Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Jeremiah 1:11

Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree.

11. I see a rod of an almond tree ] The almond tree in Palestine has been compared to the snowdrop with us, as giving one of the first signs of approaching spring. Dr Tristram ( Nat. Hist. of the Bible) tells us that at Bethany in the month of January he gathered the blossoms in full bloom. They appear before the leaves open, like those of the peach-tree in England. The Hebrew used here ( shkd) is not the ordinary word for an almond tree, but a poetical expression, meaning that which is awakening, and referring to the blossoming of this tree as taking place while others are still in their winter sleep. There is a play on the words shkd and ( Jer 1:12) shkd (watching over). Cp. Amo 8:1, where the sight of a basket of summer fruit ( kayitz) is to the prophet symbolic of the end ( ktz) which is coming upon his nation.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

11, 12. The symbol of the almond tree

It is often supposed that the almond tree and the boiling caldron were seen by the prophet in vision. But it is quite possible that it was an actual almond tree to which Jeremiah’s attention was directed. If so, we may see the prophet musing on the moral deadness and neglect which he beheld around him, as illustrated by nature’s winter sleep. It is borne in upon him, either at the very time of his call or perhaps subsequently, that in spiritual matters no less surely than in nature this state of things must cease. For him “the sight of the tree is more than a coincidence: Nature is a parable of God’s working. Hence he sees in this harbinger of the spring a sign that the hard frost is about to break and new life to spring from the soil.” (Pe. ad loc.)

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

What seest thou? – If we admit a supernatural element in prophecy, visions would be the most simple means of communication between God and man.

A rod of an almond tree – Many translate a staff of almond wood. The vision would thus signify that God – like a traveler, staff in hand – was just about to set forth upon His journey of vengeance. But the rendering of the King James Version is supported by Gen 30:37. The word rendered almond comes from a root signifying to be awake; and as the almond blossoms in January, it seems to be awake while other trees are still Sleeping, and therefore is a fit emblem of activity.

Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible

Jer 1:11-16

I see a rod of an almond tree.

Tree emblems

The Hebrew word for almond signifies the waker, in allusion to its being the first tree to wake to life in the winter. The word also contains the signification of watching and hastening. The word for almond tree is shaked, and the word for I will hasten (Jer 1:12) is shoked, from the same root. The almond was the emblem of the Divine forwardness in bringing Gods promises to pass. A similar instance in the name of another rosaceous tree is the apricot, which was named from praecocia (early), on account of its blossoms appearing early in the spring, and its fruit ripening earlier than its congener the peach. (Professor Post, F. L. S.)

The rod of the almond tree and the seething pot

This vision was parabolic, and contains one thought in different stages of development. In looking at any object through a telescope the first look may give a correct impression of the object, but an adjustment of the lens may reveal details not seen before. So in the case of the double vision here. The almond is the first tree to awake from the sleep of winter, and to put forth blossoms. God, in the vision of the almond branch, indicated that the judgments pronounced upon the Hebrew nation were nearing their fulfilment. I will hasten My Word to perform it. The second vision gives more information than the first upon the same subject. In the first only the fact of the speedy retribution is made known, the second reveals whence it is to come. Out of the north. The seething pot also shows the terror and confusion that would fill the city of Jerusalem when surrounded by her enemies.

I. Those who have to utter the truth of God to others must first see it clearly themselves.

II. Those who can see the mind of God must be prepared to utter the truths they see. Men of genius who see things in secret, and think they see what is worth giving to the world, gird up their loins to put forth what they have seen in word, or on canvas, or in the sculptured marble. Christ instructed His first scholars to do this (Mat 10:27). So Jeremiah must give out that which he has seen.

III. God often makes use of things far beneath us, to make known to us important truths. The boiling pot and the almond branch were common everyday objects, yet God uses them as vehicles to convey to Jeremiah solemn truths respecting His people. So in Christs parables.

IV. The times and instruments of national judgment are in the hands of God.

V. Gods chastisements increase in severity with the increase of national sin. God had again and again sent less severe chastisement upon the Jewish nation, but all had failed to stop their moral decay; hence the necessity, if the nation were to continue in existence, of the execution of the judgments foretold in the prophetic vision.

VI. The most childlike and humble in spirit see best into divine mysteries. Just before receiving this revelation Jeremiah had confessed his ignorance and inability (verse 6). (Mat 18:3-6; Isa 57:15; 1Co 2:1-16.) (Sermons by a London Minister.)

The almond trees message

The almond tree was, as its name indicates, the watcher, the hastener; as if it lay at the gates of spring, waiting, yearning for their opening; as if it would urge forward the days of sunshine and gladness. It was apparently with some sense of the allegory it taught that the shape of its blossom was adopted as the pattern of the cup for the candles in the golden candlestick in the temple. So, as the candles burnt from sunset to sunrise in the golden cups of the almond blossoms, the symbol out of which they sprang was telling of the watcher and the hastener, and was saying, The morning cometh And the almond branch says through all the dreary winter, The spring cometh and also the summer. God watches over His Word to perform it. Yes, as God watches over the almond blossoms to open their beautiful leaves, and to gladden the eyes of men, so will He open the promises and prophecies of His Word to fill mens hearts with joy and peace. Ah, we cannot watch over our word to perform it, save in a very qualified sense indeed. But how calmly the Infinite and Eternal One keeps watch over His from generation to generation till all are fulfilled! Although the symbol of the almond branch was employed to show how certainly Gods Word will be performed on the grand scale of its application to national life, we may fairly take our crumb of personal comfort from it. There are multitudes of promises, multitudes of assurances of love, multitudes of revelations which are adopted and applied as personal words from God to His children, who build upon them, hope in them, look for their fulfilment. They have associated Gods love and honour with them as closely as our children bind us up with our words. And they are abundantly encouraged to do so. The promises for man are promises to men. God deals with humanity by dealing with individuals. The race is saved through its units. The secret promise of spring in the branch of the almond tree, which the prophet was taught to apply to the whole nation, has also a meaning for every soul of man. It means that God watches and waits to perform His Word to him. But we turn now to that national and human aspect of the text, which undoubtedly it chiefly had for the prophet, and which it was intended to have for men in all generations. When, then, God performs His Word, does He perform it mediately by the instrumentality of agents, or immediately by an exercise of volition? The almond branch answers our question. Not by the touch of His invisible fingers does He make the flower burst from the stem and open its pale pink leaves to the sun and wind. He does it by the majestic movement of the seasons. The courses of the stars, the rush of the world through space, the heat from the far-off sun, the blowing of the winds, the falling of the rain, the secret chemical action of the soil, the mysterious operation of the laws of life in the tree itself, all combine as Gods ministers to bring to pass Gods will and word in the making and unfolding of a flower. And this increases the marvel of His work; this enlarges our conception of His superintending care; this touches our souls with a consciousness of His universal presence. If the Almighty will spend a year of unceasing work to make a flower bloom, if He will lavish the wealth of earth and use the powers of the heavens upon it, then we may fairly assume that He will exercise as great or greater vigilance and effort to perform His Word touching the highest welfare of man. He will not fail to establish His kingdom, and He will do it by using the most vailed forces operating through centuries of time, if need be, through ages of ages. It is, perhaps, not easy for us to remember that He is now operating through ourselves and through the great masses of mankind, all the while watching over His Word to perform it, but so it is. The Old Testament view of Gods use not only of Israel, but also of heathen kings and nations, should aid us to see that He is still using men to fulfil His purposes. Tyrants as well as patriots have served the cause of liberty by compelling nations to safeguard it by constitutional laws and usages. Atheists have furthered a reverent piety by revealing the coldness of their denials and their incompetence to satisfy the deepest, the best, the most irrepressible of our thoughts and desires. Grasping capitalists, as well as Socialists, are now urging forward the cause of a sound and real equality, by causing men everywhere and of all degrees to think, to inquire, to contrive, and to act in combination, each man subordinating the personal to the general good, and so learning a lesson in unity, in self-control, and in care for others. The very faith of the Gospel has been promoted by much that seemed to threaten its extinction. The very principles and precepts of the kingdom of God have been adopted and confirmed because of experience of the evil of their opposites. We dare not, we would not, say that knowledge of evil has been the necessary introduction to knowledge of good, but this we may affirm, that God works by means of evil to perform His Word, to establish it among us as the admitted counsel of perfect wisdom and perfect love; He uses even our faults and our sins to bring to pass the fulfilment of His Word. (J. P. Gladstone.)

