The Lord Will Not Relent
Jer 15:1 Then the LORD said to me: “Even if Moses and Samuel were to stand before me, my heart would not go out to this people. Send them away from my presence! Let them go!
Jer 15:2 And if they ask you, ‘Where shall we go?’ tell them, ‘This is what the LORD says: “‘Those destined for death, to death; those for the sword, to the sword; those for starvation, to starvation; those for captivity, to captivity.’
Jer 15:3 “I will send four kinds of destroyers against them,” declares the LORD, “the sword to kill and the dogs to drag away and the birds and the wild animals to devour and destroy.
Jer 15:4 I will make them abhorrent to all the kingdoms of the earth because of what Manasseh son of Hezekiah king of Judah did in Jerusalem.
Jer 15:5 “Who will have pity on you, Jerusalem? Who will mourn for you? Who will stop to ask how you are?
Jer 15:6 You have rejected me,” declares the LORD. “You keep on backsliding. So I will reach out and destroy you; I am tired of holding back.
Jer 15:7 I will winnow them with a winnowing fork at the city gates of the land. I will bring bereavement and destruction on my people, for they have not changed their ways.
Jer 15:8 I will make their widows more numerous than the sand of the sea. At midday I will bring a destroyer against the mothers of their young men; suddenly I will bring down on them anguish and terror.
Jer 15:9 The mother of seven will grow faint and breathe her last. Her sun will set while it is still day; she will be disgraced and humiliated. I will put the survivors to the sword before their enemies,” declares the LORD.
Jeremiah’s Complaint
Jer 15:10 Alas, my mother, that you gave me birth, a man with whom the whole land strives and contends! I have neither lent nor borrowed, yet everyone curses me.
Jer 15:11 The LORD said, “Surely I will deliver you for a good purpose; surely I will make your enemies plead with you in times of disaster and times of distress.
Jer 15:12 “Can a man break iron— iron from the north—or bronze?
Jer 15:13 “Your wealth and your treasures I will give as plunder, without charge, because of all your sins throughout your country.
Jer 15:14 I will enslave you to your enemies in a land you do not know, for my anger will kindle a fire that will burn against you.”
Jer 15:15 LORD, you understand; remember me and care for me. Avenge me on my persecutors. You are long-suffering—do not take me away; think of how I suffer reproach for your sake.
Jer 15:16 When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, LORD God Almighty.
Jer 15:17 I never sat in the company of revelers, never made merry with them; I sat alone because your hand was on me and you had filled me with indignation.
Jer 15:18 Why is my pain unending and my wound grievous and incurable? You are to me like a deceptive brook, like a spring that fails.
Jer 15:19 Therefore this is what the LORD says: “If you repent, I will restore you that you may serve me; if you utter worthy, not worthless, words, you will be my spokesman. Let this people turn to you, but you must not turn to them.
Jer 15:20 I will make you a wall to this people, a fortified wall of bronze; they will fight against you but will not overcome you, for I am with you to rescue and save you,” declares the LORD.
Jer 15:21 “I will save you from the hands of the wicked and deliver you from the grasp of the cruel.”
1 The utter rejection and manifold judgments of the Jews. 10 Jeremiah, complaining of their spite, receives a promise for himself, 12 and a threatening for them. 15 He prays, 19 and receives a gracious promise.
The Lord Will Not Relent
Jer 15:1 Then the LORD said to me: “Even if Moses and Samuel were to stand before me, my heart would not go out to this people. Send them away from my presence! Let them go!
Chapter 15 apparently continues unbroken the message of ch. 14. Thus both chapters are probably of the same date. Continuing the debate, as it were, between Himself and Jeremiah (see vs. 1–9), God again declares His rejection of all intercession for the apostate Israelites. Moses and Samuel are doubtless mentioned because they were successful in their pleading with God (see Ex. 32:9–14; Num. 14:11–20; 1 Sam. 7:8, 9; cf. Eze. 14:14).
Jer 15:2 And if they ask you, ‘Where shall we go?’ tell them, ‘This is what the LORD says: “‘Those destined for death, to death; those for the sword, to the sword; those for starvation, to starvation; those for captivity, to captivity.’
This classification is doubtless designed to impress upon the people the impossibility of escape.
Jer 15:3 “I will send four kinds of destroyers against them,” declares the LORD, “the sword to kill and the dogs to drag away and the birds and the wild animals to devour and destroy.
The sword is the direct instrument of death. The animals and birds of prey devour the corpses (see Deut. 28:25, 26; 1 Kings 21:23, 24; Jer. 7:33).
Jer 15:4 I will make them abhorrent to all the kingdoms of the earth because of what Manasseh son of Hezekiah king of Judah did in Jerusalem.
Because of Manasseh. The recent and evil reign of this wicked king (see 2 Kings 21:1–18) was still fresh in the minds of the people. The persistence of the people in following the example of this evil king was the cause of their present distress. The mention of righteous King Hezekiah emphasized the contrast in character between father and son.
Jer 15:6 You have rejected me,” declares the LORD. “You keep on backsliding. So I will reach out and destroy you; I am tired of holding back.
Patience has reached its end for the sinners of Judah, even as it did for the antediluvians.
