Read & Study the Bible Online - Bible Portal
John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 23:18

For who hath stood in the counsel of the Lord ,.... These are either the words of the Prophet Jeremiah; signifying that none of the false prophets were of God's privy council, or were acquainted with his secrets, that they could tell the people they should have peace, and no evil come upon them; this they said, not from divine revelation, but from the imagination of their own hearts; for though the Lord does nothing but he reveals it to his servants, the prophets; yet not to men of such bad... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 23:19

Behold, a whirlwind of the Lord is gone forth in fury ,.... Or, "behold, a whirlwind of the Lord, of the fury is gone forth" F2 הנה סערת יהוה המה יצאה "ecce turbo Domini exandescentia", Montanus, Junius & Tremellius; "en procella Jehovae! ira exivit", Schmidt. ; which latter clause explains the former; and, hews, that by "the whirlwind of the Lord" is meant his "fury" or "wrath"; which, like a whirlwind, would come suddenly, and at an unawares, and be very boisterous and... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 23:20

The anger of the Lord shall not return ,.... Having a commission from him, and being sent forth on an errand to do business for him, it shall not return to him, without having done it; as a servant sent by his master does not return till he has finished what he was sent about: until he have executed, and till he have performed the thoughts of his heart ; all his counsels, purposes, and designs, respecting those his anger kindled against, the false prophets and wicked Jews: in the... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 23:21

I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran ,.... They might be sent of men, and be encouraged by them; but they were not sent of God: it is not only necessary that men employed in religious affairs should have an external call, in an orderly way, from the church of God; but also an internal call from the Lord himself; he qualifying them with gifts, putting his word into their mouths, and inclining their hearts to publish it; see Hebrews 5:4 ; but these false prophets had no mission nor... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 23:22

But if they had stood in my counsel ,.... As they boasted they did; or, as they reproached the true prophets, and charged them with vanity and arrogance, in talking as if they had; had this been truly their case, as it was that of the prophets of the Lord: and had caused my people to hear my words ; or, "then they would have caused my people to hear my words"; had it been so, they would have heard first the words of the Lord themselves in secret and privately, and then they would have... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 23:23

Am I a God at hand, saith the Lord ,.... Or "near" F6 מקרב "e propinquo", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator; "vel propinquus", Schmidt. ; that is, in heaven; and only sees, and hears, and observes persons and things there, being near unto him: and not a God afar off ? that sees, and hears, and takes notice of persons and things at a distance, even on earth. The meaning is, that he certainly was; and that persons and things on earth were as much under his cognizance and notice,... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 23:24

Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the Lord ,.... If a man should hide himself in the most secret and hidden places of the earth, and do his works in the most private manner, so that no human eye can see him, he cannot hide himself or his actions from the Lord, who can see from heaven to earth, and through the darkest and thickest clouds, and into the very bowels of the earth, and the most hidden and secret recesses and caverns of it. The darkness and the... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 23:25

I have heard what the prophets said, that prophesy lies in my name ,.... Or, "I hear what the prophets say" F7 אמרו "dicunt", Calvin, Cocceius. , &c.; though they thought God was at a distance from them, in the highest heavens, and neither saw, nor heard, nor took any notice of what was done on earth, they were greatly mistaken; he heard and observed with indignation the false doctrines and lying prophecies which they delivered out in his name to the people, whether in public or... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 23:26

How long shall this be in the heart of the prophets that prophesy lies ?.... To invent such lies, and deceive the people, and turn them away from God; agreeably to the preceding and following verses: this shows that this was not through ignorance and inadvertence; it was a meditated and studied thing by them; they contrived it in their hearts, and they were resolute and bent upon it, and took much delight and pleasure in it; their hearts were in it, and it was in them to do as they did; and... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 23:27

Which think to cause my people to forget my name ,.... The Septuagint and Arabic versions render it, "my law". The word and worship of God; from which men are drawn off by false teachers, and are in a fair way to be brought to atheism, and to forget that there is a God; for when once men are turned from the word of God to believe lies, and from the pure worship of God to a false religion, there is no knowing where things will end; and, indeed, it was the design of these false prophets, a... read more

Group of Brands