Jeremiah 2:27

27 They say to wood, ‘You are my father,’ and to stone, ‘You gave me birth.’ They have turned their backs to me and not their faces; yet when they are in trouble, they say, ‘Come and save us!’

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Jeremiah 2:27 in Other Translations

KJV

27 Saying to a stock, Thou art my father; and to a stone, Thou hast brought me forth: for they have turned their back unto me, and not their face: but in the time of their trouble they will say, Arise, and save us.

ESV

27 who say to a tree, 'You are my father,' and to a stone, 'You gave me birth.' For they have turned their back to me, and not their face. But in the time of their trouble they say, 'Arise and save us!'

NLT

27 To an image carved from a piece of wood they say, ‘You are my father.’ To an idol chiseled from a block of stone they say, ‘You are my mother.’ They turn their backs on me, but in times of trouble they cry out to me, ‘Come and save us!’

MSG

27 They walk up to a tree and say, 'My father!' They pick up a stone and say, 'My mother! You bore me!' All I ever see of them is their backsides. They never look me in the face. But when things go badly, they don't hesitate to come running, calling out, 'Get a move on! Save us!'

CSB

27 say to a tree: You are my father, and to a stone: You gave birth to me. For they have turned their back to Me and not their face, but in their time of disaster they beg: Rise up and save us!

Jeremiah 2:27 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 2:27

Saying to a stock
"To a tree" ^F6; to a piece of wood; that is, to an image made of it; so the Targum,

``they say to an image of wood;''

what follows: thou art my father;
ascribing that to the idol which belongs to God, who was their Father that made them, and upheld them, was the author of their beings, and the God of their mercies: and to a stone;
an image of stone: thou hast brought me forth:
into being; affirming it to be his former and maker; so the Targum,

``to that which is made of stone, thou hast created me:''

for they have turned their back unto me, and not their face;
they turned their faces to images of wood and stone, and worshipped them; and they turned their backs upon the Lord, his worship and ordinances, and apostatized from him; which the Targum thus expresses,

``for they turned their backs on my worship, and did not put my fear before their faces:''

but in the time of their trouble;
when any calamity befalls them, as famine, pestilence, sword, captivity, and the like: they will say, arise, and save us;
not that they will say so to their idols, but they will say so to the true God; for notwithstanding they worshipped idols in time of prosperity, forgetting God their Saviour; yet in adversity they are brought to their senses, and find that none but God can save them, and therefore apply to him; to which agrees the Targum,

``and in the time that evil comes upon them, they deny their idols, and confess before me, and say, have mercy on us, and save us.''

FOOTNOTES:

F6 (Uel) "ligno", V. L. Pagnanius, Montanus, Schmidt.

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible

Jeremiah 2:27 In-Context

25 Do not run until your feet are bare and your throat is dry. But you said, ‘It’s no use! I love foreign gods, and I must go after them.’

26 “As a thief is disgraced when he is caught, so the people of Israel are disgraced— they, their kings and their officials, their priests and their prophets.

28 Where then are the gods you made for yourselves? Let them come if they can save you when you are in trouble! For you, Judah, have as many gods as you have towns.

29 “Why do you bring charges against me? You have all rebelled against me,” declares the LORD.