Jeremiah 6:17
in Jeremiah 6I appointed watchmen over you and said, ‘Listen for the sound of the ram’s horn.’ But they answered, ‘We will not listen!’
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And I set watchmen over you, saying, Hearken to the sound of the trumpet; but they said, We will not hearken.
KJV
Also I set watchmen over you, saying, Hearken to the sound of the trumpet. But they said, We will not hearken.
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This verse in Jeremiah 6
Commentary
9 notes on this verse(Vers. 17) And I appointed watchmen over you, listen to the sound of the trumpet. And they said, we will not listen. And immediately he brings forth: And I have set watchmen over you. No doubt that the chorus of the Apostles is indicated, according to Ezekiel: Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel (Ezek. III, 17).
This site's exposition
Ask for the ancient paths
on Jeremiah 6:16-19
The invitation to “Ask for the ancient paths” promises “rest for your souls”, and the people answer “We will not walk in it”. The disaster that follows is “the fruit of their own schemes”, the harvest of a mind that had already rejected the LORD's instruction.
This site's exposition
Listen for the sound of the ram’s horn
Barnes identifies the watchmen as the prophets, and the ram's horn as the signal for flight sounded at verse 1. Irenaeus quoted the verse to show that one Father sent the prophets and then his own Son. The people refuse to listen.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
And again in like manner does Jeremiah speak: "I set watchmen over you; hearken to the sound of the trumpet; and they said, We will not hearken. Therefore have the Gentiles heard, and they who feed the flocks in them." It is therefore one and the same Father who planted the vineyard, who led forth the people, who sent the prophets, who sent His own Son, and who gave the vineyard to those other husbandmen that render the fruits in their season.
Jeremiah refers to their guides by the term "shepherds," not simply those accorded spiritual guidance but also kings and rulers who have accepted the divine message. This is the way the divine apostles Barnabas and Paul also behaved. When they entered a certain synagogue, they …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Also I set watchmen over you,.... That is, prophets, as Jarchi; true prophets, as Kimchi; such an one was Ezekiel, Jer 3:17. The Targum interprets it teachers; such were the apostles and first ministers of the Gospel; and all faithful preachers of it, who teach men good doctrine and watch for their souls, give them warning of their danger, and exhort them to flee to Christ for rest and safety; and these are of the Lord's appointing, constituting, and setting in his churches; see 1Co 12:
God's ministers are watchmen, and it is a great mercy to have them set over us in the Lord. Now observe here, (1.) The fair warning given by these watchmen. This was the burden of their song; they cried again and again, Hearken to the sound of the trumpet.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Watchmen - The prophets Isa 52:8. The second of the trumpet - This was the signal for flight Jer 6:1; Amo 3:6. Similarly the prophet’s warning was to move men to escape from God’s judgments.
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
I set watchmen - I have sent prophets to warn you.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַהֲקִמֹתִ֤י | vahakimoti | and I raised up | H6965 → | 628 times |
| עֲלֵיכֶם֙ | ʾaleikhem | over you | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| צֹפִ֔ים | tzofim | watchmen | H6822 → | |
| הַקְשִׁ֖יבוּ | hakshivu | pay attention | H7181 → | 46 times |
| לְק֣וֹל | lekol | to [the] sound of | H6963 → | 506 times |
| שׁוֹפָ֑ר | shofar | a trumpet | H7782 → | 72 times |
| וַיֹּאמְר֖וּ | vaiyomeru | and they said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| לֹ֥א | lo' | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| נַקְשִֽׁיב׃ | nakshiv | we will pay attention | H7181 → | 46 times |
וַהֲקִמֹתִ֤יand I raised up
vahakimotiH6965 →628 times
עֲלֵיכֶם֙over you
ʾaleikhemH5921 →5755 times
צֹפִ֔יםwatchmen
tzofimH6822 →
הַקְשִׁ֖יבוּpay attention
hakshivuH7181 →46 times
לְק֣וֹלto [the] sound of
lekolH6963 →506 times
שׁוֹפָ֑רa trumpet
shofarH7782 →72 times
וַיֹּאמְר֖וּand they said
vaiyomeruH559 →5305 times
לֹ֥אnot
lo'H3808 →5168 times
נַקְשִֽׁיב׃we will pay attention
nakshivH7181 →46 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
Habakkuk 2:1I will stand at my guard post and station myself on the ramparts. I will watch to see what He will say to me, and how I should answer when corrected.
it leads to
- Isaiah 21:8
Then the lookout shouted: “Day after day, my lord, I stand on the watchtower; night after night I stay at my post.
- Isaiah 62:6
On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have posted watchmen; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the LORD shall take no rest for yourselves,
- 2 Samuel 18:24
Now David was sitting between the two gates when the watchman went up to the roof of the gateway by the wall, looked out, and saw a man running alone.
- Psalms 85:8
I will listen to what God the LORD will say; for He will surely speak peace to His people and His saints; He will not let them return to folly.
- Isaiah 21:8
Through
Isaiah 58:1“Cry aloud, do not hold back! Raise your voice like a ram’s horn. Declare to My people their transgression and to the house of Jacob their sins.
it leads to
- Titus 2:15
Speak these things as you encourage and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you.
- Hosea 8:1
Put the ram’s horn to your lips! An eagle looms over the house of the LORD, because the people have transgressed My covenant and rebelled against My law.
- Acts 20:26–27
Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all men.
- Acts 7:51–52
You stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit, just as your fathers did.
- Titus 2:15
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Jeremiah
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Irenaeus, AGAINST HERESIES 4:36.2; Jerome, Commentary on Jeremiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Theodoret of Cyrus, ON JEREMIAH 2:6.18.