Verse-by-Verse Commentary
The Book of Jeremiah
Chapter 47: O Thou Sword of the LORD
The oracles against the nations continue with the Philistines, Israel's ancient neighbors and frequent enemies. Jeremiah pictures an unstoppable army sweeping down from the north like an overflowing flood, the thunder of hooves and chariots so terrifying that fathers abandon their own children in panic. Gaza and Ashkelon are cut off. Behind the invading army stands a greater hand: the invaders are 'the sword of the LORD,' and the prophet cries out to that sword as if pleading for mercy, 'O thou sword of the LORD, how long will it be ere thou be quiet? put up thyself into thy scabbard, rest, and be still.' The answer is sobering: the sword cannot rest, because 'the LORD hath given it a charge.' God's judgments are His own, and they do not cease until His purpose is accomplished.
About This Commentary
This is a verse-by-verse study of Jeremiah chapter 47, the brief oracle against the Philistines. You will find the KJV text, the Hebrew words that sharpen the meaning, plain explanation, and a Gospel Focus. Here the invading army is revealed as "the sword of the LORD," under His command. Every Scripture quotation is from the King James Version.
Setting the Stage
Waters From the North
An overflowing flood, the invading army, sweeps down on Philistia, and all cry out.
Fathers Abandon Children
The thunder of hooves and chariots brings such panic that fathers flee, hands too feeble to help.
Gaza and Ashkelon Cut Off
The Philistine strongholds are spoiled, mourning in baldness and self-wounding grief.
The Sword of the LORD
The army is God's sword, and it cannot rest until it has fulfilled His charge.
How Long Ere Thou Be Quiet? (Jeremiah 47:1-7)
An overflowing flood from the north overwhelms Philistia in terror and mourning; the prophet cries to the sword of the LORD to rest, but it cannot be still, for God Himself has given it its charge.
The LORD Hath Given It a Charge
"The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet against the Philistines, before that Pharaoh smote Gaza. Thus saith the LORD; Behold, waters rise up out of the north, and shall be an overflowing flood, and shall overflow the land, and all that is therein; the city, and them that dwell therein: then the men shall cry, and all the inhabitants of the land shall howl. At the noise of the stamping of the hoofs of his strong horses, at the rushing of his chariots, and at the rumbling of his wheels, the fathers shall not look back to their children for feebleness of hands; Because of the day that cometh to spoil all the Philistines, and to cut off from Tyrus and Zidon every helper that remaineth: for the LORD will spoil the Philistines, the remnant of the country of Caphtor. Baldness is come upon Gaza; Ashkelon is cut off with the remnant of their valley: how long wilt thou cut thyself? O thou sword of the LORD, how long will it be ere thou be quiet? put up thyself into thy scabbard, rest, and be still. How can it be quiet, seeing the LORD hath given it a charge against Ashkelon, and against the sea shore? there hath he appointed it."
Hebrew Study
"an overflowing flood," nachal shotef (נַחַל שׁוֹטֵף). A torrent that bursts its banks and sweeps everything away, the same flood-imagery used of Egypt's advance (46:7-8), here turned on the Philistines. The invading army from the north (Babylon) is pictured as an unstoppable inundation. What men trust in cannot stand before it.
"the sword of the LORD," cherev la-YHWH (חֶרֶב לַיהוָה). The invading army is God's own sword, wielded by His hand and under His "charge." Human armies are, in His sovereignty, instruments of His purpose (compare Isaiah 10:5, Assyria "the rod of mine anger"). The sword cannot rest of itself; it moves and stops only at God's command.
Explanation
This short oracle falls on the Philistines, the coastal people who had troubled Israel since the days of the Judges and Samson, Saul, and David. Jeremiah pictures the invasion as a natural disaster: "waters rise up out of the north, and shall be an overflowing flood," overwhelming "the city, and them that dwell therein," until "all the inhabitants of the land shall howl." The terror is vivid, "the stamping of the hoofs of his strong horses... the rushing of his chariots", so overwhelming that "the fathers shall not look back to their children for feebleness of hands." Panic so complete that parents abandon their own children. "Baldness," a sign of mourning, "is come upon Gaza; Ashkelon is cut off," and the people gash themselves in pagan grief, "how long wilt thou cut thyself?" Then the striking climax. The prophet addresses the invading army as "the sword of the LORD" and pleads with it as though it were a living thing: "how long will it be ere thou be quiet? put up thyself into thy scabbard, rest, and be still." It is the cry of a compassionate heart longing for the slaughter to end. But the answer is sobering: "How can it be quiet, seeing the LORD hath given it a charge... there hath he appointed it." The sword cannot sheathe itself; it moves at God's command and will not rest until His appointed work is done.
