“Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture!” says Yahweh. Therefore Yahweh, the God of Israel, says against the shepherds who feed my people: “You have scattered my flock, driven them away, and have not visited them. Behold, I will visit on you the evil of your doings,” says Yahweh. “I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they will be fruitful and multiply.
I will set up shepherds over them, who will feed them. They will no longer be afraid or dismayed, neither will any be lacking,” says Yahweh.
“Behold, the days come,” says Yahweh, “that I will raise to David a righteous Branch, and he will reign as king and deal wisely, and will execute justice and righteousness in the land.
In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell safely. This is his name by which he will be called: Yahweh our righteousness.
“Therefore behold, the days come,” says Yahweh, “that they will no more say, ‘As Yahweh lives, who brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt;’
but, ‘As Yahweh lives, who brought up and who led the offspring of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all the countries where I had driven them.’ Then they will dwell in their own land.”
Concerning the prophets: My heart within me is broken. All my bones shake. I am like a drunken man, and like a man whom wine has overcome, because of Yahweh, and because of his holy words.
For the land is full of adulterers; for because of the curse the land mourns. The pastures of the wilderness have dried up. Their course is evil, and their might is not right;
for both prophet and priest are profane. Yes, in my house I have found their wickedness,” says Yahweh.
Therefore their way will be to them as slippery places in the darkness. They will be driven on, and fall therein; for I will bring evil on them, even the year of their visitation,” says Yahweh.
“I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria. They prophesied by Baal, and caused my people Israel to err.
In the prophets of Jerusalem I have also seen a horrible thing: they commit adultery and walk in lies. They strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that no one returns from his wickedness. They have all become to me as Sodom, and its inhabitants as Gomorrah.”
Therefore Yahweh of Armies says concerning the prophets: “Behold, I will feed them with wormwood, and make them drink poisoned water; for from the prophets of Jerusalem ungodliness has gone out into all the land.”
Yahweh of Armies says, “Don’t listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you. They teach you vanity. They speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of Yahweh.
They say continually to those who despise me, ‘Yahweh has said, “You will have peace;” ’ and to everyone who walks in the stubbornness of his own heart they say, ‘No evil will come on you.’
For who has stood in the council of Yahweh, that he should perceive and hear his word? Who has listened to my word, and heard it?
Behold, Yahweh’s storm, his wrath, has gone out. Yes, a whirling storm: It will burst on the head of the wicked.
Yahweh’s anger will not return until he has executed, and until he has performed the intents of his heart. In the latter days, you will understand it perfectly.
I didn’t send these prophets, yet they ran. I didn’t speak to them, yet they prophesied.
But if they had stood in my council, then they would have caused my people to hear my words, and would have turned them from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings.
“Am I a God at hand,” says Yahweh, “and not a God afar off?
Can anyone hide himself in secret places so that I can’t see him?” says Yahweh. “Don’t I fill heaven and earth?” says Yahweh.
“I have heard what the prophets have said, who prophesy lies in my name, saying, ‘I had a dream! I had a dream!’ How long will this be in the heart of the prophets who prophesy lies, even the prophets of the deceit of their own heart? They intend to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams which they each tell his neighbor, as their fathers forgot my name because of Baal. The prophet who has a dream, let him tell a dream; and he who has my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What is the straw to the wheat?” says Yahweh. “Isn’t my word like fire?” says Yahweh; “and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?
“Therefore behold, I am against the prophets,” says Yahweh, “who each steal my words from his neighbor. Behold, I am against the prophets,” says Yahweh, “who use their tongues, and say, ‘He says.’ Behold, I am against those who prophesy lying dreams,” says Yahweh, “who tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies, and by their vain boasting; yet I didn’t send them or command them. They don’t profit this people at all,” says Yahweh.
“When this people, or the prophet, or a priest, asks you, saying, ‘What is the message from Yahweh?’ Then you shall tell them, ‘ “What message? I will cast you off,” says Yahweh.’ As for the prophet, the priest, and the people, who say, ‘The message from Yahweh,’ I will even punish that man and his household. You will say everyone to his neighbor, and everyone to his brother, ‘What has Yahweh answered?’ and, ‘What has Yahweh said?’ You will mention the message from Yahweh no more: for every man’s own word has become his message; for you have perverted the words of the living God, of Yahweh of Armies, our God. You will say to the prophet, ‘What has Yahweh answered you?’ and, ‘What has Yahweh spoken?’ Although you say, ‘The message from Yahweh;’ therefore Yahweh says: ‘Because you say this word, “The message from Yahweh,” and I have sent to you, telling you not to say, “The message from Yahweh;” therefore, behold, I will utterly forget you, and I will cast you off, and the city that I gave to you and to your fathers, away from my presence. I will bring an everlasting reproach on you, and a perpetual shame, which will not be forgotten.’ ”
John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On vv1–40 Here the Prophet promises the restoration of the Church;…
Here the Prophet promises the restoration of the Church; but he reminds hypocrites that there was no reason for them on that account to flatter themselves, especially the king, his councillors, and the priests. Then this prophecy is a mixture of promises and threatenings, for God promises that he would be propitious to the miserable Jews, after having chastised them, so that the seed of Abraham might not be entirely cut off: he yet deprives hypocrites of vain confidence, so that they might not falsely apply to themselves the hope of salvation, from which they had excluded themselves by their impiety. And this is what ought to be noticed, for as soon as God’s mercy is offered, hypocrites apply to themselves whatever God promises, and become more and more insolent, as though they held him bound to them; for impunity leads them to take more liberty to sin. Hence it is that they boast that they are safe, for they consider themselves to be the people of God. The Prophet, therefore, teaches here that whatever God promises belongs to his elect, that it does not appertain indiscriminately to all, nor ought to be extended to hypocrites who falsely pretend his name, but that it peculiarly belongs to the elect, though they may be small in number, and though they may be despised.
He says first, Wo to the pastors who destroy, etc. Here are contrary things — a pastor and a destroyer! But he concedes to them the name which was honorable; and yet he derides their false boasting, for they thought that they could hide their crimes under this shade, falsely claimed. Though then he calls them pastors, he yet removes the mask, and thus shews that they in vain boasted while they assumed the name of pastors. “Ye are pastors,” he says, ““and ye are destroyers! who dissipate or scatter the flock of my pastures.”
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Here God shews the reason why he was so grievously displeased with these pastors; for by exercising tyranny over the people, they not only injured men, but also injured and dishonored God, who had received under his own protection his chosen people. It is indeed true that they deserved such a scattering; for we have already seen in many places, that the people could by no means be excused when they were deceived by wicked and unfaithful leaders; for in this way was rendered to them all their past reward for having provoked God’s wrath against themselves, from the least to the greatest. But the impiety of wicked pastors was not on this account excusable; for they ought to have considered for what purpose this burden was laid on them, and also by whom they had been appointed. God then intimates that great injury was done to him, when the people were thus so ignominiously scattered. He was himself the chief pastor; he had put as it were in his own place the king and his counsellors and also the priests. Justly then does he now condemn them, because they had destroyed the flock of God, according to what is said in another place,
“That they had destroyed his vineyard.” (Jeremiah 12:10; Isaiah 5:3)
In short, when God calls the Jews the flock of his pastures, he does not regard what they deserved, or what they were, but he, on the contrary, sets forth the favor bestowed on the seed of Abraham. He has respect then here to his gratuitous adoption, though the Jews had rendered themselves unworthy of such a benefit.
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 vv1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 10, 11, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 30, 31, 33, 34, 36, 39 Meaning, the princes, governors and false prophets, as Ezek.…
Meaning, the princes, governors and false prophets, as Ezek. 34:2.
For the which I have especial care, and have prepared good pastures for them.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv1–40 Jer 23:1 Woe be unto the pastors that destroy…
Jer 23:1 Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! saith the LORD.
Ver. 1. Woe to the pastors,] i.e., To the rulers and chieftains, whether in the State or Church; woe to the wicked of both sorts; and why?
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They destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture.] So he calleth the people, how bad soever, because of the covenant with their fathers.
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 vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40 There is the like woe against the
There is the like woe against the
pastors denounced Eze 34:2. Interpreters judge that by the pastors are to be understood the civil magistrates, for Jer 23:9 he denounceth the judgments of God against their ecclesiastical officers. The civil magistrates at this time in Judah were great tyrants; and whereas God had committed his people (whom he calls the sheep of his pasture) to them in trust, that they should protect and govern them, and that they might live under them godly and peaceable lives, in all prosperity, they had acted quite contrary to their trust, and worried the people like wolves, instead of feeding them like shepherds. God took notice of their oppressions, and by the prophet denounceth this woe against them, to verify that of Solomon, Ecc 5:8.
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 vv1, 9, 33 I. Here is a word of terror to the…
I. Here is a word of terror to the negligent shepherds. The day is at hand when God will reckon with them concerning the trust and charge committed to them: Woe be to the pastors (to the rulers, both in church and state) who should be to those they are set over as pastors to lead them, feed them, protect them, and take care of them. They are not owners of the sheep. God here calls them the sheep of my pasture, whom I am interested in, and have provided good pasture for. Woe be to those therefore who are commanded to feed God's people, and pretend to do it, but who, instead of that, scatter the flock, and drive them away by their violence and oppression, and have not visited them, nor taken any care for their welfare, nor concerned themselves at all to do them good. In not visiting them, and doing their duty to them, they did in effect scatter them and drive them away. The beasts of prey scattered them, and the shepherds are in the fault, who should have kept them together. Woe be to them when God will visit upon them the evil of their doings and deal with them as they deserve. They would not visit the flock in a way of duty, and therefore God will visit them in a way of vengeance.
II. Here is a word of comfort to the neglected sheep. Though the under-shepherds take no care of them, no pains with them, but betray them, the chief Shepherd will look after them. When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord taketh me up. Though the interests of God's church in the world are neglected by those who should take care of them, and postponed to their own private secular interests, yet they shall not therefore sink. God will perform his promise, though those he employs do not perform their duty.
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1. The dispersed Jews shall at length return to their own land, and be happily settled there under a good government, Jer 23:3, Jer 23:4. Though there be but a remnant of God's flock left, a little remnant, that has narrowly escaped destruction, he will gather that remnant, will find them out wherever they are and find out ways and means to bring them back out of all countries whither he had driven them. It was the justice of God, for the sin of their shepherds, that dispersed them; but the mercy of God shall gather in the sheep, when the shepherds that betrayed them are cut off. They shall be brought to their former habitations, as sheep to their folds, and there they shall be fruitful, and increase in numbers. And, though their former shepherds took no care of them, it does not therefore follow that they shall have no more. If some have abused a sacred office, that is no good reason why it should be abolished. "They destroyed the sheep, but I will set shepherds over them who shall make it their business to feed them." Formerly they were continually exposed and disturbed with some alarm or other; but now they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed; they shall be in no danger from without, in no fright from within. Formerly some or other of them were ever and anon picked up by the beasts of prey; but now none of them shall be lacking, none of them missing. Though the times may have been long bad with the church, it does not follow that they will be ever so. Such pastors as Zerubbabel and Nehemiah, though they lived not in the pomp that Jehoiakim and Jeconiah did, nor made such a figure, were as great blessings to the people as the others were plagues to them. The church's peace is not bound up in the pomp of her rulers.
2. Messiah the Prince, that great and good Shepherd of the sheep, shall in the latter days be raised up to bless his church, and to be the glory of his people Israel, Jer 23:5, Jer 23:6. The house of David seemed to be quite sunk and ruined by that threatening against Jeconiah (Jer 22:30), that none of his seed should ever sit upon the throne of David. But here is a promise which effectually secures the honour of the covenant made with David notwithstanding; for by it the house will be raised out of its ruins to a greater lustre than ever, and shine brighter far than it did in Solomon himself. We have not so many prophecies of Christ in this book as we had in that of the prophet Isaiah; but here we have one, and a very illustrious one; of him doubtless the prophet here speaks, of him, and of no other man. The first words intimate that it would be long ere this promise should have its accomplishment: The days come, but they are not yet. I shall see him, but not now. But all the rest intimate that the accomplishment of it will be glorious. (1.) Christ is here spoken of as a branch from David, the man the branch (Zac 3:8), his appearance mean, his beginnings small, like those of a bud or sprout, and his rise seemingly out of the earth, but growing to be green, to be great, to be loaded with fruits. A branch from David's family, when it seemed to be a root in a dry ground, buried, and not likely to revive. Christ is the root and offspring of David, Rev 22:16. In him doth the horn of David bud, Psa 132:17, Psa 132:18. He is a branch of God's raising up; he sanctified him, and sent him into the world, gave him his commission and qualifications. He is a righteous branch, for he is righteous himself, and through him many, even all that are his, are made righteous. As an advocate, he is Jesus Christ the righteous. (2.) He is here spoken of as his church's King. This branch shall be raised as high as the throne of his father David, and there he shall reign and prosper, not as the kings that now were of the house of David, who went backward in all their affairs. No; he shall set up a kingdom in the world that shall be victorious over all opposition. In the chariot of the everlasting gospel he shall go forth, he shall go on conquering and to conquer. If God raise him up, he will prosper him, for he will own the work of his own hands; what is the good pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in the hands of those to whom it is committed. He shall prosper; for he shall execute judgment and justice in the earth, all the world over, Psa 96:13. The present kings of the house of David were unjust and oppressive, and therefore it is no wonder that they did not prosper. But Christ shall, by his gospel, break the usurped power of Satan, institute a perfect rule of holy living, and, as far as it prevails, make all the world righteous. The effect of this shall be a holy security and serenity of mind in all his faithful loyal subjects. In his days, under his dominion, Judah shall be saved and Israel shall dwell safely; that is, all the spiritual seed of believing Abraham and praying Jacob shall be protected from the curse of heaven and the malice of hell, shall be privileged from the arrests of God's law and delivered from the attempts of Satan's power, shall be saved from sin, the guilt and dominion of it, and then shall dwell safely, and be quiet from the fear of all evil. See Luk 1:74, Luk 1:75. Those that shall be saved hereafter from the wrath to come may dwell safely now; for, if God be for us, who can be against us? In the days of Christ's government in the soul, when he is uppermost there, the soul dwells at ease. (3.) He is here spoken of as The Lord our righteousness. Observe, [1.] Who and what he is. As God, he is Jehovah, the incommunicable name of God, denoting his eternity and self-existence. As Mediator, he is our righteousness. By making satisfaction to the justice of God for the sin of man, he has brought in an everlasting righteousness, and so made it over to us in the covenant of grace that, upon our believing consent to that covenant, it becomes ours. His being Jehovah our righteousness implies that he is so our righteousness as no creature could be. He is a sovereign, all-sufficient, eternal righteousness. All our righteousness has its being from him, and by him it subsists, and we are made the righteousness of God in him. [2.] The profession and declaration of this: This is the name whereby he shall be called, not only he shall be so, but he shall be known to be so. God shall call him by this name, for he shall appoint him to be our righteousness. By this name Israel shall call him, every true believer shall call him, and call upon him. That is our righteousness by which, as an allowed plea, we are justified before God, acquitted from guilt, and accepted into favour; and nothing else have we to plead but this, "Christ has died, yea, rather has risen again;" and we have taken him for our Lord.
3. This great salvation, which will come to the Jews in the latter days of their state, after their return out of Babylon, shall be so illustrious as far to outshine the deliverance of Israel out of Egypt (Jer 23:7, Jer 23:8): They shall no more say, The Lord liveth that brought up Israel out of Egypt; but, The Lord liveth that brought them up out of the north. This we had before, Jer 16:14, Jer 16:15. But here it seems to point more plainly than it did there to the days of the Messiah, and to compare not so much the two deliverances themselves (giving the preference to the latter) as the two states to which the church by degrees grew after those deliverances. Observe the proportion: Just 480 years after they had come out of Egypt Solomon's temple was built (Kg1 6:1); and at that time that nation, which was so wonderfully brought up out of Egypt, had gradually arrived to its height, to its zenith. Just 490 years (70 weeks) after they came out of Babylon Messiah the Prince set up the gospel temple, which was the greatest glory of that nation that was so wonderfully brought out of Babylon; see Dan 9:24, Dan 9:25. Now the spiritual glory of the second part of that nation, especially as transferred to the gospel church, is much more admirable and illustrious than all the temporal glory of the first part of it in the days of Solomon; for that was no glory compared with the glory which excelleth.
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 vv1–40 Woe be unto the pastors,.... Or, "O ye shepherds"…
Woe be unto the pastors,.... Or, "O ye shepherds" or "governors", as the Targum; the civil rulers and magistrates, kings and princes of the land of Israel; since ecclesiastical rulers, the priests and prophets, are mentioned as distinct from them in Jer 23:9; whose business it was to rule and guide, protect and defend, the people: but, instead of that, they were such
that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture, saith the Lord God; set them bad examples, led them into idolatry and other sins, which were the cause of their ruin, and of their being carried captive, and scattered in other countries; and their sin was the more aggravated, inasmuch as these people were the Lord's pasture sheep, whom he had an interest in, and a regard unto, and had committed them to the care and charge of these pastors or governors, to be particularly taken care of.
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 vv1, 2, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 13, 16, 18, 20, 28, 30, 31, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38 Woe against wicked pastors, the scattered flock shall be…
Woe against wicked pastors, the scattered flock shall be gathered, Christ shall rule and save them, ver. 1-8. Against false prophets, ver. 9-32. And mockers of the true, ver. 33-40.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 27, 28, 29, 30, 33, 36, 39, 40 Sequel of the discourse which commenced in the preceding
CHAPTER XXIII
Sequel of the discourse which commenced in the preceding
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chapter. The prophet denounces vengeance against the pastors of
Israel who have scattered and destroyed the flock of the Lord,
1, 2.
He concludes with gracious promises of deliverance from the
Babylonish captivity, and of better times under the Messiah,
when the converts to Christianity, who are the true Israel of
God, shadowed forth by the old dispensation, shall be
delivered, by the glorious light of the Gospel, from worse than
Chaldean bondage, from the captivity of sin and death. But this
prophecy will not have its fullest accomplishment till that
period arrives which is fixed in the Divine counsel for the
restoration of Israel and Judah from their various dispersions,
of which their deliverance from the Chaldean domination was a
type, when Jesus the Christ, the righteous Branch, the Root and
Offspring of David, and the only legitimate Heir to the throne,
shall take unto himself his great power, and reign gloriously
over the whole house of Jacob, 3-8.
At the ninth verse a new discourse commences. Jeremiah
expresses his horror at the great wickedness of the priests and
prophets of Judah, and declares that the Divine vengeance is
hanging over them. He exhorts the people not to listen to their
false promises, 9-22;
and predicts the utter ruin that shall fall upon all pretenders
to inspiration, 23-32,
as well as upon all scoffers at true prophecy, 33-40.
NOTES ON CHAP. XXIII
Verse 1. Wo be unto the pastors] There shall a curse fall on the kings, princes, priests, and prophets; who, by their vicious conduct and example, have brought desolation upon the people.
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 vv1, 2, 5, 7, 9, 10, 11, 13, 15, 16, 18, 19, 21, 23, 25, 28, 30, 33, 36, 39 Jer 23:1. Wo be unto the pastors — Or,…
Jer 23:1. Wo be unto the pastors — Or, as הויis by some rendered, Alas for the pastors! or, Ho the pastors! For it may be a particle of calling, as the LXX. and Syriac represent it, and not of commination, as in our translation. The word pastors comprehends both civil and ecclesiastical governors: see note on Jer 2:8. This acceptation of the word agrees with the prophet’s complaint elsewhere, that their rulers, as well as their priests and prophets, were rather corrupters than reformers of the people’s manners. And the Messiah himself, whose coming is foretold, Jer 23:5, for the rectifying of these disorders, was both a king and a priest.
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 vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 35, 36, 38, 39 The pastors - shepherds, i. e., civil rulers Jer…
The pastors - shepherds, i. e., civil rulers Jer 2:8.
The sheep of My pasture - literally, of My pasturing, the sheep of whom I am shepherd. The people do not belong to the rulers but to God.
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 vv1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 21, 22, 23, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 39 Pastors. Successors of Josias (Calmet) and false prophets. (Menochius)
Pastors. Successors of Josias (Calmet) and false prophets. (Menochius)
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 vv1, 9, 16, 23, 33 f. Conclusion and Consolation, in a glance at the…
f. Conclusion and Consolation, in a glance at the just and the justifier
Jer_23:1-8.
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1 Wo, pastors,1 who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture,2 saith Jehovah!
2 Therefore thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel, concerning the pastors,3 that pasture my people:
Ye have scattered my flock, and dispersed and not visited them.
Behold I visit4 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;5 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;6
Neither shall they be missing,7 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,8
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 call9 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.
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
This passage is in general suitably connected with the entirety of the previous context, since in relation to the previous specifications (Jer_22:10-30), it may be regarded as a comprehensive conclusion. But originally it formed a connected whole only with Jer_22:1-9; Jeremiah 13-23, since Jer_22:10-12 must have been inserted afterwards. Going down into the house of the king, who can have been no other than Jehoiakim, Jeremiah first, in Jer_22:1-9, 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 Jer_23:13-19 he turned to the king alone with an incisive speech of rebuke and menace, to which was appended a singular one addressed to 4e people (Jer_23:20-23). Finally, in a grand survey, he contrasts with the deep decline, effectuated by the wicked pastors (Jer_23:1-2), the other extreme, the salvation to be imparted to the re-assembled people, in the distant future, by the Messiah. The remnant restored to their home shall again become a numerous people (Jer_23:3). This people shall be fed in blessing by shepherds appointed by the Lord (Jer_23:4). 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 (Jer_23:5-6). 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 (Jer_23:7-8). The same antithesis, between deepest impending ruin and highest glory to be expected in the distant future, was found also in Jeremiah 3
Jer_23:1-2. Wo, Pastors … saith Jehovah. As the sections Jer_22:1-9; Jeremiah 13-23 ; Jer_23:1-8 contain the discourse delivered in the house of the king, this section is immediately attached to Jer_22:13-23. Both sections begin with הוֹי. After the alternative in Jer_22:3-9 also the prophet pronounces 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 follows : 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., Jer_23:1-2) which appears to produce so much effect, both extensively and intensively, that we can recognize it only as the action of those who occupy the highest, most influential positions; 3. from the antithesis of the good shepherd, Jer_23:4, and of the righteous scion of David, Jer_23:5, in particular. For that beneficial influence (Jer_23:4) can only be that of (he chief, and in Jer_23:5 the “righteous scion” is directly designated as king. They first corrupt the people morally, and thus effect the external destruction which culminates in their dispersion, comp. 2Ki_17:21-23; 2Ki_21:10-12; 2Ki_23:26-27; Jer_15:4.
Jer_23:3-4. And I will gather.....saith Jehovah. Comp. Jer_29:14; Jer_31:8-10; Mic_2:12; Eze_24:12.—The remnant,etc. On this Hengstenberg remarks: “The gathering being promised only to the remnant (comp. Isa_10:20; Rom_9:27) indicates that justice accompanies mercy.”—And they shall be fruitful,etc. Comp. rems. on Jer_3:16. In the following verse it should first of all be observed that the prophet has in view two older prophecies: First the foundation-prophecy of the future glory of the Davidic house in 2Sa_7:12, where we read the words, “I will set thy seed after thee.” The prophet’s choice of this particular utterance here and in Jer_23:5, could not have been without the object of a double allusion to the passage above quoted, and to the name of Jehoiakim. Since this name (as well as the name יוֹיָבִין) is chosen undoubtedly with reference to the passage mentioned, it was natural that the prophet, thinking in joyful hope of that prophecy, should at the same time remember the contradiction, which prevailed between the present and the promised Jehoiakim. The second passage, to which Jeremiah more plainly alludes, is his own utterance in Jer_3:15. He must have been reminded of this the more readily that it relates to the same future period.
Jer_23:5. Behold the days ... in the land. The connection of this verse with the previous one is formed by behold the days. This expression does not refer to the difference in time. It does not declare that what is spoken of in Jer_23:5 will take place after the events of Jer_23:4, but is antithetic only to the present.—Pastors,etc., in Jer_23:4 is a figurative expression, which is explained in Jer_23:6 in proper language. On the question as to the relation of the singulars צֶמָח, scion,מֶלֶךְking, etc., to the plural רֹעִים, pastors, there are three views. According to one רֹעִים 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 Jeremiah presents the prospect of a multiplicity of rulers of the seed of David for the time of the great restoration: Jer_33:17-18—
“ There shall not be wanting 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. Jer_23:22. “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. Jer_23:26. “ 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 (משְׁלִים)
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 צֶמָח, scion, is taken in a collective sense. Graf, who adopts this view, appeals (a) to the idiom, according to which it always has a collective meaning (Gen_19:25; Psa_65:11 ; Eze_16:7; Isa_61:11); (b) to the idiom according to which דָוֹד, David, and עַבְדִּי דָוִד as much designate the descendants of David, as יַֽעְַקֹב; Jacob, and עַבְדִּי יַֽעְַקֹב, the descendants of Jacob: Jer_30:9; Hos_3:5; Eze_24:23-24; Eze_37:24-25; Eze_45:8; Eze_46:16, coll. Jer_30:10; Jer_46:27-28; Isa_44:1; Isa_45:4; Isa_48:20, etc.—To this view it may be 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 reconciled 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, notwithstanding that pastors preceding (Jer_23:4) intimates a multiplicity. I therefore propose a third view, taking רֹעִים in a plural sense, but צֶמַח, 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?” צֶמַח 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 number. If the prophet wished it to be taken in the latter sense, and therefore as absolutely identical with רֹעִים, 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 Eze_34:23, “ And I will set up one shepherd over them.” And Zechariah in Zec_3:8, and Zec_6:12, used צֶמַח as a proper name, saying (Zec_3:8): “For I bring my servant Zemach” [The Branch]—and (Zec_6:12): “ 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 circumscribed and distinctly impressed forms (comp. 1Pe_1:11). These forms were as little born entirely of the future, severed from the present. Rather were they eternal ideas, which had derived their body from the present. Of this kind are most of the Messianic prophecies. In reality Christ is a different king, priest and prophet, from what the authors of Psalms 2; Psalms 110; Deuteronomy 18 conceived, and yet His advent is the true fulfilment of those prophecies. Thus Jeremiah also sees together with the one grand form of the arch-shepherd, many others, whom he recognizes as His seed. If the prophet conceived among his offspring 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 remained 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 so long, of whom it was said that He gave His soul an offering for sin (Isa_53:10). Objectively considered, even Jerome and Theodoret understood the apostles by the many רֹעִים—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 ἐν χριστῶ, are not only Abraham’s seed (Gal_3:29) but also David’s. We are indeed a royal priesthood (1Pe_2:9); and He has made us not only priests but kings ἐποίησας αὐτνὺς βασιλείαν καῖ ἱερεῖς, καὶ βασιλεύουσιν ἐπὶ τής γῆς,Rev_5:10, coll. Jer_1:6). [Henderson: “By the better shepherds whom Jehovah promises to place over His restored people, I understand Zerubbabel, Ezra, Nehemiah, the Maccabees, etc., under whose superintendence and rule they were re-instated in their possessions, and enjoyed protection against both internal and foreign enemies.”—S. R. A.] If now the inquiry is made, how the prophet came to choose the expression צֶמַח, it was long ago pointed out by the Comm. that he had in mind Isa_11:2; Isa_53:2. 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 along 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 צֶמַח here as in Zec_3:8; Zec_6:12, ἀναταλή. Comp. especially καὶ ὑποκάτωδεν αὐτοῦ ἀςατελεῖ, in the passage last mentioned.—Justice or righteousness is the chief quality of a good king according to the Old Testament doctrine. Comp. Psa_45:5; Psa_45:7-8; Psa_72:1-4; Psa_72:12-14; Psa_82:2-4; Psa_101:1-8.—Hence righteous scion, of which the confirmation in fact is declared in shall exercise judgment. Comp. Psa_146:7; Psa_103:6, and the remarks on Jer_7:5-6; Jer_9:23.
Jer_23:6. In his days … our righteousness. Comp. Deu_33:28-29,—Repetition of our passage, Jer_33:16—Judah is fem., as in Jer_3:7; Jer_14:2; Jer_33:16; Lam_1:3; Nah_2:1; Mal_2:11. It is then equivalent to daughter of Judah, Lam_2:2; Lam_2:5. Comp. Naegelsb., Gr. 60. 4.—They will call him. According to the explanation prevalent even from antiquity, this refers to righteous scion. But as Jeremiah is his own best interpreter, the name must be referred to Israel. For in the parallel passage, Jer_33:16, where instead of “and Israel dwell securely,” we read “ Jerusalem shall dwell securely,” 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 passage, Jer_33:16) and the nation appears as before under its old name, which is also a sacred, God-given name. (Gen_32:28.) Jerusalem elsewhere receives other names which are likewise not intended for daily use: in Ezek. 48:36, the name יהוהשָֽׁמָּה (The Lord is there) is attributed to the city. In Isa_60:14 we read “ they shall call thee The city of Jehovah, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel.” In a similar manner Nathan gives his pupil Solomon the name Jedi-diah, which he never bore in reality. With respect to the name Emmanuel (Isa_7:14; Isa_8:8-10) the case appears to be the same.—Similar in form are the names Jehovah-nissi (Exo_17:15), Jehovah-shalom (Jdg_6:24), Jehovah-jireh (Gen_22:14). The LXX. makes a proper name of it, Ἰωσεδἐκ. I suppose with Hermann (Gött. Weihn. Progr. 1752, comp. J. D. Michaelis, Observ. S. 189) that it referred the passage to the post-exilic restoration, and understood by Ἰωσεδέκ its representative, the high-priest Joshua, the son of Jozedek, which it always pronounces ’Ιωσεδέκ (Hag_1:1; Hag_1:12; Ezr_3:2; Ezr_3:8; Ezr_5:2; Neh_12:26). In favor also of this view is the Jewish interpretation of the passage concerning Zerubbabel, combated by Theodoret and Eusebius (Dem. Ev., vii. 9), which seems to be supported by the LXX. The strange expression ἐν τοῖς προφήταις (Theodoret: αὐτὸς ἐν τ. πρ., perhaps a trace of the final syllable נוּ, which is wanting in Ἰωσεδέκ: Euseb. Ἰωσεδεκιμ) is also in its favor. It is indeed transferred from Jer_23:9, where it stands as a title, but it is not impossible that the Alexandrian translators perceived in it a reference to the post-exilic prophets, under whose co-opsration Joshua and Zerubbabel labored. The Syriac and Sym-machus, moreorer, read צַדְּקֵנוּ, for they translate δικαίεσον ἡμὰς.—If it is not the name of the Messiah, 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 צֶרֶק exclusively in the sense of “salvation” (Graf). Without denying that it may have this meaning (comp. Rems. on Jer_7:5; Jer_9:23 ; Isa_46:12, etc.), I do not think that here בְּרָכָה ,תְּשׁוּעָה or any similar word would have done as well. The prophet certainly chose צדק 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 salvation. 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_9:31-32; Rom_9:7), but did not succeed. It has been further correctly remarked (Vide Hengstenberg, Christology ad h. l.) that Zedekiah changed his former name into this with reference to this passage. Compelled by Nebuchadnezzar to assume mother name (2Ki_24:17, comp. Keil on Jer_23:34) he chose this, which may very well Signify “Jehovah my Righteousness,” and by which he expressed the presumptuous hope, that Jeremiah’s glorious promise would find in him the beginning of its fulfilment—in which he exdressed rather an irony than a glorification of himself.
Jer_23:7-8. Therefore ... in their own land. These two verses are repeated with unessential alterations from Jer_16:14-15. 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 tha chapter, whereas Jer_23:6 closes with the words: ’Ιωσεδὲκ ἐν τοῖς προφήταις, 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 capvicious arbitrariness 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 Jer_16:14-15 a minatory, here a friendly, meaning, which led him to think that they must be introduced in the same connection as in Jeremiah 16. This end he attained by placing them at the close of the minatory prophecy against the prophets. It should further be remarked that both verses, in the positive part of their relative clauses, agree in part verbatim with Jer_23:3, and in so far might be regarded as superfluous in this place. But the main emphasis is to be laid on the main proposition, “they shall no more say, As Jehovah liveth, etc., but: As Jehovah liveth,” etc., and in this sense they have the significance of a concluding doxology. The reduction of Israel from the later exile will furnish a more glorious substratum to the oath by the name of Jehovah.
DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL
1. On Jer_21:2. “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 unfortunate! It is indeed as though it only depended on them to arrange matters with God; as if He were only waiting 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 necessary 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 brought 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 insufficiency 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 different manner of dealing with the Lord.” Zinzendorf. “When the ungodly 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 persist in their impenitence.” Starke.
2. On Jer_21:8. “It is pure grace on the part of God, when He 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, Deu_30:19.” 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 thy life where there seems to be only death. He who would save his life must lose it, and he who devotes it for the sake of the truth will save it.” Diedrich.
3. On Jer_21:11-14. “To be such a king is to be an abomination to the Lord, and severe judgment will follow. God appoints magistrates for His service and for the use of men; he who only seeks his own enjoyment in office, is lost. Jerusalem, 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 proceeds from within outwards, so that nothing of the former stock can remain. What shall a government do which no longer bears the sword of justice? What shall a church do which is no longer founded on God’s truth as its only power?” Diedrich. Comp. moreover on the whole of Jeremiah 24. the extended moral reflections of Cyrillus Alex. περὶ τῆς ἐν πνεύματι καὶ ἀληθ. προσκυνήσεως. Lib. I.
4. On Jer_22:1. “Jeremiah is to deliver a sermon at court, in which he reminds the king of his office of magistrate, in which he is to administer justice to every man.” Cramer.
It was no easy task for Jeremiah to go into the lions’ den and deliver such an uncourtly message to him. We are reminded of the prophet Jonah. But Jeremiah did not flee as he did.
5. On Jer_22:1-3. [“But we ought the more carefully to notice this passage, that we may learn to strengthen ourselves against bad examples, 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 name 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 remember the admonition of Christ, to hear the Scribes and Pharisees who sat in Moses’ seat (Mat_23:2).” Calvin.—S. R. A.]
6. On Jer_22:10. [“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 reserved for ourselves and our children (Luk_23:28).” Henry.—S. R. A.]
“Nequaquam gentilis plangendus est atque Judæus, qui in ecclesia non fuerunt et simul mortui sunt, de quibus Salvator dicit: dimitte mortuos sepelire mortuos suos (Mat_8:22). Sed eos plange, qui per scelera atque peccata egrediuntur de ecclesia et nolunt ultra reverti ad earn damnatione vitiorum.” Hieron. Epist. 46 ad Rusticam. “Nolite flere mortuum, sed plorate raptorem avarum, pecuniæ sitientem et inexplebilem auri cupidinem. Cur mortuos inutiliter ploramus? Eos ploremus, qui in melius mutari possunt.” Basilius Seleucensis. Comp. Basil, Magn. Homil. 4 de Gratiarum actione post dimid.—Ghislerus.
7. On Jer_22:6-9. “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 (Psa_82:6) … No cedars are too high for God, no splendor too mighty; He can destroy all at once, and overturn, and overturn, and overturn. Eze_21:27,” Cramer.
Another 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 representatives 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 Jer_22:24.
8. On Jer_22:13-19. It is blasphemy to imagine that God will be frère 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 majesty 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 Jehoiakim was however an aristocrat, a heartless, selfish tyrant, who for his own pleasure trampled divine and human rights under foot. If such 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 Jer_22:14. [“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 that 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 remember, that men never go to excesses in external things, except when their hearts are infected 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 Jer_22:15. “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_48:10.” Cramer.
11. On Jer_22:17. “Description of haughty, proud, magnificent, merciless and tyrannical lords and rulers, who are accomplices of thieves.” Cramer.
12. On Jer_22:19. [“God would have burial a proof to distinguish us from brute animals even after death, as we in life excel them, and as our condition is much nobler than that of the brute creation. Burial is also a pledge 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 denied.” Calvin.—S. R. A.]
13. On Jer_22:24. “Great lords 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_34:19.” Cramer.
14. On Jer_22:28. [“What is idolized will, first or last, be despised and broken, 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 2Ch_36:12, to be evil on the part of Zedekiah, that he did not humble himself before Jeremiah. Teachers must be much on their guard against assuming such purely prophetic, that is, extraordinary 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 Jer_22:28-30. Irenæus (Adv. Hær. 3:30) 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 generatum et in eo habere spem, abdicatos se faciunt a regno, sub maledictione et increpatione decidentes, quæ 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_49:10), that a ruler should not be lacking from Judah, till He came for whom the nations were hoping. Basil distinguishes 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 fulfilment of the promise in Gen_49:10, 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. Mariæ p. med.)—Ambrose finally (Comment. in Ev. Luc. L. III. cap. ult.) raises the question how Jeremiah could say, that ex semine Jechoniæ neminem regnaturum esse, since Christ was of the seed of Jeconiah and reigned? He answers: “Illic (Jer_22:30) futuros ex semine Jechoniæ posteros non negatur et ideo de semine ejus est Christus (comp. Mat_1:11), et quod regnavit Christus, non contra prophetiam est, non enim seculari honore regnavit, nee in Jechoniæ sedibus sedit, sed regnavit in sede David.” Ghislerus.
16. On Jer_23:2. “Nonnulli præsmles gregis quosdam pro peccato a communione ceiciunt, ut pæniteant, sed quali sorte vivere debeant ad melius exhortando non visitant. Quibus congrue increpans sermo divinus comminatur: pastores, qui pascunt populum meum, vos dispersistis gregem meum, ejecistis et non visitastis eum.” Isidor. Hisp. de summo bono she LL. sentt. Cap. 46. Ghislerus.
17. On Jer_23:5-6. Eusebius (Dem. Ev. VII. 9) remarks that Christ among all the descendants of David is the only one, who rules over the whole earth, and everywhere not only preaches justice and righteousness by His doctrine but is Himself also the author of the rising [of the Sun] of righteousness for all, according to Psa_72:7 : ἀνατελεῖ ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις αὐτοῦ δικαιοσύνη, καὶ πλῆθος εἰρήνης ἕως οὗ ἀνταναιρεθῇ ἡ σελήνη (LXX.) Cyril of Alex. (Glaphyr. in Gen. I. p. 133) explains Ἰωσεδέκ as 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_3:24; Tit_3:5.
18. On Jer_23:6. [“If we regard God in Himself, He is indeed righteous, but not our righteousness. If we desire to have God as our righteousness, 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 righteousness of God in Him. (1Co_1:30). 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 Wordsworth, to show that Jehovah our Righteousness 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 inscrutable 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. ‘O 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.” Zinzendorf.
19. On Jer_23:5-8. “The return under Ezra was also a fulfilment of this promise, but inferior and preliminary: not all came, and 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 perfectly, 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 been delivered from all our suffering, when we sit down at the feet of Jesus to hear His word. Then there is a power of resurrection within us, So that we can fly with our souls beyond the world and laugh at all our foes. For Christ has 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 can have it.” Diedrich.
20. On Jer_23:9. “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 enthusiast, 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. On Jer_23:11. “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 Jer_23:13-14. “In the prophets of Samaria I see folly. This is the character which the Lord gives to error, false religion, heterodoxy. But in the prophets of Jerusalem I find 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 Jer_23:15. “From the prophets of Jerusalem 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 is apparent in the whole land what sort of theologians sit at the helm.” Zinzendorf.
24. On Jer_23:16. 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 office to themselves; because, if this office remained 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 members 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 extravagances than to save a church become religiously indifferent from the fate of Laodicea (Rev_3:16).
25. On Jer_23:16. [“But here a question may be raised, How can the common people understand that some speak from God’s mouth, and that others propound their own glosses? I answer, That the doctrine of the Law was then sufficient to guide the minds of the people, provided they closed not their eyes; and if the Law was sufficient at that time, God does now most surely give us a clearer light by His prophets, and especially by His Gospel.” Calvin—S. R. A.]
26. On Jer_23:17. “The pastors, who are welcome and gladly seen at a rich man’s table, wish him in fact long life, good health, and all prosperity. What they wish they prophesy. This is not unnatural; but he who is softened by it is ill-advised.” Zinzendorf.
27. On Jer_23:21. [“There is a twofold call; one is internal, the other belongs to order, and may therefore be called external or ecclesiastical. 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 sufficient, especially for a time. For when there is no church, there is no remedy for the evil, except God raise up extraordinary teachers.” Calvin.—S. R. A.]
28. On Jer_23:22. “If I knew that my teacher was a most abominable miscreant, personally, and in heart the worst enemy of God in his parish; so long as, for any reason, he preaches, expounds, develops, inculcates the word of God; even though he should betray here and there in his expressions, that this word was not dwelling in him; if only he does not ex professo at one time throw down what at another time he teaches of good and true quasi aliud agendo: I assure you before the Lord that I should fear to censure his preaching.” Zinzendorf.
29. On Jer_23:23. “ God’s essential attribute is Omnipresence. For He is higher than heaven, what canst thou do? deeper than hell, what canst thou know? Longer than the earth and broader than the sea (Job_4:8). And He is not far from every one of us (Act_17:27).” Cramer.—“We often think God is quite far from us, when He is yet near to us, has us in His arms, presses us to 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. (Psa_34:19) ”—“Deus et omni et nullo loco “—” Cuncta Deus replens molem se fundit in omnem.” MS. notes to my copy of Cramer’s Bibel.—“ Si vis peccare, O homo, quære tibi locum, ubi Deus non videat.” Augustine.
30. On Jer_23:28. [“When any one rejects the wheat because it is covered with chaff, 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 negligent, and think that it is a sufficient excuse for despising the Word of God, 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 him 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 therefore always mingle some of the genuine word of God amongst it. An unavailing mixture! It is in this mingling that Satan’s highest art is displayed, so that he at the same time furthers his own work and testifies against himself. Comp. Genesis 3
31. On Jer_23:29. God’s word is the highest reality, life and power, while the dreams of the false prophets are pretence, death and weakness. God’s word is therefore compared to a fire which burns, warms, and enlightens, so that it burns up the hardest flint, melts the thickest ice, illuminates 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 will become fire and burn up the straw (1Co_3:12-15). He Who handles the word of the Lord purely, let him not despair if he sees before him hearts of adamant (Zec_7:12). 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 opposed 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 hammer? What then remains to him as the result of his straw-diet, which is in a condition to withstand the blows of the hammer and the fire?
Help, Lord, against Thy scornful foes,
Who seek our souls to lead astray;
Whose 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 befools.” Luther.
32. On Jer_23:29. “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 often 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 under 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 unskilful 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 incidentally in the world by the preaching of the Gospel.” Jos. Conr. Schaller, Pastor at Cautendorf, Sermons on the Gospels, 1742.
33. On Jer_23:30. “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 (Joh_3:11). False teachers steal God’s word, inventing a foreign meaning for it, and using this for the palliation of their errors.” Starke—“Hinc illi ζῆλοι at auctions, who can obtain this or that good book, this or that manuscript? Here they are thus declared to be plagiarios; 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 Jer_23:33-40. “ 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 terræ, which the land can no more bear, therefore they must be winnowed out, Jer_15:17.” Cramer.
35. On Jer_24:5-7. “ He who willingly and readily resigns himself to the will of God even to the cross, may escape misfortune. But he who opposes himself to the hand of God cannot escape.” Cramer.—“The captives are dearest to God. By the first greater affliction He prepares their souls for repentance and radical conversion, so that He has in them again His people and inheritance. O the gracious God, that He allows even those who on account of sin must be so 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 Jer_24:7. [“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 tribunal 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_1:12). And of this sentence Christ Himself is the best interpreter, when He says, that He is not the God of the dead, but of the living (Luk_20:38).” Calvin.—S. R. A.]
HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL
1. On Jer_21:8. This text may be used on all occasions when an important decision is to be made or on the entrance on a new section of life, as, e. g., at synods, diets, New Years, beginning of the church-year, at confirmations, weddings, installations, 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 Jer_22:2-9. In how 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 behaviour well-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 eternal ideas lying at the foundation of the single appearances, and their absolute realizations.
