Words in italic type have been added for clarity. They are not found in the original Hebrew or Aramaic.

Jeremiah 13

• Linen: Symbolic of righteousness
• Sash: Judah and Israel
• The Three Shepherds: Kings, Priests, Prophets

Symbol of the Linen Sash

Jeremiah 13:¹ Thus the Lord (Yᵊhōvâ) said to me: “Go and get yourself a linen sash, and put it around your waist (Lit. upon your loins), but do not put it in water.”

Jeremiah 13:² So I got a sash(waistband) according to the word of the Lord (Yᵊhōvâ), and put it around my waist.

Jeremiah 13:³ And the word of the Lord (Yᵊhōvâ) came to me the second time, saying,

Jeremiah 13:⁴ “Take the sash (waistband) that you acquired, which is around your waist (Lit. upon your loins), and arise, go to the Euphrates (Heb. Perath), and hide it there in a hole in the rock.”

Jeremiah 13:⁵ So I went and hid it by the Euphrates, as the Lord (Yᵊhōvâ) commanded me.

Jeremiah 13:⁶ Now it came to pass after many days that the Lord (Yᵊhōvâ) said to me, “Arise, go to the Euphrates, and take from there the sash which I commanded you to hide there.”

Jeremiah 13:⁷ Then I went to the Euphrates and dug, and I took the sash (waistband) from the place where I had hidden it; and there was the sash, ruined. It was profitable for nothing.

Jeremiah 13:⁸ Then the word of the Lord (Yᵊhōvâ) came to me, saying,

Jeremiah 13:⁹ “Thus says the Lord (Yᵊhōvâ): ‘In this manner I will ruin the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem.

• They will be good for nothing.

Jeremiah 13:¹⁰ This evil people, who refuse to hear My words, who follow the dictates of their hearts (walk in the stubbornness or imagination), and walk after other gods to serve them and worship them, shall be just like this sash which is profitable for nothing.

Jeremiah 13:¹¹ For as the sash clings to the waist of a man, so I have caused the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah to cling to Me,’ says the Lord (Yᵊhōvâ), ‘that they may become My people, for renown, for praise, and for glory; but they would not hear.’

Symbol of the Wine Bottles

Jeremiah 13:¹² “Therefore you shall speak to them this word: ‘Thus says the Lord God (Yᵊhōvâ ‘ĕlōhîm) of Israel: “Every bottle shall be filled with wine.” ’

“And they will say to you, ‘Do we not certainly know that every bottle will be filled with wine?’

Jeremiah 13:¹³ “Then you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord (Yᵊhōvâ): “Behold, I will fill all the inhabitants of this land—even the kings who sit on David’s throne, the priests, the prophets, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem—with drunkenness!

• The three shepherds of the flock: Kings, Priests, and Prophets (See Jeremiah 11:8)

Jeremiah 13:¹⁴ And I will dash them one against another (Lit. a man against his brother), even the fathers and the sons together,” says the Lord (Yᵊhōvâ). “I will not pity nor spare nor have mercy, but will destroy them.” ’ ”

Pride Precedes Captivity

Jeremiah 13:¹⁵ Hear and give ear:
Do not be proud,
For the Lord (Yᵊhōvâ) has spoken.

Jeremiah 13:¹⁶ Give glory to the Lord your God (Yᵊhōvâ ‘ĕlōhîm)
Before He causes darkness,
And before your feet stumble
On the dark mountains,
And while you are looking for light,
He turns it into the shadow of death
And makes it dense darkness.

Jeremiah 13:¹⁷ But if you will not hear it,
My soul will weep in secret for your pride;
My eyes will weep bitterly
And run down with tears,
Because the Lord’s (Yᵊhōvâ) flock has been taken captive.

• Ref. Verse: Both Jeremiah and Jesus wept for Jerusalem.
  Luke 19:41 – Jesus Weeps over Jerusalem – Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it,
  With Jeremiah, the inhabitants were taken into physical captivity by Babylon.
  With Jesus, the inhabitants were in spiritual captivity by Satan.
  
• “In Secret”
  Jeremiah must grieve in private. Speaking out in public has only resulted in an increase in their stubbornness, pride, and hardness of heart.
  However, holding it back overtakes him:
  Jeremiah 20:9 Then I said, “I will not make mention of Him, Nor speak anymore in His name.” But His word was in my heart like a burning fire shut up in my bones; I was weary of holding it back, and I could not.
  

Jeremiah 13:¹⁸ Say to the king and to the queen mother,
“Humble yourselves;
Sit down,
For your rule shall collapse, the crown of your glory.”

Jeremiah 13:¹⁹ The cities of the South shall be shut up,
And no one shall open them;
Judah shall be carried away captive, all of it;
It shall be wholly carried away captive.

Jeremiah 13:²⁰ Lift up your eyes and see
Those who come from the north (Babylon).
Where is the flock that was given to you,
Your beautiful sheep?

Jeremiah 13:²¹ What will you say when He punishes you?
For you have taught them
To be chieftains, to be head over you.
Will not pangs seize you,
Like a woman in labor (childbirth)?

Jeremiah 13:²² And if you say in your heart,
“Why have these things come upon me?”
For the greatness of your iniquity
Your skirts have been uncovered,
Your heels made bare (Lit. suffer violence).

Jeremiah 13:²³ Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard its spots?
Then may you also do good who are accustomed to do evil.

Jeremiah 13:²⁴ “Therefore I will scatter them like stubble
That passes away by the wind of the wilderness.

Jeremiah 13:²⁵ This is your lot,
The portion of your measures from Me,” says the Lord (Yᵊhōvâ),
“Because you have forgotten Me
And trusted in falsehood.

Jeremiah 13:²⁶ Therefore I will uncover your skirts over your face,
That your shame may appear.

Jeremiah 13:²⁷ I have seen your adulteries
And your lustful neighings,
The lewdness of your harlotry,
Your abominations on the hills in the fields.
Woe to you, O Jerusalem!
Will you still not be made clean?”

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