Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Jeremiah 50:11

Because ye were glad, because ye rejoiced, O ye destroyers of mine heritage, because ye are grown fat as the heifer at grass, and bellow as bulls;

11. an heifer ] LXX render calves, which is better.

that treadeth out the corn] mg. at grass, vocalising (with LXX) the Hebrew differently. The cattle were without muzzles when treading the corn (Deu 25:4).

neigh ] See on Jer 8:16.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

Verse 11. As the heifer at grass] Ye were wanton in the desolations ye brought upon Judea.

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

They

rejoiced at the ruin of the Jews; the same thing is laid to the charge of the Edomites, Ob 12. The Chaldeans were Gods rod to scourge the Jews; but when men are made use of by God, as his rod and scourge, they ought not to put off humanity, but to behave themselves decently, and as persons that are sensible of the miseries which their brethren suffer. God calls them his heritage, because they formerly were a people whom he owned above all other people. There is some difference amongst critical interpreters, whether the heifer here mentioned be to be understood of

a heifer at grass, ( as we translate it,) or a heifer used to tread out the corn; or whether the last words be to be understood of a horse neighing, (as the words may be interpreted,) or a

bull bellowing. But these are things of very small moment. The cause for which Babylon is threatened was doubtless their luxury of all sorts commonly attending great wealth, and prosperity meeting with hearts unsanctified.

Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole

11. (Isa47:6).

grown fatand so, skipwantonly.

at grassfat andfrisky. But there is a disagreement of gender in Hebrewreading thus. The Keri is better: “a heifer threshing“;the strongest were used for threshing, and as the law did not allowtheir mouth to be muzzled in threshing (De25:4), they waxed wanton with eating.

bellow as bullsrather,”neigh as steeds,” literally, “strong ones,”a poetical expression for steeds (see on Jer8:16) [MAURER].

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

Because ye were glad, because ye rejoiced, O ye destroyers of mine heritage,…. This is addressed to the Chaldeans who destroyed Jerusalem and the land of Judea, once the heritage of the Lord; when they rejoiced at the destruction of God’s people, and insulted them in their miseries; and which is the cause and reason assigned of their ruin; for though they had a commission to destroy, yet they exceeded that, and especially by exulting at the ruin of that people, which showed great inhumanity. So the Papists will rejoice at the slaying of the witnesses, but will be repaid in their own coin, Re 11:10;

because ye are grown fat as the heifer at grass: which feeds all the day, and so grows fat. Some copies read, “as the heifer that treads out” k the corn; which, according to the law, was not to be muzzled, and so was continually feeding, and grew plump and sleek; and so these Chaldeans, having enriched themselves with the spoils of Judea and other nations, gave themselves up to ease and luxury; and it was at one of their festivals their city was taken, to which there may be some allusion:

and bellow as bulls: or, “neigh as horses” l; having got the victory, of which war horses are sensible; or it may denote their impetuous lust after women, whom they forced and ravished, when taken captives by them.

k “sicut vitula exterens”, Tigurine version; “triturans”, Cocceius, De Dieu. l “hinnistis sicut fortes (equi)”, Munster, Vatablus, Piscator, Schmidt; “ut caballi”, Cocceius.

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

The devastation of Babylon and glory of Israel. – Jer 50:11. “Thou ye rejoice, though ye exult, O ye plunderers of mine inheritance, though ye leap proudly like a heifer threshing, and neigh like strong horses, Jer 50:12. Your mother will be very much ashamed; she who bare you will blush: behold, the last of the nations [will be] a wilderness, a desert, and a steppe. Jer 50:13. Because of the indignation of Jahveh it shall not be inhabited, and it shall become a complete desolation. Every one passing by Babylon will be astonished, and hiss because of all her plagues. Jer 50:14. Make preparations against Babylon round about, all ye that bend the bow; shoot at her, do not spare an arrow, for she hath sinned against Jahveh. Jer 50:15. Shout against her round about; she hath given herself up: her battlements are fallen, her walls are pulled down; for it is Jahveh’s vengeance: revenge yourselves on her; as she hath done, do ye to her. Jer 50:16. Cut off the sower from Babylon, and him that handles the sickle in the time of harvest. From before the oppressing sword each one will turn to his own nation, and each one will flee to his own land. Jer 50:17. Israel is a scattered sheep [which] lions have driven away: the first [who] devoured him [was] the king of Babylon; and this, the last, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, hath broken his bones. Jer 50:18. Therefore thus saith Jahveh of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will punish the king of Babylon ad his land, as I have punished the king of Assyria. Jer 50:19. And I will bring back Israel to his pasture- ground, and he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan, and on the mountains of Ephraim his soul shall be satisfied. Jer 50:20. In those days, and at that time, saith Jahveh, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, but it shall not be; and the sins of Judah, but they shall not be found: for I will pardon those whom I will leave remaining.”

