John Calvin Commentary Jeremiah 10:7

"Who should not fear thee, O King of the nations? for to thee doth it appertain; forasmuch as among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their royal estate, there is none like unto thee." — Jeremiah 10:7 (ASV)

The Prophet exclaims, Who will not fear thee? This question is very emphatic, as though he indignantly rebuked the stupidity of all those who did not acknowledge the only true God. It is as if he had said, “Why is it that you are not feared throughout the whole world? Surely, if there were a spark of right knowledge in men, they would acknowledge you as the only true God, and having found this truth, would submit to your power.”

Therefore, when men invent various gods for themselves, and when everyone is led here and there without any judgment, it is a monstrous thing. For when the subject is pressed upon the attention of even the rudest, they confess that there is some supreme deity and are eventually constrained to allow that there is but one true God. Why then is it that there is such a multitude and variety of gods in the world?

How is it that those who hold this principle—that God ought to be worshipped—fall away, adopt many gods, and can never determine who the true God is, or how He is to be worshipped? We now understand the Prophet’s purpose in exclaiming, as if in astonishment, Who will not fear thee, the King of nations?

We know that the true God was then despised by the pagans, and we also know that His law was regarded with contempt, and even as an abomination. What then does this question mean? It means what I have already stated: the Prophet indignantly says that it was a monstrous thing, bordering on madness, that men paid no regard to the only true God but went astray after their own foolish devices. And He calls Him the King of the nations, not because the nations submitted to His authority, but because He manifested evidence of His power everywhere, which might have induced even the rudest to show Him reverence, if they were not extremely stupid. We then see that this is not said to honor the nations; on the contrary, it is so that their ingratitude might be exposed to shame for not honoring God, who manifested His power among them.

Then follows what confirms this: For to thee it belongs; for among all the wise of the nations, and in all their kingdoms, from no time has there been one like to thee. He says that it belongs to God—that is, that all the world should fear Him. Some render יאתה iate, as a noun, taking it to mean “honor,” while others render it “government” or “authority”; but this interpretation cannot be accepted.

He then says, it belongs to God. What belongs? Some say, “Glory or dominion belongs to thee.” But it must be referred to the beginning of the verse: there is a figure of speech here called Zeugma, and the meaning is that God deserves this—that is, to be feared by all. He then speaks of fear and says that it belongs to God. What is meant is that the glory of God shines so brightly as to be sufficient to arrest and engage all the thoughts of men. They are therefore extremely stupid when they pass by and forsake Him, turning to their own devices and inventing gods according to their own fancies.

The Prophet then confirms what we have already said: that all men who do not worship or fear the only true God are detestable beings, because so much of His glory shines forth that it makes everyone bound to acknowledge Him. It then follows that those who are carried away into various superstitions are extremely stupid and brutish, for God makes His glory conspicuous everywhere, so that it ought to engage and occupy the thoughts of all men; and it would do so if they were not led away by their own vanity.

From this we also learn that the pretext of ignorance made by unbelievers is wholly vain. There are those who at first glance seem to be excusable for their error, since they have not been taught and never understood who the true God is; yet there is in them the blame of neglect as well as of wickedness, for they willfully neglect and despise the only true God. Since then unbelievers take delight in their errors, they must be held guilty. And this is what the Prophet means by saying that God was worthy of glory—the glory of being feared by all. This he more fully confirms when he says, “Among all the wise, and in all kingdoms”—that is, among all the princes who seemed to excel in wisdom in governing the world—“no other God could be found throughout all the ages.”

He again repeats the word מאין main, of which we spoke yesterday. It is as though the Prophet had said, “Let all the wise men and philosophers come forth, let all those counselors who assume great wisdom appear, and let them bring forward whatever they can allege. Doubtless, God will always defend His own glory against all their frivolous arguments, so that they must depart confounded; nor will they be able, however willing they may be, to bring any solid objection against Him.” By these words, then, the Prophet intimates that it is vain to boast of philosophic reasons, and that the counsels of princes, who esteem themselves very acute in civil affairs, will be brought forward in vain; for all will be covered with shame and be constrained to be silent when God makes known His glory. Indeed, the glory of God appears everywhere so conspicuously that even the rudest ought to perceive it. Yet the wise—who fly above the heavens as philosophers, who search all the secrets of nature—do not understand what is, as they say, plainly evident; for God manifests Himself to the simple, and even to children. We now perceive the Prophet’s intent when he says, From no times has been found any like to God, not only among the common people, but among the wise, and princes, and kings’ counselors. He afterwards adds—