◄ Jeremiah 12:11 ►
They have made it a desolation; desolate before Me, it mourns. All the land is laid waste, but no man takes it to heart.
Study Bible
They have made it a desolation
The Hebrew word for "desolation" is "שְׁמָמָה" (shemamah), which conveys a sense of utter ruin and devastation. In the context of Jeremiah, this desolation is a result of the people's persistent disobedience and idolatry. Historically, this reflects the period leading up to the Babylonian exile, where the land of Judah faced destruction due to its inhabitants' failure to adhere to God's covenant. The phrase underscores the active role of the people in bringing about their own ruin, highlighting the consequences of turning away from God.

desolate, it mourns before Me
The repetition of "desolate" emphasizes the severity of the situation. The Hebrew root "אבל" (aval) for "mourns" suggests a deep, sorrowful lamentation. This personification of the land mourning "before Me" (God) indicates that creation itself is affected by human sin and is in a state of grief due to the broken relationship between God and His people. It reflects the biblical theme that the land is not just a backdrop for human activity but is integrally connected to the spiritual state of its inhabitants.

The whole land has been made desolate
This phrase reiterates the totality of the devastation. The use of "whole land" signifies that the impact of sin and judgment is comprehensive, affecting every part of the nation. In a historical context, this can be seen in the widespread destruction brought by the Babylonian conquest. Spiritually, it serves as a warning that sin has far-reaching consequences, affecting not just individuals but entire communities and environments.

but no one takes it to heart
The Hebrew phrase "וְאֵין אִישׁ שָׂם עַל־לֵב" (v'ein ish sam al-lev) translates to "but no one lays it to heart." This indicates a profound spiritual apathy and lack of repentance among the people. Despite the visible signs of judgment and the land's mourning, the people remain indifferent. This highlights a recurring biblical theme where God calls His people to recognize their sin and turn back to Him, yet they often fail to respond. It serves as a call to self-examination and a reminder of the importance of heeding God's warnings and aligning one's heart with His will.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Jeremiah
A prophet called by God to deliver messages of warning and hope to the people of Judah. He is known for his lamentations over the spiritual and physical desolation of the land.

2. Judah
The southern kingdom of Israel, which faced destruction and exile due to its persistent disobedience and idolatry.

3. The Land
Refers to the land of Judah, which has become desolate due to the people's sin and neglect of God's commandments.

4. God
The sovereign Lord who mourns over the desolation of the land and the spiritual state of His people.

5. Desolation
The state of the land as a result of the people's sin, symbolizing both physical ruin and spiritual barrenness.
Teaching Points
The Consequences of Sin
Sin leads to desolation, both spiritually and physically. When we turn away from God, we invite ruin into our lives and communities.

God's Heart for His People
God mourns over the desolation caused by sin. His desire is for restoration and repentance, not destruction.

Taking Sin Seriously
The phrase "because no one takes it to heart" challenges us to be vigilant and responsive to sin in our lives and communities. Ignoring sin leads to greater devastation.

The Call to Repentance
Desolation is a call to return to God. We must examine our hearts and turn back to Him, seeking His forgiveness and restoration.

Hope in Restoration
While the land is desolate, God's ultimate plan is for renewal and restoration. We can trust in His promises and work towards spiritual renewal.
Bible Study Questions
1. What are some modern-day examples of "desolation" that result from turning away from God, and how can we address them?

2. How does understanding God's mourning over desolation change our perspective on sin and its consequences?

3. In what ways can we "take to heart" the warnings of desolation in our personal lives and communities?

4. How do the themes of desolation and restoration in Jeremiah 12:11 connect with the message of hope found in the New Testament?

5. What practical steps can we take to prevent spiritual desolation in our own lives and in the lives of those around us?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Isaiah 24:3-6
This passage also speaks of the earth being laid waste and desolate due to the inhabitants' transgressions, highlighting the consequences of sin.

Hosea 4:1-3
Hosea describes a similar desolation due to the lack of knowledge of God and widespread sin, emphasizing the connection between spiritual and physical desolation.

