Jeremiah 13:8

⁷So I went to Perath and dug up the loincloth, and I took it from the place where I had hidden it. But now it was ruined—of no use at all.⁸Then the word of the LORD came to me:⁹“This is what the LORD says: In the same way I will ruin the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem.

Summary

In Jeremiah 13:8, God uses the metaphor of a waistband to illustrate His relationship with the people of Judah. Just as a waistband clings to a man's waist, God intended for His people to cling to Him and be close to Him. However, the people of Judah had become stubborn and unwilling to listen to God's commands, causing them to be marred and ruined like a useless waistband. This verse serves as a warning about the consequences of disobedience and the importance of remaining close to God in obedience and faith.

Commentary

John Gill
Tyndale

John Gill Bible Commentary

Then the word of the Lord came unto me, saying. Or the word of prophecy from before the Lord, as the Targum; and now follows the application of this sign to the thing signified, and the whole intention of it is opened. Then the word of the Lord came unto me, saying. Or the word of prophecy from before the Lord, as the Targum; and now follows the application of this sign to the thing signified, and the whole intention of it is opened. Jeremiah 13:9 jer 13:9 jer 13:9 jer 13:9Thus saith the Lord, after this manner,.... As this girdle has been hid in Euphrates, and has been marred and rendered useless; so in like manner, and by such like means, will I mar the pride of Judah, and the great pride of Jerusalem; or their glory, or excellency (t); that which they gloried in, and were proud of; their city which was burnt, and their temple which was destroyed by the Chaldeans; their king, princes, and nobles, who were carried captive into Babylon, by the river Euphrates, and stripped of all their grandeur, honour, and glory; and so the Targum, "so will I corrupt the strength of the men of Judah, and the strength of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, which is much;'' and to which agrees the Syriac version, which renders it, "the proud or haughty men of Judah, and the many haughty men of Jerusalem.'' (t) "excellentiam", Calvin, Piscator.