“Now therefore, speak to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Yahweh says: “Behold, I frame evil against you, and devise a plan against you. Everyone return from his evil way now, and amend your ways and your doings.” ’ But they say, ‘It is in vain; for we will walk after our own plans, and we will each follow the stubbornness of his evil heart.’ ”
Therefore Yahweh says: “Ask now among the nations, ‘Who has heard such things?’ The virgin of Israel has done a very horrible thing.
Will the snow of Lebanon fail from the rock of the field? Will the cold waters that flow down from afar be dried up?
For my people have forgotten me. They have burned incense to false gods. They have been made to stumble in their ways, in the ancient paths, to walk in byways, in a way not built up,
to make their land an astonishment, and a perpetual hissing. Everyone who passes by it will be astonished, and shake his head.
I will scatter them as with an east wind before the enemy. I will show them the back, and not the face, in the day of their calamity.
John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On vv11–17 The Prophet is now bidden to turn his discourse…
The Prophet is now bidden to turn his discourse to the Jews, that he might apply the doctrine of repentance, to which he had referred; for a doctrine generally stated, as it is well known, is less efflcient. He then contends here, as it were, in full force with his own nation: Say then to the Jews and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, who indeed ought to have shewn the way to others, but were themselves the worst of all, return ye, he says, every one from his evil way. Here God shews, that what he had before stated generally, applied peculiarly to the Jews, — that he is reconcilable when a sinner returns to him, and that they who disregard and despise his goodness cannot possibly escape unpunished.
Return ye, he says, every one from his evil way, and make right your ways; why so? For behold I frame for you an evil, and I think for you a thought; that is, “Vengeance is now prepared and is suspended over your heads, except ye turn in due time; but if ye truly and from the heart repent, I am ready to receive you.” We see how God includes the two things before referred to: He had previously said, “If I speak against a nation, and it turns from its sins, I immediately repent; but when I promise to be a father to a nation or a kingdom, I do not allow myself and my bounty to be despised, which men do when they reject what I offer.” But he now says, Behold, I think, etc.; this refers to the former clause, the threatenings; and then when he adds, Return ye, he promises pardon; for as it has been said elsewhere and often, there can be no exhortation to repentance without a hope of favor, as God cannot be feared, except there be propitiation with him, according to what is said in Psalm 130:4
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God then shews in this verse, that he was ready to receive the Jews if they repented; but that if they continued perverse as they were wont to be, he would not suffer them to go unpunished, for he thought of evil for them. But this thought included the effect, the execution, as he was the potter, in whose hand and power they were.
Then the Prophet adds what shews how hopeless was the impiety of the people, for all his labor was in vain. It was indeed a monstrous stupidity, when they could not be terrified by God’s threatenings not allured by his kind promises. But the Prophet meant also to shew, that God tried all means to restore the people from ruin to life and salvation, but that all means were tried in vain, owing to the irreclaimable character of the people. I cannot finish the subject to-day; I must therefore defer it till to-morrow.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv12, 14, 15, 17 As men that had no remorse, but were altogether…
As men that had no remorse, but were altogether bent to rebellion and to their own self-will.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv11–17 Jer 18:11 Now therefore go to, speak to the…
Jer 18:11 Now therefore go to, speak to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I frame evil against you, and devise a device against you: return ye now every one from his evil way, and make your ways and your doings good.
Ver. 11. Behold, I frame evil against you.] As the potter frameth his vessel on the wheel.
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Return ye now.] Currat poenitentia, ne praecurrat sententia. Mitte preces et lachrymas, cordis legatos. Let him run from regret not hasten on by feeling. Send prayers and tears as envoys of the heart. Address yourselves to God, and be at peace; so shall good be done unto you. See Jer 3:12; Jer 7:3.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv11–17 The Lord fixeth a particular application to the more…
The Lord fixeth a particular application to the more general doctrine which he had before delivered. God had told this people, that though he had by his prophet denounced his wrath and anger, and threatened to pluck them up and destroy them, yet if they turned from their sinful courses, he would show mercy to them, and alter the course of his providence. Now he tells them that this was their case, God had a work upon the wheel against them, and was framing evil against them, and bringing ruin upon them; therefore it was their wisdom now to return from their evil ways, and to make their doings good. Those who think that these exhortations are vain, if man hath not a power in himself to turn from his evil way, ought to consider that none denieth that man hath a power in himself, by virtue of that common grace of God which he denieth to no man, to turn from such evil courses as were before mentioned, viz. not to carry out burdens upon the sabbath day, not to Bow down to and worship idols, but to worship the true and living God according to the prescription of his word. In short, there is no man but hath a power to do much more than he doth do, and so much as may serve to avert temporal judgment; and although no man without special grace, beyond the outward means of grace, hath a power to do whatsoever God requireth in order to his salvation, yet he hath a power to do so much, as if he doth, no instance can be given of any to whom, so doing, God denied his special grace, enabling him to do whatsoever God requireth of him in order to eternal life.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On v11 These verses seem to be the application of the…
These verses seem to be the application of the general truths laid down in the foregoing part of the chapter to the nation of the Jews and their present state.
I. God was now speaking concerning them to pluck up, and to pull down, and to destroy; for it is that part of the rule of judgment that their case agrees with (Jer 18:11): "Go, and tell them" (saith God), "Behold I frame evil against you and devise against you. Providence in all its operations is plainly working towards your ruin. Look upon your conduct towards God, and you cannot but see that you deserve it; look upon his dealings with you, and you cannot but see that he designs it." He frames evil, as the potter frames the vessel, so as to answer the end.
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II. He invites them by repentance and reformation to meet him in the way of his judgments and so to prevent his further proceedings against them: "Return you now every one from his evil ways, that so (according to the rule before laid down) God may turn from the evil he had purported to do unto you, and that providence which seemed to be framed like a vessel on the wheel against you shall immediately be thrown into a new shape, and the issue shall be in favour of you." Note, The warnings of God's word, and the threatenings of his providence, should be improved by us as strong inducements to us to reform our lives, in which it is not enough to turn from our evil ways, but we must make our ways and our doings good, conformable to the rule, to the law.
III. He foresees their obstinacy, and their perverse refusal to comply with this invitation, though it tended so much to their own benefit (Jer 18:12): They said, "There is no hope. If we must not be delivered unless we return from our evil ways, we may even despair of ever being delivered, for we are resolved that we will walk after our own devices. It is to no purpose for the prophets to say any more to us, to use any more arguments, or to press the matter any further; we will have our way, whatever it cost us; we will do every one the imagination of his own evil heart, and will not be under the restraint of the divine law." Note, That which ruins sinners is affecting to live as they list. They call it liberty to live at large; whereas for a man to be a slave to his lusts is the worst of slaveries. See how strangely some men's hearts are hardened by the deceitfulness of sin that they will not so much as promise amendment; nay, they set the judgments of God at defiance: "We will go on with our own devices, and let God go on with his; and we will venture the issue."
IV. He upbraids them with the monstrous folly of their obstinacy, and their hating to be reformed. Surely never were people guilty of such an absurdity, never any that pretended to reason acted so unreasonably (Jer 18:13): Ask you among the heathen, even those that had not the benefit of divine revelation, no oracles, no prophets, as Judah and Jerusalem had, yet, even among them, who hath heart such a thing? The Ninevites, when thus warned, turned from their evil ways. Some of the worst of men, when they are told of their faults, especially when they begin to smart for them, will at least promise reformation and say that they will endeavour to mend. But the virgin of Israel bids defiance to repentance, is resolved to go on frowardly, whatever conscience and Providence say to the contrary, and thus has done a horrible thing. She should have preserved herself pure and chaste for God, who had espoused her to himself; but she has alienated herself from him, and refuses to return to him. Note, It is a horrible thing, enough to make one tremble to think of it, that those who have made their condition sad by sinning should make it desperate by refusing to reform. Wilful impenitence is the grossest self-murder; and that is a horrible thing, which we should abhor the thought of.
V. He shows their folly in two things: -
1. In the nature of the sin itself that they were guilty of. They forsook God for idols, which was the most horrible thing that could be, for they put a most dangerous cheat upon themselves (Jer 18:14, Jer 18:15): Will a thirsty traveller leave the snow, which, being melted, runs down from the mountains of Lebanon, and, passing over the rock of the field, flows in clear, clean, crystal streams? Will he leave these, pass these by, and think to better himself with some dirty puddle-water? Or shall the cold flowing waters that come from any other place be forsaken in the heat of summer? No; when men are parched with heat and drought, and meet with cooling refreshing streams, they will make use of them, and not turn their backs upon them. The margin reads it, "Will a man that is travelling the road leave my fields, which are plain and level, for a rock, which is rough and hard, or for the snow of Lebanon, which, lying in great drifts, makes the road impassable? Or shall the running waters be forsaken for the strange cold waters? No; in these things men know when they are well off, and will keep so; they will not leave a certainty for an uncertainty. But my people have forgotten me (Jer 18:15), have quitted a fountain of living waters for broken cisterns. They have burnt incense to idols, that are as vain as vanity itself, that are not what they pretend to be nor can perform what is expected from them." They had not the common wit of travellers, but even their leaders caused them to err, and they were content to be misled. (1.) They left the ancient paths, which were appointed by the divine law, which had been walked in by all the saints, which were therefore the right way to their journey's end, a safe way, and, being well-tracked, were both easy to hit and easy to walk in. But, when they were advised to keep to the good old way, they positively said that they would not, Jer 6:16. (2.) They chose by-paths; they walked in a way not cast up, not in the highway, the King's highway, in which they might travel safely, and which would certainly lead them to their right end, but in a dirty way, a rough way, a way in which they could not but stumble; such was the way of idolatry (such is the way of all iniquity - it is a false way, it is a way full of stumbling-blocks) and yet this way they chose to walk in and lead others in.
2. In the mischievous consequences of it. Though the thing itself were bad, they might have had some excuse for it if they could have promised themselves any good out of it. But the direct tendency of it was to make their land desolate, and, consequently, themselves miserable (for so the inhabitants must needs be if their country be laid waste), and both themselves and their land a perpetual hissing. Those deserve to be hissed that have fair warning given them and will not take it. Every one that passes by their land shall make his remarks upon it, and shall be astonished, and way his head, some wondering, others commiserating, others triumphing in the desolations of a country that had been the glory of all lands. They shall wag their heads in derision, upbraiding them with their folly in forsaking God and their duty, and so pulling this misery upon their own heads. Note, Those that revolt from God will justly be made the scorn of all about them, and, having reproached the Lord, will themselves be a reproach. Their land being made desolate, in pursuance of their destruction, it is threatened (Jer 18:17), I will scatter them as with an east wind, which is fierce and violent; by it they shall be hurried to and fro before the enemy, and find no way open to escape. They shall not only flee before the enemy (that they might do and yet make an orderly retreat), but they shall be scattered, some one way and some another. That which completes their misery is, I will show them the back, and not the face, in the day of their calamity. Our calamities may be easily borne if God look towards us, and smile upon us, when we are under them, if he countenance us and show us favour; but if he turn the back upon us, if he show himself displeased, if he be deaf to our prayers and refuse us his help, if he forsake us, leave us to ourselves, and stand at a distance from us, we are quite undone. If he hide his face, who then can behold him? Job 34:29. herein God would deal with them as they had dealt with him (Jer 2:27), They have turned their back unto me, and not their face. It is a righteous thing with God to show himself strange to those in the day of their trouble who have shown themselves rude and undutiful to him in their prosperity. This will have its full accomplishment in that day when God will say to those who, though they have been professors of piety, were yet workers of iniquity, Depart from me, I know you not, nay, I never knew you.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv11–17 Therefore thus saith the Lord,.... This being the case…
Therefore thus saith the Lord,.... This being the case of the people of the Jews, and they so resolutely bent on their own ways:
ask ye among the Heathen; inquire among the nations of the world, the Gentiles that know not the true God, and have not the external revelation of his will, only the dim light of nature to guide them; and see if anything like this is to be found among them, as with this people, favoured with the law of God, his word and ordinances to direct them, and his prophets to teach and instruct them; suggesting that they were worse than the Heathens, and that it would be more tolerable for them, one day, than for these people:
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who hath heard such things? as expressed in the preceding verses; such desperate words, such bold and daring expressions, such impious resolutions; for generally, when persons are reproved and threatened for sin, they promise amendment; or what is after related concerning their idolatries; intimating that nothing like it was ever heard of among the Gentiles; see Jer 2:10;
the virgin of Israel hath done a very horrible thing; the congregation of Israel, as the Targum; the people of the Jews, ironically so called; because they had been espoused to the Lord as a chaste virgin, and ought to have remained so, pure and incorrupt in the worship of him; but had committed spiritual adultery, that is, idolatry; even very gross acts of it; horrible to hear and think of; enough to make a man's hair stand an end to be told of; or what was very filthy and abominable, and to be loathed and detested, which is explained, Jer 18:15; unless it can be thought to refer to what goes before, concerning their dreadful resolution to continue in their evil ways.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv14–17 Of Lebanon - Lebanon had rocks, and also fruitful…
Of Lebanon - Lebanon had rocks, and also fruitful valleys; snow fell upon these rocks, and upon a thaw ran down into the lower places. Reason teaches men not to forsake a greater good for a less, tho' that greater good was but a poor creature comfort, not to be compared with God.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv12, 13, 14, 16, 17 Verse 12. There is no hope] See Jer 2:25.
Verse 12. There is no hope] See Jer 2:25.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv11, 13, 15 Jer 18:11-12. Now therefore speak to the men of…
Jer 18:11-12. Now therefore speak to the men of Judah — The Lord now commands his prophet to make a particular application of the more general doctrine which he had before delivered. Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I frame evil against you — I have a work upon the wheel, which, when finished, will effect your ruin; it is therefore your wisdom now to return from your evil ways, and make your doings good. And they said, There is no hope — Thou dost but labour in vain in talking to us. We will walk after our own devices — We will proceed forward in our old course; and we will every one do the imagination of his evil heart — It cannot be supposed that they would call the imaginations of their hearts evil; nor does the prophet mean that they actually expressed themselves in these words; but this was the language of their conduct. They gave evident proof that they were determined to continue in their sins.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv11–17 The word rendered “frame” is a present participle, and…
The word rendered “frame” is a present participle, and is the same which as a noun means “a potter.” God declares that He is as free to do what He will with the Jews as the potter is free to shape as he will the clay.
Devise a device - “I am purposing a purpose.”
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv12–17 Hopes. Chap. ii. 25. Septuagint, "we are valiant men."…
Hopes. Chap. ii. 25. Septuagint, "we are valiant men." (Haydock)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures 1864 · Public Domain On v11 11 And now speak indeed4 to the men of…
2. THE INTERPRETATION OF THE PARABLE IN THE POSITIVE SENSE
Jer_18:11-17
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11 And now speak indeed4 to the men of Judah,
And to5 the inhabitants [citizens] of Jerusalem, saying,
Thus saith Jehovah: Behold!
I frame evil against you, and think thoughts against you:
Turn ye now, each from his evil way,
And reform your ways and your works.