Lamentations 1:1-4
Jeremiah's lament over Jerusalem's desolation mirrors the mourning described in Jeremiah 12:11, showing the deep sorrow over the consequences of sin.
Sermons
The Inheritance that has Lost its CharmsD. Young Jeremiah 12:7-11
The Hiding of God's FaceS. Conway Jeremiah 12:7-13
People
Jeremiah
Places
Anathoth, Jerusalem, Jordan River
Topics
Cares, Desolate, Desolated, Desolation, Heart, Laid, Layeth, Laying, Lays, Mourned, Mourneth, Mourns, Parched, Takes, Waste, Wasted, Weeping
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Jeremiah 12:11

     5885   indifference

Library
Calms and Crises
'If thou hast run with the footmen, and they have wearied thee, then how canst thou contend with horses? and though in a land of peace thou art secure, yet how wilt thou do in the pride of Jordan?'--JER. xii. 5, R.V. The prophet has been complaining of his persecutors. The divine answer is here, reproving his impatience, and giving him to understand that harder trials are in store for him. Both clauses mean substantially the same thing, and are of a parabolic nature. The one adduces the metaphor …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Are You Prepared to Die?
"There is a land of pure delight, Where saints immortal reign; Infinite day excludes the night, And pleasures banish pain." There everlasting spring abides, And never-withering flowers; Death, like a narrow sea, divides This heavenly land from ours." Taking "the swelling of Jordan" to represent the precise time of death, the question really is, what shall we do when we come to die? "How wilt thou do in the swelling of Jordan?" I. We notice, in the first place, that this is an EXCEEDINGLY PRACTICAL …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 11: 1865

Synagogues: their Origin, Structure and Outward Arrangements
It was a beautiful saying of Rabbi Jochanan (Jer. Ber. v. 1), that he who prays in his house surrounds and fortifies it, so to speak, with a wall of iron. Nevertheless, it seems immediately contradicted by what follows. For it is explained that this only holds good where a man is alone, but that where there is a community prayer should be offered in the synagogue. We can readily understand how, after the destruction of the Temple, and the cessation of its symbolical worship, the excessive value attached …
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life

The Roman Pilgrimage: the Miracles which were Wrought in It.
[Sidenote: 1139] 33. (20). It seemed to him, however, that one could not go on doing these things with sufficient security without the authority of the Apostolic See; and for that reason he determined to set out for Rome, and most of all because the metropolitan see still lacked, and from the beginning had lacked, the use of the pall, which is the fullness of honour.[507] And it seemed good in his eyes[508] that the church for which he had laboured so much[509] should acquire, by his zeal and labour, …
H. J. Lawlor—St. Bernard of Clairvaux's Life of St. Malachy of Armagh

Of the Trinity and a Christian, and of the Law and a Christian.
EDITOR'S ADVERTISEMENT. These two short treatises were found among Mr. Bunyan's papers after his decease. They probably were intended for publication, like his 'Prison Meditations' and his 'Map of Salvation,' on a single page each, in the form of a broadside, or handbill. This was the popular mode in which tracts were distributed; and when posted against a wall, or framed and hung up in a room, they excited notice, and were extensively read. They might also have afforded some trifling profit to aid …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

Jeremiah, a Lesson for the Disappointed.
"Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord."--Jeremiah i. 8. The Prophets were ever ungratefully treated by the Israelites, they were resisted, their warnings neglected, their good services forgotten. But there was this difference between the earlier and the later Prophets; the earlier lived and died in honour among their people,--in outward honour; though hated and thwarted by the wicked, they were exalted to high places, and ruled in the congregation. …
John Henry Newman—Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VIII

The Justice of God
The next attribute is God's justice. All God's attributes are identical, and are the same with his essence. Though he has several attributes whereby he is made known to us, yet he has but one essence. A cedar tree may have several branches, yet it is but one cedar. So there are several attributes of God whereby we conceive of him, but only one entire essence. Well, then, concerning God's justice. Deut 32:4. Just and right is he.' Job 37:23. Touching the Almighty, we cannot find him out: he is excellent …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

Jeremiah
The interest of the book of Jeremiah is unique. On the one hand, it is our most reliable and elaborate source for the long period of history which it covers; on the other, it presents us with prophecy in its most intensely human phase, manifesting itself through a strangely attractive personality that was subject to like doubts and passions with ourselves. At his call, in 626 B.C., he was young and inexperienced, i. 6, so that he cannot have been born earlier than 650. The political and religious …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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