# commentaries

text:
<p>Now Jeremiah came in and went out among the people; for they had not put him into prison- To ’go in and out among’ can be used as a metaphor for leadership or position of influence. But the term may simply mean he had free movement, and moved amongst the people with his message.</p>


text:
<p>Pharaoh’s army had come forth out of Egypt; and when the Chaldeans who were besieging Jerusalem heard news of them, they broke up from Jerusalem- It seems in essence that this situation will be repeated when the latter day Babylon as"king of the north"invades Israel (<a href='B:340 11:44'>Dan 11:44</a>). Those who learnt anything from Bible history will see the similarity and put their faith in God rather than the hope of human deliverance. For Judah’s faith was in Egypt rather than in their God.</p>


text:
<p>Then came the word of Yahweh to the prophet Jeremiah saying- This prophecy was to address the way in which Judah were eagerly watching to see whether Egypt would defeat the Babylonians, and thereby lift the threat to them. As the prophets often lament, their faith was in Egypt and not in Yahweh. It might have seemedabsolutely the wrong time to make this challenge to them; but it had to be said, in hope they would repent. See on :3.</p>


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<p>Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, You shall tell the king of Judah, who sent you to Me to inquire of Me- This desire to get someone else to pray for you is often mentioned in the Bible. Israel could have had a direct relationship with God as they stood before Him at Sinai, but instead wanted Moses to mediate His word to them; Elymas wanted Peter to pray for him likewise. The unique feature of the one true God is that He invites personal relationship with Him; spirituality rather than mere mass religion.</p><p>Behold, Pharaoh’s army which has come forth to help you shall return to Egypt into their own land- The Egyptians had their own agenda for wanting to fight the Babylonians; they didn’t come solely to save Judah. And yet that was how Judah liked to imagine it, and God here goes along with their reasoning.</p>


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<p>The Chaldeans shall return and fight against this city; and they shall take it- As ever, reading all of Scripture enables us to see the wider picture. We know from <a href='B:300 34:16'>Jer 34:16</a> that the Jewish leadership ’returned’ from their covenant to liberate the poorer brethren whom they had previously abused; and so the Chaldeans would ’return’ and destroy them because of this. But in this prophecy, the overall summary is presented. But the return of the Chaldeans was in fact a conditional prophecy; it need not have happened if the Jews had repented meaningfully of their attitude to their poorer brethren.</p><p>And burn it with fire- The punishment for a whore, which is how Jerusalem had been to God through trusting in Egypt and other nations against Babylon. See on :3.</p>


text:
<p>Thus says Yahweh, Don’t deceive yourselves by saying, The Chaldeans shall surely depart from us; for they shall not depart- I noted on <a href='B:300 4:10'>Jer 4:10</a> that Jeremiah had falsely accused God of deceiving the people. This corrects him on this point; the people were self deceived, through listening to the deceit of their false prophets (<a href='B:300 29:8'>Jer 29:8</a>). As explained on :8, the Chaldeans could have ’departed’ from them if they had let depart their brethren whom they were abusing as servants and slaves (<a href='B:300 34:16'>Jer 34:16</a>). But instead of doing this, they chose to deceive themselves that the Babylonians would in any case depart from them. We see here how people believe what is subconsciously convenient to them. And indeed the unregenerate human heart is the great deceiver, and not some cosmic being called Satan.</p>


text:
<p>For though you had struck the whole army of the Chaldeans who fight against you, and there remained but wounded men among them, yet would they rise up every man in his tent, and burn this city with fire- The idea is that whatever temporary reverses the Babylonians might appear to suffer, the purpose of God was that they should be used to destroy Judah- unless the Jews repented. All human victories are but short term compared to the final judgment of God. And we need to get that right in our minds for all time."Wounded"translates the word usually used for"thrust through", referring to the final death wound of a foe. The idea is therefore that even if they were struck down dead, they would be resurrected in order to do God’s work against Judah. And this likewise was what could spiritually happen to Judah; they could be revived as the dry bones prophecy of Ezekiel 36 demonstrates.</p>


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<p>It happened that when the army of the Chaldeans was broken up from Jerusalem for fear of Pharaoh’s army-"Was broken up"suggests someone broke them up. And that was God, in response to the Jews’ apparent repentance of enslaving their brethren. Earlier they had asked Jeremiah to pray that the Chaldeans would be broken up from them (s:w. <a href='B:300 21:2'>Jer 21:2</a>). God was not open to that request from Jeremiah- because the condition for the Chaldeans leaving was the peoples’ repentance for abusing their brethren. Only they could do that, and no intercession from a third party could change that condition.</p>


text:
<p>then Jeremiah went forth out of Jerusalem to go into the land of Benjamin, to receive his portion there, in the midst of the people- Jeremiah had been told to purchase a field, which he would receive at the restoration (<a href='B:300 32:7-9'>Jer 32:7-9</a>). It seems this was a momentary lack of judgment on his part- he wanted his inheritance right away, rather than waiting for God’s time. However, the Hebrew is difficult here. The&nbsp; AV has"to separate himself thence in the midst of the people". It could equally mean that he had had enough of his ministry in Jerusalem and wanted to separate himself from being in the midst of an apostate people. He learnt his lesson- for at the end of his life, when given the choice of the easy life as guest of honour in Babylon or remaining in the ruined land of Judah, he chose to remain with God’s people. And finally, when they disobeyed God and chose to flee to Egypt, Jeremiah went with them, to continue appealing to them. The Hebrew could also mean that he slipped through the gates hiding himself in the midst of the people. Whatever, these three translation options all suggest a not very good decision by Jeremiah. However, it could also be that he was being obedient toGod’s word- to go out to the Babylonians (<a href='B:300 21:9'>Jer 21:9</a>; <a href='B:300 38:2'>Jer 38:2</a>; <a href='B:300 38:18'>Jer 38:18</a>) in recognition of the fact that Judah had sinned and deserved to be dominated by their enemies in accordance with the covenant of Deuteronomy 28. The fact the Chaldeans were in retreat at the time, apparently scared by the Egyptian army (:11), showed all the more faith on Jeremiah’s part. But he was not allowed to do this act of faith and obedience by others- and so it can be with us. And yet when arrested, Jeremiah denies he is going to the Chaldeans (:14)- even though he had preached that this is what the Jews should do. So it does seem, however we look at this incident, that Jeremiah acted in momentary weakness.</p>


text:
<p>When he was in the gate of Benjamin, a captain of the guard was there, whose name was Irijah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Hananiah; and he laid hold on Jeremiah the prophet saying, You are falling away to the Chaldeans- The details are given as if the cameraman is close up, to enable us to imagine the scene; and the full details of Irijah’s family background are given because of the significance of his false accusation. There were Jews who had fallen away to the Chaldeans (s:w. <a href='B:300 38:19'>Jer 38:19</a>), but the implication is that Jeremiah felt his motives to be totally different.</p>


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<p>Then Jeremiah said, It is false; I am not falling away to the Chaldeans. But he didn’t listen to him; so Irijah laid hold on Jeremiah, and brought him to the princes- Jeremiah himself taught that Israel should surrender to the Babylonians, in accordance with God’s word. He himself tried to do this, in obedience; but he was caught by the Jews. He promptly denied that he was doing this, overcome by the patriotism of the moment, in a desire to save his skin (<a href='B:300 37:14'>Jer 37:14</a>; <a href='B:300 38:2'>Jer 38:2</a>).</p>


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<p>The princes were angry with Jeremiah and struck him and imprisoned him in the house of Jonathan the scribe; for they had made that the prison- In this Jeremiah was a type of the Lord Jesus, indeed more than this- Jeremiah might have been a potential Messiah figure of some sort, but Judah rejected him. The way the servant is beaten, imprisoned and has his hair pulled out (<a href='B:290 50:4-11'>Isa 50:4-11</a>) reminds us of how the prophet Jeremiah was treated the same way by the Jews when his message was rejected (<a href='B:300 20:2'>Jer 20:2</a>; <a href='B:300 37:15'>Jer 37:15</a>)."Jonathan the scribe"may have been a secretary; or a religious scribe. His complicity is therefore the worse.</p><p>A study of “the princes” of Judah at the time of the final Babylonian invasion shows that they were not against Jeremiah nor responding to God’s word (<a href='B:300 26:16'>Jer 26:16</a>; <a href='B:300 36:14'>Jer 36:14</a>; <a href='B:300 36:19'>Jer 36:19</a>); indeed at one stage they pulled back from their path of refusing to respond (<a href='B:300 34:10'>Jer 34:10</a>). But “the princes” were the ones whom Zedekiah feared (<a href='B:300 38:25'>Jer 38:25</a>), and that fear led him to reject God’s word. And “the princes” were finally condemned for their weakness (<a href='B:300 32:32'>Jer 32:32</a>); it was they who imprisoned and sought to kill Jeremiah because ultimately they could not abide his word (<a href='B:300 37:15'>Jer 37:15</a>; <a href='B:300 38:14'>Jer 38:14</a>). One person or a very small group can easily lead a whole group, even of believers, into sin. And so it is that whole groups of people- even God’s people- can be very fickle.</p>


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<p>When Jeremiah had come into the dungeon house and into the cells, and Jeremiah had remained there many days- These"cells"were cabins excavated out of the sides of the shaft of the dungeon."Many days"there would have left people with post traumatic stress if nothing else.</p>


text:
<p>then Zedekiah the king sent and fetched him: and the king asked him secretly in his house saying, Is there any word from Yahweh? Jeremiah said, There is. He said also, You shall be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon- The ’word’ that Zedekiah would be delivered into the hand of the Chaldeans had already been given several times by Jeremiah (<a href='B:300 21:7'>Jer 21:7</a>; <a href='B:300 22:25'>Jer 22:25</a>; <a href='B:300 32:4'>Jer 32:4</a>; <a href='B:300 34:3'>Jer 34:3</a>; Jer 3421). Perhaps this was no new revelation, but rather Jeremiah reminding Zedekiah of God’s word. We can seek some new insight, some new ’word from the Lord’- when actually the answer is staring us in the face in His word which we already know. We perceive that Zedekiah was desperate to hear God’s word; despite being characterized as not listening to it (:2). The religious conscience within all men is strong; and those who have been exposed to the one true God will always be unable to totally forget Him. Zedekiah was asking for this revelation from God at the very time when all his hopes were pinned upon salvation from Egypt (:5); and yet even then, he had this uncanny sense that he needed revelation from Yahweh. We recall Saul’s desperate seeking for God’s word the night before he was killed.</p>


text:
<p>Moreover Jeremiah said to king Zedekiah, Wherein have I sinned against you, or against your servants, or against this people, that you have put me in prison?- Jeremiah’s questions were perhaps simply to plead for deliverance from what appeared certain death in the dungeon (:20). But perhaps he also was seeking for Zedekiah’s repentance for having treated him like this. Jeremiah hoped this would be elicited by presenting Zedekiah with the question as to what, exactly, had Jeremiah done wrong? And what had provoked his imprisonment was his touching of the king’s conscience by challenging him to repent. And Jeremiah was asking the king to recognize that, and live according to his conscience before Yahweh.</p>


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<p>Where now are your prophets who prophesied to you saying, The king of Babylon shall not come against you, nor against this land?-"Your prophets"sounds as if Zedekiah had surrounded himself with those who spoke what he wanted to hear; it’s as if he had appointed his personal prophets. We can effectively do the same, by listening only to those teachers whom we know are going to say that which we wish to hear.</p>


text:
<p>Now please hear, my lord the king: please let my supplication be presented before you, that you not cause me to return to the house of Jonathan the scribe, unless I die there- We sense the awful desperation of Jeremiah, facing a slow and miserable death. When Zedekiah called Jeremiah out of the prison house to meet him and show him the word of God, he ought to have perceived that he was going through the very experience of Pharaoh with Joseph (<a href='B:300 37:17'>Jer 37:17</a>; <a href='B:300 37:20'>Jer 37:20</a>). Jeremiah’s desperate plea not to be sent back to prison to die there surely echoes that of Joseph to his brethren; for Jeremiah was let down like Joseph had been into a pit with no water in, so reminiscent of Joseph (<a href='B:10 37:24'>Gen 37:24</a>). But Zedekiah didn’t want to see all this; he should’ve listened to Jeremiah, as Pharaoh had listened to Joseph and saved himself. It was all potentially set up for him; but he refused to take note.</p>


text:
<p>Then Zedekiah the king commanded and they committed Jeremiah into the court of the guard; and they gave him daily a loaf of bread out of the bakers’ street- The events of chapter 38 show how this assurance was not kept by Zedekiah- a reflection of his powerlessness, as well as the weakness of his character. We sense Zedekiah wanting to do the right thing, to save God’s prophet from death, even bringing him to live in the court of the guard within his own palace; and yet being so consumed by issues of image; and fears about irrelevancies that arise from assuming we are not going to die, nor face Divine judgment for our sins.</p><p>Until all the bread in the city was spent. Thus Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard- This could have been the words of Zedekiah, as if he recognized there would come about a point when all the bread was finished, and Jeremiah was to be fed until the very end. But the idea may be that it was when this point was reached that the walls were breached and the city fell (<a href='B:300 52:6'>Jer 52:6</a>); as if to say that Jeremiah had bread right up to the end.</p>


text:
<p>Shephatiah the son of Mattan, Gedaliah the son of Pashhur, Jucal the son of Shelemiah and Pashhur the son of Malchijah heard the words that Jeremiah spoke to all the people saying- Gedaliah was the son of the Pashhur of <a href='B:300 20:1'>Jer 20:1</a> who had put Jeremiah in the stocks. Jucal is that of <a href='B:300 37:3'>Jer 37:3</a>. The other Pashhur is that of <a href='B:300 21:1'>Jer 21:1</a>.</p>


text:
<p>Thus says Yahweh, He who remains in this city shall die by the sword, by the famine and by the plague; but he who goes forth to the Chaldeans shall live, and his life shall be to him for a prey, and he shall live- Jeremiah himself taught that Israel should surrender to the Babylonians, in accordance with God’s word. He himself tried to do this, in obedience; but he was caught by the Jews. He promptly denied that he was doing this, overcome by the patriotism of the moment, in a desire to save his skin (<a href='B:300 37:14'>Jer 37:14</a>; <a href='B:300 38:2'>Jer 38:2</a>). Jeremiah wanted to flee the city so as not to die; he very nearly did die of famine (:9), in order to achieve his total identification with his sinful people. This identification was why the Lord died the death of a criminal on the cross.</p><p>The prediction of death by plague in <a href='B:300 21:6'>Jer 21:6</a> was therefore conditional. Those prophetic words need not have come true if Israel had been obedient to this call to surrender."Passes over"is literally"to fall down". They were to accept their condemnation, and thereby save their lives. Their lives would be to them"for a prey", literally, as booty taken from a conquered city. This was and is the great paradox- that surrender, acceptance of defeat, was the great spiritual victory. In the future, at the Lord’s return, we will be saved from wrath (i:e. condemnation) through Christ (<a href='B:520 5:9'>Rom 5:9</a>). Whilst this has already been achieved in a sense, it will be materially articulated in that day- in that we will feel and know ourselves to be worthy of God’s wrath, but then be saved from it. We are all to some extent in the position of Zedekiah and the men of Judah, who was told that if they accepted God’s condemnation of them as just, and served the King of Babylon, then they would ultimately be saved; but if they refused to accept that condemnation, then they would be eternally destroyed (<a href='B:300 21:9'>Jer 21:9</a>; <a href='B:300 27:12'>Jer 27:12</a>). And the Babylonian invasion was a type of the final judgment.</p>


text:
<p>Thus says Yahweh, This city shall surely be given into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon, and he shall take it- It was on one hand"sure"and certain, but right up to the very end, it was possible for Judah to repent and the siege to be lifted. ’Given... and taken’ is the term used for how Yahweh gave the cities of Canaan to Israel and they took them (<a href='B:60 10:32'>Jos 10:32</a>). He had given Jerusalem into the hand of their enemies- exactly the opposite of how people then understood a tribal god to act. He was supposed to always protect his city from the hand of their enemies, regardless of their morality. Yahweh was showing Himself to be so much more than mere religion, a simple tribal god. Denominationalism can be little more than believing in tribal deities.</p>


text:
<p>Then the princes said to the king, Please let this man be put to death; because he weakens the hands of the men of war who remain in this city, and the hands of all the people, in speaking such words to them: for this man doesn’t seek the welfare of this people, but their hurt- The hands of the Jews are contrasted with the hands of Babylon (:3). They were as it were arm wrestling against God’s intentions. The Jews were to be repentant and"seek the welfare"or"peace"of Babylon, to the end Babylon might repent and become part of God’s restored kingdom (<a href='B:300 29:7'>Jer 29:7</a>). This was such a radically different agenda to that of the flesh. By their impenitence, the Jews were seeking hurt and not peace / welfare to themselves&nbsp; (<a href='B:370 5:14'>Amo 5:14</a> s:w:).</p>


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<p>Zedekiah the king said, Behold, he is in your hand; for the king is not he who can do anything against you- The LXX makes this clause a comment of the narrator (“For the king was not able..."). Jeremiah in :15 didn’t consider this to be the case, understanding it rather as an excuse. Zedekiah ought to have reflected that his lack of hand / power in this matter was true on a larger scale too; for he had been given into the hand of the Babylonians (:3). God may bring a smaller scale situation into our lives to teach us of our powerlessness on a larger scale.</p>


text:
<p>Then they took Jeremiah and cast him into the dungeon of Malchijah the king’s son, that was in the court of the guard- AVmg. "the son of Hammelech" (<a href='B:300 36:26'>Jer 36:26</a>). This was as it were the punishment cell within the prison.</p><p>And they let down Jeremiah with cords. In the dungeon there was no water, but mud; and Jeremiah sank in the mud- See on :22. The only way to eat would have been to have food lowered down, and seeing the city was suffering famine, chances of survival were slim. The pit in which there was no water would have reminded him of Joseph’s experience (<a href='B:10 37:24'>Gen 37:24</a>), and he may well have looked therefore towards some miraculous deliverance. His thoughts at this time are in Lamentations 3, where he wrote in his mind a prayer or psalm about it. But he felt his prayers were shut out by the covering placed upon the dungeon (<a href='B:310 3:8'>Lam 3:8</a>; <a href='B:310 3:53'>Lam 3:53</a>), and he was enclosed within hewn stone (<a href='B:310 3:9'>Lam 3:9</a>)- what the dungeon walls were made of. It was presumably a sewer, with excrement falling before his face. He therefore felt he was in a living death and burial, surrounded by gravel stones as if in a grave (<a href='B:310 3:16'>Lam 3:16</a>). His enemies mocked him from above (<a href='B:310 3:14'>Lam 3:14</a>), pouring water that was probably excrement upon him (<a href='B:310 3:54'>Lam 3:54</a>; as the dungeon was a sewer), his teeth were broken from the beating and perhaps from the descent into the dungeon (<a href='B:310 3:16'>Lam 3:16</a>), and he felt bitter with God rather than full of faith and hope in deliverance (<a href='B:310 3:15'>Lam 3:15</a>). But then his faith revived, reflecting how God had still not destroyed Judah by His great grace (<a href='B:310 3:22'>Lam 3:22</a>), and therefore every day he survived until morning he saw as God’s grace to him, in which he could hope (<a href='B:310 3:23'>Lam 3:23</a>). He realized he was Judah’s representative; for they too were to be sent forth from Babylon, the pit in which there was no water (<a href='B:450 9:11'>Zec 9:11</a>). And this gave him hope; just as God’s great grace to Israel historically should be basis for our hope. See on :13.</p>


text:
<p>Now when Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, a eunuch who was in the king’s house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon (the king then sitting in the gate of Benjamin)- This was the spot where Jeremiah had been arrested (<a href='B:300 37:13'>Jer 37:13</a>) and earlier had been put in the stocks there (<a href='B:300 20:2'>Jer 20:2</a>). Perhaps therefore the king’s inner thoughts were upon Jeremiah, and Ebedmelech was guided therefore to approach the king at just the right time.</p>


text:
<p>Ebedmelech went forth out of the king’s house and spoke to the king saying- He approached the king outside of the king’s house, privately. Always we sense Zedekiah’s concern about image and what others would think of him.</p>


text:
<p>My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon; and he is likely to die in the place where he is- Heb. "is dead of hunger on the spot". This kind of apparent exaggeration is common in Semitic languages.</p><p>Because of the famine- Jeremiah had frequently prophesied that the impenitent Jews were to die of the famine. Now, Jeremiah is on the brink of death because of famine. He was led by these experiences to absolutely identify with the condemned. Just as the Lord Jesus died the death of sinners, of a criminal, and thereby tasted death for every man. Being a captive in the dungeon who is released is exactly the language of Isaiah about the release of the exiles from captivity. Jeremiah was their example and personification. They could have followed his path, but chose to remain in that dark dungeon of Babylon.</p><p>For there is no more bread in the city- This was only true at the end (<a href='B:300 52:6'>Jer 52:6</a>); if it were literally true, there would have been no point in releasing Jeremiah. This exaggerated language is not corrected, as often in the Biblical record.</p>


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<p>Then the king commanded Ebedmelech the Ethiopian saying, Take from here thirty men with you, and take up Jeremiah the prophet out of the dungeon before he dies- That it would take thirty men to get Jeremiah out of the dungeon indicates the serious depth to which Jeremiah had sunk. And there was the possibility of opposition to Ebedmelech if he attempted to do this alone. We can imagine the racism against an Ethiopian, especially as Egypt / Ethiopia had now been shown to be false friends of Judah and powerless to help Judah. Yet God so loves to work through the despised and marginal.</p>


text:
<p>So Ebedmelech took the men with him, and went into the house of the king under the treasury, and took from there rags and worn-out clothes and let them down by cords into the dungeon to Jeremiah- It was common in those days to symbolically tear clothes in grief. And what then happened to the clothes? They were kept in the treasury, as the material itself was valuable. These symbols of past repentance were used to save Jeremiah’s life.</p>


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<p>Ebedmelech the Ethiopian said to Jeremiah, Put now these rags and worn-out clothes under your armpits under the cords. Jeremiah did so- We note Ebedmelech’s sensitivity, imagining how the cords would bite into Jeremiah’s armpits unless there was some material to cushion them. His voice echoing down the sewer would have seemed as the voice of God responding to Jeremiah’s feeble prayers as recorded in Lamentations 3.</p>


text:
<p>So they drew up Jeremiah with the cords, and took him up out of the dungeon: and Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard- Perhaps Jeremiah as Judah’s representative experienced the ’drawing up’ unto salvation offered to Judah in the new covenant, when he was "drawn up" out of certain death in the dungeon (<a href='B:300 38:13'>Jer 38:13</a>, s:w. "with loving kindness have I drawn you [up]", <a href='B:300 31:3'>Jer 31:3</a>). His hope in salvation from the pit was because he perceived he was Israel’s representative; see on :6. The dungeon "was in the court of the guard" so Jeremiah would have lived continuously within sight of the dungeon of death, the ultimate punishment cell in the makeshift prison.</p>


text:
<p>Then Zedekiah the king sent and took Jeremiah the prophet to him into the third entry that is in the house of Yahweh- Or, "the entry of the body-guard". Perhaps this was the king’s special entry to the temple (2Ki 16:18).</p><p>And the king said to Jeremiah, I will ask you something. Hide nothing from me- Zedekiah was aware that Jeremiah would be tempted to give him only some of God’s word, hiding from him the harder parts. Zedekiah wanted God’s truth, and yet was unprepared to act upon it. That is so true of so many people, and probably of all of us at some times and in some ways. To ’want to find the truth’ can be trendy and attractive; but the question is not so much as to whether we have an interest in finding it, but will we do with it once confronted with it. See on :26.</p>


text:
<p>Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, If I declare it to you, will you not surely put me to death? And if I give you advice, you will not listen to me- Jeremiah clearly didn’t accept Zedekiah’s plea of impotence in :5. Instead of simply begging Zedekiah for deliverance and saying what Zedekiah wanted to hear, Jeremiah comes over as absolutely committed to the truth of God’s words about the situation.</p>


text:
<p>So Zedekiah the king swore secretly to Jeremiah saying, As Yahweh lives, who made us this soul, I will not put you to death- The fact God has given us life ought to mean that we are truthful and honest in our words; and that we will seek to preserve the life of others rather than take it from them. This is all the implication of the most basic truth of the Genesis record- that God created man and made him a living soul / creature.</p><p>Neither will I give you into the hand of these men who seek your life- This may have been said with a nod towards "these men" nearby. It contradicts Zedekiah’s excuse that he could do nothing against the will of his courtiers in :5. We too can plead weakness, railroading and impotence to justify our lack of purpose and commitment to principle.</p>


text:
<p>Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, Thus says Yahweh, the God of Armies, the God of Israel: If you will go forth to the king of Babylon’s princes, then your soul shall live, and this city shall not be burned with fire; and you shall live, and your family- Jeremiah picks up on Zedekiah’s comment that God made us this soul (:16). This is the way towards dialogue; using the words and phrases of others and reframing them in a way which will therefore be the more persuasive to them. God here offers salvation from the whole judgment scenario for the sake of just one thing- if Zedekiah had surrendered to Babylon. Likewise if the Jews had properly released their bondservants, then the Babylonians would have departed. All the idolatry, murder and spiritual prostitution would have been overlooked just for the sake of one act of obedience. These offers were made in order to highlight the importance of the request being made- in this case, to accept the rightness of the Divine judgment for sin. Just one man’s humility could have averted so much suffering. But human fear and pride was too great to allow it.</p><p><a href='B:300 34:5'>Jer 34:5</a> says that "You shall die in peace; and with the burnings of your fathers, the former kings who were before you, so shall they make a burning for you; and they shall lament you saying, Ah Lord!". It surely has to be recognized that the ‘prophecy’ that Zedekiah would die in peace was conditional upon his obedience to the word of Jeremiah- even though those conditions aren’t recorded (although they are implicit surely).</p>


text:
<p>But if you will not go forth to the king of Babylon’s princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire- God somehow arranged things within His purpose so that Zedekiah’s repentance would have enabled the salvation of all Israel. But his failure to repent meant that judgment came on His people. What this shows is that there are times and places where God is willing to save people for the sake of the spirituality of a third party, but if he or she fails in this, deliverance doesn’t necessarily arise from another place, as it would have done in Esther’s time.</p><p>And you shall not escape out of their hand- Zedekiah’s attempt to escape the city was therefore made in conscious disobedience to these words.</p>


text:
<p>Zedekiah the king said to Jeremiah, I am afraid of the Jews who are fallen away to the Chaldeans, lest they deliver me into their hand and they mock me- These were the Jews who had accepted their judgment was just and had surrendered. They had likely been abused by Zedekiah and the Jewish leadership beforehand. And so he feared they would mock him. Jeremiah had used just this word about what would be done to Jerusalem by the Babylonians (<a href='B:300 6:9'>Jer 6:9</a>), but Zedekiah’s pride was such that he feared the mocking of his fellow Jews more than he did that of the Babylonians. We have a window here into the extent of his pride, and the fears which arise from pride.</p>


text:
<p>But Jeremiah said, They shall not deliver you. Obey, I beg you, the voice of Yahweh, in that which I speak to you: so it shall be well with you, and your soul shall live- These Jews were those who had heeded Jeremiah’s warnings and surrendered to the Chaldeans in recognition of their sins. They were therefore probably known to Jeremiah, and would therefore welcome Zedekiah’s surrender. The implication is that Zedekiah’s soul would not live unless her surrendered. But he didn’t surrender. Yet by grace he was not killed, but actually died in peace in Babylon. Presumably he did therefore repent, and God by utter grace changed his deserved punishment.</p>


text:
<p>But if you refuse to go forth, this is the word that Yahweh has shown me- The Hebrew for "refuse" is only elsewhere used of Pharaoh refusing to let Israel go (<a href='B:20 8:2'>Exo 8:2</a>; <a href='B:20 9:2'>Exo 9:2</a>; <a href='B:20 10:4'>Exo 10:4</a>). The deliverance of Israel was likewise being allowed to hinge upon the humility or pride of one man. Zedekiah was surely intended to see the appeal to precedent in Biblical history, just as we often are. This is one advantage of being familiar with the text and basic narrative of the Bible through daily Bible reading.</p>


text:
<p>behold, all the women who are left in the king of Judah’s house shall be brought forth to the king of Babylon’s princes, and those women shall say, Your familiar friends have deceived you and have prevailed over you. Your feet are now sunk in the mud, and they now turn away from you- Preaching has to be personal. For God is all about the salvation of persons; and He hungers for intimacy with her persons whom He has created. We each make an individual witness, and that witness is intended by God to be uniquely suitable for certain people within our sphere of contact. Jeremiah is an example of how our witness to others should be framed in the language of our own experiences, thus giving it credibility. He had just been in the dungeon, where he had sunk down in the mud (<a href='B:300 38:6'>Jer 38:6</a>). But he soon afterwards appeals to Zedekiah to have the courage to do what God wants and not what his princes think is humanly smarter. Metaphorically, Jeremiah says, it was Zedekiah whose “feet are sunk in the mire” (<a href='B:300 38:22'>Jer 38:22</a>). ‘Spiritually, you’re like I was physically’, was what Jeremiah was saying. And because he personalized his message in this way, it became all the more credible. Thus a blind brother can speak about our spiritual blindness with an obvious appropriacy and credibility which the sighted lack. This is why all witness simply has to be personal- impersonal handing out of tracts or hiding behind web sites on the internet isn’t the essentially personal witness which God intended.</p>


text:
<p>They shall bring out all your wives and your children to the Chaldeans; and you shall not escape out of their hand, but shall be taken by the hand of the king of Babylon: and you shall cause this city to be burned with fire- Zedekiah’s attempt to escape the city was therefore made in conscious disobedience to these words. We note the emphasis upon the suffering of women and children&nbsp; (:22,23). It is simply so that there are consequences of human sin which mean that others are affected far beyond the sinner. The innocent suffer because of the sins of others. That is why sin is so multi dimensional; although in this case it would be true to say that the women themselves were also guilty of idolatry (<a href='B:300 7:18'>Jer 7:18</a>; <a href='B:300 44:17'>Jer 44:17</a>). But this could have been overlooked for the sake of one man’s humble repentance.</p>


text:
<p>Then Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, Let no man know of these words, and you shall not die- Again, his claim of being impotent to save Jeremiah in :5 is shown to be false. He was worried lest it become known that God had made this deal with him, whereby his repentance alone could radically affect the outcome for Jerusalem. Again, his pride and concern about image is so pathetically apparent. His offer of not killing Jeremiah if he didn’t publish this latest word from the Lord is in fact similar to what he imagined the princes’ position would be (:25). So this was but a carefully calculated offer.</p>


text:
<p>But if the princes hear that I have talked with you, and they come to you and tell you, Declare to us now what you have said to the king; don’t hide it from us, and we will not put you to death; also what the king said to you- This connects with how Zedekiah had asked Jeremiah not to "hide" God’s word from him; see on :26.</p><p>A study of “the princes” of Judah at the time of the final Babylonian invasion shows that they were not against Jeremiah nor responding to God’s word (<a href='B:300 26:16'>Jer 26:16</a>; <a href='B:300 36:14'>Jer 36:14</a>; <a href='B:300 36:19'>Jer 36:19</a>); indeed at one stage they pulled back from their path of refusing to respond (<a href='B:300 34:10'>Jer 34:10</a>). But “the princes” were the ones whom Zedekiah feared (<a href='B:300 38:25'>Jer 38:25</a>), and that fear led him to reject God’s word. And “the princes” were finally condemned for their weakness (<a href='B:300 32:32'>Jer 32:32</a>); it was they who imprisoned and sought to kill Jeremiah because ultimately they could not abide his word (<a href='B:300 37:15'>Jer 37:15</a>; <a href='B:300 38:14'>Jer 38:14</a>). One person or a very small group can easily lead a whole group, even of believers, into sin. And so it is that whole groups of people- even God’s people- can be very fickle.</p>


text:
<p>then you shall tell them, I presented my supplication before the king, that he would not cause me to return to Jonathan’s house to die there- The dungeon of death was in the court of the guard, where Jeremiah was now located. He likely was quartered just meters away from it. "Jonathan’s house" was perhaps a name for that dungeon of death. And Jeremiah surely had requested this, and so this was not untrue; but it was a hiding from the princes of what had really transpired. Zedekiah had asked Jeremiah not to do this to him, but to give full disclosure of God’s word (:14). He ought to have reflected upon this inconsistency, and instead have openly told the princes of the situation and his obedience&nbsp; to God’s word.</p>


text:
<p>Then came all the princes to Jeremiah, and asked him; and he told them according to all these words that the king had commanded. So they left off speaking with him; for the matter was not perceived- The fact we are now reading of it shows that it was of course finally perceived. LXX "And they were silent, because the word of the Lord was not heard". Zedekiah heard the word, but didn’t really hear it; just as we can hear and read the word of God but not really hear it. This surface level hearing of God’s word becomes a more acute temptation as we become the more familiar with the Bible text.</p>


text:
<p>So Jeremiah stayed in the court of the guard until the day that Jerusalem was taken- We imagine the Babylonian soldiers closing in on the court, the guards fleeing, and the soldiers encountering the grateful but confused prisoners.</p>


text:
<p>It happened when Jerusalem was taken, (in the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, came Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army against Jerusalem, and besieged it- The exacter date is given in <a href='B:300 52:4-7'>Jer 52:4-7</a>, meaning that the siege lasted exactly 18 months.</p>


text:
<p>in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, the ninth day of the month, a breach was made in the city)- The Babylonians made a breach in the wall to the north, from where the cherubim had left and would return. But Zedekiah tried to escape by digging a hole in the southern wall (<a href='B:330 12:12'>Eze 12:12</a>). He did to the city what the Babylonians did, living out his own condemnation; see on :7. This "breach" is the same word used for the breaking up of things at the time of the flood (<a href='B:10 6:11'>Gen 6:11</a>), a well established foretaste of the destruction of Jerusalem by the flood waters of the Babylonians, albeit with the promise of a new creation coming as a result of it.</p>


text:
<p>that all the princes of the king of Babylon came in, and sat in the middle gate- The gate separating the citadel of Zion where the temple was, from the rest of Jerusalem. In other words, the temple was about to be taken.</p><p>Nergal Sharezer, Samgarnebo, Sarsechim, Rabsaris, Nergal Sharezer, Rabmag, with all the rest of the princes of the king of Babylon- These are titles rather than personal names. Many of them are plays on the names of their gods, such as Nebo. Rabmag was the master of the magi, and the idea was that the gods of Babylon had triumphed over Jerusalem.</p>


text:
<p>It happened that when Zedekiah the king of Judah and all the men of war saw them, then they fled and went forth out of the city by night, by the way of the king’s garden, through the gate between the two walls- It seems Zedekiah had taken refuge in the temple. From there, he saw the princes of Babylon who had breached the northern wall and were now at the temple gate (:3). And so they fled by "the king’s garden", which was his own private entrance to the temple, and then came to the double walls of the southern perimeter of the city. Zedekiah himself dug through those walls, the strongest point of his defence and human strength(<a href='B:330 12:12'>Eze 12:12</a>). He was being taught that all human defence, and the physical temple, was not going to save him.</p><p>And he went out towards the Arabah- "Went out" is the language of Judas going out (<a href='B:500 13:30'>Joh 13:30</a>), Cain ’"went out" (<a href='B:10 4:16'>Gen 4:16</a>), as did Zedekiah in the judgment of Jerusalem (<a href='B:300 39:4'>Jer 39:4</a>; <a href='B:300 52:7'>Jer 52:7</a>). Esau went out from the land of Canaan into Edom, slinking away from the face of his brother Jacob, sensing his righteousness and his own carnality (<a href='B:10 36:2-8'>Gen 36:2-8</a>). Even in this life, those who leave the ecclesia ’go out’ after the pattern of Judas, condemning themselves in advance of the judgment by their attitude to the ecclesia (<a href='B:690 2:19'>1Jn 2:19</a> cp. <a href='B:510 15:24'>Act 15:24</a>). The unrighteous flee from God now, as they will then (<a href='B:350 7:13'>Hos 7:13</a>).</p>


text:
<p>But the army of the Chaldeans pursued after them, and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho: and when they had taken him, they brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to Riblah in the land of Hamath- The main lying helpless on the Jerusalem - Jericho road was surely modeled on Zedekiah being overtaken there by his enemies. That weak, vacillating man basically loved God’s word, he wanted to be obedient, but just couldn’t bring himself to do it. And so he was, quite justly, condemned. It’s as if the Lord saw in that wretched, pathetic man a type of all those He came to save. And even in this wretched position, the Lord will pick us up and carry us home. Pursuing and overtaking are the words used of the punishment to come upon those who broke the covenant (<a href='B:50 28:45'>Deu 28:45</a>).</p><p>And he gave judgment on him- He ’spoke judgments’, as if Zedekiah were a common criminal no longer protected by his royal status. <a href='B:120 25:5'>2Ki 25:5</a> adds the detail that his army was scattered from him; he was left alone to face judgment. This was God’s intention; to make Zedekiah face judgment alone, so that he might be the more in touch with his God and repent. For this is one function of the loneliness which God brings.</p>


text:
<p>Then the king of Babylon killed the sons of Zedekiah in Riblah before his eyes: also the king of Babylon killed all the nobles of Judah- The princes were killed, but Zedekiah was spared. He had been given a wonderful opportunity to repent in Jeremiah 38, but had spurned it. And yet he was still spared the loss of his life, although he had been told he would lose his life (<a href='B:300 38:17'>Jer 38:17</a>). Presumably his deep repentance as he faced his condemnation was so impressive that God spared his life; whereas the princes didn’t repent.</p>


text:
<p>Moreover he put out Zedekiah’s eyes, and bound him in fetters to carry him to Babylon- This is how Jeremiah saw Nebuchadnezzar’s eyes (<a href='B:300 34:3'>Jer 34:3</a>) and yet came to Babylon without seeing it (<a href='B:330 12:13'>Eze 12:13</a>). Zedekiah fled Jerusalem disguised as a woman with his face so bound around with some disguise that he couldn’t see (<a href='B:330 12:12'>Eze 12:12</a>). He was living out his own condemnation, which was to be blinded. See on :2.</p>


text:
<p>The Chaldeans burned the king’s house and the houses of the people with fire, and broke down the walls of Jerusalem- Israel were told to "throw down", "break in pieces" and "utterly destroy" the idols and altars of Canaan. There were times during their history when they obeyed this command by purging themselves from their apostasy in this. The Hebrew words used scarcely occur elsewhere, except very frequently in the context of how God "broke down", "threw down" and "destroyed" Israel at the hands of their Babylonian and Assyrian invaders as a result of their not ’breaking down’ (etc:) the idols. "Throw down" in <a href='B:20 34:13'>Exo 34:13</a>; <a href='B:50 7:5'>Deu 7:5</a>; <a href='B:50 12:3'>Deu 12:3</a>; <a href='B:140 31:1'>2Ch 31:1</a> is the same word in <a href='B:140 36:19'>2Ch 36:19</a>; <a href='B:300 4:26'>Jer 4:26</a>; <a href='B:300 31:28'>Jer 31:28</a>; <a href='B:300 33:4'>Jer 33:4</a>; <a href='B:300 39:8'>Jer 39:8</a>; <a href='B:300 52:14'>Jer 52:14</a>; <a href='B:330 16:39'>Eze 16:39</a>; <a href='B:410 1:6'>Nah 1:6</a>. "Cut down" in <a href='B:50 7:5'>Deu 7:5</a>; <a href='B:50 12:3'>Deu 12:3</a>; <a href='B:140 31:1'>2Ch 31:1</a> later occurs in <a href='B:290 10:33'>Isa 10:33</a>; Jeremiah 48; Jeremiah 25; <a href='B:310 2:3'>Lam 2:3</a>. So Israel faced the choice: either cut down your idols, or you will be cut down in the day of God’s judgment. Those who worshipped idols were like unto them. The stone will either fall on us and destroy us, or we must fall on it and become broken men and women (<a href='B:470 21:44'>Mat 21:44</a>). For the man untouched by the concept of living for God’s glory, it’s a hard choice.</p>


text:
<p>Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive into Babylon the remnant of the people who remained in the city, the deserters also who fell away to him, and the residue of the people who remained- The "remnant" is the remainder of those who had not died from the sword, famine or plague. But there was a large element of "the poor of the people" (:10) who remained.</p>


text:
<p>But Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard left of the poor of the people, who had nothing, in the land of Judah, and gave them vineyards and fields at the same time- The majority of the population remained, because they were those who had nothing and were abused by the wealthy minority; and they received their vineyards and fields. They did well out of the Babylonian invasion; and that was Babylonian policy, to deport only the leadership and ingratiate themselves to the poor masses, in the hope they would thereby have their loyalty.</p><p>It needs to be noted that poverty has a way of distracting, terribly so. Merely giving aid to the poor won’t automatically make converts- true converts. It’s simply not true that desperately poor people will somehow respond better than others to the Gospel. The Jews left in the land at the time of the exile were the very poorest. But actually these were the spiritually weaker in the long run, and it was the more wealthy who went to Babylon who were the “good figs” of <a href='B:300 24:3-8'>Jer 24:3-8</a>.</p>


text:
<p>Now Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon commanded Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard concerning Jeremiah saying- Nebuchadnezzar was then at Hamath, Antioch on the Orontes. He would have heard about Jeremiah from the Jews who had already defected in response to Jeremiah’s prophecies, and they would have told him of Jeremiah’s prophecies; which was why he was well disposed toward Jeremiah, perhaps ignorant of or choosing to ignore the other prophecies about Babylon’s destruction.</p>


text:
<p>Take him, and look well to him, and do him no harm; but do to him even as he shall tell you- ’To set the eyes upon for good’ (Heb:), "take care of" or "look well unto", could mean that God’s eyes, the Angels, would bless the "good figs" in captivity and lead them to repentance and salvation. For that is the ultimate "good" which God plans for His people. But twice we read that Jeremiah could have gone into captivity and been looked upon for good (<a href='B:300 39:12'>Jer 39:12</a>; <a href='B:300 40:4'>Jer 40:4</a> s:w. "I will set My eyes on them for good" in <a href='B:300 24:6'>Jer 24:6</a>). Yet Jeremiah declined; he chose to suffer affliction with the condemned, with the bad figs of the Jeremiah 24 prophecy, so that he might still help them to repentance. This looked forward to the Lord’s death as a sinner on the cross. And it is to be our spirit too, ever seeking the repentance of those who otherwise will be condemned rather than enjoying time solely with those who apparently will be saved.</p>


text:
<p>So Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard sent, and Nebushazban, Rabsaris, Nergal Sharezer, Rabmag, and all the chief officers of the king of Babylon- The top brass of Babylon were all involved in this singular mission- to locate and do well to this individual called Jeremiah. Such was God’s deep desire to reward and care for Jeremiah.</p>


text:
<p>they sent, and took Jeremiah out of the court of the guard, and committed him to Gedaliah the son ofAhikam, the son of Shaphan, that he should carry him home: so he lived among the people- But initially Jeremiah was taken captive in chains (<a href='B:300 40:1'>Jer 40:1</a>), perhaps in the confusion which arose after the sacking of Jerusalem. He was released from those chains and given the best treatment, given a place in the house of Gedaliah whom the Babylonians had appointed governor. But Jeremiah had a heart for people, wanting only to minister God’s word to them. Even that relatively luxurious position is described according to how Jeremiah perceived it- he lived "among the people". And this of course is an example to us, wherever our lot be cast.</p>


