The Meaning of Jeremiah 3:6 Explained

Jeremiah 3:6

KJV: The LORD said also unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath played the harlot.

YLT: And Jehovah saith unto me, in the days of Josiah the king, 'Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? She is going on every high mountain, and unto the place of every green tree, and committeth fornication there.

Darby: And Jehovah said unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen what backsliding Israel hath done? She hath gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath committed fornication.

ASV: Moreover Jehovah said unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath played the harlot.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

The LORD  said  also unto me in the days  of Josiah  the king,  Hast thou seen  [that] which backsliding  Israel  hath done?  she is gone up  upon every high  mountain  and under  every green  tree,  and there hath played the harlot. 

What does Jeremiah 3:6 Mean?

Study Notes

Israel
"Israel" and "Ephraim": names by which the northern kingdom (the ten tribes) is usually called in the prophets. When by "Israel" the whole nation is meant, it will appear from the context.
The Lord said
The general character of the second message to Judah is:
(1) of reproach that the example of Jehovah's chastening of the northern kingdom 2 Kings 17:1-18 had produced no effect upon Judah, e.g. Jeremiah 3:6-10 .
(2) of warning of a like chastisement impending over Judah, e.g. Jeremiah 3:15-17 .
(3) of touching appeals to return to Jehovah, e.g. Jeremiah 3:12-14 .
(4) of promises of final national restoration and blessing, e.g. Jeremiah 3:16-18 .
Israel
"Israel" and "Ephraim": names by which the northern kingdom (the ten tribes) is usually called in the prophets. When by "Israel" the whole nation is meant, it will appear from the context.

Verse Meaning

Yahweh previously had a conversation with Jeremiah along the same lines that took place during the reign of King Josiah (between627,609 B.C.). This section may have been a shorter oracle that the writer used to compose the final written sermon. The Lord asked the prophet if he had observed that the Northern Kingdom of Israel had been guilty of flagrant spiritual prostitution. He described the Northern Kingdom as "faithless Israel," literally "Apostasy (Heb. meshuba) Israel" (cf. Jeremiah 3:8; Jeremiah 3:11-12). Israel was Apostasy personified. She was faithless in respect to the Mosaic Covenant and in respect to her relationship to Yahweh as His "wife." She had deserted her covenant with the Lord and made a covenant with Baal, and she had failed to maintain her responsibilities as Yahweh"s "wife."
When Jeremiah began his ministry, in627 B.C, the Israelites of the Northern Kingdom had been in exile for95 years, since722 B.C. All hope for the restoration of these banished people seemed to have vanished.

Chapter Summary: Jeremiah 3

1  God's great mercy to Judah the polluted land
6  Judah is worse than Israel
12  The promises of the gospel to the penitent
20  Israel reproved, and called by God, makes a solemn confession of their sins

What do the individual words in Jeremiah 3:6 mean?

And said Yahweh to me in the days of Josiah the king have you seen what has done backsliding Israel has gone up she on every mountain high and under tree green and played the harlot there
וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יְהוָ֜ה אֵלַ֗י בִּימֵי֙ יֹאשִׁיָּ֣הוּ הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ הֲ‍ֽרָאִ֔יתָ אֲשֶׁ֥ר ؟ עָשְׂתָ֖ה מְשֻׁבָ֣ה יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל הֹלְכָ֨ה הִ֜יא עַל־ כָּל־ הַ֣ר גָּבֹ֗הַּ וְאֶל־ תַּ֛חַת עֵ֥ץ רַעֲנָ֖ן וַתִּזְנִי־ שָֽׁם

וַיֹּ֨אמֶר  And  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
יְהוָ֜ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: Jehovah—used primarily in the combination ‘Lord Jehovah’.
אֵלַ֗י  to  me 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).
בִּימֵי֙  in  the  days 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: יׄום 
Sense: day, time, year.
יֹאשִׁיָּ֣הוּ  of  Josiah 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יׄאשִׁיָּה 
Sense: son of Amon by Jedidah who succeeded his father to the throne of Judah and reigned for 3 years; his reign is noteworthy for the great revivals back to the worship of Jehovah which he led.
הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ  the  king 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: מֶלֶךְ 
Sense: king.
הֲ‍ֽרָאִ֔יתָ  have  you  seen 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, second person masculine singular
Root: רָאָה 
Sense: to see, look at, inspect, perceive, consider.
؟ עָשְׂתָ֖ה  has  done 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person feminine singular
Root: עָשָׂה 
Sense: to do, fashion, accomplish, make.
מְשֻׁבָ֣ה  backsliding 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: מְשׁוּבָה  
Sense: turning away, turning back, apostasy, backsliding.
יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל  Israel 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יִשְׂרָאֵל  
Sense: the second name for Jacob given to him by God after his wrestling with the angel at Peniel.
הֹלְכָ֨ה  has  gone  up 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, feminine singular
Root: הָלַךְ  
Sense: to go, walk, come.
הִ֜יא  she 
Parse: Pronoun, third person feminine singular
Root: הוּא 
Sense: he, she, it.
כָּל־  every 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: כֹּל  
Sense: all, the whole.
הַ֣ר  mountain 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: הַר  
Sense: hill, mountain, hill country, mount.
גָּבֹ֗הַּ  high 
Parse: Adjective, masculine singular
Root: גָּבֹהַּ  
Sense: high, exalted.
תַּ֛חַת  under 
Parse: Preposition
Root: מִתְחָה 
Sense: the under part, beneath, instead of, as, for, for the sake of, flat, unto, where, whereas.
עֵ֥ץ  tree 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: עֵץ  
Sense: tree, wood, timber, stock, plank, stalk, stick, gallows.
רַעֲנָ֖ן  green 
Parse: Adjective, masculine singular
Root: רָעַן 
Sense: (Palel) to be or grow luxuriant or fresh or green adj.
וַתִּזְנִי־  and  played  the  harlot 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: זָנָה 
Sense: to commit fornication, be a harlot, play the harlot.