Jeremiah 12:6 kjv
For even thy brethren, and the house of thy father, even they have dealt treacherously with thee; yea, they have called a multitude after thee: believe them not, though they speak fair words unto thee.
Jeremiah 12:6 nkjv
For even your brothers, the house of your father, Even they have dealt treacherously with you; Yes, they have called a multitude after you. Do not believe them, Even though they speak smooth words to you.
Jeremiah 12:6 niv
Your relatives, members of your own family? even they have betrayed you; they have raised a loud cry against you. Do not trust them, though they speak well of you.
Jeremiah 12:6 esv
For even your brothers and the house of your father, even they have dealt treacherously with you; they are in full cry after you; do not believe them, though they speak friendly words to you."
Jeremiah 12:6 nlt
Even your brothers, members of your own family,
have turned against you.
They plot and raise complaints against you.
Do not trust them,
no matter how pleasantly they speak.
Jeremiah 12 6 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Jer 11:18-19 | They told me, "Come, let us devise plans against Jeremiah, for the tongue will not last. Let us strike him with his own tongue." But you, LORD, know all their secret plots against me... | Opposition from own people |
| Ps 41:9 | Even my close friend, whom I trusted, he who shared my bread, has lifted up his heel against me. | Betrayal by a trusted friend |
| Ps 55:12-14 | If an enemy were insulting me, I could endure it; if my foe were rising against me, I could hide from him. But it is you, a man my equal, my companion and my familiar friend, with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship at the house of God, walking in the procession among the throng. | Betrayal by a close companion |
| Micah 7:6 | For the son dishonors the father, the daughter rises up against her mother, the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law— a man’s enemies are the members of his own household. | Family discord and betrayal |
| Matt 10:21 | Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rise against parents and put them to death. | Jesus predicting familial betrayal |
| Matt 10:36 | A man’s enemies will be the members of his own household. | Quoting Micah's prophecy |
| Luke 12:53 | "They will be divided: father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law." | Jesus on division within families |
| John 15:18-19 | "If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you." | Opposition from the world |
| Acts 7:51-52 | "You stiff-necked people! You are deaf to the truth and resisting the Holy Spirit. You are doing just what your ancestors did. Which of the prophets did your ancestors not persecute? They even killed those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become." | Accusation of resisting the Spirit and betraying prophets |
| Gal 1:6-7 | I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— which is no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and wanting to pervert the gospel of Christ. | Desertion by those once aligned |
| 2 Tim 4:16 | At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. | Abandonment during persecution |
| Ps 22:1 | My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from my cries of anguish? | Feeling of abandonment |
| Jer 1:8, 17 | Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you... I will equip you with a formidable presence. | God's presence amidst betrayal |
| Jer 15:10 | Woe to me, my mother, that you gave me birth, a man with such violent quarrels with all the land! I have neither lent nor borrowed, yet everyone curses me. | Jeremiah's personal lament |
| Jer 20:10 | I hear many whispering, "Terror is all around! Give in to it! Let's denounce him." All my friends are waiting for me to slip, hoping for my downfall. "Perhaps he will be deceived," they say, "and we can overpower him and take our revenge on him." | Jeremiah hearing whispers of plot |
| Isa 53:3 | He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we did not give him a thought. | Servant of God rejected |
| Amos 3:11 | Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says: "An enemy is advancing, and from all around the land your defenses will be stripped away, and your strongholds will be plundered." | Encirclement by enemies |
| Ps 64:1-6 | For the choir director. A psalm of David. Hear my voice, O God, in my complaint; preserve my life from fear of the enemy. Hide me from the secret conspiracy of the wicked, from the clamor of wrongdoers... | Conspiracy against the psalmist |
| Jer 38:4-5 | So the officials said to the king, "This man ought to be put to death. He is weakening the hands of the soldiers still left in this city and all the people by the things he says. For this man is not seeking the good of this people, but their disaster." Then the king said, "He is in your hands; the king can do nothing to stop you." | Officials seeking Jeremiah's death |
| 1 Cor 1:11 | For as I have been informed about you, my brothers and sisters, by Chloe’s people, that there are quarrels among you. | Division within the church |
Jeremiah 12 verses
Jeremiah 12 6 Meaning
The verse conveys that even close family members and those with close relationships within Judah have betrayed the prophet Jeremiah. They have acted deceitfully, and their opposition is as pervasive as a hunter's snare. This betrayal intensifies Jeremiah's suffering, as he experiences it not just from external enemies but also from his own community.
Jeremiah 12 6 Context
Jeremiah chapter 12 finds the prophet in deep anguish and distress, questioning God about the prosperity of the wicked. In the preceding verses, Jeremiah directly confronts God about why the path of the faithless is smooth and why wrongdoers thrive. He expresses his own uprightness and the unjust suffering he endures because of his faithfulness. This verse, Jeremiah 12:6, reveals the specific and intensely personal nature of this suffering: it comes from within his own household and community, his own relatives and former allies in Judah. Historically, Judah was a society bound by strong familial and tribal ties. Betrayal from such close quarters would have been particularly devastating, adding a profound layer of emotional pain to Jeremiah's prophetic burden. This internal opposition reflects the deep-seated resistance to God's message of judgment that permeated even the closest circles of his people.
