Jeremiah Comforts Baruch.

v. 1. The word that Jeremiah, the prophet, spake unto Baruch, the son of Neriah, his secretary and, in a sense, his fellow-worker, when he had written these words in a book at the mouth of Jeremiah, as the latter dictated his prophecies from the thirteenth year of Josiah to the fourth of Jehoiakim, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, saying,

v. 2. Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel, unto thee, O Baruch, for even the disciple of the prophet was not spared by the Lord as far as reproving the faults of those whose welfare He sought was concerned,

v. 3. Thou didst say, Woe is me now! namely, on account of the hatred of his enemies, for the Lord hath added grief to my sorrow, that which he felt on account of the depravity of his people. I fainted in my sighing, and I find no rest. The grief which Baruch felt was intensified by fear for his own life on account of the suspicions of his own countrymen, 43:3. All of this seemed to him to amount to a very harsh treatment on the part of God.

v. 4. Thus shalt thou say unto him, The Lord saith thus, Behold, that which I have built will I break down, and that which I have planted I will pluck up, even this whole land. Cf. Jer 31:28; Isa 5:5.

v. 5. And seekest thou great things for thyself? as the one solitary human being that thought to find himself an exception in the general destruction. Seek them not; for, behold, I will bring evil upon all flesh, saith the Lord, in a universal punishment; but thy life will I give unto thee for a prey in all places whither thou goest. Baruch was not to claim exemption in the general overthrow, but he had the consolation of knowing that his life would be spared, no matter what else he might have to endure. “This is part of God’s design in suffering His servants to be tempted, that their temptations may adapt them for ministering to their fellow-servants when tempted. “

Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann

PROMISE TO BARUCH.

EXPOSITION

Jer 45:1

These words; i.e. the revelations which Baruch had committed (or was committing) to writing.

Jer 45:3

Hath added grief to my sorrow. Baruch felt “sorrow” or “pain” at the sinfulness of the people; “grief” or “anxiety” was added by Jeremiah’s announcement of the judgment. I fainted in my sighing; rather, I am weary with my sighing; comp. Psa 6:7 (Authorized Version, 6).

Jer 45:4

That which I have built (comp, Jer 1:10 and parallel passages). Even this whole land; rather, and that is the whole earth.

Jer 45:5

Seekest thou great things, etc.? All around is passing through a sore crisis, and canst thou expect a better lot? It is no time for personal ambition, when the very foundations of the state are crumbling. In all places whither thou goest. This seems to indicate that Baruch’s time of exile would be a restless one; it would nowhere be safe for him to take up a settled habitation.

HOMILETICS

Jer 45:1-5

The grief of one soul, and its consolation.

This chapter is devoted to one man. Among the large prophecies concerning whole nations, room is found for a prophecy to a single individual. The Bible is at once universal and individualistic in character. Its narratives alternate history with biography. God cares for the whole world, and truth is largess the universe; yet God does not forget one soul in its private distress, and truth has special applications to special cases.

I. THE GRIEF. Baruch had a double distressgrief added to sorrow.

1. The first sorrow. Probably this arose from a consideration of the wretched condition of the nation in its vice and decay. It is right and natural that good men should feel deep concern at the state of their country. The Christian should have the spirit of him who “when he beheld the city, wept over it.” Moreover, if we see much of the wickedness of the world, we should not be satisfied with steadily condemning it, nor with congratulating ourselves on our own superior goodness. The sight should fill us with sorrow. They who go thus astray are our own brethren. And is not there much of the same sin in all of us? Often the wickedness which shocks us in others is only the full development of the very sin that lurks in our own hearts.

2. The added grief.

(1) This came from the prophecy. Baruch was commissioned to write and read. His privileged position, so near to the fountain of inspiration, only deepened his distress. High spiritual privilege may bring only sadness in this world’s experience. Increase of knowledge may be increase of sorrow. Revelation is sometimes a cause of distress. In the present case the prophecy was a declaration of the approaching doom of Jerusalem. We should contemplate the punishment of the impenitent with profound grief. Revengeful, triumphant, or self-complacent feelings in regard to this terrible subject are quite unchristian.

(2) Baruch had personal grounds for his distress. In the approaching overthrow of his nation all his cherished hopes of personal ambition were shattered. The most sanguine too often suffer the bitterest disappointments.

(3) Jeremiah’s grief would add to that of Baruch. Sorrow is contagious. He who is much with “the Man of sorrows” will be likely to feel strange grief in contemplating the evil of the world. Baruch could find no rest in his grief. The greatest weariness is not the result of hard work; it comes from distress of heart. It is trouble, not work, that breaks down the strong life to premature old age. The blessedness of the heavenly rest is that it is rest from sorrow as well as from toil.

II. THE CONSOLATION. Jeremiah has a prophecy for Baruch. God speaks to individual souls, The preacher must be preached to. Has not he who would save others a soul of his own to be saved. How sad that any preacher should declare the Divine message to the people, but hear no voice speaking peace to his own troubled soul! If he were as faithful as Baruch, he might expect, like Baruch, to receive a Divine consolation. Note the characteristics of this consolation. It did not deny the cause of grief. Much comfort is unreal and false in trying to do this. The consolation for Baruch consisted chiefly in furnishing him with advice regarding his views of God’s action and his own aims in life.

1. A lesson of acquiescence in the Divine will. God is acting within his rights. It is vain to rebel. Peace is found in submission.

2. A rebuke to ambition. Self-seeking brings distress. As we live out of self we gain Divine peace.

3. A promise of safety. After the lessons intended to lead Baruch into a right mood, God promises him his lifeonly this, but this is much for a humble man who knows he does not deserve it, and a good man who will devote it to God’s service.

Jer 45:4

Divine destruction.

I. GOD CAN DESTROY HIS OWN WORK. What he made he can unmake. People dogmatize about the indestructibility of matter, of atoms, of souls. How do we know they are indestructible? Is God’s omnipotence limited by the properties of his own works? But apart from all metaphysics, the complex world, being constructed, is plainly subject to destruction. It is monstrous to think the universe is a huge Frankenstein, able to escape from the power of its Maker.

II. GOD HAS A RIGHT TO DESTROY HIS OWN WORK. There is no property so clearly belonging to a person as the work of his own hands. All things that exist were made by God, and all belong to him. What he gave us he has a right to withdraw. His gifts are loans, talents to be used for a season and then returned. No creature has a right to its own life before God. He freely gave it; he may withdraw it. Much less have we sinful creatures any such right.

III. GOD WILL NOT DESTROY HIS OWN WORK WITHOUT GOOD REASON. A power is not necessarily always put forth nor a right in perpetual exercise. God does not act capriciously nor cruelly. He is the Creator rather than the Destroyer. He delights in creating because he loves his creatures. He takes no pleasure in destroying, but will only do it under urgent necessity.

IV. NEVERTHELESS THERE ARE CIRCUMSTANCES UNDER WHICH GOD WILL DESTROY HIS OWN WORK. All things were good when they came from their Maker’s hands. But some have been corrupted. When a thing is hopelessly corrupt there is no reason for preserving it and much for destroying it. See this in earthly experiencethe Flood, the destruction of Jerusalem, and m greater judgmentsthe wages of sin, death, and the final destruction of the world. Therefore let us not presume that any work or institution is eternal because it was established by the eternal God, that any possession of ours must be permanent because it came from him, or that our own life is safe because God breathed it into us.

Jer 45:5

Self-seeking.

Self-seeking is treated in the Bible, especially in the New Testament, as both wrong and not really profitable to the self-seeker, although it seems be prompted by natural instincts and supported by good reasons. Let us consider the grounds of these representations.

I. WHY SELF–SEEKING IS WRONG. God does not require absolute altruism; we are only commanded to love our neighbours as ourselves. Natural self-regarding instincts created by God can surely be innocently exercised. It cannot be necessary for all efforts of men to rise in social position, etc; to be condemned. What, then is the self-seeking which is blameworthy?

1. That which offends against justice by seeking selfish gain at the expense of others. What frightful injustice ambition must answer for, in liberty destroyed, lives sacrificed, confusion and misery sown broadcast!

2. That which offends against charity by disregarding the good of others. In the spirit of Cain it cries, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” So long as it attains its own ends, it will not lift a finger to move another man’s burden. But Christ teaches us that it is not enough that we do not injure others, we must also actively help them; it is not enough that we do not steal, we midst go further and “give to him that asketh.”

3. That which offends against duty by sacrificing the vocation of life to private gain. We are not free to live to ourselves, because we are not our own masters. We are called to God’s service. Our duty is to serve God, not self, so that whatsoever we do may be done “unto the Lord.” Self-seeking is rebellion against our Lord and Master. In times of public distress self-seeking is peculiarly odious. Such were the times in which Baruch lived. Then there are loud calls of duty and noble tasks to be done. The general grief makes the thought of one’s own pleasure and profit out of place. To use that distress as a ladder by which to rise to greatness is indeed despicable.

II. WHY SELF–SEEKING IS NOT PROFITABLE. In a worldly sense and for a time it may be, but not really and ultimately. Even in the lower human relations, how often do the seeds of ambition bring a harvest of anxiety! The self-seeker reaches the climax of his endeavours, his most brilliant dream is realized, he is a kingand he wears a hidden coat of mail, hides himself in a fortress-castle, has not the liberty of his meanest subject, is driven near to madness by the fear of assassination.

“He who ascends to mountain tops shall find
The loftiest peaks most wrapped in clouds and snow;
He who surpasses or subdues mankind
Must look down on the hate of those below.”

When extreme greatness and extreme disappointment are neither realized, lesser self-seeking brings its corresponding trouble. It narrows the heart and destroys the purest and best delightsthe joys of human sympathy. Christ shows to us deeper grounds for regarding it as a vain pursuit. “The first shall be last, and the last first.” The reason he gives is that “Whosoever would save his life shall lose it: and whosoever shall lose his life for my sake shall save it.” Only in proportion as we live out of self can we enjoy a life worth living; only then, indeed, do we truly live at all. By trying to make ourselves great, though we may reach a high external position, we fall to a low internal conditionwe become mean and small; while in forgetting self and sacrificing self for God and for mankind we become unconsciously great.

HOMILIES BY A.F. MUIR

Jer 45:1-5

Baruch’s message; or, God’s consideration for his servant.

It is not always well to know more than others. Future things are for the most part mercifully bidden from us. The prophecies of God’s kingdom in the world, as they awaken new hopes, also occasion new anxieties; and the latter will be the greater in proportion to our failure to comprehend and sympathize with the Divine purpose. Baruch was not in the same relation of spiritual sympathy and self-effacement with relation to the Word as Jeremiah was; he did not share the same moral elevation, and therefore his perplexities. In reward of his faithful, self-denying work as amanuensis to the prophet, a special communication is made to him with reference to his state of mind on hearing the threatenings of God against Israel and the nations.

I. TO RECEIVE SUCH A COMMUNICATION WAS A DISTINGUISHED HONOUR. In identifying his name with the book he wrote it immortalized him. His work was a comparatively humble one, but it required its own virtues, and these are recognized. Nothing done for God in a right spirit is forgotten by him. Amidst imperial and world wide changes the interests of his servants are ever watched over with special care. When we see the Sovereign Disposer of events, when empires are as small dust in his balance, arranging for the welfare of a single individual, merely because of help given to one of his prophets, shall we not acknowledge how precious in his eyes is even the least of his servants? They are children of the great King.

II. IT MINISTERED TO HIS PERSONAL COMFORT AND PEACE OF MIND. The anxiety and fear which weighed upon Baruch are thereby dissipated. God loves to see his children cheerful and in sympathy with his will. It is just from the “sorrow of the world that worketh death,” he seeks to deliver us. The work of Baruch would be easier and less oppressive when he was assured that his own safety would be secured. But how poor is this promise compared with the” life and immortality brought to light in the gospel”! The children of promise are not only delivered from the sorrows and disappointments of this present evil world, but made sharers in the final triumphs of redemptive love.

III. IT CORRECTED A SPIRITUAL FAULT.

1. The caution. “And seekest thou great things for thyself? seek them not.” Earthly ambition has often crept into the heart of God’s servants. It is not consistent with faithful, single-eyed service. They that would further the kingdom of God in the world must seek it first. Baruch was reminded that this is not our rest. And when the powers of the world were being shaken was no time for self-advancement. His sighs were not pure. He mourned over opportunities lost, not of laying up treasure in heaven, but of accumulating it on earth.

2. The promise. “Thy life will I give unto thee for a prey.” It seems poor, compared with his hopes. He perhaps anticipated a slight rebuke and chastisement of Israel, a few changes and adjustments, and the carrying on of the Divine purposes to a speedy issue. This illusion is gently but firmly checked. The world has a severer ordeal to pass through ere the ancient offence can be expiated, and the arena cleared for the Divine future. His hopes are, therefore, not wholly destroyed, but transferred. He will be spared to see the things beyond, and meanwhile it will be his privilege to help on that better time. Happy for him if, thus corrected, he attains to a diviner calm of spirit and a more thorough acceptance of the Divine terms and conditions. He too was but a sinner, whose deliverance was in itself a great and undeserved mercy (cf. Mat 24:1-51.).M.

HOMILIES BY S. CONWAY

Jer 45:1-5

Baruch; or, the young recruit reheartened.

Baruch reminds of Mark (Act 13:13). Both were good and faithful men; both became discouraged; both were reheartened; both found profitable to the ministry and true to the end. Now, as we look on this Divine reheartening of Baruch, we are taught much

I. CONCERNING GOD.

1. We see his grace. He does not overlook or forget his servants. He notes their distresses and devises means for their relief. “Like as a father pitieth,” etc.

2. We see his methods with those who are as Baruch was.

(1) Though animated by love, they were severe rather than soothing; stern rather than gentle and consolatory. We have many parallels to this. Cf. ch. 12; “If thou hast run with the footmen,” etc. How stern the dealing of God with Moses! No entreaty could procure the alteration of the sentence of exclusion from Canaan that had gone out against him. See also our Lord’s message to John the Baptist in prison: “Go, tell John,” etc. No gentle message of sympathy, but rather of rebuke for his failure of faith. So with Paul’s thorn in the flesh, the Lord would not remove it. In all these cases there is rather the sharp, bracing, rousing summons to duty than words of soothing pity and tenderness. Far more like Paul’s dealing with the recreant Markhe virtually cashiered himthan that of Barnabas, who, Son of Consolation that he was, was all for comforting him and dealing gently with him.

(2) God tells him that he has heard his complainings. When we talk to ourselves, we often forget that every word is audible to God. The people about our Lord were often talking to themselves concerning him, and, though they said nothing out loud, we constantly read how “Jesus answered and said,” showing that he had heard all they said.

(3) He gives him to understand that his purpose is not to be set aside because of his complainings. “The Lord saith thus.” It we cannot bring our circumstances to our mind, our wisdom is to bring our mind to our circumstances. Baruch was shown that he must do this.

(4) He implies that a seeking after “high things” for himself had much to do with his complaining. He was of great ability, of noble lineage (Jer 51:59; Josephus, ‘Ant.,’ 10. Jer 6:2; Jer 9:1), the grandson of Maasiah (2Ch 34:8), and this may well have animated him with hopes of high office in the state, such as his brother had held; or his nearness to Jeremiah may have led him to believe that he should be the prophet’s successor.

(5) He promises him that his life shall be spared, though with much difficulty”given to him as a prey.” We cannot tell what afterwards became of him. Tradition varies. There was not much comfort in all this, but rather a “What doest thou here, Elijah?” (1Ki 19:1-21.).

3. His motives. The leaders of an army must not be weaklings. Those who have stern work to do must themselves be stern. Luther, not Erasmus, must head the Reformation movement. Hence God disciplines his most trusted servants by very severe methods. Even our Lord, “He learned obedience by the things that he suffered;” “He was made perfect through sufferings.”

4. His success. That which he purposes is ever done. Baruch here, as Mark afterwards, was reheartened and did good service again.

II. CONCERNING THE PROPHETIC WORK. Demands self-denial, involves much suffering, and has much sorrow in it. No wonder that in ancient days men shrank from the pastoral office. “Nolo episcopari” meant something then. Are any thinking of it? Count the cost. Are any in it? Let them, as they need, seek daily strength from God.

“Chief Shepherd of thy chosen sheep,

From sin and death set free,

May every under shepherd keep

His eye intent on thee.”

Let those not so charged of the Lord pray for those that are.

III. CONCERNING YOUNG SOLDIERS OF JESUS CHRIST.

1. There is much that is delightful in them. Their ardour, their zeal, their affection. Elisha to Elijah, Timotheus to Paul, so here Baruch to Jeremiah.

2. But they are apt to be discouraged and desponding. They need enduring power. Melancthon thought he should soon convert men to the truth. But Luther tolls how the old Adam was soon found to be too hard for the young Melancthon.

3. Let them submit cheerfully to the methods of discipline God has appointed for them, and be on their guard against all self-seeking ambition.

4. And they are to remember that, though their life be given to them, it shall be “as a prey.” They wilt have to watch, to toil, to contend, to struggle, even for that.

“The Son of God goes forth to war

Who follows in his train?”

C.

Jer 45:5

Ambition prohibited.

“Seekest thou great things,” etc.? God searches the heart, and probably discovered that, lurking secretly there, there was somewhat of an unhallowed ambition. Had he been other than one of God’s chosen messengers, such ambition would have been natural and reasonable (cf. former homily). God does not directly charge him with this, but sets him on self-examination. This ever the Divine method. Are we seeking great things for ourselves? If we are, God says to us, “Seek them not.” And the reasons are many. Some of them are such as these

I. We cannot tell whether they are designed for us. If they are not, they will bring us only misery; cf. David in Saul’s armour. If they are, they will come without our seeking.

II. To make ourselves our supreme object is ever wrong, despicable, and in the end ruinous. The corn of wheat must fall into the ground and die, give up its own life. If it do not, it abideth alone; if it do, it bringeth forth fruit. “He that loveth his life shall lose it, but he,” etc. (Joh 12:1-50.).

III. Great things mean great responsibilities and terrible possibilities of great guilt and harm done to others and ourselves.

IV. Whilst seeking them, we let go what is more precious than them all. “Whilst I was busy here and there, lo, he was gone.”

V. They tend to tie us down to earth and to fill our hearts with that love of the world which is death. “Ah! Davie, Davie,” said Johnson to Garrick, as they wandered through the beautiful demesne of a great nobleman, “these are the things that make it so hard for a man to die.” A similar story is told of Cardinal Richelieu, who caused himself, when near death, to be borne into his magnificent picture gallery, and there is reported to have made, to one near him, a like remark.C.

HOMILIES BY D. YOUNG

Jer 45:1-5

Counsel and comfort for the man overcome with bad tidings.

I. CONSIDER THE EFFECT ON BARUCH‘S OWN MIND OF WHAT HE HAD HAD TO WRITE. Baruch came in simply to be a scribe and transmitter. Seemingly a friend of Jeremiah, he must have been in considerable sympathy with the prophet in his purposes and predictions. Doubtless he had made himself acquainted with each prophetic utterance as it came forth from Jehovah. But he had never had them all before his mind at one time, as now became necessary, through his having to write them down. Hence we have here an illustration of how more is required than the mere utterance of a word of God in order to produce a deep effect from it. A man may think he understands and receives it, and yet the understanding and reception may be far from what they ought to be. Not till Jeremiah’s prophecies stand before Baruch in one mass does he fully discern the trouble coming on his people. Jehovah has spoken many times, and always in the same way, against the wicked and their wickedness. And so we see how important it is to get the impression, not only of successive parts of God’s words, but of that Word as a whole. Moreover, if Baruch was oppressed by the consistent mass of threatening, it is equally possible for us to be uplifted and strengthened by a consistent mass of promises and encouragements. We shall ever find in the Scriptures that which we look for and prepare ourselves to find.

II. SOME INDICATION OF BARUCH‘S OWN CHARACTER. Baruch seems to have been not exactly what we should call an ambitious man, but still one who wanted to get on in the world. Perhaps he had a position which made it reasonable for him to expect influence and authority. But what can a man of this sort look for in a state rapidly declining to its fall? Baruch had to learn all at once that he must seek for such things as God would have him seek for. Thus we see God combining a lesson for the individual with the message for the nation. Baruch could hardly have been the only man competent to act as a scribe, but God, in taking him, took one who needed correction, needed to have his purposes turned into a more submissive way and a less self-seeking one.

III. TEMPORAL BLESSINGS MUST DEPEND UPON CIRCUMSTANCES. There had been times in the Jewish state when Baruch might have been a very useful man in some high position. But every man must accept the conditions of the time in which he lives. At one time the great temporal blessings may be those of attainment, at another those of escape. And so, to some extent, it is in spiritual things. There are times when what Christ does for us puts on the aspect of salvation; we are glad because of the great evils from which we are delivered. There arc other times when we are not contented with merely thinking of deliverance; we want something positivegrowth, fruitfulness, perfection. Then we are seeking great things spirituallythings which are always to be sought. And we may add they are always to be found, however adverse temporal conditions may be.Y.

Fuente: The Complete Pulpit Commentary

Appendix to the Prophecies Relating to the Entire Theocracy

The Promise Given To Baruch (chap. 45)

While in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, according to Jeremiah 36., Jeremiah was dictating to his true friend and servant, Baruch, the revelations hitherto received, the latter appears to have been quite overpowered by a feeling of deep sorrow and anguish. Then Jeremiah receives a commission to address to him some words of consolation. This brief address doubtless formed the conclusion of the whole, of the original writing of which an account is given in Jeremiah 36. For it is incredible that Baruch was overcome with grief, when he had written the prophecies against the heathen, so far as these were extant in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, in their original position after Jeremiah 25. and before Jeremiah 27. (comp. rems, on Jer 25:12-14 and the Introd. to chh. 4651.); these being of relatively consolatory import to the Israelites (comp. especially Jer 49:1 sqq.). But when he could survey at a glance the entirety of the threatening words pronounced against the theocracy, this may have been the moment when he broke out into the utterance recorded in Jer 45:3. The word , Jer 45:1, is not opposed to this. For it is not necessary to take the prefix in the sense of whilst. It merely expresses that Baruch received the revelation at a time when he was at work as an amanuensis, neither before nor after; but does not determine whether he received it at the beginning, in the midst, or at the end of this time. Even when the prophet had dictated to him his last words his work was not done: he had still to look over and revise what he had written. It is therefore not credible, that the great main work was interrupted by this personal communication. The present chapter is thus an appendix to the entire collection of Jeremiahs prophecies. Its position at the close corresponds to the dignity and importance of Baruch, who as the faithful friend and amanuensis of the prophet was closely connected with the book as a whole, while Ebed-melech, for whom a similar word of promise is found in Jer 39:15-18, came into contact with Jeremiah only at a single epoch. The revelation concerning him was therefore inserted at the corresponding place in the narrative.

Jer 45:1-5

1The word that Jeremiah the prophet spake unto Baruch the son of Neriah, when he had written [was writing] these words in a book at the mouth of Jeremiah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, saying,2, 3Thus saith the Lord [Jehovah], the God of Israel, unto thee,1 O Baruch: Thou didst say, Woe is me now! for the Lord hath added grief to my sorrow; I fainted4[am weary]2 in my sighing, and I find no rest Thus shalt thou say unto him, The Lord saith thus: Behold, that which I have built will I break down, and that 5which I have planted I will pluck up, even this whole land.3 And seekest thou great things for thyself? seek them not: for, behold, I will bring evil upon all flesh, saith the Lord; but thy life will I give unto thee for a prey in all places whither thou goest.

EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL

In the fourth year of Jehoiakim, when Baruch, the son of Neriah, was writing out the prophecies of Jeremiah at his dictation (Jer 45:1-2), the proclamation is made to him, in answer to his expression of sorrow (Jer 45:3): that the Lord is intending to desolate the whole land (Jer 45:4), but he, Baruch, without laying claim to greater things, should accept, as a reward of distinguished grace, that whithersoever he might be cast, he should everywhere escape with his life (Jer 45:5).

Jer 45:1-3. The word find no rest. After Baruch (comp. rems. on Jer 32:12) had finished writing what was dictated to him, Jeremiah receives the command to address a prophecy to him, concerning only his own person.Baruch was evidently powerfully affected by the total impression made by the prophecies upon him (comp. rems. on Jer 36:1; Jer 36:16). In addition to the sorrow, which he must have felt with every other Israelite, at the present disturbed condition of his native land, was the anxiety for the future, which had been awakened by the minatory predictions he had heard.Grief Comp. Jer 8:18; Jer 20:18; Jer 31:13.I faint. The same thought as in Lam 5:5.

Jer 45:4-5. Thus shalt them thou goest. Two things are involved in these words: 1. Although the theocracy is the Lords creation, it is yet His fixed determination to destroy His work. With respect to the expression, comp. Jer 1:10; Jer 18:7; Jer 18:9; Jer 31:28.Even this whole land. If we compare Jer 25:15-26, we shall perceive that this determination to destroy is to be understood in a twofold degree, and accordingly is to be taken in the double sense of land and earth. The whole earth and the existence of all nations upon it is the Lords work, but the Lord will cause His judgment to issue on all this, His work. But Israels land and people is especially His sanctuary, the first fruits of His increase (Jer 2:3), His precious inheritance (Jer 3:19; Eze 20:6; Eze 20:15), and of course Baruchs sorrow relates above all to the ruin threatening his own, the chosen nation. It is thus declared by the words, this whole land, that it is not a partial visitation, but a total devastation of the country, which is impending.2. If now the whole (comp. Jer 12:12; Jer 25:31) is under sentence of total destruction, no single individual can claim a high degree of positive earthly prosperity. Even the best must be content, if only mere earthly existence, bare life, is guaranteed him. This is done herewith respect to Baruch. Thus a measure is given of the degree and extent of the calamity relating to the whole. Comp. Jer 21:9; Jer 38:2; Jer 38:17.

DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL

1. Baruch did not act as secretary for hire but for love. He esteemed it an honor and a happiness, that by his skill he could serve the Lord, to whom he owed it. Therefore a glorious reward is imparted to him unsought, so that his name and remembrance are immortalized in the sacred record by an oracle addressed specially to him. This honor is to be esteemed still higher than the assurance, that this wretched mortal life should not be taken by violence before its time.

2. On Jer 45:3. Non Stoicos nos esse convenit, qui commendare atque asserere soliti, qualis etiam fuit Mnzerus ejusque progenies Anabaptist. Frster.

3 On Jer 45:4. Compare the remarks on Jer 7:4. There is no delusion more ruinous than to suppose that the Lord cannot destroy His own work again. The destruction will certainly only come upon the bad. But it is the bad on the earth, among the chosen people, in the church and on the throne, who imagine themselves to be secure, in spite of their badness, by the fact of the divine appointment or choice, whereby they make God the servant of sin. God has created the earth. He will destroy it by fire. But a new earth and a new heaven will proceed from the conflagration. He has thrown down the holy city and temple and scattered the people of Israel. But the still lives and will one day permeate the with new life again (Romans 11.). The Christian Church in the East has been devastated by Islam, and what guarantee then have Rome, Geneva and Wittenberg that it will not be with them as with Jerusalem? Princes too are not to understand the divine right of legitimacy as that God can appoint princes but cannot depose them. Yet even if all present Christian churches were to be destroyed and all thrones overthrown, neither the Church of the Lord would cease to be nor the magistracy, which is ordained of God (Matthew 16.; Romans 13.).