Jer 15:7 I will winnow them with a winnowing fork at the city gates of the land. I will bring bereavement and destruction on my people, for they have not changed their ways.
Winnowing fork. Used to toss the grain into the air so the wind would blow away the chaff (see Ps. 1:4; Matt. 3:12).
Jer 15:8 I will make their widows more numerous than the sand of the sea. At midday I will bring a destroyer against the mothers of their young men; suddenly I will bring down on them anguish and terror.
Their widows. The war with the invaders is pictured as bereaving the women of their husbands.
The mothers. Since the fathers have been slain, the older women are left to trust in the valour of their sons. However, all is in vain; defeat is inevitable.
Midday. The hour when the “spoiler” would be least expected, the time when most armies rested (see on ch. 6:4).
I will bring down on them anguish and terror.
Jer 15:9 The mother of seven will grow faint and breathe her last. Her sun will set while it is still day; she will be disgraced and humiliated. I will put the survivors to the sword before their enemies,” declares the LORD.
A figure expressing the grief of the mother at being left “disgraced and humiliated” because of her lack of sons and heirs (see Gen. 16:4; 30:1, 23; Isa. 54:4; see on Ruth 4:15).
Jeremiah’s Complaint
Jer 15:10 Alas, my mother, that you gave me birth, a man with whom the whole land strives and contends! I have neither lent nor borrowed, yet everyone curses me.
Contemplating the effects of his message the prophet suddenly senses that his mission, like that of Christ, is “not to send peace, but a sword” (Matt. 10:34).
Jer 15:11 The LORD said, “Surely I will deliver you for a good purpose; surely I will make your enemies plead with you in times of disaster and times of distress
God is offering comfort to the prophet by giving him the promise of deliverance from his enemies.
Jer 15:12 “Can a man break iron— iron from the north—or bronze?
1. It was God’s way of indicating that Jeremiah’s prayer, however strong in intercession (see chs. 14:7–9; 19–22), could not change the divine purpose to punish the people for their transgressions.
It represented the lack of power on the part of the enemies of Jeremiah to withstand the prophet’s divine commission, which power is likened to the harder “northern iron.”
It represented Jeremiah’s impotence to overcome the confirmed and obdurate evil of the people who had the hardness of “northern iron.”
Jer 15:13 “Your wealth and your treasures I will give as plunder, without charge, because of all your sins throughout your country.
These words are addressed to Jeremiah as the people’s intercessor and, therefore, their representative.
A figure indicating complete abandonment. Tragically, God was forced to relinquish His people because of their sins, as men freely give away that which is worthless.
Jer 15:14 I will enslave you to your enemies in a land you do not know, for my anger will kindle a fire that will burn against you.”
Jer 15:15 LORD, you understand; remember me and care for me. Avenge me on my persecutors. You are long-suffering—do not take me away; think of how I suffer reproach for your sake.
Remember me. In vs. 15–18 Jeremiah pours out the intense feelings of his soul. On the surface, the language employed by the prophet may seem vindictive, but that is not necessarily the case. Jeremiah was pleading for justice to be done.
Jer 15:16 When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, LORD God Almighty.
I bear your name.
Jeremiah recognized that he had been adopted into the family of heaven and that he now bore the family name (see Eph. 3:15). On this basis he made his appeal for protection from his enemies (Jer. 15:15).
Jer 15:17 I never sat in the company of revellers, never made merry with them; I sat alone because your hand was on me and you had filled me with indignation.
Alone. Evidently from the time of his call Jeremiah had had little of social enjoyment. As a man set apart by God, he found no pleasure in fellowshipping with merrymakers.
The prophet had lived an abstemious life because of the divine requirements. However, his self-denial had not always been cheerfully undertaken. At times feelings of resentment and indignation filled his soul. Compare the experience of Ezekiel (see on Eze. 3:14).
Jer 15:18 Why is my pain unending and my wound grievous and incurable? You are to me like a deceptive brook, like a spring that fails.
Many of the streams, or wadies, of Palestine that are filled with a rushing torrent in winter are dry in summer (see on 1 Sam. 17:3).
Jer 15:19 Therefore this is what the LORD says: “If you repent, I will restore you that you may serve me; if you utter worthy, not worthless, words, you will be my spokesman. Let this people turn to you, but you must not turn to them.
This implies a rebuke of the prophet’s attitude. The Lord assures Jeremiah that if he resumes his right attitude, “you will be my spokesman”.
The prophet must not allow any godless opposition or any thought of failure to tempt him to “turn” to the people by compromising his mission to secure their favor.
Jer 15:20 I will make you a wall to this people, a fortified wall of bronze; they will fight against you but will not overcome you, for I am with you to rescue and save you,” declares the LORD.
The Lord sought to encourage Jeremiah by giving him these precious promises. However, the Lord also saw fit to reveal to His servant some of the prophet’s future hardships. In vs. 20, 21 the Lord forewarned Jeremiah that the “wicked” would “fight” against him (see PK 419). Thus, the severe persecutions Jeremiah experienced in his later ministry were not unexpected, and, forewarned, he was better prepared to meet them. Jer 15:21 “I will save you from the hands of the wicked and deliver you from the grasp of the cruel.”