Jeremiah 6 Study Notes: Siege Warning and the Old Paths
God warns that an army from the north will besiege Jerusalem because the city is full of oppression and its leaders give false assurances of safety. The people refuse His call to walk in the old good way and heed His watchmen, so their offerings are refused and they are judged as worthless metal.
General
In 6:16, what does the LORD tell His people to do where the roads meet, and what does He promise?
Answer: Ask for the old, good way, follow it, and find rest
The LORD tells His people to stand where the roads meet and look, to ask about the old paths and where the good road is, and then to walk in it, promising that their souls will find rest (6:16). The old paths are the long-established way of trusting and obeying the LORD that He had already made known to their fathers. But the people flatly refused to walk in it. Later the LORD says His people left the ancient roads for rough side paths (18:15). Jesus’ invitation to the weary echoes this promise: those who come to Him and take His yoke will receive rest for their souls (Matthew 11:28-29).
- Jeremiah 6:16 (BSB)“This is what the LORD says: “Stand at the crossroads and look. Ask for the ancient paths: ‘Where is the good way?’ Then walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But they said, ‘We will not walk in it!’”The LORD calls His people to seek the old, good way and promises rest, but they refuse.
- Jeremiah 18:15 (BSB)“Yet My people have forgotten Me. They burn incense to worthless idols that make them stumble in their ways, leaving the ancient roads to walk on rutted bypaths instead of on the highway.”The LORD says His people forgot Him and left the ancient roads for side paths.
- Matthew 11:28-29 (BSB)“Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”Jesus invites the weary to come to Him and promises rest for their souls.
Theological
What counsel and promise does the LORD give at the crossroads in 6:16?
Answer: Ask for the old, good way, follow it, and find rest
At the crossroads of 6:16 the LORD directs His people to inquire after the ancient paths, the good way already revealed in His covenant, to follow it, and so to find rest for their souls; their reply is a flat refusal. The forsaking of the ancient roads is charged again in 18:15. Jesus’ invitation to the weary echoes this promise of rest for the soul (Matthew 11:28-29), where the rest is found in coming to Him and taking His yoke.
- Jeremiah 6:16 (BSB)“This is what the LORD says: “Stand at the crossroads and look. Ask for the ancient paths: ‘Where is the good way?’ Then walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But they said, ‘We will not walk in it!’”The LORD calls His people to seek the old, good way and promises rest, but they refuse.
- Jeremiah 18:15 (BSB)“Yet My people have forgotten Me. They burn incense to worthless idols that make them stumble in their ways, leaving the ancient roads to walk on rutted bypaths instead of on the highway.”The LORD says His people forgot Him and left the ancient roads for side paths.
- Matthew 11:28-29 (BSB)“Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”Jesus invites the weary to come to Him and promises rest for their souls.
General
In 6:6-7, what reason does the LORD give for the siege against Jerusalem?
Answer: Oppression and evil flowed out of her
The chapter opens with a warning to Benjamin’s people to flee Jerusalem because ruin looms out of the north, and enemy shepherds with their flocks are pictured camped around her, eager to attack by day or by night (6:1-5). Then the LORD Himself orders trees cut down and a ramp built against the city, and He gives the reason: Jerusalem must be punished because she is full of oppression. As a spring keeps sending up water, she keeps sending out wickedness, and violence and ruin are heard in her streets (6:6-7). Even so He warns her to take heed, so that He does not turn from her and leave her desolate (6:8). Micah similarly charged Jerusalem’s leaders with building the city through injustice (Micah 3:9-10), and Isaiah called the once-faithful city a home of murderers (Isaiah 1:21).
- Jeremiah 6:6-8 (BSB)“For this is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Cut down the trees and raise a siege ramp against Jerusalem. This city must be punished; there is nothing but oppression in her midst. As a well gushes its water, so she pours out her evil. Violence and destruction resound in her; sickness and wounds are ever before Me. Be forewarned, O Jerusalem, or I will turn away from you; I will make you a desolation, a land without inhabitant.””The LORD orders the siege and says Jerusalem must be punished for the oppression and evil within her.
