Jeremiah 14:12 kjv
When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and an oblation, I will not accept them: but I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence.
Jeremiah 14:12 nkjv
When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. But I will consume them by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence."
Jeremiah 14:12 niv
Although they fast, I will not listen to their cry; though they offer burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Instead, I will destroy them with the sword, famine and plague."
Jeremiah 14:12 esv
Though they fast, I will not hear their cry, and though they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. But I will consume them by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence."
Jeremiah 14:12 nlt
When they fast, I will pay no attention. When they present their burnt offerings and grain offerings to me, I will not accept them. Instead, I will devour them with war, famine, and disease."
Jeremiah 14 12 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Jeremiah 14:12 | "When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer a burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them; for I will consume them by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence." | Direct statement of rejection |
| Isaiah 1:11-15 | "What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices? says the LORD. . . Your appointed feasts and your solemn festivals my soul hates; they have become a burden to me; I am weary of bearing them. . . when you spread out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not listen." | Unaccepted worship due to sin |
| Amos 5:21-23 | "I hate, I despise your religious festivals, and I will not savor your solemn assemblies. . . Take away from me the noise of your songs. . . But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream." | God desires justice over ritual |
| Micah 6:8 | "He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?" | True righteousness beyond offerings |
| Hosea 8:13 | "As for my sacrificial offerings, they sacrifice flesh and eat it; but the LORD has no delight in them. Now he will remember their iniquity and punish their sins—they shall return to Egypt." | Similar rejection of offerings |
| John 9:31 | "We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, him he listens to." | God hears the obedient |
| Psalm 66:18 | "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear." | Sin hinders prayer |
| 1 Peter 3:7 | "Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered." | Praying hindered by wrong living |
| Jeremiah 11:14 | "Therefore thus says the LORD: Behold, I am bringing upon them such disaster as they cannot escape. Though they cry to me, I will not listen to them." | God's unwavering judgment |
| Jeremiah 7:23 | "But this command I gave them: ‘Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people. And walk in all the ways that I command you, that it may be well with you.’" | Obedience linked to God's favor |
| Deuteronomy 11:13-14 | "And if you will indeed obey my commandments that I command you today, to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, he will give the rain for your land in its season, the early rain and the late rain, that you may gather in your grain and your wine and your oil." | Obedience brings blessings |
| Jeremiah 5:25 | "Your iniquities have turned away these things, and your sins have kept good from you." | Sins as a barrier to good |
| Proverbs 15:29 | "The LORD is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous." | God's favor on the righteous |
| Isaiah 58:3-4 | "‘Why have we fasted, say they, and you see no trouble? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no notice?’ Behold on the day of your fast you find pleasure, and oppress all your workers." | True fasting vs. self-serving fast |
| Matthew 6:14-15 | "For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." | Forgiveness impacting God's response |
| Jeremiah 15:1-3 | The Lord's decree of destruction on Jerusalem and its people, listing death by sword, famine, and pestilence. | Parallel divine judgment |
| Psalm 34:17 | "When the righteous cry for help, the LORD hears and delivers them out of all their troubles." | The righteous' cries are heard |
| 1 John 5:14 | "And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us." | Prayer in accordance with His will |
| Jeremiah 7:26 | "Yet they did not listen to me. . . but they stiffened their neck. . . You spoke not to them; they refused to hear." | Persistent disobedience |
| Proverbs 1:28-29 | "Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently but will not find me, because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD." | Seeking God after rejecting Him |
Jeremiah 14 verses
Jeremiah 14 12 Meaning
This verse describes God's rejection of the people's prayers for deliverance due to their unrepented sin. Despite fasting and offering sacrifices, their actions did not align with true repentance, rendering their worship unacceptable and their pleas unheard. God declares He will not accept their offerings, implying a severing of the relationship due to their disobedience.
Jeremiah 14 12 Context
Jeremiah chapter 14 occurs during a severe drought in Judah, a judgment from God. The people, desperate for relief, turn to fasting and offerings, seeking God's intervention. However, Jeremiah, the prophet, has been consistently calling the nation to repentance from their idolatry and unrighteousness. This verse reflects God's pronouncement through Jeremiah that their current religious practices are hypocritical and unacceptable because they have not turned from their sin. The historical context is a period of deep national crisis, with divine judgment evident in the drought, highlighting the consequences of ongoing disobedience despite outward shows of piety. The immediate preceding verses (14:10-11) speak of God's anger and His refusal to accept their pleas, setting the stage for verse 12.
Jeremiah 14 12 Word Analysis
- When (wə-'eth) - This temporal conjunction marks the condition or circumstance under which God's response will occur.
- they fast (tsûm) - To abstain from food; here, it refers to a religious observance, an act of seeking God.
- I will not hear ('al yišmā‘) - A strong negative prohibition, signifying God's refusal to attend to or grant their petitions. This conveys divine displeasure and disassociation.
- their cry (šāwə‘ātām) - Their outcry, their loud plea for help. This emphasizes the desperate nature of their prayer.
- and when (wə-'eth) - Again, introducing a condition.
- they offer (yāqîrbû) - They bring near; refers to the presentation of sacrifices and offerings.
- a burnt offering (‘ôlâ) - A whole burnt offering, the highest form of sacrifice in the Old Testament, signifying complete devotion.
- and grain offering (minḥâ) - An offering of grain, flour, or produce, typically presented alongside burnt offerings.
- I will not accept (lō' ’erṣeh) - To be pleased with, to approve. God's rejection of their offerings indicates they are offensive to Him.
- them (’ōtām) - Referring to the offerings themselves.
- for (kî) - This particle introduces the reason for God's rejection.
- I will consume (’ôkalām) - To eat them up, devour them. This refers to a destructive judgment.
- them (’ōtām) - Again, referring to the people.
- by the sword (bāḥāreḇ) - War, bloodshed.
- by famine (barā‘āḇ) - Starvation due to lack of food, directly linking to the drought context.
- and by pestilence (ûmāgēpâ) - Epidemic disease, often a consequence of drought and famine.
Words/Groups Analysis:
- "When they fast... and when they offer...": The structure highlights that despite engaging in prescribed religious activities, God's gaze is upon the heart and the accompanying life. The conditional phrasing emphasizes that these actions are being performed, but without the necessary internal disposition.
- "I will not hear... I will not accept...": The repeated "I will not" emphatically declares God's rejection. This is not a passive refusal but an active turning away, indicating a severe breaking of the covenant relationship due to their continued sin.
- "by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence": This triplet of divine judgments, commonly found in Scripture, signifies total destruction and a complete absence of divine protection, directly tied to their disobedience. It paints a grim picture of their fate.
Jeremiah 14 12 Bonus Section
The prophetic mechanism at play here is crucial. God is using Jeremiah to pronounce judgment but also to underscore the conditions for His favor. The drought itself serves as a visible manifestation of God's displeasure with the people's unrepented sin. The rejection of their fasts and offerings is not arbitrary; it flows from their covenant disobedience. The list of calamities—sword, famine, pestilence—represents the full spectrum of God's judgment against a disobedient people, often described as the "four great destroyers" or a similar enumeration found elsewhere in the prophetic literature (e.g., Ezekiel 14:21). This verse stands as a powerful illustration that external religious activity without a transformed heart and obedient life is, in God's eyes, empty and even offensive. It preempts any notion that mere participation in religious acts, however sincerely performed outwardly, can circumvent the foundational requirement of righteousness in the covenant relationship.
Jeremiah 14 12 Commentary
God's pronouncement in Jeremiah 14:12 is a stern reminder that true worship is inseparable from obedience and genuine repentance. The people of Judah were observing religious rituals like fasting and sacrifices, perhaps to appease God and end the drought, but their hearts were not turned towards Him. Their sins—likely including idolatry, injustice, and oppression, which Jeremiah consistently rebuked—remained unaddressed. Therefore, their outward acts of devotion were seen by God as a mockery, devoid of sincerity. He declares that He will not "hear" their cry (meaning answer their prayers) or "accept" their offerings. Instead of deliverance, He forewarns of consumption by the very instruments of His judgment: sword, famine, and pestilence. This highlights that religious observance without inner transformation and outward righteousness is superficial and ultimately unacceptable to God. True worship requires a contrite heart and a life aligned with God's commands.
- Practical Application: Genuine faith is demonstrated not just by attending religious services or offering sacrifices, but by living a life that reflects God's character of justice, mercy, and truth. When we sin, seeking God requires more than just outward rituals; it demands a sincere turning away from wrongdoing.