Jeremiah 10:20
New International Version
My tent is destroyed; all its ropes are snapped. My children are gone from me and are no more; no one is left now to pitch my tent or to set up my shelter.

New Living Translation
My home is gone, and no one is left to help me rebuild it. My children have been taken away, and I will never see them again.

English Standard Version
My tent is destroyed, and all my cords are broken; my children have gone from me, and they are not; there is no one to spread my tent again and to set up my curtains.

Berean Standard Bible
My tent is destroyed, and all its ropes are snapped. My sons have departed from me and are no more. I have no one left to pitch my tent or set up my curtains.

King James Bible
My tabernacle is spoiled, and all my cords are broken: my children are gone forth of me, and they are not: there is none to stretch forth my tent any more, and to set up my curtains.

New King James Version
My tent is plundered, And all my cords are broken; My children have gone from me, And they are no more. There is no one to pitch my tent anymore, Or set up my curtains.

New American Standard Bible
My tent is destroyed, And all my ropes are broken. My sons have gone from me and are no more. There is no one to stretch out my tent again Or to set up my curtains.

NASB 1995
My tent is destroyed, And all my ropes are broken; My sons have gone from me and are no more. There is no one to stretch out my tent again Or to set up my curtains.

NASB 1977
My tent is destroyed, And all my ropes are broken; My sons have gone from me and are no more. There is no one to stretch out my tent again Or to set up my curtains.

Legacy Standard Bible
My tent is destroyed, And all my ropes are torn out; My sons have gone from me and are no more. There is no one to stretch out my tent again Or to set up my curtains.

Amplified Bible
My tent is destroyed, And all my [tent] cords are broken; My children have been taken from me [as captives] and are no more. There is no one to stretch out my tent again And to set up my [tent] curtains.

Christian Standard Bible
My tent is destroyed; all my tent cords are snapped. My sons have departed from me and are no more. I have no one to pitch my tent again or to hang up my curtains.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
My tent is destroyed; all my tent cords are snapped. My sons have departed from me and are no more. I have no one to pitch my tent again or to hang up my curtains.

American Standard Version
My tent is destroyed, and all my cords are broken: my children are gone forth from me, and they are not: there is none to spread my tent any more, and to set up my curtains.

Contemporary English Version
Our homes are destroyed; our children are dead. No one is left to help us find shelter."

English Revised Version
My tent is spoiled, and all my cords are broken: my children are gone forth of me, and they are not: there is none to stretch forth my tent any more, and to set up my curtains.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
My tent is destroyed, and all my ropes are broken. My children have left me and have disappeared. There's no one to set up my tent again or put up my tent curtains.

Good News Translation
Our tents are ruined; the ropes that held them have broken. Our children have all gone away; there is no one left to put up our tents again; there is no one to hang their curtains."

International Standard Version
My tent is destroyed, and all my tent cords are broken. My sons have gone away from me, they no longer live. There is no one to pitch my tent again and set up my curtains.

Majority Standard Bible
My tent is destroyed, and all its ropes are snapped. My sons have departed from me and are no more. I have no one left to pitch my tent or set up my curtains.

NET Bible
But our tents have been destroyed. The ropes that held them in place have been ripped apart. Our children are gone and are not coming back. There is no survivor to put our tents back up, no one left to hang their tent curtains in place.

New Heart English Bible
My tent is destroyed, and all my cords are broken: my children are gone forth from me, and they are no more: there is none to spread my tent any more, and to set up my curtains.

Webster's Bible Translation
My tabernacle is laid waste, and all my cords are broken: my children are gone from me, and they are not: there is none to stretch forth my tent any more, and to set up my curtains.

World English Bible
My tent has been destroyed, and all my cords are broken. My children have gone away from me, and they are no more. There is no one to spread my tent any more, to set up my curtains.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
My tent has been spoiled, "" And all my cords have been broken, "" My sons have gone out from me, and they are not, "" There is none stretching out my tent anymore, "" And raising up my curtains.

Young's Literal Translation
My tent hath been spoiled, And all my cords have been broken, My sons have gone out from me, and they are not, There is none stretching out any more my tent, And raising up my curtains.

Smith's Literal Translation
My tent was laid waste, and all my cords were broken: my sons went forth from me, and they are not: none stretched forth my tent any more, and the place of my curtains.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
My tabernacle is laid waste, all my cords are broken: my children are gone out from me, and they are not: there is none to stretch forth my tent any more, and to set up my curtains.

