The Meaning of Jeremiah 6:23 Explained

Jeremiah 6:23

KJV: They shall lay hold on bow and spear; they are cruel, and have no mercy; their voice roareth like the sea; and they ride upon horses, set in array as men for war against thee, O daughter of Zion.

YLT: Bow and javelin they take hold of, Fierce it is, and they have no mercy, Their voice as a sea doth sound, And on horses they ride, set in array as a man of war, Against thee, O daughter of Zion.

Darby: They lay hold on bow and spear; they are cruel, and have no mercy; their voice roareth like the sea; and they ride upon horses, set in array as a man for the battle, against thee, daughter of Zion.

ASV: They lay hold on bow and spear; they are cruel, and have no mercy; their voice roareth like the sea, and they ride upon horses, every one set in array, as a man to the battle, against thee, O daughter of Zion.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

They shall lay hold  on bow  and spear;  they [are] cruel,  and have no mercy;  their voice  roareth  like the sea;  and they ride  upon horses,  set in array  as men  for war  against thee, O daughter  of Zion. 

What does Jeremiah 6:23 Mean?

Verse Meaning

They would be cruel warriors, riding on instruments of warfare, shouting loud battle cries, and making as much noise as the roaring sea. Their target would be God"s beloved residents of Jerusalem.

Chapter Summary: Jeremiah 6

1  The enemies sent against Judah,
4  encourage themselves
6  God sets them on work because of their sins
9  The prophet laments the judgments of God because of their sins
18  He proclaims God's wrath
26  He calls the people to mourn for the judgment on their sins

What do the individual words in Jeremiah 6:23 mean?

Bow and spear they will lay hold on cruel it [is] and no has mercy their voice like the sea roars and on horses they ride set in array as men of war against you daughter of Zion
קֶ֣שֶׁת וְכִיד֞וֹן יַחֲזִ֗יקוּ אַכְזָרִ֥י הוּא֙ וְלֹ֣א יְרַחֵ֔מוּ קוֹלָם֙ כַּיָּ֣ם יֶהֱמֶ֔ה וְעַל־ סוּסִ֖ים יִרְכָּ֑בוּ עָר֗וּךְ כְּאִישׁ֙ לַמִּלְחָמָ֔ה עָלַ֖יִךְ בַּת־ צִיּֽוֹן

קֶ֣שֶׁת  Bow 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: קֶשֶׁת  
Sense: bow.
וְכִיד֞וֹן  and  spear 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular
Root: כִּידֹון  
Sense: javelin, short sword, dart.
יַחֲזִ֗יקוּ  they  will  lay  hold  on 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: חָזַק  
Sense: to strengthen, prevail, harden, be strong, become strong, be courageous, be firm, grow firm, be resolute, be sore.
אַכְזָרִ֥י  cruel 
Parse: Adjective, masculine singular
Root: אַכְזָרִי  
Sense: cruel.
הוּא֙  it  [is] 
Parse: Pronoun, third person masculine singular
Root: הוּא 
Sense: he, she, it.
וְלֹ֣א  and  no 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
יְרַחֵ֔מוּ  has  mercy 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: רָחַם  
Sense: to love, love deeply, have mercy, be compassionate, have tender affection, have compassion.
קוֹלָם֙  their  voice 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine plural
Root: קֹול 
Sense: voice, sound, noise.
כַּיָּ֣ם  like  the  sea 
Parse: Preposition-k, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: יָם  
Sense: sea.
יֶהֱמֶ֔ה  roars 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: הָמָה  
Sense: to murmur, growl, roar, cry aloud, mourn, rage, sound, make noise, tumult, be clamorous, be disquieted, be loud, be moved, be troubled, be in an uproar.
וְעַל־  and  on 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
סוּסִ֖ים  horses 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: סוּס 
Sense: swallow, swift.
יִרְכָּ֑בוּ  they  ride 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: רָכַב  
Sense: to mount and ride, ride.
עָר֗וּךְ  set  in  array 
Parse: Verb, Qal, QalPassParticiple, masculine singular
Root: עָרַךְ  
Sense: to arrange, set or put or lay in order, set in array, prepare, order, ordain, handle, furnish, esteem, equal, direct, compare.
כְּאִישׁ֙  as  men 
Parse: Preposition-k, Noun, masculine singular
Root: אִישׁ 
Sense: man.
לַמִּלְחָמָ֔ה  of  war 
Parse: Preposition-l, Article, Noun, feminine singular
Root: מִלְחָמָה  
Sense: battle, war.
עָלַ֖יִךְ  against  you 
Parse: Preposition, second person feminine singular
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
בַּת־  daughter 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: בַּת  
Sense: daughter.
צִיּֽוֹן  of  Zion 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: צִיּׄון  
Sense: another name for Jerusalem especially in the prophetic books.