The Meaning of Jeremiah 26:2 Explained

Jeremiah 26:2

KJV: Thus saith the LORD; Stand in the court of the LORD'S house, and speak unto all the cities of Judah, which come to worship in the LORD'S house, all the words that I command thee to speak unto them; diminish not a word:

YLT: Thus said Jehovah, Stand thou in the court of the house of Jehovah, and thou hast spoken unto all those of the cities of Judah who are coming in to bow themselves in the house of Jehovah, all the words that I have commanded thee to speak unto them, thou dost not diminish a word.

Darby: Thus saith Jehovah: Stand in the court of Jehovah's house, and speak unto all the cities of Judah, which come to worship in Jehovah's house, all the words that I command thee to speak unto them: diminish not a word.

ASV: Thus saith Jehovah: Stand in the court of Jehovah's house, and speak unto all the cities of Judah, which come to worship in Jehovah's house, all the words that I command thee to speak unto them; diminish not a word.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Thus saith  the LORD;  Stand  in the court  of the LORD'S  house,  and speak  unto all the cities  of Judah,  which come  to worship  in the LORD'S  house,  all the words  that I command  thee to speak  unto them; diminish  not a word: 

What does Jeremiah 26:2 Mean?

Verse Meaning

The Lord commanded His prophet to stand in the temple courtyard and deliver every word of this message to the people who came there. He was not to omit one word for fear of the consequences of his preaching or to trim his message to please his hearers. The occasion may have been a special festival, since people from many parts of Judah came to the temple at that time. What follows is a summary of the Temple Sermon previously recorded in Jeremiah 7:1-15, but here the reaction that the sermon created is the main point. This message also summarizes the essential content of chapters7-10.
"Jeremiah frequently held discourses in the temple, and more than once foretold the destruction of Jerusalem; so that it need not be surprising if on more than one occasion he threatened the temple with the fate of Shiloh.... Whereas in chap. vii. the prophet speaks chiefly of the spoliation or destruction of the temple and the expulsion of the people into exile, here in brief incisive words he intimates the destruction of the city of Jerusalem as well ..." [1]

Context Summary

Jeremiah 26:1-24 - Shepherds That Mislead God's Flock
It is God's purpose to care for His people through shepherds (pastors) who are responsible to Him. Jesus our Lord is the Branch into which we may be grafted. He is our King who saves us and clothes us with His own spotless righteousness. God finds us in Him, Philippians 3:9. Because He reigns, we are saved and dwell in safety. When we are brought into contact with false shepherds, whether the failure be in doctrine or example, let us ask for the broken heart of Jeremiah 23:9.
God is everywhere present; as the latter paragraph indicates, He is near at hand to overhear the blasphemy of those who deride religion, and to be a very present help in time of trouble. If He fills heaven and earth, can He not fill thy heart? If His Word is like fire, let it cleanse thee! If it is as a hammer, let it pulverize thy pride! Let those of us who essay to teach and preach, not steal our words from our neighbors, or utter our own, but receive them from the source of all truth. [source]

Chapter Summary: Jeremiah 26

1  Jeremiah by promises and threats exhorts to repentance
8  He is therefore apprehended,
10  and arraigned
12  His apology
16  He is quit in judgment, by the example of Micah,
20  and of Urijah,
24  and by the care of Ahikam

What do the individual words in Jeremiah 26:2 mean?

thus says Yahweh Stand in the court of the house of Yahweh and speak to all the cities of Judah which come to worship [in] the house of Yahweh - the words that I command you to speak to them not do diminish a word
כֹּ֣ה ׀ אָמַ֣ר יְהוָ֗ה עֲמֹד֮ בַּחֲצַ֣ר בֵּית־ יְהוָה֒ וְדִבַּרְתָּ֞ עַל־ כָּל־ עָרֵ֣י יְהוּדָ֗ה הַבָּאִים֙ לְהִשְׁתַּחֲוֺ֣ת בֵּית־ יְהוָ֔ה אֵ֚ת הַדְּבָרִ֔ים אֲשֶׁ֥ר צִוִּיתִ֖יךָ לְדַבֵּ֣ר אֲלֵיהֶ֑ם אַל־ תִּגְרַ֖ע ! דָּבָֽר

כֹּ֣ה ׀  thus 
Parse: Adverb
Root: כֹּה  
Sense: thus, here, in this manner.
אָמַ֣ר  says 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
יְהוָ֗ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
עֲמֹד֮  Stand 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine singular
Root: עָמַד  
Sense: to stand, remain, endure, take one’s stand.
בַּחֲצַ֣ר  in  the  court 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, common singular construct
Root: חָצֵר 
Sense: court, enclosure.
בֵּית־  of  the  house 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: בַּיִת 
Sense: house.
יְהוָה֒  of  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
וְדִבַּרְתָּ֞  and  speak 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Piel, Conjunctive perfect, second person masculine singular
Root: דָּבַר 
Sense: to speak, declare, converse, command, promise, warn, threaten, sing.
עָרֵ֣י  the  cities 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural construct
Root: עִיר 
Sense: excitement, anguish.
יְהוּדָ֗ה  of  Judah 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יְהוּדָה  
Sense: the son of Jacob by Leah.
הַבָּאִים֙  which  come 
Parse: Article, Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine plural
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
לְהִשְׁתַּחֲוֺ֣ת  to  worship 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Hitpael, Infinitive construct
Root: שָׁחָה  
Sense: to bow down.
בֵּית־  [in]  the  house 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: בַּיִת 
Sense: house.
יְהוָ֔ה  of  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
אֵ֚ת  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
הַדְּבָרִ֔ים  the  words 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine plural
Root: דָּבָר  
Sense: speech, word, speaking, thing.
אֲשֶׁ֥ר  that 
Parse: Pronoun, relative
Root: אֲשֶׁר 
Sense: (relative part.).
צִוִּיתִ֖יךָ  I  command  you 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Perfect, first person common singular, second person masculine singular
Root: צָוָה  
Sense: to command, charge, give orders, lay charge, give charge to, order.
לְדַבֵּ֣ר  to  speak 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Piel, Infinitive construct
Root: דָּבַר 
Sense: to speak, declare, converse, command, promise, warn, threaten, sing.
אֲלֵיהֶ֑ם  to  them 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine plural
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).
תִּגְרַ֖ע  do  diminish 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, second person masculine singular
Root: גָּרַע 
Sense: to diminish, restrain, withdraw, abate, keep back, do away, take from, clip.
! דָּבָֽר  a  word 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: דָּבָר  
Sense: speech, word, speaking, thing.