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Public-domain commentary
Matthew Henry
From his Commentary on the Whole Bible. Henry comments on passages, not single verses — this entry covers Jeremiah 9:12–22. His four-level outline is real structure in the source text, so it is rendered as structure.
Two things the prophet designs, in these verses, with reference to the approaching destruction of Judah and Jerusalem: - 1. To convince people of the justice of God in it, that they had by sin brought it upon themselves and that therefore they had no reason to quarrel with God, who did them no wrong at all, but a great deal of reason to fall out with their sins, which did them all this mischief. 2. To affect people with the greatness of the desolation that was coming, and the miserable effects of it, that by a terrible prospect of it they might be awakened to repentance and reformation, which was the only way to prevent it, or, at least, mitigate their own share in it. This being designed,
I.He calls for the thinking men, by them to show people the equity of God's proceedings, though they seemed harsh and severe (Jer 9:12):
"Who, where, is the wise man, or the prophet, to whom the mouth of the Lord hath spoken? You boast of your wisdom, and of the prophets you have among you; produce me any one that has but the free use of human reason or any acquaintance with divine revelation, and he will soon understand this himself, and it will be so clear to him that he will be ready to declare it to others, that there is a just ground of God's controversy with this people." Do these wise men enquire, For what does the land perish? What is the matter, that such a change is made with this land? It used to be a land that God cared for, and he had his eyes upon it for good (Deu 11:12), but it is now a land that he has forsaken and that his face is against. It used to flourish as the garden of the Lord and to be replenished with inhabitants; but now it is burnt up like a wilderness, that none passeth through it, much less cares to settle in it. It was supposed, long ago, that it would be asked, when it came to this, Wherefore has the Lord done thus unto this land? What means the heat of this great anger? (Deu 29:24), to which question God here gives a full answer, before which all flesh must be silent. He produces out of the record,
1.The indictment preferred and proved against them, upon which they had been found guilty, Jer 9:13, Jer 9:14. It is charged upon them, and it cannot be denied,
(1.)That they have revolted from their allegiance to their rightful Sovereign. Therefore. God has forsaken their land, and justly, because they have forsaken his law, which he had so plainly, so fully, so frequently set before them, and had not observed his orders, not obeyed his voice, nor walked in the ways that he had appointed. Here their wickedness began, in the omission of their duty to their God and a contempt of his authority. But it did not end here. It is further charged upon them,
(2.)That they have entered themselves into the service of pretenders and usurpers, have not only withdrawn themselves from their obedience to their prince, but have taken up arms against him. For,
[1.]They have acted according to the dictates of their own lusts, have set up their own will, the wills of the flesh, and the carnal mind, in competition with, and contradiction to the will of God: They have walked after the imagination of their own hearts; they would do as they pleased, whatever God and conscience said to the contrary.
[2.]They have worshipped the creatures of their own fancy, the work of their own hands, according to the tradition received from their fathers: They have walked after Baalim: the word is plural; they had many Baals, Baal-peor and Baal-berith, the Baal of this place and the Baal of the other place; for they had lords many, which their fathers taught them to worship, but which the God of their fathers had again and again forbidden. This was it for which the land perished. The King of kings never makes war thus upon his own subjects but when they treacherously depart from him and rebel against him, and it has become necessary by this means to chastise their rebellion and reduce them to their allegiance; and they themselves shall at length acknowledge that he is just in all that is brought upon them.
2.The judgment given upon this indictment, the sentence upon the convicted rebels, which must now be executed, for it was righteous and nothing could be moved in arrest of it: The Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, hath said it (Jer 9:15, Jer 9:16), and who can reverse it?
(1.)That all their comforts at home shall be poisoned and embittered to them: I will feed this people with wormwood (or rather with wolf's-bane, for it signifies a herb that is not wholesome, as wormwood is though it be bitter, but some herb that is both nauseous and noxious), and I will give them water of gall (or juice of hemlock or some other herb that is poisonous) to drink. Every thing about them, till it comes to their very meat and drink, shall be a terror and torment to them. God will curse their blessings, Mal 2:2.
(2.)That their dispersion abroad shall be their destruction (Jer 9:16): I will scatter them among the heathen. They were corrupted and debauched by their intimacy with the heathen, with whom they mingled and learned their works; and now they shall lose themselves, where they lost their virtue, among the heathen. They set up gods which neither they nor their fathers had known, strange gods, new gods (Deu 32:17); and now God will put them among neighbours whom neither they nor their fathers have known, whom they can claim no acquaintance with, and therefore can expect no favour from. And yet, though they are scattered so as that they will not know where to find one another. God will know where to find them all out (Psa 21:8) with that evil which still pursues impenitent sinners: I will send a sword after them, some killing judgment or other, till I have consumed them; for when God judges he will overcome, when he pursues he will overtake. And now we see for what the land perishes; all this desolation is the desert of their deeds and the performance of God's words.
II.He calls for the mourning women, and engages them, with the arts they practise to affect people and move their passions, to lament these sad calamities that had come or were coming upon them, that the nation might be alarmed to prepare for them: The Lord of hosts himself says, Call for the mourning women, that they may come, Jer 9:17. the scope of this is to show how very woeful and lamentable the condition of this people was likely to be.
1.Here is work for the counterfeit mourners: Send for cunning women, that know how to compose mournful ditties, or at least to sing them in mournful tunes and accents, and therefore are made use of at funerals to supply the want of true mourners. Let these take up a wailing for us, Jer 9:18. The deaths and funerals were so many that people wept for them till they had no power to weep, as those, Sa1 30:4. Let those therefore do it now whose trade it is. Or, rather, it intimates the extreme sottishness and stupidity of the people, that laid not to heart the judgments they were under, nor, even when there was so much blood shed, could find in their hearts to shed a tear. They cry not when God binds them, Job 36:13. God sent his mourning prophets to them, to call them to weeping and mourning, but his word in their mouths did not work upon their faith; rather therefore than they shall go laughing to their ruin, let the mourning women come, and try to work upon their fancy, that their eyes may at length run down with tears, and their eyelids gush out with waters. First or last, sinners must be weepers.
2.Here is work for the real mourners.
(1.)There is that which is a lamentation. The present scene is very tragical (Jer 9:19): A voice of wailing is heard out of Zion. Some make this to be the song of the mourning women: it is rather an echo to it, returned by those whose affections were moved by their wailings. In Zion the voice of joy and praise used to be heard, while the people kept closely to God. But sin has altered the note; it is now the voice of lamentation. It should seem to be the voice of those who fled from all parts of the country to the castle of Zion for protection. Instead of rejoicing that they had got safely thither, they lamented that they were forced to seek for shelter there: "How are we spoiled! How are we stripped of all our possessions! We are greatly confounded, ashamed of ourselves and our poverty;" for that is it that they complain of, that is it that they blush at the thoughts of, rather than of their sin: We are confounded because we have forsaken the land (forced so to do by the enemy), not because we have forsaken the Lord, being drawn aside of our own lust and enticed - because our dwellings have cast us out, not because our God has cast us off. Thus unhumbled hearts lament their calamity, but not their iniquity, the procuring cause of it.
(2.)There is more still to come which shall be for a lamentation. Things are bad, but they are likely to be worse. Those whose land has spued them out (as it did their predecessors the Canaanites, and justly, because they trod in their steps, Lev 18:28) complain that they are driven into the city, but, after a while, those of the city, and they with them, shall be forced thence too: Yet hear the word of the Lord; he has something more to say to you (Jer 9:20); let the women hear it, whose tender spirits are apt to receive the impressions of grief and fear, for the men will not heed it, will not give it a patient hearing. The prophets will be glad to preach to a congregation of women that tremble at God's word. Let your ear receive the word of God's mouth, and bid it welcome, though it be a word of terror. Let the women teach their daughters wailing; this intimates that the trouble shall last long, grief shall be entailed upon the generation to come. Young people are apt to love mirth, and expect mirth, and are disposed to be gay and airy; but let the elder women teach the younger to be serious, tell them what a vale of tears they must expect to find this world, and train them up among the mourners in Zion, Tit 2:4, Tit 2:5. Let every one teach her neighbour lamentation; this intimates that the trouble shall spread far, shall go from house to house. People shall not need to sympathize with their friends; they shall all have cause enough to mourn for themselves. Note, Those that are themselves affected with the terrors of the Lord should endeavour to affect others with them. The judgment here threatened is made to look terrible.
