Jeremiah 8:2 kjv
And they shall spread them before the sun, and the moon, and all the host of heaven, whom they have loved, and whom they have served, and after whom they have walked, and whom they have sought, and whom they have worshipped: they shall not be gathered, nor be buried; they shall be for dung upon the face of the earth.
Jeremiah 8:2 nkjv
They shall spread them before the sun and the moon and all the host of heaven, which they have loved and which they have served and after which they have walked, which they have sought and which they have worshiped. They shall not be gathered nor buried; they shall be like refuse on the face of the earth.
Jeremiah 8:2 niv
They will be exposed to the sun and the moon and all the stars of the heavens, which they have loved and served and which they have followed and consulted and worshiped. They will not be gathered up or buried, but will be like dung lying on the ground.
Jeremiah 8:2 esv
And they shall be spread before the sun and the moon and all the host of heaven, which they have loved and served, which they have gone after, and which they have sought and worshiped. And they shall not be gathered or buried. They shall be as dung on the surface of the ground.
Jeremiah 8:2 nlt
They will spread out their bones on the ground before the sun, moon, and stars ? the gods my people have loved, served, and worshiped. Their bones will not be gathered up again or buried but will be scattered on the ground like manure.
Jeremiah 8 2 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Jer 8:1 | "At that time, declares the LORD, they shall bring out the bones... from their tombs." | Immediate context of desecration |
| Jer 7:33 | "The dead bodies of this people shall be food for the birds... none shall frighten them away." | Bodies left unburied and exposed |
| Jer 9:22 | "The bodies of the fallen shall lie like dung on the open country." | Fallen bodies as worthless dung |
| Jer 16:4 | "They shall die of deadly diseases... be for dung on the surface of the ground." | No burial; bodies as refuse |
| Jer 25:33 | "Those pierced by the LORD shall be many... not mourned or gathered or buried." | Extensive judgment, denial of burial |
| Jer 36:30 | "Therefore thus says the LORD concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah: ...he shall have no one to bury him." | Specific example of an unburied king |
| 2 Ki 9:36-37 | "The dogs shall eat the flesh of Jezebel in the plot... as dung on the surface." | Prophecy fulfilled for Jezebel |
| Deut 28:26 | "Your dead body shall be food for all birds of the air... none to frighten them away." | Curse for disobedience: unburied bodies |
| Ps 79:2-3 | "They have given the bodies of Your servants... as food for the birds... no one to bury them." | Lament for unburied faithful (parallel imagery) |
| Isa 66:24 | "They shall go out and look at the dead bodies of the men who have transgressed against Me. For their worm shall not die..." | Corpses as a spectacle of divine judgment |
| Eze 39:17 | "You, son of man, thus says the Lord GOD: Speak to every winged bird and to every beast of the field: 'Assemble and come, gather... to the sacrificial feast.'" | Imagery of bodies for consumption after judgment |
| Lev 26:30 | "And I will destroy your high places... cast your dead bodies upon the dead bodies of your idols." | Bodies desecrating idols, mirroring Jer 8:2 |
| Deut 4:19 | "Beware lest you raise your eyes to heaven, and when you see the sun, the moon, and the stars... you are drawn away and worship them." | Warning against astral worship |
| Deut 17:3 | "Who has gone and served other gods and worshiped them, or the sun or the moon or any of the host of heaven..." | Prohibition against celestial idolatry |
| 2 Ki 21:3-5 | "He rebuilt the high places... erected altars for Baal... worshiped all the host of heaven and served them." | Manasseh's idolatry, including astral worship |
| 2 Ki 23:4-5 | "He removed from the temple of the LORD all the articles made for Baal and for Asherah and for all the host of heaven." | Josiah's reform against celestial worship |
