Jeremiah 44:25

Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, saying; Ye and your wives have both spoken with your mouths, and fulfilled with your hand, saying, We will surely perform our vows that we have vowed, to burn incense to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her: ye will surely accomplish your vows, and surely perform your vows. YE ... HAVE BOTH SPOKEN WITH YOUR MOUTHS, AND FULFILLED WITH YOUR HAND - ironical praise. They had pleaded their obligation to fulfill their vows in excuse for their idolatry. He answers, no one can accuse you of unsteadiness as to your idolatrous vows; but stedfastness toward God ought to have prevented you from making, or, when made, from keeping such vows. YE WILL SURELY ACCOMPLISH YOUR VOWS. Jeremiah hereby gives them up to their own fatal obstinacy....

Jeremiah pursues the same subject, and not only bitterly reproves the ungodly men who so pertinaciously despised his doctrine, but also shews that they could gain nothing by their audacity, because they would at length be violently broken down, as they could not bear to be corrected, he says at the beginning, _Ye and your wives have spoken; _the men are also included, Ye have spoken both men and women, and _with your hands have fulfilled it; _that is, your obstinacy is complete, for, as you have spoken insolently against God, so there has been a performance; for by _hands _he designates the work done. he then shews that they had advanced to the highest pitch of impiety, for they hesitated not to vomit forth these impious words, _We will not obey God, _and they joined their hands to their mouth, for they strenuously executed what they had said. The thought itself was sufficient to condemn...

20-30 Whatever evil comes upon us, it is because we have sinned against the Lord; we should therefore stand in awe, and sin not. Since they were determined to persist in their idolatry, God would go on to punish them. What little remains of religion were among them, would be lost. The creature-comforts and confidences from which we promise ourselves most, may fail as soon as those from which we promise ourselves least; and all are what God makes them, not what we fancy them to be. Well-grounded hopes of our having a part in the Divine mercy, are always united with repentance and obedience....

Earnest as was the preceding expostulation, Jeremiah sees that it has produced no effect. He therefore utters his last warning, and with this last resistance to the sins of a debased and godless people, his earthly ministry closed. Jeremiah 44:25 AND FULFILLED WITH YOUR HAND - Your hands. Jeremiah pointed to their hands, in which they were carrying the crescent-shaped cakes which they had vowed to the goddess. Their idolatry therefore was an accomplished deed, as the symbols held in their hands testified. YE WILL SURELY ACCOMPLISH - Or, Accomplish then your vows. It is not a prediction, but is ironical, and means that as they will take no warning, they must needs have their way. J

EXPOSITION Jeremiah's debate with the Jewish fugitives in Pathros; his last prophecy. JEREMIAH 44:1 Accusation brought against the obstinately idolatrous people. JEREMIAH 44:1 WHICH DWELL; rather, _which dwelt. _It appears from this verse that the Jewish fugitives had separated in Egypt, some going to the two northern frontier cities, Migdol (on which see R.S. Poole, 'The Cities of Egypt,' Jeremiah 8:1.) and Tahpanhes or Daphnae, others further south to Noph, _i.e. _Memphis, or, less probably, Napata (see on Jeremiah 2:16), and

THUS SAITH THE LORD OF HOSTS, THE GOD OF ISRAEL,.... Which is an usual preface to prophecies coming from him: SAYING; as follows: YE AND YOUR WIVES HAVE BOTH SPOKEN WITH YOUR MOUTHS, AND FULFILLED WITH YOUR HAND; they had said they would burn incense to the queen of heaven, and they had done it; they had been as good as their word, true to it, though in a bad thing: their words and works agreed, and so did the men and their wives: the women had before said they did not perform worship to the queen of heaven without their men; this is acknowledged by the Lord, and their confession is improved against them: SAYING, WE WILL SURELY PERFORM OUR VOWS THAT WE HAVE VOWED, TO BURN INCENSE TO QUEEN OF HEAVEN, AND TO POUR OUT DRINK OFFERINGS UNTO HER; they thought, because they made a vow that they would do it, that it was therefore obligatory upon them, and this would be sufficient to justify t...

CHAPTER 44 _ 1. The message to the Jews (Jeremiah 44:1) _ 2. Their punishment (Jeremiah 44:11) 3. Worshipping the queen of heaven (Jeremiah 44:15) 4. Jehovah's answer (Jeremiah 44:20) 5. The sign: Pharaoh-Hophra's Defeat (Jeremiah 44:29) Jeremiah 44:1. The message is concerning all the Jews who were now dwelling in Egypt. Besides being in Tahpanhes, they were also in Noph (Memphis) and

JEREMIAH 44. DENUNCIATION OF THE JEWISH WORSHIP OF ISHTAR IN EGYPT. Jeremiah points to the desolation of Judah as the experienced consequence of idolatry, notwithstanding Yahweh's warnings (Jeremiah 44:1). Why, then, do they repeat the offence, forgetting the past? Yahweh will destroy the remnant in Egypt, leaving fugitives only (Jeremiah 44:7). The assembled men and women refuse to abandon the worship of Ishtar (the queen of heaven, Jeremiah 7:18 *), which they have vowed (Jeremiah 44:17, out of our mouth, Judges 11:36); prosperity of old acc

See introd. summary of the ch....

YE AND YOUR WIVES HAVE BOTH SPOKEN— _Your wives have spoken from your mouth, that which you have fulfilled with your hands, when you said, We,_ &c.—_They have accomplished your vows, they have performed what you vowed._ Houbigant....