Jeremiah 14:1-6 · Bible study
Jeremiah 14:1-6 Commentary: Drought as Yahweh's Word
Hebrew · 11 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Jeremian 14:1-6 presents a severe drought as a divine message.
Research Summary
- Meaning: A severe drought in Judah is presented as a prophetic word from Yahweh, exposing human powerlessness and the collapse of creation under judgment.
- Key words: דׇּבָר (word), בַּצָּרוֹת (droughts, v.1); אָבַל (mourn), קָדַר (be dark), v.2; בּוֹשׁ (be ashamed), חָפָה (cover head), vv.3, 4; אַיֶּלֶת (doe), פֶּרֶא (wild ass), vv.5, 6.
- Main debate: Whether the drought is purely a punitive judgment or also an act of God meant to provoke repentance and prayer.
- Theological theme: God communicates through the natural order; creation groans under sin; disaster can be a form of divine address that calls the community to lament.
- Best use: Teaching on judgment and lament, Lenten reflection, prayer services during natural hardship, and showing the link between human sin and environmental distress.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
1This is the word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah concerning the drought:
2“Judah mourns and her gates languish. Her people wail for the land, and a cry goes up from Jerusalem.
3The nobles send their servants for water; they go to the cisterns, but find no water; their jars return empty. They are ashamed and humiliated; they cover their heads.
4The ground is cracked because no rain has fallen on the land. The farmers are ashamed; they cover their heads.
5Even the doe in the field deserts her newborn fawn because there is no grass.
6Wild donkeys stand on barren heights; they pant for air like jackals; their eyes fail for lack of pasture.”
WEB World English Bible 2000
1This is Yahweh’s word that came to Jeremiah concerning the drought:
2“Judah mourns, and its gates languish. They sit in black on the ground. The cry of Jerusalem goes up.
3Their nobles send their little ones to the waters. They come to the cisterns, and find no water. They return with their vessels empty. They are disappointed and confounded, and cover their heads.
4Because of the ground which is cracked, because no rain has been in the land, the plowmen are disappointed. They cover their heads.
5Yes, the doe in the field also calves and forsakes her young, because there is no grass.
6The wild donkeys stand on the bare heights. They pant for air like jackals. Their eyes fail, because there is no vegetation.
KJV King James Version 1769
1The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the dearth.
2Judah mourneth, and the gates thereof languish; they are black unto the ground; and the cry of Jerusalem is gone up.
3And their nobles have sent their little ones to the waters: they came to the pits, and found no water; they returned with their vessels empty; they were ashamed and confounded, and covered their heads.
4Because the ground is chapt, for there was no rain in the earth, the plowmen were ashamed, they covered their heads.
5Yea, the hind also calved in the field, and forsook it, because there was no grass.
6And the wild asses did stand in the high places, they snuffed up the wind like dragons; their eyes did fail, because there was no grass.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
1The word of Jehovah that came to Jeremiah concerning the drought.
2Judah mourneth, and the gates thereof languish, they sit in black upon the ground; and the cry of Jerusalem is gone up.
3And their nobles send their little ones to the waters: they come to the cisterns, and find no water; they return with their vessels empty; they are put to shame and confounded, and cover their heads.
4Because of the ground which is cracked, for that no rain hath been in the land, the plowmen are put to shame, they cover their heads.
5Yea, the hind also in the field calveth, and forsaketh her young, because there is no grass.
6And the wild asses stand on the bare heights, they pant for air like jackals; their eyes fail, because there is no herbage.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
1That which hath been the word of Jehovah unto Jeremiah concerning the matters of the dearths:
2Mourned hath Judah, and her gates have languished, They have mourned to the earth, And the cry of Jerusalem hath gone up.
3And their honourable ones have sent their little ones to the water, They have come unto ditches, They have not found water, They have turned back--their vessels empty! They have been ashamed, And have blushed and covered their head.
4Because the ground hath been broken, For there hath been no rain in the land, Ashamed have been husbandmen, They have covered their head.
5For even the hind in the field hath brought forth--to forsake it! For there hath been no grass.
