The Jews in Egypt: Idolatry and Condemnation
Jeremiah 44:1-30
Jer.44.1 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- הדבר: NOUN,m,sg,def
- אשר: PRON,rel
- היה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אל: NEG
- ירמיהו: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אל: NEG
- כל: DET
- היהודים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- הישבים: PART,qal,ptc,3,m,pl,def
- בארץ: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,def
- מצרים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- הישבים: PART,qal,ptc,3,m,pl,def
- במגדל: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ובתחפנחס: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ובנף: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ובארץ: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,f,sg,cs
- פתרוס: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
Parallels
- Jeremiah 42:1-22 (structural): Earlier episode where surviving Judeans consider fleeing to Egypt and ask Jeremiah for guidance; provides the immediate narrative background and prophetic warning against going to Egypt that precedes the oracles addressed to those who nevertheless settle there.
- Jeremiah 43:8-13 (structural): Direct continuation of the same narrative cycle: Jeremiah delivers judgment concerning those who went to Egypt, explicitly naming Tahpanhes and predicting foreign intervention—closely connected in setting and message to 44:1.
- Ezekiel 29:1-16 (thematic): Ezekiel’s oracle against Egypt (including prophecies about Pharaoh and Egyptian cities) parallels Jeremiah’s prophetic condemnation of Egyptian refuge and foreign domination of Egypt after Judah’s collapse.
- Isaiah 19:1-25 (thematic): Isaiah’s long prophecy concerning Egypt (judgment, civil upheaval, and a future turning to the LORD) parallels Jeremiah 44’s focus on Egypt as the destination of Judean refugees and the site of divine judgment and restoration motifs.
Alternative generated candidates
- The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the Jews who were living in the land of Egypt, at Migdol, at Tahpanhes, at Noph, and in the land of Pathros, saying:
- The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the Jews who lived in the land of Egypt, who were living in Migdol, in Tahpanhes, in Noph, and in the land of Pathros, saying:
Jer.44.2 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- כה: ADV
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- צבאות: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- אלהי: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- ישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אתם: PRON,2,m,pl
- ראיתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- כל: DET
- הרעה: NOUN,f,sg,def
- אשר: PRON,rel
- הבאתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,_,sg
- על: PREP
- ירושלם: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ועל: CONJ+PREP
- כל: DET
- ערי: NOUN,f,pl,cons
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- והנם: CONJ+DEM,3,m,pl
- חרבה: ADJ,f,sg,abs
- היום: NOUN,m,sg,def
- הזה: DEM,m,sg
- ואין: CONJ+PART,exist
- בהם: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
- יושב: VERB,qal,ptcp,1,m,sg
Parallels
- Leviticus 26:32-33 (verbal): God threatens to make the land and its cities a desolation and to scatter the people among the nations—language closely parallels 'they are desolate... no one dwells in them.'
- Deuteronomy 28:63-65 (thematic): Part of the covenant curses: the LORD will bring ruin on your cities, scatter you among the nations, and leave you without rest—the same motif of divine retribution resulting in desolate cities.
- 2 Chronicles 36:19-21 (structural): Narrative fulfillment of Jeremiah's warnings: Jerusalem is destroyed, the people are carried to Babylon, and the land is left desolate, reflecting the condition described in Jer 44:2.
- Lamentations 1:1-3 (thematic): Poetic lament over Jerusalem's desolation and Judah's exile—echoes the depiction of cities laid waste and inhabitants removed as in Jer 44:2.
Alternative generated candidates
- Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: You have seen all the evil that I brought upon Jerusalem and upon all the cities of Judah; behold, they are a desolation this day, without inhabitant.
- Thus says the LORD, the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: You have seen all the disaster that I brought upon Jerusalem and upon all the cities of Judah; behold, they are this day a desolation and no one dwells in them.
Jer.44.3 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- מפני: PREP
- רעתם: NOUN,f,sg,suff-3mp
- אשר: PRON,rel
- עשו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- להכעסני: PREP+VERB,hif,inf,1,m,sg,obj
- ללכת: VERB,qal,inf
- לקטר: PREP+VERB,qal,inf
- לעבד: VERB,qal,inf
- לאלהים: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אחרים: ADJ,m,pl,abs
- אשר: PRON,rel
- לא: PART_NEG
- ידעום: VERB,qal,imperfect,3,m,pl,OBJ=3,m,pl
- המה: PRON,3,m,pl
- אתם: PRON,2,m,pl
- ואבתיכם: CONJ+NOUN,m,pl,abs+2mp
Parallels
- Deuteronomy 32:17 (verbal): Speaks of sacrificing to ‘gods they had not known’/to demons—close verbal and thematic parallel to Jeremiah’s charge of burning incense to gods neither they nor their fathers knew.
- Psalm 78:58 (thematic): Accuses the people of provoking God to anger with their high places and idols—echoes Jeremiah’s language of provoking God by idolatrous worship.
- Jeremiah 2:11-13 (structural): Earlier Jeremiah passage condemning Israel’s exchange of the true God for idols and ‘‘gods which are not gods’’, thematically paralleling the complaint about burning incense to other gods unknown to them.
- 1 Kings 11:9–11,33 (thematic): Describes YHWH’s anger against Solomon because he followed other gods and caused the people to do likewise—parallels Jeremiah’s motif of divine wrath provoked by idolatry.
Alternative generated candidates
- Because of their evil that they did to provoke me to anger—going to burn incense and to serve other gods whom they did not know, they and their fathers—
- Because of the evil that they did to provoke me to anger—by going to burn incense and serve other gods, whom neither you nor your fathers knew.
Jer.44.4 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ואשלח: VERB,qal,impf,1,_,sg
- אליכם: PREP+PRON,2,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- כל: DET
- עבדי: NOUN,m,pl,cons
- הנביאים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- השכים: VERB,qal,ptc,m,pl,def
- ושלח: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
- אל: NEG
- נא: PART
- תעשו: VERB,qal,impv,2,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- דבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- התעבה: NOUN,f,sg,def
- הזאת: DEM,f,sg,def
- אשר: PRON,rel
- שנאתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,c,sg
Parallels
- Jeremiah 25:4 (verbal): Nearly identical wording — God declares He sent all His servants the prophets, rising early, to warn the people, emphasizing prior prophetic warnings.
- Jeremiah 7:25-26 (verbal): Same Jeremiah theme and phrasing: God has repeatedly sent prophets from the days of their fathers to that day, but the people did not listen and committed abominations.
- 2 Kings 17:13 (thematic): Describes the LORD sending prophets and seers to Israel to warn them to abandon their evil ways and abominations, but the people refused to listen — a parallel in theme of ignored prophetic warnings.
- 2 Chronicles 36:15-16 (thematic): God repeatedly sent messengers to call the people to repentance, but they mocked and persecuted them — parallels the motif of sent prophets whose warnings are rejected.
- Ezekiel 3:17-21 (structural): Presents the prophetic watchman function: God appoints a prophet to warn the people and holds the prophet responsible to deliver the warning — connects to the sending of prophets to admonish against abominations.
Alternative generated candidates
- and though I sent to you all my servants the prophets early and I sent them, saying, ‘Do not do this detestable thing that I hate,’
- And I sent to you all my servants the prophets, rising early and sending them, saying, 'Do not do this hateful thing that I hate.'
