Jeremiah 2:26
in Jeremiah 2As the thief is ashamed when he is caught, so the house of Israel is disgraced. They, their kings, their officials, their priests, and their prophets
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
As the thief is ashamed when he is found, so is the house of Israel ashamed; they, their kings, their princes, and their priests, and their prophets;
KJV
As the thief is ashamed when he is found, so is the house of Israel ashamed; they, their kings, their princes, and their priests, and their prophets,
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This verse in Jeremiah 2
Commentary
8 notes on this verse(Verse 26, 27.) Just as a thief is ashamed when he is caught, so were the people of Israel and their kings, leaders, priests, and prophets ashamed. Even though the faces of thieves are shameless and bold, they are still embarrassed when caught in the act. And so, when Israel says to a piece of wood, 'You are my father,' and to a stone, 'You have given birth to me,' they are calling their own creations their parents, and they are ashamed when caught in their idolatry.
This site's exposition
As the thief is ashamed when he is caught
on Jeremiah 2:26-28
The nation's shame is a thief's shame when he is caught. They call a tree “my father”, and they turn to the LORD only “in the time of trouble”. The LORD sends them back to their own gods, which are “as numerous as your cities, O Judah”.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
Against those who, in the greatness of their wickedness, have scorned God's goodness and rejected the Savior, there is decreed wrath and misery.… For those who are in their sins are full of shame. For so it is somewhere said of the Israelites, who violated the law of Moses: Like the shame of a thief when he is caught, so will the children of Israel be ashamed. But those who are in Christ by faith, escaping from the pollutions of sin, are certainly not full of shame but also have that boldness that becomes those who are free.
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
When these were first made the objects of worship they were supposed to be animated by some celestial power or spirit; but by degrees the thought of this was lost, and so vain did idolaters become in their imagination, even the princes and priests themselves, that the very idol, though made of wood and stone, was supposed to be their father, and adored accordingly.
As the thief is ashamed when, notwithstanding all his arts and tricks to conceal his theft, he is found, and brought to punishment, so are the house of Israel ashamed, not with a penitent shame for the sin they had been guilty of, but with a penal shame for the disappointment they met with in that sin.
As the thief is ashamed when be is found,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
is ashamed--is put to shame. thief-- (Joh 10:1). Israel--that is, Judah (Jer 2:28).
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
As the thief is ashamed - As the pilferer is confounded when he is caught in the fact; so shalt thou, thy kings, princes, priests, and prophets, be confounded, when God shall arrest thee in thy idolatries, and deliver thee into the hands of thine enemies.
The words behind it
13 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| כְּבֹ֤שֶׁת | kevoshet | like [the] shame of | H1322 → | 30 times |
| גַּנָּב֙ | ganav | a thief | H1590 → | 17 times |
| כִּ֣י | ki | if | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| יִמָּצֵ֔א | yimatze' | he is found | H4672 → | 455 times |
| כֵּ֥ן | ken | so | H3651 → | 771 times |
| הֹבִ֖ישׁוּ | hovishu | they have been put to shame | H954 → | 127 times |
| בֵּ֣ית | beit | [the] house of | H1004 → | 2046 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| הֵ֤מָּה | hemah | they | H1992 → | 553 times |
| מַלְכֵיהֶם֙ | malkheihem | kings their | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| שָֽׂרֵיהֶ֔ם | sareihem | officials their | H8269 → | 421 times |
| וְכֹהֲנֵיהֶ֖ם | vekhohaneihem | and priests their | H3548 → | 750 times |
| וּנְבִיאֵיהֶֽם׃ | unevieihem | and prophets their | H5030 → | 314 times |
כְּבֹ֤שֶׁתlike [the] shame of
kevoshetH1322 →30 times
גַּנָּב֙a thief
ganavH1590 →17 times
כִּ֣יif
kiH3588 →4482 times
יִמָּצֵ֔אhe is found
yimatze'H4672 →455 times
כֵּ֥ןso
kenH3651 →771 times
הֹבִ֖ישׁוּthey have been put to shame
hovishuH954 →127 times
בֵּ֣ית[the] house of
beitH1004 →2046 times
יִשְׂרָאֵ֑לIsrael
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
הֵ֤מָּהthey
hemahH1992 →553 times
מַלְכֵיהֶם֙kings their
malkheihemH4428 →2525 times
שָֽׂרֵיהֶ֔םofficials their
sareihemH8269 →421 times
וְכֹהֲנֵיהֶ֖םand priests their
vekhohaneihemH3548 →750 times
וּנְבִיאֵיהֶֽם׃and prophets their
unevieihemH5030 →314 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
Romans 6:21What fruit did you reap at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? The outcome of those things is death.
it leads to
- Romans 1:32
Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things are worthy of death, they not only continue to do these things, but also approve of those who practice them.
- Romans 7:5
For when we lived according to the flesh, the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in our bodies, bearing fruit for death.
- Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
- Galatians 6:7–8
Do not be deceived: God is not to be mocked. Whatever a man sows, he will reap in return.
- Proverbs 14:12
There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.
- Romans 1:32
Through
Ezra 9:7From the days of our fathers to this day, our guilt has been great. Because of our iniquities, we and our kings and priests have been delivered into the hands of the kings of…
it leads to
- 2 Chronicles 29:6
For our fathers were unfaithful and did evil in the sight of the LORD our God. They abandoned Him, turned their faces away from the dwelling place of the LORD, and turned their backs…
- 2 Chronicles 29:6
Through
Jeremiah 32:32because of all the evil the children of Israel and of Judah have done to provoke Me to anger—they, their kings, their officials, their priests and prophets, the men of Judah, and the residents…
it leads to
- Daniel 9:8
O LORD, we are covered with shame—our kings, our leaders, and our fathers—because we have sinned against You.
- Isaiah 1:4–6
Alas, O sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a brood of evildoers, children of depravity! They have forsaken the LORD; they have despised the Holy One of Israel and turned their backs on…
- Daniel 9:8
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Jeremiah
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Cyril of Alexandria, COMMENTARY ON LUKE, HOMILY 95; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole 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.