6And wild asses have stood on high places, They have swallowed up wind like dragons, Consumed have been their eyes, for there is no herb.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
1The word of Jehovah that came to Jeremiah concerning the drought.
2Judah mourneth, and the gates thereof languish, they are black unto the ground; and the cry of Jerusalem goeth up.
3And their nobles send their little ones for water: they come to the pits, they find no water; they return with their vessels empty; they are ashamed, they are confounded, and have covered their heads.
4Because the ground is chapt, for there hath been no rain on the earth, the ploughmen are ashamed, they cover their heads.
5For the hind also calveth in the field, and forsaketh [its young], because there is no grass.
6And the wild asses stand on the heights, they snuff up the wind like jackals; their eyes fail, because there is no herbage.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
1The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the words of the drought.
2Judea hath mourned, and the gates thereof are fallen, and are become obscure on the ground, and the cry of Jerusalem is gone up.
3The great ones sent their inferiors to the water: they came to draw, they found no water, they carried back their vessels empty: they were confounded and afflicted, and covered their heads.
4For the destruction of the land, because there came no rain upon the earth, the husbandman were confounded, they covered their heads.
5Yea, the hind also brought forth in the field, and left it, because there was no grass.
6And the wild asses stood upon the rocks, they snuffed up the wind like dragons, their eyes failed, because there was no grass.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Jeremiah 14:1
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree that this passage opens with a formula establishing the drought as a prophetic word from Yahweh, not merely a report of natural disaster. The phrase “the word of Yahweh that came to Jeremiah” (v.1) stamps the entire description as divine revelation. Calvin argues that the drought was a future event revealed to the prophet, a sign of God’s unusual judgment. Keil and Delitzsch treat the unit as part of a larger discourse (Jeremiah 14, 17) where the drought provokes intercession. The chain of suffering, from the gates of Judah languishing, to nobles sending servants to empty cisterns, to farmers covering their heads in shame, and finally to the doe abandoning her fawn and wild donkeys gasping on barren heights, is read as a unified depiction of creation’s collapse under judgment. Barnes and the Cambridge Bible note that the poetic structure intensifies the sense of despair: each verse narrows the focus from the city to the field to the wild. The common thread is that the drought is not random; it is a covenantal curse that speaks of human sin and calls the people to cry out to God.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Low
What is clear: The drought is presented as a divine word from Yahweh, an act of judgment against Judah’s sin, and it sets up the people’s prayer for mercy.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| The purpose of the drought | The drought is an extraordinary, divine judgment sent by Yahweh on Judah for their sins. | Some traditions emphasize the drought as purely punitive (retributive justice), while others see it as a disciplinary warning with room for repentance, the prayer that follows (vv.7, 9) suggests the people hope God might relent. |
| The historical setting | The drought occurred in Jeremiah’s prophetic career, likely in the reign of Jehoiakim, after Josiah’s reforms failed. | While Barnes and Lange place it in Jehoiakim's early years, Calvin and others think the exact date is uncertain and not critical to the passage's meaning. |
| The identity of the wild animals' comparison | The animals are actual creatures suffering from lack of water and grass. | The phrase “like dragons” (כַּתַּנִּים) is interpreted by some as jackals (Cambridge, Barnes) and by others as serpents or even the hippopotamus (Clarke). The interpretive choice does not change the force of the image. |
Historical & Cultural Context
The superscription locates this prophecy “concerning the drought,” literally “the matters of the droughts” (דִּבְרֵי הַבַּצָּרוֹת). The plural form may point to a prolonged period of withheld rain. Keil and Delitzsch note that the word for drought (בַּצֹּרֶת) is used elsewhere only in Jeremiah 48:4; it emphasizes a specific calamity. Barnes assigns this passage to the early years of Jehoiakim (c. 609 BC), when the religious reforms of Josiah had already proved futile and the nation was sliding into apostasy. Clarke compares the severity to the drought in Elijah’s day, when King Ahab himself had to search for water. Catching rain in cisterns was a lifeline in the region; the limestone was often waterproofed with plaster. When “no rain has been in the land” (v.4), the ground cracked, Clarke says cracks could be “a cubit wide and deep enough to receive the greater part of a human body.” The gates of a city were its civic nerve center (v.2), where trade and justice happened; to see them “sit in black on the ground” was a public spectacle of mourning. The covering of the head (v.3, 4) was a recognized gesture of grief and shame (2 Samuel 15:30). The inclusion of wild animals, the doe and the wild ass, highlights that the drought extended beyond human habitation into the wilderness. These animals were known for their endurance: Wesley notes that the hind’s habitat was normally mountains, but desperation drove her to the field. The scene is a portrait of a land under a curse, setting the stage for the people’s confession and prayer in verses 7, 9.
