:
1 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, that was the first year of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon; 2 The which Jeremiah the prophet spake unto all the people of Judah, and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, 3 From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, even unto this day, that is the three and twentieth year, the word of the LORD hath come unto me, and I have spoken unto you, rising early and speaking; but ye have not hearkened. 4 And the LORD hath sent unto you all his servants the prophets, rising early and sending them; but ye have not hearkened, nor inclined your ear to hear. 5 They said, Turn ye again now every one from his evil way, and from the evil of your doings, and dwell in the land that the LORD hath given unto you and to your fathers for ever and ever: 6 And go not after other gods to serve them, and to worship them, and provoke me not to anger with the works of your hands; and I will do you no hurt. 7 Yet ye have not hearkened unto me, saith the LORD; that ye might provoke me to anger with the works of your hands to your own hurt. 8 Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts; Because ye have not heard my words, 9 Behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, saith the LORD, and Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and will bring them against this land, and against the inhabitants thereof, and against all these nations round about, and will utterly destroy them, and make them an astonishment, and an hissing, and perpetual desolations. 10 Moreover I will take from them the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones, and the light of the candle. 11 And this whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. 12 And it shall come to pass, when seventy years are accomplished, that I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, saith the LORD, for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans, and will make it perpetual desolations. 13 And I will bring upon that land all my words which I have pronounced against it, even all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah hath prophesied against all the nations. 14 For many nations and great kings shall serve themselves of them also: and I will recompense them according to their deeds, and according to the works of their own hands. 15 For thus saith the LORD God of Israel unto me; Take the wine cup of this fury at my hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send thee, to drink it. 16 And they shall drink, and be moved, and be mad, because of the sword that I will send among them. 17 Then took I the cup at the LORD's hand, and made all the nations to drink, unto whom the LORD had sent me: 18 To wit, Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, and the kings thereof, and the princes thereof, to make them a desolation, an astonishment, an hissing, and a curse; as it is this day; 19 Pharaoh king of Egypt, and his servants, and his princes, and all his people; 20 And all the mingled people, and all the kings of the land of Uz, and all the kings of the land of the Philistines, and Ashkelon, and Azzah, and Ekron, and the remnant of Ashdod, 21 Edom, and Moab, and the children of Ammon, 22 And all the kings of Tyrus, and all the kings of Zidon, and the kings of the isles which are beyond the sea, 23 Dedan, and Tema, and Buz, and all that are in the utmost corners, 24 And all the kings of Arabia, and all the kings of the mingled people that dwell in the desert, 25 And all the kings of Zimri, and all the kings of Elam, and all the kings of the Medes, 26 And all the kings of the north, far and near, one with another, and all the kingdoms of the world, which are upon the face of the earth: and the king of Sheshach shall drink after them. 27 Therefore thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Drink ye, and be drunken, and spue, and fall, and rise no more, because of the sword which I will send among you. 28 And it shall be, if they refuse to take the cup at thine hand to drink, then shalt thou say unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Ye shall certainly drink. 29 For, lo, I begin to bring evil on the city which is called by my name, and should ye be utterly unpunished? Ye shall not be unpunished: for I will call for a sword upon all the inhabitants of the earth, saith the LORD of hosts. 30 Therefore prophesy thou against them all these words, and say unto them, The LORD shall roar from on high, and utter his voice from his holy habitation; he shall mightily roar upon his habitation; he shall give a shout, as they that tread the grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth. 31 A noise shall come even to the ends of the earth; for the LORD hath a controversy with the nations, he will plead with all flesh; he will give them that are wicked to the sword, saith the LORD. 32 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Behold, evil shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great whirlwind shall be raised up from the coasts of the earth. 33 And the slain of the LORD shall be at that day from one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth: they shall not be lamented, neither gathered, nor buried; they shall be dung upon the ground. 34 Howl, ye shepherds, and cry; and wallow yourselves in the ashes, ye principal of the flock: for the days of your slaughter and of your dispersions are accomplished; and ye shall fall like a pleasant vessel. 35 And the shepherds shall have no way to flee, nor the principal of the flock to escape. 36 A voice of the cry of the shepherds, and an howling of the principal of the flock, shall be heard: for the LORD hath spoiled their pasture. 37 And the peaceable habitations are cut down because of the fierce anger of the LORD. 38 He hath forsaken his covert, as the lion: for their land is desolate because of the fierceness of the oppressor, and because of his fierce anger.
[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:1
(Chapter 25, Verse 1) The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah. These events took place before the vision because it was during the reign of Zedekiah, after Jehoiachin was deported to Babylon. But this event took place during the reign of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, and the father of Jehoiachin. For the prophets (as I mentioned before) were not concerned with keeping track of the times, which require the laws of history, but rather with writing in a way that would be useful to those hearing or reading it. Some people wrongly seek the order of the history of the psalms in the Psalter, which is not observed in lyrical poetry.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:2
(Verse 2) This is the first year of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon (which is not in the LXX. And it follows): What Jeremiah the Prophet spoke to all the people of Judah and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying. In the fourth year of the reign of King Jehoiakim, son of Josiah and father of Jeconiah, Nebuchadnezzar became the ruler in Babylon, and it happened that the year which was the first for Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon was the fourth for King Jehoiakim in Jerusalem. Finally, in the eighth year of his reign, Jechoniah, along with his mother and the princes, was led into captivity, having only reigned for three months after the death of his father, Joachim. However, Joachim was killed in the eleventh year of his reign in Jerusalem (2 Kings 24).

[AD 325] Lucius Caecilius Firmianus Lactantius on Jeremiah 25:3-7
When the Jews often resisted wholesome precepts and departed from the divine law, going astray to the impious worship of false gods, then God filled just and chosen men with the Holy Spirit, appointing them as prophets in the midst of the people, by whom he might rebuke with threatening words the sins of the ungrateful people and nevertheless exhort them to repent of their wickedness. Unless they did this and, laying aside their vanities, returned to their God, it would come to pass that he would change his covenant, that is, bestow the inheritance of eternal life on foreign nations and collect to himself a more faithful people out of those who were aliens by birth. But they, when rebuked by the prophets, not only rejected their words but, being offended because they were scolded for their sins, killed the prophets with calculated tortures. All these things are sealed up and preserved in the sacred writings. For the prophet Jeremiah says, “I have sent to you my servants, the prophets. I sent them before light, and you hearkened not to me nor inclined your ears to hear when I said to you, ‘Return, you, every one from this evil way and from your wicked devices, and you shall dwell in that land that I have given to you and to your ancestors forever and ever. Do not go after strange gods to serve them, and do not provoke me to wrath by the works of your hands for afflicting you.’ ”

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:3
(Version 3.) From the thirteenth year of Josiah, son of Ammon, king of Judah, until this day, which is the twenty-third year, the word of the Lord came to me, and I spoke to you, rising up at night and speaking, but you did not listen. In the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah, who reigned in Jerusalem for thirty-one years, Jeremiah began to prophesy, and he prophesied under him for nineteen years. After him, his son Joahaz became king, but he was immediately taken into captivity by Pharaoh Necho, king of Egypt, and his brother Joachim succeeded to the throne (2 Kings 23). In the fourth year of his reign, this message of the Lord comes to Jeremiah and thus it was the twenty-third year of the prophet Jeremiah, since he began speaking to the people. And he never ceased to preach, but every day, rising at dawn and in the night, he spoke to the people. And you have not listened, he says. But if, as the heretics want from the old things, the law was given once for help, and established precepts which we do or do not do according to our own will; how does the Prophet always thrust himself forward and daily repeat the commands of God, which, certainly once received, were enough for those to whom they were given, unless to show this, that we always need the help of God and can never be sufficient, what was given once, unless it is renewed daily by the reminder of the Lord?


And the Lord sent to all of you his servants the Prophets, rising up in the morning and sending them; and you did not listen. Not through one Prophet, but through all his people, God always warned, and as if he himself arose in watchful vigil and stood up in the morning, to warn his people. And you did not listen; so with the more frequent admonition, how much greater have been the sins of those who despise?

