1. Jeremiah 16:18 (ESV)
  2. Exposition

How has the nation polluted the Lord’s land and filled his inheritance with their abominations?

Jeremiah 16:18 (ESV)

18 But first I will doubly repay their iniquity and their sin, because they have polluted my land with the carcasses of their detestable idols, and have filled my inheritance with their abominations.”

Judah, says the Lord, has polluted my land with the carcasses of their detestable idols, and have filled my inheritance with their abominations. The Lord refers to the land of Canaan as my land and my inheritance. The whole earth belongs to the Lord, but Canaan belonged to him in a special way because it was the land he had given to his covenant people (Exodus 15:17; Joshua 22:19; Psalm 79:1). The fact that the land belonged to the Lord meant that it is was given to Israel as their inheritance and the place where they would experience his covenant blessings.1 Judah had polluted the land by bringing in the carcasses of their detestable idols. This description of these idols highlights the fact that they are dead and powerless. They are an abomination to the Lord because their presence in the land suggests that in the hearts of the people, the Lord is not king of his people and of the land.