The Meaning of Jeremiah 30:7 Explained

Jeremiah 30:7

KJV: Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.

YLT: Woe! for great is that day, without any like it, Yea, a time of adversity it is to Jacob, Yet out of it he is saved.

Darby: Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.

ASV: Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Alas!  for that day  [is] great,  so that  none [is] like it: it [is] even the time  of Jacob's  trouble;  but he shall be saved  out of it. 

What does Jeremiah 30:7 Mean?

Verse Meaning

A coming period of time would be the worst "Jacob" (Israel) had ever experienced, or would ever experience. This anticipates the Tribulation, in which Israelites will suffer more greatly than they ever have or ever will (cf. Jeremiah 46:10; Isaiah 2:12-21; Isaiah 13:6; Isaiah 34:1-8; Ezekiel 30:3; Daniel 9:27; Daniel 12:1; Joel 1:15; Joel 2:1-2; Joel 2:11; Amos 5:18-20; Micah 1:2-5; Zephaniah 1:2 to Zephaniah 3:8; Zechariah 14:1-8; Zechariah 14:12-15; Matthew 24-25; Revelation 6-18). Perhaps the Lord referred to His people here as Jacob because the patriarch Jacob experienced many extreme distresses. However, the Israelites would not perish in this distress because the Lord promised them deliverance, both physical and spiritual (cf. Zechariah 12:10 to Zechariah 13:1).

Context Summary

Jeremiah 30:1-24 - 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 30

1  God shows Jeremiah the return of the Jews
4  After their trouble they shall have deliverance
10  He comforts Jacob
18  Their return shall be gracious
23  Wrath shall fall on the wicked

What do the individual words in Jeremiah 30:7 mean?

Alas for great day [is] that so that none [is] like it and the time trouble it [is] of Jacob but out of it he shall be saved
! ה֗וֹי כִּ֥י גָד֛וֹל הַיּ֥וֹם הַה֖וּא מֵאַ֣יִן כָּמֹ֑הוּ וְעֵֽת־ צָרָ֥ה הִיא֙ לְיַֽעֲקֹ֔ב וּמִמֶּ֖נָּה יִוָּשֵֽׁעַ

! ה֗וֹי  Alas 
Parse: Interjection
Root: הֹוי  
Sense: ah!, alas!, ha!, ho!, O!, woe!.
גָד֛וֹל  great 
Parse: Adjective, masculine singular
Root: גָּבֹול 
Sense: great.
הַיּ֥וֹם  day  [is] 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: יׄום 
Sense: day, time, year.
הַה֖וּא  that 
Parse: Article, Pronoun, third person masculine singular
Root: הוּא 
Sense: he, she, it.
מֵאַ֣יִן  so  that  none  [is] 
Parse: Preposition-m, Adverb
Root: אַיִן 
Sense: nothing, not, nought n.
כָּמֹ֑הוּ  like  it 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
Root: כְּמֹו  
Sense: like, as, the like of which conj.
וְעֵֽת־  and  the  time 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, common singular construct
Root: עֵת  
Sense: time.
צָרָ֥ה  trouble 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: צָרָה 
Sense: straits, distress, trouble.
הִיא֙  it  [is] 
Parse: Pronoun, third person feminine singular
Root: הוּא 
Sense: he, she, it.
לְיַֽעֲקֹ֔ב  of  Jacob 
Parse: Preposition-l, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יַעֲקֹב  
Sense: son of Isaac, grandson of Abraham, and father of the 2 patriarchs of the tribes of Israel.
וּמִמֶּ֖נָּה  but  out  of  it 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition, third person feminine singular
Root: מִן 
Sense: from, out of, on account of, off, on the side of, since, above, than, so that not, more than.
יִוָּשֵֽׁעַ  he  shall  be  saved 
Parse: Verb, Nifal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: יָשַׁע 
Sense: to save, be saved, be delivered.