[AD 458] Theodoret of Cyrus on Jeremiah 25:3-7
He mentions the great number of years in order to emphasize God’s long-suffering in putting up with unbelievers for so long. I sent my servants the prophets to you, he says. I urged you to abandon the road to ruin and travel by the other road that produces life. I, in fact, promised you blessings for doing this. But you did not listen, and instead you chose the worship of idols. And to censure the purpose of this unbelief he went on, “So that you might provoke me by the works of your own hands to your own misfortune.” To provoke me, you committed those things, but then you also reaped their harmful effects then as well.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:4-5
(Verse 4, 5.) You did not incline your ears to listen when I said (Vulgate: said): Return to me, each one of you, from your evil ways and from your wicked thoughts. And you will dwell in the land that the Lord gave to you and your fathers from eternity to eternity. The hardness of the people was so great that they would not even assume the habit of listening and incline their ear, particularly when the Lord was warning them to turn each one from their evil ways and from their wicked thoughts. And, O infinite mercy, not to inflict punishment for crime, but to provoke to repentance, both for evil deeds, which the wicked way signifies, and for the worst thoughts, which are considered sin even without action. And He promises a reward, if they do what is commanded, that they may dwell in the land which was given to the fathers, and for the sins of their children to be removed. And He says: From age to age, or, from eternity to eternity, He shows the eternal gifts of God, if those to whom they are given are worthy.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:6-7
(Verse 6, 7.) And do not go after foreign gods, to serve them and worship them; and do not provoke me to anger with the works of your hands, and I will not afflict you. But you did not listen to me, says the Lord, to provoke me to anger with the works of your hands, to your own harm. And this, I said to your forefathers, not to serve and worship foreign gods, and by doing so, provoke me to anger because of the works of your hands, so that I would do what I did not desire, and afflict you, and you did not listen to me. And what follows, says the Lord, that you have provoked me to anger with the works of your hands, for your own harm, is not found in the Septuagint.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:8
(Verse 8.) Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts: Because you have not listened to my words, behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, declares the Lord, and Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and I will bring them against this land and its inhabitants, and against all these surrounding nations. I will devote them to destruction, and make them a horror, a hissing, and an everlasting desolation. Moreover, I will banish from them the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the grinding of the millstones and the light of the lamp. This whole land shall become a ruin and a waste, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. But the Lord sends forth angels to stir up the nations, or certainly moves such tribes, so that they may do the will of the Lord. And he calls his servant Nebuchadnezzar, not called as the prophets and all the saints are called, who truly serve the Lord; but so that in the destruction of Jerusalem, he may serve the will of the Lord: as the Apostle also speaks: Whom I have delivered to Satan, that they may learn not to blaspheme (1 Timothy 1:20). There is no doubt that the Chaldeans are located in the northern part, near the site of Jerusalem.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:9
(Verse 9) And I will bring them upon this land and upon its inhabitants and upon all the nations around it. And I will destroy them and make them a horror, and a hissing, and an everlasting desolation. These are the rewards of those who despise and refuse to listen to the words of God. Therefore, whatever evil comes upon us, it is because of our sins. And all the nations were brought against Jerusalem in that way, just as they are brought against the negligent Church today, to destroy them and make them a horror, and a hissing, and an everlasting desolation, so that they may serve as an example and a wonder to all. But the hissing is a sign of a miracle and wonder; and eternal loneliness is found in those who do not have God as their guide.

[AD 373] Athanasius of Alexandria on Jeremiah 25:10-14
Israel … killed those who were sent, and not even before the Lord of the vineyard were they ashamed, but even he was slain by them. Truly, when he came and found no fruit in them, he cursed them through the fig tree, saying, “From now on, let there be no fruit from you.” The fig tree was dead and fruitless so that even the disciples wondered when it withered away. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by the prophet: “I will take away from them the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the scent of myrrh and the light of a lamp, and the whole land shall be destroyed.” For the whole service of the law has been abolished from them, and from now on and forever they remain without a feast.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:10
(Verse 10) And I will destroy from among them the voice of joy, and the voice of gladness; the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride; the sound of the millstone, and the light of the lamp. And the whole land shall be desolation and astonishment, and these things are proven today in the assembly of the wicked; so that their teachers do not teach the word of God, but hiss like a serpent. And the voice of joy and the voice of gladness perish in them, so that they never hear the words of the Apostle: Rejoice, again I say, rejoice (Philippians 4:4). The voice also of the bride, of the Ecclesiastical faith; and the voice of the bridegroom, of the Lord Savior: For he who has a bride, is the bridegroom (John III, 29). The voice of the mill, so that the grains are not crushed in it, and are given to the peoples for nourishment: and the light of the lamp, namely the teaching and knowledge (or, rather, the teaching and knowledge) of the Prophets. Finally, it is also said about John the Baptist: He was a shining lamp (John V, 35). And another Prophet: Your word, Lord, is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my paths (Psalm CXVIII, 105). All, he said, the land of heretics will be as a wasteland and in astonishment, when its final folly has been revealed.

