Jeremiah 23:28 Komentář

In this chapter the prophet, in God's name, is dealing his reproofs and threatenings, I. Among the careless princes, or pastors of the people (Jer 23:1, Jer 23:2), yet promising to take care of the flock, which they had been wanting in their duty to (Jer 23:3-8). II. Among the wicked prophets and priests, whose bad character is here given at large in divers instances, especially their imposing upon the people with their pretended inspirations, at which the prophet is astonished, and for which they must expect to be punished (v. 9-32). III. Among the profane people, who ridiculed God's prophets and bantered them (Jer 23:33-40). When all have thus corrupted their way they must all expect to be told faithfully of it.

INTRODUCTION TO JEREMIAH 23 This chapter contains threatenings to the Jewish governors, and to their priests and prophets, on account of their manifold sins; intermixed with gracious promises to the Lord's people, and particularly with a famous promise of the Messiah. The pastors or governors of Israel are charged with scattering and driving away the Lord's flock, for which they are threatened, Jer 23:1; and a promise is made of the gathering of the remnant of them, and of setting up other shepherds over them, under whom they should increase, and be comfortable, Jer 23:3; particularly the Messiah is promised; as David's righteous Branch; as a prosperous and righteous King; as the author of righteousness to his people, under whom they should have salvation and safety, Jer 23:5; so that in comparison of this salvation, the deliverance out of Egypt should not be spoken of, Jer 23:7; and then follows a sad complaint of the priests and prophets; of their profaneness, their adultery, swearing, lying, hypocrisy, and deception of the people; for all which they are severely threatened, Jer 23:9; wherefore the people are exhorted not to hearken to them, promising them peace and safety; whereas, by attending to the word of God, it might easily be seen that a storm of wrath was gone forth, and was ready to break, and would fall upon the head of the wicked, to the executing of the thoughts and purposes of God's heart, Jer 23:16; and the Lord declares he had not sent these prophets, as might be known from their not turning the people from their evil ways, Jer 23:21; whose conduct and behaviour could not be hid from the sight of the Lord, nor their prophecies from his ears, which were no other than dreams, and the deceits of their own hearts; and there was as great a difference between them and the word of the Lord, as between chaff and wheat; seeing his word in his hand is of great virtue and efficacy, whereas there was none in theirs, Jer 23:23; wherefore the Lord declares himself to be against these prophets, for stealing his word from their neighbour; for making use of his name, when they were not sent by him; and for causing the people to err by their lies, Jer 23:30; and both people, priest, and prophet, are severely threatened for jeering and scoffing at the word of the Lord, calling it the burden of the Lord; which phrase they are forbid to use in a sneering way; and should they persist in it, they are told that God would forsake and forget them, and cast them out, and everlastingly punish them, Jer 23:39.

The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream,.... These words are directed not to a true prophet of the Lord, that has a dream from him, or something communicated to him in a dream by the Lord, which he is to deliver as such; but to a false prophet, that says he has dreamed; and if he has dreamed a dream, let him tell it as a "dream" (l); so some supply it, as the fruit of his own roving fancy and imagination in sleep; and not call it a revelation from the Lord, and impose it upon the people as such. The Septuagint version is, "let him tell his dream"; let him tell it as his own, and not as a dream from the Lord; and he that hath my word; the word of prophecy by revelation, and under the influence of the Spirit of God, as the true prophets: "my word"; not the word of men, or the word spoken by angels, or the Scriptures in general; but the word of the Gospel, the word of peace and reconciliation, of righteousness, life, and salvation; the evangelical part of the word, though not to the exclusion of all the rest, but this chiefly: "he that hath it"; or "with whom", or "in whom it is" (m); who has it not only in his hands to read, nor merely in his head, so as to have speculative notions of it; but has it in his heart, where it is come with power, and is become the ingrafted word; and who has a large share of spiritual and experimental knowledge of it, and an ability and capacity to express it to the edification of others; let him speak my word faithfully; or "truly" (n); as it is. Ministers of the word are stewards, and it is required of such that they be faithful, and a more honourable character they cannot well have; and then may the word of the Lord be said to be spoken faithfully, when nothing else is spoken but that; when there is no mixture of man's with it; and when the whole of it is spoken, and nothing kept back or concealed; when a man's views in it are sincere and upright, and he aims only at the glory of God; and the good of immortal souls; when it is spoken out, openly and boldly, not as pleasing men, but God, and as in his sight, to whom the account must be given: or, "let him speak my word, truth" (o); which is truth; or, for it is truth, as Kimchi; so this is a reason why it should be spoken freely, fully, publicly, and boldly, because it is truth, and nothing but truth: or, "let him speak my word as truth"; or as it is (p); it comes from the God of truth; if lies in the Scriptures of truth; the subject matter of it is truth, Christ, who is truth itself, and those doctrines, relative to his person, office, and grace, and salvation by him; and it is the Spirit of truth that directs into it, owns it, and makes it useful; what is the chaff to the wheat? saith the Lord; there is no comparison between the one and the other; the one is greatly preferable to the other; there is as much difference between the dreams and lies of the false prophets and the word of God, as there is between chaff and wheat. False doctrine is as "chaff", light; when put into the balance of the sanctuary it is found wanting; it is of no value; it is as wood, hay, and stubble, in comparison of gold, silver, and precious stones; it is not fit for food, and has no nourishment in it, but the contrary, and its end is to be burned. Some doctrine is as "wheat", choice and excellent, pure, solid, substantial, and of a nourishing and strengthening nature. And what is the one to the other? or what have they to do with one another? they should not be mixed together, but separated. So the Syriac version, "why do ye mix the chaff with the wheat?" see Co2 2:17. The Targum interprets this of persons, paraphrasing the words thus, "behold, as one separates between the chaff and the wheat, so I separate between the righteous and the wicked, saith the Lord.'' Wicked men are as "chaff"; such were the false prophets, and all ungodly men, for their emptiness, lightness, unprofitableness, and for their being fit fuel for everlasting burnings; see Psa 1:5; and good men, and true prophets of the Lord, and all the righteous, are as "wheat" for choiceness and excellency, purity and solidity; and these are not to be mixed together, should not now, nor will they be hereafter, Mat 3:12. (l) "narret ut somnium", Grotius, Gataker, Schmidt. (m) "et penes quem est verbum meum", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator; "at cum quo est verbum meum", Schmidt; , Sept. (n) "vere", Pagninus, Junius & Tremellius; "veritate", Montanus, Schmidt. (o) "narret meum verbum veritatem, quod est veritas", Kimchi, Ben Melech, Abarbinel. (p) "Loquatur verbum meum sicuti est", Schmidt.

