Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Jeremiah 33:12
Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Again in this place, which is desolate without man and without beast, and in all the cities thereof, shall be a habitation of shepherds causing [their] flocks to lie down.
An habitation – A shepherds encampment. The words, causing their flocks to lie down, mean gathering them into the fold at night.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 12. A habitation of shepherds] See on Jer 31:12.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
That is, a great part of which is, and the other part shall soon be, desolate. In all these places there shall be flocks and herds of sheep and goats, which the shepherd shall take care of as in former times.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
12. habitation of shepherds . . .flocksin contrast to Jer33:10, “without man . . . inhabitant . . . withoutbeast” (Jer 32:43;compare Jer 31:24; Jer 50:19;Isa 65:10).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Thus saith the Lord of hosts,…. Which phrase, or what is answerable to it, is often repeated, to give authority to what is said, and to command a belief of it:
again, in this place which is desolate; which was said to be so,
Jer 33:10; and indeed was so; and was near utter destruction, as to be
without man and without beast; both falling into the hands of the enemy; and that not in the city of Jerusalem only, but
in all the cities thereof; of the land of Judea; and from thence in other countries, even in Gentile ones:
shall be an habitation of shepherds, causing [their] flocks to lie down; which is expressive of great peace, no foreign enemy to make afraid or disturb the shepherds and their flocks; and of diligence and industry, plenty and prosperity; though this is to be understood not in a literal, but mystical sense. For by “shepherds” are meant the apostles of Christ, the first ministers of the Gospel, and pastors of churches, that should be first raised up in the land of Judea, and then sent into and spread in all the world; shepherds under Christ, of his raising, qualifying, and calling; to whom he gives a commission to feed his sheep and lambs; assigns them their distinct flocks, and gives them food to feed them with, and to whom they are accountable for those under their care, and the gifts bestowed upon them; and whose business lies in feeding the flock with the solid doctrines of the Gospel, by faithfully administering the ordinances, and in all directing to Christ, where they may find pasture; as also in ruling and governing according to the laws of Christ; in watching over the sheep that they go not astray, and in protecting and defending them from beasts of prey. By the “habitation” of these shepherds is meant the house of God, where the word is preached, and ordinances are administered; here are the shepherds’ tents, which, like the tents of Kedar, which were shepherds’ tents also, are mean and coarse without, but rich and beautiful within; and are like tents, movable from place to place; and it is the glory and happiness of a country where they are. And by “flocks”, or “flock”, for it is in the singular number, are meant the church of Christ, which is but one, the general assembly and church of the firstborn written in heaven, and the several particular congregated churches; consisting of such persons as may be compared to sheep, being weak and timorous, meek and humble, harmless and inoffensive; of persons gathered out of the world, distinguished by the grace of God, and folded together in a Gospel church state; though but few, and despised of men, and persecuted, a little flock, and a flock of slaughter: these, by their shepherds, are made “to lie down” in a good fold at night, where they are safe and secure; these shepherds watch over them; angels encamp about them; salvation is walls and bulwarks to them; and God himself a wall of fire around them; and in the day they are made to lie down in the green pastures of the word and ordinances, where they have an abundance, a sufficiency of provisions; and at noon under the shadow of Christ, where they have rest, and where they are screened and sheltered from the heat of a fiery law, of Satan’s fiery darts, and of the world’s persecution.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
In the land which is now laid waste, and emptied of men and beasts, shepherds, with their flocks, shall again move about and lie down. “This place,” is specified by the mention of the several parts of the land, as in Jer 32:44; Jer 17:26. , at the hands, i.e., under the guidance, of him who counts them, viz., the shepherd, who counted the sheep when he took them out to the pasture as well as when he brought them back into the fold; cf. Virgil, Ecl. iii. 34.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
Vs. 12-13: JOY AND PEACE WILL MAKE PROSPERITY POSSIBLE
1. When the blessings of God rest upon His people and the land of promise, it will again become a habitation of shepherds who will cause( their flocks to lie down in peace. (vs. 12; Jer 31:12-14; Isa 65:10; Eze 34:12-14; Zep 2:6-7).
a. It is not SAFE for men to prosper until they are cleansed and joyful in the Lord!
b. Though we manipulate and scheme, in order to obtain prosperity, it never abides unless rooted in such joy as enables men to dwell together in a mutuality of love and respect.
