This chapter is a continuation of the judgments of God upon the Jews for their sins and transgressions herein mentioned; illustrated by the lamentation of the prophet; by calling for the mourning women, and upon other women that had lost their husbands or children, with an intimation that none of…

Oh that my head were waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears Or, “who will give to my head water, and to mine eyes a fountain of tears?” as the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, and Arabic versions.

Oh that I had in the wilderness a lodging place of wayfaring men Such as travellers take up with in a desert, when they are benighted, and cannot reach a town or village.

And they bend their tongues like their bow for lies Their tongues were like bows, and their lying words like arrows, which they directed against persons to their injury; see , or, “like their deceitful bow” [[14]]; to which the Targum agrees, “they teach their tongues words of falsehood, they are…

Take ye heed everyone of his neighbour Take care of being imposed upon by them, since they are so given to lying and deceit; be not too credulous, or too easily believe what is said; or keep yourselves from them; have no company or conversation with them, since evil communications corrupt good…

And they will deceive everyone his neighbour In conversation, with lying words; and in trade and commerce, by art and tricking: and will not speak the truth; with respect to facts they report, or goods they sell: they have taught their tongue to speak lies; and become so accustomed to lying that…

Thine habitation is in the midst of deceit In the midst of a people of deceit, as Kimchi and Ben Molech. These are the words of the Lord to the prophet, showing what a people he dwelt among, and had to do with; how cautiously and prudently he should act; how little they were to be trusted to and…

Therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts Because of this deceit and hypocrisy, and lying: behold, I will melt them, and try them: as the refiner does his gold and silver, by putting them into the fire of afflictions, and thereby remove their dross and corruption from them.

Their tongue is as an arrow shot out As an arrow out of a bow, which moves swiftly, and comes with great force; or, “drawn out” [[19]]; as out of a quiver.

Shall I not visit them for these things? saith the Lord The Targum adds, “to bring evil upon them.” Shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this? the Targum is, “or of a people whose works are such, shall I not take vengeance according to my pleasure?” (See Gill on Jer. 5:9).

For the mountains will I take up a weeping and wailing Because of the desolation of them; because no pasture upon them, nor flocks feeding there; or “concerning” them, as the Arabic version; or “upon” them [[23]], in order to cause the lamentation to be heard the further; but the former sense seems…

And I will make Jerusalem heaps That is, the walls and houses of it shall be thrown down, and become heaps of stones and rubbish: and a den of dragons; only inhabited by wild beasts: and I will make the cities of Judah desolate, without inhabitant; so that the calamity would be universal; not only…

Who is the wise man that may understand this? &c.] Not the calamity, but the cause of it; a man of wisdom would inquire into it, find it out, and understand it; but the intimation is, that there was not a wise man among them, at least very few; there were scarce any that took any notice of these…

And the Lord saith The Septuagint version adds, “to me”; there being no wise and understanding man, nor prophet [[1]], to take up this affair, and open the cause of it, therefore the Lord undertakes it himself: the question was put to them, but they not answering it, the Lord does it, because they…

But have walked after the imagination of their own heart What their own hearts devised, chose, and were best pleased with; (See Gill on Jer. 7:24), and after Baalim; the idols of the Gentiles; these they served and worshipped, and not the true God: which their fathers taught them; which was so far…

Therefore thus saith the Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel, &c.] He calls himself “the Lord God of hosts”, of armies above and below, in heaven and in earth, in opposition to Baalim, the idols of the Gentiles; which word signifies “lords”; which, though there be many who are called so, there is…

I will scatter them also among the Heathen Besides the bitter judgments of famine and pestilence during the siege, what remained of them should be carried captive out of their own land into foreign countries, than which nothing could be more distressing: whom neither they or their fathers have…

Thus saith the Lord of hosts, consider ye The punishment that was just coming upon them, as Kimchi; or the words that the Lord was about to say unto them; as follows: and call for the mourning women, that they may come; the same with the “praeficae” among the Romans; persons that were sent for, and…

And let them make haste, and take up a wailing for us Deliver out a mournful song, as the Arabic version; setting forth their miseries and distresses, and affecting their minds with them.

For a voice of wailing is heard out of Zion Out of the fortress of Zion, out of the city of Jerusalem, which was thought to be inexpugnable, and could never be taken; but now a voice is heard out of that, deploring the desolation of it: how are we spoiled? our houses destroyed, and we plundered of…

Yet hear the word of the Lord, O ye women Not the mourning women, but others who had lost their husbands and their children, and had just reason for real mourning; and therefore they are called upon to it, not only because they were more tenderhearted than men, as Kimchi observes; or because they…

For death is come up into our windows Their doors being shut, bolted, and barred, they thought themselves safe, but were not; the Chaldeans scaled their walls, broke in at the tops of their houses, or at their windows, and destroyed them: for the invasion of the enemy, and the manner of their…

Speak, thus saith the Lord These are the words of the Lord to Jeremiah, to go on with his prophecy in his name; so the Targum, “prophesy, thus saith the Lord:” even the carcasses of men shall fall as dung upon the open field; or, “upon the face of the field” [[5]]; this shows the reason why the…

Thus saith the Lord, let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, &c.] Not in his natural wisdom, or knowledge of natural things: this is often but an appearance of wisdom, and is science falsely so called; and whatever is real of this kind is of God; and the best falls short of leading men to a true…

But let him that glorieth glory in this In the Lord alone, as it is interpreted by the apostle, : that he understandeth and knoweth me; or, “in understanding and knowing me” [[6]]; or, “he understanding and knowing me”; for this clause is descriptive of the person that is to glory in the Lord, and…

Behold, the days come, saith the Lord Or, “are coming” [[7]]; it seems to respect the time after the Babylonish captivity, when the punishment after threatened took place, and not before: that I will punish all them that are circumcised with the uncircumcised; Jews and Gentiles together.

Egypt, and Judah, and Edom, and the children of Ammon, and Moab Places and people among which the Jews were dispersed, and whose punishment is predicted in Jeremiah chapters forty six through forty nine, and whose countries are now under the dominion of the Turks: [[7]] and all that are in the…