Jeremiah 9 Study Notes: Weeping Over Judah and True Boasting
Jeremiah longs to weep without end for his slain people and grieves over a nation of lies and betrayal. God says the land lies ruined because they abandoned His law, calls for mourning women, and teaches that the only proper boast is in knowing Him. Outward circumcision will not shield a people uncircumcised in heart.
General
According to 9:23-24, what is the only thing worth boasting in?
Answer: In understanding and knowing the LORD Himself
God declares that the wise should not boast in their wisdom, the strong in their strength, or the rich in their riches (9:23). Anyone who wants to boast should boast in understanding and knowing the LORD, who acts with loving devotion and with justice and righteousness throughout the world, for these things please Him (9:24). Paul quotes this verse twice, telling believers to boast only in the Lord (1 Corinthians 1:31; 2 Corinthians 10:17). In 1 Corinthians he explains why: God picked those the world counts foolish, weak, and lowly, leaving no one any ground for boasting before Him, and it is God’s doing that believers are united to Christ, who has become their wisdom and righteousness (1 Corinthians 1:26-30). Salvation is God’s gift, so all the glory goes to Him. Praying to the Father, Jesus said that eternal life is knowing the one true God and the Son He sent (John 17:3).
- Jeremiah 9:23-24 (BSB)“This is what the LORD says: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, nor the strong man in his strength, nor the wealthy man in his riches. But let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD, who exercises loving devotion, justice and righteousness on the earth—for I delight in these things,” declares the LORD.”The LORD forbids boasting in wisdom, strength, or riches and commends boasting in knowing Him.
- 1 Corinthians 1:31 (BSB)“Therefore, as it is written: “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.””Paul quotes Jeremiah to teach that believers should boast only in the Lord.
- 2 Corinthians 10:17 (BSB)“Rather, “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.””Paul quotes the same words again when speaking of his ministry.
- 1 Corinthians 1:26-30 (BSB)“Brothers, consider the time of your calling: Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were powerful; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly and despised things of the world, and the things that are not, to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast in His presence. It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God: our righteousness, holiness, and redemption.”Paul shows that God chose the lowly so no one could boast, since believers are in Christ because of God.
- John 17:3 (BSB)“Now this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent.”Jesus defines eternal life as knowing the only true God and the One He sent.
Theological
What is the one legitimate ground of boasting according to 9:23-24?
Answer: In understanding and knowing the LORD Himself
The LORD forbids the wise, the mighty, and the rich to glory in their wisdom, might, or wealth (9:23); whoever glories is to glory in understanding and knowing Him as the LORD whose loving devotion and whose justice and righteousness are at work throughout the world, things in which He delights (9:24). Paul quotes the verse in both Corinthian letters (1 Corinthians 1:31; 2 Corinthians 10:17). In 1 Corinthians 1 he grounds it in God’s sovereign choice of the foolish, weak, and lowly so that nobody can glory before Him, since it is of God that believers are in Christ, who has become their wisdom from God and their righteousness, their holiness, and their redemption (1 Corinthians 1:26-30). Because salvation is entirely of grace, every ground of self-glorying is excluded, and the knowledge of God in Christ is itself eternal life (John 17:3).
- Jeremiah 9:23-24 (BSB)“This is what the LORD says: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, nor the strong man in his strength, nor the wealthy man in his riches. But let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD, who exercises loving devotion, justice and righteousness on the earth—for I delight in these things,” declares the LORD.”The LORD forbids boasting in wisdom, strength, or riches and commends boasting in knowing Him.
- 1 Corinthians 1:31 (BSB)“Therefore, as it is written: “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.””Paul quotes Jeremiah to teach that believers should boast only in the Lord.
- 2 Corinthians 10:17 (BSB)“Rather, “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.””Paul quotes the same words again when speaking of his ministry.
- 1 Corinthians 1:26-30 (BSB)“Brothers, consider the time of your calling: Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were powerful; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly and despised things of the world, and the things that are not, to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast in His presence. It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God: our righteousness, holiness, and redemption.”Paul shows that God chose the lowly so no one could boast, since believers are in Christ because of God.
