Jeremiah 9:3
in Jeremiah 9“They bend their tongues like bows; lies prevail over truth in the land. For they proceed from evil to evil, and they do not take Me into account,” declares the LORD.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And they bend their tongue, as it were their bow, for falsehood; and they are grown strong in the land, but not for truth: for they proceed from evil to evil, and they know not me, saith Jehovah.
KJV
And they bend their tongues like their bow for lies: but they are not valiant for the truth upon the earth; for they proceed from evil to evil, and they know not me, saith the Lord.
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This verse in Jeremiah 9
Commentary
9 notes on this verse(Verse 3.) Because they are all adulterers, a gathering of transgressors. And they have stretched out their tongue like a bow of falsehood and not of truth. They have grown strong in the land, for they have gone from evil to evil, and they have not known me, says the Lord. Sinners go from evil to evil, when they exchange idols for idols, and they go from sins to sins, or certainly from the evil of siege to captivity. And indeed, concerning the saints, it is said: They will go from strength to strength (Psalm 83:8).
This site's exposition
Oh, that my head were a spring of water
on Jeremiah 9:1-3
The chapter opens with the prophet's own extremity, “Oh, that my head were a spring of water, and my eyes a fountain of tears”. The charge that follows, “They bend their tongues like bows; lies prevail over truth in the land”, names the sin behind the tears.
This site's exposition
They bend their tongues like bows
Clarke says the lies of the false prophets killed like arrows. The people believed no danger was near, made no defence and met the sword. From evil to evil, in Jerome's reading, runs from idol to idol, or from siege to captivity.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
They were fabricating deceit, engaging in blackmail, leveling false accusations against neighbors. For this is what he says, "Deceit, not faith, prevails over the land, for they proceed from evil to evil." Because of this he exposes their evil, which never changes as they move …
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
(2.) That which aggravates the sin on this false and lying generation is, [1.] That they are ingenious to sin: They have taught their tongue to speak lies, implying that through the reluctances of natural conscience they found it difficult to bring themselves to it.
): They proceed from evil to evil, from one sin to another, from one degree of sin to another. They began with less sins. Nemo repente fit turpissimus--No one reaches the height of vice at once.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
And they bend their tongues like their bow for lies,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
They bend their tongues like their bow for lies - And their lies are such that they as fully take away life as the keenest arrow shot from the best strung bow. The false prophets told the people that there was no desolation at hand: the people believed them; made no preparation for their defense; did not return to the Lord; and the sword came and destroyed them. They are not valiant for the truth - They are bold in sin, and courageous to support their lies; but the truth they neither patronize nor support.
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
bend . . . tongues . . . for lies--that is, with lies as their arrows; they direct lies on their tongue as their bow (Ps 64:3, 4). not valiant for . . . truth-- (Jer 7:28). MAURER translates, "They do not prevail by truth" or faith (Ps 12:4). Their tongue, not faith, is their weapon. upon . . . earth--rather, "in the land." know not me-- (Ho 4:1).
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
The words behind it
19 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַֽיַּדְרְכ֤וּ | vaiyadrekhu | and they have bent | H1869 → | 62 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| לְשׁוֹנָם֙ | leshonam | tongue their | H3956 → | 117 times |
| קַשְׁתָּ֣ם | kashtam | bow of their | H7198 → | 76 times |
| שֶׁ֔קֶר | sheker | falsehood | H8267 → | 113 times |
| וְלֹ֥א | velo' | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| לֶאֱמוּנָ֖ה | leemunah | to faithfulness | H530 → | 49 times |
| גָּבְר֣וּ | gaveru | they are strong | H1396 → | |
| בָאָ֑רֶץ | vaaretz | in the land | H776 → | 2504 times |
| כִּי֩ | ki | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| מֵרָעָ֨ה | meraah | from evil | H7451 → | 662 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| רָעָ֧ה׀ | raah | evil | H7451 → | 662 times |
| יָצָ֛אוּ | yatzau | they have gone out | H3318 → | 1067 times |
| וְאֹתִ֥י | veoti | and <obj.> me | H853 → | 10935 times |
| לֹֽא־ | lo'- | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| יָדָ֖עוּ | yadau | they know | H3045 → | 945 times |
| נְאֻם־ | neum- | [the] utterance of | H5002 → | 376 times |
| יְהוָֽה׃ ס | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
וַֽיַּדְרְכ֤וּand they have bent
vaiyadrekhuH1869 →62 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
לְשׁוֹנָם֙tongue their
leshonamH3956 →117 times
קַשְׁתָּ֣םbow of their
kashtamH7198 →76 times
שֶׁ֔קֶרfalsehood
shekerH8267 →113 times
וְלֹ֥אand not
velo'H3808 →5168 times
לֶאֱמוּנָ֖הto faithfulness
leemunahH530 →49 times
גָּבְר֣וּthey are strong
gaveruH1396 →
בָאָ֑רֶץin the land
vaaretzH776 →2504 times
כִּי֩for
kiH3588 →4482 times
מֵרָעָ֨הfrom evil
meraahH7451 →662 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
רָעָ֧ה׀evil
raahH7451 →662 times
יָצָ֛אוּthey have gone out
yatzauH3318 →1067 times
וְאֹתִ֥יand <obj.> me
veotiH853 →10935 times
לֹֽא־not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
יָדָ֖עוּthey know
yadauH3045 →945 times
נְאֻם־[the] utterance of
neum-H5002 →376 times
יְהוָֽה׃ סYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 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 3:13“Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.” “The venom of vipers is on their lips.”
it leads to
- Psalms 5:9
For not a word they speak can be trusted; destruction lies within them. Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.
- Psalms 140:3
They sharpen their tongues like snakes; the venom of vipers is on their lips. Selah
- Psalms 57:4
My soul is among the lions; I lie down with ravenous beasts— with men whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Psalms 5:9
Through
Jeremiah 4:22“For My people are fools; they have not known Me. They are foolish children, without understanding. They are skilled in doing evil, but they know not how to do good.”
it leads to
- 1 Corinthians 14:20
Brothers, stop thinking like children. In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be mature.
- Romans 16:19
Everyone has heard about your obedience, so I rejoice over you. But I want you to be wise about what is good and innocent about what is evil.
- Jeremiah 5:21
“Hear this, O foolish and senseless people, who have eyes but do not see, who have ears but do not hear.
- Hosea 4:6
My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I will also reject you as My priests. Since you have forgotten the law of your God, I will also forget…
- Romans 3:11
There is no one who understands, no one who seeks God.
- 1 Corinthians 14:20
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; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; 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 3:9.