Then Yahweh’s word came to Jeremiah, saying, “Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel, says: ‘Go and tell the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, “Will you not receive instruction to listen to my words?” says Yahweh. “The words of Jonadab the son of Rechab that he commanded his sons, not to drink wine, are performed; and to this day they drink none, for they obey their father’s commandment; but I have spoken to you, rising up early and speaking, and you have not listened to me. I have sent also to you all my servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them, saying, ‘Every one of you must return now from his evil way, amend your doings, and don’t go after other gods to serve them, then you will dwell in the land which I have given to you and to your fathers:’ but you have not inclined your ear, nor listened to me. The sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have performed the commandment of their father which he commanded them, but this people has not listened to me.” ’
“Therefore Yahweh, the God of Armies, the God of Israel, says: ‘Behold, I will bring on Judah and on all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evil that I have pronounced against them; because I have spoken to them, but they have not heard; and I have called to them, but they have not answered.’ ”
John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On vv13–17 Here Jeremiah applies the example which he had related;…
Here Jeremiah applies the example which he had related; for subjoined is God’s complaint, — that he was less regarded by his people than Jonadab was by his posterity. He then says, Go and speak to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants ofJerusalem To make the reproof the more effectual, the Prophet introduces God as the speaker. It was therefore God’s purpose to convey the reproof to the Jews in his own name, and as it were in his own person. Will ye not receive instruction, he says, so as to obey me? The word מוסר musar, means sometimes ruling or governing, and sometimes correction. But God here no doubt reprehends that madness of the Jews in which they had long hardened themselves, as though he had said, “You never think it right to return to a sound mind.” Since, then, they had been for a long time incorrigible and wandered after their own lusts like unbridled wild beasts, a reproof is here given, as though he had said, “Will this people be always ungovernably wanton so as never to submit to the yoke?” And he says, so as to obey me God shews that he required nothing unjust from the Jews, so that a true excuse could be pretended, as though he was too rigid: “I require only,” he says, “that ye obey me: this is all my severity, for lovely is the rule of meekness which I use towards you. Since, then, I demand nothing but what children ought willingly to render to their fathers without being admonished, how is it that this mederation is so displeasing to you, and can by no means be approved by you?”
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 vv13, 14, 17 Whom I have chosen to be my children, seeing…
Whom I have chosen to be my children, seeing these which were the children of an heathen man, obeyed the commandment of their father.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv12–17 Jer 35:12 Then came the word of the LORD…
Jer 35:12 Then came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah, saying,
Ver. 12. Then came the word of the Lord.] Then, after this famous example of obedience thus proposed, an excellent way of teaching surely. Reason should rule, and therefore lodgeth in the brain; but when reason cannot persuade, example will.
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 vv15, 17 God, in this revelation of his mind to the…
God, in this revelation of his mind to the prophet, expoundeth to him why he had set him to bring the Rechabites into the temple, and commanded him to set wine before them, and invite them to drink of it, viz. that by their refusal of doing according to the invitation, in obedience to their father Jonadab, he might convince the Jews of their disobedience to his commands, though God’s commands were more advantaged than the commands of Jonadab, in that,
1. Jonadab was but an earthly parent, and so had no absolute universal sovereignty over his children; but God was the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel.
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2. Jonadab’s command was not for the performance of a moral duty, but the doing of a thing which they might do, or leave undone; God required of them what was but their moral duty, and for which was the highest reason.
3. Jonadab’s command had no promise annexed; God’s precept had a promise annexed, yet they had not yielded him that obedience which the sons of Jonadab had yielded him: he was their Father, but where was his honour?
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 v12 The trial of the Rechabites' constancy was intended but…
The trial of the Rechabites' constancy was intended but for a sign; now here we have the application of it.
