Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary
Jeremiah 4:19

Clarke's Commentary

Verse Jeremiah 4:19. My bowels — From this to the twenty-ninth verse the prophet describes the ruin of Jerusalem and the desolation of Judea by the Chaldeans in language and imagery scarcely paralleled in the whole Bible. At the sight of misery the bowels are first affected; pain is next felt by a sort of stricture in the pericardium; and then, the heart becoming strongly affected by irregular palpitations, a gush of tears, accompanied with wailings, is the issue. - "My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very heart, (the walls of my heart;) my heart maketh a noise in me; I cannot hold my peace." Here is nature, and fact also.

Bridgeway Bible Commentary

The coming invasion (4:5-31)

Jeremiah now pictures the terrible judgment that will fall on Judah if it does not repent. With the enemy army sweeping down upon Judah from the north, a trumpeter sounds the alarm and the people of Judah flee to their walled cities for safety (5-6). Like an enraged lion the enemy prepares to pounce upon its victim. God is about to pour out his anger on the unfaithful people (7-8).
Judah’s leaders, both civil and religious, are shocked at the sudden catastrophe that overtakes them. They now realize that by believing the false prophets, they have deceived themselves. They mistakenly thought that God would never allow a heathen nation to destroy them (9-10).
God’s judgment burns up his people like a scorching desert wind (11-12). As Jeremiah pictures the enemy’s horses and chariots sweeping across the northern frontier, he makes a last desperate plea to the Jerusalemites to repent (13-14). He sees the invasion forces moving down from Dan, crossing Ephraim’s mountains, spreading over the country and besieging cities as they head for their main prize, Jerusalem. The people of Judah have brought this disaster upon themselves because of the way they have lived. They are about to reap the fruits of their ungodliness and idolatry (15-18).
Jeremiah can scarcely bear to look at the scene of destruction, and cries out in his distress (19-21). God assures him that the judgment is just. In their stupidity the people have rejected God and devoted themselves to wrongdoing. Now they are suffering the consequences (22).
To the prophet it seems that, with the fall of Judah, the earth has become barren, waste, dark and silent (23-26). God’s judgment is so devastating that, were it not for his mercy, the people would be wiped out (27-28). In country towns people flee before the enemy and look for hiding places in forests and caves (29). Jerusalem tries to win favour with the enemy, as a prostitute tries to win the favour of lovers, but the enemy is not fooled. Jerusalem’s end is as horrible as that of a brutally murdered prostitute; her screams are as piercing as those of a woman in agonizing childbirth (30-31).

Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible

"My anguish, my anguish! I am pained at my very heart; my heart is disquieted in me; I cannot hold my peace; because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war. Destruction upon destruction is cried; for the whole land is laid waste: suddenly are my tents destroyed, and my curtains in a moment. How long shall I see the standard, and hear the sound of the trumpet? For my people are foolish, they know me not; they are sottish children, and they have no understanding; they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge."

Jeremiah was evidently not the owner of the many tents suggested in Jeremiah 4:20; and therefore it seems better to accept this paragraph as did Jamieson: "The prophet suddenly assumes the language of the Jewish state personified lamenting its affliction."Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's Commentary, p. 511. "Jeremiah 4:19-22 are best understood as a series of ejaculations, in which the people express their grief at the ravages committed by the enemy."Scribner's Bible Commentary (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1898), p. 252.

God did not, however, leave the cries of his people unanswered but promptly supplied the reason that lay behind their dreadful suffering.

"My people are foolish… sottish… know me not... no understanding… wise to do evil… etc.," `Sottish' means `stupefied with drink,' thus adding drunkenness to the list of the debaucheries of the people.

The Anchor Bible has an interesting rendition of Jeremiah 4:22 as follows:

"Ah, my people are fools!
Me they know not.
Stupid sons are they,
Senseless - they.
Clever are they to do wrong,
To do right, they don't know how!"Barnes' Notes on the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, a 1987 reprint of the 1878 edition), p. 30.

Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible

The verse is best translated as a series of ejaculations, in which the people express their grief at the ravages committed by the enemy:

“My bowels! My bowels!” I writhe in pain!

The walls of my heart! “My heart” moans for me!

I cannot keep silence!