2. Throughout the land productive flocks will pass under the hand of faithful shepherds who, each evening, make sure that all are safely in the fold, (vs. 13; comp. Jer 17:26; Luk 15:3-7).
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
Jeremiah still pursues the same subject; but he speaks here of the settled happiness of the people, as though he had said, that there was no reason for the Israelites to fear, that God would not open for them a way of return to their own country, and preserve and protect them after their return. But in setting forth their quiet and peaceable condition, he speaks of shepherds; for we know that it is a sure sign of peace, when flocks and herds are led into the fields in security. For enemies always gape after prey, and the experience of wars proves this; for whenever incursions are made by enemies, they send spies that they may know whether there are any shepherds or keepers of cattle; and then they know that there is a prey for them. As then shepherds, when an invasion from enemies is dreaded, dare not go forth, and as there is then no liberty, the Prophet, in order to intimate that the Jews would be in a tranquil state, says, There shall again be in this place the habitation of sheepherds, who will make their sheep, or their flock, to lie down
We now perceive the design of the Prophet; for one not sufficiently acquainted with Scripture might raise a question, Is this promise to be confined to shepherds and herdsmen? But, as I have already intimated, the answer is obvious, — The promise is general, but expressed in this way, — that God would be the guardian of his people, so that shepherds would drive here and there their flocks, and herdsmen their cattle, in perfect safety, and without any fear of danger.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(12, 13) Again in this place.The place includes, as in Jer. 33:10, the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem. The habitation for shepherds is translated sometimes by sheepcote (1Ch. 17:7; 2Sa. 7:8), sometimes by fold (Isa. 65:10; Eze. 34:14), sometimes by dwelling or habitation. It would seem here to answer to the towns of our old English speech, as meaning enclosed spaces, with the tower of the watchman (2Ki. 17:9; Isa. 1:8), in which, in times of average tranquillity, shepherds and their flocks found shelter, but which were abandoned when the land was overrun by an invading army. In Jer. 33:13 the eye of the prophet travels over such districts within the kingdom of Judah to the north and south of Jerusalem, and adds to the picture the vivid touch that the sheep shall pass under the hands of him that telleth them, the shepherd whose work it was to count the flockin older English, to tell his taleas it went out in the morning and returned at nightfall, should find that he had lost none of them.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
12. Causing their flocks to lie down A graphic feature of pastoral life, suggesting peace and tranquillity.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
The Whole Land Will Once Again Become A Place Of Flocks And Herds ( Jer 33:12-13 )
To an agricultural people this was an essential part of the re-establishment of the land. Once again the land, which had become so desolate, would be filled with flocks and herds. This would be the sign of its prosperity. The land would be filled with Jacobs, feeding their flocks and seeing their numbers grow. It would be back to the good old days.
Jer 33:12-13
“Thus says YHWH of hosts.
Yet again will there be in this place,
Which is waste, without man and without beast,
And in all its cities,
A habitation of shepherds causing their flocks to lie down.
In the cities of the hill-country, in the cities of the lowland,
And in the cities of the South, and in the land of Benjamin,
And in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah,
Will the flocks again pass under the hands of him who numbers,
Says YHWH.”
Note again the vivid contrast being expressed. Initially the land would be waste, and would be emptied of man and beast, but then it would become repopulated with both man and beast. The ‘cities’ would be mainly shepherds’ encampments, as they gathered together for mutual protection, with their watchtowers and their sheepfolds. And they would be found all over the land, in the hill country, and in the lowlands (the Shephelah), in the cities of the Negeb (in the south), and in the land of Benjamin (in the north), and in the places around Jerusalem and in the varied cities of Judah. There the flocks would lie down, and there they would be counted by the counters. Note again the opening and closing ‘says YHWH’ stressing that YHWH has spoken.