I. The Rechabites' observance of their father's charge to them is made use of as an aggravation of the disobedience of the Jews to God. Let them see it and be ashamed. The prophet asks them, in God's name, "Will you not at length receive instruction? Jer 35:13. Will nothing affect you? Will nothing fasten upon you? Will nothing prevail to discover sin and duty to you? You see how obedient the Rechabites are to their father's commandment (Jer 35:14); but you have not inclined your ear to me" (Jer 35:15), though one might much more reasonably expect that the people of God should have obeyed him than that the sons of Jonadab should have obeyed him; and the aggravation is very high, for, 1. The Rechabites were obedient to one who was but a man like themselves, who had but the wisdom and power of a man, and was only the father of their flesh; but the Jews were disobedient to an infinite and eternal God, who had an absolute authority over them, as the Father of their spirits. 2. Jonadab was long since dead, and was ignorant of them, and could neither take cognizance of their disobedience to his orders nor give correction for it; but God lives for ever, to see how his laws are observed, and is in a readiness to revenge all disobedience. 3. The Rechabites were never put in mind of their obligations to their father; but God often sent his prophets to his people, to put them in mind of their duty to him, and yet they would not do it. This is insisted on here as a great aggravation of their disobedience: "I have myself spoken to you, rising early and speaking by the written word and the dictates and admonitions of conscience (Jer 35:14); nay, I have sent unto you all my servants the prophets, men like yourselves, whose terrors shall not make you afraid, rising up early and sending them (Jer 35:15), and yet all in vain." 4. Jonadab never did that for his seed which God had done for his people. He left them a charge, but left them no estate to bear the charge; but God had given his people a good land, and promised them that, if they would be obedient, they should still dwell in it, so that they were bound both in gratitude and interest to be obedient, and yet they would not hear, they would not hearken. 5. God did not tie up his people to so much hardship, and to such instances of mortification, as Jonadab obliged his seed to; and yet Jonadab's orders were obeyed and God's were not.
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II. Judgments are threatened, as often before, against Judah and Jerusalem, for their disobedience thus aggravated. The Rechabites shall rise up in judgment against them, and shall condemn them; for they very punctually performed the commandment of their father, and continued and persevered in their obedience to it (Jer 35:16); but this people, this rebellious and gainsaying people, have not hearkened unto me; and therefore (Jer 35:17), because they have not obeyed the precepts of the word, God will perform the threatenings of it: "I will bring upon them, by the Chaldean army, all the evil pronounced against them both in the law and in the prophets, for I have spoken to them, I have called to them - spoken in a still small voice to those that were near and called aloud to those that were at a distance, tried all ways and means to convince and reduce them - spoken by my word, called by my providence, both to the same purport, and yet all to no purpose; they have not heard nor answered."
III. Mercy is here promised to the family of the Rechabites for their steady and unanimous adherence to the laws of their house. Though it was only for the shaming of Israel that their constancy was tried, yet, being unshaken, it was found unto praise, and honour, and glory; and God takes occasion from it to tell them that he had favours in reserve for them (Jer 35:18, Jer 35:19) and that they should have the comfort of them. 1. That the family shall continue as long as any of the families of Israel, among whom they were strangers and sojourners. it shall never want a man to inherit what they had, though they had no inheritance to leave. Note, Sometimes those that have the smallest estates have the most numerous progeny; but he that sends mouths will be sure to send meat. 2. That religion shall continue in the family: "He shall not want a man to stand before me, to serve me." Though they are neither priests nor levites, nor appear to have had any post in the temple service, yet in a constant course of regular devotion, they stand before God, to minister to him. Note, (1.) The greatest blessing that can be entailed upon a family is to have the worship of God kept up in it from generation to generation. (2.) Temperance, self-denial, and mortification to the world, do very much befriend the exercises of piety, and help to transmit the observance of them to posterity. The more dead we are to the delights of sense the better we are disposed for the service of God; but nothing is more fatal to the entail of religion in a family than pride and luxury.
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 vv12–17 Then came the word of the Lord unto Jeremiah,....…
Then came the word of the Lord unto Jeremiah,.... After the Rechabites had been tried whether they would break the command of their father, respecting drinking of wine; and steadfastly persisted in their resolution not to drink, urging the reason of it, and vindicating their conduct in another respect:
saying; as follows:
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv14, 17 Verse 14. The words of Jonadab - are performed…
Verse 14. The words of Jonadab - are performed - but ye hearkened not unto me.] The Lord, knowing the fidelity of this people, chose to try them in this way, that he might, by their conscientious obedience to the precepts of their forefathers, show the Jews, to their confusion, their ingratitude to him, and their neglect of his precepts, which if a man do, he shall live by them.
