Jer 6:1 “Flee for safety, people of Benjamin! Flee from Jerusalem! Sound the trumpet in Tekoa! Raise the signal over Beth Hakkerem! For disaster looms out of the north, even terrible destruction.
Jer 6:2 I will destroy Daughter Zion, so beautiful and delicate.
Jer 6:3 Shepherds with their flocks will come against her; they will pitch their tents around her, each tending his own portion.”
Jer 6:4 “Prepare for battle against her! Arise, let us attack at noon! But, alas, the daylight is fading, and the shadows of evening grow long.
Jer 6:5 So arise, let us attack at night and destroy her fortresses!”
Jer 6:6 This is what the LORD Almighty says: “Cut down the trees and build siege ramps against Jerusalem. This city must be punished; it is filled with oppression.
Jer 6:7 As a well pours out its water, so she pours out her wickedness. Violence and destruction resound in her; her sickness and wounds are ever before me.
Jer 6:8 Take warning, Jerusalem, or I will turn away from you and make your land desolate so no one can live in it.”
Jer 6:9 This is what the LORD Almighty says: “Let them glean the remnant of Israel as thoroughly as a vine; pass your hand over the branches again, like one gathering grapes.”
Jer 6:10 To whom can I speak and give warning? Who will listen to me? Their ears are closed so they cannot hear. The word of the LORD is offensive to them; they find no pleasure in it.
Jer 6:11 But I am full of the wrath of the LORD, and I cannot hold it in. “Pour it out on the children in the street and on the young men gathered together; both husband and wife will be caught in it, and the old, those weighed down with years.
Jer 6:12 Their houses will be turned over to others, together with their fields and their wives, when I stretch out my hand against those who live in the land,” declares the LORD.
Jer 6:13 “From the least to the greatest, all are greedy for gain; prophets and priests alike, all practice deceit.
Jer 6:14 They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. ‘Peace, peace,’ they say, when there is no peace.
Jer 6:15 Are they ashamed of their detestable conduct? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; they will be brought down when I punish them,” says the LORD.
Jer 6:16 This is what the LORD says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’
Jer 6:17 I appointed watchmen over you and said, ‘Listen to the sound of the trumpet!’ But you said, ‘We will not listen.’
Jer 6:18 Therefore hear, you nations; you who are witnesses, observe what will happen to them.
Jer 6:19 Hear, you earth: I am bringing disaster on this people, the fruit of their schemes, because they have not listened to my words and have rejected my law.
Jer 6:20 What do I care about incense from Sheba or sweet calamus from a distant land? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable; your sacrifices do not please me.”
Jer 6:21 Therefore this is what the LORD says: “I will put obstacles before this people. Parents and children alike will stumble over them; neighbors and friends will perish.”
Jer 6:22 This is what the LORD says: “Look, an army is coming from the land of the north; a great nation is being stirred up from the ends of the earth.
Jer 6:23 They are armed with bow and spear; they are cruel and show no mercy. They sound like the roaring sea as they ride on their horses; they come like men in battle formation to attack you, Daughter Zion.”
Jer 6:24 We have heard reports about them, and our hands hang limp. Anguish has gripped us, pain like that of a woman in labor.
Jer 6:25 Do not go out to the fields or walk on the roads, for the enemy has a sword, and there is terror on every side.
Jer 6:26 Put on sackcloth, my people, and roll in ashes; mourn with bitter wailing as for an only son, for suddenly the destroyer will come upon us.
Jer 6:27 “I have made you a tester of metals and my people the ore, that you may observe and test their ways.
Jer 6:28 They are all hardened rebels, going about to slander. They are bronze and iron; they all act corruptly.
Jer 6:29 The bellows blow fiercely to burn away the lead with fire, but the refining goes on in vain; the wicked are not purged out.
Jer 6:30 They are called rejected silver, because the LORD has rejected them.”