Jer.44.5 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ולא: CONJ
- שמעו: VERB,qal,impv,2,m,pl
- ולא: CONJ
- הטו: VERB,qal,perf,3,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- אזנם: NOUN,f,pl,abs+3,m,pl
- לשוב: INF,qal
- מרעתם: NOUN,f,sg,suff,3,m,pl
- לבלתי: PART,neg
- קטר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לאלהים: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אחרים: ADJ,m,pl,abs
Parallels
- Jeremiah 7:25 (verbal): Repetitive prophetic refrain: 'I sent to you... but you did not listen nor incline your ear' — same language and charge of refusing to heed God's messengers and repent.
- Jeremiah 11:8 (verbal): Uses similar wording about not listening and persisting in evil, reinforcing Jeremiah's theme of stubborn disobedience.
- 2 Kings 17:14-15 (thematic): Describes Israel's failure to listen to God's prophets and their continued idolatry — parallels the refusal to turn from evil and to stop burning incense to other gods.
- Ezekiel 20:8 (thematic): God's complaint that the people 'rebelled and would not listen' and then committed idolatry echoes Jeremiah's accusation of willful disobedience and continued worship of other gods.
Alternative generated candidates
- they did not listen nor incline their ear to turn from their evil, to stop burning incense to other gods.
- But they did not listen nor incline their ear to turn from their evil, to cease from burning incense to other gods.
Jer.44.6 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ותתך: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- חמתי: NOUN,f,sg,pronominal_1cs
- ואפי: NOUN,m,sg,abs+1s
- ותבער: VERB,hiph,impf,3,f,sg
- בערי: PREP+NOUN,f,pl,const
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- ובחצות: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,f,pl,abs
- ירושלם: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ותהיינה: VERB,qal,impf,3,f,pl
- לחרבה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- לשממה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- כיום: ADV
- הזה: DEM,m,sg
Parallels
- Jeremiah 25:9-11 (thematic): Declares Yahweh will pour out his wrath on Judah and Jerusalem, leading to desolation and exile—same judgment theme and outcome as Jer 44:6.
- Lamentations 2:3-5 (verbal): Speaks of the Lord pouring out his wrath and making Jerusalem desolate; language and imagery of divine fury and ruin closely echo Jer 44:6.
- 2 Kings 25:9-10 (structural): Historical fulfillment: Nebuzaradan burns the house of the Lord and the houses of Jerusalem, leaving the city in ruins—concrete realization of the destruction announced in Jer 44:6.
- Ezekiel 6:14 (thematic): God announces he will make the cities desolate and the land a waste because of idolatry—parallels Jer 44:6’s motif of punishment by desolation for covenant unfaithfulness.
Alternative generated candidates
- Therefore my wrath and my fury were poured out and were kindled in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; they became a desolation and a waste, as they are this day.
- Therefore my wrath and my anger were poured out and kindled in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; they have become a desolation and astonishment, as at this day.
Jer.44.7 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ועתה: CONJ
- כה: ADV
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלהי: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- צבאות: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- אלהי: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- ישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- למה: ADV
- אתם: PRON,2,m,pl
- עשים: VERB,qal,inf
- רעה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- גדולה: ADJ,f,sg,abs
- אל: NEG
- נפשתכם: NOUN,f,sg,abs+PRON,2,m,pl
- להכרית: PREP+VERB,hiph,inf,NA,NA,NA
- לכם: PREP,2,m,pl
- איש: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואשה: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- עולל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ויונק: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מתוך: PREP
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- לבלתי: PART,neg
- הותיר: VERB,hiph,perf,3,m,sg
- לכם: PREP,2,m,pl
- שארית: NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Ezekiel 9:6 (verbal): A nearly identical injunction to slaughter all ages in Jerusalem—'slay utterly old and young, both maids, little children, and women'—parallels Jeremiah's threat of destruction of men, women, infants and sucklings.
- Deuteronomy 28:62-64 (structural): Part of the covenant curses promising national decimation and scattering as a consequence of covenant unfaithfulness—echoes Jeremiah's warning that the people of Judah will be destroyed and left with no remnant.
- Jeremiah 19:4,9 (thematic): Same prophetic collection: God announces catastrophic judgment on the city because of idolatry, including imagery of utter desolation and eating of children—parallels the motive (apostasy) and result (total ruin) in Jer 44:7.
- Isaiah 13:16 (thematic): Oracles against a nation that include the killing or dashing of children and the annihilation of families—themewise parallel in the depiction of comprehensive, multi‑generational destruction.
Alternative generated candidates
- Now therefore thus says the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: Why are you doing this great evil to yourselves—to cut off man and woman, infant and suckling, from Judah, so that there be no remnant left to you?
- Now therefore thus says the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: Why are you doing great evil to your own souls, to cut off man and woman, infant and nursing child, from Judah, so that you leave no remnant to yourselves?
Jer.44.8 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- להכעסני: PREP+VERB,hif,inf,1,m,sg,obj
- במעשי: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,cons
- ידיכם: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- לקטר: PREP+VERB,qal,inf
- לאלהים: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אחרים: ADJ,m,pl,abs
- בארץ: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,def
- מצרים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- אשר: PRON,rel
- אתם: PRON,2,m,pl
- באים: VERB,qal,part,3,m,pl
- לגור: VERB,qal,inf
- שם: ADV
- למען: PREP
- הכרית: VERB,hiph,perf,2,m,sg
- לכם: PREP,2,m,pl
- ולמען: CONJ+PREP
- היותכם: NOUN,m,sg,suff=2mp
- לקללה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ולחרפה: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- בכל: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- גויי: NOUN,m,pl,const
- הארץ: NOUN,f,sg,def
Parallels
- Deuteronomy 28:37 (thematic): The curse of becoming a byword/proverb among all nations echoes Jeremiah’s phrase about becoming a 'curse and reproach among all the nations of the earth.'
- Deuteronomy 4:25-28 (thematic): Warns that when Israel is scattered among the nations they will worship other gods in foreign lands—parallels Jeremiah’s rebuke of sacrificing to other gods while dwelling in Egypt.
- Exodus 32:7-10 (allusion): God’s anger at Israel for idolatry (the golden calf) and His threat to 'consume' or cut them off parallels the charge that their offerings to other gods provoke the LORD and bring destruction.
- 2 Kings 17:18-23 (structural): The account that Israel was sent into exile because they served other gods mirrors Jeremiah’s link between idolatry (in Egypt) and being cut off/remade a reproach among the nations.
Alternative generated candidates
- You have provoked me by the works of your hands, burning incense to other gods in the land of Egypt, where you have gone to dwell, to make you perish and to be a curse and a reproach among all the nations of the earth.
- Because you have provoked me by the works of your hands, by going to burn incense to other gods in the land of Egypt where you have come to dwell—there I will consume you, and you shall become a curse and a reproach among all the nations of the earth.
Jer.44.9 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- השכחתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- רעות: ADJ,f,pl,abs
- אבותיכם: NOUN,m,pl,abs+PRON,2,m,pl
- ואת: CONJ
- רעות: ADJ,f,pl,abs
- מלכי: NOUN,pl,m,cons
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- ואת: CONJ
- רעות: ADJ,f,pl,abs
- נשיו: NOUN,f,pl,abs,3,m
- ואת: CONJ
- רעתכם: NOUN,f,sg,cons,2,pl
- ואת: CONJ
- רעת: NOUN,f,sg,construct
- נשיכם: NOUN,f,pl,abs+2mp
- אשר: PRON,rel
- עשו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- בארץ: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,def
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- ובחצות: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,f,pl,abs
- ירושלם: NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Judges 2:11-13 (thematic): Israelites 'served Baalim' and 'forsook the LORD' — a recurring theme of the people repeating idolatrous practices and abandoning covenantal faithfulness, parallel to Jeremiah's charge that they have followed the evil of their fathers.
- 2 Kings 21:11-15 (thematic): Yahweh announces calamity because of the abominations of Judah's king(s) (e.g., Manasseh); parallels Jeremiah's reference to the 'evil of the kings of Judah' as a cause for judgment.
- Psalm 106:34-39 (verbal): A catalogue of Israel's repeated sins—idolatry, mingling with nations, offering children to idols—echoes Jeremiah's indictment of recurring ancestral evils and communal guilt.
- Jeremiah 7:24-26 (verbal): Earlier in Jeremiah the prophet accuses the people of not listening to the prophets and doing worse than their fathers—closely parallels the present rebuke about repeating ancestral wrongdoing.
Alternative generated candidates
- Have you forgotten the evil of your fathers, the evil of the kings of Judah, the evil of their wives, and your own evil and the evil of your wives which they committed in the land of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?
- Have you forgotten the wickedness of your fathers and the wickedness of the kings of Judah and the wickedness of their wives and your wickedness and the wickedness of your wives, which they committed in the land of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?
Jer.44.10 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- לא: PART_NEG
- דכאו: VERB,qal,infc,3,m,sg
- עד: PREP
- היום: NOUN,m,sg,def
- הזה: DEM,m,sg
- ולא: CONJ
- יראו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- ולא: CONJ
- הלכו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- בתורתי: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs,1,sg
- ובחקתי: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs,poss1s
- אשר: PRON,rel
- נתתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,_,sg
- לפניכם: PREP,2,m,pl
- ולפני: CONJ+PREP
- אבותיכם: NOUN,m,pl,abs+PRON,2,m,pl
Parallels
- Jeremiah 7:24 (verbal): Same prophetic indictment phrasing — they 'hearkened not' and 'walked' in their evil counsels instead of walking in God's law, echoing Jeremiah's complaint about persistent disobedience.
- Ezekiel 20:21-22 (verbal): Ezekiel uses the same language ('walked not in my statutes, neither kept my judgments') to describe Israel's refusal to follow God's statutes, paralleling Jeremiah's charge.
- Leviticus 26:40-42 (thematic): Leviticus sets the covenantal framework linking disobedience to exile and calls for confession/return; Jeremiah's remark about not walking in God's statutes echoes this covenantal theme and consequence.
- Deuteronomy 8:11-14 (thematic): Deuteronomy warns Israel not to forget the Lord and his commandments when prospering; Jeremiah's complaint that they 'have not walked in my law' reflects this recurring Deuteronomic concern about failing to keep God's statutes.
Alternative generated candidates
- They were not humbled to this day; they have not feared nor walked in my law and my statutes that I set before you and before your fathers.
- They were not humbled to this day; they did not see, and they did not walk in my law nor in my statutes that I set before you and before your fathers.
Jer.44.11 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- לכן: ADV
- כה: ADV
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- צבאות: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- אלהי: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- ישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- הנני: PRT+PRON,1,sg
- שם: ADV
- פני: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- בכם: PREP,2,m,pl
- לרעה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ולהכרית: CONJ+VERB,hiph,inf
- את: PRT,acc
- כל: DET
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
Parallels
- Deuteronomy 28:64 (thematic): Curses for covenant unfaithfulness include scattering and exile—God ‘sends’ the people away and removes them from the land, paralleling Jeremiah’s announcement that he will set his face against them and cut off Judah.
- 2 Chronicles 36:17-21 (structural): Narrative fulfillment: Babylonian judgment—Jerusalem burned and people taken into exile—realizes Jeremiah’s threat that the LORD would set his face against Judah and effect removal/destruction.
- Amos 5:27 (verbal): ‘I will cause you to go into captivity beyond Damascus, saith the LORD, the God of hosts’—a direct, concise prophetic formula of exile under the ‘LORD of hosts’ that echoes Jeremiah’s declaration of divine opposition and removal.
- Isaiah 1:7-9 (thematic): Isaiah likewise depicts the land as desolate and the people reduced to a remnant because of divine judgment—paralleling Jeremiah’s threat to cut off Judah and the theme of punishment leaving only a remnant.
Alternative generated candidates
- Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will set my face against you for evil and will cut off from you all Judah.
- Therefore thus says the LORD, the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I set my face against you for evil and to cut off all Judah.
Jer.44.12 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ולקחתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,m,sg
- את: PRT,acc
- שארית: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- אשר: PRON,rel
- שמו: NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,3,m,sg
- פניהם: NOUN,m,pl,abs+PRON,3,m,pl
- לבוא: VERB,qal,inf
- ארץ: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- מצרים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- לגור: VERB,qal,inf
- שם: ADV
- ותמו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- כל: DET
- בארץ: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,def
- מצרים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- יפלו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- בחרב: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ברעב: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יתמו: VERB,qal,imf,3,m,pl
- מקטן: PREP,ADJ,m,sg,abs
- ועד: CONJ+PREP
- גדול: ADJ,m,sg,abs
- בחרב: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- וברעב: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ימתו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- והיו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- לאלה: PREP+DEM,pl
- לשמה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ולקללה: CONJ
- ולחרפה: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Jer.42:18-22 (verbal): Earlier warning in the same narrative that if the remnant goes to Egypt they will perish there by sword and famine; language and threat (death from sword and famine, from least to greatest) closely echo Jer 44:12.
- Jer.43:10-13 (thematic): Prophecy that Nebuchadnezzar will come against Egypt, carry off people and destroy cities—develops the consequence for those fleeing to Egypt and the theme of exile, destruction and shame.
- Deut.28:37,65 (thematic): Deuteronomic curses promise Israel will become a byword and reproach among nations, be scattered and suffer hardship in foreign lands (including lack of rest and servitude); parallels the language of reproach/curse and suffering by famine/defeat.
- Ezek.29:6-7 (thematic): Prophecy against Egypt declaring it will not be safe and will suffer desolation; the theme that Egypt will be a place of destruction for those there (and an instrument of judgement) parallels the doom pronounced on Judah’s remnant in Egypt.
Alternative generated candidates
- I will take the remnant of Judah, whom they have set their faces to come into the land of Egypt to dwell there; they shall all be consumed in the land of Egypt—they shall fall by the sword and by famine. From the least to the greatest they shall perish by sword and famine, and they shall be for a reproach and a curse and a mocking.
- And I will take the remnant of Judah who have set their faces to come into the land of Egypt to dwell; they shall be consumed every one by the sword and by famine; from the least even to the greatest they shall perish, by sword and by famine. They shall be for a reproach, a curse, and a disgrace.
Jer.44.13 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ופקדתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,com,sg
- על: PREP
- היושבים: PART,qal,pres,0,m,pl,def
- בארץ: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,def
- מצרים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- כאשר: CONJ
- פקדתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,c,sg
- על: PREP
- ירושלם: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- בחרב: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ברעב: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ובדבר: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Leviticus 26:25-26 (verbal): Leviticus lists God’s covenant punishments using very similar language—'I will bring the sword upon you... I will send the pestilence among you'—paralleling the triad of sword, famine, and pestilence as divine visitation.
- Ezekiel 14:21 (verbal): Ezekiel enumerates the instruments of divine judgment—'sword, famine, evil beasts, and pestilence'—a near verbal and structural parallel to Jeremiah’s catalogue of punishments visited on a land.
- Deuteronomy 28:52-53 (thematic): Deuteronomy’s curses for covenant unfaithfulness describe siege conditions, deliverance to enemies, and suffering from sword and famine, thematically echoing Jeremiah’s promised visitation on Egypt as on Jerusalem.
