to' the river, 
 
 And will not fear* when the heat comes, and its leaf is green. 
 
 And in the year of drought it will not have care nor cease from fruit-bearing. 
 
 9 The heart is more deceitful than anything 
 An I profoundly corrupt Who can know it? 
 
 10 I, Jehovah, search the heart, try the reins. 
 Even* to give every one according to his way, 
 According to the fruit of his doings. 
 
 11 A partridge, which fosters without having laid, 
 Is he who accumulates riches not by right. 
 
 In the half of his days he will leave them, 
 And at his end he will be a fool. 
 
 12 O throne of glory, height® of beginning, place of our sanctuary ! 
 
 13 Hope of Israel, Jehovah! 
 
 All who forsake thee are put to shame ! 
 
 Those who depart' from me must be written in the earth. 
 
 Because they have forsaken the fountain of living water, Jehovah. 
 
CHAP. XVII. 5-13. 
 
 165 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 "Ver. 6. — '^V'^V3- The ancient translations all express here, doubtless on the ground of the antithesis in ver. 8, the 
 name of a 'iree or shrub, while in Ps. cii. where alone the word occurs a second time, they all, in accordance with the con- 
 text, express the idea of miser. Since now "IJ^IJ? is formed after the analogy of 7J 7j, TTn, SiSl, 2323 {33)3), etc. 
 
 t:- -:--:--:-t:-t 
 
 (comp. Olsh. § 189, a; Naegelsb. Gr., § 42, a, S. 87), since, further, the corresponding verbal root is given by li. 58 
 
 (^j;i^Mj"^ ^y^J?) uucjuestionably with the meaning denudare (couip. Isai. xxiii. 13; xxxii. 11 ; Hab. iii. 9. "liyo nuditas, 
 D'lj; nudus, 'TIJ? nudus, solitarius; Gen.xv. 2 ; Lev. xx. 20, 21 ; Jer. xxii. 30), the meaning of "naked, destitute, wretched," 
 is assured also in this passage. [Henderson : " I acquiesce in the opinion of Dr. Robinson, that it is the same as the Arab. 
 
 ^^ 
 
 A rar, the juniper-tree which is found in the vicinity of the Arabah, or the Great Valley, to the south of the 
 
 Dead Sea. See Bihl. Res. II., 506. Thus De Wette : Wacholderbaum. The same form of the word occurs Ps. cii. 18, where 
 the idea conveyed is that of naked, destitute. The point of comparison in the two passages of our prophet is the forlorn ap- 
 pearance of a solitary juniper, deprived of all nourishment in the arid desert." — HiTZio referring to the composition of Ps. 
 cii., after the Pight of Jonathan into the desert of Tekoa, and the connection with Jer. xlviii. 6, where also flight is spoken 
 of, decides that the word designates one who hasfln'l or been driren into the desert, or one who has come into misfortune aa 
 Starved or per ishitig.—Si. R. A.j. On the words in xlviii. 6, 131,33 "1^1"1J^3, comp. rems. there. 
 
 2 Ver. 8. — 73r. an. Key., synonymous with 73', Isai. xxx 25 ; xliv. 4. 
 
 3 Ver. 8.— '7 y for '7X as frequently in Jer. Comp. on x. 1. 
 
 4 Ver. 8.— XT N^V The Keri reads PINT' after ver. 6. The Chethibh should be punctuated NT (Imperf. from XT'), 
 corresponding to JXT, and is at any rate to be preferred; as also the ancient translations express it, with the exception of 
 
 the Chaldee. . 
 
 5 Ver. 10. — nn?!- Comp. xxxii. 19. The Vau, which the ancient translations and many Codd. omit, is not so super* 
 fluous as Geaf supposes. 
 
 6 Ver. 12.— D110 might grammatically be in the accusative, but as 1133 appears to be contrasted with r\^3 (iii 
 
 24; xi. 13), so does DHD with niD3- 
 
 7 Ver. 13.— mD"'- TheChethibh 'TD^ would be formed like 3''1', DID', "IliT (Olsh.2212). The form TD'_asanoun, 
 does not, however, occur elsewhere, and the sudden change of person is strange. The Keri reads 'l^DI- The meaning is 
 the same (= those departing from me. Comp. 'Dp, li. 1) ; the form is likewise a rare one. (Yet comp. ii. 21 ; Isa. xUx. 
 21; Olsh. § 172, 6.) Meier reads mO\ 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This long discourse ends with a concluding ad- 
 dress in two parts, the first of which relates to 
 general, the second to personal matters. In the 
 first (vers. 5-13) the prophet indicates the most 
 inward and hidden roots of the spiritual and 
 physical corruption of his people. He mentions 
 three chief moral defects, attaching to eacli the 
 corresponding punishment. At the head he places 
 the perverse disposition, which regards not the 
 Lord, but flesh as the source and treasure of all 
 blessing (ver. 5). The punishment of this sin is 
 mentioned in ver. 6, the shadow being further 
 deepened in vers. 7 and 8 by the contrast there 
 presented. The second radictil defect, designated 
 in ver. 9, is the perfidiousness of the heart in 
 connection with its weakness. In consequence 
 of this habitus, the human heart is unfathomable 
 to human sight, yet the Lord is in a position to 
 look through and to judge it (ver. 10). Avarice 
 is designated as the third destructive root to 
 which every means is right, to which, however, 
 poverty and shame must follow as a just recom- 
 pense (ver. 11). — The last two verses express 
 once more in a comprehensive manner, and after 
 a solemn invocation of Jehovah, the judgment 
 of destruction on all those who have forsaken 
 Jehovah, the fountain of living water (vers. 
 12, 13). 
 
 Vers. 5 and 6. Thus saith Jehovah . . . 
 salt and uninhabited. The prophet had in 
 the previous context repeatedly designated the 
 Lord as his and Israel's only safety: xiv. 8, 22; 
 XV. 20, 21 ; xvi. 19. He, however, expressly in- 
 
 timated in xvi. 19, that the Israel of those times 
 was wanting in confidence in this Saviour. Here 
 he renders this sin of unbelief strongly promi- 
 nent, portraying it according to its positive and 
 its negative side. He mentions the positive side 
 first. Man and flesh designate the totality of 
 all earthly visible forces in antithesis to the 
 spiritual power of the invisible God. It is pre- 
 cisely their visibility which withdraws the carnal 
 mind from the invisible things to be appre- 
 hended by faith alone. The mind is first taken 
 captive by things visible. Then having gained a 
 firm footing in these, it breaks loose from the In- 
 visible. It was so in the Fall. This confidence 
 in things visible, however, is idolatry (comp. 
 Luther's explanation of the first command- 
 ment). Hence the curse may well be an allusion 
 toDeut. xxvii. 15 coll. xi. 28. — Mac and flesh. 
 (DIX and IK'S) synonymous also in Isa. xxxi. 3 
 
 coli. Job X. 4; Ps. Ivi. 5. ["The Hebrew lan- 
 guage, having three distinct words for man, has 
 the advantage of our English in the finer shades 
 of a passage like this, 'cursed is the man (strong 
 man) who trusteth in man (frail man of the 
 earth) who maketh flesh (mere weakness) his 
 arm.'" Cowles.— S. R. A.] —His arm, J^jir, 
 the organ for the exhibition of physical force. 
 He who delivers over this function to another, 
 i. e. makes him his arm, has him for his assist- 
 ant, for protection and deliverance Comp. Isa. 
 xxxiii. 2 ; Ps. Ixxxiii. 9. — A land salt.e^c. Comp. 
 
 34._Win dwell. 3^n 
 25; xxx. 18; \. 18, 39; 
 
 Job xxxix. 6 ; Ps. cvii, 
 intransitive! as in ver 
 Isa. xiii. 20. 
 Vers. 7, 8. Blessed the man 
 
 fruit 
 
166 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 bearing. We might suppose that these verses 
 were so co-ordinate with the two preceding that 
 the two pairs would constitute an independent, 
 self-contained whole. But then the following 
 verses would be entirely disconnected. I there- 
 fore think that verses 7 and 8 are to serve as a foil 
 to the thought expressed in vers. 5, 6, which is 
 shown to be the main thought by its position. — 
 As a tree. Comp. Ps. i. 3.— Drought. Comp. 
 xiv. 1. 
 
 Vers. 9 and 10. The heart is more deceit- 
 ful . . . his doings. Were the hearts of men, 
 and especially of the Israelites, upright and di- 
 rected to the true and the good, they must agree 
 in word and deed with that which the prophet 
 has declared in vers. 5-8. But there is nothing 
 in the world so deceitful as the human heart, 
 which understands the art thoroughly of pursuing 
 the evil under the appearance of wishing the right 
 (comp. ch. V. and ix. 2-8). This deceitfulness 
 is however only a symptom of the deep depra- 
 vity, the incurable sickness by which the heart is 
 possessed. — Deceitful, Dp;^. Comp. on ix. 3. 
 The word occurs here only as an adjective with 
 this meaning.— Corrupt, lyjX. The meaning 
 " desperate " is not contained in the word. It is 
 every where == severely sick, incurable (xv. 18; 
 XXX. 12, 15; Isa. xvii. 11; Mic. i. 9; Job xxxiv. 
 6), full of the deepest pain (ver. 16). No man is 
 in a condition to see through the deceitful hypoc- 
 risy of the human heart, but the Lord can do it, 
 and founds on this His knowledge. His strict and 
 righteous judgment. Comp. xi. 20; xii. 3; xx. 
 12. — Even to give. Separating the statement 
 of the object from the fundamental declaration, 
 the word even sets forth the independence of 
 the latter. God is not omniscient merely for the 
 purpose of judging, but in His essential nature. 
 Comp. besides coram, on vi. 2. 
 
 Ver. 11. A partridge ... be a fool. As 
 the third root of spiritual and bodily corrup- 
 tion the prophet names avarice, which is the 
 root of all evil (1 Tim. vi. 10). The selfish in- 
 quire not about the right (comp. v. 1, 26 sqq. ; 
 vi. 6, 7 ; xiii. 8, 10), therefore the blessing of 
 God is also denied them. Lightly come lightly go. 
 Forsaken and put to shame the unrighteous man 
 is at last like the bird, of which it is said that it 
 collects the young of others and fosters them, 
 but is forsaken by them as soon as they perceive 
 that a stranger has usurped a mother's rights 
 over them. The form of comparison is like that 
 in Prov. x. 20; xi. 22; xvi. 24, etc. It is doubt- 
 ful what bird is to be understood by H'^p. 
 The word is found besides only in 1 Sam. xvi. 
 20. The ancient translators and most of the 
 Comm. understand the partridge, and the dialects 
 also favor this rendering. Only natural history 
 does not confirm this peculiarity of the part- 
 ridge. Comp. Winer s. v. Rehhuhn. [" The 
 ancients believed that she stole the eggs of other 
 birds and hatched them as her own. See Epi- 
 PHAN. Physiol, cap. ix. ; Ism. Origg. xii. 7." 
 Hknderson. — S. R.A.I. — Fosters. IJT occurs 
 
 -■ TT 
 
 besides only in Isa. xxxiv. 15. It is there ex- 
 pressly distinguished from J^p3, to hatch, and can 
 mean only the gathering together and clierishing 
 by warmth of the newly hatched young. Winek 
 
 quotes inter al. a passage from Olympiodorus : 
 b 7r£p(h^ * * * ^oi;f aTiAoTpiovg "KpocnaklLrai veot- 
 Tovg o'lTiveq yvdvreq vcrepov, on ovk elalv avrov, 
 naralifinavovGiv avrdv. This agrees admirably 
 with the sense and connection of the passage, 
 though it must still remain undecided whether 
 we have here a real popular opinion existing at 
 the time of Jeremiah, or only one deduced from 
 this passage. — Shall leave them refers to the 
 riches. On fool comp. x. 8, 14. 
 
 Vers. 12 and V6. O throne of glory . . . 
 Jehovah. Comprehensive conclusion in the 
 form of a brief but solemn invocation of Jeho- 
 vah. From Hope of Israel it is evident that 
 the words of the prophet were addressed in the 
 last instance to the person of the Lord. But he 
 mentions first the exteriora, which are the places 
 and bearers of His glory : his throne, the place 
 where His throne stands, the sanctuary which 
 surrounds it, for he wishes to set forth distinctly 
 how foolish and criminal it is to do that, which 
 he has censured in vers. 5, 9, 11 and which he 
 afterwards comprises in one word, "forsake the 
 Lord." Israel has given up the truly real and 
 eternal sanctuaries for the miserable high-places 
 of idolatry. I do not therefore hold the view 
 that ver. 12 is addressed to Jehovah Himself, for 
 the reason given by Graf, that the Lord cannot 
 possibly be called place of sanctuary. — O 
 throne of glory. Comp. 1 Sam. ii. 8 ; Isa. 
 xxii. 23 ; Jer. xiv. 21. The Lord's throne ap- 
 pears in the Old Test, in three degrees. First, 
 Jerusalem is thus named (iii. 17), second, the 
 ark of the covenant (Exod. xxv. 22; Ps. Ixxx. 
 2; xcix. 1), third, the proper, so to speak, and 
 transcendent throne (Isa. vi. 1; Ezek. i. 26; Dan. 
 vii. 9 ; Ps. ix. 5 ; xi. 3 ; xlvii. 9 ; ex. 1). These 
 three degrees are however so connected, that he 
 who forsakes one does the same to the other. 
 The prophet has primarily in view here, as at 
 any rate in xiv. 21, the visible throne of the 
 Lord. — Height of beginning. The idea ex- 
 pressed by DHD has also several gradations. 
 
 1. Mt. Zion is <!alled hvi^VJ" D'np 'in, Ezek. xvii. 
 
 28 ; XX. 40 coll. xxxiv. 14 ; Jer.' xxxi. 12. 2. It 
 is very often used to designate the transcendent 
 abode of Jehovah, Isa. xxxiii. 5; Ivii. 15; Mic. vi. 
 6; Jer. xxv. 30; Ps. xciii. 4; Ixviii. 19, etc. The 
 
 expression jlE'XIO, which occurs here only 
 (comp. U/HID, Prov. viii. 23) agrees with DTID 
 in both senses. For that transcendent abode is 
 from the beginning, eternally existing (comp. 
 Ps. xciii. 2), and Zion also as chosen from eternity 
 is in idea the eternal dwelling-place of God. 
 (Comp. Ps. cxxxii. 13, 14 coll. Exod. xv. 17; 
 XX. 24 ; Dent. v. 12). — Place of our sanctu- 
 ary. Comp. Isa. Ix. 13; Dan. viii. 11. Even 
 the sanctuary of Israel (C'TpD) is a double one, 
 an earthly and a heavenly. The former is made 
 according to the type of the latter (Exod. xxv. 
 8, 9, 40; xxvi. 30). Thus though the expres- 
 sion refers primarily to the earthly sanctuary 
 the heavenly is not excluded. There is no ob- 
 jection to the impersonal rendering of these 
 three substantives in the prophet's addressing 
 words of prayer to them. For what the prophet 
 declares with respect to them : " All who forsake 
 thee are put to shame," would be quite unpreju- 
 
CHAP. XVII. 14-18. 
 
 167 
 
 dicial even if " Hope of Israel," etc., did not come 
 between. But the three former are entirely 
 sunlc in this last conception, since it is only in 
 and by Jehovah that they have any existence or 
 meaning. Hence also the singular suffix in 
 
 1'3TJ^. The older commentators render throne 
 of glory as nominative, either taking the first 
 and the last three words together [solium glorise 
 excelsum, ab initio locus sanctuarii nostri, Calvin), 
 or regarding throne [thronus, qui est altitude ab 
 seterno, est locus sanctuarii, Sbb. Schmidt), or 
 height (a throne in glory is the height of begin- 
 ning, the place of our sanctuary, Neumann) as 
 the nominative. According to these renderings 
 however it is scarcely possible to find a suitable 
 connection. — Hope of Israel. Comp. xiv. 8; 
 1. 7. — Written in the earth. In the eartli 
 (in the dust, Job xiv. 8), where what is written 
 
 will be speedily effaced, shall those who depart 
 from me be written. The antithesis on the one 
 hand would be to xvii. 1 (the sin in brass, the 
 sinners in dust), on the otlier hand to the book 
 of life (Exod. xxxii. 32; Ps. Ixix. 29; Dan. xii. 
 1; Mai. iii. 16; Luke x. 20; Phil. iv. 3 ; Rev. 
 iii. 5; xiii. 8; xvii. 8; xxi. 27). Meier reads: 
 they vanished away in the laud (Job xv. 30), all 
 who are recorded in it (xvii. 1 ; xxii. 30) that they 
 have forsaken the fountain, etc. This exegesis 
 
 also is exposed to several objections : 1. that I^D 
 must be taken in the sense of vanish away; 2. the 
 imperf. '3ri3\ I therefore prefer to adhere to 
 the reading of the Chethibh. The rapid change 
 of person forms no objection to this. Comp. on 
 v. 14 ; ix. 7 ; xii. 13 ; xvii. 1. The Lord then con- 
 tinues in confirmation of the prophet's address. 
 — Fountain, etc. Comp. ii. 13 ; Ps. xxxvi. 10. 
 
 2. Petition of the prophet for the safety of his person and the honor of his official ministrations. 
 
 XVII. 14-18. 
 
 14 Heal me, Jehovah, that I may be healed ; 
 
 Deliver me that I may be delivered, for thou art my praise ! 
 
 15 Behold, they say to me: Where is the word of Jehovah? Let it come now. 
 
 16 But I have not hastened away from being a pastor after thee ; 
 And the calamitous day I have not desired, thou knowest. 
 That which went forth from my lips was from thee. 
 
 17 Be not^ a terror to me, my refuge in the day of distress! 
 
 18 My persecutors must be put to shame, 
 But I must not be put to shame ; 
 
 They must be dismayed, but I must not be dismayed I 
 Bring* upon them the day of calamity, 
 And doubly' with destruction destroy them ! 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 1 Ver. 17. — nTtO, comp. Ewald, § 224 c ; Naeoelsb. Gr., g 3S, Anm. 2. 
 
 aVer. 18.— X' jn, a rare form instead of X3n. Init comp. 1 Sam. xx. 4U; OLSH.,g 256 b, S. 669. 
 sVer. 18.— njtyo (not r\WD) is accus. modi. Comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., § 70 g. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The second, personal half of the conclusion. 
 The prophet prays for safety and deliverance for 
 himself (ver. 14). In opposition to the scornful 
 doubt in the fulfilment of his predictions, ex- 
 pressed in ver. 15, he prays on the ground of the 
 fact that he had not hastened into the prophetic 
 office, or declared his own inventions (ver. 16), 
 that the Lord, his refuge, would not be a terror 
 to him or suffer him to be put to shame, but his 
 persecutors, and bring upon them the day of 
 calamity and double destruction (vers. 17, 18). 
 
 Ver. 14. Heal me . . . thou art my praise. 
 
 The prophet begins with a prayer for safety ami 
 deliverance in general. — Heal me. Deut. xxxii. 
 39; Ps. vi. 3; ixx. 3. — My praise, the object 
 
 of my confident boasting. Comp. Deut. x. 21 ; 
 Ps. Ixxi. 6. 
 
 Vers. 15 and 16. Behold, they say . . . was 
 from thee. The prophet resumes the thought 
 in XV. 10, 15-19 (coll. xx. 7-12). — Where, etc. 
 Comp. Isa. V. 19; Ezek. xii. 22 sqq. It is used 
 ironically also in Ps. xlii. 4, 11 ; Ixxix. 10; 2 
 Kings xviii. 34, etc. — On Let it come now, 
 comp. xxviii. 8, 9; Deut. xviii. 21, 22 coll. xiii. 
 2. — But I have not, etc. The prophet would 
 deserve such scorn, if he had taken the word of 
 the Lord into his mouth in his own strength, or 
 deceitfully, as others did, xiv. 14, 15. — But he is 
 not a pseudo-prophet, but a prophet against his 
 will. Comp. i. 6 sqq.; xx. 7. — The words I have 
 
 not hastened (I'D TiyN N?) have been variously 
 explained. But all the commentators (when they 
 do not alter the reading, as the Syr., which 
 
168 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 reads T\y'\'0) concur in understanding n>^'^ of 
 the spiritual pastorate. The thought that he 
 had not hastened from the pastoral office or spi- 
 ritual pasture after Jehovah does not however 
 suit the connection. For he can wish only to 
 defend himself against the imputation of having 
 hurriod. It is very remarkable that not a single 
 comm. has yet thought of taking nj7/1 in a phy- 
 sical sense; doubtless because the knowledge of 
 Jeremiah's priestly descent has seemed to pre- 
 clude the thought of his having been a shepherd. 
 But why may not Jeremiah, who was called as a 
 "l^J to the prophetic office, have previously tended 
 his father's sheep ? The shepherd's state was 
 rendered sacred to the Israelites by the example 
 of their fathers, and kings as well as prophets 
 had proceeded from it (comp. Am. i. 1 ; vii. 14 
 coll. Exod. iii. 1). Moreover the K'"^JO [pasture, 
 common], which was possessed by every priestly 
 and levitical city (comp. Josh. xxi. and 1 Chron. 
 vi.), was according to Num. xxxv. 4 expressly in- 
 tended "for the cattle." Anathoth also had its 
 
 ^"MD (Josh. xxi. 18). Comp. Herzoo, R.-Enc. 
 
 VI. S. 150. How well now it suits the connec- 
 tion if Jer. says : They scorn me as a prophet 
 and yet I did not hurry away from being a shep- 
 herd (nj;^o=nj;.'i nrnn. Comp. ii. 25 ; xiviii. 
 
 2; Ps. Ixxxiii. 5; 1 Sam. xv. 23, 26) after thee. 
 — y^iiz=: to press, to haste: Exod. v. 13 ; Josh. x. 
 
 13; Prov. xix. 2; xxi. 5; xxviii. 20. — yiHX. 
 Comp. ii. 2 ; iii. 19. Going after Jehovah is in 
 antithesis to going after the flock (comp. 1 Chr. 
 xvii. 7). [Hitzig: '■'■ I have not hastened away 
 not to keep after thee. In |'-"IX is the idea of wil- 
 fulness, following one's own impulse in any di- 
 rection. ' I did not struggle away so that I should 
 not be pasturing,' etc. yinx does not suit the 
 
 usual rendering of Hi^l as the trade of the 
 shepherd, but leads to this, that Jahve is the 
 shepherd, leader, and Jeremiah the lamb, Ps. 
 xxiii. 1. Willingly following him (comp. 1 Sam. 
 vii. 2; Numb. xiv. 24) he allowed himself to be 
 fed by Jahve (comp. Prov. x. 21) with words of 
 truth and with revelation, xv. 16." Henderson 
 appears to follow Hitzig in this rendering. — 
 WoiiuswoKTH : "Rather, I have not hastened back- 
 ward/row being a -shepherd (a prophet) after thee. 
 When I was called by Thee, I did not withdraw 
 myself hastily from Thy service (see Gesen. 23), 
 but I obeyed Thy call without delay: and I did no I 
 desirethe woful day.''' — So also Cowles. — S. R. A.] 
 
 And the calamitous day. Comp. rems. on 
 ver. 9. From the connection the prophet can 
 mean only the day of his entrance into the pro- 
 phetic office. (Comp. xx. 7 sqq. ; xv. 10, 11). 
 For he needed not to give the assurance that he 
 did not desire the day of calamity for the whole 
 people. He might indeed have been reproached 
 with loving to prnplipsy evil, but thcreis nothing 
 of this in the text.— Thou knowest. Comp. 
 XV. 15. — That which went forth, etc. That 
 which has gone forth from his lips, since he has 
 been a prophet, God knows and approves, he has 
 notliing then to fear from the criticism of men. 
 Comp. Prov. v. 21; Lam. ii. 19. 
 
 Vrrs 17 and 18. Be not a terror ... de- 
 stroy them. The negative petition, comp. ver. 
 
 14. — persecutors, pursuers. Comp. xv. 15; 
 XX. 11. — doubly with destruction. Comp. 
 xvi. 18. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On xiv. 7. "Medicina erranti confessio, qua di 
 re Ps. xxxii. 3, 4 et Ambrosius elegani.er : Con- 
 fessio verecunda suffragatur Deo, et poenam, quam 
 defensione vitare non possumus, pudore revelamus 
 (lib. de Joseph., c. 36), et alibi idem: Cessat vin- 
 dicta divina, si confessio prsecurat humana. Etsi 
 enirn confessio non est causa meriloria remissionis pec- 
 catorum, est tamen necessarium quoddam antecedens." 
 
 FORSTER. 
 
 2. " In earnest and hearty prayer there is a 
 conflict between the spirit and the flesh. The 
 flesh regards the greatness of the sins, and con- 
 ceives of God as a severe Judge and morose be- 
 ing, who either will not help further or cannot. 
 The spirit, on the other hand, adheres to the 
 name of God, i. e., to His promise ; he apprehends 
 God by faith as his true comfort and aid, and de- 
 pends upon Him." Cramer. 
 
 3. On xiv. 9 a. ** Ideo non vult Dens cito dare, 
 ut discas ardentius orare.'" Augustine. 
 
 4. On xiv. 9 b. " Quia in baptismo nomen Do- 
 mini, i. e., totius SS. et individuse Trinitatis super 
 nos quoque invocatum est, eo et ipso nos infoedus Dei 
 recepti sumus et inde populus Dei salutamur." 
 
 FoRSTER. 
 
 5. On xiv. 10. " So long as the sinner remains 
 unchanged and uncontrite God cannot remove the 
 punishment of the sin (xxvi. 13)." Starke. — 
 " Quotidie crescit poena, quia quotidie crescit et cul- 
 pa." Augustine. 
 
 6. On xiv. 11, 12. ["We further gather from 
 this passage that fasting is not in itself a reli- 
 gious duty or exercise, but that it refers to an- 
 other end. Except then they who fast have a 
 regard to what is thereby intended — that there 
 may be a greater alacrity in prayer — that it may 
 be an evidence of humility in confessing their 
 sins, — and that they may also strive to subdue 
 all their lusts; — except these things be regarded, 
 fasting becomes a frivolous exercise, nay, a pro- 
 fanation of God's worship, it being only super- 
 stitious. We hence see that fastings are not only 
 without benefit except when prayers are added, 
 and those objects which I have stated are re- 
 garded, but that they provoke the wrath of God 
 as all superstitions do, for His worship is pol- 
 luted." Calvin.— S. R. A.] " Unbelief is a 
 mortal sin, so that by it the good is turned into 
 evil. For fasting or praying is good; but when 
 the man who does it has no faith it becomes sin 
 (Ps. cix. 7)." Cramer. 
 
 7. On xiv. 14. " He who would be a preacher 
 must have a regular appointment. In like form 
 for all parts of divine worship we must have 
 God's word and command for our support. If we 
 have it not all is lost." Cramer. 
 
 8. On xiv. 14 (I have not sent them). "This 
 docs not come at all into the account now-a-days ; 
 and I do not know, whether to such a preacher, 
 let him have obtained his office as he may, in 
 preaching, absolution, marrying and exorcising, 
 or on any otiier occasion, when he appeals to his 
 calling before the congregation or against the 
 devil, the thought once occurs, whether he is 
 
CHAP. XVII. 14-18. 
 
 169 
 
 truly sent by God. Thus the example of the 
 sons of Sceva (Acts xix. 14, 16) is no longei- con- 
 sidered, and it appears that the devil is not yet 
 disposed by such frightful occurrences to inter- 
 rupt the atheistical carelessness of the teachers." 
 
 ZiNZENDORF. 
 
 9. On xiv. 15. " The example of Pashur and 
 others shortly afterwards confirms this discourse. 
 This is an important point. One should however, 
 with that modesty and prudence, which Dr. 
 WiESMANN (Prof, of Theol. in Tiibingen), who 
 seems called of God to be a writer of church his- 
 tory, in his Introd. in Memorabilia historic sacrse N. 
 T. (1731 and 1745) which I could wish were in 
 the hands of all teachers, repeatedly recommenis, 
 have regard to this also, when so-called judgments 
 on the wicked are spoken of, that when the Lord 
 in His wisdom and omnipotence exercises justice 
 on such transgressors by temporal judgments, 
 these are often a blessing to them and the yet re- 
 maining means of their salvation. It is related 
 that a certain clergyman in a Saxon village, 
 about the year 1730, felt such a judgment upon 
 himself and his careless ministry, and after happy 
 and humble preparation on a usual day of fast- 
 ing and prayer, presented himself before his 
 church as an example, and exercised on himself 
 what is called church discipline, whereupon he is 
 said to have fallen down dead with the words, 
 
 ' My sin is deep and very great, 
 
 And fills my heart with grief. 
 for thy agony and death, 
 Grant me, I pray, relief 
 
 He is no doubt more blessed, and his remem- 
 brance more honorable, than thousands of others, 
 who are praised by their colleagues in funeral 
 discourses as faithful pastors, and at the same 
 time, or already before, are condemned in the 
 first but invisible judgment as dumb dogs, wolves 
 or hirelings." Zinzendorf. 
 
 10. On xiv. 16. "Although preachers lead 
 their hearers astray, yet the hearers are not thus 
 excused. But when they allow themselves to be 
 led astray, the blind and those who guide them 
 fall together into the ditch (Luke vi. 39)." Cra- 
 mer. [" When sinners are overwhelmed with 
 trouble, they must in it see their own wicked- 
 ness poured upon them. This refers to the wick- 
 edness both of the false prophets and the peo- 
 ple ; the blind lead the blind, and both fall to- 
 gether into the ditch, where they will be mise- 
 rable comforters one to another." Henry. — S. 
 R. A.] 
 
 11. On xiv. 19. Chrysostom refers to Rom. xi. 
 1 sqq., wtiere the answer to the prophet's ques- 
 tion is to be found. 
 
 12. On xiv. 21. " Satan has his seat here and 
 there (Rev. ii. 13). I should like to know why 
 the Saviour may not also have His cathedral. As- 
 suredly He has, and where one stands He knows 
 how to maintain it, and to preserve the honor of 
 the academy." Zinzendorf. 
 
 ["Good men lay the credit of religion, and 
 its profession in the world, nearer their hearts 
 than any private interest or concern of their 
 own; and those are powerful pleas in prayer 
 which are fetched from thence, and great sup- 
 ports to faith. We may be sure that God will 
 not disgrace the throne of His glory, on earth; nor 
 will He eclipse the glory of His throne by one 
 
 providence, without soon making it shine forth, 
 and more brightly than before, by another. God 
 will be no loser in His honor in the long run." 
 Henry.— S. R. A.] 
 
 13. On xiv. 22. " Testimony to the omnipo- 
 tence of God, for His are both counsel and deed 
 (Prov. viii. 14). Use it for consolation in every 
 distress and for the true apodictica [demonstra- 
 tion] of all articles of Christian faith, however 
 impossible they may appear." Cramer. — [" The 
 sovereignty of God should engage, and His all- 
 sufficiency encourage, our attendance on Him, 
 and our expectations from Him, at all times." 
 Henry. — " Hence may be learned a useful doc- 
 trine — that there is no reason why punishments, 
 which are signs of God's wrath, should discou- 
 rage us so as to prevent us from venturing to 
 seek pardon from Him ; but on the contrary a 
 form of prayer is here prescribed for us; for if 
 we are convinced that we have been chastised by 
 God's hand, we are on this very account encou- 
 raged to hope for salvation ; for it belongs to Him 
 whio wounds to heal, and to Him who kills to re- 
 store to life." Calvin.— S. R. A.] 
 
 14. On XV. 1. On the part of the Catholics it 
 is maintained that " hoc loco refellitur hsereticorum 
 error . . . orationes defunctorum sanctorum nihil pro- 
 desse vivis. Gontrarium enim p alius ex hisce argu- 
 endum suggeritur, nempe istiusmodi sanctorum mor- 
 tuorum orationes et fieri coram Deo solere pro viuen- 
 iibus, et quando viventes ipsi non posuerlnt ex semet 
 obicem, illas esse iis maxime proftcuas. Ghisl. Tom. 
 II. p. 296). To this it is replied on the part of 
 the Protestants. 1. Enu7itiat,io isthsec plane est 
 hypotheiica. 2. Eo tantum special, ul s'l Moses et 
 Samuel in vivis adhue essent, adeoque in his terris 
 pro populo preces interponereiit suas, perinde ut ille, 
 Ex. xxxii. hie vero 1 Sam. vii. (Forstee, S. 
 86)." He also adds two testimonies of the fa- 
 thers against the invocation of saints. One from 
 Augustine, who (^contra Maximin., L. 1), calls 
 such invocation sacrilegium, the other from Epi- 
 PHANius who [Heeres 2) names it an error seducto- 
 rum, and adds " non sanctos colimus, sed sanctorum, 
 dominum.^' — That the intercession of the living 
 for each other is effective, Cramer testifies, say- 
 ing "Intercession is powerful, and is not without; 
 fruit, when he who prays and he for whom he 
 prays are of like spirit." Comp. Rom. xv. 30; 2 
 Cor. i. 11; Eph. vi. 18, 19; 1 Tim. IL 1, 2; 1 
 John V. 16. [To the same effect also Calvin and 
 Henry. — S. R. A.] 
 
 15. On XV. 4 b. " Scilicet in vulgus manant ex- 
 empla regentum, utque ducum lituos, sic mores castra 
 seguuntur." — ^'^ Non sic infleclere sensus humanos 
 edicla valent ut vita regentum.'^ — " Qualis rex talis 
 grex." F()kster. 
 
 16. " God keeps an exact protocol [register] 
 of sins, and visits them to the third and fourth 
 generation." Cramer. ["See what uncertain 
 comforts children are ; and let us therefore re- 
 joice in them as though we rejoiced not." Henry. 
 — S. R. A.] 
 
 17. On XV. 5. "When Gotl abandons us we 
 are abandoned also by the holy angels, and all 
 creatures. For as at court when two eyes are 
 turned away the whole court turns away; so 
 \/hen the Lord turns away all His hosts tura 
 away also." Cramer. 
 
 18. On XV. 7. " God as a faithful husbandman 
 
170 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREJIkllAH. 
 
 has all kinds of instruments for cleaning His 
 grain. He has two kinds of besoms and two 
 kinds of winnowing-fan. With one He cleanses, 
 •winnows the grain and sweeps the floor, so that 
 the chaflF may be separated from the good wheat. 
 This is done by the Fatherly cross. But if this 
 does not avail He takes in hand the besom of de- 
 struction." Cramer. 
 
 19. On XV. 10. " The witnesses of Jesus have 
 the name among others of being hard and rough 
 people, from whom they cannot escape without 
 quarreling. It is not only a reproach which 
 Ahab and such like make to Elijah, 'Art thou he 
 that troubleth Israel?' (1 Ki. xix. 17). But 
 even true-hearted people like Obadiah do not 
 thoroughly trust to them; every one has the 
 thought, if they would only behave more gently 
 it would be just as well and make less noise. 
 Meanwhile the poor Elijah is sitting there, know- 
 ing not what to do ; a Jeremiah laments the day 
 of his birth . . . why am I then such a monster ? 
 Why such an apple of discord ? What manner 
 have I ? How do I speak? ' For when I speak, 
 they are for war' (Ps. cxx. 7). He does not at 
 once remember that they called the master Beel- 
 zebub, and persecuted all the prophets before 
 him ; that his greatest sin is that he cares for 
 the interests of Jesus in opposition to Satan." 
 ZiNZENDORF. [" Eveu ihose who are most quiet 
 and peaceable, if they serve God faithfully, are 
 often made men of strife. We can but folloio 
 peace; we have the making only of one side of 
 the bargain, and therefore can but, as much as in 
 us lies, live peaceably." Henry. — S. R. A.] 
 
 20. On XV. 10 b. (I have neither lent nor bor- 
 rowed at usury). " My dear Jeremiah! Thou 
 mightest have done that; that is according to 
 the custom of the country, there would be no 
 such noise about that. There is no instance of a 
 preacher being persecuted because he cared for 
 his household. But to take payment in such na- 
 tural products as human souls, that is ground of 
 distrust, that is going too far, that thou carriest 
 too high, and thou must be more remiss therein, 
 otherwise all will rise up against thee ; thou wilt 
 be suspended, removed, imprisoned or in some 
 ■way made an end of, for that is pure disorder 
 and innovation, that smacks of spiritual revolu- 
 tionary movements." Zinzendorf. 
 
 'Jl. On XV. lo a. (Thou knovvest that for thy 
 sake I have suffered reproach). " Tiiis is the 
 only thing that a servant of the Lamb of God 
 should care for, that he does indeed suffer not the 
 least in that he has disguised and disfigured the 
 doctrine of God and his Saviour. . . . It might be 
 wished that no servant of the Lord^ especially 
 in small cities and villages, would now and then 
 make a quarrel to relieve the tedium, which will 
 occupy the lialf of his life, and of which it may 
 be said in the end: vinco vel vincor, semper ego 
 macnlor." Zinzendorf. 
 
 22 On XV. 16. "The sovereign sign of a little 
 flock depending on Christ is sucli a hearty, spi- 
 ritual tender disposition towards the Holy Scrip- 
 tures, that they find no greater pleasure than in 
 their simple but heart-searching truths. I, poor 
 ch'ld, if I but look into the I'ible, am happy for 
 several hours after. 1 know not what misery i 
 couhl not alleviate at once witli a little Sci'ipiure." 
 Zinzendorf. [On ver. 17. " It is the folly and 
 
 infirmity of some good people that they lose 
 much of tlie pleasantness of their religion by the 
 fretfulness and uneasiness of their natural tern 
 per, which they humor and indulge instead of 
 mortifying it." Henry. — S. R. A.] 
 
 23. On XV. 19, a. (ilnd thou shalt stand before 
 me : [Luther: thou shalt remain my preacher]) 
 " Hear ye this, ye servants of the Lord ! Ye 
 may be suspended, removed, lose your income 
 and your office, suffer loss of house and home, 
 but ye will again be preachers. This is the 
 word of promise. * * * And if one is dismissed 
 from twelve places, and again gets a new place, 
 he is a preacher to thirteen congregations. For 
 in all the preceding his innocence, his cross, his 
 faith preach more powerfully than if he himself 
 were there." Zinzendorf. 
 
 Note. — On this it may be remarked that in 
 order to be the mouth of the Lord it is not neces- 
 sary to have a church. 
 
 24. On XV. 19 b. (Before thou return to them) 
 "We can get no better comfort than this, that 
 our faithful Lord Himself assures us against 
 ourselves. I will make thee so steady, so dis- 
 creet, so well-founded, so immovable, that, hard 
 as the human heart is, and dead and opposed, yet 
 it will be rather possible that they all yield to 
 thee, than that thou shouldest be feeble or slack 
 and go over to them." Zinzendorf. 
 
 25. On XV. 20. " A preacher must be like a 
 bone, outwardly hard, inwardly full of marrow." 
 FoRSTER. [" Ministers must take those whom 
 they see to hQ precious into their bosoms, and not 
 sit alone, as Jeremiah did, but keep up conversa- 
 tion with those they do good to, and get good by." 
 Henry.— S. R. A.] 
 
 26. On xvi. 2. "It is well-known that in no 
 condition is celibacy attended by so many evils 
 as in that of the clergy and that this condition 
 entails in a certain measure a present necessity 
 of marrying. For if any one needs a helpmeet 
 to be by his side, it is the man who must be sac- 
 rificed to so many different men of all classes. 
 But all this must be arranged according to cir- 
 cumstances. Ye preachers! Is it made out that 
 ye marry only for Jesus ? . . . that you have 
 the church alone as your object ? and that you 
 subject yourselves to all the hardships of this 
 condition with its tribulations only for the profit 
 of many ? First, then, examine maturely in 
 your offices, whether there is no word of the Lord, 
 whether circumstances do not show, whether 
 there is not an exception from the rule in your 
 case, that you are to take no wife ; whether Paul 
 does not call to you in spirit, ' 1 would that thou 
 wert as I.' May it not sometimes be saidV ' Take 
 no wife at this time or at this place!' or ' Take not 
 another!' How does the matter look on closer 
 examination? The rather, as it is known to 
 the servants of Christ to be no hyperbolical 
 speech, when it is said, 'The minister has slain 
 his tliousands, but the ininister's wife her ten 
 thousands.' He that loves anything more than 
 Christ is not worthy of Him. If it cannot be 
 cured endure it. But see to it the more, that 
 tiiose who have wives be as those who have them 
 not (1 Cor. vii. 29). Lead your wife in prayer 
 diligently and plainly, as Moses with Zipporah 
 (Hxod. iv. 25, Surely a bloody husband art thou 
 to uie). If they would not have you dead they 
 
CHAP. XVII. 14-18. 
 
 171 
 
 must leave you your Lord. I know not when 
 anything was so pleasing to me as when I saw a 
 certain minister's wife weeping sorely from ap- 
 prehension that her husband would not endure a 
 certain trial. She saw clearly that he would re- 
 tain his charge, but she feared the Saviour would 
 make it hard to him." Zinzendokf. 
 
 27. On xvi. 2. " Ridiculi sunt Fapicolse, qui ex 
 hoc typo articulum religionis su% de coelibalu sacer- 
 dotumexstruereconanfur. Nam\. tola hsec res fuit 
 typica. Typica auteni et symboUca theologia non est 
 argumentativa juxUi axioma Tliotnm. 2. Non sim- 
 pliciter interdicitur conjugium prophetx in omni loco, 
 sed tantum in ho- loco." Forster. 
 
 28. On xvi. 7. This passage (as also Isa. Iviii. 
 7) is used by the Lutheran theologians to prove 
 that panem frangere may be equivalent to panem 
 distribuere, as also Luther translates : " They 
 will not distribute bread among them." This is 
 admitted by the Reformed, who, however, remark 
 that it does not follow from this that frangere et 
 distribuere also "in Sacramento sequipoUere, quod 
 esset a particulari ad particulare argumentari.'" 
 Comp. TuRRETiN., Inst. Theol. Elencht. Tom. III., 
 p. 499. 
 
 29. On xvi. 8. "When people are desperately 
 bad and will not be told so, they must be regarded 
 as heathen and publicans (Matt. xvii. 18; Tit. iii. 
 10; 1 Cor. V. 9)." Cramer. 
 
 30. On xvi. 19. " The calling of the heathen 
 is very consolatory. For as children are rejoiced 
 at heart when they see that their parents are 
 greatly honored and obtain renown and praise 
 in all lands, so do all true children of God rejoice 
 when they see that God's name is honored and 
 His glory more widely extended." Cramer. — 
 This passage is one of those which predict the 
 extension of the true religion among all nations, 
 and are therefore significant as giving impulse 
 and comfort in the work of missions. Comp. 
 Deut. xxxii. 21; Hos. ii. 1, 25; Joel iii. 5; Isa. 
 xlix. 6; Ixv. 1 : Rom. x. 12 sqq. 
 
 31. On xvi. 21. " Nothing can'be learned from 
 God without God. God instructs the people by 
 His mouth and His hand, verbis et verbeributs." 
 Cramer. 
 
 32. On xvii. 1. '■'Scripta est et fides tua, scripta 
 est et culpa tua, sicut Jeremias dixit : scripta est 
 Juda culpa tua graphio ferreo et ungue adamantino . 
 Et scripta est, inquit, in pectore et in corde tuo. 
 Ibi igilur culpa est ubi gratia ; sed culpa graphio 
 scribitur, gratia spiritu designatur.'" Ambros. de 
 
 Sp. s. in. 2. 
 
 33. On xvii. 1. " The devil is God's ape. For 
 when he sees that God by the writing of His 
 prophets and apostles propagates His works and 
 wonders to posterity, he sets his own pulpiteers 
 to work, who labor with still greater zeal, and 
 write not only with pens and ink, but also with 
 diamonds, that such false religion may have the 
 greater respect and not go down." Cramer. 
 
 34. On xvii. 5. 
 
 " man in human help and favor 
 Trust not, for all is vanity. 
 The curse is on it, — happy he, 
 Who trusts alone iu Christ the Saviour." 
 
 ["When water is blended witlx fire, both perish; 
 80 when one seeks in part to trust in God and in 
 part to trust in men, it is the same as though he 
 wished to mix heaven and earth together, and to 
 
 throw all things into confusion. It is then to 
 confound the order of nature, when men imagine 
 that they have two objects of trust, and ascribe 
 half their salvation to God and the other half to 
 themselves or to other men." Calvin. — S. R. A.] 
 
 35. On xvii. 6. " A teacher is commanded to 
 be the first to honor the authorities, to pray for 
 them and be subject to them as God's servants. . . 
 But since the authorities, in all which pertains 
 to the concerns of the soul, have part only as mem- 
 bers, there is great occasion for this cursed de- 
 pendence on flesh . . . when one from the hope 
 of good personal protection . . . gives up the 
 work of the Lord to the powers of the earth. 
 ... It is true the church is to have foster- 
 parents who are kings. But nevertheless neither 
 kings nor princes are its tutelar deities, much 
 less lords and commanders of the church, but 
 one is our Master, one our Judge, one our King, 
 the Crucified." Zin'zexdorf. 
 
 36. On xvii. 5. Reformed theologians, ex. gr., 
 Lambertus DAN.EUS {ob. 1596) have applied 
 this passage in the sense of John vi. 63, in their 
 controversies against the Lutheran doctrine of 
 the Supper. But as Calvin declared, it is not 
 the flesh of Christ, but only earthly flesh and 
 that per contemtum which is here spoken of. 
 Comp. FoRSTER, S. 97. 
 
 37. On xvii. 7. "Blessed are those teachers, 
 who have betaken themselves to His protection, 
 who once promised His Church, that even the 
 
 gates of hell should not prevail against it 
 
 Who has ever been put to shame who trusted in 
 Him?" Zinzendorf. 
 
 38. On xvii. 9. " This is a spiritual anatomy 
 of the heart. Examples: Manasseh (2 Chron. 
 xxxiii.) ; Hezekiah (Isa. xxxviii. 39); the chil- 
 dren of Israel (Num. xiv.). Alii sumus dum Iseta- 
 mur et omnia in vita nobis secundo vento succedunt; 
 alii vero in tcmporibus calamitosis, ubi quid prseter 
 sententiam acciderit. Comp. Ser. xi. 27." (MS. 
 note in my copy of Cramer's Bibel). 
 
 39. On xvii. 9. Na^e Kal fie/LCvaao aiziaTEiv. This 
 applies with respect to ourselves and others. 
 For the defiant it avails as an extinguisher (Horn, 
 xii. 3) ; but the despairing may be reassured by 
 it (1 John iii. 19, 120). 
 
 40. On xvii. 14. (Thou art my praise) 
 
 '• When a teacher confines himself to the praisei 
 of the cross and lets all other matters of praiso 
 go. wliicli might adorn a theologian of these times, 
 and adheres immovably to this: 'I am deter- 
 mined to know nothing among you but Jesuis 
 Christ the crucified' (1 Cor. ii. 2), — amid all the 
 shame of His cross He is victorious over the rest." 
 Zinzendorf. 
 
 41. On xvii. 16. (That which I have preached 
 was right before thee). " It is not difficult to 
 know in these times what is right before the 
 Lord. There is His word; he who adheres to this 
 
 strictly, knows in thcsi that he is right In 
 
 all this it is the teacher's chief maxim, not to 
 make use of the application without need, but to 
 make the truth so plain in liis public discourse, 
 that the hearers must necessarily make the applica- 
 tion to themselves. ..." Thus saying, thou re- 
 proachest us also,' said the lawyer (Luke xi. 45). 
 . . . . Other.s went away convicted in their con- 
 sciences." Zinzendorf. 
 
 42. On xvii. 17. "That is a period whick 
 
172 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 straitens the hearts of witnesses, when their rock, 
 their protection, their consolation, their trust is 
 a terror to them. But under this we must bow 
 and faithfully endure, and we shall have a peace- 
 able fruit of righteousness. Discipline always 
 ends gloriously." Zinzendorp. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 On xiv. 7-9. Jeremiah a second Israel, who 
 wrestles with the Lord in prayer. 1. In what the 
 Lord is strong against the prophet: the sin of the 
 people. 2. In what the prophet is strong against 
 the Lord: the Name of the Lord, (a) in itself. 
 This compels him to show that He is not a desper- 
 ate hero, or giant, who cannot help ; (6) in that 
 His name is borne by Israel. Thus the Lord is 
 bound to show Himself as He who is in Israel (not 
 a guest or stranger), and consequently the Com- 
 forter and Helper of Israel. — Heim und Hoff- 
 mann, The Major Prophets (Winnenden, 1839). As 
 Daniel (ix. 5) prayed, We have sinned and com- 
 mitted iniquity, etc., so Jeremiah took his share 
 in the sin and guilt of his people. — This is true 
 penitence, when one no longer wishes to contend 
 with God in tribulation, but confesses his sin and 
 condemnation, when he sees that if God should 
 treat us according to our misdeeds. He could find 
 no ground for grace. But for His name's sake 
 He can show us favor. He Himself is the cause 
 of the forgiveness of sin. — Calmer Handbuch 
 [Manual]. Notwithstanding the ungodliness of 
 the people the prophet may still say, " Thou art 
 among us," because the temple of the Lord and 
 His word were still in the land, and the pious 
 have never all died out. [On xiv. 7-9. "Prayer 
 hath within itself its own reward. The prayer 
 of the prophet consists of confession and peti- 
 tion. 1. Confession fitly begins. It is the testi- 
 mony of iniquity, and that this iniquity is. against 
 God. When we are to encounter any -enemy or 
 difiiculty, it is sin weakens us. Now confession 
 weakens it, takes off the power of accusation, 
 etc. 2. Petition: For Thy name's sake. This is 
 the unfailing argument which abides always the 
 same and hath always the same force. The chil- 
 dren of God are much beholden to their troubles 
 for clear experiences of themselves and God. 
 Though thou art not clear in thy interest as a 
 believer, yet plead thy interest as a sinner, which 
 thou art sure of." Leighton. — S. R. A.] 
 
 2. On xiv. 13-16. Against false prophets. 1. 
 They tell the world what it likes to hear (ver. 
 13) ; 2. The Lord denies them (ver. 14) ; 3. The 
 Lord punishes them (ver. 15) ; 4. The Lord also 
 punishes those who allow themselves to be de- 
 ceived by them (ver. 16). — Tub. Bibelw.: To en- 
 ter the preacher's office without divine calling, 
 what an abomination is that ! But mark this, ye 
 iirelings ! the sentence of condemnation is al- 
 ready pronounced over you (.ler. xxiii. 21 ; Matt, 
 vii. 15). — OsiANDER Bibl.: God avenges the de- 
 ception of false teachers most severely, if not in 
 this world in the next (Acts xiii. 10, 11). — 
 Starke : God punishes both deceivers and de- 
 ceived, the latter cannot then lay all the guilt 
 on the former (xxvii. 45). 
 
 3. On xiv. 19-22. The church's distress and 
 consolation. 1. The distress is {n) outward 
 (ver. 19), [b) inward (ver. 20, the reason of the 
 
 outward, confession). 2. The consolation (a). 
 The Lord's Name, [a] It is called and is One 
 (ver. 22): [/3] His glory and that of the church 
 (throne of glory) are one; (6) the Lord's cove- 
 nant (ver. 21). — What in the present circum- 
 stances should be our position towards God? 1. 
 The divine providence, in which we are at pres- 
 ent: 2. Our confession, which we make before 
 God : 3. Our petition, which we should address 
 to Him. Voelter in Palmer's .£■('. Casual- Reden. 
 [Occasional Discourses], 4th Ed., 1865. 
 
 4. On XV. 16. Sermon on a Reformation or 
 Bible- Anniversary. The candlestick of the Gos- 
 pel has been rejected by more than one church. 
 We therefore pray: Preserve to us Thy word (Ps. 
 cix. 43). 1. Why we thus pray (Thy Word is our 
 hearts' joy and comfort) ; 2. Why we hope to be 
 heard (for we are named by Thy name). 
 
 5. On XV. 19. Caspar! [Installation- sermon at 
 Munich, Adv., 1855). These words treat; 1, of 
 tlie firm endurance ; 2, of the holy zeal ; 3, of the 
 joyful confidence, with which a preacher of God 
 must come to an evangelical church. 
 
 6. Homilies of Origen are extant on xv. 5 and 
 6; (Horn. XII., Ed. Lommatzsch) ; xv. 10-19 
 (Hom. XIV.); xv. 10; xvii. 5 (Horn. XV.). [On 
 XV. 20. "I. God's qualification to be an over- 
 seer of the church. The metaphor of a wall im- 
 plies, (1) courage, (2) innocence and integrity, 
 (3) authority. II. The opposition a church- 
 governor will be sure to meet with, (1) by se- 
 ditious preaching and praying, (2) by railing 
 and libels ; (3) perhaps by open force. III. The 
 issue and success of such opposition (they shall 
 not prevail)." South. — S. R. A.] 
 
 7. On xvi. 19-21. Missionary Sermon. The 
 true knowledge of God. 1. It is to be had in 
 Christianity (ver. 19, a). 2. It will also make 
 its way to the heathen, for (a) It is God's will 
 that they should be instructed (ver. 21) ; (6) they 
 are ready to be instructed (ver. 19 b. 20). 
 
 8. On xvii. 5-8. The blessing of faith and the 
 curse of unbelief (comp. Ebalund Gerizim). 1. 
 Why does the curse come upon the unbeliever? 
 (He departs in his heart from the Lord). 2. 
 Wherein this curse consists (ver. 6). 3. Why 
 must blessing be the portion of the believer? (ver. 
 7). 4. Wherein this blessing consists (ver. 8). 
 
 9. On xvii. 6-8, and xviii. 7-10. Schleier- 
 macher (Sermon on 28 Mar., 1813, in Berlin) : 
 We regard the great change (brought about by 
 tlie events of the period) on the side of our worthi- 
 ness before God. 1. What in this respect is ita 
 peculiar import and true nature. 2. To what 
 we must then feel ourselves summoned. 
 
 10. On xvii. 9, 10. The human heart and its 
 judge. 1. The antithesis in the human heart. 
 2. The impossibility of fathoming it with human 
 eyes. 3. The omniscient God alone sees through 
 it; and 4, judges it with justice. [" The heart 
 is deceitful — it always has some trick or other 
 by which to shuffle off conviction." Henry. — "It 
 is extremely difficult for sinners to know their 
 hearts. I. What is implied in their knowing 
 their own hearts. 1. It implies a knowledge of 
 their selfishness. 2. Of their desperate incura- 
 ble wickedness. 3. Of their extreme deceitful- 
 ness. II. Why it is so extremely difficult for 
 them to know their own hearts. 1. They are 
 unwilling to know them. 2. Because of the de- 
 
CHAP. XVII. 19-27. 
 
 17S 
 
 ceitfulaess of sin. They love or hate, as they 
 appear friendly or unfriendly to them: [a) God, 
 (6) Christ, (c) good men, [d) one another, («) the 
 world, (/) their own hearts, {g) the means of 
 grace, (h) their convictions, (i) heaven — Improve- 
 ment. The only way to know the heart is to in- 
 quire whether it loves God or not, e<c. 2. Saints 
 O'j.u more easily ascertain their true character 
 than sinners can. 3. All changes in life are 
 trials of the heart," etc., etc. Emmons. — " I. The 
 human heart exhibits great fraud and treachei-y. 
 1. We are changeable by that connection which 
 the soul has with the body. 2. By its connec- 
 tion with external objects by our senses. 3. By 
 its love of novelty and variety. 4. By its hasty 
 resolutions. 5. By its self-love. II. Its exces- 
 sive malice is seen in history and experience. 
 III. Its deep dissimulation and hypocrisy render 
 it inscrutable. Inferences: 1. We should en- 
 tertain a sober diffidence of ourselves. 2. We 
 should not be surprised when men use us ill or 
 disappoint us. 3. We should take care and give 
 good principles and a good example to those 
 young persons under our guidance. 4. We 
 should be ready to confess our offences to God. 
 5. We should bear in mind that we are under the 
 
 inspection of one who searcheth the hearts," etc. 
 JoiiTiN. — See also two Sermons by Jer. Taylor. 
 — S. R. A.]. 
 
 11. Run. KcEGEL (Court and Cathedral preacher 
 at Berlin, 1865). Sermon on xvii. 9, 19, and 
 Heb. xiii. 9: Two pictures: 1, the uuregenerate ; 
 2, the regenerate heart. 
 
 12. On xvii. 12, 18. Sermon for the dedication 
 of a church, the anniversary of the Reformation, 
 or on Whitsunday. The church of the Lord. 1. 
 What it is in itself (place of sanctuary, throne 
 of divine glory, house of Him, who is Israel's 
 hope). 2. What it will be (it will ever remain 
 firm, Matt. xvi. 18) : 3. What they find who for- 
 sake it (ver. 19). 
 
 13. On xvii. 14-18. Cry for help of a preacher 
 tempted on account of the truth. 1. The tempta- 
 tion (ver. 15). 2. The demonstration of inno- 
 cence (ver. 16). 3. The cry for help, (a) nega- 
 tive (vers. 17 and 18), (6) positive (ver. 19). [On 
 xvii. 14. The penitent's prayer. 1. The words 
 express an earnest desire for salvation. 2. He 
 applies to Almighty God for it. 3. Through the 
 medium of prayer. 4. With confidence that he 
 will be heard. Dr. A. Thomson of Edinburgh. — 
 S. R. A.]. 
 
 6. THE SIXTH DISCOURSE. 
 
 (Chap. XVII. 19-27.) 
 
 7'his short passage is closely connected neither with what precedes nor with what follows. Mttny commen- 
 tators have, indeed, devised an extensive frame, so as to include this passage in it together with the pre- 
 vious or subsequent context, but these artificial expedients are fiot satisfactory. The previous discourse 
 is, as shoivn above, complete in itself, and requires no further addition. The following passages are 
 also as peculiar and independent as this. This forms a small but important and in form a finished 
 whole. Why should not the prophet have addressed short speeches to the people ? 
 
 As to the date, all is in favor of the reign of Jehoiakim. 1 . The state still exists in unenfeebled inde- 
 pendence ; no trace betrays that the power of the Chaldeans had become predominant, or that they were 
 immediately threatening. 2. The censure of the transgression of so important a command corresponds 
 rather with the times of the godless Jehoiakim, than of the pious Josiah. The great similarity with 
 zxii. 1-5, which passage indubitably pertains to the reign of Jehoiakim, is in favor of referring this 
 discourse to the same period. [Henderson: " Eichhorn, Rosenmiiller and Maurer,-are of opinion 
 that this portion of the chapter belongs to the reign of Jehoiakim, 7vho rapidly undid all the good which 
 had been effected by Josiah, and among other evils encouraged the profanation of the Sabbath, with 
 the due observance of which the prosperity of the State was bound up. The language of the prophet, 
 however, is not objurgatory, as we should have expected, if the profanation in question had actually 
 existed. It is rather that of caution and warning, with a promise of prosperity in case of obedience, 
 and a threatening of destruction to the city in case of disobedience. It would seem, therefore, to belong 
 to the time of Josiah, and to have been delivered in connection tvith or shortly after his reformation." 
 — Hitziq refers this passage together with chapter xwiii., to the period of Jeconiah, or that immediately 
 following the death of Jehoiakim. — S. R. A.] 
 
 EXHORTATION TO HALLOW THE SABBATH. 
 
 XVII. 19-27. 
 
 19 Thus saith the Lord [Jehovah] unto me ; Go and stand in the gate of the chil- 
 dren of the people,' whereby the kings of Judah come in, and by the which they 
 
 20 go out, and in all the gates of Jerusalem ; And say unto them, Hear ye the word 
 of the Lord [Jehovah], ye kings of Judah and all Judah, and all the inhabitants 
 
 21 of Jerusalem that enter in by these gates : Thus saith the Lord [Jehovah] ; Take 
 heed ye to yourselves [Care with foresight for your souls],^ and bear no burden oq 
 
174 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 22 the Sabbath-day, nor bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem ; neither carry forth a 
 burden out of your houses on the Sabbath day, neither do ye any work, but hallow 
 
 23 ye the Sabbath-day, as I commanded your fathers. But ihey obeyed [heard] not, 
 neither inclined their ear, but made their neck stilf, that they might nut hear^ nor 
 
 24 receive instruction. And it shall come to pass, if ye diligently hearken unto me, 
 saith the Lord [Jehovah] to bring in no burden through the gates of this city on 
 the Sabbath-day, but hallow the Sabbath day to do [by doing] no work therein;* 
 
 25 then shall there enter into [through] the gates of this city kings and princes" sitting 
 upon [who sit on] the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they and 
 their princes, the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem ; and this city 
 
 26 shall remain [be inhabited] forever. And they shall come from the cities of Judah 
 and from the places about [environs of] Jerusalem and from the land of Benjamin, 
 and from the plains and from the mountains, and from the south, bringing [people 
 who bring] burnt offerings and sacrifices and meat-offerings and incense, and bring- 
 
 27 ing sacrifices of praise unto the house of the Lord [Jehovah]. But if ye will not 
 hearken unto me to hallow the Sabbath day, and not to bear a burden, even enter- 
 ing [or enter] into the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath-day ; then will I kindle 
 a fire in the [your] gates thereof, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem 
 and it shall not be quenched. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 19. — [HiTZio : Of the common man]. The Chethibh reads DJ^~' J3, but this does not make any difference in the 
 gense. If the absence of the article is not due to an oversight, it may lie explained by the later, less exact use of language, 
 of which we repeatedly find traces in Jeremiah (comp. iii. 2 ; vi. 16; xiv. 18). 
 
 2 Ver. 21.— D01li'3J3. The construction is like Mai. ii. 15, 16, DDHnS. But 3 is not =6y, ^jer, after verba of 
 petition or conjuration (by your life not. Fid. Gesen., Thes. IIL, S. 1443), or^for the sake of (Meier), but the Niphal in- 
 volves the meaning of having regard to, observing, and 3 depends on this. Comp. 'nj^J^ 'D~nD2/, 2 Sam. xviii. 12. That 
 
 this is the sense of the connection follows plainly from 2 Sam. xx. 10, " took no heed to the sword ;" Deut. xxiv. 8, " take 
 heed to the plague." Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., ^ 100, 3. 
 
 8 Ver. 23. — ^yoili? [Chethibh, ^MDtJ/J Hiller in Arcano Kri et KHih, remarks that the Masoretes, when they wished 
 to indicate the SIcriptio plena, in order that the difference of their reading might be remarked, set the mater hctionis in an- 
 other place in the woril. So also in ii 25; ix. 7 ; xxvii. 1 ; xxix. 23 ; xxxii. 23. Comp. the Explicatio leclionum masoret. in 
 the Hebrew Bible of Simonis, Halle, 1752. 
 
 < Ver. 24.— On the form T\2- Comp. Ewald, g 84, & ; 247, d. Olsh. § 96, c; 40, h. 
 
 5 Ver. 25. — D'^tJ'1 is strange. Graf not without reason, assumes au oversight, caused by the frequent juxtaposition 
 • T : 
 of the two words. Comp.xlix. 38; Hos. xiii. 10; 2 Sam. xviii. 5; 1 Chron. xxiv. 6; 2 Chron. xxviii. 21; xxix. 30; xxx. 
 12; Esth. i. 16, 21, tic. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Jeremiah is to go under the gate of the city and 
 there warn all the people from the king down- 
 wards against the desecration of the Sabbath 
 by bearing burdens and laboring as their fathers 
 had done (vers. 18-23). If they would sanctify 
 the Sabbath, their city should remain forever, 
 and their gate should be witnesses of a lively 
 traffic, of importance to the king's house, the city 
 and the temple (vers. 24-26). But if they should 
 eontinue to desecrate the Sabbath, an inex- 
 tinguishable fire should consume the gates and 
 palaces of the city (ver. 27). Accordingly three 
 parts may be distinguished in this passage. 
 
 Vers. 19-2.3. Thus saith Jehovah . . . nor 
 receive instruction. — Go, etc. (Vimp. ii. 2; 
 iii. 12; xix. 1.— Gate of the children of the 
 people. This gate is mentioned here only. It 
 is, therefore, difficult to determine its position 
 with certainty, as according to Von Raumer 
 (Pala.il., 4th Ed., 5. 291), not two interpreters 
 agree as to its position. The first question is 
 whether it was a pate of the city or of the tem- 
 ple. Graf correctly remarks that, witli respect 
 to a gate of the city IX^' must stand first and 
 IJ^^' last (comp. 2 Chron. xxiii. 8). The name 
 
 Dj^ri'^JD would also be a very strange one for a city 
 gate. The expression occurs with three mean- 
 ings. 1. It designates the difference between 
 strangers and natives, although in this sense DJT 
 is found in the Old Testament not with the arti- 
 cle, but only with suffixes : Gen. xxiii. 11 ; Judges 
 xiv. 16; Lev. xix. 18; Ezek. iii. 11; Num. xxii. 5; 
 Lev. XX. 17. — 2. It designates a difference in rank 
 among the people themselves, and in two degrees, 
 the mass of the people in opposition to the king 
 and the princes (2 Chron. xxxv. 7 coll. 8), and 
 again the commonalty in opposition to the more 
 respectable classes (Jer. xxvi. 23; 2 Kings xxiii. 
 6). — 3. The expression designates the difference 
 between priests and not priests, in which sense 
 it corresponds to our term "laity" (2 Chron. 
 xxxv. 5, 12, 13). It occurs only in the passages 
 cited. Since now nothing is known of a gate 
 of tlie city through which strangers might not 
 pass, or of one through which only the kings 
 and the dregs of the people, or only the kings 
 and the rest of their subjects to the exclusion of 
 the priests might pass, it follows that the gate 
 must have been a gate of the temple through 
 which only the laity went in and out, since spe- 
 cial entrances were reserved for the priests. 
 What gate it was it is difficult to say. The ex- 
 pression was probably nut ouj in general use, 
 
CHAP. XVII. 19-27. 
 
 17* 
 
 but employed only by the priests, since accord- 
 ing to the second explanation it included a some- 
 what dishonorable side-meaning. The rarity of 
 the expression also justifies the conclusion that 
 it was a temporary expression, i. e., in use only 
 in those times, since as is well-known the city- 
 gates of Jerusalem bore successively different 
 names. Comp. Raumeii's Paldst. S. 290, 1. — 
 When in 2 Chron. xxiii. 5, the high-priest Je- 
 hoiada posted a third of his people at the "Ij^E^ 
 
 niD"'?!' it is natural to suppose that this was the 
 
 gate through which he expected Athaliah to pass. 
 It is then further probable that this gate was 
 identical with the one mentioned in our passage 
 "whereby the kings of Judah went in and out." 
 [Henderson : — " The gate of the mass of the peo- 
 ple . . was in all probability the gate of David, 
 corresponding to what is now called the Jaffa 
 Gate, and was called the ' people's ' gate from the 
 circumstance of its being the principal thorough- 
 fare for the tribes in the South, the West, and 
 the North-West."— S. R. A.] That this gate, 
 even were it a gate of the temple, was adapted 
 to the proclamation of this divine message, is 
 evident if we reflect (a), that this gate also might 
 by the purchase and sale of temple-necessaries 
 (comp. Matth. xxi. 12) be the scene of Sabbath- 
 desecrating traffic ; (b) that even if this was not 
 the case, at any rate the gate was one which was 
 much frequented, perhaps more than all the rest. 
 — Not do any w^ork. Comp. Exod. xii. 16; 
 XX. 8sqq. ; Deut. v. 12sqq. — The Sabbath was 
 the day of Jehovah (comp. the passages quoted) 
 a monimentum temporale for his service, hence the 
 observance of this day stood or fell with the wor- 
 Bhip of Jehovah. — But they obeyed not. The 
 first half of ver. 23 is taken verbatim from vii. 
 26. — Ver. 23 is parenthetical, suggested by as I 
 commanded, etc. 
 
 Vers. 24-26. And it shall come . . . Jeho- 
 vah Sitting upon the throne. Comp. xiii. 
 13; xxii. 4. — Shall remain. Comp. rems. on 
 ver. 6. — Men of Judah. Comp. xxxii. 44; 
 xxxiii. 13; coll. Josh. x. 40; Judges i. 9; Deut. 
 
 i. 7 ; Zech. vii. 7. — The plains, ^h^^ is the 
 low country between Joppa and Gaza, Josh. ix. 
 1; xii. 8; xv. 33 sqq. ; 1 Kings x. 27; Obad. 
 19 ; Raumer, Paldst. S. 51. — South, JJJ is the 
 
 southern, as TOiiW the western, n3"lD the east- 
 ern, inn the northern, parts of the tribe of Ju- 
 dah, separating the two last mentioned. Comp. 
 Josh. XV. 55 sqq. ; 2 Sam. xxiv. 7. 
 
 Ver. 27. But if ye w^ill not . . . not be 
 quenched. The negation before to bear must 
 also be referred to enter. Comp. ver. 21. — 
 Will I kindle. Comp. xxi. 14 ; xlix. 27 ; Am. 
 1. 14. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On ver. 30. " It is no derogation to the sa- 
 gacity of a teacher if he directs his public in- 
 structions, admonitions and warnings with some 
 special adaptation to the rulers of the country. 
 Only he must guard against offensive or abusive 
 expressions, and see to it that he carefully dis- 
 tinguish between their ofiBce and their life, and 
 be sure of his case, that he is not following the 
 
 motions of nature, but the calling of the Lord. 
 Acts xxiii. 3; 1 Ki. xiv. 7, 8." Starke. 
 
 2. Man in this earthly lite needs, besides work, 
 rest also for body and soul. It would be inept 
 to have one rest day for the body and another 
 for the soul. It would be equally so to have 
 more or fewer holidays than God has ordained 
 by sanctification of the Seventh day, whereby He 
 who is the creator of time has at the same time 
 given us the fundamental principles of its divi- 
 sion. As the rest of the body is both negative 
 and positive (abstinence from labor and recu- 
 peration of forces) so also is that of the soul. 
 The soul is from God, and must on its day of rest 
 be freed from earthly cares and brought into the 
 element of its heavenly origin, as it were into a 
 cleansing and invigorating bath. The observance 
 by Christians of the first, instead of the Seventh 
 day, as a weekly holiday is well founded in the 
 fact that the day of Christ's resurrection is also 
 a day of creation, and so much the more glori- 
 ous as the new and imperishable world is more 
 glorious than the old and perishable world. 
 
 3. "Neglect not church going. For though 
 the unbelieving heathen thought it a foolish 
 course to spend the day in idleness, yet tempo- 
 ral subsistence will not therefore fail, but rather 
 will the weekly work of other days flourish the 
 more. Matth. vi. 33." Cramer. 
 
 4. [" God did not regard the external rite 
 only, but rather the end, of which He speaks in 
 Ex. xxxi. 13, and in Ezck. xx. 12. In both 
 places He reminds us of the reason why He com- 
 manded the Jews to keep holy the Seventh day, 
 and that was that it might be to them a symbol 
 of sanctification. ' I have given My Sabbaths,* 
 He says, ' to you, that ye might know that I am 
 your God who sanctifieth you.' . . And it appears 
 from other places that this command was typical 
 — Christ being the substance. Col. ii. 16." Cal- 
 vin.— S. R. A.] 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 The weekly holiday as the day of Jehovah ana 
 as the day of the Lord. 1. What they have iu 
 common. The weekly holiday is in both cases 
 (a) a monument of the loving care of our God 
 (a) for our body (/?) for our soul ; {b) a right of 
 God which forms on our part a holy obligation 
 towards God, ourselves, and our neighbor. 2. 
 The differences, (a) The day of Jehovah is 
 founded on the creation of the perishable world ; 
 the day of the Lord is founded on the resurrec- 
 tion of Christ, as of a new, eternal world; (6) 
 the observance of the day of Jehovah was only 
 legal, i. e., (a) imposed by external compulsion, 
 (/3) by requirements to be fulfilled by outward 
 observance ; — the observance of the day of the 
 Lord is to be more and more an evangelical one, 
 i. e. (ff) a free, (b) a spiritually free one, i. e., sa- 
 tisfying the right as well as the obligation of 
 personality. 
 
 [" What blessings God has in store for thosa 
 who make conscience of Sabbath sanctification. 
 
 1. The court Shall flourish. The honor of the go- 
 vernment is the joy of the kingdom, and the sup- 
 port of religion would contribute greatly to both. 
 
 2. The city shall flourish. Whatever supports 
 religion tends to establish the civil interests of » 
 
176 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 land. 3. The country shall flourish. By this the 
 flourishing of a country may be judged of. What 
 does it do for the honor of God ? Those who 
 starve their religion either are poor, or are in a 
 fair way to be so. 4. The church shall flourish. 
 
 It is a true observation which some hare made^ 
 That the streams of all religion run either deep 
 or shallow, according as the banks of the Sab- 
 bath, are kept up or aeglected." Henrt. — 8 
 R. A.] 
 
 THE SEVENTH DISCOURSE. 
 
 (Chaps. XVIII.^XX.) 
 
 As these three chapters appear under a common superseripHon of the longer form, which does not recur till 
 chap, xxi., they are evidently to be regarded as a connected whole. They have in fact an internal 
 connec(io7i, although they ca?inot by any means be considered as a rhetorical whole, or as a coiuiected 
 discourse. Two historical facts are here set before us, which are internally related, but are different 
 as to time, and probably also as to their original record, to which are also attached both prophetic in- 
 dications and subjective effusions. The first historical fact is the incident with the potter, related in 
 ch. xviii. As in this chapter the impending judgment is still announced in the same general manner 
 as before, the Chaldeans not yet being mentioned as the instrument, it is manifest that it must have 
 been written before the decisive turning-point reported in ch. xxv., viz., before the battle of Carche- 
 mish in the 4th year of Jehoiakim. On the other hand chh. xix. and x^. were written after this 
 crisis. For in xx. 4 we read ^'I will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he 
 shall carry them captive into Babylon.'^ Jeremiah does not speak thus till after that decisive battle. 
 It is also noteworthy, that the prophet in xx. 2 is called NO^H irTDT, not simply ^rTDT", which 
 mode of expression likewise prevails only after the great crisis. [Camp. xxv. 2; xxviii. 5, 10, 11, 
 12, 16, etc.) It follows definitively that chh. xix. and xx. belong to the time of Jehoiakim from the 
 circumstance that in the reign of Zedekiah, not Pashur, but Zephaniah, the son of Maaseiah, appears 
 to be invested with the dignity of temple-officer [comp. xxix. 26 coll. xxi. 7 ; xxxvii. 3 ; lii. 24), 
 and moreover as the successor of Jehoiada, which renders the probability that Pashur no longer held 
 this office under Zedekiah so much the greater, especially if ice consider that ch. xxix. belongs to one of 
 the first years of Zedekiah {see the Introd. to ch. xxix.) Pashur, who in xx. 4 sqq. is threatened with 
 being carried away captive to Babylon, had most probably met this fate with king Jehoiakim and that 
 numerous company which is spoken of in xxix. 1 and 2 Ki. xxiv. 12-14. — Notwithstanding therefore 
 that ch. xviii. belongs to an earlier period than chh. xix. and xx. they are placed together because both 
 are based on symbolic actions, of which the productions of pottery form the substratum. In ch. xviii. 
 the clay on the potter's wheel first fails, but is then immediately formed anew; in ch. xix. the vessel is 
 ready-made, which being poured out is then (irreparably xix. 11) broken by the prophet. Both actions 
 are of such a character as to set before the people that the Lord has not only the power but the will to 
 destroy them. Nevertheless there is a great difference betiveen the two actions, the first having a parse- 
 neiic, the second more of a declarative charaiter, as will be shown in the exposition. Graf is of opinion 
 that xix. 1-13 was written down at the same time ivith ch. xviii., because the event narrated in xx. 1 sqq., 
 is related to the prophecy in vii. 30 sqq. as ch. xxvi. to vii. 12, and since the discourse in ch. vii. sqq. 
 belongs to the fourth year of the reign of Jehoiakim, so also the prophecy in xix. 1-13, and the event re- 
 corded in XX. 1-6 must belong to this time. But the latter was not recorded till afterwards, like all 
 the narratives from the life of Jeremiah. The lyrical passage xx. 1 -\Z has no connection with the pre- 
 ceding context. But it may have been composed under the impression of the shameful treatment which 
 Jeremiah had received in the temple, or subsequently in remembrance of this and other persecutions. 
 The five verses, xx. 14-18, are said to be an independent fragment, an amplification of xv. 10, which 
 was perhaps composed in consequence of the same occurrences, and were put here on this account, or 
 only on account of its agreement with vers. 7, 8. To this I have to object; 1. Itis an unnatural sup- 
 position that xix. 1-13 was written before xix. 14-xx. (J. For both passages are so closely connected 
 that we cannot conceive what could have occasioned the prophet to defer the relation in xix. 14, etc., 
 after having recorded the previous facts, together with the prophecy connected with them. The narra- 
 tive xix. 14, etc., was certainly recorded after the prophet had already begun to call himself^'' N'^jn, 
 
 but only because the prophecy itself belongs to this later period. This is not identical with vii. 30-34, 
 and does not therefore belong to the first years of Jehoiakim. The agreement in particular words and 
 phrases corresponds only to the general usage of Jeremiah, to repeat himself frequently and extensively, 
 and in different connections by no means justifies the assumption of identity. 2. The passage xx. 7- 
 13 is closely connected ivilh the previous context, as is especially seen in the words ^ODip IIJD [comp. 
 the Comm. on xx. 10); it is not however an objective and official word of God, but a memorial of sub- 
 jective thoughts and feelings, which then moved the prophet, and thus bears to some extent the charac- 
 ter of a private record. 3. The case is the same with xx. 14-18. This passage also is of an entirely 
 subjective and private nature. To strike it out or explain it as only patched on accidentally is to den^ 
 
CHAP. XVIII. 1-10. 171 
 
 the dualism which must undoubtedly have prevailed in the mind of the prophet. To transpose U from 
 this place and set it before xx. 7 {as Ewald does, in this however opposed by Geaf) would be to dis- 
 turb the 7iatural course and the clear picture of the inner feelinys of the prophet. For it is only too 
 probable that in those troubled times a troubled frame of mind finally became predominant. 
 lam therefore of opinion that ch. xviii. belongs to the period before, chh. xix. and xx. to the period after, 
 the fourth year of Jehoiakim, that the passages however being of related contents were placed in juxta- 
 position in the collection of prophecies ; further, that xix. 1 — xx. G is to be regarded as a closely con- 
 nected whole, on which follows as an appendix a subjective effusion of double and contradictory ^pur- 
 port, by which hoivever we obtain a true picture of the prophet's then prevailing state of mind. 
 The discourse may be divided as follows : — 
 
 THE SYMBOLS OF POTTERY, 
 First Symbol : the clay and potter, ch. xviii. 
 
 1. The parable of the potter and its interpretation in a negative sense, xviii. 1-10. 
 
 2. The interpretation of the parable in a positive sense, xviii. 11-17. 
 
 3. The mamier in which the people receive the word of the prophet, and his petition to the Lord for prO' 
 
 tectionfrom their hostility, xviii. 18-23. 
 
 Second Symbol: — the broken vessel, chaps, xix. andxx. 
 
 1. The symbolic action and its interpretation, xix. 1-13. 
 
 2. Opposition and punishment of Pashur, xix. 14-xx. 6. 
 
 3. Appendix. The prophet's joy and sorrow, xx. 7-18. 
 
 a. Through sorrow to joy, xx. 7-13. 
 
 b. For the present sorrow only. The prophet curses the day of his birth, xx. 14-18. 
 
 Chapters XVIII. to XX. 
 
 THE SYMBOLS OF POTTERY. 
 
 J?IRST Symbol: — the clay and potter. 
 
 Chap. XVIII. 
 
 1. The parable of the potter and its interpretation in the negative sense. 
 
 XVIII. 1-10. 
 
 1, 2 The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord [Jehovah], saying, Arise 
 and go down to the potter's house and there I will cause thee to hear my words. 
 
 3 Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the 
 
 4 wheels. And the vessel which he was making^ of [as] clay'' was spoiled in the hand 
 of the potter ; so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to 
 
 5 make it. Then the word of the Lord [Jehovah] came to me, saying, 
 
 6 Cannot I do to you as this potter does, 
 
 house of Israel ? saith Jehovah. 
 
 Behold as the clay in the hand of the potter, 
 So are ye in my hand, O house of Israel ! 
 
 7 Suddenly I speak against a nation and against a kingdom. 
 To extirpate and exterminate and to destroy : 
 
 8 If now this nation, against which I have spoken, turn from its wickedness, 
 
 1 repent i^ the evil which I thought to do unto it. 
 
 9 And suddenly I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, 
 To build and to plant : 
 
 10 If how it does that which is eviP in my eyes. 
 So that it hears not my voice, 
 I repent of the good wherewith I promised to benefit it. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 1 Ver. 4.— nntl'JI. Tlie perfects JinCJ and 3ty signify th^t these facts are not to be regarded as co-ordinate points in 
 the course of the narrative, but as further ilevelopinents of the 713X73 Dtl'l*, from which it is not necessary to assume 
 that the word designates more than a single act (Hitzig, Graf). The form Hiyi is used (as ex. gr.. Gen. xxvi. 17) for the 
 12 
 
178 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 reason that the -word does not contain the main idea, but a subordinate one attached aa it were by the preceding perfect. 
 Comp. Oen. xxix. 2 sqq. ; Isa. vi. 3 ; Dan. viii. 4 ; Ewald, § 342 b ; Naegelsb. Gr., § 8t, 6 ; § 95 jr, A7im. 
 
 a Ver. 4. — '•') TOPlb- These words have been unjustly suspected by different translators, transcribers, and commenta- 
 tors. Tliey are not a gloss from ver. 6, Imt doubtless chosen with reference to tliis verse. The intention is to set forth 
 prominently the punctum saliens by similarity of expression in the historical narrative and the application. The 3 is to be 
 
 regarded as Kaph veritnfis^as clay, i. e., as he is accustomed to do to the clay. Comp. xv. 19 ; Naegelsb. Gr., g 112, 5, c. 
 
 JWoRDSWORTH: ul« ctey Sometimes fails in the hand of the potter. — Henderson. '•"10113 with 2 instead of J3, is found in 
 
 the text of fifty-eight MSS., has originally been in several more, and is now in five more by correction. It is likewise exhibi- 
 ted in scvi'iiti'eu printed eihtious. and alone makes sense." — S. K. .\.]. 
 
 ^ Ver. 10. — rii'in. Tlie Masoretes would read Uiri, according to the usage which prevails elsewhere without an ex- 
 ception (comp. Num. xxxii. 13; Jud. ii. 11 : iii. 7, 12, etc. ; 1 Kings xi. 6 ; xiv. 22 ; Jer. vii. 30; xxxii. 30, etc.). The reading 
 of the Chethibh is, however, evidently occasioned by nJIDil after, and 1j"\^"| before it. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The prophet receives the command to go into 
 the potters house, to receive there a revelation 
 from the Lord. He obeys and is a witness how 
 the clay is spoiled in the hands of the potter, as 
 he works on the wheel, and how he immediately 
 forms a new vessel out of the clay (vers. 1-4). 
 Hereupon the prophet receives the word of the 
 Lord: As the clay is in the hand of the potter, 
 so is Israel in the hand of the Lord (vers. 5 and 
 6). As the Lord by penitence and conversion 
 is dissuaded from the accomplishment of His 
 threateuings, so by evil-doing He may be pre- 
 vented from performing His gracious promises 
 (vers. 7-10). 
 
 Vers. 1-4. The word ... to the potter to 
 make it. The superscription is like that in vii. 
 1 ; xi. 1. — D'JNri, \wheels. The meaning of the 
 word, which occurs besides only in Exod. i. 16 
 cannot be doubtful in this passage. With respect 
 however to Exod. i. 16, it was the object of a 
 literary controversy. Comp. Bottcher iu Wi- 
 liBR's Zeitschs f. wiss. TheoL, Bd. II., H. 1, S. 
 
 49 ff. ; Rettig, Bottcher u. Redslob, Stud. u. 
 Krit., 1834; Benary, Berlin, Jahrhb., 1841; 
 Ernst Meier, Stud. u. Krit, 1842. [For a de- 
 scription and diagram of the wheel, see Gesen. 
 Lex., s. v.] — As seemed good. Comp. xxvii. 
 5. 
 
 Vers. 5-10. Then the word ... to benefit 
 it. — On as the clay in the hand of the 
 potter comp. Isa. xxix. 16 ; xlv. 9 ; Ixiv. 7 ; 
 Wisd. XV. 7; Ecclus. xxxvi. 13; Rom. ix. 21. — 
 Suddenly, vers. 7 and 9, is evidently not to be 
 referred to the proximate verb, but to the main 
 thought, i. e., to the apodosis. The mode of ex- 
 pression is paratactic. In our syntactic mode it 
 would be : Suddenly, if I have spoken against a 
 nation . . . and this nation turn, I will repent, etc. 
 Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., | 111, 1. Anm. More- 
 over, the word refers evidently to the rapidity 
 with which the potter changes the form of the 
 clay. Observation may be recommended as the 
 best commentator on this passage. — To extir-> 
 pate. Comp. i. 10. — Against which I spoke 
 is not to be referred to wickedness, but t« 
 nation. 
 
 2. ITie interpretation of the parable in the positive tense. 
 
 xvm. 11-17 
 
 11 And now speak indeed^ to the men of Judah, 
 
 And to'' the inhabitants [citizens] of Jerusalem, saying, 
 
 Thus saith Jehovah : Behold ! 
 
 I frame evil against you, and think thoughts against you: 
 
 Turn ye now, each liom his evil way, 
 
 And reform your ways and your works. 
 
 12 But they will say: No use !* but our thoughts we will follow, 
 
 And will practise, each according to the obstinacy* of his wicked heart. 
 
 13 Therefore thus saith Jehovah : 
 
 Inr^uire now among the nations, who hath heard the like? 
 The virgin Israel hath done a very horrible thing.^ 
 
 14 Ceases® from the rock of the field the snow of Lebanon? 
 Oi do the strong,' cool, rippling waters dry up? 
 
 15 That my people forgat me and burned incense to vanity, 
 And made them stumble in their ways, the ancient paths,* 
 To walk in roads of an unlevcled way, 
 
 16 To make their land a desolation, 
 An object of everlasting derision ?• 
 
CHAP. XVIII. 11-17. 
 
 179 
 
 He who only passes through will be astounded at it, 
 And will shake his head.^** 
 17 Like the east wind will I scatter them before the enemy 
 Back not face will I show them in the day of their fall. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 11. — [Henderson: I charge thee. Blatxet: I pray thee.— S. R. A.] 
 
 2 Ver. 11. — On the change of 7X to 7j;, comp. Textual Note 2 on x. 1. 
 
 3 Ver. 12. — u;xij. Niph. part, of t^X', <o(?espat>. Comp.Comm. on ii. 25. [Henderson: It is hopeless. BLATNET:Itis 
 a thin;; n-rt to be IkijiciI.] 
 
 * Ver. 12. — ilil'lTJJ'- 'I'he expression is found here only as the object of ntyi*, elsewhere always with 3 or 'THX after 
 
 T /H (comp. iii. 17 ; ix. 13 ; xvi. 12 ; vii . 24 ; xi. 8 ; xiii. 10 ; xxiii. 17). 
 
 6 Ver. 13. — r\*l"^yty. This form is found here only. Comp. Hos. vi. 10; Jer. v. 30; xxiii. 14. 
 
 6 Ver. 14. — There is no other instance of the construction in <.1 m 3 |j;\ for 3I_J7 is used transitively even in Gen. xxiv. 
 
 27. Should we not perhaps read II^D instead of "Ili'O ■ Tli'^ is not merely circumvallatio, but also munimentum, arx, 
 
 : ■ T 
 
 turris. Comp. Hah. ii. 1. Gf.sen. Thes., p. 1161. 
 
 " Ver. 14. — Instead of U'"\1, which certainly affords no satisfactory meaning, the LXX. seems to have read D^^T, the 
 
 * T 
 
 proud, splendid. So also Meier in comparison with D'JIT" D''0, Ps. cxxiv. 5. Ewald (and after him Graf) derives D'lT 
 
 . . . _ . y. 
 
 from "T^ I, to press. This word, however, signifies constrinxit, compressit, and the meaning to press forth is a bare assump- 
 
 - T 
 
 tion. If the word is to be altered, it is then better to agree with Meier. [" □''"^f from T^T, to compress, straiten, is descrip- 
 
 •T 
 
 tive of streams, as contracted within narrow channels, while descending through the gorges and defiles of the rocks. The 
 
 use of the verb 7|J, Arab. nazaZ, \ V^ > discendit Zoco, confirms this view." Henderson. Hitzig renders "strange," as 
 
 coming from afar, in the sense of the A. V., and refers to the unknown source of the pool of Siloam, etc. — S. K. A.] 
 
 8 Ver. 15.— The form hl2^ here only in the Chethibh ; V^t^ Ps. Ixxvii. 20. The word does not recur. 
 
 9 Ver. 16.— npllil?. This form here only; ^\p'''^'^ in Jud. v. 16. In Jeremiah ripltJ? only occurs elsewhere: xix. 
 8; XXV. 9, 18; xxix. 18; Ii. 37. 
 
 10 Ver. 16. — 1i!/X13 TJ'. Comp. Naeqelsb. ffr., g 69, 1. Anm.2. The expression occurs here only. Comp. Pa. xliv. 
 15 ; xxii. 8 ; cix. 25. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 After it had been shown in vers. 5-10 that the 
 Lord was not bound by His promises with re- 
 spect to the people, but has as much freedom as 
 the potter with respect to the clay, He now makes 
 the positive application of this parable. He de- 
 clares what, like a potter, he is about to form, 
 viz., calamity. The expression ^V'. ver. 11, is 
 the only point in which this strophe supports 
 itself on the preceding parable, for in what fol- 
 lows there is no further reference to it. To the 
 brief application and exposition of this word, is 
 attached an exhortation to repentance and refor- 
 mation (ver. 11 6), to which the people answer 
 with stubborn rejection (ver. 12). On account 
 of this unheard of (ver. 13), and unnatural apos- 
 tasy (vers. 14, 15), desolation, dispersion and 
 flight are again announced to the people as the 
 divine punishment (vers. 16, 17). 
 
 Vers. 11 and 12. And now speak . . . 
 ■wicked heart. — • And now introduces the 
 transition, after the basis has been laid for the 
 proper object of the discourse. It has been 
 shown that the Lord can form what He will, it 
 is now positively declared, that He will frame 
 evil. — I frame ("^X^'). In the transferred sense 
 the word is used also in Isa. xxii. 11 ; xxxvii. 
 26; xlvi. 11; Jer. xxxiii. 2.— Think. Comp 
 xlix. 30. The words from turn to way, ai-e 
 found verbatim in xxv. 5; xxxv. 15. In tlie last 
 passage is found also the rest of the verse with 
 the exception of D3"'3"n, your works. Comp. 
 vii. 3 ; xxvi. 13. 
 
 Vers. 13-17. Therefore thus . . . day of 
 their fall. From the peremptory declaration 
 which Israel made in ver. 12, it ia concluded that 
 this nation has rendered itself guilty of un- 
 faithfulness, the like of which is found neither 
 in history (ver. 13), nor in nature (ver. 14). — In- 
 quire now. Comp. ii. 10, 11. — Virgin. Comp. 
 Am. V. 2; Jer. xxxi. 4,21. — Ceases, etc. Ac- 
 cording to the connection the prophet can only 
 mean to adduce a fact in natural history which 
 forms a parallel to the historical fact that a na- 
 tion has never forsaken its gods. In general it 
 is plain that he has chosen, as the example from 
 natural history, the perennial connection of the 
 snow on Lebanon, and of the fresh abundant 
 springs, with the Hti' 11^. But what is this ? 
 
 Disregarding the various arbitrary and forced 
 explanations, two views may be here considered. 
 According to one it is Mt. Zion, according to the 
 other, Mt. Lebanon itself. It is in favor of the 
 former. 1. That Zion in xvii. 3 appears under the 
 designation mt^^, and in xxi. 13 as "liK;'3n ^^^i. 
 
 2. That in Ps. cxxxiii. 3 also the dew of Her- 
 mon, which descends on ^It. Zion, is spoken of, 
 and in Prov. xxv. 23 it is said: the north wind 
 brings [Eng. Vers. : driveth away] rain. 3. 
 That the expression s?iow of Lebanon intimates 
 that the rock of the plain is not identical with 
 Lebanon. On the other hand it may be objected 
 to this explanation : 1. That a connection be- 
 tween the snow of Lebanon and the springs of 
 Zion is very dubious. In a bold poetical figure 
 the extension of the dew of Hermon over the 
 whole land even to Zion, may be spoken of, but 
 
180 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 here a fact in natural history is treated of, which 
 must have been familiar to the Israelites, and 
 which must have set before them a clear repre- 
 sentation of natural and most intimate union. 
 Now other traces show that the Israelites ac- 
 knowledged the sea to be the true and proper 
 source of rain and moisture for the land, which 
 it also is in fact (conip. 1 Kings xviii. 44, 45; 
 Luke xii. 64; Winer, R. W. B., s. v., Windc ; 
 Raumer, Paldst. S. 91). Hence in Palestine the 
 rainy winds are the West and South-west, which 
 the Arabs also call the " fat hers of the rain." In 
 Prov. XXV. 23 the north-west wind is probably to 
 be understood by |i3V fl^l, since the north wind, 
 as with us, is cold, producing frost (Job xxxvii. 
 9,10;Ecclus. xliii.20). 2. Inxvii. 3 mt:?3'-nnis 
 a designation of the whole land, for it is noi^=zmy 
 mountain set in the plain (as antithesis between 
 mountain and plain ) but my mountain together with 
 the plain (antithesis between the sanctuary and 
 the rest of the country inhabited and cultivated 
 by men. Comp. the Comm.). The passage xxi. 
 13 also does not enter into comparison with this. 
 For there evidently not Mt. Zion, but the house 
 of David, is to be understood, of which it is said 
 that it is like a rock in a valley, eminent above 
 the surrounding level, whereby it is intended to 
 designate, not the topographical position of Zion, 
 but the relation of the king's house to his sub- 
 jects. 3. That it is not said. Ceases the snow 
 from the rock of the field, from Lebanon ? but 
 ceases the snow o/ Lebanon ? etc., is certainly re- 
 markable and in other circumstances would be a 
 strong proof that the prophet wished to distin- 
 guish the rock and the mountain. For Lebanon 
 alone presented to them the picture of a snow- 
 capped mountain, and all the snow they had 
 came from it. Add to this, that Lebanon was 
 originally an appellative and signifies albedo 
 (comp. Alpes, which were so called ab albis nivi- 
 bus) whence there appears to me to be a play 
 upon words in Lebanon : the Lebanon snow and 
 the white snow. The absence of the article favors 
 this, for if Lebanon were regarded merely as a 
 proper name, it would require the article. Comp. 
 Naegelsb. Gr., § 71, 4 b. [So Henderson. — 
 S. R. A.]. — In favor of the other view, accord- 
 ing to which "W "liy is Lebanon itself, is 1. that 
 the perennial snow of a mountain, like Lebanon, 
 which though in a hot climate is never free from 
 snow, and on which the snow seems to have lost 
 its peculiar qualify of disappearing r.apidly, is 
 particularly adapted to serve as an emblem of 
 the most faithful adherence. It seems as though 
 Tacitds had this passage in view, when he wrote 
 {Hist, v., 6): '■'■ Pnecipuum montium Libanum 
 eriyit, mirum dictu, tantos inter ardores opacum 
 fidumque nivibus. Idem amnem Jordanem alit 
 funditque." Comp. J. D. Mich., Observ. inJer., 
 p. IGl. — Add to this that 2. the expression used 
 of Lebanon seems particularly appropriate in 
 this connection. For not only may Lebanon be 
 mentioned as an isolated far-looking summit, but 
 especially also as a protecting wall for the plains, 
 which wards off the northerly storms and at the 
 
 same time mitigates the heat. And is not this 
 " protecting wall of the plains " an excellent em- 
 blem of the D'aVlJ,' -\^)i, which is spoken of in 
 Isa. xxvi. 4, and of the hiiy\^\ 11]f, in Isa. xxx. 
 29? The snow never forsakes the 'T^ 11^, but 
 Israel, changeable as the snow, easily forsakes 
 
 the D'dSij; my ! —Dry up. The meaning of 
 tearing out, uprooting, which klJM includes, is 
 not inappropriate if taken in the figurative sense. 
 The change into ^Pim\ [dry up], which perhaps 
 lies at the basis of the old translations, with the 
 exception of the Vulgate, and wliich is supported 
 on Isa. xix. 5; xli. 17; Jer. li. 3U, is theretbre 
 unnecessary. — Waters. The wealth of springs 
 on Lebanon is well known. The traveler Korte 
 assures us that nowhere did he see such large 
 and numerous springs as on Lebanon. Vid. 
 Raumer, Paldst., S. 3U. In Song of Sol. iv. 15 
 also the rippling waters of Lebanon are used as 
 a comj arisen. The thought of the prophet is 
 that as the snow covers Lebanon perpetually 
 above, so the flow of waters at its foot is also 
 perpetual. For the snow is the source of the 
 springs. The expression therefore seems to have 
 been chosen purposely to indicate the connection 
 between the snow and the waters of Lebanon. 
 An uprooting of the waters would be caused by 
 the cessation of the snow. Comp. Hitzig on the 
 passage. — Cold (D'^p. comp. Prov. xxv. 25,- 
 
 xvii. 27) needs no change; the meaning "cold" is 
 
 perfectly appropriate. — Rippling, D''hu, comp. 
 Exod. XV. 8; Isa. xliv. 3; Ps. Ixxviii. 16; Prov. 
 V. 15; Song of Sol. iv. 15. — That my people, 
 etc. This gives the reason why the questions in 
 vers. 13 and 14 have been put. Since the people 
 have forgotten Him (ii. 32), the Lord looks about 
 to see whether anything similar occurs elsewhere. 
 Comp. Ps. viii. 5. — Made them stumble. 
 The nominative is the collective idea of the idols 
 designated by ii)p, vanity. [Henderson: false 
 
 prophets and idolatrous priests. — S. R. A.] 
 Comp. 2 Chron. xxviii. 23. — When Hitzig and 
 Graf maintain that the old ways were not good, 
 for even the fathers of the Israelites had sinned 
 from ancient times by idolatry (ii. 32 ; vii. 25, 
 26; xi. 10), they forget that the good ways are 
 more ancient than the people of Israel. Even if 
 Israel since the exodus from Egypt had not 
 served the Lord (which after ii. 2 notwithstand- 
 ing vii. 25 is not to be maintained too uncondi- 
 tionally), yet the way of Jehovah was the way 
 everlasting (vi. 16), and Israel's true and proper 
 way, for their fathers at any rate served the God 
 who from them is called the God of Abraham, 
 Isaac and Jacob, and the fathers' way is de jure 
 that of the children. — To walk, etc., is the im- 
 mediate and first consequence of the eS"ect desig- 
 nated by made to stumble, while to make 
 . . . a desolation, ver. 10, denotes the mediate 
 consequence. — Like the east 'wind. Comp. 
 Exod. xiv. 21 ; Ps. xlviii. 8 ; Isa. xxvii. 8; Hos. 
 xiii. 15 ; John iv. 8. — Back, etc. Comp. ii. 27. 
 
CHAP. XVIII. 18-23. 
 
 18] 
 
 3 The manner in which the people receive the word of the prophet, and his petition to the Lord for pre 
 
 tection from their hostility. 
 
 XVIII. 18-23. 
 
 18 And they said : Come, let us devise plans against Jeremiah, 
 For the law shall not perish from the priest, 
 
 Nor counsel from the wise, 
 
 Nor the word from the prophet. 
 
 Come, and let us smite him with the tongue, 
 
 And give no heed to any of his words. 
 
 19 Give thou heed, O Jehovah, to me ! 
 
 And listen to the voice of ray adversaries.^ 
 
 20 Shall then evil be recompensed for good, 
 For they have digged a pit for my soul? 
 
 Remember how I stood before thee to speak good for them, 
 And to turn away thy wrath from them. 
 
 21 Therefore deliver up their children to famine. 
 And give them over to the hands of the sword ; 
 And let their wives be childless and widowed, 
 But let their men be sacrifices of death, 
 Their youths be slain by the sword in battle. 
 
 22 Let a cry be heard from their houses, 
 
 When thou bringest the murderous troop suddenly upon them ; 
 Because they have digged a pit to take me, 
 And laid snares for my feet. 
 
 23 But thou, O Jehovah, knowest all their murderous plans against me ; 
 Cover not up their iniquity, 
 
 Nor blot out'^ their sin before thy face ; 
 That they may be' overthrown* before thee ; 
 And in the time of thy wrath act against them. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 > Ver. 19.— -^'T' The word is found besides only in Isa. xlix. 25 ; Ps. xxxv. 1. 
 
 aVer. 23.— 'nDH- Comp. 'JiP, Hi. 6. The form is anomalous for nOD (Neh. xiii. 14). Comp. Olsh. g 257, «, .inm.; 
 
 EWALD, ? 224, c. ' , .. 
 
 3 Ter. 23.— ViTI. TheChethibh is VHI- The Masoretes did not wish the series of jussive or imperative forms to M 
 
 interrupted.— The word expresses the result, that they lie overthrown. Accordingly this sentence concludes the series of 
 negative petitions ; in conclusion follows the positive request : at the time of thy wrath, etc. It is evident that the change 
 proposed by the Keri is unnecessary. 
 
 * Ver. 23.— D'^K/DD points back to ver. 15. The form here only. Comp. Ps. Ix. 4; Jer. vi. 15; xx. 11. 
 
 peuse good with evil, while he has always sought 
 their highest welfare from God (ver. 20). There- 
 fore the Lord may permit deaih and destruction 
 to come upon those who have digged a pit and 
 laid snares for him (vers. 21 and 22) ; he is not to 
 forgive these murderous associates their iniquity, 
 but to overthrow them, and let them feel His 
 anger (ver. 23). 
 
 Ver. 18. And they said . . .any of his 
 •words.— Let us devise (0 nutynj) as in xi. 
 19 coll. xviii. 11. — For the law, etc. The 
 meaning must be : We do not need this Jeremiah, 
 for without him we shall always have priests ta 
 instruct us (Mai. ii. 7), wise men to advise us, 
 prophets to proclaim to us the word of the Lord. 
 Comp Comni. on viii. 8-10; Ezek. vii. 26. It ifl 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Here, as before, the prophet; represents his 
 adversaries as answering his faithful admoni- 
 tions with words of personal enmity. Comp. 
 xi. 19; XV. 10; xvii. 15. And as in these pas- 
 sages he always prayed that the Lord would 
 avenge him, so here, but in stronger measure. 
 ( Vide infra Doctr. and Ethical No. 13, and the 
 ExEGETiCAL rems. on xx. 14). After showing 
 the hostile disposition of his opponents, he turns 
 in supplication to the Lord (vers. 19-23). In 
 this prayer he beseeches the Lord to give heed 
 to his and to his adversaries' speeches (ver. 19). 
 »nd observe above all that they would recom- 
 
182 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 of course presupposed that the instruction, etc. 
 will be in accordance with their views. — With 
 the tongue. That these smitings with the 
 tongue (comp. ix. 2, 7; Ps. Ixiv. 4, etc.) had the 
 death of the prophet for their object is evident 
 from ver. 23. 
 
 Vers. 19-23. Give thou heed. . . act against 
 them. Observe the antithesis between Give 
 no heed in ver. 18 and give thou heed in 
 ver. 19. — Shall then evil. On the subject- 
 matter comp. xiv. 7-21; 2 Mace. xv. 12-14. In 
 ver. 14 we read: "o 0«Adf)£A^of ovt6^ ectlv 6 
 ■koA'Xo. npooevx^fiEvog nepi rov Aauv koI Tfjq ay'iaq 
 TidTiEug, 'lep£/j.iaq 6 rov deov nprHp/'/r^/r.''' — How I 
 Stood. Comp. XV. 1. — Into the hands. This 
 expression is found also in Ps. Ixiii. 11; Ezek. 
 XXXV. 5; it is used in the sense of in potestatem, 
 which meaning has various gradations. Comp. 
 
 2 Kings xii. 12; Job xvi. II; Jer. xxxiii. 13 
 with 1 Chron. vi. 16 (into service) ; 1 Chron. 
 XV. 2, 3, 6; 2 Chron. xxiii. 18; Ezra iii. 10 (in 
 service, under the hands, a'jcording to the direc- 
 tion) ; 2 Chron. xxix. 27 (on the foundation). — 
 Sacrifices of death. Comp. Comm. on xv. 2. 
 — Because, etc. Kimchi supposes that the ene- 
 mies had attempted to administer poison to the 
 prophet; R. Salomo, with many other Rabbins, 
 that they had accused him of adultery, others of 
 blasphemy. Comp. ver. 18. — Cover not up. 
 Comp. Ps. cix. 14; Isa. ii. 9, — In the time of 
 thy ■wrath. Not of grace, i. e., of gracious 
 disposition, but in the moment of wrath, is the 
 Lord to appear and act against them — Act, 
 ntyj;, in the absolutts sense, as in xiv. 7 : xxxix. 
 12 ; Dan. xi. 7 coll viii. 4 ; xi. 3, 36. 
 
 Second Symbol: — the broken vessbl. 
 
 Chapters XIX., XX. 
 
 1. The symbolic action and its interpretation. 
 
 XIX. 1-13. 
 
 1 Thussaith the Lord [Jehovah], Go and get [buy] a potter's earthen bottlft 
 [vessel]/ and take [some] of the ancients [elders]'^ of the people, and of the an- 
 
 2 cieuts [elders] of the priests ; And go forth into the valley of the Son of Hinnom 
 [valley of Ben-Hinnom], which is by the entry of the east [Potters'] gate/ and 
 
 3 proclaim there the words that I shall tell thee, And say, Hear ye the word of the 
 Lord [Jehovah], O kings of Judah, and inhabitants of Jerusalem : Thussaith the 
 Lord of hosts [Jehovah Zebaoth] the God of Israel, Behold, I will bring evil upon 
 
 4 this place, the which whosoever heareth,* his ears shall tingle. Because they have 
 forsaken me, and have estranged^ this place, and have burned incense in it to other 
 gods, whom neither they nor their fathers have known, nor the kings of Judah, and 
 
 5 have filled this place with the blood of innocents ; They have built also the high 
 places of Baal, to burn their sous [children] with fire for burnt offerings unto 
 Baal, which I commanded not, nor spake it, neither came it into my mind. 
 
 6 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the Lord [Jehovah], that this place 
 shall no more be called Tophet, nor The Valley of the Son of Hinnom [valley of 
 
 7 Ben-Hinnom] but The Valley of Slaughter. And I will make void [pour out] 
 the counsel of Judah and Jerusalem in this place ; and I will cause them to fall by 
 the sword before their enemies, and by the hands of them that seek their lives: 
 and their carcases will I give to be meat for the fowls of the heaven, and for the 
 
 8 beasts of the earth [land]. And I will make this city desolate, and an hissing [a 
 horror of desolation and a derision] ; every one that passes thereby [through] shall 
 be astonished and hiss [deride] because of all the plagues thereof® And I will 
 
 9 cause thtra to eat the flesh of their sons, and the flesh of their daughters, and they 
 shall eat every one the flesh of his friend in the siege and straitness, wherewith 
 their enemies, and they that seek their lives, shall straiten them.' 
 
 10 Then shalt thou break the bottle [pitcher] in the sight of the men that go with thee. 
 
 11 And shalt say unto thera. Thus saith the Lord of Ho.«its [Jehovah Zebaoth], Even so 
 will I break this people and this city, as one breaketh a potter's vessel, that cannot 
 be made whole again; and they shall bury them in Tophet, till [because] there be 
 
 12 [is] no place [room] to bury [elsewhere]. Thus will I do unto this p'lace, saith the 
 
CHAP. XIX. 1-13. 
 
 18a 
 
 Lord [Jehovah], and to the inhabitants thereof, and even make this city as To- 
 13 phet: and the houses of Jerusalem, and the houses of the kings of Judah, shall be 
 defiled as the place of Tophet, [because of]* all the houses upon whose roofs they 
 have burned incense unto all the host of heaven, and have poured out^ drink-offer- 
 ings unto other gods. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 1.— p3p3 i;* fuunU as an appellative in 1 Ki. xiv. 3, and as a proper name in Ezr. ii. 51; Neh. vii. 53, coll. 
 rfpSpS, Neh. xi. 17 ; xil. 9, 25. Gesenius {Tlies., I., p. 232 [Lex. s. v.]) derives it from pp3, evacuavit (comp. ver. 7), ac- 
 cording to the analogy of Cl^ia. "^Plin, e<c. So also Olsh. § 190, e. [HiTZia renders : a bottle,— Naegelsb.: a pitcher,— 
 from the maker of earthenware.— S. R. A.']— t^in "1}^V. There is also Sp £3 '1V% Isa. xliv. 9 coll. liv. 16, 17. tJ'in, 
 synonymous with 0"^?!) is that which has become dry and rough by heat. (Comp. 0*^11! scabies a scabiendo, as Krdtze 
 from kraizen in German), Deut. xxviii. 27, and D"in, sun, in Jud. viii. 13 ; Job ix. 7 ; then especially the burnt earthenware : 
 'n '^3, Lev. vi. 21, etc. TI "''73J, Lam. iv. 2. 
 
 2 Ver. 1.— ''1 'JpTDI. liXX., Kal afeis anb tS>v npf<7pvT€pioi>, etc. They certainly did not read j"^np7l, hut correctly- 
 supplied it from ri''Jp1. for the prophet was not merely to buy the pitcher, but to take it with him. It is a species of very 
 
 T • It: ... 
 
 bold construc'io pnef/nans, the verb to be supplied governing not the preposition present in the sentence, but the preposition 
 of a second sentence, connected by 1, to which it forms a predicate. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 112, 7. 
 
 3 Ver. 2.— n^D^nn "IJ^jy. The form r\?D'^n is not the later, as Hitzio supposes, but n'D'^n is the only form used 
 
 by the Rabbins, and from this both the Keri and'the Xapo-ei'S (LXX.) or 'ApaiO (Aqu., Symm., Theod.), of the Greek trans- 
 lators is to be explained. The Syriac text in the London Polyglot strangely has Chadsit. 
 
 * Ver. 3.— Comp. 1 Sam. iii. 11 ; 2 Ki. xxi. 12. As to the construction 1. T\V'0^~l2 Partic. absolutum to be resolved 
 
 T : T 
 
 into a hypothetical sentence. (Comp. Exod. xii. 15 ; Numb. xxi. 8 : Naegelsb. Gr., g 97, 2 6) ; 2. ^^UVi is accusative, at- 
 tracted by n^Otl' ; 3. The apodosis on account of the brevity of the sentence is without the connecting Vau. (Comp. Gen. 
 iv. 15 ; Ruth i. 16, 17). PlJ^^f i^ for nyb^P (so in 1 Sam. iii. 11) according to the Aramaic formation. Comp. Ewau), § 
 
 197, a ; Olsh., § 243, b, d. ' 
 
 5 Vei- 4 _(.^ njyi LXX. aiTriK\oTpl.u>aav ; Y nig., alienumfecerunt. This rendering accords both with the connection 
 and the etymology of the word. The latter occurs in Piel besides ouly in Deut. xxxii. 7; 1 Sam. xxiii. 7 ; Job xxi. 29; 
 xxxiv. 19. With the exception of tlie jiassages in Job, in which the Piel evidently has the meaning of the Hiphil, the mean- 
 ing is everywhere appropriate, " to estrange one's self or another."' 
 
 6 Ver. 8.— On the suffix form in HHilO comp. Naegelsb. Gr., ? 44, 4 Anm. coll. Olsh., g 131, i. 
 
 7 Ver. 9.— OnS Ip"}?' It-'X wherewith they procure them distress (Deut. xxviii. 53, 55,57). 'ItJ'X is the Ace. instru- 
 mentalis (comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 70, i.) ; p'Jf H is that Hiphil, which has the substantive idea contained in the verb with 
 respect to the nearer object (comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 69, 1 Anm. 2 ; Judg. xvi. 16 ; Isai. xxix. 2, 7). 
 
 8 Ver. 13.— '73S. S is distributive. Comp. Ezek. xliv. 9. Naegelsb. Gr., 1 112, 5 6. 
 
 9 Ver. 13.— lonV Comp. rems. on vii. IS; xliv. 17 sqq. coll. xxxii. 29. With respect to the construction, comp. Nae- 
 gelsb. Gr., § 92, 2 a. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The prophet receives the command to buy an- 
 other pitcher from the potter, and in company 
 with the elders of the people and priests to be- 
 take himself to the valley of Ben-Hinnom, near a 
 gate, which appears here under the name of the 
 Potter's gate (vers. 1 and 2). There he is to 
 proclaim the words which we read in vers. 3-13. 
 In these words a severe divine judgment is first 
 proclaimed in general (ver. 3). Then the crimes 
 are narrated in detail, which the people and the 
 kings of Judah have committed in this place. 
 Then the divine punishments are mentioned, of 
 which the witness and theatre will be the valley 
 of Ben-Hinnom or Tophet: 1. This will be called 
 the Valley of Slaughter, (ver. 6), in consequence 
 of the slaugh+er, which after the failure of the 
 plans determined on by the people (here the pro- 
 phet must have made the gesture of pouring out 
 of the pitcher), both the enemy will make among 
 the people, and the people among themselves 
 (vers. 8-9). 2. The people and city shall be 
 broken in pieces, which the prophet indicates by 
 
 the breaking of the pitcher ; Tophet for lack of 
 room shall become a place of interment, and the 
 city, with all the houses on whose roofs offerings 
 have been made to Baal, shall become a place like 
 the desolate and unclean Tophet (vers. 10-13). 
 
 Vers. 1 and 2. Thus saith ... I shall tell 
 thee. This opening is like that in xvii. 19 — 
 bottle, Heb. bakbuk, is an earthen pitcher with 
 a long neck. The sound of the word seems to 
 imitate the noise of water being poured out. — 
 Comp. the Greek (i6/Lijiv?iog, (iouiivlt], and the Ger- 
 man Kutterkrug. — Elders of the priests are 
 mentioned besides ouly in Isai. xxxvii. 2 (2 Ki. 
 xix. 2). Whether they are identical with the 
 princesor chief of the priests (2Chron. xxvi. 
 14; Neh. xii. 7) or ouly in general the most respect- 
 able of the priests is doubtful. Comp. Oehler, 
 in Herzoo. R.-Enc, XII. S. 188.— Valley of 
 Ben-Hinnom. Comp. Comm. on vii. 31 coll. 
 ii. 23. — By the entry (nn£3), comp. Gen. xviii. 
 1: .Jul. ix. 3-'>, etc. N.\EGELSB. Gr., ^ 70, c. — 
 Potter's gate. 1. concerning the form, comp. 
 Textual iSoxEs. 2. As to the meaning, (a) some 
 of the older Rabbins, cited by Kimchi, who how- 
 ever does not agree with them, are of opinion that 
 
184 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 the word is to be derived from D^^n sun, and that 
 by the sun-gate is to be understood the eastern 
 gate of the temple, since there was no gate in the 
 city-wall to the South. So also Tremellius, 
 PisCATOR, J. D. MiCHAELis and HiTZiG, but they 
 ■would have the southern gate of the outer court 
 (a soiis sestu sic dictum) understood to be the near- 
 est way to Tophet. (6) The other commenta- 
 tors agree in deriving ^'0"}n from 0^^' testa. 
 
 But opinions greatly differ whether the gate was 
 so called because the potsherds were thrown out 
 there [the Chaldee paraphrast renders : the 
 dung-gate], or because the potters lived in its 
 vicinity, or because the clay-pits were just out- 
 side the gate. The last is the view of Hofmann 
 {Weiss, u. Erf. II., S. 124, etc. Vid. Comm. on 
 vii. 31). Apart from the etymological significa- 
 tion of the word Tophet, which Hofmann gives, 
 it is in favor of this interpretation that this same 
 place is called in Matth. xxvii. 7 aypo^ tov Kepa- 
 fieug (observe the generic article). This name 
 decidedly favors the supposition that the place 
 stood in closer relation to pottery than that of a 
 mere depository of potsherds. White clay, a 
 kind of pipe-clay, is also still dug there. Comp. 
 Herzoq, R.-Enc, V. S. 475; Radmer, Pal. S. 
 306. Finally the choice of an earthen pitcher 
 for the prophetic symbol must have been occa- 
 sioned by the inner relation which the pitcher 
 bore to the place of the action. If it was merely 
 intended to indicate that death and destruction 
 would come upon Jerusalem even so as to fill To- 
 phet with corpses, the breaking and throwing 
 away of any other object would have answered 
 as well. But Jeremiah is to take an earthen 
 pitcher because Tophet was the place where such 
 vessels were produced, consequently nothing was 
 more natural tlian to choose for this place of 
 breaking an object to be broken which originated 
 there, in connection with which it is not to be 
 denied that other reasons, as the comparatively 
 easy frangibility, and the climax in relation to 
 ch. xviii. (there transformation, here destruction) 
 may have co-operated. And by all this also it is 
 not disputed that the potters may have lived in 
 the vicinity of the clay-pits, and that the same 
 place may have served at the same time for the 
 deposit of potsherds and other refuse. 3. To 
 what gate otherwise known does the pottery- 
 gate correspond? The name occurs here only. 
 The remark on xvii. 19 is here confirrned that 
 the names of the gates of Jerusalem have been 
 often changed. Many commentators proceed, as 
 we have remarked, on the hypothesis that the 
 city wall had no gates to the South. That this 
 is an error will now scarcely be doubted by any- 
 one. Comp. Raumer, Pal.f S. 291. On the 
 southern side of the city were the well-gate 
 [Zion-gate? — S. R. A.] and the dung-gate. Botli 
 opened on the Tyropaeum, both therefore con- 
 ducted to Tophet, the former being nearer to this 
 place. But the latter corresponds better to the 
 character of Tophet as an unclean spot, receiving 
 the impurities of the city. Here also the cloaca 
 Betzo disembogued. "The site of this gate," 
 Bays Raumeu, S. 352, " is the lowest point of the 
 eity, to which all the filth of the city and the ra- 
 vine of Siloah descends." — [Comp. Thomson, 
 The Land and the Book, II. 497]. A definite con- 
 
 clusion is however not to be reached with respect 
 to things concerning which so much uncertainty 
 still prevails. 
 
 Vers. 3-5. And say . . into my mind. Here 
 it is not recorded, as in xviii. 3, that the prophet 
 performed the command received in vers. 1, 2, 
 and thereupon in the valley of Hinnora received 
 the revelation contained in vers. 3 sqq. For 
 there (ch. xviii.) the revelation to be received 
 was occasioned by the observations made at the 
 potter's (.iviii. 3, 4). There is no similar occa- 
 sion here, so that ver. 3 proceeds at once to com- 
 municate the revelation. — And say, reads as 
 though the previous discourse were continued, 
 which cannot be the case on account of I shall 
 tell. We shall not err if we attribute the mode 
 of expression here chosen to the written repre- 
 sentation. — Kings of Judah. Here, as in ver. 
 4 coll. xiii. 13 ; xvii. 20 the prophet has in view 
 not only the person of the present king, but the 
 kingdom of Judah generally. — This place is 
 here, in accordance with what follows. Tophet. — 
 They, etc. Comp. ix. 15; xvi. 13; xliv. 3, 21. — 
 Have filled. On the verbal form comp. Comm. 
 on xviii. 4. — Blood of innocents. According 
 to the connection and Ps. cvi. 37, 38 we must un- 
 derstand this of the blood of the children offered 
 in sacrifice. — Ver. 5 is almost verbatim the same 
 as vii. 31 ; xxxii. 35. Comp. the remarks on the 
 first of these passages. 
 
 Vers. 6-9. Therefore behold . . . shall 
 straiten them. After, in vers. 4 and 5, the 
 abominations practised in Tophet have been enu- 
 merated, the announcement is now made of the 
 corresponding punishments. This announcement, 
 which appears to be a specification of the sum- 
 mary denunciation in ver. 3 b, is made in two 
 stages, of which the first (vers. 6-9) is accompa- 
 nied by the gesture of pouring out (ver. 7), and 
 the second by the act of breaking (ver. 10). — The 
 dajrs come, etc., ver. 6. Comp. Comm. on vii. 
 32. — tour out. Isai. xxiv. 1; Nah. ii. 3. What 
 is poured out falls to the ground, which is fre- 
 quently used as a figurative expression for coming 
 to naught. Comp. 1 Sam. iii. 19 ; 2 Kings x. 
 10. — In this place. Is this the ter7n. in quo, or 
 in quern? I believe the latter. In Tophet all 
 the counsel of Judah and Jerusalem is to find its 
 tragical end, as this is indeed expressed by the 
 name Valley of Slaughter, and by burying in 
 Tophet (ver. 11) and by becoming like Tophet 
 (ver. 12). — I w^ill give, etc. Comp. vii. 30; 
 xvi. 4. — A hissing, ver. 8. Comp. xviii. 16; 
 XXV. 9, 18; li. 37. — Every one, etc. Comp. 1 
 Ki. ix. 8; Jer. xviii. 16; xlis. 17; 1. 13. — Ver. 
 9 is taken entire from Deut. xxviii. 53-55 (Lev. 
 xxvi. 29). Comp. Lam. ii. 20; iv. 10. As his- 
 torical analogies, comp. 2 Ki. vi. 28, 29. Jo- 
 seph, Bell. Jud., VI. 3, 3-5. 
 
 Vers. 10-13. Then shalt thou break . . . 
 unto other gods. The second stage of the 
 symbolic action. The progress consists in this, 
 that by the breaking of the pitcher the total ruin 
 of the city and people (therefore not merely of 
 individuals) and by the casting into Tophet its 
 desolation and defilement, or in other words its 
 becoming itself Tophet, is symbolized. — As one 
 breaketh (ver. 11). Comp. Comm. on v. 26; 
 vi. J'.l ; viii. 4; x. 3 ; xii. 11; Naegelsb. Gr., § 
 101, 2, b. — Cannot be made ■whole again. 
 
CHAP. XIX 14-15.— XX. 1-0. 
 
 18j 
 
 Though uttered concerning another object, we 
 find the same words verbatim in Deut. xxviii 27, 
 35. — And they shall bury, etc. Comp. vii. 
 32. These words being wanting in the LXX., 
 have been suspected. But thoy stand in a good 
 connection, and correspond to the casting out, 
 by which the pitcher was not merely broken but 
 buried in Tophet. Consequently by this act To- 
 phet is as it were dedicated to the purposes tf a 
 cemetery. Jeremiah says interments will be 
 made in Tophet for want of room. This pro- 
 phecy may have been fulfilled after the destruc- 
 tion of the city by Nebuchadnezzar (comp. xxxii, 
 29) though we have no positive statements to this 
 effect. But Tophet. having once become a place 
 of burial, must have accomplished this destina- 
 tion afterwards in a significant manner. It is the 
 aypoc '''oi) Kspausu^ which was bought with the 
 price of blood for the burial-place of pilgrims 
 (Matth. xxvii. 3 sqq. ; Acts i. 18, 19). And 
 still at the present day Aceldama is the burial- 
 place of pilgrims dying in Jerusalem; indeed 
 the whole of the valley surrounding Zion on the 
 West and South, on its right side, contains nu- 
 merous rock sepulchres, a true "Necropolis," 
 says Raumer. Comp. his Pal., S. 306. — Ver. 12. 
 Thus ■will I do, etc. The Lord will do to the 
 city as is indicated by the breaking of the pitcher. 
 Thus will Jerusalem become a heap of ruins, and 
 unclean, for the want of room presupposes that 
 even the city itself will be full of corpses. There- 
 fore we find 1 before fin? z= and indeed. 
 
 Comp. rems. on xvii. 10. — Shall be defiled, 
 (D^NODH). [Henderson renders: which are 
 polluted, shall be as this place ; Hitzig, Umbreit, 
 Naegelsbach: shall be as the place of Tophet, 
 
 the unclean, or unclean. — S E. A.]. Since th« 
 Hebrew in a much higher degree than our mo- 
 dern languages is capable of tne constructio ad 
 sensum, since especially an ideal plural is often 
 contained in singular words (comp. 1 Ki. v. 17; 
 2 Sam. XV. 23. Naegelsb. Gr., | 105, 2f.) so 
 the connection of the singular T^ophet with 
 D'NOtOn presents in itself no difficulty. Only it 
 IS not clear what are th?, several elements in- 
 cluded in the unity of Tophet. Hofmann and 
 others suppose them to be graves. .. referred 
 above, on vii. 31, to altars. This word is cer- 
 tainly elsewhere used as feminine. But in re- 
 spect also to gender, the same ideal construction 
 prevails in the Hebrew. (Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., 
 \ 60, 4). It appears ta me therefore that the 
 prophet had here the places of worship in view. 
 These he calls unclean both on account of the 
 abominations practised there, and the defile- 
 ments caused by Josiah, 2 Ki. xxiii. 10. The 
 other renderings (defiled as the predicate, of 
 as in apposition to houses or to place or an- 
 other division of the words: C^^P^ njHtlj'^) are 
 
 opposed by such strong grammatical objections, 
 that the remaining uncertainty of our explana- 
 tion is scarce worth consideration in comparison 
 with them. The houses of Jerusalem will how> 
 ever in this sense be like Tophet, that the place 
 where they now stand, will in the future become 
 as desolate and unclean as it. — Upon the roofs. 
 Comp. Zeph. i. 5; 2 Ki. xxiii. 12. J. D. Michae- 
 Lis quotes Strabo (XVI. p. 1131): "Safiaralot 
 (comp. 1 Mace. v. 25 ; ix. 35) t]1iov Tifiuaiv ekI 
 Toh dufiarog i^pvadfiEvot (iu/ibv, airivdovTeg ev avr^ 
 Kai?' ^fiipav nal ?ii(iavi^ovT£g. 
 
 2. The opposition aiid punishment of Pashur. 
 XIX. 14.— XX. 6. 
 
 14 Then came Jeremiah [back] from Tophet, whither the Lord [Jehovah] had sent 
 him to prophesy; and he stood in the court of the Lord's [Jehovah's] house; and 
 
 15 said to all the people, Thus saith the Lord of hosts [Jehovah Zebaoth], the God 
 of Israel: Behold, I will bring upon this city and upon all her towns all the evil that 
 I have pronounced against it, because they have hardened their necks, that they 
 might not hear my words. 
 
 1 XX. Now Pashur, the son of Immer the priest, who was also chief governor^ in 
 the house of the Lord, heard [that] Jeremiah prophesied [prophesy] these things. 
 
 2 Then Pashur smote Jeremiah the prophet, and put him in the stocks [prison] that 
 were [was] in the high gate of Benjamin, [the Benjamin-gate, the upper] which was 
 
 3 by [in] the house of the Lord [Jehovah]. And it came to pass on the morrow that 
 Pashur brought forth Jeremiah out of the stocks [prison]. Then said Jeremiah unto 
 him. The Lord [Jehovah] hath not called thy name Pashur, but Magor-missabib, 
 
 4 [" Terror round about "]. For thus saith the Lord [Jehovah], Behold, I will make 
 thee [give thee up] a [to] terror to [for] thyself and to [for] all thy friends : and 
 they shall fall by the sword of their enemies and thine eyes shall behold it: and I 
 will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall carry them 
 
 5 captive into Babylon, and shall slay them with the sword. Moreover I will deliver 
 all the strength [store]* of this city, and all the labours [gains] thereof, and all the 
 
186 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 precious things thereof, and all the treasures of the kings of Judah will I give into 
 the hand of their enemies, which shall spoil them, and take them, and carry them to 
 6 Babylon. And thou, Pashur, and all that dwell in thine house, shall go into cap- 
 tivity : and thou shalt come to Babylon, and there thou sh.alt die, and shalt be bu- 
 ried there, thou, and all thy friends, to whom thou hast prophesied lies. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 1.— TJJ Tp£)-Nini. The construction is like 3tyjr H^l, li3J Sx, Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., §g 72 and 66. 
 
 2 Ver. 5. JOn = copia, store. Comp. Prov. xv. G ; xxvii. 24 ; Isai. xxxiii. 6 ; Ezek. xxii. 25. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The prophet betakes himself back from Tophet 
 into the temple, and probably repeats there his 
 predictions of calamity (vers. 14, 15). For this 
 he is struck by Pashur, the governor of the tem- 
 ple, and committed to prison for the night (xx. 
 1-2). Released from this confinement in the 
 morning, Jeremiah announces to Pashur that the 
 Lord has changed his name to Magor-miss.ibib, 
 for he will be given up a prey to the torments of 
 mortal anguish, his friends shall be slain befoi-e 
 his eyes, Judah carried away to Babylon, all its 
 treasures plundered ; he himself shall survive 
 all this, and die and be buried in Babylon, the 
 prophet of lies in the midst of those whom he has 
 deceived (vers. 4-G). 
 
 Vers. 14, 15. Then came Jeremiah . . my 
 words. As these words are closely connected 
 with the previous context iO"'!, ver. 14, corves- 
 ponds to r\Xi'\ In antithesis to X^f however 
 
 *^ T TT TT 
 
 X13 has always the meaning of return. Comp. 
 Nurab. xxvii. 17; Deut. xxviii. 6; 1 Chron. xi. 
 2 ; Ps. cxxi. 8; cxxvi. 6. — Ver. 15. Thus saith, 
 etc. It is incredible that Jeremiah spoke only 
 these few words in the temple. He would then 
 have said nothing new, and have given no mo- 
 tive to the evidently increased anger of the tem- 
 ple-governor. We must therefore refer all that 
 I have pronounced specially to the words 
 spoken in Tophet, and assume a repetition of 
 these words, in order that the reference might 
 be understood. — I ■will bring. Comp. 2 Sam. 
 v. 2; Mic. i. 15, etc. Olsh., g 38, c; | 208, d. 
 — All her towns. Comp. Josh. x. 37, 39; 
 xiii. 17 ; Jer. xxxiv. 1 ; Zech. vii. 7. — Hardened, 
 "tc. Comp. xvii. 23 ; vii. 2(). — That they might 
 not hear. (Jomp. xvi. 12; xviii. 10; xlii. 13. 
 
 XX. 1 -G. Now Pashur heard . . . prophesied 
 lies. According to Ezr. ii. 38; x. 22; Neh. vii. 41, 
 there was a course of priests of the name Pashur. 
 Not of tliis, however, but of the course named as 
 that of Immer in these passages (comp. 1 Chron. 
 xxiv. 14) was the Pashur of the text. He is not 
 mentioned elsewhere. For though the name fre- 
 quently occurs (xxi. 1 ; xxxviii. 1 ; 1 Chron. ix. 
 12; Noh. X. 3; xi. 12), none of the individuals 
 designated by it can be regarded as identical 
 with this Pasliur. It is at most possible that the 
 fatlier of Gedaliah mentioned in xxxviii. 1 may 
 be tlic same. Comp. Hitzio, (/(/ loc. — Chief 
 governor. Tlie expression involves that there 
 were several overseers (comp. Joseph. Anli<jq., 
 xK. 8, 5). AVitliout doubt the temple-watch (comp. 
 Winer, R.-W.-B , Art., Tempel at the end) was 
 ander the orders of the "governor." From a 
 
 comparison of xxix. 25, 26, with Hi. 24, it seemi 
 that the temple-governor took the second rank to 
 the high-priest. As th.e head of the temple-police, 
 Pashur now puts Jeremiah into the HJiinD. T]ie 
 expression occurs besides only in xxix. 26; 2 
 Chron. xvi. 10. It is without doubt a contri- 
 vance for shutting up in i crooked position 
 [aTpe^AuTypiov. Symm. ■K(HV)7^f)a3ri). Comp. Acts 
 xvi. 24. — Gate of Benjamin, etc. From 
 xxxvii. 13; xxxviii. 7, it is evident that there 
 was a city-gate which led into the territory of 
 the tribe of Benjamin, and was therefore called 
 the gate of Benjamin. The one mentioned in the 
 text is expressly distinguished from tliis as a 
 temple-gate. The same name intimates identity 
 of cause. We must then look for this tenip!e-g,ite 
 also in the direction of Benjamin, i. e., to the 
 north. The upper gate corresponds to the upper 
 court, forming one of the entrances to it. 
 Whether this upper gate of Benjamin is the same 
 with the new gate, leading to the upper court 
 (xxxvi. 10; xxvi. 10) which, according to 2 Kings 
 XV. 35, was built by Jotham, is questionable. 
 Comp. Ezek. viii. 3; xiv. 5 ; ix. 2. — Not called 
 Pashur, ver. 3. The signification of the name 
 Pashur is very obscure. Most commentators 
 derive the word from Wiq \viih\c 2}asaha=amplius 
 fuit, and "linp circiimcirca. Hence Fuerst: ez- 
 
 tension — around. Others from 1^13, Lev. xiii. 5, 
 7, and "^in. Josh. xxix. 22, as though "the widely 
 extended authority of the man, making all pale" 
 (comp. Neumann), were indicated. Ewald ren- 
 ders Joij {VJ^ or W^ from t^^a, Mai. iii. 20) 
 
 around (as though "^in were pronounced 7in). 
 
 Meier: Spirit of the free (1^3 as in Job xxxv. 15 
 
 =^exlension, liigh spirit, pride ; T^n:='1in the noble, 
 the free). Hitzig and Graf cannot dispute that 
 Jeremiah had the etymology, obscure as it is to 
 us, in view, for how otherwise can we explain 
 tlie choice of the name which he gave to the 
 priest? It is certainly natural that Pashur 
 sliould have some meaning opposed to that of the 
 name Magor-missabib. It is noteworthy that the 
 explanation afterwards given in ver. 4, sqq., 
 corresponds exactly to this name, in so far as 
 Pashur seems to be always surrounded by terrors, 
 but never himself brought to extremity, for he is 
 to die and be buried in Babylon (ver. 6). In 
 this sense the words thine eyes shall see, are 
 especially important. For by these the position 
 of a man is designated, who is not liimself reached 
 by the most terrible calamity, but is compelled 
 continually to behold how this comes upon others, 
 and therefore does not escape the torture of 
 
 anxiety. I would therefore neither render ^7 
 
CHAP. XX. 7-13. 187 
 
 thee, after ^]nj as distributive (xix. 13), nor 
 would I allow it to depend on the latter, but on 
 1U0, terror: I give thee up to fear for thyself and 
 
 thy friends. This is to be the specific punishment 
 of Pashur, that he is not visited by death itself, 
 but by the constant fear of death. — To vrhom 
 
 thou hast prophesied lies. From these con- 
 cluding words we learn that Pashur was active, 
 not merely as a priest, but also as prophet. But 
 his prophetic office was assumed and false; and 
 his behaviour toward Jeremiah may, in part at 
 least, be thus accounted for. 
 
 3. APPENDIX. 
 Chap. XX. 7-18. 
 
 THE prophet's JOY AND SORROW. 
 
 This passage contains an outbreak of the deepest sorrow, called forth by the persecutions, whose object Jere- 
 miah was, both in general and specially in the bad treatment just received (xx. 2, 3 ; comp. xi. 18 ; 
 XV. 15; xviii. 18 sqq.). The close connection of the passage with the preceding context is evident, as 
 it seems to me from the words Magor-missabib in ver. 10. For the application of this expression to 
 the prophet is certainly most easily explained by the application which he himself had made of it in so 
 pregnant a manner and to so prominent a personage as J'ashur. If we further consider that to pass a 
 night in the stocks must have been a fearful torture, and that it was the first time that the prophet had 
 had to suffer bodily ill-treatment, ive must admit that the historical epoch toas perfectly adapted for 
 the production of such a lamentation. It should, moreover, be observed that there is no superscription 
 or designation of this effusion as " Word of the Lord." From this it follows that the prophet himsflf 
 ascribes to this passage only a subjective and private character. The passage may be divided into two 
 parts: 1. Vers. 7-13. Hete the prophet rises from his lament on account of the persecution which 
 had come upon him against his will to the expression of the most joyful hope. 2. Vers. 14-18. Here 
 the feeling of sorrow, nay of despair, gets the upper hand, and the prophet sinks into a state of the 
 most utter grief and despondency, 
 
 a. Through sorrow to joy. 
 XX. 7-13. 
 
 7 Thou didst persuade me,^ Jehovah, and I was persuaded: 
 Thou didst lay hold of me'' and didst prevail over me. 
 
 I am become a derision daily; every one mocketh me. 
 
 8 For as often as I speak or cry,^ 
 
 I must cry concerning violence and ill-treatment ; 
 
 For the word of Jehovah is made to me a scorn and derision the whole day. 
 
 9 And if I say,^ I will no more make mention of him, 
 Nor speak henceforth in his name, 
 
 It becomes in my heart like a burning fire, shut up* in my bones, 
 And I weary myself with refraining, and cannot. 
 
 10 For I hear the talking of many : 
 
 Terror round about ! "Announce! We will announce it!" 
 
 All who are obligated to be at peace with me watch for my halting : — 
 
 " Perhaps he will allow himself to be taken ! 
 
 Then we will overpower him and take our revenge on him." 
 
 11 But Jehovah is with me as a mighty hero ; 
 Therefore my persecutors will stumble and not prevail. 
 
 They shall be p'rievously put to shame, because they have effected nothing, 
 With eternal disgrace, which is not forgotten. 
 
 12 But Jehovah Zebaoth tries justly ;® he sees reins and heart. 
 I ehall see thy vengeance on them, 
 
 For on thee have I devolved my suit. 
 
 13 Sing to Jehovah, praise Jehovah, 
 
 For he has saved the soul of the poor from the hand of evil doens. 
 
188 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 7.— '' jnTIS- The construction is like HJ^INI ' PJ^'^TI HirT'l, xi. 18. 
 a Ver. 7.— pin, transitive as in 1 Kings xvi. 22 ; 1 Chron. xxviii. 20. 
 
 3 Ver. 8.— According to theMasoretic punctuation, p>'TX is connected as asyndeton with "13'nX, Hti*! DDH depending 
 
 onVIDS as an accusative. This punctuation is supported on the fact that the latter phrase frequently occurs in this 
 
 connection- vi. 7 • Am.iii. 10; Fzok. xlv. 9. In itself it would certainly be allowable and more in accordance with the 
 sense to consider the latter seiitenc lis aifc.dosi.'i of the former. ^ , „^ 
 
 4 Ver. 9.— On the form of the conditional sentence, comp. Naegelsb. Or., g 85 a, tic. 
 
 5Ver. 9— "ivy being in apposition to iT1^3 iyX> is to be rendered as neuter: inclusum aliquid. Comp. Naegelsb. 
 
 '« Ver. 12.— [Henderson : The Trier of the righteous.— S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The prophet first calls to mind that he had not 
 thrust himself into the prophetic office, but un- 
 dertaken it with reluctance (ver. 7 a). That 
 his objections were well founded is shown by the 
 result, for he has reaped nothing in return for 
 his proclamation of the divine word but scorn 
 and derision (vers. 7 6-8). But when he at- 
 tempted to divest himself of the prophetic voca- 
 tion, he found this impossible ; there was an 
 impulse from within, which burned like a fire 
 and threatened to consume him unless he were 
 relieved (ver. 9). And yet his ministry did not 
 cease to be ruinous to him. He hears how the 
 words of his prophecy, as "Terror round about" 
 (xx. 3), are turned against him in derision, and 
 used indenunciation of the prophet. Yea, even 
 such as should be well disposed towards him 
 watched curiously to spy out some false step, by 
 which they might obtain the satisfaction of their 
 feeling of' revenge (ver. 10). He then consoles 
 himself with the hope that everlasting shame will 
 be the portion of his enemies (ver. 11), and that 
 he will be avenged by God, the true knower of 
 hearts (ver. 12). Finally in the anticipation of 
 being heard, he breaks out into a summons to 
 praise God as the Saviour of the poor (ver. 13). 
 
 Vers. 7 and 8. Thou didst persuade him 
 . . . the -whole day. On the subject-matter, 
 comp. i. 5 sqq. 
 
 Ver. 9. And if I say . . . and cannot. The 
 prophet describes his experience, when, having 
 undertaken the prophetic calling, he attempts to 
 escape from it. He had the feeling as if a fire 
 were burning within him, which having no out- 
 let would consume him, to which, therefore, he 
 was obliged to give an outlet by expressing what 
 was inwardly communicated to him. Comp. vi. 
 11 ; Am. iii. 8. — I weary myself. Comp. ix. 4; 
 XV. 6. 
 
 Vers. 10-13. For I hear . . . evil-doers. "'3 
 
 For in ver. 10, cannot possibly refer immediately 
 to ver. 9. It rather presupposes a similar thought 
 to that to which the parallel 'D in ver. 8 refers, 
 and which is contained in ver. 7 b. We must, 
 therefore, supply after ver. 9 a thought of this 
 kind : since the cause remains, the efifoct also 
 remains (namely, that indicated in 7 6). How 
 far this is tin; case, is shown in the following 
 sentence. — Talk, 713*1 is fama, rumor, public talk, 
 report (comp. Gen. xxxvii. 2; Num. xiii. 32; xiv. 
 ■;tj, 37; I'rov. x. 18; xxv. 10). That it' is a 
 secretly cii-culatcd, softly wiiispered rumor, 
 neither follows IVdih tae ctyiiioli)gy (which is 
 
 pretty uncertain ; comp. Fuerst's Concordance 
 with his Lexicon), nor from the connection of 
 the passage where it occurs. — Terror, etc. 
 Magor-missabib. The expression occurs in vi. 
 25; afterwards also in xlvi. 5; xlix. 29 coll. 
 Lam. ii.22, besides Ps. xxxi. 14. Since the dis- 
 course to which vi. 25 belongs, is older than ch. 
 xix. and xx., the prophet did not use the expres- 
 sion in XX. 3 for the first time, but only as a re- 
 petition of one previously used. In this passage 
 the expression may be understood as only an 
 ironical quotation. For 1. The form of the ex- 
 pression is not such that it can be designated as 
 a popular form of threatening. "lUD, magor, is 
 not only a comparatively rare word, but one 
 which belongs exclusively to poetic and prophetic 
 phraseology; it occurs only eight times in the 
 Old Testament, and except once in Isa. (xxxi. 9 
 in another connection), only in the formula here 
 used, six times in Jeremiah and in Ps. xxxi. 14. 
 2. The expression is evidently one peculiar to 
 Jeremiah, as is clear from what has been stated; 
 in addition to which may be remarked, that Ps. 
 xxxi. contains so many elements peculiar to the 
 style of Jeremiah or related to it, that the ques- 
 tion whether Jeremiah was not its author is 
 fully justified. As it can scarcely be doubted 
 that those scoflFers applied his own phrase to 
 the prophet, it is further in the highest degree 
 probable that they did this from an occasion on 
 which it had been used by the prophet not by the 
 way, but in a pregnant manner. This latter was, 
 however, the case when Jeremiah changed the 
 name of so important a personage as Pashur into 
 Magor-missabib. The question is of subordinate 
 interest in what sense they applied the expres- 
 sion to the prophet; whether it was as a menace 
 ae;ainst him, or as a reproach for his hostile dis- 
 position towards the community. Probably they 
 wished to unite both. — All who are obligated, 
 etc. Comp. xxii. 22; Ob. 8; Psalm xli. 10. — 
 
 Watch for my halting. J^vV in the meaning 
 of "side," according to which "who cover my 
 side " would be in apposition. — Friends [liter- 
 ally : men of ray peace], from the want of a pre- 
 dicate, gives no sense [though adopted by 
 
 SCHMID, SCHNUREEU, ElCHHORN, and GeSENIUS]. 
 
 Doubtless it is, as in Ps. xxxv. 15, claudicatio, 
 tottering, making a false step. For IDty in the 
 sense of "to watch for, to lie in wait," see Ps 
 Ivi. 7; Ixxi. 10; Job x. 14; xiii. 27. — Over- 
 power him. Comp. i. 19; xv. 20. — My perse- 
 cutors. Comp. XV. 15; xvii. 18. — Not prevail. 
 Comp. v. 22; iii. 5 — Effect nothing. Comp. 
 Comm. on x. 21. — Eternal disgrace. Comp. 
 
CHAP. XX. 14-18. 
 
 189 
 
 xxiii. 40. — But Jehovah (ver. 12). Comp. xi. 
 20. — Justly, p''^.^ might be accusative. But 
 
 from the parallel with xi. 20, we perceive that it 
 is intended to define more particularly the action 
 
 predicated. The sense is also more satisfactory, 
 if it is not merely said, ivhat the Lord sees, but 
 also hotv lie sees it. — Sing, etc. A hymn of the 
 hopeful man, who by faith possesses that whicu 
 is still future CHeb. xi. 1). 
 
 b. For the present nothing but sorrow: The prophet curses the day of his birth. 
 
 XX. 14-18. 
 
 14 Cursed be the day wherein I was begotten ! 
 
 Let not the day, wherein my mother bare me, be blessed ! 
 
 15 Cursed be the man who brought tidings to my father, saying, 
 A son is born to thee, a man-child ! — making him very glad. 
 
 16 And let that man be as the cities which the Lord overthrew without mercy. 
 And let him hear the cry in the morning and alarm of war at noontide, 
 
 17 Because he slew me not in the womb ; 
 
 So that my mother might have been my grave, 
 And her womb have remained always gravid. 
 
 18 Wherefore came I forth from the womb, 
 
 To see labour and sorrow and my days consumed in shame? 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The prophet curses the day of his begetting 
 and the day of his birth (ver. 14). He further 
 curses the man, who brought to his father the 
 first news of his birth (ver. 15). He wishes that 
 this man may be like Sodom and Gomorrah (ver. 
 16), because he did not kill him in the womb and 
 thus prevent his birth (ver. 17). Finally he 
 breaks out again into a lamentation: — why 
 must I be born to a life of misery and shame (ver. 
 18)? Two questions here arise. 1. Is such a 
 cursing in the mouth of a prophet to be justified ? 
 2. Is it in place in this connection immediately 
 after the hopeful words in vers. 11-13? As to 
 the first question, as a preliminary all those ar- 
 bitrary interpretations are to be rejected, which 
 understand by the day which .Jeremiah curses, 
 not the day of his birth, but some other day, es- 
 pecially some future day, as that of the destruc- 
 tion of Jerusalem (as according to Jerome the 
 older Rabbins), — or which suppose that Jeremiah 
 speaks not in his own name, but in the name of 
 others [perditorum hominum), — or which suppose 
 that Jeremiah complains here not of external but 
 internal trials, or of the perversity of the people 
 (Calvin), or that he gives an account of a trial 
 which he had endured previously (in explanaiion 
 
 of JVnx, ver. 13, on account of which 'n"!?X T^X 
 or ION is to be supplied before ver. 14. Seb. 
 Schmidt). It should be observed that this en- 
 tire passage from ver. 7 onwards, is not pro- 
 claimed by the prophet as a word of Jehovah 
 (Comp. 1 Cor. vii. 25). He gives us merely ji_ 
 t rue refle x "f his human feTing. Who can dis- 
 pute the possibility of a man like Jeremiah having 
 Buch temptations of indignation and despair ? Is 
 it not human? Do the men of God cease to be 
 
 men ? Think of that man of God, Job, whose 
 words evidently (iii. 3 sqq.) hovered before the 
 mind of the prophet. It is further to be observed, 
 that the cursing is merely a rhetorical form. It 
 has no object. The long past day of his birth is 
 as little an object, to which the curse might 
 really attach itself as the man who announced to 
 the father the birth of his son, — who in reality, 
 probably, never existed. For were men wit- 
 nesses of confinements ? Is it not of purpose that 
 the prophet speaks of a man, and not of a wo- 
 man? Therefore Chrtsostom says concerning 
 Job: '■^ inanimatis facit injuriam^' (Ghisl. II., S. 
 523). Finally, however, it must be admitted, as 
 Seb. Schmidt sets forth, that it manifests an in- 
 firmity on the part of the prophet. Forster eve^i 
 says : " Grande hoc et mexcusabile prophetx pccca- 
 tum est." And indeed the sinfulness of it consists 
 partly in the high degree of impatience and ill- 
 humor, which is here manifested, and partly in 
 the form in which it displays itself. If this may 
 be regarded as rhetorical hyperbole, yet this 
 mode of expression is not New Testament, Chris- 
 tian, evangelical. We find here, too, somewhat 
 of the spirit of the Ben-Hargem, to whom Christ 
 said: Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are 
 of (Luke ix. 55). Comp. the Doctrinal and 
 Ethical remarks on xviii. 20. The second ques- 
 tion, whether this outbreak of indignation suits 
 the connection, or is supposable as following vers. 
 11-13, is answered by many in the negative. 
 Ewald even places vers. 14-18 before ver, 7. 
 Graf regards it as an independent fragment, a 
 further development of xv. 10, which is placed 
 h.ere only on account of its agreement in purport 
 with vers. 7-10. Now it must certainly be admit- 
 ted that an outbreak of ill-humor such as this, after 
 ver. 13, is in a high degree remarkable. But ob- 
 serve the following points: 1. It isnotneces-ary 
 to suppose that vers. 14-18 contain the exprea 
 
190 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 sion of a state of mind, which followed immedi- 
 ately on that joyous state described in the pre- 
 vious context. There may have been a pause, a 
 transition. None the less does the prophet por- 
 tray the occurrences in his own mind with per- 
 fect correctness. He gives us to understand that 
 his state of comfort did not long continue, but 
 soon made way for its opposite. 2. This arrange- 
 ment of the psychological tableaux corresponds 
 also to the course of history : the prophet never 
 attained in this life to the enjoyment of outward 
 peace. If he had now and then a moment of rest 
 ami of hope, it was soon past. Ver. 18 corres- 
 pond.s only too exactly to the actual tenor of his 
 life. 
 
 Ver. 14. Cursed be the day ... be 
 blessed. Even R. Salojio and Abarbanel, in 
 
 order to avoid tautology took ^Pi'\r in the sense 
 of beget. They add that Jeremiah was begoiten 
 on the day that Manasseh killed the prophets of 
 the Lord (2 Kings xxi. 16). Moreover comp. xv. 
 10 ; Job iii. 3 sqq. 
 
 Vers. 15-18. Cursed be the man . . . con- 
 sumed in shame. The Rabbins say this man 
 
 was Pashur. — Brought tidings 1KJ3 with ac- 
 cusatives of the person, 1 Sam. xxxi. 9 ; 2 Sam. 
 xviii. 19. — As the cities, etc. Allusion to Gen. 
 xix. 25. — In the morning ... at noontide^: 
 
 unceasingly, without any breathing pause. Comp. 
 Ps. Iv. 18. — In [A. v.: from] the womb. 
 DHID- Comp. Job iii. 11. The preposition tO. 
 on account of the following sentence, cannot be 
 =from — away, but is used here in accordance 
 with that idiom, by wliich the terminus a quo is 
 used for the terminus in quo, or in quem. Comp. 
 DTpp, eastwards. Gen. xi. 2. [Eng. Vers. 
 
 "from the east"— S. R. A]. pn^lSD 03 he flees 
 
 into the distance. Isa. xvii. 13 ; Prov. vii. 19 ; 
 Naegelsb. Gr., | 112, 5 d. The man may be re- 
 garded equally well with Jehovah [Henderson], 
 as the subject of slew, especially if we remem- 
 ber that the whole description is not of a his- 
 torical but rhetorical character. Comp. Ps. 
 xxxi. 10. ["While destitute of the sublime 
 imagery employed by J ob, this passage is not sur- 
 passed in patlios ; there is a unity and condensa- 
 tion throughout, which heighten its poetical 
 beauty.' Henderson. — S. R. A.]. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On xviii. 2. "What is the prophet of God 
 to learn in the house of the potter? How shall 
 tliis be his Bible or his school ? But God chooses 
 the foolish things to confound human wisdom (1 
 Cor. i. 27)." Cramer. ["An orator would never 
 choose such an instance for the purpose of mak- 
 ing an impression on his audience; still less for 
 the purpose of exhibiting his own skill and live- 
 liness. It must be for business, not for amuse- 
 ment, that such a process is observed." — "What 
 we want in every occupation is some means of 
 preserving the continuity of our thoughts, some 
 resistance to the influences which are continually 
 distracting and dissipating them. But it is es- 
 pecially the student of tiie events of his own time, 
 of the laws which regulate them, of the issues 
 which are to proceed from them, who has need 
 
 to be reminded that he is not studying a number 
 of loose disconnected phenomena, but is tracing 
 a principle under different aspects and through 
 different manifestations. A sensible illustration, 
 if we would condescend to avail ourselves of it, 
 would often save us from much vagueness and 
 unreality, as well as from hasty and unsatisfac- 
 tory conclusions." Maurice. — S. R. A.] 
 
 2. On xviii. b sqq. Omne simile claudicat. Man 
 is not clay, though he is made of clay (Gen. ii. 
 7). Consequently in vers. 8 and 10 the moral 
 conditions are mentioned, which by virtue of his 
 personality and freedom must be fulfilled on the 
 part of man, in order that the divine transforma- 
 tion to good or bad may take place. If the clay is 
 spoiled on the wheel, it cannot help it. It is 
 probably only the potter's fault. Nothing then 
 is here symbolized but the omnipotence of God, 
 by virtue of which He can iii any given case sup- 
 press whole kingdoms and nations, and transform 
 them with the same ease and rapidity as the 
 potter rolls up the spoiled vessel into a ball of 
 clay, and immediately gives it a new form. It 
 would be well for all to convince themselves, by 
 witnessing the process, of the wonderful ease with 
 which the potter forms the clay on the wheel. 
 
 3. On xviii. 6-10. '^ Coffitet unusquisque peccata 
 sua, et modo ilia emendet, cum tempus est. Sit 
 fructuosus dolor, non sit sterilis pcenitudo. Tan- 
 quam hoc dicit Deus, ecce indicavi sententiam, sed 
 nondum protuli. Prcedixi non fixi. Quid times, 
 quia dizif Si mutaveris, mutattir. Nam scriptum 
 est, quod poenileat Deum. Nnmquid quomodo homi- 
 neni sic poenitet Deum? Nam dictum est : si pceni- 
 tuerit vos de peccatis vestris, paenitebit me de omnibus 
 malis, qust facturus eram vobis. Numquid quasi 
 errantem poenitet Deum ? Sed poeniteniia dicitur iii 
 Deo mutatio sententix. Non est iniqua, sed justa. 
 Quarejusta? Mutatus est reus, mutavit judex sen- 
 tentiam. Noli terreri. Sententia mutata est, non 
 justitia. Justitia Integra manet, quia mutato debet 
 parcere, quia Justus est. Quomodo pertinaci non 
 parcit, sic mutato parcit." Augustin, Sermo 109. 
 De Tern, ad medium. 
 
 4. On xviii. 6-10. " Comminationes Dei non in- 
 teUigrndx sunt absolute, sed cum exceptione poeniten- 
 tise et condilione impcenitentise. Promissiones itidem 
 non S2int absolutx sed circumscripta cum conditione 
 obedientise, turn exceptione crucis. God stipulates 
 everywhere for the cross." Comp. Deut. xxviii. 
 
 FORSTER. 
 
 5. On xviii. 0-10. ^'Prsescientia et prsedictio Dei 
 non injicit absolutam eventus necessitatem rebus 
 prsescilis ac prsedictis." Forster. 
 
 6. On xviii. 8. " O felix pcenitentium humilitas! 
 Quam potens es apud omnipotentem." Bernard of 
 Clairvaux. 
 
 [On xviii. 8-10. "I apprehend that we shall 
 le;irn some day that the call to individual re- 
 pentance, and the promise of individual re- 
 formation, has been feeble at one time, pro- 
 ductive of turbulent, violent, transitory effects at 
 another, becau.se it has not been part of a call to 
 national repentance, because it has not been con- 
 nected with a promise of national reformation. 
 We may appeal to men by the terrors of a future 
 state; we may use all tlie michinery of revi- 
 valists to awaken them to a concern for their 
 souls; we niay produce in that way a class of 
 religious men who pursue an object which other 
 
CHAP. XX. 14-18. 
 
 191 
 
 men do not pursue (scarcely a lesi selfish, often 
 not a less outward object) : — who leave the world 
 to take its own course ; — who, when they mingle 
 in it, as in time they must do for the sake of 
 business and gain, adopt again its own maxims, 
 and become less righteous than other men in 
 common aifairs, because tliey consider religion 
 too fine a thing to be brought from the clouds 
 to the earth, while yet they do not recognise a 
 lower principle as binding on them. But we 
 musi speak again the ancient language, that God 
 has made a covenant with the nation, and that 
 all citizens are subjects of an unseen and right- 
 eous King, if we would have a hearty, inward 
 repentance, which will really bring us back to 
 God ; which will turn the hearts of the fathers 
 to the children, and of the children to the fathers ; 
 which will go down to the roots of our life, chang- 
 ing it from a self-seeking life into a life of hu- 
 mility and love and cheerful obedience; which 
 will bear fruit upwards, giving nobleness to our 
 policy and literature and art, to the daily routine 
 of what we shall no more dare to call our secular 
 existence." Maurice. — S. R. A.] 
 
 7. On xviii. 10. "God writes as it were a re- 
 flection in our heart of that which we have to 
 furnish to Him. For God is disposed towards 
 us as we are disposed towards Him. If we do 
 well. He does well to us ; if we love Him, He 
 loves us in return; if we forsake Him, He for- 
 sakes us. Ps. xviii. 26." Cramer. ['* Sin is the 
 great mischief maker between God and a people; 
 it forfeits the benefits of His promises, and spoils 
 the success of their prayers. It defeats His kind 
 intentions concerning them (Hos. vii. 1), and 
 batfles their pleasing expectations from Him. It 
 ruins their comforts, prolongs their grievances, 
 brings them into straits, and retards their de- 
 liverances. Is. xlix. 1, 2." Henry. — S. R. A.] 
 
 8. On xviii. 12. " Freedom of the Spirit ! 
 AVho will allow himself to be brought into bond- 
 age by the gloomy words of that singular man, 
 Jeremiah ? Every one must be able to live ac- 
 cording to his own way of thinking." Diedrich, 
 The jjrophet Jeremiah and Ezekiel briefly expounded. 
 1863, S. 59. — This is the watchword of impiety 
 in all times. If in truth every one bears the 
 divinity within him, then it is justified. But 
 since evory man bears within him only a ■deluv 
 TL, a divine germ or spark, a p'~^int of connection 
 for the objectively divine, and at the same time a 
 point of connection for the diabolical, it is a hell- 
 ish deception when one supposes he must follow 
 his ingenium.. For the question is, whether the 
 voice from within is the voice of God or the voice 
 of the devil. Here it is necessary to try our- 
 selves and to open an entrance to the divine sun 
 of life, so that the divine life-germ in us may be 
 strengthened, and enabled to maintain its true 
 authoriy. 
 
 9. On xviii. 14. On the summits of the high 
 mountains, even in tropical countries, the snow 
 does not entirely melt, and therefore the mighty 
 cool springs at their feet never dry up. With 
 those men only does the pure white snow of di- 
 vine knowledge and godly fear never melt, whose 
 heads are elevated above the steam and vapor of 
 earthly cares and passions, into the pure clear 
 air of heaven. And they it is, from whose bodies 
 flow streams of living water (John vii. 38). 
 
 10. On xviii. 18. Consult the treatise of Luther; 
 How a minister should behave when his office ia 
 despised? 
 
 11. On xviii. 18. (Come and let us smite him 
 with the tongue, etc.). "It is indeed uncertain 
 whether this is said by the preachers or by the 
 whole people; but this is certain, that such ac- 
 tions are pi;rformad diiily by those teachers, who 
 know no other way of stopping the moutli of a 
 servant of Jesus. ' And not give heed to any of 
 his words.' This is au pis alien. If we can do 
 him no harm, we will stop our ears, and he shall 
 not convince us." Zinzenuorf. 
 
 12. On xviii. 19. (Give heed to me, Lord). 
 "This takes place in two ways. A teacher is 
 looked at by the eye which is as flames of fire. 
 He is also guided by the same eyo, which looks 
 on all lands, to strengthen those whose hearts are 
 towards the Lord. No child can rest more se- 
 curely in the cradle, while the nurse is looking 
 for any fly that might disturb it, than a servant 
 of the Lord can, to whom God gives heed." Zin- 
 
 ZENDORF. 
 
 13. On xviii. 20. " It is a pleasing remembrance, 
 when a teacher considers that he has been able 
 to avert divine judgments from his people. It is 
 also an undeniable duty. The spirit of Job, 
 Moses, Jeremiah, Ezra, Nehemiah, Paul in this 
 respect is the true spirit of Jesus Christ. He is 
 a miserable shepherd who can give up his sheep 
 and look on with dry eyes, while the fold is be- 
 ing devastated. Not to mention that teachers 
 are now-a-days, by the salaries which they re- 
 ceive from their congregations, brought into the 
 relation of servitude, and besides the regular 
 obligation of the head are laid under indebted- 
 ness, as hospitals and other institutions, to pray 
 for their founders. They give themselves the 
 name of intercessors and thus bind themselves 
 anew to this otherwise universal duty of all 
 teachers." Zinzendorf. But when the servant 
 of God receives *^ odium pro labore, persecutio pro 
 intercessione,'" this is " the world's gratitude and 
 gratuity." Forster. 
 
 14. On xviii. 21-23. With regard to this prayer 
 against his enemies Calvin i-emarks, " this 
 vehemence, as it was dictated by the Holy Spirit, 
 is not to be condemned, nor ought it to be made 
 an example of, for it was peculiar to the Prophet 
 to know that they were reprobates." For the 
 prophet, he says, was (1) "endued with the 
 t^pirit of wisdom and judgment, and (2) zeal also 
 tor God's glory so ruled in his heart, that the 
 feelings of the flesh were wholly subdued, or at 
 least brought under subjection; and farther, he 
 pleaded not a private cause. — As all these things 
 fall not to our lot, we ought not indiscriminately 
 to imitate Jeremiah in this prayer: for that 
 would then apply to us which Christ said to His 
 disciples, ' Ye know not what spirit governs 
 you (Luke ix. 55).' " In general the older Comm. 
 agree in this. Oecolampadius says tersely: 
 " Subscribit sententise divi?ise." Forster also says 
 that originally such a prayer is not allowed, but 
 that to the prophet, who by the divine inspiration 
 was certain of the " obstinata et plane insanabilis 
 malitia" of his hearers, it was permitted as 
 " singulare et extraor dinar ium aliquid. " The 
 Hirschberger Bibel also explains the words as a 
 consignment to the divine judgment, since (\o\ 
 
192 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 Himself has several times refused to hear prayer 
 in their behalf (xiv. 13, 14), and they themselves 
 could not endui-e it (ver. 18). Vide Neumann 
 II. S. 15. — Seb. Schmidt says plainly, " Licet 
 homiiiibus impiis et persecutoribus imprecari malum, 
 modo ejusmodi imprecaiiones 7ion fiant ex privata 
 vindicta, et conditionatse sint ad constantem eorurn 
 impietatem. Nisi enim ejusmodi imprecationes etiam 
 piis esscnt licilm, propheta non imprecatus asset 
 persecutoribus gravissimam poeuam ham." I 
 believe that it is above all to be observed that 
 Jeremiah does not announce these words (vers. 
 18-23) as the word of Jehovah. It is a prayer 
 to the Lord, like xx. 7-18. That which was re- 
 marked on XX. 14-18, on the Old Testament cha- 
 racter of the prayer, applies here also and in a 
 higher degree. For here as there we may set a 
 good share of the harshness to the account of the 
 rhetoric. The standard of judgment may be 
 found in Matt. v. 43. Many ancient Comra. ex. 
 gr. Jeeome, who regard the suffering prophet as 
 a type of the suflering Saviour, point out the 
 contrast between this prayer of Jeremiah's 
 against his enemies and the prayer of Christ/o/- 
 His enemies (Luke xxiii. 34). The only parallel 
 adduced from the New Testament is 2 Tim. iv. 4. 
 But there it is airoduaei (according to the correct 
 reading of Tischendorf) not ano66ri [Text. Rec, 
 Knapp). 
 
 15. On xix. 1. " If man were only a Platonic 
 avTciDdpuTTog, and did not dwell in the flesh, but 
 were pure spirit and soul, as the Schwenkfelder 
 dreamed a man might be, he would not need such 
 visible signs. — But because man consists of body 
 and soul, God uses, together with the Holy 
 Ghost, the word and Sacrament and other 
 signs." Cramee. 
 
 16. On xix. 6-9. Meycikuv aSiKripaTuv pf.ya7{,aL e'lal 
 Ti/iupiaL Tvapa tuv ■Qeov. Herodotus. Vide Foes- 
 tee, S. 106. 
 
 17. On xix. 10, 11. What is more easily broken 
 in pieces than an earthen vessel? Equally easy 
 is it for the hand of the Almighty to break in 
 pieces the kingdoms of men. And if He spared 
 not the kingdom of Judah, whose king was a son 
 of David and the people the chosen nation, shall 
 He spare the kingdoms of the heathen, none of 
 which can point to any prophecy in its behalf, 
 like that which we read in 2 Sam. vii. 16 ? Comp. 
 Dan. ii. 21 ; iv. 14, 22, 29; v. 21; Ecclus. x. 4, 
 8, 10, 14. 
 
 18. On xix. 11-13. This prophecy was not 
 comi>letely fulfilled by the destruction of Jeru- 
 salem by Nebuchadnezzar. For Jerusalem was 
 restored after this destruction. The second de- 
 struction, by the llomans, must then be regarded 
 as the defiuiiive fulfillment. Comp. Jerome adloc. 
 — Tophet was used by the inhabitants of Jeru- 
 salem for idolatrous purposes. In consequence, 
 the fires of Tophet set Jerusalem on lire, and 
 again the corpses which filled Jerusalem ex- 
 tended even to Tophet, and by reciprocal cala- 
 mity Tophet became like Jerusalem and Jeru- 
 salem like Tophet. 
 
 19. On XX. 1,2. ^^'llpuuvTeKvaTCT/finrn. Ilonores 
 mutant mores." Forster. ♦' Quod hie fitit tor- 
 tnentum, illic erit ornanientum." Augustin. 
 
 20. On XX. 3-G. "Mark, who is the stronger 
 bere: Pashur or Jeremiah? For 1. Jeremiah 
 Dvercomcs his sufferings by patience , 2. He is 
 
 firm in opposition to his enemy and does not 
 allow himself to be terrified by his tyranny, but 
 rebukes him to his face for his sins and lies." 
 Cramee. 
 
 21. On XX. 3-6. Pashur's punishment consists 
 in this, that he will participate in the terrible 
 affliction and be a witness of it, without being 
 able to die. — He is a type of the wandering Jew. 
 
 22. On XX. 7-12. The prophet could say with 
 a good conscience that he had not pressed into 
 this office. It was his greatest comfort that the 
 Lord had persuaded and overpowered him, when 
 resisting, and that afterwards the fire within 
 kindled by the Lord compelled him to speak. 
 Thus he at last becomes so joyful, that in the 
 midst of his sufferings he sings a hymn on his 
 deliverance. 
 
 Lord Jesus, for Thy work divine, 
 The glory is not ours, but Thine ; 
 Therefore we pray Thee stand by those, 
 Who calmly on Thy word repose. 
 
 23. On XX. 14-18. " When the saints stumble 
 this serves to us; 1. for doctrine: we see that 
 no man is justified by his own merits; 2. for 
 e'Aeyxog, i. e. for the refutation of those, who 
 suppose that there are dvapapn/roi ; 3. for kivavdp- 
 ■&uai.q, if we follow Ambeose, who called to the 
 emperor Theodosius : ' Si Davidem imitatus es 
 peccantem, imitare etiam poenitentem ; ' 4. for 
 naideia, that he who stands take heed that he do 
 not fall ; 5. for napTjyopia, that he who has fallen 
 may after their pattern rise again." Foestee. 
 
 24. On XX. 17, 18. "The question is. Does a 
 man do right in wishing himself dead ? Answer: 
 He who from impatience wishes himself dead 
 like Job, Elijah, Jonah, Tobias, and here Jere- 
 miah, does wrong, and this is a piece of carnal 
 impatience. But when we think of the wicked 
 world and the dangerous times in which we live 
 and on the other hand of the future joy and 
 glory, and therefore desire with Simeon and Paul 
 to be released, we are not to be blamed." 
 Geameb. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. The 18th homily of Origen has for its text 
 xviii. 1-16 and xx. 1-7. The 19th has xx. 7-12. 
 
 2. On xviii. 1-11. Comfort and warning, im- 
 plied in the fact that the threatenings and pro- 
 mises of the Lord are given only conditionally: 
 1. The comfort consists in this, that the threat- 
 ened calamities may be averted by timely repen- 
 tance. 2. The warning in this, that the promises 
 may be annulled by apostasy. 
 
 3. On xviii. 7-10. Comp. the Homiletical on 
 xvii. 5-8. 
 
 4. On xviii. 7-11. " How we should be moved 
 by God's judgments and goodness: that each, 
 1. Should turn from his wickedness; 2. should 
 reform his heart and life." Kapff, Passion, 
 Easter and Revival Sermons. 1866. 
 
 5. [On xviii. 12. " The sin, danger and un- 
 reasonableness of despair. The devil's chief 
 artifices are to produce either false security and 
 presumption or despair. Despair is 1. sinful, 
 (a) in itself, [b) because it is the parent of other 
 sins, as is seen in the cases of Cain, Saul, and 
 Judas. 2. It is dangerous. 3. It is groundless, 
 because (a) we still enjoy life and the means oi 
 
CHAP. XXI. 1-7. 
 
 193 
 
 grace, (6) of the long-suflFering character of God, 
 (c) of the universality of the scheme of redemp- 
 tion, [d] of the person, character and invitations 
 of Christ, (e) of many instances of final salva- 
 tion." Payson.— S. R. A.] 
 
 6. On xviii. 18-20. Text for a Sermon on the 
 Anniversary of the Reformation. Opposition of 
 the office which has apparent authority to that 
 which has true authority ; 1. The basis of the op- 
 position: the assertion of the infallibility of the 
 former office. 2. The mode of the opposition; 
 (a) in not being willing to hear, (6) in the at- 
 
 tempt to destroy the latter by violence. 3. The 
 result of the opposition is nugatory, for (a) the 
 Lord hears the voice of the opposers to judge 
 them, (6) He gives heed to His servants to pro- 
 tect them. 
 
 7. On XX. 7-13. The trial and coihfort of a 
 true minister of the Word; 1. The trial: (a) scorn 
 and derision ; (6) actual persecution. 2. The 
 comfort: (a) the Lord put him in office and main- 
 tains him in it; [b) that the Lord will interpose 
 for His servants and thus, (1) help His. cause to 
 victory, and (2) save their persons. 
 
 8. THE EIGHTH DISCOURSE (Against the Wicked Shepherds). 
 
 (Chaps. XXI.— XXIV.) 
 
 In designating this portion of the book a discourse we do so only a potiori. For neither is it purely of tht 
 nature of a discourse, nor does it form one discourse, i. e., a connected rhetorical whole. The different 
 portions of it, partly of historical, partly of rhetorical character, and pertaining to very different 
 epochs, are however comprised under a common title, such as in Jeremiah is usually prefixed to the 
 greater sections. These portions contain in general the same fundamental thought, viz., that which is 
 stated in the title, "Agai?ist wicked Shepherds." By these wicked shepherds are to be understood all 
 the leaders of the people, kings and prophets (and priests, xxiii. 11). The main trunk is formed by 
 the powerful speech against Jehoiakim (xxii. 1-9, 13-23; xxiii. 1-8), which Jeremiah addressed to that 
 violent despot before the gale of his palace, in presence of his court and the people. Around this dis- 
 course, enclosing it and interwoven with it, are grouped other portions of similar character. Originally 
 a brief passage (xxi. 11-14) was prefixed to this discourse, on zccount of its purport, in which it is 
 intimately related to xxii. 3-7 [comp. the Comm. on xxi. 11-14). This passage could not be sub- 
 joined after xxii. 9, because here the personal addresses connected with the words spoken to Jehoiakim, 
 xxii. 13-19, had to be inserted, and after xxii. 30, the distance would be too great from the discourse 
 to which it is related, xxii. 3-7. The passage xxi. 1-10 had to be placed before xxi. 11, although as 
 to time the latest in the ivhole compass o/chh. xxi. — xxiv. because in it a Pashur is spoken of. By 
 this it seemed to be connected with ch. xx., in which also a Pashur plays the chief part. XXII. 13-23 
 followed originally immediately after xxii. 9 [comp. the preliminary remarks to xxii. 13-19). 
 But since there was a brief passage, referring to Shallum-Jehoahaz (xxii. 10-12) the immediate prede- 
 cessor of J ehoiakim, this had to be placed before xxii. 13. After xxii. 23 the passage referring to 
 Jehoiakim (xxii. 24-30) naturally found its position. The passage xxiii. 1-8 followed finally as the 
 original conclusion of the speech addressed to Jehoiakim, and as a consolatory glance into the future 
 after the dark portraits of the kings of the present. From xxiii. 9-40 /o^^o*s then the connected dis- 
 course against the false prophets. This IV as by no means delivered on the same day and in the same 
 place as the discourse against Jehoiakim, xxii. 1 — xxiii. 8. It may however in general belong to the 
 same period, viz., the first four years of the reign of Jehoiakim, since there is no mention of the Chal- 
 deans, and the reign of Josiah gave much less occasion for such a discourse. Chap. xxiv. finally cor- 
 responds to ^Hhe punitive judgments on the three predecessors of Zedekiah, and completes the judgment 
 on the corrupt pastors and leaders of the people" (Graf). The reason why this chapter teas not in- 
 serted immediately after xxii. 30 is that it treats its subject in a form quite peculiar a7id different from 
 the style of ch. xxii. It would accordingly appear too much like a foreign element after xxii. 30. 
 
 If accordingly we cannot speak of this discourse as one properly and logically concatenated, yet we may re- 
 cognize a certain orderly arrangement of its individual parts. This Mill be manifest in the following 
 synopsis : — 
 
 against the wicked shepherds. 
 
 Chaps. XXL~XXIV. 
 
 I. Preface, ch. xxi. 
 
 a. Passage relating to Pashur, as an addition to ch. xx., xxi. 1-10. 
 
 b. Transition. Exhortation to the house of David to righteousness, xxi. 11-14. 
 II. Main Discourse, chs. xxii. and xxiii. 
 
 Against the ivicked kings and prophets. 
 1. Against the ivicked kings, xxii. 1 — xxiii. 8. 
 
 a. The alternative offered the royal house, xxii. 1-9. 
 
 b. Prophecy relating to the person of Shallum, xxii. 10-12. 
 
 13 
 
194 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 /. 
 
 Prophecy relating to the person of Jehoiakim, xxii. 13-19. 
 The consequences to the people, xxii. 20-23. 
 Prophecy relating to the person of Jehoiakim, xxii. 24-30. 
 
 a. Before the captivity, xxii. 24-27. 
 
 /?. After the captivity, xxii. 28-30. 
 Conclusion and consolation in a glance at the just and the j'ustifier, zxiii. 1-8- 
 
 III. 
 
 2. Against the false prophets, xxiii. 9-40. 
 
 a. The blind leaders: of the blind, xxiii. 9-15. 
 
 b. Warning against deceptionby the prophets, xxiii. 16-22. 
 
 c. The criminal mingling of man's word and God's word, xxiii. 23-32. 
 
 d. The criminal use of the word " burden," xxiii. 38-40. 
 Postscript. 
 
 Supplement to xxii. 13-30: The fourth king, xxiv. 1-10. 
 
 I. PREFACE. 
 
 Chap. XXI. 
 
 a. Passage relating to Pashur, as an addition to ch. xx. (xxi. 1-10). 
 
 1. 77ie king's question and the prophet's consolatory answer 
 
 XXI. 1-7. 
 
 1 The w5rd which came unto Jeremiah from the Lord [Jehovah] when king Ze- 
 dekiah sent unto him Pashur the son of Melchiah, and Zephaniah the son of Maa- 
 
 2 feeiah [,] the priest, saying, Inquire, I pray thee, of the Lord [Jehovah] for us, for 
 Nebuchadrezzar,' king of Babylon, maketh war against us ; if so be that [perhaps] 
 the Lord [Jehovah] will deal with us according to all his wondrous works, that he 
 
 3 may go up [withdraw] from us. Then said Jeremiah unto them. Thus shall ye say 
 
 4 to Zedekiah : Thus saith the Lord [Jehovah] God of Israel : Behold, I will turn 
 back the weapons of war that are in your hands, wherewith ye£ght against the king 
 of Babylon, and against the Chaldeans, which besiege you without the walls \_or your 
 walls from without] and I will assemble [withdraw] them into the midst of this city. 
 
 5 And I myself will fight against you, with an outstretched hand and a strong arm, 
 
 6 even in anger and in great fury, and in great wrath. And I will smite the inhabi- 
 
 7 tants of this city, both man and beast : they shall die of a great pestilence. And 
 afterward, saith the Lord [Jehovah] I will deliver Zedekiah, king of Judah, and 
 his servants, and the people, and such as are left* in this city from the pestilence, 
 from the sword, and from the famine, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Ba- 
 bylon, and into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those that seek their 
 life : and he shall smite them with the edge of the sword, he shall not spare them, 
 neither have pity, nor have mercy. 
 
 TEXTUAL and GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 2. — On the form of the name ^^X"nD13J comp. rems^. ou xxv. 1. 
 
 T '." : ~ : 
 
 2 Ver. 7. — The flXI here is logically incorrect, since after the general term the people, other surrivors are not sup- 
 posable. The LXX. omits it (icai toi' Aaoi- KaTa\eL<j)9ei'To). Comp. viii. 3 ; xxiv. 8 ; xxxviii. 4 ; xxxix. 9 ; xl. (i ; xli. 10; 
 lii. 15. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 To the petition of King Zedekiah that the pro- 
 phet would seek for them the interposition of Je- 
 hovah against Nebuchadnezzar (vers. 1, 2), the 
 prophet answers that the Lord will cause the de- 
 fenders of the city to retreat before the Chal- 
 deans (vers. 3, 4), yea, will Himself contend 
 against them with a great pestilence (vers. 5, 6), 
 and will then surrender the survivors of the 
 Bword, liimiue and pestilence (among whom will 
 be the king himself and his servants) to king Ne- 
 
 buchadnezzar, who will slay them without mercy 
 by the sword (ver. 7). 
 
 Vers. 1, 2. The word which came . . . 
 withdraw from us. The beginning is like vii. 
 1. Coiiip. ad hoc loc. — Pashur, the son of Mal- 
 kiah, is also mentioned in xxxviii. 1. — Zepha- 
 niah, the son of Maaseiah, xxix. 2-5 ; xxxvii. 3 ; 
 lii. 24. Both were priests (Malkiah and Maa- 
 seiah are also names of courses of priests, 1 
 
 Chron. xxiv. 9-18) ; the latter HJE'D JHD the 
 next iifter the high-priest (lii. 12 1). Tlie embassy 
 was therefore a respectable one. — Zedekiah sent 
 
CHAP. XXI. 8-10. 
 
 193 
 
 once again with the same object to the prophet : 
 xxxvii. 3. Comp. also Isai. xxxvii. 2 sqq. — On 
 the relation of time Vtde Comm. on xxxvii. '2S.— 
 Inquire, etc. The prophet was not merely to a.sk 
 what, will be done, but also to pray tliat what- 
 ever would serve for deliverance may be done, as 
 is evident from perhaps Jehovah, etc. In 
 xxxvii. 3 it is '■ Prm/ for us." Comp. xlii. 2. — 
 That he may go up from us Comp. 1 Sam. 
 VI. 20; 1 Ki. XV. 19; Jer. xxxvii. 5, 11. The 
 figure of a person thrown down, from whom his 
 vanquisher raises himself, lies at the basis of 
 this expression. [Henderso.\: "The phrase 
 means to recede from the incumbent attitude as- 
 sumed by a besieging army." — S. R. A.] 
 
 Vers. 8-7. Then said Jeremiah . . . have 
 mercy. From the words in the midst of the 
 city it is evident that the prophet places the 
 
 line of defence within the walls. Thus the enemy 
 presses the Jews no longer without but within 
 the walls, and certainly the city is then as good 
 as taken. Tliis liowever is just what the prophet 
 wisited them to understand. I believe therefore 
 that ^without the walls is to be referred not to 
 turn back nor to fight, but to besiege. — As- 
 semble. Comp. xvi. 5; Joel )i. lU; iv. 15. — 
 Outstretched hand. Comp. Di-ut. iv. 34; v. 
 1-J; xxvi. 8. It should be remarked that every- 
 where else, with the exception of the formula 
 "and his hand is stretched out still" (Isai. v. 25; 
 ix. 11, 1(5, 20; X. 4 coll. 1 Chron. xxi. IGj, n'lOJ 
 outstretched is the adjective used with j^i"l? 
 
 arm, and Hpin mighty, wiih T hand. — With 
 anger, ' ('omp. xxxii. 37; Deut. xxix. 27. — 
 With the edge of the sw^ord. In Jeremiah 
 here only. — Not spare them. Comp. xiii. 14. 
 
 2. The only way of escape. 
 XXI. 8-10. 
 
 8 And unto this people thou shalt say, Thus saith the Lord : Behold, I set before 
 
 9 you the way of life, and the way of death. He that abideth [remains] in this city 
 shall die by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence: but he that goeth 
 out anl falle.h' to the Chaldeans that besiege you, he shall live,^ and his life shall 
 
 10 be unto him for a prey. For I have set my face against this city for evil, and not 
 for good, saith the Lord [Jehovah], it shall be given into the hand of the king of 
 Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 9.— SajV Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., ? 99, 3.— On Sj^- Comp. Textual on x. 1. 
 
 2 Ver. 9.— The iieri TXXW is liere, as in xxxviii. 2, unnecessary. TVVi'', corresponding to r\1D' in hemistich a, is 
 
 more correct. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 It is announced to the people that the life and 
 death of individuals depends on whether they 
 give themselves up to the Chaldeans or not (vers. 
 8, 9), for the destruction of the city by Nebu- 
 chadnezzar is irrevocably determined upon, (ver. 
 10). These words are closely connected both in 
 form and in matter with the previous context. 
 It is entirely appropriate that the prophet after 
 having informed the ruler what the result of his 
 military operations would be, announces also to 
 the peopbi or to individuals, what is alone left 
 them to do for their escape. Gr.vf is correct in 
 saying (p. 2-J9), that the summons contained in 
 vers. 8-10 could not have been addressed to the 
 king's embassy. Nevertheless their form and pur- 
 port testify to their having been addressed to the 
 people contemporaneously with that answer to 
 the king. It is not opposed to this that Jere- 
 miah gave the same advice repeatedly on other 
 eccasious. (Comp. xxvii. 11. 17). 
 
 Vers. 8-10. And unto this people . . burn 
 
 it -with fire. — Unto this people, etc., corres- 
 ponds to and thus shall ye say to Zedekiah 
 in ver. 3, but not as being a part of the answer 
 given to the king. But after the application, 
 ver. 2, had been received by the prophet, a triple 
 divine word was communicated to him. It is 
 not expressly declared that this was the case, but 
 this is the natural and necessary presupposition 
 to the prophetic declarations, communicated in 
 vers. 3-7, 8-10, 11-14. — I set before you, etc. 
 The prophet evidently has in mind Deut. xi. 26, 
 27; XXX. 15,19. — He that remains, etc. Comp. 
 xxxviii. 2 and the Introd. to the 8th discourse. 
 It is evident that to the prophet the will of God 
 was of more importance than that which accord- 
 ing to the limited view of man is required by the 
 honor and interest of his country, so that by obe- 
 dience to the former this honor and interest are 
 best secui-ed. — Falleth to the Chaldeans. 
 Comp. xxxvii. 13, 14; xxxix. 9. — I have set 
 my face (ver. 10). Comp. xxiv. 6; xliv. 11. — ■ 
 Shall be given. Comp. xxxii. 29: xxxiv. 2, 
 22; xxxvii. 8, 10; xxxviii. 18, 23; xxxix. 8. 
 
196 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 b. Transition : Exhortation to the house of David to Righteousness. 
 
 XXL n-14. 
 
 11 And touching [to] the house of the king of Judah, say, Hear ye the word of the 
 
 12 Lord [Jehovah]; O house of David, thus saith the Lord [Jehovah]. Execute 
 judgment [judge righteously]^ in the [every]^ morning, and deliver niai that is 
 spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor, lest my fury go out like fire, and burn that 
 
 13 none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings.^ Behold, I am against thee, 
 O inhabitant of the valley, and rock of the plain, saith the Lord [Jehovah] ; which 
 say. Who shall come down* against us? or who shall enter into our [refuges] ha- 
 
 14 bitations? But I will jDunish you according to the fruit of your doings, saith the 
 Lord [Jehovah] ; and I will kindle a fire in the forest thereof, and it shall devour 
 all things round about it. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 12. — The expression £33JJ?0 V"] is found here only: Elsewhere JT ri (Jer. v. 28; xxii. 16; xxx. 13, etc.) 
 t03tyD is at the same time accusative of object and of mode, and as the latter involves the meaning of Q'Tiy^rDS (Ps- ix. 
 9; xcvi. 10;or p'li'S (Ps. Ixxii. 2). 
 
 * Ver. 12. — Tpi7. 7 is distributive. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 112, 5 6. As here, in Ps. lix. 17 ; Am. iv. 4. Comp. also 
 1 Chron. ix. 27 ; Ps. Ixxiii. 14; ci. 8 ; Isai. xxxiii. 2 ; Lam. iii. 23. 
 
 ■3 Ver. 12. — Instead of DriV^^'O the Keri has the second person as in iv. 4. The change of person however occurs so 
 
 frequently, that the alteration appears unnecessary. Comp. v. 14 ; xii. 13 ; xvii. 13 ; Naegelsb. Gr., § 101, Anm. 
 i Ver. 13.— nn\ On the form comp. Olsh., S. 503. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The royal family is appealed to in warning to 
 exercise righteousness, that the anger of the 
 Lord may not burn inextinguishably (vers. 11 
 and 12). Afterward, the non-fulfilment of this 
 condition being presupposed, the judgment of de- 
 struction is proclaimed to the "rock of the plain," 
 which is defiant in its inapproachability (vers. 
 13, 14). This passage cannot be contemporary 
 with the two preceding; it must be of older date. 
 For, 1. At the date to which xxi. 1-7 belongs, such 
 an admonitiou and conditional threatening is no 
 longer ia place. In vers. 4-7 his own destruc- 
 tion and that cf the nation is unconditionally an- 
 nounced to Zedekiah. 2. The stubbornness also, 
 which is expressed in ver. 13, contradicts the de- 
 spondency, with which Zedekiah humbles him- 
 self in ver. 2. 3. It is strange that after the 
 king, ver. 3, the house of the king should again 
 be speciiilly addressed, since the king is included 
 in tlie hitter, and the exhortation to "judge 
 righteously" applies above all to the king. 
 Should it be said that in vers. 11-14 actual con- 
 version is presented before the king as the only 
 way of escape, it is contradicted by the whole 
 situation and the character of vers. 1-10. Such 
 proposals belong to an eiirlier si age, which in 
 Judea, at the time of his embassy, was long past. 
 We are referred by the connection of this pas- 
 sage with xxiii. 3-9 (on which comp. tlie Comm. 
 ad loc.) entirely to the times of Jehoiakim. The 
 text, forms the transition to this discourse of 
 reproof, addressed to the king. Certainly, ac- 
 
 cording to the view of the compiler, this section 
 must have been regarded as closely connected 
 with the preceding, for and to the house, etc., 
 in ver. 11, is grounded on thou shalt say in 
 ver. 8. 
 
 Vers. 11, 12. And to the house . . . evil 
 of your doings. The division of vers. 11 and 
 12 is awkward. The house of the king is in the 
 narrower sense himself with his family, in a 
 wider sense the entire court (comp. 1 Ki. iv. 6 ; 
 xvi. 9, etc.). Here the house of the king is in- 
 tended in the narrower sense 1, because after- 
 wards the phrase "house of David " is used in- 
 stead; 2, because judging was one of the chief 
 functions of a king, which he could transfer to a 
 substitute only in cases of necessity. (2 Ki. xv. 
 5 coll. 1 Sam. viii. 5, G, liO; 2 Sam. xv. 2 sqq. ; 1 
 Ki. iii. 16 sqq. ; vi. 26; vii. 7; viii. 3-5). 
 
 Vers. 13. 14. Behold I am against thee . . . 
 round about it. If these verses are not sup- 
 posed to be attaclied to tlie preceding witliout any 
 inner connection, by rock of the plain ("l-liT 
 liy'ipH) can be understood only the house of 
 
 David. The house of David was addressed in ver. 
 12. Ver. 13 presupposes a negative answer of 
 the person addressed, on which the address con- 
 tinues: " Behold I am," c^c. XXII. 6-9 is indeed 
 referred to, and it is maintained that here as there 
 the destruction of the city appears to be the pun- 
 ishment for the sill of the royal family. But the 
 sentence ■which say, etc., would represent the 
 destruction of the city as the punishment of the 
 obstinate security of the citizens. It remains 
 either to regard vers. 13 and 14 as a discon- 
 
CHAP. XXII. 1-9. 
 
 197 
 
 nected addition, or to understand by IJ^'Sn "ll^f 
 the royal family. According to this rendering 
 pOj;, valley, and "liy'D, plain, are to be taken 
 not in the local but figurative meaning. (Corap. 
 rems. on xviii. 14). The royal family is com- 
 pared to a rock rising ia the midst of a plain. 
 pOj7 is low land, regio depressa et longe lateque pa- 
 tens ((jES., Thes.) comp. Job xxxix. 10, 21; Ps. 
 Ixv. 14. Comp. also T\^'^,'^ Gen. xi. 2. — Rock 
 of the plain defines more particularly in what 
 sense the royal family can be designated as in- 
 habiting the lowland ; it is there enthroned as 
 an elevation dominating all the rest. The inha- 
 bitants of this rock regard themselves as very se- 
 cure. They compare themselves with beasts, 
 which in their lairs or hiding-places are well- 
 concealed. [Henderson: "By <Ae ycr/^e^ is meant 
 the Tyropaeon, running down between Mount 
 Zion and Mount Moriah, and by the rock of the 
 plain Mount Zion, so called from its rapid as- 
 
 cent on the South-west, which renders its brow 
 in this direction apparently more lofty than any 
 other point connected witli the city (Robinson I., 
 389).— S. R. A].— Come down. The prophet 
 has in mind the image of a bird darting down 
 upon its prey. Since the following, and who 
 shall come dow^n evidently indicate attacks 
 by land, by these two figures the thought is ex- 
 pressed of a position secure on p.U sides. — I am 
 against thee, comp. xxiii. 30-32; 1. 31; li. 25 
 — But I will punish you. A formula espe- 
 cially frequent in .Jeremiah, ix. 24; xxiii. 34: 
 xxx. 20, etc. — According to the fruit. Comp. 
 xvii. 10. — Andl w^ill kindle g: fire. Comp. Am. 
 i. 14; Jer. xvii. 27; xliii. 12; xlix. 27; 1. 32.^ 
 In the forest thereof. Thereof refers to 
 inhabitant, ver. 13. It is apparent that the 
 prophet retains the conception of wild beasts of 
 the forest. Comp. xxii. 7. — Our vifw of the pas- 
 sage is confirmed by the parallel given in xxii. 
 1-9. Comp. especially ver. 6, and the Comm. 
 ad loc. 
 
 II. MAIN DISCOURSE. 
 Chaps. XXII. and XXIII. 
 
 AGAINST THE WICKED KINGS AND PROPHETS. 
 
 1. Against the wicked kings, (xxii. 1-xxiii. 8). 
 
 a. The alternative ofi'ered the royal house. 
 
 XXII. 1-9. 
 
 1 Thus saith the Lord [Jehovah] : Go down to the house of the king of Judah, 
 
 2 and speak there this word. And say, Hear the word of the Lord [Jehovah], O 
 king of Judah, that sittest upon the throne of David, thou, and thy servants, and 
 
 3 thy people that enter in by these gates. Thus saith the Lord [Jehovah] : 
 Execute judgment and righteousness, 
 
 And rescue him that is plundered out of the hand of the oppressor,^ 
 Strangers, orphans and widows oppress not, nor be violent towards them, 
 And innocent blood shed not in this place. 
 
 4 For if ye indeed do thus, 
 
 Then through the gates of this house, 
 Kings, sitting for David on his throne, 
 Shall enter in chariots and on horses. 
 He, his ministers'^ and his people. 
 
 5 But if ye hearken not to these words, 
 
 I have sworn by myself, saith Jehovah, 
 That this house shall become a desolation. 
 
 6 For thus saith Jehovah concerninsr the house of the king of Judah : 
 Gilead art thou to me, summit of Lebanon! 
 
 Surely a wild-^rness will I make thee, 
 Cities uninhabited. 
 
 7 And I consecrate against thee destroyers. 
 The man and his weapons. 
 
 Who shall fell thy choice cedars. 
 And cast them into the fire. 
 
i98 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 8 And many nations shall go by this city and say one to another, 
 Why has Jehovah dune thus to this great city ? 
 
 9 And they shall say : 
 
 Because they forsook the covenant of Jehovah their God, 
 And worshipped other gods and served them. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. S. — pit!? V, if not written by mistake for pjZ/lj^, occurs here only. It is formed like tHJ, meaning oppressor. 
 ^ Ver. 4.— [" A great number of MSS. and two of the earliest editions, read TT^^ his servants, or ministers, accordinj; 
 to the Keri." Hendebson.— S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The prophet receives the command to go down 
 to the king's house and to deliver to the king and 
 his servants, and to the people, the following di- 
 vine message (vers. 1, 2): if they would practice 
 justice and righteousness (ver. 3), kings of Da- 
 vid's line should possess the throne in royal 
 power and glory (ver. 4) ; if not, the king's house 
 should be made desolate (ver. 5). For though 
 hitherto like Gilead and Lebanon, it is to be de- 
 vastated (ver. 6). Destroyers shall come and 
 shall fell the cedars and cast them into the fire 
 (ver. 7), so that afterwards it shall be asked in 
 astonishment, why such a great calamity has 
 come upon the city (ver. 8). To which no other 
 answer can be given than that they forsook the 
 covenant of the Lord and served idols (ver. 
 9). — As tc the relation of these verses to the 
 preceding (xxi. 11-14), the former appear al- 
 most only like an extension of the latter. Not 
 only is the fundamental thought the same, but 
 even in details there is great, in part verbal, 
 agreement. The admonition which forms the 
 basis, is found in xxi. 12 and xxii. 3, partly 
 with. the same words, only in the latter passage 
 somewhat extended (comp. the second half of 
 ver. 3) As to the promises and threatenings 
 based on the admonition, the form of the alter- 
 nativ'j is not found in xxi. 11-14, for here the 
 idea of non-fulfilment reigns exclusively. But 
 in the form in which the punishment is announced 
 there are great similarities ; both times the royal 
 house is compared with a wooded height, the 
 wood of which will be consumed by fire. Since 
 now repetitions occur so frequently in Jeremiah, 
 there is nothing against the supposition that we 
 have here before us two utterances, related in 
 form and purport because they proceed from the 
 same liistuiical situation. That this situation 
 was in tlie reign of Jehoiakim and before tlie crisis 
 of the battle of Carchemish appears to me to 
 admit of no doubt. For 1. there is no mention 
 of the Chaldeans; 2. the king addressed is 
 warned ag.iiiist despotic acts of violence. This 
 warning corresponds neither to the character of 
 Josiah nor to that of Jehoahaz, who was most pro- 
 bably elected by tlie people, because he was sup- 
 posed to be free from despotic inclinations, and 
 besides he j-ciLjncd only three months. The 
 warning, however, corresponds entirely to the 
 cliaracter of Jehoiakim, who is also afterwards 
 reproved for such acts of violence (vers. 13-17). 
 3. Jehoiakim is in vers. 13-15 especially re- 
 proached with his lust for building, which he 
 gratified by despotic means. His cedar palace 
 
 was a monument of this. Jeremiah is to go 
 down to this proud house (ver. 1 coll. ver. 23), 
 and announce to him the judgment of fire (ver. 
 7). It follows that 1. the section 1-9 refers to 
 Jehoiakim ; 2. it is closely connected with vers. 
 13-23. 
 
 Vers. 1-5. Thus saith . . . become a de- 
 solation. — Go dow^n. Out from the temple. 
 Comp. xxvi. 10 ; xxxvi. 12 coll. xviii. 2. — Thou, 
 etc. Not the king alone, but his servants, and 
 the people also are to hear the word of the Lord. 
 All are to co-operate in complying with the ad- 
 monition, as they ^^'iIl all be affected by the con- 
 sequences. — Execute judgment and right- 
 eousness. Comp. vii. 6; xxi. 12; Ezek. xxii. 
 6, 7 ; xlv. 9. — The stranger. Comp. Exod. 
 xxii. 20, 21. — For if ye ■will, etc. Comp. vii. 
 5. — There shall enter. Comp. xvii. 25 coll. 
 xiii. 13. — But if ye ■will not hear. Comp. 
 xvii. 27. — I sw^ear by myself. Comp. Gen. 
 xxii. 16; Isa. xlv. 23; Jer. xlix. 13. 
 
 Vers. 6-9. For thus . . . and served them. 
 Gilead, which taken in its wider meaning, com- 
 prises Bashan (comp. V. Raiimer, Palastina, S. 
 229, sqq.), is a type of luxuriant fertility, espe- 
 cially with respect to pasturage. Comp. Num. 
 x xxii. 1; Mic. vii. 14; .Jer. 1. 19. — Lebanon, the far- 
 reaching, adorned with cedars, is also frequently 
 elsewhere an emblem of the lofty and splendid: 
 Isa. ii. 13 ; x. 33, 34 ; xxxv. 2 ; Ix. 13 ; Hos. 
 xiv. 6-8; Zech. xi. 1, 2. — The figures of blessing 
 and exultation are applied to the house of David, 
 not on account of its present prosperity, for this 
 does not exist, nor only on account of its former 
 prosperity, — under David and Solomon — for this 
 is a secondary consideration with the Lord. 
 From the words to me we perceive that the 
 Lord has here in view rather the significance of 
 the Davidic house, which He has most at heart, 
 its universal and transcendent mission (2 Sam. 
 vii.). For this reason we must not translate: 
 Thou wast tome, but T/wii art to me. The com- 
 parison with Lebanon is one of the points of co- 
 incidence with xxi. 31. Although the royai 
 house of Judah thus stands before the Lord in 
 such ideal glory, He will make it in outward 
 form a desolation and ruin (comp. Isa. liii. 1-5). 
 — On uninhabited comp. Comm. on ii. 15. 
 But why cities in the plural? Evidently be- 
 cause the prophet wished to intimate that the 
 judgmenton tlie king's house will be declared 
 in the desolation of the land and the destruction 
 of the cities, especially the capital (ver. 8). It 
 follows that ver. (J stands to ver. 5 in the relation 
 of more particular explanation, that for, ver. 6, 
 is therefore to be regarded as an explicative. 
 For not only the reason but the manner of the 
 
CHAP. XXII. 10-12. 
 
 199 
 
 desolation is more particularly defined in vers. 
 6-9. — Consecrated. It is commanded by God 
 and therefore a holy war. Comp. rems. on vi. 
 4. Therefore both the warriors and their wea- 
 pons are designated as holy. — They shall fall, 
 etc. The house of David is still regarded as a 
 wooded mountain (comp. xi. 14). At the same 
 
 XXIX. 23 sqq. 
 8, 9. 
 
 in mind. Comp 
 
 Kings 
 
 b. Prophecy relating to the person of Shallum. 
 XXII. 10-12. 
 
