John Calvin Commentary Jeremiah 33:17-18

"For thus saith Jehovah: David shall never want a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel; neither shall the priests the Levites want a man before me to offer burnt-offerings, and to burn meal-offerings, and to do sacrifice continually." — Jeremiah 33:17-18 (ASV)

The Prophet had spoken of the restoration of the Church; he now confirms the same truth, for he promises that the kingdom and the priesthood would be perpetual. The safety of the people, as it is well known, was secured by these two things; for without a king they were like an imperfect or a maimed body, and without a priesthood there was nothing but ruin. The priest was, as it were, the mediator between God and the people, and the king represented God. We now, then, perceive the Prophet's object, why he speaks expressly here of the kingdom and the priesthood, for the people could not otherwise have any ground to stand on. He therefore declares that the condition of the people would be safe, because there would always be some of the posterity of David who would succeed to govern them, and there would always be some of the posterity of Levi to offer sacrifices.

But this passage should be carefully noticed, for from this we gather that though all other things were given to us according to our wishes, we would yet always be miserable, unless we had Christ as our head, to perform the office of a king and of a priest. This, then, is the only true happiness of the Church, even to be in subjection to Christ, so that he may exercise towards us the two offices described here. From this we also gather that these are the two marks of a true Church, by which it is to be distinguished from all conventicles, who falsely profess the name of God and boast themselves to be churches. For where the kingdom and priesthood of Christ are found, there, no doubt, is the Church; but where Christ is not owned as a king and a priest, nothing is there but confusion, as under the Papacy. For though they pretend the name of Christ, yet, as they do not submit to his government and laws, nor are satisfied with his priesthood, but have devised for themselves countless patrons and advocates, it is quite evident that, notwithstanding the great splendor of the Papacy, it is nothing but an abomination before God. Let us, then, learn to begin with the kingdom and the priesthood when we speak of the state and government of the Church.

Now we know that in David a spiritual kingdom was promised, for what was David but a type of Christ? As God then gave in David a living image of his only-begotten Son, we should always pass from the temporal kingdom to the eternal, from the visible to the spiritual, from the earthly to the celestial. The same thing should be said of the priesthood; for no mortal can reconcile God to men and make an atonement for sins. Furthermore, the blood of bulls and of goats could not pacify the wrath of God, nor incense, nor the sprinkling of water, nor any of the things that belonged to the ceremonial laws; they could not give the hope of salvation, so as to quiet trembling consciences. It then follows that that priesthood was symbolic, and that the Levites represented Christ until he came.

But the Prophet here speaks according to the circumstances of his own time, when he says, Cut off shall not be from David a man, who may sit on the throne of the house of Israel; and then, cut off shall not be from the priests, the Levites, a man who may kindle burnt offerings, burn an oblation, etc. Why does he not speak in general of the whole people? Why does he not promise that the twelve tribes would be saved? For this would be a matter of greater importance. But as we have said, we should understand this principle, that every kind of blessing is included here, so that men are always in a miserable state unless they are ruled by Christ and have him as their priest.

But it may be asked here, how does this prophecy agree with facts? For from the time Jeremiah promised such a state of things, there has been no successor to David. It is true, indeed, that Zerubbabel was a leader among the people, but he was without a royal title or dignity.

There was no throne, no crown, no scepter, from the time when the people returned from their Babylonian exile; and yet God testified by the mouth of Jeremiah that there would be those from the posterity of David who would govern the people in continual succession. He does not say that they would be chiefs or leaders, but he adorns them with a royal title.

Someone, he says, will always remain to occupy the throne. I have said already that there has been no throne. But we must bear in mind what Ezekiel says (Ezekiel 21:27), that an interruption as to the kingdom is not contrary to this prophecy, as to the perpetuity of the kingdom, or continued succession, for he prophesied that the crown would be cast down until the legitimate successor of David came.

It was therefore necessary that the diadem should fall and be cast on the ground, or be overturned, as the Prophet says, until Christ was manifested. As, then, this had been declared, now when our Prophet speaks of kings succeeding David, we must so understand what he says that what has been said of the cast down diadem should remain true.

God, then, did cast down the diadem until the legitimate successor came. Ezekiel does not only say, “Cast you it down overturned,” but he repeats the words three times, thereby intimating that the interruption would be long. There was, therefore, no cause of stumbling when there was no kind of government, nor dignity, nor power; for it was necessary to look forward to the king, to whom the diadem, or the royal crown, was to be restored.

We now then see how it was that there have always been those of David’s posterity who occupied the throne; though this was hidden, yet it may be gathered from other prophetic testimonies. For Amos, when he speaks of Christ’s coming, makes this announcement,

“There shall come at that time one who will repair the ruins of the tabernacle of David.” (Amos 9:11)

It was therefore necessary that the kingdom should be, as it were, demolished when Christ appeared. We further know what Isaiah says,

“Come forth shall a shoot from the root of Jesse.”
(Isaiah 11:1)

He does not there name David, but a private person, who was content with a humble, retired, and rustic life; for Jesse the father of David, as it is well known, was a farmer and a shepherd. In short, whenever the Prophets declare that the kingdom of David would be perpetual, they do not promise that there would be a succession without interruption; but this should be referred to that perpetuity which was at length manifested in Christ alone.

We have said elsewhere how the time of return should be connected with the coming of Christ. For it is not necessary nor expedient to introduce an anagogical sense, as interpreters are accustomed to do, by representing the return of the people as symbolic of what was higher, even of the deliverance that was effected by Christ; for it should be considered as one and the same favor of God, that is, that he brought back his people from exile, that they might at length enjoy quiet and solid happiness when the kingdom of David should again be established.

As to the priesthood, the same difficulty might be raised, for we know that the priesthood became corrupted; indeed, that for the most part the priests not only became degenerate, but altogether sacrilegious. Therefore the sacerdotal name itself became nothing else but a base and wicked profanation of all sacred things. But it was God’s purpose in this manner to show that another priest was to be expected, and that men were not to look on figures and types, but were to raise their thoughts higher, even to him who was to be the only true Mediator to reconcile God to men.

By saying, who may kindle a burnt offering, etc., he specifies certain things, or some parts of the priest’s office, because the Prophets accommodated their discourses to men of their own age and time, and described the kingdom and priesthood of Christ under those external symbols that were then in use. It is therefore proper to take the ceremonies of the Law as denoting the reality, or what they signified. For Christ offered no calves, nor any incense, but fulfilled all these things that were then set forth to the people under symbols. And he speaks of burning, or perfuming the oblation, מנחה, meneche, for though the oblation remained entire, there was yet a perfuming made by frankincense, and a small portion of the flour was burnt. It is then a mode of speaking, when a part is stated for the whole.