Jeremiah 19:10 kjv
Then shalt thou break the bottle in the sight of the men that go with thee,
Jeremiah 19:10 nkjv
"Then you shall break the flask in the sight of the men who go with you,
Jeremiah 19:10 niv
"Then break the jar while those who go with you are watching,
Jeremiah 19:10 esv
"Then you shall break the flask in the sight of the men who go with you,
Jeremiah 19:10 nlt
"As these men watch you, Jeremiah, smash the jar you brought.
Jeremiah 19 10 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ps 2:9 | You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel. | God's absolute power to shatter nations. |
| Isa 30:14 | and he will break it as a potter's vessel is broken, so that among its fragments not one can be found... | Irreversible, total destruction and futility. |
| Jer 7:31-34 | And they have built the high places of Topheth, which is in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom... it shall no more be called Topheth... but the Valley of Slaughter. | Direct mention of Topheth as a place of judgment for child sacrifice. |
| Jer 13:14 | And I will dash them one against another, parents and children alike... | Divine judgment bringing indiscriminate ruin. |
| Jer 15:3 | “I will appoint over them four kinds of destroyers...” | God's decree of utter destruction and scattering. |
| Jer 18:6 | “Can I not do with you, O house of Israel, just as this potter has done?” declares the LORD. | God's sovereignty over nations, contrasting ability to break and remake. |
| Jer 32:35 | They built the high places of Baal in the Valley of Ben-hinnom... making their sons and daughters pass through fire... | Another explicit reference to child sacrifice in Hinnom. |
| Lam 4:2 | The precious sons of Zion, worth their weight in fine gold, how they are regarded as earthen pots, the work of a potter’s hands! | Comparing the once-precious people to broken earthenware. |
| Ezek 23:25 | I will set my jealousy against you... they shall take away your nose and your ears... and what is left of you shall fall by the sword. | Divine judgment leading to complete mutilation and ruin. |
| Deut 18:10 | There shall not be found among you anyone who burns his son or his daughter as an offering... | Commandment against child sacrifice, reason for judgment. |
| 2 Kgs 23:10 | And he defiled Topheth, which is in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom... that no one might burn his son or his daughter as an offering... | Josiah's reform act against child sacrifice in Topheth. |
| Job 10:9 | Remember that you have made me of clay; and will you return me to dust? | Humanity as fragile clay, emphasizing vulnerability to destruction. |
| Ps 75:8 | For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup with foaming wine... he will pour out and drain to the dregs... | The cup of God's wrath, a common prophetic imagery of judgment. |
| Isa 43:10 | “You are my witnesses,” declares the LORD... | Emphasis on the need for witnesses for divine pronouncements. |
| Lk 24:48 | “You are witnesses of these things.” | Christ commissioning His disciples as witnesses. |
| Acts 1:8 | “...and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” | Believers called to be public witnesses to God's actions. |
| Jer 51:64 | “Thus shall Babylon sink, to rise no more, because of the disaster that I am bringing upon her...” | Irreversible judgment pronounced upon other nations, paralleling Judah's. |
| Rev 2:27 | ...and he will rule them with a rod of iron, as when earthen pots are broken in pieces... | Echo of Psalm 2:9, God's ultimate authority to destroy evil. |
| Judg 7:19-20 | Then Gideon and the hundred men who were with him... broke their jars... and cried out, “A sword for the LORD and for Gideon!” | Symbolic breaking, but here for a military victory rather than judgment. |
| Zech 11:10-14 | He took his staff Grace, and broke it... then I broke my second staff Union... | Prophetic symbolic acts of breaking representing covenant dissolution. |
Jeremiah 19 verses
Jeremiah 19 10 Meaning
Jeremiah 19:10 is a pivotal instruction within a symbolic act, commanding the prophet to shatter an earthenware flask in the presence of witnesses. This action visually encapsulates the Lord's impending, irreversible, and complete judgment upon Judah and Jerusalem for their profound apostasy, specifically highlighted by their practice of child sacrifice in the Valley of Hinnom. The breaking of the vessel signifies that God will utterly shatter and make desolate the nation, making it beyond repair, as a potter’s vessel broken irrevocably.
