Jer 4:1
4:1 If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith the LORD, {a} return to
    me: and if thou wilt put away thy abominations out of my
    sight, then shalt thou not be removed.

    (a) That is, wholly and without hypocrisy, not dissembling
        to turn and serve God as they do who serve him by
        halves, Ho 7:16.

Jer 4:2
4:2 And thou shalt {b} swear, The LORD liveth, in truth, in
    judgment, and in righteousness; and the nations shall bless
    themselves in him, and in him shall they glory.

    (b) You will detest the name of idols, Ps 16:4 and
        will with reverence swear by the living God, when your
        oath may advance God's glory, and profit others: and
        here by swearing he means the true religion of God.

Jer 4:3
4:3 For thus saith the LORD to the men of Judah and Jerusalem,
    Break up {c} your fallow ground, and sow not among thorns.

    (c) He wills them to pluck up the impiety and wicked
        affection and worldly respects out of their heart, that
        the true seed of God's word may be sown in it,
        Ho 10:12 and this is the true circumcision of the
        heart, De 10:16, Ro 2:29, Col 2:11.

Jer 4:5
4:5 {d} Declare ye in Judah, and proclaim in Jerusalem; and say,
    Blow ye the trumpet in the land: cry, confirm, and say,
    Assemble yourselves, and let us go into the fortified
    cities.

    (d) He warns them of the great dangers that will come on
        them by the Chaldeans, unless they repent and turn to
        the Lord.

Jer 4:6
4:6 Set up the standard toward Zion: {e} retire, stay not: for I
    will bring evil from the north, and a great destruction.

    (e) He speaks this to admonish them of the great danger when
        every man will prepare to save himself, but it will be
        too late, 2Ki 25:4.

Jer 4:7
4:7 The {f} lion is come up from his thicket, and the destroyer
    of the Gentiles is on his way; he is gone forth from his
    place to make thy land desolate; thy cities shall be laid
    waste, without an inhabitant.

    (f) Meaning Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, 2Ki 24:1.

Jer 4:9
4:9 And it shall come to pass at that day, saith the LORD,
    [that] the heart of the king shall perish, and the heart of
    the princes; and the priests shall be astonished, and the
    {g} prophets shall wonder.

    (g) That is, the false prophets who still prophesied peace
        and security.

Jer 4:10
4:10 Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! surely thou hast greatly {h}
     deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, Ye shall have
     peace; though the sword reacheth to the soul.

     (h) By the false prophets who promised peace and
         tranquillity: and thus you have punished their
         rebellious stubbornness by causing them to hearken to
         lies who would not believe your truth,
         1Ki 22:23, Eze 14:9, 2Th 2:11.

Jer 4:11
4:11 At that time shall it be said to this people and to
     Jerusalem, A dry {i} wind of the high places in the
     wilderness toward the daughter of my people, not {k} to
     fan, nor to cleanse,

     (i) The north wind by which he means Nebuchadnezzar.
     (k) But to carry away both corn and chaff.

Jer 4:13
4:13 Behold, he shall come up as {l} clouds, and his chariots
     [shall be] as a whirlwind: his horses are swifter than
     eagles. {m} Woe to us! for we are laid waste.

     (l) Meaning that Nebuchadnezzar would come as suddenly as a
         cloud that is carried with the wind.
     (m) This is spoken in the person of all the people, who in
         their affliction would cry thus.

Jer 4:15
4:15 For a voice declareth from {n} Dan, and proclaimeth
     affliction from mount {o} Ephraim.

     (n) Which was a city in the utmost border of Israel north
         toward Babylon.
     (o) Which was in the middle between Dan and Jerusalem.

Jer 4:17
4:17 As keepers of a {p} field, they are against her on all
     sides; because she hath been rebellious against me, saith
     the LORD.

     (p) Who keep the fruits so straitly, that nothing can come
         in or out so would the Babylonians compass Judah.,

Jer 4:19
4:19 My distress, my {q} distress!  I am pained at my very
     heart; my heart maketh a noise in me; I cannot hold my
     peace, because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the
     trumpet, the alarm of war.

     (q) He shows that the true ministers are lively touched
         with the calamities of the Church, so that all the
         parts of their body feel the grief of their heart, even
         though with zeal to God's glory they pronounce his
         judgments against the people.

Jer 4:20
4:20 Destruction upon destruction is cried; for the whole land
     is laid waste: suddenly are my {r} tents ruined, [and] my
     curtains in a moment.

     (r) Meaning, the cities which were as easily cast down as a
         tent.

Jer 4:22
4:22 For my people [are] foolish, they have not known me; they
     [are] silly children, and they have no understanding: {s}
     they [are] wise to do evil, but to do good they have no
     knowledge.

     (s) Their wisdom and policy tend to their own destruction
         and pulls them from God.

Jer 4:23
4:23 I beheld the earth, and, lo, [it was] without form, and {t}
     void; and the heavens, and they [had] no light.

     (t) By this manner of speech he shows the horrible
         destruction that would come on the land and also
         condemns the obstinacy of the people who do not repent
         at the fear of these terrible kings, seeing that the
         insensible creatures are moved therewith, as if the
         order of nature would be changed,
         Isa 13:10,24:23, Eze 32:7, Joel 2:31,3:15.

Jer 4:27
4:27 For thus hath the LORD said, The whole land shall be
     desolate; yet will I {u} not make a full end.

     (u) But for his mercies sake, he will reserve himself a
         residue to be his Church, and to praise him in earth,
         Jer 5:18.

Jer 4:30
4:30 And [when] thou [art] laid waste, what wilt thou do? Though
     thou {x} clothest thyself with crimson, though thou deckest
     thee with ornaments of gold, though thou enlarge thy eyes
     with painting, in vain shalt thou make thyself fair; [thy]
     lovers will despise thee, they will seek thy life.

     (x) Neither your ceremonies nor rich gifts will deliver
         you.

Jer 4:31
4:31 For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, [and]
     the anguish as of her that bringeth forth her first child,
     the voice of the daughter of Zion, [that] bewaileth
     herself, [that] spreadeth her hands, [saying], {y} Woe [is]
     me now! for my soul is wearied because of murderers.

     (y) As the prophets were moved to pity the destruction of
         their people, so they declared it to the people to move
         them to repentance, Isa 22:4, Jer 9:1.