Глава 35

1–11. Obedience of the Rechabites to the covenants of their ancestors. 12–19. God's judgment over disobedient Israel and approval of the Rechabites. Jeremiah 35:1–11. At the command of God, Jeremiah invited several Rechabites to drink wine, but they refused, citing the fact that drinking wine, as well as agriculture and, in general, a settled life were strictly prohibited by their ancestor, Johanadab. Jer.35:1. The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah: This was probably no earlier than the 4th year of Jehoiakim, when the Babylonians had already broken into Judea (cf. Jer 25.1; 2 Kings 24.1 et seq.). Jer.35:2. go to the house of the Rechabites and talk to them, and bring them to the house of the Lord, to one of the rooms, and give them wine to drink. The Rechabites (1 Chronicles 2.55) had been a branch of the Kenites friendly to the Jews since the time of Moses. They were accepted into the Israeli society, but observed their own customs and traditions. Their ancestor Johanadab participated together with Jehu in the destruction of the service of Baal in the kingdom of Israel (2 Kings 10.15 et seq.). He gave some rules of life to his family, which, of course, he himself inherited from his ancestors. The main rule is to lead the life of nomads, which provided greater guarantees against moral corruption than life in cities. Only out of necessity, in order to save their lives from the Babylonians, were they (probably around 601) forced to take refuge behind the walls of Jerusalem. The rooms were arranged in large numbers in the front courtyard of the church (narthex). Sacrificial materials were stored here, church officials lived here, and meals were held after the peace offering. Jer.35:4. And he brought them to the house of the Lord, to the chamber of the sons of Anan the son of Gedaliah the man of God, which was near the chamber of the princes, over the chamber of Maaseiah the son of Shallum, the guard at the entrance; Anan is called a man of God, probably as a prophet (cf. 1 Samuel 2.27). His “sons” are probably his disciples. Jeremiah 35:12–19. The Lord commands to point out to the Jews this loyalty of the Rechabites to the covenants of their ancestors, because the Jews never obeyed their God. Why will the Lord bring upon the Jews all the disasters that He predicted for them, but He will always patronize the Rechabites. Jer.35:19. Therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: The man who stands before Me will not be taken away from Jonadab the son of Rechab all the days. “A man standing before Me” - in these words one can see an indication not only of the preservation of the family of the Rechabites, but also of their special closeness to Jehovah, which they always maintain (cf. Jer 15.19). You might be interested in: