Bible Commentary (1871–1879 Edition)
Muny Coming Evils Predicted. JEREMIAH XII. Complaint of the riosperity of the Wicked.
118. 7). 31. Propliesy not— (Isaiah 30.10; Amos 2. 12; Micah 2. 6.) If Jeremiali had not uttered his denunciatory predictions, they would not have plotte<l against him. None were more bitter than his own fellow-townsmen. Cf. the conduct of the Nazarites towards Jesus of Nazareth (Lulce4. 24-29). 33. The retribution of their intended murder shall be in kind. Just as in Messiah's siah's reformation. Their idolatry is not the result of a hasty impulse (Psulni 8:!. o; Ezekiel 22. 25). 11. cry unto me—contrasted with "cry unto the gods," &c. in. 12). not Iif.Ti-ken—(P.salm IS. Jl; Proverbs 1. 28; Isaiali 1. 15; Micali
S. 4.) Vi. cry nntotlie gods . . . not save—(Deuteronomy
32. 37, :iS.) Cf. with tliis verse and beginning of t'. 13, eh. 2.
2S. In the time of their trouble i. e., calamity (ch. 2. 27). 13. shameful thing—/7tbre(«, shame, viz., the idol, not merely shameful, but the essence of all that is shameful ca.se (Psalm 09.8-28). 33. (Cli. 23. 12.) the year of . . . visitation— LXX. (!mHs/a<e, " ir. the year of thejr," Ac., (ch. 3. 24; Ilosea 9. 10), which will bring shame and confusion on yourselves. [Calvin.] 14. There is a climax of i. e., at the time when I shall visit them in wrath. Jerome supports English Version. "Year" often means a determined time. guilt which admits of no further intercessory prayer (Exodus 32. 10, in Mie Chahlee version, " leave oft' praying;" ch.
7. 10; 1 Samuel 16. I ; 15.3,); 1 John 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
CHAPTER XII,
Ver. 1-17. Continuation of the Subject at thb Close of Chapter 11. He ventures to expostulate with Jehovah as to the prosperity of the wicked, wlio had plotted against his life (v. 1-4); in reply he is told that he will have worse to endure, and that from his own relatives (v. 5, 6). The heaviest judgments, Iiowever, would be inflicted on the faithless people (v. 7-13); and then on the nations co-operating with the Chaldeans against Judali, with, however, a promise of niercy on repentance (v. 14-17). 1. (Psalm 51. 4.) let me talk, Ac. only let me reason the ca.se with thee: inquire of thee the causes why such wicked men as these plotters against my life prosper (cf. Job 12. 6; 21.7; Psalm 37. 1, 3.5; 73. 3; Malachi S. 15). It is right, like Jeremiah, when hard thoughts of God's providence suggest themselves, to fortify our minds by justifying God beforehand, even before we hear the reasmis of His dealings. 3. grow lit., go on, progress. Thou givestthem sure dwellings and increasing prosperity, near In ; . . mouth . . . far from . . . reina —(Isaiah 29. 13; Matthew 15. 8.) Hypocrites. 3. knowest me—(Psalm 139. 1.) tried . . . heart—(Ch. 11. 20.) toward tliee—rather, ivith thee, i. e., entirely devoted to thee; contrasted with the hypocrites (v. 2), "near in . . ..mouth, and far from . . . reins." This being so, how is It that I fare so ill, they so well? pull . . . out—containing the metaphor, from a "rooted tree" (v. 2). prepare lit., separate, or set apart as devoted, day of slaugltter (James 5. 5.) 4. land mourn—personification (ch. 14. 2; of tlieir trouble. Other MSS. read, "in the time of their trouble;" a gloss from v. 12. 15. my beloved—my elect people, Judea ; this aggravates their ingratitude (ch. 12. 7). IcAvduess -with many— (Ezekiel 16.25.) Rather, "that great (or, manifold) enormity;" lit.^ the enormity, the manifold, viz., their idolatry, which made their worship of God in the temple a mockery (cf. ch. 7. 10; Ezekiel 23.39). [HaNDEK-SON.] holy flesh—(Haggai 2. 12-14; Titus 1. 15), viz., the saci-ifices, which, through the guilt of the Jews, were no longer holy, i. e., 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 — lit., " when thy evil" (is at hand). Piscatok <ro/iitaie«, " When thy calamity is at hand (according to God's threats), thou gloriest" (against God, instead of humbling thyself), ^'nfirlish Version is best (cf. Proverbs 2. 14). 16. called thy name—made thee, olive—(Psalm 5'2. 8; Romans 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 (cf. P.salm 2:3. 5; 104. 15). with . . . noise of . . . tumult —or, " at the noise," &c., viz., at the tumult of the invading army (Isaiah 13. 4). [Maurer.] Or, rather, "with the sound of a mighty voice," viz., that of God, i. e., 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 plahted thee—(Ch. 2. 21; Isaiah 5.
