A. Warning against False Claims (2:1,2)

v. 1	“Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
v. 2	“that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.”

NOTES ON TEXT

v. 1 “Now we beseech you, brethren”: This is the apostle’s introduction to an exhortation or request of great importance (cp 1Th 4:1; 5:12; Phi 4:3).

“By the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ”: Instead of “by”, read “concerning” of “about.” Paul refers to the subject at hand, which he has been discussing in 2Th 1:5-12. “Coming” = “parousia”, a coming alongside, a visible presence; the thematic word of the Thessalonian letters (see “Main Theme” in Introduction, and 1Th 2:19, notes.)

“And by our gathering together unto him”: “Epi-sunagoge”: “Our assembling” (RSV). The same word occurs as a noun in Heb 10:25, having to do with the assembling together of the church for the communion service. But this reference is “about” the return of Christ — as the previous phrase and the whole context states: “assembly”, then, must be the great assembly: the final gathering of believers (living and dead) (Mat 23:37; Mark 13:27; Luke 13:34; 1Th 4:17) to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.

v. 2 “That ye be not soon shaken in mind”: “Soon” (“tacheos”) actually means “quickly”, or “hastily”, “Saleuo”: agitated, tossed, as by the action of strong wind or waves.

“Troubled”: “Throemai”: put in a tumult. This word is used in a similar sense with regard to the return of Christ in Mark 13:7 and Mat 24:6.

“Spirit”: Greek “pneuma” — here referring to the (supposed) “revelation” and teaching of a false prophet (cp 1Jo 4:1; 1Th 5:19,20; 1Co 14:12,32). They needed to “discern the spirits” and recognize the spurious (1Co 12:10).

“Word”: “Logos” — a word-of-mouth communication, possibly purporting to come from Paul (cp his expression: “this we say unto you by the word of the Lord”: 1Th 4:15).

“Nor by letter as from us”: The “as from us” probably refers to all three forms of forged communication: spirit, word, and letter. Judaizers had resorted to publishing their own letters of commendation for the Corinthian ecclesia (2Co 3:1); this problem was acknowledged at the Jerusalem conference (Acts 15:24). In view of the prevalent forgeries, and in order positively to prove his own authorship, Paul sent his letters by the hand of accredited representatives (2Co 2:3,4,13; 7:6-8; 8:16-24). Furthermore, he sometimes signed his letters (2Th 3:17; Col 4;18; 1Co 16:21); at least once, he wrote the whole letter himself (Gal 6:11).

“As that the day of the Lord is at hand”: The “day of the Lord” or “of Christ” is Paul’s common expression of reference to the “parousia” or visible return of Christ (1Th 1:10; 5:2). “At hand” should be “has come” (RSV) or “is present” (RV). The expression is very strong in expressing suddenness or imminence: things present as distinguished from things to come (cp usage, Rom 8:38; 1Co 3:22; Gal 1:4; Heb 9:9). It was not erroneous to teach, as Paul himself did, that Christ might soon come: Paul clearly believed himself that he might live to see that day (1Th 4:13-18), and he was no longer a young man. The error that was being foisted upon the Thessalonians was that the events immediately preceding the return of Christ had already commenced.

B. The Man of Sin Revealed (2:3-9)

v. 3	“Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
v. 4	“Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
v. 5	“Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
v. 6	“And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
v. 7	“For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
v. 8	“And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
v. 9	“even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders.”

Introduction

(1) THE “MAN OF SIN” IN THE FIRST CENTURY

When the leaders of the Jews sought to contain the new movement led by Jesus of Nazareth, they used every subtle form of attack they were capable of. When these failed, they had to fall back on crude methods which involved using all the organized powers of religion and state to get him crucified.

With Jesus himself out of the way they next found that the hard facts of his resurrection, and of the transformation it wrought in his apostles, showed their problem to be still unsolved.

Now open persecution only seemed to make the movement prosper more than ever. But the old resources of craft and cunning were not used up completely. And so a deliberate attempt was made to wreck the new “sect” from within. Nowhere is this stated categorically in the New Testament, but the implication of numerous passages is very persuasive:

Galatia: To the Galatians Paul speaks of “false brethren” who had secretly infiltrated the churches, so as to enslave again (to the Law) those who had been made free by Paul’s own preaching (Gal 2:4,5). These agents had apparently been planted in the brotherhood, so as to work slowly and steadily either to draw believers back to the Law or, failing that, at least to create internal dissensions that would weaken the whole community and thus its appeal to others. Even Peter was practically won over to this philosophy (vv 11-14).

It soon became obvious that Paul — intelligent and resolute — posed the greatest single obstacle to their “satanic” objectives. And so the person and the claims and the worth of this great apostle to the Gentiles must be attacked also, as part of the overall plan of these subversives.

Corinth: In Corinth these enemies had some considerable success, in characterizing Paul as weak and contemptible as to his physical qualities (2Co 10:9,10; 11:6). By contrast, the leader of the subversives, called “Satan” by Paul himself, continues to present himself as polished and personable and wise and authoritative — the natural candidate to replace Paul as the leader of the ecclesias (2Co 11:22,23)! Such a sustained campaign of character assassination called forth from Paul the unusual expedient of a prolonged self-defense (2Co 11:13 to 12:12).

Jerusalem: Even in Jerusalem lies were being systematically spread about Paul, that he was teaching all Jews to forsake Moses and all the customs (Acts 21:20,21). While not true as to particulars, it had just enough plausibility to be accepted by gullible new converts. The faceless men who sought to pervert Paul’s work and keep the first-century ecclesia in bondage to the Temple and the priests had evidently been diligently at work in Jerusalem practically from the beginning. (It could not have been Paul’s open enemies among the Pharisees and Sadducees who told such lies, since their stories would have had no chance of being believed. This campaign was plainly carried on secretly, by whisper and innuendo, in the midst of the ecclesias.)

Rome: From Rome Paul wrote to the Philippians (Phi 1:15-17) of those who preached out of envy and strife, trying to add additional affliction to the bondage Paul was already suffering. It is clear that certain “believers” were finding malicious pleasure in preaching the gospel with some special emphasis, probably — because their work would only be another source of worry and vexation to Paul. Such were fulfilling the serpent’s role, by good words and fair speeches deceiving the simple (Rom 16:17,18).

Other hints of the same organized subversion are to be found in:

Eph 4:14:	“the sleight of men” (a phrase used for deliberate cheating at games), “and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive”;
Col 2:4:	“lest any man should beguile you with enticing words” — another plain allusion to the serpent in the garden.
Titus 1:14:	Titus was warned not to give “heed to Jewish fables… that turn from the truth”, preached by the deceivers of the “circumcision” group (see also vv 4,9,10).
1Ti 4:1,2:	Timothy was likewise warned of false teachers (“seducing spirits”, Paul called them), speaking hypocritical lies, and fostering undue concern for dietary matters.
Hebrews:	The entire letter is a learned and reasoned attempt to forestall drift back to the Mosaic institutions and the synagogue system, a drift encouraged by this organized call of opposition in the very brotherhood.

It is plain, then, that there was a subversive, “Satanic” element at work in the ecclesia of Paul’s day: a group (with perhaps a formidable leader) who professed faith in Christ, but whose hidden agenda called for a “return to Moses.” This group (and its leader?) claimed apostolic authority that was rightly the province of Paul and the twelve, and they worked within the ecclesia, or the spiritual “temple of God” (2Th 2:4), being accepted as believers in good standing. It might be assumed that either some of their number actually had Holy Spirit gifts (“all power and signs and lying wonders” — v 9), or else deceived the simple-hearted into thinking they did. They systematically and subtly taught the “lie”, that men could be justified only by keeping the law of Moses.

It is reasonable to suppose that Paul actually had his eye on some apostasy current in his own time, and which had already shown its hostile attitude toward him in very effective fashion (v 7). Otherwise, it becomes very difficult to explain the immediacy and seriousness with which he describes the “man of sin.” These Jewish pseudo-Christians, along with their leader “Satan” (Paul’s “thorn in the flesh?”), were imposters; while professing the gospel, they had not really “received the love of the truth” but instead “had pleasure in (promoting) unrighteousness” (vv 10,12). Paul was using every ounce of his faith and energy to hinder this destructive work (v 6), but Paul would not always be with them: when he would at last pass from the scene, the Judaizers might be expected to flourish almost without restraint (v 7).

Therefore the same Paul who hoped and prayed for the return of Christ in his own lifetime (consider 1Th 4:15, for example) could also expect that the Lord when he appeared would overthrow and destroy this wicked pretender (2Th 2:8; cp 1:6-10). That Christ did not return during Paul’s day or even during the final years of the first century is no reflection on Paul’s faith or understanding: what else should he have done except look for his Lord’s coming? And the fact is, that the first-century “man of sin” (and his adherents) will be destroyed by Christ at his coming — being raised from the dead to stand before the judgment seat.

(2) TRANSITION

The foregoing, however, can scarcely be the complete fulfillment of the words of Paul. The letters to Thessalonica are so dominated by the theme of Christ’s second coming; and the Judeo-Christian “man of sin” of Paul’s day has long passed from the scene (along with his adherents). So it is reasonable to expect that another “man of sin” will be a dominant element in the prophetic framework of the last days. There is one system, the Papacy, that is eminently “qualified” to fill this role, as the Notes on the Text which follow should demonstrate. The question remains, however: Is there a transition, and a discernible link, between the first-century “man of sin” and the Roman Catholic apostasy?

Zechariah 5 offers such a link: Some of its connections with 2Th 2 are set out below:

Zechariah 5	2 Thessalonians 2
“This is their iniquity in all the land” (v 6, RV mg).	“The mystery of iniquity doth already work” (v 7)… “with all deceivableness of unrighteousness” (v 10).
“A woman that sitteth in the midst of the ephah (v 7).	“Sitteth in the temple of God” (v 4).
“He cast her down into the midst of the ephah: and he cast the weight of lead upon the mouth thereof” (v 8, RV).	“That which restraineth” (v 6, RV)…“there is one that restraineth now” (v 7, RV).
“This is Wickedness” (v 8, RV).	“Then shall that Wicked be revealed” (v 8).

Zechariah 5 appears to be a prophecy of the evils of Judaism which were manifested in New Testament times, corrupting the early ecclesias, and which eventually became firmly established in the Roman Catholic church, along with many pagan ideas.

In its immediate context, Zechariah 5 presents a false worship in a detailed contrast to the true worship depicted in chapter 4. Zechariah 5 has the house of wicked women and unclean birds in the land of Shinar (Babylon) (vv 9,11), whereas Zechariah 4 has the true house of God, the true temple (v 9), wherein are the anointed ones (v 14) and the lampstand (v 12). In the picture of the false worship, the flying roll or scroll (v 3) is a “curse” which “declares innocent” (“naqah” — not “cut off” as in AV) those who steal and swear falsely. The dimensions of this scroll of wickedness (20 cubits by 10 cubits) (v 2) are the precise dimensions of the holy place of the temple and tabernacle, indicating again the nature of this worship: a deliberate parody of that which is true.

The scroll, then, represents wicked teaching, which releases men and women from their obligation to obey God’s laws. Such teaching, with a Jewish flavor, may be traced in the Pharisees’ use of “Corban” — a legal fiction that effectively released a man of his obligation to his parents (Mark 7:6-12). By some similar misapplication of law Pharisees enriched themselves by “devouring widows’ houses” (Mat 23:14) and swearing falsely (v 16). This same attitude was carried forward into the early church and became part of the Roman Catholic apostasy. So-called saints are alleged to have accumulated large excesses of virtue which could be transferred, at a price, to sinners. The clerics, from the pope down to the parish priest, claimed the power to excuse on God’s behalf sins of lying, stealing and so on at the confessional. Hence the links between Zechariah 5 and the Man of Sin.

Then there is the ephah (v 6), a unit of measure. This aptly portrays Judaism in New Testament times, where everything became a matter of measure, of keeping rules and regulations, rather than of developing a character pleasing in God’s sight. Again this entered the early ecclesias and became fully developed in the Roman Catholic church. Col 2:20-22 warns against making religion a matter of rules and regulations which results only in fleshly pride when they are kept. In 1Ti 4:3 Paul prophesied of the time to come when apostasy would make rules about “forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats”, these are examples of the kinds of rules and regulations which Roman Catholicism invented so that the keepers of those rules might be considered as especially virtuous. The idea of a religion of “measure” comes out in other ways too: the idea that, after attending church, the rest of one’s time is one’s own; and the idea that after a fixed sum of money has been handed over, the rest is one’s own to use exactly as one pleases.

Zechariah 5 is thus a portrayal of apostasy, not so much in its false doctrines as in its iniquitous practices. Hence its use in 2 Thessalonians as the background for the Man of Sin prophecy. It is noteworthy that in Zechariah 5 it is a woman who goes to Babylon (Shinar) and builds a house there. The connection with the woman of Rev 17 is obvious. Note also the stork, the unclean bird; the “Babylon” of the Apocalypse is “a cage of every unclean and hateful bird” (Rev 18:2).

Indeed, without trying to trace actual historical links, the essential unity of the two false systems (apostate Judaism of Christ’s day and modern Roman Catholicism) is perfectly evident:

• Both are heavily dependent upon the sanctity (or presumed sanctity) of special places and special, “holy” buildings.

• Both appeal to tradition and antiquity.

• Both encourage the ideal of a spiritual “elite”, set apart and elevated above the mass of ordinary believers.