It would be interesting to know how the counting would take place, for it is very probable that few if any shepherds could actually count proficiently to any large extent. (Learning to count takes considerable effort, an effort which may well have not been seen as worthwhile. Such a skill was not really needed by shepherds who would recognise their own sheep without having to count them). Possibly shepherds had a number of small stones reflecting the number of sheep, and the sheep would be numbered by dropping the stones into a vessel as the sheep were driven by. Or there may have been specialist counters who performed this function for the shepherds (as the text may seem to indicate). Or the assessment may have been by names stored in the memory, ‘he calls his own sheep by name’ (Joh 10:3). The shepherd would know every one of his sheep and would easily spot if one was missing.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
4. The Glorious Country-life of the Future
Jer 33:12-13
12Thus saith Jehovah Zebaoth, Again will there be in this place,
Which is desolate, without man and beast,8
And in all its cities a habitation [or pasture]
Of shepherds causing their flocks to lie down.
13In the cities of the mountain, in the cities of the plain,
And in the cities of the south and in the land of Benjamin,
And in the environs of Jerusalem and in the cities of Judah,
The sheep will again pass under the hands of him that numbereth them, saith Jehovah.
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
The prophet passes from the relations of the city to those of the country, the breeding of cattle will again flourish throughout the land.This place Comp rems. on Jer 33:10.Habitation of shepherds. Comp. rems. on Jer 23:3.On Jer 33:13. Comp. Jer 32:44.Under the hands. The expression designates the relation of the Lord, invested with full authority, to the person or thing given into His power, which is represented as on or in His hand, so that He can do with it according to His own pleasure. Comp. Jer 5:31; Jer 18:21; Job 16:11; 1Ch 25:2; 1Ch 3:6. So also here. The sheep pass or enter past, on the hands, i. e., as objects of which the numberer is bound to take notice. We are not to understand it as meaning guidance and protection in general. The expression numbereth () which occurs here only in this sense (comp. besides Psa 147:4), is not used by chance, and therefore not to be identified with . It is to be emphasized that the sheep will have necessarily to be numbered. When there are a few sheep only, so that they can be surveyed with a glance, this is unnecessary The whole connection of this passage forbids us to suppose that the prophet here, as in Jer 23:3-4, makes use of figurative language to portray the prosperity of Israel as Jehovahs flock. He describes the joyful future as including all mental and spiritual well-being (comp. Jer 32:38-40; Jer 33:8), but always on a corporeal and realistic basis. Comp. Deu 28:3-5; Deu 30:9. [So also Wordsworth, who refers to Job 10:3 and 3Jn 1:14, Greet the friends by name. Hitzig however says Literally, after the hand, acknowledging each by a movement. They were numbered to control the shepherd, regularly and doubtless twice (Virg. Eclog., 3:34), onbeing driven out and on returning home.S. R. A.]
DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL
1. On Jer 32:3. An effect of anger and a procedure almost like that of Ahab with the prophet Micah. The same spirit prevails now-a-days. For without entering on an investigation, with what right or reason men are found who often in pretty general expressions in a call to repentance, borrow from the prophet all sorts of judicial threatening and point to this or that city, we cannot avoid seeing why they are always put in arrest, viz.: for this cause, Why dost thou prophesy what we do not like to hear? When one is sure of his cause, a noble disdain of such people would be the best means to use against them. But men cannot bear a bad conscience and threatenings of all sorts together, and the fear that it may be true has the foolish effect, that they cause the bearers of such unpleasant tidings to come to a bad end, in order to affright others from coming with similar messages. Zinzendorf.
2. On Jer 32:7 sqq. Fundatur in hoc textu locus classicus de contractibus emtionis et venditionis, quos improbant Anabaptist, probat Scriptura, sicut ostendunt hc qu jam sequuntur documenta: Pro 31:14; Mat 13:3.Frster.
