Limitless Word
Behold, they say unto me, Where is the word of the LORD? let it come now.
Jeremiah 17:15 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB Behold, they tell me, “Where is Yahweh’s word? Let it be fulfilled now.”
  • BSB Behold, they keep saying to me, “Where is the word of the LORD? Let it come now!”
  • NKJV Indeed they say to me, “Where is the word of the Lord? Let it come now!”
  • NASB Look, they keep saying to me, “Where is the word of the Lord? Let it come now!”
  • NLT People scoff at me and say, “What is this ‘message from the Lord’ you talk about? Why don’t your predictions come true?”

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

Jeremiah's mockers demand that his prophesied judgment come to pass immediately. Their scorn reveals unbelief in God's word.

Overview

The people taunt the prophet, challenging him to produce the fulfillment of the doom he has announced. Their sarcasm masks hardened unbelief, treating delayed judgment as proof the word is false. Scripture warns that scoffers mistake God's patience for absence, a pattern Peter says will mark the last days as well (2 Peter 3:3-4).

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 6

  • Isa 5:19That say, Let him make speed, and hasten his work, that we may see it: and let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw nigh and come, that we may know it!
  • Ezek 12:22Son of man, what is that proverb that ye have in the land of Israel, saying, The days are prolonged, and every vision faileth?
  • Ezek 12:27–28Son of man, behold, they of the house of Israel say, The vision that he seeth is for many days to come, and he prophesieth of the times that are far off.
  • Jer 20:7–8O LORD, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived: thou art stronger than I, and hast prevailed: I am in derision daily, every one mocketh me.
  • 2 Pet 3:3–4Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,
  • Amos 5:18Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD! to what end is it for you? the day of the LORD is darkness, and not light.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (4)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Jeremiah videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Jeremiah 17:15YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on JeremiahMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 17:15 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.