3. On Jer_22:24. [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 angels; (b) 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 revenge. It is the nature and tendency of sin to produce misery.”—S. R. A.]
4. On Jer_23:5-6. 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 Jer_23:14. [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 Jer_23:23-24. The Omnipresence of God. 1. What it means. God is everywhere present, (a). He fills heaven and earth; (b) 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, (b) an earnest admonition. [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 resemble God’s perfections 2. Should deter us from sin. 3. Should teach us humility. 4. Should encourage us to reliance and contentment, to faith and hope.”—S. R. A.]
7. On Jer_23:29-30. God’s Word and man’s word. 1. The former is life and power (wheat, fire, hammer). The latter pretence and weakness (dream, straw). 2. The two are not to be mixed with each other. [Cecil: This shows 1. The vanity of all human imaginations in religion, (a). What do they afford to man? (b). How much do they hinder? 2. The energy of spiritual truth. Let us entreat God that our estimate may be practical.—S. R. A.]
8. On Jer_24:1-10. The good and bad figs an emblem of humanity well-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; (b) He is 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 on in foolish blindness; (b) they challenge the judgment of God.
Footnotes:
[1]Jer_23:1.—There is nothing remarkable in the absence of the article with רֹעִים, for this is generally the case with הוֹי. It occurs with the article in seven places only: Isa_5:20; Isa_10:1; Isa_29:15; Isa_31:1; Amo_5:18; Amo_6:1; Hab_2:6. Of these places, the first six have the plural, one the singular, but in a collective signification.
[2]Jer_23:1.—מַרְעִית may designate both the act (Hos_13:6) the place (Isa_49:9), and the object (Jer_10:21; Jer_25:36) of the pasturing. Hence צאן־מרעיתי (comp. Eze_34:31; Psa_74:1; Psa_79:13; Psa_100:3) 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]Jer_23:2.—Here רֹעִים has the article, because the shepherds already mentioned (Jer_23:1) are meant.
[4]Jer_23:2.—כָּקַד is here used for the sake of a paronomasia in bonam (comp. Psa_8:5; Exo_3:16) and in malam partem (comp. Jer_5:9; Jer_25:12; Jer_27:8; Hos_1:4) comp. Zec_10:3.
[5]Jer_23:3.—נויהן Sing. Comp. Olsh., § 165, f. Since it is sheep which are spoken of, נָיֶה here as in 2Sa_7:8; Isa_65:10; Jer_33:12; Eze_25:5 = pascuum, place of pasturage, field. The fem, suffix is remarkable. Comp. Gen_30:39; Naegelsb. Gr., § 60, 4.
[6]Jer_23:4.—יִהֵתּוּ Comp. Jer_17:18.
[7]Jer_23:4.—יכּקדו. This word is frequently used of missing, scattered or robbed sheep, 1Sa_25:7; 1Sa_25:15; 1Sa_25:21; comp. 1Sa_20:18.
[8]Jer_23:5.—יהשׂכיל is best taken here in a double sense: rem bene, i. e., prudenter et feliciter geret. Comp. rems. on Jer_10:21; Isa_52:13.
[9]Jer_23:6.—The reading יִקְרְאוּ which is found in some Codd. is occasioned by the endeavor to obtain a designation of the subject, perhaps also by the rarer form of suffix. With respect to the former point the well-known idiom may be referred to, according to which the subject is usually wanting with קָרָא in the meaning “they call.” Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., § 101, 2, b. With respect to the latter comp. Hos_8:3; Psa_35:8; Ecc_4:12; Olsh., § 231, c.
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 vv2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 39, 40 Ye have not . . . visited them .…
Ye have not . . . visited them . . . I will visit upon you--just retribution. Play upon the double sense of "visit." "Visit upon," namely, in wrath (Exo 32:34).
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 vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 26, 28, 29, 30, 33, 36, 39 THE GATHERING AGAIN OF THE FLOCK, Jer_23:1-8.
THE GATHERING AGAIN OF THE FLOCK, Jer_23:1-8.
1. Pastors — Shepherds. The term seems sometimes to be used with reference to subordinate civil rulers, as in Jer_2:8; Jer_22:22, and yet, perhaps, more commonly in a generic sense, covering all leaders or persons of influence — prophets, priests, and civil rulers.
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Sheep of my pasture — My sheep. The flock belongs to God, who only is the true Shepherd; all others derive their authority from him.
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 vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 36, 38, 39 1. the shepherds] See on Jer_2:8, Jer_22:22, and for…
1. the shepherds] See on Jer_2:8, Jer_22:22, and for the figure of sheep cp. Psa_74:1; Psa_95:7; Psa_100:3; Eze_34:31.
Jer_23:1-8. See introd. summary to section. We should have expected, as the natural sequel to the three preceding passages, a direct reference to the reign of Zedekiah. Probably we may attribute the absence of it to Jeremiah’s unwillingness to attack one whom he recognised as merely a weak tool in the hands of the princes, the “shepherds” of Jer_23:1. But see further on Jer_23:5-8.
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Du. and Erbt make the whole passage to be late, while individual parts have been disputed, e.g. 7, 8 by Gi. and with some hesitation by Co. Others than Du. reject the most striking vv., viz. 5, 6, but Co. (so Gi.) emphatically maintains their genuineness. See notes below.
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 vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39 (1) Woe be unto the pastors . . .—The…
XXIII.
(1) Woe be unto the pastors . . .—The message that follows in Jer_23:1-8 comes as a natural sequel to that of Jeremiah 22. The unfaithful shepherds who had been there denounced are contrasted with those, more faithful to their trust, whom Jehovah will raise up. As before, in Jer_2:8 and elsewhere, we have to remember that the “pastors” are (like the “shepherds of the people” in Greek poets) the civil rulers, not the prophets or the priests, of Israel. The parallelism with the prophecy of Ezekiel 34, delivered about the same time in the land of exile, is suggestive either of direct communication between the two writers, or of traditional lines of thought common to the two priest-prophets.
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The sheep of my pasture.—The words assert the claims of Jehovah to be the true Shepherd of His people. (Comp. Psa_79:13; Psa_100:3.)
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 vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 35, 36, 38, 39, 40 The first eight verses form the necessary conclusion of…
The first eight verses form the necessary conclusion of the group of discourses summarized in Jer 21 Jer 22. Like Isaiah, our prophet follows up denunciation with consolation, and will have the mind rest on the sure promises of God for the Messianic future. A part of the people has been already scattered abroad. In Jer_24:8, "those who dwell in the land of Egypt" are a section no less important than "those who remain in this land;" and the Babylonian Captivity is an event only too certain to take place (comp. ver. 8). Unhappy Judah! for though not free from responsibility, it is the kings who are the prime authors of the calamity. Yet happy Judah! for "the days come" that an ideal king shall arise, even the promised Messiah. (Comp. Ezekiel 34, which seems like a development of this section.) Some have represented the promises of this chapter as fulfilled in the return from Babylon, with perhaps the Maccabean glories in addition. The fulfillment would in this case correspond but ill to the prediction; the context, too, is equally opposed to it. For, as Hengstenberg points out, the "gathering" and "bringing back" of Israel is in ver. 4 closely connected with the raising up of good shepherds; and, according to ver. 5, that promise is to find at any rate its culminating fulfillment in David"s "righteous Branch," the Messiah. The mistake has been partly caused by a reluctance to increase the number of prophecies still awaiting their fulfillment, and partly by the false supposition that the events described must take place simultaneously (against this view, see vers. 7, 8). Hengstenberg himself thinks that the fulfillment lies in the conversion of Israel to the gospel. "Canaan had such a high value for Israel, not because it was its fatherland in the lower sense, but because it was the land of God, the place where his glory dwelt." To be in Christ is to be in the true Canaan.
Woe be unto the pastors, etc.! This "woe" is a pendant to the" woe" upon Jehoiakim in Jer_22:13. The original form of the verse shows the strong feeling with which the prophet both wrote and spoke: "Woe I shepherds who destroy," etc. By "shepherds" Jeremiah means rather the civil than the spiritual authorities, especially the kings poimenev lawn , as Homer calls them. This is, in fact, the general Old Testament application of the term. (see on Jer_2:8) That destroy; if it is true of all sin that no one can calculate its issues, this is specially true of the sins of rulers. Delirant reges, plectuntur Achivi; or, as an inspired teacher puts it, "The leaders of this people became false guides, and those whom they led were lost men". (Isa_9:16) How these evil shepherds "destroyed" the people we are not here told; but from Jer_22:3, Jer_22:13, it is clear that sins of injustice, ranging from oppressive exaction to murder, are specially intended. Scatter; the captivities of the Jews being directly owing to the want of good government and teaching. How could the prophets stem the tide of popular corruption, when the ruling classes opposed their efforts? The sheep of my pasture; or, the sheep of my pasturing the "pastors" are Jehovah"s under shepherds. The figure is a favorite one, especially with the psalmists of the school of Asaph. (see Psa_74:1 Psa_77:20 Psa_78:52, 70-72 79:13 80:1)
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Vers. 1-4. The character of leading men.
The character of its leading men is a matter of first importance to a people. Israel had been led astray by his kings; one of the first blessings promised to him on his return is the possession of good leaders. In the most free state there must always be leading men men exercising influence by reason of their office, their rank and position, or their capacities. Observe this in regard to the various classes of leading men.
I POLITICAL LEADERS. On their character depends the questions
(1) whether laws shall be justly framed and justly executed,
(2) whether the welfare of the subjects shall be honestly worked for, and
(3) whether the dealings with foreign nations shall be just and peaceable.
II SOCIAL LEADERS. The moral influence of the court is always great and widespread; how important that this should be pure! There are people whom rank or personal attractiveness, or powers of persuasion, endow with power to influence the customs of their age. These need be well advised that their influence may be on the side of truth, purity, and humanity.
III INTELLECTUAL LEADERS. Shall the reformer be a Luther or a Voltaire? The poet a Wordsworth or a Byron? The historian an Arnold or a Gibbon? The philosopher a Butler or a Hume? Surely for the real welfare of a people the moral tendency of its literature is more important than the intellectual brilliancy.
IV RELIGIOUS LEADERS. Are these men barren controversialists, or earnest practical guides to their flocks? Are they loyal to truth, or merely bigoted defenders of their own crotchets? Are they spiritual-minded servants of Christ, or ambitious priests? Are they true shepherds, or wolves in sheep"s clothing? These questions touch the welfare of a people very closely. Note, the one essential is that the leading men should desire to serve the good of others and not simply to increase their own power and honor; to feed the flock, not to scatter it by reckless indifference, selfish ambition, or tyrannous cruelty. The power of leading men is a great and dangerous gift, only entrusted by Providence to those who possess it for the sake of the good it may be the means of conferring on the community at large. The state is in a healthy condition only when public characters are inspired by public spirit.
HOMILIES BY A.F. MUIR Vers. 1-4. False shepherds and the true.
The reference here is to the kings of the house of David, as the leaders of a theocratic people; and secondarily, to the spiritual purpose of all true kingship.
I THE MISCHIEF OF FALSE SHEPHERDING. This is twofold, viz. scattering and destroying. The false shepherd has no real interest in the sheep; being but a hireling, his chief consideration is a selfish one. The kings of Judah had sought to realize their own ambitions and to indulge their own lusts. The moral and spiritual advancement of the people the foundation of all real material prosperity was not sought. The royal example which ought to have been influential for righteousness was directly opposed to this, and all classes of the people were infected with the licentiousness of prince and noble. The results appeared in crime, idolatry, and banishment.
II ITS JUDGMENT. The calamity was to come chiefly upon those who had been unfaithful stewards of great responsibilities. Office which is thus abused will soon be taken away. According to responsibility will be punishment. He who causes to offend is worse than the offender, and will meet with corresponding severity of judgment. The nation outlives the dynasty. Unfaithful shepherds of the theocracy sink in ignominy and ruin, but God preserves a seed to serve him, and a generation to call him blessed.
III ITS CORRECTION. The deceived of God"s people, being distinguished from the deceivers, will undergo a kindlier discipline. The shepherd"s care, as the symbol of royal responsibility, is intended as an ideal corrective. It teaches the principle that the king exists for the people, and not vice versa. It is under Christianity that popular liberties, national development, and social purity have become the aims of rulers. In modern times there have been many who have illustrated this ideal of royalty; but Christ alone is the Head of redeemed humanity the good Shepherd that lays down his life for his flock. In him the throne of David is eternally restored. Not yet do we see all things put under him, but the time draws nigh when he shall reign from shore to shore, and from the river even unto the ends of the earth. Ancient Israel depended for its very existence upon spiritual obedience to God"s Law. The Church of Christ in all its offices must respect his authority and be actuated by love to him. Its character and influence must be purely spiritual, or its message will be neutralized and soon perverted to unholy ends. M.
HOMILIES BY D. YOUNG Vers. 1-4. Shepherds, bad and good.
I THE SENTENCE ON THE UNFAITHFUL, SHEPHERDS. This is perhaps the most special and emphatic of all Jeremiah"s references to the unfaithful shepherds. Nowhere does he go into such detail as Ezekiel does (Jeremiah 34). But whatever may be lacking in illustrative detail, the essential facts are mentioned. Here are men upon whom is laid a charge such as is laid on a shepherd by the owner of the pasture and the flock. The business of such a man is to provide food for the flock, defend it from beasts of prey, prevent as far as he can any of the flock from wandering; and if any should wander do his best to restore them. This might be a task of no small difficulty to the literal shepherd of the literal sheep. It required courage, watchfulness, patience, promptitude, and above all, fidelity. And yet even a shepherd enriched by these virtues might have many losses and failures. God knew, indeed, that for kings and persons in authority to guide those under them was a task more arduous far than that of shepherding sheep; and it was not mere failure that he complained of. He complained because there had been no serious attempt to attain success. The very men who should have ruled firmly and righteously and with fidelity to Jehovah had been spoilers of the sheep, using them to serve their own ends, and leaving every one to do what was right in his own eyes. The rulers had thus rejected the authority and service of Jehovah and set up self in his place. Self was to rule, self was to be served. The sentence upon this traitorous conduct is given in very general terms, but was nonetheless real and effective. God did visit on these rulers the evil of their doings. It was necessary to give a hint of this in passing, to show that, while God delights in mercy, he must also always be just. The great matter to be spoken of here is the restoring and securing of the scattered flock, and if the judgment on those who have helped to make the mischief is simply mentioned in passing, it is enough. Besides, we must remember that the sheep also had their share of the shame. The rulers could not have done so much harm if under them there had been a people of a widely different spirit.
II THE RESTORATION OF THE SCATTERED. The pastors are spoken of as those who have destroyed and scattered the sheep. The mischief they do is therefore not confined to a simple scattering. That which is destroyed cannot be restored. But the part that has been scattered, God has in his keeping; and in due time he will bring it together again. Note how Jehovah, Who announces punishment to the unfaithful shepherds because they have scattered and dispersed his flock, goes on to say that his own hand has been concerned in this same dispersion. Here is a beautiful illustration of how God overrules calamities. Though it is the recklessness of evil men that has scattered Israel, yet the good hand of God is stronger than any hand of man; and the dispersion has been into such directions as God saw to be best. Though these remnants of the duck were far from their proper pasturage, they were nevertheless in safe places, where they would be exercised in a truly profitable discipline. They were perhaps but a very feeble remnant as man counts feebleness, and yet in God"s hands a small part may be more effectual for his purposes than the incongruous whole from which it has been separated. There may be in it a peculiar coherency and submissiveness, and a peculiar energy of growth; so that the promise of fruitfulness and increase will be amply fulfilled. The Divine course of action with this remnant seems to be much the same as that followed with Noah and his family in the re-peopling of the world after the Deluge.
III THE SUFFICIENCY OF PASTORAL OVERSIGHT PROMISED FOR THE FUTURE. Of bad shepherds there have been only too many, and of good shepherds none have been so good but what they might have been a great deal better. The cause of all these hitter experiences has, however, lain with the people themselves. Wanting to be like nations round about, they desired kings; and God gave them these desires to the full, to show what the end would be. Then when the folly of the sheep, in trying to choose shepherds of their own devising, has been illustrated sufficiently, God sends shepherds who shall be true shepherds. He alone is able, as he alone has fight, to appoint such shepherds as will be equal to all the serious charge put into their hands. No pastors will be able to do anything for God"s flock save those who are indubitably of God"s appointment. Our wisdom is to allow God to provide out of his knowledge, rather than try ourselves to provide, seeing how ignorant we are. The acceptance of God"s true teachers and guides has to come at the last, and many disappointments and vexations would be spared if this acceptance were allowed to come at the first. Y.
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 vv3, 4, 5, 7, 14, 21, 23, 28, 29, 35, 37 I will gather the remnant of my flock out…
Jer_23:3
I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries.
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Home missions
As when some beautiful picture which has been put aside and forgotten, hid, it may be, from the enemy in time of invasive war, is found and cleansed and restored, and the eye is delighted with the gradual revelation of colour and of form, the life-like features of the portrait, the characters and incidents of the historical scene, the sunny landscape, or the moon-lit sea: so in that great revival of spiritual life which came by God s grace little more than fifty years ago into this Church of England, the glorious truths of the Gospel, the joy Which we have in the presence of our Lord, in His Sacraments and Scriptures, in our praises and our prayers, in our daily duty done in His name, and in our works of mercy done for His sake, have been again abundantly given to the faith which worketh by love. Oh! blessed be He who of His tender mercy hath visited and redeemed His people. This merciful, marvellous restoration maybe divided into three developments. First, there was the restoration of Faith: Credenda, what we should believe. Then there was the restoration of Hope: Precanda, what we should pray for, and when and how we should pray,--a restoration of worship. Thirdly, there came the grandest development o fall--the restoration of charity, love: Agenda, the things we have got to do for God, our duty to Him and our duty to each other; to love Him with all our heart, and all our soul, and all our strength, and then to love our neighbour as ourself. It is impossible for a Church or an individual to be quickened with spiritual life, and not yearn that others should be saved. It is impossible for your heart and mine to be unfed with the sacred heart of Jesus and not to long that others should share our joy and peace in believing. Jubilant and thankful--thankful for the past, strong and of a good courage in the present, and hopeful of the future--we stand no more by broken cisterns, for God has struck the rock, and the streams are flowing, and our cry is, the Masters cry is, O every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters and drink Our obedience is that of His mandate, Go ye out rote the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the lame, the halt, and the blind; go into the byways and hedges and bring in all--compel them to come in. Surely we may ask, almost in shame, are we true sons of those forefathers who built such churches as this, are we true sons of the men who built those grand cathedrals, and churches, and hospitals, and colleges throughout England? Was there ever a time when it was so needful that the Spirit of the Gospel should be brought to bear upon the divisions and dissensions which are among us? I mean, for example, the jealousies that exist between the classes, the commercial rivalries, the disaffection which there is. Without going beyond the measure of our knowledge, without presuming to interfere between employers and employed as to wages and those matters which we cannot possibly understand, we have an influence in pleading the great principles of justice, and honesty, and love, which, though it may be resented at first by those who are in the wrong, must in the end prevail and be established. Was there ever a time when it was more needful for men who know that God is no respecter of persons to preach the equality of all souls for whom the Lord Jesus died? It has been well said that the Gospel code, if it could only be enforced by human laws and a human legislature, would produce a condition of security and success of which the most sanguine, the cleverest politician has never even dreamed. But the Gospel is something infinitely higher and better to you and me. To you and me Christianity means all that is brave and pure in our life, all that is bright and happy in our death. It means re-union with those whom we have loved and whom we loved the best. It means--I hardly dare speak the thought--it means that you and I shall be sinless, and shall see God. It is impossible to have such a faith and hope as this, and not to desire that all should share it, and that none should perish. It is impossible for us to love God and not to love our brother also. (Dean Hole.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Expositor's Bible 1887 · Public Domain On vv1, 3 Jeremiah 23, Jeremiah 24
CHAPTER VIII
BAD SHEPHERDS AND FALSE PROPHETS
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Jeremiah 23, Jeremiah 24
"Woe unto the shepherds that destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasture!"- Jer_23:1
"Of what avail is straw instead of Grain?is not My word like fire, like a hammer that shattereth the rocks?"- Jer_23:28-29
THE captivity of Jehoiachin and the deportation of the flower of the people marked the opening of the last scene in the tragedy of Judah and of a new period in the ministry of Jeremiah. These events, together with the accession of Zedekiah as Nebuchadnezzars nominee, very largely altered the state of affairs in Jerusalem. And yet the two main features of the situation were unchanged-the people and the government persistently disregarded Jeremiahs exhortations. "Neither Zedekiah, nor his servants, nor the people of the land, did hearken unto the words of Jehovah which He spake by the prophet Jeremiah." {Jer_37:2} They would not obey the will of Jehovah as to their life and worship; and they would not submit to Nebuchadnezzar. "Zedekiah did evil in the sight of Jehovah, according to all that Jehoiakim had done; and Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon." {2Ki_24:18-20}
It is remarkable that though Jeremiah consistently urged submission to Babylon, the various arrangements made by Nebuchadnezzar did very little to improve the prophets position or increase his influence. The Chaldean king may have seemed ungrateful only because he was ignorant of the services rendered to him-Jeremiah would not enter into direct and personal cooperation with the enemy of his country, even with him whom Jehovah had appointed to be the scourge of His disobedient people-but the Chaldean policy served Nebuchadnezzar as little as it profited Jeremiah. Jehoiakim, in spite of his forced submission, remained the able and determined foe of his suzerain, and Zedekiah, to the best of his very limited ability, followed his predecessors example.
