Tree of Life Version
Jeremiah 4:23
23I looked at the earth and behold, it was deserted and desolate, and at the heavens and they had no light.
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 battle standard and hear the sound of the shofar? 22“For My people are foolish. They do not know Me. They are senseless children, and they have no understanding. They are wise to do evil, but to do good they do not know.” I looked at the earth and behold, it was deserted and desolate, and at the heavens and they had no light. 24I looked at the mountains— behold, they were shaking and all the hills swaying to and fro. 25I looked and behold, no people! All the birds of the sky had fled.
Read all of Jeremiah 4Jeremiah 4:23 word by word
רָאִ֙יתִי֙ אֶת־הָאָ֔רֶץ וְהִנֵּה־תֹ֖הוּ וָבֹ֑הוּ וְאֶל־הַשָּׁמַ֖יִם וְאֵ֥ין אוֹרָֽם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Jeremiah 4:23
- Jeremiah 9:10“I will make Jerusalem a heap of ruins, a lair for jackals. I will make the cities of Judah a wasteland without inhabitant.
- Genesis 1:2Now the earth was chaos and waste, darkness was on the surface of the deep, and the Ruach Elohim was hovering upon the surface of the water.
- Isaiah 24:19The earth is broken apart, the earth is split open, the earth is shaken utterly.
- Revelation 20:11Then I saw a great white throne, and the One seated on it. The earth and heaven fled from His presence, but no place was found for them.
- Isaiah 5:30They will roar against them like the roaring of the sea. If one looks to the land, behold, darkness and distress! The light is darkened by the clouds.
- Isaiah 13:10For the stars of heaven and their constellations will not give their light. The rising sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light.
- Ezekiel 32:7When I extinguish you, I will cover the sky and darken the stars. I will cover the sun with cloud, and the moon will not give her light.
- Joel 2:10Before them land quakes, heaven trembles, sun and moon become dark, stars withdraw their brightness.
- Amos 8:9“It will be in that day” —declares my Lord Adonai— “I will make the sun go down at noon, yes, I will darken the earth in daylight.
- Matthew 24:29“But immediately after the trouble of those days, ‘the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light and the stars will fall from heaven and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.’
- Mark 13:25and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.’
- Luke 21:25“There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars. And upon the earth nations will be confused by the roaring of the sea and its waves.
- Acts 2:19And I will give wonders in the sky above and signs on the earth beneath— blood, and fire, and smoky vapor.
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
In the dictionaries
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
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