 10 Weep ye not for the dead, neither bemoan him : 
 Weep, weep rather for him that goeth away ; 
 
 For never shall he return, nor see his native land. 
 
 11 For thus saith Jehovah concerning Shallum, 
 
 The son of Josiah, the king of Judah, who reigned instead of his father, 
 And who is gone away from this place : 
 He will not return thither. 
 
 12 For in the place whither they have carried him captive he will die. 
 And will see this land no more. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 That these words were really spoken at the 
 historical epoch to which they correspond (there- 
 fore neither earlier nor later) is felt if we weigh 
 the terrible violence of the suffering, which, not- 
 withstanding its brevity, is expressed in it. Jere- 
 miah could speak thus only when it was neces- 
 sary to give expression, and — a corrective, to the 
 universal mourning at the loss of the noble king 
 Josiah, which was as it were repeated in their 
 horror at the captivity of his successor. Three 
 months after his father's death (2 Ki. xxiii. 31- 
 34), Jehoah.iz was taken by Pharaoh Necho as a 
 prisoner to Egypt. The sorrow was still lively 
 at the death of his father. Now came this new 
 misfortune. Many might hope for Jehoahaz: he 
 is still young, he will survive and return. Jere- 
 miah cuts off these hopes. There is more cause, 
 he says, to mourn for Jehoahaz than for Josiah. 
 The dead is more fortunate than the living. He 
 intimates that he will perish miserably in capti- 
 vity. This utterance is one of the- oldest in the 
 book. 
 
 Vers. 10-12. Weep ye not . . this land no 
 more. The absence of the article with HO; may 
 possibly be ascribed to the freedom which Jere- 
 miah allows himself in the use of the article. 
 Comp. rems. on iii. 2; vi. 10; xiv. 18; xvii. 19 
 (Chethibh). It is however also possible that r\p, 
 dead, may not express so definite a thought as 
 yp, going avray, because the dead are mourned 
 in general, but those who go away only when 
 their departure is such as il was in this conciete 
 case, whicli is indicated by the definite article. 
 On the subject-matter comp. viii. 3. — Concern- 
 ing Shallum. vN after Verbis dicendi or audi- 
 
 endi^ot concerning : Gen. xx. 2 ; 1 Sam. iv. 19 ; 
 2 Ki. xix. y, 32, etc. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., S. 
 227. — It is beyond a doubt that this Shallum is 
 Jehoahaz, the son of that Josiah who fell at Me- 
 giddo (2 Ki. xxiii. 29), but it is uncertain why he 
 is here named Shallum. The passage 1 Cliron. 
 iii. 15, where four sons of Josiah are named 
 ( Johanan, Jehoiakim, Zedekiah and Shallum), is 
 not clear and seems to have derived the name of 
 Shallum from the present passage. Disregard- 
 ing this, two views are before us. According to 
 the former it is assumed that the Shalluiu named 
 here had really another name, as cases of double 
 names were, as is well-known, not uncommon 
 among the Jews, especially in this period. (Comp. 
 Uzziah-Azariah, Eliakim-Jehoiakim, Mattaniah- 
 Zedekiah. Comp. Simonis, Onomast., p. 20: 
 Movers, Chronik, S. 156 sqq.: Thenius, on 2 
 Kings xiv. 21). But only the possibility of Je- 
 hoahaz and Shallum being the same, not the 
 actual case, is admitted. According to the other 
 view the name Shallum is a nomen reale (Heng- 
 stenberg) i. e. a symbolical name. The ancients 
 (Jerome and many of the older Rabbins) have 
 taken the word in the sense of consummatio, com- 
 pletio, referring it to the destruction of th(? king- 
 dom, and understanding by Shallum either Zede- 
 kiah or Jehoiakim. This explanation is however 
 contrary to the clear purport of ver. 10. — Dl'7^ 
 may mean recompenite (so Gesenius), recompenser 
 (FtiERST, comp. D^n^i pjn), "and to whom it is 
 recompensed " (Heng&tenberg). But in none 
 of these meanings will the word exactly suit as 
 a prophetic name. " Recompenser " is certainly 
 not appropriate. But •' recompense " and*-tc 
 whom it ;s recompensed" are such general ideas, 
 that the name might be ascribed as well to any 
 other wicked king, who was visited by the divine 
 .judgment. The turn also, that the name may 
 
200 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 have been given per analogiam, in remembrance 
 of the Israelitish Shallum, who reigued only a 
 month (2 Ki. x». 13) is not satisfactory. For 
 then it must first have been evident that every 
 king in general, whose reign was numbered by 
 months, was called Shallum. Why otherwise 
 should Jehoahaz only be so named, since Jehoia- 
 chin also reigned only three months ? It is thus 
 seen that both these modes of explanation have 
 difficulties. I should decide in preference for 
 Uie former, in the sense that Jeremiah, of 
 the two names borne by the immediate suc- 
 cessor of Josiah, retained the earlier, as the 
 simple personal name, without regard to its 
 meaning, since the other, the royal name (^nxiri'', 
 Jehovah holds, sustains) contradicted the histo- 
 rical, as also Jeremiah never calls the successor 
 of Jehoiakim Jehoiachin, but onlj' by his origi- 
 nal personal name of Jeconiah or Coniah. Comp. 
 ver. 24. — King of Judah is in apposition to 
 Shallum, since it was only this name which 
 
 needed further definition. — 'Who reigned, etc. 
 Jehoahaz, although the younger son (comp. 2 
 Ki. xxiii. 31 with 36), was raised to the throne 
 by the people (ver. 30), his elder brother Elia- 
 kim being passed over, and the rights of the 
 primogeniture disregarded, most probably on ac- 
 count of Eliakim's character, which Jeremiah 
 afterwards portrays in such dark colors. Elia- 
 kim does not seem to have submitted with a good 
 will. He threw himself into the arms of the 
 Egyptians. By the favor of Pharaoh Necho he 
 became king in his brother's place, which posi- 
 tion however he had to purchase by a tribute, 
 which was very oppressive to the people (2 Ki. 
 xxiii. 33-35). In Riblah Jehoahaz was taken 
 prisoner, whether enticed thither, or in some 
 other way, must remain undecided. He was 
 then taken to Egypt and from that time nothing 
 more is known of him. Comp. 2 Chron. xxxvi. 
 1 sqq. ; Ezek. xix. 3, 4. — On Pharaoh Necho 
 comp. the Encyclopaedias. 
 
 c. Prophecy, respecting the person of Jehoiakim. 
 XXII. 13-19. 
 
 13 Woe unto him that buildeth his house by injustice, 
 And his upper chambers by unrighteousness ; 
 
 Who uses his neighbor's service for nothing, 
 And payeth him not his wages !^ 
 
 14 Who saith : I will build me a wide house,'^ 
 And roomy upper chambers !' 
 
 And breaks out himself windows,* 
 
 Ceils it with cedar and paints it with vermillion.^ 
 
 15 Wilt thou be a king, because thou makest a show with cedars ? 
 Thy father, did he not eat and drink, 
 
 And execute justice and righteousness? 
 Then it was well with him. 
 
 16 He procured justice for the poor and the humble. 
 Then it was well with him. 
 
 Was not this*^ the fruit of knowing me ? saith Jehovah. 
 
 17 For thine eyes and thy heart are directed only to thy advantag6» 
 And to the blood of the innocent, to shed it. 
 
 And to oppression and violence,' to practise them. 
 
 18 Therefore thus saith Jehovah concerning Jehoiakim, 
 The son of Josiah, king of Judah. 
 
 They shall not mourn for him (saying), 
 Alas ! my brother ! Alas ! sister ! 
 They shall not mourn for him (saying), 
 Alas ! Lord ! Alas ! his majesty ! 
 
 19 With the burial of an ass shall he be buried ; 
 Dragged and cast out far from the gates of Jerusalem. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 13.— S|'i)=nSj'£J, wages (Lev. xix. i:! ; Ps. ci.x. 20 ; Isa. xl. 10 ; xlix. 4). Comp. Job vH. 2. 
 
 a Ver. 14.— nno no' Comi). HHO 'tyjN (Numb. xiii. 2), or HID (Isa. xlv. i4) [literally : a house of extensions'!. 
 
 .. . _ ^ . 
 
 * Ver. 14.— D'nnO. 'fiis vorlial fiinii liero only. The Kal of this verb, denomin., 1 Sam. xvi. 23; Job xxxii. 20, U 
 the sensi- of " tu l^i- airy, light." Airy iliaiuber3=lofty, roomy. 
 
CHAP. XXII. 13-19. 
 
 201 
 
 * Ver. 14. — The form ' Jwn (Kamets on account of the pause) is not sufficiently accounted for either as plural (Qesen.), 
 
 or as dual termination (Ew., § 177, a ; Ges., ed. Roediger, g 88, 1, Anm.l, coll. g 87, 1, c), or as an adjective form (comp. 
 
 •>^^2, Isa. xxxii. 5, 7, Botticher). As a suffix form it does not give a satisfactory meaning. Olshausen, J 111, c. Anm., is 
 
 of opinion that D' Jl /P is to be restored. But it is more natural, with J. D. Michaelis, Hitzig, Gaab, Meier, to connect 
 
 the following ) with the word and to read VJ1 7n. — Instead of ?."l£JO we must then read |13D. corresponding to the following 
 
 T - It It 
 
 niU/O- Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 93, e. The manner of writing U2D might arise the more easily, as in the six passages where 
 - T It 
 
 the word occurs in the Old Testament five have the passive part, in Kal. (Deut. xxxiii. 21 ; 1 Ki. vii. 3, 7 ; Hagg. 1. 4, and the 
 text), and of these again there are two which contain the words 11X3 \2D^ (1 Ki- vii. 3, 1 ). As Jeremiah evidently alludes 
 
 V •.* T ' '■. T : 
 to the erections of Solomon, it was natural to seek also this literal agreement. The radical signification of 1^0 [comp. 
 
 f 3V and ?3jy, Deut. xxxiii. 19 ; ny3D> Jon. i. 5, a ship with a deck in distinction from an open boat ; ?£)D, cp.iUng, 1 Ki. 
 
 vi. 15, in distinction from ^p"lp, fioor ; □'J^SD D'i^S, ceiled houses, as opposed to y\jy n'3, Hagg. i. 4] is certainly to 
 
 CMer ; yet whether merely the roofing is meant, or also the clothing of the walls with cedar-wood (which is also a cover- 
 ing) appears to mo doubtt'dl. 
 
 5 Ver. 14. — liytJ' is found also in Ezek. xxiii. 14. According to the Vulgate, sinopis, i. e. rubrica Sinopenais ; LXX., 
 
 ** T 
 
 /LttATOs=red, vermillion ; KiMCHi, cinnabaris, minium. 
 
 " Ver. 16. — On the neuter rendering of XTI) which besides appears here to be attracted by HJ^H, comp. Naegelsd. Gr., 
 I 60, 6, 6. 
 
 ^ Ver. 17. — HV-T^O, from Vn=n2f Ti crushing [comp. Olsh., S. 386], occurs in this sense here only. It is not to be 
 
 confounded with nVIIO, cursus, viii. 6; xxiii. 10 ; 2 Sam. xviii. 27. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The prophet cries, Woe to Jehoiakim, the king 
 of Judah, who unlike his father Josiah, ruled 
 despotically and oppressed the people, especially 
 in behalf of his fine architecture (vers. 13, 14). Is 
 the kingdom of heaven founded on cedar-beams? 
 asks Jeremiah. Josiah knew a better founda- 
 tion. He ate and drank indeed, but he practised 
 justice and righteousness. Then it was well, 
 and it was evident that to know the Lord was 
 true prosperity (vers. 15, 16). Jehoiakim, a 
 genuine despot, had only his own advantage in 
 view, and to this end practised violence and the 
 shedding of innocent blood (ver. 17). Therefore 
 he will perish miserably, unwept, dragged and 
 cast out like an ass, his corpse will lie far from 
 Jerusalem (vers. 18, 19). — This declaration must 
 have been addressed to Jehoiakim as the reign- 
 ing king, for he is not only called king (ver. IH), 
 but Josiah's reign is referred to as past and the 
 end of Jehoiakim's as future. Thus this pro- 
 phecy pertains to the reign of Jehoiakim, and 
 since there is no mention of the Chaldeans, and 
 Jehoiakim appears to be in full and undisturbed 
 exercise of his desi^otism, to the beginning of it, 
 i.e., before the crisis of the fourth year (chap. 
 
 XXV.). 
 
 Vers. 13 and 14. Woe unto him . . . vyith 
 vermillion. Comp. llab. ii. 12; Miu. iii. 10. — ■ 
 Who usetli, p/c. Comp. XXV. 14; xxvii. 7 ; xxx. 
 8, etc. — And breaks out, etc. ^Tp is to tear to 
 
 pieces, t(3 cut up of garments (Gen. xxxvii. 29, 34) 
 of bodies (by wild beasts, Hos. xiii. 8) of a book 
 (Jer. xxxvi. 23). In Jer. iv. 30 it is used of the 
 paint which makes the eyes look as if they wore 
 torn open, i. e., larger. Ii the sense of tearing 
 open, it seems to be used here, only that the tear- 
 ing seems to be effected not by painting, but by 
 breaking through. 
 
 Vers. 15, 16. Wilt thou be a king . . . 
 saith Jehovah. The pi-ophet tells the king 
 that not splendid buildings are the foundation of 
 a kingdom, but righteousness, and jDroves this to 
 him by the example of his father Josiah. Comp. 
 Prov. xiv. 34; xvi. 12; xx. 28; xxv. 5; xxix. 
 14.— Makest a show, etc. (nX3 mnn::. On 
 
 the verbal form. Comp. Olsh., \ 255, a). The 
 words have been strangely declared by many to 
 be meaningless. But the meaning which the 
 word has in xii. 5 (where alone it occurs), is 
 equally appropriate here. There it is undoubtedly 
 xmulari, to vie, (to heat one's self, to be zealous, 
 from nin to gloio. Comp. Neh. iii. 20), and is 
 
 connected with nx^ with, for the designation of 
 the relation to a rival. Here it is not said, with 
 whom Jehoiakim vies. That is a matter of 
 course : He vies with all those who have also 
 built cedar palaces, whether they were prior, 
 contemporaneous, or subsequent to him. It is 
 however said, whereby he seeks to surpass them, 
 in nN3, nX, cedar, being taken generally, as in 
 
 ver. 14. — Did he not eat, etc. Josiah enjoyed 
 life also, he was no ascetic. But he did not sacri- 
 fice his duty and conscience to the pleasures of 
 life, but practised the highest duty of a ruler, 
 righteousness, in a manner pleasing to God. 
 Thus he laid a secure foundation, and his rule 
 was a prosperous one. — Was not this the fruit 
 refers not to procured justice, but to it v^as 
 ■well with him. For that the knowledge of 
 Jehovah (the True) includes the practice of right- 
 eousness, Jehoiakim did not probably deny. But 
 he did deny, if not in thesi, yet inpraxi, that the true 
 living knowledge of Jehovah ensures the desired 
 satisfaction to a prince. Accordingly XTI, this, 
 is predicate, ^1 ni^^n, knowing, subject. 
 
 Vers. 17-19. For thine eyes . . . gates of 
 Jerusalem. — For refers to a thought to be .sup- 
 plied: Not so thou, for, e^c— Blood of the in- 
 nocent. Comp. Deut. xix. 13; 2 Kings xxiv. 4. 
 — Alas ! my brother, etc. The prophet quotes 
 tlie verba ipsissima of the usual wail for the dead. 
 II Mice the apparently unsuitable Alas! Sis- 
 ter ! He distinguishes the wail of the relatives 
 (comp. 1 Kings xiii. 30), and that of the sub- 
 jects (comp. xxxiv. 5) Tin of the highest royal 
 majesty, comp. Ps. cxlviii. 18; 1 Chrou. xxix. 2-5. 
 
 Vsr. 10. Dragged. Comp. xv. 3. — Far from. 
 
 etc. riNino as a collective idea, is the accusative 
 T : T-- , 
 
 governed by '^^v'H. The place of casting away 
 i«, according to a well-known idiom, designated 
 as <ine presenting itself from far beyond the gates 
 
202 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 of Jerusalem. Comp. Exeg. renis. on xx. 17; 
 Naegelsb. Gr., § 112, 5 d. — As to the fulfilment 
 of the prophecy, it should first be remarked, that 
 the latter is repeated in other words in xxxvi. 
 30. The historical accounts touching the end of 
 Jehoiakim are very scanty. In 2 Kings xxiv. 6 
 we read only, "So Jehoiakim slept with his 
 fathers." This expression indicates nothing 
 concerning the burial, which is the more sur- 
 prising, as the book of Kings elsewhere always 
 designates the place particularly. We are not 
 justified in casting doubt on the statement in 2 
 Chron. xxxvi. 6, that Nebuchadnezzar bound Je- 
 hoiakim with two chains to take him to Babylon. 
 on the ground that the Chronicler transferred 
 what from ver. 6 onwards relates to Jehoiachin. 
 to his predecessor (Graf). For this statement 
 does not contradict that of the book of Kings. 
 According to this also (xxiv. 1), Nebuchadnezzar 
 went up against Jehoiakim. The book of Kings 
 does not expressly say that at this time he carried 
 
 away the vessels from the temple, but the case, 
 as related in Chronicles, is in itself probable. It 
 is here said that Nebuchadnezzar carried ofif sim- 
 ply " the vessels of the house," etc., while in con- 
 nection with Jehoiachin, he carried off "the 
 goodly vessels," etc. If then the account in 
 Chronicles is not inauthentic, it affords sufiicient 
 data for the fulfilment of the prophecy in the 
 text. Since Chronicles does not state that Je- 
 hoiakim was brought to Babylon, but only that 
 Nebuchadnezzar bound him to take him mitlier, 
 it is quite possible that he died on the way, and 
 endured the sad fate prophesied in the text. We 
 need not then assume either that Jehoiakim was 
 taken from his grave, after the capture of the 
 city under Jehoiachin, dragged through the gate 
 and cast out, or that having died on the way, his 
 body was delivered up by the Chaldeans for 
 sepulture (VAiHiNQERin Herzoq, R.-Enc. VI., S. 
 790). 
 
 d. The consequences to the people. 
 XXII. 20-23. 
 
 20 Go up to Lebanon and cry/ 
 
 And in Bashan lift up thy voice and cry from Abarim, 
 That all thy lovers are broken in pieces. 
 
 21 I spoke to thee in thy prosperity, — 
 Thou saidst, I will not hear. 
 
 This was thy manner from thy youth, 
 That thou heardest not my voice. 
 
 22 The wind shall depasture all thy pastors, 
 And thy lovers shall go into captivity ; 
 Then shalt thou be put to shame,* 
 And confounded for all thy wickedness. 
 
 23 Thou that sittest on Lebanon, 
 That nestlest in cedars,^ 
 
 How dost thou groan* when pains come upon thee, 
 Pangs^ as of a parturient ! 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 20.— On tliu form 'p^'i*^, comp. Olsh., § 65 h, and § 234, e. 
 
 2 A'er. 22.— ■'ty^jT IX ''3. '3 isploonastic. Comp. ii. 35 ; Naegelsb. (?r., § 109, la. 
 
 3 Ver. 23.— On the forms T^^'C)^ iind 'PJipO. comp. rems. on x. 17. Yet it should be observed that in the latter pai- 
 Bage the Keri reads r\3i:/r, wliilc in this pi. ice wo niuiit read pJJp:D, FI^D''- The latter forms are not impossible (comp. 
 mS\ Gen. xvi. 11 ; Ju J. xiii. 5, 7, certainly in a standing formula;, imt are callod forth here only by the proximately stand- 
 ing iljnj, which, however, should not be confounded, as 2 P. Sing. Fern. Perf., with those participial forms. 
 
 < Ver. 23.— 'jljnj. On the termination, comp. rems. on ii. 20; iii. 5. The form, as it stands, is Niph. of Mn (comp. 
 
 Olsh. S. 593). But since a Niphal of Jjn to he kind, gracious, nowhere else occurs, must modern euiunieiitaturs suppose that 
 
 it is written for r\n J3. and this for j">n J >?J C'roui n JX to sic/h, to groan). Yet Fuerst is of opinion that a root MP niay ba 
 
 assumed, parallel to the Arabic /mTwia, to f//-oan, to siV//i, from which fli^n, Job xix. 17 and our pjnj are derived. The 
 
 latter plan would eertainly be more simple than the assumption of a double change of consonants. The decision is still to 
 be cxi)ect"d. . 
 
 6 Ver. :i3.— 7'n. Comp. vi. 24^- 
 
CHAP. XXII. 20-2S. 
 
 2U-5 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The people are next addressed, — after the king. 
 They have harmonized too well with their pas- 
 tors in worldly lust and pride, they must then 
 share their fate. It is evidently this thought of 
 the agreement of the people with such princes as 
 Jehoiakim, which is prominent. Dwelling on 
 Lebanon and making nests among cedars (ver. 
 23) pleased them, however displeasing the ser- 
 vice inight be to those who were compelled to 
 render it (vers. 13-15). The passage is thus 
 connected i ith the preceding, (comp. vers. 20 
 and 23, uuu vers. 6, 7 and vcbs. 13-15). The 
 train of thought is as follows: — The people of 
 Israel are required to announce from the highest 
 summits of the mountains, bordering on their 
 country, the fall of their lovers (ver. 20). For 
 he who will not hear must feel. Thus it must be 
 with Israel, who from his youth has never listened 
 to the voice of the Lord (ver. 21). When then 
 the pastors of Israel are blown away by the storm 
 and their lovers are gone into captivity, Israel 
 will expiate his wickedness in deep shame (ver. 
 22), and groan for his pride in profound an- 
 guish, like a woman in travail (ver. 23). 
 
 Vers. 20, 21. Go up . . . my voice. Leba- 
 non, Bashan and Abarim, are named as the 
 highest summits of the mountains bordering on 
 Palestine. — Go up on Lebanon forms an ironi- 
 cal antithesis to that sittest on Lebanon. 
 The people now proudly dwelling in cedars on 
 Lebanon shall in the future mount on Lebanon 
 (in the proper sense) to lament — an ascent which 
 is really a descent. Bashan stands for the moun- 
 tain of Bashan (Ps. Ixviii. 15), i. e., Hermon. 
 On Abarim with Mt. Nebo, comp. Numb. xxi. 11 ; 
 xxvii. 12; Deut. xxxii. 49; Raumek, Faldst., S. 
 72. Israel is to raise his cry of lamentation from 
 the bordering mountains that his shame and 
 the conqueror's glory might be widely manifest 
 as a terror to others. — All thy lovers must, 
 according to the connection, mean the kings. 
 For 1, it is inconceivable that thy pastors in 
 ver. 22, are not the same as thy lovers, ibid. 
 The former, however, are unquestionably the 
 kings (xxiii. 1-8). 2. The very punishment in- 
 flicted on the kings, affected the people them- 
 selves immediately. Hence the humiliating la- 
 ment to which they are summoned in vers. 20-23. 
 3. The punishment of the pastors and lovers is 
 the same which was announced to Jehoiakim in 
 
 vers. 18, 19. To the objection that a similar use 
 of the word "lovers," cannot be produced, it may 
 be replied that it is an unjustifiable demand, to 
 require a proof of every special application of a 
 meaning admitted in itself. 3nX0 means (he 
 lover ; this is sufficient. It cannot be doubted that 
 this in and of itself, might be said of kings, in 
 reference to their people. The only question is, 
 whether this mode of expression can be shown to 
 be appropriate in particular cases. This is, how- 
 ever, the case here. For here the prophet (comp. 
 ver. 2) announces the judgment lo the people, 
 because they sympathize with the sin of the king, 
 both suffering and promoting it. When there is 
 such concert in wickedness between prince and 
 people, the prince may be named the paramour, 
 unchaste lover (and this is the specific meaning 
 of 3nND. Comp. Ezek. xvi. 33, 3G, 37; xxiii. 5, 
 9, 22; Hos. ii. 7, 9, 12, 14, 15), of his people. 
 Comp. besides Lam. i. 19. — Prosperity. The 
 
 plural nilhjE' is found here only. Since the 
 singular=r/'c/i«7as, rerum status securus atque secun- 
 dus (comp. Ps. cxxii. 7 ; Prov. i. 32; xvii. 1, etc.), 
 the plural is=res secundse, prosperous, quiet, se- 
 cure relations. So long as these lasted, Israel 
 would know nothing of obedience to the voice of 
 his God. Comp. ii. 25-28.— This was thy man- 
 ner, etc. Comp. ii. 2, 23, 33, 36 ; Ezek. xxiii. 3. 
 Vers. 22, 23. The wind ... of a parturi- 
 ent. The pastors are the leaders of the people, 
 
 especially the princes. In this sense is D';^*■♦> 
 also found in x. 21 ; xxiii. 1-8 ; 1. 6. As the 
 pastor is behind his flock to drive it, so the storm 
 is behind the pastors to sweep them away. Comp. 
 iv. 11, 12; xiii. 24; Hos. iv. 19.— Thy wick- 
 edness. Comp. ii. 19, iii. 2; iv. 18: xi. 15. — 
 According to the sense, ver. 23 is a further de- 
 velopment of thou Shalt be put to shame, 
 ver. 22. For the shame of the people will ap- 
 pear the more distinctly, the more proudly and 
 hecurely they now live as on Lebanon. This is, 
 evidently intended in a double sense ; (a) as an 
 emblem of proud, unapproachable exaltation 
 (comp. remarks on ver. 6) ; (6) as an allusion to 
 the cedar-houses, into which they had brought 
 the "glory of Lebanon" (Isa. Ix. 13), so that 
 Jerusalem, in a certain respect, is like Lebanon. 
 For as on this mountain the birds make theii 
 nests in the cedars, so the princes of Judah built 
 their nests of the cedars -oi Lebanon. 
 
204 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 e. Prophecy relating to the person of Jehoiachin. 
 
 a. Before the Deportation. 
 
 XXII. 24-27. 
 
 24 As I live, saith Jehovah, though Coniah,* 
 The son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, 
 Were the signet ring upon my right hand, 
 Yet would I pluck thee thence.* 
 
 25 And I give thee into the hand of them that seek thy life, 
 And into the hand of those before whom thou fearest. 
 Even into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar, king of Babylon, 
 And into the hand of the Chaldeans. 
 
 26 And I cast thee forth, and thy mother that bare thee, 
 Into another country,' where ye were not born ; 
 And there ye shall die. 
 
 27 But to the land whither their soul desires to return,* 
 Thither shall they not return. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 2^.— The abbreviation ^iT J3 is found in Jeremiah here and in xxxvii. 1 only. Henostenberg Is of opinion that 
 by striking out the ■" the word takes a future meaning. But this is contained not merely in the '' but in the vowel also : 
 Perf. }3, Imperf. \iy (Job xxxi. 15) from which, in a double closed syllable and with the accent moved on, is formed ~p]- 
 The meaning of the perfect (Jehovah stands fast) also would be no less comforting than that of the future : Jehovah will 
 
 2 Ver.' 24.— On the form "IJpnX, comp. Olsh., § 68 d. coll. 97, a ; Ew. § 250, b. [Gesen. Gr., § 105, 6.— S. R. A.] 
 
 8 Ver. 26.— If the twice repeated V"lNn~bj^ (vers. 27 and 28) has not occasioned the article before VIXi the case ia 
 
 {Uialogous to the n^^JJ !3Jn, which see. Comp. also xvi. 13. 
 T • : T I •.-.• - 
 
 * Ver. 27.— '■I D'NE'JD. Comp. xliv. 14; Deut. xxiv. 15. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Jehovah swears by His life, that though Jehoia- 
 chin, the king of Judah, were the signet-ring on 
 His right hand, yet He would tear it off (ver. 24), 
 give him into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar (ver. 
 25), and hurl him forth, together with his mother, 
 into a foreign land. There they shall die (ver. 
 26) and never return to the home for which they 
 have so longing a desire (ver. 27). It is evident 
 that this utterance is addressed to Jehoiachin 
 during his reign. He is addressed as king; 
 IS'oijuchadnezzar stands menacingly in the vici- 
 nity ; the captivity is still future. 
 
 Ver. 24. As I live . . . thence. King Je- 
 hoiachin, Jehoiakim's son and successor, who 
 however reigned only three months (2 Kings xxiv. 
 8; three months and ten days, 2Chron. xxxvi.1)), 
 appears under the name of Jeconiah also in 
 xxiv. 1; xxvii. 20; xxviii. 4; xxix. 2; 1 Chron. 
 iii. 16, 17: comp. Esth. iii. 6. I believe that the 
 abbreviation here denotes a disparaging Ireatmunt 
 of the royal name. Somewhat of the feeling 
 expressed in ver. 28 maybe traced in it: "Is 
 not this man Coniah a despised broken vessel?" 
 — Since moreover Jeremiah never calls this king 
 
 Jehoiachin (JO'IH', he is so called only in Iii. 31), 
 
 it is possible that Jeconiah was his proper, origi- 
 nal name, and Jehoiachin only supplementary, as- 
 sumed during his brief reign. Although Jere- 
 miah acknowledges him as king, he guards 
 against using a name expressing a false arbi- 
 trary hope, as he also retains the original per- 
 sonal name Shallum, instead of the inappropri- 
 ately chosen royal name of Jehoahaz (xxii. 11). 
 — Though Coniah . . . vreie, etc. If it were 
 not for rrri' (imperfect) I should be disposed to 
 
 render in the sense of although he is. But DX 
 with the imperfect cannot possibly be taken 
 otherwise than in the sense of a conditional sen- 
 tence. I do not think that we can regard the 
 signet-ring here as a symbol of power, i. e. as a 
 sign of investiture with royal authority. (Comp. 
 Gen. xli. 42; Esth. iii. 10; viii. 2). for in this 
 sense Jeconiah was really a signet-ring. But 
 the signet is here only a jewel, a costly valuable 
 ornament (Song of Sol. viii. 6). The Lord would 
 therefore say : i^s I would pluck away the dearest 
 jewel from which 1 had never parted hitherto, 
 were it become bad, useless, therefore unworthy 
 of me, so must I reject Jeconiah, as one who is 
 despicable, useless, unworthy, even though he 
 were the signet-ring on my right hand, which he 
 is not. DN is here as in Ps. cxxxix. 8, d; Am, 
 
 ix. 2-4; Isa. x. 22; Ob. 4. 
 
CHAP. XXII. 28-30. 
 
 20:. 
 
 Vers. 25-27. And I give thee unto the 
 hand . . . they not return. Comp. xix. 7 ; 
 xxi. 7 ; xxxiv. 20, 21. — And thy mother. She 
 
 was Nehushta, the daughter of Elnathan, 2 Ki. 
 xxiv. 8. Comp. xiii. 18. 
 
 28 
 
 29 
 
 30 
 
 /?. After the Deportation. 
 
 XXII. 28-30. 
 
 Is then this man Coniah a despised broken vessel ? 
 Or a vessel wherein is no pleasure? 
 Why are they then hurled forth, he and his seed? 
 And cast into the land which they know not? 
 O land, land, land, hear Jehovah's word ! 
 Thus saith Jehovah : "Write ye this man childless, 
 As one who has no prosperity in the days of his life; 
 For not one of his seed shall succeed 
 To sit upon the throne of David and rule again over Judah. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 These words were spoken after Jeconiah had 
 been carried away captive. Compare " I cast 
 thee forth," ver. 26, with "hurled forth" and 
 "cast" in ver. 28. Hence Jeconiah himself is 
 not addressed, but the prophet speaks of him to 
 others. He first sets forth how in the fate of 
 Jeconiah the divine judgment of his unworthi- 
 ness is manifested. The antithesis is here plainly 
 felt to the " signet-ring on my right hand," ver. 
 24, and that in this comparison there was a cut- 
 ting irony (ver. 28). Thereupon the prophet 
 addresses the land directly, solemnly repeating 
 yiX thrice (ver. 29), to announce concerning it 
 
 the fatal declaration of Jehovah, that no descen- 
 dant of Jehoiachin will any more sit on the 
 throne of David. 
 
 Vers. 28-30. Is then . . . over Judah. 
 To the question of ver. 28 an affirmative an- 
 swer is expected. Comp. rems. on vii. 9; xii. 9, 
 coll. ii. 14. On the abbreviated name Coniah, the 
 object of which comes out here with especial dis- 
 tinctness, comp. rems. on ver. 24. — Childless. 
 Jeconiah was eighteen years old when he be- 
 came king (2 Kings xxiv. 8), and it is expressly 
 stated that he had wives. That he had some ofl"- 
 spring is therefore not impossible, and is not 
 even excluded by ver. 30. But even if he had 
 no children, there was other " roj^al seed" 
 (Dan. i. 3). — Into the land. Comp. ver. 26; xvi. 
 13. The article is explained by the circumstance 
 that this unknown land at the same time hovered 
 before the prophet as one often mentioned and 
 definitely designated. — The repetition of land is 
 to call attention to the fact that the prophet has 
 
 somewhat unusually important to say with re- 
 spect to the country. This is the announcement 
 that none of the offspring of Jeconiah should 
 possess the throne of David, by which it is at the 
 same time indicated that an important change 
 would take place in the throne itself, i. e. tbat it 
 would cease and give place to the throne of a 
 universal empire. — Write. The prophet has evi- 
 dently in view those who are entrusted with the 
 keeping of the family record (comp. Saalschuetz, 
 3I0S. Rechl. S. 61 ; Ezek. xiii. 9 ; coll. Jer. xvii. 
 13; Ps. Ixix. 29; Isai. iv. 3). When it is said 
 that they are to write him as childless, it is said 
 only that he is to pass for such, not that he was 
 really so. In 1 Chron. iii. 17, 18, his sons are 
 at least mentioned. Whether they were natural 
 offspring (observe the phrase I'DNrT'p'', the 
 
 imprisoned Jeconiah [A. V. : Jeconiah, Assir, 
 etc. — S. 11. A.]) or only legal (by a Levirate 
 marriage), is doubtful, comp. Ebkard, Kritik 
 der eo. Gesch. S. 201, sqq. — As one, etc. This 
 sentence is subordinate to the preceding, as ex- 
 planation and more exact definition: Jeconiah is 
 called childless, because his whole life through 
 he will be an unprosperous man. This will be 
 manifest, in that he will have seed, but no suc- 
 cessor. None of his descendants will succeed 
 to his throne. Zedekiah was Jeconiah's uncle 
 and the last king of Judah of the family of David. 
 The text accordingly rather favors than opposes 
 the hypothesis that Jeconiah had natural off- 
 spring. — Shall succeed to sit (2^^ Tn'S'')-^ 
 he will not have success or prosperity, as sitting, 
 etc. We should say: he will not have the good 
 fortune to sit, etc. 
 
20u THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 /. GoQclusion and Consolation, in a glance at the just and the justifier 
 
 xxm. 1-8. 
 
 1 Wo, pastors,^ who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture," saith Jehovah! 
 
 2 Therefore thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel, concerning the pastors,^ that pas- 
 
 ture my people : 
 Yg have scattered my flock, and dispersed and not visited them. 
 Behold I visit* upon you the evil of your doings, saith Jehovah. 
 
 3 And I will gather the remnant of my flock 
 
 Out of all the countries whither I have dispersed them. 
 
 And bring them back to their field ;* and they shall be fruitful and increase. 
 
 4 And I awaken over them pastors who shall pasture them. 
 And they shall fear no more nor be dismayed;® 
 Neither shall they be missing,^ saith Jehovah. 
 
 5 Behold the days are coming, saith Jehovah, 
 That I awake unto David a righteous scion. 
 
 Who shall reign as king and shall prosper,^ > 
 
 And exercise judgment and righteousness in the land. 
 
 6 In his days will judah be saved, 
 And Israel dwell securely ; 
 
 And this will be the name by which they will call' him [Israel], 
 Jehovah our righteousness. 
 
 7 Therefore, behold, the days are coming that they shall no more say, 
 
 As Jehovah liveth, who brought the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt, 
 
 8 But, as Jehovah liveth, who brought and led the seed of the house of Israel out 
 
 of the north country, 
 And out of all lands, whither I had dispersed them ; 
 And they shall dwell in their own land. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 1. — There is nothing remarkable in the absence of tlie article with D'J^'^. for this is generally the case with 'IH- 
 
 It occurs with the article in seven places only : Isa. v. 20 ; x. 1 ; xxix. 15 ; xxxi. 1 ; Am. v. 18 ; vi. 1 ; Hab. ii. 6. Of these 
 places, the first six have the plural, one the singular, but in a collective signification. 
 
 2 Ver. 1.— JT'J^IO may designate both the act (Hos. xiii. 6j the place (Isa. xlix. 9), and the object (Jer. x. 21 ; xxv. 36) 
 
 of the pasturing. Hence ''n'y'lD~iXV (comp. Ezek. xxxiv. 31 ; Ps. Ixxiv. 1 ; Ixxix. 13 ; c. 3) may mean both : the flock 
 which I pasture (as chief shepherd), and : the flock which feeds on my pasturage. The sense is essentially the same. 
 
 3 Ver. 2. — Here D'j^T has the article, because the shepherds already mentioned (ver. 1) are meant. 
 
 * Ver. 2. — "1p3 is here used for the sake of a paronomasia tw bonam (comp. Ps. viii. 5 ; Exod. iii. 16) and in malam par- 
 
 tern, (comp. v. 9; xxv. 12; xxvii. 8; Hos. i. 4) comp. Zech. x. 3. 
 
 •> Ver. 3. — f ri'lj. Sing. Comp. Olsh., g 165,/. Since it is sheep which are spoken of, H' J here as in 2 Sam. vii. 8 ; Isa. 
 
 Ixv. 10; Jer. xxxiii. 12; Ezek. xxv. 5 ^ po«ct«M», place of pasturage, field. The fem. suflix is remarkable. Comp. Gen. 
 XXX. 39 ; Naeoelsb. Or., g 60, 4. 
 
 « Ver. 4.-^71; . Comp. xvii. 18. 
 
 ' Ver. 4. — np3''. This word is frequently nsed of missing, scattered or robbed sheep, 1 Sam. xxv. 7, 15, 21 ; comp. 1 
 Sam. XX. 18. ,1 
 
 8 Ver. 5. — boJiTT is best taken here in a double sense : rem bene, i. e., prudenter et/eliciter geret. Comp. rems. on x. 
 21; I.ia. Iii. 13. 
 
 » Ver. 6. — The reading IXTD' which is found in some Codd. is occasioned by the endeavor to obtain a designation of 
 
 the subject, perhaps also liy the rarer form of suffix. With respect to the former point the well-known idiom may be re- 
 ferred to, according to which the subject is usually wanting with Kip in the meaning " they call." Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., 
 
 tI t 
 \ 101, 2, b. With respect to the latter comp. IIos. viii. 3 ; Ps. xxxv. 8 ; Eccles. iv. 12 ; Olsh., ? 231, c. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This passage is in general suitably connected 
 with the entirety of the previous context, since 
 
 in relation to the previous specifications (xxii. 
 10-30), it may be regarded as a comprehensive 
 conclusion. But originally it formed a connected 
 whole only with xxii. 1-9; 13-23, since xxii. 10- 
 12 must have been inserted afterwards. Qoing 
 
CHAP. XXIII. 1-8. 
 
 207 
 
 down into the house of the king, who can have 
 been no other than Jehoiakim, Jeremiah iirst, in 
 xxii. 1-9, addressed an alternative to him, the 
 purport of which was such that servants and 
 people were also obliged pro rata to apply it to 
 themselves. For in vers. 13-19 he turned to the 
 king alone with an incisive speech of rebuke and 
 menace, to which was appended a singular one 
 addressed to I'he people (vers. 20-23). Finally, 
 in a grand survey, he contrasts with the deep 
 decline, effectuated by the wicked pastors (xxiii. 
 1, 2), the other extreme, the salvation to be im- 
 parted to the re-assembled people, in the distant 
 future, by the Messiah. The remnant restored 
 to their home shall again become a numerous 
 people (ver. 8). This people shall be fed in 
 blessing by shepherds appointed by the Lord 
 (ver. 4). In particular a " righteous scion," 
 sprung from the stock of David, shall rule as 
 king with wisdom and righteousness, to the 
 prosperity of Judah and Israel, — a king, whose 
 deepest significance for his people is expressed 
 in the wonderful name given to the people — 
 Jehovah our Righteousness (vers. 5-6). 
 Oaths will then no longer be taken by the name 
 of Jehovah, who brought Israel out of Egypt, 
 but by the name of Jehovah, who brought back 
 Israel from the north country to his native land 
 (vers. 7, 8). The same antithesis, between deep- 
 est impending ruin and highest glory to be expect- 
 ed in the distant future, was found also in ch. iii. 
 
 Vers. 1, 2. "Wo, Pastors . . . saith Jehovah. 
 As the sections xxii. 1-9; 13-23; xxiii. 1-8 con- 
 tain the discourse delivered in the house of the 
 king, this section is immediately attached to xxii. 
 13-23. Both sections begin with 'in. After the 
 alternative in xxii. 3-9 also the prophet pro- 
 nounces a double woe: first on the shepherds, i. e. 
 on the person of the king then reigning, then on 
 all which may be called bad shepherding. That 
 the kings are to be understood by the shepherds fol- 
 lows : 1. from the previously stated connection 
 of the discourse of which this passage forms a 
 part; 2. from the description of the conduct of 
 the bad shepherds (who destroy and scatter the 
 flock, etc., vers. 1, 2) which appears to produce 
 so much effect, both extensively and intensively, 
 that we can recognize it ohly as the action of 
 tliose who occupy the highest, most influential 
 positions; 3. from the antithesis of the good 
 shepherd, ver. 4, and of the righteous scion -of 
 David, ver. 5, in particular. For that beneficial 
 influence (ver. 4) can only be that of (he chief, 
 and in ver. 5 the "righteous scion" is directly 
 designated as king. They first corrupt the peo- 
 ple morally, and thus effect the external destruc- 
 tion which culminates in their dispersion, comp. 2 
 Kings xvii. 21-23; xxi. 10-12; xxiii. 26, 27; 
 Jer. XV. 4. 
 
 Vers. 3, 4. And I •will gather saith 
 
 Jehovah. Comp. xxix. 14; xxxi. 8-10; Mic. ii. 
 12; Ezek. xxxiv. 12. — The remnant, etc. On 
 this Hengstenberg remarks: "The gathering 
 being promised only to the remnant (comp. Is. x. 
 20; Rom. ix. 27) indicate'! that justice accoai- 
 panies mercy." — And they shall be fruitful, 
 etc. Comp. rems. on iii. Iti. In the following verse 
 it should first of all be observed that the prophet 
 lias in view two older prophecies: First the 
 'foundation-prophecy of the future glory of the 
 
 Davidic house in 2 Sam. vii. 12, where we read 
 the words, " I will set thy seed after thee." 
 The prophet's choice of this particular utter- 
 ance here and in ver. 5, could not have been 
 without the object of a double allusion to the 
 passage above quoted, and to the name of Jehoi- 
 akim. Since, this name (as well as the name 
 j''D''V^ is chosen undoubtedly with reference to 
 
 the passage mentioned, it was natural that the 
 prophet, thinking in joyful hope of that pro- 
 phecy, should at the same time remember the 
 contradiction, which prevailed between the pre- 
 sent and the promised Jehoiakim. The second 
 passage, to which Jeremiah more plainly alludes, 
 is his own utterance in iii. 15. He nuist have 
 been reminded of this the more readily that it re- 
 lates to the same future period. 
 
 Ver. 5. Behold the days ... in the land. 
 The connection of this verse with the previous one 
 is formed by behold the days. This expres- 
 sion does not refer to the difference in time. It 
 does not declare thatwhat isspokenof in ver. 5 will 
 take place after the events of ver. 4, but is anti- 
 thetic only to the present. — Pastors, etc., in ver. 
 4 is a figurative expression, which is explained 
 in ver. 5 in proper language. On the question 
 as to the relation of the singulars HDi', scion, 
 
 ^70, ki'ng, etc., to the plural Cl^'l, pastors, 
 
 there are three views. According to one WJJ'^ 
 
 is to be taken as a generic plural, which does 
 not exclude the possibility of one shepherd being 
 intended. Thus Hengstenberg. On the other 
 hand it is rightly objected that elsewhere Jere- 
 miah presents the prospect of a multiplicity of 
 rulers of the seed of David for the time of the 
 great restoration: xxxiii. 17, 18 — 
 
 " There shall not be want&ig to David a man, 
 
 Sitting on the throne of the house of Judah . . 
 
 And to the priests and levites shall not be 
 wanting a man. 
 
 Offering burnt-offerings," etc. 
 
 Ibid. ver. 22. " As the host of heaven cannot 
 be numbered 
 
 Nor the sand of the sea measured ; 
 
 So will I multiply the seed of David my servant, 
 
 And the Levites that minister to me." 
 
 Ibid. ver. 26. " If I have not appointed the 
 laws of heaven and earth; 
 
 Then also may I reject the seed of Jacob 
 
 And David my servant, 
 
 That I should not take of his seed to be 
 rulers (D'VkJ'D) 
 
 To the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob." 
 
 According to the second view the passages just; 
 quoted are regarded as forming the measure of 
 this, and accordingly the singular MOV, scion, 
 is taken in a collective sense. Graf, who 
 adopts this view, appeals (</) to the idiom, ac- 
 cording to which it always has a collective mean- 
 ing (Gen. xix. 25; Ps. Ixv. 1] ; Ezek. xvi. 7; 
 Isii. Ixi. 11): (b) to the idiom according to 
 which TH, David, and ~\]1 "13^ as much de- 
 signate the descendants of David, as 3pJ^''_; 
 
 Jacob, and ^p]^\ '"y^J^- tlie descendants of Ja- 
 cob: Jer. XXX. 9; Hos. iii. 5; Ezek. xxiv. 23, 
 24; xxxvii. 24, 25; xlv. 8; xlvi. 16, ooll. Jer. 
 
208 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 XXX. 10; xlvi. 27, 28; Isai. xliv. 1; xlv. 4; xlviii. 
 20, etc.— To this view it maybe objected that this 
 entirely ignores the fact that the Jews expected 
 ONE great deliverer and restorer of their State, 
 the Messiah. Comp. the article " Messias," by 
 Oehler in Herzog, R.-Enc. We can only treat 
 here of two points: 1. How is this passage related 
 to the expectation of a single great son of David? 
 2. If it is based on this idea, how is it to be recon- 
 ciled with the other that a number of princes of 
 David's line will rule over Israel? As to the 
 first question, I am of opinion that this passage 
 declares the unity of the Messiah, notwithstand- 
 ing that pastors preceding (ver. 4) intimates a 
 multiplicity. I therefore propose a third view, 
 
 taking D'^T in a plural sense, but noif, etc.^ 
 notwithstanding in the sense of unity. The 
 reasons for this are as follows: 1. If Jeremiah 
 wished to set forth a multiplicity, why did he 
 not continue in the plural? Why does he not 
 say "Who shall reign as kings?" HOV has, in 
 
 the comparatively few passages where it occurs, 
 a collective sense. But not necessarily. It is 
 germen, prolos in general, and may accordingly 
 designate as well a single individual as a num- 
 ber. If the prophet wished it to be taken in the 
 latter sense, and therefore as absolutely identi- 
 cal with D'J^^, he must have indicated this by 
 
 the plural. 2. Ezekiel and Zechariah, who, as is 
 acknowledged, refer to this passage, evidently 
 understood it in the sense of unity. Ezekiel says 
 expressly in xxxiv. 23, " And I will set up one 
 shepherd over them." • And Zechariah in iii. 8, 
 and vi. 12, used HD^f as a proper name, saying 
 
 (iii. 8): "For I bring my servant Zemach" 
 [The Branch] — and (vi. 12): " Behold a man, 
 Zemach his name, under whom it shall sprout." 
 As to the second question, previously raised, 
 the subjective conception of the prophet is to be 
 distinguished from the objective reality of the 
 fulfilment. To the prophets the pictures of the 
 future, which came within the circle of their 
 vision, contained by no means always sharply cir- 
 cumscribed and distinctly impressed forms (comp. 
 1 Pet. i. 11). These forms were as little born en- 
 tirely of the future, severed from the present. 
 Rather were they eternal ideas, which had de- 
 rived their body from the present. Of this kind 
 are most of the Messianic prophecies. In reality 
 Christ is adifferent king, priest and prophet, from 
 what the authors of Ps. ii. ; ex. ; Deut. xviii. con- 
 ceived, and yet His advent is the true fulfilment 
 of tliose prophecies. Thus Jeremiah also sees 
 together with the one grand form of the arch- 
 sheplierd, many others, whom he recognizes as 
 His seed. If the prophet conceived among his 
 ofl'spring of a successor, in the sense in which 
 successors of a no longer reigning prince are 
 spoken of, this must have been a point which re- 
 mained obscure to the subjective perception of 
 the prophet, — in a similar manner, as it may 
 have been dark to the prophet, how he could live 
 80 long, of whom it was said that He gave His 
 soul an offering for sin (Isai. liii. 10). Objec- 
 tively considered, even Jerome and Theodoret 
 understood the apostles by the many □"'^'^ — 
 an interpretation which is certainly exposed to 
 the objection of too great limitation. It would be 
 
 more appropriate, to consider, with others, that 
 we, so far as we are kv Xptaru, are not only Abra- 
 ham's seed (Gal. iii. 29) but also David's. We 
 are indeed a royal priesthood (1 Pet. ii. 9); and 
 He has made us not only priests but kings 
 ETTolr/aag av^mg jiaaikeiav koI ispelg, /cat (iaaiAEv- 
 ovaiv k:vl Tijg yf/g, Rev. v. 10, coll. i. 6). [Hen- 
 derson: "By the better shepherds whom Je- 
 hovah promises to place over His restored people, 
 I understand Zerubbabel, Ezra, Nehemiah, the 
 Maccabees, etc., under whose superintendenc« 
 and rule they were re-instated in their posses- 
 sions, and enjoyed protection against both in- 
 ternal and foreign enemies." — S. R. A.] If now 
 the inquiry is made, how the prophet came to 
 choose the expression npV, it vs-as long ago 
 pointed out by the Comm. that he had in mind 
 Isai. xi. 2; liii. 2. As there the sprouting forth 
 of a scion, from the apparently withered root of 
 the house of David, is announced, so here the 
 growth of a scion in the midst of a people, 
 gathered again after a long dispersion, and thus 
 about to enter upon a new national existence. 
 This conception appears also to form the basis 
 of the translation of the LXX., which translates 
 no^ here as in Zech. iii. 8 ; vi. 12, avaraki]. Comp. 
 especially koX vTroKaru^ev avrov avaTe?.€i, in the 
 passage last mentioned. — Justice or righteous- 
 ness is the chief quality of a good king accord- 
 ing to the Old Testament doctrine. Comp. Ps. xlv. 
 5, 7, 8; Ixxii. 1-4, 12-14; Ixxxii. 2-4; ci. 1-8.— 
 Hence righteous scion, of which the confirma- 
 tion in fact is declared in shall exercise 
 judgment. Comp. Ps. cxlvi. 7; ciii. 6, and the 
 remarks on vii. 5, 6; ix. 2.3. 
 
 Ver. 6. In his days .... our righteous- 
 ness. Comp. Deut. xxxiii. 28, 29, — Repetition of 
 our passage, xxxiii. Ki — Judah is ieni. as in 
 iii. 7; xiv. 2 ; xxxiii. IG; Lam. i. 3; Nali. ii. 1; 
 Mai. ii. 11. It is then equivalent to daughter 
 of Judah, Lam. ii. 2, 5. Comp. Naegelsb., O/. Ix. 
 4. — They will call him. According to the ex- 
 pbination prevalent even from antiquity, this re- 
 fers to righteous scion. But as Jeremiah is 
 his own best iuter23reter, the name must be re- 
 ferred to Israel. For in the parallel passage, 
 xxxiii. 16, where instead of "and Israel dwell 
 securely," we read " Jerusalem shall dwell se- 
 curely," the word he, in the latter clause of the 
 verse ("and this is the name by which he shall 
 be called") can refer to no other than Jerusalem. 
 Jehovah our Righteousness is not then the 
 name of the scion of David, but of the nation. 
 It is a symbolical surname, which is distinguished 
 from other names, in that it serves not for real 
 use, but only for objective characterization, an 
 ideal inscription, as it were. Hence this name 
 is also ascribed to an object, which already has a 
 name. For the nation is already called Israel, 
 but nevertheless it is to be called " Jehovah, etc." 
 The prophet does not mean that the old name is 
 to be changed into a new one; for the name does 
 not recur (except in the repetition of this pas- 
 sage, xx.xiii. 16) and the nation appears as before 
 under its old name, which is also a sacred, God- 
 given name. (Gen. xxxii. 28.) Jerusalem else- 
 where receives other names which are likewise 
 not intended for daily use: in Ezek. xlviii. 35, the 
 
 name n?3ty miT (The Lord is there) is attri 
 
 T |T '^ ' 
 
CHAP. XXIII. 9-15. 
 
 209 
 
 lluted to the city. In Isai. Ix. 14 we read " they 
 Bhall call thee The city of Jehovah, the Zion of 
 the Holy Oae of Israel." In a similar manner 
 Nathan gives his pupil Solomon the name Jedi- 
 diah, which he never bore in reality. With re- 
 spect to the name Emmanuel (Isai. vii. 14; viii. 
 8-10) the case appears to be the same. — Similar 
 in form are the names Jehovah-nissi (Exod. xvii. 
 15), .Jehovah-shalom (Jud. vi, 24), Jehovah- 
 jireh (Gen. xxii. 14). The LXX. makes a proper 
 name of it, 'IwcteJe/c. I suppose with Hkrmann 
 ( Gott. Weihn. Progr. 1752, comp. J. D. Michaelis, 
 Observ. S. 189) that it referred the passage to 
 the post-exilic restoration, and understood by 
 'l(j)cse6kK its representative, the high-priest Joshua, 
 the son of Jozedek, which it always pronounces 
 'luaedm {\Ugg. i. 1, 12; Ezr. iii. 2, 8; v. 2; Neh. 
 xii. 26). In favor also of this view is the 
 Jewish interpretation of the passage con- 
 cerning Zorubbabel, combated by Theodorbt 
 and El'.-^kbius [Dem. Ev., vii. 9), which seems 
 to be supported by the LXX. The strange 
 expression kv rolg npo<p(jTaig ( Theodoret : 
 avToq kv T. np., perhaps a trace of the final 
 syllable M, which is wanting in 'Iwcrede/c: Euseb. 
 'luaeSeKi/i) is also in its favor. It is indeed trans- 
 ferred from ver. 9, where it stands as a title, but 
 it is not impossible that the Alexandrian trans- 
 lators perceived in it a reference to the post- 
 exilic prophets, under whose co-operation Joshua 
 and Zerubbabel labored. The Syriac and Sym- 
 
 M.-VCHUS, moreover, read IJP.1^, for they translate 
 
 diKaiuaov rjuag. — If it is not tlie name of the Mes- 
 siah, but of the people, then of course all the 
 deductions are futile, which have been drawn 
 from it in support of the deity of the Messiah. 
 Only one thought remains, that Israel will be a 
 nation, that will have no other righteousness 
 than Jehovah's. Some would take plV exclu- 
 sively in the sense of "salvation" (Graf). 
 Without denying that it may have this meaning 
 (comp. Rems. on vii. 5 ; ix. 23 ; Isa. xlvi. 12, 
 
 etc.), I do not think that here l'\!J\ r\};wr\, n313 
 
 or any similar word would have done as well. 
 The prophet certainly chose pl2f not without 
 reason, i. e. not without regard to its specific 
 meaning. We are therefore justified in taking 
 it in the entire fulness of its verbal significance 
 as expressing the thought that Jehovah is His 
 people's righteousness and therefore their salva- 
 
 tion. The expression is thus one of those which 
 contain more than the prophet himself imagines, 
 and we may therefore find in it also an antithesis 
 to personal righteousness, which Israel thought 
 to obtain by the works of the law (Rom. ix. 31, 
 32 ; xi. 7), but did not succeed. It has been fur- 
 ther correctly remarked ( Vide Hengstenberg, 
 Christologi/ ad h. I.) that Zedekiah changed his 
 former name into this with reference to this pas- 
 •s.ige. Compelled by Nebuchadnezzar to assume 
 , mother name (2 Ki. xxiv. 17, comp. Keil on 
 xxiii. 34) he chose this, which may very well 
 ■iigiiify "Jehovah my Righteousness," and by 
 u'hich he expressed the presumptuous hope, that 
 Jeremiah's glorious promise would find in him 
 the beginning of its fulfilment — in which he ex- 
 dressed rather an irony than a glorification of 
 himself. 
 
 Vers. 7, 8. Therefore ... in their ow^n 
 land. These two verses are repeated with un- 
 essential alterations from xvi. 14, 15. They 
 stand in both places in a suitable connection, 
 and Jeremiah himself may here, as frequently, 
 have reproduced his own words spoken before. 
 The omission of these verses here by the LXX., 
 and their supplementation at the end of the 
 chapter, whereas ver. 6 closes with the words : 
 'lufTfrftK: Iv Tolc irpocprjTaLQ, I cannot, with HiTZiG 
 and Graf, regard as a proof that the two verses 
 were wanting in the Hebrew original of the 
 Translator. The admitted capricious arbitrari- 
 ness of this translator deprives his testimony of 
 all demonstrative force. The occasion of the 
 transposition may have been the circumstance 
 that the verses have in xvi. 14, 15 a mina- 
 tory, here a friendly, meaning, which led him to 
 think that they must be introduced in the same 
 conuectiou as in ch. xvi. This end he attained 
 by placing them at the close of the minatory 
 prophecy against the prophets. It should fur- 
 ther be remarked that both verses, in the posi- 
 tive part of their relative clauses, agree in part 
 verbatim with ver. 3, and in so far might be re- 
 garded as superfluous in this place. But th« 
 main emphasis is to be laid on the main propo- 
 sition, "they shall no more say, As Jehovah 
 liveth, etc., but: As Jehovah liveth," etc., and in 
 this sense they have the significance of a conclud- 
 ing doxology. The reduction of Israel from the 
 later exile will furnish a more glorious substra- 
 tum to the oath by the name of Jehovah. 
 
 2. Against the False Prophets (xxiii. 9-40. ). 
 a. The Blind Leaders of the Blind. 
 
 XXIII. 9-15. 
 
 9 Against the Prophets : — 
 
 Broken is my heart in my breast, all my bones quake,^ 
 I am become like a drunken man, and a man whom wine has overcome. 
 Because of Jehovah and because of his holy words. 
 10 For the land is full of adulterers. 
 
 (For on account of the curse'* the laud mourns, 
 14 
 
210 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 The pastures of the desert are dried up :) 
 
 Aud their course is become evil and their might not right. 
 
 11 For both prophet and priest are profane, 
 
 Even in my house have I found their wickedness, saith Jehovah, 
 
 12 Therefore their way shall be to them as slippery places in the dark; 
 They shall be driven^ i .a:, they fall therein; 
 
 For 1 shall bring calamity upon them in the year of their visitation, 
 Saith Jehovah. 
 X3 Also in the prophets of Samaria have I seen perversity.* 
 They prophesied" by Baal and led my people Israel astray. 
 
 14 But in the prophets of Jerusalem I saw what is horrible; 
 Adultery and dealing in falsehood, — 
 
 They strengthened the hands of the evil-doers, 
 That they did not turn*^ every one from his wickedness. 
 They are all become to me like Sodom, 
 And their inhabitants like Gomorrah. 
 
 15 Therefore saith Jehovah Zebaoth thus concerning the prophets : 
 Behold, I feed them with absinthe [wormwood], 
 
 And give them poison-water to drink. 
 
 For from the prophets of Jerusalem profanation has gone out over the whole land. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 9. — IBTT^. Kal here only. Elsewhere Piel only occurs ; Gen. i. 2 ; Deut. xxxii. 11. The radical meaning seemi 
 to be fiaccidus, dehilis, mollis fait. Comp. the Arabic rachapha^mollis, tenuis fuit, and Dm. 
 
 - Ver. 10. — The LXX., Syriac, and Arab, read H ?X instead of PI /N- So also Hitzig and Meier. H /X, however, 
 
 V TT TT 
 
 merely designates the effect as indirect, occasioned by the curse, with reference to Deut. xxviii. 15-68 ; xxix. 19-28. 
 3 Ver. VJ.. — !|n'T' from Hm. comp. Olshausen, g 265 e. 
 
 * Ver. 13. — n73n, insulsum, insipidum [unsavoriness]. Besides only in Job i. 22 ; xxir. 12. 
 
 r : ■ 
 5 Ver. 13.— IX^Ijn. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 23, Anm. 9 ; Ezek. xxxvii. 10. 
 
 » Ver. 14. — 13t^ ''n /D/. This construction is found besides only in xxvii. 18 ; Ezek. xiii. 3. In Ezek. xiii. 22, where 
 
 these words are quoted, we read ^•liy~'r\737, but we are not therefore to assume an error here. The finite verb is admissi 
 
 ble, because a condition, which actually existed, is to be designated. 
 
 EXEQETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The prophet begins by describing his feelings 
 at the reception of this revelation. His sensa- 
 tions vifere those of a man of broken heart, or 
 of a drunken man (ver. 9). By this introduction 
 we obtain a standard, by which to measure the 
 importance of the following passage. First the 
 moral condition of the people is described a3 
 very bad, especially from the prevalence of adul- 
 tery. (Punishment of this the prevalent drought) 
 (ver. 10). How could it be otherwise when the 
 spiritual leaders of the people, prophets and 
 priests were themselves profane men. who even 
 desecrated I lie sanctuary with their crimes? (ver. 
 11). Tlierefore in the corresponding period pun- 
 ishment must come upon them also (ver. 12). Even 
 the prophets in Samaria had led the people of 
 Israel astray by their scandalous behaviour (ver. 
 13). The prophets of .Jerusalem, however, had 
 in the point of popular seduction, accomplished 
 something truly horrible. Not only had they 
 goiKi before with their example of wickedness, 
 but had actually strengthened the evil-doers in 
 their wickedness and restrained them from 
 conversion, so that the nation had become to the 
 Lord like Sodom and Gomorraii (ver. 14). There- 
 fore, as the profaners of the land, they must be 
 given poison to drink and be fed with bitterness 
 'ver. 15). 
 
 Ver. 9. Against the prophets . . . holy 
 words. To connect, as indicated by the ac- 
 cents, broken with against the prophets, is 
 
 not grammatically impossible (comp. ex. gr. xxxi. 
 20), but not altogether appropriate in meaning. 
 For a broken heart does not signify anger or in- 
 dignation (which is the only state of mind Jere- 
 miah could be supposed to be in towards the false 
 prophets), but humiliation, anxiety, care. Comp. 
 Ps. xxxiv. 19; li. 19; Ix. 21; Isa. Ixi. 1. But 
 it becomes perfectly clear that we have here a 
 superscription before us, when we observe that 
 evidently the whole section, xxiii. 9-40, as re- 
 lating to the prophets, is opposed to the prece- 
 ding as relating to the kings, that the title conse- 
 quently states the main purport, not only of the 
 next verses, but of the whole following discourse. 
 Such superscriptions are moreover common in 
 the book of this prophet : xlvi. 2; xlviii. 1; xlix. 
 1, 7, 23, 28. — By holy Twords are meant the 
 revelation contained in what follows. What 
 shocked the prophet to such an unusual degree 
 was doubtless a glance granted him into the 
 depths of human depravity and on the other hnnd 
 of the ('iviiic wrsi'li. (Nirp. iv. 19; viii. 18sqq. 
 Vers. 10-12. For the land is full . . . visi- 
 tation, saith Jehovah. — For is causal. But 
 since tlu' reason ot the prophet's great shock is 
 not expressed in the next sentence only, but in 
 tlie whole of what follows also. For is to be re- 
 ferred to the entire following discourse. — Adul- 
 
CHAP. XXIII. 16-22. 
 
 211 
 
 terers. That, this crime prevailed most exten- 
 sively is evident from v. 7, 8 ; ix. 1 ; xxix. 23. 
 Where, however, HJIOX in this respect is not 
 discovered, it is difi&cult to find it in other re- 
 spects, and especially in relation to God. Comp. 
 rems. on v. 1. — For on account, etc. This 
 sentence to dried up is to be regarded as a 
 parenthesis. From the general calamity of 
 drought may be argued the presence of a gene- 
 ral guiltiness. Moreover, both the indication 
 of the drought, which looks like a demonstratio 
 ad oculos and the leading back to the false pro- 
 phets (ver. 11), reminds us very strongly of xiv. 
 2, 13-18. — And their course is connected with 
 "full of adulterers." Their thought and en- 
 deavor generally (their walking and running, 
 comp. viii. 6; Prov. i. 16; Isa. lix. 7; Rom. ix. 
 16) is directed to evil, therefore itself evil ; they 
 are strong only for that wliich is not right. 
 Comp. rems. on viii. 6. — For both prophet, 
 etc. This sentence states the reason why the 
 moral corruption is so general : it cannot be 
 otherwise, since the teachers and leaders of the 
 people are not only themselves profane and god- 
 less, but practise their ungodliness even in the 
 tanctuary, the most influential centre of theo- 
 cratic life. Therefore the prophet says directly 
 in ver. 15, From the prophets of Jerusalem is 
 gone forth profanation over the whole land. 
 Evidently profanation is there used with re- 
 ference to profane here. On the subject comp. 
 xxxii. 34; Ezek. viii. 3 sqq. The priests are 
 moreover mentioned only incidentally ; in the 
 whole subsequent part of the discourse Jeremiah 
 speaks only of the prophets. Perhaps the jux- 
 taposition of the two is only a reminiscence from 
 XIV. 18, where alone the expression occurs. — In 
 the dark. Comp. Ps. xxxv. 6 [Thomson, The 
 L'ind and the Book, I., p. 106]. — Year of visi- 
 tation. Comp. xi. 23. It is apparent from 
 this expression that the visitation is still in the 
 indefinite future. 
 
 Vers. 13-15. Also in the prophets of Sa- 
 maria . . . over the whole land. In these 
 verses it is more particularly shown how the 
 corruption extended from the prophets over the 
 whole country. At the same time its merited 
 punishment is announced to them. — The ) here 
 (Also) and at the beginning of ver. 14 (But) cor- 
 respond, but the whole sentences are not parallel, 
 for it could not be said : Both in the prophets 
 of Samaria I see perversity, and in the pro- 
 phets of Jerusalem what is horrible, the latter 
 clause containing a climax. The expression is 
 founded on a mingling of two ways of speaking, 
 "both in the prophets of Samaria I see what ia 
 bad, and in the prophets of Jerusalem," and "in 
 
 the prophets of Samaria I see nbfln, but in the 
 
 prophets of Jerusalem even mi"'i?ty." Both are 
 
 confounded in the sentence : both in the prophets 
 of Samaria I see what is bad, and in the prophets 
 of Jerusalem what is horrible. — We cannot well 
 render these modes of expression word for word. 
 Comp. the parallel, equally unfavorable for Ju- 
 dah, in iii. 6-10. — By Baal. Comp. rems. on 
 ii. 8. — Led astray. lu this leading astray by 
 means of prophecy in the name of idols is the 
 point of coiuiection between vers. 10 and 11. — 
 Horrible. Comp. v. 30. — Strengthened, etc. 
 They thus not only seduced the people into 
 wickedness by their example, but sustained them 
 therein by the authority of their example and 
 detained thcMn from repentance. — The subject of 
 are become is the prophets, while their must 
 refer to Jerusalem — Tlie comparison with Sodom 
 and Gomorrah is here as in Zeph. ii. 9, yet with 
 this difference, that they are here the emblem of 
 moral corruption, there of outward desolation. — . 
 Poison-water. Comp. viii. 14; ix. 14. — Pro- 
 fanation. Comp. iii. 9. In this last causal 
 sentence (for from the prophets of Jerusalem has 
 profanation gone out), the fundamental thought 
 of the strophe again comes out clearly. 
 
 €/. Warning against deception by the Prophets. 
 XXIII. 16-22. 
 
 16 Thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth, 
 
 Listen not to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you ; 
 
 They deceive you.^ 
 
 They speak their own heart's vision, not from the mouth of Jehovah. 
 
 17 They say continually to my despisers : 
 
 Jehovah hath spoken,^ " There shall be peace to you ;" 
 And wherever one walketh' in the hardness of his heart, 
 There they sny : no evil shall come upon you. 
 
 18 For he who hath stood in the counsel of Jehovah, 
 Let him perceive^ and hear his word, 
 
 Let him who hath marked ray word^ proclaim it.* 
 
 19 Behold, a storm-wind of Jehovah! 
 Fury is gone forth' and whirling storm — 
 Upon the head of the ungodly it will be rolled. 
 
212 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 20 The anger of Jehovah will not turn back, 
 
 Till he execute and carry out the plans of his heart. 
 At the end of days ye will become aware of this. 
 
 21 I sent not the prophets, yet they ran, 
 
 I spake not to them, yet they prophesied. 
 
 22 But had they stood in my counsel. 
 
 Then they would have proclaimed my words to my people, 
 And have brought them back from their wicked way, 
 And from the wickedness of their deeds. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 16. — D^ 7^110, Hiph. here only. The Kal in ii. 5 ; 2 Ki. xvii. 15 ; Ps. Ixii. 11 ; Job xxvii. 12. He who renden 
 another frivolous, so that his mind is directed to what is frivolous, has led him astray, deceived him. Comp. xiv. 14 ; Ezek. 
 Xiii. 2, 3. 
 
 2 Ver. 17.— U1 11DN D''1DX. On the construction comp. Naegelsb. Gr., \ 97, 1, a, ^nm..— Instead of "l^T the LXX. 
 
 and Syriac, according to the view of some, read'^^T- But they might have taken ^31 itself as a subst.=T3'l) as in IIos. 
 
 — . ... y .p 
 
 i. 2 ; Jer. v. 13. The LXX. also connect the word with the preceding : rois dTrcoflou/iteVois Adyoi' icupi'ou, while the Syriao 
 translates: dicuntiis, quinieexaspwant ; ex oraculo Domini pax erit vohis. '''"' ^3'^ certainly never stands as an intro- 
 ductory formula (=TOX Ili)) : it most prevalently stands after "IC'X or "lE^XD- But as Jeremiah was quoting the words 
 
 ~ T 
 
 of the Pseudo-prophets he may have purposely avoided the current formula of the true prophets. As the more difficult 
 reading then "^ST deserves the preference. 
 
 3 Ver. 17. — "1 7(1 /D1. The construction is not to be explained by the effect of the 7 before ^If XJDi ^^^ the participle 
 
 is used absolutely as it is frequently, especially after 73- Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 97, 2 b. 
 
 * Ver. 18. — XT'V Jussive apodosis. On the Vau comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 111, 1 b. 
 
 6 Ver. 18. — ■'"l^i. The Masoretes unnecessarily alter into H^T- ^''tZ'pn with the accus. In Job xiii. 6; Ps. xvii. 1; 
 Ixi. 2. I 
 
 6 Ver. 18. — If we take ^Q, as we have done, as a relative pronoun, and read yot^'l, the apodosis is wanting to the 
 
 |t: •- 
 second clause. From this reading it appears that the Masoretes took ''J3 for an interrogative. By comparison with ix. 11, 
 
 and with ver. 22 below, it is thus seen that we are to punctuate VT^W) (comp. Jud. xviii. 25), he may cause to hear, may 
 
 ' |t:-- 
 proclaim. , 
 
 1 Ver. 19. — non is in explicativa apposition. HX^'' is to be taken as a perfect: the hurricane has already burst forth. 
 
 T •• TIT 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The main thought is : warning against false 
 prophets who deceive the people and proclaim 
 what comes not from the mouth of the Lord but 
 from their own heart (rer. 16). Thus they pro- 
 claim peace to the despisers of the Lord, and 
 impunity to those who go about in the hardness 
 of their heart (ver. 17). Thus too they betray 
 themselves. For he to whom is granted fhe 
 honor of receiving information concerning the 
 counsel of the Lord, cannot do otherwise than 
 proclaim the Lord's word as he received it (ver. 
 18). But the word of the Lord never proclaims 
 impunity to the despisers. Rather concerning 
 these is to be expected a tempest of anger from 
 the Lord, who will not rest till He has carried out 
 all His plans. In the end of days this will in- 
 deed be marked (vers. 19, 20). Thus they arenot 
 sent or commissioned by the Lord (ver. 21). 
 But even had they, without receiving any express 
 commission, only assisted as witnesses to the 
 counsel of the Lord they would have proclaimed 
 the word of the Lord to the people, and have 
 turned them from their wicked way (ver. 22). 
 The warning against the false prophets is thus 
 occasioned by tlie admission of the double fact, 
 that the Lord has not sent them, and that they 
 have not been present at the counsel of the Lord 
 or received information thereof. That the Lord 
 has not sent them will be proved by His doing 
 just the contrary of what tliey predicted. But 
 that they have not at all entered into tlie counsel 
 »f the Lord is seen from this, that what thej 
 
 proclaimed to the people does not agree with the 
 genuine word of the Lord, and that they have 
 not labored to turn the people from their wicked 
 way. 
 
 Ver. 18. For he who hath stood . . . pro- 
 claim it. There are two modes of explanation: 
 1. He who has stood in the counsel of God, he 
 sees and hears my word, he who has marked my 
 word let him proclaim it (Graf). 2. For who 
 has stood in the counsel of the Lord? etc. The 
 latter explanation would however either have 
 the meaning, that no one had stood in the counsel 
 of the Lord, which a prophet could not say, or 
 we must take HID^ IDJ^ in the sense of privately, 
 without calling, assisting in the counsel of the 
 Lord — which would be arbitrary and require be- 
 fore ver. 18 the supplementation of the double 
 thought: "such things have I not said to them, 
 and they cannot have heard them in my counsel 
 (quasi me invito)." Hence 'D can be taken in the 
 sense o{ guisguis only according to the first mode 
 of interpretation. (Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., ^ 79, 
 0). The connection is then as follows: Listeii 
 not to the prophets, they deceive you, for tliey 
 proclaim tlieir own thoughts, not my commissions, 
 promising impunity to my despisers. For he 
 who has stood in the counsel of the Lord, must 
 prochxim the Lord's word, which cannot possibly 
 be favorable to His despisers. The point of the 
 thought is therefoi-c contained in ver. 17: Tlie 
 despisers of the service of Jehovah were well- 
 known people. If prophets, who pretended to 
 speak in the name of Jehovah, promised such 
 impunity, they thus proved themselves indisputa- 
 bly to be deceivers. — To stand in the counsel is 
 
CHAP. XXm. 23-32. 
 
 213 
 
 not to sit in the counsel (Ps. i. 1). The latter 
 designates assistance with an advisory voice. — 
 Such an one is called D^j; K?'X Isa. xl. 13. Comp. 
 Rom. xi. 34. Standing in the counsel of 
 the Lord, i. e. as hearers, is declared in the 
 proper sense of prophets : Isa. vi. 1-8 ; 1 Ki. 
 xxii. 19-23. — Yet we shall not err, if we assume 
 that Jeremiah wishes the expression here to be 
 taken in a wider sense, in which sense Am. iii. 7 
 
 ■mo nSj is used. Comp. Ps. xxv. 14. For we 
 
 TT 
 
 cannot suppose that all the prophets received 
 all their revelations in the form in which, ac- 
 cording to the passages cited, Micah and Isaiah 
 received those mentioned. — Let him perceive 
 [see]. How can the word of the Lord be seen? 
 A reference to ii. 31 ; Eccles. i. 16 does not seem 
 to me satisfactory. Certainly the divine revela- 
 tion might partly be seen in vision (comp. pin 
 
 037 ver. 16; i. 11, 13; xxiv. 1), partly heard 
 
 (1 Sam. iii. 9, 10); it could be received by the 
 organ of the eye or the ear. — The eifect of the 
 seeing and hearing is indicated by "mark:" he 
 who gives heed to my word, hears it not only with 
 the outer but the inner ear, he may, etc. 
 
 Vers. 19, 20. Behold, a storm-\vind . . . 
 aware of this. In antithesis to ver. 17 it is 
 here set forth, what the true intention of Jeho- 
 Tah is with respect to the people. Both verses 
 
 are repeated xxx. 23, 24. — A storm-wind of Je- 
 hovah, not physical but spiritual; an outburst 
 of divine wrath is proclaimed by the prophet. — 
 Upon the head. Comp. 2 Sam. iii. 29. — "Will 
 not turn back. The storm will produce not 
 merely a slight passing effect but a thoroughly 
 destructive one. It will not cease till the will 
 of the holy and lust God is completely accom- 
 plished. Comp. Isa. xlv. 23; Ps. cxxxii. 11. — 
 At the end of days, etc. Comp. Gen. xlix. 1 ; 
 Numb. xxiv. 14; Deut. iv. 30; xxxi. 29; Isa. ii. 
 2; Jer. xlviii. 47; xlix. 39. A contrast to the 
 present is here involved : you do not now regard 
 it as possible ; at the end of days, however, t. e. 
 at the conclusion of this section of history in 
 which we live, you will indeed perceive it, viz., 
 that it can and must be thus. End of days, 
 therefore, expresses a relative idea. Comp. ver. 
 12. 
 
 Vers. 21, 22. I sent not . . . their deeds. 
 A new and perfectly clear reason for the desola- 
 tion in ver. 16. How could those be true pro- 
 phets whom the Lord sent not, to whom He spoke 
 not? If, however, they should allege, that if not 
 rile oflBcially and dejure yet actually they had re- 
 ceived information of the divine counsel, they 
 must at least proclaim the word of Jehovah in 
 its severity as hostile to the wicked and urging 
 them to repentance. But since this is not the 
 case they are irrefutably demonstrated to be false 
 prophets and deceivers. 
 
 c. The Criminal Mingling of Man's word and God's Word. 
 XXIII. 23-32. 
 
 23 Am I a God at hand ? saitli Jehovah, 
 
 And not a God at a distance ?^ 
 2-i If a man conceal himself in a hiding place, 
 
 Shall I not see him ? saith Jehovah. 
 
 Am I n^'t he, who filleth heaven and earth ? saith Jehovah. 
 
 25 I have heard wht^t the prophets say. 
 Who prophesy falsely in my name ; 
 " I have dreamed, I have dreamed." 
 
 26 How long still is the fire in the heart of the prophets, 
 Who prophesy falsehood, — 
 
 The prophets of the deceit of their own heart ? 
 
 27 Who make the endea^ior'^ to cause my people 
 To forget' my name by their dreams. 
 Which they relate one to another, 
 
 As their fathers forgot my name through Baal. 
 
 28 Let the prophet, to whom a dream came, relate the dream, 
 Let him to whom my word came, relate my word truly,* 
 What has the straw to do with the grain ? saith Jehovah. 
 
 29 Is not my word just like the fire ? saith Jehovah, 
 And like the hammer, which breaketh rocks in pieces ? 
 
 SO Therefore behold, I am against the prophets, saith Jehovah, 
 
 Who steal my words one from another ! 
 31 Behold, I am against the prophets, saith Jehovah, 
 
214 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 ^Vho take their tongue and pronounce oracles.* 
 32 Behold, I am against them, who prophesy false dreams, saith Jehovah, 
 And relate them and lead my people astray, 
 By their falsehood and by their boasting.® 
 I had not sent them nor commissioned them. 
 They can also be of no profit to this people, saith Jehovah. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 » Ver. 23:— On thp construction, comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., g 63, 4 e 
 2 Ver. ii".— DOiynn ill apjiosition to D^XDJ in ver. 26. 
 
 s Ver. ST.— nOt^'nS. Hipliil, here only. 
 
 * Ver. 2S.— j-\3}<, Accas. adverb. Comp. x. 10 ; Naegelsb. Gr., g 70, k. 
 
 6 Ver. 31. — ^^sxi'l. Of the whole verb, besides this single form, we find only DK3- 
 
 • Ver. 32. — nil Fl D is iiraf Aey. The meaning (comp. Jud. ix. 4 ; Zepli. iii. 4 ; Gen. klix. 4)=f»isoZen(ia, impudent boasting. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 As though the exalted (ver. 23) and omniscient 
 God, who fills heaven and earth would kuow 
 nothing of it (ver. 24), the false prophets dared 
 to give forth their dreams as the word of God 
 (ver. 25). How long will this unreason, which 
 is at the same time deception and self-deception, 
 last? (ver. 26). How long will they seek by their 
 dreams to bring Jehovah into oblivion among the 
 people, as their fathers forgot Him for Baal? 
 (ver. 27). With this is associated a second mis- 
 chief, that they give out the dream not as iheir 
 dream, but as Jehovah's word is to be proclaimed 
 as such, connect this with their productions, 
 though they have no more relation than the straw 
 has to the grain (ver. 28), or to the fire, or the 
 rock-crushing hammer (ver. 29). Hence the 
 prophet finally formulates a triple charge against 
 the prophets: 1. They steal God's words (ver. 
 31) ; 2. They ape the form of genuine prophecy ; 
 3. They lead the people astray by their lying 
 dreams. 
 
 Vers. 23, 24. Am I a God . . . saith Jeho- 
 vah. The audacity of the false prophets, who 
 did not fear to cover themselves with the name 
 of Jehovah, is founded on the delusion that lie 
 was not in a condition to perceive their presump- 
 tion. They regard the Lord as a God, who is 
 only able to behold that which is near, i. e. can 
 ovai'look only a limited domain. In opposition 
 
 to this the Lord calls Himself pn")D TlvN, i. e. a 
 
 God who takes note of that which occurs even 
 in the remotest distance, who from His throne 
 in heaven overlooks also the earth, because as 
 filling heaven and earth He is present in both. 
 Comp. Am. ix. 2-4; Job xi. 8, 9; Ps. cxxxix. 
 7-12. 
 
 Ver. 25. I have heard . . . dreamed. This 
 is the main cliarge, the sin which stands first in 
 view of the omnipresent and omniscient God. 
 Dreams were in themselves an acknowledged and 
 legitimate medium of divine revelation. Comp. 
 Numb. xii. 6; 1 Sam. xxviii. 6, 15; Joel iii. 1 ; 
 Dan. vii. 1. l>ut they occupy a low stage among 
 the forms of divine communication. Comp. 
 Knobkl, Proph. d. Ihhr., I., S. 174 sqq. Her- 
 EOG, Real-Enc, XVI., S. 297 fF.; Delitzsch, 
 Psychologic, Knp. IV., g 14. — These false prophets 
 always speak only of their dreams as the 
 media of their divine illumination. Of course ! 
 
 For the dream is most withdrawn from the con- 
 trol of other men. Nothing is easier than to 
 say, Last night I dreamed this or that. Who 
 can refute it? The prophets thus make an im- 
 moderate and in itself suspicious use of dreams. 
 They are dreamers, and it is remarkable that in 
 Deut. xiii. 1, 3, 5 N'^J, by which there a false 
 
 prophet is always meant, is regularly distin- 
 guished also as D/n D.^H, a dreamer of dreams. 
 
 ["Although itpleasedGodtoreveal Himself some- 
 times in dreams to His faithful people of old, yet 
 when false prophets arose, who opposed the true, 
 such revelations were rare. We have no instance 
 of them in Isaiah, Jeremiah, or Ezekiel, or other 
 prophets who were opposed by false prophets." 
 
 WORDSWOETH. S. R. A.] 
 
 Vers. 26, 27. How long . . . through Baal. 
 By how long the Lord makes known that the 
 conduct of these prophets, which is more par- 
 ticularly described in these two verses, is in- 
 tolerable to Him. Great difficulty is caused by 
 
 C'"!!. The ancient translations coolly omit the H 
 
 and make it otherwise convenient to themselves. 
 Vulg. and Chald. : usque quo istud est in corde, 
 etc. LXX. : kuQ nore iarac ev Kapdia, etc. Syr. : 
 qiiousque ermxt in ore falsorum prophetarum pro- 
 plietix fahx? — The interpretations which ad- 
 liire to the text are three: 1. The question is 
 asked by a double interrogative "'jHD and H, 
 
 which, however, amounts to this that the latter 
 is quite superfluous. Hitzig appeals indeed 
 to xlviii. 27 and Mic. vi. 10. But in neither 
 of these places is there a double interroga- 
 tive. Besides the subject is wanting, and the 
 thought: How long have they still the mate- 
 rial for dreams ? is certainly strange. 2. 'N3J 
 
 and 'X'^i are renllered according to the con- 
 strucfion nmSH V'H. PJ hlV\ Gen. ix. 20. 
 
 T T -: T • - VT- 
 
 Comp. Ew.\Li), ^ 298 b, N.vegelsb. Or., g 9?^, g, 
 Amu. Thus Ewalu and Meier. But apart liom 
 this that both ignore the interrogative He, the 
 construction with VJ'' is without a precedent, 
 
 forced and feeble in sense, for it seems as though 
 the Lord expected an alteration in these prophets, 
 though He had previously represented them as 
 incurably corrupt (comp. vers. 11, 14), and ac- 
 cording to ver. 27, expects nothing from them 
 but the endeavor to bring Him into forgetfulnesn 
 among the people. Is the thought suitable in 
 
CHAP. XXIII. 23-32. 
 
 211 
 
 this conuection : " How long do the prophets 
 purpose to be falsie prophets?" (Meier). 3. 
 The interpretation is most satisfactory which 
 was first offered by Ludwig ue Dieu and adopted 
 by Seb. Scumidt, Chr. B. Michaelis, Rosen- 
 MUELLER, Umbreit, Graf and others, according 
 to which TIO IJ? is to be rendered as an inde- 
 pendent sentence (^how long still will this last?) 
 
 373 U/'H to be taken as = have in mind ? and 
 D'3C/nn, ver. 27, to be regarded as a resumption 
 of the question interrupted by the words follow- 
 ing 3/3 : have in mind the prophets, who .... 
 think they, to make my people forget ? Although 
 this interpretation gives a sense which is tolera- 
 bly satisfactory, it is Opposed by the grammati- 
 cal difficulty, that DH should stand after D'3K/nn 
 
 as a recapitulation of the subject, which could 
 not be absent after the interruption and the re- 
 moval thereby effected of the proper subject. 
 If then this interpretation also is not perfectly 
 satisfactory, it is natural to suppose that the 
 text is faulty. Should we not read l^Xn instead 
 of K'.^n? Jeremiah had above, xx. 9, compared 
 
 the irresistible impulse to proclaim the word of 
 the Lord, to a fire burning in his heart. Could 
 not he who loves to quote himself, and who 
 knows how to wield the weapon of irony against 
 his opponents, in order to set forth incisively the 
 difference between the true and false prophets, 
 ironically presuppose in the latter what, as he 
 well knew, was possessed only by the true pro- 
 phets ? He, staggering under the burden of per- 
 secution, had said (xx. 9) : "I will not speak any 
 more in His name," but he was obliged to do so. 
 Those who ought not compelled themselves to 
 prophesy in the name of Jehovah. Did then 
 such a fire burn also in their hearts? And if 
 so, how long will it continue ? Every one is 
 summoned by these questions to make the com- 
 parison, but every one will also be obliged to 
 confess that the miserable little flame of human 
 egotism is not to be compared with the high and 
 noble flame of divine inspiration, which burned 
 in the prophet's breast. — The prophets of the 
 deceit, etc. They deceive others, after and be- 
 cause they have deceived themselves. Comp. 
 xiv. 14 ; Ezek. xiii. 2. — Cause to forget. On 
 the subject-matter comp. ii. 82 ; iii. 21 ; xiii. 25; 
 xviii. 1-5; 1. 6. — One to another. Not every 
 one to his colleagues, but every one to his fellow. 
 For they have corrupted the people by their lies. 
 Comp. ver 82: xiv. 13 sqq.; xxiii. 14 sqq. ; 1. 6. 
 — Through Baal. Comp. ii. 8. It is apparent 
 that tliese tal>e prophets did not prophesy in the 
 name of an idol, but in the name of Jehovah, 
 but they proclaimed in His name not His word 
 but the deceit of their own heart. 
 
 Vers. 28, 29. Let the prophet . . . rooks in 
 pieces. The Lord does not object if the pro- 
 phets relate their own dreams as such. But they 
 are not to mix them with the true word of God, 
 »nd on the ground of this mingling utter them 
 
 as a divine revelation. As the dreams are to be 
 related as such, so also the real revelation of God 
 is to be handed down purely, i. e. without addi- 
 tion or subtraction. It is clear that the connec- 
 tion requires this meaning for HOX. Comp. 
 ii. 21 ; Prov. xi. 18. A mixture of the two ele- 
 ments is just as unsuitable as a mingling of 
 empty straw with grain. The straw cannot be 
 used with the grain, nor the grain with the straw. 
 This comparison, and the following one of the 
 hammer and " who steal," ver. 30, shows that 
 Jeremiah here, i. e. from ver. 25, has in vievr 
 not the presentation of the products of human 
 subjectivity as the products of divine objectivity, 
 but the mingling of the two elements. He cen- 
 sures the former in vers. 25-27. As merchants 
 often sell wholly sham goods, or those which are 
 partly sham and partly genuine, as genuine, so 
 do these prophets. Both are certainly 'Ipt? — 
 
 Is not my •word like a fire ? etc. A point in 
 the comparison with straw is further developed. 
 The straw is not only false ware, when found 
 (as chopped straw) among the bread-corn, but 
 simply as straw it has no strength, and is useless 
 for defence or offence. So is also the word of 
 the false prophets. In opposition to this, God's 
 word is like the all-conquering fire (comp. Song 
 of Sol. viii. 6, 7), or like the hammer crushing 
 the hardest rock (Heb. iv. 12; Eccles. xii. 11). 
 How despicable does the word of the pseudo- 
 prophets appear in these comparisons and what 
 a disgraceful mesalliance do they cause by their 
 mingling ! I do not think that the prevalent 
 minatory and punitive import of the genuine 
 prophecies was meant, for the Gospel is the most 
 intensive force (1 Cor. i. 18-24; ii. 4; Rom. i. 
 16). 
 
 Vers. 80-32. Therefore behold . . . saith 
 Jehovah. These three similarly opening verses 
 recapitulate the main thoughts of the section in 
 reverse order, in such wise also, that a point 
 latent in the foregoing context (ver. 31), is now 
 plainly set forth. Ver. 30 evidently corresponds 
 to ver. 28. They steal the genuine words of God, 
 not directly every one from his colleague (ver. 
 27), but every one from his fellow as he pleases, 
 thus in part at first hand from true prophets, in 
 part at second hand from false prophets, or where- 
 soever they can find them. Unmixed falsehood 
 betrays itself too easily and is insipid. But 
 falsehood mingled with truth is powerful error, 
 and the beauty of truth serves as an ornamental 
 covering to its deformity. The second Behold, 
 etc., ver. 31, corresponds to "who prophesy 
 falsely in my name." vers. 25, 26. For thereby 
 it is implicitly declared that they proclaimed 
 their lies in the same form as the true prophets, 
 as oracles of Jehovah. But how cheaply they 
 hold these? All they needed was to set their 
 tongues to work. How dear on the other hand 
 did Jeremiah account the honor of being Jeho- 
 vah's true prophet! Comp. xx. 7-9. — The thir(i 
 Behold, etc., corresponds to vers 25-27, tht 
 import of which it plainly repeats. 
 
»6 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 i. The criminal use of the word " burden." 
 XXIII. 33-40. 
 
 83 And when this people, or the prophets^ or priests, 
 Ask thee, What is the burden of Jehovah ? 
 Thou shalt tell them what the burden of Jehovah is ;' 
 Namely, " I reject you,"' saith Jehovah. 
 
 34 And the prophet, the priest, or the people 
 That say, " Burden of Jehovah ;" 
 
 On such a man and his house will I visit it. 
 
 35 Thus shall ye say, every one to his neighbour and every one to* his brother: 
 What hath Jehovah answered? or What hath Jehovah spoken? 
 
 36 But " burden of Jehovah " ye shall no more take into your mouth ; 
 For the burden will be to each his own word ; 
 
 Because ye have perverted the words of the living God, 
 Jehovah Zebaoth, our God. 
 
 37 Thus shalt thou say to the prophet: 
 What has Jehovah answered thee ? 
 Or, What has Jehovah spoken ? 
 
 38 But if ye say, " Burden of Jehovah," 
 On this account saith Jehovah thus : 
 
 Because ye say this word, " Burden of Jehovah," 
 And I had sent unto you a message of this purport, 
 "Ye shall not say, 'Burden of Jehovah,'" — 
 
 39 Therefore, behold, I burden you^ and thrust you. 
 And this city which I gave to you and your fathers, 
 Away from my presence ; 
 
 40 And lay upon you everlasting reproach, 
 
 And everlasting shame, that shall not be forgotten. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 33. — The article is general, and X'3J expresses the idea of species. Comp. Naeoelsb. 6r., g 71, 4, a. 
 
 ' T 
 
 2 Ver. 33.— X!i'D~n73~r\X- Many modern commentators follow the LXX. and Vulg. which read XtJ'fSn DPX, hut in< 
 
 T V " 
 
 correctly. In His answer the Lord purposely uses the words of the question : Verba retorqmt. The arrow directed against 
 him must, being reversed, strike those insolent questioners. It should indeed properly read Xb'O Ti!/X flN. But the 
 
 necessity of retaining the words of the question justified this grammatical license, which moreover (Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., 
 g 79, G) is not altogether without precedent. JIN depends on r\TONV Comp. xiv. 17, ete. The construction is therefore 
 
 T : - T ; 
 by no means so artificial and clumsy as Ewald supposes. 
 
 » Ver. 33. — f) T\\if02^ is not co-ordinated with HTDNI) as is apparent from f DXJ- It rather expresses the purport 
 
 of that which Jeremiah is to proclaim as the " burden," etc. ) is therefore=and indeeci. It should only be remarked that 
 1 here in this meaning stands before a whole sentence, which, howevey, on. account of its brevity is not thereby rendered 
 less easily intelligible. . . 
 
 < Ver. 35. — On the interchange of 7_y and 7X, comp. rems. on x. 1. 
 
 5 Vfer. 30.— XK/J "TI'H'JI. The paronomasia requires us to read ^r\''\ifi XtJ'J, as the LXX., Vulg., Syr., and some Codd. 
 
 and editions really do. It is not necessary to assume the Piel form Tl^K/J, since forms like ^nX73 Ps. cxix. 102 ; 'jn?^ 
 
 .... • • T L ' ' ■ • 
 
 1 Sam. XXV. 33 ; DDlf Ruth ii. 9, justify the assumption of ' also in the Kal according to the analogy of the 'TV) verbs. 
 
 " T 
 
 Comp. OLsn., g 223, a, Anm. — The reading 'H'K'J. which does not afford any satisfactory sense, but may be translated "I for- 
 get," or " I heard not," is doubtless occasioned by the unusual punctuation (Tl^iyj). A proof that the latter is the origi- 
 nal is found in the Inf. Xt!^J, the X of which is likewise abnormal and therefore a sure trace of the original XK'J. niS^3 
 Is an. Aey. and perhaps to be read noSs, after xx. 11. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The word of double meaning HW'O, which sig- 
 nifies both "saying" and "burden," was mi? 
 
 used by the Jews, who were accustomed to ask 
 the prophets mockingly what sort of a XtJ'p they 
 had. Jeremiah is to tell those who thus ask, 
 wliat sort of a burden threatens them, vk., that 
 they sliall be rejected (ver. 83), and each who 
 
CHAP. XXIV. 1-10. 
 
 217 
 
 thus asks shall, for this derision, be subjected to 
 a special visitation (ver. 3-4). If any wish to 
 ask the prophets, he is to make use of the ex- 
 pression, What has the Lord answered or 
 spoken ? (ver. 35). But the expression NifD 
 
 (burden and saying) is no more to be used, for 
 this perversion of a divine word will be avenged, 
 such insolent words falling back like a heavy 
 burden on the head of tiieir authors (ver. 30). 
 The inquiry is to be made thus : What has the 
 Lord answered or spoken ? (ver. 37). If, not- 
 withstanding, the forbidden Vford is used (ver. 
 38), the Lord will carry away the people like a 
 burden (ver. 39), and give them up to everlast- 
 ing shame (ver. 40). 
 
 Veis. 33, 34. And w^hen this people . . . 
 visit it. — What burden ? It appears to have 
 been the custom, whenever the projiliets made 
 their appearance in public to ask them if they 
 had received any new revelation. There can be 
 
 no doubt that Nt^D means " saying, utterance," 
 as well as "burden." Comp. the thorough de- 
 monstration in Graf, ^S*. 315. The passages from 
 which it evidently follows that NK/O signifies 
 effatum, any utterance, besides those where the 
 
 verb Xb'J is used in the sense vocem proferre wi*'-^ 
 
 and without np, voice (Isa. iii. 7; xlii. 2, 11 
 
 coll. Exod. XX. 7; xxiii. 1; Numb, xxiii. 7; Ps. 
 cxxxix. 20, etc.), are especially the following: 
 Isa. xiv. 28; Lam. ii. 14; 2 Ki. ix. 25; Prov. 
 XXX. 1; xxxi. 1. Hengstenberg and Rueckert, 
 following the example of Jonathan, Aquila, 
 the Syriac, Jbeome and Lutheb, would take the 
 
 word exclusively in the sense of "burden." We 
 have translated " burden " above, but only be- 
 cause we have no expression, which without 
 forcing unites both meanings. Of the many at- 
 tempts to unite them by De Wette, Ewald, 
 FuERST, Meier, none are really satisfactory. 
 De Wette's translation is most so. [ Wehsagung : 
 utterance of woe. — S. R. A.]. At all events the 
 opposers emphasized the idea of burden. They 
 wished to say that every declaration of Jehovah 
 was only a new burden, that only what was 
 bui'densome, not what was pleasing, came from 
 this God. In so far the question was one of 
 blasphemous derision. It is implied by the word 
 namely that what follows is a quotation. The 
 passage to which Jeremiah refers is doubtless 
 xii. 7, "rejected mine inheritance." The signi- 
 ficance of this passage is clear from the fact that 
 it is reproduced in .a comprehensive survey in 2 
 Ki. xxi. 14. — Will I visit it. Besides the 
 judgment announced to the people generally on 
 account of their sins, those who make use of the 
 expression "burden" in a wicked manner, shall 
 receive special punishment. 
 
 Vers. 35-37. Thus shall ye say . . . Jeho- 
 vah spoken. — For the burden virill be, etc. 
 Even the insolent words will be to him who utters 
 them a crushing burden, though the utterance 
 of Jehovah, with respect to which he uses the 
 term, is not in itself a burden at all. — These 
 words are a parenthesis, and hence because ye 
 have perverted, etc., is connected with ye 
 shall no more take into your mouth and 
 declare the result of using the forbidden word. 
 — Living God. Comp. x. 10. 
 
 III. APPENDIX. 
 
 (Chap. XXIV.) 
 
 Postscript to XXII. 13-30. The Fourth King. 
 
 XXIV. 1-10. 
 
 The Lord [Jehovah] shewed me, and behold, two baskets^ of figs were set' be- 
 fore the temple of the Lord [Jehovah] after that Nebuchadrezzar, king of Baby- 
 lon, had carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, and 
 the princes of Judah, with the carpenters and smiths, from Jerusalem and had 
 brought them to Babylon. One basket had' very good figs, like the figs first ripe,* 
 and the other basket had very naughty [bad] figs, which could not be eaten,^ they 
 were so bad. Then said the Lord [Jehovah] unto me, What seest thou, Jeremiah ? 
 And I said. Figs; the good figs very good, and the evil [bad] very evil [bad], that 
 cannot be eaten, they are so evil [bad]. 
 
 Again the word of the Lord [Jehovah] came unto me, saying : 
 Thus saith the Lord [Jehovah], the God of Israel : 
 Like these good figs, so the captives of Judah, 
 
 VVhom I have sent away from this place into the land of the Chaldeans, 
 Will 1 regard^ for good ; 
 xVu I will set mine eye upon them for good, 
 And will briog them back into this land; 
 
218 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 And will build them and not pull them down, 
 And plant them and not pluck them up ; 
 
 7 And will give them a heart to know me, that I am Jehovah, 
 And they shall be my people; 
 
 I however will be their God, 
 
 When they return to me with their whole heart. 
 
 8 But like the bad figs, which cannot be eaten they are so bad, 
 — Thus saith Jehovah : I will make Zedekiah, 
 
 The king of Judah and his princes, 
 
 And the residue of Jerusalem, that are left in this land, 
 
 And those that dwell in the land of Egypt. 
 
 9 And I will make them a horror, 
 
 A calamity for all the kingdoms of the earth, 
 A shame and a proverb, a taunt and a curse. 
 In all places whither I shall drive them. 
 10 And I will send among them the sword, 
 The famine and the pestilence ; 
 Till they be entirely extirpated from the land, 
 Which I gave to them and their fathers. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 A'er. 1. — D'rnn. This plural form is fo.uul iu this sense here only (in another sense Gen. xxx. 14). It is to be de- 
 rived from a sing. '"i-n. Comp. Oi.sii. jJ ■2l{^, d. Elsewhere the plural of n:n is Onn and D""!!!, 2 Chron. xxxv. 13 ; 
 
 - ' • • T ; 
 
 2 Ki. X.7. 
 
 - \'er. 1. — ^y' is to determine, appoint. The Uiph. is diem dixit, in jus vocavit aliqu&m (Job ix. 19 ; Jer. xlix. 19 ; 
 
 1. 44). The Hoph. cannot therefore mean simply positum, collocatmn esse. Seb. Schmidt : duo calathi singularity. r a Den ante 
 templum propositi, lit proplietiainde sinueretur. (Jaab: The baskets were appuiiited ; they would not have stood liiiiv, if 
 God had nut had a special object in it. I also believe that in D'lJ^ID if* implied the idea of ex nianUutu. Vet it sevms less 
 probable to me that a mandatum speciale is meant, than that the prophet had in view that mandatum, generate, of which wo 
 read in E.Kod. x.xiii. 19: xxxiv. 2f>; Deut. xxvi. 2 sqq. The latter passage is particularly important. 
 
 3 Ver. 2. — nnX- Comp. Naeqelsb. £?»•., g 82, 4. — Observe the tropical use of the nominative: continens pro contento. 
 T •.* 
 Comp. Fbrari), Dor/ma i'. h. A. M. [Doctrine of the Lord's Supper] I. S. 14. 
 
 * Ver. 2. — j~\Tijjn »"■• ^«7- On account of 'JXr) it i* t^* l^e regarded as the subject : jicus prBecocitatum. The early 
 
 figs are the nicest. Comp. Isai. xxviii. 4 ; Hos. ix. 10 ; Mic. vii. 1. 
 
 5 Ter. 2. — nj'^DXri. The iniperf. here as in vers. 3 and 8, might certainly be taken as a simple future; — which are 
 not eaten. Ihe propliet then expresses the certainty, that no one will be in a condition to eat these ligs. But the sentence 
 may also be taken with TK'X in the sense of a general declaration ; "lU^X is then = quales, which kind of figs cannot be 
 
 eaten. The imperf. is then used to designate the permanent quality. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., ^ 87, d. 
 
 6 Ver. 5. — T'^n = to recognize, with the collateral idea of approval, allowal. Comp. Ruth ii. 10, 19 ; and the ex])res- 
 
 Bion D'ja T3n inDeut. i. 17; xvi. 19 ; Prov. xxiv. 23. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 After the carrying away of Jeboiachin the pro- 
 phet beholds in vision two baskets of figs placed 
 before the temple (ver. 1). The figs of one bas- 
 ket were very good, those of the other very bad 
 (ver. 2). The prophet, when asked, affirms that 
 he has perceived this correctly (ver. 3). There- 
 upon the Lord Himself interprets the vision: the 
 good figs signify the portion of the people al- 
 ready carried away. The Lord will recognize 
 them as good, bring them back, build and plant, 
 inwardly renew them; He will be their God, they 
 shall be His people (vers. 4-7). The bad figs 
 signify the people left in Palestine with Zedekiah. 
 and those who liad already emigrated to Egypt 
 (ver. H). These shall be to all nations an oliject 
 of horror and scorn (ver. 9), for the Lord will 
 send among them the sword, famine and pesti- 
 lence, till they are exterminated from the land 
 (ver. 10). Tlie date of this passage may be 
 learned exactly from ver. 1. It was the time im- 
 mediately subsequent to the carrying away of 
 Jeconiali (2 Ki. xxiv. 10-12). Hixzia correctly 
 
 remarks, that the expression ni/JH ''"^n>*, after 
 
 . . . carried avray, ver. 1, without further dis- 
 tinction, does not permit us to think of auother 
 epoch than that immediately subsequent to the 
 deportation. The prophecy is also best explained 
 by the situation at that period. For, as Gr.\f 
 remarks, those who remained may have tri- 
 umphed over the others, and extolled their good 
 fortune. On this feeling the prophet places a 
 damper by the declaration, that the lot of the 
 captives would be preferable to that of the 
 others (comp. xx. 10). At all events the pro- 
 phecy was delivered before the sending of that 
 letter to the captives, which is treated of in ch. 
 xxix. On the relation of this passage to the 
 previous chapters consult the introduction to the 
 Eighth Discourse. 
 
 Vers. 1, 2. The Lord . . they -were so bad. 
 
 The opening is like that of Amos vii. 1, 4, 7; 
 viii. 1. Comp. Jer. i. 11, 13. — Shewed me. 
 This distinguishes the subjective act of vision 
 from the object seen, and designates the former 
 as caused by Jehovah. This distinction witii re- 
 spect to physical vision is found times inuume- 
 
CHAP. XXIV. 1-10. 
 
 2ift 
 
 rable, (comp. the mode of expression in Gen. 
 xili. 10; xviii. 2; xxii. 4, 13, etc.), but has only 
 a, rhetorical significance. In passages like this 
 and the above from Amos, to which may be added 
 Zech. i. 8; ii. 1, etc., it cannot be a seeing with 
 the outward eye which is spoken of. This is ap- 
 parent, 1, from the object of vision ; it is not 
 supposable that baskets of bad and good figs 
 were in reality placed before the temple ; 2, from 
 the question, What seest thou ? The question 
 evidently has a proper meaning, when there is a 
 possibility of seeing incorrectly. On the point 
 whether this is supposable in visions in a sub- 
 jective and objective respect comp. the remarks 
 on i. 11 ; 3, from the general character of the 
 state in which the prophet must have been while 
 talking with God. Such a conversation as is here 
 reported can only have taken place h TTi'sb/jan. 
 For man cannot see and hear God with the bodily 
 senses. But if as talking with God he is tv nvev- 
 fiarc, then he must also see what God shows him 
 ev TTvevfiarc. For it is not supposable that in such 
 a case there would be a duplicity of perception. 
 The case being thus, Kohler is riglit in Lis re- 
 mark (on Zech. i. 7) "wherever the description 
 of a prophetic vision is introduced with the words 
 'r\'Xn or nX"lX1 (here "JX^H) followed by Hiin, 
 the prophet thus declares that as HN^ or Plih 
 he has beheld a vision, or had a vision, Isai. xxx. 
 10." As to the way in which the Lord opens the 
 inner sense so that it can behold spiritual things, 
 comp. 2 Ki. vi. 17. — Carpenters and smiths. 
 According to 2 Ki. xxiv. 14-16, Nebuchadnezzar 
 carried away beside the king, his mother and his 
 wives, the princes, the officers, the mighty of the 
 land, the strong and apt for war, and then the 
 craftsmen and smiths. These were all the mighty 
 men of valor, and only the poorest sort of the 
 people were left. Nebuchadnezzar evidently 
 wished to remove all who were fit for war, as well 
 as those who were skilled in the preparation of 
 warlike instruments. The smiths had once be- 
 fore been carried oflF for a similar purpose by the 
 Philistines (1 Sam. xiii. 19). So fur all is clear. 
 But who now especially are the "^J??' The word 
 occurs only in the accounts of this occurrence: 
 xxix. 2; 2 Ki. xxiv. 14, 16. Besides with the 
 meaning of "custody, prison," in Isai. xxiv. 22; 
 xlii. 7 ; Ps. cxlii. 8. The ancient translations 
 greatly differ from each other. The LXX. liave 
 here ^ea/iurac (comp. Bar. i. 9) in 2 Ki. xxiv. 14 
 and 16, rbv (TvjK'AEtovTa: Syr. milites, satellites; 
 Ch.a\^\. janitores (so also Raschi) ; AvSib. mancijna 
 (comp. the interpretation of Hitzig) [who trans- 
 lates "hod-carriers," and refers the term to the 
 descendants of the aborigines, who were con- 
 demned to be wood-splitters and water-carriers 
 in Israel (Deut. xxix. 10; comp. Jos. ix. 21) de- 
 riving it from DO socager, and "^J stranger. — S. 
 
 R. A.] If we derive the word, which is cer- 
 tainly most natural, from "IJu, we have either 
 
 the primitive meaning c/«z/so?-, shutter, gate-shut- 
 ter, or the derived : he who prepares what is ne- 
 cessary for shutting, shutting in, i. e., either 
 locksmith; or if we derive from "^.20, those who 
 
 prepare siege-works, engineers (Ewald). Ewald 
 would certainly also allow the word to be taken 
 in the sense of " purveyor," by which he under- 
 
 stands people "who procure for the king the sup- 
 plies of his kingdom." But he omits any further 
 proof. HiTziG, Thenius, who are followed by 
 Graf and (as it seems also) by Meier, who trans- 
 lates " daily laborer," compose the word of DO 
 tribute-service and "1_J sojourner, and understand 
 by it common laborers, or hod-carriers, in con- 
 trast to skilled artizans. For this interpretation 
 however we find, 1, no analogy in the language, 
 
 for neither 'T>^y\ which alone is adduced by 
 
 FiTZTCf. nor ^!l>' DO (Josh. xvi. 10) suit here; 
 2. thai iu 2 Ki. xxiv. 14 it is expressly stated 
 that ]nxn~D>* ri^!!) the common people, re- 
 mained, and to these must have necessarily be- 
 longed those classes of the people, who were DO 
 and IJ. Compare the connection of the passage 
 (2 Ki. xxiv. 13-16) and it will be found that Hit- 
 zig's explanation does not agree with it. Since 
 then, grammatically, the derivation from "IJD 
 
 claudere is most natural, as there is further a 
 IJpO which signifies "custody," etc., and conse- 
 quently the meaning of shutting or of employ- 
 ment in that which serves to shut, or shut up 
 (cx.gr., the bolts of gates, Deut. iii. 5 ; 1 Ki. iv. 
 13; Neh. iii. 3, 6, 13, etc.), which is the best 
 founded etymologically, I understand, with most 
 recent Comm. the locksmith, the workman, who 
 makes what serves for shutting up iia custody. 
 What may be the relation of "^JpO to tJ^IH (car- 
 penters), is certainly obscure. Graf is mean- 
 while wrong in supposing that something more 
 geueral is here to be designated. It may just as 
 well be intended to set forth only a kind of arti- 
 ficer. 
 
 Vers. 3-7. Then said the Lord . . . with 
 their vrhole heart. The construction is : as I 
 acknowledge these good figs (am pleased with 
 them), so 1 acknowledge the captives . . . — for 
 good, i. e., to render them good. Comp. xiv. 
 11; Ps. Ixxxvi. 17; Neh. v. 19; xiii. 81.— The 
 tertium comparationis is: as one is pleased with 
 good figs and retains them, but throws the bad 
 away, so shall I be pleased with the captives 
 of Judah and retain them, but reject those who 
 remain. — And I will set, etc. Comp. xxi. 10. 
 — and •will bring them back. Comp. rems. on 
 iii. 14-17. — and w^ill build, etc, Comp. i. 10. — 
 And they shall be my, etc. Comp. rems. on 
 xi. 4.— When they, etc. Not " if" but " when." 
 In accordance with the opening words of the 
 verse the thought cannot be expressed hypothcti- 
 cally. Comp. moreover iii. 14-17; iv. 1-4. 
 
 Vers. 8-10. But like the bad. . . . their 
 fathers. — Thus saith Jehovah is a paren- 
 thesis. The "3 is phonastic at the beginning 
 of a direct sentence (comp. Naegelsb. Gr. § 10'.^ 
 1, 4), so that the veruum dicendi to be supplied 
 is to be borrowed from ver. 5, to which tlie 
 ''2 refers. It is as though the prophet would 
 say, I have already said, I repeat it, that, etc. 
 As to the Jews then already living in Egypt, re- 
 ference may not be made to xxii. 11. For thoso 
 who were carried away with Jehoahaz are 
 certainly included under the promised ble'''=ing, 
 ver.s. 5-7, nut under the curse. But it is to be 
 
Z20 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 supposed that since the invasion of Nebuchad- 
 nezzar, after the battle of Carchemish, many 
 Jews fled from Egypt to the king conquered in 
 this battle as to their natural ally, as they also 
 did afterwards (ch. xlii. sqq.) — A horror, comp. 
 remarks on xv. 4. — A calamity. This after 
 the example of the LXX. is struck out by IIit- 
 ziG, EwA'.i), Umbreit, Graf. But why should 
 not the prophet wish to say that the Jews should 
 not merely be given up themselves to destruction 
 but should be the cause of destruction to others 
 also? Has not the Jewish people, sighing under 
 the curse, even to the most recent times deve- 
 loped the bad elements of its native peculiarity 
 in many ways, to the destruction of the nations 
 among whom it has been driven? — A proverb, 
 comp. xxix. 18, 22; Deut. xxviii. 37. — And I 
 •vyill send, comp. xxix. 17-22, where Jeremiah 
 repeats the main thoughts of ch. xxiv. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On xxi. 2. "King Zedekiah sends word to 
 Jeremiah, that the Lord is to do according to all 
 His miracles, that Nebuchadnezzar may withdraw. 
 A demand rather cavalierly made in such evil 
 circumstances. But the noble are so unfortu- 
 nate! It is indeed as though it only depended 
 on them to arrange matters with God; as if He 
 were only wailing for them, as if it were a point 
 of honor not to be over-hasty, but first to await 
 a little extremity It is a very neces- 
 sary observance for a servant of the Lord, that 
 he try his superiors, whether there is any trace 
 remaining in them of having been once baptized, 
 well brouglit up and instructed in the fear of the 
 Lord. If he observe anything of this kind, he 
 must insist upon it and especially not allow them 
 to deal too familiarly with the Judge of all the 
 earth, but plainly demonstrate to them their in- 
 sutSciency and nothingness, if they measure 
 themselves by Him. Though Zedekiah had 
 spoken so superficially, Jeremiah answered him 
 without hesitation, definitely and positively, and 
 accustomed him to a dilierent manner of dealing 
 with the Lord." Zinzendorf. "When the un- 
 godly desire God's help, they commonly appeal 
 not to His saving power to heal them, but to His 
 miraculous power to save them, while they per- 
 sist in their impenitence." Starke. 
 
 2. On xxi. 8. "It is pure grace on the part of 
 God, when lie leaves to man the choice between 
 the good and the evil; not that it is permitted 
 him to choose the evil, but that he may choose 
 freely the good, which he is under obligation to 
 do, Deut. XXX. 19." Starke. "God lays before 
 us the way of life and the way of death. The 
 way of life is however always contrary to human 
 reason, and that on which it sees merely death 
 and shame. ... If thou wilt save thyself thou 
 must leave the false Jerusalem, fallen under the 
 judgment, and seek tliy life where there seems to 
 be only deatli. He who would save his life must 
 lose it, and he who devotes it for the sake of the 
 truth will save it." Diedrich. 
 
 ?.. On xxi. 11-19. " To be such a king is to be 
 a'l abomination to the Lord, and severe judgment 
 \v 11 follow. God appoints magistrates for His 
 icrvice and for the use of men: he who only 
 seeks his own enjoyment in office, is lost. Jeru- 
 
 salem, situated on rocks in the midst of a plain, 
 looks secure; but against God neither rocks 
 avail nor aught else. The fire will break out 
 even in them, and consume all around, together 
 with the forest of cedar-houses in the city. The 
 corruption is seated within, and therefore pro- 
 ceeds from within outwards, so that nothing of 
 the former stock can remain. V»'hat shall a 
 government do which no longer bears the sword 
 of justice? AVhat shall a church do which is no 
 longer founded on God's truth as its only power?" 
 Diedrich. Comp. moreover on the whole of ch. 
 xxiv. the extended moral reflections of Cyrillus 
 Alex. Ttepl Tfjq kv TTVEVfian Kal a'kTj-&. npocKV- 
 vr'/aeug. Lib. I. 
 
 4. On xxii. 1. "Jeremiah is to deliver a ser- 
 mon at court, in which he reminds the king of 
 his office of magistrate, in which he is to ad- 
 minister justice to every man." Cramer. 
 
 It was no easy task for Jeremiah to go into the 
 lions' den and deliver such an uucourtly message 
 to him. AVe are reminded of the prophet Jonah. 
 But Jeremiah did not flee as he did. 
 
 5. On xxii. 1-3. ["But we ought the more 
 carefully to notice this passage, that we may 
 learn to strengthen ourselves against bad ex- 
 amples, lest the impiety of men should overturn 
 our faith; when we see in God's church things 
 in such disorder, that those who glory in the 
 Lame of God are become like robbers, we must 
 beware lest we become on this account alienated 
 from true religion. We must, indeed, desert 
 such monsters, but we must take care lest God's 
 word, through men's wickedness, should lose its 
 value in our esteem. We ought then to remem- 
 ber the admonition of Christ, to hear the Scribes 
 and Pharisees who sat in Moses' seat (Matt. 
 xxiii. 2)." Calvin.— S. R. A.] 
 
 6. On xxii. 10. [" Dying saints may be justly 
 envied, while living sinners are justly pitied. 
 And so dismal perhaps the prospect of the times 
 may be, that tears even for a Josiah, even for a 
 Jesus, must be restrained, that they may be re- 
 served for ourselves and our children (Luk« 
 xxiii. 28)." Henry.— S. R. A.] 
 
 " Nequaquam y< nlilis plangendus est atque Ju- 
 dseus, qui in ecclesia non fuerunt et simul mortui sunt, 
 de quibtis Salvator dicit: dimitte mortuos sepelire 
 mortuos suos (Matt. viii. 22). Sed eos plange, qui 
 per scelera atque peccata egrediimlur de ecclesia et 
 nolunt ultra reverti ad earn damnatione vitiorum.^' 
 HiERON. Epist. 46 ad Rusticam. "Nolite flere 
 mortuum, sed plorate raptor em avaruni, pecu7iix 
 silientem et inexplebilem auri cupidinem. Cur mor- 
 tuos inutiliter ploramus ? Eos ploremus, qui in 
 melius viutaTi possunt." Basiluts Seleucensis. 
 Comp. Basil, Magn. Homil. 4 de Gratiarum acti- 
 one post diniid. — Ghislerus. 
 
 7. On xxii. 6-9. " God does not spare even the 
 authorities. For though He has said that they 
 are gods, when they do not rightly administer 
 their office they must die like men (Ps. Ixxxii. 
 6) ... No cedars are too high for God, no 
 splendor too mighty; He can destroy all at once, 
 and overturn, and overturn, and overturn. Ezek. 
 xxi. 27." Cramer. 
 
 .\nother passage from which it is seen how 
 perverse and unjustifiable is the illusion that 
 God's election is a surety against His anger, and 
 a permit to any wilfulness. The individual re- 
 
CHAP. XXIV. 1-10. 
 
 221 
 
 presentatives of the objects of divine election 
 should never forget that God can march over 
 their carcases, and the ruins of their glory, to 
 the fulfilment of His promise, and that He can 
 rebuild on a higher stage, what He has destroyed 
 on a lower. Comp. remarks on ver. 2J:. 
 
 8. On xxii. 13-19. It is blasphemy to imagine 
 that God will be frlre et compagnon to all princes 
 as such, and that He has a predilection for them 
 as of His own kind. Does He not say to his ma- 
 jesty the king of Judah, with whom, in respect 
 of the eminence of his dynasty and throne no 
 other prince of earth could compare, that he 
 should be buried like an ass, dragged and cast 
 out before the gates of Jerusalem? This Jehoi- 
 akim was however an aristocrat, a heartless, self- 
 ish tyrant, who for his own pleasure trampled 
 divine and human rights under foot. If sucli 
 things were done in the green tree, what shall 
 be done in the dry ? 
 
 " He who builds his house with other people's 
 property, collects stones for his grave." Cramer. 
 
 9. On xxii. 14. [" It was a proof of luxury 
 when men began to indulge in superfluities. In 
 old times the windows were small; for use only 
 was regarded by frugal men ; but afterwards a 
 sort of madness possessed the minds of many, so 
 tliat they sought to be suspended as it were in 
 the air. And hence they began to have wider 
 windows. The thing in itself, as I have said, is 
 not what God condemns; but we must ever re- 
 member, that men never go to excesses in ex- 
 ternal th.ngs, except when their hearts are in- 
 fected with pride, so that they do not regard 
 what is useful, what is becoming, but are carried 
 away by fondness for excess." Calvin. — S. R. A.] 
 
 10. On xxii. 15. " God may grant the great 
 lords a preference in eating and drinking and 
 the splendor of royal courts, but it is not His will 
 that these be regarded as the main things, but 
 that true religion, right and justice must have 
 the precedence; — this is the Lord's work. But 
 cursed is he who does the Lord's work remissly. 
 Jer. xlviii. 10." Cramer. 
 
 11. On xxii. 17. "Description of haughty, 
 proud, magnificent, merciless and tyrannical 
 lords and rulers, who are accomplices of 
 thieves." Cramer. 
 
 12. On xxii. 19. ["God would have burial a 
 proof to distingtiish us from brute animals even 
 after death, as we in life excel (hem, and as our 
 condition is much nobler than that of the brute 
 creation. Burial is also a jaledge as it were of 
 immortality; for when man's body is laid hid in 
 the earth, it is as it were a mirror of a future 
 life. Since then burial is an evidence of God's 
 grace and favor towards mankind, it is on the 
 other hand a sign of a curse, when burial is de- 
 nied." Calvin.— S.R. A.] 
 
 13. On xxii. 24. "Great loi'ds often imagine 
 that they not only sit in the bosom of God, but 
 that they are a pearl in His crown; or as the 
 prophet says here, God's signet-ring. Therefore, 
 it is impossible that they should not succeed in 
 their designs. But God looks not on the person 
 of the princes, and knows the magnificent no 
 more than the poor. Job xxxiv. 19." Cramer. 
 
 14. On xxii. 28. [" What is idolized will, first 
 or last, be despised and brnkm, what is unjustly 
 honored will be justly contemned, and rivals 
 
 with God will be the scorn of man. Whatever 
 we idolize we shall be disappointed in, and then 
 shall despise." Henry. — S. R. A.] 
 
 " The compliment is a very poor one for a 
 king, who thinks somewhat of himself, and to 
 whom it in a certain measure pertains that he be 
 
 honored But here it is the word of the 
 
 Lord, and in consideration of these words it is 
 declared in 2 Chron. xxxvi. 12, to be evil on the 
 part of Zedekiah, that he did not humble him- 
 self before Jeremiah. Teachers must be much 
 on their guard against assuming such purely 
 prophetic, that is, extraoi'dina,ry acts. It cost 
 the servants of the Lord many a death, who were 
 obliged thus to employ themselves, and when it 
 is easy for one to ape it without a divine calling 
 he thus betrays his frivolity and incompetence, 
 if not his pride and delusion." Zinzendorf. 
 
 15. On xxii. 28-30. Iren^us {Adv. User. III. 
 30) uses this passage to prove that the Lord 
 could not have been Joseph's natural son, for 
 otherwise he would have fallen under the curse 
 of this passage, and appear as one not entitled 
 to dominion ["qui eum dicunt ex Joseph genera- 
 turn et in 60 habere spem, abdicalos se faciunt a 
 regno, sub maledictione et increpalione decidentes, 
 quae erga Jechoniam et in semen ejus est"). Basil 
 the Great [Epist. ad Amphilochium) endeavors to 
 show that this passage, with its declaration that 
 none of Jeconiah's descendants should sit on 
 David's throne, is not in contradiction to the 
 prophecy of Jacob (Gen. xlix. 10), that a ruler 
 should not be lacking from Judah, till He came 
 for whom the nations were hoping. Basil dis- 
 tinguishes in this relation between dominion and 
 royal dignity. — The former continued, the latter 
 ceased, and this period of, so to speak, latent 
 royalty, was the bridge to the present, in which 
 Christ rules in an invisible manner, but yet in 
 real power and glory as royal priest, and at the 
 same time represents Himself as the fulfilment 
 of the hope of the nations. In like manner John 
 of Damascus concludes that according to this 
 passage there could be no prospect of the fulfil- 
 ment of the promise in Gen. xlix. 10, if Mary 
 had not virgineo modo borne the scion of David, 
 who however was not to occupy the visible throne 
 of David. {Orat. II. in Nativ. B. Mariie p. med.) 
 — Ambrose finally [Comment, in Ev. Luc. L. III. 
 cap. m/<.) raises the question how Jeremiah could 
 say, that ex seniine Jechonise neminem regnaturum 
 esse, since Christ was of the seed of Jeconiah 
 and reigned? He answers: "Illic (Jer. xxii. 30) 
 futures ex semine Jechoniie posteros no7i negatur et 
 ideo de seniine ejus est Christus (comp. Matt. i. 11), 
 et quod regnnvit Christus, nan contra prophetiam 
 est, non enim seculari honore regnavit, nee in Jechonise 
 sedibus sedit, sed regnavit in sede David." Ghis- 
 lerus. 
 
 16. On xxiii. 2.' ^'^ Nomiulli privsnles gregis 
 quo.sdam pro peccato a communione ejiciunt, ut poeni- 
 teant, sed quali sorte vivere debeant ad melius ex- 
 hortando non visitant. Quibus congrue increpans 
 sermo divinus comminatur : pasiores, qui pascunt 
 populum meum, t^os dispersistis gngem meum, ejec- 
 istis et nonvisitastis eum." Isidor. Hisp. de summo 
 bono sive LL. sentt. Cap. 46. Ghislerus. 
 
 17. On xxiii. 5, 6. Eusebius [Dem. Ev. VIL 
 9) remarks that Christ among all the descend 
 ants of David is the only one, who rulss over 
 
222 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 the whole earth, and everywhere not only 
 preaches justice and righteousness by His doc- 
 trine but is Himself also the author of the rising 
 [of the .Sun] of righteousness for all, according 
 to Ps. Ixxii. 7: avarsAEl kv toIq iiiikpaiQ avroi' 
 i^tKaioauvtj, Koi 7r/l^i?of elprjVTj^ ewf ov avravcu- 
 pe&j) fj o-eA//v?? (LXX.) Cyril of Alex. {Glaphyr. 
 in Gen. I. p. 133) explains 'luaz^m B,s,justitia Dei, 
 in so far as we are made righteous in Him, not 
 for the sake of the works of righteousness that 
 we have done, but according to His great mercy. 
 Rom. iii. 24; Tit. Hi. 5. 
 
 18. On xxiii. 6. ["If we regard God in Him- 
 self, He is indeed righteous, but not our right- 
 eousness. If we desire to have God as our right- 
 eousness, we must seek Christ; for this cannot 
 be found except in Him. . . . Paul says that He 
 has been given or made to us righteousness, — 
 for what end? that we might be made the rigiit- 
 eousness of God in Him. (1 Cor. i. 30). Since, 
 then, Christ is made our righteousness, and we 
 are counted the righteousness of God in Him, we 
 hence learn how properly and fitly it has been 
 said that He would be Jehovah, not only that the 
 power of His divinity might defend us, but also 
 that we might become righteous in Him, for He 
 is not only righteous for Himself, but He is our 
 righteousness." Calvin. See also a long note in 
 WoRiiswoRTH, to show that Jehovah our Right- 
 eousness refers to Christ. — S. R. A.] 
 
 "The character of a true church is when the 
 Lytrum, the ransom-money of Jesus Christ, is 
 known and valued by all, and when they have 
 written this secret, foolish and absolutely in- 
 scrutable to reason, in the heart with the finger 
 of the living God: that Jesus by His blood has 
 taken away the sins of the world. ' let it ne'er 
 escape my thought, at what a price my soul was 
 bought.' This is the evening and morning 
 prayer of every church, which is a true sister from 
 above." Zinzenuorf. 
 
 19 On xxiii. 5-8. " The return under Ezra 
 was also a fulfilment of this promise, but inferior 
 and preliminary: not all came, iiud those who 
 did come brought their sins back with them. 
 They were still under the Law and had to wait 
 for Righteousness; still in their return they had 
 a pledge that the Messiah was yet to come and 
 prepare the true city of peace. Now, however, 
 all has been long fulfilled and we can enjoy it per- 
 fectly, if we have the mind for it. We have now 
 a country of which no tyrant can rob us; our 
 walk and citizenship is in heaven. We have 
 be:>n delivered from all our suflering, when we 
 r I down at the feet of Jesus to hear His word. 
 Then there is a power of resurrection within us, 
 80 that we can fiy with our souls beyond the 
 world and laugh ;it alt our foes. For Christ lias 
 made us righteous by His daily forgiveness, so 
 that we may also bring ourselves daily into 
 heaven. Yea verily, the kingdom of heaven is 
 come very nigh unto us ! Jeremiah then longed 
 to see and hear this more nearly, and now we 
 ^canhaveit." Diedrich. 
 
 20. On xxiii. 9. " Great love renders God's 
 servant so ardent, that he deals powerful blows 
 on the seducers. He does not think that he has 
 struck a wasp's nest and embittered his life here 
 forever, for he has a higher life and gives the 
 lower one willingly for love. Yet all the world 
 
 will hold him for an incorrigible and mad en- 
 thusiast, who spares no one. He says himself 
 that he is as it were drunk with God and His 
 word, when he on the other hand contemplates 
 the country." Diedrich. 
 
 21. Onxxiii. 11. ''They are rogues. They know 
 how to find subterfuges, and I would like to see 
 him who accuses a false and unfaithful teacher, 
 and manages his own case so that he does not 
 himself come into the dilemma." Zinzendorf. 
 
 22. On xxiii. 13, 14. " /« the prophets of Sa- 
 maria I see folly. This is the character which 
 the Lord gives to error, false religion, hetero- 
 doxy. But in the prophets of Jerusalem 1 fifid 
 abomination. This is the description of the or- 
 thodox, when they apply their doctrine, so that 
 either the wicked are strengthened or no one is 
 converted." Zinzendorf. 
 
 23. On xxiii. 15. " From the prophets of Jeru- 
 salem hypocrisy goes forth into all the land. This 
 is the natural consequence of the superiority, 
 which the consistories, academies, ministers, 
 etc., have and in due measure ought to have, that 
 when they become corrupt they communicate 
 their corruption to the whole region, and it Ib 
 apparent in the whole land what sort of theo- 
 logians sit at the helm." Zinzendorf. 
 
 24. On xxiii. 16. Listen not to the words of the 
 prophets, they deceive you. Luther says {Altenb. 
 
 Tom. II. p. 330) : " But a Christian has so much 
 power that he may and ought to come forward 
 even among Christians and teach, where he sees 
 that the teacher himself is wanting," etc.; and 
 " The hearers altogether have the right to judge 
 and decide concerning all doctrine. Therefore 
 the priests and liveried Christians have snatched 
 this ofiice to themselves; because, if this office re- 
 mained in the church, the aforesaid could retain 
 nothing for their own." [Altenb. Tom. II. p. 508). 
 — The exercise of this right on the part of mem- 
 bers of the church has its difficulties. May not 
 misunderstanding, ignorance, even wickedness 
 cause this to be a heavy and unjust pressure on 
 the ministers of the word, and thus mediately 
 tend to the injury of the church ? Certainly. 
 Still it is better for the church to exercise this 
 right than not to do so. The former is a sign of 
 spiritual life, the latter of spiritual death. It 
 will be easier to find a corrective for some ex- 
 travagances than to save a church become re- 
 ligiously indiiferent from the fate of Laodicea 
 (Rev. iii. 16). 
 
 25. On xxiii. 16. [" But here a question may 
 be raised. How can the common people under- 
 stand that some speak from God's mouth, and 
 that others propound their own glosses? I an- 
 swer. That the doctrine of the Law was then suf- 
 ficient to guide the minds of the people, provided 
 they closed not their eyes; and if the Law was 
 sutficient at that time, God does now most surely 
 give us a clearer light by His prophets, and es- 
 pecially by His Gospel." Calvin. — S. R. A.] 
 
 2(). On xxiii. 17. "The pastors, who are wel- 
 come and gladly seen at a rich man's table, wish 
 liini in fact long life, good health, and all pros- 
 perity. What they wish they prophesy. This 
 is not unnatural; hut he who is softened by it is 
 ill-advised." Zinzendorf. 
 
 27. On xxiii. 21. ["There is a twofold call-, 
 one is internal, the other belongs to order, and 
 
CHAP. XXIV. 1-10. 
 
 22i 
 
 may therefore be called external or ecclesiasti- 
 cal. But the external call is never legitimate, 
 except it be preceded by the internal ; for it does 
 not belong to us to create prophets, or apostles, 
 or pastors, as this is the special work of the Holy 
 Spirit. . . . But it often happens that the call 
 of God is sufi&cient, especially for a time. For 
 when there is no church, there is no remedy for 
 the evil, except God raise up extraordinary teach- 
 ers.' Calvin. — S. R. A.] 
 
 28. On xxiii. '22. "If I knew that my teacher 
 was a most abominable miscreant, personally, 
 and in heart the worst enemy of God in his pa- 
 rish ; so long as, for any reason, he preaches, 
 expounds, develops, inculcates the word of God ; 
 even though he should betniy here and there in 
 his expressions, that this word was not dwelling 
 in him ; if only he does not ez professo at one 
 time throw down what at another time he teaches 
 of good and true quasi aliml agendo : I assure you 
 before the Lord that I should fear to censure his 
 preaching." Zinzenuorf. 
 
 29. On xxiii. 23. " God's essential attribute is 
 Omnipresence. For He is higiier than heaven, 
 what canst thou do ? deeper than hell, what canst 
 thou know ? Longer than the earth and broader 
 than the sea (Job iv. 8). And He is not far from 
 every one of us (Acts xvii. 27)." Cramer. — 
 " We often think God is quite far from us, when 
 He is yet near to us, has us in His arms, presses 
 us tc His heart and kisses us." Luther. — 
 " When we think the Sun of righteousness, Jesus, 
 is not risen, and is still behind the mountain, 
 and will not come to us. He is yet nearest to us. 
 The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken 
 heart. (Ps. xxxiv. 19) " — "■Deus et omni et nullo 
 loco " — " Cuncta Deus replens molem se fundit in 
 omnem." MS. notes to my copy of Cramer's Bi- 
 bel. — " Si vis peccare, homo, quxre tibi locum, ubi 
 Deus non videat." Augustine. 
 
 30. On xxiii. 28. [" When any one rejects the 
 wheat because it is covered with chaif, and who 
 will pity him who says that he has indeed wheat 
 on his floor, but that it is mixed with chaff, and 
 therefore not fit for food ? . . . If we be negli- 
 gent, and think that it is a sulBcient excuse for 
 despising the AVord of Gou, because Satan brings 
 in his fallacies, we shall perish in our sloth like 
 him who neglects to cleanse his wheat that he 
 might turn it to bread." Calvin. — S. R. A.] 
 
 He who cannot restrain his mouth or his ink 
 let l.im expectorate. But let him say openly and 
 honestly that they are his own dreams, which he 
 preaches. The false prophets certainly know 
 that mere falsehood is empty straw. They there- 
 tore always mingle some of the genuine word of 
 God amongst it. .In unavailing mixture! It is 
 in this mingling that Satan's highest art is dis- 
 played, so that he at the same time furthers his 
 own work and testifies against himself. Comp. 
 Gen. iii. 
 
 31. On xxiii. 29. God's word is the highest re- 
 ality, life and power, while the dreams of the 
 false prophets are pretence, death and weakness. 
 Cfcas word is therefore compared to afire which 
 burns, warms, and enlightens, so that it burns 
 up the hardest flint, melts the thickest ice, illu- 
 minates the deepest obscurities. It is compared 
 further to a hammer which crushes the hardest 
 rocks into sand. — He who mingles God's wheat 
 
 among his straw, will find that the wheat wil; 
 become fire and burn up the straw (1 Cor. iii. 12- 
 15). He who handles the word of the Lord 
 purely, let him not despair if he sees before him 
 hearts of adamant (Zech. vii. 12). He who 
 seeks peace is not ashamed to bow beneath the 
 hammer of the word. For the destructive power 
 of the word applies to that in us which is opposei? 
 to God, while the God-related elements are loosed 
 and set free by those very crushing blows. — He, 
 however, to whom the peace of God is an object 
 of derision, may feed on the straw of this world. 
 But how will it be when finally the day comes 
 that God will come upon him with fire and ham- 
 mer? What then remains to him as the result 
 of his straw-diet, which is in a condition to with- 
 stand the blows of the hammer and the fire ? 
 
 Help, Lord, against Thy scornful foes. 
 Who seek our souls to lead astray ; 
 
 M^hose mockeries at mortal woes 
 Will end in terrible dismay ! 
 
 Grant that Thy holy word may root 
 
 Deep in our hearts, and richer fruit 
 May ever bear to endless day. 
 
 "God's word converts, all other doctrine be- 
 fools." Luther. 
 
 32. On xxiii. 29. "God's word in general is like 
 a fire : the more it is urged the more widely and 
 brightly it extends. God has caused His word 
 to be proclaimed to the world as a matter, which 
 they can dispense with as little as fire. Fire of- 
 ten smoulders long in secret before it breaks out, 
 thus the power of the divine word operates in its 
 time. God's word can make people as warm as 
 if glowing coals lay upon them; it shines as 
 brightly upon them, as if a lamp were held un- 
 der their eyes ; it tells every one the truth and 
 purifies from all vices. He who deals evilly with 
 God's word burns himself by it, he who opposes 
 it is consumed by it. But the word of God is 
 as little to blame as a lamp or a fire when an un- 
 skilful person is burned by it. Yet it happens 
 that often it will not be suffered in the world, 
 then there is fire in all the streets. That is the 
 unhappy fire of persecution, which is kindled in- 
 cidentally in the world by the preaching of the 
 Gospel." Jos. CoNR. Schaller, Pastor at Cau- 
 tendorf, Ser77ions 07: the Gospels, 1742. 
 
 33. On xxiii. 30. " Teachers and preachers 
 are not to steal their sermons from other books, 
 but take them from the Bible, and testify that 
 which they speak from their inward experience 
 (John iii. 11). False teachers steal God's word, 
 inventing a foreign meaning for it, and using this 
 for the palliation of their errors." Starke. — 
 ^'Hinc illi l,fi7ML at auctions, who can obtain thia 
 or that good book, this or that manuscript? Here 
 they are thus declared to he plaffiarios ; and they 
 are necessarily so because they are not taught 
 of God. But I would rather they would steal 
 from true men of God than from each other." — 
 
 ZiNZENDORF. 
 
 34. On xxiii. 33-40. " When the word of God 
 becomes intolerable to men, then men in their 
 turn become intolerable to our Lord God ; yea, 
 they are no more than inutile pondus terrte, which 
 the land can no more bear, therefore they must 
 be winnowed out, Jer. xv. 17." Cramer. 
 
 35. On xxiv. 5-7. " He who willingly and rea- 
 dily resigns himself to the will of God even to 
 
224 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 the cross, may escape misfortune. But he who 
 opposes himself to the hand of God cannot es- 
 cape." Cramer. — " The captives are dearest to 
 God. By the first greater affliction He prepares 
 their souls for repentance and radical conver- 
 sion, so that He has in them again His people 
 and inheritance. the gracious God, that He 
 allows even those who on account of sin must be 
 80 deeply degraded and rendered slaves, even in 
 such humiliation to be His people ! The captives 
 are forgiven their opposition to God ; they are 
 separated from the number of nations existing in 
 the world, politically they are dead and banished 
 to the interior. Now, God will show them what 
 His love can do ; they shall return, and in true 
 nearness to God be His true Israel." Diedrich. 
 36. On xxiv. 7. ["Since He affirms that He 
 would give them a heart to understand, we hence 
 learn that men are by nature blind, and also that 
 when they are blinded by the devil they cannot 
 return to the right way, and that they cannot be 
 otherwise capable of light than by having God to 
 illuminate them by His Spirit. . . . This passage 
 also shows, that we cannot really turn to God 
 until we acknowledge Him to be the Judge ; for 
 until the sinner sets himself before God's tribu- 
 nal he will never be touched with the feeling of 
 true repentance. . . . Though God rules the whole 
 world. He yet declares that He is the God of the 
 Church; and the faithful whom He has adopted 
 He favors with this high distinction, that they 
 are His people ; and He does this that they may be 
 persuaded that there is safety in Him, according 
 to what is said by Habakkuk, 'Thou art our God, 
 we shall not die' (Hab. i. 12). And of this sen- 
 tence Christ Himself is the best interpreter, when 
 He says, that He is not the God of the dead, but 
 of the living (Luke xx. 38)." Calvin.— S. R. A.] 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PEACTIOAL. 
 
 1. On xxi. 8. This text may be used on all oc- 
 casions when an important decision is to be made 
 or on the entrance on a new s< etion of life, as, 
 e. g., at synods, diets. New Yens, beginning of 
 the church-year, at confirmations, weddings, in- 
 stallatione, etc. What the present day demands and 
 promises: I. It demands from us an important 
 choice. II. It promises us, according as we 
 choose, life or death. 
 
 2. On xxii, 2-9. In hoio far the divine election is 
 conditional and unconditional. I. It is conditional 
 with respect to individual elected men, places, 
 things. For 1, these become partakers of the 
 salvation promised by the election only by be- 
 haviour woU-pleasing to God ; 2, if they behave 
 in a manner displeasing to God, the election does 
 not protect them from destruction. II. The 
 election is unconditional with respect to the eter- 
 nal ideas lying at tlie foundation of the single ap- 
 pearances, and their absolute realizatioue. 
 
 3. On xxii. 24. [Payson .- — "The punishment 
 of the impenitent inevitable and justifiable. I. To 
 mention some awful instances in which God has 
 verified this declaration: (a), the apostate an- 
 gels; (6) our first parents; (c) destruction of 
 mankind by the flood; [d) the children of Israel; 
 (e) Moses, David, the disobedient prophet, Christ. 
 II. Some of the reasons for such a declaration. 
 Not a disposition to give pain or desire for re- 
 venge. It is the natui'e and tendency of sin to 
 produce misery." — S. R. A.] 
 
 4. On xxiii. 5, 6. The Son of David. What the 
 prophet declares of Him is fourfold : 1. He will 
 Himself be righteous ; 2. He will rule well as 
 king and execute judgment and righteousness ; 
 3. He will be our righteousness; 4. Under Him 
 shall Judah be helped and Israel dwell safely. 
 
 5. On xxiii. 14. [Lathrop: " The horrible guilt 
 of those who strengthen the hands of the wicked. 
 1. All sin is horrible in its nature. 2. This is to 
 oppose the government of the Almighty. 3. It 
 directly tends to the misery of mankind. 4. It 
 supports the cause of the Evil Spirit. 5. It is to 
 become partakers of their sins. 6. It is horrible 
 as directly contrary to the command of God, and 
 marked with His peculiar abhorrence." — S. R. A.] 
 
 6. On xxiii. 28, 24. The Omnipresence of God. 
 1. What it means. God is everywhere pre- 
 sent, (a). He fills heaven and earth; (6) there 
 is no removal from Him in space ; (c) nothing is 
 hidden from Him. 2. There is in this for us [a) 
 a glorious consolation, (6) an earnest admoni- 
 tion. [Charnock, Jortin, and Wesley have 
 sermons on this text, all of very similar outline. 
 The following are Jortin's practical conclusions.* 
 " This doctrine 1. Should lead us to seek to re- 
 semble God's perfections. 2. Should deter us 
 from sin. 3. Should teach us humility. 4. 
 Should encourage us to reliance and content- 
 ment, to faith and hope." — S. R. A.] 
 
 7. On xxiii. 29, 30. God^s Word and man's 
 ivord 1. The former is life and power (wheat, 
 fire, hammer). The latter pretence and weak- 
 ness (dream, straw). 2. The two are not to be 
 mixed with each other. [Cecil : This shows 1. 
 The vanity of all human imaginations in reli- 
 gion, (a). What do they afford to man ? (6). 
 How much do they hinder ? 2. The energy of 
 spiritual truth. Let us entreat God that our es- 
 timate may be practical. — S. R. A.] 
 
 8. On xxiv. 1-10. The good and bad figs an em- 
 blem of humanity iv ell-pleasing and displeasing to 
 God. 1. The prisoners and broken-hearted are, 
 like the good figs, well-pleasing to God. For (a) 
 they know the Lord and turn to Him; [h) He ia 
 their God and they are His people. 2. Those 
 who dwell proudly and securely are displeasing 
 to God, like the bad figs. For {a) they live oa 
 in foolish blindness; (6) they challenge the judg 
 ment of God. 
 
CHAP. XXV. 1-11. 
 
 9. NINTH DISCOURSE. 
 
 (Chap. XXV.) 
 
 WITH THREE HISTORICAL APPENDICES (CHAPS. XXVI. — XXIX.) 
 
 The superscription, xxv. 1, to which a similar one follows first in xxx. 1, shows that the compiler of the 
 book regarded chh. xxY. — xxix. as a connected group. The motive of this arrangement mag be re- 
 cognized. First, the connection o/ch. xxvii. with ch. xxv. is perfectly clear, the figurative discourse 
 of the cup of wrath, which Jeremiah is to offer the heathen natiotis (xxv. 15sqq.), having a practical 
 commentary in the yokes, which, according to xxvii. 2-12, the prophet is to send to those nations. 
 Ch. xxviii. is however based directly on ch. xxvii., since here the false prophet Hananiah breaks the 
 yoke, which Jeremiah, according to ch. xxvii., had hung upon his neck, and Jeremiah replaces this 
 wooden yoke by an iron one. In subject then these three chapters are closely connected. ■Oh. xxix., 
 moreover, stands in intimate topical connection ivifhchh. xxvii. and xxviii., since it is directed against 
 the false prophets, who contradicted the prophecy of Jeremiahwithrespectto their position in Babylon. 
 Though ch. xxv. and chs. xxvii. — xxix. belong to very different periods [on which point see the par- 
 ticular chapters), yet their connection in fact is beyond a doubt. Ch. xxvi. is not indeed related to 
 ch. xxv. topically, but it is chronologically , for it belongs to the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim. 
 This chapter is, however, intimately connected with the following, in that it likewise has for its subject 
 the conflict of the true prophet with thefalse>prophets, and with the people as favoring the latter (comp. 
 xxvi. 7, 8, 11, 16 with xxvii. 9, 14, 16). As ch. xxvi. is thus related in subject to chh. xxvii.- 
 zxix., and in date to ch. xxv., it stands between them. Comp. my art. on Jeremiah in Herzog, Real- 
 Unc, VI., S. 486, 7. — The position of thegroup, chh. xxv. -xxix., hereseems to be due primarily to 
 chronological reasons. Ch. Xxv., the basis of the section, belongs to the 4th year of Jehoiakim. The 
 main trunk of the preceding section, chh. xxi.-xxiv., belongs to the beginning of the reign of this king, 
 prior to his fourth year [comp. Introd. to the Eighth Discourse). All the portions following ch. xxix., 
 belong mainly to the times of Zedekiah, or to the later period of Jehoiakim'' s reign (comp. ch. xxxvi.). 
 Accordingly, ch. xxv. with its appendix is in the right vlace. It concurs with this, though without 
 design, that with respect to its subject also this chapter is rightly placed ; for its vosition in the middle 
 of the book corresponds exactly to the central significance, which pertains to it in the collection of Jere- 
 miah's prophecies. 
 
 We first then consider ch. xxv., the central propheoy, by itself. It may he dividedinto three sections : — 
 
 1. Vers. 1-11. — The Judgment on Judah. 
 
 2. Vers. 12-29. — The Judgment on Judah and the kingdoms of the world. 
 
 3. Vers. 30-38. — The Judgment of the world. 
 
 A. THE CENTRAL PROPHECY AND PROGRAMME (CHAP. XXV.). 
 
 1. The Judgment on Judah. 
 XXV. 1-11. 
 
 1 The word which came to^ Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the 
 first year of Jehoiakim, the son-of Josiah, king of Judah, that [the same] was the first 
 
 2 year of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon; the which Jeremiah the prophet spake 
 
 3 unto all the people of Judah and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, From 
 the thirteenth year of Josiah, the son of Amon, king of Judah, even unto this day, 
 this^ is the three and twentieth year [these 23 years], the word of the Lord [Je- 
 hovah] hath come unto me, and I have spoken unto you, rising early^ and speak- 
 
 4 ing, but ye have not hearkened. And the Lord [Jehovah] hath sent unto you all 
 his servants the prophets, rising early and sending them ; but ye have not hearkened, 
 
 5 nor inclined your ear to hear. They said [saying]. Turn ye again now every one 
 from his evil way, and from the evil of your doings, and [ye shall] dwell* in the 
 land that the Lord [Jehovah] hath given unto you and to your fathers for ever 
 
 6 and ever: And go not after other gods to serve them and to worship them, and 
 provoke me not to anger with the works of your hands; and I will do you no hurt. 
 
 7 Yet ye have not hearkened unto me, saith the Lord [Jehovah] ; that ye might 
 
 8 provoke me to anger^ with the works of your hands to your own hurt. Therefoi'e 
 thus saith the Lord of hosts [Jehovah Zebaoth] : Because ye have not heard my 
 
226 
 
 THE I'ilOPJlET JEREMIAH. 
 
 9 words, Behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, saith the Lord 
 [Jehovah] and [even to]" Nebuchadrezzar, the king of Babylon, my servant, and 
 will bring them against this land, and against the inhabitants thereof, and against 
 all thpse' nations round about, and will utterly destroy them,^ and make them an 
 
 10 astouLshment and an hissing and perpetual desolations. Moreover I will take fiom 
 them the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, 
 and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones, and the light of the candle. 
 
 11 And this whole land shall become a desolation, and an astonishment ;* and these 
 nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 1. — On ^V, which ia-twice used here as synonymous with '7X. Comp. rems. on x. 1. 
 
 •2Ver. 3.— On the adverbial use of HT- Comp. Naegelsb. Gr.,^ 79, 2 [Gesen. ff;-., ^100, 2 e.]. 
 
 s Ver. 3.— D'^tyX is possibly an Aramaism (comp. Olsh. §191, 5^; 255, b), and is possibly on account of the rarer 'i in the 
 
 finaltsyllable (D'Diyn is found only in xliv. 4, and Prov. xxvii. 14), as an addition to TJIN, written purposely as 1 Pers. 
 
 Imjjerf. ; yet more probably it is a mere oversight and, therefore, according to the Keri, and related passages (vii. 13; xxv., 
 xi. 7 ; xxv. 4 ; xxvi. 5 ; xxix. 19 ; xxxii. 33 ; xxxv. 14, 1.5 ; xliv. 4), to be read □''3tl/n- 
 
 * Ver. 5. — OlI'^ On the construction, comp. N,4.egelsb. Gr.,^ 90, 2. 
 
 5 Ver. ^■—''}^b}?DT^. The Chethibh must be pronounced ''J-1D_^3n. as in viii. 19, but does not suit the connection. The 
 Keri ''JDJ^'^ri- is according to the analogy of vii. 18 ; xxxii. 29 ; 2 Chron. xxxiv. 25 coll. Jer. xi. 17 ; xxxii. 32 ; xliv. 3, 8 ; 
 
 1 liiags xiv. 9 ; xvi. 2. It seems to me more probable that ' JO^DD is the true reading, since this form might pass more 
 easily into 'J1DJ!3n, and is moreover recommended by the shortly preceding ID' yjJH (ver. 6), but was not preferred by the 
 Masoretes, because the Inf. D'J^jn after 7, or Wul is alone u»ed in thi» sense and connection. The prophet seems, 
 moreover, to have Deut. xxxi.29 iu view. Comp. xxxii. 30; vii. 6. 
 
 ij Ver. 9. — 7X1- It is certainly easy, with the Vulgate and Chald. (the Syr. is doubtful), and some MSS. to read j"1X1, or 
 at least, as is also done by some MSS. to omit 1 before '7X- But there is no necessity for this. For 7XI is by no means 
 
 without sense, and may be justified grammatically. It must not then be rendered as depending on H/ti'- For then the 
 
 intermediate sentence, "Tinp?!, etc., is intolerably harsh. But '7X depends on '^np /• Then 1 before 7N=and indeed, 
 
 as not seldom in Jeremiah (vi. 2 ; xvii. 10 ; xix. 12. Comp. besides Gen. iv. 4 ; 2 Sam. xiii. 20 ; Isa. Ivii. 11 ; Am. iii. 11 ; iv. 
 
 10; Ps. Ixviii. 10). ^H is used here as ex.gr., in Levit. xviii. 18 in the sentence npH X7 nnnX^/X ritJ'XI tJiou shaU not 
 
 It • T -: •• T . : I 
 
 take a wife to her sister. Comp. Ezek. xliv. 7 ; Lam. iii. 41. Even in the verse of the present 26th chapter we find 7X in this 
 
 sense: all the kings of the north, the near and far, VnX~7X U/'N, that is, one to the other = one with another. The 
 
 • T 
 
 prophet therefore says: behold, I send and take (or fetch) all the faTnilies of the North, .and indeed to Nebuchadnezzar. 
 
 7 Ver. 9— Tlip ])ronoun D/Xn stands 5et<cTi/ca)?; we must suppose a corrfspumliii"; sicsture of the hand. 
 
 8 Ver. 9. — D'HOinnV Tlio word is found I'reiiuently in the books of Deut. ami Joshua (ex. gr., Deut. ii. 34; iii. 6; vii. 
 
 2 ; XX. 17, etc. ; Josh. viii. 26 ; x. 28, 3.5, 40, etc.), in Jeremiah, elsewhere ouly in 1. 21, 26 ; li. 3. 
 
 » Ver. 11.— MJ1 nOjy'?- Comp. vers. 11, 12, 18 ; xviii. 16 ; xix. 8 ; xxix. 18 ; xlix. 13, etc. 
 
 cance of this prophecy is clear from the follow- 
 ing data: 1. From the special detail of the intro- 
 diictioa, which apart from the date, is distin- 
 guished from all other introductory formulas 
 in Jeremiah, in that in vers. 1 and 2 it lays 
 special emphasis on the object and address of the 
 discourse. 2. From the date in ver. 1. It is 
 the first time in which a date is prefixed to a 
 prophecy of this seer. Only general indications 
 of time are found in the earlier prophecies, and 
 these only rarely (iii. 6 ; xiv. 1). We find exact 
 chronological statements only on the entrance of 
 the great catastrophe and the principal stages of 
 its course; (xxviii. 1 ; xxxii. 1; xxxvi. 1 ; xxxix. 
 1, and the following ckh.). 3. Here in ver. 2 
 Jeremiah calls himself for the first time N'JJ 
 
 ■ T 
 
 (comp. the Introd. to the Seventh Discourse, chh. 
 xviii. -XX.). It is as though he had renounced 
 this title, till he could announce the beginning 
 of the fulfilment of his minatory prophecy (comp. 
 Deut. xviii. 21, 22). 4. The prophet casts a com- 
 prehensive glance at his whole previous ministry 
 of 23 years, admits the fact that the people had 
 
 EXEGETICAL ANp CRITICAL. 
 
 In tile fourth year of Jehoiakim, which was the 
 first of king Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon (ver. 1), 
 Jeremiah addresses to the whole of Judah and 
 Jerusalem a prophecy of the following import 
 (ver. 2) : After Jeremiah had spoken to the peo- 
 ple for 23 years, from the 13ih year of king 
 Josiah (ver. 3), after other prophets also had un- 
 ceasingly held forth to the people (ver. 4), that 
 in case of their conversion tliey would remain 
 quietly in the land (ver. 5), but in case of their 
 apostasy to idols they would experience the 
 Lord's anger (ver. 6) ; and finally the people not 
 having regarded these exhortations and threaten- 
 ings, it is solemnly declared (vers. 7 and 8), tluit 
 the tribes of the North under the leadership of 
 Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, would invade 
 the land of J\idea and the neighboring nations, 
 lay everything desolate, and render these coun- 
 tries tributary to the king of Babylon for seventy 
 years (vers. 9-11). — The pre-eminent signifi- 
 
CHAP. XXV. 1-11. 
 
 12'i 
 
 paid no attention to his prophetic exhortations 
 aud threatenings, and announces the immediate 
 infliction of the punitive judgment promised in 
 such a case. Hence it is evident that he regards 
 the present moment as forming a decisive crisis. 
 The reason for this it is not difficult to perceive. 
 While Jeremiah in all his previous prophecies 
 speaks indefinitely of the judgment as one mena- 
 cing from the north, he here for the first time 
 names Nebuchadnezzar, the king of the Chal- 
 deans, as he who would inflict it, at the head of 
 all the "nationalities of the North" (ver. 9). 
 The victory of Nebuchadnezzar at Carchemish 
 (comp. xlvi. 2) and his ascension of the throne 
 were the historic facts, in which the divinely in- 
 spired glance of the seer perceived the most, im- 
 portant crisis in the history of the world. It was 
 at once clear to him that the victor of Carchemish 
 was the great divinely chosen instrument to in- 
 flict judgment on the theocracy and the other 
 nations, and so in a certain sense to found the 
 first universal empire. As his predictions of 
 calamity at once attained concrete definiteness 
 by this fact, so did his predictions of deliverance. 
 He perceived and predicted with the same 
 definiteness that the empire of the Chaldeans 
 would last only 70 years, and that at the close of 
 it would begin the redemption of the holy na- 
 tion. It was hidden from him into how many 
 stages and of what duration the fulfilment of 
 th>.'se prophecies would be resolved. 5. In the 
 same year Jeremiah, in obedience to the divine 
 command, began to write out his prophecies 
 (xxxvii. 1, 2). He did this, according to xxxvi. 
 3, 7, in the hope even at the eleventh hour of 
 moving the hearts of the people by the total im- 
 pression of his prophetic discourses, which at the 
 same time intimates that a moment of conclusive 
 and irrevocable decision liad come. 
 
 Vers. 1, 2. The ■word . . . saying. Why 
 the fourth year of .Jehoiakim is the right moment 
 for this important prophecy is clear from the ad- 
 ditional clause: the same was the first year of 
 Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. Nebuchad- 
 nezzar had this year become king by the death 
 of his father. As this circumstance is empha- 
 sized, it is highly probable that Jeremiah re- 
 ceived the impulse to this prophetic discourse on 
 the news of Nebuchadnezzar's accession. There 
 is no contradiction in this to our previous desig- 
 nation of the battle of Carchemish as the occa- 
 sion. The news of his father's death must have 
 come to Nebuchadnezzar soon after that victory. 
 The prophet mentions here merely tlie ascent of 
 the throne, because he might presuppose that it 
 was enough to mention the later fact to remind 
 also of the earlier and not less important one. 
 With respect to the chronological date, the state- 
 ment of our passage that .Jehoiakim's fourth year 
 was the first of Nebuchadnezzar agrees with the 
 statements in 2 Kings xxiv. 12 ; xxv. 8 ; Jer. lii. 
 12; xxxii. 1. It is generally admitted that this 
 year was B.C., 605 or 604. Comp. EoFWAym, ligypt. 
 u. israelit, Zeitrechnung, S. 64 ; Bunsen, Bible- 
 work, I. S., ccxi., cccx. ; Niebuhr, ylss. ?<. Babel, 
 S. 371; DuNCKER, Gesch. d. Altesth 1, 6^. 825, 
 3 te Aufl. ["The precise dates of the events of 
 this period cannot be determined. Dr. Pusey 
 (p 309) supposes that Josiah died in the spring 
 of B. C, 609. Jehoahaz or Shallum, reigned 
 
 three months. Then Jehoiakim's roign would 
 have besrun in the summer of 609, and his fuuith 
 year would have begun in the summer of B. C, 
 606." Wordsworth. — S. 11. A.] — The native 
 form of the name 1-^J<']73DJ appears on the 
 Babylonian monuments to have been Nabu-kudu- 
 ur-uzur, or Nabu-kudurr-usur [or Nabu-kudari- 
 utsur] (Oppert, Exp. en. Mesop., T. II., p. 259 
 sqq). From this the various transformations 
 are derived. Comp. Niebuhh, .4*.s. u. Bab., S. 
 41. — On the meaning of name comp. Scheuchzer 
 in the Zdlschri/t d. morgenl. Ges.'<c!srh. Bd.. XVI., 
 S. 487, and Rosch. in the same Journal, Bd. XV., 
 S. 505. [Rawlinson. Herodotus I., p. 511-16. 
 Ancient Monarchies, III., pp. 489, 528. Smith's 
 Bible Diet., s. v.— S. R. A.] 
 
 Vers. 3, 4. From the thirteenth year . . . 
 to hear. Josiah, according to 2 Kings xxii. 1, 
 reigned 31 years. According to i. 2 also Jere- 
 miali's prophetic ministry began in his loth year. 
 He had therefore labored 18 years [or 19 years, 
 according to Pusey and Wokdsworth] under 
 Josiah and four under Jehoiakim, and was then, 
 especially if we reckon in the three months of 
 Jehoahaz, in the 2od year of his ministry. — The 
 words from but ye have not to to hear (ver. 
 4) are, on account of the following saying, which 
 belongs to sending, to be regarded as a, paren- 
 thesis. 
 
 Vers. 5-7. Saying, Turn ye ... to your 
 own hurt. — Turn ye no^w. Comp. xviii. 11; 
 XXXV. 15. — In the land. Comp. Exod. xx. 12; 
 Dent. V. 16. — For ever and ever is to be regard- 
 ed as depending on turn, for the consolation con- 
 sists, not in God's having appointed the land for an 
 everlasting habitation, but in that it will be really 
 such. — And provoke me not, etc., and I will 
 do you no hurt, are sentences which express 
 a purpose paratactically : comp. Naegelsb. Gr., 
 I 109, 2.— On the subject-matter comp. vii. 6, 7. 
 
 Vers. 8-11. Therefore thus saith . . . se- 
 venty years. These verses contain the conse- 
 quence necessarily resulting from the premises. 
 — All the families of the north. A refe- 
 rence to the announcement often repeated since 
 the commencement of his prophetic ministry, 
 and now again appearing in the form which it 
 had in i. 15, viz., that the enemy coming from 
 the north is designated as '■'■all the families of 
 the north," an expression which is evidently not 
 to be taken literally, but as the designation of 
 an extended empire — And [even to] Nebu- 
 chadnezzar. [Comp. Texti.'al Notes]. Pre- 
 viously northern nations only were spoken of, 
 here we learn that they are first to be brought to 
 the king of the Chaldeans and then (of course 
 under his command) into the land. Since this 
 explanation is grammatically possible, I give the 
 reading in the text the preference, as the more 
 difficult. Hitzig and Graf indeed maintain that 
 the name of Nebuchadnezzar was inserted after- 
 wards. Hitzig finds the mention of this name 
 so altogether "frank" that he sees in it "a 
 glossation of the gloss in ver. 12," and an im- 
 pertinence, after the indefinite phrase "a horde 
 from midnight " purposely left that name to be 
 guessed. Graf, however, finds the mention of the 
 name in no way compatible with the construction, 
 
 for neither /Nl (which he makes dependent on 
 
228 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 nSli') nor '7X nor HXI gives a satisfactory sense, 
 the last because then Nebuchadnezzar would ap- 
 pear only as " supplementary." The latter ob- 
 jection disappears of itself in our explanation. 
 Hitzig's arguments, however, emanate too evi- 
 dently from the objection which he has to any 
 special and exactly fulfilled prophecy, to need 
 serious refutation. We say: after the victory at 
 Carchemish, Nebuchadnezzar's mission and its 
 result were so fully made out to the prophet that 
 there could be neither indistinctness nor hesita- 
 tion with respect to the mention of his name. — 
 The Lord calls Nebuchadnezzar his servant 
 C1D>', ver. 9) as in xxvii. 6; xliii. 10, the per- 
 former of His commands. He is to come with 
 his liosts "over all these nations round about." — 
 The voice of the bridegroom, etc. Comp. vii. 
 34; xvi. —[The millstones and the light 
 of the candle. "The one the sound of those 
 who prepare daily food by grinding the hand- 
 mill, see Exod. xi. 5 and Matt. xxiv. 41 ; the 
 other the evidence of domestic habitation. Both 
 emblems are combined in the Apocalypse (xviii. 
 22, 23." — Wordsworth. Comp. also Thomson, 
 The Land and the Book, II., 275.— S. R. A.].— 
 Ver. 11. This Avhole land. Since the propliet, 
 from ver. 9 onward, has in view not only Judah 
 but all the neighboring nations, "this land" is 
 to be referred not only to Palestine but to the 
 whole of the territory inhabited by those nations. 
 — And these nations shall serve. Hitzig 
 was the first to cast doubt on the genuineness of 
 these words. De Wette [Einl. S. 3-30) and Graf 
 {S. 322, 326) concur with him. On the other 
 hand compare especi.ally Haevernick, [Einl. II., 
 2, S. 225 sqq.). — What appears especially to 
 offend Hitzig is the circumstance that the seventy 
 years here would prove to be right within two 
 years, nay, that if Darius the Mede is an histori- 
 cal personage, they would prove so exactly. 
 "Such coincidence of history with prophecy 
 would be a surprising accident ; or else Jeremiah 
 knew beforehand the number of years, which 
 the dependence on Babylon would last." To this 
 may be added the point, which Graf renders 
 prominent, that a prediction of destruction ad- 
 dressed to Babylon at the same moment when 
 it is described as a power divinely commissioned 
 to execute judgment, is somewhat unsuitable 
 and improbable. So the seventy years here and 
 in ver. 12 are regarded as an interpolation and 
 vaticiniuni ex eventu, which does not very well 
 agree with the statement, that it is transposed 
 hither from xxix. 10, which passage is acknow- 
 ledged to be genuine. For even if the sending 
 of the letter in ch. xxix. occurred a decennium 
 later, the promise of a liberation after seventy 
 years, contained in ver. 10, is not by a hair less 
 than XXV. 11, 12, either a genuine prophecy or a 
 statement which happened to prove true. For 
 the difference of ten years, in view of the many 
 possibilities of longer or shorter periods is not 
 80 important that a general agreement may not 
 be spoken of. We can of course enter into no 
 controversy here with those who deny altogether 
 any loreknowledge of future things on the basis 
 of divine revelation, but if any is offended that 
 the jirophet here mentions a definite number, let 
 him consider that without this definiteness the 
 prediction would cease to be a prophecy in the 
 
 true sense. That the dominion of the Chaldeans 
 would not stretch in injimtum does not need to be 
 prophesied. The chief source of consolation for 
 Israel also is contained in this definite number. 
 (Comp. Dan. ix. 2). ["Thus a safeguard was 
 provided against the dangers to which God's cap- 
 tive people, Israel, were exposed in Babylonia, 
 from the seductions of Chaldean idolatry ; and 
 a hope of restoration to their own land was 
 cherished in their heart till the time of their 
 chastisement was past." — Wordsworth. — S. R. 
 A.] " Prophetic analogy" also is not wanting for 
 him, who in Gen. xv. 13-16 and Dan. ix. 24-20 
 sees anything but vaticinium ex eventu. Whoever 
 finally maintains that this was not the right mo- 
 ment to pronounce a prophecy of the overthrow 
 of Babylon mistakes both tlie nature of that his- 
 torical event and the meaning and object of pro- 
 phecy. We have already seen that the Babylo- 
 nian empire was determined by the victory at 
 Carchemish, and was not this a suitable uioiiuiit 
 to present a prophetic programme of the divine 
 world-policy ? Or should merely the subjection 
 of Judah and other nations be spoken of and 
 not the judgment upon Babylon ? Let it be ob- 
 served that in ch. xxv. the prophet presents three 
 stages of the divine judgment; the judgment on 
 Juc'ah, on the nations forming the Babylonian 
 empire, and finally on all the nations of the 
 earth. In this general view of the divine judg- 
 ments that on Babylon could not of course be 
 omitted, if the prophet was not to give a false 
 representation. Observe, moreover, that the 
 prophet speaks of the overthrow of Babylon only 
 in brief hints. He says of it only so much as is 
 necessary on the one hand for the completeness 
 of the picture, and on the other hand in order 
 not to encourage Israel to obstinate resistance, 
 while not altogether dispiriting them. For this 
 reason almost all the minatory predictions con- 
 clude with a consolatory outlook. (Comp. iii. 
 12 sqq.; x. 23 sqq.; xii. 14 sqq.; xxiii. 3 sqq.; 
 yea, even the prophecies against the heathen 
 nations, xlvi. 26; xlviii. 47; xlix. 6, 39). There 
 is then no reason, why the second half of ver. 
 11 should be declared spurious. On the contrary, 
 the words, like the related ones in xxvii. 7, are 
 entirely in place. — As concerns the numbering 
 of the seventy years thus much is certain, that 
 Jeremiah would say : In seventy years from this 
 time Babylon will be visited. For, as shown 
 above, he has placed the date, contrary to his 
 former custom, at the head of the chapter, simply 
 because this fourth j'ear of Jehoiakim is nl the 
 same time the year of the battle of Carchemish 
 and the first of Nebuchadnezzar, and because 
 Nebuchadnezzar's victory and accession to the 
 throne were the symptoms of a crisis in univer- 
 sal history, which geniiiiially included all the 
 other successes of the Chaldean king. F/oin 
 the moment when Jeremiah received the news 
 of the victory at Carchemish, it was for him de- 
 cided that Nebuchadnezzar would exercise uni- 
 versal dominion and that Judah, as well as the 
 rest of the nations, would be subject to hini ; in 
 xxvii. 6 indeed he represents this, by his catego- 
 rical ■'j^nj, as accomplished, though in reality it 
 
 was still waiting fulfilment. Hence also in xxix. 
 10 he does not alter the number, though this 
 prophecy is of a later date. The seventy ye«rs 
 
CHAP. XXV. 12-29. 
 
 229 
 
 have become to him a fixed measure of time, 
 which at any rate has its point of commence- 
 ment in that fourth year of Jehoiakim. Its final 
 point is less clear. (Comp. on the difi"erent 
 modes of reckoning, Rosenmueller on xxv. 11 
 and the literature there quoted). If we take the 
 year of the battle of Carchemish as the begin- 
 ning of the Chaldean empire, this corresponds 
 best to the conquest of Babylon by Cyrus. As 
 that first fact germinally involved the captivity, 
 so did the second the deliverance therefrom. 
 The dates are, as is well known, not yet deter- 
 mined with certainty. According to the reckon- 
 ing approved by most, the battle of Carchemish 
 took place in the year 13. C. G05-4, the conquest 
 of Babylon in the year 538. Between these two 
 dates lies a period of sixty-seven years. [The 
 Canon of Ptolemy, confirmed by Rawlinson, 
 
 makes the reigns of Babylonian kings from 
 Nebuchadnezzar to the end of Belshazzar cover 
 sixty-six years. Comp. Cowles ad loc. — S. R. 
 A.]. Aside from the possibility that a more exact 
 agreement might result on more accurate know- 
 ledge, this number may suffice as a round sum. 
 Comp. NiEBUHK. Assitr u. Babel, S. 7. ["These 
 seventy years begin with B. C. 606, the fourth 
 year of Jehoiakim, and the first year of Nebu- 
 chadnezzar, when be made bis first attack on 
 Jerusalem, and end with the capture of Babylon 
 in the first year of Cyrus, and the restoration 
 of the Jews, B. C. 536. Comp. Davison, on 
 Prophecy, p. 225 ; Puset, on Daniel, p. 267, who 
 justly condemns the theory of some, who allege 
 that seventy years is here either a mere approxi- 
 mative number or a symbolical one, signifying 
 a long time." Wordsworth. — S. R. A.] 
 
 2. The judgment on Judah and the kingdoms of the world. 
 XXV. 12-29. 
 
 12 And it shall come to pass, when seventy years are accomplished/ that I will 
 punish the king of Babylon and that nation,^ saith the Lord [Jehovah], for their 
 iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans, and will make it perpetual desolations. 
 
 13 And I will bring upon that land all my words, which I have pronounced against 
 it, all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah hath prophesied against all 
 
 14 the nations. For [of them, even these] many nations and great kings shall serve 
 themselves of them also [exact service] : and I will recompense them according to 
 
 15 their deeds and according to the works of their own hands. For thus saith [hath 
 said] the Lord [Jehovah the] God of Israel unto me. Take the wme-cup [the cup 
 of the wine] of this fury at my hand, and cause [give] all the nations, to whom I 
 
 16 send thee, to drink [of] it. And they shall drink and be moved [stagger] and be 
 mad [stunned], because of the sword that I will send among them. 
 
 Then took I the cup at the Lord's [Jehovah's] hand, and made all the nations 
 to drink, unto whom the Lord [Jehovah] had sent me : Jerusalem and the cities 
 of Judah and the kings thereof, and the princes thereof, to make them^ a desola- 
 tion, an astonishment, an hissing and a curse ; as it is this day ; Phfira^h, king of 
 Egypt, and his servants and his princes, and all his people ; and all the mingled 
 [allied]* people and all the kings of the laud of Uz and all the kings of the land 
 of the Philistines and Ashkelon [Askalon] and Azzah [Gaza] and Ekron and the 
 [whole] remnant of Ashdod, Edom, and Moab and the children of Amnion, — 
 
 22 and all the kmgs of Tyrus and all the kings of Zidon, and the kings of the isles 
 
 23 [coast land] which are beyond the sea, Dedan and Tema and Buz and all that are 
 
 24 in the utmost corners [cut short the hair], and all the kings of Arabia, and all the 
 
 25 kings of the mingled people, that dwell in the desert, and all the kings of Zimri 
 
 26 and all the kings of Elam and all the kings of the Medes [Media], and all the 
 kings of the north, far and near, one with another, and all the kingdoms of the 
 world,* which are upon the face of the earth : — and the king of Sheshach shall 
 drink after them. 
 
 Therefore [And] thou shalt say unto them. Thus saith the Lord of hosts [Je- 
 hovah Zebaoth], the God of Israel, Drink ye and be drunken and spue® and fall 
 and rise no more, because of the word which I will send among you. And it shall 
 be, if they refu^se to take the cup at thine hand to drink, then shalt thou say unto 
 them . Thus saith the Lord of hosts [Jehovah Zebaoth] : Ye shall certainly [and 
 
 17 
 
 18 
 
 19 
 20 
 
 21 
 
 27 
 
 28 
 
230 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 29 must] drink. For, lo, I begin to bring [do] evil on the city which is called by 
 [bears] my name, and should ye be utterly unpunished ? Ye shall not be unpun- 
 ished, for I will call for a sword upon all the inhabitants of the earth, saith the 
 Lord of hosts [Jehovah Zebaoth]. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 12. — HiTZiG would find an intimation of spuriousness in the reading HIX /O^- These forms art> certainly pre- 
 Talent in the later writings, but there are also instances of them in the earlier. Comp. Jii'i. viiv. 1; Vs. xxv. 7 ; Mio. i. 5; 
 Jer. XV. 13, etc. Comp. besides Olsh., J S. '299, 344 ; 534. — The LXX. translates ver. 12, iKSiKrjcta to idfo? eVeico xai St^a-o/xai, 
 
 avTous eis a.if>avi(TiJ.bv aiuiviov, thus omitting '2 "1 70 7j^ and f-DXJ to D'lK'D- But such an omission in the LXX. has 
 
 no authority. The position of '"""OXJ (Hitzig finds it, as in ver. 9, too far back in the sentence) has nothing objectionable 
 
 in it, if wo consider that a double more remote object is connected with lp3N by means of the preposition 7j;. Comp. 
 v. 15 ; xiii. 11 ; xvi 5, etc. ' 
 
 2 Ver. 12. — Xinn 'Un~7>'1. Xin isperfectlyregularhere(comp. Naegelsb. Cr., ^79, S), asapronoun referring to 
 something more remote in opposition to what is said SeiKTi/cios, rt/Xn □"'UH, nNIPI I'TXH, vers. 9 and 11. There is no 
 rule, as Movers supposes, why DJ1J^~nX should not be separated from IpiJN by ''' DNJ- There is good reason for the 
 subsequent position of D'TJi'D T*TX~7j^1i in tbat guilt cannot be ascribed to the land as to the king and the people. The 
 nse of ir\j< finally is explained thus, that the prophet does not refer it to VIX only (though this also is of common gender), 
 
 but also to 'U, as in ver. 9 also he refers 0J1 nOE?^ DT^Dtyi to the preceding D'lJ and inXH- These reason-s would 
 
 T - : • : - : • ' v t t 
 
 not therefore determine me to believe in the uuauthenticity of ver. 12. But there are other reasons, which afford important 
 testiuKiuv against tlie authenticity not only of this verse, but of the two following verses. Comp. Exkgetio.\l Notes. 
 
 3 Ver. 18. — Dni< is construed like 1j"\1 in ver. 12, and the suffixes of the verbs in ver. 9 6. 
 
 4 Ver. 20. — DTl*n~7D HXI. The exprossinn is fund nho in Exod. xii. 38, where it is said that 3"^ ^'^]^ went with 
 the Israelites out of Egypt ; Neh. xiii. 3 (in bit.i cae,->B plitcBd ^juuctiiat^'J 3^_J?), where it is said that after hearing the Torah 
 they s.'parated from themselves 3~1^-7D ; Jer. I. 37, where it is predicted that the sword will come also ;}1_;;n~^D 7X 
 ^^22 TinO ^t^K ; Ezek. XXX. 5, where in a prophecy against Egypt, among those who are to perish by the sword, together 
 with Cush, Phut,rfc., 3lT,'n~/D is mentioned. In all these pl.aces the meaning is easily perceived. They are o-v/j-ixiktoC, 
 i. e. f^tniiiciTs who are mingled with a nation as /ixeroiicot, allies, vassals, merrenaries. This meaning corresi»inds exactly 
 to the root U"! L', which in Chald. and Syr. denotes miscere, in Hebrew however is found only m the subst. 2"^}?, the woof 
 
 in weaving (Levit. xiii. 48-59), and in Ilithpael J^J/'jin (to mix one's self in anything, Prov. xiv. 10, to enter into com- 
 pany with any one, Ps. cvi. 35 ; Prov. xx. 19; xxiv. 21 ; in the marriage relation, Ezr. ix. 2) only reveals this meaning. 
 
 5 Ver. 26. — V^X r\D'7D0n~^D. The article before J^IU^OD is contrary to rule (comp. N.aegelsb. Gr., g 71, 5), and 
 
 therefore Graf supposes, with reference to xv. 4 ; xxiv. 9, eic, and not incorrectly, that |nNn, which is besides superflu- 
 ous, h;is crept in by mistake. 
 
 \ er. 27.— Vp, <^n. Acy- It is the other form of Xip (I-ev. xviii. 28). Comp. X'p. Isa. xxviii. 8, etc. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Leaving aside vers. 12-14 lor the present, let 
 us first take into view the relation of vers. 15-29 
 to the foregoing context. The prophet has been 
 prophesying the judgment on Judah and the 
 neighboring nations, to be executed by Nebu- 
 chadnezzar (" all these nations round about," 
 ver. 9). In ver. 11 6 he had intimated that the 
 supremacy of Babylon over these will come to an 
 end after 70 years. He had thus erected the 
 bridge by which to pass to the prediction of a 
 second and more comprehensive stage of divine 
 judgment, viz., that il will also involve Babylon 
 itself. How is this conceivable? Vers. 15-29 
 explain this. The Lord purposes to hold judg- 
 ment over all the nations of the then known 
 world, wliich also represent the aggregate of the 
 subsequent Babylonian empire. He will begin 
 with Judah. On this and the nations, only 
 hinted at before in ver. 9 sqq., but enumerated 
 in ver. 19 sqq., and several others, which cannot 
 be numbered among those meant in ver. 9 
 (comp. vers. 25, 2(j), Babylon will itself benn in- 
 strumdnt of execution. Was it however to be 
 itself spared ? Was it better than the nations 
 subjugated by it ? No, it will only drink the cup 
 of wrath la.it. For if the chosen people is not 
 spared, no other nation can expect that its of- 
 
 fence (DJIJ^, ver. 12) will remain unrecompensed. 
 
 We see that this passage presupposes the previous 
 one, being its necessary supplement. For while in 
 the first part, neighboring nations beside Judah 
 are mentioned without being particularly desig- 
 nated, the second part gives a complete and or- 
 derly catalogue of nations, beginning with Ju- 
 dah and ending with Babylon, thus preseniinga 
 considerably extended circle before our eyes. 
 While, however, in the second part, objects of 
 punitive juilgment only (and Babylon indeed as 
 such) are mentioned, we learn from the first that 
 Babylon will be the executor of the Divine will 
 on the whole series of nations mentioned before 
 it (vers. 18-2Gff). 
 
 Vers. 12-14. And it shall come to pass . . 
 their own hands. The following reasons fa- 
 vor the unauthenticity, not only of ver. 12, but 
 of the two following verses. 1. The whole pas- 
 sage, XXV. 12-14, is directed against Babylon. 
 Now it lias been already intimated in ver. 11, 
 and will likewise be below in ver. 2(j, that Ba- 
 bylon herself will not be spared from the judg- 
 ment of the Lord. But how briefly and obscurely 
 are these intimations given! If Sheshach is 
 really to be explained by tlie Atbiish, and in this 
 form to be regarded as a genuine word of Jere- 
 miahs, tliis mysierious name would c.rtainly bo 
 suitable for tlie purpose of speaking obscurely 
 of the destruction of Babylon at this moment 
 
CHAP. XXV. 12-29. 
 
 23\ 
 
 And there was reason for this. For the Jews 
 were so little disposed in accordance with the 
 will of Jehovah, to subject themselves to the Ba- 
 bylonian king, that all needed to be avoided, 
 which would confirm them iu this obstinacy. Is 
 it then, in view of this, credible that the prophet, 
 in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, after the battle 
 of Carchemish, spoke in so detailed and empha- 
 tic a manner of the destruction of Babylon, as is 
 done in vers. 12-14 ? I think not. 2. Vers. 12 
 and 13 presuppose the existence of the prophecy 
 against Babylon (chh. 1. li.) For (a) the expres- 
 sion dVi;? ^\^00p, perpetual desolations, is 
 an evident quotation from this prophecy. It not 
 only occurs exclusively in this prophecy (li. 26 
 
 and 62, and besides only as dVi;? n'lDOK/, Ezek. 
 xxsv. 9), but in li. 62 it is significantly treated 
 in a certain measure as its pith and token, so 
 that the employment of this expression in the 
 text is to be regarded as an intentional reference 
 to chh. 1. li. {/}]. The words "and I will bring 
 upon that land all My words which I have pro- 
 nounced against it, all that is written in this 
 book," in ver. 13, point likewise with all possi- 
 ble definiteness to the prophecy against Babylon 
 as one in existence. Now since this, according 
 to li. 59 was first composed in the fourth year of 
 Zedekiah, it is thus ah-eady shown that vers. 12 
 and 13, so far as they presuppose the prophecy 
 against Babylon, cannot possibly have been writ- 
 ten in the fourth year of Jclioiakim. 3. The se- 
 cond half of ver. 13 presupposes also the exis- 
 tence of the other prophecies against the nations, 
 and this too as one Sepher. Now though most 
 of these prophecies are certainly older than the 
 liattle of Carchemish (comp. on xlvi. 2 and the 
 lutrod. to chh. xlvi.-li.), it is yet evident from 
 the opposition in which the second half of ver. 
 13 stands to the first, that here that Sepher against 
 the nations is meant, wliich contains the prophecy 
 against Babylon. This Sepher however cannot, 
 as we have said, have been in existence before 
 the fourth year of Zedekiah. We might assume 
 that Jeremiah himself, after the completion of the 
 Sepher against the nations, subjoined here the 
 words of ver. 13. Tiie striking addition " which 
 Jeremiah hath prophesied," etc., is however op- 
 posed to this. For is it credible that Jeremiah 
 himself put these words in the mouth of the 
 Lord ? Every one will feel that these words of- 
 fend not only against rhetorical concinnity, but 
 against religious feeling. 4. The demonstrative 
 nin, this, after "I3pn the book, evidently 
 
 presupposes that he who wrote it regarded the 
 pi'esent passage, i. e., ch. xxv., as belonging to 
 the Sepher against the nations. For in any other 
 case the demonstrative would be incorrect. Now 
 it may certainly be proved that the prophecies 
 against the nations must once have stood in im- 
 mediate connection with ch. xxv. The LXX. 
 still has it in this place, so that, omitting ver. 14, 
 the prophecy against E'am (xlix. 54 30, Heb.) 
 folL ■ s directly on ver. 13. Then the others come 
 in the following order: against Egypt (ch. xlvi.), 
 against Babylon (chh. 1. and li. ), against Philis- 
 tia, Tyrus and Sidon (^xlvii. 1-7), against Edom 
 (xlix. 7-22), against Ammon (xlix. 1-5), against 
 Kedar (xlix. 28-33), against Damascus (xlix. 
 
 23-27), against Moab (ch. xlviii.). Then follows 
 xxv. 15-38 as a comprehensive conclusion. This 
 arrangement is certainly, as regards the order 
 of sequence, not the original one, but it still 
 bears, as a whole, unmistakable traces of the ori- 
 ginal connection. In and of itself indeed the cir- 
 cumstance that the LXX. brings the Sepher 
 against the nations into connection with ch. xxv., 
 inserting it between vers. 13 and 15 of this chap- 
 ter, is not of any great weight, for it might be 
 due to pure arbitrariness on the part of the tr.ans- 
 lator. But there is another circumstance, which 
 evidently cannot have sprung from arbitrariness, 
 and hence lends great importance to that con- 
 nection. The prophecy against Elam has in the 
 LXX. a superscription (rd AlM^u) and a post- 
 script. This postscript is however nothing else 
 but the first verse of ch. xxvii., which is wanting 
 in the LXX. For the details concerning this see 
 xxvii. 1, xlix. 34 and the Introd. to chh. xlvi.- 
 li. It is hence plain that the prophecies against 
 the nations must once have had their place di- 
 rectly before xxvii. 1, and that the prophecy 
 against Elam must have formed their conclusion. 
 Chap. xxv. however was reckoned as part of the 
 immediately following Sepher against the nations. 
 Therefore the author could say with perfect cor- 
 rectness of ver. 13 : in this book. Thus then 
 ver. 13 was inserted in the text at a time, when 
 the Sepher against the nations had its place im- 
 mediately after this chapter, as a whole, which in- 
 cluded it. It is not probable, for the reason ad- 
 duced above, that the prophet himself inserted it. 
 As to ver. 14 finally, the first half is taken almost 
 verbally from xxvii. 7, and in such wise that the 
 perfect H^;;, shall serve, which is incorrect here 
 though it corresponds perfectly with the context 
 there, is retained. In xxvii. 7 n:3j;i is used 
 quite regularly in the sense of the future, after 
 the preceding statement of time "I2f'^5< Hj,' N3~l^. 
 Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., I 84, o. In the present 
 passage, however, none of the conditions are ful- 
 filled on which the rendering of the perfect as 
 future depends, while the perfect or present sig- 
 nification contradicts the context throughout. 
 The second half of the verse, which HiTzio re- 
 gards as the genuine supplement of ver. 11, 
 strongly reminds us of 1. 29 ; li. 24. On ac- 
 cording to the -works of their own hands, 
 comp. vers. 6 and 7. In itself then the passage 
 contains nothing which Jeremiah might not have 
 written. But it is clear that if the preceding 
 sentences are to be critically suspected this sin- 
 gle little sentence is all the less able to maintain 
 its position, as standing isolated it would disturb 
 the connection. In conclusion we give a brief 
 synopsis of the different critical views respect- 
 ing tins passage, omitting those which consider it 
 wholly original, or only subsequently supplied 
 by Jeremiah. 1. Ver. 11 6-14 inauthentic (Graf). 
 2. Ver. 11 6-14 rt inauthentic (Hitziq). 3. Vers. 
 12-14 a later addition (Naegelsbach). 4. Vers. 
 13 6-14, inauthentic (Berthold). 5. Ver. 13 !■■, 
 inauthentic (Venema, Schnurker). 6. Ver. ]•-, 
 
 the words ^H-Sd-S;' ^' iO: '\Wii., inauthenilc 
 (Hknsler). 
 
 Vtrs. 15 and 16. For thus saith . . . -will 
 send among them. — For introduces the proof 
 
232 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 of the sentence pronounced in ver. 12, that even 
 Babylon, called according to vers. 9-11 to uni- 
 versal dominion, will be punished in its time. It 
 might seem strange that in the same breath, as 
 it were, conquest and destruction are predicted 
 of the Babylonians. The prophet explains how 
 this will be in the following verses, to ver. 2(j. 
 He says that all the nations will have to empty 
 the cup of wrath, but Babylon last. In this it is 
 implied that Babylon will first be the instrument 
 01 accomplishing the judgment on the other na- 
 tions, but at last will itself be subject to judg- 
 ment. Those who declare vers. 11 6-14 and ver. 
 26 b to be unauthentic, act therefore with per- 
 fect consistency. But it is wrong to reject a 
 thought here, which is one of the foundation pil- 
 lars of Jeremiah's prophecy (coiap. especially li. 
 20-24), without which it must be regarded as 
 partial, and whicia ought least of all to be want- 
 ing here in the prophet's great pi-ogramme. — The 
 figure of the " cup of fury " and " cup of tremb- 
 ling" is frequent in the Scriptures: Isai. li. 17, 
 22; Hab. ii. 16; Jer. xlix. 12; li. 7; Lam. iv. 
 21; Ezek. xxiii. 31 sqq. ; Ps. Ix. 5 ; Ixxv. 9. The 
 drinking of the cup is emblematic of suifering 
 punishment, the effect of the drinking, intoxica- 
 tion and reeling, is the emblem of shattered forces 
 and of lost hold and self-command. — I send 
 thee. The sending is to be regarded in general 
 as merely imaginary. Comp. i. 10. It was af- 
 terwards, at any rate, partially real. Comp. 
 xxvii. 2 sqq. It is evident from M flNTn and es- 
 pecially from ver. 17 that the prophet describes 
 an inward experience.— Because of thesw^ord. 
 Observe the transition from the figurative to the 
 ordinary mode of speech. 
 
 Vers. 17 and 18. Then took I . . . this day. 
 The prophet begins with Jerusalem. Why he 
 does so is seen from ver. 29. We may conclude 
 from this that the entire Sepher against the nations 
 (chh. xlvi.-51) followed this present prophecy. — 
 The kings thereof. The plural here, since 
 Nebuchadnezzar, as is well known, caused three 
 Jewish kings in succession to feel his supremacy, 
 may be taken in the proper sense. It may also 
 however be the general plural and in what fol- 
 lows, when the number of the conquered kings 
 could neither be known to the prophet, nor is any 
 check possible on our part, the plural must be 
 taken as general. Comp. rems. on xix. 3. — To 
 make them a desolation. Comp. vers. 9, 11; 
 xxiv. 9; xlii. 18; xliv. 8, 22; xlix. 13.— As it is 
 this day. The explanations "truly and cer- 
 tainly," or " as it is impending," or "as we have 
 begun to experience," are grammatically impos- 
 sible. The LXX. omit these words. They are 
 at any rate a later addition, whether by the pro- 
 phet or some other can scarcely be decided. 
 Comp. xi. 5; xxxii. 20; xliv. G, 22, 23. 
 
 Vers. 19-21. Pharaoh . . . children of Am- 
 nion. In this enumeration of the nations the 
 prophet evidently proceeds in general Iroiii South 
 to North, beginning with Egypt and concluding 
 with the kings of the North (ver. 20). From 
 Egypt he goes up to the South-West (Philistia), 
 and JSouth-East (Uz), then to the East (Kdoni, 
 Moah, Aiiimon), and West (Phoenicia), of the holy 
 land. With I'liicnicia are connected tlie islands 
 of the remote West, whereupon the propliet leaps 
 over to the far East (Arabian nations), in order 
 
 to get by the North-East (Elam, Media), to th« 
 North (ver. 26), when his view losesitself in the 
 remote distance. — Mingled people. As to 
 Egypt in particular we know exactly what Jere- 
 miah understands by ^"^X. which he attributes 
 to this country. They are without doubt foreign 
 mercenaries (ch. xlvi. 21); primarily those 
 lonians, Cariaus and Phoenicians whom Psamme- 
 tichus took into his service, and to whom he af- 
 terwards assigned residences in Egypt (Hkrou. 
 II., 152, 154; DuNCKER, Gesch. d. Alte/ih. Ste 
 Aufl. I., S. 922); — but then also strangers from 
 other nations, which Jeremiah (xlvi. 9) and Eze- 
 kiel (xxx. 5) mention. — The case appears to be 
 different with the mingled people in ver. 24, 
 of which below.— The land of Uz. (p;;n ]*"IX). 
 
 The passages of the Old Testament where Uz is 
 mentioned are Gen. x. 23 ; xxii. 21 ; xxxvi. 28; 
 Job i. 1 ; Lam. iv. 21, and the present passage. — 
 Delitzsch (Herz. R.-Enc, VI. S. 112) remarks 
 that we can still say nothing more definite with 
 respect to the situation of this country than that, 
 as we are told in the addition at the close of the 
 book of Job in the LXX., it lay knl toIq opiotg r^f 
 'ISovfiaiag aal 'Apajilag. This is favored by the 
 present passage, which includes the country in 
 its catalogue directly after Egypt and before Phi- 
 listia, (the latter corresponding to the South- 
 eastern border-land), but especially by Lam. iv. 
 21 (daughter of Edom, that dwellest in the land of 
 Uz), and the origin of Eliphaz in Teman (Job ii. 
 11), which is an Edomite city (according to Jer. 
 xlix. 7). Uz is not thus identified with Edom, in 
 which case alone Graf's remark that Uz needed 
 not to be specially mentioned together with 
 Edom, would be justified. Comp. however the 
 articles on Uz and Esau by Dr. Sprenger in the 
 Journal of the Germ. Oriental Society [Zeitsck d. 
 d.-Morgenl. GeselL, 1863, S. 373), who seeks to 
 prove the identity of Uz and Esau from Oriental 
 sources. — In opposition to Fries (Stud. u. Krit^ 
 18-54, 21 Delitzsch correctly remarks that he 
 seeks for the country too far to the North, (in the 
 province of El-Tcllul, west of the Hauran moun- 
 tains). — The Philistines, etc. Of the five ci- 
 ties of the Philistines Gath only is wanting (Josh, 
 xiii. 3 ; 1 Sam. vi. 17). It was deprived of its 
 walls by Uzziah (2 Chron. xxvi. 6) and lost its 
 importance (comp. Am. vi. 2). For the same 
 reason it seems to be passed over in Am. i. 6 sqq. ; 
 Zeph. ii. 4; Zech. ix. 5 sqq. Comp. Kouler on 
 the last passage. — AVhy Jeremiah speaks only of a 
 "remnant of Ashdod " is explained by history. 
 Psammetichus had after a siege of 29 years taken 
 the city and destroyed it. (Herod. II. 157). 
 [Rawlinson, Herodotus, II. p. 242. — S. R. A.] 
 
 Vers. 22-24. .And all the kings of Tyrus . . 
 that dwell in the desert. — Kings of the 
 isles C^H). The singular only in Isa. xx. 6; 
 xxiii. 2, 6; Jer. xlvii. 4. All sea- washed land, 
 whether continent or island, is called ''N. Here 
 the collective 'N, as elsewhere the plural D"X 
 (Isa. xl. 15; xli. 1, 5; xlii. 4, 10, etc.), denotes 
 not merely the continental Phc»nician colonies, 
 but all the coast-lauds, and thus also the islands 
 of the Mediterranean. — In vers. 23 and 24 Ara- 
 bian races are enumerated, which in oppositioa 
 to ''X and in relation to Edom, Moab and Amnion, 
 represent the remote east. — Dedan (p"t), comp* 
 
CHAP. XXV. 12-29. 
 
 23} 
 
 Gen. X. 7 ; 1 Ohron. i. 9 with Gen. xxv. 3 ; 1 
 Chron. i. 32 coll. Isa. xxi. 13 ; Ezek. xxv. 13 ; 
 xxvii. 15 '20; xxxviii. 13; Jer. xlix. 8. Both 
 the stiitements of Genesis as to their derivation, 
 and the geographical statements as to the position 
 of their couniry, lead to a double Dedan ; a 
 southern situated on the Persian gulf, and a 
 northern bordering on Edoin. It has been sought 
 to connect the two by the supposition of coloniza- 
 tion. Comp. Aknold in Herzoq, R.-Enc, I. S. 
 462 — Tema, (kSO'n), comp. Gen. xxv. 15; 1 
 Chron. i. 30; Job vi. 19; Isa. xxi. 14. This 
 name is also borne by two different localities. 
 The biblical Tema is "the most northern of all 
 Arabian places," the second chief place in Djof, 
 three days journey from the territory of Damas- 
 cus. Comp. Herz. R.-Enc.,X\., S. 706 [Ritter, 
 Urdkunde, XII. 159; XIII. 384, e^c.].— Buz ^TU), 
 is mentioned in Gen. xxii. 21 as a son of Nachor 
 and brother of Uz. Elihu (Job xxxii. 2) is a 
 Buzite. It is at all events an Arabic tribe, but 
 no further particulars are known. Comp. Winer, 
 E.-W.-B., s. v.. Buz. — All in the utmost cor- 
 ners (nXi3"''yiVp). comp. Comm. on ix. 25; xlix. 
 
 32. — Arabia (^l^^). It is well known that this 
 word, which occurs first in Isaiah (xiii. 20; xxi. 
 13) designates, not the whole of the now so-called 
 Arabia, but only a part bordering on Palestine 
 (Gesenius supposes the territory of the Ish- 
 maelites. Comp. Thes., pp. 1066 and 1441 ; coll. 
 Gen. xxv. 18). So also the mingled people 
 that d^well in the desert designates Arabian 
 peoples, of which we know nothing further. The 
 expression all the kings of Arabia, occurs be- 
 sides only in 1 Kings x. 15, where it is said that 
 Solomon received 666 talents of gold beside what 
 he had of the merchantmen and all the kings of 
 the mixed peoples [Eng. Vers. Arabia] and the 
 governors of the country. Comp. Keil on the 
 passage. — The 3^^ of this passage and the book 
 
 of Kings, were probably mixed states of various 
 tribes, which for the sake of protection were 
 tributary to some neighboring power. Such 
 little unions seem to have been formed in the 
 Arabian desert near the borders of Palestine, of 
 which, however, the remembrance was lost in a 
 comparatively brief period. The author of the 
 book of Chronicles, at least, did not know what 
 
 he was to understand by the 3"^^ '^^'^ (1 Kings 
 X. 15). He therefore wrote for it simply '3/0 
 
 n'l^ (2 Chron. ix. 14). As to the fulfilment of 
 
 these prophecies respecting the Arabian tribes, 
 we are left, in the absence of all positive state- 
 ments, to conjectures. Comp. Niebuhr. Ass. u. 
 Babel., S. 209, 10; Duncker, Gesch. d. Alterth., 
 I. S. 827, and what is subsequently remarked on 
 ver. 26 a. 
 
