1Then saidH559 the LORDH3068 to me, Though MosesH4872 and SamuelH8050 stoodH5975 beforeH6440 me, yet my mindH5315 could not be toward this peopleH5971: cast them outH7971 of my sightH6440, and let them go forthH3318. 2And it shall come to pass, if they sayH559 to thee, Where shall we go forthH3318? then thou shalt tellH559 them, Thus saithH559 the LORDH3068; Such as are for deathH4194, to deathH4194; and such as are for the swordH2719, to the swordH2719; and such as are for the famineH7458, to the famineH7458; and such as are for the captivityH7628, to the captivityH7628. 3And I will appointH6485 over them fourH702 kindsH4940, saithH5002 the LORDH3068: the swordH2719 to slayH2026, and the dogsH3611 to tearH5498, and the fowlsH5775 of the heavenH8064, and the beastsH929 of the earthH776, to devourH398 and destroyH7843. 4And I will causeH5414 them to be removedH2189 H2113 into all kingdomsH4467 of the earthH776, becauseH1558 of ManassehH4519 the sonH1121 of HezekiahH3169 kingH4428 of JudahH3063, for that which he didH6213 in JerusalemH3389. 5For who shall have pityH2550 upon thee, O JerusalemH3389? or who shall bemoanH5110 thee? or who shall go asideH5493 to askH7592 concerning thy welfareH7965? 6Thou hast forsakenH5203 me, saithH5002 the LORDH3068, thou art goneH3212 backwardH268: therefore will I stretch outH5186 my handH3027 against thee, and destroyH7843 thee; I am wearyH3811 with repentingH5162. 7And I will fanH2219 them with a fanH4214 in the gatesH8179 of the landH776; I will bereaveH7921 them of children, I will destroyH6 my peopleH5971, since they returnH7725 not from their waysH1870. 8Their widowsH490 are multipliedH6105 to me above the sandH2344 of the seasH3220: I have broughtH935 upon them against the motherH517 of the young menH970 a spoilerH7703 at noondayH6672: I have caused him to fallH5307 upon it suddenlyH6597, and terrorsH928 upon the cityH5892. 9She that hath borneH3205 sevenH7651 languishethH535: she hath breathedH5301 her lastH5315; her sunH8121 is goneH935 down while it was yet dayH3119 H3117: she hath been ashamedH954 and confoundedH2659: and the remnantH7611 of them will I deliverH5414 to the swordH2719 beforeH6440 their enemiesH341, saithH5002 the LORDH3068. 10WoeH188 is me, my motherH517, that thou hast borneH3205 me a manH376 of strifeH7379 and a manH376 of contentionH4066 to the whole earthH776! I have neither lent on interestH5383, nor have men lent to me on interestH5383; yet every one of them doth curseH7043 me. 11The LORDH3068 saidH559, VerilyH3808 H518 it shall be wellH2896 with thy remnantH8281 H8293; verilyH518 I will cause the enemyH341 to entreatH6293 thee well in the timeH6256 of evilH7451 and in the timeH6256 of afflictionH6869. 12Shall ironH1270 breakH7489 the northernH6828 ironH1270 and the steelH5178? 13Thy substanceH2428 and thy treasuresH214 will I giveH5414 to the spoilH957 without priceH4242, and that for all thy sinsH2403, even in all thy bordersH1366. 14And I will make thee to passH5674 with thy enemiesH341 into a landH776 which thou knowestH3045 not: for a fireH784 is kindledH6919 in my angerH639, which shall burnH3344 upon you. 15O LORDH3068, thou knowestH3045: rememberH2142 me, and visitH6485 me, and avengeH5358 me of my persecutorsH7291; take me not awayH3947 in thy longsufferingH639 H750: knowH3045 that for thy sake I have sufferedH5375 rebukeH2781. 16Thy wordsH1697 were foundH4672, and I ateH398 them; and thy wordH1697 was to me the joyH8342 and rejoicingH8057 of my heartH3824: for I am calledH7121 by thy nameH8034, O LORDH3068 GodH430 of hostsH6635. 17I satH3427 not in the assemblyH5475 of the mockersH7832, nor rejoicedH5937; I satH3427 aloneH910 becauseH6440 of thy handH3027: for thou hast filledH4390 me with indignationH2195. 18Why is my painH3511 perpetualH5331, and my woundH4347 incurableH605, which refusethH3985 to be healedH7495? wilt thou be altogether to me as a liarH391, and as watersH4325 that failH539? 19Therefore thus saithH559 the LORDH3068, If thou shalt returnH7725, then will I bring thee againH7725, and thou shalt standH5975 beforeH6440 me: and if thou shalt separateH3318 the preciousH3368 from the vileH2151, thou shalt be as my mouthH6310: let them returnH7725 to thee; but returnH7725 not thou to them. 20And I will makeH5414 thee to this peopleH5971 a fortifiedH1219 brasenH5178 wallH2346: and they shall fightH3898 against thee, but they shall not prevailH3201 against thee: for I am with thee to saveH3467 thee and to deliverH5337 thee, saithH5002 the LORDH3068. 21And I will deliverH5337 thee from the handH3027 of the wickedH7451, and I will redeemH6299 thee from the handH3709 of the terribleH6184.
