Jeremiah 51:57
in Jeremiah 51I 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 of Hosts.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And I will make drunk her princes and her wise men, her governors and her deputies, and her mighty men; and they shall sleep a perpetual sleep, and not wake, saith the King, whose name is Jehovah of hosts.
KJV
And I will make drunk her princes, and her wise men, her captains, and her rulers, and her mighty men: and they shall sleep a perpetual sleep, and not wake, saith the King, whose name is the Lord of hosts.
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This verse in Jeremiah 51
Commentary
7 notes on this verseDrunk - A plain allusion to the posture the king of Babylon, and the thousand of his lords were in, when their city was taken while they were drinking wine in the bowls that were brought from the temple at Jerusalem.
This site's exposition
The sound of a cry comes from Babylon
on Jeremiah 51:54-58
“The sound of a cry comes from Babylon, the sound of great destruction.” The two defenses fall together: “Babylon’s thick walls will be leveled, and her high gates consumed by fire.” “So the labor of the people will be for nothing,” words Habakkuk 2:13 repeats almost exactly.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening4 voices
Those that sink under the weight of God's wrath and curse sink irrecoverably. The last words of the chapter seal up the vision and prophecy of this book: Thus far are the words of Jeremiah. Not that this prophecy against Babylon was the last of his prophecies; for it was dated in the fourth year of Zedekiah (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
); for on that night, in the midst of the jollity, was Belshazzar slain. It is to be a universal destruction. God will make thorough work of it; for, as he will perform what he has purposed, so he will perfect what he has begun.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
And I will make drunk her princes,....
When the spoiler comes upon Babylon her mighty men, who should make head against him, are immediately taken, their weapons of war fail them, every one of their bows is broken and stands them in no stead.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
I will make drunk her princes - See on Jer 51:39 (note).
The words behind it
16 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְ֠הִשְׁכַּרְתִּי | vehishkarti | and I will make drunk | H7937 → | 19 times |
| שָׂרֶ֨יהָ | sareiha | officials its | H8269 → | 421 times |
| וַחֲכָמֶ֜יהָ | vachakhameiha | and wise [people] its | H2450 → | 138 times |
| פַּחוֹתֶ֤יהָ | pachoteiha | governors its | H6346 → | 28 times |
| וּסְגָנֶ֙יהָ֙ | useganeiha | and officials its | H5461 → | 17 times |
| וְגִבּוֹרֶ֔יהָ | vegiboreiha | and warriors its | H1368 → | 158 times |
| וְיָשְׁנ֥וּ | veyashenu | and they will sleep | H3462 → | |
| שְׁנַת־ | shenat- | a sleep of | H8142 → | 23 times |
| עוֹלָ֖ם | olam | perpetuity | H5769 → | 438 times |
| וְלֹ֣א | velo' | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| יָקִ֑יצוּ | yakitzu | they will awake | H6974 → | 22 times |
| נְאֻ֨ם־ | neum- | [the] utterance of | H5002 → | 376 times |
| הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| יְהוָ֥ה | yahweh | [is] Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| צְבָא֖וֹת | tzevaot | of hosts | H6635 → | 485 times |
| שְׁמֽוֹ׃ ס | shemo | name his | H8034 → | 864 times |
וְ֠הִשְׁכַּרְתִּיand I will make drunk
vehishkartiH7937 →19 times
שָׂרֶ֨יהָofficials its
sareihaH8269 →421 times
וַחֲכָמֶ֜יהָand wise [people] its
vachakhameihaH2450 →138 times
פַּחוֹתֶ֤יהָgovernors its
pachoteihaH6346 →28 times
וּסְגָנֶ֙יהָ֙and officials its
useganeihaH5461 →17 times
וְגִבּוֹרֶ֔יהָand warriors its
vegiboreihaH1368 →158 times
וְיָשְׁנ֥וּand they will sleep
veyashenuH3462 →
שְׁנַת־a sleep of
shenat-H8142 →23 times
עוֹלָ֖םperpetuity
olamH5769 →438 times
וְלֹ֣אand not
velo'H3808 →5168 times
יָקִ֑יצוּthey will awake
yakitzuH6974 →22 times
נְאֻ֨ם־[the] utterance of
neum-H5002 →376 times
הַמֶּ֔לֶךְthe king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
יְהוָ֥ה[is] Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
צְבָא֖וֹתof hosts
tzevaotH6635 →485 times
שְׁמֽוֹ׃ סname his
shemoH8034 →864 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
Jeremiah 25:27“Then you are to tell them that this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘Drink, get drunk, and vomit. Fall down and never get up again, because of the…
it leads to
- Habakkuk 2:16
You will be filled with shame instead of glory. You too must drink and expose your uncircumcision! The cup in the LORD’s right hand will come around to you, and utter disgrace will cover…
- Jeremiah 25:16
And they will drink and stagger and go out of their minds, because of the sword that I will send among them.”
- Habakkuk 2:16
Through
Jeremiah 46:18As surely as I live, declares the King, whose name is the LORD of Hosts, there will come one who is like Tabor among the mountains and like Carmel by the sea.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 48:15
Moab has been destroyed and its towns have been invaded; the best of its young men have gone down in the slaughter, declares the King, whose name is the LORD of Hosts.
- Joshua 19:22
The border reached Tabor, Shahazumah, and Beth-shemesh, and ended at the Jordan. There were sixteen cities, along with their villages.
- Judges 4:6
She summoned Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali and said to him, “Surely the LORD, the God of Israel, is commanding you: ‘Go and march to Mount Tabor, taking with you ten…
- Jeremiah 48:15
Through
Jeremiah 48:15Moab has been destroyed and its towns have been invaded; the best of its young men have gone down in the slaughter, declares the King, whose name is the LORD of Hosts.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 50:27
Kill all her young bulls; let them go down to the slaughter. Woe to them, for their day has come—the time of their punishment.
- Jeremiah 46:18
As surely as I live, declares the King, whose name is the LORD of Hosts, there will come one who is like Tabor among the mountains and like Carmel by the sea.
- Jeremiah 50:27
Through
Jeremiah 51:39While 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…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 25:27
“Then you are to tell them that this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘Drink, get drunk, and vomit. Fall down and never get up again, because of the…
- Jeremiah 25:27
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Jeremiah
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Carl Friedrich Keil, The Prophecies of Jeremiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.