Jeremiah 48:10
in Jeremiah 48Cursed is the one who is remiss in doing the work of the LORD, and cursed is he who withholds his sword from bloodshed.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Cursed be he that doeth the work of Jehovah negligently; and cursed be he that keepeth back his sword from blood.
KJV
Cursed be he that doeth the work of the Lord deceitfully, and cursed be he that keepeth back his sword from blood.
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This verse in Jeremiah 48
Commentary
13 notes on this verseCursed be he that doeth the work of the Lord deceitfully,.... Which is said with respect to the Chaldeans, who were enjoined to destroy the Moabites; which is called the work of the Lord, because he had given them a commission to do it; and which was to be done by them, not by halves, or in a remiss and negligent manner, but fully and faithfully; they were not to spare them, as Saul did the Amalekites, and Ahab Benhadad.
This site's exposition
Concerning Moab, this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says
on Jeremiah 48:1-10
The oracle names Moab’s towns, and verse 7 gives the cause: “Because you trust in your works and treasures.” Moab’s god goes too: “Chemosh will go into exile with his priests and officials.” Verse 10 curses the one who “withholds his sword from bloodshed,” a charge not to spare Moab.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers5 voices
I exhort and admonish you, dearly beloved, that whenever the priest prays at the altar or when the deacon intones the prayer in a loud voice, you devoutly bow your bodies as well as your hearts. I have carefully noted that when the deacon says …
"Awake, lyre and harp." O psaltery, O harp, you were made and fashioned to give praise to God; awake my harp and give praise; why do you lie idle? O monk, you are standing there in body; why is your soul listless, why are you not chanting praises to the Lord? "Cursed is one who is remiss in doing the Lord's work." If you are a psaltery, if you are a harp, why are you so mute and not glorifying God? "I will wake the dawn." There is not blessing and praising God in darkness but only in light.
It is hazardous for a superior to be delinquent, since he holds the position of arbiter in everything. It is both injurious and detrimental for those under their charge when they are disobedient. It is especially perilous if, in addition, the one who is in a superior position is scandalous. Each one who shows in his own place a tireless zeal, fulfilling the apostle's precept, "in carefulness not slothful," merits praise for his promptness. But for negligence he deserves the opposite, that is, unhappiness and woe. For the prophet says, "Cursed is the one who does the work of the Lord negligently."
What condemnation, then, ought we to expect to fall on those who are frivolous and irresponsible in the management of goods that are already consecrated to the Lord? Are they not liable to the sentence of doom pronounced on the negligent, as it is written, "Cursed is he who does the work of the Lord negligently"?
Do not allow another to do the work that is rightly yours, so that the reward as well may not be taken from you and given to another and he be enriched with your wealth while you are put to shame. Perform the duties of your ministry decently and with care as if you were serving Christ, for "cursed," says the prophet, "is everyone who does the work of the Lord negligently." Fear, as if the eye of the Lord were on you, the perversity that arises from fastidiousness and contempt, even though the task in hand seems to you a menial one. The work of the ministry is an exalted work and leads to the kingdom of heaven.
6 more voices on this verse
The Church Fathers2 voices
Elsewhere, he expresses his condemnation more vividly: "Depart from me, you cursed, into everlasting fire that was prepared for the devil and his angels." Then he alleges not the commission of any forbidden act but the omission of commended ones, saying, "For I was hungry, and you gave me nothing to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me nothing to drink," and so on. There are many passages like that that one might find to prove that not only are those who do wicked things worthy of death—for whom has been prepared the inextinguishable fire as well—but that along with these those are condemned who leave good works undone or who perform them negligently. For it is written, "Cursed is every person who does the work of the Lord negligently."
When you repeat a psalm, consider whose words you are repeating and delight yourself more with true contrition of soul, than with the pleasantness of a trilling voice. For God sets a higher value on the tears of one thus praising him, than on the …
The Medieval Church1 voice
If persons by no means ignorant of the medicinal art were to see a sore that required lancing and yet refused to lance it, certainly by their mere inactivity they would be guilty of a brother's death. Let them see, then, in how great guilt they are involved who, knowing the sores of souls, neglect to cure them by the lancing of words. And so, it is well said through the prophet, "Cursed is one who keeps back his sword from blood." For to keep back the sword from blood is to hold back the word of preaching from the killing of the carnal life. Of which sword it is said again, "And my sword shall devour flesh."
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
): Cursed be he that does the work of the Lord deceitfully, this bloody work, this destroying work; though it goes against the grain with men of compassion, yet it is the work of the Lord, and must not be done by the halves.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Lord--the divinely appointed utter devastation of Moab. To represent how entirely this is God's will, a curse is pronounced on the Chaldeans, the instrument, if they do it negligently (Margin) or by halves (Jud 5:23); compare Saul's sin as to Amalek (1Sa 15:3, 9), and Ahab's as to Syria (1Ki 20:42).
Cursed be he that doeth the work of the Lord deceitfully - Moab is doomed to destruction, and the Lord pronounces a curse on their enemies if they do not proceed to utter extirpation. God is the Author of life, and has a sovereign right to dispose of it as he pleases; and these had forfeited theirs long ago by their idolatry and other crimes.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
the Lord’s work The work of the destruction of Moab, which is the mission of the Omnipresent.
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
9 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| אָר֗וּר | ʾarur | [is] cursed | H779 → | 63 times |
| עֹשֶׂ֛ה | ʾoseh | [one who] does | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| מְלֶ֥אכֶת | melekhet | [the] work of | H4399 → | 167 times |
| יְהוָ֖ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| רְמִיָּ֑ה | remiyah | slackness | H7423 → | |
| וְאָר֕וּר | vearur | and [is] cursed | H779 → | 63 times |
| מֹנֵ֥עַ | monea' | [one who] withholds | H4513 → | 29 times |
| חַרְבּ֖וֹ | charbo | sword his | H2719 → | 413 times |
| מִדָּֽם׃ | midam | from blood | H1818 → | 360 times |
אָר֗וּר[is] cursed
ʾarurH779 →63 times
עֹשֶׂ֛ה[one who] does
ʾosehH6213 →2628 times
מְלֶ֥אכֶת[the] work of
melekhetH4399 →167 times
יְהוָ֖הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
רְמִיָּ֑הslackness
remiyahH7423 →
וְאָר֕וּרand [is] cursed
vearurH779 →63 times
מֹנֵ֥עַ[one who] withholds
monea'H4513 →29 times
חַרְבּ֖וֹsword his
charboH2719 →413 times
מִדָּֽם׃from blood
midamH1818 →360 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
1 Samuel 15:3Now go and attack the Amalekites and devote to destruction all that belongs to them. Do not spare them, but put to death men and women, children and infants, oxen and sheep, camels and…
it leads to
- Numbers 24:20
Then Balaam saw Amalek and lifted up an oracle, saying: “Amalek was first among the nations, but his end is destruction.”
- Deuteronomy 20:16–18
However, in the cities of the nations that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, you must not leave alive anything that breathes.
- Isaiah 14:21–22
Prepare a place to slaughter his sons for the iniquities of their forefathers. They will never rise up to possess a land or cover the earth with their cities.
- 1 Samuel 22:19
He also put to the sword Nob, the city of the priests, with its men and women, children and infants, oxen, donkeys, and sheep.
- Numbers 31:17
So now, kill all the boys, as well as every woman who has had relations with a man,
- Numbers 24:20
Through
1 Kings 20:42And the prophet said to the king, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Because you have let slip from your hand the man I had devoted to destruction, your life will be exchanged for…
it leads to
- 1 Kings 22:31–37
Now the king of Aram had ordered his thirty-two chariot commanders, “Do not fight with anyone, small or great, except the king of Israel.”
- 2 Chronicles 18:33–34
However, a certain man drew his bow without taking special aim, and he struck the king of Israel between the joints of his armor. So the king said to his charioteer, “Turn around and…
- 1 Kings 22:31–37
Through
1 Samuel 15:9Saul and his troops spared Agag, along with the best of the sheep and cattle, the fat calves and lambs, and the best of everything else. They were unwilling to destroy them, but they…
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 15:15
Saul answered, “The troops brought them from the Amalekites; they spared the best sheep and cattle to sacrifice to the LORD your God, but the rest we devoted to destruction.”
- 1 Samuel 15:15
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Jeremiah
This page draws on 14 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Basil of Caesarea, THE LONG RULES 24; Basil of Caesarea, THE LONG RULES 9; Basil of Caesarea, ON RENUNCIATION OF THE WORLD; Basil of Caesarea, CONCERNING BAPTISM 2:6; Caesarius of Arles, SERMON 77:1; Carl Friedrich Keil, The Prophecies of Jeremiah; Gregory the Dialogist, The Book of Pastoral Rule 3.25; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, HOMILIES ON THE PSALMS 34; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Sulpicius Severus, LETTERS OF SULPITIUS SEVERUS 2:19.