Jeremiah 18:4

The Pulpit Commentary - Jeremiah 18:4

And the vessel that he made , etc.; rather, And whensoever the vessel … was marred in the hand of the potter , he made it again another vessel read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Jeremiah 18:1-4

Jeremiah 18:1-4. The word which came to Jeremiah, &c. We have here the beginning of a new discourse of Jeremiah, which, if introduced in its proper place, as we have reason to think it is, was probably also, as well as the foregoing, delivered in some part of the first three years of Jehoiakim’s reign. Arise, and go down to the potter’s house Some well-known place where pots were made; and there I will cause thee to hear my words I will further reveal my mind to thee, that thou... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 18:1-23

Lessons from the potter (18:1-23)A potter can make a lump of clay into whatever shape he wants. He can also change the kind of vessel he is making, if he thinks that conditions require it (18:1-4). As a potter determines the kind of vessel he makes, so God determines the destinies of nations, and this is the lesson that the people of Judah must learn (5-6). He may announce judgments on a nation, but he may withdraw those judgments if the nation repents. On the other hand, he may promise... read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Jeremiah 18:4

4. marred—spoiled. "Of clay" is the true reading, which was corrupted into "as clay" (Margin), through the similarity of the two Hebrew letters, and from Jeremiah 18:6, "as the clay." read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Jeremiah 18:1-12

The lesson of the potter’s vessel 18:1-12There are indications in this message that God might yet avert judgment (Jeremiah 18:7-8; Jeremiah 18:11), so Jeremiah evidently delivered it sometime before the Babylonians invaded Judah. read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Jeremiah 18:3-4

The prophet observed the potter making a vessel on his wheel. As he worked, the vessel became damaged, so he made it into a different vessel. Ancient potter’s wheels consisted of two disc-like stones with a connecting vertical axle. The potter spun the one below by kicking it with his feet, and the stone on top served as a rotating table on which he formed his art (cf. Ecclesiastes 2:18-23; Ecclesiastes 8:17; Ecclesiastes 9:10; Ecclesiastes 10:8-9; Ecclesiastes 11:6). [Note: See R. H. Johnston,... read more

John Dummelow

John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - Jeremiah 18:1-18

Jeremiah’s Eleventh Prophecy (Reign of Jehoiakim). Prophecies Illustrated from the Work of the PotterJeremiah 18 gives and explains the figure of the potter’s clay, and tells of the effect upon the people. Jeremiah 19 gives and applies the figure of the potter’s broken vessel, while Jeremiah 20 describes the consequent sufferings of Jeremiah and his complaints.The outrage on the prophet committed by Pashur (Jeremiah 20:2) would certainly not have been permitted in Josiah’s time. On the other... read more

John Dummelow

John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - Jeremiah 18:1-23

1-17. Figure of the potter’s clay.3. The potter’s house] Clay from which pottery was made was found S. of Jerusalem: cp. Zechariah 11:13; Matthew 27:10. The potter teaches Jeremiah important lessons concerning the providential rule of the world. ’As I watched him shaping the pliant clay, remodelling the imperfect vessels until they conformed to his ideal, God revealed to me the manner in which He is able to mould at His will the nations. At the same time I realised that man may render God’s... read more

Charles John Ellicott

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - Jeremiah 18:4

(4) Of clay.—The reading in the margin, which gives “as clay,” must be regarded as a clerical error, originating, probably, in the desire to bring the text into conformity with Jeremiah 18:6, that in the text of the Authorised Version being confirmed by many MSS. and Versions.He made it again.—Literally, and more vividly, he returned and made. As we read, we have to remember that what is narrated in a few words implied a long train of thoughts. The prophet went by the impulse which he knew to... read more

William Nicoll

Expositor's Dictionary of Texts - Jeremiah 18:1-23

God's Pity for Failure Jeremiah 18:4 I. In, every action of the potter God was speaking, and Jeremiah heard and understood. What was the message? This: God's pity for failure 'It was marred, so he made it again' Why did the potter not leave the broken and marred clay, and use a fresh and flawless piece? There was plenty of it at his disposal. Why? Because he knew that if the obstacle that marred it was removed the vessel could be perfected, and so he tried again. Jeremiah was despondent,... read more

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