Chapter 3
Israel and Judah as adulteresses
Lecture 1
Mercy upon the adulteress
3:1 It is said commonly, if a man shall send his wife away, and she, departing from him, marry another man, can he return to her again? Will not that woman be unclean and defiled? Though you have fornicated with your many lovers, still, return to me, says the Lord , and I will take you.
3:2 Lift up your eyes on high, and see where you have not lain. You would sit by the roads waiting them as a thief in the desert; you have defiled the land with your fornications, and your iniquities.
3:3 Therefore, the drops of the rains were held back, and the latter rain was not given. You have had the forehead of a harlot, you would not blush.
3:4 Therefore, at least from this time forward cry unto me, ‘You are my Father, the guide of my youth.
3:5a Will you be angry forever, or will you continue to the end?’
16 . Here, he calls them to repentance.
First, he speaks of the invitation to return.
Second, he speaks of the stubbornness of those who are called back: and you shall say to them (Jer 8:4).
The first is divided into two.
In the first, he speaks of the admonitions to return;
and in the second, the reasons for the same: if you return, O Israel, says the Lord , to turn back to me (Jer 4:1).
The first point is divided into two.
In the first, he calls the people back;
in the second, he mentions the fruit of their repudiation, when he says: but as a woman that despises her lover (Jer 3:20).
The first point is divided into two.
In the first, he calls them back from the crime of adultery;
in the second, from its punishment, where he says: go and shout these words against the north wind (Jer 3:12).
The first part is divided into two.
In the first, he calls them back with admonitions;
in the second, by examples, at and the Lord said to me in the days of Josiah the king (Jer 3:6a).
Concerning the first, he does two things.
First, he calls them back by reason of the mercy of God, which he proves by citing the common proverb: if a man shall send his wife away , which comes from Deuteronomy 24:1: if a man shall send his wife away . He speaks according to the permission given regarding the bill of divorce because of the hardness of their heart (Matt 19:8); he was forbidding a return either so that they would not be readily prone to divorce, or lest they kill her after having taken her back with deceit. From this proverb he draws the proof of divine clemency: you have fornicated with your many lovers , the idols. Let him return to the Lord and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, because he will abundantly pardon (Isa 55:7).
Second, he calls them back from their guilt.
First, by exposing their guilt, and indicating the place where it occurred: lift up your eyes on high , that is, with right consideration, or alternatively, “everywhere”; where have you not , as though everywhere, lain , like a harlot, for idolatry. You have made a brothel in every street (Ezek 16:24). And the desire for sinning: you would sit by the roads , like a harlot waiting for her lovers, and as a thief waiting for those whom he might despoil. And behold, there met him a woman with the attire of a harlot, prepared to deceive souls (Prov 7:10). Gilead is a city of those who make idols, supplanted with blood, and like the jaws of highway robbers (Hos 6:8). He indicates the effect of their sin: you have defiled the land . As we saw above, you polluted my land, and turned my inheritance into an abomination (Jer 2:7).
Then, he establishes the punishment for the sin: therefore, the drops of the rains were held back , by whose power the rain and the storm are generated— I shall command the clouds that they rain not showers upon my vine (Isa 5:6). And he shows the shamelessness of those who sinned, the forehead of a harlot . As it says below, nay; rather, they were not ashamed of shame (Jer 6:15).
Second, he urges them to repentance.
First, he encourages them to recognize the benefits: therefore . It is as though he were saying, “The past suffices, and so on.” You are my Father , through creation, the guide of my youth . It is as though he were saying, “When you led me through the desert, I was yet a virgin.” Who forsook the guide of her youth (Prov 2:17). The Spirit of the Lord was her guide (Isa 63:14).
Second, he urges them to seek mercy, and says: will you be angry forever, or will you continue to the end? Will you be angry with us forever, or extend your anger from generation to generation? (Ps 84:6).
Lecture 2
Israel’s contempt
3:5b Behold you have spoken, and you have done wickedness, and you were able.
3:6a The Lord said to me in the days of Josiah the king: have you not seen what rebellious Israel has done?
17 . Here, he shows their contempt with regard to the sins of the mouth: behold you have spoken , which refers to prideful words, etc. With regard to sins of commission: and you have done , which corresponds to the phrase, you have satisfied wickedness , with regard to the sin of the heart; and you were able —to which he adds, and you have displayed , as though you reveled in your power to sin. Now the phrase, and for your words , is not in the Hebrew, or in ancient books, but appears to be a clarification of Jerome. God gave him a space to repent, but he abused it in his pride (Job 24:23). Woe to you who are mighty to drink wine, and strong men to mix drunkenness (Isa 5:22).
Lecture 3
Judah and Israel’s adultery
3:6b She has gone away upon every high mountain, and under every green tree, and fornicated there.
3:7 And I said when she had done all these things, ‘Return to me,’ but she did not return. And Judah her treacherous sister saw,
3:8 that because rebellious Israel had committed adultery, I sent her away, and gave her a bill of divorce. Yet treacherous Judah her sister did not fear, but strayed and even fornicated herself.
