Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Jeremiah 4:11
At that time shall it be said to this people and to Jerusalem, A dry wind of the high places in the wilderness toward the daughter of my people, not to fan, nor to cleanse,
11. A hot wind ] The foe comes not as a gentle wind, such as that used (see on Jer 15:7) to separate wheat from chaff, but one that shall whirl away both together. Thomson ( op. cit. p. 295) describes the sirocco thus: “The air becomes loaded with fine dust, which it whirls in rainless clouds hither and thither at its own wild will. The eyes inflame, the lips blister, and the moisture of the body evaporates, under the ceaseless application of this persecuting wind”; and again (p. 536), “We have two kinds of sirocco, one accompanied with vehement wind, which fills the air with dust and fine sand.” Cp. Joe 2:30 f.
bare heights ] omitted by LXX. Cp. on Jer 3:2.
toward ] we may understand cometh from Jer 4:12.
daughter ] fem. sing. in a collective sense. Cp. Jer 4:30, Jer 6:14, Jer 8:11, etc.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
11 18. As the burning sirocco, the dense clouds accompanied by the whirlwind, or the savage creatures of the air, so shall the enemy prove to be, as they descend on Judah in doom. Let her even now seek to avert it by repentance.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
11 18. See summary at commencement of section.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
At that time – See Jer 4:7. Though the revelation of the certainty of Judahs ruin wrings from Jeremiah a cry of despair, yet it is but for a moment; he immediately returns to the delivery of Gods message.
A dry wind – literally, A clear wind. The Samum is probably meant, a dry parching east wind blowing from the Arabian desert, before which vegetation withers, and human life becomes intolerable.
Not to fan … – The Syrian farmers make great use of the wind for separating the chaff from the grain: but when the Samum blows labor becomes impossible. It is not for use, but for destruction.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Jer 4:11-13
A dry wind of the high places in the wilderness toward the daughter of My people, not to fan, nor to cleanse.
Untempered judgments
The prophet intimates that God will one day send a judgment upon His people comparable only to the sirocco of the desert. The harvestman welcomes almost all the winds of the summer time but this. Their gentle currents lend themselves to the winnowing processes that are necessary to complete the toil of the year. But the sirocco comes with no element of helpfulness or beneficent service in its terrible wings. It is the agent of unmixed ruin, overthrow, death; the symbol of judgment without mercy. The successive invasions that were soon to close in upon the Holy Land were to be of this unmixed character. The flower of one generation was to perish in the overthrow. Whole districts were to be depopulated and re-peopled by alien races. The wind that came from the desert Came to crash and to scorch and to destroy. It was not to fan, nor to cleanse. Some men claim that all judgment must be ultimately puttying. This inspired utterance however assures us that there is such a thing in the Divine economy as punishment that is purely punitive and not disciplinary.
I. Let us inquire if this penal element has a place in the best human governments. If we work out to its logical conclusion the theory that all punishment must be disciplinary only, we shall be bound to adopt methods of procedure in our law courts more grotesque than the most audacious caricature has ever imagined. We must have no short sentences if all penalty is to be educating. We have no right to discharge a man, however slight his transgression, till he has given sufficient assurance that his character has been entirely transformed. Judge and jury would no longer need to concern themselves with the particular category into which his crime came. The only question for them to ask would be, how far does the root of evil go down in this mans character? and what amount of force will be necessary to pull it up? Some men, who are incapable of amendment through pain, can perhaps be stirred to better desires, or at least taken away from their criminal tendencies, by wholesome excitements. Experts would have to step into the witness box. In some cases it might be found that a garrotter would be more sensibly improved by wholesome excitements than by flogging. Carlyle inveighed from time to time against this unhealthy sentimentalism which would sap the foundation of all human and Divine law alike. In the Life of Bishop Wilberforce reference is made to a party at which Monckton Milnes, Thomas Carlyle, and other distinguished men were present. The conversation turned upon the question of capital punishment. Mr. Monckton Milnes was arguing against death-penalties, on the ground that we could not know how far the offender was responsible and consciously wrong. Carlyle broke out, None of your heaven-and-hell amalgamation companies for me! We do know what is wickedness. I know wicked men I would not live with: men whom under some conceivable circumstances I would kill or they should kill me. No, Milnes; there is no truth or greatness in that. Its just poor, miserable littleness. There was far more greatness in the way of your German forefathers, who, when they found one of those wicked men, dragged him to a peat bog, and thrust him in, and said, There! go in there. There is the place for all such as thee:
II. If this penal element is admitted into human governments, upon what conceivable principle can it be excluded from the Divine? Many causes combine to weaken the sense we have of our own authority to punish wrong-doing. It is a strictly delegated authority. We always feel ourselves bound to greater restraint and circumspection in the exercise of delegated than original rights. We often feel ourselves incompetent judges of all that has transpired. We judge and punish in dim twilights. That tends to make us hesitating and indeterminate. And then the sense of our own authority to judge and to punish is weakened by the recollection we have of our own desert of punishment in many things. Unless the offence is very flagrant, we fear to incriminate ourselves by judging another. And yet, notwithstanding all these things, we are absolutely sure of our clear abstract right to punish even in cases where the punishment has no educating purpose to fulfil to the individual, whatever it may have to the community. How much stronger is Gods right! His authority is original, and not delegated. He guarantees in every soul He judges the sufficiency of the past training and discipline. He dwells in the perfect light. His judgment can never be unnerved by the fear of error.
III. Disciplinary are distinguished from penal judgments, not so much by any quality in the judgments themselves, as by the temper of those who become the subjects of such judgments. The question whether purely penal elements can enter into Gods government is one that must be looked at from the standpoint of the transgressor rather than that of the Judge. Are there incorrigible elements in human nature? As a matter of fact, judgments very often fail to sober and to purify here. There are men who can never be taught wisdom by the longest succession of business reverses. There are men who, humanly speaking, can never be taught common morality, however heavy the penalties they are made to pay for its breach. There are worldly men whom no number of sicknesses and providential bereavements can discipline into religiousness. Where there are unreformable elements in human character, disciplinary judgment necessarily passes into the purely punitive stage. It is often argued that the keener judgments of the life to come will produce penitence in those who have continued stubborn under the milder judgments of the present life. There is not only no proof of that, but nothing even to suggest that it is probable. We cannot predicate anything from the cumulative power of pain. The wind does not become purifying by mere increase of the force with which it blows. After reaching a certain pitch of violence it can neither fan nor cleanse.
IV. The judgment that has passed out of the disciplinary into the penal stage for the individual is still disciplinary in its significance for the race at large. The wind that blows to crush and to scorch and to uproot in one zone of the earth, after it has passed into new latitudes, and been tempered by the seas over which it travels, may become a wind of winnowing beneficence. The penal visitation of one generation may become the saving chastisement of the generation that follows it. We must not get into the habit of supposing that Gods purposes ever terminate in the individual. That mystery of unending punishment, which seems to frustrate the Divine purpose of mercy to the individual, may fulfil a purpose of gracious admonition to the race. The law of vicariousness pervades the moral universe just as widely as the law of gravitation overspreads the natural universe. There is a priesthood of vicarious judgment as well as of mercy. As great fires are kindled in times of plague to burn up the germs of infection floating in the air, so the atmosphere of Gods universe may need to be kept pure by the flames of a quenchless Gehenna. (T. G. Selby.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 11. – 13. A dry wind – a fall wind – as clouds – as a whirlwind] All these expressions appear to refer to the pestilential winds, suffocating vapours, and clouds and pillars of sand collected by whirlwinds, which are so common and destructive in the east, (See Clarke on Isa 21:1😉 and these images are employed here to show the overwhelming effect of the invasion of the land by the Chaldeans.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
At that time, viz. when Nebuchadnezzar is upon this expedition, Jer 4:7, shall it be said to this people and to Jerusalem; there shall be tidings brought both to the country and city, Jer 4:5.
