Jeremiah 48:35 Commentary: God’s Judgment on False Worship

The Moabites traced their ancestry to Lot, Abraham’s nephew (Genesis 19:30, 38), but over centuries they adopted the religion of surrounding peoples, centering on the god Chemosh. Worship took place at “high places” (bamoth), elevated platforms often on hilltops, where offerings and incense were presented. Numbers 22:40, 41 records Balak of Moab sacrificing “at the high places of Baal,” linking Moab early with this form of worship.

Israel’s relationship with Moab fluctuated. After the exodus, Moab refused passage (Judges 11:17) and, through Balaam, seduced Israel into idolatry (Numbers 25:1, 3). David subdued Moab (2 Samuel 8:2), but after the kingdom divided, Moab regained independence and repeatedly harassed Israel (2 Kings 3:4, 27). By Jeremiah’s day, Moab was a persistent enemy, allied with Judah’s foes (2 Kings 24:2).

Jeremiah 48 draws heavily on earlier oracles against Moab in Isaiah 15, 16. Verses 35, 38 present the climax: God will bring an end to Moab’s cultic activity. The phrase “cause to cease” (hishbati) echoes the same verb used in Jeremiah 7:34 and 16:9 to describe the cessation of gladness and joy in Judah’s judgment, here it targets religious practice. Isaiah 16:12 had already mocked Moab’s futile worship: “he wearies himself on the high place, and comes to his sanctuary to pray, but he will not prevail.” Now God Himself shuts it down.

History confirms the oracle. Nebuchadnezzar subjugated Moab around 582 BC (Josephus, Antiquities 10.9.7). The nation ceased to exist as a political entity, and with it, the public worship of Chemosh. The judgment was total.

The consulted sources note no significant textual variants for this verse. The Masoretic Text is consistent across manuscripts. The main critical discussion concerns whether the passage was originally composed by Jeremiah or adapted from existing oracles in Isaiah 15, 16; that is a question of literary history, not of textual corruption.

Reformation commentators such as John Calvin used this verse to warn against superstition and to stress God’s zeal for His exclusive glory. Matthew Henry draws a parallel between Moab’s high places and the corrupt worship that later kings of Judah failed to remove. Baptist expositor John Gill expands on the comprehensive scope of judgment: not one priest or worshipper escapes. The verse has been cited in catechisms and sermons on the first commandment, especially as a warning to those who know the truth yet tolerate false worship. In modern scholarship, the focus has shifted to the literary relationships between the oracles, but the homiletic application remains: God can and will end false religion.

Three-point outline

1. God’s judgment is comprehensive, He removes both the location (high place) and the ritual (incense). Nothing of Moab’s false worship survives.
2. Idolatry provokes God to action, Moab’s pride and false religion are not minor flaws; they bring divine intervention.
3. Greater revelation means greater accountability, Calvin warns that if God did not spare Moab, who had limited knowledge, how much less will He spare those who have the full Word of God?

Five-point outline

1. God acts sovereignly, “I will cause to cease”: the cessation is God’s work, not merely historical accident.
2. The high place represents human invention in worship, God rejects worship that does not follow His revealed pattern.
3. Burning incense to “his gods” violates the first commandment, exclusive loyalty is non-negotiable.
4. Moab’s judgment is a warning to all nations, especially to those who have received Scripture.
5. God’s patience has a limit, He delays judgment, but He will eventually act.

Illustration hooks

• A landlord evicting a tenant who turns the apartment into a shrine to a false god, decisive eviction, not gradual negotiation.
• A doctor removing a malignant tumor to save the patient’s life, harsh but necessary removal of what threatens the whole.
• A parent removing a forbidden object from a child’s room, the action expresses authority and care, not cruelty.

Questions your congregation is asking

• Why does God seem so harsh toward other religions? Does this mean all non-Christians are condemned?
• How can I identify “high places” in my own heart, where I am tempted to put something above God?
• Does this verse apply to me, even though I’m not a Moabite or an idol worshipper? How does it speak to my life today?

This verse confronts us with a side of God we often avoid: He does not merely disapprove of false worship; He actively ends it. As you discuss, let the weight of this settle. But also remember the broader hope: even after judgment, God promises to restore Moab’s fortunes (Jeremiah 48:47). Justice and mercy meet.

Discussion questions

1. What does God say He will do in Moab? Identify the specific actions and objects mentioned.
2. Why are both “offering in the high place” and “burning incense to his gods” listed together? What does this reveal about the nature of their worship?
3. Read Jeremiah 48:29, 30. How do Moab’s pride and arrogance connect to their idolatry?
4. Calvin writes that if God did not spare Moab, who had no written law, how much less will He spare those who have the Word? How does this challenge believers today?
5. In what ways do we still “build high places” by prioritizing comfort, success, or relationships over wholehearted devotion to God?
6. How does this passage point to the need for a mediator who removes idolatry from the heart? (Consider Christ’s work on the cross.)
7. Despite the severity of judgment, Jeremiah 48:47 ends with hope: “Yet I will restore the fortunes of Moab in the latter days.” How does this shape your view of God’s character?