Catholic Public Domain Version
My tent has been destroyed. All my cords have been broken. My sons have gone away from me; they did not remain. There is no one to stretch out my tent any more, nor to set up my curtains.

New American Bible
My tent is ruined, all its cords are severed. My children have left me, they are no more: no one to pitch my tent, no one to raise its curtains.

New Revised Standard Version
My tent is destroyed, and all my cords are broken; my children have gone from me, and they are no more; there is no one to spread my tent again, and to set up my curtains.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
My tabernacle is plundered and all its cords are cut off; my children have left me, and they are not; there is no one to pitch my tent again and to set up my curtains.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
My tents are plundered and all its cords are cut! My children went out from me and they are not! There is no one able to pitch again and to set up my tents
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
My tent is spoiled, And all my cords are broken; My children are gone forth of me, and they are not; There is none to stretch forth my tent any more, And to set up my curtains.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Thy tabernacle is in a ruinous state, it has perished; and all thy curtains have been torn asunder: my children and my cattle are no more: there is no more any place for my tabernacle, nor place for my curtains.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Coming Destruction
19Woe to me because of my brokenness; my wound is grievous! But I said, “This is truly my sickness, and I must bear it.” 20My tent is destroyed, and all its ropes are snapped. My sons have departed from me and are no more. I have no one left to pitch my tent or set up my curtains. 21For the shepherds have become senseless; they do not seek the LORD. Therefore they have not prospered, and all their flock is scattered.…

Cross References
Lamentations 2:5-7
The Lord is like an enemy; He has swallowed up Israel. He has swallowed up all her palaces and destroyed her strongholds. He has multiplied mourning and lamentation for the Daughter of Judah. / He has laid waste His tabernacle like a garden booth; He has destroyed His place of meeting. The LORD has made Zion forget her appointed feasts and Sabbaths. In His fierce anger He has despised both king and priest. / The Lord has rejected His altar; He has abandoned His sanctuary; He has delivered the walls of her palaces into the hand of the enemy. They have raised a shout in the house of the LORD as on the day of an appointed feast.

Isaiah 54:2-3
“Enlarge the site of your tent, stretch out the curtains of your dwellings, do not hold back. Lengthen your ropes and drive your stakes in deep. / For you will spread out to the right and left; your descendants will dispossess the nations and inhabit the desolate cities.

Ezekiel 19:12-14
But it was uprooted in fury, cast down to the ground, and the east wind dried up its fruit. Its strong branches were stripped off and they withered; the fire consumed them. / Now it is planted in the wilderness, in a dry and thirsty land. / Fire has gone out from its main branch and devoured its fruit; on it no strong branch remains fit for a ruler’s scepter.’ This is a lament and shall be used as a lament.”

Isaiah 49:19-21
For your ruined and desolate places and your ravaged land will now indeed be too small for your people, and those who devoured you will be far away. / Yet the children of your bereavement will say in your hearing, ‘This place is too small for us; make room for us to live here.’ / Then you will say in your heart, ‘Who has begotten these for me? I was bereaved and barren; I was exiled and rejected. So who has reared them? Look, I was left all alone, so where did they come from?’”

Micah 1:9-16
For her wound is incurable; it has reached even Judah; it has approached the gate of my people, as far as Jerusalem itself. / Do not tell it in Gath; do not weep at all. Roll in the dust in Beth-leaphrah. / Depart in shameful nakedness, O dwellers of Shaphir. The dwellers of Zaanan will not come out. Beth-ezel is in mourning; its support is taken from you. ...

Isaiah 3:26
And the gates of Zion will lament and mourn; destitute, she will sit on the ground.

Ezekiel 7:22-24
I will turn My face away from them, and they will defile My treasured place. Violent men will enter it, and they will defile it. / Forge the chain, for the land is full of crimes of bloodshed, and the city is full of violence. / So I will bring the most wicked of nations to take possession of their houses. I will end the pride of the mighty, and their holy places will be profaned.

Amos 5:2
“Fallen is Virgin Israel, never to rise again. She lies abandoned on her land, with no one to raise her up.”

Isaiah 27:10
For the fortified city lies deserted—a homestead abandoned, a wilderness forsaken. There the calves graze, and there they lie down; they strip its branches bare.