- Amos 4:6-11 (thematic): Amos recounts God sending drought, famine, pestilence and military defeat to provoke repentance—another prophetic tradition of God 'visiting' the people through sword, famine, and disease as disciplinary judgment.
Alternative generated candidates
- I will visit upon those who dwell in the land of Egypt the same things I visited upon Jerusalem—sword, famine, and pestilence.
- I will punish those who dwell in the land of Egypt as I punished Jerusalem, with the sword, with famine, and with pestilence.
Jer.44.14 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ולא: CONJ
- יהיה: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- פליט: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ושריד: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לשארית: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- הבאים: PART,qal,ptcp,masc,pl,def
- לגור: VERB,qal,inf
- שם: ADV
- בארץ: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,def
- מצרים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- ולשוב: CONJ+VERB,qal,inf
- ארץ: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- אשר: PRON,rel
- המה: PRON,3,m,pl
- מנשאים: VERB,qal,ptc,3,m,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- נפשם: NOUN,f,sg,abs+3,m,pl
- לשוב: INF,qal
- לשבת: PREP+VERB,qal,inf
- שם: ADV
- כי: CONJ
- לא: PART_NEG
- ישובו: VERB,qal,imperf,3,m,pl
- כי: CONJ
- אם: CONJ
- פלטים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
Parallels
- Jeremiah 42:16-22 (thematic): Same prophetic warning against fleeing to Egypt: those who go to Egypt will suffer death, famine and sword and will not return—an immediate parallel in theme and consequence.
- Jeremiah 43:7-13 (thematic): Narrative prophecy about the Judeans who went to Egypt (Johanan’s group), predicting destruction in Egypt and that they will not prosper—closely related context and message to 44:14.
- Deuteronomy 28:64-68 (thematic): Covenantal curse language about being scattered into foreign lands (even to Egypt) and not finding a safe return—background legal/theological parallel to Jeremiah’s pronouncement of no remnant returning.
- Hosea 9:3 (thematic): Speaks of Israel/Ephraim ‘returning to Egypt’ and being unable to dwell in the LORD’s land—a prophetic motif of exile to Egypt and loss of a secure remnant similar to Jeremiah 44:14.
Alternative generated candidates
- There shall be no survivor or remnant of the remnant of Judah who come to dwell in the land of Egypt to return to the land of Judah; those who have set their faces to go there to dwell shall not return except as fugitives.
- There shall be no survivor nor remnant of the remnant of Judah who come to dwell in the land of Egypt to return to the land of Judah, where they long to return to live; they shall not return there, except only as fugitives.
Jer.44.15 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ויענו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- ירמיהו: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- כל: DET
- האנשים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- הידעים: ADJ,m,pl,def
- כי: CONJ
- מקטרות: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- נשיהם: NOUN,f,pl,abs,prsfx=3mp
- לאלהים: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אחרים: ADJ,m,pl,abs
- וכל: CONJ+PRON,indef
- הנשים: NOUN,f,pl,def
- העמדות: NOUN,f,pl,def
- קהל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- גדול: ADJ,m,sg,abs
- וכל: CONJ+PRON,indef
- העם: NOUN,m,sg,def
- הישבים: PART,qal,ptc,3,m,pl,def
- בארץ: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,def
- מצרים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- בפתרוס: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
Parallels
- Jeremiah 44:17-19 (structural): Immediate continuation: the people (men and women) openly defend their incense-offerings to foreign deities (the 'queen of heaven'), directly echoing the situation described in 44:15.
- Jeremiah 7:17-18 (verbal): Explicit parallel language about women preparing cakes and pouring out drink offerings to the 'queen of heaven'—same cultic practice and deity referred to in 44:15.
- Ezekiel 8:14-16 (thematic): Ezekiel condemns women in the temple engaging in cultic rites (weeping for Tammuz) and other idolatrous practices—a comparable depiction of communal, gendered participation in foreign worship.
- Exodus 32:1-6 (thematic): The golden-calf episode shows collective, public turning to other gods with offerings and revelry (men and women participating), paralleling the communal idolatry described in Jeremiah 44:15.
- 1 Kings 11:4 (thematic): Solomon's foreign wives turning him to other gods highlights the motif of domestic/familial introduction of foreign cults—resonant with the statement that wives were burning incense to other gods in Jeremiah 44:15.
Alternative generated candidates
- Then all the men who were heads of households, whose wives burned incense to other gods, and all the women who stood in a great assembly, and all the people who lived in the land of Egypt at Pathros, answered Jeremiah, saying:
- Then all the men who knew that their wives made offerings to other gods, and all the women standing in a great assembly, and all the people who lived in the land of Egypt in Pathros, answered Jeremiah,
Jer.44.16 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- הדבר: NOUN,m,sg,def
- אשר: PRON,rel
- דברת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- אלינו: PREP+PRON,1,pl
- בשם: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- איננו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl,neg
- שמעים: VERB,qal,part,?,m,pl
- אליך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
Parallels
- Jeremiah 44:17 (verbal): Immediate response in the same chapter repeats the phrase of refusal — 'we will not listen to you' — echoing the objection to Jeremiah's words.
- Jeremiah 7:25 (verbal): Jeremiah recounts that from Egypt onward the people 'have not listened' to God's prophets, paralleling the theme and language of refusal.
- 2 Kings 17:13-14 (thematic): Describes Israel's persistent refusal to heed the prophets sent by the LORD, leading to judgment — a thematic parallel of rejecting prophetic warning.
- Isaiah 30:9-10 (thematic): Isaiah condemns a people who 'will not listen' and close their ears to instruction — similar characterization of obstinate refusal to hear God's messenger.
- Ezekiel 2:7 (structural): God commissions a prophet to speak to a people 'set in their defiant faces' who may refuse to listen; structurally parallels the prophetic situation where hearers reject the message.
Alternative generated candidates
- “The matter that you have spoken to us in the name of the LORD we will not listen to you.
- and said, 'As for the word that you have spoken to us in the name of the LORD, we will not listen to you.'
Jer.44.17 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- כי: CONJ
- עשה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- נעשה: VERB,qal,impf,1,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- כל: DET
- הדבר: NOUN,m,sg,def
- אשר: PRON,rel
- יצא: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- מפינו: PREP+PRON,1,pl
- לקטר: PREP+VERB,qal,inf
- למלכת: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,cons
- השמים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- והסיך: CONJ+VERB,hiph,perf,3,m,sg
- לה: PREP+PRON,3,f,sg
- נסכים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- כאשר: CONJ
- עשינו: VERB,qal,perf,1,pl
- אנחנו: PRON,1,pl
- ואבתינו: CONJ+NOUN,m,pl,abs+1,pl
- מלכינו: NOUN,m,pl,abs+1,pl
- ושרינו: NOUN,m,pl,abs+1,pl
- בערי: PREP+NOUN,f,pl,const
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- ובחצות: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,f,pl,abs
- ירושלם: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ונשבע: VERB,nif,perf,3,m,sg
- לחם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ונהיה: VERB,qal,impf,1,c,pl
- טובים: ADJ,m,pl,abs
- ורעה: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- לא: PART_NEG
- ראינו: VERB,qal,perf,1,c,pl
Parallels
- Jeremiah 7:18 (quotation): Explicit mention of 'the queen of heaven' and pouring out drink offerings; language and idea closely match and are earlier prophetic denunciation of the same cultic practice.
- Jeremiah 44:15–19 (structural): Immediate context: the same speech by the Judeans in Egypt defending continued worship of the queen of heaven and claiming it brought prosperity—same argument and wording extended across these verses.
- Ezekiel 8:14 (thematic): Description of women at the entrance weeping for Tammuz—parallel motif of women’s participation in foreign, female-centered cultic rites within Judah’s religious life.
- Psalm 106:36–38 (thematic): Psychological and cultic parallel: Israelites offering sacrifices to other gods and even committing child sacrifice—similar depiction of illicit offerings and syncretistic rites condemned by the prophets.
Alternative generated candidates
- But we will certainly do all that has gone out of our own mouths—we will burn incense to the Queen of Heaven and pour out drink offerings to her, as we and our fathers, our kings and our princes, did in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. Then we had plenty of bread and were well and saw no evil.
- But we will certainly do everything that has gone out of our own mouths: we will burn incense to the queen of heaven and pour out drink offerings to her, as we and our fathers, our kings, and our princes did in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; for then we had plenty and were well and saw no disaster.
Jer.44.18 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ומן: CONJ+PREP
- אז: ADV
- חדלנו: VERB,qal,perf,1,c,pl
- לקטר: PREP+VERB,qal,inf
- למלכת: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,cons
- השמים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- והסך: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,def
- לה: PREP+PRON,3,f,sg
- נסכים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- חסרנו: VERB,qal,perf,1,c,pl
- כל: DET
- ובחרב: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- וברעב: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- תמנו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
Parallels
- Jeremiah 44:17 (verbal): Immediate parallel in the same chapter—the people reiterate and defend their worship of the "queen of heaven," echoing the same claims about offerings and consequences.
- Jeremiah 7:18 (verbal): Earlier Jeremiah passage that names the "queen of heaven" and describes making cakes and offering incense—verbal and cultic correspondence with 44:18.
- Ezekiel 8:14 (thematic): Ezekiel's vision of women weeping for Tammuz and participating in illicit rites parallels the popular, gendered idolatrous practices condemned in Jeremiah 44.
- 2 Kings 21:3-9 (thematic): Account of Manasseh establishing idolatrous altars and provoking divine anger—themewise link between national idolatry and the exile/judgment (sword, destruction) noted in Jeremiah 44:18.
- Deuteronomy 28:52-57 (thematic): Part of the covenant curses describing siege, famine and related calamities as consequences of covenant unfaithfulness—parallels Jeremiah 44:18's linking of cessation of cult to sword and famine.
Alternative generated candidates
- But since we stopped burning incense to the Queen of Heaven and pouring out drink offerings to her, we have lacked all things and have been consumed by sword and by famine.
- But since we ceased to burn incense to the queen of heaven and to pour out drink offerings to her, we have lacked all things and have been consumed by the sword and by famine.
Jer.44.19 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- וכי: CONJ
- אנחנו: PRON,1,pl
- מקטרים: VERB,qal,part,3,m,pl
- למלכת: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,cons
- השמים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- ולהסך: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,m,sg,def
- לה: PREP+PRON,3,f,sg
- נסכים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- המבלעדי: PREP
- אנשינו: NOUN,m,pl,abs,poss1p
- עשינו: VERB,qal,perf,1,pl
- לה: PREP+PRON,3,f,sg
- כונים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- להעצבה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,def
- והסך: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,def
- לה: PREP+PRON,3,f,sg
- נסכים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
Parallels
- Jeremiah 7:18 (verbal): Uses the same language about women kneading dough/cakes and people burning incense to the 'queen of heaven'—a near-verbatim parallel to the cultic practices condemned in 44:19.
- Jeremiah 44:17 (structural): Immediate context: the people's declarative defense of their worship of the 'queen of heaven' (they insist they will continue to burn incense and pour out offerings), which 44:19 restates and amplifies.
- Jeremiah 44:25 (allusion): Jeremiah's prophetic verdict against those practices in Egypt—this verse pronounces punishment for the very incense and libations to the 'queen of heaven' described in 44:19.
- Isaiah 65:11 (thematic): Condemns setting a table and pouring out drink offerings for foreign deities (Gad/Meni), thematically parallel to the pouring out of libations and cakes made for the 'queen of heaven'.
- Ezekiel 8:14 (thematic): Describes women participating in illicit cultic rites (weeping for Tammuz) within Judah's land—a comparable instance of popular female-led worship of foreign deities analogous to the 'queen of heaven' cult.
Alternative generated candidates
- Is it because we burned incense to the Queen of Heaven and poured out drink offerings to her that we made cakes for her, to worship her and to pour out libations to her?—is that done without our men?”
- And when we burned incense to the queen of heaven and poured out drink offerings to her, was it without our men that we made cakes for her and poured out drink offerings to her?
Jer.44.20 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ויאמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- ירמיהו: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אל: NEG
- כל: DET
- העם: NOUN,m,sg,def
- על: PREP
- הגברים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- ועל: CONJ+PREP
- הנשים: NOUN,f,pl,def
- ועל: CONJ+PREP
- כל: DET
- העם: NOUN,m,sg,def
- הענים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- אתו: PRON,3,m,sg,acc
- דבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
Parallels
- Nehemiah 8:2-3 (structural): Ezra stands before a gathered assembly and reads the law 'both to the men and the women and all who could understand,' a public address to the whole people like Jeremiah's summons to men, women and the poor.
- 2 Chronicles 34:30 (structural): King Josiah gathers 'all the people, both great and small' to hear the book of the covenant—an official, communal proclamation addressed to the entire population, comparable in scope and formula.
- Jeremiah 26:2 (structural): Within Jeremiah the prophet is commanded to 'stand in the court of the LORD's house' and speak to the people—an earlier instance of Jeremiah's public proclamation to the assembled community.
- Zechariah 7:2-3 (thematic): The prophet is told to 'speak to all the people of the land' about fasting and assembly—another prophetic injunction delivered as a public address to the whole populace (men and women included).
Alternative generated candidates
- Then Jeremiah said to all the people, to the men and to the women and to all the people who gave him that answer, saying:
- Then Jeremiah said to all the people, to the men and to the women and to all the people who gave him answer, saying,
Jer.44.21 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- הלוא: PART
- את: PRT,acc
- הקטר: NOUN,m,sg,def
- אשר: PRON,rel
- קטרתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- בערי: PREP+NOUN,f,pl,const
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- ובחצות: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,f,pl,abs
- ירושלם: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אתם: PRON,2,m,pl
- ואבותיכם: NOUN,m,pl,abs+2,pl
- מלכיכם: NOUN,m,pl,abs+2,m,pl
- ושריכם: NOUN,m,pl,abs+2,m,pl
- ועם: CONJ+PREP
- הארץ: NOUN,f,sg,def
- אתם: PRON,2,m,pl
- זכר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- ותעלה: VERB,qal,impf,3,f,sg
- על: PREP
- לבו: NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Jeremiah 7:18 (verbal): Mentions the people (children, fathers, women) making offerings and cakes to the 'queen of heaven'—a close verbal and thematic parallel to Jeremiah 44's accusation of communal incense/offering practices.
- 2 Kings 21:3 (thematic): Describes King Manasseh building altars to foreign gods and leading the people into idolatrous worship—parallels the charge that kings, officials, and the people participated in incense-offerings.
- 1 Kings 12:28-30 (thematic): Recounts Jeroboam's instituting of golden-calf worship so that Israel would offer sacrifices locally—parallel in leaders establishing idolatrous cultic practices for the people.
- Ezekiel 8:14-16 (allusion): Vision of women weeping for Tammuz and elders worshipping at the temple entrances—an allusive parallel showing ritual/idolatrous practices within Jerusalem and communal participation.
