English Standard Version
Jeremiah 7:31
31And they have built the high places of Topheth, which is in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire, which I did not command, nor did it come into my mind.
Jeremiah 7:31 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And they have built the high places of Tophet, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire; which I commanded them not, neither came it into my heart.
- New International Version (NIV)They have built the high places of Topheth in the Valley of Ben Hinnom to burn their sons and daughters in the fire—something I did not command, nor did it enter my mind.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And they have built the high places of Tophet, which is in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire, which I did not command, nor did it come into My heart.
- New Living Translation (NLT)They have built pagan shrines at Topheth, the garbage dump in the valley of Ben-Hinnom, and there they burn their sons and daughters in the fire. I have never commanded such a horrible deed; it never even crossed my mind to command such a thing!
Context of Jeremiah 7:31
29"'Cut off your hair and cast it away; raise a lamentation on the bare heights, for the Lord has rejected and forsaken the generation of his wrath.' 30"For the sons of Judah have done evil in my sight, declares the Lord. They have set their detestable things in the house that is called by my name, to defile it. And they have built the high places of Topheth, which is in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire, which I did not command, nor did it come into my mind. 32Therefore, behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when it will no more be called Topheth, or the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter; for they will bury in Topheth, because there is no room elsewhere. 33And the dead bodies of this people will be food for the birds of the air, and for the beasts of the earth, and none will frighten them away.
Read all of Jeremiah 7Jeremiah 7:31 word by word
וּבָנ֞וּ בָּמ֣וֹת הַתֹּ֗פֶת אֲשֶׁר֙ בְּגֵ֣יא בֶן־הִנֹּ֔ם לִשְׂרֹ֛ף אֶת־בְּנֵיהֶ֥ם וְאֶת־בְּנֹתֵיהֶ֖ם בָּאֵ֑שׁ אֲשֶׁר֙ לֹ֣א צִוִּ֔יתִי וְלֹ֥א עָלְתָ֖ה עַל־לִבִּֽי׃ סRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And they have builtבָּנָהbânâh · to buildH1129
- the high placesבָּמָהbâmâh · high placeH1116
- of Tophetתֹּ֫פֶתtôpheth · TophethH8612
- in the valleyגַּיְאgay' gay · ValleyH1516
- of the sonבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
- of Hinnomהִנֹּםhinnôm · (Topheth of son of) HinnomH2011
- to burnשָׂרַףώâraph · to burnH8313
- and their daughtersבַּתbath · daughterH1323
- in the fireאֵשׁ'êsh · fireH784
- which I commandedצָוָהtsâvâh · to commandH6680
- not, neither cameעָלָה‛âlâh · to ascend: riseH5927
- it into my heartלֵבlêb · heartH3820
Cross-references for Jeremiah 7:31
- Jeremiah 19:5and have built the high places of Baal to burn their sons in the fire as burnt offerings to Baal, which I did not command or decree, nor did it come into my mind—
- Jeremiah 32:35They built the high places of Baal in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to offer up their sons and daughters to Molech, though I did not command them, nor did it enter into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.
- 2 Kings 23:20And he sacrificed all the priests of the high places who were there, on the altars, and burned human bones on them. Then he returned to Jerusalem.
- 2 Chronicles 33:6And he burned his sons as an offering in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, and used fortune-telling and omens and sorcery, and dealt with mediums and with necromancers. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger.
- Jeremiah 19:2and go out to the Valley of the Son of Hinnom at the entry of the Potsherd Gate, and proclaim there the words that I tell you.
- Joshua 15:8Then the boundary goes up by the Valley of the Son of Hinnom at the southern shoulder of the Jebusite (that is, Jerusalem). And the boundary goes up to the top of the mountain that lies over against the Valley of Hinnom, on the west, at the northern end of the Valley of Rephaim.
- 2 Chronicles 28:3and he made offerings in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom and burned his sons as an offering, according to the abominations of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel.
- Deuteronomy 12:31You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way, for every abominable thing that the Lord hates they have done for their gods, for they even burn their sons and their daughters in the fire to their gods.
- 2 Kings 17:17And they burned their sons and their daughters as offerings and used divination and omens and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger.
- Psalms 106:37They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the demons;
- Ezekiel 16:20And you took your sons and your daughters, whom you had borne to me, and these you sacrificed to them to be devoured. Were your whorings so small a matter
- Leviticus 18:21You shall not give any of your children to offer them to Molech, and so profane the name of your God: I am the Lord.
- Leviticus 20:1The Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
- Deuteronomy 17:3and has gone and served other gods and worshiped them, or the sun or the moon or any of the host of heaven, which I have forbidden,
Commentaries on Jeremiah 7:31
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 31Tophet - in the valley of the son of Hinnom - Tophet was the place in that valley where the continual fires were kept up, in and through which they consecrated their children to Moloch.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 29-33Verses 29-33 Jeremiah summons the people to lament over the miserable consequences of their rejection of God. In the valley of Hinnom, where lately they offered their innocents, they shall themselves fall before the enemy in such multitudes that burial shall be impossible, and the beasts of the field unmolested shall prey upon their remains. Jeremiah 7:29 The daughter of Zion, defiled by the presence of enemies in her sanctuary, and rejected of God, must…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 29-34Verses 29-34 In token both of sorrow and of slavery, Jerusalem must be degraded, and separated from God, as she had been separated to him. The heart is the place in which God has chosen to put his name; but if sin has the innermost and uppermost place there, we pollute the temple of the Lord. The destruction of Jerusalem appears here very terrible. The slain shall be many; they having made it the place of their sin. Evil pursues sinners, even after death…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 30-34The valley of Ben-Hinnom started on the west side of Jerusalem and continued around the south side. This narrow, steep valley opened into the Kidron Valley and served as the city's garbage dump and graveyard. The bodies of the poor, whether murdered or dead from disease, were dumped there. Child sacrifice, a practice completely abhorrent to the Lord (see 2 Chronicles 28:3; 33:6), also took place there. The valley was known as Topheth (2 Kings 23:10…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 3131. high places of Tophet--the altars [Horsley] of Tophet; erected to Moloch, on the heights along the south of the valley facing Zion. burn ... sons--(Psa 106:38). commanded ... not--put for, "I forbade expressly" (De 17:3; 12:31). See on Jr 2:23; Is 30:33.Read the comment
Topics related to Jeremiah 7:31
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Jeremiah 7
- 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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