Jeremiah 15
OGCREVIEW OF CHAPTER TEN
I. Facts to Master
The time when Jeremiah received this word from God (Jeremiah 14:1).
Two titles of God used in Jeremiah 14:8.
Number of times God forbids Jeremiah to pray on behalf of his people.
What would not avail to spare the people from further calamity. (Jeremiah 14:12).
The message of the false prophets (Jeremiah 14:13; Jeremiah 14:15).
The divine explanation of false prophecy (Jeremiah 14:14).
The fate of the false prophets (Jeremiah 14:15).
Two great prophetic intercessors from the past (Jeremiah 15:1).
The four fates awaiting the sinners of Judah (Jeremiah 15:2).
The four destructive agencies God has appointed over them (Jeremiah 14:3).
The one king in particular whose sin necessitated the destruction of Judah (Jeremiah 15:4).
That of which Jeremiah accused God (Jeremiah 15:18).
Three prohibitions in chapter 16.
The great event of the future which would make Israel forget the Exodus from Egypt (Jeremiah 16:14-15).
The unique figures by which the Chaldeans are described (Jeremiah 16:16).
The sin of Judah is written with the point of a _________ (Jeremiah 17:1).
Their sin was engraved upon their and the _____________ (Jeremiah 17:1).
The heart is and is exceedingly (Jeremiah 17:9).
The place where Jeremiah delivered his sermon on Sabbath observance (Jeremiah 17:19).
What they were not to do on the Sabbath (Jeremiah 17:21-22).
II. Questions to Ponder
Just how serious was the drought which occasioned the oracles in this block of material? See Jeremiah 14:2-6.
Who is responsible for the prayer in Jeremiah 14:7-9, the prophet or the people? Is it sincere? Were the people really willing to pay the price of divine blessing? What was God’s response to the prayer? See Jeremiah 14:10-12.
What is the point of the reference to the sojourner and wayfaring man in Jeremiah 14:8?
By what criteria could a false prophet be distinguished from a true prophet? How can the message of a false prophet today best be countered? See Jeremiah 14:17.
Who is praying in Jeremiah 14:19-22?
What is the mood of the prophet at this time? See Jeremiah 15:10. How does God answer Jeremiah’s complaint? Jeremiah 15:11-14.
Why does Jeremiah feel that God owes him some thing? Jeremiah 15:16-18 a.
Did Jeremiah go too far in his complaint? How does God answer His bitter and discouraged prophet? Jeremiah 15:19-21.
why was Jeremiah refused permission to marry? See Jeremiah 16:3-4. Are wives a help or hindrance to the Gospel minister?
Does God expect Christians to cease mourning for the dead (Jeremiah 16:5) and to eliminate times of rejoicing (Jeremiah 16:8)? Why these prohibitions to Jeremiah?
Is a sinner aware of his iniquity? See Jeremiah 16:10.
What is meant by recompense their iniquity and their sin double? Jeremiah 16:18.
In Jeremiah 16:19-20 Jeremiah expresses confidence that Gen tiles will eventually cast away their idols. How does God respond to that prayer in Jeremiah 16:21? Does God have a plan for the nations? Where do Christians fit into that plan?
What is my mountain in the field? Jeremiah 17:3.
In Jeremiah 17:5-8 the believer and the unbeliever are contrasted. How do they differ?
Does Jeremiah 17:9 teach total depravity?
What is the point of the proverb about riches in Jeremiah 17:11?
For what does Jeremiah pray in Jeremiah 17:12-18?
What does Jeremiah’s sermon on Sabbath observance prove as regards his attitude toward religious observances?
