The Meaning of Jeremiah 5:19 Explained

Jeremiah 5:19

KJV: And it shall come to pass, when ye shall say, Wherefore doeth the LORD our God all these things unto us? then shalt thou answer them, Like as ye have forsaken me, and served strange gods in your land, so shall ye serve strangers in a land that is not yours.

YLT: And it hath come to pass, when ye say, 'For what hath Jehovah our God done to us all these?' That thou hast said unto them, 'As ye have forsaken Me, And serve the gods of a foreigner in your land, So do ye serve strangers in a land not yours.

Darby: And it shall come to pass, when ye shall say, Wherefore hath Jehovah our God done all these things unto us? then shalt thou say to them, As ye have forsaken me, and served strange gods in your land, so shall ye serve strangers in a land that is not yours.

ASV: And it shall come to pass, when ye shall say, Wherefore hath Jehovah our God done all these things unto us? then shalt thou say unto them, Like as ye have forsaken me, and served foreign gods in your land, so shall ye serve strangers in a land that is not yours.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And it shall come to pass, when ye shall say,  Wherefore  doeth  the LORD  our God  all these [things] unto us? then shalt thou answer  them, Like as ye have forsaken  me, and served  strange  gods  in your land,  so shall ye serve  strangers  in a land  [that is] not yours. 

What does Jeremiah 5:19 Mean?

Verse Meaning

When the people asked Jeremiah for an explanation of their circumstances, he was to tell them that: since they had forsaken serving Yahweh, and had worshipped idols in His land, the Lord was sending them to serve strangers in the land of those idols. This was only fair (recompense in kind, the lex talionis, cf. Deuteronomy 28:47-48).

Chapter Summary: Jeremiah 5

1  The judgments of God upon the people, for their perverseness;
7  for their adultery;
10  for their impiety;
15  for their worship of idols;
19  for their contempt of God;
25  and for their great corruption in the civil state;
30  and ecclesiastical

What do the individual words in Jeremiah 5:19 mean?

And it will be when you say why why does do Yahweh our God to us - all these [things] then you shall answer them just as you have forsaken Me and served gods foreign in your land so you shall serve aliens in a land [that is] not yours' -
וְהָיָה֙ כִּ֣י תֹאמְר֔וּ תַּ֣חַת מֶ֗ה עָשָׂ֨ה יְהֹוָ֧ה אֱלֹהֵ֛ינוּ לָ֖נוּ אֶת־ כָּל־ אֵ֑לֶּה וְאָמַרְתָּ֣ אֲלֵיהֶ֗ם כַּאֲשֶׁ֨ר עֲזַבְתֶּ֤ם אוֹתִי֙ וַתַּעַבְד֞וּ אֱלֹהֵ֤י נֵכָר֙ בְּאַרְצְכֶ֔ם כֵּ֚ן תַּעַבְד֣וּ זָרִ֔ים בְּאֶ֖רֶץ לֹ֥א לָכֶֽם ס

וְהָיָה֙  And  it  will  be 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אֶהְיֶה 
Sense: to be, become, come to pass, exist, happen, fall out.
תֹאמְר֔וּ  you  say 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, second person masculine plural
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
תַּ֣חַת  why 
Parse: Preposition
Root: מִתְחָה 
Sense: the under part, beneath, instead of, as, for, for the sake of, flat, unto, where, whereas.
מֶ֗ה  why 
Parse: Interrogative
Root: לָמָּה 
Sense: what, how, of what kind.
עָשָׂ֨ה  does  do 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: עָשָׂה 
Sense: to do, fashion, accomplish, make.
יְהֹוָ֧ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
אֱלֹהֵ֛ינוּ  our  God 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, first person common plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
לָ֖נוּ  to  us 
Parse: Preposition, first person common plural
אֶת־  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
אֵ֑לֶּה  these  [things] 
Parse: Pronoun, common plural
Root: אֵהֶל 
Sense: these.
וְאָמַרְתָּ֣  then  you  shall  answer 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, second person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
כַּאֲשֶׁ֨ר  just  as 
Parse: Preposition-k, Pronoun, relative
Root: אֲשֶׁר 
Sense: (relative part.).
עֲזַבְתֶּ֤ם  you  have  forsaken 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, second person masculine plural
Root: עָזַב 
Sense: to leave, loose, forsake.
אוֹתִי֙  Me 
Parse: Direct object marker, first person common singular
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
וַתַּעַבְד֞וּ  and  served 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, second person masculine plural
Root: עָבַד  
Sense: to work, serve.
אֱלֹהֵ֤י  gods 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
נֵכָר֙  foreign 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: נֵכָר  
Sense: foreign, alien, foreignness, that which is foreign.
בְּאַרְצְכֶ֔ם  in  your  land 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, feminine singular construct, second person masculine plural
Root: אֶרֶץ  
Sense: land, earth.
כֵּ֚ן  so 
Parse: Adverb
Root: כֵּן 
Sense: so, therefore, thus.
תַּעַבְד֣וּ  you  shall  serve 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, second person masculine plural
Root: עָבַד  
Sense: to work, serve.
זָרִ֔ים  aliens 
Parse: Adjective, masculine plural
Root: זוּר 
Sense: to be strange, be a stranger.
בְּאֶ֖רֶץ  in  a  land 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֶרֶץ  
Sense: land, earth.
לֹ֥א  [that  is]  not 
Parse: Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
לָכֶֽם  yours' 
Parse: Preposition, second person masculine plural
ס  - 
Parse: Punctuation