Jeremiah 18:15

15 Yet my people have forgotten me; they have offered sacrifices to a lie. And so they have stumbled along the way, even along the ancient paths. They have taken side roads, not the main roads.

Jeremiah 18:15 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 18:15

Because my people hath forgotten me
Or, "that they have forgotten me" ^F26; this is the horrible thing they have done, which was unheard of among the Gentiles, who were always tenacious of their gods, and the worship of them; and that foolish and unwise thing, which was like leaving pure flowing streams of water for dirty puddles. This is to be understood of their forsaking the worship of God, as the Targum interprets it, and following after idols: they have burnt incense to vanity;
to idols, which are vain empty things, and which cannot give their worshippers what they expect from them: or, "in vain they burn incense" ^F1; even to the true God, while they also sacrificed unto idols; which to do was an abomination to the Lord, ( Isaiah 1:13 ) ; and especially burning incense to idols must be a vain thing; and so the Targum,

``to no profit a they burn incense or spices:''

and they have caused them to stumble in their ways;
that is, either the idols they worshipped, or the false prophets caused the professing people of the Jews to stumble and fall in the ways into which they led them: and [from] the ancient paths;
or, "the paths of eternity" ^F2; which lead to eternal life; or which were of old marked out by the revealed will of God for the saints to walk in; and in which the patriarchs and people of God, in all former ages, did walk; and which were appointed from everlasting, and will remain for ever; and these are the good old paths in ( Jeremiah 6:16 ) ; to walk in paths, [in] a way not cast up;
a new way, unknown in former times; an unbeaten track, which the saints had never walked in; a rough path, unsafe and dangerous; and hence they stumbled, and fell, and came to ruin; as follows:

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FOOTNOTES:

F26 (ynxkv yk) "quod obliti sunt", Schmidt.
F1 (wrjqy awvl) "frustra adolebunt, [vel] adolent", Pagninus, Calvin.
F2 (Mlwe ylybv) "semitae [quae a] seculo, [seu] antiquo", vid. Schmidt; so Targum; "semitis jam olim praescriptis", Piscator.

Jeremiah 18:15 In-Context

13 Therefore, the LORD proclaims: Ask among the nations: Have you ever heard anything like this? Virgin Israel has done the most horrible thing.

14 Does the snow on the mountains of Lebanon ever melt entirely off their rocky cliffs? Do the cool mountain streams ever dry up?

15 Yet my people have forgotten me; they have offered sacrifices to a lie. And so they have stumbled along the way, even along the ancient paths. They have taken side roads, not the main roads.

16 They have ruined their country and brought utter shame on it. All who pass by are shocked and shake their heads.

17 Like a strong east wind, I will scatter them before their enemy. When disaster strikes them, I will show them my back, not my face.

Footnotes

• [a]. Heb uncertain