And sayest thou to me, O Lord God: Buy a field for money, and take witnesses, whereas the city is given into the hands of the Chaldeans?

Yet Thou hast said unto me, O Lord Jehovah, Buy for thee the field with money, and cause witnesses to testify, and the city hath been given into the hand of the Chaldeans!'

And you have said to me, Give the money to get yourself a property, and have the business witnessed; though the town is given into the hands of the Chaldaeans.

So why, O Lord God, are you saying to me: 'Buy a field with money, and summon witnesses,' while the city is being given into the hands of the Chaldeans?"

Et tu dixisti mihi, domine Jehova, eme tibi agrum pecunia et testare testes; cum tamen urbs tradita sit in manum Chaldaeorum.

For - See the margin. It is enough to place the command side by side with the state of Jerusalem to show how contrary it is to all the rules of human prudence. The prophet is sure that God will explain to him his difficulty.

And thou hast said to me, O Lord God,.... Or, "O Lord God, yet thou hast said to me" (b); notwithstanding this is the case, the country all around is in the hand of the enemy, and the city is as good as delivered up to them, yet thou hast given me such orders, as follows:
buy thee a field for money, and take witnesses; for though these words were not expressly said to him by the Lord; yet inasmuch as he told him that his uncle's son would come to him, and propose the selling of his field to him; and accordingly did come, agreeably to the word of the Lord; Jeremiah understood it as the will of the Lord, that he should buy it before witnesses; which he did, as before related:
for the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans; or rather, "though the city is given" (c), &c. yet thou hast said so: now by this the prophet suggests, that though he had obeyed the divine order, as he ought to have done, yet there was some difficulty upon his mind; or there were some objections Started, by the Jews that were with him, how these things could be reconciled; that he should be ordered to buy a field at such a time as this, and thereby signify that fields and vineyards should be bought and possessed in the land, and yet the city just going to be surrendered into the hands of the Chaldeans.
(b) "tu vero nihilominus dicis mihi", Piscator; "tu tamen dixisti ad me, Domime Jehovah", Schmidt. (c) "cum tamen urbs tradenda sit", Schmidt; "quum tamen futurum sit", Piscator; "quum civitas ipsa traditur", Junius & Tremellius; "cum tamen urbs tradita sit", Cocceius.

for the city, &c.--rather, "though," &c.