Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Jeremiah 18:17
I will scatter them as with an east wind before the enemy; I will show them the back, and not the face, in the day of their calamity.
17. as with an east wind ] better, perhaps, as an east wind.
look upon their face ] mg. shew them the back, and not the face, in answer to the people’s own behaviour towards Him. See ch. Jer 2:27. They shall flee for shelter from the enemy as from the sirocco, the scorching wind in Palestine which springs suddenly from the desert in the E. or S.E. Cp. Gen 41:6 (“blasted”) and see on Amo 4:9 in C.B.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
I will shew them the back – The hiding of Gods face is the sure sign of His displeasure Isa 1:15; Isa 59:2.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Jer 18:17
I win scatter them;. . . I will shew them the back.
The sinners doom
I. The cause of the evil threatened.
1. Rejecting the Divine government.
2. Guilty of idolatry.
3. Rejecting the mercy of God.
4. Conduct characterised by the greatest folly.
5. A manifestation of basest ingratitude.
II. The nature of the evil threatened.
1. God sometimes shows His back in a way of mercy (Exo 33:23; Job 25:2).
2. But this threat is expressive of Divine wrath.
3. The wrath of God is retributive.
4. A final departure.
III. The time when the evil shall be inflicted.
1. In the time of adversity.
2. In sickness.
3. When deserted by friends.
4. In old age.
5. In hour of death.
6. At last day. (Helps for the Pulpit.)
East winds
The east winds referred to by the prophets appear to be a violent form of sirocco. It was the east wind which brought the plague of locusts upon the Egyptians. It was by an east wind that the ships of Tarshish were broken (Psa 48:7), and the ships of Tyre (Eze 27:26). Jeremiah takes an east wind as the symbol of Jehovahs punishment of His people, while references to its withering and scorching properties are numerous; from the seven thin ears of wheat of Pharaohs vision in Egypt to the sultry blast which helped to afflict Jonah outside the walls of Nineveh. The east wind still breaks at times with terrific violence upon the coasts of Palestine, and the records of victims tell of tents that have been blown away by its fury. (H. B. Freeman, M. A.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 17. I will scatter them as with an east wind] It is the property of this wind, almost every where, to parch up, blast, and destroy grain and trees, and even cattle and men suffer from it. Hence the old metrical proverb: –
“When the wind blows from the east,
‘Tis good for neither man nor beast.”
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
The east wind is (or was at least in those parts) the fiercest wind. As the east wind scatters the chaff, so, saith God, I will scatter them. And when they shall be in great calamity and misery, I will not hearken to them, I will not turn my face to them, or show them my face; but I will turn my back upon them, I will not regard them crying, nor hear their prayers.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
17. as with an east windliterally,”I will scatter them, as an east wind (scatters allbefore it)”: a most violent wind (Job 27:21;Psa 48:7; Isa 27:8).Thirty-two manuscripts read (without as), “with aneast wind.”
I will show them the back . .. not . . . facejust retribution: as “they turned theirback unto Me . . . not their face” (Jer2:27).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
I will scatter them as with an east wind before the enemy,…. As the east wind, which is generally strong and boisterous, drives the chaff and stubble, and anything that is light, before it, and scatters it here and there; so the Lord threatens to scatter the people of the Jews over the face of the earth, before their enemies, whom they should not be able to withstand. It denotes the power of the enemy God would make use of; the ease with which this should be done; and the utter dispersion of them; and is their present case:
I will show them the back, and not the face, in the day of their calamity; that is, will not look upon them in a favourable way, nor with any pity and compassion for them, nor hear their cries; but turn his back upon them, and a deaf ear unto them, and give them no help and relief, or deliver them out of their calamities; but suffer them to continue upon them, and them to sink under them; see Pr 1:26; which refers to the same time of calamity as here.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Though no word of comparison is expressed, if we read ב, beth, and not כ, caph, yet the Prophet employs a comparison, for God did not drive away the Jews by an eastern wind, but as the force of that wind is violent in Judea, the eastern wind often means a storm or a whirlwind, as though he had said, “As by a whirlwind or a storm will I cast them out.” (203) I will disperse or dissipate them, he says, before the face of the enemy. He means that enemies would come to exterminate the Jews from the land; and he adds another thing, that these enemies would be full of terror, for God would give them the force of a whirlwind or a storm to disperse and scatter the Jews, for being terrified by God they would not dare to withstand.
