But like the bad figs, so bad they cannot be eaten,’ says the LORD, ‘so will I deal with Zedekiah king of Judah, his officials, and the remnant of Jerusalem—those remaining in this land and those living in the land of Egypt.
Parallel translations
- WEB “‘As the bad figs, which can’t be eaten, they are so bad,’ surely Yahweh says, ‘So I will give up Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the remnant of Jerusalem, who remain in this land, and those who dwell in the land of Egypt.
- KJV And as the evil figs, which cannot be eaten, they are so evil; surely thus saith the LORD, So will I give Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem, that remain in this land, and them that dwell in the land of Egypt:
- NKJV ‘And as the bad figs which cannot be eaten, they are so bad’—surely thus says the Lord—‘so will I give up Zedekiah the king of Judah, his princes, the residue of Jerusalem who remain in this land, and those who dwell in the land of Egypt.
- NASB ‘But like the bad figs which cannot be eaten due to rottenness,’ indeed, this is what the Lord says, ‘so will I give up Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials, and the remnant of Jerusalem who remain in this land, and the ones who live in the land of Egypt.
- NLT “But the bad figs,” the Lord said, “represent King Zedekiah of Judah, his officials, all the people left in Jerusalem, and those who live in Egypt. I will treat them like bad figs, too rotten to eat.
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 bad figs represent Zedekiah, his officials, and those remaining in Jerusalem and Egypt, whom God will give up. Staying in the land brings no security apart from God's purpose.
Overview
In a reversal of human expectation, the LORD names those who remained behind, including King Zedekiah, as the inedible figs marked for rejection. Their continued presence in the land was no proof of God's favor. The verse warns that outward position counts for nothing where the heart remains unrepentant.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Jer 43:1When Jeremiah had finished telling all the people all the words of the LORD their God—everything that the LORD had sent him to say—
- Jer 37:17Later, King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah and received him in his palace, where he asked him privately, “Is there a word from the LORD?” “There is,” Jeremiah replied. “You will be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon.”
- Jer 29:16–18this is what the LORD says about the king who sits on David’s throne and all the people who remain in this city, your brothers who did not go with you into exile—
- Jer 39:2–9And on the ninth day of the fourth month of Zedekiah’s eleventh year, the city was breached.
- Jer 24:2One basket had very good figs, like those that ripen early, but the other basket contained very poor figs, so bad they could not be eaten.
- Ezek 17:11–21Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
- Jer 37:10Indeed, if you were to strike down the entire army of the Chaldeans that is fighting against you, and only wounded men remained in their tents, they would still get up and burn this city down.”
- Ezek 12:12–16And at dusk the prince among them will lift his bags to his shoulder and go out. They will dig through the wall to bring him out. He will cover his face so he cannot see the land.
- Jer 38:18–23But if you do not surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then this city will be delivered into the hands of the Chaldeans. They will burn it down, and you yourself will not escape their grasp.’”
- Jer 52:2–11And Zedekiah did evil in the sight of the LORD, just as Jehoiakim had done.
- Jer 24:5“This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Like these good figs, so I regard as good the exiles from Judah, whom I have sent away from this place to the land of the Chaldeans.
- Jer 44:26–30Nevertheless, hear the word of the LORD, all you people of Judah living in Egypt: Behold, I have sworn by My great name, says the LORD, that never again will any man of Judah living in the land of Egypt invoke My name or say, ‘As surely as the Lord GOD lives.’
- Jer 32:28–29Therefore this is what the LORD says: Behold, I am about to deliver this city into the hands of the Chaldeans and of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, who will capture it.
- Jer 34:17–22Therefore this is what the LORD says: You have not obeyed Me; you have not proclaimed freedom, each man for his brother and for his neighbor. So now I proclaim freedom for you, declares the LORD—freedom to fall by sword, by plague, and by famine! I will make you a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.
- Jer 21:10For I have set My face against this city to bring disaster and not good, declares the LORD. It will be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon, who will destroy it with fire.’
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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 24:8 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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