Zedekiah was uncle of Jehoiachin, half-brother of Jehoiakim, and own brother to Jehoahaz. Possibly the two brothers owed their bias against Jeremiah and his teaching to their mother, Josiahs wife Hamutal, the daughter of another Jeremiah, the Libnite. Ezekiel thus describes the appointment of the new king: "The king of Babylon took one of the seed royal, and made a covenant with him; he also put him under an oath, and took away the mighty of the land: that the kingdom might be base, that it might not lift itself up, but that by keeping of his covenant it might stand." {Eze_17:13-14} Apparently Nebuchadnezzar was careful to choose a feeble prince for his "base kingdom"; all that we read of Zedekiah suggests that he was weak and incapable. Henceforth the sovereign counted for little in the internal struggles of the tottering state. Josiah had firmly maintained the religious policy of Jeremiah, and Jehoiakim, as firmly, the opposite policy; but Zedekiah had neither the strength nor the firmness to enforce a consistent policy and to make one party permanently dominant. Jeremiah and his enemies were left to fight it out amongst themselves, so that now their antagonism grew more bitter and pronounced than during any other reign.
But whatever advantage the prophet might derive from the weakness of the sovereign was more than counterbalanced by the recent deportation. In selecting the captives Nebuchadnezzar had sought merely to weaken Judah by carrying away every one who would have been an element of strength to the "base kingdom." Perhaps he rightly believed that neither the prudence of the wise nor the honour of the virtuous would overcome their patriotic hatred of subjection; weakness alone would guarantee the obedience of Judah. He forgot that even weakness is apt to be foolhardy when there is no immediate prospect of penalty.
One result of his policy was that the enemies and friends of Jeremiah were carried away indiscriminately; there was no attempt to leave behind those who might have counselled submission to Babylon as the acceptance of a Divine judgment, and thus have helped to keep Judah loyal to its foreign master. On the contrary Jeremiahs disciples were chiefly thoughtful and honourable men, and Nebuchadnezzars policy in taking away "the mighty of the land" bereft the prophet of many friends and supporters, amongst them his disciple Ezekiel and doubtless a large class of whom Daniel and his three friends might be taken as types. When Jeremiah characterises the captives as "good figs," and those left behind as "bad figs," (chapter 24) and the judgment is confirmed and amplified by Ezekiel, (chapters 7-11) we may be sure that most of the prophets adherents were in exile.
We have already had occasion to compare the changes in the religious policy of the Jewish government to the alternations of Protestant and Romanist sovereigns among the Tudors; but no Tudor was as feeble as Zedekiah. He may rather be compared to Charles IX of France, helpless between the Huguenots and the League. Only the Jewish factions were less numerous, less evenly balanced; and by the speedy advance of Nebuchadnezzar civil dissensions were merged in national ruin.
The opening years of the new reign passed in nominal allegiance to Babylon. Jeremiahs influence would be used to induce the vassal king to observe the covenant he had entered into and to be faithful to his oath to Nebuchadnezzar. On the other hand a crowd of "patriotic" prophets urged Zedekiah to set up once more the standard of national independence, to "come to the help of the Lord against the mighty." Let us then briefly consider Jeremiahs polemic against the princes, prophets, and priests of his people. While Ezekiel in a celebrated chapter (chapter 8) denounces the idolatry of the princes, priests, and women of Judah, their worship of creeping things and abominable beasts, their weeping for Tammuz, their adoration of the sun, Jeremiah is chiefly concerned with the perverse policy of the government and the support it receives from priests and prophets, who profess to speak in the name of Jehovah. Jeremiah does not utter against Zedekiah any formal judgment like those on his three predecessors. Perhaps the prophet did not regard this impotent sovereign as the responsible representative of the state, and when the long-expected catastrophe at last befell the doomed people, neither Zedekiah nor his doings distracted mens attention from their own personal sufferings and patriotic regrets. At the point where a paragraph on Zedekiah would naturally have followed that on Jehoiachin, we have by way of summary and conclusion to the previous sections a brief denunciation of the shepherds of Israel.
"Woe unto die shepherds that destroy and scatter the sheep of My Pasture!
Ye have scattered My flock, and driven them away, and have not cared for them; behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings."
These "shepherds" are primarily the kings, Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, and Jehoiachin, who have been condemned by name in the previous chapter, together with the unhappy Zedekiah, who is too insignificant to be mentioned. But the term shepherds will also include the ruling and influential classes of which the king was the leading representative.
The image is a familiar one in the Old Testament and is found in the oldest literature of Israel, {Gen_49:24} J. from older source. {Mic_5:5} but the denunciation of the rulers of Judah as unfaithful shepherds is characteristic of Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and one of the prophecies appended to the Book of Zechariah. (Chapters 9-11, Zec_13:7-9.) Ezekiel 34 expands this figure and enforces its lessons:-
"Woe unto the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the sheep? Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool. Ye kill the fatlings: but ye feed not the sheep. The diseased have ye not strengthened, Neither have ye healed the sick, Neither have ye bound up the bruised, Neither have ye brought back again that which was driven away, Neither have ye sought for that which was lost, But your rule over them has been harsh and violent, And for want of a shepherd they were scattered, And became food for every beast of the field." {Eze_34:2-3}
So in Zechariah 9, etc., Jehovahs anger is kindled against the shepherds, because they do not pity His flock. {Zec_10:3; Zec_11:5} Elsewhere {Jer_25:34-38} Jeremiah speaks of the kings of all nations as shepherds, and pronounces against them also a like doom. All these passages illustrate the concern of the prophets for good government. They were neither Pharisees nor formalists; their religious ideals were broad and wholesome. Doubtless the elect remnant will endure through all conditions of society; but the Kingdom of God was not meant to be a pure Church in a rotten state. This present evil world is no manure heap to fatten the growth of holiness: it is rather a mass for the saints to leaven.
Both Jeremiah and Ezekiel turn from the unfaithful shepherds whose "hungry sheep look up and are not fed" to the true King of Israel, the "Shepherd of Israel that led Joseph like a flock, and dwelt between the Cherubim." In the days of the Restoration He will raise up faithful shepherds, and over them a righteous Branch, the real Jehovah Zidqenu, instead of the sapless twig who disgraced the name "Zedekiah." Similarly Ezekiel promises that God will set up one shepherd over His people, "even My servant David." The pastoral care of Jehovah for His people is most tenderly and beautifully set forth in the twenty-third Psalm. Our Lord, the root and the offspring of David, claims to be the fulfilment of ancient prophecy when He calls Himself "the Good Shepherd." The words of Christ and of the Psalmist receive new force and fuller meaning when we contrast their pictures of the true Shepherd with the portraits of the Jewish kings drawn by the prophets. Moreover the history of this metaphor warns us against ignoring the organic life of the Christian society, the Church, in our concern for the spiritual life of the individual. As Sir Thomas More said, in applying this figure to Henry VIII, "Of the multitude of sheep cometh the name of a shepherd." A shepherd implies not merely a sheep, but a flock; His relation to each member is tender and personal, but He bestows blessings and requires service in fellowship with the Family of God.
By a natural sequence the denunciation of the unfaithful shepherds is followed by a similar utterance "concerning the prophets." It is true that the prophets are not spoken of as shepherds; and Miltons use of the figure in "Lycidas" suggests the New Testament rather than the Old. Yet the prophets had a large share in guiding the destinies of Israel in politics as well as in religion, and having passed sentence on the shepherds-the kings and princes-Jeremiah turns to the ecclesiastics, chiefly, as the heading implies, to the prophets. The priests indeed do not escape, but Jeremiah seems to feel that they are adequately dealt with in two or three casual references. We use the term "ecclesiastics" advisedly; the prophets were now a large professional class, more important and even more clerical than the priests. The prophets and priests together were the clergy of Israel. They claimed to be devoted servants of Jehovah, and for the most part the claim was made in all sincerity; but they misunderstood His character, and mistook for Divine inspiration the suggestions of their own prejudice and self-will.
Jeremiahs indictment against them has various counts. He accuses them of speaking without authority, and also of time serving, plagiarism, and cant.
First, then, as to their unauthorised utterances: Jeremiah finds them guilty of an unholy license in prophesying, a distorted caricature of that "liberty of prophesying" which is the prerogative of Gods accredited ambassadors.
"Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you.
They make fools of you:
The visions which they declare are from their own hearts,
And not from the mouth of Jehovah.
Who hath stood in the council of Jehovah,
To perceive and hear His word?
Who hath marked His word and heard it?
I sent not the prophets-yet they ran;
I spake not unto them-yet they prophesied."
The evils which Jeremiah describes are such as will always be found in any large professional class. To use modern terms-in the Church, as in every profession, there will be men who are not qualified for the vocation which they follow. They are indeed not called to their vocation; they "follow," but do not overtake it. They are not sent of God, yet they run; they have no Divine message, yet they preach. They have never stood in the council of Jehovah; they might perhaps have gathered up scraps of the Kings purposes from His true councillors; but when they had opportunity they neither "marked nor heard"; and yet they discourse concerning heavenly things with much importance and assurance. But their inspiration, at its best, has no deeper or richer source than their own shallow selves; their visions are the mere product of their own imaginations. Strangers to the true fellowship, their spirit is not "a well of water springing up unto eternal life," but a stagnant pool. And, unless the judgment and mercy of God intervene, that pool will in the end be fed from a fountain whose bitter waters are earthly, sensual, devilish.
We are always reluctant to speak of ancient prophecy or modern preaching as a "profession." We may gladly dispense with the word, if we do not thereby ignore the truth which it inaccurately expresses. Men lived by prophecy, as, with Apostolic sanction, men live by "the gospel." They were expected, as ministers are now, though in a less degree, to justify their claims to an income and an official status, by discharging religious functions so as to secure the approval of the people or the authorities. Then, as now, the prophets reputation, influence, and social standing, probably even his income, depended upon the amount of visible success that he could achieve.
In view of such facts, it is futile to ask men of the world not to speak of the clerical life as a profession. They discern no ethical difference between a curates dreams of a bishopric and the aspirations of a junior barrister to the woolsack. Probably a refusal to recognise the element common to the ministry with law, medicine, and other professions, injures both the Church and its servants. One peculiar difficulty and most insidious temptation of the Christian ministry consists in its mingled resemblances to and differences from the other professions. The minister has to work under similar worldly conditions, and yet to control those conditions by the indwelling power of the Spirit. He has to "run," it may be twice or even three times a week, whether he be sent or no: how can he always preach only that which God has taught him? He is consciously dependent upon the exercise of his memory, his intellect, his fancy: how can he avoid speaking "the visions of his own heart"? The Church can never allow its ministers to regard themselves as mere professional teachers and lecturers, and yet if they claim to be more, must they not often fall under Jeremiahs condemnation?
It is one of those practical dilemmas which delight casuists and distress honest and earnest servants of God. In the early Christian centuries similar difficulties peopled the Egyptian and Syrian deserts with ascetics, who had given up the world as a hopeless riddle. A full discussion of the problem would lead us too far away from the exposition of Jeremiah and we will only venture to make two suggestions.
The necessity, which most ministers are under, of "living by the gospel," may promote their own spiritual life and add to their usefulness. It corrects and reduces spiritual pride, and helps them to understand and sympathise with their lay brethren, most of whom are subject to a similar trial.
Secondly, as a minister feels the ceaseless pressure of strong temptation to speak from and live for himself-his lower, egotistic self-he will be correspondingly driven to a more entire and persistent surrender to God. The infinite fulness and variety of Revelation is expressed by the manifold gifts and experience of the prophets. If only the prophet be surrendered to the Spirit, then what is most characteristic of himself may become the most forcible expression of his message. His constant prayer will be that he may have the childs heart and may never resist the Holy Ghost, that no personal interest or prejudice, no bias of training or tradition or current opinion, may dull his hearing when he stands in the council of the Lord, or betray him into uttering for Christs gospel the suggestions of his own self-will or the mere watchwords of his ecclesiastical faction.
But to return to the ecclesiastics who had stirred Jeremiahs wrath. The professional prophets naturally adapted their words to the itching ears of their clients. They were not only officious, but also time serving. Had they been true prophets, they would have dealt faithfully with Judah; they would have sought to convince the people of sin, and to lead them to repentance; they would thus have given them yet another opportunity of salvation.
"If they had stood in My council,
They would have caused My people to hear My words;
They would have turned them from their evil way,
And from the evil of their doings."
But now:-
"They walk in lies and strengthen the hands of evildoers,
That no one may turn away from his sin.
They say continually unto them that despise the word of Jehovah,
Ye shall have peace;
And unto every one that walketh in the stubbornness of his heart they say,
No evil shall come upon you."
Unfortunately, when prophecy becomes professional in the lowest sense of the word, it is governed by commercial principles. A sufficiently imperious demand calls forth an abundant supply. A sovereign can "tune the pulpits"; and a ruling race can obtain from its clergy formal ecclesiastical sanction for such "domestic institutions" as slavery. When evildoers grow numerous and powerful, there will always be prophets to strengthen their hands and encourage them not to turn away from their sin. But to give the lie to these false prophets God sends Jeremiahs, who are often branded as heretics and schismatics, turbulent fellows who turn the world upside down.
The self-important, self-seeking spirit leads further to the sin of plagiarism:-
"Therefore I am against the prophets, is the utterance of Jehovah,
Who steal My word from one another."
The sin of plagiarism is impossible to the true prophet, partly because there are no rights of private property in the word of Jehovah. The Old Testament writers make free use of the works of their predecessors. For instance, Isa_2:2-4 is almost identical with Mic_4:1-3; yet neither author acknowledges his indebtedness to the other or to any third prophet. Uriah ben Shemaiah prophesied acording to all the words of Jeremiah, {Jer_26:20} who himself owes much to Hosea, whom he never mentions. Yet he was not conscious of stealing from his predecessor, and he would have brought no such charge against Isaiah or Micah or Uriah. In the New Testament 2 Peter and Jude have so much in common that one must have used the other without acknowledgment. Yet the Church has not, on that ground, excluded either Epistle from the Canon. In the goodly fellowship of the prophets and the glorious company of the apostles no man says that the things which he utters are his own. But the mere hireling has no part in the spiritual communism wherein each may possess all things because he claims nothing. When a prophet ceases to be the messenger of God, and sinks into the mercenary purveyor of his own clever sayings and brilliant fancies, then he is tempted to become a clerical Autolycus, "a snapper up of unconsidered trifles." Modern ideas furnish a curious parallel to Jeremiahs indifference to the borrowings of the true prophet, and his scorn of the literary pilferings of the false. We hear only too often of stolen sermons, but no one complains of plagiarism in prayers. Doubtless among these false prophets charges of plagiarism were bandied to and fro with much personal acrimony. But it is interesting to notice that Jeremiah is not denouncing an injury done to himself; he does not accuse them of thieving from him, but from one another. Probably assurance and lust of praise and power would have overcome any awe they felt for Jeremiah. He was only free from their depredations, because-from their point of view-his words were not worth stealing. There was nothing to be gained by repeating his stern denunciations, and even his promises were not exactly suited to the popular taste.
These prophets were prepared to cater for the average religious appetite in the most approved fashion-in other words, they were masters of cant. Their office had been consecrated by the work of true men of God like Elijah and Isaiah. They themselves claimed to stand in the genuine prophetic succession, and to inherit the reverence felt for their great predecessors, quoting their inspired utterances and adopting their weighty phrases. As Jeremiahs contemporaries listened to one of their favourite orators, they were soothed by his assurances of Divine favour and protection, and their confidence in the speaker was confirmed by the frequent sound of familiar formulae in his unctuous sentences. These had the true ring; they were redolent of sound doctrine, of what popular tradition regarded as orthodox.
The solemn attestation NEUM YAHWE, "It is the utterance of Jehovah," is continually appended to prophecies, almost as if it were the sign manual of the Almighty. Isaiah and other prophets frequently use the term MASSA (A.V., R.V., "burden") as a title, especially for prophecies concerning neighbouring nations. The ancient records loved to tell how Jehovah revealed Himself to the patriarchs in dreams. Jeremiahs rivals included dreams in their clerical apparatus:-
"Behold, I am against them that prophesy lying dreams-Neum Yahwe-
And tell them, and lead astray My people
By their lies and their rodomontade;
It was not I who sent or commanded them,
Neither shall they profit this people at all, Neum Yahwe."
These prophets "thought to cause the Lords people to forget His name, as their fathers forgot His name for Baal, by their dreams which they told one another."
Moreover they could glibly repeat the sacred phrases as part of their professional jargon:-
"Behold, I am against the prophets,
It is the utterance of Jehovah,
That use their tongues
To utter utterances"
"To utter utterances"-the prophets uttered them, not Jehovah. These sham oracles were due to no Diviner source than the imagination of foolish hearts. But for Jeremiahs grim earnestness, the last clause would be almost blasphemous. It is virtually a caricature of the most solemn formula of ancient Hebrew religion. But this was really degraded when it was used to obtain credence for the lies which men prophesied out of the deceit of their own heart. Jeremiahs seeming irreverence was the most forcible way of bringing this home to his hearers. There are profanations of the most sacred things which can scarcely be spoken of without an apparent breach of the Third Commandment. The most awful taking in vain of the name of the Lord God is not heard among the publicans and sinners, but in pulpits and on the platforms of religious meetings.
But these prophets and their clients had a special fondness for the phrase "The burden of Jehovah," and their unctuous use of it most especially provoked Jeremiahs indignation:-
"When this people priest, or prophet shall ask thee,
What is the burden of Jehovah?
Then say unto them, Ye are the burden.
But I will cast you off, Neum Yahwe.
If priest or prophet or people shall say,
The burden of Jehovah, I will punish that man and his house."
"And ye shall say to one another,
What hath Jehovah answered? and,
What hath Jehovah spoken?
And ye shall no more make mention of the burden of Jehovah:
For (if ye do) mens words shall become a burden to themselves.
Thus shall ye inquire of a prophet,
What hath Jehovah answered thee?
What hath Jehovah spoken unto thee?
But if ye say, The burden of Jehovah,
Thus saith Jehovah: Because ye say this word, The burden of Jehovah.
When I have sent unto you the command,
Ye shall not say, The burden of Jehovah,
Therefore I will assuredly take you up,
And will cast away from before Me both you
And the city which I gave to you and to your fathers.
I will bring upon you everlasting reproach
And everlasting shame, that shall not be forgotten."
Jeremiahs insistence and vehemence speak for themselves. Their moral is obvious, though for the most part unheeded. The most solemn formulae, hallowed by ancient and sacred associations, used by inspired teachers as the vehicle of revealed truths, may be debased till they become the very legend of Antichrist, blazoned on the Vexilla Regis Inferni. They are like a motto of one of Charles Paladins flaunted by his unworthy descendants to give distinction to cruelty and vice. The Churchs line of march is strewn with such dishonoured relics of her noblest champions. Even our Lords own words have not escaped. There is a fashion of discoursing upon "the gospel" which almost tempts reverent Christians to wish they might never hear that word again. Neither is this debasing of the moral currency confined to religious phrases; almost every political and social watchword has been similarly abused. One of the vilest tyrannies the world has ever seen-the Reign of Terror-claimed to be an incarnation of "Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity."
Yet the Bible, with that marvellous catholicity which lifts it so high above the level of all other religious literature, not only records Jeremiahs prohibition to use the term "Burden," but also tells us that centuries later Malachi could still speak of "the burden of the word of Jehovah." A great phrase that has been discredited by misuse may yet recover itself; the tarnished and dishonoured sword of faith may be baptised and burnished anew, and flame in the forefront of the holy war.
Jeremiah does not stand alone in his unfavourable estimate of the professional prophets of Judah; a similar depreciation seems to be implied by the words of Amos: "I am neither a prophet nor of the sons of prophets." One of the unknown authors whose writings have been included in the Book of Zechariah takes up the teaching of Amos and Jeremiah and carries it a stage further:-
"In that day (it is the utterance of Jehovah Sabaoth) I will cut off the names of the idols from the land,
They shall not be remembered any more;
Also the prophets and the spirit of uncleanness
Will I expel from the land.
When any shall yet prophesy, His father and mother that begat him shall say unto him,
Thou shalt not live, for thou speakest lies in the name of Jehovah":
"And his father and mother that begat him shall
Thrust him through when he prophesieth.
In that day every prophet when he prophesieth
Shall be ashamed of his vision;
Neither shall any wear a hairy mantle to deceive:
He shall say, I am no prophet;
I am a tiller of the ground,
I was sold for a slave in my youth."
No man with any self-respect would allow his fellows to dub him prophet; slave was a less humiliating name. No family would endure the disgrace of having a member who belonged to this despised caste; parents would rather put their son to death than see him a prophet. To such extremities may the spirit of time serving and cant reduce a national clergy. We are reminded of Latimers words in his famous sermon to Convocation in 1536:
"All good men in all places accuse your avarice, your exactions, your tyranny. I commanded you that ye should feed my sheep, and ye earnestly feed yourselves from day to day, wallowing in delights and idleness. I commanded you to teach my law; you teach your own traditions, and seek your own glory."
Over against their fluent and unctuous cant Jeremiah sets the terrible reality of his Divine message. Compared to this, their sayings are like chaff to the wheat; nay, this is too tame a figure-Jehovahs word is like fire, like a hammer that shatters rocks. He says of himself:-
"My heart within me is broken; all my bones shake:
I am like a drunken man, like a man whom wine hath overcome,
Because of Jehovah and His holy words."
Thus we have in chapter 23, a full and formal statement of the controversy between Jeremiah and his brother prophets. On the one hand, self-seeking and self-assurance winning popularity by orthodox phrases, traditional doctrine, and the prophesying of smooth things; on the other hand, a man to whom the word of the Lord was like a fire in his bones, who had surrendered prejudice and predilection that he might himself become a hammer to shatter the Lords enemies, a man through whom God wrought so mightily that he himself reeled and staggered with the blows of which he was the instrument.
The relation of the two parties was not unlike that of St. Paul and his Corinthian adversaries: the prophet, like the Apostle, spoke "in demonstration of the Spirit of power"; he considered "not the word of them which are puffed up, but the power. For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power." In our next chapter we shall see the practical working of this antagonism which we have here set forth.
William Robertson Nicoll, ed., The Expositor's Bible (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1887–1910) — public domain. 65 of 66 books (1 Corinthians is not separately keyed, as that volume carries no machine-parseable verse references); section-level commentary keyed to the opening verse. Introductory and overview sections not keyed to a specific passage are excluded.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On v1 CRITICAL AND EXEGETICAL NOTES.—1. Chronology of the Chapter.—The chapter…
CRITICAL AND EXEGETICAL NOTES.—1. Chronology of the Chapter.—The chapter is an epilogue to the denunciations of the three kings in chap. 22. It must have been written and proclaimed about the beginning of Zedekiah’s reign, for a warning to him, from the examples of his predecessors, of the consequences of unrighteousness. Cf. notes on chap. Jer_21:11-14.