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 vv12, 17 Jer 35:12-16. Then came the word of the Lord…
Jer 35:12-16. Then came the word of the Lord unto Jeremiah — As the trial of the constancy of the Rechabites was only intended for a sign, so now we have the application of it made by God himself. Tell the men of Judah, Will ye not receive instruction? &c. — Will nothing enlighten or affect you? Will nothing prevail to make you sensible of your sin and duty? You see how obedient the Rechabites are to their father’s commandment; but you have not hearkened unto me — Though it might have been more reasonably expected that my people should have obeyed me, than that the sons of Jonadab should have obeyed him. Thus the Rechabites’ observance of their father’s charge to them is made use of by God as an aggravation of the disobedience of the Jews to him: and the aggravation was certainly very high. For, 1st, The Rechabites were obedient to one that was but a man like themselves, and had only the wisdom and power of a man, and was only the father of their flesh; but the Jews were disobedient to the infinite and eternal God, that had an absolute authority over them, as the father of their spirits. 2d, Jonadab was long since dead, and was ignorant of his posterity, and could neither take cognizance of their disobedience to his orders, nor give any correction for it; but God lives for ever to see how his laws are observed, and is in readiness to punish all disobedience. 3d, The Rechabites were probably seldom or never put in mind of their obligations to their progenitor; but God often sent his prophets to his people, to remind them of, and excite to, their duty to him, yet they would not comply with it. This is insisted on here as a great aggravation of their disobedience, Jer 35:14; Jer 15:4 th, Jonadab had not conferred, nor could confer, any such favours on his seed as God had bestowed on his people, nor had laid them under any such obligations, from duty and interest, to obey him, as God had laid Israel and Judah under to observe his laws. 5th, God did not oblige his people to so much hardship, and to such instances of self-denial and mortification, as Jonadab enjoined to his seed, and yet Jonadab’s orders, were obeyed, and God’s were not.
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 vv13–15 Jeremiah, accompanied by the main body of the Rechabites,…
Jeremiah, accompanied by the main body of the Rechabites, went into one of the courts of the temple, and there addressed to the people the rebuke following.
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 v14 Me. What a contrast! (Haydock) --- This was only…
Me. What a contrast! (Haydock) --- This was only a counsel, mine a law! (Tirinus)
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 v12 2. The Application.
2. The Application.
Jer_35:12-19
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12, 13Then came the word of the Lord unto Jeremiah, saying, Thus saith the Lord of hosts [Jehovah Zebaoth], the God of Israel; Go and tell the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Will ye not receive instruction to hearken 14to my words? saith the Lord. The words2 of Jonadab the son of Rechab, that he commanded his sons not to drink wine, are performed; for unto this day they drink none, but obey their father’s commandment: notwithstanding I have spoken unto you, rising early and speaking [i. e., zealously and unceasingly3]; but ye 15hearkened not unto me. I have sent also unto all my servants the prophets, rising up early and sending4them, saying Return ye now every man from his evil way, and amend your doings, and go not after other gods to serve them, and ye shall dwell in the land5 which I have given to you and to your fathers: but ye have 16not inclined your ear, nor hearkened unto me. Because the sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have performed the commandment of their father, which he commanded 17them; but this people hath not hearkened unto me: Therefore thus saith the Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will bring upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evil that I have pronounced against them: because I have spoken unto them, but they have not heard; and I have 18called unto them, but they have not answered. And Jeremiah said unto the house of the Rechabites, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Because ye have obeyed the commandment of Jonadab your father, and kept all his precepts, 19and done according unto all that he hath commanded you: Therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Jonadab the son of Rechab shall not want a man to stand before me for ever.
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
The commands of Jonadab, the Rechabite, have been kept centuries after his death by his people who are not descendants of Abraham, and who consequently participate in the covenant of promise only mediately, and in the second line. Israel, however, has not obeyed the commands of Jehovah, the God of hosts, though they have been presented and inculcated unceasingly by prophets. Therefore all the threatenings pronounced by the Lord on Israel shall be fulfilled. But to the Rechabites it is promised, that Jonadab shall not want a man to stand before Jehovah.
Jer_35:12-15. Then came … hearkened unto me. From “go,” Jer_35:13, we see that Jeremiah was to speak these words, not in the “chamber,” but outside, to the people.—Instruction. Comp. Jer_2:30; Jer_32:33.—Return ye now, etc. Comp. Jer_25:5.
Jer_35:16-19. Because the sons … forever.—Shall not want a man. Comp. rems. on Jer_33:17.—To stand before me. As this expression involves the idea of service (comp. Comm. on Jer_7:10), and according to the connection that of the priestly service or worship (comp. Comm. on Jer_15:19), it is not merely the continuance of the Rechabite family, but its perseverance in the worship of Jehovah. It is said that there are still Rechabites in Asia. Wolff, the missionary to the Jews, met them in Mesopotamia and Yemen. Wolff designates the desert of Yemen near Senaar, as the proper residence of these Rechabites, who still assert their origin from Hobab, the brother-in-law of Moses. Comp. Dr. JosephWolff’s Travels.
DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL
1. As the Lord says to the Jews of His time, Luk_11:31-32, that the queen of the South and the people of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment against the people of this generation, and will condemn them, for a greater than Solomon or Jonah is here, so might Jeremiah say to his contemporaries that the Rechabites would rise up against them, and condemn them, for a greater than Jonadab is here.
2. The Rechabites’ obedience to their ancestor’s command is in itself praiseworthy and exemplary. It is in perfect accordance with the fourth Commandment. Comp. Sirach 3. Were the Rechabites equally conscientious in their observance of the Divine commands? Would not a custom contrary to the divine command have been retained with equal tenacity on the authority of their chief? The family feeling and national spirit are natural. They do not mortify our fresh. They may, for the sake of the honor and interest of our family, which is mediately our own personal honor and interest, impel us to the most difficult performances. I have heard of children, on whom the inculcation of the divine commands made little impression; but when they were told, it is the King’s will, they did what was desired of them. Comp. Mar_7:8 sqq.
3. “All families could not pursue Rechab’s mode of life, nor should they. God gives many different callings; happy are they who can feel content in the most simple, and who constantly preserve the feeling of being pilgrims in this world. It is also not contrary to God’s ordering that distinct families, ranks and callings, are formed, or that special plans are adopted for the exercise of partnerships in certain times and circumstances, just as the church at Jerusalem introduced a kind of community of goods. We are only not to perceive any special sanctity in such arrangements; they are only practices, and all depends on the mind in which they are undertaken.” Diedrich.
4.“Abuti consueverunt hac narratione de Recha-bitis Monachi ad stabiliendam vitam monasticam, quemadmodum Bellarminus ex hoc capite causam eorum agere conatur (De Mon. II., cap. 5), hunc in modum scribens: ‘Habemus etiam Jeremiah 35 insignem commendationem nepotum Rechab, qui, cum iis pater sive avus præcepisset, ut domus non ædificarent, agros non seminarent, vineas non plantarent, vinum nunquam biberent, vitam durissimam quasi extra mundum agerent, omnia diligentissime observarunt, quos etiam monachorum nostrorum figuram gessisse scribit Hieronymus in Epist. ad Paulin.’ Cf. Hieron. in Exod. cap. 21.” Förster.
HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL
True obedience shown in the example of Israel and the Rechabites. 1. The Rechabites put Israel to shame, in so far as they obey the command of their earthly ancestor, while the latter does not obey the Lord’s command. 2. The obedience of the Rechabites to the command of their earthly ancestor is however no pledge of their obedience to the commands of God. 3. Obedience to God’s commands is guaranteed only among the spiritual Israel, i. e., among those, who by the Holy Spirit have become members of a higher order of nature, in which the will of God is written in the hearts of all, and has consequently become the innermost principle of life.—Or, 1. In respect to legal obedience the Jews are surpassed by the Rechabites (the difference between the two). 2. The obedience of the Rechabites to their ancestor does not guarantee their obedience to God (equality of the two). 3. Only spiritual Israel bears in itself the guarantee of obedience to God’s command (the higher third).
Footnotes:
[2]Jer_35:14.—הוַּקם אֶת־דִּבְרִי. On the construction. Comp. Naegelsb Gr., 100, 2.
[3]Jer_35:14.—Comp. Jer_7:13.
[4]Jer_35:15.—הַשְׁכֵּם וְשָׁלֹהַ. Comp. Jer_7:25; Jer_25:4.
[5]Jer_35:15.—וִשׁבו אל–האדמה. Comp. 25. 5. אֵל for עַל. Comp. Comm. on Jer_10:1, as also אֵל־יְהוּדָה, Jer_35:17, and the reverse in עַל־מצְוַת, Jer_35:18.
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 vv14, 15, 17 obey . . . father's commandment: notwithstanding I-- (Mal…
obey . . . father's commandment: notwithstanding I-- (Mal 1:6).
rising early and speaking--God Himself speaking late and early by His various ways of providence and grace.
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 v14 THE APPLICATION OF THE RECHABITES’ EXAMPLE, Jer_35:12-19.
THE APPLICATION OF THE RECHABITES’ EXAMPLE, Jer_35:12-19.
