John Calvin Commentary Jeremiah 50:9

"For, lo, I will stir up and cause to come up against Babylon a company of great nations from the north country; and they shall set themselves in array against her; from thence she shall be taken: their arrows shall be as of an expert mighty man; none shall return in vain." — Jeremiah 50:9 (ASV)

Here, again, God declares that enemies would come and overthrow the monarchy of Babylon; but what was previously mentioned is here more clearly expressed. For He says, first, that He would be the leader of that war—that the Persians and Medes would fight under His authority.

"I," He says (the pronoun אנכי, anki, is emphatic here), "I am he," says God, "who rouse and bring," and then He adds, "an, assembly of great nations." The Chaldeans, as we know, had devoured many kingdoms, for Babylon had subjugated all the neighboring nations. Unless this had been distinctly expressed, they might have disregarded the prophetic threats.

But Jeremiah speaks here of the assembly of great nations to prevent the Chaldeans—relying on their power, the largeness of the monarchy, and the multitude of their men—from promising themselves victory and thus remaining complacent in their indulgences.

God then, in these words, briefly intimates that those who would surpass the Chaldeans in number and power would be ready.

He afterwards adds, They will set in order against her. Something needs to be supplied here—namely, that they would set the battle in order. By this expression, the Prophet sets forth the boldness of the Persians and Medes, as they would be immediately ready for the conflict; they would not consult for long but would quickly advance to the fight.

In short, he refers to the quickness and boldness of the Persians and Medes when he says, They shall set in order against her. For those who distrust their own strength take convenient positions, contrive ambushes, or withdraw for a time until they know all their enemies' plans. But the Prophet says that the Persians would by no means be like that, because they would be prepared for battle at the first attack and have their army set in order against the Babylonians.

It follows, thence taken shall be Babylon. The word משם, mesham, means "from that place." But the Prophet intimates that the Persians would become conquerors through only one battle, so that the Chaldeans would no longer dare to resist.

We indeed know that those who are once put to flight often prepare new forces and renew the battle; this is usually the case, and it seldom happens that anyone is conquered in a single battle.

But the Prophet here declares that Babylon would be taken at one time. As soon, he says, as the fight begins, the enemies shall not only overcome but shall, by a single assault, take Babylon and make it captive.

We now, then, perceive the Prophet's design. Doubtless, this prophecy was an object of derision to unbelievers, for he seemed to speak of something impossible; thus, he sang a fable to the deaf.

Yet God did not predict without reason that Babylon would be taken in such a way that it would, as it were, fall into enemy hands in a single moment. Indeed, we said yesterday that it was besieged for a long time and taken by treachery in the night.

But we also said that this prophecy is not to be confined to one period, for Babylon was taken multiple times. As we mentioned yesterday, it was taken through the contrivance of Zopyrus when it thought itself sufficiently strong to resist, and Darius had nearly despaired.

Therefore, we will find nothing inconsistent in this prophecy when we consider how great and how complacent the security of that people was, even at the time they were suddenly overthrown.

He now adds, Its arrows as of a valiant man; some render it "as of a bereaving man," because the word can be vocalized differently. The word שכל, shecal, means to act prudently, to be prosperous, and also to be bereaved.

But I agree with those who take the first sense, for it immediately follows, it shall not return in vain. Those who render the word "bereaved" understand by this that the arrows of the Persians would be deadly or fatal.

But the context does not correspond, for an explanation is given afterwards: that it would not return in vain. It seems, then, that by this word Jeremiah denotes their dexterity, as if he had said that the Persians would be so skillful in throwing arrows that they would not discharge a single arrow in vain.

This is just as those who are well practiced in that art always aim directly at an enemy and never shoot their arrows haphazardly without effect. So then, the Prophet says that the arrows of the Persians would be those of men shooting skillfully, who know how to take a correct aim.

And he calls them valiant or strong, for it is not enough to send arrows straight against an enemy unless there is also nerve and strength to shoot them; for arrows might touch someone but not penetrate their body, or hardly hurt their skin.

But the Prophet refers to both these things: that arrows would be hurled with sufficient force to strike and wound the Chaldeans, and that they would also always be aimed directly, so that no arrow would miss its target.