For as the undergarment clings to the waist of a man, so I made the entire household of Israel and the entire household of Judah cling to Me,’ declares the Lord, ‘so that they might be My people, for renown, for praise, and for glory; but they did not listen.’
Parallel translations
- WEB For as the belt clings to the waist of a man, so I have caused to cling to me the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah,’ says Yahweh; ‘that they may be to me for a people, and for a name, and for a praise, and for a glory: but they would not hear.’
- KJV For as the girdle cleaveth to the loins of a man, so have I caused to cleave unto me the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah, saith the LORD; that they might be unto me for a people, and for a name, and for a praise, and for a glory: but they would not hear.
- BSB For just as a loincloth clings to a man’s waist, so I have made the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah cling to Me, declares the LORD, so that they might be My people for My renown and praise and glory. But they did not listen.
- NKJV For as the sash clings to the waist of a man, so I have caused the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah to cling to Me,’ says the Lord, ‘that they may become My people, for renown, for praise, and for glory; but they would not hear.’
- NLT As a loincloth clings to a man’s waist, so I created Judah and Israel to cling to me, says the Lord. They were to be my people, my pride, my glory—an honor to my name. But they would not listen to me.
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
As a belt clings to the waist, God had bound Israel and Judah to Himself for praise and glory, but they would not listen.
Overview
God's design was intimate closeness, that His people would be His own for renown and glory. The tragedy is their refusal to remain near and to hear Him. This reveals God's purpose to have a people displaying His glory, a purpose fulfilled in the church created in Christ (1 Peter 2:9).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- Exod 19:5–6Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice, and keep my covenant, then you shall be my own possession from among all peoples; for all the earth is mine;
- Jer 33:9This city shall be to me for a name of joy, for a praise and for a glory, before all the nations of the earth, which shall hear all the good that I do to them, and shall fear and tremble for all the good and for all the peace that I procure to it.’”
- Ps 81:11But my people didn’t listen to my voice. Israel desired none of me.
- Isa 43:21the people which I formed for myself, that they might declare my praise.
- Ps 135:4For Yah has chosen Jacob for himself; Israel for his own possession.
- Jer 6:17I set watchmen over you, saying, ‘Listen to the sound of the trumpet!’ But they said, ‘We will not listen!’
- Isa 62:12They will call them The holy people, Yahweh’s redeemed. You will be called Sought out, A city not forsaken.
- Ps 147:20He has not done this for just any nation. They don’t know his ordinances. Praise Yah!
- Jer 7:26yet they didn’t listen to me, nor did they incline their ear, but made their neck stiff. They did worse than their fathers.
- 1 Pet 2:9But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, that you may proclaim the excellence of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light:
- Jer 32:20who performed signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, even to this day, both in Israel and among other men; and made yourself a name, as it is today;
- Jer 13:10This evil people, who refuse to hear my words, who walk in the stubbornness of their heart, and are gone after other gods to serve them, and to worship them, shall even be as this belt, which is profitable for nothing.
- Deut 4:7For what great nation is there, that has a god so near to them, as Yahweh our God is whenever we call on him?
- John 5:37–40The Father himself, who sent me, has testified about me. You have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his form.
- Deut 32:10–15He found him in a desert land, in the waste howling wilderness. He surrounded him. He cared for him. He kept him as the apple of his eye.
- Deut 26:18Yahweh has declared today that you are a people for his own possession, as he has promised you, and that you should keep all his commandments.
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Christ at the center
Against the failure of false shepherds Jeremiah promises the Righteous Branch, 'The LORD our righteousness,' and the new covenant written on the heart and sealed in the blood of Christ.
How Jeremiah 13:11 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
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