John Calvin Commentary Jeremiah 51:1

"Thus saith Jehovah: Behold, I will raise up against Babylon, and against them that dwell in Leb-kamai, a destroying wind." — Jeremiah 51:1 (ASV)

He proceeds with the same subject. Jeremiah seems, indeed, to have used more words than necessary; but we have stated the reason why he spoke at length on a matter so clear. His object was not only to teach, for he could have done this in a few words and thus included all that we have seen until now and will find in this entire chapter. But because it was an event scarcely credible, it was necessary to illustrate the prophecy about it with many figures, to impress with many repetitions what had already been said, and also to confirm by many reasons what hardly anyone admitted.

He then says, Behold, I will, etc. God is presented as the speaker, so that the word might have more force and power. Behold, he says, I will raise up a destroying wind against the Chaldeans. The comparison to wind is very appropriate, for God thus briefly reminded them how easy it was for him to destroy the whole world with even a single blast. The wind is, indeed, indirectly set in opposition to instruments of war. For when anyone seeks to overcome an enemy, he collects many strong forces and procures auxiliaries from every side; in short, he will not dare to attempt anything without making every possible preparation. So, just as men dare not attack their enemies without making strenuous efforts, God here extols his own power, because it is enough for him to raise up a wind. We now perceive, then, the purpose of this comparison, when he says that he would raise up a wind to destroy or scatter the Chaldeans.

The following words contain an obscurity; literally, they are, the inhabitants of the heart. For since the word ישבי, ishebi, is in a construct state, another word necessarily follows it, for instance, the country of the Chaldeans. But the relative, ה, He, referring to Babylon, should have been written down.

Yet as the words stand, we are compelled to read, and against the inhabitants of the heart. Some propose that the relative, אשר, asher, is to be understood, but that is harsh, for it is an unnatural way of speaking. They, however, give this rendering of אשר לב, asher leb, "those who in heart rose up against me." But what if we read the words inhabitants of the heart metaphorically, as meaning those who gloried in their own wisdom? For the Babylonians, as is well known, thought other men dull and foolish, and were so pleased with their own astuteness, as though they were fortified by enclosures on every side. They then dwelt in their own heart; that is, they thought themselves well fortified all around through their own wisdom. In this sense the Prophet seems to call the Babylonians the inhabitants of the heart.

He adds, at the same time, that they rose up against God, specifically because they had cruelly treated his people and nearly destroyed them. And we know that God took up the cause of his Church, and therefore regarded it as war waged against him by the ungodly whenever they molested the faithful. It is also generally true that all who arrogate wisdom to themselves rise up against God, because they rob God of the honor due to him. But this should properly be related to the union that exists between God and his Church, when he charges the Chaldeans that they rose up against him. It follows—