Jer 50:11-13

Jer 50:11 does not permit of being so closely connected with what precedes as to separate it from Jer 50:12 (De Wette, Ngelsbach). Not only is the translation, “for thou didst rejoice,” etc., difficult to connect with the imperfects of all the verbs in the verse, but the direct address also does not suit Jer 50:10, and rather demands connection with Jer 50:12, where it is continued. , of course, introduces the reason, yet not in such a way that Jer 50:11 states the cause why Chaldea shall become a spoil, but rather so that Jer 50:11 and Jer 50:12 together give the reason for the threatening uttered. The different clauses of Jer 50:11 are the protases, to which Jer 50:12 brings the apodosis. “You may go on making merry over the defeat of Israel, but shame will follow for this.” The change of the singular forms of the verbs into plurals ( Qeri) has been caused by the plural ‘ , but is unnecessary, because Babylon is regarded as a collective, and its people are gathered into the unity of a person; see on Jer 13:20. “Spoilers of mine inheritance,” i.e., of the people and land of the Lord; cf. Jer 12:7; Isa 17:14. On , to gallop (of a horse, Hab 1:8), hop, spring (of a calf, Mal. 3:20), see on Hab 1:8. is rendered by the lxx , by the Vulgate super herbam; after these, Ewald also takes the meaning of springing like a calf through the grass, since he explains as exhibiting the correct punctuation, and remarks that , like , can stand with an object directly after it; see 282, a. Most modern expositors, on the other hand, take as the fem. participle from , written with instead of : “like a threshing heifer.” On this, A Schultens, in his Animadv. philol., on this passage, remarks: Comparatio petita est a vitula, quae in area media inter frumenta, ore ex lege non ligato (Deu 25:10), prae pabuli abundantia gestit ex exsultat. This explanation also gives a suitable meaning, without compelling us to do violence to the language and to alter the text. As to , stallions, strong horses (Luther), see on Jer 8:16 and Jer 47:3. “Your mother” is the whole body of the people, the nation considered as a unity (cf. Isa 50:1; Hos 2:4; Hos 4:5), the individual members of which are called her sons; cf. Jer 5:7, etc. In Jer 50:12, the disgrace that is to fall on Babylon is more distinctly specified. The thought is gathered up into a sententious saying, in imitation of the sayings of Balaam. “The last of the nations” is the antithesis of “the first of the nations,” as Balaam calls Amalek, Num 24:20, because they were the first heathen nation that began to fight against the people of Israel. In like manner, Jeremiah calls Babylon the last of the heathen nations. As the end of Amalek is ruin (Num 24:20), so the end of the last heathen nation that comes forward against Israel will be a wilderness, desert, steppe. The predicates (cf. Jer 2:6) refer to the country and kingdom of Babylon. But if the end of the kingdom is a desert, then the people must have perished. The devastation of Babylon is further portrayed in Jer 50:13, together with a statement of the cause: “Because of the anger of Jahveh it shall not be inhabited;” cf. Isa 13:20. The words from onwards are imitated from Jer 49:17 and Jer 19:8.

