Chapter 11
Israel’s broken covenant
Lecture 1
The covenant recalled
11:1 The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord , saying:
11:2 Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem,
11:3 and you shall say to them: thus says the Lord God of Israel: cursed is the man who will not hearken to the words of this covenant,
11:4 which I commanded to your fathers, on the day when I led them from the land of Egypt, from the furnace of iron, saying: hear my voice, and do all that I command you, and you shall be my people, and I will be your God:
11:5 That I may stir up the oath which I swore to your fathers, that I would give them a land flowing with milk and honey, as it is today. And I answered, and said: amen, O Lord .
11:6 And the Lord said to me: proclaim all these words in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, saying: hear the words of this covenant, and do them.
77 . Here, he shows the dignity of the people from the fact that, having entered into a covenant with God, they were leagued together.
First, he speaks of the covenant, and he threatens punishment to those who transgress it.
Second, he examines the justice of punishing them: indeed, you are just, O Lord (Jer 12:1).
Concerning the first, there are two points.
First, he sets forth the covenant;
second, their transgression of the covenant, at for I strongly warned (Jer 11:7).
Concerning the first, there are two points.
First, the prophet is urged to proclaim: hear , which is addressed to you and those who are with you; they are good, and as such, are in a sense privileged.
And you shall say to them . Ezekiel speaks of this covenant: I have covered your shame, and sworn to you, and entered into a covenant with you, says the Lord God, and you are mine (Ezek 16:18).
Second, the people are urged to keep the covenant.
First, he sets forth two reasons:
the first of which he takes from the punishment of those who transgress: cursed is the man . Cursed is the man who will not abide in the words of this law, and not fulfill them in deed (Deut 27:26).
And he shows the justice of the punishment: on the day when I led them from the land of Egypt —it is as though he were saying, “It is just to punish them, who are ungrateful after having received so many kindnesses”; from the furnace , so called because of their affliction, of iron , because of the cruel domination. But the Lord took you from the iron furnace of Egypt, so that he might have a people of inheritance, as you are today (Deut 4:20). Then, he speaks of the form of the covenant: saying —in which he asks for something, namely, obedience— hear , and he promises something, namely the glory of friendship with God: and you shall be my people, and I will be your God . Above: this thing did I command them, saying: hear my voice, and I will be a God to you, and you shall be my people (Jer 7:23).
The second reason he takes from the reward of those who obey: that I may stir up , what had almost become void, because of the coming captivity; with milk , because of the abundance of animals, and honey , because of the abundance of plants springing from the earth. Alternatively, through hyperbole, an abundance of every good thing is signified by these two. That you may increase yet more in a land flowing with milk and honey, as the Lord God of your fathers has promised you (Deut 6:3).
Second, he gives the assent of the prophet: I answered, amen , that is, you have truly done what you promised: and all the people shall say, amen (Deut 27:26).
Third, the conclusion is drawn that they should give heed: and the Lord said . Raise your voice in strength (Isa 40:9).
Lecture 2
The covenant’s transgression
11:7 For I strongly warned your fathers, on the day when I brought them forth from the land of Egypt until this day; rising early I warned them, and said: listen to my voice.
11:8 But they did not listen, nor did they incline their ear, but turned away, each one in the depravity of his own evil heart; and I brought all the words of this covenant upon them, which I commanded them to do, and they did not do.
11:9 And the Lord said to me: a conspiracy has been found among the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
11:10 They have turned back to the former iniquities of their fathers, and they refused to listen to my words; therefore, they have gone after strange gods, that they might serve them; the house of Israel and the house of Judah have made void my covenant, which I made with their fathers.
78 . Here, he shows how they have transgressed the covenant:
first, by sinning against God;
second, by sinning against the prophet, at but you, O Lord , have shown me, and I have known (Jer 11:18).
Concerning the first, there are two points.
First, he sets forth their guilt;
second, he threatens punishment, at therefore, thus says the Lord (Jer 11:11).
Concerning the first point, there are three things.
First, his diligent admonition is shown: from the oath: I strongly warned , as though adjuring them; and from the time being uninterrupted: on the day when I brought them forth ; and further, from the appropriateness of the time: rising early , when man is more disposed to understand. Though I have spoken to you rising early and speaking (Jer 7:13).
Second, the transgression of the disobedient people is mentioned: but they did not listen . All have turned aside to their own way, each one to his greed, from the greatest to the least (Isa 56:11).
Third is set forth the aggravation of their guilt through stubbornness: and I brought upon them , because they were corrected neither by the punishments nor by the blessings contained in the covenant of the law that had been revealed to them. For I called, and you refused; I stretched out my hand, and there was none who would look; you despised all my counsel, and ignored my rebukes. I also shall laugh at your destruction, and mock when your fear comes upon you (Prov 1:24–26).