- Micah 3:9-10 (BSB)“Now hear this, O leaders of the house of Jacob and rulers of the house of Israel, who despise justice and pervert all that is right, who build Zion with bloodshed and Jerusalem with iniquity.”Micah condemns Jerusalem’s rulers for building the city with bloodshed and injustice.
- Isaiah 1:21 (BSB)“See how the faithful city has become a harlot! She once was full of justice; righteousness resided within her, but now only murderers!”Isaiah laments that the once-faithful city has become a place of murderers.
Theological
What grounds for Jerusalem’s punishment does the LORD state in 6:6-7?
Answer: Oppression and evil flowed out of her
After the alarm to Benjamin and the picture of enemy shepherds eager to storm the city (6:1-5), the LORD takes command of the siege Himself and states its cause: the city is to be punished because oppression fills her; she pours out wickedness as a well pours out water, and violence and destruction are heard within her (6:6-7). A final warning follows, lest He turn from her and make her a desolation (6:8). The charge parallels Micah 3:9-10 and Isaiah 1:21, where Jerusalem’s injustice is likewise the ground of judgment.
- Jeremiah 6:6-8 (BSB)“For this is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Cut down the trees and raise a siege ramp against Jerusalem. This city must be punished; there is nothing but oppression in her midst. As a well gushes its water, so she pours out her evil. Violence and destruction resound in her; sickness and wounds are ever before Me. Be forewarned, O Jerusalem, or I will turn away from you; I will make you a desolation, a land without inhabitant.””The LORD orders the siege and says Jerusalem must be punished for the oppression and evil within her.
- Micah 3:9-10 (BSB)“Now hear this, O leaders of the house of Jacob and rulers of the house of Israel, who despise justice and pervert all that is right, who build Zion with bloodshed and Jerusalem with iniquity.”Micah condemns Jerusalem’s rulers for building the city with bloodshed and injustice.
- Isaiah 1:21 (BSB)“See how the faithful city has become a harlot! She once was full of justice; righteousness resided within her, but now only murderers!”Isaiah laments that the once-faithful city has become a place of murderers.
General
As the cruel army from the north approaches (6:22-26), what are the people told to do?
Answer: Put on sackcloth and wail as for an only child
The LORD describes a great army roused in the far north, armed with bow and spear, cruel and without mercy, its roar like the sea (6:22-23). The people hear the news, their hands go limp, and pain grips them like a woman giving birth; they dare not venture into the fields or onto the road, for terror surrounds them (6:24-25). Then comes the call to the people to put on sackcloth, roll in ashes, and mourn bitterly, as one grieves for an only child, because the destroyer will arrive without warning (6:26). Grief for an only child was the deepest sorrow imaginable; Amos used the same picture for a day of judgment (Amos 8:10).
- Jeremiah 6:22-26 (BSB)“This is what the LORD says: “Behold, an army is coming from the land of the north; a great nation is stirred up from the ends of the earth. They grasp the bow and spear; they are cruel and merciless. Their voice roars like the sea, and they ride upon horses, lined up like men in formation against you, O Daughter of Zion.” We have heard the report; our hands hang limp. Anguish has gripped us, pain like that of a woman in labor. Do not go out to the fields; do not walk the road. For the enemy has a sword; terror is on every side. O daughter of my people, dress yourselves in sackcloth and roll in ashes. Mourn with bitter wailing, as you would for an only son, for suddenly the destroyer will come upon us.”A cruel army comes from the north, and the people are called to mourn bitterly as for an only son.
- Amos 8:10 (BSB)“I will turn your feasts into mourning and all your songs into lamentation. I will cause everyone to wear sackcloth and every head to be shaved. I will make it like a time of mourning for an only son, and its outcome like a bitter day.”Amos describes a day of judgment as mourning for an only son.
- Jeremiah 4:8 (BSB)“So put on sackcloth, mourn and wail, for the fierce anger of the LORD has not turned away from us.””Earlier the people were likewise told to put on sackcloth and lament because the LORD’s anger had not turned back.
Theological
What response is called for in 6:26 in the face of the army from the north?
Answer: Put on sackcloth and wail as for an only child
The northern army of 6:22-23 is cruel and pitiless, roaring as the sea roars and arrayed against Zion. Report of it brings paralysis and labor-like anguish, and terror on every side (6:24-25). The fitting response is lament: sackcloth, ashes, and bitter mourning as for an only child, for the destroyer comes suddenly (6:26). The image of grief for an only child marks the extremity of sorrow, as in Amos 8:10.
- Jeremiah 6:22-26 (BSB)“This is what the LORD says: “Behold, an army is coming from the land of the north; a great nation is stirred up from the ends of the earth. They grasp the bow and spear; they are cruel and merciless. Their voice roars like the sea, and they ride upon horses, lined up like men in formation against you, O Daughter of Zion.” We have heard the report; our hands hang limp. Anguish has gripped us, pain like that of a woman in labor. Do not go out to the fields; do not walk the road. For the enemy has a sword; terror is on every side. O daughter of my people, dress yourselves in sackcloth and roll in ashes. Mourn with bitter wailing, as you would for an only son, for suddenly the destroyer will come upon us.”A cruel army comes from the north, and the people are called to mourn bitterly as for an only son.
- Amos 8:10 (BSB)“I will turn your feasts into mourning and all your songs into lamentation. I will cause everyone to wear sackcloth and every head to be shaved. I will make it like a time of mourning for an only son, and its outcome like a bitter day.”Amos describes a day of judgment as mourning for an only son.
- Jeremiah 4:8 (BSB)“So put on sackcloth, mourn and wail, for the fierce anger of the LORD has not turned away from us.””Earlier the people were likewise told to put on sackcloth and lament because the LORD’s anger had not turned back.
General
True or False: According to 6:15, the people were deeply ashamed of the detestable things they had done.
Answer: False
This is false. The LORD asks whether they are ashamed of the detestable things they have done and answers that they are not ashamed at all; they have even forgotten how to blush (6:15). Because of this, they will fall along with the others who fall when He punishes them. Earlier He had said Judah had the bold face of a prostitute and refused to feel shame (3:3), and Zephaniah says that the unjust feel no shame (Zephaniah 3:5). A conscience that no longer feels shame over sin shows how deep the hardness had become.
- Jeremiah 6:15 (BSB)“Are they ashamed of the abomination they have committed? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; when I punish them, they will collapse,” says the LORD.”The LORD says the people feel no shame for their abominations and will fall when He punishes them.
- Jeremiah 3:3 (BSB)“Therefore the showers have been withheld, and no spring rains have fallen. Yet you have the brazen look of a prostitute; you refuse to be ashamed.”The LORD had already said Judah refused to be ashamed.
- Zephaniah 3:5 (BSB)“The LORD within her is righteous; He does no wrong. He applies His justice morning by morning; He does not fail at dawn, yet the unjust know no shame.”Zephaniah contrasts the LORD’s justice with the unjust who know no shame.
- Jeremiah 8:12 (BSB)“Are they ashamed of the abomination they have committed? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; when I punish them, they will collapse, says the LORD.”The LORD repeats the charge that they cannot even blush.
Theological
True or False: In 6:15 the LORD declares that the people felt shame over their abominations.
Answer: False
This is false. The LORD’s question, whether they were ashamed of their abomination, is met with His own answer: none whatever, not even the capacity to blush (6:15); therefore they will go down with the rest when He visits them. The deadened conscience was already exposed in 3:3, and Zephaniah 3:5 likewise sets the LORD’s righteousness against the shamelessness of the unjust. The same verdict is repeated in 8:12.
- Jeremiah 6:15 (BSB)“Are they ashamed of the abomination they have committed? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; when I punish them, they will collapse,” says the LORD.”The LORD says the people feel no shame for their abominations and will fall when He punishes them.
