Jeremiah 2:12
New International Version
Be appalled at this, you heavens, and shudder with great horror,” declares the LORD.

New Living Translation
The heavens are shocked at such a thing and shrink back in horror and dismay,” says the LORD.

English Standard Version
Be appalled, O heavens, at this; be shocked, be utterly desolate, declares the LORD,

Berean Standard Bible
Be stunned by this, O heavens; be shocked and utterly appalled,” declares the LORD.

King James Bible
Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith the LORD.

New King James Version
Be astonished, O heavens, at this, And be horribly afraid; Be very desolate,” says the LORD.

New American Standard Bible
“Be appalled at this, you heavens, And shudder, be very desolate,” declares the LORD.

NASB 1995
“Be appalled, O heavens, at this, And shudder, be very desolate,” declares the LORD.

NASB 1977
“Be appalled, O heavens, at this, And shudder, be very desolate,” declares the LORD.

Legacy Standard Bible
Be appalled, O heavens, at this, And be horribly afraid, be very devastated,” declares Yahweh.

Amplified Bible
“Be appalled, O heavens, at this; Be shocked and shudder with horror [at the behavior of the people],” says the LORD.

Christian Standard Bible
Be appalled at this, heavens; be shocked and utterly desolated! This is the LORD’s declaration.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Be horrified at this, heavens; be shocked and utterly appalled. This is the LORD’s declaration.

American Standard Version
Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith Jehovah.

Contemporary English Version
Tell the heavens to tremble with fear!

English Revised Version
Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith the LORD.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Be horrified over this, heaven. Be terribly afraid," declares the LORD.

Good News Translation
And so I command the sky to shake with horror, to be amazed and astonished,

International Standard Version
Heavens, be appalled at this, be shocked, be utterly devastated," declares the LORD.

Majority Standard Bible
Be stunned by this, O heavens; be shocked and utterly appalled,? declares the LORD.

NET Bible
Be amazed at this, O heavens! Be shocked and utterly dumbfounded," says the LORD.

New Heart English Bible
"Be astonished, you heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid. Be very desolate," says the LORD.

Webster's Bible Translation
Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith the LORD.

World English Bible
“Be astonished, you heavens, at this and be horribly afraid. Be very desolate,” says Yahweh.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
Be astonished, you heavens, at this, "" Indeed, be frightened, be greatly desolated,” "" A declaration of YHWH.

Young's Literal Translation
Be astonished, ye heavens, at this, Yea, be frightened, be greatly wasted, An affirmation of Jehovah.

Smith's Literal Translation
Be astonished, ye heavens, at this, and shudder; be ye greatly desolate, says Jehovah.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and ye gates thereof, be very desolate, saith the Lord.

Catholic Public Domain Version
Be astonished at this, O heavens, and be utterly desolate, O gates of heaven, says the Lord.

New American Bible
Be horrified at this, heavens; shudder, be appalled—oracle of the LORD.

New Revised Standard Version
Be appalled, O heavens, at this, be shocked, be utterly desolate, says the LORD,
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Be astonished, O heavens, at this, and tremble and be exceedingly afraid, says the LORD.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Be stupefied, Heaven, over this, and tremble and be very afraid, says LORD JEHOVAH
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, And be horribly afraid, be ye exceeding amazed, Saith the LORD.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
The heaven is amazed at this, and is very exceedingly horror-struck, saith the Lord.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Israel has Forsaken God
11Has a nation ever changed its gods, though they are no gods at all? Yet My people have exchanged their Glory for useless idols. 12Be stunned by this, O heavens; be shocked and utterly appalled,” declares the LORD. 13“For My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living water, and they have dug their own cisterns—broken cisterns that cannot hold water.…

Cross References
Isaiah 1:2
Listen, O heavens, and give ear, O earth, for the LORD has spoken: “I have raised children and brought them up, but they have rebelled against Me.

