God’s Word Translation
Jeremiah 4:23
23I see the earth. It’s formless and empty. I see the sky. Its lights are gone.
Jeremiah 4:23 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void; and the heavens, and they had no light.
- New International Version (NIV)I looked at the earth, and it was formless and empty; and at the heavens, and their light was gone.
- English Standard Version (ESV)I looked on the earth, and behold, it was without form and void; and to the heavens, and they had no light.
- New King James Version (NKJV)I beheld the earth, and indeed it was without form, and void; And the heavens, they had no light.
Context of Jeremiah 4:23
21How long must I see the battle flag and hear the sound of rams’ horns? 22“My people are fools. They don’t know me. They are stupid people. They don’t understand. They are experts in doing wrong, and they don’t know how to do good.” I see the earth. It’s formless and empty. I see the sky. Its lights are gone. 24I see the mountains. They are shaking, and the hills are swaying. 25I see that there are no people, and every bird has flown away.
Read all of Jeremiah 4Jeremiah 4:23 word by word
רָאִ֙יתִי֙ אֶת־הָאָ֔רֶץ וְהִנֵּה־תֹ֖הוּ וָבֹ֑הוּ וְאֶל־הַשָּׁמַ֖יִם וְאֵ֥ין אוֹרָֽם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Jeremiah 4:23
- Jeremiah 9:10I will cry and weep for the mountains. I will sing a funeral song for the pastures in the wilderness. They are destroyed so that no one can travel through them. No one can hear the sound of cattle. Birds and cattle have fled. They are gone.
- Genesis 1:2The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep water. The Spirit of God was hovering over the water.
- Isaiah 24:19The earth will be completely broken. The earth will shake back and forth violently. The earth will stagger.
- Revelation 20:11I saw a large, white throne and the one who was sitting on it. The earth and the sky fled from his presence, but no place was found for them.
- Isaiah 5:30On that day they will roar over their prey as the sea roars. If they look at the land, they will see only darkness and distress. Even the light will be darkened by thick clouds.
- Isaiah 13:10The stars in the sky and their constellations won’t show their light anymore. The sun will be dark when it rises. The moon won’t shine.
- Ezekiel 32:7“ ‘When I put out your light, I will cover the sky and darken the stars. I will cover the sun with clouds, and the moon won’t shine anymore.
- Joel 2:10The earth quakes in their presence, and the sky shakes. The sun and the moon turn dark, and the stars no longer shine.
- Joel 3:15The sun and the moon will turn dark. The stars will no longer shine.
- Amos 8:9On that day, declares the Almighty Lord, I will make the sun go down at noon and darken the earth in broad daylight.
- Matthew 24:29“Immediately after the misery of those days, the sun will turn dark, the moon will not give light, the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the universe will be shaken.
- Mark 13:25the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the universe will be shaken.
- Luke 21:25“Miraculous signs will occur in the sun, moon, and stars. The nations of the earth will be deeply troubled and confused because of the roaring and tossing of the sea.
- Acts 2:19I will work miracles in the sky and give signs on the earth: blood, fire, and clouds of smoke.
Commentaries on Jeremiah 4:23
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 23I beheld the earth, (the land), and lo it was without form and void - ובהו תהו tohu vabohu ; the very words used in Genesis to denote the formless state of the chaotic mass before God had brought it into order.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 23-26Verses 23-26 In four verses each beginning with “I beheld,” the prophet sees in vision the desolate condition of Judaea during the Babylonian captivity. Jeremiah 4:23 Without form, and void - Desolate and void (see Genesis 1:2 note). The land has returned to a state of chaos (marginal reference note). And the heavens - And upward to the heavens. The imagery is that of the last day of judgment. To Jeremiah‘s vision all was as though the day of the Lord had…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 19-31Verses 19-31 The prophet had no pleasure in delivering messages of wrath. He is shown in a vision the whole land in confusion. Compared with what it was, every thing is out of order; but the ruin of the Jewish nation would not be final. Every end of our comforts is not a full end. Though the Lord may correct his people very severely, yet he will not cast them off. Ornaments and false colouring would be of no avail. No outward privileges or profession, no…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 23-26In Jeremiah's vision, the Lord's intense anger was more important than his creative love (Jeremiah 10:10; 12:4; Isaiah 5:25; 24:19; Ezekiel 38:20; Zephaniah 1:3). He was reversing the order of creation (see Genesis 1:2–3).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2323. Graphic picture of the utter desolation about to visit Palestine. "I beheld, and lo!" four times solemnly repeated, heightens the awful effect of the scene (compare Is 24:19; 34:11). without form and void--reduced to the primeval chaos (Ge 1:2).Read the comment
Topics related to Jeremiah 4:23
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Jeremiah 4
- 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
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
Commentaries