1 Righteous art thou, Jehovah, when I plead with thee; yet will I speak with thee of [thy] judgments. Wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper? [wherefore] are all they at ease that deal very treacherously?
And now we hold the proud for happy; yea, they that work wickedness are built up; yea, they tempt God, and they escape.
The tents of desolators are in peace, and they that provoke ùGod are secure; into whose hand +God bringeth.
Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done what is evil in thy sight; that thou mayest be justified when thou speakest, be clear when thou judgest.
{[A Psalm] of David.} Fret not thyself because of evil-doers, and be not envious of them that work unrighteousness;
Wherefore do the wicked live, grow old, yea, become mighty in power? Their seed is established with them in their sight, and their offspring before their eyes. Their houses are safe from fear, neither is the rod of +God upon them. Their bull gendereth, and faileth not; their cow calveth, and casteth not her calf. They send forth their little ones like a flock, and their children dance. They shout to the tambour and harp, and rejoice at the sound of the pipe. They spend their days in prosperity, and in a moment go down to Sheol. And they say unto ùGod, Depart from us, for we desire not the knowledge of thy ways! What is the Almighty that we should serve him? and what are we profited if we pray unto him?
The righteous Jehovah is in the midst of her: he doeth no wrong. Every morning doth he bring his judgment to light; it faileth not: but the unrighteous knoweth no shame.
[Thou art] of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on mischief: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, [and] keepest silence when the wicked swalloweth up a [man] more righteous than he? And thou makest men as the fishes of the sea, as the creeping things, that have no ruler over them. He taketh up all of them with the hook, he catcheth them in his net, and gathereth them into his drag; therefore he rejoiceth and is glad: therefore he sacrificeth unto his net, and burneth incense unto his drag; for by them his portion is become fat, and his meat dainty. Shall he therefore empty his net, and not spare to slay the nations continually?
Thine, O Lord, is the righteousness, but unto us confusion of face, as at this day, to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and unto all Israel, that are near, and that are far off, in all the countries whither thou hast driven them, because of their unfaithfulness in which they have been unfaithful against thee.
But thou, Jehovah of hosts, who judgest righteously, who triest the reins and the heart, let me see thy vengeance on them: for unto thee have I revealed my cause.
As a cage full of birds, so are their houses full of deceit: therefore they are become great, and have enriched themselves. They are become fat, they shine, yea, they surpass in deeds of wickedness; they judge not the cause, the cause of the fatherless, and they prosper; and the right of the needy do they not adjudge.
For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have dealt very treacherously against me, saith Jehovah.
How long shall the wicked, O Jehovah, how long shall the wicked triumph? [How long] shall they utter [and] speak insolence -- all the workers of iniquity boast themselves?
But I will speak to the Almighty, and will find pleasure in reasoning with ùGod;
Jehovah, God of Israel, thou art righteous; for we are a remnant that is escaped, as [it is] this day. Behold, we are before thee in our trespasses; for there is no standing before thee because of this.
But if our unrighteousness commend God's righteousness, what shall we say? Is God unrighteous who inflicts wrath? I speak according to man. Far be the thought: since how shall God judge the world?
But they like Adam have transgressed the covenant: there have they dealt treacherously against me.
Yea, thou heardest not, yea, thou knewest not, yea, from of old thine ear was not opened; for I knew that thou wouldest ever deal treacherously, and thou wast called a transgressor from the womb.
Produce your cause, saith Jehovah; bring forward your arguments, saith the King of Jacob.
Jehovah is righteous in all his ways, and kind in all his works.
TZADE. Righteous art thou, Jehovah, and upright are thy judgments.
For I was envious at the arrogant, seeing the prosperity of the wicked. For they have no pangs in their death, and their body is well nourished; They have not the hardships of mankind, neither are they plagued like [other] men: Therefore pride encompasseth them as a neck-chain, violence covereth them [as] a garment; Their eyes stand out from fatness, they exceed the imaginations of their heart: They mock and speak wickedly of oppression, they speak loftily: They set their mouth in the heavens, and their tongue walketh through the earth. Therefore his people turn hither, and waters in fulness are wrung out to them. And they say, How can ùGod know, and is there knowledge in the Most High? Behold, these are the wicked, and they prosper in the world: they heap up riches. Truly have I purified my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocency: For all the day have I been plagued, and chastened every morning. If I said, I will speak thus, behold, I should be faithless to the generation of thy children. When I thought to be able to know this, it was a grievous task in mine eyes; Until I went into the sanctuaries of ùGod; [then] understood I their end. Truly thou settest them in slippery places, thou castest them down in ruins. How are they suddenly made desolate! they pass away, consumed with terrors. As a dream, when one awaketh, wilt thou, Lord, on arising despise their image. When my heart was in a ferment, and I was pricked in my reins, Then I was brutish and knew nothing; I was [as] a beast with thee. Nevertheless I am continually with thee: thou hast holden my right hand; Thou wilt guide me by thy counsel, and after the glory, thou wilt receive me. Whom have I in the heavens? and there is none upon earth I desire beside thee. My flesh and my heart faileth: God is the rock of my heart and my portion for ever. For behold, they that are far from thee shall perish; thou destroyest every one that goeth a whoring from thee. But as for me, it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord Jehovah, that I may declare all thy works.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Keil & Delitzsch Commentary » Commentary on Jeremiah 12
Commentary on Jeremiah 12 Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
The prophet's displeasure at the prosperity of the wicked. - The enmity experienced by Jeremiah at the hands of his countrymen at Anathoth excites his displeasure at the prosperity of the wicked, who thrive and live with immunity. He therefore beings to expostulate with God, and demands from God's righteousness that they be cut off out of the land (Jeremiah 12:1-4); whereupon the Lord reproves him for this outburst of ill-nature and impatience by telling him that he must patiently endure still worse. - This section, the connection of which with the preceding is unmistakeable, shows by a concrete instance the utter corruptness of the people; and it has been included in the prophecies because it sets before us the greatness of God's long-suffering towards a people ripe for destruction.
Jeremiah 12:1
"Righteous art Thou, Jahveh, if I contend with Thee; yet will I plead with Thee in words. Wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper, are all secure that deal faithlessly? Jeremiah 12:2. Thou hast planted them, yea, they have taken root; grow, yea, bring forth fruit. Near art Thou in their mouth, yet far from their reins. Jeremiah 12:3. But Thou, Jahveh, knowest me, seest me, and triest mine heart toward Thee. Tear them away like sheep to the slaughter, and devote them for a day of slaughter. Jeremiah 12:4. How long is the earth to mourn and the herb of the field to wither? For the wickedness of them that dwell therein, gone are cattle and fowl; for they say: He sees not our end. Jeremiah 12:5. If with the footmen thou didst run and they wearied thee, how couldst thou contend with the horses? and if thou trustest in the land of peace, how wilt thou do in the glory of Jordan? Jeremiah 12:6. For even thy brethren and they father's house, even they are faithless towards thee, yea, they call after thee with full voice. Believe them not, though they speak friendly to thee."