Christian Standard Bible
Jeremiah 9:4
4Everyone has to be on guard against his friend. Don’t trust any brother, for every brother will certainly deceive, and every friend spread slander.
Jeremiah 9:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Take ye heed every one of his neighbour, and trust ye not in any brother: for every brother will utterly supplant, and every neighbour will walk with slanders.
- New International Version (NIV)“Beware of your friends; do not trust anyone in your clan. For every one of them is a deceiver, and every friend a slanderer.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Let everyone beware of his neighbor, and put no trust in any brother, for every brother is a deceiver, and every neighbor goes about as a slanderer.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“Everyone take heed to his neighbor, And do not trust any brother; For every brother will utterly supplant, And every neighbor will walk with slanderers.
Context of Jeremiah 9:4
2If only I had a traveler’s lodging place in the wilderness, I would abandon my people and depart from them, for they are all adulterers, a solemn assembly of treacherous people. 3They bent their tongues like their bows; lies and not faithfulness prevail in the land, for they proceed from one evil to another, and they do not take me into account. This is the Lord’s declaration. Everyone has to be on guard against his friend. Don’t trust any brother, for every brother will certainly deceive, and every friend spread slander. 5Each one betrays his friend; no one tells the truth. They have taught their tongues to speak lies; they wear themselves out doing wrong. 6You live in a world of deception. In their deception they refuse to know me. This is the Lord’s declaration.
Read all of Jeremiah 9Jeremiah 9:4 word by word
אִ֤ישׁ מֵרֵעֵ֙הוּ֙ הִשָּׁמֵ֔רוּ וְעַל־כָּל־אָ֖ח אַל־תִּבְטָ֑חוּ כִּ֤י כָל־אָח֙ עָק֣וֹב יַעְקֹ֔ב וְכָל־רֵ֖עַ רָכִ֥יל יַהֲלֹֽךְ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Take ye heedשָׁמַרshâmar · to keep: carefulH8104
- every oneאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
- of his neighbourרֵעַrêa‛ rêya‛ · neighborH7453
- and trustבָּטַחbâţach · to trustH982
- ye not in any brotherאָח'âch · brother: male-siblingH251
- will utterlyעָקַב‛âqab · to assailH6117
- will walkהָלַךְhâlak · to go: wentH1980
- with slandersרָכִילrâkîyl · slanderH7400
Cross-references for Jeremiah 9:4
- Jeremiah 12:6Even your brothers — your own father’s family — even they were treacherous to you; even they have cried out loudly after you. Do not have confidence in them, though they speak well of you.
- Psalms 12:2They lie to one another; they speak with flattering lips and deceptive hearts.
- Psalms 55:11destruction is inside it; oppression and deceit never leave its marketplace.
- Proverbs 26:24A hateful person disguises himself with his speech and harbors deceit within.
- Micah 7:5Do not rely on a friend; don’t trust in a close companion. Seal your mouth from the woman who lies in your arms.
- Matthew 10:17Beware of them, because they will hand you over to local courts and flog you in their synagogues.
- Luke 21:16You will even be betrayed by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends. They will kill some of you.
- Genesis 27:35But he replied, “Your brother came deceitfully and took your blessing.”
- Genesis 32:28“Your name will no longer be Jacob,” he said. “It will be Israel because you have struggled with God and with men and have prevailed.”
- 1 Thessalonians 4:6This means one must not transgress against and take advantage of a brother or sister in this manner, because the Lord is an avenger of all these offenses, as we also previously told and warned you.
- Jeremiah 6:28All are stubborn rebels spreading slander. They are bronze and iron; all of them are corrupt.
- Leviticus 19:16Do not go about spreading slander among your people; do not jeopardize your neighbor’s life; I am the Lord.
- Psalms 15:3who does not slander with his tongue, who does not harm his friend or discredit his neighbor,
- Proverbs 6:16The Lord hates six things; in fact, seven are detestable to him:
- Proverbs 10:18The one who conceals hatred has lying lips, and whoever spreads slander is a fool.
- Proverbs 25:18A person giving false testimony against his neighbor is like a club, a sword, or a sharp arrow.
Commentaries on Jeremiah 9:4
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 2-9Verses 2-9 From their punishment the prophet now turns to their sins. Jeremiah 9:2 The prophet utters the wish that he might be spared his daily striving, and in some lone wilderness give way to his sorrow, without restraint. A lodging place - It was usual to build in the desert, either by private charity or at the public expense, caravanserais, to receive travelers for a single night, who had however to bring their own supplies with them. An assembly…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4-6Idolatry was the foundation of a culture built on lies. The word brother, used as a synonym for neighbor, shows that even close relationships were tainted by deceit.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. supplant--literally, "trip up by the heel" (Ho 12:3). walk with slanders--(Jr 6:28).Read the comment
Topics related to Jeremiah 9:4
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Jeremiah 9
- 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
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