For “thou hast heard, O my soul,” the trumpet’s voice!

“The alarm of war!”

Calvin's Commentary on the Bible

Some interpreters think that the Prophet is here affected with grief, because he saw that his own nation would soon perish; but I know not whether this is a right view. It is indeed true, that the prophets, though severe when denouncing God’s vengeance, did not yet put off the feelings of humanity. Hence they often bewailed the evils which they predicted; and this we shall see more clearly in its proper place. The prophets then had two feelings: when they were the heralds of God’s vengeance, they necessarily forgot their own sensibilities; but this courage did not prevent them from feeling sorrow for others; for they could not but sympathize with their brethren, when they saw them, even their own flesh, doomed to ruin. But in this place the Prophet seems not so much to mourn the calamities of the people, but employs figurative terms in order to awaken their stupor, for he saw that they were torpid, and that they neither feared God nor were touched with any shame. Since then there was so much insensibility in the people, it was necessary for Jeremiah and other servants of God to embellish their discourses, so as not simply to teach, but also forcibly and strongly to rouse their dormant minds.

He therefore says, My bowels, my bowels! We shall see that the Prophet in other places thus laments, when he speaks of Babylon, of Edom, and of other enemies of his people, and why? The Prophet was not indeed affected with grief when he heard that the Chaldeans would perish, and when God declared to him the same thing respecting other heathen nations, who had cruelly persecuted the holy people; but since thoughtless men, as I have said, take no notice of what God from heaven threatens them with, it is necessary to use such expressions as may rouse them from their torpor. So I interpret this place: the Prophet does not express his own grief for the calamities of his people, but by the prophetic spirit enlarges on what he had previously said; for he saw that what he had stated had no effect, or was not sufficient to rouse their minds. My bowels! he says. He had indeed grief in his bowels, for he was a member of the community; but we now speak of his object or the purpose he had in view in speaking thus. It is not then the expression of his own grief, but an affecting description, in order that what he had said might thoroughly rouse the minds of those who heedlessly laughed at the judgment of God.

He then adds, My heart tumultuates, or makes a noise: the verb means to resound, and hence it is metaphorically taken for tumultuating. He speaks of the palpitation of the heart, which takes place when there is great fear. But he calls it noise or tumult, as though he had said, that he was not now master of himself, so as to retain a calm and tranquil mind, for God smote his heart with horrible dread. He afterwards adds, I will not be silent, for the sound of the trumpet has my soul heard, or thou, my soul, hast heard, and the clamor of battle; for the word מלחמה chme, is to be thus taken here. He says that he would not be silent because this clamor made a noise in his heart. We hence conclude that he grieved not from a feeling of human sorrow, but he did that which he had been bidden to do by God; for he had been chosen to be the herald of God’s vengeance, which was nigh, though not dreaded by the Jews. ⁽¹¹⁶⁾

Some think that soul is here to be taken for the prophetic spirit, for trumpets had not yet sounded, nor was yet heard the clamor of battle. They therefore suppose that there is to be understood here a contrast, that Jeremiah did not perceive the noise by his ears, but in his heart. But I know not whether this refinement may be fitly applied to the Prophet’s words. I therefore think that Jeremiah means, that he spoke in earnest, because he saw God’s vengeance as though it were already made evident. And this availed not a little to gain credit to what he had stated, so that the Jews might know that he did not speak of himself, nor act a part as players do on the stage. They were then to know that he did not relate what God had pronounced, but that he was God’s herald in such a way, that he heard in his soul or heart, to his great terror, the tumult of war and the sound of the trumpet. It follows —

(116) Remarkably concise and striking are the words of this verse, —

My bowels! my bowels! I am in pain! O the enclosures of my heart! Turbulent is my heart within me; I will not be silent; for the sound of the trumpet Have I heard; my soul, the shout of battle.

To change the person of the verb, “I am in pain,” or in labor, as it literally means, as Blayney does, destroys the force and the vehemence of the passage; and all the early versions retain the first person. “The enclosures,” literally “the walls,” that is, what encloses or surrounds the heart, he mentions first the bowels, then what surrounds the heart, and afterwards the heart itself: and his pain was like that of a woman in travail. Being in this state, he resolved not to be silent but to declare their danger to the people. — Ed.

