Jeremiah 43:13
in Jeremiah 43He will demolish the sacred pillars of the temple of the sun in the land of Egypt, and he will burn down the temples of the gods of Egypt.’”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
He shall also break the pillars of Beth-shemesh, that is in the land of Egypt; and the houses of the gods of Egypt shall he burn with fire.
KJV
He shall break also the images of Beth–shemesh, that is in the land of Egypt; and the houses of the gods of the Egyptians shall he burn with fire.
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This verse in Jeremiah 43
Commentary
9 notes on this verseThe city had two names. It was called both On and Heliopolis. Exodus also taught this, for it says that the children of Israel built cities for Pharaoh: Pithom, Raamses and On, which is Heliopolis. God calls Nebuchadnezzar his servant, not because he is a …
This site's exposition
I will kindle a fire in the houses of the gods of Egypt
on Jeremiah 43:12-13
Nebuchadnezzar “will burn those temples and take their gods as captives,” wrapping himself with the land “as a shepherd wraps himself in his garment.” Gill and Clarke identify “the temple of the sun” as Beth-shemesh, the Egyptian On or Heliopolis, the city of Joseph’s father-in-law in Genesis 41:45.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
"He shall break the obelisks of the city of the sun, which is in Egypt, and the temples of the gods of the Egyptians he shall burn with fire." The city of the sun is Egyptian Heliopolis, which was known for excessive demonic veneration and …
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
) and carry away the rich materials of them. It intimates that he should lay all waste when even the temple and the images should not escape the fury of the victorious army. The king of Babylon was himself a great idolater and a patron of idolatry; he had his temples and images in honour of the sun as well as the Egyptians; and yet he is employed to destroy the idols of Egypt.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
He shall break also the images of Bethshemesh, that is in the land of Egypt,....
7 So they came into the land of Egypt: for they obeyed not the voice of the L ORD : thus came they even to Tahpanhes. What God said to the builders of Babel may be truly said of this people that Jeremiah is now dealing with: Now nothing will be restrained from them which they have imagined to do, Gen. xi.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
He shall break also the images of Beth-shemesh - בית שמש beith shemesh is, literally, the house or temple of the sun; which was worshipped here, and whose images are said to have been of solid gold. These Nebuchadnezzar was to break and carry away; and the houses of the gods - all the temples of Egypt, he was to burn with fire. Beth-shemesh is the same as Heliopolis.
2 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Beth-shemesh--that is, "the house of the sun," in Hebrew; called by the Greeks "Heliopolis"; by the Egyptians, "On" (Ge 41:45); east of the Nile, and a few miles north of Memphis. Ephraim Syrus says, the statue rose to the height of sixty cubits; the base was ten cubits. Above there was a miter of a thousand pounds weight.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Images - Rather, pillars (compare the Isa 19:19 note), obelisks. Beth-shemesh - Heliopolis, famous for its obelisks.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
and he shall wrap up the land of Egypt He shall wrap up all its plunder and leave, as a shepherd wraps up and rolls his garment and casts it over his shoulder when he leads his flock before him.
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. 7 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
14 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְשִׁבַּ֗ר | veshibar | and he will break | H7665 → | 147 times |
| אֶֽת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| מַצְּבוֹת֙ | matzevot | [the] sacred pillars of | H4676 → | |
| בֵּ֣ית | beit | Beth | H1053 → | |
| שֶׁ֔מֶשׁ | shemesh | Shemesh | H1053 → | |
| אֲשֶׁ֖ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| בְּאֶ֣רֶץ | beeretz | [is] in [the] land of | H776 → | 2504 times |
| מִצְרָ֑יִם | mitzrayim | Egypt | H4714 → | 641 times |
| וְאֶת־ | veet | and <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| בָּתֵּ֥י | batei | [the] houses of | H1004 → | 2046 times |
| אֱלֹהֵֽי־ | ʾelohei- | [the] gods of | H430 → | 2601 times |
| מִצְרַ֖יִם | mitzrayim | Egypt | H4714 → | 641 times |
| יִשְׂרֹ֥ף | yisrof | he will burn | H8313 → | 117 times |
| בָּאֵֽשׁ׃ ס | baesh | with <the> fire | H784 → | 378 times |
וְשִׁבַּ֗רand he will break
veshibarH7665 →147 times
אֶֽת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
מַצְּבוֹת֙[the] sacred pillars of
matzevotH4676 →
בֵּ֣יתBeth
beitH1053 →
שֶׁ֔מֶשׁShemesh
shemeshH1053 →
אֲשֶׁ֖רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
בְּאֶ֣רֶץ[is] in [the] land of
beeretzH776 →2504 times
מִצְרָ֑יִםEgypt
mitzrayimH4714 →641 times
וְאֶת־and <obj.>
veetH853 →10935 times
בָּתֵּ֥י[the] houses of
bateiH1004 →2046 times
אֱלֹהֵֽי־[the] gods of
ʾelohei-H430 →2601 times
מִצְרַ֖יִםEgypt
mitzrayimH4714 →641 times
יִשְׂרֹ֥ףhe will burn
yisrofH8313 →117 times
בָּאֵֽשׁ׃ סwith <the> fire
baeshH784 →378 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
5 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
Isaiah 19:18In that day five cities in the land of Egypt will speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance to the LORD of Hosts. One of them will be called the City of the…
it leads to
- Zephaniah 3:9
For then I will restore pure lips to the peoples, that all may call upon the name of the LORD and serve Him shoulder to shoulder.
- Zechariah 2:11
“On that day many nations will join themselves to the LORD, and they will become My people. I will dwell among you, and you will know that the LORD of Hosts has sent Me…
- Isaiah 19:21
The LORD will make Himself known to Egypt, and on that day Egypt will acknowledge the LORD. They will worship with sacrifices and offerings; they will make vows to the LORD and fulfill them.
- Isaiah 11:11
On that day the Lord will extend His hand a second time to recover the remnant of His people from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and…
- Jeremiah 12:16
And if they will diligently learn the ways of My people and swear by My name, saying, ‘As surely as the LORD lives’—just as they once taught My people to swear by Baal—then they…
- Zephaniah 3:9
Where this verse is studied
On this page
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; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Ephrem the Syrian, COMMENTARY ON JEREMIAH 43:13; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Theodoret of Cyrus, ON JEREMIAH 8:43.