text:
<p>Now the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah, while he was shut up in the court of the guard, saying- This is the word that had come to Jeremiah previously. The book of Jeremiah isn’t chronological, but arranged by theme. Here the theme is that God wonderfully preserved Jeremiah because of his faithfulness; and He did the same for Ebedmelech.</p>


text:
<p>Go and speak to Ebedmelech the Ethiopian saying, Thus says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel: Behold, I will bring My words on this city for evil, and not for good; and they shall be accomplished before you in that day- Jeremiah was "shut up" in prison (:15); so ’going’ is used in the figurative sense, as a metaphor to describe taking the Gospel to someone, even if we are confined to our bed. See more examples of this noted on <a href='B:670 3:19'>1Pe 3:19</a>.</p>


text:
<p>But I will deliver you in that day, says Yahweh; and you shall not be given into the hand of the men of whom you are afraid- To march into the prison with 30 men and rescue Jeremiah from the dungeon of death was nothing less than staging a jail break. Ebedmelech showed huge faith and devotion in doing this, and naturally feared for his life afterwards. His deliverance from the Jews was to encourage him that like Jeremiah, his life would be saved from the Babylonians too. "You shall not be given..." is just what Zedekiah had been encouraged- if he had repented (<a href='B:300 38:20'>Jer 38:20</a>). He likewise was "afraid of... men", the same Jewish princes who were out to kill Ebedmelech. We see here the thematic nature of the book of Jeremiah. God worked in the same way in parallel lives, and some accepted His promises and others didn’t.</p>


text:
<p>For I will surely save you, and you shall not fall by the sword, but your life shall be for a prey to you; because you have put your trust in me, says Yahweh- His life would be to him "for a prey", literally, as booty taken from a conquered city. This was and is the great paradox- that surrender, acceptance of defeat, was the great spiritual victory. LXX "and you shall find your life" is alluded to in the Lord’s promise that he who loses his life [or risks losing it] for the Lord’s sake shall find it (<a href='B:470 10:39'>Mat 10:39</a>; <a href='B:470 16:25'>Mat 16:25</a>). The reward for Ebedmelech was not just that he would save his physical life, but that he would find his true life. He thereby stands representative of us all.</p>


text:
<p>The word which came to Jeremiah from Yahweh- There is no prophetic revelation for some time in the passage, as the following historical summary was required to give context to it.</p><p>After Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had let him go from Ramah, when he had taken him being bound in chains among all the captives of Jerusalem and Judah, who were carried away captive to Babylon- As explained on <a href='B:300 39:14'>Jer 39:14</a>, initially Jeremiah was taken captive in chains, perhaps in the confusion which arose after the sacking of Jerusalem; despite the specific command of none less than Nebuchadnezzar to give him special care and honour. He was released from those chains and given the best treatment, given a place in the house of Gedaliah whom the Babylonians had appointed governor. But Jeremiah had a heart for people, wanting only to minister God’s word to them. Even that relatively luxurious position is described according to how Jeremiah perceived it- he lived "among the people" (<a href='B:300 39:14'>Jer 39:14</a>). And this of course is an example to us, wherever our lot be cast. Perhaps Jeremiah went through this brief experience of being bound in chains so that he, like the Lord Jesus, could experience the condemnation of his people despite being personally innocent.</p>


text:
<p>The captain of the guard took Jeremiah and said to him, Yahweh your God pronounced this evil on this place- The captain knew this because Jeremiah’s prophetic words had been published and were well known. This is to Jeremiah’s credit; that he didn’t just keep his unpopular message to himself.</p>


text:
<p>and Yahweh has brought it, and done according as He spoke: because you have sinned against Yahweh, and have not obeyed His voice, therefore this thing has come on you- As noted on :2, Jeremiah’s earlier words had been well distributed. We note that Nebuzaradan uses the covenant Name of Yahweh. As intended, the whole tragedy was used to magnify God’s Name and word amongst the Gentiles. People at that time understood a tribal god as always defending his own city. But this man understood that Yahweh was not such a tribal god; He brought judgment against His own people because He had a moral agenda, and was deeply sensitive to sin against Him. At that time, the whole concept of sin as a felt offence against a deity was unheard of:&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>


text:
<p>Now, behold, I release you this day from the chains which are on your hand- Jeremiah was representative of Judah; they too could have been loosed from their chains if they had repented and adopted God’s perspective as Jeremiah did. Jeremiah was to be their pattern.</p><p>If it seems good to you to come with me into Babylon, come, and I will take care of you; but if it seems bad to you to come with me into Babylon, don’t- ’To set the eyes upon for good’ (Heb:), "take care of" or "look well unto", could mean that God’s eyes, the Angels, would bless the "good figs" in captivity and lead them to repentance and salvation. For that is the ultimate "good" which God plans for His people. But twice we read that Jeremiah could have gone into captivity and been looked upon for good (<a href='B:300 39:12'>Jer 39:12</a>; <a href='B:300 40:4'>Jer 40:4</a> s:w. "I will set My eyes on them for good" in <a href='B:300 24:6'>Jer 24:6</a>). Yet Jeremiah declined; he chose to suffer affliction with the condemned, with the bad figs of the Jeremiah 24 prophecy, so that he might still help them to repentance. This looked forward to the Lord’s death as a sinner on the cross. And it is to be our spirit too, ever seeking the repentance of those who otherwise will be condemned rather than enjoying time solely with those who apparently will be saved.</p><p>Behold, all the land is before you; where it seems good and right to you to go, there go- This is the language of Israel entering the land (<a href='B:50 3:18'>Deu 3:18</a> etc:). Again, Jeremiah was the representative of Judah and the living example of what could have been, and what could yet be for them.</p>


text:
<p>If you remain, then return to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon appointed governor of the cities of Judah, and dwell with him among the people. Or go wherever you think it right to go. So the captain of the guard gave him an allowance of food and a present, and let him go- We are sometimes given such great freedom of choice, in order that we might have a chance to search our motives and do that which we "think right". Jeremiah’s response is a stellar example to us. He chose to suffer affliction with God’s people rather than seek his own security and prosperity in Babylon. Sometimes there are no morally wrong choices before us; but what is required is the right motivation for the choices we make. To have gone to Babylon and worked on bringing about the fulfillment of the "good figs" prophecy would surely have been legitimate. Instead Jeremiah chose to remain with the condemned, the "evil figs" who would not respond... in the hope they would somehow respond. He chose to "dwell among the people".</p>


text:
<p>Then went Jeremiah to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah, and lived with him among the people who were left in the land- It is repeatedly emphasized that Jeremiah "lived... among the people". Even though he lived in Gedaliah’s house in relatively luxury, his living is described according to how Jeremiah perceived it- he lived "among the people" (also :1; <a href='B:300 39:14'>Jer 39:14</a>). And this of course is an example to us, wherever our lot be cast.</p>


text:
<p>Now when all the captains of the forces who were in the fields, even they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam governor in the land, and had committed to him men, and women, and children, and of the poorest of the land, of those who were not carried away captive to Babylon- The existence of surviving Jewish military units indicates that the total destruction of Judah as intimated in Jeremiah’s earlier prophecies didn’t totally come about. In wrath God remembered mercy; or perhaps the mediation and repentance of a minority led to Him ameliorating His judgments. That is a theme of all his prophecies.</p>


text:
<p>then they came to Gedaliah to Mizpah, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, Johanan and Jonathan the sons of Kareah, Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth, the sons of Ephai the Netophathite and Jezaniah the son of the Maacathite, they and their men- Ishmael was later to murder Gedaliah, considering that he was the rightful king of Judah. It seems he had taken refuge with Baalis king of the Ammonites during the Babylonian invasion (:14).</p>


text:
<p>Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan swore to them and to their men saying, Don’t be afraid to serve the Chaldeans: dwell in the land, and serve the king of Babylon- Gedaliah was advocating the earlier appeal of Jeremiah; if the people accepted they had sinned and willingly accepted the judgment for it, servitude of their enemies, then all would be well for them. They were not to fear the Babylonians; the LXX and <a href='B:120 25:24'>2Ki 25:24</a> say that they were not to fear “because of the servants of the Chaldeans”, referring to the various Babylonian garrisons now stationed throughout the land.</p><p>And it shall be well with you- "Amend" in the earlier appeals for repentance (e.g. <a href='B:300 7:5'>Jer 7:5</a>) is the word here translated ’to do well to’. If they amended their ways, God would amend or change His plans of judgment. Here we behold the openness of God, His deep sensitivity to human repentance and change.</p>


text:
<p>As for me, behold, I will dwell at Mizpah, to stand before the Chaldeans who shall come to us- Gedaliah like any true leader was leading the way by example; living in the land and serving the Chaldeans, as he had advised others to do.</p><p>But you, gather grapes and summer fruits and oil, and put them in your vessels, and dwell in your cities that you have taken- There had been a sudden reversal of everything. The abused majority had now been given the wealth and cities of the wealthy minority who had abused them. Dwelling in the cities taken suggests again the inheritance of the land after the exodus. There was really the possibility of a new start. The harvest had not been harvested by the wealthy, and so the poor took it for themselves:&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>


text:
<p>Likewise when all the Jews who were in Moab, and among the children of Ammon, and in Edom, and who were in all the countries, heard that the king of Babylon had left a remnant of Judah, and that he had set over them Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan- This dwelling of Israel’s outcasts with Moab, Edom and Ammon was a repeat of what had happened during the previous Assyrian invasion (<a href='B:290 16:4'>Isa 16:4</a>). There were the same possibilities- of a miraculous Divine intervention and salvation.</p>


text:
<p>then all the Jews returned out of all places where they were driven, and came to the land of Judah to Gedaliah, to Mizpah, and gathered grapes and summer fruits very much- As explained on :10, this was the harvest not gathered by the wealthy minority, due to the war. Again we see similarities with the entrance of Israel into the land, where they possessed cities and ate harvest which they had not planted. It seems there was the possibility of some restoration of the Kingdom of God in Israel through these who returned from where they had fled. <a href='B:300 8:20'>Jer 8:20</a> uses the same term to describe how the summer fruits had ended as a result of Divine judgment; but apparently the summer fruits had returned.</p>


text:
<p>Moreover Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces who were in the fields, came to Gedaliah to Mizpah- Ishmael had presumably tried to get them to join in his plan of killing Gedaliah (:14); but Johanan and the other army commanders had refused to participate in the plot. Presumably they were of a mind to be obedient to Gedaliah’s example of submitting to&nbsp; Nebuchadnezzar as Yahweh’s servant, as a form of submission to Yahweh. This would have been especially difficult for military men who had been resisting the Babylonians. And yet it seems that they were willing to do this; otherwise they would have sided with Ishmael’s desperate bid for independence from Babylon.</p>


text:
<p>and said to him, Do you know that Baalis the king of the children of Ammon has sent Ishmael the son of Nethaniah to take your life? But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam didn’t believe them- The king of Ammon may have been personally against Jeremiah after hearing his prophecies about Ammon of <a href='B:300 27:3'>Jer 27:3</a>, and the demand that Ammon submit to Babylon and thence to Yahweh God of Israel. He therefore was against Gedaliah, who clearly was acting in obedience to Jeremiah’s prophecies by submitting to Babylon (understanding Nebuchadnezzar as Yahweh’s servant) as a form of submission to Yahweh.</p>


text:
<p>Then Johanan the son of Kareah spoke to Gedaliah in Mizpah secretly saying, Please let me go, and I will kill Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and no man shall know it: why should he take your life, that all the Jews who are gathered to you should be scattered, and the remnant of Judah perish?- Johanan thought that Ishmael’s plan would lead to Babylonian vengeance to the point of them slaying all who remained in Judah. This is indeed the language of some of Jeremiah’s prophecies; and yet this never happened, because in wrath God remembered mercy; or perhaps the mediation and repentance of a minority led to Him ameliorating His judgments. Ishmael did kill Gedaliah, and some of the Babylonians with him. And yet this total destruction of all Judah never happened; another testament to God’s desperate grace and saving love toward His people.</p>


text:
<p>But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam said to Johanan the son of Kareah, You shall not do this thing; for you speak falsely of Ishmael- Ishmael was from the royal family (<a href='B:300 41:1'>Jer 41:1</a>), and therefore assumed that he ought to be the rightful ruler of Judah rather than Gedaliah, who was but a willing puppet of Babylon. But it was not then the time to restore the Kingdom and throne of David, and certainly not in the form of someone as deceitful as Ishmael. Ishmael clearly disbelieved the prophecies concerning the ending of the royal family. Perhaps Gedaliah’s willing naivety about Ishmael was because he could not entertain any plan to slay a member of the royal family, remembering David’s attitude to Saul.</p>


text:
<p>Now it happened in the seventh month- Three months after the capture and two after the burning of the city.</p><p>That Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the seed royal and one of the chief officers of the king, and ten men with him, came to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah; and there they ate bread together in Mizpah- Ishmael was from the royal family, and therefore assumed that he ought to be the rightful ruler of Judah rather than Gedaliah, who was but a willing puppet of Babylon. But it was not then the time to restore the Kingdom and throne of David, and certainly not in the form of someone as deceitful as Ishmael. Ishmael clearly disbelieved the prophecies concerning the ending of the royal family. Perhaps Gedaliah’s willing naivety about Ishmael in <a href='B:300 40:16'>Jer 40:16</a> was because he could not entertain any plan to slay a member of the royal family, rememberingDavid’s attitude to Saul.</p>


text:
<p>Then arose Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and the ten men who were with him, and struck Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan with the sword, and killed him whom the king of Babylon had made governor over the land- They failed to accept that Nebuchadnezzar was Yahweh’s servant, doing His will, and therefore the appointment of Gedaliah was also sanctioned by God. Perhaps their game plan was that Baalis of Ammon would take over Judah, and Ishmael would be made the ruler (<a href='B:300 40:14'>Jer 40:14</a>). People will commit murder and any manner of sin for the sake of dreams of power.</p>


text:
<p>Ishmael also killed all the Jews who were with him, with Gedaliah, at Mizpah, and the Chaldeans who were found there, the men of war- If Ishmael truly wished to do the best for Judah by becoming their ruler, he surely would not have killed his fellow Jews. But he did so because he was working for the king of Ammon and was following his agenda, in hope of personal benefit and power thereby; see on :2.</p>


text:
<p>It happened the second day after he had killed Gedaliah, and no man knew it- This perhaps was why he killed all the Jews and Babylonians present (:3); to delay the spreading of the news, and to enable himself to carry out the plans of the king of Ammon and establish his own power.</p>


text:
<p>That there came men from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria, even eighty men, having their beards shaved and their clothes torn, and having cut themselves, with meal offerings and frankincense in their hand, to bring them to the house of Yahweh- This could mean that a shrine had been erected in Mizpeh. Or it could refer to 80 people coming to offer offerings and perform some kind of worship at the site of the Jerusalem temple even after the Babylonian destruction. Significantly, they were from the decimated ten tribe kingdom of Israel. Clearly even amongst them, a minority were still relatively faithful; contrasting with Judah’s boast that they alone were faithful and God had rejected Israel. There’s ample historical reference to the essential ground plan and some structure still standing even after the Babylonians had effectively destroyed it and rendered it useless (See R:S. Foster, The Restoration Of Israel (London: Darton, Longman & Todd, 1970) p. 28; John Bright, A History of Israel (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1981) p. 325; Martin Noth, The History of Israel (London: SCM, 1983) p. 291). This makes it more appealing to consider Ezekiel’s vision as a blueprint for the exiles’ reconstructing the existing temple, rather than a totally new structure. We also must compare this fact against the prophecies in Jeremiah and Ezekiel which speak of total destruction of man, beast and everything in the land. That didn’t happen to the extent envisaged. Perhaps God in pity simply didn’t carry out all His intended wrath. Or maybe there was a modicum of repentance or intercession which ameliorated His plans. Or perhaps He realized that the intended judgments would not in fact bring about the repentance envisaged at the time, and therefore the full extent of those judgments has been rescheduled and reapplied to the last days.</p>


text:
<p>Ishmael the son of Nethaniah went forth from Mizpah to meet them, weeping all along as he went: and it happened, as he met them, he said to them, Come to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam- This weeping was presumably in pretence grief at the loss of the temple, encouraging them to think that he like they (see on :5) were loyal to Yahweh worship. Perhaps it was their loyalty to Yahweh worship which was his motive for enticing them to come to Mizpah and murdering them; see on :5. We wonder what other motive he may have had.</p>


text:
<p>It was so that when they came into the midst of the city, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah killed them, and cast them into the midst of the pit, he, and the men who were with him- There is an ongoing theme of pits. Jeremiah was cast into the pit; and yet was miraculously saved. It’s as if that experience was to connect him with the experiences of the suffering faithful, making him look forward the more to the Lord Jesus as the representative Saviour.</p>


text:
<p>But ten men were found among those who said to Ishmael, Don’t kill us; for we have stores hidden in the field, of wheat, barley, oil and honey. So he stopped, and didn’t kill them among their brothers- These signs of material wealth would have been as the treasure hid in a field. They would have given Ishmael the details of how to find them, or perhaps the keys to the pits. We see here his materialism, crude and plain. There is a strange theme of pits- faithful men were cast into them (see on :7), whilst the unfaithful filled them with their own wealth.</p>


text:
<p>Now the cistern in which Ishmael cast all the dead bodies of the men whom he had killed along with Gedaliah was the same which Asa the king had made for fear of Baasha king of Israel. Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled it with those who were killed- This connection is perhaps because of the continued theme of civil war between God’s people. The men killed by the would be leader of Judah were from the ten tribe kingdom (see on :5). Asa king of Judah had made this pit at the time of his war with Baasha king of the ten tribes.</p>


text:
<p>Then Ishmael carried away captive all the remainder of the people who were in Mizpah, even the king’s daughters, and all the people who remained in Mizpah, whom Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had committed to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam; Ishmael the son of Nethaniah carried them away captive, and departed to go over to the children of Ammon- The daughters of Zedekiah were high value captives and would have been high on the list for deportation. The fact they were allowed to remain in the land was another sign of Yahweh’s grace; but that grace was spurned and abused by Ishmael in that he tried to take them out of the land, to Ammon.</p>


text:
<p>But when Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces who were with him, heard of all the evil that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done- These militarycommanders were committed to taking Jeremiah’s advice and surrendering to Babylon, in recognition of their personal sins against Yahweh and the rightness of the Babylonian domination. What Ishmael had done appeared to totally destroy the potential to do that, as they would have assumed the Babylonians would now kill them and the possibility of such surrender and repentance was now impossible. Hence their great anger with Ishmael.</p>


text:
<p>Then they took all the men and went to fight with Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and found him by the great waters that are in Gibeon- This was only a mile north of Mizpah. the "pool of Gibeon" of <a href='B:100 2:13'>2Sa 2:13</a>.</p>


text:
<p>Now it happened that when all the people who were with Ishmael saw Johanan the son of Kareah and all the captains of the forces who were with him, then they were glad- Again we see the power of influence of just one man. Those with him realized the folly of his actions and were glad to see the opposition to them.</p>


text:
<p>So all the people whom Ishmael had carried away captive from Mizpah turned about and returned and went to Johanan the son of Kareah- Again a play is made upon the words for repentance, turning around and turning back to God.</p>


text:
<p>But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah escaped from Johanan with eight men, and went to the children of Ammon- We wonder if those eight men were in fact Ammonites, as Ishmael appears to have been an agent of the king of Ammon, hoping to use him in order to establish himself as some kind of ruler of Judah.</p>


text:
<p>Then took Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces who were with him, all the remnant of the people whom he had recovered from Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, from Mizpah, after that he had killed Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the men of war, and the women, and the children, and the eunuchs, whom he had brought back from Gibeon- These women were the daughters of the king; they were high value captives, along with the military leaders and eunuchs, the former leadership. They had been preserved in the land by grace, rather than being taken captive to Babylon. To leave the land was therefore a denial of that grace.</p>


text:
<p>And they departed, and lived in Geruth Chimham, which is by Bethlehem, to go to enter into Egypt- Or, the sheepfolds of Chimham. They ought not to have even though of going into Egypt, but should have trusted Yahweh’s further grace to be shown to them, despite the foolish provocation of the Babylonians by Ishmael; see on :16; <a href='B:300 42:2'>Jer 42:2</a>.</p>


text:
<p>Because of the Chaldeans; for they were afraid of them, because Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had killed Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon made governor over the land- Jeremiah was to assure them that in fact God’s grace would continue to them through the grace of Nebuchadnezzar; he would not take revenge by slaying all Judah as they feared (<a href='B:300 42:12'>Jer 42:12</a>). Fear is so often based upon lack of faith; and such fear can become gripping and all consuming. This fear of certain revenge proving unfounded, by God’s grace, is what Jacob learnt after his sons pillaged Shechem. The surrounding tribes did not attack and destroy him, as he had thought would inevitably follow.</p>


text:
<p>Then all the captains of the forces, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Jezaniah the son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least even unto the greatest, came near- These people appeared to have had faith and spirituality, enough to intend surrendering to the Babylonians in recognition of their sins; see on <a href='B:300 41:11'>Jer 41:11</a>. And yet now they lost their faith in saving grace; they thought grace surely couldn’t extend this far, in preserving them from the Babylonians whom Ishmael had so provoked by killing some of their soldiers along with Gedaliah, their appointed ruler of the land. This ability to believe in Divine grace only so far... is typical of our struggles too.</p>


text:
<p>And said to Jeremiah the prophet, Please let our supplication be presented before you, and pray for us to Yahweh your God, even for all this remnant; for we are left but a few of many, as your eyes do see us- They asked for prayers and direction, but they were already assembled and prepared to go to Egypt for fear of the Babylonians whom Ishmael had so foolishly offended (<a href='B:300 41:17'>Jer 41:17</a>). We too can pray and yet already have our mind made up as to what we shall do. We likewise note the human desire to ask someone else to pray for us. There is something within us which makes us shy away from the possibility of real personal engagement with God Almighty; we would prefer some system of religion, someone else to pray for me... rather than engage directly with Him.</p>


text:
<p>That Yahweh your God may show us the way in which we should walk, and the thing that we should do- As noted on :2, they had already decided that the way they should walk was to Egypt. Any other possibility seemed to them to risk certain death or captivity. We too can rule out any options apart from those we see immediately before us, and faith is about accepting those other options when they are presented by the Father. "The way in which we should walk" is the repeated phrase used of Israel’s exodus from Egypt (<a href='B:50 1:31'>Deu 1:31</a>; <a href='B:50 1:33'>Deu 1:33</a>; <a href='B:50 8:2'>Deu 8:2</a> etc:). Likewise the request to be shown what they should do or "make" is framed in terms of the instructions given Israel in the desert (<a href='B:20 18:20'>Exo 18:20</a>). But the crucial difference in their case was that they were seeking to return to Egypt; whereas the way Israel had been shown had been out of Egypt. We too can quote Biblical precedent but get it all so wrong, as we are simply using those ideas to justify our own path.</p>


text:
<p>Then Jeremiah the prophet said to them, I have heard you; behold, I will pray to Yahweh your God according to your words; and it shall happen that whatever thing Yahweh shall answer you, I will declare it to you; I will keep nothing back from you- We pass through one experience to prepare us for another. He had tempted not to reveal everything to Zedekiah; but here he likewise must hide or "keepback" nothing. The message he had for them was to be directly opposed to what they were expecting and wanting to hear. Earlier he had been forbidden to pray for the people; and yet now he is confident that his prayer will be answered. But the idea may have been not to pray in an intercessory sense.</p>


text:
<p>Then they said to Jeremiah, Yahweh be a true and faithful witness among us, if we don’t do according to all the word with which Yahweh your God shall send you to us- The implication was that if God was to reveal something to them through His word, then it was axiomatic that they must do accordingly. God i a witness over His word, as Jeremiah’s prophecy began by pointing out. Our interaction with His word is likewise monitored; it can be no academic study or amassing of information. We are to live accordingly.</p>


text:
<p>Whether it be good, or whether it be evil, we will obey the voice of Yahweh our God to whom we send you; that it may be well with us, when we obey the voice of Yahweh our God- The Jews left in the land after the Babylonian invasion begged Jeremiah to tell them God’s word: "Whether it be good, or whether it be evil, we will obey the voice of the Lord" (<a href='B:300 42:5-6'>Jer 42:5-6</a>). But when they heard His words, their response was: "As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the Lord, we will not hearken unto thee. But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouth" (<a href='B:300 44:16-17'>Jer 44:16-17</a>). Their apparent zeal for Bible study came to nothing when the results were inconvenient to them (and we can take a lesson from this). But I wonder whether they actually said "We will certainly do whatsoever goeth forth out of our mouth"? Maybe they did; but perhaps this is what their rejection of God’s word was tantamount to, and therefore this is the way their words are recorded.</p>


text:
<p>It happened that after ten days the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah- God tells Jeremiah not to pray for them as He won’t hear him; but then Jeremiah does pray and God hears and changes His mind as a result of this (<a href='B:300 42:7'>Jer 42:7</a>; <a href='B:300 42:10'>Jer 42:10</a>). The ten day period was perhaps to help them prepare themselves for the unpopular message. As the days went by, their natural reaction would have been to get going for Egypt as soon as possible, given their fear of Babylonian revenge for the murders committed by Ishmael. The delayed response was therefore to get them used to the idea of remaining in the land.</p>


text:
<p>Then called he Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces who were with him, and all the people from the least even to the greatest- "Johanan" means ’God’s grace’, but he seems not to have believed that grace could extend so far as saving him from the offended Babylonians. Jeremiah called all the people, because he felt that remaining in the land was connected with their salvation; he didn’t want any decisions made merely by the leadership, but for all individually to make their choices.</p>


text:
<p>And said to them, Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel to whom you sent me to present your supplication before Him- The people had presented a supplication to Jeremiah (the same words are used in :2), but Jeremiah stresses that the supplication has been presented before God. They perhaps really wanted Jeremiah’s blessing on their proposed migration to Egypt; whereas Jeremiah was reminding them that their requests had really been taken by him before the presence of Almighty God. The wonder of prayer can easily be lost upon us. The same term is also found in <a href='B:300 36:7'>Jer 36:7</a>, where the hope was that the people would "present their supplication before Yahweh and repent". But they were instead asking Him if they could run away to Egypt. The personal sense of repentance and confession just wasn’t there.</p>


text:
<p>If you will still live in this land, then will I build you, and not pull you down, and I will plant you, and not pluck you up; for I grieve over the distress that I have brought on you- God had promised to build and plant them in a restored, Messianic kingdom in Israel (<a href='B:300 31:28'>Jer 31:28</a>; <a href='B:300 42:10'>Jer 42:10</a>; <a href='B:330 36:36'>Eze 36:36</a>). But this was all conditional upon them continuing to obey His voice, otherwise He would change His plans (<a href='B:300 18:9-10'>Jer 18:9-10</a>). Jeremiah had been given the power to speak the words of both destruction and building and planting (<a href='B:300 1:10'>Jer 1:10</a>). They who remained in the land were the "evil figs" of Jeremiah 24; but God was prepared to act differently, so eager was He to reestablish the Kingdom.</p><p>If Judah had remained in the land and not fled to Egypt, God would have repented of the evil He had promised, and would there and then have restored the land and rebuilt Jerusalem (<a href='B:300 42:10'>Jer 42:10</a> cp. <a href='B:450 6:15'>Zec 6:15</a>); the whole restoration from Babylon would never have happened. But Israel would not. And yet the whole restoration exercise, as it happened, brought glory to God through the faith and spirituality of men like Ezra and Nehemiah. Behold once again ‘Divine ecology’. God was prepared to relent (<a href='B:300 8:8'>Jer 8:8</a>; <a href='B:300 26:3'>Jer 26:3</a>; <a href='B:300 26:13'>Jer 26:13</a>; <a href='B:300 26:19'>Jer 26:19</a>; <a href='B:300 42:10'>Jer 42:10</a>), and yet He says in <a href='B:300 4:28'>Jer 4:28</a> that He will not. This is not self-contradiction, but rather a reflection of the depth of how God’s compassion is finally greater than His judgment of sin. The whole mental and emotional trauma made God weary of all the relenting, so deeply did He feel it (<a href='B:300 15:6'>Jer 15:6</a>).</p>


text:
<p>Don’t be afraid of the king of Babylon, of whom you are afraid; don’t be afraid of him, says Yahweh: for I am with you to save you, and to deliver you from his hand- "Don’t be afraid of the face of..." (Heb:) uses the very same words that were used to encourage Jeremiah to resist and not fear his opponents. As he had overcome all the faces of his opponents through obedience to God’s word, so all Judah could have followed Jeremiah’s personal example. This is indeed how the preacher must be; the word is to become flesh in us. As Jeremiah was not afraid before the faces of opponents, so Judah were to be like him before the Babylonians. See on <a href='B:300 41:17-18'>Jer 41:17-18</a>. Although they were the "evil figs" of Jeremiah 24, God sought to assure them of His change of plan concerning them; "I [Yahweh] am with you to save you" is very much the idea of Yehoshua, Jesus, Yahweh is our Saviour. Just as He had caused the surrounding tribes not to destroy Jacob after the pillaging of Shechem, so He would preserve Judah from the revenge of the Babylonians for the foolishness of Ishmael.</p>


text:
<p>I will grant you mercy, that he may have mercy on you, and cause you to return to your own land- The experience of God’s grace, mercy and acceptance was to be reflected through the king of Babylon choosing likewise not to take vengeance upon them, when he legitimately could have done so, after what Ishmael had done. We see here the struggle to believe in grace and mercy which is the root reason for the Gospel’s rejection by men. The king would have caused them to return from where they were then located, perhaps already well on the way to Egypt, back to their own land.</p>


text:
<p>But if you say, We will not dwell in this land; so that you don’t obey the voice of Yahweh your God- Those who don’t want to be in God’s Kingdom won’t be; and all those who love the Lord’s appearing will be accepted by Him. By refusing to dwell in the land, they were disobeying God’ saving purpose; and so they would not be in God’s Kingdom and would be condemned (:16).</p>


text:
<p>Saying, No; but we will go into the land of Egypt, where we shall see no war, nor hear the sound of the trumpet, nor have hunger of bread; and there will we dwell- Jeremiah knew this was what they were thinking, and so did God. The choice of Egypt / the world is often made on the basis of unproven assumptions and images in the mind- e.g. that there, they would not lack bread and would not be at risk of war. These assumptions were and are so often false.</p>


text:
<p>Now therefore hear the word of Yahweh, O remnant of Judah: Thus says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel, If you indeed set your faces to enter into Egypt, and go to live there- They had set their faces, hardened themselves psychologically, and therefore their request for God’s word of guidance about their migration was inappropriate. And worse, they had set their faces against the will and intention of God for them. This is the difficulty of being truly humble before God’s word; resigning all we once had hoped or assumed to be true, all our natural value systems and assumptions... before His, as they are expressed in His word.</p>


text:
<p>Then it shall happen, that the sword which you fear shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt; and the famine, about which you are afraid, shall follow close behind you there in Egypt; and there you shall die- As noted on :14, they were assuming that they would be free from famine and fear of war in Egypt. But this was not at all to be the case. The sword and famine destroying them in the land of Judah had been threatened them for their sins; they were only alive by grace. And yet they thought that by fleeing to Egypt they could escape their first condemnation, and not be judged by sword or famine. The grace available to them was that they could stay in the land of Judah and not experience the promised judgments. By fleeing to another land, there was no such guarantee. The truth was that they were not truly repentant, not really awed by God’s grace, and loved Egypt / the world far more than the things of God’s Kingdom.</p>


text:
<p>So shall it be with all the men who set their faces to go into Egypt to live there: they shall die by the sword, by the famine and by the plague; and none of them shall remain or escape from the evil that I will bring n them- As explained on :16, sword, famine and plague were the judgments upon Judah for their sin. Those judgments would be lifted if they remained in the land to allow God’s grace to work further and prepare them to be part of His restored Kingdom. But running off to Egypt was simply opting out of&nbsp; God’s program, thinking that the world / Egypt could save them from the judgments which they deserved. Egypt had been demonstrated as unable to help them during the time of the Babylonian siege; but such mental habits and tendencies to always trust in Egypt were hard to break.</p>


text:
<p>For thus says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel: As My anger and My wrath has been poured forth on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so shall My wrath be poured forth on you, when you shall enter into Egypt; and you shall be an object of horror and an astonishment, a curse and a reproach; and you shall see this place no more- They themselves had been inhabitants of Jerusalem; for the group included the eunuchs and the king’s daughters. They ought to have partaken in the pouring out of wrath upon Jerusalem; they had only not experienced it by God’s grace. They therefore ought to obey Him now that He tells them where to be and where to remain in order to further avoid judgment. But the grace in saving them was apparently in vain, because they still sought salvation in Egypt and not Yahweh. God’s wrath was only not poured upon Jerusalem because they had shown some humility (cp. <a href='B:140 12:7'>2Ch 12:7</a>); but now they were hardening themselves in their assumptions about salvation in Egypt just had to be right.</p>


text:
<p>Yahweh has spoken concerning you, remnant of Judah, Don’t you go into Egypt: know certainly that I have testified to you this day- Going into Egypt has nearly always been a bad move by God’s children; they were expected to perceive those precedents from history. God’s plan with them was clear and not open to interpretation- they were not to go into Egypt, not to do that which was the natural reaction and which seemed the logical path.</p>


text:
<p>For you have dealt deceitfully against your own souls; for you sent me to Yahweh your God saying, Pray for us to Yahweh our God; and according to all that Yahweh our God shall say, so declare to us, and we will do it- "Dealt deceitfully" is a phrase nearly always used in the prophets about the effect of false teachers and idols deceiving the people (<a href='B:300 23:13'>Jer 23:13</a>; <a href='B:300 23:32'>Jer 23:32</a>; <a href='B:300 50:6'>Jer 50:6</a>; <a href='B:330 14:11'>Eze 14:11</a> etc:). It could be that they had other prophets, false ones, telling them to go to Egypt; and they wished for the "OK" from Yahweh as well. Perhaps that was all their approach to Jeremiah amounted to.</p>


text:
<p>and I have this day declared it to you; but you have not obeyed the voice of Yahweh your God in anything for which He has sent me to you- Their disobedience is not recorded here, but is found in Jeremiah 44.</p>


text:
<p>Now therefore know certainly that you shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, in the place where you desire to go to live there- The judgment of Jerusalem by sword, famine and plague had been ameliorated, by grace; these people had avoided it. But their refusal of grace and the Divine plan of salvation meant that they would have to experience it, and this therefore was to happen to them in Egypt. The Babylonian invasion of Egypt brought it about. The simple lesson is that no attempt to avoid God’s judgments can ever work out. It is for us to repent and accept our worthiness of them, rather than cleverly seek to avoid them.</p>


text:
<p>It happened that when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking to all the people all the words of Yahweh their God, with which Yahweh their God had sent him to them, even all these words- The response of the people was immediate; they allowed themselves no time to meditate, but just followed their gut reaction of not accepting God’s message because it was not what they wanted to hear.</p>


text:
<p>then spoke Azariah the son of Hoshaiah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the proud men, saying to Jeremiah, You speak falsely: Yahweh our God has not sent you to say, You shall not go into Egypt to live there- As explained through Jeremiah 42. these people had set their hearts and faces on going to Egypt, and their enquiry of Yahweh was simply seeking His confirmation of their own hunches and desires. When they didn’t receive this, they sought to get out of things by simply denying Jeremiah’s Divine inspiration. Naturally this begs the question as to why they had asked for Yahweh’s word through him, if they considered him uninspired. We see here the root reason why people disbelieve the Bible as Divinely inspired- it interferes too much with their own preferred way of life and thought.</p>


text:
<p>but Baruch the son of Neriah sets you on against us, to deliver us into the hand of the Chaldeans, that they may put us to death, and carry us away captive to Babylon- Baruch was Jeremiah’s secretary, so maybe they were implying that these words had been written by Baruch but had not actually come from Jeremiah himself. This is typical of how those who don’t want to accept God’s word will try to find all manner of problems with the mechanism of inspiration; when the root issue is their refusal to accept any Divine word which goesagainst their own gut desires.</p>


text:
<p>So Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces, and all the people, didn’t obey the voice of Yahweh, to dwell in the land of Judah- They of course had denied the inspiration of Jeremiah to the point that they considered these words just the uninspired words of Baruch, Jeremiah’s secretary. But the reality was that they were being disobedient to nothing less than the "voice of Yahweh".</p>


text:
<p>But Johanan the son of Kareah and all the captains of the forces took all the remnant of Judah, who were returned from all the nations where they had been driven, to live in the land of Judah- These people had been restored to the land as some kind of incipient fulfillment of the prophecies of restoration. To take them off from the land to Egypt was to disallow that potential restoration of "the remnant of Judah".</p>


text:
<p>the men, and the women, and the children, and the king’s daughters, and every person who Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had left with Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan; and Jeremiah the prophet, and Baruch the son of Neriah- Jeremiah and his secretary Baruch surely could have refused to move to Egypt. Jeremiah had been offered a luxury retirement in Babylon, underwritten by none less than the king of Babylon personally. But he died in poverty and perhaps of famine, without any respect, in Egypt... just because of his huge devotion to God’s apostate people, willing to try to bring restoration even to the condemned... even at the cost of his own life and happiness.</p>


text:
<p>and they came into the land of Egypt; for they didn’t obey the voice of Yahweh: and they came to Tahpanhes-&nbsp;This was a border town, whose inhabitants had not been kind of Judah previously (<a href='B:300 2:16'>Jer 2:16</a>).</p>


text:
<p>Then came the word of Yahweh to Jeremiah in Tahpanhes, saying- This was as it were one last appeal before the people officially entered into Egypt; for Tahpanhes was the border.</p>


text:
<p>Take great stones in your hand, and hide them in mortar in the brick work, which is at the entry of Pharaoh’s house in Tahpanhes, in the sight of the men of Judah- This would only have been possible if the palace was crumbling; which would have served to warn them of the waning power of Pharaoh.</p>


text:
<p>and tell them, Thus says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel: Behold, I will send and take Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon- This would have been by Angelic action. The same phrase is used of God sending forth an Angel to take a wife for Isaac (<a href='B:10 24:7'>Gen 24:7</a>; <a href='B:10 24:40'>Gen 24:40</a>).</p><p>My servant- Judah liked to imagine that they were the "servant of Yahweh" spoken of in Isaiah’s recent prophecies. But this didn’t make them God’s people and therefore inviolate from judgment. Nebuchadnezzar was also Yahweh’s servant but would be judged for his actions.</p><p>And will set his throne on these stones that I have hidden; and he shall spread his royal pavilion over them- They would not escape the King of Babylon; he would spread his pavilion over the stones hidden in the palace of Pharaoh at Tahpanhes.</p>


text:
<p>He shall come, and shall strike the land of Egypt; such as are for death shall be put to death, and such as are for captivity to captivity, and such as are for the sword to the sword- This is a quotation from <a href='B:300 15:2'>Jer 15:2</a>. This is what could have happened had they received their judgment in Jerusalem. By grace they were spared that, and then by grace again, they would have been spared it at the hands of the Babylonians who were tempted to revenge the murders performed by Ishmael. But since they were ungrateful for that great grace shown, then those judgments would catch up with them. Fleeing to Egypt would not save from Divine judgment; only repentantly casting themselves in humility upon His grace would do so.</p>


text:
<p>I will kindle a fire in the houses of the gods of Egypt; and he shall burn them, and carry them away captive: and he shall array himself with the land of Egypt, as a shepherd puts on his garment- When refugees arrive in a host country, totally at the peoples’ mercy, they scarcely start condemning the people. But Jeremiah had to inform Egypt that Nebuchadnezzar would soon "pick clean the land of Egypt like a shepherd picking lice from his clothing and then depart unmolested" (<a href='B:300 43:12'>Jer 43:12</a>). Our position with this world, and our message to it, is no different in essence. See on <a href='B:300 51:59'>Jer 51:59</a>.</p><p>And he shall go forth from there in peace- This can be read as meaning that it was God’s intention that Babylon too should find peace with Him; Babylon’s peace was to be that of Judah (see on Jer 297).</p><p><a href='B:300 43:13'>Jer 43:13</a> He shall also break the pillars of Beth Shemesh that is in the land of Egypt; and the houses of the gods of Egypt shall he burn with fire- Beth Shemesh is ’house of the sun’ and probably refers to Heliopolis, which has the same meaning. "The pillars" refer to an avenue of obelisks in front of the temple erected by Thothmes III (BC 1500), one of which remain, and the other is “Cleopatra’s Needle,” placed on the Thames Embankment in London in 1878.</p>


text:
<p><a href='B:290 43:13'>Jeremiah 43:13</a> He shall also break the pillars of Beth Shemesh that is in the land of Egypt; and the houses of the gods of Egypt shall he burn with fire- Beth Shemesh is 'house of the sun' and probably refers to Heliopolis, which has the same meaning. &quot;The pillars&quot; refer to an avenue of obelisks in front of the temple erected by Thothmes III (BC 1500), one of which remain, and the other is &quot;Cleopatra's Needle,&quot; placed on the Thames Embankment in London in 1878.</p>


text:
<p>The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the Jews who lived in the land of Egypt, who lived at Migdol, Tahpanhes, Memphis and in the country of Pathros, saying- The Jews may well have gone to live with other Jews who had settled there previously. Most of these places [excluding Pathros] were near the border with Judah, as if they were looking to return to Judah once things had stabilized. Woe had already been declared upon these towns where the disobedient Jews went to live after the Babylonian invasion of Judah; from the prophecy of <a href='B:300 46:14'>Jer 46:14</a>, they ought to have already been aware of what Jeremiah declared to them- that even there in Egypt, the Babylonians would come and judge them.</p>


text:
<p>Thus says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel: You have seen all the evil that I have brought on Jerusalem and on all the cities of Judah; and behold, this day they are a desolation, and no man dwells therein- That evil came because of their idolatry; and yet they had fled to Egypt and were continuing in such idolatry (:8). Their attitude was therefore that it was good fortune that they had avoided the judgments for idolatry; and they were eagerly carrying on with it. They refused to see that God’s grace was trying to lead them to repentance; and that judgment for sin will fall, regardless of where on the globe one is situated.</p>


text:
<p>because of their wickedness which they have committed to provoke Me to anger, in that they went to burn incense, to serve other gods that they didn’t know, neither they, nor you, nor your fathers- Not only is the logic of choosing God’s way so powerful, but the way of the flesh is not satisfying. Sin became a weariness to Israel even before they reaped the punishment for it (<a href='B:290 57:10'>Isa 57:10</a>); their mind was alienated from the lovers they chose; they left the one they left the God of Israel for (<a href='B:330 23:17'>Eze 23:17</a>). They always wanted new gods; they were never satisfied with their idols. And it seems that now the same was happening; they were looking to adopt new gods they had found in Egypt.</p>


text:
<p>However I sent to you all My servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them saying, Oh, don’t do this abominable thing that I hate!- A love as strong as God’s is going to also elicit the emotion of hatred and anger when that love is rejected and abused. He "hated" (s:w:) Judah’s insincere worship and relationship with Him (<a href='B:290 1:14'>Isa 1:14</a>; <a href='B:290 61:8'>Isa 61:8</a>; <a href='B:300 44:4'>Jer 44:4</a>). But it is hard to separate the sin from the sinner. That distinction may be helpful for us in order to avoid judging others too personally, but God it seems doesn’t make that decision. He gave Israel into the hands of those who hated her (s:w. <a href='B:330 16:27'>Eze 16:27</a>; <a href='B:330 16:37'>Eze 16:37</a>) and in that sense He hated her. The feelings of hatred which Hosea had for Gomer due to her abuse of His love were those of God for Israel: "There I hated them" (<a href='B:350 9:15'>Hos 9:15</a>). God is not simply "love" in the abstract. He is love for real, with all the emotion and psychological complex which goes along with love; and this will include hatred if that love is abused.</p>


text:
<p>But they didn’t listen nor inclined their ear to turn from their wickedness, to burn no incense to other gods- Inclining or humbling / bowing down the ear means that true response to God’s word ought to be a humbling experience. We cannot come away from engagement with God’s word without being humbled. And this very phrase is used of how God bows down / inclines His ear to human prayer (<a href='B:120 19:16'>2Ki 19:16</a>; <a href='B:230 17:6'>Psa 17:6</a>; <a href='B:230 31:2'>Psa 31:2</a>; <a href='B:230 71:2'>Psa 71:2</a> and often). We see here the mutuality possible between God and man, and the interplay between Bible reading and God’s response to our prayers. We speak to God in line with our understanding of His word, and He responds to our prayers. Bible reading and prayer therefore mesh together in the Christian life, as part of the upward spiral of spirituality. God is not silent to our prayers- He reveals Himself in response through His word.</p>


text:
<p>Therefore My wrath and My anger was poured forth, and was kindled in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; andthey are wasted and desolate, as it is this day-&nbsp; They had failed to recognize that God is serious about judging sin; they thought that because they had so far escaped that judgment therefore it would not come. Distance was no object to God; the fact they were in Egypt didn’t mean they were hidden from Him or that judgment could only come or happen whilst they were communicant members of the temple cult in Jerusalem. Judgment will come- and resignation from a church or from God in toto , moving out of the area... will not stop judgment coming.</p>


text:
<p>Therefore now thus says Yahweh, the God of Armies, the God of Israel: Why do you commit great evil against your own souls, to cut off from yourselves man and woman, infant and nursing child out of the midst of Judah, to leave yourselves none remaining- Their sin was against their own souls. Likewise the rejected are witnesses against themselves (<a href='B:290 44:9'>Isa 44:9</a>; <a href='B:470 23:31'>Mat 23:31</a>). Herein lies the crass folly and illogicality of sin. Jeremiah pleaded with Israel: "Wherefore commit ye this great evil against your souls [i:e. yourselves], to cut off from you man and woman…that ye might cut yourselves off" (<a href='B:300 44:7-8'>Jer 44:7-8</a>, cp. how Jerusalem cut her own hair off in <a href='B:300 7:29'>Jer 7:29</a>). In the same passage, Yahweh is the one who does the cutting off (<a href='B:300 44:11'>Jer 44:11</a>); but they had cut themselves off. Likewise as they had kindled fire on their roofs in offering sacrifices to Baal, so Yahweh through the Babylonians would set fire to those same houses (<a href='B:300 32:29'>Jer 32:29</a>). Thus Israel were the ones who had kindled the fire of Yahweh’s condemnation (<a href='B:300 17:4'>Jer 17:4</a>). Both Yahweh and Israel are described as kindling the fire of judgment; He responded to what they had done (<a href='B:300 11:16'>Jer 11:16</a>; <a href='B:300 15:14'>Jer 15:14</a>; <a href='B:310 4:11'>Lam 4:11</a> cp. <a href='B:300 17:4'>Jer 17:4</a>).</p>


text:
<p>in that you provoke Me to anger with the works of your hands, burning incense to other gods in the land of Egypt where you have gone to live; that you may be cut off, and that you may be a curse and a reproach among all the nations of the earth?- The Jews considered that they had as it were resigned from Yahweh, so they were free to worship as they wished. But this wasn’t the case. We cannot resign from Him. They would become a reproach and curse for this, and thus dishonour Yahweh. We note again that the essence of idolatry is a trust in the work of our own hands. This is what makes idolatry an abiding issue in the lives of God’s people.</p>


text:
<p>Have you forgotten the wickedness of your fathers, the wickedness of the kings of Judah, the wickedness of their wives, and your own wickedness, and the wickedness of your wives which they committed in the land of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?- We note the emphasis upon the sins of the women (:17,21). In those days, religion was largely a hobby for men, and the women followed their husbands’ religion where and when required. But we see here that the women are held personally accountable; for God values men and women equally, desiring that each person exercise a personal conscience toward Him.</p>


text:
<p>They are not humbled even to this day, neither have they feared, nor walked in My law, nor in My statutes, that I set before you and before your fathers- To walk in God’s laws was to be the result of their humbled repentance. This is one reason why we have Divine laws- to provide a channel through which we can express that intangible and non-specific love of God which we feel upon repentance.</p>


text:
<p>Therefore thus says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel: Behold, I will set My face against you for evil, even to cut off all Judah- See on :7. All would be destroyed; but the same chapter speaks of a remnant that would not be (:14,28). This is the Bible paradox of God’s love of Israel and desire for their redemption.</p>


text:
<p>I will take the remnant of Judah, that have set their faces to go into the land of Egypt to live there, and they shall all be consumed; in the land of Egypt shall they fall; they shall be consumed by the sword and by the famine; they shall die, from the least even to the greatest, by the sword and by the famine; and they shall be an object of horror, an astonishment, a curse and a reproach- This is an allusion to <a href='B:300 15:2'>Jer 15:2</a>. This is what could have happened had they received their judgment in Jerusalem. By grace they were spared that, and then by grace again, they would have been spared it at the hands of the Babylonians who were tempted to revenge the murders performed by Ishmael. But since they were ungrateful for that great grace shown, then those judgments would catch up with them. Fleeing to Egypt would not save from Divine judgment; only repentantly casting themselves in humility upon His grace would do so.</p>


text:
<p>For I will punish those who dwell in the land of Egypt as I have punished Jerusalem, by the sword, by the famine, and by the plague- As noted on :12, their attempt to avoid Divine judgment by living in Egypt was not going to work. There can be a sense that we can resign from everything to do with God’s truth; and live with no sense of judgment to come. These Jews who fled to Egypt are proof that this is not the case. God’s grip is strong upon us and He wishes us for His Kingdom till the day we die.</p>


text:
<p>so that none of the remnant of Judah, who have gone into the land of Egypt to live there, shall escape or be left to return into the land of Judah, to which they will have a desire to return to dwell there: for none shall return save such as shallescape- They thought they could forget about the things of Yahweh once they were in Egypt. But they were to face condemnation there, and in their time of condemnation, they desperately wanted to return to their land [cp. the Kingdom]- but it was all too late. Cain is another type of the rejected- instead of going as far away from Divine things as possible after his condemnation, he went to live on the east of Eden- where the cherubim were, guarding the barred entry to God’s paradise (<a href='B:10 4:16'>Gen 4:16</a>). This desire to be in the Kingdom but it being too late is the ’weeping and gnashing of teeth’ the Lord speaks about; a mental torment absolutely self inflicted.</p>


text:
<p>Then all the men who knew that their wives burned incense to other gods, and all the women who stood by, a great assembly, even all the people who lived in the land of Egypt, in Pathros, answered Jeremiah saying- Pathros was in the far south of Egypt, and may have included Jews who had been resident in Egypt for some time. Being so far south, they were confident that Jeremiah’s prophecies that the Babylonians would find them even there would for sure be proved untrue.</p>


text:
<p>As for the word that you have spoken to us in the name of Yahweh, we will not listen to you- This is rank disobedience. But they phrase it in terms of there perhaps being a difference between the words of Yahweh and those of Jeremiah. These are the words Jeremiah "(you") had spoken, not from Yahweh but only "in the name of Yahweh". This kind of petty doubting of the process of Divine inspiration is often deployed by those who simply don’t want to accept the demands of His word upon them personally.</p>


text:
<p>But we will certainly perform every word that is gone forth out of our mouth, to burn incense to the queen of the sky, and to pour out drink offerings to her, as we have done, we and our fathers, our kings and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem; for then had we plenty of food, and were well, and saw no evil- See on :19; <a href='B:300 7:18'>Jer 7:18</a>. The Jews left in the land after the Babylonian invasion begged Jeremiah to tell them God’s word: "Whether it be good, or whether it be evil, we will obey the voice of the Lord" (<a href='B:300 42:5-6'>Jer 42:5-6</a>). But when they heard His words, their response was: "As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the Lord, we will not hearken unto thee. But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouth" (<a href='B:300 44:16-17'>Jer 44:16-17</a>). Their apparent zeal for Bible study came to nothing when the results were inconvenient to them (and we can take a lesson from this). But I wonder whether they actually said "We will certainly do whatsoever goeth forth out of our mouth"? Maybe they did; but perhaps this is what their rejection of God’s word was tantamount to, and therefore this is the way their words are recorded.</p>


text:
<p>But since we left off burning incense to the queen of the sky, and pouring out drink offerings to her, we have wanted all things, and have been consumed by the sword and by the famine- As noted on <a href='B:300 43:11'>Jer 43:11</a>, the consumption by sword and famine was because they were in Egypt. They had been spared this whilst in the land of Israel. By grace they had been spared death by sword and famine in Jerusalem, and then by grace again, they would have been spared it at the hands of the Babylonians who were tempted to revenge the murders performed by Ishmael. But since they were ungrateful for that great grace shown, then those judgments would catch up with them. Fleeing to Egypt would not save from Divine judgment; only repentantly casting themselves in humility upon His grace would do so. Their complaint that they had received those judgments, finally, in Egypt... was inappropriate in the extreme.</p>


text:
<p>When we burned incense to the queen of the sky, and poured out drink offerings to her, did we make her cakes to worship her, and pour out drink offerings to her, without our husbands?- It was this very behaviour which had brought the Babylonians upon Jerusalem (<a href='B:300 7:18'>Jer 7:18</a>). "The queen of heaven" was a Babylonian fertility god, otherwise called Ishtar, shaped like the moon or the planet Venus. It was the god of female fertility, hence the note that the women and children were a large part of its worship. Each female devotee was expected to sleep with the male cult prostitutes of this cult. And then sacrifice one of their children to it. No wonder this so upset God, seeing that He was the source of Israel’s fertility, and their children were born to Him and not to the supposed queen of heaven. The women later protested that they were impenitent of this worship of the queen of heaven, and they did so with the full blessing of their husbands; this was significant, seeing that the cult involved sleeping with other men and offering their children to Ishtar.</p>


text:
<p>Then Jeremiah said to all the people, to the men, and to the women, even to all the people who had given him an answer, saying- It is twice emphasized that Jeremiah replied "to all the people". None could claim they had not heard God’s response.</p>


text:
<p>The incense that you burned in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, you and your fathers, your kings and your princes, and the people of the land, didn’t Yahweh remember it, and didn’t it come into His mind?- There was the idea that God forgot their sin; that that was all back there and back then, but now they had moved to Egypt, all was different. We too can reason the same way, wrongly assuming that time and geography make a pseudo atonement for our sins. God had been hurt deeply by their idolatry, and it continued to come into His mind. Judgment was going to come for it.</p>


text:
<p>So that Yahweh could no longer endure you, because of the evil of your doings, and because of the abominations which you have committed; therefore your land has become a desolation, an astonishment and a curse, without inhabitant, as it is this day- Yahweh had been bearing their sin ("s:w."endure"), but there came a point where this was no longer appropriate if they were continuing in those sins</p>


text:
<p>Because you have burned incense, and because you have sinned against Yahweh, and have not obeyed the voice of Yahweh, nor walked in His law, nor in His statutes, nor in His testimonies; therefore this evil has happened to you, as it is this day- What was worse was that this group had come to Jeremiah seeking God’s word, and apparently had some interest in obeying it. But there was a willfulness in their sin which made their judgment inevitable. The evil done to the land of Judah"happened to you, as it is this day"; they were wrong to think that by running away to Egypt, they had avoided Divine judgment.</p>


text:
<p>Moreover Jeremiah said to all the people, and to all the women, Hear the word of Yahweh, all Judah who are in the land of Egypt- There is strange emphasis on all the people being addressed, including the women. This reflects God’s inclusive approach, recognizing the women as well as the men were guilty and likewise also capable of repentance. It is not God’s way to punish a majority just for the sins of their leadership; the entire community were addressed and thereby were responsible.</p>


text:
<p>Thus says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel, saying, You and your wives have both spoken with your mouths, and with your hands have fulfilled it saying, We will surely perform our vows that we have vowed, to burn incense to the queen of the sky, and to pour out drink offerings to her- Their hands fulfilled what their mouths spoke in that those hands formed the cakes to the queen of heaven, and performed the rituals.</p><p>Establish then your vows, and perform your vows-&nbsp; God will confirm people in the path they wish to take both for good and bad, hence we are to pray"lead us not into temptation".</p>


text:
<p>Therefore hear the word of Yahweh, all Judah who dwell in the land of Egypt: Behold, I have sworn by My great name, says Yahweh, that My name shall no more be named in the mouth of any man of Judah in all the land of Egypt saying, As the Lord Yahweh lives- This implies that every single Jew in Egypt was to be killed. Such threats of total destruction of every Jew in Judah had been made earlier by the prophets, and yet not carried out in the end because of God’s way of remembering mercy in the midst of wrath. And it was to be the same here; the Assuan papyri show that the Egyptian Jews in the century following were a flourishing community and were worshippers of Yahweh and not idolaters. Perhaps it was this level of turning toward Yahweh which meant that God changed these threatened judgments.</p>


text:
<p>Behold, I watch over them for evil, and not for good; and all the men of Judah who are in the land of Egypt shall be consumed by the sword and by the famine, until they are all gone- The language of total destruction is immediately ameliorated in :28, when we read that some of them would return into Judah.</p>


text:
<p>Those who escape the sword shall return out of the land of Egypt into the land of Judah, few in number; and all the remnant of Judah, who have gone into the land of Egypt to live there, shall know whose word shall stand, Mine, or theirs- This is proof enough that the language of total destruction of all Jews in Egypt was not going to literally happen.</p>


text:
<p>This shall be the sign to you, says Yahweh, that I will punish you in this place, that you may know that My words shall surely stand against you for evil- Egypt was given into the hand of their enemies so that Judah might learn something from this. We see the condemnation of others in order to warn us. There is a gap between the statement of judgment, and its execution. In that gap we can repent and change the otherwise inevitable outcomes. The propblems of the Pharaoh Hophra (see on :30) were to be a sign to the Jews that the Babylonian judgment would surely come upon them.</p>


text:
<p>Thus says Yahweh, Behold, I will give Pharaoh Hophra king of Egypt into the hand of his enemies, and into the hand of those who seek his life; as I gave Zedekiah king of Judah into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, who was his enemy, and sought his life- All that we know of the fate of Hophra is derived from Herodotus (2:169), who states that Amssis"gave Apries over into the hands of his former subjects, to deal with as they chose. Then the Egyptians took him and strangled him".</p>


text:
<p>The message that Jeremiah the prophet spoke to Baruch the son of Neriah, when he wrote these words in a book at the mouth of Jeremiah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, saying- The reference is to the words written in the roll or scroll of <a href='B:300 36:1'>Jer 36:1</a>. The book of Jeremiah isn’t chronological but thematic; here, the theme which continues from Jeremiah 44 is that of Baruch, who went with Jeremiah to die with the apostate Jews in Egypt.</p>


text:
<p>Thus says Yahweh the God of Israel, to you, Baruch- God’s word to Baruch begins with a quotation from Baruch’s own feelings (:3).</p>


text:
<p>You said, Woe is me now! For Yahweh has added sorrow to my pain; I am weary with my groaning and I find no rest- In the historical record of Jeremiah 36, Baruch appears to just do what Jeremiah tells him in writing the record of Jeremiah’s words. But this led him to risk death. The"pain"was how he like Jeremiah felt the pain of the condemned people; but he experienced additional"sorrow", reflected in his restless groaning, perhaps related to fear of imprisonment and death for his work in transcribing the prophecies. The Father was comforting Baruch that He knows human words, even those said quietly in frustration. But even in that ’finding no rest’ he was fellowshipping Israel’s experiences for breaking the covenant, such was his identity with them (s:w. <a href='B:50 28:65'>Deu 28:65</a>).</p>


text:
<p>You shall tell him, Thus says Yahweh: Behold, that which I have built will I break down, and that which I have planted I will pluck up; and this will be so in the whole land- Jeremiah’s words had the power to break down and pluck up; and indeed the words he had transcribed would come about. There was no way to stop that; the time for changing outcomes had passed.</p>


text:
<p>Do you seek great things for yourself? Don’t seek them; for, behold, I will bring evil on all flesh, says Yahweh; but your life will I give to you for a prey in all places where you go- Baruch, the faithful scribe of Jeremiah 36, had to be reminded later to stop seeking great things for himself. His life would be to him"for a prey", literally, as booty taken from a conquered city. This was and is the great paradox- that surrender, acceptance of defeat, was the great spiritual victory. Moving to Egypt to live with a condemned group of Jews, with only further suffering to look forward to, meant resigning all material hopes. Clearly Baruch had his eye upon"great things"&nbsp;for himself, and he seems to have been upset that now he was never going to achieve them. But all such material things were to be destroyed in the day of evil upon"all flesh"; the one thing which would survive that was his life. His life, a life with God in it, was what he would salvage; and a life like that is worth losing everything material in order to gain. This is the same promise as made to Ebedmelech in <a href='B:300 39:18'>Jer 39:18</a>. LXX"and you shall find your life"is alluded to in the Lord’s promise that he who loses his life [or risks losing it] for the Lord’s sake shall find it (<a href='B:470 10:39'>Mat 10:39</a>; <a href='B:470 16:25'>Mat 16:25</a>). The reward for Baruch and Ebedmelech was not just that they would save their physical life, but that they would find their true life. They thereby stand representative of us all.</p>


text:
<p>The word of Yahweh which came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the nations- Ezekiel also at this point gave prophecies against Egypt and the surrounding nations. As noted on Ezekiel 29-32, many of the details didn’t come true at that time. The essence will do in the last days. But the prophecies were part of a wider potential scenario in which Judah would repent, as would Israel who were already in captivity; and the nations conquered by Babylon would also come to"know Yahweh", to come into relationship with Him. But this didn’t work out as hoped; and so the application of these prophecies has been transferred and reapplied to the last days.</p>


text:
<p>Of Egypt: concerning the army of Pharaoh Necoh king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates in Carchemish, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon struck in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah- The significance of the victory is that it was a sure sign to Judah that their trust upon Egypt was futile; now Egyptian military power had been demonstrated useless. God was, for now, on the side of Babylon; they were His servants, and resistance to them was futile.</p>


text:
<p>Prepare the buckler and shield, and draw near to battle!- This was the cry of"The Egyptian officers"(GNB).</p>


text:
<p>Harness the horses, rise up, you horsemen, and stand forth with your helmets; furbish the spears, put on the coats of mail- Egypt is portrayed as replete with all the latest military technology and human strength, all of which was seen by Judah as so attractive, but by God as so abhorrent and meaningless.</p>


text:
<p>Why have I seen it?- Now we have God’s perspective, how He saw things."But what do I see?" asks the LORD"(GNB). However, this could be another interjection from Jeremiah, complaining that the visions which he had to preach, about violence and judgment, were quite against the grain of his sensitive soul (<a href='B:300 46:5'>Jer 46:5</a> RV; 47:6). The fact that true preaching is a carrying of the cross explains why Paul felt that the fact that to preach what he did went right against his natural grain, was the proof that indeed a “dispensation of the Gospel” had been given to him. Likewise Jeremiah complained. There is therefore no such person as a natural preacher in the ultimate sense.</p><p>They are dismayed and are turned backward; and their mighty ones are beaten down and have fled apace, and don’t look back: terror is on every side, says Yahweh- Although the Egyptians went forward so confidently into battle, God saw them as fleeing in terror.</p>


text:
<p>Don’t let the swift flee away, nor the mighty man escape; in the north by the river Euphrates have they stumbled and fallen- <a href='B:330 32:31'>Eze 32:31</a> says that Pharaoh would die in this battle. However there is no record of Pharaoh being killed at Carchemish, although the Nebuchadnezzar Chronicle, now housed in the British Museum, claims that Nebuchadnezzar"crossed the river to go against the Egyptian army which lay in Carchemish. They fought with each other and the Egyptian army withdrew before him. He accomplished their defeat, decisively. As for the rest of the Egyptian army which had escaped from the defeat so quickly that no weapon had reached them, in the district of Hamath the Babylonian troops overtook and defeated them so that not a single man escaped to his own country". We would expect a mention of the death of Pharaoh but there is none. And the account of the battle of Carchemish here in <a href='B:300 46:3-12'>Jer 46:3-12</a> doesn’t mention it either. Again we see that the prophetic scenario envisaged didn’t completely come about, although the essence of it will in the last days.</p>


text:
<p>Who is this who rises up like the Nile, whose waters toss themselves like the rivers?- This is said in retrospect, seeing that the Egyptians are now"dismayed and turned backward"(:5). They had once been seen as the rising power, risingup as the Nile, and Judah had been attracted by this, rather than trusting in Yahweh.</p>


text:
<p>Egypt rises up like the Nile, and his waters toss themselves like the rivers: and he says, I will rise up, I will cover the land; I will destroy cities and its inhabitants- Egypt had its eyes upon dominating the eretz,"the land"promised to Abraham, including Judah. Yet Judah had sought their help against Babylon, refusing to see the obvious- that actually Egypt wanted to dominate them and destroy their cities just as Babylon was to do.</p>


text:
<p>Go up, you horses; and rage, you chariots; and let the mighty ones go forth: Cush and Put, who handle the shield; and the Ludim, who handle and bend the bow- These are the mercenaries, from various African countries, who fought for Egypt and are being sent forth. The"mighty ones", horses and chariots are portrayed in these terms to show they are a pathetic imitation of Ezekiel’s cherubim, which could have fought for Judah had they trusted in Yahweh.</p>


text:
<p>For that day is of the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, a day of vengeance, that He may avenge Himself of His adversaries: and the sword shall devour and be satiate, and shall drink its fill of their blood; for the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, has a sacrifice in the north country by the river Euphrates- Nebuchadnezzar was Yahweh’s servant, and therefore the adversaries of Babylon were His adversaries; and He would destroy them. Judah’s desperate trust in Egypt was therefore siding with Yahweh’s enemies.</p>


text:
<p>Go up into Gilead and take balm, virgin daughter of Egypt: in vain do you use many medicines; there is no healing for you- This"daughter"may be that of :19, the daughter"who dwells in Egypt", the Jewish communities in Egypt, who were to be joined by the unfaithful Jews who later joined them under Johanan (see on <a href='B:300 44:1'>Jer 44:1</a>). Gilead’s balm was well known (<a href='B:10 37:25'>Gen 37:25</a>; <a href='B:330 27:17'>Eze 27:17</a>). There was balm and a physician in Gilead which could heal the sick person- but they wouldn’t go to it (<a href='B:300 8:22'>Jer 8:22</a>). The cure had been readily available- but Judah had refused to make use of it.</p>


text:
<p>The nations have heard of your shame, and the earth is full of your cry; for the mighty man has stumbled against the mighty, they are fallen both of them together- This may refer to the shame of the fact that a far smaller Babylonian army of 18,000 destroyed the Egyptian army of 40,000 at Carchemish."The mighty man"would be they of :9, the mercenaries upon whom Egypt relied.</p>


text:
<p>The word that Yahweh spoke to Jeremiah the prophet, how that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon should come and strike the land of Egypt- The language of smiting Egypt is that of the plagues (Exo 3:20; Exo 12:12-13 s:w:). Again there is the implicit hope that as a result of this, there would be a glorious exodus and reentry of the promised land by Judah. See on :23.</p>


text:
<p>Declare in Egypt, and publish in Migdol, and publish in Memphis and in Tahpanhes: say, Stand forth, and prepare; for the sword has devoured around you- These were the very towns where the disobedient Jews went to live after the Babylonian invasion of Judah; from this prophecy, they ought to have already been aware of what Jeremiah declared to them- that even there in Egypt, the Babylonians would come and judge them (Jer 44:1). The declaration to Egypt is effectively an appeal for repentance; as noted on :13, the predicted ’smiting’ of Egypt was to be a repetition of that at the time of the Exodus. The gods of Egypt were smitten, but the smiting was ideally in order to elicit repentance. The word of judgment was as good as executed; but they were to"stand forth and prepare", a call to repentance.</p>


text:
<p>Why are your strong ones swept away? They didn’t stand, because Yahweh pushed them over- GNB:"Why has your mighty god Apis fallen? The LORD has struck him down!’". As at the exodus there was the ’smiting’ of Egypt’s gods, so again it would be. But this was all ideally intended to elicit repentance.</p>


text:
<p>He made many to stumble, yes, they fell one on another: and they said, Arise, and let us go again to our own people, and to the land of our birth, from the oppressing sword- This speaks of the mercenaries fighting for Egypt running away to their homelands.</p>


text:
<p>They cried there, Pharaoh king of Egypt is but a noise; he has let the appointed time pass by- GNB"Give the king of Egypt a new name—’Noisy Braggart Who Missed His Chance’". As the Pharaoh at the time of the exodus was given a chance to repent, so now again (see on :13-15). As explained on Eze 30:21, God had worked to bring about the healing of Egypt in her repentance after her first defeat by the Babylonians. But she didn’t respond. Therefore Jer 46:17 AV says of Pharaoh:"he has let the appointed time pass by". He was given a window of repentance but he refused it. The breaking of Pharaoh’s arm as prophesied in Eze 30:21 was in fact by being a staff of reed to Judah which collapsed. This was all the very opposite narrative to that which the faithless Jews at the time wished to believe- that the strong arm of Pharaoh would save them from the Babylonians. Instead, both Judah and Egypt would collapse as it were in a heap together before the Babylonians. And from this debased state they were both intended to arise as repentant, knowing Yahweh. But they didn’t.</p>


text:
<p>As I live, says the King whose name is Yahweh of Armies, surely like Tabor among the mountains, and like Carmel by the sea, so shall he come- That is, with the same towering strength. The appeal to locations in Palestine was because those being addressed were not so much Egyptians as the Jews dwelling amongst them (:19).</p>


text:
<p>You daughter who dwells in Egypt, furnish yourself to go into captivity; for Memphis shall become a desolation and shall be burnt up without inhabitant- The daughter refers to the Jewish communities in Egypt. This ought to have been understood by the Jews who wanted to go and join the Jewish communities already existing in Memphis and elsewhere in Egypt; they were to also go into captivity. See on <a href='B:300 44:1'>Jer 44:1</a>.</p>


text:
<p>Egypt is a very beautiful heifer; but destruction out of the north has come, it has come- GNB"Egypt is like a splendid cow, attacked by a stinging fly from the north".</p>


text:
<p>Also her hired men in the midst of her are like calves of the stall; for they also are turned back, they are fled away together, they didn’t stand: for the day of their calamity has come on them, the time of their visitation- The apparent strength of Egypt was largely dependent upon their mercenaries; this prophecy emphasizes that. But Judah didn’t seem to want to appreciate that. They were but"fatted calves fed in her"(LXX); they were loyal only insofar as they were fed and paid by Egypt.</p>


text:
<p>The sound of it shall go like the serpent; for they shall march with an army, and come against her with axes, as wood cutters- This is just how the Babylonians came upon Jerusalem, with axes to cut down the cedarwork of the temple (<a href='B:230 74:5-6'>Psa 74:5-6</a>). Judah were not to think they had cleverly escaped judgment through moving to Egypt; judgment would still come to them.</p>


text:
<p>They shall cut down her forest, says Yahweh, though it can’t be searched; because they are more than the locusts, and are innumerable- Just as Egypt had been plagued by locusts (see on :13), so those plagues were to be repeated. And yet again there was therefore the hope for repentance and exodus because of that.</p>


text:
<p>The daughter of Egypt shall be disappointed; she shall be delivered into the hand of the people of the north- This is the daughter of :19, the Jewish daughter of Zion who lived in Egypt. They would be disappointed in Egypt; and again there is an abiding lesson. All trust in idols or in the things of Egypt, the world, will end in such disappointment, just as in due course Babylon would be disappointed in her idols (<a href='B:300 51:17'>Jer 51:17</a>).</p>


text:
<p>Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel, says: Behold, I will punish Amon of No- GNB"Amon, the god of Thebes". Egypt was to be punished by Babylon, and in due course Babylon too was to be punished (s:w. <a href='B:300 25:12'>Jer 25:12</a>). Jeremiah’s prophecies ought to have enabled God’s people to see that all human strength waxes and wanes, and all finally comes to His judgment.</p><p>And Pharaoh, and Egypt, with her gods, and her kings; even Pharaoh, and those who trust in him- Those who trusted in Egypt’s idols and gods were the Jews (:24).</p>


text:
<p>And I will deliver them into the hand of those who seek their lives, and into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of his servants; and afterwards it shall be inhabited like in the days of old, says Yahweh- GNB"But later on, people will live in Egypt again, as they did in times past. I, the LORD, have spoken". This is the language of restoration; it was clearly God’s plan to restore not only His own people and land, but those of the surrounding peoples.</p>


text:
<p>But don’t you be afraid, Jacob My servant, neither be dismayed, Israel: for, behold, I will save you from afar, and your seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and shall be quiet and at ease, and none shall make him afraid- The Jewish exiles in Egypt did indeed have something to fear and be dismayed about; but if they were repentant, then they would be restored even from Egypt into a new kingdom of God revived in the land of Israel. In the future, they would be unafraid; and even in the face of the Babylonian attack, they could still be unafraid. If they were truly penitent and on God’s side, then they could live the kingdom life there and then, just as we can. This salvation from far off must be understood in the context of how God says that He was potentially near to Judah, but they had chosen to keep Him"far off"(s:w:) in their hearts; see on <a href='B:300 12:2'>Jer 12:2</a>; <a href='B:300 23:23'>Jer 23:23</a>. Even from that situation, God’s grace could work on their hearts. They were taken"far [off]"to captivity because they had Him far from their hearts.</p>


text:
<p>Don’t you be afraid, O Jacob My servant, says Yahweh; for I am with you: for although I will make a full end of all the nations where I have driven you, I will not make a full end of you- Earlier God had threatened to make a full end, the same phrase is found in <a href='B:290 10:23'>Isa 10:23</a> and <a href='B:430 1:18'>Zep 1:18</a>. But now God promises that He will not make a full end (<a href='B:300 5:10'>Jer 5:10</a>; <a href='B:300 5:18'>Jer 5:18</a>; <a href='B:300 4:27'>Jer 4:27</a>; <a href='B:300 30:11'>Jer 30:11</a>; <a href='B:300 46:28'>Jer 46:28</a>). God is not capricious; but His love and pity is such that He is unafraid to not do according to His wrath. In wrath God remembered mercy; or perhaps responded to some degree of repentance or intercession from a minority. And this God is our God.</p><p>But I will correct you in measure, and will in no way leave you unpunished- The frequent appeals for Judah to be"instructed"use the same word translated"punish"(<a href='B:30 26:18'>Lev 26:18</a>). The idea was that the punishments were to be instruction; they were not the lashing out of an offended Deity. It was God’s hope, even ’fantasy’ would not be too strong a word, that His people would realize this, and come to say"You punished / instructed me, and I was instructed"(<a href='B:300 31:18'>Jer 31:18</a> s:w:). That correction / punishment was to be"in measure", the same phrase is used by Jeremiah as Judah’s representative when he asked to be corrected"with justice / judgment"(<a href='B:300 10:18'>Jer 10:18</a>). His personal reformation was to be that of Judah. The paradox is that Judah deserved total destruction, as Jeremiah and other prophets do state at times; and yet the"just"judgment was that which resulted in reformation and not total destruction. That justice involved them not being left"unpunished"; the guilty cannot be"cleared"(s:w."unpunished"; <a href='B:20 34:7'>Exo 34:7</a>; <a href='B:410 1:3'>Nah 1:3</a>). That is a fundamental part of God’s character. The problem was that the Jews of Jeremiah’s time considered themselves"innocent"(<a href='B:300 2:35'>Jer 2:35</a> s:w."unpunished"). They had to be convicted both of their sin and of God’s grace, in punishing / correcting them less than their sins deserved (<a href='B:150 9:13'>Ezr 9:13</a>).</p>


text:
<p>The word of Yahweh that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the Philistines, before that Pharaoh struck Gaza- Judah were tempted to trust in the Philistines against Babylon. But this prophecy makes the point that they were to be struck by both Pharaoh and Nebuchadnezzar.</p>


text:
<p>Thus says Yahweh: Behold, waters rise up out of the north, and shall become an overflowing stream, and shall overflow the land and all that is therein, the city and those who dwell therein; and the men shall cry, and all the inhabitants of the land shall wail- The overflowing river refers to the army from the north (<a href='B:300 46:8'>Jer 46:8</a>; <a href='B:290 8:7'>Isa 8:7</a>). That overflowing stream of Babylon was going to overflow the entire eretz, and that included the territory of the Philistines. It was a useless to think that Babylon could be resisted through alliances with people within the eretz.</p>


text:
<p>At the noise of the stamping of the hoofs of his strong ones, at the rushing of his chariots, at the rumbling of his wheels, the fathers don’t look back to their children for feebleness of hands- The word for the"rushing"noise of the cherubim wheels in Ezekiel is used elsewhere about the noise of the chariots of Israel’s enemies and the Babylonian invasion (<a href='B:300 10:22'>Jer 10:22</a>; <a href='B:300 47:3'>Jer 47:3</a>; <a href='B:410 3:2'>Nah 3:2</a>). The Angelic armies of Heaven were therefore revealed on earth in the chariots of Babylon; it was both Babylon and the Angelic cherubim behind them who took Judah captive, and who could also return them to their land. Hence the stress in Ezekiel’s vision that the wheels of the cherubim were on the earth / land. Clearly enough, the things that go on in our lives, even those things which appear as brutal and tragic as the Babylonian chariots were to Judah and the nations in the land like the Philistines, are not random machinations of men; they are, in some unfathomableway, under the direct control of a God of love, who only means to do us good at our latter end.</p>


text:
<p>because of the day that comes to destroy all the Philistines, to cut off from Tyre and Sidon every helper who remains- The connection with Tyre and Sidon is in that the Philistines were in league with them. Judah would be left without any helper (<a href='B:310 1:7'>Lam 1:7</a> s:w:). Yahweh alone was the helper of His people (<a href='B:290 50:7'>Isa 50:7</a> s:w:).</p><p>For Yahweh will destroy the Philistines, the remnant of the isle of Caphtor- Crete, the origin of the Philistines (<a href='B:50 2:23'>Deu 2:23</a>; <a href='B:370 9:7'>Amo 9:7</a>).</p>


text:
<p>Baldness has come on Gaza; Ashkelon is brought to nothing, the remnant of their valley: how long will you cut yourself?- The cutting of themselves was in order to beg their idols to arise and help them (<a href='B:110 18:28'>1Ki 18:28</a>). But they would not. Absolutely all human help was to be cut off; and therefore those who realized this would trust in Yahweh alone."The remnant of their valley"is LXX"the remainder of the Anakim", or giants. Again, all human strength was to be brought to nothing; and we do well to live life in that belief today.</p>


text:
<p>You sword of Yahweh, how long will it be before you be quiet? Put up yourself into your scabbard; rest, and be still- See on <a href='B:300 46:5'>Jer 46:5</a>. Jeremiah responds to the prophecy he has to utter against the hated Philistines by begging the Father to limit these judgments, presumably on account of their repentance: “O thou sword of the Lord, how long will it be ere thou be quiet? Put up thyself into thy scabbard, rest, and be still” (<a href='B:300 47:6'>Jer 47:6</a>). Think too of how he almost interrupts a prophecy he is giving to Israel about judgment to come by appealing for them therefore to repent (<a href='B:300 4:13-14'>Jer 4:13-14</a>). Our handling of the prophecies of judgment to come should have a like effect upon us: they should inspire us to an inevitable witness. Each of our days cannot be just ‘the same old scene’ when we see the world in this way.</p>


text:
<p>How can you be quiet, since Yahweh has given you a command? Against Ashkelon, and against the seashore, there has He appointed it- This may be Jeremiah’s reply to himself. These windows into Jeremiah’s struggles are profound; to preach the message of God’s word may well involve our struggle with it."Quiet"is the word just used in <a href='B:300 46:27'>Jer 46:27</a> of how Jacob shall be"at rest"when restored; and with the Philistines also, there is the implicit hope that there will be"rest"or"quiet"once the judgments of the sword have been carried out. For they too were intended to participate in the peace to come upon the entire eretz promised to Abraham.</p>


text:
<p>Of Moab. Thus says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel: Woe to Nebo! for it is laid waste- The city, not the mountain (<a href='B:40 32:38'>Num 32:38</a>).</p><p>Kiriathaim is disappointed, it is taken; Misgab is put to shame and broken down- The present tenses are used because the threatened judgments are so certain. I suggest that there is a particular address to the Jews who had taken refuge in Moab, just as the previous chapter addresses the Jews who had taken refuge in Egypt (see on :18).</p>


text:
<p>The praise of Moab is no more; in Heshbon they have devised evil against her. Come, and let us cut her off from being a nation. You also, Madmen, shall be brought to silence: the sword shall pursue you-"Heshbon"and"devised"are similar words, and so there is a word play here. Likewise"Madmen"and"brought to silence". The idea is that they had done this to themselves. Judgment is really self-inflicted and an extension of what the condemned did to themselves.</p>


text:
<p>The sound of a cry from Horonaim, desolation and great destruction!- See on :4. In <a href='B:290 16:3'>Isa 16:3</a>, Moab had been asked to accept the exiles of Judah and thus shield them from"spoiling"(s:w. NEV"desolation"). It seems that they had spoiled the Jewish refugees and not at all shielded them from the spoiling of the northern invader, both at the time of the Assyrian and Babylonian invasions. And so their attitude to their brother [for Moab and Israel were all related to Abraham] becomes the basis for their judgment. This is a continual theme, and one that will continue to our own judgment.</p>


text:
<p>Moab is destroyed; her little ones have caused a cry to be heard- Isaiah had also spoken of this crying out of Moab in their time of judgment, and it motivated him to himself cry out for them. We too will appeal to men with conviction, as Isaiah’s heart cried out for Moab like a young heifer about to be slaughtered, feeling for them in what would come upon them, and desperately appealing for their repentance. Because the Moabites would cry out and their voice would be heard, “my heart shall cry out for Moab” (<a href='B:290 15:4-5'>Isa 15:4-5</a>; <a href='B:290 15:8'>Isa 15:8</a>). As the Lord Jesus is a representative Saviour, we too must feel the judgment that is to come upon others, and in that sense cry out for them as they will cry out.</p>


text:
<p>For by the ascent of Luhith with continual weeping shall they go up; for at the descent of Horonaim they have heard the distress of the cry of destruction- See on :4. The same words for"cry of destruction"are found in the description of Jerusalem’ fall in <a href='B:430 1:10'>Zep 1:10</a>. The Jews who had fled to the mountainous crags of Moab to escape Divine judgment were going to receive exactly that judgment; leaving us a lesson, that we will not avoid judgment. We need to repent of our sins, rather than psychologically try to avert judgment coming.</p>


text:
<p>Flee, save your lives, and be like the heath in the wilderness- As noted on :4, this is an appeal for repentance. God wanted Moab saved too. LXX has"be like a wild ass in the wilderness", which is hard to capture. Through repentance, they could avoid the capture and destruction which was otherwise inevitable.</p>


text:
<p>For because you have trusted in your works and in your treasures, you also shall be taken: and Chemosh shall go forth into captivity, his priests and his princes together- Their"works"were their idols, which are repeatedly described as the works of human hands (<a href='B:50 4:28'>Deu 4:28</a> etc:). And this is the essence of idolatry today- a trusting in our own works. Perhaps the reference is to the valuable stones in the Chemosh idol, which was therefore going to be taken into captivity as a valuable item. But it was understood that a god of a people or town always fought for its people, and if overcome, then it as it were goes into captivity (<a href='B:290 46:1'>Isa 46:1</a>; <a href='B:370 1:15'>Amo 1:15</a>). This was the difference with Israel’s God Yahweh, the God who threatened to destroy His own city and temple because of His sensitivity to His peoples’ sins; the God who brought their enemies upon them.</p>


text:
<p>The destroyer shall come on every city, and no city shall escape; the valley also shall perish, and the plain shall be destroyed; as Yahweh has spoken- The reference is to the Jordan valley and to the tableland of Moab. The Hebrew phrase for ’none escaping’ has been used by Jeremiah in describing the Babylonian judgment (<a href='B:300 34:3'>Jer 34:3</a>; <a href='B:300 38:18'>Jer 38:18</a>; <a href='B:330 17:18'>Eze 17:18</a>). The Jews (see on :18) thought they could escape by running to Moab; but it is foolish to think we can play games with God.</p>


text:
<p>May wings be given to Moab, that she may fly and get her away: and her cities shall become a desolation, without any to dwell therein- This may be Jeremiah’s interjection, wishing that Moab would take the way out- which was through repentance and turning to Yahweh. The"wings"of the mighty cherubim were there to deliver God’s people, or whoever trusted in Him.</p>


text:
<p>Cursed is he who does the work of Yahweh negligently; and cursed is he who keeps back his sword from blood- If Babylon was negligent in judging Moab, they would be cursed.</p>


text:
<p>Moab has been at ease from his youth, and he has settled on his lees, and has not been emptied from vessel to vessel, neither has he gone into captivity: therefore his taste remains in him, and his scent is not changed- The idea therefore is that by Moab going into captivity, their scent and taste would change; in other words, they would repent. The same figure is used of how the captivity of Judah was likewise to bring about their repentance (<a href='B:430 1:12'>Zep 1:12</a>). This was in view throughout all these judgments, that the nations around Israel would repent. We are baptized into the Name of Jesus, and bear that Name in the eyes of men. The Hebrew concept of a name meant really a renown, an understanding of the person. The Bride comments that “thy name is as ointment poured forth” (<a href='B:260 1:3'>Son 1:3</a>), likening the name to the smell of perfume. The “scent” of a nation is likewise their reputation, the message they give out (<a href='B:300 48:11'>Jer 48:11</a>; <a href='B:350 14:7'>Hos 14:7</a>). We are the savour of Christ (<a href='B:540 2:16'>2Co 2:16</a>), we bear His Name, and therefore anyone carrying the Name is thereby a witness to Him.</p>


text:
<p>Therefore behold, the days come, says Yahweh, that I will send to him those who pour off, and they shall pour him off; and they shall empty his vessels, and break their bottles in pieces- There was to be no possibility for Moab to return to their former taste and scent (:11); the bottles of wine themselves would be broken. Yet this was all because God wanted them to radically change.</p>


text:
<p>Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh, as the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel their confidence- The idol cult at Bethel was used by Judah too (<a href='B:370 5:5'>Amo 5:5</a>). Israel’s repentance and restoration was to signal that of the surrounding nations like Moab (see on :11). But they sadly failed. Clearly enough, God’s ideal intention even in Old Testament times was for the Gentiles to respond to the Hope of Israel. The aim of God’s judgments upon Moab were so that they might be ashamed of their idols, and that their “flavour” might be changed to be more pleasing to Israel’s God (:11); see on :28.</p>


text:
<p>How do you say, We are mighty men, and valiant men for the war?- The present tense is used; they at that time were confident in their own strength, but the Divine word of judgment was as good as fulfilled, so that :15 also uses the present tense in saying that"Moab is laid waste".</p>


text:
<p>Moab is laid waste, and they are gone up into his cities, and his chosen young men are gone down to the slaughter, says the King, whose name is Yahweh of Armies- These titles are in contrast to Chemosh, god of Moab, which means ’ the powerful / subduing one’.</p>


text:
<p>The calamity of Moab is near to come, and his affliction hurries fast- This is a quotation from <a href='B:50 32:35'>Deu 32:35</a> about the judgments of Israel (<a href='B:50 32:36'>Deu 32:36</a>). As suggested on :18, it is the Jews in Moab who are being addressed here.</p>


text:
<p>All you who are around him, bemoan him; all you who know his name, say, How is the strong staff broken, the beautiful rod!- It would be Judah who particularly lamented the breaking of the strength of Moab, because she was one of the nations Judah trusted in against the Babylonians. We note how ’knowing his name’ means to have trusted and understood Moab based upon his history and characteristics; and likewise to know Yahweh’s Name is far more than simply knowing the word"Yahweh".</p>


text:
<p>You daughter who dwells in Dibon, come down from your glory, and sit in thirst; for the destroyer of Moab has come up against you, he has destroyed your strongholds- The daughter who dwelt in Egypt referred to the Jews who had fled there for salvation from the Babylonians; see on <a href='B:300 46:19'>Jer 46:19</a>; <a href='B:300 46:24'>Jer 46:24</a>. Perhaps some had fled to Moab and been accepted there (from the time of <a href='B:290 16:4'>Isa 16:4</a>), and were confident that Babylonian judgment could never reach them. But the Babylonian destroyer of Moab would also come to them there. See on :20,22,23.</p>


text:
<p>Inhabitant of Aroer, stand by the way, and watch: ask him who flees, and her who escapes; say, What has been done?- This town was Moab’s great pride; Mesha records on the “Moabite stone” that he “built (i:e. restored) the city".</p>


text:
<p>Moab is disappointed; for it is broken down: wail and cry; tell it by the Arnon, that Moab is laid waste- "Disappointed" is a concept more relevant to the Jews being disappointed in their trust in Moab, just as those who lived in Egypt had been of their trust upon Egypt (<a href='B:300 46:24'>Jer 46:24</a>). The Jews who had fled to Moab would likewise be disappointed (see on :18).</p>


text:
<p>Judgement has come on the plain country, on Holon, Jahzah, Mephaath- These last two were priestly cities (<a href='B:60 21:36-37'>Jos 21:36-37</a>). Israel had allowed these priestly cities to be lost to Moab, and thereby had decreased the accessibility of salvation intended for them. We can do the same in essence.</p>


text:
<p>Dibon, Nebo, Beth Diblathaim- "House of two figs". The Hebrew name may have been carried over by the Moabites from its original Israelite name; or perhaps the Jews living there gave it this name. See on :18.</p>


text:
<p>Kiriathaim, Beth Gamul, Beth Meon- The Moabites called the latter town Beth Baal Meon (<a href='B:60 13:17'>Jos 13:17</a>), and it is noted like that on the Moabite stone. The absence of "Baal" could suggest that this was a town taken over by Jews who had emigrated there; see on :18.</p>


text:
<p>Kerioth, Bozrah, and on all the cities of the land of Moab, far or near- Kerioth could be another name for Ar (<a href='B:40 21:28'>Num 21:28</a>; <a href='B:370 2:2'>Amo 2:2</a>). Bozrah is likely the Bezer of <a href='B:50 4:43'>Deu 4:43</a>; <a href='B:60 20:8'>Jos 20:8</a>; <a href='B:60 21:36'>Jos 21:36</a>.</p>


text:
<p>The horn of Moab is cut off, and his arm is broken, says Yahweh- This was the judgment to happen to Israel (<a href='B:310 2:3'>Lam 2:3</a>; <a href='B:370 3:14'>Amo 3:14</a>). Again we see a similarity in the judgments, because it was the same Divine hand trying to also elicit repentance in Moab as well as Israel.</p>


text:
<p>Make him drunken; for he magnified himself against Yahweh: and Moab shall wallow in his vomit, and he also shall be in derision- See on :42. This may be an invitation to Jeremiah to again take a cup of wine to Moab (<a href='B:300 25:15'>Jer 25:15</a>). Moab need not have drunk this cup of judgment, had they submitted to Babylon and repented before Yahweh. As Moab derided Israel, so they would be (:27). Again we see the eternal truth- that how we treat God’s people is the basis for our eternal blessing or condemnation.</p>


text:
<p>For wasn’t Israel a derision to you? Was he found among thieves? For as often as you speak of him, you shake your head- Israel were indeed as caught thieves (<a href='B:300 2:26'>Jer 2:26</a>), who were to be despised. The Lord’s Bible mind would have found some sort of encouragement from those who mocked Him. For the Lord was so clearly bearing the judgment of Israel’s sins: “All who pass along the way clap their hands at you: they hiss and wag their heads at the daughter of Jerusalem"(<a href='B:310 2:15'>Lam 2:15</a>). And note too <a href='B:300 48:27'>Jer 48:27</a> (LXX 31:27): “Is Israel a laughing stock? Was she caught between thieves that you wag your head?". This was exactly the Lord’s position, between thieves, and mocked- but by Israel. These prophecies imply it was the Gentiles who would mock Israel; thus by treating the Lord as they did, they declared themselves to be no longer God’s people but Gentiles.</p>


text:
<p>You inhabitants of Moab, leave the cities, and dwell in the rock; and be like the dove that makes her nest over the mouth of the abyss- They were intended to hide themselves in the rocks in repentance and be ashamed of their idols, just as Judah were to (<a href='B:300 48:11'>Jer 48:11</a>; <a href='B:300 48:13'>Jer 48:13</a>; <a href='B:300 48:28'>Jer 48:28</a> cp. <a href='B:290 2:19-21'>Isa 2:19-21</a>). Israel were to be the light to the Gentile world around them, the righteous servant who showed light to the Gentiles; their repentance and restoration was to signal that of the surrounding nations (see on :11). But they sadly failed.</p>


text:
<p>We have heard of the pride of Moab. He is very proud; his loftiness, and his pride, and his arrogance, and the highness of his heart- This is the ultimate reason for all condemnation. The pride of Moab is lamented also in <a href='B:290 25:11'>Isa 25:11</a>; <a href='B:430 2:8-10'>Zep 2:8-10</a>. This seems to be an expansion upon the prophecy of <a href='B:290 16:6'>Isa 16:6</a>.</p>


text:
<p>I know his wrath, says Yahweh, that it is nothing; his boastings have worked nothing- All external bravado and appearance is seen through by God; and we should also not find it attractive. Judah had found the bravado of Moab so attractive.</p>


text:
<p>Therefore will I wail for Moab; yes, I will cry out for all Moab: for the men of Kir Heres shall they mourn- Isaiah’s love for the Gentiles whom he condemned (see on <a href='B:290 16:7'>Isa 16:7</a>) inspired Jeremiah to adopt the same attitude (<a href='B:300 48:20'>Jer 48:20</a>; <a href='B:300 48:31-34'>Jer 48:31-34</a>); he too howled for those whose howling in condemnation he prophesied (<a href='B:300 48:31'>Jer 48:31</a> s:w:). As Moab cried out like a three year old heifer (<a href='B:300 48:34'>Jer 48:34</a>), so did Isaiah for them (<a href='B:290 15:5'>Isa 15:5</a>). All this was done by Isaiah and Jeremiah, knowing that Moab hated Israel (<a href='B:290 25:10'>Isa 25:10</a>) and were evidently worthy of God’s condemnation. But all the same they loved them, in the spirit of Noah witnessing to the mocking world around him. Our knowledge of this world’s future means that as we walk the streets and mix with men and women, our heart should cry out for them, no matter how they behave towards us, and there should be a deep seated desire for at least some of them to come to repentance and thereby avoid the judgments to come. Particularly is this true, surely, of the people and land of Israel. It ought to be impossible for us to walk its streets or meet its people without at least desiring to give them a leaflet or say at least something to try to help them see what lies ahead.</p>


text:
<p>With more than the weeping of Jazer will I weep for you, vine of Sibmah: your branches passed over the sea, they reached even to the sea of Jazer: on your summer fruits and on your vintage the destroyer is fallen- The "I" who is lamenting is God through Jeremiah. It is hard to lament the fall of the arrogant and abusive; but all the same, we see here the lament for the loss of every human being by God and His prophet.</p>


text:
<p>Gladness and joy is taken away from the fruitful field and from the land of Moab; and I have caused wine to cease from the wine presses: none shall tread with shouting; the shouting shall be no shouting- The Hebrew noun is used for both the joyous shout of the grape-treaders and for a battle-cry. The removal of the blessing of joy and&nbsp; wine recalls the covenant blessings being withdrawn from Israel for breaking the covenant; and again we suspect that it is the Jews living in Moab who are particularly in view (see on :18).</p>


text:
<p>From the cry of Heshbon even to Elealeh, even to Jahaz have they uttered their voice, from Zoar even to Horonaim, to Eglath Shelishiyah: for the waters of Nimrim also shall become desolate- This is a condensed form ofIsa 15:4-6. Isaiah’s prophecies about Moab hadn’t come true at his time, but now they had the possibility of coming true in Jeremiah’s time. The final fulfilment of every prophetic word will be in the last days.</p>


text:
<p>Moreover I will cause to cease in Moab, says Yahweh, him who offers in the high place, and him who burns incense to his gods- The implication could be that it was particularly the idolaters who were to be destroyed. The prophets condemn Israel for having adopted the gods of the surrounding nations, so perhaps these idol worshippers are specifically the Jews who had gone to live there; see on :18.</p>


text:
<p>Therefore my heart sounds for Moab like pipes, and my heart sounds like pipes for the men of Kir Heres: therefore the abundance that he has gotten is perished- This appears to be the interjection of Jeremiah for Moab. He really believed that what he was saying was going to happen to them, and his heart bled for them. See on 31.</p>


text:
<p>For every head is bald, and every beard clipped: on all the hands are cuttings, and on the waist sackcloth- This is a repeat of <a href='B:290 15:2'>Isa 15:2</a>. Such signs of mourning were forbidden to Israelites (<a href='B:30 19:27'>Lev 19:27</a>; <a href='B:30 21:5'>Lev 21:5</a>). But it seems that those mourning in Moab were Israelites who had taken refuge there, as they thought, from God’s judgments through the Babylonians (see on :18). So the idea may be that they had become so identified with Moab that they acted as they did, and thus broke their covenant with Yahweh.</p>


text:
<p>On all the housetops of Moab and in its streets there is lamentation every where; for I have broken Moab like a vessel in which none delights, says Yahweh- Housetops and streets were where idols were worshipped; earlier Jeremiah has lamented that Jerusalem’s streets and roofs were full of such idolatry. Moab was no better, and would suffer the same judgment. Moab was now going to be a vessel in which nobody delighted- including the Jews who had fled there for refuge.</p>


text:
<p>How it is broken down! How they wail! How Moab has turned the back with shame! So shall Moab become a derision and a terror to all who are around him- The same kind of language is used about the condemnation of Moab as is used for that of Judah. The idea is that they were intended to repent together, so that the revived kingdom of God in Israel would be populated by the repentant, surrounding nations too.</p>


text:
<p>For thus says Yahweh: Behold, he shall fly as an eagle, and shall spread out his wings against Moab- Just as Babylon came as an eagle against Judah, so it would against Moab (<a href='B:300 4:13'>Jer 4:13</a>; <a href='B:50 28:49'>Deu 28:49</a>). There was to be no avoiding Divine judgment. The wings of the cherubim were there for Israel’s protection; but they had spurned them, and instead run to Moab for help (see on :18).</p>


text:
<p>Kerioth is taken, and the strongholds are seized, and the heart of the mighty men of Moab at that day shall be as the heart of a woman in her pangs- Again the metaphor has hope of a new birth out of this calamity. The Divine hope was that Moab along with Israel would repent and form a reborn people in the restored Kingdom of God in Israel.</p>


text:
<p>Moab shall be destroyed from being a people, because he has magnified himself against Yahweh- It is the Name of Yahweh which is to be magnified because of His special love for Israel (s:w. <a href='B:100 7:26'>2Sa 7:26</a>), and therefore magnifying themselves against God’s people was magnifying themselves against Yahweh (<a href='B:430 2:10'>Zep 2:10</a>). Any magnification of self against God’s people is therefore a revolt against Yahweh and all that is implicit in His Name. We can do this, by magnifying our own desires and needs above those of His collective people.</p>


text:
<p>Fear, the pit and the snare are upon you, inhabitant of Moab, says Yahweh- Their relationship with Babylon would be a "snare" in that they united with them and were then destroyed by them.</p>


text:
<p>He who flees from the fear shall fall into the pit; and he who gets up out of the pit shall be taken in the snare: for I will bring on him, even on Moab, the year of their visitation, says Yahweh- <a href='B:300 48:44'>Jer 48:44</a>; <a href='B:300 49:5'>Jer 49:5</a> describe condemnation as fear being brought upon people (as <a href='B:220 3:25'>Job 3:25</a>; <a href='B:240 1:27'>Pro 1:27</a>), and <a href='B:290 24:18'>Isa 24:18</a> and other passages speak of the condemned fleeing from “the noise of the fear”. “The fear” is almost a way of saying ‘the judgment of God’ (<a href='B:310 3:47'>Lam 3:47</a>). The torment of the rejected will be their fear (<a href='B:690 4:18'>1Jn 4:18</a>). Psychologically, we need to get in touch with our own fears now, face our fears of condemnation eye to eye, and work through them- in repenting and coming to believe firmly in God’s gracious acceptance, living in the spirit of the true love which casts out fear. I know men and women who knew God and walked with the Lord, but now say ‘it means nothing to me’. They shrug when I nervously mention to them the reality of judgment to come- and I’m not very bold at bringing the conversations around to that issue, because it is just so fearsome and of such magnitude. They tell me that they’re indifferent. But somewhere deep within them, no matter what good actors they are before the stage of our human eyes, there has to be a deep and awful fear. And it is that fear which will be revealed and which will grip them in that final day. Perhaps the greatest mental torment of the rejected will be realizing how they could have been in the Kingdom of God; they will then perceive how great was the potential which they had had in the brief years of their mortality.</p>


text:
<p>Those who fled stand without strength under the shadow of Heshbon; for a fire is gone forth out of Heshbon, and a flame from the midst of Sihon, and has devoured the corner of Moab, and the crown of the head of the tumultuous ones- This quotes from the prophecies against Moab in <a href='B:40 21:28'>Num 21:28</a>; <a href='B:40 24:17'>Num 24:17</a>. The final fulfilment of all the prophetic word will be at the last day, when the Lord Jesus as the "star out of Jacob" will destroy the latter day equivalent of Moab, and any Jews who have taken refuge with her.</p>


text:
<p>Woe to you, O Moab! The people of Chemosh is undone; for your sons are taken away captive, and your daughters into captivity- This is based on <a href='B:40 21:29'>Num 21:29</a>. And yet Balaam’s prophecies against Moab all have a latter day application. See on :47.</p>


text:
<p>Yet will I revive the fortunes of Moab in the latter days, says Yahweh. Thus far is the judgement of Moab- They too were intended to participate in the peace to come upon the entire eretz promised to Abraham. It was God’s intention to restore not just Israel, but all the peoples within the land, many of whom were in fact relatives of Abraham. The final fulfilment of these prophecies will be in the last day.</p>


text:
<p>Of the children of Ammon. Thus says Yahweh: Has Israel no sons? Has he no heir? why then does Malcam possess Gad, and his people dwell in its cities?- I suggested on the previous two chapters that these judgments have in view the fact that some Jews had fled to Egypt (see on <a href='B:300 46:19'>Jer 46:19</a>) and Moab (see on <a href='B:300 48:11'>Jer 48:11</a>) to try to avoid Divine judgment. But those judgments would come. And some had also fled to Ammon. We know this because Ishmael was living there with a community of Jews at the time of the Babylonian invasion of Judah (<a href='B:300 40:14'>Jer 40:14</a>; <a href='B:300 41:10'>Jer 41:10</a>). This was why the people of the ten tribes ["Gad"; or LXX "Gilead"] were dwelling in the cities of Ammon. By doing so, effectively those Jews and Israelites were cutting themselves off from the covenant. They were losing their possession, as if they had "no heir".</p>


text:
<p>Therefore behold, the days come, says Yahweh, that I will cause an alarm of war to be heard against Rabbah of the children of Ammon; and it shall become a desolate heap, and her daughters shall be burned with fire: then shall Israel possess those who possessed him, says Yahweh- Historically there was no fulfilment of this; Rabbah wasn’t burnt and then possessed by Israel. As noted at the end of Jeremiah 48, the prophecies here will come to their final fulfilment in the last days. They could have come true in Jeremiah’s time; the potential scenario was that Israel and Judah both repented, the nations around them were judged and also repented, and together Abraham’s fragmented family would be reunited in the revived Kingdom of God in Israel. This didn’t then happen; but the prophetic thought and intention has been rescheduled and reapplied to the last days.</p>


text:
<p>Wail, Heshbon, for Ai is laid waste; cry, you daughters of Rabbah, clothe yourself in sackcloth: lament, and run back and forth among the fences- This lamenting could be a call to repentance- which was not responded to.</p><p>For Malcam shall go into captivity, his priests and his princes together- This is the same language as used about the Moabites in <a href='B:300 48:7'>Jer 48:7</a>. It was understood that a god of a people or town always fought for its people, and if overcome, then it as it were goes into captivity (<a href='B:290 46:1'>Isa 46:1</a>; <a href='B:370 1:15'>Amo 1:15</a>). This was the difference with Israel’s God Yahweh, the God who threatened to destroy His own city and temple because of His sensitivity to His peoples’ sins; the God who brought their enemies upon them.</p>


text:
<p>Why do you glory in the valleys, your lowing valley, backsliding daughter? Who trusted in her treasures, saying, who shall come to me?- All trust in human strength, wealth especially, is abhorrent to God. Treasures or wealth can in no way buy off Divine judgment. However the reference to a "backsliding daughter" is more relevant to the daughter of Zion who was then living in Ammonite territory (see on :1). It is a term used about her and not the Ammonites in <a href='B:300 31:22'>Jer 31:22</a>.</p>


text:
<p>Behold, I will bring a fear on you, says the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, from all who are around you; and you shall be driven out every man right forth, and there shall be none to gather together the fugitive- <a href='B:300 48:44'>Jer 48:44</a>; <a href='B:300 49:5'>Jer 49:5</a> describe condemnation as fear being brought upon people (as <a href='B:220 3:25'>Job 3:25</a>; <a href='B:240 1:27'>Pro 1:27</a>), and <a href='B:290 24:18'>Isa 24:18</a> and other passages speak of the condemned fleeing from “the noise of the fear”. “The fear” is almost a way of saying ‘the judgment of God’ (<a href='B:310 3:47'>Lam 3:47</a>). The torment of the rejected will be their fear (<a href='B:690 4:18'>1Jn 4:18</a>). Psychologically, we need to get in touch with our own fears now, face our fears of condemnation eye to eye, and work through them- in repenting and coming to believe firmly in God’s gracious acceptance, living in the spirit of the true love which casts out fear. I know men and women who knew God and walked with the Lord, but now say ‘it means nothing to me’. They shrug when I nervously mention to them the reality of judgment to come- and I’m not very bold at bringing the conversations around to that issue, because it is just so fearsome and of such magnitude. They tell me that they’re indifferent. But somewhere deep within them, no matter what good actors they are before the stage of our human eyes, there has to be a deep and awful fear. And it is that fear which will be revealed and which will grip them in that final day. Perhaps the greatest mental torment of the rejected will be realizing how they could have been in the Kingdom of God; they will then perceive how great was the potential which they had had in the brief years of their mortality.</p>


text:
<p>But afterwards I will revive the fortunes of the children of Ammon, says Yahweh- They too were intended to participate in the peace to come upon the entire eretz promised to Abraham. It was God’s intention to restore not just Israel, but all the peoples within the land, many of whom were in fact relatives of Abraham. The final fulfilment of these prophecies will be in the last day.</p>


text:
<p>Of Edom. Thus says Yahweh of Armies: Is wisdom no more in Teman? Is counsel perished from the prudent? Has their wisdom vanished?- All human wisdom is despised by God when it is used to justify unGodly behaviour. That was how He viewed the renowned wisdom of Edom, and it is how He must feel today.</p>


text:
<p>Flee, turn back, dwell in the depths, inhabitants of Dedan; for I will bring the calamity of Esau on him, the time that I shall visit him- The appeal to "turn back" may be a call to repentance; although of all the nations, Edom is the one of whom there is no hint of future restoration. "The calamity of Esau" was the thing he feared most, which was domination by Jacob. This was not fulfilled at Jeremiah’s time; the prophetic potential was that a repentant Israel would have dominated the nations around them. But Israel didn’t repent; and so the fulfilment has been rescheduled to the last days.</p>


text:
<p>If grape gatherers came to you, would they not leave some gleaning grapes?- As we judge, we will be judged; even Babylon will be judged as she judged others (<a href='B:730 18:20'>Rev 18:20</a> RV), and Edom’s judgments in <a href='B:300 49:9'>Jer 49:9</a> are an exact reflection of how she judged Israel, leaving no remnant (<a href='B:380 1:5'>Oba 1:5</a>). And therefore we should almost jump at the opportunity to judge- with grace.</p><p>If thieves by night, wouldn’t they steal until they had enough?- God as it were understands that a hungry thief will steal food (as taught in <a href='B:240 6:30'>Pro 6:30</a>); but Edom had done far more than that. We see here God’s sensitivity, and how He judges behaviour on a sliding scale, taking account of circumstantial factors. We are too easy to excuse sin by pleading situational ethics; but God as the only true judge can make this judgment in a way that we cannot. The implication of the argument is that a certain degree of theft or grape picking would have been acceptable with God. He recognized that Esau / Edom had a legitimate issue with Jacob, even though of course he should ideally have simply forgiven him. But God perceived that they had gone far beyond that. This is not to say that some degree of vengeance and sin is somehow OK with God, but beyond that invisible line, it is not. But on the other hand, God is used to judging human sin, and He does so with understanding, as the only true judge, taking into account all background factors which led to the sinful behaviour.</p>


text:
<p>But I have made Esau bare,I have uncovered his secret places, and he shall not be able to hide himself: his seed is destroyed, and his brothers, and his neighbours; and he is no more- We would all claim to believe that God sees and knows all things, and yet our behaviour and thinking at times implies we think there are "secret places" hidden from His view. Edom had the same mentality (<a href='B:300 49:10'>Jer 49:10</a>). God had specifically warned them that their ways were not "hid" from His eyes (<a href='B:300 16:17'>Jer 16:17</a> s:w:). And yet Israel like Edom thought they could hide from Him (<a href='B:300 23:24'>Jer 23:24</a> s:w:).</p>


text:
<p>Leave your fatherless children, I will preserve them alive; and let your widows trust in Me- This is a clear invitation to Edom to repent. They are asked not to focus solely upon their losses and the need to provide for their families in distress, but to trust in Yahweh. So easily faith in Yahweh is eclipsed by our sense that we can be and must be the saviour of the moment.</p>


text:
<p>For thus says Yahweh: Behold, they to whom it didn’t pertain to drink of the cup shall certainly drink; and are you he who shall altogether go unpunished? You shall not go unpunished, but you shall surely drink- Edom had the attitude that the cup of Divine judgment could not come to them. This is a theme of all these final prophecies upon the nations- they thought, as did the Jews amongst them, that they could somehow avoid judgment. There were people who were not the objects of judgment who would suffer collateral damage from the judgments, and thereby they too drunk of it. So Edom shouldn’t think that she should escape because of her geography and nature of her location.</p>


text:
<p>For I have sworn by Myself, says Yahweh, that Bozrah shall become an astonishment, a reproach, a waste, and a curse; and all its cities shall be perpetual wastes- The strength of the language against Edom always seems somewhat harsher than the words against the other nations; here God swears by Himself, as He can find no greater way to express the truth (<a href='B:650 6:13'>Heb 6:13</a>). Perhaps this is because Edom, which is Esau, was Jacob’s brother. What we do against our brother in the faith is so especially culpable before God. Edom or Esau was singled out for such special condemnation because he was Jacob’s brother (<a href='B:380 1:10'>Oba 1:10</a>). This was not the case for the Egyptians, Babylonians, Assyrians, Philistines etc. Jacob and Esau were admittedly somewhat separated, and Jacob hadn’t been the best brother to Esau. But they were still brothers, and God expected much better of Esau / Edom than He did of the others. And here too we find a penetrating challenge. Our brethren whom we may view askance, from whom we may be separated by the way life has gone for us, are still our brothers. And we are judged very sensitively according to our attitudes toward them, especially in the time of their distress, however justified we may feel that distress to be.</p>


text:
<p>I have heard news from Yahweh, and an ambassador is sent among the nations saying- Jeremiah is telling Edom that he had heard inside news, as it were, from Yahweh. Surely the reason for telling Edom ahead of time is so that they might repent. The Hebrew for "ambassador" is also translated "messenger", which is also what the Hebrew for "angel" means. So perhaps an Angel is in view, sent amongst the nations to stir them up to a battle which would result in the destruction of Edom. It was as if Jeremiah was allowed a vision of the court of heaven, the heavenly throne room, where decisions were made and Angels sent out to operationalize them. Obadiah was given the same insight concerning Edom, as he reports in the same words in <a href='B:380 1:1'>Oba 1:1</a>.</p><p>Gather yourselves together, and come against her, and rise up to the battle- According to Obadiah, who repeats this prophecy with further interpretation, the judgment of Edom was to result in the restoration of Israel’s Kingdom. This could have happened at various points in the history of Judah and Israel, but it didn’t, because Israel didn’t repent and the restoration was not conducted spiritually. The ultimate fulfilment of this prophecy, as of all prophecy, will be in the last days.</p>


text:
<p>For, behold, I have made you small among the nations, and despised among men- The past tense here must be compared with the present tense&nbsp; used elsewhere about Edom’s pride at that time. It is therefore a prophetic perfect- God’s word, both of judgment and salvation blessing, is so certain of fulfilment that it can be spoken as having already happened. This is why there are passages which speak of the believer’s salvation as if it has already occurred, whereas at this point in human time we are still mortal. It was Israel / Jacob who were made small among the nations; Jacob was the "younger", s:w. ’smaller’, son compared to Esau (<a href='B:10 27:15'>Gen 27:15</a>; <a href='B:10 27:42'>Gen 27:42</a>). Esau / Edom was to receive the judgment of Jacob. This is a major theme of the Apocalypse, that Israel’s enemies suffer as she suffers; the seals of judgment upon Israel are in essence repeated in the vials of judgment upon the surrounding nations.</p>


text:
<p>As for your terror, the pride of your heart has deceived you- It was their apparently awesome human strength which deceived Esau / Edom, according to the parallel in <a href='B:380 1:13'>Oba 1:13</a>. And in <a href='B:380 1:7'>Oba 1:7</a> it is the other nations in the confederacy against Israel who deceive Edom. They praised Edom’s strength, and Edom’s heart was thereby lifted up in pride. The problem with human strength is that it deceives; we thereby play God and become proud.</p><p>O you who dwell in the clefts of the rock, who hold the height of the hill- Pride is consistently given as the reason for the judgment of nations. God is so sensitive to it, and so should we be. The allusion is to how the houses in Petra were carved out of caves in the rock. Edom is recorded as having expelled the Horites from the area where the Edomites settled, and ’Horite’ is literally ’a cave dweller’. The consistent message of the prophets is that human strength will not save ultimately, and is in fact an abomination to the God who loves humble trust in Him above all things.</p><p>Though you should make your nest as high as the eagle, I will bring you down from there, says Yahweh- <a href='B:300 49:22'>Jer 49:22</a> says that an eagle greater than them shall take them away from their mountain fortress.</p>


text:
<p>Edom shall become an astonishment: each one who passes by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss at all its plagues- This is the language of judgment upon Jerusalem; it would come also upon Edom. Esau would not be able to consider himself superior to Jacob; he would have the same judgment. But the full extent of the destruction of Edomite territory didn’t then happen; see on :18,21.</p>


text:
<p>As in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighbouring cities, says Yahweh, no man shall dwell there, neither shall any son of man live therein- This has never quite come true for the land of Edom; the implication is that the whole area would be punished in some way which made the whole area uninhabitable, as happened to Sodom. But this has been rescheduled to the last days. See on :17,21; <a href='B:300 50:12'>Jer 50:12</a>.</p>


text:
<p>Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the pride of the Jordan against the strong habitation: for I will suddenly make them run away from it; and whoever is chosen, him will I appoint over it: for who is like Me? And who will appoint Me a time? And who is the shepherd who will stand before Me?- This verse is repeated word for word in <a href='B:300 50:44'>Jer 50:44</a>; is likewise about Babylon in <a href='B:300 50:45'>Jer 50:45</a>. There is a theme that all the nations around Judah were to be given the same appeal for repentance. It was God’s intention that they too repented, along with Israel and Judah, and formed part of a restored kingdom of God in the whole eretz promised to Abraham. This didn’t happen at the time, and so it is reapplied and rescheduled to the last days. The chosen shepherd appointed over Edom or Babylon will then ultimately be the Lord Jesus, the good shepherd. But in the immediate application, it could have been Cyrus the Persian or Darius the Mede, who were the shepherds to be appointed over Edom and Babylon (<a href='B:290 44:28'>Isa 44:28</a>).</p>


text:
<p>Therefore hear the counsel of Yahweh that He has taken against Edom; and His purposes, that He has purposed against the inhabitants of Teman: Surely they shall drag them away, the little ones of the flock; surely he shall make their habitation desolate over them- See on :19. But <a href='B:300 18:8'>Jer 18:8</a> clearly states that this purpose could have been changed, using the same word to say that God will "repent of the evil that I purposed to do to them". It was God’s intention that all the nations around Israel would repent along with His people, and turn to Him. Even Edom could have repented at this point. "Therefore hear the counsel of Yahweh..." is surely an appeal for repentance. That God should make so much effort with hardened worldlings... indicates His depth of concern for human salvation. And it should encourage us in our witness.</p>


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<p>The earth trembles at the noise of their fall; there is a cry, the noise which is heard in the Red Sea- The idea is that the entire area of Edom suffers an earthquake, reminiscent of the earthquake and topographical changes which seem to have occurred at the exodus. The Red Sea was the limit of their territory- <a href='B:110 9:26'>1Ki 9:26</a> speaks of "Eloth, on the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom". But this didn’t happen as planned at the time; see on :18.</p>


text:
<p>Behold, he shall come up and fly as the eagle, and spread out his wings against Bozrah: and the heart of the mighty men of Edom at that day shall be as the heart of a woman in her pangs- As noted on :16, the Edomites thought they were inaccessible as an eagle to Divine judgment; but a greater eagle would come upon them. Again the metaphor has hope of a new birth out of this calamity. The Divine hope was that Edom along with Moab (<a href='B:300 48:41'>Jer 48:41</a>) and Israel would repent and form a reborn people in the restored Kingdom of God in Israel.</p>


text:
<p>Of Damascus. Hamath is confounded, and Arpad; for they have heard evil news, they are melted away: there is sorrow on the sea; it can’t be quiet- This partly repeats the prophecy against Damascus of <a href='B:290 17:1-11'>Isa 17:1-11</a>; but <a href='B:290 17:7'>Isa 17:7</a> is insistent that as a result of this, some in Damascus would repent. These prophecies of doom are not just droning on negatively; the hope is that they would respond to the news being given them ahead of time regarding their fall. Thelanguage of the restless sea alludes to <a href='B:290 57:19-20'>Isa 57:19-20</a>. They need not have been like that; peace with God was possible through their repentance.</p>


text:
<p>Damascus has grown feeble, she turns herself to flee, and trembling has seized on her: anguish and sorrows have taken hold of her, as of a woman in travail- This was presumably because of the threat of Babylon, although there is little historical evidence about this; I suggest on :25 that this was part of a prophetic scenario which didn’t then come about. The reason for her judgment was because of what she had done to God’s people (<a href='B:370 1:3'>Amo 1:3</a>); she had judged them too harshly, with iron threshing instruments, overstepping the Divine command to judge His people. And that was to be the problem with Babylon herself, and the reason for her condemnation.</p>


text:
<p>How is the city of praise not forsaken, the city of My joy!- This has to be a reference to Zion, the joy of the whole earth (<a href='B:230 48:2'>Psa 48:2</a>). Although Zion was far from being that at the time (<a href='B:310 2:15'>Lam 2:15</a>), God saw (as we should) to the realities of the future Kingdom of God as if they were present realities. The prophetic scenario was that&nbsp; Damascus would fall, but Zion would be again exalted and indeed become the joy of the whole earth, no longer forsaken as she currently was. But the lack of repentance by both Israel and Damascus meant that this didn’t work out at the time; perhaps that is why as noted on :24 the Babylonian desolation of Damascus didn’t happen at that time as it could. All these things will come to their final truth, in essence, in the last days.</p>


text:
<p>Therefore her young men shall fall in her streets, and all the men of war shall be brought to silence in that day, says Yahweh of Armies- This is the language of Zion’s judgment. What they had done or wanted to do to God’s people would be done to them. Again we see that even in Old Testament times, attitude to God’s people is the basis for judgment. And that is an abiding principle for us today.</p>


text:
<p>I will kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus, and it shall devour the palaces of Ben Hadad- This is alluded to in Amo 1:4; Amo 1:14. But the context of those prophecies is that it will happen in the day when Yahweh roars from out of Zion (Amo 1:2), in "the day of the whirlwind" (Amo 1:14). I suggested on :24,25 that these judgments on Damascus didn’t come true as they could have done at the time, but will do so in the last days. And that seems to be the point of Amos repeating these words.</p>


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<p>Of Kedar, and of the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon struck. Thus says Yahweh: Arise, go up to Kedar, and destroy the children of the east- Babylon is portrayed as obedient to a Divine command to do so, acting as Yahweh’s servant. Babylon’s judgment was because they overstepped what they were commanded to do. Kedar and Hazor refer to the Bedouin Arabs (:29). Hazor may not refer to the city of that name but may be a take on hazer, an unwalled village of the type the Bedouins lived in (:31).</p>


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<p>Their tents and their flocks shall they take; they shall carry away for themselves their curtains, and all their vessels, and their camels; and they shall cry to them, Terror on every side!- This "terror on every side" quotes the judgment upon Judah in <a href='B:300 6:25'>Jer 6:25</a>. Even the wandering Bedouin Arabs (see on :28) were to experience the judgments which came upon Judah. But this was so that they might be able to identify with God’s people through this experience, and come to accept Israel’s God. It is not simply so that ’what goes around comes around’; there is a purpose in these judgments repeating themselves. It was so that those who had witnessed and participated in the judgment of Israel might come to see how it felt, and thereby repent. We too are at times made to feel the effect of our actions upon others- for the same reason.</p>


text:
<p>Flee, wander far off, dwell in the depths, you inhabitants of Hazor, says Yahweh; for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has taken counsel against you, and has conceived a purpose against you- Hazor may not refer to the city of that name but may be a take on hazer, an unwalled village of the type the Bedouins lived in (:31). Taking counsel and conceiving a purpose are exactly the words used of what Yahweh does (<a href='B:300 29:11'>Jer 29:11</a>; <a href='B:300 49:20'>Jer 49:20</a>; <a href='B:300 50:45'>Jer 50:45</a>). But here, Nebuchadnezzar does so. Clearly God placed in his heart to fulfill His will. This is how God can work; placing desires and ideas in the human mind. This work upon the human spirit is achieved byGod’s Spirit; and this is how His Holy Spirit can work in our lives if we are open to it. Babylon was not condemned because they conceived these purposes; but because they overstepped the commissions given, leading them into the sin which called forth such condemnation.</p>


text:
<p>Arise, go up to a nation that is at ease, that dwells without care, says Yahweh; that have neither gates nor bars, that dwell alone- Just as Babylon "conceived a purpose" against those who live without bars and gates (:30), so the latter day invader led by Gog will "conceive a purpose" (s:w. <a href='B:330 38:10'>Eze 38:10</a>) to attack an Israel dwelling without gates and bars (<a href='B:330 38:11'>Eze 38:11</a>). The Babylonian attack upon the Bedouin Arabs therefore serves as a prototype of the latter day attack upon Israel. The description of these people as ’dwelling alone’ is the very phrase used of Israel (<a href='B:40 23:9'>Num 23:9</a>); this highlights the connection.</p>


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<p>Their camels shall be a booty, and the multitude of their livestock a spoil: and I will scatter to all winds those who have the corners of their beards cut off; and I will bring their calamity on them from every side, says Yahweh- Whether Nebuchadnezzar did this is not strongly attested to historically. But as noted on :2,24, we are seeing here a potential scenario of what could have come about, but which was rescheduled to fulfilment in the last days.</p>


text:
<p>Hazor shall be a dwelling place of jackals, a desolation forever: no man shall dwell there, neither shall any son of man live therein- Just as was predicted of Edom (<a href='B:300 49:18'>Jer 49:18</a>) and of the cities of Judah (<a href='B:300 10:22'>Jer 10:22</a>). Divine judgment has the same hallmark wherever it is executed.</p>


text:
<p>The word of Yahweh that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning Elam, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying- The book of Jeremiah is not chronological but thematic. The theme here is of the nations around Judah being judged for what they had done to Judah. The fact Elam is mentioned as being judged at the beginning of Zedekiah’s reign could imply that they had played some part in the early Babylonian attack upon Judah which resulted in the dethronement and captivity of Jehoiachin, whom Zedekiah replaced. Elam is not Persia proper; they were confederate with the Assyrians in attacking Judah earlier (Isa 22:6).</p>


text:
<p>Thus says Yahweh of Armies: Behold, I will break the bow of Elam, the chief of their might- According to some of the cuneiform tablets acquired in 1878 by the British Museum, "At the very time when Nebuchadnezzar was taking an oath of allegiance from Zedekiah, he was also engaged in hostilities against Elam". So the breaking of Elam’s power was to be by Babylon. The breaking of Elam’s bow is because they had used their bow and quiver against Judah (<a href='B:290 22:6'>Isa 22:6</a>). Consistently, attitude toward God’s people is the basis for judgment; and that is the lesson for us. The day of judgment will not be a theological examination, but rather a consideration of how we dealt with the hungry, thirsty and naked.</p>


text:
<p>On Elam will I bring the four winds from the four quarters of the sky, and will scatter them towards all those winds; and there shall be no nation where the outcasts of Elam shall not come- These four winds appear to refer to Angelic powers (<a href='B:450 6:5'>Zec 6:5</a>; <a href='B:230 104:4'>Psa 104:4</a>). And yet the reference is to Babylonian forces. Babylon was a manifestation of the four cherubim figures seen in Ezekiel 1; they were controlled by God, doing His will.</p>


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<p>I will cause Elam to be dismayed before their enemies, and before those who seek their life; and I will bring evil on them, even My fierce anger, says Yahweh; and I will send the sword after them, until I have consumed them- As noted on :36, the Babylonians were sent by God. They were His sword, sent by Him. The simple takeaway from all this is that there is no radical evil in the cosmos; all is under God’s control and supervision.</p>


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<p>and I will set My throne in Elam, and will destroy from there king and princes, says Yahweh- This didn’t happen at Jeremiah’s time; but it was the potential. Their king and princes would be destroyed because Yahweh was to become their accepted king and they would thereby become part of His Kingdom. And it will come true at the last day; see on :39.</p>


text:
<p>But it shall happen in the latter days, that I will restore the fortunes of Elam, says Yahweh- They too were intended to participate in the peace to come upon the entire eretz promised to Abraham. It was God’s intention to restore not just Israel, but all the peoples within the land, many of whom were in fact relatives of Abraham. The final fulfilment of these prophecies will be in the last day. Although we perhaps see an incipient fulfilment in that there were Elamites who converted to the God of Israel in <a href='B:510 2:9'>Act 2:9</a>.</p>


