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Matthew Henry |
J E R E M I A H.
CHAP. XXVIII.
In the foregoing chapter Jeremiah had charged those prophets with lies
who foretold the speedy breaking of the yoke of the king of Babylon and
the speedy return of the vessels of the sanctuary; how here we have his
contest with a particular prophet upon those heads.
I. Hananiah, a pretender to prophecy, in contradiction to Jeremiah,
foretold the sinking of Nebuchadnezzar’s power and the return both of
the persons and of the vessels that were carried away
(ver. 1-4),
and, as a sing of this, he broke the yoke from the neck of Jeremiah,
II. Jeremiah wished his words might prove true, but appealed to the
event whether they were so or no, not doubting but that would disprove
them,
III. The doom both of the deceived and the deceiver is here read. The
people that were deceived should have their yoke of wood turned into a
yoke of iron
(ver. 12-14),
and the prophet that was the deceiver should be shortly cut off by
death, and he was so, accordingly, within two months,
| Hananiah’s False Prophecy. | B. C. 597. |
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1 And it came to pass the same year, in the beginning of the
reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the fourth year, and in the
fifth month, that Hananiah the son of Azur the prophet, which
was of Gibeon, spake unto me in the house of the LORD, in the
presence of the priests and of all the people, saying,
2 Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, saying, I
have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon.
3 Within two full years will I bring again into this place all
the vessels of the LORD‘s house, that Nebuchadnezzar king of
Babylon took away from this place, and carried them to Babylon:
4 And I will bring again to this place Jeconiah the son of
Jehoiakim king of Judah, with all the captives of Judah, that
went into Babylon, saith the LORD: for I will break the yoke of
the king of Babylon.
5 Then the prophet Jeremiah said unto the prophet Hananiah in
the presence of the priests, and in the presence of all the
people that stood in the house of the LORD,
6 Even the prophet Jeremiah said, Amen: the LORD do so: the
LORD perform thy words which thou hast prophesied, to bring again
the vessels of the LORD‘s house, and all that is carried away
captive, from Babylon into this place.
7 Nevertheless hear thou now this word that I speak in thine
ears, and in the ears of all the people;
8 The prophets that have been before me and before thee of old
prophesied both against many countries, and against great
kingdoms, of war, and of evil, and of pestilence.
9 The prophet which prophesieth of peace, when the word of the
prophet shall come to pass, then shall the prophet be known,
that the LORD hath truly sent him.
This struggle between a true prophet and a false one is said here to
have happened in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah, and yet
in the fourth year, for the first four years of his reign might
well be called the beginning, or former part, of it, because
during those years he reigned under the dominion of the king of Babylon
and as a tributary to him; whereas the rest of his reign, which might
well be called the latter part of it, in distinction from that
former part, he reigned in rebellion against the king of
Babylon. In this fourth year of his reign he went in person to Babylon
(as we find,
and it is probable that this gave the people some hope that his
negotiation in person would put a good end to the war, in which hope
the false prophets encouraged them, this Hananiah particularly, who was
of Gibeon, a priests’ city, and therefore probably himself a priest, as
well as Jeremiah. Now here we have,
I. The prediction which Hananiah delivered publicly, solemnly, in
the house of the Lord, and in the name of the Lord, in an august
assembly, in the presence of the priests and of all the people,
who probably were expecting to have some message from heaven. In
delivering this prophecy, he faced Jeremiah, he spoke it to him
(v. 1),
designing to confront and contradict him, as much as to say, “Jeremiah,
thou liest.” Now this prediction is that the king of Babylon’s power,
at least his power over Judah and Jerusalem, should be speedily broken,
that within two full years the vessels of the temple should be
brought back, and Jeremiah, and all the captives that were carried away
with him, should return; whereas Jeremiah had foretold that the yoke of
the king of Babylon should be bound on yet faster, and that the vessels
and captives should not return for 70 years,
Now, upon the reading of this sham prophecy, and comparing it with the
messages that God sent by the true prophets, we may observe what a vast
difference there is between them. Here is nothing of the spirit and
life, the majesty of style and sublimity of expression, that appear in
the discourses of God’s prophets, nothing of that divine flame and
flatus. But that which is especially wanting here is an air of
piety; he speaks with a great deal of confidence of the return of their
prosperity, but here is not a word of good counsel given them to
repent, and reform, and return to God, to pray, and seek his face, that
they may be prepared for the favours God had in reserve for them. He
promises them temporal mercies, in God’s name, but makes no mention of
those spiritual mercies which God always promised should go along with
them, as
I will give them a heart to know me. By all this it appears
that, whatever he pretended, he had only the spirit of the
world, not the Spirit of God
that he aimed to please, not to profit.
