LECTURE ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTH
17. Ne audiatis ipsos, servite regi Babylonis, et vivetis: ut
quid erit urbs haec desolatio (hoc est, in vastitatem?)
It is not to be wondered at that Jeremiah said the same things so often, for, as we have seen, he had to contend with false prophets. When any one speaks, and there be no dispute and no adversary opposing him, he may calmly deal with the teachable and confine himself to a few words; but when contention arises, and opponents appear, who may seek to subvert what we say, then we must exercise more care, for they who are thus driven different ways, will not be satisfied with a few words. As, then, Jeremiah saw that the people were fluctuating, he found it necessary, in order to confirm them, to use many words; not that prolixity is in itself
sufficient to produce conviction; yet there is no doubt but that Jeremiah spoke efficiently so as to influence at least some portion of the people.
Besides, it was necessary to dwell more expressly on a subject not very plausible; the false prophets were heard with favor, and the greater part greedily devoured what was set forth by them; for the hope of impunity is always pleasing and sought after by the world.
But what did Jeremiah say? Serve ye the king of Babylon; that is, “No better condition awaits you than to pay tribute to the king of Babylon; be subject to his authority, and patiently endure whatever he may prescribe to you.” This was indeed a very hard speech; for subjection was not unaccompanied with reproach; besides, he bade them to surrender
themselves to a most cruel enemy, as though they were to expose their life to him; and lastly, they were to risk the danger of being spoiled of all that they had. What Jeremiah taught then was very much disliked, as he thus exhorted the people to endure all things. This was, then, the reason why he had not declared in a few and plain words what God had committed to him; it was difficult to persuade the people to undergo the yoke of the king of Babylon, and to submit to his tyranny.
We hence see that there were two very just reasons why the Prophet insisted so much on this one subject, and confirmed what he might have briefly said without any prolixity; Hearken, ye to them, he says; serve ye the king of Babylon and ye shall live. fE184 We must again bear in mind what we said yesterday, that patiently to humble ourselves under God’s mighty hand is the best remedy for mitigating punishment, and that in this way punishment is turned into medicine; so on the other hand, when we are like refractory and ferocious horses, whatever punishment God inflicts on us, is only a prelude to endless destruction. Let us then lay hold on this truth and constantly meditate on it, — that our punishment becomes vivifying to us, when we acknowledge God to be a righteous judge and suffer ourselves to be corrected by him. But I refer only briefly to this subject now, for I spoke of it more at large yesterday.
He adds, Why should this city be a desolation? He set before them the city in which God’s sanctuary was, and by the sight of it he tried to turn them to repentance; for it was extremely base to harden themselves against the warnings of the prophets, so as to cause the Temple of God to be
demolished, and also the holy city to be reduced to a waste, in which God designed to have his dwelling, as he had said,
“This is my rest for ever.” (<19D214>Psalm 132:14)
In short, he declared to the Jews that a most awful condemnation awaited them, if they suffered the city to perish through their own fault, and that they would be the authors of their own ruin, if they undertook not the yoke of the king of Babylon. It follows —
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J
EREMIAH27:18
18. But if they be prophets, and if the word of the Lord be with them, let them now make intercession to the Lord of hosts, that the vessels which are left in the house of the Lord, and in the house of the king of Judah, and at Jerusalem, go not to Babylon.
18. Qued si Prophetae sunt, et si est sermo Jehovae cum ipsis (id est, apud ipsos,) intercedant ipsi apud Jehovam exercituum, ne veniant vasa, quae supersunt in Temple Jehovae, et in dome regis Jehudah et Jerosolymae
Babylonem.
Here the Prophet laughs to scorn the foolish confidence with which the false prophets were swollen, when they promised all happiness in time to come. He hence says, that they were not to be believed as to the
prosperity of which they prophesied, but that on the contrary they ought to have dreaded a most grievous punishment.
He then says, If they are prophets, let them intercede with Jehovah, that what still remains may not be taken away from Jerusalem. They promised the return of the vessels, which had been already carried away to Babylon;
and yet what still remained in the Temple and in the palace of the king and in the whole city, was to be removed to Babylon. We now perceive the Prophet’s design; he compares the future with the past, and shews that these impostors foolishly promised some better state of things, even when God’s heavy judgment was impending over them; for the city and the Temple were doomed to entire ruin. The verb [gp, pego, means to meet, to go to meet, and is taken metaphorically in the sense of interceding; for he who meets one as an intercessor, in a manner restrains the opponent;
and the Scripture uses this word, when it speaks of the saints as supplicating God; the proper word is interceding. fE185
From this passage we learn that these two things are united — teaching and praying. Then God would have him whom he has set a teacher in his Church, to be assiduous in prayer. And so the Apostles said, when they spoke of appointing deacons, that they could not attend to tables; for they said that they were sufficiently engaged in teaching, and they mentioned also prayers. (<440602>
Acts 6:2-4.) The same also we learn from this place, where Jeremiah ascribes the office of interceding to God’s true and faithful servants who conscientiously discharged the office of teaching; If they be prophets, he says, let them intercede with Jehovah, that the remaining vessels be not taken away. Let us at the same time notice the definition he gives; for by this he also shews who are to be counted true prophets, even those who have the word of God, as we have found elsewhere,
“The Prophet who has a dream, and who has my true word, let him speak my word.” (<242328>
Jeremiah 23:28)
We said by these words of the Prophet it may be determined who they are who deserve to be called prophets, even those who have the word of God.
Jeremiah confirms the same here when he says, If they are prophets, and if the word of Jehovah is with them. These two clauses ought to be read together, for the latter is exegetic, or explanatory of the former. But I cannot now finish the whole, I must therefore defer the rest till to-morrow.
PRAYER
Grant, Almighty God, that as we continually by our many vices draw on ourselves new punishment, we may strive to be reconciled to thee, and thus anticipate thy judgment, and so submit to thee in true humility, that we may not by struggling against thee be untamable, but confess our guilt, obtain thy favor, and find
reconciliation with thee, until having at length put off all our vices, we shall come to that blessed rest, which thine only-begotten Son has procured for us by his own blood. — Amen.