Jeremiah 8:13 - Exposition

There shall be no grapes , etc.; rather, there are no grapes … and the leaf is faded . It is the actual condition of things which the prophet describes. Elsewhere Judah is compared to a vine with bad grapes ( Jeremiah 2:21 ); here the vine does not even pretend to bear fruit. Another figure is that of a barren fig tree (comp. Matthew 21:19 ). And the things that I have given them , etc.; rather, and I gave them that which they transgress (viz. laws ). The construction, however, which this rendering implies is not perfectly natural, though supported by most of the ancient versions, and it is better to alter a single vowel-point, and render "And I will give them to those who shall pass over them." The phrase to pass away is constantly used of an invading host; e.g. Isaiah 8:7 ; Daniel 11:10 , Daniel 11:40 .