Jeremiah 13:18

18 The Lord said to me, "Tell the king and his mother to come down from their thrones, because their beautiful crowns have fallen from their heads.

Jeremiah 13:18 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 13:18

Say unto the king, and to the queen
Jehoiachin, and his mother Nehushta, as it is generally interpreted by the Jewish commentators, and others; who, with many princes and officers, were carried captive into Babylon, ( 2 Kings 24:12-15 ) or rather Zedekiah and his wife; since the captivity after threatened is a perfect and complete one, which Jehoiachin's was not: humble yourselves, sit down;
or, "sit down humbled" F4; come down from your thrones, and sit in the dust; humble yourselves before the Lord for your own sins, and the sins of the people; in times of general corruption, and which threatens a nation with ruin, it becomes kings and princes to set an example of repentance, humiliation, and reformation; though it may be this is rather a prediction of what would be, that they should descend from their throne, and lose their grandeur, and be in a low and abject condition, than an exhortation to what was their duty; since it follows: for your principalities shall come down;
their royal state and greatness, and all the ensigns of it; and especially such as they had upon their heads, as the word used denotes, and as the following explanation shows: even the crown of your glory;
or glorious crown, which should fall from their heads, or be taken from them, when they should be no more served in state, or treated as crowned heads.


FOOTNOTES:

F4 (wbv wlypvh) "degite humiliter", Castalio; "abjectissime considite", Junius & Tremellius; "loco humili considite", Piscator

Jeremiah 13:18 In-Context

16 Honor the Lord, your God, before he brings darkness, and you stumble on the mountains; before he turns into deep darkness the light you hoped for.
17 If you will not listen, I will cry in secret because of your pride; I will cry bitterly, and my tears will flow because the Lord's people have been taken away as captives.
18 The Lord said to me, "Tell the king and his mother to come down from their thrones, because their beautiful crowns have fallen from their heads.
19 The towns of southern Judah are under siege; no one can get through to them. All the people of Judah have been taken away into exile."
20 Jerusalem, look! Your enemies are coming down from the north! Where are the people entrusted to your care, your people you were so proud of?

Footnotes 1

  • [a]. [Some ancient translations] from their heads; [Hebrew unclear.]
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.