Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Jeremiah 14:16
And the people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and the sword; and they shall have none to bury them, them, their wives, nor their sons, nor their daughters: for I will pour their wickedness upon them.
16. their wickedness ] This shall be itself their punishment. Cp. Jer 2:19.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
I will pour … – i. e., their wickedness shall be brought home to them.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 16. And the people – shall be cast out] They shall be destroyed, because they preferred their lying words to my truth, proclaimed by thee.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
The security promised by these false prophets shall be no excuse to the people for giving credit to them; the prophets shall perish for prophesying falsely in my name, and the people that hearken to and believe what they say, practise accordingly, shall perish for their light and vain credulity. As the sinful commands of superiors in things civil will not free those from guilt that execute their commands, so the lies and false teachings of ministers will not excuse those that run into error upon the credit of their words: both the one and the other owe their first homage and allegiance to God, by whose word they ought to examine the precepts of the one, and the prophesyings of the other.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
16. none to bury (Ps79:3).
pour their wickednessthatis, the punishment incurred by their wickedness (Jer2:19).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And the people to whom they prophesy,…. That is, such of them as gave credit to their prophecies:
shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem, because of the famine and the sword; they dying of the famine and of the sword, their carcasses should be cast out of their houses into the open streets, and there lie unburied, as a punishment for disbelieving the words of the Lord, and giving heed to the lies of the false prophets:
and they shall have none to bury them; either through want of ability of body or substance, or through want of affection; or rather through want of persons to do it for them, all their relations being cut off with them, as follows:
them, their wives, nor their sons, nor their daughters; or rather, “they” n, “their wives, and their sons, and their daughters”; these shall die by the famine and the sword, and shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem; so that they and their relatives all dying, there would be none to bury one another; and that all should suffer by these calamities were but just and righteous, since all were guilty both of idolatry, and of despising the prophets, and listening to the false ones; see Jer 7:18:
for I will pour their wickedness upon them; or, “their evil upon them” o; not the evil of sin, but the evil of punishment; the meaning is, that he would abundantly punish them for their sins, and as they deserved, though not exceeding the bounds of justice: the phrase denotes that their wickedness was great; and that in proportion to it the vials of his wrath would be poured out upon them.
n “ipsi inquam”, Pagninus, Montanus, Schmidt. o “suum malum”, Vatablus, Pagninus, Montanus.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
This then was the reason why God so severely visited the Jews, who had been deceived by false teachers: it was owing to their previous impiety and ingratitude. And on this account also he adds at the end of the verse, I will pour forth upon them their wickedness Some think that the word רעה, roe, may denote punishment as well as wickedness, as עון, oun, also is taken for both. But the Prophet seems to give a reason why God had resolved to execute so dreadful a judgment on the Jews; and the reason was, because they were worthy of such a reward. I am therefore inclined to render the word wickedness, as though he had said, “A dreadful calamity indeed awaits this people; but that they may not complain of my severity, they shall receive the reward of their own wickedness.” However this may be, the Prophet no doubt wished here to close the mouths of the Jews, that they might not proceed in their evasions, as though God treated them with too little kindness. Hence then it appears, that God does not heedlessly execute his vengeance on the innocent; but that the teachers and the whole people, who approved of them, were involved in the same punishment. (117)
And he says, They shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem by the famine and the sword, or on account of the famine and the sword. They shall then all of them, that is, their carcases, be cast out; for their carcases are evidently meant, as he immediately adds, and no one shall bury them; and he mentions their wives and children. And these had no excuse for themselves, for we have seen in the seventh chapter that this charge was brought against them, rothat the children gathered wood, that the parents kindled the fire, and that the women kneaded the dough to make cakes for their idols. The Prophet then intimates, that no one would escape, because they were all implicated in the same wickedness, some more and some less, but so far, however, that the children were not to go unpunished, because they followed their fathers, nor the wives, because they followed the example of their husbands. It follows —
(117) These two verses are differently connected by some: the words, “these prophets,” at the end of the fifteenth verse, are joined with the “the people” in the next verse; and this construction is evidently the best, —
15. Therefore, thus saith Jehovah, — As to the prophets who prophesy in my name, (Though I have not sent them, yet they say, — The sword and the famine shall not be in this land) By the sword and by the famine shall they perish:
16. These prophets, and the people, to whom they prophesy, Shall be cast out into the streets of Jerusalem, On account of the famine and the sword; And there will be none to bury them — Neither them, nor their wives, nor their sons, nor their daughters; Thus will I pour upon them their own wickedness.
The preceding connection is favored by the Septuagint and the Arabic, but the other versions do not join the “prophets” and the “people” together. “Their own wickedness” is “their own evils” in the Septuagint, — “their own evil” in the Vulgate, — and “their own wickedness” in the Syriac. If rendered “wickedness,” then it is a metonymy for the fruit or effect of wickedness; if “evil” then the meaning is, the evil due to them. — Ed.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
Jer 14:16 And the people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and the sword; and they shall have none to bury them, them, their wives, nor their sons, nor their daughters: for I will pour their wickedness upon them.
Ver. 16. And the people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out. ] They shall be no more excused by their having been deluded, than he that in his drink committeth adultery or murder is excused by his drunkenness. A drunkard, saith Aristotle, deserveth double punishment: a first for his drunkenness, and then for the sin committed in and by his drunkenness; so here. See on Jer 14:15 .
a . – Ethic., lib. iii. cap. 5.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
wickedness = calamity. Heb, ra’a’. App-44. Not the same word as Jer 14:20.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
the people: Jer 5:31, Isa 9:16, Mat 15:14
be cast: Jer 7:33, Jer 9:22, Jer 15:2, Jer 15:3, Jer 16:4, Jer 18:21, Jer 19:6, Jer 19:7, Psa 79:2, Psa 79:3
for: Jer 2:17-19, Jer 4:18, Jer 13:22-25, Pro 1:31, Rev 16:1
Reciprocal: Jer 7:20 – Behold Jer 24:10 – General Jer 27:15 – ye Lam 3:51 – the daughters Lam 4:11 – Lord Hos 4:5 – and the prophet Luk 6:39 – shall
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Jer 14:16. The false prophets will not be the only ones who wjli feel the wrath of God, but the people to whom the false teaching was given will likewise suffer. The justice of such dealing is explained by Jeremiah 5; Jeremiah 31 which says the people love to have it so. It is the same principle of responsibility that Jesus taught (Mat 15:14) that if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch. Paul taught the same idea in Rom 1:32 regarding those who are pleased with the wrong doing of others.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
The people to whom the false prophets had given their placebo promises would also die in the same ways. So many of them would die that there would not be enough people left alive to bury all the dead. This would be God’s judgment on the people for their wickedness: many unburied corpses.