This chapter contains a prophecy of the subjection of the king of Judah, with five neighbouring kings, to the king of Babylon; signified by bonds and yokes on the prophet’s neck, which they are exhorted patiently to bear, as being most for their good; and not to give heed to false prophets, who…

In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah This is the same date with the prophecy of the preceding chapter and some think that this verse should conclude that, as belonging to it; and by which they would reconcile a difficulty that arises here; the orders for making…

Thus saith the Lord to me, make thee bonds and yokes The yokes were made of wood, as appears from ; and the bonds were strings or thongs, which bound the yoke together, that it might not slip off the neck, on which it was put: and put them upon thy neck; not all of them together, but one after…

And send them to the king of Edom, and to the king of Moab, and to the king of the Ammonites, and to the king of Tyrus, and to the king of Zidon All neighbouring kings and states, to whom the wine cup of God’s wrath was to be sent, and they made to drink of it, (Jer. 25:21, Jer.

And command them to say unto their masters The prophet is sent with authority, and ordered to speak in a very high strain, having his orders from the King of kings and Lord of lords; a greater master than those messengers had; and to enjoin them to tell their several masters in his master’s name;…

I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are upon the ground The earth was made by him on the first day, and man and beast on the sixth day, of the creation; the earth is still supported in its being, and man and beast are continued on it in succession: this is mentioned to show his right…

And now I have given all these lands Before mentioned; of Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, Zidon, and Judea: into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant; whom God used as an instrument in correcting and chastising the nations; and who obeyed his will, though he knew it not; nor did what…

And all nations shall serve him That is, all those, all above mentioned; though there were others also that were tributary to him, but not every nation under heaven: and his son, and his son’s son; their Scripture names were Evilmerodach and Belshazzar, ; and by Ptolemy, in his canon, are called…

And it shall come to pass, that the nation and kingdom which will not serve the same Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon Will not, upon his approaching to them, invading and besieging them, submit and become tributary to him, as is more fully expressed in the next clause: and that will not put their…

Therefore hearken not ye to your prophets False prophets, as the Targum. These words are not directed to the Jews, but are a continuation of what the messengers of the nations should say to their masters from the God of Israel, by the mouth of his prophet; for they had their prophets as well as the…

For they prophesy a lie unto you That which was vain and false, and proved so; though they might not know it was when delivered: to remove you far from your land; not that they designed it by their prophecies, but so it was eventually; for, standing it out against Nebuchadnezzar, encouraged by the…

But the nations that bring their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him That at once, and readily, submit unto him, and pay him tribute: those will I let remain still in their own land, saith the Lord; undisturbed by any other enemy; peaceably dwelling in their own habitations;…

I spake also to Zedekiah king of Judah At the same time that he delivered the above message from the Lord to the ambassadors of several nations, who were then residents in Zedekiah’s court, or however in Jerusalem: according to all these words; the same things, and much in the same language, he…

Why will ye die, thou and thy people, the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence Through a blockade of the Chaldean army, which would invade their land, and besiege their city, upon a refusal to be subject to their yoke: as the Lord hath spoken against the nation that will not serve the king…

Therefore hearken not unto the words of the prophets The false prophets, as the Targum; such bad kings always had about them, to whom they listened, and which often proved of bad consequence to them: that speak unto you, saying; as follows: ye shall not serve the king of Babylon; ye ought not to do…

For I have not sent them, saith the Lord See ; yet they prophesy a lie in my name; to deliver out a lie was a very wicked thing, sinful in them, and fatal to others; but to make use of the name of the Lord, and cover it with that, and back it with his authority, was much more wicked and abominable:…

Also I spake to the priests, and to all this people, saying, &c.] From the court he went to the temple, and spoke to the priests that were ministering there, and to all the people that were assembled for divine worship; either at the ordinary time of it, or at some one of the solemn feasts: this…

Hearken not unto them The false prophets: serve the king of Babylon, and live; pay homage and tribute to him; which is the way to live in your own land, and enjoy the benefits of that, and of the temple worship; which, if not, you will be utterly deprived of: wherefore should this city be laid…

But if they be prophets, and if the word of the Lord be with them The true prophets of the Lord are sent by him, and have his word put into them: let them now make intercession to the Lord of hosts: use their interest with him, as they must have one, if they are true prophets; let them pray unto…

For thus saith the Lord of hosts concerning the pillars The pillars of brass that stood in the temple; the one called Boaz, and the other Jachin, (1 Kings 7:15, 1 Kings 7:21) ; and concerning the sea; the sea of molten brass, which stood upon twelve oxen, (1 Kings 7:23, 1 Kings 7:25) ; and…

Which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took not For he seems only to have taken the vessels of gold, and left the vessels of brass, as the above were; see ; when he carried away captive Jeconiah, the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, from Jerusalem to Babylon, and all the nobles of Judah and…

Yea, thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning the vessels that remain in the house of the Lord Which are mentioned in ; together with others: and in the house of the king of Judah, and of Jerusalem; see .