Jeremiah 1:15
Ver. 15. For, lo, I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the Lord,.... Which belonged unto and were under the jurisdiction of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and the "call" of them, as Kimchi well observes, is no other than putting it into their hearts to come:and they shall come; being influenced and directed by the providence of God, who had a principal concern in this matter:and they shall set everyone his throne at the entering of the gates of Jerusalem; meaning, not only that they should pitch their military tents, and encamp about Jerusalem, and place themselves at the entering of the gates, in order to get in; but that they should sit down there in great safety and security, and be very successful, victorious, and triumphant:and against all the walls thereof round about, and against all the cities of Judah; not only besiege Jerusalem, and take that, but also all the rest of the cities of the land. Jeremiah 1:16Ver. 16. And I will utter my judgments against them,.... Not against the kingdoms of the north, but against the people of the Jews. The sense is, that God would enter into judgment with this people, and pass sentence upon them, and execute it:touching all their wickedness; or on account of all their sins and transgressions hereafter mentioned:who have forsaken me. The Targum is, "who have forsaken my worship"; for to forsake the public worship of God, attendance on his word and ordinances, or to forsake the assembling of themselves together for such a purpose, is to forsake the Lord himself, the fountain of living waters; and this is to forsake their own mercies:and have burnt incense to other gods; to the idols of the Gentile, as the Targum explains it; to Baal, to the queen of heaven, and to others:and worshipped the works of their own hands: idols of gold, silver, brass, and wood, which their own hands formed and carved, and which argued great stupidity and ignorance. Jeremiah 1:17Ver. 17. Thou therefore gird up thy loins,.... The loins both of his mind and body. The allusion is to the custom of the eastern countries in wearing long garments, who, when they went about business, girt them about them for quicker dispatch; and here it designs haste and expedition in doing the Lord's work, as well as courage and resolution of mind:and arise; and go from Anathoth to Jerusalem:and speak unto them all that I command thee; See Gill on "Jer 1:7",be not dismayed at their faces; See Gill on "Jer 1:8",lest I confound thee before them; show resentment at him in some way or another, which would make him ashamed before them. The Septuagint and Arabic versions add, "for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord", as in Jer 1:8. Jeremiah 1:18Ver. 18. For, behold, I have made thee this day a defenced city,.... Or, "as" one; so read the Targum, Septuagint, Syriac, and Arabic versions; which is inexpungible, and cannot be taken:and an iron pillar; which cannot be removed out of its place:and brasen walls; which cannot be broken down. All these metaphors show the safety and security of the prophet, being surrounded by the power of God; his constancy, immovableness, and invincibleness in the work of the Lord, having such a spirit of power, fortitude, and of a sound mind, that nothing was able to move and shake him, or to deter him from the execution of his office; and that he should stand inflexibleagainst the whole land; of Judea, and all the inhabitants of it:against the kings of Judah; in successive reigns, as Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, or Jechonias, and Zedekiah:against the princes thereof; who desired he might be put to death, Jer 38:4:against the priests thereof; who all of them dealt falsely, and were given to covetousness, Jer 8:10:and against the people of the land; who were grievously addicted to idolatry, and all manner of wickedness. Jeremiah 1:19Ver. 19. And they shall fight against thee,.... The Targum adds,"that they may hide the words of thy prophecy;''hinder him from prophesying, stop his mouth, and even take away his life:but they shall not prevail against thee; as to do either:for I am with thee, saith the Lord, to deliver thee; as he did; he hid him when they sought for him, and delivered him out of the dungeon and bonds into which he was cast by them; See Gill on "Jer 1:8".
John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible.