Jeremiah 19:12 kjv
Thus will I do unto this place, saith the LORD, and to the inhabitants thereof, and even make this city as Tophet:
Jeremiah 19:12 nkjv
Thus I will do to this place," says the LORD, "and to its inhabitants, and make this city like Tophet.
Jeremiah 19:12 niv
This is what I will do to this place and to those who live here, declares the LORD. I will make this city like Topheth.
Jeremiah 19:12 esv
Thus will I do to this place, declares the LORD, and to its inhabitants, making this city like Topheth.
Jeremiah 19:12 nlt
This is what I will do to this place and its people, says the LORD. I will cause this city to become defiled like Topheth.
Jeremiah 19 12 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Topheth/Gehenna Context | ||
| 2 Kgs 23:10 | He defiled Topheth, which is in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, so that no one might make his son or his daughter pass through the fire to Molech. | Josiah defiles Topheth, preventing child sacrifice. |
| Jer 7:31 | They have built the high places of Topheth, which is in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire. | Idolatry of child sacrifice in Topheth. |
| Jer 7:32-33 | Therefore, behold, days are coming, declares the LORD, when it will no more be called Topheth... but the Valley of Slaughter; for they will bury in Topheth, because there is no room elsewhere. | Topheth becomes a place of mass death. |
| Jer 32:35 | They built the high places of Baal in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to offer up their sons and daughters to Molech... | Further evidence of child sacrifice. |
| Mt 5:22 | But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother... will be liable to the hell of fire. (Gehenna) | Gehenna (Valley of Hinnom) as a metaphor for hell. |
| Mk 9:43-48 | If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off... it is better for you to enter life crippled than... to go into hell, into the unquenchable fire. | Unquenchable fire of Gehenna. |
| Judgment on Jerusalem/Judah | ||
| Deut 28:52 | They shall besiege you in all your towns, until your high and fortified walls, in which you trusted, come down... | Prophecy of siege and destruction. |
| Isa 1:7-8 | Your country is desolate; your cities are burned with fire; your land, strangers devour it... The daughter of Zion is left like a booth in a vineyard. | Desolation of Judah and Jerusalem. |
| Eze 5:10-12 | Therefore fathers among you shall eat their sons, and sons shall eat their fathers... I will execute judgments on you and scatter all your remnant. | Horrific judgments, including cannibalism. |
| Lam 1:8 | Jerusalem sinned grievously; therefore she became filthy; all who honored her despise her... | Jerusalem's disgrace and defilement. |
| Lam 2:5-7 | The Lord has become like an enemy; he has swallowed up Israel... The Lord has scorned his altar, disdained his sanctuary... | God turns against His sanctuary. |
| Hos 8:14 | Israel has forgotten his Maker and built palaces, and Judah has multiplied fortified cities... I will send fire upon his cities. | God's judgment by fire on cities. |
| Amos 2:5 | So I will send a fire upon Judah, and it shall devour the strongholds of Jerusalem. | Fire of judgment on Jerusalem's strongholds. |
| Mal 4:1 | For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble... | The day of judgment consumes like fire. |
| Consequences of Idolatry/Apostasy | ||
| Lev 18:21 | You shall not give any of your offspring to offer them to Molech, and so profane the name of your God. | Prohibition of child sacrifice, profaning God. |
| Lev 20:2-5 | If anyone of the people of Israel, or of the strangers who sojourn in Israel, gives any of his offspring to Molech... | Penalty for child sacrifice is death. |
| Ps 106:37-38 | They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the demons; they poured out innocent blood... | Israel's history of child sacrifice. |
| Jer 19:4 | For they have forsaken me and have profaned this place by making offerings in it to other gods... | The reason for judgment: forsaking God. |
| Rom 1:21-25 | For although they knew God, they did not honor him... they exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images... | Idolatry leads to spiritual degradation. |
| 1 Cor 10:14 | Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry. | Call to shun idolatry. |
| God's Sovereign Declaration | ||
| Isa 46:10 | declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand...' | God declares and executes His will. |
| Jer 1:9-10 | See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down... | Jeremiah's commission includes judgment. |
| Jer 25:11 | This whole land shall become a ruin and a waste, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. | Specific prophecy of exile. |
| Rev 1:8 | “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” | God's absolute sovereignty and authority. |
Jeremiah 19 verses
Jeremiah 19 12 Meaning
Jeremiah 19:12 conveys the Lord's declaration of severe and utterly defiling judgment upon Jerusalem and its inhabitants. The city, once considered holy and set apart, will be made into a place as abhorrent and condemned as Topheth itself – a site infamous for its pagan child sacrifices and associated with fire, death, and total desecration. This signifies not just destruction, but a profound spiritual abasement and God's absolute rejection due to their persistent idolatry.
