Jeremiah 5:20-24 · Bible study
Jeremiah 5:20-24 Commentary: Stubborn Hearts vs the Power of God
Hebrew · 10 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Jeremiah confronts Judah’s foolishness by contrasting God’s power over the sea and rain with their stubborn rebellion against Him.
Research Summary
- Meaning: God indicts his people for senseless rebellion, they do not fear the Creator who restrains the sea and sends the rains, though creation itself obeys his decrees.
- Key words: "Fear" (H3372 yare), to revere or stand in awe; "heart" (H3820 lev), mind, will, understanding; "revolting and rebellious" (H5637 sarar, H4784 marah), stubborn, disobedient; "former rain" (H3138 yoreh), autumn rains; "latter rain" (H4456 malqosh), spring rains; "appointed weeks" (H7620 shavuot), the seven weeks from Passover to Pentecost.
- Main debate: Whether verses 20, 24 are a genuine part of Jeremiah’s prophecies or a later addition; some scholars (Stade, Duhm) argue for later composition based on style and content, while others (Cambridge Bible) maintain authenticity.
- Theological theme: God’s sovereignty over creation and providence, the sin of spiritual blindness, and the call to reverent fear of the Lord as the foundation of obedience.
- Best use: Teaching on the fear of God as a remedy for stubbornness, and illustrating how creation itself bears witness to God’s power and care.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
20Declare this in the house of Jacob and proclaim it in Judah:
21“Hear this, O foolish and senseless people, who have eyes but do not see, who have ears but do not hear.
22Do you not fear Me?” declares the LORD. “Do you not tremble before Me, the One who set the sand as the boundary for the sea, an enduring barrier it cannot cross? The waves surge, but they cannot prevail. They roar but cannot cross it.
23But these people have stubborn and rebellious hearts. They have turned aside and gone away.
24They have not said in their hearts, ‘Let us fear the LORD our God, who gives the rains, both autumn and spring, in season, who keeps for us the appointed weeks of harvest.’
WEB World English Bible 2000
20“Declare this in the house of Jacob, and publish it in Judah, saying,
21‘Hear this now, foolish people without understanding, who have eyes, and don’t see, who have ears, and don’t hear:
22Don’t you fear me?’ says Yahweh; ‘Won’t you tremble at my presence, who have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree, that it can’t pass it? Though its waves toss themselves, yet they can’t prevail. Though they roar, they still can’t pass over it.’
23“But this people has a revolting and a rebellious heart. They have revolted and gone.
24They don’t say in their heart, ‘Let’s now fear Yahweh our God, who gives rain, both the former and the latter, in its season, who preserves to us the appointed weeks of the harvest.’
KJV King James Version 1769
20Declare this in the house of Jacob, and publish it in Judah, saying,
21Hear now this, O foolish people, and without understanding; which have eyes, and see not; which have ears, and hear not:
22Fear ye not me? saith the Lord: will ye not tremble at my presence, which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it: and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it?
23But this people hath a revolting and a rebellious heart; they are revolted and gone.
24Neither say they in their heart, Let us now fear the Lord our God, that giveth rain, both the former and the latter, in his season: he reserveth unto us the appointed weeks of the harvest.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
20Declare ye this in the house of Jacob, and publish it in Judah, saying,
21Hear now this, O foolish people, and without understanding; that have eyes, and see not; that have ears, and hear not:
22Fear ye not me? saith Jehovah: will ye not tremble at my presence, who have placed the sand for the bound of the sea, by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it? and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it.
23But this people hath a revolting and a rebellious heart; they are revolted and gone.
24Neither say they in their heart, Let us now fear Jehovah our God, that giveth rain, both the former and the latter, in its season; that preserveth unto us the appointed weeks of the harvest.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
20Declare ye this in the house of Jacob, And sound ye it in Judah, saying,
21Hear ye, I pray you, this, O people, foolish and without heart, Eyes they have, and they see not, Ears they have, and they hear not.
22Me do ye not fear, an affirmation of Jehovah? From My presence are ye not pained? Who hath made sand the border of the sea, A limit age-during, and it passeth not over it, They shake themselves, and they are not able, Yea, sounded have its billows, and they pass not over.
23And this people hath an apostate and rebellious heart, They have turned aside, and they go on.
24And they have not said in their heart, `Let us fear, we pray you, Jehovah our God, who is giving rain, The sprinkling and the gathered, in its season, The appointed weeks of harvest He keepeth for us.'
Darby Darby Bible 1890
20Declare this in the house of Jacob, and publish it in Judah, saying,
21Hear now this, O foolish and heartless people, who have eyes and see not; who have ears, and hear not.
