Jeremiah 2:27

27 that say to a tree, Thou art my father; and to a stone, Thou hast engendered me. They turned to me the back, and not the face; and in the time of their torment they shall say, Rise thou, and deliver us. (who say to a piece of wood, Thou art my father; and to a stone, Thou hast begat me. They turned their backs on me/They turned their backs to me, and not their faces; yet in the time of their torment they shall say, Rise thou up, and save us!)

Jeremiah 2:27 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 2:27

Saying to a stock
"To a tree" ^F6; to a piece of wood; that is, to an image made of it; so the Targum,

``they say to an image of wood;''

what follows: thou art my father;
ascribing that to the idol which belongs to God, who was their Father that made them, and upheld them, was the author of their beings, and the God of their mercies: and to a stone;
an image of stone: thou hast brought me forth:
into being; affirming it to be his former and maker; so the Targum,

``to that which is made of stone, thou hast created me:''

for they have turned their back unto me, and not their face;
they turned their faces to images of wood and stone, and worshipped them; and they turned their backs upon the Lord, his worship and ordinances, and apostatized from him; which the Targum thus expresses,

``for they turned their backs on my worship, and did not put my fear before their faces:''

but in the time of their trouble;
when any calamity befalls them, as famine, pestilence, sword, captivity, and the like: they will say, arise, and save us;
not that they will say so to their idols, but they will say so to the true God; for notwithstanding they worshipped idols in time of prosperity, forgetting God their Saviour; yet in adversity they are brought to their senses, and find that none but God can save them, and therefore apply to him; to which agrees the Targum,

``and in the time that evil comes upon them, they deny their idols, and confess before me, and say, have mercy on us, and save us.''

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FOOTNOTES:

F6 (Uel) "ligno", V. L. Pagnanius, Montanus, Schmidt.

Jeremiah 2:27 In-Context

25 Forbid thy foot from nakedness, and thy throat from thirst; and thou saidest, I despaired, (for) I shall not do (that); for I loved burningly alien gods, and I shall go after them (for I have burningly loved these strange, or these foreign, gods, and I shall go after them).

26 As a thief is shamed, when he is taken, so the house of Israel be shamed; they, and [the] kings of them, the princes, and priests, and the prophets of them, (Like a thief is shamed, when he is caught, so let the house of Israel be shamed; they, and their kings, and the princes, or the leaders, and the priests, and their prophets,)

27 that say to a tree, Thou art my father; and to a stone, Thou hast engendered me. They turned to me the back, and not the face; and in the time of their torment they shall say, Rise thou, and deliver us. (who say to a piece of wood, Thou art my father; and to a stone, Thou hast begat me. They turned their backs on me/They turned their backs to me, and not their faces; yet in the time of their torment they shall say, Rise thou up, and save us!)

28 Where be thy gods, which thou madest to thee? Rise they, and deliver thee in the time of thy torment; for after the number of thy cities were thy gods, thou Judah. (And then I shall say to them, Where be thy gods, which thou madest for thyselves? Let them rise up, and save thee in the time of thy torment; for the number of thy gods, O Judah, were as many as the number of thy cities.)

29 What, will ye strive with me in doom? All ye have forsaken me, saith the Lord. (What, will ye contend, or will ye argue, with me in judgement? All of ye have deserted me, saith the Lord.)