Jeremiah 9:15
in Jeremiah 9Therefore this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: “Behold, I will feed this people wormwood and give them poisoned water to drink.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
therefore thus saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, Behold, I will feed them, even this people, with wormwood, and give them water of gall to drink.
KJV
Therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will feed them, even this people, with wormwood, and give them water of gall to drink.
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This verse in Jeremiah 9
Commentary
5 notes on this verse(1.) That all their comforts at home shall be poisoned and embittered to them: I will feed this people with wormwood (or rather with wolf's-bane, for it signifies a herb that is not wholesome, as wormwood is though it be bitter, but some herb that is both nauseous and noxious), and I will give them water of gall (or juice of hemlock or some other herb that is poisonous) to drink.
This site's exposition
I will feed this people wormwood
on Jeremiah 9:15-16
The LORD will “feed this people wormwood and give them poisoned water to drink”, a judgment that reaches the body's most basic need. The words “I will send a sword after them until I have finished them off” show that scattering is only part of the sentence.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verses 15, 16.) Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will feed them, this people, with wormwood (or distress), and give them water of gall to drink. I will scatter them among the nations, which neither they nor their fathers have known, and I will send a sword after them until they are consumed.
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
Therefore thus saith the Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
I will feed them - with wormwood - They shall have the deepest sorrow and heaviest affliction. They shall have poison instead of meat and drink.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| לָכֵ֗ן | lakhen | <to> therefore | H3651 → | 771 times |
| כֹּֽה־ | koh- | thus | H3541 → | 577 times |
| אָמַ֞ר | ʾamar | he says | H559 → | 5305 times |
| יְהוָ֤ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| צְבָאוֹת֙ | tzevaot | of hosts | H6635 → | 485 times |
| אֱלֹהֵ֣י | ʾelohei | [the] God of | H430 → | 2601 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| הִנְנִ֧י | hini | here I | H2005 → | 316 times |
| מַאֲכִילָ֛ם | maakhilam | [am] about to feed them | H398 → | 810 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הָעָ֥ם | haam | the people | H5971 → | 1873 times |
| הַזֶּ֖ה | hazeh | <the> this | H2088 → | 1180 times |
| לַֽעֲנָ֑ה | laanah | wormwood | H3939 → | |
| וְהִשְׁקִיתִ֖ים | vehishkitim | and I will give to drink them | H8248 → | 61 times |
| מֵי־ | mei- | water of | H4325 → | 581 times |
| רֹֽאשׁ׃ | rosh | poison | H7219 → | 12 times |
לָכֵ֗ן<to> therefore
lakhenH3651 →771 times
כֹּֽה־thus
koh-H3541 →577 times
אָמַ֞רhe says
ʾamarH559 →5305 times
יְהוָ֤הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
צְבָאוֹת֙of hosts
tzevaotH6635 →485 times
אֱלֹהֵ֣י[the] God of
ʾeloheiH430 →2601 times
יִשְׂרָאֵ֔לIsrael
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
הִנְנִ֧יhere I
hiniH2005 →316 times
מַאֲכִילָ֛ם[am] about to feed them
maakhilamH398 →810 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
הָעָ֥םthe people
haamH5971 →1873 times
הַזֶּ֖ה<the> this
hazehH2088 →1180 times
לַֽעֲנָ֑הwormwood
laanahH3939 →
וְהִשְׁקִיתִ֖יםand I will give to drink them
vehishkitimH8248 →61 times
מֵי־water of
mei-H4325 →581 times
רֹֽאשׁ׃poison
roshH7219 →12 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 8:14Why are we just sitting here? Gather together, let us flee to the fortified cities and perish there, for the LORD our God has doomed us. He has given us poisoned water to drink,…
it leads to
- Lamentations 3:19
Remember my affliction and wandering, the wormwood and the gall.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Psalms 69:21
They poisoned my food with gall and gave me vinegar to quench my thirst.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Jeremiah 23:15
Therefore this is what the LORD of Hosts says concerning the prophets: “I will feed them wormwood and give them poisoned water to drink, for from the prophets of Jerusalem ungodliness has spread throughout…
- Lamentations 3:19
Through
Jeremiah 25:15This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, said to me: “Take from My hand this cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink…
it leads to
- Psalms 75:8
For a cup is in the hand of the LORD, full of foaming wine mixed with spices. He pours from His cup, and all the wicked of the earth drink it down to the…
- Psalms 75:8
Through
Psalms 80:5You fed them with the bread of tears and made them drink the full measure of their tears.
it leads to
- Isaiah 30:20
The Lord will give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, but your Teacher will no longer hide Himself—with your own eyes you will see Him.
- Psalms 42:3
My tears have been my food both day and night, while men ask me all day long, “Where is your God?”
- Psalms 102:9
For I have eaten ashes like bread and mixed my drink with tears
- Isaiah 30:20
Through
Jeremiah 23:15Therefore this is what the LORD of Hosts says concerning the prophets: “I will feed them wormwood and give them poisoned water to drink, for from the prophets of Jerusalem ungodliness has spread throughout…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 8:14
Why are we just sitting here? Gather together, let us flee to the fortified cities and perish there, for the LORD our God has doomed us. He has given us poisoned water to drink,…
- Jeremiah 8:14
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Jeremiah
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the 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.