22Will ye not fear me? saith Jehovah. Will ye not tremble at my presence, who have set the sand a bound for the sea by a perpetual decree, and it shall not pass it? and its waves toss themselves, but they do not prevail; and they roar, yet can they not pass over it?
23But this people hath a stubborn and a rebellious heart; they have turned aside and are gone.
24And they say not in their heart, Let us now fear Jehovah our God, that giveth rain, both the early and the latter, in its season; who preserveth unto us the appointed weeks of harvest.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
20Declare ye this to the house of Jacob, and publish it in Juda, saying:
21Hear, O foolish people, and without understanding: who have eyes, and see not: and ears, and hear not.
22Will not you then fear me, saith the Lord: and will you not repent at my presence? I have set the sand a bound for the sea, an everlasting ordinance, which it shall not pass over: and the waves thereof shall toss themselves, and shall not prevail: they shall swell, and shall not pass over it.
23But the heart of this people is become hard of belief and provoking, they are revolted and gone away.
24And they have not said in their heart: Let us fear the Lord our God, who giveth us the early and the latter rain in due season: who preserveth for us the fulness of the yearly harvest.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Jeremiah 5:20
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators across traditions agree this passage confronts Israel's senseless failure to fear God. Gill notes that the people are reproved for lacking the fear of the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom. Calvin emphasizes that they are more stupid than the inanimate sea, which obeys its Creator's boundary of sand. Barnes highlights the irony: the raging sea cannot break God's "belt of sand," yet people endowed with free will rebel. All agree the dual address to "house of Jacob" and "Judah" is not two audiences but a rhetorical repetition calling the whole surviving covenant people to account. Matthew Henry sums up that the want of fear is the root of their apostasy. The commentators uniformly see the passage as an indictment of spiritual blindness: having eyes and ears, they refuse to see or hear God's power in creation and his goodness in providing rain and harvests. The wonder is that a simple barrier of sand restrains the ocean's fury, but no such constraint holds God's own people in obedience.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Jeremianic authenticity (majority view): The passage fits the context and uses language consistent with other Jeremianic passages; see Cambridge Bible defense.
- Late addition theory (critical view): Plural imperatives and nature-theology parallels suggest post-exilic redaction; argued by Stade, Duhm, Cornill.
What is clear: The passage calls the people foolish for not fearing the God who controls the sea and provides rain; it contrasts the obedience of creation with the stubborn rebellion of Israel.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Address to 'house of Jacob' and 'Judah' | Commentators agree that after the northern kingdom's fall, 'Jacob' and 'Judah' both refer to the surviving southern kingdom; the repetition is rhetorical emphasis. | Some argue it implies an original address to all twelve tribes, now symbolically summoned; others see it simply as poetic parallelism. |
| The sea as an example of obedience | All traditions read the sea's obedience as a foil for human rebellion: the chaotic sea faithfully stays within God's boundary of sand. | The meaning of 'sand as the bound' is debated: some (Calvin, Clarke) stress the weakness of sand as showing God's absolute power; others emphasize the 'perpetual decree' as a legal metaphor. |
| Authenticity of verses 20, 24 | The verses are accepted as canonical by all major Christian traditions. | Critical scholars such as Stade and Duhm argue these verses are a later addition based on plural imperatives and nature-theology parallels; traditional commentators (Gill, Matthew Henry) defend Jeremianic authorship. |
| The cause of the people's failure | The root cause is a 'revolting and rebellious heart', the willful refusal to fear God despite clear evidence. | Whether this rebellion is primarily intellectual failure (lack of understanding) or moral stubbornness: Calvin emphasizes ignorance, while Barnes stresses willful choice. |
Historical & Cultural Context
The historical setting is Jeremiah's ministry in Judah during the reign of Josiah and his successors, a time of religious reform followed by deep apostasy. The northern kingdom of Israel had already fallen to Assyria a century earlier, leaving only the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. Jeremiah uses the double address "house of Jacob" and "Judah" to recall the covenant identity of the whole people, now reduced to one kingdom, and to underscore that they have broken the covenant made with their forefather. The "former rain" (Hebrew yoreh) fell in October, December, softening the ground for plowing and sowing. The "latter rain" (Hebrew malqosh) came in March, April, ripening the grain before harvest. Without these rains at their appointed times, the harvest would fail. God "preserves to us the appointed weeks of the harvest": a reference to the seven weeks between Passover and Pentecost, as Barnes notes. In an agricultural society, these weeks were critical for the grain to mature and for the harvest itself to proceed without interruption. The "sand for the bound of the sea" draws on ancient Near Eastern cosmology where the sea is a chaotic force; the Creator sets a boundary (Job 38:8, 11; Proverbs 8:29). That boundary is not a rock wall but granular sand: a powerless substance that yet holds back the most powerful force in nature. The point is that God's decree is absolute, and his power is displayed in weakness. Cross-references like Isaiah 6:9 and Deuteronomy 29:4 show the persistent theme of spiritual blindness in the prophets: Israel has physical faculties but lacks spiritual perception. Moses had already warned them of this condition:
“But Yahweh has not given you a heart to know, eyes to see, and ears to hear, to this day.”