4. On Jer 45:5. Felices frustra nobis promittimus annos semper enim cur tristitique premunt. Quotation by Frster.

5. On Jer 45:5. Endeavor not after high things. Is it then not a great thing in this world, laden as it is with a curse (Gen 3:17-19), if one has sustenance and clothing? (1Ti 6:8). And is it not the greatest thing of all, if one knows that his soul is saved in heaven, even if he must take the place there, with which the prodigal son would have been content in his fathers house? (Luke 15.).

HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL

1. On Jer 45:2-5. A word of consolation and exhortation for all the tried children of God. 1. Let no one be surprised at the heat, which he encounters, as though something strange had happened to him. 2. Let every one be satisfied with the one thing needful: (a) for his body, (b) for his spirit.

2. On Jer 45:4. Gods own institutions. We must distinguish in these: 1. the temporary form (not secured against decay and outward ruin); 2. the everlasting kernel (this is indestructible and bears in itself the guarantee of eternal duration and ever more glorious development).

Footnotes:

[1]Jer 45:2.On in comp. rems. on Jer 10:1.

[2]Jer 45:3.The verb found besides in Jeremiah only in Jer 51:58.

[3]Jer 45:4.As to the construction here, many are of opinion that the article is wanting before , as ex. gr. Gen 32:23. But we should then have . Others would take in the emasculated sense, in which it approaches to =in respect to, as to (Ewald, 277, d). But in the connection of this passage appears plainly as the sign of the accusative, governed by the preceding transitive verb. I therefore think that is used here simply with an emphatic significance, which we may express by inserting the word even: even the whole land, even this! Comp. Num 18:23; Isa 7:14. This is also the case with after a personal pronoun: , Isa 43:25; Jer 49:12, etc.

Fuente: A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical by Lange

CONTENTS

We have here a short, but precious Chapter, in which Baruch, being dismayed at his situation in Egypt, is comforted by the Prophet.

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

We had an account of this Baruch in the thirty sixth Chapter (Jer 36 ) of this same prophecy; and here, in a short, but instructive manner, his history is again brought forward. It appears, that though a follower of the Lord God of Israel, he had but weak faith. He lived in continual apprehension of danger, and from the surrounding calamities was full of fear, that evil would befall him. Reader! it is astonishing how much even good men suffer from imaginary fears; and what troubles the faithful bring upon themselves from not always living above these fears, by living upon faith in Christ. That is a sweet promise, which ought to be worn in the bosom of a child of God, for every occasion: Isa 26:3 . And it was an old saying o f the primitive Christians, “he that lives by faith, will never die by fear.”

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

The Minute Philosopher

Jer 45:5

Service is perhaps life’s best interpretation.

I. To rise in life, then, is never to escape from service. The nobler and better we are growing, the more entangled shall we be in a far-reaching servitude. Jesus has taught us that service is the true measurement of greatness. He is the least whose service is the poorest. He is the greatest whose service is the best. Could we forget ourselves, and serve mankind in life and death, we should be growing Christlike.

In service too, and nowhere else, lies our true liberty. True freedom is never liberty from service. True freedom is always liberty to serve.

II. If life be service, how all-important is it for you and me to learn the art of serving well. The best and richest service you can render is often not the service of great things but of small.

We begin to see the truth of that when we remember how largely our lives are compact of little things. Even to the greatest, the chance of doing great things rarely comes.

So then, if life be service, and if the bulk of life is made up of little things, the service that neglects these lesser elements must fail. A saint is one who sanctifies life’s trifles.

Do you not think that service in the small things is often the hardest service in the world? To work on, serve on, love on, unnoticed and unpraised, is perhaps the finest heroism earth can show.

Again mark this, as telling the importance of these little acts. Only through the small services of life faithfully done can you and I be disciplined for the great services when God is pleased to send them. God measures the service that He will give us tomorrow, not from our talents so much as from the faithfulness with which we serve Today.

And after all, how can you tell which act is small, which great? These measurements are human, not Divine. God’s standard is very different from ours.

III. What the world needs above all else Today is consecrated character, and that is just what service in small things shows. God brings the glory of the autumn hills out of a million indecipherable heather-bells. God brings the glory of the rainbow out of a million indistinguishable drops. And God can bring the glory of a consecrated character out of that countless multitude of little deeds that form our life.

G. H. Morrison, Flood-Tide, p. 241.

Illustration. Great services reveal our possibilities. Small services reveal our consecration.

And in the latter, rather than in the former, lies your best hope of influencing the world. Bridge-builders build our bridges seven or eight times stronger than the ordinary traffic needs. And bridges are rarely tested to the utmost. They do their best work carrying the daily loads. Still, if the strain should come, the strength is there. So you and I have latent powers and slumbering capacities. And some day, perhaps, all shall be needed. But now Today it is in life’s common traffic, and the brave carrying of life’s common loads, that we shall serve best, and glorify God in a consecrated life.

G. H. Morrison, Flood-Tide, p. 251.

References. XLVII. 5. Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xxxiv. No. 2025. XLVII. 6, 7. A. Maclaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture Isaiah and Jeremiah, p. 380. XLVIII. 11, 12. Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xiii. No. 761. XLIX. 8. Ibid. vol. xviii. No. 1085. L. 1. A. Maclaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture Isaiah and Jeremiah, p. 385.

Fuente: Expositor’s Dictionary of Text by Robertson

VIII

THE LIFE OF JEREMIAH DURING THE LATTER HALF OF THE REIGN OF JEHOIAKIM

Jeremiah 18-20; 22-23, Jer 22:25 ; 35-36; Jer 45

We have already described some of the events that occurred during the reign of Jehoiakim and this period, but we group them together in this chapter and discuss them more in detail. These prophecies may have been written by Baruch at the time they were uttered or at Jeremiah’s dictation. Some of them may have been written later and one of them was doubtless written by Jeremiah himself. They comprise the chapters given at the head of this chapter. We shall take them up in the order there given. It is quite probable that some of these prophecies and events occurred a little subsequent to 604 B.C., or after the roll was written and then burned by the king. We cannot fix with any certainty the events of Jeremiah’s life in chronological order. The chapters of this book are grouped with no regard to the order of events in the life of the prophet. In fact, the book makes no claim whatever to be a biography.

We have here in these chapters some lessons from the potter, the prophet’s message to the kings, the princes, the priests, and the shepherds of Israel, as well as the prophets of Judah; prophecies against the neighboring nations; the incident of the writing and the reading of the roll of prophecy; and admonitions to Baruch, his scribe.

We have the story of the potter in Jer 18:1-4 . Jeremiah had been preaching about twenty years and had used, as we have seen, a great many illustrations, a great many figures to make forceful his teachings and illustrate them, so that they would show the workings of divine providence in Israel. One day when he was sitting in the city meditating as to what he should say to the people, what he should use as an illustration so that they would feel the weight of their doom and rejection, suddenly an inspiration comes to him to go down into the lower part of the city from where he was sitting, down into the valley, the valley between Zion and Mount Moriah, called the Tyroean valley, or it may have been the valley of Hinnom. So he goes down and notices a potter sitting at his work. While he watches him, there leaps into his mind and heart a great idea, and he draws an illustration from the potter and his works. In this he is like Jesus who drew many of his illustrations from the common things of life and the affairs of men about him.

Jeremiah watched the potter. He saw him place a lump of clay on his wheel and with his deft fingers begin to mold and fashion it into a piece of pottery, and while he is attempting to fashion it into a beautiful piece, it crumbles and goes to pieces. It would not respond to his treatment. It was too crude for the fine purpose he had in mind, and so it crumbled and fell. It would not adjust itself to the ideal of the potter, and so he could not make the vase he had intended. He did not throw it away but picked it up again and began to mold it into another pattern not so beautiful or fine. He made this one but it was a poorer grade, a more common piece of pottery. We find this recorded in Jer 18:1-4 .

In the application (Jer 18:5-12 ) Jeremiah brings before our minds one of the most beautiful lessons, illustrating divine sovereignty and human freedom, to be found in the Bible. The application shows the relation of the human will to the movement of divine power. He says, Jer 18:6 , “O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith Jehovah. Behold, as the clay in the potter’s hand, so are ye in my hand, O house of Israel.” That is a weighty expression; that nations are clay in God’s hand, as individuals are; the world is but a lump of clay in God’s hands to be fashioned as he wills. “As the clay is in the potter’s hands, so are ye in my hand.” He goes on to explain the import of that truth: “At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up and to break down and to destroy it [that was the mission of Jeremiah to the nation of Israel and to the surrounding nations] ; if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.”

This brings us face to face with a great truth in human life; a great fact that must be considered in order to understand the mysteries of divine providence. We can apply the truth to ourselves and ought to do so. It is a statement that in the event that a nation changes its conduct, or repents, God changes his attitude, not that he changes his will, but that he wills to change. Repentance in the main is a change of the will, that is, repentance in man is a change of the mind, or will, but repentance in God is the will to change. So God changes his attitude toward men when they repent. That is the way it is with the potter; he wills to fashion the clay according to his plan, but when it will not adjust itself to his ideal, then he changes his plan and fashions it as best he may. The idea is this, if the potter cannot make the best kind of a vessel out of the clay, he will do the next best thing. How mightily this truth applies to individuals. He uses the materials we give him. He does the best he can to train us as we submit to his leading. Thus, this principle, as illustrated by the potter and his clay, applies to us in our daily lives. It is only as we are pliable that God can work with us and through us.

In Jer 18:10 he says, “If they do that which is evil in my sight then I will repent of the good, wherewith I said I would benefit them.” Now, that is the same idea as set forth in repenting and not doing evil. If we change, he will, in harmony with his changelessness, change, too. He will do with us as we do with him. Jonah said, “Yet forty days and Nineveh shall be destroyed.” That was God’s prophecy concerning that wicked city. After all that threatening, God did not do it because they repented, and Jonah was angry and disappointed. He wanted the city to be destroyed. The city repented, and then God repented, too, and thus the change was in the city and in God. Here in Jer 18:11 he says, “Behold I frame evil against you; return every one from his evil ways.”

Then in Jer 18:14 he draws lessons from nature. He shows how constant nature is. He says, “Shall the snow of Lebanon fail from the rock of the field? or shall the cold waters that flow down from afar be dried up?” He fixes his eyes on the snow-capped Lebanons or Hermon, and he sees that the snows are there perpetual according to the laws of nature. That snow as it melts is the source of the rivers of Damascus and the winding Jordan and they never dry up. Their source is stable; it faileth not. These streams run perpetually. He says in verse Jer 18:15 : “My people have forgotten me, they have burned incense to false gods; they have been made to stumble in their ways.” They are unstable but nature is not, and God is not, and thus he describes their defection from him.

As a result of this preaching the people begin to devise plans for taking Jeremiah (Jer 18:18 ). They decide that his preaching must stop. They must get rid of him. They concocted a scheme against him once before and he was saved from their trap. Now they concoct another scheme. They said, “Come, and let us devise devices against Jeremiah; for [even though he be dead] the law shall not perish from the priests, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, and let us smite him with the tongue, and let us not give heed to any of his words.” Now what is the use of listening to this preacher of calamity? We have the law. We will not lose the book of wisdom. We will always have these with us. Then Jeremiah begins to pray to the Lord to punish these plotters, verses Jer 18:19-20 : “Give heed to me, O Lord, . . . Shall evil be recompensed for good? Remember how I stood before thee to speak good for them,” and now they plan to kill me.

He had been standing there and preaching the truth to these men and now he fears the Lord is going to let them kill him. He says, “I have tried to help them. I would give my life to save them. And now this is what they are doing.” He prays that God will punish them; that he will give them over to the sword and destroy their children. “Let their women become childless.” Now, was that an expression of mere bitterness? No! It was not mere human anger; it was a deep sense of outraged justice. Verse Jer 18:23 : “Jehovah, thou knowest all their counsel against me to slay me; forgive not their iniquities, neither blot out their sin from thy sight.” That reminds us of Psa 109 . It seems contrary to the spirit of Christ, yet it reminds one of the spirit of Jesus when he says to the Pharisees and the Sadducees, “How can ye escape the damnation of hell?”

We have here another lesson from the potter (Jer 19:1-13 ). Jeremiah is told to go and buy an earthen bottle made also by a potter. He bought it. We do not know what sort; it may have been a good one. Then the Lord said, “Take of the elders of the people, and of the elders of the priests; and go forth into the valley of the son of Hinnom, which is by the entry of the gate of Harsith, and proclaim there the words that I shall tell thee.” That place was just outside the walls of the city, the place where the rubbish was thrown, perhaps where the potters and their factories were. Now, go down there, Jeremiah, with that vessel.

This is what he was to say: “Hear ye the word of Jehovah, O kings of Judah, and inhabitants of Jerusalem; . . . Behold, I will bring evil upon this place.” Then he goes on to give the reasons. They had worshiped idols continually. They had done evil repeatedly. “This place,” as a result, “shall no longer be called the valley of the son of Hinnom, but the place of slaughter.” Verse Jer 19:8 : “I will make this city an astonishment, and a hissing.” Destruction shall come. “Every one that passeth by shall be astonished and hiss and they shall eat the flesh of their children.” Then he took the elders and the priests and in their presence he broke the bottle to pieces. Then he said, “As I have broken this bottle, so will Jehovah break in pieces this city, so that it cannot be put together again.” The lesson is seen in Jer 19:11 : “It cannot be made whole again.” As that bottle is destroyed forever, so will I destroy this nation and I will destroy it forever, as far as human power is concerned.

