Jeremiah 12
Summary for Jer 12:1-4: 12:1-4 a Jeremiah wondered why a just God did not immediately punish the wicked. Jeremiah could not stand the continued wickedness, yet he also grieved for the terrible human suffering that he saw coming (10:19-25 b). 12:1 c Jeremiah affirmed the Lord’s justice when dealing with him in the past. However, since he was obedient, he could not understand why his life was being threatened. By contrast, those who were wicked and evil seemed to be prosperous and happy.12:2 d Jeremiah was irked that the Lord allowed evil people to become established and enjoy prosperity and happiness.
12:3 e Although Jeremiah’s words seem self-righteous, he was submissive to the Lord’s personal searching of his heart. Jeremiah was also angry enough to demand that his enemies suffer the fate they had intended for him. He hoped they would be butchered or slaughtered like helpless sheep. Jeremiah did not seem to desire their forgiveness or their return to the Lord.
12:4 f Jeremiah expressed feelings of helplessness; the Lord’s decree of desolation for the land seemed excessive. Jeremiah did recognize the evil of the people’s sneering claim that the Lord could not see the future (cp. Isa 46:10 g).
Summary for Jer 12:5-13: 12:5-13 h The Lord rebuked his messenger and responded to his question with questions of his own. 12:5 i Jeremiah’s racing against mere men was the conflict he experienced with his family and friends. It could not be compared to the race against horses that would take place when the foreign army arrived. The coming war would be as severe as finding one’s way through the thickets near the Jordan.
12:6 j Jeremiah’s family was a microcosm of Judah; they would plot ... against Jeremiah behind his back (11:9 k) while speaking pleasantly to his face. They wanted to convince him that the Lord would not let the Babylonians harm the people of Judah and Jerusalem, and they hoped to stop him from bringing shame on the family (cp. Mark 3:21 l).
Summary for Jer 12:7-13: 12:7-13 m God called the people of Judah his special possession, his dearest ones, his chosen people, and his vineyard. However, they had become hostile to him, so they had to be surrendered to their enemies. Perhaps the most severe justice they could face was for the Lord to step back and let the people suffer the consequences of their evil ways.
12:9 n The people of Judah would become prey to huge flocks of speckled vultures. The people would soon be corpses that wild animals would pick ... clean.
Summary for Jer 12:10-13: 12:10-13 o The corrupt rulers of Judah had already desolated the land by leading the people into sin (e.g., 2 Kgs 16:8-19 p; 21:16 q; 23:33-35 r); the invading army would simply complete the task. 12:10 s A vineyard is a frequent metaphor for God’s people (e.g., Isa 5:1-10 t; Matt 21:33-45 u; John 15:1-8 v).
12:11 w Sorrow gripped the Lord as he saw the empty wasteland. He had ordered the invasion according to the terms of the Sinai covenant, but the act gave him no satisfaction. Sadly, no one other than God even cared.
12:12 x The invading armies were the sword that the Lord sent to destroy the land.
12:13 y The Lord found no joy in seeing his people’s crops eaten by invaders, who left only thorns. However, the apostasy of the people of Judah merited the fierce anger of the Lord (cp. Ezek 16:36-39 z), resulting in shame.
Summary for Jer 12:14-17: 12:14-17 aa The Lord explained an important aspect of Jeremiah’s commission (see 1:10 ab). 12:14 ac No evil nations would receive protection from God’s punishment, not even those nations that God used to punish Judah. He would uproot them.
• The Lord would also uproot Judah, but this is a positive reference to deliverance from exile.
12:15 ad I will ... have compassion on all of them: Even other nations, as wicked as they were, could be restored after experiencing disaster.
12:16 ae To experience God’s compassion (12:15 af), the people of other nations needed to convert from idolatry and learn the ways of God’s people. This conversion would require a public submission to the terms of the Sinai covenant that included the words, as surely as the Lord lives. In addition, they would need to reject any oaths made in the name of Baal, by which they had persuaded Israelites to worship foreign idols.
12:17 ag If these nations refused to obey the Lord, they would be uprooted and destroyed (1:10 ah).
• I, the Lord, have spoken: This statement gave God’s declaration the force of a divine decree.
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