Jeremiah 44:20-23 · Bible study
Jeremiah 44:20-23 Commentary: The Prophet’s Reverse of Blame
Hebrew · 10 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
How Jeremiah turns the people's claim that suffering came from stopping idolatry into a condemnation of their persistent sin.
Research Summary
- Meaning: Jeremiah refutes the exiles' claim that their suffering began when they stopped idolatry; the true cause was their long-standing idolatry itself.
- Key words: 'Incense' (קִטֵּר), symbolic of false worship; 'remember' (זָכַר), God's active recollection for judgment; 'endure' (נָשָׂא), the limit of God's forbearance.
- Main debate: Whether verses 20-23 are original or a later editorial addition; most conservative commentators treat them as Jeremiah's own words.
- Theological theme: God's justice and patience, forbearance is not approval, and judgment follows persistent sin.
- Best use: Correcting the false conclusion that trouble after obedience means obedience was wrong; teaching the difference between correlation and causation in providence.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
20Then Jeremiah said to all the people, both men and women, who were answering him,
21“As for the incense you burned in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem—you, your fathers, your kings, your officials, and the people of the land—did the LORD not remember and bring this to mind?
22So the LORD could no longer endure the evil deeds and detestable acts you committed, and your land became a desolation, a horror, and an object of cursing, without inhabitant, as it is this day.
23Because you burned incense and sinned against the LORD, and did not obey the voice of the LORD or walk in His instruction, His statutes, and His testimonies, this disaster has befallen you, as you see today.”
WEB World English Bible 2000
20Then Jeremiah said to all the people—to the men and to the women, even to all the people who had given him an answer, saying,
21“The incense that you burned in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, you and your fathers, your kings and your princes, and the people of the land, didn’t Yahweh remember them, and didn’t it come into his mind?
22Thus Yahweh could no longer bear it, because of the evil of your doings and because of the abominations which you have committed. Therefore your land has become a desolation, an astonishment, and a curse, without inhabitant, as it is today.
23Because you have burned incense and because you have sinned against Yahweh, and have not obeyed Yahweh’s voice, nor walked in his law, nor in his statutes, nor in his testimonies; therefore this evil has happened to you, as it is today.”
KJV King James Version 1769
20Then Jeremiah said unto all the people, to the men, and to the women, and to all the people which had given him that answer, saying,
21The incense that ye burned in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, ye, and your fathers, your kings, and your princes, and the people of the land, did not the Lord remember them, and came it not into his mind?
22So that the Lord could no longer bear, because of the evil of your doings, and because of the abominations which ye have committed; therefore is your land a desolation, and an astonishment, and a curse, without an inhabitant, as at this day.
23Because ye have burned incense, and because ye have sinned against the Lord, and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord, nor walked in his law, nor in his statutes, nor in his testimonies; therefore this evil is happened unto you, as at this day.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
20Then Jeremiah said unto all the people, to the men, and to the women, even to all the people that had given him that answer, saying,
21The incense that ye burned in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, ye and your fathers, your kings and your princes, and the people of the land, did not Jehovah remember them, and came it not into his mind?
22so that Jehovah could not longer bear, because of the evil of your doings, and because of the abominations which ye have committed; therefore is your land become a desolation, and an astonishment, and a curse, without inhabitant, as it is this day.
23Because ye have burned incense, and because ye have sinned against Jehovah, and have not obeyed the voice of Jehovah, nor walked in his law, nor in his statutes, nor in his testimonies; therefore this evil is happened unto you, as it is this day.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
20And Jeremiah saith unto all the people, concerning the men and concerning the women, and concerning all the people who are answering him, saying:
21`The perfume that ye made in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, ye, and your fathers, your kings, and your heads, and the people of the land, hath not Jehovah remembered it? yea, it cometh up on His heart.
22And Jehovah is not able any more to accept you , because of the evil of your doings, because of the abominations that ye have done, and your land is for a waste, and for an astonishment, and for a reviling, without inhabitant, as at this day.
23`Because that ye have made perfume, and because ye have sinned against Jehovah, and have not hearkened to the voice of Jehovah, and in His law, and in His statutes, and in His testimonies ye have not walked, therefore hath this evil met you as at this day.'
Darby Darby Bible 1890
20And Jeremiah said unto all the people, to the men, and to the women, and to all the people that had given him that answer, saying,
21Is it not the incense that ye burned in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, ye and your fathers, your kings and your princes and the people of the land, that Jehovah remembered, and that came into his mind?
22And Jehovah could no longer bear, because of the evil of your doings, [and] because of the abominations that ye had committed; and your land is become a waste, and an astonishment, and a curse, without inhabitant, as at this day.
23Because ye have burned incense, and because ye have sinned against Jehovah, and have not hearkened unto the voice of Jehovah, nor walked in his law, nor in his statutes, nor in his testimonies; therefore this evil hath come upon you, as at this day.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
20And Jeremiah spoke to all the people, to the men, and to the women, and to all the people which had given him that answer, saying:
21Was it not the sacrifice that you offered in the cities of Juda, and in the streets of Jerusalem, you and your fathers, your kings, and your princes, and the people of the land, which the Lord hath remembered, and hath it not entered into his heart?
22So that the Lord could no longer bear, because of the evil of your doings, and because of the abominations which you have committed: therefore your land is become a desolation, and an astonishment, and a curse, without an inhabitant, as at this day.
23Because you have sacrificed to idols, and have sinned against the Lord: and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord, and have not walked in his law, and in his commandments, and in his testimonies: therefore are these evils come upon you, as at this day.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Jeremiah 44:20
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree that Jeremiah refutes the people's argument that their calamities began when they stopped worshiping the queen of heaven. Barnes notes that the prophet corrects their error: God is long-suffering, so punishment follows slowly. Calvin emphasizes that Jeremiah shows God could no longer endure their wickedness; the desolation of the land is proof. Lange calls this a non post hoc sed propter hoc argument, not after this but because of this. Clarke, Gill, and Matthew Henry all point out that the incense burned to idols came into God's mind and was remembered for judgment. The land's condition, desolation, astonishment, curse, without inhabitant, is the visible evidence. Keil and Delitzsch see these verses as a refutation of the people's statements, with verse 23 as an emphatic repetition. The consensus is that the people misread God's patience as approval; their very prosperity during idolatry was God's forbearance, not endorsement.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Traditional historical-redemptive reading: Jeremiah directly refutes the people's claim by asserting God's active remembrance and judgment of their idolatry (Calvin, Gill, Barnes).
- Critical source-critical reading: Verses 20-23 are considered a later editorial addition that repeats the message of 44:2-14 (Cambridge Bible, citing Du., Erbt, Co.).
- Homiletic/practical reading: The passage functions as a model for correcting faulty theology about God's providence and the danger of post hoc reasoning (common in preaching).
What is clear: The people's idolatry was the cause of their judgment, not the cessation of it.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| The core meaning of the passage | The passage refutes the people's argument that their misfortunes began when they stopped worshipping the queen of heaven; idolatry was the cause of judgment. | Some critical scholars (Du., Erbt, Co.) argue that these verses are a later editorial addition, while traditional commentators maintain they are original to Jeremiah. |
| The significance of 'incense' | 'Incense' represents all idolatrous worship, not just one element. | Barnes specifies it as 'the various acts of idolatry involving burning incense to an image'; others see it as a synecdoche for the entire false cult of the queen of heaven. |
| The nature of God's 'remembering' | God's remembering means he takes notice and holds accountable; it is judicial, not merely cognitive. | Gill includes both the incense and the persons who offered it; others focus on the acts alone. The phrase 'came it not into his mind' is taken anthropomorphically by some and as a figure of divine deliberation by others. |
| The phrase 'could no longer bear' | It expresses the exhaustion of God's patience due to cumulative sin. | Calvin stresses that this does not imply a change in God but the outworking of his immutable justice; others describe it as a limit reached within time. |
| The land's condition as evidence | The desolation, astonishment, and curse are direct consequences of the people's sin and a testimony to God's judgment. | Some see the three nouns as a rhetorical triad intensifying the devastation; others assign distinct meanings (desolation = ruin, astonishment = horror, curse = object of cursing). Jamieson-Fausset-Brown sees 'law, statutes, testimonies' as distinct categories (moral, ceremonial, judicial), while others take them as a comprehensive description of God's instruction. |
Historical & Cultural Context
After the fall of Jerusalem in 587 BC, a remnant of Judah fled to Egypt, settling in cities such as Tahpanhes and Memphis, directly disobeying Jeremiah's warning from the Lord. In Egypt, they resumed worship of the 'queen of the sky', likely the Mesopotamian goddess Ishtar or Astarte, associated with the moon and fertility. The people argue in verses 16-18 that when they burned incense to her in the cities of Judah and Jerusalem, they had plenty of food and saw no evil; but since they stopped, under Josiah's reforms and Jeremiah's preaching, they have suffered war and famine.
