New English Translation
Jeremiah 9:12
12I said, “Who is wise enough to understand why this has happened? Who has a word from the Lord that can explain it? Why does the land lie in ruins? Why is it as scorched as a desert through which no one travels?”
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?
- English Standard Version (ESV)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?
- 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?
Context of Jeremiah 9:12
10I said, “I will weep and mourn for the grasslands on the mountains, I will sing a mournful song for the pastures in the wilderness because they are so scorched no one travels through them. The sound of livestock is no longer heard there. Even the birds in the sky and the wild animals in the fields have fled and are gone.” 11The Lord said, “I will make Jerusalem a heap of ruins. Jackals will make their home there. I will destroy the towns of Judah so that no one will be able to live in them.” I said, “Who is wise enough to understand why this has happened? Who has a word from the Lord that can explain it? Why does the land lie in ruins? Why is it as scorched as a desert through which no one travels?” 13The Lord answered, “This has happened because these people have rejected my laws which I gave them. They have not obeyed me or followed those laws. 14Instead they have followed the stubborn inclinations of their own hearts. They have paid allegiance to the gods called Baal, as their fathers taught them to do.
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 32:29I wish that they were wise and could understand this, and that they could comprehend what will happen to them.”
- Psalms 107:43Whoever is wise, let him take note of these things! Let them consider the Lord’s acts of loyal love!
- Hosea 14:9Who is wise? Let him discern these things! Who is discerning? Let him understand them! For the ways of the Lord are right; the godly walk in them, but in them the rebellious stumble.
- Matthew 24:15“So when you see the abomination of desolation – spoken about by Daniel the prophet – standing in the holy place (let the reader understand),
- Revelation 1:3Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy aloud, and blessed are those who hear and obey the things written in it, because the time is near!
- Jeremiah 5:19“So then, Jeremiah, when your people ask, ‘Why has the Lord our God done all this to us?’ tell them, ‘It is because you rejected me and served foreign gods in your own land. So you must serve foreigners in a land that does not belong to you.’
- Jeremiah 16:10“When you tell these people about all this, they will undoubtedly ask you, ‘Why has the Lord threatened us with such great disaster? What wrong have we done? What sin have we done to offend the Lord our God?’
- Jeremiah 22:8“‘People from other nations will pass by this city. They will ask one another, “Why has the Lord done such a thing to this great city?”
- Deuteronomy 29:22The generation to come – your descendants who will rise up after you, as well as the foreigner who will come from distant places – will see the afflictions of that land and the illnesses that the Lord has brought on it.
- 1 Kings 9:8This temple will become a heap of ruins; everyone who passes by it will be shocked and will hiss out their scorn, saying, ‘Why did the Lord do this to this land and this temple?’
- Psalms 107:34and a fruitful land into a barren place, because of the sin of its inhabitants.
- Ezekiel 14:23They will console you when you see their behavior and their deeds, because you will know that it was not without reason that I have done everything which I have done in it, declares the sovereign Lord.”
- Ezekiel 22:25Her princes within her are like a roaring lion tearing its prey; they have devoured lives. They take away riches and valuable things; they have made many women widows within it.
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
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