Jeremiah 27:11
in Jeremiah 27But the nation that will put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will leave in its own land, to cultivate it and reside in it, declares the LORD.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
But the nation that shall bring their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him, that nation will I let remain in their own land, saith Jehovah; and they shall till it, and dwell therein.
KJV
But the nations that bring their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him, those will I let remain still in their own land, saith the Lord; and they shall till it, and dwell therein.
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This verse in Jeremiah 27
Commentary
6 notes on this verseA commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
serve . . . till it--The same Hebrew root expresses "serve" and "till," or "cultivate." Serve ye the king of Babylon, and the land will serve you [CALVIN].
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
This site's exposition
As for the nation or kingdom
on Jeremiah 27:8-11
The nation that refuses Babylon's yoke is promised “sword and famine and plague” until it is destroyed. The nation that submits keeps its land. The prophets who say “You will not serve the king of Babylon” prophesy “a lie that will serve to remove you from your land.”
This site's exposition
will put its neck under the yoke
Jamieson, Fausset and Brown note that one Hebrew root means both to serve and to till. They cite Calvin: serve the king of Babylon, and the land will serve you. The nation that bows keeps its own fields.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verse 9 and following) So do not listen to your prophets, and diviners, and dreamers, and augurs, and sorcerers, who say to you: 'You will not serve the king of Babylon, for they prophesy lies to you, in order to drive you far from your land and to expel you, and you will perish.' But the nation that puts its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serves him, I will let it stay in its own land, says the Lord; and it will till it and dwell in it.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
It is often more a point of honour than true wisdom to prefer liberty before life. It is not mentioned to the disgrace of Issachar that because he saw rest was good, and the land pleasant, that he might peaceably enjoy it, he bowed his shoulder to bear, and became a servant to tribute ( Gen. xlix.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
But the nations that bring their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him,....
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
And to Zedekiah the king of Judah have I spoken, etc. All this Jeremiah said to the ambassadors of the kings.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 4 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
17 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְהַגּ֗וֹי | vehagoy | and the nation | H1471 → | 561 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֨ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| יָבִ֧יא | yavi' | it will bring | H935 → | 2568 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| צַוָּאר֛וֹ | tzavaro | neck its | H6677 → | 42 times |
| בְּעֹ֥ל | beol | in [the] yoke of | H5923 → | 40 times |
| מֶֽלֶךְ־ | melekh- | [the] king of | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| בָּבֶ֖ל | bavel | Babylon | H894 → | 262 times |
| וַֽעֲבָד֑וֹ | vaavado | and it will serve him | H5647 → | 288 times |
| וְהִנַּחְתִּ֤יו | vehinachtiv | and I will let remain it | H5117 → | 142 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| אַדְמָתוֹ֙ | ʾadmato | land its | H127 → | 225 times |
| נְאֻם־ | neum- | [the] utterance of | H5002 → | 376 times |
| יְהוָ֔ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| וַֽעֲבָדָ֖הּ | vaavadah | and it will work it | H5647 → | 288 times |
| וְיָ֥שַׁב | veyashav | and it will dwell | H3427 → | 1079 times |
| בָּֽהּ׃ | bah | in <the> it |
וְהַגּ֗וֹיand the nation
vehagoyH1471 →561 times
אֲשֶׁ֨רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
יָבִ֧יאit will bring
yavi'H935 →2568 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
צַוָּאר֛וֹneck its
tzavaroH6677 →42 times
בְּעֹ֥לin [the] yoke of
beolH5923 →40 times
מֶֽלֶךְ־[the] king of
melekh-H4428 →2525 times
בָּבֶ֖לBabylon
bavelH894 →262 times
וַֽעֲבָד֑וֹand it will serve him
vaavadoH5647 →288 times
וְהִנַּחְתִּ֤יוand I will let remain it
vehinachtivH5117 →142 times
עַל־on
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
אַדְמָתוֹ֙land its
ʾadmatoH127 →225 times
נְאֻם־[the] utterance of
neum-H5002 →376 times
יְהוָ֔הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
וַֽעֲבָדָ֖הּand it will work it
vaavadahH5647 →288 times
וְיָ֥שַׁבand it will dwell
veyashavH3427 →1079 times
בָּֽהּ׃in <the> it
bah
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
Jeremiah 21:9Whoever stays in this city will die by sword and famine and plague, but whoever goes out and surrenders to the Chaldeans who besiege you will live; he will retain his life like a…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 45:5
But as for you, do you seek great things for yourself? Stop seeking! For I will bring disaster on every living creature, declares the LORD, but wherever you go, I will grant your life…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Jeremiah 39:18
For I will surely rescue you so that you do not fall by the sword. Because you have trusted in Me, you will escape with your life like a spoil of war, declares the…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Jeremiah 38:2
“This is what the LORD says: Whoever stays in this city will die by sword and famine and plague, but whoever surrenders to the Chaldeans will live; he will retain his life like a…
- Jeremiah 38:17–23
Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “This is what the LORD God of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you indeed surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then you will live,…
- Jeremiah 14:12
Although they may fast, I will not listen to their cry; although they may offer burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Instead, I will finish them off by sword and…
- Jeremiah 45:5
Through
Jeremiah 27:8As for the nation or kingdom that does not serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and does not place its neck under his yoke, I will punish that nation by sword and famine and plague,…
it leads to
- Ezekiel 14:21
For this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘How much worse will it be when I send against Jerusalem My four dire judgments—sword, famine, wild beasts, and plague—in order to cut off from it…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Ezekiel 14:21
Through
Jeremiah 38:2“This is what the LORD says: Whoever stays in this city will die by sword and famine and plague, but whoever surrenders to the Chaldeans will live; he will retain his life like a…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 34:17
Therefore this is what the LORD says: You have not obeyed Me; you have not proclaimed freedom, each man for his brother and for his neighbor. So now I proclaim freedom for you, declares…
- Jeremiah 34:17
Through
Jeremiah 27:2This is what the LORD said to me: “Make for yourself a yoke out of leather straps and put it on your neck.
it leads to
- Amos 7:1
This is what the Lord GOD showed me: He was preparing swarms of locusts just after the king’s harvest, as the late spring crop was coming up.
- Amos 7:1
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Jeremiah
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Jeremiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.