Jeremiah 5:6

Jeremiah 5:6 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Wherefore a lion out of the forest shall slay them, and a wolf of the evenings shall spoil them, a leopard shall watch over their cities: every one that goeth out thence shall be torn in pieces: because their transgressions are many, and their backslidings are increased.
• New International Version (NIV)Therefore a lion from the forest will attack them, a wolf from the desert will ravage them, a leopard will lie in wait near their towns to tear to pieces any who venture out, for their rebellion is great and their backslidings many.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Therefore a lion from the forest shall strike them down; a wolf from the desert shall devastate them. A leopard is watching their cities; everyone who goes out of them shall be torn in pieces, because their transgressions are many, their apostasies are great.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Therefore a lion from the forest shall slay them, A wolf of the deserts shall destroy them; A leopard will watch over their cities. Everyone who goes out from there shall be torn in pieces, Because their transgressions are many; Their backslidings have increased.

Context of Jeremiah 5:6

4Then I said, “[Surely] these are only the poor (uneducated); They are [sinfully] foolish and have no [spiritual] understanding, For they do not know the way of the Lord Or the ordinance of their God [and the requirements of His just and righteous law]. 5I will go to the great [men] And speak to them, For they [must] know the way of the Lord, The ordinance of their God.” But [I found the reverse to be true, that] they too had all alike broken the yoke [of God’s law] And had burst the bonds [of obedience to Him]. Therefore a lion from the forest will kill them, A wolf of the deserts will destroy them, A leopard is watching their cities. Everyone who goes out of them shall be torn in pieces, Because their transgressions are many, Their desertions of faith are countless. 7“Why should I [overlook these offenses and] forgive you? Your children have abandoned (rejected) Me And sworn [their oaths] by those who are not gods. When I had fed them until they were full [and bound them to Me by a promise], They committed [spiritual] adultery, Assembling in troops at the houses of prostitutes (idols). 8They were like well-fed, lusty stallions, Each one neighing after his neighbor’s wife.

Jeremiah 5:6 word by word

עַל־כֵּן֩ הִכָּ֨ם אַרְיֵ֜ה מִיַּ֗עַר זְאֵ֤ב עֲרָבוֹת֙ יְשָׁדְדֵ֔ם נָמֵ֤ר שֹׁקֵד֙ עַל־עָ֣רֵיהֶ֔ם כָּל־הַיּוֹצֵ֥א מֵהֵ֖נָּה יִטָּרֵ֑ף כִּ֤י רַבּוּ֙ פִּשְׁעֵיהֶ֔ם עָצְמ֖וּ מְשׁוּבוֹתֵיהֶֽם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Wherefore a lionאַרְיֵה'ărîy 'aryêh · lionH738
• out of the forestיַ֫עַרya‛ar · woodH3293
• shall slayנָכָהnâkâh · to smiteH5221
• a wolfזְאֵבze'êb · wolfH2061
• of the eveningsעֲרָבָה‛ărâbâh · plainH6160
• shall spoilשָׁדַדshâdad · to ruinH7703
• them, a leopardנָמֵרnâmêr · leopardH5246
• shall watchשָׁקַדshâqad · to watchH8245
• over their citiesעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
• every one that goeth outיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: comeH3318
• thence shallהֵנָּהhênnâh · they(fem.)H2007
• be torn in piecesטָרַףţâraph · to tearH2963
• because their transgressionsפֶּ֫שַׁעpesha‛ · transgressionH6588
• are manyרָבַבrâbab · to multiplyH7231
• their backslidingsמְשׁוּבָהmeshûbâh meshûbâh · faithlessnessH4878
• are increasedעָצֹם‛âtsam · be vastH6105