1 The enemies sent against Judah 4 encourage themselves. 6 God set them on work because of their sins. 9 The prophet laments the judgments of God because of their sins. 18 He proclaims God’s wrath. 26 He calls the people to mourn for the judgment on their sin
Impending Disaster for Jerusalem
Jer 6:1 “Flee for safety, people of Benjamin! Flee from Jerusalem! Sound the trumpet in Tekoa! Raise the signal over Beth Hakkerem! For disaster looms out of the north, even terrible destruction.
People of Benjamin. The inhabitants of Jerusalem are so designated probably by a figure of synecdoche, a figure of speech in which a part is put for the whole. In the original disposition of the tribal boundaries Jerusalem fell within the territory of Benjamin (see on Joshua 15:8).
Before the time of David, the city numbered its citizens from both Judah (see on Joshua 15:63) and Benjamin (see on Judges 1:21). The boundary between Benjamin and Judah ran through the Valley of Hinnom (Joshua 15:8), which was south of the city.
Jeremiah’s hometown of Anathoth was in the territory of Benjamin (see on Jer. 1:1), and some have suggested that this message may have been delivered there, near the beginning of Jeremiah’s ministry (see PK 409). This may explain why the call was addressed particularly to Benjamin, although it applied to the entire population.
Earlier (ch. 4:6) the inhabitants of the country districts had been urged to seek safety by flight to the city. The present is a warning to flee from Jerusalem to the wild pasturelands on the south. Chapter 6 vividly describes the arrival of the hostile army from the north.
The new appeal may have been issued to point out that the destruction would be so complete that even the greatest city fortifications would provide less safety than would the isolation of the countryside. On the other hand, ch. 4:6 may refer to the time of the earlier invasions, when the fortified cities provided comparative safety.
Sound the trumpet in Tekoa. A town about 10 mi. (16 km.) south by west from Jerusalem, situated on a hill nearly 2,700 ft. (c. 820 m.) above sea level, overlooking the Wilderness of Judea. It had been the home of the wise woman hired by Joab in David’s day (2 Sam. 14:2); later a defense city of Rehoboam (2 Chron. 11:5, 6; still later the home of Amos (Amos 1:1); now called Teqû‘. There is a play on words in this verse. The words for “blow” and “Tekoa” both come from the Heb. taqa‘, “to drive,” “to clap,” or “to blow.”
A sign of fire. Here, doubtless, “a fire signal” (see Judges 20:38, 40).
Beth-haccerem. Literally, “the house of the vineyard.” Formerly identified with ‘Ain Kârim, 41/3 mi. (7 km.) west of Jerusalem, it is now preferably identified with Ramath Rahel, 23/4 mi. (4.5 km.) south by west from Jerusalem.
Jer 6:2 I will destroy Daughter Zion, so beautiful and delicate.
Jer 6:3 Shepherds with their flocks will come against her; they will pitch their tents around her, each tending his own portion.”
It is a picture of conditions after the invasion, with the cities destroyed, the land a semi-wilderness, and Bedouins coming in to pasture their flocks.
Jer 6:4 “Prepare for battle against her! Arise, let us attack at noon! But, alas, the daylight is fading, and the shadows of evening grow long.
Battles were preceded by sacrifices, divination, and prayers. The practices of the Chaldeans in this regard are described in Eze. 21:21, 22. The Israelites also offered sacrifices and prayers (see Deut. 20:1–3; 1 Sam. 13:9–12) before engaging in warfare. Compare the expression “sanctified ones” (see on Isa. 13:3).
Arise let us attack. The invaders excite one another to the attack. They are impatient lest any time be lost in defeating their foes and laying hands on the plunder.
At noon. There is no relaxing even during the intense heat of the noonday sun (see chs. 15:8; 20:16). If we were as eager in spiritual warfare for the kingdom of God, no time or opportunity would be lost!
