Jeremiah 3:23

A Call to Repentance · Jeremiah 3:11–25
Read Jeremiah 3

Translations

Modern
Surely deception comes from the hills, and commotion from the mountains. Surely the salvation of Israel is in the LORD our God.
Traditional
Truly in vain is salvation hoped for from the hills, and from the multitude of mountains: truly in the Lord our God is the salvation of Israel.
Literal
Truly in vain is salvation hoped for from the hills, And from the multitude of mountains! Truly in YHWH our God is the salvation of Israel.
Latin
Vere mendaces erant colles, et multitudo montium: vere in Domino Deo nostro salus Israël.

Original

Hebrew
English
Surely deception comes from the hills, and commotion from the mountains. Surely the salvation of Israel is in the LORD our God.

Notes

  • The Lord heard the heartfelt prayer of devotion, and the people confirmed their acceptance of the Lord as their God (Jeremiah 31:7; Psalms 38:18; 121:1–2).

  • The people confessed to worshiping idols and participating in religious ceremonies. They admitted these actions were misguided (Jeremiah 11:13; 14:20; Hosea 9:10) and recognized that salvation comes only from the Lord. Their ancestors wasted their wealth by sacrificing animals and children to honor Baal.

The people, held captive in Assyria, claimed they had repented of their sins. However, their words were insincere, and the Lord rejected their plea. God told his people that if they truly wanted to return to him, they had to abandon the hilltop altars where they worshiped idols and remove all traces of idolatry from their religion.

The Lord asked Israel to repent, return, and reconcile with him (contrast Jeremiah 2:1–3:10). Israel had sinned and faced punishment. Now, the people of Judah sinned even more openly than their northern relatives, ignoring the lesson the Lord taught Israel (Ezekiel 16:51–52). However, it was still not too late to repent and become the blessing to the nations (Jeremiah 4:1–2) that God intended them to be (Genesis 12:3).

Events

Parallels

Hosea 14:1–3 Zechariah 1:1–6

People

Israel: Patriarch, son of Isaac, father of twelve tribes

Glossary

Book of Jeremiah Hosea, Book of Jeremiah (Person)

Topics

Backsliders: Backsliding of Israel Church: Backslidden Confidence: False God: Saviour Salvation is of God Salvation: Sought in Vain From: Earthly Power Salvation: Unclassified Scriptures Relating To