- Jeremiah 3:3 (BSB)“Therefore the showers have been withheld, and no spring rains have fallen. Yet you have the brazen look of a prostitute; you refuse to be ashamed.”The LORD had already said Judah refused to be ashamed.
- Zephaniah 3:5 (BSB)“The LORD within her is righteous; He does no wrong. He applies His justice morning by morning; He does not fail at dawn, yet the unjust know no shame.”Zephaniah contrasts the LORD’s justice with the unjust who know no shame.
- Jeremiah 8:12 (BSB)“Are they ashamed of the abomination they have committed? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; when I punish them, they will collapse, says the LORD.”The LORD repeats the charge that they cannot even blush.
General
In 6:13-14, how do the prophets and priests handle the deep wound of God’s people?
Answer: They declared all was well while ruin loomed
The LORD declares that everyone, from the least to the greatest, is greedy for gain, and all of them, prophets and priests alike, are dishonest (6:13). They treat the serious wound of His people as if it were a scratch, announcing that all is well when nothing is well (6:14). Instead of calling the people to repent, they offered false comfort while judgment was coming. The LORD repeats this charge almost word for word in 8:11, and He later says such prophets tell those who despise Him that all will be well (23:17). Ezekiel accuses false prophets of the same thing (Ezekiel 13:10), and Paul warns that sudden destruction comes on people while they are saying there is peace and security (1 Thessalonians 5:3).
- Jeremiah 6:13-14 (BSB)““For from the least of them to the greatest, all are greedy for gain; from prophet to priest, all practice deceit. They dress the wound of My people with very little care, saying, ‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace at all.”The LORD charges all ranks with greed and the prophets and priests with healing the people’s wound lightly.
- Jeremiah 23:17 (BSB)“They keep saying to those who despise Me, ‘The LORD says that you will have peace,’ and to everyone who walks in the stubbornness of his own heart, ‘No harm will come to you.’”The LORD says false prophets promise peace to those who despise Him.
- Ezekiel 13:10 (BSB)“Because they have led My people astray, saying, ‘Peace,’ when there is no peace, and whitewashing any flimsy wall that is built,”Ezekiel condemns prophets who lead God’s people astray by announcing peace when there is none.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:3 (BSB)“While people are saying, “Peace and security,” destruction will come upon them suddenly, like labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.”Paul warns that destruction comes suddenly on people who are saying there is peace and security.
Theological
What is the LORD’s charge in 6:13-14 against the prophets and priests?
Answer: They declared all was well while ruin loomed
The indictment of 6:13-14 reaches every rank: all grasp after unjust gain and all, prophet and priest, deal falsely. Their particular sin is superficial healing: they dress the people’s grievous wound lightly, proclaiming peace where there is none. False assurance is worse than silence because it hides the need for repentance. The charge recurs almost word for word in 8:11 and is developed in 23:17; Ezekiel 13:10 levels the same accusation, and 1 Thessalonians 5:3 shows the pattern of sudden destruction falling on those who say there is peace.
- Jeremiah 6:13-14 (BSB)““For from the least of them to the greatest, all are greedy for gain; from prophet to priest, all practice deceit. They dress the wound of My people with very little care, saying, ‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace at all.”The LORD charges all ranks with greed and the prophets and priests with healing the people’s wound lightly.
- Jeremiah 23:17 (BSB)“They keep saying to those who despise Me, ‘The LORD says that you will have peace,’ and to everyone who walks in the stubbornness of his own heart, ‘No harm will come to you.’”The LORD says false prophets promise peace to those who despise Him.
- Ezekiel 13:10 (BSB)“Because they have led My people astray, saying, ‘Peace,’ when there is no peace, and whitewashing any flimsy wall that is built,”Ezekiel condemns prophets who lead God’s people astray by announcing peace when there is none.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:3 (BSB)“While people are saying, “Peace and security,” destruction will come upon them suddenly, like labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.”Paul warns that destruction comes suddenly on people who are saying there is peace and security.
General
In 6:27-30, after the LORD appoints Jeremiah to test His people like metal, what are the people finally called?
