New King James Version
Jeremiah 8:17
17“For behold, I will send serpents among you, Vipers which cannot be charmed, And they shall bite you,” says the Lord.
Jeremiah 8:17 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)For, behold, I will send serpents, cockatrices, among you, which will not be charmed, and they shall bite you, saith the Lord.
- New International Version (NIV)“See, I will send venomous snakes among you, vipers that cannot be charmed, and they will bite you,” declares the Lord.
- English Standard Version (ESV)For behold, I am sending among you serpents, adders that cannot be charmed, and they shall bite you," declares the Lord.
- New Living Translation (NLT)I will send these enemy troops among you like poisonous snakes you cannot charm. They will bite you, and you will die. I, the Lord, have spoken!”
Context of Jeremiah 8:17
15“We looked for peace, but no good came; And for a time of health, and there was trouble! 16The snorting of His horses was heard from Dan. The whole land trembled at the sound of the neighing of His strong ones; For they have come and devoured the land and all that is in it, The city and those who dwell in it.” “For behold, I will send serpents among you, Vipers which cannot be charmed, And they shall bite you,” says the Lord. 18I would comfort myself in sorrow; My heart is faint in me. 19Listen! The voice, The cry of the daughter of my people From a far country: “Is not the Lord in Zion? Is not her King in her?” “Why have they provoked Me to anger With their carved images— With foreign idols?”
Read all of Jeremiah 8Jeremiah 8:17 word by word
כִּי֩ הִנְנִ֨י מְשַׁלֵּ֜חַ בָּכֶ֗ם נְחָשִׁים֙ צִפְעֹנִ֔ים אֲשֶׁ֥ר אֵין־לָהֶ֖ם לָ֑חַשׁ וְנִשְּׁכ֥וּ אֶתְכֶ֖ם נְאֻם־יְהוָֽה׃ סRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- For, behold, I will sendשָׁלַחshâlach · to send: departH7971
- serpentsנָחָשׁnâchâsh · serpentH5175
- cockatricesצִפְעוֹנִיtsepha‛ tsiph‛ônîy · serpentH6848
- charmedלַ֫חַשׁlachash · charmH3908
- and they shall biteנָשַׁךְnâshak · to biteH5391
- you, saithנְאֻםne'ûm · utteranceH5002
- the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
Cross-references for Jeremiah 8:17
- Deuteronomy 32:24They shall be wasted with hunger, Devoured by pestilence and bitter destruction; I will also send against them the teeth of beasts, With the poison of serpents of the dust.
- Isaiah 14:29“Do not rejoice, all you of Philistia, Because the rod that struck you is broken; For out of the serpent’s roots will come forth a viper, And its offspring will be a fiery flying serpent.
- Amos 5:19It will be as though a man fled from a lion, And a bear met him! Or as though he went into the house, Leaned his hand on the wall, And a serpent bit him!
- Amos 9:3And though they hide themselves on top of Carmel, From there I will search and take them; Though they hide from My sight at the bottom of the sea, From there I will command the serpent, and it shall bite them;
- Revelation 9:19For their power is in their mouth and in their tails; for their tails are like serpents, having heads; and with them they do harm.
- Psalms 58:4Their poison is like the poison of a serpent; They are like the deaf cobra that stops its ear,
- Ecclesiastes 10:11A serpent may bite when it is not charmed; The babbler is no different.
Commentaries on Jeremiah 8:17
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17I will send serpents - These were symbols of the enemies that were coming against them; a foe that would rather slay them and destroy the land than get booty and ransom.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 17I will send - Or, am sending. No prophet changes his metaphors so suddenly as Jeremiah. The invading army is now compared to snakes, whom no charming can soothe, and whose bite is fatal. Compare Numbers 21:5-6. Cockatrices - “Vipers.” See Isaiah 11:8 note.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 14-22Verses 14-22 At length they begin to see the hand of God lifted up. And when God appears against us, every thing that is against us appears formidable. As salvation only can be found in the Lord, so the present moment should be seized. Is there no medicine proper for a sick and dying kingdom? Is there no skilful, faithful hand to apply the medicine? Yes, God is able to help and to heal them. If sinners die of their wounds, their blood is upon their own…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4-17These three short poems were likely shared during the reign of Jehoiakim.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1717. I--Jehovah. cockatrices--basilisks (Is 11:8), that is, enemies whose destructive power no means, by persuasion or otherwise, can counteract. Serpent-charmers in the East entice serpents by music, and by a particular pressure on the neck render them incapable of darting (Psa 58:4, 5).Read the comment
Topics related to Jeremiah 8:17
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
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries