For among My people are wicked men; they watch like fowlers lying in wait; they set a trap to catch men.
Parallel translations
- WEB For among my people are found wicked men. They watch, as fowlers lie in wait. They set a trap. They catch men.
- KJV For among my people are found wicked men: they lay wait, as he that setteth snares; they set a trap, they catch men.
- NKJV ‘For among My people are found wicked men; They lie in wait as one who sets snares; They set a trap; They catch men.
- NASB ‘For wicked people are found among My people, They watch like fowlers lying in wait; They set a trap, They catch people.
- NLT “Among my people are wicked men who lie in wait for victims like a hunter hiding in a blind. They continually set traps to catch people.
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
Among God's people are wicked men who trap their fellow human beings like bird-catchers. It matters because it exposes predatory injustice within the covenant community.
Overview
The Lord indicts wicked men who lurk like fowlers, setting snares to ensnare and exploit others. Such oppression within Israel violates the justice God requires of His people. This concern for the victims of the powerful runs throughout Scripture and reflects God's heart, which the gospel calls His people to share (Proverbs 1:11-18; Micah 7:2).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Prov 1:11If they say, “Come along, let us lie in wait for blood, let us ambush the innocent without cause,
- Ps 64:5They hold fast to their evil purpose; they speak of hiding their snares. “Who will see them?” they say.
- Jer 18:22Let a cry be heard from their houses when You suddenly bring raiders against them, for they have dug a pit to capture me and have hidden snares for my feet.
- Ezek 22:2–12“As for you, son of man, will you judge her? Will you pass judgment on the city of bloodshed? Then confront her with all her abominations
- Ps 10:9–10He lies in wait like a lion in a thicket; he lurks to seize the oppressed; he catches the lowly in his net.
- 1 Sam 19:10–11Saul tried to pin him to the wall with his spear. But the spear struck the wall and David eluded him, ran away, and escaped that night.
- Hab 1:14–15You have made men like the fish of the sea, like creeping things that have no ruler.
- Isa 58:1“Cry aloud, do not hold back! Raise your voice like a ram’s horn. Declare to My people their transgression and to the house of Jacob their sins.
- Luke 5:10and so were his partners James and John, the sons of Zebedee. “Do not be afraid,” Jesus said to Simon. “From now on you will catch men.”
- Jer 4:22“For My people are fools; they have not known Me. They are foolish children, without understanding. They are skilled in doing evil, but they know not how to do good.”
- Prov 1:17–18How futile it is to spread the net where any bird can see it!
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 5:26 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.