3. On Jer 32:15. The prophet had often enough declared the land lost to the Chaldeans. Here, however, he must testify that it is not lost forever: his purchase was to restore confidence in the future to other troubled souls. Thus the most afflicted servant of God must again be the most hopeful.When we are outwardly prosperous, we think no one can take our prosperity from us, and when trouble comes upon us, we again think that no one can help us. Both courses are, however, equally ungodly. Therefore Gods servants must contradict both those who are at ease, and those who are in despair. The reverse is always right. In good days humble thyself, and in bad days let thyself be exalted, for then it is a great thing to do. Diedrich.
4. On Jer 32:9; Jer 32:16; Jer 32:24-25. Jeremiah also contends, but as a servant of the Lord. First he obeys and afterwards speaks about it. This is a noble way, by which every teacher, who knows the Lord, may prove himself. As soon as he observes that the Lord wishes this or that, it is not the time to expostulate, but to act, not to call anything in question, but to set to work. If then any hesitation is left, or one and another scruple, it is time afterwards to consult with the Lord about it, when one has first shown obedience. Zinzendorf. [Though we are bound to follow God with an implicit obedience, yet we should endeavor that it may be more and more intelligent obedience. We must never dispute Gods statutes and judgments, but we may and must inquire, What mean these statutes and judgments? Deu 6:20. Henry.S. R. A.]
5. On Jer 32:25. Tertullian (c. Marc, L. IV., c. 40) sees in the words Buy thee the field for money, the prophetic passage to which Mat 27:9 refers, regarding the reading as correct. Comp. Euseb. Demonstr. Ev., L. X., c. 4; Augustin, De consensu Evang., L. III., c. 7.
6. On Jer 32:27. To God there is no wonder [miracle]. There are wonders only on the lower stage of existence. Every higher stage is a wonder to the lower. Or is there only one stage of existence, and accordingly only one order of nature? When the North American savages cruelly murdered one of their number who had been on a visit to the Great Father in Washington, and told them of the wonders of civilization, as a demoniacally possessed liar, were they less in the right than our highly civilized savages, to whom it is a fundamental axiom, that there is no other world, but that which they can reach with their five senses? It is certainly not proved that there is a living, personal, omnipotent God. But this is not to be proved, it is to be felt from the heart. He who is born of God heareth His voice. To him also miracles cease to be aught irrational. He knows well how to distinguish between true and false miracles, but the former come to him like a voice from the higher world, in which he feels truly at home. For the stages of existence and orders of nature are not hermetically sealed towards each other, but the higher break through in order to lift the lower up to themselves.
7. On Jer 32:36 sqq. On the fulfilment of this prophecy comp. the Comm. on Jer 13:14, and the Doctrinal notes on Jer 3:18-25, No. 8. As the threatening that Israel should be dispersed among all nations from one end of the earth to the other (Deu 28:64-66) has been literally fulfilled, why should not this promise also be literally fulfilled, that they shall be collected from all lands whither the Lord has cast them out? Why cannot this people be destroyed? Why do they retain their peculiarities with such tenacity, that neither the most raging fanaticism, nor the most humane cosmopolitanism, which is much more dangerous than the former, can mingle them with other nations; so that we can follow the course of their national stream through the sea of nations, as it is said of the Rhine that its water flows unmingled through the lake of Constance? Assuredly this people must yet have a future. Only thus much is correct; that the real kernel of these prophecies is offered to us in a shell which the prophets prepared from contemporary events, but it is difficult to determine where the shell ceases and the kernel begins. Comp. Rinck, The Scripturalness of the doctrine of the Millennial reign defended against Hengstenberg. Eberfeld, 1866, S. 45 sqq.