• Both teach the doctrine of “Salvation by works.”

• Both have specially consecrated priests, dressed in distinctive garments, offering incense and “sacrifices.”

• Both have well-developed machinery for extorting vast amounts of wealth under religious pretence.

As the great false religious system of the first century was destroyed by divine edict (in AD 70) so the great false religious system of the Last Days will be destroyed — by Christ in his coming in power and glory.

NOTES ON TEXT

v. 3 “Let no man deceive you”: “Exapateo” = to greatly deceive. The influence of sin is deceitful (Rom 7:11; 1Co 3:18 — same word). Jesus similarly warned his followers against misinformation as to the time of his appearing (Mat 24:5; Mark 13:5).

“By any means”: “In any way” (RSV) — ie, by claiming spirit-gift powers, by a word-of-mouth report, or by letter purporting to be from us (v 2).

“For that day shall not come except there come a falling away first”: “That day shall not come” is italicized in the AV, indicating that this clause is supplied to give the sense of the text but that it does not have an exact parallel in the Greek text.

“Falling away”: Greek “apostasia” — a defection, rebellion, revolt, or apostasy. The same word is translated “forsake” in Acts 21:21, and the verb form “depart” in 1Ti 4:1. The presence of the definite article suggests as the correct translation “the apostasy” — something which Paul had already discussed with the Thessalonians.

Gentiles who never knew God might be the grossest sinners, but they could never constitute the “apostasy.” Only those who in some sense had been related to the worship of the true God could forsake or revolt from that faith, and thus become “apostates.” (Old Testament usage of “apostasia” in the Septuagint suggests a religious connotation also: Josh 22:22; 2Ch 29:19; 33:19; Jer 2:19). Paul elsewhere warns against such apostasy within the ecclesia:

“For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them” (Acts 20:29,30).

Later New Testament writers suggest such apostasy was truly increasing, even in the first century (2Ti 3:1-5; 4:3,4; 2Pe 2:1-22; 3:3-6; Jude 1:17,18; 1Jo 2:18,19; 2Jo 1:7-10; 3Jo 1:9,10).

“That man of sin”: This is a Hebrew idiom describing a predominant characteristic, as: “man of knowledge” (Pro 24:5) or “man of sorrows” (Isa 53:3). The predominant characteristic of this “man” is “sin!” The Greek manuscripts vary: some have “hamartia” (“sin”); others have “anomia” (“lawlessness”). There is, however, little difference between the two, since “sin is lawlessness” (1Jo 3:4, RSV).

The papacy has consistently claimed to be above the law — being the supreme judge even of civil laws. While claiming to be the “true successors” to the apostles, the popes have, with very few exceptions, led lives of wickedness of the grossest character. The papacy has imposed grievous and unnecessary burdens on its deluded followers, and has dishonored God by teaching for doctrines the commandments of men (Jesus rightly accused first-century Judaism of the same thing — Mat 15:9; Mark 7:7).

“Revealed”: “Apokalupto” — uncovered, unveiled. Just as the “man of righteousness”, Jesus Christ himself, will one day be “revealed” or “apokalypsed” (2Th 1:7), so the “man of sin” must first be “apokalypsed.” The similarity of expressions for each suggests that the one is the rival of the other — hence, the “Anti-Christ”: one appropriating to himself the honor and privilege due only to the true Messiah (1Jo 2:18). Paul’s later words indicate this power of wickedness was already working in his day (2Th 2:7), but it had not yet attained the fullness of its power.

“The son of perdition”: “Apoleia” = loss, destruction. This apostasy is the “father of sin” but also the “son of destruction”; its fate is sealed. Judas Iscariot, the first “apostate” from Christ, is called also “a son of perdition” (John 17:12). In the Revelation, or Apocalypse, the beast which carried the harlot goes at last “into perdition” (Rev 17:8).

v. 4 “Who opposeth”: “Antikeimai” = “to lie opposite to, to be set over against.” The word is used of those who opposed Jesus (Luke 13:17), who opposed his people (Luke 21:45; 1Co 16:9; Phi 1:28; 1Ti 5:14), and who opposed true doctrine (1Ti 1:10). The Judaizers in the first century claimed to have the only way to salvation — through circumcision and the law of Moses — and they opposed and harassed and undercut all who taught the true gospel, especially Paul. Likewise, in later years the Roman Catholic apostasy claimed to be God’s exclusive chosen “church”, and opposed (even to torture and death) the “heretics” and “infidels” who dared differ publicly with it. After the invention of the printing press, the Catholics were the primary suppressors of all early Bible translations into the ordinary languages of Europe.

“And exalteth”: “Huperairo” = to lift above. The language echoes that describing the willful King Antiochus in Dan 11:36,37. The Roman system claims absolute religious supremacy, as borne out by numerous papal statements. It also claims, or at least has claimed when it was propitious to do so, absolute political prerogatives. Thus it has exalted itself above God in two ways.

“Above all that is called God, or that is worshipped”: “Worshipped” is Greek “sebasma” (cp Acts 17:23) — an object of veneration. That is, “above every so-called ‘god’ or object of worship” — ie shrines, images, and relics. Roman Catholicism has, in fact, presided over a vast array of idols — and incorporated them into its system and used them all for its own advancement.

When Catholicism has held absolute authority, no other object of worship — true or false — has been allowed. The pope himself is the greatest “object of worship”: “His holiness”, “the Holy Father”, “the Bishop of Rome”, “Vicar of Jesus Christ”, etc. He has by decree claimed sovereignty over all mankind, both in religious and political spheres. And finally he has appropriated to himself the infallibility that belongs only to the God of Heaven!

“So that he as God”: These words are not in the Greek text and are deleted by RSV, NASB, NEB, and NIV.

“Sitteth in the temple of God”: He takes his seat, or establishes himself, in the “temple” of God. The Roman Emperor Caligula attempted to set up his own image in the Temple at Jerusalem, a gruesome blasphemy that was prevented only by his death about AD 40. It may well be that Paul had this incident still in his mind as he wrote these words: a foretaste of what would yet be. “Naos” may signify the literal temple at Jerusalem (Mat 23:16), still very much in use when Paul wrote to the Thessalonians. It was upon the necessity of continuing worship at this Temple that the first-century Judaizing element in the — ecclesias made its stand. “Naos” (temple) may also signify the spiritual “temple” of believers — the ecclesia itself (1Co 3:16,17; 2 Cor 6:16; Eph 2:21). The first-century apostasy, opposed strenuously by Paul, had set itself up as an integral part of the ecclesias.

In like fashion, the Roman Catholic apostasy, which had its beginnings in the church, came at last to enthrone itself in the most “beautiful” and “glorious” and elaborate of all “temples” ever built — St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. The Pope takes his seat in the “Temple of God” (a false claim, of course) when, gorgeously arrayed, he is carried on the shoulders of his cardinals, to the papal chair in St. Peter’s. It is from this chair only, and in this temple only, that he may make “ex cathedra” infallible pronouncements as to the faith of his millions of followers.

“Shewing himself that he is God”: “Apodeiknumi” = setting himself forth, a word in common use for the proclamation of a sovereign upon his accession, or official entry into office (Acts 2:22; 23:7). “Proclaiming himself to be God” (RSV): Taking his “seat” in the “temple” he will thus proclaim himself “God.” The intended contrast is directly to the Lord God Himself, who sits enthroned upon the cherubim (Psa 80:1; 99:1). Other rulers have tried to appropriate to themselves the worship due only to the Deity (Eze 28:2; Acts 12:21-23), but this coming usurpation, Paul says, will be even more offensive.

v. 5 “Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?”: Notice that here Paul uses “I” in contrast to his more customary “we” when addressing the Thessalonians. “I used to tell you”, suggesting that the general theme of this chapter had been the subject of Paul’s teaching to the Thessalonians more than once (cp expression, 1Th 5:1). In his first letter to them, Paul had referred to the persecuting power of the Jews even then active against their own countrymen (1Th 2:14-16); this power of evil he even called “Satan” (v 18) — a significant link with the “man of sin” (2Th 2:9).

v. 6: “And now ye know what withholdeth”: The Greek “katecho” signifies “to hold down” or “to hold fast”: “is restraining” (RSV), “restraining” (NEB), “restrains” (NASB), or “holding back” (NIV). It is used of things (1Co 7:30; 2Co 6:10) and of people (Phm 1:3; Rom 7:6; Luke 4:42). An interesting parallel, or contrast, is Rom 1:18 — where righteous men “restrain” the Truth. Paul, as the chief antagonist of the Judaizing influence in the ecclesias, was the restraining element as long as he was active.

The paganism of the Roman Empire was, for many years, the restraining element that prevented the full religious and political development of the Roman Catholic apostasy. Paul himself had benefited at times from Roman intervention into Jewish affairs (Acts 17:6; 18:6; 21:32-39).

But, of course, in either case the true “restraint” was the Spirit of God — ever active to ensure His interests are fulfillled in the world over which He bears ultimate authority (Dan 4:17,25).

“That he might be revealed in his time”: “Apokalupto” = “uncovered, unveiled” (as in 2Th 1:7). “In his time”, or “in his season” (kairos), suggests that God has absolute control of the timetable for future events, even though men may not understand how and when God will act (1Th 5:2; Mat 24:36; Mark 13:32). No wicked person, nor group of wicked persons, nor wicked system, can overstep the bounds which God has appointed. God’s sovereignty is dominant. Evil is strong, and will wax stronger in the last days; but the believer may take heart in the fact that God is always in control.

v. 7: “For the mystery of iniquity doth already work”: The Greek “musterion” means that which can never be known merely by the wisdom of men, but which is known only to the initiated (Mark 4:11; Rom 11:25; 16:25; 1Co 15:51; Eph 1:9; 3:3,4). “Iniquity” is “anomia”, which signifies “lawlessness” (as RSV). This particular “lawlessness” is a “mystery”, according to Paul, because it is masquerading as the very opposite of what it really is (that is, “the mystery of godliness” — 1Ti 3:16), and therefore is deceiving many of the uninformed.

“Only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way”: “Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way” (RSV). The “what” that “restrains” in v 6 has now became “he” who “restrains.” Obviously the true restraining influence is the Holy Spirit — which operates either directly by inspiration (as in the case of Paul) or indirectly by providential arrangement. This would be the “what” of the previous verse. The full flowering of the Roman Catholic apostasy was restrained or hindered by the power of pagan Rome, or specifically the power of the emperor — although, undoubtedly, God’s Spirit was providentially active there as well.

v. 8: “And then shall that Wicked be revealed”: Greek “anomos” = the lawless one. “Revealed” is “apokalupto” — to be uncovered or unveiled. For the third time (cp vv 3,6), the “Man of Sin” is said to have his own “apocalypse”, as though consciously to rival the coming “apocalypse” of Christ. He is more than the “enemy” of Christ; he is in fact the substitute, “pseudo”, or “anti-Christ!”

“Whom the Lord shall consume”: Most manuscripts read “the Lord Jesus.” “Consume” = “katangesei”, “slay” (RSV), “overthrow” (NIV). The word signifies to reduce to nothingness.

“With the spirit of his mouth”: With his “breath” (RSV), or by his word (cp Psa 33:6,9). “He shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth” (Isa 11:4). “Out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations” (Rev 19:15).

“And shall destroy with the brightness of his coming”: “Epiphaneia” has the root idea of splendor, and generally (four times out of five in the New Testament) refers to the second coming of Christ (1Ti 6:14; 2Ti 4:1,8; Tit 2:13). “Parousia” has been discussed considerably already (see Introduction; 1Th 2:19; etc). The Thessalonians need not fear, no matter how eminent wicked men may become. Even the most outstanding of them will be far outshone, and summarily destroyed, by the Lord of these lowly believers when he appears.

v. 9: “Whose coming (‘parousia’) is after the working of Satan”: This passage is better rendered: “The coming of the lawless one by the activity of Satan” (RSV). What is “the activity of Satan”? It is the work of an adversary. Paul uses the same language, when writing to the Corinthians, in describing Jewish adversaries who had assumed apostolic powers, disguising themselves as servants of righteousness (2Co 10:12-15). “To come by the activity of Satan”, therefore, is to disguise one’s true character.

Likewise, the Roman Catholic “Church” claims to be the Bride of Christ, showing his love and glorifying God — but all the while it is only a guise. The Catholic system is in reality the “Satan”, or “Adversary,” of all true religion — claiming divine authority where it has none, persecuting believers of all other faiths, and actively suppressing the printing, distributing and reading of the Bible.

“With all power”: A reference to papal claims and pronouncements. The history of the “Bishop of Rome” is one of continual grasping for greater authority and power and control over the lives of all his followers.

“Signs and lying wonders”: Or, “pretended (‘pseudo’) signs and wonders” (RSV). Again, the Man of Sin is seen as striving to be the rival of the Man of Righteousness, and his apostles, who were truly revealed in signs and wonders (Acts 2:22,43; Gal 3:5; Heb 2:4). Jesus himself predicted such a parody of himself would arise (Mat 24:24; Mark 13:22). Some examples of this conscious deception: alleged miraculous cures, alleged miraculous appearances and revelations, wonder workers, exorcisms of “demons”, and veneration of relics.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

The Two “Apocalypses”

2Th 1: The Son of God	2Th 2: The Man of Sin
Revealed from heaven (1:7).	Revealed in apostasy.
In the glory of his might (1:9).	In power (2:9) and wicked deception (2:9).
With the mighty angels (1:7).	With the activity of “Satan” (2:9).
In flaming fire (1:7).	Pretended signs and wonders (2:9); pleasure in unrighteousness (2:12).
Inflicting vengeance upon those who (a) do not know God, (b) do not obey the gospel, and (c) refuse to love the truth (1:8).	Opposes, exalts self (2:4); pretends to be a god, “taking his seat in the temple of God” (2:4).
To be glorified in his saints and to be admired in all them that believe (1:10).	To be slain by Christ’s appearing and coming with the “breath of his mouth” (2:8).

The parallels between the “Man of Sin” and the Serpent of Eden are many and obvious. How could it be otherwise when the “Man of Sin” is Scripturally defined as the “Seed of the Serpent?” “Like father, like son”, certainly!”

2 Thessalonians 2	Genesis 3
Deceives believers (v 3); lying (v 9); deceit (v 10); strong delusion (v 11).	“The serpent beguiled me” (v 13).
The son of perdition — or destruction (v 3).	“Thou art cursed” (v 14).
Opposes God (v 4).	“Hath God said…?” (v 1).
Exalts himself above God (v 4), as a “Satan” — or adversary (v 9).	“For God doth know…” (v 5).
Sits in the Temple of God (v 4).	Antitype of serpent, sitting in Eden — the place of God’s sanctuary (v 24).
Manifested “in them that perish” (v 10) because…	“Unto dust shalt thou return” (v 19).
“…they received not the love of the Truth”: (v 10).	Adam and Eve, given a command, disobeyed it.
“A lie” — or “the lie” (v 11).	The foundation lie of all apostasy: “Ye shall not surely die” (v 3).

Proceeding through history with Bible in hand, we recognize that the “Man of Sin” apostasy has so many Scripturally-attested descriptions that we can scarcely fail to identify it. But perhaps the pre-eminent mark of the apostasy — in all its faces — is the great lie: “Ye shall not surely die!” Virtually every ecclesia of “Christendom” repeats, in one form or another, this original deception of its “father” the serpent.

The doctrine of the immortality of the “soul” — borrowed from deluded pagans — has become the cornerstone of apostasy. This doctrine alone effectively prevents its holders from perceiving the glorious, yet simple and reasonable truth of the gospel. This one doctrine, when given its logical (or illogical!) force, distorts almost every first principle. It is surely the great “delusion!”

* * *

There have been many forerunners, or advance messengers of the Anti-Christ:

1. Cain, the originator of religious war, who slew his righteous brother (Gen 4:4-8), when Cain’s religious deception had been uncovered.

2. Lamech, who boasted himself even against God — so great was his power, or so he thought (Gen 4:23)!

3. Nimrod, the first great “world-ruler”, who began the history of Babylonian power (Gen 10:8-10).

4. Balaam, the false prophet who for material gain seduced God’s people into immorality; the “anti-Moses”, so to speak (Num 31:17; 2Pe 2:15; Rev 2:14).

5. Goliath — the “man of sin”, closely associated with the number six, the representative terrorist, the “anti-David”, who opposed God’s Anointed (1Sa 17).

6. Antiochus Epiphanes, the devastator of the Sanctuary of God.

7. Nero, the great first-century persecutor of the Christians, certainly regarded as “anti-Christ” by those who suffered under his rule.

8. Mohammed, the “false prophet”, a deceiver and “Satan-adversary” in his own right, even though hostile toward the Catholic Church.

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It is evident also that the “Man of Sin” closely resembles the “Beast” of Revelation:

2 Th.		Rev.
3	The falling away must come first	17:13 17:11	A harlot will be seated on the Beast, who goes into perdition
4	He exalts himself against God	13:4,5 13:8 13:12	The world worships the Beast, who speaks blasphemies. All the dwell on the earth except the faithful shall worship it. The false prophet ensures this.
4	He sits in the temple of God, claiming to be God	13:6	It blasphemes God’s name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven.
7	The mystery of iniquity is already at work	17:5	The harlot is called mystery, the mother of the abominations of the earth.
8	The Lord Jesus shall destroy him with the breath of His mouth, and bring him to naught by the manifestation of His coming.	17:14 19:15	The Lamb shall overcome the Beast with the ten kings. Out of his mouth proceeds a sharp sword.
9	His coming is according to the working of Satan, with all powers and signs and lying wonders.	13:13	He doeth great signs, that he should even make fire come down from heaven: it was given to him to give breath to the image of the Beast, that it should speak.
10	With all deceit and unrighteousness in them that are perishing, because they received not the love of the truth that they might be saved. For this cause God sends them a working of error, that they should believe a lie.	13:14	He deceives them that dwell on the earth by reason of the signs.

Some of the references in the Revelation column relate to the actions of the false prophet, but since these are performed on the Beast’s account they are included in the characteristics of the Beast itself.

This comparison leaves little doubt that the Man of Sin and the Beast refer to the same power.

C. His Followers Deceived (2:10-12)

v. 10	“and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
v. 11	“And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
v. 12	“that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”

NOTES ON TEXT

v. 10 “All deceivableness of unrighteousness”: “All wicked deception” (RSV). The Roman Catholic Church has forged numerous documents in an effort to bolster its power and authority. It has been guilty of blatant mistranslations, to justify its unscriptural practices — such as masses, purgatory, and pilgrimages. It has even distorted the “Ten Commandments” so as to accommodate the worship of images.

The phrase belongs with the final phrase of v 9: The coming of the Man of Sin is attended by Satan-like activity, fraudulent signs and wonders and wicked deception.

“In them that perish”: “Apollumi” = to loose, to destroy. Here the verb is in the continuous tense: “them that are perishing.” This is a typical phrase of Paul (1Co 1:18; 2Co 2:15; 4:3), intended to contrast with “those who are being saved.” The followers of the Man of Sin will share his fate (cp v 8), since they share his character.

“Because they received not the love of the truth”: They “gave the Truth no welcome”, in contrast to the Thessalonians themselves, who received the word of God, and allowed it to work effectually in them (1Th 2:13). “Truth” here, as elsewhere in Paul’s writings, is not to be thought of simply as an abstract moral quality; rather, it is intimately related to Jesus (Eph 4:21; John 14:6) and the gospel he preached.

“That they might be saved”: Knowledge of and obedience to the Truth of Christ’s gospel are the divinely-provided means of salvation (1Ti 2:4; Heb 10:26; 1Pe 1:22). Those who do receive the love of the Truth are saved from the vengeance to be inflicted on those who do not know God (2Th 1:8), and from eternal destruction in the grave (v 9).

v. 11 “And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion”: Literally, “a working (‘energia’) of error.” No longer would there be only an indifference toward the Truth, but now there would also be a divine, judicial influence toward error upon their hearts and minds. When men refuse to retain God in their knowledge, He may — by His own deliberate action — abandon them to their own reprobate minds (Rom 1:26,28). Of this abandonment in lawlessness Esau is one example (Heb 12:15-17). There are other similar examples, of the imposition of judgmental “blindness” (1Ki 22:23; Rom 11:8, citing Isa 29:10; cp 2Sa 24:1 with 1Ch 21:1; Exo 9:12).

“That they should believe a lie”: Literally, “the lie.” In what is practically a parallel passage, Paul writes of those who exchanged the Truth of God for the lie, and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator (Rom 1:25). The philosophy that essentially enthrones man as the center of the universe, and thereby displaces God from His rightful place, is to be considered the great lie — and the root of all lies, errors, and deceptions. It is related to the first recorded lie, which was an attack on the character of God — the lie of the serpent: “Ye shall not surely die” (Gen 3:4). Virtually all false religions perpetuate this precise lie in the erroneous teaching of the immortality of the soul.

v. 12 “That they all might be damned who believed not the truth”: Greek “krinos” = “judged.” Each will be judged by God, but in another sense they have already judged themselves — by knowingly rejecting the truth presented to them (cp John 3:18-20; 9:39-41).

“But had pleasure in unrighteousness”: This contrasts with their attitude toward the Truth. There was no warmth in their attitude to the gospel, no welcome, no love, not even any belief. But they actively rejoiced in unrighteousness, finding pleasure therein. Again, compare this with Rom 1:32:

“Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but (also) have pleasure in them that do them.”

It is in the nature of sin that, when persisted in, it ultimately deceives. Those who do not resist the impulses of sin, who are not mortified and repentant when they fail, soon find that they are unable to feel anything but pleasure in their sins. They have thus become “slaves” to sin — the divinely imposed penalty that leads inexorably to condemnation. The downward process is not absolutely inevitable, but the man who has come at last to enjoy his own peculiar sin is standing on a very slippery slope.

v. 1	“Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
v. 2	“Grace unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”

NOTES ON TEXT

The three missionaries, who had first brought the gospel to Thessalonica and established the church in that city, now address the ecclesia a second time, in terms almost identical with the greeting of their first letter (1Th 1:1, notes).

Paul is still in Corinth. Apparently, only a few months have elapsed since he had sent his first letter to the brethren at Thessalonica.

Each chapter is divided into 22 stanzas (verses), except chapter 3, which has 66 (3 X 22). Chapters 1 through 4 are alphabetic acrostics, with one stanza (in chapter 3, three stanzas) for each letter of the 22-character Hebrew alphabet. In chapter 1 the letters are in order. In chapters 2 through 4 they are in order with the exception of two letters: the sixteenth and the seventeenth characters (“ayin” and “pe”) are transposed.

These transpositions have long puzzled scholars; some have invented ingenious exegetical “reasons” for the reversals. However, recent archaeological finds in Israel and the Sinai confirm a previously unproven scribal tradition in which “pe” — “ayin” was the correct order. It now appears that this local Israelite variation in letter order was often used during the period when the Book of Lamentations was written.

Chapter 5 is not an acrostic, but it does contain 22 lines (rather than stanzas), probably corresponding to the 22 Hebrew letters. It is possible that this less rigid structure represents the deepened intensity of grief; perhaps Jeremiah was so grieved as he wrote that he did not tarry to keep the same “literary” form he had previously followed.

In chapters 1 through 3 each stanza contains three lines, with the exceptions of 1:7 and 2:19, which contain four lines. Chapter 4 contains 2-line stanzas. In chapter 3 all three lines of each stanza begin with the same letter and each line carries a verse number, comparable to Psalm 119 — an eightfold acrostic.

The acrostic is common among the Old Testament writings. One purpose was that it was very helpful to memory. The acrostic style also denotes completeness of thought — in that each letter of the alphabet suggests its own thought, all with the same basic message. This aid of the acrostic is of course lost to us in translation (although at least one translator has attempted the acrostic form in English).

Other acrostics are found in Psalms 9-10 (together), 25, 34, 37, 111, 112 and 145, and Pro 31:10-31. The prophet Nahum opens his book with a partial acrostic.

A significant feature of the Hebrew poetry is the constant repetition of similar thoughts, with only slight variations in meaning between one phrase and the next:

“He will visit thine iniquity: He will discover thy sins…”

“The elders have ceased from the gate, the young men from their music…”

Such phrases as these contribute wonderfully to the beauty of Jewish poetry, and they show how well adapted it is to be translated into other languages — where it still maintains its depth and richness of expression. Of course, one must never forget that this is not just literature or prose or poetry, but also and especially the expression of the mind and purpose of Almighty God.

It has already been stated that the original word for “lamentations” refers to a dirge. Chapters 1, 2 and 4 are elegies or dirges. In the Hebrew form of poetry, a dirge or lament is usually concluded with a prayer. We find a prayer at the end of chapters 1 and 2, and a statement at the close of chapter 4 which resembles the prayer of chapter 1. Rather than include a prayer at the close of chapter 4, it is possible the prophet, caught in the sorrow and woe of the picture of afflicted Zion, concludes not just the one elegy but the entire book with a prayer (the whole of chapter 5). This would be appropriate, for the book as a whole is an elegy.

Additional Notes on the Structure

The Book of Lamentations has occupied a prominent place in the study of Hebrew meter, because of its acrostic form in the first four chapters. Its meter, however, seems to set it apart from other forms and varieties of Hebrew verse — it is easily distinguished from other Hebrew verse. This uniqueness stresses our conviction as to the divinity behind the authorship: it is not, as some modern critics allege, just Hebrew poetry.

A few comments on the parallelism found in this book should be given at this time. A brief mention was given earlier; here is another example:

“Our land is turned over to strangers;

Our houses, to foreigners” (5:2).

Of the 266 lines in the book, 162 exhibit parallelism. Of more significance is the fact that chapter 5 reflects this characteristic in 19 of the 22 lines; and two of these lines that do not in themselves reflect this, are parallel to each other — 5:9 and 5:10. This represents either 86% or 95 % usage of this form in chapter 5. In chapters 1 through 4, this usage is found in 59% of the lines. Since Jeremiah did not use the acrostic form in chapter 5 perhaps he chose parallelism to emphasise his points.

Another interesting point involved the usage of the pattern phrases “daughter” (Hebrew “bat”) or “virgin daughter” (“betulat bat”). These phrases occur 20 times, remarkable in that they only occur 45 times in all the other portions of the Hebrew Scriptures (and perhaps even more significant, 16 of the 45 additional occurrences are found in Jeremiah). The phrase “bat ammi” (literally, daughter of my people) occurs eight times in Jeremiah — the only other instances outside of Lamentations, with one exception (Isa 22:4).

