Jeremiah 29:18

Jer 29:18 And I will persecute them with the sword, with the famine, and with the pestilence, and will deliver them to be removed to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse, and an astonishment, and an hissing, and a reproach, among all the nations whither I have driven them:

Ver. 18. And will deliver them to be removed.] See Jer 15:4; Jer 24:9.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Read Jer. 26:6.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

removed to all . . . kingdoms-- (Jer 15:4; Deu 28:25).

curse, &c.-- (Jer 29:6; Jer 18:16; Jer 19:8).

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

He goes on with the same subject, — that he would not cease to consume them with pestilence, famine, and the sword, until he wholly destroyed them, according to what we find in the twenty-fourth chapter. He repeats what is in that chapter; but the words are taken from the twenty-eighth chapter of Deuteronomy, and from the twenty-ninth. The prophets, we know, drew the substance of their doctrine from the fountain of the Law, and, strictly speaking, brought forward nothing new, but accommodated the doctrine of Moses to the circumstances of the time in which each lived.

Hence we find among the curses of the Law these words, I will set them for a commotion, or a concussion. The word may be explained in two ways, — either that the nations would tremble at such a sad spectacle, — or that they would shake their head. The second view is to be preferred, according to what I have stated elsewhere, I will then set them for a commotion, that is, every one who shall see their miseries, will shake his head in contempt, as though he had said, “All will assent to the just vengeance of God, and ye shall be objects of reproach among all the heathens; for all will acknowledge that ye suffer most justly for your sins.”

He adds, for a curse The word אלה, ale, is properly an oath, but is taken in many places for a curse, which is introduced or understood when we swear. But as men often expose themselves to punishment for perjury, the word means, frequently, a curse; and what is to be understood, as it has been explained elsewhere, is a pattern or formula of a curse; and we have seen in what sense the Prophet said this, that is, that every one who wished to curse himself or others, or to imprecate, as they say, some dire things, would take the Jews for an example, “May God curse thee as he did the Jews;” or, “May he draw forth his severity to thy ruin, as he did to the Jews.” He then says that they would be for a curse, that is, that they would be so miserable that they would be taken as an example in imprecations.

He afterwards adds, for an astonishment, as he had spoken of the shaking of the head, so now he mentions astonishment, which is something more grievous, that is, when such a spectacle presents itself as makes all men to stand astonished, as not knowing what it means. Hissing is mentioned; as it is said elsewhere that they would be a proverb, משל, meshel, and also a taunt, so Jeremiah says in this place, that they would be a hissing, as he has spoken of the shaking of the head.

And lastly he adds, that they would be a reproach even to all nations, for all would deem them worthy of their calamities, however grievous they were, when a comparison would be made between their iniquities and God’s vengeance. The reason follows, because they hearkened not to God But I cannot now finish.

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

18. For the general sense and language of the v. cp. Jer_19:8, Jer_24:9, Jer_25:18, Jer_42:18.

tossed to and fro] mg. a terror unto. See on Jer_15:4, where the Heb. verb is the same.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And I will persecute them with the sword, with the famine,

and with the pestilence,.... Or, "follow after (a) them"; such as should make their escape out of the city, and go into Egypt, or other countries, for shelter and safety, should be pursued by the vengeance of God, and should fall by sword, famine, or pestilence, in other places:

and will deliver them; such as should not perish by the above mentioned calamities:

to be removed to all the kingdoms of the earth; where they should be scattered, and live in exile: or "for a shaking to all the kingdoms of the earth" (b); who should shake and tremble at such a dreadful spectacle of vengeance; or rather they should shake and tremble at the wrath of God upon them; or else their enemies, among whom they should be, should shake their heads at them, by way of insult and triumph over them:

to be a curse, and an astonishment, and an hissing, and a reproach,

among all the nations whither I have driven them; where men shall look at them with amazement, and curse theft, and hiss at them, and reproach them, as the offscouring of the world.

(a) "et persequar post eos", Calvin, Piscator. (b) "in commotionem", Pagninus, Montanus, Schmidt.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

These verses contain no more than the threatening which we have had more than once before. He had compared them to vile figs, Jer 24:8,9,10 there threatened them with being made a reproach, a proverb, a taunt, and a curse; and consuming them with the sword, famine, and pestilence: the same thing before delivered by word of mouth to those in Judea, is here repeated in a letter to that part of the Jews in Babylon, to take them off from giving credit to their false prophets, whether in Judea or in Babylon, who deluded them with the promises of a speedy return. Believe it, (saith the prophet,) you shall be so far from returning, whatever your idle prophets tell you, that your brethren that are here shall be brought to you, or destroyed with the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, or scattered into other kingdoms, where they shall be made

a curse, and an astonishment, and an hissing, and a reproach.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

18. I have driven them — God was the wind; man, the winnowing shovel. Compare Jer_19:8; Jer_24:9; and Jer_25:18.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Connecting Statement:

Yahweh continues speaking about what will happen to Israel.

a horror, an object of curses and hissing, and a shameful thing

These words all share similar meanings and describe how the people of other nations will react when they see what Yahweh has done to the people of Judah.

hissing

the sound people make when they disapprove of something

you would not listen

"you would not obey"

this is Yahweh's declaration

Yahweh speaks of himself by name to express the certainty of what he is declaring. See how you translated this in Jeremiah 1:8. AT: "this is what Yahweh has declared" or "this is what I, Yahweh, have declared" (See: First, Second, or Third Person)

translationWords

kingdom

earth

curse

shame

nation

word of God

servant

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

and for a reproach That they will reproach them, and so is every expression of ירפה in Scripture.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.