Immediately after this incident Jeremiah comes back to the Temple and repeats the warning he had given, to the elders and the priests: “I stood in the courts of the Lord’s house and said to all the people, I will bring upon this city and this people all the evils that I have pronounced against them, because they have made their necks stiff that they hear not my words.” There are no people on earth so sure of doom as those who have simply made up their minds that they will not hear. These are they who are deaf by choice. These people had gone so far that they would not even listen. Of course, then, they could not hear. Even now sometimes people simply make up their minds that they will not hear and there is no hope for them.

Pashhur was the chief officer in the Temple. He was himself a prophet but a false one. He heard the words of Jeremiah and noted that threat. It enraged him. He set upon Jeremiah and struck him and put him in the stocks, till the following day. His smiting probably refers to whipping on the soles of his feet with the bastinado. He then put him in the stocks. His hands and feet put through openings in planks, he is forced into a stooping position. His head perhaps was put through a wooden stock or pillory. This is the first physical violence that Jeremiah had suffered.

“Then said Jeremiah unto him, the Lord hath not called thee Pashur, but Magor-missabib.” “Pashur” means a man in quietness or peace, and “Magor-missabib” means terror all around. Mr. Pashur, your name must be changed. You are going to be a terror to yourself. That is your fate. Thy friends shall fall by the sword and thine eyes shall behold it. “For thus saith Jehovah, I will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon and he shall carry them captive to Babylon and shall slay them with the sword. I will give them the treasures of the Temple and this city. This shall happen to you and your friends who prophesy falsely.” And so they did. Very soon Mr. Pashur was taken captive to Babylon and died, surrounded by terrors. The rest of this chapter contains Jeremiah’s lamentation. We studied this in the chapter on “The Life and Character of Jeremiah.” I called attention to that section where Jeremiah cursed the day in which he was born. He accused God of alluring him into prophesying and then deserting him. Then God led him step by step out of his despondency and up to the plane of praise and joy.

About this time, when Jeremiah was at liberty, a great many enemies had overrun the land of Palestine and the people had flocked to Jerusalem for protection. Among this host came the Rechabites. When Jehu was carrying on his revolution he met Jonadab who had founded this order, or sect, of the Rechabites and invited him into his chariot. They were noted for three things: They vowed not to live in houses; to have no vineyards; and to drink no wine forever. This class of people took refuge in Jerusalem; Jeremiah goes to these Rechabites, takes their leaders into the Temple and sets bottles of wine before them.

Note Jer 35:3 (Jeremiah writes, this himself): “Then I took Jaazaniah the son of Jeremiah, . . . and I brought them into the house of Jehovah.” He goes on: “And I set before the sons of the Rechabites bowls of wine, and I said unto them, Drink ye wine. “But they said, We will drink no wine; for Jonadab the son of Rechab our father, commands us.” They were faithful to the commands of their ancestor. Jeremiah seized upon this occasion as a basis for addressing the people. He goes on to say that Jonadab had commanded this people so and so. “They kept that command, but ye would not obey God who commanded you to serve him.” He outlines the punishment that will come upon the people, but makes a promise unto the sons of Jonadab, verse Jer 35:19 : “Therefore saith the Lord of hosts, . . . Jonadab the son of Rechab shall not want a man to stand before me for ever.”

He inculcates the principle of righteousness and justice in Jer 22:1-9 . The king is to be the instrument of righteousness and justice. There is no doubt that Jehoiakim, the vassal of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, sat on the throne. Jeremiah appeals to him to do right and be just. In Jer 22:4 he says, “If you do this thing indeed, then shall there enter in by the gates of this house kings sitting upon the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, he, and his servants and his people. But if ye will not do these things, I swear by myself, that this house shall come to desolation.” And thus he goes on with his message of destruction. He repeats it over and over again.

The fate of Shallam, or Jehoahaz, is described in Jer 22:10-22 : “Weep for him that goeth away; for he shall return to his native land no more.” Then a charge against Jehoiakim is found in Jer 22:13-23 . This king was a heartless tyrant. He had a passion for building. He had a magnificent palace. He built by using the people unjustly. He was without conscience or principle: “Woe unto him that buildeth a house with unrighteousness.” The son of this king succeeded him and the prophet goes on to describe the ruin coming upon this house (Jer 22:20-23 ).

Then follows judgment on Jehoiachin (Jer 22:24-30 ). This was doubtless written after the death of Jehoiakim. Jehoiachin was taken to Babylon, and it may have been written immediately preceding that event. We cannot be sure as to the exact time this section was penned. Verse Jer 22:24 : “As I live, saith Jehovah, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim were a signet upon my right hand, yet would I pluck thee thence.” He then goes on to describe the fate of the house; how Jehoiachin with his mother should be cast out and die in a foreign land, never to return to Judah. The king was to have no heir to sit upon his throne.

The message of Jer 23:1-8 is one regarding the princes, or shepherds. These princes of Judah and Jerusalem are spoken of as the shepherds of the people. They were the political and civil shepherds. God called them the shepherds of his pasture. He charged them with neglect of duty: “Therefore saith Jehovah, the God of Israel, Ye have scattered my flock.” They had not provided them spiritual pasture. But a time is coming when they shall come together again and shall have good shepherds. Jer 23:5 is a messianic prophecy: “I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, . . . Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely.”

The prophet’s own title of Jer 23:9-40 is, “Concerning the Prophets.” We discussed this in a former chapter. We showed Jeremiah’s charge against these false prophets. They were caterers and time-servers. They preached what the people wanted them to preach. They felt the pulse of the people and then shaped their messages accordingly.

The prophecy of Jer 25 is a prophecy concerning Judah and the surrounding nations. This was in the fourth year of the reign of Jehoiakim, 604 B.C., after Jeremiah had been preaching twenty-three years. Note some details here:

1. In Jer 25:1-14 Jeremiah predicted that Nebuchadnezzar would take Palestine, Judah, and Jerusalem; that he would lead them captive to Babylon; that there should be desolation; that this nation should serve the king of Babylon seventy years; that when the seventy years was accomplished, then Jehovah would punish the king of Babylon, and that nation for their iniquity and their land should be a desolation forever.

2.Jer 25:15-26 show that the cup of the wrath of Jehovah must be drunk by all the nations surrounding Judah. He said that they should drink the cup of the wine of his fury. Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, shall drink it; the land of Uz, the Philistines, Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, Sidon, those of the Grecian Archipelago, Dedan, Tema, Buz, Arabia, Zimri, Elam, the Medes, and Sheshack shall drink of it.

3.Jer 25:27-29 show that the nations must drink it. This is the substance of that passage. The doom is inevitable. The last part of the chapter, verses 30-38, gives a description of the conquest of the Babylonians, and the terrible destruction which should come upon the nations.

An account of the writing, reading, burning, and rewriting of the roll is given in Jer 36:1-32 . This is an interesting incident. In the fourth year of the reign of Jehoiakim, 604 B.C., the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah and told him to write his prophecy. Doubtless the persecution was so intense that he had to stop preaching. Jeremiah was a faithful prophet, but be could not preach any more in the open, and so the Lord told him to write his prophecies in a book, or roll. That was a wonderfully wise suggestion. If Paul had not been imprisoned two years at Caesarea, it is possible Luke would not have written his Gospel. If the same great apostle had not suffered his Roman imprisonment, we would doubtless never have had his matchless epistles to the Philippians, Colossians, Ephesians, and Hebrews. If Bunyan had not gone to jail, doubtless Pilgrim’s Progress would never have been written. And so it is here, if Jeremiah had not been persecuted, we would in all probability never have had his written prophecy. He ordered Baruch to write it down as he dictated it to him. It was the substance of his twenty-three years of ministry. How long he was in writing it, we do not know, doubtless some months. After he had written it the next thing was to read it to the people. We cannot go into details. Here is the story in substance: Baruch took the roll and went to the Temple where the people passed, stood in the door with the princes and the friends of Jeremiah at his back and read the prophecy. It made a deep impression on the princes and the people. It had a different effect on others. They resented it and hated Jeremiah the more. Some of them went and told the king about it. In brief, he had it brought to him. Jehudi read it and the king cut it to pieces and soon every shred of it was a heap of ashes. Then he ordered the arrest of Jeremiah, but he had securely hidden himself. Then Jeremiah and Baruch wrote the prophecies again.

We have certain admonitions of Jeremiah to Baruch in Jer 45 . After all his heroism this man Baruch grew despondent. This faithful scribe who had stood by Jeremiah through all his troubles now becomes troubled. We are told about it in chapter Jer 45:3 : “Thus didst thou say, Woe is me, for Jehovah hath added sorrow to my pain.” Jeremiah tells him that the Lord breaks down that which he has planted: “Behold, I will pluck up this whole land.” Baruch, have you thought that there were great things coming to you? Did you expect better things? “Seekest thou great things for thyself? Seek them not.” I am going to bring evil upon this whole land. You are not going to be a great man but your life is going to stand. What fine advice that was to this faithful secretary and scribe. Do you seek great things for yourself? Seek them not. Your life will be spared, that is enough.

QUESTIONS

1. What is the subject of this chapter of this INTERPRETATION? And what are the dates of these several chapters of Jeremiah?

2. What, in general, are the contents of these chapters?

3. What is the story of the potter in Jer 18:1-4 ?

4. What is the prophet’s application of the incident of the potter to Israel and what, in particular, is the meaning of God’s repentance here toward Israel for good or evil? (Jer 18:5-12 .)

5. What is the lesson here drawn from nature by the prophet? (Jer 18:13-17 .)

6. What is the result of the prophet’s preaching (Jer 18:18 ) and what his response? (Jer 18:19-23 .)

7. What is the second incident of the potter’s vessel and what its application? (Jer 19:1-13 .)

8. What is the prophet’s message in the Temple immediately following the second lesson from the potter’s vessel?

9. Give an account of Pashhur’s persecution.

10. Who were the Rechabites, what were their characteristics and what was the lesson enforced by Jeremiah based upon their history?

11. Who addressed in Jer 22:1-9 and what is the message to him?

12. Who is spoken of in Jer 22:10-12 and what is there said of him?

13. What is the charge against Jehoiakim and what is the result (Jer 22:13-23 )?

14. What is the contents of Jer 22:24-30 ?

15. What is the message of Jer 23:1-8 and how are the shepherds here characterized?

16. What is the prophet’s own title of Jer 23:9-40 and what is the charge of Jeremiah here against these false prophets?

17. What is the prophecy of Jer 25 and what are the essential points noted?

18. Give an account of the writing, reading, burning, and rewriting of the roll (Jer 36:1-32 ).

19. What are the admonitions of Jeremiah to Baruch in Jer 45 and what is their lesson?

Fuente: B.H. Carroll’s An Interpretation of the English Bible

Jer 45:1 The word that Jeremiah the prophet spake unto Baruch the son of Neriah, when he had written these words in a book at the mouth of Jeremiah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, saying,

Ver. 1. The word that Jeremiah the prophet spake unto Baruch. ] It is thought that Jeremiah preached his last when he prophesied in the foregoing chapter the destruction of Pharaohhophra, and together with him of the Jews that were found in Egypt by Nebuchadnezzar. Lapides loquitur. He seemed to them to speaking stones, as the proverb hath it; and therefore they stoned him to death, as Epiphanius and others report. This word that he spoke to Baruch belongeth to Jer 36:32 , and should have been annexed unto it in a natural order, as appeareth both by the date and by the matter. Baruch had, with much pains and patience, first written out Jeremiah’s prophecies, and then read them to the people, and afterwards to the princes. For this piece of work he expected belike some good piece of preferment, as the apostles also did for their forsaking all and following Christ. Mat 18:1-4 ; Mat 19:27-30 ; Mat 20:21-29 , &c. Thus flesh will show itself in the best, and in many things we offend all. But instead of any such thing, Baruch, together with his master, Jeremiah, was sought for to be slaughtered; and besides, he meets with here a contrary prophecy, whereby, before he is comforted, he is sharply reproved, 1. For a dastardly despondency of mind, because his rising expectation, it seems, was frustrated; 2. For a vain, ambitious self-seeking, which was not hid from God.

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

Jeremiah Chapter 45

No little speculation has been expended on this chapter and the reason why it is found here. Historically, it would follow Jer 36 . It stands as a fact wholly apart from what precedes and follows. But I do not entertain a doubt that its divinely assigned place is where we find it in the Hebrew Bible, the order of which is of course adhered to in the authorized version.

It is plain that, as Jer 44 gives us the last direct account of the life of Jeremiah, chapter 45 furnishes the latest notice of his friend and scribe Baruch, though in point of fact the message here inserted was delivered some twenty years before the scene immediately before described in the land of Egypt.

But moral considerations enter also; and, as I think, of greater moment than any such motive for collocation. It is not merely at a reason of danger from an incensed monarch that the mind of God conveyed by the prophet is of value; it may be increasingly needed when that pressure yields to a crowd of disasters, and a spurious calm succeeds blast after blast of evil. The question is, how Jehovah would have one who served Him to feel and act in a day of grief, and when His hand is still held out to execute summary judgment on the guilty people who dishonour His name entrusted to their keeping. This the prophet answers from God. May we have ears to heir what was said to Baruch!

“The word that Jeremiah the prophet spake unto Baruch the son of Neriah, when he had written these words in a book at the mouth of Jeremiah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, saying, Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel, unto thee, O Baruch; thou didst say, Woe is me now! for the Lord hath added grief to my sorrow; I fainted in my sighing, and I find no rest.” (Ver. 1-3.) It is evident that Baruch was not only troubled on every side, but straitened, his way hedged up as he thought, abandoned to distress without measure or end, and destruction staring him in the face. He was disheartened and weary; he could find no rest for his soul. This should never be for the believer. Not only the Christian now can never be thus without sin and unbelief at work; but even of old it ought not to have been. For, as Isaiah declares not only the everlasting God, Jehovah, faints not nor is weary, but He gives power to the faint and increases strength to those who have no might. Thus, while nature’s vigour fails utterly in the hour of trial, they that wait on Jehovah but change their strength, mount up as eagles, run without being weary and walk without being faint. How much more should we not be it weary pilgrims,” though we may well wait in sorrow though surely with a joyful hope in the Spirit!

There is always in such cases an inner forgetfulness of the Lord, a lack of communion with His mind and ways, an allowance of desires which spring from self whatever be the plausible cover they may wear in our eves or before others.

Did Baruch simply and thoroughly vindicate Jehovah’s ways with Israel? Did he in his heart sanctify the Lord God who had broken to pieces the people that He loved? This I gravely doubt. Otherwise he had not been so overwhelmed, but would surely have looked to Him and found an answer of repose in his spirit for the tears which He puts in His bottle. But as with us, so with His afflicted servant of old: God knew every thought and intent of the heart; and this in pitifulness, yet fidelity withal. Hence the word that follows: “Thus shalt thou say unto him, The Lord saith thus: Behold, that which I have built will I break down, and that which I have planted I will pluck up, even this whole land. And seekest thou great things for thyself? seek them not: for, behold, I will bring evil upon all flesh, saith the Lord: but thy life will I give unto thee for a prey in all places whither thou goest.” Verses 4, 5.

This instruction is of great price to us who are partakers of a heavenly calling in the present ruined state of Christendom. Not that it was ever allowed to the Christian to seek great things for self or even for the church. True discipleship is inseparable from the cross, as our hoped for portion in the glory of God depends on the crucified One. And Christianity only comes in when God had tried man and found him wanting in every time and way and place; in the end of the world, as it is said (or rather consummation of the ages) when the proof was complete and manifest that the creature, as far as his own responsibility was concerned, was in no less ruin and misery than dishonour to God; and, in principle therefore, it could be said, “now is the judgment of this world.” Thereon the wisdom of God gave those He separated to Himself by Christ Jesus in grace now, and for heavenly glory in hope, a place not of the world – while in it and passing through it, not of the world as Christ is not. This, however, it becomes us even more peremptorily to hold fast, now that the outward framework of the christian profession must be added to the ruins of man and of Israel; and we cannot but testify according to the word of our Lord His speedy appearing to judge the world in righteousness. We, it is true, have a blessed hope and await His coming to receive us to Himself. Baruch had but his life guaranteed to him, come what might, and wherever he might go. Our place as Christians is association with Christ – the cross, and the glory. May we never forget it, nor seek aught inconsistent with Him in both! But if we be ever so right in other respects, we fail if we do not act and feel suitably to the ways or God in a day when He has pronounced on evil and is about to judge. Lowliness especially becomes him whom grace has separated from that which is offensive to God; pride and hardness and self-seeking, always evil, become such an one least of all, and especially at such a time.

Fuente: William Kelly Major Works (New Testament)

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Jer 45:1-5

1This is the message which Jeremiah the prophet spoke to Baruch the son of Neriah, when he had written down these words in a book at Jeremiah’s dictation, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, saying: 2Thus says the LORD the God of Israel to you, O Baruch: 3’You said, Ah, woe is me! For the LORD has added sorrow to my pain; I am weary with my groaning and have found no rest.’ 4Thus you are to say to him, ‘Thus says the LORD, Behold, what I have built I am about to tear down, and what I have planted I am about to uproot, that is, the whole land. 5But you, are you seeking great things for yourself? Do not seek them; for behold, I am going to bring disaster on all flesh,’ declares the LORD, ‘but I will give your life to you as booty in all the places where you may go.’

Jer 45:1 in the fourth year of Jehoiakim The date for this would be 605 B.C. This was the same year Babylon defeated the remnants of the Assyrian army and the Egyptian army at Carchemish in northern Syria (cf. Jer 46:2).

The historical setting for this brief chapter is chapter 36.

Jer 45:3 Baruch was grieving over the current state of affairs (i.e., the king burning Jeremiah’s scroll, chapt. 36).

1. woe is me! (cf. Jer 4:13; Jer 4:31; Jer 6:4; Jer 10:19; Jer 13:27; Jer 15:10; Jer 22:13; Jer 23:1; Jer 48:1; Jer 48:46; Jer 50:27, obviously a cultural idiom of despair)

2. the Lord has added sorrow to my pain

3. I am weary with my groaning

4. I have found no rest

Jer 45:4 This verbiage reflects Jeremiah’s call in Jer 1:10 (cf. Jer 18:7-10; Jer 24:6; Jer 31:28; Jer 42:10). The curses of Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 27-30 have come to reality! A reverse exodus has occurred in parallel to the removal of the Canaanite population who had previously inhabited Canaan (cf. Gen 15:16). Their idolatry caused them to be exiled, so too, now Judah’s idolatry has caused her to be exiled.

Jer 45:5 But you, are you seeking great things for yourself This is always an appropriate question for fallen, self-centered humanity. Believers must remember that all things are in our God’s hands. We are only stewards.

A good biblical example of a person who recognized his spiritual stewardship (at least at first) was Solomon (cf. 1Ki 3:9; 1Ki 3:11).

I am going to bring disaster on all flesh This hyperbolic idiom is also found in Jer 25:31 and Isa 66:16. It is difficult for modern westerners to interpret ANE poetry because of our tendency toward literalism. A book that has really helped me in this genre is D. Brent Sandy, Plowshares and Pruning Hooks: Rethinking the Language of Biblical Prophecy and Apocalyptic. I commend it to you!

but I will give your life to you as booty YHWH promises to spare Baruch’s life in the midst of the judgment which will fall on the Judeans in Egypt.

This military imagery occurs several times in Jeremiah (cf. Jer 21:9; Jer 38:2; Jer 39:18).

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

The Fortieth Prophecy of Jeremiah (see book comments for Jeremiah).

Baruch. He was the grandson of Maaseiah, governor of Jerusalem in Josiah’s reign (2Ch 34:8), and brother of Seraiah, chief chamberlain (Jer 51:59).

written these words, &c. See Jer 36. the fourth year, &c. See App-86.

Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics

Chapter 45

Now as we move into chapter 45, we are moving into the final part of Jeremiah’s prophecies. This is known as the sixth part of the prophecies in which we have miscellaneous prophecies that are of… come from the different periods of Jeremiah’s life, but they are directed for the most part against the nations that are round about Israel. And God brings these nations around Israel – Egypt, the Gentile powers, Philistia, Tyre, Babylon and so forth – He brings them into a prophetic view as God declares the judgments that will come upon these various nations.

But chapter 45 is a message to Baruch who was Jeremiah’s friend and scribe. Jeremiah dictated it to Baruch who was a scribe and who wrote the words of Jeremiah in a book.

So this is,

The word that Jeremiah the prophet spoke to Baruch the son of Neriah, when he had written these words in a book at the mouth of Jeremiah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, saying ( Jer 45:1 ),

Now you remember Jehoiakim took the scroll and he cut it with his penknife and tossed it in the fire. Now at the time that Jeremiah gave to him these words and Baruch wrote them, God also gave a special word to Baruch.

Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, unto thee, O Baruch ( Jer 45:2 );

Wouldn’t that be something to have God give you a personal message? Heavy duty, you know. And yet, I have had God give to me personal messages right out of His Word. When right out of the Word of God the Word just seems to speak to you. And you knew it was God speaking to you right out of the book and just a personal application. It just fits so perfectly and was so appropriate for the moment. “Thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel, unto thee, O Baruch.”

You did say, Woe is me now! for the LORD hath added grief to my sorrow; I fainted in my sighing, and I find no rest ( Jer 45:3 ).

Actually Jehoiakim, when he cut up the scroll, was seeking Baruch. He was going to really give it to him for reading that scroll. And Baruch was in hiding. And he heard that Jehoiakim was after him and all and he says, “Woe is me! For the Lord has added grief to my sorrow; I fainted in my sighing, and I find no rest.” That’s what Baruch was saying.

But thus shalt thou say unto him, The LORD saith thus; Behold, that which I have built will I break down, and that which I have planted I will pluck up, even this whole land ( Jer 45:4 ).

I built this nation; I’m going to break it down. I’ve planted; I’m going to pluck it up.

And seekest thou great things for thyself? Don’t seek them ( Jer 45:5 ):

The whole thing’s going to go down, Baruch. I’m going to pluck the place up. I’m going to break it down. So it is foolish at this point to seek great things for yourself. Seek them not.

for, behold, I will bring evil upon all flesh, saith the LORD: but thy life will I give unto thee for a prey in all places wherever you go ( Jer 45:5 ).

In other words, “I’ll spare your life wherever you go. But I’m going to bring destruction.” Therefore, the message of the Lord to Baruch basically was “Don’t seek great things for yourself. The whole system’s going down the tube so why seek great things for yourself?” Jesus said, “What shall it profit a man, if he would gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” ( Mar 8:36 ) What if you could gain the whole world? What joy do you think you would have being the richest man in hell? What should it profit a man if he would gain the whole world and lose his own soul? “Don’t seek great things for yourself. It’s all coming down, Baruch. Don’t worry about it. Don’t seek a great name. Don’t seek greatness for yourself. Seek God. God will protect you wherever you go. He’ll be with you. He’ll give you your life. But don’t seek after great things for yourself.”

Jeremiah had one of the most difficult ministries that any servant of God has ever been called to perform. For from the beginning his ministry was destined for failure. God told Jeremiah in the beginning, “I’m going to send you to these people, but they’re not going to listen to you.” And so it happened. Jeremiah came and spoke the word of the Lord faithfully to them, but they didn’t listen. “And because they will not listen, thus I am going to bring upon them all of the evil that I have declared.” And Jeremiah had to stand by helplessly knowing what was happening. Seeing the decay. Seeing the downhill plunge. Seeing the people headed towards destruction. Calling out, crying out, warning them, but unable to do anything to turn them or to stop them from their own disastrous path to oblivion. He had to watch and oversee the death of the nation that God might be faithful and righteous in His judgment so that no one could say, “Well, God didn’t warn us,” or, “God didn’t tell us,” or, “Oh, if God had only told us, things would be different.” God is always faithful. He always has His servants there to warn and to speak the truth.

I feel that there are tremendous parallels that can be drawn between the nation of Israel at this time of their decline and fall and the United States, in that Israel was known as a people of God. In their beginning they were founded upon God. They experienced the blessings of God and God made them a strong and powerful nation. And you can see the parallel. In the beginning our founding fathers were looking to God for guidance in the establishing of these United States. And they established the Constitution guaranteeing the freedoms of worshipping God. One nation under God. Acknowledged the fact that we were a nation under God and we were known as a nation under God. And God blessed and prospered our nation. But Israel, when they became prosperous, got their eyes off of God and began to worship and serve other gods, the gods of their own hands, the gods of materialism. Even as we in the United States today are burning our incense to the gods of materialism. And having forsaken the true and the living God, they became forsaken by God and they were weakened and they ultimately failed. Jeremiah had to watch the fall. Seeing what was going on, warning them, but with no avail. He had to see the tragic consequence of a nation who had turned their backs on God.

I am deeply concerned of the horrible moral conditions that exist in the United States today. I am deeply concerned about the prevalence of pornography, the exploitation of sex, of the openness of homosexuals and lesbians. And of the latest advocating of incest, encouraging parents to have sexual experiences with their own small children. We are about as low as we can go. When these people can even get a voice in a national publication like Time Magazine this week where they espouse their views. It can’t go on.

Now God has His faithful remnant and God will be faithful to His remnant. They shall escape. But the judgment of God is going to fall heavy and hard. You can be sure of that. God’s Word gives vivid details of His judgment that is coming very soon. Jesus spoke in great detail of that judgment. And turning to His followers He said, “Pray always, that you’ll be accounted worthy to escape all of these things that are going to come to pass upon the earth, and to be standing before the Son of man” ( Luk 21:36 ). Pray that you’ll be that faithful remnant. More than pray–commit your life to God. Serve the Lord. Put Him first. “Beware,” Jesus said, speaking of these last days, “lest at any time your own heart be overcharged with surfeiting, the dining pleasures, drinking, drunkenness, or the cares of this life, that that day come upon you by surprise” ( Luk 21:34 ). For it will come as a surprise upon all who are dwelling upon the earth. Be careful it doesn’t take you by surprise. Live after the Spirit. Walk after the Spirit. Be led by the Spirit. Turn from a life of the flesh and the seeking of the satisfying or gratifying of your flesh to live a life after the Spirit. “Seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near” ( Isa 55:6 ). And, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness” ( Mat 6:33 ).

Even as in Israel womanhood became degraded, I notice how they are attempting to degrade womanhood today starting with pretty little teenage girls and making them sex symbols. How tragic. We hold them up as examples to the women. God help us. For when women become degraded that’s always the final straw.

You that are the Lord’s, serve Him. Make a new commitment of your life to God. “God, I’m going to live after the Spirit. I’m going to follow after You. I’ll forsake Egypt. I’ll forsake the flesh. And I’ll live fully after Thee, O God.” The time has come for you to make that kind of commitment and to lead your family in it that they might escape these things that are shortly coming to pass, as God’s judgment is certain to fall upon this godless generation. Time will show whose word is going to stand: that of the agnostic, or that of God; that of the liberal press, that of the mocker, or that of the true and the living God. But the thing is, when God’s Word was proved true, it was then too late.

