Jeremiah 4:23

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 flag And hear the sound of the trumpet? 22“For My people are foolish, They do not know Me; They are foolish children And have no understanding. They are skillful at doing evil, But they do not know how to do good.” I looked at the earth, and behold, it was a formless and desolate emptiness; And to the heavens, and they had no light. 24I looked on the mountains, and behold, they were quaking, And all the hills jolted back and forth. 25I looked, and behold, there was no human, And all the birds of the sky had fled.

Jeremiah 4:23 word by word

רָאִ֙יתִי֙ אֶת־הָאָ֔רֶץ וְהִנֵּה־תֹ֖הוּ וָבֹ֑הוּ וְאֶל־הַשָּׁמַ֖יִם וְאֵ֥ין אוֹרָֽם׃Read the interlinear

• I lookedרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• at the earthאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
• and beholdהִנֵּהhinnêh · beholdH2009
• formlessתֹּ֫הוּtôhû · formlessnessH8414
• and desolateבֹּהוּbôhû · voidH922
• And to the heavensשָׁמַיִםshâmayim shâmeh · heavenH8064
• and they hadאַ֫יִן'ayin · nothingH369
• lightאוֹר'ôr · lightH216

Cross-references for Jeremiah 4:23

• Jeremiah 9:10“I will take up a weeping and wailing for the mountains, And for the pastures of the wilderness a song of mourning, Because they are laid waste so that no one passes through, And the sound of the livestock is not heard; Both the birds of the sky and the animals have fled; they are gone.
• Genesis 1:2And the earth was a formless and desolate emptiness, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.
• Isaiah 24:19The earth is broken apart, The earth is split through, The earth is shaken violently.
• Revelation 20:11Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled, and no place was found for them.
• Isaiah 5:30And it will roar against it on that day like the roaring of the sea. If one looks across to the land, behold, there is darkness and distress; Even the light is darkened by its clouds.
• Isaiah 13:10For the stars of heaven and their constellations Will not flash their light; The sun will be dark when it rises And the moon will not shed its light.
• Ezekiel 32:7And when I extinguish you, I will cover the heavens and darken their stars; I will cover the sun with a cloud And the moon will not give its light.
• Joel 2:10Before them the earth quakes, The heavens tremble, The sun and the moon become dark, And the stars lose their brightness.
• Joel 3:15The sun and moon have become dark, And the stars have lost their brightness.
• Amos 8:9And it will come about on that day,” declares the Lord God, “That I will make the sun go down at noon, And make the earth dark in broad daylight.
• Matthew 24:29“But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
• Mark 13:25and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers that are in the heavens will be shaken.
• Luke 21:25“There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves,
• Acts 2:19And I will display wonders in the sky above And signs on the earth below, Blood, fire, and vapor 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

• Condescension of God
• Darkness
• Israel, Prophecies Concerning
• War

In the dictionaries

• Bless
• Fallow
• Pain
• Wise
• Backslide
• Form
• Genesis
• Jeremiah (2)

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