Jeremiah 13:17
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Jeremiah's weeping isn't just for the people's impending exile, but specifically for their pride, which the text links directly to their downfall. It’s a profound sorrow rooted in seeing God's people, His "flock," treated as mere spoils of war because of their arrogance.
But if you will not listen, my soul will weep in secret for your pride; my eyes will weep bitterly and run down with tears, because the LORD’s flock has been taken captive.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Jeremiah has been given a symbolic object, a linen sash, to illustrate the defilement and destruction that will befall Judah due to their pride and sin. He has just delivered a stern warning that if they don't listen to God's word, they will be scattered and ruined like the ruined sash. This verse describes the prophet's personal sorrow and despair if his prophetic warnings are ignored, leading to the inevitable captivity of God's people, who are referred to as the Lord's flock.
When pleas fail, what does a prophet do? Jeremiah's response is heart-wrenching, revealing a sorrow that goes beyond public pronouncements.
Jeremiah declares that if the people refuse to listen to God's warnings, his 'soul shall weep in secret places for your pride.' This isn't just a sadness for their impending doom, but a deep grief specifically over their 'pride.' Pride, in the biblical sense, is often a defiant self-sufficiency, an elevation of self above God. It’s this root sin that Jeremiah mourns, knowing it’s the very thing leading them to ruin. His tears aren't just for the consequences, but for the rebellion itself.
His weeping is also 'in secret places.' This suggests a sorrow so profound it can’t be contained by public performance. It’s a private agony, a deep lament that separates him from the very people he’s called to warn, highlighting the prophet’s personal burden and the isolating nature of seeing spiritual blindness.
God calls His people 'the Lord's flock.' What does this intimate relationship mean, and why does its captivity cause such deep sorrow?
The phrase 'the Lord’s flock' paints a vivid picture of God’s tender care and ownership over His people. Like a shepherd watches over sheep, God shepherds Israel. This imagery emphasizes their vulnerability and His responsibility.
When Jeremiah weeps because 'the LORD’s flock has been taken captive,' it's not just a political defeat he laments. It’s a spiritual tragedy. This 'flock' represents God’s covenant people, those set apart for Him. Their captivity signifies a loss of divine protection, a scattering of God’s people, and a seeming absence of His presence. For Jeremiah, this wasn't merely the suffering of individuals, but a grief over what this loss meant for God’s name and His redemptive purposes.
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Understand the original words
ṣō’n · Hebrew Noun
A term frequently used to describe Israel as belonging to Yahweh, who is their Shepherd. It emphasizes the intimacy of the relationship, the accountability of the leaders, and the vulnerability of the people under God's care.
gē’ût · Hebrew Noun
An attitude of self-reliance or arrogance that stands in opposition to God; it is the fundamental sin of elevating oneself above the Creator. Pride is regarded as the root cause of rebellion, leading to spiritual blindness and eventual destruction.
Jeremiah's weeping stems from the profound sorrow over the impending Babylonian exile. The verse specifically laments the captivity of 'the LORD's flock,' a moment deeply tied to the second deportation in 597 BC, when King Jehoiachin and many of the people were taken captive, marking the beginning of the most significant period of exile and loss for Judah.
c. 605 BC
First Babylonian Deportation
Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, conquers Judah and carries away a portion of the population, including members of the royal family and skilled individuals, to Babylon. This event marks the beginning of the Babylonian exile.
c. 597 BC— this verse
Second Babylonian Deportation
Following a Judean revolt, Nebuchadnezzar again besieges Jerusalem. This time, King Jehoiachin and a larger group of the elite, including the prophet Ezekiel, are exiled to Babylon. This event is pivotal for the seventy-year exile prophecy.
c. 586 BC
Fall of Jerusalem and Third Deportation
After another rebellion, Nebuchadnezzar destroys Jerusalem, its temple, and carries away the remaining population. Only the poorest are left to tend the land. This is the final destruction of the Judean kingdom.
c. 586 BC - 538 BC
Babylonian Exile Period
The Jewish people live in exile in Babylon, maintaining their religious identity and developing new forms of worship and community life, such as the synagogue.
c. 539 BC
Cyrus the Great conquers Babylon
The Persian king Cyrus the Great overthrows the Babylonian Empire, opening the way for the exiled Jews to eventually return to their homeland.
c. 538 BC
Edict of Cyrus allows return
Cyrus issues a decree permitting the Jewish exiles to return to Judah and rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem, marking the beginning of the return and restoration period.
This passage shows Jesus weeping over Jerusalem, mirroring Jeremiah's profound sorrow for his people and their impending doom.
Romans 9:2Paul expresses his deep anguish and 'great heaviness and continual sorrow' for his fellow Israelites, reflecting Jeremiah's personal grief over the 'Lord's flock' being scattered.
Psalm 77:20This psalm describes God leading His people 'like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron,' highlighting the shepherd-flock imagery that makes their captivity so tragic for Jeremiah.
Zechariah 10:3Zechariah speaks of God's anger against the shepherds (leaders) for His 'flock,' a theme that resonates with Jeremiah's lament over the pride of leaders leading to the people's (the flock's) captivity.
1 Samuel 15:35Samuel mourned for Saul after God rejected him, showing a prophetic figure's deep sorrow over a people's or leader's downfall, much like Jeremiah's grief in this verse.
barnesJeremiah 13:17: "But if ye will not hear it, my soul shall weep in secret places for your pride; and mine eye shall weep sore, and run down with tears, because the LORD'S flock is carried away captive."
The Lord's flock - The people carried away captive with Jeconiah formed the Jewish Church, as we are expressly told, whereas Zedekiah and the people of Jerusalem possessed only the externals of the Church and not its reality. It is for this reason that the seventy years' exile counts from Jeconi…
pulpitJeremiah 13:17: "But if ye will not hear it, my soul shall weep in secret places for your pride; and mine eye shall weep sore, and run down with tears, because the LORD'S flock is carried away captive."
Verse 17. - Should all admonitions be in vain, Jeremiah will return (like Samuel, 1 Samuel 15:35) and give vent to his sorrowful emotion. The Lord's flock. Jehovah is likened to a shepherd (comp. Zechariah 10:3).
Jeremiah's weeping isn't just for the people's impending exile, but specifically for their pride, which the text links directly to their downfall. It’s a profound sorrow rooted in seeing God's people, His "flock," treated as mere spoils of war because of their arrogance.
Jeremiah has been given a symbolic object, a linen sash, to illustrate the defilement and destruction that will befall Judah due to their pride and sin. He has just delivered a stern warning that if they don't listen to God's word, they will be scattered and ruined like the ruined sash. This verse describes the prophet's personal sorrow and despair if his prophetic warnings are ignored, leading to the inevitable captivity of God's people, who are referred to as the Lord's flock.
Jeremiah has been given a symbolic object, a linen sash, to illustrate the defilement and destruction that will befall Judah due to their pride and sin. He has just delivered a stern warning that if they don't listen to God's word, they will be scattered and ruined like the ruined sash. This verse describes the prophet's personal sorrow and despair if his prophetic warnings are ignored, leading to the inevitable captivity of God's people, who are referred to as the Lord's flock.
"But if you will not listen, my soul will weep in secret for your pride; my eyes will weep bitterly and run down with tears, because the LORD’s flock has been taken captive." — Jeremiah's weeping isn't just for the people's impending exile, but specifically for their pride, which the text links directly to their downfall. It’s a profound sorrow rooted in seeing God's peop…
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Last reviewed October 2026
