Bible Strands
Jeremiah 8:12
Are they ashamed of the abomination they have committed? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; when I punish them, they will collapse, says the LORD.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The LORD speaks through Jeremiah to the people of Judah following their false assurances of peace and impending judgment. This declaration occurs during a prophetic pronouncement of national collapse and divine punishment.
The words — The Hebrew root בּוֹשׁ (bosh) appears repeatedly to mean "to be ashamed" or "to blush," emphasizing their complete lack of moral revulsion. The term תּוֹעֵבָה (to'evah) denotes a detestable abomination, marking the severity of their committed sins.
The thread — This theme of shameless sin and subsequent collapse appears in Jeremiah 3:3, which notes their "brazen look," and Deuteronomy 32:35, which warns that divine vengeance will cause their footing to slip. The progression from unrepentant action to inevitable judgment mirrors the harvest's withering described in Jeremiah 8:13.
Why it lands — The text demands recognition that persistent, unrepentant sin destroys moral sensitivity and guarantees collapse under judgment. It confronts the reader with the necessity of immediate repentance before divine punishment removes all provision and stability.
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
Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush: therefore shall they fall among them that fall: in the time of their visitation they shall be cast down, saith the Lord.
Cross-references
- Jeremiah 3:3 Therefore the showers have been withheld, and no spring rains have fallen. Yet you have the brazen look of a prostitute; you refuse to be ashamed.
- Deuteronomy 32:35 Vengeance is Mine; I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; for their day of disaster is near, and their doom is coming quickly.”
- Psalms 52:7 “Look at the man who did not make God his refuge, but trusted in the abundance of his wealth and strengthened himself by destruction.”
- Isaiah 3:9 The expression on their faces testifies against them, and like Sodom they flaunt their sin; they do not conceal it. Woe to them, for they have brought disaster upon themselves.
- Jeremiah 6:15 Are they ashamed of the abomination they have committed? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; when I punish them, they will collapse,” says the LORD.
- Psalms 52:1 For the choirmaster. A Maskil of David. After Doeg the Edomite went to Saul and told him, “David has gone to the house of Ahimelech.” Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man? The loving devotion of God endures all day long.
- Zephaniah 3:5 The LORD within her is righteous; He does no wrong. He applies His justice morning by morning; He does not fail at dawn, yet the unjust know no shame.
- Isaiah 9:13 But the people did not return to Him who struck them; they did not seek the LORD of Hosts.
- Isaiah 24:2 people and priest alike, servant and master, maid and mistress, buyer and seller, lender and borrower, creditor and debtor.
- Ezekiel 22:25 The conspiracy of the princes in her midst is like a roaring lion tearing its prey. They devour the people, seize the treasures and precious things, and multiply the widows within her.