Smith's Bible Commentary

Chapter 4

But if you will return, O Israel, saith the LORD, return unto me: and if you will put away thine abominations out of my sight, then you will no longer be [moved or] removed. And thou shalt swear, The LORD liveth, in truth ( Jeremiah 4:1-2 ),

It won't just be saying it as a phrase. And the people were still saying, "Oh, the Lord lives. Praise the Lord, the Lord lives!" But it was meaningless. Just like a lot of people today who go around saying, "Praise the Lord, praise the Lord!" It's meaningless. It's just mouthing words. But you'll say in truth; it will be from your heart.

in judgment, and in righteousness; and the nations shall bless themselves in him, and in him shall they glory. For thus saith the LORD to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, Break up your fallow ground, and sow not among thorns ( Jeremiah 4:2-3 ).

That fallow ground, break it up in order that God might bring His reign and plant it and bring forth fruit.

Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and cut away the foreskins of your heart ( Jeremiah 4:4 ),

The fleshly heart, the heart that is after the flesh. Paul refers to this in Romans. The true circumcision is of the heart, not of the flesh.

ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings ( Jeremiah 4:4 ).

Cut away a heart that is after your flesh and after things of the flesh. Cut that away that you might be dedicated totally to God and the things of the Spirit.

Declare ye in Judah, and publish in Jerusalem; and say, Blow ye the trumpet in the land: cry, gather together, and say, Assemble yourselves, and let us go into the defensed cities. Set up the standard toward Zion: retire, stay not: for I will bring evil from the north, and great destruction. The lion is come up from his thicket, and the destroyer of the Gentiles is on his way [Babylon is moving toward you]; he is gone forth from his place to make thy land desolate; and thy cities shall be laid waste, without an inhabitant. For this gird you with sackcloth, lament and howl: for the fierce anger of the LORD is not turned back from us. And it shall come to pass at that day, saith the LORD, that the heart of the king shall perish, and the heart of the princes; and the priests shall be astonished, and the prophets shall wonder. Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! ( Jeremiah 4:5-10 )

Jeremiah's responding when God said all these things. The judgment is coming. These men are all going to be silent. Then I said, Oh, Lord God!

surely you have greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, Ye shall have peace; whereas the sword is reaching to their soul ( Jeremiah 4:10 ).

Because the prophets were going around saying, "Peace, peace, peace and safety. Babylon shall not come to this place. Babylon shall never cast a trench around this place."

At that time shall it be said to this people and to Jerusalem, A dry wind of the high places in the wilderness toward the daughter of my people, not to fan, nor to cleanse, even a full wind from those places shall come unto me: now also will I give sentence against them. Behold, he shall come up as the clouds, and his chariots shall be as a whirlwind: his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe unto us! for we have been spoiled [destroyed]. O Jerusalem, wash your heart from wickedness, that you mayest be saved. How long shall your vain thoughts remain in your minds? For a voice declares from Dan, and publish affliction from mount Ephraim. Make ye mention to the nations; behold, publish against Jerusalem, that watchers come from a far country, and give out their voice against the cities of Judah. As keepers of a field, are they against her round about; because she hath been rebellious against me, saith the LORD. Thy way and thy doings have procured these things unto thee ( Jeremiah 4:11-18 );

You've brought it upon yourself.

this is thy wickedness, because it is bitter, because it reaches into your hearts. My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very heart; my heart makes a noise in me; I cannot hold my peace, because you have heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war. Destruction upon destruction is cried; for the whole land is spoiled: suddenly are my tents spoiled, and my curtains in a moment. How long shall I see the standard, and hear the sound of the trumpet? For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish children, and they have no understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge ( Jeremiah 4:18-22 ).

Paul said we ought to be simple concerning evil things. A lot of people like to dabble into the evil things. "Oh, I just want to understand about the evil. Let's go down to the nude shows so that we'll know what to preach against." The Bible says be simple concerning evil. Better that you be dumb about evil things. Of course, it's good that you pick up the lingo so that you won't be using some of the corrupted words that they use. But it's good to just be simple about evil. And Jeremiah says much the same thing here. The people were wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.