 Vers. 25 and 26. And all the kings of 
 Zimri . . . drink after them. The LXX. 
 omits the kings of Zimri. Aquila has Za/api 
 (MoNTFAUCON, p. 221) ; Vulg., Zambre (Zambri) ; 
 Syr. Samron; Theodoret, Zafijipij. He says 
 iraph T(;: ''Efipaiu koL tu Xiipu Zefifipav Evp?'jKa/XEV. 
 r^f (5f Xerol'pag ovtoq v'loq. Accordingly most ex- 
 positors have taken Zimri (the name does not 
 occur elsewhere as a gentilicium) for the nation 
 descended from Simran (Gen. xxv. 2). But 
 where this nation is to be sought for is very un- 
 
 certain. To think of the Ethiopic Zimiris (Plin 
 Hist. Kat., 36, 16, 25), or the I,efx(3plTai (Strabo, 
 XVII. 1, 786) is forbidden by the connection. — 
 Zabra also, the iirbs regia between Mecca and 
 Medina, of which Gesenius reminds us (Thes., p. 
 421), will not suit. Winer [R.-W.-B., IL, p. 
 465, 3d Ed.), mentions Zimaia on the upper 
 Euphrates in Lesser Armenia, and the city of the 
 same name in Greater Armenia, and Zimura in 
 Asia. Comp. Ruetschi, in \\f.b.z. R.-Enc.Xl\., 
 S. 409. — None of these views are satisfactory. 
 The matter must remain in suspenso. — Slam, the 
 
 Medes (HD, D/J?). These two are also men- 
 tioned together in Isa. xxi. 2. As to Elam, it 
 appears in the primaeval period as an indepen- 
 dent country with its own princes (Gen. xiv. 1, 
 9). It is maintained by many that Elam in- 
 cludes Persia, and therefore in the older period, 
 stands for what was known in later times as D^3 
 
 - T 
 
 (comp. Drechsler, on Isa. xxi. 2), but this is 
 denied by others (comp. Vaihinger, Herz. R.- 
 Enc, III. iS. 747). As to its position this much 
 is certain, that it lay to the east of the Tigris, 
 and, moreover, of its mouths. But the greatest 
 uncertainty prevails with respect to its bound- 
 aries and extent. Comp. Vaihinger, with Kie- 
 pert's Atlas of the Ancient World, an-d M. Nie- 
 buhr, Ass. u. Babel., S. 384. — Media, situated to 
 the north of Elam, forms the transition to the 
 kingdoms of the north, of which Jeremiah men- 
 tions none by name. He speaks only of the near 
 and the distant (comp. xlviii. 24). In chh. 1. and 
 li. "an assembly of great nations from the north 
 country," is mentioned as the executors of the 
 destined punishment on Babylon (1. 3, 9, 41 • li. 
 48). Some are then called by name to accom- 
 plish this, — Ararat, Minni, Asticheuaz (li. 27), 
 and Media [the Medes], (li. 28). From this we 
 see that the Medes are reckoned among the 
 northern nations, which does not contradict the 
 present passage and might well be so, for Media 
 extends certainly from the northeast to the north 
 of Babylon. — One vyith another. Comp. rems. 
 on ver. 9. — As to the fulfilment of this prophecy, 
 thus much only is ascertained with certainty, 
 that Nebuchadnezzar subjugated the lands west 
 of the Tigris down to Egypt and the borders of 
 Lydia. Whether he also subjugated the lands 
 lying east, or the Median kingdom, is disputed. 
 Niebuhr (^S5. u. Bab.) maintains that Nebuchad- 
 nezzar held his kingdom as a fief of Media, but 
 without paying tribute. But after the death of 
 Cyaxares, he ended victoriously a great war with 
 Media (lb., S. 211 sqq). Duncker, on the other 
 hand (1., S. 798, 844, etc.), combats both the de- 
 pendence of Babylon on Media, and the victory 
 over it. This controversy is of no importance 
 for us. The prophet does not mean to say that 
 God had given to Nebuchadnezzar all the five 
 parts of the world, with all the beasts therein 
 (xxvii. 6), and the men, for an actual possession, 
 nor can this be maintained for all the lands here 
 expressly mentioned by name. After the victory 
 at Carchemish and Nebuchadnezzar's accession 
 to the throne, the prophet recognizes this star, 
 which has ascended the political horizon, as the 
 sun which is to shine over all. In the grand 
 prophetic view of history j which rests on the es- 
 sential and regards the collateral as non-ex- 
 
234 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 istent), since there has been any history at. all, 
 one nation always stands at the head of all the 
 rest This nation is that which rules the world, 
 I. e., which dominates all the other nations, if not 
 really, ideally or de jure, and is the representa- 
 tive worldly kingdom in antithesis to the king- 
 dom of God. This is the sense of this passage, 
 and of the later one, xxvii. 5 sqq. It may then 
 well be said that this passage (xxv. 15-26) in- 
 volves two judicial acts ; one by which the Chal- 
 dean empire is founded, and a second by which it is 
 judged (ver. 2(j 6j.— The king of Sheshach 
 {."WW I'^OI) It seems indubitable from the con- 
 text here and from 11. 41, where the two ideas 
 correspond in the parallelism, that Sheshach 
 is Babylon, and this is acknowledged by all the 
 expositors. Marsham is the only exception, who 
 takes l^^yj as equivalent to jKf^B^ (Shushan). 
 
 Comp. Ges. Tkes., p. 1486. But we are very 
 much in the dark as to the origin, the etymology 
 and the meaning of the word. It is easily under- 
 stood that Jeremiah here used a word for Baby- 
 lon which somewhat veiled the idea. He may 
 have done this for the sake of his countrymen. 
 For the object of his prophecy requires that the 
 impression of terror, which the name of Babylon 
 must have made on their minds, should not be 
 weakened. Hence with the exception of chh. 1., 
 li., he says nothing against Babylon, and these 
 chapters, as is clear from the mode of publica- 
 tion, were intended much more for the future 
 than for the present. That regard for ths Chal- 
 deans was his motive for such concealment, I do 
 not believe. It might be said that he was afraid, 
 as indeed many, Jerome at their head, have sup- 
 posed. Jeremiah, however, surely feared the 
 Chaldeans no more than his own countrymen. 
 What other motive he had for concealing the 
 name of Babylon from the Chaldeans, we cannot 
 conceive. What had the Chaldeans to do with 
 him".' If they received information of the pro- 
 phecy, yet it was not written for them. In the 
 only passage where '^K'tJf occurs besides this (li. 
 
 44), the need of change has evidently occasioned 
 the expression. Jeremiah namely, in connection 
 with chh. 1. andli., never uses the word Babylon 
 in the two parallel members of a verse, except 
 li. 49, where the antithesis requires it. Else- 
 where he uses as parallel with Babylon either 
 Chnl. leans (1. 8, 3-5, 45; li. 24, 85, 54), or land 
 of Babylon, (li. 29), or a figurative expression 
 
 like hammer ("^'£03, 1. 23), or heart of my 
 
 insurgents ('Op~3^, li. 1). He also twice uses 
 instt-ad of Babylon figurative expressions, as in 
 li. 21. In li. 41 the name of Babylon occurs in 
 the second clause. Accordingly it is quite in 
 order that this name should not be used in the 
 first clause of the sentence. Instead of it we 
 have two synonymous expressions, of which one 
 "the praise of the wliole earth" is evidently of 
 
 a figurative nature. The other is our "^^p,- We 
 
 Bee then that Jeremiah uses this expression in the 
 one case for concealment, in tlie otiier for variety. 
 Whence did he obtain it? Is it to be ex})lii,iiu'd 
 by the Atbash? Is it a species of Cabbalistic 
 Temura or anagram which is either simple [ex. gr. 
 
 DkSd, Exod. xxiii. 23=Sn3''0), or elaborate? 
 
 The latter consists in turning the Alphabet round 
 and beginning at the end (T\ for N, K' for 3, etc., 
 hence Atbash), or in the middle (7 for N, D for 3' 
 hence .\lbam). Comp. Buxtorf, Lex. Chuld., p. 
 248. 9 ; Herzoq, R.-Euc, VII. 205 [Gese.mus 
 denies that the Atbash was in use in Jeremiah's 
 time, and Hitziu accordingly attributes the ana- 
 gram to a later period, when fear of Babylon 
 furnished a motive for its use. — S. R. A.]. — Has 
 Jeremiah really made use here of such a play 
 upon words? Many maintain this. It is said, 
 if a prophet can make alphabetically arranged 
 songs, he can make use of the Atbash. It may 
 be that the two things are related, and hence I 
 will not dispute the possibility. But I make this 
 admission unwillingly and would rather say, with 
 many of the elder theologians [ex. gr., Selden, 
 De Diis Syr. Synt., II., Cap. 13) : vix risum hie 
 fortasse teneas. As regards the signification of 
 the word, it is certainly most natural to think of 
 the radix ^B^K^, coll. nn^, r\W. 22JS, \2V3^, i'pt^ 
 
 (Isa. xli. 64), and thence derive the meaning 
 demissio, submersio, sinking down (Hengsten- 
 berg), humbling (Graf). Hengstenberg re- 
 marks in opposition to my view (in Jer. u. Bab., 
 S. 131), that the reason of its use is rhetorical, 
 the prophet wishing to deprive of their terror the 
 names Babylon and Casdim, which had a most 
 terrible sound in the Israelitish ear, pointing by 
 a slight alteration at the ruin hidden behind the 
 greatness of Babylon; to which it may be replied, 
 that these names were certainly not of terrible 
 sound at the moment when destruction was being 
 predicted to their bearers. This is however the 
 case in xxv. 26, and in chh. 1. and li. And why 
 should Babylon be mentioned so frequently as 
 the instrument of Israel's chastisement, without 
 the "fearful sound" of the name being mitigated 
 by the pleasant '^Kf^? The meaning "demissio, 
 submersio " does not appear to suit at all in li. 41. 
 For there it stands parallel with "praise of the 
 whole earth." Others, therefore, have inter- 
 preted the name otherwise: Chr. D. Michaelis, 
 urbs bellatrix from the Arabic shaka=fortitudinem 
 in bello ostend.it ; J. D. Michaelis ;i;a/lKd7ri;Aoi', 
 from the Arabic sakka=ferro obduxit portam ; 
 BoHLEN, atrium regis, from an analogy in modern 
 Persian. But all this is dubious. I believe that 
 the whole matter must be left still in suspenso. 
 Perhaps the Assyrian Babylonian monuments 
 will throw light on it. At least Rodiger (in 
 Ges. T/ies.. p. 2486), refers to a discovery which 
 Rawlinson has made (comp. Journal of the Asiat. 
 Soc, XII., p. 478) according to which ^K^B'* was 
 the name of a Babylonian deity. I have not 
 been able anywhere to find a contirmation of this 
 statement ["Sir H. Rawlinson has observed 
 that the name of tlie moon god, which was iden- 
 tical, or nearly so, with that of the city of .Vbra- 
 ham, Ur (or Hur), might have been read in one 
 of the ancient dialects of Babylon as Shishaki, 
 and that consequently a possible explanation is 
 thus obtained of the ISheshach of fc)Cii[>ture,(RAW- 
 linson's Herodotus, I., p. 616). She.sliach may 
 stand for Ur, Ur itself, the old capital, being taken 
 (as Babel the new capital was constantly) tu repre- 
 sent the country." S.Mi'i'ii's Iii//h Dictionary. — S- 
 R. A.]. 
 Vers. 27-29. Therefore thou shalt say • 
 
CHAP. XXV. 30-38. 
 
 •J.oi} 
 
 the Lord of hosts. These verses, containing 
 the figure of the cup, express the immutability 
 of the divine counsel. — Which is called by 
 
 my name. Ver. 29. Comp. Comm. on ver. 18 
 and vii. 10. — Ye shall not be unpunished. 
 Comp. xlix. 12, after which passage ours is formed 
 
 3. The Judgment of the World. 
 XXV. 30-38. 
 
 30 But do thou prophesy against them all these words, 
 And say unto them : 
 
 Jehovah roareth from on high,^ 
 
 And utters his voice from his holy habitation : 
 
 He roareth against his pasture ; 
 
 With a clear cry, like the vintagers, he answers the inhabitants of the laud. 
 
 31 Tumult reacheth to the extremity of the earth ; 
 For Jehovah hath a controversy with the nations f 
 He pleadeth^ with all flesh : 
 
 The godless — he giveth them a prey to the sword, saith Jehovah. 
 
 32 Thus saitb Jehovah Zebaoth : 
 
 Behold, evil goeth forth from nation to nation. 
 
 And a great tempest riseth from the ends of the earth. 
 
 33 And the slain of Jehovah shall on that day lie 
 
 From one end of the earth to the other end of the earth : 
 They shall not be lamented nor gathered nor buried ; 
 They shall become dung on the face of the earth. 
 
 34 Howl, O ye shepherds and cry aloud, 
 And wallow, ye strong ones of the flock : 
 
 For your days for slaughter are accomplished ;* 
 
 And I scatter you,^ that ye shall fall like an elegant vessel. 
 
 35 And the refuge shall vanish from the shepherds. 
 And deliverance from the strong ones of the flock. 
 
 36 Hark ! Crying of the shepherds and howling^ of the strong ones of the flock j 
 For Jehovah devastates their pasture. 
 
 37 The fields of peace are desolated' before the fury of Jehovah's anger. 
 
 38 He hath quitted, like a lion, his covert. 
 
 For their land is become waste before the fury of the destroyer,* 
 And before the fury of his anger. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 30.— JXty"' Dnr3"0 T\'\T^''^ These words to )^)p are a quotation from Joel iv. 16 ; Am. i. 2, only that instead ci 
 TVi'rD there, we have DnDO, and ItyTD tl^'OD instead of D'Vl/ITO. 
 
 2 Ver. 31.-3'"), with 3, as in Gen. xxxi. 30; Jud. vi. 32; Hos. ii. 4. 
 
 3 Ver. 31.— £33ti?J (to have a suit at law, litigare. Comp. ii. 25) with 7 here only. 
 
 4 Ver. 34.— fljl 1X^0 O- The construction (crmstr. prxgnans. Comp. Naegelsb. 6r., ? 112, 7) is aa in Gen. xxv. 24. 
 
 B A'ur. 34.— J33''f\i;»l3i-n. The Masoretes would have this word pronounced D3'iVli'1ijn^ Many MSS. and Edd. 
 
 however read DD'illi'lSrW So also Aquila, Theod., Symm. (oi o-KopTrta^tol ijaii'); Jerome, dissipationes vesfrx [A. V.; 
 
 your dispersions].' Now whether we connect this idea with the foregoing context (" your days are accomplished and yoTir 
 scatterings," as Rashi, Ewald in his Oi-it. Gr., S. ISIJ, Maurer, Umbreit read), or with tlie following ("and as to your scnt- 
 terings— ," as Kimchi and others ; "and your scatterings will talie place," as Chr. B. illCHAELls), the construction is still 
 artificial or faulty and fhe sense feeble. The Masoretes would have the form regarded as a verb. But since D3"mi'1£)j1 ^s 
 
 a monstrous form, IIitzig and Graf would read DD'r\1i*''3n^ '^s Hiph., with strengthened fl, like rT^nil, xii. 5; xxii. 15 
 
 , •.•••: TV: |v 
 
 coll. 7 Jin Hos. xi. 3. The H bus given occasion to regard the form as a substantive; since, however, there are no sub- 
 etantives of the form n^'pfl, m^liH bas been made from nil^'Sn. 1 also adopt this view. As to the meaning of the 
 
 word, however, I hold that of " scattering " to be correct. For 1. the Hiph. occurs only in this sense, never that of break' 
 ing ; 2. breaking in relation to the jireccding context would be tautological, while it is very suitable to say that a part oi" 
 Ihe flock shall be slaughtered, another part scattered, but in such wise that the scattered also shall be overthrown vci^ 
 
236 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 broken, like fine delicate vessels (mon 'Sd Hos. xiii. 15; 2 Chron. xxxii. 27 ; xxxvi. 10 ; Neh. ii. 10; Dan. xi. 8); 3. Th» 
 
 mention of the 013D and of the HD' 7i3 ver. 35 (comp. £3' 73, the escaped) applies bettor to scattered fugitives than ta 
 T T •• T 
 
 <i Ver. 36.— On the form dSS'I comp. Olsh., J 39 6 ; 78 e. 
 
 7 Ver. 37. — Since there is no utterance transporting the reader to the future, ^D^31 is to be taken either as prseterite or 
 present (comp. Comm. on xviii. 4: xix. 4, 5V The latter is to be preferred, since 101J '« evidently parallel to "Wfj, which 
 expresses the present (ver. 30). The participle D'OIJ should be taken as praterite. (Comp. N.^eqelsb. Gr., § 96, 2). 
 
 8 Ver. 38. — PIJV [destroyer, from njV to be violent] does not occur elsewhere as an independent substantive. It stands 
 
 TT 
 
 objectively after a'ln, Jer. xlvi. 16; 1. 16, after 1'J?, Zeph. iii. 1. More frequently it is not found. On the other hand, 
 inn stands only before <■' tix. The word does not occur in any other connection. The hypothesis of HlTZIG, Ewald, 
 GR.4P is therefore well-founded, that with the LXX. and Chald. we are to read nyVPI DITI. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 While in the previous section a long series of 
 nations was adduced by name as the object of 
 judgments, in such wise, however, that the enu- 
 meration ended indefinitely (ver. 26), in what 
 follows no nation is mentioned by name, but the 
 limits of the territory to be reached by the 
 judgment are strictly defined in the words all 
 the inhabitants of the earth (ver. 80), all 
 flesh (ver. 31), fiom one end, etc. (ver. 33). 
 From this it follows that the prophet here be- 
 holds the judicial act of God in its last and 
 highest stage. After having, in vers. 1-11, de- 
 scribed the judgment of the kingdom of God in 
 the world, in vers. 12-29 the judgment of the 
 kingdom of the world (e. e. that kingdom which 
 represents the culminating point of history), he 
 now describes the world-judgment, i. e. the judg- 
 ment/)f all nations of the earth absolutely, with- 
 out regard to their greater or less historical im- 
 portance. We thus perceive here the same ap- 
 pearance, which not rarely occurs elsewhere 
 (comp. ex. gr. Joel i. 15 ; ii. 1, 2 coll. iii. 4 sqq.; 
 Isa. xiii. 9 sqq.; Zeph. i. 2-18; Matt, xxiv), viz., 
 that single temporal acts of divine judgment are 
 designated as types and preludes of the last and 
 highest judgment. — The passage includes four 
 sections: 1. vers. 30, 31, prediction of the judg- 
 ment in general, declaration as to who is the 
 judge, from whence the judge proceeds, how far 
 the judgment will extend; 2. vers. 32, 33, more 
 special description of that which the judge does ; 
 the storm rolls from nation to nation, till the 
 whole surface of the earth is covered with the 
 slain ; 3. vers. 34 and 3.5, address to the judged ; 
 they are to howl and wallow, for the day of 
 slaughter is come and there is no possibility of 
 escaping it ; 4. vers. 36-38, the judgment is in 
 course of execution, the cry of the oppressed is 
 h(.';ird ; — afterwards all becomes quiet, the lion 
 has desolated the land. 
 
 Vers. 30, 31. But do thou prophesy . . . 
 saith Jehovah. The person of .lehovuh is evi- 
 dently presented in these two verses as the judge. 
 His appearance is described in its terribleness, 
 as at the conclusion of His judicial acts. — But 
 do thou prophesy. With these words tlie 
 Lord, having dismissed those who protest against 
 the cup (vers. 28 and 29), turns to the jjrophet, 
 in order to put into his mouth, not a more mode- 
 rate, but on the contrary a more enipliaiic threat- 
 sning uf judgment. vVe see that the prophet 
 plainly wishes to represent the judgment as pro- 
 ceeding from the upper sanctuary, lie was the 
 ii:r. obliged to do this as the earthly sanctuary 
 
 was Itself to be an object of the judgment. 
 Comp. his pasture, directly afterwards. The 
 roaring is immediately explained by the synony- 
 mous utters his voice, which in Old Testa- 
 ment usage is frequeuily a designation of the 
 thunder (Ps. xviii. 1 ; xxix. 3 sqq.; xlvi. 7 ; 
 Ixviii. 34; Joel ii. 11). — Against his pasture. 
 The holy land, of course including Jerusalem 
 
 and the temple. Here, as in ver. 18 coll. vPID 
 ver. 29, the prophet names these sacred places 
 first. On nu, pasture, comp. x. 25; Ps. Ixxix. 
 7 ; Exod. XV. 13. — With a clear cry, etc. 
 Nature in uproar ! Thunder, lightning and tem- 
 pest! The thunder roars, the tempest howls, 
 hisses, whistles. This is the ITTI the hillo, 
 
 heigh-ho, ^f the vintager (comp. D'/lvh, Jud. 
 
 ix. 27), who, however, here wades in human 
 blood instead of the blood of the grape ; for in 
 the words like the treaders, an allusion has, 
 doubtless -correctly, been found to the compari- 
 son of a bloody conqueror with a treader of the 
 wine-press. HTn is found also in xlviii. 33 ; Ii. 
 14 ; Isa. xvi. 9, 10, and everywhere in a sense 
 similar to that of this passage. — He answers. 
 Comp. Ii. 14; Ps. xxxii. 18; cxix. 172. — Tu- 
 mult reacheth, etc. Description of the whole 
 tumult and its extent. — For Jehovah, etc. The 
 Lord disputes not with individuals but with all. 
 Therefore the noise is so fearful. — To the 
 sword. Comp. xv. 9. 
 
 Vers. 32, 33. Thus saith Jehovah Zeba- 
 oth . . . face of the earth. The person of the 
 judge retires ; what He does is brought into the 
 foreground and is described as proceeding from 
 the ends of the earth, from nation to nation, a 
 destructive tempest (ver. 32), especially as a 
 universal dying, in consequence of which the 
 earth will be full of unburied corpses (ver. 33). 
 — Goeth forth. Comp. ix. 2 ; xxiii. 19. — 
 Ariseth. Comp. vi. 22. — Pleadeth, etc. Comp. 
 Isa. Ixvi. 16. — Shall not be lamented, etc. 
 A quotation from viii. 2 ; xvi. 4. Observe, 
 moreover, the Old Testament coloring of this 
 description. The prophet's gaze remains fixed 
 on the earth. Comp., on the other hand, Matt, 
 xxiv. 30 sqq.; xxv. 31 sqq.; 1 Thess. iv. 16 sqq. 
 
 Vers. 34, 35. How^l . . . strong ones of the 
 flock. The prophet turns to the judged them- 
 selves, chiefly to the shepherds and the strong 
 ones of the flock. Since the judgment of the 
 world appears generally in Holy Scripture as 
 the overthrow of worldly empires by the king- 
 dom of God (comp. Ps. ii. 8 sqq.; ex. 1 sqq.; 
 Dan. ii. 44; vii. 27; 1 Cor. xv. 24 sqq.; Heb. 
 xii. 26 sqq.; Rev. xi. 15), by which it is proved 
 that the first shall be last, and the last first, and 
 
CHAP. XXV. 30-38. 
 
 231 
 
 that God has chosen the foolish and weak things 
 of the world to confound the strong; — we have 
 here to understand by the shepherds and strong 
 ones of the flock primarily the kings and princes 
 (comp. "the kings thereof," etc., ver. 18), as the 
 most eminent bearers and representatives of 
 worldly power. Still a limitation and an exten- 
 sion are in place ; a limitation, in so far that by 
 shepherds are most usually meant the kings of 
 kings, i. e. the rulers of the world in general, 
 here primarily Babylon, — an extension, in so far 
 as the strong ones of the flock doubtless de- 
 note all that is great, strong and glorious in the 
 world. Comp. Deut. xxxii. 15 ; Ps. xxii. 13 ; 
 Jer. 1. 11; Ezek. xxxix. 17 sqq. — Wallow. 
 Wallowing in dust and ashes is also elsewhere an 
 expression of anxious supplication in the great- 
 est distress. Comp. vi. 26; Mic. i. 10; Ezek. 
 xxvii. 30. 
 
 Vers. 36-38. Hark ... his anger. The pro- 
 phet describes here both the judgment in its 
 course (ver. 36) and the appearance of the earth 
 after its accomplishment. The cry of the mighty 
 and the strong is heard, for the Lord is devasta- 
 ting their pasturage. Here also only the shep- 
 herds and the strong ones of the flock, the fat 
 rams, the strong steers, the wild stallions, are 
 mentioned, for the Lord has chosen the weak 
 ones of the world. — The fields of peace, the 
 pastures hitherto peaceful. — Before the fury. 
 Comp. iv. 2H. — Like a lion. Comp. Hos. v. 14; 
 Ps. X. 9. — For their land, etc. We might per- 
 haps expect therefore. But then the following 
 reason before the fury, etc., would be drag- 
 ging tautology. The sentence with ''2 simply 
 
 explains the figure used: — because the land, in 
 consequence of the divine anger, is devastated 
 by the sword, it may be said that it lookg like 
 a pasturage visited by a lion. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On vers. 3-7. " God is a long-sufl'ering God, 
 who desireth not the death of a sinner, but that 
 he may turn and live, Ezek. xxxiii. 11. There- 
 fore He gives the first world 1.^0 years time for 
 repentance. Gen. vi. 3. Lot preaches to Sodom 
 and Gomorrah more than twenty-five years. Gen. 
 xiii. 13 and xix. 14. Christ preaches repentance 
 three and a half years, the apostles forty years, 
 before the destruction of Jerusalem. But dost 
 thou not know that the goodness of God leadeth 
 thee to repentance ? Rom. ii. 4." Cramer. 
 
 2. How is it that those to whom the Lord has 
 chiefly revealed His goodness and truth and 
 whom He has made the bearers and medium of 
 His promises; how is it, we ask, that it is just 
 these men who are the most hardened in impeni- 
 tence ? The people of Nineveh, says the Lord, 
 in Matt. xii. 41, will rise at the last judgment 
 with this generation and will condemn it ; for 
 they repented at the preaching of Jonah and 
 behold a greaier than Jonah is here. And He 
 cries. Woe to Chorazin and Bethsaida, lor had 
 such mighty works been done in Tyre and Sidon 
 as were done in them, they would have repented 
 long ago in sackcloth and ashes. And in like 
 manner He says to Capernaum, which was ex- 
 alted to heaven, that it shall be brought down 
 
 to hell, for if such mighty works had been done 
 in Sodom it would have remained to this day 
 (Matt. xi. 2i-23). The key is contained in th» 
 words " temple of Jehovah, temple of Jehovah," 
 vii. 4. Israel does not hear the "if" in the 
 words of his calling and election. They regard 
 themselves as chosen unconditionally, and on this 
 account as better than all others, being such as 
 need no repentance. Thus grace has become a 
 snare to them, and so it is to all who use their 
 privileges as a lever of their wickedness. (1 
 Pet. ii. 16). [The election to gracious privileges 
 not being necessarily election to eternal life. — 
 S. R. A.] 
 
 3. [" Nebuchadnezzar my servant. It ia 
 remarkable that the Holy Spirit gives to Nebu- 
 chadnezzar by Jeremiah (xxv. 9 ; xxvii. 6 ; xliii. 
 10) the same title that Isaiah gives even to the 
 Messiah Himself: namely, 'My Servant.' And 
 inasmuch as the Chaldean king was appointed 
 and empowered by God to conquer the nations, 
 such as Ammon, Edom, Moab (which were types 
 of the enemies of Christ and His Church,) we 
 need not scruple to say that in these victories 
 He foreshadowed the conquests of Christ, who 
 made Himself a servant to do His Father's will." 
 Wordsworth. — S. R. A.] 
 
 4. On ver. 12. '■'■ Deus uti consuevit impiorum 
 opera quoad malum poense. Malum vero culpse 
 minime prodit, sed eos ipsos propter illud gravissiine 
 punit, prsesertim si modum excesserint {Zech. i. 15). 
 Solet istud illustrari apposita similitudine a virga, 
 quam pater in castiganda sobole usurpat, usurpatum 
 vero moz in ignem conjicit.'" Forster. 
 
 5. On ver. 12. " Verbum Domini est veracissi- 
 mum turn in comminatiojiibus, de quibus hie et 2 Ii'cg. 
 X. 16, turn in promissionibus, de quibus Ps. xxiii. 
 14. Unde scite Augustincs {de Civ. D. 22, 3) ; 
 ' venient hsec quoque sicut ista venerunt; idem enim 
 Deus utraque promisit, utraque ventura esse prx- 
 dixit.'' — Per quod quis peccat, per idem punitur et 
 ipse.'' Forster. 
 
 6. On ver. 29. "Verissimum est illud Clv:,mentis 
 Alexandrini : proximus Deo plenissintus flagellis 
 (the nearer God, the nearer trouble, the better 
 Christian, the greater the cross: it meets him 
 first who is nearest to God). Contra vero Bern- 
 HARDtrs : Qui hie non in laboribus hominum, illic 
 erunt in laboribus dsemoniim." Forster. 
 
 7. On ver. 30 sqq. " The strict judgment of 
 God sounds much stronger and clearer than we 
 can bear. Hence the 600,000 men were so ter- 
 rified when they heard the voice of God, that 
 they said : let not God speak with us, lest we die 
 (Exod. XX. 19). It is well that we do not refuse 
 to hear, or stop our ears against the sweet sound 
 of God's voice in the sacred office of the preacher, 
 because we can have it (Ps. xcv. 8), or the time 
 will come, when we shall be ohliwed to hear its 
 awful roaring, which God forbid. For when 
 the lion roars, who shall not be afraid? (Am. iii. 
 8.)" Cramer. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 The entire chapter treats of the divine judg- 
 ments and aff"ords occasion to speak of them (in 
 a series of sermons) in various relations. AVe 
 can thus speak, I. of the judicial acts of God 
 according to the conditions of their manitcjii- 
 
J38 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 tion. They are (1) required by the sins of men 
 (vers. 5 and 6) ; (2) deterred by the love of God 
 
 well as single men, but the judgment of tht 
 world as a whole is still impending, ver. 30 sqq.). 
 
 (vers. 5-6) ; (3) driven to accomplishment by — III. The judicial acts of God differently re- 
 the impenitence of mankind (ver. 7 sqq.). — II. .presented in the Old and New Testaments. (1) 
 Of the judicial acts of God according to the 1 In the Old Testament they are (a) represented 
 stages of their manifestation. (1) The prelimi- in figures (vers. oO, 31 sqq., 38). {b) limited to 
 nary, {a) in the life of individuals, (b) in the \ the earth (vers. 30, 38) : (2) In the New Testa- 
 life of nations. God judges continually here be- i ment they are represented (a) in their full super- 
 low both single individual.s and entire nations i terrestrial reality, [b) as e.xtendcd over heaven 
 (vers. 9-29). (2) The final judgment ; (a) in so 
 far as it has already begun (vers. 9-11, 29 coll. 
 1 Pet. iv. 17; Matt. xxiv.). The theocracy in 
 its outer relations is already judged ; in this 
 sense tlie universal judgment has begun at the 
 house of Jod ; (6) in so far as it is still future 
 (single empires have already been destroyed, as 
 
 and earth. (Comp. in contrast to this passage 
 Matt. XXV.; I Cor. xv.; 1 Thess. iv.: 2 Pet. iii.). 
 — IV. The judicial acts of God difl'ereuily felt, 
 according to the different inward conditions of 
 men — (1) As destruction on the part of the god- 
 less (ver. 7 sqq.) ; (2) As deliverance on the part 
 of the pious (vers. 11 and 12). 
 
 B. The Three Historical Append.cea. 
 
 THE PROPHET OF THE LORD AND THE FALSE PROPHET&. 
 
 Chapters XXVI. to XXIX. 
 
 ft has been already shown in the introduction to the ninth discourse that these chapters stand here together, 
 because their covimon topic is the co7if/ict of the true prophet with the false prophets. Their position 
 
 just here, however, is occasioned by the close historical connection q/'clih. xxvii., xxviii., wjVA oh. 
 XXV. There is thus a double connection, (1) that of chh. xxvii., xxviii., with ch. xxv. {Cup of wrath 
 and yoke) ; (2) that of chh.. xxvi.-xxix. with each other [false prophets). Before ch. xxvii., how- 
 ever, stands ch. xxvi., and thus separates the connected passages, ch. xxv., anc? chh. xxvii., xxviii., 
 because it is the oldest in time. It comes before the fourth year of Jehoiakim. Perhaps also the four 
 chapters were found in this order, and transposed here as a whole. Chh. xxvii., xxviii. belong to the 
 
 fourth year of Zedekiah [Comp. Comm. on xxvii. 1). Ch. xxix. is somewhat earlier in date [Comp. 
 the Introd. to this chapter). The arrangement of these four chapters is thus not consistently chrono- 
 logical. Perhaps first, the struggle of the prophet ivith the false prophets in their home (ch. xxvi.- 
 xxviii.), then his struggleivith those also who had emigrated to Babylon is represetited. [^"Jeremiah goes 
 back herefrom the mention of the fourth year of Jehoiakim to the beginning of that king's reign, in 
 order to suggest to his readers an evidence, a fortiori, if God's mercy and forbearance to Jerusalem. 
 God gave solemn denunciations to Jehoiakim and Jerusalem in Jehoiakim' s fourth year. But He did 
 more than this : He had sent a prophetic message of warning to him even at the beginning of his reign. 
 Such considerations as these will suggest the reasons for which Jere?niah's prophecies are not placed 
 in chronological order.'" Wokosworth. — S. R. A.] 
 
 1. The conflict of Jeremiah with the false prophets before the fourth year of Jehoiakim. 
 
 XXVI. 1-24. 
 
 1 In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, 
 
 2 came this word from the Lord [Jehovah] saying, Thus saith the Lord [Jehovah] : 
 Stand in the court of the Lord's [Jehovah's] house and speak unto all the cities of 
 Judah, which come to worship in the Lord's house, all the words that I command 
 
 3 thee to speak unto them ; diminish [omit] not a word. If so be [perhaps] they will 
 hearken, and turn every man from his evil way, that I may repent me of the evil, 
 
 4 which I purpose to do unto them because of the evil of their doings. And thou 
 shaltsay unto them: Thus saith the Lord [Jehovah]: If ye will not hearken to 
 
 5 me, to walk in my law, which I have set before you, to hearken to the words of 
 my servants the prophets, whom I sent unto you, both' rising up early, and sending 
 
 6 tho:n, but ye have not hearkened : then will I make this house like Shiloh, and 
 
 7 will niaxe this^ city a curs'^. to all the nations of the earth. So the priests and pro- 
 phets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of the 
 
 8 Lord [Jehovah]. Now it came to pass, when Jeremiah had made an end of speak- 
 
CHAP. XXVI. 1-24. 239 
 
 ing all that the Lord had commanded him to speak unto all the people, that the 
 priests and the prophets, and all the people took him, saying, Thou shalt surely die. 
 9 Why hast thou prophesied in the name of the Lord [Jehovah] saying. This 
 house shall be like Shiloh, and this city shall be desolate without an inhabitant? 
 And all the people were gathered against Jeremiah in the house of the Lord [Jeho- 
 
 10 vah]. When the princes of Judah heard those things, then they came up from the 
 king's house into the house of the Lord [Jehovah] aud sat down in the entry of the 
 
 11 new gate^ of the Lord's [Jehovah's] house. Then spake the priests and the pro- 
 phets unto the princes and to all the people, saying, this man is worthy to die ; for 
 
 12 he hath prophesied against this city, as ye have heard with your ears. Then spake 
 Jeremiah unto all the princes -and to all the people, saying, The Lord [Jehovah] 
 sent me to prophesy against this house and against this city all the words that ye 
 
 13 have heard. Therefore now amend your ways and your doings, and obey the voice 
 of the Lord [Jehovah] your God, and the Lord will repent him of the evil that 
 
 14 he hath pronounced against jou. As for me, behold, I am in your hand: do with 
 
 15 me as seemeth good and meet unto you. But know ye for certain, that if ye put 
 me to death, ye shall surely bring innocent blood upon yourselves, and upon this 
 city and upon the inhabitants thereof: for of a truth the Lord hath sent me unto 
 you to speak all these words in your ears. 
 
 16 Then said the princes and all the people unto the priests and unto the prophets : 
 This man is not worthy to die : for he hath spoken to us in the name of the Lord 
 
 17 [Jehovah] our God Then rose up certain of the elders of the laud, and spake to 
 
 18 all the assembly of the people, saying, Micah* the Morasthite prophesied in the days 
 of Hezekiah, king of Judah, and spake to all the people of Juda.h, saying. 
 
 Thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth : 
 Zion shall be plowed as a field, 
 Jerusalem shall become a heap of stones, 
 And the mountain of the house woody heights. 
 
 19 Did Hezekiah, king of Judah, and all Judah put him at all to death? did he not 
 fear the Lord [Jehovah] and besought [propitiated]* the Lord [Jehovah] and the 
 Lord [Jehovah] repented him of the evil which he had pronounced against them. 
 Thus might we procure great evil [We however are about to commit great wicked- 
 
 20 ness] against our [own] souls. And there was also a man that prophesied in the 
 name of the Lord [Jehovah], Urijah the son of Shemaiah of Kirjath-jearim, who 
 prophesied against the city and against the land, according to all the words of 
 
 21 Jeremiah. And [when] Jehoiakim, the king, with all his mighty men [warriors] 
 and all the princes, heard his words [and], the king sought to put him to death : 
 but [when] Urijah heard of it [and] he was afraid and fled, and went into Egypt. 
 
 22 And Jehoiakim, the king, sent men into Egypt, Elnathan, the son of Achhor, and 
 
 23 certain men with him into Egypt. And they fetched forth Urijah out of Egypt, 
 and brought him unto Jehoiakim the king ; who slew him with the sword, and 
 
 24 cast his dead body into the graves of the common [sons of the] people. Neverthe- 
 less [But] the hand of Ahikam the son of Shaphan was with Jeremiah, that they 
 should [did] not give him into the hands of the people to put him to death. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 5.— The 1 before DDt!?n=an(I, moreover, comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., ^ 111, 1. 
 
 2 Ver. 6.— nnXin. This foi-m is found here only in the Chethibh. It is not a scriptural error, the H being the so-called 
 paragogic. Comp. Olsu. g lul, c, and § 133, <S. 254. 
 
 3 Ver. 10. — [Targiini: The east gate.] 
 
 •» Ver. 18. — The Masoretes alter HO'ID into PI^'D, not because they regard the former as correct, but to bring out 
 
 clearly the identity of this Micah with liim whose book is included in the canon (comp. Caspari, Micha der Mm-aschtite, S. 
 12).— The passage quoted is found vorbatim in Mic. iii. 12, excej)! that there we read T't; instead of W''V- (Comp.OlSH., S. 
 207, 288.) ' • • 
 
 6 Ver. 19.— [Literally : Soothed by prayer the face of the Lord.— S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 It has be 'u shown above that this chapter is 
 not immediately connected with chap, xxv., but 
 mediately through chh. xxvii., xxviii. The asser- 
 
 tion of Graf that "the narrative of this occur- 
 rence has no connection either with the preceding 
 or with the following context" is incomprehensi- 
 ble. For if we do not agree with Ewald that 
 each of the three supplements concludes with a 
 glance at those prophets, who either prophesied 
 
J40 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 what was directly false or did not defend the 
 truth with becoming steadfastness {Proph. d. A. 
 £., II., 5. 137), it is yet indisputable that all these 
 four chapters treat of the conflict of the prophet 
 with false prophets, that they follow each other 
 in chronological order, and thatchh. xxvi.-xxix. 
 presuppose ch. xxv. as their basis. This explains 
 the position of ch. xxvi. here. I cannot accept 
 the statement of Graf that as a record of per- 
 sonal experiences it ought to have stood before 
 ch. xxxvi. : for here the narrative would stand 
 quite isolated topically, and chh. xxxiv.-xliv., 
 are not the only place for the prophet's personal 
 experiences, for they are inserted elsewhere, ac- 
 cording to the connection of facts. Comp. chh. 
 XX. and xxx. And this is the case with chh. 
 xxvi.-xxix. We might rather expect that, on 
 account of the relation of the facts, it would come 
 after ch. xxiii. But on the one hand it would 
 disturb the plan of that group (against kings 
 and prophets) by partial details, and on the other 
 the principal matter of chh. xxvii. and xxviii. 
 has too close an historical connection with ch. 
 xxv. to be separated from it, or even only to be 
 placed before it. The reason why this chapter 
 does not stand after chh. vii. sqq., where it pro- 
 perly belongs in histoi-ical connection, is that the 
 series of great discourses was not to be inter- 
 rupted by a long historical section. As far as 
 ch. xviii. are discourses only. From this point 
 onwards the historical element is successively 
 brought forward. Although thus separated in 
 position, this ch. xxvi. refers back to the great 
 discourse in chh. vii.-x., and describes the al- 
 most fatal consequences, which it had with re- 
 spect to the person of the prophet (vers. 1-19). 
 At the same time, however, the opportunity is 
 aflForded for the narrative concerning another 
 prophet, Urijah, the son of Shemaiah, who had 
 no such courageous patron as Ahikam, and really 
 fell a sacrifice to his fidelity to his calling at the 
 command of the ungodly king Jehoiakim. 
 
 Vers. 1-6. In the beginning ... all the 
 nations of the earth. In the beginning of the 
 reign of Jehoiakim, at any rate before the battle 
 of Carchemish, since there is no mention made 
 of the Chaldeans, Jeremiah receives the com- 
 mand to stand in the fore-court of the temple 
 (comp. xix. 4, andExEG. on vii. 2), and proclaim 
 a revelation he has received to all the Jews who 
 have come up to the feast. What feast this was 
 we know not (comp. Comm. on vii. 2). The in- 
 troductory formula in vii. 1 is : Go into the gate 
 and proclaim as follows. Here it is said: Stand 
 in the fore-court and proclaim all that I have 
 commanded thee, without omitting anything. 
 There the command to go into the gate precedes 
 the revelation. Here the order is reversed. For 
 here the words w^hich I command thee, and 
 omit not a word, point back to the revelation 
 as one previously received. The latter especially 
 would have no sense, if what is to be delivered 
 by the prophet had not been already communi- 
 cated. Still, however, in ver. 4 sqq., the chief 
 contents of the discourse follow in a brief and 
 pregnant recapitulation. There is no contradic- 
 tion in this. It may have been that the prophet 
 received the revelation of the great discourse in 
 chh. vii.-x., at the same time with the command 
 in deliver it in the temple, and that afterwards, 
 
 when the moment of performance came, the com- 
 mand was repeated with a reference on the one 
 hand to the revelation received (xxvi. 2), and on 
 the other with a brief recapitulation of its main 
 import (xxvi. 4-6). — Omit not a word reminds 
 us of Deut. iv. 2; xiii. 1 coll. Kev. xxii. 19. — 
 If so be they will hearken, ver. 3. It is ap- 
 parent that the assembly to the feast must have 
 appeared a specially favorable opportunity for a 
 decisive attempt. — Repent me of the evil. 
 
 Comp. xviii. 8; /X as in vers. 13 and 19; xlii. 
 10; Jud. xxi. 6; 2 Sam. xxiv. 16. — rising early. 
 Comp. vii. 13, 2-5 ; xxv. 3, 4. — But ye have 
 not hearkened, retained as a reminiscence of 
 the passage vii. 13, is to be regarded as a paren- 
 thesis ; since the apodosis begins with ver. 6. — 
 Like Shiloh. In these words the prophet re- 
 produces most distinctly the main threatening 
 of the great discourse in chap. vii. (comp. vers. 
 12 and 14, and the rems. thereon). — A curse. 
 Comp. xxiv. 9; xxv. 18. 
 
 Vers. 7-11. So the priests . . . have heard 
 Avith your ears. The priests and prophets here 
 appear as the real opponents of Jeremiah. Very 
 probably most of the false prophets were them- 
 selves priests. Comp. Comm. on xx. 6. — The 
 people allow themselves to be carried away, though 
 on the speech of the princes they are disposed to 
 espouse the cause of Jeremiah against the priests 
 and prophets (ver. 16), and in other circum- 
 stances would be ready to execute the sentence 
 of death on him (ver. 24). The princes are not 
 yet filled with that blood-thirsty hatred towards 
 Jeremiah, which they afterwards manifest (ch. 
 xxxvii. sqq.). — In the words like Shiloh they 
 allude to vii. 12, 14, as in the following with- 
 out an inheritance to ix. 10. — On gate of the 
 Lord's house, comp. rems. on xx. 2. — Worthy 
 to die. This expression (HIO ODDO) occurs also 
 in Deut. xix. 6 ; xxi. 22. As the first word in 
 itself signifies judgment or condemnation, the 
 phrase may from the connection denote judg- 
 ment or condemnation to death. The expression 
 in ver. 11 and Deut. xix. 6, may be taken in the 
 first, in ver. 16 and Deut. xxi. 22 in the second 
 sense. 
 
 Vers. 12-19. Then spake Jeremiah . . . 
 our souls. In the words amend your ways 
 the prophet repeats the chief requisition of his 
 discourse in vii. 3, 5. It is thus to be seen that 
 he is neither terrified nor evilly disposed towards 
 his people. On this condition, but on this con- 
 dition only, does he promise salvation. If they 
 do not like this they may do with him as they 
 will. They are, however, at the same time to 
 know that in killing him they would bring upon 
 themselves the guilt of shedding innocent blood. 
 This answer of Jeremiah's, short and simple but 
 firm and decided, appears to have made a deep 
 impression on the judges and the people. For Jer- 
 emiah is acquitted. Some of the elders of the 
 people (|*ixn 'JpT, elders of the land, ver. 
 17, are distinguished from the D'lE', princes, 
 
 ver. 10, who are in the king's house, at court 
 and members of the government, while the 
 former represent the local magistrates through- 
 out tlie country, comp. xxxvii. 15; xxxviii. 5, 
 25 sqq.) support this sentence by reference to a 
 former occurrence. The prophet Micah, [of Mo- 
 
CHAP. XXVII. 1-22.— XXVIII. 1-17. 
 
 241 
 
 resheth, near Eleutheropolis, in Philistia. Bu- 
 ses., Jerome], had not been punished by Heze 
 kiah on account of a similar utterance. — On the 
 point, that the passage iii. 12 forms the climax 
 of the minatory prophecies of Micah, and that 
 Jeremiah quotes the book of Micah especially in 
 the discourse in chh. vii.-ix. comp. C asp ari, pas- 
 sim. From the last mentioned circumstance it fol- 
 lows that Jeremiah himself reminds his hearers of 
 Micah, and institutes a comparison between him- 
 self and this prophet. Caspari however errs in 
 attributing the discourse in chh. vii.-ix. to the 
 reign of Josiah. [On the fulfilment of the pro- 
 phecy of Micah and Jeremiah, comp. Thomson, 
 The Land and the Book, II., 475.— S. R. A.] 
 
 Vers. 20-24. And there was also a man 
 ... to put him to death. That this narra- 
 tive about Urijah does not continue the words of 
 Jeremiah's friends, is clear from the circum- 
 stance that in this case a precedent would be re- 
 ferred to unfavorable to Jeremiah. It is evident 
 that they are not the words of his opponents from 
 the absence of any introductory formula. Others 
 affirm that this story must have related to a later 
 period than the commencement of Jehoiakim's 
 reign. This however depends on how far we ex- 
 tend the commencement. Apart then from the 
 question, whether this occurred earlier or later, 
 which it will be difficult to decide, I think, with 
 Grotfus, Schnurrer, Rosenmueller and others, 
 that Jeremiah himself adds this story in order to 
 show in how great danger he then was of his 
 life. At all events the events narrated had hap- 
 pened when Jeremiah wrote his book, which he 
 did the first time in the 4th and 5th years of Je- 
 
 hoiakim (xxxvi. 1 sqq. ; 9 sqq.), and the second 
 time immediately after the destruction of the 
 first book in the Uth month of the 5th year of Je- 
 hoiakim (xxxvi. 28 sqq. ) The events might have 
 occurred up to this time ; and even if they be- 
 long to a later period, the possibility is not ex- 
 cluded that they were inserted here by Jeremiah 
 himself. Yet it is easier to explain the phrases 
 this city and this land, in ver. 20, if we sup- 
 pose that the prophet had these expressions, 
 which strictly taken presuppose an oral address, 
 still in remembrance from the preceding conver- 
 sation. Nothing further is known either of Uri- 
 jah, or his father Shemaiah. — Elnathan the son 
 of Achhor is also mentioned in xxxvi. 12, 25 
 among the princes favorable to Jeremiali. Je- 
 hoiakim appears to have been his son-in-law, for 
 Nehushta, the mother of Jehoiachin was, accord- 
 ing to 2 Ki. xxiv. 8, a daughter of Elnathan. 
 Achhor is mentioned in 2 Ki. xxii. 12 as one of 
 the princes, who were in personal attendance on 
 Josiah. — The graves of the common people (ver. 
 23) appear elsewhere as an unhallowed place (2 
 Ki. xxiii. 6). On the expression " sons of the 
 people " comp. Comm. on xvii. 19. — Ver. 24. 
 But the hand of Ahikam. The particle "jX, 
 
 only, but, presupposes a thought, which easily 
 flows from the previous context, so would it have 
 been luith Jeremiah. From the mention of Ahikam 
 alone it is plain that it was he who caused the 
 decision to be favorable to Jeremiah, (ver. 16 
 sqq.) He is also meuliouedin 2 Ki. xxii. 12-14, 
 together with Achhor, and according to xxxix. 
 14; xl. 5, and other passages, he was the father 
 of the governor Gedaliah. 
 
 2. The conflict of Jeremiah with the false prophets in the fourth year of Zedekiah. 
 
 Chapters XXVII. and XXVIU 
 
 XXVII. 1-22. 
 
 1 In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim [Zedekiah], the son of Josiah, king 
 
 2 of Judah, came this word unto Jeremiah from the Lord saying, Thus saith the 
 
 3 Lord to me. Make thee bonds and yokes and put them upon thy neck, and senci 
 them to the king of Edom and to the king of Moab, and to the king of the Ammo- 
 nites, and to the king of Tyrus, and to the king of Zidon, by the hand of the mes- 
 
 4 sengers which came to Jerusalem unto Zedekiah, king of Judah. And command 
 them to say unto their masters. Thus saith the Lord of hosts [Jehovah Zebaoth] 
 
 5 the God of Israel, Thus shall ye say unto your masters; I have made the earth, 
 the man and the beast that are upon the ground, by my great power and by my 
 
 6 out-stretched arm, and have given it to whom it seemed meet unto me. And now 
 have I given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, 
 
 7 my servant ; and the beasts of the field have I given him also to serve him. And 
 all nations shall serve him, and his son, and his son's son, until the very time of 
 his land come: and then many nations and great kings shall serve themselves of 
 
 8 him. And it shall come to pass, that the nation and kingdom which will not serve 
 the same Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and that' will not put their neck 
 under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation will I punish, saith the Lord 
 [Jehovah] with the sword, and with the famine, and with the pestilence, until I 
 
 16 
 
242 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 9 have consumed" them by his hand. Therefore hearken not ye to your priests, nor 
 to your diviners, nor to your dreamers, nor to your enchanters, nor to your sorcer- 
 
 10 ers, which speak unto you, saying, Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon For 
 they prophesy a lie unto you, to remove you far from your laud ; and that I should 
 
 11 drive you out, and ye should perish. But the nations that bring their neck under 
 the yoke of the king of Babylon, those will I let remam still in their own land, 
 
 12 saith the Lord ; and they shall till it and dwell therein. I spake also to Zede- 
 kiah, king of Judah, according to all those words, saying. Bring your necks under 
 
 13 the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live.^ Why 
 will ye die, thou and thy people, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pesti- 
 lence, as the Lord hath spoken against the nation that will not serve the king of 
 
 14 Babylon? Therefore hearken not unto the words of the prophets that speak unto 
 you, saying, Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon ; for they prophesy a lie unto 
 
 15 you. For I have not sent them, saith the Lord, [Jehovah] yet they prophesy a 
 lie in my name; that I might drive you out, and that ye might perish, ye and the 
 
 16 priests that prophesy unto you. Also I spake to the priests and to all this people, 
 saying, Thus saith the Lord [Jehovah] ; Hearken not to the words of your pro- 
 phets that prophesy unto you, saying, Behold the vessels of the Lord's house shall 
 now shortly be brought again from Babylon ; for they prophesy a lie unto you. 
 
 17 Hearken not unto them ; serve the king of Babylon, and live : wherefore should 
 
 18 this city be laid waste '/ But if they be prophets, and if the word of the Lord be 
 with them, let them now make intercession to the Lord of hosts [Jehovah Zebaoth] 
 that the vessels which are left in the house of the Lord, and in the house of the 
 king of Judah, and at Jerusalem, go* not to Babylon. 
 
 19 For thus saith the Lord of hosts concerning the pillars, and concerning the sea, 
 and concerning the bases, and concerning the residue of the vessels that remain in 
 
 29 the city, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took not, when he carried av/ay 
 captive* Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah from Jerusalem to Babylon, 
 
 21 and all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem ; Yea, thus saith the Lord of hosts, 
 the God of Israel, concerning the vessels that remain in the house of the Lord 
 
 22 [Jehovah] and in the house of the king of Judah and of Jerusalem; tbey shall be 
 carried to Babylon, and there shall they be until the day that I visit them, saith 
 the Lord ; then will I bring them up, and restore them to this place. 
 
 XXVIII. 1-17. 
 
 1 And it came to pass the same year, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah 
 king of Judah, in the fourth year,® and in the fifth month, that Hananiah the son 
 of Azur the prophet, which was of Gibeon, spake unto me in the presence of the 
 
 2 priests, and of all the people, saying. Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, the God of 
 
 3 Israel, saying, I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon. Within two full 
 years' will I bring again into this place all the vessels of the Lord's house, that 
 Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took away from this place, and carried them to 
 
 4 Babylon : And I will bring again to this place Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim king 
 of Judah, with all the captives of Judah, that went into Babylon, saith the Lord, 
 for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon. 
 
 5 Then the prophet Jeremiah said unto the prophet Hananiah in the presence of 
 the priests, and in the presence of all the people that stood in the house of the 
 
 6 Lord [Jehovah]. Even the prophet Jeremiah said. Amen :^ the Lord do so: the 
 Lord perform thy words which thou hast prophesied, to bring again the vessels of 
 the Lord's house, and all that is carried away captive, from Babylon into this 
 
 7 place. Nevertheless hear thou now the word that I speak in thine ears, and in the 
 
 8 ears of all the people; the prophets that have been before me and before thee of 
 old prophesied both against many countries, and against great kingdoms, of war, 
 
 9 and of evil, and of pestilence.® The prophet which prophesieth of peace, when the 
 word of the prophet shall come to pass, then shall the prophet be known, that 
 the Lord hath truly sent him. 
 
 iO Then Hananiah the prophet took the yoke from off the prophet Jeremiah's neck, 
 
CHAP. XXVII. 1-22.— XXVIII. 1-17. 
 
 243 
 
 11 aud brake if And Hananiah spake in the presence of nil the people, saying, 
 Thus saith the Lord; even so will I break the yoke of JSeuuciiadiiczzar king of 
 Babylon from the neck of all nations within the space of two full years. Aud the 
 
 12 prophet Jeremiah went his way. Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, 
 after that Hananiah the prophet had broken the yoke from off the neck of the 
 
 13 prophet Jeremiah, saying, Go aud tell Hananiah, saying. Thus saith the Lord; 
 Thou hast broken the j'okes uf wood, but thou shalt make for them yokes of iron. 
 
 14 For thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel ; I have put a yoKC of iron upon 
 the neck of all these nations, that they may serve Nebuchadnezzar, king of Baby- 
 lon; and they shall serve him : and I have given him the beasts of the field also. 
 
 15 Then said the prophet Jeremiah unto Hananiah the prophet, Hear now Hana- 
 niah ; The Lord hath not sent thee ; but thou makest this people to trust in a lie. 
 
 16 Therefore thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will cast^^ thee from off the face of the 
 earth ; this year thou shalt die, because thou hast taught rebellion against the 
 
 17 Lord. So Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the seventh month. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 XXVII. 8. — The construction here is not an anacoluthon, but *■! 'UH is accusative, and ItJ^X HK is not co-ordinate 
 to the first TK'X hut to ^1 ^UH : as to the nation whicli will not serve, and as to tliat which will not how the neck, etc. 
 Ileuce the singular |jT stands properly also in the second relative clause. The sign of the accusative stands before the sec- 
 ond Tl^X to distinguish it as an accusative from the first, which is nominative, (comp. Ewald, g 277 d, 2, and Geu. xlvii 
 21 ; 2 Ki. viii. 31), and thus at the same time to indicate that "m/X does not stand parallel to '■I ^UH. 
 
 2 Ver. 8. — ''on — ly. UOD in a transitive sense, as iu Ps. Ixiv. 7. 
 
 3 Ver. 12. — VnV Comp. Textual Note on xxv. 5. 
 
 * Ver. 18.— 1X3 Tu^l- The form 1X2 as a perfect is abnormal. In 1. 5 it is to be taken as imperative. It is there- 
 fore not improbable, as Hitzig, Olshausen and Graf suppose, that we are to read ^xb' POjI- 
 
 8 Ver. 20.— miSj^- Comp. Exod. xiii. 21 ; Isa. xxiii. 11 ; Ps. Ixxviii. 17 ; Olsh. § 78, c. 
 
 6 XXVIII. 1. —Instead of n''J^''3in njtJ'S as the Chethibh is tohe read, theSlasoretes would here have '•n njK'S as 
 
 in xxxii. 1. The reading of the Chethibh is found unimpeached by the Masoretes in xlvi. 2; li. 59. Probably the BFasoretea 
 wished, here as in xxxii. 1, the same i>unctu:ition for the word occurring twice in the verse, while in xlvi. 2 and li. .59, no 
 occasion was given for such an effort at conformity. On the St. const, in this connection, comp. Naegelsb. Gr., J 05, 2, c. 
 
 ' Ver. 3. — D'O' DTlJt!'. On the construction comp. Naegelsb. ffr., g 70, gr. Comp. besides Gen. xli. 1 ; 1 Sam. xiii 
 23, etc. 
 
 8 Ver. 6. — JOX occurs besides in Jeremiah, only in xi. 5. 
 
 ' Ver. 8. — On the construction in this verse, comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 88, 7; 111, 1, h, 10. 
 
 10 Ver. 10. — The masc. suffix in im^ty'l refers to the idea of 7J,». Comp. Naegelsb. <?r., g 60, 4. 
 
 " Ver. 16.— The word "in /JS'D, I cast thee off, must, as IIitziq has remarked, contain an allusion to "inSc in 
 ver. 15. ' ' 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The two chh. xxvii. and xxviii. are so evidently 
 parts of a whole that we do not seem to be justified 
 in separating them. The occurrence here nar- 
 rated is based entirely on ch. xxv. The sending of 
 the yoke to the neighboring nations can indeed be 
 regarded as the fulfilment of the commission re- 
 ceived by the prophet in xxv. 15 only in so far as it 
 niiiy be understood in a double sense; in the sense 
 of proclamation and the sense of the execution of 
 the divine sentence. — The command to acknow- 
 ledge Nebuchadnezzar as a world-ruler appointed 
 by God is supplemented by the warning not to al- 
 low the deceptive promises of the false prophets 
 to deter them from yielding in subjection to him 
 (xxvii. 9-22). Notwithstanding this, one of the 
 false prophets, Hananiah, the son of Azur, dares 
 to give the prophet of Jehovah the lie and by 
 breaking the wooden yoke, which the latter bore 
 on his neck, to symbolize his liberation from the 
 dominion of Nebuchadnezzar. Thereupon Jere- 
 miah receives the command to replace the wooden 
 yoke by an iron one, and to predict Hananiah's 
 speedy death in the course of the year. Hana- 
 niah really died two months afterwards. The 
 
 date of the whole occurrence is the fourth year 
 of Zedekiah (xxviii. 1), since the statement in 
 xxvii. 1 (beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim) is 
 at any rate, and the other in xxviii. 1 (beginning 
 of the reign of Zedekiah) is very probably in- 
 correct. Further particulars on this point be- 
 low. 
 
 XXVII. 1-11. In the beginning . . . dwell 
 therein. There are weighty critical suspicions 
 with respect to the first verse. In the first place 
 the name Jehoiakim has long been a stumbling- 
 block. How could the prophet receive a com- 
 mission in the beginning of thereign of Jehoiakim 
 to the ambassadors who had come to Zedekiah 
 D'XBn, (ver. 3)? And how could the prophet 
 
 execute the same commission to Zedekiah (ver. 12), 
 and say in xxviii. 1 that in the same year, in the 
 beginning of the reign of Zedekiah, Hananiah 
 contradicted his prediction? Haevebniok in- 
 deed [II., 2, S. 217) .says "the words 0J1 D'X^n 
 (ver. S) pertain to the compilation of the chap- 
 ter, — to show how Zedekiah should fulfil that 
 older prophecy of the time of Jehoiakim, and 
 should behave towards the nations which were 
 his allies."' But this would presuppose that Jere- 
 miah received a message to ambassadors who did 
 not come to Jerusalem till from eleven to fifteen 
 
2U 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 years afterwards. Further, according to this 
 the name of Nebuchadnezzar and the (Uialdeans 
 would have been mentioned in the beginning of 
 the reign of Jehoiakim, while we have demon- 
 strated that before the battle of Carchemish, in 
 the fourth year of Jehoiakim, Jeremiah did not 
 yet know that the enemies coming from the north 
 would be the Chaldeans under Nebuchadnezzar. 
 Add to this that the compiler must have pro- 
 ceeded very inconsiderately, to substitute the time 
 of receiving the commission for that of its execu- 
 tion. We ought to have read in that case : In 
 the time of Jehoiakim Jeremiah received the 
 commission to declare the following to foreign 
 ambassadors who should come. These ambassa- 
 aors came in the beginning of the reign of Zede- 
 kiah and unto them spake Jeremiah, etc. In- 
 stead of this we have: In the beginning of Je- 
 hoiakim's reign Jeremiah received the command to 
 deliver this message to the ambassadors, who are 
 come to Zedekiah, etc. To attribute to the sup- 
 posed compiler such a violent treatment of the 
 text is truly much worse than to assume an over- 
 sight of the copyist. It is, moreover, a wonder 
 to me that, as far as my knowledge extends, no 
 commentator has hit on the idea of taking D'JOn 
 in the sense of the Fut., or Fut. exacti. : who come 
 or tcill hai>e come. There is unquestionably gram- 
 matical autlioiity for this. For the participle, 
 which in itself has no tense, may be taken ac- 
 cording to the connection as present, past or 
 future. Comp. Naegelsb., Gr., § 97; Ewald, ^ 
 335, b. Compare especially the same word in 
 Isa. xxvii. (J=lemporibus futm-is, Eccles. ii. 16, 
 
 D'NDn D'DTI diebus Venturis, etc. — Whatever we 
 
 have already urged is certainly opposed to this 
 rendering of the word, viz. 1, the improbability 
 of the communication of a message not to be de- 
 livered for fifteen years; 2, above all the entirely 
 unhistorical mention of Nebuchadnezzar and the 
 Chaldeans in the beginning of thfe reign of Je- 
 hoiakim. The objections to the reading Je- 
 hoiakim are of ancient date. Jerome helps 
 himself out of the difficulty by connecting the 
 verse with the previous chapter. It does not dis- 
 tui-b him that thus ch. xxvi. begins and ends 
 with a similar date; yet he supposes that it was 
 this circumstance, which led the Seventy to omit 
 the verse. The Syriac and the unprinted Arabs 
 Oxonie7isis read "Zedekiah." Likewise the Cod. 
 Regiomont, II. Kennicott in his Diss, super 
 rations text. Ilebr. V. T., L, p. 503; II., p. 34G, 
 Ed. Teller, decidedly favors the view that a 
 copyist who had forgotten that Zedekiah was 
 also a son of Josiah was moved by xxvi. 1 to 
 alter the name of Zedekiah into Jehoiakim. I 
 also hold the view tliat xxvi 1 affected the ren- 
 dering of xxvii. 1, for as we shall see below at 
 xlix. 34, chapter xxvii. has lost its original 
 superscription by the oversight of a diaskenast 
 who added this verse of the prophecy against 
 Elam as a postscript. Hence^ xxvii. 1 is still 
 wanting in tlie LXX. ; on the other hand the pro- 
 phecy against Elum has in the LXX. a super- 
 scription and a postscript, in the Hebrew text a 
 Buperscription which does not correspond to the 
 general purport, and cli. xxvii. has obtained in 
 the HeVjrew a new bcgiuniiig whicli was fcirriied 
 •fterxxvi. 1, while the original text of .xxvii. l,is 
 
 to be sought nowhere else but in xlix. 34 (with 
 
 the omission of D/'J^'/N). So Movers and 
 
 HiTziG, with whom on this point I feel obliged 
 to agree. From xxviii. 1 it is evident that by 
 the beginning of Zedekiah's reign we are to un- 
 derstand his fourth year. This appears to be 
 entirely suitable in point of fact. For it is not 
 to be imagined that Zedekiah undertook revolu- 
 tionary projects immediately after his ascension 
 of the throne. As to the mode of expression, 
 "beginning" is a relative idea, and the first half 
 of a period may be designated as the beginning, 
 the latter half as its close. From the words 
 Thus saith Jehovah unto thee, it is more- 
 over apparent that from ver. 2 onward the pro- 
 phet communicates the words as he spoke them 
 to the people. Comp. " saith Jehovah," ver. 11 
 and ver. 16. The introductory formula in ver. 1 
 b, is then not to be referred specially to the mo- 
 ment of revelation, but it has this sense, that all 
 the actions and speeches related in what follows 
 are the result of a revelation to the prophet. 
 
 Ver. 2. Bonds i. e. cords (ii. 20; v. 5; xxx. 
 8), not to hold together the wooden parts of the 
 yokes, for such yokes there are none, but to fix 
 the yoke to the body, are what Jeremiah is to 
 
 prepare. So with HlUb- The word (tOW, totter- 
 ing above, crooked, broken from the branch, the 
 bough, piece of wood) is in both these chapters 
 
 used in a material sense, while 7^ always de- 
 notes the yoke in a figurative sense (xxvii. 8, 11, 
 12; xxviii. 2, 4, 11, 14 coll. xxviii. 10 sqq.). 
 Jferemiah is to put these yokes on his neck and 
 send them by the messengers to their master. As 
 certainly as the prophet should put a yoke upon 
 his neck, and has really put it on (xxviii. 10 sqq. 
 coll. Isa. XX. 2 ; Hos. i. 2 sqq. ; Ezek. xii. 3 
 sqq.), so certainly should he really give the yoke 
 to the messengers. This corresponded to orien- 
 tal customs. If the messengers would not take 
 the yoke with them, that was their affair. The* 
 four neighboring nations here mentioned (Edom, 
 Moab, Ammon, Sidon) are named in the same 
 order in xxv. 1, 2. Niebuhr (Ass. u. Bab., S. 
 211) connects this consultation with the diver- 
 sion, which resulted from Nebuchadnezzar's pre- 
 tended expedition against Media after the death 
 of CyaxaresinB. C. 694 ( Vid. sup., xxv. 26). But 
 this connection is altogether uncertain, and we 
 must be content to be ignorant why that epoch 
 was considered adapted for a revolt. At all 
 events the words of tlie prophet made an impres- 
 sion on the king. For in the same year (593) we 
 find him on a journey to Babylon (Ii. 59), 
 which can have had no other object than renewed 
 homage. When DtrNCKER [S. 834, etc.) says the 
 Phoenicians were then left to their fate and sub- 
 jugated by Nebuchadnezzar, the first part ol the 
 statement is correct. But I doubt whether they 
 then immediately revolted on their own account, 
 and were again subjugated. For when Sidon 
 (Ezek. xxxii. 29) is mentioned among the nations 
 which had fallen before the sword of Nebuchad- 
 nezzar, before the twentieth year of this king 
 (Ezek. xxxii. 17), therefore before B. C, 585, it 
 does not seem at all necessary' to assume that the 
 Plioetiicians revolted sooner liian Zedekiah him- 
 self, who was moved to open revolt by Hophra 
 
CHAP. XXVII. 1-22.— XXVIII. 1-17. 
 
 24j 
 
 the new king of Egypt, in B. C. 589. When 
 also after the destruction of Jerusalem (586) only 
 Tyrus among the Phoenician cities was still to be 
 subdued, the conquest of the rest may have well 
 taken place immediately before the attack on 
 Judah and Jerusalem (588). The Edomites, 
 Moabites and Ammonites, who are mentioned in 
 2 Kings xxiv. 2 as Chaldean allies against Judah, 
 appear according to our passage in their love 
 of freedom to have momentarily forgotten their 
 ancient enmity towards Judah, as well as their 
 fear of the Chaldeans. But they can scarcely 
 have revolted. According to Ps. cxxxvii. 7 coll. 
 Lam. iv. 21, 22; Ezek. xxxvi. 5 the Edomites 
 were zealous co-operators at the destruction of 
 Jerusalem. 
 
 Ver. 5. I have made, etc. The Creator has 
 the right to dispose of His creatures. — As 
 seemed meet unto me. Comp. xviii. 4. — Ver. 
 6. And the beasts of the field. Nebuchad- 
 nezzar is declared universal governor de jure di- 
 vino. — Ver. 7. This verse is wanting in theLXX. 
 Movers and Hitzig regard it as interpolated. 
 Comp. on the other hand Gr.\f, (S. 348, Anm. 
 An interpolator would certainly not have inter- 
 polated so incorrectly. For Nebuchadnezzar was 
 succeeded only by his son Evilmerodach, who 
 was murdered by Neriglissar, his father-in-law. 
 He was succeeded by his son Labosoarchad, a 
 child who was killed after a reign of nine months, 
 to make place for Nabonnet, one of the conspira- 
 tors. The latter was Babylon's last king. On 
 the contrary the LXX. omitted the verse because 
 it seemed so inaccurate. The prophet does not, 
 however, intend to be exact. The phrase "his 
 son and his son's son" is to denote an indefinite 
 but brief period (Exod. xx. 5; xxxiv. 7; Dent. 
 V. 9). The chronicler seems to refer to this pas- 
 sage in 2 Chron. xxxvi. 20. — Shall serve them- 
 selves of him. Comp. xxv. 14. The expres- 
 sions many nations, etc., remind us of 1. 9, 41. 
 When we remember that this passage originated 
 at the same time with chh. 1. and li., this rela- 
 tionship may well have its foundation in the 
 mind of the prophet. — Ver. 8. The nation 
 which . . . that will not, etc. At lirst it 
 seems natural to take the second sentence as the 
 correction of the first: he who will not serve, or 
 rather, he who will not voluntarily submit him- 
 self. For all, indeed, will serve. He who has 
 to be compelled may expect the extremity of dis- 
 tress, while he who voluntarily submits will re- 
 tain at least his land and his life. But unfor- 
 tunately it is not grammatically allowable to 
 take 1 in the meaning of "or rather." We must 
 therefore make this distinction between "serve " 
 and "put their neck under the yoke," that the 
 former refers to the nations already subject to 
 the Babylonian dominion, the latter to the otliers. 
 In warning the heathen nations of their diviners, 
 sorcerers, etc., the prophet puts the false pro- 
 phets of the Jews afterwards mentioned in the 
 same category with them. — Ver. 10. To remove. 
 The consequence is represented as the object. 
 Comp. ver. 15. — And that I should drive. 
 Observe the return of the discourse from the 
 secondary to the main form. Comp. Naegelsb. 
 Gr., § 99, 3,— vers. 15 and 22. 
 
 Vers. 12-15. I spake also to Zedekiah . . . 
 prophesy unto you. As in ver. ::, tlie prophet 
 
 here and in ver. 16 sqq. gives an account, not 
 of the reception, but the execution of the divine 
 commission. Comp. Exeq. rems. onxxvi. 2. — By 
 the sword, etc Comp. ver. 8. 
 
 Vers. lt)-22. Also I spake to the priests 
 . . . restore them to this place. Jeremiah 
 speaks to the king of political subjection, to the 
 priests and the people of the vessels which were 
 the ornaments of the temple and its worship. 
 These vessels carried away by Nebuchadnezzar 
 (2 Kings xxiv. 13) are according to the words of 
 the false prophets to be brought back in a very 
 brief period. In opposition to this Jeremiah 
 makes the requisition on the false prophets to 
 prove their authority by preventing through their 
 
 intercession (1J^J3\ Comp.vii. 16) the deportation 
 of the vessels still in their possession. — The pil- 
 lars (1 Kings vii. 15-22), sea (lb. 23-2G), and bases 
 (ver. 27 sqq.), were the largest and heaviest ves- 
 sels, which were not therefore carried away the 
 first time. Comp. Exeg. rems. on lii. 17. — All 
 the nobles. Comp. Is. xxxiv. 12; Jer. xxxix. 
 6 and xxix. 2; 2 Kings xxiv. 11 sqq. — The refu- 
 tation of Movers' and Hitzig's assertion that 
 vers. 16-21 are interpolated, may be seen in Graf, 
 S. 351. He has also on pp. 344, 845 shown that 
 the abbreviated name-ending, which prevails in 
 chh. xxvii.-xxix. [TV instead of Tf) is not to be 
 regarded as the sign of a later date of composi- 
 tion. 
 
 XXVIII. 1-4. And it came to pass . . . 
 the yoke of the king of Babylon. In the 
 same year, doubtless shortly after the occurrences 
 narrated in ch. xxvii. came Hananiah from Gibeou 
 (a city of priests. Josh. xxi. 17) and, therefore, 
 probably himself a priest, in opposition to Jere- 
 miah prophesying that in two years the Lord 
 will break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar, and 
 bring back the sacred vessels and kingJehoiachin, 
 together with the other captives from Babylon. 
 Uu the date "in the beginning" comp. Comm. 
 on xxvii. 1. The month is mentioned on account 
 of the statement in ver. 17. — The deceptive pro- 
 mise of Hananiah is directly opposed to what 
 Jeremiah has said in xxii. 26, 27; xxvii. 16. 
 
 Vers. 6-9. Then the prophet Jeremiah 
 said . . . truly sent him. Jeremiah replies: 
 would that thou wert right! But only prophe- 
 cies of calamity have the presumption of truth in 
 their favor, for they are connected with danger 
 to their author. Prophecies of good fortune may 
 be flattery. We must, therefore, wait for their 
 result. — On ver. 9 comp. Deut. xviii. 21, 22. 
 
 Vers. 10 and 11. Then Hananiah . . . went 
 his way. Hananiah has the audacity to an- 
 swer Jeremiah's speech by taking the yoke from 
 his neck and breaking it, at the same time re- 
 peating his previous prediction (vers. 3 and 4). 
 Jeremiah goes away for the time without uttering 
 
 a word in reply. On HtDiO and 1^ comp. Exeg. 
 rems. on xxvii. 2. 
 
 Vers. 12-17. Then the w^ord . . . seventh 
 month. After some time Jeremiah received 
 trom the Lord a double message to Hananiah: 
 1. By the breaking of the wooden yoke all that 
 he has effected is that an iron one takes its place, 
 for iron will be the yoke, which Nebuchadnezzar 
 will put upon the nations, according to the will 
 ot God; 2. Hananiah, who misuses the name of 
 
24(i 
 
 THE rROPHET JEllEMIAH. 
 
 God and has misled the people into vain confi- 
 dence, is to die this year. This also came to 
 pass, for he died two months afterwards. — 
 Yokes of wood. The plural is generic, as 
 was remarked on xxvii. 2. Comp. Naegelsb. 
 Gt., I 61, 2 d— Yoke of iron. The prophet 
 
 appears to have had Deut. xxviii. 48 in mind. 
 On ver. 14 comp. xxvii. G. — Rebellion (HID). 
 comp. xxix. 32. It is=revolt, rebellion, on ac- 
 count of the following "~^N. — In the seventh 
 mouth corresponds to fifth mouth, ver. 1. 
 
 3. The conflict of Jeremiah with the false prophets in Babylon. 
 
 Chapter XXIX. 
 
 1. The Letter to the Exiles. 
 XXIX. 1-23. 
 
 1 Now these are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Je- 
 rusalem unto the residue of the elders which were carried away captives, and to 
 the priests, and to the prophets, and to all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar car- 
 
 2 ried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon (after that Jeconiah the king, and 
 the queen, and the eunuchs, the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, and the carpeo- 
 
 3 ters and the smiths, were departed from Jeru.^alem) ; By the hand of Elasah the 
 son of Shaphan, and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah (whom Zedekiah the king of 
 Judah sent unto Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon), saying, 
 
 4 Thus saith the Lord of hosts [Jehovah Zebaoth], the God of Israel, unto all that 
 are carried away captives, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem 
 
 5 unto Babylon : Build ye houses and dwell in them, and plant gardens and eat the 
 
 6 fruit of them; Take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for 
 your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and 
 
 7 daughters ; that ye may be increased there and not diminished. And seek the peace 
 of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray unto 
 the Lord [Jehovah] for it : for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace. 
 
 8 For thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel : Let not your prophets and 
 your diviners, that be in the midst of you, deceive you, neither hearken to your 
 
 9 dreams which ye cause to be dreamed * For they prophesy falsely unto you in my 
 
 10 name: I have not sent them, saith the Lord. For thus saith the Lord, That after 
 seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good 
 
 11 word toward you, in causing you to return to this place. For I know the thoughts 
 that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give 
 
 12 you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, 
 
 13 and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall 
 
 14 search for me with all your heart. And I will be found of you, saith the Lord : 
 and I will turn away your captivity,^ and I will gather you from all the nations, 
 and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith the Lord ; and I will 
 bring you again into the place whence I caused you to be carried away captive. 
 
 15, 16 Because^ ye have said, The Lord hath raised us up prophets in Babylon ; Know 
 that thus saith the Lord of* the king that sitteth upon the throne^ of David, and 
 of all the people that dwelleth in the city, and of your brethren that are not gone 
 
 17 forth with you into capjtivity; Thus saith the Lord of hosts: Behold, I will send 
 upon them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, and will make them like vile® 
 
 18 figs, that cannot be eaten, they are so evil. And I will persecute them with the 
 swurd, with the famine, and with the pestilence, and will deliver them to be re 
 moved to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse, and an astonishment, and an 
 
 19 his.'>ing, and a reproach, among all the nations whither I have driven them : Because 
 they have not hearkened to my words, saith the Lord, which I sent' unto them by 
 my servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them; but ye would not hear, 
 saith the Lord [Jehovah]. 
 
CHAP. XXIX. 1-23. 
 
 247 
 
 20 Hear ye therefore the word of the Lord, all ye of the captivity, whom I have 
 
 21 sent from Jerusalem to Babylon : Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, 
 of Ahab the son of Kolaiah, and of Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, which prophesy a 
 lie unto you in my name : Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchad- 
 
 22 nezzar, king of Babylon ; and he shall slay them before your eyes ; And of them shall 
 be taken up a curse by all the captivity of Judah which are in Babylon, saying, The 
 Lord make thee like Zedekiah and like Ahab,® whom the king of Babylon roasted 
 
 23 in the fire ; Because they have committed villany in Israel, and have committed 
 adultery with their neighbours' wives, and have spoken lying words in my name, 
 which I have not commanded them : even I know^ and am a witness, saith the Lord. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 8. — D'D /HD- Hiph. from D /PI occurs only in Isa. xxxviii. 16 and here ; Part. Hiph. here only. The causative 
 conjugation woulJ not inappropriately intimate the self-made character of those dreams (IIitzigJ. The form is not with- 
 out analogies. Comp. D''TTJ70, ^ Chron. x.\viii. 23. D'^VHiD (Keri) 1 Chron. xv. 24. But comp. Olsh., 2 25S a, S. 580. 
 
 * Ver. 14.— 3^tJ? in this connection is used transitively. That JlOtJ? cannot be taken as accusative of the object (I turn 
 
 myself to the captivity) is evident from the circumstance, that, where the connection requires the imperfect we have ^'K'X; 
 
 • T 
 xxxii. 44; xxxiii. 11, 26 (Keri); xlix. 6, 39 (Keri) ; in Ezek. xxxix. 25 ; xxxiii. 7 we have even the perfect Iliphil. 
 
 3 Ver. 15. — ''3. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § lOi), 1 a. Since the pleonastic ^2 requires a verbum dicendi to be sujjplied be- 
 fore it, we must here supply: thus I say; thus I declare to you. ''2 before Dn"10X=when, or as to this that — as almost 
 all the commentators admit. The perfect is used (comp. the imperf. ver. 13), because the fact supposed is real. 
 
 * Ver. 16. — T 70n /X, ver. 16. ^^=in respect to, of , aa frequently elsewhere: ver. 21 ; xxii. 11. Comp. Naeoelsb. 
 
 ffr.,ail2,5,6. ... 
 
 * Ver. 16. — ND3~ /X- 7X for ^y, as frequently in Jeremiah. Comp. rems. on x. 1. 
 
 * Ver. 17. — "Ij.'tJ' (probably from "^yiJ^O) here only — meaning horridus, abominandus. Comp. T^'^^'^}^^^ 
 
 T Ver. 19. — Tin/ty^'m'X- On the construction with a double accusative comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 69, 2 c. 
 8 Ver. 22.— 3nXD1. In consequence of the elision of the X, patahh must, according to the well-known rule, pass over 
 into Segol. '^ •' = 
 
 » Ver. 23. — On the reading J^TID comp. Textual Notes on xvii. 23. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Jeremiah did not limit himself to contending 
 against the perverse nationalism of the Jews in 
 their own home, for those who had already been 
 carried away captive were in constant communi- 
 cation with home, and the accounts of the views 
 and expectations prevailing among the former 
 at all events influenced the conclusions of the 
 latter. If they adapted themselves to their state 
 of exile and described it as tolerable, when they 
 Baw its inevitable necessity, and admonished their 
 countrymen to bow to this necessity, tliis was at 
 any rate a powerful auxiliary to Jeremiah's 
 preaching. Hence Jeremiah seeks to move the 
 captives to humble submission to their lot, pre- 
 senting before them on the one hand the true 
 consolation of a deliverance to be hoped for after 
 seventy years, and on the other hand most em- 
 phatically warning them against the false conso- 
 lation of a deliverance in a shorter period, which 
 the false prophets set before ihem. Jeremiah 
 thus avails himself of the opportunity afforded 
 by an embassy, despatched by Zedekiah to Ba- 
 bylon (xxix. 3), to send a letter to those who 
 had been already deported. We know nothing 
 further either of the object of the embassy or 
 of the persons of the ambassadors. As to the 
 time of the composition and despatch of the let- 
 ter IIiTZir, has correctly remarked that all ti.e 
 data we have poitit to the period between the 
 first and the fourth years of Zedekiah. The de- 
 portation under Jeconiah had taken place (xxix. 
 1, 2). The deportation appears to be that evmt 
 on which the sending of the letter leans; there 
 
 seems to be nothing more important as the occa- 
 sion of it. Add to this that the counsel which 
 Jeremiah gives suits the commencement of the 
 exile. How are the exiles to arrange matters? 
 Are they to compose themselves for a brief 
 or lengthened sojourn? Jeremiah tells them 
 they are to do the latter. It is incredible that 
 he delayed this advice for years, the more so 
 since of the seventy years -of exile, for those who 
 were carried away with Jeconiah, eight were 
 already past. Besides this, it is not probable 
 that Zedekiah in his fourth year, when he him- 
 self went to Babylon (li. 59), would send an em- 
 bassy thither. I therefore agree with Hitzig, 
 who ascribes the epistle to the first or second 
 year after the deporiaiion. The vision, of which 
 ch. xxiv. relates, must have preceded this leiicr, 
 not only because from its purport it must have 
 followed immediately after the deportation of 
 Jeconiah, while our letter presupposes the ar- 
 rival of the captives in Babylon, but also because 
 in several places in the letter reference is made 
 to it (comp. ver. 10 with xxiv. 6; ver. 17 with 
 xxiv. 2, 8 ; ver. 18 with xxiv. 9). — It is true 
 many commentators regard vers. 16-20 as inau- 
 thentic, but incorrectly as we shall see. — The 
 question, whether we have a true copy of the 
 letter or only a later reproduction, or account 
 of it, is variously answered. The last view has 
 in its favor : 1. that the writing has not the form 
 of a letter; 2. the apparently unconnected posi- 
 tion of vers. 15-20. But what is the Hebrew 
 form of a letter ? From the few examples which 
 the Old Testament affords (comp. 2 Sam. xi. 14 ; 
 1 Ki. xxi. 8; 2 Ki. x. 1-6; 2 Chron. xxx. G; 
 Ezr. iv. 8; Neh. vi. 5), v.e cannot derive any 
 
24b 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 set form, and as to the absence of connection we 
 shall hereafter show (on ver. 15 sqq.) that such 
 an absence does not exist. I find therefore no 
 reason for doubting the agreement of our letter 
 with the original. It contains four parts: 1. 
 vers. 4-7, the positive command to arrange for a 
 longer sojourn in Babylon ; 2. Warning against 
 being deceived by the false prophets, since Jeho- 
 vah promises deliverance and return only after 
 seventy years; 3. vers. 15-20, Warning against 
 trusting in the false prophets, especially in refe- 
 rence to that part of the people which had re- 
 mained in Jerusalem, since it is devoted to de- 
 struction ; 4. vers. 21-23, prediction of the severe 
 punishment of two false prophets. 
 
 Vers. 1-7. Now these are the words . . . 
 shall ye have peace. After the words of his- 
 tiirical introduction, which give information con- 
 cerning the receivers and bearers of the letter, 
 follows the first part of the letter (vers. 4-7). 
 As tlie command of God (ver. 4), Jeremiah pro- 
 claims to the exiles that they should build houses 
 and lay out gardens (ver. 5), marry and give 
 their children in marriage (ver. 6), and seek the 
 welfare of the place assigned them as a resi- 
 dence as a condition of their own (ver. 7). Hit- 
 zio regards vers. 1-3 as showing traces of a later 
 hand in the abbreviated forms of the names, the 
 Duntion of Nebuchadnezzar, which name is 
 omitted by the LXX., and in the remark that 
 Jeremiah was a prophet. But comp. on the other 
 hand Gkaf, S. 342 sqq. — The residue of the 
 elders. The explanation of Hitzig and Geaf 
 that these were the elders who were not at the 
 same time priests or prophets, cannot possibly 
 be correct. For then this phrase must have 
 come after, since those priests and prophets who 
 were not elders, can be no others than those 
 straightway mentioned. The supposition that the 
 deceased elders must have been already replaced 
 by others, so that the council of elders could not 
 appear to the prophet as merely a residue, is un- 
 founded. How could Jeremiah assume an or- 
 ganized community, when in his letter he ex- 
 horts them to enter into such relations. He will 
 of course address those elders only who are alive. 
 — Does the date in ver. 2 refer to "sent" or 
 "carried away?" Manifestly to the latter, for 
 if referred to "sent" it would declare that Je- 
 remiah wrot^ immediately after the surrender, 
 which is not to be imagined. The sentence 
 "after tliat," etc., is therefore to be referred to 
 " carried away" and the sense is: "which Ne- 
 buchadnezzar carried away after that, in accord- 
 ance with the required condition, Jehoiauiiin, 
 with those afterwards named, surrendered him- 
 self. For Ni"' is used of the surrendering of 
 
 besieged persons (2 Ki. xxiv. 12 sqq.; 1 Sam. xi. 
 3, 10; 1 Ki. XX. 31; Isa. xxxvi. 16; Jer. xxi. 
 9; xxxviii. 2, 21). — The queen. Comp. xiii. 
 18; 2 Ki. xxiv. 8, 12, 15.— The eunuchs, the 
 princes. The two terms appear to be in appo- 
 sition, but the princes of Judah were certainly 
 not eunuchs. Either then is D'TD to betaken in 
 the sense of chamberlain, courtier (of which 
 use there is certain proof. Comp. 2 Ki. xxiv. 
 14, 15. Gksk.n. Thcs., p. 073), or else 1, and, is 
 wanting before '''^)^, princes. — On carpenters, 
 itc, comp. rems. on xxiv. 1. — The Lord desig- 
 
 nates the captives as carried away by him: vers. 
 4, 7, 14, 20. — Increased there. This ancient 
 theocratic blessing (Gen. xiii. 16; xv. 5; xvii. 
 2 ; Jer. iii. 16, 19) is thus to be preserved to the 
 people even in captivity. 
 
 Vers. 8-14. For thus . . . carried away- 
 captive. The direction in vers. 5-7 is given by 
 the prophet for two reasons, a negative and a 
 positive. The negative reason is, the expecta- 
 tion of a speedy liberation, which false prophets 
 seek to produce in the people and which is an 
 illusion of their own dreams, a nonentity, by 
 which they are not to allow themselves to be de- 
 ceived (vers. 8 and 9). The positive reason is 
 that not till after seventy years will the Lord 
 verify His promise of grace. Then will the 
 people call upon their God and seek Him, and 
 He will hear and be found of them and turn 
 away their captivity and bring them home from 
 all the places where they have been dispersed 
 (vers. 10-14). — Ver. 10. Seventy years. Comp. 
 XXV. 11. The prophet does not calculate from 
 the present, but he has in mind the absolute 
 period of duration appointed to the Babylonian 
 empire. Observe also, that he does not say: 
 when the years of your exile are ended. The 
 seventy years represent primarily the ye.ars of 
 the Babylonian empire and only secondarily those 
 of the captivity. The more justified are we in 
 dating the seventy years from the siege of Car- 
 chemish. It should further be observed that the 
 prophet opposes the arbitrary unfounded thesis 
 of the false prophets, not in a harsh and severe 
 but mild and consolatory antithesis, in which 
 even the severest point, the seventy years' dura- 
 tion of the exile, is expressed in the most for- 
 bearing manner. The Lord evidently wishes to 
 soften and win their hearts, which had been 
 rendered obstinate by false consolation, by pre- 
 senting the true. Hence also the gracious 
 thoughts of ver. 11. I still know my thoughts, 
 says the Lord, t. e. I have not forgotten them or 
 let them pass from my view. r\''^nx corresponds 
 to our English "future" (to "have a future," 
 etc.). Comp. Prov. xxiii. 18; xxiv. 14, 20; Ps. 
 xxxvii. 37 ; Jer. xxxi. 17. The Lord, however, 
 sets before the people not merely a future of 
 outward prosperity, but above all a future of in- 
 ternal welfare, without which the former would 
 be altogether inconceivable. — Ye shall go 
 
 (DriD/ni), ver. 12, is best taken of going to a 
 place of worship. So that ye shall call and 
 and pray are distinguished as private and pub- 
 lic worship (comp. 1 Ki. viii. 20, 29, 30, 35, etc.). 
 If the t-cntences of ver. 13 and "I will be found 
 of you," ver. 14, are not tautological, we must 
 regard them as two sentences with two clauses 
 each, the second forming the basis of the former; 
 
 3 is not "when" but "for," or "because:" ye 
 
 will seek me and find me ; because ye shall seek 
 me with all your heart, I will be found of yon. — 
 Turn aw^ay your captivity. The expression 
 Is rooted in Deut. (xxx. 3), as generally in our 
 whole passage this chapter hovered before the 
 mind of the prophet. The expression is found 
 with special frequency in Jeremiah, and chiefly 
 in chs. xxx.-xxxiii. and xlviii.-xlix. To turn the 
 captivity stands, however, for restitutio in inte- 
 r/rum generally (Job xiii. 10; Jer. xxx. 18). The 
 
CHAP. XXIX. 24-32. 
 
 249 
 
 return from exile was only a weak beginning of 
 the fulfilment of our prophecy. Comp. rems. 
 on iii. 12 sqq. 
 
 Vers. 15-19. Because ye have said . . . 
 saith Jehovah. Not only has ver. 15 been de- 
 clared to be transposed hither from its first place, 
 but the whole passage, vers. 16-20, has been pro- 
 nounced spurious (Hitzig), which is thought to 
 be the more justified, because the passage is want- 
 ing in the LXX. It "seems to me that two tilings 
 have been overlooked here. 1. Jerusalem with its 
 remaining population and the theocratic king at 
 their head naturally still continued to the exiles 
 to be the sun of their happiness and their hope. 
 So long as Jerusalem and the temple were stand- 
 ing, the main foundation of the theocracy was 
 unshaken and the hope existed that the present 
 temporary adversity might be followed any mo- 
 ment by a turn for the better. Hence also the 
 prophecies of the false prophets dwelt above all 
 on the continuance of Jerusalem. Even the pre- 
 sent misfortune, the partial deportation of the 
 people and the sacred vessels, although they had 
 not predicted it, they could explain as a mere 
 episode, which did not refute the main tenor of 
 their promises, so long as Jerusalem and the tem- 
 ple were standing, and there were people in Je- 
 rusalem. Hence Jeremiah takes away the ground 
 from under the feet of those false prophets, by 
 predicting in vers. 16-20 the total destruction of 
 the present population of Jerusalem, together 
 with their king. We are not then to say that 
 these words, vers. 16-20, apply to the population 
 of Jerusalem. They certainly do so, but only 
 secondarily. Primarily they are to overthrow 
 the basis on which the false prophets of the cap- 
 tivity are standing. I can then regard the words 
 only as necessary parts of the genuine letter, 
 written by Jeremiah to the exiles, and cannot 
 assume with Graf that we have in this chapter 
 only a report of the letter. 2. In its gramma- 
 tical relations the O in the beginning of ver. 16 
 has given the greatest trouble to the commenta- 
 tors. They have taken it mostly in the causal 
 
 signification, which it certainly usually has in 
 this formula, which however affords no sense, 
 whether we connect ver. 16 with ver. 15 or ver. 
 14. It is hero rather the pleonastic 'Jp which so 
 frequently introduces a direct statement. We 
 have had it already in ver. 10. Comp. ii. 35; 
 xxii. 22 ; and Textual Note. — Hath raised, 
 etc. Jeremiah supposes a reply to vers. 8, 9. 
 You despise our prophets ; we however assure 
 you that Jehovah raises up prophets not only in 
 Jerusalem, but He .has extended the inspiring 
 influence of His Spirit even to .Babylon. Hence 
 the local form Tl/DD. — The swrord. Comp. ix. 
 
 T •: T ^ 
 
 15; xxiv. 10; xxvii. 8, 13. — Figs. The prophet 
 has xxiv. 2 in view. That the exiles were ac- 
 quainted with the vision in ch. xxiv. is possible 
 but not necessary. This passage is intelligible 
 to those who had no knowledge of ch. xxiv. — Ye 
 V70uld not hear. The 2 pers. plur. proceeds 
 doubtless simply from the circumstance that the 
 prophet quotes entire a frequent saying there: 
 vii. 13; XXV. 3, 4, 7, 8; xxvi. 5. On ver. 20 
 comp. xxiv. 5. 
 
 Vers. 20-23. Hear ye therefore . . . -wit- 
 ness, saith Jehovah. In conclusion the pro- 
 phet predicts the punishment of two of those 
 false prophets for their presumption and blas- 
 phemy generally by a terrible death. Nothing 
 further is known of this Ahab and Zedekiah. — 
 Slay them. It is very natural to suppose that 
 Nebuchadnezzar feared the exciting preaching 
 of such prophets and that he wished to terrify 
 others by inflicting death in a terrible manner. — 
 Ver. 22 a. Comp. xxiv. 9 ; xxv. 18 ; xxvi. 6 coll. Isa. 
 Ixv. 15. — Roasted. Comp. Dan. iii.6. — Villany, 
 
 (n733) a deed of shame, facinus rationi legique 
 divinse repugnans (Fuerst). Comp. Gen. xxxiv. 
 7; Deut. xxii. 21; Josh. vii. 15. — The Lord calla 
 Himself a knower and witness, because He not 
 only knows the truth, but brings it also to light. 
 Comp. Mai. iii. 5. Levit. v. 1 may in general 
 have been hovering before the mind of the pro- 
 phet. 
 
 2. The Consequences of the Letter. 
 XXIX. 24-32. 
 
 24, 25 Thus shalt thou also speak to Shemaiah the Nehelamite, saying, Thus speaketh 
 the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, saying, Because thou hast sent letters in thy 
 name unto all the people that are at Jerusalem, and to Zephaniah, the son of Maa- 
 
 26 seiah the priest, and to all the priests, saying. The Lord hath made thee priest in 
 the stead of Jehoiada the priest, that ye should be officers in the house of the Lord, 
 for every man that is mad^ and maketh himself a prophet, that thou shouldest put 
 
 27 him in prison, and in the stocks.^ Now therefore why hast thou not reproved* Je- 
 
 28 remiah of Anathoth, which maketh himself a prophet to you? For therefore* he 
 .«ent [a letter] unto us in Babylon, saying, this captivity is [will continue] long:^ 
 build ye houses, and dwell in them.; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them. 
 
 29 And Zephaniah the priest rrad this letter in the pars of Jeremiah the prophet. 
 30, 31 Then came the word of the Lord unto Jeremiah, saying, Send to all them of 
 
250 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 the captivity [a message] saying, Thus saith the Lord concerning Sheraaiah the 
 Nehelamite ; Because that Shemaiah hath prophesied unto you, and I sent him 
 32 not [without my having sent him] and he caused you to trust® in a lie : Therefore 
 thus saith the Lord : Behold, I will punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite, and his 
 seed: he shall not have a man to dwell among this people; neither shall he behold^ 
 the good that I will do for my people, saith the Lord ; because he hath taught re- 
 bellion against the Lord. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 26. — XJtj/O- Only the Part. Pual and Part, and Inf. Uiphil of this word are found. The radical meaning is to h* 
 astray. (Comp. XJl?, 1^3, TM'&i- The Hiphil is used of raving in general, 1 Sam. xxi. 15, 16 ; ^W^ likewise in Deut 
 
 T T - T T T T •. ; 
 
 xxviii. 3-1 and 1 Sam. xxi. 16; elsewhere only of prophets and .always in a bad sense; Ho-^.ix.T; 2 Ki. ix. 11. 
 
 2 Ver. 26. — pj'2f. The word is an. Key. The root pjj,' also does not occur elsewhere iii Uebiew. i'rom the dialects 
 
 the most suitable comparison is afforded by the Arabic zinag, collar, ring(HiTZiQ). Acccrding to the older Rabbis in Kim- 
 
 CHi r>y^ = D'tS IJDD 'Sd as n^anO = INl'xb IJDO- Symm.: /aoxAos lever, pole, bar. Ges. 27ies., p. 1175. HiT- 
 
 ziG rightly supposes that both instruments formed the complete instrument of torture, one serving to confine the neck, the 
 other tlie hands and feet. 
 
 3 Ver. 27. — nij^J- Properly to chide (comp. Gen. xxxvii. 10) then to interfere, to stop any one (Ruth ii. 16; Mai. 
 iii. 11). , 
 
 * Ver. 28. — f3~7 V 'J. In itself these particles might be taken in the most natural sense ; for on this account {viz., on 
 
 account of defective control) ; but elsewhere they always designate the reason supposed as the object or result; xxxviii. 4; 
 Gen. xviii. 5 ; xix. 8 ; xxxiii. 10 ; xxxviii. 20. Comp. Redslob, lexical. Erijrterungen. Stud. u. Krit., 1811, S. 983 sqq. 
 
 5 Ver. 28. — It^N, of extension in time (2 Sam. iii. 1), and in space (Job xi. 9). On the neuter signiiQcance of the femi- 
 
 ' T 
 
 nine, comp. Naegelsb. Or., g 60, b. 
 
 6 Ver. 31. — On n£33''1 comp. xxviii. 15. 
 
 1 Ver. 32.— riNT "ith 2- Comp. Naegelsb. Qr., g 112, 5, a; Ps. xxxvii. 31; Uv. 9; cxviii. 7. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The letter, xxix. 4-23, caused great exaspera- 
 tion among the false prophets at Babylon. One 
 of them, Shemaiah, .complains to the overseer of 
 the temple in Jerusalem that he did not interfere 
 against the conduct of the mad Jeremiah. Je- 
 remiah gets information of this letter and re- 
 ceives the command to announce to Shemaiah that 
 his family shall become extinct, and that he him- 
 self will not see the salvation of Israel. The ar- 
 rangement of the sentences in this passage is very 
 irregular. In the first place all explanation con- 
 cerning the proximate occasion of this utterance 
 is passed over. Yet this may be accounted for 
 by the fact that this may be learned from the 
 tenor of the passage itself. The beginning will 
 then be made with the command to make an an- 
 nouncement to Shemaiah. This announcement 
 does begin in ver. 2.5, and takes its regular course 
 to the close of ver. 28, so that in vers. 26-28 the 
 letter is communicated verbatim, which gave the 
 occasion for the announcement to Shemaiah. 
 Here the address to Shemaiah breaks off without 
 a conclusion. Instead of this, after the prophet 
 has suddenly sprung back from the point of the 
 cotnmutiication iy him to the point of the com- 
 munication /o him, the conclusion is given in the 
 form K)f an address to the exiles, in wliich She- 
 maiah is spoken of in the third person (vers. 80 
 32). Here accordingly two announcements seem 
 to have been inade (comp. vers. 24, 25 with vers. 
 30, 31 ), which on account of their identical tenor 
 the prophft allows to combine in the course of 
 his narrative. 
 
 Vers. 24-28. Thus shalt thou . . . eat the 
 
 fruit of them. We might indeed translate Sn 
 here, as in vers. 16 and 21, of [Shemaiah] in- 
 
 stead of to, but ver. 25 contains a direct address 
 
 to Shemaiah. Neither he nor his birth-place is 
 mentioned elsewhere. — The letter, communicated 
 in vers. 26-28, is addressed specially to the priest 
 Zephauiah. When notwithstanding, in ver. 25, 
 letters are spoken of which were addressed to all 
 the prophets and all the priests besides Zepha- 
 niah, this niay be explained in two ways; either 
 tliere really were letters with the three address- 
 es mentioned, the principal letter only being 
 communicated to Zephaniah ; or this letler was 
 the only one, but designated in ver. 25 as in- 
 tended to be communicated to a witler circle. 
 Both explanations are grammatically possible 
 
 For letters (D'liJD) may be a general plural. 
 
 (Comp. niC3!b, yokes, xxviii. 13 and Tsa. xxxvii. 
 14; xxxix. Ij. — Zepiianiah, the son of Maaseiah, 
 
 was nJt!'D jni), second priest, Hi. 24. Comp. 
 
 xxi. 1 arid xxxvii. 3.— Officers (d'pD). This 
 
 also might in itself be a general plural, if the 
 mention of the predecessor did not require us to 
 refer it to both officers. — That is mad. Here 
 the expression involves an insult to Jeremiah. 
 Zephaniah was not to restrain all those who pro- 
 phesied, but only those who were deranged and 
 presumed to prophesy, and Jeremiah is reckoned 
 among these. — In prison. Comp. xxx, 2. — 
 This is long. By this the 70 years are meant 
 (ver. 10), wliich, in comparison with the time 
 predicted by the false prophets, would be a very 
 long period. 
 
 Vers. 29-32. And Zephaniah . . . against 
 Jehovah. The words of ver. 2'.) do not clearly 
 indicate whether Zephaniah read the letter of 
 Jeremiah alone or in the presence of others. We 
 may conclude from the two embassies (xxi. 1 ; 
 xxxvii. 3) that he was probably not personally 
 hostile towards Jeremiah. We also find no indi- 
 
CHAP. XXIX. 24-32. 
 
 251 
 
 cation that Shemaiah's letter was at that time of 
 any injury to Jeremiah. It is indeed possible 
 that Zephaniah, though unable to keep the pur- 
 port of the letter altogether secret, yet acted with 
 the utmost possible consideration toward the pro- 
 phet. At any rate Jeremiah was not intimi- 
 dated. Shemaiah receives a reproving answer 
 from the Lord's prophet: his race shall be extir- 
 pated (the phrase " dwelling among his people " 
 signifies a peaceful, secure existence, 2 Ki. iv. 
 13) and he himself will not have his eyes glad- 
 dened by the prosperity of his people. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On xxvi. 3. ["See how God waits to be gra- 
 cious, waits till we are duly qualified, till we are 
 fit for Him to be gracious to, and in the meantime 
 tries a variety of methods to bring us to be so." 
 Henry — S. R. A.] 
 
 2. On xxvi. 6. "■Deusnulli loco prsecisealligatus 
 est ita, ut ecclesiam suam et doctrinam ccelestem inde 
 dimovere nequeat propter hominum ingratitudinem. 
 Vehementer igitur errant Romanenses, dum ex aucto- 
 ritate urhis Romse suse ecclesise ac religionis auctori- 
 tatem evincere satagunt. Multo rectius Hieronymus 
 in hoc memorabili dicta, quod etiam allegatur in Jure 
 Canon. Dist. 19: Non facile est stare loco Pauli et 
 tenere gradum Petri cum Christo regnantium. Non 
 enini Sanctorum filii sunt, qui tenent loca Sanctorum, 
 sed qui exercent opera eorum.'" Forster. 
 
 3. On xxvi. 8 sqq. "Scarcely has Jeremiah 
 done speaking than they take him to task, and 
 threaten his life. What does Jeremiah do ? In- 
 stead of vindicating himself he says : ' Reform 
 your life, and hearken to the voice of the Lord, 
 and it will be better for you,' ver. 13. You do 
 not wish me to thunder away at you ; reform 
 then and I can let it alone. This preaching was 
 seasonable, and produced an admirable effect. 
 The priests and elders contradicted the priests, 
 the parrhesia [free-spokenness. Acts iv. 13] of 
 the man filled them with astonishment. ' He is 
 not worthy of death,' ver. 16. A brief illustr.a- 
 tion of the saying ' We need not our senses lose, 
 when our enemies accuse.' Jeremiah has to thank 
 his honesty for this presence of mind, his pro- 
 found meditation, his constrained calling, the 
 necessity, the ardor, which urged him to preach, 
 for no personal inclination had any share in it. 
 I know in more recent times a man, who has un- 
 affectedly practised Jeremiah's behavior, a pas- 
 tor, a teacher, I might say a prophet of many 
 thousand people. Whenever he had to vindicate 
 himself (which happened now and then) he 
 preached, he repeated to the commissioners the 
 very things of which he was accused, confessed 
 and denied not, but pressed them on their hearts, 
 and showed aliud agendo his innocence, his mind, 
 his steadfastness, and all at the same time so 
 plainly that they always returned with full con- 
 viction and knew not whether they had gone forth 
 to see a prophet or were sent to examine a cul- 
 prit? ' Never man,' they said, ' spake like this 
 man.' That cannot be counterfeited. One must 
 be just as full of the matter, as absorbed in the 
 subject, as pressed at heart, kindled with the 
 same ardor in order to explain himself with the 
 same indifference, repose and plainness, when 
 there is a knife at his throat." Zinzendorf. 
 
 4. On xxvi. 12 sqq. " Si injuriam deposueris per 
 nes Deum, ultor est; si damnum, restitutor est; si 
 dolorem, medicus est; si mortem, resuscitator est." 
 Tertcllian. [" Those that persecute God's mi- 
 nisters hurt not them so much as themselves." 
 Henry.— S. R. A.] 
 
 5. On xxvi. 7,8, 11, 16. "Auctores persecutionis 
 plerumque esse solent ii, qui in ordine ecclesiastico 
 eminent.'" Forster. " Especially are the priests 
 and men-pleasing prophets mad with Jeremiah, 
 for if he is right they have lied." Uiedrich. 
 
 6. On xxvi. 18. ["By this it appears that a 
 man may be a true prophet of the Lord and yet 
 may prophesy the destruction of Zion and Jeru- 
 salem. When we threaten secure sinners with 
 the taking away of the Spirit of God, and de- 
 clining churches with the removal of the candl'e- 
 stick, we say no more than what has been said 
 many a time, and what we have warrant from 
 the word of God to say." Henry. — S. R. A.] 
 
 7. On xxvi. 20 sqq. " Urias, a true prophet, 
 preached like Jeremiah, therefore the king wished 
 to kill him, so he fled to Egypt but could notes- 
 cape. Jeremiah did not flee and was spared . . . 
 Our running and anxiety are of no use. The 
 wickedness of the world must for its judgment be 
 displayed on God's servants, and these must yield 
 to it ; but on whom it is to come first God has in 
 His own hand; and we may spare ourselves all 
 our care and flight." Diedrich. ["Nothing 
 more is known of Urijah than is here related ; 
 but this incident suggests that God mercifully 
 strove with His people by the ministry of many 
 prophets whom He sent, rising up early and send- 
 ing them (ver. 5) whose names are written in the 
 Book of Life and are canonized in God's Mar- 
 tyrology, but do not appear in the pages of any 
 earthly history." Wordsworth. — S. R. A.] 
 
 8. On xxvi. 24. '■^ Monemur hie, Deum servis suis 
 fidelibus subinde largiri quosdam patro7ios, ut Jere- 
 miie hie Auhikamum et infra cap. 38 Ebedmele- 
 chum, Elise et prophetis (yvyxpovoi^ Obadiam 1 Reg. 
 18, Luthero Electores Saxnnise Fridericum sapien- 
 tem, Johannem pium, Johannem-Fridericum conatan- 
 tem." Forster. 
 
 9. On xxvii. 2-11. Historical times are pre- 
 ceded by a long series of centuries which pre- 
 sent themselves to us as altogether obscure or 
 only in the dubious twilight of tradition. Ac- 
 credited history also comprises only a relatively 
 small portion of the human race, for the nations 
 which are added as ciphers to the factors of his- 
 tory form the majority. A universal ruler in the 
 biblical sense is not one whose dominion actually 
 extends over the entire globe — for there is none 
 such — but he who represents the leader in the con- 
 cert of history. This part is here given to Nebu- 
 chadnezzar. Among all the universal monarchies 
 that represented by him appears richest in noble 
 capacity. It is therefore compared to the golden 
 head of the image in Dan. ii. Oomp. Auberlen, 
 der Prophet Daniel, S. 41 sqq. 
 
 10. On xxvii. -5 sqq. ["The things of the world 
 are not the best things, for God often gives the 
 largcest share of them to bad men, that are rivals 
 with him and rebels against him. Dominion is 
 not founded in grace. Those that have not any 
 colorable title to eternal happiness may yt 
 have a justifiable title to their temporal p;oo 1 
 things." Henry. — S. R. A.] " Great lords sit 
 
252 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 indeed on high thrones, but not firmly, for they 
 are only God's vassals. And when they do not 
 please Him and act accordingly, he can easily 
 transfer the fief to another; Dan. ii. 21 ; iv. 14, 
 22." Cramer. 
 
 11. On xxvii. 12. ["The conduct of Jeremiah, 
 counselling Zedekiah and Jerusalem to submit to 
 Nebuchaihiezzar, has been represented as an act 
 of political prudence to be imitated by States- 
 men and Ecclesiastics, who are thereby justified 
 in making large concessions of national rights 
 and national independence in times of public 
 emergency (Stanley, Lect. 534). * 
 
 But was it not rather one of religious duty? 
 
 God had revealed to the prophet that He had 
 given the N.ition into the hand of Nebuchad- 
 nezzar, ' His servant,'' on account of their sins, 
 and tuey must submit to Him as the Minister and 
 Vicegerent of God." Wordsworth. " Many 
 might nave prevented destroying providences by 
 humbling themselves under humbling provi- 
 dences. It is better to take up a lighter cross 
 in our way, than pull a heavier on our own 
 head." Henry.— S. R. A.] 
 
 12. On xxvii. 14. "It is one sign of our de- 
 praved nature that we are more ready lo believe 
 lies than the truth. For when Jeremiah and his 
 colleagues preached, no one believed. But no 
 sooner did the false prophet come and open their 
 mouths, than all their discourses must be spoken 
 directly from heaven, and what tbey said, must 
 pass current on earth (Ps. Ixxiii. 9). But not 
 what Jeremiah said. Take for example our 
 mother Eve; what God said was of no account, 
 but what the serpent said was something purely 
 excellent." Cramer. 
 
 13. On xxvii. 18. "True prayer is a certain 
 sign of Godliness and a fruit of faith and the 
 Holy Ghost, which cries in our hearts : Abba, 
 dear Father. Therefore he who cannot or will 
 not pray is not a good Christian." Cramer. 
 
 14. On xxvii. 18. "■ If they be prophets let them 
 supplicate the Lord. This was the great demon- 
 stration of Ellas, to which Jeremiah adheres. It 
 is infallibly the case that a false teacher has no 
 heart for the Saviour, and goes out of His way. 
 A heretic, who has a heart to pray (and that too 
 jn secret) is certainly not far from the truth." 
 Zinzendorf. 
 
 1.5. On xxvii. 22. ["We are apt to set our clock 
 before God's dial, and then to quarrel because 
 they do not agree, but the Lord is a God of judg- 
 ment, and it is fit that we should wait for Him." 
 Henry.— S. R. A.] 
 
 16. On xxviii. 1 sqq. "Wherever the dear 
 Lord builds His church, the devil has a chapel 
 near by." Cramer. This Hananiah (comp. xxviii. 
 2, 11) shows us plainly what it is to lie or de- 
 ceive in the name of God. 
 
 " Lord, and must Thy glorious name 
 Thus be a cover to their shame?" FoRSTEB. 
 
 17. On xxviii. 6. "Amen! the Lord do so. Quite 
 a different attitude of the prophet from the pre- 
 ceding. A false prophet, a miserable comforter 
 ili-^putes with him, brings good news and appeals 
 t" an oracle, a voice which he had perhaps heard 
 iiiore lately than Jeremiah. .Jeremiah without 
 getting warm about it, says I shall be heartily 
 glad if it be so: but take care that you have un- 
 
 derstood it correctly. His opponent is encour- 
 aged and goes further, he breaks off the pro- 
 phetic yoke from Jeremiah's neck. Jeremiah, 
 with the same indifference, which he has shown 
 from the beginning, goes his way ... I dare 
 not speak of anything, says Paul, which Christ 
 hath not wrought by me (Rom. xv. 18)." Zin- 
 zendorf. 
 
 18. On xxviii. 10, 11. " Cha?ianias hie prsebet 
 exemplum impudenfise Jesuwiticse, cujus niagistrum 
 non abs re appellaveris Eumundum Campianum 
 (1580) qui epistola quadum Theologos Any life provo- 
 carc non erubuit, ponens inter alia verba hsec fere 
 thrasonica: Si priestitero caelos esse, divos esse, 
 Christum esse, fidem esse, causam obtmui : hie non 
 animosus ero ? Occidi quidem possum, superari non 
 possum. Pari impudentia Jesuwitas ante Colloquium 
 Ratisbonense scriplitasse legimus: The Prsedicantes 
 should come, if they had a heart in their body, 
 they would catch them alive ; if they would bring 
 a syllogism, which is in Bocardo, they would 
 throw it at one's head and say it was in Bocallo." 
 
 FORSTER. 
 
 19. Onxxix. 7. " Monemur hie, orandmn esse pro 
 magistratibus et non tantum lis, qui nostrse religioni 
 addicti et verse ecclesise membra, sed etiam pro its, qui 
 extra ecclesiam adeoque gentiles ut Nebuchadnezzar et 
 Nero tyrannus (2 Tim. ii. 2). Nam ex salute rei- 
 publicse etiam saius et incolumitas ecclesise constat. 
 Et Lutherus pereleganter : Politia, inquit, servit ec- 
 clesise. ecclesia servat politiam.'' Forster. "Quod 
 pastori hoc et ovibus.'" The symbol of the Em- 
 peror Charles the Bald. 
 
 20. On xxix. 11. " God always has compas- 
 sion, and His heartbreaks for us (Jer. xxxi. 20), 
 for he exercises guardianship over His elect 
 (Wisd. iv. 15). And he knows how, in all that 
 he does, to mitigate His justice with His mercy, 
 so that we may see how richly His mercy is dif- 
 fused over all His works; that even when He 
 punishes, He straightway has mercy again ac- 
 cording to His great goodness, and causes His 
 mercy to be the more richly dispensed, because 
 He knows our frame (Ps. ciii. 14), viz., that we 
 are flesh, a wind which passeth away and re- 
 turneth not again (Ps. Ixxviii. 40). Cramer. 
 
 21. On xxix. 10, 11. "The waiting of the 
 righteous has always something to depend upon, 
 namely, the promise, and it is a duty to God to 
 believe the promises, but an insult and dishonor 
 to the name of the Lord when no faith is put in 
 them. Is it not enough that ye injure men, will 
 ye also insult the Lord my God? (Isa. vii. 13)." 
 Zinzendorf. 
 
 22. On xxix. 11. "God gives a happy ending; 
 He also tells us beforehand, that we may honor 
 Him by hoping; but He deals with us according 
 to His wisdom and His righteousness, so that He 
 chastens us as long as we need it. We cannot, 
 therefore, do otherwise than place ourselves'in 
 His hands." Diedrich. 
 
 23. Onxxix. 12. "Let this be firmly estab- 
 lished among the brethren, that there is no sham 
 about the hearing of prayer. I remember that 
 once a great minister said across the table: My 
 pastor wrote me that he had settled it with the 
 dear Lord that my wife should live; I should be 
 comforted. My wife died. Now my pastor con- 
 gratulates me and says, I could now indeed see 
 that she lived. No wonder. The Bible has a 
 
CHAP. XXX. :-3. 
 
 253 
 
 aose ot wax ; aud gentlemen also can explain 
 their own words. . . . Is it then to be in vain 
 that the Lord Jesus has said ; whatever ye ask 
 believing that ye shaW receive, shall be given 
 unto you (Mark xi. 24; John xvi. 23; Matt. vii. 
 7; Jas. iv. 4)? . . . Test it as often as it is ne- 
 cessary; ask however in faith, and doubt not. 
 I know most assuredly that you will be heard. 
 But I regard it as a matter for consideration, 
 whether one is to ask." Zinzendokp. 
 
 24. On xxix. 15, 16. "A heavy cross often 
 frees us from a heavier, which would otherwise 
 have come upon us. The best way, therefore, is 
 to be satisfied with God's ways, who can bring 
 good out of evil (1 Pet. iv. 19; Gen. 1. 20j." 
 Starke. 
 
 25. On xxix. 24-32. "Those who seek their 
 own consolation without God must be eternally 
 deprived of the true consolation, which God grants 
 to those who at this time humble themselves un- 
 der Him. Those who preach false consolation 
 confirm the resistance of men to the divine gui- 
 dance and thus preach revolt, though intending 
 to act conservatively. But in their blindness 
 they do not see what sort of a time it is." Died- 
 
 BICH. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On xxvi. 1-24. A sermon in rebuke of the 
 corruptions of Zion. 1. Its purport (vers. 4-6); 
 2. How it is received (vers. 7-11); 3. How the 
 preacher must defend himself (vers. 12-15) ; 4. 
 What the fate of the preacher will be (a), in the 
 most favorable case (vers. 16-19, 24) (6), in the 
 most unfavorable case (vers. 20-23). 
 
 2. On xxvii. 1-22. How the Lord's servants are 
 to treat Politics. — 1. They are to point out to the 
 people that it is the Lord wtio raises and over- 
 throws the kingdoms of this world (vers. 2-8). 
 2. They are to admonish the people to do what 
 the Lord commands (vers. 12, 13). 3. They are 
 to warn against those who speak their own 
 thoughts to the people (vers. 9-11, 14-17). 4. 
 
 They are to admonish to prayer and intercession 
 (ver. 18 sqq). 
 
 3. On xxviii. 1-17. Of false and true prophets. 
 1. False prophets, (a) publish on their own re- 
 sponsibility' what the people like to hear (vers. 
 2-4) ; [b) boldly contradict the true word of God 
 (vers. 10 and 11); (c) come to shame, by the non- 
 fulfilment of their predictions (vers. 8 and 9) and 
 by their personal destruction (vers. 15-17). 2. 
 True prophets (a) proclaim faithfully the true 
 word of God, (6) fearlessly oppose the lusts of 
 men and the lies of the false prophets; (c) They 
 are honoi'eel (a) by the fulfilment of their pro- 
 phecies, (/3) by martyrdom, i.e., honor with God 
 and posterity. 
 
 4. On xxviii. [This year thou shalt die. 
 Dwight: — A Sermon on the New Year. — S. 
 R. A.] 
 
 5. On xxix. 7. The best Christians the best 
 citizens: 1. They know that the prosperity of 
 the whole is their own prosperity (they do not, 
 therefore, seek selfishly their own personal ad- 
 
 j vantage) ; 2. They actually labor with all dili- 
 I gence for the furtherance of the common good ; 
 3. They employ for this end the power of Chris- 
 tian prayer. [A. Fuller : — Christian patriotism, 
 or the duty of religious people towards their coun- 
 try. Christianity a religion of peace. — S. R. A.] 
 
 6. On xxix. 11. The thoughts of the Lord con- 
 cerning us. 1. They are thoughts of peace and 
 not of evil ; 2, we must wait for their realization, 
 for the Lord delays this, but he does not for c/et it. 
 
 7. On xxix. 11. Sermon at the funeral service 
 of the Grand Hereditary Prince of Russia, de- 
 livered by Prof. Christiani, in Dorpat. 14 April, 
 1865: 1. Of the thoughts of peace which the 
 Lord has had in this death ; 2. Of the fruits and 
 effects of these thoughts of peace. 
 
 8. On xxix. 11-14. Whereupon is our hope of 
 peace based? 1. Objectively upon this, that the 
 Lord Himself has thoughts of peace concerning 
 us. 2. Subjectively on this, that we (a) call 
 upon and seek the Lord with all our hearts, (6) 
 patiently wait for the time of hearing. 
 
 10. The Book of Consolation. 
 
 A. The Tenth Discourse. 
 Chapters XXX. and XXXI. 
 
 The close of the prophetic discourses referring to the entire Theocracy is formed by two prophecies of exclu- 
 sively consolatory purport, of which, at least, the first (chh. xxx. and xxxi.) was intended to be pre- 
 served as a special writing [and only as such. Comp. rems. on xxx. 1 ). It is quite natural that these 
 consolatory prophecies should form the close of the discourses ; for salvation and peace will in reality 
 be the end of God's ivays. 
 
 The first of these consolatory prophecies is also the earlier in date. It is indeed one of the oldest parts of 
 the whole book. The absence of any mention of the Chaldeans [the general '■^ north country'' occurs 
 in xxxi. 8) is a sure sign of its composition before the fourth year of Jehoiakim. This discourse 
 moreover is so closely related in its subject-matter to the second discourse (chh. iii.-vi.), or to its 
 consolatory part (iii. 11-25), that toe cannot but attribute it to the came period. We may indeed say 
 that it is only a further development of the consolatory section mentioned. The relationship is seen 
 
 both in general and inparfiru' 
 
 With respect to the first it may be remarked that Israel and Ju- 
 
254 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 dah, here as there, form the ground of the division of the discourse, for as in iii. 6-10 a comparison is 
 instituted between Judah and Israel in reference to the past, and in iii. 11-17 to the future, first of 
 Israel, then (with a gradual transition) of Judah, and in iii. 18-25 the future return of both is described, 
 so in ch. XXX. the prophet directs his attention first to entire Israel, in xxxi. 1-22 to Ephraim alone, 
 in xxxi. 23-26 to Judah, in xxxi. 27-40 again to both. Though Jeremiah elsewhere also (Comp. 
 rems. on xxx. 4) in single intimations views the nation according to its two divisions, get he does this 
 nowhere in so marked a manner as in clih. iii. and xxx. -xxxi. — Further, as in iii. 14-20 the return of 
 the two halves of the nation into the holy land is the basis of all further prosperity, so also in chh. xxx. 
 and xxxi. Compare xxx. 3, 10, 18; xxxi. 2, 8, 12, 16, 21, 23. — As further in iii. 21 sqq. the return 
 is represented as the consequence of an honest inward turning, so also in xxxi. 18 the sincere penitence 
 of the people is the reasoii of the return graciously permitted them. It should here be especially ob- 
 served that in the section xxx. 16-22 the prophet gives variations of the idea of 3^1^ m the same way as 
 he did in ch. iii. Comp. Exeq. rems. on xxxi. 22. The way also in which the penitential return is de- 
 scribed in xxxi. 9, 18, 19 reminds us at many points o/iii. 21. A series of expressions further may be 
 
 specified which occur only in chh. xxx., xxxi. and iii.-vi.: T\12 TW^ only in xxx. 11 and iv. 27; 
 V. 10, 18, and besides in xlvi. 28, as a quotation from xxx. 11. — HJ^n only in xxxi. 4 and iv. 30. 
 D'JUnm on only in xxxi. 9 and iii. 21. 3X used of Jehovah in reference to Israel only in xxxi. 9 
 
 and iii. 19.-^D''.^'0 only in xxxi. 20 and iv. 19. 2"^}? in the seiise of to be siueet only in xxxi. 26 and 
 tI. 20. — lOVj^ of sins only in xxx. 14, 15 and v. 6. D'TIDH only in xxxi. 15 and vi. 26. — 1^2 to rule 
 only in xxxi. 32 and iii. 14. We meet besides loith expressions and utterances which are taken from chh. 
 i. and ii., which also belong to that initial period. Thus above all xxxi. 28 coll. i. 10, 12 ; xxxi. 
 3 coll. ii. 2; xxxi. 10 D"N coll. ii. 10 [the plural is found only in these two clauses) — 'J/JD 
 only in xxxi. 16 and ii. 25. — There are further many points of contact with chh. xxii. and xxiii., 
 which are, however, to be explained by the use of this chapter there. For as the prophet had occasion 
 in xxiii. 3-8 to deliver a glorious Messianic prophecy, it was natural that he should be thus reminded 
 of the earlier one of similar purport. In the main point, indeed, the words referring to the person of 
 the Messiah (xxx. 9, 10, 21 coll. xxiii. 5, 6), the similarity is only topical. With respect to expres- 
 sion, both prophecies retain their own individuality. Still in the less important points there is an 
 agreement in expression: xxx. 13 coll. xxii. 16; xxx. 14 coll. xxii. 20, 22; xxx. 16 coll. xxii. 
 22 ; xxx. 5, 6 coll. xxii. 23. — With respect to the verses xxx. 23, 24, consult the Exposition. 
 
 On account of the undeniable specific relationship, which exists between the present chapters and the second 
 discourse (chh. iii.-vi.), especially the consolatory portion (ch. iii.), I am convinced that chh. xxx. 
 and xxxi. owe their origin to the same time, the reign of Josiah (comp. iii. 6). 
 
 With the exception of xxx. 22-24, I cannot discover any spurious elements in these chapters. Movers 
 and HiTZiG have thought they could repeatedly recognize the hand of the assumed Isaiah II., but 
 have been so satisfactorily refuted by Graf, that I now only refer to him. Graf hims( If regards 
 xxxi. 35-40 as a latter addition. I think, however, that I have shown in the Exposition that these verses 
 fit into the connection as integral parts, and that therefore, as the diction betrays no foreign traces, they 
 are to be recognized as genuine and original. 
 
 The articulation of the discourse is as follows : — 
 
 The glorious Future of the People Israel at the end of days. 
 I. The Theme, xxx. 1-3. 
 II. The Deliverance of Entire Israel, xxx. 4-22. 
 
 1. The great day of judgment of the world and deliverance of Israel, xxx. 4-11. 
 
 2. The turn of affairs: The Lord for the chastised, against the chastiser, xxx. 12-17. 
 
 3. The consummation of salvation, xxx. 18-22. 
 
 III. The Special Distribution of Salvation to the two Halves of the Nation, xxxi. 1-26. 
 
 a. Ephraim's share, xxxi. 1-22. 
 
 1. The decree of restoratioji, xxxi. 1-6. 
 
 2. Its execution, xxxi. 7-14. 
 
 3. The threefold turn, xxxi. 15-22. 
 
 b. Judah's share. 
 
 The blessing of the sanctuary, xxxi. 23-26. 
 
 IV. The Entire Renewal, xxxi. 27-40. 
 
 1. The new life, xxxi. 27-30. 
 
 2. The new covenant, xxxi. 31-40. 
 
 The Glorious Future of the People Israel at the End of Days. 
 
 I. The Theme. 
 
 XXX. 1-3. 
 
 1, 2 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord [Jehovah] saying, Thus 
 speaketh the Lord [Jehovah] God of Israel, saying, Write thee all the words that I 
 
CHAP. XXX. 1-3. 
 
 255 
 
 3 have spoken unto thee in a book. For [Namely] lo, the days come, saith the Lord 
 [Jehovah], that I will bring again the captivity of my people Israel, and Judah, 
 saith the Lord [Jehovah] ; and will cause them to return to the land that I gave 
 to their fathers, and they shall possess it. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The superscription is one of the greater sort. 
 It pertains to clih. xxx. and xxxi., a similar one 
 not rocurring till xxxii. 1. Jeremiah had cer- 
 tainly received this prophecy before, as follows 
 from the words that I have spoken in ver. 2. 
 Nevertheless ver. 1 is not merely the announce- 
 ment of what is said in vers. 2 and 3, as Hirzro 
 supposes, but the superscription of the oracle, 
 for such superscriptions always stand as the in- 
 troduction to the larger sections. As it here in- 
 troduces the command to write and what is to be 
 written directly follows (ver. 4 sqq.), the super- 
 scription refers to both. J. D. Miciiaelis is of 
 opinion that we have here the expressum manda- 
 tum to collect the prophecies into a book, and 
 that this is the first book, which closes with ch. 
 xxxii. The Paralipomena, collected after the 
 dea h of Jeremiah, form the second book. It is 
 plain, however, that this view is altogether un- 
 tenable, for this, apart from other reasons, that 
 in vers. 2, 3 and 4 the command to write is re- 
 ferred to the next following prophecy, as Schnur- 
 RER has already proved against Michaelis. 
 These chapters also cannot be parts of that book 
 which Jeremiah was caused to write in the fourth 
 year of Jehoiakim (xxxvi. 2). For this book, 
 according to xxxvi. 6 sqq., was intended to be 
 read to the people, that they might hear " all the 
 evil which the Lord purposed to do with them, 
 that they might return every man from his evil 
 ■way and the Lord might forgive them," so that 
 it appears merely to have contained an exhorta- 
 tion and threatening. This also explains the 
 great displeasure occasioned by it. It was cut 
 into pieces from the first to the last leaf and cast 
 into the fire (xxxvi. 23), which was certainly 
 not the case with these chapters. Even Rosen- 
 MUELLER calls attention to the circumstance that 
 Jeremiah here (xxx. 2) receives the command, 
 " no«, ut ante concionem habere et quse ab eo sint 
 annuni ianda ad populum per sermonem deferre, sed 
 libro inscribere." This prophecy was not to be 
 delivered orally, but merely committed to writing, 
 just as the prophecy against Babylon (li. 6J 
 sqq.). The people were not then in the mood to 
 hear these great beaming predictions of salvation. 
 These were to be bequeathed as written docu- 
 ments, that on the one hand they might serve to 
 encourage the people in their deepest distress, 
 and on the other hand it might be evident that 
 the Lord and no other had brought about this 
 favorable turn in their affairs (Isa. xlviii. 5), but 
 also, that the Lord had not afterwards altered 
 His purpose, but already in the times of the 
 deepest decline, when the people were receiving 
 only threatening words from the mouth of the 
 prophet, He had conceived and made known the 
 plan of salvation. Comp. Isa. xxx. 8; Job ii. 2. 
 The prophecy was thus preseived separately and 
 only afterwards incorporated into the entire col- 
 lection. It does not seem probable to me, as 
 
 Graf thinks, that it T7as included in the second 
 enlarged book (xxxvi. 32). The words in xxxvi. 
 27 sqq. make throughout the impression that the 
 second book in relation to the first contained only 
 a heightened repetition. Nor can vv^ j see why, 
 if these chapters are portions of a large book, 
 they alone should bear at their head the special 
 command to write them down. This command 
 must either be found before all the single por- 
 tions or only where the origin of the whole is 
 mentioned. The special comnmnd to commit to 
 writing which we find here (xxx. 2) shows that 
 here .also we have to do with a special indepen- 
 dent writing. 
 
 Ver. 3. For lo. The construction seems to 
 require "'3 to be taken in a causal sense, for it 
 
 would be somewhat harsh to take it in the sense 
 of "that." or "naniL'ly," on account of the fol- 
 lowing njn and '"' DNJ, which seems rather to 
 
 require iQX? before it. On the other hand, the 
 causal rendering also has its difficulties. For then 
 in ver. 3 the main point is not expressed in the 
 statemeat of the reason, viz. : the Lord wishes that 
 wlieu the good days come He may be able to point 
 to the documentary evidence of His purpose of 
 salvation, as a proof of His being the author of 
 the present prosperity. This thought would 
 have still to be supplied, while the words as they 
 stand evidently state only the purport of thewords, 
 ver. 2. It will therefore be correct here lo take 
 "'3=" that" or "namely," in the sense in which 
 
 *1DX7, saying, occurs elsewhere. This latter 
 word would not be suitable after in a book, be- 
 cause it would have meant that the purport of 
 what was to be written in the book was to be 
 stated, whereas it is the tenor of the words al- 
 ready spoken which is to be quoted summarily. 
 This was necessary in order to define the gene- 
 ral phrase all the -words, which was liable to 
 be misunderstood. Hence I think that "'J is to 
 be taken here as introducing the direct state- 
 ment, which radically also is used only for the 
 
 more common lOX?. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 
 l'i9, 1 a. The original net of speaking itself is 
 certainly not related here, but the purport of a 
 discourse already delivered is quoted, by which 
 the ''2 obtains the somewhat modified (explica- 
 tive) meaning of namely. The words from T\IT\ 
 to n=lt!/"l'1 are therefore to be regarded as a quo- 
 tation. Hence Hiin and '"' DXJ. They are not 
 found verbatim as a whole in the following chap- 
 ters or anywhere in Jeremiah ; but they are an 
 accurate synopsis of the words and thoughts 
 which form the heads of the following promise 
 of prosperity. For in ver. 18 sqq : xxxi 27-32, 
 the return of the whole people of Israel loilieir 
 home is represented as the close of the mournful 
 past and the basis of a new and glorious future. 
 Comp iii. 14-18. — On bring again the capti- 
 vity comp. Comm. on xxix. 14. — [" The four fol- 
 
256 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 lowing chapters display a beautiful contrast to 
 the three foregoing ones. The former denunci- 
 sitions of judgment and captivity for sin are here 
 succeeded by promises of mercy and restoration 
 to Jerusalem — promises to be fulfilled in the 
 bringing back of all true Israelites to God by 
 
 the Divine Deliverer and Redeemer, Jesus 
 Christ. The joyful transition is marked by a 
 sudden change from grave and mournful accents 
 in solemn prose, to a jubilant outburst of poetic 
 ecstasy." Wordsworth. — S. R. A.] 
 
 II. The Deliverance of Entire Israel (xxx. 4-22). 
 1. The great day of judgment of the world and deliverance of Israel. 
 
 XXX. 4-11. 
 
 4 And these are the words which Jehovah hath spoken concerning^ Israel and 
 
 concerning Judah : 
 6 For thus saith Jehovah : 
 
 We have heard a cry of terror,^ 
 
 Fear and no deliverance. 
 
 6 Ask ye now and see if a male is parturient? 
 
 Why do I then see every man with his hands on his hips like a parturient, 
 And all faces turned into paleness?^ 
 
 7 Alas ! for great is that day, with none like it/ 
 And it will be a time of trouble to Jacob, 
 But — he shall be delivered from it. 
 
 8 And it shall come to pass on that day, saith Jehovah Zebaoth, 
 I will break his yoke off from thy neck. 
 
 And I will tear asunder thy bonds, 
 
 And strangers shall no longer enslave him •? 
 
 9 But they shall serve Jehovah their God, 
 
 And David their king, whom I will raise up® for them. 
 
 10 But fear thou not, ray servant Jacob, saith Jehovah, 
 And be not dismayed, O Israel. 
 
 For behold, I will deliver thee from afar. 
 And thy seed from the land of their captivity ; 
 And Jacob shall return and rest, 
 And be tranquil and undisturbed, 
 
 11 For I am with thee to deliver thee, saith Jehovah. 
 Though I make a full end' of all the nations, 
 Whither I have scattered them, 
 
 I will not make an end of thee ; 
 
 But I will chastise thee according to justice, 
 
 And not leave thee unpunished. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 4. — 7X=in reference to, of, concerning, as in xxix. 16, 21 ; xxii. 11. 
 
 2 Ver. 5. — HT^n Sip- riT^n is fonnil hero only in Jeremiah. The terror is not occasioned by the sound of war, but 
 the apprelieusion of jiidgincut. Comp. Luke xxi. 25, 20. 
 
 8 Ver. 6.— npT'S. Abstr. for concrete. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g .'■)0, 1. The expression is found here only. 
 
 * Ver. 7.— j^XO- Comp. rcras. on x. 6, 7 ; Naegelsb. Gr., 'i 106, 5. 
 
 B Ver. 8.— The words from riTII to 1"1X1V 'ire a quotation almost verbatim from Isa. x. 27 coll. xiv. 2.5. This explains 
 the suffix in V)]}, which, as the ijassage in Isaiah, is to be referred to the inimical tyrants. If, with Graf, we refer it to 
 3pJ»', ver. 7, Ti'XIi' immediately afterwards is iiitolcnilily liarsh. It is true the person clianges in )2 HSj^V yet this it 
 
 •t least a now sentence, in whicli case tlie chanRi; lias notliing surprising in it. Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., g 101, 2, Anm. 
 
 * Ver. 9, — D'pX i-^ used here in the same seuso as in vi. 17 ; xxiii. 4, etc. 
 
CHAP. XXX. 4-11. 
 
 257 
 
 ' Ver. 11. — T\?D nti?yj<- This expFession is found in Jeremiah (besides iu xlvi. 23, as a quotation from this passage) 
 I T V ■.•: |-.- 
 only in iv. 27 ; v. 10, 18. The construction wth the accus. is the prevailing and original construction : Nah. i. 8, 9 ; Zeph. 
 1. IS ; Ezek. xi. 13 ; xx. 17 ; Neh. ix. 31. With 2 it is found here only. It appears to signify in this connection : to caus» 
 
 destruction among, etc, 
 
 judicial acts of God as elements or stages of the 
 whole, and to him also the consummation of the 
 judgment is the turning-point of the deliverance 
 and restoration of all Israel (iii. lOsqq.; 20). 
 After Jeremiah there is Malachi only who speaks 
 in express words of " the great and dreadful day 
 of the Lord" (iv. 5). — No deliverance. Comp. 
 vi. 14; viii. 11; Ezek. vii. 25; xiii. 10, 16.— 
 Ask novT, etc. Comp. xviii. 13. The prophet 
 portrays with drastic vividness the effects of the 
 terror by saying that he saw men behaving like 
 women in the pangs of childbirth — pressing their 
 hands on their loins. Comp. Isa. xxi. 3; Jer. 
 vi. 24 ; xxii. 28 ; xlix. 24 ; 1. 43.— That day. 
 From that (Xinri) we see (1) that the prophet 
 means a day not immediately impending, but (2) 
 the same as was spoken of in vers. 5 and 6. — 
 And it ■will be a time of trouble, etc. Israel 
 also is not unaflFected by the sufferings of that 
 time (comp. Matth. xxiv. 2l, 22); but for them it 
 is only a crisis, which leads to salvation. 
 
 Vers. 8 and 9. And it shall come to pass 
 . . . raise up for them. The deliverance an- 
 nounced in the concluding words of ver. 7 is de- 
 scribed more particularly. It has its negative 
 and its positive side. The nation will no longer 
 serve strangers (ver. 8) but their God alone, and 
 the King granted tliem by God, the Messiah (ver. 
 9).— Thy bonds. Comp. ii. 20; v. 5.— En- 
 slave. Comp. xxvii. 7; xxv. 14. — Serve Je- 
 hovah. For Israel to serve his God is at the 
 same time his first duty and the fundamental con- 
 dition of salvation. This salvation is to be com~ 
 municated by the anointed of the Lord, the ee- 
 cond David. The Messiah is called David, not 
 merely as a descendant of David still called by 
 his name, but as a real David in the highest de- 
 gree. As David was the founder of the earthly 
 throne of David, so the Messiah as the fulfiller is 
 the founder and occupant of the eternal throne 
 of David. Jeremiah supports himself here chiefly 
 on Hos. iii. 5, coll. Isa. Iv. 3, while after him 
 Ezekiel (xxxiv. 23, 24; xxxvii. 24, 25) leans on 
 his predecessors, especially Jeremiah. The con- 
 ception of the second David is analogous to that 
 of the second Adam (1 Cor. xv. 4osqq.) It is 
 therefore altogether different from the Rabbini- 
 cal doctrine of a double Messiah, Ben Joseph and 
 Ben David, (comp. Oehleb in Herzog, ReaL- 
 Enc, IX. S. 440; Buxtorf Lex., p. 1273) with 
 which Haevernick seems [Comrn. on Ezek., S. 
 557) to confound the Christian conception. It is 
 accordingly clear that we must protest against 
 the lower view, that Jeremiah if here speaking of 
 a Davidic dynasty (Sanctius), or of Zerubbabtl 
 (Grotius ; is David vocatur et hie et Ezech. xxxiv. 
 23; xxxvii. 24, nimiriwi sicut a Ptolemxo orti Pto- 
 lemsei, a Cxsare Csesares), or indeed of a personally 
 resuscitated David (V. Ammon, Fortd. d. Chr. I., 
 15.178; Strauss, Glauhend. IL, S. 80). This 
 I latter conception is imputed by Hitzig to Ezekiel 
 i {ad loc. S. 245) as having thus interpreted tlie 
 I D"'pX of Jeremiah. As to the rest comp. Comiu. 
 
 on ver. 21 and xxiii. 5 ; Hengstenberg, Christol 
 [ lEng. Tr. II., p. 413 sqq.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 What was summarily comprised in ver. 2 is 
 now set forth in detail (ver. 4). Cry of terror, 
 fear without a possibility of deliverance (ver. 5) ; 
 all the men have their hands on their thighs like 
 women in travail, all faces have become pale 
 (ver. 6), for the great day of the Lord, a day 
 with none like it, is breaking, a day which will 
 be a time of dread even for Jacob, but yet at the 
 same time the day of redemption (ver. 6), for on 
 this day an end is to be put to Israel's servitude 
 (ver. 8). Israel is from thenceforward to serve 
 only his God and his king David (ver. 9), Judah 
 and Israel are then to be brought back from the 
 lands of their captivity to a peaceful habitation 
 of their home (ver. 10), for while the Lord will 
 execute on all the Gentiles a judgment of de- 
 struction. He will indeed chastise Israel so as not 
 to leave him unpunished, but will not destroy him. 
 
 Vers. 4-7. And these . . . delivered from 
 it. Apart from some brief intimations (ix. 25 ; 
 xi. 10-17; xiii. 11; xxiii. 6; 1. 4) the prophet 
 makes Israel and Judah, the two great halves of 
 the Israelitish nation, the subject of his longer 
 discourses, only here (ver. 3 ; xxxi. 27), and in 
 the second discourse (chs. iii.-vi.), which belongs 
 to the time of Josiah. — Ver. 5. This for, which 
 is logically indeed superfluous but not incorrect 
 (ver. 4 announces the entirety of the following 
 discourse as God's word and O, ver. 5, introduces 
 the particulars), has rhetorically the character 
 of a certain solemn breadth. With dramatic 
 vividness the prophet transports us into the 
 midst of the future, which he describes, causing 
 those who are concerned to be the speakers to- 
 gether with himself. It is clear that the day of 
 terror which he describes cannot be the day of 
 Jerusalem (Ps. cxxxvii. 7). For (1) the day of the 
 destruction of Jerusalem by the Chaldeans can- 
 not be represented as at the same time a day of 
 salvation for all Israel; (2) "the great day of 
 the Lord like which there is no other " always 
 designates the divine judgment in its highest 
 and most comprehensive sense. For even when 
 Joel, who is the first to speak of the great and 
 fearful days (ii. 11), understands by it prima- 
 rily the day of the devastation by locusts, he 
 yet beholds in this special act only the first 
 act of the great drama of judgments (iii. 4), 
 with which he first connects the idea of the 
 redemption and restoration of Israel (iv. 1, 7). 
 After him Hosea speaks of the great day of Jez- 
 reel (ii. 2), on which Judah and Israel will re- 
 turn again united under their common head. Af- 
 terwards the judicial activity of God is mirrored 
 before the eyes of Isaiah in the judgment on Ba- 
 bylon (xiii. 6), the return of the whole people 
 being again connected with it (xiv. 1 sqq.). Nest 
 before Jeremiah finally, the idea of the "day of 
 the Lord " forms the central point of Zephaniah's 
 prophecy, and if he also understands primarily 
 by the " great day " (i. 14) the day of the judg- 
 ment of Jerusalem, yet he also regards all the 
 17 
 
258 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 Vers. 10 and 11. But fear thou not . . un- 
 punished. Gu.\F has called attention to the 
 circumstance that these words are addressed to 
 the people living in exile " in opposition to those 
 delivered in ver. 9." More strictly we should 
 say, that vers. 8 and 9 announce the salvation 
 objectively (whence also Israel is spoken of pre- 
 dominantly in the 3d person), but in ver. 10 the 
 subjective application follows in the exhortation 
 to be comforted and not to fear, but yet with a 
 repetition of the objective basis. It is not how- 
 ever to be denied that the adversative rendering 
 "thou however" is not appropriate. Mei'er 
 translates "so fear thou nothing," evidently not 
 accurately, but in the correct feeling that the 
 connection requires an inferential rather than an 
 adversative sentence. Comp. Isa. xliv. 1, 2, 
 which passage certainly occurred to the prophet, 
 the words " fear not my servant Jacob " being 
 taken from it verbatim, and we are thus led to 
 think that instead of HPXI here we should read 
 nDJ?1 with which the passage in Isa. commences. 
 The latter certainly would correspond better 
 with the connection. Hitzig and Movers find in 
 these two verses the idiom of Isaiah II., and would 
 
 therefore regard it as an interpolation by him. 
 Graf however has satisfactorily shown that with 
 the exception of the expression 3p^'' ''12^ (I say, 
 with the exception of *•'' ^jrXTn-bN) all the rest 
 betrays the older, and specifically Jeremiah's, 
 idiom. Why should not that evident quotation 
 from Isa. xliv. 2 be just as good an instance for 
 the priority of the alleged Isaiah II. in relation 
 to the genuine Jeremiah ? The union of Judah 
 and Israel, which is here spoken of from ver. 3 
 onwards, may have reminded the prophet of that 
 passage in Isaiah, which declares this union. 
 Other declarations of Isaiah, as li. 7, may also 
 have been in the mind of our prophet. Perhaps 
 also passages like xlix. 12; Ix. 4, 9. — Rest and 
 be tranquil. Comp. xlviii. 11. — Undisturbed. 
 Comp. rems. on vii. 33. — For I am Twith thee. 
 Comp. XV. 20; xlii. 11. — Chastise thee. The 
 expression is found in x. 24 in the same sense. 
 Whether in Isa. xxviii. 26 also is disputable. On 
 7 comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 112, 5, b. — And not 
 leave thee, etc. From Exod. xxxiv. 7 ; the ex- 
 pression is found in Numb. xiv. 18, in Nah. i. 3, 
 and here. — Comp. further xlvi. 27, 28, where 
 these two verses are reproduced. 
 
 2. The turn of affair* : the Lord for the chastised and against the chattittr. 
 
 XXX. 12-17. 
 
 12 For thus saith Jehovah, thy wound is incurable,* 
 Mortal thy stroke. 
 
 13 There is no one who undertaketh thy case, 
 
 For thy wound thou hast no remedies of bandages.' 
 
 14 All thy lovers have forgotten thee ; 
 They ask not after thee ; 
 
 For I have smitten them with the stroke of an enemy, 
 With cruel chastisement for the greatness of thy guilt; 
 Because thy sins are innumerable.' 
 
 15 Why criest thou over thy wound, 
 That thy sorrow is incurable?* 
 Because of the greatness of thy guilt. 
 
 Because thy sins are innumerable, I have done this. 
 
 16 Therefore all who devour thee shall be devoured, 
 
 And all thy oppressors shall go awa ^ together into captivity. 
 
 And they that spoil thee* shall be a spoil, 
 
 And all thy plunderers will I give up to plunder. 
 
 17 For I will restore health unto thee. 
 
 And I will heal thee of thy wounds, saith Jehovah; 
 
 For they call thee " Outcast," 
 
 " Zion, which no man asketh after." 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 12.— The construction of E^IJK with S is found here only. Perhaps Nah. iii. 19 was in the prophet's mind. The 
 
 thought lyinc at tho liasis of this construction is : insanabile vidneri (un, or more exactly : incurable is the predicate which 
 belongs to your woiinil. 
 
 - Vlt. 13. — As "1110 does not agree with liy^, I refer it, with Graf, to what follows, in the sense of minus (that which 
 
 ii wrapped in bandages, as in Hos. v. 13, H 7^^1 HIXiJT =^ medicamenia ligaminis, dressings. Comp. xlvi. 11 ; Ezek. 
 
CHAP. XXX. 18-24. 
 
 259 
 
 XXX. 21. [A.. V. : There i-s none to plead thy cause, that thou mayest be hound up. Others render : for thy cure thou hast, 
 etc. Hbnderson: "1 take r\1X31 to I'*' ^ nominative absolute: as for medicines." — S. R. A.] 
 
 3 Ygj. 14.— Here as afterwards in ver. 15, a whole sentence is twice dependent on 7J,V (Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., I 
 
 112, 9). 
 
 4 Ver. 16. [A. V. : Why criest thou for thine affliction? Thy sorrow is incurable. Wordsworth after Ewald, Umbreit, 
 
 Graf : Why criest thou for thine affliction, that thy sorrow is incurable.— S. R. A.] 
 
 5 Ver. 16.— I'DXty. The Chethibh is to be punctuated TDXt^. Since tlie root QXiV does not occur in Hebrew, this 
 
 form is to be explained as an Aramaism for Ij'DDty, Keri "^'pjl/ (1. H ; I=s:t- xvii, 14). 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This whole strophe is most closely connected 
 with ver. 11, and explains the three thoughts ex- 
 pressed in this verse: tliat Ziou is chastised ac- 
 cording to its deserts, but is not to be destroyed, 
 while destruction shall be the lot of its enemies. 
 Thus vers. 12-15 arc a commentary on the words 
 " chastise thee according to justice" in ver. 11. 
 For it is here set forth that Israel is given over 
 to severe sickness without a protector and physi- 
 cian (vers. 12 and 13), that all friends have for- 
 saken the people so severely chastised by God, 
 (ver. 14), which people moreover have no right 
 to complain of such treatment, for the Lord has 
 done this on account of their sins (ver. 15). The 
 sentence therefore, etc. (ver. 16), refers back to 
 the declaration in the llth verse that the Lord 
 will make an utter end of the nations, among 
 whom He scattered Israel. The right of retri- 
 bution is to be exercised on them in the fullest 
 measure. Ver. 17 finally is connected with the 
 third point in ver. 11, viz., that Israel is to be 
 healed of his wounds after he has been appa- 
 rently outcast and forgotten. 
 
 Vers. 12-15. For thus saith Jehovah ... I 
 have done this. — For introduces the proof 
 that Israel will not really be left unpunished, but 
 will be severely chastised, so that he will only 
 not be utterly destroyed. — Mortal thy stroke. 
 Comp. X. 19 ; xiv. 17. Ver. VS. There is no one, 
 £tc. Comp. v. 28 ; xxii. 16. — Thy lovers. Comp. 
 xxii. 20, 22. — For . . . stroke of an enemy. 
 When a man is forsaken by God his fellow-men 
 also forsake him.— For the greatness, elc. In 
 these and the following words to the end of ver. 
 15 lies the confirmation of according to jus- 
 tice, ver. 11 — V. 6; xiii. 22. — Why criest 
 thou ? Israel has no right to complain of se- 
 vere treatment. The Lord deals with him " ac- 
 cording to justice," ver. 11. 
 
 Ver. 16. Therefore all . . give up to plun- 
 der. — Therefore has no sense if we refer it to 
 
 what immediately precedes. For it cannot be 
 said that the enemies are to be destroyed, be- 
 cause the Lord has punished His people accord- 
 ing to the greatness of their guilt. For if only 
 strict justice prevailed, Israel deserved the same 
 punishment as, or even severer punishment than 
 the heathen. Comp. ii. lOsqq. I therefore re- 
 fer Therefore to ver. 11, to which this whole 
 passage is only a corollary, and particularly to 
 the words Though I make a full end of all 
 the nations, elc. Israel's guilt is in the past, 
 and cause of the present calamity, hence for in 
 ver. 12. The destruction of the heathen is fu- 
 ture, and tlie efl"ect of the judgment pronounced 
 by God in ver. 11, hence therefore, ver. 16. — 
 All who devour thee. Comp. rems. on ii. 3; 
 X. 25. — Go away together, elc. Comp. xxii. 
 22. — Shall be a spoil. Comp. Zeph. i. 13; 2 
 Ki. xxi. 14. — To plunder. Comp. ii. 14. 
 
 Ver. 17. For I w^ill restore . . . asketh af- 
 ter. This sentence also refers to ver. 11. and to 
 the words Will not make an end of thee. 
 The Lord will not utterly destroy Israel, for He 
 has in mind to heal the people of the blows to 
 which they have been exposed. — I will restore, 
 etc. Comp. rems. on viii. 22. — For they call. 
 The statement of the reason refers here to the 
 thought that Israel needed healing. — Outcast. 
 Comp. Isa. xvi. 3, 4; Mic. iv. 6; Zeph. iii. 19. — 
 Zion, etc., a sentence of the object, dependent on a 
 verbum dicendi contained in call. — Which no 
 man asketh after = ea, quam nemo curat. 
 
 [Vers. 12-15. " So desperate were the circum- 
 stances of the Jews in Babylon while enduring 
 the punishment God had inflicted upon them for 
 their crimes, that no human interposition which 
 they would naturally expect, could avail for their 
 deliverance. Egypt, Syria, Tyre, etc., which had 
 formerly been tlieir confederates, were all laid 
 prostrate by the same haughty conqueror whose 
 chains they themselves wore. They are accord- 
 ingly represented under the metaphor of a body 
 full of wounds, left entirely destitute of medical 
 aid." Henderson. — S. R. A.] 
 
 ^ The consummation of Salvation. 
 XXX. 18-24. 
 
 18 Thus saith Jehovah, 
 
 Behold, I will turn the captivity of Jacob's tents* 
 
 And have mercy on his dwelling-places ; 
 
 And [the] city' shall be built on Jts own heap,' [of ruins] 
 
 And the palace .shall be inhabited according to its right.* 
 i9 And out of them shall proceed thanksgiving, 
 
260 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 And the voice of them that rejoice ; 
 
 And I will increase them, and they shall not be diminished, 
 
 And honor them, and they shall not be small. 
 
 20 Their children also shall be as aforetime, 
 
 And their congregation shall be established before me; 
 And I will punish all their oppressors. 
 
 21 And their ruler shall be of themselves, 
 
 And their prince shall proceed from the midst of them ; 
 
 And I will bring him near and he shall approach me, 
 
 For who is he, who would have pledged his heart to approach me? saith Jehovah 
 
 22 And ye shall be my people, 
 And I will be your God. 
 
 23 Behold, a tempest of Jehovah, fury is loose. 
 Whirl-winds^ — it will roll on the head of the ungodly. 
 
 24 The fierceness of Jehovah's anger will not return, 
 Till he do and execute the plans of his heart. 
 
 In the end of days ye will consider it. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 18.— SriX, poetical for house. Comp. iv. 20; 1 Kings viii. G6; Job xxi. 8. 
 
 2 Ver. 18.— Ty, without the article, therefore, not the city fcar' ffoxrji', i. e,., Jerusalem, bnt the city generally, that is, 
 any city. • , 
 
 3 Ver. 18. — n7r>-7l'. The propliet has evidently Deiit. xiii. IG iu view, wliere it is said of a city on wliich a curse i» 
 
 laid, tliat it shall be burned and shall be uh))? hpi^ it shaU not be built again. Comp. Josh. viii. 28 ; xi. 13 ; Jer. xlix. 2. We 
 see from this that Sp is the heap of rubbish formed by the ruined city. 
 
 * Ver. 18.— 311''' M^21^D-lV- Hitzio : The palace will stand in its proper place. Graf [and Henderson] : shall be in- 
 habited iu its proper place. Botli say that after an appropriale manner would be 1031^03- But the phrase umy also mean 
 according tn its right. Comp. Deut. xvli. 11. — 31^' is more than stand. It is here used intransitively as in xvii. 6, 25 ; Isa. 
 
 xiii. 20 : E/ek. xxvi. 20; Zech. vii. 7 (comp. Naegelsb. €rr., J 69, 1), but the meaning of inhabit remains. If, however, we 
 take tlie iilinise=M/)ora, in its place, tlieu tlie ideii of inhabit is supertluous. as HiTZlu has rightly felt. I therefore consider 
 " it will be inhabited as becomes it,'' as the correct rendering. A palace will not be inhabited as a beggar's hut. The pro- 
 phet wrote '71;, through occasion of nSn-b^, 'J"t t^e second 7j; must not therefore be regarded as being as local in signifi- 
 cation as the first. , . I 
 
 6 Ver. 2;5.— Instead of 77inDD, xxiii. 9, we read here "llljHO by which the paronomasia with 7liT' is destroyed. 
 .... •• : ■ T 
 
 The forcible nj'3 at the close is also wanting. As to TlUnD, this Hithp. occurs only here and in Hos. vii. 14 and 1 Kings 
 
 xvii. 21. In Tlosea themeaning«Ho alarm one's self," is most recommended, in 1 Kings xvii. that of "cnmmorari" is neces- 
 sarily required by the coiniection. In this passage the commentators vacillate greatly ; an abiding storm ( Hexostenbehg) : 
 a roiling storm from IT J, gargarizare (Meier) ; turbo cuncta abripiens from IT J, rapere, (Gesen. T/ies., p. 300; ; a whirling 
 
 storm, from T1i=SSjl volvere. The last meaning would come nearest the original 77innD. Comp. Fuerst, s. v., "I^IJ, III. 
 
 and -nj. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The restored nation will in every respect pre- 
 sent the picture of a flourishing commonwealth. 
 The ruined dwellings will be rebuilt (ver. 18), 
 praise and rejoicing will be heard from them, the 
 number of the inhabitants and the honor of the 
 State will be great (ver. 10); the latter will re- 
 gain its former importance and preserve it, but 
 all its oppressors shall be chastised (ver. 20) ; 
 the ruler of the State shall no more be a stranger, 
 but a native, who will at the same time stand in 
 the closest relation to Jehovah (ver. 21); the 
 people will be God's people, and the Lord his 
 people's God (ver. 22). All this, however, ap- 
 plies only to the Israel which submits to the 
 Lord. The d.ay of the Lord will break upon the 
 
 sense, from its application to the ruined build- 
 ings. Comp. rems. on xxix. 4. — Gr.\f refers 
 out of them, ver. 19, to the allies, Hitzig to the 
 palaces, but in the sense that he regards the 
 Israelites as the subject of the egression, in the 
 sense of xxxi. 4, 13; xxxiii. 10, 11. — The latter 
 could not well be excluded. But why should 
 not the sound of sacred joy be heard from the 
 dwellings of Israel in any sense, and therefore in 
 the sense, that it proceeds from those who are 
 within? This is at the same time a furiher 
 adornment of the houses themselves, to which, 
 in a collective sense, out of them is to be re- 
 ferred. These thus become, as it were, instru- 
 ments of sacred music. — Isa. li. 3. — Of them 
 that rejoice. Comp. xv. 17; xxxi. 4. — Dimin- 
 ished. Comp. xxix. 6. — As aforetime. As 
 formerly " sub Davide et Salomonc rerniii .statu 
 
 them (vers. 23 and 2 1 
 
 Vr-s. 18-20. Thus saith Jehovah . . . op- 
 pressors. It is evident that the phrase turn the 
 captivity may be taken here in a figurative 
 
 ungodly (vers. .5-7) like a tempest and destroy Jlorentissimo.'''' Rosenmueller. Comp. Ps. Ixxiv. 
 
 2 ; Lam. v. 21. — Their congregation. Comp. 2 
 Sam. vii. 10; Ps. cii. 29; Prov. xvi. 12; 1 Kings 
 ii. 12. 
 
 Vers. 21 and 22. And their ruler . . . your 
 
CHAP. XXX. 18-24. 
 
 261 
 
 God. The description of the glorious future is 
 crowned by the declaration of the relation of the 
 
 prince to Jehovah. He is called '^/O, king, in 
 ver. 9, here TIN, ruler, and V^D, prince. This 
 is not a low predicate, as J. D. Miohaelis sup- 
 poses, but a high one. For not every king may 
 be thus called. There are counterfeit kings 
 (Eccles. iv. 13; x. 16). This king, however, is a 
 *T''nN, a predicate which is given to the King of all 
 
 kings (Ps. viii. 2, 10; xciii. 4), and TdO for the 
 mii'O is on his shoulder (Isa. ix. 5), and the key 
 of David (Isa. xxii. 22), that he may open and 
 no man shut, and shut and no man open. Comp. 
 Mic. V. 1. This powerful ruler is of Israel's flesh 
 and blood, no foreigner, no representative of the 
 empire hostile to God's people. And not merely 
 is this declared, but also that proceeding from 
 the midst of the people, he may approach unto 
 Jehovah. The mediatorial position of the king 
 is here announced. — Him after bring refers to 
 the king. Hitzig has correctly remarked that 
 altogether too little would be said of the king if 
 his Israelitish origin merely were set forth, but 
 besides this negative reason, we have also in our 
 rendering of UOO from themselves, andUTpO 
 from their midst, a positive necessity of re- 
 ferring the suffix to the king. '0 fiEa'tTijg kvbq ovk 
 earn', Gal. iii. 20. He proceeds from the midst 
 of the people and approaches God. An intima- 
 tion has been rightly found in bring near and 
 approach of priestly attributes (Exod. xxiv. 2 ; 
 Numb. xvi. 5). The sentence with For states 
 the reason why the Lord leads the prince to Him- 
 self. The reason is a negative one ; there is no 
 other who would be capable of entering into this 
 relation of nearness and communion to "God. All 
 here depends especially on the correct under- 
 standing of the expression 137~r\X ^IP, pledge 
 his heart. The verb 2^}?, with the accusative, 
 may signify two things only. Either " to stand, 
 be a surety for some one, to vouch, guarantee " 
 (comp. Gen. xliii. 9 coll. xliv. 32. "^I 2'}}? spo- 
 
 pondit pro alieno, Prov. xi. 15; xx. 16; xxvii. 13 
 coll. Job xvii. 3 ; Isa. xxxviii. 14), or " to 
 pledge something." For the latter meaning we 
 can appeal only to Neh. v. 3. The meanings 
 " applicare (Vulg.), convertere (Syr.), lubentem 
 rcddere (so in sense the LXX., Chald. and others), 
 accommo dare, for mare (Calvin)," have no gram- 
 matical basis, and are all occasioned by 137. If 
 
 we adhere to the two meanings which are proved, 
 the second, as we have shown, rests only in the 
 authority of one passage in the book of Nehemiah. 
 It is not, however, to be used directly, but the 
 meaning must first be derived from it " to stake, 
 
 risk, venture." 37 lieart, must then be taken 
 as=Ji'3J, soul, life. Graf has adduced analo- 
 gies in favor of this (iv. 18 coll. iv. 10; Exoil. 
 ix. 14 ; Ps. Ixxxiv. 3 coll. xvi. 9; xxxi. 10; Ixiii. 
 2), but of these only the first is of consequence, 
 and even these passages only prove that the 
 j'hijsical heart may also be designated as the aim 
 of the sword which is threatening the life. There 
 may be other cases where the connection allows 
 \he heart to be set for the life, but this is not the 
 
 case here. Every one feels that here to say 
 "heart" for "life," would be harsh. I there- 
 fore think that we must take 2"^]^ in the sense of 
 
 " to be bail, to stand for another." We should 
 then have to translate: for who stands bail for 
 his heart, to approach to me ? Ought we to take 
 
 37 in the sense of "courage" as Hitzig does? 
 There are passages where it gets this meaning 
 from the context (Gen. xlii. 28; 1 Sam. xvii. 32 ; 
 2 Sam. vii. 27 ; xvii. 10 ; Job xli. 15), but this is 
 not its direct meaning. I think then that it 
 must be taken here in its general sen.sc as the 
 seat of moral volition. The prophet wislies to 
 say: Who can stand for his heart, that it ap- 
 proach me ? and this can certainly be taken in 
 the sense; that it has the will, the power, the 
 courage, to approach me? The point of the 
 thought is evidently in the antithesis, bring him 
 and pledge his heart, i. e., between the divine 
 causality and human spontaneity. No man can 
 undertake to be a mediator between God and man 
 in his own strength. For if one should even have 
 the courage to begin this difficult undertaking, 
 he cannot vouch for himself that he will have the 
 power to carry it out. The nearer the man came 
 to the glory of God, the lower would his courage 
 fall. God alone confers the power to approach 
 him, and he will confer it on him whom he has 
 chosen to be a mediator. In so far now as ap- 
 proaching God is represented as something un- 
 attainable by human strength, it is clear that the 
 prophet has not the ordinary priests' approach- 
 ing to God in mind. The answer to the question : 
 Who is he who would give his heart as surety, to 
 approach me ? — must evidently be : No one. 
 Now not every Israelite indeed, but every nor- 
 mally created member of the priestly or high 
 priestly family would be justified and authorized 
 to approach God as a priest in the sense of the 
 Mosaic law. Even these, however, are excluded 
 by the no one, which the question requires as 
 answer. Consequently the promised mediator 
 can only be an extraordinary personage. Our 
 text gives no further information, as to how the 
 divine causality renders it possible for him to ap- 
 proach God, for this may be done in diflerent 
 ways, from without or from within, in a mechani- 
 cal or an organic way. 
 
 Ver. 22. And ye, etc. The thought certainly 
 accords well with ver. 21, since the inward com- 
 munion between God and the people, which ia 
 predicted in ver. 22, is not otherwise possible, 
 even in view of the question. For vrho is he ? 
 etc., than by a mediator; it is however the neces- 
 sary glorious result of his ministry (comp. Heb. 
 viii). Since, however, vers. 23 and 24 are de- 
 cidedly to be regarded as a later addition ( Vid. 
 infra,) the thought of our verse appears to be 
 repeated immediately afterwards in xxxi. 1. 
 Such a repetition of these words in immediate 
 sequence is indeed surprising, but not impossi- 
 ble. Since in both instances the words are 
 highly appropriate, in the first as the close of the 
 prophecy relating to the whole, in the second as 
 I lie beginning of that relating to the first main 
 division, and since further in xxxi. 1 the inver- 
 sion of the clauses of the sentence is designed to 
 avoid monotony, I regard it as probable that the 
 words are authentic in both instances. If they 
 
262 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 are to be accounted spurious in one case, I would 
 vindicate the genuineness of xxxi. 1, since here 
 they occur in a characteristic setting. Observe 
 the words to all the families of Israel, which 
 evidently correspond to concerning Israel and 
 concerning Judah, xxxi. 4, and give xxxi. 1 
 the appearance of being a superscription to the 
 following section. 
 
 Vers. 23 and 24. Behold, a tempest . . . 
 consider it. The words are repeated with 
 slight variations from xxiii. 19, 20. As chh. 
 XXX. and xxxi. belong to the reign of Josiah (iii. 6. 
 Comp. Introd. ), and the prophecy, xxiii. 9-40, from 
 which our verses are taken, cannot have origi- 
 nated before the first four years of Jehoiakim, it 
 is clear that verses 23 and 24 cannot have stood 
 originally in this place. Did then Jeremiah him- 
 self add them subsequently ? I do not regard 
 
 this as probable, since the words do not corres- 
 pond to the general character of these chapters. 
 These contain only a prediction of salvation ; 
 they represent the brightest and most joyful, we 
 might say, the only untroubled moment in Jere- 
 miah's life (comp. on xxxi. 26). The verses 28 
 and 24 accordingly have the eflFect of a disso- 
 nance. Whence, in such a time as the prophet 
 
 describes, are D'^^t^l whirl-w^inds to come 
 
 (comp. xxxi. 18, 19)? And what thoughts of an- 
 ger is Jehovah to carry out at a time when He has 
 already turned the captivity of His people? I re- 
 gard it as not impossible that some later writer 
 thought himself compelled to separate the essen- 
 tially equivalent words in xxx. 22 and xxxi. 1 bj 
 sentences which he deemed appropriate. 
 
 III. The Special Distribution of Salvation to the Two Halves of the Nation 
 
 (xxxi. 1 26). 
 
 a. ephraim's share (xxxi. 1-22). 
 
 1. The Decree of Restoration. 
 
 XXXI. 1-6. 
 
 1 At that time, saith Jehovah, I will be God to all the families of Israel, 
 And they shall be my people. 
 
 2 Thus saith Jehovah ; the people left of the sword has found grace in the desert. 
 Up !^ to bring him to rest,^ eveyi Israel. 
 
 3 Jehovah appeared unto me from afar. 
 And I love thee with everlasting love. 
 Therefore have I in loving-kindness respited thee.* 
 
 4 Again will I build thee and thou shalt be built, Virgin Israel ; 
 Again shalt thou adorn thyself with thy tabrets, 
 
 And go forth in the dance of those that make merry. 
 
 5 Again shalt thou plant vineyards on the mountains of Samaria ; 
 The planters shall plant and enjoy the fruit. 
 
 6 For there is a day when the watchmen cry on Mount Ephraim, 
 Arise and let us go up towards Zion, to Jehovah our God. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 2. — ^1 vH^ The infinitive absolute is to be taken as an imperative, in the sense of a summons to one's self. Comp. 
 Naeoeisb. Gr., \ 9-2, 2, h. 
 
 2 Ver. 2. — 111 ll^'J^ri/ the prophet evidently alludes to Deut. xxviii. 6.5. This Iliphil denotes quietemagerr, to nuvki: a 
 rest (couip. Namelsb. Gr., g 18, 3). There is indeed no further instance to adduce in favor of the meaning quidumfacerc, 
 yet, apart from its grammatical admissibility, it rests on a good foundation, partly in the etymology (comp. J^IJIO, Jer. 
 vi. 16; nj^J'^'D. Isa. xxviii. 12) partly in the connection. — On the anticipation of the object by the suffix. Comp. NAi:OElSB. 
 Gr., ? 77, 'J. and renis. on ix. 14. 
 
 s Ver. 3. — non 'H17D in the sense of prolongare gratiam is found in Ps. xxxvi. 11 ; cix. 12 coll. Ixxxv. 6. The sense 
 
 wcjiild also 1)0 perfectly appropriate. Then the suffix would have to be taken in the Sfnse of the dative. This use of the 
 suffix in liow»(Vcr j>n)Vcd onlv in the Ist person CJ). and tin- similar case of the tliird jicrs. inasc. (V). For such a use in the 
 2d pera. we have only the uncertain instance of Isa. Ixv. 5. Comp. Naeoelsu. Gr., g 78. — I therefore take IjiyO with HlTZIQ 
 and FCERST in the sense of " respite " (Eccles. ii. 3). HDH is the Accus. Instr. Comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., J 70, t. 
 
CHAP. XXXI. 1-6. 
 
 263 
 
 EXEQETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 According to xxx. 4 the prophet has in the pre- 
 vious passage been addressing Israel and Judah. 
 Now he turns to Israel alone, as far as xxxi. 22, 
 thenin'o^ers. 23-21) to Judah alone, finally in vers. 
 27-40 to the entire Israclitish nation. After the 
 comprehensive promise (ver. 1), which now al- 
 lots the consolation, assured in xxx. 22 to the 
 entire nation, especially to the ten tribes; he an- 
 nounces that the residue of Israel has found 
 grace, and that the Lord arises to bring it to 
 rest (ver. 2). The people see the Lord approach- 
 ing from a distance, and telling them that he loves 
 them with an everlasting love, of which the pre- 
 vious respite was a proof (ver. 3). Then follows 
 the consolatory promise that the Virgin Israel 
 shall be rebuilt, tiiat she shall again go forth in 
 cheerful dances (ver. 4), that vineyards shall 
 again be planted in Samaria, and those who have 
 planted shall enjoy the fruit (ver. 5). And not 
 only this. Israel will also again have recourse 
 to the national Sanctuary, and go up for worship 
 to J rusalcm. 
 
 Ver. 1. At that time . . . my people. The 
 section begins as the previous one had closed. 
 That glorious consolation is again proclaimed 
 specially to the ten tribes, the most ruined and 
 almost lost portions of the people. The altera- 
 tions and extensions occasiojicd by its position 
 in the beginning and the inversion mark at the 
 same time the distinction in I'clVrence to xxx. 22. 
 
 Vers. 2-6. Thus saith Jehovah . . . our 
 God. It is impossible that there can be a refe- 
 rence here to those who were delivered from the 
 captivity in Egypt. Apart from particular ob- 
 jections, the ten tribes did not then obtain a spe- 
 cial deliverance, and the whole description re- 
 lates to the future, as is clear from up ! to 
 bring, etc., and still more plainly from vers. 4- 
 6. The declarations of these latter verses only 
 particularize what was said in vers. 2 and 3. The 
 perfects in vers. 2 and 3 are also prophetical. — 
 Has found grace. Israel had fallen into dis- 
 favor, now he has again lound favor. In the de- 
 sert the Lord finds the remnant spared by the 
 sword of the enemy. It is certain that the pro- 
 phet means the north-eastern desert situated be- 
 tween Palestine and the Euphrates. For the 
 escaped of the sword, mentioned in li. 60 are 
 not those which Jer. here has in mind. There 
 he is speaking of Jews, here of those pertaining to 
 the ten tribes. The prophet is thinking of them 
 as they were during the period of their disfavor, 
 oppressed and persecuted by enemies and driven 
 out into the desert. There, in their deepest dis- 
 tress, the Lord finds them. We have however no 
 right to deny that this prophetic picture of the 
 future has its corresponding historical reality in 
 an external, literal sense. Ver. 3. A dramatic 
 change of persons! The people speak. They 
 see the Lord appear from afar. For He had 
 kept Himself afar off", He had indeed quite dis- 
 appeared from the sight of the people. Now He 
 is again visible, of course from Zion. Comp. Ps. 
 xiv. 7; Isa. xlix. 9 sqq. — And I love. The 
 connection of what Jehovah says with what the 
 
 people say by means of Vau, and (HiTZia ap- 
 propriately compares 1 Ki. xx. 34) makes the 
 impression that the Lord at once agrees to what 
 is said, confirms it, makes indeed glorious addi- 
 tions to it. Vau therefore = and indeed (comp. 
 Naegelsb. Gr., § 111, 1, a) is connected with a col- 
 lateral causal significance (comp. Naegelsb. Gr., 
 ^110, 1, e), since that eternal love is the only 
 ground of the appearance. — Un the subject-mat- 
 ter comp. Deut, vii. 13; Isa. liv. 7, 8 ; 1 Ki. x. 
 9. — Build, etc. Build here is to be t.aken not 
 merely in the sense of building walls, but of res- 
 titutio in integrum. Comp. Ps. xxviii. 5; cii. 17; 
 Jer. xii. 16. ["This metaphor, which may ap- 
 pear harsh in English, is to be explained from 
 tlie use of the Hebrew word iawa/i, to build, as 
 applied to the building up a family of sons [ba- 
 nim) and daughters [banoth) who are like living 
 stones of the household, built up from the mo- 
 ther, wedded as a Virgin Bride to her husband." 
 Wordsworth. — S. R. A.] — Adorn thyself, etc. 
 Comp. iv. 30. The kettle-drum, [or timbrel] is 
 here designated as pertaining to the ornaments 
 of a woman who appears in festal apparel. — 
 Comp. xxxi. 19. — To the rebuilt cities and the 
 restored commonwealth, it is also necessary in 
 order that the people may be happy, that there 
 be agriculture, especially the culture of the vine, 
 the fruit of which rejoiceth the heart of man. — 
 Mountains of Samaria (comp. 1 Ki. xvi. 24) 
 are the mountains of the northern kingdom ge- 
 nerally, in so far as they permitted the culture 
 of the vine. Comp. Jud. ix. 27. — Hos. ii. 17. — ■ 
 Enjoy the fruit. Jeremiah here refers to the 
 legal enactment. Lev. xix. 13-25, that the fruit 
 of newly planted trees should not be eaten at all 
 in the first three years, and in the fourth year they 
 should be holy unto the Lord; not until the fifth 
 year should they be enjoyed ad libitum (comp. 
 Saalschuetz, 3Ios. Recht. S. 168, 9). This appro- 
 priation permitted from the 5tli year onwards is 
 
 designated by the expression /vH profanare, in 
 
 usum profanum convertere. He who has planted a 
 vineyard and has not yet enjoyed the fruit of it 
 is free from service in war, Deut. xx. 6. It is 
 also one of the punishments threatened to the 
 ungodly man that he shall plant a vineyard but 
 another shall make it common (Deut. xxviii. 30). 
 In antithesis to this passage it is here promised 
 as an element of blessing that the planter shall 
 
 also be the profaner or partaker. (^^^Hp). Comp. 
 Isa. Ixv. 21. — For there is a day, etc. All this 
 blessing promised to Israel in vers. 4 and 5 shall 
 and will be imparted to them on this account, that 
 the people themselves will return to the service 
 of Jehovah as of old. ''2 For, ver. 6, thus gives 
 the reason of Jehovah's action (vers. 4 and 5) 
 in the behavior of Israel.— W.atchmen. There 
 were not only watchmen stationed on lofty emi- 
 nences (comp. 1 Ki. xvii. 9; xviii. 8) to announce 
 danger from enemies (iv. 6, 19; vi. 1, etc.) but 
 also to announce the new moons and feasi '. 
 Comp. Saalschuetz, Mos. Recht., S. 387, 401. — 
 The cry then, up to Jerusalem to worship Jeho- 
 vah! sounds again as before the separation. Is- 
 rael and Judah are again united in the Lord. 
 
^tj-i AiA^ ^ jLwiJx lli-il Jjjlli-...J.iAii. 
 
 2. The Execution. 
 XXXI. 7-14. 
 
 7 For thus saith Jehovah, Shout joyfully over^ Jacob, 
 
 And exult^ over the head of the nations ! Sing praises' aloud and say : 
 Deliver, O Jehovah, thy people, the remnant of Israel. 
 
 8 Behold, I bring them from the North country, 
 And collect them from the ends of the earth. 
 Among them are the blind and lame, 
 
 The pregnant and the parturient together ; 
 A great assemblage shall they return hither. 
 
 9 With weeping shall they come, and with supplication. 
 I conduct them ;* I lead them to water-brooks. 
 
 By a straight way in which they shall not stumble : 
 
 For I am Israel's father, 
 
 And Ephraim is my first-born son. 
 
 10 Hear Jehovah's word, ye nations. 
 
 And proclaim it to the isles afar oflT,^ and say : 
 He that scattered Israel will collect him, 
 And guard him as a shepherd his flock. 
 
 11 For Jehovah has redeemed Jacob, 
 
 And liberated him from the hand -of him who was too strong for him. 
 
 12 And they will come and shout on the summit of Zion, 
 And stream hither to the blessing® of Jehovah, 
 
 For the corn and the new wine and the oil. 
 And for young lambs and calves : 
 And their soul shall be as a watered garden ; 
 And they shall not languish any more.'' 
 
 13 Then will the virgin rejoice in the dance, 
 And young men with the aged together ; 
 And I will turn their mourning into joy, 
 And comfort them after their sorrow. 
 
 14 And I will satiate the soul of the priests with fat, 
 
 And my people shall be full of the blessing, saith Jehovah. • 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver.7.— >-^S 1J1. S as in Pa. xxii. 31; Ixix. G, 27. Comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., S. 227.— The accus. nilDE' as ^DH ia 
 
 : T : ' V V 
 
 Tcr. 3, . 
 
 2 Ver. 7.— I7n2f '• Comi). Isa. x. ao ; xii. G ; Jer. v. 8 ; 1. 11. The construction with 3, as in Isa. xxiv. 14. 
 
 » Ver. 7. — On the constraction ^SSh l^^'Otyn, comp. rems. on iv. 5 ; xiil. 18. 
 
 * Ver. 9. — IIiTZio would connect D^'DIN ^vitli what follows because it does not agree with D'J1jnr\, which does not 
 
 iignify miseratio, cleni'ntia. But wo need not use the word in this sense, [Comp. ExEQ. rems. which, however, do not accord 
 with the rendering f;iven by N.vegelsbach in the text. Henderson and Notes adhere to the A. V.: and with supplications 
 will I lead tliem.— 8. U. A.] 
 
 * Ver. 10.— pmorD. On the construction comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., ? 112, 5, d. 
 
 * Ver. 12.— i?0~7X. On 7X and its interchange with ^y comp. rema. on x. 1. — 3!)£3, in distinction from ji£3, i« 
 never used of moral, but always of material good. Comp. ii. 7 ; Hos. iii. 5. 
 
 ^ Ver. 12.— -\1j^ TIDXH^. Comp. ver. 25, and Olshausen, S. 532. 
 
 EXEOETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 After in the previous strophe the Lord has 
 made known His purpose to liberate and restore 
 Israel, the present strophe goes a step farther. 
 
 It contains a summons at the head of each of its 
 
 two halves. The first (ver. 7) is addressed to the 
 Israelites themselves, and exhorts them, after the 
 Lord in the foregoing verses, 1-6, has made 
 known His gracious determination, to approach 
 Ilim now with petitions for its actual execution. 
 
CHAP. XXXI. 7-14. 
 
 265 
 
 It is also at once promised that tlie Loi-d will re- 
 spond to these petitions (vers. 8 and 9), for in 
 these verses it is described how they willaccom- 
 plisn their journey from the North country and 
 the most remote lands, a journey which will set 
 in the most glorious light the filial relation of Is- 
 rael to his God. At the head of the second half 
 (vers. 10-14) is a summons to all nations to hear 
 and proclaim the decree which God has formed 
 with respect to His people, tliat, namely, they 
 shiiU be liberated (vers. 10, 11) and be brought 
 home to a glorious life in joy and abundance on 
 their native soil (vers. 12-14). 
 
 Vers. 7-9. For thus saith . - . first-born 
 son. — For refers not merely to ver. 7 but to all 
 that follows. All that is subsequently said of the 
 realizat i on of the divine intentions is a proof of the 
 truth of the promise given in vers. 1-G. The sum- 
 mons to exult joyfully is addressed to the indivi- 
 dual members of the holy nation. Who else will 
 then supplicate for Israel? The antithesis to ver. 
 10 also favors this view. There the heathen are 
 summoned not to pray for Israel but to proclaim 
 the purpose which the Lord has formed on this 
 account. Israel is called the head of the nations. 
 The prophet depends in this expression on those 
 passages in the Pentateuch where Israel is called 
 the holy nation, the treasure above all peo- 
 ple, (Ex. xix. 5, 6; Lev. xx. 24, 26; Deut. vii. 
 6; xiv. 2; xxvi. 18), the great nation, to which 
 the Deity approaches (Deut. iv. 7, 8), the people 
 of inheritance (Deut. iv. 20), the highest above 
 all nations (Deut. xxvi. 19); further on prophetic 
 passages which designate the nation as chief of 
 the nations (Am. vi. 1 coll. iii. 2) as one na- 
 tion in the earth (2 Sam. vii. 23 coll. Numb, 
 xxiii. 9; Deut. xxxiii. 28). — Deliver, etc. It is 
 evident that this is meant as an earnest petition 
 from the accusative thy people. By His promise 
 in vers. 1-6 the Lord has givea the Israelites the 
 right and the courage to supplicate in comfort 
 and in joy for the redemption of their nation. 
 There is, it is true, an assonance in this word to 
 the words of praise N3 H^'iyin [Hosanna. A.V. : 
 save now. Comp. Matth. xxi. 9] (Ps. cxviii. 25) 
 which are however not merely words of praise, 
 but according to their verbal significance, are at 
 the same time a petition, and in so far as they 
 are that form of petition whicli is sure of being 
 heard are at the same time praise. Vers. 8 and y 
 then contain the comforting promise that the pe- 
 tition will be heard. It is as if the Lord in ver. 
 7 had only provoked the petition, in order to an- 
 nounce His readiness to realize the promise given 
 in vers 2-6. — From the North country. As 
 the D'^K/ came from the North, the ^2V} must 
 also be brought back from the North country. 
 Comp. lii. 12, 18; xvi. 15. — Ends of the earth. 
 Comp. vi. 22; xxv. 32; 1. 41. — Among them, 
 etc. The deliverance is to comprise the whole 
 people. The weak and frail will then not be ex- 
 cluded, but be conducted in a manner suited to 
 their circumstances. With tears of joy and con- 
 trition, with prayer and supplication to the Lord 
 their God will they retrace their way. Comp. 
 iii. 21 ; 1. 4. As in Ps. xlv. 15; Isa. Iv. 12, a 
 
 being led forth with gladness and with peace ia 
 spoken of, so here it is said that the Lord will lead 
 Israel with supplication, i. e., in the continued 
 spirit and practice of prayer. Only thus is the 
 symmetry of the construction preserved, accord- 
 ing to which a more particular definition is to be 
 given to each verb by means of a prepositional 
 expression. — To water-brooks, in a level and 
 comfortable path, are they to be brought. Comp. 
 Isa. xlviii. 21. — This careful guidance is truly 
 {.aternal. No wonder; for Jehovah is Israel's 
 father (comp. Deut. xxxii. 6; Isa. Ixiii. 16; Jer. 
 iii. 19; Herzoq, R.-Enc, XVII. S. 252), and 
 Ephraim is His first-born son. This predicate is 
 ascribed to the whole nation. Exod. iv. 22 coll. 
 Duut. xiv. 1. Here however Ephraim is pur- 
 posely designated as first-born, in allusion to the 
 preference, which Jacob awarded to the sons of 
 Joseph (Gen. xlix. 22 coil. 4), and which is dis- 
 tinctly defined in 1 Chron. v. 2, where it is 
 said that Judah obtained the dignity of chief 
 
 ruler ('T'J^), but Joseph the birthright (HlbS). 
 
 Comp. Delitszch on Gen. xlix. 3, 4; Herzoo, R.- 
 Enc. XIV., S. 769. 
 
 Vers. 10-14. Hear. . . saith Jehovah. The 
 nations themselves which held Israel captive and 
 mocked at his expulsion (xv. 4 ; xxiv. 9 ; xxix. 
 18), must proclaim the purpose of God to liberate 
 His people. We are here reminded of the edict. 
 of Cyrus (Ezr. i. 1 sqq.). This proclamation by 
 those hitherto in power is itself a new and im- 
 portant step towards the realization of the pro 
 mise given in vers. 1-6. — Isles. Comp. Exeq 
 rems. on ii. 10; xxv. 22. — Scattered. Comp. 
 XV. 7-xxiii. 3 ; xxix. 14. — Observe that the pro- 
 phet, as in vers. 8 and 9 he bad described the 
 glory of the return, so now he portrays the glory 
 of the arrival and the prosperity to be expec'.ed 
 afterwards. — For the corn. Comp. Deut. xxviii. 
 51; Joel i. 10; ii. 19, etc. — Watered garden. 
 Isa. Iviii. 11. — Then •will the virgin, etc. 
 Comp. ver. 4. The dances of virgins with mea 
 according to our custom are not to be thought 
 of, for such dancing was not practised by the 
 ancients generally and especially not by the 
 Hebrews. (Comp. Herzog, R.-Enc. XV., S. 
 414 sqq.). Men's dances also occur (comp. Jud. 
 ix. 27 ; 2 Sam. vi. 14), but in general dancing 
 was regarded as something particularly appro- 
 priated to women and especially virgins. (Comp. 
 Exod. XV. 20; Jud. xxi. 21 ; xi. 34 ; 1 Sam. xviii. 
 6; Winer, R.-W.-B. s. v. Tanz). Hence the 
 joy in the dance is to be referred to the virgin 
 alone. When it is further said that youths and 
 old men would rejoice with each other, this is to 
 express the general diffusion of the joy. Not 
 only youth, the period addicted to joyousness, 
 but even age shall be infected by the joy, so that 
 all ages and sexes will participate in it. And 
 evei'y rank also ! Hence the priests are ren- 
 dered especially prominent, their share in the 
 sacrifices (Lev. vii. 32-34; ix. 21) being set forth 
 as particularly fat, i. e. ample and dainty (the 
 eating of fat being strictly forbidden, Lev. viL 
 23-25). 
 
THE I'ROPIIET JEREMIAH. 
 
 3. The threefold Turn. 
 XXXI. 15-22. 
 
 15 Thus saith Jehovah : A voice is heard in Ramah, 
 Lamentation and most bitter crying ; 
 
 Rachel weeps for her children, 
 
 Refusing^ to be comforted for her -children, for they are no more.' 
 
 16 Thus saith Jehovah : Restrain thy voice from weeping, 
 And thine eyes from tears : 
 
 For there is reward for thy work, saith Jehovah ; 
 And they shall return from the land of the enemy. 
 
 17 There is also hope for thy future, saith Jehovah ; 
 And children* shall return to their border. 
 
 18 I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself; 
 Thou hast chastised me, 
 
 And I allowed myself to be chastised like an untrained bullock ; 
 Turn thou me again, that I may turn ; 
 For thou art Jehovah my God. 
 
 19 For after my revolt,* I repent ; 
 
 And after I have learned to know myself,* I smite on the thigh : 
 
 I blush, I am also ashamed 
 
 That I have borne the reproach of my youth. 
 
 20 Is then Ephraim a favourite® son to me or a bosom-child,^ 
 That whenever I speak against him I must still remember him ? 
 Therefore my bowels heave towards him ; 
 
 I must have pity on him, saith Jehovah. 
 
 21 Erect for thyself signals, set up for thyself poles,* 
 Turn thy mind to the highway, the way thou wentest! 
 Return, O virgin Israel, 
 
 Return to these thy cities. 
 
 22 How long wilt thou turn hither and thither,® thou backsliding daughter ?" 
 For Jehovah has created a new thing on earth : — 
 
 The woman shall turn the man. ^ 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 15.— njt^O. Comp. iii. 3 ; v. 3 ; viii. 5 ; xv. 18. 
 
 - Ver. 15. — 1 jj'X ^2. As in xi. 4 tlie ])hir:',l pronoun is referred to a singular, regarded collectively, so here, the cast 
 being reversed, the singular pronoun is referred to a plural, regarded as a unity. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 61, 1 ; Ps. v. 9 ; 
 
 Job xxiv. 24; T\^3, viii. C, He. 
 
 3 Ver. IT.— The article is wanting before D' J3, comp. Naeqelsb. Gr.. g 71, 3. 
 
 • T 
 
 * Ver. 10. — "yyj '"inX. This 'iVI? has been commonly taken in tlif same sense as in ver. 18 [A. V.? Surely after that 
 I Willi turned J, winch has given rise to great ohscurity and to arbitrary attempts to avoid it, as e. g. by Venema, who takes 
 
 ^311^ at once for ■''7 ^.Vd, *'• «■ after I had come again to myself. The only correct rendering is that of Hitzig and Graf. 
 
 They take^VC/ '» H'" '^i'"'*'* "f «« avtrUre a Jove. They are justified in this by n^-IL^'D (iii- 6, 8. II, 12, etc.), 3311^ (hi. 14, 
 
 22), n331E', n^Znty (vUi. 5 ; xxxi. 22), and by the expression *■"• " I^HXO ^W ("'• I'-U, which does not indeed occur with- 
 
 T ■■ T : 
 
 out the 'TflNO ill viii. 4, but it does in J*jsli. xxiii.l2. It seems ius though tlie prophet, hero also as well an in ch. iii., were 
 
 endeavoring to liriiig the idea of 2'<iy '"f" application in as great a varii-ty of meanings as possible. 
 
 * Ver. 19. — 'T,'~\in- Many commentators take this word in the sense of the passive of j^'Hin, e'loctre.=to be made wise, 
 
 to be instructed. But Niph. is only the reflexive or passive of Kal. It means therefore only to be acknowledged or to ac- 
 knowledge one's, self. The latter signification, in which it moreover appears £0 be used in no other passage of the Old Testa- 
 ment but this, corresi>onds perfectly to the c(inne<tion. 
 
 6 Ver. 20.— -fn\ Hebrew here only; Chald. K/.r. iv. 10; Dan. ii. 11. It denotes, like Ip' (xv. 19; Lam. iv. 2, e«c.> 
 I Itt 
 
 and 1p' (xx. 5), what is precious, a jewel. 
 
 1 Ver. 20.— D'.;;iK/J,'iy. Comp. Vj/'.li'^'t!' ^'£03, Isa. v. 7 toll. Prov. viii. 30, 31 
 
CHAP. XXXI. 15-22 
 
 267 
 
 8 Ver. 21.— DnnDn from ^Dfl, prominuit, related to loh, palmm truncus, x. 5, and mon, columna, Joel iii. 3, 
 occurs here only. All other preparations are comprised in tlie brief phrase OJI "I^lS 'DU?. Comp. Exod. yii. 23 ; Pa. 
 xlviii. 14. 
 
 9 Vci. 22.— |"p:onnn- The verb is found only in Cant. v. 6 and connected with '^2}^■ The connection requires the 
 
 meaning of "to turn one's self away," with which the only noun derived from it p:ir3n^(Cant. vii. 2) accords. This can 
 
 only signify "winding, rounding "(Delitzscr: the swinging of thy loins). A"cording tT) the etymology then the Hithp 
 must have the sense ot turning one's self hither aud thither. 
 
 i« Ver. 22.— r^22^^r^ run- observe that it is n^nVi:;, not n:]3'll^, as in iii. 14, 22; Isa. Ivii. 17. The passive form 
 has doubtless the meaning of " turned away, alienated." The active form must primarily have an active meaning. The 
 Pil'l from yrj is primarily objective causative and signifies to make some on-e or something return, bring back (1 19) re- 
 store (I»s. Ix. 3 ; xxiu. -.i). to render alienated (Isa. xlvii. U). It may also have a subjective causative meaning : to malu- a 
 turn, b.«;k or away, ».e. to turn one's self back, to desert. Hi[plul has primarily this si-ai.V- i^i m. (&'-i;i \ vegelsb Or 
 g IS, 3 ; 1 Ki. viii. 47). But the I'iel forms also have it (Ew., g 120, c). As now it is decided by the connection in what sense 
 the verb J^lty is to be taken, the meaning of the iV. verbak is also thus decided. It may then mean one who brings back. 
 
 restores, alienates, and also one who turns, deserts. It has the latter meaning in xlix. 4 and Mic. ii. 4.— The Pilel of hollow 
 roots includes also the significance of the Piel (Ewald, ^ 121 a, coll. ^ 120j. Especially does this word seem to me to involve 
 the idea of 2Vd in the causative sense, which corresponds to the following 3^iDj"l, i.-e, in the sense of reducens (comp. 
 22rC^0, Isa. Iviii. 12 ; Olsh., S. 552). " ' 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This strophe causes the return of Israel, set 
 forth before us in prospect, to be seen from an- 
 other side, viz. as at the same time an inward 
 return to God, or conversion. In a wonderfully 
 touching picture the prophet represents Rachel, 
 the mother of the house of Joseph, as raising a 
 lamentation at Ramah over the tracks of those 
 who are going into exile, as though they were 
 dead (ver. 15). Jehovah Himself, however, 
 comforts her; a reward is still to be hoped for 
 her work and comfort for the future, for the re- 
 turn of her children is promised (vers. 16 and 17). 
 But is this possible? Yes, for Israel will turn in- 
 wardly to the Lord and thus fulfil that condition, 
 which the outward return as a necessary con- 
 sequence thereof must liave. The prophet does 
 this by introducing Ephraim as speaking and 
 causing him to make an honest and hearty con- 
 fession (vers. 18 and 19). On this Jehovah gives 
 us to understand in touching words that His 
 love for Ephraim is deeply rooted and invinci- 
 ble (ver. 20). Ephraim consequently receives 
 the command to make all the preparations for 
 return. Thus at the same time the (according 
 to iii. 1) entirely new and unheard of case is 
 now realized, that a woman, rejected and shared 
 by other men, brings back her first husband 
 (vers. 21 and 22). 
 
 Ver. 15. Thus saith Jehovah . . . they 
 are no more. AVith respect to Ramah and the 
 grave of Rachel the greatest obscurity still pre- 
 vails. My view is as follows: 1. The tomb of 
 Rachel was near Ramah. This definitely follows 
 from this passage and 1 Sam. x. 2. Delitzscii 
 remarks (Comm. on Genesis, 2te Aufl. 2ter Theil., 
 S. 5o) that Rachel's weeping is heard in Ramah 
 not because her tomb is in the neighborhood, but 
 because, according to Jer. xl. 1, the exiles a-i- 
 sembled there, but to this it is opposed {a) that 
 according to 1 Sam. x. 2 the tomb of Rachel was 
 positively near Ramah; and (6) that Rachel's 
 weeping does not refer to the exiles mentioned 
 in xl. 1 ; for these were Jews, while according 
 to the whole connection of this passage, Rachel 
 bewails the exile of the Ephraimitcs. 2. Ramah, 
 Hear which was Rachel's tomb and where Samuel 
 dwelt (1 Sam. x. 2) was in Benjamin, in the 
 
 vicinity of Gibeah, north of Jerusalem. This is 
 seen from Jud. xix. 13 ; Isa. x. 29 ; Hos. v. 8. 
 In Josh, xviii. 25 it is expressly said that Ramah 
 was in Benjamin. The original and complete 
 name is Ramathaim Zophim (D''3iy D'J^aT), 1 
 Sam. i. 1 coll. ver. 19. The statement that Ra- 
 mah was situated on the mountains of Ephraim 
 (Jud. iv. 5; 1 Sam. i. 1) is not in contradiction 
 to this, for the southern slopes of the mountains 
 of Ephraim extended thus far. (Comp. Herzoq, 
 R.-Enc. XII., S. 515 [Robinson, Bill. Researches, 
 II., 315-317; 331-33-1; Thomson, The Land and 
 the Book, II., 503.— -S. R. A.]). It has been ob- 
 jected to the identity of the Ramah of Samuel 
 and the Ramah near Gibeah that Saul in seeking 
 the she-asses took three days in going from Gibeah 
 to Ramah (I Sam. ix. 20), and that David fleeing 
 from Gibeah took refuge in Ramah (1 Sam. xix. 
 18). Even Raumer [Faliist. S. 210) lays some 
 weight on these objections. [Comp. also Smith, 
 Bible Diet., s. v. Ramah. — S. R. A.]. As to the 
 first, however, it is clear from 1 Sam. ix. 4, 5 
 that Saul did not follow the direct road, but 
 seeking or pursuing the track of the asses, 
 reached Ramah by a very circuitous route. With, 
 respect to the second Ruetschi (Herz. R.-Enc, 
 ut sup.) has replied that David did not seek (tem- 
 porary) protection from the city of Ramah but 
 from Samuel. 3. There is also a Ramah in Gilead 
 (Ramoth, Ramath Mizpeh, Josh. xiii. 20; xx. 
 8 ; xxi. 38, etc.) ; another south-west from Jeru- 
 salem, west of the mountains of Judea (Ramath- 
 lebi, Jud. XV. 17=EIeutheropolis. Comp. R.\u- 
 MER, Paliist., S. 185, G) ; a third in Np.phtali 
 (Josh. xix. 30) ; a fourth in Asher (Josh. xix. 29). 
 A fifth place, which sometimes occurs under this 
 name is Ramlah, a city which is not mentioued 
 at all in tiie Old Testament (unless perhaps in 
 Neh. xi. 33), of later origin, and very probably 
 identical with Arimathea, and situated to the 
 west of Jerusalem in the plain of Saron near 
 Lydia (Diospolis). Comp. Raumer, Pallist., S. 
 217, 8, 448. There is then no Ramah in the 
 vicinity of Bethlehem! 4. Bethlehem is doubt- 
 less also called Ephrath or Ephratah (Mic. v. 1 ; 
 Ruth i. 2; 1 Sam. xvii. 12). Now if Rachel's 
 tomb is in the neighborhood of Ramah it cannot 
 be near Bethlehem, and the Ephratah near which 
 (Gen. xxxvi. 16, 19 coll. xlviii. 7) Rachel bore 
 13enjamin and was buried, cannot be Bethlehem. 
 
268 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 Now we read in 2 Chron. xiii. 19 of a place in 
 the neighborhood of Bethel, the name of which 
 according to the Chethibh is pi3;;. but accord- 
 ing to the Keri r^3;;. The latter reminds us of 
 'E6,3a//i or 'Bdpefi, a* little town, which, according 
 to -JEnoMB, lay 20 m. p. north from Jerusalem, 
 where Christ remained for some time after the 
 resurrection of Lazarus (John xi. 54). Josephus 
 also relates {B. Jud. IV., 9, 9) that Vespasian 
 destroyed B//i?;;Ad re koX 'Etppaifj, noXixvia, and then 
 rode to Jerusalem. In Josh, xviii. 23 n^3j; is 
 msntioned among the cities of Benjamin. The 
 same name recurs in 1 Sam, xiii. 17. Eusebius 
 in his Onomast., s. v. Aphra, says: 'Ust et hodie 
 vicus Effrem in quinto milUario Bethelis ad Orien- 
 tem respiciens.'" The distances given point to 
 ihe identity of Ephraim (Ephron) and Ophra. 
 (Comp. Robinson, II., S. 3o3 sqq. [III., 124]; 
 R.^UMER, .S*. 189 and 216). Now it is remarkable 
 that the Alexandrian translators in 1 Sam. xiii. 
 17 render the name ms;^ by Toipspd, and on the 
 other hand in Josh, xviii. 23 by 'E^pai?a (Cod. 
 Alex. 'Afpd). From this it seems to follow that 
 even in very ancient times HliiJ^ and r>"13J< were 
 interchanged, and that hence not only the 
 
 DnS r\'2 Nin, Gen. XXXV. 19 y xlviii. 7, but also 
 the name np"1£35<, xxxv. 16, 19; xlviii. 7, is to 
 be regarded as a corruption of the original read- 
 ing. I had reached this result before Graf's 
 treatise on ihe situation of Bethel and Rama 
 [Stud. u. Krit., 1854, IV., S. 868) became known 
 to me. — The prophet goes back in spirit to the 
 time when the inhabitants of the kingdom of the 
 ten tribes were led away to Assyria into capti- 
 vity. Since that time, he says, making use of 
 figurative language, may be heard in Ramah, the 
 greater city near Rachel's tomb (1 Sam. xx. 2), 
 nightly wailing and bitter weeping (vi. 26). It 
 is Rachel who is weeping for her children. The 
 inhabitants of the kingdom of the ten tribes may 
 be designated children of Rachel, because at 
 their head stands the tribe of Ephraim, which is 
 frequently mentioned as a representative of the 
 kingdom of Israel, Isa. vii. 2-5, 8, 9, 17; xi. 13; 
 Hos. iv. 17, elc; Jer. vii. 15; xxxi. 9, 18, 20. 
 The mother of the ruling tribe appears thus as 
 the personification of the kingdom ruled by it. 
 The spirit of Rachel is the genius of the king- 
 dom of the ten tribes, whom the prophei repre- 
 sents by a bold poetical figure as rising from her 
 tomb by ni<i;ht and bewailing the misery of her 
 c'lildren. — Are no more. Comp. Isa. xvii. 14; 
 .'.zj'iv. xxvi. 21. 
 
 Vers. 16 and 17. Thus saith Jehovah . . . 
 their border. The Lord comforts Rachel by 
 promising her a glorious reward for her mater- 
 nal labor and care, (on restrain thy voice 
 comp. guard thy foot, ii. 25. On there is 
 reward comp. 2 Chron. xv. 7) viz. her children 
 shall be redeemed from the land of captivity — 
 and by setting before her the consolatory hope 
 for the future, that the children will also return 
 to their native land. On there is also hope 
 comp. xxxi. 11. 
 
 Vers. 18 and 19. I have surely ... of my 
 youth. These verses give the inner reason of 
 that joyful change: Israel will fulfil the condi- 
 tion ioquired of him by the Lord (iii. 18 sqq.). 
 
 First the people express their acknowledgment 
 that the chastisement was necessary for them, 
 for they were like an untamed and untrained 
 bullock (the prophet evidently has in mind Hos. 
 X. 11), but they have also let themselves be 
 chastened and accepted the cnastening (v. 3). 
 As Jeremiah here geuerally moves in the same 
 circle of thought as in ch. iii., so especially in 
 what follows, where also as there the idea of 
 turning forms the central point or pivot of his re- 
 presentation. — Turn thou me, etc. The know- 
 ledge gained as the result of the chastisement 
 produces a double effect : a positive and a nega- 
 tive. The positive effect consists in the desire 
 to return to Jehovah. Meanwhile the people 
 are well aware that willing is not performing. 
 They therefore pray the Lord that He Himself 
 will turn their hearts to Him, who alone is Isra- 
 el's "God. (This is the sense of the causal sen 
 fence. For thou art, etc.). Then only will they 
 really return. The bodily return is connected 
 with the spiritual in the closest causal relation. 
 Comp. Rems. on ''2.W, ver. 19, and Lam. v. 21. 
 — Lam. iii. 40; Ps. Ixxx. 4, 8, 20. — The negative 
 effect, which on their part forms the psychologi- 
 cal condition of the positive, and is therefore 
 introduced by for, is the inner turning and cut- 
 ting loose from all that which had allured Israel, 
 but had yet only brought him to hurt and shame. 
 — The smiting on the side (^V, DOT duofemina 
 
 cum natibus, comp. Ezek. xxi. 17) was a sign of 
 mourning. Comp. Winer and IIerzog, R.-Enc, 
 s. V. Trauer. — I blush, etc. Como. Isa xlv. 16, 
 17. — The connection of this passage is then as 
 follows: Ephraim has taken the chastening to 
 heart. In consequence he addresses the prayer 
 for power to return to Jehovah, for he has now 
 learned to repent of his turning away from Him, 
 and to be ashamed of the consequences. 
 
 Vers. 20-22. Is then Ephraim . . . the 
 man. Jehovah grants the moving petition. 
 Astonished at surprising Himself, as it were, in 
 such tender feelings towards Ephraim, Jehovah 
 asks Himself if then Ephraim is his favorite son, 
 his darling child [en/ant gdte), since often as he 
 has been obliged to bring the severe judgment of 
 rejection upon him, he has yet never been able 
 to forget him. — Speak against. We may com- 
 pare 2 Chron. xxii. 10, where it is said of Atha- 
 liah that she arose and "131/11 all the seed royal. 
 
 But apart from "131 being here construed with a 
 single accusative, we have in the parallel pas- 
 sage (2 Kings, xi. 1) 13NP^ so that it is easy to 
 
 suspect a mistake. Now IST and IS^J in the 
 sense of "speak," are frequently connected with 
 2 in different meanings: loquiperaliquem [Num. xii. 
 2), de aliquo (Dent. vi. 7 ; 1 Sam. xix. 3 ; Ps. cxix. 
 46 coll. 23), ad aliquem (Numb. xii. 8 ; Hab. ii. 
 1 ; Zech. i. 9, etc.. Numb. xii. 2, etc., 1 Sam. xxv. 
 39; Cant. viii. 8). But it also signifies Joqui con- 
 tra a.liquem, Numb. xxi. 7 coll. ver. 5 ;. Ps. 1. 20; 
 Ixxviii. 19. This last meaning corresponds per- 
 fectly to the connection here: — Often as I C^O 
 
 as in 1 Sam. xviii. 30; 1 Kings xiv. 28) speak 
 against him, i. e., cast him from mo by a sentence 
 of reprobation, yet I cannot forget him. I am 
 always reminded of him again, and then the old 
 feelings of love and pity are excited anew. — My 
 
CHAP. XXXI. 15-22. 
 
 263 
 
 bow^els. Dreciisler correctly remarks on Isa. 
 
 xvi. 5, that D'^O does not like cr7r/ld/^va, viscera, 
 
 include the nobler entrails (the heart). The 
 word does not therefore designate the innermost 
 eource of the feelings, but only a place of the ex- 
 ternal organism where these make themselves 
 specially noticeable. Comp. Cant. v. 4; Job xxx. 
 27; Lam. i. 20; ii. 11; Isa. Ixiii. 15; Jer. iv. 
 19. — The immediate effect of this excitation of 
 love, is that Israel receives directions to make 
 preparations for the journey homewards. Tims 
 persons are to be sciiit in advance to set up stone 
 pillars as way marks for the coming train, p3f 
 
 cippus, monumentum ; comp. 2 Kings xxiii. 17; 
 Ezek. xxxix. 15. — Israel's returning by the same 
 road which he came is comforting in two respects, 
 first in itself, secoml because it is known and 
 easier to retrace. — The word these, before thy 
 cities, shows unquestionably that the author 
 has his point of view in Palestine, and not in the 
 lands of the captivity. Comp. Graf, S. 387, Anin. 
 Turn hither and thither. Hitzio finds in 
 this not incorrectly the collateral idea of delay. 
 This accords well with how long ? which ex- 
 presses a certain degree of impatience. Israel 
 does not respond quickly enough to the invita- 
 tion to return. The Lord has to drive him. The 
 expression backsliding daughter, occurs be- 
 sides only in a much later passage, of the people 
 of the Ammonites. — It is surprising, that the 
 Lord in the midst of this assurance of His tender- 
 est love, and after Israel in vers. 18 and 19, has 
 manifested such sincere aud deep penitence, 
 should utter another word of harsh censure. In 
 this passage there appears to me to be a play 
 upon words. In the section iii. 1-iv. 2 namely, 
 to which this discourse is most closely related 
 in matter as well as in form, the prophet gives as 
 
 many variations of the theme J-liy as possible, 
 sometimes applying the idea to Israel and Judah 
 in a physical, at others in a spiritual sense. A 
 similar variation though in abbreviated measure 
 is found in viii. 4, 5. In this passage also from 
 ver. 19 onwards, the idea of 2W forms the main 
 thought. It is, however, variously modified: in 
 vers. 16 and 17 the word is referred to bodily 
 return, in ver. 18 to spiritual and bodily turning, 
 and in ver. 19 to spiritual alienation, in ver. 21 
 again to bodily conditioned by spiritual turning. 
 Now when the prophet in ver. 22 calls Israel 
 n^Illiy, would he not thus wish to say that Israel 
 is a person, who makes much of turning, who 
 applies the idea of 2W in every possible way ? 
 It appears to me that the prophet with the follow- 
 ing sentence goes back again to the conceptions 
 of ch. iii. In the beginning of this chapter he 
 designates it as a crime profaning the land that 
 a man return to his rejected wife, who has mean- 
 while been another's. Notwithstanding that Israel 
 is such a wife, .Jehovah yet calls her back to Him- 
 self. This is the repentance of which our pas- 
 sage speaks. For when the Lord does sonie- 
 tLiiug which, according to His own law, has been 
 hitherto regarded as inadmissible, this is cer- 
 tainly an exception to the rule, therefore somc- 
 Hiing new and extraordinary. If now we ask 
 how the Lord comes to make such an exception? 
 — the answer is given in xxxi. 20. Israel has 
 done this to the Lord, he is His darling child, 
 
 whom he cannot forget. Israel is like a magnet 
 which irresis..'.jly attracts the Lord. Israel, the 
 woman, here mentioned by the specific name of 
 the sex H^PJ, causes the Lord to turn to herself, 
 who is also antithetically designated by the word 
 1.DJ which sets forth the specific distinction of 
 the male sex. Thus the weak is victorious over 
 the strong. It is not only a new thing that the 
 Lord returns to his desecrated wife, but that this 
 power to bring back proceeds from the weak, so 
 that the strong succumbs to the weak. I tliere- 
 
 fore take 23'''^^"? ^^ ^^^ sense of "to turn round, 
 to cause to turn back." Although no passage 
 can be shown where 3j?13 is really used in this 
 
 sense (everywhere where it occurs, it means either 
 circuire, Ps. xxvi. 6 ; Iv. 11 ; lix. 7, 15 ; Cant. iii. 
 2, or circumdare; Deut. xxxii. 10 ; Ps. vii. 8 ; 
 xxxii. 7, 10; Jon. ii. 4, 6), this is only accident- 
 al, for there is nothing in the radical meaning 
 which excludes this sense. The root JD which 
 is radically related to 2V\i} has the meaning of 
 turning or returning in the widest sense. And 
 that it may also stand for reverti is shown by the 
 passage, Ps. Ixxi. 20, 21, where the verb is inter- 
 changed with 2W. It cannot then be denied 
 
 that 331Dn may mean reducit. ^^Vdr} would cer- 
 tainly be more suitable, especially as correspond- 
 ing more exactly to n^^it!/, and it is not indeed 
 
 impossible that the prophet did originally write 
 22Wn. Neither the (13311:;, nor in general the 
 importance of the idea 3^1^ for the explanation 
 of the whole passage, and particularly the refer- 
 ence to iii. 1 being understood, may have occa- 
 sioned the change into 331Dn, unless indeed it is 
 an error of the copyist. It is not, however, at 
 all necessary to ah er the reading, since even this, 
 as we have shown, gives the sense required by 
 the connection. It is exceedingly difficult to give 
 the play upon words in the translation, since we 
 have no corresponding word with the same variety 
 of meanings. I know no better rendering now 
 than "thou turn-coat daughter," though the 
 phrase is not particularly suitable as applied to 
 a nation. This explanation is not a new one. 
 It is essentially that of most of the Rabbins : 
 ^^Proinde Ilcbrsei hunc locumsic legendum contendunt : 
 feinina reducet virum, et hoc est novum in terra, at 
 mulier, qux passim aliis viris se prostituit, veteris 
 mariti cupida, ilium iterum sui amantcm obtineat.'^ 
 MuENSTER. My explanation of n33W only is 
 new, so far as I know, for all the commentators 
 take the word as simply equivalent to T\22W. 
 The other explanations of the passage whose 
 number is legion, all do violence either to the 
 language or the connection. To mention only 
 the principal ones — the old orthodox explana- 
 tion, wliich refer the words "a woman shall 
 compass," etc., to the birth of the Saviour from a 
 virgin, must take DJpJ in the sense of virgin, a 
 meaning which the word never has nor can have. 
 Abakbanel explains "/em/was viros circumdahunt, 
 i. e., superabunt,'^ understanding by the women the 
 weak Israelites, by the men their strong ene- 
 mies. But neither is this a neio thing, nor has 
 331D this meaning. " Femina vertetur in virum'" 
 is the translation of Abulmawd, R. Tanchum, 
 who are followed by Luther (in the first edii.ons 
 
270 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 of bis Bible till 1538) and by Ewald among the 
 moderns. The alteration of ^^.IDi^^ into 3^iDA 
 however, or the rendering of the former in a pas- 
 sive sense is forced: the sense also must be such 
 as to agree with the context. The explanation 
 proposed by Schnurrek, which is adopted by 
 many modern commentators, is "the woman will 
 protect the man," — but neither corresponds to 
 the connection, nor is it satisfactory in itself. 
 When women protect men, either the men are be- 
 come women and the women men, or there is no 
 need of any protection. — T:ie explanation given 
 by HiTZiG, '\femina ambibit virura" which is found 
 also in Castalio and Clericus ( Vid. Graf, S. 
 or>'J) is not inappropriate in meaning, but cannot 
 be justilicd grammatically. Henustenberg, to 
 whom Graf attaches himself for want of a better, 
 
 takes 31313 in the sense of " to keep one's self 
 
 near, to persist in dependence, seeking protec- 
 tion" {Ckrlstology,^ng.Tv., II., p. 429). But 
 this rendering is developed from the idea of 
 "surrounding" which cannot be declared of a 
 single person with respect to another. The sense 
 thus obtained is also the reverse of the primary 
 meaning of the words, on which the rendering is 
 based. Radically the explanation of Hengsten- 
 BERG is no other than that the man will surround 
 the woman with his protection, as Meier also 
 actually renders the words in his translation. 
 Besides the larger commentaries, there are many 
 
 monographs on this passage. Lists of them are 
 found in Ser. Scumidt, Starke, J. D. Michaelis, 
 Ohserv. in Jer., p. 248; Rosenmueller; Dietel- 
 MAiR in the E/i(/L Biblework, Tom. IX., S. 543. I 
 add Andr. Dan. Habxchhorst, Diss, de femina 
 circumdante virum, 1670 and 1677. 
 
 [Of English and American commentators, 
 Blayney renders "a woman shall put to the 
 rout a stronjj man." Henderson: "Woman 
 shall encompass man," following however Blay- 
 ney and Calvin in his explanation, "Jehovah 
 would make the feeblest of tliem more than a 
 match for the most powerful of their foes." 
 Wordsworth retains the interpretation of the 
 words, which refers them to the miraculous con- 
 ception of the Virgin, quoting in favor of this 
 view S. Jerome and Jackson and Pearson on 
 the Creed, with references also to Justin Martyr, 
 Cyprian, Augustine, Luther, QJIcolampadius, 
 Chemnitz, Galatinus, Calovius, IIuetius, etc. 
 Noyes translates "the woman shall protect the 
 man," with the note, " there shall be a state of 
 peace and security, so that those who are re- 
 garded as feeble and defenceless, and unfit for 
 war, shall be competent to the defence of the 
 country." Cowles agrees most closely with 
 Naegelsbach, referring "the woman" to the 
 Virgin Israel, the people of God, who "instead 
 of perpetually going about 'after other lovers, 
 will go about (in the sense of seeking to win th« 
 love of) her own divine Lord." — S. R. A.] 
 
 THE share op JUDAH. 
 
 The Blessing of the Sanctuary. 
 
 XXXI. 28-26. 
 
 23 Thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth, the God of Israel : 
 Yet will they speak this word in the laud of Judah, 
 And in its cities, when I turn their captivity : 
 
 Jehovah bless thee, dwelling-place of salvation [or justice]* 
 Mountain of the sanctuary ! 
 
 24 And Judah shall dwell therein and all its cities together, 
 As husbandmen and those who go forth with flocks.' 
 
 25 For I refresh the panting soul, 
 
 And every languishing^ soul I satisfy. 
 
 26 Upon this I awoke and looked up ; 
 And my sleep had been sweet unto me. 
 
 TEXTUAL, AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 23. — On 7113- Comp. Prov. iii. 33 ; xiiv. 15 ; for Tyvi comp. rems. on vii. 5 ; ix. 23. 
 
 V T I V •.• 
 
 2 Ver. 24.— "n^'^ 1> D3V Supply "1K/X before \^^y Tliis verb is the technical term for the nomadic mode of Iir» 
 
 Cii:i»p. Geu. .wxiii. \J.; xx.\v. 21 ; xlvi. 1, etc. —On 3=in medio, i.e., cum. Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., § 112, 5 a. 
 
 'Ver. 2'). — 7^^X^• Comp. ver. 12. I do not see why this word should necessarily be a participial form. It may be a 
 finite verb with "Myi^ wanting. Comp. xiv. 4; Isa. li. 1 ; Ps. vii. IG 
 
CHAP. XXXI. 23-26. 
 
 27i 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 After the prophet had promised the ten tribes 
 •piritual and material prosperity ia richest mea- 
 sure, he now does the same with respect to Judah. 
 Judah will also return to his country ; the sanctu- 
 ary, the central point and source of all blessing 
 is again saluted with benedictions (ver. 23). 
 The whole land is again inhabited; agriculture 
 and cattle-breeiling again flourish (ver. 24). For 
 the Lord is disposed to afl^ord help in every dis- 
 tress, satisfaction for every need (ver. 25). The 
 prophet received this revelation in a dream. Its 
 joyful import was the cause of his feeling on 
 awaking that his sleep had been sweet (ver. 26). 
 He remarks this specially because with no other 
 revelation in a dream had he had a similar ex- 
 perience. > 
 
 Vers. 23-2-5. Thus saith Jehovah . . . 
 satisfy. — When I turn. Comp. on xxix. 14. — 
 Jehovah bless thee. The words may mean 
 either Jehovah will bless thee, or, Jehovah bless 
 thee. The former bears more of the priestly char- 
 acter, the latter is more appropriate as spoken by 
 the congregation. We find such a benediction 
 specified in Ps. cxxii. 6-9. — Dwelling-place, 
 etc. Comp. 1. 7, where Jehovah himself is so- 
 called. — Mountain, etc., may be in apposition 
 to dwelling-place, etc., and then the expression 
 may either be a designation of the temple alone, 
 or of the whole city of Jerusalem (comp. Isa. 
 Ixvi. 20; Zech. viii. 3). It may also be taken as 
 an asyndeton, so that then the former will desig- 
 nate the holy city, the latter the temple. Finally 
 the double phrase may designate both at the 
 same time, i. e., the city including the temple, and 
 as there is no reason for excluding either of the 
 two, this may well be the correct rendering. 
 Comp. Ps. ii. 6; xlviii. 2 sqq. ; Isa. xi. 9; Joel 
 iv. 17. — Ver. 25. Therein, i. e., the land, ver. 
 23. — Judah and all its cities. The expres- 
 sion cannot designate Jerusalem and the pro- 
 vincial cities (comp. xi. 12), nor the whole and 
 the single parts of the nation, because such a 
 distinction can be made only in abstracto. I there- 
 fore think that the prophet really distinguishes 
 the people and the cities. Both sit, dwell, lie in 
 
 the land. Comp. 3E^\ xxx. 18; Zech. ii. 8; xii. 
 
 6 ; xiv. 10. — Ver. 25. For I refresh. The per- 
 fect is the prophetical perfect. It represents the 
 future fact as already accomplished. For de- 
 notes that all that has been previously mentioned 
 is only the realization of the purpose of Jehovah 
 to relieve every distress and need, wherefore the 
 satisfaction of hunger and thirst spoken of in 
 ver. 25 is only to be understood as instar omnium. 
 f]';; of the thirsty. Comp. Ps. Ixiii. 2; cxliii. 6; 
 Prov. XXV. 25; Job xxii. 7; Isai. xxxii. 2. 
 Yer. 26. Upon this . . . sweet unto me. 
 
 If we take these words, with Chr. B. Michaelis, 
 RosENMUELLER, Umbreit and others, as the 
 words of God, we have the altogether crooked 
 sense that Jehovah designates the time, when He 
 was acting as a severe judge, as a time of sweet 
 sleep. If we understand the people as awaking, 
 then we have again the contradictory thought 
 that the time of visitation is compared with a 
 sweet sleep. The explanations of Ewald (quota- 
 tion from a well-known song, which is to show that 
 then they will have no more bad dreams), and 
 of Gkaf (therefore will it then be said, I awake, 
 etc.), are too artificial, for they require the sup- 
 plementation of introductory formulas which by 
 no means oft'er themselves. As the words stand 
 they can be understood only of the prophet. 
 But it is a question, whether it is a real physical 
 sleep or an ecstatic condition resembling sleep, 
 which is spoken of. It is difficult to decide. 
 Hengstenberg has declared in favor of the lat- 
 ter {Ghristology, Eng. Tr. II., 426). But in 
 Zech. iv. 1, to which passage Hengstenberg 
 appeals, the prophet is awakened to an ecstatic 
 vision. I do not think, moreover, that the ecsta- 
 tic condition is anywhere directly called sleep, 
 and that he who awakes from it has the feeling 
 of having slept. It cannot be doubted that 
 dreams generally served as the physical means 
 of divine revelation. Comp. rems. on xxiii. 25 
 and Numb. xii. 6; Joel iii. 1 ; 1 Ki. ill. 5 ; ix. 2. 
 Jeremiah never tells us elsewhere in what bodily 
 condition he was when he received his revela- 
 tion, but of this he tells us that he received it 
 in sleep. Why here only such a remark on the 
 outward form of the revelation and the feeling 
 which he had in connection with it? Let us re- 
 member that this prophecy is the only uninter- 
 ruptedly consolatory one in the whole book. Is 
 it not then very intelligible that that moment 
 was never forgotten when, awaking after the 
 reception of this revelation, he had the feeling 
 of an exceedingly sweet and refreshing sleep ? 
 I therefore perceive in this brief remark an in- 
 dication that Jeremiah himself regarded the 
 moment of the reception of this revelation as a 
 point of light in his otherwise rough and labo- 
 rious prophetic career (comp. xx. 7 sqq.). We 
 may indeed truly say that here we stand at the 
 most comforting and brightest point in the pro- 
 phecies of Jeremiah. — Upon this. nxr~7j,' 
 
 may well mean " upon this," combining the local 
 and causal senses (comp. iv. 28). — Looked up. 
 The prophet mentions that he opened his eyes 
 and saw, to intimate that he was really and fully 
 awake, and that in a fully awake and .'^elf-con- 
 scious state he had the feeling that his sleep had 
 been sweet. There is, as we know, a half-awak- 
 ing, which Is only apparent and therefore de- 
 ceptive. — Sweet unto me. Comp. Prov. iii 
 24; Jer, vi. '2,0. 
 
272 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 IV. The Entire Renovation. 
 
 1. The New Life. 
 XXXI. 27-30. 
 
 27 Behold, the days are coming, saith Jehovah, 
 
 When I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judahi 
 With the seed of man and with the seed of beast. 
 
 28 And it shall be that as I have been wakeful over them, 
 To pluck up and to root out, 
 
 To pull down, to destroy and to afflict, 
 
 So I will be wakeful over them, 
 
 To build and to plant, saith Jehovah. 
 
 29 In those days it shall no more be said. 
 The fathers have eaten sour grapes. 
 
 And the teeth of the children are blunted. 
 
 30 But every one shall die for his own iniquity: — 
 Every man who eats sour grapes, 
 
 His teeth shall be blunted. 
 
 (/ 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Whether Jeremiah fell asleep again at once or 
 whether the following revelation was separated 
 by a longer interval from the previous one is a 
 question which must remain undecided. Both 
 cases are possible. At any rate there is a close 
 logical connection. This and the quotation from 
 i. 10 indicate that this passage by no means takes 
 its origin from a sensibly later period. The pro- 
 phet who, in ch. xxx., had treated of Judah and 
 Israel, in xxxi. 1-22 only of Israel, and in xxxi. 
 23-26 only of Judah, now again directs his pro- 
 phetic gaze on both (comp. iii. 18; v. 11). He 
 promises the old theocratic blessing of great fruit- 
 fulness both of the men and the cattle (ver. 27), 
 the absence of all that is destructive or afflic- 
 tive, and on the other hand growth and progress 
 on all sides (ver. 28). Entering more deeply 
 into the ground of the previous destructive 
 judgment, he sets before them so lofty a position 
 and such energy of general morality that com- 
 mon guilt and solidaric implication of the fol- 
 lowing generations shall no more be spoken of. 
 But the transgressions would be only exceptional 
 cases, which would hence be no longer injurious 
 to the whole, but only to the single individual 
 (vers. 29 and 30). 
 
 Vers. 27 and 28. Beliold the days . . . saith 
 Jehovah. On the promise of fruitfulness, 
 comp. rems. on xxix. i\. — I ■will so\v. Comj). 
 Gen. xlvii. 23. — I have been ^vakeful. Comp. 
 rems. on i. 12, 10: xviii. 7, 9. 
 
 Vers. 29 and 30. In those days ... be 
 blunted. The proverb of the sour grapes and 
 bluiUuJ teeth, here mentioned for the first time, 
 may have a double meaning. It may mean the 
 fathers have begun to eat sour grapes, but it is 
 
 the sons only who haye had their teeth blunted, 
 i. e. the punishment does not always come im- 
 mediately on the first who are guilty, but on 
 those of the second, third and fourth generations. 
 It may also mean that the punishment does not 
 always come on the guilty father, but often only 
 on the innocent son or grandchild. In the latter 
 sense Ezekiel, chap, xviii., combats the proverb 
 as a blasphemy of God's justice. In the former 
 sense however the proverb involves no blasphemy, 
 but expresses only what the law itself declares in 
 the words, I am a jealous God, visiting the sins 
 of the fathers on the children, to the third and 
 fourth generation of them that hate me (Exod. 
 XX. 5; xxxiv. 7: Numb. xiv. 18; Deut. v. 9; 
 Jer. xxxii. 18; Lam. v. 7). This canon of the 
 divine justice rests on the hypothesis that there 
 is not only an individual but a corporate sin, a 
 sin of families, races, generations, nations, states. 
 Of course every such sin, common to many, has 
 its history. It unfolds like every other germ, 
 till it lias attained its widest extent and fullest 
 maturity. When the point of maturity is reached 
 the judgment comes. Those who are then living 
 have their teeth blunted, possibly indeed as the 
 less guilty (think of Louis XVI., of France) — 
 always, however, as the children of their fathers 
 in the same sense as the expression is used in 
 Matt, xxiii. 31, 32, i. e. as the apple falling not 
 far from the trunk, as the organic continuation 
 and perfection of the moral tendency adopted by 
 the fathers. According to those who understand 
 the proverb only in a bad sen.se, Jeremiah only 
 declares in this passage " that Jehovah will not 
 then as now be accused of unrighteousness iu 
 an ungodly proverb, but it will be perceived that 
 each ouiiuas to suifer for his own guilt (Graf)." 
 Appeal is made in favor of this explanation to 
 Deut. xxiv. ](j. To which I make the following 
 
CHAP. XXX[. 31-40. 
 
 objections: 1. The non-employment of the pro- 
 verb (in the false sense) prov< s certainly a cor- 
 rect knowledge of the justice of God, but only 
 elementary, merely negativ'.- knowledge. It is 
 not a symptom of greatly advanced knowledge 
 to perceive that God does not punish any inno- 
 cent person; while according to the whole con- 
 nection of this passage a period of the highest 
 prosperity of theocratic life is to be here de- 
 scribed, an essential basis of which is a corres- 
 ponding stnje of religious and moral perfection. 
 Comp. vers. 18 and 19. — 2. The passage Deut. 
 xxiv. 16 is to be regarded not as the norm of 
 divine, but only of human punitive justice. By 
 this declaration that savage custom of the hea- 
 then merely was to be guarded against, accord- 
 ing to which ob nnxam uniiis omnis propinquitas 
 was to perish. (Coiup. Jud. xv. 6 ; Haevernick 
 on Ezek., S. 286). Comp. also 2 Ki. xiv. 6; 2 
 Chron. xxv. 4. — I accordingly do not supply 
 they shall say after but, ver. 30, but I regard 
 vev. 30 as the declaration of the prophet. The 
 moral level will be so high that only individual 
 
 transgressions will occur as isolated exceptions 
 from tiie rule. In general, and as a whole, Israel 
 will be a holy congregation in which the power 
 of the prevailing spirit will not allow the evil 
 proceeding from individuals to extend itself. 
 This will be restricted to the individual author 
 and lead to the ruin of himself alone. Comp. 
 Isa. Ix. 18, 20. I find here the same view of the 
 moral condition, which the kingdom of God is to 
 attain as the highest stage of its earthly perfec- 
 tion, which lies at the basis of the Sermon on tho 
 Mount, and which found its certainly only pre- 
 cursorj' and passing realization in the apostolic 
 church at Jerusalem. For in Matt. v. 21 sqq., the 
 Lord tells us what will be the pri'vailing spirit in 
 His Church, and according to what standard any 
 contravention by individuals will be punished, 
 to which Acts v. furnishes a practical commen- 
 tary. In this view of the passage its connection 
 with what follows is also clear, this passage being 
 a preparation for what the prophet says of the 
 Lord's new covenant with the Church, and that 
 being an elucidation of the present passage. 
 
 2. The New Covenant. 
 
 XXXI. 31-40. 
 
 31 Behold, the days are coming, saith Jehovah, 
 
 When I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah : 
 
 32 Not like the covenant which I made with their fathers 
 In the day that I took them by their hand/ 
 
 To lead them forth out of the land of Egypt ; 
 
 Which my covenant they broke ; 
 
 And yet I was their husband, saith Jehovah. 
 
 33 But this is the covenant which I will make 
 
 With the house of Israel after those days, saith Jehovah : 
 I will put my law within them, and write it on their heart. 
 And I will be their God and they shall be my people. 
 
 34 And a man will no more teach his neighbor, 
 Nor a man his brother, saying, Know Jehovah ! 
 
 For all will know me from^ the least to the greatest, saith Jehovah: 
 
 For I will forgive their sin, 
 
 And their iniquity I will remember no more. 
 
 35 Thus saith Jehovah, who giveth the sun for light by day, 
 i And the laws of the moon and stars for light by night, 
 
 / Who exciteth the sea so that its waves roar, 
 Jehovah Zebaoth is his name : 
 
 36 If these laws perish before me, saith Jehovah, 
 
 The seed of Israel will also cease to be a nation before me forever. 
 
 37 Thus saith Jehovah, AVhen the heavens above are measured, 
 And the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, 
 
 \ Then will I also reject the whole seed of Israel 
 For all that they have done, saith Jehovah. 
 '38 Behold, the days are coming,^ saith Jehovah, 
 When the city shall be built for Jehovah, 
 From the tower of Hananeel to the corner-gate. 
 18 
 
274 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 39 And the measuring-line* shall go forth further, 
 Straight out to the hill Gareb and turn towards Goath. 
 
 40 And the whole valley of the dead bodies and of the ashes, 
 And all the land^ to the brook Kedron, 
 
 To the corner of the horse-gate towards the east, 
 
 Shall be holy unto Jehovah, 
 
 And shall no more be devastated nor destroyed forever. 
 
 TEXTUAL. AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 32.— On the punctuation of ^p'THn conip. Olshausen, §192 /. 
 
 2 Ver. 34. — On JO 7 comp. rems. on vii. 7, 25. 
 
 3 Ver. 38.— D'XD. which is wanting in the Chethibh, but is supplied by the Keri, is nowhere else lacking in the formula, 
 
 • T 
 go frequent in Jeremiah. There is probably then a scriptural error. 
 
 * Ver. 39. — Instead of Hip the Masorutes would read 1p (here as in 1 Ki. vii. 23 ; Zech. i. IG). Although 1p is the 
 It It It 
 
 usual form, the form nip (comp. m'^?) is however not to be discredited, 
 vl t . V T 
 
 5 Ver. 40. — A word nO'lty does not occur, nor is a root Qliy to be found. We are therefore obliged to read with the 
 T •• : -T 
 
 Masoretes fl'lOlU/- (Comp. Isa. xxxvii. 27 ; xvi. 8 ; Hab. iii. 17 ; Deut. xxxii. 32 ; 2 Ki. xxiii. 4). 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This prophecy reaches its acme in the promise 
 of a new covenant (ver. 31). This new cove- 
 nant is the foundation of the moral condition set 
 before us in vers. 29 and 30. For the essence 
 of the new covenant, in distinction from the oUl, 
 which was broken (ver. 32), will be an inward 
 central union with God (ver. 83), the consequence 
 of which will be, that on the part of men, out- 
 ward instruction will be superfluous, the ground 
 of which, on the part of God, is His forgiving 
 love (ver. 34). This covenant has two further 
 characteristics: 1. it will be eternal, as the 
 et3rnal ordinances of nature (vers. 35-37) ; 2. it 
 will also have in its train the penetration of the 
 natural sphere with the elements of holy life. 
 Jerusalem will be inwardly so holy to the Lord 
 that even the unholy places, which the city has 
 hitherto had, lilie all other cities, in its suburbs, 
 will now, as being sanctified, be reckoned to the 
 city itself (vers. 38-40). 
 
 Vers. 31, 32. Behold . . . Jehovah. Here also 
 the prophet's dii^course extends to bolli halves of 
 the nation. The Lord will conclude a new cove- 
 nant with the whole of Israel (xxxii. 40; 1. 5; 
 Isa Iv. 3). This new covenant stands in contrast 
 to the old, which the Lord made with the fatlicrs 
 of the Israelites ''ir. the day when He took them 
 by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt." 
 Wrong as it would be to understand by tliis 
 "day" the stay at Sinai, equally so would it be 
 to restrict it to the day of the exodus (Exod. 
 xii. Gl ; xiii. 3, 4). Two tilings pertain to the 
 conclusion of a covenant, a performance and a 
 condition or requirement; the concluding of the 
 covenant between Jehovah and the people Israel 
 then lasted through the whole period of the 
 Mosaic legislation, ^'.ist as long as tlie bringing 
 forth out of Egypt lasted. The munuduction 
 en''s only with the promised land, and from the 
 day of the exodus to the day of his death Moses 
 did not, cease to give laws to the people (Exod. 
 xii. to Dent, xxxii.). Since now there is no gram- 
 matical necessity of taking "diiy" in a literal sense 
 (comj). Isa. xi. 16; 2 Sam. xxi. 12; xxii. 1), we 
 are justified in understanding by the covenant 
 
 of ver. 32 that covenant which Jehovah con- 
 cluded through the mediation of Moses in differ- 
 ent acts (Deut. xxix. 1 ; comp. Kurtz, Gerch. d. 
 A. B. II., S". 522 [History of ike Old Covenant] 
 with the people Israel, and required as it -; comli- 
 tion the keeping of the Torah (comp. IXIi'inil 
 
 Deut. xxix. 24; xxviii. 1 sqq., 13 sqq.). — 
 Which my covenant. "Which is at any 
 rate to be referred to my covenant, since this 
 is also the main conception in the previous clause 
 of the sentence. — They is emphatic : the;/ broke 
 the covenant, not /. It was the weak side of 
 this covenant that it could be broken, and had j 
 God made this only, there might have been a | 
 doubt either as to His omniscience or His holy ! 
 love. The first covenant, however, was only/l 
 preliminary, preparatory and typical. — And/' 
 yet I v^as their husband. The LXX., which 
 translates iii. 14 KaraiivpLevau v/ucjv, liere has 
 T]ukAr]ca avTuv. So likewise in Heb. viii. 9. 
 From the context we should certainly expiict an 
 idea corresponding to broke, ?'. e. a word by 
 which Jehovah's relation to tiie covenant-break- 
 ers would be designated. Meanwhile gramma- 
 tical considerations require us to take 7j^3 in the 
 meaning, which it has everywhere else, namely 
 =to possess, and indeed (predominantly) as 
 spouse. But we cannot, with Hkngstenberg, 
 take the sentence and yet I, etc.. as a promise 
 (I will marry them), for that would be an anti- 
 cipation of the turn of thought beginning witi'i 
 But, in ver. 33; we must rather, with Ewald, 
 regard it as an antithetical statement of a fact: 
 and yet I was (or: while I was their husband). 
 Thus the etiipliasis rests on the idea of liusband^ 
 and tlie sense is: it is not a covenant concluded 
 inter pares, which each of the contracting parlies 
 may renounce, which they have broken, but & 
 marriage alliance in which they represent the 
 woman, who is never justified in desiring the dis- 
 solution of the matrimonial connection, or in ef 
 fecting it. [" Probably the true rendering is, and 
 therefore I rejected them (from bcial, to refuse, to 
 loathe). See the Syriac, Pococke {Port. Mo-sis, 
 pp. 5-10, Gesknius, 130, and Mr. Turpik's valu- 
 able work, ' T/ie Old Testament in the New,'' pp 
 251, 252)." Wordsworth.— S. R. A.]. 
 
 '\) 
 
CHAP. XXXI. 31-40. 
 
 !7o 
 
 Vers. 33 and 34. But this is . . . remem- 
 ber no more. "3 is "for," but in the sense of 
 
 " but," because it corresponds to not, in ver. 
 32. Comp. Nabgelsb. Gr., § 110, 4.— Those 
 days. It is not said these, for tliis would be 
 the days of the present, while the word used 
 refers to more distant days, to those namely, 
 
 which will precede the turn to good, the 2W 
 Pi^2p (ver. 16 sqq.). — I will put, etc. The pro- 
 V, phet evidently has in view the sione tables of the 
 Law, on which the ten " words," the kernel of 
 the Torah, were written. This law of command- 
 ments (Eph. ii. 15 ; Col. ii. 14) externally im- 
 posed on men by a subordinate mediator (Gal. 
 iii. 19), was da&si'i/^ nal a,vu(p£?J/c: (Heb. vii. 19), 
 wherefore it is also said of it ov6£v srsXeiiiXjei' 
 (Heb. vii. 19). It was only to render men con- 
 scious how far the human subject in and of him- 
 self was in a condition to satisfy the demands 
 of a boly God, i. e the law was to produce con- 
 viction of sin (Rom. iii. 20). Only a heart in 
 which the law has been livingly written and in 
 which it dwells, i. e. only a human will, which has 
 become one with the divine will, and thus free, can 
 continue in covenant with God (xxxii. 40; xxiv. 
 7; Ezek. xi. 19; 2 Cor. iii. 3). Only where this 
 takes place is God truly the man's God, and the 
 people God's people. To be God is to be the 
 most exalted being, therefore the highest good, 
 the source and end of life. Only where God is 
 thus for man, is He truly his God. And a peo- 
 ple only which stands in this relation to God, is 
 truly God's people (comp. vii. 23). — Hengsten- 
 BERG is of opinion that between the old and new 
 covenants there is only a quantitative not a 
 qualitative difference. "Parallel to the pas- 
 sage under jonsideration is the promise of God 
 of the pouring out of the Spirit, Joel iii. 1, 
 2 (ii. 28, 29), so that what we remarked on that 
 passage is applicable here also ... As under 
 the New Covenant generally in its relation to the 
 Old there is nowhere an absolutely new begin- 
 ning but always a completion only ... so in refer- 
 ence 10 the communication of the Spirit, Joel puts 
 only abundance in the place of scarcity, many 
 in the place of few" ^Christologt/, Eng. Tr. II., p. 
 439]. It is true no legal enactment of the Old 
 Covenant is declared false in the New (Matth. 
 v. 17-19) ; it is true that men knew even under 
 the Old Covenant that the law, in order to b6 ful- 
 iilled must not be merely externally before the 
 eyes, or merely in the head, but that it must be in 
 the heart (Dent. xxx. 6; Ps. xl. 9; Prov. iii. 1- 
 3). But this Old Testament having-in-the-heart, 
 which is spoken of in the passages cited, is quite a 
 different thing from that which .Jeremiah means 
 in this passage. There were many God-fearing 
 Jews who had the law jit heart, and in their heart, 
 and who loved the Lord with all their strength, 
 but was one of them justified by this observance 
 of the law? We shall recur to this again directly. 
 Ver. 34. No more teach, etc. Theodoret 
 says, T<l)v 61 pr/ruv tovtuv re re^.og 6 ^ie7Jiui> du^e- 
 Tai jMoq. We have however no intimation that 
 the prophecy of ver. 34 will be fulfilled at an- 
 other time than that which is spoken of before 
 and afterwards. No passage can be shown in 
 which the Old Testament prophets make pre- 
 dictioi s concerning the heavenly state. The 
 
 prophet therefore sets before his hearers a pe- 
 riod of terrestrial development in which the illu- 
 mination of the Spirit (Joel iii. 1, 2; John ri. 
 45) will lead each of himself to the essentially 
 correct knowledge of God. Ueciprocal further- 
 ance is certainly not thus denied. — For all will, 
 etc. In these words the prophet indicates the 
 proper basis of the gifts of grace previously 
 named. So also the author of the Epistle to the 
 Hebrews understands the passage, quoting x. 16 
 sqq. (in distinction from viii. 7 sqq.) so that after 
 6t6ovQ vofiovg unv sm KapSlaq ahrui' Kal irrl ~//v 6id- 
 voiav avruv ETrr/putpCi) avToiiQ he directly adds the 
 concluding words of ver. 34, km tC)v djuapTiCii' nv- 
 TG)v Kal dvofiiuv a'vTOiv oh fiij /.ivr/a\} r/ao/iat in. Only 
 where the real (not merely ideal and hypotheti- 
 cal) forgiveness of sins conditioned by the tru^ 
 atoning sacrifice is imparted (comp. Heb. x. 1-4), 
 can there be the communication of the spirit of 
 adoption (Gal. iii. 2, 5), and thus true knowledge, 
 and the true walk according to God's will. And 
 herein also consists the most radical objective 
 difference between the Old Covenant and the New, 
 in the former all is shadow and type, the latter only 
 has the essence of the good things itself (Heb. x. 
 1). Not till the sacrifice was offered on the cross 
 was the veil of the temple rent, and the way of 
 access to God actually opened. Now even if 
 Moses and Elias be pointed to (Matth. xvii. 3), 
 it is certain that no one received the knowledge 
 of the "mystery of godliness" (1 Tim. iii. 1(3) 
 before the death and resurrection of our Lord. 
 John was more than a prophet, and yet the least 
 in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he 
 (Matth. xi. 9 sqq.) The for before I will for- 
 give is therefore to be well observed. Here also 
 
 It is with- 
 in tne sense of 
 "■ constiluere, to establish, make arrangements," 
 for everywhere else it signifies to conclude a co- 
 venant. But where God concludes a covenant it 
 is always at the same time He who works the will 
 and the execution, whence also in this passage 
 gifts of God only are mentioned. At the same 
 time we are neither justified nor in a condition 
 to give a definite historical date for the conclu- 
 sion of the New Covenant. If we should desig- 
 nate the day of the crucifixion as on the part of 
 God the moment when He entered into the New 
 Covenant relation, yet on the part of mankind 
 there would then be no corresponding date of ac- 
 ceptance. In the fact that the Covenant is in 
 the most exalted sense granted, lies also the ne- 
 cessity of its acceptance. God does not give His 
 Son for an uncertainty. The taking is included 
 in the giving. In fact the measure of the cove- 
 nant members becomes full by the successive ac- 
 cession of individual believers. 
 
 Vers. 35-37. Thus saith . . . Jehovah. Not 
 only by its inwardness, but, also, closely con- 
 nected with this by its eternal duration, is the 
 New Covenant distinguished from the Old The 
 Old was broken by Israel and the nation there- 
 fore rejected by Jehovah. This will no more 
 take place under the New Covenant. This will 
 be as it were a second ordinance of nature. It 
 will be as immovable as the great laws of ftature. 
 — Who giveth the sun, etc. The prophet has 
 Gen. i. 14 in view. Comp. Ps. cxxxvi. 8. The 
 expression and the laws, etc., seems to be a re- 
 
 vve learn the meaning of iT""!^ Til.; 
 out doubt incorrect to take it in the 
 
276 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 nainiscence of Job xxxviii. 33, which comes out 
 more plainly inxxxiii. 25. — Who exciteth the 
 sea, etc., is taken from Isai. li. 15. There the 
 might, of the Lord, as it has been displayed in the 
 wonders of history and of nature in general, is 
 set forth for the comfort of Israel. Here all the 
 emphasis lies on the idea of the fixedness and 
 Btabilitysjf the ordinances of nature, which God 
 has created. That God can excite the mighty 
 ocean is rather a proof of His power than-an in- 
 stance of the inviolate order of nature, and it is 
 hence probable that the expression originated 
 with Isaiah.— Ver. 36. If th«se laws, e/c. As 
 certainly as the laws of nature are inviolable, so 
 certaiuly shall Israel everlastingly continue as a 
 nation before the Lord (xxxiii. 20-26 ; Ps. Ixxxix. 
 37,38). The question is natural here: why then 
 has Jeuovah raised the eternal continuance of 
 the people of Israel as it were to the rank of a 
 law of nature ? The answer is given in ver. 37, 
 (which does not feebly hobble after, as Graf sup- 
 poses), not however with a solution of the pro- 
 blem, but with the declaration that the ground 
 of the historical fact is as secret as the heavens 
 above us are immeasurable, and the earth beneath 
 us in its profoundest depths is unsearchable. 
 Comp. xxxiii. 22. 26. 
 
 Vers. 38-40. Behold the days . . . forever. 
 — Tower of Hananeel. This tower designates, 
 as is acknowledged, the North-East corner of Je- 
 rusalem. It is also mentioned in Zech. xiv. 10; 
 Neh. iii. 1; xii. 39. The corner-gate (comp. 
 
 2 Ki. xiv. 13 ; 2 Chron. xxvi. 9, and also l^'"^ 
 
 D'^an Zech. xiv. 10) designates the North-West 
 
 corner. Vid. Raujiek, Paldst. S. 290. By these 
 two points then the northern limit of the city is 
 defined. As the tower of Hananeel and the cor- 
 ner tower were part of the fortifications of the 
 city, there seems to -De no further extension on 
 tliis side — Straight out, HJJ accus. of motion 
 to the question ■whither? To its opposite, i. e., 
 straight out. Comp. Am. iv. 3; Josh. vi. 5, 20. 
 — Gareb occurs here only as the name of a place, 
 as the name of a person in 2 Sam. xxiii. 38 ; 1 
 Chron. xi. 40. The meaning of the word must 
 according to 3"^ J scabies, (Lev. xxi. 20; xxii. 
 
 22) be " scabby, leprous." In accordance with 
 the other localizations, this must mean, as Graf 
 lias shown, the South-West corner. What Goath 
 
 (Hj^J) is, is quite uncertain. The word occurs 
 nere only. The Ciiald. has N*?:^ r\2^2 (cow- 
 pond), the Syr. lormeto, «. «e., rocky hill, by which 
 it seems to have understood the projecting rock 
 of the castle Antonia (Hitziq, Fuerst). Vitringa 
 
 and HEXGSTF.NRr.RG take it as = nrii^U il, i. e., 
 Golgotha. P>ut hutli the etymology and topog- 
 rapliy are very uncertain. The valley of corpses 
 and ashes is witliout doubt the vale of Hinnom 
 in the South, for that was the place where all the 
 refuse of the city ran or was carried. (Comp. 
 Comm. on xix. 2). 1.53 is the unburieij cadaver 
 of men and beasts (xli. 9; Gen. xv. 11), \p'^_ is 
 
 especially the ashes of burnt fat (Lev. i. 16 ; iv. 
 1 ). It is better to regard it as the ashes, of the 
 offal, burned without the camp, than of the sa- 
 crifices burned on the altar (flesh, skin, dung. 
 Lev. It. 11, 12; vii. 17, 19; viii. 17, 32; ix. 11; 
 
 xvi. 27 ; xix. 6) and clothing (Lev. xiii. 52, 55, 
 57). The horse-gate was on the East of the city 
 by the temple (Neh. iii. 18; xii. 39, 40). So far 
 as we can perceive in general from these local 
 determinations, the subject is not primarily, as 
 in Ezek. xlviii. 15 sqq. an extension of the city. 
 For the gain in space according to the bounda 
 ries mentioned is relatively insignificant. Only 
 in the South-West, South, and at any rate in the 
 South-East, are some small portions added to the 
 city. The main point is that by this extension 
 the places which were unholy will be rendered 
 holy. They were the purlieus of the city. 
 If even these places are added to the city, it 
 shows that the city no longer needs such places. 
 It is in itself so thoroughly holy to the Lord that 
 it will have nothing unholy to cast out. Nothing 
 unclean will enter (Rev. xxi. 27), therefore no- 
 thing unclean will proceed from it. It will be 
 thoroughly sanctified and enlightened, therefore 
 safe from destruction to all eternity, 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. JoH. CoNR. ScHALLER, pastor at Cautendorf, 
 says in his Gospel Sermons, (Hof. 1742, S. 628), 
 " These chapters are like a sky in which sparkle 
 many brilliant stars of strong and consolatory 
 declarations, a paradise and pleasure-garden in 
 which a believing soul is refreshed with delight- 
 some flowers of instruction, and solaced with 
 sweetly flavored apples of gracious promise." 
 
 2. On XXX. 1-3. The people of Israel were not 
 then capable of bearing such a prophecy, brim- 
 ming over with happiness and glory. They would 
 have misused it, hearing to the end what was 
 promised them, and then only the more certainly 
 postponing what was the only thing then neces- 
 sary — sincere repentance. Hence they are not yet 
 to hear this gloriously consolatory address. It is 
 to be written, that it may in due time be perceived 
 that the Lord, even at the time when He was 
 obliged to thi-eaten most severely, had thoughts 
 of peace concerning the people, and that thus the 
 period of prosperity has not come by chance, nor 
 inconsequence of a change of mind, but in con- 
 sequence of a plan conceived from the beginning 
 and executed accordingly. 
 
 3. On XXX. 7. The great and terrible day of 
 the Lord (Joel iii. 4) has not the dimensions of a 
 human day. It has long sent out its heralds in 
 advance. Yea, it has itself already dawned. For 
 since by the total destruction of the external the- 
 ocracy judgment is begun at the house of God (1 
 Pet. iv. 17), we stand in the midst of the day of 
 God. in the midst of the judgment of the world. 
 Then the time of trouble for Jacob has begun 
 (ver. 7), frona which he is to be delivered, when 
 the fulness of the Gentiles is come in (Umu. xi.) 
 
 4. On XXX. 9. Christ is David in his highest po- 
 tency, and He is also still more For if we re- 
 present all the typical points in David's life as a 
 circle, and draw a line from each of these points, 
 the great circle thus formed would comprise only 
 a part of the nh'/pufxa given in Christ. Ne'^'er- 
 theless Christ is the true David, who was not 
 chosen like Saul for his bodily stature, but jnly 
 for his inward relation to God (comp. Ps. ,',;, 7), 
 whose kingdom also does not cease after a '.hort 
 period of glory, but endures forever; wh j will 
 
CHAP. XXX. 1— XXXI. 40. 
 
 271 
 
 not like Saul succumb to his enemies, but will 
 conquer them all, and will give to hi? kingdom 
 the widest extent promised; all this however not 
 without, like David, having gone through the 
 bitterest trials. 
 
 5. Onxsx. 11. ^^ Modus paternx castigationis ac- 
 comwodatiia el quasi appe7ixus ad stalcram judicii Dei 
 adeoque non immensus sed dimensus." " Ckrislus 
 ecclesiam criicis suse hseredem constiluit. Guegor. 
 
 M." FoKSTER. 
 
 6. On XXX. 14. '■'■Cum virlutem patientise nostrse 
 flagdla transeunt, valde metuendum est, ne peccatis 
 ■nosiris exigentibus non jam quasi filii a patre, sed 
 quasi hnsles a Domino feriamur. Gregor. M. 
 Moral. XIV. 20, on .Job xix. 11." Giiisler. 
 
 7. On XXX. 17. '■'rrovideniia DeimortaliliHs salu- 
 tifera, antequam percutiat, pharmaca medendi gratia 
 componit, et gladium irse sum <pikav&po)Kia acuit. 
 EvAGR. Hist. Eccl. iv. 6." — ^'■Qaando iiicidis in tenta- 
 tionem, crede, quod nisi cognovisset te posse ilium 
 evadere, non permisisset te in illam inciderc. Theo- 
 PHYL. incap. xviii Joh." Fov.ST^'R.-'^Feriam prius 
 et sanabo melius. Theophyl. m Hos.xi." Ghisler. 
 
 8. On XXX. 21. "This church of God will own 
 a Prince from its midst — .Jesus, of our flesh and 
 blood ilirough the virgin Mary, and He ap- 
 proaches God, as no other can, for He is God's 
 image, God's Son, and at the same time the per- 
 fect, holy in all His sufferings, only obedient son 
 of man. Tliis king is mediator and reconciler 
 with God; He is also high-priest and fulfilled all 
 righteousness, as was necessary foi< our propiti- 
 ation. What glory to have such a king, who 
 brings us nigh unto God, and this is our glory!" 
 Diedrich. 
 
 9. On xxxi. 1. "There is no greater promise 
 than this: I will be thy God. For if He is our 
 God we are His creatures, His redeemed, His 
 sanctified, according to all the three articles of 
 the Christian faith." Cramer. 
 
 10. On xxxi. 2. " The rough heap had to be 
 sifted by the sword, but those who survived, 
 tliough afflicted in the desert of this life, found 
 favor with God, and these, the true Israel, God 
 leads into His rest." Diedrich. 
 
 11. On xxxi. 3. "The love of God towards us 
 comes from love and has no other cause above 
 or beside itself, but is in God and remains in God, 
 so that Christ who is in God is its centre. For 
 herein is love, not that we loved God, but that 
 He loved us (1 John iv. 10)." Cramkr. " Totum 
 gratix imputatur, non nostris meritis. AirGUSTiNE in 
 Ps. xxxi."' Forster. " Befoi-e I had done any- 
 thing good Thou hadst alreaily moved towards 
 me. Let these words be written on your hearts 
 with the pen of the living God, that they may 
 light you like flames of fire on the day of the 
 marriage. It is your certificate of birth, your 
 testimonial. Let me never lose sight of how 
 much it has cost Thee to redeem me." Zinzen- 
 DORF. " God says: My chastisement even was 
 pure love, though then you did not understand 
 it; you shall learn it afterwards." Diedrich. 
 ["I incline to the construction given in the En- 
 glish version, both because the suffix to the verb 
 is more naturally, ' I have drawn thee,' than ' I 
 have drawn out toward thee.' and because there 
 seems to be a tacit allusion to Hos. xi. 4, ' With 
 lovii cr-kindness have I drawn thee.' — A great 
 moriil truth lies in this passage so construed, viz., 
 
 that the main po*er which humbles man's pride, 
 softens his hard heart and makes him recoil in 
 shame and sorrow from sinning, comes through 
 his apprehension of God's love as manifested in 
 Christ and His cross. It is love that draws the 
 fearful or stubborn soul to the feet of divine 
 mercy." Cowles. — .S. II. A.] 
 
 12. On xxxi. 6. " It is well: the watchmen 
 on Mount Ephraim had to go to Zion. They 
 received however another visit from the Jewish 
 priests, which they could not have expected at 
 the great reformation, introduced by John, and 
 which had its seat among other places on Mount 
 Ephraim. The Samaritans were not far distant, 
 and Mount Ephraim had even this honor that 
 when the Lord came to His temple He took Hia 
 seat as a teacher there." Zinzendorf. ["God's 
 grace loves to triumph over the most inveterate 
 prejudices. . . No words could represent a greater 
 and more benign change in national feeling than 
 these: Samaria saying through her spiritual 
 watchmen, ' Let us go up to Zion to worship, for 
 our God is there.'" Cowles. " ' Ascendamus in 
 Sion, hoc est in Ucclesiam' says S. Jerome. Ac- 
 cording to this view, the watchmen here men- 
 tioned are the Preachers of the Gospel." Words- 
 worth. — S. R. A.] 
 
 13. On xxxi. 9. " I will lead them. It is an 
 
 old sighing couplet, but full of wisdom and solid 
 
 truth: — 
 
 ' Lord Jesus, while I live on earth, guide me. 
 Let me not, self-led, wander from beside Thee.' " 
 
 — Zinzendorf. 
 
 14. On xxxi. 10. " He who has scattered Israel 
 will also collect it. Why? He is the Shepherd. 
 It is no wolf-scattering. He interposes His hand, 
 then they go asunder, and directly come to- 
 gether again more orderly." Zinzendorf. 
 
 15. On xxxi. 12-14. '^ Gaudebunt electi, quando 
 videbunt supra se, intra se,juxta se, infra se. Augus- 
 tine." — '■'■Priemia coelestia erunt tam magna, ut non 
 possint rnensurari, tam mult a, ut non possint numer- 
 ari, tamcopiosa, utnonpossint terminari, tam pretiosa, 
 ut non possint sestimari. Bernhard." Forster. 
 
 16. On xxxi. 15. "Because at all times there is 
 a similar state of things in the church of God, the 
 lament of Rachel is a common one. For as this 
 lament is over the carrying away captive and op- 
 pressions of Babylon, so is it also a lament over 
 the tyranny of Herod in slaughtering the inno- 
 cent children (Matt. ii. 1-7.)" Cramer. " Pre- 
 muntur justi in ecclesia ut clament, clamanies ex- 
 uudiunlur, cxauditi glorificent Deum. Augustin." 
 Forster. — With respect to this, that Rachel's 
 lament may be regarded as a type of maternal 
 lamentation over lost children, Forster quotes 
 this sentence of Cyprian: 7ion amisimus, sed prx- 
 7nisimus (2 Sam. xii. 23). [On the application 
 of this verse to the murder of the innocents con- 
 sult W. L. Alexander, Contiexion of the Old and 
 New Testament, p. 54, and W. H. Mill in Words- 
 worth's Note in loc. — S. R. A.] 
 
 17. On xxxi. 18. The conversion of man must 
 always be a product of two fictors. A conversion 
 which man alone should bring about, without 
 God, would be an empty pretence of conversion ; 
 a conversion, which God should produce, with- 
 out man, would be a compulsory, manufactured 
 aff"air, without any moral value. The merit and 
 the praise is, however, always on God's side. 
 
:7b 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 He gives the will and the execution. Did He 
 not discipline us, we should never learn disci- 
 pline. Did He not lead back our thoughts to our 
 Father's house which we have left (Lukexv.) we 
 should never think of returning. 
 
 18. On xxxi. 19. " The children of God are 
 ashamed their life long, they cannot raise their 
 heads for humiliation. For their sins always 
 seem great to them, and the grace of God always 
 remains something incomprehensible to them." 
 ZiNZENDOUF. The farther the Christian advances 
 in his consciousness of souship and in sanctifi- 
 catioa, the more brilliantly rises the light of 
 grace, the more distinctly does he perceive in 
 this light, how black is the night of his sins from 
 which God has delivered him. [" It is the 
 ripest and fullest ears of grain which h£^ug their 
 heads the lowest."— S. R. A.] 
 
 19. On xxxi. 19. "The use of the dear cross is 
 to make us blush (Dan. ix. 8) and not regard our- 
 selves as innocent (Jer. xxx. 11). And as it 
 pleases -a father when a child soon blushes, so 
 also is this tincture a flower of virtue well- 
 pleasing to God." Cramer. " Deus oleum mixe- 
 rationis sux non nisi in vas contritum et contribula- 
 tum infundit. Berxiiard." Fokster. 
 
 20. On xxxi. 19. The reproach of my youth. 
 " The sins of youth are not easily to be forgot- 
 ten (Ps. XXV. 7; Job xxxi. 18). Therefore we 
 ought to be careful so to act in our youth as not 
 to have to chew the cud of bitter reflection in our 
 old age. It is a comfort that past sins of youth 
 will not injure thd truly penitent. Non nocent 
 peccata praeterila, cum non placent prsesentia. Au- 
 gustine. To transgress no more is the best sign 
 of repentance." Cramer. 
 
 21. On xxxi. 20. " Comforting and weighty 
 words, which each one should lay to heart. God 
 loves and caresses us as a mother her good child. 
 He remembers Ilis promise. His heart yearns 
 and breaks, and it is His pleasure to do us good." 
 Cramer. ^' Jpsius pi-opr turn est, miser eri semper et 
 parcere." Augustine. — ^^Major est Deimisericordia 
 quam omnium hominum misrria." Idem. 
 
 22. On xxxi. 23. The Lord bless thee, thou 
 d^77elling-place of righteousness, thou holy 
 mountain. "Certainly no greater honor was 
 ever done to the Jewish mountains than that the 
 WK)man's seed prayed and wept on them, was 
 transfigured, killed and ascended above all 
 heavous." Zinzenuorf. " It cannot be denied 
 
 that a church sanctifies a whole place 
 
 Members of Jesus are real guardian angels, who 
 do not exist in the imagination, but are founded 
 on God's promise (Matt. xxv. 40)." Idkji. 
 
 23. On xxxi. 29, 30. "The so-called family curve 
 has no influence on the servants of God; one in^iy 
 sleep calmly nevertheless. This does not mean 
 that we should continue in the track of our pre- 
 decessors, cx.gr., when our ancestors have gained 
 much wealth by sinful trade, tiiat we should^con- 
 tinue this trade with this wealth with the hope 
 
 of tlie divine blessing If this or that 
 
 property, house, right, condition be afflicted 
 wi.h a cur.se, the children of God may soon by 
 prudent separation deliver themselves from these 
 unsafe circumstances. For nothing attaches to 
 their persons, when they have been baptized 
 with the blood of Jesus and are blessed by 
 
 Him." ZiNZENDOEF. 
 
 24. On xxxi. 29, 30. "/« testamento novo per san- 
 guinem viediatoris deleto paterno chirographo incipit 
 homo paternis dtbitis non esse ohnoxius renascendo, 
 quibus nascendo fuerat obligatus, ipso Mediatore di' 
 cente: Ne vobis patrem dicalis in terra (Matt, xxiii 
 9). Secundum hoc utiquc, quod alios natales, quibuf 
 non patri succederemus, sed cum patre semper vive- 
 remus, invenimus." Augustine, contra Julian, VI. 
 12, in Ghisler. 
 
 25. On xxxi. 81. ^'Tnveteribus libris autnusquam 
 ant difficile prseter hunc propheticum locum legiVdr 
 facta commemoratio tcstamenti novi, tit omnino ijjso 
 nomine appellarelur. Nam multis locis hoc signifi- 
 calur et prsenuntiatur futurum, sed non ita ut etiam 
 nometi legalur expressum." Augustine, de Spir. et 
 Lit. ad Marcellin, Cap. 19 (where to Cap. 29 there 
 is a detailed discussion of this passage) in Ghis- 
 Ler. — " In the whole of the Old Testament there 
 is no passage, in which the view is so clearly and 
 distinctly expressed as here that the law is only 
 TzaidayaySg. And though some commentators have 
 supposed that the passage contains only a cen- 
 sure of the Israelites and not of the Old Cove- 
 nant, they only show thus that they have not 
 understood the simple meaning of the words." 
 Ebrard. Comm. zum Hebrderbr . S. 275. 
 
 26. On xxxi. 31, sqq. '^Propter veteris hominia' 
 noxam, qux per literam jubentem et minantem mini- 
 me sanabatur, dicitur illud testamentum vetus ; hoe 
 aiitem novum propter novitatem spiritus, quae homi- 
 nem novum sanat a vitio vetustatis." Augustine, 
 c. Lit. Cap. 19. 
 
 27. On xxxi. 33. "Quid sunt ergo leges Dei ab ipso 
 Deo scriptie in cordibus, ?iisi ipsa prsesentia Spiritus 
 sancti, qui est digitus Dei, quo prsesente diffunditur 
 charitas in cordibus nostrio, quse plenitudo legis est 
 ct prseceptiji?iis?" Augustine, I. c. Cap. 20. 
 
 28. On xxxi. 34. " Quomodo tempus est novi testa- 
 menti, de quo propheta dixit : et non docebit unus- 
 quisque civem suum, etc. nisi quia ejusdem testamenti 
 nooi xternam mercedem, id est ipsius Dei beatissimam 
 contemplationem promittendo conjunxit ? " Augus- 
 tine, I. c. Cap. 24. 
 
 29. Onxxxi. 33, 34. " This is the blessed diff"er- 
 ence between law and Gospel, between form and 
 substance. Therefore are the great and small 
 alike, and the youths like the elders, the pupils 
 more learned than their teachers, and the young 
 wiser than the ancients (1 John ii. 20 sqq.). 
 Here is the cause: — For I will forgive their ini- 
 quities. This is the occasion of the above; no 
 one can eff'ect this without it. Forgiveness of 
 sins makes the scales fall from people's eyes, and 
 gives them a cheerful temper, clear conceptions, 
 a clear head." Zinzenuorf. 
 
 30. On xxxi. 35-37. "Etsiparticulares ecclesisein 
 tolum dejlcerepossunt, ecclesia tamen catholica 7iun- 
 quam defecit aut deficiet. Obslanl eniui LJci amplis- 
 sinix promissiones, inter quas non ultimum locum sibi 
 vindicut qux hie hubetur Jer. xxxi. 37." Forster. 
 
 31. On xxxi. 38-40. "Jerusalem will one day be 
 much greater than it has ever been. This is not 
 to be understood literally but spiritually. Jeru- 
 salem will be wherever there are believing souls, 
 its circle will be without end and comprise all 
 that has been hitherto impure and lost. This it 
 is of which the prophet is teaching, and wjich 
 he presents in figures, which were intelligib.e to 
 the people in his time. The hill Gareb, probably 
 the residence of the lepers, the emblem of the 
 
CHAP. XXX. 1— XXXI. 40. 
 
 279 
 
 sinner unmasked and smitten by God, and the 
 cursed valley of Ben-Hiunom will be taken up 
 into the holy city. God's grace will one day 
 effect all this, and Israel will thus be manifested 
 as much more glorious than ever before." Dib- 
 
 DRICH. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On XXX. 5-9. Sermon on one of the last 
 Sundays after Trinity or the second in Advent. ; 
 The day of the judgment of the world a great 
 day. For it is, (Ij a day of anxiety and terror 
 for all the world; (2) a day of deliverance from 
 all distress for the church of the Lord ; (•^) a day ' 
 of realization of all the happiness set in prospect 
 before it. 
 
 2. On XXX. 10-12. Consolation of the church 
 in great trial. 1. It has well deserved the trial 
 (ver. 12) ; 2. it is therefore chastised, but with 
 moderation ; 3. it will not perish but again en- 
 joy peace. 
 
 3. On XXX. 17. [" The Restorer of mankind. 
 1. Faith in the Christian Sacrament and its at- 
 tendant revelation of divine character alone an- 
 swer the demand of the heart and reason of man 
 for a higher state of moral perfection. 2. Chris- 
 tianity offers to maintain a communication be- 
 tween this world and that eternal world of holi- 
 ness and truth. 3. It commends itself to our 
 wants in the confirmation and direction of that 
 principle of hope, which even in our daily and 
 worldly life, we are perpetually forced to substi- 
 tute for happiness, and 4. By the adorable ob- 
 ject, which it presents to our affections." Archer 
 Butler. — S. R. A.] 
 
 4. On xxxi. 1, 2. Gesetz and Zeugniss (Law and 
 Testimony) 1864, Heft. 1. Funeral sermon of 
 Ahlfeld. 
 
 5. On xxxi. 2-4. lb. 1865. Heft 1. Funeral 
 sermon of Besser, S. 32 ff. 
 
 6. On xxxi. 3. C. Fr. Hartmann (Wedding, 
 School, Catechism and Birth-day sermons, ed. C. 
 Chr. Eberh. Ehemann. Tiib. 1865). Wedding 
 sermon. 1. A grateful revival in the love of 
 God already received. 2. Earnest endeavor 
 after a daily enjoyment of this love. 3. Daily 
 nourishment of hope. 
 
 7. On xxxi. 3. Floret. Comfort and warning 
 at graves. I. Bdndchen, S. 258. On the attrac- 
 tions of God's love towards His own children. 
 They are, 1. innumerable and yet so frequently 
 
 overlooked ; 2. powerful and yet so frequently 
 resisted ; 3. rich in blessing and yet so frequently 
 unemployed. [For practical remarks ou this 
 text see also Tholuck, Stunden der Andacht, No. 
 11.— S. R. A.] 
 
 8. On xxxi. 9. Confessional sermon by Dekan 
 V. BiARowsKY in Erlangeu (in Palmer's Euang. 
 Casual-Reden, 'IteFolge, 1 Band. Stuttgart, 1850.) 
 Every partaking of the Lord's supper is a return 
 to the Lord in the promised land, aud every one 
 who is a guest at the supper rises and comes. 
 
 1. How are we to come? (weeping and praying). 
 
 2. What shall we find? (Salvation and blessing, 
 power and life, grace and help). 
 
 9. On xxxi. 18-20. Comparison of conversion 
 with the course of the earth and the sun. 1. The 
 man who has fallen away is like the planet in its 
 distance from the sun ; he flees from God as far as 
 he can. 2. Love however does not- release him: 
 a. he is chastened (winter, cold, long nights, 
 short days); b. he accepts the chastening and 
 returns to proximity to the sun (summer, warmth, 
 light, life). Comp. Brandt, ALtes und Neues in 
 eztemporirbaren Entwiirfen. Niiremberg, 1829, II. 
 5. [The stabborn sinner submitting himself to 
 God. I. A description of the feelings and con- 
 duct of an obstinate, impenitent sinner, while 
 smarting under the rod of affliction: He is re- 
 
 I bellious — till subdued. II. The new views and 
 , feelings produced by affliction through divine 
 I grace: [a) convinced of guilt and sinfulness; 
 (6) praying; (c) reflecting on the effects of di- 
 vine grace in his conversion. III. A correcting 
 but compassionate God, watching the result, etc., 
 [a) as a tender father mindful of his penitent 
 child; (6) listening to his complaints, confes- 
 sions and petitions; (c) declaring His determina- 
 tion to pardon. Payson. — S. R. A.] 
 
 10. On xxxi. 31-34. Sermon on 1 Sunday in 
 Advent by Pastor Diechert in Groningen, S. 
 Stern aus Jakob. I. Stuttg. 1867. 
 
 11. On xxxi. 33, 34. Do we belong to the peo- 
 ple of God? 1. Have we holiness? 2. Have we 
 knowledge? 3. Have we the peace promised to 
 this people? (Caspari in Predigtbuch von Ditt- 
 MAR, Erlangen, 1845). 
 
 12. On xxxi. 33, 34. By the new covenant in 
 the bath of holy baptism all becomes new. 1. 
 What was dead becomes alive 2. What was ob- 
 scure becomes clear. 3. What- was cold becomes 
 warm. 4. What was bound becomes free 
 (Floret, 1862). 
 
280 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 B. THE ELEVENTH DISCOURSE. 
 
 Chapters XXXII.—XXXIII. 
 
 with an appendix (chap. xxxiv. 1-7). 
 
 The thirty-third chapter contains a revelation of somewhat later date than ch. xxxii. In xxxiii. 1 it is ex- 
 pressly stated that the contents of this chapter loere communicated to the prophet separately, and sub- 
 sequently to the revelation contained in ch. xxxii. The word second (Pi^W) xxxiii. 1, hoivever, 
 designates this chapter as the second part or continuation of ch. xxxii., which also accords ivith its 
 very similar purport. As ch. xxxii. shows us that the occupation of the Israelitish country by the 
 northern foes does not prevent the Lord from commanding the prophet to purchase a piece of this very 
 land, as a pledge that the time ivill come when the land can be bought and sold and inhabited and 
 tilled in peace, so in ch. xxxiii., in connection with the destruction of many houses in the city of 
 Jerusalem for the purposes of defence it is predicted that the city apparently devoted to entire devasta- 
 tion shall be rebuilt, that joy and rejoicing shall again prevail in it, that in the country breeding of 
 cattle shall again be followed with blessing, and especially that from the house of David a '■'■righteous 
 sprout" shall proceed, by ivhom righteousness and salvation shall be diffused through the land. The 
 throne of Israel shall no more lack a prince of the house of David, nor the worship Levitical priests. 
 This covenant shall stand everlastingly as the laws of nature ; innumerable as the stars of heaven or the 
 sand of the sea shore shall be the seed of David and Levi. In the midst of the present mourning the pro- 
 phet makes known these promises, for — and this is the formal basis, which ch. xxxiii. has in common 
 with ch. xxxii. — the Lord has the power to do this; nothing is too wonderful for Him (comp. xxxiii. 
 2, 3 with xxxii. 17, 27). Without doubt these prophecies, proceeding from the court of the prison, 
 are among the grandest which the prophet uttered. We shall see what a depth of misery this court of 
 the prison involved for the prophet and for Israel. And in the very midst of this prophecy the abused 
 prophet raises his voice in the mosi glorious prediction, .that the wonder-working power of God may be 
 recognized and praised, and faith, tvhich rests not on the seen, but on the unseen (2 Cor. iv. 18), may 
 be thus confirmed and encouraged. The fulfilment of this prophecy runs through all the stages of 
 development, from that first feeble beginning, which was made after the return from exile, to the con- 
 summation of the fiaoLkeia tuv ovpaviiv which the future seon will bring us. 
 From what has been said, it is evident that the present discourse forms a parallel to the earlier consolatory 
 discourse, chh. xxx. and xxxi., and that both, being placed purposely at the close of the collection, 
 may with propriety be called the Book of Consolation. Though the general purport of the two dis- 
 courses is similar, some differences are also noticeable. While the first (chh. xxx. and xxxi.) may 
 be compared to a picture tvhich beams with light and color, and in which the shading is indicated only 
 by a few though powerful strokes (comp xxx. 5-7, 11 ; xxxi. 15, 16, 18, 19), the second seems like 
 a picture, in which the deepest shades and the brightest light are equally divided and displayed in 
 vivid contrast. Not only does the promise in the second discourse rise from present distressing circum- 
 stances, but the guilt of Israel, which is the cause of this distress, is portrayed with a strong hand 
 (xxxii. 29-35). Still as the shade is stronger in the second discourse than in the first, so is the light. 
 That tvhich may be called the crown of all theocratic promise, viz., the Messianic kingdom, together 
 with the priesthood standing inseparably by its side as a necessary supplement, is in the second dis- 
 course set forth much more clearly, mtich more comprehensively, and in much more various relations. 
 While in the first discourse the Messianic king is spoken of in a Jew words only, and with no special 
 emphasis, xxx. 9, 21, in the second the most prominent passage is occupied in detail with the Messianic 
 king and priesthood. Tlie passage xxxiii. 14-26, tvhich is evidently to form the crowning close of the 
 whole discourse, is entirely devoted to that most important subject of Messianic prediction. 
 The lime of the composition o/chh. xxxii. and xxxiii. is stated in the text. In xxxii. 1 it is expressly 
 mentioned that the events there narrated took place in the tenth year of Zedekiah, the eighteenth of 
 Nebuchadnezzar (i. e., B. C, 587), during the siege by the Chaldeans, and while Jeremiah was a 
 prisoner in the court of the gaol. Only a little later followed, as a continuation and completion of the 
 consolatory prediction, the revelation communicated to us in the thirty-third chapter [comp. xxxiii. 1). 
 MovEKS, De Wette and Hitzig regard ch. xxxiii. as worked over by the author of Isa. xl.-lxvi. This 
 view has been so thoroughly refuted by Graf thatit will sufficeto refer to him (comp. Graf, *S'. 369, 415). 
 — J.D.MiCHAELis {Orient. Bibl., XVII., S. \12 sqq.), Jahn {Vatt. Messian., P. II., S. 112 sqq.) 
 and HiTziG dispute the genuineness o/ xxxiii. 14-26. Movers [deutr. Rec, etc., S. 41) declares that 
 vers. 18, 21 b-'lb at least, are an interpolation. We may also appeal to Graf for the refutation of 
 this view {S. 369, 370, and his exposition of the passages in question). For a valuation of the cir- 
 cumstance that the section mentioned is wanting in the LXX, comp. Graf, Einleitung, pag. XL VI 'II. 
 Graf himself however regards xxxiii. 2, 3 as interpolated. I refer on the other hand to my ezposi.ion 
 of thit passage. 
 
CHAP. XXXII. 1-15. 281 
 
 Since both chapters are so far of similar import, that ch. xxxiii. may be regarded as a continuation and 
 extension of ch. xxxii., the two together may consequently be regarded as one prophetic discourse. 
 They are not so, however, in a logical and rhetorical sense, since they did not originate contemporanC' 
 ously. We shall therefore treat the two halves separately. 
 
 I. CHAPTER XXXII. 
 
 The most glorious future warranted in the midst of the most gloomy present by the purchase of a piece of 
 ground in the enemy'' s hands. 
 
 1. The transaction of the purchase, xxxii. 1-15. 
 
 2. A prayer of praise and inquiry, xxxii. 16-25. 
 
 3. Nothing is impossible to the Lord, xxxii. 26-44. 
 
 II. CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 Promise of the most glorious future, given at the moment when the destruction of Jerusalem was alreadg 
 begun by its own inhabitants in the interest of defence. 
 
 1. Brief transition : summons to new prayer in the sense of xxxii. 16-25, and promise of a 
 
 hearing, xxxiii. 1-3. 
 
 2. Destruction in the present. Glorious internal and external rebuilding in the future notv 
 
 withstanding, xxxiii. 4-9. 
 
 3. The glorious city -life of the future, xxxiii. 10, 11. 
 
 4. The glorious country -life of the future, xxxiii. 12, 13. 
 
 5. The glorious kingdom and priesthood of the future, xxxiii. 14-18. 
 
 6. The kingdom and priesthood of the future eternal, xxxiii. 19-26. 
 
 1. CHAPTER XXXII. 
 
 The most glorious future warranted in the midst of the moat gloomy present by the 
 purchase of a piece of ground in the hands of the enemy. 
 
 1. The transaction of the Purchase. 
 XXXII. 1-15. 
 
 1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the tenth year of Zedekiah, 
 
 2 king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadrezzar. For then the 
 king of Babylon's army besieged Jerusalem : and Jeremiah the prophet was shut 
 up in the court of the prison [or guard] which was in the king of Judah 's house. 
 
 3 For Zedekiah king of Judah had shut him up,' saying, Wherefore dost thou pro- 
 phesy, and say, Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will give this city into the hand 
 
 4 of the king of Babylon, and he shall take it; And Zedekiah king of Judah shall 
 not escape out of the hand of the Chaldeans, but shall surely be delivered into the 
 hand of the king of Babylon, and shall speak with him mouth to mouth, and his 
 
 5 eyes shall behold his eyes ; And he shall lead Zedekiah to Babylon, and there shall 
 he be until I visit him, saith the Lord : though ye fight with the Chaldeans, ye 
 
 6 shall not prosper. And Jeremiah said, The word of the Lord came unto me, say- 
 
 7 ing. Behold, Hanameel the son of Shallum thine uncle shall come unto thee, say- 
 ing. Buy thee my field that is in Anathoth : for the right of redemption is thine to 
 
 8 buy it. So Hanameel mine uncle's son came to me in the court of the prison ac- 
 cording to the word of the Lord, and said unto me. Buy my field, I pray thee, 
 that is in Anathoth, which is in the country of Benjamin : for the right of inheri- 
 tance is thine, and the redemption is thine ; buy it for thyself Then I knew that 
 
 9 this was the word of the Lord. And I bought the field of Hanameel my uncle's 
 son, that was in Anathoth, and weighed him the money, even seventeen shekels of 
 
 10 silver.^ And I subscribed the evidence [deed],^ and sealed it, and took wit- 
 
 11 nesses, and weighed him the money in the balances. So I took the evidence [deed] 
 of the purchase, both that which was sealed according to the law and custom [or 
 
 12 (containing) the assignment and limitation], and that which was open : And I gave 
 the evidence [deed] of the purchase unto Baruch, the son of Neriah, the son of 
 Maaseiah, in the sight of Hanameel mine uncle's son. and in the presence of the 
 witnesses that subscribed the book of the purchase, before all* the Jews that sat in 
 
282 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 13,14 the court of the prison. And I charged Baruch before them, saying. Thus 
 saith the Lord of hosts, the God'of Israel ; Take these evidences, this evidence ^f 
 the purchase, both* which is sealed, and this evidence which is open ; and put them 
 
 15 in an earthen vessel, that they may continue many days. For thus saith the Lord 
 of hosts, the God of Israel ; Houses and fields and vineyards shall be possessed 
 again in this land. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL, 
 
 1 Yer. 3. IxS^ 1il/X- The Nota relationis is to be regarded as in the. accusative. Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., § 70, 6; Num. 
 
 xiii. 27 ; Isa. Ixiv. 10; Ps. Ixxxiv. i. 
 
 i Ver. 9.— On the accus. np^ri- Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr.,^1Q, g.—Oa the article. Ih. 71, 4 a. 
 
 8 Ver. 10.— The article in "1303 is again general. Naeqelsb. Gr., I 71, 4 a. 
 
 4 Ver. 12. — Sd ^yvh. Misk-d by the Atnach, many suppose that y is wanting here. But this 'yj^7 does not belong 
 to 'PNI, inU.ver., but to DOjlijil. 
 
 5 \\.r. i4._pxi — nXV TliP two Vaus here as in ver. 20=both, and also comp. v. 24. Naeqelsb. Gr., ?110, 3. The con- 
 struction would certainly be simpler and clearer, if HNI were wanting before Q-TDnrii and it would certainly not be im- 
 
 • ■ : T *.■ 
 
 possible that, as Graf thinks, this HNI may have been repeated from ver. 11 by an oversight. A certain solemn breadth 
 
 may, however, also have been intended. Then first the quantitative multiplicity or duplicity of the deeds may be generally 
 set "forth, then their qualitative unity (they form together only one deed of sale. Comp. vers. 11 and 12) ; finally the multi- 
 plicity is specified : there are two deeds, one sealed, the other open. The niH and 'I^J can then both be referred at the 
 same time to D^Dnn. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 In the tenth year of king Zedekiah, during the 
 siege of Jerusalem by the ChaUleans, at a time 
 when all hope of deliverance had vanished and 
 the overthrow of the kingdom was certain to all 
 those who were not blinded, Jeremiah, who was 
 then on account of his prophecy of inevitable 
 ruin held a prisoner in the prison court, received 
 a divine revelation, which announced that the lot 
 of ground of his uncle Shallum at Anathoth 
 would be oifered him for sale on account of his 
 right of redemption. Hanameel, the son of Shal- 
 lum, really came with this offer to Jeremiah. 
 The latter recognizing the Lord's will, buys the 
 lot, carefully observing all the formalities, as a 
 sign that " houses, fields and vineyards will again 
 be bought in the land of Judah." 
 
 Vers. 1-5. The v7ord . . . shall not prosper. 
 The superscription is again of the larger kind. 
 It dominates chh. xxxii. and xxxiii. The word 
 of Jehovah which it announces, is not merely the 
 next following brief revelation of ver. 7, but all 
 the revealed contents of both chapters. Comp. 
 rems. on xxx. 1. — In the tenth, etc. Comp. 
 rems. on xxviii. 1. The numerical statements 
 are in entire agreement with xxxix. 1 ; xxv. 1 ; 
 lii. 12. — Besieged. Comp. xxi. 4; xxxvii. .5; 
 xxxix. 1 ; Deut. xx. 12, eta. — Court of the 
 prison. According to xxxvii. 15, Jercmiali was 
 incarcerated by the princes in "i^DNH Pi'^2 [prison, 
 
 literally: house of bonds]. When the king had 
 him brought out for an audience, he besought 
 that he might not be taken back to that prison. 
 Die king giaiiteil his rccjucst and liail him kept 
 
 in the court of the guard, (^rr^CD^n "li'n, xxxvii. 
 
 21 coll. xxxviii. 6, 13, 28; xxxix. 14, 15). Ac- 
 cordingly this must have been at any rate a more 
 tolerable place. The expression occurs, besides 
 the passages mentioned, only in xxxiii. 1 ; Neh. 
 iii. 25; xii. 39. mtS'D is custodia and may mean 
 watch as well as custody. As his detention here 
 
 afforded him relief, as he received visits and was 
 supported from without (xxxvii. 21), we may 
 with the greater probability suppose that it was 
 the closed court in which the palace-watch was 
 stationed. — Wherefore dost thou prophesy. 
 Comp. xxi. 4 sqq. ; xxxiv. 2 sqq. ; xxxvii. 17. 
 The words from I ^vill give to Zedekiah to 
 Babylon agree almost verbatim with xxxiv. 2, 
 o. From the slight differences we may infer that 
 we have here two independent records, of which 
 the passage xxxiv. 2-5 is in so far to be regarded 
 as the more complete, as it gives the particulars 
 of Zedekiah's fate after his captivity, while in 
 xxxii. 5 all that relates to this is comprised in 
 the words, "and there shall he be until I visit 
 him." If we compare xxxiv. 4, 5 with xxxix. 
 7; lii. 11, we shall see that in the first passage 
 the fate of the king is portrayed from its favora- 
 ble, in the latter passages from its unfavorable 
 side. The representations are by no means con- 
 tradictory. In xxxiv. 4, 5 it is merely stated that 
 the king will not die by a violent, but in peace 
 by a natural death, and after his death will re- 
 ceive an honorable interment. This by no means 
 excludes the cruel treatment, which lie received 
 according to xxxvii. 7; lii. 11. The indefinite- 
 ness of the expression visit and the prospective, 
 leaving it open either to deliverance or death, 
 was perceived even by Jerome, who says " visi- 
 tatio et consolalionem significat et supplicnnn.'^ It 
 should also be not unobserved that the expres- 
 sion "die in peace," xxxiv. 5. admits of this 
 double meaning. — Though ye fight, etc. These 
 words are not found in the record, cli. xxxiv. 
 Coming after the positive prediction of calamity 
 they do not make the impi-ession of being in- 
 tended for an admonition, but appear to have 
 the meaning of a statement of reason: if you 
 fight with the Chaldeans it certainly cannot re- 
 sult otherwise; ye cannot then prosper. The 
 prophet does not want to call forth a subjective 
 volition, but merely to present the objective 
 nexus rcrutn. On the subject-matter, comp. xxi. 
 9; xxvii. 8 sqq., as well as the introduction to 
 xxxiv. 1-7, and the remarks on xxxiv. 1-5. 
 
CHAP. XXXII. 1-15. 
 
 283 
 
 Vers. 6 and 7. And Jeremiah ... to buy 
 it. After that in vers. 1-5 the general situation 
 had been portrayed in which the following event 
 took place, ver. 6 begins the narrative of the event 
 itself. This narrative is given as the report of a 
 third person. From the word in ver. 6, to the 
 close of the prayer in ver. 25, it is Jeremiah who 
 speaks. It is, however, a third person who tells 
 us that Jeremiah spoke all these things, as is 
 seen from the words and Jeremiah said, ver. 
 6. This form of presentation is not unusual in 
 this book. Comp. xix. 14, 15; xxvi. 7-9; xxviii. 
 5-7 coll. ver. 1; ch. xxxvii. etc. — Son of Shal- 
 lum thine uncle. That the uncle was named 
 Shallum is seen from vers. 8 and 9. Though 
 
 Hanameel is also designated "m, uncle, this is 
 explained by the possibility of using this word in 
 the wider sense. The meaning of ^^patruus" is 
 the innermost of a series of concentric circles, 
 which represent a progress from general to par- 
 ticulars. From the Canticles we unquestionably 
 obtain the radical meaning of "caritas, amor" (i. 
 2, 4, etc.). From this is derived the meaning of 
 
 "carus, amicus" [abstr. pro concreto as in il^lID), 
 comp. Isa. V. 1 ; Cant. i. 13, 14, 1(^, etc. Now 
 though the father's brother is especially called 
 the dear one, the friend of the family, tliis is an 
 honorable distinction, which may of course in 
 certain circumstances be transferred to another 
 relative, as is doubtless the case here for the sake 
 of brevity with respect to the son of the in. — 
 Right of redemption. According to Lev. xxv. 
 2o in I he case of an iuipoverished Israelite wish- 
 ing to sell his piece of ground, his nearest of kin 
 have the right of purchase. Comp. Saalschuetz, 
 Mos. Recht., S. 147 sqq. ; 483, 808 sqq.— The 
 members of the tribe of Levi also, according to 
 Numb. xxxv. 2 coll. Josh. xxi. owned real estate, 
 viz., so much as was included in the precincts of 
 the cities allotted to them [W^IO, comp. 1 Chron. 
 vi. 40, 41). The statement in Lev. xxv. 34, that 
 this real estate could not be sold appears simply 
 to mean that the sale of priests' property to those 
 who are not priests was forbidden. Among the 
 family the sale must have been possible, other- 
 wise an illegal act would have been demanded 
 of Jeremiah, not only by his cousin but by the 
 
 Lord Himself. The right of redemption (n^NJ) 
 had moreover its two sides. Towards the seller 
 it was a duty, towards the more distantly related 
 it was a right. Comp. Ruth iv. 
 
 Vers. 8-10. So Hanameel ... in the bal- 
 ances. The right of inheritance was generally 
 and especially among the priests the basis of the 
 right of redemption. For it was indeed the sense 
 of the whole institution, that the real estate 
 should remain in the family. Accordingly it 
 was always the next heir who was in the first 
 
 place entitled and obligated to the rivXJ. We 
 find no intimation in the Law wliat the relation 
 
 of the "^XJ was to the "ID'S (comp. Saalschutz, 
 
 Mos. R. S. 81 1 ). After all it appears to me that 
 this was lelt to the friendly understanding of the 
 two relatives, and the loyal disposition of the 
 god was reckoned upon. From the fact that tlie 
 visit announced to him by revelation was really 
 received, Jeremiah knew that the proposal, which 
 
 his visitor made him, and of which the Lord had 
 not yet said anything, was also an expression of 
 the divine will. — The price seems small. This 
 has been explained by supposing that the seller 
 was driven to the sale by urgent need and that 
 the property was depreciated by the war. Both 
 may be correct, but I do not think that the small 
 price is thus explained. This would have been 
 unworthy of the prophet. Could Jeremiah buy 
 as a speculator ? Livy relates (XXVI. 11) that 
 when Hannibal was before the gates of Rome 
 tlie very field on which his camp stood was sold, 
 '■'■nihil ob id dimiimto pretio.'" Comp. Florus, II. 
 6 (^Parva res dictu, sed ad magnanimilnlcm populi 
 Romani probandam satis efficaz, quod illis ipsis qui- 
 bus obsidebatur diebxis ager, quern Hannibal castris 
 insederat, venalis Romse fuit hastseque suhjectus in- 
 vcnit emtorem). — Can the proud assurance of the 
 Romans have produced a greater effect than the 
 trust; reposed by our prophet on the divine pro- 
 mise? I therefoi-e think that seventeen she- 
 kels was the nominal price. Its smallness may 
 be explained, apart from the possible smallness 
 of the object purchased, by the nearness of the 
 jubilee year. Though we have no data by which 
 to determine how far distant the jubilee was 
 from the time of sale, it may be safely assumed 
 that the provisions of the law, Lev. xxv. 15, 16, 
 were not unobserved. The year of manumissio, 
 spoken of in ch. xxxiv., was not a jubilee. 
 Comp. rems. on xxxiv. 14 and Herzog, R.-Enc. 
 XIII. , S. 212. Seventeen shekels in our money 
 was little more than ten dollars. Comp. Herz. 
 R.-Enc, IV., S. 764. — AVhence did Jeremiah ob- 
 tain the money? Had he, the pri-soner, fot- 
 whom a daily scanty subsistence was furnished 
 (xxxvii. 21), pecuniary means at command? His 
 silence on this point shows that he regarded it 
 as of little moment. There was probably more 
 money than bread in the city. Baruch also 
 might have procured him the funds. — After the 
 account of tlie purchase and the price in ver. 9, 
 the particulars of the transaction are specially 
 enumerated in ver. 10. First the writing and 
 sealing. From what follows we see that the deed 
 of purchase was written in duplicate. One copy 
 remained open, the other was closed with seals. 
 "^ Quse emtionum consuetude hucusque servatur, ut 
 quod intrinsecus clausuni signacula continent, hoc 
 legere cupientibus apertum volumen exhibeat," Je- 
 rome ou ver. 14. Whether the open copy also 
 bore a seal cannot be definitely ascertained from 
 the text. The object of the writing in duplicate 
 appears to me to have been twofold. First, that 
 which duplicates generally have, viz., to have a 
 second copy in case the first is los; ; secondly 
 (and this is especially the destination of the 
 sealed deed), in case of injury or defacement, 
 which the open deed might sutfer either by acci- 
 dent or design, to have an intact original. The 
 circumstance that Jeremiah does not mention the 
 witnesses till after the sealing is not to be ex- 
 plained, with HiTZiG, as though the contents of 
 the closed deed and the price were concealed 
 from them. Evidently the prophet does not wish 
 to confuse the three points in ver. 10. He there- 
 fore relates first of the deed ("'SD), then of thj 
 witnesses, then of the weighing of the money. 
 The order of subjects then prevails, not however 
 excluding the order of time, since the weiguing 
 
«84 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 out the money at any rate came last. If we 
 should argue as Hitzig does, we should come to 
 the conclusion that the witnesses had nothing at | 
 all to do with the documents. This, however, is 
 contradicted by ver. 12, where it is expressly 
 stated that the witnesses " subscribed the book 
 of the purchase." As now in ver. 11, ver. 12 
 init., ver. li njp^n "(3p appears to be a general 
 conception, to which the specifications given in 
 the second half of the verse are subordinate, the 
 word may in ver. 12 also designate both docu- 
 ments; they may therefore have both been sub- 
 scribed by the witnesses. 
 
 Vers. 11 and 12. So I took ... of the 
 prison. The words D'pnni Hll^^n, in ver. 11, 
 are difficult. Those explanations do violence both 
 to granuoar and context which («) assume an 
 accusative of the norm; according to the law 
 and customs, for which no instance can be ad- 
 duced ; (6) consider these words to indicate the 
 contents of a third "13D. The enumeration in 
 ver. 1-4 is opposed to this, and the difficujty of 
 perceiving what laws and customs were observed 
 in a third deed, and why this was drawn. Only 
 one explanation is grammatically possible and in 
 agreement with the context, viz., that which takes 
 the words as in apposition to D^nnn. Then the 
 question arises, what are we to understand by 
 the words themselves? The respective defini- 
 tions of the Mosaic law (comp. ex. gr. Deut. v. 
 28)? But why should these be written out in 
 detail and be designated as the main contents of 
 the U\PX\ ? It is better then to take mSD in the 
 
 T t: • 
 
 spnse of statutum, establishing, settling, and 
 D\"5n in the sense of stipulation. The main 
 thing established, i. e. the object of the purchase 
 and the price, as well as the special stipulations 
 or conditions of sale were then fully contained 
 
 only in the 3inn. Yet I confess that this ex- 
 planation also is not perfectly satisfactory. We 
 must wait for further illumination. — Baruch ia 
 here mentioned for the first time. Hence the 
 more exact statement of his lineage. Josephus 
 {Antt. X. 9, 1) calls him k^ enia7//iov a(p66pa umiaq 
 ovra Kal rrf Trarpwcj yAuTTt) ^laibenavrug Treirnu^evue- 
 vov. The high position of his brother Seraiah 
 at court (li. 59) seems to prove that he was of a 
 respectable house. — Before all the Jews. 
 The prophet intimates that two circles of 
 witnesses are to be imagined surrounding the 
 central point, formed by Jeremiah and Baruch, 
 a narrower and a wider. The wider circle tes- 
 tifies to the witness of tho narrower. 
 
 Vers. 13-15. And I charged ... in this 
 land. — In an earthen vessel. To keep the 
 deeds from damp, mot lis or dirt. Can the 
 earthen vessel have survived the abomination of 
 destruction? It matters not. The main thing 
 was the establishment of the fact that the Lord 
 in the midst of their dread of destruction, at a mo- 
 ment when all hope for the future seemed to have 
 fled, gave the promise of a glorious restoration, 
 as indicated in ver. 15. The object of this 
 promise was on the one hand to comfort those 
 who were involved in the present ruin, and on 
 the other hand to prove that the Lord had fore- 
 willed, foreknown and foretold the predicted 
 favorable turn of affairs. Comp. rems. on xxx. 1. 
 To attain the latter object the transaction had 
 certainly to be brought to the knowledge of pos- 
 terity in an authentic manner. For this purpose 
 the documents themselves relating to the pur- 
 chase, which would hardly contain any account 
 of the accompanying circumstances, would be less 
 useful than on the one hand oral tradition based 
 on the declaration of many eye and ear witnesses, 
 and on the other hand the written report of the 
 prophet. 
 
 2, A Prayer of Praise and Inquiry. 
 XXXn. 16-25. 
 
 16 Now when I had delivered the evidence of the purchase unto Baruch the son of 
 
 17 Neriah, I prayed unto the Lord, saying, Ah Lord God ! behold, thou hast made 
 the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is 
 
 18 nothing too hard for thee [hid from thee] '} Thou shewest loving-kindness unto 
 thousands, and recompensest the iniquity of the fathers into the bosom^ of their 
 children after them : the Great, the Mighty God, the Lord of hosts [Jehovah 
 
 19 Zebaoth] is his name. Great in counsel, and mighty in work^ : for thine eyes are 
 open upon all the ways of the sons of men : to give every one according to his ways, 
 
 20 and according to the fruit of his doings. Which [who]* hast set signs and wonders 
 in the land of Egypt, even unto this day, and in Israel, and among other men ; and 
 
 21 hast made thee a name, as at this day ; And hast brought forth thy people Israel 
 out of the land of Egypt with signs, and with wonders, and with a strong hand 
 
 22 and with a stretched out arm, and with great terror ; And hast given them this 
 land, which thou didst swear to their fathers to give them, a land flowing with milk 
 
 23 and honey ; And they came in, and possessed it ; but they obeyed not thy voice, 
 neither walked in thy law^; they have done nothing of all that thou commandedst 
 
CHAP. XXXII. 16-25. 
 
 2^5 
 
 24 them to do : therefore thou hast caused all this evil to come upou them.® Behold 
 the mounts [ramparts], they are come uuto the city to take it : and the city is 
 given into the hand of the Chaldeans, that fight against it, because of [o? in con- 
 sequence of ] the sword and the famine and of the pestilence : and what thou hast 
 
 25 spoken is come to pass ; and, behold thou seest it. And thou hast said unto me, 
 O Lord God, Buy thee the field for money, and take witnesses ; for [and yet]'' the 
 city is given into the hands of the Chaldeans. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. n.—ahS'' xS- Comp. Gen. xviii. 14 ; Dent. xvil. 8: Zech. viii. G; Naeqelsb. Gr., g 75, 2, 4. 
 
 2 Ver. 18.— Instead of D'H hn we find in Deut. vii. 10, □" Jj) "7X. Comp. besides Isa. Ixv. (3, 7 ; Ps. Ixxix. 12. 
 
 3 Ver. 19.— The form H'S'S^ is found here only. 
 
 * Ver. 20. — The construction in the sentence PiTZU lt!?X to niD DTTI 1^, is as in xi. 7. In both cases ^_J^ is to be re- 
 
 pirded as depending on the idea latent in the verb of " stretching, lasting." It is accordingly a constructio prsegnans. Comp. 
 Naeqelsb. Gr., § 112, 7. 
 
 6 Ver. 23.— "IJinn^V The reading of the Chethibh which is HnTlh (xxxviii. 22 ; comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 44, 4, Anm.) 
 
 Is probably to be explained by a mere oversight of the ^. Comp.rems. on xvii. 23. 
 6 Ver. 23. — XTprW Hiphil here only. Comp. Deut. xxxi. 29. 
 
 1 Ver. 25.— T^ni. To obtain the meaning : although the city, as spoken by Jehovah, we should have to read '3 Q}. 
 
 On the 1 comp. Ewald, g 341 a ; Naegelsb. Gr., § 110, 4. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The main thought of this pi-ayer is praise of 
 the omnipotence, justice and grace of God. It 
 consists of three parts: 1. Vers. 17-19; 2, vers. 
 20-23; 3, vers. 24 and 25. In the first part 
 God's omnipotence is shown from the creation 
 (ver. 17), then His justice from His providence 
 in history (vers. 18, 19). In the second part 
 God's omnipotence is shown from His leading of 
 the people of Israel, as it was especially glorified 
 in the deliverance from Egyptian bondage (vers. 
 20-22), then His justice from the terrible calamity 
 which has now come upon the disobedient nation 
 (ver. 23). In the third part, which is least in 
 extent, but the most important, a problem or un- 
 solved riddle appears to be proposed. It is said 
 that the Lord sees this calamity, and yet com- 
 mands the prophet to buy the lot of ground (ver. 
 24). All however which has been previously said 
 of the Lord's omnipotence, especially " notliing 
 is too hard for thee," in union with that which 
 must be extolled of the Lord's grace towards 
 Israel (ver. 21 sqq.), gives the key for the solu- 
 tion of that riddle. 
 
 Vers. 16-19. Now -when . . . fruit of his do- 
 ings On ver. 17 comp. xxvii. 5; Deut. xxix. 
 9. — Thou she-west loving-kindness, etc. 
 Comp. Exod. XX. 6 ; xxxiv. 7 ; Deut. v. 10. For 
 
 C'r'Sx'? we find in Deut. vii. 9 "in fj^xb. If 
 we compare with this the phrase in the parallel 
 
 clause Qy,^\ 0'^).^ (Exod. xx 5 ; xxxiv. 7 ; 
 Numb. xiv. 18; Deut. v. 9) which can only sig- 
 nify the oflFspring of the third and fourth gene- 
 ration, it is clear that the phrase in the text is 
 taken in such a general signification that the idea 
 of " thousands, belonging to the thousandth ge- 
 neration" is included. — And recompensest, 
 etc. Comp. rems. on xxxi. 29, 30. — The mighty- 
 God. Comp. Deut. x. 17. — Jehovah Zebaoth. 
 Comp. X. l(i; xxxi. 35, e<c. — Great in counsel. 
 etc. Comp. Isa. xxviii. 29; Ps. Ixvi. 5. — To give 
 every one, etc. Comp. xvii. 10. 
 
 Vers. 20-23. "Who hast set ... evil to 
 come upon them. It is as though it were said, 
 thou who in Egypt didst set in operation a wonder- 
 working power, which continues to operate until 
 this day. — The antithesis of Israel and other men, 
 as in Isai. xliii. 4; Ps. Ixxiii. 5. — As at this 
 day. Comp. xxv. 18. — Wich signs. Cuinp. 
 Deut. iv. 34 ; xxvi. 8. — Which thou didst 
 swear. Comp Gen. xii. 7 ; rcius. on xi. 5. 
 
 Vers. 24, 25. Behold the ramparts . . . the 
 
 Chaldeans. jlw/On are ramparts set up by 
 the besiejiers. Comp. xxxiii. 4; vi. tj. — Given, 
 etc. The Chaldeans are indeed still without the 
 city, but according to the prophet's idea this is 
 as good as surrendered, and on the fall of the 
 chief city naturally follows the exile and the im- 
 possibility of further cultivation of the soil. — In 
 consequence of depends on given. Sword, 
 famine and pestilence, bring the city into the 
 hands of the enemies. Comp. xiv. 16; xxv. 16, 
 27; xxxviii. 9. Tiie Lord sees the condition of 
 the city and yet He commands the prophet to buy 
 a field. The fact that the prayer closes with this, 
 paradox must be regarded as an expression of 
 the most tormenting uncertainty and helpless- 
 ness, if the prophet had not himself in the previ- 
 vious context accumulated the most ample mate- 
 rial to dispel such doubts. This apparently un- 
 satisfactory conclusion is thus in the highest de- 
 gree skilful and elevated. He leaves it to the 
 reader to find the solution of the problem, after 
 giving him all the aid that he needs. The con- 
 cluding sentence, and the city, etc., ver. 25 b, 
 viewed as spoken by the prophet, appears at first 
 sight a tautological repetition. We might there- 
 fore be tempted to take it as spoken by Jehovah; 
 buy the field although the city, etc But al- 
 though is not suitable in the mouth of Jehovah, 
 for whom, in fact, the apparent contradiction is 
 non-existent. The sentence is then spoken by 
 the prophet ; but it is not co-ordinate with buy 
 thee, but an exclamation, in which the main 
 point in the apparent contradiction is expressly 
 repeated from ver. 24. Comp. /he translation 
 and Textual Notes. 
 
286 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 3. Nothing is impossible to the Lord. 
 XXXII. 26-44. 
 
 26, 27 Then came the word of the Lord unto Jeremiah, saying, Behold, I am the 
 
 28 Lord, the God of all flesh : is there anything too hard for Me? Therefore thus 
 saith the Lord : Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the Chaldeans, and 
 
 29 into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar, king of Babylon, and he shall take it : and the 
 Chaldeans that fight against this city shall come and set fire on [to] this city, and 
 burn it with the houses, upon whose roofs they have ofiered incense unto Baal and 
 
 30 poured out drink offerings unto other gods, to provoke Me to anger. For the chil- 
 dren of Israel and the children of Judah have only done evil before Me from their 
 youth ;^ for the children of Israel have only provoked Me to anger with the work 
 
 31 of their hands, saith the Lord. For this city hath been to Me as a provocation of 
 Mine anger [or for My anger] and of my fury from the day that they built it even 
 
 32 to this day ; that I should remove it from before my face,^ because of all the evil 
 of the children of Israel and the children of Judah, which they have done to pro- 
 voke Me to anger, they, their kings, their princes, their priests, and their prophets, 
 
 33 and the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And they have turned 
 unto Me the back [neck] and not the face: though I taught them, rising up early 
 
 34 and teaching them, yet they have not hearkened to receive instruction. But they 
 
 35 set their abominations in the house, which is called by My name, to defile it. And 
 they built the high places of Baal, which are in the valley of the sou of Hinnom 
 [or valley of Ben-Hinnom] to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through 
 the fire unto Molech ; which I commanded not, neither came it into My mind, that 
 they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.' 
 
 36 And now therefore thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning this city, 
 whereof ye say. It shall be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon by the 
 
 37 sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence; behold I will gather them out 
 of all countries, whither I have driven them in Mine anger, and in My fury, and in 
 great wrath; ^nd I will bring them again unto this place, and I will cause them to 
 
 38, 39 dwell safely ; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God : And I 
 will give them one heart,* and one way, that they may fear me forever, for the good 
 
 40 of them, and of their children after them : And I will make an everlasting covenant 
 with them,* that I will not turn away from [lit, behind] them, to do them good ; 
 
 41 but I will put my fear in their hearts, and they shall not depart from me. Yea, I 
 will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this land as- 
 
 42 suredly [or in truth] with my whole heart and with my whole soul. For thus 
 saith the Lord : Like as I have brought all this great evil upon this people, so will 
 
 43 I bring upon them all the good that I have promised them. And fields® shall be 
 bought in this land, whereof ye say. It is desolate without' man or beast ; it is 
 
 44 given into the hand of the Chaldeans. Men shall buy fields for money, and sub- 
 scribe evidences [deeds]* and seal them, and take witness in the land of Benja- 
 min, and in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, and in the cities 
 of the mountains, and in the cities of the valley, and in the cities of the South : for 
 I will cause their captivity to return, saith the Lord. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 80.— On Dn''n'l;?3D (the fem. form horp only). Cnnip. iii. 24, 2S ; xxii. 21. 
 
 * Ver. 31. — The 7j; is less surprising (since tins jirepositiou is freijiifnily interchanged with Sx. [comp. rems. on x. 
 1, Isai. xxix. 11, 14], and even S [conip. Jiyi-b^' Isai. Ix. 7 with Jl^f^S Ivi. 7; Jer. vi. -20]) than the suffix in the fol- 
 lowing "7. Accordingly the construction, which takes j^ in the causal sense and makoe m'OnS depend immediately 
 
CHAP. XXXII. 26-44. 
 
 287 
 
 on nn'n. on account of the pregnant sense in which nnTI must then be taken, and on account of the suffix in HTOn 
 r : T T : T t • -: 
 
 is still more difficult. This latter word forms the transition to the special grounds of the judgments, of which vers. 32-35 
 treat. In ver. 32 first follows a specification of the subjects. Comp. ii. 26; xvii. 25. Then in vers. 33-35 a specification of 
 the prcilicates. 
 
 3 Ver. 35 — Ou the form 'DHn comp. Olsh., g 38, c. .• 192,/. Olshausen supposes a clerical error, which may certainly, 
 
 as Grap thinlis, have been occasioned by the following X. Comp. xix. 15. 
 
 * Ver. 39.— On the infinitive HX"^' comp. Ewald ? 238, a ; Olsh. g 245, d. 
 
 T ; 
 
 5 Ver. 40. — The construction with 7 as in Isa. Iv. 3 ; Ixi. 8 ; Ezek. xxxiv. 25 ; xxxvii. 26 ; Ps. Ixxxix. 4. — ^J^X here i« 
 
 •vidently a conjunction = that. Comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., § 109, 1 6. 
 
 Ver. 43. — mtiTl. The article is generic. Comp. rems. on ver. 9. 
 ' Ver. 43.— ['XO- Comp. ii. 15 ; iv. 7 ; ix. 9-12 ; Naegelsb. Gr., g 106, 5. 
 
 8 Ver. 44.-31 ri31 • Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 92, 2, a. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 At the head of this discourse, the limpid but 
 diffuse style of which is peculiar to the prophet's 
 later period, and is notably distinguished from 
 that of the preceding discourse, we again find 
 the thouglit, which the prophet has once before 
 made the basis of a prayer (ver. 17): can any- 
 thing be too wonderful for the Lord ? (ver. 27). 
 The answer ps, No ! Therefore Jerusalem shall 
 indeed be destroyed by the Chaldeans (vers. 28, 
 29), as a well deserved punishment for the mani- 
 fold abominations, by which Judah and Israel 
 had provoked the Lord from the first (vers. 30 
 35), but therefore also a re-asserabling and bring- 
 ing back of the people to their own country shal' 
 take place (vers. 36, 37). Then will Israel be 
 Jehovah's people and Jehovah be Israel's God 
 (ver. 38) ; they will with unanimity serve the 
 Lord to their own eternal welfare (ver. 39); the 
 Lord will conclude an everlasting covenant with 
 them, in consequence of which neither will He 
 ever cease to do them good, nor will they ever 
 again depart from the Lord (ver. 40) ; it will be 
 a joy to the Lord to do them good, and with all 
 His heart He promises them that from this time 
 forward they shall be firmly planted and rooted 
 in their land (ver. 41). With these two colors 
 does ill ' prophet paint the future of his nation, 
 for I ver. 42) this is the very proof of His om- 
 nipotence, to which nothing is impossible, that 
 as certainly as He has now brought destruction 
 on Jerusalem, He will one day also perform His 
 p.-omise of blessing to the people (ver. 42). Then 
 will fields again be bought in the country, which 
 is now called a desert (ver. 43) ; yea, with all 
 the usual formalities will purchases be made, 
 deeds drawn, sealed and witnessed in all parts 
 of the country (ver. 44). The passage thus seems 
 to be closely connected with the historical basis 
 of Jeremiah's purchase of a field (ver. 7sqq.), as 
 well as to be a logical exposition of the main 
 thought of ver. 27 ii ; — nothing is impossible to 
 the Lord, therefore He destroys Jerusalem and 
 restores it again It is because He is almighty 
 that He can do both. 
 
 Vers. 26-2U. Then came the word . . . 
 provoke me to anger. — God of all flesh. 
 The expression r:'ninds us of Numb. xvi. 22; 
 xxvii. 16, whore God is called the God of the spi- 
 rits of all flesh. — Is there anything, etc. Comp. 
 ver. 1". — Therefore. The blinded Israelites 
 thought it impossible that the chosen place of the 
 sanctuary could be destroyed (comij. rems. on 
 vii. 4; xxi. 13). They did not reflect that to the 
 
 Lord nothing is impossible. — Set fire. Comp. 
 xvii. 27; xxi. 10, 14; xxxiv. 22; xxxvii. 8. — ■ 
 Offered incense, etc. Comp. vii. 9; xix. 4, 13. 
 
 Vers. 30-35. For the children . . . Judah 
 to sin. These six verses express the reason of 
 the punitive judgment announced in vers. 28, 29. 
 Verses 30, 31 give the general reason, vers. 32- 
 3J the special. In vers. 30, 31 we find three 
 causal sentences beginning with for. In what 
 relation do these stand to each other and to the 
 preceding context? The first for might refer 
 ( 1 ) to the acts of the Chaldeans, or (2) to offered 
 incense, etc., and poured out, etc., or (3) to 
 to provoke me. It is not probable that it can 
 refer to (2), for no one expects a reason in this 
 connection for the Jews having offered incense to 
 their idols, but for the Lord's giving up the place 
 of the sanctuary to destruction. (Comp. on there- 
 fore ver. 28j. This for may then refer either to 
 (1) or (3). Regarded according to the subject 
 both amount to the same, for what produced the 
 anger of the Lord also brought about the destruc- 
 tion. The ground of the one is also the ground 
 of the other. Add to this that a special ground 
 of the to provoke me is expressed in the sen- 
 tence immediately preceding. W* shall thus 
 have to refer the first causal sentence, ver. 30, 
 essentially to the prediction of destruction in 
 vers. 28, 29. This will accordingly have for its 
 motive the objective fact of the habitual sinful- 
 ness of the Jews and Israelites, since done evil 
 further strengthened by only expresses the ha- 
 bitual state. The second and third causal sen- 
 tences set forth more the subjective element of 
 the Divine anger; Jerusalem must be d-estroyed, 
 for they have provoked Jehovah. It must not 
 however be overlooked that the words have only 
 provoked me to anger by the work of their 
 hands look back to ver. 29 6. For (1) pro- 
 voked is only a confirmation of to provoke ; (2) 
 the work of their hands is not their moral con- 
 duct in general (this would be only a tautologi- 
 cal repetition of the first half of the verse), but 
 the idol images are to be understood by it in a 
 concrete sense, to which according to ver. 29 b 
 incense was burned. Comp. i. 16; Deut. iv. 28; 
 xxvii. 15. The prophet appears also to have had 
 Deut. xxxi. 29 generally in view. — The third 
 causal sentence forms a climax with the second. 
 He no longer uses the expression to prorolc but 
 the cumulative and stronger expressions for My 
 anger and for My fury. Jerusalem has filled the 
 measure of the divine anger, hence the total de- 
 struction announced in vers. 28, 29. The ex- 
 pression this city has been to Me, for My any r and 
 for 3Iy fury (on which the passages lii. 3 ; 2 Ki, 
 
288 
 
 THE PKOPilET JEREMIAH. 
 
 xxiv. 8, 20 seem to be founded) is unusual. The 
 sense can paly be that the city became an object 
 of anger to Me. On ver. 33 comp. ii. 27; vii. 
 13, 25 ; XXV. 3, 4. On vers. 34, 35 comp. vii. 
 30, 31; xix. 5. — In ver. 35 the sentence neither 
 cam6 it, etc. , does not depend on ■which, but is to 
 be regarded as a new and independent sentence. 
 Both sentences however, from •which to abomi- 
 nation, are parentheses, and to cause ... to 
 sin is connected with cause ... to pass. 
 
 Vers. 36-41. And now therefore . . . my 
 whole soul. By and now^ Jeremiah desig- 
 nates the joyful present in contrast with the 
 mournful past, vehich he described in the previ- 
 ous context. This is indeed not yet real but 
 ideal, yet none the less certain; for this ideal 
 present is based on the word of Divine promise. 
 Therefore, nn already remarked, corresponds to 
 therefore in ver. 28, and now draws the second 
 inference from the proposition that nothing is too 
 wonderful for God. As from this followed the 
 destruction which appeared impossible to the 
 Jews, so also follows the apparently equally im- 
 possible restoration. — 1'J^n 7X with respect to 
 this city, comp. xxii. 11 ; xxviii. 8, 9; xxix. 16, 
 21. — By the sword. Comp. because of the sword, 
 ver. 24. — Behold I •will gather them refers 
 to the idea of "inhabitants, citizens" contained 
 implicitly ia the city, to which in the widest sense 
 all those enumerated in ver. 32 belong. On the 
 subject-matter comp. Dent. xxx. 3sqq. ; Jer. iii. 
 18-20; xxiii. 3; xxix. 14; xxxi. 8, 10. — Cause 
 them to dwell safely. Comp. Hos. xi. 11; 
 Ezek. xxxvi. 11, 33.— Ver. 38. And they shall 
 be, etc. Comp. rems. on xxx. 32. — Ver. 39. 
 And I w^ill give, etc. The restoration and re- 
 turn must necessarily be at the same time spiri- 
 tual (comp. xxxi. 18-20.) An essential element 
 of this spiritual return is also the cessation of 
 all enmity and discord among the members of 
 the people, consequently the prevalence of a spi- 
 rit of love and concord among them. Comp. 
 Ezek. xi. 19; Jer. xxiv. 7; xxxi. 34. — One 
 way. An allusion to the division introduced 
 by Jeroboam I. between Judah and Israel. Comp. 
 X. 2 ; Am. viii. 14. — That they may fear me. 
 In this the unity of the way is manifested that 
 they fear the Lord with one mind. The sentence 
 is taken verbatim from Deut. iv. 10. — For the 
 good of them. A reminiscence from Deut. vi. 
 24 coll. X. 13 ; xxx. 9, 10.— Ver. 40. And I wiU 
 make, etc. Comp. rems. on xxxi. 31, 32; 1. 
 5. According to the stipulations of the cove- 
 nant the Lord promises two things: (1) that 
 He will no more turn away behind the people in 
 respect of doing them good, i. e., that as a faith- 
 
 ful shepherd to His people He will always follow 
 them with His protective and blessed guardian- 
 ship ; (2) that He will also give the people them- 
 selves the power no longer to turn away from 
 Hiui. We see that the Lord takes the priestanda 
 entirely upon Himself. Hence also the con- 
 struction 7 TV^^ mj, which does not occur 
 
 elsewhere in Jeremiah. ^That they shall not, 
 
 etc. Comp. Deut. xvii. 20. Josh, xxiii. 6. — Yea, 
 I will rejoice, etc. Comp. Deut. xxviii. 63 ; 
 xxx. 9; Isai. Ixii. 5. — I will plant, etc. This 
 J^OJ is the opposite of tynj. Comp. i. 10; xviii. 
 7 sqq. ; xxxi. 28. — In truth is explained in the 
 following words. The first planting had been im- 
 perfect (comp. ii. 21) as much so as the iirst co- 
 venant, (xxxi. 32). Because this was only hy- 
 pothetical (vii. 5-7) and because the Lord knew 
 that the condition would not be kept, He could 
 not be in it with His whole heart. Now He 
 knows (for He has Himself promised, ver. 40 6), 
 that the condition will be fulfilled ; therefore He 
 can designate the planting as done in truth [i. e., 
 without the reservation that it is only for a short 
 time), and also as one which He performs with a 
 full and undivided heart. Comp. 2 Sam. vii. 10. 
 Vers. 42-44. For thus saith . . . Jehovah. 
 From ver. 27 onwards a double inference is drawn 
 from the general proposition that nothing is im- 
 possible to the Lord (vers. 28-35, and vers. 36- 
 41). From ver. 42 onwards the argument is dif- 
 ferent. It is to demonstrate the certainty of the 
 promise, vers. 36-41. This is done by pointing to 
 the fulfilment of the minatory prophecy, which 
 was indeed regarded as impossible by blinded 
 Israel. As certainly as the Lord has brought 
 great calamity on us, and so verified His word 
 on the one hand, so certainly will He verify it on 
 the other hand. — Like as I have brought, etc. 
 Comp. xxxi. 28. — Ver. 43. And fields, etc. Re- 
 turn to the historical point of departure. Comp. 
 ver. 15. — In the land of Benjamin. Comp. 
 xvii. 26; xxxiii. 13. Benjamin is mentioned not 
 because Anathoth belonged to this tribe, but be- 
 cause the tribes of Benjamin and Judah consti- 
 tuted the Jewish kingdom. Benjamin as the 
 smaller part of this kingdom is named only in ge- 
 neral, while Judah as the main part is charac- 
 terized according to its chief constituents, as they 
 are also enumerated elsewhere. (Comp. besides 
 loc. cit. Josh. X. 40; Jud. i. 40). ["The New 
 Testament mentions the sale of lands in Judea 
 in Apostolic times, when Jerusalem was about to 
 be destroyed, and the church was to be planted 
 in all the world (Acts iv. 34; v. 4)." Words- 
 worth. — S. R. A.] 
 
CHAP. XXXIII. 1-3. 
 
 289 
 
 II. CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 Promise of the most glorious future given at a moment -when the destruction of Je- 
 rusalem by its own inhabitants in the interest of defence ^w■as already begun. 
 
 1. Brief transition: Summons to new prayer in the sense of xxxii. 16-25, and Promise of a Hearing. 
 
 XXXIII. 1-3. 
 
 1 Moreover the word of the Lord came unto Jeremiah the second time, while he 
 was yet shut up in the court of the prison, saying, 
 
 2 Thus saith Jehovah, who does it, 
 
 Jehovah, who prepares it, to complete it, — Jehovah is His Name, 
 
 3 Call upon Me, and I will answer thee, 
 
 And will announce to thee great and hidden things that thou knewest not. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The prophet, still in the court of the prison, re- 
 ceives a second time a revelation of an exceedingly 
 comforting character. It is introduced by some 
 words of Jehovah, which set forth His power to 
 carry out his thouglits (ver. 2), as well as His 
 readiness to aflFord the prophet on his request a 
 glimpse into the great facts of the future, which 
 the Lord intends to accomplish, notwithstanding 
 that they are now regarded as impossible (ver. 3). 
 Some would consider these words a later addition, 
 because they cannot distinguish Jeremiah's style 
 in tliem (Graf). But Graf himself has shown in 
 opposition to Movers and Hitzig that the style of 
 the alleged Isaiah II. is not seen in these verses, 
 that rather the main elements (ppn, X'^p of 
 calling upon God, 1017 mH'') accord well with 
 the style of Jeremiah. I add that 11>'\ in the 
 sense of " forming thoughts," is found pTr.allcl 
 with n^lJ/no 3tyn in Jer. xviii. 11. The expres- 
 sion nti/j?, as far as the meaning of the verb 
 goes, has noihing gpecilic about it, and the neu- 
 tral signiliuiition of tlie t'emiuiue sufiBx is not for- 
 eign to ihesLyle of Jeremiah, iv. 28; xiii. 17. — On 
 
 riwlJ, etc., vid. infra. — What might most make 
 
 the impression of a style differing from that of 
 Jeremiah is this Introduction in itself, and espe- 
 cially the peculiar turn of ver. 3 : Call upon me, 
 and I will answer, etc. — But we must here well 
 observe that these words are occasioned by the 
 prayer of the prophet in xxxii. 16-25. The pro- 
 phet had indeed already received an answer to 
 this prayer in xxxii. 26-44. But he is here ad- 
 monished to approach the Lord more frequently 
 with such petitions. The God, who has the powei- 
 to carry out His determinations, is ready and 
 willing to afford him a glance into His great 
 thoughts of the future. A proof of this imme- 
 diately follows. Consequently the verses, xxxiii. 
 1-3, form a bridge of connection bi'tween clih. 
 xixii. and xxxiii. In the admonitiou to pray 
 ID 
 
 more frequently they point back to the previous 
 context and prepare by the promise I will an- 
 nounce, etc., for the following disclosures. 
 
 Vers. 1-3. Moreover the w^ord . . . knew- 
 est not. — Who does it. This passage both in 
 the thought and the words reminds us of Isa. 
 xlvi. 11. — Jehovah is his name. Comp. x. Ifi; 
 xxxi. 35; xxxii. 18. In the name of Jehovah 
 lies the guarantee of His action. For what He 
 is called He is. — And I will announce. It 
 might here be asked whether the prophet is pro- 
 mised an insight into the inner connection of the 
 
 divine arrangements (in the same sense as T-IH 
 
 is used of the solution of riddles, Jud. xiv. 12- 
 14), or only a view of facts. I believe that the 
 two are to be connected. The innermost grounds 
 of the divine action are a secret to the prophet 
 as to the angels (1 Pet. i. 11, 12). When however 
 the Lord shows the prophet a chain of facts, it 
 can not only be evident to him what will happen, 
 but also how one thing follows from another. 
 Tliis may have taken place in only a limited de- 
 gree, yet it furnished the prophet with a bridge 
 of connection between the past and the present. 
 Hidden things, Pni*:}. In Isa. xlviii. 6 we 
 read Dnin"' K7I n'll.^JI. The resemblance is un- 
 
 mistakable. The whole connection of the pas- 
 s ige renders it incredible that the words in Isaiah 
 are a quotation, they must therefore be so here. 
 
 The reading here, miVS, may be due to a criti- 
 cal error (3 for J), especially as the word does 
 not occur elsewhere iu this altered sense. It is 
 always used elsewhere of walls or cities (Num. 
 xiii. 28; Deut. i. 28; ix. 1; Josh. xiv. 12, etc.). 
 Meanwhile it is also conceivable that the prophet 
 may have written ^11^3. He frequently modi- 
 fies the words which he quotes. This might 
 take place the more easily as the related pas- 
 sage, Isa. xxxvii. 26, may at the same time have 
 hovered before his mind. nni>3 is not in itsell 
 inappropriate, as it may signify " secluded, 
 separate, inaccessible." 
 
290 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 2. Destruction in the Present. ^Nevertheless glorious Internal and External Rebuilding in the Future. 
 
 XXXIII. 4-9. 
 
 4 For thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel, 
 Concerning the houses of this city, 
 
 And concerning the houses of the kings of Judah, 
 
 Which were thrown down against the ramparts and against the sword, 
 
 5 Which are come to fight against the Chaldeans,^ 
 And to fill them with the dead bodies of men. 
 Whom I have slain in my anger and in my fury, 
 
 And for all whose wickedness I have hid my face from this city: 
 
 6 Behold, I bring it health^ and cure, and heal them, 
 
 And reveaP unto them an abundance* of peace and truth. 
 
 7 And I turn the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel, 
 And build them as in the beginning. 
 
 8 And I cleanse them from all their guilt, with which they have sinned against me, 
 And pardon all their transgressions, with which they have sinned and transgressed* 
 
 against me. 
 
 9 And it [the city] shall be to me a name of joy, 
 
 A praise and an honor before^ all the nations of the earth, 
 Who shall hear all the good that I do unto them ;'' 
 Aud shall tremble and quake on account of all the goodness, 
 And on account of all the prosperity, that I procure unto it. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 lYer. 5. — ("Ul Dn/Hv D^X3- This passage is a difBcult one. Movers and HiTzia strike out D'J<3 entirely, after the 
 
 ■ T 
 
 example of the LXX., by which the sense certainly becomes easy. But how can this difficult word have got into the text ? 
 EwALD emends D''N3 3Tn into □'"Jinn, which he takes, after Kzek. xxvi. 9, in the sense of " heavy siege weapons, 
 
 • T •.• '.■ • T -: ~ 
 
 artillery." But the plural of 3^11 is never D''3Tn. Meier reads D'X3 3'inn, and translates "and against the desola- 
 
 • T -: ■ T • -; - 
 
 tiuii uf tlie invaders." Both this use of the infinitive, however, and the mode of expression (the ramparts are erected by 
 the invaders not lor the purpose of hinderitiR the desolation of tlio invaders^ render the altenition STispicious. If we adhere 
 to the text the question is, To what does Q'XB I'efer ? It has been referred to the Chaldeans {vejiiuid ad pugnandum Chaldsti, 
 
 • r 
 De Bieu, Schnubreb, Rosenicueller). In this case, however, J^X would be nota nominativi, which ia impossible. Comp. 
 
 Naf.gelsb. Gr., g 69, 1, Anm. 1.— Others refer it to the .Tews. So Jerome, Chald., Syr., Seb. Schmidt, Venema, .T. D. Michaelis, 
 and these translate either veniunt or venieatium, referring D'N3 to the persons implied in the city. In the first case there 
 
 • T 
 
 is no subject designated, and in the second the connection with ')i) T^Tl T\2 is very harsh, apart from the circumstance 
 
 that the expression D'8<3 is not appropriate to the inhabitants of the city, and that DXvIO 7 presents great difficulty 
 
 • r T : - : 
 
 with regard both to the suffix and the prefix. As the text now stands, we can take Q'X^ only as co-ordinate with □'Jfrijri 
 
 in second apposition to D'n3- The absence of the article is certainly not normal, but yet not without analogy. Comp. ii. 27 ; 
 
 * T 
 
 X. 12, 23 ; Ps. civ. 2-4; cxxxv. 7 ; Zech. xii. 1 ; Naegelsb. Gr.,i 97, 2 a. , 
 
 2 Ver. G. — On HD^i^ comp. Comm. on viii. 22. The suffi.ves in DTINST and DH / refer to the same object as the suffix 
 
 . T\ -: • T : VT 
 
 in n V, i. e. to the holy city. It is the same construciio ad sensum as in D''N3. See rems. on this. 
 
 8 Ver. G. — ' jT'vJI. In itself there is nothing to hinder this word from being derived from Till, to reveal. Yet compa- 
 rison with ^r\''73, xi. 20; xx. 12, leads us to think that the form may be traced to 77J, to roll (Hitzig), or with FuERST to 
 nbj II-, synonymous with S^J- Comp. Am. v. 24; Isa. xlviii. 18; Ixvi. 12. 
 
 TT 
 
 * Ver. G.— j"\1 j"\j; is air. key. For the verb comp. Prov. xxvii. 6 ; Ezek. xxxv. 13. 
 
 * Ver. 8. — ^'dii radically means : to break, from which is developed the meaning : to revolt. It is stronger than K£3ri. 
 
 •^ - T - T 
 
 IK'X is the accusative of the instrument. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 70, i. 
 
 « Ver. 9. — 737. The preposition as in "'Yyl, xxviii. 1, 5, 11 ; xxxii. 12. Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., g 112, 5, b. e. 
 
 1 Ver. 9.— nmX may stand for HjIK (i. IG), but it may also be the accusative of the object. Comp. Naeqelsb. Gt., g 69, 2 d. 
 
 EXEOETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 In conaection with the view which the city of 
 Jerusalem then aflforded, with many houses 
 
 thrown down in the interest of defence (vers. 4, 
 5), the prophet promises the city healing and 
 peace (ver. 6), the return of all the exiles, re- 
 storation (ver. 7) and forgiveness of all sin (ver. 
 8j. Jeliovah will again make Jerusalem the ob- 
 
CHAP. XXXIII. 4-9. 
 
 294 
 
 ject of His joy and His glory in view of all the 
 nations of the earth, who will be most powerfully 
 impressed by this marvel of restoration to peace 
 and prosperity (ver. 9). 
 
 Vers. 4, 5. For thus saith Jehovah . . . 
 from this city. By for at the beginning of 
 ver. 4 the prophet introduces the specification of 
 the great and wonderful facts of redemption 
 promised in general in vers. 2, 3. This ^2 is 
 
 thus the key of the whole chapter. — Concern- 
 ing the houses. From .Isa. xxii, 10 we see 
 thac houjes were ihrowu down in sieges, to re- 
 pair or strengthen the walls. It was natural 
 that tliose houses should be used for this purpose 
 which were nearest the walls, whether private 
 or royal property, and it is unnecessary, with 
 HiTziG, to explain tlie prominence of the royal 
 hou'^es from the greater ease in obtaining them 
 or the superiority of their materials. It is clear 
 that we cannot render for ramparts and for 
 sword, for in the first place, as has been repeat- 
 edly remarked, the Hebrew does not signify 
 ramparts of defence but of attack (comp. xxxii. 
 24; vi. G; 2 Sam. xx. 15; 2 Ki. xix. 32; Ezek. iv. 
 2; xvii. 17; xxi. 27 ; xxvi. 8 ; Dan. xi. 15), and in 
 the second place, /or sword would not be appro- 
 priate. We are not justified in rendering this 
 singular in any other than the usual sense, espe- 
 cially as it is not at all certain that the plural 
 ni3in, Ezek. xxvi. 9, has any other than the 
 
 usual meaning. Comp. Haevernick, in loc. — 
 To take 7X for 7 and to attribute a causal mean- 
 ing to it so that it is equivalent to through, is 
 altogether arbitrary. It cannot be urged that 
 the prophet here speaks of all the houses of Je- 
 rusalem as being destroyed. Jeremiah only 
 takes occasion, in a view of the houses destroyed 
 in behalf of the defence, to set over against this 
 gloomy picture of the present, which certainly 
 was the prelude of entire destruction, the most 
 
 glorious picture of the future restored city. /X 
 is here therefore:^against. — Sword is evidently 
 used by synecdoche for all manual weapons, 
 while the ramparts also include the machines 
 erected upon them, so that these two words com- 
 prise the totality of the implements of attack. 
 Comp. Ezek. xxi. 24, 25. — Which are come, 
 etc. Comp. Textual Notes. As the text now 
 stands it is declared of the houses that they are 
 come (1) to fight with the Chaldeans, (2) to fill 
 tliem [viz., the houses) with corpses. Now 
 though the first may be said, in so far as by a bold 
 hyperbole, the houses thrown down would be 
 designated as moved forward into line of battle 
 and taking part in the fray, still the second is in 
 the highest degree surprising. For how can the 
 houses come to fill them with corpses ? This 
 "them" must either denote thcmselrcs, which 
 would be grammatically and logically incorrect^ 
 or it must be referred to the other houses, which 
 would be doing violence to it, seeing that the 
 other houses have not been previously mentioned. 
 Then also the fiUiiiff, etc., must be regarded as the 
 unintended result, which seems forced. Since, 
 then, the present text proves to be incapable of 
 
 giving us a satisfactory sense, nothing ''urther i? 
 left us but to resort to an ercendation. We have 
 mentioned in the Textual Notes attempts al- 
 ready made, none of which, however, meet with 
 our approval. Perhaps it would be better to 
 read Jerusalem (xxxvii. 10), or to Jerusalem 
 (xxxiv. 1-7 coll. xxxii. 24, 29) instead of tht 
 Chaldeans. Then the words are come would refer 
 to ramjjarts and sivord. The circumstance that 
 these substantives are feminine is of no account. 
 For the masculine come may be referred Kara 
 a'vveaiv to the persons, to whom the ramparts and 
 sword serve as implements. (Comp. Naegelsb. 
 Gr., I GO, 4).— Them alter fill would then be 
 referred to the idea of houses, which is promi- 
 nent enough in ver. 4 to justify such a construc- 
 tion. Perhaps also we might real to fill it 
 
 (comp. n? ver. 6). The alteration into the 
 
 Chaldeans might be explained by the difficulty 
 of understanding are come of the ramparts and 
 sword, and by the idea that it might refer to the 
 houses of the city or their inhabitants. Perhaps 
 also the remembrance of xxxii. 5 may have as ■ 
 sisted in this. Meanwhile I confess that I per- 
 ceive the difficulties attending tliis conjecture 
 also, and therefore will gladly receive better in- 
 struction. 
 
 Vers. 6, 7. Behold I bring ... as in the 
 beginning. In opposition to tearing down in 
 ver. 4 the prophet promises bandages or healing, 
 instead of filling with corpses he promises cure. 
 — Peace and truth, i. e. genuine, lasting pros- 
 perity. Comp. xiv. 13; Ps. Ixxxv. 11. — Build 
 them. Comp. xxiv. 6; xxxi. 4. The expres- 
 sion is chosen with reference to the occasion of 
 the prophecy, ver. 4. Yet the idea is not to be 
 taken merely in the narrower sense. — As in the 
 beginning. The phrase is used proleptically, 
 comp. ver. 11. It is not the building which is 
 compared with the building of the beginning, 
 but the result of the building is compared with 
 the original state of things. Comp. besides Isa. 
 i. 26; 1 Ki. xiii. 6. 
 
 Vers. 8, 9. And I cleanse . . . procure 
 unto it. In ver. 8 the internal, heart-restora- 
 tion is described. Comp. xxxi. 18-20, 34. — 
 "Which they have sinned. Comp. Zeph. iii. 
 11. — Ver. y. And it shall be. The subject is 
 
 the city. Comp. H? ver. 6. — A name of joy 
 ptyr W, which reminds us of \\t''a pp^ (Ps. xlv 
 8; Isa. Ixi. 3), is joyful renown, renown which 
 brings joy. On the subject-matter comp. xiii. 
 11; Zeph. iii. 19,20; Deut. xxvi. 19.— Before 
 all the nations. How far Jerusalem will ex- 
 tend the Lord's glory among the nations is de- 
 clared in the following clause. The view of all the 
 good which the Loi-d is preparing for Jerusalem 
 will fill them with dread. At any rate with a 
 wholesome fear, for after they have in their ter- 
 ror perceived that they have neglected the al- 
 mighty and benevolent Ood for vain idols, they 
 will turn again to the former. Comp. Num. xiv. 
 13-15; Deut. xxix. 24; Isa. ii. 2-4; xi. 10; xix- 
 17. 
 
292 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 8. The glorious City-life of the Future. 
 XXXIII. 10, 11. 
 
 10 Thus saith Jehovah, Again shall be heard in this place, 
 Of which ye say, It is desolate without man and beast — 
 
 In the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, which are desolate, 
 Without man, without inhabitant and without beast — 
 
 11 The voice of joy and the voice of gladness, 
 
 The voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, 
 
 The voice of those who say. Praise Jehovah Zebaoth, 
 
 For Jehovah is good, for his mercy endureth forever ! — 
 
 Who bring thank-offerings into the house of Jehovah. 
 
 For I will reverse the captivity of the land as at the beginning, saith Jehovah. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 After, in the previous context, the restoration 
 in general, viz. of the city and the state, had 
 been promised on the basis of inward purifica- 
 tion, the prophet now becomes more specific ; 
 city and country are again to be peopled and to 
 become the theatre of ioyous civil and religious 
 life. 
 
 Vers. 10, 11. Thus saith . . . Jehovah. 
 The subject of shall be heard is the voice of 
 joy, etc., ter. 11. — This place is the land 
 
 (comp. ver. 12; xxiv. 5; xvi. 3; vii. 7) as is 
 seen from the following "in the cities of Judah," 
 etc.- — Of wjiich ye say. Comp. xxxii. 36, 43. 
 ■Without man, etc. Comp. vers. 32, 43. — The 
 voice, etc. Comp. vii. 84; xvi. 9; xxv. 10: 
 Zech. viii. 4, 5. — Praise Jehovah. A frequent 
 liturgical formula of thanksgiving in the later 
 period. Ps. cvi. .1 ; cvii. 1 ; cxviii. 1-3; cxxxvi. 
 1-3; Ezr. iii. 11; 2 Chron. v. 13; vii. 3, etc.— 
 Who bring, etc. Comp. rems. on xvii. 26 ; Ps. 
 Ivi. 13. — For I will reverse, etc. Comp. rems 
 on xxiz. 14. 
 
 4. The Glorious Country-life of the Future. 
 XXXIII. 12-13. 
 
 12 Thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth, Again will there be in this place, 
 Which is desolate, without man and beast,^ 
 
 And in all its cities a habitation [or pasture] 
 Of shepherds causing their flocks to lie down. 
 
 13 In the cities of the mountain, in the cities of the plain. 
 And in the cities of the south and in the land of Benjamin, 
 And in the environs of Jerusalem and in the cities of Judah, 
 
 The sheep will again pass under the hands of him that numbereth them, saith 
 Jehovah. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 12. — nOn3~li'1 mX rXiD. TIip construction here is instead of rX731 in ver. 10. "^^ expresses the idea 
 of an all-cjiubracing comiileteness, even to the extremest limits (comp. Gen. vi. 7 ; vii. 23 ; Num. viii. 4). '\^) requires the 
 supplementation of a corresponding verbal idea : ex. gr. 1 Sam. xviii. 4 13in ^_J'1, ei ita perrexit usque ad, etc. — Where 
 ^J?^~}0 occurs there is a confounding of two constructions. Comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., Jill, 1. — In the passage under con- 
 Bideratioa '\^\ ^eems to have arisen from the JQ in TKD, which reminds us of the JO in constructions like "y^) jlCOpQ 
 
CHAP. XXXIII. 14-18. 
 
 293 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The prophet passes from the relations of the 
 city to those of the country, the breeding of cattle 
 will again flourish throughout the laml. — This 
 place Comp rems. on ver. 10. — Habitation 
 of shepherds. Comp. rems. on xxiii. 3 — On 
 ver. 13. Comp. xxxii. 44. — Under the hands. 
 The expression designates the relation of the 
 Lord, invested with full authority, to the person 
 or thing given into His power, which is repre- 
 sented as on or in His hand, so that He can do 
 with it according to His own pleasure. Comp. v. 
 31; xviii. 21; Job xvi. 11; 1 Cbroa. xxv. 2; 
 iii. 6. So also here. The sheep pass or enter 
 past, "on the hands," i. e., as objects of which 
 the uumberer is bound to take notice. We are not 
 to understand it as meaning guidance and pro- 
 tection in general. The expression numberetb 
 
 (nJlD) which occurs here only iu this sense 
 
 ' (comp. besides Ps. cxlvii. 4), is not used by 
 chance, and therefore not to be identified with 
 n^n. It is to be emphasized that the sheep will 
 have necessarily to be numbered. When there are 
 a few sheep only, so that, they can be surveyed 
 with a glance, tliis is unnecessary The whole 
 connection of this passage forbids us to suppose 
 tliat tlie prophet here, as in xxiii. 3, 4, malies 
 use of figurative language to portray the pros- 
 perity of Israel as Joiiov.ih's flock. He describes 
 ♦he joyful future as including all mental and 
 spiritual well-being (comp. xxxii. 38-40 ; xxxiii. 
 8), but always on a corporeal and realistic basis. 
 Comp. Deut. xxviii. 8-5; xxx. 9. [So also 
 Wordsworth, who refers to Job x. 3 and 3 John 
 14, " Greet the friends by name." Hitzio how- 
 ever says "Literally, after the hand, acknowledg- 
 ing each by a movement. They were numbered 
 to control the shepherd, regularly and doubtless 
 twice (ViRO. Eclog., iii. 34), on being driven out 
 and on returning home." — S. R. A.] 
 
 5. Tht Glorious Ji.in^dom and Priesthood of the Future. 
 XXXIII. 14-18. 
 
 14 Behold me days are coming, saitli Jehovah, that I will fulfil 
 
 The good word that I have spoken of the house of Israel and the house of Judah. 
 
 15 In those days and that time will I cause' 
 
 The sprout of righteousness to spring to David, 
 
 And he shall execute'* justice and righteousness in the land. 
 
 16 In those days will Judah be saved and Jerusalem dwell safely, 
 And this will be her name, Jehovah our Righteousness.' 
 
 17 For thus saith Jehovah, a man shall never be wanting to David, 
 Who may sit upon the throne of the house of Israel. 
 
 18 And to tiie priests, the Levites,a man shall not be wanting before me, 
 Who may offer burnt-offerings and kindle meat-offerings, 
 
 And offer sacrifices continually. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND -GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 15.— n''OyX. In xxiii. 5 we find TID''pni. The former corresponds better with the following PIDV while the 
 reading in xxiii. 5 is occasioned by the preceding "'r\b"'pn, ver. 4. Instead of DH^ i-X we have here Hpn^ ^'^, but the 
 
 meaning is the same. The change shows in this case, as iu that -of most other differences, merely that the prophet quotes 
 freely from memory. , . i 
 
 2 Ver. 15— '•Ul ntyj^l. Before these words 7''3ty^|!| I'vO "Hra^ is omitted. No essential alteration of the sense la 
 
 thus produced, for the royal nature of. the riDS i' c!ea«- even, Usides this passage, from vers. 17, 21, "26. 
 
 3 Ver. 16.— The divergence of this passage from xxiii. 6, which is very troublesome to many of the old expositors, they 
 seek either to paralyze by taking HI as a nominative referring to nD!f=and he who will call it (the Ecclesia. New Testa- 
 
 metU) is Jehovah, our righteousness (Forstee) — or by supplying K^H after HT and taking X'^p^ as passive and ^17 as 7 
 
 auctoris, and he is the one who the city of Jerusalem will be called : the Lord, who is our righteousness (Ce.\mer). 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Passing from the general to the particular, fl)e 
 circumference to the centre, the prophet furtlier 
 declares with respect to the hippy future, that 
 in it the promise previously announced will be 
 fulfilled (ver. 4), a sprout of righteousness shall 
 
 spring from the stock of David, who will restore 
 justice and righteousness in the land (ver. 15), 
 and by whom Judah and Jerusalem will be raised 
 to such a iieight of prosperity that the laiter will 
 actually bear the name "Jehovah our Righteous- 
 ness " (ver. 16). The race of David shall never 
 die out (ver. 17), nor the priestly tribe of Levi 
 and the priestly service ever cease. 
 
29i 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 Vers. 14-16. Behold^ the days . . . our 
 Righteousness. Wluit is "the good word" in 
 ver. 14? The expression occurs besides in Jere- 
 miah only in xxix. 10. There it refers, as is 
 evident from the mention of the seventy years, to 
 XXV. 11. If the expres.sion is to be taken there 
 in a sjiecial sense, so also here. For here we 
 have a still plainer reference to a former promise 
 (xxiii. 5,0). The reference to the general sal- 
 vation, i. e., to the most universal manifestation 
 of salvation is thus not excluded. Though this 
 view is favored by the circumstance that the pro- 
 phet, as already remarked, proceeds in this 
 chapter from the general to the special, yet the 
 special salvation, to which ver. 15 sqq. refer, is 
 the central point comprising all that has been 
 said hitherto, being a condition of all silv.ition 
 in the widest sense. Hengsenberg incorrectly 
 
 accentuates the two prepositions /X and 7j/. Ac- 
 coi'ding to the usage of our prophet they are so 
 like each other in signification, that one fre- 
 quently stands for the other (comp. xxv. 1 coll. ; 
 vii. 1; xi. 1, etc. ; xxvi. 15), or by the side of the 
 other with absolutely identical meaning (xi. 2 ; 
 xviii. II; xxiii. 35; xxv. 2; xxvii. 19; xliv. 
 20). — Ver. 15. In those days, etc. In these 
 words the chronological statement in ver. 14 is 
 resumed after the interruption, so that in sense 
 this beginning coinciiles with that in xxiii. 5. The 
 addition and that time here as in 1. 4, 20 pos- 
 sesses a merely rhetorical significance. It serves 
 to render the declaration more solemn. The alter- 
 ation from in his days (xxiii. 0) is unimportant. 
 It is however important to note the change of 
 Israel into .Jerusalem, this being founded in the 
 connection of the chapter. While the general 
 object of the prophet, as is seen in ver. 14, is to 
 show that the comforting prophecy given in 
 former times, still holds good, notwithstanding 
 the comfortless circumstances in which Jerusa- 
 lem then was, being sorely pressed by the Chal- 
 deans, yet he cannot avoid somewhat modifying 
 the prophecy in accordance with the present 
 occasion. This occasion according to ver. 4 is 
 the sight of the houses thrown down in defence. 
 In view of this mournful spectacle he had in vers. 
 6, 7 to promise healing of wounds, rebuilding of 
 the city. He has also here the city of Jerusalem 
 especially in view, though he does not by any 
 means forget Israel, but on the contrary diligently 
 sets forth its share in the promise given to Judah 
 (ver. 14). Hence the alteration to Jertisalem. — 
 With this it is also connected that the last clause 
 states the name which Jernsalem will bear as a 
 3ignificant symbolical inscription. Comp. rems. 
 an xxiii. fj. 
 
 Vers. 17, 18. For thus saith Jehovah . . . 
 continually. The principal statement refers 
 neither to ver. 15 nor to ver. 10 exclusivel}', but 
 toboi'i. Improbable as it must then have ap- 
 peared .it the time of Zedekiah that the house of 
 David, which was reduced so low both inwardly 
 and outwardly, should send forth so excellent and 
 glorious a scion, equally so must the happy con- 
 dition promised to itie people in ver. 10 have ap- 
 peared. I'oth however are shown to be possible 
 by the announcement in ver. 17 of the everlasting 
 
 continuance of the house of David and of its do- 
 minion over Israel. Observe, moreover, that it 
 is not said on the throne of David nor 07i his throne 
 (ver. 21 ; xiii. 13 ; xxii. 4), but on the throne of 
 the house of Israel. The house of Israel is evi- 
 dently here the whole of Israel, and the eternal 
 duration of David's rule over it involves both the 
 inner and outer rejuvenescence of the Davidic 
 race, and the welfare of the people, which essen- 
 tially depends thereon, since it may be subjected 
 not to foreign rulers, but to their own native 
 royal family. ^A man shall never, etc. Comp. 
 XXXV. 19. The sense of the expression is not, 
 none shall ever be extirpated, but ever;/ one shall 
 never be extirpated, eo that none will be left. 
 Herein is thus primarily contained only the 
 promise of succession of rulers extending in per - 
 petuum. Hengstenberg, however, calls atten- 
 tion to the circumstance [ChristoL, S. 516) [Eng. 
 Tr., II., p. 404] that we are not to suppose a 
 "perfectly uninterrupted succession," but only 
 one that is not broken off entirely. The pro- 
 phet moreover reproduces almost verbatim the 
 ancient promise given to the house of David, 
 as it is repeated on the basis of 1 Sam. vii. 10, by 
 David in his parting words to Solomon (1 Kings 
 ii. 4), and afterwards by the latter himself at his 
 deilication of the temple (1 Kings viii. 25), and 
 finally by the Lord Himself in His renewed pro- 
 mise to Solomon (1 Kings ix. 5). — And to the 
 priests, etc. A second pillar on which rests the 
 redemption and secure continuance of Israel 
 (ver. 10) is the normal permanence of the national 
 priesthood. This is the Levitic. — The Levites 
 is therefore in apposition (comp. Deut. xvii. 9, 
 18 ; Josh. iii. 3 ; Ezck. xliv: 15 coll. Deut. xxi. 
 6). The descendants of Levi, who according to 
 the Mosaic law were alone eligible to the priest- 
 hood (Num. iii. 10; xvi. 40; xviii. 7), will be 
 opposed to others who might possibly assume the 
 priesthood to themselves. The question may 
 here arise how this promise of the eternal con- 
 tinuance of the Levitic priesthood is related to 
 other declarations, especially of the Epistle to the 
 Hebrews, according to which this Levitical priest- 
 hood as only an inferior stage is to give way to 
 a higher priesthood, viz., that after the order of 
 Melchizedek (Heb. vii.-ix. coll. Jer. iii. 10; Ps. 
 ex. 4). I believe that this question must be de- 
 cided according to the standard of Mutt. v. 17, 
 18. As not a tittle of the law is absolutely ab- 
 rogated, and thrown aside as worthless, but is 
 kept by being fulfilled and thus being elavated 
 to a higher potency, so also the Levitical priest- 
 hood being absorbed by a higher, is lost in its 
 outward, temporal and local form, but in its ideal 
 character is now first established. Hence the 
 expressions of this passage (as well as the re- 
 lated ones in Ezek. xl.-xlii.) neither contradict 
 former declarations of Jeremiah (asiii. 10; xxxi. 
 31-33), nor the doctrine of the Epistle to the He- 
 brews. Comp. rems. on ver. 22 and my review 
 of " Bai,.mkr-Rinck, The Prophet EzekieVs vision 
 of the Temple'' in Reuter's Repertorium, 1860, 
 ileft. in., S. 152.— "Who may offer, etc. Comp. 
 Exod. xxix. 18; Lev. i. 9, 17; ix. 10; Num. 
 xviii. 17, etc. — The three species of offerings are 
 mentioned also in xvii. 26; Num. xv. 3, 4. 
 
CHAP. XXXIII. 19-26. 
 
 295 
 
 6. The Kingdom and Priesthood of the Future eternal, 
 XXXIII. 19-26. 
 
 19, 20 And the word of Jehovah came to Jeremiah, saying, Thus saith Jehovah : 
 If ye will break my covenant^ of the day and my covenant of the night. 
 So that^ there shall not be day* nor night in their season ; ' 
 
 21 My covenant with David my servant shall also be broken, 
 So that he shall have* no son to be king on his throne, — 
 And with the Levites, the priests, who serve* me. 
 
 22 As® the host of heaven cannot be numbered, 
 Nor the sand of the sea measured. 
 
 So will I multiply the seed of David, my servant. 
 And the Levites who serve me.' 
 
 23 Moreover the word of Jehovah came to Jeremiah, saying : 
 
 24 Hast thou not seen,* what this people saith, 
 
 " The two families which Jehovah had chosen he has rejected ?"^ 
 And thus despise my people, that they are no more a nation before them [in then 
 sight.] 
 
 25 Thus saith Jehovah, If my covenant continue not day and night, 
 And I have not appointed the ordinances'" of heaven and earth; 
 
 26 Then will I reject the seed of Jacob, and David my servant. 
 
 That I will not take of his seed rulers over the seed of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob : 
 For I will reverse their captivity'^ and have mercy on them. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 20.— The •>— at the end of TinS is a suffix. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 63, 4 g. 
 
 2 Ver. 20.— The 1 before 'jl73 7=and indeed. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 111, a, and Jer. Ti. 2 ; xvii. 10 ; xix. 12 ; xxv. 9 ; 
 
 xxvi. 5. 
 
 3 Ver. 20.— DdV is used as a substantive in the sense of DT hero and in ver. 25 only. In Ezek. xxx. 16 it=quotidie. 
 
 Comp. Din ri^/P' Prov. xxvi. 2. Haeverotck on Ezek., S. 515, 6.— Since DO'V according to all analogies is an old nomi- 
 nal form (comp. Oi.sh. § 222, h), it is possible that for the sake of solemnity Jeremiah made use of this old form without re- 
 gard to tilt! adverbial signification which had become usual. 
 
 * Ver. 21.— nrnO- Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 106, 6. 
 
 6 Ver. 22.— 'jilt;; O- flit!? is the technical term for the ministration of the Levites and priests. Num. iii. 6; 1 Sam. 
 li. 11 ; Joel i. 9 ; ii. 17 ; 2 Chron. xiii. 10, etc. Comp. Herzog, R.-Enc, XII , § 175, 6. 
 
 6 Ver. 22. — lU^K is here used accusatively, i. e., adverbially for Tt^XD. Comp. Isa. liv. 9. 
 
 7 Ver. 22.— TIX "'JTIK'O- Comp. Ewald, g 288, a; Naegelsb. Gr.," g 64, 5 c. 
 
 8 Ver. 24. — jTXI X/H- In Ezekiel this idiom is frequent, viii. 12, 15, 17 co!l. ver. 6 ; xlvii. 6. Comp. also Jer. iii. 6 
 coll. vii. 17 This use of nXT by synecdoche, is like thatinv. 12; Lam. iii. 1; Gen. xlii. 1, coll. 2. 
 
 9 Ver. 24.— QOXO'I- Comp. vi. 19; Naeoelsu. Gr., ^ SS, 7 e. 
 
 10 Ver. 25. — jllpn. In xxxi 36, □''pn. Comp.xxxii.il. The former is more usual in Jeremiah, — v. 24; x. 3; xxxi. 
 35 ; xliv. 10, 23. I I 
 
 11 Ver. '.46. — ^IC'X- Only in xl. 39 besides do we find in Jeremiah the imperfect Kal in this formula. It also occurs in 
 
 • T 
 
 Joel iv. 1. Elsewhere, where the thought is expressed in the imperfect, we find the imperfect Hiphil. (N. B. The Perf. Hiph. 
 occurs also xxxiii. 7), xxxii. 44 ; xxxiii. 11 ; xlix. 6 ; hzek. xxxix. 25. The Masoretes would therefore, and probably not in.' 
 correctly, read ^'l^X in these three places also. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The preceding sectioi* concluded with the word 
 " continually." The idea thus briefly intimated, 
 of a perpetual duration of the promised blessing, 
 forms the main thought in what follows. As it 
 does not lie within the power of man to break 
 the covenant of the Lord, which ensures the 
 ehange of day and night, so also the covenant is 
 
 not to be broken which guarantees the perpetual 
 succession of Davidic kings and Levitical priests 
 (vers. 19-21). A natural guarantee of this dura- 
 tion will be given by the innumerable increa.>-e 
 of the royal and priestly seed (ver. 22). In op- 
 position to the presumptuous speech that Jehovah 
 had chosen .Judah and Israel and yet afterwards 
 rejected them, which contains both a complaint 
 against the Lord and a despising of the people 
 (vers. 23 and 24), the assurance is again given 
 
2y6 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 that so long as day and night, and the funda- 
 mental laws of heaTen and earth continue, so 
 long also will kings of Jacob's and David's race 
 rule over the seed of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. 
 Tlieir rejection is only temporary. The Lord 
 will turn the captivity of the people (vers. 25, 
 26). From this table of contents it is clear, that 
 vers. 19-26 are related to vers. 14 18, just as in 
 eh. XXXV. vers. 35-37, are to vers. 31-34. In 
 form and character the section fully accords with 
 th J character of the prophet, as will be seen from 
 a consiiliM-ation of the particulars. Hitzig's 
 view, which attributes the section to Ezekiel, is 
 deficient in any solid basis. We may indeed in- 
 fer from the introductory formulas (vers. 19 and 
 23), that the prophet received these revelations 
 separately, but not that they are disconnected 
 later additions, seeing that these formulas stand 
 in the middle between the large (comp. xxxii. 1), 
 and the small divisions (thus saith Jehovah). 
 Moreover this formula with to Jeremiah, is 
 found all along from ch. xxviii. ; xxviii. 12 ; 
 xxix. 30; xxxii. 26; xxxiii. 1, 19, 23; xxxiv. 
 12; XXXV. 12; xxxvi. 27; xxxvii. 6; xlii. 7; 
 xliii. 8. Previously we find tome; i. 4, 11; ii. 
 1; xiii. 3, 8; xvi. 1; xviii. 5; xxiv. 4. 
 
 Vers. 19-22. And the word . . . who serve 
 me. To break the covenant on which the changes 
 of day and night are founded, is not in the power 
 of man. For according to the divine promise 
 (Gen. viii. 22) in no circumstances, not even in 
 the case of an apostasy similar to that which oc- 
 casioned the flood, will any change take place in 
 the laws of nature, so long as the earth stands. In 
 these words it is certainly declared that the earth 
 will one day cease to exist, but it will then ac- 
 cording to the teaching of the Scriptures only 
 pass to a higher stage of existence (Isa. Ixv. 17; 
 Ixvi. 22; 2 Pet. iii. 13; Rev. xxi. 1), and this 
 transition is not an annulling of the promise 
 given to David, but only leads to a corresponding 
 transition to a higher stage of realization. — My 
 covenant of the day is the covenant which I 
 have concluded with respect to the day, whose 
 object is the day.— David my servant. Comp. 
 2 Sam. iii. 18; vii. 5, 8; Ezek. .xxxiv. 24, etc. — 
 These verses express substantially the same 
 thought as xxxi. 32-37. — As the host, etc. The 
 reference to the promise given to the patriarchs. 
 Gen. XV. 5; xxii. 17; xxxii. 13 is evident, and 
 corresponds with the mention of the same in ver. 
 26. FIengstenberq has pointed out with per- 
 fect justice that Jeremiah here by no means pro- 
 phesies an unlimited increase of the royal and 
 priestly posterity which, as Jahn remarks, would 
 be only a burden on the people. But in perfect 
 accordance with the declaration of the Lord, that 
 all Israel shall be a "kingdom of priests " (Exod. 
 xix. 6), and with the prophetic utterances {Isa. 
 Ixi. 0, "and ye shall be named ihe priests of Je- 
 hovali: men shall call you the Ministers of our 
 God;' Ixvi. 20, 21, "ana 1 will also take of them 
 to be priests and Levites [Levitic priests]"). 
 Jeremiah here declares that the threefold pro- 
 mise of 1. innumerable increase; 2. the priest- 
 ly and royal character of the whole people ; 3. 
 the everlasting continuance of kingdom and 
 priesthood, will form a grand harmonious chord. 
 If, as cannot be denied, Jeremiaii has in view 
 ».hat time, in which all that is ideal will be real, 
 
 his words cannot (whether he was conscious of 
 it or not, is a matter of indifl'erence), express 
 anything else but this; the priestly and royal 
 seed will be innumerable, because the whole 
 nation having now become innumerable, will con- 
 sist according to its original and essential idea 
 of priests and kings. The innumerousness of the 
 people, which was never actual even in the times 
 of the highest prosperity (comp. 2 Sam. xxiv. 9) 
 rests on the inclusion of the whole of regenerate 
 humanity (Isa. Ixvi. 20). 
 
 Vers. 23-26. Moreover the w^ord . . . have 
 mercy on them. In the preceding verses (20- 
 22) was positively declared the eternal duration 
 of the covenant which Jehovah has concluded 
 with the theocratic kingdom and priest liuod; in 
 the following verses this declaration is defended 
 against a malicious attack. — It is altogether 
 wrong to understand by "this people," foreign 
 nations (Schnurreb understands Egypt, Jahn 
 Chaldean warriors. Movers Samaritans, Hitziq 
 the neighbors oi Xhe Jews and of Ezekiel on the 
 Chaboras). It was surely not worth the trouble 
 to rebut such an assertion, if it were made by 
 the heathen. Their judgment had no weighf in 
 such a case. But when Israelites, who ought to 
 know the relation of their nation to the Lord, 
 subscribed to such pessimism, a counter-testi- 
 mony was in place. — It is evident that Judah and 
 Israel are meant by the two families. It is clear 
 both from the following phrase "my people," 
 and "seed of Jacob," and "seed of Abraham, 
 e<c.," ver. 26. nnSi^rD is often used in Jeremiah 
 
 T T : • 
 
 of national races; i. 15; x. 25; xxv. 9 — And 
 thus despise, VXJ is here "cum irrisione sper- 
 
 nere,''' as in general the idea of rejection, rejection 
 with disdain, is related to that of contempt. Comp. 
 xiv. 21 where 33Jn is used as synonymous with 
 yxjn. These Jews thus pronounce on their own 
 responsibility, without any occasion on the part 
 of the Lord, a sentence of rejection upon their 
 nation, thus on the one hand insulting God, as 
 though He were inconsistent, on the other their 
 nation, as though it were only good enough to 
 be the foot-ball of its Lord's caprice. — A na- 
 tion before them. From xxxi. 36 coll. xxxv. 
 19 we see that 1, " to be a nation " signifies na- 
 tional existence in opposition to division and 
 scattering of the constituents of the nation ; 2. 
 that "before them " is not to be taken in a tem- 
 poral but a physical sense; i. e., they maintain 
 that they will no longer be witnesses of that na- 
 tional existence, that their eyes will no longer be 
 gratified by the sight of such prosperity — If my 
 covenant, etc. Comp. xxxi. 35, 37. The charge 
 is rebutted by an appeal to th^e guarantee in- 
 volved in the order of nature. Is this more firmly 
 established than the order of salvation? To 
 supplement if by the following have appointed, 
 as in 2 Sam. xxiii. 5, seems to me forced. If we 
 
 do not wish^ to take X'S according to Job vi. 21 as 
 a substantive, it is sufficient to regard it as a 
 negative particle: if my covenant is not daily 
 and nightly, /. e., has no real, permanent exis- 
 tence. — Then will I reject the seed, etc. Ob- 
 serve that the charge in ver. 24 involved the 
 rejection of both tribes. With a view to this, 
 "seed of Jacob " is placed first as the main con- 
 
CHAP. XXXIII. 19-26. 
 
 297 
 
 ception, "and David my servant" is inserted, 
 because if the charge were well-founded, the pro- 
 mise in vers. 17, 18 would also fall to the ground. 
 Since now, however, the seed of Jacob is to re- 
 main in possession of his promise, the basis is 
 thus given for the preservation of the seed of 
 David. The priests are no longer spoken of 
 specially, being included in the seed of Jacob. 
 The prophet lays special emphasis on the seed of 
 David, because in ver. 15 he started with this 
 idea as the security and central point of the 
 theocracy. He then connects this idea with that 
 of the seed of Jacob by saying that there shall 
 never fail a descendant of David to rule over the 
 seed of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. In naming 
 the three patriarchs he throws new weight into 
 the scale in favor of the nation. Not only Jacob, 
 but Isaac and Abraham also must have lost favor 
 in the sight of God, if He reject their seed. They, 
 however, are dear for the fathers' sake (Rom. 
 xi. 28, 29 coll. i. 2, 16). Comp. Exod. ii. 24, 
 25; xxxii. 13; Lev. xxvi. 42; 2 Kings xiii. 23; 
 Ps. cv. 8-10; Isa. xli. 8. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On xxxii. 3. "An effect of anger and a pro- 
 cedure almost like that of Ahab with the prophet 
 Micah. The same spirit prevails now-a-days. 
 For without entering on an investigation, with 
 what right or reason men are found who often in 
 pretty general e.xpressions in a call to repentance, 
 borrow from the prophet all sorts of judicial 
 threatening and point to this or that city, we 
 cannot avoid seeing why they are always put in 
 arrest, viz.: for this cause, 'Why dost thou pro- 
 phesy what we do not like to hear?' When one 
 is sure of his cause, a noble disdain of such peo- 
 ple would be the best means to use against them. 
 But men cannot bear a bad conscience and 
 threaten! ngs of all sorts together, and the fear 
 that it may be true has the foolish effect, that 
 they cause the bearers of such unpleasant tidings 
 to come to a bad end, in order to affright others 
 from coming with similar messages." Zinzen- 
 
 DORF. 
 
 2. On xxxii. 7 sqq. '■'■ Fundatur in hoc textu lo- 
 cus classicus de contractibus emiionis et venditionis, 
 guos improhanl Anabaplistse, probnt Scriptura, sicut 
 ostenditnt hsfc quee jam sequuntur documenia: Prov. 
 xxxi. 14; Matt. xiii. 3." Forster. 
 
 3. On xxxii. 15. "The prophet had often 
 enougli declared the land lost to the Chaldeans. 
 Here, iiowever, he must testify that it is not lost 
 forever: his purchase was to restore confidence 
 in the future to other troubled souls. Thus the 
 most afflicted servant of God must again be the 
 most hopeful." — "When we are outwardly pros- 
 perous, we think no one can take our prosperity 
 from us, and when trouble comes upon us, we 
 again think that no one can help us. Both 
 courses are, however, equally ungodly. There- 
 fore God's servants must contradict both those 
 who are at ease, and those who are in dospair. 
 The reverse is always right. In good days lium- 
 ble thyself, and in bad days let thyself be exalted, 
 for then it is a great thing to do." Diedrich. 
 
 4. On xxxii. 9, 16, 24, 25. "Jeremiah also 
 contends, but as a servant of the Lord. First he 
 »beys and afterwards speaks about it. This is a 
 
 noble way, by which every teacher, who knows 
 the Lord, may prove himself. As soon as he ob- 
 serves that the Lord wishes this or that, it is not 
 the time to expostulate, but to act, not to call 
 anything in question, but to set to work. If 
 then any hesitation is left, or one and another 
 scruple, it is time afterwards to consult with the 
 Lord about it, when one has first shown obedi- 
 ence." ZiNZENUORF. ["Though we are bouud 
 to follow God with an implicit obedience, yet we 
 should endeavor that it may be more and more 
 intelligent obedience. We must never dispute 
 God's statutes and judgments, but we may and 
 must inquire. What mean these statutes and judg- 
 ments? Deut. vi. 20." Henry.— S. R. A.] 
 
 5. On xxxii. 25. Tertullian (c. Marc, L. IV., 
 c. 40) sees in the words " Buy thee the field for 
 money," the prophetic passage to which Matt, 
 xxvii. 9 refers, regarding the reading ' Is pe/ilov as 
 correct. Comp. Eusbb. Demonstr. Ev., L. X., c. 
 4; AuGUSTiN, De consensu Evang., L. III., c. 7. 
 
 6. On xxxii. 27. To God there is no wonder 
 [miracle]. There are wonders only on the lower 
 stage of existence. Every higher stage is a 
 wonder to the lower. Or is there only one stage 
 of existence, and accordingly only o?ie order of 
 nature? When the North American savages 
 cruelly murdered one of their number who had 
 been on a visit to the Great Father in Washing- 
 ton, and told them of the wonders of civilization, 
 as a demoniacally possessed liar, were they less 
 in the right than our highly civilized savages, 
 to whom it is a fundamental axiom, that there la 
 no other world, but that which they can reach 
 with their five senses ? It is certainly not proved 
 that there is a living, personal, omnipotent God. 
 But this is not to be proved, it is to be felt from 
 the heart. He who is born of God heareth His 
 voice. To him also miracles cease to be aught 
 irrational. He knows well how to distinguish 
 between true and false miracles, but the former 
 come to him like a voice from the higher world, 
 in which he feels truly at home. For the stages 
 of existence and orders of nature are not hermeti- 
 cally sealed towards each other, but the higher 
 break through in order to lift the lower up to 
 themselves. 
 
 7. On xxxii. 36 sqq. On the fulfilment of this 
 prophecy comp. the Comm. on xiii. 14, and the 
 Doctrinal notes on iii. 18-25, No. 8. As the 
 threatening that Israel should be dispersed among 
 all nations from one end of the earth to the other 
 (Deut. xxviii. 64 titi) has been literally fulfilled, 
 why should not this promise also be literally ful- 
 filled, that they shall be collected from all lands 
 whither the Lord has cast them out? Why can- 
 not this people be destroyed ' Why do they re- 
 tain their peculiarities with such tenacity, that 
 neither the most raging fanaticism, nor the most 
 humane cosmopolitanism, which is much more 
 dangerous than the former, can mingle them with 
 other nations ; so that we can fnUow the course 
 of their national stream through tht .^ea of na- 
 tions, as it is said of the Rhine that its water 
 flows unmingled through the lake of Constance? 
 Assuredly this people must yet have a future. 
 Only thus much is correct, that the real kernel 
 of these prophecies is offered to us in a shell 
 which the prophets prepared from contemporary 
 events, but it is difficult to determine where th« 
 
■2'.;.< 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 shell ceases and the kernel begins. Comp. Rinck, 
 The Scripluralness of the doctrine of the Millennial 
 reign defended against Hengstenbero. Eberfeld, 
 1866, S. 45 sqq. 
 
 8. Oa xxxii. 36 sqq. "Is the consummation of 
 the redemptive work possible while Israel is re- 
 jected as a nation ? According to the Old Testa- 
 ment this question must be unconditionally nega- 
 tived. This knows only a temporary rejection 
 of Israel, which at the same time has this result, 
 that Israel does not perish as a nation, but is 
 preserved for future restoration. Is this law 
 annulled since Israel despised the gracious visi- 
 tation of the Messiah, the kingdom of God taken 
 from them and given to a people which bring 
 forth the fruits thereof? Are thus the predic- 
 tions of the prophets, which treat of a glorifica- 
 tion of Israel in the latter days, eternally abro- 
 gated on account of the nation's sin? Or can 
 their fulfilment be found only in a spirit ual manner 
 in the Christian church, the main trunk of which 
 was formed by a chosen few from Israel ? These 
 questions are answered in the aflSrmative by Ber- 
 THEAU {Old Testament prophecy of Israel's nation- 
 al glory in their own land. Jahrb.f. deutsche Theol., 
 1859 and 1860) in accordance with the older pro- 
 testant theology (comp. especially Hollaz, Exam. 
 theolog. ed. Teller, p. 1264 sqq.) as decidedly as 
 according to our conviction they must, on the 
 ground of Rom. i. 25 sqq., be negatived. It 
 seems to us to be irrefragably established that 
 when the times of the world-nations are full 
 (Luke xxi. 24), Israel will obey the gospel call, 
 and thus be prepared to welcome the Messiah 
 (Matt, xxiii. 39) ; that for this reason in its dis- 
 persion among the nations of the earth it has 
 never been absorbed by them, but preserved in 
 separate existence for its final destination, be- 
 cause God's gifts of grace and calling are ajuera- 
 (iklTjTa.'" Oehler in Herzog, R.-Enc, XVII., S. 
 658, 9. 
 
 9. On xxxiii. 3. "This is the Lord's declara- 
 tion to His obedient servant Jeremiah. My dear 
 child. He says, thou hast acted according to my 
 will, without knowing why. Thou hast done 
 well. But I will make it clear to thee, so that thou 
 wilt wonder no more; I will tell thee that and 
 yet more, so that thou wilt at last say, 'Yes, let 
 it be so.' We find such connections a few times 
 elsewhere in the Scriptures. The Lord says, 
 ' How can I hide from Abraham the thing that 1 
 dol' (Gen. xviii. 17.) And the same Lord de- 
 clares to His ilisciples, whence comes this inclina- 
 tion or predisposition to tell something new to 
 His disciples, ' Henceforth I call you not servants, 
 for the servant knoweth not what his Lord doeth, 
 but I have called you friends, for all things that 
 I have heard of my Father, I have made known 
 unto you' (Jolin xv. 15). So also is it here with 
 Jeremiah." Zi.nzkndouf. 
 
 10. On xxxiii. 6. Healing, restoration, joy 
 and permanent prosperity are promised by the 
 prophet to Jerusalem at a time when all seemed 
 lost, and it seemed impossible to regain them. 
 How desolate must it have then appeared in Je- 
 rusalem when one house after another was thrown 
 down to furnish means of defence! How wildly 
 raged the tumult of war, and how comfortless 
 was the condition of the city shut in hy the ene- 
 my and completely cut ott" from the rest of the 
 
 country ! To the mind of him, who then thought 
 of Jerusalem in the future, pictures of destruc- 
 tion alone presented themselves. Jeremiah, 
 however, whose sight was sharpened by the divine 
 anointing, sees beyond the present abomination 
 of desolation in the far distant future pictures of 
 peace ami, moreover, of everlasting peace., such 
 as no eye has ever seen, nor hath it entered into 
 the heart of man. There was the patience and 
 faith of the saints (Rev. xiii. 10). • Impossible ' 
 is a word, which does not occur in God's language. 
 
 11. On xxxiii. 8. "After the stubborn race has 
 been partly annihilated and partly humbled, God 
 will turn the captivity of the nation, as a whole. 
 Israel cannot perish eternally. God will purify 
 the people from their sins, by forgiveness, the 
 only way in which men can be really freed from 
 sin. Grace and forgiveness are the only ground 
 on which we stand as Christians. This seems 
 nothing to the world, and yet it is more than hea- 
 ven and earth." Dieurich. 
 
 12. On xxxiii. 7-13. "An important doctrine 
 meets us in these words, that it is not the gifts 
 of God which we should seek to apprehend, but 
 the love of God which is manifested in that He 
 imputes not our sin to us. Otherwise we treat 
 the Divine benefits like the fishes which swallow 
 the hook with the bait." Heim and Hofmann. 
 The major prophets expounded for edification, 1839, 
 S. 509. 
 
 13. On xxxiii. 14-17. " All God's promises are 
 at the same time fulfilled by the true man, the 
 Son of Man, the pure sprout of David. He will 
 be a King, in whom we have perfect protection 
 from all destructive agencies, for He will help 
 us from sin, procuring and executing on earth 
 justice and righteousness for all mankind. Aa 
 we all together inherited sin and death from 
 Adam, so Jesus by His righteousness has brought 
 justification of life for all men, if we would now 
 only take it with joy. Jerusalem will itself bear 
 the King's name, as he was called in xxiii. 6: 
 Jehovah our Righteousness, i. e., that Jehovah 
 bestows on us the righteousness, which is the 
 bond, which at the same time unites us to the ci- 
 tizens of His celestial city." Dieurich. 
 
 14. On xxxiii. 15, 16. [^The Lord our righteous- 
 ness. " This is to be explained by the union of 
 the Church with Christ (see Rom. xii. 4, 5 ; 1 
 Cor. X. 17: xii. 12; Eph. i. 22; iv. 12, 15, 16, 
 25; vi. 23, 30; Col. i. 18, 24) so that what be- 
 longs to Him is communicated to her (Calvin, 
 PiscATOR, Muenster). — Thus, by virtue of her 
 mystical union with Christ, and by the imputa- 
 tion of His merits, and the infusion of His Spirit, 
 the Name of the Church may be said to be ' The 
 Lord our righteousness:' she hides herself in 
 Him, and is seen by God as in Him ; she is 
 clothed with Christ the Sun of righteousness (see 
 Rev. xii. 1) and is accepted in the Beloved (Eph. 
 i. 6)." Wordsworth. — S. R. A.] 
 
 15. On xxxiii. 17. [•• When the First-begotten 
 was brought into the world it was declared con 
 cerning Him, The Lord God shall gii'c unto Him 
 the throne of His Father David, Luke i. 32." 
 Henry.— S.R. A ] 
 
 16. On xxxiii. 13-22. [" Four words, each of 
 them full of meaning, coinprise the conceptions 
 which we attribute to the Paradisaical state. 
 They are these : Innocence, Love, Rural Life, 
 
CHAP. XXXIII. 19-28. 
 
 299 
 
 Piety; and it is towards these conditions of 
 earthly happiness that the human miml reverts, 
 as often as it turns, sickened and disappointed, 
 from the pursuit of whatever else it may have 
 ever labored to acquire. The innocence we here 
 think of is not virtue recovered, that has passed 
 through its season of trial, but it is Moral Per- 
 fectness, darkened by no thought or knowledge 
 of the contrary. This Paradisaical love is con- 
 jugal fondness, free from sensuous taint. This 
 Rural Life is the constant flow of summer days, 
 spent in gardens and afield, exempt from our 
 exacted toil. This })iety of Paradise is the grate- 
 ful approach of the finite being to the Infinite, — 
 a correspondence tha.t is neither clouded, nor is 
 apprehensive of a cloud." Isaac IaxTuOB., Spirit 
 of Hebrew Poetry. — S. R. A.] 
 
 17. On xxxiii. 19-22. [" The richest promises 
 are confirmed by the strongest assurances." 
 CowLES. — S. R. A.] "As God's arrangements 
 in nature do not fail, still less can His word fail 
 in His kingdom of grace, and all His word refers 
 to the divine Son of David and His eternal king- 
 dom of grace. Yea, the whole innumerable Is- 
 rael, Abraham's spiritual posterity, shall become 
 Davids and Levites, i. e., priests and kings, as 
 was designed even at the beginning of Israel. 
 (Exod. xix. G; 1 Pet. ii. 9; Rev. v. 5)." Die- 
 
 DRICH. 
 
 18. On xxxiii. 18-22. [Wordsworth rejects 
 Hengstenberg's explanation that these words 
 are to be applied to all Christians indiscrimi 
 nately, and approves of the argument derived by 
 the ancient Christian fathers from the passage in 
 favor of the threefold order of ministers in the 
 Christian church. He adds "The Gospel of 
 Christ and the Church of Christ possess the spi- 
 ritual essence of whatever was commanded in the 
 Levitical dispensations. Whatever was local and 
 personal in those dispensations has passed away. 
 The Tabernacle, the Temple, their Sacrifices, 
 their Sabbaths, their Annual Festivals, their 
 threefold Ministry, all these have been spiritu- 
 alized in the Gospel. Sinai is perpetuated in 
 Zion. The glory of the Law has been absorbed 
 into that of the Gospel. See Ps. Ixviii. 17, the 
 great Pentecostal Psalm." — S. R. A.] 
 
 19. On xxxiii. 23-26. " In the first place they 
 will not be warned, and afterwards they will 
 not be comforted. The true prophet however 
 announces death to sinners according to the 
 law, but afterwards grace for renovation and 
 for life. Despair is blasphemy. God's king- 
 dom stands and will be perfected, but the faint- 
 hearted will not enter it. God answers: so long 
 as heaven and earth are preserved by Me, it is 
 for the sake of My kingdom, and as a pledge that 
 it will not fail. Israel or, what is the same 
 thing, David's seed shall be a royal seed, and 
 the captivity which the people must now endure 
 is transient. It is however impossible for the 
 worldly to comprehend this, who persist in carnal 
 repose as though no God could punish them, 
 and again in affliction are so despondent, as though 
 there were no God to help them any more." 
 DiEPRicH. ["Deep security commonly ends in 
 deep despair; whereas those that keep up a holy 
 fear at all times have a good hope to support 
 themselves in the worst of times." Henry. — S 
 R. A.] 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On xxxii. 16. [" Before Jeremiah went to 
 prayer he delivered the deeds that concerned his 
 new purchase to Baruch, which may intimate to 
 us, that when we are going to worship God we 
 should get our minds as clear as may be from the 
 cares and encumbrances of this world. — Note, 
 Prayer is the salve of every sore." Henry. — S. 
 R. A.] 
 
 2. On xxxii. 17-25. The Divine promises our 
 heat consolation in every affliction. 1. There are 
 promises of Divine help for every kind of dis- 
 tress in human life. 2. These promises often 
 sound very wonderful (vers. 24 and 25). 3. 
 Their fulfilment on the part of God is guaranteed 
 by the perfection of the Divine nature (vers. 17- 
 19). 4. Their fulfilment is on our part condi- 
 tioned by faith. 
 
 3. On xxxii. 18, 19. Harvest [Thanksgiving- 
 day] Sermon. "To what should our admiration 
 of the power and grace of God in the present har- 
 vest lead us? 1. To thank God. 2. To trust all 
 to Him, that He has promised us. 8. To obey 
 His voice." Jentsch., Gesetz and Zeugniss, 1853. 
 
 4. On xxxii. 19. " The very serious and im- 
 portant truth, the eyes of the Lord are open to 
 all the paths of the children of men. This should 
 1, shake us and awake us from our security, if 
 some of our ways are sinful and such as the Lord 
 must certainly disapprove ; 2, humble us. if we 
 are indeed under the discipline of God's Spii-it, 
 and yet turn to our own self-made courses, and 
 have not yet allowed a fixed and sure heart to b<j 
 imparted to us; 8, be for our comfort and en- 
 couragement, when we are ofien led in dark and 
 difficult paths." J. M. Mueller, Zeugnissc v. 
 Christo. lWit?iesses to Christ}. Neaes Frediytbuch., 
 Stuttgart, 1866, S. 1^1. 
 
 5. On xxxii. 19. [" The greatness of God's, 
 wisdom and the abundance of His power. Proved 
 from His nature. Rem. 1. God hath the power- 
 of making the deepest affliction of His children 
 produce their highest happiness. 2. The con- 
 trivances of tyrants to oppress the church pro- 
 cure its establishment. 3. The triumphs of Satan 
 turn to the destruction of his empire." Saubin. 
 — S. R. A] 
 
 6. On xxxii. 39. Wedding-sermon, " The pro- 
 mise which the Lord gives to God-fearing cou- 
 ples. 1. One heart. 2. Oneway. 3. One bless- 
 ing, which shall extend to their children." Flo- 
 REY, 1862. 
 
 7. On xxxii. 40. Wedding-sermon. The na- 
 ture and fruit of a true marriage. 1. Its na- 
 ture: it is a covenant which a man and a woman 
 conclude in the Lord, and with the Lord (put My 
 fear in their hearts; — not depart from Me; — 
 everlasting covenant). 2. Its fruit: good from 
 the Lord witliout ceasing. 
 
 8. On xxxii. 40. [" Teachers may put good 
 things into our heads, but it is God only that can 
 put them into our hearts, that can work in us 
 both to will and to do.'' Henry. — S. R. A.] 
 
 9. On xxxii. 39-41. " The greatest and dearest 
 of all the promises of God to a marriage in the 
 higliest degree happy and delightful." G. Conr. 
 
 RiEGER. 
 
 lU. On xxxii. 40, 41. Baptismal Sermon. " The 
 
»J00 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 gracious promises of God, which He gives to a 
 child of man in holy baptism." Florey, 1862. 
 
 11. On xxxii. 42. " In communion of suffering 
 of pious Christians is also a blessed fellowship 
 of consolation, since 1, when we as Christians 
 bear with one another, we can also with each 
 other and by each other obtain composure with 
 respect to whatever has befallen us; 2, our heart 
 is revived by what remains, viz., love on earth 
 and hope in heaven ; 3, we become strong for 
 whatever duty is laid upon us, viz., labor and 
 courage." Florey, 1863 
 
 12. Oil xxxiii. 1. ["No confinement can de- 
 prive God's people of His presence ; no locks or 
 bars can shut out His gracious visits; nay, often- 
 times as their afflictions abound their consolations 
 much more abound, and they have the most re- 
 viving communications of His favor then wli«n 
 the world frowns on them Paul's sweetest Epis- 
 tles were those that bare date out of a prison." 
 Henry.— S. R. A.] 
 
 13. On xxxiii. 6. " The disease of our times is 
 no other than a rebellious spirit, aad the cause 
 
 of this is no other than a want of reverence foi 
 God and His law." Discourse on the Birth-day 
 of the king by Deacon Hauber in Tubingen. 
 Palmer, Ev Casualreden, 2te Folge, 1, 1850. 
 
 14. On xxxiii. 14-16. "Jesus Christ a King, 
 1. From what a noble royal stock did He pro- 
 ceed! (Raised by GoJ, descending from David, 
 both by His deity and humanity heir of the 
 throne). 2. How well has He exercised His rule 
 with judgment and righteousness (He Himself is 
 the Lord, who is our righteousness). 3. How 
 far does His dominion extend! (From Jerusalem 
 to the ends of the earth). 4. How safely does 
 His people dwell by His help in peace !" Nau- 
 MANN, in Oesetzu. Zeugn., 18H0, March. 
 
 15. On xxxiii. 14-16. " AVho is He announced 
 to-day? 1. The long promised — with reference to 
 His historical appearance. 2. The Son of David 
 and at the same time God's Son — this is His per- 
 sonal significance. 3. The Lord, who is our 
 righteousness — this relates to His holy office 
 and work." Anaoeee, in Gesetz u. Zeugn., 1860, 
 March. 
 
 C. Historical Appendix to zzzii. 1-5. 
 
 (Chap. XXXIV. 1-7). 
 
 From the introductory words to chh. xxxii. and xxxiii. we perceive that the event, which is here narrated 
 (xxxiv. 1-7), falls in the 10th year of Zedekiah, since the conference, in consequence of which Jere- 
 miah was confined in the court of the prison (xxxii. 3), must be that of ivhich we have an account in 
 this passage. Both passages agree almost verbatim in the announcement of the fate impending on the 
 king and the city (comp. xxxii. 3-5 with xxxiv. 2, 3) ; especially is the phrase " thy mouth shall 
 speak to His mouth, thine eyes shall see Bis eyes " peculiar to both. What is said in xxxiv. 4, 5 of 
 the fate of Zedekiah is found in a condensed form in xxxii. 5 in the words, ^^ and there shall he be 
 until I visit him." The concluding words q/ xxxii. 5 '■'■though ye fight, etc.,'' are not found in ch. 
 xxxiv. (comp. rems. on xxxii. 1-5). — XXXIV. 1-7 is therefore evidently the special report, written by 
 Jeremiah himself of his conference with Zedekiah. In consequence of this conference he was thrown 
 hack into the court, notioithstanding his favorable announcement to Zedekiah, xxxiv. 4, 5. The king 
 might have expected something better from the prophet, as he approached when not called for. It was 
 after this return to the court that Jeremiah received the revelation contained in chh. xxxii. and xxxiii. 
 The event narrated in xxxiv. 1 -7 also precedes these two chapters in the order of time. The report 
 of it, perhaps written by the prophet immediately after the interview, is however, as a brief isolated pas- 
 sage, added as an appendix. It is evident that the conversation with Zedekiah did not long precede the 
 facts related in chh xxxii., xxxiii., /rom the circumstance that the co7ifinement of Jeremiah in the 
 court, which is spoken of in xxxii. 3 as a C07isequence of the conversation, was properly a remanding 
 to prison. If then the first confinement, as appears from xxxvii. 17-21, especially y^v. 21, falls in 
 the last period of the siege, after the return of the Chaldeans from their diversion against the Egyptians 
 {B. C. 687), the second incarceration cannot be placed earlier, but must be ascribed to a somewhat later 
 dale of the same year 
 
 XXXIV. 1-7. 
 
 1 The word which came unto Jeremiah from the .Lord [Jehovah] when \or while] 
 Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and all his army, and all the kingdoms of the' 
 earth, of [subject to, lit, the dominion of His hand] His dominion, and all the peo- 
 
 2 pie, fought against Jerusalem, and against all the cities thereof, saying, Thus saith 
 the Lord, the God of Israel : Go and speak to Zedekiah king of Judah, and tell him, 
 Thus saith the Lord ; Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Ba- 
 
 3 bylon, and he shall burn it with fire : And thou shalt not escape out of his hand, 
 but shalt surely be taken, and delivered into his hand; and thine eyes shall behold 
 the eyes of the king of Babylon, and he shall speak with thee mouth to mouth,'^ and 
 
CHAP. XXXIV. 1-7. 
 
 301 
 
 thou shalt go to Babylon. Yet [only] hear the word of the Lord, O Zedekiah king 
 of Judah ; Thus saith the Lord of thee, Thou shalt not die by the sword : But thou 
 shalt die in peace ; and with the burnings^ of thy lathers the former kings which 
 were before thee, so shall they burn odors* for thee; and they will lament thee, 
 saying, Ah [alas] lord! for I have pronounced the word [spoken a word], saith 
 the Lord. Then Jeremiah the prophet spake all these words unto Zedekiah king 
 of Judah in Jerusalem. When [while] the king of Babylon's army [power] fought 
 against Jerusalem, and against all the cities of Judah that were left,, against Lachish, 
 and against Azekah : for these defenced cities remained of the cities of Judah. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 1. — The article is wanting before V"1X, as in iii. 2 ; xiv. 18. 
 
 2 Ver. 3. — [Literally : thy moutli shall speak with his mouth]. 
 
 8 Ver. 5. — [Henderson says twenty-eight MSS., with the LXX., Arab., Syr., Vulg., read like the burnings. — S. R. A.] 
 * Ver. 5. — [Some render : light the funeral fire, but comp. Exeg. rems. — S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 During the siege (ver. 1) Jeremiah receives 
 eommaud to go and announce to king Zedekiah 
 that the city will be given into the hands of the 
 king of Babylon and burned (ver. 2). Zedekiah 
 himself will be captured, brought before the 
 king, and carried to Babylon (ver. 3). Yet he 
 will not perish by the sword (ver. 4), but die in 
 peace and be interred with royal honors, after 
 the traditional manner (ver. 5). Jeremiah exe- 
 cuted this commission punctually (ver. 6) at the 
 time when Jerusalem and the still uncaptured 
 fortified cities of Lachish and Azekah were being 
 besieged (ver. 7). 
 
 Vers. 1-5. The word . . . saith Jehovah. 
 The style in vers. 1, 2 bears the character of 
 great ditfuseness, such as is peculiar to Jeremiah 
 in the later period of his ministry. Hence such 
 phrases as all the people, ver. 1, and tell him, 
 ver. 2, which strictly taken are superfluous, need 
 not surprise us. — Of the dominion of his 
 hand. This addition is a restriction ahd defi- 
 nition of the earth ; not all kingdoms of the 
 earth, but of the earth in so far as it was the 
 "dominion of his hand." Comp. li. 28^ 1 Ki. 
 ix. 19. — Go, etc. Two questions here present 
 themselves which it is not easy to answer. 1. 
 How is the conference with Zedekiah here nar- 
 rated connected with the other mentioned in 
 xxxii. 3 ; xxxvii. 17 ? 2. What relation does that 
 bear which is said in vers. 4, 5 of Zedekiah's 
 end, to the other declarations concerning it 
 (xxxix. 5-7 ; Iii. 9-11 ; 2 Ki. xxv. 6, 7) ? These 
 two questions seem to be heterogeneous. There 
 is, however, a close connection between them, 
 for which reason we investigate the second ques- 
 tion here instead of at vers. 4, 5. 
 
 Are the words of the prophet in vers. 2-5 to 
 be understood in a good sense for Zedekiah, or 
 as a menace ? All depends on the understanding 
 of the sentence yet hear, etc., ver. 4. Venema, 
 Chr. B. Michaelis, HiTzxG and Graf are of 
 opinion that this sentence proposes an excep- 
 tional case, viz., in case Zedekiah obeys the com- 
 mand to give himself up to the Chaldeans the 
 threatening pronounced against him in ver. 3 
 will not be fulfilled, but he will die in quiet pos- 
 session of his throne. The reasons urged for 
 this explanation are: The pleasant prospect, 
 which in vers. 4, 5 is placed before Zedekiah, 
 
 would contradict the elsewhere constantly re- 
 peated exhortation to surrender himself ; it would 
 also be otherwise too favorable. Here it is pre- 
 supposed that ver. 5 can be understood only of 
 the quiet possession of the throne and of a peace- 
 ful end and honorable interment, which Zedekiah 
 will receive as the reigning king. Aside from 
 ver. 4 a, this explanation would certainly be pos- 
 sible. It is, however, also possible to under- 
 stand ver. 5 as an antithesis to " thou shalt not 
 die by the sword," not a violent death in battle, 
 but a natural, peaceful end. This might be, even 
 if Zedekiah died a prisoner (comp. Iii. 11), as 
 imprisonment is not necessarily a hinderance to 
 the usual funeral obsequies. The Jews were 
 generally well treated while in captivity, — many 
 of them enjoyed the favor of the rulers, and ex- 
 cited the envy of the natives by their preferment, 
 and most of them were undesirous of returning 
 to their native land. — Jehoiachin was elevated to 
 royal honors after twenty-seven years' confine- 
 ment (Iii. 31). Why may not Zedekiah have 
 been kept in mild imprisonment and permission 
 have been given to the Jews after his death to 
 bury their king according to the custom of their 
 country ? This appears to be the only possible 
 explanation, as the sentence " Thus saith the 
 Lord of thee," ver. 4 6, cannot be other than a 
 summary of the word of God, which, according to 
 ver. 4 a, Zedekiah is to hear. I leave out of ac- 
 count that the other explanation would require 
 "Listen to" or "Heed" the word, and also a 
 designation of the divine word to which Zedekiah 
 is to listen. But it would be indispensable that 
 " hear the word," etc., should be plainly desig- 
 nated as a condition, and what follows as a con- 
 sequence of the condition's being fulfilled. As 
 the words now read ver. 4 b can be taken only 
 as the word which Zedekiah is to hear. Ver. 4 a 
 then expresses no condition, but in vers. 4 and 
 5 a restriction or more exact definition (not a 
 continuation, as Hitzig supposes), is added to 
 ver. 3. In ver. 3 it was said that Zedekiah 
 should be captured and taken to Babylon. Vers. 
 4 and 5 mitigate this harsh sentence, adding that 
 he shall not die by violence there, but in peac^ 
 and be buried with royal honors. Thus ren- 
 dered, the passage harmonizes with the other 
 intimations, which are given with respect to the 
 end of the king: xxxii. 5; xxxix. 5-7; Iii. 9-11 ; 
 2 Ki. xxv. 6, 7. Is then this declaration adnpted 
 to excite the anger of the king? Though tha 
 
302 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 first part of it is gloomy, the second presents 
 some points of comfort. The terrible fate which 
 befel the tyrant Jehoiakim (the words " will 
 lament thee," ver. 5, are in evident contrast to 
 xxii. 18) will not be Zedekiah's. His fate, when 
 the severest crisis is past, will take a (relatively) 
 better turn; he will at least enjoy a respectful 
 treatment as a prisoner, and indeed again receive 
 honor after death. Zedokiah is thus relatively 
 favored. Should he for this have the prophet 
 confined, as must have been the case if the con- 
 ference reported here be ideniical with that 
 meniioned in xxxii. 8? According to chh. 
 xxxvii. and xxxviii., where tlie whole history of 
 the relation!? bet ween Zedekiah and the prophet 
 is related according to its main features, the 
 former confined the latter in the court only with 
 benevolent intentions. In the first instance the 
 court of the guard was assigned as a mitigation 
 in contrast to the terrible detention he had suf- 
 fered in the prison of Jonathan, the , Scribe 
 (xxxvii. 20). Afterwards the court of the guard 
 was again assigned him out of kindness, after 
 his still more terrible confinement in the pit 
 (xxxviii. 13). Chh. xxxvii. and xxxviii. make 
 the general impression that Zedekiah kept the 
 prophetin custody only on accouutof the princes. 
 Had it not been for these he would have given 
 him his entire freedom (comp. xxxviii. 5). It 
 should, moreover, be observed that according to 
 xxxiv. 2 Jeremiah seeks the king freely, while 
 according to chh. xxxvii. sq. this scarcely seems 
 possible. Then we have reports of two confer- 
 ences of Jeremiah with the king. On the first 
 he is brought from strict confinement in the 
 house of Jonathan (xxxvii. 17), on the second 
 lie is brought after his deliverance from the pit 
 (xxxviii. 14). The fear, which Jeremiah ex- 
 presses on this latter occasion, shows that he 
 had no desire to present himself before the king. 
 Thus it appears as if the different accounts of 
 Jeremiah's conferences with Zedekiah would not 
 agree, especially does a confinement in the court 
 of the guard as a punishment, according to 
 xxxii. 3, seem to agree neither with chh. xxxvii. 
 and xxxviii. nor with xxxiv. 2-5. Meanwhile as 
 the apparent want of agreement itself excludes 
 the idea of an interpolation, and as there is 
 nothing in the language which betrays a strange 
 hand, we are forced to the hypothesis that in 
 xxxii. 1-5 and xxxiv. 1-5 we have an account of 
 a conference of Zedekiah with Jeremiah which 
 is distinct from the two narrated in. xxxvii. 17- 
 20 and xxxviii. 14-16. From the words "wilt 
 thou not certainly put me to death," xxxviii. 15, 
 it is clear that Jeremiah did not expect a very 
 kindly disposition on the part of the king. It is 
 conceivable that the court was assigned him as 
 a place of punishment, when after a voluntary 
 visit to the king (comp. xxii. 1), he was dis- 
 missed with the ungracious words "back into 
 the court!" Although, as we have shown, the 
 words in xxxiv. 4, 5 are relatively favorable to 
 the king, yet he may have expected something 
 better of the prophet when he appeared uncalled 
 for and have accordingly become indignant at 
 t.i'j es-ietitially invariable prediction of the cap- 
 ture of th(! city and his own inipri'-onment If 
 it is asked wliat was tlie object of this address to 
 ♦.he king, not occasioned by the king but com- 
 
 manded by God, it is surprising that the prophet 
 does not say what the fate of the city will be in 
 case of voluntary submission (comp. xxxviii. 17). 
 He does not, however, say fully what will be the 
 fate of the king in case of stubborn refusal to 
 surrender. Nothing is here said of Zedekiah's 
 children together with the princes of Israel being 
 killed before his eyes, of his own eyes being put 
 out (Hi. 10), or ot liis wives being given to the 
 Babylonian princes (xxxviii. 21-23). This lack 
 of an alternative distinguishes the present pas- 
 sage from xxi. 9; xxxviii. 2, 17. 
 