Lamentations uses “daughter of Zion” seven times; “virgin daughter of Zion” once; “daughter of my people” five times; “daughter of Judah” twice; “virgin daughter of Judah” once (these last two are found nowhere else in Scripture); “daughter of Jerusalem” twice; and “daughter of Edom” once. These occurrences make explicit the personification of the people or city as a woman, a figure used so often by God of His people.

“Daughter(s)” — “bat” or “banot” — may also signify satellite settlements of a major urban center, like Jerusalem. Psa 9:14 refers to the “gates” of the daughter (“bat”) of Zion, clearly indicating a town of some sort (see also Psa 48:11; 97:8; Isa 10:32; and Josh 15:45, 47 — where the same word occurs). These “banot” were dependent commercially, politically and socially on the “mother” city — a concept echoed in Gal 4:26 and Rev 17:5 to cite two diametrically opposite examples.

All of these points on the structure, rather than detracting from the divinity of the book, seem to strengthen it. God chose to use a form which could be easily remembered; and Jeremiah was the man of God to write this book for Him. The fact that poetry rather than prose was chosen adds to the thought that this book was written for all (including the children!) to be able to memorize. Verse is easier to memorize than prose, and easier still when the sequence of lines follows a set pattern. God wanted this book, with its principles and memories and horrors and hopes, to be remembered.

Several lessons recur often throughout this book. The most obvious is this: That we may see, in the plight of Jeremiah and Judah, both the sufferings of Christ and the persecutions and trials of the saints in this Gentile world. We are the saints, the people or nation whom God has separated to bear His Name, and ultimately to bear His glory — if we are worthy. But we have not been separated to a life of ease or luxury. Instead we have committed ourselves to the loss of worldly possessions and honours and to chastisement at the hand of our Father in Heaven —

“Remember, O Lord, what is come upon us:

consider, and behold our reproach!” (5:1)

We well know that–

“No chastening for the present seemeth joyous, but grievous” (Heb 12:11).

Therefore, may we have the wisdom and foresight to realize our weakness and to lean on the mercy of God —

“Arise, cry out in the night:

in the beginning of the watches

pour out thine heart like water

before the face of the Lord” (2:19).

And we learn at last that nothing can separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ (Rom 8:38). We must accept chastisement in order to be true sons; Paul tells us that God chastises us for our profit, that we might be partakers of His holiness (Heb 12:10):

“For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us afar more exceeding and eternal weight of glory” (2Co 4:17).

Another point amply demonstrated is that all nations and their affairs are controlled by God (Dan 2:21; 4:17, 25) according to His purpose with Israel. Israel–both natural and spiritual — may “give the hand” to the Egyptians and Assyrians at the present time (5:6). She may be trodden down by “Edom” for now (4:21). But when God has waited long enough, the respective fortunes of Jew and Gentile will change quite drastically, and God will elevate His people and render unto the others–

“A recompense… sorrow of heart, and thy curse…” (3:64-65).

Paul told the brethren at Corinth that–

“ALL THINGS are for your sakes” (2Co 4:15).

Jesus told his listeners of certain times being shortened–

“For the elect’s sake.”

If we would only let this truth sink into our hearts, never could we become discouraged or feel neglected!

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Finally, the principle of responsibility to God is emphasized throughout Lamentations. The practical and Scriptural belief is that the sorest punishment is visited upon those who are most responsible — that is, those who have the most knowledge. To whom much is given, much will be required in the day of God’s visitation. The nation of Judah was more responsible to God than were the other nations of their time–

“You only have I known of all the families of the earth:

therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities” (Amos 3:2).

This sense of being known of God is explained in Psa 147–

“He sheweth His Word unto Jacob,

His statutes and His judgments unto Israel.

He hath not dealt so with any (other) nation:

and as for His judgments, they have not known them” (vv 19-20).

The Jews who refused to heed God’s messengers, and who followed their own evil inclinations — neglecting His testimony — received the sorer punishment befitting their status —

“For the punishment of the iniquity of the daughter of My people is greater than the punishment of the sin of Sodom, that was overthrown as in a moment, and no hands stayed on her” (4:6).

Sodom had been exceedingly wicked, but her punishment was swift, and therefore less painful than that of Judah–whose final sufferings were intense and drawn-out (4:8-10).

“If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Rom 8:31)

This can be a wonderful assurance, but the solemn, sobering truth is that the God Who fights for us may very well come to fight against us — as He fought against Jerusalem (2:5-7). It is for us to ponder this carefully, and to put ourselves in the place of Judah–

“Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples (Gr. ‘types’); and they are written for our admonition…” (1Co 10:11).

“How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation?” (Heb 2:3).

The central thought of Lamentations is found precisely in the center of the book. The proper climax is 3:19-36. Of these verses 31-33 must be singled out particularly–

“For the Lord will not cast off forever:

But though He cause grief

yet will He have compassion

according to the multitude of His mercies.

For He doth not afflict willingly

nor grieve the children of men.”

The book progresses from an early feeling of shame and bewilderment to a growing awareness and appreciation of God’s presence and His hand in man’s affairs — both to chasten and to save. What man finds difficult to remember is that disobedience inevitably brings chastisement. The non-repentant will suffer the judgments, woes and desolations brought by God. The faithful remnant are repentant, accepting chastisement as a necessity for building character, knowing that –

“God will not forget in need

the man that trusts in Him indeed.”

Zion, who mourns her desolation and weeps sorely in the night (1:2), is in the end comforted by the birth of new sons, whose days are renewed as of old (5:21).

Patience, endurance and godliness are characteristics of the true Israelite. The true Israelite offers a confident prayer of deliverance from the oppressor and a longing prayer for justification and glorification. Sorrow gives way to a new hope–

“Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning” (Psa 30:5).

In the analysis, note the emphasis on “affliction”, and the progression: Jerusalem’s affliction (Lam 1) is brought by God (Lam 2) and is necessary (Lam 3) because of her persistent apostasy (Lam 4), but she will at last be delivered from affliction (Lam 5). Note also the succession of prayers at the ends of the chapters, growing in length and intensity until culminating in the extended prayer, filling all of Lam 5 (see notes on structure).

“Yahweh hath done this”

The second poem follows a similar pattern to that of the first: the first 10 verses recapitulate the suffering of Jerusalem, and the last 12 form a dramatic soliloquy by the “Daughter of Zion.” A superficial reading of these verses will not make this quite so obvious as it is in the first chapter, but it is a very convincing reading to treat it as such.

In Lam 1, the central theme was the helplessness of Israel — “None to comfort her”. But in v 18 of that chapter, there was recognition of God’s hand in her desolation — which continues as the main theme of this chapter. In the first chapter, the thought “None to comfort her” occurs seven times; in the second, the “Lord” (“Yahweh” — Companion Bible, Appendix 32) is mentioned by name seven times as the One Who “hath done this” (vv 1, 2, 5, 7, 8, 17, 20). Once, in v 16, Jerusalem’s enemies boast proudly, “We have swallowed her up.” But they, as all others outside the understanding of God, have misinterpreted the forces and the reasons behind the history of the Jews. God has thought only to punish the nation temporarily, as a necessary part of His overall plan. Then He must cleanse them and establish them, for they are His peculiar people, and He cannot utterly cast them away, because of His promises to their fathers. The promises to the fathers were made immutable by oath, as Paul reminds us. Nevertheless, their punishments (and their recognition of it as coming from God) are essential.

In this chapter, Jeremiah speaks too as the voice of the righteous remnant — who lament the fate of Zion (vv 13, 14), but who never cease to arise and call upon God to remember His people (vv 18-20).

Verses 1-9: Just Judgments of Yahweh

Israel had been forewarned that they were to be made desolate if they did not turn from their wicked imaginations — but they chose to stay with their “evil devices”. Yahweh, the Master Potter, has sole power over the clay. If the vessel is marred, it must be either destroyed or reshaped. This is God’s decision with respect to people and nations. The King of Babylon accomplished the destruction of Jerusalem, but he was only a tool in the hands of God (Dan 4:25; Isa 45:1). These things must be a lesson for us; Paul thinks so for he picks this idea up and uses it in his letter to the Romans (9:21-24; ch 11). God will reshape us if we can be remolded; He will break us, and blot us out if we continue in sin — “For if he spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.”

In this section is described, in turn, the destruction of every outward form of true worship in Israel. The picture becomes distinctly clear, that nothing is so abominable in God’s sight as an attempt to worship Him by people who, in all their lives, are living at enmity with Him.

Verses 10-14: Tears of Affliction

Verse 10 is a transitional verse; it paints a picture of the elders of Zion sitting on the ground in a state of despair, contemplating the inevitability of evil, rather than seeking counsel.

The ravages of war are terrible. Ezekiel told how Jerusalem was to be taken and suffer by fire, the sword and finally exile. The children of Judah were shown by sign that they were to face famine and pestilence. This would surely bring tears of sorrow to those who witnessed these things — particularly those who had heard the warnings of the prophets.

Jeremiah had reason to weep also, for the fact has begun to dawn on him, that his generation of Jews, whom he loved, were never to fulfill the glorious and exalted calling to which God had called them. Their high aspirations, like their once magnificent temple, now lie in the ashes.

Verses 15-17: Jerusalem’s Enemies Rejoice

The scorn, anger and exultation of Jerusalem’s enemies call forth from the daughter of Zion a plea for compassion (this is almost a refrain of 1:12). One of the more grotesque characteristics of human nature is the compulsion to “kick a man when he’s down.” As if the physical torment were not enough, ridicule now adds mental anguish.

As in the first poem, so here also there is hope expressed amidst desolation and despair — and along with it, a growing insight into God’s dealing with His children: “The Lord hath done that which He had devised” (v 17).

Verses 18-22: Jerusalem’s Prayer

Israel’s ignorant enemies scorn her — but there is left in her a true remnant who pray for deliverance and the fulfilment of the “hope of Israel”. This is not only a picture of Jeremiah’s day, but of our day as well. We may take the words of Psa 120:6 as our own — as we cry to God–

“My soul hath long dwelt with him that hateth peace.”

Although the daughter of Zion was abused by her enemies, the true author of her misery was God Himself! Here was the element of hope — that it was preferable to fall into the hands of the living God rather than into those of men (2Sa 24:14). If suffering must indeed come as a chastisement for past sins, then there was hope with God that the punishment might be mitigated by repentance. And so, in an amazing paradox, the Destroyer might become also the Healer!

“He who hides his sins shall not prosper,

but he who confesses and forsakes them, shall have mercy”

(Pro 28:13).

“Wherefore doth a living man complain?”

“I am the man that hath seen affliction!” said Jeremiah as he now takes up his lament, placing himself in the position of his erring brethren — just as Christ would do (Introduction to ch. I): “Whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth” (Heb 12:6). The same process of correction which Jeremiah and the faithful of his countrymen had to undergo is designed for the faithful of all ages. But throughout all affliction is this one overriding thought: “Great is Thy faithfulness… The Lord is good unto them that wait for Him” (vv 23, 25). God’s faithfulness is seen in this chapter in two different ways: in mercy and sustenance now, and in a sure reward in the future.

Verses 1-18: Darkness, Affliction, Derision

“The Lord is longsuffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2Pe 3:9). In each of the first four chapters, the early verses chronicle great affliction. However, these early verses serve only as a preliminary feature — to introduce to us the greatness of God’s mercy upon His chastened children.

In the phrase “I am the man” (v 1), Jeremiah speaks for his nation Israel — God’s “firstborn” (Exo 4:22), who is afflicted, with the purpose of calling back the wicked (Ezek 33:11). Yahweh is touched by this as well (v 33; Isa 63:9). He will pity those who learn from their sufferings and return to fear Him (Psa 103:13). In speaking of himself, Jeremiah speaks for Jesus as well — and as a type of him and all the saints, for whom Jesus is the primary example to follow. Jesus was the only-begotten of the Father (John 1:14, 3:16) — and thus the “firstborn”. He was afflicted (Isa 53:4), and he learned obedience by the things he suffered, even to death (Heb 5:8; Phi 2:5-8), being rewarded by his Father in becoming the “firstfruits of them that sleep” (1Co 15:20).

The “rod” of God’s wrath (v 1) is an expression for correction (Job 37:13), and tribulation:

1. God used Babylon as His rod to punish Israel, just as He had previously used Assyria as the “rod of His anger” (Isa 10:5, 15).

2. Christ suffered and died because, like all of Adam’s descendants, he was of flesh, with all the susceptibilities of the flesh. Federally, he died for all men (by “crucifying the flesh” even before his physical death, he demonstrated endurance in affliction, seeking not his own will and desires but those of his Father) if those men will identify with this man of affliction by a life of “dying”. But the “rod” of God’s correction was not used upon him, since he never sinned — never violated the purpose which was entrusted in him. If we will accept the affliction of chastisement and training and character building, the “rod” of the affliction of God’s “wrath” will not be forthcoming.

“He turned His hand against Me all the day” (v 3) is similar in thought to “I will turn My hand upon thee, and purely purge away thy dross, and take away all thy sin…” (Isa 1:25). The pure metal, salvaged through the long purging process, is to be kept for use; the dross will be cast away as worthless. Dross is the refuse of smelting of precious metal through intense heat. Figuratively it is used of what is base or worthless (Ezek 22:18, 19; Psa 119:119). The “furnace” of affliction is purging us — we will either come out of this furnace reflecting the brightness of the pure metal, that is, the image of Christ; or we will be cast away as unfit for future use.

The phrase “He hath set me in dark places” (v 6) can have a threefold interpretation: (1) The grave, as in a political death (Ezek 37:2); (2) A dungeon, as where Jeremiah was placed (v 53; Jer 37:16); and (3) Christ’s death and burial (Mat 27:66).

The phrase “As they that be dead of old” can be rendered as “they that have been dead since ancient times”. Perhaps the idea that he is trying to convey is that he has been forgotten, as though he had been dead a long time. This brings to mind Ezekiel 37 and the national resurrection of Israel. From 586 BC to the present, Israel has not had a king reigning upon the throne of David. The kingdom has been “dead” a very long time.

Verses 19-21: The Desired Effect: A Remnant Saved

It is surely no coincidence that in the first 18 verses of black despair, God’s name is not mentioned at all until the end of the last verse. (The nearest Jeremiah comes is to refer to God with “He” and “His” — until v 17 when God is addressed as “Thou”). But it is at this point of despair that hope rises, and comfort and consolation strengthen the prophet. It was surely the mention of God’s Memorial Name in v 18 that effected the transformation. For “Yahweh” is a God who remembers His promises, and will one day fill the earth with His glory (Num 14:21; Isa 11:9), no matter what interruptions may prevail in the meantime.

To fulfill God’s purpose, a repentant and forgiven remnant must be saved.

Although speaking of an earlier captivity, Psalm 137 is illustrative of this Divine principle. Through bitterness and suffering and adversity, the Jew learns to turn to God:

“By the rivers of Babylon,

there we sat down, yea, we wept,

when we remembered Zion…

How shall we sing the Lord’s song

in a strange land?

If I forget thee, O Jerusalem,

let my right hand forget her cunning;

if I do not remember thee,

let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth;

if I prefer not Jerusalem

above my chief joy” (vv 1,4-6).

The Jews who returned from the 70 years captivity in Babylon were a much more disciplined and righteous band than those who had been originally carried there. The rebels, the half-hearted, the greedy, and the idolaters had been left behind — often of their own free will.

In the same way, when God brings the Jews back to Israel in the period after Christ’s return, He will purge out the rebels (Ezek 20:38; Zec 13:9). The Jews will return to their homeland with a renewed spirit, cleansed at last from their heathen associations, and much the better as a nation for their two millennia spent in division and scattering. Already those Jews who have returned to the land have begun to demonstrate this renewal and rededication to Jerusalem, although they still know only to trust in themselves and not in God.

Again, the lesson to us may be stressed: God is constantly bringing discomforts and hardships and challenging decisions upon us (but not in punishment, for the punishment of spiritual Israel has been set aside for a special time) to instruct us, to turn us in the right direction. His chastenings upon His children are as gentle proddings. If we will but yield to them, we will be directed in the right paths. The Book of Lamentations is the ideal representation of that “godly sorrow which worketh repentance not to be repented of” (2Co 7:10).

“This I recall in my mind; therefore have I hope” (v 21). Examination and evaluation are the tools of the man of reason; no matter what circumstances he finds himself in, he will seek the cause and the desired effect. How wonderful that God cares enough to remind us of our high calling! It is a confirmation that He is there; and if He is there, there is always hope. Jeremiah, the righteous remnant, Christ, and the saints all have known that all things work together for good to God’s elect. What a privilege to be chastised! For then we are not illegitimate, but we are truly sons!

Verses 22-30: The Lord’s Mercies, Service and Separation

These few verses demonstrate the attitude of life for Jeremiah and the righteous in view of God’s hand upon them. In the same sense it is prophetic of the life which Christ led, and the lives of all true believers in the ages since — a reliance upon the Lord’s mercies, a patient faith and hope, and a bearing of God’s yoke. These verses form the most sublime of exhortations. Here is the heart, the core, of Lamentations’ comfort and instruction for us.

“The LORD’S mercies” (v 22) in the Old Testament are invariably connected with God’s promises, or covenants. “Mercy” and “covenant” are used alongside one another in Psa 89:28. In v 1 of that psalm the author says:

“I will sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever:

with my mouth will I make known Thy faithfulness to all generations…”

The mercies of God he identifies in vv 3,4 and throughout the psalm:

“I have made a covenant with My chosen,

I have sworn unto David My servant,

Thy seed will I establish for ever,

and build up thy throne to all generations.”

God’s covenants of promise (to Adam, to Noah, to Abraham and the fathers, and to David) were the only channel through which God’s forgiveness and mercy might come to His people. The Law of Moses could only convict man of his sins for failing to keep it perfectly. But the promise of an everlasting inheritance in the land of Canaan implied very definitely a forgiveness of past sins leading to immortality. Law will not in the end bring us life; but mercy will! All of God’s various temporary blessings are only types of that one great future blessing.

God’s compassions are “new every morning” (v 23) for God watches over His servants always. Man must sleep, but God is always awake, never withdrawing His life-giving spirit for the benefit of all flesh. The Angel of His Presence keeps us (Isa 63:9). Remember the fresh manna from heaven which the Jews found every morning except the Sabbath, without fail (Exo 16:15,35; Num 11:9). In the Lord’s prayer we are taught to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread”. Like the manna in the wilderness: this daily bread points to the True Bread from heaven, the Truth of God, His promises which shall never fail, to give us encouragement each day!

“The LORD is my portion” or “inheritance” is the exact meaning of the name of Jeremiah’s father, Hilkiah. Again, this bears a direct relation to God’s promises:

“The LORD is the portion of mine inheritance

and of my cup: Thou maintainest my lot…

For Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell;

neither wilt Thou suffer Thine Holy One to see corruption.

Thou wilt shew me the path of life:

in Thy presence is fulness of joy;

at Thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Psa 16:5,10,11).

In conjunction with this is seen the hope of a resurrection to eternal life, first of Christ and then of all those “in Christ”.

“The LORD is good unto them that wait for Him” (v 25). The righteous are pictured by Isaiah as saying, in their time of deliverance, “We have waited for Him (Isa 25:9; 30:18). The same thought is found in the New Testament:

“Ye turned from idols to serve the living and true God; and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come…” (1Th 1:9, 10).

More is implied in these verses, however, than a simple passing of time now in expectation of receiving the promise at Christ’s return. A “watchman” of God was not only to wait, but to observe keenly the signs of the times, and to watch himself and keep his garments unspotted (Isa 21:7-12; Ezek 33:1-9). He was not to waste his opportunities, but to redeem the time, because the days were (and are!) evil (Eph 5:16; Col 4:5). And finally, he was to wait patiently and without complaint (Jam 5:7), not seeking his reward in this world, but in the age to come.

“Waiting for the Lord” has always implied a separation from evil. The way of true holiness has always meant a “sitting alone” (v 28). “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful” (Psa 1:1). Jeremiah — though preaching to all his neighbors — was to maintain a distinct and different lifestyle. The references to separation from the ways of the world are so numerous throughout Scripture: Deut 22:10; 2Co 6:14, 17; Heb 7:26; Jam 4:4; 1Pe 2:11, 12; 1Jo 2:15-17; 3:1; 4:5; 5:19; Gal 6:14; John 17:6-9.

Verses 31-33: The Central Theme: Chastening is Necessary and Helpful

This fact has been covered sufficiently in previous comments. Indeed, it seems to be the main message of the entire book:

“Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them that are exercised thereby” (Heb 12:11).

“For the Lord will not cast off forever” (v 31). The gospel of the kingdom is intimately connected with the “hope of Israel”, as Paul shows (Acts 28:20). God’s deliverance of the natural Jews from their enemies is related to, and concurrent with, the deliverance from mortality of His saints.

“For He doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men” (v 33). In Isa 28:21 the prophet comments upon a “strange work, a strange act” of God. The “strange work” is evidently performed upon the Jews (“that dwell in Jerusalem”– v 14), and it involves judgments. This work appears peculiar to the unenlightened Gentile, but it is eminently necessary for the Jews’ preparation. This affliction of His children is necessary, but in itself it gives God no pleasure. Neither does the death of the wicked give Him pleasure (Ezek 18:32; 33:11), for He is not willing that any should perish (2Pe 3:9) — but sadly, it is necessary that many do. God will vindicate His most Holy Name. He will be gracious at last to those who love Him, but He must of necessity be vengeful upon those who hate Him, or are indifferent toward Him.

Verses 34-36: “The LORD Approveth Not”

God cannot approve of certain things, and — much as He may hate to destroy even the wicked — it must be done to erase their ways from the earth; the earth must ultimately be filled with only those things which glorify Him (Num 21:14; Isa 11:9), and to this end He is working.

Note the things of which God disapproves — and thus by implication what pleases Him: These are things that men might regard as very mundane matters, matters of small consequence one way or the other. God considers them very important: the simple code of behavior found in the book of Proverbs, the essential day-to-day acts of goodness and justice (which often God alone sees). It was the weight of seemingly minor violations of His law, over a long period, that eventually caused God’s mercy to be exhausted. These sins (vv 34-36) are what brought the horrors of the Babylonian invasion. “Shall such “minor” offences as gossip and “clever” business practices cause us also to be driven from God’s presence?

Verses 37-41: A Living Man Should Not Complain

Under the hand of God’s chastening, the sons are commanded to “turn again”. “Wherefore doth a living man complain, a man for the punishment of his sins?” Two examples answer this question:–

1. The nation of Israel, once politically dead (v 6), is alive today because of God’s direction of world affairs (Ezek 37:10). All things are for their benefit.

2. We who were once “afar off” among the Gentiles, dead in trespasses and sins, have been made “alive” (Eph 2:13; Rom 6:13) in Christ (Gal 2:20), and are now God’s sons (1Jo 3:1-3), enduring chastening (Heb 12). Can we ever complain in view of what we would have been if God had not called us to the Truth? Let us, as Paul did, glory in tribulation, “knowing that tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope: and hope maketh not ashamed…” (Rom 5:3-5).

Verses 42-66: Prayer

“We have transgressed” (vv 42-54), but “Judge my cause” (vv 55-66). Two things are essential for us to do before God will hear our prayers and take our cause for His own:

1. We must realize our sinful condition, and
2. We must repent and seek to change our ways.

This prayer is a gradually unfolding realization of the ways of God, and His boundless love and compassion toward those who trust in Him.

“Behold our reproach.”

Again, as in the earlier chapters, Jeremiah dwells at length upon the details of the siege and the captivity. There is by now no doubt to the Jews that God is behind this whole affair; neither is there any doubt as to His reason (v 16). Indeed, the whole chapter is a sustained prayer to God — in every verse acknowledging His authority and power — and calling upon Him to intervene on behalf of His people. This is the elegy which traditionally closes every Hebrew lamentation (see the introduction).

Verses 1-15: “See Our Reproach” — Disgrace

After considering the terrible condition of the city and realising the cause of this great tribulation, the remnant is depicted as coming before God in PRAYER. “Behold our reproach, O Lord.” What condition had they been left in! The land which “they” had tilled, the homes “they” had built, the cattle “they” had acquired were no longer theirs. The water and the wood which were once free had to be bought. The number of their valiant men had diminished. Everything “they” had, had been given to them by God — and now He had taken it away. Their women were violated, the men of power were abased, the yoke of bondage was once more borne upon Israel. The people were helpless, unable to stop the fulfilment of the captor’s desires. The city that once had seen David dance in the streets because God was there, now takes up a song of mourning because He has departed. Because they had turned from God in their wantonness. God had turned from them.

As we witness these judgments, we still want to keep in mind God’s preservation of a faithful remnant, who endured these tribulations and grew by them, through the acknowledgment that they were totally and completely helpless without God.

“Remember” (v 1) — compare 1:20; 2:20; 3:19. Yahweh will remember the sufferings of the Jews. He will also remember the sufferings of the saints — as He did those of Christ:

“Remember, LORD, the reproach of Thy servants;

how I do bear in my bosom the reproach of all the mighty people;

wherewith Thine enemies have reproached, O LORD;

wherewith they have reproached the footsteps of Thine anointed” (Psa 89:50,51).

As James says, “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much” (James 5:16). The prayer of Hezekiah, when Jerusalem was threatened by the Northern Host, is a prime example (Isa 37:14-20). We are commanded to pray, in the same way, for the peace of Jerusalem (Psa 122:6), to “remember the Lord afar off, and let Jerusalem come into our minds” (Jer 51:50).

“Behold our reproach” — our shame, disgrace. The word “reproach” is from a root meaning “autumn” or “ripeness” — signifying the fulness of iniquity, reaping what has been sown (v 7). Jeremiah, true to his feeling for the “hope of Israel”, places himself among those who have grievously sinned.

“Our fathers have sinned, and are not” (v 7). The nation has at last recognized the reason for God’s heavy hand upon them, the same hand which fell upon their fathers. Compare the words of Zechariah, spoken 70 years later:

“Your fathers, where are they? and the prophets, do they live for ever? But My words and My statues, which I commanded My servants the prophets, did they not take hold of your fathers? and they returned and said, Like as the LORD of Hosts thought to do unto us, according to our ways, and according to our doings, so hath He dealt with us” (Zec 1:5,6).

“We have borne their iniquities.” The Jews, similarly, had in Christ’s time, filled up the measure of their fathers (Mat 23:32). Although it is a Scriptural principle that every man bears the responsibility for his own deeds, it is still true that national sins are often unpunished for a time, and judgment is stored up until a later date, when it all falls at once (Gen 15:13-16; 1Ki 21:26). Such was the case with the kingdom of Judah: the iniquities of the past — as well as their own — finally were laid upon the one generation of Jeremiah’s time.