Now the Lord speaks. There are some who think that Jeremiah is here going back. But contextually it's hard to really see it that way. But he uses the same phraseology that is used in Genesis 1:1-31 . And therefore, those who adhere to the Gap Theory, and that is, that between verses Jeremiah 4:1 , and Jeremiah 4:2 of Genesis there is a gap of indeterminate time. "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" ( Genesis 1:1 ). When that was, we don't know. Billions, trillions of years ago, we don't know. Verse Jeremiah 4:2 , "And the earth was without form and void," can also be translated, "but the earth became wasted and desolate." So they see the possibility of a great gap of time, indeterminate, existing between verses Jeremiah 4:1 , and Jeremiah 4:2 of Genesis. And they see the earth that was originally created by God as being destroyed by God's fierce anger in a rebellion that preceded man's existence upon this planet. And one of the scriptures that they use as a proof for the Gap Theory is this particular passage that we come to here in Jeremiah where he makes a reference.

I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void ( Jeremiah 4:23 );

The same terminology that you find in verse Jeremiah 4:2 of Genesis 1:1-31 .

and the heavens, they had no light ( Jeremiah 4:23 ).

You remember the first thing God said was, "Let there be light" ( Genesis 1:3 ).

I beheld the mountains, and, lo, they trembled, and all of the hills moved lightly. I beheld, and, lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled. I beheld, and, lo, the fruitful place was as a wilderness, and all the cities thereof were broken down at the presence of the LORD, and by his fierce anger. For thus hath the LORD said, The whole land shall be desolate; yet will I not make a full end ( Jeremiah 4:24-27 ).

And so those who subscribe to the Gap Theory see this as a proof of the Gap Theory, as Jeremiah, they say, is looking back and he sees the earth prior to God's reconstruction of the earth for placing man upon it, and sees earth in perhaps the state it was before God began to reconstruct the earth, to put man upon it. Sees it in the last ice age when there was no light shining down upon the earth. When the earth was enshrouded in darkness and the birds, the life that had existed was gone. The cities that were once here were destroyed. And so they explain the fossils, prehistoric man, and so forth through this Gap Theory. There is much that can be said for the Gap Theory. There are problems also with the Gap Theory, but it is one of the common theories of creation and especially of Genesis, that Gap Theory. And as I say, there is merit to it. There are problems, but there is merit to it. "For thus hath the Lord said, 'The whole land shall be desolate; yet will I not make a full end.'"

For this shall the earth mourn, and the heavens above be black: because I have spoken, I have purposed, and will not change, neither will I turn back from it. The whole city shall flee for the noise of the horsemen and bowmen; they shall go into thickets, and climb up upon the rocks: every city shall be forsaken, and not a man dwell therein. And when thou art spoiled, what will you do? Though you clothe yourself with crimson, though you deck yourself with ornaments of gold, though you rentest your face with painting, in vain you will make yourself beautiful; for your lovers will despise thee, they will seek thy life. For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, and the anguish as of her that is bringing forth her first child, the voice of the daughter of Zion, that is wailing, she is spreading forth her hands, she is saying, Woe is me now! for my soul is wearied because of murderers ( Jeremiah 4:28-31 ).

"

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

Jeremiah complained that his heart was pounding and he felt very upset because he had heard the Lord’s announcement of impending invasion and destruction.

". . . it would be hard to find a sharper description of uncontrollable inner turmoil . . ." [Note: Kidner, p. 39.]

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

The anguished response of Jeremiah 4:19-22

This section is the first of Jeremiah’s so-called "confessions." [Note: See Thompson, pp. 88-92.] It is also a lamentation.

Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

My bowels, my bowels,.... These are either the words of the people, unto whose heart the calamity reached, as in the preceding verse; or rather of the prophet, who either, from a sympathizing heart, expresses himself in this manner; or puts on an appearance of mourning and distress, in order to awaken his people to a sense of their condition. The repetition of the word is after the manner of persons in pain and uneasiness, as, "my head, my head", 2 Kings 4:19:

I am pained at my very heart; as a woman in labour. In the Hebrew text it is, "as the walls of my heart" e; meaning either his bowels, as before; or the "praecordia", the parts about the heart, which are as walls unto it; his grief had reached these walls, and was penetrating through them to his heart, and there was danger of breaking that:

my heart makes a noise in me; palpitates, beats and throbs, being filled with fears and dread, with sorrow and concern, at what was coming on; it represents an aching heart, all in disorder and confusion:

I cannot hold my peace; or be silent; must speak, and vent grief:

because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war; Kimchi observes, he does not say "my ears", but "my soul"; for as yet he had not heard with his ears the sound of the trumpet; for the enemy was not yet come, but his soul heard by prophecy: here is a Keri and a Cetib, a reading and a writing; it is written שמעתי, "I have heard"; it is read שמעת, "thou hast heard", which is followed by the Targum: the sense is the same, it is the hearing of the soul. The prophet, by these expressions, represents the destruction as very near, very certain, and very distressing. The trumpet was sounded on different accounts, as Isidore f observes; sometimes to begin a battle; sometimes to pursue those that fled; and sometimes for a retreat.

e קירות לבי "parietes cordis mei", Pagninus, Montanus, Cocceius. f Orignum l. 18. c. 4.

Henry's Complete Commentary on the Bible

      19 My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very heart; my heart maketh a noise in me; I cannot hold my peace, because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.   20 Destruction upon destruction is cried; for the whole land is spoiled: suddenly are my tents spoiled, and my curtains in a moment.   21 How long shall I see the standard, and hear the sound of the trumpet?   22 For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish children, and they have none understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.   23 I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void; and the heavens, and they had no light.   24 I beheld the mountains, and, lo, they trembled, and all the hills moved lightly.   25 I beheld, and, lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled.   26 I beheld, and, lo, the fruitful place was a wilderness, and all the cities thereof were broken down at the presence of the LORD, and by his fierce anger.   27 For thus hath the LORD said, The whole land shall be desolate; yet will I not make a full end.   28 For this shall the earth mourn, and the heavens above be black: because I have spoken it, I have purposed it, and will not repent, neither will I turn back from it.   29 The whole city shall flee for the noise of the horsemen and bowmen; they shall go into thickets, and climb up upon the rocks: every city shall be forsaken, and not a man dwell therein.   30 And when thou art spoiled, what wilt thou do? Though thou clothest thyself with crimson, though thou deckest thee with ornaments of gold, though thou rentest thy face with painting, in vain shalt thou make thyself fair; thy lovers will despise thee, they will seek thy life.   31 For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, and the anguish as of her that bringeth forth her first child, the voice of the daughter of Zion, that bewaileth herself, that spreadeth her hands, saying, Woe is me now! for my soul is wearied because of murderers.

      The prophet is here in an agony, and cries out like one upon the rack of pain with some acute distemper, or as a woman in travail. The expressions are very pathetic and moving, enough to melt a heart of stone into compassion: My bowels! my bowels! I am pained at my very heart; and yet well, and in health himself, and nothing ails him. Note, A good man, in such a bad world as this is, cannot but be a man of sorrows. My heart makes a noise in me, through the tumult of my spirits, and I cannot hold my peace. Note, The grievance and the grief sometimes may be such that the most prudent patient man cannot forbear complaining.

      Now, what is the matter? What is it that puts the good man into such agitation? It is not for himself, or any affliction in his family that he grieves thus; but it is purely upon the public account, it is his people's case that he lays to heart thus.

      I. They are very sinful and will not be reformed, Jeremiah 4:22; Jeremiah 4:22. These are the words of God himself, for so the prophet chose to give this character of the people, rather than in his own words, or as from himself: My people are foolish. God calls them his people, though they are foolish. They have cast him off, but he has not cast them off, Romans 11:1. "They are my people, whom I have been in covenant with, and still have mercy in store for. They are foolish, for they have not known me." Note, Those are foolish indeed that have not known God, especially that call themselves his people, and have the advantages of coming into acquaintance with him, and yet have not known him. They are sottish children, stupid and senseless, and have no understanding. They cannot distinguish between truth and falsehood, good and evil; they cannot discern the mind of God either in his word or in his providence; they do not understand what their true interest is, nor on which side it lies. They are wise to do evil, to plot mischief against the quiet in the land, wise to contrive the gratification of their lusts, and then to conceal and palliate them. But to do good they have no knowledge, no contrivance, no application of mind; they know not how to make a good use either of the ordinances or of the providences of God, nor how to bring about any design for the good of their country. Contrary to this should be our character. Romans 16:19, I would have you wise unto that which is good, and simple concerning evil.