[AD 430] Augustine of Hippo on Jeremiah 25:10-14
We have seen the promises that God made to Abraham—to be the father, first, of the Jewish race according to the flesh, and second, of all nations who were to embrace the faith. The development in history of the City of God will show how these promises were kept. The end of the preceding book brought us up to the reign of King David. I shall now begin with his reign and treat of what ensued in as much detail as the theme of this book requires. There is a period that begins with the prophecies of Samuel and continues through the seventy years of the Babylonian captivity (which Jeremiah had foretold) and ends with the rebuilding of the temple, after the Israelites came home. This period is known as the age of the prophets, although, of course, the patriarch Noah, in whose lifetime the whole earth was destroyed by the flood, and others before and after him up to the time of the kings were prophets also. At least, they prefigured, in some fashion, many things touching the City of God and the kingdom of heaven and sometimes actually prophesied. Consequently, it is not too much to speak of these men as prophets; some of them are explicitly in Holy Scripture, for example, Abraham and Moses.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:11-13
(Verse 11 and following) And these nations will serve the king of Babylon for seventy years. And when seventy years have been completed, I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation, says the Lord, for their iniquities, and the land of the Chaldeans, and I will make it an eternal wasteland. And I will bring upon that land all my words that I have spoken against it, all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah prophesied against all the nations. Just as Jerusalem, after seventy years, received back its former inhabitants and, having completed its punishments because it obeyed the command of God, now enjoys its former happiness; so the king of Babylon, who was lifted up in pride and trusted in his own strength, because he reigned among the nations and not according to the will of the Lord, will be destroyed when the Medes and Persians come. Ultimately, only the remains of the city of Babylon exist to this day. And the Lord placed her in everlasting solitude, and fulfilled all the words that are contained in the volume of this very prophet. For in the following, the sermon of Jeremiah describes the evils that Babylon is to suffer.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:11
[Daniel 5:2] "Being now drunken, he therefore gave order that the golden and silver vessels be brought in which his father, Nebuchadnezzar, had taken away from the temple which was in Jerusalem, in order that the king might drink from them..." The Hebrews hand down some such story as this: that up until the seventieth year, on which Jeremiah had said (Jeremiah 25:11) that the captivity of the Jewish people would be released (a matter of which Zechariah also speaks [Zechariah 1:12] in the first part of his book), Belshazzar had esteemed God's promise to be of none effect; therefore he turned the failure of the promise into an occasion of joy and arranged a great banquet, scoffing somewhat at the expectation of the Jews and at the vessels of the Temple of God. Punishment, however, immediately ensued. And as to the fact that the author calls Nebuchadnezzar the father of Belshazzar, he does not make any mistake in the eyes of those who are acquainted with the Holy Scripture's manner of speaking, for in the Scripture all progenitors and ancestors are called fathers. This factor also should be borne in mind, that he was not sober when he did these things, but rather when he was intoxicated and forgetful of the punishment which had come upon his progenitor, Nebuchadnezzar.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:14
(Verse 14) Because many nations and great kings have served them, and I will repay them according to their deeds and according to the works of their hands. This is not found in the Septuagint. However, it signifies that Jeremiah prophesied not only against Babylon, but against the other nations that were in the Babylonian army and fought against the people of the Lord. Finally, it is said in the following verses against Egypt, and the Philistines, and Moab, and Ammon, and Edom, and Damascus, and Kedar, and the kingdoms of Hazor and Elam, and finally against Babylon and the land of Chaldea.

[AD 253] Origen of Alexandria on Jeremiah 25:15-29
In the same way in which physicians apply remedies to the sick, in order that by careful treatment they may recover their health, God so deals toward those who have lapsed and fallen into sin, is proved by this, that the cup of God’s fury is ordered, through the agency of the prophet Jeremiah, to be offered to all nations, that they may drink it, and be in a state of madness and vomit it forth. In doing which, God threatens them, saying that if anyone refuses to drink, he shall not be cleansed. By this certainly it is understood that the fury of God’s vengeance is profitable for the purgation of souls.

[AD 258] Cyprian on Jeremiah 25:15-29
Know that it was foretold that wars would continue frequently to prevail, death and famine accumulate anxiety, health would be shattered by raging diseases and the human race be wasted by the desolation of pestilence. It was predicted that evils should be multiplied in the last times and that misfortunes should be varied and that as the day of judgment is now drawing near, the censure of an indignant God should be more and more aroused for the scourging of the human race. For these things do not happen, as your false complaining and ignorant inexperience of the truth asserts and repeats, because your gods are not worshiped by us, but because God is not worshiped by you. For since he is Lord and Ruler of the world and all things are carried on by his will and direction, nor can anything be done save what he has done or allowed to be done, certainly when those things occur that show the anger of an offended God, they happen not on account of us by whom God is worshiped, but they are called down by your sins and by what you deserve, by whom God is neither in any way sought or feared, because your vain superstitions are not forsaken, nor is the true religion known in such a way that he who is the one God over all might alone be worshiped and petitioned. Finally, listen to himself speaking with a divine voice at once instructing and warning us: “You will worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.” And again, “You will have no other gods but me.” And again, “Do not go after other gods to serve them, and do not worship them, and do not provoke me to anger with the works of your hands to destroy you.”

