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<TITLE>Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary on the Whole Bible [Jeremiah XXX].</TITLE>
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"This site is for those friends and family members who may or may not know Our Lord Jesus Christ, and if not, they may come to know Our Lord through His Prophets."> <meta name="author" content="Brian Duncalfe">
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<center><h1>Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary
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on the Whole Bible</h1>
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<h3><a href="http://www.biblesnet.com" target="_blank">Back to Biblesnet.com Home Page</a>
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[<A HREF="MHC00000.HTM">Table of Contents</A>]<BR>
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[<A HREF="MHC24029.HTM">Previous</A>]
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[<A HREF="MHC24031.HTM">Next</A>]<BR>
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<TD ALIGN="RIGHT" VALIGN="TOP">
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Matthew Henry<BR><I>Commentary on the Whole Bible</I> (1712)
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</TD></TR></TABLE>
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<!-- (Begin Body) -->
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<CENTER>
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<BR><FONT SIZE=+3><B>J E R E M I A H.</B></FONT>
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<BR>
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<BR><FONT SIZE=+2>CHAP. XXX.</FONT>
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<HR SIZE=1 WIDTH=50>
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</CENTER>
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<FONT SIZE=-1>
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<P>
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The sermon which we have in this and the following chapter is of a very
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different complexion from all those before. The prophet does indeed, by
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direction from God, change his voice. Most of what he had said hitherto
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was by way of reproof and threatening; but these two chapters are
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wholly taken up with precious promises of a return out of captivity,
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and that typical of the glorious things reserved for the church in the
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days of the Messiah. The prophet is told not only to preach this, but
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to write it, because it is intended for the comfort of the generation
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to come,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:1-3">ver. 1-3</A>.
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It is here promised,
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I. That they should hereafter have a joyful restoration.
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1. Though they were now in a great deal of pain and terror,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:4-7">ver. 4-7</A>.
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2. Though their oppressors were very strong,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:8-10">ver. 8-10</A>.
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3. Though a full end was made of other nations, and they were not
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restored,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:11">ver. 11</A>.
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4. Though all means of their deliverance seemed to fail and be cut off,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:12-14">ver. 12-14</A>.
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5. Though God himself had sent them into captivity, and justly, for
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their sins,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:15,16">ver. 15, 16</A>.
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6. Though all about them looked upon their case as desperate,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:17">ver. 17</A>.
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II. That after their joyful restoration they should have a happy
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settlement, that their city should be rebuilt
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:18">ver. 18</A>),
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their numbers increased
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:19">ver. 19, 20</A>),
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their government established
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:21">ver. 21</A>),
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God's covenant with them renewed
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:22">ver. 22</A>),
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and their enemies destroyed and cut off,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:23,24">ver. 23, 24</A>.</P>
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</FONT>
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<A NAME="Jer30_1"> </A>
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<A NAME="Jer30_2"> </A>
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<A NAME="Jer30_3"> </A>
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<A NAME="Jer30_4"> </A>
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<A NAME="Jer30_5"> </A>
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<A NAME="Jer30_6"> </A>
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<A NAME="Jer30_7"> </A>
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<A NAME="Jer30_8"> </A>
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<A NAME="Jer30_9"> </A>
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<A NAME="Sec1"> </A>
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<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>Promises of Mercy.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 594.</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
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</TABLE>
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<P>
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<FONT SIZE=+1>1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>, saying,
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2 Thus speaketh the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> God of Israel, saying, Write thee all
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the words that I have spoken unto thee in a book.
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3 For, lo, the days come, saith the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>, that I will bring
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again the captivity of my people Israel and Judah, saith the
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L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>: and I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to
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their fathers, and they shall possess it.
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4 And these <I>are</I> the words that the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> spake concerning
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Israel and concerning Judah.
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5 For thus saith the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>; We have heard a voice of trembling,
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of fear, and not of peace.
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6 Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail with child?
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wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a
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woman in travail, and all faces are turned into paleness?
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7 Alas! for that day <I>is</I> great, so that none <I>is</I> like it: it
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<I>is</I> even the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be saved out
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of it.
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8 For it shall come to pass in that day, saith the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> of
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hosts, <I>that</I> I will break his yoke from off thy neck, and will
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burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve themselves of
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him:
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9 But they shall serve the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> their God, and David their
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king, whom I will raise up unto them.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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Here, I. Jeremiah is directed to <I>write</I> what God had spoken to
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him, which perhaps refers to all the foregoing prophecies. He must
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write them and publish them, in hopes that those who had not profited
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by what he said upon once hearing it might take more notice of it when
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in reading it they had leisure for a more considerate review. Or,
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rather, it refers to the promises of their enlargement, which had been
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often mixed with his other discourses. He must collect them and put
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them together, and God will now add unto them many like words. He must
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write them for the generations to come, who should see them
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accomplished, and thereby have their faith in the prophecy confirmed.
