Jeremiah 22:13
New International Version
“Woe to him who builds his palace by unrighteousness, his upper rooms by injustice, making his own people work for nothing, not paying them for their labor.

New Living Translation
And the LORD says, “What sorrow awaits Jehoiakim, who builds his palace with forced labor. He builds injustice into its walls, for he makes his neighbors work for nothing. He does not pay them for their labor.

English Standard Version
“Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness, and his upper rooms by injustice, who makes his neighbor serve him for nothing and does not give him his wages,

Berean Standard Bible
“Woe to him who builds his palace by unrighteousness, and his upper rooms without justice, who makes his countrymen serve without pay, and fails to pay their wages,

King James Bible
Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that useth his neighbour's service without wages, and giveth him not for his work;

New King James Version
“Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness And his chambers by injustice, Who uses his neighbor’s service without wages And gives him nothing for his work,

New American Standard Bible
“Woe to him who builds his house without righteousness, And his upstairs rooms without justice, Who uses his neighbor’s services without pay And does not give him his wages,

NASB 1995
“Woe to him who builds his house without righteousness And his upper rooms without justice, Who uses his neighbor’s services without pay And does not give him his wages,

NASB 1977
“Woe to him who builds his house without righteousness And his upper rooms without justice, Who uses his neighbor’s services without pay And does not give him his wages,

Legacy Standard Bible
“Woe to him who builds his house without righteousness And his upper rooms without justice, Who uses his neighbor’s services without pay And does not give him his wages,

Amplified Bible
“Woe (judgment is coming) to him who builds his house by [acts of] unrighteousness And his upper chambers by injustice, Who uses his neighbor’s service without pay And does not give him wages [for his work],

Christian Standard Bible
Woe for the one who builds his palace through unrighteousness, his upstairs rooms through injustice, who makes his neighbor serve without pay and will not give him his wages,

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Woe for the one who builds his palace through unrighteousness, his upper rooms through injustice, who makes his fellow man serve without pay and will not give him his wages,

American Standard Version
Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by injustice; that useth his neighbor's service without wages, and giveth him not his hire;

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
Woe to him who builds his house that is not in righteousness, and his upper rooms that are not in justice! His fellow man works for him without charge and he does not give him his wages

Brenton Septuagint Translation
He that builds his house not with justice, and his upper chambers not with judgment, who works by means of his neighbour for nothing, and will by no means give him his reward.

Contemporary English Version
King Jehoiakim, you are doomed! You built a palace with large rooms upstairs.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Woe to him that buildeth up his house by injustice, and his chambers not in judgement: that will oppress his friend without cause, and will not pay him his wages.

English Revised Version
Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by injustice; that useth his neighbour's service without wages, and giveth him not his hire;

GOD'S WORD® Translation
"How horrible it will be for the person who builds his house dishonestly and his upper rooms through injustice. He makes his neighbors work for nothing and doesn't pay them for their work.

Good News Translation
Doomed is the one who builds his house by injustice and enlarges it by dishonesty; who makes his people work for nothing and does not pay their wages.

International Standard Version
"How terrible for him who builds his house without righteousness, and its upper rooms without justice, who makes his neighbor work for nothing, and does not pay him his wage.

JPS Tanakh 1917
Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, And his chambers by injustice; That useth his neighbour's service without wages, And giveth him not his hire;

Literal Standard Version
Woe to him who is building his house by unrighteousness, | And his upper chambers by injustice, | He lays service on his neighbor for nothing, | And he does not give his wage to him.

Majority Standard Bible
“Woe to him who builds his palace by unrighteousness, and his upper rooms without justice, who makes his countrymen serve without pay, and fails to pay their wages,

New American Bible
Woe to him who builds his house on wrongdoing, his roof-chambers on injustice; Who works his neighbors without pay, and gives them no wages.

NET Bible
"'Sure to be judged is the king who builds his palace using injustice and treats people unfairly while adding its upper rooms. He makes his countrymen work for him for nothing. He does not pay them for their labor.

New Revised Standard Version
Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness, and his upper rooms by injustice; who makes his neighbors work for nothing, and does not give them their wages;

New Heart English Bible
Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness, and his rooms by injustice; who uses his neighbor's service without wages, and doesn't give him his hire;

Webster's Bible Translation
Woe to him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that useth his neighbor's service without wages, and giveth him not for his work;

World English Bible
“Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness, and his rooms by injustice; who uses his neighbor’s service without wages, and doesn’t give him his hire;

Young's Literal Translation
Woe to him who is building his house by unrighteousness, And his upper chambers by injustice, On his neighbour he layeth service for nought, And his wage he doth not give to him.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
A Warning about Jehoiakim
13“Woe to him who builds his palace by unrighteousness, and his upper rooms without justice, who makes his countrymen serve without pay, and fails to pay their wages, 14who says, ‘I will build myself a great palace, with spacious upper rooms.’ So he cuts windows in it, panels it with cedar, and paints it with vermilion.…

Cross References
James 5:4
Look, the wages you withheld from the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of Hosts.

Leviticus 19:13
You must not defraud your neighbor or rob him. You must not withhold until morning the wages due a hired hand.

Deuteronomy 24:15
You are to pay his wages each day before sunset, because he is poor and depends on them. Otherwise he may cry out to the LORD against you, and you will be guilty of sin.

2 Chronicles 36:5
Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. And he did evil in the sight of the LORD his God.

Isaiah 5:8
Woe to you who add house to house and join field to field until no place is left and you live alone in the land.

