The Pulpit Commentary — Jeremiah — Volume 1 — Section 268

EXPOSITION. plied in a new sense), i.e. by persons provi- CHAPTER X. dent.io.Ily raised up for this purpose, o.n,l Whoever wrote tbe prophecy in vers.1-16 endowed with o.t lenst a younger son's of this chapter, it was not Jeremfah; but portion of the prophetic Spirit. In tl10 of course, ns the passage forms part of o. times of the editor of Jernmiab, to whom we c1monical book, its claims to the character of owe the first sixteen verses of this chapter, o. Scripture remo.in the same o.s if it were the the Jews must have been in danger of falling WOl'k of our prophet. It is obvious at the into idolntry, nnd our prophet, guided by the very outset that it interrupts the connection ; Divine Spirit, took up the pen to counteract ve1·s. 17-25 stand in no relo.tion to vers. this danger. His name hns not come down 1-16, but nttnch themselves moat naturnlly to us; indeed, self-abuegf\tion is the cha- (see below) to the concluding verses of oh. rncterislio of iuspii-ccl writers. llow un- ix. The o.uthor tells us himself, ns clearly certain is the o.uthor,hip of at any rnte not o.e he oon, thnt the people whom ho ad- a. fow of tho psalms, a.nd of o.11 the historical dresses o.re free o.a yet (or o.t o.ny rate have books I Ancl ho.ve we a right to be sur- freod thmnselves) from tho guilt of idolo.try, prised thnt the prophets too, absorbed in o.nd consequently co.nnot be the snmo as their glorious mission, have sometimes for- those who o.ro so severely chastised for their gotten to ho.nd ou thoir names to posterity? polytheism iu eh. vii. 17, 18, 30, 31. Tho It is of course possible, in the abstrllct, that style too is, on the whole, very different aomo fmgments of tho pnssoge are reo.lly from tho.t of the writer of the preceding due to Jeremiah; but how a.re we to distin- chapters (see the details in the introduc. guish them from the rest? Hitzig think:i tion to this passo.ge in the Commentary of thllt vcrs. 6-8 and ver. 10 are the great Naegelsbnch). But how can we account for prophet's work; but theso arc the very surh nn insertion? Only by the view al- verses the origin of wlPich is tho most ready mentioned (supported by a. large num- douLtful, sinco they ll.re entirely omitted in ber of foots throughout the prophetic litero- tho Septuagint. Ono thing is certain-that turc), that the prophecies wore edited, and tho pllssnge vers. 1-16 sttmds in oloso re- here o.ud there supplemented by the "sons Iatiou to tho latter part of the Dook of of the prophots" (if the tol'm may be ap· Isaiah. The prophetic writer, whoever he  268 THE BOOK OF 'l'HE l'ROPHE1' JEREMIAH. [mt. x. 1-25.