Jeremiah 37:7

7 Thus hath the LORD, the God of Israel said; Thus shall ye say to the king of Judah, that sent you unto me to enquire of me: Behold, Pharaoh’s army, which had come forth to help you, has returned to Egypt into their own land.

Jeremiah 37:7 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 37:7

Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel
Which are the usual titles and characters the Lord takes to himself, when he spake by the prophet; see ( Jeremiah 34:2 Jeremiah 34:13 ) ; thus shall ye say to the king of Judah, that sent you unto me, to
inquire of me;
in an oracular way; for by this it seems that they were not only sent to desire the prophet to pray for them, but to obtain an oracle from the Lord, confirming it to them, that the Chaldean army which was gone would not return any more; this they were willing to believe, but wanted to have a confirmation of it from the Lord; and so the Targum,

``to seek an oracle from me;''

or to ask instruction or doctrine from me: now these messengers are bid to go back and tell the king, his nobles, and all the people of the land, what follows: behold, Pharaoh's army, which is come forth to help you, shall return
to Egypt, into their own land;
being afraid to face the Chaldean army; or being defeated and driven back by it. Josephus ^F1 says there was a battle fought between the Egyptians and Chaldeans, in which the latter were conquerors, and put the former to flight, and drove them out of all Syria. Jarchi relates a fable, how that the Egyptian army came by ships, and that at sea they saw strange appearances, upon which they said one to another, what means this? they replied, these are our fathers, whom the fathers of those we are going to help drowned in the sea; and immediately returned to their own land.

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FOOTNOTES:

F1 Anitqu. l. 10. c. 7. sect. 3.

Jeremiah 37:7 In-Context

5 And as Pharaoh’s army was come forth out of Egypt; and when the Chaldeans that besieged Jerusalem heard tidings of them, they departed from Jerusalem.)

6 Then came the word of the LORD unto the prophet Jeremiah, saying,

7 Thus hath the LORD, the God of Israel said; Thus shall ye say to the king of Judah, that sent you unto me to enquire of me: Behold, Pharaoh’s army, which had come forth to help you, has returned to Egypt into their own land.

8 And the Chaldeans shall come again and fight against this city and take it and burn it with fire.

9 Thus hath the LORD said; Do not deceive yourselves, saying, The Chaldeans have surely departed from us; for they shall not depart.