What Does Jeremiah 16:7 Mean?

(7) **Neither shall men tear themselves.**—The marginal reading, “Neither shall men *break bread for them,*” as in Isaiah 58:7; Lamentations 4:4, gives the true meaning. We are entering upon another region of funeral customs, reminding us of some of the practices connected with the “wakes” of old English life. After the first burst of sorrow and of fasting, as the sign of sorrow (2Samuel 1:12; 2Samuel 3:35; 2Samuel 12:16-17), friends came to the mourner to comfort him. A feast was prepared for them, consisting of “the bread of mourners” (Hosea 9:4; Ezekiel 24:17) and the “cup of consolation,” as for those of a heavy heart (Proverbs 31:6). It is probable that some reference to this practice was implied in our Lord’s solemn benediction of the bread and of the cup at the Last Supper. As His body had been “anointed for the burial” (Matthew 26:12), so, in giving the symbols of His death, He was, as it were, keeping with His disciples His own funeral feast. The thought of the dead lying unburied, or buried without honour, is contemplated in all its horrors.