A dry wind: the meaning is, a drying wind, such as shall blast and scorch where it comes, without any rain or moisture, or any other way for use or refreshment, as the last word in the verse intimates; and it may also allude unto the coast from whence this wind comes, viz. from Babylon, or the north, which drives away rain, Pro 25:23; for it points at the stormy and furious irruption of the Babylonian army, destroying all before them, a metaphorical allegory, Jer 23:19; 30:23,24.
In the wilderness; or, in the plain, where there is no stop or obstacle in the way to hinder the wind, or to break its fury, Isa 21:1; Jer 13:24. See Poole “Isa 63:13“.
Toward, i.e. directly and designedly, coming along in the way leading to my people; for so we are to understand this expression,
the daughter of my people, as the daughter of Zion, Isa 1:8, or rather, the daughter Zion, which is as comely and beautiful in my eyes and tender to me as a daughter, Jer 9:1.
Not to fan, nor to cleanse; not such a gentle wind which is made choice of to separate the chaff from the wheat, the bad from the good; but so boisterous and violent, that it shall depopulate, sweep away, and lay waste all together, Jer 51:1; Eze 21:3.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
11. dry windthe simoom,terrific and destructive, blowing from the southeast across the sandydeserts east of Palestine. Image of the invading Babylonian army (Ho13:15). Babylon in its turn shall be visited by a similar”destroying wind” (Jer51:1).
of . . . high placesthatis, that sweeps over the high places.
daughterthat is, thechildren of my people.
not to fana verydifferent wind from those ordinary winds employed for fanning thegrain in the open air.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
At that time shall it be said to this people, and to Jerusalem,…. The inhabitants of Judea and Jerusalem, the people of the Jews; or “concerning” x them, as Jarchi interprets it:
a dry wind of the high places in the wilderness toward the daughter of my people. The Targum is,
“as the south wind upon the heads of floods of water in the wilderness, so is the way of the congregation of my people;”
but rather the north wind is designed, since that is a dry one, and the south wind a moist one; and the rather, since this wind intends Nebuchadnezzar and his army, which should come from Babylon, from the north. Some render it, “a neat clean wind” y; which strips the trees, lays bare rocks and mountains, carries away the earth and dust before it, and makes the stones look white and clean: it denotes a very strong, rushing, stormy, and boisterous wind. The Vulgate Latin version renders it, “a burning one”; and it represents the force and power with which the enemy should come, without any opposition or resistance to him; for a wind on high places, hills, and mountains, and which comes through deserts and wildernesses, has nothing to hinder it, as Kimchi observes; whereas, when it blows in habitable places, there are houses, walls, hedges, and fences, which resist it; and it is observed, that in the way from Babylon to Judea, which the prophet calls “the daughter of my people”, were many desert places. The Septuagint version is, “the spirit of error in the desert, the way of the daughter of my people”; which the Syriac and Arabic versions seem to follow; the former rendering it, “as the wind that wanders through the paths of the desert, so is the way of the daughter of my people”; and the latter thus, “there is a spirit of error in the desert, in the way of the daughter of my people”;
not to purity, nor to holiness, as it with the Septuagint renders the next clause: “not to fan, nor to cleanse”; of which use a more moderate wind is in winnowing and cleansing the corn from chaff, and light and useless grain.
x “de hoc populo”, Calvin, Vatablus. y “ventus nitidus”, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Description of the impending ruin, from which nothing can save but speedy repentance. – Jer 4:11. “ At that time shall it be said to this people and to Jerusalem, A hot wind from the bleak hills in the wilderness cometh on the way toward the daughter of my people, not to winnow and not to cleanse. Jer 4:12. A wind fuller than for this shall come to me; now will I also utter judgments upon them. Jer 4:13. Behold, like clouds it draws near, and like the storm are it chariots, swifter than eagles its horses. Woe unto us! for we are spoiled. Jer 4:14. Wash from wickedness thy heart, Jerusalem, that thou mayest be saved. How long shall thine iniquitous thoughts lodge within thee? Jer 4:15. For a voice declareth from Dan, and publisheth affliction from the Mount Ephraim. Jer 4:16. Tell it to the peoples; behold, publish it to Jerusalem: Besiegers come from a far country, and let their voice ring out against the cities of Judah. Jer 4:17. As keepers of a field, they are against her round about; for against me hath she rebelled, saith Jahveh. Jer 4:18. Thy way and thy doings have wrought thee this. This is thy wickedness; yea, it is bitter, yea, it reaCheth unto thine heart.”