Spiritual vision

This power of spiritual vision is preeminently the gift of God. This power of parables, making them or reading them, is a deep mystery of the unseen kingdom. Is it not the gift of sight that distinguishes one man from another? The prophet may truly say, I hear a voice they cannot hear; I see a hand they cannot see. How the earth and sky are rich with images which the poets eye alone can see! What a parable is spring, and what a vision from the Lord is summer, laden with all riches, gentle and hospitable beyond all parallel! With the mountains girdling thee round, as if to shut thee up in prison, and suddenly opening to let thee through into larger liberties–what seest thou? I see beauty, order, strength, majesty, and infinite munificence of grace and loveliness. Look at the moral world, and say what seest thou. Think of its sinfulness, its misery untold, its tumult and darkness and corruption, deep, manifold, and ever-increasing. Is there any cure for disease so cruel, so deadly? What seest thou? I see a Cross, and one upon it like unto the Son of Man, and in His weakness He is mighty, in His poverty He is rich, in His death is the infinite virtue of atonement. I see a Cross, its head rises to heaven, and on it is written, The blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin, and from it there comes a voice, saying, Turn ye, turn ye, why will ye die? Believe in Me, and live forever. And far away in the distance, what seest thou? Across the seething sea of time, standing high above all earthly affairs, yet inseparably connected with them, what is that glistening object? It is fairer than the sun when he shineth in the fulness of his strength, and marvellous is its fascination alike for the evil and the good: the evil look upon it until their knees tremble and their bones melt like wax, and the good look unto it, and praise the Lord in a song of thankfulness and hope. What is it? It is a great white throne whence the living Judge sends out His just and final decrees. (J. Parker, D. D.)

Natural objects setting forth Divine dispensations

In his later days it was the habit of Wm. Wilberforce, before retiring to rest, to seek in the natural objects about him, to be afresh assured of his Fathers love and presence. I was walking with him, says a friend, in a verandah, watching for the opening of a night-blowing Cereus. As we stood in eager expectation, it suddenly burst wide open before us. It reminds me, said he, of the dispensations of Divine providence first breaking on the glorified eye, when they shall fully unfold, and appear as beautiful as they are complete.

Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell

Verse 11. A rod of an almond tree.] shaked, from shakad, “to be ready,” “to hasten,” “to watch for an opportunity to do a thing,” to awake; because the almond tree is the first to flower and bring forth fruit. Pliny says, Floret prima omnium amygdala mense Januario; Martio vero pomum maturat. It blossoms in January, when other trees are locked up in their winter’s repose; and it bears fruit in March, just at the commencement of spring, when other trees only begin to bud. It was here the symbol of that promptitude with which God was about to fulfil his promises and threatening. As a rod, says Dahler, is an instrument of punishment, the rod of the almond may be intended here as the symbol of that punishment which the prophet was about to announce.

Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible

This and the boiling caldron, Jer 1:13, is thought to be at the same time, and in the same vision, when he was first appointed to his work.

A rod of an almond tree, viz. that had leaves, and possibly blossoms, on it, like Aarons, Num 17:8; for without leaves at least it is possible he had not so readily guessed of what kind it had been. This is a tree that blossoms early and speedily, and hence hath its name in Hebrew scaked, signifying watchful, forward, nimble, or quick; and so it may point at either Gods readiness to smite, Jer 1:12, which is described elsewhere by summer fruit, Amo 8:1,2; or Israels ripeness to be smitten, as we have the like Eze 7:10,11; or both; this rod being like a portentous comet, showing to Jeremiah the miseries that were at hand, as the death of Josiah, which soon followed this vision, 2Ki 23:29, and the taxing them by Pharaoh-nechoh, 2Ki 23:35, and presently after the breaking in of the Chaldees, Syrians, Moabites, and Ammonites, 2Ki 24:2, and then the Babylonian captivity, 2Ki 24:10, which happened in the eighth year of Jehoiachin, 2Ki 24:12, when Nebuchadnezzar took him with others, and carried them away, about twenty-three years from hence; and about the fortieth year Jerusalem was taken, and the temple burnt.

Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole

11. rodshoot, or branch.

almond treeliterally,”the wakeful tree,” because it awakes from the sleep ofwinter earlier than the other trees, flowering in January, andbearing fruit in March; symbol of God’s early execution of Hispurpose; Jer 1:12, “hastenMy word” (compare Am 8:3).

Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

Moreover, the word of the Lord came unto me,…. At the same time as before:

saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? The Septuagint version leaves out the word “Jeremiah”:

and I said, I see a rod of an almond tree; a dry stick, without leaves or fruit upon it, and yet he knew it to be an almond tree stick; though some think it had leaves and fruit on it, by which it was known. The Targum is,

“and I said, a king hastening to do evil I see;”

meaning Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, hastening to bring destruction upon the Jews.

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

The Confirmatory Tokens. – The first is given in Jer 1:11 and Jer 1:12: “And there came to me the word of Jahveh, saying, What seest thou, Jeremiah? And I said, I see an almond rod. Then Jahveh said to me, Thou hast seen aright: for I will keep watch over my word to fulfil it.” With the consecration of the prophet to his office are associated two visions, to give him a surety of the divine promise regarding the discharge of the duties imposed on him. First, Jeremiah sees in spirit a rod or twig of an almond tree. God calls his attention to this vision, and interprets it to him as a symbol of the swift fulfilment of His word. The choice of this symbol for the purpose given is suggested by the Hebrew name for the almond tree, , the wakeful, the vigilant; because this tree begins to blossom and expand its leaves in January, when the other trees are still in their winter’s sleep ( florat omnium prima mense Januario, Martio vero poma maturat. Plin. h. n. xvi. 42, and Von Schubert, Reise iii. S. 14), and so of all trees awakes earliest to new life. Without any sufficient reason Graf has combated this meaning for , proposing to change into , and, with Aquil., Sym., and Jerome, to translate watchful twig, virga vigilans , i.e., a twig whose eyes are open, whose buds have opened, burst; but he has not even attempted to give any authority for the use of the verb for the bursting of buds, much less justified it. In the explanation of this symbol between the words, thou hast seen aright, and the grounding clause, for I will keep watch, there is omitted the intermediate thought: it is indeed a . The twig thou hast seen is an emblem of what I shall do; for I will keep watch over my word, will be watchful to fulfil it. This interpretation of the symbol shows besides that is not here to be taken, as by Kimchi, Vatabl., Seb. Schmidt, Ngelsb., and others, for a stick to beat with, or as a threatening rod of correction. The reasons alleged by Ngelsb. for this view are utterly inconclusive. For his assertion, that always means a stick, and never a fresh, leafy branch, is proved to be false by Gen 30:37; and the supposed climax found by ancient expositors in the two symbols: rod-boiling caldron, put thus by Jerome: qui noluerint percutiente virga emendari, mittentur in ollam aeneam atque succensam , is forced into the text by a false interpretation of the figure of the seething pot. The figure of the almond rod was meant only to afford to the prophet surety for the speedy and certain fulfilment of the word of God proclaimed by him. It is the second emblem alone that has anything to do with the contents of his preaching.

Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament

Charge Given to Jeremiah.

B. C. 629.

      11 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree.   12 Then said the LORD unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform it.   13 And the word of the LORD came unto me the second time, saying, What seest thou? And I said, I see a seething pot; and the face thereof is toward the north.   14 Then the LORD said unto me, Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land.   15 For, lo, I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the LORD; and they shall come, and they shall set every one his throne at the entering of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all the walls thereof round about, and against all the cities of Judah.   16 And I will utter my judgments against them touching all their wickedness, who have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, and worshipped the works of their own hands.   17 Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee: be not dismayed at their faces, lest I confound thee before them.   18 For, behold, I have made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brasen walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land.   19 And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee.

      Here, I. God gives Jeremiah, in vision, a view of the principal errand he was to go upon, which was to foretel the destruction of Judah and Jerusalem by the Chaldeans, for their sins, especially their idolatry. This was at first represented to him in away proper to make an impression upon him, that he might have it upon his heart in all his dealings with this people.