Then follows a commination, that God would turn to them the neck, or the back, and not the face in the day of calamity. It sometimes happens that we are severely chastised by God, he thus often tries his faithful people when he subjects them to the will of the ungodly; but yet all remedy is not taken away from them, as they find consolation in God’s mercy, for as he casts down so he raises up, as he puts to death so he gives life, according to what is said in 1Sa 2:6. But God here denounces a punishment without any prospect of pardon or alleviation, I will scatter them, he says, as by an east wind before their enemies. Then he adds, “In vain shall they flee to me and seek my mercy, though otherwise it is offered to all, yet then they shall implore it in vain, for it is decreed not to pardon them. I will shew to them my back, (or neck, for ערף, oreph, is the hinder part of the head, but here it means the back,) they shall then find that I am turned away from them, so that they shall not be set before my eyes.” For it is an invaluable consolation when God is pleased to look on our miseries, but he deprives the Jews of this hope, for he would turn to them his back in the day of slaughter. I cannot proceed farther now.
(203) Many copies read ב, though all the versions retain the כ; “As a burning wind will I scatter them,” is the version of the Septuagint and the Vulgate; “As a hot wind,” etc, is the Syriac. — Ed
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(17) With an east wind.MSS. vary, some giving with and some as an east wind. The difference does not much affect the meaning. The east wind blowing from the desert was the wind of storms, tempests, and parching heat (Jon. 4:8; Psa. 48:7; Isa. 27:8). I will shew them the back, and not the face.The figure is boldly anthropomorphic. The light of Gods countenance is the fulness of joy (Num. 6:25). To turn away that light was to leave the people to the darkness of their misery. What was thus done by Jehovah was but a righteous retribution on the people who had turned their back and not their face to Him (Jer. 2:27).
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
Jer 18:17 I will scatter them as with an east wind before the enemy; I will shew them the back, and not the face, in the day of their calamity.
Ver. 17. I will scatter them. ] Whirry and whirl them up and down, as chaff before the force of the enemy.
I will skew them the back, and not the face.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
as. Some codices, with five early printed editions, read “with”, instead of “as”.
wind. Hebrew. ruach. App-9.
in the day. See App-18.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
scatter: Jer 13:24, Deu 28:25, Deu 28:64, Job 27:21, Psa 48:7, Hos 13:15
show: Jer 2:27, Jer 32:33, Deu 31:17, Jdg 10:13, Jdg 10:14
the day: Jer 46:21, Deu 32:35, Pro 7:25, Pro 7:26
Reciprocal: Deu 32:20 – I will hide 2Ch 30:9 – turn away Psa 18:18 – me in Jer 20:8 – I cried Jer 33:5 – I have hid Eze 7:22 – face
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Jer 18:17. East wind is referred to a number of times in the Bible as something especially unpleasant or destructive. Smiths Bible Dictionary says the following on the subject: “The east wind crosses the sandy wastes of Arabia Deserta before reaching Palestine, and was hence termed the wind of the wilderness”– Job 1:19; Jer 13:24. It blows with violence, and is hence supposed to be used generally for any violent wind. Job 27:21; Job 38:24; Psa 48:7; Isa 27:8; Eze 27:26. Funk and Wagnalls Standard Bible Dictionary says of it: “The hot, dry wind from the desert, that fills the air with dust and is exceedingly unpleasant for man and often fatal to young vegetation. It blows generally in the spring. It is frequently referred to in the Old Testament.” The figurative east wind was to consist of the Babylonian army that was to invade the country with such devastating results. Shew them the back means that when the enemy came against the people it would be useless for them to appeal to God, for he would turn his back upon them.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
18:17 I will scatter them as with an east wind before the enemy; I will show them the back, and {f} not the face, in the day of their calamity.
(f) I will show my anger and not my favour toward them.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
Yahweh would scatter His people from their land before the enemy, as when the strong east wind (the sirocco, cf. Jer 4:11; 13:34) blew the tumbleweeds in the windy months. Their enemy would also come from the east, specifically Babylon, though the soldiers would descend on them from the north. Yahweh would turn His back on His people when this calamity fell; He would offer them no help or favor (cf. Jer 2:27; Num 6:24-26).