12 But they will say: No use!6 but our thoughts we will follow,
And will practise, each according to the obstinacy7 of his wicked heart.
13 Therefore thus saith Jehovah:
Inquire now among the nations, who hath heard the like?
The virgin Israel hath done a very horrible thing.8
14 Ceases9 from the rock of the field the snow of Lebanon?
Or do the strong,10 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,11
To walk in roads of an unleveled way,
16 To make their land a desolation,
An object of everlasting derision?12
He who only passes through will be astounded at it,
And will shake his head.13
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.
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
After it had been shown in Jer_18:5-10 that the Lord was not bound by His promises with respect 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 declares what, like a potter, he is about to form, viz., calamity. The expression יוֹצֵר, Jer_18:11, is the only point in which this strophe supports itself on the preceding parable, for in what follows there is no further reference to it. To the brief application and exposition of this word, is attached an exhortation to repentance and reformation (Jer_18:11 b), to which the people answer with stubborn rejection (Jer_18:12). On account of this unheard of (Jer_18:13), and unnatural apostasy (Jer_18:14-15), desolation, dispersion and flight are again announced to the people as the divine punishment (Jer_18:16-17).
Jer_18:11-12. 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 (יוצר). In the transferred sense the word is used also in Isa_22:11; Isa_37:26; Isa_46:11; Jer_33:2.—Think. Comp Jer_49:30. The words from turn to way, are found verbatim in Jer_25:5; Jer_35:15. In the last passage is found also the rest of the verse with the exception of דרביבם, your works. Comp. Jer_7:3; Jer_26:13.
Jer_18:13-17. Therefore thus … day of their fall. From the peremptory declaration which Israel made in Jer_18:12, it is concluded that this nation has rendered itself guilty of unfaithfulness, the like of which is found neither in history (Jer_18:13), nor in nature (Jer_18:14).—Inquire now. Comp. Jer_2:10-11.—Virgin. Comp. Amo_5:2; Jer_31:4; Jer_31:21.—Ceases, etc. According 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 nation 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 צוּר שָֹׁדַי. 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 Jer_17:3 appears under the designation בַשָּׂדֶה, and in Jer_21:13 as צוּר הַמִּישׁוֹר. 2. That in Psa_133:3 also the dew of Hermon, which descends on Mt. Zion, is spoken of, and in Pro_25:23 it is said: the north wind brings [Eng. Vers.: driveth away] rain. 3. That the expression snow 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 between 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 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 representation of natural and most intimate union. Now other traces show that the Israelites acknowledged the sea to be the true and proper source of rain and moisture for the land, which it also is in fact (comp. 1Ki_18:44-45; Luk_12:54; Winer, R. W. B, s. v., Winde;Raumer, Paläst. S. 91). Hence in Palestine the rainy winds are the West and South-west, which the Arabs also call the “fathers of the rain.” In Pro_25:23 the north-west wind is probably to be understood by רוּחַ צָפוֹן, since the north wind, as with us, is cold, producing frost (Job_37:9-10; Sir_43:20). 2. In Jer_17:3הררי בֹשׂדה is a designation of the whole land, for it is not=my 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 Jer_21:13 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 subjects. 3. That it is not said, Ceases the snow from the rock of the field, from Lebanon? but ceases the snow of Lebanon? etc., is certainly remarkable and in other circumstances would be a strong proof that the prophet wished to distinguish the rock and the mountain. For Lebanon alone presented to them the picture of a snowcapped 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 nivibus) 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, according to which צוּר שָׂדַי is Lebanon itself, Isaiah 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 quality of disappearing rapidly, is particularly adapted to serve as an emblem of the most faithful adherence. It seems as though Tacitus had this passage in view, when he wrote (Hist. V., 6): “Præcipuum montium Libanum erigit, mirum dictu, tantos inter ardores opacum fidumque nivibus. Idem amnem Jordanem alit fanditque.” Comp. J. D. Mich., Observ. in Jer., p. 161.—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 emblem of the צוּר עוֹלָמִים, which is spoken of in Isa_26:4, and of the צוּר יִשְׂרָאֵל, in Isa_30:29? The snow never forsakes the צור שׂדי, but Israel, changeable as the snow, easily forsakes the צור עולמים!—Dry up. The meaning of tearing out, uprooting, which נָתַשׂ includes, is not inappropriate if taken in the figurative sense. The change into יִנָּשְׁתוּ [dry up], which perhaps lies at the basis of the old translations, with the exception of the Vulgate, and which is supported on Isa_19:5; Isa_41:17; Jer_51:30, is therefore 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, Paläst., S. 30. In Son_4:15 also the rippling waters of Lebanon are used as a comparison. 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 (קָרִים, comp. Pro_25:25; Pro_17:27) needs no change; the meaning “cold” is perfectly appropriate.—Rippling, נזלים, comp. Exo_15:8; Isa_44:3; Psa_78:16; Pro_5:15; Son_4:15.—That my people, etc. This gives the reason why the questions in Jer_18:13-14 have been put. Since the people have forgotten Him (Jer_2:32), the Lord looks about to see whether anything similar occurs elsewhere. Comp. Psa_8:5.—Made them stumble. The nominative is the collective idea of the idols designated by שָׁוְא, vanity. [Henderson: false prophets and idolatrous priests.—S. R. A.] Comp. 2Ch_28:23.—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 (Jer_2:32; Jer_7:25-26; Jer_11:10), 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 Jer_2:2 not withstanding Jer_7:25 is not to be maintained too unconditionally), yet the way of Jehovah was the way everlasting (Jer_6:16), 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 immediate and first consequence of the effect designated by made to stumble, while to make … a desolation, Jer_18:16, denotes the mediate consequence.—Like the east wind. Comp. Exo_14:21; Psa_48:8; Isa_27:8; Hos_13:15; Joh_4:8.—Back, etc. Comp. Jer_2:27.
Footnotes:
[4]Jer_18:11.—[Henderson: I charge thee. Blayney: I pray thee.—S. R. A.]
[5]Jer_18:11.—On the change of אֵל to עַל, comp. Textual Note2 on Jer_10:1.
[6]Jer_18:12.—נואשׁ, Niph. part, of יאשׁ, to despair. Comp. Comm. on Jer_2:25. [Henderson: It is hopeless. Blayney: It is a thing not to be hoped.]
[7]Jer_18:12.—שְׁררוּת. The expression is found here only as the object of עשׂה, elsewhere always with בְ or אחרי after הלד (comp. Jer_3:17; Jer_9:13; Jer_16:12; Jer_7:24; Jer_11:8; Jer_13:10; Jer_23:17).
[8]Jer_18:13.—שׁעררת. This form is found here only. Comp. Hos_6:10; Jer_5:30; Jer_23:14.
[9]Jer_18:14.—There is no other instance of the construction in יַֽעֲוֹב מִן ו׳, for עזב is used transitively even in Gen_24:27. Should we not perhaps read מְצוֹר instead of מִצוּר? מָצוֹר is not merely circumvallatio, but also munimentum, arx, turris. Comp. Hab_2:1. Gesen. Thes., p. 1161.
[10]Jer_18:14.—Instead of זָרִים, which certainly affords no satisfactory meaning, the LXX. seems to have read זִדִיִם, the proud, splendid. So also Meier in comparison with מַיִם יֶידוֹנִים, Psa_124:5. Ewald (and after him Graf) derives זָרִים from זָרַר, to press. This word, however, signifies constrinxit, compressit, and the meaning to press forth is a bare assumption. If the word is to be altered, it is then better to agree with Meier. [“זָרִים from זוּר, to compress, straiten, is descriptive of streams, as contracted within narrow channels, while descending through the gorges and defiles of the rocks. The use of the verb נָזַל. Arab, nazal, להה ב discendit loco, 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. R. A.]
[11]Jer_18:15.—The form שָׁבוּל here only in the Chethibh; שָׁבִיל Psa_77:20. The word does not recur.
[12]Jer_18:16.—שׁרוקת. This form here only; שׁריקת in Jdg_5:16. In Jeremiah שְּׁרֵקָת only occurs elsewhere: Jer_19:8; Jer_25:9; Jer_25:18; Jer_29:18; Jer_51:37.
[13]Jer_18:16.—יניד בראשׁו. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 69, 1. Anm. 2. The expression occurs here only. Comp. Psa_44:15; Psa_22:8; Psa_109:25.
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv11–17 frame evil--alluding to the preceding image of "the potter,"…
frame evil--alluding to the preceding image of "the potter," that is, I, Jehovah, am now as it were the potter framing evil against you; but in the event of your repenting, it is in My power to frame anew My course of dealing towards you.
return, &c.-- (Kg2 17:13).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv11–16 APPLICATION OF THE PARABLE, Jer_18:11-17.
APPLICATION OF THE PARABLE, Jer_18:11-17.
11. Frame — The Hebrew word here is kindred with that for potter, so that the continued reference to the illustration already given is more specific than appears in the Authorized Version.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 17 11. The direct application of the figure to the…
11. The direct application of the figure to the people here begins.
frame] The Hebrew root is the same as that for potter.
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amend your ways and your doings] See on ch. Jer_7:3.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv11–17 (11) I frame evil.—The verb chosen is that which…
(11) I frame evil.—The verb chosen is that which specially describes the potter’s work, and from which the Hebrew word for potter is itself derived. This, so to speak, is the shape of the vessel actually in hand, determining its use, but its form is not unalterably fixed. It is shown in terrorem, and the people are invited to accept the warning by repentance.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv11–17 Vers. 11, 12. The fatalism of the wicked.
Vers. 11, 12. The fatalism of the wicked.
The conception of God"s judicial omnipotence furnished in the parable of the potter is misinterpreted by the wicked. It is made a reason for continuing in their sin, they arguing that it is their fate, or needs be, to follow in the path they have chosen.
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I IN THIS WE HAVE AN ILLUSTRATION OF THE SOWER OF EVIL HABIT. Sin has acquired such influence over the nature that it becomes its ruler. A recklessness born of desperation takes the place of prudent and hopeful counsels. The inward indisposition colors the view that is taken of the possibilities of the situation. Instead of the sinner seeing that his condition is due to a continual withdrawal from God, he declares that he is "past feeling," that God"s grace cannot save him, and that it is "no use." But
II IT IS NOT JUSTIFIED BY:
1. The condition of God"s opposition. It is the perverseness and unreality of man. He refuses to suffer. False religion God will not accept.