Gospel Focus
"O thou sword of the LORD, how long will it be ere thou be quiet?" This oracle teaches that God's judgments are His own, no invading army moves outside His charge, and it also lets us hear the tender grief of a prophet who longs for the sword to rest. Both are true: God is sovereign over judgment, and God takes no pleasure in it, "As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked" (Ezekiel 33:11). The sword does not fall from blind fate but from a holy "charge," and it will not be quiet until God's righteous purpose is fulfilled. That raises the deepest question the whole Bible answers: how can the sword of God's justice ever finally be quiet, when sin deserves it and it cannot rest until its charge is done? The answer is the cross. God said through Zechariah, "Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow" (Zechariah 13:7), a word Jesus applied to Himself the night He was betrayed (Matthew 26:31). At Calvary the sword of divine justice, which could not simply be told to rest, fell instead upon the Shepherd who stood in the sinner's place. Because it struck Him, it can be sheathed for all who take refuge in Him; the charge was satisfied, not ignored. For those outside of Christ, the sword still has its charge and will not be quiet; but for those who are His, justice has been met, and the sword is put up into its scabbard forever. Flee to the Shepherd on whom the sword already fell, and be at peace.
Chapter 47 in Review
Jeremiah 47 is the brief oracle against the Philistines. Judgment comes as "an overflowing flood" from the north, an invading army whose thundering horses and chariots bring such terror that fathers abandon their children in flight. Gaza and Ashkelon are cut off, and the land mourns in baldness and self-wounding grief. At the center is the revelation that the army is "the sword of the LORD," and the prophet's compassionate cry that it might rest, "how long will it be ere thou be quiet? put up thyself into thy scabbard." The answer is that it cannot be quiet, "seeing the LORD hath given it a charge... there hath he appointed it." God's judgments move and cease at His word alone.
For the Apostolic reader, this short chapter carries a large truth and points to the cross. God is sovereign over every instrument of judgment, even a pagan army is "the sword of the LORD," yet He grieves over the slaughter and takes "no pleasure in the death of the wicked." The sword of His justice will not rest until its charge is fulfilled, and that leaves us with the gospel's central wonder: at Calvary God awoke that sword "against my shepherd," so that it fell on Christ in the sinner's place. Because the sword struck Him, it can be sheathed forever for all who trust Him. Outside of Christ, the sword still has its charge; in Him, justice is satisfied and the sword is put up into its scabbard. Do not wait for the day the sword falls, flee now to the Shepherd on whom it already fell.
- God is sovereign over every instrument of judgment; even an invading army is "the sword of the LORD" (47:6).
- God's judgments move and cease only at His charge, not by chance (47:7; Isaiah 10:5).
- God grieves over judgment even as He ordains it; He has "no pleasure in the death of the wicked" (Ezekiel 33:11).
- The sword of justice cannot simply be told to rest; its charge must be satisfied.
- At the cross God awoke the sword "against my shepherd," and it fell on Christ (Zechariah 13:7; Matthew 26:31).
- In Christ the sword is sheathed forever for those who take refuge in Him.
Questions for Reflection
- Do you see the events of history as random, or under the sovereign "charge" of God?
- How does it comfort you that God grieves over judgment even while He is just?
- The sword of justice could not simply rest. Have you taken refuge in the Shepherd on whom it fell?
- Is there a "flood" you are facing that only God can command to be still?
References & Sources
Scripture is quoted from the King James Version (KJV). The Hebrew terms are standard and can be checked in any Hebrew lexicon. The Philistines were Israel's coastal neighbors, originally from "Caphtor" (verse 4), commonly identified with Crete. The "overflowing flood... out of the north" (verse 2) is the Babylonian army, the same flood-imagery used of Egypt (46:7-8). "Baldness" and self-cutting (verse 5) were pagan mourning customs (compare Deuteronomy 14:1). the "sword of the LORD" (verse 6) shows God's sovereignty over the instruments of judgment (Isaiah 10:5, Assyria as "the rod of mine anger"); yet God grieves over judgment (Ezekiel 33:11). The sword awoken "against my shepherd" (Zechariah 13:7), applied by Jesus to Himself (Matthew 26:31), is the cross, where the sword of justice fell on Christ so it could be sheathed for those who trust Him. If anything here does not look right, a verse, a reference, or a wording, please tell us at info@FruitBearers.net. Thank you for helping us keep Bible Learning error free.
- The flood from the north and the terror on Philistia: Jeremiah 47:1-5; Jeremiah 46:7-8; Deuteronomy 14:1.
- The sword of the LORD under His charge; the cross where it fell on the Shepherd: Jeremiah 47:6-7; Isaiah 10:5; Ezekiel 33:11; Zechariah 13:7; Matthew 26:31.