Jeremiah 11:18 - Meaning and Application

Jeremiah has more about his own sufferings in his writings than Isaiah does, because he lived in a far more troubled time. Here we seem to see the start of his grief, and it came from the people of his own town, Anathoth, a priestly town that was still deeply hostile. Their hatred of him shows how bitter persecution can be, even among people who should have known better.

They plotted against Jeremiah, and they did it carefully. They said, “Let us destroy the tree with its fruit,” a proverb meaning, “Let us wipe him out completely.” They meant to destroy both the prophet and his message, to kill him and ruin his work at the same time. They wanted his name forgotten and his predictions made useless, but their plan failed. They thought they would end his life, yet he outlived most of his enemies, and his memory remains blessed.

Jeremiah did not know about the plot at first. His enemies hid it so well that he came to Anathoth in peace, with no fear of harm, like a lamb led to the slaughter without suspecting danger. None of his friends warned him, and none of his enemies would help him. But the Lord revealed their scheme to him, perhaps through a dream, a vision, or a strong inward warning, so he could save himself. God showed him their actions, and that very discovery defeated their evil purpose.

This is another proof of God’s care for his prophets. He does not let people do them wrong until their work is finished. He knows the secret plans of his enemies, and when he chooses, he can make those plans known. “A bird of the air shall carry the voice” means that hidden things can be exposed. If God had not warned Jeremiah, wicked people might have used his danger against his reputation, saying that the man who foretold the ruin of his nation could not even foresee his own danger.

Jeremiah then turned to God, the Lord of hosts, who judges rightly. It is a comfort when people treat us unjustly to know that we can bring the case to God. His justice is a terror to the wicked and a refuge to the godly. Jeremiah also looked to God as the one who tests the inner person, the heart and mind. God knew Jeremiah’s innocence, and he also knew the evil hidden in the hearts of his enemies, even though they tried to conceal it well.

Jeremiah prayed, “Let me see your vengeance on them,” meaning, “Do justice between us in whatever way you choose.” Some think this shows a human weakness in the prophet, especially since Christ later taught us to pray for those who persecute us, both by his teaching and by his example. Others think Jeremiah spoke out of holy zeal for God’s glory, since these men were priests, the Lord’s ministers, and yet they were acting with cruel wickedness. In any case, the prayer also looked forward to the judgment God would bring.

He also committed his case fully to God. “To you I have revealed my cause,” means that he laid the matter before God and trusted him alone with it. That is a comfort to every wronged person, and it is also our duty. We should leave the final sentence with God, submit to his judgment, and not try to set terms for him.

God then gave judgment against the men of Anathoth. It would have been useless for Jeremiah to appeal to the courts in Jerusalem, because the priests there would likely support the priests of Anathoth. But God himself took up the case, and his judgment is always true. Their crime was that they sought the prophet’s life. They had forbidden him to prophesy on pain of death, meaning they wanted either to silence him or kill him. Their offense was not only against Jeremiah, but against God, because they were resisting his word.

Their reason was that Jeremiah prophesied in the name of the Lord without their permission, and he would not speak only the smooth things they wanted to hear. For God’s faithful servants, it is a serious wrong to have their mouths shut. Worse still, these men had made up their minds that if Jeremiah kept speaking, they would kill him themselves. People used to say that a prophet could only perish in Jerusalem, where the great council sat, but the men of Anathoth were so bitter that they were ready to kill him on their own. A prophet often finds no honor, and no welcome, in his own country.

God’s sentence was that he would punish them. He would visit their sin on them, meaning he would examine it and repay it. Two of his severe judgments would destroy their town. The sword would devour their young men, even though they were young priests and not soldiers, so their calling would not protect them. Famine would also destroy their children, the sons and daughters who stayed at home, and that death would be even more bitter than the sword (Lamentations 4:9).

The destruction would be complete (Jeremiah 11:23). There would be no one left from among them, no children to carry on the next generation. They tried to take Jeremiah’s life, and so they would die. They wanted to uproot him completely, so that his name would be forgotten. Because of that, no remnant would remain, and the Lord would be shown righteous in this judgment.

So disaster would come on them, the time of their punishment, and that punishment would be enough. It would be a fitting reward for what they had done. Then Jeremiah would see his desire fulfilled against his enemies. It is a sad thing for those who have the prayers of faithful ministers and godly people against them.