Trees were cut and the timber was used in the construction of mounds, embankments, towers, and military engines. The Mosaic law forbade the cutting of fruit-bearing trees for siege purposes (see on Deut. 20:19, 20). Plutarch records a similar law among the Egyptians, but it is doubtful whether other Near Eastern nations were that scrupulous.
Build siege ramps. Basketfuls of earth were carried and heaped up to make a mound that was piled up until it was level with the walls. From such elevations direct assaults could be made (see 2 Sam. 20:15; 2 Kings 19:32; Isa. 29:3; Eze. 4:2).
Jer 6:7 As a well pours out its water, so she pours out her wickedness. Violence and destruction resound in her; her sickness and wounds are ever before me.
Whichever figure the prophet had in mind, the thought is evident that the city was completely dominated by evil.
Jer 6:8 Take warning, Jerusalem, or I will turn away from you and make your land desolate so no one can live in it.”
During warnings of terrible punishment comes this tender appeal from Israel’s God, who is infinitely good and patient, and unwilling to bring ruin upon His people. The Lord admonished them to be chastened and corrected by His discipline.
God was loath to turn His back upon the nation of His choice (see Eze. 23:18; Hosea 9:12; 11:8).
What a patient loving God that does not want us to be lost!
Jer 6:9 This is what the LORD Almighty says: “Let them glean the remnant of Israel as thoroughly as a vine; pass your hand over the branches again, like one gathering grapes.”
In this figure the grapes are the Jews and the gleaners the invaders, the Babylonians. The captivity and destruction would be carried on repeatedly and thoroughly.
The remnant of Israel. The kingdom of Judah was all that was left of Israel in Jeremiah’s day. The ten tribes had been carried captive by the Assyrians (see Isa. 24:13; Jer. 49:9; Obadiah 5).
Turn back thine hand. Captives would be repeatedly carried off to Babylon (Jer. 52:28–30; cf. 2 Kings 24:14; 25:11).
Jer 6:10 To whom can I speak and give warning? Who will listen to me? Their ears are closed so they cannot hear. The word of the LORD is offensive to them; they find no pleasure in it.
Jeremiah appears to be overcome with a sense of the futility of his mission. Because of the obstinacy of the people all his preaching seemed vain.
Their ears are closed. The people of Judah closed their ears against the precepts of God and stubbornly pursued their profane course. They were obstinate and rebellious. God’s message to them through His prophet was despised and treated with contempt. It became an object of scorn and derision (see ch. 20:8).
No pleasure. Religious exercises are profitable to the worshiper only when they are performed cheerfully and with the heart.
Jer 6:11 But I am full of the wrath of the LORD, and I cannot hold it in. “Pour it out on the children in the street and on the young men gathered together; both husband and wife will be caught in it, and the old, those weighed down with years.
Full of the wrath of the Lord. Zeal for God’s cause was figuratively consuming the prophet (see Jer. 4:19; cf. Eze. 3:3).
I am weary. A picture of exhausted patience. All, irrespective of age or sex, would be overwhelmed together, from the children in the streets to the old and decrepit.
Jer 6:12 And their houses shall be turned over to others, Fields and wives together; For I will stretch out My hand Against the inhabitants of the land,” says the LORD.
All the things that the people held dear would be transferred to strangers. Verses 12–15 are closely parallel with ch. 8:10–12 (see Deut. 28:30).
Jer 6:13 “From the least to the greatest, all are greedy for gain; prophets and priests alike, all practice deceit.
The spiritual leaders—prophet and priest—should have been foremost in checking the evil. Instead, they were the chief offenders in it.
Jer 6:14 They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. ‘Peace, peace,’ they say, when there is no peace.
Peace. Heb. shalom, a word frequently used to comprehend all the good things of life. Shalom has been defined as meaning not only “peace,” but also “completeness,” “prosperity,” “welfare,” “health,” “friendship,” etc. Shalom, or its equivalent salaam, is even today the common word of greeting in many Eastern lands.
The so-called prophets of Jeremiah’s day glossed over the sins of the nation, and drew flattering pictures of Judah’s future prospects (see Jer. 8:11; 14:13; 23:17; cf. Micah 3:5). By their smooth and deceitful teachings these faithless leaders lulled the souls of sinners into a fatal ease. They should have warned of impending calamity and the need for repentance, but instead they asserted there was nothing to fear (see Eze. 13:22).
Prophets who proclaim peace and security despite transgression, when God has declared that sin is about to collect its inevitable wages, are echoing the satanic lie first spoken by the serpent in the Garden of Eden, “Ye shall not surely die” (Gen. 3:4). Through Jeremiah and other messengers God had announced that the day of Judah’s grace was about to close, and that the reward of evildoing could not be longer delayed (cf. Eze. 12:21–28). But the false prophets denounced Jeremiah and his Heaven-sent message (see Jer. 28; 29) and sought to calm the people’s fears that there would be any interruption in their evil course of action. The false prophets said, as it were, “To morrow shall be as this day, and much more abundant” (Isa. 56:12).
Jer 6:15 Are they ashamed of their detestable conduct? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; they will be brought down when I punish them,” says the LORD.
“They” refers to the impudent spiritual leaders. If they had been ashamed of their monstrous wickedness, there would have been hope. But they were utterly callous, “past feeling” (Eph. 4:19), beyond the reach of the Holy Spirit.
Shamelessness is indicative of a seared conscience.
Jer 6:16 This is what the LORD says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’
The metaphor is that of a traveler who, having lost his way, stations himself at the juncture of several different roads, carefully considering and diligently inquiring after the right one.
Ancient paths. The true road was the one on which Judah’s godly forefathers had walked. The observance of the ethical and moral principles of the covenant would bring the highest spiritual blessings to the nation and to individuals (see PK 411).
Rest for your souls. He who walks in the path that God directs will find peace and quietude (see on Matt. 11:28, 29).
Jer 6:17 I appointed watchmen over you and said, ‘Listen to the sound of the trumpet!’ But you said, ‘We will not listen.’
Sound of the trumpet. The trumpet blast was the signal of alarm used by the sentinels on the walls of a city (see ch. 4:5).
We will not listen. Compare “we will not walk,” in v. 16.
Jer 6:18 Therefore hear, you nations; you who are witnesses, observe what will happen to them.
Therefore. That is, because the Israelites had closed their ears to severe warning as well as to friendly admonition. The prophet summoned the Gentiles as witnesses to God’s judgment upon His people (see Isa. 1:2).
Jer 6:19 Hear, you earth: I am bringing disaster on this people, the fruit of their schemes, because they have not listened to my words and have rejected my law.
The judgment is pictured as already on its way. The inhabitants of Judah were to reap the fruitage of their own sowing. Their stubbornness and impenitence were bringing upon them swift ruin (see on Prov. 1:31). What men do is the result of what they are. From thoughts spring actions.
Jer 6:20 What do I care about incense from Sheba or sweet calamus from a distant land? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable; your sacrifices do not please me.”
Jeremiah here emphasizes the fact that no mere external service is acceptable to God. The observance of the entire ceremonial system was useless unless accompanied by heart religion (see 1 Sam. 15:22; Ps. 40:6; Isa. 1:11–13; Jer. 7:21–23; Eze. 20:39; Hosea 6:6; Amos 5:21–24; Micah 6:6–8).
Sheba. Archeological findings (about 1950) now identify Sheba with Yemen, a country in southwestern Arabia (see on 1 Kings 10:1). The Sabaeans were a Semitic merchant people who dealt particularly in such luxury goods as gold, incense, and precious stones (see Isa. 60:6; see on 1 Kings 10:1, 2). Their capital was Marib.
Jer 6:21 Therefore this is what the LORD says: “I will put obstacles before this people. Parents and children alike will stumble over them; neighbours and friends will perish.”
Obstacles. the Chaldeans, the instrument of Judah’s fall and destruction.