14. The words of Jonadab… are performed;… but ye hearkened not unto me — Here is the plain application of this historical lesson. The Rechabites kept the commands of their father, and as a consequence have been rewarded. Ye violate the commands of your Father and will be punished. What could more thoroughly shame their unfaithfulness?
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 vv12, 13, 17 12. unto Jeremiah] LXX, better, unto me. It is…
12. unto Jeremiah] LXX, better, unto me. It is more natural to retain the 1st person in accordance with the previous context, thus taking the proper name as a gloss.
12–19. See introd. summary to the section. This portion, which forms the application of the preceding narrative, seems to have received considerable later additions. The LXX seem to present it in practically its original form.
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 vv12, 13, 15, 17 (12) Then came the word of the Lord unto…
(12) Then came the word of the Lord unto Jeremiah.—Up to this time the prophet had acted on the thought which came into his mind as an inspiration, without apparently more than a partial insight into its meaning. Now, as the words indicate, he passes at once into the prophetic state and speaks the prophetic words. It follows from Jer_35:18 that it was uttered in the presence of the Rechabites and formed, we may believe, the conclusion of this strange dramatic scene.
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 vv12, 14, 15, 16 Then came the word of the Lord, etc. The…
Then came the word of the Lord, etc. The substance of the severe address which follows must have been delivered in one of the outer courts of the temple, when Jeremiah had left the Rechabites.
Vers. 12-17. Rechabites unconsciously reproving Israelites.
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I HOW FAR THE MEN OF JUDAH WERE REALLY CONDEMNED; i.e. How far were the cases really parallel? The first question to be asked is Were the men of Judah as able to obey the commandments of Jehovah has the Rechabites were to obey the precept of Jonadab? and, of course, the answer is that for many reasons they were not. But passing this over for the present, let us notice the one respect in which Israelites were lamentably different from Rechabites. The Rechabites gloried in their attachment to the precept of their ancestor; it was a sort of point of honour with them; whereas the Israelites were in no way grieved, humiliated, or ashamed because of their disobedience. If only it had been a continual and sore trouble of heart that there was not in them strength to obey God, why, this very trouble would have been a measure of obedience. But they both disobeyed and disobeyed in the most heedless and audacious way. Instead of receiving prophets with contrition and as messengers of God, they laughed them to scorn, abused them, and even put them to death. And similarly the Rechabites reprove us. In the midst of all our natural inability to give a true obedience to Divine requirements, we should be incessantly troubled by this; then would the way be made open for revealing to us how obedience becomes possible.
II HOW FAR THE RECHABITES WERE REALLY PRAISED. After all, Rechabite and Israelite were really the same sort of beings. If they had exchanged places, they would have exchanged conduct. The Israelite was quite capable of sticking, with utmost tenacity, to some external rule. And the Rechabite, we may be quite sure, was equally incapable, with the Israelite, of obeying the commandments of God. But the Rechabite was to be praised in this that he recognized an authority outside of his own wishes. The law under which he lived might not go very far; but it operated with certainty so far as it did go. The Rechabite would have died rather than violate the ancestral prohibition. God ever recognizes conformity to law as a good thing. We must, therefore, not go seeking in these Rechabites more than God has appointed us to find. The one good thing in them was singled out to point a most humiliating lesson and vindicate the need of a severe chastisement. Compared with the benefits of Jehovah toward Israel, what had Jonadab done for the Rechabites? 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 v16 I will bring upon Judah and upon all the…
Jer_35:16-17
I will bring upon Judah and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evil that I have pronounced against them: because I have spoken unto them, but they have not heard; and I have called unto them, but they have not answered.
