JEREMIAH CHAPTER 14 A grievous famine prophesied; its miseries, JEREMIAH 14:1. The prophet prayeth, but God will not be entreated for them, JEREMIAH 14:7. Lying prophets no excuse for them, JEREMIAH 14:13. The prophet's complaint, JEREMIAH 14:17. What DEARTH we are not told, nor when it happened; so... [ Continue Reading ]
By JUDAH is meant the men and women in the whole country of Judah. The GATES is put for their cities; or the men of their cities languished, for want of moisture for themselves or their beasts. They are all in the habits of mourners, or their faces looked swarthy and starvedly, for want of due and w... [ Continue Reading ]
This scarcity of water afflicted not mean persons only, who have not so good means to supply their necessities as others; but their greatest persons; so as they sent their LITTLE ONES (it were better translated _servants_, for they are meant) to the places made to receive and retain water; but findi... [ Continue Reading ]
The Hebrew word signifieth more largely than _chapt_, broken, spoiled, turned into dust, as is usual in great droughts. The word also which we translate _ploughmen_, doth not strictly signify ploughmen, but _husbandmen_: there having been no rain upon the earth, it brought forth little or no grass f... [ Continue Reading ]
Hinds use not to get their food in fields, but upon the mountains and in wildernesses; but the drought was such, that these wild creatures came into the lower grounds, nearer the habitations of men than they were wont, and there brought forth their young. The hinds are loving creatures, and as all c... [ Continue Reading ]
THE WILD ASSES, wanting water, got upon HIGH PLACES, where was the freest and coolest air, and sucked in the wind, and this it is said they did LIKE DRAGONS, of whom Aristotle and Pliny report, that by reason of the great heat of their bodies, they ordinarily stand upon high places sucking in the co... [ Continue Reading ]
The prophet having described their misery, both in the cause of it, the drought for want of rain, and the effects of it, he applieth himself to that God who he knew was he who alone could give the former and the latter rain; confessing that their sins and backslidings were very many, and testified a... [ Continue Reading ]
O THE HOPE OF ISRAEL; that is, the object of Israel's hope, he in whom alone thy people Israel have been wont to hope, or he in whom alone Israel hath just reason to hope. The saviour thereof in time of trouble; thou who hast formerly been their Saviour in the times of their trouble, or who alone ca... [ Continue Reading ]
ASTONIED; the Hebrew word here used being found in no place of holy writ but this, hath given interpreters a liberty to translate it variously, _sleepy, weak, astonished, frighted_, like a man in such disorder, through some great passions, that he is able to do nothing. AS A MIGHTY MAN THAT CANNOT S... [ Continue Reading ]
Here beginneth that Divine revelation mentioned Jeremiah 14:1, as an answer to the prophet's complaint and prayer in the nine first verses; the substance of which is, that for their manifold sins he was resolved to punish them, and therefore would not be any more solicited on their behalf. THUS HAVE... [ Continue Reading ]
Twice before God had given the prophet this charge, JEREMIAH 7:16, JEREMIAH 11:14; how it could consist with the piety of Jeremiah after those charges to put up the prayer we have JEREMIAH 14:7 of this chapter, SEE POOLE ON "JEREMIAH 11:14".... [ Continue Reading ]
WHEN THEY FAST, I WILL NOT HEAR THEIR CRY; the like threatening we have PROVERBS 1:28 ISAIAH 1:15 JEREMIAH 11:11 EZEKIEL 8:18 MICAH 3:4. WHEN THEY OFFER BURNT-OFFERING AND AN OBLATION, I WILL NOT ACCEPT THEM: men may so long despise God's calls, exhortations, and counsels, as their case may be despe... [ Continue Reading ]
We have many complaints of this prophet against false prophets that contradicted his prophecies, JEREMIAH 4:10, JEREMIAH 23:9, and we shall hereafter meet with the names of some of them. Corrupt governments never want prophets to their humour, though a bolder transgression can hardly be imagined, th... [ Continue Reading ]
They did not only prophesy falsehoods, but lies, what they knew to be false; for they pretended that God had revealed such things unto them; for admit the things they spake (as to men) but future contingencies, which might be true or false, yet it was a lie for them to pretend that God had told them... [ Continue Reading ]
It is a most dangerous thing for ecclesiastical ministers to deliver that to people as the will of God which is not so. God here threateneth that these prophets, in testimony of the truth of the word of God delivered by Jeremiah, should die by these very judgments which they falsely prophesied to th... [ Continue Reading ]
The security promised by these false prophets shall be no excuse to the people for giving credit to them; the prophets shall perish for prophesying falsely in my name, and the people that hearken to and believe what they say, practise accordingly, shall perish for their light and vain credulity. As... [ Continue Reading ]
No text from Poole on this verse.... [ Continue Reading ]
OLBHeb; The prophet is by God directed to speak still of the calamities of this people as a thing past, though yet to come, according to the usual style of prophetical writings; and to tell them, that whatsoever their false prophets told them, yet he so certainly knew the contrary, that he could eve... [ Continue Reading ]
The prophet again returns to God, expostulating with him, and humbly imploring mercy for his people, which lets us know that he did not understand God's words to him, JEREMIAH 14:11, as an absolute prohibition of him to pray for this people. ZION was a place whose gates God loved, and _Judah_ was hi... [ Continue Reading ]
That is, both we and our fathers have sinned against thee, and have given thee a right to punish and destroy its; we desire not to cover or cloak our sin, we own and acknowledge it.... [ Continue Reading ]
The thing which the prophet deprecateth is, the judgments come already and further coming upon this people, the famine, sword, and pestilence, with the drought, under the sad consequents of which they at present laboured; but he prays for the removal of these judgments, and the prevention of such as... [ Continue Reading ]
The present judgment under which they groaned was a drought, which he had described in the six first verses; the prophet imploring God for the removal of it, argues from the impossibility of help in this case from any other way; none of the idols of the heathens, which he calls _vain things_, nothin... [ Continue Reading ]