Jeremiah 13:18 kjv
Say unto the king and to the queen, Humble yourselves, sit down: for your principalities shall come down, even the crown of your glory.
Jeremiah 13:18 nkjv
Say to the king and to the queen mother, "Humble yourselves; Sit down, For your rule shall collapse, the crown of your glory."
Jeremiah 13:18 niv
Say to the king and to the queen mother, "Come down from your thrones, for your glorious crowns will fall from your heads."
Jeremiah 13:18 esv
Say to the king and the queen mother: "Take a lowly seat, for your beautiful crown has come down from your head."
Jeremiah 13:18 nlt
Say to the king and his mother,
"Come down from your thrones
and sit in the dust,
for your glorious crowns
will soon be snatched from your heads."
Jeremiah 13 18 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Jer 13:18 | "Say to the king and the queen mother: "Humble yourselves; sit enthroned, for your dignity will soon be replaced by shame."" | Direct command regarding humility and loss of status |
| Isa 3:18 | "On that day the Lord will remove the finery of the anklets, the scarves and the crescent necklaces," | Prophecy of removal of adornments as judgment |
| Isa 22:12 | "In that day the Lord, the God of hosts, called for weeping and mourning, for cutting of hair and wearing sackcloth." | Call to repentance through symbolic mourning |
| Lam 1:8 | "Jerusalem has grievously sinned; therefore she has become a mockery... she has become like a menstruous woman among them." | Jerusalem's sin leading to disgrace |
| Lam 2:10 | "The elders of the daughter of Zion sit on the ground in silence; they throw dust on their heads and gird themselves with sackcloth..." | Elders' posture of mourning and repentance |
| Lam 3:26 | "It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD." | Emphasizing patient waiting in sorrow |
| Dan 9:3 | "Then I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and supplication with fasting and sackcloth and ashes." | Daniel's posture of repentance |
| Hos 5:15 | "I will return again to my place, until they acknowledge their guilt and seek my face, and in their distress they seek me earnestly." | God withdrawing until acknowledgement of sin |
| Mic 6:9 | "The LORD's voice cries to the city— and it is wisdom to fear your name: “Hear the rod, and who appoints it." | Heeding the warnings and source of discipline |
| Matt 11:21 | "“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes." | Jesus rebuking cities for lack of repentance, referencing sackcloth |
| Luke 10:13 | "“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes." | Parallel passage with Matt 11:21 |
| 1 Cor 1:27 | "But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise, but God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong," | God's way of humbling the proud |
| James 4:6 | "but he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”" | Exhortation to be humble |
| James 4:10 | "Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you." | Promise of exaltation for the humble |
| 1 Pet 5:5 | "Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”" | Instruction on humility |
| Prov 16:18 | "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." | Warning against pride |
| Jer 5:23 | "But this people has a stubborn and rebellious heart; they have alienated themselves and departed." | Describing the people's rebellious nature |
| Jer 5:31 | "The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests lend their aid, and my people love to have it so! But what will you do when the end of the matter comes?" | False prophets and people loving sin |
| Jer 13:10 | "This evil people, who refuse to hear my words, who stubbornly follow their own counsel and walk after other gods, to serve them and worship them, shall be like this girdle..." | Earlier comparison of Judah to a useless girdle |
| Jer 13:27 | "Your adulteries and your neighings, the lewdness of your whoredom on the hills and in the fields— alas for you! You defile yourself by all these things." | Judah's spiritual adultery |
Jeremiah 13 verses
Jeremiah 13 18 Meaning
The king and his queen, along with all the officials and royal court, are commanded to adorn themselves in sackcloth, symbolizing deep repentance and sorrow. This action is a public confession of sin and a plea for God's mercy. They are to accept the coming desolation and exile as a consequence of their unfaithfulness.
Jeremiah 13 18 Context
Jeremiah 13 addresses the persistent sinfulness of Judah, particularly Jerusalem, which is compared to a worthless linen girdle that has become rotten. Despite God's repeated warnings and pronouncements of judgment through the prophet Jeremiah, the people and their leaders have refused to repent. Chapter 13 begins with a symbolic act: God instructs Jeremiah to take a linen girdle, hide it in a hole in a rock by the Euphrates, and then retrieve it later, only to find it ruined. This object lesson represents Judah's spiritual decay and impending exile due to their unfaithfulness to God. Verse 18 specifically targets the king and the queen mother, who held significant influence and authority, commanding them to adopt outward signs of deep repentance and sorrow, signifying a humbling before God and acceptance of the forthcoming consequences of their actions and the nation's sin.
Jeremiah 13 18 Word analysis
“Say”: The Hebrew word is
amar(אָמַר), meaning to speak, say, tell, communicate. It is an imperative, a direct command from God to Jeremiah.“to the king”: Refers to the reigning monarch of Judah. In this context, it would be King Jehoiachin or perhaps Zedekiah, depending on the exact timing within Jeremiah's ministry.
“and to the queen”: The Hebrew is
lameleket(לַמֶּלֶכֶת), literally "to the queen" or "to the queen mother." Given the ancient Near Eastern context, the queen mother often held a position of considerable influence.“mother”: The Hebrew is
em(אֵם), meaning mother.“humble yourselves”: The Hebrew verb is
cnaw(עָנָו), meaning to be humbled, afflicted, or to humble oneself. It implies a recognition of one's lowliness and dependence on God, an active lowering of one's status and pride.“and sit down”: The Hebrew is
shev(שֵׁב), from the rootyashav(יָשַׁב), meaning to sit, dwell, remain. In this context, "sit down" signifies occupying a low or lowly position, often in mourning or defeat, rather than the lofty seat of authority.“for your head’s adornment”: The Hebrew phrase is
lǝmishbĕrō·w·š roʾ·šē·ḵim(לְמִשְׂבְּרֹ syair עֹונֵּת רֹošִּוכֵם), more literally translated as "for the wearing of your head's crown" or "your dignified headdress." It refers to royal insignia and the visible marks of their royal status and authority.“is brought down”: The Hebrew is
yerad(יָרַד), meaning to go down, descend, bring down. Here, it signifies being lowered, deposed, or removed.“sit down, for your head’s adornment is brought down”: This group of words carries the essence of a loss of royal dignity and authority. The royal crown or headdress, a symbol of power and honor, will be removed and cast down, signifying deposition and shame. It's a direct reversal of their exalted position.
Jeremiah 13 18 Bonus section
The prophetic imagery here aligns with similar motifs in scripture emphasizing humility before God as the antidote to pride and the precursor to divine favor. The reversal of status, from elevated rulers to humble mourners, is a consistent theme when nations or individuals defy the Almighty. This act of wearing sackcloth and sitting in the dust is a profound form of metanoia (repentance), demonstrating a willingness to acknowledge fault and face the consequences, thereby opening the possibility, however slim, for a different outcome. The failure of previous kings and queens to heed such warnings ultimately sealed Jerusalem's fate, as repeatedly documented by Jeremiah.
Jeremiah 13 18 Commentary
This verse is a stark pronouncement of judgment directly targeting the highest echelon of Judean society: the king and the queen mother. God demands that they shed their royal regalia and publicly adopt symbols of mourning and humility. The command to "sit down" is not merely to rest but to occupy a position of lowliness, acknowledging their fallen status. The phrase "your head's adornment is brought down" powerfully conveys the imminent loss of their crowns, dignity, and power. This isn't just a political overthrow but a spiritual consequence, indicating that their current pride and misplaced trust have led to their downfall. Their outward posture of sackcloth is meant to reflect an inner contrition, a desperate need for God's mercy in the face of inescapable judgment due to persistent national sin, which they, as leaders, are ultimately responsible for.