3:9 With the heedlessness of her fornication she polluted the earth, and committed adultery with stone and wood:
3:10 In all these things, her treacherous sister Judah did not return to me with her whole heart, but with a lie, says the Lord .
3:11 And the Lord said to me, rebellious Israel has justified her soul, by comparing herself to treacherous Judah.
18 . Here, he calls them back by the example of the ten tribes: and concerning this he makes three points.
First, he gives an example of the crime of idolatry— she has gone away , following her own inclinations, and not my commands;
and he speaks of her disobedience: and I said . They have made for themselves statues, and groves on every high hill, and under every leafy tree, and there they burned incense upon their altars after the manner of the nations (2 Kgs 17:10). And as for the punishment which he made known to them: her treacherous sister saw , because they arose from the same ancestors.
I gave her a bill of divorce : she maintains the likeness of a harlot, in whom filthiness is found.
Yet, on the contrary, what is this bill of divorce? (Isa 50:1).
It must be said that God, insofar as it pertains to him, divorces no one, but that it is sinful man who divorces himself from God. For this reason, it says in the same place: you have been sold for your iniquities, and for your wickedness have I divorced your mother .
Second, he exposes their contempt: yet treacherous Judah her sister did not fear .
With stone , that is, with an idol made of stone. But neither did Judah himself keep the commandments of the Lord his God, but erred and strayed in the errors which Israel had done (2 Kgs 17:19).
Third, he exacerbates their guilt: and the Lord said to me, rebellious Israel has justified , comparatively, because the ten tribes had not seen the punishment of other peoples, and they were not corrected. You have justified your sisters in all your abominations, which you have done (Ezek 16:51).
Lecture 4
Call to return
3:12 Go and shout these words against the north wind, and say: return rebellious Israel, says the Lord , and I will not turn my face away from you, because I am holy, says the Lord , and I will not be angry forever.
3:13 But recognize your iniquity, that you have rebelled against the Lord your God, and scattered your ways to strangers under every green tree, and have not listened to my voice, says the Lord .
3:14a Turn back, returning children, says the Lord , because I am your husband.
19 . Here, he calls them back from the punishment of captivity.
First, he calls them back.
Second, he shows them the cause of their being called back, at but I said (Jer 3:19).
Concerning the first, there are two points.
First, he speaks of their being called back;
and second, the response of those who were called back: and I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will lead you into Zion (Jer 3:14b).
Concerning the first, there are two points.
First, he calls them back from the ten tribes when he calls them to return, against the north wind , where they are held captive in the land of the Assyrians. He will not always be angry, nor threaten forever (Ps 102:9).
And regarding the recognition of their sins, but recognize . You have . . . scattered your ways to strangers , as though to many idols. As we saw above, consider the roads in the valley and know what you have done (Jer 2:23).
Second, speaking of those from the two tribes, turn back , by repentance, returning , to me. Or, returning , from captivity. And it shall be on that day, says the Lord, that she will call me, ‘My husband,’ and will no more call upon the Baalim (Hos 2:16).
Lecture 5
Promise of shepherds
3:14b And I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will lead you into Zion.
3:15 And I will give you shepherds after my own heart, and they will feed you with knowledge and understanding.
3:16 And when you have multiplied, and grown numerous in the land in those days, says the Lord , they shall not say anymore, the ark of the covenant of the Lord , neither shall it come into their heart, neither shall there be remembrance of it, neither shall it be visited, or be anymore.
3:17 In that time they will call Jerusalem the throne of the Lord ; and all nations shall be gathered together in her in the name of the Lord in Jerusalem, and they will not walk after the depravity of their own wicked hearts.
3:18 In those days the house of Judah shall go forth to the house of Israel, and together they shall come from the land of the north to the land which I gave to your fathers.
20 . Here, he takes up the response of those who have been called back:
first, those of the two tribes, promising them the restitution of their native land: one from a city , because they were scattered, or because not all have come back. Indeed, I will take you from the nations, and I will gather you from every land, and I will lead you to your own land (Ezek 36:24).
And the restoration of justice by the correction of their rulers: and I will give you shepherds after my own heart, and they will feed you with knowledge , regarding faith, and understanding , regarding morals. I will restore your judges as they were before, and your counsellors as they were of old (Isa 1:26).
Third, with regard to the increase of glory, which he signifies by the forgetting of what has come before: when you have multiplied . . . they shall not say anymore, the ark of the covenant of the Lord —as though they will account what they now glory in as nothing, because the ark had been hidden and not found, as it says in 2 Maccabees 1.
And from the promise of future things: in that time they will call Jerusalem , whole, because it has been completed by the reputation for sanctity in which it was held, as it says in 1 Maccabees 3. The place of my throne, and the place of the prints of my feet, where I dwell in the midst of the children of Israel forever (Ezek 43:7).