A more minute account of the impending judgment is introduced by the phrase: at that time. It shall be said to this people; in other words, it shall be said of this people; substantially, that shall fall upon it which is expressed by the figure following, a hot wind blowing from the naked hills of the wilderness. is stat. constr., and dna its genitive, after which latter the adjective should be placed; but it is interpolated between the nomen regens and the n. rectum by reason of its smallness, and partly, too, that it may not be too far separated from its nomen , while belongs to . The wind blowing from the bleak hills in the wilderness, is the very severe east wind of Palestine. It blows in incessant gusts, and cannot be used for winnowing or cleansing the grain, since it would blow away chaff and seed together; cf. Wetzst. in Del., Job, S. 320. is universally taken adverbially: is on the way, i.e., comes, moves in the direction of the daughter of Zion. The daughter of Zion is a personification of the inhabitants of Zion or Jerusalem. This hot blast is a figure for the destruction which is drawing near Jerusalem. It is not a chastisement to purify the people, but a judgment which will sweep away the whole people, carry away both wheat and chaff – a most effective figure for the approaching catastrophe of the destruction of Jerusalem, and the carrying away captive of its inhabitants. Hitz. and Graf have, however, taken as subject of the clause: the path, i.e., the behaviour of my people, is a keen wind of the bare hills in the wilderness. Thus the conduct of the people would be compared with that wind as unprofitable, inasmuch as it was altogether windy, empty, and further as being a hurtful storm. But the comparison of the people’s behaviour with a parched violent wind is a wholly unnatural one, for the justification of which it is not sufficient to point to Hos 8:7: sow wind and reap storm. Besides, upon this construction of the illustration, the description: not to winnow and not to cleanse, is not only unmeaning, but wholly unsuitable. Who is to be winnowed and cleansed by the windy ways of the people? Jahveh?! Jer 4:14 is indeed so managed by Hitz. and Graf that the tempestuous wind blows against God, “is directed against Jahveh like a blast of defiance and hostility.” But this argument is sufficient to overthrow that unnatural view of the figure, which, besides, obtains no support from Jer 4:12. cannot refer to : a full wind from these, i.e., the sons of my people; and , in spite of the passages, Jer 22:23; Jer 50:26; Jer 51:48; Job 3:25, does not mean: comes towards me, or: blows from them on me; for in all these passages is dativ commodi or incommodi . Here, too, is dative, used of the originator and efficient cause. The wind comes for me – in plainer English: from me. Properly: it comes to God, i.e., at His signal, to carry out His will. is comparative: fuller than these, namely, the winds useful for winnowing and cleansing. Now will I too utter. The intensifying does not point to a contrast in the immediately preceding clause: becaus e the people blows against God like a strong wind, He too will utter judgment against it. The refers back to the preceding : the storm comes from me; for now will I on my side hold judgment with them. The contrast implied in lies in the wider context, in the formerly described behaviour of the people, particularly in the sayings of the false prophets mentioned in Jer 4:10, that there will be peace. On , cf. Jer 1:16.
These judgments are already on the way in Jer 4:13. “Like clouds it draws near.” The subject is not mentioned, but a hostile army is meant, about to execute God’s judgments. “Like clouds,” i.e., in such thick dark masses; cf. Eze 38:16. The war-chariots drive with the speed of the tempest; cf. Isa 5:28; Isa 66:15. The running of the horses resembles the flight of the eagle; cf. Hab 1:8, where the same is said of the horsemen of the hostile people. Both passages are founded on Deu 28:49; but Jeremiah, while he had the expression , Hab 1:8, in his mind, chose ; instead of leopards ( ), in this following the original in Deut.; cf. 2Sa 1:23 and Lam 4:19. Already is heard the cry of woe: we are spoiled, cf. Jer 4:20, Jer 9:18; Jer 48:1.