— Deuteronomy 29:4 (WEB)
Jeremiah's audience refused to "say in their heart" (to reflect and consider) that they should fear the Lord who sustains them.
Textual Notes
The supplied sources note that some critical scholars (Stade, Duhm, Cornill, Giesebrecht) question the authenticity of Jeremiah 5:20, 24, citing the plural imperatives "declare... publish," the use of nature-theology parallels (cf. Job 38, Amos 4, 5, Jeremiah 31, 32), and an embellished style. However, the Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges argues these reasons are insufficient, noting plural imperatives appear elsewhere in Jeremiah (4:16) and creation theology is present in earlier prophets (Amos 4:13, 5:8, 9:6). The majority of commentators across traditions accept these verses as part of the original prophecy of Jeremiah. No significant textual variants are noted in the manuscripts.
Reception History
Jeremiah 5:20, 24 has been read across Christian traditions as a call to fear the Creator. John Calvin used the passage to argue that human rebellion is more senseless than the irrational sea, which obeys its boundary. The Wesleyan commentator Adam Clarke emphasized the weakness of sand as a demonstration of God's power to use simple means. In the Anglican tradition, the Cambridge Bible notes the importance of the agricultural cycle as a sign of God's providential care. The passage has also been cited in hymns about God's sovereignty and in prayers for harvest seasons, drawing on the language of "former and latter rain" and "appointed weeks of harvest."
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The Charge of Foolishness (vv. 20, 21). God commands the prophet to publish the indictment: the people are foolish, without understanding, willfully blind and deaf. This echoes the language used of idolaters (Psalm 115:5, 6) and of Israel's stubbornness at the edge of Canaan (Deuteronomy 29:4). Their stupidity is not a lack of intelligence but a refusal to use what they have been given.
- The Evidence from Creation (v. 22). God presents two arguments: his power over the sea and his provision of rain and harvest. The sea rages, tosses, roars, but it never crosses the line of sand. It obeys. Humanity, though weaker, disobeys. The sand is a perpetual decree; the hearts of the people are a perpetual rebellion.
- The Missing Response (vv. 23, 24). What should they say? "Let us now fear Yahweh our God." Instead they have a "revolting and rebellious heart"; they have turned aside and gone away. The heart in Hebrew includes mind, will, and intention. They do not consider God's gifts or his power. The tragedy is not ignorance but chosen disregard.
Five-point outline
- A Public Proclamation (v. 20). Declare and publish, the message must reach every ear in Judah and the remnant of Jacob.
- The Diagnosis (v. 21). Foolish, senseless, blind, deaf. Not a lack of organs but a refusal to use them.
- The First Argument: The Sea (v. 22). God places sand as a boundary. The waves cannot cross it. Why do humans not tremble before the One who sets that boundary?
- The Second Argument: The Rains (v. 24). God gives autumn and spring rain at the right time. He secures the harvest weeks. Every good gift points back to him.
- The Conclusion of the Matter (v. 23). But this people has a stubborn and rebellious heart. They have revolted and gone. They do not say in their heart, "Let us fear the Lord."
Illustration hooks
- A parent’s frustration. You tell your child not to touch a hot stove. The stove does what a stove does, it stays hot. But the child, who has ears, chooses not to listen. The created thing acts according to its design; the reasoning creature rebels. That is the irony of this passage: the sea obeys, but God's own people do not.
- The reliability of seasons. Every year the autumn rain comes, then the spring rain, then the harvest. We take it for granted. But those cycles are not automatic; they are sustained by God’s faithfulness. Imagine if the sea decided tomorrow it would not stop at the shore. Creation obeys; we often don't. Which is more foolish?
Questions your congregation is asking
- Why is it "foolish" not to fear God? Because fear here is not terror but reverent awe, the recognition that the Creator has absolute power and authority. Without that awe, we live as if we are the center.
- How can I cultivate this "fear of the Lord" in daily life? By stopping to consider the power and goodness of God in creation, in provision, and in Scripture. The passage suggests it begins with "saying in the heart", an intentional internal conversation that leads to worship.
- What does it mean that my heart is "revolting and rebellious"? It means we naturally draw back from God’s authority and resist his ways. Recognizing this is the first step to repentance.
