Jeremiah 44:26

26 "Nevertheless hear the word of the LORD, all Judah who are living in the land of Egypt, 'Behold, I have 1sworn by My great name,' says the LORD, '2never shall My name be invoked again by the mouth of any man of Judah in all the land of Egypt, saying, "3As the Lord GOD lives."

Jeremiah 44:26 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 44:26

Therefore hear ye the word of the Lord, all Judah that dwell
in the land of Egypt (See Gill on Jeremiah 44:24); since you have made your vows, and will perform them, I will take an oath, and abide by it: behold, I have sworn by my great name, saith the Lord;
by his name Jehovah, which is incommunicable, and expressive of his eternity and immutability; or by himself, his name being himself, and than which he can swear by no greater, ( Hebrews 6:13 ) ; that my name shall no more be named in the mouth of any man of Judah
in all the land of Egypt, saying, the Lord God liveth:
this cannot be understood of the name of the Lord being called upon them, or of their being called by his name, and reckoned his people, which is the sense of Abarbinel; since this respects not a name by which they should be named, but which they should name; and intends their use of the divine name in an oath, of which this is a form, "the Lord God liveth": or as sure as the Lord lives, or by the living God, it is so and so; and especially as used in their vows to burn incense to the queen of heaven, they vowing by the living God that they would do so, which must be very abominable to him; and therefore he solemnly swears there should not be a Jew in all Egypt that should use it; the reason is, because everyone of them that did should be cut off, as follows:

Jeremiah 44:26 In-Context

24 Then Jeremiah said to all the people, including all the women, "Hear the word of the LORD , all Judah who are in the land of Egypt,
25 thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, as follows: 'As for you and your wives, you have spoken with your mouths and fulfilled it with your hands, saying, "We will certainly perform our vows that we have vowed, to burn sacrifices to the queen of heaven and pour out drink offerings to her." Go ahead and confirm your vows, and certainly perform your vows!'
26 "Nevertheless hear the word of the LORD , all Judah who are living in the land of Egypt, 'Behold, I have sworn by My great name,' says the LORD , 'never shall My name be invoked again by the mouth of any man of Judah in all the land of Egypt, saying, "As the Lord GOD lives."
27 'Behold, I am watching over them for harm and not for good, and all the men of Judah who are in the land of Egypt will meet their end by the sword and by famine until they are completely gone.
28 'Those who escape the sword will return out of the land of Egypt to the land of Judah few in number. Then all the remnant of Judah who have gone to the land of Egypt to reside there will know whose word will stand, Mine or theirs.

Cross References 3

  • 1. Genesis 22:16; Deuteronomy 32:40, 41; Jeremiah 22:5; Amos 6:8; Hebrews 6:13
  • 2. Psalms 50:16; Ezekiel 20:39
  • 3. Isaiah 48:1, 2; Jeremiah 5:2

Footnotes 2

  • [a]. Lit "Therefore"
  • [b]. Heb "YHWH," usually rendered LORD
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