Jeremiah 25:35
in Jeremiah 25Flight will evade the shepherds, and escape will elude the leaders of the flock.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And the shepherds shall have no way to flee, nor the principal of the flock to escape.
KJV
And the shepherds shall have no way to flee, nor the principal of the flock to escape.
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This verse in Jeremiah 25
Commentary
5 notes on this verseAnd the shepherds shall have no way to flee,.... Or, "and flight shall perish from the shepherds" (u); though they may attempt it, they shall not be able to accomplish it; neither the dignity of their persons, the greatness of their power, or the abundance of their riches, would make a way for them; their enemies being so numerous, powerful, and watchful: nor the principal of the flock to escape; this was particularly verified in Zedekiah and his princes, Jer 39:
This site's exposition
Howl, ye shepherds, and cry
on Jeremiah 25:34-36
The address turns to the kings and princes under the shepherd figure already used in chapter 23, howl, ye shepherds, and cry, and wallow yourselves in the ashes, ye principal of the flock, rulers who fed themselves now facing the slaughter they permitted. Ye shall fall like a pleasant vessel pictures the leadership class as fine pottery about to be dropped, valuable and about to be worthless. Verse 35's flight with no way to escape and verse 36's cry heard because the Lord hath spoiled their pasture state that the shepherds' own provision, the throne and the land, is the thing being taken from under them.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verse 34, 35.) Howl (or rejoice) you shepherds, and shout, and sprinkle yourselves with ashes, you noble flock (or lament, you rams of the sheep); for your days are fulfilled that you may be slain, and your dispersions, and you shall fall like precious vessels (or like chosen rams). And flight shall perish from the shepherds, and salvation from the noble ones (or rams) of the flock.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Note, As we cannot out-face, so we cannot out-run, the judgments of God. This is that for which the shepherds howl and cry. The progress of this war is here described (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
); so that we have here judgment beginning at the house of God, but not ending there. God's Remonstrances with the People. 1 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, that was the first year of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon;
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
The words behind it
7 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְאָבַ֥ד | veavad | and it will be lost | H6 → | 184 times |
| מָנ֖וֹס | manos | a place of escape | H4498 → | 8 times |
| מִן־ | min- | from | H4480 → | 1188 times |
| הָֽרֹעִ֑ים | haroim | the shepherds | H7462 → | 177 times |
| וּפְלֵיטָ֖ה | ufeleitah | and escape | H6413 → | |
| מֵאַדִּירֵ֥י | meadirei | from [the] noble [ones] of | H117 → | 27 times |
| הַצֹּֽאן׃ | hatzon | the flock | H6629 → | 274 times |
וְאָבַ֥דand it will be lost
veavadH6 →184 times
מָנ֖וֹסa place of escape
manosH4498 →8 times
מִן־from
min-H4480 →1188 times
הָֽרֹעִ֑יםthe shepherds
haroimH7462 →177 times
וּפְלֵיטָ֖הand escape
ufeleitahH6413 →
מֵאַדִּירֵ֥יfrom [the] noble [ones] of
meadireiH117 →27 times
הַצֹּֽאן׃the flock
hatzonH6629 →274 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Job 11:20But the eyes of the wicked will fail, and escape will elude them; they will hope for their last breath.”
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 28:65
Among those nations you will find no repose, not even a resting place for the sole of your foot. There the LORD will give you a trembling heart, failing eyes, and a despairing soul.
- Deuteronomy 28:65
Through
Amos 2:14Escape will fail the swift, the strong will not prevail by his strength, and the mighty will not save his life.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 9:23
This is what the LORD says: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, nor the strong man in his strength, nor the wealthy man in his riches.
- Jeremiah 9:23
Through
Daniel 5:30That very night Belshazzar king of the Chaldeans was slain,
it leads to
- Jeremiah 51:31
One courier races to meet another, and messenger follows messenger, to announce to the king of Babylon that his city has been captured from end to end.
- Jeremiah 51:57
I will make her princes and wise men drunk, along with her governors, officials, and warriors. Then they will fall asleep forever and not wake up,” declares the King, whose name is the LORD…
- Jeremiah 51:39
While they are flushed with heat, I will serve them a feast, and I will make them drunk so that they may revel; then they will fall asleep forever and never wake up, declares…
- Jeremiah 51:31
Through
Jeremiah 32:4Zedekiah king of Judah will not escape from the hands of the Chaldeans, but he will surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon, and will speak with him face to…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 38:18
But if you do not surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then this city will be delivered into the hands of the Chaldeans. They will burn it down, and you yourself…
- 2 Kings 25:4–7
Then the city was breached; and though the Chaldeans had surrounded the city, all the men of war fled by night by way of the gate between the two walls near the king’s garden.…
- Jeremiah 37:17
Later, King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah and received him in his palace, where he asked him privately, “Is there a word from the LORD?” “There is,” Jeremiah replied. “You will be delivered into the…
- Jeremiah 38:18
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies2
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About Jeremiah
This page draws on Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Jeremiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.