John Calvin Commentary Jeremiah 51:60-64

"And Jeremiah wrote in a book all the evil that should come upon Babylon, even all these words that are written concerning Babylon. And Jeremiah said to Seraiah, When thou comest to Babylon, then see that thou read all these words, and say, O Jehovah, thou hast spoken concerning this place, to cut it off, that none shall dwell therein, neither man nor beast, but that it shall be desolate for ever. And it shall be, when thou hast made an end of reading this book, that thou shalt bind a stone to it, and cast it into the midst of the Euphrates: and thou shalt say, Thus shall Babylon sink, and shall not rise again because of the evil that I will bring upon her; and they shall be weary. Thus far are the words of Jeremiah." — Jeremiah 51:60-64 (ASV)

Here we see, on one hand, what courage the Prophet had, who dared to command the king’s messenger. For though Seraiah was a meek man, so as to render himself submissive, yet Jeremiah exposed himself to danger. He might have been timid, though he was neither proud nor arrogant; and thus, as men tend to do when terrified, he might have reported to the king what he had heard from the Prophet. Jeremiah, therefore, did what we read here, not without danger, and thus his firmness appears. We then see that he was endowed with the spirit of invincible courage, so as to discharge his office freely and intrepidly.

On the other hand, we have to observe not only the meekness of Seraiah, but also his piety, together with his modesty. For unless he had in him a strong principle of religion, he might have adduced plausible reasons for refusing. Therefore, since he was so submissive and dreaded no danger, it is evident that the true fear of God was vigorous in his soul.

And these things ought to be carefully noticed. For who among our courtly princes can be found today who will close his eyes to all dangers and resolutely disregard all adverse events when God and His servants are to be obeyed? And then we see how pusillanimous are those who profess to be God’s ambassadors and claim for themselves the name of Pastors. Therefore, since teachers dare not faithfully perform their office, so on the other hand, courtly princes are so devoted to themselves and to their own prudence that they are unwilling to undertake duties which are unpopular. For this reason, then, this passage, with all its circumstances, ought to be carefully noticed.

Jeremiah, then, wrote in a book all the evil which was to come on Babylon, even all those words (he refers to the prophecies which we have seen); and Jeremiah said to Seraiah, etc. Here the boldness of Jeremiah becomes clear: that he did not hesitate to command Seraiah to read this book when he came to Babylon and had seen it.

To see it is not mentioned here without reason, for the splendor of that city might have astonished Seraiah. The Prophet here appropriately addresses the difficulty and instructs him to disregard the height of the walls and towers. However Babylon might dazzle the eyes of others, yet he was to look down, as from on high, on all that pomp and pride: When you enter the city, and have seen it, then read this book. The verb קרא, kora, means to call, to proclaim, and also to read.

Seraiah must then have read this book by himself; and I do not doubt that the words ought to be so understood, as we shall see. It was not then necessary for Seraiah to have a pulpit, or to read the book publicly to an assembled people; but it was sufficient to read it privately by himself, without any witnesses. This may be gathered from the context.

And you shall say, Jehovah, you have spoken against this place. Thus it appears that Seraiah was commanded to read the book, not for the benefit of hearers, for they would have been doubly deaf to the words of Seraiah. It is also not probable that the Hebrew language was then familiar to the Chaldeans. There is a great affinity in the languages, as is well known, but there is also some difference.

But we conclude from this passage that the reading was in a chamber or in some secret place, for Seraiah is instructed to fix all his thoughts on God and to address his words to Him.

He did not, therefore, undertake the work or office of a preacher, to openly proclaim all these things to the Babylonians. But having inspected the city, he was to read the book by himself—that is, what had been written.

And this also deserves to be noticed. For however courageous we may be, our constancy and boldness are more apparent when we have to do with men than when we are alone and God is the only witness. For when no one sees us, we tremble; and though we may have previously appeared to have manly courage, yet when alone, fear takes hold of us.

There is hardly one in a hundred who is so bold as he ought to be when God alone is witness. But shame makes us courageous and constrains us to be firm, and the vigor which is almost extinct in private is roused in public.

Since, then, ambition almost always rules in men, this passage ought to be carefully noticed, where the Prophet commands Seraiah to deal alone with God and, though no mortal was present, to strengthen himself by relying on the certain and infallible fidelity of God: You shall then say, Jehovah, etc.