Jamieson Fausset Brown Bible Commentary 1 GOD'S REPLY TO JEREMIAH'S INTERCESSORY PRAYER. (Jer. 15:1-21)
Moses . . . Samuel--eminent in intercessions (
Exod 32:11-
Exod 32:12;
1Sam 7:9;
Ps 99:6).
be toward--could not be favorably inclined toward them.
out of my sight--God speaks as if the people were present before Him, along with Jeremiah.
2 death--deadly plague (
Jer 18:21;
Jer 43:11;
Ezek 5:2,
Ezek 5:12;
Zech 11:9).
3 appoint-- (
Lev 26:16).
kinds--of punishments.
4 cause . . . to be removed-- (
Deut 28:25;
Ezek 23:46). Rather, "I will give them up to vexation," I will cause them to wander so as nowhere to have repose [CALVIN]; (
2Chr 29:8, "trouble;" Margin, "commotion").
because of Manasseh--He was now dead, but the effects of his sins still remained. How much evil one bad man can cause! The evil fruits remain even after he himself has received repentance and forgiveness. The people had followed his wicked example ever since; and it is implied that it was only through the long-suffering of God that the penal consequences had been suspended up to the present time (compare
1Kgs 14:16;
2Kgs 21:11;
2Kgs 23:26;
2Kgs 24:3-4).
5 go aside . . . how thou doest--Who will turn aside (in passing by) to salute thee (to wish thee "peace")?
6 weary with repenting-- (
Hos 13:14;
Hos 11:8). I have so often repented of the evil that I threatened (
Jer 26:19;
Exod 32:14;
1Chr 21:15), and have spared them, without My forbearance moving them to repentance, that I will not again change My purpose (God speaking in condescension to human modes of thought), but will take vengeance on them now.
7 fan--tribulation--from tribulum, a threshing instrument, which separates the chaff from the wheat (
Matt 3:12).
gates of the land--that is, the extreme bounds of the land through which the entrance to and exit from it lie. MAURER translates, "I will fan," that is, cast them forth "to the gates of the land" (
Nah 3:13). "In the gates"; English Version draws the image from a man cleaning corn with a fan; he stands at the gate of the threshing-floor in the open air, to remove the wheat from the chaff by means of the wind; so God threatens to remove Israel out of the bounds of the land [HOUBIGANT].