II. Jeremiah’s reply to this pretended prophecy.
1. He heartily wishes it might prove true. Such an affection has he for
his country, and so truly desirous is he of the welfare of it, that he
would be content to lie under the imputation of a false prophet, so
that their ruin might be prevented. He said, Amen; the Lord do so;
the Lord perform thy words,
v. 5, 6.
This was not the first time that Jeremiah had prayed for his people,
though he had prophesied against them, and deprecated the judgments
which yet he certainly knew would come; as Christ prayed, Father, if
it be possible, let this cup pass from me, when yet he knew it must
not pass from him. Though, as a faithful prophet, he foresaw and
foretold the destruction of Jerusalem, yet, as a faithful Israelite, he
prayed earnestly for the preservation of it, in obedience to that
command, Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Though the will of
God’s purpose is the rule of prophecy and patience, the will of his
precept is the rule of prayer and practice. God himself, though he has
determined, does not desire, the death of sinners, but would have
all men to be saved. Jeremiah often interceded for his people,
The false prophets thought to ingratiate themselves with the people by
promising them peace; now the prophet shows that he bore them as great
a good-will as their prophets did, whom they were so fond of; and,
though he had no warrant from God to promise them peace, yet he
earnestly desired it and prayed for it. How strangely were those
besotted who caressed those who did them the greatest wrong imaginable
by flattering them and persecuted him who did them the greatest service
imaginable by interceding for them! See
2. He appeals to the event, to prove it false,
The false prophets reflected upon Jeremiah, as Ahab upon Micaiah,
because he never prophesied good concerning them, but evil. Now
he pleads that this had been the purport of the prophecies that other
prophets had delivered, so that it ought not to be looked upon as a
strange thing, or as rendering his mission doubtful; for prophets of
old prophesied against many countries and great kingdoms, so
bold were they in delivering the messages which God sent by them, and
so far from fearing men, or seeking to please them, as Hananiah did.
They made no difficulty, any more than Jeremiah did, of threatening
war, famine, and pestilence, and what they said was regarded as coming
from God; why then should Jeremiah be run down as a pestilent
fellow, and a sower of sedition, when he preached no otherwise than
God’s prophets had always done before him? Other prophets had foretold
destruction did not come, which yet did not disprove their divine
mission, as in the case of Jonah; for God is gracious, and ready to
turn away his wrath from those that turn away from their sins. But the
prophet that prophesied of peace and prosperity, especially as
Hananiah did, absolutely and unconditionally, without adding that
necessary proviso, that they do not by wilful sin put a bar in their
own door and stop the current of God’s favours, will be proved a true
prophet only by the accomplishment of his prediction; if it come to
pass, then it shall be known that the Lord has sent him, but, if
not, he will appear to be a cheat and an impostor.
| Hananiah Condemned. | B. C. 597. |
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10 Then Hananiah the prophet took the yoke from off the prophet
Jeremiah’s neck, and brake it.
11 And Hananiah spake in the presence of all the people,
saying, Thus saith the LORD; Even so will I break the yoke of
Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon from the neck of all nations
within the space of two full years. And the prophet Jeremiah went
his way.
12 Then the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah the prophet,
after that Hananiah the prophet had broken the yoke from off the
neck of the prophet Jeremiah, saying,
13 Go and tell Hananiah, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Thou hast
broken the yokes of wood; but thou shalt make for them yokes of
iron.
14 For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; I have
put a yoke of iron upon the neck of all these nations, that they
may serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and they shall serve
him: and I have given him the beasts of the field also.
15 Then said the prophet Jeremiah unto Hananiah the prophet,
Hear now, Hananiah; The LORD hath not sent thee; but thou makest
this people to trust in a lie.
16 Therefore thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will cast thee from
off the face of the earth: this year thou shalt die, because thou
hast taught rebellion against the LORD.
17 So Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the seventh
month.
