Jeremiah Chapter 4

From The Open Bible Project

4:1 "If you will return, Israel," says Yahweh, "if you will return to me, and if you will put away your abominations out of my sight; then you shall not be removed;

• (a) That is, wholly and without hypocrisy, not dissembling to turn and serve God as they do who serve him by halves, (Hosea 7:16).

4:2 and you shall swear, 'As Yahweh lives,' in truth, in justice, and in righteousness. The nations shall bless themselves in him, and in him shall they glory."

• (b) You will detest the name of idols, (Psalms 16:4) and will with reverence swear by the living God, when your oath may advance God’s glory, and profit others: and here by swearing he means the true religion of God.

4:3 For thus says Yahweh to the men of Judah and to Jerusalem, "Break up your fallow ground, and don't sow among thorns.

• (c) He wills them to pluck up the impiety and wicked affection and worldly respects out of their heart, that the true seed of God’s word may be sown in it, (Hosea 10:12) and this is the true circumcision of the heart, (Deuteronomy 10:16; Romans 2:29; Colossians 2:11).

4:4 Circumcise yourselves to Yahweh, and take away the foreskins of your heart, you men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem; lest my wrath go forth like fire, and burn so that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings.

4:5 Declare in Judah, and publish in Jerusalem; and say, 'Blow the trumpet in the land!' Cry aloud and say, 'Assemble yourselves! Let us go into the fortified cities!'

• (d) He warns them of the great dangers that will come on them by the Chaldeans, unless they repent and turn to the Lord.

4:6 Set up a standard toward Zion. Flee for safety! Don't wait; for I will bring evil from the north, and a great destruction."

• (e) He speaks this to admonish them of the great danger when every man will prepare to save himself, but it will be too late, (2 Kings 25:4).

4:7 A lion is gone up from his thicket, and a destroyer of nations; he is on his way, he is gone forth from his place, to make your land desolate, that your cities be laid waste, without inhabitant.

• (f) Meaning Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, (2 Kings 24:1).

4:8 For this gird yourself with sackcloth, lament and wail; for the fierce anger of Yahweh hasn't turned back from us.

4:9 "It shall happen at that day," says Yahweh, "that the heart of the king shall perish, and the heart of the princes; and the priests shall be astonished, and the prophets shall wonder."

• (g) That is, the false prophets who still prophesied peace and security.

4:10 Then I said, "Ah, Lord Yahweh! Surely you have greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, 'You shall have peace;' whereas the sword reaches to the heart."

• (h) By the false prophets who promised peace and tranquillity: and thus you have punished their rebellious stubbornness by causing them to hearken to lies who would not believe your truth, (1 Kings 22:23; Ezekiel 14:9; 2 Thessalonians 2:11).

4:11 At that time shall it be said to this people and to Jerusalem, "A hot wind from the bare heights in the wilderness toward the daughter of my people, not to winnow, nor to cleanse;

• (i) The north wind by which he means Nebuchadnezzar.
• (k) But to carry away both corn and chaff.

4:12 a full wind from these shall come for me. Now I will also utter judgments against them."

4:13 Behold, he shall come up as clouds, and his chariots [shall be] as the whirlwind: his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe to us! For we are ruined.

• (l) Meaning that Nebuchadnezzar would come as suddenly as a cloud that is carried with the wind.
• (m) This is spoken in the person of all the people, who in their affliction would cry thus.

4:14 Jerusalem, wash your heart from wickedness, that you may be saved. How long shall your evil thoughts lodge within you?

4:15 For a voice declares from Dan, and publishes evil from the hills of Ephraim:

• (n) Which was a city in the utmost border of Israel north toward Babylon.
• (o) Which was in the middle between Dan and Jerusalem.

4:16 "Tell the nations; behold, publish against Jerusalem, 'Watchers come from a far country, and raise their voice against the cities of Judah.

4:17 As keepers of a field, they are against her all around, because she has been rebellious against me,'" says Yahweh.

• (p) Who keep the fruits so straitly, that nothing can come in or out so would the Babylonians compass Judah.

4:18 "Your way and your doings have brought these things to you. This is your wickedness; for it is bitter, for it reaches to your heart."

4:19 My anguish, my anguish! I am pained at my very heart; my heart is disquieted in me; I can't hold my peace; because you have heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.

• (q) He shows that the true ministers are lively touched with the calamities of the Church, so that all the parts of their body feel the grief of their heart, even though with zeal to God’s glory they pronounce his judgments against the people.

4:20 Destruction on destruction is cried; for the whole land is laid waste: suddenly are my tents destroyed, [and] my curtains in a moment.

• (r) Meaning, the cities which were as easily cast down as a tent.

4:21 How long shall I see the standard, and hear the sound of the trumpet?

4:22 "For my people are foolish, they don't know me. They are foolish children, and they have no understanding. They are skillful in doing evil, but to do good they have no knowledge."

• (s) Their wisdom and policy tend to their own destruction and pulls them from God.

4:23 I saw the earth, and, behold, it was waste and void; and the heavens, and they had no light.

• (t) By this manner of speech he shows the horrible destruction that would come on the land and also condemns the obstinacy of the people who do not repent at the fear of these terrible kings, seeing that the insensible creatures are moved therewith, as if the order of nature would be changed, (Isaiah 13:10, Isaiah 24:23; Ezekiel 32:7; Joel 2:31, Joel 3:15).

4:24 I saw the mountains, and behold, they trembled, and all the hills moved back and forth.

4:25 I saw, and behold, there was no man, and all the birds of the sky had fled.

4:26 I saw, and behold, the fruitful field was a wilderness, and all its cities were broken down at the presence of Yahweh, [and] before his fierce anger.

4:27 For thus says Yahweh, "The whole land shall be a desolation; yet will I not make a full end.

• (u) But for his mercies sake, he will reserve himself a residue to be his Church, and to praise him in earth, (Jeremiah 5:18).

4:28 For this the earth will mourn, and the heavens above be black; because I have spoken it, I have purposed it, and I have not repented, neither will I turn back from it."

4:29 Every city flees for the noise of the horsemen and archers; they go into the thickets, and climb up on the rocks: every city is forsaken, and not a man dwells therein.

4:30 You, when you are made desolate, what will you do? Though you clothe yourself with scarlet, though you deck you with ornaments of gold, though you enlarge your eyes with paint, in vain do you make yourself beautiful; [your] lovers despise you, they seek your life.

• (x) Neither your ceremonies nor rich gifts will deliver you.

4:31 For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, the anguish as of her who brings forth her first child, the voice of the daughter of Zion, who gasps for breath, who spreads her hands, [saying], "Woe is me now! For my soul faints before the murderers."

• (y) As the prophets were moved to pity the destruction of their people, so they declared it to the people to move them to repentance, (Isaiah 22:4; Jeremiah 9:1).