8 Their widows--My people's (
Jer 15:7).
have brought--prophetical past: I will bring.
mother of the young men--"mother" is collective; after the "widows," He naturally mentions bereavement of their sons ("young men"), brought on the "mothers" by "the spoiler"; it was owing to the number of men slain that the "widows" were so many [CALVIN]. Others take "mother," as in
2Sam 20:19, of Jerusalem, the metropolis; "I have brought on them, against the 'mother,' a young spoiler," namely, Nebuchadnezzar, sent by his father, Nabopolassar, to repulse the Egyptian invaders (
2Kgs 23:29;
2Kgs 24:1), and occupy Judea. But
Jer 15:7 shows the future, not the past, is referred to; and "widows" being literal, "mother" is probably so, too.
at noonday--the hottest part of the day, when military operations were usually suspended; thus it means unexpectedly, answering to the parallel, "suddenly"; openly, as others explain it, will not suit the parallelism (compare
Ps 91:6).
it--English Version seems to understand by "it" the mother city, and by "him" the "spoiler"; thus "it" will be parallel to "city." Rather, "I will cause to fall upon them (the 'mothers' about to be bereft of their sons) suddenly anguish and terrors."
the city--rather, from a root "heat," anguish, or consternation. So the Septuagint.
9 borne seven-- (
1Sam 2:5). Seven being the perfect number indicates full fruitfulness.
languisheth--because not even one is left of all her sons (
Jer 15:8).
sun is gone down while . . . yet day--Fortune deserts her at the very height of her prosperity (
Amos 8:9).
she . . . ashamed--The mothers (she being collective) are put to the shame of disappointed hopes through the loss of all their children.
10 (
Jer 20:14;
Job 3:1, &c.). Jeremiah seems to have been of a peculiarly sensitive temperament; yet the Holy Spirit enabled him to deliver his message at the certain cost of having his sensitiveness wounded by the enmities of those whom his words offended.
man of strife--exposed to strifes on the part of "the whole earth" (
Ps 80:6).
I have neither lent, &c.--proverbial for, "I have given no cause for strife against me."
11 Verily--literally, "Shall it not be?" that is, "Surely it shall be."
thy remnant--the final issue of thy life; thy life, which now seems to thee so sad, shall eventuate in prosperity [CALVIN]. They who think that they shall be the surviving remnant, whereas thou shalt perish, shall themselves fall, whereas thou shalt remain and be favored by the conquerors [JUNIUS], (
Jer 40:4-
Jer 40:5;
Jer 39:11-
Jer 39:12). The Keri reads, "I will set thee free (or as MAURER, 'I will establish thee') for good" (
Jer 14:11;
Ezra 8:22;
Ps 119:122).
to entreat thee well--literally, "to meet thee"; so "to be placable, nay, of their own accord to anticipate in meeting thee with kindness" [CALVIN]. I prefer this translation as according with the event (
Jer 39:11-
Jer 39:12;
Jer 40:4-
Jer 40:5). GESENIUS, from
Jer 7:16;
Jer 27:18;
Job 21:15, translates (not only will I relieve thee from the enemy's vexations, but) "I will make thine enemy (that now vexeth thee) apply to thee with prayers" (
Jer 38:14;
Jer 42:2-
Jer 42:6).
12 steel--rather, brass or copper, which mixed with "iron" (by the Chalybes near the Euxine Pontus, far north of Palestine), formed the hardest metal, like our steel. Can the Jews, hardy like common iron though they be, break the still hardier Chaldees of the north (
Jer 1:14), who resemble the Chalybian iron hardened with copper? Certainly not [CALVIN]. HENDERSON translates. "Can one break iron, (even) the northern iron, and brass," on the ground that English Version makes ordinary iron not so hard as brass. But it is not brass, but a particular mixture of iron and brass, which is represented as harder than common iron, which was probably then of inferior texture, owing to ignorance of modern modes of preparation.
13 Thy substance . . . sins--Judea's, not Jeremiah's.
without price--God casts His people away as a thing worth naught (
Ps 44:12). So, on the contrary, Jehovah, when about to restore His people, says, He will give Egypt, &c., for their "ransom" (
Isa 43:3).
even in all thy borders--joined with "Thy substance . . . treasures, as also with "all thy sins," their sin and punishment being commensurate (
Jer 17:3).
14 thee--MAURER supplies "them," namely, "thy treasures." EICHORN, needlessly, from Syriac and the Septuagint, reads, "I will make thee to serve thine enemies"; a reading doubtless interpolated from
Jer 17:4.
fire-- (
Deut 32:22).
