Jeremiah 17:6

Jeremiah 17:6 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited.
• New International Version (NIV)That person will be like a bush in the wastelands; they will not see prosperity when it comes. They will dwell in the parched places of the desert, in a salt land where no one lives.
• English Standard Version (ESV)He is like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see any good come. He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land.
• New King James Version (NKJV)For he shall be like a shrub in the desert, And shall not see when good comes, But shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, In a salt land which is not inhabited.

Context of Jeremiah 17:6

4And you will, through your own fault, let go of your [grip on your] inheritance That I gave you; And I will make you serve your enemies In a land which you do not know; For you have kindled a fire in My anger Which will burn forever. 5Thus says the Lord, “Cursed is the man who trusts in and relies on mankind, Making [weak, faulty human] flesh his strength, And whose mind and heart turn away from the Lord. For he will be like a shrub in the [parched] desert; And shall not see prosperity when it comes, But shall live in the rocky places of the wilderness, In an uninhabited salt land. 7Blessed [with spiritual security] is the man who believes and trusts in and relies on the Lord And whose hope and confident expectation is the Lord. 8For he will be [nourished] like a tree planted by the waters, That spreads out its roots by the river; And will not fear the heat when it comes; But its leaves will be green and moist. And it will not be anxious and concerned in a year of drought Nor stop bearing fruit.

Jeremiah 17:6 word by word

וְהָיָה֙ כְּעַרְעָ֣ר בָּֽעֲרָבָ֔ה וְלֹ֥א יִרְאֶ֖ה כִּי־יָב֣וֹא ט֑וֹב וְשָׁכַ֤ן חֲרֵרִים֙ בַּמִּדְבָּ֔ר אֶ֥רֶץ מְלֵחָ֖ה וְלֹ֥א תֵשֵֽׁב׃ סRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• For he shall be like the heathעַרְעָר‛ar‛âr · destituteH6199
• in the desertעֲרָבָה‛ărâbâh · plainH6160
• and shall not seeרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• when goodטוֹבţôb · goodH2896
• comethבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
• but shall inhabitשָׁכַןshâkan · to dwellH7931
• the parched placesחָרֵרchârêr · parchedH2788
• in the wildernessמִדְבָּרmidbâr · wildernessH4057
• a saltמְלֵחָהmelêchâh · saltinessH4420
• landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
• and not inhabitedיָשַׁבyâshab · to dwellH3427

Cross-references for Jeremiah 17:6

• Jeremiah 48:6Run! Save your lives, That you may be like a juniper in the wilderness.
• Job 8:11“Can the papyrus grow up without a marsh? Can the rushes or reed grass grow without water?
• Job 15:30He will not escape from darkness [fleeing disaster]; The flame [of God’s wrath] will wither his branch, And by the blast of His mouth he will go away.
• Psalms 1:4The wicked [those who live in disobedience to God’s law] are not so, But they are like the chaff [worthless and without substance] which the wind blows away.
• Psalms 92:7That though the wicked sprout up like grass And all evildoers flourish, They will be destroyed forever.
• Psalms 129:5May all who hate Zion Be put to shame and turned backward [in defeat].
• Isaiah 1:30For you will be like an oak whose leaf withers and dies And like a garden that has no water.
• 2 Kings 7:1Then Elisha said, “Hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord, ‘Tomorrow about this time a measure of finely-milled flour will sell for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, at the gate of Samaria.’ ”
• John 20:17Jesus said to her, “Do not hold Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.’ ”
• Deuteronomy 29:23‘The whole land is brimstone and salt, a burning waste, unsown and unproductive, and no grass grows in it; it is like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which the Lord overthrew in His anger and wrath.’
• Judges 9:45Abimelech fought against the city that entire day. He took the city and killed the people who were in it; he demolished the city and sowed it with salt.
• Ezekiel 47:11But its swamps and marshes will not become fresh [and wholesome for animal life]; they will [as the river subsides] be left encrusted with salt.
• Zephaniah 2:9Therefore, as I live,” declares the Lord of hosts, The God of Israel, “Moab will in fact become like Sodom And the sons of Ammon like Gomorrah, A land possessed by nettles and salt pits, And a perpetual desolation. The remnant of My people will plunder them And what is left of My nation will inherit them [as their own].”

Commentaries on Jeremiah 17:6

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 6Be shall be like the heath in the desert - כערער kearar ; or, like a blasted tree, without moisture, parched and withered. Shall not see when good cometh - Shall not be sensible of it: the previous drought having rendered it incapable of absorbing any more vegetable juices. A salt land - Barren; and therefore unfit to be inhabited.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 5-18Verses 5-18 In the rest of the prophecy Jeremiah dwells upon the moral faults which had led to Judah‘s ruin. Jeremiah 17:6 Like the heath - Or, “like a destitute man” Psalm 102:17. The verbs “he shall see” (or fear) and “shall inhabit” plainly show that a man is here meant and not a plant. Jeremiah 17:8 The river - Or, “water-course” Isaiah 30:25, made for purposes of irrigation. Shall not see - Or, “shall not fear Jeremiah 17:6.” God‘s people feel…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 5-11Verses 5-11 He who puts confidence in man, shall be like the heath in a desert, a naked tree, a sorry shrub, the product of barren ground, useless and worthless. Those who trust to their own righteousness and strength, and think they can do without Christ, make flesh their arm, and their souls cannot prosper in graces or comforts. Those who make God their Hope, shall flourish like a tree always green, whose leaf does not wither. They shall be fixed in…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 6The people of Judah would be completely helpless during disasters because they trusted human abilities instead of the Lord. They would be like desert shrubs that are stunted due to a lack of water.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 66. heath--In Psa 102:17; Is 32:11; Ha 3:9, the Hebrew is translated, "bare," "naked," "destitute"; but as the parallel in Jr 17:8 is "tree," some plant must be meant of which this is the characteristic epithet (Jr 48:6, Margin), "a naked tree." Robinson translates, "the juniper tree," found in the Arabah or Great Valley, here called "the desert," south of the Dead Sea. The "heath" was one of the plants, according to Pliny (13.21; 16.26), excluded from…Read the comment

Topics related to Jeremiah 17:6

• Apostasy
• Desert
• Heath
• Idolatry
• Wicked (People)

In the dictionaries

• Discontinue
• Hallow
• Hatch
• Heath
• Salt
• Sit
• Champaign
• Parched
• Tamarisk

Commentaries on Jeremiah 17

• 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