Isaiah 50:2
Why was no one there when I arrived? Why did no one answer when I called? Is My hand too short to redeem you? Or do I lack the strength to deliver you? Behold, My rebuke dries up the sea; I turn the rivers into a desert; the fish rot for lack of water and die of thirst.

Ezekiel 5:14-15
I will make you a ruin and a disgrace among the nations around you, in the sight of all who pass by. / So you will be a reproach and a taunt, a warning and a horror to the nations around you, when I execute judgments against you in anger, wrath, and raging fury. I, the LORD, have spoken.

Hosea 4:1-3
Hear the word of the LORD, O children of Israel, for the LORD has a case against the people of the land: “There is no truth, no loving devotion, and no knowledge of God in the land! / Cursing and lying, murder and stealing, and adultery are rampant; one act of bloodshed follows another. / Therefore the land mourns, and all who dwell in it will waste away with the beasts of the field and the birds of the air; even the fish of the sea disappear.

Micah 6:1-2
Hear now what the LORD says: “Arise, plead your case before the mountains, and let the hills hear your voice. / Hear, O mountains, the LORD’s indictment, you enduring foundations of the earth. For the LORD has a case against His people, and He will argue it against Israel:

Deuteronomy 32:1
Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak; hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.

Psalm 50:4
He summons the heavens above, and the earth, that He may judge His people:

Isaiah 24:19-20
The earth is utterly broken apart, the earth is split open, the earth is shaken violently. / The earth staggers like a drunkard and sways like a shack. Earth’s rebellion weighs it down, and it falls, never to rise again.

Isaiah 34:1-2
Come near, O nations, to listen; pay attention, O peoples. Let the earth hear, and all that fills it, the world and all that springs from it. / The LORD is angry with all the nations and furious with all their armies. He will devote them to destruction; He will give them over to slaughter.

Amos 3:9
Proclaim to the citadels of Ashdod and to the citadels of Egypt: “Assemble on the mountains of Samaria; see the great unrest in the city and the acts of oppression in her midst.”

Romans 8:22
We know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until the present time.

Matthew 11:20-24
Then Jesus began to denounce the cities in which most of His miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. / “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. / But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. ...

Luke 19:41-44
As Jesus approached Jerusalem and saw the city, He wept over it / and said, “If only you had known on this day what would bring you peace! But now it is hidden from your eyes. / For the days will come upon you when your enemies will barricade you and surround you and hem you in on every side. ...

Revelation 18:9-10
Then the kings of the earth who committed sexual immorality and lived in luxury with her will weep and wail at the sight of the smoke rising from the fire that consumes her. / In fear of her torment, they will stand at a distance and cry out: “Woe, woe to the great city, the mighty city of Babylon! For in a single hour your judgment has come.”

Revelation 18:15-17
The merchants who sold these things and gained their wealth from her will stand at a distance, in fear of her torment. They will weep and mourn, / saying: “Woe, woe to the great city, clothed in fine linen and purple and scarlet, adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls! / For in a single hour such fabulous wealth has been destroyed!” Every shipmaster, passenger, and sailor, and all who make their living from the sea, will stand at a distance


Treasury of Scripture

Be astonished, O you heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be you very desolate, said the LORD.

Jeremiah 6:19
Hear, O earth: behold, I will bring evil upon this people, even the fruit of their thoughts, because they have not hearkened unto my words, nor to my law, but rejected it.

Jeremiah 22:29
O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD.

Deuteronomy 32:1
Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.

Jump to Previous
Affirmation Afraid Amazed Appalled Astonished Completely Declares Desolate Exceeding Fear Frightened Full Great Greatly Heavens Horribly Horror Overcome Shocked Shudder Utterly Waste Wasted Wonder
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Affirmation Afraid Amazed Appalled Astonished Completely Declares Desolate Exceeding Fear Frightened Full Great Greatly Heavens Horribly Horror Overcome Shocked Shudder Utterly Waste Wasted Wonder
Jeremiah 2
1. God having shown his former kindness,
5. expostulates with the people on their causeless and unexampled revolt
14. They are the causes of their own calamities
18. The sins and idolatries of Judah
35. Her confidence is rejected.