15 thou knowest--namely, my case; what wrongs my adversaries have done me (
Jer 12:3).
revenge me--(See on
Jer 11:20). The prophet in this had regard to, not his own personal feelings of revenge, but the cause of God; he speaks by inspiration God's will against the ungodly. Contrast in this the law with the gospel (
Luke 23:34;
Acts 7:60).
take me not away in thy long-suffering--By Thy long-suffering towards them, suffer them not meanwhile to take away my life.
for thy sake I have suffered rebuke--the very words of the antitype, Jesus Christ (
Ps 69:7,
Ps 69:22-
Ps 69:28), which last compare with Jeremiah's prayer in the beginning of this verse.
16 eat-- (
Ezek 2:8;
Ezek 3:1,
Ezek 3:3;
Rev 10:9-
Rev 10:10). As soon as Thy words were found by me, I eagerly laid hold of and appropriated them. The Keri reads, "Thy word."
thy word . . . joy-- (
Job 23:12;
Ps 119:72,
Ps 119:111; compare
Matt 13:44).
called by thy name--I am Thine, Thy minister. So the antitype, Jesus Christ (
Exod 23:21).
17 My "rejoicing" (
Jer 15:16) was not that of the profane mockers (
Ps 1:1;
Ps 26:4-
Ps 26:5) at feasts. So far from having fellowship with these, he was expelled from society, and made to sit "alone," because of his faithful prophecies.
because of thy hand--that is, Thine inspiration (
Isa 8:11;
Ezek 1:3;
Ezek 3:14).
filled me with indignation--So
Jer 6:11, "full of the fury of the Lord"; so full was he of the subject (God's "indignation" against the ungodly) with which God had inspired him, as not to be able to contain himself from expressing it. The same comparison by contrast between the effect of inspiration, and that of wine, both taking a man out of himself, occurs (
Acts 2:13,
Acts 2:15,
Acts 2:18).
18 (
Jer 30:15). "Pain," namely, the perpetual persecution to which he was exposed, and his being left by God without consolation and "alone." Contrast his feeling here with that in
Jer 15:16, when he enjoyed the full presence of God, and was inspired by His words. Therefore he utters words of his natural "infirmity" (so David,
Ps 77:10) here; as before he spoke under the higher spiritual nature given him.
as a liar, and as--rather, "as a deceiving (river) . . . waters that are not sure (lasting)"; opposed to "tiring (perennial) waters" (
Job 6:15). Streams that the thirsty traveller had calculated on being full in winter, but which disappoint him in his sorest need, having run dry in the heat of summer. Jehovah had promised Jeremiah protection from his enemies (
Jer 1:18-
Jer 1:19); his infirmity suggests that God had failed to do so.
19 God's reply to Jeremiah.
return . . . bring . . . again--Jeremiah, by his impatient language, had left his proper posture towards God; God saith, "If thou wilt return (to thy former patient discharge of thy prophetic function) I will bring thee back" to thy former position: in the Hebrew there is a play of words, "return . . . turn again" (
Jer 8:4;
Jer 4:1).
stand before me--minister acceptably to Me (
Deut 10:8;
1Kgs 17:1;
1Kgs 18:15).
take . . . precious from . . . vile--image from metals: "If thou wilt separate what is precious in thee (the divine graces imparted) from what is vile (thy natural corruptions, impatience, and hasty words), thou shall be as My mouth": my mouthpiece (
Exod 4:16).
return not thou unto them--Let not them lead you into their profane ways (as Jeremiah had spoken irreverently,
Jer 15:18), but lead thou them to the ways of godliness (
Jer 15:16-
Jer 15:17).
Ezek 22:26 accords with the other interpretation, which, however, does not so well suit the context, "If thou wilt separate from the promiscuous mass the better ones, and lead them to conversion by faithful warnings," &c.
20 The promise of
Jer 1:18-
Jer 1:19, in almost the same words, but with the addition, adapted to the present attacks of Jeremiah's formidable enemies, "I will deliver thee out of . . . wicked . . . redeem . . . terrible"; the repetition is in order to assure Jeremiah that God is the same now as when He first made the promise, in opposition to the prophet's irreverent accusation of unfaithfulness (
Jer 15:18).
