Bible Strands
Jeremiah 50:33
This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “The sons of Israel are oppressed, and the sons of Judah as well. All their captors hold them fast, refusing to release them.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The LORD of Hosts declares this in Jeremiah 50 amid a prophetic oracle against Babylon, positioned between the warning of kindled fire in verse 32 and the promise of a strong Redeemer in verse 34.
The words — עֲשׁוּקִים ('a.shu.Kim) translates literally as [are] oppressed, anchoring the verse’s claim that the sons of Israel and Judah suffer captivity.
The thread — The text notes captors refusing release, a motif that appears in Exodus 9:2 and Isaiah 14:17, while the implied demand for liberation aligns with Isaiah 58:6.
Why it lands — It presents oppression as a concrete condition requiring divine intervention, directing the reader to recognize the LORD of Hosts as the one who will plead their case and bring rest.
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 children of Israel and the children of Judah were oppressed together: and all that took them captives held them fast; they refused to let them go.
Cross-references
- Exodus 9:2 But if you continue to restrain them and refuse to let them go,
- Isaiah 14:17 who turned the world into a desert and destroyed its cities, who refused to let the captives return to their homes?”
- Isaiah 58:6 Isn’t this the fast that I have chosen: to break the chains of wickedness, to untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and tear off every yoke?
- Exodus 9:17 Still, you lord it over My people and do not allow them to go.
- Isaiah 47:6 I was angry with My people; I profaned My heritage, and I placed them under your control. You showed them no mercy; even on the elderly you laid a most heavy yoke.
- Jeremiah 50:17 Israel is a scattered flock, chased away by lions. The first to devour him was the king of Assyria; the last to crush his bones was Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.”
- Exodus 5:2 But Pharaoh replied, “Who is the LORD that I should obey His voice and let Israel go? I do not know the LORD, and I will not let Israel go.”
- Exodus 8:2 But if you refuse to let them go, I will plague your whole country with frogs.
- Isaiah 49:24 Can the plunder be snatched from the mighty, or the captives of a tyrant be delivered?
- Isaiah 51:23 I will place it in the hands of your tormentors, who told you: ‘Lie down, so we can walk over you,’ so that you made your back like the ground, like a street to be traversed.”