Jeremiah 9:12 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Jeremiah 9:12
Who is the wise man, that may understand this? and who is he to whom the mouth of the LORD hath spoken, that he may declare it, for what the land perisheth and is burned up like a wilderness, that none passeth through?
a man as an individual or a male person · definite article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
understand
וְיָבֵ֣ןve.ya.Ven
H995
to separate mentally (or distinguish) · conjunction + verb, qal jussive, 3rd person masculine singular
mouth
פִּֽיpi-
H6310
the mouth (as the means of blowing) · noun, common masculine singular construct
LORD
יְהוָ֛הYah.weh
H3068
Jehovah · proper noun, a title
spoken
דִּבֶּ֧רdi.Ber
H1696
perhaps properly · verb, piel perfect, 3rd person masculine singular
declare
וְיַגִּדָ֑הּve.ya.gi.Dah
H5046
properly · conjunction + verb, hiphil, 3rd person masculine singular + pronominal suffix, 3rd person feminine singular
land
הָאָ֔רֶץha.'A.retz
H776
the earth (at large · definite article + noun, common feminine singular absolute
perisheth
אָבְדָ֣ה'a.ve.Dah
H6
properly · verb, qal perfect, 3rd person feminine singular
up
נִצְּתָ֥הni.tze.Tah
H3341
to burn or set on fire · verb, niphal perfect, 3rd person feminine singular
wilderness
כַמִּדְבָּ֖רkha.mid.Bar
H4057
a pasture (i.e. open field · preposition with the article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
through
עֹבֵֽר'o.Ver
H5674
to cross over · verb, qal active participle, masculine singular absolute
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Hosea 14:9 Who is wise, and he shall understand these things? prudent, and he shall know them? for the ways of the LORD are right, and the just shall w…
Psalms 107:43 Whoso is wise, and will observe these things, even they shall understand the lovingkindness of the LORD.
Deuteronomy 32:29 O that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their latter end!
Psalms 107:34 A fruitful land into barrenness, for the wickedness of them that dwell therein.
Deuteronomy 29:22-28 So that the generation to come of your children that shall rise up after you, and the stranger that shall come from a far land, shall say, w…
1 Kings 9:8-9 And at this house, which is high, every one that passeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why hath the LORD do…
Jeremiah 5:19-20 And it shall come to pass, when ye shall say, Wherefore doeth the LORD our God all these things unto us? then shalt thou answer them, Like a…
Jeremiah 16:10-13 And it shall come to pass, when thou shalt shew this people all these words, and they shall say unto thee, Wherefore hath the LORD pronounce…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Jeremiah 9:12-22
Two things the prophet designs, in these verses, with reference to the approaching destruction of Judah and Jerusalem: - 1. To convince people of the justice of God in it, that they had by sin brought it upon themselves and that therefore they had no reason to quarrel with God, who did them no wrong at all, but a great deal of reason to fall out with their sins, which did them all this mischief. 2. To affect people with the greatness of the desolation that was coming, and the miserable effects of it, that by a terrible prospect of it they might be awakened to repentance and reformation, which was the only way to prevent it, or, at least, mitigate their own share in it. This being designed,
I…
Rather, "Who is a wise man? (that is, Whosoever has inspired wisdom, Pe2 3:15); let him understand this (weigh well the evils impending, and the causes of their being sent); and he to whom the mouth of the Lord hath spoken (that is, whosoever is prophetically inspired), let him declare it to his fellow countrymen," if haply they may be roused to repentance, the only hope of safety.
John Gill on Jeremiah 9:12
Who is the wise man that may understand this?.... Not the calamity, but the cause of it; a man of wisdom would inquire into it, find it out, and understand it; but the intimation is, that there was not a wise man among them, at least very few; there were scarce any that took any notice of these things, or were concerned about them:
and who is he to whom the mouth of the Lord hath spoken; and foretold this desolation and destruction; meaning a prophet:
that he may declare it; as from the Lord, namely, what follows:
for what the land perisheth, and is burnt like a wilderness, that none passeth through? that is, what were the sins of the inhabitants of the land, which brought such distress u…
(Verse 12 onwards) Who is the wise man who understands this, and to whom is the word of the Lord spoken, that he may declare it: why has the land perished and become scorched like a desert, because there is no one to pass through it? And the Lord said: Because they have forsaken my law that I gave to them, and have not listened to my voice, and have not walked in it, but have followed the stubbornness of their own hearts and after the Baals, which they learned from their fathers. He interrogates the Prophet, if anyone among the wise in Jerusalem is able to find, and those to whom the word of God is spoken, and who are able to announce the will of the Lord, and to provide reasons why Judah has been reduced to a desolation, and with everyone killed, there is no one remaining who can pass through it. And the Lord responds and provides reasons: because they have forsaken His Law that He gave to them, and have not listened to His voice, nor have they done what they should have done; but they have gone after the wickedness of their own hearts. Therefore, it is necessary to confess not according to our will, but in the Lord. For the heart is corrupt in all things. And from our heart come evil thoughts. And after the Baals, they went, as it is said, whom they learned from their fathers. Baal is the idol of the Sidonians, and Baalim is the plural number. Therefore, neither the error of our parents nor of our ancestors should be followed, but rather the authority of the Scriptures and the command of God, who teaches us.
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Jeremiah 9:12
12. Who is the wise man, that may understand this? and who is he to whom the mouth of the LORD hath spoken, that he may declare it, for what the land perisheth and is burned up like a wilderness, that none passeth through?
12. Quis vir prudens ut intelligat hoc? (ad verbum, et intelligens,) et ad quem loquutum est os Jehovae, ut annunciet quare perierit terra, vastata sit instar deserti, ut nemo transeat? (mvly vr absque transeunte, ad verbum.)
Here the Prophet reproves more sharply the insensibility of the people, because none attended to the judgments of God; for though they were apparent, no one considered them. The question arose from astonishment; for it was like someth…
The land laid waste, and the people scattered amongst the heathen. - Jer 9:9. "For the mountains I take up a weeping and wailing, and for the pastures of the wilderness a lament; for they are burnt up so that no man passeth over them, neither hear they the voice of the flock; the fowls of the heavens and the cattle are fled, are gone. Jer 9:10. And I make Jerusalem heaps, a dwelling of jackals; and the cities of Judah I make a desolation, without an inhabitant. Jer 9:11. Who is the wise man, that he may understand this? and to whom the mouth of Jahveh hath spoken, that he may declare it? Wherefore doth the land come to ruin, is it burnt up like the wilderness, that none passeth through? Jer…
It is unclear who asks these three questions. It might be the people or Jeremiah. The first two questions express frustration that the Lord’s message about the religious and political situation made no sense—the Lord’s words seemed too harsh and too extreme. The third question reveals anger that the land had been desolated. The questioner seems to ask where to find the wisdom and goodness of the Lord in what was happening.
Rashi on Jeremiah 9:11
Who is the man so wise Who will understand this, and who is the prophet to whom the mouth of the Lord has spoken,
that he may declare it? And who will declare why the land is ruined and all this retribution has come?