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Condemned by our virtues
How did the obedience of the Rechabites prove inexcusable, and therefore worthy of the severest punishment, the disobedience of the Jews? Their obedience was the obedience of children to their father, and sufficiently showed that even in a matter which crossed their natural inclinations men were capable of acting on a parental command and practising self-denial. The Jews then could not plead that they had no power of hearkening unto God. The Rechabites were witnesses against them. If Jonadab were obeyed because he was a father, had not Jehovah a right to expect to be obeyed, seeing that He was a father unto Israel? If the Rechabites could obey, obey as children, the Israelites might have obeyed, obeyed as children. Thus the instance or example of the Rechabites rose up in the sternest condemnation of the Jews, and in the clearest vindication of the judgments with which God was about to visit their transgressions. Now let us extend the argument, and exhibit it in such shape as may make it applicable to ourselves. It is a very hard doctrine which we have to enforce, when we press on your attention the utter worthlessness, so far as our procuring favour with God is concerned, of those virtues and excellences which are so much admired in society. There is something so graceful, and beautiful, and beneficial around a man of unblemished morals, of high rectitude, of large generosity--the dutiful son, the affectionate husband and parent, the loyal subject, the staunch friend--that you seem to shrink instinctively from statements which go to the bringing him to a level with those whom you abhor as the hardened and the injurious, and to the declaring him possibly as far off from the kingdom of heaven as though he lived a dissolute life, or were dishonourable in his dealings. But the statements are not the less true because they may jar with your feelings; and the minister cannot,, without the worst dishonesty, soften down facts on which Scripture is most explicit, and which even experience sufficiently establishes--the facts that there may be as thorough enmity to God beneath the aspect which is most attractive, as beneath that which is most repulsive, and that the virtues which shed a blandness over domestic life, and a dignity over commercial transactions, and a strength over political relations, may as well coexist with complete want of the religion of the heart, as those vices which break up the peace of families, and outrage all the decencies of a neighbourhood. But the principle involved in the text requires us to go even further than this, and to maintain, not only that there is no justifying power in these virtues, hut that there is even a condemning power--that they may be brought up as witnesses against their possessors, and used as proofs of their being without excuse in their neglect of God and disobedience to His Gospel. The man of great native kindliness of heart has evidently even less excuse than one of worse nature for withholding from God the offerings of thankfulness. Where there is a fine generosity, a gushing sensibility, a quick appreciation of what is noble and disinterested, what shall extenuate indifference to the Gospel, with all its holy story of love and condescension and conquest? We have thus engaged you with the general argument, rather than with the particular case presented by our text. You will, probably, however, understand the argument better, if we now confine ourselves to the relation which subsists between parent and child; for it is on this that God grounds His complaint against the Jews. Now there is no more beautiful and graceful affection of our nature than that which subsists between parents and children. We cannot but admire this affection, even as exhibited amongst inferior animals; and no passage in natural history is so attractive as that which tells how tenderly the wild beast of the forest will watch over her young, or with what assiduousness the fowls of the air will tend their helpless brood. But with the inferior animals the affection is but an instinct which lasts for a time, just long enough to ensure attention to the offspring whilst yet unable to provide for themselves; when this time is past, the tie is for the most part altogether broken; there is no keeping up of the relationship; however exquisitely the beast of the field and the fowl of the air may have nourished their young during their weeks of helplessness, they become afterwards as strangers to them, and seem not to distinguish them from others of their tribe. There is for a time a great exhibition of parental affection, but comparatively little of filial; there is apparently no reciprocity, for when the offspring has reached an age at which the kindness might be returned, the connection seems at an end, and the offspring goes away from the parent, though, becoming a parent itself, it displays the very instinct of which it has been the object. But in the human race the connection goes beyond this; if not so very intense at the first, it is abiding and reciprocal; the love of a parent for a child does not terminate when the child has grown into strength and asks no further help--it continues through life, increasing, for the most part, rather than diminishing, so that though the child may have been long absent from his home, wandering in foreign lands, or domesticated among strangers, yet can he always reckon that the hearts of his father and mother are beating kindly towards him, and that he has only again to present himself at their door, to unlock a tide of rich sensibilities, and be folded in an ardent embrace, and welcomed with deep gratulations. But whilst parents are thus abidingly and profitably actuated by affection for their children, children entertain an affection towards their parents which is scarcely less graceful and scarcely less advantageous. Of course there are exceptions, but they provoke unmingled reprobation, as though all the feelings of a community rose up against that unnatural being, a thankless child, and prompted the fitness of ejecting him from its circles. It is comparatively but seldom that children show themselves void of affection towards a father and a mother, when that father and that mother have done their part as parents; on the contrary, whether it be in the highest or the lowest families of the land, there is generally a frank yielding to its heads of that respect and that gratitude which they have a right to look for from their offspring. And from this fact, illustrated in the particular case of the Rechabites, God proceeds in our text to justify His complaint against the Jews. We stay not to demonstrate to you the paternal character of God; it is the character which pervades the whole of revelation, and is outlined by the whole of providence. The question is not as to whether God acts towards us as a father--it is only whether we act towards God as children; and here comes the melancholy contrast between men as members of particular families, and men as members of the universal family. The very beings who can recognise most cordially the claims of earthly parents, who can manifest themselves a reverence and a homage which give to the domestic picture an exquisite moral beauty, and who would show themselves monstrously indignant at any tale of filial disobedience or unthankfulness, have only to be viewed as children of God, and presently they would be convicted of all that unnaturalness, all that ingratitude, and all that baseness, on which they are so ready to pour unmingled reprobation. You cannot for a moment profess to deny, that in the heart which is all alive to filial emotions, and which beats with so true an affection towards a father and a mother, that the whole strength is gathered in the showing them respect and ministering to their comfort, there may be an utter indifference towards the heavenly Parent--ay, no more practical remembrance of Him in whom we live, and move, and have our being, than if it were the heart of one of those blots upon our race, in which all the family charities appear to have been extinguished, or never to have grown. Then do ye not further perceive how thoroughly self-condemned must all of us stand, if we act faithfully the part of a child toward an earthly parent, but utterly fail to act that part towards a heavenly? It will be demonstrable from our own actions that we were quite without excuse, as members of the universal family; we shall be put to shame by our very excellence as members of individual families. (H. Melvill, B. D.)
A wilful rejection of salvation
Mr. Spurgeon has said, To me it is especially appalling that a man should perish through wilfully rejecting the Divine salvation. A drowning man throwing away the life-belt, a poisoned man pouring the antidote upon the floor, a wounded man tearing open his wounds--any of these is a sad sight. But what shall we say of a soul refusing its Saviour and choosing its own destruction? (R. Venting.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Alexander MacLaren 1905 · Public Domain On v16
Jeremiah
THE RECHABITES
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Jer 35:16.
The Rechabites had lived a nomad life, dwelling in tents, not practising agriculture, abstaining from intoxicants. They were therein obeying the command of their ancestor, Jonadab. They had been driven by the Babylonian invasion to take refuge in Jerusalem, and, no doubt, were a nine days’ wonder there, with their strange ways. Jeremiah seized on their loyalty to their dead ancestor’s command as an object-lesson, by which he put a still sharper edge on his rebukes. The Rechabites gave their ancestral law an obedience which shamed Judah’s disobedience to Jehovah. God asks from us only what we are willing to give to one another, and God is often refused what men have but to ask and it is given. The virtues which we exercise to each other rebuke us, because we so often refuse to exercise them towards God.
I. Men’s love to men condemns their lovelessness towards God.
These Rechabites witnessed to the power of loyal love to their ancestor. Think of the wealth of love which we have all poured out on husbands, wives, parents, children, and of the few drops that we have diverted to flow towards God. What a full flood fills the one channel; what a shrunken stream the other!
Think of the infinitely stronger reasons for loving God than for loving our dearest.
II. Men’s faith in men condemns their distrust of God.
However you define faith, you find it abundantly exercised by us on the low plane of earthly relations. Is it belief in testimony? You men of business regulate your course by reports of markets on the other side of the world, and in a hundred ways extend your credence to common report, with but little, and often with no examination of the evidence. ‘If we believe the witness of men, the witness of God is greater.’ And how do we treat it? We are ready to accept and to act on men’s testimony; we are slow to believe God’s, and still slower to act on it, and to let it mould our lives.
Is faith the realising of the unseen? We exercise it in reference to the earthly unseen; we are slow to do so in reference to the heavenly things which are invisible.
Is faith the act of trust? Life is impossible without it. Not only is commerce a great system of credit, but no relations of life could last for a day without mutual confidence. We depend on one another, like a row of slightly built houses that help to hold each other up. These earthly exercises of trust should make it easier for us to rise to trusting God as much as we do each other. They ought to reveal to us the heavenly things. For indeed our human trust in one another should be a sample and shadow of our wise trust in the adequate Object of trust.
III. Men’s obedience to human authority condemns their rebellion against God.
Jonadab’s commandment evoked implicit obedience from his descendants for generations. Side by side in man’s strange nature, with his self-will and love of independence, lies an equally strong tendency to obey and follow any masterful voice that speaks loudly and with an assumption of authority. The opinions of a clique, the dogmas of a sect, the habits of a set, the sayings of a favourite author, the fashions of our class-all these rule men with a sway far more absolute than is exercised on them by the known will of God. The same man is a slave to usurped authority and a rebel against rightful and divine dominion.
Whether we consider the law of God in its claims or its contents, or its ultimate object, it is worthy of entire obedience. And what does it receive?