[AD 345] Aphrahat the Persian Sage on Jeremiah 25:15-29
Consider and observe, my hearer, that if God had provided hope for Sodom and its companions, he would not have overthrown them with fire and brimstone, the sign of the last day of the world. Instead, he would have delivered them over to one of the kingdoms to be chastised. This is what was written, for instance, when Jeremiah caused the nations and kingdoms to drink the cup of wrath. Concerning each one of the cities, he said that after they shall “drink the cup, I will turn back the captivity of Elam, of Tyre, of Sidon, of the children of Ammon, and of Moab and of Edom.” Concerning each one of these kingdoms he said, “In the last days I will turn back its captivity.” Now we see that Tyre was inhabited and was opulent after it had wandered seventy years, and after it had received the reward of its harlotries and after it had committed fornication with all the kingdoms. And Tyre took the harp, and played it sweetly and multiplied its music. And also the region of Elam is inhabited and opulent. And with regard to Babylon Jeremiah said, “Babylon shall fall and shall not rise.” And look! Up to the present day it continues in desolation and will do so forever. And also about Jerusalem he said, “The virgin of Israel shall fall and shall not rise again. She is forsaken on the ground, and there is none to raise her up.” For if the prophecy is true that Jeremiah spoke about Babylon, also that about Jerusalem is true and worthy of faith. And Isaiah said to Jerusalem, “I will not again be angry with you, nor will I reprove you.” He truly will not be angry with Jerusalem ever again, nor will he reprove her forever; for that which is in desolation he will not reprove, nor will she provoke him to wrath.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:15-17
(Verse 15 and following) For thus says the Lord God of Israel to me (Vulgate adds 'of hosts, and is silent to me'): take the cup of wine of fury (or strong drink) from my hand, and give it to all the nations to which I send you, and they shall drink it, and become intoxicated (Vulgate says 'disorderly') (or vomit); and they shall become mad because of the sword that I will send among them. And I took the cup from the hand of the Lord, and gave it to all the nations to which the Lord sent me. The drinking of the cup, and the cup of wine, whether unmixed or mixed, which is called ἀκράτου in Greek, is an indication of the Lord's furious wrath, so that all nations who have waged war against God's people may drink from the cup of the Lord's fury, about which Isaiah writes against Jerusalem: 'You have drunk the cup of fury, the chalice of ruin, and have drained it out, therefore arise' (Isa. 51:17). This cup, however, is drunk by all nations so that they may vomit and become insane. That which a certain corrupt interpreter takes in a good sense: so that, like a cathartic potion, it compels whatever bile and phlegm and harmful humor is in the chest to exit and restores its original health. It also takes the Savior for Jeremiah, in that he offered himself to all nations to which he was sent, so that they would abandon idolatry and devote themselves to the worship of God. The following will show that this is contrary to Holy Scripture. For they are offered not for remedy, as he wishes, but for punishment, deservedly served in a bitter cup.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:15-29
The pouring out of the cup—and that a cup of pure or unmixed wine (which is called akratos in Greek)—is a sign of the Lord’s wrath so that all the nations who have waged war against the people of God will drink from the cup of the wrath of the Lord. Also, Isaiah writes concerning this cup against Jerusalem, “You have drunk and emptied the drinking cup of wrath, the cup of destruction; therefore, arise!” But that cup is being drunk by all nations so that they can vomit and be maddened. To be sure, an unsound interpretation understands this cup in a good sense, so that like a purgative it forces out whatever bile or phlegm or noxious humor is in the chest and restores pristine health. This interpretation understands the Savior instead of Jeremiah as the one who would make all the nations drink it, to whom also he was sent, so that when they had rejected idolatry they might dedicate themselves to the worship of God. But the words that follow will show that this is contrary to the Holy Scripture, for they are made to drink of the cup of pure wine not as a remedy (as this interpretation wants to understand it) but as a punishment.

[AD 458] Theodoret of Cyrus on Jeremiah 25:15-29
He gives the name drinking cup to punishment, as also in another psalm, “In the hand of the Lord there is a cup of wine, full of a strong mixture,” and a little later, “all the sinners of the earth will drink it.” This drinking cup blessed Jeremiah was ordered to offer to the nations.

[AD 458] Theodoret of Cyrus on Jeremiah 25:15-29
And he calls God’s punishment the “cup of unmixed wine.” … By “drinking” and “vomiting” Jeremiah implies they have had enough, and in their “raving,” he alludes to the terrible nature of their punishment. Then the prophet further relates how Jerusalem and the cities that paid tribute to it, along with their kings and rulers, were made to drink this cup.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:18
(Verse 18) Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, and its kings, and its princes, to make them a desolation, and an astonishment, and a hissing, and a curse, as it is this day. 'I thought,' he says, 'that I would give this only to the nations, and therefore I gladly offered myself to this ministry; but among all the nations, indeed before all others, I have given it to Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, and its kings, and its princes, to make them a desolation, and an astonishment, and a hissing, and a curse, as is proven by the present example.' And as it is said above: You have seduced me, O Lord, and I have been seduced; you have been strong and have prevailed.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:19
(Verse 19.) To Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and his servants, and his princes, and all his people, and everyone in general. After Jerusalem, Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and his companions drank: the princes and all the people drank, as did everyone who is not Egyptian, but who dwells in his territories: whom the Seventy translated as 'συμμίκτους', that is, mixed, the common people not of the land of Egypt, but foreign and alien.