      II. They are miserable, and cannot be relieved.

      1. He cries out, Because thou hast heard, O my soul! the sound of the trumpet, and seen the standard, both giving the alarm of war,Jeremiah 4:19; Jeremiah 4:21. He does not say, Thou hast heard, O my ear! but, O my soul! because the event was yet future, and it is by the spirit of prophecy that he see it and receives the impression of it. His soul heard it from the words of God, and therefore he was as well assured of it, and as much affected with it, as if he had heard it with his bodily ears. He expresses this deep concern, (1.) To show that, though he foretold this calamity, yet he was far from desiring the woeful day; for a woeful day it would be to him. It becomes us to tremble at the thought of the misery that sinners are running themselves into, though we have good hopes, through grace, that we ourselves are delivered from the wrath to come. (2.) To awaken them to a holy fear, and so to a care to prevent so great a judgment by a true and timely repentance. Note, Those that would affect other with the word of God should evidence that they are themselves affected with it. Now,

      2. Let us see what there is in the destruction here foreseen and foretold that is so very affecting.

      (1.) It is a swift and sudden destruction; it comes upon Judah and Jerusalem ere they are aware, and pours in so fast upon them that they have not the east breathing time. They have no time to recollect their thoughts, much less to recruit or recover their strength: Destruction upon destruction is cried (Jeremiah 4:20; Jeremiah 4:20), breach upon breach, one sad calamity, like Job's messengers, treading upon the heels of another. The death of Josiah breaks the ice, and plucks up the flood-gates; within three months after that his son and successor Jehoahaz is deposed by the king of Egypt; within two or three years after Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem and took it, and thenceforward he was continually making descents upon the land of Judah with his armies during the reigns of Jehoiakim, Jeconiah, and Zedekiah, till about nineteen years after he completed their ruin in the destruction of Jerusalem: but suddenly were their tents spoiled and their curtains in a moment. Though the cities held out for some time, the country was laid waste at the very first. The shepherds and all that lived in tents were plundered immediately; they and their effects fell into the enemies' hands; therefore we find the Rechabites, who dwelt in tents, upon the first coming of the army of the Chaldees into the land retiring to Jerusalem, Jeremiah 35:11. The inhabitants of the villages soon ceased: Suddenly were the tents spoiled. The plain men that dwelt in tents were first made a prey of.

      (2.) This dreadful war continued a great while, not in the borders, but in the bowels of the country; for the people were very obstinate, and would not submit to the king of Babylon, but took all opportunities to rebel against him, which did but lengthen out the calamity; they might as well have yielded at first as at last. This is complained of (Jeremiah 4:21; Jeremiah 4:21): How long shall I see the standard? Shall the sword devour for ever? Good men are none of those that delight in war, for they know not how to fish in troubled waters; they are for peace (Psalms 120:7), and will heartily say Amen to that prayer, "Give peace in out time, O Lord!" O thou sword of the Lord! when wilt thou be quiet?