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<p>The word that Yahweh spoke concerning Babylon, concerning the land of the Chaldeans, by Jeremiah the prophet- To speak of Babylon in the hostile way the prophets do, especially as here signing oneself as the human author, was a brave and unpopular thing (Isaiah 13, 14, 21, 46; Jeremiah 50, 51; often in Zechariah). We know from Ezekiel 8, Jeremiah 44 and Zechariah 5 that many Jews had accepted the idols of their Babylonian conquerors, rather like Ahaz did after his defeat by Assyria (<a href='B:120 16:10'>2Ki 16:10</a>). The spirit of ridiculing the idolatry of Babylon whilst living in it, waiting the call to leave, is so relevant to modern Christians working, living and waiting in latter day Babylon. <a href='B:300 25:13'>Jer 25:13</a> had stated: "I will bring on that land all My words which I have pronounced against it, even all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah has prophesied against all the nations". These are clearly the words written in the prophecies against Babylon and the other nations here at the end of Jeremiah. The book of Jeremiah isn’t arranged chronologically; <a href='B:300 25:13'>Jer 25:13</a> sounds as if "this book" of Jeremiah had been finished at this point:&nbsp;</p>


text:
<p>Declare among the nations and publish, and set up a standard; publish, and don’t conceal: say, Babylon is taken, Bel is disappointed, Merodach is dismayed; her images are disappointed, her idols are dismayed- This is the ultimate end of all idolatry, of all life lived without total devotion to God- disappointment. Life is only in Yahweh; both eternal life, and meaningful life now. Just before the Babylonian conquest of Jerusalem, the Jews within the city were making those very same idols, and would be disappointed in them just as Babylon was to be in the end (<a href='B:300 10:14'>Jer 10:14</a> s:w:). The desire to worship is built within the human condition. And we become like what we worship (<a href='B:230 115:8'>Psa 115:8</a>). It is therefore critically important to worship the right thing.</p><p>The news of Babylon’s fall was to be published. Jeremiah had been the object of special care from Nebuchadnezzar, and so these prophecies against Babylon would appear to be biting the hand which fed him. Perhaps this was why Jeremiah chose not to go to Babylon, but to remain with the poor remnant of Jews in Judah. He knew that Babylon was to fall and he was to proclaim that, but it would be easier to achieve his prophetic mission if he published that message from somewhere outside of Babylon. We too are in a similar apparently difficult position in proclaiming the fall of this world, upon which in a secular sense we depend.</p>


text:
<p>For out of the north there comes up a nation against her, which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell therein: they are fled, they are gone, both man and animal- Just as Babylon had been the nation from the north who would bring God’ judgments, so now she is to be judged from the north. She was to be made to realize how she had made others feel. It is not simply so that ’what goes around comes around’; there is a purpose in these judgments repeating themselves. It was so that those who had witnessed and participated in the judgment of Israel might come to see how it felt, and thereby repent. We too are at times made to feel the effect of our actions upon others- for the same reason.</p><p>Time and again the prophets describe the judgments to fall upon Israel in the same terms as they speak of the condemnations of the surrounding nations (e.g. <a href='B:300 50:3'>Jer 50:3</a>; <a href='B:300 50:13'>Jer 50:13</a>). The message was clear: rejected Israel would be treated as Gentiles. Even if we are separated from this world externally, we can still act in a worldly way, and share the world’s condemnation.</p>


text:
<p>In those days, and in that time, says Yahweh, the children of Israel shall come, they and the children of Judah together; they shall go on their way weeping, and shall seek Yahweh their God- This is critical for us to understand the prophecies about Babylon. The intended prophetic scenario was that the fall of Babylon would coincide with the repentance of both the ten tribes and Judah; they would come "together", on the basis of the common experience of weeping repentance, and return to Zion. It is the common experience of God’s grace and recognition of our sins which is the basis for unity in practice amongst God’s people, rather than any dry theological agreement. The weeping of Ezra and Nehemiah was the basis for their desire to return to Zion (<a href='B:150 10:1'>Ezr 10:1</a>; <a href='B:160 1:4'>Neh 1:4</a>). But the ’restoration’ of the Jews was generally not upon that basis. Many chose to remain in captivity, and those who did return were motivated by a desire for personal benefit in the land grants they expected to receive in the land. And the restoration prophets are clear that many of them were not at all spiritually motivated. So the intended prophetic scenario didn’t come about, and this in turn affected the outcome of the prophecies of the fall of Babylon.</p>


text:
<p>They shall inquire concerning Zion with their faces turned towards it saying, Come, and join yourselves to Yahweh in an everlasting covenant that shall not be forgotten- The potential new covenant of <a href='B:300 31:31'>Jer 31:31</a> is spoken about in Jeremiah 50, where we read that Babylon would fall as God’s revenge for what they did to God’s people, and then Judah in their exile would return to Zion whilst inviting others to come and join themselves to that same new covenant. Indeed at the time ofBabylon’s fall, Judah were to heed God’s call to “Remove out of the midst of Babylon”, who had taken them captives (<a href='B:300 50:8'>Jer 50:8</a>; <a href='B:300 50:33'>Jer 50:33</a>). Babylon did fall; and yet Judah did not return. Indeed, Daniel the Jew became a senior ruler in the administration that followed Babylon’s fall (<a href='B:340 5:31'>Dan 5:31</a>). They themselves refused the new covenant, and didn’t invite Babylon and the surrounding peoples to join it. They would "ask the way to Zion" although their faces were already set to go there (AV); they would accept the call of <a href='B:300 6:16'>Jer 6:16</a> to ask or inquire for the Godly ways (s:w:), asking for their own intention to be confirmed; for their faces were already "turned towards it". And they would have been answered. But there is no evidence that they did ask for this.</p>


text:
<p>My people have been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray; they have turned them away on the mountains; they have gone from mountain to hill- God in His zeal to think positively about His people lays the blame upon their bad shepherds. But we have often noted throughout Jeremiah that the people and the leadership are usually addressed together; the people were punished for their own sins, and their shepherds were only teaching what they perceived the people themselves wanted to hear. But God is as it were gushing in His desire to be positive about His people; and that is how He feels toward us too. And we should reflect that positivity.</p><p>They have forgotten their resting place- Zion, their resting place, had been forgotten by them in exile, despite their cultural loyalty to it. This is proof enough that Christian culture of itself is not enough; in reality they had forgotten Zion, despite singing songs such as <a href='B:230 137:5'>Psa 137:5</a> which avow their eternal remembrance of Zion.</p>


text:
<p>All who found them have devoured them; and their adversaries said, We are not guilty, because they have sinned against Yahweh- The devourers of Israel considered themselves "not guilty" because Judah had sinned against their God. But the clear statement in <a href='B:300 2:3'>Jer 2:3</a> is that "All who devour him shall be held guilty". Punishing a sinner doesn’t mean that those who do the punishing are thereby justified; we can be used by God, but that is no guarantee of righteousness or acceptability. This needs to be remembered by those who consider they can punish sinners within the church; they may well be held equally guilty for the lack of love they showed.</p><p>The habitation of righteousness, even Yahweh, the hope of their fathers- Jerusalem would be known as the habitation of the righteous one when Messiah came. But they refused that potential. Babylon is presented as being Yahweh’s servant, doing what He commanded against both Israel and the nations. This raises the question as to whether God would then turn around and condemn Babylon for their obedience. I suggest that Babylon is condemned because they overstepped the bounds of their commission. Indeed God wanted Babylon to accept Him; that was His desire. It was their refusal to do so, and their abuse of God’s people beyond what they were commanded, which was the basis for their condemnation.</p>


text:
<p>Flee out of the midst of Babylon, and go forth out of the land of the Chaldeans- The offer of rest was rejected by the exiles then; but is taken up now by all who accept Christ, realizing that they are in the same state as the exiles in Babylon. “Come out from among them and be ye separate” (<a href='B:540 6:17'>2Co 6:17</a>) is picking up the language of <a href='B:290 48:20'>Isa 48:20</a>; <a href='B:290 52:11'>Isa 52:11</a>; <a href='B:300 50:8'>Jer 50:8</a>; <a href='B:450 2:7'>Zec 2:7</a> concerning the return of the exiles from Babylon. The edict of Cyrus for the Jews to return to the land is in a sense pointing forward to God’s command to us to leave the spirit of Babylon, the Gentile world, and go up to do His work. The returned exiles are us. Those who left Babylon did so of their own freewill (<a href='B:150 7:13'>Ezr 7:13</a>), and yet providential events stirred up their spirits to do this (<a href='B:150 1:5'>Ezr 1:5</a>); and the way was prepared in miraculous way. And so it is for us, in our exodus from this world and from the flesh.</p><p>God will confirm us in coming out from the world. He told His people to flee from Babylon, to come out of her and return to His land and Kingdom (<a href='B:290 48:20'>Isa 48:20</a>; <a href='B:290 52:7'>Isa 52:7</a>; <a href='B:300 50:8'>Jer 50:8</a>; <a href='B:450 2:7'>Zec 2:7</a>). Babylon offered them a secure life, wealth, a society which accepted them (<a href='B:190 8:17'>Est 8:17</a>; <a href='B:190 10:3'>Est 10:3</a>), houses which they had built for themselves (<a href='B:300 29:5'>Jer 29:5</a>). And they were asked to leave all this, and travel the uncertain wilderness road to the ruins of Israel. They are cited in the NT as types of us in our exit from this world (<a href='B:540 6:17'>2Co 6:17</a>; <a href='B:730 18:4'>Rev 18:4</a>). Those who decided to obey God’s command and leave Babylon were confirmed in this by God: He raised up their spirit to want to return and re-build Jerusalem, and He touched the heart of Cyrus to make decrees which greatly helped them to do this (<a href='B:150 1:2-5'>Ezr 1:2-5</a>). And so the same Lord God of Israel is waiting to confirm us in our every act of separation from the kingdoms of this world, great or small; and He waits not only to receive us, but to be a Father unto us, and to make us His sons and daughters (<a href='B:540 6:18'>2Co 6:18</a>).</p><p>And be as the male goats before the flocks- The idea was that Judah’s repentance would have lead the Gentile flocks of nations to follow them to Zion in repentance. But this didn’t happen, because the Jews weren’t truly repentant, and the flocks didn’t want to follow. Yet in essence it will come true in the last days.</p>


text:
<p>For behold, I will stir up and cause to come up against Babylon a company of great nations from the north country; and they shall set themselves in array against her; from there she shall be taken- Just as God stirred or raised up Babylon to invade Judah (<a href='B:300 6:22'>Jer 6:22</a>), so He would stir up, or psychologically provoke, other nations to come and judge her (<a href='B:300 50:9'>Jer 50:9</a>; <a href='B:300 50:41'>Jer 50:41</a>; <a href='B:300 51:1'>Jer 51:1</a>; <a href='B:300 51:11'>Jer 51:11</a> s:w:). This is greatly emphasized. The activity of God directly upon human hearts is a great theme of the Biblical revelation, and is to encourage us that He is eager to transform hearts, and to place desires within us beyond our own unaided psychological ability.</p><p>Their arrows shall be as of an expert mighty man; none shall return in vain- Every arrow would be guided by God to its mark.</p>


text:
<p>Chaldea shall be a prey: all who prey on her shall be satisfied, says Yahweh- <a href='B:420 2:8'>Hab 2:8</a> says that Chaldea would be a prey because of their violence against God’s land and city. They had been commanded to take the land and city of God; but it seems their violence and bloodlust overstepped the bounds set by God. So it was not that God punished Babylon for being His servant. They were punished because they overstepped the boundary between legitimate punishment and abuse.</p>


text:
<p>Because you are glad, because you rejoice, O you who plunder My inheritance, because you are wanton as a heifer that treads out the grain, and neigh as strong horses- As explained on :10, it was the wanton, joyful plundering of Zion which was the basis of their condemnation. It was as if they were unmuzzled beasts not merely treading out the grain [performing the required judgments] but also eating the grain for themselves.</p>


text:
<p>your mother shall be utterly disappointed; she who bore you shall be confounded: behold, she shall be the least of the nations, a wilderness, a dry land, and a desert- The judgment was to be upon all Babylonia, not just the city of Babylon, who is here described as the mother of Babylon. All attempts to apply this verse solely to the city of Babylon are therefore misplaced; it refers to all Babylonia. And the whole area didn’t become a literal desert; the fertile crescent remained fertile. This recalls how the similar judgments upon the area of Edom likewise didn’t come about at the time; see on <a href='B:300 49:18'>Jer 49:18</a>. But this will happen in the last days.</p>


text:
<p>Because of the wrath of Yahweh she shall not be inhabited, but she shall be wholly desolate: everyone who goes by Babylon shall be astonished, and hiss at all her plagues- As explained on :12, this was part of a wider prophetic scenario, whereby Babylonian would be made like this and a repentant Judah and Israel would return to their land and their God (see on :3,4). But that scenario didn’t come completely true; although it will in the last days. The language of total desolation implies some radical intervention akin to what happened to Sodom; and that didn’t happen.</p>


text:
<p>Set yourselves in array against Babylon all around, all you who bend the bow; shoot at her, spare no arrows: for she has sinned against Yahweh- I noted on :10,11 that the sin against Yahweh was in elevating herself to Divine status, and punishing Israel more than God intended. For Babylon had been God’s servant, obeying His commands concerning Judah and the nations.</p>


text:
<p>Shout against her all around: she has submitted herself; her bulwarks are fallen, her walls are thrown down; for it is the vengeance of Yahweh: take vengeance on her; as she has done, do to her- The command to "shout" to cause the fall of the walls of Jericho was a reflection of the belief Israel were to have in the fact that God had already given them the city- for the Hebrew for "shout" usually refers to a shout of victory. The word is translated "... will I triumph" in <a href='B:230 60:8'>Psa 60:8</a>; <a href='B:230 108:9'>Psa 108:9</a>. The same idea of shouting in victory over a city which has been given to God’s people recurs in <a href='B:300 50:15'>Jer 50:15</a> - "Shout against her round about [cp. compassing the walls of Jericho]…her foundations are [present tense] fallen, her walls [cp. Jericho’s] are thrown down". And this speaks of our latter day victory against Babylon- thus making the whole account of earnest relevance to us who live in the last days, and who will see Babylon fall by faith. Notice how literal Babylon fell by the water of the river being dried up, and the walls being opened- just the same sequence of events that occurred at Jericho.</p>


text:
<p>Cut off the sower from Babylon, and him who handles the sickle in the time of harvest- Aristotle claims that grain was grown within the walled city area of Babylon. But even the agricultural workers were to be cut off. This didn’t really happen when the Medes conquered the city.</p><p>For fear of the oppressing sword they shall turn each one to his people, and they shall flee each one to his own land- The various captive peoples taken to Babylon would each return to their own land, and Judah were to do likewise. But this isn’t how things quite turned out. This was the prophetic ideal scenario, but it didn’t happen because many Jews preferred to remain in Babylon and they didn’t repent. The impression given is that the attack upon Babylon would reduce the city to ruins immediately. But this didn’t happen under the Medes; it was only some time later that Cyrus further demolished parts of Babylon’s wall, and there was a rebellion of Babylon at the time of Darius Hystapses. The deportation of some of the population happened even later in the time of Seleucus Nicanor. But the impression is given that all this would happen immediately at Babylon’s fall. It didn’t, because the preconditions related to Judah’s repentance didn’t come about. And so the prophecies were reapplied and rescheduled to the last days, and are alluded to throughout Revelation 18 with reference to the fall of latter day Babylon; which appears to not refer to the literal city of Babylon.</p>


text:
<p>Israel is a hunted sheep; the lions have driven him away: first, the king of Assyria devoured him; and now at the last Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has broken his bones- "At the last" suggests that Nebuchadnezzar’s abuse of Israel was "the last" suffering they would endure. That was the potential scenario; for had Israel repented at Babylon’s fall, then a Messianic Kingdom of God would have been reestablished in Israel. But this didn’t happen, and so this was not "the last" suffering of Israel.</p><p>The ’scattering’ or ’driving away’ to the gods of many different peoples (s:w. <a href='B:300 3:13'>Jer 3:13</a>) would result in them being appropriately scattered amongst those nations (s:w. <a href='B:190 3:8'>Est 3:8</a>; <a href='B:360 3:2'>Joe 3:2</a>). Judgment was really a reflecting back to them of what they in essence had done.</p>


text:
<p>Therefore thus says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel: Behold, I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, as I have punished the king of Assyria- The Assyrians were overthrown by the Medes and the Chaldeans. The Medes would again be used against Babylon.</p>


text:
<p>I will bring Israel again to his pasture, and he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan, and his soul shall be satisfied on the hills of Ephraim and in Gilead- As noted on :3,4, the prophetic potential was that the fall of Babylon would coincide with the return of Israel to their land. But these events didn’t happen together, because Judah didn’t repent, and most of the ten tribes and Judah preferred to stay in exile. Carmel, Bashan, Mount Ephraim, and Gilead, were in the territory of the ten tribes, and they showed no interest in repenting or returning to the land.</p>


text:
<p>In those days and in that time, says Yahweh, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I leave as a remnant- This would be because they had accepted the new covenant (<a href='B:300 31:34'>Jer 31:34</a>). But they didn’t; and so the prophetic scenario was precluded from coming true at the time as was potentially possible. That will be true for Israel in the last days, and for those who accept the new covenant today. The wonderful certainty of salvation and freedom from condemnation is brought out by the wonderful figure of the courtroom. God is the prosecutor- yet He is the one who shall search for Israel’s sin, and admit that it cannot be found (<a href='B:300 50:20'>Jer 50:20</a>). God is both judge,advocate for the defence, and prosecutor- and this is God is for us, the guilty! <a href='B:520 8:33-34'>Rom 8:33-34</a> develops the figure at length. The person bringing the complaint of sin against us is God alone- for there is no personal devil to do so. And the judge who can alone condemn us is the Lord Jesus alone. And yet we find the one ‘brings the charge’ instead being the very one who justifies us, or as the Greek means, renders us guiltless. The one who brings the charge becomes this strange judge who is so eager to declare us guiltless. And the judge who can alone condemn, or render guilty, is the very one who makes intercession to the judge for us- and moreover, the One who died for us, so passionate is His love. The logic is breathtaking, literally so.</p>


text:
<p>Go up against the land of Merathaim, even against it, and against the inhabitants of Pekod: kill and utterly destroy after them, says Yahweh, and do according to all that I have commanded you- These names are chosen because of their meaning; "Merathaim" is the word used in :24 for how they rebelled or struggled against Yahweh; "Pekod", where Nineveh was located and which had become a province of Babylon, is the same word used for "punish" in :18.</p>


text:
<p>A sound of battle is in the land, and of great destruction- Continually the stress is upon the destruction of "the land" of Babylon. To seek to apply these prophecies just to the city of Babylon is incorrect. The scenario of all Babylonia being destroyed didn’t quite come true at the time as envisaged; the exiles didn’t repent, and so the scenario didn’t at that time come about.</p>


text:
<p>How is the hammer of the whole earth cut apart and broken! How is Babylon become a desolation among the nations!- Jeremiah had used the word for "hammer" earlier in describing the power of God’s word (<a href='B:300 23:29'>Jer 23:29</a>). Babylon had been a hammer on God’s behalf, in fulfilling His word. Now a repentant Israel were to become that hammer, breaking all in pieces (<a href='B:300 51:20-23'>Jer 51:20-23</a>). But this didn’t happen, because Israel were not repentant and were therefore unwilling to be used by God for this. They could have been the little stone of <a href='B:340 2:44'>Dan 2:44</a> which returned from Babylon and destroyed the kingdoms upon the eretz in order to prepare the way for Yahweh’s eternal kingdom. But they would not. And so these things are to come true in the last days, when a repentant and therefore willing Israel will become Yahweh’s weapons to establish His Kingdom and do all the necessary ’breaking’ (<a href='B:300 51:20'>Jer 51:20</a>).</p>


text:
<p>I have laid a snare for you, and you are also caught, Babylon, and you weren’t aware: you are found, and also caught, because you have struggled against Yahweh- The immediate application was in the Medes attacking Babylon unawares, by drying up the water of the protective river system around the city. Babylon had been given commands relating to Judah and the surrounding nations; but they had gone beyond fulfilling them, and had therefore striven against Yahweh, effectively declaring themselves to be Yahweh, and their kingdom as His Kingdom.</p>


text:
<p>Yahweh has opened His armoury and has brought forth the weapons of His indignation; for the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, has a work to do in the land of the Chaldeans- The Medes and their confederate peoples had been prepared by Yahweh for the work in hand; they had as it were been stored up in His armoury for this moment.</p>


text:
<p>Come against her from the utmost border; open her storehouses; cast her up as heaps, and destroy her utterly; let nothing of her be left- The impression is given that the famed storehouses of Babylon were to be opened at the same time as she was turned into heaps with nothing left. But this didn’t happen when the Medes took the city. It was only some time later that Cyrus further demolished parts of Babylon’s wall, and there was a rebellion of Babylon at the time of Darius Hystapses. The deportation of some of the population happened even later in the time of Seleucus Nicanor. But the impression is given that all this would happen immediately at Babylon’s fall. It didn’t, because the preconditions related to Judah’s repentance didn’t come about. And so the prophecies were reapplied and rescheduled to the last days, and are alluded to throughout Revelation 18 with reference to the fall of latter day Babylon; which appears to not refer to the literal city of Babylon.</p>


text:
<p>Kill all her bulls; let them go down to the slaughter: woe to them! For their day has come, the time of their visitation- It has been observed that the slaughterhouses were below the river, and when the river was dried up, the soldiers of the Medes approached into the city through those slaughterhouses.</p>


text:
<p>The voice of those who flee and escape out of the land of Babylon, todeclare in Zion the vengeance of Yahweh our God, the vengeance of His temple- As noted on :3,4, we are reading here of a potential prophetic scenario which didn’t actually come about at the time. The command to flee and escape from Babylon was largely ignored. The idea was that around the time when Babylon fell, the repentant Jewish and Israelite exiles would return to Zion. There, they would declare with joy that Babylon had fallen. But this isn’t what happened. They didn’t repent and most didn’t return to the land. The prophecy is therefore to be reapplied and rescheduled to the last days, as Revelation 18 makes clear.</p>


text:
<p>Call together the archers against Babylon, all those who bend the bow; encamp against her all around; let none of it escape: recompense her according to her work; according to all that she has done, do to her- As noted on :26, much of Babylon did escape when the Medes attacked and conquered her. This projected scenario didn’t come about at the time, and yet will do in essence in its latter day fulfilment.</p><p>For she has been proud against Yahweh, against the Holy One of Israel- I have repeatedly made the point that Babylon is presented as being Yahweh’s servant, doing what He commanded against both Israel and the nations, with Him putting the ideas into the king of Babylon’s mind. God surely would not then turn around and condemn Babylon for their obedience. I suggest that Babylon is condemned because they overstepped the bounds of their commission, they were proud, and established themselves as Yahweh with their kingdom as His kingdom.</p>


text:
<p>Therefore her young men will fall in her streets, and all her men of war will be brought to silence in that day, says Yahweh- This is what was done to Jerusalem, as Jeremiah frequently expresses in his Lamentations.</p>


text:
<p>Behold, I am against you, you proud one, says the Lord, Yahweh of Armies; for your day has come, the time that I will visit you- Again, it was the pride of Babylon which led to her judgment; she had been Yahweh’s servant, doing His will upon Judah and her neighbours. But she went too far and became exalted with pride, just as Isaiah 14 and other prophecies against Babylon make clear. The judgments against Babylon are perhaps the parade example of how seriously God views pride.</p>


text:
<p>The proud one shall stumble and fall, and none shall raise him up; and I will kindle a fire in his cities, and it shall devour all who are around him- Again, as noted on :31, it was pride which was the reason for Babylon’s judgment and not the fact she had invaded Judah; for that had been at Yahweh’s bidding and initiative. The destruction of all the cities of Babylonia with fire didn’t happen; indeed, the Medes didn’t destroy Babylon itself with fire; see on :26. This was the potential prophetic scenario which didn’t come about, because Judah didn’t repent (see on :3,4).</p>


text:
<p>Thus says Yahweh of Armies: The children of Israel and the children of Judah are oppressed together; and all who took them captive hold them fast; they refuse to let them go- Because the Jews oppressed Gentiles (<a href='B:300 7:6'>Jer 7:6</a> s:w:), therefore they were to be oppressed by them (<a href='B:50 28:29'>Deu 28:29</a>; <a href='B:50 28:33'>Deu 28:33</a> s:w:). They were acting as "the oppressor" to God’s people too (<a href='B:300 21:12'>Jer 21:12</a> s:w:), and so they too were oppressed by the Babylonians. How they treated their brethren was directly related to how they would be treated in their judgment, and this principle applies for all time. Their judgments were appropriate to their sins, as were Babylon’s. But again we have here an example of why I say that we are reading about a potential prophetic scenario. There is no evidence that Israel and Judah actually strongly wanted to be allowed to return to their land at the end of 70 years; Judah responded poorly to the decree of Cyrus to return, and most of the ten tribes remained willfully in exile. But the prophetic potential was that Israel and Judah "together" would repent and return together. But they chose not to. Had they done so, and earnestly wanted to return to restore Zion, then Babylon would have been guilty of acting as Pharaoh, refusing to let God’s people go; and would have been punished appropriately:&nbsp;</p>


text:
<p>Their Redeemer is strong- At that time, God was willing to be strong to show Himself Judah’s redeemer- but they chose to remain in Babylon under the Medo-Persian administration. So they did not ask the way to Zion and seek a new covenant with Yahweh; and thus the promises of a new covenant, strong redemption in Yahweh, a Messiah figure arising, were all delayed and re-interpreted in their fulfilment. &nbsp; See on :5.</p><p>Yahweh of Armies is His name: He will thoroughly plead their cause- "Plead their cause" is legal language. As explained on <a href='B:300 25:31'>Jer 25:31</a>, it was a complicated case, with counter appeals which resulted in everyone being condemned- and yet Judah then being finally justified, by grace. Yahweh had this legal case with Judah whom He condemned, and then with the peoples who supported Babylon against her (<a href='B:300 25:31'>Jer 25:31</a>); and then He has this case against Babylon (<a href='B:300 51:36'>Jer 51:36</a>) during which He is advocate for Judah, whose cause He legally pleads in the court case (<a href='B:300 50:34'>Jer 50:34</a>) of which He is judge as well as advocate for the defence. Being both advocate and judge, we see the certainty of Judah’s final justification- if they chose to accept His amazing grace in justifying them.</p><p>That He may give rest to the earth, and disquiet the inhabitants of Babylon- The fall of Babylon was intended to lead to "rest" to the eretz promised to Abraham, in the form of the restored Kingdom of God in Israel. But this didn’t in fact happen at that time. The prophetic picture here is only to come true in the last days, as Revelation 18 makes clear.</p>


text:
<p>A sword is on the Chaldeans, says Yahweh, and on the inhabitants of Babylon, on her princes and on her wise men- The idea of a sword hanging over Babylon is an image used elsewhere about Jerusalem, and the idea is that there was therefore an appeal for repentance. This is what God wanted to see from Babylon.</p>


text:
<p>A sword is on the boasters, and they shall become fools; a sword is on her mighty men, and they shall be dismayed- As noted on :31 and often, Babylon was judged above all for her pride and exaltation of human strength and wisdom. Babylon is set up as a fake Christ and Kingdom of God. She had proselytes and prophets ["boasters"] (<a href='B:300 50:36-37'>Jer 50:36-37</a>); a mountain (<a href='B:300 51:25'>Jer 51:25</a>); "The golden city" (<a href='B:290 14:4'>Isa 14:4</a>) with a thick, embellished wall (<a href='B:300 51:58'>Jer 51:58</a>); springs and rivers within her (<a href='B:300 51:36'>Jer 51:36</a>); “The praise of the whole earth” (<a href='B:300 51:41'>Jer 51:41</a>). Her sin was that she thought of herself in her own right as the kingdom of God, instead of humbling herself to become part of His Kingdom.</p>


text:
<p>A sword is on their horses, and on their chariots, and on all the mixed people who are in the midst of her; and they shall become as women: a sword is on her treasures, and they shall be robbed- The idea of a sword hanging over Babylon is an image used elsewhere about Jerusalem, and the idea is that there was therefore an appeal for repentance. This is what God wanted to see from Babylon. It was trust in horses, chariots and wealth which was so abhorrent to God; this was the basis for the pride which brought about her judgment; see on :31.</p>


text:
<p>A drought is on her waters, and they shall be dried up; for it is a land of engraved images, and they are mad over idols- This was partly fulfilled by the Medes diverting the course of the Euphrates in order to take Babylon by surprise; although Layard uncovered inscriptions which say that Babylon opened her own gates in surrender. The judgments described here are upon her "land"; perhaps all the water sources are in view and not just the river around the city of Babylon. And this didn’t happen to all of Babylonia. What was in view was a destruction of all Babylonia after the pattern of Sodom’s destruction (:40). And that didn’t happen; the prophetic scenario didn’t come true at the time, and Revelation 18 alludes to these prophecies to demonstrate that they will come true in essence only in the very last days.</p>


text:
<p>Therefore the wild animals of the desert with the wolves shall dwell there, and the ostriches shall dwell therein: and it shall be no more inhabited forever; neither shall it be lived in from generation to generation- As noted on :26, much of Babylon did escape when the Medes attacked and conquered her, and the city continued being inhabited for some time. This projected scenario didn’t come about at the time, and yet will do in essence in its latter day fulfilment, as Revelation 18 explains.</p>


text:
<p>As when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighbouring cities, says Yahweh, so shall no man dwell there, neither shall any son of man live therein- Such dramatic destruction of Babylon didn’t happen at the hands of the Medes (see on :26). And we must bear in mind the many hints that the projected judgments were not just upon the city of Babylon but upon the land of Babylon i:e. Babylonia. The image of Sodom’s destruction suggests direct, miraculous Divine intervention. This didn’t happen at Jeremiah’s time, but Revelation 18 alludes to all this and makes it clear that such Divine intervention will occur against latter Babylon in the last days.</p>


text:
<p>Behold, a people comes from the north; and a great nation and many kings shall be stirred up from the uttermost parts of the earth- Just as Babylon had been the nation from the north who would bring God’ judgments, so now she is to be judged from the north. She was to be made to realize how she had made others feel. It is not simply so that ’what goes around comesaround’; there is a purpose in these judgments repeating themselves. It was so that those who had witnessed and participated in the judgment of Israel might come to see how it felt, and thereby repent. We too are at times made to feel the effect of our actions upon others- for the same reason. For "stirred up", see on :9.</p>


text:
<p>They lay hold on bow and spear; they are cruel, and have no mercy; their voice roars like the sea; and they ride on horses, each one set in array as a man to the battle, against you, daughter of Babylon- This quotes the condemnation of Judah in <a href='B:300 6:23'>Jer 6:23</a> and applies it to Babylon. What Babylon had done to Judah was to be done to her. There is a continuity in God’s judgments, they all bear the same Divine hallmark. And the same desire to elicit repentance. The scenario here again doesn’t quite fit the picture of what happened to historical Babylon. There was much support for Darius the Mede within Babylon; both the Babylonian Chronicles and the Cyrus Cylinder describe Babylon being taken "without battle". So the main fulfilment of this must yet be future.</p>


text:
<p>The king of Babylon has heard the news of them, and his hands wax feeble: anguish has taken hold of him, pains as of a woman in labour- This is not quite the same as the impression given by surface level Bible teachers that the king of Babylon was rejoicing in his city, confident in his own strength, when the Medes diverted the course of the Euphrates and took the city by surprise. The record in Daniel 5 is correct, but that record doesn’t contradict the information given here- that the king was already deeply concerned at the advance of the Medes. Here we read that he was feeble at the news of the enemy advance. Hence we should give due weight to the discovery by Layard of inscriptions which say that Babylon opened her own gates in surrender.</p>


text:
<p>Behold, the enemy shall come up like a lion from the pride of the Jordan against the strong habitation: for I will suddenly make them run away from it; and whoever is chosen, him will I appoint over it: for who is like Me? And who will appoint Me a time? And who is the shepherd who can stand before Me?- This verse is repeated word for word in <a href='B:300 49:19'>Jer 49:19</a> about Edom; and :45 is likewise about Edom in <a href='B:300 49:20'>Jer 49:20</a>. There is a theme that all the nations around Judah were to be given the same appeal for repentance. It was God’s intention that they too repented, along with Israel and Judah, and formed part of a restored kingdom of God in the whole eretz promised to Abraham. This didn’t happen at the time, and so it is reapplied and rescheduled to the last days. The chosen shepherd appointed over Edom or Babylon will then ultimately be the Lord Jesus, the good shepherd. But in the immediate application, it could have been Cyrus the Persian or Darius the Mede, who were the shepherds to be appointed over Edom and Babylon (<a href='B:290 44:28'>Isa 44:28</a>).</p>


text:
<p>Therefore hear the counsel of Yahweh that He has taken against Babylon; and His purposes, that He has purposed against the land of the Chaldeans: Surely they shall drag them away, even the little ones of the flock; surely he shall make their habitation desolate over them- See on :44. But <a href='B:300 18:8'>Jer 18:8</a> clearly states that this purpose could have been changed, using the same word to say that God will "repent of the evil that I purposed to do to them". It was God’s intention that all the nations around Israel would repent along with His people, and turn to Him. Even Babylon could have repented at this point. "Therefore hear the counsel of Yahweh..." is surely an appeal for repentance. That God should make so much effort with hardened worldlings... indicates His depth of concern for human salvation. And it should encourage us in our witness.</p>


text:
<p>At the noise of the taking of Babylon the earth trembles, and the cry is heard among the nations- The fall of Babylon was intended to cause panic amongst the nations of the eretz promised to Abraham, and her "cry" is frightening for those nations. Revelation 18 interprets this for us, as meaning that the nations of the eretz were all confederate with and supportive of Babylon, and would take her fall as a body blow to themselves. But that was not the scene when the Medes took Babylon. Again, the prophetic scenario here described didn’t fully happen when the Medes captured Babylon, or as Layard claims, Babylon opened her gates in surrender to the Medes. We are looking at a potential scenario which was precluded by the lack of repentance and desire for restoration in Israel and Judah (see on :3,4). But this is not to say that the prophecy was proven false; it is reinterpreted and rescheduled for the last days in Revelation 18.</p>


text:
<p>Thus says Yahweh: Behold, I will raise up a destroying wind against Babylon and against those who dwell in Lebkamai-&nbsp; see on <a href='B:20 12:23'>Exo 12:23</a>. For "raise", see on :11. God makes His Angels spirits or winds (<a href='B:230 104:4'>Psa 104:4</a>), so the invaders were under the direct control of God. "Lebkamai" is "Chaldea", written in the cypher called athbash (see on :41 and <a href='B:300 25:26'>Jer 25:26</a>); just as "Sheshach" in :41 is equivalent to Babel. But why this apparent attempt to hide the reference to Babylon, when "Babylon" has just been mentioned? One suggestion is that the prophecy was given earlier, and Jeremiah sought to hide the direct reference to Babylon; but later inspired editing added the name "Babylon". Or we could stick with the AV: "Them that dwell in the midst of her". But that would raise the question as to why "Lebkamai" is "Chaldea", written in athbash.</p>


text:
<p>I will send to Babylon strangers who shall winnow her; and they shall empty her land: for in the day of trouble they shall be against her around- The image of winnowing suggests that there would be some good grain which would fall to the ground. Again we see that the intention of God was that some in Babylon would repent as a result of the judgments. God never lashes out in anger as it were, with the frustration of a more powerful being. Always there is the hope and intention of reformation and salvation for some through His necessary judgments.</p>


text:
<p>Against him who bends let the archer bend his bow, and against him who lifts himself up in his coat of mail: don’t spare her young men; utterly destroy all her army- This wasn’t really the scene when the Medes took Babylon. There was much support for Darius the Mede within Babylon; the Nabonidus Chronicle records that the people of Babylon welcomed Cyrus by spreading green twigs before him (James Pritchard, ed:, Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament (3rd ed:) (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1968, p. 306b). Both the Babylonian Chronicles and the Cyrus Cylinder describe Babylon being taken "without battle". So the main fulfilment of this must yet be future. See on :4.</p>


text:
<p>They shall fall down slain in the land of the Chaldeans, and thrust through in her streets- This isn’t the scenario which happened when the Medes took Babylon; see on :3. As mentioned often in commentary on Jeremiah 50, the judgments here are not only upon the city of Babylon, but upon the entire "land of the Chaldeans", Babylonia. The scale of sudden destruction implied didn’t happen when the Medes took Babylon. The prophetic scenario projected in these prophecies didn’t fully happen, although it will do so ultimately in the last days, as Revelation 18 makes clear. This was because Judah and Israel didn’t repent and earnestly seek to restore Zion; see on <a href='B:300 50:3-4'>Jer 50:3-4</a>; <a href='B:300 50:26'>Jer 50:26</a>. And this was intended to be connected with the realization of these prophecies upon Babylon:&nbsp;</p>


text:
<p>For neither Israel nor Judah is forsaken, of his God, of Yahweh of Armies; though their land is full of guilt against the Holy One of Israel- The prophetic intention was that Israel and Judah would be reunited through the joint experience of repentance and receipt of forgiveness by grace, and would together return from exile to restore Zion; see on <a href='B:300 50:3-4'>Jer 50:3-4</a>. But they preferred to remain in exile, and therefore failed to make use of the amazing grace offered to them- that despite being so guilty, God had not forsaken them. The word specifically means to be forsaken in the sense of divorced in a marriage; although God had said that effectively they had ended the marriage by breaking the marital covenant, and they were therefore divorced, yet His love was such that they were not forsaken by Him, despite the "guilt" of their unfaithfulness. But this great grace was spurned by them.</p>


text:
<p>Flee out of the midst of Babylon, and save every man his life; don’t be cut off in her iniquity: for it is the time of Yahweh’s vengeance; He will render to her a recompense- <a href='B:300 51:6'>Jer 51:6</a>; <a href='B:300 51:45'>Jer 51:45</a> make it clear that every single Jew (“every man his soul”) was ordered by God to leave Babylon- and <a href='B:300 51:60'>Jer 51:60</a> clarifies that all these words were written down and that Seraiah read them to the Jews of Babylon. They were all supposed to “let Jerusalem come into your mind” - but in the end, only a minority like Nehemiah did so. Judah’s disobedience was chronic and specific. They rejected all the wonderful things which God had worked out for them in potential. It was such a tragedy, as tragic as when we individually are our community as a whole repeat it in our contexts today. For the call to leave Babylon is quoted in the New Testament as an appeal for us to respond to in our day. Those who remained in Babylon rather than returning to Judah would be “cut off in her iniquity”. But actually this threatened judgment didn’t happen in that way. Most of the Jews did stay there, and simply assimilated into the world around them. And the scenario envisaged here therefore didn’t happen; when Cyrus took Babylon, he didn’t kill the Jews but rather encouraged them to return to their homeland, as he did the other exiled peoples he found there.</p>


text:
<p>Babylon has been a golden cup in Yahweh’s hand, who made all the earth drunken: the nations have drunk of her wine; therefore the nations are mad- "Mad" is the Hebrew halal which is usually used about praise (s:w. <a href='B:300 20:13'>Jer 20:13</a>) which the nations shall finally give (<a href='B:300 31:7'>Jer 31:7</a> s:w:), although it can carry the sense of ’raving’. If madness was solely in view, another word would have been used. Perhaps the word choice was again to hint that they could come to repentance and praise of Yahweh as a result of the judgments- if they responded rightly.</p>


text:
<p>Babylon is suddenly fallen and destroyed- Babylon was not "suddenly" destroyed by the Medes; full weight must be given to the inscriptions uncovered by Layard which say that in fact Babylon opened her own gates to the Medes in surrender. It was only some time later that Cyrus further demolished parts of Babylon’s wall, which was still standing; and there was a rebellion of Babylon at the time of Darius Hystapses. The deportation of some of the population happened even later in the time of Seleucus Nicanor. But the impression is given that all this would happen immediately at Babylon’s fall. It didn’t, because the preconditions related to Judah’s repentance didn’t come about. And so the prophecies were reapplied and rescheduled to the last days, and are alluded to throughout Revelation 18 with reference to the fall of latter day Babylon; which appears to not refer to the literal city of Babylon.</p><p>Wail for her; take her balm for her pain, if so be she may be healed- This opens another window into what God potentially planned at this time. Balm in <a href='B:300 46:11'>Jer 46:11</a> refers to repentance. Surely this passage speaks of Judah appealing to Babylon to repent, and then coming out of her, returning to Judah, and leaving her to perish in her iniquity if she didn’t repent. God’s intention here was not carried out by Judah. They made no appeal for Babylon to repent. Only a few of them returned to Judah, most preferring the Babylon life. But had they done what God suggested, then the whole prophecies about Babylon’s destruction would have become conditional prophecies, exactly after the pattern of Jonah’s pronunciation of destruction upon Nineveh, which actually never came to pass because they did repent. So although the doom of Babylon was often prophesied, even this could have been avoided if Babylon had hearkened to the witness which Israel were supposed to make to her of their wonderful God. Remember how Jeremiah told the exiles to pray for the good of Babylon and to seek its’ peace with God (<a href='B:300 29:7'>Jer 29:7</a>).</p>


text:
<p>We would have healed Babylon, but she is not healed: forsake her, and let us go each one into his own country- Consider the nuance of John Bright’s strict translation of <a href='B:300 51:8-9'>Jer 51:8-9</a>: "Wail over (Babylon)! Get ointment for her hurt- perhaps it’s curable. Though we treated her, Babylon mends not". The implication is clearly that God intended to use Judah to bring about Babylon’s repentance, and only because this failed did He finally "Give her up" to destruction (<a href='B:300 51:9'>Jer 51:9</a>). If this scenario had happened, then the prophecies of judgment against Babylon would have been more clearly revealed for what I believe they were- conditional, upon her repentance.</p><p>For her judgement reaches to the sky, and is lifted up even to heaven- The idea of knowing God’s judgments is frightening. Sin is its own judgment. Sins rise up to Heaven (<a href='B:140 28:9'>2Ch 28:9</a>)- and the judgment for them is spoken of as rising up to Heaven (same Hebrew words, <a href='B:300 51:9'>Jer 51:9</a>). Sin and judgment are paralleled. Whenever we commit sin, we do so knowing (at least in one part of our brain) the judgment / condemnation which it is. The outcome of the judgment needn’t be something mysterious to us; it isn’t necessarily the great unknown to the thoughtful, self-reflective believer who knows and loves and studies God’s judgments with the verve of David in Psalms 119</p>


text:
<p>Yahweh has brought forth our righteousness: come, and let us declare in Zion the work of Yahweh our God- The exiles were warned time and again to flee from Babylon back to the land, so that they wouldn’t share in the destruction of the city. There’s no record they did so; and yet by grace, God seems to have preserved them from perishing or even suffering as a result of the Persian takeover of Babylon. Indeed, they prospered under the Persians, and as soon as Cyrus took Babylon he encouraged the Jews to return to rebuild Zion. The voice of the faithful remnant pleaded with the other exiles after the fall of Babylon: "Babylon is fallen... forsake her [as they had been told to do before Babylon fell, <a href='B:300 51:6'>Jer 51:6</a>], and let us go and return to our own country... and let us declare in Zion the work of the Lord" (<a href='B:300 51:8'>Jer 51:8</a>; <a href='B:300 51:10'>Jer 51:10</a>). God’s patient grace to the Jews in Babylon was amazing. The hope was that they would recognize that they had had righteousness imputed to them, and this was ’their’ righteousness which had been "brought forth"; and their response was to declare in Zion God’s work, i:e. to begin rebuilding and restoring the temple and God’s Kingdom there. But none of this was really fulfilled as was potentially possible.</p>


text:
<p>Make sharp the arrows; hold firm the shields: Yahweh has stirred up the spirit of the kings of the Medes; because His purpose is against Babylon to destroy it: for it is the revenge of Yahweh, the revenge for His temple- Just as God stirred or raised up Babylon to invade Judah (Jer 6:22), sharpening her arrows (Eze 21:21), so He would stirup, or psychologically provoke, other nations to come and judge her (Jer 50:9; Jer 50:41; Jer 51:1; Jer 51:11 s:w:). This is greatly emphasized. The activity of God directly upon human hearts is a great theme of the Biblical revelation, and is to encourage us that He is eager to transform hearts, and to place desires within us beyond our own unaided psychological ability. But the Medes didn’t destroy Babylon; as explained on :3,8, there was no destruction of the city, and so much was left that it revived several times and asserted independence. He did not take full vengeance for what Babylon did in His temple because His own people were not eager to rebuild it and were not recognizant of their role in its destruction.</p>


text:
<p>Set up a standard against the walls of Babylon, make the watch strong, set the watchmen, prepare the ambushes- The watchmen here are not the Babylonian defenders, but the attackers. The concept is used as in <a href='B:300 4:16'>Jer 4:16</a> "Watchers [i:e. besiegers] come from a far country".</p><p>For Yahweh has both purposed and done that which He spoke concerning the inhabitants of Babylon- There is a vision described in <a href='B:110 22:22'>1Ki 22:22</a> of the Angels presenting their various plans of how to slay Ahab. God says to the one whose plan He accepts "Thou shalt persuade him (Ahab), and prevail also: go forth, and do so". Thus the Angel still has to "prevail" or ’struggle’ to operationalize a command from God which they know is His will to perform; and we have to do likewise, not least in the preaching of the Gospel, both obeying and prevailing. This makes more sense of <a href='B:300 51:12'>Jer 51:12</a>, which says that "The Lord (of Hosts / Angels, :14) hath both devised and done that which He spake" about Babylon.</p><p>Israel were told to separate themselves from Babylon because God had purposed to destroy that nation; they were asked to believe that what God had planned, He would actually do (<a href='B:300 51:12'>Jer 51:12</a>), and therefore they should treat Babylon accordingly in their attitudes. Appreciating that God is beyond time, not just an everlasting being but without time, helps us to understand a whole range of Biblical issues. Faith is about adopting God’s time-less perspective. Israel were told to separate themselves from Babylon because God had purposed to destroy that nation; they were asked to believe that what God had planned, He would actually do, and therefore they should treat Babylon accordingly in their attitudes. Appreciating that God is beyond time, not just an everlasting being but without time, helps us to understand a whole range of Biblical issues.</p>


text:
<p>You who dwell on many waters, abundant in treasures, your end has come, the measure of your covetousness- As explained on :8, the victory of the Medes against Babylon was not then the "end" of Babylon. The prophecies of Jeremiah 50 and Jeremiah 51 imply a sudden fall of Babylon by supernatural means which would mean her immediate and permanent end. This didn’t happen when the Medes entered Babylon. Again we see that the prophetic scenario didn’t fully happen at that time; although Revelation 18 makes it clear that it will do so, in essence, in the last days.</p>