2. Contemporary Scriptures.—2Ki_24:17-19; 2Ch_36:10-12. Comp. Jer_52:1-3.
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For 3. National Affairs, and 4. Contemporaneous History. See notes on chap. Jer_21:11-14.
5. Geographical References.—Jer_23:13. “Samaria:” here alluded to as the territory of the ten tribes of Israel, in contrast with “Jerusalem” (Jer_23:14), the territory of Ephraim and Judah. Jer_23:14. “Sodom and Gomorrah:” two cities “of the plain,” standing close together, in or near the vale of Siddim (Gen_10:19; Gen_13:10); overthrown B.C. 2064, for their atrocious wickedness (Gen_18:20; Rom_9:29). Their doom is held up as a warning to the children of Israel (Deu_29:23), and forms a standing illustration of abandoned iniquity (Deu_32:32; Isa_1:9-10;) and in this verse. Josephus states that the Dead Sea now fills the valley in which these “cities of the plain” stood (Ant. i. 9), but elsewhere affirms (War, iv. 8, 4) that the site of Sodom was not submerged, but remains a burnt and charred scene. Pilgrims to Palestine formerly saw, or thought they saw, ruins of towns at the bottom of the Dead Sea, not far from the shore.
6. Personal Allusions.—Jer_23:5. “David.” Comp. Homily on Jer_23:24 of chap. 22 for the lineal royal connection with David.
7. Natural History.—Jer_23:5. “Branch.” This word Tsemach occurs also in chap. Jer_33:15; Zec_3:8; Zec_4:12, and denotes a springing or budding plant—“a sprout.” Dr. Payne Smith remarks: “A tree has many branches, and these can be pruned away without killing the tree, but the sprout is that in which the root springs up and grows, and which, if it be destroyed, makes the root perish also. For its use, see Gen_19:25; Isa_61:11, in both which places it springs directly out of the ground; also Eze_16:7; Eze_17:9; Hos_8:7, where it is translated either bud or spring.”
Jer_23:15. “Wormwood and gall:” cf. notes on chaps. Jer_9:15, and Jer_8:14.
Jer_23:28. “Chaff and wheat:” cf. Homily on verse infra.
8. Manners and Customs.—Jer_23:25. “I have dreamed, I have dreamed:” Professional “dreamers” early appeared (see Deu_18:1), for superstitious people in all ages have given ready credulity to these false visionists.
9. Literary Criticisms.—Jer_23:5. “A King shall reign and prosper.” Rather, “He shall reign as king and prosper;” as contrasted with chap. Jer_23:30.
Jer_23:6. “His name whereby He shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.” “He shall be called” is more properly “he shall call him:” i.e., either “God shall,” &c., or “he shall”—each shall. Several MSS., however, read, יִקְרְאוּ plural, “they shall call him,” instead of יִקְרְאוֹ singular. “THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS:” Jehovah Tsidkenu. Criticism has attempted to make “Jehovah” the nominative of “shall call,”—”Jehovah shall call him, “our Righteousness:” thus destroying the compound name, and depriving the Messiah of the title of Deity: but Henderson affirms, and in this is sustained by the consensus and weight of modern scholarship, that “to make יְהֹוָה the nominative of the verb (shall call) is to contradict all Hebrew usage, according to which the name given, and not the person who gives the name, immediately follows the verb.
Jer_23:15. “Profaneness gone forth”—profanation, desecration.
Jer_23:17. “Imagination”—stubbornness.
Jer_23:19. “Behold, a whirlwind,” &c. The verse should read, Behold, a tempest (storm wind) of Jehovah! Fury is gone forth (or, even hot anger is gone forth); and a whirlwind (סַעַר מִתחוֹלֵל a tornado, whirling storm) shall be hurled (or burst) upon the head of the wicked.
Jer_23:29. “Is not My word like as a fire?” The presence of the word כה, thus, in this sentence gives rise to the suggestion that formerly it was כח, strength or power. The Targum reads: “Are not all My words strong like fire?” Probably this suggested the word in Heb_4:12, “quick and powerful.”
Jer_23:31. “That use their tongues and say, He saith.” Not נְאֻם יהֹוָה, saith Jehovah, but only נְאֻס “saith.”
Jer_23:33. “What burden?” The LXX. divide the words אֶת־מה־משּׂא, What burden? into only two sections, thus, אתם המּשּׂא, Ye are the burden; and with this reading, which is more rational, the following words accord: “Ye are the burden, and I will cast you away, saith the Lord.” “Forsaken you,” should be, refused you, thrown you off.
HOMILIES ON SECTIONS OF CHAPTER 23
Sections
Jer_23:1-8.
Judah’s restoration under Jehovah Tsidkenu.
Sections
Jer_23:9-40.
False prophets and national levity denounced.
Section, Jer_23:1-8. JUDAH’S RESTORATION UNDER JEHOVAH TSIDKENU
Through the dark clouds gathering over Jerusalem there broke occasionally gleams of sunshine. The judgments which the prophet foretold were so terrible, and the ruin awaiting Judah so overwhelming, that Jeremiah and the small remnant of the true Israel remaining might have abandoned all hope.
But God relieved their despondency by the promise that, notwithstanding the judgments and calamities, He would again visit and redeem His people.
I. The prediction assumes that all the calamities which the prophet foretold would overtake Judah. These calamities threatened the kingdom, and also the very house of David: for the expression, “I will raise unto David a righteous Branch,” conveys the idea of a tender sprout springing from the root of a tree cut down or seemingly dead.
II. Yet the prediction assured them that the promise would certainly be fulfilled. The positive fulfilment of the threatening would encourage the hope in the sure realisation of the promise, and give them encouragement amid the calamities.
III. There is here an obvious contrast between this promised King and all who ever held David’s throne. He was to be righteous, to reign, to act wisely. How different from all kings before Him! Their impiety and folly had entailed ruin upon the people.
IV. The description of their future King could not fail to astonish them. It began by comparing Him to a bud, or tender shoot, from a tree cut down, and ended by ascribing to Him the great and fearful name of JEHOVAH! It must have awakened their admiration, reverence, confidence: for—
1. His being the offspring of David assured them of His tenderest sympathy in the well-being of Israel and Judah; and—
2. His being Jehovah gave still stronger assurance that nothing was too difficult to accomplish, and nothing would be left undone. And—
3. They were assured that His righteousness, power, and wisdom would be made available for securing the peace and prosperity of His people, as He was to be their Righteousness.
V. This promise has been fulfilled, and its hidden meaning unfolded. To God’s ancient people obscurity must have hidden the true character of their king. The prophets themselves diligently sought a “private interpretation” of their own predictions. The Church at large was in mystery. But to us the mystery is all revealed.
VI. The great principle on which the whole scheme of redemption rests is here stated. “Righteousness.”
1. It is only on the ground of perfect righteousness that God can accept and approve an intelligent creature.
2. Yet a sinner’s restoration to righteousness was impracticable by and of himself. He fell under the power as well as condemnation of sin.
3. The two conditions of man’s deliverance were, punishment due to sin already committed must be borne, and perfect compliance with the demand of the law must be rendered. Man was wholly incompetent.
4. The manifold wisdom of God is seen in His provision of what seemed impossible—perfect righteousness. “He shall be called Jehovah our righteousness.”—Robert Gordon, D.D., F.R.S.C.—“Christ as made known to the Ancient Church.”
Here is—
I. A word of terror to the negligent shepherds (Jer_23:1-2). The day is at hand when God would reckon with them concerning the trust committed to them.
1. They were not owners of the sheep. God calls them “the sheep of My pasture.”
2. They had neglected the sheep. “Scattered the flock,” &c.
3. They would be visited with vengeance. They would not “visit” the sheep; God would “visit” upon them the evil of their doings. See Addenda: NEGLIGENT PASTORS.
II. A word of comfort to the neglected sheep.
1. The dispersed people should be gathered happily into their own land, and under good government (Jer_23:3-4).
2. Messiah, the good Shepherd of the sheep, would be raised up to bless and be the glory of His people Israel (Jer_23:5-6).
3. This great salvation should far outshine Israel’s deliverance from Egypt (Jer_23:7-8).
III. An illustrious description of the promised Messiah.
1. Christ is here spoken of as the Branch from David. Mean in appearance; His beginnings small; His rise seemingly out of the earth, but growing to be green, to be great, and to be loaded with fruits.
2. He is here spoken of as the Church’s King. He shall reign on the throne of His father David, and he shall prosper, and not, as the degenerate kings had done, go back in their affairs. He shall set up a kingdom in the world, which shall be victorious over all opposition. And in these days of Christ’s government, “Judah shall be saved,” &c. When He reigns uppermost in the soul, the soul dwells at ease.
3. He is here spoken of as The Lord our Righteousness. (1.) Who and what He is. As God, “Jehovah;” denoting His eternity and self-existence. As Mediator, “our Righteousness.” All our righteousness has its being from Him; and we are made the righteousness of God in Him. (2.) The profession and declaration of this. “This is the name by which,” &c. Not only shall He be so, but He shall be known to be so. God shall call Him by this name: and Israel shall so call Him: and every true believer shall know and call upon Him by that name.—Matthew Henry.
Section, Jer_23:9-40.—FALSE PROPHETS, AND THE NATIONAL LEVITY DENOUNCED
Jeremiah’s deep distress under the necessity of declaring the dreadful woes which God bade him utter (Jer_23:9).
I. Delusive prophesyings.
1. Criminal teachers (Jer_23:13-14). Their wicked teachings had led to apostasy in Samaria, and effrontery in Jerusalem.
2. Deluded hearers (Jer_23:16-17). They “hearkened” readily; were rendered “vain;” grew to “despise” God; and still expected “peace.”
3. A demoralised nation (Jer_23:10-11). Abandoned to vileness of conduct; to profanity of speech; perversity of life (“course evil”); and resolute defiance (“their force is not right”).
4. God’s revulsion at such scenes (Jer_23:13-14). The conduct of the Baal-priests in Samaria stirred God’s contempt; but the vile corruptions of the Jerusalem priests aroused His loathing and wrath.
5. God’s remonstrance with the nation (Jer_23:16). Though men mislead, God interposes with earnest appeals and honest counsels.
6. God’s charge against the prophets (Jer_23:18; Jer_23:21-22). They had neglected “the counsel of the Lord”; had spoken without a commission; and therefore misled God’s people.
7. Sin’s cruel seductions (Jer_23:12). God gives them over to strong delusions; to inherit the miseries of their perversity.
8. Fierce anger against transgressors (Jer_23:19-20). Mighty forces of destruction; working furious disaster upon the wrong-doers; allowing of no escape.
9. Bitter woes against the prophets (Jer_23:15). Inward bitterness: enforced bitterness: God would fill them with the pangs of woe.
Note:
i. False teachers will taste the full “bitterness” of their wicked delusions.
ii. Wilful sinners shall be “driven on” in the slippery ways they prefer.
iii. No teachings which lead men to sin can have the sanction of God.
II. Frivolous dreamers.
1. False pretenders to Divine communications (Jer_23:25-27). These dreamy surmisings are (1.) Traced to their origin (“the deceit of their own heart”); and (2.) Their baneful purpose is exposed (“they think to cause My people to forget My name,” &c.).
2. A bold distinction between God’s messages and such deceits (Jer_23:28-29). The “dream” beguiles to delusions; the “word” burns all conceits and breaks all false confidences.
3. An all-observing Eye (Jer_23:23-24). Deceivers are watched. Men cannot see through their fallacies, but God can. None deceive Him.
4. Stern denunciations of lying prophets, (1.) Their sinful practices; they “steal God’s words” from true prophets and pervert or misapply them; they simulate a Divine authority for their false words, saying “He saith;” and they lead God’s people “to err by their lightness.” (2.) God’s severe remonstrance; “I am against the prophets,” and the “dreamers;” He would requite them for their deceptions and for the consequent errors of the people.
Note:
i. Promises of peace from men who lead us astray from God are mere “chaff” which the wind shall drive away.
ii. The “faithfulness” of God’s Word distinguishes it from the delusions of human teachings.
III. Profane jesting. This charge is thrown upon the whole nation (Jer_23:33-34). They so treated the messages of God’s true prophet.
1. Retorting with banter and levity. Taking up Jeremiah’s solemn words with derision, and tossing them about as if it all were a jest.
2. Trifling with messages from God (Jer_23:35-36). Chaffing one another with being bearers of God’s “burden;” and “perverting” Jehovah’s “words.”
3. Rejected by Jehovah with contempt (Jer_23:39-40). God had forbidden this levity (Jer_23:38); and now would “cast off” the nation as a grievous and loathsome burden (Jer_23:39), and leave them to the “lasting shame” they so richly deserved (Jer_23:40).
Note:
i. Jesting with God’s Word indicates the most daring impiety.
ii. Such lightness and profanity will prove a woful burden to the sinner and his everlasting reproach.
HOMILIES AND COMMENTS ON VERSES OF CHAPTER 23
Jer_23:1-4. Theme: FAITHLESS PASTORS: FAITHFUL SHEPHERDS.
I. Woful neglect of the flock of God.
1. On whom God charges this faithlessness. These “pastors” were the secular rulers, the unrighteous kings, mentioned in chap. 22, Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, and Jeconiah. Note, the responsibility of civil rulers to God; for “By Me kings reign,” &c. Hence argue: the obligations of all in power, whether that power be royal, civil, ecclesiastical, or pastoral, to rule and work for the highest good and the spiritual advantage of the people.
2. For what God threatens these shepherds. The flock was “destroyed;” i.e., it was no longer “the flock of God,” for the nation was a wilful and wicked herd of goats; its pastoral simplicity had been ruined. And the flock was “scattered;” driven away from fidelity to God; equally from His nutritious pasturage; and literally from the fold they should have occupied, the land they should have continued to inhabit (Jer_23:3). Negligent Shepherds harm the people temporally and spiritually; despoil them of the choicest blessings of this life—their spiritual comforts and heavenly hopes.
3. With what judgments God would visit such faithlessness. “Woe be to the pastors.” “I will visit upon you the evil of your doings.” With what measure ye mete it shall be measured to you again. The ruin of the flock would be requited by the ruin of the shepherds. (See Ezekiel 33.)
II. Benignant promise of faithful pastors.
Note that the words “pastors” and “shepherds” are different translations of the same Hebrew word (rôim).
1. To that nation this was fulfilled in the raising up of religious and righteous rulers, Zerubbabel, Ezra, Nehemiah, and the Maccabees, who were not hereditary kings of the seed of David, but men raised up by God to govern His flock.
2. To the spiritual Israel this was fulfilled in the orders and ordinances of the Christian Church. No more have we the tyranny of secular kings within the Church; but Christ Himself is King. No longer have we the impiety of priests and Pharisees within the Church (as in the Jewish Synagogue); for the apostles of Christ began a line of earnest teachers and preachers who minister within the sanctuary: faithful pastors who love and tend “the flock of God over which the Holy Ghost has made them overseers.”
3. To every soul within the Saviour’s fold these assurances are now verified: “they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, saith the Lord” (Jer_23:4): for believers in Christ have Him for Shepherd (Psalms 24); and He both guards His fold from harm, and nourishes the souls of His flock.
“Fear no more:” it pledges a sense of security. Such is the luxury of Christian restfulness within the fold of and under the rule of Jesus our Lord. Safe in Christ.
“Nor be dismayed:” it guarantees protection from such neglect and exposure as a flock, faithlessly shepherded, would suffer. Saved by Christ.
“Neither shall they be lacking:” this means, not one sheep shall be missing. This is therefore a prophecy of Judah’s restoration from Babylon; yet its fulness of significance can only be realised in the final restoration of both “Judah” and “Israel” (comp. Jer_23:6) out of all countries—a prophecy never yet accomplished. While spiritually it foreshadows the gathering together of all Christ’s redeemed, under the One Shepherd of the sheep.
See Addenda: NEGLIGENT PASTORS.
Jer_23:5. Theme: THE KINGDOM OF THE MESSIAH.
The prophetic writings are replete with appropriate and sublime descriptions of the personal appearing, redeeming works, and mediatorial offices of the promised Messiah. The text describes the Redeemer’s character, as assuming human nature and establishing His kingdom of grace; and directs our attention to the following important truths:
I. The person of the Messiah.
“Behold the days come,” &c. In these words we may observe three things relative to the coming Messiah:—
1. His human incarnation. “A Branch.” This term is often used by the prophets to represent Christ’s assumption of our nature as “the seed of the woman,” according to the Divine promise (Gen_3:15). To accomplish this and similar promises, the Lord declares in the text, “Behold the days come that I will raise unto David a righteous branch.” The Father loved the world, promised, and actually “sent His Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, that we might live through Him.” Thus, the Lord “raised” in the royal house and lineage of David “a Branch;” as it is written, “There shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of His roots.” The scheme of redemption rendered it necessary for Christ to “take on Him the seed of Abraham,” that He might suffer and die for our sins (Heb_2:10; Heb_2:17).
2. His personal perfection. “A righteous branch.” In His essential nature as God, Jesus Christ was infinitely pure, holy, just, and good. And in His human nature as man He was perfectly righteous and sinless. Had not Christ been sinless, He could not have atoned for our sins.
3. His sovereign character. “A King shall reign.” The Jews were taught to expect their Messiah as an illustrious Prince and prosperous monarch. But, in general, they mistook the precise meaning of the prophets, and expected Him as a temporal, and not as a spiritual, sovereign. He possessed every qualification requisite for the dignity of His character. He is infinite in wisdom, righteousness, power, and goodness. He is not only a Prophet to instruct, a Priest to atone, but also a King to rule and save His people.
II. The nature of His kingdom.
“A King shall reign and prosper,” &c. The empire of Christ is of a complex character, and comprehends His vast dominion over all things, as the Creator and Preserver of mankind, and as the Redeemer and Saviour of them that believe. In this extended view the Messiah possesses:—
1. A universal kingdom. His presence fills all space, and His power is unlimited. He reigns in His providence over all His creatures, and is “the King of kings, and Lord of lords.” He is the sovereign proprietor of all things, and sways His sceptre both in heaven and in earth. All things are dependent on His power, and subject to His control, “who is over all, God blessed for ever.”
2. A mediatorial kingdom. This refers to Christ’s official character, as the “mediator between God and man.” When Christ engaged in the cause of our redemption. He founded a kingdom of mediation for the redemption of mankind. The Saviour reigns as the conqueror of all our enemies as “the Prince of Peace and the King of Zion,” in His redeeming and mediatorial character (Php_2:5-11).
3. A spiritual kingdom. The kingdom which Christ established in the work of redemption is designed in its personal influence to destroy sin, that “grace might reign through righteousness unto eternal life.” Our Lord declares the kingdom of God is within you. It is an eternal empire of grace, producing righteousness, peace, and “joy in the Holy Ghost.”
4. A celestial kingdom. Heaven is often denominated a kingdom, and is the promised inheritance of the Lord’s faithful people (Luk_12:32). The kingdom of grace here prepares and leads to the kingdom of glory hereafter. Christ waits to receive and welcome His followers into His everlasting kingdom, that they may participate His glory, dwell in His presence, and reign with Him for ever.
III. The character of His reign. “A king shall reign and prosper,” &c.
1. Christ’s reign is legitimate. He is no impostor. He reigns by rational and eternal right as Sovereign of the universe; and as mediator He reigns in the kingdom of grace by Divine appointment, authority, and sanction. The kingdom of Christ is founded on principles of sound reason, and therefore all rational beings ought to submit to His government.
2. Christ’s reign is righteous. He is a merciful and gracious Sovereign, and though He “executes judgment and justice in the earth,” it is in mercy and love to mankind.
3. Christ’s reign is prosperous. Whatever opposition His kingdom meets with, “He shall prosper.” All the schemes He adopts, and the means He employs, are devised by infinite wisdom and accompanied by omnipotent energy; and therefore His reign must succeed. His perfections, declarations, promises, gospel, and Spirit, secure the prosperity of His cause (Heb_1:8; Dan_2:44; Joh_16:8).
4. Christ’s reign is everlasting. All other kings are mortal, and therefore die and leave their dignities to their successors. All temporal kingdoms rise and fall, and will ultimately perish in the wreck of worlds; but Christ is the “King eternal and immortal, and His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and His dominion is from generation to generation.”
To improve the subject, consider: The dignity of Christ’s person and character, the folly and misery of His enemies, and the duty and happiness of His subjects.—Sketches of Sermons.
Theme: THE NATURE AND PROSPERITY OF MESSIAH’S REIGN.
Christ is described in His distinct and dissimilar parts of His character by Jeremiah: “A branch,” to denote His human nature and origin: “the righteous branch,” to denote His essential righteousness in Himself, and the source of righteousness to believers: and their “King,” to direct attention to His spiritual dominion.
I. The character of Christ. There are three things we look for in a king:
1. Supreme power (Eph_1:21; Rom_9:5).
2. Legislative authority. Christ’s right to legislate, as being proprietor of all (Joh_1:10; Col_1:16) and redeemer of all; for He “bought us with a price.”
3. Righteous administration. There must be wisdom, or the monarch’s reign would be one of folly; justice, or tolerate licentiousness; mercy, or be despotic (Mat_12:20).
II. The nature of Christ’s reign.
1. Spiritual. Seat of His government is in the human spirit (Luk_17:20; Rom_14:17).
2. Equitable. Prohibits all evil, enjoins all good (Heb_1:8).
3. Benevolent. Alexanders and Cæsars were “warriors with confused noise and garments rolled in blood;” but Christ (Isa_42:2).
4. Perpetual. Earthly kingdoms may rise and fall (Isa_9:7; Heb_1:8).
III. The prosperity with which His reign shall be attended. To prosper as king, implies:
1. To have an increase of willing subjects.
2. To have adequate provision for supply of all their wants.
3. To secure their real happiness (Psa_72:7-8).
4. To subjugate or destroy His enemies (Isa_60:12).
Observe:
1. If Christ shall reign and prosper, how great is the folly of being His adversaries!
2. This subject should inspire the Christian with joy and gratitude (Act_15:3; Rev_19:6-7).
3. We should do our utmost to extend the Redeemer’s triumphs.—From
Sketches of Four Hundred Sermons.