      1. He intimates to him that the people were ripening apace for ruin and that ruin was hastening apace towards them. God, having answered his objection, that he was a child, goes on to initiate him in the prophetical learning and language; and, having promised to enable him to speak intelligibly to the people, he here teaches him to understand what God says to him; for prophets must have eyes in their heads as well as tongues, must be seers as well as speakers. He therefore asks him, “Jeremiah, what seest thou? Look about thee, and observe now.” And he was soon aware of what was presented to him: “I see a rod, denoting affliction and chastisement, a correcting rod hanging over us; and it is a rod of an almond-tree, which is one of the forwardest trees in the spring, is in the bud and blossom quickly, when other trees are scarcely broken out;” it flourishes, says Pliny, in the month of January, and by March has ripe fruits; hence it is called in the Hebrew, Shakedh, the hasty tree. Whether this rod that Jeremiah saw had already budded, as some think, or whether it was stripped and dry, as others think, and yet Jeremiah knew it to be of an almond-tree, as Aaron’s rod was, is uncertain; but God explained it in the next words (v. 12): Thou hast well seen. God commended him that he was so observant, and so quick of apprehension, as to be aware, though it was the first vision he ever saw, that it was a rod of an almond-tree, that his mind was so composed as to be able to distinguish. Prophets have need of good eyes; and those that see well shall be commended, and not those only that speak well. “Thou hast seen a hasty tree, which signifies that I will hasten my word to perform it.” Jeremiah shall prophesy that which he himself shall live to see accomplished. We have the explication of this, Eze 7:10; Eze 7:11, “The rod hath blossomed, pride hath budded, violence has risen up into a rod of wickedness. The measure of Jerusalem’s iniquity fills very fast; and, as if their destruction slumbered too long, they waken it, they hasten it, and I will hasten to perform what I have spoken against them.”

      2. He intimates to him whence the intended ruin should arise. Jeremiah is a second time asked: What seest thou? and he sees a seething-pot upon the fire (v. 13), representing Jerusalem and Judah in great commotion, like boiling water, by reason of the descent which the Chaldean army made upon them; made like a fiery oven (Ps. xxi. 9), all in a heat, wasting away as boiling water does and sensibly evaporating and growing less and less, ready to boil over, to be thrown out of their own city and land, as out of the pan into the fire, from bad to worse. Some think that those scoffers referred to this who said (Ezek. xi. 3), This city is the cauldron, and we are the flesh. Now the mouth or face of the furnace or hearth, over which this pot boiled, was towards the north, for thence the fire and the fuel were to come that must make the pot boil thus. So the vision is explained (v. 14): Out of the north an evil shall break forth, or shall be opened. It had been long designed by the justice of God, and long deserved by the sin of the people, and yet hitherto the divine patience had restrained it, and held it in, as it were; the enemies had intended it, and God had checked them; but now all restraints shall be taken off, and the evil shall break forth; the direful scene shall open, and the enemy shall come in like a flood. It shall be a universal calamity; it shall come upon all the inhabitants of the land, from the highest to the lowest, for they have all corrupted their way. Look for this storm to arise out of the north, whence fair weather usually comes, Job xxxvii. 22. When there was friendship between Hezekiah and the king of Babylon they promised themselves many advantages out of the north; but it proved quite otherwise: out of the north their trouble arose. Thence sometimes the fiercest tempests come whence we expected fair weather. This is further explained v. 15, where we may observe, (1.) The raising of the army that shall invade Judah and lay it waste: I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the Lord. All the northern crowns shall unite under Nebuchadnezzar, and join with him in this expedition. They lie dispersed, but God, who has all men’s hearts in his hand, will bring them together; they lie at a distance from Judah, but God, who directs all men’s steps, will call them, and they shall come, though they be ever so far off. God’s summons shall be obeyed; those whom he calls shall come. When he has work to do of any kind he will find instruments to do it, though he send to the utmost parts of the earth for them. And, that the armies brought into the field may be sufficiently numerous and strong, he will call not only the kingdoms of the north, but all the families of those kingdoms, into the service; not one able-bodied man shall be left behind. (2.) The advance of this army. The commanders of the troops of the several nations shall take their post in carrying on the siege of Jerusalem and the other cities of Judah. They shall set every one his throne, or seat. When a city is besieged we say, The enemy sits down before it. They shall encamp some at the entering of the gates, others against the walls round about, to cut off both the going out of the mouths and the coming in of the meat, and so to starve them.

      3. He tells him plainly what was the procuring cause of all these judgments; it was the sin of Jerusalem and of the cities of Judah (v. 16): I will pass sentence upon them (so it may be read) or give judgment against them (this sentence, this judgment) because of all their wickedness; it is this that plucks up the flood-gates and lets in this inundation of calamities. They have forsaken God and revolted from their allegiance to him, and have burnt incense to other gods, new gods, strange gods, and all false gods, pretenders, usurpers, the creatures of their own fancy, and they have worshipped the works of their own hands. Jeremiah was young, had looked but little abroad into the world, and perhaps did not know, nor could have believed, what abominable idolatries the children of his people were guilty of; but God tells him, that he might know what to level his reproofs against and what to ground his threatenings upon, and that he might himself be satisfied in the equity of the sentence which in God’s name he was to pass upon them.

      II. God excites and encourages Jeremiah to apply himself with all diligence and seriousness to his business. A great trust is committed to him. He is sent in God’s name as a herald at arms, to proclaim war against his rebellious subjects; for God is pleased to give warning of his judgments beforehand, that sinners may be awakened to meet him by repentance, and so turn away his wrath, and that, if they do not, they may be left inexcusable. With this trust Jeremiah has a charge given him (v. 17): “Thou, therefore, gird up thy loins; free thyself from all those things that would unfit thee for or hinder thee in this service; buckle to it with readiness and resolution, and be not entangled with doubts about it.” He must be quick: Arise, and lose no time. He must be busy: Arise, and speak unto them in season, out of season. He must be bold: Be not dismayed at their faces, as before, v. 8. In a word, he must be faithful; it is required of ambassadors that they be so.

      1. In two things he must be faithful:– (1.) He must speak all that he is charged with: Speak all that I command thee. He must forget nothing as minute, or foreign, or not worth mentioning; every word of God is weighty. He must conceal nothing for fear of offending; he must alter nothing under pretence of making it more fashionable or more palatable, but, without addition or diminution, declare the whole counsel of God. (2.) He must speak to all that he is charged against; he must not whisper it in a corner to a few particular friends that will take it well, but he must appear against the kings of Judah, if they be wicked kings, and bear his testimony against the sins even of the princes thereof; for the greatest of men are not exempt from the judgments either of God’s hand or of his mouth. Nay, he must not spare the priests thereof; though he himself was a priest, and was concerned to maintain the dignity of his order, yet he must not therefore flatter them in their sins. He must appear against the people of the land, though they were his own people, as far as they were against the Lord.

      2. Two reasons are here given why he should do thus:– (1.) Because he had reason to fear the wrath of God if he should be false: “Be not dismayed at their faces, so as to desert thy office, or shrink from the duty of it, lest I confound and dismay thee before them, lest I give thee up to thy faintheartedness.” Those that consult their own credit, ease, and safety, more than their work and duty, are justly left of God to themselves, and to bring upon themselves the shame of their own cowardliness. Nay, lest I reckon with thee for thy faintheartedness, and break thee to pieces; so some read it. Therefore this prophet says (ch. xvii. 17), Lord, be not thou a terror to me. Note, The fear of God is the best antidote against the fear of man. Let us always be afraid of offending God, who after he has killed has power to cast into hell, and then we shall be in little danger of fearing the faces of men that can but kill the body, Luk 12:4; Luk 12:5. See Neh. iv. 14. It is better to have all the men in the world our enemies than God our enemy. (2.) Because he had no reason to fear the wrath of men if he were faithful; for the God whom he served would protect him, and bear him out, so that they should neither sink his spirits nor drive him off from his work, should neither stop his mouth nor take away his life, till he had finished his testimony, v. 18. This young stripling of a prophet is made by the power of God as an impregnable city, fortified with iron pillars and surrounded with walls of brass; he sallies out upon the enemy in reproofs and threatenings, and keeps them in awe. They set upon him on every side; the kings and princes batter him with their power, the priests thunder against him with their church-censures, and the people of the land shoot their arrows at him, even slanderous and bitter words; but he shall keep his ground and make his part good with them; he shall still be a curb upon them (v. 19): They shall fight against thee, but they shall not prevail to destroy thee, for I am with thee to deliver thee out of their hands; nor shall they prevail to defeat the word that God sends them by Jeremiah, nor to deliver themselves; it shall take hold of them, for God is against them to destroy them. Note, Those who are sure that they have God with them (as he is if they be with him) need not, ought not, to be afraid, whoever is against them.

Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary

Vs. 11-16: THE LESSON DRAMATICALLY ILLUSTRATED

1. Though it is not certain as to just when he saw them, Jeremiah’s call was reinforced by two visions which, as all biblical visions, were accompanied by a spoken word.

2. To understand the vision of the almond branch, one must recognize the play on words that is used in the Hebrew of verses 11-12.

a. The Lord asks Jeremiah what he sees, (comp. Jer 24:3; Amo 7:8).

b. Jeremiah does not use the regular word for “almond tree,” but the symbolic “shaqed,” meaning “to be awake, or watchful” – thus designating the tree whose blossoms appear first in the early Spring (even before any leaves appear), while other trees are still dormant.

c. The Lord then declared that He was watching (“shoqed”s over His word to perform it, (vs. 12 ASV; comp. Jer 31:27-28; Dan 9:14).

d. When, in the Winter of Judah’s spiritual darkness and declension, it may seem to Jeremiah that the word of God has lost its power, he must remember that God is watching over His word; it is still THE WORD OF AUTHORITY! and WILL BE FULFILLEDI (1Ki 8:56; Isa 55:11; Eze 12:25; Mat 5:18; Luk 21:33).

3. In a second vision, Jeremiah recognizes a boiling pot in the North, but so tipped that its hot, seething, blasting contents are about to be emptied toward the South, (vs. 13-16; comp. Eze 11:3; Eze 11:7-12).

a. That war was raging in the North was surely no surprise to the prophet.

b. Nor was a vision necessary for him to understand the potential danger to Judah.

c. The word from the Lord, specifically designed to hearten Jeremiah, is that ALL THIS TUMULT, strife and conflict IS UNDER DIVINE CONTROL!

d. God is bringing judgment upon Judah because of her sin In forsaking Him, (Jer 2:13; Jer 2:17; Jer 2:19);

1) burning Incense to other gods, (Jer 7:8-10; Jer 19:4-9; Jer 44:15-19);

2) and worshipping the works of their own hands, (Jer 10:3-5; Isa 2:8; Isa 37:15-20).

Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary

God confirms in this passage what he had previously said of the power of his word. These two verses, then, are to be taken as explanatory, for no new subject is introduced; but the former part is confirmed — that the Prophets spoke not in vain, or to no purpose, because they were invested with celestial power to plant and to build, and, on the other hand, to pull down and to root up, according to what we have quoted from Paul, who says that true teachers are armed with such power. (2Co 10:5) We have in readiness, he says, vengeance against all the unbelieving, however proud they may be: and though their height may terrify the whole world, yet we have a sword in our hands which will stay them; for God’s word has sufficient power to destroy the rebellious.

God then proceeds with the same subject when he says, What seest thou, Jeremiah? He had set before him a staff or a rod of almond, as some render the word: and שקר, shaked, means an almond; but as it comes from a verb which means to watch or to hasten, we cannot fitly render it here, almond. I do not, however, deny that the Hebrew word has this meaning. But it is written here with Kamets; the participle which afterwards follows has Holem: we hence see what affinity there is between the two words. The word שקר , shaked, an almond, is derived from the verb, שקר, shakad, to watch; and it has been thought that this tree is so called, because it brings forth fruit earlier than other trees; for almonds, as it is well known, flower even in winter, and in the coldest seasons. Now, were we to say in Latin, I see a rod or a staff of almond; and were the answer given, Thou hast rightly seen, for I watch, the allusion in the words would not appear, the sentence would lose its beauty, and there would indeed be no meaning. It is hence necessary to give another version, except we wish to pervert the passage, and to involve the Prophet’s meaning in darkness. It should be, “I see the rod, “or the staff, “of a watcher.” Let us grant that the almond is intended; yet the tree may be called watchful, according to what etymology requires, and also the sense of the passage, as all must see. (14)

(14) The word is rendered “a rod of almond” by the Septuagint, the Arabic version, and Theodotion; and also by Piscator, Drusius, Grotius, and Blayney; and “the rod of the watcher” by Sym. , Aq. , and the Vulgate The latter is no doubt more suitable in a translation. Some conclude, from what is related in Num 17:0, that the head of each tribe carried a wand or a staff made of the almond tree as a token of watchfulness: if so, the probability is, that this wand was presented to the view of the Prophet. It being a well-known emblem of watchfulness, and called perhaps the watchful rod or staff, it was most suitable to the purposes here designed. The verb שקד does not mean to hasten, but to watch, or to be awake. Then the version of the passage would be the following: –

11. And the word of Jehovah came to me, saying, “What seest thou, Jeremiah?” and I said, “The rod of a watcher is what I see.”

12. Then Jehovah said to me, “Thou seest rightly, for I am watching over my word to do it.”

—

Ed.

Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary

II. THE CALL CONFIRMED Jer. 1:11-19

TRANSLATION

(11) And the word of the LORD came unto me saying, What are you looking at, Jeremiah? And I replied, I am looking at a rod of almond. (12) Then the LORD said unto me, you have seen well, for I am watching over MY word to perform it. (13) And the word of the LORD came unto me a second time saying, What are you looking at? And I said, I am looking at a boiling pot and its face is from the north. (14) And the LORD said unto me, From the north calamity is unleashed upon all the inhabitants of the land. (15) For, behold, I am about to call for all the tribes of the kingdoms of the north (oracle of the LORD) and they will come and place each man his throne at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, against all its walls round about, and against all the cities of Judah. (16) Then I will pronounce against them My judgments because of all of their wickedness, viz., they have forsaken Me, made offerings to other gods and worshiped the works of their hands. (17) But as for you, gird up your loins! Stand up! Speak unto them all which I have commanded you! Do not be dismayed because of them lest I shatter your nerve before them. (18) And as for Me, behold, I have made you today a fortified city, and iron pillar, a wall of bronze against all the land, against the kings of Judah against her princes, against her priests and against the people of the land. (19) They shall fight against you but they shall not prevail against You, for I am with you (oracle of the LORD) to deliver you.

COMMENTS

In the last half of chapter 1 the call of Jeremiah is confirmed and amplified through two visions and further words of exhortation and encouragement. The two visions are of particular interest. The first one expresses a general principle of prophecy; the second deals with a particular concrete application.[112] Before considering the visions themselves two preliminary matters need to be touched upon: (1) the time of the visions, and (2) the nature of them.

[112] Skinner, tip. cit., p. 32.

The time of the visions. Hyatt[113] calls the visions inaugural visions but it really is not certain that they were part of the call experience or even that they followed immediately after the call. The fact that each vision has a separate introductory formula would suggest a certain time interval between the call and the visions and between the two visions as well. If these visions did not come immediately upon the call of Jeremiah they were given very early in his career for God seems to use them to assure Jeremiah of his prophetic call. They are confirmatory tokens. The visions also serve to create within Jeremiah an awareness that momentous events affecting the kingdom of Judah were imminent.

[113] Philip Hyatt, Jeremiah (Exegesis), The Interpreters Bible (New York: Abingdon, 1956), V, 798f.

The nature of the visions. God made known His will and purpose through two kinds of visions in the Old Testament. In the first type of vision the prophet saw with his mind (or perhaps with his eyes, who can say) an object or scene which had no external reality. In this kind of vision God produced what was seen and also provided the interpretation of it. In the second type of vision the prophet happened to notice or was directed to notice an object or scene. He meditated upon what he saw and as he did so God revealed to him the prophetic significance of it. In the one case God caused the prophet to see a significant object; in the other, God caused the prophet to see significance in an object. Into which one of these two vision categories do the visions in Jeremiah 1 fall?

It is difficult to decide whether God showed the almond rod and the boiling pot in mental visions or whether Jeremiah happened to see the external objects and then learned their symbolic significance through divine revelation. In both visions God asked Jeremiah What do you see? The same language is used in Jer. 24:3 where the problem again arises as to the nature of what the prophet saw. The absence of the words the Lord showed me which are present in other similar passages (e.g., Jer. 24:3; Amo. 7:8; Amo. 8:2) might suggest that Jeremiah did not receive a mental vision. However the phrase the Lord showed me is sometimes absent in contexts where mental vision is mandatory (e.g., Zachariah Jer. 4:2; Jer. 5:2). Exegetically, then, decisive evidence with regard to the nature of what Jeremiah saw in chapter 1 is lacking. The present writer is inclined to think that as Jeremiah meditated on these common, every day objects God caused him to see in them a mystic or prophetic significance.

