Matthew Henry Commentary Jeremiah 8:4-13

"Moreover thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith Jehovah: Shall men fall, and not rise up again? Shall one turn away, and not return? Why then is this people of Jerusalem slidden back by a perpetual backsliding? they hold fast deceit, they refuse to return. I hearkened and heard, but they spake not aright: no man repenteth him of his wickedness, saying, What have I done? every one turneth to his course, as a horse that rusheth headlong in the battle. Yea, the stork in the heavens knoweth her appointed times; and the turtle-dove and the swallow and the crane observe the time of their coming; but my people know not the law of Jehovah. How do ye say, We are wise, and the law of Jehovah is with us? But, behold, the false pen of the scribes hath wrought falsely. The wise men are put to shame, they are dismayed and taken: lo, they have rejected the word of Jehovah; and what manner of wisdom is in them? Therefore will I give their wives unto others, and their fields to them that shall possess them: for every one from the least even unto the greatest is given to covetousness; from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely. And they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace. Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush: therefore shall they fall among them that fall; in the time of their visitation they shall be cast down, saith Jehovah. I will utterly consume them, saith Jehovah: there shall be no grapes on the vine, nor figs on the fig-tree, and the leaf shall fade; and [the things that] I have given them shall pass away from them." — Jeremiah 8:4-13 (ASV)

What brought this ruin?

1. The people would not heed reason; they would not act in the affairs of their souls with common prudence. Sin is backsliding; it is going back from the way that leads to life, to that which leads to destruction.
2. They would not heed the warning of conscience. They did not take the first step towards repentance: true repentance begins in serious inquiry about what we have done, from the conviction that we have done wrong.
3. They would not heed the ways of providence, nor understand the voice of God in them (Jeremiah 8:7). They do not know how to make good use of the seasons of grace, which God provides. Many boast of their religious knowledge, yet, unless taught by the Spirit of God, the instinct of animals is a more sure guide than their supposed wisdom.
4. They would not heed the written word. Many enjoy an abundance of the means of grace, have Bibles and ministers, but they have them in vain. They will soon be ashamed of their schemes. The pretenders to wisdom were the priests and the false prophets. They flattered people in sin, and so flattered them into destruction, silencing their fears and complaints with, "All is well."

Selfish teachers may promise peace when there is no peace; and thus people encourage each other in committing evil; but in the day of visitation they will have no refuge to flee to.