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

4I thought, ‘These are poor, foolish people. They do not understand what the Lord wants them to do. They do not know his commands. 5So I will go to speak to the leaders. They will surely understand what the Lord wants. They will know his commands.’ But all of them have turned against the Lord too. They refuse to obey his authority. So lions will come out of the forest to attack them. Wolves will come from the desert to destroy them. Leopards will wait outside their cities. They will kill anyone who goes outside. That will happen because the people have turned against the Lord. They have done many bad things. 7The Lord said, ‘Jerusalem, I have to punish you. Your people have turned away from me. They have served gods that are not true gods. I gave them everything that they needed. But they left me, like a wife who leaves her husband. The men hurry to the houses of prostitutes. 8They are like strong male horses. They cannot wait to have sex with another man'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 2:15Their enemies have attacked them like lions. They have destroyed my people's land. They have destroyed your cities with fire. Nobody lives in them any more.
• Jeremiah 4:7Yes, a strong army is coming, like a lion that has left its cave. It has come out to destroy many nations. It will attack your whole land. Your cities will become heaps of stones, and nobody will live in them.
• Jeremiah 25:38The Lord will come out, like a lion that comes out of its cave. He will make their land a terrible place. Cruel armies will destroy the land, because of the Lord's great anger.’
• Jeremiah 49:19‘I will attack the people of Edom and I will chase them out of their land. I will be like a lion that has been hiding in the forest. It attacks the sheep in the fields beside the Jordan River. Like that lion, I will suddenly chase Edom's people out of their country. Then I will choose a leader to rule that nation. There is nobody who is like me. Nobody can accuse me of anything. No ruler can stand against me.
• Ezekiel 14:16I promise you this, as surely as I live: if those three righteous men lived there, they would only save themselves. They could not even save the lives of their own children. The whole land would become an empty place. That is what the Almighty Lord says.
• Daniel 7:4The first animal seemed like a lion, but it had the wings of an eagle. As I watched, someone pulled its wings off. They lifted it up and it stood on two feet like a man. They gave a man's mind to it.
• Hosea 5:14I will attack Ephraim's people like a lion. I will also attack Judah's people like a young lion. I myself will tear them into pieces. I will carry them away. Nobody will be able to rescue them.
• Hosea 13:7So I will attack them like a lion. I will be like a leopard that waits beside the road. It is ready to catch anything that goes that way.
• Amos 5:18You want the special day of the Lord to come. But it will be very bad for you! You think that God will punish your enemies on that day. But that day will not bring light to you, it will bring darkness.
• Nahum 2:11The home of the lions has gone. The place where they fed their young lions has gone. This was the place where whole families of lions once lived. It is here where their young lions were not afraid.
• Psalms 104:20At night you make it dark, so that the forest animals come out.
• Ezekiel 22:27The officers in the land are like wolves that catch other animals and tear them into pieces. They use their power to murder people so that they can take their money for themselves.
• Habakkuk 1:8Their horses run faster than leopards. They are more cruel than wolves that attack in the evening. Their riders come on fast horses from places that are far away. They quickly attack their enemies, like hungry eagles that fly down to catch chickens.
• Zephaniah 3:3The rulers of the city make a very loud noise with their voices like big wild animals. Its judges are like hungry wolves. They are like wolves that have even eaten all an animal's bones before morning.
• Daniel 7:6Then I saw another animal. It seemed like a leopard, but it had four wings on its back. They were like a bird's wings. This animal had four heads. It received authority to rule.
• Revelation 13:2The wild animal that I saw was like a leopard. But its feet were like a bear's feet and its mouth was like a lion's mouth. The dragon gave his own power and great authority to the wild animal so that it could rule as king.

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