And all the kings of the land of Uz, which is called Us in Hebrew, from which the history also narrates that Job was: There was a certain man in the region of Uz, named Job (Job 1). And yet it should be known that this verse is not found in the Septuagint, and Theodotion interpreted it as an island.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:20
(v. 20) And to all the kings of the land of the Philistines, and to Ascalon, Gaza, Accaron, and the rest of Azotus. He generally placed the Philistines, that is, the land of the Palestinians, and specifically their cities Ascalon, Gaza, Accaron, and Azotus; he only remained silent about Gath, which is included in the rest. For this is what is written: And the rest of Azotus: for it is near and adjacent to Azotus, which in Hebrew is called Esdod, the region of the city of Gath. But Isaiah writes that the Palestinians were captured and devastated by the Babylonians.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:21
(Verse 21.) Idumea, and Moab, and the sons of Ammon, and all the kings of Tyre, and all the kings of Sidon. Idumea, where the mountains of Seir are, and which is called Edom in Hebrew (): Moab and Ammon, they are the sons of Lot, close to the Dead Sea. Tyre and Sidon are the chief cities on the coast of Phoenicia, which themselves were conquered by the Babylonians when they came, among which Carthage is a colony. Hence the Phoenicians are also called the Phoenicians, their language being for the most part closely related to the Hebrew language.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:22
(Verse 22.) And to the kings of the islands across the sea. He crossed over to Cyprus, and Rhodes, and the islands called the Cyclades. And these were indeed occupied by the Babylonians.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:23
(Verse 23.) And Dedan, and Teman, and Buz, and all who have their hair cut short. These are the nations that live in solitude, near and mixed with the regions of the Ishmaelites, whom they now call Saracens, and of whom it is said: those who have their hair cut short.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:24
(Verse 24) And all the kings of Arabia, and all the kings of the West, who dwell in the desert. This is not found in the Septuagint. After Dedan, therefore, and Teman, and Buz, and the Ishmaelites, follows the order of the regions.

And all the kings of Zamri. This is also not found in the Septuagint.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:25
(Verse 25.) And all the kings of Elam, and all the kings of the Medes. From this, since Zamri follows Elam and the kings of the Medes, we conclude that Zamri is the region of Persia, unless perhaps because Arabia came before, and these kings should be understood as the kings of the wilderness. Elam, however, is a region of Persia beyond Babylon, from which also the Elamites. Likewise, the Medes and the Persians, by whom Babylon was captured and destroyed. And they themselves were able to drink from the mixed cup, with Alexander, the king of the Macedonians, offering it.


And all the kings of the North ((or of Babylon)) from nearby and far away. Because he had listed the regions of Persia and Babylon, Elam and the Medes; now he generally includes all the kings of the North, those who are nearby and those who are far away. For the North, which is called Saphon in Hebrew (), the Septuagint translates it as 'the furthest', which we can call 'Subsolanum'.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:26
(Verse 26.) To each one against his brother, and to all the kingdoms of the earth that are above its surface. In order not to make it long to enumerate all the regions of the Eastern provinces in detail, he generally placed all the kingdoms of the earth that are mentioned in that land. And that which he said against his brother is implied: I gave them a full measure to make them all rage, vomit, go mad, and fight with each other in mutual battles. And what he brought:

And King Sesach will drink after them; and though it is not found in the Septuagint, it has this meaning: All, he says, will be subject to the Babylonian empire, and it will subject everything to its power, so that all the nations that the previous passage mentioned will serve and drink from its cup. Thus, in the vision against Babylon, it is written: Babylon, the golden cup, that intoxicates the whole earth. (Jeremiah 51:7) And finally, the king of Babylon will drink this potion, offered to him by the charioteer of the chariot, consisting of camels and donkeys, Cyrus the king of the Medes and Persians. However, someone who has at least a small knowledge of the Hebrew language will not struggle greatly to understand how Babylon, which is called Babel in Hebrew (), is also understood as Sesach (). Just as in our case the Greek alphabet is read in order up to the last letter, that is, Alpha, Beta, and so on up to Omega: and again for the memory of children we are accustomed to reverse the order of reading and mix the first letters with the last, so that we say Alpha, O, Beta, Psi: similarly among the Hebrews the first is Aleph, the second Beth, the third Ghimel, and so on up to the twenty-second, and the last letter is Thau, with the penultimate being Sin. Therefore, we read Aleph, Thau, Beth, Sin. And when we come to the middle, Lamed, the letter Chaph appears: and as, if we read correctly, we read Babel: thus, with the order changed, we read Sesach. However, the vowel letters are not placed between Beth and Beth, and Lamed, according to the language of the Hebrew tongue in this name. And I think it was wisely hidden by the holy Prophet, so as not to openly provoke the madness of those who were besieging Jerusalem, and were about to take possession of it very soon. We read that the Apostle also acted against the Roman Empire, writing about the Antichrist: 'Do you not remember that when I was still with you, I told you these things? And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time,' the Antichrist is understood. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming (2 Thess. 2:3-8). He who holds it, shows the Roman empire: for unless this be destroyed, taken out of the way, according to the prophecy of Daniel, the antichrist will not come. But if he had wished to state it openly, he would have aroused foolish persecution against the Christians and the Church, which was then just beginning. We have spoken on this chapter at greater length than the brevity of the Commentaries allows, because it is not found in their codices, the Greeks and Latins perhaps despising it. But what profit will it be when the very Prophet himself says concerning these things which follow in this country: How is Sechach taken, and how is the renowned city of the whole earth captured? How is Babylon become a wonder among the nations? Allegorical interpreters refer this whole place to all the nations which the devil has made drunk with the most bitter cup of sins. And this very man himself will also drink torments and tortures, of whom the Apostle writes: Whom the Lord Jesus will destroy with the spirit of his mouth (II Thess. 2:8). And in another place it says: The last enemy to be destroyed is death (1 Corinthians 15:26). This is the power of being able to transfer the words of different nations under their etymologies, and to adapt individual vices to individual names.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:27
(Verse 27.) And you shall say to them, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Drink and be drunk, and vomit, and fall, and do not rise up (according to the Vulgate, do not rise up) before the sword that I am sending among you. Once you have made all the nations drink, and filled them with the command of the Lord, you shall again give this command in the words of the Lord, and you shall say: Drink and be drunk, and vomit, and fall, and do not rise up. If to drink and become drunk, to vomit, and to fall are signs of health, so that all noxious things are expelled like a cathartic potion: how then does it follow, 'do not rise'? Moreover, what is the potion that causes them to fall forever, he explains more clearly, that is, the face of the sword which I will send among you.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:28
(Verse 28.) And when they refuse to accept the cup from your hand to drink, you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord of hosts: You shall drink! For behold, in the city where my name has been invoked, I will begin to afflict, and you shall be as innocent ones, immune (or you shall be as clean ones, pure)? You shall not be immune (or you shall not be clean). He covertly shows, the command of God, that those who do not wish to do so willingly, will have to do so out of necessity, and shall hear: You shall drink! He says, whether you want it or not, the will of God must be fulfilled. For if the city of Jerusalem, in which the name of God was known, as the Prophet says: 'God is known in Judah; his name is great in Israel' (Psalm 76:1), drinks from the bitter cup of wrath, how much more will you, who worship idols in the name of God, not be pure!

