Amplified Bible
Jeremiah 5:22
22Do you not fear Me?’ says the Lord. ‘Do you not tremble [in awe] in My presence? For I have placed the sand as a boundary for the sea, An eternal decree and a perpetual barrier beyond which it cannot pass. Though the waves [of the sea] toss and break, yet they cannot prevail [against the sand ordained to hold them back]; Though the waves and the billows roar, yet they cannot cross over [the barrier]. [Is not such a God to be feared?]
Jeremiah 5:22 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Fear ye not me? saith the Lord: will ye not tremble at my presence, which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it: and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it?
- New International Version (NIV)Should you not fear me?” declares the Lord. “Should you not tremble in my presence? I made the sand a boundary for the sea, an everlasting barrier it cannot cross. The waves may roll, but they cannot prevail; they may roar, but they cannot cross it.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Do you not fear me? declares the Lord. Do you not tremble before me? I placed the sand as the boundary for the sea, a perpetual barrier that it cannot pass; though the waves toss, they cannot prevail; though they roar, they cannot pass over it.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Do you not fear Me?’ says the Lord. ‘Will you not tremble at My presence, Who have placed the sand as the bound of the sea, By a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass beyond it? And though its waves toss to and fro, Yet they cannot prevail; Though they roar, yet they cannot pass over it.
Context of Jeremiah 5:22
20“Declare this in the house of Jacob And proclaim it in Judah, saying: 21‘Now hear this, O foolish people without heart, Who have eyes but do not see, Who have ears but do not hear. Do you not fear Me?’ says the Lord. ‘Do you not tremble [in awe] in My presence? For I have placed the sand as a boundary for the sea, An eternal decree and a perpetual barrier beyond which it cannot pass. Though the waves [of the sea] toss and break, yet they cannot prevail [against the sand ordained to hold them back]; Though the waves and the billows roar, yet they cannot cross over [the barrier]. [Is not such a God to be feared?] 23But this people has a stubborn heart and a rebellious will [that draws them away from Me]; They have turned away and have gone [into idolatry]. 24They do not say in their heart, “Let us now fear and worship the Lord our God [with profound awe and reverence], Who gives rain in its season, Both the autumn and the spring rain, Who keeps for us The appointed weeks of the harvest.”
Read all of Jeremiah 5Jeremiah 5:22 word by word
הַאוֹתִ֨י לֹא־תִירָ֜אוּ נְאֻם־יְהֹוָ֗ה אִ֤ם מִפָּנַי֙ לֹ֣א תָחִ֔ילוּ אֲשֶׁר־שַׂ֤מְתִּי חוֹל֙ גְּב֣וּל לַיָּ֔ם חָק־עוֹלָ֖ם וְלֹ֣א יַעַבְרֶ֑נְהוּ וַיִּֽתְגָּעֲשׁוּ֙ וְלֹ֣א יוּכָ֔לוּ וְהָמ֥וּ גַלָּ֖יו וְלֹ֥א יַעַבְרֻֽנְהוּ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Fearיָרֵאyârê' · to fear: revereH3372
- ye not me? saithנְאֻםne'ûm · utteranceH5002
- the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- will ye not trembleחוּלchûl chîyl · to twist: trembleH2342
- at my presenceפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
- which have placedשׂוּםώûm ώîym · to set: putH7760
- the sandחוֹלchôl · sandH2344
- the boundגְּבוּלgebûl gebûl · border: boundaryH1366
- of the seaיָםyâm · seaH3220
- by a perpetualעוֹלָם‛ôlâm ‛ôlâm · forever: enduringH5769
- decreeחֹקchôq · statute: allotmentH2706
- that it cannot passעָבַר‛âbar · to passH5674
- it: and though the wavesגַּלgal · heap: waveH1530
- thereof tossגָּעַשׁgâ‛ash · to shakeH1607
- themselves, yet can they not prevailיָכֹלyâkôl yâkôl · be ableH3201
- though they roarהָמָהhâmâh · to roarH1993
Cross-references for Jeremiah 5:22
- Jeremiah 10:7Who would not fear You, O King of the nations? For it is appropriate and it is Your due! For among all the wise men of the nations And in all their kingdoms, There is none like You.