[1.]Multitudes shall be slain, Jer 9:21. Death shall ride in triumph, and there shall be no escaping his arrests when he comes with commission, neither within doors nor without. Not within doors, for let the doors be shut ever so fast, let them be ever so firmly locked and bolted, death comes up into our windows, like a thief in the night; it steals upon us ere we are aware. Nor does it thus boldly attack the cottages only, but it has entered into our palaces, the palaces of our princes and great men, though ever so stately, ever so strongly built and guarded. Note, No palaces can keep out death. Nor are those more safe that are abroad; death cuts off even the children from without and the young men from the streets. The children who might have been spared by the enemy in pity, because they had never been hurtful to them, and the young men who might have been spared in policy, because capable of being serviceable to them, shall fall together by the sword. It is usual now, even in the severest military executions, to put none to the sword. It is usual now, even in the severest military executions, to put none to the sword but those that are found in arms; but then even the boys and girls playing in the streets were sacrificed to the fury of the conqueror.
[2.]Those that are slain shall be left unburied (Jer 9:22): Speak, Thus saith the Lord (for the confirmation and aggravation of what was before said), Even the carcases of men shall fall as dung, neglected, and left to be offensive to the smell, as dung is. Common humanity obliges the survivors to bury the dead, even for their own sake; but here such numbers shall be slain, and those so dispersed all the country over, that it shall be an endless thing to bury them all, nor shall there be hands enough to do it, nor shall the conquerors permit it, and those that should do it shall be overwhelmed with grief, so that they shall have no heart to do it. The dead bodies even of the fairest and strongest, when they have lain awhile, become dung, such vile bodies have we. And here such multitudes shall fall that their bodies shall lie as thick as heaps of dung in the furrows of the field, and no more notice shall be taken of them than of the handfuls which the harvestman drops for the gleaners, for none shall gather them, but they shall remain in sight, monuments of divine vengeance, that the eye of the impenitent survivors may affect their heart. Slay them not, bury them not, lest my people forget, Psa 59:11.
Historical interpretation
Historical Reception
2 surviving comments on this verse. Each one is dated, so this reads as a timeline rather than a list.
Select a marker to jump to its quote. Markers stagger vertically where authors wrote within a few decades of each other.
Because they had not been enlightened by the many exhortations he had delivered in Jerusalem, he wept for their blindness. The prophets also did this. Let us now do so as well. Now is the time to mourn and weep and lament. It is timely also for us to say now, “Call for the mourning women, and send to them that are wise women, and let them speak.” Perhaps we shall thus be able to drive the disease of avarice from those who are building elaborate homes, from those who are securing fields for themselves by fraud.
(Verse 19.) How desolate and utterly confused we are! Because we have forsaken the land, for our tents have been abandoned. This is the voice of those lamenting Zion: how desolate and utterly confused we are! And immediately they answer themselves and explain the reasons for their devastation, saying: Because we have forsaken the land, through our own fault and sin, and our tents have been abandoned, which once possessed as if passing by. Let them say this also to the crowds of once believing, in persecution: that they have been devastated and confused because they have abandoned the land of the Lord and have deserted their tents.
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Summary
Jeremiah 9:19 profoundly articulates the collective lament and deep despair of the people of Judah, specifically emanating from Zion (Jerusalem), as they confront the devastating consequences of divine judgment. The verse captures the anguish of a nation overwhelmed by invasion, plunder, and displacement, acknowledging their profound shame and confusion. Crucially, it attributes this catastrophic state directly to their spiritual rebellion and unfaithfulness, expressed as having "forsaken the land" and being "cast out" from their dwellings, a direct outcome of their abandonment of God's covenant.
