So all the nations will ask, ‘Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land? Why this great outburst of anger?’
Parallel translations
- WEB even all the nations will say, “Why has Yahweh done thus to this land? What does the heat of this great anger mean?”
- KJV Even all nations shall say, Wherefore hath the LORD done thus unto this land? what meaneth the heat of this great anger?
- NKJV “All nations would say, ‘Why has the Lord done so to this land? What does the heat of this great anger mean?’
- NASB All the nations will say, ‘Why has the Lord done all this to this land? Why this great outburst of anger?’
- NLT “And all the surrounding nations will ask, ‘Why has the Lord done this to this land? Why was he so angry?’
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The nations will ask why God brought such fierce wrath on his land. God's judgments raise questions that demand a true answer.
Overview
Observers will wonder aloud at the severity of God's anger against his own land and people. The question, 'Why has Yahweh done thus?', sets up the explanation that follows. It shows that God's dealings are not arbitrary but have a clear moral cause, vindicating his justice before the nations and inviting reflection on covenant faithfulness.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Jer 22:8–9And many nations will pass by this city and ask one another, ‘Why has the LORD done such a thing to this great city?’
- 1 Kgs 9:8–9And when this temple has become a heap of rubble, all who pass by it will be appalled and will hiss and say, ‘Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’
- 2 Chr 7:21–22And when this temple has become a heap of rubble, all who pass by it will be appalled and say, ‘Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’
- Lam 4:12The kings of the earth did not believe, nor any people of the world, that an enemy or a foe could enter the gates of Jerusalem.
- Lam 2:15–17All who pass by clap their hands at you in scorn. They hiss and shake their heads at the Daughter of Jerusalem: “Is this the city that was called the perfection of beauty, the joy of all the earth?”
- Ezek 14:23They will bring you consolation when you see their conduct and actions, and you will know that it was not without cause that I have done all these things within it,’ declares the Lord GOD.”
- Rom 2:5But because of your hard and unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of wrath, when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Commentaries & study tools
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Moses promised a Prophet like himself to whom Israel must listen (18:15); Jesus is that Prophet, the one who keeps the covenant we broke and becomes the curse for us by hanging on a tree (Gal 3:13).
How Deuteronomy 29:24 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.