Announce in Judah, proclaim in Jerusalem, and say: "Blow the ram's horn throughout the land. Cry aloud and say, 'Assemble yourselves and let us flee to the fortified cities.' Announce in JudahThe call to "announce" signifies a proclamation of utmost importance. In the Hebrew context, the word used here is "קִרְאוּ" (qir'u), which means to call out or proclaim. This is not a mere suggestion but a divine command to make known God's message. Judah, representing the southern kingdom, is the primary audience. Historically, Judah was often warned by prophets due to its wavering faithfulness to God. This announcement is a call to attention, urging the people to heed the warning and return to God. and proclaim in Jerusalem
Jerusalem, the heart of Judah and the center of worship, is specifically mentioned, emphasizing its significance. The Hebrew word for "proclaim" is "הַשְׁמִיעוּ" (hashmi'u), which implies making something heard clearly. This is a call to ensure that the message reaches every ear in the city. Jerusalem, being the spiritual and political center, is crucial in the unfolding of God's plan. The historical context shows that Jerusalem often faced threats due to its strategic and religious importance, making this proclamation urgent. Sound the trumpet throughout the land
The trumpet, or "שׁוֹפָר" (shofar) in Hebrew, was used in ancient Israel for various purposes, including calling people to war, assembly, or alerting them to danger. The sounding of the trumpet here is a call to prepare for impending judgment. It serves as a wake-up call for the people to recognize the seriousness of their situation. The use of the shofar is deeply rooted in Israelite tradition, symbolizing both alarm and the need for repentance. Cry aloud and say
The phrase "cry aloud" indicates urgency and intensity. The Hebrew "צַעֲקוּ" (tsa'aku) suggests a loud, passionate plea. This is not a time for silence or complacency; the message must be delivered with fervor. The directive to "say" underscores the importance of verbal communication in conveying God's warnings. Historically, prophets were often tasked with delivering difficult messages, requiring courage and conviction. Assemble yourselves
The call to "assemble" is a directive for the people to gather together. The Hebrew "אִסְפוּ" (isfu) implies a collective action, urging the community to unite in response to the warning. This assembly is not just a physical gathering but a call to spiritual unity and readiness. In the biblical context, assembling often preceded significant events, whether for worship, battle, or receiving instruction from God. Let us flee to the fortified cities
The instruction to "flee" indicates imminent danger. The Hebrew "וּנְבוֹאָה" (un'vo'ah) suggests a sense of urgency and necessity. The "fortified cities" were places of refuge and protection, often with strong walls and defenses. Historically, these cities were crucial during times of invasion or threat. This call to flee is both a literal and metaphorical urging to seek safety and security, ultimately found in God. The fortified cities symbolize the need for spiritual refuge in the face of judgment. Persons / Places / Events 1. JeremiahA prophet called by God to deliver messages of warning and hope to the people of Judah. His ministry spanned the reigns of several kings and was marked by his deep emotional connection to his people and his unwavering commitment to God's message. 2. JudahThe southern kingdom of Israel, consisting of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. It was the primary audience of Jeremiah's prophecies, facing imminent judgment due to their persistent idolatry and disobedience to God. 3. JerusalemThe capital city of Judah, a central place of worship and political power. It was often the focal point of prophetic messages due to its significance in the religious and national life of the Israelites. 4. Ram’s Horn (Shofar)A trumpet-like instrument made from a ram's horn, used in ancient Israel for religious purposes and as a call to arms or alert. Its sound was a signal for the people to prepare for action, whether in worship or in response to danger. 5. Fortified CitiesCities with strong defenses, often used as places of refuge during times of war or invasion. The call to flee to these cities indicates an impending threat that requires immediate action for safety. Teaching Points Urgency of RepentanceThe call to blow the ram’s horn signifies the urgent need for repentance. Just as the people of Judah were warned of impending judgment, we too must heed God's call to turn from sin and seek His forgiveness. Spiritual PreparednessThe instruction to flee to fortified cities serves as a metaphor for seeking refuge in God. In times of spiritual danger, we must fortify our lives with prayer, scripture, and community. Role of Prophetic VoicesJeremiah's role as a prophet reminds us of the importance of listening to those who speak God's truth, even when it is uncomfortable. We should be open to correction and guidance from spiritual leaders. Community ResponseThe collective call to assemble and flee highlights the importance of community in responding to God's warnings. We are not alone in our spiritual journey and should support one another in times of trial. Bible Study Questions 1. How does the urgency in Jeremiah 4:5 challenge us to examine areas of our lives where we need to repent and seek God's guidance? 2. In what ways can we "flee to fortified cities" in our spiritual lives today? What practices or disciplines help us find refuge in God? 3. How can we discern and respond to modern-day prophetic voices that call us back to faithfulness to God? 4. What role does community play in helping us respond to God's warnings and calls for repentance? 5. How do the themes in Jeremiah 4:5 connect with the broader biblical account of God's judgment and mercy? How can this understanding shape our view of God's character? Connections to Other Scriptures Joel 2:1Similar to Jeremiah 4:5, this verse calls for the blowing of the trumpet in Zion as a warning of the coming day of the Lord, emphasizing the urgency and seriousness of the message. Isaiah 58:1This verse also speaks of raising one's voice like a trumpet to declare transgressions, highlighting the prophetic role of warning God's people about their sins. Numbers 10:9The use of trumpets in times of war or danger is established in the law, showing the continuity of this practice as a means of rallying and alerting the people. People Dan, JeremiahPlaces Dan, Jerusalem, Mount Ephraim, ZionTopics Aloud, Assemble, Blow, Cause, Cities, Cry, Crying, Declare, Defenced, Enter, Fenced, Flee, Fortified, Fully, Gather, Gathered, Horn, Jerusalem, Judah, Loud, Openly, Proclaim, Publish, Sounded, Throughout, Towns, Trumpet, Voice, Walled, YourselvesDictionary of Bible Themes Jeremiah 4:5 5256 city
5315 fortifications
5335 herald
5595 trumpet Jeremiah 4:5-6 5316 fortress Library The Wailing of Risca
You all know the story; it scarce needs that I should tell it to you. Last Saturday week some two hundred or more miners descended in health and strength to their usual work in the bowels of the earth. They had not been working long, their wives and their children had risen, and their little ones had gone to their schools, when suddenly there was heard a noise at the mouth of the pit;--it was an explosion,--all knew what it meant. Men's hearts failed them, for well they prophesied the horror which …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 7: 1861How those are to be Admonished who Sin from Sudden Impulse and those who Sin Deliberately.
(Admonition 33.). Differently to be admonished are those who are overcome by sudden passion and those who are bound in guilt of set purpose. For those whom sudden passion overcomes are to be admonished to regard themselves as daily set in the warfare of the present life, and to protect the heart, which cannot foresee wounds, with the shield of anxious fear; to dread the hidden darts of the ambushed foe, and, in so dark a contest, to guard with continual attention the inward camp of the soul. For, …
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great Prevailing Prayer.
Text.--The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.--James v. 16. THE last lecture referred principally to the confession of sin. To-night my remarks will be chiefly confined to the subject of intercession, or prayer. There are two kinds of means requisite to promote a revival; one to influence men, the other to influence God. The truth is employed to influence men, and prayer to move God. When I speak of moving God, I do not mean that God's mind is changed by prayer, or that his …
Charles Grandison Finney—Lectures on Revivals of Religion How to Make Use of Christ for Cleansing of us from Our Daily Spots.