- John 17:3 (BSB)“Now this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent.”Jesus defines eternal life as knowing the only true God and the One He sent.
General
True or False: In 9:2 Jeremiah wishes he had a place to stay in the wilderness so he could leave his people, because they are unfaithful.
Answer: True
This is true. Right after wishing he could weep endlessly for his people, Jeremiah also wishes for a travelers’ shelter out in the wilderness where he could get away from them, because every one of them is an adulterer and a traitor (9:2). His love for them and his disgust at their sin stand side by side. The word adulterers points both to actual sexual sin and to the nation’s unfaithfulness to God, as earlier chapters describe (Jeremiah 3:20; 5:7). David voiced a similar longing to fly far off and stay in the wilderness, away from trouble (Psalm 55:6-7).
- Jeremiah 9:2 (BSB)“If only I had a traveler’s lodge in the wilderness, I would abandon my people and depart from them, for they are all adulterers, a crowd of faithless people.”Jeremiah wishes for a wilderness shelter so he could leave his unfaithful people.
- Jeremiah 3:20 (BSB)“But as a woman may betray her husband, so you have betrayed Me, O house of Israel,” declares the LORD.”God describes Israel’s unfaithfulness to Him as a wife betraying her husband.
- Jeremiah 5:7 (BSB)““Why should I forgive you? Your children have forsaken Me and sworn by gods that are not gods. I satisfied their needs, yet they committed adultery and assembled at the houses of prostitutes.”God charges the people with forsaking Him and with literal adultery.
- Psalm 55:6-7 (BSB)“I said, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and find rest. How far away I would flee! In the wilderness I would remain. Selah”David expresses a similar longing to escape and stay in the wilderness.
Theological
True or False: In 9:2 the prophet longs for a desert shelter where he could withdraw from his people on account of their faithlessness.
Answer: True
This is true. Alongside his grief, the prophet longs for a wayfarers’ lodging in the desert where he might abandon his people, since every one of them is an adulterer and a traitor (9:2). Compassion and revulsion coexist in him. The charge of adultery spans both literal immorality and the nation’s covenant infidelity toward the LORD (Jeremiah 3:20; 5:7). David’s wish for the wings of a dove to flee to the wilderness voices a similar desire (Psalm 55:6-7).
- Jeremiah 9:2 (BSB)“If only I had a traveler’s lodge in the wilderness, I would abandon my people and depart from them, for they are all adulterers, a crowd of faithless people.”Jeremiah wishes for a wilderness shelter so he could leave his unfaithful people.
- Jeremiah 3:20 (BSB)“But as a woman may betray her husband, so you have betrayed Me, O house of Israel,” declares the LORD.”God describes Israel’s unfaithfulness to Him as a wife betraying her husband.
- Jeremiah 5:7 (BSB)““Why should I forgive you? Your children have forsaken Me and sworn by gods that are not gods. I satisfied their needs, yet they committed adultery and assembled at the houses of prostitutes.”God charges the people with forsaking Him and with literal adultery.
- Psalm 55:6-7 (BSB)“I said, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and find rest. How far away I would flee! In the wilderness I would remain. Selah”David expresses a similar longing to escape and stay in the wilderness.
General
Because of the people’s deceit, what does God say He will do to them (9:7-9)?
Answer: He will refine and test them as metal in a fire
God says He will refine and test His people, like a metalworker melting metal to burn away what is impure, asking what else He could do because of them (9:7). Their tongues are like deadly arrows; a man speaks kindly to his neighbor while secretly planning to trap him (9:8). God asks whether He should not punish such a nation (9:9). The refining fire is a judgment, but it is also meant to purify. Isaiah speaks of God testing His people in a furnace of suffering (Isaiah 48:10), and Zechariah and Malachi describe God refining His people like silver and gold so that they turn to Him in prayer and serve Him rightly (Zechariah 13:9; Malachi 3:3).
- Jeremiah 9:7-9 (BSB)“Therefore this is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Behold, I will refine them and test them, for what else can I do because of the daughter of My people? Their tongues are deadly arrows; they speak deception. With his mouth a man speaks peace to his neighbor, but in his heart he sets a trap for him. Should I not punish them for these things? declares the LORD. Should I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?””God declares He will refine and test His deceitful people and punish the nation.
- Isaiah 48:10 (BSB)“See, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.”God says He has tested His people in the furnace of affliction.
- Zechariah 13:9 (BSB)“This third I will bring through the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. They will call on My name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘They are My people,’ and they will say, ‘The LORD is our God.’””God refines His people like silver so that they will call on His name.
- Malachi 3:3 (BSB)“And He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver. Then they will present offerings to the LORD in righteousness.”God is pictured as a refiner who purifies His people for righteous worship.
Theological
What is God’s response to Judah’s deceit in 9:7-9?
Answer: He will refine and test them as metal in a fire
God resolves to smelt and assay His people, since nothing else remains for Him to do in view of their sin (9:7). Their tongues are lethal arrows; outwardly they speak peace to a neighbor while inwardly laying an ambush (9:8). Shall He not punish and avenge Himself on a nation like this (9:9)? The refining is judicial but also purifying in intent. Isaiah speaks of God testing Israel in a furnace of suffering (Isaiah 48:10), and Zechariah and Malachi describe God refining His people like silver and gold, yielding a people who call on His name and offer righteous worship (Zechariah 13:9; Malachi 3:3).
- Jeremiah 9:7-9 (BSB)“Therefore this is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Behold, I will refine them and test them, for what else can I do because of the daughter of My people? Their tongues are deadly arrows; they speak deception. With his mouth a man speaks peace to his neighbor, but in his heart he sets a trap for him. Should I not punish them for these things? declares the LORD. Should I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?””God declares He will refine and test His deceitful people and punish the nation.
- Isaiah 48:10 (BSB)“See, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.”God says He has tested His people in the furnace of affliction.
- Zechariah 13:9 (BSB)“This third I will bring through the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. They will call on My name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘They are My people,’ and they will say, ‘The LORD is our God.’””God refines His people like silver so that they will call on His name.
- Malachi 3:3 (BSB)“And He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver. Then they will present offerings to the LORD in righteousness.”God is pictured as a refiner who purifies His people for righteous worship.
General
Whom does the LORD tell the people to call for in 9:17-21, and why?
Answer: Skilled mourning women, to raise a lament
The LORD tells the people to call for the women who mourn for the dead, the most skillful of them, and have them hurry to raise a lament so that everyone’s eyes will run with tears (9:17-18). A cry of devastation and shame is already heard from Zion because the people have had to leave their land and their homes are torn down (9:19). The women are to teach their daughters and neighbors to wail, because death has come in through the windows and into the strongholds, cutting down children and young men, and the dead will fall in the open field left lying where no one collects them (9:20-22). Amos also foretold that mourners would be summoned when God’s judgment came (Amos 5:16), and Ezekiel pictures women chanting a lament over a nation God has judged (Ezekiel 32:16).
- Jeremiah 9:17-18 (BSB)“This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Take note, and summon the wailing women; send for the most skillful among them. Let them come quickly and take up a lament over us, that our eyes may overflow with tears, and our eyelids may gush with water.”The LORD tells the people to summon skilled mourning women to lead a lament.
- Jeremiah 9:21 (BSB)“For death has climbed in through our windows; it has entered our fortresses to cut off the children from the streets, the young men from the town squares.”Death is pictured entering homes and fortresses to cut down the young.
- Amos 5:16 (BSB)“Therefore this is what the LORD, the God of Hosts, the Lord, says: “There will be wailing in all the public squares and cries of ‘Alas! Alas!’ in all the streets. The farmer will be summoned to mourn, and the mourners to wail.”Amos also foretold that mourners would be summoned to wail when judgment came.
- Ezekiel 32:16 (BSB)“This is the lament they will chant for her; the daughters of the nations will chant it. Over Egypt and all her multitudes they will chant it, declares the Lord GOD.””Ezekiel also pictures women chanting a lament over a nation under God’s judgment.
Theological
Whom does the LORD summon in 9:17-21, and for what purpose?
Answer: Skilled mourning women, to raise a lament
The LORD calls for the professional mourning women, the most skilled, to come quickly and raise a dirge until all eyes stream with tears (9:17-18). Zion already cries out at its ruin and shame, having left the land and seen its dwellings thrown down (9:19). The women are to train their daughters and one another in lament, since death has crept through the windows and entered the fortresses, cutting off children and young men, while corpses lie ungathered in the open field (9:20-22). Amos likewise foresaw mourners summoned to wail in the day of judgment (Amos 5:16), and Ezekiel depicts women chanting a dirge over a judged nation (Ezekiel 32:16).
- Jeremiah 9:17-18 (BSB)“This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Take note, and summon the wailing women; send for the most skillful among them. Let them come quickly and take up a lament over us, that our eyes may overflow with tears, and our eyelids may gush with water.”The LORD tells the people to summon skilled mourning women to lead a lament.
- Jeremiah 9:21 (BSB)“For death has climbed in through our windows; it has entered our fortresses to cut off the children from the streets, the young men from the town squares.”Death is pictured entering homes and fortresses to cut down the young.
- Amos 5:16 (BSB)“Therefore this is what the LORD, the God of Hosts, the Lord, says: “There will be wailing in all the public squares and cries of ‘Alas! Alas!’ in all the streets. The farmer will be summoned to mourn, and the mourners to wail.”Amos also foretold that mourners would be summoned to wail when judgment came.
- Ezekiel 32:16 (BSB)“This is the lament they will chant for her; the daughters of the nations will chant it. Over Egypt and all her multitudes they will chant it, declares the Lord GOD.””Ezekiel also pictures women chanting a lament over a nation under God’s judgment.
General
What does Jeremiah wish for as he grieves over his slain people (9:1)?
Answer: That his eyes were an endless source of tears
Jeremiah (the speaker here is generally taken to be the prophet himself) wishes his head could become a spring and his eyes a never-ending fountain, so that he could mourn without stopping for those of his people who have been killed (9:1). He does not stand coldly apart from the judgment he announces; he grieves over it deeply. He has just said he is crushed by his people’s brokenness (8:21), and elsewhere he says he will grieve privately over their pride and that his eyes run with tears without ceasing (Jeremiah 13:17; 14:17). Centuries later Jesus, coming near Jerusalem, wept over the city because it did not recognize what would bring it peace (Luke 19:41-42).
- Jeremiah 9:1 (BSB)“Oh, that my head were a spring of water, and my eyes a fountain of tears! I would weep day and night over the slain daughter of my people.”Jeremiah longs for endless tears to mourn the slain of his people.
- Jeremiah 13:17 (BSB)“But if you do not listen, I will weep in secret because of your pride. My eyes will overflow with tears, because the LORD’s flock has been taken captive.”Jeremiah says he will weep in secret over his people’s pride and captivity.
- Jeremiah 14:17 (BSB)“You are to speak this word to them: ‘My eyes overflow with tears; day and night they do not cease, for the virgin daughter of my people has been shattered by a crushing blow, a severely grievous wound.”Jeremiah’s eyes overflow with tears day and night over his people’s crushing wound.
- Luke 19:41-42 (BSB)“As Jesus approached Jerusalem and saw the city, He wept over it and said, “If only you had known on this day what would bring you peace! But now it is hidden from your eyes.”Jesus weeps over Jerusalem as He foresees its coming ruin.
Theological
What longing does the prophet express in 9:1 as he mourns the slaughter of his people?
Answer: That his eyes were an endless source of tears
The prophet longs for his head to be a spring and his eyes a fountain, that he might weep without ceasing for the slain of his people (9:1). The messenger of judgment is no detached observer but grieves over the very sentence he proclaims. The verse continues the lament of 8:21, and the same tears recur in 13:17 and 14:17. Jesus, approaching Jerusalem, likewise wept over the city that did not know what would bring it peace (Luke 19:41-42), uniting faithful warning with deep compassion.
