Jeremiah 6 26

Jeremiah 6:26 kjv

O daughter of my people, gird thee with sackcloth, and wallow thyself in ashes: make thee mourning, as for an only son, most bitter lamentation: for the spoiler shall suddenly come upon us.

Jeremiah 6:26 nkjv

O daughter of my people, Dress in sackcloth And roll about in ashes! Make mourning as for an only son, most bitter lamentation; For the plunderer will suddenly come upon us.

Jeremiah 6:26 niv

Put on sackcloth, my people, and roll in ashes; mourn with bitter wailing as for an only son, for suddenly the destroyer will come upon us.

Jeremiah 6:26 esv

O daughter of my people, put on sackcloth, and roll in ashes; make mourning as for an only son, most bitter lamentation, for suddenly the destroyer will come upon us.

Jeremiah 6:26 nlt

Oh, my people, dress yourselves in burlap
and sit among the ashes.
Mourn and weep bitterly, as for the loss of an only son.
For suddenly the destroying armies will be upon you!

Jeremiah 6 verses

Jeremiah 6 26 Meaning

Jeremiah 6:26 calls the people of Judah to engage in extreme, ceremonial acts of mourning as a prophetically urgent response to their impending, severe destruction. The command implies that the catastrophe, described as a "destroyer" arriving "suddenly," will be so absolute and devastating that their grief should be akin to the unparalleled sorrow of losing an only son, signifying utter and irreparable loss for the entire nation.

Jeremiah 6 26 Context

Jeremiah chapter 6 continues the prophet's grim pronouncements regarding Judah's impending destruction. The chapter vividly describes the invasion of a fearsome enemy from the north (often identified as Babylon), likened to a mighty army preparing for siege. It critiques the spiritual blindness and corruption of the people, from prophet to priest, and their stubborn refusal to heed God's warnings or repent. Despite the urgent calls for alarm and repentance, the people persist in their ways, causing God to lament their inevitable downfall. Verse 26, positioned within these warnings, acts as a command for immediate and intense ritualistic mourning, a pre-enactment of the devastating grief that will soon befall them due to their unrepentant sins. Historically, this prophecy anticipates the Babylonian invasion and the fall of Jerusalem (586 BCE).

Jeremiah 6 26 Word analysis

• O daughter of my people (bat-'ammī בַּת־עַמִּי): A term of affectionate address by Jeremiah, simultaneously tender and lamenting. It reflects the prophet's profound personal connection and shared identity with the nation, here personified as a beloved female. Despite God's judgment, this phrase maintains a link of kinship and highlights the tragedy from an internal, familial perspective.
• put on sackcloth (ḥiḡrū śaq חִגְרוּ־שַׂק): An imperative, commanding a ritualistic act of extreme sorrow, humiliation, and often repentance. Sackcloth was a coarse, itchy fabric made of goat's hair, symbolizing affliction, discomfort, and self-abasement. It was worn directly against the skin as a public display of profound distress.
• and roll in ashes (wəhiṯpalašū ba'efer וְהִתְפַּלְּשׁוּ בָאֵפֶר): Another imperative for an act of intense mourning, self-debasement, and lamentation. To "roll in ashes" further signified deep despair, often associated with death, decay, and worthlessness. It represented the lowest point of humiliation and grief.
• mourn as for an only son (ēḇel yāḥīḏ אֵ֣בֶל יָחִ֔יד): This phrase sets the standard for the expected intensity of grief. In ancient Israelite society, the loss of an "only son" (yāḥīḏ, implying unique, singular, one-and-only) represented the utter extinction of one's lineage, name, inheritance, and future hopes. It was considered the most tragic and irrecoverable loss imaginable, conveying incomparable sorrow.
• a most bitter lamentation (mispeḏ tamrurim מִסְפֵּד תַּמְרוּרִֽים): Mispeḏ means a funeral lament or wailing. Tamrurim intensifies it, denoting "bitterness," "severe pain," or "fierce trouble." This phrase describes a lamentation of unparalleled agony, characterized by intense and anguished wailing.
• for suddenly (kī ḇəpeta'כִּי־בְפֶ֙תַע֙): A temporal adverb emphasizing the abrupt, swift, and unexpected nature of the impending judgment. It suggests no time for preparation or escape, intensifying the terror and helplessness.
• the destroyer will come upon us (yābō' šōdēḏ ʻāleinu יָבֹ֤א שֹׁדֵד֙ עָלֵֽינוּ): Šōdēḏ (destroyer) refers to one who lays waste, spoils, plunders, or despoils. It portrays the enemy (Babylon) not merely as an invading army, but as a force specifically tasked with utterly demolishing and annihilating the nation. The verb yābō' (will come) highlights its certainty. "Upon us" brings the threat to a personal, immediate reality for the audience.

