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Commentary on Jeremiah 22 verses 20–30
This prophecy seems to have been calculated for the ungracious inglorious reign of Jeconiah, or Jehoiachin, the son of Jehoiakim, who succeeded him in the government, reigned but three months, and was then carried captive to Babylon, where he lived many years, Jer 52:31. We have, in these verses, a prophecy,
I. Of the desolations of the kingdom, which were now hastening on apace, Jer 22:20-23. Jerusalem and Judah are here spoken to, or the Jewish state as a single person, and we have it here under a threefold character: - 1. Very haughty in a day of peace and safety (Jer 22:21): "I spoke unto thee in thy prosperity, spoke by my servants the prophets, reproofs, admonitions, counsels, but thou saidst, I will not hear, I will not heed, thou obeyedst not my voice, and wast resolved that thou wouldst not, and hadst the front to tell me so." It is common for those that live at ease to live in contempt of the word of God. Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked. This is so much the worse that they had it by kind: This has been thy manner from thy youth. They were called transgressors from the womb, Isa 48:8. 2. Very timorous upon the alarms of trouble (Jer 22:20): "When thou seest all thy lovers destroyed, when thou findest thy idols unable to help thee and thy foreign alliances failing thee, thou wilt then go up to Lebanon, and cry, as one undone and giving up all for lost, cry with a bitter cry; thou wilt cry, Help, help, or we are lost; thou wilt lift up thy voice in fearful shrieks upon Lebanon and Bashan, two high hills, in hope to be heard thence by the advantage of the rising ground. Thou wilt cry from the passages, from the roads, where thou wilt ever and anon be in distress." Thou wilt cry from Abarim (so some read it, as a proper name), a famous mountain in the border of Moab. "Thou wilt cry, as those that are in great consternation use to do, to all about thee; but in vain, for (Jer 22:22) the wind shall eat up all thy pastors, or rulers, that should protect and lead thee, and provide for thy safety; they shall be blasted, and withered, and brought to nothing, as buds and blossoms are by a bleak or freezing wind; they shall be devoured suddenly, insensibly, and irresistibly, as fruits by the wind. Thy lovers, that thou dependest upon and hast an affection for, shall go into captivity, and shall be so far from saving thee that they shall not be able to save themselves." 3. Very tame under the heavy and lasting pressures of trouble: "When there appears no relief from any of thy confederates, and thy own priests are at a loss, then shalt thou be ashamed and confounded for all thy wickedness," Jer 22:22. Note, Many will never be ashamed of their sins till they are brought by them to the last extremity; and it is well if we get this good by our straits to be brought by them to confusion for our sins. The Jewish state is here called an inhabitant of Lebanon, because that famous forest was within their border (Jer 22:23), and all their country was wealthy, and well-guarded as with Lebanon's natural fastnesses; but so proud and haughty were they that they are said to make their nest in the cedars, where they thought themselves out of the reach of all danger, and whence they looked with contempt upon all about them. "But, how gracious wilt thou be when pangs come upon thee! Then thou wilt humble thyself before God and promise amendment. When thou art overthrown in stony places thou wilt be glad to hear those words which in thy prosperity thou wouldst not hear, Psa 141:6. Then thou wilt endeavour to make thyself acceptable with that God whom, before, thou madest light of." Note, Many have their pangs of piety who, when the pangs are over, show that they have no true piety. Some give another sense of it: "What will all thy pomp, and state, and wealth avail thee? What will become of it all, or what comfort shalt thou have of it, when thou shalt be in these distresses? No more than a woman in travail, full of pains and fears, can take comfort in her ornaments while she is in that condition." So Mr. Gataker. Note, Those that are proud of their worldly advantages would do well to consider how they will look when pangs come upon them, and how they will then have lost all their beauty.
II. Here is a prophecy of the disgrace of the king; his name was Jeconiah, but he is here once and again called Coniah, in contempt. The prophet shortens or nicks his name, and gives him, as we say, a nickname, perhaps to denote that he should be despoiled of his dignity, that his reign should be shortened, and the number of his months cut off in the midst. Two instances of dishonour are here put upon him: -
1.He shall be carried away into captivity and shall spend and end his days in bondage. He was born to a crown, but it should quickly fall from his head, and he should exchange it for fetters. Observe the steps of this judgment. (1.) God will abandon him, Jer 22:24. The God of truth says it, and confirms it with an oath: "Though he were the signet upon my right hand (his predecessors have been so, and he might have been so if he had conducted himself well, but he being degenerated) I will pluck him thence." The godly kings of Judah had been as signets on God's right hand, near and dear to him; he had gloried in them, and made use of them as instruments of his government, as the prince does of his signet-ring, or sign manual; but Coniah has made himself utterly unworthy of the honour, and therefore the privilege of his birth shall be no security to him; notwithstanding that, he shall be thrown off. Answerable to this threatening against Jeconiah is God's promise to Zerubbabel, when he made him his people's guide in their return out of captivity (Hag 2:23): I will take thee, O Zerubbabel! my servant, and make thee as a signet. Those that think themselves as signets on God's right hand must not be secure, but fear lest they be plucked thence. (2.) The king of Babylon shall seize him. Those know not what enemies and mischiefs they lie exposed to who have thrown themselves out of God's protection, Jer 22:25. The Chaldeans are here said to be such as had a spite to Coniah; they sought his life; no less than that, they thought, would satisfy their rage; they were such as he had a dread of (they are those whose face thou fearest) which would make it the more terrible to him to fall into their hands, especially when it was God himself that gave him into their hands. And, if God deliver him to them, who can deliver him from them? (3.) He and his family shall be carried to Babylon, where they shall wear out many tedious years of their lives in a miserable captivity - he and his mother (Jer 22:26), he and his seed (Jer 22:28), that is, he and all the royal family (for he had no children of his own when he went into captivity), or he and the children in his loins; they shall all be cast out to another country, to a strange country, a country where they were not born, nor such a country as that where they were born, a land which they know not, in which they have no acquaintance with whom to converse or from whom to expect any kindness. Thither they shall be carried, from a land where they were entitled to dominion, into a land where they shall be compelled to servitude. But have they no hopes of seeing their own country again? No: To the land whereunto they desire to return, thither shall they not return, Jer 22:27. They conducted themselves ill in it when they were in it, and therefore they shall never see it more. Jehoahaz was carried to Egypt, the land of the south, Jeconiah to Babylon, the land of the north, both far remote, the quite contrary way, and must never expect to meet again, nor either of them to breathe their native air again. Those that had abused the dominion they had over others were justly brought thus under the dominion of others. Those that had indulged and gratified their sinful desires, by their oppression, luxury, and cruelty, were justly denied the gratification of their innocent desire to see their own native country again. We may observe something very emphatic in that part of this threatening (Jer 22:26), In the country where you were not born, there shall you die. As there is a time to be born and a time to die, so there is a place to be born in and a place to die in. We know where we were born, but where we shall die we know not; it is enough that our God knows. Let it be our care that we die in Christ, and then it will be well with us, wherever we die, though it should be in a far country. (4.) This shall render him very mean and despicable in the eyes of all his neighbours. They shall be ready to say (Jer 22:28), "This is Coniah a despised broken idol? Yes, certainly he is, and much debased from what he was." [1.] Time was when he was dignified, nay, when he was almost deified. The people who had seen his father lately deposed were ready to adore him when they saw him upon the throne, but now he is a despised broken idol, which, when it was whole, was worshipped, but, when it is rotten and broken, is thrown by and despised, and nobody regards it, or remembers what it has been. Note, What is idolized will, first or last, be despised and broken; what is unjustly honoured will be justly contemned, and rivals with God will be the scorn of man. Whatever we idolize we shall be disappointed in and then shall despise. [2.] Time was when he was delighted in; but now he is a vessel in which is not pleasure, or to which there is no desire, either because grown out of fashion or because cracked or dirtied, and so rendered unserviceable. Those whom God has no pleasure in will, some time or other, be so mortified that men will have no pleasure in them.
