About Jeremiah

Jeremiah warned Judah of coming judgment for 40 years, yet proclaimed the hope of a new covenant.

Author: JeremiahWritten: c. 627-580 BCReading time: ~1 minVerses: 10
JudgmentNew CovenantRepentanceSufferingFaithfulnessHope

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King James Version

Jeremiah 24

10 verses with commentary

Two Baskets of Figs

1

The LORD shewed me, and, behold, two baskets of figs were set before the temple of the LORD, after that Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon had carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, and the princes of Judah, with the carpenters and smiths, from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>The LORD shewed me, and, behold, two baskets of figs were set before the temple of the LORD</strong>—this vision came after Nebuchadnezzar had deported King Jeconiah (also called Jehoiachin) and Judah's leadership in 597 BC. The Hebrew <em>ra'ah</em> (רָאָה, to see/show) indicates divine revelation, not ordinary sight. Figs (<em>te'enim</em>, תְּאֵנִים) were a covenant blessing symbol (Deu...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

XXIV. (1) **The Lord shewed me . . .**—The chapter belongs to the same period as the two preceding, *i.e., *to the reign of Zedekiah, after the first capture of Jerusalem and the captivity of the chief inhabitants. The opening words indicate that the symbols on which the prophet looked were seen in vision, as in Amos 7:1-4; Amos 7:7; Zechariah 1:8; Zechariah 2:1, and the symbols of Jeremiah 1:11; ...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**12. fetch wine--**language of the national teachers challenging one another to drink. Barnes translates, "I will take another cup" (Is 5:11). **to-morrow, &amp;c.--**Their self-indulgence was habitual and intentional: not merely they drink, but they mean to continue so.
2

One basket had very good figs, even like the figs that are first ripe: and the other basket had very naughty figs, which could not be eaten, they were so bad. they: Heb. for badness

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>One basket had very good figs, even like the figs that are first ripe</strong>—the Hebrew <em>tovot me'od</em> (טֹבוֹת מְאֹד, very good) emphasizes exceptional quality. <em>Bikkurot</em> (בִּכּוּרוֹת, first ripe) refers to early figs, considered the choicest fruit, eagerly anticipated and highly prized (Isaiah 28:4, Hosea 9:10, Micah 7:1). First fruits belonged to God (Exodus 23:19), makin...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(2) **Like the figs that are first ripe.**—Figs were usually gathered in August. The “first ripe,” the “summer fruits” of Micah 7:1, the “hasty fruit before the summer” (Isaiah 28:4; Hosea 9:10) were looked upon as a choice delicacy. The “naughty” (*i.e., *worthless) fruits were those that had been left behind on the tree, bruised and decayed. The word was not confined in the 16th century to the l...
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3

Then said the LORD unto me, What seest thou, Jeremiah? And I said, Figs; the good figs, very good; and the evil, very evil, that cannot be eaten, they are so evil.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>Then said the LORD unto me, What seest thou, Jeremiah?</strong>—God's question engages the prophet in interpretation, a pedagogical method seen throughout Scripture (Amos 7:8, 8:2; Zechariah 4:2, 5:2). The question tests understanding and prepares Jeremiah to explain the vision. God doesn't merely show visions but ensures prophets comprehend their meaning before proclaiming them.<br><br><s...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(3) **What seest thou, Jeremiah?**—The question is asked as if to force the symbol as strongly as possible on the prophet’s mind, leaving him to wait till another word of the Lord should come and reveal its true interpretation. We are reminded, as he must have been, of the vision and the question which had first called him to his work as a prophet (Jeremiah 1:11).