Leading a Discussion
This passage challenges us to consider whether we truly fear the Lord. The people of Judah had eyes and ears, but they did not use them to perceive God. Creation, the sea, the rain, the harvest, all bear witness to God's power and faithfulness, but they ignored him. The discussion questions below will help your group explore the themes of spiritual perception, the fear of God, and the human heart.
Discussion questions
- Observation: What does this passage say about the sea and the rain? Why do you think the prophet contrasts the behavior of creation with the behavior of the people?
- Interpretation: The Hebrew word for "fear" (yare) can mean terror but also awe and reverence. What kind of fear does God expect from his people according to this passage?
- Interpretation: Verse 23 says the people "have a revolting and a rebellious heart." The Hebrew uses two verbs, "turned aside" and "gone." What picture of the human heart do these words paint?
- Application: In what ways do we "have eyes but do not see" or "ears but do not hear"? Can you think of an area where you have ignored what God is clearly showing you?
- Application: Verse 24 suggests that saying "in the heart" is a reflective act, to think about God's works. How can you build more of this kind of internal reflection into your week?
- Application: The people did not say, "Let us fear the Lord our God." What would change in your daily decisions if you began each day by saying those words to yourself?
- Connection to Christ: The New Testament shows Jesus exercising authority over the sea (Mark 4:39). How does Jesus' calming of the storm relate to the message of this Old Testament passage?
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)
| Deuteronomy 29:4 | But Yahweh has not given you a heart to know, eyes to see, and ears to hear, to this day. |
| Deuteronomy 32:6 | Is this the way you repay Yahweh, foolish and unwise people? Isn’t he your father who has bought you? He has made you and established you. |
| Psalms 94:8 | Consider, you senseless among the people; you fools, when will you be wise? |
| Proverbs 17:16 | Why is there money in the hand of a fool to buy wisdom, since he has no understanding? |
| Isaiah 6:9 | He said, “Go, and tell this people, ‘You hear indeed, but don’t understand. You see indeed, but don’t perceive.’ |
| Isaiah 6:10 | Make the heart of this people fat. Make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their heart, and turn again, and be healed.” |
| Isaiah 27:11 | When its boughs are withered, they will be broken off. The women will come and set them on fire, for they are a people of no understanding. Therefore he who made them will not have compassion on them, and he who formed them will show them no favor. |
| Isaiah 44:18 | They don’t know, neither do they consider, for he has shut their eyes, that they can’t see, and their hearts, that they can’t understand. |
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
8 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke marvels that God restrains the ocean's mighty waves by sand, a substance with no internal cohesion, showing divine power works through the weakest means. He notes that the phrase "appointed weeks of the harvest" likely refers to the period between Passover and Pentecost, and prefers this reading over an alternative that means "sufficiency."
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes contrasts the sea, which cannot break God's laws despite its immense power, with humans who can rebel because they are endowed with free will. He argues that human sin, rooted in a will that draws back from God, is the deeper problem behind both idolatry and widespread immorality.
Calvin's Commentaries Reformed 1564
Calvin draws a sharp contrast between the sea, which obeys God's command even in a storm, and the people, who have eyes and ears yet refuse to see or hear. Their perverse heart, bent on turning away, removes any excuse of ignorance: God's blessings were visible and tangible, yet they never considered fearing Him.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The commentary defends these verses against critics who reject them as later additions, arguing that the reasons given are insufficient and that omitting them would damage the sequence of thought. It also notes that the Hebrew word translated "heart" means the seat of intelligence.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva commentators highlight the stark contrast between God's absolute control over the raging sea and Israel's stubborn refusal to fear Him. Though God sets the sand as an unbreakable boundary for the ocean's fury, His people remain unfaithful and rebellious, never saying in their hearts that they should fear the Lord who provides rain and harvest.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill highlights the stark contrast between the obedient sea, which never crosses its sandy boundary, and the rebellious people of Judah, who refuse to fear God. Even the raging waves obey their Maker, yet these people, despite seeing His power in the storm and His goodness in the rain and harvest, never think to fear Him.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
JFB stresses the people's willful blindness: they have eyes and ears but refuse to use them, yet remain accountable. The sea, though senseless, obeys God's boundary of sand, but these intelligent people do not. Even the rain falls in its proper seasons, and harvest weeks stay dry by God's design, yet they remain rebellious.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry's core complaint is that Israel's problem is not ignorance but deliberate stupidity: they have eyes and ears yet refuse to use them. The root of their rebellion, he argues, is a lack of holy fear despite God's undeniable power displayed in setting the sea's boundary and providing rain and harvest.