Neighbours and friends. Implying a general and indiscriminate destruction.
Jer 6:22 This is what the LORD says: “Look, an army is coming from the land of the north; a great nation is being stirred up from the ends of the earth.
Ends of the earth. A figure denoting the remote parts of the earth (see ch. 25:32). The invader is elsewhere described as coming “from far” (ch. 5:15). The land of the captivity from which God would bring His people is described in terms like those used here (ch. 31:8).
Jer 6:23 They are armed with bow and spear; they are cruel and show no mercy. They sound like the roaring sea as they ride on their horses; they come like men in battle formation to attack you, Daughter Zion.”
The Babylonians and Assyrians were skilled in the use of this weapon (see chs. 4:29; 5:16).
Cruel. The ruthlessness and cruelty of the invaders was shown in the treatment given Zedekiah (see ch. 52:8–11). The king’s sons were slain before his eyes, following which his eyes were put out, so that his last visual remembrance was that horrible sight. He was then sent in fetters to Babylon. The monuments perpetuate a record of some of the barbarities practiced.
Roaring sea. The invaders would be so numerous that the sound of their approach would resemble the roaring of the sea (see Isa. 5:30; 17:12).
Battle formation. Armed and equipped for immediate battle.
Jer 6:24 We have heard reports about them, and our hands hang limp. Anguish has gripped us, pain like that of a woman in labor.
Jer 6:25 Do not go out to the fields or walk on the roads, for the enemy has a sword, and there is terror on every side.
Verses 24, 25 describe the consternation caused by news of the arrival of the invader.
Do not venture beyond the walls of Jerusalem (see on v. 1).
Jer 6:26 Put on sackcloth, my people, and roll in ashes; mourn with bitter wailing as for an only son, for suddenly the destroyer will come upon us.
An expression of extreme grief. To sprinkle the person, especially the head, with ashes was a token of grief, humiliation, or penitence (see 2 Sam. 13:19; cf. Neh. 9:1). At times the afflicted or penitent one sat in ashes (see Job 2:8; 42:6; Jonah 3:5, 6). Utter wretchedness or prostration might be expressed by wallowing in ashes.
An only son.
The cutting off one’s posterity among a people who placed extreme emphasis upon the possession of children would result in extreme grief.
Jer 6:27 “I have made you a tester of metals and my people the ore, that you may observe and test their ways.
You. The reference is to Jeremiah himself (see PK 419) and not to the “daughter of my people” (v. 26) as the context might seem to indicate. This is clearly shown by the fact that the Hebrew pronoun is masculine. The Lord was evidently seeking to encourage the prophet to be faithful despite trying experiences.
Jeremiah was to stand strongly for the Lord, as a fortification against which the wrath of man could not prevail.
Test. Verses 28–30 employ metallurgic terms. The refining process yields only refuse silver (v. 30).
Jer 6:28 They are all hardened rebels, going about to slander. They are bronze and iron; they all act corruptly.
Brass and iron. These are of themselves not valueless metals, but should they be discovered by an assayer who was expecting to find gold or silver, he would be greatly disappointed. God as the great Assayer was keenly disappointed in His people. They completely missed attaining to the high destiny He had in mind for them, and yet they considered themselves better than the heathen.
Jer 6:29 The bellows blow fiercely to burn away the lead with fire, but the refining goes on in vain; the wicked are not purged out.
In vain. Continuing the figure of the refining process. God’s great efforts on behalf of His people were of no avail.
Jer 6:30 They are called rejected silver, because the LORD has rejected them.”
Throughout his ministry Jeremiah encouraged the people to cast aside the dross of disobedience (see PK 410). Rejected. The play on words strikingly heightens the force of the prophet’s message. The people of Judah had fallen far short of God’s lofty ideal for them as a nation, and in their present state were wholly unacceptable to Him. He could no longer bear with their waywardness lest His long-suffering be construed as approval of their actions.