Jeremiah 15:1-9
E. The Final Rejection of Prophetic Intercession
TRANSLATION
(1) And the LORD said unto me: If Moses and Samuel were standing before Me, I would have no affection for this people. Cast them away from My presence and let them go out. (2) And it shall come to pass if they say unto you, Where shall we go? Then you shall say unto them: Thus says the LORD: Those for death to death; those for the sword to the sword; those for famine to famine; and those for exile to the exile. (3) I have appointed against them four types of punishment (oracle of the LORD): the sword to slay, the dogs to drag, the birds of the heavens and the beasts of the field to devour and to destroy. (4) And I will make them a sight that will horrify all the kingdoms of the earth on account of Manasseh son of Hezekiah king of Judah for that which he did in Jerusalem. (5) For who shall have mercy upon you, O Jerusalem? And who shall mourn for you? Who shall turn aside to ask concerning your welfare? (6) You have abandoned Me (oracle of the LORD); backward you go. Therefore I have stretched out my hand against you and destroyed you. I am weary with having compassion. (7) And I will winnow them with a winnowing in the gates of the land; I will deprive them of children, I will destroy My people since they have not turned aside from their ways. (8) Their widows have become to me more numerous than the sand of the sea. I will bring against them, against the mother of the young men, a destroyer at high noon; I will cause to fall upon her suddenly distress and terrors. (9) The one who has borne seven has grown feeble, her soul gasps. Her sun has gone down while it is yet day; she is ashamed and confused. I will give their remnant to the sword before their enemies (oracle of the LORD).
COMMENTS
It is useless for Jeremiah to continue to intercede for the people of Judah. Not even Moses and Samuel, the two greatest intercessors the nation had ever known, would be able to move God to show any affection or pity to the present sinful generation. God had hearkened to Moses and Samuel and extended His mercy to previous generations but only after Israel had manifested repentance. Jeremiah’s generation was so steeped in sin that repentance seemed impossible and consequently intercessory prayer was useless. Jeremiah was to quit praying and go back to preaching the message of judgment which God had commissioned him to preach. In and through his preaching he is to cast away the inhabitants of Judah from the presence of the Lord that they might go out from before Him (Jeremiah 15:1). If the people ask him to explain this cryptic statement go out the prophet is to have a ready answer. Every man will go out to the punishment which has been decreed for him. Some will suffer death by pestilence, others will die in battle, others will perish with hunger, still others will be taken into foreign captivity (Jeremiah 15:2). All will suffer; none will escape. Four types, families or modes of punishment have been decreed for many of the inhabitants of Judah. They will be first slain by the sword of Babylon and then their unburied bodies will be ripped, torn and eaten by dogs, birds and beasts of the field (Jeremiah 15:3). The nations of the world would witness the terrible things which happen to Israel and will fear for their own safety. All of this must befall Judah because of the sins of Manasseh, the most wicked king who ever sat on the throne of Judah (Jeremiah 15:4).
From speaking about the people God turns and speaks directly to the people in Jeremiah 15:5. By means of three rhetorical questions He drives home the point that no one in the world will really care when Judah falls. No one will show any sympathy or pity, no one will mourn, no one will even ask about the condition of the city (Jeremiah 15:5). Many times in the past Israel had forsaken God and thereby had incurred the threat of divine wrath. But in the past God had always withheld the threat and had taken His people back. Now it is too late. He cannot forgive them any more. Using anthropomorphic language, He is weary with this business of making threats and then withholding the stroke at the last possible instance (Jeremiah 15:6). Judgment will be executed. As the winnowing process separates the chaff from the grain, so God will cause the parents of Judah to be separated from their children. The children who served as soldiers would be slain as they attempted to defend the gates of their cities from the invading enemy. This terrible judgment is necessary because the inhabitants of Judah have not turned from their sinful ways (Jeremiah 15:7). Wives will be deprived of their husbands and hence the land will be left defenseless. Against the mother of the young men, i.e., Jerusalem, God will bring a destroyer at the most unexpected timeat high noon when normally military operations temporarily ceased. Distress and terror will fall upon the mother when she realizes the danger which she faces (Jeremiah 15:8). The woman with numerous children,[205] usually the most proud and joyous inhabitant of the city, will be filled with consternation. With the loss of her children her sun has gone down while it is yet day. In the prime of life all has become dark and dreary for her. All of her hopes, dreams, aspirations are dashed to pieces when the enemy slays her sons. The shame of childlessness[206] comes upon her in full force when the remnant of the nation is given over to the sword of the enemy (Jeremiah 15:9).
[205] She that has borne seven is a proverbial expression meaning one who bears numerous children. See 1 Samuel 2:5 and Rth 4:15.
[206] The shame of childlessness is repeatedly mentioned in the Old Testament. See Jeremiah 50:12; Isaiah 54:4; Genesis 16:4; Genesis 30:1; Genesis 30:23.