And with regard to the increase of worship: and all nations shall be gathered together , some will come from all peoples, for they shall come to pray in Jerusalem. Or it may be understood to speak of the conversion of the nations to the faith of Christ. All the nations, which you have made, will come and worship before you, O Lord (Ps 85:9).
Second, he discusses the conversion of the ten tribes: in those days the house of Judah shall go forth to the house of Israel , because those who returned were joined to the two tribes. This is alluded to by the fact that it is said: together they shall come . As it is said below: in those days, and at that time, says the Lord , the children of Israel shall come, they and the children of Judah together, walking and weeping they shall make haste, and shall seek the Lord their God (Jer 50:4). Some, however, interpret all this to refer to the last times.
Lecture 6
Reason for mercy
3:19 But I said: how shall I set you among the sons, and give you a desirable land, an excellent inheritance from among the hosts of the nations? And I said: you will call me ‘Father,’ and you will not cease to walk after me.
21 . Here, he gives the reason for their being called back.
First, he poses the question: how? That is, how is it possible that I should bestow so many good things upon you, when you languish in so many sins? Among the sons , that is, among a multitude of sons, the hosts of the nations , that is, where, since ancient times, armies have gathered, as they do even to this day, because of its allurements: they set at naught the desirable land (Ps 105:24). The lines have fallen to me in goodly places, for my inheritance is goodly to me (Ps 15:6).
Second, he gives the response: and I said , that is, foreseeing the good which you will do, I promise these things to you. He will call upon me: you are my father, my God and the support of my salvation (Ps 88:27).
Lecture 7
Shame after conversion
3:20 But as a woman that despises her lover, so has the house of Israel despised me, says the Lord .
3:21 A voice was heard on the roads, the crying and the wailing of the children of Israel, for they have made their way wicked, and have forgotten the Lord their God.
3:22 Turn back, wayward children, and I will heal your backslidings. Behold, we have come to you, for you are the Lord our God.
3:23 Surely the hills were deceitful, the multitude of the mountains; truly in the Lord our God is the salvation of Israel.
3:24 Shame has devoured the labor of our fathers from our youth, their flocks and their herds, their sons and their daughters.
3:25 We will sleep in our shame, and our disgrace shall cover us, for we have sinned against the Lord our God, we and our fathers, from our youth until this day, and we have not listened to the voice of the Lord our God.
22 . Here he discusses the fruit of their return.
First, he speaks of the necessity of their being called back as regards their own guilt— lover , not husband. Go, and love a woman loved by a lover, an adulteress (Hos 3:1).
Regarding the punishment, a voice was heard on the roads . As it says below, a voice was heard on high: lamentation, grief and wailing, Rachel weeping for her children (Jer 31:15).
Second, he discusses the usefulness of conversion: turn back , as it says above, backslidings , the things by which you have been turned away from God. Who heals all your infirmities (Ps 102:3). Turn back to me, and you will be saved (Isa 45:22).
Third, he treats of their return.
First, he acknowledges their obedience: behold, we have come , as you commanded. Come, let us return to the Lord, because he has taken and healed us; he will strike, and will cure us (Hos 6:1).
Second, they confess the magnificence of God, professing his divinity: for you are the Lord our God . This is my God, and I will glorify him (Exod 15:2).
And the falsity of their idols: surely the hills were deceitful , because the idols which we worshiped there did not bring the help for which we hoped, nor did they have the divinity which they pretended. We have set a lie as our hope, and by a lie are we protected (Isa 28:15). And the usefulness of worshiping God: truly in the Lord our God is the salvation of Israel . In God is my salvation, the God of my help, and my hope is in God (Ps 61:7).
Third, they confess their guilt and their punishment, and that of their fathers: shame has devoured the labor of our fathers from our youth . As it says below: O Lord , all who forsake you shall be put to shame; those who depart from you shall be inscribed in the land, for they have abandoned the Lord , the source of living waters (Jer 17:13).
Collations
Note that God is called father (Jer 3:4) from his act of creating: I confess to you Father, Lord of heaven and earth (Matt 11:25). By adoption: you have received the spirit of adoption of the sons of God, in whom we cry, Abba Father (Rom 8:15). By instruction: the father shall make known to his sons your truth (Isa 38:19). By correction: for whom the Lord loves, he chastens, and as a father a son in whom he delights (Prov 3:12).
Note that the inheritance (Jer 3:19) of the heavenly homeland is in the bright splendor of the divine vision: wisdom is bright and never fading, and easily seen by those who love her (Wis 6:12). In the sweetness of divine love: my intoxicating cup — how excellent it is (Ps 23:5). In familiarity with divine address: renown in sharing her words (Wis 8:18). In the magnificence of his work: there are great and wondrous works (Sir 43:27). In the greatness of exultation: the house of Judah and the house of Israel will be for a blessing (Zech 8:13). In the consolation of fellowship: every tree of pleasure which was in the paradise of God (Ezek 31:9).