2.3. 10). for tl»e wickedness—(Psalm 107. 34.) beasts— (Hosea 4. 3.) He sliall not see our last entl—Jehovah knows not what is about to happen to us (ch. 5. 12). [Rosenmulxer.] So LXX. (Psalm 10. 11; Ezekiel 8. 12; 9.
2.) against themselves—the .sinner's sin is to his own hurt {JS'ote, ch. 7. 19). 18, 19. Jeremiah here digresses to 9). Rather, " The prophet (Jeremiah, to whom the whole context refers) shall not see our last end." "We need not troulde ourselves about his boding predictions. We shall not be destroyed as he .says (ch. 5. 12, 13). 5. .Jehovah's reply to .Teremiah's complaint, horses i. e., horsemen: the argument ft /o?-/iori. A proverbial phrase. The injunotice the attempt on his life plotted by his townsmen of Anathoth. He had no suspi< iou of it, until.Jehovah revealed it lo him (ch. 12. 6). the Lord . . . thou—The change of person from the third to the second accords with Uie excited feelings of tlie prophet, then—when I was in peril of my life, their doings—those of the men ries done thee by the men of Anathoth (" the footmen") are small compared with those which the men of Jerusalem (" the horsemen") are about to inflict on thee. If the former weary the out, how wilt thoil contend with the king, the court, and the priests at Jerusalem? xvhereof Anathoth. His thus alluding to them, before he has mentioned their name, is due to his excitement. 19. lami»—?i7.,a pet-lamb, such as the Jews often had in their houses, (or their children to play with ; and the Arabs still have (2 Samuel 12. 3). His own familiar friends had in thou tnistcdst, they wearied tliee—Engli.ih Versio7i thus fills up the sentence with the italicized words, to answer plotted against the prophet. The language is exactly the same as that applied to Messiah (Isaiah 53. 7). Each to the parallel clause in the first sentence of the verse. The parallelism is, however, sufficiently retained with a prophet and patriarch exemplified in his own person some one feature or more in tlie manifold attributes and le.ss ellipsis: " If (it is only) in aland of peace thou art confident." [Maurer.] swelling of Jordan-In harvest time and earlier (April and May) it overflows its banks (Joshua 3. 15), and fills the valley called the Ghor. sufferings of the Messiah to come ; just as the saints have done since His coming (Galatlans 2. 20; Philippians 3. 10; Colosslans 1.24). This adapted both the more experimentally to testify of Christ, devices—(Ch. 18. IS.) tree with Or, " the pride of Jordan," viz., its wooded banks abounding in lions and other wild beasts (ch. 49. 19; 50. 44 ; Zechn-. . ; fruit— in its fruit or food, i. c., when it is in fruit. riah 11.3; cf. 2 Kings 6.2). Maundrell says, that between the Sea of Tiberias and Lake Merom the banks are so wooded that the traveller cannot see the river at all without first passing through the woods. If in tlie champaign country (alone) thou art secure, how wilt thou do whe-n thou tallest into the wooded haunts of wild boasts? «. even thy bretliren—As in Christ's case (P.salm 69. 8; John
Proverbial, to express the destruction of cause and etl'ect together. The man Is the tree; his teaching, the fruit.
Let us destroy the prophet and Ills prophecies ; viz., those tlireatenlng des-tru(Mion to the nation, whi(!h offended them. Cf. Matthew 7. 17, which also refers to proqhetsaml their doctrines. ZO. triest . . . hcart^(rievelation 2. 23.) revealed—committed my came. Jeremiah's wish for ven-
1.11; 7.5; cf. ch.9. 4; 11.19,21; Matthew 10.36). Godly geance was not personal but ministerial, and accorded faithfulness Is sure to provoke the ungodly even of one's own family, called a multitutle after tliee—(IsalaU U< with God's purpose revealed to him against the enemies alike of God and of His servant (Psalm 37. 34; 54. 7 ; ir2. 8; 51S