Jer_23:6. Theme: A BRIGHT ERA FOR MANKIND. “In His days Judah shall be saved and Israel shall dwell safely.”
Eagerly we scan those prophecies which open a gracious future for humanity. Especially when our Lord Jesus is predicted as being the author of that blissful change. For it is so desirable both for human good and the Saviour’s glory.
(a.) The present prevailing irreligion, with all the force of a dark contrast, makes the outlook alluring to contemplate.
(b.) The slow progress of evangelisation gives zest to the anticipation of the grand success which shall come “in those days” through the direct interposition of Heaven.
HAS THIS PROPHECY BEEN FULFILLED? Does it allude to the spiritual salvation of the spiritual Judah as the result of gospel preaching in this Christian era? Or, to the final gathering together of Jews into their own land? Or, to the millennial day when the spiritual Israel will be made triumphant over all the forces of evil, and reign in peace and safety on the earth?
I. An age anticipated which shall belong to Christ. Called “His days.”
1. Have those days been realised in the Christian era? Certainly Christianity in some sense has fulfilled this prediction. It is an era when, not Moses, but Christ gives the impress to, and dwells supreme in, the dispensation. Jesus is now “the Lord our Righteousness.” And if we may interpret “Judah and Israel” spiritually, then He has “saved us.”
But the ancient people of God are here literally meant. And they have not as yet come to call Jesus “the Lord our Righteousness;” they do not “dwell safely,” for they are wanderers upon the earth. The promise in Jer_23:8 has not yet been fulfilled even in a spiritual sense: Israel has not been all won to Christ.
2. Those days have yet to dawn. For when they come Israel shall acknowledge Christ.
(a.) There may be an actual fulfilment of this promise for the tribes of Judah and Israel. And who would not welcome it? for they have been a sad people long afflicted. Yet even more because of the promises which attend the time of their restoration (Rom_11:11-12; Rom_11:15; Rom_11:25-26).
(b.) But the allusion may be to the millennial age: when (Jer_23:5) the “King shall reign.” We cannot say these are the days of Christ; for the devil rules a wider dominion! But “the kingdom of this world shall become the kingdom of our God and of His Christ.” For this grand future pray, work, and hope.
II. The days of Christ’s ascendancy shall be distinguished by the enjoyments of salvation.
(a.) Oppression and destruction marked the days of despotic monarchies—the Pharaohs, Nebuchadnezzar, Frederick the Great, Bonaparte.
(b.) Safety has not hitherto been the experience of the Jewish nation. Every age finds them a wronged and outraged people. But when Messiah comes they will be molested no more.
(c.) Neither has Israel, spiritually considered, dwelt safely. The souls of Christ’s people are always imperilled and assailed by the forces of evil.
1. What do “safety and salvation” here mean?—If the Hebrew interpretation be correct, it means deliverance from the nations, and possession of their own country, where they would dwell in peace. If the spiritual interpretation be correct, it means, Christ’s followers ransomed from the enemy, piety victorious over sin, earth won for Christ. Then the foe disturbs our peace no more, threatens our safety no more, either by insinuating doubt, planning temptation, or chilling love. What days those! when all will be blessed in Jesus; when all shall know the Lord, &c., and the Church shall be happy in Jesus’ favour, free from the dread of ills!
2. In the individual believer these promises are already fulfilled. He is “saved,” and “dwells safely” in Christ. But that personal bliss is the possession of few now. “Christ’s days” shall spread it far and wide—to Jew and Gentile.
III. For the coming of Christ’s days we may well with eagerness yearn.
1. They are desirable. What a joyous outlook! Ended our “sowing precious seed with tears,” our grief over the desolations of sin, our shame for the scorn and rejection of Christ, our struggles with evil around.
2. We live amid danger now. Therefore anxiety and watchfulness: therefore peace is disturbed and joy marred. Then shall we realise rest and delight. “How long, O Lord, how long?” Not long, if we speed the time by diligent work—for the conversion of the heathen and the salvation of those who are near. Not long, if we speed the time by earnest prayer. “Thy kingdom come.” Let us “give Him no rest till He arise and make Jerusalem a praise in the earth.”
Jer_23:6. Theme: “THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.” We may view this as—
I. An announcement of an important truth.
1. The Lord is our righteousness inasmuch as the purpose and plan of justifying sinners originated with Him.
2. Inasmuch as He Himself has alone procured righteousness for us.
3. Inasmuch as it is through His grace and by His free donation that we receive righteousness.
II. An utterance of personal belief and confidence.
The language of faith, hope, joy, gratitude.
III. A directory to the spiritual inquirer.
Anxious sinners wish to know the way of acceptance with God. The text is a brief but satisfactory answer.—Dr. W. Lindsay-Alexander (of Edinburgh), “The Hive.”
Theme: CHRIST’S SUPREME NAME.
Redemption by a crucified Redeemer is the capital theme of Divine revelation. It is completely interwoven with the golden network of the prophetic page—for to Him give all the prophets witness—whilst the evangelists echo and re-echo the exhaustless theme.
The Gospel is not known as a system of promises simply, though these are exceedingly great and precious; not as a system of morals, though its morality is of the highest kind; nor as a system of legislation simply, though it contains the code of God’s moral government; but it is pre-eminently known as a system of reconciliation.
This doctrine forms the key to the Christian system. To this one work all dispensations point. This all sacrifices illustrate. This all promises embody. This all Providence is bowed to subserve. This all heaven stoops to witness. This all hell resists and opposes. This all bad men revile or neglect. This all good men venerate and love. Surely shall one say, In the Lord Jehovah have I righteousness and strength. “This is the name by which He shall be called,” etc.
It is common with the prophets to console the Jews under their calamities with the prospect of Messiah’s approach, as a proof that if the Church was to be preserved till His coming, it should not be destroyed in its present exigency. Here the transit is easy from the corrupt pastors that destroyed Israel to the true Shepherd who should redeem it. He was to be the descendant of their shepherd-king.
1. Exhibit the delightful character under which Christ is portrayed.
2. Specify some of the circumstances that put an emphasis and value upon the redemption He has achieved.
I. Exhibit the delightful character under which Christ is here presented. The Lord is our righteousness.
Every title which Christ bears opens a source of consolation to His people. They are so many beautiful notices of Himself, and shadow forth blessings.
i. In His essential dignity. “The Lord.” Jehovah. Incommunicableness.
We are thus led up before the springs of Time. “His goings forth have been of old from everlasting.” Before the dayspring knew its place. All things were derived from Him; He was before all things were; He shall be when they cease to exist. The message to the seven churches begins with, “Grace, mercy, peace, from Him THAT IS, and WAS, and is to COME, the Almighty:” and He who there speaks says, “I am Alpha and Omega.” The JEHOVAH of the Old Testament is the LORD of the New: the seed of David: over all God.
All the evidence concurs in this, that the Redeemer of the world was to be Divine as well as human. This was necessary that He might transact our salvation on equal terms, and that the virtue of His offering might be available and efficacious on our behalf. Take away His humanity, and He would have no sacrifice to offer: take away His divinity, and His sacrifice would have no inherent merit. The doctrines of Christ’s merit and of Christ’s Divinity are inseparable, for if the one be removed, the other must fall, of course; and with them the whole fabric of our redemption.
ii. His mediatorial office. “Our righteousness.” So important is this that our Lord takes His name from it. It is the title by which He loves to be distinguished, and all who would speak to His honour must make mention of His righteousness. It was no unusual thing for the warriors, princes, and great men of antiquity to take their names from the countries conquered, or the exploits they had achieved. As Scipio from his conquest of Africa, and Coriolanus from his over the Corioli. So Christ from redemption. In the name of Jesus the whole Gospel lies hid.
The necessity for this scheme of substitution arose out of human depravity, and the inflexible rectitude of the Divine government. It was necessary that as we had lost our righteousness it should be restored in Christ. “Die He, or justice must.” To fulfil the high condition Jesus interposed. Here was glory for our meanness, suffering for our ransom. It was exacted.
Here we see the grand reality to which all the shadows of the Jewish law pointed. “It became Him,” etc.
iii. In the spiritual relation in which He stands to His people—intended in the term “our righteousness.”
A spiritual union is presupposed between us and Him, of which faith is the connecting link—in consequence of which the penalty we incurred is borne by Him, and the righteousness He wrought out on Calvary is applied to us. The inheritance was to be redeemed by the GOEL or near kinsman. “Both He that sanctifieth,” etc.
Rest not till you can rest in Christ, as made of God to you wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. It is the personal experience and the personal application of Christ’s benefits which we need. “I know whom I have believed.” “I know my Redeemer.”
II. Specify some considerations which put an emphasis and value upon redemption, and heighten our sense of its importance.
i. The work of redemption has ennobled our nature and shed a lustre over the annals of our world. He took not on Him the nature of angels—laid not hold on them. Those first-born sons of immortality were left in their sins. No “mighty to save” appeared for them. No ark in their deluge: no refuge city in their land: no brazen serpent in their camp: no star of Bethlehem in their sky!
Christ ennobles all with which He comes in contact. The very place is memorable. “Thou Bethlehem Ephrata.” The times are memorable. Jesus fills an era of His own. “In HIS DAYS Judah saved.” We date from His death—we memorialise His death—“show forth the Lord’s death.”
ii. It eclipses and throws into the shade the greatest of the Divine works. “No more say the Lord liveth, who brought Israel from Egypt.” Babylon was to eclipse the deliverance from Egypt—and Calvary that of Babylon.
iii. It enhances the value of temporal blessings following in its train. “Judah shall be saved”—when God is known as her righteousness.
iv. It forms a permanent bond of union among subjects of grace. “Judah and Israel.”
Finally, judge of the grandeur of the work by the doom denounced against those who despise and reject it. “Behold, ye despisers, and wonder and perish.” “Of how much sorer punishment,” &c.—S. Thodey, A.D. 1838.
Jer_23:5-6. Theme: THE CHRISTIAN CREED SUMMARISED.
The ancient fathers agreed that this prophecy was not fulfilled on the return of the Jews under Zerubbabel, but is accomplished by the restoration of all true Israelites in Christ.
I. The manhood of the Messiah is here declared. “I will raise unto David a righteous branch” (comp. Isa_11:1).
II. Christ’s royal majesty and judicial authority are prophetically announced. “And a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.”
III. His saving power and love as our Redeemer are also affirmed. “In His days Judah shall be saved and Israel shall dwell safely.”
IV. Here is a clear assertion that He who has been pre-announced as Very Man of the seed of David, and as an Eternal King and Righteous Judge, and as a mighty Saviour and Deliverer, is also the LORD, JEHOVAH, Very God, and, being Very God as well as Very Man, is OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.—Bishop Wordsworth.
Theme: CHRIST’S RIGHT TO THIS NAME VINDICATED.
To speak of a person as “THE LORD OUR RIGHTNEOUSNESS,” and to say that His name was to be called JEHOVAH, would be very dangerous unless His name really was Jehovah.
I. According to the whole teaching of the Christian Scripture, it cannot be predicated of Jehovah, regarded as a name of God the Father, that He is “our righteousness.” On the contrary, the Father is our righteous Lawgiver and Judge, and we are liable to Him for the punishment of our sins.
II. We may safely predicate “our righteousness” of Christ, who is here called “the Lord our righteousness.”
For the Apostle has expressly taught us that “Christ is made unto us righteousness” (1Co_1:30). As Man He was able to suffer for us: as God He is able to reconcile the Father to us.
Not only, therefore, may Christ “our righteousness” be called JEHOVAH, but by being also called “OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS” he is thereby distinguished from God the Father, and becomes our Jehovah and our righteousness: the God-Man consecrated to man’s redemption.—Comp. Bishop Pearson on this text, Art. ii. p. 148.
Theme: “JEHOVA JUSTITIA NOSTRA.”
This name is compounded of these three words—all of them essential: and it makes a “threefold cord which cannot be broken;” which, except it be entire, and have all three, it loseth the virtue, it worketh nothing.
i. “JEHOVA.” Why that must be a part of this name. David shows (Psa_71:16), because only His righteousness is worth remembering; and no other is fit to be mentioned. For our own “righteousness” is odious (Isa_64:6, and Php_4:8).
ii. JUSTITIA. Why “righteousness” rather than “salvation” or “peace”? Because salvation and peace are the fruits which grow on “Righteousness” as the “Branch” (Isa_33:7).
iii. JEHOVA JUSTITIA. Why is “Jehovah” here associated with “righteousness” rather than with some other attribute, as of “power” or “mercy”? Because it is “God with us” (Isa_7:10), chiefly in this property of righteousness as above all other Divine properties.
David calls Him Jehova misericordia (Psa_59:17), and true it is that mercy is ours. But justice is against us; and except “justice” also be made “ours,” all is not as it should be. But if justice—that in God which only is against us—might be made for us, then are we safe. Therefore, all our thought is how we may get “mercy to triumph over justice” (Jas_2:13), or how we may get them to meet and be friends (Psa_85:10). Hence, therefore, neither Jehova potentia nor Jehova misericordia are enough, but it must be Jehova justitia.
iv. NOSTRA. Without this “Jehovah” alone doth not concern us, while “Jehovah justitia” is wholly against us. But if He be not alone “righteousness,” but ours too, we have our desires. Verily this possessive word of application is all in all.—Bishop Andrewes (Works, vol. v. Sermon 5). See further Noticeable Topics.
Jer_23:7-8. Repeated from chap. Jer_16:14-15. See Homily in loc. But see Noticeable Topics below: “THE LOST TEN TRIBES.”
Jer_23:9. Theme: HORROR OVER FAITHLESS PROPHETS. The Prophet seems “beside himself for God” as Paul was; a mad enthusiast; “like a man whom wine hath overcome.” He had sufficient cause.
I. Intense grief over false teachers. “Mine heart within me is broken because of the prophets.” 1. Their wickedness in teaching delusions. This incensed his pious soul. 2. Their ruinous misleading of the nation. This disturbed his patriotic spirit.
II. Profound terror over approaching disasters. “All my bones shake, I am like a drunken man.” For, 1. He himself clearly knew the disasters which false prophets sought to obscure and hide. 2. He vividly apprehended the agonies into which his nation would speedily be plunged. See Addenda: NEGLIGENT PASTORS.
III. Deepest awe over God’s terribleness. “Because of the Lord and the words of His holiness.” 1. He knew with whom these prophets were trifling. “And knowing the terrors of the Lord, we persuade men.” 2. He realised the compulsion of God’s holy words. God never threatened willingly; but when necessity led Him to pronounce doom, it was appalling to think of what it meant.
Jer_23:10-12. Theme: GOD’S WRATH OVER NATIONAL VICES. Here is a catalogue of criminalities, together with their penalties.
I. Outrages by man against God. Sin has manifold names and shapes, all offensive. Here is a specification of some especially odious.
1. Immorality. “Land full of adulterers.” Literal: for fornication was the common attendant of idolatry. And this by “prophets,” and by the people throughout the land, who were encouraged thereto by the example of their leaders. Spiritual adultery also; Israel had forsaken her Husband for idols (Jer_3:8-10; Jer_3:20).
2. Foul speech, “swearing.” Margin, cursing. [This interpretation can only be given by licence, for the text most probably means, because of the curse (of God) the land mourneth]. Yet Hosea (Jer_4:2-3) warrants the use of the text as it stands in the E.V. God hears and hates blasphemous language.
3. Persistent wrongdoing. “Their course is evil, and their force is not right.” 1. The current of their life is bad. Low public tastes and manners. 2. The intention of their life is dishonourable; they use their personal powers (“force”) and civil powers and ecclesiastical powers, not for rectitude, but deceit and oppression and impiety.
4. Sacrilege. 1. Religious officers were themselves “profane” (Jer_23:11). 2. Holy scenes were degraded by “wickedness.”
II. Disasters from God upon man.
Sin has manifold penalties and punishments; here is an enumeration of some especially disastrous.
1. Pleasures all desolated. “Pleasant places of the wilderness are dried up” (Jer_23:10). For it should be recognised that men occupy a “wilderness.” Earth is not naturally fruitful of luxury and pleasure. All its “pleasant places” are God’s gifts, specially provided for us. Therefore He can easily turn its pleasures into drought, and He will do so if we abuse His grace. Then life becomes a blank waste, and the heart is left without comfort.
2. False ways made fatal. God will allow them to pursue “their way” (Jer_23:12); give them up to their heart’s desire; not arresting them, simply let them alone to become befooled, besotted, benighted. “In the darkness” they should not be shown their peril so as to become alarmed, and certainly should not find escape, but slide down into the blackness of darkness for ever.
3. Forces of evil should seize them. Sin when indulged in the heart and habits assumes a tyrannical despotism, and “drives on” the sinner (Jer_23:12). Once sin merely pleaded and decoyed, now it forces and masters the soul; and the sinner shall “fall”—where? “Therein,” i.e., into the depths of woe, which end the “slippery ways of darkness.”
4. God Himself will visit sinners with evil (Jer_23:12). Though God delays the judgment, yet, (1.) There comes a time of judgment, “even the year of their visitation, saith the Lord.” (2.) Then God will Himself bring evil upon them. “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” “Turn ye from your evil ways, for why will ye die?”—Comp. Homily on chap. Jer_11:15.
Jer_23:13-14. Theme: COMPARATIVE SINFULNESS. “Folly in the prophets of Samaria, … in the prophets of Jerusalem an horrible thing.”
I. Sins are not regarded by God as of equal magnitude.
1. Some evils are mistakes. “Folly,” and “they cause to err.”
2. Others are malignant. “Horrible thing,” “wickedness.”
II. Sins take their colour and degree from circumstances.
1. The location of our life affects the moral qualities of conduct. The same acts done “in Samaria” had less wrong in them than when done “in Jerusalem,” because there was more religious light in Jerusalem.
2. Guilt is guiltiest when done in the face of God. It was stupidity when done “in Baal,” in connection with Baal. It was absolutely “horrible” when done in the Temple in Jerusalem, the seat of God’s Holy Throne and Shekinah glory. Thus “exalted unto heaven,” they should be “thrust down to hell.”
III. Sins involve all wrong-doers in pitiable distress.
1. Though proportioned to the degree of guiltiness, yet the lightest punishment of sin must be appalling. The “few stripes” involve banishment from God and heaven, for “the unclean shall not dwell therein.”
2. The heaviest woes of sin are terrifying to contemplate. “They are all of them unto me as Sodom, and the inhabitants thereof as Gomorrah.” Overwhelmed with ruin, and destroyed with “fire and brimstone.”
Jer_23:14. Theme: STRENGTHENING THE HANDS OF THE WICKED. “I have seen also in the prophets of Jerusalem an horrible thing. They strengthen the hands of evil-doers, that none doth return from his wickedness.”
I. All sin is horrible in its nature. It is contrary to the character and will of an Infinite Being—a Being of glorious purity, supreme authority, and almighty power; a Being who cannot be tempted with evil, nor even look on iniquity, &c.
II. To strengthen the hands and hinder the repentance of sinners is to oppose the great plan of the Divine government.
III. It tends to the misery of mankind, and is the reverse of that bene volence which ought to govern us in all our conduct.
IV. It is to operate with that evil spirit who works in the children of disobedience.
V. It is a horrible thing, because we thus become partakers of their sins.
VI. It is directly contrary to God’s commands, and marked with His peculiar abhorrence.
Application:—
To teachers of religion; to Christians in general; to heads of families; to the young. It is also horrible to be strengthened in evil-doing.—Dr. Lathrop.
Jer_23:16. Theme: PREACHERS TESTED BY THEIR HEARERS.
I. False preaching may be discovered.
1. It is here described. “A vision of their own heart,” &c.; entertain with fanciful theories.
2. It may be detected. “They make you vain;” deceive with false hopes. In Jer_23:17 their preaching is further described.
(a.) To despisers of God peace is promised.
(b.) To wilful sinners immunity is assured.
II. Hearers must refuse wrong teaching. The Church, and not her ministers, is the pillar and ground of the truth.
1. The exercise of the right of “trying the spirits whether they be of God” has its perils and difficulties. Ignorant, misguided, and narrow-minded men may make a preacher “an offender for a word.” Timid souls may take quick alarm. Impatient listeners may judge in haste and without ample reasons.
2. Yet the non-exercise of this right is a grave misdemeanour on the part of the Church. God commands hearers to “take heed how they hear,” and to “try the spirits,” &c. Not to do so indicates spiritual inertia, intellectual indifference, and neglect of highest trusts. It exposes the Church to the grossest misleading, and leaves the pulpit to reckless adventurers.
III. God’s truth is perceivable by the common people. Rome and arrogant priests would have us believe that hearers are to receive what is taught them, being incapable of judging their teachers.
1. The doctrine of the Law was sufficient to guide Judah concerning the teachings of prophets. “He who ran might read,” if he sought to know.
2. Certainly, therefore, the doctrines of the Gospel are plain to men’s understanding. “God hath revealed them unto us by His Spirit.”
LESSONS—
1. Seek to know God’s truth by personal study.
2. Suffer no authority to usurp your own judgment.
3. Challenge any teacher who speaks not according to God’s Word.
4. Take alarm at the preacher’s messages which continually quiet the conscience and lull the heart.
5. Encourage and strengthen the earnest and outspoken preacher who may seem to “become men’s enemy because he tells them the truth.”
6. Make no truce with the sins which an honest preacher must denounce.
Jer_23:20. Theme: GOD’S ANGER UNDERSTOOD AT LAST.
I. Because sinners will not duly consider their wickedness, therefore they misunderstand God’s displeasure.
1. God sees our sin in its most awful aspects. “This abominable thing that I hate.”
2. Sin blinds the judgment of sinners to its heinousness.
3. Divine anger is rightly fierce towards conduct which would ruin the order and happiness of the whole intelligent and moral world.
4. Men not understanding what sin is, and what it would despoil, think God harsh in His denunciations, and its penalties unduly severe.