- Jeremiah 9:1 (BSB)“Oh, that my head were a spring of water, and my eyes a fountain of tears! I would weep day and night over the slain daughter of my people.”Jeremiah longs for endless tears to mourn the slain of his people.
- Jeremiah 13:17 (BSB)“But if you do not listen, I will weep in secret because of your pride. My eyes will overflow with tears, because the LORD’s flock has been taken captive.”Jeremiah says he will weep in secret over his people’s pride and captivity.
- Jeremiah 14:17 (BSB)“You are to speak this word to them: ‘My eyes overflow with tears; day and night they do not cease, for the virgin daughter of my people has been shattered by a crushing blow, a severely grievous wound.”Jeremiah’s eyes overflow with tears day and night over his people’s crushing wound.
- Luke 19:41-42 (BSB)“As Jesus approached Jerusalem and saw the city, He wept over it and said, “If only you had known on this day what would bring you peace! But now it is hidden from your eyes.”Jesus weeps over Jerusalem as He foresees its coming ruin.
General
How widespread does God say the lying and betrayal have become (9:3-6)?
Answer: Even brothers and friends cannot be trusted
God says the people aim their speech like archers shooting lies, and falsehood rules the land; they go from one evil to the next and do not acknowledge Him (9:3). Everyone must be wary of the person next door, and no one can trust even a brother, because brothers cheat and friends slander (9:4). They have trained themselves in lying and wear themselves out doing wrong, and their deceit leads them to refuse to know God (9:5-6). Lies toward others go hand in hand with turning away from God. The psalmist describes people who shoot cruel words as an archer shoots (Psalm 64:3), Micah warns not to trust even a friend or family member (Micah 7:5-6), and Paul includes deceitful tongues in his description of all humanity under sin (Romans 3:13).
- Jeremiah 9:3-4 (BSB)““They bend their tongues like bows; lies prevail over truth in the land. For they proceed from evil to evil, and they do not take Me into account,” declares the LORD. “Let everyone guard against his neighbor; do not trust any brother, for every brother deals craftily, and every friend spreads slander.”God describes tongues used like bows for lies and warns that no brother or neighbor can be trusted.
- Psalm 64:3 (BSB)“who sharpen their tongues like swords and aim their bitter words like arrows,”The psalmist describes wicked people aiming words like arrows.
- Micah 7:5-6 (BSB)“Do not rely on a friend; do not trust in a companion. Seal the doors of your mouth from her who lies in your arms. For a son dishonors his father, a daughter rises against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. A man’s enemies are the members of his own household.”Micah describes the same breakdown of trust among friends and family.
- Romans 3:13 (BSB)““Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.” “The venom of vipers is on their lips.””Paul names deceitful tongues as a mark of humanity’s universal sinfulness.
Theological
How deep does the deceit described in 9:3-6 run in Judah’s society?
Answer: Even brothers and friends cannot be trusted
The people use their tongues like bent bows for falsehood; lies, not truth, prevail in the land, and they advance from one wickedness to another without regard for the LORD (9:3). Neighbor must beware neighbor and brother must beware brother, since every brother is crafty and every friend a slanderer (9:4); they have trained their tongues in falsehood, exhausting themselves in iniquity, and in deceit refuse to know Him (9:5-6). Corruption of speech and refusal to know God are bound together. Psalm 64:3 depicts words aimed like arrows, Micah 7:5-6 describes the same collapse of trust even within households, and Paul cites the deceitful tongue in his catalog of universal depravity (Romans 3:13).
- Jeremiah 9:3-4 (BSB)““They bend their tongues like bows; lies prevail over truth in the land. For they proceed from evil to evil, and they do not take Me into account,” declares the LORD. “Let everyone guard against his neighbor; do not trust any brother, for every brother deals craftily, and every friend spreads slander.”God describes tongues used like bows for lies and warns that no brother or neighbor can be trusted.