- Psalm 106:28-30 (thematic): Recounts Israel's apostasy in worshiping Baal and the people's sinful cultic acts that provoked God's anger—echoes Jeremiah's theme of corporate idolatry provoking the Lord's recollection and judgment.
Alternative generated candidates
- “Have you not remembered the incense that you burned in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem— you and your fathers, your kings, your princes, and the people of the land? Remember the LORD, and let it come into your mind.
- Do you not remember the incense you burned in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem— you and your fathers, your kings, your princes, and the people of the land? Has not the LORD taken it to heart?
Jer.44.22 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ולא: CONJ
- יוכל: VERB,qal,impf,3,ms
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- עוד: ADV
- לשאת: VERB,qal,inf
- מפני: PREP
- רע: ADJ,m,sg,abs
- מעלליכם: NOUN,m,pl,suff:2,m,pl
- מפני: PREP
- התועבת: NOUN,f,sg,def
- אשר: PRON,rel
- עשיתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- ותהי: VERB,qal,perf,3,f,sg
- ארצכם: NOUN,f,sg,abs+2mp
- לחרבה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ולשמה: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ולקללה: CONJ
- מאין: ADV,interrog
- יושב: VERB,qal,ptcp,1,m,sg
- כהיום: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- הזה: DEM,m,sg
Parallels
- Leviticus 18:25-28 (verbal): Speaks of the land being 'defiled' by abominations and that God will 'vomit out' its inhabitants—closely parallels Jeremiah's charge that the people's abominations make the land a desolation and without inhabitants.
- Deuteronomy 29:20-21 (thematic): Warning that the LORD will not spare one who breaks covenant and practices abominations, and that all the curses written will come upon him—mirrors Jeremiah's claim that God can no longer endure their evil and will bring the curse of desolation.
- Isaiah 24:5-6 (thematic): Declares that the land is defiled because its inhabitants have transgressed, so the LORD will make the earth a waste and the inhabitants few—parallels the theme of national punishment and land desolation for sin.
- Ezekiel 6:13-14 (thematic): Proclaims that because of the people's detestable practices the LORD will make the land a desolation and scatter its inhabitants—echoes Jeremiah's linkage of abominations to the land's ruin and emptiness.
- Deuteronomy 28:63-64 (structural): As part of covenant curses, God promises that blessings will turn to curses and the people will be scattered and the land left desolate if they forsake Him—provides the covenantal framework behind Jeremiah's announcement of irreversible judgment and desolation.
Alternative generated candidates
- Can the LORD now bear you any longer for all your wickedness and for the abominations that you have committed? Has your land not become a desolation and a waste, a curse without inhabitant, as it is this day?
- And the LORD could no longer endure because of the evil of your deeds and because of the abominations that you committed; therefore your land has become a desolation and a waste and a curse, without inhabitant, as at this day.
Jer.44.23 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- מפני: PREP
- אשר: PRON,rel
- קטרתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,mp
- ואשר: CONJ+PRON,rel
- חטאתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- ליהוה: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,def
- ולא: CONJ
- שמעתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- בקול: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- ובתרתו: NOUN,f,sg,abs,poss3ms
- ובחקתיו: NOUN,f,pl,abs,poss3ms
- ובעדותיו: NOUN,f,pl,abs,poss3ms
- לא: PART_NEG
- הלכתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- על: PREP
- כן: ADV
- קראת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- אתכם: PRT+PRON,2,m,pl
- הרעה: NOUN,f,sg,def
- הזאת: DEM,f,sg,def
- כיום: ADV
- הזה: DEM,m,sg
Parallels
- Jeremiah 7:25-26 (verbal): Uses the same language of Israel's failure to 'hear' and 'obey' the LORD and to walk in his statutes/testimonies, linking persistent disobedience to coming judgment.
- Leviticus 26:14-17 (structural): Covenantal formula: failure to keep God's statutes brings specified punishments—establishes the theological pattern connecting disobedience to calamity found in Jeremiah 44:23.
- 2 Chronicles 36:14-16 (thematic): Describes the people burning incense, persecuting God's messengers and persisting in sin, after which the LORD's wrath and exile come—parallels Jeremiah's charge and promised evil.
- Ezekiel 5:11 (thematic): Divine declaration that because of Judah's transgressions the LORD will bring a day of calamity—echoes Jeremiah's causal link between sin (disobedience) and imminent disaster.
Alternative generated candidates
- Because you have burned incense and because you have sinned against the LORD, and have not obeyed the voice of the LORD, nor walked in his law, nor in his statutes, nor in the testimony that he testified against you, therefore this disaster has come upon you as of this day.”
- Because you burned incense and sinned against the LORD and did not obey the voice of the LORD nor walk in his law nor in his statutes nor in his testimonies, therefore this disaster has come upon you, as at this day.
Jer.44.24 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ויאמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- ירמיהו: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אל: NEG
- כל: DET
- העם: NOUN,m,sg,def
- ואל: CONJ+PREP
- כל: DET
- הנשים: NOUN,f,pl,def
- שמעו: VERB,qal,impv,2,m,pl
- דבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- כל: DET
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- אשר: PRON,rel
- בארץ: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,def
- מצרים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
Parallels
- Jeremiah 44:1-3 (structural): Immediate context: the same scene in which Jeremiah addresses the remnant of Judah in Egypt and summons them to hear the word of the LORD.
- Jeremiah 43:7-11 (thematic): Narrative continuation showing the people’s flight to Egypt and God’s prophetic judgment on those who went there — closely related to the audience Jeremiah addresses in 44:24.
- Jeremiah 42:1-11 (thematic): Earlier episode in which Judah’s leaders consult Jeremiah about remaining in the land or fleeing to Egypt; both passages address the remnant’s presence/decisions regarding Egypt and include prophetic commands.
- Jeremiah 29:4-7 (verbal): Another prophetic address directed to exiles in a foreign land (Babylon) beginning 'Thus says the LORD... to all who are carried away,' paralleling the formula and pastoral concern for Israelites living abroad.
Alternative generated candidates
- And Jeremiah said to all the people and to all the women: Hear the word of the LORD, all Judah who dwell in the land of Egypt.
- And Jeremiah said to all the people and to all the women, 'Hear the word of the LORD, all Judah who are living in the land of Egypt!'
Jer.44.25 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- כה: ADV
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- צבאות: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- אלהי: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- ישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
- אתם: PRON,2,m,pl
- ונשיכם: CONJ+NOUN,f,pl,abs,poss:2,pl
- ותדברנה: VERB,qal,impf,3,f,pl
- בפיכם: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs,poss:2,pl
- ובידיכם: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,f,pl,abs,poss:2,pl
- מלאתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,pl,m
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
- עשה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- נעשה: VERB,qal,impf,1,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- נדרינו: NOUN,m,pl,abs,poss:1,pl
- אשר: PRON,rel
- נדרנו: VERB,qal,perf,1,pl
- לקטר: PREP+VERB,qal,inf
- למלכת: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,cons
- השמים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- ולהסך: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,m,sg,def
- לה: PREP+PRON,3,f,sg
- נסכים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- הקים: VERB,hiph,perf,3,m,sg
- תקימנה: VERB,hiphil,impf,3,f,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- נדריכם: NOUN,m,pl,poss,2,pl
- ועשה: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- תעשינה: VERB,qal,impf,3,f,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- נדריכם: NOUN,m,pl,poss,2,pl
Parallels
- Jeremiah 44:17-19 (structural): Immediate context: the people (and their wives) insist on making vows and offering to the 'queen of heaven'—same actors, same cultic vow language that Jeremiah condemns in 44:25.