 This passage reads like an unconditional sen- 
 tence, in which, however, it is expressly remarked 
 that this still severe sentence is yet to be regarded 
 as a mitigation. (Comp. vers. 4 and 5 with xxii. 
 18). It accordingly seems probable that this 
 passage, together with the prophecy closely con- 
 nected with it in chh. xxxii. and xxxiii , belongs 
 to the period indicai^ed in xxxviii. 26, i. e. to the 
 period after the last exhortation which the pro- 
 phet addressed to Zedekiah conditionally. Now 
 a simple announcement is made to him of what 
 will take place. The possibility that Zedekiah 
 may yet tread the path of deliverance so often 
 pointed out to him, is no longer thought of. It 
 is still a great favor that the full terrible reality 
 is not yet disclosed to him. He doubtless owed 
 this as well as the relative mildness of his sen- 
 tence to the good-will he had manifested towards 
 the prophet. It certainly seems, as remarked 
 above, that this announcement of his sentence, 
 by the prophet who comes before him uncalled- 
 for, first irritated liim towards the latter, on 
 which supposition the words, "Wherefore dost 
 thou prophesy?" in xxxii. 3, would be explained. 
 
 And with the burnings of thy fathers. 
 The burning of the dead was not a Jewish cus- 
 tom. Burning alive only occurs as a punishment. 
 Lev. XX. 14 ; xxi. 9 coll. Isa. vii. 25 — and there 
 is a trace of burning corpses in time of pesti- 
 lence in Am. vi. 10 (if 1i31D0=1£nE/0). At any 
 rate in the present passage it is the burning of 
 spices which is meant, 2 Cliron. xvi 14; xxi. 19. 
 With this also will agree the dative of the pro- 
 noun and the form of the verb. Comp. the verb 
 with the accusative of the thing and the dative 
 of the person for whom the sacrifice is burned. 
 Exod. XXX. 20; Lev. vii. 5; 2 Chron. xiii. 11. 
 [Calvin says, that to prevent putrefaction, the 
 bodies of the dead were dried by a slow fire, but 
 only at the burial of kings. — S. R. A.] 
 
 For I have spoken a word. Not merely 
 breath, but a word wiiich is spirit, life, power 
 has the Lord uttered. (Comp. Deut. xxii. 47 ; 
 Ps. xxxiii. 4; cxix. IGO; Prov. xxx. 6; Isa. il. 
 8; Iv. 10, 11 ; Jer. xxiii. 29). The expression 
 " I have spoken," without " word," is found with 
 special frequency in Ezekiel, v. 13, 15, 17: xvii. 
 21, 24, etc. 
 
 Vers. 6, 7. Then Jeremiah . . . cities of 
 Judah. The performance of the task is men 
 tioned as a proof that Jeremiah had the courage 
 to appear before the king with a message, which 
 was by no means such as he wished to hear in a 
 time of severe affliction. — Lachish and Azekah 
 were both situated in the Sephela, the low coun- 
 try in the south-western part of the tribe of 
 Judah (Jer. xv. 33, 35, 39). They were both 
 fortified by Rehoboam (2 Chron. xi. 9). Lachish 
 
CHAP. XXXIV. 8-22. 
 
 303 
 
 was besieged by Sennacherib (2 Ki. xviii. 14, 
 17; xix. 8; Isa. xxxvi. 2; xxxvii. 8). ["This 
 celebrated siege is supposed by Layard to be de- 
 picted on certain slabs disinterred from the ruins 
 of Nineveh." — Cowles]. — Fortified citiescan- 
 not well be taken as in apposition to cities of 
 Judah, because this addition would either be 
 superfluous or would give the wrong thought 
 that unfortified cities were still left. It cannot 
 
 also well be attached as a definition to remained : 
 7iam hxc oppida ex oppidis Judse. munita suprrerant 
 (Rosenmueller). It is not credible that there 
 were no other fortified cities besides these. It 
 can only be in apposition to these ; these, as 
 fortified cities, were still left. The reason of 
 their remaining is thus expressed, and this rea- 
 son was the strength of their fortifications. 
 
 11. Hidtorical Appendix to the Collection of Discourses. 
 
 (Chap. XXXIV. 8-22 and Chap. XXXV.) 
 
 At the close of the collected discourses we find two portions which may be regarded as an appendix, inas- 
 much as they afford a glaring instance of Israel's disobedience towards Jehovah, in contrast with the 
 obedience of a non-Israelitish tribe towards the command of their ancestor. Th" history of the dis- 
 charge of servants, ordered in the pressure of distress but taken back ichcn the dniiger seemed to be 
 past, is a proof how lightly obedience to Jehovah's law sat on the hearts of the Israelites, ivhile the 
 obedience of the Rechabites to their ancestral ordinances was deeply rooted and impregnable. Although 
 the two portions are chronologically far apart, the first belonging to the tenth year of Zedekiah {more 
 exactly to the time of the temporary suspension of the siege), the second to the reign of Jehoiakim 
 (more exactly when the first invasion of the Chaldeans under Nebuchadnezzar was expected) ; yet it is 
 quite appropriate that they should stand side by side, since, as remarked above, the second serves as a 
 foil to the first. 
 The reason for placing the older portion last may be that the following chapter (xxxvi.) belongs to the same 
 
 period, viz., the fourth year of Jehoiakim. 
 The division into two parts is very clear and simple. The facts are narrated in xxxiv. 8-11. Then in 
 vers. 12-16 the facts are recapitulated by the prophet with reference to the legal enactments, finally in 
 vers. 17-22 the divine sentence is pronounced on the covenant-breaking Israelites. — Chap. xxxv. is 
 plainly divisible into ttvo halves. In the first (vers. 1-11) the facts are again related, in the second 
 the parallel is drawn between the behaviour of the Rechabites and of Israel, a7id corresponding recom- 
 pense announced to both. 
 
 A. THE DISOBEDIENCE OF THE ISRAELITES 
 
 SHOWN IN THEIR BEHAVIOUR IN SETTING FREE THEIR 
 SERVANTS. 
 
 8 
 
 10 
 
 11 
 
 12 
 13 
 
 14 
 
 15 
 
 XXXIV. 8-22. 
 
 This is the word that came unto Jeremiah, from the Lord, after that the king 
 Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people which were at Jerusalem, to 
 proclaim liberty unto them ;^ That every man should let his man-servant, and every 
 man his maid-servant, being an Hebrew or an Hebrewess, go free ; that none should 
 serve himself of them,^ to wit, of a Jew his brother. Now when all the princes, 
 and all the people, which had entered into the covenant, heard that every one 
 should let his man-servant, and every one his maid-servant, go free, that none 
 should serve themselves of them any more, then they obeyed, and let them go. 
 But afterward they turned, and caused the servants and the handmaids, whom 
 they had let go free, to return, and brought them into subjection for [or compelled 
 them to be]' servants and for handmaids.* Therefore the word of the Lord came 
 to Jeremiah from the Loed, saying. Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel ; I 
 made a covenant with your fathers in the day that I brought them forth out of 
 the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondjaen, saying, At the end of seven 
 years let ye go every man his brother an Hebrew, which hath been sold [or who hath 
 sold himself] unto thee ; and when he hath served thee six years, thou shalt let 
 him go free from thee : but your fathers hearkened not unto me, neither inclined 
 their ear. And ye were now [to-day] turned, and had done right in my eight, in 
 proclaiming liberty every man to his neighbor; and ye had made a covenant be- 
 fore me in the house which is called by my name [whereupon my name is called] : 
 
S04 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 16 but ye turned and polluted my name, and caused every man his servant, and every 
 man his handmaid, whom he had set at liberty at their pleasure, to return, and 
 brought them into subjection [compelled them], to be unto you for servants and 
 for handmaids. 
 
 17 Therefore thus saith the Lord [Jehovah], Ye have not hearkened unto me, in 
 proclaiming liberty, every one to his brother, and every man to his neighbor : be- 
 hold, I proclaim a liberty for you, saith the Lorl> [Jehovah], to the sword, to the 
 pestilence, and to the famine ; and I will make you to be removed* into all the 
 
 18 kingdoms of the earth. And I will give® [or deliver] the men that have trans- 
 gressed my covenant, which [who] have not pertormed the words of the covenant 
 which they had made before me, when they cut the calf in twain, and passed be 
 
 19 tween the parts thereof, the princes of Judah, and the princes of Jerusalem, the 
 eunuchs, and the priests, and all the people of the land, which passed between the 
 
 20 parts of the calf; I will even give them into the hands of their enemies, and into 
 the hands of them that seek their life : and their dead bodies shall be for meat 
 
 21 unto the fowls of the heaven, and to the beasts of the earth. And Zedekiah, king 
 of Judah, and his princes will I give into the hand of their enemies, and into the 
 hand of them that seek their life, and into the hand of the king of Babylon's 
 
 22 army, which are gone up from you. Behold, I will command, saith the Lord, and 
 cause them to return to this city ; and they shall fight against it, and take it, and 
 burn it with fire ; and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation without an in- 
 habitant. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 8. — The construction is ad sensum, and very common in Hebrew. Comp. 2 Ki. x. 24; Naegelsb. Or., g 95, 2. 
 ■2 Ver. 9.— 03 n3i'- Comp. xxii. 13 ; xxv. 14 ; xxx. 8. 
 
 8 Ver. 11. — D1t^03''V The Hiphil does not occur elsewliere. The Masoretes therefore read Kal(ver. 16; 2 Cliron. 
 xxviii. 10). , 
 
 i Ver. 11.— On the construction ') DM^^ 7^ comp. Naegelsb. &r., g 95 g., Anm. 5. 
 
 5 Ver. 17. — [A. V. marg.: for a remoring; NAEOEtSB.: for a horror ; Henderson : give yon up to agitation.— S. R. A.] 
 
 6 Ver. 18.— [Naegelsb., Hitzig, Wordsworth : I will make the men who .... the calf which they cut ; i. e. like the calf, 
 cJc- Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 69, 3.— S. K. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Vers. 8-11. This is the word ... for ser- 
 vants and for handmaids. Though the ex- 
 pression " to make a covenant " generally means 
 that two persons pledge themselves to a mutual 
 performance, which accrues to the advantage of 
 both parties, the expression here denotes a per- 
 formance which all do in common in the interest 
 of a third, from which, however, advantage is 
 expected for all. For the setting free was chiefly 
 for the advantage of those set free. It was, how- 
 ever, also hoped that it would be for the general 
 good, account being taken partly of the gratitude 
 of the freedmen and their increased activity in 
 the defence, partly perhaps also of the favor of 
 Jehovah thus to be procured. It is clear that 
 the word "covenant" is thus employed in es- 
 sentially the same sense as usual. — To proclaim 
 liberty unto them. The expression is found 
 in this sense besides only in Lev. xxv. 10; Isa. 
 Ixi. 1 ; Ezek. xlvi. 17. Them of course refers 
 to the servants mentioned afterwards. The law 
 on this point is found in Exod. xxi. 1 sqq. ; Lev. 
 xxv. 39-41 ; Deut. xv. 12. Every servant of He- 
 brew origin was to be set free after six years' 
 service (without respect to the Sabbatical year); 
 according to Lev. xxv. this was to be done in the 
 year of jubilee. This involves no contradiction, 
 for in Ley. xxv. it is the law of the jubilee year 
 which is given. The former enactment is merely 
 Bupplementec^ from this point of view, the jubilee 
 
 year is to end the service unconditionally, where- 
 fore the price was to be determined by the time 
 intervening befoi-e the jubilee (ver. 50sqq. where 
 it is the sale of Israelitish servants to heathen in- 
 habitants which is spoken of, but there is no 
 reason to doubt the application of this rule to 
 the purchase by Israelites). Comp. Saalschuetz, 
 Mos. Rcchi. Kap., 14 and 101, § 3.— These legal 
 prescriptions had, like so many others, remained 
 unobserved. The reformation under Josiah may 
 have revived the knowledge, but not the obser- 
 vance of them. The pressure of the siege aroused 
 the thought that the observance of this law might 
 be of tise in both the ways above indicated. 
 They therefore pledged themselves on the king's 
 demand by mutual agreement to set free the He- 
 brew servants and maids, and as appears from 
 ver. 9, all of them, even those who had not served 
 six years. The supererogation with regard to 
 some was outweighed by their short-comings 
 with respect to the others. But — and this is a 
 striking instance of false conversion, springing 
 from bad motives, — when the danger seemed over 
 on the withdrawal of the Chaldeans, they brought 
 the servants again under the yoke. 
 
 Vers. 12-16. Therefore the word . . . io\ 
 handmaids. — In the day. Comp. vii. 22 ; xi. 
 4; xxxi. 32. — House of bondmen. Them 
 selves delivered from oppressive servitude, Israel 
 should be kind towards their servants, which is 
 expressly designated in Deut. xv. 15 as the mo- 
 tive of the law of manumission. — At the end 
 of seven years cannot mean at the end of every 
 
CHAP. XXXIV. 8-22. 
 
 .=^05 
 
 seven years. This would contradict what fol- 
 lows, "after he has served gix years," and the 
 similar legal enactments (Esod. xxi. 2 ; Deut. 
 XV. 12). It can only signify at the close of a 
 septennium. The preposition jD then retains its 
 
 proper signification; — from the close, i. c, when 
 the close of the septennium, the seventh year, has 
 begun. Comp. similar expressions in Deut. xv. 1; 
 xiv. 28 coll. xxxi. 10. — Who hath sold him- 
 self. These words are a quotation from memory 
 from Deut. xv. 12. — Turned, vers. 15 and 16. 
 The meaning of the verb is the same in both cases, 
 only the termini a quo and in quern are opposite. 
 — Called by my name. Every transgression 
 of the divine commands, but especially a breach 
 of a covenant sworn in His name, is a desecration 
 thereof (comp. Lev. xix. 12; xx. 3). — At their 
 pleasure. The expression occurs also in Deut. 
 xxi. 14. It is there used of the captive woman, 
 married but afterwards disapproved. Here tlie 
 antithesis is evidently not property or family, so 
 that the sense would be, what she possesses be- 
 longs to her, but tliou shalt set her person at 
 liberty. But the antithesis is the unfreedom of 
 the sold, who must go wherever his master sends 
 him, and the freedom of the dismissed, to go 
 wherever he wishes. The word then^accord- 
 
 ing to, or at, their pleasure, IJ'SJ being regarded 
 
 as the seat of desire, as in the expression "if it 
 be your mind," Gen. xxiii. 8; 2 Kings ix. 15. 
 
 Vers. 17-22. Therefore . . . without an in- 
 habitant. — Liberty is used the second time in 
 ver. 17 ironically ; because ye did not proclaim 
 liberty (that wliich is taken back again directly 
 is as good as none), liberty shall be proclaimed 
 to you, but a liberty of which you will be the 
 victims. [I set you, whom I have hitherto re- 
 garded as my servants, free, deliver you over, to 
 your fate, to the sword, etc. — Hitzig]. — The 
 calf. Ver. 18 seems to me better connected with 
 I will give [make], in which we are gram- 
 matically fully justified (comp. Naegelsb. Gr., ^ 
 69, 3). So also Luther and others. The sym- 
 bolical meaning of the rite here alluded to ap- 
 pears then immediately applied, in order to pre- 
 sent before the covenant breakers the threatening 
 punishment. They themselves are to be the calf 
 cut in two. On this rite comp. Gen. xv. 10, and 
 Delitzsch thereupon. According to the other 
 explanation, "the calf" is in opposition to "the 
 covenant." Then, however, the similarity in 
 the fate of the transgressor to that of the calf, is 
 only implicitly hinted at, not expressed. The 
 late and anacoluthic resumption "I will give," 
 in ver. 21, is then also troublesome. — In ver. 19 
 chiefs of tribes, city-chiefs (elders of the city), 
 courtiers, priests and common people, are dis- 
 tinguished. When afterwards, verse 21, his 
 princes are again mentioned with the king, we 
 
 must attribute this to Jeremiah's diffuseness, and 
 emphasize it the less, as it is very common to 
 mention the king and princes together (xxiv. 8; 
 XXV. 19, etc.). 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. Onxxxiv. 8-11. "The peculiar difi'erence be- 
 tween hypocritical repentance and true conver- 
 sion. The hypocrites when they do penance, do 
 it(l.) not from faith, but from fear of distress 
 and dilnger, in which they are at tlie time; (2.) 
 they do not make a change in all points of dis- 
 obedience, but only in the ethical, as here with 
 the jubilee year, as if there were nothing more 
 to be altered; (3.) they do such things as make 
 a shovy for the people and have a high regard, as 
 the manumission, letting loose the rabble, would 
 have a great noise and show, but meanwhile 
 tliere were few thoughts of faith, love, fear of 
 Godj hope and thanksgiving ; (4.) such penitence 
 does not last long, but as soon as the distress 
 finds a hole, the devotion goes with it." Cramer. 
 
 2. On ver. 12. " Qua locutione mystica [verbum 
 Jovse factum esse a Jooa) qualis etiam. Gen. xix. 
 24, innuitur mysterium Trinitatis juzta regulam 
 Lutheri commendatam nobis in aureo scripto de ulti- 
 mis verbis Davidis. Insinuatur enim hac et simili- 
 bus loquendi formulis pluralitas personarum, ut hie 
 Filiiet Spirilus sancti." Forster. 
 
 3. On xxxiv. 15, 16, " Converted, but not 
 rightly; friendship made when the foot is on the 
 neck, Pharisaic repentance. Yet thus, there is 
 often an interval, a period of rest and of refresh- 
 ment for the kingdom of Christ. And God has 
 tliis in view when He extorts conversions of this 
 
 kind." ZiNZENDORF. 
 
 4. On xxxiv. 16, 16, 18-22. The Jews thus com- 
 mitted a double sin: 1. They did not keep the 
 promise made to each other and to the servants ; 
 2. They desecrated the name of God by their 
 disobedience and breach of the oath sworn in 
 God's name and house. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 True repentance in distinction from false. 1. 
 The occasion may be the same in both; external 
 distress (comp. ex. gr., Isa. xxviii. 19; 1 Cor. xi. 
 82; Tit. ii. 12). 2. In false penitence the inward 
 disposition remains unchanged; in true peni- 
 ttnce man turns inwardly with pain and sorrow 
 from evil and to God. 3. False penitence lasts 
 as long only as the outward need ; true penitence 
 is a permanent .condition of the heart, and not- 
 withstanding single backslidings, advances to a 
 more complete subjugation of the old man (the old 
 Adam in us is to be drowned and perish by daily 
 sorrow and repentance). 
 
 20 
 
306 
 
 THE PilOPHET JEREMIAH 
 
 B. THE COTJNTERPAKT TO THE DISOBEDIENCE OF THE ISRAELITES: THE OBEDIENCE OF THE 
 
 BECHABITES (CHAP. XXXV.). 
 
 1. The Fact. 
 XXXV. 1-11. 
 
 1 The word which came unto Jeremiah from the Lord in the days of Jehoiakim 
 
 2 the son of Josiah king of Judah, saying, Go unto the house of the Rechabites, and 
 speak unto them, and bring them into the house of the Lord, into one of the chum- 
 
 3 bers, and give them wine to drink. Then I took Jaazaniah the son of Jeremiah, 
 the son of Habaziniah, and his brethren, and all his sons, and the whole housj 
 
 4 of the Rechabites; And I brouglit them into the house of the Lord, into the 
 chamber of the sons of Hauan, the son of Igdaliah, a man of God, which was by 
 the chamber of the princes, which was above the chamber of Maaseiah the son of 
 
 5 Shallum, the keeper of the door [or, threshold]. And I set before the sons of the 
 house of the Rechabites pots^ full of wine, and cups, and I said unto them, Drink 
 
 6 ye wine. But they said. We will drink no wine: for Jonadab the son of Rechab 
 our father commanded us, saying, Ye shall drink no wine, neither ye, nor your sons 
 
 7 for ever : Neither shall ye build house, nor sow seed, nor plant vineyard, nor have 
 any : but all your days ye shall dwell in tents : that ye may live many days in the 
 
 8 land where ye be strangers. Thus have we obeyed the voice of Jonadab the son 
 of Rechab our father in all that he hath charged us, to drink no wine all our days, 
 
 9 we, our wives, our sons, nor our daughters; nor to build houses for us to dwell in: 
 
 10 neither have we vineyard, nor field, nor seed: but we have dwelt in tents, and 
 have obeyed, and done according to all that Jonadab our father commanded us. 
 
 11 But it came to pass, when Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came up into the land, 
 that we said, Come, and let us go to Jerusalem for fear of the army of the Chal- 
 deans, and for fear of the army of the Syrians : so we dwell at Jerusalem. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL, 
 
 1 Ver. 5. — J^'iJ, related to J^3J, nj^3J) hiHi designates here a larger round vessel (crater), from which the cups were 
 filled. Comp. Gen. xliv. 2, 5, 12. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Vers. 1-5. The ■word . . . Drink ye wine. 
 
 As the Rechabites did not live in houses, the 
 house of the Rechabites must be taken in a 
 gentilic sense. The Rechabites were a branch of 
 tiiat tribe of Kenites, which springing from Ho- 
 bab, the brother-in-law of Moses (Num. x. 2U), 
 migrated with the Israelites from the desert to 
 Canaan, and were therefore closely connected 
 with them politically, as well as religiously 
 (comp. Jud. i. 10; iv. 11; 1 Sam. xv. 6; xxvii. 
 lO; XXX. 29). To what an extent this, espe- 
 cially the latter, was the case may be learned from 
 what is said of Jonadab, the ancestor and law- 
 giver of the Rechabites, in the book of Kings (2 
 Kings X. 15, 2'^). The injunctions which, ac- 
 cording to vers. 6, 7, Jonadab laid on his descend- 
 ants, were doubtless for the purj)ose of preserv- 
 ing their nomadic state and avoiding the evils of 
 Stationary and agricultural life. Jonadab ap- 
 pears to iiave forbidden the drinking of wine, not 
 merely for the sake of the immediate conse- 
 
 quences, which it might easily have, but also that 
 the love of wine might not be the occasion of 
 their becoming settled. The conscientiousness 
 with which the Rechabites after three centuries 
 still followed the commands of their ancestor, is 
 a testimony that they held him in high honor. 
 That he deserved this honor, and that it was 
 shown him by others during his life-time, is seen 
 in the respect with which Jehu treated hira, 
 taking him as a witness of his zeal in the service 
 of Jehovah. Comp. Keil on 2 Kings x. 12-17. — 
 
 The nijti'7 were rooms in the buildings enclosing 
 
 the fore-courts, appropriated to various uses (1 
 Ciiron. xxviii. 12 coll. ix. 26; Jer. xxxvi. 10, 12, 
 20, 21; l!:zr. x. G; Neh. x. 38). One of these 
 rooms, which must havebeen ahall corresponding 
 to the number of the persons, was named after 
 "the sons of Ilanan, the son of Igdaliah, the man 
 of God." It is not known who this Hanan was. 
 From the designation "man of Elohim," we may 
 infer that he was a prophet (comp. Deut. xxxiii. 
 1; Josh. xiv. 8; 1 Sam. ii. 2t); ix. 8, 10, etc.), 
 and from "sons" (comp. 1 Kings, xx. 35; 2 
 
CHAP. XXXV. 12-19. 
 
 307 
 
 Kings ii. 3, 5, 7, 16, etc.), that the room was a 
 place of assemblage used by him and his pupils 
 and adherents. Maaseiah, the threshold-keeper 
 (of which there were three, lii. 24; 2 Kings 
 XXV. 18, and who stood in rank immediately after 
 
 the njtZ'O inj. Comp. 2 Kings xxiii. 4) is pro- 
 bably identical with the Maaseiah, whose son 
 Zephaniah was a "second priest" (lii. 24; 
 xxxvii. o; xxix. 2o, xxi. 1). — Of the region 
 inhabited by the Rechabites we have no further 
 indication than the brief notice, 1 Chron. ii. 55, 
 from which we learn merely tliat they dwelt in 
 the tribe of Judah. Jud. i. 16 agrees with this, 
 where it is said of the Kenites, that they settled 
 in the wilderness of Judah, which lies south of 
 
 I Arad (near the wilderness of Kadesh to the south 
 
 of Hebron, Raumer, Paldst.,S. 172). As they were 
 
 I Nomads, they needed laud suited to this mode 
 
 I of life. There is no objection to their southern 
 
 I position from the approach of tlie enemies from the 
 
 N'jrth. For they might justly fear an inundation 
 
 of the whole land, and therefore sought refuge in 
 
 Jerusalem betimes, before they were cut off. 
 
 Ver. 11 Army of the Syrians. Aram is 
 Syria in the more restricted sense. Before B. 
 C, 738, when it became an Assyrian province, 
 it played an important part among the foes of 
 the Israelites (2 Sam. Viii. 3 sqq., etc.), and 
 afterwards it still appears among Iheir number 
 in the train of Assyria (Isa. ix. 11), as here iu that 
 of Babylon (comp- 2 Kings xxiv. 2j. 
 
 2. The Application, 
 XXXV. 12-19. 
 
 12, 13 Then came the word of the Lord unto Jeremiah, saying. Thus saith the 
 Lord of hosts [Jehovah Zebaoth], the God of Israel; Go and tell the men of Ju- 
 dah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Will ye not receive instruction to hearken 
 
 14 to my words ? saith the Lord. The words' of Jonadab the son of Rechab, that 
 he commanded his sons not to drink wine, are performed ; for unto this day they 
 drink none, but obey their father's commandment : notwithstanding I have spoken 
 unto you, rising early and speaking [i. e., zealously and unceasingly-] ; but ye 
 
 15 hearkened not unto me. I have sent also unto all my servants the prophets, rising 
 up early and sending* them, saying Return ye now every man from his evil way, 
 and amend your doings, and go not after other gods to serve them, and ye shall 
 dwell in the land* which I have given to you and to your fathers : but ye have 
 
 16 not inclined your ear, nor hearkened unto me. Because the sons of Jonadab the 
 son of Rechab have performed the commandment of their father, which he com- 
 
 17 manded them ; but this people hath not hearkened unto me : Therefore thus saith 
 the Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel ; Behold, I will bring upon Judah, and 
 upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evil that I have pronounced against 
 them : because I have spoken unto them, but they have not heard ; and I have 
 
 18 called unto them, but they have not answered. And Jeremiah said unto the 
 house of the Rechabites, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel ; Because ye 
 have obeyed the commandment of Jonadab your father, and kept all his precepts, 
 
 19 and done according unto all that he hath commanded you : Therefore thus saith 
 the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel ; Jonadab the son of Rechab shall not want 
 a man to stand before me for ever. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 14.— n31-nX Dpin. On the construction. Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., § 100, 2. 
 
 « Ver. 14.— Comp. vii.'lS. 
 
 » Ver. 15.— TlSiyi DJStyn. Comp. vii. 25 ; xxv. 4. 
 
 < Ver. 15.— nOlNn-bx UE'V Comp. XXV. 5. bxforSy. Comp. Comm. on x. 1, as also m^n'-bx, ver. 17, ana 
 
 the reverse in ri1VD~7^, ver. 18. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The commands of .Jonadab, the Rechabite, have 
 been kept centuries after his death by his peo- 
 
 ple who are not descendants of Abraham, and 
 who consequently participate in the covenant of 
 promise only mediately, and in the second line. 
 Israel, however, has not obeyed the commands of 
 Jeliovah, the God of hosts, though they have 
 
808 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 been presented and inculcated unceasingly by 
 prophets. Therefore all the threateuings pro- 
 nounced by the Lord on Israel shall be fulfilled. 
 But to the Rechabites it is promised, that Jona- 
 dab shall not want a man to stand before Je- 
 hovah. 
 
 Vers. 12-15. Then came . . . hearkened 
 unto me. From "go," ver. 13, we see that 
 Jeremiah was to speak these words, not in the 
 "chamber," but outside, to the people. — In- 
 struction. Comp. ii. 30; xxxii. 33. — Return 
 ye now, etc. Comp. xsv. 5. 
 
 Vers. 16-19. Because the sons. . .forever. — 
 Shall not w^ant a man. Comp. rems. on xxxiii. 
 17. — To stand before me. As this expi-ession 
 involves the idea of service (comp. Comm. on vii. 
 10), and according to the connection that of the 
 priestly service or worship (comp. Comm. on xv. 
 19), it is not merely the continuance of the 
 Rechabite family, but its perseverance in the 
 worship of Jehovah. It is said that there are 
 still Rechabites in Asia. Wolff, the missionary 
 to the Jews, met them in Mesopotamia and Ye- 
 men. Wolff designates the desert of Yemen 
 near Senaar, as the proper residence of these 
 Rechabites, who still assert their origin from 
 Hobab, the brother-in-law of Moses. Comp. Dr. 
 Joseph Wolff's Travels. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. As the Lord says to the Jews of His time, 
 Luke xi. 31, 32, that the queen of the South and 
 the people of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment 
 against the people of this generation, and will 
 condemn them, for a greater than Solomon or 
 Jonah is here, so might Jeremiah say to his con- 
 temporaries that the Rechabites would rise up 
 against them, and condemn them, for a greater 
 than Jonadab is here. 
 
 2. The Rechabites' obedience to their ancestor's 
 command is in itself praiseworthy and exemplary. 
 It is in perfect accordance with the fourth Com- 
 mandment. Comp. Ecclus. iii. Were the Recha- 
 bites equally conscientious in their observance 
 of the Divine commands? Would not a custom 
 contrary to the divine command have been re- 
 tained with equal tenacity on the authority of 
 their chief? The family feeling and national 
 spirit are natural. They do not mortify our 
 flesh. They may, for the sake of the honor and 
 interest of our family, which is mediately our 
 own personal honor and interest, impel us to the 
 most difficult performances. I have heard of 
 •bildren, on whom the inculcation of the divine 
 
 commands made little impression; but when they 
 were told, it is the King's will, they did what was 
 desired of them, Comp. Mark vii. 8 sqq. 
 
 3. "All families could not pursue Rechab's 
 mode of life, nor should they, God gires many 
 different callings; happy are they who can feel 
 content in the most simple, and who constantly 
 preserve the feeling of being pilgrims in this 
 world. It is also not contrary to God's ordering 
 that distinct families, ranks and callings, are 
 formed, or that special plans are adopted for the 
 exercise of partnerships in certain times and cir- 
 cumstances, just as the church at Jerusalem in- 
 troduced a kind of community of goods. We are 
 only not to perceive any special sanctity in such 
 arrangements; they are only practices, and all 
 depends on the mind in which they are undei'- 
 taken." Diedeich, 
 
 4, " Abuli consueverunt hac narratione de Re.cha- 
 bitis Monachi ad stabiliendam vitam monasticam, 
 quemadmodum Bellarminwt ex hoc capite causam eo- 
 rum agere conatur {De Mon. II., cap. 5), hunc in 
 modum scribens: ' Ilabemus etiam Jer. xxxv. insig- 
 nem commendationem nepotum Rechab, qui, cum iis 
 pater sive avus prtecepisset, ut domus non eedifica- 
 rent, agros non seminarent, vineas non plantarent, 
 vinum nunquam biberent, vitam durissimam quasi ex- 
 tra mundum agerent, omnia diligentissime observa- 
 runt, quos etiam. monachoruin nostrorum figuram 
 gessisse scribit Hieronymus in Epist. ad Paulin.' 
 
 Cf. Hieron. in Exod. cap. 21." Forster. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 True obedience shown in the example of Israel 
 and the Rechabites. 1. The Rechabites put Is- 
 rael to shame, in so far as they obey the com- 
 mand of their earthly ancestor, while the latter 
 does not obey the Lord's command. 2. The obe- 
 dience of the Rechabites to the command of their 
 earthly ancestor is however no pledge of their 
 obedience to the commands of God. 3. Obedi- 
 ence to God's commands is guaranteed only among 
 the spiritual Israel, i. e., among those, who by 
 the Holy Spirit have become members of a higher 
 order of nature, in which the will of God is writ- 
 ten in the hearts of all, and has consequently be- 
 come the innermost principle of life. — Or, 1, In 
 respect to legal obedience the Jews are surpassed 
 by the Rechabites (the difference between the 
 two). 2. The obedience of the Rechabites to 
 their ancestor does not guarantee their obedience 
 to God (equality of the two). 3. Only spiritual 
 Israel bears in itself the guarantee of obedience 
 to God's command (the higher third). 
 
CHAP. XXXVI. 1-8. 80» 
 
 SECOND DIVISION. 
 
 Historical Presentation of the most important Events from the fourth year of Je^- 
 hoiakim to the close of the Prophet's ministry. 
 
 (B. C. 605—570). 
 
 Chapters XXXVI.— XLIV. 
 
 To the collection of discourses and its appendices are now added historicalisections. These contain, with the 
 exception of the beginning and the conclusion, a continuous historical narrative. The beginning is 
 formed by a single but highly important event of the fourth and fifth years of J^hoiakim's reign — the 
 writiiig out of the prophecies (cb. xxxvi.) The conclusion (ch. xliv. ) is formed by a portion, which, 
 after a pause embracing 16-18 years, gives an account of Jeremiah's last appearance, in the midst of 
 the people even in Egypt still devoted to idolatry. From ch. xxxvii. to ch. xliii. the events are con- 
 tinuously narrated, tvhich occurred from the beginning of ZedekiaKs reign up to the arrival of the fu- 
 gitive remnant in Egypt. It should be remarked that the presentation begins indeed with the beginning 
 ofZedekiah's reign, but hurries rapidly over the first ten years (xxxvii. 1, 2) and begins the con- 
 nected narrative with the imprisonment of the prophet, tvhich took place in the tenth year of this king. 
 The thread on which the events are hung is the personal experience of the prophet ; the behaviour of 
 the people towards the Lord's servant being both the ground and consequence of the fate which befel 
 them. The single portions of this section may be arranged as follows : 
 
 A. The events before the capture of Jerusalem, chh. xxxvi.-xxxviii. 
 
 I. The writing out of the prophecies in the fourth year ofJehoiakim, ch. xxxvi. 
 
 1. The command and first writing, xxxvi. 1-8. 
 
 2. The reading to the people, xxxvi. 9-18. 
 
 3. The reading to the king, xxxvi. 19-26. 
 
 4. The prediction of punishment to Jehoiakim and the second writing, xxxvi. 27-32. 
 
 II. The events in the tenth and eleventh years of Zedekiah, chh. xxxvii. and xxxviii. 
 
 1. The embassy of the king and the imprisonment of the prophet in its first and .second stages, 
 
 ch. xxxvii. 
 
 2. Jeremiah in the pit [third stage of imprisonment), his conference with the king and confine- 
 
 ment in the court of theguard {^fourth stage oj imprisonment), ch. xxxviii. 
 
 B. The events after the capture of Jerusalem, chh. xxxix.-xliv. 
 
 1. Jeremiah liberated from the court of the guard, a?i^ delivered to Gedaliah, xxxviii. 28 6— 
 
 xxxix. 14. 
 
 2. Appendix to xxxix. 1-14; the promise made to Ebed-melech the Cushite, xxxix. 15-18. 
 
 3. Jeremiah liberated in Ramah and delivered the second time to Oedaliah, xl. 1-6. 
 
 4. The gathering of the people under Gedaliah, xl. 7-16. 
 
 5. The murder of Gedaliah and its consequences, ch. xli. 
 
 6. The hypocritical inquiry, xlii. 1-6. 
 
 7. The unwelcome answer, xlii. 7-22. 
 
 8. The flight to Egypt, xliii. 1-7. 
 
 9. Jeremiah in Tahpanhes, xliii. 8-13. 
 
 10. Jeremiah at the festival of the Queen of Heaven in Pathros. The last act of his prophetic mi^ 
 iiistry, ch. xliv. 
 
 a. The charge against the obstinately idolatrous people, xliv. 1-14. 
 
 b. The replication of the people, xW-^. \b-\^. 
 
 C. The recapitulation of the prophet, xliv. 20-30. 
 
 a. The refutation of the people's assertions, xliv. 20-23. 
 
 j8. The positive prediction of severest punishment, xliv. 24-30. 
 
810 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 A. The events before the capture of Jerusalem, (chh. xxxvi. — xxxviii.^ 
 I. The writing out of the prophecies in the fourth year of Jehoiakim {ch. xxxvi.) 
 
 1. The Command -and the first writing. 
 XXXVI. 1-8. 
 
 1 And it came to pass in the fourth year of Jelioiakim the son of Josiah king of 
 
 2 Judah, that this word came unto Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, Take thee a roll 
 of a book, and write therein^ all the words that I have spoken unto thee against Is- 
 rael, and against Judah, and against all the nations, from the day I spake unto 
 
 3 thee, from the days of Josiah, even unto this day. It may be that the house of Ju- 
 dah will hear all the evil which I purpose to do unto them ; that they may return 
 
 4 every man from his evil way ; that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin. Then 
 Jeremiah called Baruch the son of Neriah : and Baruch wrote from the mouth of 
 Jeremiah all the words of the Lord, which he had spoken unto him, upon a roll of 
 
 5 a book. And Jeremiah commanded Baruch, saying, I am shut up [hindered] ; I 
 
 6 cannot go into the house of the Lord. Therefore go thou, and read in the roll, 
 which thou hast written from my mouth, the words of the Lord in the ears of the 
 people in the Lord's house upon the fasting day : and also thou shalt read them in 
 
 7 the ears of all Judah that come out of their cities. It may be they will present 
 their supplication^ before the Lord, and will return every one from his evil way : 
 for great is the anger and the fury that the Lord hath pronounced against this 
 
 8 people. And Baruch the son of Neriah did according to all that Jeremiah the pro- 
 phet commanded him, reading in the book the words of the Lord in the Lord's 
 [Jehovah's] house. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ter. 2, — 7X for 7j^ (comp. rems. on x. 1) as is evident from vers. 4 and 29. In 7X1ti'' 1^ however 7J7 has the 
 
 meaning of " against," as we see from ver. 3, " all the evil." 
 
 2 Ver. 7. — [Naegelsb. : Their supplication vpill come (prevail) before Jehovah.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 In the fourth year of Jehoiakim's reign Jere- 
 miah receives the command to commit to writing 
 the prophecies delivered by him from the begin- 
 ning of his prophetic ministry (therefore for 
 twenty-three years). The fourth year of Jehoia- 
 kim, as frequently shown already, was a turn- 
 ing-point both in the political world and in Je- 
 remiah's ministry. It was then that in conse- 
 quence of the battle of Carchemish both the call 
 of Nebucliadnezzar to universal dominion was 
 decided, and also the question, who were to be 
 the uortliern executors of the judgment on .Ju- 
 dah, so often predicted by the proplicl. It was 
 now cle.ir that they would be the Chaldeans un- 
 der Nebuchadnezzar. The way to Palestine and 
 beyond was open to them. Their arrival was to 
 be expected after a very brief interval. It was 
 the last moment when Israel could still propitiate 
 the Lord by sincere penitence, and avert the 
 threatening danger. To determine Israel to make 
 use of the last gracious respite thus granted 
 a last attempt was to be made by the presenta- 
 tion of Jeremiah's prophecies as a whole. They 
 were now to hear at once, find in a concentrated 
 form, what they had been hearing piece-meal in 
 the course of twenty-three years, and that a pow- 
 erful elfecl might be expected from the total im- 
 
 pression, is seen from ver. 16. Jeremiah now, 
 to discharge his exalted commission, dictates the 
 words of Jehovah to his faithful Uaruch, and 
 commands him to read what he has written to 
 the assembled people on the occasion of a fast- 
 day, since he himself, Jeremiah, is hindered from 
 being present. 
 
 Vers. 1-3. And it came to pass . . . their 
 sin. From the period before the fourth year of 
 Jehoiakim, we tind in the book of our prophet as 
 we have it at present, chh. ii. ; iii.-vi. ; vii.-x.; xi.- 
 xiii.; xiv.-xvii. ; xviii. ; xxi. 11-14; xxii. 1-23; 
 xxiii. ; xxvi. Chh. ixv. and xlvi. 1-12; xlvii.- 
 xlix. 33 are also to be reckoned in here, since they 
 certainly preceile the writing, which extended 
 into the fifth year of Jehoiakim (xxxvi. 9). Chh. 
 XXX. and xxxi. also belong here chronologically, 
 but in subject they form a "13p by itself (comji. 
 xxx. 2), and cannot have been a part of the book 
 liere meant, which consisted o\\\y of minatory 
 prophecies. The first writing however did not, 
 according to ver. 32, contain all these passages, 
 at least not in their present extent. The view of 
 IIiTZiG, that Jeremiah was not to write out the 
 discourses for the first time, but only from the 
 scattered leaves to compile them into a book, be- 
 cause the former would not have been possible 
 even for the most retentive memory, has been 
 well refuted by Graf from IIitzig's own point 
 of view. From my own point of view I remark 
 
ta.ir. xxxvi. 9-18. 
 
 311 
 
 that the same supernatural factor which operated 
 in the production of the prophecies must have 
 acted also in their reproduction (comp. John xiv. 
 26). Here neither the much nor the little enters 
 into consideration, nor must we lay too much 
 weight on the similarity of the prophecies, for 
 even the variations of the theme have their spe- 
 cific object and occasion, and could not be arbi- 
 trarily altered. 
 
 It is remarkable that the expression nbjD, 
 
 apart from Ps. xl. 8, occurs only in Jeremiah 
 and later writers (Ezek. ii. 9 ; iii. 1 ; Zech. v. 1, 
 2). Ps. xl., however, as is well known, is as- 
 cribed by many to Jeremiah. But comp. Isai. 
 xxxiv. 4. Hengstenberg, Beitrdye II., S. 491 
 sqq. — Leyrer in Herz. R.-Enc, XIV., S. 18. — 
 Ver. 3. It may be, etc. It is not expressly said, 
 but may be understood, that the words of Jeho- 
 vah were to be read after being written, as the 
 eflFects mentioned could not be attributed to the 
 mere writing, and so Jeremiah understood it, 
 vers. 6-8. — That before they may return is 
 difficult. We should expect and they •will re- 
 turn, (comp. xxvi. 3). The prophet however 
 distinguishes a nearer and a more remote object. 
 The first is that they hear, not in a physical 
 sense, for that was not problematic, but in a spi- 
 ritual sense, i. e., in the sense of marking, ob- 
 serving, taking to heart. Comp. vii. 13 ; xxv. 
 3, 4, etc. The more remote and properly main 
 object, to which the proclaiming and the mark- 
 ing were related only as means, was that they 
 should be converted. 
 
 Vers. 4-8. Then Jeremiah ... in Jeho- 
 vah's house. Respecting Daruch comp. xxxii. 
 12. The reason why Jeremiah did not write liim- 
 self is not necessarily that he could not. From 
 xxxii. 10; li. 60 on the contrary it seems to fol- 
 low that Jeremiah was well able to write. At 
 least it is not apparent why in these passages it 
 should not be said that Jeremiah dictated, since 
 such a minute statement would well accord with 
 the particularity of his style elsewhere. It may 
 however easily be conceived that in the discharge 
 of so great a task, the aid of a writer to take the 
 
 mechanical part, was a necessity to the prophet. 
 As the reading, according to ver. 9, did not take 
 place till the nintli inontli of the fifth year of Je- 
 hoiakim, the writing occupied nearly a year.— c 
 Shut up ("liy^). As, according to vers. 19 and 
 26, Jeremiah and Barucli were able to hide them- 
 selves, this cannot mean "imprisontd " sis it may 
 well do in xxxiii. 1 ; xxxix. 15. Jeremiah was 
 therefore only detained or hindered. By what 
 we have no means of ascertaining. — An-d rea-d 
 in the roll. Comp. Beut. xvii. 19 ; Neh. viii. 
 
 8, 18. — Upon the fasting day. The prophet 
 does not mean either the regular yearly fast, 
 which was observed in the seventh month (Lev 
 xvi. 29 ; xxiii. 27), nor does he expect in the ninth 
 month several (extraordinary) fasts, so that we 
 should translate " ou a fast-day." The absence 
 of the article is no more emphatic here than in 
 iii. 2; vi. 16, etc. — "Were the ordinary fast meant 
 in ver. 6, andiin extraordinary fast-duy in ver. 
 
 9, as many of the older commentators suppose, we 
 cannot conceive why only the second reading had 
 results, but the first passed away without a trace. 
 — Ver. 7. They will present. Comp. xxxvii. 
 20; xlii. 2 coll. xxxviii. 26; xlii. 9 ; Dan. ix. 18, 
 20, where we find the Hiphil. The expression ia 
 evidently a stronger form of "come before 
 thee" (Ps. Ixxix. 11; Ixxxviii. 3 ; cxix. 170 coll. 
 Job xxxiv. 28) in so far as it involves the idea 
 of humble petitioning, and at the same time the 
 collateral idea of prevailing, being heard. For 
 that which /a/^s down before one, can as little re- 
 main unobserved as that which cowjes before one. 
 — And will return. The prophet presupposes 
 that the words of Jehovah will render clear to 
 the people above all the necessity of repentance, 
 and that accordingly their prayer will above all 
 have reference to power for the fulfilment of this 
 indispensable condition. He also hopes that this 
 effect will be produced by the reading, as by this 
 the greatness of God's anger will be brought vi- 
 vidly before the minds of the people, and must 
 produce a wholesome fear in them. In ver. 8 
 the accomplishment of the task is reported in 
 general. The particulars follow. Comp, HiTzia 
 in loc. 
 
 2. The reading to the people. 
 XXXVI. 9-18. 
 
 9 And it came to pass in the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Ju- 
 dah, in the ninth month, that they proclaimed a last before the Lord to all the peo- 
 
 10 pie in Jerusalem and to all the people that came from the cities of Judah unto Je- 
 rusalem. Then read Baruch in the book the words of Jeremiah in the house of 
 the Lord, in the chamber [cell] of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan the scribe, in 
 the higher court, at the entry of the new gate of the Lord's house, in the ears of 
 
 11 all the people. When Michaiah the son of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan, had 
 
 12 heard out of the book all the words of the Lord. Then he went down into the 
 king's house, into the scribe's chamber -} and, lo, all the princes sat there, even Eli- 
 shama the scribe, and Delaiah the son of Shemaiah, and Elnathan the son of 
 
812 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 13 
 
 14 
 
 Achbor, and Gemariah the son of Shaphan, and Zedekiah the son of Hananiah, 
 and all the princes. Then Michaiah declared unto them all the words that he had 
 heard when Baruch read the book in the ears of the people. 
 
 Therefore all the princes sent Jehudi the son of Nethauiah, the son of Shelemiah, 
 the son of Cushi, unto Baruch, saying, Take in thine hand the roll wherein thou 
 hast read in the ears of the people, and come.'^ So Baruch the son of Neriah took 
 
 15 the roll in his hand, and came unto them. And they said unto him, Sit down now 
 
 16 and read it in our ears. Now it came to pass, when they had heard all the words, 
 tiiey were afraid both one and other,^ and said unto Baruch, We will surely tell the 
 
 17 king of all these words. And they asked Baruch, saying, T?ell us now. How didst 
 
 18 thou write all these words at his mouth ?* Then Baruch answered them, He pro- 
 nounced^ all these words unto me with his mouth, and I wrote them with ink® in 
 the book. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 12. — [Naegelsbach : Chancery chamber or chancellor's room, according to the original Roman use of the word 
 eliancellor for chief notary or scribe, or accoiding to tlie Scripture use for master of decrees, or president of the council, 
 Ezra iv.— S. R. A.] 
 
 - Ver. 14. — According to our idiom the expression designates removal trom the speaker. In Hebrew it merely desig- 
 nates the leaving of the former position on the part of the person addressed, the terminus in quern being inferred from the 
 context. Comp. 1 Sam. ix. 9; xi. 14. 
 
 3 Ver. 16.— IHJ^tSx tJ^'N nPIS- On the construction comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 112, 7 ; Gen. xlii. 28. 
 
 * Ver. 17. — V30- The LXX. omit the word. So also Ewald. Others take it as = VflDH as it must be according to 
 
 their understanding of the question. [See EXEGEt.] 
 
 B Ver. 18.— X"1p\ The Imperf. designates duration in the past, wherefore also the part. 3113 corresponds to it. Comp. 
 
 Naegelsb. Gr., g 87,/— xiii. 7; xv. 6. 
 
 6 Ver. 18. — n. The word is oTT. Aey. It implies that Baruch only performed the mechanical work. Comp. Winee, 
 H.-W.-B. Art. Schreibekunst ; Herzoo, B.-Enc, Art. Schriftzeichen und Schreibekumt, S. 19, [Smith, Diet. Ill, 1802]. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 In the fifth year of Jehoiakim and the ninth 
 month Baruch on occasion of a public fast reads 
 to the assembled people in the temple the dis- 
 courses of Jeremiah, written down by him (vers. 
 9, 10). Michaiah, the son of Gemariah, gives 
 notice of this to the princes assembled in the 
 royal chancery, among whom was his father 
 (vers. 11-13). Thereupon the princes cause 
 Baruch to be brought with his roll, and com- 
 manded him to read it to them (vers. 14, 15). 
 What he reads fills them with terror. They de- 
 clare to Baruch that they must inform the king 
 and inquire as to the particular circumstances 
 of the writing (vers. 16, 17). Baruch replies 
 simply tliat Jeremiah dictated the words to him 
 and he wrote them down (ver. 18). 
 
 Vers. 9, 10. And it came to pass ... all 
 the people. The rendering of the "ninth 
 niontli" 1)1' the fifth year of Jehoiakim as the 
 ninth month of the civil year, i. e. about Decem- 
 ber, is favored especially by the circumstance 
 that the statement of the months and days 
 (comp. xxxix. 2), without a previous exact state- 
 ment of the day and month of the beginning of 
 the reign, would be unintelligible and purpose- 
 less, while, if we understand the months and 
 days of the civil year, the matter is clear, pro- 
 vided that the fragments of the initial and con- 
 cluding years are reckoned as full years. — Pro- 
 Claimed a fast. It was at any rate an extraordi- 
 nary last, such as was not infrequently appointed 
 in times of distress (comp. Joel i. 14; ii. 15; 1 
 Ki. xxi. 9, 12 ; 2 Ghron. xx. 3), then probably 
 occasioued by tho danger ihreatening from the 
 Chaldeans (comp. ver. 29). It is therefore very 
 
 probable, that Nebuchadnezzar then (in Decem- 
 ber of the fifth year of Jehoiakim) had not yet 
 retired from Jerusalem. This is opposed to those 
 who make the battle of Carchemish immediately 
 precede the siege of Jerusalem ("only a few 
 weeks." Comp. GustavRosch, Art. Bi(/l. Zeitrech- 
 nung [Bibl. Chronology] in Herzog, R.-Enc, 
 XVIII., S. 4ij4). The subject, proclaiming the 
 fast, appears (as in Jon. iii. 5 coll, Joel i. 14; 
 ii. 15) to be the whole people. Elsewhere it ia 
 the presiding officers who proclaim the fast (1 
 Ki. xxi. 9, 12; 2 Chron. xx. 3; Ezr. viii. 21). 
 Whether by the former mode of expression any- 
 thing is intimated concerning the suggestion of 
 the appointment, or a rite in proclamations un- 
 known to us, is not clear. Ewald, as it seems to 
 me incorrectly, after the Vulg., connects "all the 
 people" with "fast" as a genitive [^jejimium 
 omni populo']. — In the chamber of Gemariah, 
 ver. 10. Comp. rems. on xxxv. 2, 4. — This 
 Gemariah is named immediately afterwards as 
 one of the princes assembled in the royal clian- 
 cery. He had, it seems, as scribe a room in the 
 temple, and also took part in the official trans- 
 actions in the scribe's chamber in the king's 
 house. (Comp. infra on ver. 12). His father 
 appears to have been scribe under Josiah (2 Ki. 
 xxii. 3 sqq.). Possibly the family was a priestly 
 one. (Comp. 2 Ki. xxii. 3 with 1 Chron. ix. 11, 
 12). His brother Ahikam is mentioned as a 
 protector of Jeremiah, x;cvi. 24. On the upper 
 fore-court and new gate comp. comm. on xx. 2 ; 
 xxvi. 10. The room was situated not in the 
 entry but at the entry, so that it m'jht probably 
 be entered directly from the gateway. At any 
 rate it was a very frequentwl spot. As the 
 higher court was that of the priests (comp. 
 Herz. R.-Enc. XV., S. 509), which the people 
 
CHAP. XXXVI. 19-26. 
 
 313 
 
 might not enter, it is possible that the new gate 
 led from the higher into the outer (Ezek. xl. 17), 
 or great court (2 Chron. iv. 9), and that accord- 
 ingly the room, from its elevated position, af- 
 forded a view over the great court. Comp. Hit- 
 ZIG, in loc. 
 
 Vers. 11-18. When Michaiah ... in the 
 book. Michaiah, the son of iliai Gemariah in 
 whose temple-chamber Baruch held his lecture, 
 who was probably present in the chamber, 
 thought himself called upon to inform his father. 
 He found him in the royal chancery (so Luther). 
 According to ver. '10, the princes go from the 
 chancery into the court of the palace, to the 
 presence of the king. Accordingly, the chan- 
 cery appears to have been placed more on the 
 outer side of the palace, probably for the sake 
 of accessibility. The "scribe" Gemariah ap- 
 pears to have had the ecclesiastical department 
 (ver. 10, minister of worship), and the "scribe" 
 Elishama the political. The latter was thus 
 chancellor, or Secretary of State. Comp. Her- 
 ZOG, R.-Enc. XIV., S. 2. On the general mean- 
 ing of "princes" comp. the list of Solomon's 
 princes, 1 Ki. iv. 2 sqq. — If Elishama is identi- 
 cal with the one mentioned in xli. 1 and 2 Ki. 
 XXV. 1-5, which is not impossible, he was a prince 
 of the rcyal family. Comp. on xli. 1. — Elnathan, 
 the son of Achbor, was mentioned before in 
 xxvi. 22. — Jehudi, etc. The name of his ances- 
 tor leads us to conclude that he was of Cushite 
 descent. It is not probable that the name Jehudi 
 was given with reference to the injunction in 
 Deut. xxiii. 8, for there it is merely said that the 
 descendants of the Edomites and Egyptians are not 
 to enter the congregation of the Lord till the 
 third generation. With respect to the other 
 nations (with the exception of still more strictly 
 excluded Canaanites, Ammonites and Moabites) 
 there was no such limitation. They might be 
 naturalized in the first generation on fulfilment 
 of the conditions. Comp. Saalschuetz, Mos. 
 Recht, Kap. 92, | 3 ; Kap. 100, I 2. Moreover, 
 
 both the father and grandfather bear Israelitish 
 names, and Jehudi is a family, not a national 
 name. The feminine, Judith, appears, even in 
 ancient times, as a proper name among the 
 Hittites (Gen. xxvi. 34). Comp. Fuerst s. v. — 
 Sit dow^n now. They are evidently friendlily 
 disposed. Comp. vers. 19 and 25. — I do not be- 
 lieve that they were terrified merely in the in- 
 terest of Jeremiah and Baruch. It was possible 
 to protect them. Without doubt the concentra- 
 tion of the threatenings did not fail of its in- 
 tended object in their case. — It was clear that 
 after the public reading in the temple, the mat- 
 ter could not be kept concealed from the king. 
 Purposed concealment might be dangerous to 
 those whose duty it was to report. — Rosenmuel- 
 ler, Hitzig, Graf understand the question in 
 ver. 17 as if the princes wished to know whether 
 Baruch had not compiled the book against the 
 will and knowledge of Jeremiah, from memory 
 or written documents. But then the read- 
 ing would have been different. [See Textual 
 Notes]. As the words stand, they seem to me 
 simply to express the curious desire for a peep, 
 as it were, into the prophet's workshop. They 
 supposed that Baruch must have been a witness 
 of secret transactions, and they, therefore, wish 
 to know how the dictation, on the part of the 
 prophet, was given, whether, ez. ^r., consciously 
 or in a state of ecstasy. Baruch answers that 
 Jeremiah simply pronounced the words and he 
 as simply wrote them down with ink. There 
 was nothing wonderful about it. How Hitzio 
 can say that Ji'^p cannot mean speaking, but only 
 
 reading to another, I do not understand. Dicta- 
 tion requires no less an elevation of the voice 
 than reading aloud, and may therefore be desig- 
 nated as "calling." The phrase "with big 
 mouth" also seems to imply just the opposite of 
 reading from a book. Comp. ver. 4 with vers. 
 6 and 10. 
 
 3. Tht Reading before the King. 
 XXXVI. 19-26. 
 
 19 Then said the princes unto Baruch, Go, hide thee, thou and Jeremiah ; and let 
 
 20 no man know where ye be. And they went in to the hmg, into the court, but they 
 laid up^ the roll in the chamber of Elishama the scribe, and told all the words in 
 
 21 the ears of the king. So the king sent Jehudi to fetch the roll: and he took it 
 out of Elishama the scribe's chamber. And Jehudi read it in the ears of the king, 
 
 22 and in the ears of all the princes which stood beside [before] the king. Now the 
 king sat in the winter house, in the ninth month ; and there was afire on the hearth, 
 
 23 burning before him [the pot^ kindled before him]. And it came to pass, that when 
 Jehudi had read three or four leaves [columns], he cut it with the penknife, and 
 cast it into the fire that was on the hearth [in the pot], until all the roll was con- 
 
 24 sumed in the fire that was on the hearth [in the pot]. Yet they were not afraid, 
 nor rent their garments, the king nor any of his servants that heard all these words. 
 
 25 Nevertheless' [And even though] Elnathan and Delaiah and Gemariah had made 
 intercession to [prayed] the king that he would not burn the roll : but [yet] he 
 
314 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 26 would not hear them. But the king commanded Jerahmeel, the son of Hamme. 
 lech [the king], and Seraiah, the son of Azriel, and Shelemaiah, the son of Abdeel, 
 to take [fetch] Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet : but the Lord [Jeho- 
 vah] hid them. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 20.— On n"'p3n comp. xxxvii. 21 ; xl. 7. 
 
 8 Ver. 22.— nNn~nX1- jlXI is not here=and indeed with. It is an emphasizing of the subject, which we might para- 
 phrase by "and as to," but which the Hebrews express by the accusative. Comp. 2 Ki. vi. 5; Ewald, § 277, d : Gesen., 
 'i 117, 2. 
 
 8 Ver. 25. — Observe the paratactic construction, since QJl according to the connection belongs to j;OB? N"?. Comp. 
 
 Naegelsb. (?r., 2, 111, 1 Anm. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The princes command Baruch, together with 
 Jeremiah, to hide themselves (ver. 19). There- 
 upon they give the king personally notice of 
 what has occurred (ver. 20). The king has the 
 roll brought, read, cut and thrown into the tire, 
 notwithstanding the intercession of three princes 
 (vers. 21-25). He also wishes Baruch and Jere- 
 miah to be taken into custody, but the Lord had 
 hid them (ver. 26). 
 
 Vers. 19, 20. Then said . . . ears of the 
 king. It is noteworthy that under the despotic 
 and ungodly Jehoiakim the princes were friendly 
 to Jeremiah, while under the weak but kindly- 
 disposed Zedekiah they were hostile to him. 
 The reason for this may be partly the outward 
 circumstances, partly the personality of the 
 king. Under Jehoiakim the danger was not so 
 near, and Jeremiah's continual exhortation to 
 submit did not make so much the impression of 
 treachery and of a laming influence (xxxviii. 
 4). Add to this, that Jehoiakim's annoyance 
 provoked opposition, as Zedekiah's weakness did 
 insolence. — The proper dwelling-house of the 
 king (doubtless identical with the winter house) 
 stood in a court of its own, " which, regarded 
 from the entrance, formed the hinder court of 
 the whole citadel" (Keil on 1 Ki. vii. 8). — They 
 did not take the roll with them, in order as much 
 as in them lay, to withdi-aw it from the eyes and 
 fury of the despotic king. If the king himself 
 had it fetched, they were not responsible for 
 what he did with it. 
 
 Vers. 21-24. So the king . . . these words. 
 — Beside the king. The king sat on the floor, 
 those who were standing were therefore above 
 him. Comp. Gen. xviii. 8; Jud. iii. 19; 2 8ani. 
 XX. 11. — On the winter-house (Am. iii. 15) and 
 the fire-pot comp. Winer, R.-W.-B. s. v. llduser, 
 near the end. ["In common parlance, the 
 lower apartments are simply el belt — the house; 
 the upper is the 'allii/eh, wliich is the summer- 
 house. Every respectable dwelling has both, 
 and they are familiarly called belt shetawy and beit 
 %eifi/ — winter and summer house. If these are on 
 Uie same story, then the external amt airy apart- 
 ment is the summer house, and that for winter is 
 the interior or more sheltered room." Thomson, 
 The Land and the Book, I. p. 478. — "The Ori- 
 entals still use pots made of burnt earthenware 
 for warming, instead of fire-places. Tiiese pots 
 have the form of a large pitcher, and are usually 
 placed in a hollow place in the middle of the 
 
 room. When the fire is out, a frame like a table 
 is put over them, and is covered with a carpet, 
 and thus the warmth is kept in them. See also 
 NiEBUHR and Tavernier in Winer, B.- W.-B. I., 
 468 ; Stanley, Led. 536-538." Wordsworth. 
 — S. R. A.]. — The ninth month corresponds 
 nearly to our December. It was therefore the 
 cold and rainy season of the year. — Ver. 23. 
 And it came to pass, etc. It is unequivocally 
 evident from the words "until all the roll was 
 consumed " that the book did not consist of many 
 leaves, but only of one roll. The roll must also 
 have been written on one side only or the whole 
 could not have been read. That Jehudi did 
 read the whole is evident (1) from the imperfect 
 nj.np''. If Jehudi, after reading some sections, 
 
 had cut them off and at the same time thrown 
 them with the rest into the fire, we should have 
 had the perfect. — It would then be a matter of 
 indifference whether Jehudi threw the rest into 
 the fire entire or after successive abscissions, for 
 the latter is in itself a perfectly unessential cir- 
 cumstance. It is only of account if the succes- 
 sive reading was connected with it. Only in the 
 latter case is the imperfect, expressing repe- 
 tition in the past, in place (compare remarks 
 on J^Tp', ver. 18). — (2) From the words " till 
 all the roll was consumed " and the preceding 
 words. Had Jehudi thrown all at once into the 
 coals, it could at most be said that they looked 
 on and waited till the entire roll was burned 
 up. But as it is said, that Jehudi cut and threw 
 into tiie fire till the whole roll was consumed, 
 there must evidently have been a repeated cutting 
 and throwing. Such a course, however, presup- 
 poses also a successive reading of the wliole, for 
 if he did not wish to read it, why should he not 
 throw it all at once into the fire. With this also 
 
 agrees the prefix 3 before X'^P, which designates 
 
 the coincidence (comp. Gen. xviii. 1; xxxix. 18; 
 Deut. xvi. 6; 1 Kings i. 21), and accordingly in 
 repeated actions must assume the meaning of "as 
 often as." How Graf can deny this, is as incon- 
 ceivable as the assertion, that the successive 
 reading and cutting would be unnatural or in- 
 deed trifling. As to the first, the tenor was in- 
 teresting and exciting enough to render the king 
 desirous of knowing the whole; as to the second, 
 it was the subservient Jehudi who would not 
 wait till the end, to execute punishment on the 
 
 hateful book. If the r\in7T were not single 
 
 T : ° 
 
 leaves, they were columns, the lines of which ran 
 parallel with the margin of the roll. The ex- 
 
CHAP. XXXVI. 27-32. 
 
 31f 
 
 pression doors, which occurs nowhere else in this 
 sense, is easily explained by the square shape 
 of the columns, which were probably also en- 
 closed in lines. Jehudi's cutting the roll with 
 his penknife, and not tearing it with his hands, 
 is explained by the character of the material. 
 Even if it were a papyrus roll, cutting was to be 
 preferred to tearing, because in this latter way 
 he would be sure to injure the next columns. It! 
 is, moreover, questionable whether they would 
 have burned a leather or parchment roll. — Rent ' 
 their garments. On this custom comp. Winer, j 
 R.-W.-B., Art. Trailer. By the servants of the; 
 king who "heard all these words," are here 
 evidently to be undei'stood those who beard them 
 here for the first time, not those who had already 
 heard them in the secretary's office. Their peti- 
 tion shows the respect which they entertained for 
 the words of the Lord. 
 Vers. 25, 26. And even though . . . hid 
 
 /them. — Jerahmeel, the king's son. As ac- 
 cording to 2 Kings xxiii. 36, .Jehoiakim came ta 
 I the thi-one when twenty-five, and was then in the 
 fifth year of his reign, at most thirty years of age, 
 he could not have had a grown-up son, such as 
 this Jerahmeel must have been. "Son of the 
 king"' is, therefore, here a prince royal. Comp 
 xxxviii. 6 with xli. 1; Dan. i. 3. — Who Seraiah, 
 the son of Azriel, Shelemiah, the son of Abdeel 
 were, we do not know, but the messengers, judg- 
 ing from the rank of the first, appear to have 
 been very respectable. Jehoiakim thus at least 
 honored the prophet of the Lord, sending men 
 of the highest rank to apprehend him. Accord- 
 ing to ver. 19 the kindly-disposed princes com- 
 manded Jeremiah and Baruch to hide them- 
 selves. They had obeyed. We are now informed 
 that the Lord Himself had guided them in the 
 choice of a hiding-place, and thus guarded against 
 their discovery. 
 
 4. The Prediction of Punishment to Jehoiakim and the Second Writing. 
 
 XXXVI. 27-32. 
 
 27 Then the word of the Lord [Jehovah] came to Jeremiah, after that the king had 
 burned the roll, and the words which Baruch wrote at the mouth of Jeremiah, say- 
 
 28 ing. Take thee again another roll, and write in it all the former words that were 
 
 29 in the first roll, which Jehoiakim the king of Judah hath burned. And thou shalt 
 say to^ Jehoiakim, king of Judah, Thus saith the Lord [Jehovah] ; Thou hast 
 burned this roll, saying, Why hast thou written therein, saying, The king of 
 Babylon shall certainly come and destroy this land, and shall cause to cease 
 [exterminate] from thence man and beast? 
 
 30 Therefore thus saith the Lord [Jehovah] of [against]' Jehoiakim, king of Ju- 
 dah, He shall have none to sit upon the throne of David : and his dead body shall 
 
 31 be cast out in the day to the heat, and in the night to the frost [cold]. And I will 
 punish^ him and his seed and his servants for their iniquity ; and I will bring upon 
 them, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and upon the men of Judah, all the 
 evil that I have pronounced against them ; but they hearkened not. 
 
 Then took Jeremiah another roll, and gave it to Baruch the scribe, the son of 
 Neriah, who wrote therein from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the book 
 which Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire : and there were added 
 besides unto them many like^ words. 
 
 32 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Vers 29, 30.— "7_^t after^^X has the meaning of " over, concerning," thoughfrom the connection in a hostile sense. Ot 
 ter. 31, where after 'riXDn the third time we find ^X, comp. remarks on x. 1. 
 
 2 Ver. 31.— [Literally : I will visit upon.— S. R. A.] 
 
 8 Ver. 32.— [Or, as many more ; literally : as many as they.— S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Jehoiakim could, indeed, burn the roll, bu not 
 the living word of God present in themind of the 
 prophet. He, therefore, gained nothing by his 
 act. On the contrary he thus increased both his 
 guilt and the number of the prophecies predicting 
 calamity in the new roll. 
 
 Vers. 27-32. Then the word . . . like words. 
 
 The direct address to Jehoiakim in ver. 29 
 passes over into the indirect in ver. 30. But as 
 the former is not to be conceived of as to the 
 king in bodily presence, and as it was inter- 
 rupted by the question put into the mouth of 
 Jehoiakim, "Why hast thou written," etc., iha 
 transition to the third person is easily explained. 
 Comp. Naec.elsb. Gr., ^ 101, 2, ^w?j.— Ver. 30, 
 He shall have none, etc. The successor of 
 Jehoiakim was his son Jehoiachin (2 Kings, xxiv. 
 
316 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 6). But the reign of the latter was so brief (it 
 lasted only three months) that it does not come 
 into consideration. On what is said of his corpse 
 comp. lems. on xxii. 19. — Like words. In itself 
 nonS may certainly be referred to "words," 
 
 T *' T 
 
 and the similar import of the additions to be thus 
 declared. Then, however, it would stand better 
 after "words." Its position after "many," seems 
 to be to indicate that it is to be referred to tliis 
 word, and that thus the quantitative similarity 
 is to be declared. Accordingly the new collection 
 must have been about double the size of the pre- 
 vious one. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On ver. 2. The object of the writing was 
 notouly that ^' lilerascriptamanet" {Cb.amer: "the 
 mouth speaks only to those who are present, but 
 the pen to the absent; the mouth speaks only to 
 the present hours and times, the pen many hun- 
 dred years afterwards also." Comp. Exod. xxxiv. 
 27; Deut. x. 4, 5; xvii. 18; Isa. xxx. 8; Hab. 
 ii. 2), but also to collect all the single lightning 
 strokes into one grand prophetic tempest. More- 
 over, it is a matter of course that the written word 
 was of special use, not only to posterity, but also 
 to the contemporaries in so far as it rendered pos- 
 sible continued study, repeated quiet contempla- 
 tion, and careful comparison. Jeremiah certainly 
 prevented no one from taking copies of his book. 
 
 2. On ver. 4. Did Jeremiah hold such a rela- 
 tion to the Spirit of God as Baruch to Jeremiah 
 when dictating? Then it was a matter of indif- 
 ference to whom the dictation was made. Then 
 a Saul would do as well as a Samuel, if he could 
 only write. The best writer would be the most 
 chosen instrument. There was no mingling of 
 the individuality of the prophet except in the 
 MS., and that is lost to us with the original. All 
 prophetic writings must have the same type as to 
 form and purport, which, as is well known, is so 
 little the case that according to the saying of 
 BuFFON, le style c'est rhomme, the portrait of a 
 prophet might almost be drawn from his style. 
 
 3. On ver. 5. "God's word is not bound; 2 
 Tim. ii. 9. Paul for example wrote his most 
 beautiful epistles from prison, as those to the Ga- 
 latians, the Ephesians, the Philippians, the 
 Colossians, to Philemon, and the second to Timo- 
 thy." Cramer. 
 
 4. On ver. 14. "It is a good state of things 
 wlien rulers ask for God's Word, and cannot be 
 answered or helped promptly and quickly enough 
 to the fulfilment of their purpose. So it was a 
 joy to Paul that he couM tell Agrippa what the 
 Lord had done for his soul, and his heart yearned 
 after Agrippa, Festus and all those around them." 
 
 ZiNZENDORF. 
 
 5. On ver. 16. "When a true servant of God 
 gets his superiors so far that they hear him, he 
 may surely not doubt, that he will also bring 
 them to obedience. It is then not his, but the 
 Lords affair." Zinzendorf. 
 
 6. On ver. 23. " The higher the enemies of 
 God are, the more dangerous; the greater, the 
 more bitterly opposed to the work of the Lord, 
 
 and the general patience with respect to the 
 wickedness ancl unrighteousness of men, has 
 certainly given something special to the So^acg. 
 Procul a Jove procul afubaine.'' Zinzendorf. 
 
 7. On ver. 23. '■'■Locus maxime principalis in 
 prxsenti hoc textu est de combustione sacrorum libro- 
 rum, quale fatum illi experd sunt non tantuni Jer. 
 xxxvi., verum etiam 1 Mace. i. 59 sub Antiocho 
 Epiphane; nee 7ion tempore Diocletiani, qui et ipse 
 multa bibliorum sacrorum exemplaria undiquaque 
 conquisita comburi jussit ; quorum vestigiis insistere 
 non dubitarunt Pontifices roriiani et prsesertim Leo ^F. 
 qui anno 1520 binos legatos emisit ad Fridericum 
 Sapientem, postulant es ab ipso, ut libros Lutheri 
 combureret . . . Quid hodie Jesuitx de Ubrorum com- 
 bustione, qui a Lutheranis eduntur, sentiant, pecu- 
 liari scripto Gretserus aperuit, quod de hoc argu- 
 mento consarcinavit [de jure et more prohibendi, 
 expurgandi et abolendi libros hsereticos et noxios. 
 Ligoist. 1G03, 4°)." Forster. 
 
 8. On ver. 25. "AVhen John's head was in 
 question, Herod did not understand how he could 
 resist his magnates. When Daniel is to go into 
 the lions' den, Darius has not the heart to refuse 
 his princes. When Jeremiah is to be delivered 
 up, Zedekiah says with great modesty to his 
 princes: ' the king can do nothing against you' 
 (xxxviii. 5). But when anytliing evil is to be 
 done, the rulers can insist on having their own 
 way. Here we have an instance: he hearkened 
 not unto them." Zinzendorf. 
 
 9. On ver. 26. " Dominus eos abscondidisse di- 
 citur, qua ratione olim Eliam (1 Reg. xvii. 2 sqq. et 
 xviii. 12), nee non Elisseum, (2 Reg. vi.), itemque 
 Athanasium et Augustinum et nostra tempore IjUthe- 
 rum abscondidit." Forster. 
 
 10. On ver. 27. [" Here is a sublime specimen 
 of the triumph of God's Word, when repressed by 
 the power, and burnt by the rage of this world, 
 whether it be in the suppression of the Scrip- 
 tures, or in preventing their circulation, or in 
 casting copies of them into the fire, or in the 
 imprisonment and martyrdom of Gods preachers. 
 That Word rises more gloriously out of all its 
 persecutions." Wordsworth. — S. R. A.I 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On vers. 2, 3. Sermon at a Bible Society 
 Anniversary. The blessing of the written ■word. 1. 
 That which it has in common with the spoken 
 word (ver. 3): preparation of the heart for the 
 reception of salvation. 2. That which it brings 
 in distinction from the written Word : (a) it is 
 present for every one: (6) it is present at every 
 time and at every place- (c) it is present in all 
 its parts (comparison). 
 
 2. On vers. 21-32. The majesty of the Word. 1. 
 The power, which the word exercises. 2. The 
 independence, which it maintains. 3. The self- 
 verification which it continually effects. Sermons 
 in Berlin by Fr. Wilh. Krummacher. Berlin, 
 1849. 
 
 3. On ver. 24. ["The guilt of indifference to 
 the divine threatenings. It involves: 1, con- 
 tempt of God; 2, unbelief, making God a liar ; 3, 
 
 extreme hardness of heart." Payson. — S. R. A.l 
 J ■' 
 
CHAP. XXXVII. 1-21. 317 
 
 II. The Events in the Tenth and Eleventh year of Zedekiab. 
 
 (Chap, xxxvii. and xxxviii.) 
 
 1. The embassy of the King and the Imprisonment of the Prophet in its First and Second Stage. 
 
 Chap. XXXVII. 
 
 1 And king Zedekiah the son ot Josiah reigned^ instead of Coniah, -the son of Je* 
 hoiakim, whom Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon made king^ in the land of Judah. 
 
 2 But neither he, nor his servants, nor the people of the land, did hearken unto the 
 words of the Lord [Jehovah], which he spake by the prophet Jeremiah. 
 
 3 And Zedekiah the king sent Jehucal the son of Shelemiah and Zephaniah the 
 
 4 son of Maaseiah the priest to the prophet Jeremiah, saying. Pray now unto the 
 Lord [Jehovah] our God for us. Now Jeremiah came in and went out among 
 
 5 the people : for they had not put him into prison.' Then Pharaoh's army was 
 come forth out of Egypt, and when the Chaldeans that besieged Jerusalem heard 
 tidings of them, they departed from Jerusalem. 
 
 6 Then came the word of the Lord [Jehovah] unto the prophet Jeremiah, saying, 
 
 7 Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel; Thus shall ye say to the king of Judah^ 
 that sent you unto me to inquire of me; Behold, Pharaoh's army, which is come 
 
 8 forth to help you, shall return [is returning]* to Egypt into their own land. The 
 Chaldeans shall come again, and fight against this city, and take it, and burn it 
 
 9 with fire. Thus saith the Lord; Deceive not yourselves,^ saying, The Chaldeans 
 
 10 shall surely depart from us : for they shall not depart. For though ye had smitten 
 the whole army of the Chaldeans that fight against you, and there remained but 
 wounded men among them, yet should they rise up every man® in his tent, and burn 
 
 11 this city with fire. And it came to pass,' that when the army of the Chaldeans was 
 
 12 broken up [had retired] from Jerusalem for fear of [before] Pharaoh's army, Then 
 Jeremiah went forth out of Jerusalem to go into the land of Benjamin, to separate 
 
 13 himself thence [to raise an inheritance there] in the midst of the people. And 
 when he was in the gate of Benjamin, a captain of the ward [watch] ivas there, 
 whose name was Irijah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Hananiah ; and he took 
 [seized] Jeremiah the prophet, saying. Thou fallest away [art going over] to the 
 
 14 Chaldeans. Then said Jeremiah, It is false [a lie].: I fall not away [am not going 
 
 15 over] to the Chaldeans. But he hearkened not to him: so Irijah took Jeremiah, 
 and smote him, and put him in prison in the house of Jonathan the scribe: for 
 
 16 they had made that the prison. When* Jeremiah was entered into the dungeon, 
 
 17 and into the cabins,* and Jeremiah had remained there many days ; Then Zedekiah 
 the king sent, and took him out: and the king asked him secretly in his house, and 
 said, Is there any word from the Lord? And Jeremiah said. There is : for, said 
 
 18 he, thou shalt be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon. Moreover Jere 
 miah said unto king Zedekiah, What have I ofiended against thee, or against thy 
 
 19 servants, or against this people, that ye have put me in prison ? Where are now'" 
 your prophets which prophesied unto you, saying. The king of Babylon shall not 
 
 20 Come against you, nor against this land? Therefore hear now, I pray thee, O my 
 lord the king : let my supplication, I pray thee, be accepted" before thee ; that 
 thou cause me not to return to the house of Jonathan the scribe, lest I die there. 
 
 21 Then Zedekiah the king commanded that they should commit Jeremiah into the 
 court of the prison, and that they should give [and they gave him] him daily a 
 piece of bread out of the bakers' street, until all the bread in the city were spent. 
 Thus Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison lor guard.] 
 
118 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH, 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL 
 
 1 Ver. 1.— Naegelsb.: And Zedekiah became king. The phrase "jSD'lSrD"') (instead of the simple "^"JD^Ij as is espe- 
 cially common in the book of Kings. Comp. 1 Ki. xi.43 ; xii. 17 ; xiT. 20, 31, etc.), does not occur except in xxiii. 5 where, 
 however there is more reason for the 'H/O- Wemust not, however, finda parallel, as Kimchi does, with such expressions as 
 •^■^j *nj, "^JS TJ3, where the noun stands in th« accusative, nor with Hitzig attract '^70 •^^'p^y, and translate: and 
 » king. Zedekiah, came to the government, etc., for Zedekiah was not king when he came to the government. "jlO is rather 
 
 to be taken as more exact definition of the predicatec and Zedekiah came to the government as king, etc. The pleonasm 
 seems to accord with J*?remiah's more diffuse style. 
 
 2 Ver. 1. "^lyX before '^'"7071 is accus., and to be Esferred to Zedekiah. Comp. 2 Ki. xxiv. 17. 
 
 s Yer. 4. N'bjD HO- Here, as in lii. 31, in which passages alone the word occurs, the Masoretes would alter with- 
 out any necessity to ii>h2. Comp. Gesen., ? 84, 13, etc. 
 
 4 Yer 7 lyix*? 2]i^- The participle, naving itself no tense can, from the context, signify only that they are in the 
 
 act of returning. 
 
 6 Ver. 9.— [Literally: your souls.— S. R. A.l . L L_ , .,..,,,,,.. 
 
 6 Ver 10 HiTMG correctly remarks that 0"^}^, in antithesis to 7'n~/J denotes inaividuuls, a,nd tha.t therefore it 
 
 , • T-: ■• T 
 
 Is more correct to connect r?nX3 U/''^ with what follows, as the punctuation denotes, since it is evidently intended to 
 
 express that these individuals, without any previous agreement, would arise, moved by a divine impulse, to perform the 
 
 work of destruction. _ « ... « ... „„ i ^ 
 
 V Ver. 11.— riTIV This form stands here, a trace of the later usage, for TI'V Comp. iii. 9; xxxvui. 28 0; Ewald, ^ 
 345 h ; Naeqelsb. Gr., § 88, 7, Anm. ' '•' , ^ . 
 
 8 Ver. 16. 2 at the beginning of the verse is surprising. Neither its causal nor its temporal signification is suitable 
 
 here. The LXX. translate <cal JiKOev, Hitzig, Ewald, Graf and others read ^y^ with reference to 1 Sam. ii. 21, and 2 Ki. 
 
 XX. 12 coll. Isai. xxxix. 1. . , . i ,^ t . , .^ . 
 
 9 Ver. 16.— [Or : cells ; Naegelsbach has : vaults. " Some suppose it to mean bent bars, by which the prisoner was con- 
 fined, and in which he sat as in a cage in a distorted position, (Gesen., Graf)." Wordsworth.— S. R. A.] 
 
 10 Ver. 19. With respect to the form 1'XI, the question is, how the Chethibhis to be pronounced I'X or VX- Usually 
 
 the former is adopted, an obscuration of the suflax-meaning being maintained as in npl j Fdekst on the other hand (Fid. 
 
 p. W. B. S. 66) isof opinion that weare to read TX, which stands for j^X with the old plural termination, the traces of 
 
 which are preserved in verbs and particles (Comp. Olsh., J 16, 6). The decision is difficult, as the form is a solitary one with 
 either punctuation. 
 
 U Ver. 20.— [Literally : fall]. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL, 
 
 This chapter consists of two parts, reporting 
 two events, which had their course or beginning in 
 the pause occasioned by the departure of the Chal- 
 deans. In the first part (vers. 1-10) it is related 
 that Jeremiah replied to an embassy of king Ze- 
 dekiah, which he sent to the prophet with the 
 request for his intercession (vers. 1-5) : — The 
 army of Pharaoh which has come out to your as- 
 sistance will return again to their own country, 
 the Chaldeans however will resume tbe siege of 
 Jerusalem and capture the city and burn it (vers. 
 6-8). Therefore deceive not yourselves! Even 
 were the Egyptians to smite the entire Chaldean 
 army, and there were only a few wounded men 
 left, these would rise from their tents and burn 
 Jerusalem (vers. 9, 10). — In the second part the 
 i iiprisonment of the prophet is described, in vers. 
 10-16 its occasion and first stage, and then in 
 vers. 17-21, the (by the favor of Zedekiah) 
 loss severe second stage. — Jeremiah had wished, 
 during the pause caused by the temporary with- 
 drawal of the Chaldeans, to leave Jerusalem and 
 go into the land of Benjamin to attend to a little 
 business of inheritance (vers. 11, 12). He was 
 however detained at the gate by the commander 
 of the watch, as he entertained the suspicion that 
 Jeremiah wished to go over to the enemy (ver. 
 13). Jeremiah's assurance that he had no such 
 intention was of no avail. He was brouglit be- 
 fore tlie princes, who caused him to be beaten 
 and closely imprisoned in a dungeon, where he 
 languished for some time (vers. 14-16). From 
 
 this prison Zedekiah had him secretly brought 
 one day, to inquire whether there was any word 
 from the Lord. Jeremiah could answer in the 
 affirmative, but could only give a revelation of 
 the same tenor as before. Thou wilt be given into 
 the hands of the Chaldeans. Still at the earnest 
 petition of the prophet Zedekiah does not send 
 him back to the prison, but has him confined in 
 the court of the guard, and scantily supplied with 
 bread (vers. 17-21). 
 
 Vers. 1, 2. And king Zedekiah , . . the 
 prophet Jeremiah. With respect to Coniah 
 comp. rems. on xxii. 24. — People of the land. 
 Comp. rems. on i. 18. — Did not hearken. 
 Comp. xxxvi. 31. 
 
 Vers. 3-5. And Zedekiah . . . from Jeru- 
 salem. Jehucal, the son of Shelemiah, is also 
 mentioned among the " princes " in xxxviii. 1 
 coll. 4. Zephaniah, the son of Maaseiah, was, 
 according to lii. 24 coll. xxi. 1 ; xxix. 25 a priest 
 of the second order. The messengers were thus 
 very respectable. — Pray now. The prophet is 
 not merely to inquire, but to intercede. Comp, 
 to inquire of me, ver. 7. Fi-om this it is appa- 
 rent that notwithstanding the withdrawal of the 
 Chaldeans the state of mind was not one of per- 
 fect confidence. The result of the conflict be- 
 tween tliu rival forces had still to be expected. — 
 Came in and went out. Tliis is emphasized 
 in antithesis to the subsequent imprisonment and 
 also to tlio statement in xxxvi. 26, that Jeremiah 
 and Baruoh had to hide themselves. The free- 
 dom in which Jeremiah livuil accorded with the 
 respect which the king showed him. and ex- 
 plains at the same time how Jeremiah couk' 
 
CHAP. XXXVII. 1-21. 
 
 3iy 
 
 think of a journey. Both verses 4 and 5 are to 
 be regarded as a parenthetical and explanatory 
 sentence (Ewald, | 341). — Pharaoh's army. 
 This Pliaraoh was Pharaoh Hophra (xliv. 30), 
 successor ofPsaininuthis, and ascended the throne 
 B. C. 588. In the tirst, or at least the second 
 year of his reign, seventeen years after the battle 
 of Carchemish, he undertook to make war on Ne- 
 Duchadnezzar, occasioned probably by the em- 
 bassy of Zedekiah (Ezek. xvii. 15). Hophra was 
 slain (coiiip. Ezek. xxix. 1-16; chh. xxx.-xxxii.) 
 and the hopes excited in the Israelites by the 
 withdrawal of the Chaldeans were shown to be 
 nugatory. 
 
 Vers. 6-10. Then came the vrovd . . . -with 
 fire. Jeremiah does not cease to demonstrate 
 the vanity of their hopes. He might have insi- 
 nuated himself into the favor of the king and 
 great men by a prophecy correspondent to their 
 wish-'s, but he does not. With inflexible fidelity 
 he proclaims the word of the Lord as he has re- 
 ceived it. — Deceive not your souls. Comp. 
 xxix. 8 ; 2 Ki. xviii. 29 coll. 2 Chron. xxxii. 15. 
 The prophet warns against self-deception. On this 
 
 meaning of K'SJ comp. Naegelsb. Gr., | 81, 2. 
 
 Vers. 11-16. And it came to pass . . many 
 days. Jeremiah wishes to use the time, while 
 the ways are free, to do some business in the land 
 
 of Benjamin, (probably from p/PI? in Anathoth). 
 
 — To separate, etc. This is a difficult passage. 
 LXX. translates tov ayopaaai iKn-dev ev /xeacf) rob 
 Xaov, which Theodoket explains by Tvpiaadai ap- 
 Tovg. The other ancient translations all express 
 the idea of division of inheritance, in which they 
 are followed by most of the commentators. The 
 diiferent explanations are as follows : Abarba- 
 
 NEL takes p''7nn in the sense of demulcere (to 
 
 smooth. Comp. Prov. xxix. 5) and refers it to 
 the people of Anathoth who were inimical to Je- 
 remiah : Ad demulcendum eos blandis verbis, ut 
 amarent ipsum et inter illos inveniretur, si abirent in 
 ezilium. Kimchi, Sanctius: Ad dividendum se 
 et separandum ab Hierosolymis, in quibus fuit in 
 medio populi. Lyranus: Ut agrum emtum (cap. 
 ^s-nn.) separaret ab aliis. Luther: To till fields 
 [j^cker zu bestellen]. HiTzio: To separate his 
 own from the portions of land which had be- 
 come common property in the Sabbatical year 
 (which HiTziG regards as B. C. 588, on the 
 basis of xxxiv. 8 sqq.) Tremellius, Piscator, 
 RosENMUELLER : Ad lubrificcindum se ipsum, i. e., 
 ad subducrnduin se. Seb. Schmidt: Ut divideret 
 cum populo relicta Chaldseorum spolia, partemque 
 sibi acciperet et in urbem secum sumeret. L. de 
 DiEU : Ut partitim comnioraretur nunc hie nunc 
 illic. All these explanations are manifestly 
 forced or grammatically incorrect. The ancient 
 
 interpretation alone, which understands P^SnS 
 
 of a division of inheritance, appears admissible 
 according to the present form of- the text. The 
 form of the word is like ^OK'/ Isai. xxiii. 11. 
 Comp. Olsh., I 78, c. In the midst of the 
 people declares that the prophet had no secret 
 purpose, but wished to transact his business with 
 the usual amount of publicity. Comp. Ruth iv. 
 In this explanation however some points must 
 
 still be considered unsatisfactory. 1. That P'^HH 
 must be taken in the specific meaning " to divide 
 inheritance"' in which it nowhere else occurs; 
 
 though p7n. np/n may mean joa^rmowmm (Num. 
 
 xviii. 20) ; 2. That to the Hiphil, in order to be 
 able to connect it with Qt'O, must be specially 
 
 alsf) attributed the meaning of fetching, since pri- 
 marily it contains only the idea of parting. Mean- 
 while, as said above, the text as it stands does 
 not afford a satisfactory meaning. It has been 
 attempted to alter the text. J. D. Michaelis 
 
 would read D^ 'Ip'^nS or DE^ DpSnS. This how- 
 ever wojLild not be good Hebrew. The scriptio 
 defection P /H £, as well as the similarity of -p 
 
 and *] renders it easier to read DK^D ^^n'7_. ^J\ 
 means to change, which meaning appears with 
 various modifications. For not only all kinds 
 of change of place are designated by it (comp. 
 transiit, Job ix. 11 ; transgressus est, Isai. xxiv. 
 5 ; abiil. Cant. ii. 11 ; perrexit, 1 Sam. x. 8 ; per' 
 transivit, Jud. v. 26; periit, Isai. ii. 18, in which 
 meanings it is for the most part synonymous with 
 
 ^^J') but change of material (comp. renovari, revi- 
 
 vescere, Hab. i. 11; Ps. xc. 5) and of form (comp. 
 Piel., Gen. xli. 14; Hiph., Gen. xxxi. 7, 41; 
 
 XXXV. 2 ; further ^T} and m'SwH). It might 
 
 then be declared that the prophet's going to Ben- 
 jamin had for its object a change of residence. 
 
 Uli/D might very suitably be referred to Jerusa- 
 lem. It might however also according to well- 
 known usage (comp. Naegelsb. Gr., | 112, 5, rf) 
 signify " in that direction, thither" (comp. Isai. 
 xvii. 13). It might thus be intimated to us that 
 the prophet had no intention of going over to the 
 Chaldeans, or of fleeing to secure his personal 
 safety, but simply of returning to his native 
 place, because he knew that a residence in Jeru- 
 salem no longer afl^orded him any safety, and be- 
 cause he regarded his ministry there as ended. 
 (Comp. Starke, ad h. I.) It is however declared 
 by the words "in the midst of the people " that 
 he did not take this step alone and secretly, but 
 publicly and in company with many others, per- 
 haps of those who believed in his prophetic ut- 
 terances. From this as well as from Dl^D ( be- 
 
 T • ^ 
 
 cause it indicates tliat the prophet took his way 
 not to the army of the Chaldeans, but in the op- 
 posite direction) it would be clear how unjusti- 
 fiable the imprisonment of the prophet was. In 
 this however I merely express my own supposi- 
 tion. — On the gate of Benjamin comp. xxxviii. 7, 
 and rems. on xx. 2. — Thou fallest away to 
 
 the Chaldeans. The expression 73J appears 
 
 to be an allusion to the answer, which Jeremiah, 
 according to xxi. 9, gave a former embassy of 
 Zedekiah. I say a former. For at the time, to 
 which ch. xxi. belongs, Jerusalem was besieged 
 by the Chaldeans, but the prophet was at liberty 
 (comp. xxi. 1, 2, and xxxvii. 3, with xxxvii. 17). 
 After his imprisonment, related in xxxvii. 13, 
 however, Jeremiah was not again set at liberty. 
 Chap. xxi. must therefore be placed before the 
 retirement of the Chaldeans related in xxxvii. 5. 
 
820 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 ^The princes, before whom Jeremiah was 1 
 
 brought, were, as Graf correctly remarks, not 
 the same as those, who had so warmly espousetl 
 his cause under Jehoiakim (chh. xxvi. xxxvi.) 
 These had probably been carried away with Je- 
 hoiachin into captivity (xxiv. 1 ; xxix. 2) comp. 
 rem*, on xxviii. 1. — The house of the secretary 
 Jonathan, of which we have no further know- 
 ledge, was used as a prison, because there were 
 parts of it adapted for such a purpose. These 
 are designated (1) by the word "113. This word 
 does not necessarily everywhere mean a pit, 
 though it certainly does in xxxviii. 6, 7, 9, as is 
 shown by passages like Gen. xl. 15; Exod. xii. 
 29. It is at any rate a subterranean cavity, and 
 "li^n'jT^ is a house where there are such cavi- 
 ties, for the word may be taken collectively. 
 Such places are (2) designated as n'rjn. The 
 word occurs here only. In the dialects, accord- 
 ing to the i-adical meaning, it is "to let one's- 
 self down, to encamp, to turn in," and " a camp, 
 a place to put up at, a booth, a cell." (Fuerst). 
 Here it is evidently the subterranean cell of a 
 prison. (Comp. Rosenmueller ac? A. /.) 
 
 Vers. 17-21. Then Zedekiah , . . court of 
 the guard. The second stage of imprisonment! 
 The weak king, dependent on his nobles, has the 
 prophet secretly brought from his prison to ask 
 him, whether there is not a word from the Lord 
 which in their desperate condition would give 
 them some light and comfort. From the scarcity 
 of means of subsistence (ver. 21) it is seen that 
 the city was again blockaded. Jeremiah's pro- 
 phecy (ver. 8) was thus already fulfilled. This 
 was doubtless the circumstance which filled Ze- 
 dekiah with 80 much solicitude, that he deter- 
 
 mined to have the prophet called, a step which 
 involved humiliation to himself (comp. ver. 19), 
 and it might also compromise him with the 
 princes (comp. "secretly," ver. 17). — From the 
 circumstance that Zedekiah has the prophet 
 brought from the prison in the house of Jona- 
 than, it is plainly seen that we have not before 
 us the same conference, as that spoken of in 
 xxxii. 3-5 and xxxiv. 2-5. For in this Jeremiah 
 took part voluntarily, and for this as a punish- 
 ment he was confined in the court of the guard, 
 (xxxii. 3). For the conference here recorded he 
 was brought from the prison, and afterwards as 
 a favor assigned to the court of the guard. Since 
 now the other conference at all events belongs to 
 the last stage of the siege, as was shown above 
 on xxxiv. 1-5, which entire stage Jeremiah spent 
 partly in prison and partly in the guard-court, 
 the conference recorded here must be the earlier 
 of the two. — It is accordingly also clear that the 
 prophecy "thou shalt be delivered into the hand 
 of the king of Babylon " cannot be, as Graf sup- 
 poses, identical with that contained in xxxii. 4, 
 5; xxxiv. 2-5, i. e., it is so in subject but not in 
 time. Jeremiah boldly tells the king the truth ; 
 but he also uses the opportunity to promote his 
 own personal interest. He does this by giving 
 expression on the one hand to the consciousness 
 of his innocence, which was exhibited with eclat 
 in the shaming of the false prophets (vers. 18, 
 19), and on the other by beseeching earnestly that 
 he may not be taken back to the dungeon (ver. 
 20). — On let my supplication, etc., comp. 
 xxxvi. 7. — On court of the guard, comp. xxxii. 
 2. — Qn piece of bread and bakers' street, 
 comp. the articles ^^ Backen" and "Bt-nd^' in 
 Herzoq, R.-Encycl. [Smith, Diet. I,, 227]. 
 
 2. Jeremiah in the Pit {third stags of his imprisonment), his Conference with the King and Confinement in 
 
 the court of the guard {fourth stage of imprisonment). 
 
 Chap. XXXVIII. 
 
 Then Shephatiah the son of Mattan, and Gedaliah the son of Pashur, and Jucal 
 the son of Shelemiah, and Pashur the son of Malchiah, heard the words that Jere- 
 miah had spoken unto all the people, saying, Thus saith the Lord [Jehovah] : He 
 that remaineth in this city^ shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pes- 
 tilence: but he that goeth forch to the Chaldeans shall live; for he shall have his 
 life for a prey, and shall live. Thus saith the Lord, This city shall surely [or 
 must] be given into the hand of the king of Babylon's army, which shall take it. 
 Therefore the princes said unto the king, We beseech thee, let this man be put to 
 death f for thus^ he weakeneth* the hands of the men of war that remain in this 
 city, and the hands of all the people, in speaking such words^ unto them : for this 
 man seeketh not the welfare [lit. peace]** of this people, but the hurt. Then Ze- 
 dekiah the king said, Behold, he is in your hand : for the king is not he that can 
 do any thing [the king can do nothing]'' against you. Then took they Jeremiah, 
 and cast him into the dungeon [pit, or cistern]® of Malchiah the son of Haramelech 
 [the king] that was in the court of the prison : and they let down Jeremiah with 
 cords. And in the dungeon there was no water, but mire : so Jeremiah sunk in the 
 mire. Now when Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, one of the eunuchs which [who] 
 
CHAP. XXXVIII. 1-28. 321 
 
 was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon ; the 
 
 8 king then sitting in the gate of Benjamin ; Ebed-melech went forth out of the 
 
 9 king's house, and spake to the king, saying, My lord the king, these men have 
 done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiali the prophet, whom they have east 
 into the dungeon : and he is like to [or must ; lit. : is dead] die for hunger in the 
 
 10 place where he is^ : for there is no more bread in the city. Then the king com- 
 manded Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, saying, Take from hence thirty'" men with 
 
 11 thee," and take up Jeremiah the prophet out of the dungeon, before he die. So 
 Ebed-melech took the men with him, and went into the house of the king under 
 the treasury, and took thence old cast clouts,^^ and old rotten rags [rags of tattered 
 and worn out clothes], and let them down by cords into the dungeon to Jeremiah. 
 
 12 And Ebed-melech the Ethiopian said unto Jeremiah, Put now i/iese old cast clouts 
 and rotten rags under thine armholes" under the cords. And Jeremiah did so. 
 
 13 So they drew up Jeremiah with cords, and took him up out of the dungeon : and 
 
 14 Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison [guard]. Then Zedekiah the king 
 sent, and took Jeremiah the prophet unto him into the third [or principal] entry^* 
 that is in [to] the house of the Lord [Jehovah]: and the king said unto Jeremiah, 
 
 15 I will ask thee a thing ;^* hide nothing'® from me. Th^ Jeremiah said unto Ze- 
 dekiah, If I declare it unto thee, wilt thou not surely put me to death ? and if I 
 
 16 give thee counsel wilt thou not hearken unto me ? So Zedekiah the king swore 
 secretly unto Jeremiah, saying, As the Lord [Jehovah] liveth, that" made us this 
 soul, I will not put thee to death, neither will I give thee into the hand of these 
 men that seek thy life. 
 
 17 Then said Jeremiah unto Zedekiah, Thus saith the Lord [Jehovah], the God of 
 hosts, the God of Israel : If thou wilt assuredly go forth unto the king of Baby- 
 lon's princes, then thy soul shall live, and this city shall not be burned with fire ; 
 
 18 and thou shalt live, and thine house : but if thou wilt not go forth to the king of 
 Babylon's princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, 
 
 19 and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hand. And 
 Zedekiah the king said unto Jeremiah, I am afraid'^ of the Jews that are fallen to 
 the Chaldeans, lest they deliver me into their hand, and they mock me.^^ 
 
 20 But Jeremiah said. They shall not deliver thee. Obey, I beseech thee, the voice 
 
 21 of the Lord [Jehovah], which^° I speak unto thee : so it shall be^^ well unto thee, 
 and thy soul shall live.^^ But if thou refuse to go forth, this is the word that the 
 
 22 Lord [Jehovah] hath showed me : And, behold, all the women that are left in the 
 king of Judah's house shall be brought forth to the king of Babylon's princes, and 
 those women [they] shall say. Thy friends [men of thy place]'^ have set thee 
 on [over-persuaded] and have prevailed against thee :^ thy feet are sunk in the 
 
 23 mire,'* and they are turned away back. So they'* shall bring out all thy wives 
 and thy children to the Chaldeans : and thou shalt not escape out of their hand, 
 but shalt be taken by the hand of the king of Babylon : and thou shalt cause this 
 city to be burned with fire. 
 
 24 Then said Zedekiah unto Jeremiah, Let no man know'^® of these words, and thou 
 
 25 shalt not die. But if the princes hear that I have talked with thee, and they come 
 unto thee, and say unto thee, Declare unto us now what thou hast said unto the 
 king, hide it not from us, and we will not put thee to death ; also what the king 
 
 26 said unto thee : then thou shalt say unto tiiem, I presented my supplication before 
 the king, that he would not cause me to return to Jonathan's house, to die there." 
 
 27 Then came all the princes unto Jeremiah, and asked him : and he told them ac- 
 cording to all these words that the king had commanded. So they left off speaking'^ 
 
 28 with him [lit. : were silent from him] ; for the matter was not perceived. So Je- 
 remiah abode in the court of the prison [guard] until the day that Jerusalem was 
 taken 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 2.— The same words as in xxi. 9. Only here Si3 J1 and DD'S^^ D'''^yn are wanting, and instead we have at the 
 
 close a repeated "TIV The Chothibh nTI' is here as in xxi. t» the more correct reading, agreeing better with the order of 
 
 the sentence (nO')- ^Pl- 'n sense superfluous, but in accordance with the verbose style of the prophet, is construed llko 
 
 Deut. iv. 42 coll. xix. 4 ; Ezek. xviii. 13 ; xx. 11 ; Naegllsu. Gr., J 84, i. On the form comp. Olsh., S. 480, 482, 460. 
 21 
 
THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 SYer. 4.— >.1 ty-xn nX NJ-nor. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., ? 100, 2. 
 
 3 Ver. 4.— On |3~S^' ""2- Comp. rems. on xxix. 28. 
 
 ♦ Ver. 4. — N3"l'0 for riiJ'IO- Comp. Olsh., § 249, a; Naeoelsb. Gr., g 39 Anm. 
 
 5 Ver. 4.— "^31^- Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 95, e. 
 
 6 Ver. 4. — The construction with '7, as in Job x. 6 ; Deut. xii. 50 ; 1 Chron. xxii. 19 ; 2 Chron. xv. 13 ; xvii. 4, etc. 
 
 7 Ver. 5. Since DDnX can bo only the nota Ace. with suffix (not on account of the meaning, but the form), 7JV must 
 
 be taken in the meaning " overpower " (comp. Ps. xiii. 5), t'X as purely adverbial with emphatic significance (comp. Job 
 XXXV. 15 ; 1 Sam. xxi. 9 ; Naegelsb. Gr-, g 106, 3), '\21 as accusative of more exact definition : the king can not go beyond 
 
 you in anv matter. 
 
 8 Ver' 0.— Ou the article's position in >-0 TUn comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., g 71, 5 Anm. 1, b. 
 
 ' Ver. 9. — Vnnri- The preposition is to be taken in its original meaning as a substantive, and as accusative of place: 
 in its uiidcrsjjace, 1. c. as M-e say, on the spot. Comp. 2 Sam. ii. 23; Exod. x. 23; xvi. 29; Jud. vii. 21; 1 Sam. xiv. 9; 
 2 o.l 11. Vli. 10; 1 v'lu'ou. xvii. ',1. , . 
 
 w Ver. 10.— HiTZlG (and alter him Ewald, Graf, JIeiee) would read T\li/ll^, because thirty men is too many and D'E^JX 
 
 is contrary to the syntax, and also in 2 Sam. xxiii. 13 the same correction is made by the Kori. This alteration does not 
 appear to me to be necessary. Zedekiah might not have ordered the larger number for the sake of the diawin^- uj) (for 
 which four men would suffice, as UlTZio reckons), but for greater security and to hinder any rosistanc •. Tli ■ ^,, iit ix is not 
 opposed to tliis. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 70, 4 ; Gesen. g 120, 2; 2 Sam. iii. 20 ; 2 Ki. ii. 16 coll. 17.— In 2 Sam. xxiii. the 
 text is coiriipt in many places. 
 
 II Ver. 10.— 1T3. Comp. Gen. XXX. 35; xxxii. 17; Numb. xxxi. 49 ; Jud. ix. 29. 
 
 i» Ver. 11. — D'V'^S from *I73, vetustate tritum (comp. Josh. ix. 4, 5), occurs here only. Comp. Olsh., g 173, 9. So also 
 
 nnnD from 3nD, to rend, to tear (xv. 3 ; xxii. 19 ; xlix. 20). They are shreds, tatters, rags. The article, which the Keri 
 
 exscimis, is abnormal and probably occasioned by niDHDn, ver. 12. DTl/O also is not found elsewhere. The root flbo 
 
 is found only in Isa. Ii. 6, in the meaning of diffluere, unless we assume another n /O. synonymous with HTO (Isa. xxxviii. 
 
 ~ T " T 
 
 21 ; Lev. xxi. 20), to rub, rub away, and plr3, to rub, polish (xlvi. 4 ; Lev. vi. 21 ; 2 Chron. iv. IG). 
 
 13 Ver. 12. — From the connection this must be the meaning [not knuckles of the fingers]. Comp. Ezek. xli. 8, the only 
 place where nS'-^X occurs besides. In Ezek. xiii. 18 we find 'T* "' 7^!f X i" a related meaning as to both words, for the latter 
 is used by Ezekiel also in the wider sense, as is seen from ver. 20, where riij-'ITT stands for it. Comp. Zech. xiii. 6; Isa. 
 XXV. 11 and the analogous use of 7J1 in the sense of leg. Isa. vii. 20 ; xxxvi. 12 Keri ; Deut. xxviii. 57. 
 
 14 Ver. 14. — On the construction comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 73, 2 Anm. [The LXX. render : ei? oiiciac 'Ao-eAeio-ijA, regard- 
 ing it as a proper name, but this is no authority for a punctuation ''ti^'' /IJ'n XUO, entry of the TpitrToTat. — IIlTZlG.] 
 
 16 Ver. 14. — The sense is the same as in the former question, xxxvii. 17. The Part. ^XK' is to be taken as future: 
 
 qustsiturus sum. Comp. Nakgelsb. Gr., g 97, 1 a. 
 
 10 Ver. 14. — The second 131 (observe that IHDn does not stand simply with a suffix) belongs to the negation, in the 
 T T •' ~ : 
 
 sense of ne quid. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 82, 2. 
 
 1' Ver. 10. — 1i7X nX. If the Chethil>h is correct, which is favored by the greater difficulty of the reading, these 
 words 8imply=?M»i. qui. The relative freriueutly includes the idea of tlio demonstrative pronoun (comp. vi. IS ; Naegelsb. 
 Gr., g 80, 5). Since now niiT Tl is in the accusative, the pronoun relating to it must also be in the accusative ; since, 
 
 however, It^X must at the same time be the nominative to Hii'^, it evidently involves the double conception of eum qui, 
 
 ■.• -: T r 
 
 which is only rendered possible by the flX. In Latin it would be impossible to say qu^m in such a case. 
 
 18 Ver. 19.— JXH- Comp. xvii. S ; xiii. 16. 
 
 19 Ver. 19.— '3 iSS^'jinV Comp. Num. xxii. 29 ; Jud. xix. 25 ; 1 Sam. xxxi. 4 coll. Lam. i. 22 ; ii. 20; iii. 51. In the 
 Hitlip. tli'j iiu:iiiiiigs of •• t(^ j;ratify, indulge one's self" and " to mock" appear to be united, the LXX. usually rendering 
 the word by enirai^w, in this place, however, by Kara/xw/cao^ai. 
 
 20 Ver. 20.— li^xS- '7=in respect to. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., S. 227 ; Gen. xvii. 20; xxvii. 8. 
 
 21 Ver. 20. — "nn-l 3£3'''1 are Jussives with the signification of intended effect. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 89, 3, 6, 2. 
 
 22 Ver. 22.-Comp. xx. 10; Ps. xli. lo. 
 
 23 Ver. r2 — Comp. xliii. 3 ; Isa. xxxvi. 18. The two verbs together express the idea of successful seduction. 
 
 2* Ver. 22.— v'3 Inr. \ey. Comp. n-^3 Job viii. 11 ; xl. 21.— The form T7i'\_ is indeed irregular, but not without ana- 
 logy. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 44, 4 Anm. 
 
 25 Ver. 2.5.— On the absence of a subject comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., g 97, 2, b. 
 
 20 Ver. 24.— Comp. (Jen. xix. 33, 35 ; 1 Sam. xxii. 15 ; Job xxxv. 15. This also seems to be a jiregnant construction, the 
 prefix 3 accordingly being dependent on the idea of penetrating latent in_i;i\ That it would be regarded as partitive I 
 
 cannot believe. We should then expect VO- 
 
 w 'Ver. 27.— This inf. (HID^) depends on ''J3''tyn. ''jl737, and 7 designates here not the subjective purpose, but the 
 
 objective result. Comp. Gen. xix. 21 ; Num. xi. 11. 
 
 28 Ver. 27.— On the construction comp. rems. on ver. 23. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The chapter consists of two parts. In the 
 first part (vers. 1-1:3) it is narrated how tlio 
 princes prevailed on Zedekiah to give up Jere- 
 miah to them, on account of his continual ex- 
 
 hortations to surrender, that they might render 
 him harmless (vers. 1-5). They then lower him 
 down into a pit of mud, from which however the 
 king has him drawn up, on the petition of the 
 Ciishite Ebed-melech (vers. 6-13). In the second 
 part (14-28) it is recorded how the king has the 
 propliet brought from the court of the guard, to 
 
CHAP. XXXVIII. 1-28. 
 
 32a 
 
 which he had returned from the pit, for a secret 
 conference (vers. 14, 15). The king desires that 
 Jeremiah disclose the future to him without re- 
 serve, and promises him with an oath that his 
 life shall be spared and protected. Jeremiah 
 has, however, nothing else to say to the king, but 
 that surrender is the only way of escape (vers. 
 16-23). Then the king forbids the prophet to 
 communicate the purport of this conference. In 
 accordance with the king's command, Jeremiah 
 tells the princes, who really come to inquire 
 from lura about the conversation, that he only 
 petitioned the king that he might not be taken 
 back to the house of Jonathan, the secretary. 
 The princes have to depart with this answer. 
 Jeremiah, however, remains in the court of the 
 guard till the capture of the city (vers. 24-28). 
 
 Vers. 1-6. Then Shephatiah ... in the 
 mire. Jeremiah, brought back into the court 
 of the guard, has further opportunity of inter- 
 course with the people, and uses it again and 
 again to counsel voluntary surrender as the only 
 means of escape. — Of the four princes, who hear 
 the prophet's discourse, Shephatiah, son of Mat- 
 tan, and Gedaliah, son of Pashur, are not fur- 
 ther mentioned ; Jucal, son of Shelemiah, is 
 evidently identical with Jehucal, son of Shele- 
 miah, xxxvii. 3. Pashur son of Malchiah, has been 
 mentioned in xxi. 1. Pashur was of sacerdotal 
 (comp. rems. on xxi. 1), Jucal of Levitic descent 
 (comp. 1 Chron. xxvi. 1, 2, 9, 14). These 
 "princes" were thus neither "raised from a 
 lower rank," as Graf supposes (on xxxvii. 15), 
 nor do their former relations to the prophet lead 
 us to conclude that they were inimically disposed 
 towards him. We do not send, to present peti- 
 tions, as is the case in xxi. 1, 2; xxxvii. 3, per- 
 sonas ingratas. The intended departure of Jere- 
 miah (xxxvii. 12) seems thus to have awakened 
 suspicion against him. — On ver. 3 comp. xxi. 10. 
 — Seeketh not the ■welfare. On the subject- 
 matter comp. xxlx. 7 ; Deut. xxiii. 7 ; Ezr. ix. 12. 
 — The charge against the prophet is unjust. He 
 has the true welfare of the people in view, viz. 
 that which is in accordance with the divine will, 
 and the confidence which he seeks to break, is 
 not a fully satisfied heroic courage, founded on 
 genuine trust in God, but carnal obstinacy, which 
 must lead to destruction. It is inconceivable 
 how any one can fail to see this and take the 
 part of the prophet's opponents. Comp. Dunc- 
 KER, 1. -S". 80 1. The king, fearing on the one 
 hand tlie higlior power supporting the prophet, 
 and on the oiher not having the courage openly 
 to oppose the princes standing in corpvre before 
 him, delivers 1 he prophet into their hands. That 
 he expected the prophet would be merely taken 
 back to the house of Jonathan (Graf) I do not 
 believe. The princes had decisively demanded 
 Jeremiah's death (ver. 4). Their not having 
 him executed at once, but thrown into a pit, 
 where his escape would appear possible only by 
 a miracle, may have been due either to their 
 wickedness or to a certain fear of shedding the 
 blood of the prophet. Comp. Gen. xxxvii. 22-24. 
 Jeremiah is now thrown into a cistern, which 
 bears the name of an otherwise unknown prince, 
 Malkiah (comp. rems. on xxxvi. 26), probably 
 because he had it dug. The pit may have bcpu 
 often used as the severest iaskprisonment. The 
 
 princes in letting down Jeremiah into it may have 
 intended either his most painful death, or an 
 evasion on their part, that they had not shed his 
 blood, but only thrown him into a prison appro- 
 priate to such traitors. If he perished there the 
 guilt would not be theirs. In the central point 
 of the theocracy, opposed to prophets and priests 
 wno are filled with diabolical hatred and a weak 
 king led fey them, this solitary "servant of Je- 
 hovah " is at the lowest stage of humiliation and 
 of suftering. All the hatred of Jerusalem, "that 
 killest theprophets and stonest them that are sent 
 unto thee" (Matt, xxiii. 37), culminates at this 
 time in this behaviour towards Jeremiah, by which 
 the measure of guilt was fulfilled and the sentence 
 of destruction was pronounced over the unhappy 
 city. The fulfilling and completing antitype of 
 this historical event is certainly not what hap- 
 pened to John the Baptist (as Hengstenberq 
 supposes, Christol., II. S. 400 [Eng. Tr., II., 
 40o]), but what our Lord Himself sutfered, who 
 was also the object of the most intense hatred 
 on the part of carnal Israel, as being the pro- 
 phet of its final overthrow (Matt, xxiii. and 
 xxiv.). — Comp. Ps. Ixix. 
 
 Vers. 7-13. Now when Ebed-melech . . . 
 court of the guard. The expression "one 
 of the eunuchs" (comp. lii. 25) seems to inti- 
 mate that a real eunuch is here meant. As the 
 Mosaic law forbade such mutilation (comp. Deut. 
 xxiii. 1) and, on the other hand, it is not impro- 
 bable that eunuchs were then employed in the 
 service of the harem (2 Ki. xxiv. 15), it is not 
 very strange to find a foreign eunuch in the ser- 
 vice of a Jewish king, with whom, as we infer 
 from vers. 22, 23, the harem occupied an import- 
 ant position. That Ethiopians were preferred 
 for such service seems to be indicated by some 
 traces (comp. Dan. xi. 43 ; Terent. Eun., I. 2, 
 85), as at the present day most of these people 
 come from upper Egypt. (Comp. Winer, R.- 
 W.-B. s.y., Verschnittene. [Smith's Z'/c/., I. 590]). 
 Ebed-melech [servant of the king] (N. B. not 
 
 l7^n) is the proper name of the man, chosen 
 
 with reference to his fuuuiion. This name is so 
 purely Hebrew and in accurdauce wiih the man's 
 position at the Jewish court, that it is not to be 
 conceived how Fuerst could come to suppose 
 that it is a Hebraized from an Ethiopic name. 
 Comp. H.-W.-B., S. 583.— This Ebed-melech is 
 moreover a proof that the called are not always 
 the chosen, that on the contrary the last are 
 often the first. A stranger, a heathen, a Moor 
 feels compassion for the prophet and horror at 
 the crime committed on him, while in Israel not 
 a hand or tongue is moved in his favor. Comp. 
 Luke iv. 25; xix. 40; Matt. viii. 10. — "Who 
 w^as in the ki'ng's house. A relative sen- 
 tence which expresses that Ebed-melech received 
 the news, while he was present in the palace, 
 but the king was absent, sitting in the gate of 
 Benjamin. Comp. xxxvii. 13. — Have done 
 evil, ver. 9. Comp. xliv. 5 ; Mic. iii. 4 ; 2 Ki. 
 xxi. 11. — rnnn nn''l. This may certainly mean 
 grammatically, "and he had died," etc. But 
 Ebed-melech does not wish to blame them, that 
 instead of death by famine, which he would have 
 suffered without tiiis, they had •inflicted on him 
 another death, but that they had placed him ia 
 
824 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 H position in which he must die at any rate, but 
 must inevitably before all succumb to the famine. 
 As is well known the Imperfect with Vau con- 
 secutive may represent any action which is not 
 really past, but only represented as such, while 
 in reality it is present or future, or even merely 
 the wish, command, or assumed possibility of it. 
 So here, that is related as an accomplished fact 
 which is merely undoubtedly to be expected. 
 Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., ^ 88, 5 ; Jer. viii. 16; ix. 
 2: XX. 17. — Ebed-melechpre-supposestwothings, 
 (1) That the detention in the pit is not in itself 
 absolutely fatal; (2) but that Jeremiah must at 
 all events die of hunger in the pit. The latter 
 pre-supposition is evidently founded on this fact, 
 that in the general scarcity of means of subsist- 
 ence one who was thrown into a pit might least 
 of all expect to be provided for. 
 
 Vers. 14-16. Then Zedekiah . . . seek thy 
 life. How long after the liberation from the 
 pit the following conference took place, is not 
 stated. HiTZio supposes that Zedekiah sent for 
 the prophet very soon after his liberation, per- 
 haps on the same day, since otherwise the eva- 
 sion in ver. 26 would have lost all probability, 
 for '"days or weeks later, being let alone in the 
 meantime, Jeremiah must have been set at rest 
 with respect to the king's designs." But with a 
 king of so weak and vacillating character Jere- 
 miah could not, even after weeks, be safe from 
 cruel measures towards his person. All that 
 can be said is, that immediately after showing a 
 favor a contrary treatment was less to be feared 
 than some time afterwards. Nothing more exact 
 can be determined. At all events, in the inter- 
 val between the deliverance from the pit and the 
 conference no remarkable event occurred. — 
 Third entry. What entrance to the temple this 
 was is unknown. At any rate, it must have 
 afforded a suitable place for a secret conference. 
 — HiTZiG, by the use of 2 Ki. xvi. 18; xxiii. 11; 
 1 Chron. xxvi. 18, lias attempted a clever combi- 
 nation, which is, however, based on too insecure 
 premises to be satisfactory. [The outer entrance 
 ("the king's entry without," 1 Ki. xvi. 18) lead- 
 ing from the citadel and after the time of Ahaz 
 from the temple into the ■jvpodareiov, where there 
 was the cell of a royal eunuch, 2 Ki. xxiii. 11. — 'S. 
 R. A.] — From the prophet's answer we see that he 
 neither trusted the king with respect to his own 
 person, in spite of the favors he had received 
 from him, nor with respect to the subject in hand 
 did he expect any receptivity to the divine com- 
 munications. Proudly and boldly he at first de- 
 clines to answer the question. But the king 
 swears to him that he will neither put him to 
 deatli himself nor surrender him to his enemies. 
 — Zedekiah swears by the God of life that he 
 will preserve the prophet's life. Comp. xvi. 14, 15. 
 
 "Vers. 17-23. Then said Jeremiah ... to 
 be burned w^ith fire. Jeremiah again offers 
 the king the alternative which had been so fre- 
 quently presented before, either voluntary sur- 
 render to the Chaldean generals (C"!'^, comp. 
 
 xxxix. 3, 13, Nebuchadnezzar himself was in 
 Riblah, xxxix. 5) and at least the safety of his 
 life and preservation of the city, or continued 
 resistance and destruction of the city and the 
 endangering of his own person. Observe the 
 
 negative expression, "thou shalt not escape," in 
 ver. 18. Comp. xxxii. 4, 5; xxxiv. 2-5. Zede- 
 kiah, however, cannot make up his mind to fol- 
 low the advice of the prophet. He alleges that 
 he fears ill-treatment from the Jews who had 
 already gone over to the Chaldeans. It can 
 scarcely be supposed that this fear was seriously 
 intended, though those transfugse might represent 
 a party, which was discontented with the govern 
 ment of Zedekiah and ascribed all the calami 
 ties of the State to him. For even the quieting 
 assurance of Jereminli, ver. 2U, makes no im 
 pression, which would have been the case if 
 the king had had no other reason. There was 
 really no reason to distrust the prophet's as- 
 surance. — In case Zedekiah, from fear of the 
 insults of his fugitive subjects, refuses to 
 follow the admonition of the prophet, the pros- 
 pect of insult to his wives is set before him. 
 — This is the word that Jehovah hath 
 showed me. This does not logically follow as 
 apodosis to the protasis if thou refuse, etc. A 
 middle clause is wanting expressing the thought, 
 thus shalt thou know, or I have to announce to 
 thee as follows. Further, T\iT\\ is the standing 
 formula with which the subject of the vision is 
 introduced, xxiv. 1; Am. vii. 1, 4-7; viii. 1. 
 Accordingly ver. 21 b seems to be contracted 
 from "hear now the word which I speak in thine 
 ears, which Jehovah," etc. (xxviii. 7). It is not, 
 however, denied that the expression in itself is 
 admissible as it stands. Comp. Ezek. xi. 25. — 
 The prophet's setting before the king the pros- 
 pect of the deportation of all his remaining wives, 
 seems to intimate that these were a specially es- 
 teemed part of his household, in other words, 
 that he had a large and to him very dear harem. 
 The expression "the women that are left in the 
 king of Judah's house," in distinction from "thy 
 wives" in ver. 23, indicates that there were still 
 wives of former kings as fixtures in the royal 
 household (comp. 2 Sam. xii. 8; Michaelis, 
 Mos. Recht., I. S. 207; Saalschuetz, Mos. Recht., 
 S. 85), and that even the deportation under Je- 
 hoiachin (2 Ki. xxiv. 15), had by no means ex- 
 hausted the supply of these fixtures. I do not 
 think that by the "women that are left," are to 
 be understood the maidens, as distinguished from 
 the wives, as Graf supposes. For tlieir being 
 taken forth to the princes, points to higlicr rank 
 and estimation. A satirical speech is placed in 
 the mouths of these women, the first part of 
 which is found verbatim (with the exception of 
 
 'I^N^l^n instead of ^liTDH) in the prophecy of 
 
 Obadiah (ver. 7j. On the indications that .Jere- 
 mialt borrowed from Ubadiaii, and not the re- 
 verse, comp. Casi'ari. O^Ku^ja, S. 8, anl ili(3 
 article Ohadja in IIkrzog, R.-Eiic. — Turned 
 away back. Comp. xlvi. 5; Isa. xlii. 17; Ps. 
 XXX v. 4; xl. 15; cxxix. 5. As in the first clause, 
 so also in the second two verbs are employed to 
 express the thought, of which the second expres- 
 ses the result of the first. The warrior sinking 
 in the mire must fall back. The words are 
 characteristic of Zedekiah. They represent him 
 distinctly as a weak man, dependent on the in- 
 fluence of others. No wonder then that instead 
 of a victor's pouan, with which the women usu- 
 ally receive a conqueror (1 Sam. xviii. 7), a song 
 
CHAP. XXXVIII. 1-28. 
 
 32d 
 
 of mockery awaits him. Observe also, that this 
 satirical song is not put into the mouths of Zede- 
 kiah's own wives, for these (in ver. 23) are evi- 
 dently distinguished from the oiIkm- occupants 
 of tlie ro^al harem. — Taken by the band. As 
 ty3P signifies only "to seize," the words can 
 mean only : thou wilt be taken by the hand, or into 
 the hand of the king, etc. The former would be a 
 mode of expression foreign to the style of the 
 prophet (comp. XX. 4; xxi. 7; xxvii. 6; xxix. 21 ; 
 xxxii. 3, 4 ; xxxiv. 3, etc. The second construc- 
 tion [Constr. prsegnnns. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., ^ 
 112, 7) is frequent in Jer. iv. 31; xi. 7; xiv. 2; 
 XXV. 34; xxxii. 20; comp. also infra, vers. 24 and 
 27. The sentence is to be regarded as the con- 
 traction of two thoughts into one, according to 
 the example of xxxiv. 3. — The following sentence 
 is also strange. For Jeremiah to say lo Zede- 
 kiah. Thou wilt burn the city, although correct 
 in a certain sense, is contrary to his usual mode 
 of expressing himself. The LXX., Syr., Chald., 
 read n"it!?.^. The punctuation ^^E/r> may be oc- 
 casioned by nx. The latter is, however, not 
 seldom used to emphasize an antithetical new con- 
 ception, for which we should say: but as to, etc. 
 Comp. EwALD, § 277, d, and especially the pas- 
 sages Ezek. xvii. 21; xliv. 3; Jer. xxxvi. 22; 2 
 Ki. vi. 5. ISo EwALD, Hitzig, Graf, Meier and 
 others. 
 
 Vers. 24-28 Then said Zedekiah . . . was 
 taken. The king feared that if the import of 
 his conversation with Jeremiah were known, he 
 would be regarded as vacillating and be sus- 
 pected of inclining to the view of the prophet. 
 Though he knew that the fact of the conversation 
 could not remain concealed, he wished, however, 
 that it might be represented as occasioned by 
 Jeremiah himself, and as relating purely to his 
 personal interests. — And thou shalt not die, 
 may be regarded as a threat on the part of the 
 king, but at the same time also as areference to the 
 danger threatening from the princes. For the 
 king would say : I will have you put to death if 
 you betray me, and the princes will kill you if 
 they learn that you have summoned me again to 
 surrender. In the supposed inquiry of the 
 princes, ver. 2-5, the words hide it not from 
 us, and we will not put thee to death, are 
 a parenthesis, the latter expressing the threat, 
 which Zedekiah presupposes in case the prophet 
 should refuse to make a satisfactory statement. 
 — I presented, etc. Comp. rems. on xxxvi. 7. 
 The pit is not mentioned here. Zedekiah seems 
 thus to presuppose that Jeremiah need not fear a 
 taking back to the pit, from which he had been 
 liberated at the king's command, but that a return 
 to the prison of Jonathan (xxxvii. 15), to avert 
 which he had already oflfered a petition, might 
 be regai'ded as possible. The latter seems to 
 have been an ordinary place of confinement, 
 while the pit was only an extraordinary one. — 
 The princes really come to Jeremiah. The fact 
 of the conference thus did not remain concealed, 
 but concerning the import of it, nothing had be- 
 come known (the matter w^as not perceived). 
 They must have regarded the declaration of 
 Jeremiah made in accordance with tlie king's 
 command as probable, for they do not urge the 
 prophet further, but withdraw in silence. After 
 
 this Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard 
 till the capture of the city. On that wiiich 
 further occurred between Jeremiah and Zede- 
 kiah during this last stage of his confinement 
 comp. rems. on xxxii. 2-5; xxxiv. 1-5. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On xxxvii. 2, 3. The Lordls words Zede- 
 kiah did not care to hear, but tlie help of the 
 Lord lie would iiave liked to have This seek- 
 ing for help then did not proceed from u truly 
 believing heart. It was merely an experiment, 
 as in time of need one tries everything. Hence 
 Zedekiah did not venture to come to the Lord 
 himself, but Jeremiah was to iniercede for him. 
 "It is, however, in vain for intercession to be 
 made for him, and he himself does not help to 
 pray. Take the example of Pharaoh, Exod. viii. 
 29; ix. 28; x. 17." Cramer. 
 
 2. On xxxvii. 5-10. Nothing is more bitter 
 than in time of greatest need to see apparent help 
 again disappear. Raised from the depths, one is 
 then cast back into a still profounder deep. The 
 Jews had invoked the aid of the Egyptians on 
 their own responsibility. It was a triumph of 
 worldly policy. The Lord disappoints their cal- 
 culations. He is not to be so easily put out. 
 The Chaldeans withdraw, but only to defeat the 
 Egyptians, and then return. And Jeremiah must 
 be the prophet of this disappointed hope. A few 
 mortally wounded men, he must proclaim, would 
 suSice to execute the Lord's decree on Jerusalem. 
 Comp. 2 Sam. v. 6. 
 
 3. On xxxvii. 10. This passage is also adduced 
 as an instance of the so-called .^ceen^m media orde 
 futuro conditionato ( Vide BuDDE,./ns< Dogm., pag. 
 228), together with 1 Sam..xxiii. 11, 12; Jer. 
 xxxviii. 17; Ezek. iii. 6; Matt. xi. 21,22; xxiv. 
 22; Acts xxvii. 31. Starke. 
 
 4. On xxxvii. 11, 12. If Jeremiah really wished 
 to leave Jerusalem, because in the city he no 
 longer hoped to secure safety or any success to 
 his ministry (comp. Starke: "It appears that 
 the prophet would betake himself to the country- 
 people, because he hoped from them better re- 
 sults in penitence and the averting of the divine 
 judgments, since hitherto he had been mostly 
 hindered in his office by the priests and the 
 court "), he was in error and took an arbitrary 
 step. For in the first place the servant of God, 
 who is at his post, is under divine protection, 
 and in the second, he had to proclaim the will 
 of God again and again to the stubborn people. 
 There was then still the possibility of their obe- 
 dient submission to the divine will. Jeremiah 
 did afterwards repeatedly show that deliverance 
 was still possible on the condition of submission 
 (xxxviii. 2, 3, 17), and also, as he had to pro- 
 claim ruin unconditionally (xxxii. 3-5; xxxiv. 
 2-5), tliis testimony wns ncces^^ary, partly as a 
 proof of tiie inviolability of the divine counsel, 
 partly to cut oif all excuse for the Jews after- 
 wards, partly as a foil to the glorious Messianic 
 prophecies (chh. xxxii. and xxxiii.) which per- 
 tain to this hxst stage before the destruction of 
 the city. If then Jeremiah really had the pur- 
 pose at that time to leave the city, it was an ar- 
 bitrary step, which was not to succeed, and for 
 which his arrest and what followed was a just 
 
326 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 punishment. In this sense Diedrich also says 
 {S. 120), "The saints also err, and God deals 
 with them punctiliously, so they also must be 
 docile under the divine chastisements." 
 
 5. On xxxvii. 15. "Jeremiah's prophecies ap- 
 plied to the whole situation (political), and he 
 Ihus cou'.d not avoid the appearance, which his 
 disposition to recommend to the king the sur- 
 l-euder of the city occasioned. God be praised ! 
 our Lord's kingdom is not of this world. His 
 servants may renounce the matters, which per- 
 tain thereto, with full freedom, and this the more 
 because the Lord raises the instruments who are 
 to labor for the amelioration of the State and the 
 circumstances of mankind also from this king- 
 dom, but gives the prophets of the New Testa- 
 ment a complete dispensation therefrom; of 
 which we have a living example in Jesus and all 
 His Apostles, who did not meddle by a word in 
 any of the civil matters of the authorities, under 
 whom they taught. Justice and chastity were 
 Paul's themes with the procurator Felix, which 
 were matters of the interior, and that is enough." 
 
 ZiNZENUORF. 
 
 6. On xxxvii. 17. "The king was commanded 
 to put the book of the law before him, and always 
 have it with him, Deut. xvii. 19. As now he did 
 not do this, he must be in awe even of his own 
 servants: sometimes he must look at his coun- 
 sellors through his fingers and let them do as 
 they will, and though he might have been a mas- 
 ter, he must be a servant. For God poureth con- 
 tempt upon princes and looseth the covenant of 
 the mighty (Job xii. 21)." Cramer. 
 
 7. On xxxvii. 18-20. In the consciousness of 
 his official dignity the prophet proudly appears 
 before the king, saying. Although it has come 
 out clearly that I was right and your prophets 
 wrong, you have done me injustice. Nevertheless 
 he applies with humble and earnest petition to 
 the king in behalf of his person, that he may not 
 be taken back again to the dreadful prison. "After 
 Jeremiah's example, one may well petition tyran- 
 nical magistrates for a mitigation of persecution, 
 but not speak to please them for the sake of the 
 mitigation." Cramer. 
 
 8. On xxxviii. 1-4. Jeremiah is like a running 
 spring, which has an abundance of water. The 
 mouth of the tube may be stopped. But no sooner 
 is a sligJit temporary opening afforded, than the 
 water breaks forth with full power. Although 
 he knew what was before him, he was not silent. 
 For he could not be silent (xx. 9). Even if they 
 had beaten him to death on the spot with clubs, 
 yet dying he would have cried : he that.goeth 
 forth shall live. Jeremiah was, however, no 
 arch-tr;iiior, but the truest patriot in all Israel. 
 Is not tliis proved by the courage, with which 
 he inflexibly repeated his apparently so unpa- 
 triotic counsel? Certainly his opponents re- 
 gard him as tlie most dangerous man among the 
 people, just as Ahab accused Elijah of troub- 
 ling Israel (1 Kings xviii. 18), Amaziah Amos 
 vvii. lOj, the Jews Paul (Acts xvi. 20). 
 
 9. On xxxviii. 5. Legal right to carry out 
 their will, in opposition to that of the king, the 
 princes had none. Zedekiah's speech, there- 
 fore, displays only his individual weakness. He 
 iiNo sliows by it liow little he was subject to 
 God. For had he been fuiihlul to God, he would 
 
 have found means lo compel the obedience of his 
 princes. He who has the right, has also the 
 Lord on his side. If this was manifest in the 
 case of the poor priest Jeremiah, how much more 
 so in that of the king. But this king was no 
 Jeremiah. 
 
 10. On xxxviii. 6. No prophet was ever mal- 
 treated so pitiably as Jeremiah. He represents 
 the culminating point in the humiliation of the 
 servant of Jehovah, but also the extreme point 
 in the alienation from God of the theocracy, 
 which was immediately followed as a merited 
 punishment by the deepest outward decline. 
 Therefore in Jeremiah also must "Christ's re- 
 surrection become visible (Diedrich)." 
 
 11. On xxxviii. 7-13. A Moor, aheathen, must 
 have compassion and raise his voice against the 
 enormity, while all Israel was silent. Thus is 
 completed the testimony to Israel's decline, and 
 the guilt appears to be a common one. 
 
 12. On xxxviii. 14, 15. This seems to be the 
 manner of princes. They say: I wish to hear 
 the truth, the truth only, the whole truth. And 
 when one tells them the truth, he draws upon 
 himself their highest displeasure. For these 
 lords, accustomed to a Homeric life of the gods 
 [■&eol ptla (oui'Tec;). do not like to be disturbed in 
 this their bliss. Nothing, however, affects them 
 more rudely than the truth. Zedekiah even does 
 not seem to have been in earnest with his " pray, 
 hide nothing from me," for otherwise he would 
 at least have done what he could to follow the 
 prophet's counsel. 
 
 13. On xxxviii. 19-23. Zedekiah gives as a 
 pretext his dread of mocking and maltreatment 
 from the fugitive Jews. For these, the malcon- 
 tents, who attributed all the blame to his govern- 
 ment and had therefore fled, might possibly have 
 him delivered over to them, and then take their 
 revenge on him. Jeremiah assures him that he 
 has no insult to fear from them. But he will be 
 exposed to the most sensible insults from a quar- 
 ter where he would least expect it, viz., from the 
 women of his own harem. To be received by his 
 own wives with insulting songs, instead of songs 
 of victory — what greater disgrace could be con- 
 ceived for a man and a prince ? Incidit in Scyllam 
 qui vult vitare Charybdim. 
 
 14. On xxxviii. 24-27. Did Jeremiah partici- 
 pate in a prevarication, or not? The opinions 
 on this point are divided. Forster says: Non 
 quidi'in dincrtis verbis mentitus est Jeremias ; i?Uerim 
 tanien hoc ejus factum speciem quandam meudacii ha- 
 bet, vel carte est dissiinulalio, quse non omni ex parte 
 ezcusarida. Others on the other hand call atten- 
 tion to two points: 1. Although in vers. 15-17, 
 no si'ch request is mentioned as, according to 
 ver. 20, .Jeremiah is said to have made, it is yet 
 implied, both in the words of the prophet in ver. 
 15, and in the answer of the king, ver. 10. It 
 follows from what is said by both of them, that 
 Jeremiah wished that he might neither be put to 
 death nor brought into such a condition as would 
 inevitably involve his death. Consequently, he 
 at any rate, cherished the same wish, which he 
 expressed to the king in xxxviii. 20. 2. If then 
 the declaration of ver. 26 does not contain the 
 whole truth, it contains no untruth. The princes, 
 however, had no right to demand the whole truth 
 from Jeremiah. For they were simply murder- 
 
XXXVIII. 28 6.— CHAP. XXXIX. 1-14. 
 
 327 
 
 era. No one, however, is bountl to a murderer 
 to expose himself to his knife, by the confession 
 of the truth. This latter view may well be the 
 correct one. [Comp. Wordsworth and Stanley, 
 Jewish Church, p. 524. — S. R. A.] 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On xxxvii. 3. To supplicate the Lord or to 
 intercede with the Lord is indeed right, but it is 
 useless and wrong to desire the help, but not the 
 Lord Himself. [Sinners contradict their prayers, 
 and thus render them unsuccessful, by their lives. 
 Lathrop. — S. R. A.] 
 
 2. On xxxvii. 5-10. Instructive example of the 
 difference between man's help and God's help. 
 Man's help self-sought, self-made, shows at first 
 indeed a joyous hopeful countenance, but it is 
 hollow and vacuous, and confidence therein is 
 self-deception. In due course it shows itself 
 perfectly powei-less, indeed it turus to the con- 
 trary, to destruction. God's help on the other 
 hand is announced at first under gloomy aspects 
 and hard conditions (surrender to the Chaldeans), 
 but these hard conditions are wholesome chastise- 
 ment, from which proceed life and salvation. 
 
 3. On xxxvii. 11-13. "It is the manner of 
 God's enemies, that they shamefully misinterpret 
 the acts of His servants, when these indeed justify 
 themselves, but when they find no hearing they 
 suffer and are silent; only from the confession 
 of the truth they will not forbear." The Major 
 Prophets, by Heim and Hoffmann. 
 
 4. On xxxviii. 4. "Worldly people are still 
 disposed to reproach the preachers of the Gospel 
 with the injury which they inflict on the com- 
 monwealth, because they seek to hinder the God- 
 forgotten course of the commonwealth, as the 
 worldly people- wish it to be. One must not be 
 put out by this, but go on." Heim and Hoff- 
 mann. 
 
 5. On xxxviii. 4-13. As at the time of Chi-ist 
 the external theocracy was approaching its final 
 overthrow, so at the time of Jeremiah it was its 
 precursory overthrow. Christ was the prophet 
 of the former, Jeremiah of the latter. As Christ 
 was accused of beiug an arch-traitor and cor- 
 rupter of the people (John xi. 48, 50), so also 
 Jei'emiah. The true ground here, as tliere, was 
 diabolical hatred to the divine truth and car- 
 nal dependence on outward supports and their 
 own excellence. The princes, who threw Jere- 
 miah into the pit, correspond to the rulers of the 
 people at the time of Christ, the weak Zedekiah 
 to the weak Pontius Pilate, Ebed-melech to those 
 believers from the heathen (the ruler of Caper- 
 naum, the Canaanitish woman, the Samaritans) 
 who put Israel to shame by their faith. And as 
 Jeremiah is delivered from the pit, so Christ after 
 three days rises from the grave. 
 
 6. On xxxviii. 19-23. Our ways and God" sways. 
 1. Ourways: (a) preserve us not from that which 
 we feared (ver. 22) : (6) they lead to destruction 
 (ver. 23). God's ways: (a) preserve us from 
 that which we feared (vers. 19, 20) : [b) they 
 lead to safety and life (ver. 20) 
 
 B. The Events subsequent to the Capture of Jerusalem (chh. xxxix.-xliv). 
 1. Teremiah liberated from the court of the guard and given in charge to Gedaliah. 
 
 XXXVIII. 28 6— XXXIX. 14. 
 
 28 h. And he was there^ [And it came to pass] when Jerusalem was taken, 
 XXXIX. 1 (In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, came 
 Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon and all his army against Jerusalem, and they be- 
 
 2 sieged it. And in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, the ninth day 
 
 3 of the month, the city was broken up. And [that] all the princes of the king of 
 Babylon came in, and sat in the middle gate, even Nergal sharezer, Samgar-nebo, 
 Sarsechim, Rab-saris, [or the chief of the eunuchs] Nergal sharezer, Rab-mag [or 
 the chief of the Magi], with all the residue of the princes of the king of Babylon. 
 
 4 And it came to pass, that when Zedekiah the king of Judah saw them, and all 
 the men-of-war [or and all the men-of-war saw them], then they fled and went out 
 of the city by night, by the way of [to] the king's garden, by the gate betwixt the 
 
 5 two walls : and he went out the way of the plain. But the Chaldeans' array pur- 
 sued [hastened] after them, and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho: and 
 when they had taken him [and took him] they [and] brought him up to Nebu- 
 chadnezzar king of Babylon to Riblah in the land of Hamath, where he gave 
 
 6 [held]^ judgment upon him. Then the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah 
 in Riblah before his eyes: also the king of Babylon slew all the nobles of Judah. 
 
 7 Moreover he put out Zedekiah's eyes, and bound him with chains [a double chain], 
 
 8 to carry [take] him to Babylon. And the Chaldeans burned the king's house, and 
 the houses of the people, with fire, and brake down the walls of Jerusalem. 
 
328 
 
 THE PROPHET JERExMIAH. 
 
 9 Then Nebuzar-adan the captain of the guard [halberdiers, lit. : executionersi\ 
 carried away captive into Babylon the remnant of the people that remained in the 
 city, and those that fell away, that fell to him [the deserters, who had gone over to 
 
 10 him], with the rest of the people that remained. But Nebuzar adan the captain 
 of the guard left of the pour of the people, which had nothing, in the land of Ju 
 
 11 dah, and ^ave them vineyards and fields^ at the same time. Now Nebuchadrezzai 
 king of Babylon gave charge concerning Jeremiah to N«buzar-adan the captain 
 
 12 of the guard, saying, Take him, and look well to him, [set thine eyes upon him] 
 
 13 and do him no harm; but do unto him even as he shall say unto ihee. So Ne- 
 buzar-adan the captain of the guard sent, and Nebushasban, Rab-saris [chief of 
 the eunuchs] and Nergal-sharezer, Rab-mag [chief of the Magi], and all the king 
 
 14 of Babylon's princes : Even they sent, and took Jeremiah out of the court of the 
 prison [guard], and committed him unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of 
 Shaphan, that lie should carry him home [into the house] : so he dwelt among the 
 people. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ter. 28 6. — These words cannot either logkally or grammatically be connected with the previous context. The Vulg. 
 and Chald. translate ungrammatically : et factum fxt, lit caperptur Ifierosolijiiia. The Syr. omits the words altogether. The 
 LXX. translate merely nTIl, connecting it immediately with xxxix. 1. On the other hand, an entirely appropriate sense 
 
 T t: 
 and connection is furnished, if the words are connected with ver. 3. On iTm, comp. rems. on xxxvii. 11. The Masoretes, 
 
 T T : 
 moreover, objected to the present division of the text, as may be seen from their XplDS J^!f 0N3 XDDD (lacuna in 
 
 medio versu). Comp. Gesen. : Lehrgeb., S. 124 ; Hupfeld, Sttul. u. Krit., 1837, S. 835. Similar cases are found in Gen. xxxv. 
 22 ; Num. xxv. 19 ; Josh..iv. 1 ; Ezok. iii. Ill, etc. Comp. J-'uerst, Propylxa Masorte, § 29 in tlie Concordance, p. 1369. — In ver. 
 
 1, C'Tn / "ni!/V3 is wanting in our text, possibly through the oversight of the transcriber ; X^PI is likewise wanting 
 
 before i'7'"n~'7D1 ; n'/^' ^Ti'^1 is contracted from the longer sentence "and pitched against it, and built forts against it 
 
 T : T '.■ T \ T ~ 
 
 round about, so the city was besieged." Finally T^H nj7p3n i^ contracted from " the famine prevailed (was sore) in the 
 
 city, and there was no bread for the people of the land, and the city was broken up." It is evident that the author of this 
 text was concerned only to i)resent tlie main thouglits. 
 
 2 Ver. 5. — The expression '■£) r\X D''£D3D'D "^21 for "to hoUl judgment," occurs only in Jeremiah: i. IG; iv. 12; xii. 
 
 •• ■ T : • " " 
 
 1. The present account also has the form here only, while in 2 Ki. xxv. 6 we find C^SliTS. Moreover the expression is not 
 
 found elsewhere with the following HX and with the meaning " Utigare, hold judgment," but it signities elsewhere (Ps. 
 
 xxxvii. 30 ; Isa. xxxii. 7) simply " to speak justice." — This is a point which would favor the Jeremian origin of ch. Iii. 
 (comp. IIaevernick, Einl., II. 3, S. 233), if this grammatical agreement might not be due to other causes. 
 
 3 Ver. 10.— D''3J'' is an-. Aey. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The text of this chapter is interwoven with 
 portions from chap. Iii. (2 Ki. xxv.). Immedi- 
 ately after the opening words an abridged ac- 
 count is interpolated from Iii. 4-7 (2 Ki. xxv. 1- 
 4), of the capture of the city mentioned in these 
 words (vers. 1 and 2). Then after ver. 3, vers. 
 4-10 a similarly abridged account of the flight, 
 capture and puiiishineut of the king, and of the 
 burning of the city and deportation of the people 
 is added from Iii. 7-16 (2 Ki. xxv. 4-12). What 
 furtlior follows (vers. 11-14) is not derived from 
 elsewhere, but with xxxviii. 28 b, and xxxix. 3, 
 forms the only independent portion of this sec- 
 tion, xxxix. 1-14. The question, whether the 
 statements in vers. 11-18, agree with ver. 3, will 
 be treated in the Exeg. Reins. Here it may sim- 
 ply be observed that after the excision thus piade 
 the original constituents of the section are occu- 
 pied purely with the person of tlio prophet, in- 
 foriiiirig us that by onler of Nebuchadnezzar, the 
 captain of dragoons Nebuzar-adan has the pro- 
 phet brought out of the court of the guard and 
 given in charge to Gedaliah, son of Ahikam, after 
 which .Jeremiah rem.iined " auuirig tlie people." 
 
 XXXVIII. 28 i. — xxxix. 2. And it came to 
 
 pass . . . broken up. As the verses 1, 2 can- 
 not in any way be grammatically connected 
 with the preceding and following context, they 
 may be regarded as a parenthesis. The mention 
 of the capture of Jerusalem in xxxviii. 28 b oc- 
 casioned the insertion of this chronological no- 
 tice relating thereto. It is evident that this 
 insertion was not made by the prophet himself, 
 but proceeded from a later source. Even Keil 
 acknowledges that the account of the destruction 
 of Jerusalem, which is contained in two recen- 
 sions, Jer. Iii. and 2 Ki. xxiv 18 — xxv. 4, can- 
 not have proceeded from the hand of the prophet 
 (comp. Commentar zu den BB. d. KiJnitje, 18G5, S. 
 10, 11 with which, however, what is said in S. 
 378 Anm., does not quite agree). Since now vers, 
 xxxix. 1, 2 are taken from that account of the 
 destruction of Jerusalem which we find in Jer. 
 Hi. and 2 Ki. xxv., and this account (comp. the 
 narrative of Jehoiachin's end, Jer. Iii. 31-34), 
 must necessarily be of later date than Jeremiah, 
 the extract from that account cannot have been 
 made by Jeremiah. These verses are, therefore, 
 to be regarded as a gloss, which probably came 
 into the text, not by t.lie will of the author, but 
 by the fault of the transcriber. Once having en- 
 tered the text, they pressed back also those words 
 at tlie close uf ije previous chapter, since the 
 
CHAP. XXXVIII. 28 6.— XXXIX. 1-14. 
 
 329 
 
 parenthesis was doubtless then found to be too 
 long and disjointed, and the connection of the 
 words with ver. 3 impracticable. What means 
 the oldest commentators took to tit the words to 
 the previous context, we have already seen. 
 
 Ver. 3 That all the princes . . king of 
 Babylon. These words attach themselves as we 
 have shown lo xxxviii. 28 b. How long after 
 the capture of the city this event took place, the 
 worls themselYes do not inform us. For the 
 connection of the sentence, xxxviii. 28 b, may 
 designate both an immediate chronological 
 sequence, or a longer interval. Let us first re- 
 gard more particularly the place and object of 
 the assembly, and the persons assembled. The 
 place is called the gate of the middle. As is well 
 known, David had first conquered and fortified 
 (2 Sam. V. 7, 9) Mount Zion, the city of David, 
 which JosEPHUs {Anf.iq V., 2, 2) calls the 
 /fai?L'7repii^£i' TvoTiig in distinction from the /cdrw 
 TToAtf. The expression seems to denote one of 
 the gates in the wall separating this upper and 
 lower city. It does not occur elsewhere. Per- 
 haps, however, njb'PPI Tj; (Keri njij'PH ^m) 
 
 2 Ki. XX. 4 is connected with it. Arnold (Herz. : 
 R.-Enc. XVIII., S. 629) [Smith, Diet., 1. 1027] 
 supposes that the middle gate is to be sought in 
 the middle of the north wall of Mt. Zion. If the 
 gate of the middle is then to be sought, not 
 in the outer city-wall, but in the interior of the 
 city, perhaps as the main entrance to the upper 
 city, it appears to be a central point quite fa- 
 vorable for the commander's purpose. At the 
 same time the sitting of the commander in this 
 ^ate, as the central point of the city-life (comp. on 
 the significance of the gate in this regard, Her- 
 zog's R.-Enc. XIV., S. 721) may have been the 
 signal of the formal and solemn taking posses- 
 sion. In taking their places where the rulers 
 and elders of Jerusalem were accustomed to dis- 
 charge their office, the Chaldean princes gave it 
 to be understood that they were now masters of 
 the city. That they had "taken up their quar- 
 ters " in the gate, as Graf supposes, I do not 
 think. For a gate is no place for living in, least 
 of all for princes. As we perceive from 2 Ki. 
 XXV. 1 (Jer. lii. 4), Nebuchadnezzar himself be- 
 gan the siege, but left its continuation to his 
 generals, he himself being at the time of the cap- 
 ture in Riblah(2 Ki. xxv. 6 ; .Jer. xxv. 9: xxxix. 
 5). These generals are now enumerated. Hitzig 
 has made the ingenious conjecture, that the four 
 names whicn we here read, are to be reduced to 
 three, of which each is followed by an official 
 title. Thus Nergal-sharezer bears the title Sam- 
 gar, which in the Persian signifies "he who has 
 the cup," so that it is equivalent to Rabshakeh 
 (Isa. xxxvi. 2) the cup-bearer. Nebo, which in 
 compound names never occurs in the last place 
 (which is certainly correct), is to be connected 
 with the following name. Sar-sechim is identi- 
 cal with Rab-saris (for OD from T\DD, or HDiy 
 
 ^ . • T Tt' T T 
 
 secure, from which y3^ knife, is equivalent to 
 
 eunuch). This idle, sportive accumulation of 
 designations of a man has now after Nebo 
 supplanted the second half of the real name, 
 Shasban (ver. 13). We thus obtain three names, 
 each with a title: 1. Nergal-sharezer, cup- 
 
 bearer; 2. Nebushasban, chief-eunuch; 3. Nergal- 
 sharezer, chicf-magian. This conjecture, on 
 which Graf has bestowed his approbation, is very 
 plausible, especially as Rabsaris is certainly 
 called Nebushasban in ver. 13, and we cannot 
 conceive why the chief-eunuch, of which there 
 cannot well have been more than one, bears 
 a different name in ver. 3, from that in ver. 
 13. According to Hitzig the last two names 
 in ver. 13 agree with the corresponding ones in 
 ver. 3, the only difference being in the first name, 
 which is however fully explained by the cir- 
 cumstance, that during the interval which had 
 elapsedbetween ver. 3 and ver. 15, Nebuzar-adan, 
 who was highest in rank of all the princes, had 
 arrived, and is therefore named first in the latter 
 passage instead of the Nergal-sharezer of ver. 3. 
 The sense and connection are thus in favor of 
 Hitzig's conjecture, but it still lacks a secure 
 etymological basis. That Samgar means cup- 
 bearer, and Sar-sechim is equivalent to Rab-sa- 
 ris, is not yet sufficiently proved. On the name 
 Nergal-sharezer comp. Niebuhr, Ass. u. Bab., S. 
 37, 42, 43, Anm. [On the identification of Ner- 
 gal-sharezer with Neriglissat, son-in-law of Ne- 
 buchadnezzar, see Rawlinson, Ancient Monar- 
 chies, III., 232, 528, and Smith's Bible Dictionary, 
 s. v.—S. R. A.] On Nebo also, lb. S. 30, 34. 
 
 Vers. 4-10. And it came to pass . . at the 
 same time. This passage is, as already re- 
 marked, taken with abbreviations from lii. 7-16 
 (2 Ki. xxv. 4-12). The object is evidently to 
 give, in a compressed picture of the general dis- 
 tress, a background to the original representa- 
 tion, relating merely to the fate of the prophet. 
 That this was necessary, together with ch. lii., 
 must be doubted. For what author will unne- 
 cessarily write the same thing twice over? Or 
 would not the author of ch. xxxix. expect that the 
 reader could himself derive the necessary eluci- 
 dation of this narrative from ch lii. ? xxxix. 4- 
 10 is however taken from ch. lii., not from 2 Ki. 
 xxv. For if we compare xxxix. 4 with lii. 7; 
 xxxix. 5 with lii. 8, 9; xxxix. 6 with lii. 10 (N. 
 B. : the slaughter of the princes is not mentioned 
 in 2 Ki. xxv.) and xxxix. 7 with lii. 11, we shall 
 find that the present passage contains all which 
 distinguishes the narrative of ch. lii. from that 
 in 2 Ki. xxv., while in no point does it agree with 
 2 Ki. xxv. in opposition to ch. lii. In the verses 
 xxxix. 8-10 the narrative in relation both to ch. 
 lii. and 2 Ki. xxv. is so much abbreviated, that 
 any special relationship with one of the two pas- 
 sages is not perceptible. They differ in this sec- 
 tion however only in single words, which have 
 no bearing on the essential import, so that we 
 may say that the present text is related to ch. 
 lii., as well as to 2 Ki. xxv., as extract and elu- 
 cidation. On this more below. If, now, xxxix. 
 4-10 is indisputably of later date than ch. Hi., so 
 as to presuppose this chapter, we cannot avoid 
 regarding the text as originally a marginal gloss, 
 which was gradually by the fault of the tran- 
 scriber incorporated into the text. As regards 
 particular points, the words " And it came to 
 pass that when Zedekiah," ver. 4, may be recog- 
 nized as a skillfully added connecting gloss, for 
 1, the original text contains nothing of this ; but 
 lets the flight follow immediately on the breaking 
 in of the Chaldeans, lii. 7; 2-Ki. xxv. 4; 2, it is 
 
330 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH, 
 
 also in itself improbable, that Zedekiah deferred 
 his flight till the Chaldean princes had taken 
 their post in the middle gate. The flight was 
 effectuated in a direction opposite to that in 
 which the enemies from the North approached, 
 viz., by the exit to the South "on the way to the 
 garden of the king through the gate between the 
 double wall." This garden of the king is men- 
 tioned only in Neb. iii. 15, where it borders on 
 the pool of Siloah. Comp. Arnold in Herzog, 
 R.-Enc.XYlll., S. 630 u. 635; Leyreb in the 
 same, XIV. 5. 371. [Smith, Diet., I., 653J. 
 According to Arnold this garden of the king is 
 probably identical with the garden of Uzza (2 
 Ki. xxi. 18, 26). The gate between the double 
 walls also is mentioned only here and in the paral- 
 lel passages. It is to be sought for in the exit of 
 the Tyropaeon, and is probably identical with the 
 gate of the fountain (Neh. ii. 14 ; iii. 15 ; xii. 37). 
 Comp. Arnold, S. 629 etpass.; Thenius, BB. d. 
 Koniye, S. 456; Robinson, Pal. II., 5. 142.— The 
 double-wall mentioned besides here (and paral- 
 lel passages) only in Isa. xxii. 11, appears to 
 have been a double connection between Zion and 
 Ophel. But concerning this there are various 
 views. Comp. Thenius, The graves of the kings of 
 Judah in Illgru's Zeitschr. f. hist. Theol., 1844, I. 
 S. 18 sqq. ; Herzog, R.-Enc, V. S. 157; XIV. S. 
 374; XVIII. ^. 633; Keil, BB. d. Kon., S. 381. 
 From this southern exit Zedekiah turned east- 
 ward to the HDi;^. This is the general term for 
 
 the plain or vale of the Jordan, both on its east- 
 ern (comp. Deut. i. 1 ; iii. 17; iv. 49; Josh. xii. 
 1) and its western shore (comp. Josh. viii. 14; 
 xi. 2, 16; 2 Sam. ii. 29). Yet it seems as though 
 Arabah is not only to be taken in a narrower and 
 wider sense, (in the wider it comprises the entire 
 depression of the lake Gennesaret to the Elami- 
 tic gulf, of which the southern half, from the 
 southern end of the Dead Sea, is still called Wady 
 el Araba) but to be generally of a fluctuating 
 character. For in Deut. xi. 30 for instance the 
 region of Sichem, where Mts. Ebal and Gerizim 
 are situated, is reckoned to the Arabah. Zedekiah 
 is overtaken in the inv m3"|j;. This is a part 
 
 of the Arabah, the enlargement of the Jordan- 
 valley, three leagues wide, near Jericho, watered 
 by the brook of Elisha. 
 
 The captured king is taken to Riblah, the 
 northern boundary city of Palestine, at the source 
 of tlie Orontes, (Numb, xxxiv. 11) the point of 
 juncture tor the roads eastward to the Euphrates, 
 southward to Damascus and the Jordan, and west- 
 ward to Phoenicia, which had previously been 
 the head-quarters of Pharaoh Necho (2 Ki. xxiii. 
 33). Here Nebucliadnezzar held judgment over 
 him. Nebuchadnezzar had made him king (2 Ki. 
 xxiv. 17), Zedekiah was thercfure a rebel against 
 him (Iii. 3; 2 Ki. xxiv. 20). 
 
 The punishment which Zedekiah had to suffer 
 for his revolt was a cruel one : his children were 
 slain before liis eyes, likewise all the great men 
 of Judah {''')y\ tor ''^i:' Hi. 10 probably as a remi- 
 niscence from xxvii. 3U) ; lie himself was blinded 
 and carried in chains to Riibylon. From to 
 carry, ver. 7, onwards, the aliridgemeiit is fjreut 
 and in so f:ir unfortunate that one main point is 
 omitted, viz., the circumstance that Nebuchad- 
 nezzar on the news of the capture of Jerusalem 
 
 sent the captain of his body-guard, Nebuzar- 
 adan, to Jerusalem, who arrived there four weeks 
 after the capture. The mention of this circum- 
 stance was important, because without it the ap- 
 pearance of Nebuzar-adan, trom xxxix. 9 on- 
 wards, is wholly unaccounted for. One conse- 
 quence of this omission is also that in ver. 8 it is 
 not Nebuzar-adan who burns the city, but the 
 Chaldeans. Why the temple is not mentioned 
 among the objects burned is not clear In ver. 
 4 the obscure and superfluous words " the poor 
 of the people," found in Iii. 15, are omitted, and 
 instead of " that fell to the king of Babylon," we 
 have simply " that fell to him," V^j; (2 Ki. xxv. 
 
 11, O ^Sp Sj;, almost the only point in which 
 ch. xxxix. approaches more nearly to 2 Ki. xxv. 
 than ch. Iii.). Since the king of Babylon has 
 not been named just before (comp ver. H fin.) 
 " to him " can refer only to the Nebuzar adan 
 mentioned in the following verse ; a reference 
 which cannot be historically justified, since by 
 the deserters mentioned are to be understood such 
 only as went over before the conquest. After 
 the deserters our text mentions besides " the 
 remnant of the people." In antithesis to the 
 "remnant of the people that remained in the 
 city " can be understood only the inhabitants re- 
 maining in the country. In the place of the se- 
 cond Di?n we find in 2 Ki. xxv. 11 jbnn, in 
 
 Jer. Iii. 15 JOXH. The former denotes " tumult, 
 multitude of people " (comp. Isai. xiii. 4; xvii. 
 12) and our text takes the latter doubtless in the 
 same sense. Whether correctly is another ques- 
 tion. Comp. rems. on Hi. 15. Nebuzar-adan, the 
 "captain of the guard," is here named for the 
 first time. Sent by the king to Jerusalem on re- 
 ceipt of the news that Jerusalem is taken (comp. 
 Hi. 12; 2 Ki. xxv. 8), he immediately assumes the 
 chief command, as is evident from this passage, 
 and the following (xxxix. 10-12; xl. 1-5). The 
 nature of his ofiBce, as well as the expression 
 " who stood before the king" in Hi. 12, indicate 
 that he took precedence of all other princes. — 
 The tenth verse, in this differing from the rest, 
 contains an extension of the original text, the 
 expression "the poor " being explained by the 
 addition "which had nothing," wanting in ch. Hi. 
 and 2 Ki. xxv. The author evidently held it to 
 be desirable (though unnecessary), to call atten- 
 tion to the fact that /T is not here to be taken in 
 
 the sense of " affliclus, miser.'' The brief phrase 
 " for vino-dressers and for husbandmen " in Hi. 
 16; 2 Ki. xxv. 12 (Keri) he extends into a sen- 
 tence. — The words "at the same time " (in the 
 same day) are to mark the difference in time be- 
 tween what was last narrated and what follows. 
 It might otherwise have seemed as if the events 
 narrated in ver. 11 occurred contemporaneously 
 willi those in vers. 9, 10. 
 
 Vers 11 14. Now Nebuchadnezzar . . . 
 among the people. Stkuensee, Movers, 
 Gii.\F, Mkier, disjjute the genuineness of vers. 
 11-13, IIiTZKi only of ver. 13. The objections to 
 tiie authenticity .-ippear to be the following: 1. 
 Tlie commission given to Nebuzjir-adan is, ac- 
 cording to xl. 1, not executed. Only in llama 
 (xl. 1) does Nebuzar-adan (comp. xl. 4) what ac- 
 
CHAP. XXXIX. 11-14. 
 
 S31 
 
 cording to xxxix. 11, 12 he was commanded to do. 
 2. If Nebuzar-adan, who according to lii. 12 came 
 to Jerusalem four weeks after its capture, first 
 ordered the liberation of Jeremiah from the court 
 of the guard, Jeremiah had remained there four 
 weeks after the capture, which is in contradictioa 
 to xxxviii. 28. 3. The three vers, are wanting in 
 the LXX. 4. As to ver. 13 in particular, it is a 
 mere connecting clause, rendered necessary by 
 the insertion of vers. 11, 12. For ver. Hcouldnot 
 be connected directly with ver. 12 ; for the subject 
 of " sent " would then be obscure. By the men- 
 tion of Nebuzar-adan the connection with ver. 12 
 and the previous context, and by the mention of 
 the other princes the connection with ver. 13 is 
 established. I do not think that these arguments 
 are conclusive. As to the first point, Nebuzar-adan 
 certainly made the necessary arrangements for 
 the execution of his commission. He liberated the 
 prophet from thecourtof the guard, and entrusted 
 him to Gedaliah for his further maintenance. But 
 he seems not to have been in a condition to keep 
 the prophet specially in view, so that he might be 
 preserved from any personal malignity. In the 
 confusion which was necessarily connected with 
 the destruction of the city, the prophet, who vol- 
 untarily or involuntarily had been included in the 
 multitude of the people, was treated like the rest. 
 He was bound like the others. It was only in 
 Ramah, where probably the first halt was made, 
 ajud the arrangement of the caravan was defi- 
 nitely adjusted, that the captain of the halber- 
 diers remembered his commission with respect to 
 the prophet. There he liberated him from the 
 chains, which he had borne "among all that were 
 carried away captive" (xl. 1) and committed him 
 the second time to Gedaliah (xl. 6). With re- 
 gard to the second point it should first of all be 
 remarked that " day," xxxviii. 28, must not ne- 
 cessarily be understood in the most restricted 
 sense. This word, as is well known, frequently 
 designates the period of an historical event in 
 general, without any thought of a day of twenty- 
 four hours. Comp. vii. 25; xi. 7; Jud. xviii. 
 30, etc. If now we consider that the princes 
 who, according to xxxix. 3, sat down in the mid- 
 dle gate, thus took possession of Jerusalem in the 
 name of the Chaldean king, but could not under- 
 take further measures with respect to the fate of 
 the city till they had heard from him, it cannot 
 truly be surprising that for four weeks, till the 
 arrival of Nebuzar-adan (lii. 12) things remaiiieil 
 vssentially as before, and that thus Jeremiah 
 could not be removed from the court of the guanl. 
 The absence of the vex's. 11-13 in the LXX. (which 
 moreover omits the whole section 4-13, while it 
 ]ias vers. 1, 2) is of no significance, the reasons 
 for it being apparent. The translator wished by 
 the omission of vers. 11, 12 to avoid an apparent 
 contradiction, by the omission of ver. 13 a repe- 
 tition. As to the fourth argument it falls to 
 pieces of itself, in so f;ir that ver. 13 seems neces- 
 sary in any case, whether we regard vers. 11, 12 as 
 genuine or not. The names of the princes might 
 indeed be named together after ^n/i^'l. But we 
 
 see that the author's thoughts (after vers. 11, 12) 
 were so much occupied with Nebuzar-adan that 
 he names him first and as the chief personage 
 
 (hence n7tJ^^1 ver. 13), adding the rest only by 
 
 way of supplement. When now after the long 
 series of names and titles he repeated the prin- 
 cipal verb once more, and in the plural, this ia 
 evidently done purely in the interest of perspi- 
 cuity. We cannot then regard the arguments 
 against the genuineness of vers. 11-13 as valid. 
 On the other hand the following positively favoi 
 the genuineness: 1. lu point of idiom there is no- 
 tiiing which is foreign to the prophet's usage. It 
 is worth notice that in ver. 11 the name of the 
 Chaldean king is Nebuchadrezzar (as Jeremiah 
 is always accustomed to write it) while in ver. 5 
 we read Nebuchadnezzar. The expression T? 
 is one current in Jeremiah. It is found thirty- 
 eight times, more frequently than in any of the 
 
 other prophets. The expression 'I''J''Jt^ Ci^ ia 
 found besides here and xl. 4 only in Gen. xliv. 
 21. The phrase "do him no harm" (on the 
 Dag.f. in j;'^ comp. Olsh. \ 83,/.) is not indeed 
 
 specifically Jeremian, but by no means as Graf 
 asserts, an unnecessary explanatory addition. 
 Could it have been unnecessary to enjoin on Ne- 
 buzar-adan that no harm should be dono to Jere- 
 miah ? Was this beyond the reach of possibility ? 
 The actual fate of the prophet gives the answer 
 to this question. Or could the ^"^ be omitted? 
 Then we should have an ambiguous expression. 
 For, strictly taken, the sentence without ^1 
 
 would make it Nebuzar-adan's duty to beliave 
 inditferently towards Jeremiah. 2. Itisiiilavor 
 of the authenticity that the passage (vers. 11-13) 
 is shown to be neither a foreign property, bor- 
 rowed from elsewhere (like vers. 1, 2 ; 4-Ui), nor 
 an interruption of the connection, but on the con- 
 trary as necessary to furnish a perfectly clear 
 picture of the occurrences. That the passage is 
 not borrowed is acknowledged by all. That the 
 course of Nebuzar-adan, as it is related in xl. 1- 
 G presupposes a commission of Nebuchadnezzar 
 is involved in the nature of the case. For how 
 could Nebuzar-adan dare to distinguish a single 
 person with such favors if he had not been sure 
 of the approval of his master? And is it then 
 improbable that this approval was assured to him 
 by a positive commission ? Must an interpolator 
 have invented this commission when Nebuchad- 
 nezzar may have heard a thousand times from 
 tlie mouth of deserters that there was a prophet 
 in Jerusalem who incessantly and with constant 
 danger to his life had designated Nebuchadnez- 
 zar as an in!>irunient in the hand of the Lord and 
 submission to him as the only way of escape? 
 And if Nebuchadnezzar had heard this, is there 
 any reason for regarding the commission as the 
 idle, unhistorical conjecture of a later editor? 
 I believe that the narrative in vers. 1 1-14, in most 
 intimate connection with ver. 3, presents us with 
 the events in a perfectly natural manner, both as 
 to form and contents. It is not at all necessary 
 
 to take IV'I, ver. 11, as pluperfect. For this 
 command was actually given after the event re- 
 lated in ver. 3, which we have regarded above as 
 the act of solemn taking possession. After Ne- 
 buchadnezzar had received the news of the cap- 
 ture of Jerusalem he sent Nebuzar-adan with his 
 further orders. Among these was one respecting 
 tiie person of the prophet. This alone is hra 
 mentioned, as the subject of the verses xxxix. 3, 
 
832 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 11-14, is simply the personal experiences of Jere- 
 miah. In the execution of this commission, the 
 princes, at whose head no longer stood Nergal- 
 sharezer but Ncbuzar-adan, had the prophet 
 taken out of the court of the guard. This could 
 not be done before, because till the arrival of 
 Nebuchadnezzar all had to remain in general the 
 same as it had been at the capture of the city. 
 Jeremiah was now given in charge to Gedaliah, 
 the son of Ahikam. This Ahikam, of a noble 
 family (comp. 2 Ki. xxii. 12, 14), had already 
 favored the prophet (xxvi. 24). Gedaliah evi- 
 dently belonged to that small party, who having 
 taken Jeremiah's prophecies as the rule of their 
 political course, had gone over to the Chaldeans 
 (xxxviii. 19). Gedaliah was to bring the pro- 
 phet from the court of the guard r\'3n-7X. By 
 
 this some have understood the temple (Hitzig), 
 others the king's house (Gkaf, etal.). But ac- 
 cording to lii. 13 (2 Ki. xxv. 9), both these were 
 burned down by Nebuzar-adan, together with the 
 other houses of Jerusalem, directly on his arri- 
 
 val. And assuredly those large public buildings 
 were not the last to which the Chaldeans applied 
 the destroying hand. It is credible that some 
 private dwellings might be preserved to the last, 
 to afford shell er to some privileged persons. 
 "Into the house" may thus designate the genus, 
 private dwelling in general, in contrast to "quar- 
 ters at the public expense," such as the court 
 afforded, it thus remaining undecided whether 
 the private dwelling in which Jeremiah was taken 
 were Gedaliah's own house, or some other. In 
 this private dwelling Jeremiah was not placed 
 under confinement. He could freely go in and 
 out. And so he had intercourse with the pej3- 
 ple, doubtless warning and comforting them with 
 his prophetic words, and was thus in the vast 
 confusion of the destruction, plundering and de- 
 portation, treated by the soldiers who had charge 
 of the details like the mass of the populace, i. e., 
 bound in chains, and placed in the trains of cap- 
 tives. Nebuchadnezzar's order thus remained 
 unobeyed, without any fault of Nebuzar-adan and 
 Gedaliah, till they reached the station of Ramah. 
 
 2. Appendix to xxxix. 1-14. — The Promise made to the Cushite Ebed-melech. 
 
 XXXIX. 15-18. 
 
 15 Now the word of the Lord came unto Jeremiah, while he was shut up in the court 
 
 16 of the prison [guard], saying. Go and speak to Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, saying, 
 Thus saith the Lord of hosts [Jehovah Zebaoth], the God of Israel ; Behold, I will 
 bring' my words upon this city for evil, and not for good ; and they shall be* ac- 
 
 17 comjilished in that day before thee. But I will deliver thee in that day, saith the 
 
 18 Lord [Jehovah] : and thou shalt not be given into the hand of the men of whom 
 thou art afraid. For I will surely deliver thee, and thou shalt not fall by the 
 sword, but thy life shall be for a prey unto thee : because thou hast put thy trust 
 in me, saith the Lord [Jehovah]. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 16.— On '•DO- Comp. Olsh., S. 69, 392, 581. 
 
 s Ver. 16.— riTI is evidently used here in a pregnant sense^to be realized, to attain to a real existence . Comp. Isa. vii. 
 
 T T 
 
 7 ; xiv. 24. 
 
 evident that the contents are too trifling in com- 
 parison with the importance of that great theo- 
 cratic book of consolation, and that the historical 
 connection seems better preserved in this place. 
 After the prophet had related his own experi- 
 ences till tlie capture of the city, he appends this 
 brief prophecy uttered shortly before that epoch. 
 In connection with ch. xlv. it would have been 
 neither historically nor topically in the right 
 place. 
 
 Vers. 15-18. Now the •word . . . saith Je- 
 hovah. Two tliouglits lie at the foundation of 
 ver. 16: 1. The fulfilment of my threatonings 
 against Jerusalem shall take place before thine 
 ei/es. Ebed-melech is to see what he before be- 
 lieved. This is, as it were, the immanent reward 
 of faith, its crown and corroboration. 2. Not- 
 withstanding that all Jerusalem with all the peo- 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The Cushite Ebed-melech, to whom the words 
 of our Lord may be applied (Luke xix. 40), "if 
 those should hold their peace, the stones would 
 cry out," is here honored by a special consola- 
 tory promise. In the nature of the case this falls 
 into the period after the occurrence related in 
 xxxvii. 7-13. The expression shut up, etc., is 
 found besides only in xxxiii. 1 (comp. xxxii. 2). 
 As we know from other grounds that chh. xxxii. 
 and xxxiii. pertain to the last stage of the con- 
 finement in the court of the guard (xxxviii. 28, 
 oomp. on xxxvii. 17), we may place our brief 
 passage in the same period as that great consola- 
 tory discourse. This portion might, therefore, 
 be attached to those chapters. It is, however, 
 
CHAP. XXXIX. 15-18. 
 
 331 
 
 pie therein perishes the person of Ebed-melech 
 shall remain unimperilled. This is the second 
 physical and palpable reward of faith. — As the 
 import of God's word cannot be conceived of as 
 indiflferent, admitting of fulfilment either in a 
 good or a bad sense, "for evil" must be re- 
 garded as dependent on "words." Comp. xxi. 
 10. — In that day, ver. 16, refers necessarily to 
 the point of time in " I will bring," and expresses 
 that the moment of fulfilment will be at the same 
 time the moment of visible perception. There 
 may be a fulfilment which takes place invisibly. 
 Compare what is said under xxv. 11 of the in- 
 visible reality of the beginning of the exile. In 
 the same day Ebed-melech is to experience the 
 power and grace of God in the deliverance of his 
 own person. For he is not to be given into the 
 hand of the men of whom he is afraid (ver. 17). 
 It might be asked whether the Chaldeans are 
 meant, or the Jews who were hostile to him on 
 Jeremiah's account. The expressions used in 
 the following verse thou shalt not fall by the 
 S'word, and especially the contrast to the general 
 destruction, involved in thou shalt have thy 
 life for a prey (comp. xxi. 9 : xxxviii. 2 ; xlv. 
 5), favor the former. Ebed-melech believed and 
 trusted in the Lord. He held the word of the 
 Lord, which Jeremiah proclaimed, to be true, 
 he dared to oppose Jeremiah's enemies; he con- 
 sequently did not set his hope on the means of 
 escape, on which these foolishly trusted, but on 
 the Lord. In the words put thy trust, then, 
 there is a double point of applause and of con- 
 fidence. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On xxxix. 11, 12. '■^Elucet inde Veritas illiiis 
 Salomonis (Prov. xxi. 1): Cor regis in vianuDei, 
 quo vuh illud iyiclinat." Forster. 
 
 2. On xxxix. 11-14. "Nebuchadnezzar the 
 king and Ebed-melech the Ethiopian enhanced 
 the guilt of the Jews. For thiese, although they 
 were heathens, were not shy of the prophet. The 
 Jews, however, who had grown up with the pro- 
 phetic words, paid no regard to the divine word, 
 but on the contrary subjected the prophet to 
 manifold maltreatment." Theodoret. 
 
 3. On xxxix. 11-14. " Deus ex iisdem hominibus 
 diverse singulis disponit prsemia, qui ex iisdem ele- 
 mentis pro meritorum qualitate electis et reprobis 
 diversas impendit remunerationes. Nam aqua maris 
 rubri, quse cultores Dei illsesos eervabat laraelitas, 
 
 eadem interfecit ^gyptios idololatras. Similiter 
 fiamma cainini, quie regis Babylonis juxta fornacem 
 atroces interfecit ministros, eadem laudantes et bene- 
 dicentes Dominum in medio ignis conservavit pueros, 
 unde vir sapiens in laudibus Dei ait: crealura enirn 
 tibi factori deserviens excandescit in tormentum ad- 
 versus injustos et lenior fit ad benefaciendum pro his, 
 qui in te confidunt [Sap. 16, 24)." Rhabanus Mad- 
 Rus in Ghisler. 
 
 4. On xxxix. 15-18. "Well for him, whose 
 help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the 
 Lord his God (Ps. cxlvi. 5). Well for the people, 
 whose God is the Lord (Ps. cxliv. 15). For of 
 what avail was it to Zedekiah that he was king? 
 And of what injury was it to Ebed-melech that 
 he was a servant? For the former had to endure 
 all on account of his ungodliness, while the latter 
 on account of his piety sutfered no evil." Theo- 
 doret. 
 
 5. On xxxix. 15-18. " Uece principes, qui Jere- 
 miam expetivei'unt ad carceris poenam, Chaldaicae 
 captivitatis perpessi sunt vindictam. Hie autem 
 Eunuchus, qui prophetam liber av it de carcere. Domi- 
 no remunerante perfecta potitus est libertate." Rha- 
 banus Maurus in Ghisler. 
 
 6. On xxxix. 15-18. "This pious courtier had 
 interceded for the prophet with the king, but the 
 prophet had again interceded for him with God 
 the Lord. Ebed-melech had drawn him out of 
 the pit, but Jeremiah draws him by his prayer 
 from the jaws of all Chaldean war-vortices. 
 Those who receive a prophet shall receive a pro- 
 phet's reward (Matt. X. 41). Preachers do their 
 patrons more good than they get from them." 
 Cramer, 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On xxxix. 11-14. Jeremiah's deliverance an 
 example of how wonderfully the Lord helps His own. 
 1. While in Jerusalem his fellow believers hate 
 and persecute him, the heathen king in Riblah 
 thinks of him, and commands to liberate him. 2. 
 While the city of Jerusalem with all its popula- 
 tion perishes, he is protected and brought into 
 safety. 
 
 2. On xxxix. 15-18. What can we learn from 
 the example of the believing Ebed-melech? 1. That 
 faith is not connected with limits of any external 
 communion; 2, that assent and confidence per- 
 tain to its nature (ver. 18) ; 3, that there is an 
 internal (ver. 16) and external (ver. 17) reward 
 of faith. 
 
184 
 
 THE rPtOPIlET JEREMIAH. 
 
 3. Jeremiah liberated in Ramah and committed the second time to Gedaliah. 
 
 XL. 1-6. 
 
 1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, after that Nebuzar-adan the 
 captain of the guard had let him go from Ramah, when' he had taken him being 
 bound in chains'' among all that were carried away captive of Jerusalem and Ju- 
 
 2 dah, which were carried away captive unto Babylon. Ami the captain of the 
 guard took^ Jeremiah, and said unto him. The Lord [Jehovah] thy God hath pro- 
 
 3 nounced this evil upon this place. Now the Lord [Jehovah] hath brought it,* and 
 done according as he hath said: because ye have [had] sinned against the Lord 
 [Jehovah], and have not obeyed his voice, therefore this thing is come upon you. 
 
 4 And now, behold, I loose thee this day from the chains which were upon thine 
 hand.^ If it seem good unto thee to come with me into Babylon, come ; and I 
 will look well unto thee : but if it seem ill unto thee to come with me into Babylon, 
 forbear: behold, all the land is before thee : whither it seemeth good and convenient 
 
 5 [right] for thee to go, thither go. Now while he was not yet gone back [answered],® 
 he laid, Go back also to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan, whom 
 the king of B ^'nvlon hath made governor over the cities of Judah, and dwell with 
 him among the people: or go wheresoever it seemeth convenient unto thee to go. 
 So the captain of the guard gave him victuals and a reward [present], and let him 
 
 6 go. Then went Jeremiah unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah ; and dwelt 
 with him among the people that were left in the land. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 1.— 3 is hero causal. Comp. 2 Chron. xvi. 7 ; xxviii. 6. 
 
 2 Ver. 1.— O'DIX- The form with X only here and in ver. 4. Besides D''pT in Job xxxvi. 8; Isa. x1t.14; Nah. iii.lO. 
 From ^^"bj?, ver. 4, we see that hauo-fetters are meant. 
 
 a Vei\ 3.— The construction of np"^ with S is an Aramaism. Comp. Ewald, §277, e. 
 
 * Ver. 3.— The pronominal ol>j«c't of X^"! is to be supplied from the foregoing context. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., ? 78, 2, 
 Anm. The absence of the articli? before "131 to which the Masoretes object, is no rare occurrence. Comp. xxxii. 14; 
 
 T T 
 
 3txxviii.lt: 1. 16: NvEGELSn. (7r, TJ, •_', >lwni. , ,. ,, 
 
 6 \ er. 4.— IT, ver. 4, mny ba taken both grammatically (comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., §44, 4, Anm,.),a,nd according to thesense 
 
 '"." T 1 
 
 either as singular or plural. On 3£0-7X. Comi). Ewald, ? 33.5, a. 
 
 6 Ver. 5.— [Naeqelsb.; Since, however, he had not yet answered. See Exeq. and Cbit. "So .1. D. Michaelis, Dahler, 
 Umbreit, Neumann. But J«?emiih never uses the verb 2W in tiiis sense, but always in the sense of returning." Words- 
 worth. — S. R. A.J 
 
 one recurs only in xliv. 1. Since the formula, 
 
 "the word that ciiiik-," elc, appears constantly as 
 the superscription to the longer sections (comp. 
 vii. 1; xi. 1 [xiv. 1]; xviii. 1; xxi. 1, etc.), it 
 has gradually assumed a double character. It 
 is primarily, according to the meaning of the 
 words, the announcement of a word of God spoken 
 to the prophet. Since, however, these words 
 represent at the same time the main sections of 
 the prophetic book, historical narrative being 
 annexed only as introductory or supplementary 
 commentary, the formula has gradiaiUy become 
 the superscription of a main section, even where 
 historical narrative predominates. This is cer 
 tainlj' nowhere to so great an extent the case as 
 here. In a less degree it is found also in xxi. 
 1-3 (comp. "And .Jeremiah said," ver. 3). The 
 formula is certainly never found as a superscrip- 
 tion of a purely historical section. Nor are chh. 
 xl.-xliii. such. For in xlii. 7-22 we have an ac- 
 
 EXEGET3CAL AND CRITICAI* 
 
 In the unavoidable confusion Jeremiah, con- 
 trary to the command of the king (xxxix. 11-14), 
 is included among the captives, and bound with 
 chains. This error is first remarked in Ramah. 
 The captain of the halberdiers has him immedi- 
 ately liberated, and gives him the choice to go 
 with them to Babylon or i*emain in the country. 
 As .Jeremiah, as it appears, liesitated in answer- 
 ing, the captain of halberdiers, guessing the wish 
 of the propliet, decides himself that he is to re- 
 main. Provided with a supply of food and 
 presents, Jeremiah hereupon betakes himself to 
 (iedaliah, who was appointed by Nebuchadnezzar 
 j;(ivf'rnor ovim- the cniintry, in Mizpali 
 
 1. The word 
 
 unto Babylon. 
 
 Tlie suyxirscriplion is of the larger kind. It ex- 
 tenJs jver the four chh. xl.-iliii., for a similar 
 
CHAP. XL. 1-6 
 
 935 
 
 count of a revelation made to the prophet, to 
 which all the previous and subsequent coDlext is 
 related as historical background. In xliii. 8-13 
 is a second oracle, from which it again follows, 
 that we are tc regard the formula in this verse 
 as a comprehensive title of a section, which may 
 refer not only to other matter besides a revela- 
 tion, but also to more than one revelation. More- 
 over the superscription here is related also to i. 
 8. For there the narrative ■of the events till the 
 deportation in the fifth month of the eleventh 
 year of Zedekiah is announced. Our section, 
 being written at a later date, records the events 
 immediately after this date, and till the arrival 
 in Egypt. — When he had taken him. This 
 is to explain why a liberation of Jeremiah can be 
 spoken of, after what is narrated in xxxix. 11- 
 14. Nebuzar-adan had to liberate the prophet 
 in Ramah, because he had taken him captive (by 
 a misunderstanding. Comp. rems. on xxxix. 11- 
 13), and bound Mm with chains. — Being 
 bound, etc., more particularly describes in what 
 condition .Jeremiah was in consequence of being 
 taken, and when he was liberated by Nebuzar- 
 adan. — Among all, etc. This addition also is 
 evidently to contribute to the explanation of 
 Jeremiah's being bound. Jeremiah standing 
 alone would not have suffered this indignity. It 
 was only in consequence of his remaining 
 "among the people" (xxxix. 14), and was con- 
 trary to the purpose of the general. It has been 
 already remarked above that Ramah, being the 
 first station after .lerusalem, served as the place 
 of assembly and final arrangement of the caravan, 
 (in reference to its position. Comp. rems. on 
 xxxi. 15). 
 
 Vers. 2-4. And the captain . . . thither 
 go. What Nebuzar-adan here says to Jeremiah 
 presupposes that he was well acquainted with 
 the purport of his prophecies, and that he ac- 
 knowledged their fulfilment as a manifestation 
 of the power of the God in whose name they had 
 been pronounced. It could not be difficult for a 
 heathen to admit that the national deity of the 
 Jews, enraged because this people preferred 
 other deities to Him, had given them up to their 
 enemies. Nebuzar-adan may also have spoken 
 Hebrew, though the mode of expression betrays 
 that Jeremiah gives only the sense, not the pre- 
 cise words of his speech. Comp. xvi. 10; xix. 
 15; xxxii. 42; xxxvi. 81 ; xxxix 16; xliv. 2. 
 
 Vers. 5, 6. Novy ■while ... in the land. 
 
 The words 2W^ kS \l'^\^]}^ mock at every attempt 
 to explain them according to the grammar and 
 lexicon. For 1. It is contrary to rule to take 
 Uni;? as simply equivalent to Hi;?, since it is a 
 
 complete sentence (and he is still), and either 
 requires no predicate or it can have one only in 
 the form of a participle or adjective. It must be 
 
 3itr. nS ni;;], or 2W' xb xin ni;;i, or ^n);n 
 
 DB' K^, or y'd"^, or something like this. 2. 
 The connection with the following 7\2V by the 
 mere ) is likewise abnormal. We should expect, 
 since in sense T\'2W\ cannot simply continue tha 
 
 speech interrupted by a parenthesis — as a con- 
 tradiction would thus be produced — some con- 
 nective formula like "ipj^'lj 3. The meaning of 
 2W^ is enigmatical. For whomsoever we take 
 
 as the subject, Jeremiah or the king of Judah 
 or Gedaliah, or (with Seb. Schmidt) the inhabi- 
 tants of the place of residence selected by Jere- 
 miah, or an indefinite " they," no satisfactory 
 meaning is obtained. The ancient translators 
 therefore rendered with arbitrary freedom, 
 LXX. £( fJe fif/, aTTorpexe, avdcrpeipov wpbg tov Todo- 
 Aiav. Vulg.: et mecum noli venire, sed habita apud 
 GodoljCim. Syr.: dixit etiam ad eum : si maneas, 
 commorarein medio populi apud Gedaljam. Chald.: 
 et si tu nan vis reverti, revertere ad Gedaljam. I 
 consider the text corrupt. Since in ver. 4 Ne- 
 buzar-adan leaves it to Jeremiah to go wherever 
 he wishes, but ver. 4 says distinctly that he must 
 return to Gedaliah, there must have stood be- 
 tween the two a sentence reporting the pre- 
 ference, which Jeremiah somehow intimated, to 
 remain in the country. How this sentence read 
 is no longer to be ascertained. Since from 
 Jeremiah's not returning it could not be con- 
 cluded that he wished to return, while from 
 his not answering this conclusion might easily 
 be drawn, since morer honor would be done to the 
 Chaldeans if Jeremiah preferred a residence in 
 their country to one in his desolated home, I am 
 of opinion, that originally some form of 2W 
 stood here, involving the idea of answering. — 
 Nebuzar-adan now dismisses the prophet with a 
 supply of food (nrr^X, comp. lii. 34 ; Prov. xv. 
 17) and presents (nxi^D, literally load, what is 
 carried away, i. e. presents. Comp. Esth. ii. 18 ; 
 Am. V. 11). Jeremiah, following the advice 
 given him, betakes himself to Gedaliah in Miz- 
 pah, doubtless that city among the five of this 
 name which was situated in Benjamin, and is 
 named together with Gibeon and Ramah in Josh, 
 xviii. 25, 2G ; comp. 1 Sam. vii. Iti ; x. 17 ; 1 Ki. 
 XV. 22; 1 Mace. iii. 46; Raumer, Paldst., S. 
 213. [This Ramah is supposed to have been 
 about six miles north of Jerusalem, on the road 
 to Bethel. Comp. Smith, Diet. — S. R. A.] 
 
«86 TEE PKUPHET JEREMIAH, 
 
 4. The gathering of the peovle under Gedaliah. 
 XL. 7-16. 
 
 7 Now when all the captains of the forces* which were in the fields, even they and 
 their men, heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam 
 governor in the land, and had committed unto^ him men, and women, and children, 
 and of the poor* of the land, of them that were not carried away captive to Baby- 
 
 8 Ion ; then they came to Gedaliah to Mizpah, even* Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, 
 and Johanan and Jonathan^ the sons of Kareah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth, 
 and the sons of Ephai the Netophathite, and Jezaniah the son of a [the] Maacha- 
 
 9 thite, they and their men. And Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan 
 sware unto them and to their men, saying, Fear not to serve the Chaldeans: dwell 
 
 10 in the land, and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with you. As for 
 me, behold, I will dwell at Mizpah, to serve the Chaldeans,® which will come unto 
 us : but ye, gather ye wine, and summer fruits, and oil, and put them in your 
 
 11 vessels, and dwell in your cities that ye have taken. Likewise when all the Jews 
 that were in Moab, and among the Ammonites, and in Edom, and that %vere in all 
 countries, heard that the king of Babylon had left a remnant' of Judah, and that 
 
 12 he had set over them Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan ; Even all 
 the Jews returned out of all the places whither they were driven, and came to the 
 land of Judah, to Gedaliah, unto Mizpah, and gathered wine and summer fruits 
 
 13 very much. Moreover Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the 
 
 14 forces that were in the fields, came to Gedaliah to Mizpah, and said unto him, 
 Dost thou certainly know that Baalis the king of the Ammonites hath sent Ish- 
 mael the son of Nethaniah to slay thee?^ But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam be- 
 
 15 lieved them not. Then Johanan the son of Kareah spake to Gedaliah in Mizpah 
 secretly, saying. Let me go, I pray thee, and I will slay Ishmael the son of Netha- 
 niah, and no man shall know it; wherefore should he slay thee, that all the Jews 
 which are gathered unto thee should be scattered and the remnant in Judah 
 
 16 perish? But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam said unto Johanan the son of Kareah, 
 Thou shalt not do this thing :' for thou speakest falsely of Ishmael. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 7. — D'' /'H- The word is found in the senae of "riches "' in Isa. xxx. 6. In the sense of "forces, bands,"' it oc- 
 curs only in Jeremiah (xl. 13 ; xli. 11, 13, 16; xlil. 1, 8; xliii. 4, 5), and in later books (1 Ki. xv. 20 ; 2 Ki. xxv. 23, 26 ; Eccl. 
 X. 10 ; 1 Chron. vii. 5-7 ; Dan. xi. 10). By the addition of miyS "ItyX these bands are distinguished from the main forces 
 
 of the regular army in the capital. 
 
 * Ver. 7. — int< TpDn. This Iliphil denotes not only inspicientem, but also inspiciendum /acere : xli. 10 ; xxxvi. 20 ; 
 
 xxxvii. 21 ; Ps. xxxi. G ; Isa. x. 28 ; 2 Chron. xii. 10, in which case he to whom the inspeciio is committed is designated in 
 various ways by j, by fiX, by T'3 or T^ 7J,'. 
 
 * Ver. 7.— nb'IDV Comp. xx.\ix. 10; 2 Ki. xxv. 12. The partitive JD expresses that not all the "poor of the land" 
 
 were left behind, which also follows from lii. 15 coll. 16. In the following JO before "It^X there is a sort of attraction, and 
 
 it is tlierefore not to.be emphasized, as it would then signify that Gedaliah was not set as inspector over all the remaining 
 people. 
 
 •* Ver. 8.— The Van is cxiilicative^and indeed. Comp. Naeoelsd. Or., ? Ill, 1. 
 
 ' Ver. 8. — 'A Ki. xxv. 'Z'-i lias <mly " .Icilianaii scm of K;ireali." 'I'lic words " and thi' sons of Ejdiai " are also omitted, so 
 that " the Netophathito " is referred to Tanhumeth. Instead of n'JP limiHy we read there ri'JlN''. From these altera- 
 
 t:-: t: — :- 
 
 tions it follows that the present text is the original. For the similarity of the names Johanan and Jonathan, which appears 
 more in wrilint; tliaii in speaking, lus well as tlie obscurity of the name '£3_y (wliich according to the Chethibh is to be 
 epoken '31^*, according to the Keri 'D'W. Comp. HD'^, Oen. xxv. 4; Isa. lx.6; 1 Chron. ii. 46, 47) well exjilains the 
 
 omission of these words, while their irisfrtion in tli(^ text appears in the highest degree improbable. 
 
 6 Ver. 10.— ['• Literally, tn stand lit the fare of the ChaMeans: to be their representative, and to do ^heir will, and alM 
 to mediate with tlieiii in your belialf (UlTziu)." Wordswokth. — S. 11. A.] 
 
 » Ver. 11.— n'^NK^ THJ. Comp. xliv. 7 ; Gen. xlv. 7 ; 2 Sam. xiv. 7. 
 
CHAP. XLI. 1-18. 
 
 337 
 
 8 Ver. 14.— lybj nniinS- Comp. Gen. xxxvii. 21 ; Deut. xix. 6, 11 ; xxvii. 25 ; Naegelsb. Gr., J 70,/. 
 » Ver. 16.— tyj^n-Sx. The Keri would read TW}}r\ (comp. on this form Olsh., § 240, a Anm.), unnecessarily. Conip* 
 xzxiz. 12 ; Qen. xxii. 12 ; Job xiii. 20. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The leaders of the scattered bands roving 
 through the country, who bad managed to escape 
 the Chaldean forces, assembled to Gedaliah in 
 Mizpah on the news that he had been set by 
 Nebuchadnezzar over the country (vers. 7, 8). 
 Gedaliah, after promising them on oath on his 
 part protection and support, urges them to col- 
 lect whatever the land contains of the necessaries 
 of life and willingly to serve the Chaldeans 
 (vers. 9, 10). The dispersed Jews from the 
 neighboring countries also gathered about Geda- 
 liah (vers. 11, 12). It however came to be ru- 
 mored that one of those band-leaders, Ishmael, 
 the son of Nethaniah, of the royal stock, had 
 been incited by Baalis, king of the Ammonites, 
 to murder Gedaliah. The rest of the band- 
 leaders, therefore, warned Gedaliah of Ishmael, 
 but Gedaliah believed them not (vers. 13, 14). 
 One of the leaders, Johanan the son of Kareah, 
 even offered to murder Ishmael secretly. Geda- 
 liah, however, would not permit it, declaring the 
 suspicion prevailing against Ishmael to be based 
 on a lie (vers. 15, 16). 
 
 Vers. 7, 8. Novr \when all . . . their men. 
 These two verses are also found in 2 Ki. xxv. 23 
 in an abridged form. — This Ishmael was, accord- 
 ing to xli. 1, of royal lineage, which partly ex- 
 plains his enmity to Gedaliah. The other per- 
 sons named are otherwise altogether unknown. — 
 Who the sons of the Netophathitewere (the place 
 belonged to Bethlehem, comp. 1 Chron. ii. 54; 
 ix. 16; Neb. vii. 26; Ezr. ii. 22) is as little known 
 as what the proper name of the Maachathite 
 was (Maachah a province of Syria on the north- 
 eastern borders of Palestine, Deut. iii. 14; Josh. 
 xli. 5 coll. 2 Sam. x. 6, 8 ; Raumer, Paldst., S. 
 226, 7). Comp. rems. on xlii. 1. 
 
 Vers. 9-12. And Gedaliah . . . fruits very 
 much. Ver. 9 is also found in 2 Ki. xxv. 24, 
 reproduced with the noteworthy alteration, "to 
 be the servants of the Chaldeans " instead of 
 " to serve the Chaldeans." The former expres- 
 siou however (we should expect at least " ser- 
 
 vants of the king of the Chaldeans") corres- 
 ponds neither to the usage of the prophets, nor 
 the co-inection of the passage. Remarkably also 
 the LXX. translate here : fj.?} (poliijdt'/TE drro npoa- 
 uTTov Tuv Tnui5u)v TO)U 'X.aTiSatcjv, while in 2 Ki. xxv. 
 24 they have /ui/ ^ojielai^e izapodov rwi' XaAf^a/ur. — 
 What Gedaliah has sworn to them is, according 
 to ver. 10 a, that he would stand in Mizpah be- 
 fore the Chaldeans, who would come to them. 
 He means by this that he would be the medium 
 of intercourse with the Chaldean ambassadors, 
 ofiScers, soldiers, etc., and would represent the 
 interest of the country with them (comp. xv. 
 1). The Jews on their part are to care for their 
 sustenance by collecting the fruits still to be 
 found in the country (it was now autumn, comp. 
 Iii. 12; xli. 1). In the desolated and plundered 
 land this was naturally a matter of the highest 
 importance. Tne collected supplies they were 
 to preserve in the cities which, according to their 
 own choice, they had taken into their possession. 
 On the news that Nebuchadnezzar had left of the 
 Jewish people, as it were a remnant of root in 
 their land, and over this feeble remnant had ap- 
 pointed Gedaliah overseer, the dispersed Jews 
 also returned from the neighboring lands, in 
 order to gather around Gedaliah in Mizpah, who 
 must thus have been a persona grata. 
 
