8 © Now it came to paſs, that when Jeremiah had
Therefore he addeth, ; 15 But know ye for certain, that if ye put me to
| death, ye ſhall ſurely bring innocent blood upon your
ſelves, and upon this city, and upon the inhabitants thereof *.* : for of a truth the LORD hath ſent me unta
you, tO ſpeak all theſe words in your ears f.
'.* If 5ou make this S2dicion, and put me to Death for ir, you have a natural power to do it, but you will get nothing by it, bur further bring down the Vengeance of God upon you, by ſhedding my Blood without a cauſe, the guilt of which will be added to your other guilt, and lie upon you, and upon your City. f For
made an end of ſpeaking all that the LORD had com- you may think, and talk-what you pleaſe, it isa certain truth, thag tH manded 54im to ſpeak » unto all the people, that the | T fpake nothing our of any evildeſign, nor of my own head : but Sons only what the Lord ſent me to ſpeak. peep
prieſts, and the prophets, and allthe people took him,
ſaying, Thou ſhalc furely die 0.
God fel} upon them, ſo as they did not interrupt him till he had | o Thenthe chief of the Prieſts with of the LORD our God h.
t Hebs _ the Judg- ment of death is for this lg
» Either they had a reverence for the Prophet, or the terror of
fully diſpatched his Errand. | the aſſiſtance of the People apprehend him, and tell him he ſhould
be pur to Death»
9 Why haſt thou propheſied in the name of the
16 © Then aid the princes, and all the people unto the prieſts, and to the prophets g, This man zs not
' worthy to die : for he hath ſpoken to us in the name
£ The Judge in this caſe with the aſſent of the People acquit the
; Prophet, and vindicate him jfrom the Charge of Scdition given
againſt him by the corrupt Prieſts, and falſe Prophets, diſtinguiſh«
LORD : ſaying, This houſe ſhall be like Shiloh, and 1ng h betwixt one who of his own Head ſpreadeth falſe News,
thiscity ſhall be deſolate without an inhabitant ? and all the people were gathered againſt Jeremiah in the'
houſe of the LORD 9. > They charge him with being a falſe Propher, ſpeaking falſe things in the Name of God ; thcir pretence ſeemeth to have been from the Promiſes of God; ſuch as thar, Pſal. 132. 13, 14 For the Lord hath choſen Zion, he hath deſired it for his habitation, This is my reſt for ever, here will I dwell, for I have defired ir. Which they in- rerpreted into ſuch a ſenſe as if they could nor by their fin drive God away from them, and therefore Jeremiah muſt propheſie falſly apainſt the Will of God before revealed. p This cauſed a ſeditious Tumult of the People in the Temple, which alarm'd the Civil Magiſtrates. ; xo T When the princes of Judah heardtheſe things r,
then they came up from the kings houſe, unto the houſe of the LORD /; and ſat down || at the entry of
the new gate. of the LORD's houſe r. | » When the Nobles, and other Civ]l Magiſtrates, heard of the Tumulr, occaſioned by Feremiah's unpleaſing prophecy. { They came from the King's Court, where the Nobles and great Officers in Nations uſually are, to the Temple. t And fat down at the entry of the new gate in the Lord's Houſe ; ſome think it was called the New Gate, becauſe repaired by Jotham, 2 Kings 15. 35» 2 Cborn 27, 3. Some ay it was the Eaſtern, others, that it was the Weſtern-Gare, It was certainly the place where their Shanedrim, who were to judge of falſe Prophets were wont to fits 11 Then ſpake the prieſts, and the prophets « un- to the princes, and to all the people w, ſaying, + This man #s worthy to die, for he hath propheſied againſt
this city, as ye have heard with your eass x.
# In the corrupt ſtate of all Kingdoms, and Ciries, rhe Eccleſia- tical Officers always were the greateſt Enemies to the Faithful Mi. niſtzrs of God, as we ſhall find in the whole ſtory both of the Old and New Teſtament. x They ſpeak to the Members of the grear Court wh? are called Princes, ard alſo to the people who we '» in the Court charging Jeremiah with Sedition, by prophſying falſly, which was a Capital Crime. It was the charge againit Stephen, Acts 6G. 13- that he ſpake blaſphemous words againſt the holy place ; to prove this they appeal to thoſe of the people that had heard him.
12 T Then ſpake Jeremiah unto all the princes, and to all the people, ſaying y The LORD ſent me to propheſie azainſt this houſe, and againſt this city all
the words that you have heard z.
5 The Prieſts having given Jeremisb his Charge he makes his Defence. z The ſum of which was, he acknowledgeth thar he had propheſied againft the Temple, and againſt the oy and tacitly acknowledgeth rheir power to take cognizance of ſeditious Perſons, and falſe Prophets, and doth not deny bur ſuch Perſons deſerve to
|
and threatneth evil to a place, and one who doth it by Authority from God, or by Divine Revelation, which is here meant by in the Name of our Lord God, Thus the Civil Magiſtrates taught the Prieſts and Propnecs a point of Divinity, which they ought not to hays been 1gnorart of, Some may enquire how the Princes knew that Jeremy ſpake what he ſpake in the Name of the Lord? To which it may be replyed, That Jeremy had been a Prophet now about 20 Years, for he began in the 13th of Joſiah, Chap. 1. 1, 2. Johah reigns ed 31 Years, 2 Kings 22. 1, Then Shallum or Jehoahaz reigned three Months, this was in the beginning of Jekolakim's Reign, in which rime they had had a Jarge Experience both of his Dof#rine,and Converſation 3; and though the Prieffs and Prophers, who had bad the like Experience, were filled with Malice and Prejudice, yet the Princes, and a part of the People were more equal. and though the People were many of them led away with the Prieſts, ye hear- ing the Prophet's defence, and the Princes Judgment upon ir, they concur with them to acquit the Prophet.
17 Then roſe up certain of the elders of the land,
and ſpake to all the aſſembly of the people, ſaying z,
z; Probably theſe Elders were ſome of the Court, or elſe Advo. cates for they were wont to riſe up, either to plead or to judge 1/2. 3. 13. Acts 5. 34. They riſe up and apply themſelves to the People ro juſtifie their abſolutory ſentences
18 Micah the Moraſhite & propheſied in the daysof Hezekiah king of Judah, and ſpake to all che people of Judah, fſaying/, Thus faith the LORD of hoſts : Zion {hall be plowed /ike a field, and Jeruſalem ſhall become heaps, and the mountain of the houſe, as the high
places of the foreſt w9.