Amplified Bible
Jeremiah 12:9
9Is My inheritance like a speckled bird of prey to Me [unlike the others]? Are the birds of prey (enemies) surrounding her on every side? Go, gather all the [wild] beasts of the field; Bring them to devour [her]!
Jeremiah 12:9 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Mine heritage is unto me as a speckled bird, the birds round about are against her; come ye, assemble all the beasts of the field, come to devour.
- New International Version (NIV)Has not my inheritance become to me like a speckled bird of prey that other birds of prey surround and attack? Go and gather all the wild beasts; bring them to devour.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Is my heritage to me like a hyena's lair? Are the birds of prey against her all around? Go, assemble all the wild beasts; bring them to devour.
- New King James Version (NKJV)My heritage is to Me like a speckled vulture; The vultures all around are against her. Come, assemble all the beasts of the field, Bring them to devour!
Context of Jeremiah 12:9
7“I have abandoned My house, I have given up My [precious] inheritance (Judah); I have given the [dearly] beloved of My life Into the hands of her enemies. 8My inheritance has become to Me Like a lion in the forest; She has raised her voice and roared against Me; So I have come to [treat her as if I] hate her. Is My inheritance like a speckled bird of prey to Me [unlike the others]? Are the birds of prey (enemies) surrounding her on every side? Go, gather all the [wild] beasts of the field; Bring them to devour [her]! 10Many shepherds (invaders) have destroyed My vineyard (Judah), They have trampled My field underfoot; They have made My pleasant field A desolate wilderness. 11They have made it a wasteland, Desolate, it mourns before Me; The whole land has been made a wasteland, Because no man takes it to heart.
Read all of Jeremiah 12Jeremiah 12:9 word by word
הַעַ֨יִט צָב֤וּעַ נַחֲלָתִי֙ לִ֔י הַעַ֖יִט סָבִ֣יב עָלֶ֑יהָ לְכ֗וּ אִסְפ֛וּ כָּל־חַיַּ֥ת הַשָּׂדֶ֖ה הֵתָ֥יוּ לְאָכְלָֽה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Mine heritageנַחֲלָהnachălâh · inheritanceH5159
- a speckledצָבוּעַtsâbûa‛ · variegatedH6641
- birdעַ֫יִט‛ayiţ · bird of preyH5861
- round aboutסָבִיבsâbîyb sebîybâh · aroundH5439
- against her; comeיָלַךְyâlak · to walkH3212
- ye, assembleאָסַף'âsaph · to gatherH622
- all the beastsחַיָּהchay · living thingH2416
- of the fieldשָׂדֶהώâdeh ώâday · land: wildlifeH7704
- comeאָתָה'âthâh 'âthâ' · to comeH857
- to devourאׇכְלָה'ôklâh · foodH402
Cross-references for Jeremiah 12:9
- Jeremiah 2:15The young lions have roared at him, They have made their voices heard and roared loudly. And they have made his land a waste; His cities have been destroyed and are burned ruins, without inhabitant.
- 2 Kings 24:2The Lord sent marauding bands of Chaldeans, Arameans (Syrians), Moabites, and Ammonites against Jehoiakim. And He sent them against Judah to destroy it, in accordance with the word of the Lord which He spoke through His servants the prophets.
- Ezekiel 16:36Thus says the Lord God, “Because your lewdness was poured out and your nakedness uncovered through your obscene immoralities with your lovers (pagan allies), and with all your [repulsive] idols, and because of the blood of your sons that you gave to them,
- Ezekiel 23:22“Therefore, O Oholibah, thus says the Lord God, ‘Behold, I will stir up your lovers (allies) against you, from whom you turned away in disgust, and I will bring them against you from every side:
- Revelation 17:16And the ten horns which you saw, and the beast, these will hate the prostitute and will make her desolate and naked [stripped of her power and influence], and will eat her flesh and completely consume her with fire.
- Jeremiah 7:33And the dead bodies of this people will be food for the birds of the air and for the beasts of the earth and no one will frighten them away.
- Isaiah 56:9All you beasts of the field, All you beasts (hostile nations) in the forest, Come to eat.
- Ezekiel 39:17“As for you, son of man, thus says the Lord God, ‘Say to every kind of bird and to every animal of the field, “Assemble and come, gather from every side to My sacrifice that I am slaughtering for you, as a great sacrificial feast on the mountains of Israel, and you will eat flesh and drink blood.
- Revelation 19:17Then I saw a single angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he shouted to all the birds that fly in midheaven, saying, “Come, gather together for the great supper of God,
Commentaries on Jeremiah 12:9
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 9Is unto me as a speckled bird - A bird of divers colors. This is a people who have corrupted the worship of the true God with heathenish rites and ceremonies; therefore, the different nations, (see Jeremiah 12:10; whose gods and forms of worship they have adopted shall come and spoil them. As far as you have followed the surrounding nations in their worship, so far shall they prevail over your state. Every one shall take that which is his own; and…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 7-9Verses 7-9 Yahweh shows that the downfall of the nation was occasioned by no want of love on His part, but by the nation‘s conduct. Left - More correctly, cast away. Jeremiah 12:8 Judah has not merely refused obedience, but become intractable and fierce, like an untamed lion. It has roared against God with open blasphemy. As His favor is life, so is His hatred death, i. e., Jerusalem‘s punishment shall be as if inflicted by one that hated her. Jeremiah…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 7-13Verses 7-13 God's people had been the dearly-beloved of his soul, precious in his sight, but they acted so, that he gave them up to their enemies. Many professing churches become like speckled birds, presenting a mixture of religion and the world, with its vain fashions, pursuits, and pollutions. God's people are as men wondered at, as a speckled bird; but this people had by their own folly made themselves so; and the beasts and birds are called to prey…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 9Large flocks of speckled vultures would prey on the people of Judah. Soon, wild animals would pick their bodies clean.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 99. speckled bird--Many translate, "a ravenous beast, the hyena"; the corresponding Arabic word means hyena; so the Septuagint. But the Hebrew always elsewhere means "a bird of prey." The Hebrew for "speckled" is from a root "to color"; answering to the Jewish blending together with paganism the altogether diverse Mosaic ritual. The neighboring nations, birds of prey like herself (for she had sinfully assimilated herself to them), were ready to pounce upon…Read the comment
Topics related to Jeremiah 12:9
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Jeremiah 12
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
Amplified Bible — © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631
Commentaries