Jeremiah 3:24 - Exposition

For shame ; rather, and the Shame (i.e. the Baal). The words Bosheth ("Shame") and Baal are frequently interchanged; so again in Jeremiah 11:13 (comp. Hosea 9:10 ). So, too, Jerubbesheth stands for Jerubbaal ( 2 Samuel 11:21 ; comp. 6:32 ); Ishbosheth for Eshbaal. Hath devoured the labor of our fathers , etc.; a condensed way of saying that Baal-worship has brought the judgments' of God upon us,, our flocks, and herds, and all the other labor (or rather "wealth;' i . e . fruit of labor) of our fathers, being destroyed as the punishment of our sins (comp. Deuteronomy 28:30-32 ). Another view is that the "devouring" had to do with the sacrifices, but it is improbable that the sacrificial worship of Baal bad developed to such a portentous extent, and the former explanation is in itself more suitable to the context.