Jeremiah counters by taking their exact language, 'you and your fathers, your kings, your princes, and the people of the land', and asking: did Yahweh not remember those very acts? The phrase 'came it not into his mind' (literally 'did it not arise on his heart') pictures God's divine awareness leading to action. The prophet insists that God's forbearance is not approval; his patience has a limit. The land became a desolation 'as it is this day', a present, visible testimony. Jeremiah turns their post hoc reasoning (since we stopped, we suffered) into a propter hoc (because of your idolatry, you suffer). This is a classic rhetorical reversal, grounded in the historical reality that the people's own culpability had been accumulating for centuries.
Textual Notes
The consulted sources note no significant textual variants that affect the meaning of the passage. Keil and Delitzsch observe a grammatical form in verse 23: קראת for קראה (the feminine verb with a masculine suffix), a known morphological variant (cf. Deuteronomy 31:29). Some critical scholars, as noted by the Cambridge Bible, question whether verses 20-23 are original or a later editorial repetition of the ideas in Jeremiah 44:2-14, but no manuscript evidence supports their removal.
Reception History
Calvin used this passage to argue that God's judgment is never arbitrary but always responds to persistent sin, and that the prophets must not be intimidated by popular opposition. The Geneva Bible notes treat it as a reminder that God sees all hidden idolatry and will bring it to account. Matthew Henry reads it as a mirror of the stubborn heart, noting that even after captivity the exile's root of unbelief remained. In modern preaching, these verses are employed to caution against interpreting prosperity as divine approval and to expose the fallacy that obedience causes misfortune. They have also been a key text in discussions of theodicy and the proper reading of providence.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The Danger of Misreading Providence, The people assumed that past prosperity meant God approved of their idolatry. We often do the same, interpreting blessing as endorsement of our choices.
- God’s Patience Is Not Indifference, He remembered every act of incense and let it accumulate. Justice delayed is not justice canceled.
- The Evidence of Sin, The land's desolation speaks louder than their false memories of plenty. Consequences are a divine witness.
Five-point outline
- The People’s Faulty Logic, They argue from correlation to causation, ignoring God's prophets.
- God’s Perfect Memory, The incense, the altars, the generations, nothing escapes his mind.
- The Exhaustion of Divine Patience, 'Could no longer bear' shows a holy limit reached.
- The Visible Consequences, The land's condition is a sermon in itself.
- Repentance Not Rationalization, The only right response is to admit sin, not excuse it.
Illustration hooks
- A worker blames company downsizing on his new commitment to church attendance, ignoring years of poor performance that leadership finally addressed.
- A teenager thinks freedoms before a curfew were better, not seeing that the curfew came after dangerous choices.
- A family credits luck or past habits when a crisis hits after they try to live more ethically, missing that the crisis has deeper roots.
Questions your congregation is asking
- “If I start following God, why does my life sometimes get harder instead of easier?”
- “Does my financial success mean God is pleased with everything I do?”
- “How can I tell if God’s patience with me has limits?”
Leading a Discussion
The people in Egypt were sincere, they genuinely believed their worship of the queen of heaven had brought them blessing. They had evidence: when Josiah's reforms suppressed idolatry, things got worse. How do we know when we are misreading our circumstances? This passage exposes the danger of building theology on autobiography rather than God's word.
Discussion questions
- What specific claim do the people make in verses 16-18, and on what evidence do they base it?