Jeremiah 12 6 Word Analysis
- "For": (Hebrew: כִּי - ki) Indicates a reason or cause, explaining why Jeremiah is suffering or lamenting. It connects his present distress directly to the preceding points.
- "even": (Hebrew: גַּם - gam) Emphasizes that the betrayal extends to the closest relationships, amplifying the shock and pain. It signifies inclusion, showing that these people, too, are involved.
- "your": Refers to God.
- "brother": (Hebrew: אָח - 'ach) Signifies a close kinship or close association, not necessarily a blood relative but someone with whom there is deep familiarity and trust. It highlights the depth of the betrayal.
- "and": (Hebrew: וְ - we) Conjunction connecting phrases.
- "your": Refers to God.
- "father": (Hebrew: אָב - 'av) Indicates a position of authority or origin, again emphasizing a deep, foundational relationship.
- "hath dealt": (Hebrew: יְקַשֵּׁר - yeqasher) Means to tie, bind, or ensnare. The Niphal participle here suggests "acting deceitfully" or "entangling" someone in a net of treachery.
- "treacherously": (Hebrew: בְּבָגָדוּת - be-vagdut) An adverbial form meaning with deceit, treachery, or perfidy. It underscores the malicious intent.
- "with": (Hebrew: עִם - 'im) Indicates accompaniment or connection.
- "you": Refers to Jeremiah.
- "yea": (Hebrew: גַּם - gam) Similar to "even," reinforcing the preceding point with emphasis. It adds another layer of surprise and pain that this is happening.
- "your": Refers to God.
- "own": (Hebrew: קָרֹב - qaron) While "qaron" is not a direct translation, the Hebrew here might be implied or related to closeness (e.g., closest, next of kin). Some translations render it as "very kin." The intent is to specify these betrayers are intimately related.
- "kindred": (Hebrew: מְיֻדָּע - meyu'dad) Denotes those who are known or familiar, intimates. It extends beyond mere family to close friends and confederates.
- "have": Indicates possession or action.
- "dealt": (Hebrew: קָשְׁרוּ - qashru) The Qal perfect form of the same verb root as "dealt treacherously." Here, it means "have plotted," "have conspired," or "have bound themselves together" in secret schemes.
- "falsely": (Hebrew: בָּגַד - bagad) The root verb itself, meaning to act deceitfully, to be unfaithful, to betray. This word emphasizes the act of breaking trust.
Word Group Analysis:
- "even your brother, and your father, hath dealt treacherously with you": This phrase emphasizes the profound personal violation experienced by Jeremiah. The enemies are not strangers but those within his innermost circle of trust—family, which in ancient Israel included extended family and close associates. The parallelism highlights the breadth of this familial and close-community betrayal.
- "yea, your own kindred have dealt falsely": The "yea" (gam) amplifies the shock. The term "kindred" (meyu'dad) broadens the scope from immediate family to all those who knew and should have supported Jeremiah, extending to political allies and countrymen. "Dealt falsely" (bagad) underscores the deliberate nature of their disloyalty. This group's perfidy paints a grim picture of the complete social and relational breakdown occurring in Judah due to their opposition to God's prophet and His message. The Hebrew word 'qashru' (plotted/conspired) further implies a united, planned effort against him.
Jeremiah 12 6 Bonus Section
The intense betrayal described in this verse is a pattern that extends throughout biblical history and the New Testament. The "household" being divided, as predicted by Jesus (Matt 10:36), finds an echo in Jeremiah's experience. This betrayal from within can be seen as a manifestation of a spiritual warfare where the very fabric of trust and community is torn apart by adherence to or rejection of God's word. The snare imagery ('yeqasher') evokes a sense of being trapped and surrounded by unseen dangers from familiar sources. This personal betrayal by his own people contributed to the severe emotional toll on Jeremiah, leading to further expressions of his anguish and sometimes his desire to flee from his calling, yet always tempered by his ultimate commitment to God's message.
Jeremiah 12 6 Commentary
Jeremiah's lament is deeply personal. He faces opposition not just from distant enemies, but from those he should be able to trust implicitly: his own brothers and father, his very own kindred. This betrayal is characterized by deceit and conspiracy ('qashru', 'bagad'). This mirrors the prophetic experience of many, including Jesus and His disciples, who faced rejection and betrayal from within their closest circles. The pervasive treachery signifies a profound moral and spiritual decay within Judah itself, extending even to the core relationships that were meant to be anchors of stability. This verse underscores that prophetic ministry often involves profound personal suffering, especially when those closest to the prophet are among those who actively oppose the divine message. The isolation Jeremiah feels is magnified because the opposition comes from his own people, his own household. This makes his burden heavier, and his lament more understandable as he pleads with God.