Jeremiah
Verse 2. Ways. Religious rites. verse 3.—Fear. Worship. Leviticus 19:14.—Signs. They were designed to point out the seasons. Genesis 1:14. Calmet.—Heathens thought that they had a divine power. Worthington.
EXPLANATIONS
Jeremiah 10
Historical chapter commentary
Jeremiah
Verse 4. Asunder. Isaiah 44:8. Baruch 6:3. Wisd. 13:11. The pagans themselves laughed at such folly. Calmet.—If such things were gods, the makers and tools deserved more adoration: Fabri deorum vel parentes numinum, says Prudentius. The vanity of such idols was more easily discerned than that of the stars. Worthington.
Jeremiah
Verse 5. Tree. The ancient statues were ill-formed, (Diodor. 4.) before Dedalus brought the art to greater perfection, and gave them a living attitude.
Jeremiah
Verse 6. There. Septuagint omit the three following verses; and from verse 9. all these, and so forth to the end of verse 10 which Grabe inserts in a different character. Bible.
Jeremiah
Verse 7. Wise. MS. 2. has in the margin “kings,” perhaps more correctly. Kennicott.
Jeremiah
Verse 8. Vanity, and shews them clearly to be foolish ( Calmet.) and wicked. Bible.
Jeremiah
Verse 9. Ophaz, or Phison, (Genesis 2:11. Calmet.) the coast of Pegu, Faprobana, and so forth Menochius.
Jeremiah
Verse 10. Wrath. God is the true cause of all that terrifies mankind.
Jeremiah
Verse 11. Heaven. This verse is in Chaldee, for the captives to use at Babylon, to defend themselves. It should be in a parenthesis, as it interrupts the discourse. Perhaps it was added during the captivity.
Jeremiah
Verse 13. Voice. Thunder, (Psalms 28:3) which is usually the forerunner of rain. Lightning is occasioned by the inflamed exhalations of conflicting clouds.
Jeremiah
Verse 14. Knowledge. If it were real, he would see the vanity of idols. verse 8. Calmet.
Jeremiah
Verse 16. Portion. The Lord. Bible. Psalms 72:6.—Rod, to measure, (Psalms 73:2) or the sceptre and ruler. Menochius.
Jeremiah
Verse 17. Shame. Idols. See if they will keep thee. Hebrew “thy merchandise,” or most precious effects.
Jeremiah
Verse 18. Found by the enemy. Hebrew also, “find” me, being taught by affliction. Calmet. 29:13. Calmet.—Entering into sentiments of penance, they shall say, Woe, and so forth Bible.
Jeremiah
Verse 22. North. He has announced this conqueror eight times.—Dragons. Tannim means “huge reptiles,” whether of sea or land. Calmet.
Jeremiah
Verse 23. The way, and so forth Notwithstanding man’s free-will, yet he can do no good without God’s help, nor evil without his permission. So that, in the present case, all the evils which Nabuchodonosor was about to bring upon Jerusalem, could not have come but by the will of God. Challoner. Worthington.—This prince succeeds by thy order. Theod.—Yet chastise us as a father, and have us not to his fury. verse 24. Calmet.—“Let new preachers blush, who say that each one is governed by his own will,” (Saint Jerome Calmet. ix. 23) and able to do good without God’s grace. Bible.
Jeremiah
Verse 24. Judgment. Calmet. 30:11. Psalms 6:1. Justice is not contrary to mercy. Calmet.
Jeremiah
Verse 25. Glory. This is repeated from Psalms 78:6. Menochius.—The prophet supposes that these nations will not repent, and that their sins are more enormous. To see God’s people treated with greater severity, might scandalize the weak, while infidels would take occasion to abuse their own impunity. Calmet.