Hosea 9:12-17
Even if they raise their children, I will bereave them of each one. Yes, woe be to them when I turn away from them! / I have seen Ephraim, like Tyre, planted in a meadow. But Ephraim will bring out his children for slaughter. / Give them, O LORD—what will You give? Give them wombs that miscarry and breasts that dry up! ...

Zechariah 11:2-3
Wail, O cypress, for the cedar has fallen; the majestic trees are ruined! Wail, O oaks of Bashan, for the dense forest has been cut down! / Listen to the wailing of the shepherds, for their glory is in ruins. Listen to the roaring of the young lions, for the thickets of the Jordan are destroyed.

Matthew 23:38
Look, your house is left to you desolate.

Luke 13:35
Look, your house is left to you desolate. And I tell you that you will not see Me again until you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.’”

Revelation 18:2
And he cried out in a mighty voice: “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! She has become a lair for demons and a haunt for every unclean spirit, every unclean bird, and every detestable beast.

Matthew 24:2
“Do you see all these things?” He replied. “Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”


Treasury of Scripture

My tabernacle is spoiled, and all my cords are broken: my children are gone forth of me, and they are not: there is none to stretch forth my tent any more, and to set up my curtains.

tabernacle.

Jeremiah 4:20
Destruction upon destruction is cried; for the whole land is spoiled: suddenly are my tents spoiled, and my curtains in a moment.

Isaiah 54:2
Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes;

Lamentations 2:4-6
He hath bent his bow like an enemy: he stood with his right hand as an adversary, and slew all that were pleasant to the eye in the tabernacle of the daughter of Zion: he poured out his fury like fire…

my children.

Jeremiah 31:15
Thus saith the LORD; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rahel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not.

Job 7:8
The eye of him that hath seen me shall see me no more: thine eyes are upon me, and I am not.

Proverbs 12:7
The wicked are overthrown, and are not: but the house of the righteous shall stand.

there.

Jeremiah 4:20
Destruction upon destruction is cried; for the whole land is spoiled: suddenly are my tents spoiled, and my curtains in a moment.

Isaiah 51:16
And I have put my words in thy mouth, and I have covered thee in the shadow of mine hand, that I may plant the heavens, and lay the foundations of the earth, and say unto Zion, Thou art my people.

Jump to Previous
Broken Children Cords Curtains Despoiled Destroyed Forth Hanging Help Laid Pitch Pulled Raising Ropes Shelter Snapped Spoiled Spread Stretch Stretching Tabernacle Tent Waste
Jump to Next
Broken Children Cords Curtains Despoiled Destroyed Forth Hanging Help Laid Pitch Pulled Raising Ropes Shelter Snapped Spoiled Spread Stretch Stretching Tabernacle Tent Waste
Jeremiah 10
1. The unequal comparison of God and idols.
17. The prophet exhorts to flee from the calamity to come.
19. He laments the spoil of the tabernacle by foolish pastors.
23. He makes an humble supplication.














My tent is destroyed
The imagery of a tent in ancient Israelite culture often symbolizes a dwelling place or a temporary abode. The Hebrew word for "tent" is "אֹהֶל" (ohel), which can also represent the tabernacle, a sacred place of meeting with God. The destruction of the tent signifies a profound loss and vulnerability, reflecting the dismantling of the people's spiritual and communal life. Historically, this can be seen as a metaphor for the impending Babylonian exile, where the Israelites would lose their homeland and the center of their worship.

all its ropes are snapped
Ropes, or "מֵיתָר" (meitar) in Hebrew, are essential for holding a tent together, providing stability and structure. The snapping of the ropes indicates a complete breakdown of order and security. This phrase suggests the fragility of human constructs when they are not anchored in God. It serves as a reminder of the consequences of turning away from divine guidance, leading to the unraveling of societal and spiritual cohesion.

My children have departed from me and are no more
The departure of children, "בָּנַי" (banai), is a poignant expression of loss and desolation. In the context of Jeremiah, this can be understood as the scattering of the people of Judah due to conquest and exile. Children represent the future and continuity of a family or nation. Their absence underscores the severing of generational ties and the interruption of God's covenantal promises. This phrase evokes a deep sense of mourning and the consequences of collective disobedience to God's commands.