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

CHAPTER 57 Is 57:1-21. The Peaceful Death of the Righteous Few: the Ungodliness of the Many: a Believing Remnant Shall Survive the General Judgments of the Nation, and Be Restored by Him Who Creates Peace. In the midst of the excesses of the unfaithful watchmen (Is 56:10, 11, 12), most of the few that are godly perish: partly by vexation at the prevailing ungodliness; partly by violent death in ...
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4

Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying</strong>—this formulaic introduction signals fresh prophetic revelation. The Hebrew <em>davar-YHWH</em> (דְּבַר־יְהוָה, word of Yahweh) carries authority as God's direct communication, not human speculation. This phrase appears over 240 times in Jeremiah, more than any other prophetic book, emphasizing that Jeremiah spoke divine messages, not...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(4) **Again the word of the Lord came unto me.**—The words seem to imply an interval, during which the prophet was left to ponder over the symbols that he had thus seen. At last “the word of the Lord came” and made their meaning clear.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

2. Or, "he entereth into peace"; in contrast to the persecutions which he suffered in this world (Job 3:13, 17). The Margin not so well translates, "he shall go in peace" (Psa 37:37; Lu 2:29). **rest--**the calm rest of their bodies in their graves (called "beds," 2Ch 16:14; compare Is 14:18; because they "sleep" in them, with the certainty of awakening at the resurrection, 1Th 4:14) is the embl...
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5

Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel; Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge them that are carried away captive of Judah, whom I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans for their good. them: Heb. the captivity

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KJV Study Commentary

The 'good figs' represent the exiles in Babylon - those whom God would preserve and restore. Paradoxically, those who seemed judged (exiled) were actually recipients of God's special care, while those who remained in Jerusalem faced worse judgment. God's perspective inverts human wisdom. The promise 'I will set mine eyes upon them for good' echoes His covenant commitment despite circumstances.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(5) **So will I acknowledge.**—The expected revelation came. The two baskets represented the two sections of the people. The captives who had been carried to Babylon were, as the list shows, for the most part of higher rank than those who were left behind. The workmen were the skilled labourers of the artisan class. There are many indications that under the teaching of Daniel and his companions, a...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**3. But ... ye--**In contrast to "the righteous" and their end, he announces to the unbelieving Jews their doom. **sons of the sorceress--**that is, ye that are addicted to sorcery: this was connected with the worship of false gods (2Ki 21:6). No insult is greater to an Oriental than any slur cast on his mother (1Sa 20:30; Job 30:8). **seed of the adulterer--**Spiritual adultery is meant: ido...
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6

For I will set mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them again to this land: and I will build them, and not pull them down; and I will plant them, and not pluck them up.

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KJV Study Commentary

God promises to set His eyes upon the exiles 'for good' and bring them back to the land. He will 'build them, and not pull them down; and I will plant them, and not pluck them up.' This agricultural imagery reverses Jeremiah's commission to 'root out, and to pull down, and to destroy' (1:10). After judgment accomplishes its purpose, restoration begins.

Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(6) **I will set mine eyes upon them for good.**—The state of the Jews at Babylon at the time of the return from exile was obviously far above that of slaves or prisoners. They had money (Ezra 2:69), they cultivated land, they built houses (Jeremiah 29:4; Jeremiah 29:28). Many were reluctant to leave their new home for the land of their fathers, and among these must have been the families represen...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**4. sport yourselves--**make a mock (Is 66:5). Are ye aware of the glory of Him whom you mock, by mocking His servants ("the righteous," Is 57:1)? (2Ch 36:16). **make ... wide mouth--**(Psa 22:7, 13; 35:21; La 2:16). **children of transgression, &amp;c.--**not merely children of transgressors, and a seed of false parents, but of transgression and falsehood itself, utterly unfaithful to God.
7

And I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the LORD: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart.

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KJV Study Commentary

In the vision of good and bad figs representing the exiles and those who remained in Jerusalem, God promises regarding the exiles: 'I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the LORD: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart.' This anticipates the new covenant promise (31:33) of internal transformation. God will give them a he...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(7) **I will give them an heart to know me . . .**—Of this also the history of the return gives at least a partial proof. Whatever other faults might be growing up, they never again fell into the apostasy from the true faith in God, which up to the time of the exile had been their besetting sin. **They shall be my people . . .**—The prophet clearly remembers and reproduces the promise of Hosea 2:2...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**5. Enflaming yourselves--**burning with lust towards idols [Gesenius]; or else (compare Margin), in the terebinth groves, which the Hebrew and the parallelism favor (see on Is 1:29) [Maurer]. **under ... tree--**(2Ki 17:10). The tree, as in the Assyrian sculptures, was probably made an idolatrous symbol of the heavenly hosts. **slaying ... children--**as a sacrifice to Molech, &amp;c. (2Ki 1...
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8

