Jeremiah 23:38
in Jeremiah 23But if you claim, ‘This is the burden of the LORD,’ then this is what the LORD says: Because you have said, ‘This is the burden of the LORD,’ and I specifically told you not to make this claim,
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
But if ye say, The burden of Jehovah; therefore thus saith Jehovah: Because ye say this word, The burden of Jehovah, and I have sent unto you, saying, Ye shall not say, The burden of Jehovah;
KJV
But since ye say, The burden of the Lord; therefore thus saith the Lord; Because ye say this word, The burden of the Lord, and I have sent unto you, saying, Ye shall not say, The burden of the Lord;
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This verse in Jeremiah 23
Commentary
6 notes on this verseThis was the word that gave great offence to God, that, whenever they spoke of the word of the Lord, they called it, in scorn and derision, the burden of the Lord. This was a word that the prophets much used, and used it seriously, to show what a weight the word of God was upon their spirits, of what importance it was, and how pressingly it should come upon those that heard it.
This site's exposition
Now when this people or a
on Jeremiah 23:33-40
The Hebrew massa means both a burden carried and an oracle spoken, and the people ask, “What is the burden of the LORD?” as a taunt. The LORD answers, “I will forsake you,” then punishes prophet, priest and people, since “you pervert the words of the living God.”
This site's exposition
I specifically told you
The ban is plain, and the penalty follows for anyone who breaks it. Henry notes that true prophets used burden in earnest, for the weight of God's word on them. These men kept the word only to mock it.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verses 37 onwards) And you pervert the words of the living God: the Lord of hosts, our God. This is what you say to the Prophet: What did the Lord respond to you, and what did the Lord say? But if you say the burden of the Lord.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
5 Behold, the days come, saith the L ORD , that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. 6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE L ORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — scripture-overlap:93%@v5-6
But since ye say, the burden of the Lord,....
The words behind it
22 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְאִם־ | veim- | and if | H518 → | 1069 times |
| מַשָּׂ֣א | masa' | [the] burden of | H4853 → | 66 times |
| יְהוָה֮ | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| תֹּאמֵרוּ֒ | tomeru | you will say | H559 → | 5305 times |
| לָכֵ֗ן | lakhen | <to> therefore | H3651 → | 771 times |
| כֹּ֚ה | koh | thus | H3541 → | 577 times |
| אָמַ֣ר | ʾamar | he says | H559 → | 5305 times |
| יְהוָ֔ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| יַ֧עַן | yaan | because | H3282 → | 99 times |
| אֲמָרְכֶ֛ם | ʾamarekhem | have spoken you | H559 → | 5305 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הַדָּבָ֥ר | hadavar | the word | H1697 → | 1440 times |
| הַזֶּ֖ה | hazeh | <the> this | H2088 → | 1180 times |
| מַשָּׂ֣א | masa' | [the] burden of | H4853 → | 66 times |
| יְהוָ֑ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| וָאֶשְׁלַ֤ח | vaeshlach | and I sent | H7971 → | 845 times |
| אֲלֵיכֶם֙ | ʾaleikhem | to you | H413 → | 5510 times |
| לֵאמֹ֔ר | lemor | <to> saying | H559 → | 5305 times |
| לֹ֥א | lo' | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| תֹאמְר֖וּ | tomeru | you must say | H559 → | 5305 times |
| מַשָּׂ֥א | masa' | [the] burden of | H4853 → | 66 times |
| יְהוָֽה׃ | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
וְאִם־and if
veim-H518 →1069 times
מַשָּׂ֣א[the] burden of
masa'H4853 →66 times
יְהוָה֮Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
תֹּאמֵרוּ֒you will say
tomeruH559 →5305 times
לָכֵ֗ן<to> therefore
lakhenH3651 →771 times
כֹּ֚הthus
kohH3541 →577 times
אָמַ֣רhe says
ʾamarH559 →5305 times
יְהוָ֔הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
יַ֧עַןbecause
yaanH3282 →99 times
אֲמָרְכֶ֛םhave spoken you
ʾamarekhemH559 →5305 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
הַדָּבָ֥רthe word
hadavarH1697 →1440 times
הַזֶּ֖ה<the> this
hazehH2088 →1180 times
מַשָּׂ֣א[the] burden of
masa'H4853 →66 times
יְהוָ֑הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
וָאֶשְׁלַ֤חand I sent
vaeshlachH7971 →845 times
אֲלֵיכֶם֙to you
ʾaleikhemH413 →5510 times
לֵאמֹ֔ר<to> saying
lemorH559 →5305 times
לֹ֥אnot
lo'H3808 →5168 times
תֹאמְר֖וּyou must say
tomeruH559 →5305 times
מַשָּׂ֥א[the] burden of
masa'H4853 →66 times
יְהוָֽה׃Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
Where this verse is studied
About Jeremiah
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; 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.