Answer: Rejected silver, since the wicked were not purged
The LORD tells Jeremiah that He has made him a tester of His people, like someone who tests metal ore, so that he may examine their ways (6:27). The result is grim: they are all stubborn rebels and slanderers, as hard and impure as bronze and iron (6:28). The bellows blow hard and the fire burns away the lead, but the refining does no good, because the evildoers are not removed (6:29). So they are named silver to be thrown away, since the LORD Himself has cast them off (6:30). Ezekiel uses the same picture of Israel as the waste left when silver is refined (Ezekiel 22:18), and Proverbs says that as the crucible and furnace test silver and gold, the LORD tests hearts (Proverbs 17:3).
- Jeremiah 6:27-30 (BSB)““I have appointed you to examine My people like ore, so you may know and try their ways. All are hardened rebels, walking around as slanderers. They are bronze and iron; all of them are corrupt. The bellows blow fiercely, blasting away the lead with fire. The refining proceeds in vain, for the wicked are not purged. They are called rejected silver, because the LORD has rejected them.””The LORD appoints Jeremiah to test the people like ore, and they prove to be rejected silver.
- Ezekiel 22:18 (BSB)““Son of man, the house of Israel has become dross to Me. All of them are copper, tin, iron, and lead inside the furnace; they are but the dross of silver.”Ezekiel describes Israel as the dross left in the furnace when silver is refined.
- Proverbs 17:3 (BSB)“A crucible for silver and a furnace for gold, but the LORD is the tester of hearts.”Proverbs compares the LORD testing hearts to the crucible and furnace that test metals.
Theological
What is the outcome of the refining described in 6:27-30?
Answer: Rejected silver, since the wicked were not purged
Jeremiah is appointed to test the people as metal is tested (6:27). The test reveals stubborn rebels and slanderers, base metal throughout (6:28). The smelting is vigorous yet futile; the lead is consumed but the evildoers are not separated out (6:29), so they are named reject silver, cast off by the LORD Himself (6:30). Ezekiel 22:18 uses the same refining image of Israel as dross, and Proverbs 17:3 makes the LORD the one who tests hearts. Where purifying judgment does not reform, rejection follows.
- Jeremiah 6:27-30 (BSB)““I have appointed you to examine My people like ore, so you may know and try their ways. All are hardened rebels, walking around as slanderers. They are bronze and iron; all of them are corrupt. The bellows blow fiercely, blasting away the lead with fire. The refining proceeds in vain, for the wicked are not purged. They are called rejected silver, because the LORD has rejected them.””The LORD appoints Jeremiah to test the people like ore, and they prove to be rejected silver.
- Ezekiel 22:18 (BSB)““Son of man, the house of Israel has become dross to Me. All of them are copper, tin, iron, and lead inside the furnace; they are but the dross of silver.”Ezekiel describes Israel as the dross left in the furnace when silver is refined.
- Proverbs 17:3 (BSB)“A crucible for silver and a furnace for gold, but the LORD is the tester of hearts.”Proverbs compares the LORD testing hearts to the crucible and furnace that test metals.
General
According to 6:19-20, why did the LORD refuse the people’s offerings and incense?
Answer: They had rejected His word and instruction
The LORD calls the nations and the whole earth to hear that He is bringing disaster on His people as the outcome of their own plans, because they ignored His word and rejected His instruction (6:19). So their costly incense from distant lands and their burnt offerings mean nothing to Him and do not please Him (6:20). Worship without obedience is empty. Samuel told Saul that obeying the LORD matters more than sacrifice (1 Samuel 15:22), Isaiah delivered the same message (Isaiah 1:11), and David knew that what God desires is a broken and repentant heart (Psalm 51:16-17).
- Jeremiah 6:19-20 (BSB)“Hear, O earth! I am bringing disaster on this people, the fruit of their own schemes, because they have paid no attention to My word and have rejected My instruction. What use to Me is frankincense from Sheba or sweet cane from a distant land? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable; your sacrifices do not please Me.””The LORD brings disaster because the people rejected His word, and He refuses their offerings.