We have here an instance,
I. Of the insolence of the false prophet. To complete the affront he
designed Jeremiah, he took the yoke from off his neck which he
carried as a memorial of what he had prophesied concerning the
enslaving of the nations to Nebuchadnezzar, and he broke it, that he
might give a sign of the accomplishment of this prophecy, as Jeremiah
had given of his, and might seem to have conquered him, and to have
defeated the intention of his prophecy. See how the lying spirit, in
the mouth of this false prophet, mimics the language of the Spirit of
truth: Thus saith the Lord, So will I break the yoke of the king of
Babylon, not only from the neck of this nation, but from the
neck of all nations, within two full years. Whether by the force of
a heated imagination Hananiah had persuaded himself to believe this, or
whether he knew it to be false, and only persuaded them to believe it,
does not appear; but it is plain that he speaks with abundance of
assurance. It is no new thing for lies to be fathered upon the God of
truth.
II. Of the patience of the true prophet. Jeremiah quietly went his
way, and when he was reviled he reviled not again, and would
not contend with one that was in the height of his fury and in the
midst of the priests and people that were violently set against him.
The reason why he went his way was not because he had nothing to
answer, but because he was willing to stay till God was pleased to
furnish him with a direct and immediate answer, which as yet he had not
received. He expected that God would send a special message to
Hananiah, and he would say nothing till he had received that. I, as
a deaf man, heard not, for thou wilt hear, and thou shalt
answer, Lord, for me. It may sometimes be our wisdom rather to
retreat than to contend. Currenti cede furori–Give place unto
wrath.
III. Of the justice of God in giving judgment between Jeremiah and his
adversary. Jeremiah went his way, as a man in whose mouth there was
no rebuke, but God soon put a word into his mouth; for he will
appear for those who silently commit their cause to him.
1. The word of God, in the mouth of Jeremiah, is ratified and
confirmed. Let not Jeremiah himself distrust the truth of what he had
delivered in God’s name because it met with such a daring opposition
and contradiction. If what we have spoken be the truth of God, we must
not unsay it because men gainsay it; for great is the truth and will
prevail. It will stand, therefore let us stand to it, and not fear
that men’s unbelief or blasphemy will make it of no effect. Hananiah
has broken the yokes of wood, but Jeremiah must make for them
yokes of iron, which cannot be broken
(v. 13),
for (says God) “I have put a yoke of iron upon the neck of all these
nations, which shall lie heavier, and bind harder, upon them
(v. 14),
that they may serve the king of Babylon, and not be able to
shake off the yoke however they may struggle, for they shall serve him
whether they will or no;” and who is he that can contend with God’s
counsel? What was said before is repeated again: I have given him
the beasts of the field also, as if there were something
significant in that. Men had by their wickedness made themselves
like the beasts that perish, and therefore deserved to be ruled
by an arbitrary power, as beasts are ruled, and such a power
Nebuchadnezzar ruled with; for whom he would he slew and whom he
would he kept alive.
2. Hananiah is sentenced to die for contradicting it, and Jeremiah,
when he has received commission from God, boldly tells him so to his
face, though before he received that commission he went away and said
nothing.
(1.) The crimes of which Hananiah stands convicted are cheating the
people and affronting God: Thou makest this people to trust in a
lie, encouraging them to hope that they shall have peace, which
will make their destruction the more terrible to them when it comes;
yet this was not the worst: Thou hast taught rebellion against the
Lord; thou hast taught them to despise all the good counsel given
them in God’s name by the true prophets, and hast rendered it
ineffectual. Those have a great deal to answer for who, by telling
sinners that they shall have peace though they go on, harden their
hearts in a contempt of the reproofs and admonitions of the word, and
the means and methods God takes to bring them to repentance.
(2.) The judgment given against him is, “I will cast thee off from
the face of the earth, as unworthy to live upon it; thou shalt be
buried in it. This year thou shalt die, and die as a rebel
against the Lord, to whom death will come with a sting and a curse.”
This sentence was executed,
Hananiah died the same year, within two months; for his prophecy is
dated the fifth month
(v. 1)
and his death the seventh. Good men may perhaps be suddenly taken off
by death in the midst of their days, and in mercy to them, as Josiah
was; but this being foretold as the punishment of his sin, and coming
to pass accordingly, it may safely be construed as a testimony from
Heaven against him and a confirmation of Jeremiah’s mission. And, if
the people’s hearts had not been wretchedly hardened by the
deceitfulness of sin, it would have prevented their being further
hardened by the deceitfulness of their prophets.
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