Bible Strands
Jeremiah 6:28
All are hardened rebels, walking around as slanderers. They are bronze and iron; all of them are corrupt.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Jeremiah delivers this declaration to Judah’s leadership and populace immediately after being commissioned to test them like ore. The prophet speaks at a moment of impending judgment, framing the people’s condition as a direct object of divine examination.
The words — The Hebrew סֽוֹרְרִ֔ים (sō.rîm) literally means "rebels" or "those who turn aside," denoting a persistent refusal to follow God’s standard. The phrase נְחֹ֣שֶׁת (ne.chō.shet) and בַרְזֶ֑ל (bar.zel) translates to "bronze and iron," describing a hardened, unyielding state that resists purification.
The thread — This pattern of rebellion and slander runs through Jeremiah 5:23, which cites stubborn hearts and turning away, and Jeremiah 9:4, which warns against trusting neighbors due to crafty dealings. Jeremiah 18:18 shows leaders conspiring against the prophet, mirroring the slanderous behavior described here.
Why it lands — The text plainly states that the people’s moral corruption and slander are a fixed, national condition rather than isolated failures. It asks the reader to recognize that human resistance to divine examination cannot be overcome by human effort alone.
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
They are all grievous revolters, walking with slanders: they are brass and iron; they are all corrupters.
Cross-references
- Jeremiah 9:4 “Let everyone guard against his neighbor; do not trust any brother, for every brother deals craftily, and every friend spreads slander.
- Jeremiah 5:23 But these people have stubborn and rebellious hearts. They have turned aside and gone away.
- Jeremiah 18:18 Then some said, “Come, let us make plans against Jeremiah, for the law will never be lost to the priest, nor counsel to the wise, nor an oracle to the prophet. Come, let us denounce him and pay no heed to any of his words.”
- Ezekiel 22:18 “Son of man, the house of Israel has become dross to Me. All of them are copper, tin, iron, and lead inside the furnace; they are but the dross of silver.
- Psalms 50:20 You sit and malign your brother; you slander your own mother’s son.
- Isaiah 1:4 Alas, O sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a brood of evildoers, children who act corruptly! They have forsaken the LORD; they have despised the Holy One of Israel and turned their backs on Him.
- Isaiah 31:6 Return to the One against whom you have so blatantly rebelled, O children of Israel.
- Jeremiah 6:30 They are called rejected silver, because the LORD has rejected them.”
- 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.”
- Revelation 11:18 The nations were enraged, and Your wrath has come. The time has come to judge the dead and to reward Your servants the prophets, as well as the saints and those who fear Your name, both small and great—and to destroy those who destroy the earth.”