Commentary on Jeremiah Volume 1 John Calvin
JOHN CALVIN
he says, to the great, and will speak to them It is the same as though he had said, that everywhere his labor was in vain, for not only he spoke to the deaf when addressing the illiterate vulgar, but also when addressing the chief men. I have said, that the Prophet did not make the inquiry as one doubtful, but his purpose was to make the chief men ashamed of themselves, and also to confirm what he had said before, --- that not one just and upright man could be found in Jerusalem.
For they know, he says, etc. He declares the same thing in the same words. But we must ever remember, that the Prophet did not believe this; but he speaks of it as a thing that appeared probable: for who could have then thought that there was so much ignorance in the chief men? for they were in great esteem among the people.
Since then the opinion prevailed, that all those who were rulers were well acquainted with the law, Jeremiah speaks according to what was commonly thought, and says, that they knew the way of Jehovah
He afterwards adds, But (for {,}אךak, is to be taken here adversatively, and its proper meaning is, nay or but) they have alike broken the yoke, they have burst the bonds; that is, ``If any one thinks that the rulers are better than the common people, he is much deceived; for I have proofs enough to shew that their conduct is the same; they have broken the yoke of God no less than the most ignorant.'' By this repetition he more fully confirmed their defection, and at the same time reminded them how shameful it was, that prophets, priests, and rulers, who occupied the first places in the state, had become so unbridled in their vices. It follows ---
Jeremiah 5:6
6. Wherefore a lion out of the forest shall slay them, and a wolf of the evenings shall spoil them, a leopard shall watch over their cities: every one that goeth out thence shall be torn in pieces: because their transgressions are many, and their backslidings are increased.
6. Propterea percussit eos leo e sylva; lupus solitudinum (alii per {}ערבותintelligunt vesperas, quia deducunt ab {}ערבquod significat vesperum; ita vertunt, lupus vesperinus) vastavit eos; pardus (alii vertunt, pantheram) vigilans super urbes eorum; quisquis egredietur, discerpet (vel, lacerabit;) quoniam multiplices sunt iniquitates eorum, auctae sunt defectiones ceorum.
Here, at length, God shews that he was moderate in his judgments, so that the wicked in vain charged him, as it is usual with them, with too much rigor.
Some render the words in the past tense, and think the sense to be, that the Prophet reminds the Jews that they had not been afflicted without reason by so many evils, as they had deserved heavier punishments. But another view may be taken; for we know that in Hebrew the tenses often change; and I am inclined to regard the future tense as intended; for the Prophet seems not here to record what they had already suffered, but to remind them of the heavy punishment that was awaiting them. Smite them shall the lion from the forest
The wolf is called the wolf of solitudes, because of his coming forth from the desert. Some render the words, ``the wolf of the evening;'' and this may be allowed.
We indeed know, that in other places hungry wolves are called the wolves of the evening; for after having sought their prey in the day --- time, and finding none, they
COMMENTARY ON JEREMIAH
become in the evening almost mad, and their hunger causes them to run furiously in all directions. This explanation, then, may be admitted. But as he says first, that the lion would come from the forest, it is more probable that the wolf is described as coming from the desert. 133 As to the general import of the passage there is not much difference.
He mentions here three wild beasts --- the lion, the wolf, and the leopard. By these wild beasts he understands no doubt the enemies, who would shortly attack them with the greatest cruelty. It is indeed true that the Jews, before the time in which Jeremiah spoke to them, had been afflicted with many evils; for God had not punished them only once, but had given them frequent warnings; and had there been any hope of repentance, they might have still continued in safety, though considerably reduced. But Jeremiah seems to predict future punishment: he therefore refers, not only to the Egyptians and the Assyrians, but also to other enemies. For that people, we know, were hated by all their neighbors, and had suffered grievous wrongs even from their own kindred. Since, then, many nations were hostile to the Jews, it is nothing strange that the Prophet enumerates here three sorts of wild beasts; as though he had said, that enemies would come from every quarter, who would, like lions, wolves, and leopards, vent their fury on them, because they had so often, and for so long a time, provoked God's wrath. At the same time, God does here check those false complaints which are wont to be often alleged by the wicked, and shews that he is a righteous Judge, and that the punishments he inflicted could not be blamed by the Jews: and it was for this purpose that he used the particle, Wherefore
--- {}כז-{,}עלol-kan.
He also adds, A leopard shall watch, that he may tear all who shall go out of the cities This language is no doubt metaphorical; and what he means is, that when the enemies would occupy the land, the Jews would be shut up in their cities, and would not venture to go forth, for dangers would await them everywhere.
At the end of the verse he repeats again, and speaks more fully of what he meant by ``Wherefore --- {}כז-{`` ,}עלat the beginning of the verse; 134 for he says, Because multiplied have their transgressions, and increased have their defections By these words he further proves what he had said, that God is a righteous judge, even when he seems to be too severe: for it could not have been otherwise, but that he must have visited with extreme vengeance a people so abandoned and irreclaimable.
Nor does he only call them wicked, and apostates, but he says that their iniquities, 135 or evil deeds, were many, and that their defections had increased And by the last
133The word, as found here, is never used for the evening; it ever means the desert, or uncultivated plains. The plural termination of the word, when it means the evening, is -{,{יםand not ,{}ותas here. See Numbers 22:1; Joshua 5:10; Jeremiah 39:5. In these verses it is rendered ``plains;'' they were evidently uncultivated, and might properly be called deserts. The Vulgate and the Targum have led commentators astray as to this word.
The Septuagint have completely misunderstood it, and have rendered the sentence, ``The wolf even to the houses ({ἕως} {τῶν}
{οἰκιῶν}) has destroyed them.'' The version of Blayney is, ``The wolf of the plains:`` and he says in a note, that they were ``unenclosed commons.'' used for sheepwalks, which were commonly ``infested with wolves.'' --- Ed
134This illative, "wherefore," or therefore, or, for this cause, is both retrospective and anticipative. It is a reason given for what is contained in the latter part of the last verse, and for what is contained in the last words of this verse; it anticipates the particle "because" before "multiplied." — Ed.
135It is rendered "{ἀσεβείας} --- impieties, ``by the Septuagint; ``prevarications'' by the Vulgate; ``rebellions'' by the Targum. It does not mean ``iniquities,`` but willful violations of the law in matters connected with God's worship and service. The