II. Because sinners defy the forewarning of God’s anger, therefore it will overwhelm them at the last.
1. God may defer the infliction, yet it cannot be delayed for ever.
2. Men may defy the threatenings, yet cannot thwart the thoughts of the Lord.
3. The full purposes of God upon wrong-doers will be ultimately “performed.”
4. When God begins with punishment, His anger will not stay till it execute fullest vengeance.
III. When sinners feel the final woes their sins deserve, they will then awake to their just deserts.
1. With this nation it was so; Jerusalem was destroyed, and the exiles, taught by the sore adversity of captivity, saw then how their sin brought woes on themselves and ruin on their country.
2. Even in this world God makes sinners realise that their guilt is the cause of their misery of heart and life. As in perilous illness, or sudden calamity.
3. But it is in the future that the ungodly will learn their full iniquity, and justify the ways of God with them.
Jer_23:22. Theme: THE SECRET OF A SUCCESSFUL MINISTRY. The true prophet will be characterised by no indecent haste (Jer_23:21) in assuming his office; but when commissioned, will faithfully perform its duties.
I. God’s messenger—whence he gains his message. “Stood in My counsel.” The Hebrew word “counsel” (sôd) means a confidential meeting of private friends. In Psa_25:14 it is rendered the secret, i.e., confidential fellowship.
1. The preacher in private converse with God.
2. Coming from that hidden fellowship with a message to men.
3. Solemnity and grandeur of the office.
4. The majestic force of conviction thus sustaining the preacher while delivering his message.
II. God’s messenger—what he preaches to men. “Caused My people to hear My words.”
1. Divine truths gained from God’s mouth (Jer_23:16).
2. Messages which foster no delusions (Jer_23:17).
3. Human theories (“visions,” Jer_23:16) kept in abeyance that only God’s “words” may gain heed.
4. God’s utterances preached with the fervour which “causes” the “people to hear.”
III. God’s messenger—what effects crown a true ministry.
1. What is the Divine preacher’s supreme aim? “To turn men from their evil way,” &c.
2. What are the Divine teacher’s best credentials? That his preaching does accomplish this result. “Then they should have turned them,” &c.
3. What are the Divine preacher’s richest rewards? Not worldly favour or power, but sinners turned from the error of their ways; souls won for Christ, his “crown of rejoicing.”
Jer_23:23. Theme: GOD’S NEARNESS EVERYWHERE.
Sinners, amid iniquitous doings, often resort to atheistical subterfuges. “God seeth us not.” Needful, therefore, that they be confronted with the very first principles of religion—God’s omnipresence and omniscience. National religion affirms these attributes of Deity. Revelation confirms and enlarges the doctrine. God everywhere: seeing all, near all.
I. All space is pervaded by God Himself. “He is at hand:” but equally He is “afar off.” Near us on earth, as He is near those in heaven.
1. Near us in personal presence. God “stands before the door.” “Compasses our path,” &c.
2. Near us in minute perception. “His eyes behold,” &c. “Run to and fro.”
3. Near us in mighty power. “Doing according to His will among the inhabitants of the earth,” as well as amid the “armies of heaven.” “No place can either include Him or exclude Him.” (Henry.)
II. All actions are performed in God’s full gaze.
1. The thought of secrecy is a delusion. We live, move, think, act in the full blaze of the searching light of omniscience.
2. The deeds of human life are Divinely scanned. He reads them through and through—motive and method, all keenly and completely discerned.
3. The judgments of God are based upon perfect knowledge of facts. This is consolatory to the righteous—who are often misrepresented and maligned. This is admonitory to the irreligious—who will be destitute of all hope of excuse or covert in the day of decision.
4. Such universal knowledge, from personal supervision of the universe, throughout all time, is both necessary to a proper idea of a God—the world’s Ruler, Sustainer, and Judge; and it is a guarantee of rectitude in the administration of Divine providence now and of Divine rewards and punishment hereafter. He will depend on no secondary source of knowledge of us—not even on the reports of angel ministers: “all things are naked and open unto the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.”
III. All scenes are equally favourable to revelations of God.
1. In heaven, where He seems locally “near,” pure and redeemed souls may look upon Him, and glory in His cloudless presence.
2. On earth, though clouds and darkness hide Him, and we think of God as “afar off,” He can yet make Himself known to our souls.
3. Even in hell, the scene of banishment from Him, God may—certainly He can—show Himself to outcast souls whose desire it will be to “hide themselves from the face of Him that sitteth upon the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.”—See Addenda: GOD’S OMNIPRESENCE.
Jer_23:23-24. Theme: THE ALL-PRESENT GOD.
Always present and everywhere present. Three interrogations are here submitted: but not to imply a question or doubt as to the facts interrogated, but to emphasise the truths brought thereby upon attention.
i. The sublime fact of God’s omnipresence is affirmed (Jer_23:23); God is near at hand, and is present afar off.
ii. The co-ordinate truth of God’s omniscience (Jer_23:24). There are no secret places to God.
iii. The spirituality of God—His immaterial essence is likewise affirmed:—for He fills the universe, “heaven and earth;” the Great Spirit present everywhere.
I. Verily this omnipresent Spiritual Being is worthy of human worship. If we had to search out whom to adore and obey, who can compare with God.
1. Such attributes constrain our homage.
2. Such greatness impresses on us the thought that it is well that we be reconciled to One so majestic and mighty.
3. Such a God, everywhere near, it is easy to worship and wise to trust. He can know all things on our behalf and do all we need.
II. Equally clear it is that any lower object of worship is an error.
1. Idolatry is reprehensible. It elevates inferiors (even if idols had any real existence) into ascendancy. It wrongs God; it gives His glory to another; and it angers Him.
2. Divided affections are inconsistent with true homage. We can have but one God. He will not be placed on a level with another object of regard. “Beside Me is none else.”
III. The loftiest reverence and truest loyalty become us in relation to a God so glorious.
1. What thoughts and feelings can be too elevated as we think of Him.
2. What devotion can exceed His claims.
3. What a privilege to be permitted to hide our life in such a God! “Hid with Christ in God.”
IV. Security and peace are assured to the godly soul in the fact of the Divine omnipresence.
1. God will guard him from the lurking forces and subtleties of sin. “Can any hide,” &c. God sees His saints in all scenes and circumstances, and will keep them safely.
2. God will be ever near him; his solace and sufficiency. He is at hand to cherish, to guide—in life and death; till the redeemed soul reaches Him in heaven.
Jer_23:28-29. Theme: FIDELITY REQUIRED IN MINISTERS.
“He that hath My word, let him speak My word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the Lord.”
No order is more influential on society than ministers. The old prophets, if faithful to their God, diffused incalculable blessings through the land; if false, hardened the people in their wickedness. Ministers to-day produce like effects.
I. A solemn injunction to all who bear the office of the ministry.
The Word of God is put into our hands, and a dispensation is committed to us to preach it. This office we must execute “faithfully;” we must speak the Word—
1. Unreservedly, without concealment (Act_20:20; Act_20:27). Our object must be (Pro_11:30) our manner (2Co_4:2); and our motto (2Co_2:17).
2. Impartially, without respect of persons. All idea of pleasing men must be abandoned (Gal_1:10). We must follow the fidelity of Paul (1Th_2:3-6), using “great plainness of speech” (2Co_3:12-13).
3. Boldly, without fear. The prophets were so enjoined to speak (Jer_1:8; Jer_1:17; Eze_2:6-7). We must expect hatred (Joh_3:19-20): but our answer to opponents must be (Act_4:19-20): and we must account suffering in this work our glory (Act_5:41; Philip. Jer_2:17-18).
This injunction is further enforced by—
II. A solemn appeal to the whole world.
1. To our judgment. “What is the chaff?” &c. Of what use were the assertions of false prophets? They only deceived the people to their ruin. Contrast with this the labours of Moses, David, Elijah, Paul. So the true minister (1Ti_4:16; Jas_5:20). God declares the good effect of faithful teaching (see Jer_23:23).
2. To our experience. God’s Word, if faithfully declared, is “quick and powerful” (Heb_4:12). Let any who has observed its effects say whether it is not “like fire,” which dissolves the hardest metal, and “like a hammer,” &c. Illustrate by Nineveh (Jon_3:4-10), and the scene at Pentecost (Act_2:37, &c.) Verily, “it is mighty through God” (2Co_10:4-5).
There are cogent reasons for ministerial fidelity. False doctrines save no man; but a simple preaching of “Christ crucified is the power of God unto salvation” (1Co_1:23-24; Rom_1:16). Many are thereby “turned to God from idols,” &c. (1Th_1:5; 1Th_1:9-10).
i. Let me now discharge my duty to you. To me is committed the Word of God for you, and woe is unto me if I preach it not with all fidelity (1Co_9:16-17; Eze_33:6-8).
ii. Let me call on you to make a due improvement of my testimony. Pray; seek God’s blessing on the word preached, that it may prove to you “a savour of life unto life,” and not of “death unto death.” It is He who can make the “fire” burn, and the “hammer” so mighty that no rock can withstand its force.—C. Simeon.
Jer_23:28. Theme: THE CHAFF AND THE WHEAT.
“What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the Lord.”
We may regard this question as suggestive of the superiority of the real to the superficial, and of the substance to the shadow, &c.
I. There are those who make more of the ritual and ceremonial in religion than they do of the spirit and power. But, “What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the Lord.”
II. There are those who make more of the speculative, theoretical, mysterious, and mystical in religion, than of the plain, practical, experimental, and useful. But, “What is the chaff?” &c.
III. There are those who make more of the name, profession, and show of godliness than they do of godliness itself. But, “What is the chaff?” &c.
IV. There are those who attach more importance to words, style, manner, appearance, and persons in preaching, than they do to the truth of Scripture. But, “What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the Lord.”—Lay Preacher.
Jer_23:28. Theme: LYING COMMUNICATIONS AND GOD’S TRUTH.
“What is the chaff to the wheat?”
Jehovah had contrasted the godless inventions of false teachers with the truth of His own assertions, and having desired that each message might be stated as each deserved (Jer_23:28), proceeds to compare the lying communications of men with the true sayings of God.
In the corrupt heart within us there exists and labours so perverse and destructive a tendency to prefer the chaff to the wheat, as to incur the peril of choosing the false rather than the true. Therefore the attempt is here made to expose some of these misapprehensions.
I. What are worldly maxims compared with the Word of God, but as the chaff to the wheat? The whole world lieth under the power of the “father of lies.”
1. Regard the conduct of men of the world, and by what maxim are they governed? to what authority do they bow? Of Him who created, sustains, redeemed them, or of him who deceived our first parents, and has ever since been spreading snares for their posterity?
2. What lessons does the world teach its disciples? To be lovers of pleasure more than the lovers of God; to worship the creature more than the Creator; to spend the precious season of mercy in laying up deceitful treasure for self; to say to the ensnared soul, “Soul, take thine ease,” &c.; or, “Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we die.” Does not the world stigmatise all true religion, the privileges of Christian life, &c., as dreams of enthusiasm and inventions of hypocrisy; and a zealous pursuit of “the one thing needful” as the miserable error of “being righteous overmuch?”
“But what is the chaff to the wheat?”—the authority of the world compared with that of the Supreme Lord and King; the ridicule of the world with the indignation of God; the present judgment of men with the decisions of the Book which shall be opened at the last day; the world’s standard of morality with Christ’s requirement of a new birth?
There are vain dreamers (Jer_23:26). Suffer them not to mislead you from an atoning Saviour, &c. “Love not the world,” &c.: but heed the faithful teachings of the Word of God which liveth and abideth for ever.
II. What is the value of that legal righteousness in which carnal man delights, compared with the righteousness of Christ Jesus, as a ground of justification with God? “The carnal man is at enmity with God.” He may deem himself, “as touching the righteousness of the law, blameless,” and ask, “What lack I yet?” But this delusion results from ignorance of the spirituality of the Divine law. Let the Spirit’s illumination come to him, and he will see himself no longer “rich, increased with goods, and in need of nothing; but wretched, miserable,” &c.
The terrors of the law will sweep away all refuges of lies in which the sinner has sheltered himself, and drive him to the righteousness of Jesus Christ. Repentance for sin will not form that wedding garment which fits for a seat at the marriage supper of the Lamb. Nor is it by “works of righteousness which we have done” that we are accepted with God. Christ alone is “made unto us wisdom, righteousness,” &c. “In Him must all the seed of Israel be justified.”
“What is the chaff to the wheat?” Who that knows himself to be a sinner, who knows anything of the self-sufficient salvation of Jesus, would hesitate a moment between leaning on the broken reed of his own goodness, and coming in faith to Christ Jesus?
III. What is the happiness of the worldling compared with that of a child of God, but as chaff to the wheat? “There be many which say, Who will show us any good,” &c.
1. An eager desire after happiness is implanted in us all.
2. Men pursue phantoms of enjoyment as children might attempt to grasp a rainbow which has allured them.
3. But while all creature-joys elude, “godliness is profitable,” &c. The believer has a “joy which no man taketh from him.” “Say ye to the righteous that it shall be well with him.”
IV. What are the present pleasures of sin compared with the glories of heaven?
1. This glad prospect sinners have forfeited for the mocking indulgences of life. “Thou hast had thy good things.”
2. Christ Himself will effectually forbid heaven’s joys to Christless souls. “His fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly purge,” &c.
Has a deceived heart turned you aside? Oh, seek the Spirit’s illumination that ye may escape the delusion of earthly vanities and find rest in the Divine love now, and a part in the inheritance with the saints in light.—Partly taken from an old and nameless MS.
Jer_23:28-29. Theme: SYMBOLS OF GOD’S WORD.
“Wheat—Fire—Hammer.”
I. In its own essential properties God’s Word is thus manifold.
1. A vital and vitalising substance: “Wheat.” (a.) Life inheres in it. (b.) It nourishes life in the eater.
2. A refining and devouring element: “Fire.” (a.) It imparts warmth. (b.) It purges from impurities, from dross. (c.) It consumes rubbish.
3. A subduing and destroying force: “Hammer.” (a.) Beating down all resistance in the regenerate heart. (b.) Crushing and destroying the hard and defiant life.
II. In its changeful aspects and revelations God’s Word assumes these diversities. It comes in various forms to mankind.
1. Corn covered with husk. The Divine truth covered with the human exterior. “We have this treasure in earthen vessels.” Also the God-given message and doctrine mingled with the “chaff” of human theories and interpretations.
2. Fire in its various forms and degrees. Attractive, as the domestic fire which draws us around its genial glow. Beneficial, as the warmth to a chilled traveller, &c. Terrible, as the fiery furnace to those it would consume.
3. A Hammer applied to different uses and with different force. Fastening “a nail in a sure place,” i.e., enforcing Divine truth upon the conscience. “Breaking in pieces the rocky vessel,” i.e., crushing the alien and antagonistic heart.
II. In the ministries it effects, God’s Word needs to be thus diverse.
1. Men, to whom God’s Word is addressed, are in such utterly dissimilar conditions. (a.) Some need “wheat”—nourishment; food to sustain the Divine life within them. Men are as soils of various conditions, into which the wheat-grain is cast by the sower. (b.) Others are as metal—“gold and silver,” which need refining; or as “wood, hay, stuble,” only fit to be burned. (c.) Others are as the rock—either requiring the stroke of affliction to disclose their hidden treasures and graces; or as destined to the stroke of destruction, being valueless for any good end.
2. Men, to whom God’s Word is addressed, must respond to its manifold purposes. For God’s Word is to be utilised in all its various forms—“wheat, fire, hammer.” (a.) Cleanse the corn of the chaff, and eat the precious wheat. (b.) Welcome its purifying mission, and live in its warm glow. (c.) Submit to its strokes, and become compliant to its powerful appeals.
Observe:
i. God’s Word can be refused as “wheat,” but cannot be evaded as “fire,” nor resisted as “a hammer.”
ii. If we receive not the life it can bring as food, we must feel its consuming and destroying force.
Theme: GOD’S WORD AND MAN’S WORD.
i. The former is life and power (wheat, fire, hammer); the latter pretence and weakness (dream, straw).
ii. The two are not to be mixed with each other. Why (add) the chaff to the wheat? This rendering is admissible.—Lange.
This shows,
i. The vanity of all human imaginations in religion. (a.) What do they afford to man? (b.) How much do they hinder!
ii. The energy of spiritual truth. Let us entreat God that our estimate may be practical.—Cecil.
Jer_23:30-32. Theme: GOD THE ANTAGONIST OF FALSE TEACHERS. “Behold” stands in front of each of the three declarations: it commands notice; the subject is serious.
“I am against:” God in opposition to their wicked work, to their baneful influence, and to their very persons.
I. God repudiates stolen teachings. They were plagiarists (Jer_23:30). (1.) They stole the words they uttered from God’s true prophets: (2.) They stole away the Divine meaning from those words by their perverse rendering: and (3.) They stole one another’s fictitious messages, thus reiterating and propagating lies.
II. God denounces spurious messages. Having no message from God, the second class used the solemn formula by which Jehovah confirmed the validity of His messages through His own prophets; but in using it they misused it: only employing the form “Saith,” instead of “Jehovah saith.” (1.) Yet this gave emphasis to their delusive inventions: and hypocrites glibly revel in such free use of solemn asseverations. (2.) They thereby deceived their hearers into the belief that God said what they uttered. So with all who preach human fancies and theories instead of the Divine Word.
III. God contemns lying frivolities. (1.) They acted a solemn part with shameful levity. (2.) They caused the people to err by their spurious teachings.
Notice here:
i. What is a teacher’s qualification for his work. That God should “send” and “command” him.
ii. What is the test by which to try all preaching. If it “profit not,” it has no Divine origin or authority.
Jer_23:33-40. Theme: THE BURDEN OF THE LORD ON TRIFLERS.
“Burden” (Massa) means hear oracle, prophetic discourse, and there is a play on this double sense of the Hebrew.
I. Men’s scoffing inquiry, “What is the burden of the Lord?” (Jer_23:33).
1. How they estimated God’s message. Another “burden”—oppressive oracle. So are all God’s messages and demands to those “who stumble at the Word, being disobedient.” And so will always be God’s prohibitions and threatenings to those who love their sins and rebel against reproof.
2. How they reviled God’s messenger. A mere burden-bearer. Not a messenger of good tidings—not even an ambassador from God—not greeted with respect as one who authoritatively taught them their duty. No! he only brought them troublesome words, tidings of disaster: and they taunted him therewith (comp. chap. Jer_20:8-10; see also Mal_1:1).
II. God’s derisive answers. You ask, “What burden?” “Ye are the burden” (see Lit. Crit. supra on Jer_23:33). And for you the burden shall be this:
1. God will cast you of as being a “burden” to Him. Or, since My word is burdensome in your eyes, you shall have no more of it, and that will be a far worse “burden” to you—deserted by God and denied His prophetic word!
2. God will deal seriously with those triflers (Jer_23:34). They used God’s word in derision, but it would prove dreadfully literal in its fulfilment. Whosoever shall in mockery call the Lord’s word a “burden,” shall be visited in wrath.
3. God will turn His messages which were intended to prove blessings into burdens, which shall press heavily on every man.
On Jer_23:40 comp. chap. Jer_20:11.
NOTICEABLE TOPICS IN CHAPTER 23
Topic: JESUS, OUR LORD AND RIGHTEOUSNESS. (Jer_23:6.)
Christians believe these words fulfilled in Jesus; Jews look for One to come. All acknowledge they refer to the Messiah: and we may form a judgment from this description as to what religious system they are suited best, that of the Jew, the Unitarian, or the Christian.
i. The Christ, or Messiah, of THE JEW. They believe a man of admirable wisdom will be born, descended from Royal family of David, shall go round the world to where Israelites are now in banishment, and persuade or compel Gentile rulers to let His people return to their native land. There, having rebuilt Temple, and re-established ancient worship, they will be exposed to envy of nations, who will invade and make war upon their country; but, at last, delivered from all their troubles under the anointed Prince, all the world shall become Jews like themselves, and send every year gifts and sacrifices to Temple of Jerusalem.
ii. The Messiah of the UNITARIANS. Already come; Jesus of Nazareth the Saviour, foretold by ancient prophecy. But, when Christ came, He was nothing more than a man; born (so many argue), not of a virgin, but of Joseph and Mary his wife; sent by God to preach to mankind a holy life, and that all men hereafter should be raised from the dead, and be rewarded according to their works.
iii. The Messiah of CHRISTIANS. Jesus; formed as man, but God Himself, eternally one with Father; came from heaven, preached righteousness and resurrection, but these only subordinate ends; by His obedience, merits, and atonement by blood to take off from the world that curse under which, since Adam, it had been.
Examine meaning of language in text.
I. This prophecy is fulfilled to the Jews, who expect in their Christ an earthly monarch, and to Christians, who believe that Christ is a Divine and heavenly monarch. Jews suppose Christ will be man like ourselves, prophet like Moses, but also a mighty conqueror and king. Christians believe that Christ from all eternity has been, together with the Father and Holy Ghost, the Creator and Governor of the world; that He now sitteth in human form at right hand of Father’s glory; will be Judge of world at last. But to Unitarians, with whom Christ was a mere prophet, having no power to rule world, no privilege of doing good to His Church, how can this prophecy be fulfilled in Christ? On earth, and in human nature, He was very unlike a “king;” and if He were nothing beyond man, these words are inapplicable to Him.
II. This prophecy points out the salvation Christ would effect. “In His days, saith the Lord, Judah shall be saved.” Jews and Christians have reasons, though different, for applying prophecy to Messiah. They suppose He will save them from worldly troubles; we believe that He saves all who trust in Him from burthen of sins and wrath of God. But with what salvation do Unitarians accredit Christ? They answer: By bringing a more perfect moral law, He taught us to avoid sin, and thus saved us from sin; that by teaching resurrection and rising Himself, He saved us from fear of death; that by abolishing law of Moses, He saved us from burdensome ceremonies. In answer: Morality was equally enforced under Old Testament; resurrection believed in; and Christ did not destroy and abolish the law.