Cross-references for Jeremiah 5:6

• 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.
• Jeremiah 4:7A lion has left his lair, And a destroyer of nations is on his way. He has gone out from his place To desolate your land; Your cities will be in ruins Without an inhabitant.
• Jeremiah 25:38He has left His lair like the lion; For their land has become a horror Because of the fierceness of the oppressor And because of the Lord’s fierce anger.”
• Jeremiah 49:19See, one will come like a lion from the thicket of the Jordan against the enduring habitation [of Edom] and its watered pastures; for in an instant I will make him (Edom) run from his land. I will appoint over him the one whom I choose. For who is like Me, and who will summon Me [into court] and prosecute Me [for this]? Who is the [earthly] shepherd who can stand [defiantly] before Me?”
• Ezekiel 14:16though these three men were in the land, as I live,” says the Lord God, “they could not save either their sons or their daughters. They alone would be saved, but the land would be desolate (ruined, deserted).
• Daniel 7:4The first (the Babylonian Empire under Nebuchadnezzar) was like a lion and had the wings of an eagle. I kept looking until its wings were plucked, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man; a human mind was given to it.
• Hosea 5:14For I will be like a lion to Ephraim And like a young lion to the house of Judah. I, even I, will tear to pieces and go on [tearing]; I will carry off [the prey] and there will be no one to rescue them.
• Hosea 13:7So I will be like a lion to them; Like a leopard I will watch and lie in wait [ready to attack] by the road [to Assyria].
• Amos 5:18Woe (judgment is coming) to you who desire the day of the Lord [expecting rescue from the Gentiles]! Why would you want the day of the Lord? It is darkness (judgment) and not light [and rescue and prosperity];
• Nahum 2:11Where is the den of the lions (Assyria) And the feeding place of the young lions, Where the lion, lioness, and lion’s cub prowled With nothing to fear?
• Psalms 104:20You [O Lord] make darkness and it becomes night, In which prowls about every wild beast of the forest.
• Ezekiel 22:27Her princes within her are like wolves tearing and devouring the prey, shedding blood and destroying lives in order to get dishonest gain.
• Habakkuk 1:8Their horses are swifter than leopards And keener than [hungry] wolves in the evening, Their horsemen come galloping, Their horsemen come from far away; They fly like an eagle swooping down to devour.
• Zephaniah 3:3Her officials within her are roaring lions; Her judges are [as hungry as] the wolves at evening, They leave nothing for the morning.
• Daniel 7:6After this I kept looking, and behold, another one (the Greek Empire of Alexander the Great), like a leopard, which had on its back four wings like those of a bird; the beast also had four heads (Alexander’s generals, his successors), and power to rule was given to it.
• Revelation 13:2And the beast that I saw resembled a leopard, but his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth was like that of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority.

Commentaries on Jeremiah 5:6

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 6Wherefore a lion - Nebuchadnezzar, according to the general opinion; who is called here a lion for his courage and violence, a bear for his rapaciousness, and a leopard for his activity. Dahler supposes the Scythians to be intended, both here and in Jeremiah 4:7.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 6Evenings - See the margin. From its habit of skulking about in the twilight the wolf is often called the “evening wolf” Habakkuk 1:8; Zephaniah 3:3, but the word used here means a sandy desert. Leopard - panther.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 6The Babylonians would attack like a lion, a wolf, and a leopard. These fierce animals could destroy human life. The people's rebellion and sins were very serious to the Lord (Jeremiah 4:7; 30:14–15; Psalm 104:20; Ezekiel 22:27; Hosea 13:7; Habakkuk 1:8; Zephaniah 3:3).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 66. lion ... wolf ... leopard--the strongest, the most ravenous, and the swiftest, respectively, of beasts: illustrating the formidable character of the Babylonians. of the evenings--Others not so well translate, of the deserts. The plural means that it goes forth every evening to seek its prey (Psa 104:20; Ha 1:8; Zep 3:3). leopard ... watch ... cities--(Ho 13:7). It shall lie in wait about their cities.Read the comment

Topics related to Jeremiah 5:6

• Backsliders
• Idolatry
• Leopard
• Lion
• Wolf

In the dictionaries

• Correction
• Deceit
• Evening
• Forest
• Leopard
• Lions
• Wolf
• Even; Evening; Eventide
• Exodus, the Book of
• Jeremiah (2)

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