2. The circumstances of the simmer. So long as life continues there is hope. The repetition of the gospel"s appeal has the same significance. Are there any signs of relenting in his mind now? any stirrings of heavenly aspiration? any shame and sorrow for past sin? God"s Spirit has not ceased to strive with him, and he may yet be saved.
3. The means of salvation that offer themselves. Christ is both able and willing to save. His sacrifice on the cross is a finished work and a complete atonement for our sin. "The Spirit helpeth our infirmities." He is able to save "unto the uttermost," etc.
III IT IS A SUPREME EXPRESSION OF WICKEDNESS AND WILL BE PUNISHED AS SUCH.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv11, 12, 14, 17 Return ye now everyone from his evil way.
Jer_18:11
Return ye now everyone from his evil way.
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Return! Return!
My text is all about repentance; it is an exhortation from God, very brief and sententious, but very earnest and plain: Return ye now everyone from his evil way. I want you all to notice that this is the call of mercy. God would have you saved, and therefore He cries to you, Return, because He is willing to receive you, and to blot out all your sin. But remember that it is equally the call of a holy God, the God who knows that you cannot be saved except you turn from your evil ways. Thou must be made to hate thy sin, or else, where God is, thou canst never come.
I. What does the text say? The picture is that of a man who is going the wrong way. He is trespassing, he is on forbidden ground, he is advancing in a dangerous road, and if he shall continue to go in that direction, he will by and by come to a dreadful precipice over which he will fall, and there he will be ruined. A voice cries to him, Return! What does that word mean? It is very simple, and that I may make it plainer still, perhaps, for practical purposes, let me say that the first thing such a man would do would be to stop. If I was out in the country, on a road which I did not know, and I heard a voice crying out to me, Return, I should certainly stop, and listen; and if I heard the cry repeated, with great eagerness and earnestness, Return! Return! I should pause, and look round, and try to see who it was that had called to me. I wish that all of you who are wandering away from God, would stop, and consider where you are going. In Gods name, I would arrest thee; as Gods officer, I would put my hand on thy shoulder, and say to thee, Thou must stop; thou shalt pause; thou shalt consider thy ways. I cannot let thee go on carelessly to thy ruin, like a sheep into the slaughter house, or a bullock going to be killed. Stop, I pray thee. Suppose a man did stop, that would not be returning; it is but the commencement of the return when a man stops, but it will be necessary for him, next, to turn round. The order for him to obey is, Right about face. There must be a total, a radical change in you, ii you are really to obey the command, Return. I think I hear you ask, Who can effect this change? And I am glad to hear that question, for I trust it will lead you to pray, Turn me, O Lord, and I shall be turned! There is something done towards returning when a man stops, there is still more done when he turns round; yet he does not actually return until, with persevering footsteps, the wanderer hastens back to him from whom he had departed. What God desires is that all His prodigal children should come home, that His stray sheep should be brought back to the fold, that the lost pieces of silver should be put into the treasury again; that, indeed, you who have wandered in sin should be as they are whom Christ has washed in His precious blood, whom the Holy Spirit has regenerated, and whom the Father has adopted, and put among His children.
II. When are sinners to return? Return ye now everyone from his evil way. The voice of God bids you to return now, and I would urge you to do so, because life is so uncertain that, if you do not return now, you may not live to return at all. He who would have his estate rightly ordered when he is dead should have his will made, everybody says that; and he who would have his eternal estate ordered aright should yield himself at once to the sovereign will of the Most High, for life is uncertain. Return, now, for the calls of grace may not always come to you. Recollect, also, that your sin will be increased by delay. If you keep on in the wrong path, not only will you have sinned the more, but that sin will have taken a more terrible hold upon you. Habits begin like cobwebs, but they end like chains of iron. Moreover, it is well for us to return unto our God now, because the sooner we return to Him the sooner we shall enjoy His favour, and the more delightful will our life become. Peace with God makes even this life to be a blessed life; and he who has it begins, even here, to enjoy the felicities of the glorified. Do you not see, too, that God will have the more service from you? The sooner you are brought to Him, the longer will you have of life in which to serve Him. If any of you have gone past youth, into manhood, and to middle age, or even to old age, then the word now should come to you with a sharp, clear crack, as of a rifle. It comes like a staccato note in music, Now! Now! Now! Yet once more, return now, because, if ever there is a reason for returning, that reason points to the present moment. If there is a hope that a man will leave his sin some time or other, there must be a better hope that he will leave it now than that he will leave it in a years time. Wisdoms voice cries, Now! It is folly that says, Tarry.
