3 Their tongues are bent like a bow to send out false words: they have become strong in the land, but not for good faith: they go on from evil to evil, and they have no knowledge of me, says the Lord.
His tongue is an arrow causing death; the words of his mouth are deceit: he says words of peace to his neighbour, but in his heart he is waiting secretly for him.
For my people are foolish, they have no knowledge of me; they are evil-minded children, without sense, all of them: they are wise in evil-doing, but have no knowledge of doing good.
Their throat is like an open place of death; with their tongues they have said what is not true: the poison of snakes is under their lips:
We have gone against the Lord, and been false to him, turning away from our God, our words have been uncontrolled, and in our hearts are thoughts of deceit. And the right is turned back, and righteousness is far away: for good faith is not to be seen in the public places, and upright behaviour may not come into the town. Yes, faith is gone; and he whose heart is turned from evil comes into the power of the cruel: and the Lord saw it, and he was angry that there was no one to take up their cause.
And this is eternal life: to have knowledge of you, the only true God, and of him whom you have sent, even Jesus Christ.
And they overcame him through the blood of the Lamb and the word of their witness; and loving not their lives they freely gave themselves up to death.
My loved ones, while my thoughts were full of a letter which I was going to send you about our common salvation, it was necessary for me to send you one requesting you with all my heart to go on fighting strongly for the faith which has been given to the saints once and for ever.
Evil and false men will become worse and worse, using deceit and themselves overcome by deceit.
Having no fear of those who are against you; which is a clear sign of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God;
Because the god of this world has made blind the minds of those who have not faith, so that the light of the good news of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, might not be shining on them. For our preaching is not about ourselves, but about Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your servants through Jesus. Seeing that it is God who said, Let light be shining out of the dark, who has put in our hearts the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
And because they had not the mind to keep God in their knowledge, God gave them up to an evil mind, to do those things which are not right;
For I have no feeling of shame about the good news, because it is the power of God giving salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first, and then to the Greek.
Jesus said in answer, If I take glory for myself, my glory is nothing: it is my Father who gives me glory, of whom you say that he is your God. You have no knowledge of him, but I have knowledge of him; and if I said I have no knowledge of him I would be talking falsely like you: but I have full knowledge of him, and I keep his word.
Whoever has a feeling of shame because of me and my words in this false and evil generation, the Son of man will have a feeling of shame because of him, when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.
Then have no fear; you are of more value than a flock of sparrows. To everyone, then, who gives witness to me before men, I will give witness before my Father in heaven. But if anyone says before men that he has no knowledge of me, I will say that I have no knowledge of him before my Father in heaven.
Their hands are made ready to do evil; the ruler makes requests for money, and the judge is looking for a reward; and the great man gives decisions at his pleasure, and the right is twisted. The best of them is like a waste plant, and their upright ones are like a wall of thorns. Sorrow! the day of their fate has come; now will trouble come on them. Put no faith in a friend, do not let your hope be placed in a relation: keep watch on the doors of your mouth against her who is resting on your breast.
Give ear to the word of the Lord, O children of Israel; for the Lord has a cause against the people of this land, because there is no good faith in it, and no mercy and no knowledge of God in the land. There is cursing and broken faith, violent death and attacks on property, men are untrue in married life, houses are broken into, and there is blood touching blood. Because of this the land will be dry, and everyone living in it will be wasted away, with the beasts of the field and the birds of heaven; even the fishes of the sea will be taken away.
And no longer will they be teaching every man his neighbour and every man his brother, saying, Get knowledge of the Lord: for they will all have knowledge of me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord: for they will have my forgiveness for their evil-doing, and their sin will go from my memory for ever.
He was judge in the cause of the poor and those in need; then it was well. Was not this to have knowledge of me? says the Lord.
Everyone will make sport of his neighbour with deceit, not saying what is true: their tongues have been trained to say false words; they are twisted, hating to come back.
For your hands are unclean with blood, and your fingers with sin; your lips have said false things, and your tongue gives out deceit. No one puts forward an upright cause, or gives a true decision: their hope is in deceit, and their words are false; they are with child with sin, and give birth to evil. They give birth to snake's eggs, and make spider's threads: whoever takes their eggs for food comes to his death, and the egg which is crushed becomes a poison-snake.
O Lord, be the saviour of my soul from false lips, and from the tongue of deceit. What punishment will he give you? what more will he do to you, you false tongue? Sharp arrows of the strong, and burning fire.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Keil & Delitzsch Commentary » Commentary on Jeremiah 9
Commentary on Jeremiah 9 Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
Jeremiah 9:1. "Oh that I had in the wilderness a lodging-place of wayfarers! then would I leave my people, and go away from them. For they be all adulterers, a crew of faithless ones. Jeremiah 9:2. They bend their tongue like their bow with lying; and not according to faithfulness do they manage in the land, but go on from evil to evil, and me they know not, saith Jahve. Jeremiah 9:3. Beware each of his neighbour, and trust not in any brother; for every brother supplanteth, and every friend goeth slandering. Jeremiah 9:4. And one overreaCheth the other, and truth they speak not; they teach their tongue to speak lies, to deal perversely they weary themselves. Jeremiah 9:5. Thy dwelling is in the midst of deceit; in deceit they refuse to know me, saith Jahveh. Jeremiah 9:6. Therefore thus hath spoken Jahveh of hosts: Behold, I will melt them, and try them; for how should I deal in regard to the daughter of my people? Jeremiah 9:7. A deadly arrow is their tongue; they speak deceit; with his mouth one speaketh peace with his neighbour, and inwardly within him he layeth ambush. Jeremiah 9:8. Shall I not visit this upon them? saith Jahveh; or on such a people as this shall not my soul take vengeance?"