“We gat our bread with the peril of our lives because of the sword of the wilderness” (v 9). Contrast this with the fortunes of the Jews who spent 40 years in the wilderness, where they gathered bread every day as they found it as the dew upon the ground. They had “no lack”. Also, the famine of bread in Jeremiah’s time was only the type of the far worse famine — the famine of God’s word (Amos 8:11,12). There were still prophets to speak to Israel, but most refused to hear — and thus suffered the hardships of a “famine” upon themselves while the bread of life lay on the table before them!

Verses 16-18: “The Crown is Fallen”–

In the first verses of this chapter, the disgrace of the Jews was the principal subject. In this section is stressed the fall of the nation, and its degradation during the long period of Gentile dominion:

“And they shall fall by the edge of the sword,

and shall be led away captive into all nations:

and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles,

until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled” (Luke 21:24).

In two senses the “crown” had fallen (v 16)–

1. The crown is a symbol of royalty — which was fallen (Ezek 21:26; Psa 89:39; Hos 3:4) because Israel had rejected God to rule over them (as in 1Sa 8:7).

2. The crown symbolises obedience to the Truth (Rev 2:10;3:11), dedication and priesthood (Exo 28:36-38) — which were grievously lacking.

Verses 19-22: The Everlasting Throne: A Hope Of Renewal

The previous section dealt with the overthrow of the Jewish throne. That is contrasted in this section with the sureness of God’s throne and God’s crown. This final chapter is a prayer in itself, a fitting conclusion to Lamentations. These last verses are a prayer within the prayer — a final summation of thought, a climactic entreaty to God — for all times and for all peoples who have experienced affliction at His hand:

“Turn thou us unto Thee… renew our days as of old.”

Oh, How is Zion’s glory gone!

And vengeance, like a flood,

Hath quenched her power, and not a stone

Marks where her temple stood.

How are thy streets, Jerusalem,

By careless strangers trod!

And crush’d thy once bright diadem,

Before the wrath of God!

O Lord, look down with pitying eye

Upon Thy ancient race;

And bring Thy promised mercy nigh

And show Thy saving grace.

Oh, bring Thy scatter’d sheep again,

And feed them as of old;

Let Christ o’er all his people reign,

One Shepherd and one fold.

“For the sins of her prophets…”

The third chapter of Lamentations is really the high point of the book. In the last two chapters Jeremiah returns to a further consideration of the pitiful state of Zion, due to her continuing apostasy. However, these last two chapters are distinct from the first two in that they tell of sincere repentance, and they outline more clearly the coming deliverance “to turn back the captivity” of Israel (4:21,22).

Here we have one of the most moving and horrifying pictures of suffering and famine which inevitably followed the invasion of Judah. There is the terrible portrayal of famine, and consequent cruelty, as those that remained behind struggled frantically to survive (vv 4,5).

Verses 1-12: Contrast of Sons of Zion: Fine Gold to Earthen Pitchers–

The most precious possession — the greatest natural resource of any nation — is its people. Thus, the sons of Zion are symbolised by gold and precious stones. A nation’s vitality is determined by the condition, motivation, and loyalty of its citizens. This was especially true of Judah, for their national economy was as strong as their faithfulness to God. When the sons of Zion were faithful, they were precious in God’s eyes and He became their staff and shield. When they were unfaithful, God became the rod of correction to them, and they became base in His eyes. They were removed from their place of pre-eminence over the nations and like a shattered piece of pottery they were broken and scattered.

In times of stress people often lose whatever “godliness” they might possess. Israel, for example, had become lower than animals with respect to responsibility to their young (2Ki 6:25-29). This is a picture of futility — even depravity, brought about by great tribulation. The city’s inhabitants, once the picture of health, became spiritually and physically “withered”.

“How is the gold become dim!” (v 1): Gold is used throughout the Bible as a symbol of faith — a tried faith in God, as gold that has passed through the fire and been purified (1Pe 1:7; Job 23:10). Thus, gold or faith is the basis for the kingdom of God, both in the past and in the future. In Jeremiah’s time, true faith had all but completely disappeared, and thus the kingdom was removed from the “daughter of Zion” (Ezek 21:25-27). The gold became dim (dark) because of impurities.

Gold was found in abundance in Solomon’s temple, but Nebuchadnezzar’s hordes made short work of it (1Ki 6:22; 2Ki 25:9,10).

“How is the most fine gold changed!” This is a reference to a deed of Solomon, but it is typical of the lack of faith in God common to most men and most times — especially so to Jeremiah’s time. Solomon possessed 300 gold shields (1Ki 10:17) — symbols of faith in God (cp Eph 6:16 — “the shield of faith”). But he unwisely used his wealth to buy leagues with other nations, and thus to glorify the flesh and his own ingenuity. This did not profit him, and after his death Shishak of Egypt removed the remainder of the gold shields during the reign of Rehoboam (1Ki 14:26,27). And Rehoboam replaced the shields of gold with shields of brass — or copper — denoting trust in man. The fine gold was changed!

“The stones of the sanctuary are poured out in the top of every street.” Stones are often representative of people; and the type of stone determines the type of person intended. Peter’s profession of faith in the Messiahship of Jesus is called a “rock” (Mat 16:16) — the sturdy foundation of the Holy City (Rev 21:14), the stones of God’s sanctuary or temple — because all the “stones” of that eternal city will have professed the same faith as Peter. They will be “lively (or living) stones” built up around Christ — the “chief cornerstone” (Isa 28:16; Psa 118:22; Acts 4:11), the “rock” in the wilderness (1Co 10:1-4). Thus Jeremiah is here bewailing the righteous.

“How are they esteemed as earthen pitchers” (v 2). Those who might have been precious stones and fine gold instead failed to please God; and they were to be broken, as in Jer 19:11 and Isa 30:14.

Man is an earthen vessel, made by God (Jer 18:6; Rom 9:21). He must be filled — or fill himself — with the “treasure” of God’s knowledge (2Co 4:6, 7), or else he will be destroyed as vessels of wood and earth (2Ti 2:20).

Verses 13-16: Sins of the Leaders

It is natural, when seeking to place the blame for Judah’s apostasy, to turn first to the leaders: the prophets (such as the deceitful Hananiah — Jer 28) and the priests (This is certainly a warning to any of those who aspire to be leaders in the Ecclesia). The “prophets” of Jeremiah’s and Ezekiel’s time spoke smooth words, and promised good fortune for all. They professed a cheery outlook when God’s true prophets foresaw darkness and punishment. Ezekiel warned against such prophets, and promised that they would be held accountable for failing to “declare the whole counsel of God” in warning of punishment to come:

“But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman’s hand” (Ezek 33:6).

The true watchman must sound an early warning when sin threatens, even though those he arouses from their slumber may be ungrateful. It is better to risk offending man than to offend God (Acts 4:19; 5:29).

Verses 17-20: Vain Hopes

These verses imply first of all that the common people were in a great measure responsible also for the downfall of Judah. They were deceived by their leaders, it is true; but they willingly allowed themselves to be deceived. They are condemned for their false trust, and for their ears which itched to hear “smooth things” (Isa 30:10).

These verses also stress the vain hopes in which Judah trusted — the nation that could not save them, the ruler that could not save them, the beliefs that could not save them, the false sense of security that could only hasten their doom.

“The breath of our nostrils, the anointed of the LORD” (v 20) — To whom was Jeremiah referring? Perhaps there are several answers:

1. Josiah, the last righteous king of Judah, and a type of Christ in many ways, but who had died 608 BC (2Ch 35:25).

2. Zedekiah, Judah’s last king, and the center of their feeble hopes, although a wicked man — who was carried captive.

3. Prophetically: Christ, the only true hope of Israel (Luke 24:21), who was slain (Luke 19:14), leading to the dispersion of 70 AD.

“He was taken in their pits” —

1. The “pit” of nations — from 588 BC to the present time.
2. Death, which Christ suffered (Luke 24:25, 26) to deliver others from the same “pit” (Psa 107:20).

“Of whom we said, Under his shadow we shall live among the heathen” —

1. The Jews’ false hopes in the kingship of Zedekiah.
2. The true hope found in Christ, fulfilled in vv 21,22 — when Israel is cleansed (Zec 13:1).

Verses 21-22: The Cup Passes to Edom

The “daughter of Edom” (v 21) had allied herself with Babylon against Judah (Oba 1:11: Joel 3:19; Psa 137:7). Edom may symbolise “all nations” (in Isa 34 the two are used interchangeably). “Edom”, as “Adam”, is the Hebrew word for “red”, or “flesh”. Thus it is a fitting designation for those last great fleshly powers of Gentile times who will oppress Israel: the Arabs (some of whom occupy the ancient territory of Edom) and the Russian “Reds”. These are the powers to be destroyed by Christ and the “saviours” who come up on Mount Zion (Isa 63:1; Oba 1:21).

“Edom” is said to dwell in the land of Uz. “Uz” signifies “wisdom, advice, counsel” — its citizens were famed for their learning — typical of all Gentile enemies of Israel, who boast in the “wisdom of this world” (Jer 9:23) but are blind to the one “hope of Israel”.

Verse 1:

“How doth the city sit solitary (‘deserted’ — NIV),

that was full of people”; Compare Isa 3:8.

Well-known among students of ancient history is a medal struck by a Greek artist of the Roman Court to commemorate the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus and Vespasian in 70 AD It is called “Judea Capta” (“Judah Subjected”), and it depicts a powerful soldier standing triumphantly over a helpless woman, who sits destitute upon the ground. How did this come about? Let us ask ourselves and learn the answer well. It came about because Judah neglected its true strength — the Lord their God.

What do we naturally think of when we hear the words “many people”? Ideas that come to mind are a party, or a market place — people milling around, laughing, joking and empty of serious thoughts. This is how Isaiah pictured this same city, Jerusalem — “full of stirs, a tumultuous city, a joyous city” (Isa 22:2); a city, in fact, thoroughly opposed to the Divine will, and heedless of her impending punishment:

“And in that day did the Lord GOD of hosts call to weeping, and to mourning, and to baldness, and to girding with sackcloth: And behold (instead) joy and gladness, slaying oxen, and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine: let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we shall die” (Isa 22:12,13).

To those who thought in their hearts, “Peace and safety”, came instead sudden destruction (1Th 5:3) by the wrath of God: “I will make your cities waste… desolation”, He had threatened through His prophet Moses (Lev 26:14-16, 31-35). But the people had continued to delight themselves in every imaginable form of wickedness until it was too late (Note the summary of Nebuchadnezzar’s destructions in Jer 52:12-23 — and remember that he was merely God’s “servant” — Jer 25:9 — to perform this).

“As a widow”: The city of Jerusalem had lost her husband, her lord and her protector (Jer 2:2). All of the pains associated with widowhood were hers — an absence of her “husband’s” favor and protection; sorrow and grief; a pitiful feeling of helplessness (Isa 54:6; Hos 3:3, 4).

Again, let us remember why such things came upon Jerusalem:

“Behold, for your iniquities have ye sold yourselves (ie, into slavery), and for your transgressions is your mother put away” (Isa 50:1). “Your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid His face from you” (Isa 59:2).

“She that was great among the nations”: Israel, in its beginning as a kingdom, was lavishly praised by Hiram of Tyre (“this great people” — 1Ki 5:7) and the queen of Sheba, who saw Solomon’s wealth (1Ki 10). The united kingdom of Solomon’s time must have been very nearly unsurpassed in commerce and power. And the kingdom of Judah continued to prosper at times in the years following the division of the kingdom.

“Princess among the provinces”: Especially in the times of David, Solomon, and Hezekiah, neighbouring countries served Jerusalem and Judah (1Ki 4:21; 1Ch 9:26; 32:23).

“How is she become tributary”: We are perhaps too accustomed to viewing Judah, during the period of the kings, as having much less majesty and authority than she actually had. Only when we realize what a magnificent position she once occupied, can such a phrase as this have its proper effect upon us. Just as God brought the splendour of Egypt and Babylon to the dust, so was He able to humble Judah. The word “tributary” refers to personal servitude (the same word as in Josh 16:10; 17:13). Compare Lam 5:8,13, 16. The princess had become a “slave” (NIV), a “vassal” (RSV).

Verse 2:

“She weepeth sore in the night”:

The Hebrew is most expressive: “Weeping she weepeth”. Her one occupation is weeping. The night is a darkness in the Jewish “heavens”, or ruling places. For 2500 years, Jerusalem has been trodden down. And she will continue to be so “until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled” (Luke 21:24). “Night” such as we see it in the world around us is assuredly a time of weeping and sorrow — for the natural Jews, who must battle ceaselessly with their many enemies.

For the saints as well, it is a time of mourning, for the bridegroom is still away (Luke 5:35). But the night in which we weep is a time for watching as well:

“Watchman, what of the night?” (Isa 21:11).

As followers of Christ, we must not allow the “night” to lull us into slumber:

“We are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others, but let us watch and be sober” (1Th 5:5, 6).

“Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning” (Psa 30:5). Joy will come to us if we are truly looking for and earnestly desiring the day of our Lord’s return. “Arise, cry out in the night” (Lam 2:19).

“I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem,

which shall never hold their peace day nor night;

Ye that make mention of the LORD, keep not silence,

and give Him no rest, till He establish,

and till He make Jerusalem a praise in the earth” (Isa 62:6,7).