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He must write them not <I>in a letter,</I> as that in the chapter
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before to the captives, but <I>in a book,</I> to be carefully preserved
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in the archives, or among the public rolls or registers of the state.
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Daniel understood by these books when the captivity was about coming to
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an end,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Da+9:2">Dan. ix. 2</A>.
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He must write them in a book, not in loose papers: "<I>For the days
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come,</I> and are yet at a great distance, when <I>I will bring again
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the captivity of Israel and Judah,</I> great numbers of the ten tribes,
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with those of the two,"
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:3"><I>v.</I> 3</A>.
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And this prophecy must be written, that it may be read then also, that
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so it may appear how exactly the accomplishment answers the prediction,
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which is one end of the writing of prophecies. It is intimated that
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they shall be <I>beloved for their fathers' sake</I>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ro+11:28">Rom. xi. 28</A>);
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for <I>therefore</I> God will bring them again to Canaan, because it
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was <I>the land that he gave to their fathers,</I> which therefore
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<I>they shall possess.</I></P>
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<P>
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II. He is directed what to write. The very words are such as the Holy
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Ghost teaches,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:4"><I>v.</I> 4</A>.
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These are the words which God ordered to be written; and those promises
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which are written by his order are as truly his word as the ten
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commandments which were written with his finger.
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1. He must write a description of the fright and consternation which
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the people were now in, and were likely to be still in upon every
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attack that the Chaldeans made upon them, which will much magnify both
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the wonder and the welcomeness of their deliverance
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:5"><I>v.</I> 5</A>):
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<I>We have heard a voice of trembling</I>--the shrieks of terror
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echoing to the alarms of danger. The false prophets told them that
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they should have <I>peace,</I> but <I>there is fear and not peace,</I>
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so the margin reads it. No marvel that when <I>without are fightings
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within are fears.</I> The men, even the men of war, shall be quite
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overwhelmed with the calamities of their nation, shall sink under them,
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and yield to them, and shall look like <I>women in labour,</I> whose
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pains come upon them in great extremity and they know that they cannot
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escape them,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:6"><I>v.</I> 6</A>.
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You never heard of a man travailing with child, and yet here you find
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not here and there a timorous man, but <I>every man with his hands on
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his loins,</I> in the utmost anguish and agony, <I>as women in
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travail,</I> when they see their cities burnt and their countries laid
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waste. But this pain is compared to that of a woman in travail, not to
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that of a death-bed, because it shall end in joy at last, and the pain,
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like that of a travailing woman, shall be forgotten. <I>All faces</I>
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shall be <I>turned into paleness.</I> The word signifies not only such
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paleness as arises from a sudden fright, but that which is the effect
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of a bad habit of body, the jaundice, or the green sickness. The
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prophet laments the calamity upon the foresight of it
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:7"><I>v.</I> 7</A>):
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<I>Alas! for that day is great,</I> a day of judgment, which is called
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the <I>great day,</I> the <I>great and terrible day of the Lord</I>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Joe+2:31,Jude+1:6">Joel ii. 31, Jude 6</A>),
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great, so that <I>there has been none like it.</I> The last destruction
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of Jerusalem is thus spoken of by our Saviour as unparalleled,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Mt+24:21">Matt. xxiv. 21</A>.
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<I>It is even the time of Jacob's trouble,</I> a sad time, when God's
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professing people shall be in distress above other people. The whole
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time of the captivity was a time of Jacob's trouble; and such times
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ought to be greatly lamented by all that are concerned for the welfare
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of Jacob and the honour of the God of Jacob.
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2. He must write the assurances which God had given that a happy end
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should at length be put to these calamities.
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(1.) Jacob's troubles shall cease: <I>He shall be saved out of
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them.</I> Though the afflictions of the church may last long, they
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shall not last always. <I>Salvation belongs to the Lord,</I> and shall
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be wrought for his church.
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(2.) Jacob's troublers shall be disabled from doing him any further
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mischief, and shall be reckoned with for the mischief they have done
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him,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:8"><I>v.</I> 8</A>.
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<I>The Lord of hosts,</I> who has all power in his hand, undertakes to
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do it: "<I>I will break his yoke from off thy neck,</I> which has long
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lain so heavy, and has so sorely galled thee. <I>I will burst thy
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bonds</I> and restore thee to liberty and ease, and thou shalt no more
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be at the beck and command of strangers, shalt no more serve them, nor
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shall they any more <I>serve themselves of thee;</I> they shall no more
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enrich themselves either by thy possessions or by thy labours." And,
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(3.) That which crowns and completes the mercy is that they shall be
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restored to the free exercise of their religion again,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:9"><I>v.</I> 9</A>.
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They shall be delivered from serving their enemies, not that they may
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live at large and do what they please, but that they may <I>serve the
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Lord their God and David their king,</I> that they may come again into
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order, under the established government both in church and state.