A. The Vision of the Almond Rod Jer. 1:11-12

As Jeremiah held in his hand an almond walking stick or rod God caused the prophet to come to a tremendous realization. The almond tree which blossoms in January was poetically named by the Hebrews the wakeful tree because it was the first to awake from winter sleep. When God asked Jeremiah what he saw His purpose was not only to direct the attention of the prophet to the almond rod, but also to get the prophet to pronounce the word for almond. The Hebrew word for almond tree is shaked and the Hebrew word for watch (or wakeful) is shoked. Here then is paronomasia or word play.[114] God is using the rod of wake-tree wood to show Jeremiah that He is wakeful.

[114] Paronomasia in the context of a vision also occurs in Amo. 8:1-2.

Aside from the word play, what is the import of this vision? First, the vision speaks of Gods concern. Since the days of wicked Manasseh no judgment had befallen the nation of Judah. As in the winter season all was at rest. But the Keeper of Israel does not slumber or sleep (Psa. 121:4). Amid the moral and spiritual deadness round about, God was awake. He was aware of and concerned about the corrupt condition of the nation. At times things seemed to go unchecked, evil seems to triumph and men assume that God is dead or unconcerned. But the winter of moral desolation cannot last forever; the Lord is wakeful. When the season of judgment has fully come the Wakeful One will manifest Himself as the God of wrath.

The almond rod also suggests the chastisement of the nation. As Aarons almond rod that budded in the wilderness was a token of Gods wrath against the rebellious (Num. 17:8) so now the almond rod which Jeremiah observes presages the outpouring of Gods judgment upon the apostate people of another time. It is not a branch with twigs and leaves which the prophet sees but rather a stick used for walking or striking. This would be a most appropriate symbol of an instrument of chastisement. The symbolic significance would not be lost upon a prophet who knew the writings of Isaiah: Ho Assyrian, the rod of My anger, the staff in whose hand is My indignation! (Isa. 10:5).

The third focus of the almond rod vision is that of the certainty of prophetic revelation. God is watching with persistent care to see that His word is performed. He sees to it that His word does not return unto Him void but rather accomplishes His good pleasure (Isa. 55:11). Whether it be judgment or salvation, threat or promise His word will come to pass. Jeremiah need have no fear that he will ever be embarrassed or proven to be wrong if he preaches the word of God. Thus the prophet can be absolutely confident that what he predicts through divine revelation will be fulfilled. Such confidence would enable Jeremiah to preach with boldness, power and assurance. Every preacher should remember that he is the messenger of Him who watches over His word; no promise shall fail, no threat shall go unfilled.

Implicit in the first vision is the calendar of divine judgment. When one in Palestine sees the almond tree blossom he knows that spring is hastening inevitably onward. As the almond among the trees hastens to put forth its leaves, so God is hastening (note the translation of the King James Version) to perform His word of judgment. Such was the interpretation of the great Jewish commentators Rashi and Kimchi. On Gods calendar, judgment was imminent.

B. The Seething Caldron Jer. 1:13-16

At some undetermined time subsequent to the almond rod revelation Jeremiah experienced another vision. He observed a large cooking or wash pot[*] over an open fire. He describes the pot as seething or boiling. The Hebrew word here means literally blown up. The idea seems to be that the fire beneath the pot had been fanned into a fierce flame by a blast. of wind thus bringing the contents of the pot to a boil.[115] So much is clear. But what did Jeremiah mean when he said its face is from the north?[116] Its face probably refers to the side of the pot facing Jeremiah.[117] The face of the pot is from i.e., away from, the north. If the pot is tilting away from the north it must be tilting toward the south.[118] How the pot got in this precarious position is anyones guess. Perhaps it had been set unevenly on the fire at the start or perhaps as the materials on which it was standing were consumed the pot settled unevenly and the southern side sank.

[*] The same kind of pot was used by a whole company of prophets to cook their meals (2Ki. 4:38). It probably was made of metal (Eze. 24:11).

[115] Bright op. cit., p. 5.

[116] The King James translation to the north has been rightly corrected by more recent English versions.
[117] Others think the face of the pot was what one would see as he looked into the pot, i.e., the contents.
[118] Streane, op. cit., p. 7.

Nothing could be more appropriate in describing the political conditions in the days of Jeremiah than a seething caldron. The whole Fertile Crescent was seething with plans for revolt after the death of the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal in 627 B.C. The Assyrian empire was tottering. The Neo-Babylonian kingdom was rising on the horizon. Shortly the calamitous contents of that political caldron would be unleashed against the inhabitants of Judah. The word translated unleashed (ASV, shall break forth) means literally, opened. Cheyne suggests that the caldron had a lid and the removal or falling off of this lid is the opening to which the prophet alludes.[119] The evil (ASV) or calamity which is the subject of Jer. 1:14 is the invasion of Judah by hordes of Babylonian soldiers. The word translated land in this verse can also mean earth. Here the former meaning is intended as Jer. 1:15 indicates.

[119] Cheyne, op. cit., p. 3. It is also possible that the evil or calamity in the north was opened in the sense of revealed. See Freedman, op. cit., p. 4.

The key word in Jer. 1:14 is the word north. Previous to the battle of Carchemish the Babylonians are only mentioned vaguely by Jeremiah as a northern people.[120] Strictly speaking they were an eastern people from the point of view of Palestine. However, the caravan route which the armies of Babylon would follow as they swept southward entered Palestine at Dan (cf. 4:I5 and Jer. 8:16) and then proceeded due south. Jerusalem could be attacked successfully only from the north, as the west, south, and east sides of the city were rendered practically impregnable by deep valleys. Thus the ominous and as yet unidentified enemy is pictured as coming from the north.

[120] See Jer. 4:6; Jer. 6:1; Jer. 10:22.

The significance of the boiling caldron pouring forth its contents toward Judah is explained in Jer. 1:15. God will summon against Judah all the families of the kingdoms of the north. The army of king Nebuchadnezzar was made up of mercenaries of the various kingdoms which he had conquered. This vast throng would attack Jerusalem and the cities of Judah. The thrones might refer to the formal judgment passed upon the inhabitants of the conquered city by the victorious Babylonian generals. On the other hand thrones might be metaphorical for the tents of the enemy generals or perhaps even for some of the large siege instruments. The formula oracle of the Lord (ASV saith Jehovah) underscores the truth of the prediction made in this verse. This is the first of numerous occurrences of this expression in the Book of Jeremiah. The expression is one of the strongest possible claims of inspiration in the Old Testament.

Jer. 1:16 makes it clear that the coming conquerors are but instruments of God who is sending His divine judgment upon an apostate people. The expression speak or pronounce judgments is peculiar to Jeremiah,[121] occurring elsewhere only in 2Ki. 25:6. The judgment falls upon Judah because of all of their wickedness. Three specific examples of this wickedness are cited: (1) They had deserted the true God and were thus guilty of infidelity; (2) they had burned incense to false gods; and (3) they had worshiped graven images. The Hebrew word translated offered incense has a general sense (to make sacrifices smoke) and a specific sense (to offer incense). It is difficult to know in many passages which sense is intended. Bright has proposed that the word be rendered sending up offerings. The phrase other gods refers of course to false gods and does not imply that Jeremiah recognized the actual existence of other deities beside God.[122]

[121] See Jer. 4:12; Jer. 12:1; Jer. 39:5; Jer. 52:9.

[122] Jeremiahs own strict monotheism is proved by such passages as Jer. 2:27; Jer. 8:19; Jer. 10:1-16 and Jer. 16:20.

C. Exhortation and Encouragement Jer. 1:17-19

After a brief preview of the fate of Jerusalem the divine eye again focuses on the key man for the hour. First comes the exhortation (Jer. 1:17) and then the encouragement (Jer. 1:18-19).

1. Words of excoriation

The verbs in Jer. 1:17 are most instructive. Three positive commands are followed by one prohibition. The first command, gird up your loins, implies preparation. Before beginning a journey, starting a race or engaging in conflict an oriental would bind up his loose flowing robes so as not to be hindered in his movement.[123] Gird up the loins then implies (1) readiness for action and (2) energy in action. God is saying to the prophet Prepare yourself for a strenuous ministry. In modern idiom God might say to a preacher, Roll up your sleeves!

[123] Cf. Gehazi on an urgent mission (2Ki. 4:29); Elijah racing from Mt. Carmel to Jezreel (1Ki. 18:46). Jesus also advised his disciples in Luk. 12:35 : Let your loins be girded about, and your lamps be burning.

The second command, Stand up, implies action! He is to begin his prophetic ministry immediately. The kings business is urgent and there is no time for loitering. The third command, speak, points to the primary task of the prophet viz., the communication of the word of God. As in Jer. 1:7, the prophet is directed to preach nothing more and nothing less than what the Lord has commanded.

The fourth command, a negative one, is accompanied by a word of warning. God knew that during his ministry Jeremiah would on numerous occasions face hostile crowds, angry shouts, mocking, taunting, jeering, insolent opponents. The message of divine judgment always stirs such reactions among godless sinners. True preachers of the word must constantly battle the temptation to be intimidated by their audience and to compromise their message. Thus the Lord commands His prophet, Do not be dismayed because of them. He must not permit himself to break down before his audience nor show any signs of fear nor let his fear cause him to alter the message. A stern warning accompanies this commandment, lest I shatter your nerve before them. If Jeremiah shows the least bit of fear for his enemies they will be able to get the best of him. One moment of weakness will finish him as Gods messenger. Only fear of the Lord will save a man of God from the fear of his congregation.[124]

[124] Joseph Woods, Jeremiah (Epworth Preachers Commentaries. London: Epworth, 1964), p. 13.

2. Words of encouragement

The challenging as for you to Jeremiah (Jer. 1:17) is balanced by the assuring as for Me of the Lord (Jer. 1:18).[125] God does not make demands without supplying needs. When God gives the prophet a message to deliver he also gives him the courage to deliver it and the strength to withstand the reaction it provokes. Jeremiah would be fortified by divine strength. Three metaphors are used to portray the protection which Jeremiah would experience: (1) He would be as invincible as a fortified city which might withstand enemy bombardment for years. (2) He would be as indestructible as an iron gate which could withstand the heaviest attack. (3) He would be as impregnable as a wall of bronze, the toughest metal known to the ancients. Walls of wood might be destroyed by fire and walls of stone might ultimately be battered down; but all the weapons of ancient warfare would be ineffective against walls of brass.[126] Though all segments of the populationthe kings, princes, priests and people of the landmight oppose him, yet God would give him the strength to endure.

[125] Elmer A. Leslie, Jeremiah Chronologically Arranged, Translated, and Interpreted (New York: Abingdon, 1954), p. 24.

[126] Theo. Laetsch, Bible Commentary, Jeremiah (St. Louis: Concordia, 1952), p. 32.

Metaphorical language gives way to literal warning and promise in the last verse of chapter 1. Jeremiah would be famous but he would not be popular. All the powerful figures of the nation will fight against him but they will not prevail. God will come to his rescue. His adversaries might win the skirmishes but they will not win the war. Jeremiah is not promised deliverance from persecution and suffering but from being defeated by persecution and suffering. Here then is the contrasting picture presented by this verse: Jeremiah hated and attacked by men but loved and protected by his God. The invincible Lord will stand with him; he cannot be defeated. On this positive note the call narrative concludes.

Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series

(11) The word of the Lord . . .As before, we have the element of ecstasy and vision, symbols not selected by the prophet, and yet, we may believe, adapted to his previous training, and to the bent and, as it were, genius of his character.

The poetry of the symbols is of exquisite beauty. In contrast to the words of terror, in harmony with the words of hope, he sees the almond-bough, with its bright pink blossoms and its pale green leaves, the token of an early spring rising out of the dreariness of winter. The name of the almond-tree (here the poetical, not the common, name) made the symbol yet more expressive. It was the watcher, the tree that hastens to awake (shkd) out of its wintry sleep, and thus expresses the divine haste which would not without cause delay the fulfilment of its gracious promise, but would, as it were, make it bud and blossom, and bear fruit.

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

11. What seest thou A form of question many times used to call attention to a prophetic vision. See especially the book of Zechariah.

A rod of an almond tree The word , “almond,” means primarily wakeful, vigilant, and is applied to this tree because it wakes up to life, and blossoms in January, while the other trees are still in their winter’s sleep. Hence it is a natural symbol of vigilance, and so God uses it to suggest his own ever-wakeful activity. The word , ( makkel,) though ordinarily meaning “rod,” is here used in the sense of shoot or twig. Both Gesenius and Furst give to the root form the meaning to germinate. Other examples of the sense which seems to be demanded in this text are, Gen 30:37; Jer 48:17.

Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

The Sign Of The Branch Of The Almond Tree ( Jer 1:11-12 ).

The first sign was that of the branch of an almond tree, which was an indication and assurance that YHWH would be watching over His word, as spoken through Jeremiah, so as to perform it. The almond tree budded early and was thus a reminder of new life in contrast with the dearth of life preceding it which was the result of the hot summer. It was a constantly renewed reminder that all was well with the world, and that YHWH could make all things new. Its Hebrew name also had the same consonants as the word for ‘watching’.

Jer 1:11-12

‘Moreover the word of YHWH came to me, saying, “Jeremiah, what do you see?” And I said, “I see a branch of an almond-tree (shoqed).” Then YHWH said to me, “You have seen well, for I watch (shaqed) over my word to perform it.”

The word for ‘rod’ or ‘branch’ can mean a fresh, leafy branch (Gen 30:37), but the main point here is that it is from an ‘almond tree’. ‘Almond tree’ is shoqed, whereas the verb ‘to watch’ is shaqed. Thus every time that that he saw a fruitful branch of shoqed he was to remember YHWH’s fruitful ‘watch’ (shaqed) over His word. In view of the abundance of almond trees it was intended to be a huge encouragement. It was a guarantee that YHWH would continually remind him that He would not fail in His purpose.

YHWH’s promise to watch over His word would be comprehensive, for His effective word (Isa 58:10-13) would produce many effects. It would include His judgment on, and final re-planting once their chastisement was over, of His people, and His judgment on, and final calling of, the nations (compare Isa 42:6; Isa 49:6). It included all His purposes revealed to Jeremiah.

Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett

YHWH Gives Jeremiah Two Signs, One Of Which Was The Certainty Of YHWH’s Watchfulness Over His Purposes, And The Second A Sign Which Demonstrated The Judgments That Were To Come From The North Because Of Israel’s Idolatry And Unfaithfulness ( Jer 1:11-19 ).

YHWH now gave Jeremiah two signs of what He intended to do. The first sign was a simple branch from an almond tree (shoqed) which indicated the ‘watching’ (shaqed) of YHWH. He would ‘watch over’ His word in order to bring it about. The second was a boiling cauldron with its open part pointing from the north so that its scalding contents could be poured over Judah, indicating the terrible things that were shortly coming on Judah from YHWH. The contrast is vivid. The beauty of the almond tree expressing YHWH’s control over events, and the boiling cauldron emphasising His judgment. At the same time He warned Jeremiah that he was not going to have an easy time of it.

We should, however, note that Jeremiah carefully distinguishes the two signs, the first being introduced with the words ‘the word of YHWH came to me saying –’, and the second with the words ‘the word of YHWH came to me a second time saying –’. The signs are thus deliberately shown to be distinctly separate, each bringing its own assurance.

Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett

Jer 1:11-12. And I said, I see, &c. The almond-tree, shaked, is so called, because this tree, before all others, first waketh, and riseth from its winter-repose. See Num 17:8. It flowers in the month of January, and by March brings its fruit to maturity; that is to say, in the warm southern countries. The forwardness of this fruit-bearing tree is here intimated to us: I see a rod of an almond-tree:Then said the Lord, Thou hast well seen; for I am hastening, or rather, I am awakening, or watching over, or, on account of my word to fulfil it. So the LXX, u949? , and the Vulgate, vigilabo ego super. In the first ages of the world, says the learned author of the Divine Legation, mutual converse was upheld by a mixed discourse of words and actions. Hence came the eastern phrase of the voice of the sign; and use and custom, improving what had arisen out of necessity into ornament, this practice subsisted long after the necessity was over, especially among the eastern people, whose natural temperament inclined them to a mode of conversation which so well exercised their vivacity by motion, and so well gratified it by a perpetual representation of material images. Of this we have innumerable instances in Holy Scripture, and especially in 1Ki 12:11 and Ezekiel 4. By these actions the prophets instructed the people in the will of God, and conversed with them in signs; but where God teaches the prophet, and, in compliance with the custom of that time, condescends to the same mode of instruction, then the significative action is generally changed into vision, either natural or extraordinary; as in these verses, where the prophet Jeremiah is bid to regard the rod of the almond-tree and the seething-pot. The almond-tree buds and blossoms very early in the spring; and therefore a branch of it, adorned with buds and blossoms, is a proper emblem to denote God’s hastening the execution of the predictions which he delivered by his prophet; and accordingly Jeremiah lived to see most of the predictions fulfilled. We must not omit the explanation of this verse given us by Maimonides: “The prophets,” saith he, “frequently employed equivocal and metaphorical words, with intent not to signify the thing which is obvious in the first sense of the words, but what is to be collected from another etymology and derivation thereof. Sometimes they see things which represent very different matters from those that they see, and which are implied in another signification of the word, which stands for the things seen. An almond-tree is presented before Jeremiah, and yet no respect is had to that tree, which was only an artificial memorial that God, will hasten or watch over [ shoked,] the performance of his words, which is the other sense of the Hebrew word for an almond-tree. Amos (ch. Jer 8:1-2.) sees a basket of summer-fruit; but that had no connexion, except in sound, with the prediction which is implied in that sign; then said the Lord, the end is come upon my people Israel. Sometimes a double reference to different persons is included in the same word. Again, the letters of a word are transposed to form a word which hath no affinity in etymology or sense with the former. Thus Zechariah (ch. Jer 11:7-8.) calls one of his shepherd’s staves noam, or delight, to signify the pleasure that God had in his people, and the delight which the people took in God’s worship. He calls his other staff chobelim, bands; in token that the people were chobelim, because corrupters of God’s law, and their souls did mutually bachelah, abhor each other.” See Bishop Chandler’s Defence, vol. 1: p. 225.

Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke

The Lord was pleased, we find, both by word and by vision, to confirm the Prophet in his new appointment. And the Lord which raised up to the Prophet’s mind these images, took care to instruct his mind how to interpret them, that nothing of divine teaching might fall to the ground.

Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

Jer 1:11 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree.

Ver. 11. Jeremiah, what seest thou? ] It was great kindness and familiarity thus to parley with him, and to call him by his name.

And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree. ] Which hath its name in Hebrew from watching, because it watcheth, as it were, to bud and bear before other trees, even in the deep of winter, and when it is at coldest. Hereby the prophet is animated, though but young, and assured that he shall have the fruit of his so early labours. God careth not for those arbores autumnales Jdg 1:12 trees which bud not till the latter end of harvest. The truth of all his predictions is designed, though little believed by the most; the speediness also of their performance, Jer 1:12 Eze 7:10-11 a good comment upon this text. The sins of God’s people, saith one, are sooner ripe than of the heathens, because they have the constant light and heat of his Word to hasten their maturity. This was typified by the basket of summer fruits, and by the almond tree in this text. As the almond tree, saith another, hath a bitter rind, but a sweet kernel, so hath affliction sanctified; and again, as the almond tree is made more fruitful by driving nails into it, letting out a noxious gum that hindereth the fruitfulness thereof, so is a good man made better by afflictions. a

a Jerome, Theod., Just. Mart.

Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Jer 1:11-12

11The word of the LORD came to me saying, What do you see, Jeremiah? And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree. 12Then the LORD said to me, You have seen well, for I am watching over My word to perform it.

Jer 1:11 What do you see There are two visions (Jer 1:11-12 and Jer 1:13-19). The time element is uncertain, but they are placed close to Jeremiah’s call.

I see a rod of an almond tree The term almond, shaqed (BDB 1052), is related to the VERB watching in Jer 1:12, shoqed (BDB 1052). In this culture the almond tree was called the watching tree. Apparently this vision was a way to emphasize the surety of God’s word through Jeremiah (i.e., watching over and to perform it).

Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley

Jeremiah’s Second Prophecy (see Book comments for Jeremiah).

Moreover = And. Another commission introducing two visions.

a rod = a staff for striking. Hebrew. makkel, as in Jer 48:17 and Gen 30:37-41.

a rod of an almond tree. Denotes an almond tree staff, corresponding with a vigilant watchman.

an almond tree. Hebrew. shaked = a watcher, or an early waker, because it is the first of the trees to wake from its winter sleep, and is thus what the cock is among birds.

Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics

Jer 1:11-12

Jer 1:11-12

“Moreover, the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond-tree. Then said Jehovah unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I watch over my word to perform it.”

The meaning of this vision turns upon the fact of the almond-tree being the first one that puts out blooms in the spring. JKP translated almond-tree here as “`The early-awake tree’; the Hebrew word translated `almond’ means this. Thus, the revelation to Jeremiah was that, just as the almond tree in bloom signified the near-approach of spring, so God was soon to bring his word to pass.

In the last half of chapter 1 the call of Jeremiah is confirmed and amplified through two visions and further words of exhortation and encouragement. The two visions are of particular interest. The first one expresses a general principle of prophecy; the second deals with a particular concrete application. Before considering the visions themselves two preliminary matters need to be touched upon: (1) the time of the visions, and (2) the nature of them.

The time of the visions. Hyatt calls the visions inaugural visions but it really is not certain that they were part of the call experience or even that they followed immediately after the call. The fact that each vision has a separate introductory formula would suggest a certain time interval between the call and the visions and between the two visions as well. If these visions did not come immediately upon the call of Jeremiah they were given very early in his career for God seems to use them to assure Jeremiah of his prophetic call. They are confirmatory tokens. The visions also serve to create within Jeremiah an awareness that momentous events affecting the kingdom of Judah were imminent.

The nature of the visions. God made known His will and purpose through two kinds of visions in the Old Testament. In the first type of vision the prophet saw with his mind (or perhaps with his eyes, who can say) an object or scene which had no external reality. In this kind of vision God produced what was seen and also provided the interpretation of it. In the second type of vision the prophet happened to notice or was directed to notice an object or scene. He meditated upon what he saw and as he did so God revealed to him the prophetic significance of it. In the one case God caused the prophet to see a significant object; in the other, God caused the prophet to see significance in an object. Into which one of these two vision categories do the visions in Jeremiah 1 fall?

It is difficult to decide whether God showed the almond rod and the boiling pot in mental visions or whether Jeremiah happened to see the external objects and then learned their symbolic significance through divine revelation. In both visions God asked Jeremiah What do you see? The same language is used in Jer 24:3 where the problem again arises as to the nature of what the prophet saw. The absence of the words the Lord showed me which are present in other similar passages (e.g., Jer 24:3; Amo 7:8; Amo 8:2) might suggest that Jeremiah did not receive a mental vision. However the phrase the Lord showed me is sometimes absent in contexts where mental vision is mandatory (e.g., Zachariah Jer 4:2; Jer 5:2). Exegetically, then, decisive evidence with regard to the nature of what Jeremiah saw in chapter 1 is lacking. The present writer is inclined to think that as Jeremiah meditated on these common, every day objects God caused him to see in them a mystic or prophetic significance.

The Vision of the Almond Rod Jer 1:11-12

As Jeremiah held in his hand an almond walking stick or rod God caused the prophet to come to a tremendous realization. The almond tree which blossoms in January was poetically named by the Hebrews the wakeful tree because it was the first to awake from winter sleep. When God asked Jeremiah what he saw His purpose was not only to direct the attention of the prophet to the almond rod, but also to get the prophet to pronounce the word for almond. The Hebrew word for almond tree is shaked and the Hebrew word for watch (or wakeful) is shoked. Here then is paronomasia or word play. God is using the rod of wake-tree wood to show Jeremiah that He is wakeful.

Aside from the word play, what is the import of this vision? First, the vision speaks of Gods concern. Since the days of wicked Manasseh no judgment had befallen the nation of Judah. As in the winter season all was at rest. But the Keeper of Israel does not slumber or sleep (Psa 121:4). Amid the moral and spiritual deadness round about, God was awake. He was aware of and concerned about the corrupt condition of the nation. At times things seemed to go unchecked, evil seems to triumph and men assume that God is dead or unconcerned. But the winter of moral desolation cannot last forever; the Lord is wakeful. When the season of judgment has fully come the Wakeful One will manifest Himself as the God of wrath.

