Jeremiah 8:1-9

The Sin and Treachery of Judah

1 "At that time," declares the LORD, "they will ¹bring out the bones of the kings of Judah and the bones of its princes, and the bones of the priests and the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem from their graves.

2 "They will spread them out to the sun, the moon and to all the ²host of heaven, which they have loved and which they have served, and which they have gone after and which they have sought, and which they have worshiped. They will not be gathered ³or buried; ⁴they will be as dung on the face of the ground.

3 "And ⁵death will be chosen rather than life by all the remnant that remains of this evil family, that remains in all the ⁶places to which I have driven them," declares the LORD of hosts.

4 "You shall say to them, 'Thus says the LORD, "Do men ⁷fall and not get up again? Does one turn away and not repent?

5 "Why then has this people, Jerusalem, ⁸Turned away in continual apostasy? They ⁹hold fast to deceit, They ¹⁰refuse to return.

6 "I ¹¹have listened and heard, They have spoken what is not right; ¹²No man repented of his wickedness, Saying, 'What have I done?' Everyone turned to his course, Like a ¹³horse charging into the battle.

7 "Even the stork in the sky ¹⁴Knows her seasons; And the ¹⁵turtledove and the swift and the thrush Observe the time of their migration; But ¹⁶My people do not know The ordinance of the LORD.

8 "¹⁷How can you say, 'We are wise, And the law of the LORD is with us'? But behold, the lying pen of the scribes Has made it into a lie.

9 "The wise men are ¹⁸put to shame, They are dismayed and caught; Behold, they have ¹⁹rejected the word of the LORD, And what kind of wisdom do they have?

Jeremiah 8:1-9 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO JEREMIAH 8

In this chapter the prophet goes on to denounce grievous calamities upon the people of the Jews; such as would make death more eligible than life; and that because of their idolatry, Jer 8:1-3 and also because of their heinous backslidings in other respects, and continuance in them, Jer 8:4,5 likewise their impenitence and stupidity, Jer 8:6,7 their vain conceit of themselves and their own wisdom; their false interpretation of Scripture, and their rejection of the word of God, Jer 8:8,9 their covetousness, for which it is said their wives and fields should be given to others, Jer 8:10, their flattery of the people, and their impudence, on account of which, ruin and consumption, and a blast on their vines and fig trees, are threatened, Jer 8:11-13, their consternation is described, by their fleeing to their defenced cities; by their sad disappointment in the expectation of peace and prosperity; and the near approach of their enemies; devouring their land, and all in it; who are compared to serpents and cockatrices that cannot be charmed, Jer 8:14-17 and the chapter is closed with the prophet's expressions of sorrow and concern for his people, because of their distress their idolatry had brought upon them; and because of their hopeless, and seemingly irrecoverable, state and condition, Jer 8:18-22.

Cross References

• 1. Ezekiel 6:5
• 2. 2 Kings 23:5; Jeremiah 19:13; Zephaniah 1:5; Acts 7:42
• 3. Jeremiah 22:19; Jeremiah 36:30
• 4. 2 Kings 9:37; Psalms 83:10; Jeremiah 9:22
• 5. Job 3:21, 22; Job 7:15, 16; Jonah 4:3; Revelation 9:6
• 6. Deuteronomy 30:1, 4; Jeremiah 23:3, 8; Jeremiah 29:14
• 7. Proverbs 24:16; Amos 5:2; Micah 7:8
• 8. Jeremiah 5:6; Jeremiah 7:24
• 9. Jeremiah 5:27; Jeremiah 9:6
• 10. Jeremiah 5:3
• 11. Psalms 14:2; Malachi 3:16
• 12. Ezekiel 22:30; Micah 7:2; Revelation 9:20
• 13. Job 39:21-25
• 14. Proverbs 6:6-8; Isaiah 1:3
• 15. Song of Songs 2:12
• 16. Jeremiah 5:4
• 17. Job 5:12, 13; Jeremiah 4:22; Romans 1:22
• 18. Isaiah 19:11; Jeremiah 6:15; 1 Corinthians 1:27
• 19. Jeremiah 6:19

Footnotes

• [a]. Lit "turn back"
• [b]. Lit "coming"