Jeremiah 5:25 - Meaning and Application

Here, the prophet first shows them what damage their sins had done. They had brought an end to “these things,” the former and latter rains, which they used to receive at the right time (Jeremiah 5:24). But for a while those rains had been withheld (Jeremiah 3:3), and because of that, the appointed weeks of harvest sometimes failed them. It was their sin that had shut off good from them when God was ready to give it.

This is a reminder that sin blocks the flow of God’s favor and takes away blessings we once enjoyed. It is sin that makes the sky like brass and the ground like iron. When people turn from God, even the gifts of creation can seem closed to them.

He then shows how serious and offensive their sin was. When they left the worship of the true God, even simple moral honesty disappeared among them. Among my people, the Lord says, are found wicked men (Jeremiah 5:26), and they were worse because they were found among God’s own people.

They were cruel and hateful people. Wicked men are those who enjoy doing harm. They were caught in the very act of evil. Like hunters setting traps for animals, they lay in wait for people and made a game of it.

They planned ways to harm good people, especially those who faithfully corrected them (Isaiah 29:21). They also targeted anyone who stood in the way of their success, or whom they thought had insulted them, or whose property they wanted. This is like Jezebel trapping Naboth for his vineyard. Worse still, they sometimes did evil simply because they liked evil.

They were also false and treacherous (Jeremiah 5:27). Their houses were full of deceit, like a cage full of birds or a coop full of fattened animals ready for slaughter. Their whole way of life was built on fraud. Whoever dealt with them was likely to be cheated, because they did not care what they said or did.

In this way, they went beyond the wicked in Jeremiah 5:26. Those who use deceit under the cover of law and fairness may do even more harm than people who openly use force and violence. In fact, they were worse than the nations around them, even the worst of them. What is shocking is that they prospered in these evil ways, and that only hardened their hearts. They grew greedy because money kept coming in. They did not hesitate to do more evil, because evil seemed to help them get rich.

They became wealthy and powerful. They had enough to satisfy the desires of the flesh, and they were very willing to indulge themselves. They grew fat from ease and pleasure. They were smooth and polished, attractive to the eye, and everyone admired them. Yet they escaped the troubles that one would expect their sins to bring. They were not in trouble like other people, much less like bad men should have been.

When they gained power, they did not use it to do good. They did not defend the cause of the fatherless or the rights of the needy. Orphans often need help and guidance, and people often take advantage of their helpless state. That is exactly why the rich and powerful should protect them. What are wealth and influence for, if not for doing good? But these men would not even pay attention to such cases.

They had no real sense of justice or compassion. And if they did get involved, it was not to do right, but to defend the wrongdoer. Still they prospered, and God did not immediately lay their folly to their charge. That should remind us that worldly success is not the best sign of God’s approval. Often the worst people have the most of this world’s goods. Yet we must not assume God approves of their conduct just because judgment is delayed. Though sentence against evil works is not carried out quickly, it will be carried out.

There was a general corruption among all ranks of society (Jeremiah 5:30, Jeremiah 5:31). A wonderful and horrible thing had happened in the land. It was wonderful because such a privileged people had fallen so low, and horrible because it was deeply hateful and its results were dreadful. If we want to guard ourselves against sin, we should learn to call it what it is, a horrible thing.

What was this terrible corruption? The leaders misled the people. The prophets were prophesying falsely, pretending to have a message from heaven when they were really serving hell. Religion is most dangerous when it comes wearing the mask of divine revelation. But the priests, who had authority to stop them, did not do it. Instead, they used the false prophets to support their own ambition and power. The priests ruled by their means, and the false prophets helped them keep their wealth, ease, and oppression.

The people were willing to be misled. “They are my people,” says God, and they should have stood with him and spoken against the wickedness of their priests and prophets. But they loved it that way. If the priests and prophets would leave them alone in their sins, they would not trouble them in theirs. They wanted a loose rein and liked leaders and teachers who would not restrain their desires or correct them.

The prophet then shows the certain result of all this. They must consider what judgment would come for their wickedness (Jeremiah 5:29). “Should I not punish for these things?” the Lord asks, as he had asked before (Jeremiah 5:9). Sometimes mercy seems to argue against judgment, as when God says, “How can I give you up, Ephraim?” Here, judgment argues against mercy.

The words are strong and serious. They show both the certainty and the justice of God’s punishment. Shall not my soul be avenged? Yes, without doubt, vengeance will come unless the sinner repents. And do not such people deserve punishment? Should God not be avenged on such a nation, such a wicked and provoking nation as this?

Here is the direct result of their wickedness: “What will you do in the end of it?” In other words, what will this grow into? You are moving toward deeper and deeper sin, until you fill up the full measure of your guilt.

It also means, what pit of ruin will you end in? When people have gone this far, nothing more can be expected from them than a flood of sin. Then nothing more can be expected from God than a flood of wrath, and what will they do when that comes?

Those who walk in evil ways should think about where those ways lead. They lead both to greater sin and to complete ruin. An end will come. The end of a wicked life will come, when everything will be called to account again, and its later result will surely be bitter.