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<I>Therefore</I> they were brought into trouble and made to <I>serve
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their enemies</I> because they had not <I>served the Lord their God</I>
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as they ought to have done, <I>with joyfulness and gladness of
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heart,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+28:47">Deut. xxviii. 47</A>.
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But, when the time shall come that they should be <I>saved out of their
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trouble,</I> God will prepare and qualify them for it by giving them a
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<I>heart to serve him,</I> and will make it doubly comfortable by
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giving them opportunity to serve him. <I>Therefore</I> we are
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<I>delivered out of the hands of our enemies,</I> that we may <I>serve
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God,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Lu+1:74,75">Luke i. 74, 75</A>.
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And <I>then</I> deliverances out of temporal calamities are mercies
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indeed to us when by them we find ourselves engaged to and enlarged in
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the service of God. They shall serve their own God, and neither be
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inclined, as they had been of old in the day of their apostasy, nor
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compelled, as they had been of late in the day of their captivity, to
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serve other gods. They shall serve <I>David their king,</I> such
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governors as God should from time to time set over them, of the line of
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David (as Zerubbabel), or at least sitting on the <I>thrones of
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judgment, the thrones of the house of David,</I> as Nehemiah. But
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certainly this has a further meaning. The Chaldee paraphrase reads it,
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<I>They shall obey</I> (or <I>hearken to</I>) <I>the Messiah</I> (or
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<I>Christ</I>), the <I>Son of David, their king.</I> To him the Jewish
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interpreters apply it. That dispensation which commenced at their
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return out of captivity brought them to the Messiah. He is called
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<I>David their King</I> because he was the <I>Son of David</I>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Mt+22:42">Matt. xxii. 42</A>)
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and he answered to the name,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Mt+20:31,32">Matt. xx. 31, 32</A>.
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David was an illustrious type of him both in his humiliation and in his
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exaltation. The covenant of royalty made with David had principal
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reference to him, and in him the promises of that covenant had their
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full accomplishment. God gave him the <I>throne of his father
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David;</I> he <I>raised him up unto them, set him upon the holy hill of
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Zion.</I> God is often in the New Testament said to have <I>raised up
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Jesus,</I> raised him up as a King,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ac+3:26,13:23,33">Acts iii. 26; xiii. 23, 33</A>.
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Observe,
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[1.] Those that serve the Lord as their God must also serve <I>David
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their King,</I> must give up themselves to Jesus Christ, to be ruled by
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him. For all men must <I>honour the Son as they honour the Father,</I>
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and come into the service and worship of God by him as Mediator.
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[2.] Those that are delivered out of spiritual bondage must make it
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appear that they are so by giving up themselves to the service of
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Christ. Those to whom he gives rest must take his yoke upon them.</P>
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<A NAME="Jer30_10"> </A>
|
||
|
<A NAME="Jer30_11"> </A>
|
||
|
<A NAME="Jer30_12"> </A>
|
||
|
<A NAME="Jer30_13"> </A>
|
||
|
<A NAME="Jer30_14"> </A>
|
||
|
<A NAME="Jer30_15"> </A>
|
||
|
<A NAME="Jer30_16"> </A>
|
||
|
<A NAME="Jer30_17"> </A>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A NAME="Sec2"> </A>
|
||
|
<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
|
||
|
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>Promises of Mercy.</I></FONT></TD>
|
||
|
<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 594.</TD></TR>
|
||
|
<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
|
||
|
</TABLE>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<P>
|
||
|
<FONT SIZE=+1>10 Therefore fear thou not, O my servant Jacob, saith the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>;
|
||
|
neither be dismayed, O Israel: for, lo, I will save thee from
|
||
|
afar, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob
|
||
|
shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall
|
||
|
make <I>him</I> afraid.
|
||
|
11 For I <I>am</I> with thee, saith the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>, to save thee: though I
|
||
|
make a full end of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yet
|
||
|
will I not make a full end of thee: but I will correct thee in
|
||
|
measure, and will not leave thee altogether unpunished.
|
||
|
12 For thus saith the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>, Thy bruise <I>is</I> incurable, <I>and</I>
|
||
|
thy wound <I>is</I> grievous.
|
||
|
13 <I>There is</I> none to plead thy cause, that thou mayest be
|
||
|
bound up: thou hast no healing medicines.
|
||
|
14 All thy lovers have forgotten thee; they seek thee not; for
|
||
|
I have wounded thee with the wound of an enemy, with the
|
||
|
chastisement of a cruel one, for the multitude of thine iniquity;
|
||
|
<I>because</I> thy sins were increased.
|
||
|
15 Why criest thou for thine affliction? thy sorrow <I>is</I>
|
||
|
incurable for the multitude of thine iniquity: <I>because</I> thy sins
|
||
|
were increased, I have done these things unto thee.
|
||
|
16 Therefore all they that devour thee shall be devoured; and
|
||
|
all thine adversaries, every one of them, shall go into
|
||
|
captivity; and they that spoil thee shall be a spoil, and all
|
||
|
that prey upon thee will I give for a prey.