2.He shall leave no posterity to inherit his honour. The prediction of this is ushered in with a solemn preface (Jer 22:29): O earth, earth, earth! hear the word of the Lord. Let all the inhabitants of the world take notice of these judgments of God upon a nation and a family that had been near and dear to him, and thence infer that God is impartial in the administration of justice. Or it is an appeal to the earth itself on which we tread, since those that dwell on earth are so deaf and careless, like that (Isa 1:2), Hear, O heavens! and give ear, O earth! God's word, however slighted, will be heard; the earth itself will be made to hear it, and yield to it, when it, and all the works that are therein, shall be burnt up. Or it is a call to men that mind earthly things, that are swallowed up in those things and are inordinate in the pursuit of them; such have need to be called upon again and again, and a third time, to hear the word of the Lord. Or it is a call to men considered as mortal, of the earth, and hastening to the earth again. We all are so; earth we are, dust we are, and, in consideration of that, are concerned to hear and regard the word of the Lord, that, though we are earth, we may be found among those whose names are written in heaven. Now that which is here to be taken notice of is that Jeconiah is written childless (Jer 22:30), that is, as it follows, No man of his seed shall prosper, sitting upon the throne of David. In him the line of David was extinct as a royal line. Some think that he had children born in Babylon because mention is made of his seed being cast out there (Jer 22:28) and that they died before him. We read in the genealogy (Ch1 3:17) of seven sons of Jeconiah Assir (that is, Jeconiah the captive) of whom Salathiel is the first. Some think that they were only his adopted sons, and that when it is said (Mat 1:12), Jeconiah begat Salathiel, no more is meant than that he bequeathed to him what claims and pretensions he had to the government, the rather because Salathiel is called the son of Neri of the house of Nathan, Luk 3:27, Luk 3:31. Whether he had children begotten, or only adopted, thus far he was childless that none of his seed ruled as kings in Judah. He was the Augustulus of that empire, in whom it determined. Whoever are childless, it is God that writes them so; and those who take no care to do good in their days cannot expect to prosper in their days.
(Verse 20 and following) Ascend Lebanon and cry out, and in Bashan give forth your voice, and cry out to the passersby, for all your lovers are crushed. I spoke to you in your abundance, you said: I will not listen. This is your way from your youth, for you have not listened to my voice. The wind will pasture all your shepherds (or lovers), and your lovers (or friends) will go into captivity. And then you will be confounded and ashamed of all your wickedness. Which resides in Lebanon, and nests in cedars, how did you wail when pains came to you like the pains of a woman in labor? The metaphor of Lebanon and Bashan, regions and mountains beyond the Jordan, is directed to Jerusalem, which in vain relied on Egypt, or to King Joacim himself, who was reigning in Jerusalem at that time and had been appointed king by the Egyptians, that in vain she hoped for help from the Egyptians, and that they themselves would also be overcome by the Babylonian king and led into captivity (2 Kings 23). And he said, I have spoken to you, that is, God himself through the Prophets; or, the Prophets have spoken to you, that is, my Prophets; and in your abundance you said, I will not listen: he reproaches her for her pride, and for abusing the greatness of her wealth in contempt of God. And he narrates that not only at this time, but from the beginning when she was brought out of Egypt, she did not listen to the voice of God; therefore all her shepherds and leaders have been scattered here and there, and have submitted their necks to the captivity of Babylon. And it brings forth: You who dwell in Lebanon and nest in the cedars, it marks with a bruise the arrogance that had grown from the abundance of all things, and just as sudden pain and unexpected captivity come to a woman in childbirth. And what we have said: cry out to those passing by, and it is written in Hebrew Meabarim (), the Seventy translated it as "transmarine," Theodotion did likewise. Symmachus, on the other hand, translated it to mean that the voice of the Prophet should reach from Jerusalem to Mount Lebanon, and to Bashan.
