Jeremiah 5 27

Jeremiah 5:27 kjv

As a cage is full of birds, so are their houses full of deceit: therefore they are become great, and waxen rich.

Jeremiah 5:27 nkjv

As a cage is full of birds, So their houses are full of deceit. Therefore they have become great and grown rich.

Jeremiah 5:27 niv

Like cages full of birds, their houses are full of deceit; they have become rich and powerful

Jeremiah 5:27 esv

Like a cage full of birds, their houses are full of deceit; therefore they have become great and rich;

Jeremiah 5:27 nlt

Like a cage filled with birds,
their homes are filled with evil plots.
And now they are great and rich.

Jeremiah 5 verses

Jeremiah 5 27 Meaning

This verse describes how the people of Judah had built many "folds" or enclosures, not for their sheep and cattle as is typical, but for their illicit gains. They had become exceptionally wealthy through unjust and corrupt practices, using their wealth to set traps and exploit others, thereby increasing their riches. The focus is on their perversion of wealth and how their prosperity was built upon exploitation and injustice, directly leading to God's judgment.

Jeremiah 5 27 Context

Jeremiah 5:1-30 portrays God's deep disappointment with Jerusalem and its people. Despite being spared from the complete destruction faced by Samaria, they have fallen into widespread corruption, injustice, and idolatry. God searches for even one righteous person, finding none, which underscores the pervasive sin. Jeremiah 5:27 specifically highlights the people's wicked accumulation of wealth. They have enriched themselves through oppressive and deceitful means, treating their ill-gotten gains like treasures protected within secure enclosures, or "folds." This perversion of wealth, used for further entrapment and exploitation, is a significant part of why God's judgment is imminent. The historical context is one of a nation facing potential conquest by Babylon due to its internal decay and rebellion against God's covenant.

Jeremiah 5 27 Word Analysis

• Hebrew:

  • "For": This word, often translated from ki (כִּי), introduces a reason or explanation for what was stated previously. Here, it explains why God is sending judgment.
  • "among": From qerev (קרֶב), meaning "in the midst of," "among," or "within." It emphasizes that the evil is deeply ingrained within the nation.
  • "my people": Referring to the covenant people of Israel (Judah). It highlights God's ongoing relationship and the deeper disappointment because it's His own people who are sinning.
  • "wicked": reshaim (רְשָׁעִים), a plural form from rasha (רָשָׁע), meaning "wicked," "ungodly," "guilty," or "evil." It describes those who deliberately act contrary to God's will and justice.
  • "are found": matzahu (מָצָאוּ), the perfect tense of matsa (מָצָא), meaning "to find," "to be found," "to obtain." It signifies their active engagement in this state.
  • "like": From ke (כְּ), a preposition used for comparison.
  • "a fowler's": From qosh (קֹוֶשׁ), relating to a fowler or snare-maker.
  • "traps": môqesh (מוֹקֵשׁ), meaning "snare," "trap," or "net." This word evokes the imagery of deception and ensnarement.
  • "net": chelyay (חֶלְיַי), often translated as "furnishings" or "implements." Here it refers to the instruments or means used for trapping.
  • "their net": chelyatah (חֶלְיָתָהּ) combined with the suffix "her" (referring to the community or the earth where they set the traps).
  • "he has put": natsa (נָתַן), perfect tense, meaning "to give," "to put," or "to set."
  • "in their nets": baché·lyó·theyh (בְּחֶלְיָתָיו), the preposition be (בְּ) "in" or "with" plus the plural noun for implements/nets.
  • "wealth": baz (בָּז), meaning "spoil," "plunder," "booty," or "prey." This word carries a strong negative connotation of ill-gotten gain, captured through violent or dishonest means. It highlights that their riches were not legitimately earned.
  • "his traps": bemôq·shey·há (בְּמוֹקְשֵׁי־הוּא), meaning "in his snares" or "in his traps," with hû (הוּא) referring to the individual sinner or the nation as a whole.

• Words/Groups Analysis:

  • "like the snaring of birds": This idiom draws a direct parallel between the deceitful actions of corrupt people and the methodical hunting of birds with snares. It emphasizes premeditated entrapment and the casual manner in which the wicked ensnared others.
  • "their net": The plural term chelyay can refer to implements or furnishings. Here, it extends beyond a simple net to encompass all the devices, systems, and fraudulent practices they employed to capture their prey (wealth and people).
  • "their wealth": The term baz (spoil, plunder) is crucial. It explicitly states that the wealth accumulated was not through honest labor or God's blessing but through predatory and unjust acquisition, akin to taking plunder from a defeated enemy, but applied to fellow citizens.
  • "in their nets": This phrasing suggests that their very livelihoods and systems were built around the practice of ensnaring others. Their prosperity was intrinsically linked to their wicked methods, reinforcing the idea that their wealth was a product of their sin.

Jeremiah 5 27 Bonus Section

The imagery of "folds" is particularly potent. In ancient Israel, folds (gidrōth in Hebrew, a different word but conveying a similar protective enclosure idea, or in this context possibly metaphorical extensions of their "nets") were associated with pastoral life, safety, and care for livestock. By twisting this imagery to describe their means of illicit gain, the prophet illustrates a profound inversion of societal and moral values. Their "folds" weren't for nurturing, but for hoarding and capturing. This also echoes themes found in prophetic judgment where barrenness replaces fruitfulness, and the shepherd becomes a predator rather than a protector, a distortion God cannot overlook. The specific choice of "wealth" (baz) as plunder rather than honestly acquired property is critical, framing their accumulation as fundamentally predatory and illegal in God's eyes, even if accepted by their corrupt society.

Jeremiah 5 27 Commentary

This verse serves as a vivid indictment of economic injustice within Judah. The people had developed sophisticated systems (their "nets" and "traps") for accumulating wealth through corrupt means, likened to a fowler's deliberate strategy. This wealth wasn't simply earned; it was seized, representing "spoil" or "plunder" taken from others through oppression and deceit. God sees their prosperity not as a blessing but as evidence of their profound sinfulness. They had perverted the concept of "folds," typically places for safe herding, into instruments of exploitation. This spiritual perversion and corrupt economic practice directly contributed to the divine judgment pronounced by Jeremiah. The passage condemns the pursuit of riches at the expense of justice and mercy, showing how economic sin leads to national ruin.