36 The words “Then I said to the people of Judah” are not in the text but are implicit from the address in v. 15 and the content of v. 17. They are supplied in the translation for clarity to show the shift from the Lord speaking to Jeremiah.
37 Heb “Give glory/respect to the Lord your God.” For this nuance of the word “glory” (כָּבוֹד, kavod), see 459 כָּבוֹד 6.b and compare the usage in Mal 1:6 and Josh 7:19.
38 The words “of disaster” are not in the text. They are supplied in the translation to explain the significance of the metaphor to readers who may not be acquainted with the metaphorical use of light and darkness for salvation and joy and distress and sorrow respectively. For the metaphorical use of these terms the reader should consult O. A. Piper, “Light, Light and Darkness,” 3:130–32. For the association of darkness with the Day of the Lord, the time when he will bring judgment, see, e.g., Amos 5:18–20. For the association of darkness with exile see Isa 9:1–2 (8:23–9:1 ).
39 Heb “your feet stumble.”
40 Heb “you stumble on the mountains at twilight.” The added words are again supplied in the translation to help explain the metaphor to the uninitiated reader.
41 Heb “and while you hope for light he will turn it into deep darkness and make [it] into gloom.” The meaning of the metaphor is again explained through the addition of the “of” phrases for readers who are unacquainted with the metaphorical use of these terms. For the meaning and usage of the term “deep darkness” (צַלְמָוֶת, tsalmavet), see the notes on . For the association of the term with exile see Isa 9:2 (9:1 ). For the association of the word gloom with the Day of the Lord see Isa 60:2; Joel 2:2; Zeph 1:15.
42 Heb “If you will not listen to it.” For the use of the feminine singular pronoun to refer to the idea(s) expressed in the preceding verse(s), see §135.p.
43 Heb “Tearing [my eye] will tear and my eye will run down [= flow] with tears.” The depth of Jeremiah’s sorrow for the sad plight of his people, if they refuse to repent, is emphasized by the triple repetition of the word “tears” twice in an emphatic verbal expression (Hebrew infinitive before finite verb) and once in the noun.
44 Heb “because the Lord’s flock will …” The pronoun “you” is supplied in the translation to avoid the shift in English from the second person address at the beginning to the third person affirmation at the end. It also helps explain the metaphor of the people of Israel as God’s flock for some readers who may be unfamiliar with that metaphor.
45 The verb is once again in the form of “as good as done” (the Hebrew prophetic perfect).

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

Hear and give ear; be not proud,

for the Lord has spoken.

Give glory to the Lord your God

before he brings darkness,

before your feet stumble

on the twilight mountains,

and while you look for light

he turns it into gloom

and makes it deep darkness.

But if you will not listen,

my soul will weep in secret for your pride;

my eyes will weep bitterly and run down with tears,

because the Lord’s flock has been taken captive.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

Hear and pay attention,

do not be arrogant,

for the Lord has spoken.

Give glory to the Lord your God

before he brings the darkness,

before your feet stumble

on the darkening hills.

You hope for light,

but he will turn it to utter darkness

and change it to deep gloom.

If you do not listen,

I will weep in secret

because of your pride;

my eyes will weep bitterly,

overflowing with tears,

because the Lord’s flock will be taken captive.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

Listen and pay attention. Do not be proud,

for the Lord has spoken.

Give glory to the Lord your God

before he brings darkness,

before your feet stumble

on the mountains at dusk.

You wait for light,

but he brings darkest gloom

and makes total darkness.

But if you will not listen,

my innermost being will weep in secret

because of your pride.

My eyes will overflow with tears,

for the Lord’s flock has been taken captive.

NLTNew Living Translation

Listen and pay attention!

Do not be arrogant, for the Lord has spoken.

Give glory to the Lord your God

before it is too late.

Acknowledge him before he brings darkness upon you,

causing you to stumble and fall on the darkening mountains.

For then, when you look for light,

you will find only terrible darkness and gloom.

And if you still refuse to listen,

I will weep alone because of your pride.

My eyes will overflow with tears,

because the Lord’s flock will be led away into exile.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

Listen, and pay attention,

you must not be haughty, for Yahweh has spoken.

Give glory to Yahweh your God before he brings darkness,

and before your feet stumble on the mountains at twilight.

And you will hope for light, but he makes it as gloom,

he makes it as thick darkness.

But if you will not listen to it,

my inner self will weep in secret places,

because of the presence of your pride.

And my eyes will weep bitterly,

and they will melt in tears,

because the flock of Yahweh has been taken captive.

Hear ye, and give ear; be not proud: for the Lord hath spoken. Give glory to the Lord your God, before he cause darkness, and before your feet stumble upon the dark mountains, and, while ye look for light, he turn it into the shadow of death, and make it gross darkness. But if ye will not hear it, my soul shall weep in secret places for your pride; and mine eye shall weep sore, and run down with tears, because the Lord’s flock is carried away captive.

Public Domain

Jeremiah 13:15–17

English

Arabic

Czech

French

German

Hebrew

Hungarian

Italian

Korean

Latin

Portuguese

Russian

Simplified Chinese

Spanish

Traditional Chinese

Footnotes

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

NIVNew International Version (2011)

CSBChristian Standard Bible

NLTNew Living Translation

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

KJV 1900King James Version