1God sheweth Jeremiah the return of the Jews, 4and their deliverance out of their trouble. 10He comforteth Jacob, 18and promiseth the Jews a gracious re-establishment in their ancient privileges. 23Wrath shall fall on the wicked.
1THE word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
2Thus speaketh the LORD God of Israel, saying, 1Write thee all the words that I have spoken unto thee in a book.
1 See Jer. 36:2.
3For, lo, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will bring again the 2captivity of my people Israel and Judah, saith the LORD: and I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it.
2 Or, bring again the captives.
4¶And these are the words that the LORD spake concerning Israel and concerning Judah.
5For thus saith the LORD; 3We have heard a voice of 4trembling, of fear, and not of peace.
3 Here the inhabitants of Jerusalem are introduced , thus lamenting at the time of the capture of the city, etc.
4 Or, terror.
6Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth 5travail with child? wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail,a and all faces are turned into 6paleness?
5 That is, can bring forth, as often.
a Jer. 4:31; 6:24.
6 Or, yellowness, jaundice, that is, discolored, as those who have the yellow jaundice and as the fruits of the ground, when through too much moisture they putrefy, and are smitten with mildew. Compare Deut. 28 on verse 22.
7Alasb! 7for that 8day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.
b Joel 2:11; Zeph. 1:15.
7 Or, certainly, surely is that day, etc. Or, that that day is so great!
8 That is, the appointed time of the judgment, upon Jacob’s posterity (see Psalm 37 on verse 13; Joel 1 on verse 15), that they were never before so severely punished.
8For it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will break 9his yoke 10from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more 11serve themselves of 12him:
9 Of the king of Babel. See Jeremiah 27.
10 Compare Jer. 28:11.
11 Or, compel to serve. See Jer. 25 on verse 14.
12 Namely, Jacob.
9But 13they shall serve the LORD their God, and 14Davidc their king, whom I will raise up unto them.
13 Jacob’s descendants.
14 That is, the Lord Jesus Christ. See 2 Sam. 22 on verse 51.
c Ezek. 34:23, 24; 37:24; Hosea 3:5.
10¶Therefore fear thou not, Od my servant Jacob, saith the LORD; neither be dismayed, O Israel: for, lo, I will save thee from afar, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him 15afraid.
d Isa. 41:13; 43:5; 44:1; Jer. 46:28.
15 Or, to make him tremble.
11For I am 16with thee, saith the LORD, to save thee: though I make a full end of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yete will I not make a 17full end of thee: but I will correct thee in 18measure,f and will not leave 19thee altogether unpunished.
16 See Gen. 21 on verse 22.
e Jer. 4:27; 5:10, 18; 46:28.
17 See Jer. 4 on verse 27.
18 See Jer. 10 on verse 24.
f Isa. 27:8; Jer. 10:24.
19 Hebr. holding guiltless will I not hold thee guiltless, that is here, I will not leave thee altogether or entirely unpunished, as Jer. 46:28. Compare Jer. 25:29.
12For thus saith the LORD, Thy 20bruise is incurable,g and thy 21wound is grievous.
20 As Jer. 4:6. Other, Concerning thy breach, it is deadly.
g Jer. 10:19; 15:18.
21 Or, plague, as Jer. 14:17.
13There is 22none to plead thy cause, that thou mayest 23be bound up: thou hast no 24healing medicines.
22 That is, who feels himself drawn to the matter of your tumor, and investigate how or whether you are to be helped in this misery or not.
23 That is, the wound. In this signification is the Hebrew word also used in Hosea 5:13; Obadiah verse 7, and is nowhere else found in Scripture. Other, for binding up or crushing out, that is, that thy wounds might be bound up, crushed out, cleansed and healed.
24 Hebr. healings or curing of rising or coming up, going up, that is, no bandages are laid on thy wounds, that health may come up, climb upon it, that is, increase, or that scars might come up. Compare verse 17; Neh. 4 on verse 7. Other, rising of healings, by transposing the words, as is sometimes done in the Hebrew.
14All thy 25loversh have forgotten thee; they seek thee not; for I have wounded thee with the 26wound of an enemy, with the chastisement of a cruel one, for the multitude of thine iniquity; because thy sins were increased.
25 On whom thou hast relied, as the Egyptians and others.
h Jer. 22:20.
26 That is, so hard and so severely, as if an enemy had smitten thee; so that one would say according to the outward appearance: An enemy has done it; while in the meantime My thought of peace remain firm and constant. See verses 16, 17 and 18, etc.
15Why criesti thou for thine affliction? thy sorrow is incurable for the multitude of thine iniquity: because thy sins were increased,j I have done these things unto thee.
i Jer. 13:17.
j Jer. 5:6.
1627Therefore all they that devour thee shall be 28devoured;k and all thine adversaries, every one of them, shall go into captivity; and they that spoil thee shall be a spoil, and all that prey upon thee will I give for a prey.
27 To show that I first chastised you because of your sins for your good, and that afterward My time comes to recompense your enemies, who meant it not so, and to bless you again. Compare Jer. 10:25.
28 Compare Psalm 14:4; 79:7, with the annotations.
k Exod. 23:22; Isa. 41:11; Jer. 10:25.
17For I will restore 29health unto thee, and I will heal thee of thy 30wounds, saith the LORD; because they called thee an Outcast, saying, This is 31Zion, whom 32no man seeketh after.
29 Or, lay a bandage upon thee. Compare with verse 13; Jer. 8 on verse 22; 33:6. Likewise Jer. 46:11.
30 Or, plagues.
31 In a scoffing manner, as if they said: This is that Zion, the church of God, whereof they have spoken so frequently and in such a renowned manner, and of whom it had so great an opinion; but see now, I pray, etc.
32 Or, she hath no inquirer after her; that is, no man troubles himself with her.
18¶Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will bring again 33the captivity of Jacob's tents, and have mercy on his dwellingplaces; and the 34city shall be builded upon her own 35heap, and the 36palace shall 37remain after the manner thereof.
33 That is, I will cause the captives of My people to return to their own dwellings, and consequently will redeem My church out of spiritual captivity by the Messiah, and will build and bless them.
34 Jerusalem and God’s church, thereby represented.
35 Or, hill, namely, upon Mount Zion, where previously it prospered so well.
36 Temple, or king’s court.
37 Or, be situated, that is, stand as before in its own place. Compare Cant. 5:12.
19And out of 38them shall proceed 39thanksgiving and the voice of them 40thatl make merry: and I will multiply them, and they shall not be few; I will also glorify them, and they shall not be 41small.
38 My people or church.
39 For the corporal and principally the spiritual redemption by the Messiah.
40 That is, of such as make merry and are joyful at God’s mercies. Also Jer. 31:4.
l Jer. 31:4.
41 Or, inconsiderable, that is, be vilified, accounted small, despised.
2042Their children also shall be as aforetime, and 43their congregation shall be established before me, and I will 44punish all that oppress them.
42 Of Jacob, from verse 18.
43 Namely, Jacob’s congregation.
44 By punishments. See Gen. 21 on verse 1.
21And 45their 46nobles shall be 47of themselves, and their governor shall proceed from the midst of them; and I will cause him 48to draw near, and he shall approach unto me: for 49who is this that engaged 50his heart to approach unto me? saith the LORD.
45 Of Jacob, as in the previous verse.
46 Or, the glorious one, that is, the Messiah, our Savior Jesus Christ (of the Hebrew word see Psalm 8 on verse 1), Who in the following words is called governor, and ruler in Micah 5:2.
47 Proceed from Jacob according to the flesh, as follows.
48 That is, I will anoint and call Him for this end and purpose, that He be an High Priest and a Mediator between Me and My people.
49 Namely, else but the Messiah, Jesus Christ? Who is My Son, only suitable for this, called by Me, and presenting Himself willingly for a Surety, to reconcile My people unto Me, and to appear before Me as Advocate for them. Compare Psalm 40:6, 7, 8; 110:4; Heb. 4:14, 15; 5:4, 5, 6, etc.; 7:22, 25; 9:14, 15, 24, etc.
50 Or, that should make his heart a surety, engage, pawn, oblige, pledge, assure his heart, that is, who would dare to be so bold as to set himself as a mediator between Me and sinful man as doth the Messiah, of Whom is spoken in the previous words? As such is the Hebrew word also used in Gen. 43:9; 44:32; Neh. 5:3; Prov. 20:16; 27:13, etc.
22And ye shall be mym51people, and I will be your 52God.
m Jer. 24:7; 31:1; 32:38.
51 See Deut. 7 on verse 6.
52 See Gen. 17 on verse 7.
23Behold, 53the whirlwindn of the LORD goeth forth with fury, a 54continuing whirlwind: it shall 55fall with pain upon the head of the wicked.
53 See Jer. 23:19.
n Jer. 23:19; 25:32.
54 Or, a tempest that gathereth itself, or a gathered tempest; as we also usually say: There is a great tempest gathering when the sky begins to be black and thick, at the first rising of a great thunderstorm. Other, a fearful or terrible tempest.
55 Or, fall painfully, fall with pain, remain.
24The fierce anger of the LORD shall not return, until he have done it, and until he have performed the intents of his heart: in the latter days ye shall 56consider it.
56 Or, get understanding of it. Compare Jer. 23:20.