| Jer 19:13 | "The houses of Jerusalem and the houses of the kings of Judah shall be defiled... for all the houses on whose roofs they have offered incense to all the host of heaven." | Widespread nature of astral worship |
| Zeph 1:5 | "Those who bow down on the roofs to the host of heaven... and swear by the LORD and yet swear by Malcam." | Judah's syncretic astral worship |
| Amos 5:26 | "You carried your shrine of Moloch and the star of your god Rephan..." | Worship of star-gods |
| Acts 7:42 | "But God turned away and gave them over to worship the host of heaven..." | Stephen's historical recounting of Israel's idolatry |
| Rom 1:25 | "They exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator." | New Testament perspective on worship of creation |
| Php 3:8 | "Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish..." | Analogy for worthlessness (rubbish/dung) |
| Rev 11:9 | "For three and a half days some from the peoples and tribes... will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb." | Future unburial, similar to an ultimate curse |
Jeremiah 8 verses
Jeremiah 8 2 Meaning
Jeremiah 8:2 vividly portrays a profound divine judgment against the people of Judah for their rampant idolatry. It foretells that the unearthed remains of kings, officials, priests, prophets, and ordinary citizens will be spread out and left unburied. Their bodies will lie exposed before the very sun, moon, and celestial bodies—the "host of heaven"—they passionately worshipped, served, followed, sought, and prostrated themselves before. This act denies them the basic human dignity of burial, turning their physical remains into mere refuse upon the earth, a horrifying symbol of their utter degradation and the ultimate emptiness of their devotion to false gods.
Jeremiah 8 2 Context
Jeremiah 8:2 is part of Jeremiah's dire prophecies against Judah, specifically denouncing their spiritual apostasy and impending judgment by God, often manifested through the Babylonians. Chapter 8 opens with a stark reversal of funeral practices: instead of respectful burial, bodies will be brought out of tombs. This verse explains the horrifying details, describing the public exposure of these remains. It immediately precedes Jeremiah's lament over the people's incurable backsliding and the deep sorrow he feels for Judah's impending destruction, where death will be preferred over a life of suffering (Jer 8:3).
Historically and culturally, proper burial was extremely important in the ancient Near East, signifying respect, dignity, and often, an entry into an ancestral rest. To be denied burial was the ultimate humiliation, a severe curse implying rejection by God and exclusion from one's community even in death. This imagery is deeply polemical, directly confronting the common worship of celestial bodies, which was a pervasive pagan practice in the region, seen prominently in Canaanite, Assyrian, and Babylonian religions. Judah, despite warnings and reforms like King Josiah's (2 Kgs 23), consistently succumbed to worshipping the sun, moon, and stars, often in conjunction with other idolatrous practices like Baal worship. This verse shows these supposed deities are powerless to help their devotees.
Jeremiah 8 2 Word analysis
- And they shall spread them (וּשְׁטָחוּם ushṭaḥûm): From the root שָׁטַח (shaṭaḥ), meaning "to spread out, lay flat, flatten." It conveys a deliberate, public exposure of the bodies, not a mere accidental displacement. This action accentuates the humiliation and lack of respect.
- before the sun, and the moon, and all the host of heaven (לַשֶּׁמֶשׁ וְלַיָּרֵחַ וּלְכֹל צְבָא הַשָּׁמַיִם lashshemesh velayyārēaḥ ûleḵol ṣeḇā’ haššāmayim): These terms specifically refer to the celestial bodies which were worshipped as deities in ancient pagan religions (e.g., the Babylonian god Shamash, the moon god Sin). "Host of heaven" is a collective term for the stars and planets, signifying the full spectrum of their astral idolatry. The direct placement before these entities highlights divine irony.