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:29
(Verse 29.) For I will call the sword upon all the inhabitants of the earth, says the Lord of hosts. This is the most bitter potion, this cup of the Lord's fury, which is not only upon Jerusalem, but upon all the earth, and upon all the surrounding nations. As it was said before: And I will send to Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, my servant, and I will bring him over this land, and over its inhabitants, and over all the nations around it.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:30-31
(Verse 30, 31.) And you shall prophesy to them all these words, and you shall say to them: The Lord will roar from on high (or give a response), and from His holy habitation He will utter His voice. He roars loudly over His glorious place (or responds to His place), His shout resounds like those who trample the earth. The sound (or destruction) reaches to the ends (or above) of the earth: for the Lord has a judgment with the nations: He shall judge all flesh: I have given the wicked (or I gave the wicked) to the sword, says the Lord. First, let us say that the truth of the interpretation is evident. You will prophesy to all nations, he says, and you will declare that the Lord roars from on high, that is, he gives a clear sign of his anger; according to what is written: The lion will roar, and who will not fear? The Lord has spoken, and who will not prophesy? And from his holy dwelling he will make his voice heard, to terrify all who hear it. He will roar over his sanctuary, that is, over the Temple. And when he roars like those treading the winepress, a loud noise will be sung, and during the pouring out of the mutual blood, a mournful song will be chanted: which Symmachus calls a conclusion; Aquila, a remedy. The sound of this singing and song will reach to the ends of the earth, because the judgment of the Lord is with the nations. But if the judgment of the Lord is with the nations, then the merits of the nations are different (Hosea 4). To explain that passage, as some want: Whoever does not believe is already judged (John 3:18). Indeed, he is judged because he did not believe; but those who do not believe among themselves will be subjected to different punishments. He himself is judged with all flesh, so that no one may leave uninjudged. But the ungodly, that is, those who do not believe in the Lord, are handed over to eternal sword. Allegorical interpreters according to the Septuagint explain this passage in such a way that they interpret the Lord's open threat in a positive manner. The Lord, they say, will give a response from on high to those whom he intends to save. And from His holy place He will give His voice, and He will answer with His word in His place. But they, like reapers full of fruit, will respond to His message: Destruction will come upon all the inhabitants of the earth, not upon the whole earth, but upon a part of the earth, namely those who do not believe. Judgment will be among the nations, and He will judge with all flesh. But the wicked will be delivered by the sword.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:32-33
(Verse 32, 33.) Thus says the Lord of hosts: Behold, affliction (or evil) will come forth from nation to nation, and a great whirlwind (or storm) will come forth from the ends of the earth. And those slain (or wounded by the Lord) on that day will be from one end of the earth to the other end. They shall not be lamented, nor shall they be gathered or buried; they shall lie on the surface of the earth like manure. Let those who try to do violence to the Holy Scripture be ashamed, as they interpret those things which are full of threats in a positive way. But concerning this matter, I believe the Lord also said: 'A nation will rise against a nation, and a kingdom against a kingdom' (Luke 21:10), and the other things that are contained in the sentiment of the Gospel. Let us understand these things either according to the historical events themselves, when all the nations around were subjugated by the Babylonian king and felt the cruelty of his empire, or according to the prophecy that will happen long after in the end of the world. They are said to be killed by the Lord, not because the Lord Himself strikes, but so that in the destruction of the wicked, the will and authority of the Lord may be fulfilled.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:34-35
(Verse 34, 35.) Howl (or rejoice) you shepherds, and shout, and sprinkle yourselves with ashes, you noble flock (or lament, you rams of the sheep); for your days are fulfilled that you may be slain, and your dispersions, and you shall fall like precious vessels (or like chosen rams). And flight shall perish from the shepherds, and salvation from the noble ones (or rams) of the flock. It should be noted that only in this place have the Seventy interpreted 'jubilum' in a negative sense: for which reason other interpreters have translated it as 'howl' (as it is written in Hebrew). Between shepherds and rams, or leaders of the flock, there is this distinction: the shepherds are rational beings; but the rams and leaders are referred to the wealthy, who themselves are also called part of the flock. And it brings forth: Your days are complete, that you may be killed: then their days shall be completed, when their sins are fulfilled; and they shall be scattered and fall, like precious vessels, so that when broken they cannot be restored; and the more precious they were before, the greater the damage in their breaking; or like chosen rams, desiring to devour a fat sacrifice. He says that the flight of the shepherds will perish when they do not repent. Finally, it is said to the Pharisees: Offspring of vipers, who has shown you how to escape from the coming wrath (Luke 5:7)? And in the Psalms we read: The flight has perished from me (Psalm 141:5). And salvation, he says, from the best of the flock, or from the rams: in common, it is understood that it will perish.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:36
(Verse 36.) The voice of the shepherds crying out, and the howling of the leaders of the flock (or the jubilation of the rams): because the Lord has laid waste to their pastures. And the fields of peace (or the beautiful ones) have fallen silent before the face of the wrathful fury of the Lord. And here it should be noted that in the Septuagint, jubilation is used instead of howling. However, there is a difference between the shepherds and the rams, in that the shepherds are considered to be in the Church, who oversee the flock with wisdom and knowledge and teaching. But the leaders who seem to be in the crowd, have nothing of teaching and wisdom in themselves, and due to excessive simplicity they are almost neighbors of foolishness. But when we will have peace, and we will not understand either the good or beautiful things of peace, but we will give ourselves to luxury, idleness, and pleasures: then the good things of peace will rest, or rather be silenced, and they will be taken away from us because of the anger of the Lord's fury, and that which is written will be fulfilled: 'When they shall say, peace and security, then sudden destruction shall come upon them' (I Thess. V, 3), and when it comes, everything will be silent.

[AD 420] Jerome on Jeremiah 25:37-38
(Verses 37, 38) He has abandoned his shelter (or den) like a lion. (And to be more accurate, his tent: for this is what 'Succho' means in Hebrew.) Because their land has become a desolation (or impassable) from the wrath of the dove (or from the face of the great sword) and from the face of the fury of the Lord. The Lord, of whom it was said above, will roar from on high, and from his holy dwelling he will give forth his voice. Roaring, he will roar over his glory, he himself will abandon his tent, of which it is written: He has made it in peace, or in Salem, that is, his dwelling place, and his habitation in Zion (Psalm 75:2): he himself will abandon his seat, and he will fulfill what he spoke through the same prophet: I have forsaken my house, I have abandoned my inheritance (Jeremiah 12:7). But it left its den like a lion, so that all the beasts have power over its land. For with the lion as their guardian and ruler, no one dares approach it. It has become, he says, their land, undoubtedly to the point that either the Jewish people or certainly all the nations will be desolated and made impassable by the face of the dove's wrath. It is not surprising that the dove of the Lord is understood to be Nebuchadnezzar, who has read himself being called the servant of the Lord above him. For why they have translated Seventy, a great sword. May we receive a dove and in the person of Jerusalem, that he may be angry and sad, having lost the custody of his lion, and his land coming into desolation.