Jeremiah 13:1

¶ Thus saith the LORD unto me, Go and get thee a linen girdle, and put it upon thy loins, and put it not in water.

Thus saith {H559} the LORD {H3068} unto me, Go {H1980} and get {H7069} thee a linen {H6593} girdle {H232}, and put {H7760} it upon thy loins {H4975}, and put {H935} it not in water {H4325}.

ADONAI said to me, "Go, buy yourself a linen loincloth, and wrap it around your body; but don't soften it in water."

This is what the LORD said to me: “Go and buy yourself a linen loincloth and put it around your waist, but do not let it touch water.”

Thus saith Jehovah unto me, Go, and buy thee a linen girdle, and put it upon thy loins, and put it not in water.

Jeremiah 13:1 marks the beginning of a powerful symbolic act commanded by the LORD to the prophet Jeremiah. This verse introduces a visual prophecy intended to convey a profound spiritual truth to the disobedient people of Judah.

Context

The book of Jeremiah chronicles the prophet's challenging ministry during the final decades of the Kingdom of Judah, leading up to its destruction and the Babylonian exile. God frequently used Jeremiah not only to speak His word but also to perform symbolic actions, known as "sign-acts," to impress upon the people the gravity of their sin and the impending judgment. At this point in Judah's history, the nation, particularly its leaders and inhabitants of Jerusalem, had become deeply entrenched in idolatry and moral corruption, despite repeated warnings from prophets like Jeremiah. This specific command regarding the linen girdle serves as a prelude to a more detailed explanation of Judah's spiritual decay and God's impending judgment, as revealed in later verses of this chapter.

Key Themes

  • Symbolic Prophecy: The linen girdle is not merely an object but a powerful visual aid, a common prophetic device used to communicate divine messages in a tangible way. God often used such methods to capture attention and illustrate spiritual truths that words alone might not convey effectively.
  • Intimacy and Corruption: A girdle, worn close to the body, symbolizes the intimate relationship God desired with His people, Judah. Just as a girdle clings to a man's loins, God intended for Judah to cling to Him, to be His glory and praise. The command to keep it unwashed foreshadows the nation's spiritual defilement. This deep connection is further explained in Jeremiah 13:11, where God states His desire for Judah to be like a girdle to Him.
  • Divine Command and Obedience: Jeremiah's immediate obedience to this unusual, detailed command from the LORD highlights his role as a faithful messenger. Prophets were often called to perform difficult or strange acts to demonstrate God's unwavering will and the certainty of His word.
  • Warning of Impending Judgment: The unwashed and eventually ruined girdle (as described later in the chapter) serves as a stark warning of the decay and ruin that awaited Judah due to their spiritual unfaithfulness and rejection of God's covenant. This foreshadows the coming exile and the loss of their former glory.

Linguistic Insights

The Hebrew word for "girdle" is 'ezor (אֵזוֹר), which refers to a belt or loincloth, often worn close to the skin. The material, "linen" (Hebrew: pishteh - פִּשְׁתֶּה), was typically associated with purity, cleanliness, and often used in priestly garments (e.g., Exodus 28:42). The crucial instruction to "put it not in water" is key to the prophecy's meaning. Water was often used for purification in ancient Israelite rituals. By forbidding the washing, God immediately sets up the girdle to become soiled and ultimately ruined, symbolizing Judah's deliberate refusal to be cleansed from their sins and their descent into moral and spiritual decay.

Practical Application

Jeremiah 13:1 reminds us that God desires a close and pure relationship with His people. Just as the linen girdle was meant to be pure and close to the prophet, so too are believers called to live a life of holiness, reflecting God's glory. The command not to wash the girdle serves as a powerful metaphor for spiritual negligence; when we refuse to allow God to cleanse us through His word and Spirit, our spiritual state deteriorates, leading to separation and consequences. This verse encourages us to examine our own walk, ensuring we are not allowing spiritual defilement to take root, but rather embracing the cleansing power of God's forgiveness and truth.

Note: Commentary was generated by an advanced AI, utilizing a prompt that emphasized Biblical fidelity over bias. We've found these insights to be consistently reliable, yet we always encourage prayerful discernment through the Holy Spirit. The Scripture text and cross-references are from verified, non-AI sources.

  • Jeremiah 13:11

    For as the girdle cleaveth to the loins of a man, so have I caused to cleave unto me the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah, saith the LORD; that they might be unto me for a people, and for a name, and for a praise, and for a glory: but they would not hear.

  • Hebrews 1:1

    ¶ God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,

  • Jeremiah 27:2

    Thus saith the LORD to me; Make thee bonds and yokes, and put them upon thy neck,

  • Ezekiel 4:1

    ¶ Thou also, son of man, take thee a tile, and lay it before thee, and pourtray upon it the city, [even] Jerusalem:

  • Ezekiel 4:5

    For I have laid upon thee the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days: so shalt thou bear the iniquity of the house of Israel.

  • Jeremiah 19:1

    ¶ Thus saith the LORD, Go and get a potter's earthen bottle, and [take] of the ancients of the people, and of the ancients of the priests;

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