Jeremiah 12:7

7 "I have left Israel; I have left my people. I have given the people I love over to their enemies.

Jeremiah 12:7 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 12:7

I have forsaken my house
The temple, where the Lord took up his residence, and vouchsafed his presence to his people; this was fulfilled in the first temple, when it was destroyed by the Chaldeans; and more fully in the second, when Christ took his leave of it, ( Matthew 23:38 ) and when that voice was heard in it, a little before the destruction of Jerusalem, as Josephus F1 relates,

``let us go hence.''
So the Targum,
``I have forsaken the house of my sanctuary.''
I have left mine heritage:
the people whom he had chosen for his inheritance, whom he prized and valued, took care of, and protected as such; see ( Deuteronomy 32:9 ) . I have given the dearly beloved of my soul;
whom he heartily loved and delighted in, and who were as dear to him as the apple of his eye: into the hands of her enemies;
the Chaldeans. This prophecy represents the thing as if it was already done, because of the certainty of it, and to awaken the Jews out of their lethargy and stupidity; and by the characters which the Lord gives of them it appears what ingratitude they had been guilty of, and that their ruin was owing to themselves and their sins.
FOOTNOTES:

F1 De Bello Jud. l. 6. c. 5. sect. 3.

Jeremiah 12:7 In-Context

5 "If you get tired while racing against people, how can you race against horses? If you stumble in a country that is safe, what will you do in the thick thornbushes along the Jordan River?
6 Even your own brothers and members of your own family are making plans against you. They are crying out against you. Don't trust them, even when they say nice things to you!
7 "I have left Israel; I have left my people. I have given the people I love over to their enemies.
8 My people have become to me like a lion in the forest. They roar at me, so I hate them.
9 My people have become to me like a speckled bird attacked on all sides by hawks. Go, gather the wild animals. Bring them to get something to eat.
Scripture taken from the New Century Version. Copyright © 1987, 1988, 1991 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.