Context
Literary Context
This verse is situated within a deeply sorrowful and condemnatory section of Jeremiah's prophecy (Jeremiah 8-10), characterized by intense lament and pronouncements of impending judgment against Judah for their persistent idolatry, moral corruption, and spiritual apostasy. Jeremiah, often known as the "weeping prophet," embodies the profound grief of God over His people's stubbornness and the inevitable sorrow that will follow their disobedience. The "voice of wailing" in this verse echoes the prophet's own anguish, expressed earlier in his desire for his head to be "waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears" to weep for his people, as seen in Jeremiah 9:1. The immediate preceding verses describe the land's desolation, the people's flight, and the pervasive death, setting the stage for this cry of utter devastation heard directly from the heart of Zion. This lament serves as a poignant climax to the prophet's earlier warnings, demonstrating the painful reality of judgment.
Historical & Cultural Context
Jeremiah prophesied during the tumultuous final decades of the Kingdom of Judah (late 7th to early 6th centuries BCE), a period marked by the decline of the Assyrian Empire and the inexorable rise of the Babylonian Empire. Judah found itself precariously positioned between these great powers, often making political alliances contrary to God's explicit will. The "wailing" and "spoiling" directly refer to the series of Babylonian invasions that would culminate in the catastrophic destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 586 BCE, leading to the Babylonian exile. Culturally, the loss of land was an unparalleled catastrophe, as land ownership was intrinsically linked to covenant blessings, national identity, and the fulfillment of God's promises to Abraham's descendants. Being "cast out" of their dwellings signified not merely physical displacement but a profound rupture of their social, religious, and national fabric, fulfilling the severe curses outlined in the Mosaic Covenant for disobedience, vividly detailed in passages like Deuteronomy 28:49-57.
Key Themes
Jeremiah 9:19 powerfully contributes to several overarching themes in the book of Jeremiah. Firstly, it highlights the consequences of covenant disobedience, illustrating how Judah's pervasive spiritual apostasy directly led to national catastrophe. Their "forsaking the land" is a direct parallel to their deeper act of forsaking God, resulting in the land itself becoming uninhabitable for them. Secondly, the verse emphasizes divine judgment as a righteous and inevitable response to sin, demonstrating God's unwavering commitment to His covenant, which included both blessings for obedience and severe curses for rebellion. Thirdly, it vividly portrays the theme of lament and national sorrow, capturing the deep emotional and spiritual anguish of a people facing utter devastation and the ignominy of exile. This lament foreshadows the profound grief expressed in the Book of Lamentations, written after Jerusalem's fall, articulating the sorrow of a people dispossessed, humiliated, and longing for restoration, as seen in Lamentations 1:1-3.
Exposition and Analysis
Key Word Analysis
This term denotes an elegy or a deep, mournful cry. It often refers to a professional lamentation, indicating a public, formalized, and intense expression of grief. Its use here emphasizes the profound and pervasive sorrow that grips Zion, signifying not merely individual sadness but a collective, national outpouring of anguish, a public demonstration of their utter devastation.
This word signifies vehemence or intensity. When paired with "confounded," it acts as a superlative, emphasizing the extreme degree of their shame, bewilderment, and disorientation. It suggests a state of utter disgrace and profound psychological distress that goes beyond simple confusion, indicating a complete loss of composure and self-respect.
This primitive root means to loosen, relinquish, or leave destitute. In the context of "forsaking the land," it carries a dual meaning: both the literal act of being forced to abandon their homeland due to invasion, and the deeper theological implication of Israel having forsaken their covenant relationship with God. Their abandonment of God resulted in the land itself becoming untenable for them, as per the covenant curses.
This term refers to a residence, habitation, or even the Tabernacle. Here, it signifies the homes and settled places of the people. The phrase "our dwellings have cast us out" is a powerful personification, suggesting that the very places meant to provide security and belonging have rejected them, underscoring the completeness of their displacement and the loss of any secure refuge.
Verse Breakdown
"For a voice of wailing is heard out of Zion"
This opening clause immediately establishes the setting and the pervasive atmosphere of profound grief. "Zion," representing Jerusalem and the spiritual heart of Judah, is no longer a place of worship and security but the source of a loud, mournful cry. This indicates that the epicenter of their national and religious identity is now consumed by sorrow and devastation, signaling the depth and comprehensive nature of the impending or ongoing divine judgment.
"How are we spoiled!"
This is an exclamation of utter devastation and plunder, reflecting a state of shock and disbelief. The people are acknowledging that they have been thoroughly ravaged, their possessions taken, their land laid waste, and their very existence threatened. It conveys the brutal reality of invasion and the violent stripping away of their resources, security, and national dignity.
"we are greatly confounded"
This phrase expresses a profound sense of shame, bewilderment, and disgrace. The people are not merely confused but deeply humiliated by their defeat, the reversal of their fortunes, and the public ignominy of their situation. Their world has been turned upside down, leaving them disoriented, exposed, and utterly without understanding of how such a catastrophe could befall them.
"because we have forsaken the land"
This clause provides the immediate, albeit partial, reason for their suffering. On a literal level, it refers to their forced abandonment of their homeland due to the Babylonian invasion. However, in the deeper prophetic and theological context, it implicitly points to their prior act of forsaking God and His covenant. Their unfaithfulness to God led directly to the land becoming untenable for them, fulfilling the covenant curses that promised expulsion from the land for disobedience.
"because our dwellings have cast [us] out"
This concluding clause powerfully reinforces the theme of utter displacement and homelessness. The vivid personification of "dwellings" casting them out emphasizes the completeness of their dispossession. It highlights that even their most fundamental places of security and belonging have become hostile and uninhabitable, signifying a state of profound alienation and the loss of any stable foundation or refuge.
Literary Devices
Jeremiah 9:19 is rich in literary devices that amplify its message of despair and divine judgment. The entire verse functions as a Lament or Elegy, a poetic expression of profound grief and sorrow over catastrophic loss. Pathos is heavily employed, evoking deep sympathy for the suffering of Judah through its raw depiction of wailing, spoiling, and confusion. The phrase "a voice of wailing is heard out of Zion" employs Synecdoche, where "Zion" (the part, representing the spiritual and political capital) stands for the entire nation of Judah (the whole), emphasizing that the sorrow originates from the very heart of their national and religious identity. The exclamation "How are we spoiled!" is an example of an Exclamatory Lament, conveying intense despair and the overwhelming nature of their loss without expecting a literal answer, highlighting their utter helplessness. The most striking device is Personification in "our dwellings have cast [us] out," which attributes human action (casting out) to inanimate objects (dwellings). This vivid imagery powerfully conveys the complete and inescapable nature of their displacement, suggesting that even their homes have turned against them, leaving them utterly without refuge or security.
Theological and Thematic Connections
Jeremiah 9:19 stands as a stark testament to the theological principle that disobedience to God's covenant carries severe and inescapable consequences. The "wailing" and "spoiling" are not random misfortunes but the direct, divinely ordained judgment upon a people who have "forsaken the land," a phrase that symbolizes their deeper spiritual abandonment of the Lord who graciously gave them that land. This verse underscores God's unwavering justice and His commitment to His covenant, which stipulated that faithfulness would bring blessing and unfaithfulness would bring curses, including exile and desolation. It powerfully highlights the corporate nature of sin and suffering in ancient Israel, where the actions of the nation as a whole brought about collective judgment, demonstrating that God's promises are conditional upon covenant fidelity.
