Jeremiah 14:3

Jeremiah 14:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And their nobles have sent their little ones to the waters: they came to the pits, and found no water; they returned with their vessels empty; they were ashamed and confounded, and covered their heads.
• New International Version (NIV)The nobles send their servants for water; they go to the cisterns but find no water. They return with their jars unfilled; dismayed and despairing, they cover their heads.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Her nobles send their servants for water; they come to the cisterns; they find no water; they return with their vessels empty; they are ashamed and confounded and cover their heads.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Their nobles have sent their lads for water; They went to the cisterns and found no water. They returned with their vessels empty; They were ashamed and confounded And covered their heads.

Context of Jeremiah 14:3

1This is the Lord's message that he gave to Jeremiah about the famine: 2‘Judah's people are very sad and upset. The people in Judah's cities are becoming weak. They are sitting on the ground and they are weeping. Jerusalem's people call to me for help. Rich people send their servants to get water. They go to the wells, but they do not find any water. They return home with empty water jars. They are ashamed and upset. They hide their faces in their hands. 4There has been no rain anywhere. The ground is breaking apart. The farmers too are very upset. They hide their faces in their hands. 5There is no grass in the fields for the deer to eat. So the mother deer runs away from her new baby.

Jeremiah 14:3 word by word

וְאַדִּ֣רֵיהֶ֔ם שָׁלְח֥וּ צְעִירֵיהֶ֖ם לַמָּ֑יִם בָּ֣אוּ עַל־גֵּבִ֞ים לֹא־מָ֣צְאוּ מַ֗יִם שָׁ֤בוּ כְלֵיהֶם֙ רֵיקָ֔ם בֹּ֥שׁוּ וְהָכְלְמ֖וּ וְחָפ֥וּ רֹאשָֽׁם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And their noblesאַדִּיר'addîyr · greatH117
• have sentשָׁלַחshâlach · to send: departH7971
• their little onesצָעִירtsâ‛îyr tsâ‛ôr · littleH6810
• to the watersמַיmayim · waterH4325
• they cameבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
• to the pitsגֶּ֫בֶאgebe' · cisternH1360
• to the pitsגֵּבgêb · cisternH1356
• foundמָצָאmâtsâ' · to findH4672
• they returnedשׁוּבshûb · to return: returnH7725
• with their vesselsכְּלִיkelîy · article/utensilH3627
• emptyרֵיקָםrêyqâm · emptilyH7387
• they were ashamedבּוֹשׁbûsh · be ashamedH954
• and confoundedכָּלַםkâlam · be humiliatedH3637
• and coveredחָפָהchâphâh · to coverH2645
• their headsרֹאשׁrô'sh · headH7218

Cross-references for Jeremiah 14:3

• 1 Kings 18:5Now Ahab said to Obadiah, ‘Go through all the land to where there are valleys and springs of water. See if we can find some grass to feed the horses and mules. Then we will not have to kill our animals.’
• Jeremiah 2:13My people have done two evil things: I give them life, like a spring of fresh water, but they have turned away from me. Instead, they have tried to get water for themselves. They have dug holes in the ground to store it. But those holes cannot hold the water. It quickly runs away.
• 1 Kings 17:7After some time the stream became dry, because there had been no rain in the whole land.
• 2 Kings 18:31Do not believe what Hezekiah says.” This is what the king of Assyria says: “Show me that you accept my offer of peace and come out of your city. Then you will all live safely in your homes. You will eat the fruit from your own vines and fig trees. You will drink the water from your own wells.
• Joel 1:20Even the wild animals are thirsty and they want your help. The rivers have no water in them. Fire has destroyed the fields in the wilderness.
• Amos 4:8People became weak. They went from city to city to look for water. They were almost too weak to walk. There was not enough water. But still you did not start to pray to me again.’ The Lord says this!
• Jeremiah 2:26A robber is ashamed when people catch him. The people of Israel will become ashamed like that. They will all be ashamed of their sins. Their kings, their officers, their priests and their prophets are all guilty.
• Jeremiah 20:11But the Lord is with me, like a brave soldier who will fight for me. So people who want to hurt me will fail. They will not get power over me. They will be very ashamed because they have failed. Nobody will ever forget their shame.
• Psalms 40:14Chase away the people who want to kill me! Cause them to become ashamed and confused. Chase away the people who want to hurt me, so that they run away in shame.
• Psalms 109:29Shame will come on my enemies. It will cover them like a coat.
• Isaiah 45:16People who make idols will all become ashamed. People will insult them as they leave together.
• Jeremiah 14:4There has been no rain anywhere. The ground is breaking apart. The farmers too are very upset. They hide their faces in their hands.
• 2 Samuel 15:30But David continued to go up the Mount of Olives. He was weeping as he went. He had covered his head and he was not wearing any shoes on his feet. All the people with him also covered their heads and they wept as they went up the hill.
• 2 Samuel 19:4The king covered his face and he cried, ‘Absalom, Absalom! My son, my son!’
• Esther 6:12After this, Mordecai returned to sit at the king's gate. But Haman hurried back home. He covered his face because he was ashamed and upset.

Commentaries on Jeremiah 14:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3Their nobles have sent their little ones - So general was this calamity, that the servants no longer attended to their lords, but every one was interested alone for himself; and the nobles of the land were obliged to employ their own children to scour the land, to see if any water could be found in the tanks or the pits. In the dearth in the time of Elijah, Ahab the king, and Obadiah his counselor, were obliged to traverse the land themselves, in order to…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3Little ones - mean ones, the common people. The word is unique to Jeremiah Jeremiah 48:4. The pits - i. e., tanks for holding water. Covered their heads - The sign of grief.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2-3During a drought, no crops were sold in the markets at the Jerusalem gates. People could not store previous harvests for long, so starvation threatened them. Cisterns built to collect water dried up, and without rain, no water was available for drinking or cooking meals. As a result, a great cry rose from Jerusalem.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. little ones--rather, "their inferiors," that is, domestics. pits--cisterns for collecting rain water, often met with in the East where there are no springs. covered ... heads--(2Sa 15:30). A sign of humiliation and mourning.Read the comment

Topics related to Jeremiah 14:3

• Drought
• Famine
• Impenitence
• Mourning

In the dictionaries

• Gebim
• Heal
• Pit
• Ashamed
• Cistern; Well; Pool; Aqueduct
• Gesture
• Head

Commentaries on Jeremiah 14

• 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