Bible Strands
Jeremiah 9:22
Declare that this is what the LORD says: “The corpses of men will fall like dung upon the open field, like newly cut grain behind the reaper, with no one to gather it.”
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The LORD commands Jeremiah to deliver a message of judgment to Israel immediately after describing how death has breached their cities and fortresses. This declaration occurs at a moment of national crisis when the prophet has just detailed the sudden loss of youth in streets and squares.
The words — The phrase נְאֻם־יְהוָה (ne.'um-Yahweh) marks the authoritative utterance of Yahweh, while כְּדֹמֶן (ke.Domen) literally renders the fallen bodies as resembling waste. These terms ground the visual of unburied dead in the concrete reality of divine judgment.
The thread — The image of exposed, unburied dead recurs in Jeremiah 8:2, where corpses are left to the sun and moon, and Jeremiah 25:33, which states they will not be gathered or mourned. Psalm 83:10 similarly describes defeated enemies as becoming like dung scattered on the ground.
Why it lands — The text requires readers to acknowledge the absolute vulnerability of human life to sudden, unmitigated death. It strips away illusions of security by showing that mortality leaves bodies unattended and unvalued, directly preparing the reader for the warning against boasting in human advantage.
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
Speak, Thus saith the Lord, Even the carcases of men shall fall as dung upon the open field, and as the handful after the harvestman, and none shall gather them.
Cross-references
- Jeremiah 8:2 They will be exposed to the sun and moon, and to all the host of heaven which they have loved, served, followed, consulted, and worshiped. Their bones will not be gathered up or buried, but will become like dung lying on the ground.
- Jeremiah 25:33 Those slain by the LORD on that day will be spread from one end of the earth to the other. They will not be mourned, gathered, or buried. They will be like dung lying on the ground.
- Psalms 83:10 who perished at Endor and became like dung on the ground.
- Isaiah 5:25 Therefore the anger of the LORD burns against His people; His hand is raised against them to strike them down. The mountains quake, and the corpses lie like refuse in the streets. Despite all this, His anger is not turned away; His hand is still upraised.
- Jeremiah 16:4 “They will die from deadly diseases. They will not be mourned or buried, but will lie like dung on the ground. They will be finished off by sword and famine, and their corpses will become food for the birds of the air and beasts of the earth.”
- Zephaniah 1:17 I will bring such distress on mankind that they will walk like the blind, because they have sinned against the LORD. Their blood will be poured out like dust and their flesh like dung.
- 2 Kings 9:37 And Jezebel’s body will lie like dung in the field on the plot of ground at Jezreel, so that no one can say: This is Jezebel.’”
- Jeremiah 7:33 The corpses of this people will become food for the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and there will be no one to scare them away.