John Calvin Commentary Jeremiah 15:20

"And I will make thee unto this people a fortified brazen wall; and they shall fight against thee, but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee to save thee and to deliver thee, saith Jehovah." — Jeremiah 15:20 (ASV)

Jeremiah might have objected and said that the burden was too heavy for him if he only attempted to break down the stubbornness of the people, for he was alone, and we have seen how great the ferocity and also the cruelty of his adversaries were. As he might have shunned his commission, it being too much for his strength, God therefore comes to his aid and tells him to take courage, for he was fortified by help from heaven. I have set thee, He says, for a brazen fortified wall to this people.

The word for “fortified” is from בצר, betsar; if it were בצרה, betsare, derived from צור, tsur, to besiege, it would much better suit this place. I do not know whether the passage has been corrupted; however, I will not depart from the common reading. Since interpreters agree on this, I will change nothing, and indeed the difference is not very material.

We see, then, what God meant by these words: As the Prophet was almost alone, and God had commanded him to contend with many and powerful enemies, He promises to stand on his side, as though He had said: “Though you are defenseless and unarmed, and they are furnished with wealth and great power, you will yet be like a well-fortified city; you will indeed be impregnable, despite all their assaults and whatever they may attempt against you.”

But God proceeds by degrees, for He first declares that His Prophet would be like a brazen and a fortified wall, that is, like an invincible city; for by stating a part for the whole, a wall means a city that is impregnable. It then follows, They indeed will fight against thee. This warning was very necessary, for Jeremiah was doubtless willing to serve God by exercising authority over teachable and humble men, and by gently inducing them to render obedience to God; but he is reminded here that he would have many hard contests with a rebellious people. They will fight, He says, against thee.

We see how God does not promise ease to Jeremiah, nor give him hope of a better lot in the future; but, on the contrary, He exhorts him to fight. And why? Because the people would not bear the yoke of God but kindled into rage against him. But another promise follows: They shall not prevail against thee, or overcome you.

It was indeed necessary for Jeremiah himself to disturb the Jews, for nothing would have been more agreeable to them than his silence, and the object of all their attempts was to drive him to despair. But it is not without reason that they are said to fight with him, for it is contrary to nature for men to resist God and to set themselves against Him when He invites them to Himself. For what can be more natural than for the whole world to hasten to God?

It is, then, something monstrous for men to oppose God, even furiously to rise up against Him, when He kindly calls them to Himself. Therefore, God here makes the Jews the authors of all this disturbance. For since they loaded the Prophet with the most wicked slanders, as we have seen, and said that he was a turbulent man and confounded all things by his ill-temper, God here shows, on the other hand, that all the commotions and the fightings ought to be attributed to them, because they should have obediently received the doctrine set before them.

But though this was said only once to Jeremiah, yet the condition of all God’s servants is here set before us as in a mirror. For they cannot perform what God commands them without having to encounter many and grievous assaults, for the world is never so prepared to obey God; on the contrary, the greater part furiously resists and, as far as it can, stifles the word of God and hinders His ministers.

He states the reason: For I am with thee to save thee and to deliver thee. By these words God exhorts His Prophet to prayer, for we know how dangerous overconfidence is to all the children of God, and especially to teachers. Since they always need God’s aid, they are to be exhorted to resort to solitude and prayer. This is the meaning of the words God uses: I am with thee. It is as though He had said, “You indeed will not stand by yourself, or through your own efforts, nor will you be a conqueror by carrying on war yourself; but you must learn to flee to Me.”