III. This prophecy gives a Divine title to the Messiah: “The Lord our Righteousness.” Both Jews and Unitarians must be perplexed, since neither allow the Saviour foretold was to be other than mortal man. But the word “Lord” is in Hebrew JEHOVAH. Accordingly, we accept this as proof that the Messiah must not only be man but God. This is not refuted by the attempt to show from Jer_23:16, that it is not the Saviour who should bear this awful name, but Judah: for that text should read, “He, who calleth Jerusalem, is the Lord our righteousness;” and also, in this present verse, both Judah and Israel are united in blessing by Messiah; so that, if Judah be meant by this title, Israel must also; and the word should be, not “He shall be called,” but “they shall be.” Turn it as we may, this passage remains unconquerable by those who deny Jesus to be GOD and LORD; for it is allowed He is Messiah, and Messiah is no other than JEHOVAH.
IV. This prophecy further gives to Christ the title of “Our righteousness.” Jews and heretics cannot explain this away; they deny that the blood of Christ is a sacrifice, or satisfaction, for the sins of the world; that we are justified by His death. Yet here, the Man, Messiah, is not only JEHOVAH, but in His own Person He is “our righteousness.” But how can man or God become the righteousness of sinful creatures, unless He suffer in their stead the punishment of their sin, and in their stead obey and fulfil the law? How can He make another being righteous, except by proving him innocent of faults, or obeying the laws on behalf of the offender, bearing the faults on Himself, and suffering his punishment? Hence it is by the imputed merits, obedience, and death of Christ that we are cleansed from sin and made righteous in the sight of God.
We are herein called to acknowledge in Christ a mighty God and most merciful Saviour: Advocate, pleading on our behalf His own merits; High Priest, who offered up His own life for us; Lamb, whose blood washed us clean. Let us by every action and affection show our faith, love, and thankfulness. Remember that Christ is our righteousness alone; no merit in us; and in Him is the sinner’s hope.—Condensed and arranged from BISHOP REGINALD HEBER, A.D. 1838.
Topic: THE RECOVERY OF THE TEN LOST TRIBES FROM THE NORTH COUNTRY. (Jer_23:8.)
Israel, or the Ten Lost Tribes, were carried captive into Assyria in 725 B.C. Their captivity was complete in number and time—to this day they have not returned. The captivity of Judah in 588 was partial in number and time; they returned and remained until finally scattered about the year 70 A.D. Now they are all in exile, but they are to return again to their own land. And as surely as the Jews now say, “The Lord liveth which brought up His people out of Egypt,” so will they by and by say, “The Lord liveth which brought up His people out of the North country, and from all the countries whither He had driven them.”
I. This is, and has been, the expectation of the Church for ages. From earliest centuries this has been a prevailing idea. Six years after the destruction of Jerusalem, as foretold by the prophets and the Saviour, a child was born who in his life was to confront this idea in prophecy. Hadrian, the Roman Emperor, born in 76 A.D., died in 138. He hated, with a deadly hatred, the Jews and the Christians. What of the city of Jerusalem was standing in his day he destroyed, and built a new city on the old site and called it after himself, Elia Capitolina. Then he forbade Jew or Christian, under penalty of death, to enter the same, declaring that he would show them the weakness of their hope and falsity of their prophets.
Again, there was born in Constantinople another child, Nov. 17, A.D. 331, who died June 26, A.D. 363, named Flavius Claudius Julinus, surnamed Julian the Apostate. He said that he would make God a liar and prophecy false, for he would gather the Jews and build the Temple. Some of the Jews he did gather, and he began to build the Temple, but God was against him by earthquake and by balls of fire out of the ground, so he ceased to fight against God. Even England has sought to bring back Israel before the time. Three successive times she has conquered Palestine, and given it over to the Turks for keeping. Nay, for a time the whole Christian world sought to force Providence in this matter. You have read of the wonderful crusades; no less than eight of them, from 1095 to 1272; the time was not yet, but it will come.
II. Let us remember there is a God—a God who has a purpose and design both for His people and this land of Palestine. Hear Him speak: “The land shall not be sold for ever, for the land is Mine, for ye are strangers and sojourners with Me” (Lev_25:23).
1. Men write, talk, and speculate, but they leave out the Divine quantity in their calculations. It is this that has confused the nations and the press. The science of algebra has been passed by, or this quantity could have been found. There is in nature a force, or something, which science names Catalysis. It is the name for the presence of some force or power that acts on other things, rendering precision in the chemical laboratory many times impossible. How much this catalytic power is in any compound or combination it is difficult to tell. It is a Divine quantity. It is present in the analysis, but not in the synthesis. The physiologist meets it everywhere, but the anatomist nowhere. Science can pull to pieces, but cannot put things together the same, for this catalytic power escapes.
2. Nations, kings, rulers, and governments forget that the earth is the Lord’s. They think they can part it as they like, but they cannot. This Divine force or quantity enters and vitiates their conclusion. Listen to Jehovah: “Remember the days of old, consider the years of many generations; ask thy father and he will show thee; thy elders and they will tell thee. When the Most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when He separated the sons of Adam, He set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel” (Deu_22:7-8; comp. also Isa_44:7, and Act_17:26).
III. But when will Israel and Judah return, and how? That they have to return some time, surely all will agree. The time of the end we believe to be near—
1st. By the general expectation.
2d. By the grand revelations and teaching of the Great Pyramid, this pillar and witness spoken of by Isa_19:19. In this remarkable structure the year 1882 is very significantly denoted. Many great facts in Israel’s history have been incorporated in this building and have come to pass; so for Israel something is in reserve for 1882—perhaps it is the great deliverance spoken of in the text. This year is also the wonderful prophetic year. The “time and times and dividing of time” makes 1260 years, which, added to the first year of Mahomet, is equal to our 622, which added makes 1882.
3d. By the Church witness. For the Gospel was to be preached as a witness unto all nations before Israel are gathered. This sign is now complete. But how will this great deliverance be brought about—in God’s own way, as from the Egyptians? The overthrow and destruction of Turkey may be the preparatory cause. The Jews now feel specially moved, for at their late council in New York they had letters missive from Berlin, Paris, London, on how best to promote the return of those Jews who desire to return to Palestine.—Joseph Wild, D.D., Brooklyn, A.D. 1878.
ADDENDA TO CHAPTER 23: ILLUSTRATIONS AND SUGGESTIVE EXTRACTS
Jer_23:1. NEGLIGENT PASTORS.
“Probably many who are called Gospel ministers are more chargeable with concealing truths than affirming direct error; with not properly building the house than wilfully pulling it down.”—Dr. Witherspoon.
“Unfaithfulness is to undo our own souls as well as our people’s.”—Bridges.
“But the unfaithful priest, what tongue
Enough shall execrate!.…
By solemn, awful ceremony, he
Was set apart to speak the truth entire,
By action and by word; and round him stood
The people, from his lips expecting knowledge.
They stood, for he had sworn, in face of God
And man, to deal sincerely with their souls;
To preach the Gospel for the Gospel’s sake.
Most guilty, villainous, dishonest man!
Wolf in the clothing of the gentle lamb!
Dark traitor in Messiah’s holy camp!
Leper in saintly garb! assassin masked
In virtue’s robe! Vile hypocrite, accursed!
I strive in vain to set his evil forth.”
—Pollock.
Jer_23:23. GOD’S OMNIPRESENCE.
During the American war a British officer, walking out at sunrising, observed an old man with his arm upraised as if in adoration. The officer interfered with rude disregard, and demanded what he was about. The old native replied, “I am worshipping the Great Spirit.” The officer asked derisively, “Where is He?” To which taunt the old man replied, “Soldier, where is He not?”
The question was once asked of a little boy, “How many gods are there?” “One,” be replied. “How do you know there is only one?” He answered, “Because there is no room for any more; for the One God fills heaven and earth.”
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Sermon Bible 1900 · Public Domain On v1 I. We may view the text as simply an…
Jer 23:6
I. We may view the text as simply an announcement of important truth. It stands there on the sacred page like a profound oracular utterance from the hidden shrine of truth, given forth for our enlightenment and everlasting benefit. (1) The Lord is our righteousness, inasmuch as the purpose and plan of justifying sinners originated with Him. (2) The Lord is our righteousness, inasmuch as He Himself alone has procured righteousness for us. (3) The Lord is our righteousness, inasmuch as it is through His grace and by His free donation that we receive righteousness.
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II. These words may be contemplated as the utterance of personal belief and confidence. Here we present to our minds the view of a body of persons who avow and proclaim that the Lord is their righteousness; and who know, reverence, and confide in God as thus apprehended. They have no confidence in the flesh, their trust is in God alone. They look not to works of charity, or self-denial, or penance, for acceptance with God; they ask only to be accepted in the beloved. They know in whom they have believed, and therefore they do not hesitate to stand up and avow before the world that all their trust and all their hope is in that worthy name, The Lord our Righteousness. In their lips this is the language (1) of faith; (2) of hope; (3) of joy and gratitude.
III. We may contemplate the text as a directory to the inquirer. Sinners are supposed to be anxious to know the way of acceptance with God. Conscious of guilt, they feel their need of a justifying righteousness in order that they may stand without blame before the moral Governor of the universe. With them, therefore, the foremost and most pressing question is, How may I, a sinner, be righteous before God? To such the words of my text give a brief but most satisfactory answer. They are a proclamation from God Himself, that in Him is the salvation of the sinner found. They direct the inquirer away from self, away from all creature help, away from all methods of personal or sacerdotal propitiation, and carry his thoughts to God—to God in Christ, as the sole Author and Bestower of righteousness. The Lord is our righteousness, and He alone. His voice to the lost and guilty sons of men is "Look unto Me and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is none else."
W. Lindsay Alexander, Sermons, p. 66.
I. This verse teaches us that the Son of David and the King of Israel is the source of our righteousness, the exhibition and presentation of it before our consciences and unto the Father. Christ is to us the realisation of righteousness. It is no longer an unattainable conception of an abstract idea which we find it hard to grasp or to fulfil, but in Him it becomes a concrete fact on which we can lay hold, and a thing which we can appropriate and possess. He becomes first "righteousness," and then "our righteousness"—first the visible, incarnate, and realised exhibition of righteousness, and then something of which we can claim possession and in which we can participate.
II. If this is the obverse presentation or positive statement of the truth, it has also its reverse or negative side. If the name whereby Christ is called is "The Lord our Righteousness," that fact is destructive of all other hopes, prospects, or sources of righteousness; it gives the lie to them and asserts their vanity. No, we can have no righteousness but what we find in the Lord.
S. Leathes, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxiv., p. 390.
References: Jer 23:6.—J. Keble, Sermons for Sundays after Trinity, Part II., p. 430; Bishop Walsham How, Plain Words, p. 292; Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. vii., No. 395; Ibid., Morning by Morning, p. 31; Plain Sermons by Contributors to "Tracts for the Times," vol. vii., p. 261; G. Brooks, Outlines of Sermons, p. 152; S. Leathes, Contemporary Pulpit, vol. iv., p. 305; E. Blencowe, Plain Sermons to a Country Congregation, 2nd series, p. 460.
Jer 23:28
I. The human dream is empty, but the Divine word is substantial. Chaff is a mere husk, but wheat is all grain. So the antagonists of the Bible deal in vague speculations or empty negations, whereas the Scriptures are positive and satisfying.
II. The human dream is destitute of nourishment for man’s spiritual nature, while the Divine word is strengthening and ministers to its growth. Chaff does not feed, but wheat gives nutriment. So mere speculation has in it no educating and ennobling influence. It occupies the mind without strengthening the character. The man who indulges in it makes no progress, but, instead of flowing onward with the current, he is caught in some whirling eddy, round which he is continually revolving. But the Christian believer grows. His character is ever gaining new development. He never reaches his ideal, but still "follows after."
III. The human dream has no aggressiveness in it to arrest or overcome the evils that are in the world, but the Divine word is regenerating and reforming. "Is not My word like a fire, saith the Lord, and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?"
IV. The human dream is shortlived, but the Divine word is enduring. Chaff is easily blown away, but the wheat remains. And so the "little systems" of human speculation "have their day, and cease to be;" but the word of the Lord endureth for ever. Like some impregnable fortress, in the hollows around which you may pick up specimens of the various missiles which from age to age have been hurled against it, whilst its walls remain unbroken; the Word of God has withstood for centuries the attacks of many successive armies of antagonists. There is deep truth in Beza’s motto for the French Protestant Church, which surmounts the device of an anvil surrounded by blacksmiths, at whose feet are many broken hammers:
"Hammer away, ye hostile bands,
Your hammers break, God’s anvil stands."
W. M. Taylor, Contrary Winds, p. 21.
References: Jer 23:28.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xv., No. 862. Jer 23:29.—G. Brooks, Outlines of Sermons, p. 202. Jer 23:35.—J. Hiles Hitchens, Christian World Pulpit, vol, xvi., p. 394. Jer 24:1-3.—T. G. Horton, Christian World Pulpit, vol. ii., p. 149. Jer 24:7.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xx., No. 1206. Jer 26:4-6.—T. Binney, Good Words, 1861, p. 300.
The Sermon Bible, ed. William Robertson Nicoll (1888–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. R. Dummelow 1909 · Public Domain On v1 1-4. A remnant shall return.
1-4. A remnant shall return.
1. The pastors] i.e. the rulers of Judah.
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4. Shepherds] e.g. Ezra, Nehemiah, etc.
5-8. Promise of the Messiah.
5. Branch] rather, 'sprout,' 'shoot,' that which is immediately connected with the root, and contains, as it were, the springs of life. So in Jer_33:15, and in later time Zec_3:8; Zec_6:12. On the other hand, the word in Isa_11:1 denotes 'branch,' properly so called. The v. predicts the coming of an ideal descendant of David, a king who shall reign in righteousness over the people. We see the fulfilment of the prophecy in the spiritual conquests of Christ. And prosper] RV 'and deal wisely,'as David did (1Sa_18:5-14).
6. The Lord our righteousness] RV 'The Lord is our righteousness.' The coming king shall be a righteous ruler, whose reign shall be marked by absolute justice; He shall be called Jehovah-Tsidkenu ('The Lord is our righteousness'); and His name shall be the sign that God will make His people righteous: cp. Jer_33:16. Cp. also 'Immanuel' ('God with us'), Isa_7:14; Isa_8:10.
7, 8. See on Jer_16:14.; The deliverance after the captivity will be even more wonderful than that from Egypt.
9-40. Rebuke of false prophets and priests. Their disgrace is foretold.
10. Swearing] RM 'the curse' (of God).
Pleasant places] RV 'pastures.' Course] manner of life. Force] exercise of power.
13, Samaria] the northern kingdom. In Baal] i.e. the name of Baal.
14. The representatives of God encourage evil doers by their own misdeeds.
17. These false prophets promised deliverance from Babylon.
18. For who hath stood, etc.] meaning that at any rate these false prophets had not done so.
20. Consider] RV 'understand.'
21. Yet they ran] as if appointed.
23. Think you that My knowledge is subject to human limitations? These men do not deceive Me as they do the people.
25. I have dreamed] By repeating this formula they caught the ear of the crowd.
28. The contrast between true and false prophecy. God's word contains nourishment and life. Other words are but as chaff, or, rather, straw.
29. Fire] which consumes the dross. 30, 31. The false prophets steal the phrases of the true, e.g. 'He saith.'
32. Lightness] RV 'vain boasting.'
33. They ask jestingly of Jeremiah, What is thy latest message for us? what is the burdensome oracle of the Lord? 'Burden' was often used in this sense: cp. Nah_1:1; Hab_1:1; Zechariah 9. What.. burden] LXX 'ye are the burden.'
34, 35. The misused phrase 'the burden of the Lord 'is to be used no more. Some other expression is to take its place.
36. Every man's burden shall be his use of the word. For he who has jokingly enquired after the 'burden of the Lord' shall find that those lightly spoken words of his are in very deed a load upon him. Perverted] used jestingly.
J. R. Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (Macmillan, 1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain On vv1, 3, 5 This final restoration is shown to be accomplished after…
restoration
This final restoration is shown to be accomplished after a period of unexampled tribulation Jer 30:3-10 and in connection with the manifestation of David’s righteous Branch Jer 23:5 who is also Jehovah-tsidkenu Jer 23:6. The restoration here foretold is not to be confounded with the return of a feeble remnant of Judah under Ezra, Nehemiah, and Zerubbabel at the end of the 70 years Jer 29:10. At His first advent Christ, David’s righteous Branch Luk 1:31-33 did not "execute justice and judgment in the earth," but was crowned with thorns and crucified. Neither was Israel the nation restored, nor did the Jewish people say, "The Lord our righteousness." Cf. Rom 10:3. The prophecy is yet to be fulfilled. Act 15:14-17.
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Arno C. Gaebelein 1922 · Public Domain On vv1, 9 1. The false shepherds (Jer 23:1-4)
CHAPTER 23:1-8
1. The false shepherds (Jer 23:1-4)
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2. The True Shepherd (Jer 23:5-8)
Jer 23:1-4. The word “pastors” means “shepherds.” Ezekiel received a larger message about these false shepherds, the hirelings who did not feed the flock. (See annotations of Eze 34:1-31 The scattered remnant of the Lord’s flock (not the Church, but the remnant of Israel) will yet be gathered out of all countries, be fruitful and increase, no longer fearful, dismayed or in want. It is a prophecy concerning the time when the Shepherd of Israel, their King as well, is manifested.
Jer 23:5-8. A great Messianic prophecy follows. “The Righteous Branch,” the Son of David, whose name is “THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS” (Jehovah Zdidkenu) is the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the King who will reign and prosper, executing judgment and justice in the earth. The prophecy is unfulfilled. He came as the Son of David, the promised King. He offered that kingdom to Israel; they rejected Him. But He is coming again, and in that day of glory this great prediction will be accomplished. His people Israel will be saved Rom 11:25-36. Their wonderful restoration from the north and from all the countries will then take place.
Arno C. Gaebelein, The Annotated Bible (1913–1922) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On vv1, 9 The Restoration of the Scattered Flock
The Restoration of the Scattered Flock
v. 1. Woe be unto the pastors, the rulers, the spiritual leaders of the people in particular, that destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasture! saith the Lord, Israel and Judah, specifically the congregation of the Lord in the midst of the people, are called the flock of Jehovah’s pasturage because He attends them with His particular care. All the more reason, therefore, to denounce the leaders who were so willfully forgetful of their duties.
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v. 2. Therefore thus saith the Lord God of Israel against the pastors that feed My people, to whom this sacred duty was entrusted, Ye have scattered My flock and driven them away, instead of holding them together in a compact flock, and have not visited them, this being the most reprehensible form of neglect. Behold, I will visit upon you, in a visitation of His avenging wrath, the evil of your doings, saith the Lord.
v. 3. And I will gather the remnant of My flock, the true spiritual Israel, out of all countries whither I have driven them, for although the people themselves had permitted themselves to be corrupted by their false leaders, yet the burden of the guilt lay on the rulers, this phase of the matter being emphasized in this instance, and will bring them again to their folds, as congregations of believers; and they shall be fruitful and increase, according to the blessings of the Gospel-promise.
v. 4. And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them, teach them in full agreement with the will of Jehovah; and they shall fear no more nor be dismayed, terrified by the coming of the enemies; neither shall they be lacking, saith the Lord, they will not be missed, that is, they would no more be lost from the flock, since the Lord’s shepherds would take the best care of them. The Messianic import of this passage is unmistakable, but this factor is brought out even more strongly in the next paragraph.
v. 5. Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, success attending His wise and prudent dealing, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.
v. 6. In His days Judah shall be saved and Israel shall dwell safely. And this is His name whereby He shall be called, The Lord our, Righteousness. Here the Messiah is spoken of by a name, in a figure, which is used also by Isaiah and Zechariah. To David, namely, as a descendant of Judah, as a member of his family, Jehovah will cause to arise a righteous Branch, a shoot characterized by, and distinguished for, righteousness. This Branch will at the same time be a King, who would have royal power and would make use of that power and authority in taking care of the affairs of His kingdom in a prudent manner. The excellency of His rule would be brought out particularly by the fact that He would perform judgment and execute righteousness according to unquestioned standards, although unusual in the eyes of men. For He would show these traits in bringing salvation to Judah and in letting Israel dwell in safety, both expressions referring to the true spiritual Israel, the Church of Christ. No wonder, then, that His name would be called "Jehovah Our Righteousness," since, by virtue of His perfect atonement, all men may become partakers of the righteousness earned by Him for them.
v. 7. Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that they shall no more say, in the form of oath prevalent at that time. The Lord liveth, which brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt;
v. 8. but, The Lord liveth, which brought up and which led the seed of the house of Israel, the stock of the new people of Jehovah, out of the north country, and from all countries whither I had driven them, since the Lord had scattered them throughout the countries pertaining to the Babylonian Empire; and they shall dwell in their own land. Cf. Jer 16:14-15. "Jehovah Our Righteousness" is the one Hope of all mankind; for by faith in His redemption men become partakers of the righteousness earned by Him, which makes them just in the sight of God.
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 vv1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 16, 19, 21, 23, 25, 28, 31, 33, 35, 37 General Information:
General Information:
In verses 1-4, Yahweh refers to Israel as his pasture, the people of Israel as his sheep, and the leaders of Israel as the shepherds. Shepherds have a duty to protect the sheep, but the leaders were not doing that. (See: Metaphor)
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this is Yahweh's declaration
Yahweh speaks of himself by name to express the certainty of what he is declaring. See how you translated this in Jeremiah 1:8. AT: "this is what Yahweh has declared" or "this is what I, Yahweh, have declared" (See: First, Second, or Third Person)
You have scattered my flock and have driven them away
These two phrases have similar meanings. The second one strengthens the thought in the first. (See: Doublet)
translationWords
woe
shepherd
ewe
Yahweh
declare
God
Israel
people of God
flocks
cast out
know
evil
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 vv1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 21, 22, 23, 25, 28, 29, 30, 33, 34, 36, 37, 40 23:1-8 The Lord rebuked the three kings (ch 22)…
23:1-8 The Lord rebuked the three kings (ch 22) and contrasted them with the righteous leader he would place over his people after the Exile.
23:1 Kings in the ancient Near East were often referred to as shepherds. Good shepherds would protect and care for their people, but Judah’s kings scattered their people instead.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.