Textual Notes
The consulted sources note two textual matters. In verse 4, the Masoretic Text reads “the ground is cracked” (הָֽאֲדָמָה֙ חַ֔תָּה); the Cambridge Bible suggests an emendation to “the tillers of the ground are dismayed,” supported by the Septuagint, which would better parallel the second clause and give the verb the sense it carries elsewhere. In verse 6, the phrase “like jackals” (כַּתַּנִּים) could also be read as “like the crocodile” or “like serpents” by altering one consonant. Neither variant changes the passage’s overall meaning: the drought is devastating and the suffering is universal.
Reception History
Christians have read this passage primarily as a model of lament and confession when facing natural calamity. The description of creation’s distress, the doe and the wild ass, has been connected to Paul’s statement in Romans 8:22 that the whole creation groans. In many lectionaries, Jeremiah 14 is appointed for Ash Wednesday or other penitential seasons. The passage has also been used to frame intercessory prayer during times of famine and drought, especially in the developing world, where the language of empty cisterns and cracked ground remains painfully immediate.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The drought as divine word. The opening phrase frames the disaster as a message from Yahweh. It is not the report of a naturalist but the speech of a prophet. The crisis is God’s language.
- The cascade of brokenness. The drought hits city gates, noble estates, farms, and finally the wild. No one escapes. The verbs cluster: mourn, languish, be ashamed, cover the head. The pattern is collapse from the top down and then outward.
- Creation groans with us. The doe and the wild ass are not metaphors; they are real creatures caught in a judgment that sin brought. The land itself suffers. This pushes the reader to feel the cost of rebellion and to long for renewal.
Five-point outline
- The source: “This is Yahweh’s word.” The prophet does not begin with a complaint but with the claim that God is speaking through circumstance.
- The sign: Empty cisterns. Water, the most basic need, is gone. The nobles send “servants” (צְעִירֵיהֶם, literally their “small ones”), everyone is reduced to the same desperate errand.
- The shame: “They are disappointed and confounded, and cover their heads.” The Hebrew verbs (בֹּשׁוּ, הָכְלְמוּ) carry the force of public dishonor. The drought exposes human inadequacy.
- The scattering: Farmers are ashamed because the ground is cracked. Plowmen stop working; there is nothing to plant. The economic and social order freezes.
- The summons: By showing creation at its limit, the doe abandoning her fawn, wild donkeys panting like jackals, the passage leads the hearer to ask: who will cry out to Yahweh? The answer comes in verse 7.
Illustration hooks
- A drought in your own town: reservoirs running low, local farmers selling livestock, green lawns turning brown. The passage names the shame that accompanies such a crisis.
- A time when you sent the most vulnerable to find what everyone needed: children sent to look for water mirrors how a crisis reverses normal roles.
- Watching an animal suffer physically, a stray dog panting in the heat, as a reminder that human sin affects all creatures.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Is every drought a punishment from God? How do we interpret natural disasters?
- Why does God sometimes seem silent when creation is in pain?
- How do we pray honestly when we feel that God has withdrawn His favor?
Leading a Discussion
This passage opens with “the word of the Lord” but contains no direct command or promise. It presents a scene of total drought. Before you move to the prayer in verses 7, 9, take time to sit with the description itself. How does it feel to read such a detailed account of loss?