|
||
|
17 For I will restore health unto thee, and I will heal thee of
|
||
|
thy wounds, saith the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>; because they called thee an Outcast,
|
||
|
<I>saying,</I> This <I>is</I> Zion, whom no man seeketh after.
|
||
|
</FONT></P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
In these verses, as in those foregoing, the deplorable case of the Jews
|
||
|
in captivity is set forth, but many precious promises are given them
|
||
|
that in due time they should be relieved and a glorious salvation
|
||
|
wrought for them.</P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
I. God himself appeared against them: he <I>scattered</I> them
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:11"><I>v.</I> 11</A>);
|
||
|
|
||
|
he did <I>all these things unto them,</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:15"><I>v.</I> 15</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
All their calamities came from his hands; whoever were the instruments,
|
||
|
he was the principal agent. And this made their case very sad that God,
|
||
|
even their own God, spoke concerning them, to pull down and to destroy.
|
||
|
Now,
|
||
|
|
||
|
1. This was intended by him as a fatherly chastisement, and no other
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:11"><I>v.</I> 11</A>):
|
||
|
|
||
|
"<I>I will correct thee in measure,</I> or <I>according to
|
||
|
judgment,</I> with discretion, no more than thou deservest, nay, no
|
||
|
more than thou canst well bear." What God does against his people is in
|
||
|
a way of correction, and that correction is always moderated and always
|
||
|
proceeds from love: "<I>I will not leave thee altogether
|
||
|
unpunished,</I> as thou art ready to think I should, because of thy
|
||
|
relation to me." Note, A profession of religion, though ever so
|
||
|
plausible, will be far from securing to us impunity in sin. God is no
|
||
|
respecter of persons, but will show his hatred of sin wherever he finds
|
||
|
it, and that he hates it most in those that are nearest to him. God
|
||
|
here corrects his people <I>for the multitude of their iniquity,</I>
|
||
|
and <I>because their sins were increased,</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:14,15"><I>v.</I> 14, 15</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
Are our sorrows multiplied at any time and do they increase? We must
|
||
|
acknowledge that it is because our sins have been multiplied and they
|
||
|
have increased. Iniquities grow in us, and therefore troubles grow upon
|
||
|
us. But,
|
||
|
|
||
|
2. What God intended as a fatherly chastisement they and others
|
||
|
interpreted as an act of hostility; they looked upon him as having
|
||
|
<I>wounded them with the wound of an enemy</I> and <I>with the
|
||
|
chastisement of a cruel one</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:14"><I>v.</I> 14</A>),
|
||
|
|
||
|
as if he had designed their ruin, and neither mitigated the correction
|
||
|
nor had any mercy in reserve for them. It did indeed seem as if God
|
||
|
had dealt thus severely with them, as if he had turned to be their
|
||
|
enemy and had fought against them,
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+63:10">Isa. lxiii. 10</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
Job complains that God had become cruel to him and <I>multiplied his
|
||
|
wounds.</I> When troubles are great and long we have need carefully to
|
||
|
watch over our own hearts, that we entertain not such hard thoughts as
|
||
|
these of God and his providence. His are the chastisements of a
|
||
|
merciful one, not of a cruel one, whatever they may appear.</P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
II. Their friends forsook them, and were shy of them. None of those who
|
||
|
had courted them in their prosperity would take notice of them now in
|
||
|
their distress,
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:13"><I>v.</I> 13</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
It is commonly thus when families go to decay; those hang off from them
|
||
|
that had been their hangers-on. In two cases we are glad of the
|
||
|
assistance of our friends and need their service:--
|
||
|
|
||
|
1. If we be impeached, accused, or reproached, we expect that our
|
||
|
friends should appear in vindication of us, should speak a good word
|
||
|
for us when we cannot put on a face to speak for ourselves; but here
|
||
|
<I>there is none to plead thy cause,</I> none to stand up in thy
|
||
|
defence, none to intercede for thee with thy oppressors; therefore God
|
||
|
will <I>plead their cause,</I> for he might well wonder there was none
|
||
|
to uphold a people that had been so much the favourites of Heaven,
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+63:5">Isa. lxiii. 5</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
2. If we be sick, or sore, or wounded, we expect our friends should
|
||
|
attend us, advise us, sympathize with us, and, if occasion be, lend a
|
||
|
hand for the applying of healing medicines; but here there is none to
|
||
|
do that, none to bind up thy wounds, and by counsels and comforts to
|
||
|
make proper applications to thy case; nay
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:14"><I>v.</I> 14</A>),
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>All thy lovers have forgotten thee;</I> out of sight out of mind;
|
||
|
instead of seeking thee, they forsake thee. Such as this has often been
|
||
|
the case of religion and serious godliness in the world; those that
|
||
|
from their education, profession, and hopeful beginnings, one might
|
||
|
have expected to be its friends and lovers, its patrons and protectors,
|
||
|
desert it, forget it, and have nothing to say in its defence, nor will
