Jeremiah 10:1-6

A Satire on Idolatry

1 Hear the word which the LORD speaks to you, O house of Israel.
2 Thus says the LORD, "1Do not learn the way of the nations, And do not be terrified by the signs of the heavens Although the nations are terrified by them;
3 For the customs of the peoples are 2delusion; Because 3it is wood cut from the forest, The work of the hands of a craftsman with a cutting tool.
4 "They 4decorate it with silver and with gold; They 5fasten it with nails and with hammers So that it will not totter.
5 "Like a scarecrow in a cucumber field are they, And they 6cannot speak; They must be 7carried, Because they cannot walk! Do not fear them, For they 8can do no harm, Nor * can they do any good."
6 9There is none like You, O LORD; You are 10great, and great is Your name in might.

Jeremiah 10:1-6 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO JEREMIAH 10

This chapter shows that there is no comparison to be made between God and the idols of the Gentiles; represents the destruction of the Jews as near at hand; and is closed with some petitions of the prophet. It begins by way of preface with an exhortation to hear the word of the Lord, and a dehortation not to learn the way of the Heathens, or be dismayed at their signs, since their customs were in vain, Jer 10:1-3 which lead on to expose their idols, and set forth the greatness and glory of God. Their idols are described by the matter and makers of them, Jer 10:3,4,9 and from their impotence to speak, to stand, to move, or do either good or evil, Jer 10:4,5, but, on the other hand, God is described by the greatness of his name and power, and by the reverence that belongs unto him; in comparison of whom all the wise men of the nations are brutish, foolish, and vain, Jer 10:6-8, by the epithets of true, living, and everlasting, and by the terribleness of his wrath, Jer 10:10, by his power and wisdom, in making the heavens and the earth, in causing thunder and lightning, wind and rain, when the gods that have no share in these shall utterly perish, Jer 10:11-13 their makers being brutish, and brought to shame; and they falsehood and breathless vanity, the work of errors, and so shall come to ruin, Jer 10:14,15, but he, who is Jacob's portion, and whose inheritance Israel is, is not like them; being the former of all things, and his name the Lord of hosts, Jer 10:16 and next follows a prophecy of the destruction of the Jews; wherefore they are bid to gather up their wares, since in a very little time, and at once, the Lord would fling them out of the land, and bring them into distress, Jer 10:17,18, upon which the prophet expresses his sympathy with his people in trouble, and the part of grief he took and bore with them, Jer 10:19, the particulars of his distress, through the desolation of the land, and the captivity of the people, with the cause and authors of it, by whose means these things were brought upon them, are mentioned, Jer 10:20,21, and the Chaldean army, the instruments of their ruin, are represented as just at hand, Jer 10:22, when the prophet, directing himself to God, acknowledges the impotence of man in general to help and guide himself, deprecates correction in anger to himself in particular, and prays that the wrath of God might be poured down upon the Heathens, by whom his people were devoured, consumed, and made desolate, Jer 10:23-25.

Cross References 10

  • 1. Leviticus 18:3; Leviticus 20:23; Deuteronomy 12:30
  • 2. Jeremiah 14:22
  • 3. Isaiah 44:9-20
  • 4. Isaiah 40:19
  • 5. Isaiah 40:20; Isaiah 41:7
  • 6. Psalms 115:5; Isaiah 46:7; Jeremiah 10:14; 1 Corinthians 12:2
  • 7. Psalms 115:7; Isaiah 46:1, 7
  • 8. Isaiah 41:23, 24
  • 9. Exodus 15:11; Deuteronomy 33:26; Psalms 86:8, 10; Jeremiah 10:16
  • 10. Psalms 48:1; Psalms 96:4; Isaiah 12:6; Jeremiah 32:18

Footnotes 1

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