And as the evil figs, which cannot be eaten, they are so evil; surely thus saith the LORD, So will I give Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem, that remain in this land, and them that dwell in the land of Egypt:

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>And as the evil figs, which cannot be eaten, they are so evil</strong> (הַתְּאֵנִים הָרָעוֹת אֲשֶׁר לֹא־תֵאָכַלְנָה מֵרֹעַ, <em>hatt'enim hara'ot asher lo-te'akhelna mero'a</em>)—the evil figs represent <strong>Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem...and them that dwell in the land of Egypt</strong>. The comparison to inedible figs, spoiled beyond use (ר...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(8) **And them that dwell in the land of Egypt.—**These were, in fact, such as had been carried into captivity with Jehoahaz by Pharaoh-nechoh (see Note on Jeremiah 22:11), or had fled thither in order to avoid submission to Nebuchadnezzar, and were settled in Migdol, and Tahpanhes, and Noph. We meet with them later on in Jeremiah 44. For these there was to be no return, no share in the work of re...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

6. The smooth stones, shaped as idols, are the gods chosen by thee as thy portion (Psa 16:5). **meat offering--**not a bloody sacrifice, but one of meal and flour mingled with oil. "Meat" in Old English meant food, not flesh, as it means now (Le 14:10). **Should I receive comfort--**rather, "Shall I bear these things with patience?" [Horsley].
9

And I will deliver them to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth for their hurt, to be a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse, in all places whither I shall drive them. to be removed: Heb. for removing, or, vexation

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>And I will deliver them to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth for their hurt, to be a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse</strong> (וּנְתַתִּים לְזַעֲוָה לְרָעָה לְכֹל מַמְלְכוֹת הָאָרֶץ לְחֶרְפָּה וּלְמָשָׁל לִשְׁנִינָה וְלִקְלָלָה, <em>un'tattim l'za'avah l'ra'ah l'khol mamlekhot ha'arets l'cherpah ul'mashal lishnina v'liqlalah</em>). The fourfold designation—reproach ...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(9) **To be a reproach and a proverb.**—The language of the verse is coloured by that of Deuteronomy 28:25; Deuteronomy 28:37, from which most of the words are chosen.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**7. Upon ... high mountain ... bed--**image from adultery, open and shameless (Eze 23:7); the "bed" answers to the idolatrous altar, the scene of their spiritual unfaithfulness to their divine husband (Eze 16:16, 25; 23:41).
10

And I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, among them, till they be consumed from off the land that I gave unto them and to their fathers.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>And I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, among them, till they be consumed from off the land</strong> (וְשִׁלַּחְתִּי בָם אֶת־הַחֶרֶב אֶת־הָרָעָב וְאֶת־הַדָּבֶר עַד־תֻּמָּם מֵעַל הָאֲדָמָה, <em>v'shillachti vam et-hacherev et-hara'av v'et-haddaver ad-tummam me'al ha'adamah</em>). The threefold judgment—sword (חֶרֶב), famine (רָעָב), pestilence (דֶּבֶר)—appears throughout ...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(10) **The sword, the famine, and the pestilence.**—The three forms of suffering are grouped together, as in Jeremiah 14:12 and Ezekiel 14:21. The two latter followed almost inevitably in the wake of the first. **Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers Text Courtesy of BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission. **Bible Hub

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

8. "Remembrance," that is, memorials of thy idolatry: the objects which thou holdest in remembrance. They hung up household tutelary gods "behind the doors"; the very place where God has directed them to write His laws "on the posts and gates" (De 6:9; 11:20); a curse, too, was pronounced on putting up an image "in a secret place" (De 27:15). **discovered thyself--**image from an adulteress. *...
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