Jeremiah 15:10-14
II. PROPHETIC AGONY Jeremiah 15:10-21
Jeremiah suffered a great deal of mental anguish during his ministry. The rejection of his prophetic intercession on three successive occasions plunges Jeremiah to the depths of despair. This is the second personal crisis in the life and ministry of this great man of God. In response to the complaint of the prophet (Jeremiah 15:10) God offers consolation (Jeremiah 15:15-18). But Jeremiah is not satisfied. He feels that God has deceived him and he does not hesitate to tell God so (Jeremiah 15:15-18). To these wild accusations the Lord does not even bother to respond except to tell his disgruntled prophet that if he will repent he may be reinstated in the ministry (Jeremiah 15:19-21).
A. Prophetic Lamentation and Divine Consolation
TRANSLATION
(10) Woe to me, O my mother, because you gave birth to me, a man of strife and a man of contention to the whole land. I have not lent nor have they lent to me, yet every man curses me. (11) The LORD said, surely I will set you free for good; surely I will cause the enemy to entreat you in the time of evil and in the time of distress. (12) Can iron break iron from the north and bronze? (13) Your wealth and your treasures I will give for plunder without price, even for all of your sins and in all of your borders. (14) And I will cause you to serve your enemies in a land you do not know; for a fire is kindled in My anger; against you it will burn.
COMMENTS
The divine refusal to hearken to the intercession of the prophet has caused Jeremiah to sink into the slough of despondency. He begins to reflect upon his ministry and to think of the trouble that had come to him as he attempted to carry the message of God to his people. His preaching had produced no repentance. He had only succeeded in arousing the animosity of those to whom he preached. This tender and timid soul from Anathoth had become the center of controversy. He wishes he had never been born. To bring a thundering message of accusation and condemnation was contrary to the personality of this man. People viciously curse him just as they might curse a hard hearted creditor. Dealings between money-lenders and debtors in antiquity were anything but cordial. This is the kind of relationship which now exists between Jeremiah and his countrymen (Jeremiah 15:10).
The introductory formula the Lord said occurs only in Jeremiah 15:11 and in Jeremiah 46:25. Surely is a free rendering of what in Hebrew is part of an oath formula. God in effect is taking an oath to perform His promises to the prophet. The translation of the first verb describing what God will do for Jeremiah is difficult. The American Standard Version in the text renders it strengthen and in the margin offers the alternative release. The King James Version gives an altogether different translation, it shall be well with thy remnant. Probably the best rendering is set free or release. God promises to release Jeremiah from the hostility and animosity which he has been experiencing in this phase of his ministry. Those who are currently so bitter against him will humbly come to him to seek his aid and advice when the calamity befalls Jerusalem. They may question his prophetic credentials now but before long they will be forced by the fulfillment of his prophecies to recognize Jeremiah as a true prophet of God. King Zedekiah on numerous occasions during the siege of Jerusalem consulted with Jeremiah, sometimes personally (e.g., Jeremiah 21:1-2) and sometimes through intermediaries (e.g., Jeremiah 37:3). After the assassination of the governor Gedaliah the remnant came to Jeremiah to seek an oracle from the Lord (Jeremiah 42:1-3).
Jeremiah 15:12 is enigmatic. It is not clear whether God is still speaking to the prophet or whether these words are addressed to the people. Iron from the north, the region of the Black Sea, was of the strongest sort. Bronze, a mixture of copper and tin, was one of the strongest metals known to the ancients. Common iron cannot break iron from the north or bronze for that matter. But who is this unbreakable metal? Is it Jeremiah himself? God has told him at his call that he would be an iron pillar and a bronze wall (Jeremiah 1:18). Is God here reminding Jeremiah of that promise? Possibly so. But it is more likely that Jeremiah 15:12 is a transition to the two verses which follow. God would then be assuring Jeremiah that his prophecy of an invincible foe from the north would indeed be fulfilled, and the fulfillment of that prophecy would serve to vindicate Jeremiah as a spokesman for God.
