The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah Not only in the city of Jerusalem, but in the whole land of Judea. This prophecy concerns them all; their repentance and reformation, to which they are exhorted; or their invasion, desolation, and captivity, with which they are…

The which Jeremiah the prophet spake unto all the people of Judah Perhaps at one of the three feasts, at which all the males appeared in Jerusalem; for it cannot be thought that he went up and down throughout all parts of the land to deliver this prophecy, but to as many of them as he found in…

From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, even unto this day The year in which Jeremiah began to prophesy, ; (that is, the three and twentieth year); for Josiah reigned one and thirty years; so that Jeremiah prophesied nineteen years in his reign; and now it was the fourth…

And the Lord hath sent unto you all his servants the prophets, &c.] Not only him, but many others, Micah, Nahum, Zephaniah, and others: rising early and sending them; not only the prophet, but the Lord himself is said to rise early, and send his prophets to them; which denotes his great care and…

They said The prophets: this was the substance of their discourses and prophecies, what follows: turn ye again now everyone from his evil way, and from the evil of your doings; repent of sins, and reform from them; particularly their idolatries, to which they were prone, and are after mentioned:…

And go not after other gods to serve them, and to worship them So long as they served the Lord God, they continued in their own land, in the comfortable enjoyment of all the blessings of it; for their government was a theocracy; God was their King; and as long as they served and worshipped him…

Yet ye have not hearkened unto me, saith the Lord Though it was he that spake unto them by his prophets; and though it was so much to their own good and advantage; and the neglect of him and his word were so much to their disadvantage, and even ruin: that ye might provoke me to anger with the works…

Behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, saith the Lord The Targum is, the kingdoms of the north, the same with those in ; even all those kingdoms which were subject to the king of Babylon, and lay north of Judea: and Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon my servant: though a great…

Moreover, I will take from them the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness At their festivals, and nuptial solemnities: the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride; expressing their mutual love unto, and delight in, each other; so agreeable to one another and their friends: or it may…

And this whole land shall be a desolation Not only the city of Jerusalem, but all Judea, without inhabitants, or very few, and shall be uncultivated, and become barren and unfruitful: and an astonishment; to all other nations, and to all persons that pass through, beholding the desolations of it:…

And it shall come to pass, when seventy years are accomplished Which were accomplished in the first year of Cyrus: they began with the first year of Nebuchadnezzar, who reigned two years and two months with his father Nabopolassar; after that forty three years by himself; Evilmerodach two years:…

And I will bring upon that land all my words which I have pronounced against it By his prophets, and particularly by Jeremiah, as follows; for not one word that is spoken by the Lord, either in a way of promise or threatening, shall fail; his truth, power, and faithfulness, are engaged to…

For many nations and great kings shall serve themselves of them also Take their cities, seize upon the kingdoms, spoil them of their wealth and riches, and bring them into servitude to them: these “many nations”, which should and did do all this, were the Medes and Persians, and those that were…

For thus saith the Lord God of Israel unto me The prophet: take the wine cup of this fury at my hand; in a vision the Lord appeared to Jeremiah with a cup of wine in his hand, which he bid him take of him.

Then took I the cup at the Lord’s hand In a visionary way, and did as he commanded, and prophesied as he directed him. The prophet was obedient to the heavenly vision, as became him: and made all the nations to drink, unto whom, the Lord had sent me; not that he travelled through each of the…

To wit, Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah Which are mentioned first, because God’s judgments began with them, as they usually do with the house of God, ; and even now began; for this very year, in which this prophecy was delivered, Nebuchadnezzar came up and besieged Jerusalem, and carried away…

Pharaoh king of Egypt Who is mentioned first after the kings of Judah; not only because the Jews were in alliance with Egypt, and trusted to them; and therefore this is observed, to show the vanity of their confidence and dependence; but because the judgments of God first took place on the king of…

And all the mingled people Not the Arabians, who are mentioned afterwards, ; but rather a mixed people in the land of Egypt, such as came out of it along with the Israelites; or were near it, and bordered upon it, as the Targum; which renders it, all the bordering kings; or rather a mixture of…

Edom, and Moab, and the children of Ammon. ] All well known and implacable enemies of Israel. The Edomites descended from Esau; and the Moabites and Ammonites from Moab and Ammon, the two sons of Lot by his daughters. Their destruction is prophesied of in the forty eighth and forty ninth chapters.