The night around is dark indeed. How are we using our time? Are we searching fruitlessly for pleasure in the dark shadows of the night? Or are we behaving ourselves as “children of the light” — soon to dawn over all the earth? “Behold, the bridegroom cometh” (Mat 25:6).

“Her tears are on her cheeks”: The cheek is used scripturally as a symbol of persecution and submission — “Turn the other cheek” (Mat 5:39). For Abraham’s natural seed today, the persecution is endured involuntarily. For us, Abraham’s true seed and heirs according to the promise, submission must be given freely, lovingly. For we know that whatever we might endure now is merely God’s schooling for our future:

“We glory in tribulations also…” (Rom 5:3).

“Among all her lovers…”: Solomon inadvertently planted the seeds which led to Judah’s prostitution among the nations. He loved many strange women (1Ki 11). And these indiscretions led in short order to idol worship in the land and his very condoning of it. Furthermore, it led to political alliances of convenience with Gentile nations, rather than a single-minded faith and trust in God.

Later Judah trusted upon Egypt (Jer 2:36; Isa 30:7; 36:6), Babylon (Isa 39:3, 4) and Edom and Mob. Her alliances with such peoples is painfully reminiscent of the great whore, “with whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication” (Rev 17:2).

“All her friends have dealt treacherously with her,

they are become her enemies”: All her flirtations were of no avail. As Ezekiel prophesied,

“Therefore, O Aholibah (or Jerusalem, v 8), thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will raise up thy lovers against thee…” (Ezek 23:22).

None of Judah’s former friends came to her aid. Edom (Lam 4:21, 22; Oba 1:11, 12; Psa 137:7) and Ammon (Ezek 25:3, 6; Jer 40:14), who should have helped Judah, rejected even their ties of kinship and turned against her.

The Jews had rejected the strong arm of God, and they had chosen instead to lean on the friendly surrounding nations. These remained friendly only as long as it was advantageous to their own interests. When the Babylonians threatened, Jerusalem learned the lesson of Pro 19:6,7:

“Many will intreat the favour of the prince:

and every man is a friend to him that giveth gifts.

All the brethren of the poor do hate him:

(For Judah was ‘poor’ in faith and thus poor in strength)–

how much more do his friends go far from him?

he pursueth them with words, yet they are wanting to him.”

Let us learn this lesson well: No amount of preparation or planning or building of barns — or diplomacy — can take the place of trust in God. Riches will be lost or spent, youth and strength will evaporate, friends will desert us when most needed, and — at last — life itself will be taken from us. Our only deliverance, then, is found in the words of Paul:

“For our conversation (or our life, our treasure, and our hope) is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ…” (Phi 3:20).

Verse 3:

“Judah is gone into captivity because of affliction,

and because of great servitude”: Whether this phrase refers to Judah’s sins (afflicting the innocent — Jer 2:34), Judah’s punishments (ie, v 2), or both, is not completely certain.

Any of these would be appropriate.

“She dwelleth among the heathen”: When God maintained Israel as a separate nation, she was constantly straining at His bonds to return to the practice of the heathen nations around her. This was notably true for Moses’ generation, which had just left Egypt. At last Israel’s wish was realized — in a much different way than expected: her eminence was taken away, her people “perished among the heathen”, and they that were left alive “pined away in their iniquity in their enemies’ land” (Lev 26:36-39).

“She findeth no rest”: “And among these nations thou shalt find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest… And thy life shall hang in doubt before thee…” (Deut 28:65, 66).

“Her persecutors (‘pursuers’ — RSV) overtook her between the straits”: The idea is that Israel, as a wanderer by God’s decree, finds herself trapped by thieves in a narrow pass, with no escape in sight. Perhaps this is a reference to the capture of Zedekiah and his captains, as they tried to escape from Jerusalem “between the two walls” (Jer 52:7; cp Lam 4:18, 19).

Verse 4:

“The ways of Zion do mourn”: The roads leading to Jerusalem were empty, since none came to the solemn feasts (2:6). But contrast this picture of desolation with the prophecy of Isaiah concerning the future kingdom:

“And an highway shall be there, and a way, and

it shall be called The way of holiness… And

the ransomed of the LORD shall return” (Isa 35:8, 10).

All the land was to mourn:

“The earth mourneth, and fadeth away…

because they have transgressed the laws…” (Isa 24:4, 5).

Jeremiah had promised the same punishment — in Jer 9:11 and 33:10-12. But again, the desolation is contrasted with the future blessedness of the same “ways of Zion”:

“Again, in this place, which is desolate without man and without beast… shall be an habitation of shepherds causing their flocks to lie down… (when) the Branch of righteousness shall grow up” (Jer 33:12, 15).

The “ways of Zion” mourned because of the wickedness of their inhabitants. But they will rejoice when Christ as king turns ungodliness from Jacob, and Israel leads the nations up to Jerusalem (Rom 11:26, Zec 8:22-3).

“None come to the solemn feasts”: The three annual feasts, which all the men of Israel were to attend — the Passover, Pentecost (the firstfruits), and the Feast of Tabernacles. But these, of course, ceased with the captivity:

“He hath violently taken away His tabernacle…

he hath destroyed His places of the assembly…

The LORD hath caused the solemn feasts…

to be forgotten in Zion” (2:6).

“All her gates are desolate”: Compare Jer 14:2. In eastern cities in Biblical times, the gates of a city were the main places of commerce — as well as of legal and social activities (5:14; Ruth 4:1; Job 29:7; Pro 31:23). They would be especially alive during the various feasts.

“Her priests sigh”: The priests, supposedly the spiritual leaders of Judah, are condemned in 4:13-16, for their grievous iniquity. Perhaps they “sigh” because of the famine (vv 11, 12, 18-20).

“Sigh”: The Hebrew word for “sigh” appears also in vv 8, 11 and 21.

“Her virgins are afflicted”: Compare 5:11, 13. The RSV follows the LXX in amending the text to read “… have been dragged away”. The virgins are mentioned as playing upon instruments on certain times of joyful celebration (Exo 15:20; Jer 31:13; Psa 68:25).

Verse 5:

“Her adversaries are the chief,

her enemies prosper”: This is just as Moses had warned the children of Israel, that if they disobeyed God,

“The stranger that is within thee shall get up above thee very high; and

thou shalt come down very low…

He shall be the head, and thou shall be the tail” (Deut 28:43, 44).

“Her children are gone into captivity before the enemy”: The “children of Zion” were carried away by Nebuchadnezzar (Jer 52:28-30), but these same children, called the “children of Rachel”, “shall come again from the land of the enemy” (Jer 31:16) in the last days.

Verse 6:

“And from the daughter of Zion all her beauty is departed”: The priestly garments of Aaron and his sons were given them “for glory and for beauty” (Exo 28:2). The beauty which they represented was the beauty of righteousness and holiness. This type of beauty had departed from the promiscuous daughter of Zion; she no longer maintained the “ornament of a meek and a quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price” (1Pe 3:4).

The inner beauty had departed. Therefore it was left for God next to remove the external beauty, which had been meant to signify the righteousness of the Jews: the temple, the throne, the priesthood, and the religious services all departed.

The greatest beauty which the Jews possessed was God’s personal presence in their midst:

“Cry out and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion:

for great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee” (Isa 12:6).

“God is known in her palaces for a refuge” (Psa 48:3).

This, sadly, was also taken away at the time of the captivity. The glory of Yahweh departed in successive stages — from the sanctuary, and then from the city, until it came to the Mount of Olives on the east of Jerusalem, from whence it disappeared (Ezek 9:5; 10:4; 11:22, 23).

We must note again, as we have before, that God will restore what He has taken away. The same glory of God will return, in a time of much greater happiness than the time of its removal. In the last days, “his feet shall stand upon the Mount of Olives” (Zec 14:4). The glorious company of saints, led by Christ, will approach the city (Isa 63:1; Song 3:6, 7). This is what Ezekiel is referring to when he speaks in Ezek 43:2, 5:

“The glory of the God of Israel came from

the way of the east (‘the sun’s rising’ — Rev 16:12)…

and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the house.”

“Her princes are become like harts that find no pasture”: David, in Psa 42:1, presents a picture of a hart panting after water in a dry and thirsty land. This is the picture intended here. The land of Israel has figuratively become a desert: the “water of life”, the true knowledge and fear of God, has vanished.

Also, the hart symbolizes timidity and meekness. The strong princes of Judah have become no better than cowards — who flee from their enemies, as did Zedekiah (2Ki 25:5; Jer 39:5). Those who once walked with great dignity and authority now run like hungry and frightened deer, not even looking behind to their children who depended upon them (Jer 47:3).

Verse 7:

“In the days of her affliction and of her miseries

Jerusalem remembered all her pleasant things

that she had in the days of old,

when her people fell into the hand of the enemy,

and none did help her:

the adversaries saw her,

and did mock at her sabbaths”: See 2:15-17:

“All that pass by clap their hands at thee…

Is this the city that men call The perfection

of beauty. The joy of the whole earth?…

He hath caused thine enemy to rejoice over thee…”

At this time, the sabbaths had no religious services. The service which has always set the Jews apart from surrounding peoples, more than any other, is the commemoration of the Sabbath. Thus the cessation of this was the target of much scorn. But, of course, this curtailment was the work of God — as is explained in Jer 25:8, 11. Judah had not observed her sabbaths as she should have, when she had the chance. Therefore, God forced her to observe the sabbath rest for 70 years:

“Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, Because ye have not heard My words… this whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.”

Verse 8:

“Jerusalem hath grievously sinned,

therefore she is removed”: Jerusalem — or the nation of Judah — is presented here as a woman, a wicked adulteress, who has forsaken Yahweh her true husband (Isa 54:5; Hos 2:2) and who has sinned among her many lovers (v 2).

Thus, Judah is likened to a woman legally and ceremonially “unclean” (NIV) under the Law (vv 9, 17; Lev 12:2; 15:19), who is to be separated from the people.

The marginal rendering of this passage offers a different idea, though related to this: “She is become a wandering”. Jeremiah used the same phrase in Jer 34:17, where the Jews’ future dispersion is meant:

“I will make you to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth.”

“All that honoured her despise her,

because they have seen her nakedness”: Exposure of one’s body was, to the Hebrews, a terrible disgrace — a shame they felt much more deeply than most modern peoples would. Stripping was thus part of the punishment meted out to a prostitute (Ezek 16:35-39; 23:29), and it is used, metaphorically, of the punishment of nations (Isa 47:2, 3; Lam 4:21; Nah. 3:5).

Israel’s glorious garments of holiness (cp Aaron’s garments, in Exo 28) were removed, leaving her — as the Laodiceans — “poor and blind and naked” (Rev 3:17). The Jews had forgotten their own clothing — the guilt was their own:

“Can a maid forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire?

Yet my people have forgotten Me days without number” (Jer 2:32).

The lessons for us from Israel’s experiences are well worth noting: our conduct is always obvious to the aliens around us, and they judge all Christadelphians by us. Furthermore, they judge God by our example. We are God’s representatives to the world, and as such we bear a tremendous responsibility. If we live our faith honestly, letting our light shine before men, then the Gentiles will glorify God because of us (1Pe 3:1). But if we are seen to be less than we proclaim to be, we will have the opposite effect on our friends and neighbors.

Also, we must take steps to cover the “nakedness” of our sins. We have done this first in baptism, by “putting on Christ”, “putting on the new man of righteousness and true holiness” (Eph 4:24). Then we must continually strive to keep our garments pure and spotless, looking to God for forgiveness when we fail, so that we will be properly dressed when we are called to appear at the marriage feast.

Verse 9:

“Her filthiness is in her skirts”: This filthiness is, first of all, the same as the legal impurity of v 8 (cp Jer 13:27), the defilement of her spiritual adulteries. But also it is the blood of her victims:

“Also in thy skirts is found the blood of the souls of the poor innocents…” (Jer 2:34).

In this persecution of the innocent (Mat 23:34, 35), including Christ, Jerusalem bears a close resemblance to the other “holy city” (so-called), “Babylon the Great” and her hideous system:

“And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus” (Rev 17:6; 18:24).

“She remembereth not her last end”: “She took no thought of her doom” (RSV). That is, she did not remember what God had threatened would be her end — the desolation she is experiencing here. God had pleaded incessantly for her to change her ways, but to no avail (Deut 32:29; Isa 65:2). Again, Jerusalem is comparable to “Babylon” of the Apocalypse, in her stubbornness:

“And thou saidst, I shall be a lady forever: so that thou didst not lay these things to thy heart, neither didst remember the latter end of it” (Isa 47:7; cp Rev 18:7).

“Therefore she came down wonderfully”: The verb “yarad” (to come down) is used of the humiliation of persons in Ezek 30:6 and Isa 47:1. Why was Israel humbled? “Because their tongue and their doings are against the LORD” (Isa 3:8). This was just as God had said, in Jer 13:17,18.

Verse 10:

“The adversary hath spread out his hand

upon all her pleasant things”: Called “precious” (RSV) or “desirable things” (margin). See note v 6 (“All her beauty is departed”). This includes the vessels of the temple, called “goodly vessels” (or “vessels of desire” — mg) in 2Ch 36:10, 19. Some of these vessels were brought to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar; the others were destroyed when God’s house was burned. Jeremiah himself had predicted these things (Jer 15:13; 20:5).

“For she hath seen that the heathen entered into her sanctuary, whom Thou didst command that they should not enter into Thy congregation”: Compare Deut 23:3,4. In her life, the daughter of Zion had ignored the intents of such commands as these and had mingled freely with aliens and set up their gods in Yahweh’s house (eg, 2Ki 21:7). She thus brought these punishments upon herself.

