Jeremiah 15:18 Kommentar

When we left the prophet, in the close of the foregoing chapter, so pathetically poring out his prayers before God, we had reason to hope that in this chapter we should find God reconciled to the land and the prophet brought into a quiet composed frame; but, to our great surprise, we find it much otherwise as to both. I. Notwithstanding the prophet's prayers, God here ratifies the sentence given against the people, and abandons them to ruin turning a deaf ear to all the intercessions made for them (Jer 15:1-9). II. The prophet himself, notwithstanding the satisfaction he had in communion with God, still finds himself uneasy and out of temper. 1. He complains to God of his continual struggle with his persecutors (Jer 15:10). 2. God assures him that he shall be taken under special protection, though there was a general desolation coming upon the land (Jer 15:11-14). 3. He appeals to God concerning his sincerity in the discharge of his prophetic office and thinks it hard that he should not have more of the comfort of it (Jer 15:15-18). 4. Fresh security is given him that, upon condition he continue faithful, God will continue his care of him and his favour to him (Jer 15:19-21). And thus, at length, we hope he regained the possession of his own soul.

INTRODUCTION TO JEREMIAH 15 This chapter contains the Lord's answer to the prophet's prayers, in which he declares himself inexorable, and had resolved on the ruin of the Jewish nation for their sins; the prophet's complaint of the hardships he endured, notwithstanding his sincerity and integrity; and the Lord's promise of protection and deliverance, in case of his continuance in the faithful discharge of his office. The Lord denies the request of the prophet, by observing, that if even Moses and Samuel had been the intercessors for the people, he would not have regarded them, being determined upon casting them out, and sending them away captive, Jer 15:1, their punishment is declared, which was resolved on; some for death, or the pestilence; others for the sword; others for famine; and others for captivity; and others to be devoured by dogs, and fowls, and wild beasts, Jer 15:2, the cause of which were their sins, particularly their idolatry in the times of Manasseh, Jer 15:4, wherefore they should have no pity from men, nor would the Lord any more repent of the evil threatened, of which he was weary, because of their many backslidings, Jer 15:5, which destruction, being determined, is illustrated by a description of the instrument of it; by the multitude of widows, and the distress of mothers bereaved of their children, Jer 15:7 on which the prophet takes up a complaint of his being born for strife and contention, and of his being cursed by the people, though no usurer, Jer 15:10, when he is comforted with a promise of being used well by the enemy, both he and his remnant, Jer 15:11, but as for the people of the Jews in general, they would never be able to withstand the northern forces, the army of the Chaldeans; their riches and substance would be delivered into their hands, and their persons also be carried captive into a strange land, and the prophet along with them, because of their sins, and the wrath of God for them, Jer 15:12, upon which the prophet prays to the Lord, who knew him, that he would remember and visit him, and avenge him of his persecutors, and not take him away in his longsuffering; he urges, that he had suffered rebuke and reproach for his sake; that he was called by him to his office, which he had cheerfully entered on; he had his mission, commission, and message, from him, which he received with the greatest pleasure, signified by eating his words with joy; and that he had not associated himself with mockers and scoffers at religion and the word of God; and therefore expostulates why he should be put to so much pain, and be used as he was, Jer 15:15, wherefore the Lord promises that, upon condition of doing his work faithfully, he should be preserved, protected, and delivered, Jer 15:19.

Therefore thus saith the Lord, if thou return,.... From thine unbelief, diffidence, and impenitence, and repent of them; expressed in the preceding verses: then will I bring thee again; or, "restore thee (s)"; pardon his sin, and return him to his post and place, to his office and ministry in it, and confirm and establish him therein: and thou shalt stand before me; not only as a petitioner for the people; see Jer 15:1, but as a servant of the Lord, attending to his word, and waiting his orders, and ready to execute them. It denotes his stability in his office: and if thou wilt take forth the precious from the vile; take precious truths, comparable to gold, silver, and precious stones; truths more valuable and desirable than thousands of gold and silver, from those doctrines which are worthless and contemptible, comparable to wood, hay, and stubble, and everything that is mean and vile; these faithful ministers should separate one from the other, and not mix and blend them together: or precious souls, truly gracious ones, who are precious in the sight of God, are redeemed by Christ, by his precious blood, and are adorned with the graces of the Spirit; these are to be distinguished from the vile, from sinners impenitent and unbelieving, that live in sin, in defiance of the law, and in contempt of the Gospel; a difference is to be made between them; delivering out comfortable words to the one, and denouncing severe threatenings to the other; doing the reverse of the false prophets, Eze 13:22, thou shalt be as my mouth; to the people; speak what I command thee, and whatsoever thou sayest shall be as if I had spoken it myself: let them return unto thee, but return not thou unto them; this is said of the people of the Jews, to whom the prophet was sent; and the sense is, that he should not at all comply with them, or conform to their humours, or flatter and sooth them in their sins, as the false prophets did; but if they returned to him, attended on his ministry, received his words and messages, and agreed and conformed to him, and followed his directions and example, it would be very well; but otherwise he was not in the least to give way to them, or go into any sinful compliance with them, either with respect to doctrine or practice, (s) "restituam te", Tigurine version.

How then can one who is baptized among them seem to have obtained remission of sins and the grace of the divine mercy by his faith, when he has not the truth of the faith itself? For if, as some suppose, one could receive anything abroad out of the church according to his faith, certainly he has received what he believed. If he believes what is false, he could not receive what is true. Rather, he has received things adulterous and profane, according to what he believed. Jeremiah, the prophet, censures in detail this subject of profane and adulterous baptism, saying, “Why do those who grieve me prevail? My wound is incurable. When shall I be healed? When this is done, it is become for me as treacherous water not having faith.” The Holy Spirit makes mention through the prophet of treacherous water also not having faith. What is this treacherous and faithless water? Assuredly it is that which asserts falsely the image of baptism and frustrates the grace of faith by its shadowy simulation.