The almond rod also suggests the chastisement of the nation. As Aarons almond rod that budded in the wilderness was a token of Gods wrath against the rebellious (Num 17:8) so now the almond rod which Jeremiah observes presages the outpouring of Gods judgment upon the apostate people of another time. It is not a branch with twigs and leaves which the prophet sees but rather a stick used for walking or striking. This would be a most appropriate symbol of an instrument of chastisement. The symbolic significance would not be lost upon a prophet who knew the writings of Isaiah: Ho Assyrian, the rod of My anger, the staff in whose hand is My indignation! (Isa 10:5).

The third focus of the almond rod vision is that of the certainty of prophetic revelation. God is watching with persistent care to see that His word is performed. He sees to it that His word does not return unto Him void but rather accomplishes His good pleasure (Isa 55:11). Whether it be judgment or salvation, threat or promise His word will come to pass. Jeremiah need have no fear that he will ever be embarrassed or proven to be wrong if he preaches the word of God. Thus the prophet can be absolutely confident that what he predicts through divine revelation will be fulfilled. Such confidence would enable Jeremiah to preach with boldness, power and assurance. Every preacher should remember that he is the messenger of Him who watches over His word; no promise shall fail, no threat shall go unfilled.

Implicit in the first vision is the calendar of divine judgment. When one in Palestine sees the almond tree blossom he knows that spring is hastening inevitably onward. As the almond among the trees hastens to put forth its leaves, so God is hastening (note the translation of the King James Version) to perform His word of judgment. Such was the interpretation of the great Jewish commentators Rashi and Kimchi. On Gods calendar, judgment was imminent.

Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary

rod

(See Scofield “Num 17:8”)

Fuente: Scofield Reference Bible Notes

what seest thou: Amo 7:8, Amo 8:2, Zec 4:2, Zec 5:2

I see a rod: Num 17:8, Eze 7:10

Reciprocal: Exo 25:33 – like unto Exo 37:20 – almonds 1Ki 22:17 – I saw Ecc 12:5 – the almond Jer 1:2 – the word Jer 2:1 – the word Jer 24:3 – What Eze 11:3 – It is not Eze 47:6 – hast thou Amo 7:1 – showed Act 11:5 – and it Rev 14:1 – I looked

Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

Jer 1:11-12. The word almond is bhaqeo and Strong’s definition is, The almond (tree or nut; as being the earliest in bloom).” Hasten is from shaqao which Strong defines, A prim* itive root; to be alert, i.e, sleepless; hence to be on the lookout (whether for good or ill). Here is an unusual coincidence of words. The two in italics have no similarity of meaning in the English, yet the originals are almost identical in meaning. The circumstance gives us one of the methods the Lord takes in his use of words that get their meaning from the characteristics of the objects bearing the names of said words. The almond is one of the earliest of trees to Show up in the spring blooming season. Because of this fact the Lord chose the word in his descriptive prediction because it was practically the same in meaning as another word in the Hebrew vocabulary that specifically does mean to hasten or be on the alert. And the underlying reason for this peculiar phrasing was the truth that the things being predicted were soon to be fulfilled; not be on the list of happenings that were many years in the future. As a visual circumstance for the impressions on the mind of the prophet, God caused him lo see a rod or limb taken from the almond tree. The event that was soon to occur was the Babylonian Invasion that was to result in the captivity of the nation. Jeremiah began to write in the year 627 B.c and the invasion came in G06 u.c,, only 21 years later. This short interval of time would justify the prediction made by the imagery of the almond tree.

Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary

Jer 1:11-12. Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me Probably at the same time, and in the same vision, wherein he was first appointed to his office; saying, What seest thou Here, by symbolical representations, the meaning of which God immediately interpreted, future things were presented to his view. This method of instruction or information sinks deeper into the mind, and leaves a more lasting impression there, than any mere words can do; and therefore the prophets frequently received communications from God in this way. And I said, I see a rod of an almond-tree Namely, which had leaves, and possibly blossoms on it, like Aarons rod; otherwise the prophet could not so readily have discerned of what kind of wood it was. The almond-tree is one of the first that wakes and rises from its winter repose, flowering, in the warm southern countries, in the month of January, and by March bringing its fruits to maturity. From this circumstance, which is mentioned by Pliny, lib. 16. cap. 42, it is supposed to have received its name, , shaked, as being intent, and, as it were, on the watch to seize the first opportunity of emitting its buds and blossoms: which is the proper sense of the verb, from which that noun is derived. A branch of this tree, therefore, with buds or leaves, and blossoms upon it, was a proper emblem to denote Gods hastening the execution of the predictions which he declared by this prophet, who lived to see most of his prophecies fulfilled. There is also in the original a remarkable paranomasia, or affinity in sound, between shaked, an almond-tree, and shoked, hastening, which makes the words more striking than they can possibly be in any translation. For not only the nature of the almond-tree, but the very sound of the Hebrew word, which signifies it, denoted Gods hastening to fulfil the prophecies which Jeremiah uttered by his directions. Thou hast well seen Or, thou hast seen and judged right. Hebrew, , Thou hast done well to see, that is, in seeing so. For I will hasten my word Literally, I will act like the almond-tree respecting my word; namely, my word of threatening, against Judah and Jerusalem, to perform it.

Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

Jer 1:11-19. The Two Visions of Judgment.These form a separate experience, and imply some change of standpoint, since it is now the judgment of Judah through the instrumentality of the nations which is presented to the prophets eye. The first vision (Jer 1:11 f.) is preparatory; he sees the branch (rod) of an almond tree, and the interpretation of his vision is that this shkd stands for the Divine shkd, the watcher God (who slumbers not nor sleeps, Psa 121:4), ever wakeful unto judgment. The almond tree is here called the waker, because of its early (February) blossoming; see Thomson, The Land and the Book, p. 318. Such play on words is characteristic of Hebrew thought; it finds a parallel, e.g. in Amo 8:2, where the prophets vision of a basket of summer fruit (kaitz) suggests that the end (ktz) of Israel is near. Such visions as these, at least in pre-exilic times, are not merely a rhetorical device; they imply some abnormal psychical experience. The second and principal vision (Jer 1:13 ff.) is of a boiling caldron. The phrase the face thereof is from the north is obscure, and might mean either that the caldron was seen north of the prophet, in which case its contents, as they boil over, represent the northern nations as they descend upon Judah, or, more probably (with Duhm, repointing one word) that the fireplace on which the caldron stands is open on the northern side, from which the fire is kindled. On this latter view, the caldron becomes Judah itself, whose inhabitants suffer from the flames kindled beneath them by the enemy. On either interpretation of the object seen, the emphasis falls on the quarter from which the enemy comes, i.e. the north. These kingdoms of the north are doubtless the Scythians (p. 60), who came as far as Syria, intending to invade Egypt (Herod, i. 1036), about this time, though they did not do what the prophet here expects of them. When he reissued these and similar prophecies in 604 (see Introduction), he transferred his expectations to the Babylonians. The hostile kings set up their thrones (Jer 1:15) to judge the vanquished after the city is taken. Through their agency, Yahweh proceeds to judgment upon Judah (Jer 1:16 mg.), because of the heathen worship appropriated by, or practised along with, the worship of Yahweh in the reign of Manasseh (heathenism which the Assyrian supremacy naturally encouraged). This is the judgment Jeremiah is to declare fearlessly, with a Divinely given strength comparable with that of a fortified city and a bronze wall.

Jer 1:14. shall break forth: read, with LXX, shall be kindled, i.e. blown upon, with a play on the Hebrew word for seething.

Jer 1:15. Omit, with LXX, families of the.

Jer 1:16. burned incense: sacrificed.

Jer 1:18. Omit iron pillar, and read wall for walls, both with LXX.

Fuente: Peake’s Commentary on the Bible

1:11 Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a {m} rod of an almond tree.

(m) He joins the sign with the word, for a more ample confirmation: signifying by the rod of the almond tree, which first buds, the hasty coming of the Babylonians against the Jews.

Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes

2. Two confirming visions 1:11-19

The Lord gave Jeremiah two visions to help him appreciate the nature of his calling, two witnesses to his calling. The first one stresses the ultimate effectiveness of his ministry and the second its negative emphasis. The first deals with the time of judgment and the second with the direction and nature of it.

Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)

The vision of the almond tree 1:11-12

Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)

The Lord directed the prophet to observe the branch of an almond tree. The almond tree is distinctive, as it is the first tree to blossom in the spring in Israel. Many almond trees still grow in Israel, even in the area of old Anathoth, so the tree was probably common to Jeremiah.

Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)