I spoke to thee in thy prosperity: and thou saidst: I will not hear: this hath been thy way from thy youth, because thou hast not heard my voice.
דִּבַּ֤רְתִּי אֵלַ֙יִךְ֙ בְּשַׁלְוֺתַ֔יִךְ אָמַ֖רְתְּ לֹ֣א אֶשְׁמָ֑ע זֶ֤ה דַרְכֵּךְ֙ מִנְּעוּרַ֔יִךְ כִּ֥י לֹֽא־שָׁמַ֖עַתְּ בְּקוֹלִֽי׃
4 Church Fathers comment on this verse
I communicated with you during your downfall, declaring my refusal to listen. This means I proclaimed the impending disaster, and they dismissed my spoken encouragement. You assert that I will not listen. What was once deemed virtuous was forfeited; in their affliction, they sought Him. Although someone in distress might not receive a response, you have consistently been this way, not just at this moment.
Ascend to Lebanon and raise your voice, and at Bashan proclaim loudly to those who pass by; for all your allies have been shattered. I spoke to you during your times of plenty, yet you declared, I will not listen. This has been your pattern since your youth; you have consistently ignored my voice. All your guardians will be swept away like chaff, and your companions will be led into captivity. You will experience shame and fall into disgrace for all your iniquity. O dwelling upon Lebanon, nestled among the cedars! How you cried out when anguish struck you, like the pains of childbirth.
Through the imagery of Lebanon and Bashan, which are the lands and mountains of Jordan, this message is directed to Jerusalem, which placed its futile hope in Egypt, or to Jehoiakim himself, who ruled in Jerusalem at that time, relying on the Egyptians for aid, unaware that they too would be conquered by the king of Babylon and carried away into exile. When it says, I have spoken unto you, it refers to God Himself through the prophets, or they have spoken to you—meaning My prophets—and you, in your prosperity, have chosen not to listen. This rebukes him for his arrogance and having misused his abundant wealth, leading to offenses against God. Moreover, it highlights that even from the very beginning, when he was delivered from Egypt, he failed to heed God's voice; hence, all his shepherds and leaders were scattered and bowed their heads under Babylonian dominion. In the phrases about sitting upon Lebanon and nesting in cedars, he condemns the pride resulting from an abundance of blessings and warns of imminent suffering and unforeseen captivity, akin to that which a mother experiences. The call to shout to those passing by, found in the Hebrew term meabarim, has been translated by the Seventy and Theodotion as beyond the sea, while Simmachus implies that the prophet's voice should resonate from Jerusalem to the heights of Lebanon and Bashan.
I communicated with you during your downfall, declaring that I would not listen. When you sinned, I advised you to turn away from this evil, yet you chose not to heed my guidance. This has been your pattern since your youth, as you have continually ignored my words. From the very outset, you have been rebellious.
What will become of the man who does not listen to the word of God while he is safe? He will have the burial of a donkey (Jer 22:19). So spoke the prophet to King Jehoiakim, and his words were fulfilled. When the Babylonians captured Jerusalem, they killed Jehoiakim, dragged him under the city wall, and left him to the dogs.
Passages read together with this verse.
THEOSIS