Jeremiah 44:3

Because of their wickedness which they have committed to provoke me to anger, in that they went to burn incense, and to serve other gods, whom they knew not, neither they, ye, nor your fathers. THEY WENT - implying perverse assiduity, 'they went (out of their way) to burn incense' (one species of idolatry put for all kinds), etc....

He afterwards adds, _For the evil which they did to provoke _me. He refers to the sins by which the Jews had provoked the wrath of God; for the people whom Jeremiah addressed had relapsed into those superstitions which had been the cause of their ruin. Had the Prophet spoken generally and said, that it was strange that the Jews had forgotten the punishment which had been inflicted by God on the whole nation, his doctrine would not have been so impressive. But when he now points out as by the finger how they had procured for themselves such calamities, he presses and urges them more forcibly to acknowledge their madness, because they thus continually provoked God, and sinned not through ignorance, but offended him by the same sins for which yet they had suffered punishment so grievous and dreadful. This is the reason why the Prophet says, _For the evil which they did to provoke me, _even...

1-14 God reminds the Jews of the sins that brought desolations upon Judah. It becomes us to warn men of the danger of sin with all seriousness: Oh, do not do it! If you love God, do not, for it is provoking to him; if you love your own souls, do not, for it is destructive to them. Let conscience do this for us in the hour of temptation. The Jews whom God sent into the land of the Chaldeans, were there, by the power of God's grace, weaned from idolatry; but those who went by their own perverse will into the land of the Egyptians, were there more attached than ever to their idolatries. When we thrust ourselves without cause or call into places of temptation, it is just with God to leave us to ourselves. If we walk contrary to God, he will walk contrary to us. The most awful miseries to which men are exposed, are occasioned by the neglect of offered salvation....

IN THAT THEY WENT TO BURN INCENSE, AND TO SERVE - Or, by going to burn incense to serve thereby other gods....

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

BECAUSE OF THEIR WICKEDNESS WHICH THEY HAVE COMMITTED TO PROVOKE ME TO ANGER,.... The cause of this desolation was the wickedness they were guilty of; whereby they provoked the anger of God to bring this destruction on them. Sin is always provoking unto God; and though it may not be done on purpose to provoke him, which it sometimes seems to be; yet it eventually does, and is always the cause of punishment: God never punishes man without a cause, or for anything but sin: IN THAT THEY WENT TO BURN INCENSE, [AND] TO SERVE OTHER GODS: the particular wickedness they were guilty of, and which was the cause of their ruin, was burning incense to idols, and worshipping them, than which nothing is more provoking to God: and it was an aggravation of their sin, that they were gods WHOM THEY KNEW NOT, [NEITHER] THEY, YOU, NOR YOUR FATHERS; what they were; from whence they were; their original, and...

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

WICKEDNESS. Hebrew. _ra'a._ App-44. SERVE OTHER GODS. Reference to Pentateuch (Deuteronomy 13:6; Deuteronomy 32:17)....

_burn incense_ For this expression (and so throughout the ch.) See on Jeremiah 1:16....