God asks from us only what we willingly give to men. Even the qualities and acts, such as love, trust, obedience, which as exercised towards men give dignity and beauty and strength, rise up in judgment to condemn us. There is a sense in which Augustine’s often-denounced saying that they are ‘splendid vices’ is true, for they are turned in the wrong direction, and very often their being directed so completely towards men and women is the reason why they are not directed towards God, who alone deserves and alone can satisfy and reward them. Then they become sins and condemn us.
Alexander MacLaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture (1904–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v12 The Application
The Application
v. 12. Then came the word of the Lord unto Jeremiah, saying,
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v. 13. Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Go and tell the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Will ye not receive instruction by which they might be trained properly, to hearken to My words? saith the Lord.
v. 14. The words of Jonadab, the son of Rechab, that he commanded his sons not to drink wine are performed, the commands of a mere man having so much weight; for unto this day they drink none, but obey their father’s commandment, in unwavering faithfulness and obedience; notwithstanding I have spoken unto you, rising early and speaking, but ye hearkened not unto Me. The Rechabites had received only one ordinance, and they had clung to its observance for almost three hundred years, although it was transmitted by oral tradition from father to son only; but the Lord’s people took no interest in His admonitions, although they were repeated continually.
v. 15. I have sent also unto you all My servants, the prophets, rising up early and sending them, saying, Return ye now every man from his evil way and amend your doings and go not after other gods to serve them, a warning which we find time and again, and ye shall dwell in the land which I have given to you and to your fathers; but ye have not inclined your ear nor hearkened unto Me. He had commanded nothing unreasonable, but simply to serve Him, and he had attached to His command a most gracious promise, but all in vain.
v. 16. Because the sons of Jonadab, the son of Rechab, have performed the commandment of their father which he commanded them, but this people hath not hearkened unto Me,
v. 17. therefore thus saith the Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel, Behold, I will bring upon Judah and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evil that I have pronounced against them, because I have spoken unto them, but they have not heard, and I have called unto them, but they have not answered. The connection of thought is this: Just as faithfulness in keeping a father’s commands has a promise of blessings, so, and much more so, disobedience to the Lord’s commands will, on the other hand, bring a most severe punishment. The emphasis of the passage lies in the contrast.
v. 18. And Jeremiah said unto the house of the Rechabites, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Because ye have obeyed the commandment of Jonadab, your father, and kept all his precepts and done according unto all that he hath commanded you, their obedience being brought out very strongly by the synonymous expressions,
v. 19. therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Jonadab, the son of Rechab, shall not want a man to stand before Me forever, that is, the family of the Rechabites would not die out, and it would continue in the worship of Jehovah without interruption. According to the accounts of trustworthy travelers, the descendants of Rechab are still living in the desert of Yemen, near Senaar, on the border of Mesopotamia and Arabia. Thus the Lord rewards the careful observance of the Fourth Commandment by blessings continuing through many generations.
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 vv12, 15, 17 the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah, saying, "Yahweh
the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah, saying, "Yahweh
This idiom is used to introduce a special message from God. See how you translated a similar phrase in Jeremiah 1:4. AT: "Yahweh gave a message to Jeremiah. He said, 'Yahweh" or "Yahweh spoke this message to Jeremiah: 'Yahweh" (See: Idiom)
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to Jeremiah
It is not clear why Jeremiah is referring to himself by name here. You may translate using first person, as the UDB does. (See: First, Second, or Third Person)
Yahweh of hosts ... says this
Jeremiah often uses these words to introduce an important message from Yahweh. See how you translated this in Jeremiah 6:6.
Will you not receive correction and listen to my words?
Yahweh is telling Israel to listen carefully to his rebuke. AT: "You must certainly receive this correction and listen to my words." (See: Rhetorical Question)
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)
The words of Jonadab son of Rekab that he gave to his sons as a command, not to drink any wine, have been observed
This can be stated in active form. AT: "The sons of Jonadab son of Rekab have observed their father's command to not drink wine" (See: Active or Passive)
Jonadab ... Rekab
These are the names of men. (See: How to Translate Names)
translationWords
word of God
Yahweh of hosts
Israel
Judah
receive
declare
preach
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 vv12, 14, 17 35:12-19 The Lord applied the Recabites’ example in stark…
35:12-19 The Lord applied the Recabites’ example in stark contrast to the people of Judah. The Recabites had been deprived of many good things in life, yet they remained obedient.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.