Be appalled at this
The phrase "Be appalled at this" is a call to shock and horror. In Hebrew, the word used here is "שֹׁמּוּ" (shommu), which conveys a sense of being utterly desolate or devastated. This is not a mild surprise but a profound, gut-wrenching reaction. The context here is God's call to the heavens to witness the spiritual adultery of Israel. The heavens, often seen as witnesses to God's covenant with His people, are called to be appalled at Israel's betrayal. This highlights the gravity of Israel's sin and the deep sorrow it causes God.

O heavens
The "heavens" in this context refers to the celestial bodies and the spiritual realm, which are often personified in Scripture as witnesses to human actions. In Deuteronomy 30:19, Moses calls heaven and earth to witness against Israel, establishing a pattern of cosmic witnesses. The heavens are called to be appalled because they have seen the faithfulness of God and the unfaithfulness of His people. This phrase underscores the universal scope of Israel's sin and the cosmic order that is disrupted by their actions.

be shocked and utterly desolate
The Hebrew words here, "שֹׁמּוּ" (shommu) and "חָרְבוּ" (charbu), intensify the reaction expected from the heavens. "Shocked" implies a sudden and intense emotional response, while "utterly desolate" suggests a complete and overwhelming devastation. This language conveys the depth of Israel's apostasy and the profound impact it has on the created order. The use of such strong language emphasizes the seriousness of turning away from God, who is the source of life and order.

declares the LORD
The phrase "declares the LORD" is a solemn affirmation of divine authority. In Hebrew, "נְאֻם־יְהוָה" (ne'um-YHWH) is often used in prophetic literature to assert that the message comes directly from God. This declaration underscores the certainty and seriousness of the message. It is not merely a human observation but a divine pronouncement. The use of God's covenant name, YHWH, reminds the reader of His eternal faithfulness and the grievousness of Israel's unfaithfulness. This phrase assures the reader that the call to be appalled is not hyperbole but a reflection of God's righteous judgment.

(12) Be astonished, O ye heavens.--The adjuration had been made familiar by a like utterance in Isaiah 1:2; Deut. 32 1 "Astonished"--in the old sense, "thunder-stricken," stupefied. The whole universe is thought of as shocked and startled at the offence against its Creator.

Verse 12. - Be astonished. "Be appalled" would more nearly express the force of the Hebrew (so Jeremiah 18:16; Jeremiah 19:8). Be ye very desolate; literally, become dry; i.e. not so much "shrivel and roll up" (on the analogy of Isaiah 34:4), as "become stiff with horror."

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Be stunned
שֹׁ֥מּוּ (šōm·mū)
Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine plural
Strong's 8074: To stun, devastate, stupefy

by
עַל־ (‘al-)
Preposition
Strong's 5921: Above, over, upon, against

this,
זֹ֑את (zōṯ)
Pronoun - feminine singular
Strong's 2063: Hereby in it, likewise, the one other, same, she, so much, such deed, that,

O heavens,
שָׁמַ֖יִם (šā·ma·yim)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 8064: Heaven, sky

be shocked
וְשַׂעֲר֛וּ (wə·śa·‘ă·rū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine plural
Strong's 8175: To storm, to shiver, fear

and utterly
מְאֹ֖ד (mə·’ōḏ)
Adverb
Strong's 3966: Vehemence, vehemently, wholly, speedily

appalled,
חָרְב֥וּ (ḥā·rə·ḇū)
Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine plural
Strong's 2717: To parch, to desolate, destroy, kill

declares
נְאֻם־ (nə·’um-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 5002: An oracle

the LORD.
יְהוָֽה׃ (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3068: LORD -- the proper name of the God of Israel


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OT Prophets: Jeremiah 2:12 Be astonished you heavens at this (Jer.)
Jeremiah 2:11
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