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Matthew Henry

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Jeremiah 21:8-14

By the civil message which the king sent to Jeremiah it appeared that both he and the people began to have a respect for him, which it would have been Jeremiah's policy to make some advantage of for himself; but the reply which God obliges him to make is enough to crush the little respect they begin to have for him, and to exasperate them against him more than ever. Not only the predictions in the Jer. 21:1-7, but the prescriptions in these, were provoking; for here, I. He advises the people... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 21:8

And unto the people thou shalt say, thus saith the Lord ,.... These are the words, not of the prophet to the messengers of the king, ordering or advising them what they each of them should say to the people; for the message by them is finished; but they are the words of the Lord to the prophet, directing him what he should say to the people at this critical juncture: behold, I set before you the way of life, and the way of death ; the way how to preserve their lives; and which, if they... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 21:9

He that abideth in this city ,.... Imagining himself safe there; not fearing its being taken by the king of Babylon; though it was so often foretold by the prophet of the Lord that it should: shall die by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence : by the first of these, in sallying out against the enemy; and by the other two, which raged within the city: but he that goeth out, and falleth to the Chaldeans that besiege you , he shall live ; not fall upon them, as the... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 21:10

For I have set my face against this city ,.... Or "my fury", as the Targum; their sins had provoked the eyes of his glory; he was wroth with them, and determined to cut them off; his mind was set against them, and upon their ruin; and there was no turning him from it: for evil, and not for good, saith the Lord ; to bring the evil of punishment upon them for the evil of their sins, and not do any good unto them, they were so ill deserving of: it shall be given into the hand of the king... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 21:11

And touching the house of the king of Judah, say ,.... Or "to the house of the king of Judah" F16 לבית מלך "domui regis", Pagninus, Montanus, Tigurine version, Schmidt. ; that is, his palace, as Calvin understands it; go to it, and there say as follows, as in Jeremiah 22:1 ; and some think that this part of the chapter belongs to that, and was not delivered at the time the former part of it was; but before the peremptory decree was gone forth, to deliver the city into the hand... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 21:12

O house of David, thus saith the Lord ,.... This appellation is made use of to put them in mind of their descent, and to observe to them how much it became them to follow the example of so illustrious an ancestor, from whom they had the honour to descend; by doing judgment and justice as he did, 2 Samuel 8:15 ; or, otherwise, their being his seed would not secure them from ruin and destruction: execute judgment in the morning ; be at it early, and dispatch it speedily; show a hearty... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 21:13

Behold, I am against thee ,.... Or, "behold, I unto thee" F19 הנני אליך "ecce ego ad te", Munster, Montanus. ; to be supplied either thus, "behold, I say unto thee" F20 "Ecce tibi dico", Strigelius; so Luther. ; what follows; and therefore take notice of it, attend unto it: or, "behold, I come unto thee" F21 "Ecce ad te venio", Pagninus; so Kimchi. ; who bid defiance to all their enemies to come near them, as in the latter part of the verse. The Targum is, "lo, I... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Jeremiah 21:14

But I will punish you according to the fruit of your doings , saith the Lord ,.... The situation of their city, and the strength of its fortifications, however sufficient they might be thought to keep out an enemy from annoying them; yet it was impossible to hinder the Lord's coming among them, as he here threatens to do; and "visit" them, as the word signifies, in a way of wrath and justice, according to the demerit of their sins, expressed by "the fruit of their doings"; their... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Jeremiah 21:8

Behold, I set before you the way of life, and the way of death - Meaning escape or destruction in the present instance. This is explained in the next verse. read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Jeremiah 21:10

He shall burn it with fire - What a heavy message to all; and especially to them who had any fear of God, or reverence for the temple and its sacred services! read more

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