English Standard Version
Jeremiah 11:16
16The Lord once called you 'a green olive tree, beautiful with good fruit.' But with the roar of a great tempest he will set fire to it, and its branches will be consumed.
Jeremiah 11:16 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)The Lord called thy name, A green olive tree, fair, and of goodly fruit: with the noise of a great tumult he hath kindled fire upon it, and the branches of it are broken.
- New International Version (NIV)The Lord called you a thriving olive tree with fruit beautiful in form. But with the roar of a mighty storm he will set it on fire, and its branches will be broken.
- New King James Version (NKJV)The Lord called your name, Green Olive Tree, Lovely and of Good Fruit. With the noise of a great tumult He has kindled fire on it, And its branches are broken.
- New Living Translation (NLT)I, the Lord, once called them a thriving olive tree, beautiful to see and full of good fruit. But now I have sent the fury of their enemies to burn them with fire, leaving them charred and broken.
Context of Jeremiah 11:16
14"Therefore do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer on their behalf, for I will not listen when they call to me in the time of their trouble. 15What right has my beloved in my house, when she has done many vile deeds? Can even sacrificial flesh avert your doom? Can you then exult? The Lord once called you 'a green olive tree, beautiful with good fruit.' But with the roar of a great tempest he will set fire to it, and its branches will be consumed. 17The Lord of hosts, who planted you, has decreed disaster against you, because of the evil that the house of Israel and the house of Judah have done, provoking me to anger by making offerings to Baal." 18The Lord made it known to me and I knew; then you showed me their deeds.
Read all of Jeremiah 11Jeremiah 11:16 word by word
זַ֤יִת רַֽעֲנָן֙ יְפֵ֣ה פְרִי־תֹ֔אַר קָרָ֥א יְהוָ֖ה שְׁמֵ֑ךְ לְק֣וֹל׀ הֲמוּלָּ֣ה גְדֹלָ֗ה הִצִּ֥ית אֵשׁ֙ עָלֶ֔יהָ וְרָע֖וּ דָּלִיּוֹתָֽיו׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- The Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- calledקָרָאqârâ' · to call: call byH7121
- thy nameשֵׁםshêm · nameH8034
- A greenרַעֲנָןra‛ănân · luxuriantH7488
- olive treeזַ֫יִתzayith · oliveH2132
- fairיָפֶהyâpheh · beautifulH3303
- of goodlyתֹּ֫אַרtô'ar · appearanceH8389
- fruitפְּרִיperîy · fruitH6529
- with the noiseקוֹלqôl qôl · voice: soundH6963
- of a greatגָּדוֹלgâdôl gâdôl · great: largeH1419
- tumultהֲמֻלָּהhămûlâh hămûllâh · tumultH1999
- he hath kindledיָצַתyâtsath · to kindleH3341
- fireאֵשׁ'êsh · fireH784
- upon it, and the branchesדָּלִיּוֹתdâlîyâh · branchH1808
- of it are brokenרָעַעrâ‛a‛ · to shatterH7489
Cross-references for Jeremiah 11:16
- Psalms 52:8But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God. I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever.
- Romans 11:17But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree,
- Psalms 80:16They have burned it with fire; they have cut it down; may they perish at the rebuke of your face!
- Isaiah 1:30For you shall be like an oak whose leaf withers, and like a garden without water.
- Isaiah 27:11When its boughs are dry, they are broken; women come and make a fire of them. For this is a people without discernment; therefore he who made them will not have compassion on them; he who formed them will show them no favor.
- Ezekiel 15:4Behold, it is given to the fire for fuel. When the fire has consumed both ends of it, and the middle of it is charred, is it useful for anything?
- Ezekiel 20:47Say to the forest of the Negeb, Hear the word of the Lord: Thus says the Lord God, Behold, I will kindle a fire in you, and it shall devour every green tree in you and every dry tree. The blazing flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from south to north shall be scorched by it.
- Matthew 3:10Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
- John 15:6If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.
Commentaries on Jeremiah 11:16
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16The Lord called thy name, A green olive tree - That is, he made thee like a green olive - fair, flourishing, and fruitful; but thou art degenerated, and God hath given the Chaldeans permission to burn thee up.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 14-17Verses 14-17 A parenthesis. As in Jeremiah 7:16, all intercession is forbidden, and for this reason. Prayer for others for the forgiveness of their sins avails only when they also pray. The cry of the people now was that of the guilty smarting under punishment, not of the penitent mourning over sin. Jeremiah 11:15 This passage, like Isaiah 1:12, rebukes the inconsistency of Judah‘s public worship of Yahweh with their private immorality and preference for…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 11-17Verses 11-17 Evil pursues sinners, and entangles them in snares, out of which they cannot free themselves. Now, in their distress, their many gods and many altars stand them in no stead. And those whose own prayers will not be heard, cannot expect benefit from the prayers of others. Their profession of religion shall prove of no use. When trouble came upon them, they made this their confidence, but God has rejected it. His altar shall yield them no…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16-17During the Exodus, the Lord saw Israel as a flourishing olive tree. King David compared himself to an olive tree (Psalm 52:8), and the apostle Paul used this image to explain how non-Jews could share in the blessings of salvation (Romans 11:16–21).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1616. called thy name--made thee. olive--(Psa 52:8; Ro 11:17). The "olive" is chosen to represent the adoption of Judah by the free grace of God, as its oil is the image of richness (compare Psa 23:5; 104:15). with ... noise of ... tumult--or, "at the noise," &c., namely, at the tumult of the invading army (Is 13:4) [Maurer]. Or, rather, "with the sound of a mighty voice," namely, that of God, that is, the thunder; thus there is no confusion of metaphors…Read the comment
Topics related to Jeremiah 11:16
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Jeremiah 11
- 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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