 Vers. 13-16. Moreover Johanan ... of 
 Ishmael. Whether Baalis, king of the Ammon- 
 ites, had any special hatred towards the person 
 of Gedaliah, or whether he wished to destroy 
 the Jews' last point of cohesion and erystaliza- 
 tion, is uncertain. His making use of Ishmael 
 may have been due to the personal jealousy of 
 this man, who as a prince royal (xli. 1) regarded 
 Gedaliah's post of honor as properly belonging 
 to him. The plan became known The captains 
 came to Mizpah (in the fields is not a thought- 
 less repetition from ver. 7, but indicates that the 
 bands were still essentially the same, namely, 
 free corps roving through the country) to warn 
 Gedaliah. He, however, did not believe them. 
 And when Johanan alone in secret conference 
 offered to kill Ishmael, he directly forbade him, 
 declaring the accusation to be a lie. 
 
 5. The murder of Gedaliah and its conseqtiences. 
 Chap. XLI. 
 
 Now it came to pass in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah 
 the son of Elishama, of the seed royal, and the princes of the king, even ten men 
 with him, came unto Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam to Mizpah ; and there they did 
 eat bread together in Mizpah. Then arose Ishtnael the son of Nethaniah, and th(/ 
 ten men that were with him, and smote Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of 
 Shaphan with the sword, and slew him, whom the king of Babylon had made 
 governor over the land. Ishmael also slew all the Jews that were with him, even 
 with Gedaliah, at Mizpah, and the Chaldeans that were found there, the men of war. 
 
 22 
 
i<38 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 4 And it came to pass the second day after he had slain Gedaliah, and no man 
 
 5 knew it, that there came certain [men] from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from 
 Samaria, even fourscore [eighty] men, having their beards shaven and their clothes 
 rent, and having cut themselves [their bodies], with offerings and incense in their 
 
 6 hand, to bring them to the house of the Lord [Jehovah]. And Ishmael the son of 
 Nethaniah went forth from Mizpah to meet them, weeping all along as he went ; 
 And it came to pass, as he met them, he said unto them. Come to Gedaliah the son 
 
 7 of Ahikam. And it was so, when they came into the midst of the city, that 
 Ishmael the s^n of Nethaniah slew them and cast them into the midst of the pit 
 
 8 [slew them into the cistern],^ he, and the men that were with him. But ten men 
 were found among them that said unto Ishmael. Slay us not : for we have treasures 
 in the field, of wheat, and of barley, and of oil, and of honey. So hj lorbare, and 
 
 9 slew them not among their brethren. Now the pit [cistern] wherein Ishmael had 
 cast all the dead bodies of the men, whom he had slain because [by the hand] of* 
 Gedaliah, xvas it [that] which Asa the king had made for fear* of Baasha king of 
 Israel : and Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled it with them that were [the] slain. 
 
 10 Then Ishmael carried away captive all the residue of the people that were in 
 Mizpah, even the king's daughters, and all the people that remained in Mizpah, 
 whom Nebuzar-adan the captain of the guard [halberdiers] had committed to 
 Gedaliah the son of Ahikam : aud Ishmael the son of Nethaniab carried them 
 away captive, and departed to go over to the Ammonites. 
 
 11 But when Johanan the son of Kareah, aud all the captains of the forces that 
 were with him, heard of all the evil that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done, 
 
 12 then they took all the men, and went to fight with Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, 
 
 13 and found him by the waters that are in Gibeon. Now it came to pass, that when 
 all the people which were with Ishmael saw Johanan the son of Kareah, and all 
 
 14 the captains of the forces that were with him, then they were glad. So all the 
 people that Ishmael had carried away captive from Mizpah cast about and returned, 
 
 15 and went unto Johanan the son of Kareah. But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah 
 escaped from Johanan with eight men, and went to the Ammonites. 
 
 16 Then took Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that 
 were with him, all the remnant of the people whom he had recovered from Ishmael 
 the son of Nethaniah, from Mizpah, after that he had slain Gedaliah the son of 
 Ahikam, even mighty men of war,* and the women, and the children, and the 
 
 17 eunuchs, whom he had brought again from Gibeon : and they departed, and dwelt 
 in the habitation of Chimham,* which is by Beth-lehem, to go to enter into Egypt, 
 
 18 because of the Chaldeans : for they were afraid of them, because Ishmael the son 
 of Nethaniah had slain Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon 
 made governor in the land. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 7. — Pregnant construction. Corap. Naeoelsb. Gr., ^ 112, 7 ; 2 Ki. x. 14 ; 1 Mace. vii. 19. 
 
 2 Ver. 9. — Q T3. J. D. MlCHAtus conjectures T3 (comp. vi 7 KeriJ, which reading is said to be found in one Codex 
 
 of De Rossi (comp. liosENMtTELLEB arf /.). The LXX. translate i^peap ^leyaToOTo ecmi', as if they had read XID Vnjn 113, 
 
 T - 
 
 which reading i.s adopted by Dahler, Movers, Hitzio, Graf. It would afford a good meaning. But the reading is not to be 
 altered unnecessarily. 
 
 * Ver. 9.— ''J£3?D, before, properly "on account of," but used here in the sense of "against." Comp. Jud. ix. 21 ; 1 
 
 Chron. xii. 1. , 
 
 ♦ Ver. 16. — non/^n 'tyjX is in apposition to D'13J aud is to e.xpress that the latter ia not to be taken in the sense 
 
 T T :■-■■: - -T : 
 
 of marcs generally, in which even the children might be included, but in the sense of " fighting men." 
 
 5 Ver. 17.— Dri03 flOJ (Keri). The Chethibh seems to require the pronunciation Dni33. The meaning of the 
 
 word is not apparent. The old translators all express, though with great want of clearness and agreement among tliem- 
 Belves, a propnr name. Only Josephus {Antiq. X., 9, g 5) says : eis riVa roiroy ixa.i'Spav Keyoiievov. lie evidently read Hnj 
 
 (wall, protection, hurdle. Comp. Zepb. ii. 6). — r\nj is oiTr. \ey., but from its etymology must mean hospitium, diversorium. 
 
 EXEOETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The suspicion again.st Islimael was only too 
 well-foumled. He really nmnlers Gedaliah and 
 his retinue, consisting of Jews and Clialdeans 
 
 (vers. 1 -3) also seventy Israelites who were bring- 
 ing oflFerings to the destroyed sanctuary (vers. 4- 
 9). The rust of the people he leads away cap- 
 tive from Mizpah, but is overtaken by Johanan 
 and tlie other band-leaders. The captives im- 
 mediately leave him, and he escapes with eight 
 
CHAP. XLl. 1-18. 
 
 339 
 
 men to the Ammonites (vers. 10-15). Thereupon 
 the leaders assemble the whole people in the 
 neighborhood of Bethlehem, to prepare for re- 
 moval to Egypt, for in consequence of the mur- 
 der of Gedaliah they think that they will be lia- 
 ble to the extreme vengeance of the Chaldeans if 
 they remain longer in the country. 
 
 Vers. 1-3. Now it came to pass . . . men 
 of war. There is a brief extract from these 
 verses in 2 Ki. xxv. 25. The event took place in 
 the seventh month, therefore three months after 
 the capture of the city (xxxix. 2), and two after 
 the destruction and deportation by Nebuzar-adan 
 (lii. 12; 2 Ki. xxv. 8). Ishmael was of the roy- 
 al, therefore David's seed. Neither he nor his 
 father Nethaniah (1 Chron. xxvi. 2, 12 ; 2 Chron. 
 xvii. 8, Levites are thus named) are mentioned 
 elsewhere. Nethaniah is called the son of Eli- 
 shama. Whether this person is identical with 
 the -'scribe" mentioned in xxxvi. 12, 20, 21, or 
 the Elishama named in 2 Sam. v. 16 ; 1 Chron. 
 iii. 6 (8); xiv. 7 as a son of David is meant, is 
 not apparent. Both cases are possible. In the 
 latter Elishama would be the ancestor of the fa- 
 mily, ••son" being used according to a well 
 known idiom, in the wider sense. Ishmael would 
 then belong to a collateral branch of the royal 
 family. — Princes of the king. It is clear 
 that the king of .Judah is meant. Not so clear 
 the grammatical connection. It may be referred 
 to "royal seed." Hitzig in opposition to this cor- 
 rectly remarks that the " princes " did not form 
 an hereditary caste. It is therefore, according 
 to some, governed by "of." Is it not nowever 
 a matter of course that Ishmael as a prince be- 
 longed to the t)'3T, especially as this word by 
 
 no means desiguates a definite category of great- 
 ness ? Further, is it probable that Ishmael with 
 ten men could overpower the entire Jewish re- 
 tinue of Gedaliah, together with the Chaldean 
 soldiers (ver. 3), eighty men (ver. 7), who if not 
 provided with arms were with legs, and then 
 lead away captive against their will the whole 
 population of Mizpah (ver. 14) ? We are thus 
 recommended to take '3'] as a nominative = 
 
 and great men of the king. It would then be de- 
 clared that Ishmael and other Jewish nobles 
 (doubtless each with his own retinue), and ten 
 men who formed the personal retinue of the for- 
 mer, accomplished the deed. The passage hi. 
 10 would not contradict this. For since even the 
 Chaldeans could not kill any one whom they did 
 not have, that passage states only that the Chal- 
 deans took the life of all the princes who fell into 
 their power. Now besides here 3"} never oc- 
 curs in Jeremiah of the great men of the He- 
 brews, but only of the Chaldean grandees in gene- 
 ral (xxxix. 13), and of the principal court-officers 
 in particular. Comp. Rab-Mag., etc., xxxix. 
 3, 13, etc. — It is then natural to suppose that the 
 words " and the princes of the king " are a gloss, 
 occasioned by the difficulty of crediting such 
 deeds to a little band of eleven men. 
 
 Slew him. These words expressly set forth 
 that though several smote Gedaliah with their 
 swords, Ishmael was the real murderer, upon 
 whom rested the immense responsibility of having 
 killed the Chaldean king's chief officer in the 
 country. I therefore do not think that, as Hit- 
 
 zig and Gr.\f propose, we must read " smote '* 
 also in the singular (13_'1). That by "all the 
 Jews that were with Gedaliah at Mizpah" we 
 are not to understand the wiiole population of the 
 city, is apparent from ver. 10. It is rather the 
 armed men, who were at the disposal of Gedaliah 
 as governor, who are intended and who, whether 
 permanently or temporarily, were strengthened 
 by Chaldean soldiers. 
 
 Vers. 4-9. And it came to pass . . . ^<rith 
 the slain. Ishmael knew how to guaid against 
 the murder of Gedaliah being known immedi- 
 ately outside the city. He evidently intended to 
 use iMizpah as a trap. So it happened ths^t on 
 the second day the approach of a troop of men 
 was announced, who from a distance presented 
 the appearance of a peaceful caravan, and from 
 the burdens they bore one promising booty. 
 They came from Shechem, Shiloh and Samaria. 
 The LXX. read 2«/l//«, and Hitzig, as well as 
 Graf, is disposed to give this reading the pre- 
 ference, since thus a more correct order (accord- 
 ing to geographical position we should have Shi- 
 loh, Shechem, Samaria) and vicinage of the cities 
 is obtained. Salem would then be the place men- 
 tioned in Gen. xxxiii. 18, 19 as near Shechem 
 (comp. Herzog, R.-Enc, XIII. S. 326). But the 
 authority of the LXX. is, as is well known, un- 
 reliable. Shiloh also lies so near the road that 
 Travellers proceeding from it might meet with 
 those coming from Samaria and Shechem. As to 
 the order, as this in itself was a matter of indif- 
 ference, a more external circumstance may well 
 have suggested it : the word of one syllable is 
 placed first, then that of two syllables, and of 
 these again that of five consonants after that of 
 three. 
 
 From 2 Chron. xxxiv. 9 it is apparent, that at 
 the time of Josiah there was still in the cities of 
 the ten tribes a " remnant of Israel," which con- 
 tributed to the house of the Lord in Jerusalem, 
 which appears as a resumption and continuance 
 of the co-operation, which even in the reign of 
 Hezekiah the pious Israelites had afforded in es- 
 tablishing the worship of Jehovah in Jerusalem 
 (2 Chron. xxx. and xxxi.) These men came as 
 mourners over the destruction of the sanctuary 
 (comp. on xvi. 6 ; xlvii. 5; xlviii. 37) with gifts 
 of meat and incense offerings, as the beasts ne- 
 cessary for burnt offerings could not well be 
 brought from so great a distance. Doubtless the 
 feast of Tabernacles, occurring in the Seventh 
 month (Lev. xxiii. 34; Numb. xxix. 12; Deut. 
 xvi. 13) was the occasion of their coming. Al- 
 though they could not hope to find altar and 
 priests in the holy place, they would still depo- 
 sit their gifts there in order at least to manifest 
 their devotion. Grotius calls attention here to 
 the expression of Papinian [Instit. de reruni divi- 
 ■lione, ^ Sacrm) • '■'■Locus, in quo sedes sacrse sunt 
 pedijicatse etiam diruto sedijicio sacer adhuc manet." 
 
 What was the motive of Ishmael's act? It is 
 supposed by some that he feared to be betrayed, 
 and therefore killed those strangers whom he 
 could not drag away with him. But he only 
 needed then not to admit them into Mizpah. 
 Graf sees in the deed an act of revenge which 
 Ishmael took on these Israelites for the murder 
 of his relatives and associates in rank (Hi. 10), 
 
840 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 because these, living with heathens, had for a 
 long time been Assyrian and Chaldean subjects. 
 But these Israelites, coming with all the tokens 
 of deepest sorrow, had shown themselves to be 
 well-disposed towards the Jews, and it is incon- 
 ceivable how Ishmael could have chosen them for 
 the objects of his vengeance. I think he had sim- 
 ple robbery in view. For after this Ishmael, who 
 was evidently a rough and wild man, had from 
 personal jealousy, to the disadvantage of his peo- 
 ple and in the political interest of his Ammoni- 
 tish protection, assassinated the noble Gedaliah, 
 he must either attempt to maintain himself in the 
 latter's position or flee. When he quickly, be- 
 fore, the matter has become known, murders a 
 peaceful caravan of temple pilgrims, and spares 
 only a few of them, who offer him treasures, and 
 at last drags with him as captives the whole 
 turba imbell.is from Mizpah into slavery, he shows 
 himself to be simply a robber. 
 
 Ver. 6. Weeping all along as he went 
 [lit.: in going and weeping]. LXX. : ahroi eko- 
 pEvovrn Kal in?.aiov. They then refer the words 
 to the eighty. Hitziq and Graf find this refe- 
 rence quite in order. Why should Ishmael weep? 
 We might suppose it to be perfectly clear that 
 Ishmael wept to deceive those people, in order to 
 present the appearance of a person who from in- 
 ternal grief was not thinking of worldly things 
 at all, much less of robbery and murder. Hit- 
 tiQ and Graf however deny that Ishmael wept 
 at all, because he had no ostensible reason for 
 doing so. HiTZiG says be would not weep for 
 the fate of the temple, since he did not in them 
 meet again old friends for the first time since its 
 destruction, he did not go to meet them in cere- 
 mony as notorious temple-pilgrims, nor was he 
 himself on the way to Jerusalem. Graf says if 
 he had wept like the pilgrims over Jerusalem, 
 this would have been unnatural behaviour for 
 one who was sojourning in the vicinity of the 
 city. But are these reasons? It is scarcely 
 credible that they can be intended seriously. If 
 in those days of the most tremendous national ca- 
 lamity a train of Jewish pilgrims, bearing them- 
 selves all the signs of grief, meet another Jew 
 weeping, about what will they suppose that he 
 is weeping ? Will they not most naturally sup- 
 pose that he accords with the general mourning 
 of the country ? There can be no doubt this was 
 the supposition which Ishmael wished to produce 
 in the pilgrims' minds. There may have been 
 one and another among them who regarded the 
 weeping comer as not a partaker in the general 
 grief, it sufficed for Ishmael that he was gene- 
 rally regarded as such. Murder and robbery are 
 not expected from such a person. Ishmael tried 
 in this way to deceive them. If they had mis- 
 trusted him his project must have failed or he 
 must have tried other expedients. Hitziq and 
 Graf fail to convince us that they would have 
 more readily believed a person who was not 
 mourning, but who invited them to Gedaliah in a 
 tone usual at other times. Graf also urges that 
 it was not necessary for Ishmael to shed tears 
 the whole way, even though it was a short one, 
 which however is implied in the grammatical con- 
 Btruction (comp. on this point Naegelsb Gr.. § 
 93, 6, Anm.) To this it may be replied that Ish- 
 mael could act knovv how sharp-sighted any one 
 
 of the eighty might be, so that he would rathel 
 begin to weep too early than too late, and conse- 
 quently traversed the greatest part of the dis- 
 tance, perhaps the whole way from the gate, 
 weeping. 
 
 Come to Gedaliah. Why Gedaliah invites 
 them he does not say. Many reasons might be 
 imagined : Gedaliah might wish to show them 
 hospitality, or to accompany them, or to impart 
 some injunction or warning in his gubernatorial 
 capacity. At any rate he was a powerful man, 
 whose requisition was not to be ignored. They 
 therefore followed. But in the midst of the city, 
 at any rate in a place where eleven men sufficed 
 to close up both their advance and their retreat, 
 in some narrow lane, Ishmael fell upon them. 
 Ten of them evidently perceived at once why this 
 was done. They saw that it was robbery on 
 which he was intent. They therefore promise 
 him D'JOI^O, i. e., promtuaria siibterratiea (from 
 tOtO ahscondidit), such being used from the ear- 
 liest times in many countries of Asia and Africa 
 for the concealment and preservation of the fruits 
 of the earth. Comp. Rosenmuelleu ar/. /., and 
 Gesenius Thfsauriis, s. v. ; Winer, B- ]V.-B., s. 
 V. Ernte. — By the hand of Gedaliah. The 
 words are difficult. The explanations: by the 
 fault of Gedaliah, on Gedaliah's account, {i. e., 
 as friends of Gedaliah); coram Gedalja, i. e., to- 
 gether with Gedaliah, una cum Gedalja, in potes- 
 tate Gedalja (i. e., as imperio G. subjeclos) are all 
 ungrammatical. The normal significance of the 
 words seems to me to afford an appropriate mean- 
 ing. Ishmael had made use of Gedaliah's name, 
 to allure them to destruction. He had called to 
 them: Come to Gedaliah (ver. 6), and on the 
 authority of this name they had followed him. 
 Thus we may well say that Ishmael killed them 
 by means of Gedaliah. Of course the person of 
 Gedaliah was not the instrument of execution, 
 but his name was the means by which their wills 
 were determined in the intended direction. — 
 Was that which Asa, etc. We read in 1 Ki. 
 XV. 22 that king Asa, with the material of which 
 Baasha had fortified Ramah built Geba-Benjamin 
 and Mizpah. This pit appears to have been part 
 of these works of fortification, but as to its des- 
 tination we are not informed. Was it a cistern, 
 a ditch, or a mere pit, which might defend a nar- 
 row approach, and in ordinary times was bridged 
 over? HiTZiG assumes the latter. But as Graf 
 remarks, the pit appears according to ver. 7 to 
 have been situated in the interior of the city. It 
 cannot have been a ditch, such never being 
 
 called "Its. It was then probably a large and 
 deep cistern (Comp. Rosenmueller on ver. 7), 
 which was built to afford water to the fort, and 
 which accordingly might be reckoned among the 
 means of defence, with which Asa provided the 
 city for fear of Baasha. AVhether the pit, which 
 is here spoken of, is identical with the great 
 hore that is in Sechu, 1 Sam xix. 21, and with 
 the (jfi/)f'a/j jiiya 1 Mace. vii. 19, must be left un- 
 decided. 
 
 Vers. 10-1.5. Then Ishmael. . to the Am- 
 monites. Tiie intimidated, and probably in 
 addition unarmed people, among them the king's 
 daughters (probably in the wider sense of prin- 
 cesses, as "king's son," xzzvi. 26; xxxviii. 6), 
 
CHAP. XLII. 1-6. 
 
 341 
 
 Ishmael carried away captive, either to use them 
 as slaves or to sell them. Meanwhile however 
 the Jewish band-captains had received intelli- 
 gence of the events in Mizpah. They hasten 
 thither with their people, and encounter Ishmael 
 by the "great water" near Gibeon. Gibeon is 
 only half a league distant from Mizpah in a nortli- 
 easterly direction. Till Ishmael had done with 
 the eighty pilgrims and the gathering of the rest 
 of the population prior to their departure, so 
 much time might pass that the captains could 
 huiry up and almost reach him in Mizpah. The 
 "great waters " of Gibeon are a pond. Comp. 2 
 Sam. ii. 13. Robinson (II. 351, 2) recognizes 
 Gibeon in the village El-Jib. [Comp. Thomson, 
 The Land and the Book, II., p. 546. — S. R. A.] 
 At the east of the village he found a beautiful 
 fountain and the remains of a large water-tank. 
 All Ishmael's prisoners left, him at once to attach 
 themselves to Johanan. Ishmael escaped with 
 eight men. It seems then that there was a fight, 
 in which he lost two of his ten men. 
 
 Vers. 16-18. Then took Johanan ... in 
 the land. It cannot be denied that there is 
 some difficulty in the relative sentence from 
 'vrhom he had recovered to son of Ahikam. 
 Especially troublesome is from Mizpah. Also 
 
 the singular J'K'n as well as the sentence after 
 
 he had slain, etc. (we should expect: after they 
 had driven Ishmael off) are striking; so too the 
 relative sentences vrhom he had recovered 
 from Ishmael and °whom he had brought 
 again from Gibeon, as they both state the 
 same fact. Hitziq supposes that " whom Ish- 
 mael carried away captive " should be read after 
 
 ver. 14. Certainly the connection thus becomea 
 clear and intelligible. And as the sentence 
 whom he had recovered from Ishmael 
 
 siands directly between whom Ishmael car- 
 ried away captive from Mizpah, ver. 14, 
 and whom he had brought again from Gi. 
 heon, fill. ver. 16, it is quite conceivable that 
 an exchange may have taken place. — Mighty 
 men of war. It is evident from these woi'ds 
 thai the great mass of the Jewish people still left 
 were assembled in Mizpah, comp. xl. 7-11. — It ia 
 the more strange that Ishmael could take all 
 these captive with ten men. Were they unarmed? 
 Were they surprised? Did Ishmael terrify them 
 with threats, by making a false show of Ammo- 
 nitish help at hand? — However this may be, Jo- 
 hanan betakes himself with all these to a more 
 southern rendezvous on the road to Egypt. This 
 according to the Keri is called the " habitation 
 (hospice, caravanserai) of Chimham [Kimhani]," 
 who according to 2 Sam. xix. 37-40 was the son 
 of the.Barzillai who purveyed so well for David 
 iind his army on their flight. Why did an inn or 
 .caravanserai in the vicinity of Bethlehem bear 
 tlie name of Chimham ? We do not know. — This 
 point was to serve as a meeting-place. There 
 were still single bands or individuals scattered 
 through the country. Preparations had also to 
 be made for the march through the desert. Tho 
 vengeance of the Chaldeans, in spite of the surely 
 provable innocence of the Jews, appeared how- 
 ever so certain, and the fear of it was so great, 
 that the resolution to flee to Egypt was already 
 fixed, before they asked the prophet's advice. 
 Hence this act was a mere farce. 
 
 6. The hypocritical inquiry. 
 XLII. 1-6. 
 
 1 Then all the captains of the forces, and^ Johanan the son of Kareah, and Jeza- 
 niah the son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least unto the greatest, came 
 
 2 near, and said unto Jeremiah the prophet, Let, we beseech thee, our supplication be 
 accepted before thee, and pray for us unto the Lord [Jehovah] thy God, even for 
 all tli's remnant ; (for we are left hut a few of many," as thine eyes do behold us) : 
 
 3 that the Lord [.lehovah] thy God may shew us the way wherein we may walk, and 
 the thing that we may do. 
 
 4 Then Jeremiah the prophet said unto them, I have heard^ i/ow; behold, I will 
 pray unto the Lord [Jehovah] your God according to your v/ords ; and it shall 
 come to pass, that whatever thing the Lord [Jehovah] shall answer you, I will de- 
 
 5 clare it unto you ; I will keep nothing back from you. Then they said to Jeremiah, 
 The Lord be a true* and faithful witness between us, if we do not even according to 
 
 6 all things for the which the Lord thy God shall send^ thee to us. Whether it he 
 good, or whether it he eviP we will obey the voice of the Lord our God, to whom we'' 
 send thee ; that it may be well with us, when® we obey the voice of the Lord our God* 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 » Ver. 1.— The 1 before prtV aa in xl. 8 [=even]. 
 a Ver. 2.— On 713171 comp. OLsn., S. 358 and 583. 
 
842 
 
 THE riiui'iiEi ji:.;i:,MiAH. 
 
 • Ver. 4. — T\VD^ involves the sense of hearing and granting, and is at the same time tlie token of the acceptance and 
 
 approval of the potitiim. It torresponds nearly to the German " Gutr [Eng. : good !] 
 
 * Ver. 5. — The expression JlOX "[^ is found besides only in Prov. xiv. 2o coll. ver. o. JOXJ HW Ps. Ixxxix. 38; 
 
 Tsai. Tiii. 2. . 
 
 5 Ver. 5.— On X\l]^ with a double accusative, couip. Nabgelsb. Gy., ^ G ', 2, e. 
 
 " T 
 
 « Ver. 6.— To V'\ QXI 2M2 DX we are not to supply 13171 for then we must have J<^n after yi. Much rather is the 
 
 , . TT - T 
 
 whole sentence in apposition to the foUowiug 7lp, as in Eccles. xii. 14 to the preceding ni7> 0. 
 
 ' Ver. 6. — ^3X. The form occurs only here in the Old Testament. Comp. Olsh., § 95, 6, 5. It is indeed possible that 
 
 It was not incorrectly put into the mouth of the people, for the form usual in post-biblicaj Hebrew may have been a popular 
 expression even at tliat time. 
 
 8 Ver. (3. — '3 is here necessarily because, not if. For there is no question about their obeying. They will obey, but 
 
 expect prosperity from this obedience as such, apart from the immediate result of the step commanded them. Comp 
 xxiv. 7. 
 
 EXEQETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The people request the prophet to inquire of 
 the Lord what is to be done (vers. 1-3); Jere- 
 miah promises to do so (ver. 4). The people 
 therefore solemnly promise punctual obedience 
 to all that the prophet shall disclose to them as 
 the commands of their God (vers. 5, 6). 
 
 Vers. 1-3. Then all . . . that we may do. 
 Jezaniah is here called the son of Hoshaiah ; in 
 xl. 8 he is called the son of the Maachathite, in 
 xliii. 2 Azariah is named as the son of Hoshaiah. 
 There must then have either been two Jezaniahs 
 and two Hoshaiahs, or there is an error in the 
 text. The LXX. has in xlii. 1 and xliii. 2 'ACa- 
 piog VLOi; Maaaaiov. There is thus the possibility 
 that here Jezaniah is written by mistake for Aza- 
 riah. — These leaders and the whole people with 
 
 them address to the prophet the humble petition 
 (comp. rems. on xxxvi. 7 ; xxxvii. 201, that he 
 will address to Jehovah in their behalf, the small 
 remnant of the great nation, a prayer for in- 
 struction concerning the path to be taken. 
 
 Vers. 4-6. Then Jeremiah . . . our God. 
 When the people express their readiness to sub- 
 mit to the direction of Jehovah, however this 
 may turn out, but afterwards (xliii. 2-7) rebel 
 so decidedly against this direction, their declara- 
 tion here must be explained either as hypocrisy 
 or on the supposition that the question was not 
 of remaining in the country, but there was doubt 
 only as to the direction of their flight. They ap- 
 peal to the Lord to appear as a true and faithful 
 witness against them, if they do not submit to 
 the divine indication expected through the pro- 
 phet. The Lord however is, as is presupposed in 
 every oath, at the same time Witness and Judge- 
 
 7. 2%e unwelcome answer, 
 XLIL 7-22. 
 
 7 And it came to pass after ten days, that [or that after ten days] the word of the 
 
 8 Lord [Jehovah] came unto Jeremiah. Then called he Johanan the son of Kareah, 
 and all the captains of the forces [band-leaders] which were with him, and all the 
 
 9 people from the least even to the greatest, and said unto them, Thus saith the 
 Lokd [Jehovah] the God of Israel, unto whom ye sent me to present your suppli- 
 
 10 cation before him; If ye will still abide' in this land, then will I build you, and 
 not pull you down ; and I will plant you, and not pluck you up : for I repent me 
 
 11 of the evil that I have done unto you. Be not afraid of the king of Babylon, of 
 whom ye are afraid ; be not afraid of him, saith the Lord : for I am with you to 
 
 12 save you, and to deliver you from his hand. And I will shew mercies unto [pre- 
 pare pity for]'' you, that he may have mercy upon you, and cause you to return^ 
 
 13 to your own laud But if ye say, We will not dwell in this land, neither obey the 
 
 14 voice of the Lord your God, Saying, No ; but we will go into the land of Egypt, 
 where [that]* we shall see no war, nor hear the sound of the trumpet, nor have 
 
 15 hunger of [for]* bread ; and there will we dwell : and now^ therefore hear the 
 word of the Lord, ye remnant of Judah ; Thus saith the Lord of hosts [Jeho- 
 vti.h Zebaoth] the God of Israel ; If ye wholly set your faces to enter into Egypt, 
 
 16 and go to sojourn there ; then it shall come to pass'' that the sword, which ye feared, 
 shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt, ; and the famine, whereof ye were 
 
 17 afraid, shall follow close after you therein Egypt ; and there ye shall die. 80 shall 
 it be with ail the men that set their faces to go into Egypt to sojourn there ; they 
 shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence : and none of them 
 
CHAP. XLII. 7-22. 343 
 
 18 shall remain or escape from the evil that I will bring upon them. For thus saith 
 the Lord of hosts [Jehovah Zebaoth] the God of Israel ; As mine anger and my 
 fury hath been poured forth upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem ; so shall my fury 
 be poured forth upon you, when ye shall enter into Egypt ; and ye shall be an ex- 
 ecration, and an astonishment [horror] and a curse, and a reproach ; and ye shaK 
 
 19 see this place no more. The Lord hath said concerning you [Jehovah hath spoken 
 to you] O ye remnant of Judah ; Go ye not into Egypt : know certainly that I 
 
 20 have admonished [warned]® you this day. For ye dissembled in your hearts [de- 
 ceived yourselves],^ when^" ye sent me unto the Lord your God, saying, Pray for 
 us unto the Lord our God ; and according unto all that the Lord our God shall 
 
 21 say, so declare unto us and we will do it. And now I have this day declared it 
 to you ; but ye have not obeyed the voice of the Lord your God, nor any thing^' 
 
 22 for the which he hath sent me unto you. Now therefore know certainly that ye 
 shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, in the place whither 
 ye desire to go and to sojourn. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 10. — 31tJ/ is evidently abbreviated from 3i{J^% since the sense renders the derivation from '2W impossible. Che. 
 
 T 
 
 B. MiCHAELis and Rosenmtteiier indeed translate, sirevertendo tlluc ma?iseritis in hac terra. But then the Inf. dbf. would 
 be placed after the finite verb. Comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., § 93, «. — This apocopation of ^ is certainly unexampled in this form, 
 but most readily assumed in a verb >■'£) according to the analogy of the Inf. constr. and Imperfect Comp. besides Olsh., 
 g 89 ; 170, a, Anm. ; 245, h, Anm. 
 
 * Ver. 12. — From the following sentence it is evident that '"^ tr\J here does not mean "to show compassion," but " to 
 
 prepare pity, to procure it on the part of another." Comp. Gen. xliii. 14. 
 
 3 Ver. 12.— l^JJ^nV LXX., Vulg., Syr., J. D. Mich.\elis, Hitzig, Ewald, Graf, would read, S'tyir?, but this wouldnot 
 
 agree with the following '7X. Comp. also Exeg. and Crit. rems. [Blaynet: would settle you in, etc.—?,. R. A.J 
 
 * Ver. 14.— "lE/X = that. Comp. Gen. xi. 7 ; Exod. xx. 23 ; Deut. iv. 40 ; vi. 3. 
 
 6 Ver. 14. — on 7 7. From Am. viii. 11 we perceive that the meaning of the expression is, to hunger for or after 
 bread. 
 
 6 Ver. 15. — With Pinj^l begins the apodosis (paratactically introduced. Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., g 110, 2) to QKI in 
 
 ver. 13. 
 
 ' Ver. 10. — njTTII has this form by attraction, as well as VXV^ ver. 17. Comp. Ewald, g 345, 6. 
 
 8 Ver. 19. — TJ^ri) literally to bring in witnesses, then to adduce testimony (according to the directly causative mode 
 
 of speaking, on which comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 18, 3). From the idea of giving testimony is developed that of earnest solemn 
 addreiS, admonition, warning. Comp. Ps. 1. 7 ; Dent. viii. 19 ; .Ter. xi. 7. 
 
 * Ver. 20. — nynn is also to be regarded as directly causative = errationein fecit (Gesen.J Comp. Prov. x. 17. It is 
 
 therefore doubtful whether 3 indicates the object or the place. The word is at least not found elsewhere with 3 of the 
 
 person. The prophet might woU say, ye have erred in your souls, i. e., in your volition and thought, and have thus taken a 
 false direction, while ye suppusud ye were on the right track. The ChetliiOh DTl^nPI is evidently a mistake. The Keri 
 
 is correct Dn''l?nn. [Noyes strangely renders, "ye err to your ruin." — S. R. A.] 
 
 M Ver. 20.— 'b = when. Comp. Jud. ii. 18 ; Ps. xxxii. 3 ; Ezek. iii. 19. 
 
 '1 Ver. 21. — 7371 may mean, and indeed with respect to all, etc. Since, however, only one point is treated of, the em- 
 phatic expression of a multiplicity of points is remarkable. 1 therefore think that the word stands in simple parallelism to 
 
 the first clause, while ^Ot!? is construed only with '7 instead of with 3, a construction which (apart from 7lp7 ^Dt^i 
 
 Gen. iii. 17 ; Jtid. ii. 20 ; Ps. Iviii. G) is peculiar to the later idiom : Ncli. ix. 20 ; xiii. 27 ; 2 Chron. x. 16 ; Dan. i. 14 ; Lev. 
 xxvi. 21. A double disobedience is thus declared against Jehovah and against the prophet. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 After ten days the prophet receives answer 
 from the Lord, which he immediately communi- 
 cates to the leaders, and to the whole people 
 (vers. 7, 8). If they remain in the country they 
 shall have nothing to fear from the Chaldeans, 
 but the Lord will so direct the heart of the king 
 that he will aid in their restoration (vers. 9-12). 
 If, however, they do not remain in the country, 
 but from fear of the Chaldeans flee to Egypt, 
 they shall perisli there by the snme calamities, 
 which they thought to escape by flight (vers. 13- 
 18). Finally the prophet urgently admonishes 
 them not to despise this warning, although he 
 knows only too well, that it was pure self-decep- 
 tion when they inquired of the Lord by Kim, 
 
 since they had already resolved not to obey the 
 Lords command. Well, they shall also know, 
 that they will come to their ruin in the place, 
 whither tlieii- desires lead them (vers. 19-22.) 
 
 Vers. 7-12. And it came to pass . . . your 
 own land. The opinion of Hitzig and Gkaf, 
 that .Jeremiah used the ten days in procuring in- 
 formation and arriving at a clear and firm con- 
 viction, is in accordance with modern. science but 
 not with history. The prophet really received 
 tlie answer to his prayer for divine direction 
 (comp. ver. 4 : xxxii. IG) not until after ten days. 
 It is significant that he received it on the tenth 
 day (comp. Ezek. iii. 16), although we cannot 
 stop here to investigate the ground of this signifi- 
 cance (comp. [on symbolical numbers] Herzog. 
 Real-Enc, XVIII., S. 381). On to present, etc 
 comp. xxxviii. 2(3. — On for I repent, etc. comp 
 
 ir 
 
844 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 xxvi. 3. — Cause you to return. When we 
 consider, that the prophet has iu view not only 
 the return of those who had been already carried 
 away into exile, but may also with perfect cor- 
 rectness regard those as such who have assem- 
 bled at Bethlehem and prepared to leave their 
 home, turning their back upon it, the alteration 
 [cause to dwell] proposed in the text seems un- 
 necessary. It was not unpatriotic policy, nor 
 indolence, nor selfishness, nor any view based on 
 human foresight, which caused the prophet to 
 speak thus. For, humanly considered, there was 
 nothing left for the Jews but flight. The hope 
 for further indulgence on the part of the Chal- 
 dean king must seem like madness. The pro- 
 phet, however, does not reckon alone with hu- 
 man factors. He is the organ of God, to whom 
 nothing is impossible (xxxii. 26 sqq.), and who 
 especially has the hearts of kings in His hand, 
 and turns them whithersoever He will (Prov. 
 xxi. 1). 
 
 Vers. 13-18. But if ye say . . . this place 
 no more. The words from neither obey, ver. 
 13, to dwell, ver. 14, are a parenthesis. — 
 Sound of the trumpet. Comp. iv. 19, 21. — 
 Remnant, etc. Comp. xli. 16; xlii. 2, 19; xliii. 
 6. — Wholly set your faces. Comp. ver. 17; 
 xliv. 12; 2 Kings xii. 18. — By sword, famine 
 and pestilence (comp. xiv. 12; xxi. 9; xxvii. 8, 
 13; xxix. 18; xxxii. Si; xxxviii. 2; xliv. 13), 
 will the disobedient perish in Egypt, and not a 
 single individual will escape (comp. xliv. 14 ; 
 Lam. ii. 22 ; Josh. viii. 22). As on Jerusalem, 
 so also on them will the fury of the Lord be 
 
 poured out (vii. 20: 2 Chron. xxxiv. 21); they 
 shall become an object of cursing, horror and 
 derision (comp. xxiv. 9; xxv. 18; xliv. 22, etc.), 
 and never return to their native land (comp. 
 rems. on vii. 3). 
 
 Vers. 19-22. Jehovah hath ... to sojourn. 
 In a very earnest closing speech the prophet 
 sets forth that the Lord Himself has spoken to 
 the people. Then he reminds them that they 
 have been warned. They cannot then have the 
 excuse of ignorance. In the third place the pro- 
 phet discovers to them their self delusion. They 
 perhaps imagined that they honestly desired the 
 right, when they commissioned him to present 
 their petition before God. What, however, is 
 opposed to this honest intention easily appears 
 to them to be incorrect, and therefore justifying 
 them in resistance. The prophet therefore de- 
 sires to convince them that they did not. honestly 
 wish to do the right. It was self-deception, when 
 they declared themselves ready to obey uncon- 
 ditionally the divine command. — In the fourth 
 place, the prophet tells them before they had 
 opened their mouth to reply, what was now pass- 
 ing in their minds, viz., that they had formed 
 the fixed resolution not to obey the faithfully re- 
 ported direction of Jehovah, in spite of their 
 solemn declaration given in vers. 5, 6. — In the 
 fifth place, finally, he proclaims to them, that the 
 very place, to which an irresistible longing at- 
 tracts them, will be their destruction. He an- 
 nounces this apodictically, because he knows that 
 they will inevitably do what will bring them to 
 this. 
 
 8. The Flight to Egypt. 
 XLIII. 1-7. 
 
 And it came to pass, that when Jeremiah had made an end^ of speaking unto all 
 the people all the words of the Lord their God, for which the Lord their God had 
 sent him to them, even all these words, Then spake Azariah the son of Hoshaiah, 
 and Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the proud'^ men, saying' unto Jeremiah, 
 Thou speakest falsely : the Lord our God hath not sent thee to say. Go not into 
 Egypt to sojourn there: but Baruch the son of Neriah setteth thee on [has excited 
 thee]* against us, for to deliver us into the land of the Chaldeans, that they might 
 put us to death, and carry us away captives into Babylon. So Johanan the son of 
 Kareah, and all the captains of the forces [band-leaders], and all the people, 
 obeyed not the voice of the Lord, to dwell in the land of Judah. But Johanan 
 the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces, took all the remnant of Judah, 
 that were returned from all nations, whither they had been driven, to dwell in the 
 land of Judah ; even men, and women, and children, and the king's daughters, 
 and every person that Nebuzar-adan the captain of the guard [halberdiers] had 
 left with Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Jeremiah the pro- 
 phet, and Baruch the son of Neriah. So they came into the land of Egypt : for 
 they obeyed not the voice of the Lord : thus came they even to Tahpanhes. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 1.— nibD3 
 
 as in x.wi. 8. 
 
 * Ver. 2. — p^^T^• The word occurs here only in .Teremiah. The LXX. omits it, and reads instead koI. vavm o( 
 aXAoyf J'fis, xlii. 17, reading D^"^T tor D'lT. The reverse in xviii. 14; li. 2. 
 
CHAP. XLIII. 8-13. 
 
 345 
 
 » Ver. 2.— D''TbX- Instead of "ibN 7, because the words spoken do not follow immediately. Comp. xiv. 15; xxiii. 17. 
 * Yer. 3. — H^DD- Comp. xxxviii. 22 ; Isa. xxxvi. 18. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 On the communication, which Jeremiah made 
 in the name of Jehovah to the Jews, these de- 
 clared, that they regard it, not as a message from 
 their God, but as the result of incitement by 
 Baruch, who is friendly to the Chaldeans (vers. 
 1-3). Thereupon they, with the whole mass of 
 the remaining population, including Jeremiah 
 and Baruch, commence their journey to Egypt, 
 where, on their arrival, they settle first in Tah- 
 panhes (vers. 4-7). 
 
 Vers. 1-3. And it came to pass . . . into 
 Babylon. The phrase all these "words in- 
 dicates that the words written in ch. xlii. are an 
 exact rendering of the prophet's verbal communi- 
 cation. Comp. li. 60. — On Azariah, the son of 
 Hoshaiah. Comp. rems. on xlii. 1. — On what facts 
 this charge against Baruch was supported, it is 
 difficult to perceive. From this book we learn 
 only that Baruch was a faithful adherent and 
 servant of the prophet. It was doubtless merely 
 the circumstance that Baruch, to the envy of 
 many, was the most intimate of all the Jews 
 
 with Jeremiah, which gave a handle to the accu- 
 sation. 
 
 Vers. 4-7. So Johanan . . . Tahpanhes. — 
 All the remnant of Judah. Those who had 
 returned from the dispersion are mentioned 
 first, probably because among them there were 
 few or none of the " poor of the land " (xl. 7). 
 It seems surprising that in ver. 6 a specification 
 follows which, on account of the mention of the 
 king's daughter, does not correspond to the 
 general statement in ver. 5 b. But the specifica- 
 tion concludes with children, and with king's 
 daughters commences the description of the 
 second division of the remnant of Judah. Be- 
 sides, those who had returned, viz., the king's 
 daughters and all the other souls are mentioned. 
 If we consider that in ver. 5 a, the heads of those 
 who had remained in the country are named as the 
 subjects of the deportation, it is intelligible that 
 besides these the princesses were the most eminent 
 personages in this category (comp. xli. 10). — 
 Every person. Comp. Josh. x. 28. The expres- 
 sion is so general that it comprehends all the other 
 members of the remnant of Judah (comp. xli. 16). 
 — On Tahpanhes comp. rems. on ver. 8. 
 
 9. Jeremiah in Tahpanhei, 
 XLIII. 8-13. 
 
 8, 9 Then came the word of the Lord unto Jeremiah in Tahpanhes, saying, Take 
 great stones in thine hand, and hide them in the clay [mortar]' in the brick-kiln, 
 which is at the entry of Pharaoh's house in Tahpanhes, in the sight of the men of 
 
 10 Judah ; and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord of hosts [Jehovah Zebaoth], the 
 God of Israel ; Behold, I will send and take Nebuchadrezzar, the king of Babylon, 
 my servant, and will set his throne upon these stones that I have hid ; and he shall 
 
 11 spread his royal pavilion^ over them. And when he cometh,^ he shall [he shall 
 come and] unite the land of Egypt, and deliver such as are for death to death ; and 
 such as are for captivity to captivity : and such as are for the sword to the sword. 
 
 12 And I will kindle a fire in the houses of the gods of Egypt; and he shall burn 
 them, and carry them away captives : and he shall array himself with the land of 
 Egypt, as a shepherd putteth on his garment ; and he shall go forth from thence 
 
 13 in peace. He shall break also the images [statues] of Bethshemesh [the house of 
 the sun], that is in the land of Egypt ; and the houses of the gods of the Egyptians 
 shall be burned with fire. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 9. — t3^p is an-. Aey. The analogies milat, moUo (Syr.), ij.d.\da, malta, aie vouchers for the meaning of " mortar, 
 
 '"?ment, clay." 
 
 2 Ver. 10.— The meaning of "I^S^^ is doubtful. The word occurs here only. HiTZia, with J. D. Michaelis, refers to suphra 
 
 (Arab, for corium nrhiculare, quod soln insteniitur). which agrees with nat' (Arab, the leathern veil of the judge of life and 
 death). According to the text the throne is to he first placed on the stones, and then tho ~15'>£3tj; stretched above it. Is a vail 
 spread over a throne ? And is not n £3 3 the tucliuical term for the spreading of a tent ? The meaning " pavilion," seems then 
 most suitable, it being, however, still doubtful whether it be so named a splendore 021!/, nituit, 13K;, ni£3U', splendor, 
 9ulchritudo), or a cavitate (comp. 131t:^, tuba, n"13iy, Pi- Job xxvi. 13 ?) [" The Keri proposes T'ljitS? as the proper form 
 
846 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 which is, indeed, that in which nouns, with the third radical germinated, most frequently appear. Comp. T'lJD, Pror 
 
 xxvii. 15." Hevderson. — S. R. A.] 
 
 8 Ver. 11.— nN3V Chethibh ^X3^ The Keri would unnecessarily strike out the sufiSx. Comp. rems. on xi. 15 ; xxvii. 
 
 T T 
 
 8; zxxi. 2; xli. 3; xlviii. 44. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 In Tahpanhes Jeremiah receives the command 
 to hide great stones in the clay of a brick-kiln, 
 opposite the royal palace in the sight of the Jews, 
 and to tell theui that the Lord will bring king 
 Nebuchadnezzar to Egypt, and that he will erect 
 his throne and stretch his tent on these stones 
 (vers. 8-10). Then will Nebuchadnezzar visit 
 the land of Egypt with all the terrors of war, 
 burn the idol-temples, subjugate the land com- 
 pletely to his sway, and depart in peace (vers. 11 
 and 12). It is especially emphasized at the close 
 that Nebuchadnezzar will break in pieces the 
 statues of Beth-shemesh and burn up the idol- 
 temples (ver. 13). 
 
 Vers. 8, 9. Then came . . . men of Judah. 
 When we compare the larger superscriptions, 
 xl. 1 ami xliv. 1, it is evident that the first intro- 
 duces the events after the deportation, the secotid 
 the occurrences in Egypt. Hence it might seem 
 as if this passage were not in place, or as if the 
 superscription, which stands in xliv. 1, belonged 
 in this place, xliii. 8. But it is evident from 
 xliv. 1 that the passage, which begins with this 
 superscription, is to narrate what happened to 
 the Jews already established in Egypt (vyho 
 d^velt in the land), while the event related 
 here is, as it were, a part of the journey. For 
 Tahpanhes (comp. ii. 16) is the eastern boundary 
 city of Egypt, situated on the Pelusian branch 
 of the Nile. Here Jeremiah, by a symbolical 
 act, was to set before the eyes of the Jews, how 
 impossible it is to escape from the Lord (comp. 
 the propQet Jonah), and that by their removal 
 from Egypt they had only come from bad to 
 worse. Thus clear as is the meaning of the sym- 
 bolical act in general, the definition of the del ails 
 
 is still difficult. The word brick-kiln (f^bp) 
 
 occurs, besides here, only twice in the Old Testa- 
 ment: 2 Sam. xii. 31, and Nah. iii. 14. In the 
 first passage it is related that David caused them 
 to pass under saws, harrows and axes of iron. 
 It then continues, "and made them pass through 
 the brick-kiln" (the Chethibh has, doubtless in- 
 correctly, t.3^0, which is no word). When we 
 recall the frequently occurring phrase "made his 
 son to pass through the tire" (comp. 2 Ki. xvi. 
 3; xxi. 6, etc.), we cannot doubt that a similar 
 cruel mode of death is spoken of here also. As 
 such also appears the putting into heated brick- 
 ovens (HJI]^, brick, from which the denomina- 
 tive verb |37. to make bricks, Exod. v. 7, 14). 
 In the second passage, Nah. iii. 14, the Assyrians 
 are ironically called upon to "repair the fortifi- 
 cations, go into the mud and tread the mortar, 
 and repair the brick-kiln." EiciinouN, FIitziq 
 and Graf think it incredible that a brick-kiln 
 can have stood immediately opposite the royal 
 palace. Hence Flixzto takes the word in the sense 
 of a projection of tiles or brick-work under the 
 
 threshold, a stone-floor probably cemented over. 
 Besides the analogies in Arabic, the meanings of 
 
 JS/O in later Hebrew [area, massa, tabula, quad- 
 
 rata. Comp. Buxtokf, Zex. Chald.,^. 1120) favor 
 this rendering. On the other hand, as Graf 
 himself correctly remarks, it is equally incredi- 
 ble that Jeremiah could have torn up the pave- 
 ment before the gate of the king's palace, and 
 inserted large stones. I am now quite of Neu- 
 mann's opinion that we are to regard this brick- 
 kiln not as permanently, but only temporarily, 
 present. 
 
 The brick-yard need not have been in the court 
 of the royal palace and directly before the doors 
 of the building. It may have been situated 
 opposite the gate of the outer court or avenue to 
 the palace. The place may have been designated 
 to the prophet on account of this position, and 
 perhaps also because it was the pl;>.ce, from 
 which the material was taken for the extension 
 of the palace now building, as Neumann [comp. 
 also Henderson] supposes. In this case the 
 thought would be expressed that Egypt, to whose 
 protection the Jews had fled, was only weak, 
 fragile clay. Since the prophet was to hide the 
 stones in the clay, it is evident, that he did not 
 place them visibly on the surface, and therefore^ 
 set them up on the walls of the brick-kiln. 
 Brick-kiln must be, therefore, understood as 
 
 pars pro toto. The whole place is called p7D, 
 not merely the oven. Jeremiah is to hide the 
 large stones in clay belonging to this kiln. He is 
 to lay the foundation for a future ideal building. 
 In place of the weak clay, which signifies Egypt, 
 the Lord lays the foundation stones of a power, 
 which He intends to found, the bearer of which 
 will be His servant (ver. 10), or the organ of His 
 will. It is a fact, still hidden in the womb of the 
 future, that Egypt will groan under the foot of 
 the Babylonian conqueror; but the stones guaran- 
 tee this fact. Men of Judah were present as 
 witnesses (ver. 9), when they were laid. The 
 significance of the stones is disclosed to these 
 witnesses. The memory remained ; the word 
 of the Lord was pledged. On the fulfilment 
 comp. the remarks on xliv. 29, 30. 
 
 Vers. 10-13. And say unto them . . . burn 
 •with fire. On Behold. I •will send, etc.,. 
 comp. XXV. 9. — The Lord Himself has hidden the 
 stones, and in so far the prophet was only an 
 instrument. On these stones Nebuchadnezzar 
 shall one day erect his throne and stretch his 
 tent. — HiTzio thinks that the erection of a tent 
 would not be threatening, or dangerous; on the 
 contrary, it would be only a matter of curiosity. 
 It seems to me, however, that Nebuchadnezzar's 
 tent, erected before the royal palace in Tah- 
 panhes, is dangerous enough, signifying neither- 
 more nor less than the conquest of Egypt by 
 Nebuchadnezzar. — Such as are for death. 
 Comp. rems. on xv. 2. The sense of the expres- 
 sion is. that not only one kind of destruction will 
 come upon Egypt, but many, and that each one; 
 
CHAP. XLin. 8-13. 
 
 347 
 
 will also really devour the victims apportioned to 
 it. — Away captives, viz., the idols. Comp. 
 rems. on xlviii. 7. — And he shall array, etc. 
 Commentators have frequently, and as it seems 
 to me, quite unnecessarily, stumbled over this 
 expression. How does a shepherd put on his 
 garment? In general like any other person, but 
 there is this difference, that in doing so the shep- 
 herd has regard to no one, because no one sees 
 him. He therefore puts on his garment entirely 
 at his own whim and convenience. So according 
 to his own pleasure, without the slightest regard 
 to others, will Nebuchadnezzar deal with con- 
 quered Egypt. After he has thus made Egypt 
 his own property, he will depart in peace, with- 
 out any one being able to detain or harass him 
 or rob him of his booty. — Ver. 13 is surprising. 
 The discourse seemed to have concluded with 
 ver. 12. For what is there to report of Nebu- 
 chadnezzar's doings in Egypt, when his departure 
 is already announced ? Further, the second 
 clause of the verse is tautological. Comp. burn 
 them, ver. 12. Finally the addition that is in 
 the land of Egypt is very surprising, for did 
 Jeremiah, writing in Egypt, need to say this ? 
 Hence not merely three words (in the original 
 text), but the whole verse, might be suspected. 
 If, however, these words originated with the rest, 
 then by Beth-shemesh must be meant not the 
 temple of the sun at Heliopolis, but this city itself. 
 The images of Beth-shemesh are above all the 
 obelisks, of which there was an unlimited num- 
 ber in the city. Of the oldest, which however 
 were not the largest (comp. Herod II., Ill), one 
 still remains in its place. Comp. Herzoq, R.-Enc, 
 X., S. 610 sqq. 
 
 [The fulfilment of this prophecy is confirmed 
 by JosEPHUS [Ant. X., 9, 7). " It is also proba- 
 ble, that during the thirteen years in which some 
 of Nebuchadnezzar's forces were engaged in the 
 blockade of Tyre, he extended his campaign into 
 Egypt ; and there is a confirmation of this opinion 
 in the narrative of Meqasthknes in Strabo, 
 XVI.. 687. Joseph. Ant. X., 11, 1; c. Apion. I., 
 20. Abulfeda, i?«s<. jlwie-wZam, p. 102." Words- 
 worth. — S. R. A.] 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On xl. 1-3. "Although the calamity, which 
 has come upon Jerusalem, is great and terrible, 
 God does not allow such evil to befal it that good 
 will not result from it, as the Chaldean captain 
 not obscurely intimates, that he has made a fair 
 beginning in the knowledge of the true God. 
 For he confesses, first, that the God of the pro- 
 phet is a lord ; secondly, that He knows future 
 things; thirdly, that He causes His servants to 
 proclaim these beforehand ; fourthly, that God 
 has conducted the war and done everything ; 
 fifthly, that He was displeased with the sinful 
 manners of the people (among which idolatry 
 was the worst) ; sixthly, that He has punished 
 their disobedience to His word." Cramer. 
 
 2. On xl. 4. " The friendliness, shown to the 
 prophet, appears to proceed from men, but it 
 comes from God. For God's works are all made 
 so that they are hidden among the creatures; for 
 as He conceals His wisdom in the creation 
 of heaven and earth, as He hides His kindness 
 
 in the fruits of the earth, so also He disguises 
 His help in the king of Babylon. For God exe- 
 cutes His works now by rational and anon by 
 irraiional creatures. As when He fed Elijah by 
 the widow and by the ravens and by the angels 
 (1 Ki. xvii. 8 sqq.; 14 sqq. and xix. 5). For all 
 are His instruments." Cramer. 
 
 3. On xl. 2, 3. '■'■ Nebusaradan altestatione sua 
 comprobat et confirmat veritatejn ac certitudinem 
 prsedictionum prophetse. Unde hand inscite coliigi 
 conjtcique potest, quod Satrapa illc Babylonicus 
 prxditus fuerit agnilione veri Dei cdque salvatus. 
 Et sic Dcus subinde aliquos ex Magnalibus ad sui 
 aynitionem et seternam salutem tr admit (Ps. Ixviii.). 
 Potest istiid exemplum kleyariKu^ obverti absoluto 
 Caloinianoruiii decreto." Forster. 
 
 4. On xl. 5. "In this, that Jeremiah preferred 
 remaining in the country to going to Babylon, it 
 strikes me further — that 'a discreet man, who 
 knows the world and his heart and the true in- 
 terest of God's cause — is as much as possible 
 contented, and does not think to better himself 
 by going further. He is willing to remain at 
 court unknown, and at any rate he would rather 
 be taken away than go away. — The advice, which 
 Solomon gives, is verified, 'Stand not in the 
 place of gi-eat men.' We are a generation of the 
 cross, and our symbol is 'an evil name and little 
 understood.' " Zinzendorf. 
 
 5. On xl. 5. In Babylonia honor and a com- 
 fortable life invited the prophet, in Judea danger, 
 dishonor and need in the desolated country. In 
 Babylonia a respectable field of labor was opened 
 to him among the great mass of his people, in 
 Judea he had only rabble and condottieri about 
 him. Jeremiah, however, was not a bad patriot, 
 as many accused him of being. By remaining 
 in Judea he showed that the import of his pro- 
 phecies, apparently friendly to the Chaldeans 
 and hostile to the Jews, had proceeded from the 
 purest love to his people and his fatherland. 
 Thus he imitated Moses, of whom it is written 
 in Heb. xi. 25, that he chose rather to suffer 
 affliction with the people of God than to enjoy 
 the pleasures of sin for a season. The holy ground 
 of the fatherland bound him to it, and in addi- 
 tion — if he went, who was to take spiritual over- 
 sight of the poor forsaken remnant, to proclaim 
 the word of God and bestow on them consolation 
 and admonition? Those who were in Babylon 
 had Ezekiel. And could not the Lord raise up 
 other prophets for them? So he remained with 
 the sheep, who had no shepherd. Jeremiah had 
 not sought his own through his whole life, nor 
 did he here. 
 
 6. On xl. 7 sqq. " Human reason, and indeed 
 nature shows, that in worldly government men 
 cannot be without a head. For as the bees can- 
 not be without a queen, or the sheep without a 
 shepherd, so no large number of people can exist 
 wiihout a head and government. God has wisely 
 ordered it, and we should be thankful for the 
 authorities." Cramer. 
 
 7. On xl. 11 sqq. We may well perceive in this 
 "remnant of Judah " a fulfilment of the pro- 
 phecy in Isa. vi. 11 sqq.: "Then said I, Lord, 
 how long ? And he answered. Until the cities 
 be wasted without inhabitant, and the houses 
 without man, and the land be utterly desnbte, 
 and Jehovah have removed men far away, and 
 
348 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 great is the forsaking in the midst of the land. 
 And if a tenth remains in it, this again must be 
 removed. Yet as the terebinth and the oak, in 
 which when they are felled, a ground-stock still 
 remains, so is its stock a holy scion." 
 
 8. On xl. 13 sqq. Gedaliah, in whom not only 
 Nebuchadnezzar, but also his people, had confi- 
 dence, must have been a noble man, to whom it 
 was diflficult to think evil of his neighbor. 
 '• Those who are of a pious disposition, cannot 
 believe so much evil, as is told of people. But 
 we must not trust too much, for the world is full 
 of falseness (Wisd. xxxvii. 3). He who believes 
 too easily, will be often deceived, and he who 
 believes no one is also deceived. Therefore is 
 he indeed a happy man, who can preserve the 
 golden mean." Cramer 
 
 9. On xl. 13 sqq. " Misfortune is like the 
 waves of the sea; when one is broken another 
 follows, and the end of one trouble is the begin- 
 ning of others." Cramer. 
 
 10. On xli. 1-3. "Judas's kiss and Jacob's 
 brethren are very common in the world and take 
 after their grandfather Cain, who spake kindly 
 to Abel and yet had blood-thirsty thoughts (Gen. 
 iv. 8). Yea, they take after their father, the 
 devil, who is a murderous spirit (John viii. 44), 
 and disguises himself as an angel of light (2 Cor. 
 xi. 14j." Cramer. 
 
 11. On xli. 1 sqq. ^^ Similia perfidise exempla 
 [aimulatse fraternitatis) : 2 Sam. xiii. 24 ; xx. 9 
 sq. Quadrat etiam hue historia nuptiarum Parisi- 
 ensium celebralum 1572 mense Au^usto." Forster. 
 
 12. On xli. 4 sqq. 
 
 " Murder and avarice love to go with eacli other. 
 And one crime is often a prolific mother." — Cramer. 
 
 13. On xli. 16 sqq. It is very remarkable that 
 even this last centre and rendezvous of the un- 
 fortunate people must be destroyed. It might 
 be supposed that with the destruction of the 
 city and deportation of the people the judgments 
 would have terminated. It seems as if the 
 deed of Ishmael and the removal of the remnant 
 to Egypt transcended the measure of punish- 
 ment fixed by Jehovah, for the Lord did not send 
 Islimael, and the removal to Egypt He directly 
 forbade. And yet it seems that only by Ishmael's 
 act and the flight to Egypt could the land obtain 
 its Sabbath rest, which is spoken of in Lev. 
 xxvi. 34, 35. 
 
 14. Ou xlii. 1-6. " Had not Johanan and his 
 people asked for advice, but gone directly to 
 Egypt, their sin would not have been so great. 
 They feigned, however, submission to the will 
 of God, while they yet adhered to their own will. 
 It is a common fault for people to ask advice 
 while they are firmly resolved what they will do. 
 For they inquire not to learn what is right, but 
 only to receive encouragement to do what they 
 wish. If we advise them according to their in- 
 clination they take our advice, if not, they reject 
 it. — We must be on our guard when we appeal 
 to God's decision, that we do not previously de- 
 cide for ourselves. For thus we fall into hypoc- 
 risy, which is the most fatal intoxication and 
 blindness." Hei.h and Hoffman, The Major Pro- 
 ■p'tets. [" Those will justly lose their comfort in 
 real fenrs, that excuse themselves in sin with 
 pre. ended fears." Henry. — S. R. A.] 
 
 15. On xlii. 7. After the murder of Gedaliah 
 the anger of Nebuchadnezzar seemed inevitable. 
 But the Lord, to whom nothing is impossible 
 (xxxii. 17), promises to perform a miracle, and 
 restore Israel to new prosperity in their land if 
 they will give Him the honor and trust in Him. 
 Nebuchadnezzar's heart is indeed in His hand. 
 If this is not acknowledged and Nebuchadnezzar 
 more feared than the Lord, their sin is then 
 against the first commandment. 
 
 16. On xlii. 13 sqq. " God reminds His people 
 of the favor with which He adopted them as His 
 people, which was the most sacred obligation to 
 obedience; that Egypt was to them a land of de- 
 struction, a forbidden land, as indeed all confi- 
 dence in human aid is forbidden to those who 
 would live by faith, which was known to them 
 from the history of their fathers and all the 
 prophets. It is a great sin to deem one's self 
 safer under the protection of man than under 
 that of God. It is incomprehensible, how blind 
 unbelief makes people, so that the Jews have 
 not yet learned the truth in the destruction of 
 Jerusalem and the temple of God." Heim and 
 Hoffman. '■'■ Fides futurorum certa est ex prsece- 
 dentibus." Tertull. " Venient hsec quoque sicut 
 ista venerunt." Augustin, — Forster. 
 
 17. On xliii. 2 sqq. "Hypocrites forsooth do 
 not wish to be regarded as rejecting and setting 
 themselves in opposition to God's word, or ac- 
 cusing lod of falsehood. For then is all the 
 world pious, and no one refuses to be submissive 
 to the dear Lord. God is truly God and remains 
 so. It is only against this parson Jeremiah that 
 they must act* he lies, he is not sent, his ruling 
 and preaching cannot be endured." Cramer. 
 
 18. On xliii. 3. "Observe the old diabolical 
 trick: when preachers practice God's word and 
 their office with zeal, the world understands how 
 to baptize it with another name and call it per- 
 sonal interest, as even here Baruch must bear the 
 blame, as if he only wished to vent his anger on 
 them and be contrary." Cramer. 
 
 19. On xliii. 6. The ancients here examine the 
 question why Jeremiah accompanied the people 
 to Egypt and take occasion to discuss the 1 
 Comm. de fuga viijiistrorum with reference to 
 AuousTiN. Epist. 150 ad Honorar. With respect 
 to Jeremiah, it is clear that he did all in his 
 power to avert the journey to Egypt. After the 
 whole people, however, were once on their way 
 it was impossible for him and Baruch to remain 
 alone in the deserted country. They were 
 obliged to go with their flock. The more these 
 were wandering, the more need they had of the 
 shepherds. Thus, even if they were not com- 
 pelled, they had to go with them. It seems, 
 however, to follow from the expression np'V ver. 
 
 5, that no choice was given them. The people 
 wished to have the prophet with them. In no 
 case can we say that Jeremiah fled, for accord- 
 ing to his own prophecy, he knew that he was 
 going to meet ruin in Egypt. 
 
 20. On xliii. 8-13. At the present day when 
 we wish to convey to posterity the account of 
 some accomplished fact, or the prediction of 
 some fact to be accomplished [ex. gr. a last testa- 
 ment), we take paper and ink, write it down, 
 seal it, have it subscribed by witnesses and pre- 
 serve it in the registrar's or recorder's office 
 
CHAP. XLIV. 1-14. 
 
 349 
 
 In accient times they took a simpler and surer 
 way. Jacob and Laban simply erected a heap 
 of stones (Gen. xxxi.), the two and a half tribes 
 (Josh, xxii.) built an altar on the bank of the 
 Jordan. As long as the heap and the altar were 
 standing, the record was transmitted from gene- 
 ration to generation for what object these stone 
 witnesses were set up, and thus, that which it 
 was desired to convey to posterity lived in the 
 memory of men. Jeremiaii also knows how to 
 use ink and pen (ch. xxxii.), but here he returns 
 once more to the old manner of preserving ar- 
 chives. He simply places great stones in the 
 clay, declaring what they signify, wiz., that here, 
 on this spot, Nebuchadnezzar's tent shall stand. 
 Whether the Egyptians and Jews then believed 
 him or not, is of no consequence. The record 
 of these stones and their meaning at any rate 
 remained alive, and the Lord's word was thus 
 safely preserved till the day of its fulfilment. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On ch. xl. 1-12 ; xli. 1-3 ; xlii. 1-16. Israel, 
 the chosen nation, is in its destinies a type of 
 human life in general. Consider only the exodus 
 from Egypt. So also the destinies of the people 
 of Israel, after the destruction of Jerusalem by 
 JVebuchadnezzar, are pretypical. For 1. The 
 deportation of the whole people in chains 
 and fetters is a type of our universal human 
 misery, from which no one (not even Jeremiah) 
 is free. '1. The fate of Gedaliah and the journey 
 to Egypt is a type of the insufficiency of all 
 mere human help. 3. As the Jews after Geda- 
 liah's murder, somen at all times, find protection 
 and deliverance in the Lord alone. 
 
 2. On xl. 1-6. The Christian in the tumult of 
 the world. 1. He is regarded externally like 
 others. 2. The eye of the Lord watches with 
 special care over him, so that (a) not a hair of 
 his head is bent, (b) all his wants are provided 
 for. 3. He, however, on his part directs all his 
 efforts to the kingdom of God and His righteous- 
 ness, and will not be turned aside from this 
 
 either by the violence or the friendliness of the 
 world. 
 
 3. On xl. 7-xli. 3. Gedaliah's fate an exampl« 
 of what befals even the most noble in times of 
 deep corruption. 1. They enjoy general confi- 
 dence. 2. They are incapable of attributing ex- 
 treme wickedness to men. 3. They become a 
 sacrifice to their confidence. 4. They are there- 
 fore not in a condition to stay the divine judg- 
 menis. 
 
 4. On xlii. 1-16. What is the surest way of 
 coming to the right conclusion in difficult cases? 
 1. To inquire of the Lord. 2. To obey uncondi- 
 tionally the direction which the Lord communi- 
 cates. [" We must still in faith pray to be 
 guided by a spirit of tvisdom in our hearts, and 
 the hints of Providence." Henry. — S. R. A.] 
 
 5. On xliii. 1-7. Characteristic example of the 
 .HTtfulness of the human heart: the Jews inquire 
 of the Lord and promise to obey His direction 
 (xlii. 20). But when the direction does not ac- 
 cord with their wish, they at once declare it to 
 be supposititious, not from the Lord. The pro- 
 phet must be a liar, an alleged enemy has incited 
 him. But what was long previously determined 
 in the heart is obstinately brought to execution. 
 ["Those that are resolved to contradict the 
 great ends of the ministry, are industrious to 
 bring a bad name upon it. It is well for persons 
 who are thus misrepresented that their witness 
 is in heaven, and their record on high," Henry. 
 — S. R. A.] 
 
 6. On xliii. 8-13. The ways of the Lord are 
 wonderful. Israel flees before Nebuchadnezzar 
 far away to Egypt. But there they are not safe. 
 The Lord causes it-to be proclaimed to them that 
 at the entrance of the king's palace at Tahpanhes 
 Nebuchadnezzar's tent shall stand. Now indeed 
 there is a brick-kiln there, in the clay of which 
 Jeremiah is to place stones, the foundation stones, 
 as it were, for the Chaldean king's pavilion. 
 Thus the Lord lays the germs of future events, 
 and whatever He prepares in secret He reveals 
 in His own time to the glory of His wisdom, om- 
 niscience and omnipotence. 
 
 10. Jeremiah at the Festival of the Queen of Heaven in Pathros. The Last Act of his Prophetic Ministry. 
 
 a. The charge against the stubbornly idolatrous people. 
 
 XLIV. 1-14. 
 
 1 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning [for, to] all the Jews which dwell 
 [who dwelt] in the land of Egypt, which dwell at Migdol, and at Tahpanhes, and 
 
 2 at Noph, and in the country of Pathros, saying, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the 
 God of Israel: Ye have seen all the evil that I have brought upon Jerusalem, and 
 upon all the cities of Julah ; and, behold, this day they are a desolation, and no 
 
 3 man dwelleth therein ; because of their wickedness which they have committed 
 to^ provoke me to anger, in that they went to burn incense, and to serve other 
 
 4 gods, whom they knew not, neither they,^ ye, nor your fathers. Howbeit I s^^nt 
 unto you all my servants the prophets, rising early and sending them, saying, On. 
 
860 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 5 do not this abominable thingf that I hate. But they hearkened not, nor inclined 
 
 6 their ear to turn from their wickedness, to burn no incense unto other gods Where- 
 fore ray fury and mine anger was poured forth, and was kindled in the cities of 
 Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem : and they are wasted and desolate, as at 
 
 7 this day. Therefore now thus saith the Lord, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: 
 Wherefore commit ye this great evil against your souls,* to cut off from you man 
 
 8 and woman, child and suckling, out of Judah, to leave you none to remain : In 
 that ye provoke me unto wrath with the works of your hands, burning incense* 
 unto other gods in the land of Egypt, whither ye be gone to dwell, that ye might 
 cut yourselves^ off, and that ye might be a curse and a reproach among all 
 
 9 the nations of the earth? Have you forgotten the wickedness [evilj' of 
 your fathers, and the wickedness of the kings of Judah, and the wickedness of 
 their [his]* wives, and your own wickedness, and the wickedness of your wives, 
 which they'' have committed in the land of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem? 
 
 10 They are not humbled even unto this day, neither have they feared, nor walked in 
 
 11 my law, nor in my statutes, that I set before you and before your fathers. There- 
 fore thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel : Behold, I will set my face 
 
 12 against you for evil, and to cut off all Judah. And I will take the remnant of 
 Judah, that have set their faces to go into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, and 
 they shall all'" be consumed, and fall in the land of Egypt ; they shall eve)i be con- 
 sumed by the sword and by the famine: they shall die, from the least even unto 
 the greatest, by the sword and by the famine : and they shall be an execration, and 
 
 13 an astonishment, and a curse, and a reproach. For I will punish them that dwell 
 in the land of Egypt, as I have punished Jerusalem, by the sword, by the famine, 
 
 14 and by the pestilence : So that none [there shall be none escaped or remaining] of 
 the remnant of Judah, which are gone into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, 
 shall escape or remain, that they should return [and then to return] into the land 
 of Judah, to the which they have a desire to return to dwell there : for none shall 
 return but such as shall escape." 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 3.— In 'JOJ^^hS and H^SS the S is the gerundial (comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., ? 95, e), in l5_|^7 Tt3p7 it is the 
 
 Bupinal (lb., ? 95,/.). Comp. xi. 17 ; xxxii. 32. 
 
 i Ver. 3.— nbn is not to be regarded as accusative, since this has been already expressed by the sufBx in D^^T) hut 
 
 as nominative. The third person stands in close connection with the preceding, the (ISH with the sudden change of per- 
 son (comp. infra veri. 5 and 10 and Naegelsb. Gr., § 101 Anm.) is however explained by *^1 DnN, with which a return is 
 
 made to the second person used in the beginning of the sentence (ver. 2). 
 
 3 Ver. 4. — T31 as in Jud. xix. 24. 
 
 4 Ver. 7. T\v''\ must here have the same sense as ril^l, ver. 9. For the connection is: the HJ^I that ye now do 
 
 can only be explained, by your having forgotten the jl'lJ^T of the past. Since now fllj^l niust necessarily be taken in a 
 
 double sense, so must also T\V'\ in this passage. M jTIDPlS is a gerundial infinitive. On r\1K^£3J comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., 
 
 "tt ■ : - : 
 
 g 81, 1 C. , L 
 
 6 Ver. 8.— 'JD'tonv and T£3p7 are also gerundial infinitives (comp. ver. 3). 
 
 8 Ver. 8.— In ver. 7 fl'IDH ii^s a definitely expressed object. Many would supply this here. Others take 'Ojl for 
 D!)">y. according to the analo"y of xl. 2. jT'lDn may, however, also bo taken in a directly causative seuse=prepare ex- 
 tti.iiination, so that the dative would have nothing abnormal in it. Comp. T'ilin Jer. 1. 34; noiil Isa. ii. 4; p'^IVH 
 Isa. li. 11 with S ; N.\egelsb. Gr., J G9, 1 Anm. 2. 
 
 7 Ver. 9. From ^\^V Tij/X it would follow that ril^'l is to be taken in a moral sense. But can it be said of those who 
 
 are censured on account of their persistence in these sins : (Tave you forgotten your sins ? J. D. Michaelis is therefore dis- 
 posed to read DPnSiyn, with a marginal reading of a Kduigsberg Codex: majus peccando memoriam peccatorum ante 
 cammiisorum, obliterastis. But this reading is not sufficiently authenticated. Wo must therefore take pi)^"), as in ver. 7, 
 
 in a double sense, so as to designate at the same time tho mala pomx and the mala culpx (comp. Gen. 1. 15). Their forget- 
 fulness of the sufferings which they had drawn on them by tlieir sins is the cause of their obstinate persistence in the 
 latter. 
 
 8 Ver. 9.— VK^J r\iyi. Both the introduction of the " wives " and the singular suffix are surprising. The LXX. read 
 
 Til/ apxovTiov v/jioiv. DD'"lti' or D3''6<''tyj would certainly correspond better to the connection, as well as to the usage of 
 
 the prophet elsewhere (comp. vers. 17, 21 ; i. 18 ; ii. 26 ; xxiv. 8; xxv. 18; xxxii. 32; xxxiv. '21). But the more difficult 
 reading is to be preferred. The singular suffix is not to bo referred to .ludah, since the expression " wives of Judah " is 
 neither used elsewhere nor suitable to the connection, but te tho king of the time. Comp. Hos. iv. 8 ; Zech. xiv. 12 ; Nas- 
 BBL3= Cr , » 105 7, 'tnm. 'i. 
 
CHAP. XLIV. 1-U. 
 
 S61 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The word of the Lord is communicated through 
 Jeremiah to the Israelites dwelling in Egypt ; ye 
 have seen how I have punished Judah and Jeru- 
 salem for their idolatry (vers. 1-6). Why then 
 do you continually commit the same wickedness ? 
 Have ye forgotten the lecture? It appears so, 
 for they have not humbled themselves, nor en- 
 deavored to keep the law of God (vers. 7-10). 
 Therefore shall the remnant of Judah in Egypt, 
 even like unto Judah and Jerusalem, be destroyed 
 by sword, famine and pestilence, and at most sin- 
 gle fugitives shall return home (vers. 11-14). 
 
 Ver. 1. The -word . . . saying. We have 
 here the last document of Jeremiah's prophetic 
 ministry. Far from home, after terrible judg- 
 ments, he has still the same thing to say to the 
 Jews as at first. They have not become wiser or 
 better. From Tahpanhes they had spread abroad 
 in the land. What occasion had brought them 
 together in so large an assembly, is not indeed 
 stated in the superscription, which is of the 
 greater sort (comp. xl. 1 ; xxxvi. 1 ; xxxv. 1 ; 
 xxxiv. 1, etc.), but is evident enough from what 
 follows. — Dwelt. The fugitives have already 
 established themselves in fixed abodes. Comp. 
 rems. on xliii. 8. — Migdol (comp. xlvi. 14 ; 
 Ezek. xxix. 10; xxx. 6 coll. Exod. xiv. 2; Num. 
 xxxiii. 7) was one of the north-eastern boundary 
 points of Egypt [near Syene]. In Herodotus 
 (II. 159) and the LXX. the place is called Udy- 
 diSkov ; according to the Itiner. Anton, (p. 171) 
 it was twelve Roman miles from Pelusium. — On 
 Tahpanhes comp. rems. on xliii. 8. — Noph 
 is Memphis, the ancient capital of lower Egypt. 
 Comp. rems. on ii. 16. — Pathros (comp. ver. 1.5; 
 Isa. xi. 11; Ezek. xxix. 14; xxx. 14) is upper 
 Egypt. Comp. Herzog, R.-Enc, I. S. 149. The 
 assembly was held, according to ver. 15, in Pa- 
 thros. A considerable time must have elapsed 
 since the migration, because we find the colony 
 already dispersed and settled in different places. 
 On the other hand the meeting cannot have oc- 
 curred so long after the migration that those who 
 are addressed by Jeremiah can belong to the se- 
 cond generation. They were the Jews who had 
 come into the country (ver. 8), and the longing 
 for home was still strong in them. Comp. rems. 
 on vers. 29, 30 
 
 Vers. 2-6. Thus saith ... as at this day. 
 The pr.iphet pi-esents before the Jews first the 
 great catastrophe, portraying its genesis in the 
 order of its elements. — Whom they know^ 
 not. Comp. xix. 4. — I sent, etc. Comp. vii. 
 13, 25; xxix. 19. — This abominable thing. 
 
 « Ver. ^.—W^ "ItyX. Change of person as in vers. 3, 5. Comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., g 101, 2, Anm. 
 
 10 Ver. 12. '~I2 ibiil- According to the accents the sentence is to be construed as in the translation. On 73 comp. 
 
 Isa. x.\x. 5 ; Ew.\LD, 280, e. 
 
 u Ver. ll. — D'to'^S DN '3- Strictly taken these words form a direct contradiction to the beginning of the verse, 
 which declares that there shall be a t3'Si3 or T'^Ii'.and the words O^C''' N7 '3 are no other than the confirmation of 
 
 ■ T • T T ■ 
 
 this statement. It is therefore natural to regard the words as a later addition, a.s IIiTzirj docs. The brevity of the previous 
 sentence, and its apparent contradiction of ver. 28 seemed to require this suppiemenuuiuii. in ver. 28 it is expressly stated 
 that some, having escaped, will return, and it is hence evident that the declaration here, ver. 11, id not to be taken with ab- 
 Bolute literalness. 
 
 Comp. xxxii. 35. — Was poured forth. Comp. 
 xlii. 18. — In the cities of Judah. Comp. 
 vers. 9, 17, 21 ; vii. 17; xi. 6; xxxiii. 10. — As 
 at this day. Comp. vers. 2, 22, 23 ; xi. 5. 
 
 Vers. 7-10. Therefore now thus . . . be- 
 fore your fathers. After the Jews had just 
 learned in a ditferent manner how fearfully .Je- 
 hovah avenges apostasy from Him, how can they 
 now again, to their unendurable shame and ruin, 
 commit the same sins? It appears as if they 
 had forgotten the lesson and not yet learned to 
 bow in obedience to the divine law. — Man and 
 w^oman. Comp. 1 Sara. xv. 8; xxii. 19; Lam. 
 ii. 11. — The w^orks of your hands. From i. 
 16 coll. XXV. 14 it is evident that the prophet 
 wishes the expression to be under.-^tood in a phy- 
 sical sense of the idol images. — Burning in- 
 cense in the wider sense. Comp. rems. on i. 
 16. — That ye might be, etc. Comp. xlii. 18; 
 Zech. viii. 13. — Have ye forgotten, etc. The 
 present unlawful conduct of the people is ex- 
 plained only by their forgetfulness of the former 
 calamities occasioned by their idolatry. — Hitzig 
 well calls attention to the fact, that the royal 
 wives played an important part in the history of 
 Jewish idolatry. Comp. the wives of Solomon 
 (1 Ki. xi. 1 sqq.) Maachah, the mother of Asa 
 (xv. 13) and Athaliah (xi. 1). 
 
 Ver. 10. They are not humbled. Comp. 
 Isa. Ivii. 15. How unwillingly does the prophet 
 turn away and address his discourse concerning 
 these, to whom he has hitherto spoken, to others 
 Comp. Mic. i. 2; Jer. 1. 8. — Nor walked. Comp. 
 ix. 12 ; xxvi. 4. 
 
 Vers. 11-14. Therefore . . . shall escape. 
 Because the Jews, notwithstanding they had ex- 
 perienced the fearful severity of God's punitive 
 justice, again committed the same sins, therefore 
 
 (p7 ver. 11) will the Lord set his face against 
 
 them, the last remnant of Judah, and by the de- 
 struction of this utterly exterminate the nation. 
 Comp. ver. 7. — And I will take. The expres- 
 sion involves an antithesis to set their faces to 
 go. They thought in their own power to take a 
 path which would lead them away from the pu- 
 nitive hand. But the Lord seizes them as He 
 once did the prophet Jonah. — Shall be an exe- 
 cration. Comp. rems. on xlii. 18. — Them that 
 dw^ell. Comp. ix. 24, 25 ; xlvi. 2-'). — None es- 
 caped. The Jews had gone to Egypt to remain 
 there temporarily, and then return home. On 
 which are gone then depends not only to so- 
 journ there but also and to return with the 
 following relatrve sentence. — To the w^hich. 
 Comp. xxii. 27. — But such as shall escape 
 Comp. Textual Note. 
 
352 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 6, The Replication of the People. 
 XLIV. 15-19. 
 
 16 Then all the men which knew that their wives had burned incense unto other 
 gods, and all the women that stood by a [there in the] great multitude [assembly], 
 even all the people that dwelt in the land of Egypt, in Pathros answered Jere- 
 
 16 miah, saying. As for the word ^ that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the 
 
 17 Lord, we will not hearken unto thee. But we will certainly do whatsoever thing 
 [word] goeth forth [has gone forth] out of our own mouth, to burn incense unto the 
 queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, as we have done, we, 
 and our fathers, our kings, and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the 
 streets of Jerusalem : for theti had we plenty of victuals, and were well,'^ and saw 
 
 18 no evil. But since we left off to buru incense to the queen of heaven, and to pour 
 out drink offerings unto her, we have wanted all things, and have been consumed* 
 
 19 by the sword and by the famine. And when we burned incense to the queen of 
 heaven, and poured out drink offerings unto her, did we make her cakes to wor- 
 ship her,* and pour out drink offerings unto her, without our men ? 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 16. — "UTH Is to be regarded as accusative of restriction. Not generally, but only with reipect to this particular 
 
 T T ~ 
 
 word, do they declare that they will not obey the prophet. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 70,/. 
 
 2 Ver. 17. — □''31£0 /dices. Comp. Isa. iii. 10, and Delitzsch ad loc. 
 
 3 Ver. 18. — Ou tjie form !|JOr\> which is found only in the root D'Dn, comp. Olsh., S. 483,/. 
 
 * Ver. 19. — nj'Vj^n 7. The Hiph. here only. The Piel only in Job x. 8 decidedly in the meaning of " to form, shape." 
 Compare further J2f^, CS^fJ? (Jer. xxii. 28), so the meaning of the Hiph. in this place cannot be other than "to form, 
 
 copy," with reference to the moon-shaped form of the cakes. Comp. rems. on vii 18. The circumstance that the T\ is 
 written without Mappik (which however is found in some MSS.) does not stand in the way of this. (Comp. Olsh., § 96, e ; 
 Isai. xxi. 2 ; xxiii. 17, 18). [We must then render : make her cakes to copy her. — S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 From the purport of this passage it is manifest 
 that the people had come together to celebrate a 
 festival in honor of the queen of heaven, and to 
 perform the vows they had made. The assembly 
 consisted principally of women. Hence they 
 were the chief speakers. They now declare to 
 the prophet that they will not obey his jvords 
 (ver. 16), but perform their vows, and make their 
 offerings to the queen of heaven, as they had also 
 done at home. It was then well with tliem (ver. 
 17), only since they neglected her worship, has 
 it gone b.idly with them (ver. 18). In addition, 
 they (the women) had devoted themselves to the 
 service of this goddess only with the concurrence 
 of their husbands. 
 
 Ver. l-j. Then all . . . saying. The assem- 
 bly consisted (I) of men. who well knew that 
 their wives offered incense to other gods (comp. 
 rems. on ver. 3); (2) of women, who were a 
 great multitude. From the circumstance that 
 the " great assembly " is designated as consist- 
 ing of women, it has been rightly concluded that 
 they formed the majority, wliich explains the 
 emphasis laid on the women in vers. 24, 25. — 
 The .Jewish women thus appear to have come to- 
 gether from all parts of Egypt to a festival of 
 the queen of heaven, which was held in a place 
 
 of upper Egypt (Pathros), not more particularly 
 designated, in order there to perform their vows 
 made to this goddess. The men seem to have 
 been both those who lived in the neighborhood 
 and those who had come from a distance as hus- 
 bands of a part of the women mentioned. The 
 assembly consisted (.3) of representatives of all 
 the people, who were settled in Egypt, among 
 whom we must suppose individuals, who were 
 neither husbands nor wives — In Pathros ac- 
 cordingly designates the place of meeting, and is 
 not to be connected with lived but with an- 
 swered. The prophet had endeavored by his 
 discourse, vers. 2-14, to hinder the observance 
 of this idolatrous festival, but was not successful. 
 Vers. 16-19. As for the word . . . w^ithout 
 our men. — "We w^ill not hearken. Comp. 
 vii 16. — ^The expression whatsoever word 
 has gone forth out of our mouth indicates 
 vows tliat had been made (comp. Num. xxx. 3, 
 13; x.'.xii. 24; Jud. xi. 36). On the queen of 
 heaven comp. rems. on vii 18.— And when we 
 burned. According to the apodosis this ought 
 properly tobein the feminine instead of t lie mascu- 
 line, as in ver. 15 (PnopO). The masculine form 
 
 has not only a general justification, as being the 
 chief form, and frequently occurring for the femi- 
 nine (comp. Naeoblsb. Or., § 60, 5, 4), but also 
 a special, since the speakers had in view the en- 
 
CHAP. XLIV. 20-23. 
 
 SOS 
 
 tire number who took part in the offering. Ac- 
 cording to Num. XXX. 7 sqq., the women were re- 
 Bponsible for the observance of their vows only 
 when approved by their husbands (or fathers, 
 comp. ver. 4). Hence they now declare, that in 
 consequence of having obtained the concurrence 
 
 of their husbands they are at any rate free from 
 all personal responsibility. On cakes comp. 
 rems. on vii. 18. It is evident from the latter 
 passage, that this cult was not first adopted ia 
 Egypt, but imported from home. 
 
 c. The Rejoinder of the Prophet (xliv. 20-30). 
 
 a. Refutation of the Popular Assertions. 
 
 XLIV. 20-23. 
 
 20 Then Jeremiah said unto* all the people, to the men, and to the women, and to 
 
 21 all the people which had given him that answer, saying, Is it not so ? The in- 
 cense^ that ye burned in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, ye, 
 and your fathers, your kings, and your princes, and the people of the land, did not 
 the Lord remember them, and came it not into his mind? [Jehovah remembered 
 
 22 it,^ and it came into his mind].* So that the Lord [Jehovah] could no longer bear* 
 because of the evil of your doings,® and because of the abominations which ye have 
 committed ; therefore is your land a desolation,' and an astonishment [a waste] and 
 
 23 a curse, without an inhabitant,® as at this day. Because ye have burned incense, 
 and because ye have sinned against the Lord, and have not obeyed the voice of 
 the Lord, nor walked in his law, nor in his statutes, nor in his testimonies ; there- 
 fore this evil is happened® unto you, as at this day. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 20.— On the interchange of 7J^ and 7X comp. rems. on x. 1. 
 
 2 Ver. 21.— The Piel form TDp, which occurs here only (comp. Olsh. § 182, e) corresponds to the German " Geraiicher " 
 [fumigating, incensing]. Observe also the emphatic position of the word at the beginning of the sentence [the incensing 
 
 that ye did]. . , . , . . ^ ^ , 
 
 » Ver. 21.— The plural suffix in DfllX refers to the plural idea contained xn the intensive form. Compare remarlu 
 
 on xi. 4. 
 
 * Ver. 21. — Comp. rems. on iii. 16. 
 
 B Ver. 22.— SdV xSi. The imperf. is evidently used here in an aoristic sense, but since the fact in question is removed 
 from all objective human perception, it is consequently founded, notwithstanding its undoubted correctness, on a subjec- 
 tive conception. Comp. Isa. xxxvii. 4 ; 1 Ki. viii. 5. 
 
 6 Ver. 22.— nSitS'S. With ''J30 following, here only. It seems to be used in the absolute sense of "endure, hold 
 
 »ut," also in Isa. i. ' ; Prov. xxx.'21— 0J1 J^T. Comp. iv. 4; xxi. 12; xxiii. 2, 22; xxiv.2sqq.; xxvi. 3. 
 
 1 Ver. 22.— n3"inS. Comp. vers. 6, 12. 
 
 8 Ver. 22.— nti/r TNO- Comp. rems. on ii. 15. 
 
 » Ver. 23.— nXlp- Comp. Olsh., S. 449, 478.— Ges., g 74, Anm. 1 ; Ewald, ? 194, 6. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 To the assertion of the people that it had gone 
 well with them so long as they had served the 
 queen of heaven, and that their misfortunes dated 
 from their cessation of this service, the prophet 
 
 answers with a non post hoc sed propter hoc. It 
 was precisely on account of this idolatrous cult 
 (ver. 21) which Jehovah could no longer suffer, 
 that their misfortunes had come upon them (ver. 
 22). And for the sake of emphasis Jeremiah re 
 peats this bitter truth once more (ver. 23). 
 
 28 
 
854 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH, 
 
 /?. The Positive Announcement of Severest Punishment. 
 
 XLIV. 24-30. 
 
 24 Moreover Jeremiali said unto all the people, and to all the women, Hear the 
 
 25 word of the Lord [Jehovah's word] all Judah that are in the land of Egypt. Thus 
 saith the Lord of hosts [Jehovah Zebaoth] the God of Israel, saying : Ye and 
 your wives have both^ spoken with your mouths, and fulfilled with your hand, say- 
 ing, We will surely perform our vows that we have vowed, to burn incense to the 
 queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her; ye will surely accom- 
 
 26 plish^ your vows, and surely perform your vows. Therefore hear ye the word of 
 the Lord [Jehovah's word] all Judah that dwell in the land of Egypt; Behold, I 
 have sworn by my great name, saith the Lord, that my name shall no more be 
 named in the mouth of any man of Judah in all the land of Egypt, saying. The 
 
 27 Lord God [Adonai Jehovah] liveth. Behold, I will watch over them for evil, and 
 not for good ; and all the men of Judah that are in the land of Egypt shall be cou- 
 
 28 suraed by the sword and by the famine, until there be an end of them. Yet a 
 small number that escape' the sword shall return out of the land of Egypt into 
 the land of Judah, and all the remnant of Judah, that are gone into the land of 
 
 29 Egypt to sojourn there, shall know whose words shall stand, mine, or theirs.* And 
 this shall be a sign unto you, saith the Lord, that I will punish^ you in this place, 
 
 30 that ye may know that my words shall surely stand against you for evil : Thus 
 saith the Lord: Behold, I will give Pharaoh-hophra, king of Egypt, into the hand 
 of his enemies, and into the hand of them that seek his life ; as I gave Zedekiah, 
 king of Judah, into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar, king of Babylon, his enemy, and 
 that sought his life. 
 
 TEXTUAL and GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 25. — On the Vau consecutive comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., ^ 88, 7, and Jer. iii. 9 ; vi. 19; xxxiii. 24. 
 
 2 Ver. 25.— On the form njO^pn comp. Olsh., S 579; Ewald, g 190, c; Ges., § 72, 5, Anm. 
 
 I T : I- T 
 
 3 Ver. 28.— 3"in '£3 w3 comp. Ezek. vi. 8 : Naegelsb. Gr., § 64, 5, c. 
 
 * Ver. 28. — The construction DDOI 'J^O (comp. analogies in Graf) is found in this form here only. The two pro- 
 nouns analyze the idea ^.J'Jt;/. Since, however, both members of the disjunctive question were to be distinctly expressed, 
 the only way was either to say 03^31 DN1 'TJT DX (comp. Joel i. 2), or as there are no independent possessive pro- 
 nouns, to use the personal pronouns, which, however, could be employed only in the form of sufBxes to the partitive prepo- 
 sitions. . 
 
 6 Ver. 29.— 1pi3 with 1^ as in ver. 13. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 As that which the land and people of Judah 
 had experienced from the Chaldeans, was a pu- 
 nishment for their previous wickedness, so in the 
 future also new calamities will be the recom- 
 pense of their newly-repeated offences. The 
 Jews persist in performing their idolatrous vows. 
 Well, they sliall do so (ver. 26). But they shall 
 also hear, that there will soon be no longer a Jew 
 in Egypt, who may even take the name of Jeho- 
 vah into his mouth (ver. 20). For they shall be 
 exterminated by sword and famine (ver. 27), and 
 only a few shall return into the land of Judah, 
 that this stubborn people may learn who is in a 
 position to execute his will, Jehovah or they? 
 (ver. 28). And this may serve for a token, that 
 the Lord will make good His word, that Hophra, 
 king of Egypt, will be given into the hand of his 
 
 mortal enemies, just as Zedekiah was given into 
 the hand of his enemy, the king of Babylon 
 (vers. 29, 30). 
 
 Vers. 24, 25. Moreover Jeremiah . . your 
 vows. The women are here also expressly men- 
 tioned (see rems. on ver. 15). In ver. 25 even 
 tile predicate to ye and your wives, as well as 
 the predicates in the concluding sentence of the 
 verse has the feminine form. — The sentence and 
 fulfilled with your hand is to be regarded as 
 a parenthesis, occasioned by the circumstance, 
 that the discharge of the vows was already in 
 progress at the very moment the prophet was 
 speaking. We may conclude from this, that 
 the words in vers. 24 sqq. were spoken later 
 than the preceding context, viz., towards the close 
 of the meeting. 
 
 Vers. 2G-28. Therefore hear ... or theirs. 
 As you obstinately cari-y out your will, hear 
 what the Lord will do to effect His. He has 
 
CHAP. XLIV. 24-30. 
 
 355 
 
 sworn by His great Name (comp. xxii. 5; xlix. 
 18; li. 14), that a time will yet come, when no 
 Jew in Egypt will any more take the name of 
 Jehovah into his mouth as an oath (comp. iv. 2; 
 V. 2; xii. 16), simply for this reason, that there 
 will be none there (ver. 27). "In the form of 
 asseveration the name of Jehovah would be still 
 retained, although tlicy had long since become 
 devoted to the service of other gods. But Je- 
 hovah, who is an XJp 7X [jealous God], rejects 
 honor and acknowledgment which He must share 
 with others; and so it is name shall no longer be 
 heard from the mouth of any Jews in Egypt." 
 HiTziG. — In Behold, I will watch, there is 
 evidently a reminiscence of i. 12, so that the 
 close of the prophecies is thus connected with the 
 beginning. — Only a few individuals will escape 
 the sword and return home (comp. rems. on ver. 
 14). — A small number. Comp. Gen. xxxiv. 80; 
 Deut. iv. 27; Ps. cv. 12. — And thus Israel shall 
 
 learn by this fact, whose word will stand ('0 
 
 *15"1. Comp. viii. 9; Gen. xxiv. 28; D^p\ Isa. 
 
 xiv. 24; vii. 7; xlvi. 10), theirs (vers. 17, 18) 
 or .Jehovah's. 
 
 Vei 
 
 li), 30. And this shall be a sign 
 
 sought his life. The Jews might think that in 
 Egypt they were out of sight of their God, whose 
 throne was in Jerusalem. To expel this delu- 
 sion the prophet announces to them a sign, that 
 the Lord has them well in view. When they see 
 this sign it will be a pledge that the punishments 
 threatened in vers. 26-28 will really overtake 
 them. The sign will consist in this, that 
 Hophra, the Egyptian king, will be given into 
 the hiinds of his enemies, as Zedekiah was into 
 the hands of Nebuchadnezzar. Now Herodotus 
 certainly relates (II., 161 sqq.) that Apries 
 [Manetho, Obd(!)pcg, LXX., Oiaifif)//^, ('• e., Hophra) 
 whom he calls after Psammetichus the most 
 fortunate of the earlier kings, in consequence of 
 an unsuccessful battle with the Cyrenians, had 
 to experience a revolt of the Egyptians. Amasis, 
 who was sent to treat with them, himself went 
 over to the rebels, and Apries was compelled to 
 figtit the Egyptians under Amasis with an army 
 consisting only of foreign auxiliaries. He was 
 so presumptuous as to think, says Herodotus, 
 that no God could cast him from his throne, so 
 firmly was he seated upon it. He was, however, 
 vanquished and taken captive. Amasis now in- 
 deed treated him very well in the palace, but the 
 Egyptians took it ill that he was so indulgent to 
 his and their greatest enemy. Therefore Amasis 
 delivered Apries up to the Egyptians, who 
 strangled him (II., 169). If we compare this 
 narrative with the passage under consideration, 
 we find that they agree perfectly, not only in 
 speaking of a "surrender of Hophra into the 
 bauds of those who sought his life " (comp. 
 VTX and ^J '^p??, ver. 80 a, with the singular 
 in hemistich b) but also in this, that the circum- 
 Dtance of tlie surreiuler of the king being pre- 
 dicted as a sign, appears to be thus well ac- 
 counted for, in Apries having by his obstinate 
 arrogance challenged the divine Nemesis. But 
 how about the chronology ? It has been assumed 
 that the surrender of Apries occurred at too late 
 a date for it to have served as a sign, or that 
 
 Jeremiah could have lived to any proximate 
 period. The death of Apries must certainly be 
 placed in B. C, 570 (comp. DuScker, S. 930; 
 iM. NiEBUHR, Ass. u. Bab., S. 217). We have re- 
 marked above on ver. 1, that the Jews are still 
 designated as having come into the country (vers. 
 8, 12, 14), and therefore not as born in it, and a 
 strong longing for the land of their fathers is 
 still ascribed to them (ver. 14). But does this 
 prevent us Irom supposing that they have been 
 .'ilready about sixteen years in the country? 
 There is nothing opposed to this in the text. 
 This simply records -that they had settled down 
 at different places, and were now assembled for a 
 festival in Upper Egypt. This might happen as 
 well after sixteen years as after two, but better 
 then, than in the first year. A longing for home 
 is not yet altogether extinguished in the Jews 
 even at the present day. Comp. Ps. cxxxvii. — As 
 to the age of Jeremiah — if he vvas a I^J, about 
 twenty, in the thirteenth year of Josiah (comp. 
 i. 2, 6), he must have been about seveuty-six or 
 seventy-seven in the year B. C, 570. Tliis is 
 not impossible. What object could the subse- 
 quent insertion of this verse as a vaticiiiium post 
 rventinn, alleged by Hitzig and Graf, have had? 
 There was no need for it (as there perhaps was 
 
 for D'ifl'Sa DX '3, ver. 14), and if it was not 
 
 Jeremiah's custom to offer tokens, this would 
 all the more have deterred from such an interpo- 
 lation. Even if we grant that there are no other 
 tokens of this kind to be found in Jeremiah, this 
 does not involve the impossibility of his ever 
 having given such a one. He might have a special 
 reason for doing so here. I think I can perceive 
 such a reason in the presumptuous declaration 
 on the part of the king, recorded by Herodotus. 
 This prediction of the fate impending over the 
 king was the answer of the true God to this pro- 
 vocation. The point of the prediction is evi- 
 dently directed against this latter. That which 
 Jeremiah loudly proclaimed in an open assembly 
 of the Jewish people could not remain hid. The 
 king could and should hear it, even though he 
 held the old Jewish soothsayer in disdain. Only 
 thus is it explained why Jeremiah gave a token 
 just now, and why he gave just this. He was 
 obliged to predict his fate to the king, in order 
 that when this came, the hand of God might be 
 recognized in it, and at the same time this pre- 
 diction was to be a pledge to the Jewish people 
 for the fulfilment of the judgment threatened by 
 him. Let us remember how the mighty hand of 
 the Lord was once displayed through Moses on 
 Egypt and its king, in order that they might per- 
 ceive that He was the Lord, and His the earth 
 (Exod. vii. 5, 17; viii. 22; ix. 14, 29; x. 2). 
 After the lapse of a thousand years the last rem 
 nant of the theocratic nation return as fugitives 
 to the same Egypt, from which the Lord had so 
 gloriously conducted them. Israel had failed of 
 the high goal, appointed for it — but the Lord had 
 remained the same, and His last prophet like His 
 first was commissioned to be the medium of an- 
 nouncement to the proud empires of the jusl, 
 judgments of the only true God, who does not 
 allow Himself to be despised with impunity. 
 
 How now was the threatening fulfilled that the 
 remnant of Judah in Egypt should perish by 
 
856 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 Bword and famine, except a few who shoulil re- 
 turn home (ver. 28), and none should be left in 
 Egypt who could take the name of Jehovah for 
 an oath on his lips (ver. 26) ? In the first place 
 it may here be mentioned, that it is a matter of 
 indifference to this question, whether Nebuchad- 
 nezzar really came to Egypt and fulfilled the pro- 
 phecy in xliii. 8-14, or not. I leave entirely out 
 of account the fabulous record of Megasthenes 
 (in Strabo, XVI., p. 687, a; Joseph., Antiqq., 
 X.. 11, 1; c. Ap., I., 20), that Nebuchadnezzar 
 subjugated not only Egypt, but also Lybia and 
 Iberia, and came to the pillars of Hercules, yea 
 even to Thrace and the Pontus (comp. Haever- 
 NiCK, Comm. on Ezek., S. 496 sqq., and the nar- 
 ratives confirming the conquest of Egypt in Ara- 
 bian authors: Abulfeda, Hist. ante-Islam, p. 102. 
 Fleischer, Ahdollatif, Rel. de V Eijijp., p. 184, 
 247; ed. ue Sacy). But Josephus, as is well 
 known, relates also f^Antiqq.,%., 9, 71 that Nebu- 
 chadnezzar in the fifth year after the capture of 
 Jerusalem himself led an army to Coelo-Syria, 
 and after the conquest)of this country, made war 
 also on the Ammonites and Moabites, and inva- 
 ded Egypt. On this occasion he killed the king 
 then reigning in Egypt, set up another in his 
 stead, and again led Jews away captive to Baby- 
 lonia. Now if whatever in this account relates 
 to the Egyptian king be decidedly erroneous 
 (Comp. M. NiEBUHR, Ass. u. Bab., S. 215, Anm. 
 3), it is, however, still possible that Nebuchad- 
 nezzar, during the thirteen years siege or block- 
 ade of Tyre, which began directly after the con- 
 quest of Jerusalem, had the desire and the leisure 
 to make an expedition through Coelo-Syria and 
 the East-Jordanic countries to Egypt. It would 
 make no essential difference if he entrusted this 
 expedition to one of his generals. The prophecy 
 in xliii. 8-14, may then have been fulfilled. 
 Captive Jews and Egyptians may also have been 
 really carried away on this occasion. Comp. lii. 
 30; M. NiEBUHR, S. 215, el passim. But, as we 
 have said, the question, what happened to the 
 Jews still living in Egypt B. C, 570, is not affected 
 by an expedition of the Chaldeans to Egypt ten 
 or twalve years earlier. 
 
 It is surprising that in oh. xliv. the extermina- 
 tion of the Jews living in Egypt is so definitely 
 prophesied, while some centuries later we find 
 the Jew,s in Egypt very numerous, and Egypt a 
 centre of the Jewish diaspora (comp. Herzog, 
 R.-Enc, XVII. 5. 285.) Alexander the Greatfinds 
 so many Jews in Egypt, that he peoples the city 
 founded by him, and named after him, chiefly 
 with them (comp. Herzog, R.-Enc, I., S. 235). 
 How did these Jews come into Egypt? Till the 
 time of Nehcmiah (about B.C., 444), Judea was 
 so tliinly populated, tluit it certainly could not 
 afford to send out colonists. Tlie many Persian 
 expeditions to Egypt (B. C, 525, 484, '460, 458, 
 873), may indeed have carried many single Jews 
 Y?ith them. The same may also be said of the 
 brief occupation of Palestine by Taches, king of 
 Egypt (B. C, .361). It is related of Oohus, that 
 in liis "xpedition, undertaken B. C, o50 for tlie 
 reconqu'-st of Egypt, he dragged many Jews with 
 him to Egypt. It is, however, added that he 
 afterwards took part of them back to Babylon, 
 and part of them he banished to Ilyrcania. 
 Comp. Herzfkld, Gesch. d. V. Isr., etc., [History 
 
 of the Israelitish nation from the completion of 
 the Second Temple to Simon Maccabeus], I., S. 
 118. It is recorded of Alexander the Great 
 himself that on his expedition to Egypt he incor- 
 porated many Jews and Samaritans in his army 
 (comp. Herzfeld, S. 120, el pass.), but it is 
 scarcely probable that he left all these warriors 
 behind in Egypt. When in Babylon, he wished 
 to rebuild the temple of Belus, he had Jews in 
 his army, as is related by Hecatteus in Joseph., 
 c. Ap., I., 22 (p. 1186 sqq., ed. Obertuuer). 
 Whence then the great number of Jews that 
 Alexander found ali'eady in Egypt ? I believe 
 we must seek them for the most part in the de- 
 scendants of those who immigrated with Jere- 
 miah. But then the prophecy was not fulfilled. 
 May we not assume that the idolatrous practices 
 ceased among the exiled Jews in Egypt, as well 
 as among those in Babylon? And if this was the 
 case, how can it be a question, what turning- 
 point we must suppose between the idolatrous 
 period, in which we still see them in Jer. xliv., 
 and the later one of fidelity to Jehovah? May 
 not the powerful words of tlie aged and venerable 
 Jeremiah, and the literal fulfilment of the pro- 
 phecy uttered by him respecting the king (xliv. 
 29, 30) have produced an overpowering impres- 
 sion on their minds? According to tradition 
 (HiERON., adv. Jovin., 2, 37 ; Tertullian, Scorp. 
 8; Epiphan. -Kepi tuv Trpo(pT/T(i)P, 0pp., II., p. 
 239) Jeremiah was stoned by his countrymen in 
 Tahpanhes. But this legend is surely without 
 foundation. If they stoned him, they must have 
 done it after the discourse in ch. xliv., which 
 was not delivered in Tahpanhes (xliv. 15). It is, 
 however, also possible that the idolatrous inclina- 
 tion in them, as in their countrymen in Baby- 
 lonia, was now exhausted, and that the Lord in 
 view of their repentance, repented Him of the evil, 
 which He had spoken against them (xxvi. 13, 18). 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. " Obfirment animum suum ministri ecclesise 
 hujus capitis meditatione, ne pertinacia auditorum te 
 territuri patiantur, sed ut potius dehorlando, ob- 
 jurgando, comminando intrepide instenl ex prsecepto 
 apostoli 2 Tim. iv. 2." Forster. 
 
 2. On xliv. 2-13. A mirror of the stubborn 
 heart of man ! For centuries unceasingly warned 
 by the prophets — and how warned! Not by 
 sentimental talk, but by words of thunder and 
 strokes of po\ver, — think only of Elijah, Elisha, 
 Hosea, Isaiah, etc.! — yet Judah bowed not his 
 stubborn neck. Then at last when long-suffer- 
 ing love was exhausted, the judgment of just love 
 was executed. And yet in the wretched remnant 
 flie old root of unbelief and disobedience remains 
 still unbroken. 
 
 3. On xliv. 9. "Though thou shouldest bray a 
 fool in a mortar with a pestle as vetches, yet 
 will his foolishness not depart from him (Prov. 
 xxvii. 22). And he that sings songs to a heavy 
 lieart, it is like a torn garment in winter, and 
 vinegar on nitre (Prov. xxv. 20)." Cramer. 
 
 4. On xliv. 15. '■'■ Hoc loco imaginnn quandam 
 conipicere licet seditionis, de qua Elhnicus : hv r^ 
 arnaei iraaa Jrfea kukov Eveariv, — itemque con/usionis 
 plus quam cyclopicse, de qua notum est illud tritum: 
 oix'ieiQ ovSevbc ovdev aKovec." Forster. 
 
CHAP. XLIV. 24-30. 
 
 351 
 
 5. Onxliv. 16. "Ungodliness continually extends 
 and even goes beyond itself. In the foregoing 
 chapter they wish it to be considered as having to 
 do only with Jeremiah's private person, but now 
 they are become bolder so that they contradict him 
 oflBcially and thus God Himself, not considering 
 that they know what he says to be spoken not on 
 his own, but on God's account, which is a great 
 blasphemy of God." Cramer. 
 
 6. On xliv. 17. " The ungodly are blind. For 
 they ascribe all their good fortune to their idola- 
 try. When, however, a misfortune comes God 
 and His word must be to blame, and they say : It 
 is vain to serve God (Mai. iii. 14). The charge 
 of the Papists is used again now-a-days. when 
 times are dear and the country suffers such like 
 chastisements, that it is the fault of the Gospel: 
 since on the other liand their mass is regarded 
 as a regular Egyptian Meleket, by whicli they 
 think to obtain temporal and eternal blessings 
 both for the living and the dead." Cramer. 
 
 7. Onxliv. 17. " iVbra ovum ovo tarn simile est 
 atque huic Judseorum orationi nostrorum hominum 
 vox contendentium, sub papatu aureum fuisse ssecii- 
 lum, cum (amen contrarium testentur historiie de 
 hellis, peste et fame in papatu, prsesertimea, quse in- 
 cidit in annum Christi 1815, quo tempore , fere tertia 
 pars Germanise partim fame, partim peste eztincta. 
 Hinc versus : Ut lateat nullum tempus famis, ecce 
 
 CUCUllum." FORSTER. 
 
 8. On xliv. 17. "Hon mirum, quod urbes peste 
 vexentur, cum ^sculapius et Dii ab lis procul ab- 
 sint, nam ex quo Jesus colitur, nihil jam utiUtatis a 
 Diis consequimur . Porphyrius." MS. note in my 
 copy of Cramer's Bible. 
 
 9. On xliv. 19. "There is no doubt that the 
 inconstant, frivolous women were the first to be 
 seduced into idolatry, as Eve (2 Cor. xi. 3). 
 Wlien these are taken captive, he then proceeds 
 farther, and knows how to bring in the Adam 
 also. Therefore keep the doors of thy mouth 
 from her that lieth in thy bosom (Mic. vii. 5)." 
 Cramer. 
 
 10. On xliv. 19. " The harmony and com- 
 plaisance of married people is never more easily 
 secured than when it is against the Lord, and it 
 is nothing unusual for domestic peace to be ad- 
 duced as the cause of a lack of zeal in religion. 
 It is an ancient custom ; Ahab, Ahaziah and Solo- 
 mon only followed Adam. The wife had to be 
 deceived by a subtle serpent ; the man was bound 
 to keep peace in the family ; she gave him and he 
 ate." Zinzendorf. 
 
 11. On xliv. 20. "God remembers the good 
 and the evil; the good that He may reward it, 
 
 the evil that He may punish it." Cramer. ["God 
 will have the last word. The prophets may be 
 run down, but God cannot." Henry. — S. R. A ] 
 
 12. On xliv. 26. "This is the severest punish- 
 ment of all, that God takes away His holy name 
 and word, as He says in Deut. xxxii. 20: I will 
 hide my face from them, I will see what their end 
 shall be. And this is the famine, not of bread, 
 but of the word of God which they seek and yet 
 do not find (Am. viii. 11)." Cr.\mer. 
 
 13. On xliv. 29, 30. Between Moses and Jere- 
 miah, between the exodus from Egypt and the 
 return thither of the remnant, there lies a period 
 of almost a thousand years, and what a history ! 
 But the Pharaoh, under whom Israel made the 
 exodus, Menephthes (comp. Lepsius in Herz., 
 R.-Enc , I., S. 146) is described by Herodotus as 
 an arrogant and ungodly man (II., Ill), just 
 like Hophra. And at both times Israel was a 
 poor despised heap in the land of Egypt. But 
 the heathen were to know that the God of this 
 despised heap is the only true God, and that their 
 idols were naught, as also Nebuchadnezzar, Bel- 
 shazzar and Darius the Mede had also to leara 
 (Dan. ii.-vi.). 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On xliv. 1-14. The holy love of God: 1. 
 long-suffering; 2. just. 
 
 2. On xliv. 9-14. How ruinous aicourse it is to 
 forget the chastisements -of the Lord. This will 
 be shown, if we ponder that this forgetfulness 
 
 1. implies chastisement already suffered, 2. proves 
 its want of good results, 3. calls forth severer 
 chastisements from God. 
 
 3. On xliv. 15-18. The utmost alienation of a 
 people from their God, shown in the example of 
 the Jews in Egypt. 1. They place the benefits 
 received to the account of their idols. 2. The 
 evils suffered they place to the account of the 
 Lord. 3. They renounce their obedience to the 
 Lord. 4. They vow their service to their idols. 
 
 4. On xliv. 26, 27. The severest punishment 
 which the Lord can bring upon a people, who 
 have hitherto served Him. 1. It consists in this, 
 that the Lord removes the candlestick of His 
 word from among this people, i. e. that by de- 
 priving them of the means of grace. He brings 
 Himself into forgetfulness among the people. 
 
 2. It is founded in this, that this people on their 
 part have striven to forget the Lord. 3. It has 
 the effect, that this people is given up to the 
 powers of evil to their .complete destruction. 
 
868 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 Appendix to the Prophecies Relating to the Entire Theocracy. 
 
 THE PBOMISE GIVEN TO BARUCH (CHAP. XLV). 
 
 While in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, according to ch. xxxvi., Jeremiah was dictating to his true friend 
 and servant, Baruch, the revelations hitherto received, the latter appears to have been quite overpow- 
 ered by a feeling of derp sorrow -and miguish. Then Jeremiah receives a commission to address to him 
 some ivords of consolation. This brief uddress doubtless formed the conclusion of the whole, of the 
 original writing of which an account is given in ch. xxxvi. For it is incredible that Baruch was 
 overcome with grief when he hadivritten the prophecies against the heathen, so far as these were extant 
 in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, in their original position after cli. xxv. and before cb. xxvii. [comp. 
 rems. o« xxv. 12-14 and the Introd. to chh. xlvi.-li.) ; these being of relatively consolatory import 
 to the Israelites [comp. especially xlix. 1 sqq.). But when he could survey at a glance the entirety 
 of the threatening words pronounced against the theocracy, this may have been the moment when he 
 
 broke outnnto the utterance .recorded in xlv. 3, The word )2r}22, ver. 1, is not opposed to this. For 
 
 it is not necessary to take the prefix in the sense of " whilst." It merely expresses that Baruch received 
 the revelation at a time -when he was at loork as an amanuensis, neither before nor after ; but does not 
 determine tvhether he received k at the beginning, in the midst, or at the end of this time. Even when 
 the prophet had dictated to him his last words his work was not done : he had still to look over and 
 revise what he had written. It is therefore not credible, that the great main work was interrupted by 
 this perso7tal communication. The present chapter is thus an appendix to the entire collection of Jere- 
 miah'' s prophecies. Its position at the close corresponds to the dignity and importance of Baruch, who 
 as the faithful friend and amanuensis of the prophet was closely connected with the book as a whole, 
 while Ebed-melech, for whom a similar word of promise is found in xxxix. 15-18, came into contact 
 with Jeremiah only at a single epoch. The revelation concerning him was therefore inserted at the 
 corresponding place in the narrative. 
 
 XLV. 1-5. 
 
 1 The word that Jeremiah the prophet spake unto Baruch the son of Neriah, 
 when he had written [was writing] these words in a book at the mouth of Jere- 
 miah, in. the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, saying, 
 
 2, 3 Thus saith the Lord [Jehovah], the God of Israel, unto thee,' O Baruch : Thou 
 didst say, Woe is me now ! for the Lord hath added grief to my sorrow ; I fainted 
 
 4 [am weary]' in my sighing, and I find no rest Thus shalt thou say unto him. 
 The Lord saith thus : Behold, that which I have built will I break down, and that 
 
 5 which I have planted I will pluck up, even this whole land.' And seekest thou 
 great things for thyself? seek them not : for, behold, I will bring evil upon all flesh, 
 saith the Lord ; but thy life will I give unto thee for a prey in all places whither 
 thou goest. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 2.— On bv in 'ViV comp. rems. on x. 1. 
 
 ' ■.• T 
 * Ver. 3. — The verb ^y is found besides in Jeremiah only in li. 58. 
 
 "T 
 
 3 Ver. 4. — As to the construction liere, many are of opinion that the article is wanting before X'Tl. *8 ex. gr. Gen. xxxii. 
 23. But we should then have nXt- Others would take r\X in the emasculated sense, in which it " approaches to " 7=in 
 respect to, as to (Ewald, g 277, d). But in the connection of this passage nX appears plainly as the sign of the accusative, 
 governed by the preceding transitive verb. I therefore think that KTI is used here simply with an emphatic significance, 
 which we may express by inserting the word " even :" even the whole land, even this ! Comp. Num. xviii. 23 ; Isa. vii. 14. 
 This is also the case with N^n after a personal pronoun : NIPI '3JX ^3JX, Isa. xliii. 25 ; Jer. xlix. 12, etc. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 In the fourth year of Jehoiakim, when Baruch, 
 the son of Neriah, was writing out the prophe- 
 cies of Jeremiah at his tlictation (vers. 1 and 2), 
 the proclamation is made to him, in answer to 
 
 his expression of sorrow (ver. 3) : that the Lord 
 is intending to desolate the whole land (ver. 4), 
 but he, Baruch, without laying claim to greater 
 things, should accept, as a reward of distin- 
 guished grace, that whither.><oever lie might be 
 cast, he should everywhere escape with his life 
 (ver. 6). 
 
CHAP. XLV. 1-&. 
 
 359 
 
 Vers. 1-3. The word . . . find no rest. 
 
 After Baruch (comp. rems. on xxxii. 12) had 
 finished writing what was dictated to him, Jere- 
 miah receives the command to address a pro- 
 phecy to him, concerning only his own person. 
 — Baruch was evidently powerfully affected by 
 the total impression made by the prophecies 
 upon him (comp. rems. on xxxvi. 1, 16). In ad- 
 dition to the sorrow, which he must have felt 
 with every other Israelite, at the present dis- 
 turbed condition of his native land, was the 
 anxiety for the future, which had been awakened 
 by the minatory predictions he had heard. — 
 Grief Comp. viii. 18 ; xx. 18 ; xxxi. 18. — I 
 faint. The same thought as in Lam. v. 5. 
 
 Vers. 4, 5. Thus shalt thou . . . thou 
 goesL Two things are involved in these words : 
 1. Although the theocracy is the Lord's creation, 
 it is yet His fixed determination to destroy His 
 work. With respect to the expression, comp. 
 i. 10 ; xviii. 7, 9 ; xxxi. 28. — Even this whole 
 land. If we compare xxv. 15-26, we shall per- 
 ceive that this determination to destroy is to be 
 understood in a twofold degree, and accordingly 
 I'lX is to be taken in the double sense of land 
 and earth. The whole earth and the existence 
 of all nations upon it is the Lord's work, but the 
 Lord will cause His judgment to issue on all 
 this, His work. But Israel's land and people is 
 especially His sanctuary, the first fruits of His 
 increase (ii. 3), His precious inheritance (iii. 19; 
 Ezek. XX. 6, 15), and of course Baruch's sorrow 
 relates above all to the ruin threatening his own, 
 the chosen nation. It is thus declared by the 
 words, "this whole land," that it is not a partial 
 visitation, but a total devastation of the country, 
 which is impending. — 2. If now the whole (comp. 
 xii. 12 ; xxv. 31) is under sentence of total de- 
 struction, no single individual can claim a high 
 degree of positive earthly prosperity. Even the 
 best must be content, if only mere earthly ex- 
 istence, bare life, is guaranteed him. This is 
 done here with respect to Baruch. Thus a mea- 
 sure is given of the degree and extent of the 
 calamity relating to the whole. Comp. xxi. 9 ; 
 xxxviii. 2, 17. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. Baruch did not act as secretary for hire but 
 for love. He esteemed it an honor and a happi- 
 ness, that by his skill he could serve the Lord, 
 to whom he owed it. Therefore a glorious re- 
 ward is imparted to him unsought, so that his 
 name and remembrance are immortalized in the 
 sacred record by an oracle addressed specially 
 to him. This honor is to be esteemed still higher 
 than the assurance, that this wretched mortal 
 life should not be taken by violence before its 
 time. 
 
 2. On xlv. 3. " Non Sloicos nosesse eonvenit, qui 
 aTvd&ELav commendare atque asserere soliti, qualis 
 etiam fuit Munzerus ejusque progenies Anabaptistse." 
 
 FORSTER. 
 
 3 On xlv. 4. Compare the remarks on vii. 4. 
 There is no delusion more ruinous than to sup- 
 pose that the Lord cannot destroy His own work 
 again. The destruction will certainly only come 
 upon the bad. But it is the bad on the earth, 
 among the chosen people, in the church and on 
 the throne, who imagine themselves to be secure, 
 in spite of their badness, by the fact of the 
 divine- appointment or choice, whereby tiiey raake 
 God the servant of sin. God has created the 
 earth. He will destroy it by fire. But a new 
 earth and a new heaven will proceed from the 
 conflagration. He has thrown down the holy 
 city and temple and scattered the people of Is- 
 rael. But the 'lapayX Kara TrvevfiatatiU. lives and 
 will one day permeate the 'lapatj'A Kara'CapKa with 
 new life again (Rom. xi.). The Christian Church 
 in the East has been devastated by Islam, and 
 what guarantee then have Rome, Geneva and 
 Wittenberg that it will not be with them as with 
 .Jerusalem? Princes too are not to understand 
 the divine right of legitimacy as that God cm 
 appoint princes but cannot_ depose them. Yet 
 even if all present Christian chuicheswere to be 
 destroyed and all thrones overthrown, neither 
 the Church of the Lord would cease to be, nor 
 the magistracy, which is ordained of God -(Matt, 
 xvi.; Rom. xiii.). 
 
 4. On xlv. 5. ^'■Felices frustra nobis promittimus 
 nnnos semper enim curse trislitiseque premunt." Quo- 
 tation by FoRSTER. 
 
 5. On xlv. 5. Endeavor not after high things. 
 Is it then not a great thing in this world, laden 
 as it is with a curse (Gen. iii. 17-19), if one has 
 sustenance and clothing? (1 Tim. vi. 8). And is 
 it not the greatest thing of all, if one knows that 
 his soul is saved in heaven, even if he must take 
 the place there, with which the prodigal son 
 would have been content in his father's house ? 
 (Luke XV.). 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1, On xlv. 2-5. A word of consolation and ex- 
 hortation for all the tried children of God. 1. 
 Let no one be surprised at the heat, which he 
 encounters, as though something strange had 
 happened to him. 2. Let every one be satisfied 
 with the one thing needful: (a) for his body, 
 (6) for his spirit. 
 
 2. On xlv. 4. God's own institutions. We must 
 distinguish in these: 1. the temporary form 
 (not secured against decay and outward ruin); 
 2. the everlasting kernel (this is indestructible 
 and bears in itself the guarantee of eternal du- 
 ration and ever more glorious development). 
 
860 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 ni. SECOND MAIN DIVISION. 
 
 The Prophecies Against Foreign Nations. 
 (Chapp. XLVL— LI.) 
 
 The propheis of j.srael could not avoid bringing the heathen nations also within the sphere of their predic- 
 tions. They were compelled to this, partly even from tk.ir theocratic and particularistic point of view, 
 in so far as the interests of the theocracy were essentially affected by the standing or falling of their 
 heathen neighbors, and partly in a general view, as they represented the idea of the all-embracing divine 
 love and providenee. Hence loe find declarations concerning heathen nations in most of the prophetic 
 books. We find these prophecies relating to heathen nations, comprising larger groups, in Isaiah, 
 cbh. xiii.-xxiii., in Ezekiel chh. xxv.-xxxii., and here also in Jeremiah xlvi.-li. 
 
 The main trunk of these prophecies is formed by a Sepher, which according to its principal part, owes its 
 origin to the period immediately before the battle of Carchemish [comp. rems. on xlvi. 2). As Amos 
 makes his way through a cycle of seven tiations toJiis main goal, the kingdom of Israel (i. 3 — ii. 5), 
 and\ps Ezekiel predicts a judgment onsevennadons, so our Sepher also contains declarations against seven 
 jnations: Egypt, Philistia, 3Ioab, Amman, Edom, Damascus, and Elam. This arrangement is evi- 
 dently intentional ; proceeding from Egypt the prophet advances to the Philistines ; from these he 
 springs across to their eastern neighboTS and concludes with Elam, as representing the distant East and 
 North. It is evident that these seven utterances form the main trunktof the Sepher against the nations, 
 from two circumstances. First, that in none of them is Nebuchadnezzar or the Chaldeans mentioned. 
 This is the certain and constantly observed sign of composition before llie battle of Carchemish. Sec- 
 ondly, that five of them (or six, comp. infra, rems. on xlix. 34-39) have a similar commencement, viz. 
 
 W'ViTjl, 3N1D 7, etc. This grammatical form is closely connected with the common superscription. 
 The Tvord of Jehovah vyhich came to Jeremiah against the nations, xlvi. 1. 
 The prefix i, viz. expresses the comprehension of the following special prophecies under this general 
 title [comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 112, 5, b). On this point, however, two things are to be remarked, 
 
 1. The prophecy against the Philistines (ch. xlvii.) bears a superscriptio7i according to a different for- 
 mula, and provided with a special date. We shall show, on xlvii. 1, that this prophecy is older than 
 the six others of the Sepher against the Nations, that it is indeed the oldest of all the prophecies of 
 Jeremiah against heathen nations. It was therefore already extant, when the Sepher was formed, and 
 was therefore included in it, fust as it was. 2. The prophecy against Elam (xlix. 34-38) likewise 
 bears a title differing both inform and purport, by tvhich the utterance is assigned to the fourth gear 
 of Zedekiah. With this superscription the case is quite peculiar. In the LXX., viz. ch. xxv. con- 
 tinues after ver. 13: "A tnpo<p>jTEvaev 'lepEjuiag em to. E't^vTf tci AIMju. Hereupon follows the pro- 
 phecg which we read in the Hebrew text xlix. 35-38. At the close of this, however, we find the 
 words : 'Ev apxv paaikehovToq "LedeKLOV jiaaiMug kyevero 6 ?i6yog ovrog Tiepl AlXdp. The prophecy 
 against Elam in tlie LXX. thus has a superscription and a postscript, which is unexampled in Jere- 
 
 *miah. Now, however, the double circumstance comes in, that in t/ie LXX. the superscription of ch. 
 xxvii. is wanting, the same which in the Hebrew text contains the evidently and admittedly false name 
 Jehoiakim, and that in the Hebrew text the prophecy against Elam is in xlix. 34 assigned to the fourth 
 year of Zedekiah, though Nebuchadnezzar and the Chaldeans are not mentioned, as they usually are 
 in prophecies subsequent to the battle of Carchemish. From this stale of the case I draw the following 
 
 conclusions: 1. The prophecy against Elam must originally have had the superscription D ''J^./, in con- 
 formity lo the superscriptions of the prophecies against Egypt I., Moab, Ammon, Edom and Damascus. 
 For only thus is the abrupt to. A'M/i in the superscription of the prophecy in the LXX. explicable. 
 The article to. proceeds from the circumstance that they connected Al/Mp grammatically with ra Mw/, 
 to which neither grammar nor criticism give any justification, for they arbitrarily separated "lEfX 
 
 CUri'Sj? n"' N3J. xxv. 13, from the previous context, and made it the superscription, then arbitra- 
 rily placed oV^S as if in apposition to D'ijn, and finally, with equal arbitrariness, transposed the 
 whole prophecy hither, for it stood originally in another place. From the postscript, viz. we see that 
 
 2. the prophecy must originally have stood, as it still does in the Hebrew text, at the close of the 
 Sepher against. the nations, hut immediately before ch. xxvii., this postscript being evidently no other 
 than the first verse of ch. xxvii. [modified according to circumstances), which is entirely wanting in the 
 LXX., and in the Hebrew contains the wrong name of a king. How did this prophecy come by a post- 
 icript, since no other prophecy in Jeremiah has such an one ? Whence came it that xxvii. 1 is entirely 
 wanting in the LXX.? To say nothing of the circumstance, that the date iv apxv jiaailevovTog "LeSeKiov 
 in the prophecy against Elam is as incorrect as xxvii. 1 is undoubtedly alone correct [comp. rems. on' 
 xxvii. 1 ami xlix. 34). But how now does verse 1 of ch. .xxvii. come to be the postscript, in the 
 
CHAP. XLVI. 2-12. '661 
 
 Hebreiu the superscription to the prophecy against Elam ? Eoidentli/ the prophecies against the nations 
 must once have had their place after ch. xxv. and before ch. xxvii. 1. Theg were, however, taken 
 away from this place, and xxvii. 1 went ivith them, whether it was that it was really taken for the 
 postscript of the prophecy, or by an unintentional error. If this view is correct it is thus determined 
 that the Sepher against the nations then concluded with the prophecy against Elam. Whether the sub- 
 sequently added prophecies against Egypt If., against the Arabians and against Babylon were then 
 incorporated in the Sepher cannot be ascertained. Where, however, did the Sepher begin, or rather on 
 what portion of our book did it follow? Chapter xxv. cannot have preceded it, for it is quite out of 
 the question, that it can ever have had place between chh. xxvi. and xxvii. Since that detached verse 
 (xxvii. 1) is found at the close, or at the beginning of the prophecy against Elam, and not at the close 
 of the passage xxv. 15-38, it necessarily follows that this passage did not follow, but preceded the 
 Sepher against the nations. Thus the Sepher cannot have been attached to xxv. 14, 13 or 12. It 
 can, therefore, have had its place only between xxvii. 1 and xxv. 38. Both the present form of the 
 text in the LXX., and the purport of xxv. 13 b, show that it must have been placed in the immediate 
 neighborhood of this verse. For what reason? The verses 12, 13 and 14 of ch. xxv., are directed 
 against Babylon. They treat of the ruin of Babylon with an emphasis and a detail, which do not cor- 
 respond at all to the historical fact to which ch. xxv. owes ils origin. The first half o/xxv. 1^ 
 decidedly presupposes the prophecy against Babylon, pertaining to the fourth year of Zedekiah (comp. 
 li. 59). From this it follows, that the Sepher against the nations can have been transposed from its ori- 
 ginal place between xxv. 38 and xxvii. 1 to that before xxv. 15, 07ily with the prophecy against Baby- 
 lon, therefore after its becoming kno wn. We shall not err if ice suppose that the ivords in xxv. 11, " and 
 these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years," gave occasion both to the more extended 
 portrayal of the visitation of Babylon only implicitly, intimated as zve have it in the verses xxv. 12-14, 
 and also the transposition hither of the Sepher against the nations now extended by the prophecy against 
 Babylon. The LXX. version flowed from a recension affording this form of the text. For omitting 
 ver. 14, it is connected with ver. 13, and then gives, though in a different order from the Masoretic 
 text, the prophecies against the nations and as a comprehensive conclusion follows the passage xxv. 15- 
 38 in ch. xxxii. From ch. xxxiii. onward the remaining chapters follow in the same order as in 
 the Masoretic text, only that a chapter is not devoted to the prophecy for Baruch, this appearing in the 
 LXX. merely as the conclusion of ch.. li. Another diaskenast (who it was it would be impossible to de- 
 termine) now found it more to the purpose to separate the prophecies against the nations from the pas- 
 sages relating to the theocracy. And thus they 2vere then, tvithout making any alteration in vers. xxv. 
 12-14, transposed to the place, where we now find them in the Masoretic text. — The prophecy against 
 Babylon was, however, the only addition to the original Sepher against the nations. Two neiv portions 
 were inserted at appropriate places between the original ones, viz.: 1, a second prophecy against 
 Egypt (xlvi. 13-26) which expressly mentions the name Nebuchadnezzar, xlvi. 13-26; 2. a prophecy 
 against the northern Arabian kingdom (xlix. 28-33), in which at any rate Nebuchadnezzar^ s name is 
 mentioned in vers. 28 and 30. The insertion of the second prophecy against Egypt after the first, and 
 that against the Arabians after that against Damascus, and before that against Elam, cannot be re- 
 garded as other than appropriate. 
 
 1. THE SUPERSCRIPTION. 
 
 XLVI. 1. 
 
 1 The word of the Lord [Jehovah] which came to Jeremiah the prophet against 
 the Gentiles [The Nations]. 
 
 This superscription extends over the whole of the prophecies here brought together and forming a *13D. 
 It thus forms the heading to chh. xlvi.-li., and introduces the second main division of the Book. The form 
 is the same as in xiv. 1 ; xlvii. 1 ; xlix. 34. On the grammar, comp. rems. on xiv. 1 
 
 2. THE FIRST PROPHECY AGAINST EGYPT 
 
 XLVL 2-12. 
 
 2 Against [concerning] Egypt, against the army of Pharaoh-necho king of Egypt, 
 which was by the river Euphrates in Carchemish, which Nebuchadrezzar king of 
 Babylon smote in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah. 
 
 3 Prepare ye the buckler and the shield, 
 And move ye on to the battle. 
 
 4 Harness the horses, and mount ye horsemen, 
 And stand forth with your helmets. 
 Furbish^ the spears, put on coats of mail.'' 
 
 5 Why, (as) I see, are they dismayed — retreat? 
 And their heroes are dashed to pieces ; 
 They flee in haste, and turn not again ?* 
 Fear round about !* saith Jehovah. 
 
862 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH 
 
 6 Let not the swift flee away ;* 
 Nor let the mighty escape ! 
 
 Northwards, by the margin of the river Euphrates, they totter, they fall, 
 
 7 Who is he who riseth up like the Nile, 
 His waters roll along like the streams ?® 
 
 8 Egypt riseth up like the Nile, 
 
 His watery roll along lijie the streams ; 
 And he said, I will up, cover the land, 
 Destroy'' the city and them that dwell therein. 
 
 9 Mount ye^ the horses, and rage, ye chariots; 
 And let the mighty warriors go forth : 
 Cush and Phut, who handle the shield. 
 
 And Lydians, that handle and tread the bow.* 
 
 10 And that d^y is a day of vengeance for the Lord, Jehovah Zebaoth, 
 That he may avenge himself on his enemies ; 
 
 And the sword shall devour'" and be satiate," 
 And be drunken with their blood : 
 For a slain offering has the Lord, Jehovah Zebaoth, 
 In the land of the North by the river Euphrates. 
 
 11 Go up towards Gilead and fetch balm. Virgin daugnter of Egypt!" 
 In vain takest thou many medicines ; 
 
 There is no plaster'' for thee. 
 
 12 Nations hear of thy shame, 
 
 And with thy crying the earth is filled , 
 For one warrior threw down another. 
 They are both of them fallen together' 
 
 u 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 ver. 4.— pID- Comp. Lev. vi. 21 ; 2 Chron. iv. 16. The meaning is to clean, polish by rubbing. 
 
 2 Ver. 4.— I'VID only here and in li. 3, for iV^^'d■ 
 
 s Ver. 5.— in3\ Comp. Mic. i. 7; Job iv. 20 ; Olsh., ? 261.— ID J D1JD. Comp. Lev. xxvi. 36; Naegelsb. Gr., § 93, d. 
 jinm,.—)}2n Hiph. in direct causative signification— make a turn. Comp. ver. 21 ; xlvii. 3 ; xlix. 24 ; Naegelsb. Gr., g 
 18 3 
 
 ' * Ver. 5.— J'^Dn "lUO- Comp. vi. 25; xx. 3, 10 ; xlix. 29. 
 
 6 Ver. 6. — Diy "bX- If it were not the unabbreviated form, the words might be taken as the divine command. As it is 
 Sx must be taken in the feebler sense x'?. Comp. 2 Kings vi. 27 ; Ps. xxxiv. 6 ; xli. 3 ; Job v. 22, etc. 
 
 6 Ver. 7. — "liX^, a word of Egyptian origin, signifies as an appellative " ditch, canal," Isa. xxxiii. 21 ; Job xxviii. 10, as 
 
 a proper name the Nile only, Am. viii. 8 ; ix. 5 : Isa. xix. 8 ; xxiii. 10, e<c.— J^nnj is also an Egyptian reminiscence, in so 
 
 far as it is >ised of the arms or canals of the Nile, Exod. vii. 19 ; viii. 1 ; Ezek. xxxii. 2, 14. 
 
 ' Ver. 8.— nTDX, comp. Gesen., ^ US, 2, Anm. 1 : Olstl, ^ 2.37 b.—') T'j;. Comp. viii. 16; xlvii. 2. 
 
 8 Ver. 9. — 3inn, vocative. Comj). Naegelsb. Or., g 71, 5, Anm. 4. 
 
 9 Yer. 9.— On'ntyp "'Dl'l ''ti^3h. Comp. nir^p "'D'II "'ptl/j, Ps. Ixxviii. 9; Naegelsb. Gr., § 63, 4, e. 
 
 10 Ver. 10. ^1 J1 ri/DXI. As was remarked on ver. 1, these perfects with the Van conversive can be taken in a future 
 
 sense only. Notliing in tlie context transposes us into the past. All previous verbs relate to the future, and if the day were 
 
 to be designated as past this would have to be done either disertis verbis, or by IDXHI- Except on a false interpretation 
 
 of ver. 2, we obtain the impression from vers. 7-9 that it is the future which is being described, and if the day (ver. 10) is re- 
 cognized as future, the following verbs can only bcs so rendered. Comj). Naegelsb. Gr., § 84, o. 
 
 " Ver. 10.— qjl n^Ot^l- Comp. Isa. xxxiv. 5 sqa. 
 
 12 Ver. 11.— On ^0 n3 nS^H^. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 64, 4. 
 
 i« Ver. 11. nSt'ri- Comp. xxx. 13. The word occurs onlyin these two passages in Jeremiah, and in these onlywith the 
 
 meaning of '• something laid on, bamlage, jilaster." 
 
 u Ver. 12. T13JU "113J. Tbe preli.x 3 is to bo taken in its jiroper, instrumental signification : One stumbles by an- 
 other, because one throws another over the heap. Comp. Lev. xxvi. 37. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 After the double, viz., general and special title 
 (vers. ], 2), two fjicturei are presented before us. 
 The first (vers. 3-6) is the more general and in- 
 definite ; warriors are admonished to equip them- 
 selves for battle (vers. 3, 4). Then, however, 
 
 directly follows a description of the defeat and 
 terrible fliglit, with a statement as to the place of 
 the battle (vers. 6, 6). In tlie second picture not; 
 only is Egyjit mentioned as tlie army addressed 
 by the prophet, but it is also portrayed in colors 
 tiilvcn iVom specially Egyptian relations. Tliat 
 we have, moreover, two pictures before us, is 
 seen from the circumstance, that in vers. 7-12 
 
CHAP. XLVI. 2-12. 
 
 368 
 
 the whole course of the struggle from beginning 
 to end is described in its main features : the pro- 
 phet sees the Egyptian host approaching like the 
 overflow of the Nile (vers. 7, 8) ; he then sum- 
 mons horses, chariots and all warriors (among 
 them the neighboring nations, forming part of 
 the host), to the fight (ver. 9). But the fight does 
 not end well for Egypt: it is a day of the ven- 
 geance of Jehovah on Egypt, a sacrificial feast, 
 in which Egypt is the slaughtered victim (ver. 
 10). The consequences of the lost battle are so 
 fatal to Egypt, that it cannot recover, and the 
 report of its overthrow fills the world (vers. 11, 
 12). — Does this passage contain a prophecy of 
 the battle, or does it presuppose the battle as al- 
 ready fought? I think the former. Foraccord- 
 
 ing to ver. 10 (^U1 n*73X1), the battle is evidently 
 
 still future. But the prophet felt himself moved 
 to this prophecy, not during the advance of the 
 Egyptian host from its country, but when it had 
 already taken up a position on the Euphrates 
 and the decisive conflict was there to be ex- 
 pected. This follows clearly from ver. 2 in con- 
 nection with ver. 6 b, and ver. 10 6, as will be 
 further seen in the exposition of these passages. 
 The prophetic and poetical prediction of the ap- 
 proaching battle comes into the foreground, but 
 this does not exclude brief significant hints with 
 respect to the consequences of the battle for the 
 whole future of Egypt. 
 
 Ver. 2. Against Egypt ... of Judah. 
 D'"12fD'7, comp. xxiii. 9; xlviii. 1; xlix. 1, 7, 23, 
 28. The prefix 7 restricts the general idea ex- 
 pressed in the main superscription to a special 
 part. Comp. xix. 1^ ; Ezek. xliv. 9; Lev. xii. (5, 7. 
 
 Pharaoh-necho (HJJ, 2 Ki. xxiii. 29-35) was the 
 sixth king of the twenty-sixth dynasty. He 
 reigned after his father, the great Psammetichus, 
 from B. C, 610-595. Comp. Duncker, I., S. 817, 
 925; Herzog, R.-Enc. X., S. 257. — He came from 
 Egypt by sea, landed to the north of Carmel in 
 the bay of Acco, and defeated Josiah at Megiddo 
 (01)8). .Jehoiakim was his creature (comp. 2 Ki. 
 xxiii. 34). He was thus at the time de facto ruler 
 of Judah. After the battle at Megiddo, it must 
 have been easy for him to subjugate Phoenicia and 
 Syria, for who was there to offer him any re- 
 sistance? The power of the Assyrians, Medes 
 and Babylonians, was concentrated in and around 
 Nineveh. Nineveh fell B. C, 606. Now first did 
 the Babylonian army advance under the leader- 
 ship of Nebucliadnezzar. It met the Egyptians 
 at Carchemish. The city was situated at the 
 confluence of the Chaboras [Chebar or Khaboor], 
 and the Euphrates, on a peninsula formed by the 
 two rivers. Here was the principal passage 
 across the Euphrates (comp. Nikbuhr, 5. 205, 
 369; Herzog, Real-Enc. VII., 5'. 379), and here 
 as "the extreme line of defence of his new pro- 
 vince" (NiEBUHR, S. 36'.»), Necho took up his 
 position. He must have lain here for some time, 
 whether because the siege of the city occupied 
 much time, or because it was a part of his plan 
 not to advance farther, but here in a favorable 
 position to await the enemy. Observe in the 
 text the double relative sentence ■which ■was, 
 etc., and ■which Nebuchadnezzar, etc. It is 
 doubtless not by accident that by the first of the 
 
 two, the first, mentioned s<ay of Necho at Carche- 
 mish is especially set forth. If the chief em- 
 phasis lay on the battle, that first sentence would 
 have been quite superfluous. It would have been 
 enough to say : "which Nebuchadnezzar smote 
 by the Euphrates in Carchemish." From the 
 emphasis on the stay by the Euphrates it is 
 clear to me that this, and not the battle, was the 
 occasion of the prophecy. When Jeremiah learned 
 that the Egyptian army had taken up a position 
 at Carcliemith, he recognized at once the impor- 
 tance of the situation. He knew, that now a 
 collision between the southern and northern em- 
 pires was inevitable, that there on the Euphrates 
 the destinies of the world would be decided for 
 the proximate future. Egypt on the Euphrates ! 
 This was the fatal juncture which summoned him 
 to prophetic utterance. Observe, also, that ia 
 the prophecy itself he does not yet mention Nebu- 
 chadnezzar (he names him, as I have frequently 
 shown, only after the battle), but ho twice men- 
 tions in a significant manner the position on the 
 Euphrates (ver. 6 and ver. 7) ; an evident proof 
 that it was this, which led him to speak. He 
 foresees that it would eventuate in a battle. And 
 with equal definiteness, ho sees what the result 
 will be (vers. 5, 6; ver. 10 sqq.). The entire 
 superscription (ver. 2) was adJoJ subsequently 
 by the prophet on the writing of the prophecy. 
 In the first relative sentence he indicates the oc- 
 casion, in the second he-declares that the fulfil- 
 ment followed very speedily in the fourth year 
 of Jehoiakim (B. C. 605-4) The date refers 
 primarily to "smote," but it does not follow that 
 the prophecy may not have been made the same- 
 year, or sooner. The particulars here are not to 
 be determined, but it is possible that the news 
 of the establishment of the Egyptians on the 
 Euphrates, did not reach Jerusalem before the 
 fourth year of Jehoiakim. NiebuhrIs of opinion 
 that the battle had already taken place in the 
 third year of Jehoiakim [Ass. u. Bah., S. 50, 86, 
 370), and that hence the date here refers to the 
 composition of the poem, not to the historical 
 event of the battle. The chronological relations 
 are not to be investigated here, but exegetically 
 it seems to me as impossible to put a point after 
 smote (NiEBUHR, S. 86, An?n.), as to refer in the 
 fourth year to the -word, etc., ver. 1, as Grap 
 proposes. Apart from their being so far re- 
 moved from each other, ver. 1 is a general title 
 referring to all the following chapters, including 
 ch. li. The construction too, would then be ob- 
 scure and forced. We should then hav;' to take 
 
 D''/}^iP7 as a more particular definition: with 
 respect to Egypt, however, in the fourth year; 
 which would give the sense that only this pro- 
 phecy was uttered against Egypt, in the fourtli 
 year of Jehoiakim, which is incorrect. 
 
 Vers. 3-6. Prepare ye . . . the fall. 
 The first battie-picture commences with the 
 call to the warriors to prepare buckler and 
 shield (the Egyptian monuments show two kinds 
 of shields, a larger [H^Y] anc^ a smaller. Comp. 
 Neumann, II., S. 383), to harness the horses (to 
 thechariots) andtomoLint. Cty"^!) designates the 
 
 horses for riding in distinction from carriage- 
 horses in 2 Sara. i. 6; 1 Kings v. 6; Joel ii. 4,- 
 
864 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 Ezek. xxvii. 14. This usage being established, 
 and the parallelism favoringthe meaning "ejMt," 
 I believe that D'ty^i^n is to be translated not in 
 
 ■ T T ~ 
 
 the vocative, but as in the text: and mount ye 
 riders. Of the other expressions in ver. 4, the 
 tirst, after horses and riders, must refer to the 
 footmen, the rest, as in ver. 3, to all species of 
 arms. — In the second act of the first picture, the 
 prophet sees the army defeated: Why, I see, 
 are they dismayed? Comp. xxx. 6. As 
 n^n (they) is the nominative and HKl requires 
 
 th J accMsaiive after it in a still higher degree 
 than riin, our passage cannot, as Graf supposes, 
 
 be explained by Ezek. xxxvii. 19 coll. Gen. vi. 17, 
 but I see must be taken as a parenthetical sen- 
 tence. — The description closes significantly with 
 two perfects, the prophet sees the tottering and 
 falling as accomplished facts. Comp. ver. 12. 
 
 Vers. 7-12. Who is he . . . fallen toge- 
 ther. The second battle picture is more in de- 
 tail, more concrete, and as it were painted with 
 specifically Egyptian colors. The prophet sees 
 the Egyptian army approaching like the over- 
 flowing Nile. The immediate preparations for 
 the battle are described in ver. 9, as in ver. 4, 
 only still more concretely. Cavalry, chariots and 
 footmen are equally distinguished. I am there- 
 fore of opinion that we must render *^1 'i>i? here 
 as in ver. 4 "mount the horses." — The chariots 
 are to rage (comp. Nah. ii. 5), the mighty war- 
 riors to go forth on foot. Egypt's neighboring 
 nations accompany the expedition, and the Ethi- 
 opians and Lybiana are described as shield-bear-y 
 
 ers, and therefore masters of close combat (eo- 
 minus), the Lybians (comp. Gen. x. 13 coll. 22; 
 Isa. Ixvi. 19; Ezek. xxvii. 10) as archers. The 
 three nations stand together, as here, as Egyp- 
 tian auxiliaries in Ezek. xxx. 5 coll. Nah. iii. 9. 
 On Lydians 1^*7, comp. Arnold in Herzoq, 
 Real.-Enc, VUI., S. ulO. 
 
 All these preparations, however, do not en- 
 sure the victory, it being ordained that the day 
 of battle shall be a day of vengeance for Jeho- 
 vah, and a bloody sacrificial festival. Egypt 
 both in ancient and more recent times has in- 
 jured the theocracy, and now stands opposed to 
 the chosen instrument of the Lord, Nebuchad- 
 nezzar, and must therefore be subdued. — Day 
 of vengeance. Comp. li. 6; Isa. xxxiv. 8; 
 Ixi. 2; Isiii. 4. — Sacrifice. A slain offering, 
 where the original meaning of the verb (comp. 
 Numb. xxii. 40; 1 Ki. i. 19) comes into the fore- 
 ground, but the word must not be taken in its 
 literal signification. Comp. Isa. xxxiv. 6 ; Zeph. 
 i. 7. In the last two verses the consequences of 
 the lost battle are described. Egypt is ironically 
 called upon to fetch balm from Gilead (comp. 
 rems. on viii. 22). But the blow was fatal. 
 Therefore remedies are of no avail, to however 
 great extent applied. The fearful defeat cannot 
 of course remain hidden. The nations must 
 learn the shame of Egypt, since the cry of the 
 stricken ones fills the world (xiv. 2 coll. Isa. xlii. 
 11). Ver. 12 b contains a step backwards, an 
 additional statement of reason. This is occa- 
 sioned by the evident endeavor to close the se- 
 cond picture in correspondence to the first. 
 
 3. THE SECOND PROPHECY AGAINST BQTPT. 
 
 XLVI. 13-26. 
 With an Appendix, xlvi. 27, 28. 
 
 13 The word that the Lord [Jehovah] spake to Jeremiah the prophet, how [con- 
 cerning the coming of] Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, should come and [to] 
 smite the land of Egypt. 
 
 14 Proclaim ye it in Egypt and publish it in Migdol, 
 Publish it also in Noph and Tahpanhes. 
 
 Say ye, Stand fast' and prepare thyself i'^ 
 For the sword hath devoured thy neighbors. 
 
 15 Wherefore is thy bulP dragged away ? 
 
 He stood not, for Jehovah thrust him away 
 
 16 He causeth many to totter ; 
 One also falleth upon another: 
 
 And they -say. Up! let us return to our own people, 
 And to the land of our birth, from the murderous sword. 
 
 17 There they cry:* Pharaoh, king of Egypt, is lost;* 
 He hath lost the time through neglect ! 
 
 18 As truly as I live, saith the king, 
 Jehovah Zebaoth is his Name ; 
 
CHAP. XLVI. 13-26. S66 
 
 As Tabor among the mountains, 
 
 And as Carmel by the sea, shall he come. 
 
 Make thyself preparations [apparatus] for journeying, 
 
 Thou inhabitant, daughter of Egypt ; 
 
 19 For Noph shall become £». wilderness, 
 And destroyed without an inhabitant. 
 
 20 A finely formed heifer is Egypt ; 
 
 A gad-fly^ from the north is coming, is coming.'' 
 
 21 Her hirelings also in her midst are like fatted calves 
 For they also turn and flee away together. 
 
 They stand not, for the day of their destruction is come upon them^ — 
 The time of their visitation. 
 
 22 Her sound® goeth like the sound of serpents; 
 For with power they advance, 
 
 And are come to her with axes as hewers of wood. 
 
 23 They have cut down her forest,, saith Jehovah. 
 For it is not to be searched ; 
 
 For they are many, more than thelocusts, 
 And of them there is no number. 
 
 24 The daughter of Egypt has been put to shame. 
 Delivered into the hand of a people from the North. 
 
 25 Saith Jehovah Zebaoth, the God of Israel, 
 Behold, I visit the Amon of No, 
 
 And Pharaoh and Egypt, and its gods and its. kings. 
 And Pharaoh and those that trust in him. 
 
 26 And I give them into the hand of those that seek their lives, 
 And into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, 
 And into the hand of his servants : 
 
 And afterwards it shall be inhabited® 
 As in the days of old, saith Jehovah. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 14. — 33f'nn comp. ver. 4. 
 
 2 Ver. 14. — "[7 j^HV Comp. Ezek. xxxviii. 7. It is a direct causative Hiphil : make preparation, equipment for thy 
 
 self. Naeoelsb. Gr., g 69, 1, Anm. 2. 
 
 8 Ver. 15. — Jeremiah uses the plural D'^^SX elsewhere only in the meaning of " strong horses " (viii. 16 ; xlvii. 3 ; L 
 
 11). But neither this meaning nor that of " strong men, heroes" D^mSJ suits the connection. For apart from ^npl 
 
 (besides here in Prov. xxviii. 3 only) which as a foregoing predicate may certainly stand in the singular, the singulars '^^p 
 
 ~ T 
 
 and i3in show that H'T^X is to be taken as singular. Then, however, nothing is more natural than, with the LXX., 
 
 T-: I .. . - 
 
 to think of the Apis. This is the LXX. translation : Siari e<l>vyev ano crov a 'Airi?; 6 ftoaxoi 6 eKAexTo? <rov ovfc fij.eivev. 
 T3X both iu the singular and plural is frequently used for bulls : Isa. xxxiv. 7 ; Ps. xxii. 13 ; 1. 13 ; Ixviii. 31. But who 
 
 but Apis is the bull of Egypt? The plural suffix has been explained as an abnormal pausal pronunciation fcomp. ^'^711^ 
 
 ' V T : • 
 Ps. ix. 15; TriXJtJ^ Ezek. xxxv. 11— TJ'3 [Gen. xvi. 5 ; 1 Ki. xv. 19] which Qkaf adduces, does not belong here), comp. 
 
 OLSH.,g 39, c, i«m.; §131, A;, but this is unnecessary. T3X (observe that Jehovah also is called 7N1ty' T3X or ^pjf^ 'X, 
 Isa. i. 24 ; xlix. 26, etc.) stands in the plural as a name of God, according to the analogy of jnX, 7j73j O'lJ^D, D'ty^p> 
 which again themselves follow the analogy of DTlSX- Comp. N.iegelsb. Gr., g 61, 2, Anm.; Olsh., g 122, g; Gesen., g 
 \(iS,2, Anm.,h. 
 
 *Ver. 17.— DK' 1X"lp- LXX., Vulg., Syr., and after them many modern commentators read these words U^ ^X"^p 
 (comp. XX. 3 ; Isa. viii. 3; xx. 7), but, as it appears to me, unnecessarily. The nominative of IX'^p is not the auxiliaries, 
 and OtJ? need not be referred to their home. It may very well be referred to the place where Apis was maltreated, and the 
 
 T ■ 
 
 warriors were killed, thus generally to the place of the previously described defeat. It might even be referred to the time, 
 for Du bas also a temporal signification. Comp. Ps. xiv. 6 ; liii. 5 ; Job xxxv. 12; Hos. ii. 17; Jer. 1. 9. The subject of 
 
 T 
 
 ^X"^p may be an indefinite number -.—they call. Comp. iii. 16, 17 ; Naegelsb. Gr., § 101, 2, a. 
 
 5 Ver. 17.— The meaning of jlXK' is strepitus, tumultus (Isa. v. 14 ; xiii. 14 ; Jer. xxv. 31 ; xlviii. 45 ; li. 55, etc.). With 
 
 the idea of tumult and confusion is connected that of destruction and ruin (comp. jiXtJ' ^13, Ps. xl. 3). The word would 
 
 1 T 
 then be u.sed as nbstr. pro concreto : Pliaraoh is ruin, i. e.. ruined, (Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 59, 1) and there is no need tc 
 
 read J^XK' with MAURtK. We know not why the prophet chose this particular word, but there is probably an allusion iu 
 
 T 
 
S66 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 It to some Egyptian word unknown to us. Whj- Pharaoh is ruined the prophet proceeds to tell us. lj/'10 is the appointed 
 season (Gen. i. 14 ; xvii. 21 ; xxi. 2, etc.) 1D^' of passing over a time is quite usual (comp. ex. gr., viii. 20 ; Job xxx. 15). 
 
 6 Vlt. 20.— 1*1 p. The word occurs here only. The root V'lp signifies " to pinch, press together" (of the eyes Proy 
 vi. 13 ; X. 11 ; xxxv. 19, of the lips Prov. xvi. 30) then " to pinch off " (Job xxxiii. 0). VI p is then pinching, pinching oft 
 
 or that which pinches. The old translations are vacillating: LXX. airoo-iracTMa ; Chald. I'lDp t'OOJ.' popwK inter/ecto- 
 
 res; Syr. fTfrcihix ; \ulg. stimulator. Attaching himself to the last Rosenmuei.ler tninslatt-s .„nau,la6 ; CocCElus, ScHUL- 
 TENS EicHHDR.N, lIiTZiii, (iRAF, Mkier, gad-fly | Bremse\ coJiiparing tlie A rabic quarasa, ])n)>uyit i pulexj, quaris, insectum cimici 
 simile, or qiiirs, a kind ul suuiU fly. Much mure uii.7iiitaljly Ewald adduces qu.usii, aiul uuJiToia.idj uy it a, great, Jearful 
 monster. The meaning txctW turn., which the Kabbis, Gesenius, Umbreit and others attribute to the word, does not corres- 
 pond very exactly to the specific radical signification. Following this and the Arabic analogies I regard the meaning gfod- 
 % as correct, which suits the connection admirably. Comp. Exod. xxiii. -28; Deut. i. -W ; vii. 2U ; Isa. vii. IS; Ps. cxviii. 
 12. fBLATNEY translates " breeze" though be admits the radical meaning and the Arabic analogies: Notes has "destruc- 
 tion" as the A. V., Neumann, Fuerst, efc— S. R. A.] 
 
 1 Ver. 20.— The reading r\2 X3 in the LXX., Chald., Syr., Arab., and many codd. of Kennicott and De Rossi is only a 
 
 T T 
 
 weak correction. i . 
 
 8 Ver. 2J. I do not approve of the reading Dvlp followed by the ancient translators and by IIitzw. n71p refers to 
 
 T I I T I 
 
 Egypt. The feminine suffix (comp. n31p3 TTI'Diy ver.21) is to be referred, if not to H ;JJ^, yet to D'^l^ifO r\3 (ver. 
 191. The construction of the sentence is as 1. 9; Nah. ii. 5. Comp. Naeqeisb. Gr., § 65, 3, Anm. There is, it is true, no pas- 
 sage m which :nn is used expressly of the voice ; but why may not the voice be described as going? 'n_nr> DJ1l^7 
 I- T . ; ' T : 
 
 Ps. Ixxiii. 9 is at least related. If we take ^7' as a relative sentence (like a serpent, which goes) the expression is very 
 
 feeble, and the meaning " creeps," which Graf substitutes, either declares nothing, or must have an artificial meaning 
 to it. 
 
 9 Ver. 26.— {3ty is used here in the neutral sense, as in Isa. xiii. 20 ; Jer. xvii. (5, 25 ; xxx. 18 ; 1. 13, 39. 
 
 I -T 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This prophecy cannot be regarded as an imme- 
 diate contemporaneous continuation of the pre- 
 vious one. 1. The title announces it as an in- 
 dependent passage. There is not the slightest 
 ground for regarding this as a later addition, for 
 it contains nothing which Jeremiah could not 
 himself have written. 2. In ver. 26 Nebuchad- 
 nezzar is mentioned by name. Jeremiah never 
 does this before the battle of Carchemish. As 
 now we must assign the passage xlvi. 1-12 to the 
 period immediately before that battle, it follows 
 that the present passage must have originated at 
 a later period. 3. If the superscription in ver. 
 13 expresses nothing with regard to the time of 
 composition, but only states the main purport of 
 the passage, it is yet clear that a prophecy con- 
 cerning the coming of Nebuchadnezzar more pro- 
 bably originated at a time in which Jeremiah de- 
 monstrably expected this coming than at a time 
 of which we have no trace that the prophet che- 
 rished this expectation. The prophet does not 
 express the definite expectation that Nebuchad- 
 nezzar will come to Egypt, before xliii. 8-13. 
 Previously, indeed, we have a general declara- 
 tion, that Egypt will succumb to him (xxv. 19; 
 xlvi. 11, 12). but none purporting that he will 
 himself enter the country. It is therefore much 
 more probable that this passage is contempora- 
 neous with xliii. 8-13 than that it belongs to the 
 time of xlvi. 3-12. The reason, which Graf 
 urges against this hypothesis, that Jeremiah there 
 prophesies the conquest of Moab, Edom, Ammon, 
 etc., in consequence of the battle of Carchemish, 
 but with respect to Egypt, had contented himself 
 with a song of triumph over its defeat, is not of 
 weight ; for evidently Egypt is the most impor- 
 tant of all the countries, against which chh. xlvi.- 
 xlix. contain prophecies. It is hence no matter 
 nl' surprise, if we have two prophecies against it, 
 01 which the first (xlvi. 3-12) treats of the defeat 
 and destruction of Egypt /« general (xlvi. 11, 12), 
 the second specially of the latter. 
 
 This prophecy, like the preceding one, evi- 
 dently consists of two halves. In the first the 
 Egyptian cities are summoned to equip them- 
 selves against the approaching enemy (ver. 14) ; 
 then the thought is expressed, that all, which is 
 great in Egypt, Apis (ver. 15) the foreign auxil- 
 iaries (ver. 16), Pharaoh (ver. 17) must bow be- 
 fore the greatness of the Chaldean prince, who 
 approaches like Tabor among the mountains and 
 Carmel in the sea, in order to carry away the 
 Egyptians into captivity (vers. 18, 19). In the 
 second half the quantitative conception seems to 
 prevail. Egypt is a fair, fat cow, but a gad-fly 
 *from the North brings destruction to it (ver. 20). 
 Their mercenaries also, who are here compared 
 to fatted calves, flee (ver. 21). Egypt is further 
 compared to a forest, in which stand innumerable 
 trees. Yet there is only a hissing like a snake 
 in a thicket, while the enemies proceed to cut 
 down the trees (vers. 22, 23). Finally it is pro- 
 claimed in blunt words, without a figure, that 
 Egypt with its gods, its kings, and all who trust 
 in them, must be given into the haiid of Nebu- 
 chadnezzar, but that a time will come, in which 
 Egypt will be inhabited as quietly and undis- 
 turbed as of old (vers. 24-26). The two halves 
 are distinguished thus: 1. I'he Egyptian power 
 is described from its intensive and qualitative, in 
 the second from its intensive or quantitative side. 
 2. The first half closes with the prospect of exile, 
 the second with a consolatory outlook into a dis- 
 tant but happy future. 
 
 Ver. 13. The word . . . Egypt. The su- 
 perscription is of the larger kind, but in the form 
 which occurs besides only in xlv. 1 and 1. 1. It 
 is indubitable that such a superscription intro- 
 duces a specifically new passage. The only ques- 
 tion is. Who composed this, the prophet himself 
 or a later writer, who had no right to do it? No 
 reasons can be urged against its composition by 
 the prophet, either general or special. The 
 
 form Xn?, both alone and with a second infini- 
 
 T 
 
 tive depending on it, is very common in Jere- 
 miah ; it is found more frequently in him than 
 
CHAP. XLVI. 13-26. 
 
 367 
 
 in any other book of the Old Testament. (Comp. 
 xxxvi. 5; xl. 4; xli. 17; xlii. 15, 17, 22; xliv 
 
 12; xlviii. 16). 7 a.\so after & verb, dicendiia J e- 
 remian. Comp. xxviii. 8, 9. 
 Ver. 14. Proclaim . . . thy neighbors. 
 
 Egypt is alarmed, before all the boundary-cities. 
 On Migdol, Noph and Tahpanhes, comp. rems. on 
 ii. 16 ; xliv. 1. — Immediate preparations are ne- 
 cessary, since the surroumling countries, the 
 neighbors, have already been devastated by the 
 hostile sword. Comp. xxi. 14; xlviii. 17, 39; 
 xlix. 5. 
 
 Vers. 15-19. Wherefore . . . without an 
 inhabitant. The three heads of Egypt are 
 Apis, the army consisting of foreigners, and the 
 king. •The overthrow of this triad is here de- 
 scribed. With respect to the form it is note- 
 worthy that the transition is made with the same 
 turn from the summons to prepare and the de- 
 scription of the defeat as in ver. 5. — The Apis, 
 which had hitherto in divine majesty enjoyed 
 most undisturbed existence in his temple, is now 
 dragged away like a common ox to the slaughter, 
 and can make no resistance, for it is Jehovah 
 who thrusts him on, as it were, from behind. 
 Numb. XXXV. 20; Ezek. xxxiv. 21. It is Jeho- 
 vah, likewise, who causes great defeat among 
 those upon whom the power of Egypt in war de- 
 pended. Since the time of Psammelichus foreign 
 mercenaries (3^;,' xxv. 20; Ezek. xxx. 5) com- 
 posed the main strength of the Egyptian forces. 
 (Comp. DuNCKER, I., S. 922); but they are un- 
 able to,resist the enemy whom God sends against 
 them. They therefore flee to their homes. — 
 Palleth upon another. Comp. xxix. 9, 26. — 
 Murderous swrord. Comp. rems. on xxv. 88. 
 — The king himself finally, whom the Egyptians 
 adored as an incarnation of the deity (comp. 
 DuNCKER, I., S. 150, "The Egyptians went fur- 
 ther in their exaltation of their rulers than any 
 other nation, even according divine \w)rship to 
 their despots") becomes an object of ridicule. — 
 Lost the time. These words signify that he 
 has allowed the time to pass by. What time? 
 The gracious respite appointed by Jehovah ? 
 Not impossibly. The prophet then places the 
 confession in the mouth of the Egyptians, 'that 
 Ihey have not followed the advice given them 
 in xxv. 15 coll. xxvii. 8. In contrast to this 
 humiliation of the Egyptian king the prophet 
 exalts (verse 18) the greatness of the true king, 
 the King of all kings, the Lord of hosts, .Jeho- 
 vah, and that of His chosen servant and instru- 
 ment (xxv. 9; xxvii. 6), the king of Babylon. 
 Jehovah, who is called king also in xWiii. 15; 
 Ii. 57, swears solemnly by Himself (xxii. 5, 24; 
 xliv. 2H), that he, who is not indeed here men- 
 tioned by name, but i< plainly recognized from 
 the connection, viz. the king of Babylon, will on 
 his expedition to the other kings be as Tabor to 
 the mountains rising to the north of it (comp. 
 Raumer, Pol. S. 37) and will present himself 
 as Carmel seen from the sea, for tliis "looks like 
 a watch-tower westward overtlie Mediterranean" 
 (R.\UMER, S'. 45). In such circumstances should 
 it fare better with Egypt than with Judah ? No, 
 the former also cannot escape captivity. He is 
 therefore called upon to prepare himself for this. 
 
 — nlM '72 (comp. Ezek. xii. 3 sqq.) are a very 
 
 necessary equipment, such as exiles are allowed 
 to take with them. As the capital of Judah was 
 not spared, so the capital of Egypt, Memphis, 
 shall be destroyed (comp. ii. 15). 
 
 Vers. 20-23. A finely formed heifer . . . 
 no number. In a new double picture Egypt's 
 destruction is here portrayed. These pictures 
 refer, as already remarked, more to the extent 
 and quantity of the Egyptian forces, the first 
 settingaforth their volume, the second their nu- 
 merical strength. Accordingly Egypt is first 
 compared to a state-cow, which is of course to 
 be regarded as well kept. We are involuntarily 
 reminded of Pharaoh's fat kine in Gen. xli. 18. 
 
 ri/JJ^ is moreover a young cow, but one which 
 has attained its full vigor, for it may be three 
 years old (xlviii. 34; Isa. xv. 5; Gen. xv. 9), 
 give milk (Isa. vii. 21, 22), be already trained 
 (Hos. X. 11), draw the plough (Jud. xiv. 18), but 
 also may still rejoice in the untamed wildness of 
 its life (xxxi. 18). — This cow is to be attacked 
 by a gad-fly coming from the north, from whence 
 Jeremiah is accustomed to see the Chaldeans 
 coming (comp. i. 14, etc). [Blayney and Words- 
 WORTH find here a probable allusion to the legend 
 of lo, who was transformed into a heifer, and 
 driven by a gad-fly into Egypt, where she was 
 worshipped as Isis. Comp Virg. Georg., III., 
 147; Ovid, Melam. Lib., I. — S. R. A.] 
 
 The double is coming portrays the vehe- 
 mence of the assault. Comp. Ezek. vii. 6 ; Ps. 
 xcvi. 13. The same fulness and breadth are 
 seen in the well-kept mercenaries as in Egypt 
 itself. (Comp. Herod., II. 158; Duncker, I., 
 (S. 922). They are fatted calves, and conse- 
 quently lazy, as is seen in their fleeing instead 
 of fighting. — Turn. Comp. rems. on ver. 5. — 
 Day of destruction. Comp. Deut. xxxii. 35; 
 Jer. xviii. 17. — Time of visitation. Comp. 
 X. 15 ; 1. 27. — In a second picture it is- described 
 how the forces of the Egyptians, though so 
 great in number, are overcome. Egypt is in 
 this behalf compared to a forest, which serves 
 for the abode of a serpent. The serpent has 
 retired into a thicket. It is only heard to hiss. 
 Thus the ancient power of Egypt, which led 
 Ezekiel to compare it to a crocodile (xxix. 3; 
 xxxii. 2), is come to an end. It is only a ser- 
 pent hissing with impotent rage in a thicket. 
 It no longer attacks nor bites, for it is afraid. 
 There is also reason for this. For the enemies 
 
 rush upon it with power (Tn3, comp. Zech. iv. 
 6) ; they come upon it with axes (comp. xlix. 9) 
 as hewers of wood. Whether this figure is oc- 
 casioned by the circumstance that the Persians, 
 Massagetes, and Scythians made use of battle- 
 axes, as Graf supposes, or whether it has no 
 connection with this, must be left undecided. — 
 Ver. 23. With their axes the enemies hew down 
 tiie forest, /. e. they kill the warriors, destroy 
 the fortifications and supplies. This forest is 
 not to be otherwise come at, for it is unsearch- 
 able, impenetrable. A thin forest may be taken 
 possession of by going through it, but a thick, 
 impenetriible one nuist be cut down tree by tree. 
 The enemies can do this, for they are more nu- 
 merous than the locusts. — Not to be searched 
 
368 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 I would not refer to the enemies, 1. on 
 account of the sing, number ; 2. because then 
 
 np.n\) 
 
 the same thought would be expressed three times. 
 —In the following context the thought of Egypt's 
 subjugation is expressed without a figure. 
 
 Vers. 24-26. The daughter . . . saith Je- 
 hovah. — Put to shame. Comp. ii. 26 ; vi. 15 ; 
 xlviii. 1 ; 1. 2, etc. — The God of Israel, who is 
 more powerful than the gods of the Egyptians, 
 declares that He will visit the Amon of No (the 
 highest deity of the Egyptians, comp. Herzog, 
 R?-Enc. I., -S. 286, which had its seat in Thebes, 
 hence called |iON XJ, Nah. pii. 8; comp. lb. X., 
 S. 392), Pharaoh and the land itself, and further 
 all the other kings {i. e. those entitled to be so) 
 and gods, and finally Pharaoh and the entire 
 
 mass of those who trust in him as a god. (Comp. 
 reins, on ver. 17). The style is here very broad 
 and verbose, in order to express the complete- 
 ness of the destruction. All these shall fall into 
 the hands of those who seek their life (comp. 
 reras. on xliv. 30), and be given into the hand of 
 Nebuchadnezzar and his servants. — And after- 
 ■wards, etc. If 've compare on the one hand 
 ver. 19, and on the other passages like xlviii. 
 47 ; xlix. 6 ; xlix. 39, it appears in the highest 
 degree probable, that here at the close a favora- 
 ble prospect is to be opened up to the Egyptians. 
 In the days of old, ancient Thebes, of which no 
 one knows when it was built, was peaceful, un- 
 assailed and prosperous. A remembrancer of 
 this condition can be understood only as a word 
 of blessed promise. 
 
 Appendix to the Prophecies against Egypt ; a Consolatory Declaration to Israel. 
 
 XLVI. 27, 28, 
 
 27 But fear thou not, my servant Jacob, 
 And be thou not dismayed, O Israel ; 
 For behold, I will save thee from afar 
 
 And thy seed from the land of their captivity, 
 And Jacob shall return and be at rest. 
 And quiet, and none shall make him afraid. 
 
 28 Fear thou not, my servant Jacob, 
 Saith Jehovah, for I am with thee. 
 
 For I will make a full end of the nations, 
 
 Whither I have dispersed thee : 
 
 But I will not make a full end of thee, 
 
 I will correct thee in measure and not leave thee unpunished, 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 This brief consolatory passage is reproduced here from xxx. 10, 11. Tlie discrepancies are slight. In ver 27 r^ QXJ ie 
 wanting after 3py^ "'H^y- In ver. 28 the initial words of ver. 27 are repeated to Jpj;''_with f QKJ appended, whicii is 
 not the case in xxx. 11. Further, in xxx. 11 ■^)^^mrh '■"' DXJ stand after ''JX '"ji^X ^2 ; instead of '"|'J7I^^^ we find 
 in xxx. 11 -Tni^^'fln ; finally, in the latter place tjnX IjX staiids for '"jriNI. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 It is acknowledged that these words stand in 
 the original and suitable connection in ch. xxx., 
 as well as that they are not necessary to ch. 
 xlvi., and would not be missed if they were 
 omitted. Still it may be said that every injury 
 befalling the enemies of tlie theocracy is a cor- 
 roboration of the latter, and that it cannot be 
 unsuitable also to express in words this mutual 
 relation founded in the nature of the case, tlio 
 two going constantly hand in hand in chh. 1., li. 
 (Comp. 1. 4-6, 17-19, 28, 3:J ; li. 5, 6, 10, 35, 45, 
 50). But tlie overthrow of the Babylonian king- 
 dom by Cyrus bore the deliverance of Judah im- 
 mediately in its womb. This can be said of the 
 
 conquest of Egypt no more than of that of the 
 other small nations against which chh. xlvii.- 
 xlix. are directed. Hen«e in these three chap- 
 ters there is no trace of that mutual relation. 
 Why then just here? And how does it agree 
 with the fact that elsewhere in Egypt Jeremiah 
 pronounces only the severest threatenings against 
 the Israelites (chh. xlii.-xliv.) ? There is much 
 then that is opposed to the genuineness of the 
 passage, while on the other hand it is easy to 
 suppose tliat a later seer saw fit to oppose this 
 light to the former shadow. Moreover, as we 
 have said, the words are not absolutely unsuit- 
 able here, and we cannot therefore deny tlie pos- 
 sibility, that Jeremiah, who, as is well known, 
 is very fond of quoting himself, himself felt the 
 need of causing the light of Israel to shine 
 
CHAP. XLVH. 1-7. 
 
 369 
 
 brightly on the dark background of their ancient 
 enemy, Egypt. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. FoRSTER states four reasons why the prophets 
 had to proclaim judgment on the heathen nations 
 also. The first is diSaoKa^uKoc : it is to be known 
 that the prosperity of the heathen is not lasting, 
 but that heathendom has no basis of true pros- 
 perity. The second reason is Trapr/yoptKoc : the 
 pious are not to fear that the heathen will get 
 the upper hand and suppress the church. The 
 third is enavnpi^uriKoq: God's people are to guard 
 against forming alliances with the heathen and 
 trusting in their help. The fourth is eXeyKTiKog: 
 a conclusion is to be drawn a minori ad majus : if 
 God does not spare the heathen who are deprived 
 of His light, how much less will He spare His 
 people, if they despise the light of His word. 
 
 2. " .Jeremiah's God is also the Lord of all the 
 heathen and makes their destinies. They find 
 it so according to their words and especially 
 their posture towards the chosen people Israel. 
 They haste to their destruction, for one nation 
 only is eternal ; this, however, is the nation 
 which has been passed through a thousand sieves 
 and in comparison with others is no nation. 
 That which is in Israel, as in other nations, 
 passes away, and only that which it has above 
 other nations remains eternal. Jeremiah pro- 
 phesies most against Egypt, Moab and Babylon, 
 in which the wealth, the jealous, scoffing manner 
 of the mean world, and the cavalier spirit of 
 
 great states is rebuked He who rightly 
 
 understands this sees here not sermons addressed 
 to generations long since passed away, but to t-he 
 natural humanity streaming through this world, 
 as it is continually presented with new names 
 and yet always with the same carnal impulses 
 and based on the same unreason. To him, who 
 thus understands Jeremiah, he is again alive, 
 and the Jewish legend is fulfilled, that Jeremiah 
 must come again before the Messianic kingdom 
 can bloom up again in glory. Yea, let Jeremiah i 
 
 rise truly for thee to mourn, and Christ, with the 
 hosannas of His eternal hosts of disciples, will 
 not longer be hidden from thee, and in Him 
 thou wilt, have all things." Dieurioh. 
 
 3. On xlvi. 6. " The race is not to the swift. 
 Eccles. ix. 11. Therefore let not the strong 
 man glory in his i^trength. Jer. ix. 22 Also 
 are horses and chariots and such like things of 
 no avail : for to those who have not God on their 
 side, all is lost." Cramer. 
 
 4. On xlvi. 10. " God may long delay His 
 reckoning. This Pharaoh-necho had killed the 
 pious Josiah, conquered his son Jehoahaz and 
 laid the land of Judah under tribute. But guilt 
 rusts not, however old, and though God comes 
 slowly He comes surely." Cramer. 
 
 5. On xlvi. 10. "Although the ungodly go free 
 for a long time and rejoice with timbrel and 
 harp and are glad with pipes and spend their 
 days in wealth (Job xxi. 12), yet he lets them 
 go free like sheep for the slaughter, and spares 
 them for the day of slaughter (Jer. xii. 3)." 
 Cramer. 
 
 6. On xlvi. 25. " Bonum confidere in Domino et 
 nan in principibus (Ps. cxlvi.). When their help 
 is most needed they lie down and die." Forster. 
 
 7. On vers. 27, 28. "When God turns things 
 upside down and takes care that neither root 
 nor branch remains, His little flock must be pre- 
 served. The punishments which redound to the 
 destruction of the ungodly redound to the ame- 
 lioration of the godly. For from these He takes 
 the eternal punishment, and the temporal must 
 also redound to their advantage, but the ungodly 
 drink it to the dregs." Cramer. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On xlvi. 1-12. The power of God in contrast 
 to human power. 1. Human power confides in 
 its strength ; (a) in a qualitative (vers. 3, 4, 7) ; 
 (6) in a quantitative respect (ver. 8). 2. The 
 divine power strikes it down, whereby {a) arro- 
 gance is chastised (vers. 5, 6, 11) ; (6) the right- 
 eousness of God is satisfied (ver. 10). 
 
 4. prophecy against the philistines. 
 Chap. XLVII. 
 
 The word of Jehovah, which came to Jeremiah, the prophet, against the Philis- 
 tines, before Pharaoh had smitten Gaza. 
 Thus saith Jehovah : 
 Behold, waters rise out of the North, 
 And become an overflowing torrent. 
 And overflow the land and whatever is therein, 
 The city and those that dwell therein ; 
 And the men shall cry aloud,^ 
 And all the inhabitants of the country shall howl, 
 Before the thundering hoof-beat^ of his horses,' 
 Before the rattling of his chariots,* the rutnbling of his wheels. 
 Fathers, for feebleness* of hands, turn not for their children, 
 
 24 
 
370 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 4 Because of the day that eometh to extirpate all the Philistines, 
 
 To exterminate from Tyre and Sidon every escaped one that might help; 
 For Jehovah extirpates the Philistines, 
 The remnant of the coasts of Caphtor. 
 
 5 Baldness is come upon Gaza, 
 
 Ashkelon is struck dumb,^ the remnant of their valley. 
 How long wilt thou still wound thyself by cutting ? 
 
 6 Alas ! sword of Jehovah, how long ere thou wilt rest? 
 Back® into thy sheath, rest and be still ! 
 
 7 How canst thou rest ? Jehovah has given it a charge 
 Against Ashkelon and against the sea-shore — 
 Thither^ has he appointed it. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 2.— In regard to the construction, there are only two principal verbs from 2 6 to 4 a; — IpJ^TI and ^JBH- Evi- 
 dently whatever comes before the latter depends on the former, and what follows on the latter. 
 
 2 Ver. ■i.-T\!2j}p an. Aey. From analogies like y^h and I^^S, D-II] and 0^2, D-ID and Qj^p (Samar.), S?3 and ^^2 
 (comp. FuERST, H.-iv.-B., s. n. /-"IB) there can be no doubt that the radix is identical with £J-1tJ?, which appears to me, ac- 
 cording to lQi\^,flagelhim, D'O^ (Ezek. xxvii. 8, remiges, remigare^remis percutere), £3^^ (strike out, discurrere), to have 
 
 • T 
 
 the radical signification of " beating." 
 
 s Ver. 3.— VT'JX. Comp. rems. on xlvi. 15. 
 
 * Ver. 3.— I^JI*? I^J^T. The construction with 7 seems to proceed here from a striving after change. Otherwise in 
 
 ver. 6. Comp. Naegei.sb. ffr., § 07, 2. 
 6 Ver. 3. — {ViJT is <Ltt. Aey. 
 
 6 Ver. 4.— n^'IDnV Comp. xliv. 7. We should expect Tlt^ 11^^ l2- But the radical meaning of TTtJ' is not re- 
 
 liquus, but elapsus. Hence the meaning of the expression is not "every helper remaining," but " every escaped one that 
 might help," i. e. even the weakest, separated, inelfective helper. 
 
 7 Ver. 5. — If we should take ^^D^J 'u the sense of " being destroyed," the prophet must have suddenly dropped his 
 
 T : : 
 figure. I therefore take HO'n, with Graf, in its original meaning=D01 (comp. Ps. xlix. 13), and regard this being made 
 
 T T ~ T 
 
 dumb as a lower grade, or preliminary, of destruction, for Philistia still supplicates and according to ver. 7 the enemy 
 has t^till to take Ashkelon and the sea-coast. 
 
 8 Ver. ti. — '3DXn, put up thyself. Comp. Ezek. xxi. 35. 
 
 9 Ver. 7. — The emphatic repetition of the object by Dtj/ is tbe reverse of the anticipatory construction, which occurs 
 
 T 
 
 more frequently in Jeremiah. Comp. ix. 14 ; xi. 15 ; xli. 3 ; li. 56, etc. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 From the North the prophet sees the hostile 
 hosts approaching like groat water-floods against 
 the Philistines. Terror will seize these to such 
 a degree, that fathers will not once look round 
 after their children. Then will the Philistines 
 be extirpated even to the last remnant, and the 
 last helper be taken from the Phoenicians (vers. 
 2-4). Gaza and Ashkelon will fall, for the con- 
 sideration that the sword of the Lord has already 
 had enough bloody work, and will now stand still 
 before the last of these cities, does not hold good 
 (vers. 5-7). 
 
 Ver. 1. The word . . . smitten Gaza. 
 According to history .Jeremiah lived to see one, 
 and possibly two conqifsts of Gaza by Pharaoh, 
 for Herodotus relates (If., 159): 'LvpoLai TreCfi 6 
 "NiKur Gvu3a?MV iv Maj'fS'iAcj iviia/rrE' /lEra (U rf/v 
 l-iaxyv Kdi^vTi/v noViv Ttjr ^uf/ij^r hihnav /iryn'^r/v elAF. 
 Thus after the liattle of Mogiddo (for tliis is ad- 
 mitted to be MdyiSo/lof) Pharaoli-necho conquered 
 Gaza. That Knihrtg ia Gaza (according to the 
 Egyptian Kalnhi; comp. Di'\(;kf.r, I., i?. 342, 
 818) is now generally acknowledged. Comp. M. 
 NiKBUUR, Ass. u. Huh., S. ?M)\ Akxomi in Hku- 
 zoo, It. -Erie. IV., S. (')72 ; (iR.\F ail h. loc, S. 523; 
 Du.NCKER, etc. — Possibly Gaza had also been con- 
 quered by Psaminetichus. He took Ashdod, ac- 
 cording to Herodotus (II., 157), after a twenty 
 
 years' siege. Duncker is correctly of opinion 
 "that the siege of Ashdod could not well be un- 
 dertaken, before Gaza and Ashkelon had been 
 captured" [S. SIQ, Anni.). Jeremiah must have 
 survived the capture of Ashdod, for he speaks in 
 XXV. 20 of the remnant of Ashdod. This 
 must also have occurred in the second decennium 
 of his prophetic labors, since Psammetichus can- 
 not have commenced his expeditions against the 
 Philistines before B. C, 64U (comp. Duncker, 
 S. 81G). If then .Jeremiah did witness a con- 
 quest of Gaza in consequence of the undertaking 
 against Ashdod, it was yet an event of relatively 
 small importance. Gaza appears by no means 
 to have been destroyed, for in the same passage, 
 where Jeremiah speaks of the remnant of Ash- 
 dod (xxv. 2i>), he speaks of Ashkelon, Gaza and 
 Ekron, as cities still intact. It is inconceivable 
 that this capture of Gaza, which if it took place, 
 was of secondary importance, could be the occa- 
 sion of this prophecy, since the words "before 
 Pharaoh smote Gaza," can be understood only of 
 a celebrated, well-known conquest of Gaza. Any 
 oflier must have required a more particular 
 designation. Add to this, that when Jeremiah 
 proiiliesies the visitation of Philistia, and men- 
 tions the cities to he destroyed by name, hecould 
 not have left Ashdod unmuntioned, if the great 
 and celebrated siege of this city was then in pro- 
 gress. From his not mentioning it, we may 
 with safety conclude that the capture of this city 
 
CHAP. XLVII. 1-7. 
 
 371 
 
 was already a fact in the past. From all which 
 it follows that the superscription mnst refer to 
 the capture of Gaza by Pharaoh-necho, which, 
 Herodotus says, took place after the battle of 
 Magdolos or Megiddo. Two points are now to be 
 observed : — 
 
 1. This capture took place before the fourth 
 year of Jehoiakim, the battle of Megiddo oc- 
 curring in B. C, BOS (comp. Duncker. 5'. 817). 
 It is perfectly intelligible that Necho, wlio, as we 
 have seen above, lauded with his army in the 
 bay of Acco, sought to keep his retreat open by 
 subjugating the large fortified cities of Philistia, 
 especially Gaza, the key of the road to Egypt. 
 He would have been lost after the battle of Car- 
 chemish, if he had not t<vken these precautionary 
 measures. Accordingly the present prophecy 
 belongs not to those which Jeremiah published 
 in the year 604, after the battle of Carcheniish, 
 but is older. It agrees with this, that in this 
 chapter the Chaldeans and Nebuchadnezzar are 
 not mentioned, but an enemy from the north is 
 spoken of generally. 
 
 2. If now the waters rising from the north 
 (ver. 2) are the Chaldeans, as according to Jere- 
 miah's constant usage they must be, this super- 
 scription has not the sense that it asserts the 
 fulfilment of the prophecy by the conquest of 
 Gaza which soon followed on the part of Necho, 
 but on the contrary it is to declare, that Jere- 
 miah prophesied destruction to the Philistines by 
 an enemy from the north, at a time when con- 
 quest by an enemy from the south was impending. 
 It might indeed be alleged that .Jeremiah under- 
 stood by the "waters from the north" the 
 Egyptians, because they were then making their 
 attack on Philistia from the north. This, how- 
 ever, was only an accidental circumstance which 
 Jeremiah would certainly have designated as 
 such. It was natural that at a time when the 
 Egyptian forces, after the battle of Megiddo, were 
 turned against Philistia, Jeremiah should find 
 occasion for a prophecy against this country, but 
 that at this time he should designate its destruction 
 as the work of a northern enemy, corresponds 
 perfectly to the character of that prophet who 
 buys laud which is in possession of the enemy 
 (ch. xxxii.), and proclaims to the Jews in Tah- 
 panhes. that the throne of the Chaldean king will 
 stand before the gates of the royal palace (ch. 
 xliii.) I do not think that the capture of Gaza 
 was made by the army of the Egyptians returning 
 defeated from Carchemish. I lay no great weight 
 on Heroiloius' placing it immediately after the 
 battle of Magdolos, yet it is in itself improbable 
 that Necho could have deferred the capture of 
 "the key lo Egypt" so long, or have accom- 
 plished it with his defeated army. 
 
 Vers. 2-4. Thus saith . . . coasts of 
 Caphtor. The figure of an overflowing stream 
 is frequently used of armies. Comp. ez. gr., Isa. 
 viii. 7 ; Jer. xlvi. 7. — From the north. Comp. 
 i. 18-17. — And overflov7. Comp. viii. 16. — The 
 city, etc. Comp. xlvi. 8. — On turn not. Comp. 
 xlvi. 5. The exhaustion caused by the terror of 
 that day will hinder even parents from going to 
 the help of their children. A similar expression, 
 but in a dilferent sense, is found in Mai. iii. 24; 
 Luke i. 17. — The prediction of ver. 4 was soon 
 afterwards fulfilled. The Phoenicians in the dis- 
 
 tress caused by the Chaldeans which followed 
 the destruction of Jerusalem, must have grievously 
 missed the aid of their Philistine neighbors. — • 
 The remnant, e^c. Comp. Am. ix. 7; Gen. x. 14; 
 Ueut. ii. 23; Ezek. xxv. 1 ti ; Zeph. ii. 5. It is 
 certain that a part of the Philistines originated 
 from Caphtor, but not whether by Caphtor we 
 are to understand Creta or the coast of the Egyp- 
 tian delta (so Stauke, Gaza, S. 76). Comp. 
 Herz. It.-Enc. the articles "Philistia," "Creta," 
 and "Caphtor." 
 
 Vers. 5-7. Baldness . . . appointed It. 
 While in the previous context the catastrophe ia 
 designated as still future, it appears here in great 
 part to have occurred. The prophet in spirit 
 sees the country already in the hands of the 
 enemy. Gaza, the strong southern fortification, 
 the key of the country is, as it were, a head 
 shaven bare (comp. ii. 16) ; Ashkelon, the sea- 
 port, the mouth of the stream of traffic, is a 
 mouth struck dumb. It is not yet, indeed, de- 
 stroyed like Gaza, but its gates are closed. No 
 one any more goes in or out, for the enemy is 
 before them. — Remnant of their valley. In 
 the topography of Philistia a hilly country (in 
 the east), and alow country maybe distinguished. 
 Comp. Vaiiiinger's art., Philistia in Herz. ^.- 
 Enc. XI., S. 553. Although the proper name of 
 
 this low land is Vn^'^, it is yet possible that pD-^'^ 
 also may be put for it (comp. 1 Sam. xxxi. 7). 
 It must further be admitted that Ashkelon and 
 Gaza are not inappropriately termed the rem- 
 nant of the valley, for they were the strongest 
 cities: the enemy coming from the north through 
 
 Judea, has beset the hill region (nnC'X, Josh. x. 
 
 40; xii. 8. Comp. Vaihinger, ut sup.): in the 
 low country Gaza and Ashkelon resist the longest; 
 when these are fallen, the last remnant of the 
 low lands, consequently the whole land, is in the 
 power of the enemy. — Their and the following 
 sentence hew long, etc., refer to the whole 
 Philistia. These self-woundings were a heathen 
 custom in conjunction with earnest supplication 
 of their deities (comp. 1 Ki. xviii. 28 ; Herz. 
 R.-Enc, Art. Baal). The prophet then repre- 
 sents the Philistines here as humbling them- 
 selves. They perceive that it is the God of Israel, 
 who is bringing this judgment upon them (comp. 
 1 Sam. v.), they therefore appeal to Him after 
 their manner for grace. The prophet tells them, 
 however, that this can no longer help them, the 
 judgment having already begun with the facts 
 intimated in ver. 5, a. This explanation appears 
 satisfactory. I cannot, therefore, conclude to 
 read with Gesenius [Thes. s. v., pD^), HiTzia 
 
 and Graf after the LXX., DpJJ^ (Anakim), much 
 as this reading has in its favor, affording, as it 
 does, a suitable supplementation to "remnant 
 of the coasts of Caphtor," ver. 4, and an appro- 
 priate allusion to Gath, the chief residence of 
 the last of these giants (1 Sam. xvii. 4; 1 Chron. 
 XX. 5-8). Alterations of the reading are to be 
 permitted only in cases of extreme necessity. 
 The words of ver. 6 contain the import of the 
 supplications accompanying the self-woundings. 
 There seems to me to be an intimation that these 
 were tiie words of the Pl;ilistines in the expres- 
 sion of Jehovah (niri"''?), tor though not bad 
 
872 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 Hebrew, it has a foreign sound and makes the 
 impression that the speakers attribute the sword 
 raging against them only unwillingly and hesita- 
 tingly to Jehovah. In vi. 25; xii. 12, the con- 
 struction is different. — In ver. 7 the prophet 
 answers the petition of ver. 6. In the first clause 
 attaching himself closely to the question, a change 
 of person is thus occasioned, as so often in Jere- 
 miah. Comp. V. 14; xii. 13; xvii. 13; xxi. 12 
 (Chethibh), xxxvi. 29, 30; xlvi. 3, 9.— The sea- 
 shore is used in Ezek. xxv. 16 also of Philistia, 
 but it is not impossible that, as Graf supposes, 
 it may refer also to J lie Phenicians of ver. 4. It 
 also intimates that the enemy will advance from 
 the East. Comp. xxiii. 19, 20; xlviii. 10; Isa. 
 Iv. 10. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 Among all the neighboring nations the Philis- 
 tines were those who showed enmity to the 
 Israelites longest and with most success. For 
 from the times of Shamgar (Jud. iii. 31) down 
 to Hezekiah (2 Ki. xviii. 8j, they were both hostile 
 
 (comp. Dnp H^'X, Ezek. xxv. 15), and danger- 
 ous neighbors. Even Israel's great heroic and 
 victorious period, the time of Samuel, Saul and 
 David, did not result in rendering these oppo- 
 nents perfectly innoxious (comp. 1 Ki. xv. 27 ; 
 xvi. 15; 2 Chron. xxi. 16, 17; xxviii. 18). Ezekiel 
 even mentions them among those who delighted 
 
 with malicious joy in the fall of Jerusalem. 
 Since now it is perfectly natural that the theo- 
 cratic prophecy should include the Philistines 
 and reckon the destruction of these old enemies 
 among the bright points in Israel's future (comp. 
 Isa. xi. 14; xiv. 28, 29: Obad. 19; Am. i. 6; 
 Zeph. ii. 4; Ezek. xxv. 15), our prophecy is pro- 
 bably the earliest of Jeremiah's predictions 
 against foreign nations. As, however, Jeremiah 
 in ver. 6 predicts a humbling of the Philistines, 
 so Zechariah their complete conversion lo the 
 Lord and their reception into Israel (ix. 7). 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On xlvii. 1. The inviolable majesty of the 
 divine word has nothing to tear from an apparent 
 momentary violation. Jereminh predicts too the 
 Philistines' destruction by an enemy from the 
 north, at the moment when an enemy from the 
 south was about successfully to assail them. 
 
 2. On xlvii. 3. A noble picture of extreme de- 
 spair! Comp. Isa. xlix. 15. Yet it has occurred 
 that, women have killed and eaten their children: 
 2 Kings vi. 28,29. Comp. Deut. xxviii. 53-57; 
 Lam. ii. 20; iv. 10. 
 
 3. On xlvii. 6. "The terribly pathetic dis- 
 course which the prophet here holds with God's 
 sword, should remind us; 1, that no calamity 
 comes, but by the Lord's will ; 2, that it goes no 
 further than God will; 3, that it will not ceas* 
 before God wilL" Ceamer. 
 
 5. PROPHECY AGAINST MOAB (CHAP. XLVIIl). 
 
 Although Israel had received the command by Moses, not to oppress or make war on the Moabites (Deut. 
 ii. 9), the Moabites on their part acted in a most hostile manner towards Israel, and according to 
 Balaam's counsel (Num. xxxi. 17), did them greater injury by seducing them to idolatry, than they 
 could have done with weapons of war. In consequence of the command given by Moses, the Israelites 
 took possession of none of the country of the Moabites, but the Arrion. which had formed the boundary 
 line between the Moabites and Ammonites (Num. xxi. 13; Jud. xi. 18), now formed that between 
 Moab and Reuben (Deut. ii. 36; Josh. xiii. 9). From this time the history of the relations between 
 Israel and Moab falls into two periods. The first extends from the OQCupatiofi of the transjordanie 
 country to the subjugation of the Moabites by David (2 Sam. viii. 2). During this period many 
 struggles took place between the two iiations with varying success (Jud. iii. 12 sqq. ; 28 sqq. ; 1 Sam. 
 xiv. 47). The second period embraces the subjection of the Moabites under Davidand his successors {after 
 the division under the kings of Israel) to their revolt after the death of Ahab (2 Ki. i. 1 ; iii. 4, 5). The 
 third period again is one of hostility with varying success (2 Ki. iii. 6-27; xiii. 20), biit closes with 
 the occupation of the region to the north of the Arnon by the Moabites in consequence of the deportation 
 of the East-jordanic Israelites by Tiglath Pileser (2 Ki. xv. 29; 1 Chron. v. 6, 26). The fourth 
 period embraces their entire subsequent history. In this the only account we have of wars between the 
 two nations is, that Moabitish troops were sent against Jehoiakim after his revolt from the Chaldeans 
 (2 Ki. xxiv. 2). Under Zedekiah we see the Moabites in league with Israel against the common enemy, 
 the Chaldeans (Jer. xxvii. 1-3), of which Josephus (Ant. X., 9, 7) records that Nebuchadnezzar in 
 the fifth year after the destruction of Jerusalem subjugated the Ammonites and Moabites. In this 
 fourth period fall the other prophecies against Moab, with the exception of the brief oracle. Am. ii. 1- 
 S,viz., those of Isaiah (chh. xv. and xvi. coll. xxv. 16-19) Zephaniah (ii. 8-11), Jeremiah (ch. 
 xlviii.), Ezekiel (xxv. 8-11). 
 