And it is doubtless a true test of faith when we consider within ourselves the promises of God and do not go forth before the public to avow our firmness. For when anyone in silence acknowledges God to be true, and strengthens himself in His promises, and so disregards the false judgments of all that, were he alone in the world, he would not yet despond—this is a true and genuine trial of faith.

You shall then say, Jehovah, you have spoken against this place. The design of the words was that Seraiah might feel assured that God was true, and embrace in His presence what he read, and not doubt that the word, which came from God, would, in due time, be accomplished. Why so? Because God is true. The word Jehovah, then, ought to be regarded as emphatical: and you shall say, You, Jehovah, have spoken against this place; that is, neither Jeremiah nor any other mortal is the author of this prophecy, but You, O Lord, have dictated to Your servant whatever is contained in this volume.

To destroy it, so that there should not be an inhabitant in it, neither man nor beast. Why so? Because it shall be reduced to desolations, or the particle כי, ki, may be taken adversatively, but it shall be reduced to perpetual desolations.

He afterwards adds, And when you have finished reading, you shall tie a stone to it and cast it into the Euphrates, and shall say, Thus shall Babylon sink. Here an external symbol is added to confirm the faith of Seraiah.

We must, however, bear in mind that this was not said to Seraiah for his own sake alone, but also that the people might know that the king’s messenger, who had been sent for the sake of conciliating, was also the messenger of God and of the Prophet, who might otherwise have been despised by the people. When, therefore, the faithful knew this, they were confirmed in no ordinary way in the truth of the prophecy.

Jeremiah, then, not only considered the benefit of Seraiah alone, but that of all the godly. For though this was unknown for a long time, the messenger afterwards acknowledged that this command had been given to him by Jeremiah, and that he took the book and cast it into the Euphrates. This, then, was given as a confirmation to all the godly.

As to the symbols by which God sealed the prophecies in former times, we have spoken elsewhere; I therefore pass over them briefly now. Only we should bear in mind this one thing: that these signs were only temporary sacraments, for ordinary sacraments are permanent, such as the Holy Supper and baptism.

But the sign mentioned here was temporary and referred, as they say, to a special action; it nevertheless had the force and character of a sacrament as to its use: the confirmation of this prophecy. Seraiah was then instructed to tie a stone to the book and then to cast it into the Euphrates. Why so?

This was so that the volume might not float on the surface of the water but be sunk down to the bottom. And the application follows: You shall say, etc. We see that words ought always to be connected with signs.

From this we conclude how fatuous the Papists are, who practice many ceremonies but without knowledge. Indeed, whatever signs men may devise for themselves are dead and empty things, unless God’s word is added.

You shall then say, Thus shall Babylon sink, and shall not rise from the evil which I shall bring upon her. In short, Seraiah was commanded, as the Prophet’s messenger, to predict by himself concerning the fall of Babylon; but it was for the sake of all the godly, who were afterwards taught what had been done.

The conclusion follows: Thus far the words of Jeremiah. We have said that the prophets, after having spoken in the Temple or to the people, afterwards collected brief summaries, and that these contained the principal things; from these the prophetic books were made up.

For Jeremiah did not write the volume as we have it today, except the chapters; and it appears evident that it was not written in the order in which he spoke. The order of time is not, therefore, everywhere observed.

But the scribes were careful in this respect: they collected the summaries affixed to the doors of the Temple, and so they added this conclusion, Thus far the words of Jeremiah. But this, in my view, is not to be confined to the prophecies respecting the fall of Babylon, for I do not doubt that the scribe who had collected all his prophecies added these words, meaning that he had thus far transcribed the words of Jeremiah.

Thus we conclude that the last chapter is not included in the prophetic book of Jeremiah, but that it contains history only as far as was necessary to understand what is taught here. For it appears evident that many parts of the prophecy could not be understood without the knowledge of this history. As to the book of Lamentations, we know that it was a work distinct from the prophecies of Jeremiah; it is, then, no wonder that it has been added, Thus far the words of Jeremiah.

Prayer:

Grant, Almighty God, that since You have deigned to choose us for Your people, we may not doubt that our enemies will be before You like Babylon. So that when You have chastised us, You will at length, by a fatal and perpetual destruction, so lay them prostrate that they shall rise up no more. And when You have killed the body, manifest Yourself as our deliverer, until we shall at length be gathered into that celestial kingdom which has been prepared for us by Your only-begotten Son. Amen.

The last chapter, as it is historical and all its parts have been handled elsewhere, holy Calvin did not expound in his lectures, so that he might not burden the hearers with superfluous repetitions. However, to render the book complete, we add it here.