|
||
|
do any thing towards the healing of its wounds. Observe, <I>Thy lovers
|
||
|
have forgotten thee, for I have wounded thee.</I> When God is against a
|
||
|
people who will be for them? Who can be for them so as to do them any
|
||
|
kindness? See
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Job+30:11">Job xxx. 11</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
Now, upon this account, their case seemed desperate and past relief
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:12"><I>v.</I> 12</A>):
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>Thy bruise is incurable, thy wound grievous,</I> and
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:15"><I>v.</I> 15</A>)
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>thy sorrow is incurable.</I> The condition of the Jews in captivity
|
||
|
was such as no human power could redress the grievances of; there they
|
||
|
were like a valley full of <I>dead and dry bones,</I> which nothing
|
||
|
less than Omnipotence can put life into. Who could imagine that a
|
||
|
people so diminished, so impoverished, should ever be restored to their
|
||
|
own land and re-established there? So many were the aggravations of
|
||
|
their calamity that their sorrow would not admit of any alleviation,
|
||
|
but they seemed to be hardened in it, and their souls refused to be
|
||
|
comforted, till divine consolations proved strong ones, too strong to
|
||
|
be borne down even by the floods of grief that overwhelmed them. <I>Thy
|
||
|
sorrow is incurable because thy sins,</I> instead of being repented of
|
||
|
and forsaken, <I>were increased.</I> Note, Incurable griefs are owing
|
||
|
to incurable lusts. Now in this deplorable condition they are looked
|
||
|
upon with disdain
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:17"><I>v.</I> 17</A>):
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>They called thee an outcast,</I> abandoned by all, abandoned to
|
||
|
ruin; they said, <I>This is Zion, whom no man seeks after.</I> When
|
||
|
they looked on the place where the city and temple had been built they
|
||
|
called that an outcast; now all was in ruins, there was no resort to
|
||
|
it, no residence in it, none asked the way to Zion, as formerly; <I>no
|
||
|
man seeks after</I> it. When they looked on the people that formerly
|
||
|
dwelt in Zion, but were now in captivity (and we read of <I>Zion
|
||
|
dwelling with the daughter of Babylon,</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Zec+2:7">Zech. ii. 7</A>),
|
||
|
|
||
|
they called them outcasts; these are those who belong to Zion, and are
|
||
|
wont to talk much of it and weep at the remembrance of it, but <I>no
|
||
|
man seeks after</I> them, or enquires concerning them. Note, It is
|
||
|
often the lot of Zion to be deserted and despised by those about
|
||
|
her.</P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
III. For all this God will work deliverance and salvation for them in
|
||
|
due time. Though no other hand, nay, <I>because</I> no other hand, can
|
||
|
cure their wound, his will, and shall.
|
||
|
|
||
|
1. Though he seemed to stand at a distance from them, yet he assures
|
||
|
them of his presence with them, his powerful and gracious presence:
|
||
|
<I>I will save thee,</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:10"><I>v.</I> 10</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>I am with thee, to save thee,</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:11"><I>v.</I> 11</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
When they are in their troubles he is with them, to save them from
|
||
|
sinking under them; when the time has come for their deliverance he is
|
||
|
with them, to be ready upon the first opportunity, to save them out of
|
||
|
their trouble.
|
||
|
|
||
|
2. Though they were at a distance, remote from their own land,
|
||
|
<I>afar</I> off <I>in the land of their captivity,</I> yet there shall
|
||
|
salvation find them out, thence shall it fetch them, them and their
|
||
|
<I>seed,</I> for they also shall be known among the Gentiles, and
|
||
|
distinguished from them, that they may <I>return,</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:10"><I>v.</I> 10</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
3. Though they were now full of fears, and continually alarmed, yet
|
||
|
the time shall come when they <I>shall be in rest and quiet,</I> safe
|
||
|
and easy, <I>and none shall make them afraid,</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:10"><I>v.</I> 10</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
4. Though the nations into which they were dispersed should be brought
|
||
|
to ruin, yet they should be preserved from that ruin
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:11"><I>v.</I> 11</A>):
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>Though I make a full end of the nations whither I have scattered
|
||
|
thee,</I> and there might be danger of thy being lost among them,
|
||
|
<I>yet I will not make a full end of thee.</I> It was promised that in
|
||
|
the peace of these nations they should <I>have peace</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+29:7"><I>ch.</I> xxix. 7</A>),
|
||
|
|
||
|
and yet in the destruction of these nations they should escape
|
||
|
destruction. God's church may sometimes be brought very low, but he
|
||
|
<I>will not make a full end of</I> it,
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+5:10,18"><I>ch.</I> v. 10, 18</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
5. Though God correct them, and justly, for their sins, their manifold
|
||
|
transgressions and mighty sins, yet he will return in mercy to them,
|
||
|
and even their sin shall not prevent their deliverance when God's time
|
||
|
shall come.