 No" proof is needed that Jeremiah had occasion to direct a prophecy against this old hereditary foe. The 
 account in 2 K.\. xx'w. 2 shows that even .specially at that time the disposition of the Moabites was 
 hostile to Judah ; for this prophecy certainly belongs to the time of Jehoiakim and before the fourth 
 year, the Chaldeans and Nebuchadnezzar not being mentioned. The form of the superscription favor* 
 its contemporaneousness with the first prophecy against Egypt (xlvi. 1. 2). Comp. rem*, on that pa^- 
 
CHAP. XLVIII. 1-5. 873 
 
 sage. — Jeremiah's object in this prophecy ivas evidently to reanimate, as it were, the former declara- 
 tions of similar purport, and comprise them togeiher for the sake of a powerful total effect. From ver. 
 29 onwards, there is a constant, more or less free, use of older utterances. Of special importance ap- 
 peared to our prophet the prophecy of Isaiah, itself reproducing an older oracle (Isa. xvi. 13). He 
 makes very extensive use of it, particularly o/vers. 29-38. Amos also (comp. pNty-'JS, ver. 45, and 
 r\1'Tpn, vers. 24 and 41, with Am. ii. 2). Zcphaniah (comp. /'^JH, vers. 26 and 42, with Zeph. 
 ii. 8, 10) and even older utterances of the Pentateuch (comp. vers. 45, 46 with Num. xxi. 28, 29; 
 xxiv. 17) have not been left unemployed. Thus the prophecy has not only become very long, but 
 many unevennesses have been produced by the inlroduclion of foreign matters. Movers and Hitzig 
 have thus been misled to assume various interpolations. Graf, however, has satisfactorily rebutted 
 these attack's on the integrihf of our text. As regards the structure of the discourse, it consists, ac- 
 cording to the peculiarity of Jeremiah's style, in pictures of various extent, of which we number eleven. 
 The first five are predominantly occupied ivith the description of the punitive judgment breaking in upon 
 Moab (vers. 1-25), while the four following (vers. 26-42) have the reasons of this judgment for their 
 subject. The last two pictures (vers. 43, 44, and vers. 45, 46) are related to the two main divisio7is 
 as supplements, in so far as they contain nothing new, but draw only on two older sources, viz. : 1, a 
 drastic passage by Isaiah, which moreover has nothing to do with Moab ; 2, some declarations of the 
 book of Numbers referring to Moab. The last verse is a consolatory glance forming a conclusion to the 
 ■whole. 
 
 1. The Description of the Punitive Judgment (xlviii. 1-25.) 
 
 1. The Devastation Proceeding from City to City. 
 
 XLVIII. 1-5. 
 
 1 Against Moab. 
 
 Thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth, the God of Israel: 
 
 AVoe unto Nebo, for it is laid waste ! 
 
 Confounded and taken is Kiriathaim ! 
 
 Confounded and broken to pieces is the citadel [Misgab], 
 
 2 The glory of Moab is departed. 
 
 In Heshhon they have spun evil against ner. 
 " Up ! and let us cut her off from being a nation !"^ 
 Thou also, Madmen, art made mad [feeble] :* 
 Behind thee cometh the sword. 
 
 3 Hark! Crying from Choronaim — 
 Desolation and great ruin. 
 
 4 Broken in pieces is Moab ! 
 They cry aloud towards Zoar.' 
 
 5 For the ascent of Luhith is ascended with weeping, with weeping.* 
 
 For on the descent of Choronaim are heard the oppressors^ of the cry of woe. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 2.— "'UO. Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., 1 106, 6. 
 
 * Ver. 2. — Whether '3^n is Kal or Niphal, is doubtful. Both are possible. The Niphal meaning would correspond 
 best to the connection. Comp. Olsh., § 2-1.3 d, with Ewald, g 140 6. 
 
 3 Ver. 3.— I concur with Graf in reading myii*, following the LXX., instead of n'''lH'^. In Isa. xv. 5, which pas- 
 
 T-: TV. 
 
 sage the prophet had in view here, the fugitives of Moab flee 1_yi* l_j;, and in ver. 34 of this chapter. IJ^jf is mentioned 
 
 with Choronaim. The readin;; ni>''i* which appears also to have led the LXX. astray, so that they write Zoydpa instead 
 of 2»)7uip, as they elsewhere i euder l^i* (Gen. xiv. 2 ; six. 22 sqq. ; Isa. xv. 5) seems to have arisen in a similar manner 
 
 with ^'^W, iri'K'IX', etc. Comp. rems. on xvii. 23. The analogy of xiv. 3 finally produced the alteration into iT^IJ^}? . 
 
 ♦ Ver. 5. — n 7_I^' is a paronomasia with H 7j?rD ; grammatically it is the third person singular impersonal. Comp. 
 Naegelsb. Gr., § 101, 2 6. Instead of the second '' J3, we have U iu the passage in Isaiah. It is natural to suppose that 
 here "33 arose from a blending of the following ^2 with the preceding 3, in consequence of indistinct or defective writing 
 
 Df the vowel. Delitzsch also {Jes., S. 207) attributes the reading to a mistake. It is not, however, to be denied that .Tere- 
 piiah may possibly have written OS- Then it would be more advisable to take the second as an empiiatic rhetorical repe- 
 tition of the first with omission of the preposition (comp. Naeoeisb. Gr.. § 112, 8), than to give it the part of the subject. 
 For, when we compare cases like n J L^3 twd, Vl'Z I'Vi we must not forget that here the immediate juxtaposition of the 
 
 two assonant words is essential. 
 
 5 Ver. CI. — Comp. ~\^i with accus., and following 7J7 as a designation of the term, ad quern ; .lud. ix. 31 ; Isa. xxix. 3, 
 
 and on the construct itate, aa a substitute for the preposition, Naegelsb. Gr., g 04, 5 c. In accordance with the exegesis of 
 
374 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 this passage, as given below, we are neither to take D''"1V as an abstraction=an5rus<i«, nor with IIitzig to read '"l^f (X"iy), 
 »nd regard this as the literal name, and connect it as a gloss with ')2'y, meaning the same, nor with Geaf to take •""^if 
 
 (which does not once occur in old Hebrew) in connection with * 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The prophet proclaims destruction to Moab by, 
 as it were, sketching a great picture, in which 
 we not only perceive the abomination of desola- 
 tion embracing and, as it were, enveloping the 
 whole country, but also distinguish particular 
 points marked by glaring colors. In the enume- 
 ration of the cities there is a general progress 
 from north to south. 
 
 Against Moab. The superscription leans 
 for support on xlvi. 2. Comp. the introduction to 
 chh. xlvi.-li. 
 
 Ver. 1. Thus saith . . . citadel. That the 
 mountain Nebo is not meant, is seen from the 
 verb, both in its sense and form (fem.). The 
 city of Nebo (comp. ver. 22; Num. xxxii. 3, 3B) 
 was situated, according to the Onomasticon of 
 Jerome, eight Roman miles south of Heshbon, 
 while Mt. Nebo was six miles west of this city. 
 Comp. Raumer, Paldst., S. 265. — Kiriathaim 
 (comp. ver. 23; Gen. xiv. 5; Num. xxxii. 37; 
 Josh. xiii. 19 ; Ezek. xxv. 9) is one of the oldest 
 cities of the East-Jordanic district. Burkhardt 
 [Travels in Syria, II., S. 626) found ruins of a 
 place called Et-Taim, half an hour west of Me- 
 daba, which, however, does not well harmonize 
 with the statement of Jerome, who places Ka- 
 ptd^a (Koroiatha, Kiriathaim), ten Roman miles 
 west of Medaba. Comp. Raumer, S. 263, 4 et 
 pass. ; Herz. R.-Enc, VII., S. 710. 
 
 The citadel [Misgab]. It is very probable 
 from the context that a definite locality is meant, 
 for otherwise either the citadel of the last men- 
 tioned city must be intended, or the citadels of 
 Moab generally. In both cases, however, we 
 should expect the word to have a sufSx. Hence 
 the chief fortress of the Moabites, Kir-Moab, or 
 Kir-heres (comp. vers. 31 and 36 ; Isa. xv. 1 ; 
 xvi. 7, 11 ; 2 Ki. iii. 25) has been correctly under- 
 stood. No appeal can be made in behalf of this 
 view to Isa. xxv. 12, since it is extremely ques- 
 tionable whether a definite locality is there in- 
 tended. Comp. Drhch^lur on Isa. xxv. 12. On 
 Kir-Moab, coaip. Heuz. R.-Enc. VII., S. 558 sqq. 
 
 Ver. 2. The glory . . . the sword. From 
 vers. 29, 30, we see that the Moabites were in- 
 clined to proud self-praise, but we cannot here 
 take the word translated glory in flio subjective 
 sense, as the whole stroplie has for its sulyectfhe 
 destruction of real objects. It is, therefore, here 
 as in Deut. xxvi. 19 ; Jer. xiii. 11 ; li. 4, the sub- 
 ject of their glory. — The name of the city Hesh- 
 bon gives occasion for a play upon words. We 
 translate "spun" after the example of Meier. 
 Heslibon was then in the possession of the Am- 
 monites (xlix. 3). On arriving at the boundary 
 tiie enemy projects his plan of attack. Comp. 
 rems on ver. 45. After the deportation of tlie 
 East-Jordanic tribes by Tiglatli-Piloser (2 Ki. 
 XV. 29 ; 1 Chron. v. 26), the Moabites appear to 
 have taken possession of their territory. Hence 
 Isaiah ( xv. 4 ; xvi. 8, 9) mentions Heslibon among 
 the Moubitish cities. The Ammonites must have 
 
 =cry of murder. 
 
 come subsequently into possession of the city. 
 Comp. Graf, S. 654 ; Von Raumer, S. 262 and 
 269, 270. — A place called Madmen, im Moab, is 
 not expressly mentioned elsewhere, but there 
 seems to be a trace of it in the figure of the 
 dung-pit (Isa. xxv. 10), to the choice of which 
 Isaiah may have been occasioned by the existence 
 of such a place, as Joseph Kimchi supposed. 
 Besides a HJOIO is mentioned in Benjamin, Isa. 
 X. 31 ; a n30nb in Judah, Josh. xv. 31; a njDl 
 in Zebulon, Josh. xxi. 35. Hence JOID here 
 also is not to be taken as an appellative, as some 
 modern commentators would do, following the 
 LXX., Vulg. and Syr., but as a proper noun. 
 
 Vers. 3-5. Hark . . . cry of woe. From 
 Choronaim (comp. Isa. xv. 5) a loud cry is heard, 
 and at the same time the noise of the city falling 
 into ruins. Comp. iv. 6 ; vi. 1 ; 1. 22 ; Is. lix. 7 ; 
 Ix. 18. — Graf has made it very probable that by 
 Moab in ver. 14 is to be understood, not the 
 country, but the city (Num. xxi. 28; Isa. xv. 1 ; 
 Num. xxii. 36). The mention of several cities in 
 connection, and the feminine gender of the verb 
 (comp., however, the masculine in ver. 11) favor 
 this. I refer also to Num. xxi. 16, where "^p 
 alone seems to be given as the name of the city. 
 — The first hemistich of ver. 5 is taken almost 
 verbatim from Isa. xv. 6, there being a difference 
 only in the last words. As we have Luhith in 
 Isaiah, without any difference in reading, we are 
 justified in following the Keri, which has the same 
 
 here. From the other reading (mn^'7=tables, 
 boards) a suitable sense can be wrung only with 
 difficulty. ^^Est usque hodie vicus inter Areopolin 
 {i. e.,Ar-3foab) et Zoarum 7iomine Lidtha," says Je- 
 rome in the Onomasticon. By For the declaration 
 of the preceding verse, that the inhabitants of Ar- 
 Moab cry towards Zoar, is explained, viz., the 
 ascent of Luhith, which is on the road designated, 
 they are seen to ascend weeping. — In the second 
 half of the verse we find a much altered copy of 
 the second half of the verse in Isa. xv. 5. Instead 
 of " in the way of Horonaim" it is inJeremiah, 
 "in the descent of Horonaim." The present form 
 of the text appears to me to betraj' an effort after 
 greater distinctness and closer correspondence to 
 the topography. Hence the ascent of Luhith is 
 opposed to the descent of Horonaim. He who 
 would go from Ar-Moab to Zoar, would have to 
 go down a declivity at Horonaim, and ascend an 
 elevation at Luhith. Similarly Vitkinga on Isa. 
 XV. 6, only that he makes Luhith come first after 
 Ar-Moab and Horonaim afterward, which, how- 
 ever, evidently contradicts the connection. In 
 Isaiah it reads "they raise aery of destruction," 
 and here it might be objected, how could those 
 who go up by Luhith weep, because they raise a 
 cry at Horonaim? When the ascent of Luhith is 
 faking place, the descent of Horonaim lying in 
 the reiir is vacant. Or are the people of Horo- 
 naim supposed to have remained behind, when 
 tlie streanj of fugitives passed tiirough from Ar- 
 Moab? How could this stream raise a cry at 
 Horonaim while ascending Luhith ? They might, 
 
CHAP. XLVIII. 6-10. 
 
 375 
 
 however, Ye anxious when they heard the op- 
 pressors behind them at Horonaim. I therefore 
 
 think that "^2^, which has given the commenta- 
 tors 80 much trouble, and produced so many 
 ouriosities of exegesis, is quite correct. IV is 
 
 the oppressor ; for 11X is premere, urgere aliquem 
 hostili modo. The genitive is to be taken in that 
 wider and freer sense, which the construct state 
 80 frequently has. The oppressors of the cry of 
 woe are those who cause the cry by their oppres 
 sious. 
 
 2. Summons to flight, which yet will not secure lafety, 
 XLVIII. 6-10. 
 
 6 Flee, save your lives ! 
 
 But they shall be^ like a forsaken one^ in the wilderness. 
 
 7 For on account of thy confidence in thy bungling work' 
 And in thy treasures shalt thou also be taken, 
 
 And Chemosh shall go into captivity, 
 His priests and his princes together.* 
 
 8 And the spoiler shall come upon every city, 
 And the city shall not be delivered ; 
 
 The valley also shall perish, 
 
 And the plains shall be devastated — as' Jehovah hath spoken. 
 
 9 Give wings* unto Moab, for it will flee forth. 
 But its cities shall be desolation 
 
 Without any to dwell therein. 
 10 Cursed be he who doeth Jehovah's work remissly, 
 
 And cursed be he who keepeth back his sword from biood. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 6. — nynnV if the condition to be.expected.as a consequence of the flight were to be designated, VHl <"" nn^iTI 
 
 T : T : T : 
 
 would be grammatically more correct. Hence I take 1 in the adversative sense, and the Imperf. as a simple announce- 
 ment. The plural of the third person refers to the ideal plural contained in the collective DDtJ'fl J- 
 
 '^ Ver. 6. — It has been with reason supposed that ^^1J^3 is to be read instead of '\^^'^V2, according to the analogy 
 
 of xvii. 6 The opinion that the strange word was also the name of a city, and indeed of the well-known Aroer, may easily 
 have given occasion to the reading of the text. The ancient translations vacillate : .the LXX. translate-ovos aypiosOTIJ?). 
 
 Vulg. : myrica {virgultum humile et spinnsum) ; Syrus : ti-uncus arhoris, slips. All these renderings lack proper etymological 
 foundation. Gesenius {Commenlary on Isa. vii. 2j, and in his Thesaurus (S. 10, 74), fixes the meaning of rudera, ruinx, on 
 IJ^TIJ^ itself, but for this also there is no etymological basis. 
 
 8 Ver. 7. — The meaning of D'ti'J^iO is doubtful— bulwark, bungling work (idol images), property — the latter according 
 
 to passages like Exod. xxiii. 16; 1 Sam. xxv. 2. But in these passages riK'^O denotes only the pursuit of agriculture and 
 
 its products. An emphasis on this appears to be superfluous with riJ'IV IX- Since immediately afterwards the disgraceful 
 
 T 
 
 carrying away of the principal idol of Moab is expressly mentioned, the mention of these manufactured idols as vain sup- 
 ports is more suitable to the connection (i. 16 ; x. 3, 9 ; xxv. 6, 7. Comp. xlix. 4). 
 
 * Ver. 7. — Tn' (Chethibh) does not occur elsewhere in Jeremiah. In the parallel passages, also, we find 'TH'- 
 
 T : ~ 
 
 5 Ver. 8.— '•■' lOX "IK^X- This "^t^X, whether we take it as=as, because, or which, is -quite contrary to the usage of 
 
 Jeremiah, since he always inserts i' "^bx alone (vi. 15; xxx. 3 ; xxxiii. 11, 13 ; xlix. 2, 18). J. D. Michaelis supposes it is 
 ortum ex repelitione finalium literarum prxcedentis, "lU/'O. It is also wanting, according to him, in Cod. 72. 
 
 6 Ver. 9.— I"'' i* from the radical meaning micare, prcmiicare, has also tlie meanings of "forehead-plate" (of the high- 
 priest, Exod. xxviii. 36-3S), " flower," and " wing," in which last it occurs here. In Chaldee it is used for ala, Ps. cxxxix. 
 9; for fin Lev. xi. 9. Comp. Buxtorf's L'x. Cliald.., p. 1907. The choice both of this word and the following xij, seems to 
 
 T 
 
 have been occasioned by an effort at paronomasia. For XV J also (properly HV J. Comp. Jli'l J, wing ; Ezek. xvii. 3, 7 ; Job 
 
 TT T ' 
 
 xxxix. 13— the X for the sake of uniformity with XVn. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 93 d, Anm.), is owaf \ey6iievov. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This strophe portrays the destruction threaten- 
 ing Moab by surojvouing the people to flight, but a,t 
 
 the same time distinctly declaring that this would 
 not avail. This summons is made in a double 
 gradation: 1. Moab is simply called upon to fl'je 
 (ver. 6 a), but it is directly remarked that Moab 
 would only barely escape and then be recaptured 
 
876 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 (vers. 6 6-7 a), and that in consequence the en- 
 tire people, idols, priests and princes at their 
 head, would be carried into captivity, while all 
 remaining immovable property would be de- 
 stroyed (vers. 7 b, 8). 2. The means of flight 
 are offered to Moab in a figure (9 a) but, as the 
 second half of the verse briefly intimates, the end 
 will yet be the same, namely, devastation (ver. 9 
 b). It cannot also possibly be otherwise, for the 
 Lord makes known Ilis fixed resolution to destroy 
 Moab, by threatening remissness or forbearance 
 in the work of destruction with His curse (ver. 
 10). 
 
 Vers. 6-8. Flee . . . hath spoken. The 
 cull to flee is evidently intended ironically, for the 
 announcement, directly follows that the condition 
 of the fugitives will be an extremely wretched 
 one, that they will indeed be again taken. — Like 
 a forsaken one, — Hike Aroer. Three Aroers 
 are known; in Judah (1 Sam. xxx. 26), in Gad 
 (Num. xxxii. 34; Josh. xiii. 25; Jud. xi. 33; 2 
 Sam. xxiv. 5), and in Reuben (Deut. ii. 36; iii. 
 12; iv. 18; Josh. xii. 2; xiii. 9; Jud. xi. 26). 
 The first cannot possibly be meant. How one of 
 the two others, whether that on the Arnon, or that 
 further to the north, in the vicinity of Rabbath- 
 Ammon, can be called "Aroer in the wilderness," 
 it is difiicult to perceive. For if even on the 
 lii\sis of Isa. xvii. 2, the city be supposed to be 
 then destroyed, it is yet strange that a destroyed 
 city should be designated as situated " in the 
 wilderness," since this expression by no means 
 involves the idea of destruction. Hence I have 
 adopted the alternate reading proposed, which is 
 favored by what follows. Neither a city, nor a 
 tree, nor ruins, can flee and be taken, but this 
 may easily happen to one nudatus et desertus in 
 the wilderness. The causal sentence, ver. 7, has 
 then the sense: thy flight will no longer procure 
 thee protection, as one forsaken in the desert 
 finds out, for thou also (like other nations) wilt be 
 taken. And this will be the punishment of Moab 
 for having founded its happiness on false sup- 
 ports. — Chemosh (the Chethibh E/"'D3 is perfectly 
 
 unique) was the national god of the Moabites 
 and Ammonites (1 Ki. xi. 7 ; 2 Ki. xxiii. 13 ; Jud. 
 xi. 24). Moab is, therefore, called the people 
 of Chemosh (ver. 40 ; Num. xxi. 29) ; accord- 
 ingly here, also, iiis princes are called princes 
 of Chemosh. The idol goes into captivity when 
 his image is carried away. Comp. xlix. 3 ; Am. 
 i. 15; Hos. X. 5, 6. The passage Am. i. 15 
 seems to have been in the prophet's mind here, as 
 in xlix. 3. — Ver. 8 describes the destruction of 
 the immovable property ; cities, valleys (all river- 
 valleys in antithesis to elevated plains and moun. 
 
 tains), and plains (liiJ/'Jp the plateau of Rabbath- 
 
 Ammon, south as far as the Arnon. Comp. Deut. 
 iii. 10; iv. 43; Josh. xiii. 9, 16, 17, 21; xx. 8; 
 Raumer, Pal. S. 71 fl".) 
 
 Ver. 9. Give ■wings . . . therein. In com- 
 parison with ver. 6 there is evidL-utly a progress 
 here; there it is a mere call to flight, here the 
 call is to afford Moab the only still imaginable 
 means for this, viz., wings. The one call is as 
 ironical as the other. There is a strengthening 
 of the irony in the word "for," which designates 
 the fleeing away as the object not of the speaker, 
 but of Moab. Comp. Isa. xvi. 2. — The second 
 half of the verse corresponds as a brief synopsis 
 to all that has been mentioned from ver. 6 6 to 
 ver. 8, as the result of the first summons (ver. 6 
 a). The expression is as in xlvi. 19; xlix. 17 ; 
 li. 43 ; iv. 9, etc. 
 
 Ver. 10. Cursed . . . from blood. These 
 words are the foil to the foregoing description. 
 On this background the irony appears in its full 
 strength. From these words we perceive what 
 was the true meaning of the summons to flight, 
 and how much more bitter the severity is ren- 
 dered by these contrasting announcements (ver. 
 6 6-ver. 8 ; ver. 9 b). Moab's destruction is 
 designated as the work of the Lord, because this 
 is no more than the execution of a decree of 
 judgment pronounced by Him. Comp. xxv. 31 ; 
 xlvi. 10 ; li. 6. — Remissly. Comp. Prov. x. 4; 
 xii. 27. 
 
 3. The Transfusion. 
 XLVIII. 11-18. 
 
 11 Moab hath been at ease from his youth, 
 And he lay still on his lees, 
 
 And was not drawn off from one- vessel to another,* 
 Neither hath he gone into exile : 
 Therefore hath his taste remained in him, 
 And his fragrance hath not changed. 
 
 12 Therefore behold, the days are coming, saith Jehovah, 
 That I will send unto him tilters, who shall tilt him up 
 And empty his vessels and dash his dishes in pieces. 
 
 13 And Moab shall be put to shame by Chemosh, 
 
 As the house of Israel was put to shame by Bethel, their confidence. 
 
CHAP. XLVIII. 14-17. 
 
 37* 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 • Ver. 11. — On 7K for 7^ comp. rems. on x. 1. 
 
 ' Ver. 12.— n^lf , inclinare, only here and ii. 20 in Jeremiah. In D'J^i tbe object is Moab, or the wine representing 
 
 it; since it is to be mentioned what is made empty there must be another object to Ip^T, and as 73 J (originally a leathern 
 
 bottle, and then cadus,urceus; comp. xiii. 12 ; Lam. iv. 2 ; Isa. xxx. 11) offered itself as a paronomasia [alliteration] to ViJJ, 
 
 it is given as the third object, though really the object remains the same. In order to render the alliteration we have trans- 
 lated, after Luthkr, [Bl.wnet, Noyes, Wordsworth] "tilters" and "tilted;" [Cowles : emptyers; and the former after 
 Meier, render " dash '" and " dishes."— S. K. A.J 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 In a very palpable figure the prophet compares 
 Moab with wiue, which has never been drawn 
 oiF into another cask and has therefore retained 
 its taste and scent unchanged (ver. 11). The 
 Lord will transfuse Moab and cause his old cask 
 to be broken in pieces (ver. 12), and then, like 
 Israel, he will be put to shame by his idols. 
 
 Vers. 11-13. Moab . . . their confidence. 
 Since the Moabites took the land from the origi- 
 nal inhabitants, the Emims (Deut. ii. 10), they 
 had generally remained in quiet possessien of it. 
 They had never been carried into captivity, as 
 had been the case with Israel in their stay in 
 Egypt and the deportation of the ten tribes. 
 That this is the meaning of the figure is ex- 
 pressly declared in ver. 11, by the words neither 
 hath he gone into exile. It seems to me 
 doubtful whether Jeremiah has reference to Isa. 
 XXV. 6 ; at any rate, on account of the difference 
 in the main thoughts, the reference can be only 
 cursory and verbal. Essentially the same 
 thought, however, is expressed in the same 
 words in Zeph. i. 12, whence it is probable that 
 Jeremiah had this passage in mind. Four points 
 
 are distinguished : 1. As a basis the fact that 
 Moab has never been transfused. 2. The pri- 
 mary consequence that its taste and odor have 
 remained. So far as this refers to the outward 
 status reruin, a great degree of national pros- 
 perity is thus designated. In so far, however, 
 as the words refer to the inward habitus, or to 
 their relation to God and connected with this to 
 His people, they express a sense unfavorable to 
 Moab. They declare that Moab has never been 
 thoroughly purified, never been freed from its 
 enmity to the Lord and His people. 3. As a 
 secondary consequence, it is mentioned, that a 
 time of visitation is impending on Moab, since 
 it cannot possibly be privileged against such a 
 season. The instruments of the visitation are 
 designated, in accordance with the figure in ver. 
 11, as coopers, who are to tilt up the old casks, 
 empty and then break them in pieces. 4. As the 
 final result it is mentioned that Moab will be put 
 to shame by Chemo^h as Israel by Bethel. The 
 long undisturbed quiet was physically considered 
 a benefit to Moab, but spiritually a gracious op- 
 portunity which it did not make use of. Hence 
 Moab must become wise, like Israel, by loss and 
 suffering (comp. 1 Ki. xii. 28-33). 
 
 4. TVie Vanity of Human Glory. 
 XLVIII. 14-17. 
 
 14 How can ye say, we are heroes 
 And strong men for the war ? 
 
 15 Desolated is Moab and his cities go up/ 
 
 And his best young men go down to the slaughter, 
 Saith the King, Jehovah Zebaoth is his name. 
 
 16 Moab's destruction is near approaching, 
 And his calamity hastens on apace.^ 
 
 17 Bemoan him, all his neighbors, 
 All ye, who know his name, 
 
 Say, how is the mighty stem broken, 
 The splendid rod ! 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 "Ver. 15.— The singular rhy is certainly surprising, but the alteration of the text to intjr (the spoiler of Moab and tils 
 
 cities goes up) [as J. D. Mich., Ewald, Graf, BLAY^fEY], seems to me unnecessary. I believe tliat .Teremiah had in view the 
 
 passage in Jud. xx. 40 (HD'Oiyn 1'J.'n-V7D hS V H^m), ami that thus the sing. masc. is explained, which moreover 
 
 X :~ T ~ • T • : TT ••*: 
 
 in the principle of the ideal number (the entirctv of the cities regarded as a unit. Comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., i 105 4 a) has a 
 grammatical support. 
 
 « Ver. 16.— Comp. Isa. xiii. 22 ; Ivi. 1 ; Naeoelsb. Or., I 95, 3 6. 
 
878 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 All human glory is turned to shame, whether 
 one glorify himself, as, according to ver. 14, 
 Moab had done, to which the destruction of all 
 his warlike power stands in strong contrast 
 (ver. 15), or good friends and neighbors praise 
 us. These may soon and easily find occasion 
 (ver. 16) to turn their song of praise into a 
 lamentation. 
 
 Vers. 14, 15. How can . . . his name. In 
 opposition to Moab's boastful glorying in his 
 warlike strength, desolation is announced in 
 general and destruction according to a just Ne- 
 mesis of the main objects of his glorying: the 
 fort)*i°d cities, which seemed to rest immovably 
 on their foundations, must fly away in smoke ; 
 
 the strong youths, wlio aimed high, must go 
 down to slaughter. — Go dowrn, etc. Comp. Isa. 
 xxxiv. G, 7 ; Jer. 1. 27; li. 40.— Saith, etc. Comp. 
 xlvi. 18; li. 67. 
 
 Vers. 16, 17. Moab's destruction . . . 
 splendid rod. So near and certain is the de- 
 struction of Moab that his neighbors and friends 
 are called upon to bemoan the overthrow of this 
 power so highly extolled hitherto by themselves. 
 — Bemoan him. Comp. xv. 5; xvi. 5; xxii. 
 10. — Neighbors (comp. xlvi. 14; xlviii. 39: 
 xlix. 5), literally those round about iiim, there- 
 fore most intimately acquainted with him, ye 
 •who know his name, being the more distant 
 acquaintances. (Comp. the related expressions 
 in Ps. Ixxxvii. 4; Job xix. 13; xlii. 11; Ps. Ivi. 
 14; Ixxxviii. 9, 19). — The mighty stem. 
 Comp. Ps. ex. 2 ; Ezek. xix. 12, 14. 
 
 6. Message to the Fugitives on the Arnon. 
 XLVIII. 18-25. 
 
 18 Come down from thy glory and seat thyself in the thirsty/ 
 Thou inhabitant daughter of Dibon !^ 
 
 For the spoiler of Moab is advancing against thee, 
 He destroyeth thy strongholds. 
 
 19 Place thyself by the wayside and look out, 
 Thou inhabitress of Aroer ; 
 
 Ask of the fugitive and her who is escaped !' 
 Say, What hath been done ?* 
 
 20 " Moab is confounded, for she is broken down.^ 
 Howl and cry !® 
 
 Proclaim it on the Arnon, that Moab is destroyed ; 
 
 21 And judgment has come on the land of the plain, 
 On Holon and on Jahazah, and on Mephaath, 
 
 22 And on Dibon, Nebo and Beth-diblathaim, 
 
 23 And on Kiriathaim, Beth-gamul and Beth-meon, 
 
 24 And on Kerioth and Bozrah, 
 
 And on all the cities of the land of Moab, far or near. 
 
 25 The horn of Moab is broken off, 
 
 And his arm is shattered " — saith Jehovah. . 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 18.— Judging from the parallel passage (Isa. xlvii. 1) we must read with the Kerl »3Bf^. XDV everywhere els© 
 
 T T 
 
 iignifies thirst. " To seat one's self in the thirst," however, sounds very strange. We must then either punctuate X02f , or re- 
 gard xnV as a collateral form of XOV (comp. \'21 with n'^, Gen. xlix. 12 ; ^Sp with aSpi, Exod. xxiii. 19). In I^tin 
 
 also sitientia is used for reginnes aridx. Comp. Plin. HUL. N X. 7:5 ; XIT. '2S ; XXV. 11. 
 
 2 Ver. 18. *13''T~r\3 r\3K'''. This form of expression is found besides here only in xlvi. 19. The construction is as in 
 
 XVi r\3 nSin^, isa. xxxvil. 22. Comp. Naeoelsu. Gr., ? 64, 4. 
 
 8 Ver. 19. ntoSo J1 D J. The different gender is to express the variety. On the irregular accentuation of ptO/D J 
 
 tomp. Olsh., S. 253 and 3G3. 
 
 * Ver. 19.— On nn'TIJ and its difference from the masc. (the idea of multiplicity involved in the feminine) comp. 
 t|t:- 
 Naeoelsb. Or., § 60, 6 6. 
 
 5 Ver. -.JU.— The fem. HPn can only be referred to Moab, in spite of the immediately preceding \tf^2T\. It is the same 
 
 change in gender as in ver. 9, ver. 11, ver. 16 (n"yi ''D "VWi, and then again VlinS), vera. 38 and 39. Observe beside* 
 that i^'^n precedes as TIB' does. 
 
CHAP. XLVIII. 18-25. 
 
 r.T'j 
 
 •Ver. 20. — The alteration of the Keri (to accord -with the following ^TjH) is unnecessary, since the fern, form of tttf 
 imperf. evidently attaches itself to the preceding '10^, etc. Accordingly it ia Aroer, which is addressed, not Moab. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 An animated picture ! First some concrete 
 forms of cities are directly addressed: Dibon is 
 to go down, Aroer to question the fugitives 
 (vers. 18, 19). Tlie answer of tlie latter is sad 
 enougli. Arrived ou tiie Arnon, where Aroer is 
 situated, and thus on the borders of the viishor, 
 they proclaim that it is at an end with Moab, for 
 all the cities of the northeru half of the country 
 are taken (vers. 20-24). From this it follows as 
 the total result, that the power of Moab is 
 broken (ver. 25). 
 
 Ver. 18. Come down . . . thy strong- 
 holds. Isa. xlvii. 1 was here in the prophet's 
 mind, "Come down and sit in the dust, virgin 
 daughter of Babylon." — On Dibon, which, as we 
 conclude from thy strongholds, was a fortified 
 city and was situate a league north of the Arnon, 
 comp. Num. xxxii. 3, 34 ; Josh. xiii. 9, 17 ; Isa. 
 XV. 2 ; Raumer, Pal. S. 2G1. 
 
 Ver. 19. Place thyself . . . done. To the 
 inhabitants of Aroer, tlie southern boundary city 
 
 of the "lil^'p (comp. rems. on ver. 8) the sad sum- 
 mons is addressed to go out into the street, to spy 
 out (comp. Nah. ii. 2) and then to make inquiries 
 from the approaching train of the fugitives. 
 
 Vers. 20-25. Moab . . . saith Jehovah. 
 These verses contain the answer of the escaped. 
 — Judgment. The choice of the expression is 
 occasioned by the mishor, plain, which signifies 
 not merely plain, but sequitas, justitia. Comp. 
 Ps. xxix. 11 ; xlv. 7 ; Ixvii. 5. Judgment is 
 thus to come upon the land, whose name also 
 signifies "land of righteousness." The cities 
 mentioned afterwards are all in the Mishor. 
 Holon (diiFerent from another in Judah, Josh. 
 XV. 51) is mentioned here only. Jahaza (Comp. 
 Isa. XV. 4; Num. xxi. 23 ; Josli. xiii. 18; Jud. xi. 
 20) lay, according to Eusebius and Jerome, in 
 the vicinity of Medaba. Comp. Raumer, S. 263. 
 
 — Mephaath is elsewhere called rijt^30 (Josh, 
 xiii. 18) or TS^ji^-q (Josh. xxi. 37; 1 Chron. vi. 
 
 64). According to the passages cited from the 
 book of Joshua it belongs to the tribe of Reuben 
 and to the Mishor. — Dibon. Comp. rems on 
 ver. 18. — Nebo. Comp. rems. on ver. 1. — 
 Beth-diblathaim is not mentioned elsewhere 
 
 in the Old Testament. Its position is clear from 
 the statement of Jerome, that Jahaza was situ- 
 ated between Medaba and Diblathaim. ( Vid. 
 Ono-masticon s. v. Jatt'a). — Kiriathaim. Comp. 
 rems. on ver. 1. — Beth-gamul occurs here only. 
 If Pointer is correct in recoguizing Bozrah, Ke- 
 rioth and Betli-gamul in the present ruined 
 cities of the Haurau, Bosra, Kureiyeh and El Je- 
 mal, we have here three cities not in Moab, but 
 separated from it by the entire territory of the 
 Ammonites. Comp. Raumer, Pal. S. 251, 2. 
 This hypotljesis is, however, improbable, since 
 real Moabitish cities can be shown for Bozrah 
 and Kerioth. See below. — Beth-meon was 
 named in full Beth-baal-meon (Josh. xiii. 17) ; 
 elsewhere Baal-meon (Num. xxxii. 38j, and is 
 designated among the other places as belonging 
 to the Mishor and to the tribe of Reuben, 
 ('omp. Raumer, S. 259 and 264. — Kerioth. 
 Comp. ver. 41 and Am. ii. 2. Seetzen found a 
 place on Mt. Attarus (comp. il'lCO^ Num. xxxii. 
 
 34, 35) called El-Karriat, which he decidedly 
 regards as Kerioth not ICiriathaim. Comp. R.\t:- 
 MER, S. 251, 2. — Bozrah. There is a Bozrah 
 mentioned as in Edom (comp. rems. on xlix. 13) 
 and one as in the Hauran, but the latter not in the 
 Bible. It was the Bostra of the Romans, the birth- 
 place of Pliilippus Arabs. Immense ruins still 
 testify to the importance of the city. Comp. 
 Raumer, S. 244. Since, however, a place "1}f3 in 
 the Mishor is expressly mentioned (Dent. iv. 43 ; 
 Josh. XX. 8 ; xxi. 30), and since the LXX. always 
 render this name by Boaop, we do not hesitate to 
 
 recognize n"lX3 in this "12f3. — And on all the 
 
 T : T vv 
 
 cities, etc. From the context it can only be the 
 cities to tlic north of Aroer which are meant, for 
 according to ver. 19 sqq., the fugitives announce 
 to the people of Aroer that both the cities further 
 to the north, and also those more to the south in 
 the vicinity of Aroer were already taken. From 
 this it follows that the whole northern half of the 
 country was in the hands of the enemy, and 
 consequently Moab's horn and arm (the biblical 
 types of dominion and strength, comp. Ps. Ixxv. 
 6, 11, 1 Sam. ii. 31 ; Ps. x. 15) are broken. 
 
 [On the Moabitic stone recently discovered, 
 which confirms many of the names here men- 
 tioned, see Bibliotheca Sacra, Oct. 1870. Andover. 
 — S. R. A.] 
 
I'/.j^'ilET JEREMIAH. 
 
 II. The Reasons of the Punitive Judgment (xlviii. 26-42.) 
 
 1. MoaVs Pride and his Punishment in General. 
 
 XLVIII. 26-30. 
 
 26 Make ye him drunken, for against Jehovah hath he magnified himself! 
 And Moab may wallow^ in his vomit, 
 
 And he also may become a derision ! 
 
 27 Or'^ was not Israel a derision^ unto thee, 
 When he was found* among the thieves ? 
 
 Yea, for at each of thy words concerning him thou shookest thyself. 
 
 28 Leave the cities and dwell in the rock, ye inhabitants of Moab, 
 
 And be as the dove that maketh her nest on the walls of the yawning ravine. 
 
 29 We have heard the arrogance of Moab, the very arrogant,* 
 
 His loftiness, and his arrogance and his pride and the haughtiness of his heart 
 
 30 I know, saith Jehovah, his insolence 
 
 And the nothingness of his boastings ; nothing have they effected.® 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 26.— p£30 an onomatopoetic word, denotes originally " to spank, to clap." Comp. ^y^^' 7_j; \"^p3D, xxxi. 19. 
 Then it is frequently used of striking hands : Num. xxiv. 10 ; Job xxxiv. 37 ; Lam. ii. 15.— p3ty is used in part for piJD 
 (Job xxvii. 23), and in part as an independent root with meaning sufficere. In the latter signification it occurs, however, iu 
 the Hebrew of the Old Testament (mly in the imperfect pSt:;' (1 Ki. xx. 10), and (perhaps) in the Hiphil (Isa. ii. 6), and be- 
 sides (perhaps) the substantive p3i;i; (Job xxxvi. 18). Yet in consequence of the interchange of the related radical p3p 
 occurs in Job xx. 22, as also in the Aramaic psp and X3p3p in the sense of sufficiency and superfluity. Here it is evident 
 that the rendering '■ that Moab had superfluity in his vomit '' (Meier) is feeble, and moreover unsafe, since the prefix 3 is 
 
 Btrikintr, and it is not proved that the meanings of sufficiency (of the things) and of having a superfluity (of the persons) are 
 united in the verb. The common radic.d meaning of pQD to strike, to clap, gives a perfectly satisfactory sense. Comp. Isa. 
 
 xix 14. ' 
 
 2 Ver. liT.— DJ<1==or ? Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 107, 4. In the second clause of the disjunctive question H (with a follow- 
 ing Dag. forte. Coiup. Naegelsb. Gr., § 53, 3 Anm.) is repeated as in Gen. xvii. 17 ; Ps. xciv. 9. 
 
 3 Vei. 27— pnE'=ohject of derision as in Job xii. 4. 
 
 4 Ver. 27 — The fem. nX^D3 is unjustly suspected by the Masoretes. Comp. rems. on nnfl. ver. 20. 
 
 5 Ver. 29.— nXJ is an adjective ^Comp. Isa. ii. 12 ; Ps. xciv. 2), and to be referred to Moab. 
 
 6 Yer.30.— Isa. xvi. 6 concludes with in3 P"^?^. Here the words W}} n J^b, also are added. And the Masoretes 
 punctuate so as to connect m3 with W^ as its subject. We cannot, however, doubt that V13, in accordance with the 
 fundament.il passage, belongs to JJ-Xp- It would then be "the nothingness (comp. 2 Ki. xvii. 9; Prov. xv. 7) of his 
 boastings (Isa. xliv. 25; Job xi. 3)," while the words \\IJV P'K*? seem to declare the nothingness of his deeds. 
 
 EXEQETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 To ver. 42 the prophet describes specially the 
 judgment of God on the criminal arrogance of 
 Moab, which he manifested particularly towards 
 Israel and Israel's God. First, generally, (vers. 
 26-30) the disgraceful fate of a drunken man, 
 who falls into his own vomit (ver. 26), is an- 
 nounced as a just punishment for the scorn, with 
 which they always treated Israel when chastised 
 hy his God (ver. 27), and further, the fate of the 
 dtive driven into the fearful clefts of tiie rock 
 (M-r. 28) as a punishment for his insolent and 
 false arrogance (vers. 29, 30). 
 
 Vers. 26, 27. Make ye him . . . shookest 
 thyself. A man, who is beastly intoxicated, falls 
 into his own vomit, and how does he provoke to it? 
 full extent the derisive laughter of tlie beholder! 
 So shall it be to Moab for his boasting against 
 Jehovah. This making drunk reminds us of the 
 figure of the cup of wrath (xxv. 15 coll. xiii. 13). 
 As there, those who make drunk are those whom 
 the Lord has appointed His agents in executing 
 the punishment. — Magnified himself. Comp. 
 ver. 42. The expression seems to be taken 
 from Zeph. ii. 8, 10, an older prophecy against 
 Moab. Comp. also Joel ii. 20. — The objection 
 on the part of Moab that this is too severe a 
 punishment is met with the intimation that Moab 
 
CHAP. XLVIII. 31-35. 
 
 381 
 
 had done the same to the Israelites. — When he 
 was found, etc. This is usually also taken as a 
 question. But was not Israel really often caught 
 in thievery and punished for it? Jeremiah ex- 
 pressly affirms this in ii. 26. What reason 
 would Moab otherwise have had for scorning 
 
 Israel? I therefore regard DX as a particle of 
 
 time=when, as often as (Num. xxi. 9; Gen. 
 xxxviii. 9). It IS then thus admitted that I«rael 
 had been more than once caught in criminal con- 
 duct and punished, but observe that, it is said 
 among thieves. In this there is an allusion to the 
 fact that Israel was only seduced by others, and 
 that the principal thieves, to which Moab be- 
 longed, were his heathen neighbors. — Yea. for, 
 etc. This is the answer to the question. We 
 
 supply Yea. — ''^p=jt>ro sufficientia, pro ratione 
 (Isa. Ixvi. 23 ; Zech. xiv. 16), comp. xxxi. 20. 
 From the latter passage we see also that (13) 
 him is to be referred to thy Tvords. — Shook- 
 est thyself. This may be shaking of the head 
 (comp. xviii. 16) or shrugging of the shoulders, 
 but equally in either case is it an expression of 
 scorn. 
 
 Ver. 28. Leave. . . yawning ravine. The 
 preceding figure was adapted to humble Moab's 
 national pride, the present relates to his warlike 
 
 pride. They boasted greatly of their valor in 
 war (ver. 14), and doubtless also of their excellent 
 fortifications (comp. ver. 18). They are now told 
 that they will be driven from their bulwarks and 
 into the rocky mountains, there like a wild pigeon 
 to pass a troubled, ever threatened existence. — 
 On the ■walls. The word is found besides only 
 in Isa. vii. 20, where it undoubtedly signifies be- 
 yoml. "^^J^. however, signifies not merely the 
 side beyond, but the side generally. (Comp. xlix. 
 •i'l; 1 Ki. V. 4; Exod. xxxii. 15). On the doves 
 in Palestine comp. Herzog, Real-Enc, XV. S. 
 425. 
 
 Vers. 29, oO. "We have heard . . . effected. 
 These two verses are no more than a reproduc- 
 tion, extended by a few additions, of Isa. xvi. 6 
 in accord with Zeph. ii. 10. In this quotation 
 the prophet expresses the thought, which is ex- 
 pected as a foundation to vers. 26-28, viz., an 
 answer to the question, whence comes on the one 
 hand Moab's scorn towards Jehovah and His peo- 
 ple, on the other, the particularly severe punish- 
 ment of the same? Answer: to the pride of 
 Moab corresponds both his scorn against Israel 
 and the chastisement, which he receives on the 
 part of Jehovah. Hence the prophet labors by 
 an accumulation of terms to describe the ar- 
 rogance of the Moabites as surpassing all bounds. 
 
 2. Moab utterly Destroyed. 
 
 XLVIII. 31-35. 
 
 31 Therefore I howl over Moab, 
 
 And over Moab, the whole of it, I cry. 
 Over the men of Kir-heres there is sighing.^ 
 
 32 My tears over Jazer flow even to thee, thou vine of Sibmah : 
 Thy shoots are gone over the sea, 
 
 Even to the sea of Jazer they did reach. 
 
 On thy fruit harvest and thy vintage is the spoiler fallen ; 
 
 33 And joy and gladness is taken from the fruit fields and the land of Moab; 
 And I cause the wine to fail from the wine presses ; 
 
 They will not tread with shouting, — 
 With a shouting that is no shouting. 
 
 34 From the cry of Heshbon even to Elealeh, 
 Unto Jahaz they raise their voice : 
 
 From Zoar to Horonaim, the three year old heifer,* 
 For even the waters of Nimrim shall be desolations.' 
 
 35 And I destroy Moab, saith Jehovah, 
 
 Him who ascends* the high places and burns incense to his gods. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 31. — The correction rUHX, whichi Meier allows himsflf, is unuecessarj' and not sufiSciently anthorized by the ex- 
 amples adduced by him (Mic. vi. lo, ij?X for U?', ver. 11, T\3'ii. fur T\2V, 1X11 for J^H). 
 
 * Ver. 34.— n7 j;i? is used of nations in xlvi. 20 ; 1. 11 ; Hos. iv. 16 ; x. 11. The genitive r\SjJ^ is explained by analogie.s 
 like ri'^^"in njtyi, anm quarti, i. e., numeri (Jer. xlvi. 2 ; Ii. 59 ; 2 Ki. xvii. 6), inX tOSt^D (Lev. xxiv. 22), THK 
 nnX (2 Ki.' xii. 10). TV - : ■ -: 
 
 T ■; 
 
 3 Ver. 34. — We have adopted the translation of Meier [German] — Aimrimnimmcr rinnen [Nimrim will never run, which 
 expresses the alliteration of the Hebrew, but is rather a free rendering]. The ^2 at the beginning of the verse is transterred 
 
S82 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 from Isaiah, where it is fully la place. In the present passage it can only introduce a single point in corroboration of th« 
 main proposition (ver. 31). 
 
 Ver. 35. — Is 'nhvO a participle or a substantive ? Grammatically the latter is the easier (comp. ver. 5), but the di»- 
 
 crepancy with TDpO is disturbing. We may take it then in the direct causative meaning (ascensum faciens. Comp. on 
 
 xlviii. 5, 2), and observe the remark of Geaf that correspondence with this word occasioned tho choice of the Hiphil 
 participle. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 After the reason and manner of the judgment 
 on Moab have been set forth in general, the lat- 
 ter is now described more in particular. This is 
 done by the prophet's first expressing (ver. 31 a) 
 what feeling he has in consequence of his know- 
 ledge of the destruction threatening all Moab 
 (i. e., no longer merely the northern half as in 
 vers. 18-25), and then turns to single places of the 
 whole land, with special emphasis on the destruc- 
 tion which is impending on the vine and fruit 
 culture of Moab (vers. 32, 33), as well as the 
 worship of the idols connected therewith (ver. 35). 
 
 Ver. 31. Therefore . . . there is sighing. 
 This verse begins with a free rendering of Isa. 
 xvi. 7. While there the third person is used, 
 here Jeremiah speaks in the first person, being 
 evidently himself shocked by the fearful import 
 of the message which he has to deliver. Comp. 
 Isa. XV. 5 ; xvi. 9, 11 ; xxi. 3 and Drechsler 
 ad'loc. — In the words, the w^hole of it, he de- 
 clares that here he has not merely the northern 
 half of the country, the Mishor, but the whole 
 country in view, mentioning a series of cities 
 from the north to the extreme south (ver. 34). — 
 Over the men, eic. In the original passage it 
 reads "over the raisin-cakes of Kir-hareseth will 
 ye sigh, deeply troubled." There is no need of 
 seeking aid from indistinctly written MSS., it 
 being quite in Jeremiah's manner to substitute 
 for a marked and strange expression, one softer 
 and more usual. He has evidently omitted the 
 concluding words and substituted 'C/JX (men) for 
 't^'K^N (grapes, raisin-cakes). The second per- 
 son plural would be in too strong a contrast to 
 the lirst person in the hemistich, and therefore the 
 third person singular masculine is chosen, which 
 is to be taken in its impersonal sense. 
 
 Vers. 32, 33. My tears ... no shouting. 
 In Isa. xvi. 9 it reads " Tiierefore I will bewiul 
 with the weeping of Jazer." If we take '330 of 
 the text in the sense of a comparison the con- 
 nection in meaning with the original would dis- 
 appear, and then no good ground for the compara- 
 tive is apparent. Jaazer, according to the 
 Onomast. {s. v. Azer atid Jazer), was 15 m. p., 
 Sibmah only five hundred paci-s from Heshbon. 
 They were, therefore, neighboring towns in a 
 fertile district abounding in fruit and wine. 
 Since then they were thus, as it were, sisters, the 
 centres of agriculture closely connected by soli- 
 darity of interest, and the blow which strikes one 
 affects the other also, one is not to be bewailed 
 alone, but both at the same time. This is essen- 
 tially the meaning of '333 (in the weeping over 
 Jaazer is contained also that over Sibmah) and 
 of '330 (Sibmah participates in the tears which 
 flow over Jaazer). — The district of Salt, in the 
 vicinity of which Jaazer must have been situated 
 
 (comp. Raumer, S. 262, 3) is still very rich in 
 vines. Comp. Herzog, R.-Enc, XVII. S. 611. 
 
 The elements of the two following sentences 
 also are found in Isa. xvi. 8, "branches" only 
 instead of "shoots" and "sea," being wanting 
 before Jazer. The sea of Jazer may denote only 
 a pond or great basin. That the term may be so 
 used is shown by the "sea" in the temple (1 Ki. 
 vii. 23). "The sea of Jazer was probably some 
 celebrated large pond, like the ponds of Heshbon, 
 in which tiie water of the Wady (Nahr) Sir, which 
 springs near by, was collected. Seetzen found 
 some ponds there still." Delitzsch, Jes., S. 211 
 [Eng. Tr., p. 384]. Raumer, Pal., S. 263, Anm. 
 The hypothesis that the repetition of the word 
 sea is based on a scriptural error is therefore 
 unnecessary. The widely extended (even ac- 
 cording to Isa. xvi. 7, 8, over the Dead Sea) wine- 
 culture of Moab is poetically represented under 
 the figure of a single vine. Comp. Drechsler 
 [and Alexander] on Isa. xvi. 8. — On thy fruit- 
 harvest, etc. Comp. xl. 10, 12. Instead of 
 vintage, which suits the connection better, we 
 find in Isa. xvi. 9 "harvest," and instead of 
 spoiler the more forcible but less distinct "shout- 
 ing." — And joy, eic, from Isa. xvi. 10. Comp. 
 Joel ii. 20; iv. 15. Carmel (fruit-fields) cannot 
 possibly be a proper noun here. For what oc- 
 casion had the prophet to make such a spring? 
 
 In Isa. xvi. 10, also stands /D^lin JD, but there 
 
 without the following and the land of Moab, 
 
 and hence evidently in an appellative significance. 
 The prophet would say: joy and gladness having 
 vanished from the vineyards they have departed 
 from the whole country. — And I cause, etc. 
 These words are altered from Isa. xvi. 10 b, in a 
 peculiar manner. Instead of they ■will not 
 tread vrith shouting, we read in Isaiah "the 
 treaders shall tread out no wine in their presses." 
 The following words contain the justification of 
 tiie rendering given. It is emphasized that the 
 treading will be altogether without shouting. A 
 shouting will indeed be heard, not, however, 
 such as pertains to the treading of grapes (xxv. 
 30), but another, a warlike shouting. The word 
 is elsewhere only applied to war-cries, li. 14. 
 
 Ver. 34. Prom the cry . be desolations. 
 These words to their voice are taken, with mo- 
 difications from Isa. xv. 4. Theory of Heshbon, 
 as it is called in Jeremiah, represents at the same 
 time a place, and consequently serves as a termi- 
 nus a quo. On Heshbon comp. rems. on ver. 2. 
 Elealeh (now El Al) lies only half an hour from 
 Heshbon. Comp. Numb, xxxii. 37 ; Isa. xvi. 19; 
 Raumer, S. 261. Jahaz (identical with Jahza, 
 ver. 21) must, according to Numb. xxi. 23 have 
 lain to tlie south east, towards the desert. Zonr 
 (comp. ver. 4) and Horonaiin (ver. 3) represent 
 tlie south couiiti'y of the Mnabites. Wa distiiicily 
 meet here the idea of I he wkule of Moab (ver. 31 ^ 
 in contrast to the limitation, in which Moab is 
 spoken of in vers. 18-25. The individual ele- 
 
CHAP. XLVIII. 36-38. 
 
 383 
 
 ments are taken from Isa. xv. 5. There Eglatb- 
 shalishiyah appears to stand in apposition to 
 Zoar. In the present passage it is as formally 
 co-ordinated with the name Horonaim. Both 
 are possible only if Eglath, etc., is either a place 
 near both the cities in question, or a predicate 
 equally applicable to botli. Tiie latter view is 
 favored by the grammatical struct u-i". for in the 
 former case we should expect Ij^ uato or H^' 
 (comp. on Jahaz, ver. 21, etc.) In what sense, 
 however, are these cities called Eglath-shalislii- 
 vah? KoSTER (5/w^/. u. Kril., 1862, I., S. 118 ff.) 
 perceives herein a topographical definition. Egla 
 was a Tripolis, and " Egla of the third part " is 
 equivalent to the third part of Egla. Egla is the 
 principal name, Zoar and Horonaim the names 
 of the two other parts. It is however surprising 
 that of this group of cities, which must certainly 
 have been of some importance, we find no trace 
 elsewhere. We should also expect the reverse 
 order. Shalishah-Eglath, and if Egla, Zoar and 
 Horonaim form one city, what is the cry from 
 Zoar to Hoioiiaim to mean? Delitzsch (on Isa. 
 S. 206) [Eiig. Tr., p. 336] attaches himself to 
 Gesenius and his predecessors (Vulg., Targ. ) 
 taking the words to signify '\]uvenca tertii, i. e., 
 anni" = indomita, Jugoque non assueta. Yet lie 
 does not refer the predicate to Moab (which can 
 be done in Isaiah only with great harshness, and 
 in Jeremiah not at all) but to Zoar " the beauti- 
 ful, fortified, hitherto unconquered city." Al- 
 though the reason why Zoar should be so called 
 is not very transparent, the language compels us 
 to give this exegesis the preference. Whether 
 
 Horonaim deserved the predicate in the same de- 
 gree as Zoar is a question of minor importance, 
 for the transference to Horonaim, which is men- 
 tioned only one line after in Isa. xv. 5, can be 
 only accidental. — For even, etc. Comp. Isa. 
 XV. 6. If by D''"}pJ 'D we are to understand 
 Beth-Nimrah, we sliall thus be carried into the 
 extreme uorlh-west of the country, not inappro- 
 priately to the purport of the strophe. (Comp. 
 the Twhole, ver. 31). The name and character 
 of Beth-Nimrah favor the identity, for this place 
 at the mouth of the AVady Sliaib or Shoeb in the 
 plain of the Jordan is still celebrated for its 
 wealth of springs. Comp. Winer, R.-W.-B., s. 
 V. Bethnimra. Yet it must be confessed, that ac- 
 cording to the connection, a place in the South, 
 as the ruined Numere with the spring Moyet 
 Numere (Delitzsch, ,S. 207) [Eng. Tr., p. 327], 
 might be meant. 
 
 Ver. 35. And I destroy . . . to his gods. The 
 
 prophet has Isa. xv. 2 and xvi. 12 in mind. What 
 
 he means by the words 7103 nbjTD is not per- 
 fectly clear. They may mean, who erects the 
 high places, throws them up (Hitzig) or, who 
 oflers on the height (literally: offerers of the 
 height), or who ascends to the height; or, finally, 
 the ascending to the height. Each of these ren- 
 derings has its light and its shadow. In Isa. xvi. 
 12, however, the idea of going up to the sanc- 
 tuary is expressed. Hence I give those expla- 
 nations the preference which take Hv^O in the 
 sense of ascending. 
 
 ?. The Lamentation for the Dead. 
 XLVIII. 36-38. 
 
 36 Therefore my heart sighs over Moab like flutes. 
 
 And my heart sighs like flutes over the men of Kir-heres ; 
 Because the remnant^ of what was gained has perished. 
 
 37 F^»r every head is bald, and every beard cut short, 
 Upon all hands cuttings, and on the loins sackcloth ! 
 
 38 On all the roofs of Moab and in his streets all is lamentation :' 
 For I have broken Moab like a vessel 
 
 Wherein there is no more pleasure, saith Jehovah. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 36.— On the construct state of nil'^ n^H"' comp. Naegelsb. (??•., ^ 65, 2, 3. 
 
 » Ver. 38.— In regard to the construction, the abstract stands for the concrete. Comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., I 59, 1. 
 
 EXEQETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The prophet feels his heart to be, as it were, 
 a mourning flute in view of the great loss of 
 Moab (ver. 36) and this all the more that he per- 
 ceives in Moab itself on every hand lamentation 
 for the dead (vers. 37, 38 a). This is also war- 
 
 ranted, for the Lord has broken Moab like a ves- 
 sel which has become worthless (ver. 38 b.) 
 
 Ver. 36. Therefore . . perished. This verse 
 is parallel to ver. 31. For 1, both begin with 
 therefore; 2, in both the object of the utter- 
 ance of feeling is designated as Moab (hardly Ar 
 Moab ver. 4, on account of "whole," ver. 31 — 
 and why should Jeremiah have constantly omit- 
 
t84 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 ted the "^H^) and Kir-heres; in both cases an 
 analogous thought is introduced by the particle 
 " therefore:" there the expression of howling 
 and crying, here the sighing of the heart com- 
 pared with the tone of a funeral flute. " There- 
 fore " in ver. 36 then refers not to the special 
 calamities enumerated immediately before, but to 
 that general description, which we have read 
 in vers. 25-30. Moreover here also the single 
 elements of the discourse are taken primarily 
 from Isa. xv. This employment of foreign pro- 
 perty explains much of the uuevenness in the ar- 
 rangement of the sentences. Isa. xvi. 11 and 
 XV. 5 are in the prophet's mind, but he changes 
 the harp, spoken of in Isa. xxi. 11 into the flute, 
 as is correctly remarked, because the flute is the 
 instrument used in mourning, and thus confor- 
 mity is obtained with the funeral customs after- 
 wards described. On the use of the flute in 
 mournings for the dead comp. Matth. ix. 23. 
 Joseph. Bell. Jud. III., 9, 5; Ovid Fai^t. VI., 
 656; Herzog, R.-Enc, XVI. S. 364.— Because, 
 etc. The words are from Isa. xv. 7, but there they 
 are the object of the following verb (DIXty') in- 
 stead of which we here find perished. The words 
 remnant, etc., must therefore be the subject of 
 the verb, since "^y^ never means " to lose " but 
 only " to be lost, to perish." The plural of the 
 predicate is explained by the collective meaning 
 
 of the subject. — |3~7j;^ is also here taken from 
 Isa. XV. 7, but it cannot possibly signify " there- 
 fore " as it does there. iSo unless we assume an 
 error there is uothiug left but to take it as equi- 
 valent to TtJfN \r'.~^^J ^ meaning which is cer- 
 tainly not proved, sitice this very passage is ad- 
 duced as the strongest evidence (comp. Gesen., 
 Thex.pag. 669). A double reason is then given 
 for the mourning of the prophet in ver. 36 : 1. a 
 mediate, ver. Z^h; 2. an immediate, vers. 37, 
 38 a. Whence dost thou know that all is lost ? 
 From the fact that all mourns. 
 
 Vers. 37, 38. For every head . . Jehovah. 
 Isa. XV. 2, 3 is the oiigiual passage. On Bald 
 comp.vii. 29; xvi. 6. Instead of cut short (HJ^TJ) 
 Isaiah has "cut ofi"" (H^HJ cse&a). In the lat- 
 ter passage however the editions vary. Comp. 
 Delitzsch, S. 205 [Eng. Tr., p. 325].— Cut- 
 tings. Comp. xvi. 6; xli. 5.— Sackcloth. 
 Comp. iv. 8; vi. 26; Joel i. 8. — Roofs. Comp. 
 Isa xxii. 1 ; Herzog, R.-Enc. XVI., -S. 363.— All 
 is lamentation. In Isaiah "everything wails, 
 melting into tears." — For I have broken, etc. 
 The ground of the facts which cause the lamen- 
 tation is, that (not chance, or any human or demo- 
 niac power, but) Jehovah has broken Moab. In 
 like a vessel, etc., Jeremiah quotes himself, 
 xxii. 28. 
 
 4. Pride comes before a Fall. 
 XLVIII. 39-4? 
 
 39 How is she broken ! How do they howl ! 
 How has Moab turned the back shamefully ! 
 And Moab shall become a derision 
 
 And a horror to all his neighbors. 
 
 40 For thus saith Jehovah : Behold like an eagle he fliea, 
 And spreads his wings over Moab. 
 
 41 Taken are the cities/ 
 
 And the fortresses captured,* 
 
 And the heart of the heroes of Moab in that day 
 
 Shall be like the heart of a parturient woman.^ 
 
 42 And Moab shall be destroyed from being a nation, 
 For against Jehovah hath he magnified himself. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 IVer. 41.— nVTp cannot here as in ver. 14, be a proper name on account of the following Jinj^D- The plural 
 riT'^p does not indeed occur in an appellative sense elsewhere, but this forms no objection, since the prophet m.ay have 
 chosen this form with reference to the names of the Mnaliitish cities. Comp. Olsh., § 146 d ; 152 a. 
 
 2 Ver. 41.— On the singular nt^Dnj comp. Nakoklsb. Gr., § 105, 4, b ; Ewai,t>, J 317, a. 
 
 » Ver. 41. — The expression rT^VO HiyX {mulitr uterum comprimens) ocaxiTi hero and in xlix. 22 only. On the lub- 
 
 T •• : T • 
 Ject-matter comp. iv. 31. 
 
CHAP. XLVIII. 43,44. 
 
 38< 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 With ver. 38 the quotations from Isa. xv. and 
 xvi. cease ; the begiuuing of ver. 39 reminds us 
 of ihe beginning of vers. 31 and 20 ; vers. 39 and 
 41 are evidently closely related, reproducing, as 
 it were, the fundamental thought of vers. 26, 27 
 that Moab is to become a derision, because he 
 has magnified himself against the Lord. I there- 
 fore take vers. 39-41 as one strophe. This be- 
 gins with an exclamation : how is Moab broken, 
 given up to shameful flight, and thus become an 
 object of ridicule and horror (ver. 39) ! This ef- 
 fect corresponds exactly to the cause, for a pow- 
 erful enemy, comparable to a powerful eagle, is 
 to come upon Moab (ver. 40). lu consequence 
 the fortified places are taken, the courage of all 
 the warriors broken (ver. 41), and Moab stricken 
 from the roll of nations. This is his punishment 
 for having magnified himself against Jehovah. 
 
 Ver. 39. How is she . . . his neighbors. 
 Moab is here again conceived of as feminine. 
 Comp. rems. on ver. 20. Since this passage was ge- 
 nerally in the prophet's mind, nnn also must be 
 
 taken in the meaning which it has there, viz., of 
 being broken. (Comp. Isa. vii. 8). The first re- 
 sult of this being broken is howling. We how- 
 ever take ^ /' ' n as 3d pers. perf., since the im- 
 perative here, as afterwards in 1^13, does not suit 
 the connection. The further consequence is 
 
 shameful flight (E'iS to be regarded as in the ac- 
 cusative. Comp. Mic. i. 11). From all this it fol- 
 lows lastly that Moab is become two things, a de- 
 rision (vers. 26, 27) and a terror (xvii. 17) to all 
 his neighbors. 
 Ver. 40. For tbua saith . . . over Moab. 
 
 — For is argumentative. The effect correspondg 
 to the cause. The choice of figures is founded 
 on Deut. xxviii. 49, where the people of Israel 
 are assured in case of apostasy of severe judg- 
 ment, to be executed by a nation coming from 
 afar. In iv. 13 also there was an echo of this 
 passage. It is possible that Isa. xlvi. 11 was in 
 the mind of the prophet, even as tliis present pas- 
 sage lay before the prophet Ezekiel, when in xvii. 
 3 he used the same figure of Nebuchadnezzar. 
 Who the eagle is here the prophet does not say. 
 If what we have said in the introduction con- 
 cerning the date of composition of this and the 
 contemporary prophecies against the Nations is 
 correct, the present passage is in so far dissimi- 
 lar to xlvi. 18 in that there Nebuchadnezzar is 
 mentioned just before (ver. 13). Here the non- 
 mention is due to the circumstance that the pro- 
 phet did not yet know who was the chosen in- 
 strument for the execution of the judgment. — • 
 And spreads, etc. Here also a passage from 
 Deuteronomy (xxxii. 11) seems to have hovered 
 before the prophet's mind. This however applies 
 only to the expression, for here the spreading of 
 wings IS intended in an exactly opposite sense. 
 Comp. also Job xxxix. 26. A repetition of this 
 passage and of the following verse is found in 
 xlix. 22. 
 
 Vers. 41, 42. Taken . . . magnified him- 
 self. The prophet here passes into the literal 
 style of discourse. — From being, etc. Comp ver. 
 2 and Isa vii. 8. — For against Jehovah, etc. 
 This points back to ver. 26, and here as there is 
 to be regarded as a reminiscence from Zeph. ii. 8, 
 10. The prophet here brings to a close that part 
 of his prophecy, which has the pride of Moab e** 
 pecially for its object. 
 
 III. Two Appendices with a Concluding Word (xlvn.. 43-47). 
 
 1. Application to Moab of a passage from Isaiah. 
 
 XLVIII. 48, 44. 
 
 43 Terror^ and ditch [pit] and trap'' on thee, 
 Thou inhabitant of Moab,' saith Jehovah. 
 
 44 He that fleeth* from the terror shall fall into the ditch, 
 And he that riseth from the ditch shall be taken in the trap ; 
 For I bring upon them, upon Moab,^ 
 
 The year of their punishment, saith Jehovah. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 43. — ^^3 fear, terror, is found besides in Jeremiah only in xxx. 5 and xlix. 5. 
 
 > Ver. 43. — r\T\2 pit, only in ver. 28. nS snare, only in the plural, xviii. 22. [The rendering ditch for pit and trap 
 for snare is given to express the alliteration of the original pa'hadh, pa'hath, pa'h. — S. R. A.] 
 
 ' Ver. 43. — 3X10 ^tJ'V- This expression is entirely contrary to the usage of Jeremiah, as he never uses the singular 
 
 in this connection. Isaiah however uses the singular in a similar connection. 
 
 * Ver. 44. — The Chethibh D'^il (comp. Fuerst, Concord, S. 691, 1365) is a form which does not occur elsewhere, so the 
 
 Keri would read Djn after Isaiah. An echo of this passage is found in Lam. iii. 47. 
 
 25 
 
886 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 6 Ver. 4i.— 3K10~Vx n'SX- Comp. ix. 14 ; li. 15; xxvu. 8, etc. Naeqelsb. Gr., ^ 77, 2. [" n' 7X is anticipatiye of 
 .'JX1D~'7N as the prouominal suffixes frequently are in the Aramaic dialects." Henderson. — S. R. A. 
 
 EXEQETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Application of a passage from Isaiah (xxiv. 17, 
 18). That Jeremiah is the original here, and at 
 most took the remote analogy of Am. v. 19 for 
 his model, appears to me an entirely unwarranted 
 assertion. This pithy drastic play upon words 
 corresponds as much more to the Old Testament 
 master of such worc^-play, Isaiah, as it is con- 
 
 trary to the softer and more fluent style of our 
 prophet. In addition it is inconceivable that at 
 the close of his discourse, where he has evidently 
 already exhausted himself and has for sometime 
 been speaking only in quotations, he should sud- 
 denly make such a pithy original utterance. 
 Comp. Delitzsch in Drechsler's Comm. zu Jes. 
 III., S. 405, 6, and in his own Comm. on Isaiah, 
 S. 271 [Eng. Tr., pp. 431, 2]. 
 
 2. The Testimony of the Book of Numbers concerning Moab, and concluding tpord. 
 
 XLVIII. 45-47. 
 
 45 In the shade of Heshbon the fugitives stand powerless ;* 
 For fire^ goes forth from Heshbon, 
 
 And flame from the midst of Sihon, 
 
 And it devoured the side of Moab 
 
 And the crown (of the head) of the sons of tumult.* 
 
 46 Woe unto thee, Moab i 
 Destroyed is the people of Chemosh, 
 For thy sons are led away into prison, 
 And thy daughters into captivity.* 
 
 47 And I turn the captivity of Moab at the end of days, saith Jehovah. 
 — ^Thus far the judgment on Moab. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 > Ver. 45.— On the privative JO in ni)D comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 112, 5, d; Jar. x. 14. 
 
 2 Ver. 45. — jyx is used in Numbers as feminine, as it usually is, but here as masculine, as in Pa. civ. 4. (In Job xx. 26 
 riiJJ regarded as neuter is iu apposition. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 60, 4 coll. Jer. xx. 9). 
 
 5 Ver. 45. — ^plp, Numb. xxiv. 17, not being appropriate to the present passages (it signifies suffodit, radicitus evertit 
 
 from "y^p fiidit) we cannot say that TpTp is the original reading, although it seems to suit the passage iu Numbers bet- 
 ter, and is really the reading of Cod. Saniarit. .Jeremiah, dealing very freely after his manner with the text of his sources, 
 may have substituted a word of similar form. V\iW is of like meaning with P(\^, as the latter stands for J^XU?. Lam. iii. 
 
 47 (as T\t} Job xli. 16 for nXK?, PXt:/ xiii. 11) and this for TS^-^- Comp. Olsh., ?153. 
 
 < Ver. 46.— The form DOu? is found iu Jeremiah here only. Since he uses TV^W (DO^) only in the connection of 
 
 "■ty 2,Vl} he was obliged, in order to have a corresponding word to OC?, to choose either H'^iy or n"'3U', which latter 
 
 • : t: • T • ■ 
 
 occurs more rarely than the former, since it is found only in Isa. Iii. 2. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 With the exception of ver. 45 a, the verses are 
 a free reproduction of Num. xxi. 28, 29; xxiv. 
 17. The prophet who already in the previous 
 context has brought into use old prophecies 
 agiiinst Moab, does the same here with some 
 passages of the book of Numbers. It is only 
 natural Lhat Jeremiah should not leave unem- 
 ployed tliose ancient utterances occasioned by 
 the first conflict between Israel and Moab. This 
 use IS evidLMitly the main intention, and no em- 
 phasis is therefore to be laid on the less strict 
 
 connection of the words with the previous con- 
 text, and with each other. Graf has, therefore, 
 rightly rejected the hypothesis of Movers and 
 HiTZiG, tliat these verses aio a later gloss. 
 
 Vers. 45, 46. In the shade . . . captivity. 
 As the passage to be used speaks of a going forth 
 of the fire from Heshbon upon the Moabitea 
 (Num. xxi. 28), the Moabitea must be represented 
 as having come into the district of Heshbon. 
 This is done by assuming a flight of the Moabites 
 in that direction (doubtless also with a reference 
 to " he that fleeth," ver. 44). It has indeed 
 been correctly remarked that as the enemy is ap- 
 proaching from the north, the flight could uotba 
 
CHAP. XLVIII. 45-47. 
 
 387 
 
 towards Heshbon (comp. rems. on ver. 19 sqq.), 
 but all that concerns the prophet is to show that 
 the ancient sentence will be veritied anew in this 
 judgment on Moab. It is assuredly not his 
 meaning that this will take place literally in the 
 form chosen by hiiu (for which Isa. xxx. 2, 8, 
 also was, perhaps, in his mind). Ver. 45 a is 
 thus a mere connecting clause, of which the ex- 
 pressions are not to be emphasized. — Power- 
 less declares that the fugitives, who for protec- 
 tion had betaken themselves to the shade of 
 He>!ihon, receive from thence no strength but 
 the contrary. The following '3 which is also 
 taken from Num. xxi. 28, need not then be taken 
 in an adversative sense (but). — From the midst 
 of Silion. In Num. xxi. 28 it reads, " Xvowi the 
 city ofSihon." Heshbon is called in xxi 2»)the 
 city of Sihon the king of the Amorites. Owing 
 to the omission of city here, I would neither alter 
 the text with J. D. Michaelis, Ewald and Meier 
 (n'J3 for y22) so as to read, from the house of 
 Sihon, nor with Graf, conceive an ideal presence 
 of Sihon (with reference to Gen. xlix. 10), butas 
 in ver. 4, and more frequently according to Graf, 
 Moab stands for Ar-Moab, and elsewhere usually 
 Shjchem for city of Shechera (Gen. xxxiii. 18), 
 so here also the name of Lord of the city stands 
 for the city itself. The sense of from the midst, 
 is that fire breaks forth from between the open- 
 ings of the city (/. e., the gates of the walls and 
 towers). — The side of Moab. Num. xxiv. 17, 
 " and a sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall 
 smite the borders of Moab." As here the sub- 
 ject is astalf wiiich smites, the borders can mean 
 only the sides of the body. Accordingly in this 
 passage also it is more natural to think of the 
 aide (Meier) as burnt or roasted by the fire, than 
 the end of the beard [Hexderson: corner of the 
 beard], which would inflict no material injury. — 
 And the crown, etc. Num. xxiv. 17, "and de- 
 stroy all the children of Sheth." Sheth has also 
 the meaning of tumult. The children of tumult are 
 homines tumultuosi. The designation corresponds 
 on the one hand to the arrogant character of the 
 Moabites mentioned in vers. 26-30, and on the 
 other hand there seems to be an allusion to Am. 
 ii. 2, where it reads "and Moab shall die with tu- 
 mult."— Woe unto thee, etc., from Num. xxi. 29. 
 Moab is called the people of Chemosh (comp. ver. 
 7) as Israel the people of Jehovah (Num. xi. 29; 
 xvii. H; .Jud. v. 11). — For thy sons, etc.. Num. 
 xxi. 29: he gives his sons ap as fugitives, and 
 his daugluers into captivity. It is apparent that 
 the original is softened down. Comp. Gen. xii. 15. 
 Ver. 47. And I turn ... on Moab. — Close of 
 the chapter. Comp. xlvi. 26 ; xlix. 6, 89. — I turn. 
 Comp. xxx. 3, 18; xxxiii. 7, 11. — At the end of 
 days. Comp. rems. on xxiii. 20. The expression 
 points to that final period in which the heathen 
 also will be converted to the God of Israel. Comp. 
 iii. 17; Isa. xxiv. 13-16; xxv. 6; Hagg. ii. 7. — 
 Thus far the judgment. Comp. ver. 21 ; U. 64. 
 With the exception ui the latter passage (on which 
 comp. the exeg. reuis.) this formula is not found 
 in Jeremiah. It appears to be a later addition. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. "Because the destruction of the Moabites 
 it of no service to us except for penitence, we 
 
 must note well wliat particular sins are specified, 
 of which they were guilty, and for which such 
 heavy punishments were heaped upon them, viz.; 
 1. Disdain, in that they gave no one a good word, 
 were unfriendly and only blustered and boasted 
 with every one, Ps. Iii. 3 (1). 2. Confidence in 
 their fortifications, in their power, money and 
 riches, 2 Chron. xxxii. 8 ; Isa. xl. 6. 3. Security, 
 all being prosperous and peaceful, which was the 
 siuof their sister Sodom, Ezek. xvi.49; Zeph. ii. 9. 
 4. Talking great things, and thrasonic self-praise. 
 But although Goliath was such a iniglity fellow 
 he had yet to bite the grass, 1 Sam. xvii. 50. 5. 
 Pride and Arrogance. These never do well, but 
 act with violence and injustice. By violence, 
 injustice and avarice, however, a kingdom passes 
 from pne people to another. Sir. 10, 8." Cramer. 
 
 2. On ver. 10. '^ Iliswerbis duopeccata severissime 
 prohibentur • 1. negligentia in operibus vocationis, 
 cui oppositum cap. 39 Sir. ; 2. misericordia intem- 
 pestiva (2 Tim. iv. 2)." Forster. 
 
 3. On ver. 10. Est ex ore Dei ma.ledictus et im- 
 pius est hie Qui Domini curat corde dolosus opus. 
 
 (MS. marginal note in my copy of the Cramer 
 Bible). 
 
 4. On ver. 10. God glorifies Himself in such 
 judgments over the malignant and proud powers 
 of the world. He who knows Him is also made 
 strong, so as to see the world perish and yet be 
 able to sing praises to God thereat." Dieurich. 
 
 5. On ver. 11. "Moab retained its old charac- 
 ter; being far from the traffic of the great world 
 it was well pleased to keep to itself Vet things 
 cannot continue thus in this world forever, every 
 family and every nation is at some time rudely 
 terrified from its rest, for what is peculiar, 
 natural or national is not in itself the good. This 
 comes here only through conflict and tribulation, 
 and by God's word among men. One's own way 
 is full of idolatry, and all idols will in like man- 
 ner come to shame: the golden calf of the Is- 
 raelites certainly first, but afterwards Kamosh." 
 
 DiEDRICH. 
 
 6. On ver. 11. " Hie notetur, quod hac allegoria 
 Jeremiad nefarie et fanatice abusus circa annum 
 Ckristi 1564 quidam Martians Sfeinbnch, rector vin- 
 arius sive doliarius Seleeestadiensis, qui se esse dicti- 
 tavil spiritum sanctum incarnatum uti Christus filius 
 incarnatus est, hsereseos sux fundamentum statuens 
 hoc prsesens Jeremise dictum. Cumque sibi asseclas 
 fecissct circiter viginti ex plebe, obiit et se post mor- 
 tem appariturum splendore luminis ajfirmavit. Vide 
 Theatr. Zwingeri Vol. V., L. 4, F. 1328. " Forster. 
 
 7. On vers. 26, 27. Proud men rejoice with 
 malicious pleasure when they can treat one, whom 
 they do not like, as a caught thief. But it may 
 happen to them that notwithstanding their age, 
 rank and high dignity, they may yet fixll in a 
 truly beastly manner into that which they have 
 themselves vomited, and thus become a laughing 
 stock to the street gamins. 
 
 8. On ver. 39. "It also comes about that the 
 natural man hangs his head, and at this time be- 
 lievers commonly look up and raise their heads, 
 because their redemption draweth nigh." Zin- 
 
 ZENDORF. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 1. "How many are still like the Moabites? 
 
388 
 
 THE PROPFIET JEREMIAH. 
 
 For how many are (here of those who depend on 
 their power and violence, their fortified cities 
 and buildings, riches, money and property, and 
 set all their hope and confidence t hereupon ! How 
 many are there of those who, when they have 
 been some time at peace, become secure and 
 think there is no more trouble from the rising to 
 the setting of the sun ! How many of those who 
 rely on their own strength and say, let the enemy 
 come, they area match for him! How many 
 who, when they surpass others in bodily and 
 mental gifts or in perishable goods, become proud 
 and despise, ridicule and treat badly their in- 
 feriors, as if tliey had found such among thieves, 
 as God the Lord here says ! Not to mention that 
 even the dear God is not exempted. For although 
 all good and perfect gifts come only from above, 
 from the Father of light (Jas. i. 17), yet many 
 will not acknowledge this, but ascribe them to 
 their own wisdom and skill, do not thank God 
 for them, and thus make themselves and the out- 
 ward means, by which they obtain one and 
 another thing, the idol which they serve." Bibl. 
 Summarien, Halle, 1848. 
 
 2. Onver. 10. Remissnessin the work of the Lord. 
 1. Wherein it consists (in not doing or doing ill 
 that which is commanded. Comp. Saul in 1 Sara. 
 XV., and doing that which is forbidden). 2. Its 
 causes (Selfishness, Pride, Unbelief, Cowardice, 
 
 Indolence, worldly interests). 3. Its punish- 
 ment (to be cursed). 
 
 [Jeremy Taylor: 1. He that serves God with 
 the body, without the soul, serves God deceit- 
 fully. 2. He that serves God with the soul, 
 without the body, when both can be conjoined, 
 doth the work of the Lord deceitfully. 3. They 
 are deceitful in the Lord's work that reserve one 
 faculty for sin, or one sin for themselves, or one 
 action to please their appetite and many for re- 
 ligion. 4. And they who think God sutficiently 
 served with abstaining from evil, and converse 
 not in the acquisition and pursuit of holy charity 
 and religion. — S. 11. A.] 
 
 3. Oliver. 42. The ivorlcfs boldness towards Ood. 
 ]. Whereon it is supported (on the one hand on 
 the real [material] powers appai-ently standing 
 at its behest alone; on the other hand, on the 
 apparent powerlessness of God's servants, who 
 have only truth and right on their side). 2. 
 What its end will be (Destruction, or termination 
 of national existence). [Cowles: "If all the 
 historians who record the ultimate extinction of 
 nations were inspired of God to give the true 
 reasons of their fall, we should often meet this 
 testimony, ' Perished of national pride, producing 
 contempt of God and of fundamental morality.' " 
 — S. R. A.] 
 
 6. Prophecy against the Ammonites. 
 
 XLIX. 1-6. 
 
 The Ammonites also, the brother nation of the Moabites, (Gen. xix. 37) after centuries of various conflict 
 (comp. Jud. m. 13; x. 7 sqq. ; xi. 32: 1 Sam. xi. ; 2 Sam. x., xi., xii. 26; 2 Chron. xx. ; xxvi. 
 8: xxvii. 5) in consequence of the deportation of the Bast-Jordanic tribes have appropriated apart of 
 their territory. This fact forms the point of departure for the present prophec.?/. Older prophecies 
 against Ammon are extant only by Amos (i. 13-15) and Zephaniah {in consequence of a declaration 
 against Moab, (ii. 9, 10). Of these Jeremiah has made considerable use of the prophecy of Amos. 
 Comp. the exposition. There is at most an echo of the brief utterance of Zephaniah in the expression 
 desolation, ver. 2. coll. Zeph. ii. 9. Since Nebuchadnezzar and the Chaldeans are not named, the 
 prophecy must be older than the battle of Carchemish, and since the beginning agrees inform with the 
 beginning of the first prophecy against Egypt (xlvi. 2), and the prophecies against Moab (xlviii. 1), 
 Edom (xlix. 7) and Damascus {jlWs.. 23), the supposition is natural that the date of its origin is the 
 same as that of these prophecies. 
 
 8 
 
 Against the children of Ammon. 
 Thus saith Jehovah : Has theu Israel no children, or has he no heir ? 
 Why then does Malcom inherit Gad and his people dwell in his cities? 
 Therefore behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, 
 
 That I cause the war-shout to be heard against K-abbah of the children of Ammon ; 
 And she shall become a desolated heap. 
 And her daughter shall be burned with fire : 
 And Israel shall be heir to his heirs, saith Jehovah. 
 Howl Heshbon, for devastated is Ai ! 
 Cry, ye daughters of Rabbah, gird on sackcloth j 
 Lament and run to and fro' on the walls ; 
 For Malcom must go into captivity. 
 His priests and his princes together. 
 
CHAP. XLIX. 1-6. 
 
 38S 
 
 Why boastest* thou of the valleys ? 
 
 Thy valley is flowing away,' thou rebellious daughter, 
 
 Who trusted in her treasures; — "Who will come to me?" 
 
 Behold, I bring fear upon thee, saith the Lord, Jehovah Zebaoth, 
 
 From all thy neighbors ; 
 
 And ye shall be driven away, each one before him ; 
 
 And there shall be no gatherer of the fugitives. 
 
 But nevertheless I will turn the captivity of the children of Ammon, 
 
 Saith Jehovah. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 3.— Q0)Vr\'n. On the form comp. Olsh., g 67, Anm., 272, a. 
 
 2 Ver. 4.— S^nnn in'.ariably denotes to boast, to brag. The object of the boasting is most frequently connected bS 
 3. Comp. iv. 2 ; ix. 22, 23 ; Ps. xlix. 7, etc. 
 
 3 Ver. -i.— TpOj,' 21 The explanation of Ewald and Graf, " of the luxuriance, the superfluity of thy valley " would 
 suit the connection, but the abstract rendering of 31 is an objection, since this form (Dp) elsewhere is used almost wholly 
 
 T It 
 
 in the formation of participles, very rarely of substantives of concrete meaning, as 3jr people, ^_Jr city. 31 occurs (in the 
 
 T T T 
 
 masc. form) only of a man with emission of seed (Lev. xv. 4), in the fem. of a woman with emission of blood (Lev. xv. 19), 
 and of Canaan as a land flowing witli milk and honey (Exod. iii. 8, 17 ; Lev. xx. 24 ; Num. xiii. 27, etc.) Hence the explana- 
 tion : thy valley flows away, passes away, or redundat sangui-m confossnrum, does not correspond to the use of the word 
 elsewhere. I would, therefore, explain with Schleuss.ner: quid gtoriaris vallibus tuis? {quod scilicet) foscunda sit vallis 
 tuaf Thus one idea is expressed independently of the preposition. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Four parts may be plainly distinguished. In 
 the first (vers. 1, 2) the prophet alludes to the 
 fact, from the theocratic point of view regarded 
 as improper, that the Ammonites had taken pos- 
 session of the Gadite territory (ver. 1), and de- 
 clares that this cannot remain so. Ammon must 
 be involved in war, the capital with the neigh- 
 boring cities destroyed, and Israel again put into 
 possession of his country (ver. 2). In the second 
 part (ver. 3) a brief specification follows, in the 
 third (vers. 4, 5) a reason for the punitive judg- 
 ment, with express indication, that the recom- 
 pense would correspond exactly to the inculpa- 
 tion. In the fourth part (ver. 6) the prophet 
 concludes with a consolatory outlook into the 
 future. 
 
 Vers. 1, 2. Against . . . saith Jehovah. — 
 The prophet here presupposes the possession of 
 the Gadite territory by the Ammonites in con- 
 sequence of the deportation of the East-Jordanic 
 tribes by Tiglath-Pileser (2 Ki. xv. 29; 1 Chron. 
 V. 6, 26. Comp. Introd. to ch. xlviii.). Amos re- 
 fers to former attempts by the Ammonites for the 
 same object (i. 13). — Malcom. Jeremiah has 
 Am. i. 15 in view. In this passage Malcom ap- 
 pears to me to be used in a double sense. AVhy 
 should the kint/ be mentioned only with the peo- 
 ple of the Ammonites? Why does Amos say of 
 Damascus (ver. 5) and Philistia (ver. 8), "him 
 that holdeth the sceptre," and of Moab (ii. 3) 
 "the judge?" Did he not wish it tobe under- 
 stood that the expression used only of Ammon, 
 wes to be taken here in a special sense? I lie- 
 lieve, then, that Malcom (Am. i. 16) refers 
 primarily to the King, but in such wise that an 
 allusion to the God is also intended. This allu- 
 sion was all the plainer, if the Ammonites really, 
 as Movers supposes {Phcenic, I., S. 323. Comp. 
 Herzog, Real-Enc, IX., S. 714), called the god 
 
 p/P, ». e., our king. With reference to this he 
 
 might fitly, when the Ammonites were spoken of, 
 be called DD^D by the Israelites. It is, there- 
 fore, unnecessary here, and in ver. 8 to read 
 
 D37D, as EwALD, Graf and Meier would do, 
 after the example of the LXX. and Syr. Since we 
 cannot express the specific meaning -of the word 
 by the translation, we have retained Malcom as 
 if it were a proper name. — The ■war-shout, 
 et£., is a reminiscence from Am. i. 14. — Rabbah 
 Beni Ammon. This was the complete name 
 of the city (comp. Deut. iii. 11 ; 2 Sam. xi. 1; 
 xii. 26 sqq). It was called Rabbah, the great, 
 the capital, in contrast to the neighboring cities. 
 Comp. Yi-E-RZ., R.-Enc. XII., -S. 469.— A deso- 
 late heap, literally hill of desolation, therefore, 
 heap of ruins. Comp. Josh. viii. 28 and Zeph. ii. 
 9. — Burned ■with fire. This also reminds us 
 of Am. i. 14 (comp. Olsfi., § 242 b). 
 I Ver. 3. Howl Heshbon . . . princes to- 
 ' gether. The immediate consequences of the 
 war-shout being heard are specified. Heshbon 
 is to howl. It was then an Ammonitish city. 
 Comp. rems. on xlviii. 2, 45. It is given as a 
 reason that Ai is destroyed. What city iliis was 
 is not to be ascertained. Venema's and Ewald's 
 explanation [Rabba ita vastata est, tit jam xil tu- 
 mulus ruderum) is forced. Graf would read 1J^ 
 
 with reference to Rabbah. But Rabbah could 
 be called '\^ only in the appellative sense, and 
 then it must have the article. To suppose that 
 Ai is transferred hither from Josh. viii. 28, be- 
 cause there alone the expression "heap of deso- 
 lation " occurs, is to attribute to the prophet 
 either ignorance or carelessness. Many com- 
 mentators therefore (J. D. Michaelis, Hitzig, 
 comp. V. Raumer, S. 168, Anm. 150) are disposed 
 to assume an East-.Jordanic Ai, which expedient 
 s-ems to me thus far the best. — There is no rea- 
 son for taking daughters of Rabbah in a dif- 
 ferent sense here from ver. 2. — Sackcloth. 
 Comp. rems. on xlviii. 37. — On the ■walls. 
 I do not see why these should be regarded as 
 
890 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 the walls of a sheep-fold, as many would do. What 
 is more natural in a city, against which the 
 enemy is advancing, than to run up and down on 
 the walls to take measures for defence ? That 
 the city walls may be meant is evident from Ps. 
 Ixxxix. 41; Ezek. xlii. 12. — For Malcom, etc. 
 These words are taken from Am. i. 15. Only in 
 the present passage we have his priests for 
 "he," which is evidently not from misunder- 
 standing, but to emphasize more plainly the 
 intended meaning of Malcom. Comp. rems. on 
 xlviii. 7. 
 
 Vers. 4, 5. Why boastest thou .... fugi- 
 tives. Reason of the primitive judgment. The 
 pride, the stubbornness, the security of Ammon 
 must be correspondingly punished. Comp. 
 xlviii. 26, 30. — Rebellious daughter. Comp. 
 
 xxxi. 22. — "Who will come to mw? The 
 Ammonites' boast, Who will come fe> us ? The 
 Lord tells them, the enemies will come upon 
 them, and that from all sides, yea, oven behind 
 them, so that the Ammonites will be driven 
 straight before them, and because the enemies 
 come from all sides will be so scattered that no 
 one will be in a condition to collect the fugitives 
 again. — Pear. Comp. xlviii. 43, 44. — Each 
 one before him. Comp. ''every man straight 
 before him," Josh. vi. 5, 20; v. 13. — Gatherer. 
 Comp. Isa. xiii. 14; Ivi. 8; Nah. iii. 18. 
 
 Ver. 6. But nevertheless .... Jehovah. 
 Ammon also is to share in the salvation of the 
 future, which is to issue from Israel unto all 
 nationa. Comp. rems. on xlviii. 47 and xlix. 39. 
 
 7. Prophecy against Edom (xlix. 7-22). 
 
 On account of their relationship to the Israelites, the Edomites, in consequence of an express divine com- 
 mand, were not treated as enemies on the journey to Canaan (Deut. ii. 4 ; xxiii. 7). Saul, however, 
 conquered them (1 Sam. xiv. 47). David subjected them entirely (2 Sam. viii. 14). In this state 
 of dependence they remained after Iladad's attempt at revolution had failed (1 Ki. xi. 14-22) till the 
 reign oj Joram, when they revolted (2 Ki. viii. 20-22; 2 Chron. xxi. 8). Amaziah and Uzziah in- 
 deed made by no means unsuccessful attempts to bring them again into subjection (2 Ki. xiv. 7, 22), 
 but their success was not lasting. In the reign of Ahaz the Edomites again invaded Judea (2 Chron. 
 xxviii. 17), and in the time of the Chaldeans we also Jind their ambassadors among those who came to 
 Zedekiah to consult concerning means to be taken in common (Jer. xxvii. 3) ; but at the destruction 
 of Jerusalem they are on the side of the Chaldeans, greeting the destruction of the long hostile city 
 
 (comp. D/tJ? nT{<, Ezek. xxxv. 5) with scornful triumph (Lam. iv. 21 ; Ezek. xxxv. 15; xxxvi. 
 5; Ps. cxxxvii. 7). 
 
 As regards the date oj our prophecy, the construction of the superscription (DHX/), as well as the non- 
 mention of the Chaldeans, point to the same date at which the other portions with similar superscrip- 
 tion, at the head of which is the first against Egypt (xlvi. 1-12), originated, i. e., the time immediately 
 before the battle of Carchemish. Comp. rems. on xlvi. 1, 2, and Inlrod. to the Prophecies against 
 the Nations. 
 
 Of special importance for our prophecy is its relation to the prophecy of Obadiah directed against Edom. 
 They correspond to each other as follows : 
 
 7. 
 
 That Jeremiah drew from Obadiah, and not vice versd, has been shown by Caspari (Der Proph. Obadja 
 ausgel. Leipzig, 1842) in such an exhaustive manner that there can be no further question on this 
 point. The quotations then from Obadiah extend only to ver. 8 of his prophecy. On the other hand, 
 the following context (Obad. 9 sqq.) has frequent points of contact with Joel, which is not /he case 
 in the previous context, and it is just in these verses that the indubitable references to the capture of 
 Jerusalem by the Chaldeans are found (comp. Obad. 10, 16). Hence recently either the old theory 
 has been retained (held by AcausTi, Kraiimer, Ewald, Meier in Zeller's Jahrb. I. 3, S. 526) of 
 the use of an older source in common on the part of Jeremiah and Obadiah (comp. Meier, die proph. 
 BE. d. A. T. iihersetzt u erk., S. 368 [The proph. Books of the O. T. transl. and explained']), or it 
 is supposed that Ohnd. 9-21 was a later addition, composed after the Chaldean catastrophe. Tliis u 
 not the place to enter into this difficult investigation specially or loiih the precision which it requires. 
 I content myself therefore with putting two questions : 1 . Ii it then so decidedly demonstrated that 
 Obadiah quotes Joel and not Joel Obadiah? 2. How is it, that in vers. 12-14 Edom is only irnmed 
 against committing hostilities against Judah '^ in the day of their calamity?" Such hostilities had 
 certainly been already committed (vers. 10, 11, 15, 16). But is it not clear from the turn which tht 
 
 er. 
 
 xlix. 7 
 
 and 
 
 Obad 
 
 8. 
 
 
 " 9 
 
 
 
 5. 
 
 
 '« 10 
 
 
 
 6, 
 
 
 " 14 
 
 
 
 1. 
 
 
 " 15 
 
 
 
 2. 
 
 
 " 16 
 
 
 
 3, 
 
CHAP. XLIX. 7-13. 391 
 
 discourse takes (with 7X1) in ver. 12 that the prophet distinguishes two points of time, a past and a 
 future ? Once already have the Edomites greeted the calamity of Jerusalem with malicious joy. When 
 now they are warned against doing this again, is it not presupposed that Jerusalem is still by no means 
 wholly destroyed, but that the really great day of calamity is still impending [observe the *•! DV3 re- 
 peated eight times in vers. 12-14) ? Would it not accordingly be exeyetically viore exact to suppose 
 that the prophet, finding occasion in the hostility displayed by the Edomites in a transient occupation 
 of Jerusalem, warns them from a repetition on the great day of Jerusalem, ivhich he foresees as in- 
 evitable, and on the presupposition that this warning will not avail, threatened them with a just re- 
 compense ? 
 
 Of the other older prophecies against Edom (Isa. xxxiv. 5-17 ; Am. i. 11, 12 ; Joel iv. 19) Jeremiah has 
 made no use. 
 
 The whole prophecy is plainly to be discriminated into three parts. The first (vers. 7-13) has for its topic 
 the Judgment to be executed on Edom according to the elements of its outward appearance (vers. 7-10) 
 and its objective imvard ground, ivhich is the decree of Jehovah. The second part (vers. 14-18) is 
 predominantly occupied with the statement of the subjective ground of the visitation, i. e., with the 
 guilt of Edom. The third part (vers. 19-22) brings before us the subject of the destination, that is, 
 the instrument thereof, chosen by Jehovah. 
 
 1. The judgment on Edom in its external appearance and objective reason, 
 
 XLIX. 7-13. 
 
 7 Against Edom. Thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth : 
 Is there no longer wisdom in Teman ? 
 
 Hath counsel vanished from the intelligent ?^ 
 Is their wisdom expended ? ^ 
 
 8 Flee, turn, bow low,^ ye inhabitants of Dedan ! 
 For the destruction of Esau I bring upon him, 
 The time, when I visit him. 
 
 9 If vintagers come to thee they will leave no gleanmgs, 
 If thieves by night they destroy their fill, 
 
 10 For I have stript Esau bare, discovered his hiding places, 
 And he cannot hide himself.* 
 
 His seed is destroyed and his brethren and his neighbors. 
 And he is no more. 
 
 11 Leave ^ thy orphans, I will preserve their life. 
 And let thy widows confide* in me. 
 
 12 For thus saith Jehovah, Behold, 
 
 They, whose rule it was not to drink the cup, must drink it, 
 And art thou' to remain unpunished? 
 No, but thou shalt drink. 
 
 13 For I have sworn by myself, saith Jehovah, 
 That Bozrah shall become a desolation, 
 
 A reproach, a desert* and a curse; 
 
 And all her cities shall become desolate for ever. 
 
 TEXTUAIi AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 7.— D'J^D Part. Kal from J'^ instead of the more usual Part. Niph. D'jbj (Gen. xli. 33, 39, etc.). The form 
 does not occur elsewhere. 
 
 * Ver. 7.— rr^D is to overflow, overhang. So Exod. xxvi. 12 of the overhanging curtain; Ezek. xvii. 6, fin^D |3J, 
 vUispaiula, late effusa. Part. Pual PmD, poured out, stretched out on the couch. Am. vi. 4, 7. D'SOD TinD, Ezek. 
 xxiii. 15, redundantes mitris d. i. gestantes mUras longe dependentes. Hence Niph. (which occurs here only), pro/usum, ef- 
 fusum esse, p^j from DpII, Isa. xix. 3 coll. Jer. xix. 7. 
 
 3 Ver. 8.— As ^QJ can only be Imperative, 1p"3J^n and ?J3n niust also be taken as such. The former (on the con- 
 struction with the Inf. comp. Naeqelsb. Gr.. J 95, e) is also used in ver. 30 as an Imperative. Other instances, ^tynH, - Hi. 
 ii. 3, 5 ; mXH, Jer. xii. 19 ; comp. Oi.sh., § 250, a, b. :| J£3n is likewise a rare form, but not impossible or without analogy. 
 
 Comp. n33'iyn, Ezek. xxxii. 19; 13iyn, Job xxi. 5; Olsh., ?2G0, coll. S. 631. 
 1 ; T - - 
 
 * Ver. 10.— n^njl. ^Tv) for ^xS, comp. Olsh., 2263, b. The perfect would have to be translated: and does he hide 
 himself, he cannot, which is forced. We should expect at least v' X'Sv Ewald and Graf would punctuate T^3'^^, comp. 
 
392 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 forms like XTpJ. rlOIJ' DiilHi (Ol3H., §2G0, c), aud as regards the construction, ver. 23. This expedient removes at 
 
 least the great grammatical difiBLulties which HSHJ affords. 
 
 T : *.' 
 
 5 Vor. 11.— On the Imperative form comp. Olshausen. ?234, a. 
 
 6 Ver. 11. — inO^ri- *-!uu'p. KuL'k. x.x-\vii. 7. E.tcept iu connection with suffixes, we find only this and n^HX as ex- 
 amples of the aljuormiil affirmative. Comp. Olsh., S. io\i, 3. 
 
 ■ Ver. 12.— Xin TMMi. 'I'huu, such an one! xiv. 22 ; Ps. xliv. 5, comp. Naegelsb. Gr., §79, 3. 
 
 8 Ver. 13.— Instead of Jlh we find HSin in the parallel passages. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The destruction of Edoin is described, 1. as it 
 appears oulwardly, 2. according toils inner rea- 
 son in the divine decree. First the irresistible 
 nature of the attack is set forth, in opposition to 
 which all the renowned wisdom of Edom will be 
 unavailing (ver. 7). The Dedanites, the neigh- 
 bors and commercial allies of Edom, are warned 
 to consult their own safety (ver. 8). The ene- 
 mi.'s will come, and, like vintagers or thieves, 
 make a clean sweep (ver. 9). It will turn out 
 that Edom's material means of defence, his rock 
 fortresses regarded as impregnable, together 
 with his own and his allied offensive forces, can- 
 not avert destruction (ver. 10). This must be 
 so, because it is the will of Jehovah. This is 
 seen in Jehovah's taking charge, as it were, of 
 the widows and children of the Edomites, which 
 presupposes the death of their guardians (ver. 
 11). Jehovah must permit their death, as with- 
 out being unjust. He cannot spare Edom the cup 
 which Israel had to drink. Edom must there- 
 fore drain it irrevocably (ver. 12) for Jehovah 
 (in accordance with the imperative demands of 
 His justice) has sworn, that Edom will be a prey 
 to everlasting desolation (ver. 13). Tiius the 
 strophe concludes, and from the similarity of 
 this conclusion with ver. 18 it is seen, that in 
 both cases we have a larger section of the dis- 
 course. 
 
 Ver. 7. Against Edom . . . expended. 
 Wisdom and intelligence are necessary in car- 
 rying on war (Prov. xxiv. 6) and where these 
 fail, all is lost. This lack is observable in Edom. 
 This is the more striking since the wisdom of 
 Edom and especially of Teman was celebrated 
 from of old. Comp. Ob. 8; Job ii. 11 (Te- 
 man was the home of Eliphaz) ; Baruch iii. 22, 
 23. On Teman comp. Herz., R.-Eiic, III., S. 
 650. [CowLES on this verse. — S. R. A.] 
 
 Ver. 8. Flee . . visit him. On Dedancomp. 
 rems. on xxv. 23. They were not Edomites but 
 neighbors (Ezek. xxv. 13), and at all events con- 
 nected with them by mercantile intercourse 
 (comp. Isa. xxi. 13). Hence they are also threa- 
 tened by tiie tempest which is breaking over 
 Edom. They are therefore admonislied to look 
 to their own safety. — For, etc. Comp. ver. 32 ; 
 xlvi. 21 ; vi. 15. 
 
 Vers. 9, 10. If vintagers . . . nomore. Ver. 
 9 is taken from Obad. 5. The sense is clear. It 
 could not be so if we should render the sentence 
 interrogatively, as many do, in too servile ad- 
 herenc« to the passage in Obadiah. Ver. 10 re- 
 
 minds us of Obad. 6, though there we read 
 "searched out" and "sought up" for stript 
 bare and discovered. These terms applied 
 to Esau refer to the uiicouimouly strong fortress- 
 dwellings, occupied by the Edomites. Comp. 
 rems. on ver. 16. — His seed is destroyed, etc. 
 " Both the real Edomites and the descendants of 
 related and other nations, which were mingled 
 with them, as the Amalekites, Gen. xxxvi. 12; 
 Horites, Gen. xxxvi. 20; Simeonites, 1 Chron. 
 iv. 42 and neighboring tribes, as Dedan, ver. 8. 
 Tema and Buz, Jer. xxv. 23 " are to be destroyed 
 says Graf. He also justly remarks that the ex- 
 pression his brethren and his neighbors ap- 
 l^ears to have been occasioned by " men of thy 
 confederacy" and " men of thy peace " in Obad. 
 7. — Aud he is no more. Comp. Isa. xix. 7. 
 
 Vers. 11-13. Leave thy orphans . . . deso- 
 late forever. Hitzig sees in ver. 11a preli- 
 minary conclusion parallel to ver. 6 and xlviii. 
 47. But ver. 11 is no conclusion, being; followed 
 by two sentences with foi;", vers. 12, 13, of such 
 a purport that no inference favorable to Edom 
 can possibly be drawn from them. I therefore 
 take ver. 11 with Theodoret, Neumann and 
 others, as irony. The Edomites are called upon, 
 the men, namely, to leave their widows and or- 
 phans. Observe that it is not said, wives and 
 children. The death of the men is presupposed. 
 When Jehovah immediately adds that He will 
 care for the survivors, this is a poor consolation 
 for the Edomites who do not believe in Jehovah. 
 For what other care but such as slaves receive, 
 can be expected from Him, who announces as his 
 unalterable determination so total a destruction 
 of Edom, as in vers. 13, 17, 18, 20, 21?— I wiU 
 preserve, etc. Comp. Exod. i. 17, 18; 2 Sam. 
 xii. 3; 1 Ki. xviii. 5 ; Isa. vii. 21. We see from 
 these passages that the meaning of the word is 
 prim^arily negative : not kill, but secondarily 
 positive: do what is necessary for the preserva- 
 tion of life. — Whose rule it v^as not, etc. It 
 was an abnormal thing lor Israel, the chosen 
 people, to be obliged to drink the cup of wrath. 
 
 I therefore take £031^0 in the sense of norm, law, 
 
 rule. Comp. xxx. 11 ; viii. 7. — The cup. 
 Comp. xxv. losqq. — Unpunished. Comp. xxv. 
 29, — Have sv^orn, etc. Comp. xxii. 5. — A de- 
 solation. Comp. xxv. 11, 18; xliv. 6, 22. — 
 Bozrah (Isa. xxxiv. 6 ; Ixiii. 1 ; Am. i. 11, 12) 
 was one of the most important cities of Edom 
 (comp. xlviii. 24) of which there are still re- 
 mains under the name of Besseyra, i. e.. Little 
 Bozrah. Comp. Raumer, Pal., S. 278. — Deso- 
 late for ever. Comp. xxv. 9, 
 
CHAP. XLIX. 14-18. 
 
 ;593 
 
 2. The Judgment on Edom according to its subjective reason, 
 XLIX, 14-18. 
 
 14 I have heard a report from Jehovah, 
 And a messenger is sent among the nations : 
 
 "Assemble yourselves and come up against her, 
 And rise ye for the war." 
 
 15 For behold, I make thee small among the nations ; 
 Despised among men. 
 
 16 Thy object of horror^ deceived thee, 
 The pride of thy heart, 
 
 Thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock, 
 
 Thou that occupiest the height of the hill. 
 
 Even though, like an eagle, thou buildest thy nest high, 
 
 I will bring thee down from thence, saith Jehovah. 
 
 17 And Edom shall become a wilderness ; 
 Every one that passeth by shall be horrified, 
 And jeer on account of all her strokes. 
 
 18 As in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, 
 And their neighboring cities, saith Jehovah, 
 No man will dwell there, 
 
 Nor a son of man sojourn in her. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 16. — nX /£3r\ does not occur elsewhere. It is usually taken in the sense of terror =«ni2f 73 (Jer. xxi. 4) 
 and understood to mean the terror which Edom inspires. But because the following verb is in the masc. some have 
 thought it necessary to separate "in^f 7i3n from it and regard it as an isolated exclamation (comp. DDDSH) Isa. 
 
 xxix. 16), which Schleussner renders O arrogantiam, tuam; Hitziq, "fear to thee;" Graf, "horror at thee." But this 
 exclamation appears somewhat exaggerated. Why should a people, who are deceived by pride, be especially inspired 
 with fear? Is not this very common? Was the pride of Edom greater than that of Moab (xlviii. 29)? Or was it threat- 
 ened with a worse fate? I find it more suitable to take HV /SH in the sense of JIV/DO. The latter word in 1 Ki. xv. 
 13 ; 2 Chrou. xv. 16 designates an idol, an idol-image. This is called a terror, an object of holy horror, as frequently ini3, 
 
 Gen. xxxi. 42; X^IOi Isa. viii. 13; D'O'X, Jer. 1. 38 are used in an analogous sense. The LXX. may have the same idea, 
 
 . ^ ... 
 
 translating r^vaiyyia aou, i.e., risus, jocm tuus. According to Schleussner, they had Priapus in mind, for which also Je- 
 rome holds j"\]i7D0 in 1 Ki. xv. and 2 Ki. xv. Rabbis also, according to Kimchi's testimony, have understood the word of 
 niT m^y, i.e., idolatry. Among the moderns, J. D. Mich.^elis and Meier adopt this view. The gender of the verb is 
 
 TT T "^r 
 
 no hinderauce, for the prophet could properly use the masc. when thinking of the person of the idol. Comp. Naegelsb. 
 er.,g60,4. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Jeremiah proclaims in the words of Obadiah, 
 that nations will be summoned to make war upon 
 Edom, to make her small and despised (vers. 14, 
 15). To such a procedure has Edom given oc- 
 casion by her idolatrous abominations and her 
 pride. This pride is now to be punished (ver. 16) 
 and Edom is now to become a horrible waste and 
 like Sodom and Gomorrah (vers. 17, 18). These 
 verses are taken with modifications from Oba- 
 diah 1-4. The main thought is evidently ex- 
 pressed in ver. 16; the statement of the subjec- 
 tive cause of the punitive judgment, impending 
 over Edom. 
 
 Vers. 14, 15. I have heard . . among men. 
 Hemistich 1 is taken from Obad. 1 only with 
 
 the alteration of "we have heard" (Israel) to 
 " I have heard," and "arise ye" to "assemble 
 yourselves." The report wh'ch the prophet 
 bears directly from the Lord and the message 
 (1"'^ viator, nuntius, Prov. xiii. 17; xxv. 1'3; Isa. 
 
 xviii. 2; Ivii. 9) which is sent among the nations 
 are of the same purport. We must regard the 
 report however as expressing not only the com' 
 mand itself, but also that it has been issued. 
 Hemist. 2 is extended in Jeremiah. It reads in 
 Obadiah "Arise ye, and let us rise up against her 
 in battle." Ver. 15, taken from Obad. 2, states 
 the object of the war, for the attainment of which 
 the nations are summoned. The words corres- 
 pond to vers. 11-13, expressing the decree of Je- 
 hovah concerning Edom, the execution of which 
 is the object of the war. " For " is wanting in 
 Obadiah. In small and despised there is evi* 
 
«94 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 dently an antithesis to EJom's pride (ver. 16). 
 Hemist. 2 reads in Obadiah, "thou art greatly 
 despised." 
 
 Ver. 16. Thy object of horror. . . saith Je- 
 hovah. We evidently have here the kernel of 
 the strophe, that by which it is distinguished 
 from the context, viz., the guilt of Edom is here 
 stated, the subjective reason of her destruction. 
 While Obadiah mentions as this reason only 
 "the pride of thine heart" (ver. 3), Jeremiah 
 mentions also the " being a terror," or, as I un- 
 derstand the word, the horror, i. e., the idol. We 
 may well conceive that wishing to extend the 
 text of his source the prophet would insert a 
 word which would state the ground of Edom's 
 moral corruption. Whence does arise the moral 
 pollution of the heathen world ? According to 
 Rom. i. from idolatry. Here also Jeremiah would 
 say that it was really the idol which deceived 
 Edom, pride being involved in idolatry. — The 
 pride of thy heart is then in apposition to hor- 
 ror. It is in accordance with this that inacces- 
 sible rock-castles are designated as the ground of 
 pride, for, were not all heathen idols local dei- 
 ties ? Was not then the idol who had built these 
 rocks and continually protected them the real 
 lord on whom their proud confidence was founded? 
 — Clefts of the rocks, etc. It appears to me 
 beyond doubt that Jeremiah had here in view the 
 peculiar character of the Edomite cities, espe- 
 cially the capital, which was called Sela (2 Ki. 
 xiv. 7; Isa. xvi. 1). Comp. the remarks on Boz- 
 rah, ver. 13. The second hemistich is abbrevi- 
 ated from Obad. 4. Comp. Am. ix. 2. 
 
 [" The descriptive points in this verse are won- 
 derfully accurate. Petra, the ancient capital 
 of Edom, for ages the main thoroughfare of the 
 great trade and travel between India and Meso- 
 potamia on the East, and Egypt and North Africa 
 on the South- West; the seat therefore of wealth 
 
 and art, perhaps of wisdom also, and culture, 
 held a position of great military strength. It was 
 built in a vast ravine, partly on the broad area 
 inclosed by lofty precipitous walls of rock, which 
 by some of nature's mighty convulsions had been 
 rent asunder, and partly in those very fronts of 
 lofty rock, chiseled out with immense labor, so 
 that the pillars, of the temples and the apartments 
 of its tombs and dwellings were wholly cut from 
 the solid, eternal rock. Here — her nests built 
 high in these crags like the eagle's — old Petra 
 sat in her pride and h3r strength, cherishing the 
 vain fancy that no power could ever bring her 
 down. But the Almighty spake and it was done! 
 — The site of ancient Petra, for ages unknown, 
 has been brought to light during the present cen- 
 tury. A number of travelers have visited and 
 explored it. Laborde, Dr. Robinson and others, 
 have given fuU.and precise statements of its won- 
 derful ruins, placing Petra in the front rank of 
 those ancient witnesses who bear their silent but 
 resistless testimony to the precision of the old 
 prophetic descriptions, and to the marvellous 
 correspondence in the most minute details be- 
 tween prophecy and history — the prophecy of 
 twenty centuries ago and the history of to-day." 
 CowLES. — S. R. A.] 
 
 Vers. 17, 18. And Edom . . . sojourn in 
 her. These verses do not contain any reminis- 
 cences from Obadiah, but they do from Jeremiah 
 himself and from other writings. — And Edom, 
 etc., is formed after xxv. 11, 38. Comp. 1. 13. — 
 Every one that passeth. Comp. xix. 8. — As 
 in the overthrow, etc., is from Deut. xxix. 22. 
 Comp. Isa. xiii. 19; Jer. 1. 40. The expression 
 neighboring cities points to Deut. xxix. 22, 
 where Admah and Zeboim are mentioned with 
 Sodom and Gomorrah. Comp. Hos. xi. 8. — No 
 man vrill dwell, 
 li. 43. 
 
 etc. Comp. ver. 33; 1. 40; 
 
 3. TVie instrument chosen by Jehovah for the destruction of Edom. 
 
 XLIX. 19-22. 
 
 19 Behold, as a lion he cometh up 
 
 From the pride of Jordan to the evergreen pasturage, 
 For in a twinkling I drive him (Edom) from thence.^ 
 And who is chosen ?^ Him will 1 set over him. 
 For who is like me ? And who will appoint me the time ? 
 And who is the shepherd that would stand before me ? 
 
 20 Therefore hear the counsel of Jehovah which He hath counselled against Edom, 
 And His thoughts, which he has thought concerning the inhabitants of Teman : 
 Verily they will be dragged along, the feeble little sheep ; 
 
 Verily their pasturage will be astounded* at them. 
 
 21 At the sound of their fall* the earth trembles. 
 Crying !* The sound of it^ is heard on the Red Sea. 
 
 22 Behold, as an eagle he ascends and flies, 
 And extends his wings over Bozrah ; 
 
 And the heart of the heroes of Edom on that day 
 Will be as the heart of a woman in anguish. 
 
CHAP. XLIX. 19-22. 
 
 395 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 19. — The construction as in Zeph. iii. 7 coll. Prov. xii. 19. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g95 ff, Anm. — H'/yD is «n- 
 doubtedly to be referred to HI J, although this word is elsewhere used as a masc. (Isa. xxvii. 10; xxxiii. 20), since the idea 
 
 of " country " lies at its basis. Comp. rems. on r^^^^ilH ver. 16. . , 
 
 2 Ver. 19.— ■'D is used as e.^. in Exod. xxiv. 14. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 79, 6.— n''7X for T]''7V- Comp. remarks 
 
 T V T v't 
 
 on X. 1. 
 
 s Ver. 20.— □''2/1 Hiphil (oathe form comp. Olsh., S. 577, 8; Numb. xxi. 30) is to be taken as the direct causative: 
 ttuparem ej)icere, to produce astonisliment and horror not in others, but in one's self, i. <•.., to be horrified. Comp. Naegelsb. 
 
 Cr., g 18, 3. ["J<7~DX if noJ, a strong mode of asseveration for the purpose of expressing the certainty of any event." 
 
 Henderson. — S. R. A.] 
 
 * Ver. 20. — 0*73^ is infinitive. Comp. 2 Sam. i. 10 ; Olshausen, \ 245 6. 
 
 B Ver. 21.— npy^ the main idea placed emphatically in advance, which is more accurately defined in the following 
 context. Comp. Ewald, § 309, 6. 
 
 « Ver. 21. — ["For PlVlp which refers to npyX, we find the less appropriate reading D/'lD in eighty-four MSS. : it 
 
 has been originally in fourteen more ; it is in three by correction, and is in the text of twenty-one printed editions. The 
 only version whicli supports it is the Targum." Henderson. IIitzu; however approves of this reading as the more diflS 
 cult, referring it to VTj^ri. the land, i. e. the population thereof. — S. R. A.] 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This strophe also describes the destruction of 
 Edom, but in such wise that the instrument in the 
 hand of the Lord is prominent, without being men- 
 tioned by name. As a lion from the reed thick- 
 ets of the Jordan falls upon a Hock, which is pas- 
 turing on the luxuriant, ever-green meadows of 
 the Gor, so shall Edom be surprised in his rock- 
 dwelling and be driven away in a twinkling. So 
 shall a new shepherd, chosen ad hoc by the Lord 
 Himself, be set over Edom, for the previous shep- 
 herds of Edom have no prerogative to maintain 
 their position in spite of the Lord (ver. 19). The 
 new Shepherd, however, will not pasture the 
 flock in the old way peaceably, but will drag 
 them away, so that their pasturage will be as- 
 tounded at the disappearance of the flock (ver. 
 20). Thus the fall of Edom will be a violent one, 
 so much so that the sound of it will be heard 
 afar (ver. 20). Again, in conclusion, the one who 
 is called to the destruction of Edom is compared 
 with an eagle (after Deut. xxviii. 49), who will 
 extend his wings over Bozrah, which is fortified 
 indeed, but powerless against such an enemy, so 
 that on that day even the heroes of Edom will 
 be as faint-hearted as parturient women. 
 
 Ver. 19. Behold as a lion . . . before me. 
 As in xlvi. 18 with Carmel, and in xlviii. 40 with 
 an eagle, so here the instrument of the Lord is 
 compared with a lion, one who lurks in the reedy 
 margin of the .Jordan (the pride of Jordan, "the 
 luxuriant bushes and reeds growing on its banks, 
 by which it is enclosed as by a green garland." 
 KoHLER on Zech. xi. 3 coll. Jer. xii. 5; Raumek, 
 Pal. S. 58; Herzog, R.-Enc, VII., S. S) and 
 from thence makes his inroads on the flocks pas- 
 turing on the luxuriant evergreen meadows of 
 the Jordan valley. For the Gor, though in ge- 
 neral arid and infertile, where brooks flow down 
 from the mountains to the Jordan has oases, 
 which under the influence of the tropical climate 
 are exceedingly fertile. Comp. Arnold in Her- 
 zog, R.-Enc, S. 10, etc. I am therefore of opi- 
 nion that jiTX nij does not directly signify the 
 land of Edom. and thus is neither to be taken as 
 " rock-dwelling" nor as " evergreen pasturage " 
 with sole reference to the undisturbed possession 
 
 of the land for centuries. I take it in the latter 
 meaning, but I think that the expression is cho- 
 seu because it admits of a double reference, to 
 the oases of the Jordanic valley and to Edom it- 
 self, which may be thus designated both as the 
 ancient residence of the Edomite nation, and 
 with reference to the strength ami indestructibi- 
 lity of its national defences (comp. Num. xxiv. 21 ; 
 Mic. vi. 2). In referring the expression at the 
 same time to Edom, a transition is formed from 
 the comparison to the thing compared. — For in 
 a tw^inkling. From the "For" we see that the 
 jirophet has in view the suddenness of the at- 
 tack as a tertium comparationis. From the thickets 
 of the Jordan lions could easily fall upon herds 
 feeding near the bank (comp. Herzog, R-Enc. XI. 
 *S. 2'J). In like manner shall Edom be suddenly 
 assailed and driven away from his pa.slurige. — 
 And who is chosen? We see from this ex- 
 pression that the prophet had no definite person 
 in view. He does not yet know who the chosen 
 one is, but only that there will be one. Whoever 
 it is will really obtain the supremacy over Edom, 
 appointed to him. (xv. 3; li. 27). The elder 
 commentators understood Nebuchadnezzar, or 
 even {interprete Luthero, as Forstersays) Alexan- 
 der the Great. — For -who is like me? Edom's 
 princes of ancient and illustrious descent (Gen. 
 xxxvi.) might well be caught in the delusion of in- 
 violable security. Here they are told that they 
 have a higher power above them, who can re- 
 move them, and set others more pleasing to him 
 in their place — Jehovah, namely, who has none 
 like unto Him, (Comp. C.\sp.\ri, iltcha da- Mo- 
 rast, S. llsqq. ; Exod. xv. 11), whom no one can 
 bring to an account (Job ix. 19), whom no earthly 
 national shepherd (x. 21 ; xxv. 34; xxiii. Ij can 
 defy. ["To 'appoint one the time' is the an- 
 cient phrase for a legal indictment and sum- 
 mons. Who shall prosecute me before the court 
 for this proceeding, i. e., set himself against me 
 as an opponent, or an antagonist." Cowles — S. 
 R. A.] 
 
 Vers. 20, 21. Therefore hear . . . Red Sea. 
 
 As it is, therefore, undeniable that the Lord has 
 power over all kingdoms of the nations, it is 
 solemnly made known to all the world as the de- 
 cree of the highest Majesty; the Edomites shaU 
 suifer the same fate from Him, who shall attack 
 
896 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 them like a lion, aa the lion brings upon the 
 weaker animals, i. e., they shall be dragged away 
 (xv. 3 ; xxii. 19) — carried into captivity. Thus 
 will the land be desolated, as the prophet poeti- 
 cally expresses it in the words, the land will be 
 horrified at the sudden stillness and desolation. 
 There is a similar personification in Job vii. 10, 
 (Ps. ciii. 16). From tbis it follows 1. that the 
 entire representation of these two verses is based 
 on a figure of a place of pasturage ; 2. that by 
 the new shepherd, a conqueror is understood who 
 will desolate the land and carry the people into 
 captivity ; 3. that the sentence with therefore, 
 occasioned by the emphatic causal sentence of 
 three clauses, ver. 19, b, contains no more than 
 an emphatically repeated inference (A, then B, 
 therefore A), consequently the same thought in 
 substance, which was already expressed in I v^ill 
 drive him from thence. Onver. 20acomp.ver. 
 30: xviii. 11; xxix. 11; Isa. xiv. 26, 27; xix. 12 
 — Teman, comp.ver. 7. The city lay according to 
 Jerome, five, according to Eusebius, fifteen Roman 
 miles from Petra, comp. Baumeb, Pal. S. 279. 
 
 The little sheep. Comp. xiv. 3;xlviii. 4. The 
 "smallest of the flock" are the weakest, most 
 helpless, who are least adapted for flight or re- 
 sistance, and most for being dragged away. — 
 [Henderson adheres to the A. V., making "the 
 smallest of the flock" the nomi ative. — S. R. A.] 
 — At the sound, &c., immediate efi"ect of the 
 overthrow of the power of Edom. Comp. Ezek. 
 xxvi. 15; xxxi. 16; Isa. xiii. 13; Jer. li. 29. — The 
 whole passage, vers. 19-21, is repeated and ap- 
 plied to Babylon (1. 44-46). 
 
 Ver. 22. Behold ... in anguish. That 
 which is in ver. 19 declared by means of a figure 
 taken from a lion, is here repeated in the form 
 of a figure derived from an eagle. The first half of 
 the verse is taken from xlviii. 40, the second from 
 xlviii. 41. The reason of the assailer of Bozrah 
 appearing here as an eagle may be that the "cas- 
 tellated rock" of this city is designated as ac- 
 cessible only to an eagle. Comp. Raumer, Pal. 
 S. 278 ; Schubert, Reise in das Morgenland, 11. 
 S. 426. 
 
 8. Prophecy against Damascus. 
 XLIX. 23-27. 
 
 Out of a large number of small kingdoms {thirty-two are mentioned in 1 Ki. xxi. 1, 16) with which the 
 Israelites after the period of the Judges had to endure many conflicts, (Jud. iii. 8 ; 1 Sam. xiv. 47 : 
 2 Sam. viii. and x.), a large one was formed after David's death by Rezon, with Damascus for its 
 capital (1 Ki. xi. 23, 24). With this great Syrian kingdom also the two kingdoms of Israel had to 
 endure many and severe conflicts, (1 Ki. xv. 18 sqq. ; xx. 1 sqq. ; xxii. 1 sqq. ; 2 Ki. v. 1 sqq. ; 
 vi. 8 sqq. ; viii. 28, 29; x. 32, 33; xii. 17; xiii. 3; xiv. 25; xv. 37; xvi. 5, 6), till at last the 
 Assyrians, solicited by Ahaz of Judah, (2 Ki. xvi. 7-10), fell upon Syria and brought the country 
 permanently under their dominion (2 Ki. xvi. 9). We need not seek the fulfilment of JeremiaKs 
 prophecy of the destruction of Damascus in a particular " conquest and devastation of the country by 
 Nebuchadnezzar. '^ (Graf). For even if Nebuchadnezzar did seize Syria and Damascus and trtat 
 them with a certain degree of hostility [whether as an Assyrian province or as an Egyptian tributary) 
 yet the prophet' s perspective extends over the whole future of Damascus (comp. the Introd. to chh. 
 1. li.). He sees in one picture what in the fulfilment will be divided into many stages, comp. Hekzoq 
 R.-Enc. III., S. 260. 
 
 As regards the date of the prophecy both the superscription and the purport of it indicate that it formed 
 part of that Sepher, beginning with xlvi. 1, which oiues its origin to the period before the battle of 
 Carchemish. Comp. Introd. to the Prophecies against the Nations. 
 
 23 Against Damascus. 
 Ashamed are Hamath and Arpad, 
 
 For a bad report have they heard : they are dissolved.* 
 In the sea there is terror,'' it cannot rest. 
 
 24 Enfeebled is Damascus, she turns to flee, 
 And terror^ seizes her,* 
 
 Anguish and sorrow lay hold on her like a parturient. 
 
 25 How ! Is not the city of renown abandoned, 
 The place of my delight ? 
 
 26 Hence her youths fall in the streets. 
 
 And all men of war shall perish on that day, saith Jehovah Zebaoth. 
 
 27 And I kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus, 
 Which shall devour the palaces of Benhadad. 
 
CHAP. XLIX. 23-27. 
 
 S9T 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 23. — Jjjj used frequently of the effect of fear in loosening the compagines corporis ; Eiod. xv. 15 ; Josh. ii. 9, 24; 
 
 T 
 
 Vs. Ixxv. 4 ; Isa. xiv. 31. , . 
 
 2 Ver. 23.— njXI DO Since the following words 73V X/ Dp'C'n tire taken verbatim from Isa. lvii.20, the previous 
 
 words in Isaiah may rule the previous words here. There we read tJ/TJJ D''3 D'yi2'"im. It would now be certainly 
 
 T : ■ T - • 1 : t; 
 
 most convenient to read □''3 in the present passage instead of D'3. Jeremiah however does not quote the last words ac- 
 
 curately as a whole. And □'3 also is not without difficulty. We should expect it to be in the construct state. I there- 
 fore think that the reading in the text is the correct one. — njXT is fear, terror, unrest. Comp. Josh. xxii. 24 ; Prov. xii. 
 
 T T : 
 25; Ezek. iv. 16; xii. 18, 19. The subst. in Jeremiah here only ; theverb inxvii. 8 ; xxxviil. ItT; xlii. 16. 
 
 3 Ver. 24. — £0D1 ^tt. Key. a Syrian word, without doubt chosen purposely. Comp. J^m, llos. xiii. 1. 
 
 * Ver. 24. — np'tnn is so punctuated by the Masoretes that it is evident the^ took Damascus for the subject (terrorem 
 /?reft.endt<) having in view passages like Isa. xiii. 8 ; Job xviii.20; xxi. 6. But the punctuation Hp^inn would corres- 
 pond better to Jeremiah's usage. Comp. vi. 24 ; viii. 21 ; 1. 43. . ' ' 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 An enemy coming from the north threatens 
 first Hamath and Arpad, which are thus thrown 
 into commotion, like a tempestuous sea (ver. 23). 
 This agitation reaches also Damascus, hence dis- 
 couragement, anxiety, in part ilight (ver. 2-1). 
 The city is not abandoned by all the troops (ver. 
 25), hence a great blood-bath and destruction of 
 the army in the streets (ver. 26) and destruction 
 of the city by fire (ver. 27). 
 
 Ver. 23. Against Damascus . . . cannot 
 rest. The superscription is as in xlvi. 2 ; xlviii. 
 1; xlix. 1, 7. I cannot at all discover that the 
 superscription is too limited, as Graf supposes, 
 for in fact this brief utterance is occupied only 
 with Damascus, the cities Hamath and Arpad 
 being mentioned only to designate the successive 
 advance of the calamity and the direction in 
 which the enemy comes. It is a matter of course 
 that the fall of the capital involves that of the 
 kingdom, hence the superscription is incorrect 
 neither in itself nor in relation to the purport 
 of the passage. According to Num. xxxiv. 8 
 Hamath is to be the northern limit of the land 
 to be occupied by Israel. The boundaries were 
 also really extended thus far at times. Comp. 
 2 Ki. xiv. 28 with 2 Chron. viii. 4. The city 
 was situated on the Orontes to the North of Da- 
 mascus, and was afterwards called Epiphania 
 by the Greeks. Comp. Jerome on Am. vi. 2, 14. 
 Arpad, which is always named together with 
 Hamath (Isa. x. 9, comp. Delitzsch on the pas- 
 sage; xxxvi. 19; xxxvii. 13), must have been 
 situated in the neighborhood of this city. We 
 thus see that the prophet expects the enemy 
 from the North, as it was natural that the army 
 of the Egyptians then in northern Syria should 
 turn his gaze in that direction. Hamath and 
 Arpad stand confounded in consequence of the 
 evil tidings. They flow away, dissolve, pass 
 away with anguish. — The following words are 
 taken verbatim from Isa. Ivii. 20. Jeremiah has 
 doubtless from this passage the idea of the sea 
 
 in general in his mind. The expression IJOJ 
 had directed his thoughts to that passage and 
 still exerts some influence. He thus imagines 
 these cities as a wildly agitated sea. In the 
 swaying hither and thither ot the waves is mir- 
 rored the inward unrest and anguish. It is not 
 then the real sea that is meant (Hitzig), but the 
 human multitude compared to a sea. (Comp. 
 Isa. xvii. 12 ; viii. 7, 8). 
 
 Vers. 24-27. Enfeebled 
 
 Benhadad. 
 
 The bad report reaches-even the capital, and this 
 in consequence falls into critical agitation. De- 
 spair seizes on the inhabitants. A part turns to 
 flight. (Comp. rems. on xlvi. 5, 21). Anguish 
 takes hold upon them. — How ? Is not, etc. 
 We are not justified in regarding the negative 
 as a strong affirmation, or taking abandoned 
 in the sense of, left free, spared. Rather does 
 the prophet say really : how then is the city 
 not forsaken? (Comp. 2 Sam. i. 14). He is 
 astonished and complains, that it has not been 
 abandoned. This would have been better for the 
 Syrians. For just because it has not been, their 
 youths fall in their streets and their whole army 
 is destroyed. Flight might have saved them. — 
 City of renown, etc. Comp. li. 41 ; Isa. Ix. 
 18 ; Ixii. 7. — My refers to the prophet and there 
 is no irony in it. He lamented that the city was 
 not abandoned. He has a human pity for the 
 destroyed city as he has a human joy in its 
 beauty. Comp. rems. on xlviii. 31. [The Vulg., 
 Syr., Chald., omit 77iy. Boothroyd maintains 
 that this omission is necessary to make good 
 sense! — S. R. A.]. — The youths. Comp. ix. 
 20.— Ver. 27. And I kindle. The whole verse 
 in its main constituents is taken from Am. i. and 
 ii. Comp. Am. i. 4, 7, 10, 12, 14 ; ii. 2, 5.— In 
 the w^all, not on the wall, for the wall itself 
 does not burn, but within the wall, so that all 
 which the wall includes is consumed by the fire. 
 The palaces of Benhadad are the royal palaces, 
 since Benhadad (there were three of them, 1 Ki. 
 XV. 18, 20; XX. 1-3; 2 Ki. vi. 24; viii. 7, 9,- 
 xiii. 3, 24, 25) wa& the best known name of 
 Syrian kings. 
 
398 THE PROPdEf J EKE Ml AH. 
 
 9. Prophecy against Kedar and the Kingdoms of Hazor. 
 
 XLIX. 28-33. 
 
 From Damascus the prophet tU'-ns his gaze eastward to the bordering Arabians, comprised in the designor 
 Hon of the title. In xxv. 23, 24 Jeremiah mentions among the populations to be subdued by Nebu- 
 chadnezzar several Arabian tribes. We feel impelled to suppose that the limits of the Arabian con- 
 quests of Nebuchadnezzar were undefined in the mind of the prophet, for we shall be obliged to dis- 
 tinguish a real and ideal dominion of that ruler, though the boundary line between the two is a vague 
 one. It is unnecessary to inquire after a special occasion for this prophecy. Nebuchadnezzar being 
 now universal ruler, the Arabs, being the immediate southern neighbors of his native country, cannot 
 possibly be omitted from subjection to his power. Moreover, the Arabs had enough to do with the 
 Israelites frorn the time of Gideon (comp. Jud. vi.-viii. ; 2 Chron. xvii. 11; xxi. 16, 17; xxvi. 7). — 
 As regards the date of this prophecy we have in the mention of Nebuchadnezzar' s name a sure proof 
 that it was written later than most of its sisters in chh. xlvi.-xlix., for only a single one of these (the 
 second against Egypt, xlvi. 13-28) mentions Nebuchadnezzar. If his expedition against the Arabian 
 tribes were really the first, which he made after his ascension to the throne [comp. the exeg. reins, on 
 vers. 28, 29) this prophecy might be ascribed most fitly to the time in which he was preparing for the 
 undertaking. 
 
 28 Against Kedar and the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchadnezzar^ the king 
 
 of Babylon smote, 
 Thus saith Jehovah : 
 Arise, go up against Kedar, 
 And spoil ye the sons of the east.^ 
 
 29 Their tents and their flocks shall they take, 
 Their curtains and all their utensils ; 
 
 And their camels shall they take for themselves,' 
 And shall cry over them, " Terror round about." 
 
 30 Flee, run apace, stoop, ye inhabitants of Hazor, saith Jehovah, 
 
 For Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon hath planned a plan against you, 
 And hath had thoughts against you. 
 
 31 Up ! Move against a nation at ease,* 
 That dwelleth securely, saith Jehovah. 
 They have neither doors^ nor bolts, 
 They dwell apart by themselves. 
 
 32 And their camels shall become a prey, 
 
 And the multitude of their flocks a plunder ; 
 
 And I scatter to all (the four) winds, those with cropped hair-corners, 
 
 And from all sides I bring their destruction, saith Jehovah. 
 
 33 And Hazor shall become a habitation for jackals, 
 A desolation in perpetuity : 
 
 Not a man shall dwell there. 
 Nor a son of man sojourn therein. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 ' Ver. 28. — The 1 with which the king's name i8 written in the Chethibh is due to a scriptural error occasioBed by th« 
 word TlVn atanding just before. 
 
 2 Ver. 28.— nntJ'1. On the singular imperative form comp. Own. ? 235, 6. 
 
 3 \PT. 29. — DnS IXtl'". The pronoun is grammiitieally more correctly referred to the enemies of the Arabs (comp. 
 Num. xvi. ; Deut. ii. 35 ; iii. 7 ; Naegelsb. Or., g 81, 1 h) since the reference to the Arabs must have beeu expressed by TO. 
 
 4 Ver. .•51.— Tho form vSt!? formed like Tyt (comp. Olsh. § 180, Anm.) is found here only. Elsewhere iSt^ (Job xvi, 
 
 , . ■•: '^■■- "T 
 
 12: XX. 20) or Vty (-lob .xxi. 23). 
 
 •■ T 
 
 5 Ver. 31.— DTiSt xb by this are meant not house-doors, but city gates. Comp. Deut. iii. 5 ; 1 Sam. xxlii. 7. 
 
CHAP. XLIX. 28-33. 
 
 899 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Plunder, desolation and dispersion by Nebu- 
 chadnezzar are proclaimed to the pastoral tribes 
 living in Arabia to the East of Palestine. First 
 the enemies are called upon to advance, and with 
 war-cries to fall upon the Arabs and spoil them 
 (vers. 2-^, 29). The Arabs, however, are ad- 
 monished to flee and hide tliemsjlves,, to escape 
 the plans formed against them (ver. 30). Here- 
 upon the enemies are summoned anew to the 
 attack, and are told, as if to allure them, that 
 they have to deal with a people at peace and not 
 intrenched behind bulwarks (ver. 31). Rich 
 booty is placed before tliera in prospect. Dis- 
 persion on all aides will he the result, corres- 
 ponding to the attack on all sides (ver. 32). The 
 land shall be devastated and cease to be a habi- 
 tation for man (ver. 33). 
 
 Vers. 28, 29. Against Kedar . . . terror 
 round about. Kedar is named in Gen. xxv. 13 
 as the second son of Ishmael, with which the 
 Arabian tradition agrees. Comp. Herzog, ^.- 
 Enc. I. S. 463. [Comp. Keil and Delitzsch, 
 Comm. on the Pentateuch (Eng. Ed ) Vol. I. p. 
 264]. They lived " in the desert between Arabia 
 Pctrnea and Babylonia" (Knobel, Gen. S. 212), 
 and are frequently mentioned as rich in flocks, 
 living in tents (Song of Sol. i. 5; Ps. cxx. 5; 
 Isa. xlii. 11; Ix. 7; Ezek. xxvii. 21) and cele- 
 brated for their skill in archery (Isa. xxi. 16, 17). 
 Comp. rems. on ii. 10. — Hazor, difi"erent from 
 the localities of this name in Palestine (Josh. xi. 
 1-3; xii. 19; xix. 36; Jud. iv. and v; 1 Ki. ix. 
 15; XV. 29— Josh. xv. 23, 25— Neh. xi. 33), is 
 mentioned here only as a district in Arabia. 
 According to Niebuhr [Ass. u. Bab., S. 210 coll. 
 428), Hazor is "the present Hadshar, a district 
 which occupies the whole north-eastern corner 
 of Nedshed, and to which in the wider sense the 
 coast lands of Lachsa also belong.*' This corner 
 is formed by the southern course of the Euphra- 
 tes and the Persian Gulf. With regard to the 
 meaning of the name it is natural to think of 
 Isa. xlii. 11 and to suppose that l^ypi denotea 
 the inhabitants of the D'''^Vn, i. e. villages with- 
 out walls and gates (comp. Gen. xxv. 16). De- 
 LiTzscaremarksonlsa. xlii. 11, "the settled Arabs 
 are still called Hadarije in distinction from Wa- 
 barij'e, the tent Arabs ; hadar, "H^n is the fixed 
 
 dwelling-place in contrast to bedd, the steppe, 
 where the tents are erected temporarily now 
 
 here and now there." Accordingly "np and "llXn 
 
 are related not as opposites, but only as the 
 more limited and more extended idea, and Jere- 
 miah would address his words to Kedar and to 
 mil other Arabs dwelling in C'^KO- ^it,h this 
 
 would accord not only the -Chaldean incursion 
 generally, which it is easier to regard as directed 
 against a settled people than against nomads, 
 but especially the description of the devastation 
 in ver. 23, which seems to presuppose not the 
 pasturage of a passing horde but the abiding- 
 place of men who build houses. It seems op- 
 posed to this, however, that in ver. 29 the tents 
 and curtains of the attacked are spoken of, ac- 
 cording to which part of them at least were 
 tent-dwellers. It is also surprising that in Isa. 
 xlii. 11 the Kedarenes are inhabitants of D"'"12fn, 
 while elsewhere (comp. the passages cited) they 
 are described as tent-dwellers. I believe that 
 all may be united in the hypothesis that there 
 were some Kedarenes living in tents and some in 
 villages, and that the text has in ^iew both these 
 and also the other tribes settled in villages of 
 northern Arabia. — Which Nebuchadnezzar, 
 etc. These words appear to be a later addition, 
 as otherwise the prophecy characterizes itself as 
 a vaticinium post eventum. Yet even Hitzig re- 
 marks, the addition is "contained in the LXX. 
 and preserving the older form of the proper 
 name as in xliv. 30 is relatively very old, and pro- 
 bably genuine and certainly contains historical 
 tiulh, which is not handed down elsewhere." 
 Niebuhr [Ass. u. Bab., S. 209, 10) and Duncker 
 [Genh. des. Alterth., I. S. 827) are of opinion 
 that Nebuchadnezzar, after returning from the 
 victory of Carchemish, had strengthened his in- 
 ternal dominion, first taking into consideration 
 "the extension of his dominion over the Arabs 
 on the lower Euphrates, in North Arabia and the 
 Syrian desert " (Dunckeb). It is to be remarked 
 in this connection, that according to Ctesi.\s, 
 whose statement Duncker regards as credible 
 [S. 804, 806 Anm. 2, etc.), the Babylonians had 
 already brought Arabs with them to the siege of 
 Nineveh. — The expression "sons of tlie East" 
 is the " general designation of the Arabs, espe- 
 cially the nomad tribes of northern Arabia" 
 (Arnold in Herz., R.-Enc. I. S. 460). Comp. 
 Jud. vi. 3, 33; vii. 12; viii. 10; 1 Ki. v. 10; 
 Job i. 3; Isa. xi. 14; Ezek. xxv. 4, 10. — Cur- 
 tains are the mats or canvas of which the tents 
 consist. Comp. iv. 20; x. 20. — Terror, etc. 
 Mayor missabib. Comp. vi. 15; xx. 3, 10; xlvi. 5. 
 Vers. 30-33. Flee . . . therein. On flee, 
 etc., comp. ver. 8. On planned a plan comp. 
 ver. 20; xviii. 11. — At ease. Comp. Jud. xviii. 
 7. — Apart by themselves. Comp. xv. 17; 
 Numb, xxiii. 9; Deut. xxxiii. 28. — And I scat- 
 ter, etc. Comp. Ezek. v. 12 ; xii. 14. — Cropped 
 hair-corners. Comp. rems. on ix. 25; xxv. 
 23. — From all sides. Comp. rems. on xlviii. 
 28; 1 Ki. V. 4— ver. 8; xlvi. 21.— Shall be- 
 come, etc., ver. 33. Comp. ver. 18; ix. 10; s. 
 ^2 ; li. 37 ; 1. 40. 
 
400 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 10. Prophecy against Elam. 
 XLIX. 34-39. 
 
 l^lam is mentioned in the Old Testament in Gen. x. 22; xiv. 1, 9; Isa. xi. 11; xxi. 2; xxii. 6; Jer. 
 XXV. 25 : Ezek. xxxii. 24 ; Dan. viii. 2 ; Ezra iv. 9. Comp. supra ad xxv. 25. It is here men- 
 tioned as the representative of the more remote populations, beyond the Tigris, all those who are enu- 
 merated in the catalogue of nations beyond the Tigris in xxv. 25, 26. M. Niebuhr assumes as 
 certain a victorious war of Nebuchadnezzar with Elam between the ninth and twentieth years of his 
 reign (Ass^ u. Bab. S. 212). In this, however, he relies not on positive historical testimony but only 
 on inferences, the correctness of which may be disputed. We are further in no need of an actual over- 
 throw of Elam by Nebuchadnezzar. The kernel of the prophecy is an idea which retains its truth 
 even if' Nebuchadnezzar had never made war on Elam. 
 
 Why Jeremiah chose Elam as the representative of the eastern nations is not apparent. The supposition of 
 EwALD (Proph. d. A. £., II. S. lioO), that ^^ the wild warlike Elamites had acted as auxiliaries 
 shortly before in the deportation of Jehoiachin and the first great deportation of the people, and in this 
 had shown themselves particularly cruel,'' does not appear to be well-founded. For 1. if the Elamites 
 already served in the army of Nebuchadnezzar they needed not to be subjugated ; 2. the superscription 
 affords no sure criterion of the date. For it is highly 2^rol)able that it is placed here by mistake, as we 
 shall show on ver. 34. The prophecy does not mention Nebuchadnezzar by name, and we must 
 therefore regard it as of the same date as the others m chh. xlvi.-xlix. against the nations (^except 
 xlvi. 13 sqq. and xlix. 28-33). 
 
 34 The word of Jehovah which came to Jeremiah the prophet with respect to Elam, 
 in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah, saying, 
 
 35 Thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth : 
 Behold, I will break the bow of Elam, 
 The chief part of their strength, 
 
 36 And I will bring upon Elam four winds from the four corners of heaven, 
 And will scatter them to all those winds ; 
 
 And there shall be no nation whither the dispersed of Elam^ shall not come. 
 
 37 And I will terrify^ Elam before their enemies, 
 And before those who seek their life ; 
 
 And I will bring calamity upon them, 
 The fierceness of my anger, saith Jehovah ; 
 And I will send the sword after them, 
 Until I have utterly consumed them. 
 
 38 And I will set my throne in Elam, 
 
 And destroy king and prince from thence, saith Jehovah. 
 
 39 And it shall be at the end of days, 
 
 I will turn the captivity of Elam, saith Jehovah. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 36.— dSi^^ ia the Chethibh has expressions such as ver. 13 ; xxv. 12 ; li. 26, 62, etc., in view. 
 
 2 Ver. 37.— Ou Tinnn comp. Olsh., S. 563, 4,— xlvi. 26 ; ix. 15. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The bow of the Elamites, wherein their strength 
 consists, shall be broken (ver. 35). They shall 
 be attacked and scattered on all sides (ver. 3U), 
 and be pursued to destruction (ver. 37). In the 
 country itself the Lord will hold strict judgment 
 and pxtcrminiite all the rulers (ver. 38). Yet in 
 the distant future Elam aiso shall be liberated 
 and obtain salvation (ver. 39). 
 
 Ver. 34. The word . . . Judah. There are 
 
 well-founded doubts as to the authenticity of this 
 superscription. AVe have hitherto found without 
 an exception, that in all prophecies which are 
 older than the battle of Carchemish, Jeremiah 
 never mentions Nebuchadnezzar and the Chal- 
 deans, while in all the oracles subsequent to this 
 catastrophe he knows and names Nebuchadnezzar 
 as the Lord's chosen instrument. If now this 
 prophecy really dates from the beginning of 
 Zedekiah's reign, why is not Nebuchadnezzar 
 mentioiied ? Why are the agents of the punish- 
 ment spoken of in as general a masaer as in thr 
 
CHAP. XLIX. 34-39. 
 
 401 
 
 older prophecies ? Or must not Nebuchadnezzar 
 be necessarily regarded as the agent, as Gbaf 
 supposes {S. 576)? I hold itquite impossible for 
 Jeremiah in the beginning of the reign of Zede- 
 kiah to have thought of any other than Nebuchad- 
 nezzar as an instrument of the execution, or to 
 have left this point even in suspense. Compare 
 only xxvii. 6 sqq., where the whole earth, with 
 all that is thereon, is given over without excep- 
 tion or reserve to the Chaldean king. Add to 
 this an external circumstance. Unreliable as the 
 Alexandrian translation in general is, yet in some 
 circumstances it may serve to indicate the origi- 
 nal form of the text (comp. Graf, Finl. S. LVII.). 
 This is here the case. As is well-known the pro- 
 phecies against the nations have in the LXX. 
 their place immediately after that indication of 
 a Sepher, containing them, in xxv. 13, and this 
 prophecy against Elam is at their head. It is 
 introduced with the words: a hKpo(f)ijT£vaev 
 'leps/ulag kni ra idvr] to. ADidfi. It further closes 
 with the words: ev apxv (iaoLTievovToq ^edeKiov 
 ^aaoMuQ eyEvero 6 ?.6yog ovrog irepl AiTidu, and 
 these words form in addition the beginning of 
 ch. xxvi. However severely we may judge the 
 arbitrariness of this translator, it must be ad- 
 mitted that this exceeds the customary degree 
 thereof, which is substantially confined to abridge- 
 ment (comp. Graf, EM., S. XLIIL). What 
 could have induced him to invent this postscript, 
 since the brief oracle was sufBeiently character- 
 ized by the prefixed words rd Al'^ap. (evidently 
 
 corresponding to the Hebrew Ur^j, but on ac- 
 count of its brevity added as in apposition to the 
 preceding exl to. kdvjjt Whence now that post- 
 script? It is remarkable that in the LXX. the 
 first verse of ch. xxvii. (Heb. ) is wanting. It is 
 the verse with the undoubtedly false name of Je- 
 hoiakim! Now ch. xxvii. stands in the closest 
 topical relation to ch. xxv. In the symbolic 
 sending of the yoke it forms an actual commen- 
 tary to the symbol of the cup of wrath, xxv. 15 
 sqq. Ch. xxvi. on the other hand belongs to a 
 much earlier date, and is merely inserted here, 
 because it likewise (as ch. xxvii.) has for its 
 subject the conflict with the false prophets, and 
 bears as date the beginning of the reign of Je- 
 hoiakim. Compare the Introduction to the Ninth 
 Discourse (ch. xxv.), and the rems. on xxvii. 1. 
 This postscript now whicli the LXX. subjoins to 
 the oracle against Elam suits exactly (only with 
 the omission of the words rcepl At/Id//) in the place 
 of the verse wanting at the beginning of ch. xxvii., 
 and, which is a matter of importance, it contains 
 the right king's name, viz., that of Zedekiah. 
 The supposition is thus pressed upon us that the 
 prophecies against the nations originally had 
 place immediately after ch. xxv., that ch. xxvii. 
 was connected directly therewith (without the 
 intervention of ch. xxvi.), that the prophecy 
 against Elam formed the conclusion of the oracle 
 against the nations, and that by mistake the 
 Diaskenast who altered that original order, re- 
 moved xxvii 1, and attached it, as a postsci-ipt, 
 to the oracle agninst Elam. In this behalf the 
 words "against Elam," had to be inserted. This 
 alteration must have been made in very early 
 umes, for it makes itself felt in both the Hebrew 
 leit and in the LXX. only with this difi'erence. 
 
 that in the text, on which the LXX. was based, 
 the misplaced words still stood at the close of the 
 word directed against Elam, so that this had a 
 superscription and a postscript, while in our 
 Masoretic recension the postscript is made into 
 the title by the assumption into it of the words 
 
 D^'^" /X. For this purpose the form of the sen- 
 tences must also have been altered, so that it was 
 in correspondence with the superscription, xlvi. 
 1 and xlvii. 1, while in the Greek text (xxvi 1) 
 the old form is still perceptible. Thus substan- 
 tially Movers and Hitzig, with whom I feel com- 
 pelled to agree in the main. 
 
 Vers. 35-89. Thussaith . . . aaith .Jehovah. 
 It seems to me far-fetched to take HK^p in the 
 
 sense of vin fortes as Hitzig and Graf would do, 
 after the example of the Targum and several 
 llabbis. This meaning also does not seem to me 
 to be proved. For in Isa. xxi. 17 the word is to 
 be understood peculiarly (comp. Delitzsch, ad 
 loc). In 1 Sam. ii. 4 and Hos. i. 5, it stands by 
 synecdoche for all the means of attack and de- 
 fence. And it is thus to be rendered here the 
 rather as we know from history, that the Elamites 
 were really celebrated as archers (comp. Isa. 
 xxii. 6; Livy XXXVII. 27; Herzog, R.-Enc, III. 
 S. 748). The bow was the chief part of their 
 strength (comp. ii. 3; Am. vi. 1, 6). When 
 Hitzig inquires "why limit the breaking to the 
 bow?" the answer is, because it was the main 
 element of their power. To break their bow was 
 to render them defenceless. When this is done, the 
 advance is made upon them positively; from the 
 four corners of the heaven are the four winds to 
 rage against them and drive them one to another, 
 i. e., the four winds shall scatter them to the four 
 winds (comp. ver. 32; Zech. ii. 10; vi. 5). With- 
 out a figure, they shall be attacked on all sides 
 and scattered on all sides, so that there will be 
 no nation in which such Elamites are not to be 
 found. That this is the sense is clear from ver. 
 37, where the same thing is expressed without a 
 figure — In the country itself will the Lord erect 
 His throne (comp. the related but not identical 
 expression, i. 15 and xliii. 10), i. e., He will sit 
 in judgment, and the heads of the people must 
 appear to receive their sentences. But Elam 
 also at the end of days shall share in the salva- 
 tion which the Lord shall then bring to all na- 
 tions by the Messiah (comp. xlix. 6; xlviii. 47). 
 It is also not to be doubted that this word of con- 
 solation applies not to Elam alone, but to all the 
 nations before mentioned. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. On xlix. 1. Has then Israel no heir? So the 
 prophet tells the Ammonites. But to Israel him- 
 self he speaks differently; I will cast you out 
 from my presence, as I cast out all your brethren, 
 the whole seed of Ephraim (vii. 15). Thus the 
 Ammonites have no right in Israel, and Israel, 
 although he has forfeited his claim with respeit 
 to Jehovah, still has a right to his country with 
 respect to the Ammonites, which ho will one day, 
 through God's grace, make good again. "Israel 
 will one day possess and rule his possessors an 1 
 rulers. This is Israel's eternal calling, which, 
 in spite of every sin, must again be manifested. 
 
402 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 and Is fulfilled in the Christian church to which 
 all nations are given as a possession. Even now 
 Jeremiah by God's word, of which he is the 
 bearer, has power over Ammon as over all the 
 heathen world. He surveys their whole charac- 
 ter, and already holds judgment. In him is 
 Israel's majesty and triumph even though on this 
 account he is most mo^^ked by the Jews." 
 (Diedrich). As then the servants of Malcom 
 occupied the territory of Israel, so since then 
 have the servants of Mohammed occupied the 
 territory of the Christian church in Asia and 
 Europe. In both cases it was a judgment on the 
 latter without conferring any righton the former. 
 A time, however, will come when the restoration 
 of Israel and of Christianity to their country, 
 and their right will take place at the same time. 
 
 2. On vers. 4, 5. "The real confidence of the 
 world is always on Mammon. They would 
 satisfy the deity with their dead self-devised 
 works, but with desire and the tension of all 
 their powers does the world serve material in- 
 terests, as they are now-a-days called ? Soon, 
 however, Ammon's corn-fields are overflowed by 
 enemies, then even their confidence gives way to 
 despair." Diedrich. 
 
 3. On ver. 7. "We see here, how God puts to 
 shame those who depend on their wisdom and 
 craftiness, so that we may ask: is tliere no more 
 wisdom or counsel among the wise? Is their 
 wisdom come to naught? Paul also writes of 
 this (1 Cor. i. 19, 20) from the prophet Isaiah 
 (xxix. 14 coll. Jer. ix. 23, 24). Biblische Sum- 
 viarien, etc. 
 
 4. On ver. 7 sqq. "Although Edom was the 
 nation nearest to Israel both in relationship and 
 acquaintance, it is thus only a precursor of Anti- 
 christ, who endeavors to hide a worldly charac- 
 ter in Christian forms. Edom is 'irritated by the 
 existence of Israel, the presence of the pure word 
 of God is always a thorn in his conscience. 
 From Edom cam* Herod wh'o wanted to murder 
 the child Jesus, and who also mocked the suffer- 
 ing Saviour. Edom was celebrated for wise 
 proverbs; it possessed high mental endowments; 
 but are not even these put to shame, when not 
 accompanied by the fear of God?" Diedrich. 
 
 5. On ver. 12. Israel was the chosen nation, 
 the son of the house (comp. Exod. iv. 22; Jer. 
 xxxi. 9), and yet he was severely chastised. 
 Further, there were in Israel many just and pious 
 men, who did not share the sins of their people, 
 but zealously contended against them. But even 
 these also had to bear the severe chastening. 
 " Prophets and priests were also carried away to 
 Babylon ; Daniel, Ezekiel and pious men like 
 Ananiah, Azariah, Mishael, and probably very 
 many others," says Theodoret. How then could 
 another nation expect to be treated differently? 
 Comp. Prov. xl. 31 ; 1 Pet. iv. 17, 18. There 
 will, however, be a similarity also in this that 
 finally the chastisement of both, the chosen na- 
 tion and the other, will redound to their eternal 
 Tyelfare. Comp. ver. 39. "Ju.ttii.i c.it Dominus et 
 rectum omne judicium ejus! Qux etiam erat con- 
 fes.sio Mauritii imperaloris, quam edihat. cum videret 
 sanctum suam uxorem gladio feriri paulo post feri- 
 endus et ipse." Forster. Pss. cxix., cxxxvii. 
 
 6. On ver. 16. " Fortifications may be con- 
 it ructed and made due use of, but they must not be 
 
 depended upon. For no fortification is too strong 
 or too high when God is angry, and will punish. 
 And he has various ways of bringing them into 
 the hands of the enemies as, He can cause pro- 
 visions to fail; or a spark to fall in a powder- 
 magazine; water may be wanting; there may be 
 pestilence or the dysentery or mutiny among the 
 soldiers, or bribes may be used as scaling lad- 
 ders. Then all is in vain." Cramer. "What 
 the world calls protection, cannot protect against 
 God's judgnaent; death mounts over all rocks." 
 Diedrich. 
 
 7. On ver. 19. "God gives all authority and 
 respect, and takes it all away. For He it is, who 
 poureth contempt upon princes, Job xii. 21 ; Ps. 
 cvii. 40; Isa. xl. 23." Cramer. ["We need not 
 be surprised by such a searching question as 
 that in the present passage conceining Christ, 
 when we remember that Edom is the prophetical 
 type of Christ's enemies," etc. Wordsworth. — 
 S. R. A.] 
 
 8. On ver. 25. "God can suffer moderate joy- 
 ousness, but to be joyous from security and in 
 an Epicurean manner, is commonly a prelimi- 
 nary to destruction, Matt. xxiv. 39." Cramer. 
 
 9. On ver. 30. ^' JVon est -quo fugias a Deo irato, 
 nisi ad Deum placatum^ Augustin in Ps. Ixxiv." — 
 Forster. 
 
 10. On ver. 38. Where judgment is held there 
 is the Lord's throne. For even the idea of judg- 
 ment is divine, and all judges are the lower 
 representatives of the highest judge. Woe to 
 those judges who proceed so as to efl'ace the idea 
 which they represent. Well for us that there is 
 a superior tribunal which will reverse all unjust 
 judgments, and in all points bring true justice 
 to the light, before which also summum jus will 
 not be summa injuria. 
 
 11. On ver. 39. " In promissione spondetur Persis 
 vocatio ad regnum Chrisli, cujus primitiae fuerunt 
 Magi (Matt, ii.), qui et ob id a Chrysostomo Patri- 
 archse gentium appellantur.''^ Forster. [The ful- 
 filment ot this prophecy was seen, in part, when 
 the Magi came to our Lord at Bethlehem; and 
 still more on the day of Pentecost, when ' Parth- 
 ians, Medesand Elamites' listened to the preach- 
 ing of St. Peter at Jerusalem, and were received 
 into the Christian church (Acts ii. 9, 14)." 
 Wordsworth. — S. R. A.]^ 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On vers. 1, 2. Lament and hope of the 
 church with respect to lost territory. 1. The 
 lament (ver. 1). 2. The hope (a) with respect 
 to the overcoming of opponents ; (b) with respect 
 to the reacquisition.of the lost. 
 
 2. On vers. 4, 6. Warning against arrogance. 
 1. Whereon it depends (ver. 4, trusted in her 
 treasures, etc.). 2. What its end will be (destruc- 
 tion of its sources of help, fear, flight). 
 
 3. On ver. 7. The insufficiency of human wis- 
 dom. 1. Its strength (the renowned wisdom of 
 the Edomites was not unfounded). 2. Its weak- 
 ness (it must fail before the strokes of the Lord). 
 
 3. On ver. 11. A word of comfort for widows 
 and orphans. 1. They have lost their human 
 protectors and supporters. 2. Their shield is 
 the Lord, if they trust in him. — "How blessed is 
 God's kind promise to widows and orphans 1. 
 
CHAPS. L., LI. 
 
 403 
 
 It calms the heart of every dying father ; 2. It 
 comforts the heart of all who are left orphans ; 
 8. It encourages us all to trust ourselves with 
 our children more faithfully to God. Florey, 
 Bibliseh. Wegweiser fur yeistl. Grabredner, 1861, 
 S. 101. 
 
 5. On ver. 12. The justice of the Lord. 1. It 
 directs its strokes with strict impartiality against 
 the children of the house and against strangers. 
 
 2. It always has in view the true welfare of those 
 who are smitten. 
 
 6. On vers. 15, 16. The folly of those who 
 would contend against God. 1. The ground of 
 it (pride, earthly power). '1. Its fate (overthrovf 
 and destruction by divine omnipotence) 
 
 7. On vers. 38, 39. The Lord's judgments. They 
 are 1, irresistible; 2, directed not to complete de- 
 struction, but to amelioration and true well-being. 
 
 11. Prophecy against Babylon (chh. 1., li.). 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 1. Before the battle of Carchemish Jeremiah 
 predicted to his people a severe visitation b}' a 
 people coming from the north, whom lie after- 
 wards recognized as the Chaldeans, and then 
 constantly proclaimed that Israel and the other 
 nations would be saved from complete destruc- 
 tion only by subjection to Nebuchadnezzar. It 
 may, therefore, be said that during part of his 
 ministry he spoke of the Chaldeans unknowingly 
 in a manner favorable to them. There is no 
 contradiction, however, as many suppose, in his 
 here predicting the destruction of Babylon itself, 
 and in the same manner by a people coming from 
 the north (1.3, 9,41; li. 48). For Jeremiah 
 would only say that for the present, in the proxi- 
 mate future, Babylon is the instrument of judg- 
 ment on all nations (1. 23; li. 20 sqq.), but the 
 time is coming when Babylon itself must drain 
 the cup of wrath, in punishment for the sins 
 which it has incurred in the execution of its mis- 
 sion (1. 11, 24, 28, 32; li. 6, 11, 24, 36, 56). Jere- 
 miah's declarations for and against Babylon are 
 thus related to each other, as in ixv. 27 the 
 brief declaration, "and the king of Sheshach 
 shall drink after them," is to the previous an- 
 nouncements that Babylon shall offer the cup of 
 wrath. It is not strange to find a prophecy 
 against Babylon in Jeremiah, but must be re- 
 garded as perfectly natural. 
 
 2. Prophecy against Babylon has a history. 
 First, Isaiah, probably moved by the embassy, 
 which Merodach-Baladan sent to Hezekiah (Isa. 
 xxxix.; 2 Ki. xx. 12 sqq.) proclaimed the 
 judgment of destruction on Babylon (Isa. chh. 
 xiii., xiv., xxi.; xliii. 14; xlvi. 1-2; xlvii.; xlviii. 
 14 sqq.). He is followed by Micah, who, in a 
 brief declaration, comprises all which Jeremiah 
 has said in his whole book for and against Baby- 
 lon, "thou shalt dwell in the field, and thou shalt 
 go to Babylon ; there shalt thou be delivered ; 
 there the Lord shall redeem thee from the hand 
 of thy enemies." Mic. iv. 10. Habakkuk then, 
 the cotemporary of Jeremiah, prophesied before 
 him, but after the battle of Carchemish, against 
 Babylon, characterizing it not only in the nar- 
 rower sense as a power hostile to the people of 
 Israel, but also in a higher and more compre- 
 hensive sense as a worldly power, self-deifying, 
 and the enemy of God. Jeremiah finally appro- 
 priates his predecessors " "4 represents the acme 
 
 of Old Testament prophecy against Babylon. 
 He thus forms the main foundation for the pro- 
 phecy of the Apocalypse concerning the Babylon 
 of the final period. It is, however, to be ob- 
 served that he gives relatively less prominence 
 than Habakkuk to the ideal significance of Ba- 
 bylon as a type of ungodly, self-deifying, worldly 
 powers. The latter does this in brief but won- 
 drously profound and significant utterances. 
 " For, lo, I raise up the Chaldeans, that powerful 
 anil irrepressible nation, which goes as far as the 
 earth extends, to occupy dwellings which are not. 
 Terrible and fearful are they ; from themselves 
 proceed their judgment and their dignity" (i. 6, 
 7). "Then he overflows with courage and trans- 
 gresses and becomes guilty; this his power is 
 unto his God" (i. 11). "Lo, inflated, not up- 
 right is his soul within him, but the just by faith 
 shall live" (ii. 4). "Yea also because wine 
 stultifies a man, who is arrogant and is not con- 
 tented, who enlargeth his desire as hell, and is 
 like death and cannot be satisfied, but draweth 
 to himself all nations and gathereth to himself all 
 nations " (ii. 5). — Jeremiah by no means passes 
 over this element, but he rather intimates it only 
 in single words, in those significant names which 
 he gives to Babylon when he calls it Double de- 
 fiance (1. 21), Pride (as personification in 1. 31, 
 32), Heart of my opponents (li. 1), Golden cup 
 making the whole earth drunk (li. 7). We may 
 then say that of the two contemporary prophets, 
 who lived to see the culmination of the Baby- 
 lonian power, Jeremiah draws the grandest and 
 most complete picture of the destruction menacing 
 Babylon, but in such wise that he only intimates 
 the ideal element which represents Babylon as 
 the centre and type of all worldly enmity to God, 
 while Habakkuk, who, notwithstanding the ex- 
 ternal insignificance of his little book, has a 
 powerful and profound mind, gives us deeper 
 glances into the inner life of the Babylonian em- 
 pire. 
 
 3. It is not, however, the prophets who first 
 stamped Babylon as a centre and type of ungodly 
 empire. This character was impressed upon it 
 from the earliest period. It was the locality of 
 the first earthly princedom. That Nimrod, 
 whose memory is preserved to the present day by 
 the ruined tower of the Birs Nimrud, and who 
 still lives in the traditions of the East ag a great 
 
404 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 criminal and enemy of God, had, according to 
 Gen. X. 8sqq., Babylon as the beginning of his 
 dominion. The first aristocrat, hero of the chase 
 and of war, conqueror, and despot, proceeded 
 from Babylon. Add to this, that the Babylonian 
 tower-structure is, according to its most essential 
 nature, to be regarded as an undertaking of hu- 
 man pride begun without God and in man's own 
 strength. The tower was to be a memorial of a 
 period of gigantic effort and aspiration towards 
 the political concentration of the human race into 
 one irresistible power. Thus we see that the 
 ideas of earthly power and glory were from the 
 first native to the soil of Babylon. Comp. Nae- 
 GELSB., Jer. u. Bab., S. 5 sqq.; Perizonius, 
 Origg. BabyLonicse, Cap. 10-12 ; Jahn, Archieology 
 I., 1. S. 80, coll. Deyling, Observ. Sacrse., P. III., 
 p. 19 ff. — Brian Walton in his Polyglott, Lond., 
 Prolegg. I., pag. 3; Hetzel, Gedanken iiber den 
 babylonischen Thurmbau, Hildb., 1775; Gorres, 
 Die ViJlkertafeldes Pent., Regensburg, 1845,1, /S'.51. 
 The seed sowed in that primitive period reached 
 its full bloom in Nebuchadnezzar. By him Ba- 
 bylon was really made the first "all-devouring" 
 universal monarchy, by which I mean that his 
 power was greater than that of the Assyrians 
 before him, or the Persians and Romans after 
 him. But he also devoured the theocracy, i. e., 
 the only point on this earth where the kingdom 
 of God was represented in the form of a human 
 popular and civil life. Since that time the king- 
 dom of God as such lias had no place on earth. 
 It is still as the church in the embrace of worldly 
 power. Babylon, however, the first worldly 
 power which brought the kingdom of God into 
 this condition, appears from that time in the 
 Scriptures as the worldly '^/ower, kut^ e^ox'/v, so 
 that not only what the Old Testament prophets 
 declare of the different representatives of worldly 
 dominion, of Egypt (Rev. xi. 8), Tyre (Rev. 
 xviii. 11 coll. Ezek. xxvii.), Nineveh (Rev. xviii. 
 3, 5 coll. Nah. iii. 4; Jon. i. 2), is transferred in 
 the New Testament to Babylon, but even the name 
 of Babylon itself is attributed to the final form 
 of the worldly power, antichristian Rome. Comp. 
 Rev. xvii. 9, 18. See in general Rev. xiv. 8; 
 xvi. 9, and especially chh. xvii., xviii. This 
 subject is treated more in detail in Naegelsb. 
 Jer. u. Bab. 
 
 4. With regard to the etymology of the name 
 Babylon there have been two opposite views. Ac- 
 cording to one, which was first broached by Ste- 
 PHANUS Byzantinus and the Elyviologicon Magn. 
 s. V. 'Rafivluv, the name, designates Bel as the 
 founder of the city. Eichhokn [Biblioth. d. bibl. 
 
 Litt. III., S. 1001) accordingly exjilains 733 as 
 
 arising from Bab Bel, i. e., porta or aula Belt. 
 Gesenius [Thesaur., pag. 212), Tuch and others 
 modify this view, in so far that they translate 
 
 733 domus Beli, since the word is written in 
 
 Arabic babel, and ba is frequently used in Arabic 
 names of cities for bi, bet. Knobel [Gen., S, 
 12§) derives Babel from Bar-bel, i. e., arx (/3ap<c, 
 n^'3) Beli. It is opposed however to these ex- 
 planations that they are supported on partly 
 much too recent and partly altogether insecure 
 linguistic analogies. The other explanation is 
 
 founded on Gen. xi. 7, 9 (Dn£3ty nS3J, ver. 7 and 
 
 ^ T T : T :|T 
 
 tnxn-S3 naty '■■' SSs Dty '3). According to thli 
 733 arose from 7373. The punctuation of the 
 
 VT •• : - '■ 
 
 first syllable is to be explained after tlie analogy of 
 3313 for 3333, n'liJDiD for j-\i3tD3£3 (Ew. 2 158, 
 
 T t:- t t:t^ X, ' 
 
 c; Olsh. I 74, I 189, a). For the Segol of the 
 
 second syllable appeal might be made to /p.7^ 
 (Delitzsch on Gen. xi. 9). The meaning would 
 be confusio. Comp. Exod. xxix. 2, 40; Lev. ii. 
 
 4-6; further, 7w3, farrago; /73r), troubling, 
 
 blemish (Lev. xxi. 20). These explanations are 
 also favored by the ancient translations. Onke- 
 
 Los translates n73J, Gen. xi. 7, by 73*731 '7'?3, 
 
 t:|t '•'■■:-: -t 
 
 ver. 9, by 73^3, confudit. Comp, Buxtorf, Lex. 
 Rabb. et Talm., pag. 309. The Peshito version 
 has in xi. 9 balbel (comp. Castelli. Lex., pag. 
 100); Saadiah haAhala, confudit . — Comp. Gabler, 
 Urgeschichte II. 2, S. 228. Haevebnick, Einleit. 
 i. A. T., I., S. 147, 8.— -The Babylonian monu- 
 ments lead to still another etyojology. Accord- 
 ing to Oppert, namely [Exp. en. Mesop. II. S. 46), 
 the word reads on the monuments Babi-ilu, Ba- 
 
 bilu. Bab is the Shemitic 33 door, Ilu the'EAof 
 
 in Diodorus, the Kp6vo^ of the Greeks, Saturn, 
 the god of the deluge. The meaning of the name 
 would then be Porta Dei diluvii. Comp. lb., S. 
 67, 157, 259. — Which of these explanations is tlie 
 correct one is by no means decided, for even the 
 cuneiform inscriptions, presupposing that they 
 are correctly deciphered, represent a late date 
 in relation to the origin of the name, and it is a 
 question whether the Babylonian scholars them- 
 selves knew the correct etymology of the word. 
 [Comp. also Smith's Dictionary of the Bible, s. v.. 
 Babel, Babylon ; Rawlinson, Ancient Monarchies, 
 I., p. 149; Id., Herodotus, II., p. 574; DR- Pu- 
 SET, Lectures on Daniel, p. 271, n, quoted in 
 Wordsworth adloc. — S. R. A.] 
 
 6. The genuineness of this prophecy has been 
 shown by me in detail in my work Jeremia und 
 Babylon, S. 69 ff. Graf also acknowledges it 
 [S. 580 ff. ). Only Ewald and Meier, so far as 
 I know, still persist in maintaining its unauthen- 
 ticity. "This portion evidently belongs to tlie 
 last period of the exile, and cannot therefore 
 proceed from Jeremiah," says the latter [Die 
 prophet. Bucher d. A. T., S. 350, 2). I myself 
 formerly regarded the passage 1. 41-46 as a gloss, 
 but I have now retracted this opinion. But af- 
 ter repeated investigation I cannot regard the 
 passage li. 15-19 as original. Consult, the exe- 
 gesis. In respect to the word 'ijK'B', li. 41, also, 
 
 my suspicions have not yet been removed. 
 
 6. In what manner the prophecy is related to 
 its fulfilment has been fully shown in Nakoelsb. 
 Jer. u. Bab , S. 135. I add to the remark there, 
 that according to Theodoret Jews were the last 
 inhabitants of the destroyed city of Babylon, the 
 following notice from Oppert [Exp. I., S. 135): 
 "Hillah fut fondle par Seifeddaulet vers I'an 
 1100 a la place de I'antique ville de Babylone, 
 Tu aarv. Jusque-la, des Juifs avaient habits seuls 
 laville on plutot les mines de Babylone ; en 1030 
 apr^s Jesus-Christ ils quittferent ces lieux." 
 Many later witnesses thus corroborate the state- 
 ment of Theodoret, that the people of Israel 
 
CHAP. L. 1-5. 
 
 405 
 
 could not separate themselves from the corpse 
 of the city, which had destroyed Jerusalem and 
 the temple. 
 
 7. In regard to the division of the portion, I 
 am no longer of opinion that the whole is to be 
 discriminated into three main sections with thir- 
 teen subdivisions. I still think that three chro- 
 nological stages may be distinguished, in so far 
 as the destruction of Babylon is represented 
 partly as future, now in the stage of preparation 
 (comp. 1. 9, 21, 26, 41) partly as present, in the 
 process of execution (comp. 1. 14, 24, 35, 43, 
 etc.; li. 1, 11, 27), partly as already accomplished 
 
 (comp. 1. 2, 15, 46; li. 39, 41, 46, 57). Ani 
 these three stages are so distributed that the first 
 is chiefly in the beginning, the second chiefly in 
 the middle, the third towards the close ; but not 
 so sharply defined that 1. 21 — li. 33 may be re- 
 garded as the second and the foregoing and fol- 
 lowing as the first and third divisions. The 
 single tableaux or pictures, of which, according 
 to the peculiar style of Jeremiah, the discourse 
 consists, are more distinct. I find nineteen of 
 these, exclusive of the superscription and the 
 historical close. The exegesis will exhibit these 
 in detail. 
 
 1. The Superscription. 
 L. 1. 
 
 1 The word which Jehoyah spoke against Babylon, against the land of the Chal« 
 deans, by Jeremiah the prophet. 
 
 EXEQETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The form of the superscription is like those in 
 xlv. 1 ; xlvi. 13. The expression T3 is not found 
 
 in any other superscription of Jeremiah's. It 
 occurs in this sense only in xxxvii. 2. In my 
 work, Jer. u. Bab., S. 22, I have proposed the | 
 
 hypothesis that there is in this an intimation 
 that this prophecy, according to li. 59 sqq., was 
 given only by the hand, not by the mouth of 
 
 the prophet. ]*"'N~7K defines more particu- 
 larly the idea of 733 and guards against too nar- 
 row a rendering. Comp. 1. 8, 45 ; li. 54. 
 
 2. 77ie cord broken; Israel free (Ps. cxxiv. 7). 
 
 2 Declare it among the nations, 
 Publish it and erect a signal ; 
 Publish it, conceal it not. 
 
 Say " Babylon is taken, with shame stands Bel, 
 Merodach is thrown down, with shame stand her images. 
 Thrown down are her idols." 
 
 3 For a nation cometh against her from the north, 
 And will make her land desolate, 
 
 That no inhabitant shall be therein 
 
 From man down to beast they flee ; up, away ! 
 
 4 In those days and at that time, saith Jehovah, 
 The children of Israel shall come. 
 
 They and the children of Judah together ; 
 
 Weeping shall they come 
 
 And seek Jehovah their God. 
 6 After Zion shall they inquire. 
 
 Their faces turned thitherward : 
 " Come, let us join ourselves' to Jehovai. 
 
 In a perpetual covenant' that shall not be forgotten." 
 
406 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 1 Ver. 5. — II7JI 1N3. Both forms are Imperative, and there is no need either to take !|X3 as Perf. or to alter ^IvJ into 
 n^Sj (Graf.). Comp. Ewald, §226, 6 ; Olsh , §264 ; Joel iv. 11 ; Isa. xliii. 9. 
 
 a Yer. 5.— dSiJ^ iTIi- Accus. modalis. Comp, Naegelsb. GV., §70, t; xxxi. 31, 32; xxxii. 40. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The prophet in the first two verses goes to work 
 analytically, first (ver. 2) causing the destruction 
 of Babylon to be proclaimed aloud to all nations, 
 and then (ver. 3) saying, how and by whom this 
 destruction will be accomplished. This analytic 
 description serves him, however, only as a basis 
 for a promise important to him above all, viz., 
 that in those days the captives of Israel and Ju- 
 dah being liberated, will come home and be 
 united to their God in an eternal and unforgeta- 
 ble covenant (vers. 4, 5). 
 
 Vers. 2, 3. Declare it . . . up, away. The 
 importance of the matter is shown in the grand- 
 eur and animation of the opening, in which the 
 summons to proclaim and the declaration of the 
 destruction are five times repeated. Comp. iv. 
 5, 6; v. 20; xxxi. 7 ; xlvi. 14. — Erect a signal, 
 i. e., for the rapid spread of the tidings. Comp. 
 li. 12, 27; iv. 6; vi. 1 ; Isa. v. 26; xiii. 2.— 
 Conceal it not. The address seems to be to 
 the friends of Babylon, who might be disposed to 
 withhold this Job's post. — Taken. Comp. viii. 
 9; X. 14; xlvi. 24 ; xlviii. 1. — Bel and Merodach 
 are not difiFerent deities, but one and the same 
 (comp. Delitzsch on Isa. xlvi. 1). The temple 
 of Belus (comp. Herod. I. 181, 2) was also the 
 temple of Marduk, as he is called on the monu- 
 ments. Here he was worshipped as the Bilu 
 
 rabu (31 ^.J'3) as deus auffurationis a.nd'pTotective 
 
 deity of Babylonia. "Toute la dynastie Babylo- 
 nienne (says Oppert, Uzp. en Mesop., Tom. II., 
 p. 272) le met (Merodach) a la fete des Dieux, et 
 1' inscription de Borsippa le nomme le roi du 
 
 ciel et de la terre. Nebo prend la seconde place 
 et les autres divinites ne paraissent que rare- 
 ment." Comp. Tom. 1, p. 178, 9.— That he is 
 not Mars, as I formerly supposed and Hahn in 
 Drechsler's Jesaja on xxxi. 1 (II., 2, S. 212) 
 directly maintains, is decidedly affirmed by Op- 
 pert (p. 271). — The purport of the piuclamation 
 is expressed in vers. '2 b and 3 only. From ver. 
 4 we have the words of the prophet, who pre- 
 dicts in what manner these results will be at- 
 tained. This is seen from the imperfects 
 riTT, iTK^', etc. — A nation from the north. 
 
 Comp. ver. 9. The destroyers of Babylon are to 
 come from the north, and in li. 27, 28 nations to 
 the north and north-east of Babylonia are men- 
 tioned. Comp. the map in Niebuhr's Ass. u. 
 Bab., and S. 135, Anm. 1 ; 427, 8. — Moreover, 
 the remarkable parallelism should be noticed, 
 Babylon, once the nation from the north, me- 
 nacing Israel, is now attacked by such a nation. 
 Comp. ii. 15; iv. 7; ix. 9 ; xxxiii. 12; li. 62. 
 
 Vers. 4, 5. In those days .... forgotten. 
 The destruction of Babylon is immediately fol- 
 lowed by the redemption. The prophets so re- 
 gard it as to comprise all the stages of iis lulril- 
 ment through several thousand years in one pic- 
 ture. To this picture belongs above all the re- 
 union of the tribes of the northern and southern 
 kingdom (comp. iii. 14-16) and then their honest 
 conversion to the Lord (comp. iii. 21 ; xxxi. 9-19 ; 
 Hos. iii. 5), the return to Zion (xxxi. 8), the 
 conclusion of a covenant with Jehovah, which 
 shall not be broken and forgotten like the first 
 (comp. Geu. xvii. 10; Lev. xix. 6-7; Deut. xxix. 
 and XXX.). Comp. also Jer. xx. 11; xxiii. 40. 
 
 3. 77ie Chastisement of the Chastiser. 
 L. 6-13. 
 
 6 A lost herd' was'' my people : 
 
 Their shepherds had led them astray on seductive mountains,* 
 From mountain to hill they went, 
 Forgat their fold. 
 
 7 Whoever found them devoured them, 
 
 And their oppressors said : We incur no guiit, 
 
 Because they have sinned against Jehovah, 
 
 The true pasturage and their fathers' hope, Jehovah. 
 
 8 Flee out of Babylon and — 
 
 Let them go* forth out of the land of the Chaldeans, 
 And be as the rams before the sheep ! 
 
 9 For behold, I raise and lead^ against Babylon 
 
 An assembly of great nations from the north country ; 
 
CHAP. L. 6-13. 
 
 407 
 
 They equip themselves against her, there® she is taken — 
 
 Their arrows' like those of a successfuP hero, who returneth not empty, 
 
 10 And Chaldea shall become a prey ; 
 
 All that plunder her shall be satisfied, saith Jehovah. 
 
 11 For thou rejoicedst,^ for thou exultedst, robber of my heritage, 
 For thou skippedst like a thrashing^" calf 
 
 And neighedst like the strong steeds. 
 
 12 Your mother is put to great shame, 
 She that bare you blushes. 
 
 ** Behold the last of the nations, wilderness, waste, and steppe,** 
 
 13 Because of the wrath of Jehovah it shall be uninhabited. 
 And shall be wholly a desolation ; 
 
 Whoever passeth by Babylon is amazed. 
 And mocks her on account of all her strokes. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 Ver. 6.— The plural HH^X depends on the Ideal plural in ?X)f- Comp. Naegeisb. dr., §105, 3; Gen. xxx. 38; Jer. 
 
 xxxiii. 13 ; Job i. 14. ' 
 
 2 Ver. 6. — The Chethibh TTTI is referred to the subject as e.g., in Gen. xxxi. 8. The Keri is therefore unnecessary. 
 
 S Ver. 6.— D'iJIty Cin. The Chethibh is usually read D'S^Hy ('"• 14, 22) the Ker Q^D'Hy. I think, however, 
 that we must read the Chethibh D'331U' (comp. xxxi. 8 ; xlix. i), and understand it in the meaning of " alienating, seduc- 
 tive mountains." We then take the word in the sime sense as those who follow the Keri, and find our support like them 
 in passages like Isa. xlvii. 10. Comp. reins, on xxxi. 8. 
 
 * Ver. 8. — Chethibh J|{<2^'- This sudden change of person is not uncommon. (Comp. v. 14; xii. 13; xvii. 13; xxi. 12 
 
 Chethibh) ; xxxi. 3 ; xxxvi. 29, 30 ; xliv. 3-6 ; xlvii. 7. Naegelsb. Gr., § 101, 2, Anm. 
 
 » Ver. 9. — n 7j7m I^J^D- Observe the paronomasia and compare li. 1, 11 ; Isai. xiii. 17. 
 
 * Ver. 9. — DtyD. If this word is regarded as local, it is difficult after H 7 O'^J^ to find a suitable terminus a quo. I 
 
 therefore prefer to understand it with Rosknmueller, De Wette, Umbreit, of time. Comp. Hos. ii. 17 ; Job xxxv. 12. 
 ' Ver. y. — •Vyri- The suffix is to be referred to the entirety of those nations regarded as one male person. 
 
 8 Ver. 9.— ^Oli'O. Comp. x. 21 ; xxiii. 5. 
 
 9 Ver. 11. — The Keri inOtiT^i etc. is occasioned by *.1 'Dti') but is unnecessary, for the prophet conceives the Chaldean 
 nation as one female individual, as in TV H the enemies as one male. Comp. e. g., iii. 8-10, and DJ3K in ver. 12. 
 
 M Ver. 11.— XE^'l- Part, from tJ^^T to thrash (Hos. x. 11), N for 71 as e. g., Lam. iii. 12 ; comp. Ol'sh. g 108, e, Anm. 164, 6 , 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Israel has certainly sinned greatly by idolatry 
 (ver. 6), and has therefore been deservedly chas- 
 tised by his enemies (ver. 7). But now the hour 
 of deliverance strikes (ver. 8), for the Lord sends 
 against Babylon great hosts of nations from the 
 north, who will attack it successfully (ver. 9). In 
 consequence Babylon itself shall become a prey 
 (ver. 10), and receive the punishment for having 
 discharged its office as punisber of Israel with 
 arrogant and malicious joy (ver. 11). It shall 
 thus be the last of nations, and the country be a 
 horrible wilderness (vers. 12, 13). 
 
 Vers. 6, 7. A lost herd . . . hope, Jehovah. 
 Comp. Ezek. xxxiv. 4. IG; Ps. cxix. 176; Luke 
 XV. 4, 6.— Their shepherds. Comp. x. 21; xii. 
 10; xxiii. 1 sqq. — Seductive. The mountains 
 may well be thus called, which by means of the 
 worship of high-places practised upon them, ex- 
 erted such an irresistible charm on the heart of 
 carnal Israel. Comp. ii. 20; iii. 2; vi. 23; xvii. 
 2.— Whoever found them. Comp. ii. 3 ; x. 
 25; xxx. 16. In this expression there is evi- 
 dently an intimation that Israel has been often 
 devoured. The enemies had a certain degree of 
 justification in this, but in yielding to the illu- 
 sion that they could not sin against Israel, for- 
 saken by his God, and could therefore do any 
 thing to him, they incurred great guilt, as is seen 
 
 in what follows. — True pasturage. Zion is 
 called Pn^~niJ in xxxi. 23. Here Jehovah Him- 
 self is so called, as elsewhere a fortress (Ps. xviii. 
 3) sun, shield (Ps. Ixxxiv. 11), shade (Ps. cxxi. 
 5). — Father's hope. Comp. xiv. 8; xvii. 13. 
 
 Vers. 8-10. Flee . . . saith Jehovah. The 
 tables are turned. Babylon must now suffer the 
 punishment of injustice. The hour of deliver- 
 ance has struck for Israel and the other nations 
 held in bondage. Hence the summons is made 
 to Israel to flee. Comp. Isa. xlviii. 20; Iii. 11; 
 Zech. ii. 10. — As the rams, etc. The sense is 
 not both that Israel is to press forward in order 
 to save himself before all, but rather that it is to 
 go before all (comp. ver. 16) as an example and 
 leader in the flight. — -North. Comp. rems. on 
 ver. 3. — Like those, dc. Comp. iv. 31 ; xlvi. 22; 
 Naegelsb. Gr., ^ 65, 3 Anm. — Who returneth, 
 etc. Comp. 2 Sam. i. 22. — Chaldea. Kasdim as 
 the name of the country, as in li. 24, 35 ; Ezek. 
 xi. 24. — A prey. Comp. xlix. 32. 
 
 Vers. 11-13. For thou rejoicedst . . . 
 
 stroke. — I take ''2 simply as ''for," so that ver 
 
 11 gives the reason why Chaldea is to become a 
 prey. The imperfects then designate the action 
 as continuing in the past. Comp. Naegelsb. 
 Gr., ^ 87 f. : Jer. xv. 9; xxxvi. 18.— Vers. 12, 
 13 conclude the discourse with a l.vely descrip- 
 tion, sketched in a few powerful strokes of the 
 condition of Babylon after the attack predicted 
 
408 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 in vers. 9, 10. Theprophet beholds this as though 
 it had been produced in his presence. Hence 
 the perfects is put to shame, and blushes 
 (xv. 9). Observe that the prophet here address- 
 es the single individuals of the nation. Hence 
 
 your mother and last of the nations. Comp. Pg. 
 cxxxix. 9; Am. ix. 1; Jer. xxxi. 7. — Waste 
 (TTX). Comp. li. 43. — Uninhabited. Comp. Isa. 
 xiii. 20; Jer. xvii. 6, 25; xxx. 18. — "Whoever 
 passeth. Comp. xviii. 16; zix. 8; xlix. 17. 
 
 4. The Vengeance of Jehovah. 
 L. 14-16. 
 
 14 Array yourselves against Babylon round about, all ye archers, 
 
 Shoot^ at her, spare not* the arrows, 
 For against Jehovah hath she sinned. 
 
 15 Cry against her round about ! 
 She stretches forth* her hand ; 
 Fallen are her bastions,* 
 Thrown down are her walls. 
 For Jehovah's vengeance it is. 
 Avenge yourselves on her ! 
 
 As she hath done, do also unto her. 
 
 16 Exterminate the sower from Babylon, 
 
 And him that handleth the sickle at the time of harvest. 
 Before the destroying sword let every one turn to his people, 
 And every one flee into his own land. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 14. — nv The Kal here only. Elsewhere Pie! only occurs; Joel iv. 3; Chad. 11; Nah. iii. 10; Lam. iii. S3, 
 Zech. ii. 4. . . 
 
 a Ver. 14.— 70n with ^X, as in li. 3 ; Isa. ix. 18. 
 
 — T 
 
 3 Ver. 15. — Owing to the animation of style, the perfects are without the connecting Vau. Comp. Josh. vi. 5, 10, 16, 20 ; 
 1 Sam. xvii. 20. 
 
 * Ver. 15.— rrn'lti'X or n'n'lU'X (ChethiUh) occurs here only. Likewise the form of the Keri nTIViyX- The root 
 TV -: TV ■ : |- . . T V : T . . 
 
 appears to be Hu/X, from which at most in Hebrew the proper name ri'E/K'' is derived. Related, however, is tyt^N, to be 
 
 T T . . T • . . - T 
 
 Strong, firm (Arab, assa) from which jy'CX (Isa. xvi. 7) the foundation-walls and the Aram. tJ'N, plur. TtJ'X (Ezt. iv. 12; 
 
 v. IG ; vi. 3\ which the prophet chose purposely. Comp. ver. 23. From the radical meaning " to be strong,'' may also ba 
 derived that of fortification, defence, bastion. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This picture is a supplement to the foregoing, 
 and a further delineation of particular features, 
 (a) The attack is described more in detail (vers. 
 14. 15 a); {b) the connection between the fall of 
 Babylon and its malignant pride (ver. 11) traced 
 through the idea of recompense and vengeance 
 of Jehovah (vers. 14 6, 15 b); and (c) the deso- 
 lation of Babylon, described generally in vers. 12, 
 1;J, is rcndt-red more palpable in ver. 16 by the 
 setting forth of single characteristic features. 
 
 Vers. 14, 15. Array . . . unto her. — Array 
 evidently refers to equip (O^J^), ver. 9, but as 
 
 the attack was only ordered there in general, the 
 manner of it is here more specially designated. 
 Comp. ver. 29 ; xlvi. 9. — Both these verses cor- 
 respond exactly in their structure. Each begins 
 with a summons to attack, and closes witli a 
 eausal sentence of the purport that this warlike 
 proceeding is an act of Jehovah's vengeance. 
 Yel there is a gradation in the two, for while in 
 ver. 14 the attack is described in only its first 
 
 stage, ver. 15 brings before us the last decisive 
 storm in the words Cry against her, which has 
 the surrender for its immediate consequence. 
 That the words are to be understood in this sense, 
 seems to me clear from round about. Comp. 
 ver. 14. The triumphant cry sounds not from the 
 environs, but from within the city. — Stretches 
 forth her hand. This is a token of subjection. 
 Del mamis vincique se patiatur. Cicero, De Amic. 
 Cap. 'Hi fin. Conip. 2 Chron. xxx. 8; Lam. v. 6. 
 — For Jehovah's, etc. This point also is here 
 expressed more strongly than in ver. 14 b, and 
 thus forms the transition from ver. 14 to the 
 threatening of judgment. Babylon has called 
 fortli the vengeance of Jehovah by its malicious 
 pleasure and arrogant violence. Comp. ver. 28 ; 
 li. C, 11, 36; xlvi. 10. — As she hath done. 
 Comp. ver. 29; Ps. cxxxvii. 8; Rev. xviii. 6, 7. 
 
 Ver. 16. Exterminate . . . his own land. 
 This verse also specializes a general idea ex- 
 pressed in the previous context, viz., that of deso- 
 lation, and this from two points of view. It ia 
 first said that what had hitherto been an orna- 
 ment of tiie city, and had increased their power 
 
CHAP. L. 17-20. 
 
 409 
 
 of resistance, viz., the fields inside the walls 
 (DioD. Sic, II. 9; Curt. v. 4; Plix. Hist. Nat., 
 XVIII. 17), will be given up to desolation for 
 lack of men. It is evident that tlie prophet had 
 these fields within the city in view from the fact 
 that he is describing the siege of the city of 
 Babylon throughout. Then, however, he predicts 
 the flight of all who are not Babylonians (for the 
 Babylonians will fall by the sword), Israel at 
 their head (ver. 8). Comp. xlvi. 16 ; Isa. xiii. 14. 
 
 — Destroying sword. Comp. xxv. 38; xlvi. 
 16. In the latter passage the LXX. translates as 
 here, /udxacpa kTiXrividj, which Theodoret explains: 
 ■Kpo tF/c BapvXuvoc Av6ovg 6 Kvpoc Karearphpara 
 Kal 'luvag Kat A'loAiaQ. Another explanation ia 
 given by Walton {Polyglott, Lond., Tom. l.,pag. 
 47. Introd.): Ira columbse (xxv. 38), gladius 
 columbse dcsignant iram et gladiiim Chaldseorum, in 
 quorum labaro erat columba argentea pennis tnaura' 
 tis Semiramidem reprsesentans. 
 
 5. The -Happy Turn. 
 L. 17-20. 
 
 17 A scattered sheep is Israel, which the lions chased.* 
 First the king of Assyria devoured him, 
 
 And last this Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon hath broken hia bones.' 
 
 18 Therefore thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth, the God of Israel; 
 Behold, I visit the king of Babylon and his land 
 
 As I have visited the king of Assyria. 
 
 19 And I bring Israel home to his pasturage, 
 To pasture on Carmel and Bashan, 
 
 And on mount Ephraim and Gilead his soul shall be satisfied. 
 
 20 In those days, at that time, saith Jehovah, 
 
 The iniquity of Israel shall be sought for,' — and it is gone ! 
 And the sins of Judah — but thou findest them not.* 
 For I will pardon him whom I reserve. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 17.— This is to be regarded as a relative sentence with "Iti'X understood. Comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., g 80, 6. 
 
 2 Ver. 17.— D2fX here only. It is formed like D"^ J, 'ienominative from Q'^J. As this signifies " to strip oflf, to gnaw 
 ofif " (Num. xxiv. 8 ; Ezt-k. xxiii. 34), so the former means " to bone, to destroy tlie bones." 
 
 3 Ver. 20.— '■1J1 pj^-flX K/p^''- Comp. xxxl. 34; xxxiii. 8; xxxvi. 3. In regard to the construction comp. Naeqel8B. 
 
 6r., § 100, 2. 
 
 * Ver. 20.— nj''N:f on. Comp. Olsh., g 265, c. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Hitherto Israel has been a poor frightened 
 sheep, driven and devoured by two mighty wild 
 animals, Assyria and Babylon (ver. 17) ; but the 
 tables are to be turned. Assyria has already 
 received its chastisement. That of Babylon will 
 not be deferred (ver. 18). Then will Israel again 
 feed peaceably on his own pasture (ver. 19). The 
 reason of this wonderful change consists in this, 
 that the Lord will show kindness to His people 
 and forgive them all their iniquity (ver. 20). 
 
 Vers. 17-19. A scattered ... be satisfied. 
 Assyria destroyed the northern, Babylon the 
 southern kingdom. In both cases the destruc- 
 tion was complete, and consequently represented 
 by the figure of devouring, only with this diifer- 
 ence that as a still higher degree the breaking 
 »f the bones is mentioned in the second case. 
 After the destruction of the kingdom of the ten 
 
 tribes the kingdom of Judah still remained as 
 the skeleton of the theocracy. In destroying Je- 
 rusalem and the temple Nebuchadnezzar, as it 
 were, broke its bones. — As I have visited. 
 Comp. xlvi. 25. The then already long past de- 
 struction of Nineveh is thus the type and pledge 
 of the destruction of Babylon. — Bring Israel 
 home. Comp. Ezek. xxxviii. 4; xxxix. 2. — 
 Pasturage. Comp. xxiii. 3; xxii. 6; Mic. vii. 
 14; Isa. xxxiii. 9; Nah. i. 4 ; Ezek. xxxiv. 
 13, 14. 
 
 Ver. 20. In those days . . . reserve. Comp. 
 ver. 4. As in the mention of Assyria and Baby- 
 lon, vers. 17, 18. there was a reference to the 
 community of the two halves of the theocratic 
 nation in misfortune, so here their union in 
 prosperity is expressly set forth. Comp. rems. 
 on ver. 4. The reason of their restoration to 
 prosperity is here nientioneil; .Jehovah's grace 
 which will grant forgiveness to the survivors, and 
 cause their guilt to disappear without a trace. 
 
410 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 6. One Hammer crushed by the Other. 
 L. 21-23. 
 
