Bible Strands
Jeremiah 44:2
“This is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: You have seen all the disaster that I brought against Jerusalem and all the cities of Judah; and behold, they lie today in ruins and desolation
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Yahweh of Hosts, the God of Israel, speaks through Jeremiah to the Jewish exiles residing in Egypt at Migdol, Tahpanhes, Memphis, and Pathros immediately after the destruction of Jerusalem and Judah.
The words — רְאִיתֶם (re'i.tem) = you have seen, functions as a direct command to acknowledge the physical evidence of the preceding judgment.
The thread — The pattern of cities reduced to ruins and desolation appears in Isaiah 6:11, Jeremiah 9:11, and Jeremiah 34:22, consistently marking the outcome of divine judgment.
Why it lands — The text states that God brought disaster and left Judah’s cities in ruins, then requires the reader to accept that present exile is the factual result of continued idolatry rather than a failure of divine warning.
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
Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Ye have seen all the evil that I have brought upon Jerusalem, and upon all the cities of Judah; and, behold, this day they are a desolation, and no man dwelleth therein,
Cross-references
- Isaiah 6:11 Then I asked: “How long, O Lord?” And He replied: “Until the cities lie ruined and without inhabitant, until the houses are left unoccupied and the land is desolate and ravaged,
- Jeremiah 9:11 “And I will make Jerusalem a heap of rubble, a haunt for jackals; and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation, without inhabitant.”
- Jeremiah 34:22 Behold, I am going to give the command, declares the LORD, and I will bring them back to this city. They will fight against it, capture it, and burn it down. And I will make the cities of Judah a desolation, without inhabitant.”
- Jeremiah 4:7 A lion has gone up from his thicket, and a destroyer of nations has set out. He has left his lair to lay waste your land. Your cities will be reduced to ruins and lie uninhabited.
- Micah 3:12 Therefore, because of you, Zion will be plowed like a field, Jerusalem will become a heap of rubble, and the temple mount a wooded ridge.
- Exodus 19:4 ‘You have seen for yourselves what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself.
- Leviticus 26:32 And I will lay waste the land, so that your enemies who dwell in it will be appalled.
- Leviticus 26:43 For the land will be abandoned by them, and it will enjoy its Sabbaths by lying desolate without them. And they will pay the penalty for their iniquity, because they rejected My ordinances and abhorred My statutes.
- Deuteronomy 29:2 Moses summoned all Israel and proclaimed to them, “You have seen with your own eyes everything the LORD did in Egypt to Pharaoh, to all his officials, and to all his land.
- Joshua 23:3 “and you have seen everything that the LORD your God has done to all these nations for your sake, because it was the LORD your God who fought for you.