Jeremiah 17:6

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Jeremiah 17:5-11

It is excellent doctrine that is preached in these verses, and of general concern and use to us all, and it does not appear to have any particular reference to the present state of Judah and Jerusalem. The prophet's sermons were not all prophetical, but some of them practical; yet this discourse, which probably we have here only the heads of, would be of singular use to them by way of caution not to misplace their confidence in the day of their distress. Let us all learn what we are taught... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 17:6

For he shall be like the heath in the desert ,.... The Vulgate Latin version renders it, "myrice": and so the Latin interpreter of the Targum; but the word that paraphrase makes use of according to R. Hai, mentioned by Kimchi, signifies something that is thorny without, and eatable within; but this is not likely to be intended here. The Septuagint version renders it, "wild myrice"; it seems to be the same that is called "erice", or "ling", and "heath"; which delights to grow in wild and... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Jeremiah 17:6

Be shall be like the heath in the desert - כערער kearar ; or, like a blasted tree, without moisture, parched and withered. Shall not see when good cometh - Shall not be sensible of it: the previous drought having rendered it incapable of absorbing any more vegetable juices. A salt land - Barren; and therefore unfit to be inhabited. read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Jeremiah 17:6

Verse 6 He adds a similitude for the purpose of confirming his doctrine, He shall be like a tamarisk, or a juniper, as some render it. The word ערער, oror, means a copse. But the Jews themselves are not agreed; some think it to be the juniper, and others the tamarisk; but we may hold it as certain that it was a useless shrub, not fruit-bearing for those Jews are mistaken, in my judgment, who consider it to be the juniper, for some fruit grows on branches of that. It was a shrub or a tree, as I... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 17:1-27

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 17:5-8

The desert shrub and the flourishing tree. I. THE DESERT SHRUB EXEMPLIFIES THE CURSE OF WORLDLY CONFIDENCE . 1. Note the character of worldly confidence. 2. Consider the curse of this worldly confidence. It makes one like a desert shrub. II. THE FLOURISHING TREE EXEMPLIFIES THE BLESSEDNESS OF TRUST IN GOD . 1. Note the character of trust in God. 2. Consider the blessedness of this trust in God. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 17:5-8

Trust: human and Divine. The prophet here presents before us a vivid contrast between two types of human character. He does this by the use of suggestive images drawn from the realm of nature, as one accustomed to see the great lessons of man's moral life and destiny reflected in visible forms in the sandy desert and sterile places of the wilderness, and in the fertile valleys and woody banks of the flowing river. The imagery is peculiarly Oriental We can all appreciate it in some measure,... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 17:5-11

In the higher gnomic or proverbial style. God and man, flesh and spirit, are natural antitheses (comp. Isaiah 31:3 ; Psalms 56:4 ). The prayer of the believer is, "Be thou (O Jehovah) their arm every morning;" not Egypt, not Assyria, not any "arm of flesh." read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 17:6

Like the heath in the desert ; as forlorn as some well-known desert plant. But which plant? St. Jerome explains, "Et erit quasi myrice ['tamarisk'], quae Hebraice dicitur Aroer (?) sire, at interpretatus est Syrus, lignum infructuosum." The versions agree in supposing the comparison to be to a plant; and a very similar word in Arabic ( ghargar ) means the mountain juniper; Tristram, the dwarf juniper. Most, however, take the word to be an adjective equivalent to "destitute." Dr. Thomson... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 17:6

The curse upon the man who trusts in man . In considering this passage it is important to bear in mind that two different Hebrew words ( גֶּבֶד and אָדָם ) are rendered by the one word "man." A recollection of this difference will bring much more meaning out of the passage. I. There is suggested for consideration MAN IN HIS OPINION OF HIMSELF . He reckons himself as גֶּבֶד , the strong one. He likes to estimate his great resources and use them for his own... read more

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