III. Who is the person that is to return? Everyone. Many of you have returned. But every man, every woman, every child who has not returned, should hear the voice of the Lord repeating this message. Well, says one, perhaps there will be some people converted through this sermon. Do not talk so, I pray you. Will you be converted through it? Possibly some of you are like the man we read of in the papers some time ago. He was walking by the seaside, and trod on a large chain, and slipped his foot right through one of the links. When he tried to draw it back again, he could not, for he was held fast. The tide was coming in, and there he was a prisoner. He had to call long and loud before anybody came; and by the time the people arrived, he had very much hurt his foot in endeavouring to extricate himself. He begged them to run for the smith, that he might come, and break the iron. He came, but he brought the wrong tools with him, so he could not accomplish the task. It would be some time before he could be back, and, meanwhile, the tide had come in, and the water was up to the mans feet, so he cried, Run for the surgeon. Let him come, and cut my leg off; it is the only hope of saving my life. But by the time the surgeon came, the water was up to the mans neck, so the doctor could not get down to where his foot was fast in the iron chain, and there was nothing that could be done for him. There he was, poor fellow, and the tide rolled over him, and he was drowned. Some of you seem to me to be just like that man, held fast by some invisible force; yet, when I try to get at the chain, I cannot find out what it is, it is so far under the water. Perhaps you do not yourself know what it is. I am going to make a dive to try to get at it, as I ask my last question concerning the text.
IV. From what are these people to return? From his evil way. Then, each man has a way of his own,--an evil way of his own,--some personal form of sin. What is your own way? Is it some constitutional sin to which you are prone? Well, asks one, what do you think is my evil way? I will answer by putting another question to you, What is the sin into which you most frequently fall? I should think you can tell that, and that is the evil way from which you have most to fear. It is from that one way that you are called upon specially to return. Tonight, if you were tempted, to which temptation would you be most likely to yield? You do not know, you say; well then, let me put another question to you. When do you get most angry if anybody rebukes you? What is it in the preaching that makes you say, There, I will never go to hear that man again; he cuts my hair so short, he comes quite close to the skin? Well now, that will help you to find out what is your own personal evil way; and it is from that way that you are to return. Again, what sin of yours eats up the other sins? Where does your money mostly go? You could have told that Joseph was Jacobs favourite, because he made him a coat of many colours; and there are some sins that wear the coat of many colours, and often, as it were, it is dipped in the mans own blood, for everything goes for that particular sin. But I have not hit on your sin yet, my friend, have I? You have an evil way which you will not tell to anyone; it is not as bad as any I have mentioned; it is a very respectable kind of evil way which you have. Your evil way is this, the evil way of self-righteousness. It makes out that the death of Christ was a superfluity; it tells God that He is wrong in charging a man with sin; it raises a clamour against God; it claims as a right every good thing that God has to give; it does, in fact, uncrown the Saviour, bid the Holy Spirit go His way as no longer needed, and throws the Gospel, which is the crown jewel of God, into the mire. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Returning from evil ways
There are two things proper to a man that returneth: first, to go a way clean contrary to the way he went before; secondly, to tread out and obliterate his former steps, First, I say, he must go a way clean contrary to his former way. Many men think that the way to hell is but a little out of the way to heaven, so that a man in small time, with small ado, may pass out of the one into the other; but they are much deceived: for as sin is more than a stepping aside, namely, a plain, a direct going away from God; so is repentance, or the forsaking of sin, more than a little coasting out of one way into another. Crossings will not serve; there is no way from the road of sin to the place we seek, but to go quite back again the way we came. The way of pleasure in sin must be changed for sorrow for the same. He that hath superstitiously worshipped false gods must now as devoutly serve the true; the tongue that hath uttered swearings, and spoken blasphemies, must as plentifully sound forth the name of God in prayer and thanksgiving; the covetous man must become liberal; the oppressor of the poor as charitable in relieving them; the calumniator of his brother a tender guarder of his credit: in fine, he that hated his brother before must now love him as tenderly as himself. (Joseph Mede.)
Repentance useless without amendment
Repentance without amendment is like continual pumping in a ship, without stopping the leaks. (J. Palmer.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v11 The Parable Further Applied
The Parable Further Applied
v. 11. Now, therefore, go to, speak to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, in announcing the intention of the Lord on the basis of the nation’s behavior, saying, Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I frame evil against you, shaping it as the potter shapes the clay on his wheel, and devise a device against you, a plan to work destruction; return ye now, every one, from his evil way and make your ways and your doings good, so that all their doings would bear the inspection of His holy eyes.
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v. 12. And they said, once more stubbornly refusing to heed the warning of the Lord, There is no hope, or, "No use!" But we will walk after our own devices, following after the wicked designs of their own mind, and we will every one do the imagination of his evil heart, abandoning themselves entirely to their sins and to the penalty placed upon them by God.
v. 13. Therefore, thus saith the Lord, in expressing His horror over such behavior as here exhibited by Judah, Ask ye now among the heathen who hath heard such things. The virgin of Israel, the Lord’s betrothed, in whose case one would not have believed such shameless indecency possible, hath done a very horrible thing, an act which was abominable in His sight.
v. 14. Will a man leave the snow of Lebanon which cometh from the rock of the field? literally, ’’Will the snow of Lebanon desert the rock of the mountain range?" the point of comparison being in the fact that the snow of the mountains is perennial. Or shall the cold flowing waters that come from another place be forsaken? Will the strange, cold, rippling waters, fed by the glaciers of Hermon, dry up? As the snow covers the summits of Lebanon with a perpetual mantle, so the flow of waters at its foot is perpetual, there is no interruption, the connection between the two is unbroken. All the more reprehensible, then, is the conduct of the people of Judah.