Reflection and Application
Jeremiah 9:19 serves as a profound and sobering reminder for all generations of the spiritual consequences of turning away from God. While believers today live under the New Covenant, the timeless principles of faithfulness, accountability, and the interconnectedness of our actions with their outcomes remain profoundly relevant. When we, individually or corporately, "forsake the land" of God's truth, His commands, and His life-giving presence, we risk experiencing a spiritual "wailing," a sense of being "spoiled" of peace and joy, and "confounded" by confusion and disorientation. This can manifest as spiritual barrenness, a loss of purpose, or a feeling of being "cast out" from the blessings and security found in close communion with God. The verse calls us to deep introspection, urging us to examine areas where we might have drifted from God's path, prioritizing worldly comforts or personal desires over His divine will. It emphasizes that true security and belonging are found not in physical dwellings or earthly possessions, but in an unwavering commitment to the Lord. Our greatest lament should be over our own sin and spiritual apathy, and our deepest desire, a heartfelt repentance and a swift return to Him, trusting in His boundless mercy and restorative grace.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
What does "Zion" represent in this verse, and why is its wailing significant?
In Jeremiah 9:19, "Zion" refers to Jerusalem, specifically the Temple Mount and, by extension, the city itself. It was the spiritual and political capital of Judah, the place where God's presence was believed to dwell and where His covenant was symbolically ratified. Its wailing is highly significant because it symbolizes the utter devastation and spiritual bankruptcy of the entire nation. The sorrow originates from the very heart of their identity and faith, indicating that the judgment is comprehensive and has reached the most sacred and central aspects of their existence. It signifies that even where God's name was honored, sin had led to profound suffering and lament, fulfilling prophetic warnings found in passages like Micah 3:12.
What does it mean to be "spoiled" and "greatly confounded" in this context?
To be "spoiled" (Hebrew: shadad) means to be plundered, ravaged, or devastated, referring to the violent and destructive actions of an invading army. It implies the brutal loss of possessions, security, and the very fabric of their society. To be "greatly confounded" (Hebrew: bûwsh with mᵉʼôd) signifies a profound sense of shame, disgrace, and bewilderment. It's more than just confusion; it's a deep humiliation and disorientation resulting from their defeat and the collapse of their world. They are not only physically stripped but also emotionally and psychologically shattered, facing the ignominy of their situation as a direct consequence of their unfaithfulness, as warned in Deuteronomy 28:20.
How does "forsaking the land" relate to forsaking God?
In the Old Testament, the land of Israel was a covenant gift from God, promised to Abraham and his descendants. Living in the land was contingent upon obedience to God's covenant. Therefore, "forsaking the land" in Jeremiah 9:19 carries a dual meaning. Literally, it refers to the forced expulsion from their homeland due to invasion and exile, a consequence of their sin. Theologically, however, it implicitly points to Judah's deeper spiritual apostasy – their "forsaking" of God Himself, His laws, and His covenant. Their spiritual unfaithfulness led to the land no longer sustaining them, effectively "casting them out" as a consequence of their rebellion. This reflects the conditional nature of the covenant, where blessings (like dwelling securely in the land) were tied to obedience, and curses (like expulsion) to disobedience, as seen in Leviticus 26:32-33.
Christ-Centered Fulfillment
Jeremiah 9:19, with its lament over a people "spoiled," "confounded," and "cast out" due to their forsaking of God, finds its ultimate Christ-centered fulfillment in the person and redemptive work of Jesus. While ancient Israel experienced physical exile and desolation for their corporate sin, Christ, the true and faithful Israel, bore the ultimate "spoiling" and "confusion" of humanity's sin on the cross. He was "forsaken" by God, crying out in dereliction as recorded in Matthew 27:46, not for His own sin, but for ours, taking upon Himself the spiritual exile and separation that our unfaithfulness deserved. Through His perfect sacrifice, the curse of being "cast out" is reversed for all who believe. Where Israel's earthly dwellings failed to provide refuge, Christ becomes our true and eternal dwelling place, the "temple" not made with human hands, in whom we are no longer alienated but brought near to God, as beautifully articulated in Ephesians 2:19. The "voice of wailing" from Zion, a cry of judgment and despair, ultimately gives way to the triumphant cry of resurrection and the promise of a New Covenant, foretold in Jeremiah 31:31-34, established in His blood, where God's people are truly gathered and never again "cast out" but dwell securely and eternally in Him.