Jer 4:14 If Jerusalem wishes to be saved, it must thoroughly turn from its sin, wash its heart clean; not merely abstain outwardly from wickedness, but renounce the evil desires of the heart. In the question: How long shall…remain? we have implied the thought that Jerusalem has already only too long cherished and indulged wicked thoughts. is 3rd pers. imperf. Kal, not 2nd pers. Hiph.: wilt thou let remain (Schnur. and others). For the Hiphil of luwn is not in use, and besides, would need to be . The , as in Pro 6:18; Isa 59:7, refer chiefly to sins against one’s neighbour, such as are reckoned up in Jer 7:5., Jer 7:8.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
Jeremiah proceeds with the same prediction: he says, that a terrible wind was coming, which would not only disperse or clear away, but dissipate and overthrow all things. He then expresses how great and how grievous would be the calamity which he had before mentioned. He compares it to dry or and wind; for צח, tsach, sometimes means “clear,” and sometimes “arid,” as the greatest dryness is found on high places. He means, no doubt, here the wind, which is violent, and disturbs the whole atmosphere, when there are no clouds, and where no trees impede its course. Hence, he speaks of high and desert places. It is the same as though he had said, that so great would be the violence of God’s vengeance, and so irresistible would be the eruption, that it would be like a violent wind when it passes through high regions and through dry land or desert places. He says, Towards the way of the daughter of my people; as though he had said, — that the course of the wind would be such as to bear directly on Judea. The mode of speaking here used is well known to all who are in any degree acquainted with the writings of the prophets. “The daughter of my people, “means the people themselves. Come, then, shall wind towards Judea.
He then adds, Not to scatter nor to cleanse Husbandmen are wont to winnow the corn when taken from the thrashing — floor, that the chaff may be carried away by the wind: but the Prophet says, that this wind would not be to clear away or scatter the chaff; for it will be, he says, a very vehement wind He means, in short, that God would shew so much displeasure towards the Jews, that he would no longer chastise them in a moderate degree, or use any moderation, as he had done previously; for God had already often punished the Jews, but had hitherto acted the part of a physician, having endeavored to heal the vices of the people. As, then, these corrections had been without fruit, the Prophet now says, that God’s wrath would now come, not to cleanse as before, nor to scatter the chaff, but to consume everything among the people. Hence he adds (for the two verses are connected together) a fuller wind, or one more complete, shall come to them. Some read, “from these places, “so they render מ; but it is rather to be taken as noting the comparative degree, — that this wind would be much rougher and more violent than other winds which usually clear the land or scatter away the chaff, and separate it from the corn: come, then, shall a much more violent wind
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
2. The second figure:
TRANSLATION
(11) In that time it shall be said to this people and to Jerusalem, A wind scorching hot of the bare heights in the wilderness toward the daughter of my people, not to winnow, not to cleanse; (12) a wind too strong for these things shall come for Me; now also I will speak judgments against them. (13) Behold, like clouds he comes up and like a whirlwind are his chariots. His horses are more swift than eagles. Woe to us! for we are devastated.
COMMENTS
When the judgment falls upon Judah people will use the figure of a blasting wind to describe what has befallen the land. The foe sweeping down upon Jerusalem will not be like the gentle wind which separates the grain from the chaff but will be like the fierce sirocco which blasts in annually from the Arabian desert (Jer. 4:11). Repeating his figure for the sake of emphasis Jeremiah declares that the coming wind of retribution will be too strong for these things, i.e., it will be a more violent wind than could serve for winnowing the grain. God had spoken in times past through His prophets. Now God will speak to His people in the only language which they will understand, the language of judgment and punishment (Jer. 4:12). The hosts of Gods warriors will come up like the clouds (Eze. 38:16) which accompany a violent whirlwind (Isa. 5:28; Isa. 66:15). The horses of the enemy are more swift than eagles (Hab. 1:8; Deu. 28:49). As the inhabitants of Judah see that vast horde descending upon them the wail of lamentation shall be taken up in the land (Jer. 4:13).
