19 But I was like a gentle lamb taken to be put to death; I had no thought that they were designing evil against me, saying, Come and let us make trouble his food, cutting him off from the land of the living, so that there may be no more memory of his name.
Then they said, Come, let us make a design against Jeremiah; for teaching will never be cut off from the priest, or wisdom from the wise, or the word from the prophet. Come, let us make use of his words for an attack on him, and let us give attention with care to what he says.
Men were cruel to him, but he was gentle and quiet; as a lamb taken to its death, and as a sheep before those who take her wool makes no sound, so he said not a word. They took away from him help and right, and who gave a thought to his fate? for he was cut off from the land of the living: he came to his death for the sin of my people.
Man has not seen the way to it, and it is not in the land of the living.
For numbers of them say evil secretly in my hearing (there is fear on every side): they say, Come, let us give witness against him; all my nearest friends, who are watching for my fall, say, It may be that he will be taken by deceit, and we will get the better of him and give him punishment.
And at the right time he sent a servant to the workers to get part of the fruit from the vines; but the workmen gave him blows and sent him away with nothing. And he sent another servant, and they gave blows to him in the same way, and put shame on him, and sent him away with nothing. And he sent a third, and they gave him wounds and put him out. And the lord of the garden said, What am I to do? I will send my dearly loved son; they may give respect to him. But when the workmen saw him, they said to one another, This is he who will one day be the owner of the property: let us put him to death and the heritage will be ours. And driving him out of the garden they put him to death. Now what will the lord do to these workmen?
Let his seed be cut off; in the coming generation let their name go out of memory.
But God will put an end to you for ever; driving you out from your tent, uprooting you from the land of the living. (Selah.)
And at the end of the times, even after the sixty-two weeks, one on whom the holy oil has been put will be cut off and have no ...; and the town and the holy place will be made waste together with a prince; and the end will come with an overflowing of waters, and even to the end there will be war; the making waste which has been fixed.
Then the chief priests and the rulers of the people came together in the house of the high priest, who was named Caiaphas. And they made designs together to take Jesus by some trick, and put him to death.
I said, I will not see the Lord, even the Lord in the land of the living: I will not see man again or those living in the world.
The designs of the false are evil, purposing the destruction of the poor man by false words, even when he is in the right.
The simple man goes after her, like an ox going to its death, like a roe pulled by a cord;
I have made my cry to you, O Lord; I have said, You are my safe place, and my heritage in the land of the living.
He will not ever be moved; the memory of the upright will be living for ever.
The sinners are watching the upright man, desiring to put him to death. The Lord will not give him into their hands, or be against him when he is judged.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Jeremiah 11
Commentary on Jeremiah 11 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 11
Jer 11:1-23. Epitome of the Covenant Found in the Temple in Josiah's Reign. Judah's Revolt from It, and God's Consequent Wrath.
2. this covenant—alluding to the book of the law (De 31:26) found in the temple by Hilkiah the high priest, five years after Jeremiah's call to the prophetic office (2Ki 22:8-23:25).
Hear ye—Others besides Jeremiah were to promulgate God's will to the people; it was the duty of the priests to read the law to them (Mal 2:7).
3. (De 27:26; Ga 3:10).
4. in the day—that is, when. The Sinaitic covenant was made some time after the exodus, but the two events are so connected as to be viewed as one.
iron furnace—(De 4:20; 1Ki 8:51). "Furnace" expresses the searching ordeal; "iron," the long duration of it. The furnace was of earth, not of iron (Ps 12:6); a furnace, in heat and duration enough to melt even iron. God's deliverance of them from such an ordeal aggravates their present guilt.
do them—namely, the words of the covenant (Jer 11:3).
so, &c.—(Le 26:3, 12).
5. oath—(Ps 105:9, 10).
a land flowing with milk and honey—(See on Nu 14:8).
as it is this day—These are the concluding words of God to the Israelites when formerly brought out of Egypt, "Obey … that I may at this time make good the promise I made to your fathers, to give," &c. [Maurer]. English Version makes the words apply to Jeremiah's time, "As ye know at this time, that God's promise has been fulfilled," namely, in Israel's acquisition of Canaan.
So be it—Hebrew, Amen. Taken from De 27:15-26. Jeremiah hereby solemnly concurs in the justice of the curses pronounced there (see Jer 11:3).
6. Jeremiah was to take a prophetic tour throughout Judah, to proclaim everywhere the denunciations in the book of the law found in the temple.
Hear … do—(Ro 2:13; Jas 1:22).
7. rising early—(Jer 7:13).
8. imagination—rather, "stubbornness."
will bring—The words, "even unto this day" (Jer 11:7), confirm English Version rather than the rendering of Rosenmuller: "I brought upon them."
words—threats (Jer 11:3; De 27:15-26).
9. conspiracy—a deliberate combination against God and against Josiah's reformation. Their idolatry is not the result of a hasty impulse (Ps 83:5; Eze 22:25).
11. cry unto me—contrasted with "cry unto the gods," (Jer 11:12).
not hearken—(Ps 18:41; Pr 1:28; Isa 1:15; Mic 3:4).
12. cry unto the gods … not save—(De 32:37, 38). Compare this verse and beginning of Jer 11:13; Jer 2:28.
in the time of their trouble—that is, calamity (Jer 2:27).
13. shameful thing—Hebrew, "shame," namely, the idol, not merely shameful, but the essence of all that is shameful (Jer 3:24; Ho 9:10), which will bring shame and confusion on yourselves [Calvin].
14. There is a climax of guilt which admits of no further intercessory prayer (Ex 32:10, in the Chaldee version, "leave off praying"; Jer 7:16; 1Sa 16:1; 15:35; 1Jo 5:16). Our mind should be at one with God in all that He is doing, even in the rejection of the reprobate.
for their trouble—on account of their trouble. Other manuscripts read, "in the time of their trouble;" a gloss from Jer 11:12.
15. my beloved—My elect people, Judea; this aggravates their ingratitude (Jer 12:7).
lewdness with many—(Eze 16:25). Rather, "that great (or, manifold) enormity"; literally, "the enormity, the manifold"; namely, their idolatry, which made their worship of God in the temple a mockery (compare Jer 7:10; Eze 23:39) [Henderson].
holy flesh—(Hag 2:12-14; Tit 1:15), namely, the sacrifices, which, through the guilt of the Jews, were no longer holy, that is, acceptable to God. The sacrifices on which they relied will, therefore, no longer protect them. Judah is represented as a priest's wife, who, by adultery, has forfeited her share in the flesh of the sacrifices, and yet boasts of her prerogative at the very same time [Horsley].
when thou doest evil—literally, "when thy evil" (is at hand). Piscator translates, "When thy calamity is at hand (according to God's threats), thou gloriest" (against God, instead of humbling thyself). English Version is best (compare Pr 2:14).
16. called thy name—made thee.
olive—(Ps 52:8; Ro 11:17). The "olive" is chosen to represent the adoption of Judah by the free grace of God, as its oil is the image of richness (compare Ps 23:5; 104:15).
with … noise of … tumult—or, "at the noise," &c., namely, at the tumult of the invading army (Isa 13:4) [Maurer]. Or, rather, "with the sound of a mighty voice," namely, that of God, that is, the thunder; thus there is no confusion of metaphors. The tree stricken with lightning has "fire kindled upon it, and the branches are broken," at one and the same time [Houbigant].
17. that planted thee—(Jer 2:21; Isa 5:2).
against themselves—The sinner's sin is to his own hurt (see on Jer 7:19).
18, 19. Jeremiah here digresses to notice the attempt on his life plotted by his townsmen of Anathoth. He had no suspicion of it, until Jehovah revealed it to him (Jer 12:6).
the Lord … thou—The change of person from the third to the second accords with the excited feelings of the prophet.
then—when I was in peril of my life.
their doings—those of the men of Anathoth. His thus alluding to them, before he has mentioned their name, is due to his excitement.
19. lamb—literally, a "pet lamb," such as the Jews often had in their houses, for their children to play with; and the Arabs still have (2Sa 12:3). His own familiar friends had plotted against the prophet. The language is exactly the same as that applied to Messiah (Isa 53:7). Each prophet and patriarch exemplified in his own person some one feature or more in the manifold attributes and sufferings of the Messiah to come; just as the saints have done since His coming (Ga 2:20; Php 3:10; Col 1:24). This adapted both the more experimentally to testify of Christ.
devices—(Jer 18:18).
tree with … fruit—literally, "in its fruit" or "food," that is, when it is in fruit. Proverbial, to express the destruction of cause and effect together. The man is the tree; his teaching, the fruit. Let us destroy the prophet and his prophecies; namely, those threatening destruction to the nation, which offended them. Compare Mt 7:17, which also refers to prophets and their doctrines.
20. triest … heart—(Re 2:23).
revealed—committed my cause. Jeremiah's wish for vengeance was not personal but ministerial, and accorded with God's purpose revealed to him against the enemies alike of God and of His servant (Ps 37:34; 54:7; 112:8; 118:7).
21. Prophesy not—(Isa 30:10; Am 2:12; Mic 2:6). If Jeremiah had not uttered his denunciatory predictions, they would not have plotted against him. None were more bitter than his own fellow townsmen. Compare the conduct of the Nazarites towards Jesus of Nazareth (Lu 4:24-29).
22. The retribution of their intended murder shall be in kind; just as in Messiah's case (Ps 69:8-28).
23. (Jer 23:12).
the year of … visitation—The Septuagint translates, "in the year of their," &c., that is, at the time when I shall visit them in wrath. Jerome supports English Version. "Year" often means a determined time.