Jeremiah 42:15

then hear the word of the LORD, O remnant of Judah! This is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you are determined to go to Egypt and reside there,

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — Jeremiah delivers this warning to the surviving Jewish remnant after they have requested prayer regarding their planned flight to Egypt. The prophet speaks at a moment of crisis when the group is actively debating whether to obey God's command or flee to Egypt.

The words — The Hebrew term שִׁמְעוּ (shim‘û) functions as an imperative commanding "hear," demanding attention to the impending divine judgment. The particle כֹּה־ (kōh) introduces the oracle with "thus," marking the formal delivery of Yahweh’s decree.

The thread — The prohibition against returning to Egypt appears in Deuteronomy 17:16 as a royal restriction and in Jeremiah 44:12 as a recorded fulfillment against settlers. Jeremiah 42:17 immediately follows with the explicit consequence that all who resolve to go will die by sword and famine.

Why it lands — The text demands immediate obedience to God's explicit command rather than reliance on human strategy or fear of war and famine. It requires the reader to recognize that fleeing from divine instruction into a place of idolatry guarantees the very destruction they seek to avoid.

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

And now therefore hear the word of the Lord, ye remnant of Judah; Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; If ye wholly set your faces to enter into Egypt, and go to sojourn there;

Cross-references

Deuteronomy 17:16 But the king must not acquire many horses for himself or send the people back to Egypt to acquire more horses, for the LORD has said, ‘You are never to go back that way again.’
Jeremiah 44:12 And I will take away the remnant of Judah who have resolved to go to the land of Egypt to reside there; they will meet their end. They will all fall by the sword or be consumed by famine. From the least to the greatest, they will die by sword or famine; and they will become an object of cursing and horror, of vilification and reproach.
Jeremiah 42:17 So all who resolve to go to Egypt to reside there will die by sword and famine and plague. Not one of them will survive or escape the disaster I will bring upon them.’
Genesis 31:21 So he fled with all his possessions, crossed the Euphrates, and headed for the hill country of Gilead.
Daniel 11:17 He will resolve to come with the strength of his whole kingdom, and will reach an agreement with the king of the South. He will give him a daughter in marriage in order to overthrow the kingdom, but his plan will not succeed or help him.
Luke 9:51 As the day of His ascension approached, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.