Verse 11:

“All her people sigh, they seek bread; they have given their pleasant things for meat

to relieve the soul”: Again, the reference is to the famines of a besieged city, Jerusalem (see Jer 37:21; 38:9; 52:6). To make things worse Jeremiah prophesied of a dearth (Jer 14:1-6).

“Pleasant things”: Same word as v 10.

“I am become vile”: “I am despised” (RSV, NIV). Here is the beginning of Israel’s recognition of her guilt, to be seen more fully in v 18 and in ch.2. The narrative is interrupted by an outburst of the voice of the personified city — a desperate cry from one overcome by grief and despair.

Verse 12:

“Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by?

behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is done unto me,

wherewith the LORD hath afflicted me in the day of His fierce anger”:

Compare 2:15. The fallen daughter of Zion speaks a challenging message to the mockers who pass by. This scene demonstrates the utter indifference of the Gentiles to the plight of the Jews, and often their hostility (Psa 89:41).

This is really a condemnation of the Gentiles, because of their complete lack of understanding of the “hope of Israel” (Acts 28:20). “Hath God cast away His people, whom He foreknew?” (Rom 11:1) The unenlightened Gentile would answer, “Yes!” — and thus dismiss Paul’s words to the Roman brethren:

“Blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved… for this is My covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins” (Rom 11:25-27).

It is true that the Lord has afflicted Israel. But it is also true that “Salvation is (still) of the Jews” (John 4:22). In the last days, God plans to correct her and teach her His truth and place her in the most eminent position among the mortal nations of Christ’s kingdom, as the “first dominion” (Mic 4:8). Then ten men shall take hold of the skirt of a Jew; to go with him to worship his God (Zec 8:20-23).

“To crush my young men”: Compare 3:34; 5:13.

“As in a winepress”: Another common symbol of God’s judgments (Isa 63:2, 3; Rev 14:19; 19:15; Joel 3:13). This figure implies a ripeness for punishment. It is a vivid, even a gruesome symbol — the blood squeezed out of bodies like juice squeezed out of grapes.

This figure of speech implies also that those to be punished belong to God — that He is the Owner of the vineyard, so to speak, and that He is the Master of all (4:4; 17:4; 21:12). The fire from above is the “consuming fire” (Heb 12:29) of God’s judgment, the fiery two-edged sword of God’s word — to divide soul from spirit, to try and perfect men, and to discern the thoughts and intents of the heart (1Pe 1:7; Heb 4:12, 13). The wicked cannot stand such a searching fire, and it prevails against them. But a righteous remnant survives this “fire in their bones” (Jer 20:9, for example), and emerges more fit for God’s use.

“He hath spread a net for my feet”: A figure of speech found also in Ezek 12:13; Hos 7:12 and Jer 50:24. But the Jews made their own trap; they could not blame God for any unjust actions. They caught themselves in the net of their own sins. This is pictured in Pro 1:16-18:

“For their feet run to evil,

and make haste to shed blood.

Surely in vain the net is spread

in the sight of any bird.

And they lay wait for their own blood:

they lurk privily for their own lives.”

And also in Pro 5:22:

“His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself,

and he shall be holden with the cords of his sins.”

“He hath turned me back”: He hath confused them (cp Psa 35:4; 70:2, 3; Isa 42:17), giving them over to a reprobate mind (Rom 1:28), sending upon them strong delusion (2Th 2:11), because they never appreciated the privilege they had once possessed.

“He hath made me desolate”: See v 1 and Isa 3:26. A picture of utter, hopeless misery — “There is none to comfort her”. The same word is used of Tamar after her humiliation by Amnon (2Sa 13:20).

Verse 14:

“The yoke of my transgressions”: This represents, first of all, Israel’s burden of sin, pressing down heavily upon its shoulders. The “yoke” was slavery, from which the children of Israel had been freed in Moses’ day (Lev 26:13) — just as we are freed from the yoke of slavery to sin at baptism.

But another “yoke” was waiting for them in Jeremiah’s time: Babylon’s “yoke of iron” (Deut 28:48; Jer 28:14). This yoke was the work of God’s “servant” Nebuchadnezzar (Jer 25:9), and it was to be accepted humbly as a chastening from God (Jer 37:8-12). But the Jews fought against receiving the yoke, and thus the hand of God became firmer and firmer upon them.

For us, the saints, there is the lesson here to submit ourselves meekly to our Father and His chastening (Heb 12:5, 6, 11) — to seek to learn the lessons He might teach us. For this reason, the same symbol of the yoke is used particularly in relation to us:

“It is good for a man that he bear the yoke

in his youth” (Lam 3:27).

And Jesus tells us:

“Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls” (Mat 11:29).

“They are wreathed”: ie, “twisted together” or “entwined”, speaking of the strength of the cords of the yoke.

“From whom I am not able to rise up”: “They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches; None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him…” (Psa 49:6, 7). For those among the Jews who might learn the lesson from their condition: “My (ie God’s) strength is made perfect in weakness… Therefore I (Paul) take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in persecutions… for when I am weak, then am I strong” (2Co 12:9, 10).

Verse 15:

“The Lord hath trodden under foot all my mighty men in the midst of me”: God fought against Jerusalem (2:5, 7). Judah’s “heroes” were captured in the midst of the city (2Ki 24:14-16) or else they fled in fear (25:4).

“An assembly against me…”: A solemn assembly called by God, as a feast (Lev 23:4). The enemies of Israel are called to witness and partake of the sacrifice of Israel herself, upon her own altar — Jerusalem:

“Woe to Ariel, to Ariel (sig. ‘God’s altar’), the city where David

dwelt… And I will camp against thee round about, and will lay siege

against thee… the multitude of all the nations that fight against

Ariel…” (Isa 29:1, 3, 7).

Other passages also represent Yahweh’s judgment upon Israel and other nations as sacrificial feasts (Zep 1:7, 8; Jer 46:10; Ezek 39:17-20; Isa 34:6).

“To crush my young men”: Compare 3:34; 5:13.

“As in a winepress”: Another common symbol of God’s judgments (Isa 63:2, 3; Rev 14:19; 19:15; Joel 3:13). This figure implies a ripeness for punishment. It is a vivid, even a gruesome symbol — the blood squeezed out of bodies like juice squeezed out of grapes.

This figure of speech implies also that those to be punished belong to God — that He is the Owner of the vineyard, so to speak, and that He is the Master of all flesh, and that He has the right to tread them down. Jeremiah amplifies this in Jer 14:17 by saying that the virgin daughter of his people is “trodden down” by sword and famine.

In Lam 1:15, Israel is trodden down “as in a winepress” by God. In 4:21, 22, “the daughter of Edom” is marked out to receive retribution (as a “cup”) for her part in this treading-down of Israel. And, finally, in Isa 63:2, 3 the particulars are given: Edom’s “cup” is produced from the treading of the winepress by the One who is “mighty to save” His people Israel!

Verse 16:

“For these things I weep”: See more in 3:48, 49.

“My children”: See 5:13.

“Desolate”: See 1:13.

Verse 17:

“Zion spreadeth forth her hands”:

1. Zion spreads her hands in prayer to God (cp Exo 9:29; 1Ki 8:22, 38). But her efforts are made useless by her many sins and her unchanged attitude (Isa 1:15-17).

2. Or perhaps Zion spreads forth her hands merely in lament and travail — with no thought of prayer, as Jeremiah prophesied in Jer 4:31.

“Jerusalem is as a menstruous woman”: Legal defilement (see vv 8, 9; Lev 15: 19-27), but also a type of moral and spiritual defilement, an “unclean” state (Lam 4:15). See also Ezekiel 36:17:

“When the house of Israel dwelt in their own land, they defiled it by

their own way and by their own doings: their way was before me as the

uncleanness of a removed woman.”

But even in the depths of their filthiness, the Jews will be offered the promise of being cleansed and healed by God:

“For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land. Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put My spirit within you, and cause you to walk in My statutes, and ye shall keep My judgments, and do them” (Ezek 36:24-27).

“In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness” (Zec 13:1).

Verse 18:

“The Lord is righteous;

for I have rebelled against His commandment”: Literally, “His mouth” (same word as in Job 39:27; Pro 8:29). God is inherently good (Rom 1:17; Mat 19:17; Rev 16:5-7; 19:2; Psa 129:4). Man is inherently evil (Jer 17:9; Eccl 8:11; 1Co 2:11; Mat 15:18-19). These two facts are cardinal points of the Bible’s teaching.

Israel is more responsible to God than the other nations: “You only have I known…” (Amos 3:2); “He sheweth his word unto Jacob…” (Psa 147:19). Thus Israel has sorer punishment from God (see 4:16). Again, the lesson is very strongly outlined for us, as we see these punishments upon Jerusalem in 590 BC (and 70 AD). Just as the Jews at Mount Sinai, we have trembled before God and promised to do whatsoever He has commanded. Shall we meet the same fate as they did, and as their descendants did at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar and Titus? “How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation?” (Heb 2:3) For us, who know God’s laws and commands, there awaits the sorer punishment of the “many stripes”.

“Hear, I pray you, all people”: Again, it is stressed that the lesson of Jerusalem’s fall is for all people who seek to serve God (cp v 12). These things happened for “our admonition” (1Co 10:11).

“Behold my sorrow”: Or “suffering” (RSV, NIV).

Verse 19:

“My lovers”: See notes on v 2.

“My priests and my elders”: The ones to whom the Jews looked for spiritual leadership and direction were the most deeply mired in iniquity. They bound heavy (and unnecessary) burdens, and grievous to be borne, and laid them upon the shoulders of their followers; but they themselves made no effort to carry them (Mat 23:4). The blind leading the blind, all fell into the ditch. See more in v 4; 2:20; 4:7-9; 5:12.

“While they sought their meat to relieve their souls”: See notes, v 11.

Verse 20:

“Abroad the sword bereaveth”: Those who tried to flee for protection, possibly in Egypt, met certain death (Jer 9:21, 22; 14:18; Ezek 7:15). They could not escape God.

“At home there is as death”: Famine, pestilence for those who remained and tried to resist Nebuchadnezzar (v 11; Jer 9:21; 2Ki 25:3), for they were resisting God.

Verse 21:

“There is none to comfort me”: The seventh, and final, time that this thought is expressed (vv 2, 3, 7, 9, 16, 17, 21), for in the next chapter a remnant in Zion begins to realize that their help and comfort will surely come, from God (2:18, 19).

“They shall be like unto me”: This is the fearful but wonderful promise, spoken of more fully in 4:21, 22 in connection with “Edom”, a symbol of all Israel’s enemies who rejoice at the misfortunes of the “hope of Israel”. It was literally Edom who said of Jerusalem, “Rase it, rase it, even to the foundations thereof…” (Psa 137:7). From the time it turned against its former friends, Edom travelled slowly downward in esteem and power among the nations, becoming subservient to Babylon and Rome, losing its former territory and being forced to dwell among the Jews, and at last being annihilated by the Roman conquerors. In contrast to the nations of Mob and Ammon, Edom is the scene of “perpetual desolations”. Her fate, with no chance for repentance, stands as a type of all the “Edoms” at the present time who will remain unchanged in their hostility toward Israel. “For the day of the LORD is near upon all the heathen” (Oba 1:15). “I will curse him that curseth thee” (Gen 12:3). See also Joel 3:19; Zec 12:2, 3; Jer 25:29.

Verse 22:

“Let all their wickedness come before Thee”: As great Babylon will come into remembrance before God, “to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of His wrath” (Rev 16:19). The souls of them who are slain cry with a loud voice, “How long?” (Rev 6:10). But God is patient: it may appear that retribution will never come, but it is certain:

“For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry” (Hab 2:3).

“For my sighs are many, and my heart is faint”: But then, all hands will faint, and every man’s heart will melt, when the day of the Lord is at hand upon “Babylon” and her allies (Isa 13:6-8).

Chapter 1: The AFFLICTION of Jerusalem

“There is none to comfort her.”

1-11:	The lament of the city.
12-15:	God’s fierce anger
16-17:	“For these I weep”
18-19:	“The LORD is righteous”
20-22:	Jerusalem’s PRAYER

Chapter 2: The Source of the AFFLICTION

“Yahweh hath done this.”

1- 9:	Just judgments of the Lord
10-14:	Tears of affliction
15-17:	Jerusalem’s enemies rejoice
18-22:	Jerusalem’s PRAYER

Chapter 3: Renewed Hope in AFFLICTION

“Wherefore doth a living man complain?”

1-18:	Darkness, affliction, derision
19-21:	The desired effect: a remnant saved
22-30:	The Lord’s mercies, service and separation
31-33:	The central theme: Chastening is necessary and helpful
34-36:	“The LORD approveth not”
37-41:	A living man should not complain
42-66:	PRAYER—
	42-54:	We transgressed
	55-66:	But judge my cause

Chapter 4: The Reason For AFFLICTION

“For the sins of her prophets…”

1-12:	Contrast of sons of Zion: fine gold to earthen pitchers
13-16:	Sins of the leaders
17-20:	Vain hopes
21-22:	The cup passes to Edom

Chapter 5: PRAYER for Deliverance From AFFLICTION

“Behold our reproach.”

1-15:	“See our reproach”–disgrace
16-18:	“The crown is fallen”
19-22:	The everlasting throne: a hope of renewal