      (3.) The desolations made by it in the land were general and universal: The whole land is spoiled, or plundered (Jeremiah 4:20; Jeremiah 4:20); so it was at first, and at length it became a perfect chaos. It was such a desolation as amounted in a manner to a dissolution; not only the superstructure, but even the foundations, were all out of course. The prophet in vision saw the extent and extremity of this destruction, and he here gives a most lively description of it, which one would think might have made those uneasy in their sins who dwelt in a land doomed to such a ruin, which might yet have been prevented by their repentance. [1.] The earth is without form, and void (Jeremiah 4:23; Jeremiah 4:23), as it was Genesis 1:2. It is Tohu and Bohu, the words there used, as far as the land of Judea goes. It is confusion and emptiness, stripped of all its beauty, void of all its wealth, and, compared with what it was, every thing out of place and out of shape. To a worse chaos than this will the earth be reduced at the end of time, when it, and all the works that are therein, shall be burnt up. [2.] The heavens too are without light, as the earth is without fruits. This alludes to the darkness that was upon the face of the deep (Genesis 1:2), and represents God's displeasure against them, as the eclipse of the sun did at our Saviour's death. It was not only the earth that failed them, but heaven also frowned upon them; and with their trouble they had darkness, for they could not see through their troubles. The smoke of their houses and cities which the enemy burnt, and the dust which their army raised in its march, even darkened the sun, so that the heavens had no light. Or it may be taken figuratively: The earth (that is, the common people) was impoverished and in confusion; and the heavens (that is, the princes and rulers) had no light, no wisdom in themselves, nor were any comfort to the people, nor a guide to them. Comp. Matthew 24:29. [3.] The mountains trembled, and the hills moved lightly,Jeremiah 4:24; Jeremiah 4:24. So formidable were the appearances of God against his people, as in the days of old they had been for them, that the mountains skipped like rams and the little hills like lambs,Psalms 114:4. The everlasting mountains seemed to be scattered,Habakkuk 3:6. The mountains on which they had worshipped their idols, the mountains over which they had looked for succours, all trembled, as if they had been conscious of the people's guilt. The mountains, those among them that seemed to the highest and strongest, and of the firmest resolution, trembled at the approach of the Chaldean army. The hills moved lightly, as being eased of the burden of a sinful nation, Isaiah 1:24. [4.] Not the earth only, but the air, was dispeopled, and left uninhabited (Jeremiah 4:25; Jeremiah 4:25): I beheld the cities, the countries that used to be populous, and, lo, there was no man to be seen; all the inhabitants were either killed, or fled, or taken captives, such a ruining depopulating thing is sin: nay, even the birds of the heavens, that used to fly about and sing among the branches, had now fled away, and were no more to be seen or heard. The land of Judah had now become like the lake of Sodom, over which (they say) no bird flies; see Deuteronomy 29:23. The enemies shall make such havoc of the country that they shall not so much as leave a bird alive in it. [5.] Both the ground and the houses shall be laid waste (Jeremiah 4:26; Jeremiah 4:26): Lo, the fruitful place was a wilderness, being deserted by the inhabitants that should cultivate it, and then soon overgrown with thorns and briers, or being trodden down by the destroying army of the enemy. The cities also and their gates and walls are broken down and levelled with the ground. Those that look no further than second causes impute it to the policy and fury of the invaders; but the prophet, who looks to the first cause, says that it is at the presence of the Lord, at his face (that is, the anger of his countenance), even by his fierce anger, that this was done. Even angry men cannot do us any real hurt, unless God be angry with us. If our ways please him, all is well. [6.] The meaning of all this is that the nation shall be entirely ruined, and every part of it shall share in the destruction; neither town nor country shall escape. First, Not the country, for the whole land shall be desolate, corn land and pasture land, both common and enclosed, it shall be laid waste (Jeremiah 4:27; Jeremiah 4:27); the conquerors will have occasion for it all. Secondly, Not the men, for (Jeremiah 4:29; Jeremiah 4:29) the whole city shall flee, all the inhabitants of the town shall quit their habitations by consent, for fear of the horsemen and bowmen. Rather than lie exposed to their fury, they shall go into the thickets, where they are in danger of being torn by briers, nay, to be torn in pieces by wild beasts; and they shall climb up upon the rocks, where their lodging will be hard and cold, and the precipice dangerous. Let us not be over-fond of our houses and cities; for the time may come when rocks and thickets may be preferable, and chosen rather. This shall be the common case, for every city shall be forsaken, and not a man shall be left that dares dwell therein. Both government and trade shall be at an end, and all civil societies and incorporations dissolved. It is a very dismal idea which this gives of the approaching desolation; but in the midst of all these threatenings comes in one comfortable word (Jeremiah 4:27; Jeremiah 4:27): Yet will not I make a full end--not a total consumption, for God will reserve a remnant to himself, that shall be hidden in the day of the Lord's anger--not a final consumption, for Jerusalem shall again be built and the land inhabited. This comes in here, in the midst of the threatenings, for the comfort of those that trembled at God's word; and it intimates to us the changeableness of God's providence; as it breaks down, so it raises up again; every end of our comforts is not a full end, however we may be ready to think it so. It also intimates the unchangeableness of God's covenant, which stands so firmly, that, though he may correct his people severely, yet he will not cast them off,Jeremiah 30:11; Jeremiah 30:11.