From the conspiracy: a conspiracy has been found —it is as though he were saying, “All have sinned alike, just as if they had conspired at it.” For a conspiracy is an agreement strengthened by an oath to do something. Everything which this people speaks is a conspiracy (Isa 8:12).
And from habit, they have turned back . They have turned back that they may be without yoke, they have become like a treacherous bow (Hos 7:16).
Fourth, the conclusion is drawn: have made void . But they like Adam have transgressed the covenant, they have rebelled against me (Hos 6:7). She has forsaken the guide of her youth, and forgotten the covenant of her God (Prov 2:17).
Lecture 3
Inescapable punishment
11:11 Therefore, thus says the Lord : behold I shall bring evil upon them, from which they shall not be able to escape; and they shall cry to me, but I will not hear them.
11:12 And the cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem shall go and cry to the gods for whom they pour out drink offerings, and they shall not save them in the time of their affliction.
11:13 For according to the number of your cities, O Judah, were your gods, and according to the number of the streets of Jerusalem have you erected altars to your shame, altars to pour out drink offerings to the Baalim.
11:14 Therefore, you shall not pray for this people; take up no praise, or prayer for them, for I will not hear them in the time of their cry unto me, in the time of their affliction.
11:15 Why is it that my beloved has done much wickedness in my house? Will the sacred flesh take away your wickedness in which you gloried?
11:16 The Lord called your name an abundant olive tree, beautiful, fruitful, and fair. At the sound of a great word, a fire was kindled in her, and her branches were burnt.
11:17 And the Lord of hosts, who planted you, has spoken evil concerning you, for the evils of the house of Israel, and the house of Judah, which they did to provoke me, pouring out drink offerings to the Baalim.
79 . Here, he threatens an inescapable punishment for incorrigible guilt.
First, he speaks of the punishment: behold I . He who draws himself out of the pit shall be taken by the snare (Isa 24:18).
Second, he excludes escape as a means of aid:
first, because they will not be helped by their own prayers poured out to God: they shall cry to me, but I will not hear them . They will call upon me, and I will not listen (Prov 1:28).
Neither will they be helped by prayers poured out to idols: and the cities of Judah shall go . They are ignorant who raise the image of their idol, and pray to a lord who cannot save (Isa 45:20).
And he adds the multitude of their idols: for according to the number of your cities, O Judah, were your gods . You have made a brothel on every street, and at the head of every street you have built an image of your prostitution (Ezek 16:31). The same is said above (Jer 2:28).
Not even by the prayers of others: therefore, you shall not pray for this people; take up no praise , as if by praising me for being merciful, you might induce me to show mercy. How long shall you mourn for Saul, when I have rejected him from reigning over Israel (1 Sam 16:1). The same is said above (Jer 7:16).
Second, that they will not be helped by the offering of sacrifices. He ascribes the reason to their rejection: why is it that my beloved , the people of Judah; in my house , there in the temple, worshiping idols. What do you think, O son of man, do you see, what these men do, the great abominations which the house of Israel does here, so that they may depart afar off from my sanctuary (Ezek 8:6). Here, he speaks of the rejection of the sacrifices: will the flesh , of sacrificed animals. It is impossible to take away sins with the blood of goats and bulls (Heb 10:4).
Third, he shows that they will not be helped by their own efforts. Concerning this, there are two things.
First, he recalls their former glory: an abundant olive tree , with regard to the abundance of her branches, by which is signified the multitude of the people; beautiful , with regard to greenness of color, by which is meant flourishing prosperity, and the vigorous strength of the mind; fruitful , with regard to the bounty of fruits, by which is meant the abundance of great good works; fair , with regard to the arrangement of the parts, by which is signified the proper ordering of the people. The Lord called , that such renown should go forth from you from every place. His glory shall be like the olive, and his fragrance like the Lebanon (Hos 14:6).
Second, he predicts their future punishment:
first, when he sets forth the punishment itself: at the sound of a word , that is, at the command of Nebuchadnezzar; in her , that is, the house of Israel; a fire was kindled in her , literally; her branches , men, and those things which pertained to them. Alternatively, of a great word , because from such an address you thought grand things of yourself, and therefore deserved punishment. I would march against it in battle, and set it on fire in like manner (Isa 27:4).
Second, the power of the one who punishes: the Lord of hosts . The Lord puts to death and gives life; he brings down to hell, and brings back again (1 Sam 2:6).
Third, he gives the cause: for the evils . They have provoked me by that which was no god, and incited me with their vanities; I also shall provoke them by that which is no people, and incite them with a foolish nation (Deut 32:21).
Lecture 4
Jeremiah’s persecution
11:18 But you, O Lord , have shown me, and I have known; then you disclosed to me their intentions.
11:19 And I was gentle, like a lamb brought as a sacrifice: and I did not know that they took counsel against me, saying: let us put wood in his bread, and let us cut him off from the land of the living, and his name shall be remembered no more.