Jeremiah 19 12 Context
Jeremiah chapter 19 describes a prophetic act in the Valley of Hinnom, where the prophet is instructed to buy a potter's earthen flask and, in the presence of elders and priests, smash it. This act symbolizes God's irreversible destruction of Jerusalem and Judah because of their widespread idolatry, including burning their children to Baal in Topheth (vv. 4-5). The Lord declares that He will "make this place a Topheth" (v. 6), transforming it from a site of abhorrent ritual into a place of literal mass death and defilement, as a consequence of their sin. Verse 12 directly follows this declaration, extending the judgment from the valley to the entire city of Jerusalem. The historical context is the approaching Babylonian invasion and exile, a judgment Yahweh brings against His people for repeatedly breaking the covenant.
Jeremiah 19 12 Word analysis
And thus: (וְכָכָה, ve-khakhah) Connects this specific action directly to the preceding symbolic act and declaration (Jer 19:10-11). It emphasizes the certainty and manner of God's coming judgment.
will I do: (אֶעֱשֶׂה, e'eseh) From the verb עָשָׂה (asah), "to do, make, accomplish." Implies active, decisive, and deliberate execution of a divine decree. This is not passive acceptance but active infliction of judgment.
to this place: (לַמָּקוֹם הַזֶּה, la-maqom hazzeh) Refers specifically to Jerusalem, which Jeremiah previously prophesied would be turned into a ruin (Jer 19:8). Jerusalem, once "the holy city," will now be reduced to spiritual desolation.
declares the LORD: (נְאֻם־יְהוָה, ne'um-YHWH) A frequent and strong prophetic formula affirming that these are the direct, authoritative words of God Himself, not Jeremiah's personal opinion. It lends ultimate authority and certainty to the prophecy.
and to its inhabitants: (וּלְיֹשְׁבֶיהָ, u-l'yoshveha) The judgment extends beyond the physical city to the people within it. They are held accountable for the collective sin that led to this judgment.
making this city: (לָשׂוּם אֶת־הָעִיר הַזֹּאת, la-sum et ha-'ir ha-zot) "Making" (from שׂוּם, sum, "to set, place, make") implies a transformation of identity or status. The city is fundamentally altered.
like Topheth: (כְּתֹפֶת, k'Topheth)
- Topheth (תֹּפֶת, Topheth): A specific, notoriously defiled site in the Valley of Hinnom (Gehenna) just outside Jerusalem. It was the main location for the abhorrent practice of child sacrifice to Molech. It symbolizes the epitome of religious apostasy, abomination, death, and fiery destruction.
- like: (כְּ, kə) The prefix "kə" indicates comparison, similarity. The whole city will acquire the nature, status, and destiny of this defiled place. This is not just destruction, but complete spiritual degradation. The entire holy city will be viewed as abominable as Topheth.
Words-group Analysis:
- "And thus will I do...declares the LORD": Emphasizes divine sovereignty and intention. The judgment is not random or merely a consequence of human actions, but a direct, declared act of God. It's the fulfillment of His covenant curses for disobedience.
- "to this place...and to its inhabitants": The judgment encompasses both the physical space and the people who populate it, highlighting corporate responsibility for sin. No aspect of their life or environment will be untouched by the divine wrath.
- "making this city like Topheth": This is the core metaphor and shock factor. Jerusalem, the dwelling place of God's name, will be stripped of all holiness and become indistinguishable from the most profane site in their memory. It signifies ultimate defilement, total loss of divine protection, and impending widespread death. It foreshadows a city overflowing with corpses, mirroring the horrific end of the children sacrificed there.
Jeremiah 19 12 Bonus section
The comparison of Jerusalem to Topheth holds significant polemical weight. It directly confronts the false security the people felt in the presence of the Temple and God's covenant with the city (Jer 7:4). God's message asserts that their persistent apostasy and adoption of pagan practices, specifically child sacrifice to Molech, have nullified their special status. The prophecy makes the most sacred object (the holy city) analogous to the most profane place (Topheth), thus overturning all their theological presumptions. This serves as a warning against superficial religious adherence devoid of true repentance and obedience. The fulfillment of this prophecy in the Babylonian destruction would indeed see Jerusalem become a desolate place of death, reflecting the imagery of Topheth. The transformation from a sacred beacon to a desecrated wasteland underscores the gravity of spiritual infidelity and God's unyielding demand for exclusive devotion.
Jeremiah 19 12 Commentary
Jeremiah 19:12 is a powerful and terrifying declaration of God's judgment, expressing the utter desecration that awaits Jerusalem. The image of the holy city becoming "like Topheth" would have been deeply shocking to its original audience. Topheth represented the height of pagan abomination, where parents willingly sacrificed their children, a practice strictly forbidden and detested by Yahweh. By comparing Jerusalem to Topheth, God declares that the city, because of its rampant idolatry and moral corruption, has lost all its sacred status. Its sacred rituals, the Temple itself, and its inhabitants have become as defiled in God's eyes as the valley where children were immolated. The prophecy foretells widespread death and destruction so profound that Jerusalem will be overflowing with unburied corpses, becoming a literal valley of slaughter (Jer 7:32). This is not just physical destruction but spiritual degradation, a complete reversal of Jerusalem's identity as the city of God. The judgment serves as a stark warning against syncretism and persistent rebellion against the covenant.