Bible Strands
Jeremiah 50:21
Go up against the land of Merathaim, and against the residents of Pekod. Kill them and devote them to destruction. Do all that I have commanded you,” declares the LORD.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The LORD speaks through Jeremiah, directing military action against specific Babylonian territories as judgment falls on the empire.
The words — The Hebrew verb עֲלֵה ('aleh) means "go up," and the noun יוֹשְׁבֵי (yoshevei) denotes the "inhabitants" or residents of the targeted regions.
The thread — The text names Pekod, which Ezekiel 23:23 also lists among the Babylonian and Chaldean forces, while the command to devote targets to destruction parallels the directive in 1 Samuel 15:3.
Why it lands — The passage requires readers to accept the certainty of divine judgment and the necessity of carrying out commanded actions without delay or negotiation.
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
Go up against the land of Merathaim, even against it, and against the inhabitants of Pekod: waste and utterly destroy after them, saith the Lord, and do according to all that I have commanded thee.
Cross-references
- Ezekiel 23:23 the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans, the men of Pekod, Shoa, and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them—all desirable young men, governors and commanders, officers and men of renown, mounted on horses.
- Numbers 31:14 But Moses was angry with the officers of the army—the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds—who were returning from the battle.
- 1 Samuel 15:3 Now go and attack the Amalekites and devote to destruction all that belongs to them. Do not spare them, but put to death men and women, children and infants, oxen and sheep, camels and donkeys.’”
- 1 Samuel 15:11 “I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned away from following Me and has not carried out My instructions.” And Samuel was distressed and cried out to the LORD all that night.
- 2 Samuel 16:11 Then David said to Abishai and to all his servants, “Behold, my own son, my own flesh and blood, seeks my life. How much more, then, this Benjamite! Leave him alone and let him curse me, for the LORD has told him so.
- 2 Kings 18:25 So now, was it apart from the LORD that I have come up against this place to destroy it? The LORD Himself said to me, ‘Go up against this land and destroy it.’”
- 2 Chronicles 36:23 “This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: ‘The LORD, the God of heaven, who has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, has appointed me to build a house for Him at Jerusalem in Judah. Whoever among you belongs to His people, may the LORD his God be with him, and may he go up.’”
- Isaiah 10:6 I will send him against a godless nation; I will dispatch him against a people destined for My rage, to take spoils and seize plunder, and to trample them down like clay in the streets.
- Isaiah 44:28 who says of Cyrus, ‘My shepherd will fulfill all that I desire,’ who says of Jerusalem, ‘She will be rebuilt,’ and of the temple, ‘Let its foundation be laid.’”
- Isaiah 48:14 Come together, all of you, and listen: Which of the idols has foretold these things? The LORD’s chosen ally will carry out His desire against Babylon, and His arm will be against the Chaldeans.