Jeremiah 46:14
in Jeremiah 46“Announce it in Egypt, and proclaim it in Migdol; proclaim it in Memphis and Tahpanhes: ‘Take your positions and prepare yourself, for the sword devours those around you.’
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Declare ye in Egypt, and publish in Migdol, and publish in Memphis and in Tahpanhes: say ye, Stand forth, and prepare thee; for the sword hath devoured round about thee.
KJV
Declare ye in Egypt, and publish in Migdol, and publish in Noph and in Tahpanhes: say ye, Stand fast, and prepare thee; for the sword shall devour round about thee.
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This verse in Jeremiah 46
Commentary
7 notes on this verseMigdol - Magdolum, a city of Lower Egypt. Noph, Memphis. Tahpanhes, Daphne. See before, Jer 44:1 (note). Round about thee - The Phoenicians, Philistines, Ammonites, Moabites, and Edomites, all prostrated by the arms of the Chaldeans.
This site's exposition
how Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon should come and smite the land of Egypt
on Jeremiah 46:13-19
This second oracle turns from Carchemish to a later invasion of Egypt's own soil, and the cities it names, Migdol, Noph and Tahpanhes, are the very towns where the fleeing remnant of Judah had carried Jeremiah after Gedaliah's murder (43:7), so the judgment reaches Israel's chosen refuge along with Egypt's own people. Tabor among the mountains and Carmel by the sea, both unmistakable landmarks visible for miles, supply the simile for an invader whose coming cannot be missed. Noph, the city of Memphis, is told plainly that it shall be waste and without an inhabitant.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
), notice given to the country that the enemy is approaching, the sword is devouring round about in the neighbouring countries, and therefore it is time for the Egyptians to put themselves in a posture of defence, to prepare for war, that they may give the enemy a warm reception.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
Declare ye in Egypt,....
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
He mentions the three other quarters, but omits the west, because the Chaldeans did not advance thither. These cities, too, were the best known to the Jews, as being in their direction. sword shall devour round about thee--namely, the Syrians, Jews, Moabites, and Ammonites (see on Jer 48:1). The exhortation is ironical, as in Jer 46:4, 9.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
Prophecy of the invasion of Egypt by Nebuchadnezzar, which took place sixteen years after the taking of Jerusalem. Having spent thirteen years in the siege of Tyre, and having obtained nothing for his pains, he is promised by God Egypt for his reward in humbling Tyre (Eze 29:17-20;
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
The sword shall devour - “The sword” hath devoured “those round about thee.” One after another the nations have been consumed by Nebuehadnezzar; and now at length Tyre, which so long had withstood him, has fallen, and his forces are about to fall upon Egypt (Jer 2:16 note). Hence, the summons to arrange themselves in their ranks, and to prepare for battle by putting on their armor.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
“Stand fast and prepare yourself” for the war. והכן means “and prepare.”
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
concerning the coming of Nebuchadnezzar This was a second blow, [viz.] that Nebuchadnezzar laid Egypt waste in the twenty-seventh year of his reign (Ezek.:17), as we learned in Seder Olam (ch. 26).
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. 5 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
15 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| הַגִּ֤ידוּ | hagidu | declare | H5046 → | 370 times |
| בְמִצְרַ֙יִם֙ | vemitzrayim | in Egypt | H4714 → | 641 times |
| וְהַשְׁמִ֣יעוּ | vehashmiu | and make a proclamation | H8085 → | 1159 times |
| בְמִגְדּ֔וֹל | vemigdol | in Migdol | H4024 → | |
| וְהַשְׁמִ֥יעוּ | vehashmiu | and make a proclamation | H8085 → | 1159 times |
| בְנֹ֖ף | venof | in Memphis | H5297 → | 7 times |
| וּבְתַחְפַּנְחֵ֑ס | uvetachpanches | and in Tahpanhes | H8471 → | 7 times |
| אִמְר֗וּ | ʾimru | say | H559 → | 5305 times |
| הִתְיַצֵּב֙ | hityatzev | take your stand | H3320 → | |
| וְהָכֵ֣ן | vehakhen | and prepare | H3559 → | 217 times |
| לָ֔ךְ | lakh | <to the> yourself | ||
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| אָכְלָ֥ה | ʾakhelah | it will devour | H398 → | 810 times |
| חֶ֖רֶב | cherev | [the] sword | H2719 → | 413 times |
| סְבִיבֶֽיךָ׃ | seviveikha | around you | H5439 → | 336 times |
הַגִּ֤ידוּdeclare
hagiduH5046 →370 times
בְמִצְרַ֙יִם֙in Egypt
vemitzrayimH4714 →641 times
וְהַשְׁמִ֣יעוּand make a proclamation
vehashmiuH8085 →1159 times
בְמִגְדּ֔וֹלin Migdol
vemigdolH4024 →
וְהַשְׁמִ֥יעוּand make a proclamation
vehashmiuH8085 →1159 times
בְנֹ֖ףin Memphis
venofH5297 →7 times
וּבְתַחְפַּנְחֵ֑סand in Tahpanhes
uvetachpanchesH8471 →7 times
אִמְר֗וּsay
ʾimruH559 →5305 times
הִתְיַצֵּב֙take your stand
hityatzevH3320 →
וְהָכֵ֣ןand prepare
vehakhenH3559 →217 times
לָ֔ךְ<to the> yourself
lakh
כִּֽי־for
ki-H3588 →4482 times
אָכְלָ֥הit will devour
ʾakhelahH398 →810 times
חֶ֖רֶב[the] sword
cherevH2719 →413 times
סְבִיבֶֽיךָ׃around you
seviveikhaH5439 →336 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
Isaiah 1:20But if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.” For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.
it leads to
- Isaiah 65:12
I will destine you for the sword, and you will all kneel down to be slaughtered, because I called and you did not answer, I spoke and you did not listen; you did evil…
- Isaiah 58:14
then you will delight yourself in the LORD, and I will make you ride on the heights of the land and feed you with the heritage of your father Jacob.” For the mouth of…
- Numbers 23:19
God is not a man, that He should lie, or a son of man, that He should change His mind. Does He speak and not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?
- Isaiah 40:5
And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all humanity together will see it. For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”
- Isaiah 3:25
Your men will fall by the sword, and your warriors in battle.
- Isaiah 65:12
Through
Jeremiah 44:1This is the word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the Jews living in the land of Egypt—in Migdol, Tahpanhes, and Memphis—and in the land of Pathros:
it leads to
- 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…
- Exodus 14:2
“Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp before Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. You are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal-zephon.
- Isaiah 11:11
Through
Jeremiah 46:10For that day belongs to the Lord GOD of Hosts, a day of vengeance against His foes. The sword will devour until it is satisfied, until it is quenched with their blood. For the…
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 32:42
I will make My arrows drunk with blood, while My sword devours flesh—the blood of the slain and captives, the heads of the enemy leaders.”
- Deuteronomy 32:42
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 on the Old Testament; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Carl Friedrich Keil, The Prophecies of Jeremiah; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.