Jeremiah 4:17

17 They surround them like men guarding a field, because Judah has rebelled against me," declares the LORD.

Jeremiah 4:17 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 4:17

As keepers of a field, are they against her round about
As those that are set to watch a field, in which are fruit and corn of any sort, that thieves and robbers, and wild beasts, may not enter to waste and destroy, and are placed on all sides for that purpose; so the Chaldeans were round about Jerusalem, that none could make their escape out of it; see ( 2 Kings 25:4 ) : because she hath been rebellious against me, saith the Lord;
it was not without reason that the Lord suffered the Chaldeans to come against Jerusalem, besiege, and take it; the inhabitants of it had rebelled against him, their King and their God; and therefore he delivers them up into the hands of another lord, and a cruel one; they had provoked him to anger with their sins, and caused him to stir up his wrath against them in this way: rebellion against a prince, or against a parent, is a provoking sin; see ( 1 Samuel 15:23 ) ( Isaiah 1:2 ) .

Jeremiah 4:17 In-Context

15 A message is heard from Dan, and a report of disaster comes from the mountains of Ephraim.
16 Warn the nations about these things. Bring them to the attention of Jerusalem. "Hostile troops are coming from a distant country. They are shouting battle cries against the cities of Judah.
17 They surround them like men guarding a field, because Judah has rebelled against me," declares the LORD.
18 "You brought this on yourself. This is your punishment. It is bitter. It breaks your heart."
19 My anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain. My heart is beating wildly! My heart is pounding! I can't keep quiet because I hear a ram's horn sounding the alarm for war.
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