Jer 50:14-16

In order to execute this judgment on Babylon, the nations are commanded to conquer and destroy the city. The archers are to place themselves round about Babylon, and shoot at the city unsparingly. does not mean to prepare oneself, but to prepare , the battle, combat. The archers are mentioned by synecdoche, because the point in question is the siege and bombardment of Babylon; cf. Isa 13:18, where the Medes are mentioned as archers. is used only here, in Kal, of the throwing, i.e., the shooting of arrows, instead of , which is elsewhere the usual word for this; and, indeed, some codices have the latter word in this passage. “Spare not the arrow,” i.e., do not spare an arrow; cf. Jer 51:3. , to cry aloud; here, to raise a battle-cry; cf. Jos 6:16. The effect and result of the cry is, “she hath given her hand,” i.e., given herself up. usually signifies the giving of the hand as a pledge of faithfulness (2Ki 10:15; Eze 17:18; Ezr 10:19), from which is derived the meaning of giving up, delivering up oneself; cf. 2Ch 30:8. Cf. Cornelius Nepos, Hamilc. c. 1, donec victi manum dedissent. The . . (the Kethib is either to be read , as if from a noun , or to be viewed as an error in transcription for , which is the Qeri) signifies “supports,” and comes from , Arab. asa , to support, help; then the supports of a building, its foundations; cf. , Ezr 4:12. Here the word signifies the supports of the city, i.e., the fortifications of Babylon, , propugnacula, pinnae , the battlements of the city wall, not the foundations of the walls, for which is unsuitable. “It (sc., the destruction of Babylon) is the vengeance of Jahveh.” “The vengeance of Jahveh” is an expression derived from Num 31:3. “Avenge yourselves on her,” i.e., take retribution for what Babylon has done to other nations, especially to the people of God; cf. 27f. and Jer 51:11. The words, “cut off out of Babylon the sower and the reaper,” are not to be restricted to the fields, which, according to the testimonies of Diod. Sic. ii. 7, Pliny xviii. 17, and Curtius Jer 51:1, lay within the wall round Babylon, but “Babylon” is the province together with its capital; and the objection of Ngelsbach, that the prophet, in the whole context, is describing the siege of the city of Babylon, is invalid, because Jer 50:12 plainly shows that not merely the city, but the province of Babylon, is to become a wilderness, desert, and steppe. The further threat, also, “every one flees to his own people from before the oppressing sword” (cf. Jer 25:38; Jer 46:16), applies not merely to the strangers residing in Babylon, but generally to those in Babylonia. Hitzig would arbitrarily refer these words merely to the husbandmen and field-workers. The fundamental passage, Isa 13:14, which Jeremiah had before his mind and repeats verbatim, tells decidedly against this view; cf. also Jer 51:9, Jer 51:44.

Jer 50:17-19

This judgment comes on Babylon because of her oppression and scattering of the people of Israel, whom the Lord will now feed in peace again on their native soil. Israel is like , a sheep which, having been scared away out of its stall or fold, is hunted into the wide world; cf. , Joe 3:2. Although , “to scatter,” implies the conception of a flock, yet we cannot take as a collective (Graf), since it is nomen unitatis. The point in the comparison lies on the fact that Israel has been hunted, like a solitary sheep, up and down among the beasts of the earth; and pizeer is more exactly specified by the following clause, “lions have chased after it.” The object of is easily derived from the context, so that we do not need to follow Hitzig in changing into . These kings are, the king of Assyria first, and the king of Babylon last. The former has dispersed the ten tribes among the heathen; the latter, by destroying the kingdom of Judah, and carrying away its inhabitants, has shattered the theocracy. The verbs apply to the figure of the lion, and the suffixes refer to Israel. is used of the devouring of the flesh; is a denominative from , and means the same as , Num 24:8, to break bones in pieces, not merely gnaw them. So long as the flesh only is eaten, the skeleton of bones remains; if these also be broken, the animal is quite destroyed.

Jer 50:18-20

The Assyrian has already received his punishment for that-the Assyrian kingdom has been destroyed; Babylon will meet with the same punishment, and then (Jer 50:19) Israel will be led back to his pasture-ground. , pasture-ground, grass-plot, where sheep feed, is the land of Israel. Israel, led back thither, will feed on Carmel and Bashan, the most fertile tracts of the country, and the mountains of Ephraim and Gilead, which also furnish fodder in abundance for sheep. As to Gilead, see Num 32:1; Mic 7:14; and in regard to the mountains of Ephraim, Exo 34:13., where the feeding on the mountains of Israel and in the valleys is depicted as fat pasture. The mountains of Israel here signify the northern portion of the land generally, including the large and fertile plain of Jezreel, and the different valleys between the several ranges of mountains, which here and there show traces of luxuriant vegetation even yet; cf. Robinson’s Physical Geography, p. 120. Then also the guilt of the sins of Israel and Judah shall be blotted out, because the Lord grants pardon to the remnant of His people. This promise points to the time of the New Covenant; cf. Jer 31:34 and Jer 33:8. The deliverance of Israel from Babylon coincides with the view given of the regeneration of the people by the Messiah, just as we find throughout the second portion of Isaiah. On the construction ‘ , cf. 35:14, and Gesenius, 143, 1. On the form , with y after the manner of verbs ” , cf. Ewald, 198, b.

Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament

God shows here, that though the Chaldeans insolently exulted for a time, yet their joy would not continue; and at the same time he points out the cause of their ruin, even because they dealt so arrogantly with the people of God. He then says in the former clause, Ye exulted and rejoiced in plundering my heritage; and then he adds, Ye became fat (for to be multiplied means here to become fat) as a heifer, well fed, or of the grass; for some think that the word is used for דשאה, deshae; but some render it, “herbified,” or fed on grass; while others derive the word from דוש, dush, to thresh or tread out corn. (56) It is then added, Ye neighed like strong horses, or ye bellowed like bulls, as some render the words; for אבירים, abirim, sometimes mean bulls, and sometimes strong horses; and the verb צהל, tzal, means to cry aloud, but is taken sometimes in the sense of neighing, as we have seen in Jer 5:0, “Every one neigheth on his neighbor’s wife;” the Prophet said so in condemning the people for their lusts; and they who apply this passage to bulls are obliged to change the meaning of the verb — for bellowing, and not neighing, is what belongs to bulls. (57)

Now it was necessary, for two reasons, for the Prophet to speak thus; first, it was hardly credible, that the Chaldeans, after so many and so remarkable victories, could be broken down and laid prostrate by new enemies; for they had been terrible to the whole world, they had subdued all their neighbors, they had extended on all sides their borders; it was then the same as though they had set their nest in the clouds. Then the Prophet says here, that though they exulted and gave loose reins to their joy, yet this state of things would not be perpetual, because they should at length be brought to shame. This is one thing. And the second reason why the Prophet spoke thus was, because God intended that it should be testified to his own people, that though he permitted so much liberty to the Chaldeans, he had not yet forgotten his covenant; and for this reason he mentioned the word heritage. Though then the calamity of his people was apparently a sort of repudiation, as though God designed to have nothing more to do with them, yet he says that they were his own heritage; and thus he shows, that God would give a specimen of his favor towards the Jews, by thus severely chastising the Chaldeans. This then is the reason why he says, Ye have rejoiced in plundering my heritage, but your mother is ashamed. He expresses here more than if he had said, “Ye shall at length lie down confounded with shame;” but he names their mother, that he might intimate the destruction of the whole of that monarchy, which had been so terrible to all the neighboring nations. (58)

(56) Several copies have דשה, threshing. Being allowed to eat at pleasure, the threshing heifer became fat and frisky. It is so taken by Blayney and Henderson, though not countenanced by the Versions or the Targ. — Ed.

(57) Jeremiah having twice before (Jer 8:16; Jer 47:3) used the word for steeds or horses, we may conclude that he means the same here. — Ed.

(58) The connection of these two verses will be more evident, if we render כי when, as proposed by Gataker, and not surely, as by Calvin, nor because, as in our version, —

11. When ye shall rejoice, when ye shall exult, Ye plunderers of mine heritage, When ye shall skip as a fed heifer, And neigh like steeds,

12. Ashamed greatly shall be your mother, Confounded shall she be who bare you; Behold, the last of the nations shall she be, A desert, a dry land, and a wilderness.

The reference seems to be to the rejoicings of Babylon, when it was taken. — Ed.

Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary

B. Babylons Desolation and Israels Restoration Jer. 50:11-20

TRANSLATION

(11) Because you laugh, because you rejoice, O plunderer of My heritage, because you scamper about like a heifer in the grass and you neigh like mighty horses (12) your mother shall utterly be put to shame, she that bore you shall be embarrassed. Behold, the last of nations, a wilderness, a dry land, a desert. (13) Because of the wrath of the LORD she shall not be inhabited. All of it shall be a desolation; every one who passes by shall be astonished, shall whistle because of all her wounds. (14) Set your. selves in array round about, all you bowmen! Shoot against her! Do not spare an arrow; for she has sinned against the LORD. (15) Shout against her round about! She has put forth her hand. Her bulwarks have fallen; her walls are broken down; for it is the vengeance of the LORD. Take vengeance upon her! As she has done, do to her. (16) Cut off the sower from Babylon and the one who holds the sickle in the time of harvest. From before the sword of the oppressor each man shall turn to his people, yea, each man shall flee to his land. (17) A scattered sheep is Israel. Lions have driven him away. First, the king of Assyria devoured him; now at last Nebuchadnezzar has crushed his bones. (18) Therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts, God of Israel: I am about to punish the king of Babylon and his land as I have punished the king of Assyria. (19) And I will cause Israel to return unto his habitation and he will graze on Carmel and Bashan, and on the mountains of Ephraim and Gilead he shall satisfy his soul. (20) In those days and in that time (oracle of the LORD) the iniquity of Israel shall be sought but there shall be none, the sin of Judah but it shall not be found; for I will pardon those that I leave as a remnant.

