CHA P. XIV. This chapter foretells a drought, which would greatly diftrefs Fudea; the prophet makes confeffion and fupplication for pardon; God declares his purpose to punish; and the prophet bewails their misery. I HE word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah TH concerning the dearth, the fcarcity occafioned by 2 want of rain. Judah mourneth, and the gates thereof languish, that is, the cities and their inhabitants; they are black unto the ground; they look black and ghastly, and throw themselves on the ground in grief and defpair; and the cry of Jerufalem is gone up, even the capital 3 city groans under it. And their nobles have fent their little ones to the waters, being forced to part with their fervants, they fend their children for water: they came to the pits, [and] found no water; they returned with their veffels empty; they were afhamed and confound4 ed, and covered their heads. Because the ground is chapt, for there was no rain in the earth, the plough5 men were afhamed, they covered their heads. Yea, the hind also calved in the field, and forfook [it,] because there was no grafs for herself to eat, that she might 6 nourish her young. And the wild affes did stand in the high places for air to cool them, they fnuffed up the wind like dragons, or, like crocodiles, who frequently put up their heads above the water to breathe; their eyes did fail, they looked till they were weary with looking, because [there was] no grafs. 7 O LORD, though our iniquities testify against us, do thou [it] for thy name's fake, interpofe for us: for, or rather, tho' our backflidings are many; we have finned 8 against thee. O the hope of Ifrael, the faviour thereof in time of trouble, why fhouldft thou be as a ftranger in the land, and as a wayfaring man, [that] turneth afide to tarry for a night? thou haft promifed to dwell with us: and doft thou regard us no more than a traveller doth a place in which he lodges for a night, and never ex9 pelts to fee it any more? Why shouldft thou be as a man aftonied aftonied thro' fear and furprife, as a mighty man [that] plies; ΙΟ Thus faith the LORD unto this people, Thus have they loved to wander, they have not refrained their feet from evil ways, therefore the LORD doth not accept them; he will now remember their iniquity, and visit I their fins. Then faid the LORD unto me, Pray not for this people for [their] good; do not expect that your 12 interceffions will prevail. When they faft, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and an oblation, I will not accept them; tho' they offer whole burnt offerings, and bread offerings, (which were then peculiarly valuable) yet I will not hear: but I will confume them by the fword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence; the peftilence and the fword fhall be added to the famine already among them. 13 Then faid I, as fome excufe for them, Ah, LORD God, behold, the prophets fay unto them, Ye fhall not see the fword, neither fhall ye have famine; but I will 14 give you affured peace in this place. Then the LORD faid unto me, The prophets prophefy lies in my name: I fent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophefy unto you a false vifion and divination, and a thing of nought, and the 15 deceit of their heart. Therefore thus faith the LORD concerning the prophets that prophefy in my name, and I fent them not, yet they fay, Sword and famine shall not be in this land; By fword and famine shall thofe prophets be consumed, which, tho' they call themfelves prophets, they cannot fee to be coming upon themselves. 16 And the people to whom they prophefy fhall be caft out in the streets of Jerufalem because of the famine and the fword; and they fhall have none to bury them, them, their wives, nor their fons, nor their daughters: for 1 will pour their wickedness upon them. 17 Therefore thou fhalt fay this word unto them; Let. mine eyes run down with tears night and day, and let them go them not ceafe; God commands me to lament your calamities for the virgin daughter of my people is broken 18 with a great breach, with a very grievous blow." If I forth into the field, then behold the flain with the fword! and if I enter into the city, then behold them that are fick with famine! yea, both the prophet and the priest go about into a land that they know not; the falfe prophets and wicked priests fhall be carried captive. 