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
(11) At that time.i.e., when the lion and destroyer of Jer. 4:7 should begin his work of destruction.
A dry wind.Literally, a clear wind, the simoom, the scorching blast from the desert, coming clear and without clouds. Other winds might be utilised for the threshing-floor, but this made all such work impossible, and was simply devastating, and was therefore a fit symbol of the terrible invader.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
11. A dry wind “A hot wind,” Keil; “a violent wind,” Furst. The reference is to the simoom, which is too fierce to be used for winnowing, as it would carry away both chaff and grain; a fit symbol of irresistible destruction. The figure of the lion sets forth the fierceness and bloodthirstiness of their enemies; the simoom, their resistlessness.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Jer 4:11-13. A dry wind, &c. The prophet here describes the Chaldean army coming up for the destruction of Judaea, under the metaphor of a hot pestilential wind, which sweeps away multitudes in a moment, blasts the fruits of the earth, and spreads desolation every where around. The passage, like that in the preceding verses, is spirited and sublime; but it loses a good deal of elegance in our version. Houbigant renders it thus, Behold, a wind hangs over the mountains of the desarts; behold, it a shall come upon the daughter of my people, but not to fan, or to cleanse: Jer 4:12. A mighty wind shall thence come upon her, and then at length will I declare my judgment concerning them, or her: Jer 4:13. Behold, as clouds it shall hang over; its chariots shall be as a whirlwind; its horses swifter than eagles, &c. Of the malignancy of the south wind blowing over the desarts of Arabia, travellers have given dreadful accounts. The effect of this wind is, not only to render the air extremely hot and scorching, but to fill it with poisonous and suffocating vapours. It sometimes becomes a whirlwinds raising up large quantities of land, so as to darken the air, and not seldom to bury underneath the unfortunate traveller. The most violent storms that Judaea was subject to came from that quarter. See Bishop’s Lowth’s note on Isa 21:1 and Mr. Harmer’s citation from Maillet’s Memoirs; ch. i. obs. 16.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Under those strong images, of a dry wind and a full wind, and a whirlwind, are set forth the judgments of the Lord. But under all, I pray the Reader to observe, how the Lord fully proves, that the evil is in his people, the remedy is in the Lord. Hos 13:9 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Jer 4:11 At that time shall it be said to this people and to Jerusalem, A dry wind of the high places in the wilderness toward the daughter of my people, not to fan, nor to cleanse,
Ver. 11. A dry wind of the high places. ] Ventus urens et exsiccans, as the north wind is. Understand hereby the King of Babylon, as Jer 4:6 blasting and wasting all before him.
Not to fan, nor to cleanse.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Jer 4:11-13
11In that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, A scorching wind from the bare heights in the wilderness in the direction of the daughter of My people-not to winnow and not to cleanse, 12a wind too strong for this-will come at My command; now I will also pronounce judgments against them.
13Behold, he goes up like clouds,
And his chariots like the whirlwind;
His horses are swifter than eagles.
Woe to us, for we are ruined!
Jer 4:11 A scorching wind This refers to the sirocco desert winds, often used in the OT as a metaphor for judgment (i.e., not to winnow, and not to cleanse, cf. Jer 4:12).
from the bare heights This was the physical locality of Ba’al worship (cf. Jer 2:20; Jer 3:2; Jer 3:6; Jer 4:11; Jer 7:29; Jer 14:6; Jer 17:2; Isa 57:7; Deu 12:2).
not to winnow The wind will be too strong and too hot for harvesting grain. The last item, cleanse, probably refers to the process of separating the husk from the grain.
Jer 4:12 at My command God sent these judgments; they were carried out by Mesopotamian pagan nations! There are consequences to covenant disobedience (cf. Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 28-29)! See Special Topic: Keep .
