Bible Strands
Jeremiah 4:4
Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and remove the foreskins of your hearts, O men of Judah and people of Jerusalem. Otherwise, My wrath will break out like fire and burn with no one to extinguish it, because of your evil deeds.”
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Jeremiah addresses the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, issuing a warning immediately before the call to flee to fortified cities (v. 5).
The words — עָרְל֣וֹת (ʿărəlōṯ), "foreskins," appears in the plural and is applied to the heart (לְבָב), treating the organ as though it carries a physical covering that must be cut away.
The thread — Deuteronomy 10:16 commands the same act ("circumcise your hearts"), and Deuteronomy 30:6 promises God will perform it on their behalf; Romans 2:28 later distinguishes this inward reality from the outward sign.
Why it lands — The Hithpael form (הִמֹּ֣לוּ) makes the listener the agent: they must do the cutting to themselves, and the consequence of refusal is stated without hedging.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings.
Cross-references
- Deuteronomy 10:16 Circumcise your hearts, therefore, and stiffen your necks no more.
- Deuteronomy 30:6 The LORD your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, and you will love Him with all your heart and with all your soul, so that you may live.
- Romans 2:28 A man is not a Jew because he is one outwardly, nor is circumcision only outward and physical.
- Colossians 2:11 In Him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of your sinful nature, with the circumcision performed by Christ and not by human hands.
- Jeremiah 9:26 Egypt, Judah, Edom, Ammon, Moab, and all the inhabitants of the desert who clip the hair of their temples. For all these nations are uncircumcised, and the whole house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart.”
- Jeremiah 21:12 O house of David, this is what the LORD says: ‘Administer justice every morning, and rescue the victim of robbery from the hand of his oppressor, or My wrath will go forth like fire and burn with no one to extinguish it because of their evil deeds.
- Ezekiel 20:33 As surely as I live, declares the Lord GOD, with a strong hand, an outstretched arm, and outpoured wrath I will rule over you.
- Amos 5:6 Seek the LORD and live, or He will sweep like fire through the house of Joseph; it will devour everything, with no one at Bethel to extinguish it.
- Mark 9:43 If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two hands and go into hell, into the unquenchable fire.
- Ezekiel 24:13 Because of the indecency of your uncleanness I tried to cleanse you, but you would not be purified from your filthiness. You will not be pure again until My wrath against you has subsided.