The Meaning of Jeremiah 25:18 Explained

Jeremiah 25:18

KJV: To wit, Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, and the kings thereof, and the princes thereof, to make them a desolation, an astonishment, an hissing, and a curse; as it is this day;

YLT: Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, And its kings, its heads, To give them to waste, to astonishment, To hissing, and to reviling, as at this day.

Darby: Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, and the kings thereof, and the princes thereof, to make them a waste, an astonishment, a hissing, and a curse, as it is this day;

ASV: to wit , Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, and the kings thereof, and the princes thereof, to make them a desolation, an astonishment, a hissing, and a curse, as it is this day;

KJV Reverse Interlinear

[To wit], Jerusalem,  and the cities  of Judah,  and the kings  thereof, and the princes  thereof, to make  them a desolation,  an astonishment,  an hissing,  and a curse;  as [it is] this day; 

What does Jeremiah 25:18 Mean?

Context Summary

Jeremiah 25:1-38 - Shepherds That Mislead God's Flock
It is God's purpose to care for His people through shepherds (pastors) who are responsible to Him. Jesus our Lord is the Branch into which we may be grafted. He is our King who saves us and clothes us with His own spotless righteousness. God finds us in Him, Philippians 3:9. Because He reigns, we are saved and dwell in safety. When we are brought into contact with false shepherds, whether the failure be in doctrine or example, let us ask for the broken heart of Jeremiah 23:9.
God is everywhere present; as the latter paragraph indicates, He is near at hand to overhear the blasphemy of those who deride religion, and to be a very present help in time of trouble. If He fills heaven and earth, can He not fill thy heart? If His Word is like fire, let it cleanse thee! If it is as a hammer, let it pulverize thy pride! Let those of us who essay to teach and preach, not steal our words from our neighbors, or utter our own, but receive them from the source of all truth. [source]

Chapter Summary: Jeremiah 25

1  Jeremiah, reproving the Jews' disobedience to the prophets,
8  foretells the seventy years' captivity;
12  and after that, the destruction of Babylon
15  Under the type of a cup of wine he foreshows the destruction of all nations
34  The howling of the shepherds

What do the individual words in Jeremiah 25:18 mean?

- Jerusalem and the cities of Judah its kings and its princes to make them a desolation an astonishment a hissing and a curse as [it is] day this
אֶת־ יְרוּשָׁלִַ֙ם֙ וְאֶת־ עָרֵ֣י יְהוּדָ֔ה מְלָכֶ֖יהָ שָׂרֶ֑יהָ לָתֵ֨ת אֹתָ֜ם לְחָרְבָּ֧ה לְשַׁמָּ֛ה לִשְׁרֵקָ֥ה וְלִקְלָלָ֖ה כַּיּ֥וֹם הַזֶּֽה

אֶת־  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
יְרוּשָׁלִַ֙ם֙  Jerusalem 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: יְרוּשָׁלַםִ  
Sense: the chief city of Palestine and capital of the united kingdom and the nation of Judah after the split.
עָרֵ֣י  the  cities 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural construct
Root: עִיר 
Sense: excitement, anguish.
יְהוּדָ֔ה  of  Judah 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יְהוּדָה  
Sense: the son of Jacob by Leah.
מְלָכֶ֖יהָ  its  kings 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, third person feminine singular
Root: מֶלֶךְ 
Sense: king.
שָׂרֶ֑יהָ  and  its  princes 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, third person feminine singular
Root: סָרַר 
Sense: prince, ruler, leader, chief, chieftain, official, captain.
לָתֵ֨ת  to  make 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct
Root: יָתַן 
Sense: to give, put, set.
לְחָרְבָּ֧ה  a  desolation 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, feminine singular
Root: חָרְבָּה  
Sense: a place laid waste, ruin, waste, desolation.
לְשַׁמָּ֛ה  an  astonishment 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, feminine singular
Root: שַׁמָּה  
Sense: waste, horror, appalment.
לִשְׁרֵקָ֥ה  a  hissing 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, feminine singular
Root: שְׂרֵקָה 
Sense: hissing, whistling.
וְלִקְלָלָ֖ה  and  a  curse 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition-l, Noun, feminine singular
Root: קְלָלָה  
Sense: curse, vilification, execration.
כַּיּ֥וֹם  as  [it  is]  day 
Parse: Preposition-k, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: יׄום 
Sense: day, time, year.
הַזֶּֽה  this 
Parse: Article, Pronoun, masculine singular
Root: זֶה  
Sense: this, this one, here, which, this … that, the one … the other, another, such.