Discussion questions
- What images in verses 2, 6 stand out to you most? Why?
- The first verse says the drought is a “word of Yahweh.” How does that change the way you read the description compared to reading it as a news report?
- The nobles send “servants” (or “little ones”) for water. What does that detail reveal about how the crisis affected social roles?
- Notice the repetition of “ashamed” and “covered their heads.” What kind of shame is this, guilt, remorse, or simple powerlessness?
- The doe “calves and forsakes her young.” Wesley says hinds are loving but the drought dried their milk. What does the breakdown of natural instincts signal about the depth of this judgment?
- How does this passage help you understand the connection between human sin and the suffering of creation?
- If you were to write a prayer after reading these six verses, what would you say? Does it sound more like confession, lament, or petition?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Jeremiah 17:8 | For he will be as a tree planted by the waters, who spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes, but its leaf will be green, and will not be concerned in the year of drought. It won’t cease from yielding fruit. |
| Exodus 2:24 | God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. |
| I Samuel 5:12 | The men who didn’t die were struck with the tumors; and the cry of the city went up to heaven. |
| I Samuel 9:16 | “Tomorrow about this time I will send you a man out of the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be prince over my people Israel. He will save my people out of the hand of the Philistines; for I have looked upon my people, because their cry has come to me.” |
| Job 34:28 | so that they caused the cry of the poor to come to him. He heard the cry of the afflicted. |
| Isaiah 3:26 | Her gates shall lament and mourn. She shall be desolate and sit on the ground. |
| Isaiah 5:7 | For the vineyard of Yahweh of Armies is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant. He looked for justice, but behold, oppression, for righteousness, but behold, a cry of distress. |
| Isaiah 15:5 | My heart cries out for Moab! Her nobles flee to Zoar, to Eglath Shelishiyah; for they go up by the ascent of Luhith with weeping; for on the way to Horonaim, they raise up a cry of destruction. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
9 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke notes that this drought was no single catastrophe but a recurring threat in Judea's dry climate, where winter rains were stored in reservoirs and failure meant certain famine. He highlights the desperation: nobles had to send their own children to scour the land for water, and the cracked earth could be wide enough to swallow a person.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes ties the drought directly to the frustration of Josiah's reforms, seeing it as God's response to the people's rejection. He draws attention to unique details: "little ones" means the common people, a term found only in Jeremiah, and the ground being parched stands metaphorically for the people themselves.
Calvin's Commentaries Reformed 1564
Calvin emphasizes that the prophecy of drought was given in advance so the Jews would not attribute the calamity to chance or natural causes. By using vivid, forceful language, the prophet aimed to break through their spiritual dullness and make them recognize the famine as God's extraordinary judgment for their sins.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva note emphasizes how the drought affects every level of creation, from nobles sending servants for water to wild animals collapsing. The complete failure of rain leaves no one and nothing untouched, and the people cover their heads in shame under God's judgment.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill highlights how the drought struck every level of society, from nobles sending servants for water to the ground being too hard for ploughing. Even wild animals suffered: hinds abandoned their young for lack of grass, and wild asses stood panting on barren heights, their eyes failing from hunger.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
JFB explains that the Hebrew word for drought means literally "withholdings," especially of rain. He then shows the drought's severity through animal suffering: the hind ab
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil-Delitzsch stresses that the plural “droughts” indicates repeated judgments, not a single calamity. They view the passage as a thematic summary of Judah’s deep corruption rather than a sermon tied to one event. The universal mourning—from nobles to wild animals—shows how sin affects all creation.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Matthew Henry's distinctive observation is that the chapter's prayers are still called "the word of the Lord" because every acceptable prayer is one God first puts into our hearts. What we say to Him is only His word coming back from us.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley explains that the hinds and wild asses, usually found in remote places, were driven by drought into unusual areas. The hinds, normally tender mothers, could not nurse their young from lack of moisture, and the asses stood on high ground gasping for air like dragons. This vivid animal imagery illustrates the depth of Judah's spiritual desolation.