Jeremias 18

¹ The worde which came to Ieremiah from the Lord, saying,

² Arise, and go downe into the potters house, and there shall I shewe thee my words.

³ Then I went downe to the potters house, & behold, he wrought a worke on the wheeles.

⁴ And the vessel that he made ofAs the potter has power over the clay to make what pot he will, or to break them, when he has made them: so have I power over you to do with you as seems good to me, (Isa_45:9; Rom_9:20-21).clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make [it].

⁵ Then the worde of the Lord came vnto me, saying,

⁶ O house of Israel, cannot I doe with you as this potter, sayth the Lord? beholde, as the clay is in the potters hande, so are you in mine hande, O house of Israel.

⁷ I will speake suddenly against a nation or against a kingdome to plucke it vp, and to roote it out and to destroy it.

⁸ If that nation, against which I have pronounced, shall turn from their evil, I willWhen the Scripture attributes repentance to God, it is not that he does contrary to that which he has ordained in his secret counsel: but when he threatens it is a calling to repentance, and when he gives man grace to repent, the threatening (which ever contains a condition in it) takes no place: and this the scripture calls repentance in God, because it so appears to man's judgment.repent of the evil that I thought to do to them.

⁹ And I wil speake suddenly concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdome to builde it and to plant it.

¹⁰ But if it do euill in my sight and heare not my voyce, I will repent of ye good that I thought to do for them.

¹¹ Speake thou nowe therefore vnto the men of Iudah, and to the inhabitants of Ierusalem, saying, Thus saith ye Lord, Behold, I prepare a plague for you, and purpose a thing against you: returne you therefore euery one from his euill way, and make your wayes and your workes good.

¹² And they said,As men who had no remorse but were altogether bent to rebellion and to their own selfwill.There is no hope: but we will walk after our own plots, and we will every one do the imagination of his evil heart.

¹³ Therefore thus saith the Lord, Aske now among the heathen, who hath heard such thinges? the virgin of Israel hath done very filthily.

¹⁴ Will [a man] leave the snow of Lebanon [which cometh] from the rock of the field?As no man that has thirst refuses fresh waters which he has at home, to go and seek waters abroad to quench his thirst: so they should not seek help and comfort from strangers and leave God who was present with them.[or] shall the cold flowing waters that come from another place be forsaken?

¹⁵ Because my people hath forgotten me, they have burned incense to vanity, and they have caused them to stumble in their ways [from] theThat is, the way of truth which God had taught by his law, (Jer_6:16).ancient paths, to walk in paths, [in] a way not cast up;

¹⁶ To make their land desolate and a perpetual derision, so that euery one that passeth thereby, shalbe astonished and wagge his head,

¹⁷ I will scatter them as with an east wind before the enemy; I will show them the back, andI will show my anger and not my favour toward them.not the face, in the day of their calamity.

¹⁸ Then said they, Come, and let us devise plots against Jeremiah; for the lawThis argument the wicked have always used against the servants of God. The church cannot err: we are the Church, and therefore whoever speaks against us, they ought to die, (1Ki_22:24; Jer_7:4, Jer_20:2; Mal_2:4) and thus the false Church persecutes the true Church, which stands not in outward pomp, and in multitude, but is known by the graces of the Holy Spirit.shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, and let us smite him with theLet us slander him and accuse him: for we will be believed.tongue, and let us not give heed to any of his words.

¹⁹ Hearken vnto mee, O Lorde, and heare the voyce of them that contend with me.

²⁰ Shall euill be recompensed for good? for they haue digged a pit for my soule: remember that I stood before thee, to speake good for the, and to turne away thy wrath from them.

²¹ ThereforeSeeing the obstinate malice of the adversaries, who grew daily more and more, the prophet being moved with God's Spirit, without any carnal affection prays for their destruction because he knew that it would be to God's glory, and profit of his Church.deliver their children to the famine, and pour out their [blood] by the force of the sword; and let their wives be bereaved of their children, and [be] widows; and let their men be put to death; [let] their young men [be] slain by the sword in battle.

²² Let the crye bee heard from their houses, when thou shalt bring an hoste suddenly vpon them: for they haue digged a pit to take me, and hid snares for my feete.

²³ Yet Lord thou knowest al their counsel against me tendeth to death: forgiue not their iniquitie, neither put out their sinne from thy sight, but let them be ouerthrowen before thee: deale thus with them in the time of thine anger.