- Psalm 64:3 (BSB)“who sharpen their tongues like swords and aim their bitter words like arrows,”The psalmist describes wicked people aiming words like arrows.
- Micah 7:5-6 (BSB)“Do not rely on a friend; do not trust in a companion. Seal the doors of your mouth from her who lies in your arms. For a son dishonors his father, a daughter rises against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. A man’s enemies are the members of his own household.”Micah describes the same breakdown of trust among friends and family.
- Romans 3:13 (BSB)““Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.” “The venom of vipers is on their lips.””Paul names deceitful tongues as a mark of humanity’s universal sinfulness.
General
True or False: In 9:25-26 God says Judah will be spared the coming punishment because its people bear the outward sign of circumcision.
Answer: False
This is false. God says a time is coming when He will judge everyone whose circumcision is only physical, and He lists Judah right alongside Egypt, Edom, Moab, Ammon, and the desert peoples (9:25-26). Circumcision was the outward sign of God’s covenant with Israel, but all Israel remains uncircumcised in heart, meaning their inner lives have not been changed (9:26). An outward sign cannot replace a heart given to God. Moses had commanded Israel to circumcise their hearts (Deuteronomy 10:16), and he promised that the LORD Himself would one day circumcise their hearts so they would love Him (Deuteronomy 30:6). Paul teaches that true circumcision is an inward work in the heart, done by the Spirit (Romans 2:28-29).
- Jeremiah 9:25-26 (BSB)““Behold, the days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will punish all who are circumcised only in the flesh— Egypt, Judah, Edom, Ammon, Moab, and all the inhabitants of the desert who clip the hair of their temples. For all these nations are uncircumcised, and the whole house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart.””God announces punishment on all circumcised only outwardly, including Judah, which is uncircumcised in heart.
- Deuteronomy 10:16 (BSB)“Circumcise your hearts, therefore, and stiffen your necks no more.”Moses commanded Israel to circumcise their hearts.
- Deuteronomy 30:6 (BSB)“The LORD your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, and you will love Him with all your heart and with all your soul, so that you may live.”God promises that He Himself will circumcise His people’s hearts so they love Him.
- Romans 2:28-29 (BSB)“A man is not a Jew because he is one outwardly, nor is circumcision only outward and physical. No, a man is a Jew because he is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man’s praise does not come from men, but from God.”Paul teaches that true circumcision is of the heart, by the Spirit.
Theological
True or False: According to 9:25-26, Judah’s physical circumcision exempts it from the judgment coming on the surrounding nations.
Answer: False
This is false. God will judge everyone circumcised merely in the flesh, and Judah is listed alongside Egypt, Edom, Moab, Ammon, and the desert tribes (9:25-26). The covenant sign profits nothing where the reality is absent: all Israel remains uncircumcised in heart (9:26). Deuteronomy both commands heart circumcision (Deuteronomy 10:16) and promises that the LORD Himself will accomplish it so that His people love Him (Deuteronomy 30:6), a promise of sovereign regenerating grace. Paul defines true circumcision as inward, a work of the Spirit in the heart (Romans 2:28-29).
- Jeremiah 9:25-26 (BSB)““Behold, the days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will punish all who are circumcised only in the flesh— Egypt, Judah, Edom, Ammon, Moab, and all the inhabitants of the desert who clip the hair of their temples. For all these nations are uncircumcised, and the whole house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart.””God announces punishment on all circumcised only outwardly, including Judah, which is uncircumcised in heart.
- Deuteronomy 10:16 (BSB)“Circumcise your hearts, therefore, and stiffen your necks no more.”Moses commanded Israel to circumcise their hearts.
- Deuteronomy 30:6 (BSB)“The LORD your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, and you will love Him with all your heart and with all your soul, so that you may live.”God promises that He Himself will circumcise His people’s hearts so they love Him.
- Romans 2:28-29 (BSB)“A man is not a Jew because he is one outwardly, nor is circumcision only outward and physical. No, a man is a Jew because he is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man’s praise does not come from men, but from God.”Paul teaches that true circumcision is of the heart, by the Spirit.