God warned through Noah, “There’s going to be a flood.” “Ahh, flood, whoever heard of a flood?” “Water is going to fall from heaven.” “Ahh, whoever heard of rain?” Noah went in. God shut the door. It began to rain. “We believe you now. Wow!” Too late. There are many believers too late. God’s Word is going to stand. It’s important that we stand on God’s Word. “

Fuente: Through the Bible Commentary

Jer 45:1-5

Jer 45:1-5

THE PROMISE TO BARUCH

The word that Jeremiah the prophet spake unto Baruch the son of Neriah, when he wrote these word in a book at the mouth of Jeremiah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, saying, Thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel, unto thee, O Baruch: Thou didst say, Woe is me now! for Jehovah hath added sorrow to my pain; I am weary with my groaning, and I find no rest. Thus shalt thou say unto him, Thus saith Jehovah: Behold, that which I have built will I break down, and that which I have planted I will pluck up; and this in the whole land. And seekest thou great things for thyself? seek them not; for, behold, I will bring evil upon all flesh, saith Jehovah; but thy life will I give unto thee for a prey in all places whither thou goest.

In the fourth year of Jehoiachim…

(Jer 45:1). This prophecy is dated 604 B.C. when the first roll (‘these words’) was written (Jeremiah 36 :ff).

I am weary with my groaning…

(Jer 45:3). There were three grounds, probably, for Baruch’s discouragement: (1) he was overwhelmed with the prophet’s words on the seriousness of the peoples’ sin and the shattering consequences of it; (2) he had probably already suffered some indignities because of his association with the ‘prophet of doom,’ and may have anticipated more to come; and (3) he saw his own personal air castles of ambition and advancement come crashing down around him.

And this in the whole land…

(Jer 45:4). God’s reply reveals that when a whole society is being destroyed, there will certainly be hardship and disaster for many individuals, and warns Baruch to give up his thoughts of ambition and self-advancement. They could not come in that situation where God was plucking up and tearing down the kingdom of Israel.

But thy life will I give unto thee for a prey in all places whither thou goest…

(Jer 45:5). Nevertheless would bless his faithful children, not with the prosperity and peace for which they longed; but he would grant them life, when all around them were perishing. What a precious gift is life, under whatever conditions!

For a prey…

(Jer 45:5). This means that God will allow Baruch to escape with his life, as in Jer 21:9; Jer 28:2, and Jer 39:18. However, the words, In all places whither thou shalt go, are somewhat ominous, indicating that, Baruch will be obliged to avoid destruction by flight, but that God will thereby save his life.

The discerning comment of Albert Barnes is a fitting conclusion to my comments on this little chapter.

“The long catalog of calamities pronounced against Israel by Jeremiah made a painful impression upon Baruch’s mind. He was ambitious, of noble birth, being the grandson of Maaseiah the governor of Jerusalem during the times of Josiah; he was a scribe and probably looked forward to high office of state. This short prophecy commands Baruch to give up his ambitions and to be satisfied with being able to escape with his life. When the last memorials of Jeremiah’s life were added to the history of the fall of Jerusalem, Baruch added this chapter in his old age; and then, being humbled by the weight of years, and by the sorrows of private and public ,disasters, he probably read this little chapter with far different feelings from those which he had when first Jeremiah revealed to him what the Lord had prophesied concerning his faithful scribe.”

A PERSONAL NOTE TO BARUCH Jer 45:1-5

Chapter 45 dates back to the fourth year of Jehoiakim. This is the third time the fourth year of Jehoiakim has been mentioned (cf. Jer 25:1, Jer 36:1). That was the crucial year in the political history of Judah and in the ministry of Jeremiah. It was in that year that Nebuchadnezzar was able to defeat the Assyrian-Egyptian coalition and assume control of the Near East. That was also the year in which the words of Jeremiah were first put into written form.

Chronologically chapter 45 would have fitted much better after Jer 36:8 or at least at the conclusion of that chapter. Why has it been placed in its present location? It is impossible to say precisely. If Baruch was, as has been plausibly suggested, Jeremiahs biographer and the editor of his masters messages, it could well be that he has placed this chapter here for a definite purpose. Perhaps this chapter serves as his personal signature at the end of the biographical section of Jeremiah. It is only here that Baruch reveals himself as a person. Throughout the rest of the Book of Jeremiah he is content to remain in the background and simply record the message of his master. Whatever the reason for the placement of chapter 45 here, it is like a quiet meadow in the midst of a tumultuous battlefield. After the rumbling of chariot wheels, the carnage of battle, the fall of cities and nations the reader is ready for something more mild. Here the focus shifts from international conflict to the problems of a single individual. God is just as concerned about the troubled mind of one of His faithful as about the course of international politics. After an introductory word (Jer 45:1) chapter forty-five contains a gentle rebuke (Jer 45:2-4) and a gracious promise (Jer 45:5).

A Gentle Rebuke Jer 45:2-4

The gentle rebuke contained in Jer 45:2-4 is in the form of a vivid contrast, In Jer 45:3 the self-pity of Baruch is indicated. In contrast to this, in Jer 45:4, the genuine and justifiable grief of God is indicated.

1. The self-pity of Baruch (Jer 45:3)

Baruch had been complaining. He was disturbed, weary and tired. Woe is me now! for the Lord has added grief to my sorrow; I fainted in my sighing, and I find no rest (Jer 45:3). There is no indication as to why Baruch felt this way. But since the incident is associated with the writing of the scroll there is probably some relationship between Baruchs state of mind and what he had just written. Perhaps Baruch had become discouraged and depressed as he recorded from the lips of Jeremiah that long series of charges and threats against his people. For the first time he saw the deplorable spiritual condition of the nation. The thought of that impending catastrophic destruction brought anguish to his heart even as to the heart of his master. His city, the Temple and all he held dear would be swept away. His own personal hopes and aspirations would be dashed to the ground. As he contemplated these bitter prospects his depression grew into despondency.

Added to the burden which future prospects laid upon his heart was his present predicament. He was in hiding with Jeremiah under the threat of execution by the tyrant Jehoiakim. It seemed to him that ever since he had volunteered his scribal services to Jeremiah that one heartache, disappointment and sorrow had been added to another. The burden had become too great. He was utterly weary because of his own sighing. He could find no rest for his soul. Somewhere along the difficult way he had lost that quiet trust and confidence in the Lord. why? he would ask. Why must this be my lot? Baruch had to learn as Jeremiah before him had learned that the immediate persecution was only the beginning of his personal suffering. Between 605 and 587 B.C. Baruch was to suffer much as the companion and scribe of the weeping prophet.

2. The genuine grief of God (Jer 45:4)

To the tired and weary Baruch God sent His messenger with a word of comfort. It is not a word of sympathy for this would merely have added fuel to the tormenting flames of self-pity within the soul of Baruch. Nor does God promise this secretary immunity from the difficulties of the time. Rather God deals with the despondency of Baruch by revealing to him the depths of the divine agony. The thought of the passage may be paraphrased as follows: You, O Baruch, are experiencing the very worst form of self-pity. Well, now, consider! What I Myself built I am about to tear down. What I planted, I am about to uproot. In other words God is saying to Baruch What is your hurt compared to mine? The amazing teaching of this little chapter is that God too experiences pain. One can sense the pathos in the words What I Myself built I am about to demolish. Perhaps here in Jeremiah 45 is the antidote to the self-pity of those who labor in the vineyard of the Lord today. Perhaps if more preachers and teachers and even church secretaries like Baruch would only stop to contemplate that God knows pain perhaps they would be able then to view their own trials and troubles in the proper perspective. When one begins to meditate on the Scripture God is not willing for any to perish but that all should come to repentance surely the magnitude of the divine hurt must be impressed upon the mind. When the modern Baruch comes to mentally grasp the depth of divine agony over lost mankind he must come to realize how trivial and superficial are the circumstances which cause him to feel discouraged and despondent. There are many Baruchs in the Bible. Elijah sat for a time under his Juniper tree (1Ki 19:4); Jonah became terribly despondent over the loss of a shade-giving plant. Some of the Psalmists are in this category and above all there is Job. What they all needed to learn is the lesson of this chapter. Their grief was more than matched by that of God.

A Gracious Promise Jer 45:5

Having pointed out to Baruch His own genuine grief, the Lord seems to chide this scribe by saying And do you seek great things for yourself? Seek them not! What were these great things to which Baruch aspired? One can only guess. Did he aspire to preach the word of the Lord in the masterful style of Jeremiah? Did he anticipate that the nation would heed the cry for repentance, recognize Jeremiah for the man of God he was, and give Baruch the recognition he deserved as the right hand man of this great prophet? Did he have his sights set on some position of political power? The truth will never be known. It is sufficient to note that the ambitions of the human heart often run counter to the plan and purposes of God. Baruch should have been praying Not my will but Thine be done! But like so many of his kind today, this secretary wanted to pour the purposes of God into the mold of his own ambition. All wishful thinking and hopeful dreams to the contrary, the judgment upon all flesh is coming. Gods purpose will be carried out regardless of who it affects.

There is a note of consolation for Baruch in this verse. In the day of destruction and death God promises, I will give you your life for a prey. This expression, which occurs several times in Jeremiah(Jer 21:9; Jer 35:2; Jer 39:18.), probably originated in the army. Victorious soldiers customarily brought home the booty they had seized. A soldier returning after a defeat when asked where his share of the booty was might well have replied that his life was all the booty that he could bring away. Baruch would escape from the forthcoming conflagrations with his life. That would be his reward. Instead of continuing to gaze upon the wreckage of his own ambitions Baruch should rejoice in the promise that through all those days of trouble God would spare him for the task of being the secretary of a prophet.

That fourth year of Jehoiakim marked a turning point in the life of Baruch. It was indeed the moment of truth for him. Baruch had been brought low by the circumstances of life. He had been melted down and now he was being poured into a new mold. He was able to triumph over despondency and alter ambition to conform to the divine will. Through thick and thin he stayed close to Jeremiah during all those long years of ridicule and abuse. In the many passages which record the events subsequent to 604 B.C. there is never any hint that Baruch ever faltered again.

The Flight to Egypt – Jer 40:7 to Jer 45:5

Open It

1. Whom do you know who has been too trusting and suffered because he or she refused to believe ill of another person?

2. What traditional superstitions were you taught as you were growing up?

Explore It

3. How did the governor appointed by the Babylonians reassure the small fighting force that remained in the land after the Babylonians withdrew? (Jer 40:7-10)

4.How did the remnant of people in the land of Judah grow and begin to prosper? (Jer 40:11-12)

5. What warning did some of the commanders give to Gedaliah, the appointed governor? (Jer 40:13-14)

6. How did Johanan propose to solve the threat against Gedaliah, which he perceived as potentially disastrous to the whole remnant? (Jer 40:15)

7. How did Gedaliah respond to Johanans desire to protect him? (Jer 40:16)

8. What devious plan was carried out by Ishmael and his followers? (Jer 41:1-3)

9. What evil deeds did Ishmael add to his murder of Gedaliah? (Jer 41:4-10)

10. What transpired when Johanan caught up to Ishmael? (Jer 41:11-15)

11. What did Johanan assume the remaining faithful people would have to do since Gedaliah had been murdered? (Jer 41:16-18)

12. What request did Johanan and the people with him make of the prophet Jeremiah? (Jer 42:1-3)

13. What promises did Jeremiah and the people make to one another? (Jer 42:4-6)

14. What positive commands and reassuring words did Jeremiah bring from God? (Jer 42:7-12)

15. What warning did God have for the people in anticipation of their intended disobedience? (Jer 42:13-18)

16. Of what fatal mistake did Jeremiah accuse the remnant of Judah? (Jer 42:19-22)

17. How did Johanan and the other leaders rationalize their disobedience? (Jer 43:1-3)

18. Who were the people who entered Egypt, some of them against their will? (Jer 43:4-7)

19. When he was at Tahpanhes with the others, what symbolic action did God tell Jeremiah to take, and what was the meaning? (Jer 43:8-13)

20. For what sin did God, through Jeremiah, remind the people that He had punished Judah and Jerusalem? (Jer 44:1-6)

21. Why was Jeremiah amazed that the remnant had not learned a lesson from all that had happened before? (Jer 44:7-10)

22. What did God say He would do to all those determined to go to Egypt for protection? (Jer 44:11-14)

23. What superstitious belief did the people cite as they defied Jeremiah openly? (Jer 44:15-19)

24. How did Jeremiah proceed to correct their thinking about the real cause of their misfortune? (Jer 44:20-23)

25. With what vow did God answer the peoples vow to continue worshiping the “Queen of Heaven”? (Jer 44:24-28)

26. What did God promise to do to the pharaoh of Egypt, whom the Israelites considered an ally against Babylon? (Jer 44:29-30)

27. Why was the scribe, Baruch, feeling sorry for himself? (Jer 45:1-3)

28. How did God respond to Baruchs self-pity? (Jer 45:4-5)

Get It

29. What mistake on the part of a well-meaning governor kept the remnant of poor people and fugitive soldiers from prospering after the Babylonian conquest?

30. How did reliance on their own wisdom and preconceptions about Gods answer get Johanan and his fellow leaders into trouble?

31. What (other than fear of the Babylonians) led the people to ignore God and His prophet, Jeremiah?

32. Why did Jeremiah call the disobedience of the people who insisted on fleeing to Egypt a fatal mistake?

33. Why do people swear oaths that they dont really intend to keep?

34. Why are some people willing to attribute their misfortune to Gods indifference or powerlessness rather than to their own sins?

35. When have you felt discouraged because of how long you have endured hardship in doing the right thing?

36. What blessings will follow if we allow Gods loving-kindness to be our reward for faithfulness?

Apply It

37. In what area of your life do you need to pray for Gods perspective on human evil?

38. What initial steps can you take to refocus on the eternal rather than the earthly rewards when you face discouragement in serving the Lord?

Questions On Jeremiah Chapters Forty-Four & Forty-Five

By Brent Kercheville

1 Who is the prophecy of chapter 44 directed to (Jer 44:1)?

2 What is Gods message to these people (Jer 44:2-10)? What sin have they committed?

3 What is the result of their sin (Jer 44:10-14)?

4 What is the response of the people to Gods message (Jer 44:15-19)? What lesson do we learn?

5 What is Jeremiahs response to the peoples reaction (Jer 44:20-30)?

6 What is the message to Baruch (Jer 45:1-5)? What lessons do we learn from this?

TRANSFORMATION:

How does this relationship change your relationship with God?

What did you learn about him?

What will you do differently in your life?

Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary

The messages of Jeremiah to the chosen people practically ended with the last chapter. Before coming to his messages concerning the surrounding nations we have the brief story told in this chapter of the special word which he was charged to speak to Baruch when he wrote his words in a book in the fourth year of Jehoiakim.

A perusal of this message makes it evident that this faithful ally of the prophet had become depressed. If this message was delivered to him in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, it was evidently before the book was actually written and the words read. His lamentation suggests that he was depressed over the circumstances in which he lived, and the word which Jeremiah was commissioned to speak to him, charging him not to seek great things for himself, would lead us to suppose that the emphasis in his lamentation is to be placed on the word “me”- “Woe is me now.” Evidently he had been overwhelmed with the sorrows of his people, and had hoped to do something to deliver them. In his aspiration there had been something of self-seeking. Yet he had been sincere, and therefore a word of rebuke and comfort was spoken to him. He was reminded of Jehovah’s right to deal as He thought best with the people; but he was also promised protection in the difficult circumstances. Such a word as this would prepare him for writing the words of Jeremiah, and the reading of them which fell to his lot.

Fuente: An Exposition on the Whole Bible

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

A WORD FOR BARUCH AND FOR US ALL

(Chap. 45)

This beautiful though brief chapter of just five verses is pregnant with instruction for the children of GOD in all ages, and particularly for any who essay to serve the Lord in any public or official capacity.

Chronologically, it follows chapter 36, as the first verse makes plain: “The word that Jeremiah the prophet spake unto Baruch the son of Neriah, when he had written these words in a book at the mouth of Jeremiah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah.” (Jer 45:1)

The expression “these words” refers to the words penned by Baruch, at the prophet’s dictation, in the roll that was read before the king and his counselors, only to be contemptuously cast into the fire. Another copy, with added words, was then written by the same scribe.

Baruch had thus been an instrument, used of GOD to communicate His mind to others. His own soul must not be neglected, however; hence the message given him, as narrated in this portion of the Scriptures. It is of the greatest moment that those who minister to others be in a right state of soul themselves. Nothing is more dangerous than to go on giving out the truth of GOD, as suited to saint or sinner, while the heart is set upon self-seeking, or the private life of the servant is accompanied with unholiness and lack of humility before the Lord. It is this that leads to what another has most solemnly denounced as “trafficking in unfelt truth.” Only as the truth has power over one’s own heart and conscience can it be safely ministered to others.

In Baruch’s case, it would seem that he felt the king’s rejection of the Word of GOD as an insult aimed at himself and his master, rather than at the Lord who inspired the writing that was in the roll. The result was sore discouragement.

Therefore the prophet’s message: “Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel, unto thee, O Baruch: Thou didst say, Woe is me now! for the Lord hath added grief to my sorrow; I fainted in my sighing, and I find no rest” (Jer 45:2-3).

It was quite right that the son of Neriah should feel, and feel keenly, the wretched state of his people, and their departure from holiness and truth. Every godly soul must of necessity have thus felt. Jeremiah did, as we know; and Ezekiel, in vision, saw a mark placed upon the foreheads of the men who sighed and cried because of Jerusalem’s abominations (Ezekiel 9). This was pleasing to GOD, and indicated a chastened spirit and divine sensibilities.

But the grief of Baruch is more personal, like that which threatened to consume the prophet himself, in chapter 15. It was prompted in large measure by disappointment. He had not received the recognition as the Lord’s servant and the amanuensis of Jeremiah that he looked for. Hence he faints in the day of adversity, because his strength is small. He has not yet learned to deny himself, which is quite another thing to merely being self-denying. This latter thing he knew: the former he has not yet reached. Perhaps almost unknown to himself, and unseen heretofore even by Jeremiah, Baruch was seeking a measure of recognition from man.

It is so easy to slip into this, especially if one is serving the Lord in the gospel, or in teaching the children of GOD. There is the secret desire, often, to be accorded a place, with the corresponding grief when that place is refused and one’s ministry is unacknowledged. Frequently this may be mistaken for sorrow because of the rejection of the Word of GOD; but in that case the soul finds refuge in the Author of that Word; and though tried, is not cast down, knowing that when the truth is proclaimed “we are unto God a sweet savor of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish: to the one we are the savor of death unto death; and to the other the savor of life unto life” (2Co 2:15-16).

It was not in this way that Baruch seemed to be affected. He felt the personal slight, the setting at nought, the despising of his ministry – always so hard for a sensitive soul to bear, if out of the presence of GOD. Therefore he fainted, and could find no rest.

But the Lord has been graciously considering his case, and has for him a needed word, both of admonition and of comfort. His is no harsh, unkind rebuke; no hard and severe scourging. Knowing full well that Baruch was, after all, seeking to honor Him, however he might have, well-nigh unconsciously, permitted self to have a place, He ministers a needed word in tenderness and love.

“Thus shalt thou say unto him,” He says to Jeremiah, “The Lord saith thus: Behold, that which I have built will I break down, and that which I have planted I will pluck up, even this whole land” (Jer 45:4).

Surely, when all was so obnoxious to GOD, it was a specially improper scene for personal ambition. When the times were so evil, it was a specially improper season for self-seeking. One is reminded of Elisha’s words to Gehazi after he had profited in a material way by his deception of Naaman: “Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and oliveyards, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and maidservants?” (2Ki 5:26).

Poor, wretched Gehazi had been planning for his own comfort in a day when judgment, like a destroying angel, was stalking through the land. How awful to be so engaged at such a time! In a similar way the apostle Paul also speaks to the Corinthians when he writes:

“But this I say, brethren, the time is short: it remaineth, that both they that have wives be as though they had none; and they that weep, as though they wept not; and they that rejoice as though they rejoiced not; and they that buy, as though they possessed not; and they that use this world, as not abusing it: for the fashion of this world passeth away” (1Co 7:29-31).

This was what, in his measure, Baruch needed to learn. GOD was about to bring the then present order of things to an end in judgment, as He will soon bring the age in which we live to a close by the coming of our Lord JESUS CHRIST and our gathering together unto Him, to be followed by the opening of the seven-sealed book of His indignation, when wrath to the uttermost must fall on apostate Christendom.

For Baruch it was no time to be occupied with self-seeking, or to be troubled because he failed to gain the respect of a people who had so grievously departed from their GOD. And what shall be thought of a professed servant of CHRIST, sent to testify against the unspeakable corruptions of this age, expecting to be honored by the unspiritual for so doing? Such an one has quite failed to appreciate the call of GOD, and the condition of the world fast ripening for the judgment about to fall upon it.

But the Lord goes on to give His servant a watchword that may well be kept in mind by all who endeavor in any way to contend for the faith once delivered. “And seekest thou great things for thyself? Seek them not” (Jer 45:5).

A suited motto this for each of us. How apt is the heart to crave “great things;” but in doing so, how unlike the servant becomes to the Master who “pleased not Himself,” but could say, “I do always those things that please Him;” (Joh 8:29) and again, “I came not to do Mine own will, but the will of Him that sent Me.” (Joh 6:38) And does not the position He took when down here determine our only proper one? What was it, then, as to the world? Alas, He was ever the Rejected One!

For Him there was “no room in the inn” (Luk 2:7) at His birth; no place among the great in His life; and when dead, only room in a borrowed tomb. He was always the outside One – always getting wrongs instead of His rights; as one has said, always in a different path from that of the “dwellers on the earth” (Isa 18:3) in His day of humiliation. And yet it might have been so different – if one dare allow the thought.

He need not have taken the place of rejection they gave Him. He could justly have claimed and acted upon the rights that were truly His. Had there been in Him an atom of self-seeking (which there was not, for He was the Holy One of the Father), He might have claimed a place among the mighty here, as others did. All the kingdoms of earth and the glory of them were offered Him; but on what conditions? Conditions which involved some violation of the Word of GOD. How utterly abhorrent, this, to the Holy One of GOD! (Oh that we were more like Him!)

And so, faithfulness to GOD kept Him ever the Rejected One, till at last He suffered outside the gate.

Let us ever remind ourselves that this is the One to whom we owe everything for eternity, whose loving-kindness is better than life, and who “also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that we should follow His steps: who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth: who, when He was reviled, reviled not again; when He suffered, He threatened not; but committed Himself to Him that judgeth righteously: who His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, being dead to ‘sin, should live unto righteousness” (1Pe 2:21-24).

Do we, then, desire a place where He had none? Can we desire it so much that we will have it despite the fact that we must disobey His Word and grieve His Holy Spirit to get it; and knowing that if, like Him, we seek only to be faithful to GOD, we never can obtain it? Is it really worth so much to be thought well of by sinful men and foolish saints? Will it appear so when we stand at His judgment-seat and gaze upon His face? Ah, better, far better, to be poor and despised here and have His approval than to seek great things for ourselves and lose His smile of approbation! Our “great things” are coming by and by. Let our faith lay firm hold of these. Till then may we have grace to truly say,

“We’d not have joy where He had woe,

Be rich where He was poor.”

If tempted to turn aside from the narrow path of subjection to the truth for an easier path, or to be better thought of in a world like this, let us remember these words to Baruch; if “great things” attract and would lure us on, remember the words – Seek them not.”

The Lord adds, “For, behold, I will bring evil upon all flesh; . . . but thy life will I give unto thee for a prey in all places whither thou goest” (Jer 45:5). No harm could come to Baruch, let men rage as they might, while GOD was His protector. Famine, sword and pestilence may destroy, but he should be preserved. He lived in a dispensation when temporal blessing was a sign of the divine favor. With us, in this spiritual dispensation, our blessings are of a different character. Precious it is to know that even though the body might be destroyed, yet nothing can touch the eternal life of the Christian; and even as to the body,

“Not a single shaft can hit

Till the GOD of love sees fit.”

He who bids us not to seek great things for ourselves undertakes to carry us on, and has declared, “I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.” (Heb 13:5) So that we may boldly say, “I will trust and not be afraid.” (Isa 12:2)

~ end of chapter 23 ~

Fuente: Commentaries on the New Testament and Prophets

CHAPTER 45

This is the shortest chapter and contains a special message to Baruch, the companion and secretary of the prophet Jeremiah. It must be noticed that this did not take place in Egypt, where now the prophet and his friend sojourned, but it was in the fourth year of Jehoiakim. Baruch had just finished writing the words which Jeremiah dictated. It was no doubt a strenuous task, and when Baruch laid down his pen, the work having been finished, the Lord sent him a special message, showing that He had not forgotten the faithful scribe. He, too, was deeply exercised over the existing conditions; he shared the grief and sorrow of the prophet. But there must have been a measure of disappointment in Baruchs heart. Had he expected some special recognition? Was he seeking something for himself, expecting great things? Had he planned and was he lifted up with some high ambition? It would seem that such was the case, for He who knows the thoughts of His creatures from afar said to him: And seeketh thou great things for thyself? Seek them not. It is the very heart of the old nature to seek great things, to be ambitious for earthly possessions and honors, to please oneself. Gods people need to watch against this more than against anything else. It is the very crime of the devil, pride 1 Timothy 3:66). Every high ambition must be dethroned; the only ambition worthy of a child of God is to please Him, who lived on earth, never pleasing Himself, who made of Himself no reputation. How it ought to ring in our hearts daily: Seeketh thou great things? Seek them not. Seek not recognition in this poor age; wait for His day. And Baruch is assured of Gods protection and care.

Fuente: Gaebelein’s Annotated Bible (Commentary)

am 3397, bc 607

Baruch: Jer 32:12, Jer 32:16, Jer 43:3-6

when: Jer 36:1, Jer 36:4, Jer 36:8, Jer 36:14-18, Jer 36:26, Jer 36:32

in the: Jer 25:1, Jer 26:1, Jer 36:1, Jer 36:9

Reciprocal: Jer 51:59 – Neriah

Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

Jer 45:1. In the compiling of the parts of Jeremiahs writing not much attention was paid to chronology. This chapter should be read just after chapter 36, Baruch was a good man and served as secretary to Jeremiah. After writing at the dictation of the prophet, he was addressed personally by him.

Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary

Jer 45:1. The word that Jeremiah spake unto Baruch when he had written, &c. This seems to indicate that the exact time of the uttering of this prophecy was between the writing and the publication of the roll. And, perhaps, if Baruch had not received such special assurances of protection, he might not have had resolution enough to have followed the prophets further directions, and to have read first before all the people, and afterward before the princes, what he had written. Blaney.

Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

REFLECTIONS.We read in chap. 36, that Baruch the scribe, who was mentioned to the king as a character of known probity, wrote the substance of Jeremiahs prophecies against his country, and was deeply sorrowful at its impending doom; but when the princes advised him to hide for fear of the kings displeasure, he felt weak, and fainted in his sighing. Therefore the Lord comforted him by a special promise, which was realized through a series of calamitous times. His faith though weak was sincere; and he seems the only learned man who stood by the insulted prophet. Now it is a rule in providence, that the prophets friends have mostly shared the prophets blessings; and likewise that holy men, after showing some act of faith and zeal, have generally received some special token of divine approbation. So Abraham, when he had offered up Isaac his son; so Caleb and Joshua, when they gave a good report of the land; so Phinehas, when he had purged the camp of fornication; and so St. Peter, when he avowed the Saviour to be the Son of God. Here Baruch, acting in the same spirit, obtained promises of like nature.

We should regulate our conduct in conformity to the promises. Baruch, by incurring the kings displeasure, lost his hopes of preferment, and his prudence sustained a tarnish in the eyes of the world; but God promised him his life for a prey, in all places whither he should sojourn. Then he should review the care of providence with pleasure, while he beheld all his learned colleagues stripped of their preferment, and most of them deprived of life.

We should place a special reliance on the promises in every time of trouble. Baruchs promises did not merely respect his safety in Jerusalem, but in Egypt, and in all other places of exile. How happy then is the man who by a simple faith lives in a daily reliance upon providence. His life is hid with Christ in God; he glories in tribulation, because it perfects his patience here, and shall augment his happiness for ever.

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

Jer 45:1-5. Baruch.This prophecy concerning him is dated 604, when the first roll (these words) was written (Jer 36:1 ff.). The implied reference to personal danger might be explained by Jer 36:26, if the date were a year later, or by the troubles of 586, if we disregard Jer 45:1 b. Probably this formed the (fitting) close of Baruchs biography of the prophet. Baruch has complained that to his pain (perhaps on account of the fortunes of his people) sorrow (concerning his personal future) is added. Yahweh asks whether he can expect much when Yahweh has to be destroying His own work; yet Baruchs life shall be spared (Jer 21:9).

Jer 45:4. The opening and closing clauses are best omitted (the latter with LXX) as glosses.

Jer 45:5. thou is emphatic.

Fuente: Peake’s Commentary on the Bible

45:1 The word that Jeremiah the prophet spoke to {a} Baruch the son of Neriah, when he had written these {b} words in a book from the mouth of Jeremiah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, saying,

(a) Who was Jeremiah’s disciple, and wrote his prophecies under him.

(b) Of which read Jer 36:9-10 .

Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes

The Lord had given Jeremiah a message for Baruch after he had copied Jeremiah’s prophecies in 605 B.C. (ch. 36). Which copying this was is unclear, the first one referred to in Jer 36:8 or the second one in Jer 36:32.

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

CHAPTER V

BARUCH

Jer 45:1-5

“Thy life will I give unto thee for a prey.”- Jer 45:5

THE editors of the versions and of the Hebrew text of the Old Testament have assigned a separate chapter to this short utterance concerning Baruch; thus paying an unconscious tribute to the worth and importance of Jeremiahs disciple and secretary, who was the first to bear the familiar Jewish name, which in its Latinised form of Benedict has been a favourite with saints and popes. Probably few who read of these great ascetics and ecclesiastics give a thought to the earliest recorded Baruch, nor can we suppose that Christian Benedicts have been named after him. One thing they may all have in common: either their own faith or that of their parents ventured to bestow upon a “man born unto trouble as the sparks fly upward” the epithet “Blessed.” We can scarcely suppose that the life of any Baruch or Benedict has run so smoothly as to prevent him or his friends from feeling that such faith has not been outwardly justified and that the name suggested an unkind satire. Certainly Jeremiahs disciple, like his namesake Baruch Spinoza, had to recognise his blessings disguised as distress and persecution.

Baruch ben Neriah is said by Josephus to have belonged to a most distinguished family, and to have been exceedingly well educated in his native language. These statements are perhaps legitimate deductions from the information supplied by our book. His title “scribe” {Jer 36:26; Jer 36:32} and his position as Jeremiahs secretary imply that he possessed the best culture of his time; and we are told in Jer 51:59 that Seraiah ben Neriah, who must be Baruchs brother, was chief chamberlain (R.V.) to Zedekiah. According to the Old Latin Version of the Apocryphal Book of Baruch (1:1) he was of the tribe of Simeon, a statement by no means improbable in view of the close connection between Judah and Simeon, but needing the support of some better authority.

Baruchs relation to Jeremiah is not expressly defined, but it is clearly indicated in the various narratives in which he is referred to. We find him in constant attendance upon the prophet, acting both as his “scribe,” or secretary, and as his mouthpiece. The relation was that of Joshua to Moses, of Elisha to Elijah, of Gehazi to Elisha, of Mark to Paul and Barnabas, and of Timothy to Paul. It is described in the case of Joshua and Mark by the term “minister,” while Elisha is characterised as having “poured water on the hands of Elijah.” The “minister” was at once personal attendant, disciple, representative, and possible successor of the prophet. The potion has its analogue in the service of the squire to the mediaeval knight, and in that of an unpaid private secretary to a modern cabinet minister. Squires expected to become knights, and private secretaries hope for a seat in future cabinets. Another less perfect parallel is the relation of the members of a German theological “seminar” to their professor.

Baruch is first (in order of time, chapter 36) introduced to us in the narrative concerning the roll. He appears as Jeremiahs amanuensis and representative, and is entrusted with the dangerous and honourable task of publishing his prophecies to the people in the Temple. Not long before, similar utterances had almost cost the master his life, so that the disciple showed high courage and devotion in undertaking such a commission. He was called to share with his master at once the same cup of persecution-and the same Divine protection.

We next hear of Baruch in connection with the symbolic purchase of the field at Anathoth. (chapter 32) He seems to have been attending on Jeremiah during his imprisonment in the court of the guard, and the documents containing the evidence of the purchase were entrusted to his care. Baruchs presence in the court of the guard does not necessarily imply that he was himself a prisoner. The whole incident shows that Jeremiahs friends had free access to him; and Baruch probably not only attended to his masters wants in prison, but also was his channel of communication with the outside world.

We are nowhere told that Baruch himself was either beaten or imprisoned, but it is not improbable that he shared Jeremiahs fortunes even to these extremities. We next hear of him as carried down to Egypt (chapter 43) with Jeremiah, when the Jewish refugees fled thither after the murder of Gedaliah. Apparently he had remained with Jeremiah throughout the whole interval, had continued to minister to him during his imprisonment, and had been among the crowd of Jewish captives whom Nebuchadnezzar found at Ramah. Josephus probably makes a similar conjecture in telling us that, when Jeremiah was released and placed under the protection of Gedaliah at Mizpah, he asked and obtained from Nebuzaradan the liberty of his disciple Baruch. At any rate Baruch shared with his master the transient hope and bitter disappointment of this period; he supported him in dissuading the remnant of Jews from fleeing into Egypt, and was also compelled to share their flight. According to a tradition recorded by Jerome, Baruch and Jeremiah died in Egypt. But the Apocryphal Book of Baruch places him at Babylon, whither another tradition takes him after the death of Jeremiah in Egypt. These legends are probably mere attempts of wistful imagination to supply unwelcome blanks in history.

It has often been supposed that our present Book of Jeremiah, in some stage of its formation, was edited or compiled by Baruch, and that this book may be ranked with biographies-like Stanleys Life of Arnold-of great teachers by their old disciples. He was certainly the amanuensis of the roll, which must have been the most valuable authority for any editor of Jeremiahs prophecies. And the amanuensis might very easily become the editor. If an edition of the book was compiled in Jeremiahs lifetime, we should naturally expect him to use Baruchs assistance; if it first took shape after the prophets death, and if Baruch survived, no one would be better able to compile the “Life and Works of Jeremiah” than his favourite and faithful disciple. The personal prophecy about Baruch does not occur in its proper place in connection with the episode of the roll, but is appended at the end of the prophecies, possibly as a kind of subscription on the part of the editor. These data do not constitute absolute proof, but they afford strong probability that Baruch compiled a book, which was substantially our Jeremiah. The evidence is similar in character to, but much more conclusive than, that adduced for the authorship of the Epistle to the Hebrews by Apollos.

Almost the final reference to Baruch suggests another aspect of his relation to Jeremiah. The Jewish captains accused him of unduly influencing his master against Egypt and in favour of Chaldea. Whatever truth there may have been in this particular charge, we gather that popular opinion credited Baruch with considerable influence over Jeremiah, and probably popular opinion was not far wrong. Nothing said about Baruch suggests any vein of weakness in his character, such as Paul evidently recognised in Timothy. His few appearances upon the scene rather leave the impression of strength and self-reliance, perhaps even self-assertion. If we knew more about him, possibly indeed if any one else had compiled these “Memorabilia,” we might discover that much in Jeremiahs policy and teaching was due to Baruch, and that the master leaned somewhat heavily upon the sympathy of the disciple. The qualities that make a successful man of action do not always exempt their possessor from being directed or even controlled by his followers. It would be interesting to discover how much of Luther is Melanchthon. Of many a great minister, his secretaries and subordinates might say safely, in private, Cujus pars magna fuimus.

The short prophecy which has furnished a text for this chapter shows that Jeremiah was not unaware of Baruchs tendency to self-assertion, and even felt that sometimes it required a check. Apparently chapter 45 once formed the immediate continuation of chapter 36, the narrative of the incident of the roll. It was “the word spoken by Jeremiah the prophet to Baruch ben Neriah, when he wrote these words in a book at the dictation of Jeremiah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim.” The reference evidently is to Jer 36:32, where we are told that Baruch wrote at Jeremiahs dictation all the words of the book that had been burnt, and many like words.

Clearly Baruch had not received Jeremiahs message as to the sin and ruin of Judah without strong protest. It was as distasteful to him as to all patriotic Jews and even to Jeremiah himself. Baruch had not yet been able to accept this heavy burden or to look beyond to the brighter promise of the future. He broke out into bitter complaint: “Woe is me now! for Jehovah hath added sorrow to my pain; I am weary with my groaning, and find no rest.” Strong as these words are, they are surpassed by many of Jeremiahs complaints to Jehovah, and doubtless even now they found an echo in the prophets heart. Human impatience of suffering revolts desperately against the conviction that calamity is inevitable; hope whispers that some unforeseen Providence will yet disperse the storm clouds, and the portents of ruin will dissolve like some evil dream. Jeremiah had, now as always, the harsh, unwelcome task of compelling himself and his fellows to face the sad and appalling reality. “Thus saith Jehovah, Behold, I am breaking down that which I built, I am plucking up that which I planted.” This was his familiar message concerning Judah, but he had also a special word for Baruch: “And as for thee, dost thou seek great things for thyself?” What “great things” could a devout and patriotic Jew, a disciple of Jeremiah, seek for himself in those disastrous times? The answer is at once suggested by the renewed prediction of doom. Baruch, in spite of his masters teaching, had still ventured to look for better things, and had perhaps fancied that he might succeed where Jeremiah had failed and might become the mediator who should reconcile Israel to Jehovah. He may have thought that Jeremiahs threats and entreaties had prepared the way for some message of reconcilation. Gemariah ben Shaphan and other princes had been greatly moved when Baruch read the roll. Might not their emotion be an earnest of the repentance of the people? If he could carry on his masters work to a more blessed issue than the master himself had dared to hope, would not this be a “great thing” indeed? We gather from the tone of the chapter that Baruchs aspirations were unduly tinged with personal ambition. While kings, priests, and prophets were sinking into a common ruin from which even the most devoted servants of Jehovah would not escape, Baruch was indulging himself in visions of the honour to be obtained from a glorious mission, successfully accomplished. Jeremiah reminds him that he will have to take his share in the common misery. Instead of setting his heart upon “great things” which are not according to the Divine purpose, he must be prepared to endure with resignation the evil which Jehovah “is bringing upon all flesh.” Yet there is a word of comfort and promise: “I will give thee thy life for a prey in all places whither thou goest.” Baruch was to be protected from violent or premature death.

According to Renan, this boon was flung to Baruch half-contemptuously, in order to silence his unworthy and unseasonable importunity:-

“Dans une catastrophe qui va englober lhumanite tout entiere, il est beau de venir reclamer de petites faveurs dexception! Baruch aura la vie sauve partout ou il ira; quil sen contente!”

We prefer a more generous interpretation. To a selfish man, unless indeed he clung to bare life in craven terror or mere animal tenacity, such an existence as Baruch was promised would have seemed no boon at all. Imprisonment in a besieged and starving city, captivity and exile, his fellow countrymens ill will and resentment from first to last-these experiences would be hard to recognise as privileges bestowed by Jehovah. Had Baruch been wholly self-centred, he might well have craved death instead, like Job, nay, like Jeremiah himself. But life meant for him continued ministry to his master, the high privilege of supporting him in his witness to Jehovah. If, as seems almost certain, we owe to Baruch the preservation of Jeremiahs prophecies, then indeed the life that was given him for a prey must have been precious to him as the devoted servant of God. Humanly speaking, the future of revealed religion and of Christianity depended on the survival of Jeremiahs teaching, and this hung upon the frail thread of Baruchs life. After all, Baruch was destined to achieve “great things,” even though not those which he sought after; and as no editors name is prefixed to our book, he cannot be accused of self-seeking. So too for every faithful disciple, his life, even if given for a prey, even if spent in sorrow, poverty, and pain, is still a Divine gift, because nothing can spoil its opportunity of ministering to men and glorifying God, even if only by patient endurance of suffering.

We may venture on a wider application of the promise, “Thy life shall be given thee for a prey.” Life is not merely continued existence in the body: life has come to mean spirit and character, so that Christ could say, “He that loseth his life for My sake shall find it.” In this sense the loyal servant of God wins as his prey, out of all painful experiences, a fuller and nobler life. Other rewards may come in due season, but this is the most certain and the most sufficient. For Baruch, constant devotion to a hated and persecuted master, uncompromising utterance of unpopular truth, had their chief issue in the redemption of his own inward life.

Fuente: Expositors Bible Commentary