Bible Strands
Jeremiah 6:25
Do not go out to the fields; do not walk the road. For the enemy has a sword; terror is on every side.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Jeremiah speaks to the people of Judah during an imminent military crisis, directly commanding them to stay indoors as enemy forces close in. The prophet issues this warning at a moment when national panic and physical exhaustion are already gripping the population.
The words — The Hebrew אַל־תֵּֽצְאוּ (ʾal-tēṣəʾū) and אַל־תֵּלֵ֑כוּ (ʾal-tēlēkū) literally command "do not go out" and "do not walk." These parallel imperatives function as a strict prohibition against all travel to avoid the approaching threat.
The thread — The phrase "terror is on every side" appears in Job 18:11 and Psalm 31:13 to describe the inescapable pressure of judgment or enemy conspiracy. The warning about the enemy's sword and sudden destruction parallels the looting and ruin described in Jeremiah 49:29.
Why it lands — The text demands immediate obedience to a divine warning rather than denial or flight. It requires the reader to acknowledge that imminent peril often necessitates stillness and prepared mourning instead of movement or false security.
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 not forth into the field, nor walk by the way; for the sword of the enemy and fear is on every side.
Cross-references
- Jeremiah 49:29 They will take their tents and flocks, their tent curtains and all their goods. They will take their camels for themselves. They will shout to them: ‘Terror is on every side!’
- Job 18:11 Terrors frighten him on every side and harass his every step.
- Psalms 31:13 For I hear the slander of many; there is terror on every side. They conspire against me and plot to take my life.
- Jeremiah 14:18 If I go out to the country, I see those slain by the sword; if I enter the city, I see those ravaged by famine! For both prophet and priest travel to a land they do not know.’”
- Jeremiah 20:10 For I have heard the whispering of many: “Terror is on every side! Report him; let us report him!” All my trusted friends watch for my fall: “Perhaps he will be deceived so that we may prevail against him and take our vengeance upon him.”
- Judges 5:6 In the days of Shamgar son of Anath, in the days of Jael, the highways were deserted and the travelers took the byways.
- 2 Chronicles 15:5 In those days there was no safety for travelers, because the residents of the lands had many conflicts.
- Isaiah 1:20 But if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.” For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.
- Jeremiah 4:5 Announce in Judah, proclaim in Jerusalem, and say: “Blow the ram’s horn throughout the land. Cry aloud and say, ‘Assemble yourselves and let us flee to the fortified cities.’
- Jeremiah 4:10 Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD, how completely You have deceived this people and Jerusalem by saying, ‘You will have peace,’ while a sword is at our throats.”