Jer 4:13 This is a metaphorical description of God’s judgment (i.e., lines a-c) and the results.
1. woe to us (BDB 17, cf. Jer 4:31; Jer 6:4; Jer 10:19; Jer 13:27)
2. we are ruined (BDB 994, KB 1418, Pual PERFECT, same VERB found in Jer 4:20; Jer 9:19; Jer 10:20; Jer 48:1; Jer 48:15; Jer 48:20; Jer 49:3; Jer 49:10)
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
wind. Hebrew. ruach. App-9.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Jer 4:11-18
Jer 4:11-18
“At that time shall it be said to this people and to Jerusalem, A hot wind from the bare heights in the wilderness toward the daughter of my people, not to winnow, nor to clean; a full wind from these shall come for me: now will I utter judgments against them. Behold, he shall come up as clouds, and his chariots shall be as the whirlwind: his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe unto us, for we are ruined! O Jerusalem, wash thy heart from wickedness, that thou mayest be saved. How long shall thine evil thoughts lodge within thee? For a voice declareth from Dan, and publisheth evil from the hills of Ephraim. Make ye mention to the nations; behold, publish against Jerusalem, that watchers come from a far country, and give out their voice against the cities of Judah. As keepers of a field are they against her round about, because she hath been rebellious against me, saith Jehovah. Thy way and thy doings have procured these things unto thee; this is thy wickedness; for it is bitter, for it reacheth unto thy heart.”
Here we have a further description of the coming of Babylon upon the apostate Judah. It shall be like a bank of threatening clouds, like the terrible sirocco, or simoon, a wind, not at all helpful like the one used for winnowing, but a violent and destructive wind. The swift chariots shall descend upon the helpless people swifter than an eagle descends upon the prey. There will be no recourse for Judah; she must drink the bitter cup, because it came upon her solely as the result of her terrible wickedness, represented here as “procuring” the terrible disaster that befell her.
“From Dan … from the hills of Ephraim …” (Jer 4:15). Dan was at the northern extremity of Palestine, and Ephraim was quite near Jerusalem. The rapid advance of the enemy upon Jerusalem is indicated:
“Make ye mention to the nations …” (Jer 4:16). The pagan nations are called to witness God’s punishment of Judah. “The tents or booths of the besiegers are compared to the stations of the farmers who guarded their crops in more prosperous times.
“This thy wickedness …” (Jer 4:18). The meaning of this verse was given thus by the Dean of Canterbury:
“This word signifies both evil done and evil suffered by anyone. It means, `this is thy wretchedness, this army, and thy approaching ruin is thy misery, thy wretched lot.
When the judgment falls upon Judah people will use the figure of a blasting wind to describe what has befallen the land. The foe sweeping down upon Jerusalem will not be like the gentle wind which separates the grain from the chaff but will be like the fierce sirocco which blasts in annually from the Arabian desert (Jer 4:11). Repeating his figure for the sake of emphasis Jeremiah declares that the coming wind of retribution will be too strong for these things, i.e., it will be a more violent wind than could serve for winnowing the grain. God had spoken in times past through His prophets. Now God will speak to His people in the only language which they will understand, the language of judgment and punishment (Jer 4:12). The hosts of Gods warriors will come up like the clouds (Eze 38:16) which accompany a violent whirlwind (Isa 5:28; Isa 66:15). The horses of the enemy are more swift than eagles (Hab 1:8; Deu 28:49). As the inhabitants of Judah see that vast horde descending upon them the wail of lamentation shall be taken up in the land (Jer 4:13).