Having spoken of the way of making use of Christ for removing the guilt of our daily transgressions, we come to speak of the way of making use of Christ, for taking away the guilt that cleaveth to the soul, through daily transgressions; "for every sin defileth the man," Matt. xv. 20; and the best are said to have their spots, and to need washing, which presupposeth filthiness and defilement, Eph. v. 27. John xiii. 8-10. Hence we are so oft called to this duty of washing and making us clean. Isa. …
John Brown (of Wamphray)—Christ The Way, The Truth, and The Life "For they that are after the Flesh do Mind the Things of the Flesh,",
Rom. viii. 5.--"For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh,", &c. Though sin hath taken up the principal and inmost cabinet of the heart of man--though it hath fixed its imperial throne in the spirit of man, and makes use of all the powers and faculties in the soul to accomplish its accursed desires and fulfil its boundless lusts, yet it is not without good reason expressed in scripture, ordinarily under the name of "flesh," and a "body of death," and men dead in sins, are …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning "Who Walk not after the Flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the Flesh,"
Rom. viii. 4, 5.--"Who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the flesh," &c. If there were nothing else to engage our hearts to religion, I think this might do it, that there is so much reason in it. Truly it is the most rational thing in the world, except some revealed mysteries of faith, which are far above reason, but not contrary to it. There is nothing besides in it, but that which is the purest reason. Even that part of it which is most difficult to man, …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning "If So be that the Spirit of God Dwell in You. Now if any Man have not the Spirit of Christ, He is None of His. "
Rom. viii. 9.--"If so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." "But will God in very deed dwell with men on the earth?" 2 Chron. vi. 18. It was the wonder of one of the wisest of men, and indeed, considering his infinite highness above the height of heavens, his immense and incomprehensible greatness, that the heaven of heavens cannot contain him, and then the baseness, emptiness, and worthlessness of man, it may be a wonder to the …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning The Acceptable Sacrifice;
OR, THE EXCELLENCY OF A BROKEN HEART: SHOWING THE NATURE, SIGNS, AND PROPER EFFECTS OF A CONTRITE SPIRIT. BEING THE LAST WORKS OF THAT EMINENT PREACHER AND FAITHFUL MINISTER OF JESUS CHRIST, MR. JOHN BUNYAN, OF BEDFORD. WITH A PREFACE PREFIXED THEREUNTO BY AN EMINENT MINISTER OF THE GOSPEL IN LONDON. London: Sold by George Larkin, at the Two Swans without Bishopgates, 1692. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. The very excellent preface to this treatise, written by George Cokayn, will inform the reader of …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 Original Sin
Q-16: DID ALL MANKIND FALL IN ADAM'S FIRST TRANSGRESSION? A: The covenant being made with Adam, not only for himself, but for his posterity, all mankind descending from him, by ordinary generation, sinned in him, and fell with him in his first transgression. 'By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin,' &c. Rom 5:12. Adam being a representative person, while he stood, we stood; when he fell, we fell, We sinned in Adam; so it is in the text, In whom all have sinned.' Adam was the head …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity Repentance
Then has God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life.' Acts 11: 18. Repentance seems to be a bitter pill to take, but it is to purge out the bad humour of sin. By some Antinomian spirits it is cried down as a legal doctrine; but Christ himself preached it. From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent,' &c. Matt 4: 17. In his last farewell, when he was ascending to heaven, he commanded that Repentance should be preached in his name.' Luke 24: 47. Repentance is a pure gospel grace. …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments Directions to Awakened Sinners.
Acts ix. 6. Acts ix. 6. And he, trembling and astonished, said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do. THESE are the words of Saul, who also is called Paul, (Acts xiii. 9,) when he was stricken to the ground as he was going to Damascus; and any one who had looked upon him in his present circumstances and knew nothing more of him than that view, in comparison with his past life, could have given, would have imagined him one of the most miserable creatures that ever lived upon earth, and would have expected …
Philip Doddridge—Practical Discourses on Regeneration The Quotation in Matt. Ii. 6.
Several interpreters, Paulus especially, have asserted that the interpretation of Micah which is here given, was that of the Sanhedrim only, and not of the Evangelist, who merely recorded what happened and was said. But this assertion is at once refuted when we consider the object which Matthew has in view in his entire representation of the early life of Jesus. His object in recording the early life of Jesus is not like that of Luke, viz., to communicate historical information to his readers. …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament Jesus Attends the First Passover of his Ministry.
(Jerusalem, April 9, a.d. 27.) Subdivision B. Jesus Talks with Nicodemus. ^D John III. 1-21. ^d 1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. [Nicodemus is mentioned only by John. His character is marked by a prudence amounting almost to timidity. At John vii. 50-52 he defends Jesus, but without committing himself as in any way interested in him: at John xix. 38, 39 he brought spices for the body of Jesus, but only after Joseph of Arimathæa had secured the body. …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel Jeremiah
The interest of the book of Jeremiah is unique. On the one hand, it is our most reliable and elaborate source for the long period of history which it covers; on the other, it presents us with prophecy in its most intensely human phase, manifesting itself through a strangely attractive personality that was subject to like doubts and passions with ourselves. At his call, in 626 B.C., he was young and inexperienced, i. 6, so that he cannot have been born earlier than 650. The political and religious …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Jeremiah 4:5 NIVJeremiah 4:5 NLTJeremiah 4:5 ESVJeremiah 4:5 NASBJeremiah 4:5 KJV
Jeremiah 4:5 Commentaries
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