Jeremiah 10:12

12 The Lord made the earth by his power; by his wisdom he created the world and stretched out the heavens.

Jeremiah 10:12 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 10:12

He hath made the earth by his power
The Targum considers these words as a continuation of the answer of the Jews to the Chaldeans, paraphrasing them thus,

``and so shall ye say unto them, `we worship him who hath made the earth by his power':''
who stands opposed to the gods that made not the heavens and the earth, that had no title to deity, nor right to worship; but the true God has both; and his making the earth out of nothing, and hanging it upon nothing, and preserving it firm and stable, are proofs of his almighty power, and so of his deity; and consequently that he ought to be worshipped, and he only. He hath established the world by his wisdom;
upon the rivers and floods; or he hath poised it in the air; or he hath disposed it in an orderly, regular, and beautiful manner, as the word F21 used signifies; by making it terraqueous, partly land, and partly water; by opening in it fountains and rivers; by diversifying it with hills and vales, with wood and arable land; all which show the wisdom as well as the power of God. And hath stretched out the heavens by his discretion;
as a canopy over the earth, as a tent to dwell in; and which is beautifully bespangled with the luminaries in it; hence it has the name of expanse, or the firmament of heaven.
FOOTNOTES:

F21 (Nykm) "aptavit", Cocceius; "preparans", Schmidt; a (Nwk) "aptavit, disposuit", Gussetius.

Jeremiah 10:12 In-Context

10 But you, Lord, are the true God, you are the living God and the eternal king. When you are angry, the world trembles; the nations cannot endure your anger.
11 (You people must tell them that the gods who did not make the earth and the sky will be destroyed. They will no longer exist anywhere on earth.)
12 The Lord made the earth by his power; by his wisdom he created the world and stretched out the heavens.
13 At his command the waters above the sky roar; he brings clouds from the ends of the earth. He makes lightning flash in the rain and sends the wind from his storeroom.
14 At the sight of this, people feel stupid and senseless; those who make idols are disillusioned, because the gods they make are false and lifeless.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.