8. On Jer 32:36 sqq. Is the consummation of the redemptive work possible while Israel is rejected as a nation? According to the Old Testament this question must be unconditionally negatived. This knows only a temporary rejection of Israel, which at the same time has this result, that Israel does not perish as a nation, but is preserved for future restoration. Is this law aunulled since Israel despised the gracious visitation of the Messiah, the kingdom of God taken from them and given to a people which bring forth the fruits thereof? Are thus the predictions of the prophets, which treat of a glorification of Israel in the latter days, eternally abrogated on account of the nations sin? Or can their fulfilment be found only in a spiritual manner in the Christian church, the main trunk of which was formed by a chosen few from Israel? These questions are answered in the affirmative by Bertheau (Old Testament prophecy of Israels national glory in their own land. Jahrb. f. deutsche Theol., 1859 and 1860) in accordance with the older protestant theology (comp. especially Hollaz, Exam, theolog. ed. Teller, p. 1264 sqq.) as decidedly as according to our conviction they must, on the ground of Rom 1:25 sqq., be negatived. It seems to us to be irrefragably established that when the times of the world-nations are full (Luk 21:24), Israel will obey the gospel call, and thus be prepared to welcome the Messiah (Mat 23:39); that for this reason in its dispersion among the nations of the earth it has never been absorbed by them, but preserved in separate existence for its final destination, because Gods gifts of grace and calling are . Oehler in Herzog, R.-Enc., XVII., S. 658, 9.
9. On Jer 33:3. This is the Lords declaration to His obedient servant Jeremiah. My dear child, He says, thou hast acted according to my will, without knowing why. Thou hast done well. But I will make it clear to thee, so that thou wilt wonder no more; I will tell thee that and yet more, so that thou wilt at last say., Yes, let it be so. We find such connections a few times elsewhere in the Scriptures. The Lord says, How can I hide from Abraham the thing that I do! (Gen 18:17.) And the same Lord declares to His disciples, whence comes this inclination or predisposition to tell something new to His disciples, Henceforth I call you not servants, for the servant knoweth not what his Lord doeth, but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard of my Father, I have made known unto you (Joh 15:16). So also is it here with Jeremiah. Zinzendorf.
10. On Jer 33:6. Healing, restoration, joy and permanent prosperity are promised by the prophet to Jerusalem at a time when all seemed lost, and it seemed impossible to regain them. How desolate must it have then appeared in Jerusalem when one house after another was thrown down to furnish means of defence! How wildly raged the tumult of war, and how comfortless was the condition of the city shut in by the enemy and completely cut off from the rest of the country! To the mind of him, who then thought of Jerusalem in the future, pictures of destruction alone presented themselves. Jeremiah, however, whose sight was sharpened by the divine anointing, sees beyond the present abomination of desolation in the far distant future pictures of peace and, moreover, of everlasting peace, such as no eye has ever seen, nor hath it entered into the heart of man. There was the patience and faith of the saints (Rev 13:10). Impossible is a word, which does not occur in Gods language.
11. On Jer 33:8. After the stubborn race has been partly annihilated and partly humbled, God will turn the captivity of the nation, as a whole. Israel cannot perish eternally. God will purify the people from their sins, by forgiveness, the only way in which men can be really freed from sin. Grace and forgiveness are the only ground on which we stand as Christians. This seems nothing to the world, and yet it is more than heaven and earth. Diedrich.
12. On Jer 33:7-13. An important doctrine meets us in these words, that it is not the gifts of God which we should seek to apprehend, but the love of God which is manifested in that He imputes not our sin to us. Otherwise we treat the Divine benefits like the fishes which swallow the hook with the bait. Heim and Hofmann. The major prophets expounded for edification, 1839, S. 509.
13. On Jer 33:14-17. All Gods promises are at the same time fulfilled by the true man, the Son of Man, the pure sprout of David. He will be a King, in whom we have perfect protection from all destructive agencies, for He will help us from sin, procuring and executing on earth justice and righteousness for all mankind. As we all together inherited sin and death from Adam, so Jesus by His righteousness has brought justification of life for all men, if we would now only take it with joy. Jerusalem will itself bear the Kings name, as he was called in Jer 23:6 : Jehovah our Righteousness, i. e., that Jehovah bestows on us the righteousness, which is the bond, which at the same time unites us to the citizens of His celestial city. Diedrich.
14. On Jer 33:15-16. [The Lord our righteousness. This is to be explained by the union of the Church with Christ (see Rom 12:4-5; 1Co 10:17; 1Co 12:12; Eph 1:22; Eph 4:12; Eph 4:15-16; Eph 4:25; Eph 6:23; Col 1:18; Col 1:24) so that what belongs to Him is communicated to her (Calvin, Piscator, Muenster).Thus, by virtue of her mystical union with Christ, and by the imputation of His merits, and the infusion of His Spirit, the Name of the Church may be said to be The Lord our righteousness; she hides herself in Him, and is seen by God as in Him; she is clothed with Christ the Sun of righteousness (see Rev 12:1) and is accepted in the Beloved (Eph 1:6). Wordsworth.S. R. A.]
15. On Jer 33:17. [When the First-begotten was brought into the world it was declared concerning Him, The Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of His Father David, Luk 1:32. Henry.S.R. A.]
16. On Jer 33:13-22. [Four words, each of them full of meaning, comprise the conceptions which we attribute to the Paradisaical state. They are these: Innocence, Love, Rural Life. Piety; and it is towards these conditions of earthly happiness that the human mind reverts, as often as it turns, sickened and disappointed, from the pursuit of whatever else it may have ever labored to acquire. The innocence we here think of is not virtue recovered, that has passed through its season of trial, but it is Moral Perfectness, darkened by no thought or knowledge of the contrary. This Paradisaical love is conjugal fondness, free from sensuous taint. This Rural Life is the constant flow of summer days, spent in gardens and afield, exempt from our exacted toil. This piety of Paradise is the grateful approach of the finite being to the Infinite,a correspondence that is neither clouded, nor is apprehensive of a cloud. Isaac Taylor, Spirit of Hebrew Poetry.S. R. A.]
17. On Jer 33:19-22. [The richest promises are confirmed by the strongest assurances. Cowles.S. R. A.] As Gods arrangements in nature do not fail, still less can His word fail in His kingdom of grace, and all His word refers to the divine Son of David and His eternal kingdom of grace. Yea, the whole innumerable Israel, Abrahams spiritual posterity, shall become Davids and Levites, i. e., priests and kings, as was designed even at the beginning of Israel. (Exo 19:6; 1Pe 2:9; Rev 5:6). Diedrich.
18. On Jer 33:18-22. [Wordsworth rejects Hengstenbergs explanation that these words are to be applied to all Christians indiscriminately, and approves of the argument derived by the ancient Christian fathers from the passage in favor of the threefold order of ministers in the Christian church. He adds The Gospel of Christ and the Church of Christ possess the spiritual essence of whatever was commanded in the Levitical dispensations. Whatever was local and personal in those dispensations has passed away. The Tabernacle, the Temple, their Sacrifices, their Sabbaths, their Annual Festivals, their threefold Ministry, all these have been spiritualized in the Gospel. Sinai is perpetuated in Zion. The glory of the Law has been absorbed into that of the Gospel. See Psa 68:17, the great Pentecostal Psalm.S. R. A.]
19. On Jer 33:23-26. In the first place they will not be warned, and afterwards they will not be comforted. The true prophet however announces death to sinners according to the law, but afterwards grace for renovation and for life. Despair is blasphemy. Gods kingdom stands and will be perfected, but the fainthearted will not enter it. God answers: so long as heaven and earth are preserved by Me, it is for the sake of My kingdom, and as a pledge that it will not fail. Israel or, what is the same thing, Davids seed shall be a royal seed, and the captivity which the people must now endure is transient. It is however impossible for the worldly to comprehend this, who persist in carnal repose as though no God could punish them, and again in affliction are so despondent, as though there were no God to help them any more. Diedrich. [Deep security commonly ends in deep despair; whereas those that keep up a holy fear at all times have a good hope to support themselves in the worst of times. Henry.S. R. A.]
HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL
1. On Jer 32:16. [Before Jeremiah went to prayer he delivered the deeds that concerned his new purchase to Baruch, which may intimate to us, that when we are going to worship God we should get our minds as clear as may be from the cares and encumbrances of this world.Note, Prayer is the salve of every sore. Henry.S. R. A.]
2. On Jer 32:17-25. The Divine promises our best consolation in every affliction. 1. There are promises of Divine help for every kind of distress in human life. 2. These promises often sound very wonderful (Jer 32:24-25). 3. Their fulfilment on the part of God is guaranteed by the perfection of the Divine nature (Jer 32:17-19). 4. Their fulfilment is on our part conditioned by faith.
3. On Jer 32:18-19. Harvest [Thanksgiving-day] Sermon. To what should our admiration of the power and grace of God in the present harvest lead us? 1. To thank God. 2. To trust all to Him, that He has promised us. 3. To obey His voice. Jentsch., Gesetz and Zeugniss, 1853.
4. On Jer 32:19. The very serious and important truth, the eyes of the Lord are open to all the paths of the children of men. This should 1, shake us and awake us from our security, if some of our ways are sinful and such as the Lord must certainly disapprove; 2, humble us, if we are indeed under the discipline of Gods Spirit, and yet turn to our own self made courses, and have not yet allowed a fixed and sure heart to be imparted to us; 3, be for our comfort and encouragement, when we are often led in dark and difficult paths. J. M. Mueller, Zeugnisse v. Christo. [Witnesses to Christ]. Neues Predigtbuch., Stuttgart, 1866, S. 757.
5. On Jer 32:19. [The greatness of Gods wisdom and the abundance of His power. Proved from His nature. Rem. 1. God hath the power of making the deepest affliction of His children produce their highest happiness. 2. The contrivances of tyrants to oppress the church procure its establishment. 3. The triumphs of Satan turn to the destruction of his empire. Saurin.S. R. A.]
6. On Jer 32:39. Wedding-sermon, The promise which the Lord gives to God-fearing couples. 1. One heart. 2. One way. 3. One blessing, which shall extend to their children. Florey, 1862.
7. On Jer 32:40. Wedding-sermon. The nature and fruit of a true marriage. 1. Its nature: it is a covenant which a man and a woman conclude in the Lord, and with the Lord (put My fear in their hearts;not depart from Me;everlasting covenant). 2. Its fruit: good from the Lord without ceasing.
8. On Jer 32:40. [Teachers may put good things into our heads, but it is God only that can put them into our hearts, that can work in us both to will and to do. Henry.S. R. A.]
9. On Jer 32:39-41. The greatest and dearest of all the promises of God to a marriage in the highest degree happy and delightful. G. Conr. Rieger.
10. On Jer 32:40-41. Baptismal Sermon. The gracious promises of God, which He gives to a child of man in holy baptism. Florey, 1862.
11. On Jer 32:42. In communion of suffering of pious Christians is also a blessed fellowship of consolation, since 1, when we as Christians bear with one another, we can also with each other and by each other obtain composure with respect to whatever has befallen us; 2, our heart is revived by what remains, viz., love on earth and hope in heaven; 3, we become strong for whatever duty is laid upon us, viz., labor and courage. Florey, 1863.
12. On Jer 33:1. [No confinement can deprive Gods people of His presence; no locks or bars can shut out His gracious visits, nay, oftentimes as their afflictions abound their consolations much more abound, and they have the most reviving communications of His favor then when the world frowns on them. Pauls sweetest Epistles were those that bare date out of a prison. Henry.S. R. A.]
13. On Jer 33:6. The disease of our times is no other than a rebellious spirit, and the cause of this is no other than a want of reverence for God and His law. Discourse on the Birth-day of the king by Deacon Hauber in Tbingen. Palmer, Ev Casualreden, 2te Folge, 1, 1850.
14. On Jer 33:14-16. Jesus Christ a King. 1. From what a noble royal stock did He proceed! (Raised by God, descending from David, both by His deity and humanity heir of the throne). 2. How well has He exercised His rule with judgment and righteousness (He Himself is the Lord, who is our righteousness). 3. How far does His dominion extend! (From Jerusalem to the ends of the earth). 4. How safely does His people dwell by His help in peace ! Naumann, in Gesetz u. Zeugn., 1860, March.
15. On Jer 33:14-16. Who is He announced to-day? 1. The long promisedwith reference to His historical appearance. 2. The Son of David and at the same time Gods Sonthis is His personal significance. 3. The Lord, who is our righteousnessthis relates to His holy office and work. Anacker, in Gesetz u. Zeugn., 1860, March.
Footnotes:
[8]Jer 33:12. . The construction here is instead of in Jer 33:10. expresses the idea of an all-embracing completeness, even to the extremest limits (comp. Gen 6:7; Gen 7:23; Num 8:4). requires the supplementation of a corresponding verbal idea: ex. gr. 1Sa 18:4 , et ita perrexit usque ad, etc.Where occurs there is a confounding of two constructions. Comp. Naegelsb. Gr., 111, 1.In the passage under consideration seems to have arisen from the in , which reminds us of the in constructions like .
Fuente: A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical by Lange
Jer 33:12 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Again in this place, which is desolate without man and without beast, and in all the cities thereof, shall be an habitation of shepherds causing [their] flocks to lie down.
Ver. 12. In all the cities thereof shall be an habitation of shepherds, ] i.e., Several sorts of buildings, yea, even sheep cotes and lodges for shepherds and their flocks. All these promises are antitheta, opposite to those menaces, Jer 7:34 ; Jer 16:9 ; cf. Jer 25:10 ; Jer 31:24 .
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Jer 33:12-13
12Thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘There will again be in this place which is waste, without man or beast, and in all its cities, a habitation of shepherds who rest their flocks. 13In the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the lowland, in the cities of the Negev, in the land of Benjamin, in the environs of Jerusalem and in the cities of Judah, the flocks will again pass under the hands of the one who numbers them,’ says the LORD.
Jer 33:12-13 The strophe further explains Jer 33:10-11.
Jer 33:13 will again pass under the hands of the one who numbers them This refers to the daily actions of shepherds (cf. Lev 27:32; this imagery is the background of Joh 10:1-18).
1. making sure that all of the sheep were in the pen at night
2. a way of counting the sheep for tithing purposes
3. the Aramaic Targums specifically attribute this action to the Messiah
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
without: Jer 32:43, Jer 36:29, Jer 51:62
in all: Jer 17:26, Jer 31:24, Jer 32:44, Jer 50:19, Jer 50:20, Isa 65:10, Eze 34:12-14, Eze 36:8-11, Oba 1:19, Oba 1:20, Zep 2:6, Zep 2:7
Reciprocal: Isa 51:3 – all Jer 21:6 – I will Jer 32:15 – Houses Eze 12:19 – that her Eze 14:17 – so that Eze 34:14 – there shall Eze 36:10 – I will Eze 36:11 – I will multiply Eze 38:12 – the desolate
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Jer 33:12. This verse predicts the return of industrial and agricultural pursuits. Flocks to He dowm indicates two blessings; sufficiency, and peace while using it under the protection of the God of Israel.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Jer 33:12-13. Again in this place shall be a habitation for shepherds, &c. See Jer 50:19; Isa 65:10. In those places which were desolate, without man and beast, there should be flocks and herds of sheep and goats, which the shepherds should take care of as in former times. And in the cities of Judah shall the flocks pass again under the hands of him that telleth them Namely, so as to keep account of them, as they were wont to do, both morning and evening in those countries. Virgil alludes to the same custom, when he says, Ecclesiastes 3., Bisque die numerant ambo pecus, alter et hdos; Twice each day they count my goats and sheep. See Lev 27:32, where , passing under the rod, means their being numbered, the shepherds striking every sheep with his rod, or crook, as it passed out of the fold, and so counting them; and the expression here made use of, , under the hand of him that numbers them, seems to signify the same thing.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Judah would again become a quiet and secure place where shepherds pasture their flocks. This may refer to leaders of people, not just shepherds of sheep (cf. Jer 23:1-3; Eze 34:1-6; Luk 15:3-7; Joh 10:1-18). The Targum interpretation substituted the word "Messiah" for the phrase "the one who numbers them."