The description of the invincible foe from the north continues in Jeremiah 15:13-14. The enemy will roam throughout the land plundering and looting because of all of the sins which the inhabitants of the land had committed. The phrase without price (Jeremiah 15:13) has been understood in more than one way. Perhaps it means that the enemy will not need to be paid for attacking Judah. On the other hand the phrase may be taken to mean that God will give Judah to the enemy without receiving any compensation in return. The former interpretation is preferable. The inhabitants of Judah will be forced to serve their enemies in a foreign land. Borrowing an expression from Deuteronomy 32:22 God declares a fire is kindled in My anger (literally, in My nostril). The judgment described in the Song of Moses centuries earlier is now about to fall on Judah.
What consolation is it to the despondent Jeremiah to know that his land and his people will be destroyed? None unless it would be the thought that if he continues to preach this message of doom he certainly will not be discredited. His message was controversial to be sure. But it was a true message and it had to be preached. The warning had to be sounded. Jeremiah needed this reassurance at this juncture in his ministry.
Jeremiah 15:15-18
B. The Prayer of Jer 15:15-18
TRANSLATION
(15) You, O LORD, know; remember me, visit me, and avenge me of my persecutors. Do not take me away by deferring your anger. Know that for Your sake I have been bearing reproach. (16) Your words were found and I ate them; and Your words were to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart; for I have been called by Your name, O LORD God of hosts. (17) I have not sat in the assembly of the merry makers, that I might rejoice. Because of Your hand I sat alone, because you filled me with indignation. (18) Why is my pain perpetual and my wound in curable, refusing to be healed? You have surely become unto me like a deceptive stream, like waters that fail.
COMMENTS
In Jeremiah 15:15 the second of the so-called confession of Jeremiah begins. The prophet begins by affirming the omniscience of God, you know, O Lord. The fact that God knows what the prophet has been going through comforts Jeremiah. His petition contains three positive requests and one negative one: (1) He wants God to remember him. (2) He needs to see some visible sign of God’s continued care; He wants God to visit him. (3) He asks God to avenge his persecutors. God executes vengeance on behalf of His people. This is why God’s people are forbidden to act in a vengeful way toward others. He is asking that these persecutors receive their just deserts. (4) Jeremiah asks that he not be taken away, i.e., that he not be allowed to die an early, premature death. If God continues to exercise long-suffering with regard to the wicked enemies of Jeremiah, the prophet fears that he will be killed.
From petition Jeremiah moves in his prayer to narrative. Even though God knows all, still Jeremiah rehearses before his God the particular difficulties which he has recently been experiencing. First he asks God to take note of the reproach which he bears daily for His sake (Jeremiah 15:15). When the Lord initially put His word in the mouth of the prophet (Jeremiah 1:7) Jeremiah ate them. To eat words means to make them one’s own, to digest them, to absorb them, to make them the constant food of one’s spiritual life (cf. Ezekiel 3:1 ff.; 1 Timothy 4:14-16). Jeremiah’s whole life revolved around the word of God. It was to him a source of great joy to learn that he had been called of God to be His prophet, His messenger (Jeremiah 15:16). But as time went on Jeremiah found out that being God’s man had distinct disadvantages. His preaching made him unpopular. This man was filled with God’s indignation against sin. His messages centered in the wrath and judgment of God. For this reason he was excluded or perhaps excluded himself from the joyous festivals. He lived a lonely, solitary life because the touch of God’s hand had set him apart. The Old Testament contains numerous references to a prophet being touched by the hand of God.[207] The hand of the Lord came upon is an idiomatic expression meaning that the irresistible power of God came upon the life of a man. Because he possessed the prophetic spirit Jeremiah was different. He suffered alone (Jeremiah 15:17).
[207] See 2 Kings 3:15; Isaiah 8:11; Ezekiel 3:14.
Jeremiah 15:18 contains interrogation and accusation. Jeremiah asks the question that many other discouraged saints through the ages have asked, Why? In earlier passages (e.g. Jeremiah 12:1 ff.; Jeremiah 14:8-9; Jeremiah 14:19) Jeremiah was asking how God could finally forsake Israel. But now Jeremiah feels that God has forsaken his servant; and so the question why is renewed but this time with a personal application. Thus far his ministry had not been blessed with success. He had faithfully sown the word of God but had reaped only hatred and opposition. His mental anguish is perpetual, like a wound which will not heal. He would love to preach salvation but instead he must preach damnation. In this moment of anguish and despair he cries out against God: you have surely become to me as a deceptive stream, a brook that runs dry in summer. He had publicly preached that God was a fountain of living water (Jeremiah 2:13); now privately he accuses God of being a dried up stream! He is accusing God of being unreliable, untrustworthy, unfaithful. To soften the thrust of the last part of Jer 15:18, some make this sentence a question. While this is a possible translation there is no real indication that a question is intended. Jeremiah has simply reached the breaking point. In this moment of weakness Satan has placed this blasphemous thought in the mind of Jeremiah.
