Chapter Thirty-Five

1–11. The obedience of the Rechabites to the covenants of their ancestors. 12–19. God’s judgment on Israel, which disobeys God, and approval of the Rechabites.

Jer 35:1-11. By God’s command, Jeremiah offered some Rechabites wine to drink, but they refused, citing the fact that the drinking of wine, as well as agriculture and, in general, settled life, are strictly forbidden to them by their ancestor, Jonadab.

Jeremiah 35:1. The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the days of Jehoiakim, son of Josiah, king of Judah: This was probably not earlier than the fourth year of Jehoiakim, when the Babylonians had already invaded Judah (cf. Jer 25:1; 2 Sam 24:1 and following).

Jeremiah 35:2. Go to the house of the Rechabites and speak with them, and bring them into the house of the Lord, into one of the chambers, and give them wine to drink. The Rechabites (1 Chr 2:55) were a branch of the Kenites, who had been friendly with the Hebrews since the time of Moses. They were received into the community of Israel, but they maintained their own customs and traditions. Their ancestor Jonadab participated together with Jehu in the destruction of the worship of Baal in the kingdom of Israel (2 Sam 10:15 and following). He gave certain rules of life to his family, which of course he himself inherited from his ancestors. The main rule was to lead a nomadic life, which offered greater safeguards against moral corruption than life in cities. Only by necessity, in order to save their lives from the Babylonians, they (probably around 601 BC) were forced to take refuge behind the walls of Jerusalem. Chambers were constructed in great numbers on the front court of the temple (the vestibule). Here were kept the materials for sacrifice; the temple officials lived here and feasts were held after peace offerings.

Jeremiah 35:4. And I brought them into the house of the Lord, into the chamber of the sons of Hanan, son of Igdaliah, a man of God, which was beside the chamber of the princes, above the chamber of Maaseiah, son of Shallum, the keeper of the threshold; Hanan is called a man of God, probably as a prophet (cf. 1 Sam 2:27). His “sons” are probably his disciples. Jer 35:12-19. The Lord commands that the Judeans be shown this faithfulness of the Rechabites to the covenants of their ancestors, for the Judeans never obeyed their God. That is why the Lord will bring upon the Judeans all the calamities He foretold them, but will always protect the Rechabites.

Jeremiah 35:19. For this reason, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: there will never fail a man of the house of Jonadab, son of Rechab, standing before Me at all times. “A man standing before My face” – in these words one can see an indication not only of the preservation of the race of Rechabites, but also of their special closeness to Yehova, which they always maintain (cf. Jer 15:19).