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¶ The word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD in the days of Jehoiakim
the son of Josiah king of Judah, saying,
2 Go unto the house of the Rechabites, and speak unto them, and bring them into the house of the LORD, into one of the chambers, and give them wine to drink. |
1 -
The
word of the Lord came This chapter records earlier events.
2 - Rechabites Their founder was Jonadab v6 who lived some 240 years earlier (mid-9th century BC). They were very influential 2ki1015. 2 - Give them wine It was a test. |
.3
Then I took Jaazaniah the son of Jeremiah, the son of Habaziniah, and his
brethren, and all his sons, and the whole house of the Rechabites;
.4 And I brought them into the house of the LORD, into the chamber of the sons of Hanan, the son of Igdaliah, a man of God, which was by the chamber of the princes, which was above the chamber of Maaseiah the son of Shallum, the keeper of the door: 5 And I set before the sons of the house of the Rechabites pots full of wine, and cups, and I said unto them, Drink ye wine. 4 - Chambers That is, the rooms which were a part of the temple complex 1ki0605. Man of God is a term applied to prophets 1sa0227, 2ki0407. 4 - Princes They may have been advisors or other secular officers je3610. 5 - Maaseira Probably Jeremiah's father who was "the second" or "deputy" priest. See je2101, je2925, je5224. Image
from 1915 book. Copyright expired
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But they said, We will drink no wine: for Jonadab the son of Rechab our
father commanded us, saying, Ye shall drink no wine, neither ye, nor your
sons for ever:
7 Neither shall ye build house, nor sow seed, nor plant vineyard, nor have any: but all your days ye shall dwell in tents; that ye may live many days in the land where ye be strangers. 8 Thus have we obeyed the voice of Jonadab the son of Rechab our father in all that he hath charged us, to drink no wine all our days, we, our wives, our sons, nor our daughters; 9 Nor to build houses for us to dwell in: neither have we vineyard, nor field, nor seed: 10 But we have dwelt in tents, and have obeyed, and done according to all that Jonadab our father commanded us. 11 But it came to pass, when Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came up into the land, that we said, Come, and let us go to Jerusalem for fear of the army of the Chaldeans, and for fear of the army of the Syrians: so we dwell at Jerusalem. |
6 -
Drink
no wine This was good advice pr2001.
The other rules are not biblical requirements but neither were they wrong.
God may have had a special role for them as evidenced here.
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¶ Then came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah, saying,
13 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Go and tell the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Will ye not receive instruction to hearken to my words? saith the LORD. |
13 - Receive instruction? The Rechabites (v8) had remained faithful to the truth they knew for hundreds of years. The men of Judah would not listen. |
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The words of Jonadab the son of Rechab, that he commanded his sons not
to drink wine, are performed; for unto this day they drink none, but obey
their father's commandment: notwithstanding I have spoken unto you, rising
early and speaking; but ye hearkened not unto me.
15 I have sent also unto you all my servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them, saying, Return ye now every man from his evil way, and amend your doings, and go not after other gods to serve them, and ye shall dwell in the land which I have given to you and to your fathers: but ye have not inclined your ear, nor hearkened unto me. 16 Because the sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have performed the commandment of their father, which he commanded them; but this people hath not hearkened unto me: |
15 - Rising up early Comparing the faithfulness of the Rechabites, the Lord has sent prophets but His people are still unfaithful. See je0713. |
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Therefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold,
I will bring upon Judah and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the
evil that I have pronounced against them: because I have spoken unto them,
but they have not heard; and I have called unto them, but they have not
answered.
18 And Jeremiah said unto the house of the Rechabites, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Because ye have obeyed the commandment of Jonadab your father, and kept all his precepts, and done according unto all that he hath commanded you: 19 Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Jonadab the son of Rechab shall not want [lack] a man to stand before me for ever. |
17
- All ... evil ... because I have spoken The Lord's prophets
and teachers have made the situation clear. See, for example, pr0124,
is6512,
is6604,
je0713.
19 - Not want [lack] a man The prediction was that there would always be people of principle like Jonadab. May you and I determine to be among them. |
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