Jeremiah 15:19-21
C. The Reply of the Lord Jeremiah 15:19-21
TRANSLATION
(19) Therefore thus says the LORD: If you return, then I will restore you; before Me you shall continue to stand. And if you cause the precious to come forth from the vile, you shall be as My mouth. Let them return unto You; but as for you, do not return unto them. (20) And I will make you to this people a fortified brazen wall. They shall fight against you, but they shall not prevail over you. For I am with you to deliver you and to save you (oracle of the LORD). And I will deliver you from the hand of the wicked, and I will redeem you from the power of the ruthless.
COMMENTS
God does not bother to directly answer the blasphemous accusation of his prophet. Rather His reply consists of an invitation to re-enter the ministry, an exhortation to remain stedfast and a repetition of a wonderful promise. Jeremiah has gone too far. As far as God is concerned Jeremiah’s accusation is tantamount to his resignation from the prophetic ministry. But God does not chide or rebuke His prophet, not directly at least. He simply suggests that Jeremiah needed to do two things: (1) return, i.e., go back to the original point of departure; and (2) separate the precious from the vile and worthless within his own heart. The refuse of doubt and mistrust had somehow gotten mingled with the precious gold of faith, love and trust within the heart of Jeremiah. Inward purification is now essential. If Jeremiah complies with these conditions God will take him back. It is interesting that God does not even ask whether or not Jeremiah wants to re-enter the ministry. That he does so is taken for granted.
The reinstatement in the prophetic ministry is described in three expressions in Jeremiah 15:19. (1) I will cause you to return. The reinstatement is not automatic. Only God can make a prophet. If Jeremiah returns to God, then the Lord can return him to a right relationship to Himself so that he might continue to be God’s minister. (2) Before Me you shall continue to stand. The figure here is of a servant standing in the presence of his master waiting for commands. Counselors and courtiers are said to stand before a king (1 Kings 12:6; Proverbs 22:29). Angels are said to stand before God (Luke 1:19). Elijah and Elisha used this expression to describe their relationship to God (1 Kings 17:1; 2 Kings 3:14). To be permitted to minister before the Great King would be the highest privilege accorded a man. (3) you shall be as my mouth. The prophet is not only the servant of God to carry out His commands, he is also the mouthpiece of God to proclaim His word. Jeremiah can occupy this high and holy office once again if he will only repent.
The invitation to repent is followed by the exhortation to remain stedfast. The last sentence of Jer 15:19 is not a simple future as in the American Standard Version but a jussive as in the King James: Let them return unto you, but do not let yourself return unto them. He must not allow the skeptical inhabitants of Judah to drag him down to their level, but, on the contrary, he should by his continued preaching raise them up to a higher plane. In effect God is saying do not join them, let them join you! Jeremiah is weakening, he is giving in. His enemies are getting to him. He must remain stedfast. This exhortation implies that Jeremiah will in fact repent and be reinstated in his prophetic office.
Jeremiah had accused God of forsaking him. But that simply was not true. God had warned him at the time of his call that people would fight against him. But God had promised to make Jeremiah like a fortified brazen wall against which the assault of the persecutors would ultimately fail. God assured him at the time of the call that He would always be near him to deliver him from death at the hands of the enemy. God has not forgotten that promise and neither should Jeremiah. So God simply quotes the promise as originally given in Jeremiah 1:18 f. only He adds at the end the precious and powerful formula oracle of the Lord (Jeremiah 15:20). And then, as if it were not enough to cite the original promise, God rephrases that promise in more specific terms. The wicked and ruthless men who would attempt to suppress the message of God will not prevail over Jeremiah. God will deliver and redeem, i.e., save him from their power (Jeremiah 15:21). Though times may get difficult and no way of escape seems apparent God will bring His prophet through. God is no deceptive stream!