v. 15. Because My people hath forgotten Me, they have burned incense to vanity, to the idols, which are nothing in the sight of God, and they have caused them to stumble in their ways from the ancient paths, thus leaving the way of the conduct prescribed by God in ancient days, to walk in paths, in a way not cast up, where proper progress was impossible;
v. 16. to make their land desolate and a perpetual hissing, an object of eternal derision and loathing; every one that passeth thereby, taking note of the desolation which had come upon the former rich land, shall be astonished, be rigid with astonishment, and wag his head, in a gesture expressing malicious enjoyment of their misfortune.
v. 17. I will scatter them as with an east wind, a violent wind from the desert, before the enemy; I will show them the back, and not the face, in the day of their calamity, this being done in just retribution upon them, for they had turned their backs to Him and refused Him obedience, 2:27. This threat on the part of God filled the reprobates with fury, which was promptly directed against Jeremiah, His faithful servant.
v. 18. Then said they, Come and let us devise devices against Jeremiah, planning wicked designs against his person and life; for the Law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. The meaning evidently is this, that they had no need of Jeremiah, the prophet of doom, since they would always have priests to instruct them, wise men to advise them, and prophets to proclaim to them the Word of the Lord, men, moreover, more to their liking, who would not be forever harping on the subject of repentance and judgment. Come and let us smite him with the tongue, making life unbearable for him by defamation, shortening his life by the grief caused him by this manner of dealing with him, and let us not give heed to any of his words, this being another way in which they intended to show their spite. The prophet, therefore, raises his voice in an earnest appeal to God.
v. 19. Give heed to me, O Lord, listening attentively to his cry for deliverance and protection, and hearken to the voice of them that contend with me, taking note of those who oppose him in his work.
v. 20. Shall evil be recompensed for good? namely, by the fact that the evil plans of his adversaries would be successful. For they have digged a pit for my soul, where they hoped to catch him unawares. Remember that I stood before Thee to speak good for them, in an earnest intercession in their behalf, Cf. Jer 14:7 ff. and to turn away Thy wrath from them, pleading that the Lord would not visit their iniquity upon them.
v. 21. Therefore, because they disregarded all attempts to bring them to their senses and increased in wickedness from day to day, deliver up their children to the famine, and pour out their blood by the force of the sword, the sword, in the Hebrew, being regarded as possessing hands to perform its murderous work; and let their wives be bereaved of their children and be widows, losing also their husbands, with whom they were one in wickedness; and let their men be put to death; let their young men be slain by the sword in battle.
v. 22. Let a cry be heard from their houses, as the attacking forces enter, when thou shalt bring a troop suddenly upon them, namely, the murderous hordes of the invaders; for they have digged a pit to take me and hid snares for my feet, as the fowler does for the bird.
v. 23. Yet, Lord, Thou knowest all their counsel against me to slay me, being fully aware of their murderous plans against Jeremiah. Forgive not their iniquity, neither blot out their sin from Thy sight, indulgently overlooking their wickedness, but let them be overthrown before Thee; deal thus with them in the time of Thine anger. This appeal, altogether in the manner of the imprecatory psalms, was inspired by the zeal of the prophet for the honor of Jehovah, since the opponents stubbornly refused to listen to reason and to the warnings of God which called them to repentance.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv11, 13, 15 This tells the reader to pay special attention to…
See
This tells the reader to pay special attention to what follows. AT: "Look" or "Listen" or "Pay attention to what I am about to tell you"
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I am about to form disaster against you. I am about to devise a plan against you
Yahweh speaks of planning disaster as if disaster were an object that he forms, like the potter would form clay. The second sentence repeats the same idea as the first using different words. AT: "I am about to devise a plan to bring disaster against you" (See: Metaphor and Parallelism)
devise a plan
"make a plan"
his wicked way
Yahweh speaks of a person's lifestyle as if it were a "way" or path along which the person walks. AT: "his wicked way of living" (See: Metaphor)
so your ways and your practices will bring good to you
The words "ways" and "practices" both refer to a person's actions and general lifestyle. AT: "so your actions will result in good happening to you" (See: Doublet)
But they will say
The word "they" refers to the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem.
This is no use
Possible meanings for this idiom are 1) the people do not care about what Jeremiah will say to them. AT: "We do not care what you say" or 2) The people do not think that anything good will come of what Jeremiah tells them to do. AT: "What you are saying will not work" (See: Idiom)
what his evil, stubborn heart desires
Here the word "heart" represents the person's mind or will. AT: "what his evil, stubborn mind desires" or "whatever evil things that we stubbornly want to do" (See: Metonymy)
translationWords
kingdom of Judah
Jerusalem
Yahweh
repent
evil
good
heart
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv11, 12, 13, 14, 16 18:11 The Lord planned to deal with Judah and…
18:11 The Lord planned to deal with Judah and Jerusalem as the potter dealt with the clay (18:4). However, they could still escape disaster if they would reject their evil ways and do what is right.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.