 21 Against the land of Double-defiance ;^ 
 
 Go up against it and against the inhabitants of Visitation I 
 
 Slay^ and burn after them, saith Jehovah, 
 
 And do according to all that I commanded thee! 
 
 22 Cry of war in the land and great ruin ! 
 
 23 How is the hammer of the whole earth crushed and broken I 
 How is Babylon become a horror of desolation among the nations 1 
 
 textual and grammatical. 
 
 1 Ver. 21.— EWALD has well remarked that the word D'iTlO is used iu antithesis to DnHJ-DIN, Mesopotamia. Not 
 
 Double-river, but Double-defiance (comp. Zweibriicken [Bipnnti's] in Germany) was to be Babylon's title. For similar 
 names comp. e. g., Mic. i. 10. The word does not occur elsewhere. It may be derived from "'10, although the mention of 
 
 Israel by this name (Ezek. ii. 7 ; xliv. 6) may be regarded as analogous to, or an imitation of (conip. l'lp3, ver. 21, and Ezek. 
 
 xxiii. 23) this expression. A singular rT^O from TT^O, rehdlisfuit, also does not occur. D'OIO is a' new form made by 
 
 TT T T • - T ; 
 
 the prophet. Fuekst would derive it from r\1f3, to which he ascribes the meaning of " lordship." But the analogies 
 
 mm (.Tob xx.xvi. 22 ; Aram. X"irO, 13), D'I'D, flilO (Mic. i. 12) are very uncertain, and admit of another explanation. 
 
 • • T - T : • T 
 
 The word HID, rebdlisfuit, is always used elsewhere of Israel, but this limitation of the use is not necessarily founded in 
 
 TT 
 
 the radical signification. There is no reason then why a word formed from the root, new and specially ad hoc, should not 
 be applied in another case. In regard to the dual it is ungraminatical to attribute to it the significance of a climax, which 
 it never has elsewhere. 
 
 2 Ver. 21.— 3ln a denominative from ^iri- Comp. ver. 27 ; 2 Ki. iii. 23. 
 
 exegetical and critical. 
 
 A complete picture, the specific element of 
 which is the prophet's showing how the Lord 
 sends a chosen instrument to crush Babylon, 
 which has hitherto served Him as such in the 
 chastisement of mankind. In brief but powerful 
 lines is described the summons to the instrument 
 (ver. 21), the execution of the commission (ver. 
 22), the result (ver. 23). 
 
 Vers. 21-23. Against the land . . . among 
 the nations. What is meant by the double de- 
 fiance it is difficult to say. We may regard it 
 not inappropriately as the double visitation of 
 the theocratic nation by Assyria and Babylon 
 (vers. 17, 18). The name, however, is given 
 only to Babylon, which according to this view 
 represents only half the defiance. The connec- 
 tion seems to require an interpretation according 
 to which Babylon itself receives the whole re- 
 proach, and here, as it seems to me, two points 
 may be observed: 1. The defiance which Babylon 
 manifested both towards man and God, in revolt- 
 ing against the king of Assyria its master, and in 
 sinning against Jehovah by its arrogant demeanor 
 towards Israel. 2. The double defiance, which 
 Babylon manifested in the earliest period in the 
 erection of the tower of Babel and the founding 
 of the first worldly kingdom (Gen. x. 8sqq.), and 
 in later times by its behaviour towards the theo- 
 cracy. I formerly inclined to the latter view, but 
 now give the former the preference, because it is 
 more natural and presents more clearly the ele- 
 ment of doubleness. For the sin of Babylon 
 
 against the Lord in earlier and more recent 
 times is too entirely one and the same for it to 
 be represented as a double one. — Against it. 
 Comp. ver. 3. The singular appears to me to be 
 due to a different reason from that in ver. 3, for 
 there we find "'U, nation, which according to 
 what follows is to be taken as collective. Here, 
 however, the subject is left indefinite. This is 
 the more surprising, as previously the enemies 
 of Babylon are always called upon in the plural 
 (vers. 14-16). When then in the following ver. 
 23 Babylon is designated as the crushed ham- 
 mer, I. e. as the instrument of Jehovah, which 
 He Himself has destroyed, is it not most natural 
 to regard as the subject of the imperative in ver. 
 21 the instrument of which the Lord will make 
 use in the destruction of His former instrument ? 
 Then, however, it is natural to place over against 
 the Babylonian hammer (Sl^QS, comp. Grotius 
 
 ad loc), viz., Nebuchadnezzar, another hammer, 
 i. e. over against the already known and men- 
 tioTied (ver. 17) representative of the first em- 
 jiire, the representative (certainly only somutimes 
 j)resent in idea) of the other empire called to its 
 destruction. Comp. li. 20. — Visitation is also 
 a name formed ad hoc, and given to Babylon in 
 antithesis to its double-defiance, which deserves 
 visitation. Thus the former name designates 
 Babylon's guilt, the latter its punishment. Comp. 
 vers. 18 and 31 and Ezek. xxiii. 23, which pas- 
 sage is based on this. Comp. Haevernick on 
 the passage. — Burn. Comp. xxv. 9. — Cry of 
 •war, elc. Comp. iv. 6; vi. 1 ; xiv. 17; xlviii. 
 3; li. 54. — Hovw, etc. Comp. Isa. xiv. 12 ; Jer 
 li. 20, 41. 
 
CHAP. L. 24-28. 
 
 ■Sil 
 
 7. Babylon surprised and destroyed, Israel liberated. 
 L. 24-28. 
 
 24 I have placed^ a net for thee and thou art also taken, 
 O Babylon, and thou knowest it not. 
 
 Thou art found and also caught, 
 
 For against Jehovah hast thou striven.* 
 
 25 Jehovah hath opened his arsenal, 
 
 And brought forth the weapons of his wrath ; 
 
 For the Lord Jehovah Zebaoth hath a work in the land of the Chaldeans. 
 
 26 Come hither even the last, open her storehouses,* 
 Cast it up as heaps of rubbish and burn it,* 
 Let there be nothing left of it. 
 
 27 Slay all her bullocks, 
 
 Down with them to the slaughter-house ! 
 Woe unto them, for their day is come. 
 The time of their visitation. 
 
 28 Hark ! the fleeing and escaped from the land of Babylon, 
 To proclaim in Zion the vengeance of Jehovah, our God, 
 The vengeance of his sanctuary. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 > Ver. 24.— The verb t^p' is not found elsewhere in Jeremiah. But compare Ji?^p% v. 26. 
 
 2 Ver. 24.— r\''"l jnn- This word does not occur elsewhere in Jeremiah. Comp. Deut. ii. 5, 19, 24 ; Prov. xxviii. 4 
 
 3 Ver. 26.— rT'O^XO- This word is an. Key. 
 
 4 Ver 26 The suffix in TX'h'O and H^O'inn may be referred to the land or more fitly to the contents of the store- 
 
 T T T • -: |- 
 
 houses. Comp. xxxiii. 2, 3 ; Naegelsb. Gr., g 60, 6, 6. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 In thif picture the element of secrecy and sur- 
 pfise as excluding all resisstance, which will 
 prevail at the capture of Babylon, is made pro- 
 minent (ver. 24). This mode of capture is ren- 
 dered possible by the Lord's having opened His 
 armory and brought into use all the means of 
 attack which it affords. He has done this be- 
 cause He would manage the business with Baby- 
 lon as a matter of the highest importance (ver. 
 25). As now, however, the Lord has emptied 
 His arsenal against Babylon, so also shall all 
 store-houses in Babylon be emptied and all living 
 and dead treasures contained therein be de- 
 stroyed (vers. 26, 27). The escaped of Zion, 
 however, shall bring home the joyful tidings of 
 ■Jehovah's vengeance (ver. 28). AVe see that 
 these verses also furnish a complete picture pro- 
 gressing from the beginning to the close with 
 special prominence of single specific elements. 
 
 Ver. 24. I have placed . . . striven. In 
 this placing of a net or snare lies the element of 
 commencement on account of which we regard 
 this verse as the commencement of a new 
 picture. This must be so the rather as ver. 23 
 evidently contains a conclusion. The prophet 
 in spirit sees Babylon unexpectedly caught in a 
 net or snare. How literally this would be ful- 
 
 filled Jeremiah himself might have no idea 
 (comp. 1 Pet. i. 11). Twice was Babylon taken 
 by stratagem, and both times so that the city 
 was in the power of its enemies, before it was 
 aware. Herodotus says (I. 191), with reference 
 to the capture by Cyrus, that if the Babylonians 
 had known or observed his plan (the diversion 
 of the Euphrates) they could have inflicted great 
 injury on the Persians. But these came upon 
 them quite unexpectedly (ff a-poo^oK/'/rov cT<f>i 
 TTapearijaav ol Uipaai), the outer parts of the city 
 being already taken before those who dwelt in 
 the central parts had observed what was going 
 on [rovQ TO fjiaov oIkeovto^ ov /nav&dveiv iaXuKOTag). 
 With reference to the capture by Darius Hystas- 
 pis, however, he says (III. 158) that a part of 
 the Babylonians, who saw the entrance of the 
 Persians through the gate opened by Zopyrus, 
 fled, the rest remaining every one in his place 
 till they also perceived that they were betrayed 
 (ff 3 6^ Kal ohrat hin^Bov TpoSf^otih'Oi). 
 
 Vers. 25-28. Jehovah . . . sanctuary. The 
 capture of a city like Babylon by an overwhelm- 
 ing surprise is not possible without great means. 
 Such are now provided by Jehovah, for He 
 opens His arsenal (comp. x. 13; li. 16) to takii 
 from it all necessary implements of war (comp. 
 Isn. xiii. 5). This He does because He has a 
 
 riD^/D. a business in the land of the Chaldeans 
 
412 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 A business or work of Jehovah is always a great 
 and important matter, and is therefore not to he 
 performed negligently (xlviii. 10). To the exe- 
 cution of this work He now summons His ser- 
 vants and instruments (ver. 2!jj, who are to 
 come I'P"?' If we refer this to the city (attacked 
 from the end, not from the middle) the meaning 
 is feeble and nnsuitable, for a city can only be 
 attacked from without and thus from the ends 
 of it. If it be rendered " from all ends " (round 
 about, vers. 15, 29) we miss the word for " all." 
 Hence it is best to take it with Ewald and Graf 
 
 =ad unum omne.s. If the outermost come, all 
 couie. Comp. Gen. xix. 4; xlvii. 2\ Isa. Ivi. 
 11; Ezek. xxxiii. 2. To the opening of the 
 arsenal of Jehovah is to correspond the violent, 
 breaking open and emptying of the storehouses 
 of Babylon. — Slay all, etc. The bullocks are 
 the representatives and chief personages of the 
 human population. Comp. Isa. xxxiv. 6, 7 ; 
 Jer. xlviii. lo ; li. 40. — -Tiie time, etc. Comp. 
 xlvi. 21. — Fleeing. Comp. vers. 4, 8. — Ven- 
 geance. Comp. ver. 15 ; li. 11, 
 
 8. The Punishment of Pride. 
 L. 29-32. 
 
 29 Call against Babylon archers ;^ 
 
 All ye that bend the bow camp against it round about !' 
 No escape ! Recompense her according to her work, 
 Just as she hath done, do ye also unto her, 
 For against Jehovah was she proud. 
 Against the Holy One of Israel. 
 
 30 Therefore shall her young men fall in her streets, 
 
 And all her warriors shall be cut off in that day, saith Jehovah. 
 
 31 Behold I come to thee, O Pride, saith the Lord, Jehovah Zebaoth. 
 For come is thy day, the time of thy visitation. 
 
 32 Then Pride totiers and falls. 
 And none helps him up ; 
 
 And I kindle a fire in his cities, 
 AVhich shall devour all round about. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 29. — D^3T. As there is no substap.tivo here as in ver. 41 ; xvi. 16, the meaning appears to be different. Derived 
 from 331 (Gen. xlix. 23; Ps. xviii. 15 coll. PIDl Gen. xxi. 20j 3T is found with the meaning of "archer," also in Job xvi. 
 
 - T TT 
 
 13 ; Prov. xxvi. 10. , 
 
 2 Ver. 29. — "'n^~7X. The Keri unnecessarily adds H ? from ver. 26. 
 
 T 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Warriors are summoned to recompense Baby- 
 lon for the pride which it has manifested towards 
 Jehovah (ver. 20). Its men shall perish (ver. 
 31). Thus will the Lord on the day of recom- 
 pense bring their pride to totter and fall ; no 
 one vfill raise it up, fire will consume all its 
 power (vers. 31, 32). 
 
 Ver. 29. CaU ... of Israel. Convocatio mili- 
 tum inilium belli. Comp. ver. 14. l^f^Dtyn is 
 taken by most commentators and translators in 
 the sense of vocare, convocare, as in li. 27 ; 1 Ki. 
 XV. 22 coll. 1 Sam. xv. 4. — All ye, etc. Comp. 
 ver. 14. — Recompense, etc. Comp. ver. 15; 
 XXV. 14. — Proud. Deserved humiliation of the 
 pride of Babylon is predicted by earlier pro- 
 phets : Isa. xiii. 11; xiv. 13 sqq.; xlvii. 7, 8; 
 Hab. ii. 5, 8. — Holy One of Israel. Comp. 
 
 li. 5. This expression is peculiar to Isaiah. 
 "All Isaiah's prophecies bear this name of God 
 as their peculiar stamp. It occurs twelve times 
 in chh. i.-xxxix., seventeen times in chh. xl.- 
 Ixvi." Delitzsch on Isa. vi. 3. 
 
 Vers. 30-32. Therefore . . . round about. 
 Ver. 80 is repeated almost verbatim from xlix. 
 26. The only difference is that here we have 
 her warriors for the warriors. The verse is not 
 necessary, but rather disturbing, for ver. 31, 
 is closely connected by Pride with ver. 29 
 (proud). It may have been a gloss. — Behold 
 I come, etc. Comp. xxi. 13; xxiii. 30 sqq.; 
 li. 25. — Pride. " Ifi nominis proprii formam 
 iransiit." J. D. Michaelis. — Thy day. Comp. 
 ver. 27 ; xlix. 8. — Totters, etc. Comp. Isa. 
 xxxi. 3 ; Jer. xlvi. 6. — I kindle, etc. Comp. 
 xxi. 14 ; xvii. 27 ; xlix. 27. — Him in ver. 32 
 refers to Pride. — Babylon is regarded as the 
 metropolis. Comp. ver. 12 ; li. 43 ; ix. 10, etc. 
 
CHAP. L. 33-40. 
 
 4:14 
 
 9. Israel Free, the Sword upon Babylon. 
 L. 33-40. 
 
 33 Thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth : 
 
 Oppressed are the childrea of Israel and the children of Judah together, 
 And all their captors hold them fast, 
 They refuse to let them go. 
 
 34 Their Redeemer is strong, Jehovah Zebaoth is his name. 
 He will well prosecute their cause, 
 
 That he may give rest^ to the land, 
 
 And procure disquiet to the inhabitants of Babylon. 
 
 35 A sword upon the Chaldeans, saith Jehovah, 
 And upon the inhabitants of Babylon, 
 
 And upou her princes and upon h.^r wise men. 
 
 36 A sword upon the coxcombs, that they become fools, 
 A sword upon her heroes, that they be dismayed. 
 
 37 A sword upon their horses and their chariots, 
 
 And upon all her auxiliaries in her midst, that they become as \7ome(n, 
 A sword upon her treasures, that they be plundered. 
 
 38 Drought* upon her waters, that they dry up ; 
 For it is a land of idols. 
 
 And on objects of horror' they foolishly trust. 
 
 39 Therefore shall wild-beasts* dwell there with the jackals,* 
 And the daughters of the ostrich shall dwell there ; 
 And never more will it be inhabited further, 
 
 Nor dwelt in from generation to generation. 
 
 40 As God overthrew 8odom and Gomorrah and their neighbors, saitb Jehovah, 
 A man shall not dwell there. 
 
 Nor a son of man sojourn in her. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 34.— On the Infinitive form y_'J"in comp. Olsh., § 192 /.; Ewald, ? 238 d. 
 
 8 Ver. 38.— The Masoretes read 3in evidently because 3in, sword, does not apply to water. The idea of a sword may, 
 however, be used by synecdoche for w.ir (comp. xi. 6) or 31 H may have a double meaning. Not a few exegetes assuma for 
 Deut. xxviii. 22 a word, ^-^n derived from Jin, with the' meaning " drought, dryness." Comp. Fuerst s. v. 3in. 
 
 8 Ver. 38.— D'O'X is used for " idols " here only. Comp. Gen. xiv. 5; Deut. ii. 10, 11 ; Ps. Ixxxviii. 16; Jobxx.25. [In 
 
 Pa. Ixxxviii. 16 the word is translated "terrors."] . „„ ^ ... , , • i ,-.. . v.^i 
 
 4 Ver. 3J.— Q'-'i (.in J eiemiah here only, comp. besides Ps. Ixxu. 9 ; Dan. xi. 30) from •'};, desertum, are inhabitants, jt the 
 
 desert, especially wild beasts. Q^'X ^om "X (ri'N to howl, comp. Delitzsch on Isa. xiii. 21) are jackals. Ibn-Awi is the 
 Arabic name for jackal. Our translation " Sliuhu^s and Uhus " [horned owls], is based on formal grounds. [Umbreit and 
 Blaynek read " wild-cats and jackals " or " wild-dogs." HiTzia as iu the te.Kt.— S. R. A.j 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Proceeding from the condition of bondage in 
 which JuJah and Israel are found (ver. 33), the 
 prophet predicts deliverance by the strong hand 
 of Jehovah (ver. 3i), which to Babylciu signifies 
 Jcstruction of all that supports its power and 
 glory : the inevitable fate of an idolatrous people 
 (vers. .3-5 3S). In consequence of this Babylonia 
 will become a deserted and horrible waste (vers. 
 39, 40). 
 
 Vers. 33, 34. Thus saith . . . inhabitants 
 of Babylon. The prophet, who knows the 
 
 exile of Israel as an accomplished fact and has 
 predicted for years the exile of Judah as im- 
 pending, may well descrlbd Judah and Israel as 
 oppressed, held fast by their captors (D'3i^', cap- 
 tivalores, Isa. xiv. 2; 1 Ki. viii. 46 sqq.; Ps. 
 cxxxvii. 3). It is the same thought which lies 
 at the foundation of the summons to flight (ver. 
 8 coll. vers. 4 and 28).— They refuse, etc. As 
 Pharaoh, Exod. vii. 14-27 ; ix. 2. — The strong 
 captor is, however, opposed by a still stronger 
 deliverer of Israel, — Jehovah. With the excep- 
 tion of the words " Jehovah Zebaoth is His 
 name" (x. 16; xxxi. 35; xxxii. 18; xxxiii 2), 
 the first half of ver. 34 is taken from Prov 
 
414 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 xxiii. 11 coll. xxii. 23; Isa. xlvii. 4; xlviii. 20. 
 — That he may give rest, etc. Since it may 
 be appropriately declared of Babylon, as the 
 "hammer of the whole earth," ver. 23, that it 
 has disquieted the earth (Isa. xiv. 1(1), and that 
 ooDsoquently its disquieting must contribute to 
 the peace of the earth, I agree with those who 
 
 take j^'J"!"? ^^ '^^^ usual meaning, " to make rest, 
 quiet" (i)eut. xxviii. 65; Isa. xxxiv. 14; li. 4; 
 Jer. xxxi. 2). 
 
 Vers. 35-38. A sword . . . foolishly trust. 
 In these verses it is specially shown how the 
 Lord will conduct His cause with Babylon and 
 bring disquiet upon it. Tiie sword is as it were 
 cited to exercise the office of avenger, both in 
 general and in particular. For as its objects 
 are designated: 1. the Chaldeans in general; 
 
 2. the inhabitants of the capital, with the resi- 
 dent princes, wise men (counsellors of the king), 
 Magians (C^t?, "talk, chattering," xlviii. 30; 
 Isa. xvi. 6; Job xi. 3 ; here personally the lying 
 prophets, astrologers, Isa. xliv. 25, couip. De- 
 LiTzscH ad loc; xlvii. 13, xix. 13) and warriors ; 
 
 3. horses, chariots and auxiliaries (xxv. 20 ; 
 comp. NiEBUHR, ^4ss. u. Bab., S. 200 ^4«w. 2 and 
 the article "Griechen" in the Register S. 519; 
 li. 30) ; 4. treasures and water, on which last 
 the power and safety of Babylon in great mea- 
 sure depended. (Comp. li. 13, 36 ; Isa. xxi. 1 
 
 and Delitzsch ad loc). — For it is a land, etc. 
 This sentence corresponds to ver. 34. As there 
 the positive reason of the destruction breaking 
 over Babylon is stated, so here the negative, 
 '-'he positive ground is the strength of Jehovah 
 (prn, ver. 34), the negative is the powerlessness 
 
 of the idols. Comp. li. 47, 52. — Foolishly 
 trust. The prefix 3 [on] may designate either 
 
 the means and instrument, or the supporting or 
 moving reason. The former yields the concep- 
 tion that the idol-images served as the instru- 
 ments of mad behaviour, the latter that they were 
 the ground thereof. Without doubt the latter 
 is the more correct. The senseless, inflated, 
 arrogant behaviour of the Babylonians was sup- 
 ported by their belief in idols. Comp. N3J with 
 
 3 in ii. 8 and the Greek fiaivsa^ai virb tov ■&eov. 
 
 ilEROD. IV. 79. 
 
 Vers. 39, 40. Therefore shall . . . sojourn 
 in her. The first half of ver. 39 is composed 
 of reminiscences from Isaiah (Isa. xiii. 21, 22; 
 xxxiv. 14). The second half of the verse is taken 
 verbatim from Isa. xiii. 20. Comp. ver. 13 ; xvii. 
 6. Ver. 40 is a repetition of xlix. 18, but taken 
 originally from Isa. xiii. 19 coll. Am. iv. 11. The 
 original passage on which all these prophetic ut- 
 terances are based is Deut. zxix. 22. — Comp. 
 xlix. 33; li. 43. 
 
 10. Non tu, ted tibi, 
 L. 41-46. 
 
 41 
 
 42 
 
 44 
 
 Behold, a people cometh from the north, 
 And a great host and many kings break up from the ends of the earth. 
 Bow and lance they bear. 
 Cruel are they^ and without compassion. 
 Their sound roareth like the sea, 
 
 And on horses they ride equipped like a man for the battle 
 Against thee, thou daughter of Babylon. 
 43 The king of Babylon hath heard the report of them. 
 And his hands are feeble; 
 
 Anguish hath seized him, trembling as a parturient. 
 Behold, like a lion he ascends 
 
 From the pride of Jordan to the evergreen pasturage, 
 For in a twinkling I drive her from thence, 
 And — who is chosen? Him I set over her. 
 For who is like me, and who will order me? 
 And who is the shepherd who may stand before me? 
 
 Therefore hear the counsel of Jehovah that he hath counselled against Babylon, 
 And his thoughts which he hath thought against the land of the Chaldeans : 
 Yea, they will be dragged away, the weak little sheep, 
 Yea, the pasturage wjll be amazed concerning them. 
 With the cry, " Babylon is taken," the earth trembles. 
 And a crying is heard* among the nations. 
 
 45 
 
 16 
 
CHAP. LI. 1-6. 
 
 416 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 42.— non "'TTDX- Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., §105, 4, 6. 2. 
 
 « Ver. 44.— D}fnX is probably only a mistake, and is therefore to be read with the Keri D^f'^N (comp. ^jT^'^X, 
 
 xlix. 19). "' "' '•' "^ 
 
 3 Ver. 46. — J^Diyj is occasioned by xlix. 21, and moreover comp. Naeoelsb. Gr., § 60, 4. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL, 
 
 This entire passage consists of quotations, 
 vers. 41-4:J being taken from vi. 2:2-24, vers. 44- 
 46 from xlix. 19-21. As the prophet has already 
 repeatedly designated the enemy as one coming 
 from the north, it was natural to apply the for- 
 mer prophecy of the enemy threatening Judah 
 from the north to Babylon, and it must also be 
 admitted that the propliet would find it appro- 
 priate to transfer the prophecy of the chosen 
 instrument for the destruction of Edom (xlix. 
 19-21) to the similarly chosen instrument of the 
 destruction of Babylon. Although thus the 
 quotations here are accumulated to a degree 
 greater than heretofore, I am yet convinced (con- 
 trary to my former view in Der proph. Jer. u. 
 Bab., S. 128 W.) that the passage is genuine and 
 original. The idea of the unity of God's 
 judgments and of just recompense was to be 
 represented here. This would receive no detri- 
 ment, even if every single feature of the former 
 prophecies did not seem adapted to be applied to 
 Babylon. This, however, is not the case, for we 
 find in the text such modifications as the appli- 
 
 cation to Babylon required; daughter of Baby- 
 lon, ver. 42; King of Babylon, ver. 43; against 
 Babylon and the land of the Chaldeans, ver. 45; 
 Babylon is taken, ver. 46; among the nations, 
 for, in the Red Sea, ver. 4tJ. What is not altered 
 is not then opposed, according to the author's 
 judgment, to its application to Babylon. The 
 figure in ver. 44 a is therefore not inappropriate. 
 The pride of Jordan and evergreen pasturage 
 belong to the picture. The lion, which, from the 
 reed-thickets on the Jordan, falls upon the flocks 
 feeding near the bank (comp. rems, on xlix. 19), 
 is a figure which may be applied to any case of 
 overpowering hostile attack. Likewise the de- 
 scription of the northern people ^vi. 23) is by no 
 means so special that it may not be applied to 
 any people advancing with warlike impetuosity. 
 Moreover, Jeremiah, when he wrote vi. 22-24, 
 neither had the Chaldeans specially in view, nor 
 are they so very difl"erent from their neighbors, 
 the Medes. 
 
 The addition and many kings in ver. 41 is 
 thus explained, that in the conception of tha 
 prophet the picture was present of a host of ene- 
 mies, composed of many different elements (comp. 
 li. 27, 28). 
 
 11. The Heart of the insurgents, the Fanners and the Invidmate. 
 
 LI. 1-6. 
 
 Thus saith Jehovah : 
 Behold, I raise up against Babylon, 
 And against the inmates of the heart of my insurgents 
 A destroying wind.^ 
 And I sent unto Babylon fanners,'' 
 Who shall fan it and empty out its land, 
 Fur upon it are they from all sides in the day of calamity. 
 Against him that bendeth let the archer bend his bow, 
 And against him who lifteth himself up^ in his harness,* 
 And spare ye not her young men, 
 Banish ye the entire host. 
 
 That the slain fall in the land of the Chaldeans, 
 And the pierced through in her streets. 
 
 For Israel and Judah are not widows* from their God,« Jehovah Zebaoth, 
 But their land is full of guilt on account of the Holy One of Israel. 
 Flee out of Babylon, and let every man deliver his soul ; 
 Let not destruction come upon you through their sin. 
 For it is a time of vengeance for Jehovah, 
 He rendereth recompense unto her. 
 
il6 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 1.— niT as masc. also in Exod. x. 13 ; Ps. li. 12 ; Eccles. i. 6. HTIti'O, comp. ver. 25 ; il. 30 ; v. 26. 
 
 2 Ver. 2. — W1]. The analogy of xlviii. 12 seems to require the punctuation D^"1T- D^"! I is very troublesome. Although 
 violence by strangers is spoken of in many places (comp. ver. 51), this idea does not at all suit this connection, and the fre- 
 quent occurrence of D'lT while 0'"^! is not found elsewhere (only rT^T occurs in Ruth iii. 2), may indeed have occasioned 
 the Masoretic punctuation, unless W'^l itself maybe taken as Part. Eal. after the analogy of nin, XT', HlO, 6tc. (comp. 
 
 •T T T ** T ■• T 
 
 Olsh., g 245, a). 
 
 3 Ter. 3. — '7l*iT~'7X1. This is the main difficulty in ver. 3. For, 1. this Hithp. form does not occur elsewhere, 2. the 
 
 abbreviated Impcrfuct form, if the word comes from PI 7^, is surprising. According to the laws of the Hebrew language, 
 
 however, ^'XliX' tan come only from 7171? (comp. Olsh., g269, d). It must then signify " lift one's self up." Then the ab- 
 
 brevlated form is strange, which might be iu place after 7X, but not after 7X- I lio not think, however, that we need be so 
 
 scrupulous in the matter. As in Jeremiah (and elsewhere) the full form stands where we should expect the abbreviated 
 (comp. iii. 7 ; Ew , g 22-t, c), so may the latter stand where we should expect the former. Comp. Jer. xvii. 8, Chethibh ; Ew- 
 ALD, 'i 224, c, Anm.; lifis., ^ 12S, 2, Anm. Then the rest, according to the reading of the Chethibh, affords no difiSculty. With 
 respect to the absence of the nnta relationis, cniiip. 1 Cliron. xv. 12; Naegelsb. Gr., g 80, 6, 2, a. 
 * Ver. 3.— riD- Comp. xlvi. i ; Ewald, g 4'J, d. 
 
 6 Ver. 5. — The masc. JO'^X bere only — to be regarded as neuter. Comp. H^nty, iv. SO. 
 
 e Ver. 5.— VnSxO- Pregnant construction. Comp. N.*.egelsb. Gr., 1 112, 7. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Babylon, the heart of Jehovah's opponents, 
 Bball be fanned like chaff (vers. 1, 2). Without 
 a figure; a strong, warlike power shall cast 
 down Babylon (vers. 3, 4). For Israel and Ju- 
 dah are not forsaken widows; rather shall they 
 be delivered and Jehovah's vengeance executed 
 on Babylon (vers. 5, 6). — The passage thus con- 
 sists of two halves: vers. 1-4, and vers. 5, 6. In 
 the first half the judgment on Babylon is an- 
 nounced, (a) under the figure of fanning, vers. 
 1, 2; {b) in unfigurative language, vers. 3, 4. 
 The second half is related to the first as a state- 
 ment of the reason (For, ver. 5). The judgment, 
 namely, is impending, because the Lord will show 
 Himself a faithful husband with respect to Is- 
 rael, a righteous recompenser with respect to 
 Babylon. 
 
 Vers. 1, 2. Thus saith calamity. 
 
 Whether 'Op 3^ [heart of my insurgents] is 
 
 to be explained by the Atbash [or principle of 
 alphabetical inversion, according to wliicli it is 
 equivalent to Casdim, the Chaldeans] is doubtful, 
 lor the expression might be used by the prophet 
 without any reference to that permutation of 
 letters. As he called Babylon Double-defiance 
 and Visitation in 1. 21 and Pride in 1. 31, so 
 might he call it Heart-of-my-insurgents. This 
 designation was a natural one. It is founded in 
 the significance which the idea of Babylon has 
 in the consciousness of the entire Old and New 
 Testament prophecy. For though it is only in 
 the Apocalypse that Babylon is distinctly set 
 fortli as the comprehensive centre of all and every 
 hostility to the Lord and His kingdom (comp. 
 Naegelsb. Jer. u. Bab., S. 10 fi. ), this repre- 
 sentation is rooted in the views of the Old Testa- 
 ment prophets concerning Babylon, and we shall 
 not err if we regard this passage as the chief 
 basis of this conception of Babylon by the New 
 Testament revelator, according to which it is de- 
 clared to be the "Mother of harlots and abomi- 
 nations of the earth" (Rev. xvii. 5). Still it is 
 remarkable that the name D'Tt^S should form, 
 
 according to the Cabbalistic play upon words, an 
 exjiression with a suitable meaning (comp. Bux- 
 TORF, Lex. Chald., p. 248, 9; Herzog, ReaUEnc, 
 VII., S. 205). The expression nn ")"'^n signifies 
 
 indeed everywhere else (ver. 11; Hagg. i. 14; 
 Ezr. i. 1, 5 ; 1 Chron. v. 26 ; 2 Chron. xxi. 16 ; 
 xxxvi. 22) "to awaken, excite the spirit." But 
 the expression is not necessarily restricted to 
 this meaning. In this passage where fanning is 
 spoken of, the context requires the meaning 
 "wind." It seems thatthe expression first began 
 to come into use in the time of Jeremiah, for 
 previously it does not occur. It is however quite 
 natural that a mode of expression still in its 
 formative state should at first waver in its signi- 
 fication. Only when it has become fixed by long 
 usage in a definite sense can it no longer be taken 
 in another sense without misapprehension. — 
 "Who shaH fan. Comp. xlix. 32, 36.— And 
 empty. Comp. xix. 1, 7; Isa. xxiv. 1; Nah. ii. 
 3. Here the prophet passes from the figurative 
 to the literal mode of speech, for the fanning will 
 consist in just this, that the land will be emptied, 
 men and property being carried away. — For 
 upon it, etc. Comp. iv. 17; xvii. 17, 18. 
 
 Vers. 3-6. Against him unto her — 
 
 Spare not, etc. Comp. Isa. xiii. 18 ; Jer. 1. 14. — 
 Fail, etc. Comp. vers. 47, 49, 52; xxxvii. 10; 
 Isa. xiii. 15. — Not vridows, etc. Comp. Isa. 1. 
 1 ; liv. 4-6; Lam. i. 1. — Their is to be referred 
 to Babylon. The sense of this half of the verse 
 is : it might appear as if the Lord were better dis- 
 posed towards Babylon than Israel, because the 
 latter is a captive in the power of the former. It 
 is not so. Babylonia is laden with guilt with re- 
 spect to. Jehovah, and is therefore under the curse 
 of the Holy One of Israel. I do not see what 
 tiiere is unlike Jeremiah in this verse. That 
 Di^X for guilt does not occur elsewhere in Jere- 
 
 T T 
 
 miah i.s nothing (o the point. The occurrence of 
 the expression Holy Oae of Israel here, us iu 
 1. 29, is not strange in view of the frequent 
 quotations from Isaiah. With respect to the 
 connection witii the preceding and following con- 
 texts, liowever, it should be mentioned th;it ver. 
 5 in an exceedingly appropriate manner gives ft 
 double reason for tlie announcement contained in 
 
CHAP. LI. 7-10. 
 
 417 
 
 vers. 1-4 : 1. a negative one (Israel is not re- 
 jected) ; 2. a positive one (Babylon is full of 
 guilt). Ver. 5 is also connected with ver. 6 in 
 two ways; 1. as an integral part of the entire 
 discourse, vers. 1-5, in so far that ver. 6 draws 
 the inference from all that has gone before (vers. 
 1-5); 2. specially by the words, "Let not de- 
 etructiou come upon you through their sin," 
 
 which apparently refer to "their land is full of 
 guilt." — Flee, etc. Comp. Isa. xiii. 14; xlviiL 
 20 ; Jer. xlviii. 6 ; 1. 8. — Let not, etc. Comp. 
 xlix. 26 ; 1. 30 — Gen. xix. 15. — For it is a time, 
 etc. Comp. Isa. xxxiv. 8; Jer. xlvi. 10; \. 15, 28; 
 li. 11 — Rev. xviii. 4. — Vengeance, etc. Comp. 
 Joel iv. 4; Isa. ILx. 18; Ixvi. 6; Prov. xix. 17; 
 Ps. cxzxvii. 8. 
 
 12. The golden Cup broken. 
 LI. 7-10. 
 
 7 A golden cup was Babylon in the hand of Jehovah, 
 Which made all the earth drunken : 
 
 Of its wine have nations drunk, 
 And nations have become mad. 
 
 8 Suddenly is Babylon fallen and shattered 1 
 Howl over her, take balsam for her pain, 
 If so be she may be healed. 
 
 9 We have healed^ Babylon, but she was not healed : 
 Forsake her and let us go each into his own country : 
 For her judgment reacheth^ unto heaven, 
 
 And towers up even to the clouds. 
 10 " Jehovah hath brought forth our righteous works : 
 
 Come and let us declare in Zion the work of Jehovah, our God." 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 > Ver. 9.— The perf. ^JX3T is to be understood de canatu. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 100, 4, Anm. 2. 
 » Ver. 9.— On J^JJ specially comp. iv. 10, 18. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 These verses also contain a picture complete in 
 itself For the prophet shows us first Babylon 
 at the height of its power, when it was like a 
 golden cup, in which Jehovah gave the nations 
 the wine of His wrath to drink (ver. 7). Now 
 the parts are changed. Babylon is itself "a sick 
 man," and the prophet therefore calls upon the 
 nations that have become tributary to him to give 
 him medicine (ver. 8). These answer that they 
 had tried this in vain, and mutually expect each 
 01 her to flee from the common prison (ver. 9). 
 Israel is one among these nations, and therefore 
 calls upon those who belong to it to journey home, 
 and in their home declare the mighty acts of the 
 Lord in the deliverance and justification of His 
 people (ver. 10). We see that the discourse is 
 ilramatically arranged, and as to its purport, 
 proceeds from the height and greatness of Baby- 
 lon to its fall. 
 
 Ters. 7, 8. A golden cup ... be healed. 
 The prophet had lu'r.e xxv. 15 in mind. That 
 which in 1. 23 and li. 2U is expressed by the figure 
 of the hammer is expressed here by the figure of 
 the cup, except that in the hammer the element of 
 irresistible power, in the golden cup that of pride 
 and glory, is more prominent. The cup, howe- 
 27 
 
 ver, is "in the hand of Jehovah." It is there- 
 fore Jehovah's instrument, and what it bestows 
 is the gift of Jehovah. From the effect of this 
 gift we see that its object was punishment. The 
 nations are intoxicated by it, and become like 
 mad (comp. xxv. 16). This figure portrays the 
 overwhelming fulness of destructive effect which 
 they were obliged to receive. — Comp. Rev. xvii. 
 2, 4. — [Babylon, " like a fair harlot, has be- 
 witched thee with the love potions of her idola- 
 tries." Wordsworth. The same image is used 
 in the Apocalypse. Comp. also Doctrinal Note 
 No. 17. — S. R. A.] — Now Babylon itself is thrown 
 down, shattered, sick unto death. The expres- 
 sion "Babylon is fallen " seems to betaken 
 from Isa. xxi. 9. Comp. Rev. xiv. 8 ; xviii. 2. 
 The figure of the cup is abandoned gradually. 
 It is still perceived in the word shattered, but 
 the balsam and the pain presuppose a living or- 
 ganism. Those who are called upon must be the 
 same who afterwards speak, vers. 9, 10. It is 
 the nations conquered and held in captivity by 
 Babylon which speak, among them Israel. They 
 are the same who were spoken of in 1. 8, 16. 
 These are summoned to heal Babylon, because 
 they are now his servants, and thus obligated to 
 render him assistance. — Balsam. Comp. xlvi. 
 11 , viii. 22. 
 Vers. 9, 10. "We have healed . . our God. 
 
418 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 Those who are called upoa do not refuse to ren- 
 der the service, but this is shown to be in vain. 
 They express this after having made the attempt, 
 and hence the perfect tense — vi. 14; xv. 18; 
 xvii. 14. They thus express that in the service 
 of Babylon they have honestly done what they 
 could for its deliverance. As all their attempts 
 have proved vain, they think of their own safety 
 by flight into their native lands. Comp. Isaiah 
 xiii. 14; Jer. xlvi. 10. — The reason why Babylon 
 was not to be helped lies in the immeasurable 
 greatness of the evil which has come upon it. 
 Tlie punitive judgment advances upon them so 
 overpoweringly that it reaches even to the sky. 
 Comp. Ps. xxxvi. 6; jvii. 11; cviii. 6. — Israel, 
 who is especially benefited by the breaking of 
 
 the prison, rejoices above all that his honor ia 
 saved, that he has not everlastingly disappeared 
 and perished as something entirely bad, but is 
 still preserved as good for something. We might 
 be tempted to take righteous works (mplV) in 
 the sense of " salvation " (comp. Isa. Ixii. 1), but 
 the plural is opposed to such a rendering. For 
 though the "righteousnesses of Jehovah" are 
 spoken of in the sense of "saving acts" (comp. 
 Jud. v. 11; Ps. ciii. 6) the righteousness of Israel, 
 which the Lord has brought to light, cannot well 
 be other than such facts as render manifest that 
 Israel is still worthy the honor of being the peo- 
 ple of Jehovah (comp. Ia. Ixii. 2). Comp. Ps. 
 xxxvii. 6; Jer. 1. 20. 
 
 13. The triple Threatening. 
 LI. 11-14. 
 
 11 Sharpen* the arrows, fill the shields !=* 
 
 Jehovah hath awakened the spirit of the kings of Media, 
 For his mind is against Babylon to destroy it ; 
 For the vengeance of Jehovah it is, 
 The vengeance of his sanctuary. 
 
 12 Against the walls of Babylon raise standards, 
 Strengthen the watch, appoint watchmen, 
 Lay the ambush ! 
 
 For as Jehovah hath thought so also hath he done — 
 
 All that he hath spoken against the inhabitants of Babylon. 
 
 13 thou that dwellest on great waters, on greatness of treasures ! 
 Thine end is come, the ell of thy section.* 
 
 14 Sworn hath Jehovah Zebaoth by himself:* 
 
 " Have I filled thee with men as with grasshoppers, 
 So shall they sing over thee the song of the vintage.'* 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 11.— T^n is properly to polish, but arrows are polished by being sharpened. The word is thus rendered by the 
 Chaldee and Vulgate. 
 
 2 Wr. 11.— D'to'^ti'- The meaning is doubtful. It may be quiver, arrow, or shield. Roediger, in Ges. Tlifs., p. 1418, 
 dccidus iur the last, and I also think that both the parallel passages (comp. Song of Sol. iv. 4 with -A Chron. xxiii. 9 ; Ezek. 
 xxvii. 11 ; 1 Chron. xviii. 7) and the use of the word in Aramaic favor the meaning " shield." To till the shields is a phrase 
 
 Viku brachiu implere. Comp. JlK/p kI'2, Zcch. ix. 13, and Koehler thereon. [Wordsworth prefers the translation gfMmr* 
 
 as civen by the Vulg., Syriac. and Tari^um. Cowles : "The Hebrew word means prim.arily to ^W. Qesenius supposes it 
 means here. Kill tiie sliields witli tlie soldiers' own body, i. <■., put tlnni on ; while Maurer suggests the sense, ' Fill them 
 with oil,' anoint tlieni as a preparation for service, ur;;iiigthat this is in harmony with the preceding clause, 'Polish the ar- 
 rows,' and eiirresponds with Isaiah xxi. .5, 'Anoint tlie sliields.' "— S. R. .\.J 
 
 3 Ver. LI.— According to this rendering [A. V.: measure of thy covetousness], 1|^X3 ia inf- Kal from j;2f3 (comp. 
 
 linns, xlviii. 7 ; Olsh., g245, 6) meaning to strike off, cut off, etc. 
 * Ver. i.—W212- Comp. Am. vi. 8. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 A triple call of threatening against Babylon 
 forming a climax; fir.st (ver. 11 a) a general 
 summons to war, with mention of the warlike 
 power thus called upon, then (ver. 12 a) an im- 
 mediate attack on the walls of the city is com- 
 manded, and in the third place (ver. 13), its ap- 
 
 proaching end is announced. Each of the calls 
 is, however, followed by a statement of reasons, 
 in which also a climax may be perceived. Foi 
 ver. Hi announces the decree of Jehovah and 
 its cause; ver. 12 b contains the assurance that 
 with the Lord purposing and acting are the same 
 thing. Ver. 14 strengthens the threatening of 
 ver. 13 by reference to a solemn oath of .Jehovah. 
 Ver. 11. Sharpen . . . sanctuary. — Hath 
 
CHAP. LI. 15-19. 
 
 41% 
 
 aw^akened, etc. Comp. rems. on ver. 1. This 
 passage is taken from Isa. xiii. 17, fi'om which 
 we see that the definition of the enemies, threaten- 
 ing from the north (1. 9, 41), as the Medes is 
 older than Jeremiah. Comp. ver. 28. In this 
 sentence the prophet informs us to whom the 
 summons of the preceding clause is addressed. 
 The second half of tbe verse contains a double 
 statement of cause, first the proximate and im- 
 mediate, then the remote and mediate, but at the 
 same time deepest ground of the summons. 
 Comp. 1. 15. -28. 
 
 Ver. 12. Against the walls ... of Baby- 
 lon. The military signals are to precede ttie 
 attack on the walls of Babylon. On account of 
 against the walls, DJ, standards, seems here 
 
 to be not the mere general signal of convocation 
 or message, but a military sign indicating a par- 
 ticular point of attack. The word also denotes 
 the Hags of ships (Isa. xxxiii. 23; Ezek. xxvii. 
 7). Comp. Wi.\ER, R.-W.-B., s. v. "Fafine7i" and 
 " Schiffe." Tlie watch aud watchmen appear 
 to be related to each other as defensive and oifeii- 
 sive (comp. 2 Sam. xi. 16, and Hitzig). — Am- 
 bush. Comp. Josh. viii. 14-16; Jud. xx. 33-35. 
 — For, etc. To wish and to do are to be shown 
 to be identical with Jehovah. Comp. iv. 28 ; Lam. 
 ii. 17; Zech. i. 6; viii. 14, 15. 
 
 Vers. 13, 14. O thou that dwellest . . . 
 vintage. The greatest supports of the power 
 of Babylon were the waters surrounding it (comp. 
 vers 32 and 36; 1. 38; Isa. xxi. 1; Ps. cxxxvii. 
 1), and the great riches which Nebuchadnezzar 
 accumulated (comp. BajSvluv 7 Tro?.vxpvaog, JEsch. 
 Pers. u2, and Oppert, Exped. en Mesop. I. p. 175), 
 and which rendered it possible for him to erect 
 his immense buildings. Duncker says in refer- 
 ence to this: " Nebuchadnezzar had no need to fear 
 that he would exhaust the subjects of his native 
 land by the cost of his buildings. The immense 
 booty of Nineveh, the greater part of which ac- 
 crued to the Babylonians, the plunder of Jerusa- 
 lem, the tributes of Syria and the Phoenician 
 cities furnished the greatest means. The fruit- 
 fulness of the Babyloaian territory, the produce 
 
 234— Their 
 -Ell of thy 
 
 of the fields depended on the overflowing of the 
 Euphrates. By an extensive system of dams, 
 canals and conduits, Nebuchadnezzar succeeded 
 both in conducting the water of the Euphrates to 
 every point of the Babylonian plain, and in 
 draining the marshes and averting the violent 
 inundations, which were not infrequent" [Gesch. 
 d. Alterth., I., S. 846). Add to this that these 
 water-courses were of the greatest importance 
 i'ur the defence of the country. "Their object 
 was primarily irrigation and navigation; but 
 tliey afforded at the same time strong lines of de- 
 fence against the enemy," says Niebuiir [Ass. u 
 Bab., S. 229). — On a cylinder in the possi ssion of 
 Mr. Thomas Phillips, which has been deciphered 
 by Grotefend, Nebuchadnezzar says (according 
 to Oppert, p. 231): " Tout autour je fis couler de 
 I' eau dans cette digice immense de terre. A tr avers 
 ces grandes eaux comparables aux abimes de la mer, 
 je fis fair e ^ln conduit." Comp. /6., p. 
 end is come. Comp. Gen. vi. 13.- 
 section. There are two renderings of this, 
 "measure, end of thy fury, avarice, gain." So 
 Grotitjs, Capelle, Chr. B. Michaelis, Rosen- 
 mueller, Ewald, Hitzig. But PISX is the ell or 
 
 T — 
 
 yard measure, and does not involve the idea of 
 full measure, or end. Hence the other render- 
 ing is to be preferred, which, after the example 
 of Jerome [pedalis prsecisioiiis tux), is adopted by 
 Venema, J. D. Michaelis, Eichhorn, De Wette, 
 Gesenius, Bottcher [Probenaltestavi. Schrifterkl., 
 S. 289, Anm. m), Maurer, Graf. The idea lying 
 at the foundation of the expression "the ell 6t 
 the cutting thee off," is that the thread of life is 
 measured, aud when a definite number of yards 
 is reached, will be cut off. Comp. Isa. xxxviii. 
 12; Job vi. 9. — Have I, DN ''II, are not here 
 particles of asseveration, as in 2 Sam. xv. 21 ; 
 2 Ki. V. 20, but conditional, if I have filled thee 
 with men as with grasshoppers (comp. xlvi. 23), 
 this was only in order to be able to tread the 
 more abundant vintage (TTn. Comp. rems. on 
 XXV. 30). Hence even the song of the treaders 
 is a sign of their work yielding abundant returns. 
 
 Passage inserted from x. 12-16. 
 LI. 15-19. 
 
 15 Who maketh the earth by his power, 
 Establisheth the globe by his wisdom, 
 
 And by his understanding stretched out the heavens. 
 
 16 At the sound of his voice, throng of waters in the heavens, 
 And vapors he bringeth up from the ends of the earth ; 
 He raaketh lightnings to the rain, 
 
 And bringeth the wind out of his chambers. 
 
 17 All men stand there mute, without understanding; 
 All the founders of idol images are put to shame, 
 For a lie is their molten work, no spirit is therein, 
 
 18 They are vapor, turned to ridicule; 
 
 At the time of their visitation they perish. 
 
420 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 1 9 Not so the portion of Jacob ; 
 
 For he formeth all things and the rod of his inheritance. 
 Jehovah Zebaoth is his name. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 This whole passage is a quotation from x. 12- 
 16. It interrupts the connection in a disturbing 
 manner. For even if the words in vers. 15, 16 
 may be regarded as suitable to support the 
 thought that Jehovah, who ha.s sworn in ver. 14 
 to destroy Babylon, has also the power to realize 
 this threat, the following exposition of the vanity 
 of idols is a superfluous appendage to the pres- 
 ent prophecy. There is no point either in the 
 
 following or previous context which requires 
 such an exposition. It is a mere digression. 
 
 Add to this, that in ver. 19 the words ^NIK'M 
 
 are omitted before £3^32/ (comp. x. 16). If this 
 
 omission is not due to a mere oversight, it be- 
 trays the hand of an emendator, who, to honor 
 the tribe of Judah, wishes to remove the appear- 
 ance as though only the Israel of the ten tribes 
 were the stock of Jehovah's inheritance. Comp. 
 Naegelsb. Jer. u. Bab., S. 131 ff.; Qka.t, S 
 590, 1. 
 
 14. ffow the Lord punishes His own Hammer, 
 LI. 20-24. 
 
 20 A hammer^ art thou to me, weapons of war, 
 And with thee I break nations in pieces, 
 And with thee I overthrow kingdoms. 
 
 21 And with thee I break in pieces the horse and his rider, 
 And with thee I break in pieces the chariot and its driver. 
 
 22 And with thee I break in pieces man and woman, 
 K\\\ with thee I break in pieces old man and boy, 
 And with thee I break in pieces young man and maiden, 
 
 23 And with thee I break in pieces the shepherd and his flock. 
 And with thee I break in pitces the husbandman and his team, 
 And with thee I break in pieces magistrates and rulers.^ 
 
 24 And I recompense to Babylon and all the inhabitants of Chaldea all the evil, 
 Which they have done to Zion before your eyes, saith Jehovah. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 20. — V30 (a participial form derived from the Hiphil. Comp. e.g., "1J0O> and as a related synonym V'3D, 
 
 Prov. XXV. 18) does not occur elsewhere. 
 
 2 Ver. 2:5.— j"lin3. Comp. ver.s 28, 57; Ezek. xxiii. 6, 23; 1 Ki. x. 15; Neh. ii. 7; Ezr. viii. 30; Esth.viii. 9. According 
 to Benfey ( Morialsnamen, S. 195), tlie word comes from tlie Sanscrit (Paksclia, socius, amicus), and is certainly related to 
 the Arabic P.T.scha. Comp. Gesex., Thes., pag. 1100. — D''J JDt which occurs only in the plural (Isa. xli. 25 ; Ezr. ix. 2 ; Nch. 
 ii. 16, etc.), are likewise jjras/ecit provinciarum. On the different derivations comp. Gesex. T/ies., pag. 937. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 A picture very clearly complete in itself. The 
 propliet sees in spirit a large number of per.sons 
 before hi^ who are lo serve the Lord for a ham- 
 mer, in order therewith to dash to pieces nations 
 and kingdoms, especially, however. Babylon in 
 all its parts, and tlius to recompense to it what 
 it ha.s inflicted on Ziim. 
 
 Vers. 20-24. A hammer . . . saith Jehovah. 
 In 1. 23 Babylon was called "the hammer of 
 the whole earth," and it miglit certainly be ad- 
 dressed agiiin in the same way here. Many ex- 
 positors, the LXX., Jerome, Theodoret at their 
 head, are of opinion that it is so. But 1, it 
 should be observed that another word and, in- 
 
 deed, one formed ad hoc is chosen. Comp. 
 Textual Note 1. May not the prophet have in- 
 tended to indicate by using another word, spe- 
 cially formed for the occasion, that he meant 
 another hammer than that spoken of before in 1. 
 23? 2. The perfects with the Vau consecutive 
 may, indeed, be taken in a past sense (comp. 
 xviii. 4; xix. 4, 5; xxxvii. 11), but this con- 
 struction is not normal. The imperfect would 
 
 be more correct. 3. 'j[^?2^}, ver. 24, must at 
 
 any rate be taken in a future sense. Since, how- 
 ever, this word is a perfectly similar form to the 
 previous perfects and similarly construed, there 
 is a presumption that the perfects are aIs;o to be 
 rendered as futures. 4. In 1. 21 we found an 
 ideal person addressed, of which the Lord would 
 
CHAP. LI. 25, 26. 
 
 421 
 
 make use as His instrument in the chastisement 
 of Babylon. It is to the same that the prophet 
 here turns. That he referred in thought to 1. 
 
 21, 'J.2, is evident from VSO, which he opposes to 
 B?'£03 there used. He here, however, extends 
 the task appointed to the hammer, for it is not to 
 visit Babylon only, as in 1. 21, but many nations 
 and kingdoms. Who this chosen instrument was 
 
 to be the prophet was ignorant. — To take ''/2 
 
 ■weapon, as singular for ^/2, with Hitzio and 
 
 Graf, appears to me unnecessary. The former is 
 not a single weapon, but comprehends all weapons 
 
 of war. The objects enumerated as to be broken 
 form in a certain measure a circle, proceeding 
 from the great and stiong to the small and weak, 
 and then rising from the young man and maideo 
 again to the great and strung. — Chaldea. Kas- 
 dim as the name of the country, as in 1. 10 coll. 
 li 35. — Before your eyes, is to be referred to 
 I recompense, since it would be superfiuoua 
 referred to have done, and expresses the 
 thought that those who now hear of the destruc- 
 tion of Babylon will also see it, and thus be con- 
 vinced by ocular demonstration of the truth of 
 Jeremiah's prediction. 
 
 15. The Destroying Mountain. 
 LI. 25, 26. 
 
 25 Behold, I come to thee, thou destroying mountain, 
 Saith Jehovah, which destroyed the whole world ; 
 And I stretch forth ray hand over thee, 
 
 And roll thee from the rocks and make thee a burnt mountain. 
 
 26 And they shall take no stone of thee for a corner, 
 Nor a stone fur foundations, 
 
 But thou shalt be perpetual ruins, saith Jehovah. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Babylon is here compared to a mountain, which 
 has a widely destroying influence. This can re- 
 fer only to a volcano, and with this it agrees that 
 the mountain, after being laid bare to its rocky 
 heart, is said to be a burnt-out mountain (ver. 
 25). So much, however, has it suffered by the 
 destroying energies that its stones are not even 
 available for building material. — We see that 
 these two verses afford a picture perfectly com- 
 plete in itself. [Cowles : "This blending of 
 the figures of the volcano and the avalanche may 
 not conform to the nicest rules of rhetoric, but 
 none can say the conceptions are not grand and 
 their significance both clear and strong." — S. 
 R. A.] 
 
 Vers. 25. 26. Behold, I come . . . saith Je- 
 hovah. — Behold, ^^c. Comp. xxi. 13; xxiii. 30- 
 32; 1. 31. — The expression destroying mountain 
 [rcniy^n "inj, occurs besides only in 2Ki. xxiii. 
 
 13, where the mount of Olives (or the southern 
 peak thereof, the mons scandali or offensionis of ec- 
 clesiastical tradition; comp. Keil on Kings, S. 
 362). is so called [A. V. "Mountain of corrup- 
 tion]." The Mount of Olives evidently received 
 this appellation from the corrupting influence 
 which proceeded from it in religious matters. 
 May not Babylon also be called a destroying 
 mountain in spiritual relations? If then we re- 
 member that the name of Babylon is connected 
 even in primaeval traditions with defiant worldly 
 power and idolatry (comp. 1. 29-32. and Xaegici.^ij. 
 Jer. u. Bab., S. off.), we mtiy well suppose tint 
 
 the prophet also had the corrupting spiritual in- 
 fluence of Babylon in mind (comp. also 1. 38; li. 
 1, 44). We are not, however, justified in re- 
 stricting his view to this single point, the ele- 
 ment of destructiveness in a physical sense being 
 also quite natural. It is repeatedly expressed 
 in this prophecy. Comp. the hammer, 1. 23, and 
 the cup, li. 7 coll. xxv. 15-17. — We may then as- 
 sume that Babylon is designated as a destroying 
 mountain in a spiritual and pliysical reference. 
 Perhaps in the term "mountain," there is also 
 a hint at the tower which was widely visible, and 
 j corresponded to the widely exi ended influence. 
 As to the picture in itself the question arises. 
 What sort of a mountain had the prophet in mind? 
 I How must a (natural) mountain be constituted so 
 I as to be fitly designated a widely destroying 
 mountain? lam of opinion that this designa- 
 j tion can be given only to a volcano, for men seek 
 I the vicinity of mountains because these afford 
 protection to their habitations and agriculture. 
 Even the vicinity of volcanoes is not shunned, be- 
 I cause these become dangerous only from time to 
 i time, and the general advantage of their vicinity 
 I outweighs the temporary disadvantage. The 
 , following description seems also to point to a 
 I volcano. How otherwise can we explain the 
 words "roll thee from, the rocks," than of a 
 volcanic eruption? The mountain is to belaid 
 bare, the overlying strata are to be thrown down 
 so that noiliing will remain but the skeleton, — 
 the masses ot stone which form its interior. All 
 this can be said only of volcanoes. And when 
 finally the result of this process is designated by 
 the words nDTiy in^ ITIjIJI, i3 not this Cv rood 
 
422 
 
 THE PllOPIIET JEllEMiAH. 
 
 conclusion to the figure drawn from a volcano? 
 
 nS'^E' is combustio, exustio. Comp. Isa. ix. 4; 
 
 liiv. 10. A mons combustionis or exustionis is 
 either one from which the combustio issues, or 
 one which suffers or has suffered combustion. In 
 the former case it would be difficult to perceive 
 how this could be a punishmeut. In the latter 
 case the question arises, whether tlie mount of 
 combustion is to be understood as burning or 
 burnt out. If we regard the previous and follow- 
 ing context, we cannot doubt that the words 
 "make thee a mountain of combustion," desig- 
 nate the result of the process, which is further 
 described in ver. 26. The mountain is so burnt 
 out that its stones are not even available for 
 buildino' materials. To Graf's remark that 
 "this latter point in itself doubtful was hardly 
 
 so established in the experience of a Jew, that 
 he could make use of it as a figure which would 
 commend itself to his countrymen," I reply, that 
 it did not need much experience to know that 
 stones cracked or vitrified by fire, are bad build- 
 ing material, and that, moreover, here at the 
 close the discourse evidently passes from figure 
 to reality. The prophet has certainly the burnt- 
 up city in view, the stones of which could not be 
 used for building purposes. [Cowles: "In fact, 
 large building stones were never there. Her im- 
 mense structures were built of brick, either sun- 
 dried or kiln-burnt. Hence the great mass of 
 these materials lie to this day more or less decom- 
 posed in the mountains of rubbish which mark 
 the site of iliat once magnificent city."- — ^S. R. A.] 
 — But thou shalt, etc. Comp. ver. 62 ; xxv. 9. 
 
 16. War against the Threshing-floor of Babylon. 
 LI. 27-33. 
 
 27 Raise ye a standard in the land, 
 Blow the trumpet among the nations, 
 Consecrate nations against her, 
 
 Call upon her the kingdoms of Ararat, Minni and Ashkenaz ; 
 Appoint a captain against her. 
 Bring up horses like bristly locusts. 
 
 28 Consecrate nations against her. 
 
 The kings of Media with her satraps and all her governors, 
 And the whole land of their dominion. 
 
 29 Then the earth quakes^ and trembles, 
 
 For the thoughts of Jehovah are being fulfilled^ on Babylon, 
 To make the land of Babylon a waste without an inhabitant. 
 
 30 The heroes of Babylon have ceased to fight. 
 They sit in their strongholds ; 
 
 Dried up* is their strength. 
 They are become women ; 
 They have burned her dwellings. 
 Her bars are broken. 
 
 31 Courier runneth against courier, messenger against messenger. 
 To announce to the king of Babylon 
 
 That his city is taken to its utmost end, 
 
 32 The passages occupied, the ponds burned with fire, the men of war confounded. 
 
 33 For thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth, the God of Israel, 
 "The daughter of Babylon is like a threshing floor. 
 Now they tread her,* 
 
 Yet a little and the time of harvest will come to her." 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 29. — ^M"^r\V The Imperf. with Vau consec. is used here because the prophet transports himself so vividly to 
 Ihe future that he regards it as already past. Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., \ 88, 5. Tliere is therefore no necessity of reading 
 B;j^"ir\1 with Meier. 
 
 a Ver. 29.— HOp. Comp. xliv. 28, 29. On the singular Cdinp. Naeqelsd. Or., 105, 4 6. 
 
 « Ver. 30.— The form nr^'^J is probably to be derived from nc/j e.xaruil. This root occurs only in two passages else- 
 
 T : |T - T 
 
 W»we: Isa. xix. ."5, ^ni!/3, and xli. 17, nr> v3" The latter form miiv liave stood for rijI'VJ with Dag. f. mphrm. Cnm^. 
 
CHAP. LI. 27-33. 
 
 41i 
 
 Olsh., § 83 6 and 232 «; Deutzsch on Isa. xix. 5. Others would derive the fTirms from nnE?, HnC? or Tim- Comp 
 FOERST s. V. nm, Gesen., Thes. s. V. I^'d:. At any rate a play upon words with Q'pih appears to be intended. 
 
 * Ver. 33.— Tmn='nin facere. Comp. IIitzig ad toe— With regard to the construction, it is not necessary to assume 
 an irregular infinitive form", but simply to supply IK'N- Comp. ver. 3 and Naeqelsb. Gr., § 80, 6. 
 
 north " which are spoken of in 1. 3, 9. — Ap- 
 point a captain— "ID3D. The word occurs 
 besides only in Nah. iii. 17. The meaning is 
 doubtful. All we learn from the context is that 
 something hostile to Babylon is intended. The 
 words against her follow four times in vers. 27, 
 28, and cannot be taken in another sense the 
 third time from the other three. It is therefore 
 not a measure tvithin Babylon but against Babylon 
 which is spoken of. Appoint is then used as 
 in XV. 3. I do not think that number, multitude 
 can be the point of comparison between this and 
 the parallel horses (it is certainly not so with 
 ITJO in Nah. iii. 17), and that therefore the 
 word designates " troops " of any kind (Graf, 
 Meier). It is admitted by most commentators* 
 that it is an Assyrian word. (Comp. Strauss 
 on Nahum, S. 128). In the inscription of Bisu- 
 tuu, the Assyrian text of which has been ren- 
 dered in Hebrew letters by Oppert, {Exp. en 
 Mesop, II. p. 238), the word "ID occurs times in- 
 numerable in the sense of " King," as a title of 
 Darius. Comp. also Strauss, S. 124 Anm., etc.; 
 Brandis, Geivinn, etc., S. 101, 2. "^D3D might 
 thus be a compound of ID. The circumstance 
 that the diiferent nations have their leaders in 
 their "kings" is no ground against this hypo- 
 thesis, for the multifarious host would still need 
 a common head. I therefore adhere provision- 
 ally to the meaning "captain."— Like bristly- 
 locusts. Comp. ver. 14. The comparison is 
 very graphic, both with respect to the ni.imber 
 and also the form and movements of the animals. 
 Comp. Credner on Joel i. 4.— Consecrate na- 
 tions is repeated as a sign that the prophet will 
 yet make new and important additions to the 
 nationsalready mentioned.— Kings of Media. 
 The plural is no more to be regarded as an ab- 
 solutely iuditferent matter than as depending oa 
 distinct historical knowledge. It simply leaves 
 open the possibility of a plurality. A great war 
 with Babylon would certainly occupy the whole 
 royal family of Media and might occupy several 
 Median kings in succession. For an analogous 
 case comp. xvii. 20; xix. 3.— Jeremiah's men- 
 tion of the Modes is significant for two reasons : 
 
 1. because at that time, in the fourth year of 
 Zedekiah (155 Nabon.=B. C. 593), Nebucha,d- 
 nezzar was in all probability at war with Media. 
 His father-in-law, Cyaxares, had died the year 
 before, B. C. 594. This was a favorable epoch 
 to cast off the previous supremacy of Media. 
 "We think that we may unhesitatingly assume 
 that Nabukudrussur had to undertake a great 
 war with Media in the years 154 and 155," says 
 NiEBUHR (A.SS. u. Bab., S. 212, 3 and on his 
 reasons for this view lb. S. 211 and S. 284),— 
 
 2. because in the mention of the Medes there is 
 a strong argument against those who assert that 
 this prophecy was composed j90s< ei^entum, during 
 the captivity, for at this time the Persian'^ and 
 not the Medes would have been designated as 
 the conquerors of Babylon. Comp. ver. 11.^ 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 A very animated picture ! Three main groups 
 may be plainly distinguished, and a conclusion. 
 The first group (vers. 27-29) shows us the ene- 
 mies of Babylon, the Medes with the nations 
 subject to their dominion advancing against 
 Babylon with so great an army that the earth 
 trembles. The second group is composed of the 
 Babylonian warriors, who, overwhelmed by the 
 success of the enemy, let their hands fall in 
 powerless and spiritless dismay (ver. 30). In 
 the third group we perceive the king of Babylon, 
 who, sitting in his castle, receives from all sides 
 the news of the capture of the city (vers. 31, 
 32). In the closing words the prophet expresses 
 the thought that all which is now being done to 
 render the city splendid and glorious is no more 
 than the preparation of the threshing-floor, on 
 which in a short time the harvest will be piled. 
 These verses are clearly distinguished from those 
 which precede and follow, and exhibit a clear 
 and connected picture. 
 
 Vers. 27-29. Raise ye . . . inhabitant. Ver. 
 27 evidently contains a new beginning, for it 
 summons to that which has to be done in the 
 beginning of a warlike expedition. Comp. ver. 
 12; 1. 2.— Consecrate, e^c. It was the custom 
 to commence every war with sacred rites (comp. 
 Herz., R.-Ehc, and Winer, R.-B.-W., s. v. 
 "Krieg"); but here, as in Isa. xiii. 3, the war 
 appears to be designated as a holy one, because 
 it has to do with a "work of Jehovah" (1. 25) 
 and "the vengeance of His sanctuai-y" (1. 28). 
 Comp. vi. 4; xxii. 7; Joel iv. 9; Mic. iii. 5. — 
 Call. Comp. 1. 2, 29.— Ararat. Comp. Gen. 
 viii. 4. [CowLES: "The name Ararat is San- 
 skrit, meaning ' the holy land,' a name probably 
 due to traditions of Noah's ark." — S. R. A.]. — 
 In Isaiah (xxxvii. 38 coll. 2 Ki. xix. 37) a land 
 of Ararat is spoken of. Theodoret says on the 
 present passage, ' Apapar t?/v 'Ap/ievlav naTiel. 
 According to Moses of Chorene {Hist. Armen. p. 
 361 ) Ararat was the chief district of Armenia and 
 divided into twenty circuits. Comp. Delitzsch 
 on Isa. xxxvii. 38. — Minni also, which occurs 
 here only, Ps. xlv. 9 being doubtful, belongs to 
 Armenia; it was, according to Niebuhr {Ass. u. 
 Bab. S. 427 coll. 13G), the second chief state of 
 this country. — Ashkenaz must be sought for 
 at any rate in the neighborhood of Armenia, 
 since Togarmah is the brother of Ashkenaz ac- 
 cording to Gen. X. 3, and "the country on the 
 Pontus, Ararat and Caucasus is in general the 
 home of the children of Japheth" (Niebuhr w< 
 sup.). Knobel ( Volkertafel and on Gen. x. 3) re- 
 gards Ashkenaz as the Asorum genus and says 
 in reference to this passage: " The Ashkenaz 
 mentioned in Jer. li. 27 appears to be a remnant 
 of the Asi nation in Asia." [Comp. also Keil 
 and Delitzsch on Gen. x. 3, Tr. 1. p. 163. — S. 
 B. A.]. In general these three peoples here 
 mentioned correspond to the "nations from the 
 
424 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 Her satraps. Comp. vers. 23 and 57. — To 
 make, etc. Comp. Isa. xiii. 9; Jer. ii. 15; iv. 
 7; ix. 10; xlvi. 19; 1. 3; li. 47. 
 
 Ver. 30. The heroes of Babylon . . . bro- 
 ken. — Become ■women. Comp. 1. 37 ; Nah. 
 iii. 13. — They have burned. The subject is 
 the enemies. — Bars are broken. Comp. Am. 
 i. 5.; Isa. xlv. 2 ; Lam. ii. 9. — As only the cap- 
 ture of the city is described, the burning of the 
 dwellings must not be referred to a burning of 
 the whole c^iy, presupposing the capture. It 
 must rather be intended as a parallel to the 
 breaking of the bars. The sentence discloses 
 that the enemies had begun their work by setting 
 the dwellings on fire. [Compare the account of 
 the siege of Babylon in Xenophon as given by 
 Wordsworth. — S. 11. A.] 
 
 Vers. 31, 32. Courier . . . confounded. 
 The prophet conceives of the king as in the midst 
 of the city, in his citadel. When the city is taken 
 "from the end thereof" (comp. 1. 26) the mes- 
 sengers hastening to inform the king would meet 
 each other. This is a sad meeting, an accumu- 
 lation of calamities which reminds us of the Job's 
 posts (Job i. 13 sqq.). — Passages. ni"13^0, are 
 
 passages. Forts may be meant, but also bridges 
 or tunnels, or even the stations of the messen;ier 
 or ferries, since on account of the walls a landing 
 could not be made at pleasure. Concerning the 
 bridges which connected the two banks of the 
 river in the middle of the city and the tunnel 
 under the Euphrates, which connected the two 
 royal castles, comp. Oppert, I. S. 192, etc. The 
 Euphrates, moreover, had no fords, and the arti- 
 cle forbids us to think of the bed of the Euphi-a- 
 tes, laid dry by the diversion of the stream 
 [Herod., I. 191), as it denotes that definite and 
 well-known points of transition are meant. The 
 expression may well be referred to the bridge, 
 the ferry-stations and perhaps also to the tunnel. 
 Both this sentence and the following parts of 
 ver. 33 belong to the announcements spoken of 
 in ver. 31. — The ponds burned vrith fire. 
 This sentence is enigmatical. The view that the 
 burning is not to be understood literally, but 
 merely to be taken as figurative for drying up, 
 for which an appeal is strangely made to 1 Ki. 
 xviii. 38, seems to me as untenable as that, ac- 
 cording to which the burning is to be referred 
 merely to the sedge. The former view is op- 
 posed by the formal reason that the figure would 
 be an unsuitably exaggerated one, the latter by 
 the material reason that the burning of the sedge 
 eeems purposeless. But are the great water- 
 works of Nebuchadnezzar to be conceived of 
 
 as having no wood-work about them ? Did 
 not the flood-gates at least consist of wood ? 
 The great basin of Sepharvaim, e. g., might be 
 opened and closed by flood-gates (comp. Duncker, 
 Gesch. d. Allerlh. I. ,S. 849). If the Euphrates 
 were di-ied up and it was wished to complete the 
 act of demolition, the destruction of the sluices 
 by fire might be an appropriate way of accom- 
 plishing this. I do not mean to say that I per- 
 ceive a special prediction in these words. Jere- 
 miah paints the picture of the destruction of 
 Babylon in colors, which in general betray a 
 correct knowledge of Babylonian circumstances. 
 This picture could not be applied to the capture 
 of any city at pleasure, but the coloring is no- 
 \7here so specific that we must say it is either a 
 inantic prediction or a vaticinium post eventum. 
 Jeremiah's mind was occupied only with the 
 great theme, — Babylon will fall and be destroyed, 
 and Israel will be delivered. He greatly varies 
 this theme, and here and there a feature finds a 
 surprisingly accurate fulfilment, but there may 
 be here a deeply hidden connection between 
 cause and effect, which we cannot fathom or de- 
 monstrate, and the prophet had no foreknow- 
 ledge of this agreement of his words with the 
 future reality. Comp. 1. 24 and the rems. oa 
 li. 39. KuEi'ER in the Bcweis des Glauhcns, Feb- 
 ruary and I\larch, 1867. — Are confounded. 
 Comp. Isa. xiii. 8. The words as the purport 
 of the message correspond exactly to what was 
 reported as a fact in ver. 30. [Comp. Heeod., 
 I. 181; Aristot., PoUt. III. c. 1; K.\wlinson, 
 Anc. Mon. III. 363 ; and Pusey, on Daniel, p. 
 268, in Wordsworth and his note on the fulfil- 
 ment of this prophecy. — S. R. A.] 
 
 Ver. 33. For thus saith ... to her. For 
 
 attaches these words closely to the previous verse. 
 What follows is separated by its specific contents, 
 and thus the statement of reason forms a con- 
 clusion. When Jeremiah wrote Babylon stood 
 at the zenith of its bloom. The rejoinder might 
 then be made to him. How canst thou, contrary 
 to all appearances, speak of such an enfeebling 
 of this glorious army and of the capture and 
 destruction of these impregnable bulwarks ? 
 Jeremiah replies, Exbylon is a threshing-floor. 
 All that is now done to render her great and 
 glorious is no more than a preparation of the 
 floor by treading. In a short time, however, the 
 season of harvest will come to her. Jeremiah 
 here leans back upon 1. 26. The glorious city 
 shall one day serve only as a threshing-floor for 
 all the treasures harvested by her enemies. 
 
CHAP. LI. 34-40. 
 
 42S 
 
 17. Babylon's Misdeed, Israel's Complaint, Jehovah's Sentence. 
 
 LI. 34-40. 
 
 34 Nebuchadrezzar, king of Babylon, devoured us, he crushea us, 
 He put us away as an empty vessel. 
 
 He swallowed us like a dragon. 
 
 He filled his belly^ with ray best and cast us out * 
 
 35 " My wrong and my flesh be on Babylon," say the inhabitress of Zion, 
 " My blood on the inhabitants of Chaldea," say Jerusalem. 
 
 86 Therefore thus saith Jehovah : 
 
 Behold, I fight thy battle, and execute thy vengeance, 
 Aud cause her sea to dry up and seal up her spring. 
 
 37 And Babylon shall become ruins, the abode of jackals, 
 
 A terror and an object of scorn, which is bare of inhabitants. 
 
 38 They will roar one with another like young lions, 
 They will growl* like the young of the lioness. 
 
 39 For their intoxication I prepare them a drinking-bout, 
 And make them drunken that they may rejoice, 
 
 Fall asleep to a perpetual sleep 
 And never awake, saith Jehovah. 
 
 40 I will bring thera down like lambs to the slaughter, 
 Like rams with he-goats. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 34.— iyi3, belly, is an. Key. 
 
 2 Ver. 34.— 'jn^'O- The singular suffix has induced the Masoretes to make the previous verbs conformable to this, but 
 this rhanse nf number is by no means rare. Comp. ix. 7 ; x. 4; xiii. 20 ; xliv. 9 ; Naegei.sb. Gr., ^ lOo, 7 Anm. 2. Some 
 commeuiators would attach the word to the following, aud read iUnHH because the Hiph of PH signifies to waah, rinse 
 
 away (Isa. iv. 4 ; Ezek. xl. 38 ; 2 Chron. iv. C), and does not occur elsewhere in Jeremiah, while pinn is very common with 
 
 him (viii. 3; xvi. 15 ; xxiii. 3, 8; xxvii. 10, 15, etc.). The meaning of rinsing, however, lies at the foundation of that cast- 
 ing away ('■ the Uiph. ol nn is to cast away, wash away," ItfiuizsCH on Isa. iv. 4, S. 8Uj, and the brevity of the seconl 
 half of the verse is not without analogy. Comp. 1. 26 ; li. 28. 
 
 3 Ver. 35.— c^ r\2U''- Comp. Isa. xii. 6. The expression occurs only in these two places. 
 * Ver. 38. — "1^ J, snarl, growl, is an air. Aey. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Nebuchadnezzar ha.s devoured Israel, emptied 
 his land and caused it to stand like an empty 
 vessel, having cast out the people (ver. 84). For 
 this Israel invokes the vengeance of .Jeliovah 
 (ver. 3')). To this desire the Lord declares 
 Himself willing to respond; as Babylon has 
 emptied Israel, so sliall it becouie an empty un- 
 watered desert; as Nebuchadnezzar has devoured 
 Israel like a dragon, so shall the Chaldeans roar 
 like lions; as tliey have revelled in Israel's flesh 
 and blood, so shall they empty the cup of wrath 
 even to fatal drunkenness, and be brought as 
 sheep to the slaughter (vers. 36-40). Three main 
 thoughts are thus plainly distinguishable, the 
 exponUio facli, the complaint and the sentence. 
 
 Ver. 34. Nebuchadrezzar . . . cast us out. 
 Nebuchadnezzar lias devoured (1. 7, 17) and 
 crushed (literally rf/A7i(/-/;(/('(7, Ex. xiv. 25; xxiii. 
 27 ; Josh. X.. 10; li Chr. xv. G) Israel; and then let 
 
 the land stand like an empty vessel. Hitziq re- 
 gards the words he put us away, as spoken by 
 the land, but this view is opposed by the plural 
 pronoun. It is better to regard the people and 
 land as speaking together. Then the first clause 
 refers to the persons, the second to the land, the 
 third to the particular things, which the enemy 
 took with him as plunder out of the country. — 
 Dragon, V^^}, is 1, bellua marilima, Ki/rog, (Gen. 
 i. 21; ,Iob vii. 12; Ps. clviii. 7). 2. Serpent 
 (Ex. vii. 9, 10, 12; Deut. xxxii. .33; Ps. xci. 13). 
 3. Crocodile (Isa. xxvii. 1; li. 9; Ezek. xxix. 3; 
 xxxii. 2; Ps. Ixxiv. 13). In this place it is 
 usually translated dragon, this being viewed as 
 a modification of the second meaning. It is 
 really a matter of indifference what great animal 
 is intended, and it therefore suffices to render the 
 word by a general term. 
 
 Ver. 35. My wrong . .' . Jerusalem. After 
 the representation of the condition of things, 
 Israel here appears as a plaintiff, and demands 
 as his right the punishment of the oppressor. — 
 
420 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 My vrrong. Comp. Gen. xvi. 5. — My flesh 
 and my blood point back to devoured, ver. 
 34. — Inhabitants of Chaldea. Comp. ver. 24; 
 1. 10. ["By my flesh we are here to under- 
 stand the blood-relations of the inhabitants of 
 Jerusalem, or the Jews throughout the country, 
 who were killed or carried captive to Babylon." 
 Henderson. — S. R. A.] 
 
 Vers. 30-40. Therefore thus . . . with he- 
 goats. The Lord receives the complaint of 
 Israel. He declares himself ready to execute the 
 punishment desired. The close connection of the 
 words with ver. 35 is clear from therefore, and 
 from its whole purport. — I fight, etc. Comp. 1. 
 34; li. 6, 11, 56; 1. 15, 28.— Cause to dry up, 
 etc. The abundance of water, to which the land 
 of Babylon owes its fertility and power, the Lord 
 will dry up and even seal up the springs. Comp. 
 1. 38. — Her sea. Comp. rems. on ver. 13. "The 
 i^ain land, on which Babylon stands, is . . . a 
 large . . . plain, which is so broken up with 
 marshes and lakes by the Euphrates, that it floats, 
 as it were, in the sea. The low land on the lower 
 Euphrates is, as it were, wrung from the sea; 
 for before Semiramis erected the dikes, the 
 Euphrates used to overflow it all [nETLayKEiv, 
 Herod., I., 184); Abydenus (in Euseb. Prsep., 
 IX., 41), even says that at first it was all water, 
 and was also called i?d/la(T(ja. " Delitzsch on Isa. 
 xxi. 1. — Become ruins. Comp. ix. 10; xviii. 
 16; xix. 8; xxv. 9, 18; xxix. 18; li. 29. Ac- 
 cording to the theory of recompense which the 
 Lord has presented in ver. 36 (comp. ver. 6) the 
 desolatioQ and evacuation here predicted corres- 
 
 ponds to the emptying, which Israel, according 
 to ver. 34, had experienced from Babylon. — In 
 ver. 38 it is not an element of the punishment, 
 but on the contrary the revelling of the Baby- 
 lonians in the enjoyment of their plunder, which 
 is described (comp. ii. 15; Am. iii. 4).— Ver. 
 39. While now they are in the heart of their 
 greedy enjoyment (comp. Hos. vii. 4-7) the Lord 
 will prepare them a banquet of his own kind. 
 He will pour them out a full cup, but of wrath 
 (xxv. 15-27). Of this excitement and sleep will 
 be the consequence — the excitemenf of anguish 
 and the sleep of death (ver. 57). — That they 
 may rejoice, is therefore intended ironically. 
 Comp. Isa. xxi. 5, and Delitzsch, ad loc. — The 
 remarkable fulfilment of these words in the sur- 
 prise of the Chaldeans while feasting (Dan. v. 1 
 sqq. ; Herod., I., 191 ; Cyrop., VII., 23) is no 
 more to be traced to special prediction, than the 
 fulfilment of vers. 31, 32; 1. 24. The prophet 
 has no expectation that his picture of wild carou- 
 sal, and the exchange of this for another ironi- 
 cally so-called, would correspond so literally to 
 the facts. That this was the case was not, how- 
 ever, due to a coincidence, but to divine Provi- 
 dence. Comp. rems. on vers. 31, 32. — I ^will 
 bring them, etc. Comp. xlviii. 15; I. 27. Lambs, 
 rams, he-goats! All classes of the population 
 are to fall a sacrifice to the butcher's knife. 
 Comp. Isa. xxxiv. 6; Ezek. xxxix. 18; Jer. 1. 8. 
 — This description also, from ver. 38 onwards, 
 stands in evident contrast to the devouring of 
 Israel by the Chaldeans, in ver. 34. 
 
 18. The Demolition of the Prison, the Liberation of the Captiwet. 
 
 LI. 41-46. 
 
 41 How is Sheshach taken, 
 
 And the praise of the whole earth captured ! 
 
 How is Babylon become a horrid waste^ among the nations I 
 
 42 The sea is come up over Babylon, 
 
 With the multitude of its waves is she covered. 
 
 43 Her cities are become a desolation, 
 A land of aridity and steppe, 
 
 A land wherein no man will dwell, 
 Which no son of man will pass through. 
 
 44 And I visit Bel in Babylon, 
 
 And take from his mouth what he hath devoured, 
 And no more shall the nations flow to him: 
 The wall also of Babylon is fallen. 
 
 45 Go out from the midst of her, my people. 
 
 And let every one save his Boul from the fury of Jehovah's anger. 
 
 46 And let not your heart faint,'^ 
 
 Nor fear on account of the rumor which is heard in the land, 
 For in that year the rumor comes^ and the year after* another, 
 And feud in the land, ruler against ruler. 
 
CHAP. LI. 47-52. 
 
 427 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL 
 1 Ver. 41.— nfSC^ is stupor in v. 30 ; viii. 21. As in the verbal root, so also in the noun, the idea of being rigid and con- 
 fused is connected with that of horrible desolation. Comp. ii. 15 ; iv. 7 ; 1. 3, 23, etc. 
 
 « Ver. 46.— ».l ■jT'-JiJI. Comp. Deut. xx. 4; Isa. vii. 4.— J^=7X aa frequently. Ewald, g 337, b. 
 
 s Ver. 46.— V1J1 X3V The construction is as, e g., in xxvii. 10. Comp. N.^egelsb. Or., g 99, 3. 
 * Ver. 46.— VinX is to be regarded as neuter. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 60, 4. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 A double picture ! As in vers. 1. 1-5, on the 
 background of Babylon destroyed the prophet 
 sees Jerusalem delivered. He thus first shows 
 us Babylon taken and desolated (vers. 41-43), the 
 gods robbed of all ability to retain plunder or 
 attract worshippers, and even the strong, proud 
 walls thrown down (ver. 44). He then summons 
 Israel to flee from the abomination of desolation 
 (ver. 45), and not to be afraid at the alarm of 
 war (ver. 46). 
 
 Vers. 41-44. How is Sheshach ... is fall- 
 en. Comp. 1. 2. — Sheshach. Comp. rems. on 
 XXV. 26. If it is to be derived from "^DU to stoop 
 
 down, and taken in the sense of "humiliation, 
 submission," the idea does not accord with the 
 following "praise of the whole earth." It must 
 wait further illumination. — Praise, etc. Comp. 
 xlviii. 2 ; xlix. 25. Herodotus says of Babylon, 
 kneKdafiriTO ug ovdev aXko 'KoMa^a ruv fjiieiq i^fiev 
 (L, 178). — The sea, etc. We might think here 
 of the sea of nations (comp. Isa. viii. 7, 8; xvii. 
 12; Jer. xlvi. 7, 8), especially since in ver. 36 
 and ver. 43, the contrary is expressed. It is, 
 however, possible that the prophet would really 
 say both, viz., that Babylon will be exposed to 
 horrible aridity and fearful inundations. The 
 Euphrates, when left to itself, has at some times 
 too much, and at others too little water. Nebu- 
 chadnezzar's great water- works were to regulate 
 the supply, and when these are destroyed (comp. 
 ver. 32) Babylon incurs the double danger. — 
 Her cities, etc. Comp. ix. 10. — Land of ari- 
 dity, etc. Comp. ii. 6; I. 12. — No man, etc. 
 Comp. ix. 9-11; xlix. 18, 33; 1. 40.— Bel (comp. 
 
 rems. on 1. 2) is here mentioned as Babylon's 
 highest deity, and accordingly as the shield of 
 its power and glory. Whoever conquers and 
 plunders Babylon, conquers and plunders Bel, 
 and whatever Babylon retains of plundered pro- 
 perty in its hand, that has Bel. He has, as it 
 were, swallowed all (comp. ver. 34 ; 1. 17). Israel 
 then with all the plunder of Jerusalem (comp. 
 Dan. i. 2) may be represented as "devoured by 
 Bel," and this he is to restore. He is also no 
 longer to have the renown of being a powerful 
 protector. Foreigners shall no longer stream 
 thither to commend themselves to his protection 
 and be amazed at his glory. On the expression, 
 comp. Isa. ii. 2. — The mention of the wall of 
 Babylon (comp. ver. 58; 1. 15) again as by way 
 of supplement, may seem surprising. The walls 
 of Babylon, however, seem here to be regarded 
 as a sanctuary of Bel. This is intimated in their 
 names; Imgur-Bel, i. e., Bel protect, was the 
 name of the outer wall comprising 480 stadia, 
 Nivitti-Bel, i. e., residence of Bel, was the name 
 of the inner wall, 360 stadia long. Comp. Oppeiit, 
 I., S. 227. [The name of the king also was Bel- 
 shazzar. — S. R. A.] 
 
 Vers. 45, 46. Go out . . . ruler. That which, 
 according to vers. 41-44 is to come upon Babylon, 
 is the effect of Jehovah's wrath. In order that 
 this may not fall upon the Israelites also, they 
 are to flee. Comp. ver. 6 ; 1. 8. — From the 
 fury, etc. Comp. iv. 8, 26; xii. 13; xxv. 37, 38; 
 XXX. 24. — Feud, etc. Comp. xxx. 21 ; xxxiii. 
 26. — The prophet evidently presupposes a great 
 war. Comp. rems. on ver. 28. This passage re- 
 minds us of Matt. xxiv. 6; Luke xxi. 28. [Comp. 
 Rawl[nson, Anc. Mon., III., p. 515, as quoted in- 
 Wordsworth. — S. R. A.]. 
 
 19. Babylon's fall an Occasion of Joy to Heaven and Earth, but especially to Israel. 
 
 LI. 47-52. 
 
 47 Therefore behold, the days come that I visit the idols of Babylon, 
 And her whole land shall be put to shame, 
 
 And her wounded ones shall all fall in the midst of her. 
 
 48 But heaven and earth, and all therein, shall rejoice over Babylon, 
 For from the north come' the destroyers, saith Jehovah. 
 
 49 As Babylon caused^ the slain* of Israel to fall, 
 
 So at Babylon are fallen the slain of the whole land. 
 
 50 Ye that have escaped the sword, 
 Go on,* stand not still : 
 Remember Jehovah from afar, 
 
 And let Jerusalem come into your hearts. 
 
428 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 51 " We are ashamed, for we have heard reproach, 
 
 Shame covers our face, for strangers are come into the sanctuaries of Jehovah's 
 house." 
 
 52 Wherefore behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, that I punish her idols ; 
 And in her whole land groan* the slain. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 48. — The singular N13' stands here aa an anticipated predicate. Comp. Naeqelsb. Gr., g 105, 4, 6, 3. 
 
 i Ver. 49 Before Ss jS should be supplied nHTI- The sense of the connection is then Babylon tended to, occasioned, 
 
 : ■ t: |T 
 
 the fall. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., ? 95, 3 6. 
 
 3 Ver. 49 — *■! ^'7^71 need not be taken as vocative. It is the construction of a sentence in which the infinitive repre- 
 sents the predicate, aiid the subject is implied in a substantive, dependinR on a preposition. Comp. v. 26; vi. 7; xvii. 2 ; 
 xxxiv. 9 ; Naegelsb. Gr., g 95, 2.— If we take it as voc. (Hitzig, Ewald, Graf, etc.), the two clauses of the disjunctive sen- 
 tence either contain the same thought, or we must take 7 as the 7 anctoris, which is harsh. The Perf. 173 J is according to 
 
 : : : T 
 
 this interpretation the prophetic perfect. The prophet sees the straqcs of the Babylonians as something which has already 
 happened. Hence he addresses the Israelites as having esca])ed from the overthrow. 
 
 * Ver. 50.— 'jSH- This imperative occurs here only. The choice of the expressicm is, however, explained by the cir- 
 cumstance, that in7\ here does not signify to go away, but as is clear from the antithesis nb^n (comp. Gen. xix. 17 ; Jer. i v 
 
 6) to go on, and is thus used with a certain emphasis. Hence it is also unnecessary with the LXX. to connect the H with 
 the previous word, and read n3"in3 or n3inO-— Comp., moreover, ver. 45 ; 1. 8, 28. 
 
 TT T •• TIT" 
 
 6 Ver. 52.— pJX in Jeremiah here only. Comp. Ezek. xxvi. 15. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 We may observe ia this passage that it gradu- 
 ally exhausts itself, and hastens to the conclu- 
 sion. We may also perceive the eifort to revert 
 to the commencement. Hence the great simi- 
 larity of these verses to 1. 3-5. Babylon's idols 
 are to be visited, the land confounded, and filled 
 with the slain (ver. 47), to the joy of heaven and 
 earth. The destroyers coming from the north are 
 to accomplish this (ver. 48). Thus will be re- 
 compensed to Babylon what it has done to Israel 
 (ver. 49). The Israelites, however, are en- 
 couraged to go home comforted (vor. 50). They 
 seem not to understand the call, for they answer 
 with complaining words, from which it is seen 
 that no other feeling could find place in their 
 hearts, than that of the disgrace they had suf- 
 fered (ver. 51). But the prophet comforts them 
 by skilfully repeating the opening words of the 
 picture, indicating that even for their disgrace 
 the promised visitation of the idols and of their 
 country would procure satisfaction (ver. 52). 
 If our division is correct, and ver. 52 is really 
 the close of the strophe beginning at ver. 47, 
 and if, as cannot be doubted (see the proof in 
 detail below), these verses reproduce in a certain 
 measure the beginning of the wliole prophecy, I. 
 2 -•'>, an artificial arrangement is here noticeable, 
 of which a trace also recurs in the last picture, 
 for ver. 58 also in its purport refers back to 
 ver. 53. 
 
 Vers. 17, 48. Therefore behold . . . saith 
 Jehovah. — Therefore draws a further special 
 conclusion from the premises stated in the pre- 
 vious context. The main purport of this picture 
 follows from all which has been previously stated 
 ;.s the lecree of Jehovah concerning Babylon. — 
 Behold, the day. Comp. ix. 24. This formu- 
 la is found fourteen times in Jeremiah, vii. 32; 
 :cvi. 14; xix. 6, e/c. — The idols, e<c. Generaliza- 
 tion of what is said in ver. 44 of Bel alone. In 
 1. 2 also the confusion of Bel, Merodach and the 
 idols generally is spoken of. Comp. ver. 52. 
 
 — Put to shame. Comp. xlviii. 13. — Her 
 wounded. Comp. ver, 4. — If we render "slain," 
 we get no suitable meaning from the sentence, 
 even if the emphasis be laid on " in the midst of 
 her," we must, therefore, take the word in the 
 sense of wounded, as in Ps. Ixix. 26; Job xxiv. 
 12. All the wounded will fall, ;'. e., all their 
 wounds will be mortal. — Ver. 48. Shall rejoice, 
 etc. These words express the main thought of 
 the first part (vers. 47, 48) and at the same time 
 the only new element. Heaven and earth cer- 
 tainly must rejoice when once again the justice, 
 wisdom and power of the Lord celebrate a tri- 
 umph, and it is anew evident that He, and not 
 the devil, is Lord in the world. Comp. Isa. xliv. 
 23; xlix. 13; Ps. xcvi. 10, 11.— The sentence 
 gains much in clearness if we regard it as a 
 parenthesis, and refer the following causal sen- 
 tence to ver. 47. According to the logical se- 
 quence the destroyers are the first cause, and the 
 destruction of Babylon the second cause of the 
 rejoicing. If we do not take the imperative sen- 
 tence as a parenthesis, we must at ^east refer the 
 causal sentence to all the foregoing context, so 
 that the destroyers appear as the ground both 
 of the fall and the rejoicing. The words for 
 from the north, also remind us of 1. 8 coll. 1. 
 9, 41, standing here in the same connection as 
 there. — Destroyers. Comp. ver. 53. 
 
 Vers. 49-32. As Babylon . . . the slain. In 
 this second part of the picture the prophet ex- 
 presses substantially the same thought as in the 
 first, but with special application to Israel and 
 emphasis on the idea of recompense. The sin 
 of Babylon against Israel shall be recompensed, 
 and Israel, at first unable to receive the joyful 
 tidings, is greatly comforted by the repeated so- 
 lemn prochmialion of judgment on the destroyers. 
 — Remember, rtc. These words remind us vi- 
 vidly of 1. 4. 5. — Prom afar. Jehovah is still al- 
 ways considered as dwelling in Zion. Comp. 
 xli. 5. — Come, etc. Comp. iii. 16; xliv. 21. — 
 The Israelites answer to the call, but with words 
 of grief. They cannot receive thejoyful tidings. 
 Their minds are still full of the feeling of the 
 
CHAP. LI. 53-58. 429 
 
 disgrace they have suffered. It is as though they I even those forbidden to profane feet) of Jehovah's 
 would say, What is the thought of Jehovah aud ! house. It must appear surprising that the Israel 
 
 Jerusalem for us ? Have we not from thence re- 
 collections only of the deepest shame and re- 
 proach ? We are put to shame and we are 
 ashamed ^comp. ix. 18), for we have heard re- 
 proach, scorn and ridicule as the part of the 
 heathen (vi. 10; xxiv. 9), the consequence of 
 which is that shame covered our face (Ps. Ixix. 
 8; XXXV. 26; Ixxi. 13). This scorn which has 
 come upon us refers however to the fact that 
 strangers (comp. v. 19; xxx. 8; Isa. i. 7) have 
 come into the sanctuaries (i. e., into all parts, 
 
 ites respond to the joyful call of the prophet, ver. 
 60, with words of grief. The strophe cannot 
 therefore possibly be concluded here, or it would 
 end in a harsh dissonance. We therefore attach 
 ver. 52 to it. Even on this account, says Jere- 
 miah, skilfully repeating the opening words of 
 the picture, shall the idols be visited and their 
 land filled with the slain. The prophet speaks 
 very appropriately of the visitation of the idols, 
 for just this is the recompense for the disgrace 
 inflicted on the house of Jehovah. 
 
 20. iVo wall is a defence against the Lord- 
 LI. 53-58. 
 
 53 " Even though Babylon should mount up to heaven, 
 And tower up^ his defences^ to a precipitous height, 
 From me will destroyers come to her," saith Jehovah. 
 
 54 A loud crying from Babylon 
 
 And great ruin from the land of the Chaldeans ! 
 
 55 For Jehovah destroyeth Babylon, 
 And extirpates from her the loud noise. 
 And her waves roar like mighty waters, 
 The noise of their calling resounds. 
 
 56 For there is coming upon her, upon Babylon, a destroyer, 
 And her heroes are taken, their bows broken f 
 
 For a God of recompense is Jehovah, 
 Who well requiteth. 
 
 57 "And I make drunk her princes and her wise men, 
 Her counts, her dukes aud her heroes, 
 
 That they may sleep a perpetual sleep. 
 And never awake," saith the King : 
 Jehovah Zebaoth is his name. 
 68 Thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth, 
 " Babylon's broad wall* is laid bare,* 
 And her high gates burn^ in the fire ! 
 Thus then have peoples labored in vain. 
 And nations wearied themselves' for the fire." 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 53.— The Piel 1^3 denotes to cut off, to separate sharply. This is used in the sense of fortifying, like Kal in 
 
 miV3, Isa- ii. 15; xxxvii. 26 coll. ^3f 30, because fortifications are sharply separated from their surroundings. Comp. 
 
 T : T ; ■ 
 
 Isa. xxii. 10. 
 
 2 Ver. 53.— TJr is here as in TJ^ ^IJ?. Ju^i- >x- ^t ; Ps.lxi.4; Prov. xviii.lO; T^^ "l^l};, Ps. Ixii. 4; T]; or I_^ fl'lp, 
 
 Isa. xxvi. 1 ; Prov. x. 12 ; xviii. 11, a strong bulwark for defence or protection. 
 
 i Ver. 56.— nr\n=to make nn, *'•«•, to make cracked. Comp. nnS, Isa. xlviii. 8 ; Ix. 11 ; ^^3, Isa. li. 13 ; aud with 
 
 respect to the meiuiiug "broken," 1 Sam. ii. 4; on the singular, comp. Naeoelsb. dr., §105, 4, 6. 
 
 4 Ver. 58. — r\10n is construed as sing, here only. Evidently the totality of the walls, which, in a certain aspect, was 
 a six-fold line of circumvallation (comp. Oppert, p. 22S, etc.), is regarded as a unit. Comp. IIwald, §318, a. 
 
 5 Ver. 68. — >.1 '^i^'^i^■ Inf- abs. Pilpel. (comp. Olsh., §253, Anm.) with Hithpalp. from I^J^, to strip one's self, i. c, 
 
 thrown down, discovered to their foundations. Comp. 71"^ J^. Hab. iii. 13; Psalm cxxxvii. 7 ; and Isaiah xxiii. 13; 
 
 T •■ 
 
 Ezek. xiii. 14. 
 
 6 Ver. .58.— iny\ Comp. xlix. 2 ; Isa. xxxiii. 12; Olsh., §242, b. 
 
 7 Ver. 58. — Regarding these words as original to Habakkuk, we may also regard 1£)^'1 as a scriptural error, it being 
 easy to write this instead of 13^^'. Comp. Naegelsb. Jer. u. Bab., S. 97. 
 
430 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 The main thought of the picture is that no 
 dead or living wall can save Babylon, for the 
 Lord, the righteous recompenser, has determined 
 upon its fall. The dead wall of r.abylon will not 
 avail, because the Lord will send destroyers, as 
 first expressed in ver. o3. In the following verses 
 the fulfilment of this declaration is exhibited : 
 great noise is heard from Babylon (ver. 54). 
 Whence comes this? Hence, that the Lord has 
 begun the work of destruction on Babylon — de- 
 stroying both the great masses (ver. 55) and the 
 ('■lite of the population. His justice requires this 
 (ver. 56). Substantially the same thought closes 
 the discourse as began it, and both the beginning 
 and conclusion appear as the verba ipsissima of 
 .Jehovah, so that in form also the end reverts to 
 the beginning. The princes and wise men of 
 iJabylon may be designated as its living wall. 
 They shall be made drunk with the cup of Jeho- 
 vah's wrath, and sleep an everlasting sleep (ver. 
 u7). The dead wall, with its lofty gates, shall be 
 subjected to fire, so that it will be made manifest 
 that the immense work, the fruit of the labor of 
 many nations, was achieved in vain, to be con- 
 sumed by fire (ver. 58). 
 
 Ver. 53. Even though . . saith Jehovah. 
 In the opening words there appears to be a dou- 
 ble allusion : 1. to the tower of Babel, Gen. xi. 
 4 ; 2. to the high walls with which Babylon was 
 surrounded. Their height must have been vei-y 
 great. Evenif the statements of 200 yards (Hero- 
 dotus) and 250 yards (Orosius) are to be consi- 
 dered exaggerated, the lowest estimates of tlie an- 
 cients (Philostr., Ajmll. Tj/an., I., 25) speak of 
 three and a half plethra, i. e., 150 feet (Oppert, 
 Exp., L, p. 224, 5).— Comp. Ob. 4; Hab. iL 9; 
 Jer. xlix. 16. — Destroyers. Comp. ver. 48. 
 [Wordsworth: "We may compare also the 
 words of Nebuchadnezzar still extant on this 
 cylinder: 'In Babylon is the tower of my 
 abode. ... To make more difficult the attack of 
 an enemy ngaXnst Imgotir- Bet, the indestructible 
 Wall of Babylon, I constructed a bulwark like a 
 mountain,'" etc. — S. II. A.] 
 
 Vers. 54-56. A loud crying . . requiteth. 
 That ver. 54 describes the execution of what is 
 threatened in ver. 63, the work therefore of the 
 destroyers (comp. 1. 22, 46; xlviii. 3) is seen 
 from vers. 55. 56. It is at the same time clear 
 from the connection that the loud noise spoken 
 of in ver. 54 is the united consequence of a dou- 
 ble operation directed to the two main portions 
 of the Babylonian population. At one time the 
 work of the destroyers is against the great mass 
 of the people. This is the sense of loud noise 
 and her v^aves. The sentence And her 
 ^vaves, etc. expresses the result. The destruc- 
 tion of Babylon and the extirpation of the great 
 tumult of nations cannot take place without bring- 
 ing the masses of the people into wild and noisy 
 excitement, for, as was remarked on ver. 42, 
 masses of people may certainly, as here, be com- 
 pared with masses of water. — Roar. Comp. v. 
 '11; xxxi. .'55; Jer. li. 15 — Jer. vi. 23. — After- 
 w irds, however, tlie work of the destroyers is 
 against the (-lite of the people, the heroes, i. e., 
 the brave men and warriors (ver. 30; 1. 36) and 
 
 their weapons. — For a God of recompense, 
 
 etc. The causal particle refers of course not only 
 to the immediate, but all the previous context. 
 The object of recompense is here stated as the 
 ground of Jehovah's procedure against Babylon, 
 as in 1. 15, 28 ; li. 6, II, 36. Comp. 2 Sam. xix. 
 37 ; Isa. lix. 18. 
 
 Vers. 57, 58. And I make . . . for the fire. 
 These verses also contain, like ver. 53, the verba 
 ipsissima of Jehovah, and ver. 58 also treats of the 
 dead wall. AVhen, in ver. 57, it is said of the 
 princes, wise men and warriors (comp. I. 35, 36 ; 
 li. 23, 28), that the Lord will make them drunk 
 and cause them to sleep a perpetual sleep (comp. 
 rems. on ver. 39, whence these words are taken, 
 and XXV. 15, 16, 27), it is evidently to be thus in- 
 timated that the Lord will paralyze all the forces 
 which might be able in any way to delay the fall. 
 It may then be said that the prophet treats in 
 ver. 57 of the destruction of the living, in ver. 58 
 of the dead stone defences. I may be allowed 
 here to insert a passage relating to the building 
 of the walls from the cylinder-inscription already 
 mentioned, as given by Oppert {Exp., I., p. 230). 
 "Babylon is the refuge of the God Merodaeh; I 
 have finished (observe that Nebuchadnezzar is 
 the speaker) Imgur-Bel, his great enclosure. In 
 the thresholds of the great gates I have adjusted 
 folding-doors in brass, very strong railings and 
 gratings (?), I h.ivc dug its ditches, 1 have 
 reached the boltom of the waters, I have con- 
 structed the banks of the trench with bitumen 
 and bricks. Wishing to preserve the pyramid 
 more efficaciously and to defend it from the enemy 
 and the attacks which might be made on Babylon 
 the imperishable, I caused to be constructed in 
 masonry in the extremities of Babylon a (second) 
 great enclosure, the boulevard of the Rising Sun, 
 which no king had made before me. I had the 
 ditches made dry, and caused the banks to be con- 
 structed on barrels." Here follow the words 
 quoted above in ver. 13. — The walls of Babylon, 
 however, were not the work of Nebucliadnezzar 
 alone. According to an inscription, now at Aber- 
 deen, some share in the glory of this work is due 
 to Assarhaddon, the son of Sanherib. He says 
 (QppKRT, p. 227, etc.), "Babylon is the city of 
 laws, Imgur-Bel is its enclosure, Nivitti-Bel its 
 rampart; from the foundation to the battlements 
 I founded, continued, enlarged them." Oppert 
 is of opinion that these words express too much, 
 and that Nabopolassar, and especially Nebuchad- 
 nezzar, are to be regarded as at least the com- 
 pleters of the work. As to the destruction of the 
 wall, Oppert says (p. 225, etc.), " It is to be pre- 
 sumed that the outer wall, encroached upon by 
 Cyrus, spoiled by Darius, filled with breaches by 
 Xerxes, did not exist at the commencement of the 
 fourth century of the vulgar era. The ditches 
 had been filled — and at least in the greater part 
 the wall had disappeared which was so imposing 
 to the enemies of Babylon, and which inspired 
 Jeremiah with the words recorded in li. 53, 58." 
 — Thus then have peoples, etc. These words 
 are found witli sligiit alteration (transposition of 
 in vain and for the fire) in Hab. ii. 13. Ha- 
 bakkuk was the contemporary of Jeremiah, and 
 also prophesied the punitive judgment to be 
 executed on Judah by the Chaldeans. As in i. 
 6 Habakkuk expressly mentions the Chaldeans, 
 
CHAP. LI. 59-U4. 
 
 431 
 
 he cannot have prophesied before the battle of 
 Carchemish, for it is inconceivable that the ap- 
 pointment of this nation was disclosed to him 
 earlier than to Jeremiah. It is possible that he 
 wrote in the reign of Zedekiah, for we see from 
 chap. i. that the dominion of the Chaldeans had 
 then lasted for some time. If now the words 
 "Behold, is it not of the Lord of hosts?" which 
 in Hab. ii. 13 immediately precede the words 
 common to this passage, are to be regarded as a 
 formula of quotation, it is not impossible that 
 this is the passage which he quotes, although, of 
 course, it cannot be denied that both may have 
 drawn from a common source. It is, however, 
 grammatically more correct to take nXO in the 
 sense of command or determination (as in Josh. 
 xi. 20; Ezek. xxxiii. 30), and to translate (with 
 EwALD, Mkier) "it is decreed of the Lord that 
 the nations," etc., and then it is more probable 
 that the words are original to Habakkuk. They 
 suit the context admirably. For Habakkuk wishes 
 to show that a building erected with blood and 
 injustice cannot endure, from which in passing 
 we may derive the important information that 
 
 Nebuchadnezzar did not execute his immense 
 works without despotic violence. — Labored and 
 vrearied themselves are synonymous expres- 
 sions, comp. Isa. xl. 38 sqq.; so that if we render 
 and •wearied themselves (as required by the 
 text here, but not in Hab. ii. 13), we must under- 
 stand this in an enhanced signification, as ex- 
 hausted themselves, or uj-e sinking, which it 
 is doubtful if the word will bear. Nor is it in 
 accordance with the sense and connection of the 
 original passage to attribute to the nations, who 
 were compelled to build the wall, a sinking when 
 the wall falls! It is for them rather a victory 
 than a defeat. This long discourse, as Ewald 
 remarks, "very suitably closes with this sentence 
 of Habakkuk, which is here quite appropriate." 
 — P'"?""?.^ (to ^ sufficiency in vain), involves 
 a certain irony. The great wall will be good 
 enough to satisfy the lust of the all-devouring 
 annihilation, or of the fire. It is therefore 
 
 stronger than P'")/- Isa. xlix. 4; Ixv. 23. Comp. 
 Nah. ii. 13. 
 
 21. Historical conclusion. 
 LI. 59-64. 
 
 59 The word which Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah the son of Neriah, 
 the son of Maaseiah, when he went with Zedekiah the king of Judah into Babylon 
 in the fourth year of his reign. And this Seraiah was a quiet prince [caravan- 
 
 60 marshall]. So Jeremiah wrote in a book all the evil that should come^ upon Ba- 
 
 61 bylon, even all these words that are written against Babylon. And Jeremiah said 
 to Seraiah, When thou comest to Babylon, and shalt see, and shalt [see that thou]' 
 
 62 read all these words ; then shalt thou say, O Lord [and say, O Jehovah], thou 
 hast spoken against this place, to cut it off, that none shall remain in it, neither 
 
 63 man nor beast, but that it shall be desolate for ever. And it shall be, when thou 
 hast made an end of reading this book, that thou shalt bind a stone to it, and cast 
 
 64 it into the midst of Euphrates : And thou shalt say. Thus shall Babylon sink,* and 
 shall not rise from [because of] the evil that I will bring upon her : and they shall 
 be weary [exhausted].* Thus far are the words of Jeremiah. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 60.— On the sense of the Imperfect x'nri comp. Naegelsb. Gr., ? 87, 1. 
 
 2 Ver. 61.— H'KIV This word cannot mean "and when thou seest it (for thf> first time)." The snflSx would certainly 
 not be wantin- in th it oa-i'. Nor Ciiii wi- si?(> why the rcailiii.i;- should takr plaL-e at tlic first sight of the city. Both time 
 and place might then lie very unfavorable. It is rather the apiKlusis; tlnu sue to it. It is inculcated upon him that he dis- 
 charge his commission with circumspection. Comp. 1 Ki. .Kii. 10; Ps. x.KXvii. 37 ; laa. xxii. 11. 
 
 8 Ver. 64.— yp^, demergi, desidere, in Jeremiah here only. Comp. Am. viii. 8; ix. 5. 
 
 * Ver. 64. If the word IJJM'I is not genuine, it can have come here only through the transposition of the following 
 
 words, " Thus far," etc., with which the copyist, through carelessness or of puriiose, connected this. This, however, involves 
 the inauthenticity of vers. 59-64 or their original position before 1. 1. HiTZiG says the passage " bears some marks of genu- 
 ineness, none of the contrary," and it is incredible that it stood before I. 1, since it would then appear that this great pro- 
 phecy was only of secondary importance. If, then, vers. 59-64 are genuine and in their original position, the same must be 
 sai<l of the concluding words, since they could never have had their position before ver. 59. A copyist could not have added 
 llJU'l by mistake. Jeremiah, then, must liave done it. His object probably was to give a token of identity to the sinking 
 prophecy by an unmistakable quotation from it. The ancient translations, with the exception of the LXX., which is of 
 no authority, all express the word. Comp. Naegelsb. Jer. u. Bab , S. 96. 
 
432 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 When King Zedekiah, in the fourth year of his 
 reign, made a journey to Babylon, Jeremiah gave 
 to Seraiah, the brother of Baruch, the marshal!, 
 the prophecy against Babylon to take with him 
 and read in Babylon, and then with prayer to the 
 Lord to cast it into the Euphrates. 
 
 Ver. 59. The word . . . caravan-marshall. 
 The commission which Seraiah receives really 
 forms the chief part of this section. For after 
 ver. tiO, in which the restoration of the roll form- 
 ing the basis of this commission is described, all 
 the rest contains only the words in which Jere- 
 miah imparts the commission. — Seraiah, accord- 
 ing to xxxii. 18, must be a brother of Baruch, 
 the friend and assistant of our prophet, which 
 explains why the commission was given to him. 
 Other persons named Seraiah are mentioned in 
 this book, xxxvi. 26; xl. 8; lii. 24. It seems to 
 have been a common name among the priests. 
 Comp. 1 Chron. vii. 6, 14; Ezr. vii. 1, 4; Neh. 
 X. 2; xi. 11; xii. 1, 12. — It is not perfectly clear 
 why Zedekiah went to Babylon. His fourth year 
 is the same in which the envoys of the neighbor- 
 ing nations met in Jerusalem, to treat concerning 
 a defensive alliance against the Chaldean power. 
 Comp. rems. on xxvii. 1 and xxviii. 1. Niebdhr 
 thinks that the diversion then made by Nebu- 
 chadnezzar's war with Media was the occasion 
 of this meeting {Ass. u. Bab., S. 211). The jour- 
 ney to Babylon shows that nothing came of the 
 project, whether that the reports from the East 
 caused the matter to appear too dangerous, or 
 that the warnings of Jeremiah made some iui- 
 pressiou. — A quiet prince (nmjO-1E/). This 
 expression has been interpreted in the most va- 
 rious and strangest ways, concerning which 
 comp. RosENMUELLER and J. D. Michaelis ad 
 loc. The latter was the first to give the substan- 
 tially correct rendering in his Translation of the 
 Old Testament, 1778, Leader of the caravan. 
 Maureb first proposed "Reisemarschall," mar- 
 shall of the journey. Literally it denotes 
 "Prince of the resting-place." Comp. Numb. 
 X. 33. 
 
 Vers. 60-64. So Jeremiah wrote .... ex- 
 hausted. We may assume that this journey of 
 Zedekiaii was the occasion of the prophecy against 
 Babylon. For homage, if not the only object, 
 was certainly one of the objects, of the journey, 
 and it therefore involved a deep disgrace to the 
 theocracy. How fitting it was that the prophet 
 should make use of this journey to furnish the 
 meilal wiih an appropriate reverse. While the 
 king of Judah, in view of all, was casting himself 
 in liomage before the throne of the Chaldean 
 kiug, Seraiah was to cast a roll in the Euphrates, 
 on which was recorded as a divine decree the 
 destruction of Babylon and deliverance of Israel. 
 — TliiU Jcroiiiiah copied the prophecy from the 
 book-roll mentioned in xxxvi. 32 (Ghak) is only 
 8upposal)le, in case Jeremiah successively in- 
 creased that collection of writings begun in the 
 fifth year of Jehoiakim, first inserting the pre- 
 sent prophecy in it, and thus giving Seraiah a 
 copy, a contirniation of which liyiiothcsis nia^' be 
 found in the expression in a [TIX, one] book. 
 
 U is, however, possible that Jeremiah would 
 
 thus intimate that he purposely wrote the pro- 
 phecy upon one roll, in antithesis to the many 
 rolls forming the main collection. The reason 
 of the prophet's care to write the whole on one 
 roll, would then doubtless be that one could be 
 handled more easily and safely than two. — The 
 reading was evidently for a threefold purpose: 
 1. With respect to the city of Babylon it was an 
 announcement of judgment (Hitzig), which ap- 
 pears the more significant, as the announcers 
 were not in a condition to make a declaration 
 against Babylon, coming, as they did in all hu- 
 mility, to do homage. 2. With respect to God, 
 it was to be affirmed that the people of Israel 
 had taken solemn notice of the divine promise. 
 Hence after the reading the Lord is to be ex- 
 pressly addressed and reminded of the word of 
 His promise in its main features (comp. ver. 62 
 with 1. 3; li. 26). He is thus, as it were, to be 
 taken at His word and pledged. 3. To the Is- 
 raelites there was naturally a great comfort in 
 all this, which must have been of special value to 
 them in that moment of deep shame. — The sink- 
 ing of the roll in the Euphrates is added to the 
 reading as supplementary and confirming the 
 words by a visible symbolic action. The roll be- 
 ing compelled to sink by the stone and thus out- 
 wardly given up to destruction, suggests the 
 thought that this external part was no longer ne- 
 cessary after, by the reading, the purport had 
 been received into the living spiritual archives 
 of the consciousness. At the same time, as is 
 expressly stated in ver. 64, the sinking by the 
 weight of the stone is to represent symbolically 
 the ruin of Babylon.— Shall not rise, as the 
 roll with the stone will not. — From the evil 
 does not designate the element in which Babylon 
 is to sink, but the figure is here forsaken and 
 the transition made to literal speech. \Ji)? then 
 
 =in consequence of [because of, the evil J. — 
 Shall be weary. These words might certainly 
 be dispensed with, as they rather injure than pro- 
 mote the clearness of the sense. As is well un- 
 derstood, however, the easier reading is by no 
 means always the more correct. The question 
 depends on whether the finer and more hidden 
 sense which may be contained in the words is 
 able to balance the formal reasons which favor 
 their spuriousness. Comp. the Textual re- 
 marks. 
 
 Thus far the w^ords of Jeremiah. These 
 words, which I cannot regard as misplaced 
 (comp. rems. on ver. 64) have simply the object 
 of indicating that ch. lii. does not proceed from 
 Jeremiah himself, but is the addition made by 
 another person. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. "Daniel's Babylonian empire resumes, as it 
 were, tlie threail which was broken off with the 
 tower-erection and kingdom of Nimrod. In the 
 Babylonian tower-building the whole of the then 
 existing iiuinanity was united against God; with 
 the Babylonian kingdom began the period of the 
 universiil monarchies, which again aspired after 
 an atheistical union of entire humanity. Baby- 
 lon has since and even to the Revelation (ch. 
 xviii ) remained the standing type of this world." 
 AuBEKLEN, Der proph. Daniel, S. 230. 
 
CHAP. LI. 59-64. 
 
 433 
 
 2. For what reason does Babylon appear 
 as a type of the world ? Why not Nineveh, or 
 Persepolis, or Tyre, or Memphis, or Rome? 
 Certainly not because Babylon was greater, 
 more glorious, more powerful or prouder and 
 more ungodly than those cities and kingdoms. 
 Nineveh especially was still greater than Baby- 
 lon (corap. DcNCKER, Gesch. d. Allerth. I. S. 
 474, 5), and Assyria was not less hostile to the 
 theocracy, having carried away into captivity 
 the northern and larger half of the people of 
 Israel. Babylon is qualified for this representa- 
 tion in two ways: 1. because it is the home of 
 worldly princedom and titanic arrogance (Gen. 
 X. 8; xi. 1-4) ; 2. because Babylon destroyed the 
 centre of the theocracy, Jerusalem, the temple 
 and the theocratic kingdom, and first assumed to 
 be the single supreme power of the globe. 
 
 3. " When God has used a superstitious, 
 wicked and tyrannical nation long enough as 
 His rod, He breaks it in pieces and finally throws 
 it into the fire. For even those whom He for- 
 merly used as His chosen anointed instruments 
 He then regards as but the dust in the streets or 
 as chaff before the wind." Cramer. 
 
 4. "No monarch is too rich, too wicked, too 
 strong for God the Lord. And He can soon 
 enlist and engage soldiers whom He can use 
 against His declared enemies." Cramer. 
 
 5. " Israel was founded on everlasting founda- 
 tions, even God's word and promise. The sins 
 of the people brought about that it was laid low 
 in the dust, but not without hope of a better re- 
 surrection. Babylon, on the other hand, must 
 perish forever, for in it is the empire of OtII 
 come to its highest bloom. Jeremiah owns the 
 nothingness of all worldly kingdoms, since they 
 are all under this national order to serve only 
 for a time. We are to be subject to them and 
 seek their welfare for the sake of the souls of 
 men, whom God is educating therein ; a Christian 
 however cannot be enthusiastic for them after 
 the manner of the ancient heathen nor of ancient 
 Israel, for liere we have no abiding city, our citi- 
 zenship is in heaven. The kingdoms of this 
 world are no sanctuaries for us and we suppli- 
 cate their continuance only with the daily bread 
 of the fourth petition. Jeremiah applies many 
 words and figures to Babylon which he has al- 
 ready used in the judgments on other nations, 
 thus to intimate that in Babylon all the heathen- 
 ism of tlie world culminates, and that here also 
 must be the greatest anguish. What, however, 
 is here declared of Babylon must be fulfilled 
 again on all earthly powers in so far as, treading 
 in its footprints, they take flesh for their arm 
 and regard the material of this world as power, 
 whether they be called states or churches." 
 
 DiEDRICH. 
 
 6. On 1. 2. In putting into the mouth of Israel, 
 returning from Babylon, the call to an everlast- 
 ing covenant with Jehovah, the prophet causes 
 them 1. to confess that they have forgotten the 
 first covenant; 2. he shows us that the time of 
 the new covenant begins with the redemption 
 from the Babylonish captivity. He was far, 
 however, from supposing that this redemption 
 would be only a weak beginning, that the ap- 
 pearance of the Saviour would be deferred for 
 eenturies, that Israel would sink still deeper as 
 
 28 
 
 an external TzoAireia, and that finally the Israel 
 of the new covenant would itself appear as a 
 [iva-Tjpinv, elg b ETTii^v/xoiiacv ayyeXoc ivapaKVTpai (1 
 Pet. i. 9-12). 
 
 7. From what Jeremiah has already said in 
 xxxi. 31-34 of the new covenant we see that its 
 nature and its difference from the old is not un- 
 known to him. Yet he knows the new covenant 
 only in general. He knows that it will be deeply 
 spiritual and eternal, but how and whr/ it will be 
 so is still to him part of the /nvar/'/piov. 
 
 8. On 1. 6. Jeremiah here points back to ch. 
 xxiii. Priests, kings and prophets, who should 
 discharge the ofBce of shepherds, prove to be 
 wolves. Yea, they are the worst of wolves, who 
 go about in ofiBcial clothing. There is th.-refore 
 no more dangerous doctrine than that of an in- 
 fallible office. Jer. xiv. 14; Matt. vii. 15; xxiii. 
 2-12. 
 
 9. On 1. 7. It is the worst condition into which 
 a church of God can come, when the enemies 
 who desolate it can maintain that they are in the 
 right in doing so. It is, however, a just nemesis 
 when those who will not hear the regular mes- 
 sengers of God must be told by the extraordi- 
 nary messengers of God what they should have 
 done. Comp. xl. 2, 3. 
 
 10. On 1. 8. "Babylon is opened, and it must 
 be abandoned not clung to, for the captivity is a 
 temporary chastisement, not the divine arrange- 
 ment for the children of God. God's people 
 must in the general redemption go like rams be- 
 fore the herd of the nations, that these may also 
 attach themselves to Israel, as this was fulfilled 
 at the time of Christ in the first churches and 
 the apostles, who now draw the whole heathen 
 world after them to eternal life. Here the pro- 
 phet recognizes the new humanity, which pro- 
 ceeds from the ruins of the old, in which also 
 ancient Israel leads the way ; thus all, who fol- 
 low it, become Israel." DiEDRICH. — "The hea- 
 then felt somewhat of the divine punishment 
 when they overcame so easily the usually so 
 strongly protected nation. But Jeremiah sliows 
 them still how they deceived themselves in think- 
 ing that God had wholly rejected His people, for of 
 the eternal covenant of grace they certainly un- 
 derstood nothing." Heim and Hoffmann on the 
 Major Prophets. 
 
 11. On 1. 18. "The great powers of the world 
 form indeed the history of the world, but they 
 have no future. Israel, however, always returns 
 home to the dear and glorious land. The Jews 
 might as a token of this return under Cyrus; 
 the case is however this, that the true Holy One 
 in Israel, Christ, guides us back to Paradise, 
 when we flee to His hand from the Babylon of 
 this world and let it be crucified for us." Died- 
 
 RICH. 
 
 12. On 1. 23. "Although the Chaldeans were 
 called of God for the purpose of making war on 
 the Jewish nation on account of their multitu- 
 dinous sins, yet they are punished because they 
 did it not as God with a pure intention, namely, 
 to punish tlie wrong in them and keep them for 
 reformation ; for they were themselves greater 
 sinners than the Jews and continued with im- 
 penitence in their sins. Therefore they could 
 not go scot-free and remain unpunished. More- 
 over, they acted too roughly and dealt with ths 
 
434 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 Jews more harshly than God had commanded, 
 for which He therefore fairly punished them. 
 As God the Lord Himself says (Isa. xlvii. 6) : 
 When I was angry with My people I gave them 
 into thine hands; but thou shewedst them no 
 mercy. Therefore it is not enough that God's 
 will be accomplished, but there must be the good 
 intention in it, which God had, otiierwise such a 
 work may be a sin and call down the divine 
 puaishment upon it." Wurtemb. Suiiim.. 
 
 13. Oa 1. 31-34. "God calls Babylon Thou 
 Pride, for pride was their inward force and im- 
 pulse in all their actions. But worldly pride 
 makes a Babylon and brings on a Babylon's fate. 
 . . . Pride must fall, for it is in itself a lie against 
 God, and all its might must perish in the fire ; 
 thus will the humble and meek remain in pos- 
 session of the earth : this has a wide applica- 
 tion through all times, even to eternity." Died- 
 
 EICH. 
 
 14. On ver. 33. "Israel is indeed weak and 
 must suffer in a time of tyranny ; it cannot help 
 itself, nor needs it to do so, for its Redeemer is 
 strong. His name The Lord Zebaoth — and He is 
 now, having assumed our flesh, among us and 
 conducts our cause so that the world trembles." 
 
 DiEDRICH. 
 
 15. On 1. 45. " An emblem of the destruction 
 of anti-christian Babylon, which was also the 
 true hammer of the whole world. This has God 
 also broken and must and will do it still more. 
 And this will the shepherd-boys do, as is said 
 here in ver. 45 (according to Luther's transla- 
 tion), that is, all true teachers and preachers." 
 Cramer. 
 
 16. On ch. li. " The doctrines accord in all 
 points with the previous chapter. And the pro- 
 puet Jeremiah both in this and the previous 
 chapter does nothing else but make out for the 
 Babylonians their final discharge and passport, 
 because they behaved so valiantly and well against 
 tiie people of Judah, that they might know they 
 would not go unrecompensed. For payment is 
 according to service. And had they done better 
 it would have gone better with them. It is well 
 that when tyrants succeed in their evil under- 
 takings they should not suppose they are God's 
 dearest children and lean on His bosom, since 
 they will yet receive the recompense on their 
 crown, whatever they have earned." Cramer. 
 
 17. ["Though in the hand of Babylon is a 
 golden cup; she chooses such a cup, in order that 
 men's eyes may be dazzled with the glitter of the 
 gold, and may not inquire what it contains. 
 But mark well, in the golden cup of Babylon is 
 the poison of idolatry, the poison of false doc- 
 trines, which destroy the souls of men. I have 
 often seen such a golden cup, in fair speeches of 
 seductive eloquence : and when I have examined 
 the venomous ingredients of the golden chalice, 
 I have recognized the cup of Babylon." Origbn 
 in VVoRDswoHTH. — S. R. A.] 
 
 " The scat and throne of Anti-christ is ex- 
 pro^sly named Babylon, namely, the city of 
 Rome, built on the seven hills (Rev. xvii. 9). 
 Just as Babylon brought so many lands and 
 kingdoms under its sway and ruled them with 
 great pomp and pride (the golden cup, which 
 made all the world drunk, was Babylon in the 
 hand of the Lord (li. 7j, aud all the heathen 
 
 drank of the wine and became mad) — so has th« 
 spiritual Babylon a cup in its hand, full of th» 
 abomination and uncleanness of its whoredom, 
 of which the kings of the earth and all who 
 dwell on the earth have been made drunk. As 
 it is said of Babylon that she dwells by great 
 waters and has great treasures, so writes .John of 
 the Romish Babylon, that it is clothed in silk and 
 purple and scarlet and adorned with gold, pre- 
 cious stones and pearls (Rev. xviii. 12). Of 
 Babylon it is said that the slain in Israel were 
 smitten by her ; so also the spiritual Babylon is 
 become drunk with the blood of the saints (Rev. 
 xvii. 6). Just, however, as the Chaldean Baby- 
 lon is a type of the spiritual in its pride and des- 
 potism, so also is it a type of the destruction 
 which will come upon it. Many wished to heal 
 Babylon but she would not be he.aled ; so many 
 endeavor to support the ruinous anti-christian 
 Babylon, but all in vain. For as Babylon was 
 at last so destroyed as to be a heap of stones and 
 abode of dragons, so will it be with anti-christian 
 Babylon. Of this it is written in Rev. xiv. 8 : 
 She is fallen, fallen, that great city, for she has 
 made all nations drink of the wine of her forni- 
 cation. And again, Babylon the great is fallen, 
 and is become the habitation of devils and a 
 hold of all foul and hateful birds (Rev. xviii. 2). 
 As the inhabitants of Babylon were admonished 
 to flee from her, that every man might deliver his 
 soul (li. 6) — and again. My people, go ye out 
 from the midst of her and deliver every man his 
 soul, etc. (li. 45) — so the Holy Spirit admonishes 
 Christians almost in the same words to go out 
 from the spiritual Babylon, that they be not pol- 
 luted by her sins and at the same time share in 
 her punishment. For thus it is written in Rev. 
 xviii. 4, I heard, says John, a voice from heaven 
 saying. Go ye out of her. My people, that ye be 
 not partakers of her sins and that ye receive not 
 of her plagues, for her sins reach unto heaven 
 and God remembers her iniquities." Wurtemb. 
 Summarien. 
 
 18. On li. 5. "A monarch can sooner make an 
 end of half a continent than draw a nail from a 
 hut which the Lord protects. — And if it is true 
 that Kaiser Rudolph, when he revoked the tole- 
 ration of the Picards and the same day lost one 
 of his principal forts, said, ' I thought' it would 
 be so, for I grasped at God's sceptre' (Weis- 
 MANNi, Hist. Eccl. Tom. II. p. 320) — this was a 
 sage remark, a supplement to the words of the 
 
 wise." ZlNZENDORF. 
 
 19. On li. 9. "We heal Babylon, but she 
 •will not be healed. Babylon is an outwardly 
 beautiful but inwardly worm-eaten apple Hence 
 sooner or later the foulness must become notice- 
 able. So is it with all whose heart and centre 
 is not God. All is inwardly hollow and vain. 
 When this internal vacuity begins to render it- 
 self externally palpable, when here and there a 
 rent or foul spot becomes visible, then certainly 
 come the friends and admirers of the unholy 
 form and wouM improve, cover up, sew up, heal. 
 But it does not avail. When once there is death 
 in the body no physician can effect a cure. 
 
 20. On li. 17, 19, 20. "The children of God 
 have three causes why they may venture on Hm. 
 1. .AH men are fools, their treasure is it not; 2. 
 The Lord is tlieir hammer ; He breaks through 
 
CHAP. LI. 59-64. 
 
 everything, and 3, tliey are an instrument in His 
 hand, a heritage; in this there is happiness." 
 
 ZiNZENDORP. 
 
 21. On li. 41-44. "How was Sheshach thus 
 won, the city renowned in all the world thus 
 taken ? No one would have thought it possible, 
 but God does it. He rules with wonders and 
 with wonders He makes His church free. Baby- 
 lon is a wonder no longer for its power, but for 
 its weakness. We are to know the world's weak- 
 ness even where it still appears strong. A sea 
 of hostile nations has covered Babylon. Her 
 land is now a desolation. God takes Bel, the 
 principal idol of Babylon, symbolizing its whole 
 civil powers in hand, and snatches his prey from 
 his teeth. Our God is stronger than all worldly 
 forces, and never leaves us to them." Diedricu. 
 
 22. On li. 58. "Yea, so it is with all walls and 
 towers, in which God's word is not the vital force, 
 even though they be entitled churches and cathe- 
 drals . . God's church alone possesses perma- 
 nence through His pure word." Diedricu. 
 
 23. On li. 60-64. When we wish to preserve an 
 archive safely, we deposit it in a record-ofBce 
 where it is kept in a dry place that no moisture 
 may get to it. Seraiah throws his book-roll into 
 the waters of the Euphrates, which must wash it 
 away, dissolve and destroy it. But this was of 
 no account. The main point was that he, Seraiah, 
 as representative of the holy nation had taken 
 solemn stock of the word of God against Babylon, 
 and as it were taken God at His word, and re- 
 minded Him of it. In this manner the matter 
 was laid up in the most enduring and safest 
 archive that could be imagined; it was made a 
 case of honor with the omniscient and omnipo- 
 tent God. Such matters can, however, neither 
 be forgotten, nor remain in dead silence, nor be 
 neglected. They must be brought to such an end 
 as the honor of God requires. 
 
 HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On 1. 2. This text may be used on the feast 
 of the Reformation, or any other occasion with 
 reference to a rein bene gestam. The Triumph of 
 the Good Cause, 1. over what enemies it is 
 gained ; 2. to what it should impel us ; («) to the 
 avoidance of that over which we new triumph ; 
 (6) to the grateful proclamation of what the Lord 
 has done for us, by word and by deed. 
 
 2. On 1. 4-8. The deliverance of Israel from 
 the Babylonian captivity a type of the deliver- 
 ance of the Church. 1. The Church must hum- 
 bly acknowledge the captivity suffered as a just 
 judgment of God. 2. She must turn like Israel 
 inwardly with an upright heart unto the Lord; 
 3. She must become like Israel to all men a 
 pattern and leader to freedom. 
 
 3. On 1. 5. A confirmation sermon. "What is 
 the hour of confirmation? 1. An hour which 
 calls to separation; 2. an hour which leads to 
 new connections; 3. an hour which fixes for- 
 ever the old covenant with the soul's friend." 
 Florey, 1863. 
 
 4. On 1. 18-20. Assyria and Babylon the types 
 of all the spiritual enemies of the church as of 
 individual Christians. Every one has his Assyria 
 and his Babylon. Sin is the destruction of men. 
 Forgiveness of sins is the condition of life, for 
 
 no 
 
 y one 
 
 only where forgiveness of sins is, is there life 
 and blessedness. In Christ we find the forgive- 
 ness of sins. He destroys the handwriting. He 
 washes us clean. He is also the good shepherd 
 who leads our souls into green pastures, to the 
 spiritual Carmel. 
 
 5. On 1. 31, 32. Warning against pride. Baby- 
 lon was very strong and powerful, rich and 
 splendid. It seemed invincible by nature and by 
 art. Had it not then a certain justification in 
 being proud, at least towards men ? No; for 
 one has to contend only with men. Eve 
 who contends has the Lord either for his friend 
 3r his enemy. It is the Lord from whom cometh 
 victoi-y (Prov. xxi. 31). He it is who teacheth 
 3ur hands to fight (Ps. xviii. 35; cxliv. 1). His 
 strength is made perfect in weakness (2 Cor. xii. 
 9). He can make the lame (Isa. xxxiii. 23 ; Mic. 
 iv. 7) and mortally wounded (.Jer. xxxvii. 10) so 
 strong that they overmaster the sound (comp. 
 ver. 45). He can make one man put to flight a 
 thousand (Deut. xxxii. 30; Isa. xxx. 17). With 
 him can one dash in pieces a troop and leap over 
 a wall (Ps. xviii. 29). No one accordingly should 
 be proud. The word of the Lord, " I am against 
 thee, thou proud one !" is a terrible word which 
 no one should conjure up against himself. 
 
 6. On 1. 33, 34. The consolation of the Church 
 in persecution* 1. It suffers violence and in- 
 justice. 2. Its redeemer is strong. 
 
 7. On li. 5. God the Lord manifests such favor 
 to Israel as to declare Himself her husband (ii. 
 2; iii. 1). But now that Israel and Judah are in 
 exile, it seems as if they were rejected or 
 widowed women. This, however, is only ap- 
 pearance. Israel's husband does not die. He 
 may well bring a period of chastisement, of puri- 
 fication and trial on His people, but when this 
 period is over, the Lord turns the handle, and 
 smites those through whom He chastised Israel, 
 when they had forgotten that they were not to 
 satisfy their own desire, but only to accomplish 
 the Lord's will on Israel. 
 
 8. On li. 6. A time may come when it is well 
 to separate one's self. For although it is said in 
 Prov. xviii. 1 ; he who separateth himself, seek- 
 eth that which pleaseth him and opposeth all 
 that is good — and therefore separation, as the 
 antipodes of churchliness, i e., of churchly com- 
 munion and humble subjection to the law of the 
 co-operation of members (1 Cor. xii. 25 sqq.) is 
 to be repudiated, yet there may come momenta 
 in the life of the church, when it will be a duty 
 to leave the community and separate one's self. 
 Such a moment is come when the community has 
 become a Babylon. It should, however, be noted 
 that one should not be too ready with such a de- 
 cision. For even the life of the church is sub- 
 ject to many vacillations. There are periods of 
 decay, obscurations, as it were, comparable to 
 eclipses of the stars, but to these, so long as the 
 foundations only subsist, must always follow a 
 restoration and return to the original brightness. 
 No one is to consider the church a Babylon on 
 account of such a passing state of disease. It is 
 this only when it has withheld the objective di- 
 vine foundations, the means of grace, the word 
 and sacrament, altogether and permanently in 
 their saving eflScacy. Then, when the soul can 
 no longer find in the church the pure and divma 
 
436 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 bread of life; it is well "to deliver the soul that 
 it perish not in the iniquity of the church." 
 From this separation from the church is, how- 
 ever, to be carefully distinguished the separation 
 within the church, from all that which is opposed 
 to the healthy life of the church, and is therefore 
 
 merit, but God's grace in Christ) ; 2. Its fruit, 
 praise of that which the Lord has wrought in us 
 {a) by words, (6) by works. 
 
 10. On U. 50. This text may be used at the 
 sending out of missionaries or the departure of 
 emigrants. Occasion may be taken to speak 1, 
 
 to be regarded as a diseased part of the eccle- of the gracious help and delivei-ance, which the 
 siastical body. Such separation is the daili/ Lord has hitherto shown to the departing ; 2, 
 duty of the Christian. He has to perform they maybe admonished to remain united in 
 
 it with respect to his private life in all the 
 manifold relations, indicated to us in Matt, xviii. 
 17 ; Rom. xvi. 17 ; 1 Cor. v. 9 sqq. ; 2 Thess. iii. 
 6; Tit. iii. 10; 2 John 10, 11. — Comp. the article 
 on Sect.t, by Palmbb. in Herzog, R.-Enc, XXI., 
 S. 21. 22. 
 
 their distant land with their brethren at liome by 
 (a) remembering the Lord, i. e., ever remaining 
 sincerely devoted to the Lord as the common 
 shield of salvation; (6) faithfuly serving Jerusa- 
 lem, i. e., the common mother of us all (Gal. iv. 
 26), the church, with all our powers in the proper 
 
 9. On li. 10. The righteousness which avails j place and measure, and ever keeping her in our 
 before God. 1. Its origin (not our work orlhearti. 
 
 IV. Conclusion. 
 
 HI8T0KICAL APPENDIX, CONTAINING A BRIEF SURVEY OF THE EVENTS PROM THE BEGINNING OF 
 THE REIGN OF ZEDEKIAH, TO THE DEATH OF JEHOIACHIN (ch. Iii.). 
 
 ^y the concluding ivords ofW. 04 [Thus far, etc.) the final editor of the book evidently tvished to indicate 
 that the ivords of Jeremiah cease with ch. li., and that, therefore, what folloics is not from him, but 
 some other. We are thus expressly warned by those concluding words against the mistake of attri- 
 buting chap. Iii. to the prophet. Nevertheless the chapter has been considered by D. Kimchi, Abar- 
 BANEL and many others, as a work of Jeremiah. Seb. Schmidt, e. g., in opposition to the opinion 
 of Abarbanel, says that the men of the great synagogue took the history of the destruction of Jerusa- 
 lem from the Book of Kings and inserted it here, " ne forte err emus in eo, quod supra scriptum est." 
 And afterwards " Contrarium potius statuimus, scripta hsec esM a Jeremia propheta et transsumta in 
 librum Regum, sicut in eum historia Hiskise ex Jesaja translata est, cum aliqua tamen variatione, ut 
 appareat, utrumque scriptorem habere quod sibi proprium et a Spiritu sancto inspiratum.^' All ortho- 
 dox commentators of the older period do not hoicever adopt this view. The strict Lutheran Forster, e. g., 
 tags in his Commentary , which appeared in 1672, '■'■Hucusque fuit prophetia Jeremise. Caput istudul- 
 timum ab alio quodam viro pio et sancto EweLaayjiarng qua.ii loco sup eradditum fuit vel hue transscrip- 
 tum ex II. Reg. c. 25." — Among the more modern authors Haevernick adopts the view that Jere- 
 miah wrote the history of Jehoiachin and Zedekiah just as Isaiah wrote that of Hezekiah. He then, 
 as editor of the Book of Kings allotted its natural place to this description in 2 Ki. xxv. [Einl. II., 1, 
 S. 172) while Jer. Iii. was added to these by the collectors of the prophecies. He afterwards (II. 2, 
 S. 248) modifies this view, at least declaring vers. 31-34 to be a subsequently added notice, which, how- 
 ever, passed naturally and probably at the same time to 2 Ki. xxv. — Keil [Einl. II., Aufi., S. 261 ; 
 Comm. iiber die proph. GeschichtsbUcher des A. T, III. Bd., 1865, S. 378, 9) is of opinion that an 
 extended history of the last times of the kingdom of Judah, composed "-perhaps by Jeremiah or Baruch" 
 [in the Einl., etc., it is '■'either by Jeremiah or by Baruch"), was in existence. The two narratives 
 of Jer. Iii. and 2 Ki. xxv. were brief extracts from this. Most commentators, however, are of opin- 
 ion that the present passage belonged originally to the Book of Kings, and was inserted by a later hand 
 with several lesser and one great modification [the insertion of Jer. Iii. 28-30, in the place of 2 Ki. 
 xxv. 22-26). I also adopt this view in substance, for the following reasons: 1. The introduction of 
 the passage (Iii. 1, 2) contains the standing formula of the Book of Kings, with which the succession of 
 a new king is usually recorded. This introduction is thus undoubtedly original in the Book of Kings. 
 For whoever composed it, and from whatever source it may have been drawn, it ivas at any rale, as it 
 now reads, loritten originally for the Book of Kings, and in Jer. Iii. is only a transposition from 
 thence. 2. The rest also is so composed that it cannot be said there is anything contained in it contrary 
 in form or purport to the usual character of the Books of the Kings. 3. There is, therefore, a strong 
 presumption that the narrative also thus introduced urns originally written for the Book of Kings, to 
 which it is essential and indispensable, and which, without it, would be so much mutilated, while the 
 Book of Jeremiah receives in it a conclusion however useful, yet essentially foreign. 4. The transfer- 
 ence from the Book of Kings is made purposely and with consideration. This is evident from the fact 
 that the brief section, "vers. 28-30, was inserted instead of the narrative concerning the fate i/ the Jews 
 remaining in the country, which is only a brief extract from Jeremiah, chh. xxxix.-xliii., and therefore 
 in the Book of Jeremiah would have been an unnecessary repetition. 5. As to the form cf the text the 
 relation is as follows : [a) in vers. 1-6, Jer. Iii. has some traces of an older form of the text, not 
 
CHAP. LII. 1-11. 437 
 
 yet purified from roughnesses. Comp. '^2^1'\DT\~'\^ milTI, ver. 3, with 2 Ki. xxiv. 20. Liketeise 
 the older for „i . /^IDOJ ver. 4, with 2 Ki. xxv. 1. On the other hand 'Jnj|2 ib. betrays the hand 
 of an emendaior, (6) In vers. 6-11, the text of Jer. lii. is in general, especially as regards com- 
 pleteness and correctness much better ; ver. 6 contains the indispensable statement of the month, which 
 is strangely laticing in 2 Ki. xxv. 3 ; so also Jer. lii. 7 contains the verbs indispensable to the sense, 
 M 1J<V'Mn'p3''. Ver. 10 b contains the statement concerning princes of Judah, ver. 11a similar one 
 concerning the imprisonment of Zedekiah, which are both wanting in 2 Ki. xxv. The text of 2 Ki. 
 xxv. thus appears here to be more than contracted (comp. also ir\j<, 2 Ki. xxv. 5 with ^r\''p'\'!i~nii 
 Jer. lii. 8, whereby the harshness occasioned in 2 Ki. xxv. 1 by a change of subjects is removed). The 
 absence of those essential parts of speech in vers. 3, 4, can be the result only of the transformations 
 which ihe text has suffered. Thus also the other wants of the text mag be explained, and there in no 
 necessity for assuming the common use of a third source, (c). From vers. 12-23 the Hook of Kings 
 shows in vers. 8-17 a text variously emended and purged from real or apparent offences. In ver. 8 
 
 Nebuchadnezzar, ib. 13^; for noj;, and oStT/n; for '■'B, in ver. 9 '7nj-r\''3-^3 for the more difficult 
 Vnjn. In ver. 10 the superfluous li) is absent before Pib'^T}; in ver. 11 for the same reason is 
 wanting D^^n Hw'TOI ; the rare word flONH is altered into the more current jionn, in ver. 12 we 
 read r\7T/or Hw^, which does not occur elsewhere ; ib. the name Nehuzaradan seemed superfluous ; 
 
 ib. D'3J Chethibh for W2y' , not occurring elsewhere; in ver. 14 nipniO, and likcivise in ver. 15 
 D''3p and Pi'T'p, because otherwise these names would be mentioned twice, also in ver. 15 the two 
 neighboring loords to the two last mentioned have disappeared ; in ver. 16 with perfect justice the state- 
 ment concerning the twelve oxen is absent; ib. iveflnd the easier nt^nj 7 ; in ver. 17 the apparently 
 superfluous Dn^fS^m is wanting in the beginning, then all from 12^11, perhaps because these statements 
 
 were already to be found in 1 Ki. vii. 15, 16 ; in ver. 17 HnX is wanting after n'ypi3r\ ; ib. Wl'i^ 
 
 is an evident mistake; after ver. 17 that is entirely wanting tvhich forms Jer. lii. 23, per- 
 haps because its main import had been already expressed in 1 Kings vii. 20. — [d). In verses 
 24-27 again the text of Jeremiah lii. shows itself to have been emended, but not happily ; in ver. 
 
 24 T\)W^'^ is only an apparent improvement; in ver. 25 DTI ItyX is certainly plainer ; ib. nj^3E/ 
 
 is doubtful ; the absence of the article before ^3D seems to proceed from ignorance, (e). In the con- 
 cluding section, vers. 31-34, again the text of the book of Kings betrays the hand of the emendator ; in 
 ver. 27 (2 Ki. xxv.) HK'Dn is obscure, but inx i<X^'2 seemed evidently superfluous ; instead of the 
 rarer form XwJp stands the more usual vh2, Np3 7j^0 is a simplification ; X5K^ in ver. 29 is a 
 later Aramaic form ; in ver. oO 733 is wanting as superfluous, for the same reason also DV ^_I^ 
 
 inio. 
 
 From all this it seems to follow that Jer. lii. is certainly a transposition of 2 Ki. xxv. but that in the former 
 passage toe have a better text, neither disfigured by needless correction nor by other injuries. Whe- 
 ther the author of the book of Kings is Jeremiah himself or whether especially at the close of his 
 history he made use of this prophet's writings, I leave undecided. This much, however, is certain, that 
 this chapter neither stood originally in this place, nor is it an extract made by another person from the 
 same source, from which 2 Ki. xxiv. 18-25, 30 ivas derived. Whatever opinion, however, may be 
 held regarding the sources, Jer. lii. was not drawn therefrom by another person, but transposed from 
 the book of Kings, and yet has preserved the text more pure than the original passage. 
 
 The object of the transposition was evidently first to furnish the reader of the prophecies ivith the necessary 
 historical guidance. The obj'ect may also have been prominent to show how completely and exactly the 
 threalenings of the prophet against the stiff-necked people were fulfilled. 
 
 1. The capture of the city, together with the circumstances immediately previous and subsequent thereto. 
 
 LII. 1-11. 
 
 1 Zedekiah was one and twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned 
 eleven years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal the daughter 
 
 2 of Jeremiah of Libnah. And he did that which was evil in the eyes of the Lord, 
 
 3 according to all that Jehoiakim had done. For^ through the anger of the Lord 
 [For so] it came to pass in Jerusalem and Judah [that Jehovah was angry] till he 
 had cast them out from his presence, that [And] Zedekiah rebelled against the king 
 
 4 of Babylon. And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month,* 
 in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came, he and 
 all his army, against Jerusalem, and pitche 1 against it, and built forts [a rampart]' 
 
438 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 5 against it round about. So the city was besieged* unto the eleventh year of king 
 
 6 Zedekiah. And in the fourth month, in the ninth day of the mouth, the famine 
 was sore in the city, so that there was no bread for the people of the land [the 
 
 7 common people]. Then the city was broken up [through], and all the men of war 
 fled, and went forth out of the city by night by the way of thd gate between the 
 two walls, which w 'S by the king's garden ; (now the Chaldeans were by the city 
 
 8 round about ;) and they went* by the way of [to] the plain. But the army of the 
 Chaldeans pursued after the king, and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho; 
 
 9 and all his array was scattered from him. Then they took the king, and carried 
 him up unto the king of Babylon to Riblah in the land of Haraath ; where he gave 
 
 10 judgment upon him. And the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah before 
 
 11 his eyes: he slew also all the princes of Judah in Riblah. Then he put out the 
 eye^ of Zedekiah ; and the king of Babylon bound him in chains [a double 
 chain], and carried him to Babylon, and put him in prison till the day of his 
 death. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 3. — 13' 7tyn, if there be no mistake in the writing, is an abnormal form of the infinitive. Comp. Olsh., g 191, 6, 
 
 /; EWAiD, §238, d. On the neuter meaning of the fern, verb nHTI comp. Naegelsb. Gr., §60, 6, b; Isaiah xi. 20; 2 Kings 
 
 t: |t 
 xxiv. 3. 
 
 2 Ver. 4.— The differences between tlie text here and in 2 Kings xxv. 1, 2 are as follows: 1. Instead of HJ^'jl here 
 
 TT - 
 
 iT'J/'K'j^n njK'S there. The latter mode of expression (anno noni, i. e., numeri, comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § G5, 2, c) is found 
 
 in Jer. also in xxviii. 1, Chethibh ; xxxii. 1, Chethibh ; xlvi. 2 ; li. 59. Besides also in lii. 28 ; xxix. 30. 2. 2 Kings has the 
 later form in Ileb., Nebuchadnezzar (comp. xxi. 2-7 ; xxiv. 1; xxxii. 1 ; xxxv. 11; xxxix. 11 ; xliii. 10 ; xliv. 30 ; xlvi. 2 ; 
 1. 17 with xxvii. 6, 20; xxviii. 3; xxxix. 5 ; HiTZio on xxiv. 1). 3. Jfl'V 2 Kings, instead of -"UnM, which is required by 
 
 * Ver. 4.— The word p'T occurs, besides here and in the parallel passages, only in Ezek. iv. 2 ; xvii. 17 ; xxi. 27 ; xxvi. 
 8. It is thus a later word. The root pH does not occur in Hebrew, but is very common in the Chaldee, Syriac and Sama- 
 ritan, where it has the meaning, speculari, inspicere, circumspicere, p'T is therefore specula, the watch-tower, from which 
 the besieged city may be watched and assailed. With this agrees well Isa. xxiii. 13, where the D'J^n3 of the Chaldeans 
 
 are spoken of. It is surprising that the word never occurs in the plural, as we should expect, if it designated only the single 
 towers. We may therefore suppose that it signifies the whole line of circuravallation, including the towers, and is thus a 
 potiori, a collective designation. As the Chaldeans were celebrated for their skill in sieges (comp. IIerzog, Real-Enc, IV., 
 S. 391), the word may have passed from their language into the Hebrew. Comp. Keil on 2 Ki. xxv. 1 ; Haevernick on Ezek. 
 iv. 2, S. 49; GESE.\.,"Tfe:«., p. 330. 
 
 * Ver. 5. — liyo is primarily coarctatio in general and then specially coarctatio by means of ofestdio, hence it assumes the 
 
 latter meaning in connections like 11:^0 1'V (Ps. xxxi. 22 ; Ix. 11), '■D nj3 (Deut. xx. 20), Sv ''D jnj (Ezek. iv. 2), 
 
 T ^ TT - I -T 
 
 '33 N^3 (2 Kings xxiv. 10; xxv. 2), without involving a complete suppression of the radical signification. Comp. x. 17; 
 
 xix. 9. 
 
 * Ver. 7.— Instead of uS'l we find in 2 Ki. the manifestly less correct form, !|7'V 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Vers. 1-3. Zedekiah . . . king of Babylon. 
 
 These three verses are of the same purport 
 with 2 Ki. xxiv. 18-21), with only two unes.sential 
 difiFerences. In the latter passage, ver. 20, we 
 
 find m-in'31 for m^H"), and O'Str^n-iy for 
 O'/'j^n-l^', in both cases an easier and more 
 correct reading, of which it is more natural to 
 
 effect: it came to pass that Jehovah was angered 
 — which may be said of what happened in Jeru- 
 salem, as well as against it. 
 
 Vers. 4, 5. And it came to pass . . . Zede- 
 kiah. These words are found ahiio.st exactly 
 the same in 2 Ki. xxv. 1, 2, and in an abridged 
 extract in xxxix. 1. Compare also Ezek. xxiv. 1. 
 For the exposition of the parts reproduced in 
 ch. xxxix., see there the differences between our 
 text and that of the Book of Kings. Comp. the 
 Textual Notes. 
 
 suppose that it arose out of the other, than the ' Vers, fi, 7. And in the fourth month . 
 
 reverse. The present passage then has the pre 
 sumption of originality in its favor. Comp., 
 moreover, 2 Chrou. xxxvi. 11-13. — For through 
 the anger, etc. The reason for .Jehovah's anger 
 is puiiislniient, in ver. 2, however, to which the 
 for refers, it is sin, not punishment, which is 
 spoken of. Accordingly the words are not to be 
 taken as causal, but as was shown on xxxii. 31 
 (p. 287) 7j^ is used here as frequently elsewhere 
 for. 7N or 7, 'Hid ']X-7^ is the statement of the 
 
 the plain. These opening words, found also in 
 xxxix. 2, are wanting in 2 Kings, although the 
 statement of the day without that of the month, 
 makes no sense, and also the words and went 
 out of the city, though thus the sentence loses 
 its predicate. Keil (on 2 Ki. xxv. 4) supposes 
 that not only the predicate has fallen out after all 
 the men of war, but also still more before these 
 words, in 2 Ki. and Jer. Hi., namely, the words 
 found in xxxix. 3, "and it came to pass, wlien 
 Zedekiah the king of Judah saw them," because 
 
CHAP. LII. 12-16. 
 
 439 
 
 the king (according to 2 Ki. xsv. 5 ; Jer. lii. 8; 
 zxxix. 5) was among the fugitives, and because 
 the words "and all the men of war," have no 
 proper connection with the previous context and 
 could not form an adverbial sentence. But if 
 Keil were right, the whole verse xxxix. 3 must 
 have dropped out, since them refers to the per- 
 sons mentioned in it. We have already shown on 
 ch. xxxix. that vers. 1, 2, 4-10 are only an 
 abridged extract from ch. lii. and that the words 
 quoted above are only a connecting clause be- 
 tween the original and genuine ver. 3, and the 
 following verses derived from ch. lii. These 
 words are therefore of hitcr date than ch. lii., 
 and cannot have been omitted before "and all 
 the men," etc. The previous mention of the king 
 is not necessary, since he is included ; the sen- 
 tence moreover is not adverbial, but a narrative 
 of a by no means unusual construction (corap. 
 EwALU, §346, h). 
 
 Vers. 8-11. But the army . . of his death. 
 The Book of Kings reads " him " instead of Ze- 
 dekiahi It is plain that the former could be 
 more easily derived from the latter than the re- 
 verse. — In the land of Hamath is wanting in 
 2 Ki. XXV. 6, while it is found ib. ver. 21 (comp. 
 2 Ei. xxiii. 33). — He gave judgment. 2 Ki. 
 
 XXV. 6, has "they gave," etc., on which comp. 
 rems. on xxxix. 5. — The first half of ver. 10 
 agrees with xxxix 6, even to the there added 
 words, "in Riblah." In 2 Ki. xxv. 7 it reads, 
 "and they slew the sons," etc., the Chaldeans of 
 ver. 5 being still the subject. The second half 
 of ver. 10 is entirely wanting in 2 Kings. Tiie 
 blinding and binding in chains of king Zedekiah 
 is narrated in both places in the same way, but 
 in 2 Ki. the singulars put out {1.?>;) and bound 
 him ('iTlpX'l) are the more surprising, as the 
 sentence is contained in the plural carried 
 him (inX'Tlj. 2 Ki. xxv. is entirely silent on 
 the confinement of Zedekiah in Babylon. Hitziq 
 justly calls attention to the fact that rnpDn-r\'3 
 is not simply a prison, this being always other- 
 wise expressed (comp., e. g., ver. 31). Jeremiah, 
 who is not blinded, is put into prison ; but Zede- 
 kiah, the more guilty, is blinded and put into the 
 house of correction. Comp. Simson on Jud. 
 xvi. 21. The LXX. also has kiq o'lKtav fivUbvog. 
 Yet It appears that towards the end his confine- 
 ment was less rigorous, and that an honorable 
 interment was granted him after his death, for 
 this is the purport of the promise made to him 
 through Jeremiah ia xxxiv. 1-5. 
 
 2. The Destruction of the City and Deportation of the People. 
 
 LII. 12-16. 
 
 12 Now in the fifth month, in the tenth day of the month, which was the nineteenth 
 year of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, came Nebuzar-adan, captain of the guard 
 [of the halberdiers], who served [stood before]' the king of Babylon, into Jerusalem. 
 
 13 And burned the house of the Lord [Jehovah] and the king's house ; and all the 
 houses of Jerusalem, and all the houses of the great men [every great house] .'^ burned 
 
 14 he with fire. And all the army of the Chaldeans, that were with the captain of 
 
 15 the guard, brake down all the walls of Jerusalem, round about. Then Nebuzar- 
 adan captain of the guard [halberdiers] carried away captive certain of the poor 
 [a part of the lowest] of the people, and the residue of the people that remained in 
 the city, and those that fell away, that fell to the king of Babylon, and the rest of 
 
 16 the multitude [work-people].' But Nebuzar adan the captain of the guard left 
 certain of the poor [part of the meanest]* of the land for vinedressers and for 
 husbandmen.* 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 12. — For ^JjJ / HDJ^, of which words the former owes its punctuation to the erroneous connection with 
 D jty^l' (hence also r'3J, 2 Kings reads H^j; as a correction, and O' without '3. He ought doubtless to read HDJ^. Comp. 
 XXXV. 19 ; Jud. xx. 28. 
 
 2 Ver. 13.— Before IHJ the article is wanting in 2 Ki. according to rule. Comp. Naeoelsb. Gr , g 82, 6. But the con- 
 itruct state of iT3 is surprising in both cases. Probably it read originally, as Hitzig supposes. Vnj n'3- A mistaks 
 (comp. the r\''3 twice before) caused r\'3, from which came ^'nJlH JTS- This can be taken only in the sense of rhetorical 
 emphasis, I'njn being collective for "the great" (2 Ki. iv. 8; v. 1). Then certainly the constr. state is perfectly normal, 
 but in 2 Ki. the tracos of an older form of the text are to be recognized. Before HOin ver. 14 is wanting in 2 Ki. the cer- 
 tainly unnecessary ^3, before '■£0-3"^ however the grammatically necessary flX- 
 
 » Ver. 15.— Instead of |'lOXn-ir\% 2 Ki. has j'lom. The word noX must have seemed obscure even to the author* 
 
440 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 of the text of 2 Ki. xxv. and Jer. xxxix., the one rendering it as above, the other by C'^Xt^in D VH. In Prov. viii. 38 
 
 • T : • - T T ' 
 pox and in Song of Sol. vii. 1 |0X certainly has the sense of woik-man, and accordingly we may take the word here as a 
 
 collective designation of the ty^H and TJDO. whose deportation is spoken of in xxiv. 1 and xxix. 2. Thus Hitzig, Graf, 
 Meier. Keil, on the other hand, appeals to xxxix. 9. But this passage, as well as 2 Ki. xxv. 11, proves only that to both au- 
 thors the word J10X appeared strange. Whether they interpreted it correctly is another question. If it should be alleged 
 that it is a word appertaining only to a higher style, we reply that it would not be an easy alteration from jIDD. 
 
 * Ver. 16. — Instead of riW^O 2 Ki. has ri7T3. This also betrays the hand of the corrector, since Hlvl does not 
 occur elsewhere either as plural or singular (Ewald, §165, c). It is the plural of H vT (xl. 7 ; 2 Ki. xxiv. 14 ; xxv. 12)= 
 
 T " 
 
 tenuitates, insignificances. 
 
 * Ver. 16. — The name Nebuzar-adan appeared superfluous to the author of 2 Ki. xxv., having been mentioned in ver. 12. 
 
 The word D^3J'i which does not occur elsewhere, he altered into Q'^J (from 2!|J, /odit, aravit). Comp. remarks on 
 
 ■ ; • T 
 
 xxxix. 10. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 7ei-s. 12-14. Now in the fifth . . . round 
 about. Instead of the tenth day, 2 Kings (as 
 also Bar. i. 2) mentions the seventh, as the same 
 text also states three cubits instead of the five ia 
 ver. 23, and five men instead of the seven in ver. 
 2-5. Hitzig, Thenius, Graf, Keil [Blayney, 
 Henderson] rightly suppose that these differ- 
 ences arose from the interchange of the letters 
 of the older alphabet used as numerals. Which 
 statements are correct is not ascertainable. The- 
 Kius [comp. also Wordsworth] declares the 
 statement here made to be the correct one, be- 
 cause the Jews afterward kept the ninth day as 
 a fast. But on the other hand comp. Keil on 
 2 Ki. xxv. 8. 
 
 Vers. 15, 16. Then Nebuzar-adan .... 
 husbandmen. — The poor of the people, 
 
 which is wanting in 2 Ki., has come here either 
 by mistake from ver. 16, where it also begins the 
 sentence, or it is to express the thought that the 
 poor people did not all remain behind, but were 
 partly carried away. The latter is probably the 
 correct view. — Multitude [work-people]. It 
 is difiicult to decide which is the correct render- 
 ing. Both suit the sense, for a remnant of work- 
 people might just as well be spoken of as a rem- 
 nant of the masses of the people (either in anti- 
 thesis to the warriors or the population of the 
 city). I prefer to take the word in the sense in 
 which it undoubtedly occurs in Prov. viii. 30 
 [then was I as a workman with him], and Song 
 of Sol. vii. 1. 
 
 3. The Carrying away of the sacred Vessels. 
 LII. 17-23. 
 
 17 Also the pillars of brass that were in [belonged to]^ the house of the Lord, and 
 the bases, and the brazen sea that was in the house of the Lord [Jehovah] the 
 
 18 Chaldeans brake, and carried alP the brass of them to Babylon. The caldrons 
 [pots] also, and the shovels, and the snuffers, and the bowls, and the spoons, and 
 
 19 all the vessels of brass wherewith they ministered, took they away. And the ba- 
 sins,' and the firepans,* and the bowls, and the caldrons [pots], and the candle- 
 sticks, and the spoons, and the cups f that which was of gold in gold, and that which 
 was of silver in silver [which were entirely of gold or silver]^ took the captain of 
 
 20 the guard [halberdiers] away. The'' two pillars, one* sea, and twelve brazen 
 bulls that were under^ the bases, which king Solomon had made to [for] the house 
 
 21 of the Lord [Jehovah] ; the brass*" of all these vessels was without weight. And 
 concerning the pillars, the height" of one pillar was eighteen cubits ; and a fillet of 
 twelve cubits did compass it ; and the thickness thereof was four fingers ; it was 
 
 22 hollow. ^^ And a chapiter of brass was upon it ; and the height of one chapiter was 
 five cubits, with network*' and pomegranates upon the chapiter, round about, all 
 
 23 of brass. The second pillar also and the pomegranates'* were like unto these. And 
 there were ninety and six pomegranates on a side; and all the pomegranates upon 
 the network were a hundred round about [round about were a hundred]. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 17.— Instead of JTSS "^S'X we read in 2 Ki. xxv. 13 n'3 "^V^- The latter—which were in the house of Jeho- 
 vah, the former=which belonged to the house, etc. 
 
CHAP. LII. 17-23. 
 
 441 
 
 ' Ver. 17. — In 2 Ki. ~f2 is wanting before Dntynj as in ver. 1-i before HIDn- 
 
 3 Ver. 19.— D'iJD (1 Ki. vii. 50; 2 Ki. xii. 14, r\13D. 2 Sam. xvii. 28, r\13p) from HD, basin, bowl (Ex. xii. 22; 
 Zechariah xii. 2) not to be confounded with flQ, threshhold (ver. 24). tlp3 niflp are expressly mentioned in 2 Kings 
 
 xii. 14. 
 
 * Ver. 19.— nirinrD (from Hnn, to hold, seize, specially used of bringing fire, Isa. xxx. 14 ; Prov. vi. 27) are vessels fot 
 : ~ T T 
 
 carrying burning substances, whether coals (Lev. xvi. 13) or lighted incense (Num. xvi. 17 sqq.). 
 
 5 Ver. 19.— ni'D JD are mentioned besides only in Ex. xxv. 29 ; xxxvii. 16 ; Num. iv. 7, and in all these places among 
 
 the utensils of the shew-bread-table (comp. rems. on ri'l£33, ver. 18) and as pertaining to libation, (|n3 Ijp.'' 1 pH)- In Ex. 
 
 xxv. 29 these vessels are expressly designated as to be made of gold. 
 
 Ver. 19.— The double position of ^PtF »nd CIQ3 has the sense of " only" or " wholly" (massive). Comp. Naegelsb. 
 
 T T I •.■ •.• • 
 
 Gr., I 22 6.— The words D'Spn flXI and niT'Dn HXI to nrpJO are wanting in 2 Kings. It is noteworthy that thus 
 
 (a) the repetition of niTD and ^'133, and (6) the plural D'iJD, which occurs nowhere else in the sense of " basins " are 
 
 avoided; (c) that the words following HTl^D and 11133 are also removed. 
 
 " Ver. 20. — With respect to the construction of ver. 20 we are to regard the Bubstaativea set first absolutely as in the 
 accusativo ; us to tlie pillars, etc., th.-ir brass was not to be weighed. The verse is to express that it was those large pieces 
 which raised the weight of the brass to sucli a degree. 
 
 8 Ver. 20.— Instead of in.'^n the Keri would have read (not in 2 Ki.) merely ITIX, probably because both numbers 
 
 T •.■ T T •.• 
 
 stand before and afterwards without the article. Grammatically both are possible. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 73, 2 Anm. 
 
 9 Ver. 20 — The explanation of r\T\r\ in the sense of " instead " is as forced as the assumption that the text originally 
 
 read ni jb^HI is arbitrary. 
 
 10 Ver. '20.— Instead of DPtyn jS (the suffix by anticipation, comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 77, 2 ; Jer. li. 56 and on xlviii. 44) 
 we find in 2 Ki. xxv. 16 simply Hti'nj/- 
 
 " Ver. 21.- The Keri noip, with which the Chethibh in 2 Ki. xxv. 17 and 1 Ki. vii. 14 accords, is unnecessary, for 
 
 HDIp may be regarded as the accusative of measure (comp. Naegelsb. Gr., g 70,5'): eighteen cubits was a pillar as to 
 
 height. 
 
 1'- Ver. 21. — On the construction comp. Naegelsb. Gr., ^9~,2 a and Anm. 1. 
 
 13 Ver. 22.—T\JTJ from "^2^/, nectere, pkctere inus (comp. 72D Nali. i. 10; Job viii. 13; 1|3D, thicket, Gen. xxii. 13, 
 
 etc.), is optis reticulatum, network. Comp. 1 Ki. vii. 17 sqq.; 2 Ki. i. 2; 2 Chron. iv. 12, 13 ; Job xviii. 8. 
 
 1* Ver. 22.— D'jb'l at the close of ver. 22 is wanting in 2 Ki. xxv. 17, and we find instead T\D2^r\~l}?. This makes 
 
 T T : - - 
 
 the impression that this expression seemed unsuitable to the author of Jer. lii. (it must denote together with the network), 
 
 both on account of the 71? and because the pomegranates were also named after the network, and that, in order besides 
 
 the general nbXDI to set forth a special part, he chose in preference the last mentioned, the D'JiDT- 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Vers. 17-20. Also the pillars . . . w^eight. 
 
 Concerning the brazen pillars of Solomon's tem- 
 ple comp. 1 Ki. vii. 15-22; 2 Chron. iii. 15 sqq.; 
 Winer, E.-W.-B., s. v. Jachin und Boas; Her- 
 ZOG, R.-Enc. VI. S. 366, 7. [Wordswoeth, ad 
 
 loc, and Smith's Diet. s. v.]. — The ni'jjp, bases 
 (comp. 1 Ki. vii. 27 sqq.), were pedestals or 
 stands, four cubits long, four broad and three 
 high, to serve as supports for the ten basins re- 
 quired in washing the flesh of the sacrifices (2 
 Chron. iv. 6j. Comp. Keil on the Books of 
 Kings. — The brazen sea (comp. 1 Ki. vii. 23-26; 
 
 1 Chron. xviii. 8; 2 Chron. iv. 2-6) served for 
 the priests' washing (comp. Exod. xxx. 18 sqq.). 
 Winer, .ff.-IF.-fi. s. v.— Herz., .fi.-.E'wc. IX. S. 
 236 sqq. [Comp. Wordsworth and Smith's 
 Dict.'\. — Of the smaller vessels are mentioned 
 niTD. pots for carrying away the ashes from the 
 altar; D'^^'' shovels for removing the ashes; 
 r>n?3fO, not to be confounded with nilDTO, a 
 vlne-dresser's knife, occurring in three places 
 only besides this: 1 Ki. vii. 50; 2 Ki. xii. 14; 
 
 2 Chron. iv. 22, and always with mplIO, of un- 
 certain meaning: Vulg., etc., psaUeria ; Luther, 
 etc., knife ; Gesenius, etc., scissors, lamp-scis- 
 sors, at any rate an instrument so-called a car- 
 pendo ; riip"^ra, which is wanting in 2 Ki., pro- 
 
 bably that it might not occur twice, from DTI. 
 
 sparsit, therefore vas unde spargitur, bowls, men- 
 tioned in Exod. xxvii. 3 ; xxxviii. 3 ; Num. iv. 14 
 among the altar-utensils, therefore used for 
 sprinkling the blood of the sacrifices, but comp. 
 
 also Am. vi. 6 ; D133, likewise of uncertain 
 meaning, LXX. Kpeaypa, flesh-fork, flesh-hook, 
 the moderns — spoons, pans, bowls, on account 
 of their resemblance to the bent hand. Comp. 
 Keil on Kings. In Exod. xxv. 29 these appear 
 among the utensils of the table of shew-bread, 
 comp. Num. vii. 14, 20, 26, etc. Winer, R.- W.-B. 
 and Herz., Real-Enc. s. v. Schaubrodtisch. All 
 these vessels were of brass [Henderson, cop- 
 per]. In the following verse the golden and 
 silver vessels are also enumerated, which the 
 Chaldeans carried away. Hitzio has unjustly 
 attacked ver. 19 as spurious, for it does not in- 
 terrupt the connection, since evidently in vers. 
 18, 19 all the smaller vessels are to be enume- 
 rated, the larger ones having been mentioned in 
 ver. 17. These latter could, of course, be only 
 of brass, but the total amount of the brass plun- 
 dered was so great that it seemed to merit the 
 special emphasis given to it in ver. 20. The 
 golden and silver vessels are not there mentioned, 
 because it was only the brazen ones which were 
 of such immense weight. The pots, sprinkling 
 cups and spoons are mentioned a second time in 
 ver. 19, simply because there were such utensils 
 both of brass and of gold and silver. Hitzig's 
 
442 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 opinion that all the golden and silver vessels had 
 already been carried away at Jelioiachin's de- 
 portation, certainly finds some support in 2 Ki. 
 xxiv. 13 ("all the vessels of gold "). From the 
 circumstance, however, that only golden vessels 
 are spoken of, we may conclude that the cream 
 only was then removed, i. e. the most valuable. 
 The golden vessels of low value as well as all 
 the silver remained for the thorough evacua- 
 tion made by Nebuzar-adan. — The words and 
 twelve brazen buUs -which w^ere under 
 are rightly wanting in 2 Ki. xxv. 16. For they 
 contain a double error: 1. the twelve bulls were 
 not under the bases, but under the sea, accord- 
 ing to 1 Ki. vii. 25; 2 Ki. xvi. 17. 2. In 2 Ki. 
 xvi. 17 it is expressly related that Ahaz had 
 already taken away the twelve bulls and replaced 
 them by a substructure of stone. Whither they 
 went is not indeed stated, but no more is it re- 
 corded that they were restored to their original 
 position. I therefore, in opposition to Keil 
 [Comm. on Kings), agree with those who regard 
 the words in question as the arbitrary addition 
 of some one, whose mind was not clear about 
 the "bases,"' and who had forgotten the passage 
 in 2 Ki. xvi. 17. [Comp. Wordsworth]. 
 
 Vers. 21-23. And the pillars ... a hun- 
 dred. Supplementary and more particular de- 
 scription of the pillars. — And tlxe pillars is 
 wanting in 2 Ki. The height is also stated at 
 eighteen cubits in 1 Ki. vii. 15. The description 
 there given is in general the basis of this. — And 
 
 a fillet, etc., to the end of the verse, is also 
 wanting in 2 Ki. — If the pillars were twelve 
 cubits in circumference, the diameter (comp. 
 Winer, R.-W.-B. s. v. Jachin und Boas) was 
 about four cubits, which gives a perfectly cor- 
 rect proportion. The thickness of the brass was 
 four fingers. Thus the pillars were hollow, as 
 indeed is remarked. — A chapiter. This is the 
 capital, coronamentum of the pillar. Comp. 1 Ki. 
 vii. IG; 2 Chron. iv. 12, 13.— Instead oi five 
 cubits 2 Ki. xxv. 17 has tJiree. The number five 
 is the correct one according to 1 Ki. vii. 16. — 
 Of one is unnecessary, but not incorrect, since 
 of course it is understood not of a second capi- 
 tal, but the capital of the second pillar. It is 
 evidently based on 1 Ki. vii. 16. — The pome- 
 granates were also an ornamentation on the hem 
 of the priest's ephod, or surplice (Ex. xxviii. 33, 
 34). A figure of it may be seen in Thenius, 
 Comm. on Kings, Ta.f. III. Fig. 2 66.— Ver. 23 is 
 entirely wanting in 2 Kings. Ninety-six pome- 
 granates on each pillar were placed nnn, t. e. 
 
 towards the wind, towards the four winds or 
 sides [Henderson after Hitzig, towards the 
 air, the outside of the capitals]. The expres- 
 sion is found here only. Comp. Ezek. xxxvii. 9. 
 It is clear that this is the meaning from the 
 statement that the entire number of the pome- 
 granates attached to the network was a hundred. 
 There must then have been also a pomegranate 
 at each corner. 
 
 4. The Execution of the Representatives of the People and Statement of the Number of the Captives. 
 
 LII. 24-30. 
 
 24 And the captain of the guard [halberdiers] took Seraiah the chief priest, and 
 
 25 Zephaniah the second priest, and the three keepers of the door : He took also out 
 of the city a eunuch [court officer], which had the charge [was^ overseer] of the 
 men of war ; and seven men of them that were near the king's person, which were 
 found in the city; and the principal scribe^ of the host [the scribe, the prince of 
 the host], who mustered the people of the land ; and three-score men of the people 
 
 26 of the land, that were found in the midst of the city. So Nebuzar-adan the cap- 
 tain of the guard took them and brought them to the king of Babylon to Riblah. 
 
 27 And the king of Babylon smote them, and put them to death in Riblah in the land 
 
 28 of Hamath. Thus Judah was carried away captive out of his own land. This is 
 the people whom Nebuchadrezzar carried away captive: in the seventh year three 
 
 29 thousand Jews and three and twenty : In the eighteenth year of Nebuchadrezzar 
 he carried away captive from Jerusalem eight hundred and thirty and two per- 
 
 30 sons : In the three and twentieth year of Nebuchadrezzar Nebuzar-adan the 
 captain of the guard carried away captive of the Jews seven hundred forty and 
 five persons : all the persons were four thousand and six hundred. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 1 Ver. 29. — In 2 Ki. xxv. wo find KIH for 7yT\. The former does not necessarily, as Hitzio asserts, signify "which is." 
 
 TT 
 
 Hin takcH tin- place of the copula generally, without reference to time. Comp. Ewald, § 297 h. 
 * Ver. 2r).— "i£30 r\X1. In 2 Ki. xxt. TSDH, which I regard as the more correct reading. 
 
CHAP. LII. 24-30. 
 
 443 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 Vers. 24-27. And the captain . . . out of 
 his own land. These verses differ from the 
 corresponding verses in 2 Ki. xxv., with the ex- 
 ception of some trifling variations in language, 
 only in the statement of a number (seven in- 
 stead of five in ver. 25), of which hereafter. It 
 is related that representatives of all classes of 
 the people, priests, officials and simple citizens 
 had to suffer death, evidently in token that Ne- 
 buchadnezzar held not only the king but the 
 people guilty of rebellion. At the head of those 
 executed stands the high-priest Seraiah, who is 
 nowhere mentioned in the book of Jeremiah. 
 According to 1 Chron. v. 40 he was the son of 
 Azariah and grandson of Hilkiah ; according to 
 Ezr. vii. 1, Ezra was descended from him. — After 
 Seraiah is mentioned Zephaniah, doubtless the 
 same who is mentioned in xxi. 1 ; xxix. 25, 29 ; 
 xxxvii. 8 as priest simply and son of Maaseiah. 
 Here he is called the second priest, but in 
 2 Ki. xxv. second priest only without the 
 article. As according to 2 Ki. xxiii. 4 (where as 
 here three grades of priests are enumerated) 
 there were several second priests, the reading 
 of the Book of Kings is probably the correct one. 
 Comp. Oehler in IIerzog, R.-Etic. VI. <S'. 203, 4. 
 — The keepers of the door [or threshold] are 
 also mentioned in 2 Ki. xii. 10; xxii. 4; xxiii. 
 4 ; Jer. xxxv. 4. As only three of them are 
 mentioned, we must regard these as the superiors 
 of the four thousand Levitical D''"lJ?ty (1 Chron. 
 
 xxiii. 5). For further details consult Oehler in 
 Herz., R.-Enc. VIII. S. 354-6.— In the second 
 category of those executed are mentioned certain 
 inhabitants of Jerusalem, who held offices at 
 court, especially in the war-department. The 
 city here seems to stand in antithesis both to the 
 temple (ver. 24) and to the country (ver. 25 b). 
 The one D'''^D (court-officer, but possibly at the 
 same time eunuch, comp. rems. on xxix. 2) was 
 not the overseer, but only an overseer, etc. He 
 was therefore one of the generals, perhaps com- 
 mander of the city garrison. — And seven men. 
 In 2 Ki. xxv. we rcad^ye men, wliether correctly 
 or incorrectly cannot here be decided as in vers. 
 12 and 22. The analogy of these cases however 
 favors our text. — That vyere near the king's 
 person, literally, "tliat saw the king's face," 
 viz. in the sense of a daily custom, is a designa- 
 tion of high, yea, highest position (Esth. i. 14 ; 
 comp. Matt, xviii. 10). These were therefore 
 officials of high rank, and as it is not said that 
 they were endued with military functions, they 
 may be regarded as representatives of the civil 
 authorities. — Scribe, the prince of the host. 
 Scribe is not a writer in our sense. The title 
 belongs not only, as Graf supposes, to the 
 "people of the pen," but. is given to the highest 
 officers of State. Comp. 2 Sam. viii. 7 ; xx. 25 ; 
 2 Ki. xii. 11; 1 Chr. xviii. 16 ; xxvii. 32. And 
 in 2 Chr. xxvi. 11 it is e.Kpressly recorded that 
 Uzziah's army went out " by the hand of Jeiel 
 the scribe." This Sopher was not the leader of 
 the host, but chief of the war-departmpnt, min- 
 ister or secretary of war. Comp. S.valschuetz, 
 Mos. Recht. S. 63. — And threescore men. 
 
 These sixty men appear as the third class of per- 
 sons executed, and representatives of the country 
 population, as is indicated by their number and 
 the remark tliat they were found in the midst 
 of the city (2 Kings xxv. I'J "in the city"). 
 This remark would be altogether superfluous, if 
 the object was not to set forth that these men did 
 not originally belong to the city. — On Riblah 
 comp. rems. on xxxix. 5. — Tlie words. Thus 
 Judah was carried aw^ay captive out of his 
 land, are found in both texts and in both places 
 are appropriate. For in Jeremiah they form the 
 transition to the numbering of the deported, and 
 in 2 Kings they lead to the account of what hap- 
 pened in the country after the deportation. Tliey 
 therefore furnish no data for the solution of the 
 question which of the two recensions is the ori- 
 ginal. Moreover, there seems to be an allusion 
 in them to i. 3. 
 
 Vers. 28-30. This is the people . . . four 
 thousand and six hundred. This section is 
 entirely wanting in 2 Kings. It is difficult to 
 bring it into harmony with the other statements 
 respecting the deportations. The differences are 
 as follows: 1. This section speaks of three de- 
 portations, while according to the other testimo- 
 nies of the Old Testament there were only two 
 (under Jehoiakim and Zedekiah). 2 The section 
 follows a divergent chronology, stating that the 
 deportations took place in the seventh, eighteenth 
 and twenty-third years of Nebuchadnezzar, while 
 this very chapter (ver. 12) and 2 Ki. xxiv. 12; 
 xxv. 8 name the eighth and nineteenth years of 
 Nebuchadnezzar as the dates of the deportation, 
 but know nothing of any in the twenty-third 
 year of this king. 3. According to this passage 
 three thousand and twenty-three were carried 
 away the first time, eight hundred and thirtj'-two 
 the second time, seven hundred and forty-five the 
 third time, total four thousand six hundred, 
 which sum is expressly given at the close of ver. 
 30. According to 2 Ki. xxiv. 14-16, however, 
 eighteen thousand souls were carried away at 
 the first deportation alone. There are no counter- 
 statements with regard to the other numbers, but 
 their smallness is surprising ; of this hereafter. 
 On these points we make the following remarks: 
 1. By the seventh year in ver. 28, we are cer- 
 tainly to understand the seventh year of Nebu- 
 chadnezzar, since both the other deportations 
 are dated in years of iliis monarch. 2. These 
 statements are not necessarily erroneous, but may 
 possibly follow another reckoning of the years, 
 and perhaps the same as Josephus follows 
 (Antiqq. X., 8, 5; C. Ap. I., 21), though evi- 
 dently only on the basis of this passage. Comp. 
 NiEBUHR, Ass. u. Bab., S. 58 sqq. 3. Ver. 29 
 mentioning the eighteenth year after ver. 12 has 
 stated the nineteenth as the date of the same fact, 
 shows that we have here another author. 4. 
 The view of Ewald {Gesch. d. V. hr.. III., 1 S 
 435) which Graf also adopts, that in ver. 29 we 
 are to read n^K?^ i'???^> that accordingly owe j/«ar 
 before the last capture of Jerusalem three thou- 
 sand and twenty-three were carried captive from 
 the country (hence D'HIH ), a/Ver the capture eight 
 hundred and thirty-two from the city (hence 
 
 DSK^n'O. ver. 29), and finally five years later 
 
444 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 from the land already somewhat repopulated 
 seven hundred and forty-five, has much in its 
 favor, but is yet not perfectly satisfactory. For 
 the circumstance that the ditference between the 
 eighth and nineteenth, and the seventh and 
 eighteenth years of Nebuchadnezzar is the same, 
 does not authorize us to supply a word n^.^*'.!'' 
 fallen out after J-'^C''. Then, too, the deportation 
 of the mass of the people during the war, at a time 
 when the Egyptian army was to be feared (comp. 
 xxxvii. 5), is scarcely probable. Finally the as- 
 siirapiion of a deportation five years after the 
 capture of the city is pure hypothesis, for which 
 there is no positive testimony. It is also not to 
 De supposed that five years after the destruction, 
 
 admitting the return of a few scattered indi- 
 viduals, an almost equally great number could 
 be carried away as after the destruction of the 
 capital. Would not these have rather again be- 
 taken themselves to flight? 5. Even if we grant 
 that the strikingly small numbers of the exiles 
 are to be judged from a specific point of view, 
 and therefore do not necessarily imply an error, 
 any more than the nuinbjr of tie years of Nebu- 
 chadnezzar's reign, yet the differences between 
 vers. 12 and 28 still remain, with the exceedingly 
 obscure third deportation, as irremovable stones 
 of stumbling, and I therefore agree with Niebuhr, 
 when he says, " it cannot be a subject of doubt 
 that vers. 28-30 in the fifty -second chapter of 
 Jeremiah are a gloss." 
 
 5. 77ie Favorable turn in the Fate of Jehoiachin. 
 LII. 31-34. 
 
 31 ^ And it came to pass in the seven and thirtieth year of the captivity of Jehoi- 
 achin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, in the five and twentieth day of the 
 month, that Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in i\\Q first year of his reign, lifted up 
 
 32 the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah, and brought him forth out of prisun, and 
 spake kindly unto him, and set his throne above the throne of the kings that were 
 
 33 with him in Babylon, and changed^ his prison-garments : and he did continually 
 
 34 eat bread before him all the days of his life. And for his diet, there was a con- 
 tinual diet given him of the king of Babylon, every day a portion [the day's re- 
 quirements] until the day of his death, all the days of his life. 
 
 TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL. 
 
 1 Ver. 31.— 2 Kings xxv. for inpSo lias obo ; ini< Xlf'l is wanting; for X'Slin it reads xS^, instead of XDIlV 
 S;??33 more simply XD3 S^'O ; fm-thor X^'J for'DiJt:' (ver. :3:!) ; for TOn V JijS tlif same words reversed, for ^53 !]_?6 
 (ver. 3 1) merely 'n'73n; tiie words iniO DV IJ? are entirely wanting in 2 Kings. All these alterations indicate that tlie 
 author of 2 Ki. xxv. endeavored to give an, in his opinion, improved text. 
 
 2 Ver. 33.— niliy ia the Hebrew, XJI^ (2 Ki. xxv.) the later Aramaic form. Comp. Olsh., § 233, Anm,., and g 246, h. 
 
 T- T ■ 
 
 Anm. 
 
 EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 To this section there is an almost exactly cor- 
 responding one in 2 Ki. xxv. (27-30). The dif- 
 ferences are unessential: instead of the twenty- 
 fifth day, 2 Ki. xxv. 31 has the twenty-seventh 
 (comp ver. 25, where the reverse is the case), so 
 that one is tempted to think that one of the two 
 authors has interchanged these two passages ; 
 (comp. also rems. on ver. 12). For other ditfer- 
 ences comp. the Textit.\l Notes. — The expres- 
 sion to lift up the head, is found also in Gen. 
 xl. 13 coll. 19 and 20, and designates the eleva- 
 tion of one who is prostrate. Comp. the expres- 
 sion in another sense in Ex. xxx. 12; Num. i. 2, 
 etr. ; Ps. Ixxxiii. 3. — In the first year of his 
 reign. It was evidently an act of grace, which 
 Evil-merodach performed on the occasion of his 
 ascending the throne. May not the influence of 
 
 Daniel and other highly esteemed Jews at the 
 Babylonian court h;ivo operated in favor of the 
 imprisoned king ? — Out of prison. Comp. rems. 
 on xxxvii. 4. — Above the throne. This ex- 
 pression does not mean that Jehoiachin received 
 a seat on the same level, but surpassing the others 
 in height, but that his seat stood higher up than 
 the others, i. e., that he could sit nearer to the 
 king. Whether the others were princes constant- 
 ly or transiently present, may be left undecided. 
 Perhaps both. — His diet, nn.'^X (comp. xl. 5), 
 evidently comprehends all thaUi-'lioiachin needed 
 for himself and household, besides the food which 
 he had at the royal table. The accumulation of 
 expressions, indicating that Jehoiachin continued 
 without interruption to the end of his life to en- 
 joy roj'al honors, shows that this fact gave great 
 satisfaction to the author. — On the chronological 
 relations, comp. Niebuhr, Ass. u. Babel., S. 87 
 sqq. ; Duncker, Gesch. d. Allertk, I., S. 8G4, 6. 
 
CHAP. LII. 31-34. 
 
 445 
 
 — The ascension of the throne by Evil-merodach 
 occurred in the year B. C, 561. It is not abso- 
 lutely impossible that Jeremiah was still alive at 
 this time. Supposing that he began his ministry 
 at the age of twenty, he would be then about 
 eighty-six. Comp. the dates in xxiii. 3, and lii. 
 31. It is also not impossible that he received in 
 Egypt the news of Jehoiachin s exaltation. But 
 this notice includes not only the liberation of 
 the ex-king, but his death (vers. 33, 34). Thus 
 vanishes all probability of Jeremiah's being its 
 author, as well as from the consideration that 
 the notice, if proceeding from Jeremiah, must 
 have been found in another place, and not at the 
 close of this supplement, evidently compiled by a 
 later hand. 
 
 DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL. 
 
 1. " Docemur hoc capite, quod comminationet 
 divinse non sint de pelvi fulgura, quodque Deus pro 
 misericordia sua infinita calamitales a se immissas 
 mitigare plerumque soleat, si seria interveniat poeni- 
 tentia." Forster. 
 
 2. On vers. 1-3. "From this we see why God 
 sometimes places ungodly rulers over a country, 
 who cast it to destruction. It is done on account 
 of the rulers' and the people's sins, that they 
 may draw down the well merited punishment, as 
 Sirach says. On account of violence, injustice 
 and avarice, a kingdom passes from one nation 
 to another (x. 8). So also says king Solomon. 
 Because of the sins of a nation occur many changes 
 of rulers, but for the sake of the people who are 
 intelligent and reasonable, the State is prolonged 
 (Prov. xxviii. 2)." Wurlemb. Summarien. 
 
 3. On ver. 4. " God allows many slight and 
 mild punishments to come as warnings, till at 
 last comes the finishing stroke. This is a wit- 
 ness to the divine long-suffering (Rom. ii. 4)." 
 Cramer. 
 
 4. On ver. 6. "The fact that in this siege com- 
 passionate women had to kill and eat their own 
 children (Lam. iv. 10) is a reminder that by 
 bodily hunger God would punish; 1. satiation 
 and disgust towards His holy word and soul-food; 
 
 2. the terrible offering up of children to Moloch; 
 
 3. the loose discipline of children." Cramer. 
 
 5 On ver. 7. "No fortress can protect the un- 
 godly, even tuough they nad their nest in the 
 clouds." Cramer. 
 
 6. On ver. 8. "An example of faithless, per- 
 jured men of war. But as Zedekiah broke his 
 oath to the king at Babylon, he was paid back in 
 the same coin." Cra.mkr. "His people forsook 
 the poor king Zedekiah on his flight and he was 
 captured, from which we see that great men can- 
 not depend on their body-guard; these flee in 
 time of need, and leave their masters in the lurch. 
 The surest and best protection is when we have 
 the holy angels for our guard . . . This angelic 
 protection is, however, to be obtained and pre- 
 served by faith and godliness, but is lost by un- 
 belief and ungodly conduct." Wurteinb. Summ. 
 
 7. On vers. 9-11. The punishment of perjury. 
 "CTZii moriPtnur, quod fides hosti, etiam barbaro, 
 qualis hodie Turca, a Chrislianis data, mimine 
 violanda.'' FoRSTER. 
 
 8. Ou ver. 9. sqq. "God had shown Zedekiah 
 by Jeremiah a way in which he could escape the 
 
 calamity. But because he forsook the Lord and 
 would not follow it, the others were only leaky 
 cisterns (Jer. ii. 13). For woe to the rebellious 
 who take counsel without the Lord (Isa. xxx. 1). 
 This is useful for an instance against the holy by 
 works, who reject God's way of escaping the 
 Devil; when they devise other ways for them- 
 selves they are caught by the Chaldeans of hell." 
 Cramer. 
 
 9. On ver. 12 sqq. "Holy places, external 
 ceremonies and opus operatum do not avail for 
 hypocrites ... If God punished His own institu- 
 tion so severely, how shall human institutions re- 
 main unpunished?" Cramer. 
 
 10. On ver. 12. " Quale fatum, ne et nostris 
 obtimjat templis . . . caveamus, ne profanemus templa 
 ulterius turn externa vel materialia, turn interna vel 
 spiritualia in cordibus nostris, de quibus 1 Cor. iii. 
 16 sqq.; vi. 19 sqq." Forster. 
 
 11. On ver. 15. " It is another work of mercy 
 that some of Judah were preserved. For God's 
 grace is always to be found in His punishments." 
 Cramer. 
 
 12. On ver. 15. " He who will not serve God 
 and his neighbor at home and in quiet, must 
 learn to do it in a strange land in affliction and 
 distress." Cramer. 
 
 13 On ver. 24 sqq. "As teachers are often to 
 blame for their behaviour that sin gets the upper 
 hand in a community, it is exceedingly just when 
 God brings such for an example into great puni- 
 tive judgment (1 Sam. ii. 27-34)." Stahke. 
 
 14. On ver. 24. "The priests are cauglit and 
 slain ; 1. bscause they could not believe the truth 
 for themselves ; 2. because they led others astray; 
 3. because they appealed to the temple of the 
 Lord; 4. because they persecuted the true pro 
 phets ; 5. because they troubled the whole church 
 of God. But he who troubleth shall bear his judg- 
 ment, whosoever he be (Gal. v. 10)." Cramer. 
 
 15. On ver. 31 sqq. ^' Sa?ie omnino verisimile- 
 videtur j'udicio Philippi Melanchthonis in Chron. part, 
 I fol. 33 Evilmerudachum amplexum esse doctrinam 
 Danielis de Vera Deo, quam et pater publico edicto 
 professus est, eamque ob ca us am dementia m exercuisse 
 erga regem Jechoniam.'' Forster. — '■'■ N arrant 
 Hebrmi hujusmodi fabulam : Evilmerodnch, qui pat re- 
 sua Nabuchodanosor vioenle per sepltiu annos inter 
 bestias, ante regnaverai, postquam ille restitutus 
 in regno est, usque ad mortem patris cum Joakiia 
 rege Judse in vinculis fuit ; quo mortuo, quum rursus 
 in regnum succederet, et non susciperetur a principi- 
 bus, qui metuebant, ne viveret qui dicebatur extincius. 
 ut fidciii patris mortui faceret, aperuit scpulcrum et 
 cadaver ejus unco et funibus traxit." .Jerome on 
 Jer. xiv. 18. 19. Josephvs speaks of it as follows: 
 " 'AfSiAauapuc^nxoc; evi^vc rbu "Ie;);c.u'(ar tuv (^ea/uijv 
 atftciQ Ev Tolc avayKaLordroir tpiAotQ elxe ... '0 yap 
 ivarfjp avTov rf/v TriaTiu ovk kcpvTia^s rtj 'Ifjtwia, 
 napaS'h'Tt /heto yvvaiKibv Kal tekvuv koI rijg avyye- 
 veiac b'Ar/g SKovaiug kavTov vnep rfjQ Trarplrfof, wf hv 
 fi-^ KaraoKaipeLT] Tnjcp'&Eiau rr) TvoAiopKta." (Anf.qq., 
 X. 11, 21.) 
 
 16. On ver. 31 sqq. "Ceterum potest hoc exem- 
 plo, quod Jechonias rex digmtati ■•mx in exilio Baby- 
 lonico restitutus, refutari exceptio Judxorum contra 
 vaticinium Jacohi (Gen. xlix. 10) de Messia jam- 
 dudiim exhibito. postquam per Romanos sceptrum de 
 Judii ablatum id quod tekutjplov Messim Jamjon 
 r.ascUuri ess:: aeouii." Forster. 
 
446 
 
 THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 
 
 17. On ver. 31 sqq. "No one should despair 
 in misfortune, for the right hand of the Highest 
 can change all (Ps. Ixxvii. 10) and Christ rules 
 even in the midst of His enemies (Ps ex. 2). For 
 His are the praise, the glory and the power from 
 everlasting to f^verlastiug. Amen." Cbamek. 
 
 HOMILETIOAL AND PRACTICAL. 
 
 1. On vers. 1-11. The truth of the word "What a 
 man soweth, that shall he also reap," exhibited in 
 the example of the Jewish State under Zedekiah. 
 
 1. The seed (ver. 2) ; 2. The crop (a) the siege, 
 (6) the famine, (c) the capture of the city and 
 flight of the king, (d) the punishment of the king 
 and his princes, (e) the fate of the people (ver. 3). 
 
 2. On vers. 12-20. The rejection of Judah ap- 
 pears at first sight a contradiction. For Jerusa- 
 lem is the holy city (Matt. iv. 5; Neh. xi. 1, 18), 
 the city of God (Ps. xlvi. 5; xlviii. 2, 9; Ixxviii. 
 3) ; the temple is the house of Jehovah (Jer. vii. 
 
 2, etc.); God's service rests on divine authority 
 (Ex. chh. xxv.-xxvii., xxx., xxxi). But God can- 
 not contradict Himself. We have, therefore, to 
 show "the unity of the divine thoughts in the 
 choice and rejection of Jerusalem." 1. The re- 
 jection was a conditional one (vii. 3 sqq). Hence 
 notwithstanding the election the rejection in- 
 volved nothing contradictory, but was a neces- 
 sary tousequence of the unfulfilled ooadition. — 
 
 2. The election remains (a) objectively notwith- 
 standing the rejection ; it is (6) subjectively 
 brought to its realization by the rejection, the 
 latter as a means of discipline operating to pro 
 duce the disposition, from which alone the fulfil 
 ment of this condition can proceed. Comp. rems. 
 on xxxii. 41, p. 288. 
 
 3. On vers. 24-27. "That great lords some- 
 times make an example of gross miscreants, pro- 
 motes righteousness, only it must not be done on 
 the innocent, or with such severity that there is 
 no proportion between the crime and its punish- 
 ment (Josh. vii. 25)." Starke. 
 
 4. On vers. 31-34. The deliverance of Je- 
 hoiachin. 1. It shows us that the Lord can help 
 {a) out of great distress (grievous imprisonment 
 of thirty-seven years), (b) in a glorious manner. 
 2. It admonishes us (a) to steadfast patience, (b) 
 to believing hope, Ps. xiii. ["It was a prelude 
 and pledge of the liberation and exaltation of the 
 Jewish Nation, when it had been humbled and 
 purified by the discipline of suffering; and of its 
 return to its own land ; and a joyful pre-an- 
 nouncement of that far more glorious future 
 restoration which the prophets in the Old Testa- 
 ment, and the Apostles in the New foretell — of 
 Israel to God in Christ; to whom, with the 
 Father and Holy Ghost, be ascribed all honor, 
 glory, dominion, adoration and praise, now and 
 foreyer. Amen." Wordsworth. — S. R. A.]. 
 
A' .>'■<. it.:': 
 
 Date Due 
 
 I