(Verse 28, 29.) The prophet who has a dream, let him tell the dream, and the one who has my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What is straw compared to wheat? says the Lord. Are not my words like fire, says the Lord, and like a hammer (or an axe) shattering rock? It is for them to interpret the dream who are deserving of having the word of God, and to say: Thus says the Lord; to whom the Lord has spoken, in whom there is truth, and not deceitful lies. What do the heretics' chaff have to do with the wheat of the Church? about which John the Baptist speaks more fully (Matt. III), that the Lord may cleanse his threshing floor, and by the winnowing fan scatter the chaff to be burned by the winds, and leave it to be consumed by fire; but may store the wheat in the barns, that it may become heavenly bread; and let each believer say: Taste and see, for the Lord is sweet (Ps. XXXIII, 9). And fittingly is false doctrine compared to chaff, which has no substance, nor can it nourish the people of believers, but it is crushed by empty husks. And because heretics usually promise prosperity and open the kingdoms of heaven to sinners, saying, 'The kingdoms of heaven are prepared for you', you can imitate the majesty of God, so that you may be without sin; for you have received the power of free will and the knowledge of the law, by which you may attain what you desire. And they deceive the wretched with flatteries, especially the women burdened with sins, who go about listening to every wind of doctrine, always learning but never coming to the knowledge of the truth, and they deceive all their hearers with adulation (Ephesians 4); therefore the Lord, comparing his words to the chaff of heretics, says: Are not my words like fire, says the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks the rock? For my part, he said, my speech announces future punishments so as to deter people from sinning; and he threatens the fire of sinners to the chaff, so that the hardened hearts of heretics, like flint, may be crushed by the hammer of his word: taking away a heart of stone, so that he may put in its place a heart of flesh, namely, one that is soft and capable of receiving and understanding God's commands. The Lord speaks of such a thing through Ezekiel as well (Ezek. 13), because false prophets smear the wall with their seductions and without mortar, which is later destroyed by a violent rain and the truth of judgment. And the false prophets may sew pillows under every arm to make sinners rest, and by no means soothe the wrath of God with tears. For a hammer, they have interpreted the axe of the Seventy, which undoubtedly John the Baptist speaks of: Now the axe is laid unto the root of the trees (Matthew 3:10). This axe cuts down unfruitful trees, and this hammer crushes the hardest stones. Therefore, the Prophet Nahum also speaks: His fury, undoubtedly God's, will consume the principalities and the rocks will be crushed by Him (Nahum 1:6). This is against heretics. Moreover, it is written about Ecclesiastical men, that the hammer and axe are not heard in the house of the Lord (3 Kings 6).

THE WICKED RULERS TO BE SUPERSEDED BY THE KING, WHO SHOULD REIGN OVER THE AGAIN UNITED PEOPLES, ISRAEL AND JUDAH. (Jer. 23:1-40) pastors--Shallum, Jehoiakim, Jeconiah, and Zedekiah (Eze 34:2).

God answers the objection which might be stated, "What, then, must we do, when lies are spoken as truths, and prophets oppose prophets?" Do the same as when wheat is mixed with chaff: do not reject the wheat because of the chaff mixed with it, but discriminate between the false and the true revelations. The test is adherence to, or forgetfulness of, Me and My law (Jer 23:27). that hath a dream--that pretends to have a divine communication by dream, let him tell it "faithfully," that it may be compared with "my word" (Co2 4:2). The result will be the former (both the prophets and their fictions) will soon be seen to be chaff; the latter (the true prophets and the word of God in their mouth) wheat (Psa 1:4; Hos 13:3).