|
||
|
|
||
|
6. Though their adversaries were mighty, God will bring them down, and
|
||
|
break their power
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:16"><I>v.</I> 16</A>):
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>All that devour thee shall be devoured,</I> and thus Zion's cause
|
||
|
will be pleaded and will be made to appear to all the world a righteous
|
||
|
cause. Thus Zion's deliverance will be brought about by the destruction
|
||
|
of her oppressors; and thus her enemies will be recompensed for all the
|
||
|
injury they have done her; for <I>there is a God that judges in the
|
||
|
earth,</I> a God <I>to whom vengeance belongs.</I> "They <I>shall every
|
||
|
one of them,</I> without exception, <I>go into captivity,</I> and the
|
||
|
day will come when <I>those that</I> now <I>spoil thee shall be a
|
||
|
spoil.</I>" Those that <I>lead into captivity shall go into
|
||
|
captivity,</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+13:10">Rev. xiii. 10</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
This might serve to oblige the present conquerors to use their captives
|
||
|
well, because the wheel would turn round, and the day would come when
|
||
|
they also should be captives, and let them do now as they would then be
|
||
|
done by.
|
||
|
|
||
|
7. Though the wound seem incurable, God will make a cure of it
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:17"><I>v.</I> 17</A>):
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>I will restore health unto thee.</I> Be the disease ever so
|
||
|
dangerous, the patient is safe if God undertakes the cure.</P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
IV. Upon the whole matter, they are cautioned against inordinate fear
|
||
|
and grief, for in these precious promises there is enough to silence
|
||
|
both.
|
||
|
|
||
|
1. They must not tremble as those that have no hope in the apprehension
|
||
|
of future further trouble that might threaten them
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:10"><I>v.</I> 10</A>):
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>Fear thou not, O my servant Jacob! neither be dismayed.</I> Note,
|
||
|
Those that are God's servants must not give way to disquieting fears,
|
||
|
whatever difficulties and dangers may be before them.
|
||
|
|
||
|
2. They must not sorrow as those that have no hope for the troubles
|
||
|
which at present they lie under,
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:15"><I>v.</I> 15</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
"<I>Why criest thou for thy affliction?</I> It is true thy carnal
|
||
|
confidences fail thee, creatures are physicians of no value, but <I>I
|
||
|
will heal thy wound,</I> and therefore, <I>Why criest thou?</I> Why
|
||
|
dost thou fret and complain thus? It is <I>for thy sin</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:14,15"><I>v.</I> 14, 15</A>),
|
||
|
|
||
|
and therefore, instead of repining, thou shouldest be repenting.
|
||
|
<I>Wherefore should a man complain for the punishment of his sins?</I>
|
||
|
The issue will be good at last, and therefore <I>rejoice in
|
||
|
hope.</I>"</P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A NAME="Jer30_18"> </A>
|
||
|
<A NAME="Jer30_19"> </A>
|
||
|
<A NAME="Jer30_20"> </A>
|
||
|
<A NAME="Jer30_21"> </A>
|
||
|
<A NAME="Jer30_22"> </A>
|
||
|
<A NAME="Jer30_23"> </A>
|
||
|
<A NAME="Jer30_24"> </A>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A NAME="Sec3"> </A>
|
||
|
<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
|
||
|
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>Promises of Mercy.</I></FONT></TD>
|
||
|
<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 594.</TD></TR>
|
||
|
<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
|
||
|
</TABLE>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<P>
|
||
|
<FONT SIZE=+1>18 Thus saith the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>; Behold, I will bring again the
|
||
|
captivity of Jacob's tents, and have mercy on his dwelling-places;
|
||
|
and the city shall be builded upon her own heap, and the palace
|
||
|
shall remain after the manner thereof.
|
||
|
19 And out of them shall proceed thanksgiving and the voice of
|
||
|
them that make merry: and I will multiply them, and they shall
|
||
|
not be few; I will also glorify them, and they shall not be
|
||
|
small.
|
||
|
20 Their children also shall be as aforetime, and their
|
||
|
congregation shall be established before me, and I will punish
|
||
|
all that oppress them.
|
||
|
21 And their nobles shall be of themselves, and their governor
|
||
|
shall proceed from the midst of them; and I will cause him to
|
||
|
draw near, and he shall approach unto me: for who <I>is</I> this that
|
||
|
engaged his heart to approach unto me? saith the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>.
|
||
|
22 And ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.
|
||
|
23 Behold, the whirlwind of the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> goeth forth with fury, a
|
||
|
continuing whirlwind: it shall fall with pain upon the head of
|
||
|
the wicked.
|
||
|
24 The fierce anger of the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> shall not return, until he have
|
||
|
done <I>it,</I> and until he have performed the intents of his heart:
|
||
|
in the latter days ye shall consider it.