Now the so-called gods of the Greeks, unworthy of the name, are faithful neither in their essence nor in their promises, because they are not everywhere. The local deities amount to nothing over the course of time and undergo a natural extinction. For these reasons, the Word cries out against them, that “faith is not strong in them,” that they are “waters that fail” and “there is no faith in them.” But the God of all, who is indeed truly faithful, who is ever the same, says, “See now that I, even I am he,” and “I change not.” Therefore, his Son is “faithful,” being ever the same and unchanging, deceiving neither in his essence nor in his promise, as is written by the apostle to the Thessalonians: “Faithful is he who calls you, who also will do it.” For in doing what he promises, he is faithful to his words.

(Verse 17, 18.) I did not sit in the council of the jesters, and I boasted (or feared) from the face of your hand: I sat alone, for you filled me with bitterness ((Vulgate: threat)). Why has my pain become perpetual (or why do those who distress me, find comfort) and my incurable wound refuse to be healed (or my strong wound, from where shall I be cured)? It has become to me like the falsehood of unfaithful waters (or like water that deceives and lacks faith). The Hebrews believe that these things are said from the perspective of Jerusalem: that she alone sat, and is filled with bitterness, and her pain has become everlasting; and just as waters pass by, so the words of the Prophets, with which they promised themselves prosperity, have passed falsely. But it is better, if we understand these things to be said from the perspective of the Prophet, by the words of a holy man, who did not sit in the assembly or secret gathering of those who mock, because he feared the impending hand of God; or rather, boasted that he did not have fellowship with evil. Alone, he said, I was sitting, according to what is written: I did not sit with the council of vanity, and I will not enter with those who do evil. I hated the congregation of evildoers, and I will not sit with the wicked (Psalm 26: 4, 5). And in another place, I am solitary until I pass through. On your face, he said, your hands, I was sitting alone (Psalm 140: 10), while I fear you, while I always expect your impending hand. I did not want to sit in the council of jesters, but I swallowed my bitterness, so that I might prepare joy for myself in the future. I had no intervals of pain, but I was constantly weighed down by unceasing misery, expecting no remedies. Those who afflicted me prevailed, and my wound became severe. But in this I had consolation, that it was like deceitful water, passing away. Just as passing waters flow and seem to vanish, so too does every attack of my enemies pass by with your help. May the Lord grant that we do not sit in the council of the mockers, or with those who do not consider the future, nor yield to adversity, but always fear God's judgment and say with the Prophet: I sat alone because I am filled with bitterness. Therefore, let him rejoice in the present time, not in the advice of the wise, but in the secret and hidden amusement of the playful; let it be good for me to adhere to God, to place my hope in God, to be satisfied with reproaches, and to await the judgment of my judge: which when the end shall come, will show by its work that all sadness and bitterness has passed like flowing waters.

This the Hebrews believe to be said in the person of Jerusalem, which sat alone and was filled with bitterness and whose pain was unending and the word of whose prophets passed through it deceitfully, like flowing water. But it is better that we receive these words of a holy person as spoken from the person of a prophet, one who did not sit in the council or cabal of fools because he feared the impending hand of God but instead would glory in not having complicity with the evil ones. “I sat alone,” he said, in accordance with what was written: “I did not sit with the council of the boastful, and I did not enter into fellowship with evildoers; I hate the company of liars, and I will not sit with the impious,” and, in another location: “I am alone until I pass away.” He also says, effectively, “I sat alone in the presence of your hand, while fearing you and constantly expecting your impending hand to come on me. I refused to sit in the company of fools, but I swallowed my bitterness to prepare myself for future joy. Nor did I have any relief from my suffering, but I was being oppressed by the misery of this yoke, such that I would not have expected any remedy. For those who afflicted me prevailed, and my wound was made worse. Yet, in this I took consolation, that it was like deceitful and passing waters. For, just as flowing waters are seen once and then slip away, so also every attack of the enemy passes away with help from you.” Would that the Lord also grant to us not to sit in the council of fools and of those who fail to think of the future! Would that he grant us the ability not to yield to adversities but instead always to dread the sentence of God and to say with the prophet, “I sat alone, for I was filled with bitterness.” Those who sit in the council of the wise, therefore, shall not rejoice at all during the present time, but only those in the secret and hidden council of fools, for “it is good for me to cling to God, to put my hope in the Lord,” to be filled with opprobrium and to await the sentence of the Judge, one that, when the end arrives, will reveal that every sorrow and bitterness was like the passing of flowing water.

GOD'S REPLY TO JEREMIAH'S INTERCESSORY PRAYER. (Jer. 15:1-21) Moses . . . Samuel--eminent in intercessions (Exo 32:11-12; Sa1 7:9; Psa 99:6). be toward--could not be favorably inclined toward them. out of my sight--God speaks as if the people were present before Him, along with Jeremiah.

(Jer 30:15). "Pain," namely, the perpetual persecution to which he was exposed, and his being left by God without consolation and "alone." Contrast his feeling here with that in Jer 15:16, when he enjoyed the full presence of God, and was inspired by His words. Therefore he utters words of his natural "infirmity" (so David, Psa 77:10) here; as before he spoke under the higher spiritual nature given him. as a liar, and as--rather, "as a deceiving (river) . . . waters that are not sure (lasting)"; opposed to "tiring (perennial) waters" (Job 6:15). Streams that the thirsty traveller had calculated on being full in winter, but which disappoint him in his sorest need, having run dry in the heat of summer. Jehovah had promised Jeremiah protection from his enemies (Jer 1:18-19); his infirmity suggests that God had failed to do so.