Jeremiah 11:12

12 Then all the people in Judah and Jerusalem will start praying to the gods you've been sacrificing to all these years, but it won't do a bit of good.

Jeremiah 11:12 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 11:12

Then shall the cities of Judah, and the inhabitants of
Jerusalem
That is, the inhabitants of the cities of Judah, as well as the inhabitants of the city of Jerusalem; the former being in distress through the enemy being in their land, as well as the latter besieged by him: go and cry unto the gods unto whom they offer incense;
Baal, the queen of heaven, sun, moon, planets, and all the hosts of heaven, as in ( Jeremiah 44:15 Jeremiah 44:17 ) ( 2 Kings 23:5 ) , these they should cry unto for help and deliverance in vain: but they shall not save them at all in the time of their trouble;
not yield them the least relief and comfort in their trouble, so far from saving them entirely from it.

Jeremiah 11:12 In-Context

10 They've plotted to reenact the sins of their ancestors - the ones who disobeyed me and decided to go after other gods and worship them. Israel and Judah are in this together, mindlessly breaking the covenant I made with their ancestors."
11 "Well, your God has something to say about this: Watch out! I'm about to visit doom on you, and no one will get out of it. You're going to cry for help but I won't listen.
12 Then all the people in Judah and Jerusalem will start praying to the gods you've been sacrificing to all these years, but it won't do a bit of good.
13 You've got as many gods as you have villages, Judah! And you've got enough altars for sacrifices to that impotent sex god Baal to put one on every street corner in Jerusalem!"
14 "And as for you, Jeremiah, I don't want you praying for this people. Nothing! Not a word of petition. Indeed, I'm not going to listen to a single syllable of their crisis-prayers." Promises and Pious Programs
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.