|
||
|
</FONT></P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
We have here further intimations of the favour God had in reserve for
|
||
|
them after the days of their calamity were over. It is promised,</P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
I. That the city and temple should be rebuilt,
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:18"><I>v.</I> 18</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>Jacob's tents,</I> and <I>his dwelling places,</I> felt the effects
|
||
|
of <I>the captivity,</I> for they lay in ruins when the inhabitants
|
||
|
were carried away captives; but, when they have returned, the
|
||
|
habitations shall be repaired, and raised up out of their ruins, and
|
||
|
therein God will <I>have mercy upon their dwelling places,</I> that had
|
||
|
been monuments of his justice. Then <I>the city</I> of Jerusalem
|
||
|
<I>shall be built upon her own heap,</I> her own hill, though now it be
|
||
|
no better than a ruinous heap. The situation was unexceptionable, and
|
||
|
therefore it shall be rebuilt upon the same spot of ground. He that can
|
||
|
<I>make of a city a heap</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+25:2">Isa. xxv. 2</A>)
|
||
|
|
||
|
can when he pleases <I>make of a heap a city</I> again. <I>The
|
||
|
palace</I> (the temple, God's palace) <I>shall remain after the manner
|
||
|
thereof;</I> it shall be built after the old model; and the service of
|
||
|
God shall be constantly kept up there and attended as formerly.</P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
II. That the sacred feasts should again be solemnized
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:19"><I>v.</I> 19</A>):
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>Out of</I> the city, and the temple, and all the dwelling-places of
|
||
|
Jacob, <I>shall proceed thanksgiving and the voice of those that make
|
||
|
merry.</I> They shall go with expressions of joy to the temple service,
|
||
|
and with the like shall return from it. Observe, The voice of
|
||
|
<I>thanksgiving</I> is the same with <I>the voice of those that make
|
||
|
merry;</I> for whatever is the matter of our joy should be the matter
|
||
|
of our praise. <I>Is any merry? Let him sing psalms.</I> What makes us
|
||
|
cheerful should make us thankful. <I>Serve the Lord with
|
||
|
gladness.</I></P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
III. That the people should be multiplied, and increased, and made
|
||
|
considerable: <I>They shall not be few, they shall not be small,</I>
|
||
|
but shall become numerous and illustrious, and make a figure among the
|
||
|
nations; for <I>I will multiply them</I> and <I>I will glorify
|
||
|
them.</I> It is for the honour of the church to have many added to it
|
||
|
that shall be saved. This would make them be of some weight among their
|
||
|
neighbours. Let a people be ever so much diminished and despised, God
|
||
|
can multiply and glorify them. They shall be restored to their former
|
||
|
honour: <I>Their children shall be as aforetime,</I> playing in the
|
||
|
streets
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Zec+8:5">Zech. viii. 5</A>);
|
||
|
|
||
|
they shall inherit their parents' estates and honours as formerly;
|
||
|
<I>and their congregation shall,</I> both in civil and sacred things,
|
||
|
<I>be established before me.</I> There shall be a constant succession
|
||
|
of faithful magistrates in the congregation of the elders, to establish
|
||
|
that, and of faithful worshippers in the congregation of the saints. As
|
||
|
one generation passes away another shall be raised up, and so the
|
||
|
<I>congregation shall be established before</I> God.</P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
IV. That they shall be blessed with a good government
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:21"><I>v.</I> 21</A>):
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>Their nobles</I> and judges <I>shall be of themselves,</I> of their
|
||
|
own nation, and they shall no longer be ruled by strangers and enemies;
|
||
|
<I>their governor shall proceed from the midst of them,</I> shall be
|
||
|
one that has been a sharer with them in the afflictions of their
|
||
|
captive state; and this has reference to Christ our <I>governor, David
|
||
|
our King</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:9"><I>v.</I> 9</A>);
|
||
|
|
||
|
he is of ourselves, <I>in all things made like unto his brethren. And I
|
||
|
will cause him to draw near;</I> this may be understood either,
|
||
|
|
||
|
1. Of the people, Jacob and Israel: "<I>I will cause</I> them <I>to
|
||
|
draw near</I> to me in the temple service, as formerly, to come in to
|
||
|
covenant with me, as <I>my people</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:22"><I>v.</I> 22</A>),
|
||
|
|
||
|
to <I>approach to me</I> in communion; <I>for who</I> hath <I>engaged
|
||
|
his heart,</I> made a covenant with it, and brought it into bonds,
|
||
|
<I>to approach unto me?</I>" How few are there that do so! None can do
|
||
|
it but by the special grace of God <I>causing them to draw near.</I>
|
||
|
Note, Whenever we approach to God in any holy ordinance we must engage
|
||
|
our hearts to do it; the heart must be prepared for the duty, employed
|
||
|
in it, and kept closely to it. The heart is the main thing that God
|
||
|
looks at and requires; but it is deceitful, and will start aside of a
|
||
|
great deal of care and pains be not taken to engage it, to bind this
|
||
|
<I>sacrifice with cords.</I> Or,
|
||
|
|
||
|
2. It may be understood of the governor; for it is a single person that
|
||
|
is spoken of: <I>Their governor shall</I> be duly called to his office,
|
||
|
shall <I>draw near</I> to God to consult him upon all occasions. God
|
||
|
<I>will cause him to approach to</I> him, for, otherwise, who would
|
||
|
engage to take care of so weak a people, and let this ruin come under
|
||
|
their hand? But when God has work to do, though attended with many
|
||
|
discouragements, he will raise up instruments to do it. But it looks
|
||
|
further, to Christ, to him as Mediator. Note,
|
||
|
|
||
|
(1.) The proper work and office of Christ, as Mediator, is <I>to draw
|
||
|
near and approach unto</I> God, not for himself only, but for us, and
|
||
|
in our name and stead, as the high priest of our profession. The
|
||
|
priests are said to draw nigh to God,
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Le+10:3,21:17">Lev. x. 3; xxi. 17</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>Moses drew near,</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ex+20:21">Exod. xx. 21</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
(2.) God the Father did <I>cause</I> Jesus Christ thus <I>to draw near
|
||
|
and approach to</I> him as Mediator. He commanded and appointed him to
|
||
|
do it; he sanctified and sealed him, anointed him for this purpose,
|
||
|
accepted him, and declared himself well pleased in him.