Words-group by words-group analysis:

• "O daughter of my people, put on sackcloth and roll in ashes": This pairing directly contrasts tender address with harsh command. It represents a call to visible, public, and self-inflicted ritual actions, signaling deep personal and communal lament. These acts symbolize surrender, utter distress, and profound despair, which in other contexts, also serve as acts of repentance.
• "mourn as for an only son, a most bitter lamentation": This phrase establishes the extreme emotional depth required. The loss of an "only son" is the ultimate personal tragedy, often interpreted collectively as the nation's loss of its future and identity. "Most bitter lamentation" elevates this to a communal anguish, a suffering beyond measure. It prepares the audience for a devastation of ultimate consequence.
• "for suddenly the destroyer will come upon us": This final clause provides the urgent, immediate rationale for the commands. It underscores the certainty, rapidity, and overwhelming nature of the coming judgment. The enemy is depicted as a "destroyer," highlighting God's role in allowing or sending such an instrument of devastation to bring complete desolation upon His people. The phrase leaves no room for hope of escape or postponement.

Jeremiah 6 26 Bonus section

The repeated motif of "daughter of my people" throughout Jeremiah is not merely a literary device; it personalizes the national tragedy. It expresses Jeremiah's (and by extension, God's) heartbreak over the judgment upon those with whom there is an intimate, covenantal bond. This specific call to mourning, while ritualistic, highlights a spiritual deficiency. Israel had often performed outward acts without inward transformation. Here, Jeremiah demands a deep, genuine, and appropriate response to the magnitude of the coming wrath. This intense lamentation could be seen as an appeal for recognition of the utter finality of their unrepentant path. The focus on the 'only son' is significant in the context of Israel as God's "firstborn son" (Ex 4:22). Thus, their lament for an only son tragically echoes God's own "lament" for the rebellious, "firstborn" Israel, demonstrating the reversal of roles in a heartbreaking way.

Jeremiah 6 26 Commentary

Jeremiah 6:26 is a potent, prophetic call for an immediate, preemptive outpouring of national grief, underscoring the severity of the imminent judgment from God. The prophet, speaking with deep anguish on behalf of God, instructs the "daughter of my people" – a term reflecting tender love despite the pending wrath – to adopt the most extreme and public signs of mourning. Donning sackcloth and rolling in ashes were ancient, unequivocal expressions of deep sorrow, self-abasement, and despair, reserved for overwhelming calamity. The demand to "mourn as for an only son" establishes a profound benchmark for this grief; it speaks to the ultimate, irreparable loss, signifying the eradication of the future and the very identity of the nation. This sorrow is not presented as an opportunity for repentance to avert judgment, but rather as the prophet's grim directive for an appropriate emotional response to the certainty of the impending, destructive blow. The qualifier "for suddenly the destroyer will come upon us" reveals the reason for such urgency and extremity: the judgment will be swift, unexpected, and devastating, leaving no time for preparations or escape. It serves as a stark warning and a mournful preparation for the unparalleled sorrow that will soon engulf Judah, delivered through God's chosen instrument of "the destroyer."