Jeremiah 13:27

Lexham English Bible

Contextual Overview

²² And if you say in your heart, ‘Why have these things happened to me?' Because of the greatness of your iniquity your skirts are uncovered; your heels have endured violence. ²³ Can a Cushite change his skin, or a leopard his spots? Then you also will be able to do good, who are accustomed to doing evil. ²⁴ And I will scatter them like stubble scattered by the wind of the desert. ²⁵ This is your lot, the portion of your measure from me," declares Yahweh, "because you have forgotten me, and you have trusted in the lie. ²⁶ So in turn I will bare your skirts over your face, and your shame will become visible. ²⁷ Your adulteries, and your neighings, the shameful behavior of your fornications on the hills in the countryside, I have seen your abominations. Woe to you, O Jerusalem! How long will you continue to be unclean?"

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

thine adulteries: Jeremiah 2:20-24, Jeremiah 3:1, Jeremiah 3:2, Jeremiah 5:7, Jeremiah 5:8, Ezekiel 16:15-22, Ezekiel 23:2-21, Hosea 1:2, Hosea 4:2, 2 Corinthians 12:21, James 4:4

abominations: Jeremiah 2:20, Jeremiah 3:2, Jeremiah 3:6, Isaiah 57:7, Isaiah 65:7, Ezekiel 6:13, Ezekiel 20:28

Woe: Jeremiah 4:13, Ezekiel 2:10, Ezekiel 24:6, Zephaniah 3:1, Matthew 11:21, Revelation 8:13

wilt: Jeremiah 4:14, Psalms 94:4, Psalms 94:8, Ezekiel 24:13, Ezekiel 36:25, Ezekiel 36:37, Luke 11:9-13, 2 Corinthians 7:1

when: etc. Heb. after when yet

shall: Proverbs 1:22, Hosea 8:5

Reciprocal: Genesis 35:2 - clean Exodus 32:9 - I have seen Deuteronomy 9:13 - I have Psalms 51:10 - clean Jeremiah 23:25 - heard Jeremiah 23:26 - How Jeremiah 29:23 - even I Jeremiah 31:22 - How Lamentations 1:9 - filthiness Ezekiel 14:6 - turn Ezekiel 16:23 - woe Matthew 23:26 - cleanse John 5:6 - Wilt

Gill's Notes on the Bible

I have seen thine adulteries,.... Not literally such, though they were greatly guilty of that sin; but figuratively, their idolatries:

thy neighings; expressive of their strong desires after other gods, like that of adulterers and adulteresses after one another; and both which are like the neighing of horses. Kimchi thinks this designs their rejoicing in their evil works:

the lewdness of thy whoredom; their sinful thoughts, and wicked desires, which were continually after their idols and idolatrous practices:

and thine abominations on the hills in the fields; their idols, which were abominable to God, and ought to have been so to them; and which they placed on high hills, and there worshipped them; all which were seen and known by the Lord, nor could it be denied by them; and this was the reason of their being carried captive, and therefore could not complain they had been hardly dealt with; yea, notwithstanding all this, the Lord expresses a tender and compassionate concern for them:

woe unto thee, O Jerusalem! sad will be thy case, dreadful are the calamities coming upon thee, unless thou repentest:

wilt thou not be made clean? wilt thou show no concern, land make use of no means to be cleansed, nor seek for it, where it is to be had? neither repent of sin, nor reform from it, nor seek to God for his grace, signified by clean water; or to the blood of Christ, the fountain opened, which cleanses from it:

when shall it once be? some instances there were of it in the times of Christ and his apostles; but it will not be completely done until they seek the Lord, and his Christ, and fear him, and his goodness, in the latter day; when they shall turn unto him, and all Israel shall be saved; or, "thou wilt not be cleansed after a long time" w; this the Lord foresaw, and therefore pronounces her case sad and miserable.

w לא תטהרי אחרי מתי עוד "non mundaberis quousque adhuc, [vel] post quantum adhuc tempus", Schmidt; "non mundaberis posthac aliquamdiu"; so some in Vatablus.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

And thine abominations - “Even thy abominations.” The prophet sums up the three charges against Judah, namely, spiritual adultery, inordinate eagerness after idolatry (see the note at Jeremiah 5:7 note), and shameless participation in pagan orgies.

In the fields - “in the field,” the open, unenclosed country (see Jeremiah 6:25; Jeremiah 12:4).

Wilt thou not ... once be? - “Or, how long yet ere thou be made clean!” These words explain the teaching of Jeremiah 13:23. Repentance was not an actual, but a moral impossibility, and after a long time Judah was to be cleansed. It was to return from exile penitent and forgiven.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Jeremiah 13:27. I have seen thine adulteries — Thy idolatries of different kinds, practised in various ways; no doubt often accompanied with gross debauchery.

Wo unto thee, O Jerusalem wilt thou not be made clean? — We see from this, that though the thing was difficult, yet it was not impossible, for these Ethiopians to change their skin, for these leopards to change their spots. It was only their obstinate refusal of the grace of God that rendered it impossible. Man cannot change himself; but he may pray to God to do it, and come to him through Christ, that he may do it. To enable him to pray and believe, the power is still at hand. If he will not use it, he must perish.