Thus saith the LORD unto me, Go and get thee a linen girdle, and put it upon thy loins, and put it not in water.
Parallel translations
- WEB Yahweh says to me, “Go, and buy yourself a linen belt, and put it on your waist, and don’t put it in water.”
- BSB This is what the LORD said to me: “Go and buy yourself a linen loincloth and put it around your waist, but do not let it touch water.”
- NKJV Thus the Lord said to me: “Go and get yourself a linen sash, and put it around your waist, but do not put it in water.”
- NASB This is what the Lord said to me: “Go and buy yourself a linen undergarment and put it around your waist, but do not put it in water.”
- NLT This is what the Lord said to me: “Go and buy a linen loincloth and put it on, but do not wash it.”
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
God commands Jeremiah to buy a linen belt, wear it, and never wash it.
Overview
This is the first of Jeremiah's enacted parables, or symbolic acts, that dramatize God's message. The linen belt, worn close to the body, will picture Judah's intended closeness to God. Such object lessons make the prophetic word vivid and unforgettable to the people.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Heb 1:1God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,
- Jer 13:11For 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.
- Jer 27:2Thus saith the LORD to me; Make thee bonds and yokes, and put them upon thy neck,
- Ezek 4:1–5Thou also, son of man, take thee a tile, and lay it before thee, and pourtray upon it the city, even Jerusalem:
- Jer 19:1Thus saith the LORD, Go and get a potter’s earthen bottle, and take of the ancients of the people, and of the ancients of the priests;
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
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 13:1 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.