Jeremiah 14 - ESV - Bible Reading / Study Notes

Jeremiah 14

Famine, Sword, and Pestilence

14:1 The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah concerning the drought:

2   “Judah mourns,
    and her gates languish;
  her people lament on the ground,
    and the cry of Jerusalem goes up.
3   Her nobles send their servants for water;
    they come to the cisterns;
  they find no water;
    they return with their vessels empty;
  they are ashamed and confounded
    and cover their heads.
4   Because of the ground that is dismayed,
    since there is no rain on the land,
  the farmers are ashamed;
    they cover their heads.
5   Even the doe in the field forsakes her newborn fawn
    because there is no grass.
6   The wild donkeys stand on the bare heights;
    they pant for air like jackals;
  their eyes fail
    because there is no vegetation.
7   “Though our iniquities testify against us,
    act, O LORD, for your name’s sake;
  for our backslidings are many;
    we have sinned against you.
8   O you hope of Israel,
    its savior in time of trouble,
  why should you be like a stranger in the land,
    like a traveler who turns aside to tarry for a night?
9   Why should you be like a man confused,
    like a mighty warrior who cannot save?
  Yet you, O LORD, are in the midst of us,
    and we are called by your name;
    do not leave us.”
10   Thus says the LORD concerning this people:
  “They have loved to wander thus;
    they have not restrained their feet;
  therefore the LORD does not accept them;
    now he will remember their iniquity
    and punish their sins.”

11 The LORD said to me: “Do not pray for the welfare of this people. 12 Though they fast, I will not hear their cry, and though they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. But I will consume them by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence.”

Lying Prophets

13 Then I said: “Ah, Lord GOD, behold, the prophets say to them, ‘You shall not see the sword, nor shall you have famine, but I will give you assured peace in this place.’” 14 And the LORD said to me: “The prophets are prophesying lies in my name. I did not send them, nor did I command them or speak to them. They are prophesying to you a lying vision, worthless divination, and the deceit of their own minds. 15 Therefore thus says the LORD concerning the prophets who prophesy in my name although I did not send them, and who say, ‘Sword and famine shall not come upon this land’: By sword and famine those prophets shall be consumed. 16 And the people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem, victims of famine and sword, with none to bury them—them, their wives, their sons, and their daughters. For I will pour out their evil upon them.

17   “You shall say to them this word:
  ‘Let my eyes run down with tears night and day,
    and let them not cease,
  for the virgin daughter of my people is shattered with a great wound,
    with a very grievous blow.
18   If I go out into the field,
    behold, those pierced by the sword!
  And if I enter the city,
    behold, the diseases of famine!
  For both prophet and priest ply their trade through the land
    and have no knowledge.’”
19   Have you utterly rejected Judah?
    Does your soul loathe Zion?
  Why have you struck us down
    so that there is no healing for us?
  We looked for peace, but no good came;
    for a time of healing, but behold, terror.
20   We acknowledge our wickedness, O LORD,
    and the iniquity of our fathers,
    for we have sinned against you.
21   Do not spurn us, for your name’s sake;
    do not dishonor your glorious throne;
    remember and do not break your covenant with us.
22   Are there any among the false gods of the nations that can bring rain?
    Or can the heavens give showers?
  Are you not he, O LORD our God?
    We set our hope on you,
    for you do all these things.

Commentary

v1-6: The powerful and moving description of the drought. Doubtless the original hearers experienced these things, probably during the reign of Jehoiakim.

The modern reader may struggle to grasp the painful experience of real drought. Throughout the land, cries are heard. Their usual places for water are dried up. Servants are sent out to find water; after hours of walking, they return, with empty vessels. The ground is cracked, their skin is cracked; wild animals’ behaviour is markedly changed. The agricultural economy is devastated. There is no escape.

v7-9: Jeremiah's prayer;

reflecting his deep concern for the people, as he considers their sins;
showing his dependence upon God, for He remained the Hope and Saviour of Israel and Judah.

As is often the case, there is no argument from the people's goodness, they could not merit answers to his prayers. Jeremiah's motivation is "the sake of Your Name." This is the people that bear His Name, should He not act on their behalf!

The experience of the people – that God was merely a visitor to their land, nor an ever-present help. They had lived in independence of God, as well as in rejection of His ways.

v10: The Lord's initial answer; the people have loved to wander in sins, they have not restrained their feet from doing wrong, and therefore punishment came.

v11-12: See 11.14; their prayers fell upon deaf ears. The Lord forbids Jeremiah from praying for the people!

v13: The added problem of false prophets proclaiming peace, giving false hope to the people. How foolish, when those who claim to speak in God’s Name, ignore the obvious evidence around them.

v14-16: The Lord's answer to the false prophets, "I did not send them." The things they denied would happen, and their words proved to be untrue.

v17-18: Words for the false prophets, a lamentation for them to use. Both truly felt the pain of the people. Whether their suffering was their own fault, or the result of an enemy’s work, there was still real pain.

v19-22: Another prayer from Jeremiah. He identified with his people's sins, and again expressed dependence upon God, "for the sake of your Name." Whatever would happen was from the hand of God, see Job 13.15.