Jeremiah 11:21 kjv
Therefore thus saith the LORD of the men of Anathoth, that seek thy life, saying, Prophesy not in the name of the LORD, that thou die not by our hand:
Jeremiah 11:21 nkjv
"Therefore thus says the LORD concerning the men of Anathoth who seek your life, saying, 'Do not prophesy in the name of the LORD, lest you die by our hand'?
Jeremiah 11:21 niv
Therefore this is what the LORD says about the people of Anathoth who are threatening to kill you, saying, "Do not prophesy in the name of the LORD or you will die by our hands"?
Jeremiah 11:21 esv
Therefore thus says the LORD concerning the men of Anathoth, who seek your life, and say, "Do not prophesy in the name of the LORD, or you will die by our hand" ?
Jeremiah 11:21 nlt
This is what the LORD says about the men of Anathoth who wanted me dead. They had said, "We will kill you if you do not stop prophesying in the LORD's name."
Jeremiah 11 21 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Jer 11:21 | that saith, Prophesy not in the name of the LORD, that we die not by thine hand | Fulfilled by actions against prophets |
| Jer 11:23 | And with a sword he shall cut them off. | Divine judgment and execution |
| Isa 30:10 | Which speak unto the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not right things unto us | Rejection of divine message |
| Jer 20:10 | For I heard the defaming of many, fear on every side, ... they devised devices against me | Opposition to Jeremiah |
| Jer 26:8 | Now when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking all that the LORD had commanded him to speak unto all the people, the priests and the prophets and all the people took him and said, You shall surely die. | Persecution of prophets |
| 1 Kgs 22:27 | And Ahab the son of Omri spake unto all these words, out of the tower unto all the people. And Michaiah said, If ye return at all in peace, the LORD hath not spoken by me. | Resistance to prophetic warnings |
| 2 Chr 18:27 | And Michaiah said, If thou certainly return in peace, then hath not the LORD spoken by me. And he said, Hearken, all ye people. | King's disregard for prophecy |
| Acts 7:52 | Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have killed them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom have been now the betrayers and murderers | Historical persecution of prophets |
| 1 Thess 2:15 | Who both killed the Lord Jesus, and their own prophets, and have persecuted us; and they please not God, and are contrary to all men | Consistent pattern of rejection |
| Matt 23:31 | Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. | Descendants of persecutors |
| Luke 11:47 | Woe unto you! for ye build the sepulchres of the prophets, and your fathers slew them. | Hypocrisy towards prophets |
| John 15:20 | Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you. | Sharing in persecution |
| Heb 11:35 | And received their torment, not accepting deliverance; that they might find a better resurrection: | Faithfulness amidst suffering |
| Jer 11:18 | And the LORD hath made it known unto me, and I shall know it: then thou shewedst me their doings. | Divine revelation of plots |
| Jer 7:15 | And I will cast you out of my sight, as I have cast out all your brethren, even the whole seed of Ephraim. | Reprobation of Israel |
| Jer 13:10 | This evil people, which refuse to hear my words, which walk after the imagination of their heart, and walk after other gods, to serve them, and to worship them, shall even be as this girdle, which is profitable for nothing. | Stubborn disobedience |
| Deut 28:15 | But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; then all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee: | Consequence of disobedience |
| 1 Sam 15:23 | For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he also hath rejected thee from being king. | Rejection of God's word |
| Isa 5:20 | Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! | Moral inversion |
| Jer 2:23 | How canst thou say, I am not polluted, I have not gone after Baalim? see thy way in the valley, know what thou hast done: ... | Unrepentant sin |
Jeremiah 11 verses
Jeremiah 11 21 Meaning
The Lord declares His judgment against those in Anathoth who plotted to kill Him, saying that He will punish them for their wickedness, as the inhabitants of Anathoth themselves will face destruction.
Jeremiah 11 21 Context
This verse is part of Jeremiah chapter 11, where the prophet is lamenting the unfaithfulness of the people of Judah. God had previously made a covenant with them, but they had broken it by turning to idolatry and other wicked practices. Jeremiah is commissioned to pronounce judgment upon them for their disobedience. The inhabitants of Anathoth, Jeremiah's own hometown, are specifically mentioned as conspiring against him. They urged him not to prophesy in the name of the Lord, fearing that his prophecies would bring ruin upon them. This verse reveals their desperate attempt to silence God's messenger to avoid the consequences of their sins.
Jeremiah 11 21 Word Analysis
- And (וְ - ve): A conjunction, connecting the statement of the people's intentions with God's judgment.
- they say (לֵאמֹר - le’mor): Literally "to say." Indicates the direct speech or thoughts of the people of Anathoth.
- prophesy (תְּנַבֵּא - tenabē’): From the root נָבָא (naba’), meaning "to prophesy," "to speak forth," "to be an exhorter." It signifies speaking God's message.
- not (לֹא - lō): A strong negation.
- in the name of the LORD (בְּשֵׁם יְהוָה - bəšēm YHWH): To speak with divine authority, as God's representative. This highlights the religious dimension of their opposition.
- that (לְמַעַן - ləmaʿan): "In order that," "so that." Introduces the purpose of their demand.
- we (אֲנַחְנוּ - ʾănāḥnû): Emphatic pronoun for the first person plural, referring to the people of Anathoth.
- die not (לֹא נָמוּת - lō’ nāmût): Expresses their fear of death and their belief that Jeremiah's prophecies were the cause.
- by your hand (בְּיָדֶךָ - bəyāḏəḵā): Refers to the consequence of Jeremiah's words coming to pass through his actions or through God acting on his behalf. They wanted to be free from responsibility or repercussions.
Words Group Analysis:
- "Prophesy not in the name of the LORD": This phrase encapsulates the core of their rejection of God's message. It wasn't just a general plea for silence, but a specific demand to cease speaking divine truth, indicating their allegiance was not to God but to their own security or political interests.
- "that we die not by your hand": This reveals their fear and misunderstanding. They perceived Jeremiah’s prophecies as the direct instrument of their demise, rather than recognizing their own sin and disobedience as the ultimate cause. They sought to evade God's judgment by silencing the messenger.
Jeremiah 11 21 Bonus Section
The resistance from Jeremiah's hometown underscores the deep societal rejection of prophecy that often occurs when the message is uncomfortable or indicts the current way of life. Anathoth, as a Levitical city, should have been a center of religious faithfulness, making their opposition particularly poignant. Their words are a spiritual precursor to later condemnations of prophets, such as those found in Acts 7:52, where Jesus speaks of those who persecuted the prophets. The people of Anathoth believed they could escape God's judgment by stopping His prophet, a fallacy tragically demonstrated throughout biblical history. They demonstrated a preference for temporal peace, achieved through silencing truth, over obedience and enduring divine favor.
Jeremiah 11 21 Commentary
The people of Anathoth, Jeremiah's own community, sought to stifle God's prophetic voice by telling him to stop speaking in the Lord's name. Their motivation was fear – the fear that Jeremiah's pronouncements of judgment would bring about their destruction, specifically "by your hand," meaning through his ministry or through the consequences of the message he delivered. This reveals a deep spiritual blindness: they blamed the messenger rather than addressing the sin that incurred God's wrath. They wanted to be delivered from the predicted consequences of their covenant-breaking disobedience by silencing the very one God sent to warn them. This echoes a historical pattern where those in authority or those clinging to sinful practices attempt to suppress truth and the messengers of truth.