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<p>Yahweh of Armies has sworn by Himself saying, Surely I will fill you with men, as a swarm of locusts; and they shall lift up a shout against you- LXX "Sing songs of victory over you", an example of which we have in Isaiah 14, and one of which now follows in :15-19.</p>


text:
<p>He has made the earth by His power, He has established the world by His wisdom, and by His understanding has He stretched out the heavens- As noted on :15, we have in :15-:19 a victory song which would be sung over Babylon. But the song of victory would be a declaration of Yahweh’s power in creation. Only His people could sing this. And there is no evidence that the Jews did rejoice when Babylon fell. Like Daniel, they continued to prosper under Cyrus as they had under the Babylonians. They were intended to rejoice that Yahweh’s wisdom was exalted, rather than that of the Babylonians.</p>


text:
<p>When He utters His voice, there is a tumult of waters in the heavens, and He causes the vapours to ascend from the ends of the earth; He makes lightning for the rain, and brings forth the wind out of His treasuries- His power in the natural creation was reflected in how He brought a destroying wind against Babylon (:1); the vapours or waters which He makes to ascend from the ends of the earth were reflected in how He brought people from the ends of the earth to destroy Babylon (:27,28). These words are a repeat of <a href='B:300 10:13'>Jer 10:13</a>, where they are in the context of rebuking belief in idols. The context is the same here (:17); and yet in reality, the Jews continued to believe in idols. For Ezekiel had to rebuke the exiles in Babylon for their idolatry. It was only after a few generations that they quit idolatry.</p>


text:
<p>Every man has become a brute, without knowledge. Every goldsmith is disappointed by his image; for his molten image is falsehood, and there is no breath in them- This is the very language used about the disappointment of the Jews when they made these Babylonian idols on the eve of Babylon’s conquest of Jerusalem (<a href='B:300 10:14'>Jer 10:14</a>). This is the ultimate end of all idolatry, of all life lived without total devotion to God- disappointment. Judah likewise would be disappointed in Egypt, the world (s:w. <a href='B:300 46:24'>Jer 46:24</a>). Life is only in Yahweh; both eternal life, and meaningful life now. It was the idols who were primitive and without knowledge (<a href='B:300 10:8'>Jer 10:8</a>); and those who make and worship idols become like unto them, also "primitive..." (<a href='B:230 115:8'>Psa 115:8</a>). The desire to worship is built within the human condition. And we become like what we worship. It is thereforecritically important to worship the right thing.</p>


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<p>They are vanity, a work of delusion: in the time of their visitation they shall perish- This quotes the words of <a href='B:300 10:15'>Jer 10:15</a>, of how the Jews who made these Babylonian idols would be forced to this same realization.</p>


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<p>The portion of Jacob is not like these- Jacob inherits God, having Him as his portion; and God inherits Israel / Jacob. We see here the mutuality intended between God and Israel. This is yet another reflection of God’s recognition that finally, Jacob fulfilled his promise to make Yahweh his God (<a href='B:10 28:20'>Gen 28:20</a>). The lessons of Jacob’s name change were finally learnt.</p><p>For He is the former of all things; and Jacob is the tribe of His inheritance: Yahweh of Armies is His name- It was the prophetic hope that Judah and the ten tribe kingdom would unite as one in the restored kingdom of God in Israel. "Israel" is therefore described here as a singular tribe.</p>


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<p>You are my battle axe and weapons of war: and with you will I break in pieces the nations; and with you will I destroy kingdoms- The potential was that God would have used a revived Israel as an army to destroy Babylon (<a href='B:330 37:10'>Eze 37:10</a>). The same message is given here. The strong emphasis here in :20-22 upon ’breaking in pieces’ recalls the little stone of Daniel 2 cut out from the great mountain (Babylon) which was to destroy the kingdoms of men then dominating Israel and become a great kingdom of God on earth. This potential didn’t happen; but it shall do finally in the last days.</p>


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<p>And with you will I break in pieces the horse and his rider- This is the language of the victory song (see on :14) against Pharaoh and the Egyptians.</p>


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<p>And with you will I break in pieces the chariot and him who rides therein; and with you will I break in pieces man and woman; and with you will I break in pieces the old man and the youth; and with you will I break in pieces the young man and the virgin- The Divine intention seems to have been that the exiles repented and themselves would seek to return to restore Zion (see on <a href='B:300 50:3-4'>Jer 50:3-4</a>). Babylon would be given the opportunity to repent, and if they didn’t, then the Medes would take their city, although there is not much hint in the prophecies of violent conflict between the Medes and the Babylonians. The actual destruction of the impenitent Babylonians would be done by God’s use of Israel, to do to those Babylonians what they had done (according to Jeremiah’s Lamentations) to the men, women, old people and children in the streets of Jerusalem. But the entire scenario simply didn’t come about. For the prime mover in the whole sequence was the repentance of Israel, and this just didn’t happen. But these prophecies will have their essential fulfilment in the last days.</p>


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<p>And with you will I break in pieces the shepherd and his flock; and with you will I break in pieces the farmer and his yoke; and with you will I break in pieces governors and deputies- Babylon had been a hammer on God’s behalf (<a href='B:300 50:23'>Jer 50:23</a>), in fulfilling His word (<a href='B:300 23:29'>Jer 23:29</a>). Now a repentant Israel were to become that hammer, breaking all in pieces (<a href='B:300 51:20-23'>Jer 51:20-23</a>). But this didn’t happen at the time, because Israel were not repentant and were therefore unwilling to be used by God for this. They could have been the little stone of <a href='B:340 2:44'>Dan 2:44</a> which returned from Babylon and destroyed the kingdoms upon the eretz in order to prepare the way for Yahweh’s eternal kingdom. But they would not. And so these things are to come true in the last days, when a repentant and therefore willing Israel will become Yahweh’s weapons to establish His Kingdom and do all the necessary ’breaking’ (<a href='B:300 51:20'>Jer 51:20</a>).</p>


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<p>I will render to Babylon and to all the inhabitants of Chaldea all their evil that they have done in Zion in your sight, says Yahweh- "In your sight" suggests that it was the same generation who could remember the devastation of Jerusalem who would now judge and destroy Babylon. The length of the exile period is again shown to be open ended; see on <a href='B:300 25:11-12'>Jer 25:11-12</a>; <a href='B:300 29:10'>Jer 29:10</a>. As explained on :22, Israel were not used at this time to judge the Babylonians, because they did not repent</p>


text:
<p>Behold, I am against you, destroying mountain, says Yahweh, which destroys all the land; and I will stretch out My hand on you and roll you down from the rocks- Babylon is set up as a fake Christ and Kingdom of God. She had proselytes and prophets (<a href='B:300 50:36-37'>Jer 50:36-37</a>); a mountain (<a href='B:300 51:25'>Jer 51:25</a>); "The golden city" (<a href='B:290 14:4'>Isa 14:4</a>) with a thick, embellished wall (<a href='B:300 51:58'>Jer 51:58</a>); springs and rivers within her (<a href='B:300 51:36'>Jer 51:36</a>); “The praise of the whole earth” (<a href='B:300 51:41'>Jer 51:41</a>). Babylon was the mountain out of whom the little stone of the repentant exiles could have returned to reestablish God’s Kingdom in Israel (<a href='B:340 2:44'>Dan 2:44</a>). But they did not repent nor wish to restore God’s Kingdom, and they rejected the new covenant offered to them upon which that Kingdom could have been established. A mountain rolling down sounds like the stones and lava hurled from the crater of an exploding volcano; this would match the idea of Babylon being destroyed in a similarly dramatic way as Sodom (see on <a href='B:300 50:40'>Jer 50:40</a>). But this didn’t happen as projected; although it will in the last days, as Revelation 18 makes clear.</p><p>And will make you a burnt mountain- Heb. ’a burning mountain’. Babylon was not much burnt by the Medes when they took it. And so this idea of a burning mountain is applied in a latter day context in <a href='B:730 8:8'>Rev 8:8</a>. It is emphasized that the latter day Babylon will indeed be burnt (<a href='B:730 18:9'>Rev 18:9</a>; <a href='B:730 18:18'>Rev 18:18</a>). But this could potentially have happened in Jeremiah’s time, had Israel repented (see on :22).</p>


text:
<p>They shall not take of you a stone for a corner, nor a stone for foundations; but you shall be desolate for ever, says Yahweh- As explained on :25, this was to be because there would literally be no stone visible due to the effects of the volcano which was projected as happening. The lava flow would not leave a stone useful to any builder. But the volcano and Sodom-like destruction of Babylon and all Babylonia didn’t happen (<a href='B:300 50:40'>Jer 50:40</a>); it has been reapplied and deferred to the last days, and is alluded to in this context in Revelation 18.</p>


text:
<p>Set up a standard in the land, blow the trumpet among the nations, prepare the nations against her, call together against her the kingdoms of Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz: appoint a marshal against her; cause the horses to come up as the rough canker worm- LXX "like bristling locusts". "Prepare" is to sanctify. But we enquire whether these particular kingdoms were the ones who actually destroyed Babylon, and whether there was one specific "marshal" or LXX "commander" who coordinated her destruction. It’s hard to prove this historically, because the destruction of historical Babylon was slow, as explained on :8. And there was much support for Darius the Mede within Babylon; both the Babylonian Chronicles and the Cyrus Cylinder describe Babylon being taken "without battle". So the main fulfilment of this must yet be future. The potential prophetic scenario projected here didn’t happen, because the repentance of Israel which was to be associated with it didn’t happen (see on <a href='B:300 50:3-4'>Jer 50:3-4</a>). Whilst the essence of the prophecy will be fulfilled in the last days, as Revelation 18 makes clear through its allusions to Jeremiah 50 and Jeremiah 51, this is not to say that every detail will be:&nbsp;</p>


text:
<p>Prepare against her the nations, the kings of the Medes, its governors, and all its deputies, and all the land of their dominion- These nations were indeed "prepared" by God to fulfill the potential scenario here projected. But as explained on :22, the lack of Israel’s repentance precluded the associated planned events from happening. So much Divine work goes to preparing potentials which we then waste.</p>


text:
<p>The land trembles and is in pain; for the plans of Yahweh against Babylon do stand, to make the land of Babylon a desolation without inhabitant- Again we note that this is said not only of the city of Babylon but of all Babylonia. The entire region was to be destroyed by an earthquake [the land trembling], related to the volcano of :25; there was to be supernatural destruction after the pattern of Sodom’s destruction (see on <a href='B:300 50:39-40'>Jer 50:39-40</a>). The image of Sodom’s destruction suggests direct, miraculous Divine intervention. This didn’t happen at Jeremiah’s time, but Revelation 18 alludes to all this and makes it clear that such Divine intervention will occur against latterBabylon in the last days. The statement that "the plans of Yahweh against Babylon do stand" suggest that God’s spoken words of judgment have a gap between them and their fulfilment; and in that gap, human repentance and mediation can result in a changed outcome. His desire therefore was that Babylon repent. But they did not, and so His plans stood.</p>


text:
<p>The mighty men of Babylon have declined to fight, they remain in their strongholds; their might has failed; they are become as women: her dwelling places are set on fire; her bars are broken- Hence we should give due weight to the discovery by Layard of inscriptions which say that Babylon opened her own gates in surrender. There was much support for Darius the Mede within Babylon; both the Babylonian Chronicles and the Cyrus Cylinder describe Babylon being taken "without battle". So the main fulfilment of this must yet be future.</p>


text:
<p>One runner will run to meet another, and one messenger to meet another, to show the king of Babylon that his city is taken on every quarter- The idea is that bearing the news from opposite quarters, they meet at the king’s palace in the heart of the city.</p>


text:
<p>And the passages are seized, and the reeds they have burned with fire, and the men of war are frightened- "Passages" can be "fords", and "reeds" can be "pools". This would then refer to the drying up of the river by the Medes in order to enter the city.</p>


text:
<p>For thus says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel: The daughter of Babylon is like a threshing floor at the time when it is trodden; yet a little while, and the time of harvest shall come for her- Babylon "is" as if she has already been harvested and is being threshed; and yet harvest time is yet to "come for her". Here we have a parade example of God speaking in the present tense of things yet future, so certain are they of fulfilment. And yet within the metaphor of winnowing and harvest there is still the hope that at least some grain shall fall to the ground; that there would at least be some repentance in Babylon. This is always the hope resident within all Divine judgments.</p>


text:
<p>Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon has devoured me, he has crushed me, he has made me an empty vessel, he has, like a monster, swallowed me up, he has filled his maw with my delicacies; he has cast me out- These were to be the words of the captive exiles of Zion (:35). In response to this, God would take vengeance for them against Babylon (:36). But we wonder whether the exiles were by this stage really angry with the Babylonians. Daniel and other Jews like him were now acceptable in Babylonian society, just as they were later at Esther’s time. Ezekiel’s dialogues with the exiles in Ezekiel 18 and elsewhere indicate they were more bitter with God than they were with the Babylonians, and were in fact serving their gods. And so therefore the full vengeance of God in response to these projected words didn’t happen (:36); which is why the judgments upon Babylon didn’t come true at that time.</p>


text:
<p>The violence done to me and to my flesh be on Babylon, shall the inhabitant of Zion say; and, my blood be on the inhabitants of Chaldea, shall Jerusalem say- See on :34. "Done to me" suggests that it was the same generation who could remember the devastation of Jerusalem and its effects upon them and their children ("my flesh") who would now judge and destroy Babylon. The length of the exile period is again shown to be open ended; see on <a href='B:300 25:11-12'>Jer 25:11-12</a>; <a href='B:300 29:10'>Jer 29:10</a>. As explained on :22, Israel were not used at this time to judge the Babylonians, because they did not repent.</p>


text:
<p>Therefore thus says Yahweh: Behold, I will plead your cause, and take vengeance for you; and I will dry up her sea, and make her fountain dry- See on :34. As explained on <a href='B:300 25:31'>Jer 25:31</a>, it was a complicated case, with counter appeals which resulted in everyone being condemned- and yet Judah then being finally justified, by grace. Yahweh had this legal case with Judah whom He condemned, and then with the peoples who supported Babylon against her (<a href='B:300 25:31'>Jer 25:31</a>); and then He has this case against Babylon (<a href='B:300 51:36'>Jer 51:36</a>) during which He is advocate for Judah, whose cause He legally pleads in the court case (<a href='B:300 50:34'>Jer 50:34</a>) of which He is judge as well as advocate for the defence. Being both advocate and judge, we see the certainty of Judah’s final justification- if they chose to accept His amazing grace in justifying them.</p>


text:
<p>Babylon shall become heaps- The impression is given that she was turned into heaps with nothing left. But this didn’t happen when the Medes took the city. It was only some time later that Cyrus further demolished parts of Babylon’s wall, and there was a rebellion of Babylon at the time of Darius Hystapses. The deportation of some of the population happened even later in the time of Seleucus Nicanor. But the impression is given that all this would happen immediately at Babylon’s fall. It didn’t, because the preconditions related to Judah’s repentance didn’t come about. And so the prophecies were reapplied and rescheduled to the last days, and are alluded to throughout Revelation 18 with reference to the fall of latter day Babylon; which appears to not refer to the literal city of Babylon.</p><p>A dwelling place for jackals, an astonishment and a hissing, without inhabitant- The language in <a href='B:300 9:11'>Jer 9:11</a> ofJerusalem’s destruction into heaps haunted by jackals is applied to Babylon; and likewise the way Jerusalem was to become a hissing (<a href='B:300 19:8'>Jer 19:8</a>) is also now to be true of Babylon. What latter day Babylon does to Jerusalem shall be done to her; and that is the theme of the book of Revelation, where the seals of judgment upon Israel become the vials of judgment upon the beast system.</p>


text:
<p>They shall roar together like young lions; they shall growl as lions’ cubs- This suggests a violent resistance from the lions of Babylon. But full weight must be given to the inscriptions uncovered by Layard which say that in fact Babylon opened her own gates to the Medes in surrender. There was much support for Darius the Mede within Babylon; the Nabonidus Chronicle records that the people of Babylon welcomed Cyrus by spreading green twigs before him (James Pritchard, ed:, Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament (3rd ed:) (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1968, p. 306b). Both the Babylonian Chronicles and the Cyrus Cylinder describe Babylon being taken "without battle". So the main fulfilment of this must yet be future. See on :4.</p>


text:
<p>When they are heated, I will make their feast, and I will make them drunken, that they may rejoice, and sleep a perpetual sleep and not wake, says Yahweh- Although generally these prophecies have only a very loose fit with the taking of Babylon by Cyrus, this is indeed the scene described in Daniel 5 when Babylon fell during a feast. We note that they themselves made a feast, probably at the festival of the god Bel, and made themselves drunk; but God made them drunk. This is His way with men, to work through their own natural desires and decisions.</p>


text:
<p>I will bring them down like lambs to the slaughter, like rams with male goats- Lambs, rams and goats may just be representative of all the classes of the people of Babylon. But there is no historical evidence that many people died when the Medes took the city, apart from Belshazzar. Such a fall of Babylon’s entire society in a moment is to happen in the last days (Revelation 18).</p>


text:
<p>How is Sheshach taken and the praise of the whole earth seized! How is Babylon become a desolation among the nations!- "Sheshach" is a code name for Babylon. The Jewish kabbalists had a system called athbash, whereby the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet is read as the last one, the second letter as the second to last letter, etc. "Sheshach" is the spelling of "Babylon" according to this; and yet the word sheshach means "humiliation", which was to happen to Babylon (<a href='B:290 47:1'>Isa 47:1</a>). We wonder why Jeremiah at times uses this term whereas at other times he is clear that he refers to "Babylon". If he was scared of repercussions, then we wonder why at times he does refer to "Babylon". I suggest therefore that he is simply making the point that proud Babylon was to be humiliated. For the essence of all human sin is pride, and judgment is therefore about humiliating pride. And we are to humble ourselves now. However I suggested on :1 that part of this material may have been written earlier, when he was still nervous about mentioning Babylon by name; and this would account for the positive actions of Nebuchadnezzar toward him when Jerusalem fell.</p><p>We note that Babylon was setting itself up as an alternative Zion, "the praise of the whole earth" being the title of Zion. This was the kind of blasphemy which called forth these judgments, rather than simply the invasion of Judah- for Babylon had been commanded by God to do that.</p>


text:
<p>The sea has come up on Babylon; she is covered with the multitude of its waves- As noted on <a href='B:300 50:40'>Jer 50:40</a>, the destruction of Babylonian was envisaged as also including miraculous Divine destruction after the pattern of Sodom, which is now apparently beneath the Dead Sea. Hence the references to Babylon being destroyed by a volcano (:25) and earthquake (:29). But this didn’t happen at the time, although it will in the last day fulfilment of these prophecies (Revelation 18). As explained on :22, the prophetic scenario didn’t happen at the time because of Israel’s lack of repentance. See on :62,63.</p>


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<p>Her cities are become a desolation, a dry land and a desert, a land in which no man dwells, neither does any son of man pass thereby- There is little point in claiming this was fulfilled in that historical Babylon was not rebuilt; the reference is to the plural "cities" and land of Babylonia. The entire territory was to be made like this; see on :42. In any case, the taking of Babylon by the Medes didn’t mean that people stopped living there; the city continued to prosper for long after that, several times asserting its independence. The fulfilment is to be in the last days, although the prophecy appears to be reapplied to a more symbolic "Babylon" in Revelation 18.</p>


text:
<p>I will execute judgement on Bel in Babylon- This didn’t happen when Darius took Babylon. Soon after, Babylonia briefly recovered its independence under a native ruler, Nidinta-Bel, who took the name of Nebuchadnezzar III:&nbsp; A few years later, in 514 BC, Babylon again revolted and declared independence under the Armenian King Arakha; only on this occasion, after its capture by the Persians, were the walls partly destroyed. E-Saggila, the great temple of Bel, however, still continued to be kept in repair and to be a center of Babylonian patriotism. Among Babylonians, feelings were still strong that none had a right to rule over western Asia until he had been consecrated to the office by Bel and his priests. Accordingly, Cyrus henceforth assumed the imperial title of "King of Babylon", claiming to be the legitimate successor of the ancient Babylonian kings and the avenger of Bel and portrayed himself as the savior, chosen by Bel to restore order and justice. So again we see that although the essence of these prophecies will be totally fulfilled in the last days, there was often no short term fulfilment of them; and the longer term fulfilment will be of the essence of the prophecies and not all the detail.</p><p>And I will bring forth out of his mouth that which he has swallowed up- There was an element of this fulfilled in that Cyrus encouraged the exiled nations to return to their homelands, including the Jews. But there is also here the hint of a miracle; that the consumed Israel, eaten by the lion of Babylon, would somehow revive and resurrect, being brought forth out of the lion.</p><p>And the nations shall not flow any more to him: yes, the wall of Babylon shall fall- We have to remember that Jeremiah’s prophecies about Babylon were given in the context of the prophecies aboutJudah’s restoration. The fall of Babylon was clearly intended to be the signal that the Jews should leave and return: "Down comes Babylon’s wall! Out from the midst of her, my people!" (<a href='B:300 51:44-45'>Jer 51:44-45</a>). And Cyrus, the conqueror of Babylon, made the decree for the Jews to return to their land. And yet... most of them remained. As explained on :8, the wall of Babylon didn’t fall when Darius took Babylon. It was slowly destroyed over a long period. Passages like Jeremiah 50 imply that when Babylon fell, Judah would return to their land and flourish into the Kingdom of God. But this didn’t happen. Another scenario worked out- Darius took over the kingdom of Babylon (<a href='B:340 5:31'>Dan 5:31</a>), and the image prophecy of Daniel 2 explained that there would now have to be a succession of empires before the Kingdom of God would come. I therefore see Daniel 2 as a new prophetic scenario which would have to come into operation if Judah didn’t do as they were told in the prophetic word. Hence the vision has two ways of being read- the whole image could represent Babylon and its next rulers, which would be destroyed in toto and replaced by the restored Kingdom of God at the time it fell; or, it could be read as a long term prophecy of the ensuing centuries, if Judah didn’t turn into the Kingdom of God as they could have done. And this is the outworking that became necessary.</p>


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<p>My people, go away from the midst of her, and save yourselves every man from the fierce anger of Yahweh- See on :6. The Jews didn’t leave Babylon to restore Zion because they were impenitent and didn’t wish to; and so the projected scenario didn’t happen. They did not suffer when Babylon fell to Cyrus, indeed as soon as he entered the city he urged the exiles from the various nations to take their gods and religious equipment and return to their homelands.</p>


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<p>Don’t let your heart faint, neither fear for the news that shall be heard in the land; for news shall come one year, and after that in another year shall come news, and violence in the land, ruler against ruler- "Ruler against ruler" is reapplied to the situation of the last days in <a href='B:490 21:10'>Luk 21:10</a>. In that same context, the Lord Jesus alluded to "Don’t let your heart faint" (<a href='B:490 21:36'>Luk 21:36</a>) again in relation to things of the last days. Likewise "violence in the land" is applied to the last days in <a href='B:490 21:23'>Luk 21:23</a>. The reference to the news coming one year and then again in the next year could mean that this fall of Babylon was to happen within two years of Jeremiah’s prophecy being published. As noted on :24, the length of the exile period is thus shown to be open ended; see on <a href='B:300 25:11-12'>Jer 25:11-12</a>; <a href='B:300 29:10'>Jer 29:10</a>.</p>


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<p>Therefore behold the days come, that I will execute judgement on the engraved images of Babylon; and her whole land shall be confounded; and all her slain shall fall in the midst of her- The conquest of Babylon by the Medes was achieved with very little loss of life apart from that of king Belshazzar; see on :3. As explained on :44,52, her god Bel was not immediately "confounded" either, at least not in the eyes of men. Nor was the whole land of Babylonia exactly confounded with shock at Babylon’s fall. And the implication of the prophecy is that all these things were to happen immediately, contiguous with Babylon’s fall. So again we see that the projected prophetic scenario didn’t come about at the time it potentially could have done, but will do so in the latter day fulfilment (Revelation 18).</p>


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<p>Then the heavens and the earth, and all that is therein, shall sing for joy over Babylon; for the destroyers shall come to her from the north, says Yahweh- Here we have "heavens and earth" used as representative of God’s people. For it was Zion and the "daughters of Judah" who were commanded to rejoice at Babylon’s fall (<a href='B:230 48:11'>Psa 48:11</a>). But there is no record of them obeying this command; for they were too caught up in Babylon by this stage. And so the prophecy will be fulfilled in a reapplied and rescheduled manner in the last days, when a slightly different group would rejoice over Babylon’s fall: "Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets, for God hath avenged you on her" (<a href='B:730 18:20'>Rev 18:20</a>).</p>


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<p>As Babylon has caused the slain of Israel to fall, so at Babylon shall fall the slain of all the land- Again, this didn’t happen when the Medes took Babylon, and the prophecies of Jeremiah 50, 51 imply that all these things will happen suddenly and simultaneously, not over an extended period. The conquest of Babylon by the Medes was achieved with very little loss of life apart from that of king Belshazzar; see on :3. Vengeance was not fully taken by God upon Babylon for what they did to Israel because Israel had not repented, recognizing that actually those judgments had been rightfully deserved by their gross sins</p>


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<p>You who have escaped the sword, go, don’t stand still; remember Yahweh from afar, and let Jerusalem come into your mind- See on :6. This is an appeal for the exiles to desire to return to rebuild Zion. The implication is again that it was the same generation who had escaped the Babylonian sword who were to now return. The appeal to remember Yahweh from afar alludes to the words of Moses and Solomon, envisioning a time when exiled Israel would repent "from afar". But they didn’t. See on :24,35. Those verses also suggest that it was the same generation who could remember the devastation of Jerusalem who would now judge and destroy Babylon. The length of the exile period is again shown to be open ended; see on <a href='B:300 25:11-12'>Jer 25:11-12</a>; <a href='B:300 29:10'>Jer 29:10</a>. As explained on :22, Israel were not used at this time to judge the Babylonians, because they did not repent.</p>


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<p>We are confounded, because we have heard reproach; confusion has covered our faces: for strangers have come into the sanctuaries of Yahweh’s house- Shame / confusion covered the faces of God’s people when the temple was desecrated, but this was because their faces had not been covered with shame at their sins. The same phrase is used for this in <a href='B:300 3:25'>Jer 3:25</a>. It’s shame for sin now, or shame at judgment day. This was the intended statement of repentance to be made by the Jews, and it was this repentance which would trigger the Babylon judgments outlined here (see on <a href='B:300 50:3-4'>Jer 50:3-4</a>). See on :52.</p>


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<p>Therefore behold, the days come, says Yahweh, that I will execute judgement on her engraved images; and through all her land the wounded shall groan- "Therefore..." means that because of the statement of repentance made by the exiles in :51, God would judge Babylon’s idols. Yet as demonstrated on :44,47, those idols were not immediately judged by the fall of Babylon to the Medes. The projected, potential judgment was precluded by Israel’s lack of repentance, just as the detailed temple prophecies of Ezekiel 40-48 were likewise not fulfilled as they could have been at the time. If we enquire why, then, are all these potential details given... it is to teach us that likewise, finely detailed potential futures have been prepared for us in our lives. But unless we have the required humility and openness to God’s ways, they will not come about.</p>


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<p>Though Babylon should mount up to the sky, and though she should fortify the height of her strength, yet from Me shall destroyers come to her, says Yahweh- This repeats the language used of Edom, who thought they were so protected by their high position that no judgment could ever reach them (<a href='B:300 49:16'>Jer 49:16</a>). The similarity is to show that it is pride which more than anything else was the reason for Babylon’s judgment. The language of <a href='B:290 14:13-14'>Isa 14:13-14</a> is also being alluded to; Babylon mounted up to heaven itself in her arrogance, playing God, effectively deposing Yahweh.</p>


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<p>The sound of a cry from Babylon, and of great destruction from the land of the Chaldeans!- I explained on :3 how there was much support for Darius the Mede within Babylon. Nor was the land of the Chaldeans, i:e. Babylonia, subject to the kind of "great destruction" envisaged here; see on :25. But the fall of Babylon with a great cry and supernatural Divine destruction will ultimately come about in the last days, as Revelation 18 makes clear, even though the definition of "Babylon" may be redefined. As I have repeatedly explained, the lack of repentance by Israel precluded these Babylon events occurring when they potentially could have done.</p>


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<p>For Yahweh lays Babylon waste, and destroys out of her the great voice; and their waves roar like many waters; the noise of their voice is uttered- This suggests that the great voice of the king of Babylon will be replaced by the noise of waters which overcome her. Those raging waters could indeed represent the attacking nations; but as explained on :25, there has been projected the idea of Babylon being laid utterly waste as Sodom was, involving an earthquake and volcano, and then being plunged underwater as Sodom was in the Dead Sea. This potential scenario didn’t happen, because it was precluded by Israel’s impenitence.</p>


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<p>For the destroyer has come on her, even on Babylon, and her mighty men are taken, their bows are broken in pieces; for Yahweh is a God of recompenses, He will surely requite- This wasn’t quite the scene when the Medes took Babylon. There was much support for Darius the Mede within Babylon; both the Babylonian Chronicles and the Cyrus Cylinder describe Babylon being taken "without battle". So the main fulfilment of this must yet be future. Vengeance or "recompense" was not fully taken by God upon Babylon for what they did to Israel because Israel had not repented, recognizing that actually those judgments had been rightfully deserved by their gross sins.</p>


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<p>I will make drunk her princes and her wise men, her governors and her deputies, and her mighty men; and they shall sleep a perpetual sleep, and not wake up, says the King whose name is Yahweh of Armies- Although generally these prophecies have only a very loose fit with the taking of Babylon by Cyrus, this is indeed the scene described in Daniel 5 when Babylon fell during a feast. We note that they themselves made a feast, probably at the festival of the god Bel, and made themselves drunk; but God made them drunk. This is His way with men, to work through their own natural desires and decisions. We note that "perpetual sleep" from which they would not awake indicates that the punishment is eternal death- and death is therefore unconsciousness. Eternal conscious torment is not a Bible teaching.</p>


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<p>Thus says Yahweh of Armies: The broad walls of Babylon shall be utterly overthrown,and her high gates shall be burned with fire- As explained on :44, the walls were not destroyed by the Medes when they took Babylon, and they were only demolished bit by bit over subsequent history. The dramatic fall of her walls, surely alluding to the fall of the walls of Jericho, just didn’t happen. Indeed inscriptions have been discovered detailing the repair of damaged gates in the wall. Nor were they then burnt with fire, despite the impression given in these prophecies that all these judgments happen more or less simultaneously and not over an extended period of decades and even centuries. These things are all reapplied and reframed in the latter day destruction of "Babylon" in Revelation 18.</p><p>And the peoples shall labour for vanity, and the nations for the fire; and they shall be weary- See on <a href='B:420 2:13'>Hab 2:13</a>. GNB "The work of the nations is all for nothing; their efforts go up in flames. I, the LORD Almighty, have spoken". Yet Babylon continued long after the Medes took it, and several times reasserted its independence. It is only in the last days that Babylon along with all human works shall be burnt permanently with fire (<a href='B:730 18:8'>Rev 18:8</a>). But we can pause to take comfort and challenge from this- that all human labour shall ultimately come to nothing before God’s judgment. Only the things of His Kingdom shall eternally endure:&nbsp;</p>


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<p>The word which Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah the son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, when he went with Zedekiah the king of Judah to Babylon in the fourth year of his reign. Now Seraiah was chief quartermaster- It seems from <a href='B:300 51:59-64'>Jer 51:59-64</a> that Zedekiah made a visit to Babylon, along with his entourage, presumably to make some peace with Nebuchadnezzar before the final invasion. And yet Jeremiah takes the opportunity to send a prophecy of the doom of Babylon along with Seraiah, one of Zedekiah’s officers who accompanied him. Seraiah was brother to Baruch (<a href='B:300 32:12'>Jer 32:12</a>), Jeremiah’s scribe, and presumably therefore also loyal to Jeremiah and willing to undertake this very brave witness. For this was scarcely politically expedient; indeed, the whole message of Babylon’s impending destruction must have been extremely hard to distribute at that time, for a whole number of reasons, not least that the rest of the entourage desperately wanted to appease Babylon, whose puppet rulers they were. Jeremiah later had to do the same kind of thing when he and the refugee Jews arrived in Egypt. See on :1 and <a href='B:300 43:12'>Jer 43:12</a>.</p>


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<p>Jeremiah wrote in a book all the evil that should come on Babylon, even all these words that are written concerning Babylon- See on :6,59. We wonder why Jeremiah writes in the book and not Baruch, who had always been his scribe. Perhaps it was because Baruch’s brother Seraiah was to physically take it to Babylon (see on :59) and they felt it better to clarify that this was not just a family thing. Or perhaps Baruch had failed to take Jeremiah’s warning not to seek great things for himself (<a href='B:300 45:5'>Jer 45:5</a>) and was wary of getting into trouble with their Babylonian masters by condemning Babylon.</p>


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<p>Jeremiah said to Seraiah, When you come to Babylon, then see that you read all these words- As explained on :59, this was a hugely risky and unpopular thing to do. His fellow Jews would have been hugely angry with him for doing so- if indeed he did what Jeremiah asked. For it was a huge thing to do, which would have endangered his life. Perhaps he didn’t actually do it- because Nebuchadnezzar is very solicitous of Jeremiah’s welfare some time later when Jerusalem fell. That is hard to understand if he had heard Jeremiah’s words about Babylon.</p>


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<p>And say, Yahweh, You have spoken concerning this place to cut it off, that none shall dwell therein, neither man nor animal, but that it shall be desolate forever- This was a way of saying "Amen" to Yahweh’s words, giving a brief summary of them in his own name, addressed to Yahweh. The prophecy that Babylon would be cut off an uninhabited didn’t come true when the Medes took Babylon. Babylon existed for a long time afterwards. And yet the tenor of Jeremiah 50, 51 is that all these judgments were to happen simultaneously and not slowly over a period of years. This didn’t happen; and the only way Babylon could not be inhabited by animals would be if it were judged as Sodom and placed underwater- as previsioned in :42. Again we conclude that these prophecies about Babylon were what was potentially planned, but it was precluded by Israel’s lack of repentance, which was the required condition to as it were trigger the Babylon prophecies; see on :22. The ultimate fulfilment will be in the last days, seeing these prophecies are the basis of Revelation 18.</p>


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<p>It shall be, when you have made an end of reading this book, that you shall bind a stone to it, and cast it into the midst of the Euphrates- Jeremiah’s ministry began with the statement that his prophetic words had the power to destroy. Those words are therefore here connected with their object, Babylon. As those words would plunge underwater, so would Babylon. As suggested on :42, Babylon would be&nbsp; judged as Sodom and placed underwater- the waters of the Euphrates would flood over the destroyed city. That didn’t happen at the time, for the reasons discussed on :62.</p>


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<p>And you shall say, Thus shall Babylon sink, and shall not rise again because of the evil that I will bring on her; and they shall be weary- See on :63. "Sink" is s:w. "quenched" (<a href='B:40 11:2'>Num 11:2</a>); as discussed on :25,26,42, Babylon was to be destroyed by a volcano, reduced to burning lava, and then submerged beneath the Euphrates for ever, never to rise up out of those waters. That was the prophetic potential for that time; but it was precluded from happening like that because Israel’s repentance was the required condition to as it were trigger the Babylon prophecies; see on :22. The ultimate fulfilment will be in the last days, seeing these prophecies are the basis of Revelation 18.</p><p>Thus far are the words of Jeremiah- This would suggest that Jeremiah 52 was added by inspiration by an editor, or it could be that Jeremiah 52 was also written by Jeremiah, as was the book of Lamentations, but was not bound up in the earlier volume or edition of his prophecies.</p>


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<p>Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began to reign; he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem- Jeremiah’s words finished in <a href='B:300 51:64'>Jer 51:64</a>. This chapter agrees almost word for word with <a href='B:120 24:18'>2Ki 24:18</a> to <a href='B:120 25:30'>2Ki 25:30</a>, although we note that the section about Gedaliah in <a href='B:120 25:22-26'>2Ki 25:22-26</a> is omitted because the history of Gedaliah has been dealt with in more detail already in Jeremiah. It could be that the inspired editor of the book chose to as it were copy and paste the section from 2 Kings (with a few minor changes) as a helpful appendix to the book. Verses 28-30 give a different take however on their equivalent in <a href='B:120 24:1-20'>2Ki 24:1-20</a>.</p><p>And his mother’s name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah- Zedekiah was thus brother of Jehoahaz but half-brother of Jehoiakim (<a href='B:120 23:31'>2Ki 23:31</a>; <a href='B:120 23:36'>2Ki 23:36</a>).</p>


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<p>He did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh, according to all that Jehoiakim had done- The implication is that he was intended to have learnt from the fate of Jehoiakim his half brother, but instead he acted just the same. God also brings people into our lives so that we might learn from their life path and destiny. We never specifically read of Zedekiah worshipping idols, and he hardly comes over as the worst of Judah’s kings, but his "evil" was in the weakness of character which he displayed when faced with God’s demand for him to submit to Nebuchadnezzar.</p>


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<p>For through the anger of Yahweh it happened in Jerusalem and Judah, until He had cast them out from His presence, that Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon- Zedekiah’s rebellion was purely of his own device. But he is described here as rebelling "through the anger of Yahweh"; God intended to pour out His wrath, and so His hand was in the rebellion of Zedekiah, using that man’s freewill decisions although through Jeremiah pleading with him not to go that way. We marvel at the perfect balance and intimate involvement in the psychology and decision making of people.</p>


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<p>It happened in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem, and encamped against it; and they built forts against it round about- These forts had been portrayed and ’built’ by Ezekiel when he drew them upon a tile in an acted parable (<a href='B:330 4:1-3'>Eze 4:1-3</a>). Had the earlier exiles in Babylon repented, then this would not have happened. Likewise if Zedekiah had repented, it would not have happened. We see here how God doesn’t just let things happen in a disinterested way, allowing natural forces to take their course. What happened was so avoidable; Zedekiah’s weakness could have been cancelled out, as it were, by the repentance of the exiles with Ezekiel. And their refusal to repent could have been cancelled out by Zedekiah’s repentance. Or if both of these elements failed, had the wealthy rulers of Jerusalem really let their slaves go free and not re-enslaved them, the siege could have been lifted. And there were other such factors and potential possibilities. Stubborn, proud refusal to bow our heads in repentance precludes so much from happening, and allows so much judgment to come which could have been averted.</p>


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<p>So the city was besieged to the eleventh year of king Zedekiah- <a href='B:300 39:1-2'>Jer 39:1-2</a> allows us to conclude that the city was besieged for exactly 18 months.</p>


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<p>In the fourth month, in the ninth day of the month, the famine was severe in the city, so that there was no bread for the people of the land- Jeremiah had earlier prophesied that many would die from famine and plague during the siege. It was by special grace that Jeremiah in prison was given bread right up to the day that Jerusalem fell.</p>


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<p>Then a breach was made in the city- The Babylonians made a breach in the wall to the north, from where the cherubim had left and would return. But Zedekiah tried to escape by digging a hole in the southern wall (<a href='B:330 12:12'>Eze 12:12</a>). He did to the city what the Babylonians did. This "breach" is the same word used for the breaking up of things at the time of the flood (<a href='B:10 6:11'>Gen 6:11</a>), a well established foretaste of the destruction of Jerusalem by the flood waters of the Babylonians, albeit with the promise of a new creation coming as a result of it.</p><p>And all the men of war fled, and went forth out of the city by night- "Went out" is the language of Judas going out (<a href='B:500 13:30'>Joh 13:30</a>), Cain ’"went out" (<a href='B:10 4:16'>Gen 4:16</a>), as did Zedekiah in the judgment of Jerusalem (<a href='B:300 39:4'>Jer 39:4</a>; <a href='B:300 52:7'>Jer 52:7</a>). Esau went out from the land of Canaan into Edom, slinking away from the face of his brother Jacob, sensing his righteousness and his own carnality (<a href='B:10 36:2-8'>Gen 36:2-8</a>). Even in this life, those who leave the ecclesia ’go out’ after the pattern of Judas, who also went out at night, condemning themselves in advance of the judgment by their attitude to the ecclesia (<a href='B:690 2:19'>1Jn 2:19</a> cp. <a href='B:510 15:24'>Act 15:24</a>). The unrighteous flee from God now, as they will then (<a href='B:350 7:13'>Hos 7:13</a>). Zedekiah’s experience of condemnation is presented as typical of every man condemned at the last day.</p><p>By the way of the gate between the two walls, which was by the king’s garden; (now the Chaldeans were against the city all around)- It seems Zedekiah had taken refuge in the temple. From there, he saw the princes of Babylon who had breached the northern wall and were now at the temple gate (<a href='B:300 39:3'>Jer 39:3</a>). And so they fled by "the king’s garden", which was his own private entrance to the temple, and then came to the double walls of the southern perimeter of the city. Zedekiah himself dug through those walls, the strongest point of his defence and human strength (<a href='B:330 12:12'>Eze 12:12</a>). He was being taught that all human defence, and the physical temple, was not going to save him.</p><p>And they went towards the Arabah- The chalky depression in the midst of which the river Jordan ran.</p>


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<p>But the army of the Chaldeans pursued after the king, and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho; and all his army was scattered from him- The allusion is to how an Israel who broke covenant with their God would surely be overtaken by curses and judgment (<a href='B:50 28:15'>Deu 28:15</a>). As his pursuers closed the distance between them and him, with him unable to gather more speed nor find a suitable place to run, now completely alone and without his bodyguards, he was a living exemplification of how Divine judgment will catch up with every man. He would then have dearly wished he had had the humility to listen to Jeremiah’s pleas for repentance and submission. And he there was and is the exemplification of every man condemned before God.</p>


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<p>Then they took the king and carried him up to the king of Babylon to Riblah in the land of Hamath; and he gave judgement on him- Zedekiah fled, was overtaken, wept (<a href='B:330 7:27'>Eze 7:27</a>), judgment was given upon him (<a href='B:300 52:9'>Jer 52:9</a>), he was punished in the presence of the king (<a href='B:300 52:10'>Jer 52:10</a>), cast into prison (<a href='B:300 52:11'>Jer 52:11</a> cp. <a href='B:470 5:25'>Mat 5:25</a>). He had his judgment in this life; and perhaps he may yet therefore be saved in the last day, seeing he apparently repented (see on :11).</p>


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<p>The king of Babylon killed the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes: he killed also all the princes of Judah in Riblah- We wonder why Zedekiah was spared but his sons were not. I will suggest on :11 that he later repented, even though he refused to repent and humble himself before God’s word when he ought to have done. His sons presumably were foreknown that they would not repent, and so they were slain. Perhaps seeing their deaths made Zedekiah realize that they were dying because he had not repented when he ought to have done; for it was his lack of repentance earlier which, he was told, would bring about the death of women and children. We may just possibly have some window here onto the terrible problem of the death of children.</p>


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<p>He put out the eyes of Zedekiah; and the king of Babylon bound him in fetters, and carried him to Babylon, and imprisoned him until the day of his death- LXX "in the mill", as if he was in hard labour, now blinded, exactly like Samson (<a href='B:70 16:21'>Jdg 16:21</a>), and as the young men were made to (<a href='B:310 5:13'>Lam 5:13</a>). And the similarities continued, in that it seems Zedekiah likewise did finally repent. <a href='B:300 21:7'>Jer 21:7</a>; <a href='B:300 27:13'>Jer 27:13</a> had prophesied that Zedekiah would be slain by the sword of Nebuchadnezzar when Jerusalem fell. But Zedekiah wasn’t slain by Nebuchadnezzar, but rather died in captivity. Perhaps he repented; or God chose to work out another path of judgment with Zedekiah which would achieve more glory for Him and His objectivesthan simply having him slain by the sword. The statement in <a href='B:300 21:7'>Jer 21:7</a> that Nebuchadnezzar would not show him "pity nor have mercy" and not spare him was therefore not fulfilled; because he was reflecting the God who had also said He would not spare or pity, but yet He did:&nbsp;I explained on <a href='B:300 34:5'>Jer 34:5</a>&nbsp;that Zedekiah died "in peace", peace with God, and the threatened judgments upon him weren’t completely carried out- presumably because he did finally repent. If we are to finally repent, then let us repent now before suffering comes upon us to elicit that repentance.</p>


text:
<p>Now in the fifth month, in the tenth day of the month, which was the nineteenth year of king Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, came Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard, who stood before the king of Babylon, into Jerusalem- <a href='B:120 25:8'>2Ki 25:8</a> says on the seventh day of the month. It could be that he arrived on the seventh day, and burnt the houses and temple (:13) on the tenth day. I suggested on :1 that the Kings record has been as it were copied and pasted into this appendix to Jeremiah, so we could have here a simple error in copying.</p>


text:
<p>and he burned the house of Yahweh, and the king’s house; and all the houses of Jerusalem, even every great house, burned he with fire- Jeremiah elsewhere criticized the building of these great houses on the walls of Jerusalem- for they were built on the back of abusing the poor for material and labour. They were finally torn down by the Babylonians, but even before that, the owners themselves broke them down and the materials were used to shore up the breaches in the city walls (<a href='B:300 33:4'>Jer 33:4</a>). Likewise there are foretastes of judgment ahead of time in the lives of all God’s people.</p>


text:
<p>All the army of the Chaldeans, who were with the captain of the guard, broke down all the walls of Jerusalem all around- We noted in the prophecies of Jeremiah 50 and Jeremiah 51 a special emphasis upon the breaking down of the walls of Babylon because of what they had done to Jerusalem, i:e. breaking down her walls. But we also observed on <a href='B:300 51:44'>Jer 51:44</a> that when the Medes took Babylon, the walls weren’t broken down, and in fact they were only broken down bit by bit over the course of many years. So the main fulfilment of this must yet be future. Vengeance or "recompense" was not fully taken by God upon Babylon for what they did to Israel because Israel had not repented, recognizing that actually those judgments had been rightfully deserved by their gross sins.</p>


text:
<p>Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive of the poorest of the people, and the residue of the people who were left in the city, and those who fell away, who fell to the king of Babylon, and the residue of the multitude- Or as AVmg. "residue of the artificers" or workmen. I suggested elsewhere that these may have been those skilled in building the defences; or it could refer to those who were the makers of idols. See on <a href='B:300 10:18'>Jer 10:18</a>.</p>


text:
<p>But Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard left of the poorest of the land to be vineyard keepers and farmers- This was probably the majority of the population. The Babylonians, unlike the Assyrians, didn’t practice mass deportations. They removed the leadership of subjected peoples, and appointed locals as the leaders under their control. This is what they did to Judah, taking the royal family and priesthood into captivity, and establishing Gedaliah as puppet governor (<a href='B:300 40:7'>Jer 40:7</a>; <a href='B:120 25:2'>2Ki 25:2</a>) along with some local Jewish "elders" (<a href='B:310 5:12'>Lam 5:12</a>), with Mizpeh rather than Jerusalem as the capital:&nbsp; <a href='B:150 9:7'>Ezr 9:7</a> is clear that it was "our kings and our priests [who] have been delivered" into captivity. The Babylonians saw no economic purpose in bringing masses of unskilled peasant farmers into captivity in their cities. It’s been estimated that at least 90% of Judah were peasant farmers; and these, the impoverished masses, were left in the land and not deported (<a href='B:300 52:16'>Jer 52:16</a>; <a href='B:120 25:12'>2Ki 25:12</a>). See on <a href='B:330 11:15'>Eze 11:15</a>. The Babylonian policy regarding deportation and management of conquered lands is described in N:P. Lemche, Ancient Israel: A New History of Israelite Society (Sheffield: JSOT, 1988) and D:L. Smith, The Religion of the Landless: The Social Context of the Babylonian Exile (Bloomington, IN: Meyer Stone, 1989). God did not therefore scatter all the people quite as He intended. There is archaeological evidence for continued agricultural activity in the land after the deportations. And <a href='B:300 41:5'>Jer 41:5</a> seems to speak of men coming to the Jerusalem temple from Shechem and Shiloh, in the ten tribe area, in order to offer grain offerings at the site of the temple. Presumably the altar had been destroyed, hence no animal sacrifices are mentioned. It has been suggested that the book of Lamentations was written as part of a temple ritual or at least material to be recited at the site of the temple. See on <a href='B:300 12:4'>Jer 12:4</a>; <a href='B:300 13:19'>Jer 13:19</a>.</p>


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<p>The Chaldeans broke the pillars of brass that were in the house of Yahweh, and the bases and the bronze sea that were in the house of Yahweh they broke in pieces and carried all of their brass to Babylon- The breaking in pieces was likely for ease of transportation. But it also symbolized the ending of the temple system. Israel had broken the covenant, and the only way back to God was to be through repentantly accepting His new covenant, as explained on Jeremiah 31.</p>


text:
<p>They also took away the pots, the shovels, the snuffers, the basins, the spoons and all the vessels of brass with which they ministered- These things were kept in Babylon and then sent back with the exiles, by the special decree of Cyrus. The new covenant offered to Israel at the time in Jeremiah 31 was not a repeat of the law of Moses, but it did include similar rituals. The worship system of Ezekiel 40-48 was command more thanprediction, and it utilized these vessels.</p>


text:
<p>The captain of the guard took away the cups, the fire pans, the basins, the pots, the lampstands, the spoons and the bowls; that which was of gold, in gold, and that which was of silver, in silver- We get the impression that an orderly inventory was kept, with the vessels divided up according to their metal.</p>


text:
<p>They took the two pillars, the one sea, and the twelve bronze bulls that were under the bases, which king Solomon had made for the house of Yahweh. The brass of all these vessels was without weight- Although as noted on :21, the gold and silver was apparently weighed, and the bronze pillars measured.</p>


text:
<p>As for the pillars, the height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits; and a line of twelve cubits encircled it; and its thickness was four fingers. It was hollow- It seems the Babylonians weighed the gold and silver and also noted the height and diameter of the pillars. When the vessels were returned to the temple they were also weighed. There is the impression given that the temple was not pillaged in a wanton way.</p>


text:
<p>A capital of brass was on it; and the height of the one capital was five cubits, with network and pomegranates on the capital all around, all of brass: and the second pillar also had like these, and pomegranates- <a href='B:120 25:17'>2Ki 25:17</a> gives “three cubits”; perhaps this smaller number is the actual measurement of the network of the capital, excluding the pomegranates.</p>


text:
<p>There were ninety-six pomegranates on the sides; all the pomegranates were one hundred on the network all around- In <a href='B:110 7:20'>1Ki 7:20</a>; <a href='B:110 7:42'>1Ki 7:42</a> each pillar is said to have had two rows of pomegranates, 100 in each, the one above and the other below the ornamental network of the capitals. The "100" may be a rough summary. "On the sides" could mean ’visible outwards i:e. four of the hundred in each row were hidden owing to the nearness of the pillar to the wall of the porch; leaving 96 visible, as stated here. Or it could be translated "hanging loosely", i:e. four of the pomegranates were fixed to the network on the capitals, while the rest hung in festoons between them.</p>


text:
<p>The captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest- An ancestor of Ezra (<a href='B:150 7:1'>Ezr 7:1</a>).</p><p>And Zephaniah the second priest, and the three keepers of the threshold- The Zephaniah of <a href='B:300 21:1'>Jer 21:1</a> who refused to heed God’s word and was associated with persecuting Jeremiah for speaking it (<a href='B:300 29:25'>Jer 29:25</a>; <a href='B:300 29:29'>Jer 29:29</a>).</p>


text:
<p>And out of the city he took an officer who was set over the men of war; and seven men of those who saw the king’s face, who were found in the city- Five men in <a href='B:120 25:19'>2Ki 25:19</a>. ’The seven who saw the king’s face’ was likely a technical term for his immediate courtiers or politburo, although they may have only numbered five men.</p><p>And the scribe of the captain of the army, who mustered the people of the land; and sixty men of the people of the land, who were found in the midst of the city- These sixty were surely not arbitrarily chosen, but were likely the priests in the temple "in the midst of the city", perhaps those whom Ezekiel had seen offering incense to the sun god in the temple precincts.</p>


text:
<p>Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took them and brought them to the king of Babylon to Riblah- They were obviously seen as representative of the civil and religious leadership of Judah. It was deemed that they needed to be killed so that there was no leadership left; but this then makes it all the more amazing that Zedekiah was not killed as God had said he would be. It would seem that he was the logical one to die. We recall how when the Medes took Babylon, there was little bloodshed but king Belshazzar was slain. All this was to highlight to Zedekiah the amazing grace of his survival, and it seemed he did respond in repentance (see on :11).</p>


text:
<p>The king of Babylon struck them, and put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was carried away captive out of his land- See on :26. I noted on&nbsp; :16 that perhaps the majority of Judah remained in the land. For most of the population were the poor masses. But the exile and destruction of the leadership is seen as "Judah" being carried away captive. But perhaps the phrase is used in order to connect with the description of the ten tribe kingdom being carried away captive out of his land (<a href='B:370 7:11'>Amo 7:11</a>; <a href='B:370 7:17'>Amo 7:17</a>; <a href='B:120 17:23'>2Ki 17:23</a>). It was as if to put a final end to Judah’s supposition that was somehow morally better than Israel. They shared an identical judgment.</p>


text:
<p>This is the people whom Nebuchadnezzar carried away captive: in the seventh year three thousand and twenty-three Jews- This is the deportation of <a href='B:300 39:1'>Jer 39:1</a>. I noted on :1 that this chapter agrees almost word for word with2Ki 24:18 to <a href='B:120 25:30'>2Ki 25:30</a>, although we note that the section about Gedaliah in <a href='B:120 25:22-26'>2Ki 25:22-26</a> is omitted because the history of Gedaliah has been dealt with in more detail already in Jeremiah. It could be that the inspired editor of the book chose to as it were copy and paste the section from 2 Kings (with a few minor changes) as a helpful appendix to the book. But verses 28-30 give a different take on their equivalent in <a href='B:120 24:1-20'>2Ki 24:1-20</a>. It seems we should correct "seventh" into "seventeenth" (just as in <a href='B:140 36:9'>2Ch 36:9</a>, for "eight" we should read "eighteen"); this avoids the number conflict with <a href='B:120 24:14'>2Ki 24:14</a>; <a href='B:120 24:16'>2Ki 24:16</a>, which speak of those taken captive with Jehoiachin, earlier. The lower numbers in Jeremiah 52 are because they are omitting the Jews already taken into captivity in the previous incursions.</p>


text:
<p>in the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar he carried away captive from Jerusalem eight hundred and thirty-two persons- These are those carried captive “from Jerusalem” itself, but not including those taken into exile after the capture of the city. The figures given in this section are far from complete, because <a href='B:150 2:64'>Ezr 2:64</a> speaks of 42,360 returning, which is far more than went into captivity, even though perhaps the majority remained in Babylon. Perhaps like Israel in Egypt they multiplied supernaturally; or maybe many exiles from other nations and even Babylonians returned with them, being assigned to Jewish tribes and localities. And yet we must ever bear in mind that the Hebrew term "thousand" is often used for a grouping, rather than being a literal figure. But more likely we are reading here just of the leadership classes who were taken away.</p>


text:
<p>in the twenty third year of Nebuchadnezzar Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive of the Jews seven hundred and forty-five persons: all the persons were four thousand six hundred- This deportation is not recorded elsewhere, although Josephus (Antiquities 10:9. 7) says that "Nebuchadnezzar in his 23rd year carried on considerable warlike operations in the direction of Palestine and in Egypt, carrying off Jews from that country to Babylon".</p>


text:
<p>It happened in the thirty seventh year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, in the twenty fifth day of the month, that Evilmerodach king of Babylon, in the first year of his reign, lifted up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah, and brought him forth out of prison- Lifting up the head out of prison recalls Joseph (<a href='B:10 40:13'>Gen 40:13</a>; <a href='B:10 40:20'>Gen 40:20</a>); for the similarities with Joseph, see on :33.</p>


text:
<p>and he spoke kindly to him, and set his throne above the throne of the kings who were with him in Babylon- There is no reason given for this amazing grace toward Jehoiachin, who would have been considered the legitimate king of Judah. The lack of explanation is perhaps to simply highlight that it was indeed pure grace. He may well have repented, but that is not mentioned. We get the impression that God pitied His people in their well deserved captivity- simply because He so loved them.</p>


text:
<p>and changed his prison garments. Jehoiachin ate bread before him continually all the days of his life- See on :34. The change of garments by the king would have recalled the experience of Joseph in <a href='B:10 41:14'>Gen 41:14</a>. But Jehoiachin had not had the spirituality of Joseph, and he would have reflected upon that truth; and thereby perceived yet more the huge grace being shown him. We too may experience blessings which we are totally unworthy of, just so that we bow our heads in marvel at God’s grace.</p>


text:
<p>and for his allowance, there was a continual allowance given him by the king of Babylon, every day a portion until the day of his death, all the days of his life- Reflect how Daniel refused to eat the food sent to him from the King of Babylon; but God arranged for this very thing to be sent to Jehoiachin as a sign of His recognition of his repentance (<a href='B:300 52:34'>Jer 52:34</a>)! God saw that Jehoiachin wasn’t on Daniel’s level, and yet He worked with him on his lower level.</p><p>Ezekiel had prophesied that those who survived the famine and invasion of Judah would go into captivity, "and I will draw out a sword after them" (<a href='B:330 5:2'>Eze 5:2</a>; <a href='B:330 5:12'>Eze 5:12</a>). We would expect from this that the exiles would be persecuted and slain in captivity, and this surely was God’s intended judgment. But in Esther we find the exiles in prosperity, in positions of power, and respected by their captors; and Jeremiah concludes his long prophecy with the information that Jehoiachin, Judah’s exiled King, was exalted "above the throne of the kings that were with him in Babylon" and he was given special favour and honour by the King of Babylon (<a href='B:300 52:31-34'>Jer 52:31-34</a>). I can only understand these things as pure grace. God showed tenderness and favour to His people in captivity, far above what He had intended or what they deserved. And He does the same with us- He gives us so much more than we deserve. And yet most of Judah abused that grace; they were so taken up with the good life God gave them in captivity that they chose to remain there and not participate in the restoration. And we so easily can end up abusing His grace likewise.</p>


text:
<p>How the city sits solitary, that was full of people!- Jeremiah was Judah’s representative; that is a key to understanding Lamentations. Jerusalem sat alone, or "solitary", so had he and so did he. Earlier, Jeremiah is rebuked for his attitude of resenting that he "sat alone" and had kept away from the "assembly" of the rejoicers (<a href='B:300 15:17'>Jer 15:17</a>; <a href='B:300 15:19'>Jer 15:19</a>); and so we are to assume that he said these things in resentment that he had had to stand alone amongst men. He resented how he "sat alone" (<a href='B:310 3:28'>Lam 3:28</a>); yet this is the very term used of how Jerusalem was to "sit alone [solitary]" (<a href='B:310 1:1'>Lam 1:1</a>). He was her representative, and yet he seems to have resented that. He was after all being representative of those who had hated him and tried to kill him. As Jeremiah wrongly lamented his own ’sitting alone’, so he ought to have perceived that he should not have lamented Jerusalem’s likewise. The book of Lamentations reveals Jeremiah, an undoubted man of God, in his lowest moments, as Jerusalem was at her lowest moment; just as the book of Job reveals Job at times. And yet the whole book is made up of five carefully structured acrostic laments, with each verse beginning with a consecutive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The chapters only vary in length because the verses have different lengths. So Lamentations is not simply the pouring out of random emotional grief. It has been written up, under inspiration, and the acrostic structure was presumably to help assist memorization of it. And yet so much of it is negative, and reveals Jeremiah charging God wrongfully and contradicting statements from God revealed in the book of Jeremiah. Jeremiah’s momentary lapse of faith was representative of that of his people after the fall of Jerusalem. But the idea is that the book progresses through the stages of grief and anger to genuine repentance and desire for restoration; and Jeremiah invites Judah to follow his example as their representative.</p><p>I suggest that the reason the book was inspired and was designed to be memorized was that it comes to a climax in <a href='B:310 5:16-21'>Lam 5:16-21</a>. And the point is that there we have here a total confession of sin, and appeal for God to turn them to Himself (<a href='B:310 5:21'>Lam 5:21</a>) and restore His relationship and Kingdom with Judah as before (<a href='B:310 5:21'>Lam 5:21</a>). But the path there was a jagged graph; see on <a href='B:310 3:40'>Lam 3:40</a>. Throughout the book of Jeremiah, and often in Ezekiel, I have made the point that so much hinged upon whether Judah repented after Jerusalem fell. If they did, then the new covenant would have been accepted by them, and the promises of the restored Kingdom would have come true. They generally did not repent, but it was Jeremiah’s heartfelt desire that they did, following his own example. And so he wished them to identify with his feelings of anger with God, his struggle with God, his confusion... and thereby to be led to this conclusion of the matter in repentance and desperate appeal for restoration. But it seems Judah got caught up in the early stages of grief, never moved on from them, and failed to follow through to this confession of sin and appeal for restoration which we have in Lamentations 5. The last verse of the book (<a href='B:310 5:22'>Lam 5:22</a>) appears starkly out of context with the immediately preceding verses, with their appeal for restoration and confession of sin: "But You have utterly rejected us; You are very angry against us". I suggest this is purposeful, because this is as it were Judah’s response to the book and the appeal to repent and appeal for restoration. They remained caught up in their grief and refused to repent and return to God because they considered He had removed Himself too far from them. And so the great prophetic potentials for a repentant Judah, described in such detail in the book of Jeremiah, didn’t then come about; although the prophecies are reapplied and rescheduled to fulfilment in the last days.</p><p>Jeremiah was commanded not to make lamentation for the punishment of his people (<a href='B:300 16:5'>Jer 16:5</a>). But he did, and God inspired the record of them in Lamentations, and because they are inspired words, He spoke through those words to all subsequent generations, wishing His people to work through their grief about the fall of Jerusalem as Jeremiah did; going through all the stages, even of anger with God, to come to the confession of sin and earnest desire for the restoration of the Kingdom with which the book concludes. Even within Jeremiah, what begins as Jeremiah’s cry from the heart often merges into God’s- Jeremiah begins lamenting in <a href='B:300 8:18'>Jer 8:18</a>, and then we find Yahweh becomes the speaker in <a href='B:300 8:19'>Jer 8:19</a>. Jeremiah’s conflicted emotions can be read as his having a too positive view of Israel, and his book of lamentations could therefore be read as a statement of protest at God’s judgments. But it could also be that Jeremiah was so in tune with God’s thinking that these struggles at the amount of suffering brought upon Judah were also God’s. The struggles within Jeremiah would therefore reflect God’s changes of mind and feeling about judging His people were endlessly "kindled together", just as they were reflected in Hosea’s oscillations of feeling concerning Gomer; see on <a href='B:350 11:8'>Hos 11:8</a>.</p><p>She has become a widow, she who was once great among the nations! She who was a princess among the provinces has become a tributary!- The idea of God being destroyed in the destruction of His people (see on <a href='B:300 6:26'>Jer 6:26</a>) may be the basis of the descriptions of Zion as being left widowed (<a href='B:310 1:1'>Lam 1:1</a>; <a href='B:290 54:1-8'>Isa 54:1-8</a>). We ask thequestion- if she was a widow, who died? Her husband, God, was as it were dead. The very idea of the death of God&nbsp;is awful and obnoxious. But this was and is the depth of God’s feelings at His peoples’ destruction. But it could be that here we have Jeremiah in the utter depth of depression, feeling his God was dead. Earlier, in his own prophecies, he had spoken forth God’s perspective; that Judah had been as a whore, never really loving Him and endlessly going off with other men (the surrounding nations and their idols), and thereby they forsook Yahweh and broke the marriage covenant. But here Jeremiah feels that Israel are a forsaken widow whose husband has died. He describes her as a gracious princess; when actually God through himself had described her repeatedly as a whore. And so the Lamentations begin with Jeremiah at rock bottom, as were all Judah. He felt God was dead. But we see him progress onwards from that, through the various stages of grief, to the begging for forgiveness and restoration at the very end of the book.</p>


text:
<p>She weeps bitterly in the night, and her tears are on her cheeks- The phrase is only used in <a href='B:40 14:1'>Num 14:1</a>, of Israel weeping all night when they were told they were not to enter the promised land because of their lack of faith. And this was their fault, not God’s.</p><p>Among all her lovers she has none to comfort her: all her friends have dealt treacherously with her; they are become her enemies- This is one of many cases of self-justification in Lamentations (<a href='B:310 1:2'>Lam 1:2</a>; <a href='B:310 1:19'>Lam 1:19</a>; <a href='B:310 2:14'>Lam 2:14</a>; <a href='B:310 4:13'>Lam 4:13</a>; <a href='B:310 5:7'>Lam 5:7</a>), which contradicts the prophetic position, whereby blame is placed upon Judah, whereas now Jeremiah laments the situation as if Judah is being hard done by. In this case, for having lovers at all, in her unfaithfulness to Yahweh (Ezekiel 16, 23 etc:).</p>


text:
<p>Judah is gone into captivity because of affliction- The same word is used of Jeremiah’s affliction (<a href='B:310 3:1'>Lam 3:1</a>; <a href='B:310 3:19'>Lam 3:19</a>); he was setting himself up as Judah’s representative in the hope they too would pass through his pattern of depression, the stages of grief, and then repentance and begging for the restoration of the Kingdom which we find at the end in <a href='B:310 5:16-21'>Lam 5:16-21</a>. See on <a href='B:310 1:1'>Lam 1:1</a>.</p><p>And because of great servitude- This was the exaggeration of depression. For Judah were not abused in Babylon, nor were they put to slave labour as they were in Egypt; rather did they prosper so much that most didn’t want to return at the restoration. They preferred life in Babylon. Jeremiah had himself explained that because they had served idols, therefore they were to serve Babylon (s:w. <a href='B:300 25:6'>Jer 25:6</a>; <a href='B:300 25:11'>Jer 25:11</a>). Their "servitude" was therefore but the extension of their own choices. He had himself urged Zedekiah and the people to willingly serve the Babylonians in recognition of their own sins (s:w. <a href='B:300 40:9'>Jer 40:9</a>); it was their refusal to do so that had resulted in their servitude in exile. As we all do in depression, Jeremiah was unbalanced here, focusing upon one aspect of a situation which he had himself recognized as absolutely legitimate.</p><p>She dwells among the nations, she finds no rest- This was written therefore at the end of Jeremiah’s life when the exile was established, as he faced his own death in Egypt. He too as Israel’s representative (:1) dwelt among the nations. But again his depression leads to exaggeration; there is no evidence that the Jews were moved around the Babylonian empire, making them find no rest. He himself had urged them to build houses in Babylon and settle down there. Being restless was a result of breaking the covenant (s:w. <a href='B:50 28:65'>Deu 28:65</a>) which Jeremiah had repeatedly accused them of doing. They were suffering far less than their iniquities deserved. They refused to repent and in that sense they had no rest to their souls. If they had accepted the yoke of Babylon, then they could have rested in their own land (s:w. <a href='B:300 27:11'>Jer 27:11</a>).</p><p>All her persecutors overtook her within the narrows- This alludes to the overtaking of Zedekiah as he fled Jerusalem; he was representative of his people. But as Jeremiah well knew, in another part of his brain, Zedekiah’s shameful flight and capture was completely his fault for not responding to Jeremiah’s pleas to him.</p>


text:
<p>The ways of Zion do mourn, because none come to the solemn assembly- This again is a very positive take on the gatherings held in the temple. Ezekiel was shown in vision how the priests and elders were solemnly worshipping idols within the temple. And so God said that He "hated" their "solemn assemblies" (s:w. <a href='B:290 1:14'>Isa 1:14</a>). Yet in depression, Jeremiah laments that these "solemn assemblies" were no more (<a href='B:310 1:4'>Lam 1:4</a>; <a href='B:310 2:6'>Lam 2:6</a>). It was in fact better that none came to them.</p><p>All her gates are desolate, her priests do sigh: her virgins are afflicted, and she herself is in bitterness- See on :13. The "ways of Zion" were "desolate" because the curse for breaking the covenant was that Israel’s "ways" would be "desolate" (<a href='B:30 26:22'>Lev 26:22</a> s:w:). Jeremiah multiple times used the word for "desolate" as the judgment which was to come; because "they [Judah] have made it desolate... the whole land is [will be] made desolate" (<a href='B:300 12:11'>Jer 12:11</a>). But now he faces the reality of what he had so often preached, he finds it unbearable. For "afflicted", see on :12.</p>


text:
<p>Her adversaries are become the head, her enemies prosper; for Yahweh has afflicted her for the multitude of her transgressions: her young children are gone into captivity before the adversary- These terms are all allusive to the curses for breaking the covenant (<a href='B:50 28:44'>Deu 28:44</a>); Judah could have been the head of her adversaries had she been obedient to the covenant (<a href='B:50 28:13'>Deu 28:13</a>). And Jeremiah recognizes this, on one hand, and yet laments that the curses have come true.</p>


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<p>From the daughter of Zion all her majesty is departed: her princes are become like harts that find no pasture- It was these very princes who had persecuted Jeremiah and sought to kill him (<a href='B:300 37:15'>Jer 37:15</a>; <a href='B:300 38:4'>Jer 38:4</a>; <a href='B:300 38:25'>Jer 38:25</a>; <a href='B:300 38:27'>Jer 38:27</a>) as they did other prophets (<a href='B:300 26:21'>Jer 26:21</a>). It is to Jeremiah’s spiritual credit that he did not rejoice at all in the fall of his enemies but rather shared God’s broken heart for the lost and the evil.</p><p>They are gone without strength before the pursuer- Another allusion to the princes fleeing Jerusalem with Zedekiah, only to be pursued, overtaken and slain. And Jeremiah finds this tragic and grieves for it. Only a heart with true love in it could come to these feelings.</p>


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<p>Jerusalem remembers in the days of her affliction and of her miseries all her pleasant things that were from the days of old. When her people fell into the hand of the adversary, no one helped her; the adversaries saw her, they mocked at her desolations- The lack of help from Egypt and the nations to whom Judah had prostituted herself was quite clearly because Judah ought to have trusted in Yahweh and not them. So many times Jeremiah had predicted that Jerusalem would be mocked by her. We learn from this that it is one thing to preach a message, but quite another to actually see it come true. Jeremiah’s ministry had begun with the warning that his prophetic words would have within them the power of great destruction, and he had been promised Divine psychological strengthening for his ministry. But he seems not to have wanted to make use of that.</p>


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<p>Jerusalem has grievously sinned; therefore she has become as an unclean thing; all who honoured her despise her, because they have seen her nakedness: yes, she sighs, and turns backward- She turned backward in shame, but her nakedness was apparent. Jeremiah had used this very figure, with the crudest of language, in <a href='B:300 13:22-23'>Jer 13:22-23</a> (see notes there). Jerusalem had been a whore and was to be judged as one, naked before her lovers. But now it actually happened... Jeremiah balked at the seriousness of sin, and how judgment really does come for sin.</p>


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<p>Her filthiness was in her skirts; she didn’t remember her latter end; therefore is she come down wonderfully; she has no comforter: see, Yahweh, my affliction; for the enemy has magnified himself- As noted on <a href='B:300 13:22-23'>Jer 13:22-23</a>, Judah had behaved as the worst harlot, with no thought to her future. And now that future had come. On one hand, Jeremiah saw perfectly that the situation was because of their sin; and yet he struggled with seeing the judgments actually come. And he asks Yahweh to see his affliction. Again, this reflects his love for his people, that he should feel afflicted for those who had refused to hear his message. And yet he feels there is "no comforter", despite surely being aware of Isaiah’s prophecy that Yahweh would comfort Zion at the restoration (s:w. <a href='B:290 51:3'>Isa 51:3</a>; <a href='B:290 51:12'>Isa 51:12</a> "I, even I, am He that comforts you"; <a href='B:290 66:13'>Isa 66:13</a> "so will I comfort you"; <a href='B:290 40:1'>Isa 40:1</a>; <a href='B:290 49:13'>Isa 49:13</a>; <a href='B:290 52:9'>Isa 52:9</a>). "Comfort" is the same word as "repent"; and God had said that He would repent (s:w:) if Judah repented (<a href='B:300 18:8'>Jer 18:8</a>; <a href='B:300 26:3'>Jer 26:3</a>). The real problem was that Judah had not repented, and Jeremiah refused to factor that into his feelings; see on <a href='B:310 2:13'>Lam 2:13</a>.</p>


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<p>The adversary has spread out his hand on all her pleasant things- This is the language of rape, the rapist spreading out his hand upon the victim. See on :8,9,10.</p><p>For she has seen that the nations are entered into her sanctuary, concerning whom You commanded that they should not enter into Your assembly- Jeremiah sees this as tragic, and yet he was fully aware that Judah had placed Gentile idols in Yahweh’s holy place (<a href='B:300 32:34'>Jer 32:34</a>).</p>


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<p>All her people sigh, they seek bread; they have given their pleasant things for food to refresh the soul: look, Yahweh, and see; for I am become abject- Their "pleasant things" in :10 refer to their private parts. Jeremiah appears to excuse their prostitution by saying they did it because they were hungry. And yet his own prophecies had clarified that they were unlike whores who sold their bodies for money, but they even paid men to sleep with them. His feeling so abject was partly because of his refusal to face up to how sinful Judah had really been. But he reasons with all the obsessiveness of depression that they had prostituted themselves just to refresh (s:w. return or repent) their soul. Quite clearly they could do this through repentance and not sin. But he was utterly taken up with lamenting the judgments which had come and chose not (at this stage) to consider that all this was because of their sins:&nbsp;</p>


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<p>Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by? Look, and see if there is any sorrow like my sorrow, which is brought on me- The extent to which Jeremiah’s heart bled for his people is reflected in <a href='B:300 9:1-3'>Jer 9:1-3</a>. He wished he had more moisture in his body, so that he could weep both day and night for Judah- and yet he goes on to describe them as proceeding from evil to evil in an ever downward spiral, shooting lies everywhere… Everyone is special, nobody is like anyone else. This is how God sees His children, and we should reflect this perspective. It is this which will make us arrestingly different from the people with whom we daily walk. We will cry out with Jeremiah: “Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by?”, unmoved and lost as they are in their own petty issues (<a href='B:310 1:12'>Lam 1:12</a>). Everyone is special, nobody is like anyone else. This is how God sees His children, and we should reflect this perspective. It is this which will make us arrestingly different from the people with whom we daily walk.</p><p>With which Yahweh has afflicted me in the day of His fierce anger- The same word for how the people were "afflicted" (:4,5). Jeremiah was to be representative of Judah (see on :1).</p>


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<p>From on high has He sent fire into my bones, and it prevails against them- Jeremiah parallels "me" and "them". He felt the burning of Jerusalem was a burning of his very bones. Such was his identity with a sinful people; see on :1. And such was his spirituality that there is never a hint of satisfaction in seeing those who had rejected and persecuted him getting their totally just deserts.</p><p>He has spread a net for my feet, He has turned me back- We sense here an anger with God, as if God had set a trap for him into which he had innocently fallen; and he says this in the midst of very strong identification with his people. It’s as if he like the Jews of Ezekiel 18 felt that God had deceived him and his people. And yet Jeremiah had so clearly warned them of the judgment to come. It was hardly a trap for the unsuspecting and uninformed. Such anger with God was expressed by Job, and yet at the end of the book God says that Job only spoke what was right about Him. It’s as if God accepted the cranky words of depression, and saw the anger with Himself as just part of the grieving process. The important thing was to move through the process stage by stage. And the end point in this grief was repentance and zeal for restoration (<a href='B:310 5:16-21'>Lam 5:16-21</a>). Jeremiah’s path was intended to be that of all the people whom he represented.</p><p>He has made me desolate and faint all the day- The physical "desolation" of the land would be matched by the internal, psychological desolation of the priests (s:w. "astonished"; <a href='B:300 4:9'>Jer 4:9</a>). Jeremiah felt the same as the other priests; he was desolated / astonished (s:w:) at the desolation of Jerusalem (<a href='B:310 1:4'>Lam 1:4</a>; <a href='B:310 1:13'>Lam 1:13</a>). We can read this as meaning that he as the righteous totally identified with the wicked; or that he was too identified with the wicked priests, and felt like them when instead he should have perceived that this was exactly the astonishment of the priests which he had prophesied in <a href='B:300 4:9'>Jer 4:9</a>.</p>


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<p>The yoke of my transgressions is bound by His hand; they are knit together, they have come up on my neck; He has made my strength to fail: the Lord has delivered me into their hands, against whom I am not able to stand- The anger with God of :13 now starts to mellow as increasingly Jeremiah recognizes his personal sins. He doesn’t yet repent in so many words, but he does recognize his sins. This was the path Judah and the exiles were intended to likewise take, coming like Jeremiah to recognize that they had no strength; and that somehow, God was in all this- for "the Lord has delivered me into their hands".</p>


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<p>The Lord has set at nothing all my mighty men in the midst of me; He has called a solemn assembly against me to crush my young men: the Lord has trodden as in a wine press the virgin daughter of Judah- Instead of feeling that God was dead (see on :1), Jeremiah now accepts that God has done the judgments, He had trodden the wine press. "My young men" may mean that his own personal male children had been killed in the invasion (also implied in :16). But it could be that he considered the young men of Judah as his children.</p>


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<p>For these things I weep; my eye, my eye runs down with water- In <a href='B:330 24:23'>Eze 24:23</a> Judah is commanded not to weep but to lament beyond tears and all external mourning; they would mourn internally for their sins (s:w. <a href='B:330 33:10'>Eze 33:10</a>). We wonder why Jeremiah wrote Lamentations, which appears to be a record of his external mourning. Whilst the book was inspired by God, at times Jeremiah there appears to be lamenting in a way inappropriate. He ’wept’ (<a href='B:310 1:16'>Lam 1:16</a>), whereas in <a href='B:330 24:23'>Eze 24:23</a> Judah were told not to externally weep. He did not take on board the idea that there was to be no mourning or weeping externally, but rather deep internal recognition of their sins. It seems the Jews were not obedient to Ezekiel’s command not to externally weep but to internally mourn their own sinfulness; the same word for "weep" is used of how they did weep by the rivers of Babylon (<a href='B:230 137:1'>Psa 137:1</a>).</p><p>Because the comforter who should refresh my soul is far from me- He feels there is "no comforter", when he implies there ought to have been. That comforter was God. Yet he says this despite surely being aware of Isaiah’s prophecy that Yahweh would comfort Zion at the restoration (s:w. <a href='B:290 51:3'>Isa 51:3</a>; <a href='B:290 51:12'>Isa 51:12</a> "I, even I, am He that comforts you"; <a href='B:290 66:13'>Isa 66:13</a> "so will I comfort you"; <a href='B:290 40:1'>Isa 40:1</a>; <a href='B:290 49:13'>Isa 49:13</a>; <a href='B:290 52:9'>Isa 52:9</a>). "Comfort" is the same word as "repent"; and God had said that He would repent (s:w:) if Judah repented (<a href='B:300 18:8'>Jer 18:8</a>; <a href='B:300 26:3'>Jer 26:3</a>). The real problem was that Judah had not repented. And yet Jeremiah appears to blame God for not being present as comforter. This all sets us up for the climax of the book in <a href='B:310 5:16-21'>Lam 5:16-21</a>, when Jeremiah confesses sin and looks for restoration. And there are plenty of moments before then in the Lamentations when he comes closer and closer to that final realization, which for us too is the end point of the path of every depression and struggle with God.</p><p>My children are desolate, because the enemy has prevailed- Perhaps Jeremiah’s children were literally killed. Or maybe even in his depression and anger with God, he still manifested God; God’s children were his children. But in that case, the enemy as it were prevailed [Heb. ’was stronger’] over God, whereas finally at the restoration, God shall prevail over His enemies (<a href='B:290 42:13'>Isa 42:13</a> s:w:).</p>


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<p>Zion spreads forth her hands; there is none to comfort her- As explained on :16, God was there to comfort- if they repented. But in the obsession of his depression, Jeremiah focused on just one part of the picture. There was none to comfort her; but that was because she would not repent and accept His comfort.</p><p>Yahweh has commanded concerning Jacob, that those who are around him should be his adversaries- Jeremiah appears here to be slipping back into the common mindset, that a nation’s god would support them and save them always. But Yahweh had a huge moral dimension to Him, which the pagan gods didn’t. He called for enemies o come upon His people.</p><p>Jerusalem is among them as an unclean thing- And therefore, the implication is, Yahweh was not protecting them. But so often Jeremiah had previously lamented the unclean state of Jerusalem.</p>


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<p>Yahweh is righteous; for I have rebelled against His commandment: please hear, all you peoples, and see my sorrow: my virgins and my young men are gone into captivity- &nbsp;This rebellion could refer to the words previously recorded in this lament, but they could also be a reference to Jeremiah’s historical failure at the time of Jeremiah 15. In <a href='B:300 15:15'>Jer 15:15</a>, Jeremiah asks for vengeance on his persecutors, and in <a href='B:300 15:18'>Jer 15:18</a> accuses God of deceiving him. God’s response is to ask him to repent of this, so that he can resume his prophetic work: “If you [Jeremiah] return, I will restore you, and you shall stand before me [prophetic language]. If you utter what is precious, and not what is base, you shall be as my mouth” (<a href='B:300 15:19'>Jer 15:19</a>). Perhaps Jeremiah had this incident in mind when he commented: “The Lord is in the right, for I have rebelled against his word” (<a href='B:310 1:18'>Lam 1:18</a>). This indicates that at least in Jeremiah’s case, he was not irresistibly carried along by the Spirit in some kind of ecstasy, having no option but to speak God’s word. His speaking of God’s word required that he shared the essentially loving and gracious spirit / disposition of his God. I have argued on :1 that the Lamentations are a path through depression and the various stages of grief; beginning with Jeremiah’s statement in :1 that God was effectively dead, the Lamentations progress to the final repentance and wholehearted plea for the restoration in <a href='B:310 5:16-21'>Lam 5:16-21</a>. But there are points during the ’journey’ when Jeremiah does repent, and this is an example. But he quickly moves on from his confession of sin to lament again the present reality- that the young people had gone into exile.</p>


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<p>I called for my lovers, but they deceived me: my priests and my elders gave up the spirit in the city, while they sought themselves food to refresh their souls- Jeremiah laments the situation as if Judah is being hard done by. Judah should never have had lovers, for this was unfaithfulness to Yahweh as Jeremiah himself has earlier made clear. This is one of many cases of self-justification in Lamentations (<a href='B:310 1:2'>Lam 1:2</a>; <a href='B:310 1:19'>Lam 1:19</a>; <a href='B:310 2:14'>Lam 2:14</a>; <a href='B:310 4:13'>Lam 4:13</a>; <a href='B:310 5:7'>Lam 5:7</a>), which contradicts the prophetic position, whereby blame is placed upon Judah. The priests and elders had been condemned by Jeremiah for their extreme wickedness, and their death in the city by famine had been explicitly predicted by Jeremiah. The reason of course was because they had sinned so badly and impenitently. So Jeremiah’s confession of sin in :18 is soon drowned out, within his mind, by the sheer pain of the punishment for it, which he still feels to be unfair. And this is how repentance seems to go in practice; rarely is it just a momentary confession. There are waves and cycles to it, whereby we return time and again to our own self-justification and sense that the punishment for sin is disproportionate. This is the significance of the book ending with the confession of sin in <a href='B:310 5:16-21'>Lam 5:16-21</a> which is not then followed by another cycle of complaint at God’s judgments of sin.</p>


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<p>See, Yahweh; for I am in distress; my heart is troubled; my heart is turned within me; for I have grievously rebelled: abroad the sword bereaves, at home there is as death- Jeremiah seemed to imagine that all the exiles were taken away to be slaughtered. That was true of some of the elders, but the exile generally was not to death camps. But clearly whilst these things were not totally true for him, he felt so totally identified with his condemned people that he speaks exactly as he imagined they felt.</p>


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<p>They have heard that I sigh; there is none to comfort me; all my enemies have heard of my trouble; they are glad that You have done it: You will bring the day that You have proclaimed, and they shall be like me- Here we have Jeremiah totally absorbed with the feelings of the exiles, absolutely united with them in representation. Again we note the complaint that there is no comforter, when in fact there was- if they would repent and accept God’s comfort. <a href='B:290 40:1-2'>Isa 40:1-2</a> speaks a message of comfort to the exiles: “Comfort, comfort my people, says your God”. But [in full allusion to this prophecy], the exiles were like Rachael who refused to be comforted over her loss (<a href='B:300 31:15'>Jer 31:15</a>); they claimed they found “none to comfort” (Lam 12; <a href='B:310 1:16-17'>Lam 1:16-17</a>; <a href='B:310 1:21'>Lam 1:21</a>). But they were like Rachel who refused to be comforted, although the verses previous to that in Jeremiah 31 invite Israel to be not like Rachel but as the young woman who takes a tambourine and goes forth rejoicing in what God could do for her in restoring her. But they were willfully refusing the comfort of God’s repeated word of hope and restoration. They didn’t grasp the plain teaching of the prophetic word because they didn’t want to- it demanded too much of them, and a giving up of the comfortable Babylon life. Hence <a href='B:290 43:19'>Isa 43:19</a> laments: “I am doing a new thing: now it springs forth [in the decree to return to Zion?], do you not perceive it?”. And do we "not perceive it?" time and again in our own lives, as to the potentials God is opening up?</p>


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<p>Let all their wickedness come before You; do to them, as You have done to me for all my transgressions: for my sighs are many, and my heart is faint- Jeremiah’s heart was "faint within me" both before (<a href='B:300 8:18'>Jer 8:18</a>) and after (<a href='B:310 1:22'>Lam 1:22</a>) the destruction of Jerusalem. He was so sure that the prophetic word would be fulfilled, that he even felt as if it had come true before it did. It was the heart of Judah which was faint (<a href='B:290 1:5'>Isa 1:5</a>), and Jeremiah identified totally with their feelings in sorrow with them. He eagerly asks God to judge the Babylonian confederacy for their sins. Yet there are many chapters in Jeremiah where he had prophesied that this would indeed happen, although as noted there, there was always an appeal and hope for their repentance. But Jeremiah is still at the stage of anger, with God and with any perceived instrument He had used:&nbsp;</p>


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<p>How has the Lord covered the daughter of Zion with a cloud in His anger! He has cast down from heaven to the earth the beauty of Israel, and hasn’t remembered His footstool in the day of His anger- It was Jeremiah who was angry (see on <a href='B:310 1:22'>Lam 1:22</a>). But he seems to transfer that anger onto God, and he implies that this Divine anger was too fierce and therefore unmerited. Despite having so often himself demonstrated why God’s anger was appropriate and deserved. He was focusing on just one part of the whole picture and obsessing about it. Which is typical depressive behaviour. The cloud between God and Israel was the cloud of their own sins. And Israel had used her "beauty" for prostitution and unfaithfulness to Him. Israel had refused to serve Him, preferring the service of idols and the Gentiles; and so they were hardly His footstool.</p>


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<p>The Lord has swallowed up all the habitations of Jacob, and has not pitied- <a href='B:300 16:5'>Jer 16:5</a> had explained why God appeared to have withdrawn His pity. The reason was that God’s covenant, referred to as "kindness and mercy", was broken; they were not at peace with Him. And so they should not be pitied in their death. And yet although the covenant was broken by Israel, and God broke His side of it in response to that... He in fact still treated them as His covenant people. This is not to say that God is not serious about His statements. He is; but His love, grace and pity is displayed as the more extraordinary, in that it leads Him to break the words and threats spoken in justifiable and understandable wrath. For the same Hebrew phrase "loving kindness and tender mercies" is used again by Jeremiah in <a href='B:310 3:22'>Lam 3:22</a>, where he reflects that these have not been withdrawn from God’s people, even though Zion is now in ruins. Again we see a progressive movement in Lamentations through the stages of grief, and towards an understanding that God does love and pity His people, but they had precluded the experience of this by refusing to repent. This is why the climax of the lamentations is in the confession of sin, wholeheartedly and without any self-justification, which we have in <a href='B:310 5:16-21'>Lam 5:16-21</a>.</p><p>He has thrown down in His wrath the strongholds of the daughter of Judah; He has brought them down to the ground- Yet it was Jeremiah who had specifically "thrown down" Jerusalem and her fortifications through his prophetic word; see on <a href='B:300 1:10'>Jer 1:10</a>, where the same word is used. His lament is therefore at best an indication that like us, he failed to realize the huge potential in God’s word that he was preaching, and the eternal consequences which arise from someone hearing it.</p><p>He has profaned the kingdom and its princes- But they had profaned themselves; and the princes were those who had conspired to kill Jeremiah (<a href='B:300 37:15'>Jer 37:15</a>; <a href='B:300 38:4'>Jer 38:4</a>; <a href='B:300 38:25'>Jer 38:25</a>; <a href='B:300 38:27'>Jer 38:27</a>) as they did other prophets (<a href='B:300 26:21'>Jer 26:21</a>). It is to Jeremiah’s spiritual credit that he did not rejoiceat all in the fall of his enemies but rather shared God’s broken heart for the lost and the evil.</p>


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<p>He has cut off in fierce anger all the horn of Israel; He has drawn back His right hand from before the enemy- Jeremiah was willfully ignorant of the obvious truth of <a href='B:230 75:10'>Psa 75:10</a>: "I will cut off all the horns of the wicked, but the horns of the righteous shall be lifted up".</p><p>He has burned up Jacob like a flaming fire, which devours all around- "Burned up" is used of how Babylon "consumed" Jerusalem with fire (<a href='B:160 2:3'>Neh 2:3</a>; <a href='B:160 2:13'>Neh 2:13</a> etc:). The people and their land were to be "consumed" by the fire which was contained in the words Jeremiah spoke (<a href='B:300 5:14'>Jer 5:14</a>; <a href='B:300 5:17'>Jer 5:17</a>). But all who devoured / consumed them would be "held guilty" (<a href='B:300 2:3'>Jer 2:3</a>; <a href='B:300 10:25'>Jer 10:25</a>; <a href='B:300 30:16'>Jer 30:16</a>). And yet in depression, Jeremiah lamented that the fire had consumed (<a href='B:310 2:3'>Lam 2:3</a>; <a href='B:310 4:11'>Lam 4:11</a>), when it was His owns words which had been that devouring fire. His lament was therefore tantamount to a statement of regret that he had been used as the vehicle for this devouring fire.</p>


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<p>He has bent His bow like an enemy, He has stood with His right hand as an adversary, has killed all that were pleasant to the eye: in the tent of the daughter of Zion He has poured out His wrath like fire- see on <a href='B:310 3:13'>Lam 3:13</a>. Jeremiah appears now to be more angry with God than with the Babylonians, who had literally bent their bows and destroyed the temple. Jeremiah himself had been full of God’s wrath and had poured it out upon the people in his prophetic words (<a href='B:300 6:11'>Jer 6:11</a>). And now he apparently laments that, as if he was almost negating his own prophetic calling. It’s as if he had then been on God’s side, but was now too much on the side of his sinful people. What had once been deep within him he now as it were distances himself from.</p>


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<p>The Lord has become as an enemy, He has swallowed up Israel; He has swallowed up all her palaces, He has destroyed his strongholds; He has multiplied in the daughter of Judah mourning and lamentation- The image of swallowing up portrays God as a beast, angry and judgmental upon His own people. It was the beast of Babylon who "swallowed up" Israel (<a href='B:300 51:34'>Jer 51:34</a> s:w:). The palaces, the great houses of the wealthy in Jerusalem, had been built on the back of abused labour, as Jeremiah had pointed out; and those houses were destroyed because offerings to idols had been made upon their roofs (<a href='B:300 19:13'>Jer 19:13</a>).</p>


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<p>He has violently taken away His tent, as if it were just in a garden; He has destroyed His place of assembly: Yahweh has caused solemn assembly and Sabbath to be forgotten in Zion- This again is a very positive take on the gatherings held in the temple. Ezekiel was shown in vision how the priests and elders were solemnly worshipping idols within the temple. And so God said that He "hated" their "solemn assemblies" (s:w. <a href='B:290 1:14'>Isa 1:14</a>). Yet in depression, Jeremiah laments that these "solemn assemblies" were no more (<a href='B:310 1:4'>Lam 1:4</a>; <a href='B:310 2:6'>Lam 2:6</a>).</p><p>And has despised in the indignation of His anger the king and the priest- "Despise" is usually translated "provoke". Jeremiah was really hurt and provoked by the opposition of his family (<a href='B:300 23:17'>Jer 23:17</a>); and in that again he manifested Yahweh, who was likewise provoked by Israel (s:w. <a href='B:50 31:20'>Deu 31:20</a>; <a href='B:50 32:19'>Deu 32:19</a>). So Jeremiah seems to have forgotten all that and appears to object to God being provoked by His people; even though he had earlier lived out the same feelings of being provoked by the same group. Again we have the impression that now he is out of step with Yahweh, and yet even in this, he is manifesting the unreasonable pity of Yahweh for His condemned people.</p>


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<p>The Lord has cast off His altar, He has abhorred His sanctuary; He has given up into the hand of the enemy the walls of her palaces: they have made a noise in the house of Yahweh, as in the day of a solemn assembly- As explained on :6, the feasts and holy place had been abused by Judah. They had made it no longer a "sanctuary", a holy place, but rather a profane place. Jeremiah himself had made that point in his prophecies(e.g. <a href='B:300 7:11-14'>Jer 7:11-14</a>). But he chose, in his depression, to hold on to the old narrative, as we all do- in this case, that the temple site was holy space, and God had been wrong to allow the Gentiles to enter and profane it. But Isaiah as well as Jeremiah had often demonstrated that the holy place was within human hearts, and not any more to be understood in physical terms. Because the holy space had been made unholy by Israel. Jeremiah had taught in <a href='B:300 7:12'>Jer 7:12</a> and often that they were wrong to consider the temple a sacred space which somehow automatically preserved them from any prosecution for their sins. They had been reminded that God doesn’t operate sacred spaces like that. God’s earlier sacred space in Shiloh had been destroyed because of the wickedness of the people, and the Jerusalem temple was not going to be any different.</p><p>We note here and in :8 Jeremiah’s particular concern for the walls of the temple being destroyed, the wall of Zion (:8). But <a href='B:330 23:14'>Eze 23:14</a> says that they had used those walls to portray images of their idols. Jeremiah surely knew this. He was intent upon seeing just one aspect of a picture, repeating to himself a narrative which was seriously incomplete to the point of being wrong; and that was what his people were also doing.</p>


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<p>Yahweh has purposed to destroy the wall of the daughter of Zion- The evil purposed need not have come about- if they repented. The "purpose" of God is therefore open ended and sensitive to human repentance. <a href='B:300 18:8'>Jer 18:8</a>; <a href='B:300 26:3'>Jer 26:3</a>; <a href='B:300 36:3'>Jer 36:3</a> use the same word to say that God will "repent of the evil that I purposed to do to them"- if they repented. They did not. And despite knowing all this, Jeremiah seems to lament the execution of the evil purposed.</p><p>He has stretched out the line, He has not withdrawn His hand from destroying- "Not oppressed [the poor]" in <a href='B:330 18:17'>Eze 18:17</a> is literally ’to turn back the hand from’. God did not turn His hand back from destroying Jerusalem (<a href='B:310 2:8'>Lam 2:8</a> s:w:) because the people of Judah and those already in exile had not responded to Ezekiel’s call to ’turn back their hand’ from oppressing the poor. Their attitude to their poor brethren was to become God’s attitude to them. And that is taught by the Lord Jesus in His parables as being the principle by which we too shall be judged.</p><p>He has made the rampart and wall to lament; they languish together- The Biblical record contains a large number of references to the frequent tears of God’s people, both in bleeding hearts for other people, and in recognition of their own sin. And as we have seen, these things are related. Consider:</p><p>-&nbsp;&nbsp; “My eye pours out tears to God” [i:e. in repentance?] (<a href='B:220 16:20'>Job 16:20</a>)</p><p>-&nbsp;&nbsp; Isaiah drenches Moab with tears (<a href='B:290 16:9'>Isa 16:9</a>)</p><p>-&nbsp;&nbsp; Jeremiah is a fountain of tears for his people (<a href='B:300 9:1'>Jer 9:1</a>; <a href='B:310 2:8'>Lam 2:8</a>)</p><p>-&nbsp;&nbsp; David’s eyes shed streams of tears for his sins (<a href='B:230 119:136'>Psa 119:136</a>; <a href='B:230 6:6'>Psa 6:6</a>; <a href='B:230 42:3'>Psa 42:3</a>)</p><p>-&nbsp;&nbsp; Jesus wept over Jerusalem (<a href='B:470 23:37'>Mat 23:37</a>)</p><p>-&nbsp;&nbsp; Blessed are those who weep (<a href='B:490 6:21'>Luk 6:21</a>)</p><p>-&nbsp;&nbsp; Mary washed the Lord’s feet with her tears (<a href='B:490 7:36-50'>Luk 7:36-50</a>)</p><p>-&nbsp;&nbsp; Paul wept for the Ephesians daily (<a href='B:510 20:19'>Act 20:19</a>; <a href='B:510 20:31'>Act 20:31</a>).</p><p>We have to ask whether there are any tears, indeed any true emotion, in our walk with our Lord. Those who go through life with dry eyes are surely to be pitied. Surely, in the light of the above testimony, we are merely hiding behind a smokescreen if we excuse ourselves by thinking that we’re not the emotional type:&nbsp; Nobody can truly gothrough life humming to themselves “I am a rock, I am an island…and an island never cries”. The very emotional center of our lives must be touched. The tragedy of our sin, the urgency of the world’s salvation, the amazing potential provided and secured in the cross of Christ…surely we cannot be passive to these things. We live in a world where emotion and passion are decreasing. Being politically correct, looking right to others… these things are becoming of paramount importance in all levels of society. The passionless, postmodernist life can’t be for us, who have been moved and touched at our very core by the work and call and love of Christ to us. For us there must still be what Walter Brueggemann called “the gift of amazement”, that ability to feel and say “Wow!” to God’s grace and plan of salvation for us.</p>


text:
<p>Her gates are sunk into the ground; He has destroyed and broken her bars: her king and her princes are among the nations where the law is not; yes, her prophets find no vision from Yahweh- It was little use lamenting that Israel were now amongst those who didn’t live by Yahweh’s law; for they had despised that law, and broken it completely- bearing in mind that it was the marriage contract between God and themselves. The silence of Yahweh through the prophets is unsurprising. And yet God had spoken at length through Jeremiah as a prophet. But here he seems to mentally associate himself completely with the people in their unGodly self lamentation.</p>


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<p>The elders of the daughter of Zion sit on the ground, they keep silence; they have cast up dust on their heads; they have clothed themselves with sackcloth: the virgins of Jerusalem hang down their heads to the ground- see on <a href='B:220 2:12'>Job 2:12</a>. The elders here are of Zion rather than of Jerusalem, so perhaps the priesthood is in view. Jeremiah had frequently denounced them, and they had plotted his death. But now his heart bleeds for them- perhaps because as a priest he was related to them. Their grief for the loss of their temple was real enough. But they treated it as a mere talisman; Jeremiah had almost mocked their attachment to it earlier, in <a href='B:300 7:4'>Jer 7:4</a> Don’t trust in lying words by saying, Yahweh’s temple, Yahweh’s temple, Yahweh’s temple, are these". But now he feels so heartbroken for those who thought and felt like that. His identification at this time is completely with the people and not with the Divine, prophetic perspective. And yet it was this identification with them which led him to spurn the good life in Babylon and instead choose to live and die with the impenitent people in Egypt. We too are caught between our natural identification with humanity, and our knowledge of their sin and rejection of God’s ways.</p>


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<p>My eyes do fail with tears, my heart is troubled; my liver is poured on the earth, because of the destruction of the daughter of my people, because the young children and the infants swoon in the streets of the city- This and :12 appear to refer to the sufferings of the people during the famine in the siege, which Jeremiah himself had prophesied several times. His ministry had begun with the assurance that his words would have the power of destruction; and he had been psychologically strengthened for that ministry. But now the reality of what he preached swamped him to the point of apparent regret he had had anything to do with this destruction. The obvious, glaring point is that the people had willfully ignored all his appeals for repentance, had despised God’s patience and grace- and so this had come because of that.</p>


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<p>They ask their mothers for grain and wine, whilst they swoon as the wounded in the streets of the city, with their soul poured out into their mothers’ bosom- We must remember that <a href='B:300 7:11'>Jer 7:11</a> and several times in Ezekiel have convicted the people of offering their children as sacrifices to idols in Yahweh’s temple. The tragic picture painted here of suffering children and distressed parents must be balanced by that fact; a society who allowed that to happen and trusted in those idols was now receiving an appropriate judgment. But Jeremiah struggles with this. He focuses on the narrative formed by his own gut reactions, rather than the prophetic word he had himself uttered.</p>


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<p>What shall I testify to you? What shall I liken to you, daughter of Jerusalem? What shall I compare to you, that I may comfort you, virgin daughter of Zion? For your breach is great like the sea: who can heal you?- The broken earthen bottle which was smashed couldn’t be made whole again- apparently (<a href='B:300 19:11'>Jer 19:11</a>). But the miracle of grace was that like the useless burnt vine branch of Ezekiel 15 and the marred linen girdle buried by the Euphrates, the smashed bottle, like Ezekiel’s dry bones vision, could be made whole again. The stripes upon the suffering servant could ’heal’ Israel (s:w."made whole", <a href='B:290 53:5'>Isa 53:5</a>). Jeremiah had preached as much, that being made whole again was possible (<a href='B:300 3:22'>Jer 3:22</a>; <a href='B:300 30:17'>Jer 30:17</a>; <a href='B:300 33:6'>Jer 33:6</a> s:w:). The rhetorical question of <a href='B:310 2:13'>Lam 2:13</a>"Zion... who can heal you / make you whole again?"(s:w:) had its answer in Yahweh. But we could read this as Jeremiah in depression appearing to have lost faith in the healing promised in <a href='B:300 30:13'>Jer 30:13</a>, for here he laments amongst the ruins of Jerusalem that Zion is without a healer.</p><p>Jeremiah earnestly wishes to comfort them, and is frustrated that he cannot- despite surely being aware of Isaiah’s prophecy that Yahweh would comfort Zion at the restoration (s:w. <a href='B:290 51:3'>Isa 51:3</a>; <a href='B:290 51:12'>Isa 51:12</a>"I, even I, am He that comforts you"; <a href='B:290 66:13'>Isa 66:13</a>"so will I comfort you"; <a href='B:290 40:1'>Isa 40:1</a>; <a href='B:290 49:13'>Isa 49:13</a>; <a href='B:290 52:9'>Isa 52:9</a>)."Comfort"is the same word as"repent"; and God had said that He would repent (s:w:) if Judah repented (<a href='B:300 18:8'>Jer 18:8</a>; <a href='B:300 26:3'>Jer 26:3</a>). The real problem was that Judah had not repented, and Jeremiah refused to factor that into his feelings; see on <a href='B:310 1:9'>Lam 1:9</a>.</p>


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<p>Your prophets have seen for you false and foolish visions; they did not expose your sin to ward off your captivity, but have seen for you false oracles and causes of banishment- There were many false prophets at the time of Jeremiah and Ezekiel; when in fact the true word of prophecy could have ’turned away’ the captivity, if the exiles and the people left in Judah had responded to it (<a href='B:310 2:14'>Lam 2:14</a>). Indeed it could have been that Zedekiah returned as"the prince"of the restored kingdom; see on <a href='B:330 12:12'>Eze 12:12</a>. Ezekiel prophesied to the exiles in Babylon of what was going to happen to the Jews still in the land, exactly so that the exiles’ repentance might avert those in the land suffering further. An ameliorated program of judgment and events would have been possible if they had repented.</p><p>This is one of many cases of self-justification in Lamentations (<a href='B:310 1:2'>Lam 1:2</a>; <a href='B:310 1:19'>Lam 1:19</a>; <a href='B:310 2:14'>Lam 2:14</a>; <a href='B:310 4:13'>Lam 4:13</a>; <a href='B:310 5:7'>Lam 5:7</a>), which contradicts the prophetic position, whereby blame is placed upon Judah, whereas now Jeremiah laments the situation as if Judah is being hard done by, with the masses suffering because of their false prophets- when Jeremiah himself has earlier said that the masses were as guilty as the false prophets, who only taught what the people wanted to hear.</p><p>The whole exile and return need never have happened- the prophecies of this need not have come true in the way they did, for even before the Babylonian invasion, Judah had been offered the prospect of eternally remaining in their land, if they repented (<a href='B:300 7:7'>Jer 7:7</a>). And after it happened, Jeremiah commented: “Your prophets… did not expose your sin to ward off your captivity” (<a href='B:310 2:14'>Lam 2:14</a> NIV). It could have been ‘warded off’ by the peoples’ repentance. Note how Jeremiah, himself a prophet at the time, so wishes to take the blame upon himself for not&nbsp; pleading more powerfully with the people. Perhaps we will have similar feelings when the time of tribulation breaks forth in the very last days.</p>


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<p>All that pass by clap their hands at you. They hiss and wag their head at the daughter of Jerusalem saying, Is this the city that men called The perfection of beauty, The joy of the whole land?- Jeremiah had foretold this (<a href='B:300 19:8'>Jer 19:8</a>; <a href='B:300 22:8'>Jer 22:8</a>), but now he seems stunned to see it happen. And yet he was so certain of the fulfillments of the prophecies that he often speaks in the past tense of those things which were yet future. The hissing nd mocking was because Jerusalem had been praised in David’s psalms (e.g. <a href='B:230 48:2'>Psa 48:2</a>; <a href='B:230 50:2'>Psa 50:2</a>) as the joy of the whole earth and perfect in beauty. Those Psalms of David were well known; for David after the Bathsheba incident had vowed to preach the good news of Yahweh’s grace to the entire world. He had done so through his Psalms. His music ministry had been successful; the nations knew the songs about Zion being the joy of the whole earth and the perfection of beauty. And so they mocked it as it lay in ruins.</p><p>The Lord’s Bible mind would have found some sort of encouragement from those who mocked Him. For the Lord was so clearly bearing the judgment of Israel’s sins: “All who pass along the way clap their hands at you: they hiss and wag their heads at the daughter of Jerusalem" (<a href='B:310 2:15'>Lam 2:15</a>). And note too <a href='B:300 48:27'>Jer 48:27</a> (LXX 31:27): “Is Israel a laughing stock? Was she caught between thieves that you wag your head?". This is exactly the Lord’s position, between thieves, and mocked- but by Israel. These prophecies imply it was the Gentiles who would mock Israel; thus by treating the Lord as they did, they declared themselves to be no longer God’s people but Gentiles.</p>


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<p>All your enemies have opened their mouth wide against you; they hiss and gnash the teeth; they say, We have swallowed her up; certainly this is the day that we looked for; we have found, we have seen it!- But Jeremiah earlier had portrayed these enemies as the"lovers"of Judah, to whom they had desperately prostituted themselves. They had sought their help against Babylon, making exclusive covenants with each of them, promising to worship their gods in the Jerusalem temple. And then the lovers realized that they were not the exclusive love of Judah, and therefore in anger turned against her and joined the Babylonians in destroying the temple which symbolized her adultery and unfaithfulness, both to God and man. But here again, Jeremiah is seeing things only from the perspective of what is immediately before his eyes; all he saw was these people as angry, exalting enemies. He shut his mind to the reasons why and the background. He is really a case study of man in depression.</p>


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<p>Yahweh has done that which He purposed; He has fulfilled His word that He commanded in the days of old; He has thrown down, and has not pitied: He has caused the enemy to rejoice over you- The purpose of God to do these things had been expressed by Jeremiah himself. But he somehow distances himself from that, saying that this was stated"in the days of old". He imagines that it was the curses of Moses which were coming true. And that was long ago; and likewise he must have seen his own words of judgment as uttered as it were in another life, in olden days. He had forgotten his own prophetic mission.</p><p>He has exalted the horn of your adversaries-"Exalted"is the Hebrew word which forms part of the name"Jeremiah", ’Yah will exalt’. Jeremiah in depression is as it were mocking his own name, which he had assumed meant that Yahweh would finally exalt Israel, when now it seemed He was exalting her enemies. For"thrown down", see on :2.</p>


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<p>Their heart cried to the Lord: wall of the daughter of Zion, let tears run down like a river day and night; give yourself no respite; don’t let the apple of your eye cease- Here we see a movement towards a more spiritual pole after the self absorption of the previous verses. But he doesn’t yet make explicit that the crying to the Lord should be in repentance, not simply for relief from present suffering. &nbsp;Jeremiah wanted his grief to be reflective of the grieving prayer of the remnant to their God: “Cry aloud to the Lord! O wall of daughter Zion! Let tears stream down like a torrent day and night! Give yourself no rest, your eyes no respite!” (<a href='B:310 2:18'>Lam 2:18</a> RSV). His grief really was and is to be the pattern for others. Doubtless it influenced the Lord Himself, who wept over Zion (<a href='B:490 19:41'>Luk 19:41</a>), inevitably holding Jeremiah in His mind.</p><p>Clearly there is an allusion to <a href='B:300 14:17'>Jer 14:17</a>"You shall say this word to them, Let my eyes run down with tears night and day, and let them not cease". This could be read as an invitation to repent in tears, in the desperate hope God may yet change His intended judgment; hence LXX"Let your eyes shed tears day and night, and let them not cease: for the daughter of my people has been sorely bruised, and her plague is very grievous". But there is an ambiguity in the text, whereby apparently God is the one who is mourning night and day. Perhaps this is purposeful; they were to mourn as He did, seeing the coming judgments from His perspective, rather than from the human perspective of considering them as just a tragic misfortune. Jeremiah himself entered into this, for he wept night and day for Zion. But here in <a href='B:310 2:18'>Lam 2:18</a>, Jeremiah appears to ask the remaining Jews in Jerusalem to pray night and day; and yet there too, the grammar is ambiguous. For he may be saying there that they had already done this. The truth was they had not, Jeremiah had done so, but contrary to what he hoped, God was not prepared to accept his tears of repentance and mourning as theirs (see on <a href='B:300 14:11'>Jer 14:11</a>).</p><p>Isaiah had prophesied that God would not rest until Zion be restored. Watchmen would be set uponZion’s walls who would give Him no rest until the walls be rebuilt (<a href='B:290 62:1'>Isa 62:1</a>; <a href='B:290 62:6-7'>Isa 62:6-7</a>). At this time, Zion was felt by God to be the “apple of his eye” (<a href='B:450 2:8'>Zec 2:8</a>). This prophesy started to be fulfilled straight after the Babylonian invasion when Jeremiah urged the desolated people to pray: “O wall of the daughter of Zion, let tears run down like a river day and night: give thyself no rest; let not the apple of thine eye cease” (<a href='B:310 2:18'>Lam 2:18</a>). The prayerful remnant gave themselves no rest; and thus was fulfilled the prophecy that God would have no rest. Sincere prayer according to God’s will meant that there was a strange mutuality between the Father and those who prayed to Him. Both He and they considered Zion to be the apple of their eye; and thus the prayers were ultimately answered and Zion was restored.</p>


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<p>Arise, cry out in the night, at the beginning of the watches; pour out your heart like water before the face of the Lord: lift up your hands toward Him for the life of your young children, that faint for hunger at the head of every street- Uplifted hands spoke of intense prayer. It is fitting that the Lord died with hands and arms lifted up above his head, rather than spread out in a crucifix form, seeing that uplifted hands is a symbol of God’s promises being confirmed (<a href='B:330 20:5-6'>Eze 20:5-6</a>; <a href='B:330 20:15'>Eze 20:15</a>; <a href='B:330 36:7'>Eze 36:7</a>; <a href='B:330 47:14'>Eze 47:14</a>), as well as intense prayer (<a href='B:310 2:19'>Lam 2:19</a>;&nbsp; <a href='B:610 2:8'>1Ti 2:8</a>;&nbsp; <a href='B:140 6:12-13'>2Ch 6:12-13</a>;&nbsp; <a href='B:230 28:2'>Psa 28:2</a>), which Christ was engaged in on the cross (<a href='B:650 5:7'>Heb 5:7</a>).</p><p>And yet the intense prayer was for the lives of their children, rather than in repentance. As the Lamentations progress, the desire to pray to God becomes more focused upon repentance, and comes to a climax at the very end in <a href='B:310 5:16-21'>Lam 5:16-21</a>. Jeremiah had a lot to say about children in his prophecies, especially about the way the people offered their infants to the idols, and the way in which Zedekiah’s refusal to repent would lead to the suffering of innocent children. Although Jeremiah is getting ’warmer’ by appealing for prayer to God, he is still not asking for the repentance toward God which was so essential. But as the Lamentations progress, that will come.</p>


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<p>Look, Yahweh, and see to whom You have done thus! Shall the women eat their fruit, the children that are dandled in the hands? Shall the priest and the prophet be killed in the sanctuary of the Lord?- This seems a placing of false guilt on God. The Jeremiah prophecies have repeatedly stated that judgment was really but an extension of the things they themselves did. They had offered their children to Gentile idols, and so their children would be slain by the Gentiles. The women were driven to eating their children in the famine, but they had earlier sacrificed their children to Baal. The prophets in view were the false prophets, who were responsible for teaching Judah to sin; and who had tried to murder Jeremiah. Jeremiah flips back into seeing things solely from the point of view of human tragedy, without factoring in all the background which he himself had been preaching for some years.</p>


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<p>The youth and the old man lie on the ground in the streets; my virgins and my young men are fallen by the sword: You have killed them in the day of Your anger; You have slaughtered, and not pitied- This had been the specific fate predicted by Jeremiah for their choosing to listen to false prophets rather than to him (<a href='B:300 14:16'>Jer 14:16</a>). But now the people were cast out in the streets of Jerusalem, Jeremiah, the true prophet, laments as if this judgment is somehow unreasonable. I feel that whilst the human tragedy was enough to make anybody cry"Too much!", Jeremiah is here out of step with the God who had inspired him to make just this prophecy in places like <a href='B:300 14:16'>Jer 14:16</a>.</p>


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<p>You have called, as in the day of a solemn assembly, my terrors on every side; there was none that escaped or remained in the day of Yahweh’s anger: those that I have dandled and brought up has my enemy consumed- Perhaps Jeremiah lost his own children, hence his bitterness. But he could still be understood here as being totally identified with his own people, feeling their suffering as if it were his very own. Although in a sense he goes too far in this, his sense of identity with his sinful people is in another sense commendable. Seeing he had suffered so much from them and very nearly died at their hands, his love and identity toward them is a reflection of a truly spiritual heart. The terrors on every side were God’s judgments on the people for how they had treated Jeremiah. <a href='B:300 20:10'>Jer 20:10</a>"Terror everywhere (GNB) / on every side"is one meaning of"Magormissabib "in <a href='B:300 20:3'>Jer 20:3</a>. The terror to come upon Judah was partly because of their defamation of Jeremiah, who had spoken God’s word to them. And yet now it comes, Jeremiah feels that there are terrors around him on every side, so deep was his sense of identity with his people. See on :21.</p>


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<p>I am the man that has seen affliction by the rod of His wrath- The same word is used of Judah’s affliction (<a href='B:310 1:3'>Lam 1:3</a>); he was setting himself up as Judah’s representative in the hope they too would pass through his pattern of depression, the stages of grief, and then repentance and begging for the restoration of the Kingdom which we find at the end in <a href='B:310 5:16-21'>Lam 5:16-21</a>. See on <a href='B:310 1:1'>Lam 1:1</a>.</p>


text:
<p>He has led me and caused me to walk in darkness, and not in light- <a href='B:310 2:21-22'>Lam 2:21-22</a> have revealed a peak of identity between Jeremiah and his sinful people, who had tried to murder him previously. Although he appears to go too far in justifying his people, his identity with his people reflected God’s identity with them even in their suffering for disobedience. Walking in darkness rather than light is the language of condemnation, and is used in John’s letters in that sense. He was identified with Israel even in their condemnation, and in this looks forward to the intensely representative work of the Lord Jesus.</p>


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<p>Surely against me He turns his hand again and again all the day- Jeremiah personalizes the suffering of Israel; he really felt he was the one being judged and condemned. See on :12.</p>


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<p>My flesh and my skin He has made old; He has broken my bones- What follows is based upon Jeremiah’s experience in the dungeon. But he seems to have reapplied those feelings to how he felt as the representative of God’s people in their condemnation and suffering at the hands of their invaders; see on :19. Just as his lamentations were originally written to lament the death of Josiah, but he has extended and reapplied them to his grief for Zedekiah and Jerusalem (<a href='B:140 35:25'>2Ch 35:25</a>). He applies his lament for himself in the dungeon to how he laments for himself as the subject of Divine condemnation at the hands of the Babylonians. Even though he was personally innocent and didn’t unduly suffer from the Babylonian invasion. In all this we have a window into the nature of the feelings of the Lord Jesus as He died on the cross, the death of a criminal, thereby tasting death for every sinful man- whilst personally innocent.</p>


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<p>He has built against me, and surrounded me with gall and travail- Building against could refer to the building of bulwarks against the wall of Jerusalem (s:w. <a href='B:50 20:20'>Deu 20:20</a>), as if Jeremiah feels as if he is Jerusalem. But the same words are used of how Jeremiah had been given God’s word, in order to build against as well as destroy (<a href='B:300 1:10'>Jer 1:10</a>). He felt torn between identification with God’s word, and identification with his sinful people and his pity for them."Gall"was specifically the judgment for Israel’s sins (<a href='B:300 8:14'>Jer 8:14</a>; <a href='B:300 9:15'>Jer 9:15</a>) and for the false prophets (<a href='B:300 23:15'>Jer 23:15</a>)- the very ones who had plotted to murder Jeremiah. But now he identifies himself even with his worst enemies in pity for them.</p><p>Jeremiah’s deep identity with his people in their sinfulness and suffering for it all points forward to the Lord’s identity with us, bearing our nature and on the cross totally identifying with sinners. Therefore His sufferings on the cross have connections with the punishments for Israel’s sins (e.g. being offered gall to drink = <a href='B:300 8:14'>Jer 8:14</a>; <a href='B:310 3:5'>Lam 3:5</a>). Israel were temporarily forsaken by God because of their sins (<a href='B:290 49:14'>Isa 49:14</a>; <a href='B:290 54:7'>Isa 54:7</a>), and therefore so was Christ. Christ was chastened with the rod of men"and with the stripes of the children of men", i:e. Israel (<a href='B:290 53:5'>Isa 53:5</a>; <a href='B:670 2:24'>1Pe 2:24</a>; <a href='B:400 5:1'>Mic 5:1</a>), in His death on the cross.</p>


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<p>He has made me to dwell in dark places, as those that have been long dead- And in this case, a priest like Jeremiah would feel ritually unclean and separated from God. It was the Lord’s intense identity with us as sinners which likewise led Him to genuinely feel forsaken by God (<a href='B:470 27:46'>Mat 27:46</a>). These feelings were in the first instance Jeremiah reworking his feelings when in the dungeon; see on :4. Perhaps that dark place felt like a tomb, and maybe dead bodies were thrown into it.</p>


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<p>He has walled me about, that I can’t go forth; He has made my chain heavy- Jeremiah was kept it seems in a cabin in the wall of the dungeon, and in chains. This would have been the basis for his feelings of being walled about. As he sees Judah going into captivity in chains, he recalled the time when he was in chains. Thus he reapplied his feelings in the dungeon to how he now felt as he saw Judah taken captive; see on :4.</p>


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<p>Yes, when I cry, and call for help, He shuts out my prayer- The only way to eat in the dungeon would have been to have food lowered down, and seeing the city was suffering famine, chances of survival were slim. The pit in which there was no water (<a href='B:300 38:6'>Jer 38:6</a>) would have reminded him of Joseph’s experience (<a href='B:10 37:24'>Gen 37:24</a>), and he may well have looked therefore towards some miraculous deliverance. His thoughts at this time are here in Lamentations 3, where he wrote in his mind a prayer or psalm about it, but now reapplies this to his feelings for Israel. But he felt his prayers were shut out by the covering placed upon the dungeon (<a href='B:310 3:8'>Lam 3:8</a>; <a href='B:310 3:53'>Lam 3:53</a>), and he was enclosed within hewn stone (<a href='B:310 3:9'>Lam 3:9</a>)- what the dungeon walls were made of. It was presumably a sewer, with excrement falling before his face. He therefore felt he was in a living death and burial, surrounded by gravel stones as if in a grave (<a href='B:310 3:16'>Lam 3:16</a>). His enemies mocked him from above (<a href='B:310 3:14'>Lam 3:14</a>), pouring water that was probably excrement upon him (<a href='B:310 3:54'>Lam 3:54</a>; as the dungeon was a sewer), his teeth were broken from the beating and perhaps from the descent into the dungeon (<a href='B:310 3:16'>Lam 3:16</a>), and he felt bitter with God rather than full of faith and hope in deliverance (<a href='B:310 3:15'>Lam 3:15</a>). But then his faith revived, reflecting how God had still not destroyed Judah by His great grace (<a href='B:310 3:22'>Lam 3:22</a>), and therefore every day he survived until morning he saw as God’s grace to him, in which he could hope (<a href='B:310 3:23'>Lam 3:23</a>). He realized he was Judah’s representative; for they too were to be sent forth from Babylon, the pit in which there was no water (<a href='B:450 9:11'>Zec 9:11</a>). And this gave him hope; just as God’s great grace to Israel historically should be basis for our hope. And so again we see his totally identity with Israel; God would not hear their prayers, having told Jeremiah not to pray to Him for them; and he feels that is true for himself personally, such was his identity with his people.</p>


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<p>He has walled up my ways with cut stone; He has made my paths crooked- The cut stone was what he would have remembered from being in the dungeon; see on :8. The Jews had made their own paths crooked or perverse (s:w. <a href='B:300 3:21'>Jer 3:21</a>; <a href='B:300 9:5'>Jer 9:5</a>). But now Jeremiah seems to blame God for their sin as well as the judgment for it; see in :11. This total taking of their side is in one sense wrong, but yet it indicates the amazing identity of the Lord Jesus and even God Himself with impenitent sinners. For at the exile, God’s heart bled for His sinful people, as Jeremiah’s did, despite their impenitence.</p>


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<p>He is to me like a bear lying in wait, as a lion in secret places- Babylon and the nations are portrayed as the beast waiting to pounce upon Judah in judgment. Jeremiah clearly sees that God is behind them, and appears more angry with God than he does with those Gentile nations. But he repeatedly refuses to see Israel’s sin as the root cause for all this. See on :46.</p>


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<p>He has turned aside my ways- As in :9, Jeremiah blames God for their sins. He recognizes that Israel’s way had turned aside from God (s:w. ’revolted’ <a href='B:300 5:23'>Jer 5:23</a>; <a href='B:300 6:28'>Jer 6:28</a>; <a href='B:330 6:9'>Eze 6:9</a>), and he identifies with them in that, feeling he has personally turned aside. But he wrongly blames God for it. It is this nadir of spirituality which serves to highlight the wonderful climax of the book in <a href='B:310 5:16-21'>Lam 5:16-21</a> when he comes to total confession of sin and desire for restoration, taking full guilt for sin without blaming God or circumstance.</p><p>And pulled me in pieces; He has made me desolate- Continuing the likeness of Yahweh to a lion in :10. But Jeremiah was treated very well by the Babylonian lion; he was given preferential treatment and offered a good retirement package in Babylon. But he as it were ignores that, and focuses upon his identity with God’s people who had been torn apart by the lion.</p>


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<p>He has bent His bow, and set me as a target for the arrow- Again as in :3, Jeremiah is intensely personalizing Judah’s suffering. He feels he himself is mere target practice for God, and is the sole target for God’s wrath; and yet as noted on :33, he does move on from this. This is typical depressive feeling; that the sufferer alone is suffering. And yet Jeremiah arrived in that position because of his deep identity with God’s people. Depression is at times caused by identification with others who are suffering; internalizing their situation can be a factor in personal depression. It was so with Jeremiah; and yet he comes to this position from a basic love for the people.</p>


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<p>He has caused the shafts of His quiver to enter into my kidneys- Notice how Jeremiah’s bowels were turned for his people, because he felt that he had shared in their sin. The arrows of God entered into his kidneys, and this is why he so cried out in pain. But God’s arrows were against a sinful Judah (<a href='B:310 2:4'>Lam 2:4</a>). Yet Jeremiah so identified with them that he felt they had entered him; and this is why he could cry out in the way he did. Even though he hadn’t rebelled, he felt that because they had, so had he, as he was so identified with them. He reached such a level of grief through identifying himself so closely with those for whom he grieved. Time and again, the descriptions of his personal suffering and grief are expressed in the terms of the very sufferings which he had prophesied as coming upon a sinful Israel. And so with us, if we feel and show a willful solidarity with the people of this world, with our brethren, then we will grieve for them. If we maintain the selfish, modern detachedness from them, then we will never have a heart that bleeds for them. Jeremiah could so easily have shrugged his shoulders and reasoned that Judah had had their chance; and it wasn’t on his head. But he didn’t. His attitude was that he had to seek the sheep until he found it.</p><p>There are intentional parallels between Jeremiah and Judah; he was their representative, as well as God’s representative to them; just like the Lord Jesus. Jeremiah was afflicted (<a href='B:310 1:9'>Lam 1:9</a>; <a href='B:310 3:1'>Lam 3:1</a>) as Judah (s:w. <a href='B:310 1:3'>Lam 1:3</a>; <a href='B:310 1:7'>Lam 1:7</a>); Built against (:5), as Jerusalem was “built against” by the invaders, <a href='B:300 52:4'>Jer 52:4</a>; he “Waxed old”, i:e. prematurely aged (:4), as the heavens and earth of Judah were to “wax old” (s:w:) and pass away (<a href='B:230 102:26'>Psa 102:26</a>; <a href='B:230 50:9'>Psa 50:9</a>; <a href='B:230 51:6'>Psa 51:6</a>). Jeremiah felt his prayers were not heard (:), as Judah’s weren’t. They “Hedged me about, that I cannot get out… inclosed my ways” (:7,9), just as Judah “Therefore, behold, I will hedge up [s:w:] your way with thorns, and make a wall, that she shall not find her paths” (<a href='B:350 2:6'>Hos 2:6</a>). “He was unto me as a bear” (:10), as “I will meet them as a bear” (<a href='B:350 13:8'>Hos 13:8</a>; <a href='B:370 5:19'>Amo 5:19</a>); and “As a lion”, as God was to Judah through the Babylonians (<a href='B:300 5:6'>Jer 5:6</a>; <a href='B:300 49:19'>Jer 49:19</a>; <a href='B:300 50:44'>Jer 50:44</a> etc:). God bent His bow against him (:12), as against Judah (<a href='B:310 2:4'>Lam 2:4</a> s:w:). “Mine affliction and my misery” (3:19) are the same words in <a href='B:310 1:7'>Lam 1:7</a> “her affliction… her miseries”. He drank gall (3:5,19), as Judah had to (<a href='B:300 8:14'>Jer 8:14</a>; <a href='B:300 9:15'>Jer 9:15</a>; <a href='B:300 23:15'>Jer 23:15</a>). There were none to comfort him (<a href='B:310 1:21'>Lam 1:21</a>), as none to comfort her (<a href='B:310 1:9'>Lam 1:9</a>). He bore a yoke (<a href='B:310 3:27'>Lam 3:27</a>), as Judah bore the yoke of condemnation by Babylon (<a href='B:300 27:8'>Jer 27:8</a>; <a href='B:300 27:12'>Jer 27:12</a>).</p><p>And so Jeremiah feels that he himself has committed Israel’s sin along with them: “We have transgressed and have rebelled” (<a href='B:310 3:42'>Lam 3:42</a>). He feels that God will not hear his prayer (<a href='B:310 3:44'>Lam 3:44</a>), even though this was only true for the people and not for Jeremiah personally. In this he looks forward to how the Lord Himself genuinely felt forsaken by the Father, even though He Himself was never forsaken.</p>


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<p>I am become a derision to all my people, and their song all the day- Jeremiah has been identified so closely with the people, as demonstrated throughout this commentary so far. But this is the more noteworthy because he achieves this even although that people mocked him continually. He loved those who mocked him, and loved to the point of total self-identification with them.</p>


