English Standard Version
Jeremiah 9:12
12Who is the man so wise that he can understand this? To whom has the mouth of the Lord spoken, that he may declare it? Why is the land ruined and laid waste like a wilderness, so that no one passes through?
Jeremiah 9:12 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Who is the wise man, that may understand this? and who is he to whom the mouth of the Lord hath spoken, that he may declare it, for what the land perisheth and is burned up like a wilderness, that none passeth through?
- New International Version (NIV)Who is wise enough to understand this? Who has been instructed by the Lord and can explain it? Why has the land been ruined and laid waste like a desert that no one can cross?
- New King James Version (NKJV)Who is the wise man who may understand this? And who is he to whom the mouth of the Lord has spoken, that he may declare it? Why does the land perish and burn up like a wilderness, so that no one can pass through?
- New Living Translation (NLT)Who is wise enough to understand all this? Who has been instructed by the Lord and can explain it to others? Why has the land been so ruined that no one dares to travel through it?
Context of Jeremiah 9:12
10"I will take up weeping and wailing for the mountains, and a lamentation for the pastures of the wilderness, because they are laid waste so that no one passes through, and the lowing of cattle is not heard; both the birds of the air and the beasts have fled and are gone. 11I will make Jerusalem a heap of ruins, a lair of jackals, and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation, without inhabitant." Who is the man so wise that he can understand this? To whom has the mouth of the Lord spoken, that he may declare it? Why is the land ruined and laid waste like a wilderness, so that no one passes through? 13And the Lord says: "Because they have forsaken my law that I set before them, and have not obeyed my voice or walked in accord with it, 14but have stubbornly followed their own hearts and have gone after the Baals, as their fathers taught them.
Read all of Jeremiah 9Jeremiah 9:12 word by word
מִֽי־הָאִ֤ישׁ הֶֽחָכָם֙ וְיָבֵ֣ן אֶת־זֹ֔את וַאֲשֶׁ֨ר דִּבֶּ֧ר פִּֽי־יְהוָ֛ה אֵלָ֖יו וְיַגִּדָ֑הּ עַל־מָה֙ אָבְדָ֣ה הָאָ֔רֶץ נִצְּתָ֥ה כַמִּדְבָּ֖ר מִבְּלִ֖י עֹבֵֽר׃ סRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- the wiseחָכָםchâkâm · wiseH2450
- manאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
- that may understandבִּיןbîyn · to understandH995
- to whom the mouthפֶּהpeh · lipH6310
- of the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- hath spokenדָבַרdâbar · to speak: speakH1696
- that he may declareנָגַדnâgad · to tellH5046
- it, for what the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- perishethאָבַד'âbad · to perishH6
- is burned upיָצַתyâtsath · to kindleH3341
- like a wildernessמִדְבָּרmidbâr · wildernessH4057
- that none passeth throughעָבַר‛âbar · to passH5674
Cross-references for Jeremiah 9:12
- Deuteronomy 32:29If they were wise, they would understand this; they would discern their latter end!
- Psalms 107:43Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things; let them consider the steadfast love of the Lord.
- Hosea 14:9Whoever is wise, let him understand these things; whoever is discerning, let him know them; for the ways of the Lord are right, and the upright walk in them, but transgressors stumble in them.
- Matthew 24:15"So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand),
- Revelation 1:3Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near.
- Jeremiah 5:19And when your people say, 'Why has the Lord our God done all these things to us?' you shall say to them, 'As you have forsaken me and served foreign gods in your land, so you shall serve foreigners in a land that is not yours.'"
- Jeremiah 16:10"And when you tell this people all these words, and they say to you, 'Why has the Lord pronounced all this great evil against us? What is our iniquity? What is the sin that we have committed against the Lord our God?'
- Jeremiah 22:8"'And many nations will pass by this city, and every man will say to his neighbor, "Why has the Lord dealt thus with this great city?"
- Deuteronomy 29:22And the next generation, your children who rise up after you, and the foreigner who comes from a far land, will say, when they see the afflictions of that land and the sicknesses with which the Lord has made it sick—
- 1 Kings 9:8And this house will become a heap of ruins. Everyone passing by it will be astonished and will hiss, and they will say, 'Why has the Lord done thus to this land and to this house?'
- Psalms 107:34a fruitful land into a salty waste, because of the evil of its inhabitants.
- Ezekiel 14:23They will console you, when you see their ways and their deeds, and you shall know that I have not done without cause all that I have done in it, declares the Lord God."
- Ezekiel 22:25The conspiracy of her prophets in her midst is like a roaring lion tearing the prey; they have devoured human lives; they have taken treasure and precious things; they have made many widows in her midst.
Commentaries on Jeremiah 9:12
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 12Who is the wise man - To whom has God revealed these things? He is the truly wise man. But it is to his prophet alone that God has revealed these things, and the speedy fulfillment of the predictions will show that the prophet has not spoken of himself.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 10-22Verses 10-22 The punishment described in general terms in the preceding three verses is now detailed at great length. Jeremiah 9:10 The habitations i. e - the temporary encampments of the shepherds (see Jeremiah 6:3). So that none can - Or, “They are parched up, with no man to pass through them; neither do they hear the voice of cattle; from the birds of the heaven even to the beasts they “are fled, they are gone.” Jeremiah 9:11 Dragons - Rather…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12-22Verses 12-22 In Zion the voice of joy and praise used to be heard, while the people kept close to God; but sin has altered the sound, it is now the voice of lamentation. Unhumbled hearts lament their calamity, but not their sin, which is the cause of it. Let the doors be shut ever so fast, death steals upon us. It enters the palaces of princes and great men, though stately, strongly built, and guarded. Nor are those more safe that are abroad; death cuts…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 12It is unclear who asks these three questions. It could be the people or Jeremiah. The first two questions show frustration because the Lord's message about the religious and political situation seemed confusing. The Lord's words appeared too harsh and extreme. The third question shows anger about the land being desolated. The questioner seems to ask where to find the Lord's wisdom and goodness in these events.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1212. Rather, "Who is a wise man? (that is, Whosoever has inspired wisdom, 2Pe 3:15); let him understand this (weigh well the evils impending, and the causes of their being sent); and he to whom the mouth of the Lord hath spoken (that is, whosoever is prophetically inspired), let him declare it to his fellow countrymen," if haply they may be roused to repentance, the only hope of safety.Read the comment
Topics related to Jeremiah 9:12
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Jeremiah 9
- 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
English Standard Version — © 2001 Crossway Bibles
Commentaries