11:20 But you, O Lord Sabaoth, who judges justly, and tests the reins and the heart, let me see your vengeance upon them; for to you have I revealed my cause.
11:21 Therefore, thus says the Lord to the men of Anathoth, who seek your soul, and they say: do not prophecy in the name of the Lord , and you shall not die in our hands.
11:22 Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts: behold, I shall visit this upon them: the young men shall die by the sword, and their sons and their daughters shall die of hunger.
11:23 And there shall be no remnant of them; for I will bring this evil upon the men of Anathoth, the year of their visitation.
80 . Here, he shows how they have transgressed by sinning against the prophet himself, and certainly what is said suits Jeremiah literally, who came to be hated by the people because of the evils which he predicted; but the persecution of Jeremiah prefigures the passion of Christ, as the Gloss says. This seems, however, to go against the opinion above, in which we have applied what was said to Christ and not to Jeremiah. But all the prophets did most things as a type of the Savior, and what is fulfilled in the present in Jeremiah is prophesied about the Lord in the future.
Concerning this, therefore, there are three things.
For first, the prophet sets forth the guilt of his adversaries:
first, the revelation of their communal guilt: you have shown , by interior revelation; you disclosed , by external signs, their intentions , their machinations against me. With his strong hand he taught me that I might not go in the way of this people (Isa 8:11).
And he sets forth the necessity of the revelation, inasmuch as the deliberative faculty of itself could neither know, nor suspect, because of his innocence, which did not deserve such things. And I was like a lamb: and I did not know . Even Christ as man along the way received that knowledge from God, by which he knew all things through the grace of the hypostatic union, just as others receive what they know through the grace of revelation. As a lamb before the shearer is silent, and opens not his mouth (Isa 53:7). For who knows the things that are in a man but the spirit of man, which is in him (1 Cor 2:11). The Lord knows the thoughts of man, that they are vain (Ps 93:11). Let us put wood , that is, yew wood, so that poisoned in this way he would die, let us cut him off , so that no memory of him remains, like a tablet whose previous writing has been erased. Mystically, it is the body of Christ on the wood of the cross; alternatively, wood in his bread , that is, through the wood of the cross let us stir up scandal at his doctrine, which is bread. He was cut off from the earth (Isa 53:8).
Second, the prophet seeks vindication, and he mentions the power and the authority by which this is possible: but you, O Lord Sabaoth , that is, of hosts: the justice by which he wills; who judges justly , the knowledge by which he knows it; and tests the reins , the affections, and the heart , that is, the thoughts; let me see your vengeance upon them , from the person of Christ, on those who are stubborn, for he prays for others. Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do (Luke 23:34). You have seen, O Lord, their iniquity against me, judge my cause (Lam 3:59). And he gives the reason: for to you have I revealed , not as to one who did not know, but trusting my whole cause to you. Cast your care upon the Lord, and he will sustain you (Ps 54:22).
Third, the Lord threatens punishment:
first, he takes up their malice again: therefore, thus says the Lord to the men of Anathoth, who seek your soul , to kill you. Those who sought my soul have done violence (Ps 37:13). And he adds the cause of this malice: and they say: do not prophecy , as though you will only be able to avoid death if you stop prophesying. Who say to the seers, do not see (Isa 30:10).
Second, he threatens the punishment:
first, foretelling the visitation: therefore, thus says the Lord . I shall visit their iniquities with a rod, and their sins with stripes (Ps 88:32).
Second, the determination of their punishment: their . . . young men . Below: those who are for the sword, to the sword, and those who are for famine, to famine (Jer 15:2).
Third, the power of the one who punishes them: I will bring this evil upon them —I who am able. Bring upon them the day of affliction, and destroy them with a double destruction (Jer 17:18). Mystically, the men of Anathoth , which means “obedience,” signifies the men of Jerusalem, who, once obedient to the Lord, afterwards persecuted Christ.
Collations
Note that the olive tree (Jer 11:16) is called holy because of fatness, by which is signified devotion: you have been made a partaker in the root, and fatness of the olive tree (Rom 11:17); because of the excellence of the oil, by which is signified contemplation: these are the two sons of oil, who stand beside the Lord of the whole earth (Zech 4:14). And he made for the oracle two cherubim from olive wood, ten cubits in height (1 Kgs 6:23). Because of the greenness of its leaves, by which is signified the strength of the mind: the dove returned at evening, carrying the branch of a green olive tree in her mouth (Gen 8:11); because of its fertility, by which is signified an abundance of good works: but I am like a fruitful olive tree in the house of God, I have hoped in the mercy of God forever, and unto ages of ages (Ps 51:10); because of its beauty, by which is signified the glory of the saints: as a beautiful olive tree in the fields, and like a plane tree I am exalted by the waters (Sir 24:19). His glory will be like the olive tree, and his fragrance like the Lebanon (Hos 14:6).