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SUMMARY
Jeremiah 22:23 delivers a scathing prophetic indictment against the arrogant and self-sufficient rulers of Judah, particularly King Jehoiakim, who built lavish palaces and trusted in their earthly power and wealth, symbolized by the cedars of Lebanon. The verse vividly portrays a dramatic reversal of fortune, predicting a sudden and excruciating judgment that will strip away their perceived security, likening the inescapable pain to the agony of a woman in childbirth. It serves as a stark warning against pride and reliance on worldly might rather than on the Lord.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Jeremiah 22:23 is rich in Imagery and Metaphor, primarily through the depiction of the "inhabitant of Lebanon" making a "nest in the cedars." This creates a powerful visual of a king (Jehoiakim) who has built a luxurious, seemingly secure dwelling from the most expensive materials, symbolizing his pride, opulence, and false sense of invulnerability. The "nest" suggests a cozy, safe, and established home, which the prophecy then shatters. The phrase "how gracious shalt thou be" employs biting Sarcasm and Irony, as the prophet uses a word associated with favor and mercy to convey the absolute opposite – utter helplessness and a complete lack of divine favor. This rhetorical question serves to highlight the dramatic reversal of the king's fortunes. The most striking device is the Simile comparing the coming judgment to "the pain as of a woman in travail." This is a powerful and common biblical Idiom for unavoidable, intense, and overwhelming suffering, emphasizing the severity, suddenness, and inescapable nature of God's judgment upon the proud and unrighteous king. The cumulative effect of these devices is to convey a message of inevitable, agonizing, and humiliating divine retribution.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Jeremiah 22:23 stands as a profound theological statement on divine justice and the futility of human pride. It asserts God's sovereignty over human kingdoms, demonstrating that no amount of worldly power, wealth, or perceived security can withstand His righteous judgment. The king's reliance on the physical strength and beauty of cedars, rather than the spiritual strength of covenant faithfulness, is exposed as a fatal flaw. The "pangs" signify a divinely orchestrated reckoning, a painful but necessary process to bring about justice and to humble the proud. This passage underscores the biblical principle that true security and blessing come from obedience and trust in God, not from material possessions or self-exaltation.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Jeremiah 22:23 serves as a timeless mirror, reflecting the human tendency to seek security and significance in external things—wealth, status, power, or even physical comfort—rather than in a humble dependence on God. It challenges us to examine where we build our "nests." Do we invest our primary efforts and trust in accumulating possessions, building impressive careers, or cultivating a comfortable lifestyle, believing these will shield us from life's inevitable "pangs"? The prophet's sarcastic question, "how gracious shalt thou be," forces us to confront the fragility of such worldly foundations. When the inevitable trials, losses, or judgments of life come, what will be our true source of strength and comfort? This verse calls us to cultivate humility, practice justice, and place our ultimate trust in the Lord, recognizing that true peace and security are found only in Him, not in the fleeting grandeur of this world. It is a powerful reminder that God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble, and that genuine flourishing comes from aligning our lives with His righteous character.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
What is the significance of "Lebanon" and "cedars" in this verse?
Answer: "Lebanon" and "cedars" are highly symbolic. In ancient Israel, cedars from Lebanon were renowned for their strength, beauty, and durability, making them extremely valuable and expensive building materials. They were used for grand structures like Solomon's Temple and royal palaces (e.g., 1 Kings 6:9-10). Therefore, "making one's nest in the cedars of Lebanon" signifies immense wealth, luxury, power, and a perceived impregnable security. It represents the king's (Jehoiakim's) arrogant reliance on his opulent, self-made kingdom and material possessions, contrasting sharply with the true source of security, which is God. The imagery highlights the king's pride and the futility of trusting in worldly grandeur.
Why is the pain compared to "a woman in travail"?
Answer: The comparison to "a woman in travail" (childbirth) is a common and powerful biblical metaphor used to describe intense, unavoidable, and overwhelming distress. It conveys several layers of meaning:
In Jeremiah 22:23, this metaphor emphasizes the inescapable, agonizing, and humiliating nature of the divine judgment that will befall King Jehoiakim and Judah. Their false sense of security will be shattered by a pain that is both physically and existentially overwhelming. This imagery is also used elsewhere in prophecy to describe the "Day of the Lord" or national calamity (e.g., Isaiah 13:8 and 1 Thessalonians 5:3).
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
While Jeremiah 22:23 is a specific judgment against a proud king, its core message of the futility of worldly security finds profound fulfillment and reversal in Christ. The "inhabitant of Lebanon" built a nest of cedars, trusting in visible, earthly power that ultimately crumbled. In stark contrast, Jesus, though "the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head" (Matthew 8:20), built an eternal kingdom not with cedars, but with humility, self-sacrifice, and divine authority. The "pangs" of judgment that fell upon the unrighteous king foreshadow the ultimate "pangs" of sin and death that humanity faced. Christ, however, willingly endured the ultimate pangs of suffering on the cross (Isaiah 53:5), not for His own sin, but to deliver us from the judgment our pride and sin deserve. He became the true "Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29), enduring the pain so that we might receive grace. Thus, the warning to the proud in Jeremiah becomes a testament to the humble, saving work of Christ, who offers a secure "nest"—an eternal dwelling in God's presence—to all who trust not in earthly cedars, but in Him (John 14:2-3).