COMMENTS

The Chaldeans discharged their office as chastiser of Israel with arrogant and malicious joy. The satisfaction which they received in plundering Jerusalem is compared to a heifer calf frisking about the threshing floor eating her fill. Like strong stallions which neigh in triumph and challenge, the Chaldeans raise a loud and boastful cry after they have subdued Jerusalem (Jer. 50:11). But God has taken note of the arrogant amusement of the Chaldean conquerors and has decreed that the mother of Babylon (i.e., the land of Babylonia) shall be utterly put to shame and confounded. Proud Babylon shall become the very least of nationsa wilderness, a dry land, a barren desert (Jer. 50:12). She shall experience the wrath of the God of Israel; she shall be utterly uninhabited. Visitors to the ruined city will be astonished by the desolation which marks the spot (Jer. 50:13).

The prophet next turns to the attacking armies and in direct address urges them to execute the divine vengeance on Babylon. He urges the nations to put themselves in battle array round about Babylon and unleash their deadly arrows for she has sinned against the Lord (Jer. 50:14). No defense of the city will be able to repel the attacking force for this is the vengeance of the Lord. Realizing the futility of further resistance, the Chaldeans give the hand i.e., they surrender to the invader. Subsequently the walls of the famous city are razed and Babylon experiences the same humiliation which she has inflicted on others (Jer. 50:15). The agricultural regions of Babylon, famous in antiquity for abundant productivity,[408] will be destroyed by the invader. When Babylon is laid waste, the exiles from all nations flee to their respective lands (Jer. 50:16). The picture of the destruction of Babylon in Jer. 50:14-16 is a composite which includes prophetic allusions to many different sieges of Babylon. These verses were not entirely fulfilled by the fall of Babylon in 539 B.C. because Cyrus did not raze the walk of the city and he was very careful to spare the rural regions of Babylonia. At least these two elements must point to subsequent sieges of the city.

[408] Herodotus (1. 193) declares that the yield in Babylonia was commonly two hundred-fold and sometimes even three hundred-fold,

In contrast to the devastation that awaits Babylon the prophet points out the glory that Israel shall experience. Hitherto Israel had been a poor, frightened sheep, driven and devoured by two mighty lions, Assyria and Babylonia (Jer. 50:17). But the tables are due to be turned. Assyria has already received its chastisement; that of Babylon will not be delayed (Jer. 50:18).[409] Then will Israel again feed peaceably on its own pasture both west of Jordan (Carmel; Mt. of Ephraim) and east of Jordan (Bashan; Gilead) where they shall enjoy the spiritual and material blessings of the Lord (Jer. 50:19). In the postexilic times God will provide for the remnant of His people, the spiritual Israel of God, absolute forgiveness (Jer. 50:20). This verse looks ahead to the cross of Calvary where the Son of God bore the sins of the world. The efficacy of that sacrifice was retroactive to sins committed under the old law as well as sins of the present and future. The remnant of Israel, the spiritual Israel, in both Testaments consists of those who turn to the Lord in faith, repent of their iniquities and obey the commandments of God appropriate to that dispensation of time. Thus Jer. 50:20 states the grounds of the promise of restoration in Jer. 50:19. God can restore the remnant of Israel to spiritual blessing and prosperity because they have repented; God can pardon this remnant because of what He knows will transpire at Calvary.

[409] Note that it is Nebuchadnezzar who devours Israel but it is the king of Babylon who is punished. This king was Nabonidus, whose son Belshazzar was co-ruler in 539 B.C. when Cyrus conquered the city.

Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series

(11) Destroyers of mine heritage.Better, plunderers or robbers.

Ye are grown fat as the heifer at grass.Better, the Hebrew text being in the singular, thou leapedst as the heifer while threshing. The rule of Deu. 25:4 (Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn ) made the image significant enough. The English version has, however, the support of the LXX. and Vulg.

And bellow as bulls.Better, thou didst neigh as strong steeds. The verb is the same as in Jer. 5:8, the noun the same as in Jer. 8:16.

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

BABYLON’S HUMILIATION AND ISRAEL’S GLORY, Jer 50:11-20.

11. Ye were glad ye destroyers of mine heritage They not only executed God’s will of just judgment, but their own will of selfish ambition and bitter hate. This verse assigns the reason why Chaldea is given over to destruction.

Because ye are grown fat bellow Better, Though thou leapedst proudly like a heifer threshing, and neigh like strong horses.

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