- Jeremiah 7:18 (verbal): Uses nearly identical imagery of women baking cakes and making offerings to the 'queen of heaven'—an earlier denunciation of the same idolatrous practice referenced in 44:25.
- Ezekiel 8:14 (thematic): Describes women participating in an idolatrous cultic ritual (weeping for Tammuz) inside the temple complex—parallel theme of women's organized participation in foreign religious rites condemned by prophets.
- 1 Kings 11:5-8 (thematic): Solomon's foreign wives lead him to worship Ashtoreth and other deities and to build high places for them—parallels the influence of wives and the establishment of cultic practices to foreign goddesses like the 'queen of heaven.'
- Deuteronomy 12:29-32 (thematic): Warnings against adopting the religious practices of the nations, including forbidden offerings and rites—provides the Deuteronomic legal/thematic background for prophetic condemnation of votive offerings to other deities as in Jeremiah 44:25.
Alternative generated candidates
- Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: You and your wives have spoken with your mouths and filled your hands with this thing, saying, ‘We will certainly fulfill our vows that we vowed—to burn incense to the Queen of Heaven and to pour out drink offerings to her’—you shall surely accomplish your vows and carry them out.
- Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: You and your wives have spoken with your mouths and filled your hands, saying, "We will surely perform our vows that we vowed—to burn incense to the queen of heaven and to pour out drink offerings to her"; then perform your vows and perform them.
Jer.44.26 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- לכן: ADV
- שמעו: VERB,qal,impv,2,m,pl
- דבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- כל: DET
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- הישבים: PART,qal,ptc,3,m,pl,def
- בארץ: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,def
- מצרים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- הנני: PRT+PRON,1,sg
- נשבעתי: VERB,niphal,perf,1,_,sg
- בשמי: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,poss1s
- הגדול: ADJ,m,sg,def
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אם: CONJ
- יהיה: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- עוד: ADV
- שמי: NOUN,m,sg,abs+1cs
- נקרא: VERB,niphal,perf,3,m,sg
- בפי: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,construct
- כל: DET
- איש: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- חי: ADJ,m,sg
- אדני: NOUN,m,sg,abs,1,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- בכל: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ארץ: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- מצרים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
Parallels
- Jeremiah 7:16 (verbal): God commands Jeremiah not to pray for the people and declares he will not listen—parallel refusal to accept invocation/prayer for Israel.
- Jeremiah 11:14 (verbal): Same injunction—'Do not pray for this people... I will not listen'—closely parallels the statement that God's name will no longer be invoked by Judah in Egypt.
- Jeremiah 14:11-12 (thematic): YHWH tells Jeremiah not to intercede because he will not respond to their cries—same theme of divine silence/refusal toward the nation's appeals.
- Ezekiel 36:20-23 (allusion): Speaks of Israel profaning God's name among the nations and God’s concern for his 'great name'—connects to Jeremiah's oath regarding the use and honor of God's name among exiled Judahites in Egypt.
Alternative generated candidates
- Therefore hear the word of the LORD, all Judah who dwell in the land of Egypt: Behold, I swear by my great name, says the LORD, that if my name is called again by any man of Judah in the land of Egypt, saying, ‘As the LORD lives,’
- Therefore hear the word of the LORD, all Judah who dwell in the land of Egypt: Behold, I have sworn by my great name, declares the LORD, that if my name is yet invoked by any one of Judah in the land of Egypt, saying, 'As the LORD lives,'
Jer.44.27 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- הנני: PRT+PRON,1,sg
- שקד: VERB,qal,ptcp,NA,m,sg
- עליהם: PREP,3,m,pl
- לרעה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ולא: CONJ
- לטובה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ותמו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- כל: DET
- איש: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- אשר: PRON,rel
- בארץ: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,def
- מצרים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- בחרב: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- וברעב: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- עד: PREP
- כלותם: NOUN,f,sg,abs+PRON:3,m,pl
Parallels
- Jeremiah 11:11 (verbal): Similar divine formula of bringing disaster on the people: God declares he will bring evil/woe upon them as punishment — close verbal and thematic parallel to 'I will watch over them for evil, and not for good.'
- Deuteronomy 28:53-57 (thematic): Part of the covenant curses detailing siege, lack of food, and death — echoes Jeremiah's threatened judgment of sword and famine on the people in Egypt as consequence of disobedience.
- Ezekiel 5:12-17 (thematic): God announces severe judgment on Jerusalem with proportions of death by famine, sword and pestilence; parallels Jeremiah's depiction of comprehensive destruction (sword and famine) as divine punishment.
- Lamentations 2:12-16 (thematic): Poetic depiction of Jerusalem's devastation — images of slaughter, desolation and suffering from siege and famine resonate with Jeremiah's prophecy that Judeans in Egypt will be consumed by sword and famine.
Alternative generated candidates
- behold, I will watch over them for evil and not for good; all the men of Judah who are in the land of Egypt shall be consumed by sword and by famine until they are destroyed.
- behold, I will watch over them for evil and not for good; and all the men of Judah who are in the land of Egypt shall be consumed by sword and by famine until they are destroyed.
Jer.44.28 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ופליטי: NOUN,m,pl,const
- חרב: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ישבון: VERB,qal,impf,3,pl
- מן: PREP
- ארץ: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- מצרים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- ארץ: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- מתי: ADV,int
- מספר: VERB,qal,impf,1,m,sg
- וידעו: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,pl
- כל: DET
- שארית: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- הבאים: PART,qal,ptcp,masc,pl,def
- לארץ: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- מצרים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- לגור: VERB,qal,inf
- שם: ADV
- דבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מי: PRON,interr,sg
- יקום: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- ממני: PREP,suff,1,m,sg
- ומהם: CONJ+PREP+PRON,3,pl
Parallels
- Jeremiah 42:18 (structural): Same narrative block: God warns Judah's remnant about the consequences of fleeing to Egypt; both passages function to show that those who go to Egypt will learn the truth of Jeremiah’s prophecy.
- Jeremiah 43:11 (thematic): Prophecy against Egypt (Pharaoh Hophra) and the futility/suffering of seeking refuge there — parallels the warning that the remnant who go to Egypt will discover whose word stands.
- Ezekiel 20:34–36 (verbal): God speaks of gathering, judging and proving Israel so that they 'know that I am the LORD' — closely parallels Jeremiah’s claim that the returning remnant will know whose word (God’s) will stand.
- Isaiah 10:20–22 (thematic): Theme of a surviving remnant whose numbers are small but who return and are recognized — echoes Jeremiah’s language about the remnant and the reckoning/recognition that will follow.
Alternative generated candidates
- Then the fugitives who escape the sword shall return from the land of Egypt to the land of Judah, a few in number, and all the remnant of Judah who went to live in the land of Egypt shall know whose word shall stand—mine or theirs.
- A few fugitives shall return from the land of Egypt to the land of Judah, and all the remnant of Judah who have gone to the land of Egypt to dwell shall know whose word will stand—mine or theirs.
Jer.44.29 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- וזאת: CONJ+DEM,f,sg
- לכם: PREP,2,m,pl
- האות: NOUN,f,sg,def
- נאם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- כי: CONJ
- פקד: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אני: PRON,1,sg
- עליכם: PREP+PRON,2mp
- במקום: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- הזה: DEM,m,sg
- למען: PREP
- תדעו: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,pl
- כי: CONJ
- קום: VERB,qal,impv,2,m,sg
- יקומו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- דברי: NOUN,m,pl,abs+PRON,1,c,sg
- עליכם: PREP+PRON,2mp
- לרעה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Jeremiah 7:20 (thematic): God threatens to pour out his anger on 'this place' for Judah's sins—similar locational judgment language ('in this place') and purpose of demonstrating that God's words bring disaster.