- 1 Samuel 15:22 (BSB)“But Samuel declared: “Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obedience to His voice? Behold, obedience is better than sacrifice, and attentiveness is better than the fat of rams.”Samuel declares that obedience is better than sacrifice.
- Isaiah 1:11 (BSB)““What good to Me is your multitude of sacrifices?” says the LORD. “I am full from the burnt offerings of rams and the fat of well-fed cattle; I take no delight in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats.”The LORD asks what good the people’s many sacrifices are to Him.
- Psalm 51:16-17 (BSB)“For You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; You take no pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.”David says God desires a broken and contrite heart rather than burnt offerings.
Theological
On what ground does the LORD reject Judah’s sacrifices in 6:19-20?
Answer: They had rejected His word and instruction
In 6:19-20 the LORD summons the earth as witness that the coming disaster is the outcome of Judah’s own scheming, since they disregarded His words and rejected His law. Consequently their imported frankincense and fragrant cane, whole offerings and sacrifices, are unacceptable to Him. Ritual detached from covenant obedience is worthless, as 1 Samuel 15:22 and Isaiah 1:11 declare, and what God accepts is a broken and contrite heart (Psalm 51:16-17).
- Jeremiah 6:19-20 (BSB)“Hear, O earth! I am bringing disaster on this people, the fruit of their own schemes, because they have paid no attention to My word and have rejected My instruction. What use to Me is frankincense from Sheba or sweet cane from a distant land? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable; your sacrifices do not please Me.””The LORD brings disaster because the people rejected His word, and He refuses their offerings.
- 1 Samuel 15:22 (BSB)“But Samuel declared: “Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obedience to His voice? Behold, obedience is better than sacrifice, and attentiveness is better than the fat of rams.”Samuel declares that obedience is better than sacrifice.
- Isaiah 1:11 (BSB)““What good to Me is your multitude of sacrifices?” says the LORD. “I am full from the burnt offerings of rams and the fat of well-fed cattle; I take no delight in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats.”The LORD asks what good the people’s many sacrifices are to Him.
- Psalm 51:16-17 (BSB)“For You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; You take no pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.”David says God desires a broken and contrite heart rather than burnt offerings.
General
True or False: In 6:17, when the LORD appointed watchmen to sound the warning horn, the people promised to listen.
Answer: False
This is false. The LORD says He set watchmen over them, prophets who warned of coming danger like guards blowing a horn on a city wall, and told the people to listen for the horn, yet they replied that they would not listen (6:17). This is the second flat refusal in a row, following their rejection of the good way in 6:16. Ezekiel describes the prophet’s job as a watchman for Israel (Ezekiel 3:17), and he explains that anyone who hears the horn and ignores it is responsible for his own death (Ezekiel 33:4-5). The people of Judah were without excuse.
- Jeremiah 6:17 (BSB)“I appointed watchmen over you and said, ‘Listen for the sound of the ram’s horn.’ But they answered, ‘We will not listen!’”The LORD appointed watchmen to warn the people, but they refused to listen.
- Ezekiel 3:17 (BSB)““Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from My mouth, give them a warning from Me.”God appoints Ezekiel as a watchman to give Israel warning from Him.
- Ezekiel 33:4-5 (BSB)“Then if anyone hears the sound of the horn but fails to heed the warning, and the sword comes and takes him away, his blood will be on his own head. Since he heard the sound of the horn but failed to heed the warning, his blood will be on his own head. If he had heeded the warning, he would have saved his life.”Whoever hears the warning horn and ignores it bears the blame for his own death.
Theological
True or False: According to 6:17, the people agreed to heed the watchmen the LORD set over them.
Answer: False
This is false. The LORD appointed watchmen, the prophets, and charged the people to heed the trumpet, but they answered that they would not (6:17), a second explicit refusal after 6:16. Ezekiel 3:17 defines the prophetic office in the same terms, and Ezekiel 33:4-5 places the guilt on the one who hears the warning and disregards it. Judah’s ruin was therefore its own responsibility.