- whom they have loved, and whom they have served, and after whom they have walked, and whom they have sought, and whom they have worshiped (אֲשֶׁר אֲהֵבוּם וַאֲשֶׁר עֲבָדוּם וַאֲשֶׁר הָלְכוּ אַחֲרֵיהֶם וַאֲשֶׁר דְּרָשׁוּם וַאֲשֶׁר הִשְׁתַּחֲוּוּ לָהֶם ’ăšer ’ăhēḇûm wa’ăšer ‘ăḇāḏûm wa’ăšer hāleḵû ’aḥărêhem wa’ăšer derāšûm wa’ăšer hištaḥawû lâhem): This powerful five-fold verbal emphasis meticulously describes the comprehensive nature of Judah's devotion to false gods. It shows emotional attachment ("loved"), active allegiance ("served"), lifestyle choice ("walked after"), active inquiry and dependence ("sought"), and ritual prostration ("worshipped"). Each word underscores the depth of their spiritual infidelity, leaving no doubt about their culpability.
- They shall not be gathered, nor be buried (לֹא יֵאָסְפוּ וְלֹא יִקָּבְרוּ lō’ yē’āsefû welō’ yiqḳāberû): A double negation stressing the complete absence of respectful funeral rites. "Gathered" could imply the collection of scattered remains for reburial, while "buried" is the core act. This denotes extreme disgrace, exclusion, and utter lack of human dignity or care.
- they shall be for dung upon the face of the earth (לְדֹמֶן עַל פְּנֵי הָאֲדָמָה יִהְיוּ leḏōmen ‘al penê hā’ăḏāmāh yiheyû): The Hebrew term דֹּמֶן (dōmen) specifically means "dung" or "manure." This is the ultimate indignity, reducing the bodies of former leaders and people to common refuse, something contemptible, valueless, and defiled.
Words-group analysis:
- "The sun, and the moon, and all the host of heaven, whom they have loved... and whom they have worshiped": This group creates a poignant ironic judgment. The very deities Judah embraced will witness the public shame and desolation of their followers. Their passive observation highlights their impotence against the true God, YHWH.
- "Loved... served... walked... sought... worshiped": This cascading series of verbs paints a comprehensive picture of idolatry, from inner affection to outward acts of devotion. It demonstrates the total dedication of the people to these false gods, emphasizing the gravity of their sin and justifying the severity of the impending judgment.
- "Not be gathered, nor be buried; they shall be for dung": This tripartite judgment—neglected, unburied, and reduced to refuse—describes the complete stripping of human dignity in death. It serves as a powerful deterrent and illustrates the ultimate outcome of spiritual unfaithfulness: profound degradation and worthlessness in God's sight.
Jeremiah 8 2 Bonus section
- The detail of spreading the bodies (ushṭaḥûm) suggests not merely leaving them to lie where they fell but perhaps a deliberate, even ritualistic, act of scattering and displaying them as a gruesome "offering" to the unhearing and unseeing idols. This intensifies the humiliation.
- In ancient cultures, denying burial was one of the most severe punishments, considered a permanent curse affecting both the individual and their family lineage. It meant one's spirit could not find rest, and one's memory would be dishonored. This speaks to the profound existential despair conveyed by Jeremiah's prophecy.
- The repetitive verbs "loved... served... walked after... sought... worshiped" form a chiastic structure in their spiritual devotion. It signifies a profound spiritual covenant-breaking where YHWH, the rightful object of such comprehensive devotion, has been supplanted by inert creation.
Jeremiah 8 2 Commentary
Jeremiah 8:2 serves as a grim fulfillment of covenant curses (e.g., Deut 28) for Judah's deep and persistent idolatry, particularly the worship of the "host of heaven." The scene depicts a reversal of order: those once entombed are now unearthed, exposed as public spectacles of divine wrath. The central irony is that the very celestial beings to whom they consecrated their love and service will passively oversee their ultimate dishonor. This prophetic imagery is a potent polemic against false worship, demonstrating the absolute impotence of idols while highlighting the zealous devotion misguidedly given to them. The final degradation, bodies reduced to mere "dung," powerfully underscores the worthlessness of a life spent in apostasy and the profound contempt that God has for those who turn from Him to empty things. It's a stark reminder that rejection of the Creator leads to utter desecration.