      (4.) Their case was helpless and without remedy. [1.] God would not help them; so he tells them plainly, Jeremiah 4:28; Jeremiah 4:28. And, if the Lord do not help them, who can? This is that which makes their case deplorable. "For this the earth mourns and the heavens above are black (there are no prospects but what are very dismal), because I have spoken it; I have given the word which shall not be called back; I have purposed it (it is a consumption decreed, determined) and I will not repent, not change this way, but proceed in it, and will not turn back from it." They would not repent and turn back from the way of their sins (Jeremiah 2:25; Jeremiah 2:25), and therefore God will not repent and turn back from the way of his judgments. [2.] They could not help themselves, Jeremiah 4:30; Jeremiah 4:31. When the thing appeared at a distance they flattered themselves with hopes that, though God should not appear for them as he had done for Hezekiah against the Assyrian army, yet they should find some means or other to secure themselves and give check to the forces of the enemy. But the prophet tells them that, when it comes to the setting to, they will be quite at a loss: "When thou art spoiled, what wilt thou do? What course wilt thou take? Sit down now, and consider this in time." He assures them that, whatever were now their contrivances and confidences, First, They will then be despised by their allies whom they depended upon for assistance. He had often compared the sin of Jerusalem to whoredom, not only her idolatry, but her trust in creatures, in the neighbouring powers. Now here he compares her to a harlot abandoned by all the lewd ones that used to make court to her. She is supposed to do all she can to keep up her interest in their affections. She does what she can to make herself appear considerable among the nations, and a valuable ally. She compliments them by her ambassadors to the highest degree, to engage them to stand by her now in her distress. She clothes herself with crimson, as if she were rich, and decks herself with ornaments of gold, as if her treasuries were still as full as ever they had been. She rents her face with painting, puts the best colours she can upon her present distresses and does her utmost to palliate and extenuate her losses, sets a good face upon them. But this painting, though it beautifies the face for the present, really rends it; the frequent use of paint spoils the skin, cracks it, and makes it rough; so the case which by false colours has been made to appear better than really it was, when truth comes to light, will look so much the worse. "And, after all, in vain shalt thou make thyself fair; all thy neighbours are sensible how low thou art brought; the Chaldeans will strip thee of thy crimson and ornaments, and then thy confederates will not only slight thee and refuse to give thee any succour, but they will join with those that seek thy life, that they may come in for a share in the prey of so rich a country." Here seems to be an allusion to the story of Jezebel, who thought, by making herself look fair and fine, to outface her doom, but in vain, 2 Kings 9:30; 2 Kings 9:33. See what creatures prove when we confide in them, how treacherous they are; instead of saving the life, they seek the life; they often change, so that they will sooner do us an ill turn than any service. And see to how little purpose it is for those that have by sin deformed themselves in God's eyes to think by any arts they can use to beautify themselves in the eye of the world. Secondly, They will then be themselves in despair; they will find their troubles to be like the pains of a woman in travail, which she cannot escape: I have heard the voice of the daughter of Zion, her groans echoing to the triumphal shouts of the Chaldean army, which he heard, Jeremiah 4:15; Jeremiah 4:15. It is like the voice of a woman in travail, whose pain is exquisite, and the fruit of sin and the curse too (Genesis 3:16), and exhorts lamentable outcries, especially of a woman in travail of her first child, who, having never known before what that pain is, is the more terrified by it. Troubles are most grievous to those that have not been used to them. Zion, in this distress, since her neighbours refuse to pity her, bewails herself, fetching deep sighs (so the word signifies), and she spreads her hands, either wringing them for grief or reaching them forth for succour. All the cry is, Woe is me now! (now that the decree has gone forth against her and is past recall), for my soul is wearied because of murderers. The Chaldean soldiers put all to the sword that gave them any opposition, so that the land was full of murders. Zion was weary of hearing tragical stories from all parts of the country, and cried out, Woe is me! It was well if their sufferings put them in mind of their sins, the murders committed upon them of the murders committed by them; for God was now making inquisition for the innocent blood shed in Jerusalem, which the Lord would not pardon,2 Kings 24:4. Note, As sin will find out the sinner, so sorrow will, sooner or later, find out the secure.