No one is left to pitch my tent
The act of pitching a tent, "לִנְטוֹת" (lintot), involves establishing a place of dwelling and security. The absence of anyone to perform this task highlights the complete desolation and abandonment faced by the people. It reflects the spiritual desolation where there is no one left to restore the relationship with God or to rebuild the community. This serves as a call to repentance and the need for divine intervention to restore what has been lost.

or set up my curtains
Curtains, or "יְרִיעוֹת" (yeriot), in the context of a tent, provide privacy and protection. In the tabernacle, curtains also held significant religious symbolism, representing the separation between the holy and the common. The inability to set up these curtains signifies a loss of sacred space and the protective presence of God. Historically, this reflects the destruction of the temple and the loss of a central place of worship. Spiritually, it calls believers to seek restoration and renewal in their relationship with God, emphasizing the need for a return to holiness and divine fellowship.

(20) My tabernacle . . .--The tent which had been the home of Israel is destroyed, the cords that fastened it to the ground are broken, the children that used to help their mother in arranging the tent and its curtains "are not," i.e. (as in Genesis 42:36; Jeremiah 31:15; Matthew 2:18), they are either dead or in exile. There is something significant in the fact that the destruction of the city is represented under the imagery of that of a tent. The daughter of Zion has, as it were, been brought back to her nomadic state.

Verse 20. - My tabernacle; rather, my tent. It is very striking how present to the minds of the Israelites was the consciousness of their pastoral origin. Hence the cry, "To your tents, O Israel" (1 Kings 12:16); comp. also, "And the children of Israel dwelt in their tents, as aforetime" (2 Kings 13:5). My cords ... my curtains. The "cords ' are those which, by being fastened to poles and stakes, keep the tent steady; the "curtains," of course, are the covering of the tent (comp. Isaiah 54:2).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
My tent
אָהֳלִ֣י (’ā·ho·lî)
Noun - masculine singular construct | first person common singular
Strong's 168: A tent

is destroyed,
שֻׁדָּ֔ד (šud·dāḏ)
Verb - Pual - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 7703: To deal violently with, despoil, devastate, ruin

and all
וְכָל־ (wə·ḵāl)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every

its ropes
מֵיתָרַ֖י (mê·ṯā·ray)
Noun - masculine plural construct | first person common singular
Strong's 4340: A cord, the string

are snapped.
נִתָּ֑קוּ (nit·tā·qū)
Verb - Nifal - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 5423: To pull, draw, or tear away, apart, or off

My sons
בָּנַ֤י (bā·nay)
Noun - masculine plural construct | first person common singular
Strong's 1121: A son

have departed from me
יְצָאֻ֙נִי֙ (yə·ṣā·’u·nî)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural | first person common singular
Strong's 3318: To go, bring, out, direct and proxim

and are no more.
וְאֵינָ֔ם (wə·’ê·nām)
Conjunctive waw | Adverb | third person masculine plural
Strong's 369: A non-entity, a negative particle

I have no one
אֵין־ (’ên-)
Adverb
Strong's 369: A non-entity, a negative particle

left
עוֹד֙ (‘ō·wḏ)
Adverb
Strong's 5750: Iteration, continuance, again, repeatedly, still, more

to pitch
נֹטֶ֥ה (nō·ṭeh)
Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine singular
Strong's 5186: To stretch out, spread out, extend, incline, bend

my tent
אָהֳלִ֔י (’ā·ho·lî)
Noun - masculine singular construct | first person common singular
Strong's 168: A tent

or set up
וּמֵקִ֖ים (ū·mê·qîm)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Hifil - Participle - masculine singular
Strong's 6965: To arise, stand up, stand

my curtains.
יְרִיעוֹתָֽי׃ (yə·rî·‘ō·w·ṯāy)
Noun - feminine plural construct | first person common singular
Strong's 3407: A hanging


Links
Jeremiah 10:20 NIV
Jeremiah 10:20 NLT
Jeremiah 10:20 ESV
Jeremiah 10:20 NASB
Jeremiah 10:20 KJV

Jeremiah 10:20 BibleApps.com
Jeremiah 10:20 Biblia Paralela
Jeremiah 10:20 Chinese Bible
Jeremiah 10:20 French Bible
Jeremiah 10:20 Catholic Bible

OT Prophets: Jeremiah 10:20 My tent is destroyed and all my (Jer.)
Jeremiah 10:19
Top of Page
Top of Page