General
When the question is asked why the land lies in ruins, what reason does the LORD give (9:12-14)?
Answer: Because the people forsook His law and followed the Baals
A lament is raised over the scorched mountains and empty pastures, and God says He will turn Jerusalem into ruins where jackals live and leave Judah’s towns empty (9:10-11). Then the question is asked: who has the wisdom to grasp why the land has been ruined and burned like a desert where no one travels (9:12)? The LORD Himself answers. The cause is that they abandoned the law He set before them, did not obey His voice, followed their own stubborn hearts, and went after the Baals (false gods of Canaan), as their fathers had taught them (9:13-14). Therefore He will make them eat bitter food and drink poisoned water, and He will disperse them among foreign nations (9:15-16). Moses had foretold that the nations would ask why the LORD had done this to the land, and the answer would be that His people abandoned His covenant (Deuteronomy 29:24-26). God told Solomon the same about the temple (1 Kings 9:8-9).
- Jeremiah 9:13-14 (BSB)“And the LORD answered, “It is because they have forsaken My law, which I set before them; they have not walked in it or obeyed My voice. Instead, they have followed the stubbornness of their hearts and gone after the Baals, as their fathers taught them.””The LORD explains that the land is ruined because the people forsook His law and followed the Baals.
- Deuteronomy 29:24-26 (BSB)“So all the nations will ask, ‘Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land? Why this great outburst of anger?’ And the people will answer, ‘It is because they abandoned the covenant of the LORD, the God of their fathers, which He made with them when He brought them out of the land of Egypt. They went and served other gods, and they worshiped gods they had not known—gods that the LORD had not given to them.”Moses foretold that the land’s ruin would be explained by Israel’s abandoning the covenant.
- 1 Kings 9:8-9 (BSB)“And when this temple has become a heap of rubble, all who pass by it will be appalled and will hiss and say, ‘Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’ And others will answer, ‘Because they have forsaken the LORD their God who brought their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them—because of this, the LORD has brought all this disaster upon them.’””God warned Solomon that the temple’s ruin would be explained by Israel forsaking the LORD.
Theological
What explanation does the LORD give in 9:12-14 for the devastation of the land?
Answer: Because the people forsook His law and followed the Baals
A lament rises over the scorched pastures, and God vows to make Jerusalem a ruin inhabited by jackals and Judah’s towns desolate (9:10-11). Who is wise enough to grasp why the land is laid waste like a wilderness with no passerby (9:12)? The LORD answers directly: they forsook the law He set before them, disobeyed His voice, walked in their own stubborn hearts, and pursued the Baals just as their ancestors had instructed them (9:13-14). Hence the bitter food and poisoned water and the scattering among unknown nations (9:15-16). The answer echoes the covenant curse of Deuteronomy 29:24-26, where the nations ask why the land was devastated and are told that Israel abandoned the covenant, and the warning to Solomon in 1 Kings 9:8-9.
- Jeremiah 9:13-14 (BSB)“And the LORD answered, “It is because they have forsaken My law, which I set before them; they have not walked in it or obeyed My voice. Instead, they have followed the stubbornness of their hearts and gone after the Baals, as their fathers taught them.””The LORD explains that the land is ruined because the people forsook His law and followed the Baals.
- Deuteronomy 29:24-26 (BSB)“So all the nations will ask, ‘Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land? Why this great outburst of anger?’ And the people will answer, ‘It is because they abandoned the covenant of the LORD, the God of their fathers, which He made with them when He brought them out of the land of Egypt. They went and served other gods, and they worshiped gods they had not known—gods that the LORD had not given to them.”Moses foretold that the land’s ruin would be explained by Israel’s abandoning the covenant.
- 1 Kings 9:8-9 (BSB)“And when this temple has become a heap of rubble, all who pass by it will be appalled and will hiss and say, ‘Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’ And others will answer, ‘Because they have forsaken the LORD their God who brought their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them—because of this, the LORD has brought all this disaster upon them.’””God warned Solomon that the temple’s ruin would be explained by Israel forsaking the LORD.