Jeremiah 51:17

Jeremiah 51:17 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Every man is brutish by his knowledge; every founder is confounded by the graven image: for his molten image is falsehood, and there is no breath in them.
• New International Version (NIV)“Everyone is senseless and without knowledge; every goldsmith is shamed by his idols. The images he makes are a fraud; they have no breath in them.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Every man is stupid and without knowledge; every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols, for his images are false, and there is no breath in them.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Everyone is dull-hearted, without knowledge; Every metalsmith is put to shame by the carved image; For his molded image is falsehood, And there is no breath in them.

Context of Jeremiah 51:17

15The Lord used his power to make the earth. He used his wisdom to make it strong. He knew how to put the sky to cover the earth. 16When he shouts like thunder, the water in the sky roars. He brings the clouds from the far places of the earth. He causes bright lightning to show in the storms. He opens his rooms so that the wind comes out and it blows everywhere. People who worship idols are stupid. They do not understand what they are doing. The men who make idols will be ashamed. They make images of gods that are false. None of their idols have the breath of life in them. 18They are useless things that people should laugh at. When the time for their punishment arrives, God will destroy them. 19The God that Jacob's descendants worship is not like those idols. He created everything. He chose Israel's people to belong to him. His name is the Lord Almighty.

Jeremiah 51:17 word by word

נִבְעַ֤ר כָּל־אָדָם֙ מִדַּ֔עַת הֹבִ֥ישׁ כָּל־צֹרֵ֖ף מִפָּ֑סֶל כִּ֛י שֶׁ֥קֶר נִסְכּ֖וֹ וְלֹא־ר֥וּחַ בָּֽם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Every manאָדָם'âdâm · manH120
• is brutishבָּעַרbâ‛ar · be brutishH1197
• knowledgeדַּ֫עַתda‛ath · knowledgeH1847
• every founderצָרַףtsâraph · to refineH6884
• is confoundedיָבֵשׁyâbêsh · to witherH3001
• by the graven imageפֶּ֫סֶלpesel · idolH6459
• for his molten imageנֶ֫סֶךְnesek nêsek · drink offeringH5262
• falsehoodשֶׁ֫קֶרsheqer · deceptionH8267
• no breathרוּחַrûach · spirit: breathH7307

Cross-references for Jeremiah 51:17

• Jeremiah 10:14People who worship idols are stupid. They do not understand what they are doing. The men who make idols will be ashamed. They make images of gods that are false. None of their idols have the breath of life in them.
• Psalms 14:2The Lord is looking down from heaven. He looks at the people of the world, to see if there are any wise people among them. He looks to see if anyone wants to know God.
• Psalms 53:1A fool thinks that there is no God. People like that are bad. They do evil things. None of them does anything that is good.
• Psalms 115:5Each idol has a mouth, but it cannot speak! It has eyes, but it cannot see!
• Psalms 135:18The people who made them will become as they are. Everyone who trusts in idols will become as useless as their idols are.
• Isaiah 44:18People like that are stupid. They do not understand anything. They cannot see the truth, as if they are blind. Their minds cannot think properly.
• Romans 1:20Ever since God made the world, he has been showing people clearly about himself. We cannot see God. But the things that he has made show us clearly what he is like. We can understand his great power that continues for ever. We can know that he is the true God. So there is no reason for anyone to say, ‘We could not know about God.’
• 1 Corinthians 1:19It says in the Bible: ‘I, God, will destroy all the clever thoughts of wise people. I will show that their clever ideas are useless.’
• Jeremiah 50:2‘Tell this news to the nations! Wave a flag to make sure that people listen! Do not try to hide anything. Say this: “Enemies will take Babylon. Bel will become ashamed. Yes, Marduk will be afraid. All Babylon's disgusting idols will be ashamed.”
• Psalms 135:17They have ears, but they cannot hear! They cannot even breathe!
• Habakkuk 2:18What value does an idol have? What help can it give? Somebody has made it as the image of a false god. It can only tell false messages. Why should its maker trust it for help? He has used wood or metal to make it and it cannot speak!

Commentaries on Jeremiah 51:17

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17Every man is brutish by his knowledge - He is brutish for want of real knowledge; and he is brutish when he acknowledges that an idol is any thing in the world. These verses, from fifteen to nineteen, are transcribed from Jeremiah 10:12-16.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 15-19Verses 15-19 A transcript of Jeremiah 10:12-16.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 15-19This song of praise highlights the Lord's uniqueness and greatness. It compares the true God with the emptiness of idols.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 15-1915-19. Repeated from Jr 10:12-16; except that "Israel" is not in the Hebrew of Jr 51:19, which ought, therefore, to be translated, "He is the Former of all things, and (therefore) of the rod of His inheritance" (that is, of the nation peculiarly His own). In Jr 10:1-25 the contrast is between the idols and God; here it is between the power of populous Babylon and that of God: "Thou dwellest upon many waters" (Jr 51:13); but God can, by merely "uttering…Read the comment

Topics related to Jeremiah 51:17

• Idolatry
• Persia

In the dictionaries

• Graven image
• Molten, Image
• Cankerworm
• Device
• Empty
• Hold
• Mount
• Brute; Brutish
• Ezekiel
• Founder

Commentaries on Jeremiah 51

• 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