- Jeremiah 6:17 (BSB)“I appointed watchmen over you and said, ‘Listen for the sound of the ram’s horn.’ But they answered, ‘We will not listen!’”The LORD appointed watchmen to warn the people, but they refused to listen.
- Ezekiel 3:17 (BSB)““Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from My mouth, give them a warning from Me.”God appoints Ezekiel as a watchman to give Israel warning from Him.
- Ezekiel 33:4-5 (BSB)“Then if anyone hears the sound of the horn but fails to heed the warning, and the sword comes and takes him away, his blood will be on his own head. Since he heard the sound of the horn but failed to heed the warning, his blood will be on his own head. If he had heeded the warning, he would have saved his life.”Whoever hears the warning horn and ignores it bears the blame for his own death.
General
In 6:10, how does Jeremiah describe the people’s attitude toward the LORD’s word?
Answer: They found it offensive and took no delight in it
Jeremiah asks whom he can warn and who will pay him any heed, because the people’s ears are shut so that they cannot hear. The LORD’s word has become distasteful to them, and they find no delight in it (6:10). He adds that he is filled with the LORD’s wrath and worn out from holding it in (6:11). Isaiah described rebellious people who refuse the LORD’s teaching (Isaiah 30:9), and Stephen later accused the leaders of his day of having hearts and ears that had not been made new, always resisting the Holy Spirit (Acts 7:51). Jesus told His opponents that they could not understand Him because they were unable to accept His message (John 8:43). A closed ear is a sign of a heart that has not been changed.
- Jeremiah 6:10-11 (BSB)“To whom can I give this warning? Who will listen to me? Look, their ears are closed, so they cannot hear. See, the word of the LORD has become offensive to them; they find no pleasure in it. But I am full of the LORD’s wrath; I am tired of holding it back. “Pour it out on the children in the street, and on the young men gathered together. For both husband and wife will be captured, the old and the very old alike.”Jeremiah laments that the people’s ears are closed and the LORD’s word offends them.
- Isaiah 30:9 (BSB)“These are rebellious people, deceitful children, children unwilling to obey the LORD’s instruction.”Isaiah describes rebellious people unwilling to obey the LORD’s instruction.
- Acts 7:51 (BSB)“You stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit, just as your fathers did.”Stephen charges his hearers with uncircumcised hearts and ears that resist the Spirit.
- John 8:43 (BSB)“Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you are unable to accept My message.”Jesus tells His opponents they cannot understand because they are unable to accept His message.
Theological
What does Jeremiah lament in 6:10 about the people’s relationship to the LORD’s word?
Answer: They found it offensive and took no delight in it
Jeremiah’s lament in 6:10 is that his warning has no audience: the people’s ears are shut and cannot hear, and the LORD’s word has become a reproach to them, something they do not enjoy. He is filled with the LORD’s anger and weary of restraining it (6:11). The inability to hear is moral, not physical, as Isaiah 30:9, Stephen’s charge that his hearers’ hearts and ears were uncircumcised (Acts 7:51), and Jesus’ word that His hearers could not accept His message (John 8:43) all show. Only God’s regenerating work opens such ears.
- Jeremiah 6:10-11 (BSB)“To whom can I give this warning? Who will listen to me? Look, their ears are closed, so they cannot hear. See, the word of the LORD has become offensive to them; they find no pleasure in it. But I am full of the LORD’s wrath; I am tired of holding it back. “Pour it out on the children in the street, and on the young men gathered together. For both husband and wife will be captured, the old and the very old alike.”Jeremiah laments that the people’s ears are closed and the LORD’s word offends them.
- Isaiah 30:9 (BSB)“These are rebellious people, deceitful children, children unwilling to obey the LORD’s instruction.”Isaiah describes rebellious people unwilling to obey the LORD’s instruction.
- Acts 7:51 (BSB)“You stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit, just as your fathers did.”Stephen charges his hearers with uncircumcised hearts and ears that resist the Spirit.
- John 8:43 (BSB)“Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you are unable to accept My message.”Jesus tells His opponents they cannot understand because they are unable to accept His message.