New International Version
Jeremiah 8:4
4“Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord says: “ ‘When people fall down, do they not get up? When someone turns away, do they not return?
Jeremiah 8:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Moreover thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord; Shall they fall, and not arise? shall he turn away, and not return?
- English Standard Version (ESV)"You shall say to them, Thus says the Lord: When men fall, do they not rise again? If one turns away, does he not return?
- New King James Version (NKJV)“Moreover you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Will they fall and not rise? Will one turn away and not return?
- New Living Translation (NLT)“Jeremiah, say to the people, ‘This is what the Lord says: “‘When people fall down, don’t they get up again? When they discover they’re on the wrong road, don’t they turn back?
Context of Jeremiah 8:4
2They will be exposed to the sun and the moon and all the stars of the heavens, which they have loved and served and which they have followed and consulted and worshiped. They will not be gathered up or buried, but will be like dung lying on the ground. 3Wherever I banish them, all the survivors of this evil nation will prefer death to life, declares the Lord Almighty.’ “Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord says: “ ‘When people fall down, do they not get up? When someone turns away, do they not return? 5Why then have these people turned away? Why does Jerusalem always turn away? They cling to deceit; they refuse to return. 6I have listened attentively, but they do not say what is right. None of them repent of their wickedness, saying, “What have I done?” Each pursues their own course like a horse charging into battle.
Read all of Jeremiah 8Jeremiah 8:4 word by word
וְאָמַרְתָּ֣ אֲלֵיהֶ֗ם כֹּ֚ה אָמַ֣ר יְהוָ֔ה הֲיִפְּל֖וּ וְלֹ֣א יָק֑וּמוּ אִם־יָשׁ֖וּב וְלֹ֥א יָשֽׁוּב׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Jeremiah 8:4
- Proverbs 24:16for though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again, but the wicked stumble when calamity strikes.
- Hosea 14:1Return, Israel, to the Lord your God. Your sins have been your downfall!
- Amos 5:2“Fallen is Virgin Israel, never to rise again, deserted in her own land, with no one to lift her up.”
- Micah 7:8Do not gloat over me, my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will rise. Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light.
- Jeremiah 3:1“If a man divorces his wife and she leaves him and marries another man, should he return to her again? Would not the land be completely defiled? But you have lived as a prostitute with many lovers— would you now return to me?” declares the Lord.
- Jeremiah 4:1“If you, Israel, will return, then return to me,” declares the Lord. “If you put your detestable idols out of my sight and no longer go astray,
- Jeremiah 23:14And among the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen something horrible: They commit adultery and live a lie. They strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that not one of them turns from their wickedness. They are all like Sodom to me; the people of Jerusalem are like Gomorrah.”
- Jeremiah 36:3Perhaps when the people of Judah hear about every disaster I plan to inflict on them, they will each turn from their wicked ways; then I will forgive their wickedness and their sin.”
- 1 Kings 8:38and when a prayer or plea is made by anyone among your people Israel—being aware of the afflictions of their own hearts, and spreading out their hands toward this temple—
- Isaiah 44:22I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you.”
- Isaiah 55:7Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.
- Ezekiel 18:23Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign Lord. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live?
- Hosea 6:1“Come, let us return to the Lord. He has torn us to pieces but he will heal us; he has injured us but he will bind up our wounds.
- Hosea 7:10Israel’s arrogance testifies against him, but despite all this he does not return to the Lord his God or search for him.
Commentaries on Jeremiah 8:4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4Moreover thou shalt say - Dr. Blayney very properly observes, "In that part of the prophecy which follows next, the difference of speakers requires to be attended to; the transition being quick and sudden, but full of life and energy. The prophet at first, in the name of God, reproves the people's incorrigibility; he charges their wise ones with folly, and threatens them with grievous calamities, Jeremiah 8:4-13. In the three next verses he seems to…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4The prophet here resumes from Jeremiah 7:28 the main subject of his prophecy. He again invites the Jews to repentance. Shall they fall? - The argument is that when men fall, they do not lie upon the ground, but endeavor to get up again: and when a man loses his way, he does not persist in going on, but turns round, and retraces his steps. Israel then will be only following the dictates of comnon sense in desisting from that which she now knows to be her…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 4-13Verses 4-13 What brought this ruin? 1. The people would not attend to reason; they would not act in the affairs of their souls with common prudence. Sin is backsliding; it is going back from the way that leads to life, to that which leads to destruction. 2. They would not attend to the warning of conscience. They did not take the first step towards repentance: true repentance begins in serious inquiry as to what we have done, from conviction that we have…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4-7These verses list the evidence of Judah's sins. The people engaged in ritual sex related to idol worship. They followed idol worship practices. They stayed in their delusions because lies trapped their minds and hearts. The term "lies" often refers to idols (Jeremiah 5:3, 6; 7:24; 9:6; Proverbs 24:16; Isaiah 44:20; Amos 5:2; Micah 7:8).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. "Is it not a natural instinct, that if one falls, he rises again; if one turns away (that is, wanders from the way), he will return to the point from which he wandered? Why then does not Jerusalem do so?" He plays on the double sense of return; literal and metaphorical (Jr 3:12; 4:1).Read the comment
Topics related to Jeremiah 8:4
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Jeremiah 8
- 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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