John Calvin Commentary Jeremiah 51:19

"The portion of Jacob is not like these; for he is the former of all things; and [Israel] is the tribe of his inheritance: Jehovah of hosts is his name." — Jeremiah 51:19 (ASV)

If the Prophet had only said that idols were mere impostures and mockeries, it would have indeed been something; but this part of his teaching would have been cold and uninteresting if he had not, on the other hand, proclaimed the glory of the one and only true God. We ought, indeed, to know that idols are nothing, that people are most foolishly deceived, and are wholly infatuated when they imagine that there is some divinity in them. But the main thing is that the true God himself is brought before us, and that we are taught to direct all our thoughts to him. This, then, is what is now done by the Prophet; for after having exposed the folly of the pagans in worshipping idols, and having shown that the whole is nothing but deception and falsehood, he now says, Not as they, the fictitious gods, is the portion of Jacob; that is, the God who had revealed himself to the chosen people is very far different from all idols.

And, doubtless, the vanity that the Prophet previously mentioned cannot be adequately understood unless the true God is known. For though some of the ancient philosophers ridiculed the grossest errors of the common people, they still had nothing fixed or certain on which they could rest. This is like the philosopher who, when asked, “What is God?” requested time to consider, and who after several delays confessed that the more he inquired into the nature of God, the more absorbed all his thoughts became. And this must necessarily be the case with people until they are taught what God is, which can never be done until he himself represents himself and his glory, as it were, in a mirror.

This, then, is the reason why the Prophet, while setting the only true God in opposition to idols and all the inventions of mortals, calls him the portion of Jacob, because the law was, as it were, the representation of the glory of God. Since, then, he had plainly shown himself there, as far as it was necessary for the salvation of the chosen people, the Prophet, in order to invite people to the true knowledge of the true God, calls him the portion of Jacob, as though he had set the law as a mirror before their eyes.

The portion of Jacob, then, is God, who is not like fictitious gods. How so? Because he is the framer of all things. Indeed, it is with a few words that he makes the distinction between the only true God and the fictitious gods; but in this brief sentence, he includes what I have previously explained: that God is the fountain of life and the life of all, and that his essence is spiritual and also infinite. For as he has created the heaven and the earth, so he necessarily sustains both by his power.

We see, then, that the Prophet speaks briefly but not coldly; and from this passage we learn a useful doctrine, namely, that God cannot be comprehended by us except in his works. Since, then, vain people weary themselves with speculations that do not contain, so to speak, any practical knowledge, it is no wonder that they run headlong into many delirious things. Let us, then, be sober in this respect, so that we may not inquire into the essence of God more than is fitting for us. Therefore, when we seek to comprehend what God is, or how to attain knowledge of him, let us direct all our thoughts, eyes, and minds to his works.

So also, by this passage, when the Prophet calls God the worker or framer of all things, the vanity of all superstitions is exposed. And how? Because from this we learn that the power which did not make the heaven and the earth is vain and worthless. But the only maker of heaven and earth is God; therefore, he is God alone. Since he is the only true God, it follows that the inventions or figments of people are altogether delirious, and are therefore the artifices and impostures of the devil to deceive humankind. We see from this that the doctrine of the Prophet is exclusive when he says that God is the maker of all things; for where the maker of all things is not found, there certainly no divinity can be.

He adds, the rod of his inheritance. This phrase seems to refer to God, but in the tenth chapter, the word Israel is introduced. Otherwise, these five verses literally agree, but in that passage, the Prophet says that Israel was the rod of God’s inheritance.

Here the "rod" means a measuring pole, for the analogy is taken from lands being measured, as the ancients used poles of a certain length for measuring.

Thus, the Hebrews called an inheritance "the rod of inheritance" because it was what had been measured and had certain limits; for example, when someone possesses a field, they know how many acres it contains, as it has been measured. But both things may be fittingly and truly said: that Israel is the rod of God’s inheritance, and also that God himself is a rod of inheritance, for there is a mutual union. For as God favors us with this honor—to make us his inheritance and is pleased to have us as his own—so also he offers himself to us as an inheritance.

David often says, The LORD is my portion, and The LORD is the portion of mine inheritance (that is, my hereditary portion). So, in this place, the meaning would not be unsuitable if we were to apply the words to God. However, since the word Israel is found in the former passage, it may be considered as understood here.

Finally, he says, Jehovah of hosts is his name. A contrast is implied here, for he does not honor God with this title as though it were a common or ordinary name; rather, he claims for God his own right and thus distinguishes him from all idols. By saying, then, that this name belongs only to the true God, even the God of Israel, he intimates that by this distinction God differs from all idols, and that people are sacrilegious when they transfer any power to idols, expect safety from them, and flee to them.

Since, then, this name belongs only to God, it follows that in Him dwells a fullness of all power and might. This being so, everything that the world has ever imagined respecting the number and multitude of gods is wholly worthless.