|
||
|
|
||
|
(3.) Jesus Christ, being caused by the Father to approach unto him as
|
||
|
Mediator, did <I>engage his heart to</I> do it, that is, he bound and
|
||
|
obliged himself to it, <I>undertook for his heart</I> (so some read
|
||
|
it), for his soul, that, in the fullness of time, it should be <I>made
|
||
|
an offering for sin.</I> His own voluntary undertaking, in compliance
|
||
|
with his Father's will and in compassion to fallen man, engaged him,
|
||
|
and then his own honour kept him to it. It also intimates that he was
|
||
|
hearty and resolute, free and cheerful, in it, and made nothing of the
|
||
|
difficulties that lay in his way,
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+63:3-5">Isa. lxiii. 3-5</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
(4.) Jesus Christ was, in all this, truly wonderful. We may well ask,
|
||
|
with admiration, <I>Who is this that</I> thus <I>engages his heart</I>
|
||
|
to such an undertaking?</P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
V. That they shall be taken again into covenant with God, according to
|
||
|
the covenant made with their fathers
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:22"><I>v.</I> 22</A>):
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>You shall be my people;</I> and it is God's good work in us that
|
||
|
makes us <I>to him a people, a people for his name,</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ac+15:14">Acts xv. 14</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>I will be your God.</I> It is his good-will to us that is the
|
||
|
summary of that part of the covenant.</P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
VI. That their enemies shall be reckoned with and brought down
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:20"><I>v.</I> 20</A>):
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>I will punish all</I> those <I>that oppress them,</I> so that it
|
||
|
shall appear to all a dangerous thing to <I>touch God's anointed,</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+105:15">Ps. cv. 15</A>.
|
||
|
|
||
|
The
|
||
|
|
||
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+30:23,24">last two verses</A>
|
||
|
|
||
|
come under this head: <I>The whirlwind of the Lord shall fall with pain
|
||
|
upon the head of the wicked.</I> These two verses we had before
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+23:19,20"><I>ch.</I> xxiii. 19, 20</A>);
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>there</I> they were a denunciation of God's wrath against the wicked
|
||
|
hypocrites in Israel; <I>here</I> against the wicked oppressors of
|
||
|
Israel. The expressions, exactly agreeing, speak the same with that
|
||
|
|
||
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+51:22,23">Isa. li. 22, 23</A>),
|
||
|
|
||
|
<I>I will take the cup of trembling out of thy hand and put it into the
|
||
|
hand of those that afflict thee.</I> The wrath of God against the
|
||
|
wicked is here represented to be.
|
||
|
|
||
|
1. Very terrible, like a whirlwind, surprising and irresistible.
|
||
|
|
||
|
2. Very grievous. It <I>shall fall with pain upon their heads;</I> they
|
||
|
shall be as much hurt as frightened.
|
||
|
|
||
|
3. It shall pursue them. Whirlwinds are usually short, but this shall
|
||
|
be <I>a continuing whirlwind.</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
4. It shall accomplish that for which it is sent: <I>The anger of the
|
||
|
Lord shall not return till he have done it.</I> The purposes of his
|
||
|
wrath, as well as the purposes of his love, will all be fulfilled; he
|
||
|
will <I>perform the intents of his heart.</I>
|
||
|
|
||
|
5. Those that will not lay this to heart now will then be unable to put
|
||
|
off the thoughts of it: <I>In the latter days you shall consider
|
||
|
it,</I> when it will be too late to prevent it.</P>
|
||
|
|
||
|
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