Jeremiah 7 27

Jeremiah 7:27 kjv

Therefore thou shalt speak all these words unto them; but they will not hearken to thee: thou shalt also call unto them; but they will not answer thee.

Jeremiah 7:27 nkjv

"Therefore you shall speak all these words to them, but they will not obey you. You shall also call to them, but they will not answer you.

Jeremiah 7:27 niv

"When you tell them all this, they will not listen to you; when you call to them, they will not answer.

Jeremiah 7:27 esv

"So you shall speak all these words to them, but they will not listen to you. You shall call to them, but they will not answer you.

Jeremiah 7:27 nlt

"Tell them all this, but do not expect them to listen. Shout out your warnings, but do not expect them to respond.

Jeremiah 7 verses

Jeremiah 7 27 Meaning

Jeremiah 7:27 conveys God's unwavering command to Jeremiah to deliver His message to the people of Judah, immediately followed by the divine pre-announcement of their utter refusal to listen or respond. This verse encapsulates the prophet's challenging mission, emphasizing that his duty to proclaim God's word is not contingent on a positive outcome. It highlights the profound spiritual rebellion and hardness of heart prevalent among the people, indicating a state of ingrained disobedience where divine warning and counsel are actively ignored.

Jeremiah 7 27 Context

Jeremiah 7:27 is part of Jeremiah's Temple Sermon, delivered in the gate of the Lord's house (Jer 7:1-2). This sermon vigorously challenged the people of Judah's misplaced trust in the Temple as an automatic shield against divine judgment, even while they engaged in rampant idolatry, injustice, and moral corruption. The prophet confronted their hypocrisy, their belief that simply possessing the Temple guaranteed their safety (Jer 7:4, 10). The broader context of chapter 7 outlines God's specific grievances against their wickedness – stealing, murdering, committing adultery, swearing falsely, burning incense to Baal, and walking after other gods (Jer 7:9). God had already announced that He would treat this Temple as He treated Shiloh (Jer 7:12-15), a place of worship He had previously abandoned. Crucially, the preceding verses (Jer 7:16-20) forbid Jeremiah from praying for these people, signifying that divine judgment is irrevocably set due to their unrepentant sin and constant rejection of prophetic warnings. Verse 27, therefore, describes the final stage of this rejection, where despite God's last, earnest plea through Jeremiah, their ears are irrevocably closed, and their hearts are hardened beyond any willingness to listen or respond.

Jeremiah 7 27 Word analysis

• You (וְאַתָּה - ve'attah):
  • This opening "You" is a strong personal pronoun, emphatically addressing Jeremiah.
  • Significance: It underscores God's direct command to Jeremiah, placing the burden and responsibility of proclamation squarely on the prophet's shoulders. This is a personal charge despite the expected futility in human terms.
• shall speak (תְּדַבֵּר - t'dabber):
  • Form: Hiphil imperfect of דָּבַר (davar), conveying a strong imperative.
  • Meaning: To speak, declare, converse. It implies an active and direct articulation of a message.
  • Significance: Jeremiah is not to merely muse or consider, but to actively, verbally declare God's "words" with authority.
• all these words (אֶת־כָּל־הַדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה - et-kol-hadd'varim ha'elleh):
  • "All" (kol) emphasizes totality, no selectivity or compromise.
  • "Words" (d'varim): Plural of דָּבָר (davar), which can mean word, thing, matter, command.
  • "These" (ha'elleh): Refers to the specific message God has entrusted to Jeremiah, particularly the denunciations and calls to repentance leading to judgment, as outlined in the preceding verses and chapters.
  • Significance: Jeremiah's commission covers the entire divine message, without holding back uncomfortable truths or softening hard commands, regardless of popular opinion or his own feelings.
• to them (אֲלֵיהֶם - aleihem):
  • Meaning: To, toward, belonging to them. Refers to the specific audience: the people of Judah, particularly in Jerusalem.
  • Significance: The message is for the people directly, not a private or generalized message. It requires confrontational delivery.
• but (וְלֹא - v'lo):
  • Meaning: "and not" or "but not." The Hebrew conjunction וְ (vav) introduces a strong contrast.
  • Significance: It clearly separates God's command to the prophet from the people's expected response, highlighting the immediate and definite failure of the message to achieve its desired human outcome. It's a prophetic prediction of rejection.
• they will not listen (יִשְׁמְעוּ - yishme'u):
  • Form: Imperfect of שָׁמַע (shama).
  • Meaning: To hear, listen, pay attention, understand, obey. In a covenantal context, it almost always implies obedience.
  • Significance: This isn't a mere failure to hear sound; it's a resolute refusal to heed and obey the divine message. Their spiritual ears are shut to God's authority and wisdom, demonstrating their deep-seated rebellion.
• You shall call (וְקָרָאתָ - v'karata):
  • Form: Imperfect with vav conjunctive (vav-consecutive perfect) of קָרָא (qara).
  • Meaning: To call, cry out, proclaim, invite. Implies a louder, more urgent, public appeal than simply "speaking."
  • Significance: Reinforces Jeremiah's proactive and insistent efforts to reach the people, even in the face of indifference. It's an earnest appeal from God through His messenger.
• to them (אֲלֵיהֶם - aleihem):
  • Repetition: Reinforces the direct address to the resistant people.
  • Significance: The object of the divine appeal remains unchanged; it is the same group who have hardened their hearts.
• but (וְלֹא - v'lo):
  • Repetition: Further emphasizes the contrast and confirmed futility of the prophetic mission's intended human response.
  • Significance: The rejection is double-emphasized; not only will they not listen obediently, but they will not even offer a direct reply or engagement.
• they will not answer (יַעֲנוּ - ya'anu):
  • Form: Imperfect of עָנָה ('anah).
  • Meaning: To answer, respond, testify. Can refer to speaking in return, engaging in dialogue, or replying.
  • Significance: This signifies an even deeper level of rejection. Not only do they not obey the message (refusal to listen), but they won't even acknowledge the messenger or engage in any dialogue. Their response is outright dismissal and stony silence, signifying total apathy and defiant unresponsiveness.

Words-group by words-group analysis:

• "You shall speak all these words to them": This phrase clearly lays out the divine mandate given to Jeremiah. It establishes the prophet's uncompromised duty to deliver the entirety of God's message, not just the pleasant parts, to a specific, hardened audience. This reflects God's complete revelatory act before judgment.
• "but they will not listen to you": This serves as a stark prophetic pronouncement of the people's pre-ordained response. The rejection is presented not as a possibility but as a certainty. "Not listen" refers not merely to auditory perception but to a deep, intentional refusal to obey the divine will expressed in Jeremiah's words.
• "You shall call to them, but they will not answer you": This second part intensifies the theme of rejection. "Call" suggests a more urgent and public appeal. The expected lack of "answer" indicates not just disobedience but a complete disregard, an unwillingness to even acknowledge or interact with God's messenger. It portrays an almost active defiance by ignoring rather than engaging.

Jeremiah 7 27 Bonus section

• The prophetic experience described in Jer 7:27 resonates deeply with the experiences of many prophets, including Isaiah (Isa 6:9-10) and Ezekiel (Ezek 3:4-7), demonstrating a recurring pattern of divine initiative and human resistance throughout Israel's history. This pattern foreshadows the nation's rejection of Jesus Himself (Matt 23:37).
• God's explicit pre-notification to Jeremiah about the people's rejection served to prepare the prophet mentally and spiritually. This divine insight could have both discouraged and strengthened Jeremiah. It provided a frame of understanding, allowing him to distinguish his faithfulness to God's command from the 'failure' in human response, thereby insulating him from despair over the results.
• The people's "not listening" and "not answering" reflect a state of spiritual deafness and utter spiritual unresponsiveness. This is often portrayed in Scripture as a condition resulting from prolonged sin and resistance to God's Spirit, a self-imposed blindness and hardness of heart. It is the natural consequence of repeatedly shutting out God's truth.

Jeremiah 7 27 Commentary

Jeremiah 7:27 presents a foundational, yet profoundly difficult truth about prophetic ministry and divine-human interaction: God demands faithfulness in proclamation regardless of the audience's response. For Jeremiah, this meant a lifelong mission fraught with pain, rejection, and personal suffering (Jer 15:10). The verse is a powerful declaration of God's perfect foreknowledge, affirming that even as He commanded His prophet, He knew the outcome of their interaction with the people. It demonstrates God's persistent grace in continuing to warn and appeal, even when He knows those warnings will be dismissed. Ultimately, the verse emphasizes that the fault for destruction lies solely with the unrepentant people who willfully chose to harden their hearts, turning a deaf ear to both spoken word and urgent plea, despite God's relentless efforts through His messenger. It highlights the serious implications of rejecting divine truth – it hardens the heart further, making genuine repentance progressively more difficult, if not humanly impossible, in some cases.