Jeremiah 19 10 Context
Jeremiah 19 opens with a divine command for Jeremiah to acquire a clay flask, take certain elders and priests to the Valley of Ben Hinnom (Topheth) outside Jerusalem, and there deliver a devastating message of judgment. This valley had become infamous for the heinous practice of sacrificing children to the pagan god Molech, and thus represented the pinnacle of Judah’s rebellion against the Lord. Jeremiah's act of breaking the flask in this verse is not merely a metaphor but a dramatic, visible prophetic sermon. It signals that just as the flask is utterly shattered and irreparable, so too will God utterly break Judah and Jerusalem, pouring out judgment on them in this very valley where they offered their children, transforming it from a site of abhorrent worship to a place of slaughter and desolation.
Jeremiah 19 10 Word analysis
- Then you shall break (וְשָׁבַרְתָּ – ve-shavarta): The Hebrew verb shavar means "to break, shatter, tear apart, crush." Its use here is decisive and irreversible. It implies a violent, complete, and unrepairable destruction. In contrast to a potter reforming clay (Jer 18), here the breaking is final.
- the flask (הַבַּקְבֻּק – ha-bakbuk): This noun refers to an earthenware jar, bottle, or flask. It typically held liquids. It was an ordinary, inexpensive item, easily shattered, symbolizing the apparent cheapness and disposability of what Judah valued over God, and the ease with which God could render them useless and broken. The onomatopoeic nature of bakbuk might even suggest the gurgling sound of pouring liquid, or the sound of something breaking. It highlights fragility.
- in the sight of (לְעֵינֵי – le-einei): Literally "in the eyes of." This emphasizes the public and demonstrative nature of the prophetic act. It was meant to be seen and understood by witnesses, authenticating the message and ensuring its transmission. The spectacle underscored the seriousness and certainty of God's decree.
- the men who go with you (הָאֲנָשִׁים הַהֹלְכִים אִתָּךְ – ha-anashim ha-holkhim ittakh): These "men" were explicitly elders and priests (Jer 19:1), representatives of the community. Their presence as witnesses validates the prophecy, giving it a legal and formal weight in ancient Near Eastern culture, similar to having witnesses for a covenant or a legal decree. It also ensures accountability and direct confrontation with the leaders responsible.
Words-group analysis
- "you shall break the flask": This command is central to the performative aspect of the prophecy. It is an acted-out word of judgment, making an abstract future judgment tangible and immediate. The simplicity of the act belies the profound severity of its meaning – the nation's spiritual and physical state.
- "in the sight of the men who go with you": This phrase highlights the intentional public nature of God's judgment and prophecy. It ensures the message isn't hidden but is directly confronted by those who need to hear it and pass it on. The divine judgment is not a secret, but a manifest truth, witnessed by the chosen representatives. This serves as both an official confirmation and an inescapable warning.
Jeremiah 19 10 Bonus section
The type of flask (bakbuk) often depicted in archaeology as a globular body with a narrow neck, reinforces its vulnerability to a simple, forceful blow. Such a vessel, once shattered, cannot be meticulously put back together or molded into a new, functional form, unlike clay that a potter can re-knead. This distinction from the potter's wheel imagery in Jeremiah 18 is crucial; chapter 18 presents God's sovereign right to destroy and rebuild based on national response, but chapter 19:10 shows an already determined, unchangeable shattering due to entrenched apostasy, particularly the abomination of child sacrifice. The location of the act, the Valley of Hinnom, also foretells the coming desolation, as this valley later became associated with "Gehenna," a vivid New Testament term for eternal judgment (e.g., Matt 5:22). This adds another layer of grim foreboding to the prophetic act.
Jeremiah 19 10 Commentary
Jeremiah 19:10 describes a climactic point in a dramatic prophecy. The breaking of the clay flask is not just a sermon illustration; it is a profound performative act by the prophet, embodying God’s decree. It vividly communicates a judgment that is absolute, irreversible, and destructive, like shattering an ordinary, inexpensive piece of pottery beyond any possibility of repair or reuse. The Lord’s judgment will dismantle Judah, transforming them into scattered fragments. This public display, witnessed by leading figures, ensures the message of doom for Judah’s egregious sins, particularly the child sacrifices in Topheth, is received with the weight of divine authority, signaling that their national and religious structures will be irrevocably destroyed.
Practical application: This passage serves as a sobering reminder of the severe consequences of persistent and unrepentant sin, especially idolatry and rejecting God's clear commands. It illustrates:
- The seriousness of God's holy wrath against deep-seated wickedness.
- The effectiveness of tangible object lessons in communicating spiritual truth.
- The reality that sin, if unaddressed, can lead to complete spiritual and communal brokenness.