THEOSISJerome of Stridon
And you engaged in unfaithfulness with the children of Assyria, yet remained unsatisfied; and in your unfaithfulness, your desire was not fulfilled. You further increased your infidelity in the land of Canaan with the Chaldeans, yet still found no satisfaction. In the Septuagint, it is stated that you acted wickedly, committing treachery with the sons of Asshur, and were not fulfilled in that act, having multiplied your treaties with Canaan and the Chaldeans, by which you sought fulfillment. Earlier it was noted that Jerusalem committed unfaithfulness with the sons of Egypt, her nearby neighbors with abundant resources; here, however, attention is drawn to other neighbors, the Assyrians.
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By honoring the idols of both nations, they betrayed themselves, adopting the deceptions of those under whose dominion they had placed themselves. Allegorically, we frequently transition from one sin to another. When we fail to repent for past wrongs, we exacerbate our sins and find no fulfillment in any falsehood. Like a heifer trapped by a long yoke, we drag along our transgressions and increase our infidelity in Canaan, which signifies chaos, while the Chaldeans symbolize a shared burden alongside us, much like demons. Our journey seems as if we tread upon a stormy sea, unable to declare, "Set my feet upon the rock" (Psalm 39:3). We remain vulnerable to the deceptions of heretics, likened to demons, or the demons themselves, as Paul asserts: "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places" (Eph. 6:12).