- How does Jeremiah's response in verses 20-23 directly target that claim? What does he repeat from their own words?
- The phrase 'did not the Lord remember them' uses the idea of God's memory as judgment. How does this contrast with prayers like Psalm 79:8 or Isaiah 64:9, which ask God not to remember iniquity?
- Why is it important that Jeremiah lists 'law, statutes, testimonies' in verse 23? What does that list reveal about the full scope of their disobedience?
- When have you found yourself interpreting your life's difficulties as evidence that a change in behavior was wrong? How might this passage correct that thinking?
- The people saw God's silence as approval. How can we learn to distinguish God's patience from his permission?
- What would genuine repentance look like for the remnant in Egypt? What does it look like for us when we have been defending something God condemns?
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)
| I Samuel 15:3 | Now go and strike Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and don’t spare them; but kill both man and woman, infant and nursing baby, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’” |
| I Kings 17:18 | She said to Elijah, “What have I to do with you, you man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to memory, and to kill my son!” |
| Psalms 79:8 | Don’t hold the iniquities of our forefathers against us. Let your tender mercies speedily meet us, for we are in desperate need. |
| Isaiah 64:9 | Don’t be furious, Yahweh. Don’t remember iniquity forever. Look and see, we beg you, we are all your people. |
| Jeremiah 11:13 | For according to the number of your cities are your gods, Judah; and according to the number of the streets of Jerusalem you have set up altars to the shameful thing, even altars to burn incense to Baal.’ |
| Jeremiah 14:10 | Yahweh says to this people: “Even so they have loved to wander. They have not restrained their feet. Therefore Yahweh does not accept them. Now he will remember their iniquity, and punish them for their sins.” |
| Jeremiah 44:9 | Have you forgotten the wickedness of your fathers, the wickedness of the kings of Judah, the wickedness of their wives, your own wickedness, and the wickedness of your wives which they committed in the land of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? |
| Jeremiah 44:17 | But we will certainly perform every word that has gone out of our mouth, to burn incense to the queen of the sky and to pour out drink offerings to her, as we have done, we and our fathers, our kings and our princes, in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; for then we had plenty of food, and were well, and saw no evil. |
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.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes notes that the people mistakenly thought God’s delay in punishing their idolatry meant He approved of it. In reality, God is long-suffering, so judgment follows slowly but certainly. Their misunderstanding is corrected: patience is not permission.
Calvin's Commentaries Reformed 1564
Calvin highlights how Jeremiah turns the Jews’ own boast against them. They cited their fathers’
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
This commentator directly counters the people's claim that they prospered more while openly worshipping idols. He insists their national collapse came not from abandoning idolatry but from God's patience finally exhausted by their long history of it, even after Josiah's reforms. The people's logic is entirely backwards.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva Notes stress that God carefully remembered every instance of the people's idolatrous incense burning, both in the cities and streets. His forbearance finally ended not because of one sin but because of their persistent wickedness and refusal to obey his law, resulting in the land's complete desolation.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill emphasizes that Jeremiah here speaks from his own mind, not as a fresh prophecy, to refute the people's claim that serving other gods brought them peace. The prophet argues that God did notice their incense offerings, remembered their idolatry, and after long forbearance finally brought the desolation they now see.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
JFB notes that Jeremiah does not deny the people burned incense, but he counters that God still remembered their evil. The desolation of their land is the proof, just as the Lord had warned. He also distinguishes three categories: moral law, ceremonial statutes, and judicial testimonies.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil-Delitzsch notes that the word for incense-burning serves as a comprehensive term for all elements of idolatrous worship. God remembered these practices with the purpose of punishing them, because He could no longer endure such abomination. The people’s own false worship, not some other cause, brought the disaster upon them.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange points out that Jeremiah reverses the people's cause-and-effect reasoning. They believed their troubles began when they stopped worshipping the queen of heaven, but Jeremiah insists the disasters came precisely because of that idolatry, not because they abandoned it.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry emphasizes that God kept a precise record of every idolatrous act the people committed, and their claim to have forgotten it only shows their self-deception. The judgment they fled to Egypt to escape would follow them there, because God's memory is not limited by geography.