The third figure: the keepers (Jer 4:14-18)
The third figure opens with an appeal to the inhabitants of Jerusalem to cleanse themselves from evil in order that they might be saved. Amid the crashing threats of divine judgment it is easy to overlook these quiet and sincere appeals. Jeremiah was perplexed by the obstinacy of his countrymen. In view of the impending disaster Jeremiah asks rhetorically, How long will you harbor (lit., cause to lodge) in your midst (within you) wicked thoughts (Jer 4:11). Repentance is so urgent for Jeremiah can see in prophetic vision the rapid advance of the enemy, He dramatically depicts a messenger arriving from Dan, the northern border of Palestine. Almost as quickly as the first messenger reaches Jerusalem a second runner from the hills of Ephraim ten miles from Jerusalem arrives with equally bad tidings. The enemy is rapidly advancing toward Jerusalem (Jer 4:15). Even the neighboring nations are called upon to take heed to what is taking place at Jerusalem for the divine visitation there has universal significance. Watchers, i.e., the besieging army. station themselves around the cities of Judah. They lift up their voices against the besieged cities in ridicule, in taunts and. demands for total surrender (Jer 4:16). The enemy erects pavilions, booths and tents about the besieged city like unto those erected by those who guard a field (cf. Isa 1:8). The enemy watches the city lest any within make good their escape. All this has come upon Judah because she has rebelled against the Lord (Jer 4:17). The sin of Judah is bitter indeed. It has reached to the very heart of the nation dealing a death blow to her (Jer 4:18).
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
A: Jer 23:19, Jer 30:23, Jer 30:24, Jer 51:1, Isa 27:8, Isa 64:6, Eze 17:10, Eze 19:12, Hos 13:3, Hos 13:15
daughter: Jer 8:19, Jer 9:1, Jer 9:7, Jer 14:17, Isa 22:4, Lam 2:11, Lam 3:48, Lam 4:3, Lam 4:6, Lam 4:10
not: Jer 51:2, Isa 41:16, Mat 3:12, Luk 3:17
Reciprocal: Job 1:19 – a great Job 30:22 – liftest me Jer 6:26 – daughter Jer 12:12 – spoilers Jer 13:24 – as Jer 15:7 – I will fan Jer 22:22 – wind Eze 22:20 – in mine Hos 4:19 – wind Hab 1:9 – their faces shall sup up as the east Zec 7:14 – scattered Jam 4:8 – purify 1Pe 1:18 – vain
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Jer 4:11. At tlial time refers to the time of the sword mentioned in the preceding verse. The march of the Babylonian army from the wilderness is compared to a wind, but it is not for the purpose of fanning or threshing grain in a desired sense. Instead, it is a dry wind which means a hot blast that will have a withering effect.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Jer 4:11. At that time When that calamity commences; shall it be said to this people and to Jerusalem There shall be tidings brought both to the country and city; A dry wind of the high places The prophet here describes the Chaldean army coming up for the destruction of Judea, under the metaphor of a hot, pestilential wind, which sweeps away multitudes in a moment, blasts the fruits of the earth, and spreads desolation everywhere around. The passage, like that in the preceding verses, is spirited and sublime; but it loses a good deal of its elegance in our version. Houbigant renders it thus: Behold, a wind hangs over the mountains of the deserts; behold, it shall come upon the daughter of my people, but not to fan or to cleanse, Jer 4:12. A mighty wind shall come from thence upon her, and then at length will I declare my judgment concerning them, or her, Jer 4:13. Behold, as clouds it shall hang over; its chariots shall be as a whirlwind; its horses swifter than eagles, &c. See Lowth and Dodd.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
4:11 At that time shall it be said to this people and to Jerusalem, A dry {i} wind of the high places in the wilderness toward the daughter of my people, not {k} to fan, nor to cleanse,
(i) The north wind by which he means Nebuchadnezzar.
(k) But to carry away both corn and chaff.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
The intensity and severity of the coming judgment 4:11-18
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
The Lord also said that when this invasion came, it would descend like a violent wind from the north. It would be far more severe than an ordinary attack, that the prophet compared to a gentle breeze winnowing the grain of the people, namely, gently disciplining them . This "wind" would come at Yahweh’s command and would be the instrument of God’s judgment on the people. They were all too familiar with such devastating winds, or siroccos, that blew almost unbearable heat and dust into Judah from the Arabian Desert (cf. Gen 41:6; Jon 4:8).