New King James Version
Jeremiah 18:21
21Therefore deliver up their children to the famine, And pour out their blood By the force of the sword; Let their wives become widows And bereaved of their children. Let their men be put to death, Their young men be slain By the sword in battle.
Jeremiah 18:21 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Therefore deliver up their children to the famine, and pour out their blood by the force of the sword; and let their wives be bereaved of their children, and be widows; and let their men be put to death; let their young men be slain by the sword in battle.
- New International Version (NIV)So give their children over to famine; hand them over to the power of the sword. Let their wives be made childless and widows; let their men be put to death, their young men slain by the sword in battle.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Therefore deliver up their children to famine; give them over to the power of the sword; let their wives become childless and widowed. May their men meet death by pestilence, their youths be struck down by the sword in battle.
- New Living Translation (NLT)So let their children starve! Let them die by the sword! Let their wives become childless widows. Let their old men die in a plague, and let their young men be killed in battle!
Context of Jeremiah 18:21
19Give heed to me, O Lord, And listen to the voice of those who contend with me! 20Shall evil be repaid for good? For they have dug a pit for my life. Remember that I stood before You To speak good for them, To turn away Your wrath from them. Therefore deliver up their children to the famine, And pour out their blood By the force of the sword; Let their wives become widows And bereaved of their children. Let their men be put to death, Their young men be slain By the sword in battle. 22Let a cry be heard from their houses, When You bring a troop suddenly upon them; For they have dug a pit to take me, And hidden snares for my feet. 23Yet, Lord, You know all their counsel Which is against me, to slay me. Provide no atonement for their iniquity, Nor blot out their sin from Your sight; But let them be overthrown before You. Deal thus with them In the time of Your anger.
Read all of Jeremiah 18Jeremiah 18:21 word by word
לָכֵן֩ תֵּ֨ן אֶת־בְּנֵיהֶ֜ם לָרָעָ֗ב וְהַגִּרֵם֮ עַל־יְדֵי־חֶרֶב֒ וְתִֽהְיֶ֨נָה נְשֵׁיהֶ֤ם שַׁכֻּלוֹת֙ וְאַלְמָנ֔וֹת וְאַ֨נְשֵׁיהֶ֔ם יִֽהְי֖וּ הֲרֻ֣גֵי מָ֑וֶת בַּח֣וּרֵיהֶ֔ם מֻכֵּי־חֶ֖רֶב בַּמִּלְחָמָֽה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Therefore deliver upנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
- their childrenבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
- to the famineרָעָבrâ‛âb · famineH7458
- and pour outנָגַרnâgar · to pourH5064
- by the forceיָדyâd · hand: powerH3027
- of the swordחֶ֫רֶבchereb · swordH2719
- and let their wivesאִשָּׁה'ishshâh nâshîym · woman: wifeH802
- be bereavedשַׁכּוּלshakkûl shakkûl · childlessH7909
- widowsאַלְמָנָה'almânâh · widowH490
- and let their menאֱנוֹשׁ'ĕnôsh · humanH582
- be putהָרַגhârag · to killH2026
- to deathמָ֫וֶתmâveth · deathH4194
- their young menבָּחוּרbâchûr bâchûr · youthH970
- slainנָכָהnâkâh · to smiteH5221
- in battleמִלְחָמָהmilchâmâh · battleH4421
Cross-references for Jeremiah 18:21
- Jeremiah 11:20But, O Lord of hosts, You who judge righteously, Testing the mind and the heart, Let me see Your vengeance on them, For to You I have revealed my cause.
- Jeremiah 12:3But You, O Lord, know me; You have seen me, And You have tested my heart toward You. Pull them out like sheep for the slaughter, And prepare them for the day of slaughter.
- Jeremiah 20:1Now Pashhur the son of Immer, the priest who was also chief governor in the house of the Lord, heard that Jeremiah prophesied these things.
- Psalms 109:9Let his children be fatherless, And his wife a widow.
- 2 Timothy 4:14Alexander the coppersmith did me much harm. May the Lord repay him according to his works.
- Jeremiah 15:2And it shall be, if they say to you, ‘Where should we go?’ then you shall tell them, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Such as are for death, to death; And such as are for the sword, to the sword; And such as are for the famine, to the famine; And such as are for the captivity, to the captivity.” ’
- Jeremiah 16:3For thus says the Lord concerning the sons and daughters who are born in this place, and concerning their mothers who bore them and their fathers who begot them in this land:
- Exodus 22:24and My wrath will become hot, and I will kill you with the sword; your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless.
- Deuteronomy 32:25The sword shall destroy outside; There shall be terror within For the young man and virgin, The nursing child with the man of gray hairs.
- Lamentations 5:3We have become orphans and waifs, Our mothers are like widows.
- Jeremiah 9:21For death has come through our windows, Has entered our palaces, To kill off the children— no longer to be outside! And the young men— no longer on the streets!
- Jeremiah 11:22therefore thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Behold, I will punish them. The young men shall die by the sword, their sons and their daughters shall die by famine;
- 2 Chronicles 36:17Therefore He brought against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion on young man or virgin, on the aged or the weak; He gave them all into his hand.
- Amos 4:10“I sent among you a plague after the manner of Egypt; Your young men I killed with a sword, Along with your captive horses; I made the stench of your camps come up into your nostrils; Yet you have not returned to Me,” Says the Lord.
Commentaries on Jeremiah 18:21
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 21Therefore deliver up their children - The execrations in these verses should be considered as simply prophetic declarations of the judgments which God was about to pour out on them. If we consider them in their grammatical meaning, then they are not directions to us to whom our Lawgiver has said, "Love your enemies."Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 21Pour out sword - literally, “pour them out upon the hands of the sword, i. e., give them up to the sword.” Put to death - Rather, slain of death. The prophet‘s phrase leaves it entirely indefinite in what way the men are to die.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 18-23Verses 18-23 When the prophet called to repentance, instead of obeying the call, the people devised devices against him. Thus do sinners deal with the great Intercessor, crucifying him afresh, and speaking against him on earth, while his blood is speaking for them in heaven. But the prophet had done his duty to them; and the same will be our rejoicing in a day of evil.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 21-23In his prayer for vengeance, Jeremiah asked God to carry out the promised curses on those who broke his covenant (compare Deuteronomy 27:11–26; 28:15–68; see also the “Prayers for Vengeance” Theme Note).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2121. pour out their blood by the force of the sword--literally, "by the hands of the sword." So Eze 35:5. Maurer with Jerome translates, "deliver them over to the power of the sword." But compare Psa 63:10, Margin; Is 53:12. In this prayer he does not indulge in personal revenge, as if it were his own cause that was at stake; but he speaks under the dictation of the Spirit, ceasing to intercede, and speaking prophetically, knowing they were doomed to…Read the comment
Topics related to Jeremiah 18:21
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Jeremiah 18
- 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
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries