John Calvin Commentary Jeremiah 29:12

"And ye shall call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you." — Jeremiah 29:12 (ASV)

Jeremiah pursues the same subject, namely that the Jews, after having undergone the punishment allotted to them by God, would eventually return to their own country and find God merciful, and thus learn that their chastisement in exile would prove useful to them. He had indeed in the last verse explained this with sufficient clarity, but he now expresses the manner, which would be by calling on God.

He uses two words, You shall call on me, he says, and pray. The verb put between these two, הלכתם, elcatem, is regarded almost by all as referring to a right course of life, as if the Prophet had said that those who before wandered after their own lusts would now walk in the way of God, that is, in His Law; but this seems to me to be too forced an explanation.

I do not doubt then, that the Prophet here indirectly reproves the indifference of the people in not immediately acknowledging that they were chastised by God’s hand and that they ought to repent in due time. To go then or to walk is the same thing, in my judgment, as if he had said, “After having suffered the exile, not of one year, but of seventy years, you will then begin to be wise.”

It was not only sloth but stupidity that kept them from being subdued by God’s scourges so as to call on Him. But as they had such a stubborn and rebellious disposition, the Prophet here briefly reminds them that many years had been necessary to subdue them, as twenty or thirty years were not sufficient. We now then understand the design of the word הלק, elek, to walk. The meaning then is, that after having profited under the scourges of God, they would become humble enough to seek to avert His wrath.

But a promise is added, that God would hear them. It may, however, appear that God promised conversion even in the first clause; and, no doubt, prayer is the fruit of repentance, for it proceeds from faith, and repentance is the gift of God. And further, we cannot call on God rightly and sincerely except by the guidance and teaching of the Holy Spirit, for it is He who not only dictates our words but also creates groanings in our hearts.

And thus Augustine, writing against the Pelagians, understands the passage and proves that it is not in man's power either to convert himself or to pray. “For God,” he says, “would in vain promise what is in man's power to do; and this is the promise, you shall pray; it then follows, that we do not pray through the impulse of our own flesh, but when the Holy Spirit directs our hearts and, in a manner, prays in us.” I do not, however, know whether the Prophet intended to speak in such a refined manner. From other passages of Scripture, it is easy to prove that we cannot pray to God unless He anticipates us by His own Spirit. But as to this passage, I prefer to take a simpler meaning: that God would hear, when they began to pray. Yet He shows that this would not be after a short time, because they were almost untamable and would not repent until after many years.