19 Haft thou utterly rejected Judah? hath thy foul loathed Zion? why haft thou fmitten us, and [there is] no healing for us? we looked for peace, and [there is] no good and for the time of healing, and behold trou20 ble! We acknowledge, O LORD, our wickedness, [and] the iniquity of our fathers: for we have finned against 21 thee; we plead guilty. Nevertheless Do not abhor [us,] for thy name's fake, do not difgrace the throne of thy glory, thy temple: remember, break not thy cove nant with us; do not annul or cut off our relation to thee. 22 Are there [any] among the vanities of the gentiles that can cause rain? or can the heavens give fhowers? idols or fecond caufes cannot relieve us; but [art] not thou he, O LORD our God? therefore we will wait upon thee: for thou haft made all these [things.] I. REFLECTION S, (Adapted to the State of our country in July 1762.) WA ANT of rain in its feason, is a great judg ment, with which our hearts ought to be deeply affected. God commands the prophet to lament it. Let us own the hand of God whenever we fee or feel any degree of it. It is he who maketh the heavens as iron, the earth as brass, and the rain of our land powder and dust; and it becomes us to humble ourselves before him under fuch vifitations. More especially as, 2. Sin is the cause of this and every other judgment. We fhould not reft in natural caufes, but under publick calamity acknowledge, with the prophet here, that our fins testify Jerufalem is called a virgin daughter, or city, because it had never been burned or, destroyed. testify against us, that we have deserved it, and that the Lord is righteous in inflicting it: that we have wandered from God, and not refrained our feet from evil ways, tho' we have often been warned of the confequences. Let us then, as v. 20. acknowledge our wickedness with penitent hearts, and cherish godly forrow for our fins. 3. In feafons of national distress let us earnestly apply to God for relief. The vanities of the gentiles cannot help us; it will be of no avail to pray to idol gods. Let us fly to him, as the hope of Ifrael and the faviour, and fupplicate his mercy for his name's fake; that he may be glorified by our thankful improvement of the favour we feek: and let us to our prayers join our ardent praises, that our cafe is not fo bad as that of Judah; that we do not fee in our towns those who are fick with famine, and in our fields those who are flain with the fword. Thus let us wait upon God, for he hath made and ordered all these things. 4. How much more earnestly should we pray for a plentiful communication of his Spirit! Rain from heaven and fruitful feasons are very defirable; but it is more defirable that religion should flourish, and the fruits of righteousness abound and this can only be expected from God's pouring out his Spirit. We very much need it; there is a fpiritual dearth in our churches; the things that remain are ready to die; and the graces of profeffors languifh. Let us daily pray that God would not reject and leave us; but send down showers of this bleffing; that we may abound in all the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jefus Chrift to the praife and glory of God. CHAP. XV. In reply to their request in the former chapter, God affures them in this that nothing could divert him from his purpose of punishing fo wicked a people. Accordingly their fate is again declared; the prophet complains of being obliged to deliver fuch messages; he is reproved for this; appeals to God for his fincerity, and fupplicates pardon; upon which God promifes to protect him in the faithful discharge of his duty. I HEN faid the LORD unto me, Though Mofes Tand Samuel ftood before me, thofe fuccessful TH interceffors for Ifrael, [yet] my mind [could] not [be] toward this people: caft [them] out of my fight, and 2 let them go forth. And it fhall come to pafs, if they fay unto thee, Whither fhall we go forth? then thou fhalt tell them, Thus faith the LORD, Such as [are] for death, to death, that is, to the peftilence; and fuch as [are] for the fword, to the fword; and fuch as [are] for the famine, to the famine; and fuch as [are] for 3 the captivity, to the captivity. And I will appoint over them four kinds, faith the LORD: the fword to flay, and the dogs to tear, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beafts of the earth, to devour and destroy thofe 4 that are flain. And I will cause them to be removed into all kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah king of Judah, for [that] which he did in Jerufalem, for complying with and perfifting in his idolatries, for fuppreffing the worship of Jehovah, 5 and putting up idols even in the temple. For who fhall have pity upon thee, O Jerufalem? or who fhall bemoan thee? or who fhall go afide to afk how thou doeft? none fhall think it worth his while to do fo, every 6 one must own thy calamity to be just. Thou haft forfaken me, faith the LORD, thou art gone backward: therefore will I ftretch out my hand against thee, and destroy thee; I am weary with repenting; with fufpending my 7 judgments and bearing fo long with thee. And I will fan them with a fan in the gates of the land; I will bereave [them] of children, I will deftroy my people, [fince] 8 they return not from their ways. Their widows are increased to me above the fand of the feas: I have brought upon them, that is, Jerufalem, against the mother of the young men a fpoiler at noon day; or, against the mother city a young man, namely, Nebuchadnezzar, who was a young man, in the first year of his reign: I have caufed [him] to fall upon it fuddenly, and terrors 9 upon the city. She that hath borne feven languifheth: fhe hath given up the ghoft; her fun is gone down while [it was] yet day: fhe hath been afhamed and con |