- Deuteronomy 28:58“If you are not careful to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, to fear and honor with reverence this glorious and awesome name, the Lord your God,
- Psalms 119:120My flesh trembles in [reverent] fear of You, And I am afraid and in awe of Your judgments.
- Matthew 10:28Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; but rather be afraid of Him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
- Luke 12:5But I will point out to you whom you should fear: fear the One who, after He has killed, has authority and power to hurl [you] into hell; yes, I say to you, [stand in great awe of God and] fear Him!
- Revelation 15:4Who will not fear [reverently] and glorify Your name, O Lord [giving You honor and praise in worship]? For You alone are holy; For all the nations shall come and worship before You, For Your righteous acts [Your just decrees and judgments] have been revealed and displayed.”
- Psalms 99:1The Lord reigns, let the peoples tremble [with submissive wonder]! He sits enthroned above the cherubim, let the earth shake!
- Isaiah 66:5Hear the word of the Lord, you who tremble [with awe-filled reverence] at His word: “Your brothers who hate you, who exclude you for My Name’s sake, Have said, ‘Let the Lord be glorified, that we may see your joy.’ But they will be put to shame.
- Daniel 6:26I issue a decree that in all the dominion of my kingdom men are to [reverently] fear and tremble before the God of Daniel, For He is the living God, enduring and steadfast forever, And His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed, And His dominion will be forever.
- Job 26:10He has inscribed a circular limit (the horizon) on the face of the waters At the boundary between light and darkness.
- Job 38:10And marked for it My [appointed] boundary And set bars and doors [defining the shorelines],
- Psalms 33:7He gathers the waters of the sea together as in a wineskin; He puts the deeps in storehouses.
- Psalms 93:3The floods have lifted up, O Lord, The floods have lifted up their voice; The floods lift up their pounding waves.
- Psalms 104:9You set a boundary [for the waters] that they may not cross over, So that they will not return to cover the earth.
- Proverbs 8:29When He set for the sea its boundary So that the waters would not transgress [the boundaries set by] His command, When He marked out the foundations of the earth—
- Isaiah 50:2Why, when I came, was there no man [to greet Me]? When I called, why was there no one to answer? Is My hand really so short that it cannot redeem [My servants]? Or have I no power to rescue? Listen carefully, with My rebuke I dry up the sea, I make the rivers into a desert; Their fish stink because there is no water And die of thirst.
Commentaries on Jeremiah 5:22
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 22Which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea - What can I not do, who confine the sea, that enormous mass of waters, and prevent it from overflowing the earth; not by immense mountains and rocks, but by the sand, no particle of which is in cohesion with another? The most tremendous waves cannot displace nor pass over this simple barrier.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 20-31Verses 20-31 Against the God (1) of Creation Jeremiah 5:22, and (2) of Providence Jeremiah 5:24, They sin, not merely by apostasy, but by a general immorality extending to all classes Jeremiah 5:25-28. It is in this immorality that their idolatry has its root. Jeremiah 5:22 The sea is the symbol of restless and indomitable energy, chafing against all resistance, and dashing to pieces the works whereby man endeavors to restrain its fury. Yet God has…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 19-31Verses 19-31 Unhumbled hearts are ready to charge God with being unjust in their afflictions. But they may read their sin in their punishment. If men will inquire wherefore the Lord doeth hard things unto them, let them think of their sins. The restless waves obeyed the Divine decree, that they should not pass the sandy shores, which were as much a restraint as lofty mountains; but they burst all restraints of God's law, and were wholly gone into…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 22People should respect the Lord for his power and fear the idea of him using it against them. If the powerful sea cannot cross the boundaries the Lord set, then the rebellion of small Jerusalem will surely fail.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2222. sand--Though made up of particles easily shifting about, I render it sufficient to curb the violence of the sea. Such is your monstrous perversity, that the raging, senseless sea sooner obeys Me, than ye do who profess to be intelligent [Calvin], (Job 26:10; 38:10, 11; Pr 8:29; Re 15:4).Read the comment
Topics related to Jeremiah 5:22
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Jeremiah 5
- 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