Here the Lord begins to call upon them to repent. And Jerusalem - i:e., and especially the men of Jerusalem, as being the most prominent in Judea. Jeremiah 4:3. Jeremiah 4:4. We hence see, that not only impiety and contempt of God, and other sins of the people of Israel, are referred to by the Prophet, but also their perverseness; for they had so hardened themselves for many years in their vices, that there was need not only of the plough, but also of other instruments to tear up the thorns, to eradicate those vices which had formed deep roots. and Jerusalem. vii., No. We are a nation in danger. ], Thorns. The "fallow ground" fitly represents the hearts of unregenerate men, which are unopened to the word, and unbroken by it; nor have they the seed of divine grace sown in them; but are destitute of faith, hope, love, fear, and the like; there is nothing grows there but the weeds of sin and corruption; and are like a common beaten road; are the common track of sin, where lusts pass to and fro, and dwell; and so are hardened and obdurate, as hard as a stone, yea, harder than the nether millstone; and who, though they may occasionally be under the word, it makes no impression on them; it has no place in them, but is like the seed that falls by the wayside, Matthew 13:4, unless divine power attends it; for the Gospel is the plough, and ministers are the ploughmen; but it is the Lord alone that makes it effectual to the breaking up the fallow ground of men's hearts, Luke 9:62, but when the Lord puts his hand to the plough it enters within, and opens the heart; it is quick, powerful, and sharp; it cuts deep, and makes long and large furrows, even strong convictions of sin; it throws a man's inside outward, as the plough does the earth; and lays all the wicked of his heart open to him; and roots up the pride, the vanity, and boasting of the creature, and other lusts; and so makes way for the seed of divine grace to be sown there: and sow not among thorns; or, "that ye may not sow among thorns" (o); for, unless the fallow ground is broken up, it will be no other than sowing among thorns; and unless the hearts of men are opened by the power and grace of God, they will not attend to the things that are spoken; preaching and eating the word will be like sowing among thorns; cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, the pleasures of life, and the lusts thereof, which are comparable to thorns, because pricking, perplexing, and distressing, and because vain and unprofitable, choke the word, and make it unfruitful; see Matthew 13:7, now this exhortation in the text does not suppose power in man to break up and open his heart; but to show his want of renewing grace; the necessity of it; and the danger he is in without it; and to awaken in him a concern for it; see Ezekiel 18:31. (2) Let the choice be absolute. Like a Tree: Planted, Rooted, Green Leafed, and Fruited - Psalm 1:1-13; Jeremiah 17:7-8 - Rodney A. Teal The thought to be supplied is: this conversion is indispensable for Judah also, for Judah too must begin a new life. 3 For thus saith the LORD to the men of Judah … Summary. Jeremiah 4:3 For thus says the Lord to the men of Judah and to Jerusalem,“Break up your fallow ground,And do not sow among thorns. To the men, Heb. If the ground isn't plowed, a seeds roots have no where to go and ultimately will die. Simpson, Christian World Pulpit, vol. Ye have been long uncultivated in righteousness; let true repentance break up your fruitless and hardened hearts; and when the seed of the word of life is sown in them, take heed that worldly cares and concerns do not arise, and, like thorns, choke the good seed. The First Question of the Catechism (Jeremiah 24:7; John 17:3; Ephesians 1:17; 2 Thessalonians 1:8) Why You Need Your Enemies and Your Enemies Need You—Part One (Jeremiah 29:7) Trapped! break up your fallow ground; this is ground that lies untilled, not ploughed, nor sown, on which nothing grows but the produce of nature, as weeds, thorns, briers, &c. is common to men and beasts, and is trodden upon, and, so is hard and unsusceptible of seed; which, if it accidentally falls upon it, makes no impression on it, and is not received by it; and the breaking of it up is by the plough. General references. The simple fact is that man is both active and passive in regeneration. Ken Wimer. It began with an edict of Cyrus the Great, and continued with other great kings of Babylon and Persia. Sermon on Jeremiah 29:4-14. 2 And thou shalt swear, The LORD liveth, in truth, in judgment, and in righteousness; and the nations shall bless themselves in him, and in him shall they glory. It’s not an easy thing to speak out God’s word. Scripture: Jeremiah 4:3. Get your church set-up with online giving, sermon streaming, and more in under 24 hours. The unhumbled heart is like ground which may be improved, being let out to us for that purpose, but which is as yet fallow, overgrown with weeds, its natural product. 1700 28th Street SE Grand Rapids, MI 49508. Sermons; Sermon March 16, 2014 Jeremiah 19 “Shattered Beyond Repair, Yet Restored!” Parables that Pack a Punch Sermon # 5 « Sermon March 10, 2014 “The Potter, The Prophet, and God’s Prophecies” Jeremiah 18:1-12 Sermon # 4 in “Parables That Pack a … We have other instances of as sudden a transition from the Israelites (in the narrower sense) to the men of Judah (see Isaiah 8:6-14; Isaiah 10:1-4; Isaiah 28:1-6; in the writer's commentary). But this new section in Jeremiah 4:3-5:6 is all about Judah. 'מפּני רע מ as in Deuteronomy 28:20. Scripture Commentary Jer. `Fallow ground' refers to land that had not been recently cultivated, indicating that conditions in Judah were not at all favorable for the planting of God's Word; and the practical import of the admonition is that they should get rid of all their idols, no longer visit the shrines of the fertility gods, and produce the kind of environment that would encourage godly living. "For thus hath Jahveh spoken to the men of Judah and to Jerusalem: Break up for yourselves new ground, and sow not among thorns. Meditations in Jeremiah Jeremiah 31:3 reads, “The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.” Those who believe in a Calvinistic system of doctrine in relation to salvation often employ Jeremiah 31:3 as a proof text for the doctrinal position of “unconditional election.” The "fallow ground" fitly represents the hearts of unregenerate men, which are unopened to the word, and unbroken by it; nor have they the seed of divine grace sown in them; but are destitute of faith, hope, love, fear, and the like; there is nothing grows there but the weeds of sin and corruption; and are like a common beaten road; are the common track of sin, where lusts pass to and fro, and dwell; and so are hardened and obdurate, as hard as a stone, yea, harder than the nether millstone; and who, though they may occasionally be under the word, it makes no impression on them; it has no place in them, but is like the seed that falls by the wayside, Matthew 13:4, unless divine power attends it; for the Gospel is the plough, and ministers are the ploughmen; but it is the Lord alone that makes it effectual to the breaking up the fallow ground of men's hearts, Luke 9:62, but when the Lord puts his hand to the plough it enters within, and opens the heart; it is quick, powerful, and sharp; it cuts deep, and makes long and large furrows, even strong convictions of sin; it throws a man's inside outward, as the plough does the earth; and lays all the wicked of his heart open to him; and roots up the pride, the vanity, and boasting of the creature, and other lusts; and so makes way for the seed of divine grace to be sown there: and sow not among thorns; or, "that ye may not sow among thorns"F15ואל תזרעו "ut non seratis". Jeremiah 4:30.—Ibid., vol. The passage before us declares that the men of Judah and Jerusalem were to "circumcise their hearts"; but Deuteronomy 30:6 declares that, "The Lord thy God will circumcise thy heart!" and do not sow among thorns. Jeremiah understood what … For thus says the Lord to the men of Judah and to ... Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. The second clause here explains the first. Cutting off the foreskins of their hearts meant removing from their thoughts and affections all of the sinful indulgences to which they were so addicted. David Jeremiah Devotional January 18 2021- The Attitudes of the Spirit . God Gives His Words to Speak to the Nation of Israel Through Sermons. Some codices, with Aramaean, Septuagint, and Syriac, read "and the inhabitants of Jerusalem", as in Jeremiah 4:4. "Circumcise you to the Lord" is explained by the next clause: remove the foreskins of your heart. SermonAudio.com - Jeremiah 4 Sermons. They then make a great bustle; yet they mar everything by their own mixtures, the same as though one scattered his seed among thorns: but it will be of no avail thus to cast seed among thorns; for the ground ought to be well cleared and prepared. Circumcise yourselves to Jehovah, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem; lest my wrath go forth like fire, and burn so that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings.". For thus, etc. We can indeed add nothing to what God is; but there is a fruit which he demands; so that our whole life is to be devoted to his glory. (Jeremiah 29:1-4) Some Advice to the Discontented (Jeremiah 29:4-6) I. Hence he says, that God required this from the Jews, — to plough again the fallow, and not to sow among thorns. The unhumbled heart is like ground which may be improved, being let out to us for that purpose; but which is as yet fallow, overgrown with weeds, its natural product. Rome fell from within ... Our nation is decaying from within. Certainly not. Read verse in … Break up your fallow ground.—The Hebrew has the force which comes from the verb and noun being from the same root, Break up for you a broken ground or fallow a fallow field. אישׁ, as often, in collective sense, since the plural of this word was little in use, see in Joshua 9:6. ", John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible, Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible, George Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Unabridged, Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers. The metaphor had been used before by Hosea (Hosea 10:12). 3This is what the Lord says to the people of Judah and to Jerusalem: “Break up your unplowed ground. It is usual to till and sow two years, and lay fallow a third: and backsliding Christians look very much like fallow ground; so faithless, so lukewarm, and indifferent; so inattentive to the word, and unconcerned under it; so barren and unfruitful, as if they had never had any faith, or love, or good work in them; so that they need to be renewed in the spirit of their minds; to have a new face of things put upon them: and to have a clean heart, and a right spirit, created in them. The Targum is, "make to yourselves good works, and seek not salvation in sins.''. Supply mentally. Break  …  fallow ground — that is, Repent of your idolatry, and so be prepared to serve the Lord in truth (Hosea 10:12; Matthew 13:7). Judah was a tiny nation. The Message of Jeremiah 4:3-5:6. For thus saith the LORD to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, Break up your fallow ground, and sow not among thorns. It is usual to till and sow two years, and lay fallow a third: and backsliding Christians look very much like fallow ground; so faithless, so lukewarm, and indifferent; so inattentive to the word, and unconcerned under it; so barren and unfruitful, as if they had never had any faith, or love, or good work in them; so that they need to be renewed in the spirit of their minds; to have a new face of things put upon them: and to have a clean heart, and a right spirit, created in them. Jeremiah 4:3. I am aware of a formatting issue in the NIV '84 edition. As then, he had before warned them, that they would labor in vain except they returned to God with sincerity of heart and acquiesced in him; so here he bids them to examine their life, that they might not cast away their seed, like hypocrites, who formally acknowledge their sins. `Fallow ground' refers to land that had not been recently cultivated, indicating that conditions in Judah were not at all favorable for the planting of God's Word; and the practical import of the admonition is that they should get rid of all their idols, no longer visit the shrines of the fertility gods, and produce the kind of environment that would encourage godly living. For thus saith the LORD to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, Break up, Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers, Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament. The foreskins are the evil lusts and longings of the heart. 1363. The Targum is, "make to yourselves good works, and seek not salvation in sins.'. (2:1-3:5) 1. The seed-corns are the good resolutions which, when they have sunk into the soil of the mind, should spring up into deeds (Hitz.). Jeremiah 4:3 Context. Jeremiah 7:20; Amos 5:6; Psalm 89:47. "For" is here not causal, but explanatory: "I say this not only to the men of Israel, but to you, … The transition from Israel to Judah in the phrase: for thus saith Jahveh, is explained by the introduction of a connecting thought, which can without difficulty be supplied from the last clause of Jeremiah 4:2; the promise that the nations bless themselves in Jahveh will come to be fulfilled. Break … fallow ground—that is, Repent of your idolatry, and so be prepared to serve the Lord in truth (Ho 10:12; Mt 13:7). 1363. ערלות is explained by the figurative use of the word, and the reading ערלת, presented by some codd., is a correction from Deuteronomy 10:16. Foster, Lectures, 1st series, pp. Some have difficulty understanding the part that man must play in his own conversion, repentance, and regeneration. Thorns — Rid your hearts and hands of what may hinder you of embracing my word. prepare your hearts by making them soft, tender, and pliable, fit to embrace my word; a metaphor taken from ploughmen, that do either prepare the ground that hath lain some time waste and untilled, by tearing up the surface of the earth, making it mellow and soft to receive the seed; (for the Hebrew word nir seems to be of larger extent than bare preparation; God useth the same word when he speaks to the same purpose to Israel, Hosea 10:13; and so it is used Proverbs 13:23) or it may relate to both, that every thing that may be injurious to the seed may be stubbed up. This is the way it is in the New Birth. Jeremiah 4:3 This is what the LORD says to the people of Judah and to Jerusalem: “Break up your unplowed ground and do not sow among thorns. Yahweh appealed to them with two agricultural metaphors. But what is done by hypocrites? The words may be applied to backsliding professors, since backsliding Israel and Judah are the persons addressed; and this may be done with great propriety and pertinence to the simile; for fallow ground is that which has been broke up and sown, and laid fallow. Break up - literally, Fallow for you a fallow ground, i. e., do not sow the seeds of repentance in unfit soil, but just as the farmer prepares the ground, by clearing it of weeds, and exposing it to the sun and air, before entrusting to it the seed, so must you regard repentance as a serious matter, requiring forethought, and anxious labor. God then would not have us to be idle and fruitless, but to bring forth some fruit. Colossians 2:11 and Houb. Verse 3. [5], "Circumcise yourselves to Jehovah ... take away the foreskins of your heart ..." (Jeremiah 4:4). Lest my fury break forth like fire; cf. The exhortation to a reformation of life is attached by כּי, as being the ground of it, to the preceding exhortation to return. It appears to this writer that McGee's comment about our own country's needing this same kind of advice is appropriate: The fallow ground needs to be broken up. Yes indeed, there are things for the sinner to do if he is ever going to be saved. The metaphor had been used before by Hosea (Hosea 10:12). The Paperback Bible presents the Bible by the Book and is designed to be portable, readable, and truly personal with ample margins for notations. 3. Jeremiah 4:10.—H. Now viewing scripture range from the book of Jeremiah chapter 3:4 through chapter 3:7... Jeremiah Chapter 3. shall it be good or evil? Choke the word. Hence he bids them wholly to shake off their vices, which were hid within, according to what they do, who tear up thorns and briers in a field, which has been long neglected, and left without being cultivated. 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