- Jeremiah 44:11 (verbal): Immediate parallel within the same section where God announces punishment on those in Egypt—echoes the threat that God's words will come to pass against them for evil.
- Ezekiel 12:11 (verbal): Ezekiel is told to be 'a sign' to the house of Israel; parallels Jeremiah's formula 'and this shall be a sign, saith the LORD' linking prophetic action/word to proof of coming judgment.
- Ezekiel 4:3 (structural): Ezekiel's commanded sign-act (lying on his side for Israel's iniquity) functions like Jeremiah's sign-utterance—both use a prophetic sign to make certain that people 'know' impending punishment.
Alternative generated candidates
- This shall be a sign to you, declares the LORD, that I will punish you in this place, so that you may know that my words against you will be fulfilled for disaster.
- This shall be a sign to you, declares the LORD: behold, I will punish you in this place, that you may know that my words against you will surely come to pass for evil.
Jer.44.30 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- כה: ADV
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- הנני: PRT+PRON,1,sg
- נתן: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- את: PRT,acc
- פרעה: NOUN,m,sg,def
- חפרע: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מלך: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- מצרים: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- ביד: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- איביו: NOUN,m,pl,abs,suff:3ms
- וביד: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מבקשי: NOUN,m,pl,cons
- נפשו: NOUN,f,sg,abs+PRON,3,m,sg
- כאשר: CONJ
- נתתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,_,sg
- את: PRT,acc
- צדקיהו: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- מלך: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- יהודה: NOUN,m,sg,prop
- ביד: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- נבוכדראצר: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- מלך: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- בבל: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- איבו: NOUN,m,sg,abs,3,m
- ומבקש: CONJ+VERB,pi'el,ptc,3,m,sg
- נפשו: NOUN,f,sg,abs+PRON,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Jeremiah 39:5-7 (structural): Records the capture of Zedekiah by Nebuchadnezzar and his being handed over to his enemies — the event explicitly cited as the model for Hophra’s fate in Jer 44:30.
- Jeremiah 52:8-11 (structural): A parallel account in Jeremiah’s book of Zedekiah’s capture, the killing of his sons, and his being delivered to Nebuchadnezzar, which Jer 44:30 invokes as a precedent.
- 2 Kings 25:7 (structural): Narrates Zedekiah’s capture, the death of his sons, and his being taken to Babylon — the historical outcome to which God compares the future handing over of Pharaoh Hophra.
- 2 Chronicles 36:11-17 (thematic): Describes Zedekiah’s rebellious rule, divine judgment, and exile under Nebuchadnezzar — provides the theological background of God handing a king over to his enemies as referenced in Jer 44:30.
Alternative generated candidates
- Thus says the LORD: Behold, I will give Pharaoh Hophra king of Egypt into the hand of his enemies and into the hand of those who seek his life, as I gave Zedekiah king of Judah into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, his enemy and those who sought his life.”
- Thus says the LORD: Behold, I will give Pharaoh Hophra king of Egypt into the hand of his enemies and into the hand of those who seek his life, as I gave Zedekiah king of Judah into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, his enemy and one who sought his life.
The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the Jews who were dwelling in the land of Egypt: those living in Migdol, in Tahpanhes, in Noph, and in the land of Pathros— Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: You have seen all the disaster that I brought upon Jerusalem and upon all the cities of Judah; behold, they lie wasted this day, without inhabitant.
Because of the evil they did to provoke me, by burning incense and serving gods other than me—gods whom neither you nor your fathers knew—
and I sent to you all my servants the prophets early and repeatedly, saying, 'Do not do this abominable thing that I hate.' But they did not obey or incline their ear to turn from their evil, to stop burning incense to other gods.
Therefore my fury and my wrath were poured out and burned in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; they became ruin and desolation, as they are to this day. And now thus says the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: Why do you do this great evil to your own souls, to cut off man and woman, infant and nursling, from Judah, leaving you no remnant?
By provoking me through the work of your hands—burning incense to other gods in the land of Egypt where you have gone to dwell—so that I will make you a desolation, an object of curse and reproach among all the nations of the earth.
Have you forgotten the evil of your fathers, the evil of the kings of Judah, the evil of their wives, and your own evil and the evil of your wives, which they committed in the land of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?
They were not humbled until this day; they did not hear or walk in my law or in my statutes that I set before you and before your fathers.
Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will set my face against you for evil and cut off all Judah. And I will take the remnant of Judah who have set their faces to come into the land of Egypt to dwell there, and they shall all be consumed—by the sword and famine they shall perish, from the least to the greatest, in the land of Egypt; they shall die by sword and famine and become a reproach, a taunt, and a curse; they shall be a horror and there shall be no survivors.
I will visit those who dwell in the land of Egypt as I visited Jerusalem—with sword, famine, and pestilence.
There shall be no survivor or remnant of the remnant of Judah who go to dwell in the land of Egypt to return to the land of Judah; they shall not return except fugitives.
Then all the men who knew that their wives burned incense to other gods, and all the women standing in a great assembly, and all the people who dwelt in the land of Egypt at Pathros, answered Jeremiah, saying,
“As for the word that you have spoken to us in the name of the LORD, we will not listen to you.”
“But we will certainly do every word that has gone out of our own mouths—to burn incense to the queen of heaven and to pour out drink offerings to her, as we and our fathers, our kings and our princes did in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; then we had plenty of food and were well and suffered no harm.”
“But since we stopped burning incense to the queen of heaven and pouring out drink offerings to her, we have lacked all things and have been consumed by sword and famine.”
“And when we burned incense to the queen of heaven and poured out drink offerings to her, was it without our husbands' permission that we made cakes for her, poured out drink offerings to her, and poured out incense?”
Then Jeremiah said to all the people, to the men and to the women and to all the people who gave him that answer:
“Is not the incense that you burned in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem—yours and your fathers', your kings' and your princes', and the people of the land—remembered by the LORD? Has it not come into his mind?
Can the LORD forget? Can he bear forever the evil in your deeds? Your habitation has become a desolation and a curse, without inhabitant, as it is this day.
Because you burned incense and sinned against the LORD and did not obey the voice of the LORD or walk in his law, statutes, and testimonies, therefore this evil has come upon you as at this day.” And Jeremiah said to all the people and to all the women, “Hear the word of the LORD, all Judah who are in the land of Egypt. Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: You and your wives have spoken with your own mouths and fulfilled what you vowed—'We will certainly perform our vows to burn incense to the queen of heaven and to pour out drink offerings to her'—do so now, perform your vows.
Therefore hear the word of the LORD, O all Judah who dwell in the land of Egypt: Behold, I have sworn by my great name, says the LORD, that I will put my name no more under the mouth of any man of Judah, saying, 'As the LORD lives'—in all the land of Egypt.
Behold, I will watch over them for harm and not for good, and all the men of Judah who are in the land of Egypt shall perish by sword and famine until they are consumed.
Then a fugitive of the sword shall return from the land of Egypt to the land of Judah, and they shall hear whose words will stand—my words or theirs.
This shall be a sign to you, declares the LORD: I will bring upon you this evil, and you shall know that my words will stand against you for harm. Thus says the LORD: I will give Pharaoh Hophra king of Egypt into the hand of his enemies and into the hand of those who seek his life, as I gave Zedekiah king of Judah into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, his enemy and the one who sought his life.”