Jeremiah 17:11
Like a partridge hatching eggs it did not lay is the man who makes a fortune unjustly. In the middle of his days his riches will desert him, and in the end he will be the fool."

Micah 3:10
who build Zion with bloodshed and Jerusalem with iniquity.


Treasury of Scripture

Woe to him that builds his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that uses his neighbor's service without wages, and gives him not for his work;

unto.

Jeremiah 22:18
Therefore thus saith the LORD concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah; They shall not lament for him, saying, Ah my brother! or, Ah sister! they shall not lament for him, saying, Ah lord! or, Ah his glory!

2 Kings 23:35-37
And Jehoiakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh; but he taxed the land to give the money according to the commandment of Pharaoh: he exacted the silver and the gold of the people of the land, of every one according to his taxation, to give it unto Pharaohnechoh…

2 Chronicles 36:4
And the king of Egypt made Eliakim his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem, and turned his name to Jehoiakim. And Necho took Jehoahaz his brother, and carried him to Egypt.

buildeth.

Leviticus 19:13
Thou shalt not defraud thy neighbour, neither rob him: the wages of him that is hired shall not abide with thee all night until the morning.

Deuteronomy 24:14,15
Thou shalt not oppress an hired servant that is poor and needy, whether he be of thy brethren, or of thy strangers that are in thy land within thy gates: …

Job 24:10,11
They cause him to go naked without clothing, and they take away the sheaf from the hungry; …

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Buildeth Builds Chambers Countrymen Curse Hire House Injustice Justice Makes Making Neighbor Neighbor's Neighbour Neighbour's Palace Pay Paying Payment Righteousness Rooms Serve Service Services Unrighteousness Upper Use Uses Useth Wages Woe Work Wrong Wrongdoing
Jeremiah 22
1. He exhorts to repentance, with promises and threats.
10. The judgment of Shallum;
13. of Jehoiakim;
20. and of Coniah.














(13) Woe unto him that buildeth . . .--The prophet now turns to Jehoiakim, and apparently reproduces what he had before uttered in denouncing the selfish bearing of that king. The feelings of the people, already suffering from the miseries of foreign invasion, were outraged by the revival of the forced labour of the days of Solomon, pressing in this instance not on the "strangers" of alien blood (1Kings 5:13-15; 2Chronicles 2:17-18), but on the Israelites themselves. We are reminded of the general characteristics of Eastern, and perhaps of all other, despotism. Like the modern rulers of Constantinople, Jehoiakim went on building palaces when his kingdom was on the verge of ruin, and his subjects were groaning under their burdens.

His chambers.--Strictly speaking, the upper storeys of the house. This is dwelt on as aggravating the severity of the work.

Without wages.--The labourers were treated as slaves, and, like the Israelites in their Egyptian bondage (Exodus 16:3), received their food, but nothing more.

Verse 13. - Shallum, or Jehoahaz, in his short reign of three months, had no opportunity of distinguishing himself for good or for evil It was otherwise with Jehoiakim, whose eleven years were marked by the worst characteristics of idolatry and despotism. He "had, besides, a passion for building splendid and costly houses; and as he esteemed his own position secure under the protection of a superior power, he did not scruple severely to oppress his helpless subjects, and wring from them as much money as possible" (Ewald, 'History of Israel,' 4:252; see 2 Kings 23:33-35). The building mania, to which Oriental sovereigns have always been prone, had seized upon Jehoiakim. The architecture of the original palace no longer, perhaps, suited the higher degree of civilization; the space was as confined as that of a Saxon mansion would have appeared to a Norman. That buildeth his house by unrighteousness; i.e., as the second half-verse explains, by not paying the workmen (comp. Habakkuk 2:12).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
“Woe
ה֣וֹי (hō·w)
Interjection
Strong's 1945: Ah! alas! ha!

to him who builds
בֹּנֶ֤ה (bō·neh)
Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine singular
Strong's 1129: To build

his palace
בֵיתוֹ֙ (ḇê·ṯōw)
Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 1004: A house

by
בְּֽלֹא־ (bə·lō-)
Preposition-b | Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

unrighteousness,
צֶ֔דֶק (ṣe·ḏeq)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 6664: The right, equity, prosperity

and his upper rooms
וַעֲלִיּוֹתָ֖יו (wa·‘ă·lî·yō·w·ṯāw)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - feminine plural construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 5944: Something lofty, a stair-way, a second-story room, the sky

without
בְּלֹ֣א (bə·lō)
Preposition-b | Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

justice,
מִשְׁפָּ֑ט (miš·pāṭ)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 4941: A verdict, a sentence, formal decree, divine law, penalty, justice, privilege, style

who makes his countrymen
בְּרֵעֵ֙הוּ֙ (bə·rê·‘ê·hū)
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 7453: Friend, companion, fellow

serve
יַעֲבֹ֣ד (ya·‘ă·ḇōḏ)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5647: To work, to serve, till, enslave

without pay,
חִנָּ֔ם (ḥin·nām)
Adverb
Strong's 2600: Gratis, devoid of cost, reason, advantage

and will not
לֹ֥א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

give
יִתֶּן־ (yit·ten-)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5414: To give, put, set

him
לֽוֹ׃ (lōw)
Preposition | third person masculine singular
Strong's Hebrew

his wages,
וּפֹעֲל֖וֹ (ū·p̄ō·‘ă·lōw)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 6467: Doing, deed, work


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OT Prophets: Jeremiah 22:13 Woe to him who builds his house (Jer.)
Jeremiah 22:12
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