And all the kings of Tyrus, and all the kings of Zidon Two very ancient cities in Phoenicia, frequently mentioned together in Scripture, being near each other.

Dedan, and Tema, and Buz These seem to be places in Edom or Idumea, of whose destruction Jeremiah prophesies in (Jer. 49:7, Jer. 49:8, Jer. 49:20) ; or rather in Arabia and Mesopotamia.

And all the kings of Arabia Of Arabia Petraea; and all the kings of the mingled people that dwell in the desert; the other Arabians or mixed people, that dwell in Arabia Deserta, as the Scenites, Nomades, Kedarenes, and others; and so the Targum, “and all the kings of the Arabians, that dwell in…

And all the kings of Zimri Of Arabia Felix, so called from Zimran, a son of Abraham by Keturah, ; the same whom Pliny 13: calls Zamerenes; and all the kings of Elam; or Persia; who are prophesied against in ; and all the kings of the Medes; who commonly go together with the Persians. 13: Nat. Hist.

And all the kings of the north, far and near, one with another That were on the north of Judea, the kings of Syria, and those that were near to the kingdom of Babylon, whether more remote from Judea, or nearer it and which joined one another in that part of the world; and all the kingdoms of the…

Therefore thou shalt say unto them To the several nations before mentioned, prophesied against: thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; the Lord of armies, above and below, the Sovereign of the whole universe; but in a special and peculiar manner the God of Israel: drink ye, and be…

And it shall be, if they refuse to take the cup at thine hand to drink To give credit to the prophecies of ruin and destruction delivered by the prophet, but say, these things shall not be: then shalt thou say unto them, thus saith the Lord of hosts, ye shall certainly drink; or those judgments…

For, lo, I begin to bring evil upon the city which is called by my name Jerusalem, the city of God, the holy city, where his name was called upon, and he was worshipped; on this he would first bring down his judgments; and indeed he had already begun to bring evil on it; for this very year…

Therefore prophesy thou against them all these words, and say unto them What follows, as well as declare all that is before spoken concerning the cup of fury all nations must drink of: the Lord shall roar from on high: from, heaven, like a lion, in violent claps of thunder; or in such dreadful…

A noise shall come up even to the ends of the earth Wars, and rumours of wars, everywhere, till the cup has gone round, and all nations have drank of it, and have felt the power of divine wrath for their sins: for the Lord hath a controversy with the nations; will enter into a judicial process with…

Thus saith the Lord of hosts, behold, evil shall go forth from nation to nation Begin in one nation, and then go on to another; first in Judea, and then in Egypt; and so on, like a catching distemper, or like fire that first consumes one house, and then another; and thus shall the cup go round from…

And the slain of the Lord Slain by his permission, yea, by his orders, according to his will, in his wrath and sore displeasure, and to glorify his vindictive justice: shall be at that day from one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth; not that this should be at one and the same…

Howl, ye shepherds, and cry The Targum is, “howl, ye kings, and cry;” and the rulers and governors of the nations before threatened with destruction are meant; who are here called upon to lamentation and mourning for the ruin and loss of their kingdoms; though Calvin thinks that this is an…

And the shepherds shall have no way to flee Or, “and flight shall perish from the shepherds” [[19]]; though they may attempt it, they shall not be able to accomplish it; neither the dignity of their persons, the greatness of their power, or the abundance of their riches, would make a way for them;…

And a voice of the cry of the shepherds Or of the kings, as the Targum: and an howling of the principal of the flock, shall be heard; of the mighty of the people, as the same; what is before called for is here represented as in fact, because of the certainty of it: for the Lord hath spoiled their…

And the peaceable habitations are cut down Or, “their peaceable ones”, as the Targum; the palaces and stately dwellings, in which they lived in great pomp and prosperity, in great peace, plenty, and safety, are destroyed by the enemy, and laid waste, and become desolate; yea, even those that lived…

He hath forsaken his covert as a lion Which some understand of God leaving Jerusalem, or the temple, where he dwelt; who, while he made it his residence, protected it; but when he forsook it, it became exposed to the enemy.