Jeremiah 6:7Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Evil and wrongdoing shall be evident in her. This speaks to significant moral degradation. With a fervent desire to commit sin, as though it were virtuous and compassionate; so meticulous, as if they feared that they might be lost without engaging in some form of iniquity. Her face is perpetually exposed. Observe how brazenly the lack of shame is depicted. Before my countenance, that is, with great boldness and insolence, always, not fleetingly but consistently. Notice the gravity of the indictment made without proper cause relating to punishment. Rather than stating that, just as a well retains water, so too a city is corrupt and shows no sign of transformation.

Like a graveyard collects water, he accumulated his iniquities within himself. This occurred during the latter part of Solomon's rule and under the kings who followed him in Jerusalem, notably during the reign of Manasseh. The Jewish people, particularly those in Jerusalem, gathered the idols venerated by the surrounding nations and worshipped them as their deities.

This city serves as a place of reckoning, filled with deceit and oppression. Like a reservoir that chills its water, it has frozen in its wickedness. The Lord orders the trees to be felled and the fortifications to be expanded, for the moment of His visitation has arrived, to recompense for the sins it has embraced, chief among them being the unjust suffering of the innocent by false accusation. Just as a reservoir cools its water, the iniquity within Jerusalem has lost all vitality. It is noteworthy that those ignited by the Holy Spirit are described as burning, while the evildoers are referred to as cold. This is reflected in the prophecy that in the latter days, as lawlessness abounds, the love of many will become cold.

Just as a graveyard cools the waters, it also dulls the spirit of iniquity. A city committed to the Lord, aimed at guiding those who act unlawfully, ought to impart righteousness; however, it now faces charges of the opposite, having morphed into a promoter of evil. Just as a spring alters the nature of its water to chillness, it similarly transforms those who enter into transgressors. The Prophet identifies a city not by its structures but by its people. Sin and iniquity will inevitably resound within its boundaries. They showed no fear of my presence; in fact, in my sight, they boldly engaged in various forms of wrongdoing. Then he encourages and advises: