Jeremiah 16:6
Both great and small shall die in this land. They shall not be buried, and no one shall lament for them or cut himself or make himself bald for them.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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What's striking here isn't just the prediction of death, but the lack of normal grieving rituals. The verse highlights that the devastation will be so absolute that customary mourning practices, even those forbidden pagan ones like cutting oneself or shaving the head in grief, won't even happen. It paints a chilling picture of a society so overwhelmed by death that the very human expressions of sorrow are rendered impossible.
In this chapter, God tells Jeremiah not to marry or have children because a devastating judgment is coming upon Judah for its unfaithfulness. This verse reveals the sheer scale of the impending destruction – so many will die that no one will be left to bury them, mourn them, or perform the usual customs of grief, even those pagan practices God had forbidden them. The coming disaster is so immense that normal human responses and rituals will be completely overwhelmed.
Imagine a plague so widespread that the usual rituals of death become impossible. This verse paints a grim picture of a society overwhelmed by death.
Jeremiah 16:6 vividly describes a catastrophic scenario where death strikes indiscriminately across all social strata – 'both great and small.' The sheer scale of mortality means that the traditional ways of honoring the dead are simply not possible.
No Time for Mourning
The verse states, 'They shall not be buried, and no one shall lament for them.' This isn't just about a lack of sadness; it signifies a complete breakdown of societal order. Burial is a fundamental act of respect, and lamentation is how a community processes grief. When these cease, it points to a profound crisis where survival takes precedence, or perhaps, where the living are too numb from shock and sorrow to perform these duties.
The Loss of Ritual
Further, the text mentions 'nor cut himself or make himself bald for them.' These were outward expressions of grief, often extreme and even forbidden by God's law in Leviticus and Deuteronomy. The fact that these customs are mentioned, even though forbidden, highlights how deeply ingrained and widespread they were as expressions of sorrow. However, in this impending devastation, even these intense, though sometimes improper, displays of mourning will cease, not because the grief is less, but because the circumstances make them impossible.
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What does it mean when even forbidden practices stop, not because they are now approved, but because disaster has struck?
Jeremiah 16:6 points to the cessation of specific mourning customs: 'nor cut himself or make himself bald for them.' These actions were explicitly forbidden in the Old Testament Law (Leviticus 19:28, Deuteronomy 14:1), likely to distinguish Israel from the surrounding pagan nations who engaged in such extreme displays of grief. These acts were seen as pagan and idolatrous.
Pagan Practices Under Judgment
Commentaries suggest that despite the prohibition, these customs were still practiced by some Israelites, especially during times of intense sorrow or due to syncretism with pagan beliefs. The fact that Jeremiah mentions them here, even though they were forbidden, serves a dual purpose:
Understand the original words
qabar · Hebrew Verb
To inter in the earth; in biblical culture, proper burial was a mark of honor and dignity, while being denied burial was considered a profound curse and divine judgment.
saphad · Hebrew Verb
To express profound grief or sorrow; often associated with public mourning rituals, such as weeping or singing dirges.
This passage describes the utter devastation and societal breakdown following the fall of Jerusalem. The extreme measures of grief—lamenting, cutting oneself, and shaving the head—were forbidden pagan practices that the people had adopted. Now, the sheer scale of death would make such rituals impossible and meaningless, as the living would be too overwhelmed by their own suffering to mourn, and too few in number to perform the necessary burial rites.
c. 722 BC
Fall of Samaria and Assyrian Exile
The Northern Kingdom of Israel falls to the Assyrian Empire, leading to the deportation of many Israelites, a devastating event that Jeremiah's audience would remember.
c. 701 BC
Assyrian Siege of Jerusalem
The Assyrian army under Sennacherib besieges Jerusalem, though the city is miraculously spared. This event heightened anxieties about future destruction and exile.
605 BC
First Deportation to Babylon
Under Nebuchadnezzar, Babylon begins its conquest of Judah. The prophet Daniel and other young nobles are taken captive to Babylon, marking the start of the Babylonian exile.
597 BC
Second Deportation to Babylon
Nebuchadnezzar deports King Jehoiachin and thousands more Judeans, including the prophet Ezekiel, to Babylon after a renewed siege of Jerusalem.
587/586 BC— this verse
Fall of Jerusalem and Temple Destruction
The Babylonians destroy Jerusalem and its Temple, ending the Davidic monarchy. This is the peak of the catastrophe that Jeremiah prophesied, resulting in widespread death and exile.
c. 582 BC
Third Deportation to Babylon
Nebuchadnezzar conducts a final deportation from Judah, further scattering the remnant and solidifying the Babylonian domination of the land.
This passage directly prohibits the very practices of cutting oneself and making oneself bald for the dead that Jeremiah describes, highlighting how the Israelites had fallen into pagan customs.
Ezekiel 7:18This verse echoes the desolate grief described by Jeremiah, mentioning that the people will 'gird themselves with sackcloth' and be covered with 'baldness,' showing a widespread societal despair.
Jeremiah 41:5This passage provides a specific historical instance where men from Shechem, Shiloh, and Samaria came to the ruined temple, cutting themselves and mourning, demonstrating the 'barbarous customs' mentioned in relation to Jeremiah 16:6.
Isaiah 22:12This verse calls the people to repentance, urging them to lament and 'make themselves bald' in sorrow for their sin, similar to the intense, outward expressions of grief that were common, though forbidden in other contexts.
clarkeJeremiah 16:6: "Both the great and the small shall die in this land: they shall not be buried, neither shall men lament for them, nor cut themselves, nor make themselves bald for them:"
Nor cut themselves - A custom of the heathen forbidden to the Jews, Leviticus 19:28 ; Deuteronomy 14:1 , and which appears now to have prevailed among them; because, having become idolaters, they conformed to all the customs of the heathen. They tore their hair, rent their garments, cut their hands, arms, and fa…
pooleJeremiah 16:6: "Both the great and the small shall die in this land: they shall not be buried, neither shall men lament for them, nor cut themselves, nor make themselves bald for them:"
There shall so many of all ranks and sizes die in this land, that men shall have no time to bury them, or there shall not be enough left living to bury the dead; nor shall men, for their own miseries, have leisure to lament for the miseries of other men. Cutting themselves in their flesh, and cutting off their h…
What's striking here isn't just the prediction of death, but the lack of normal grieving rituals. The verse highlights that the devastation will be so absolute that customary mourning practices, even those forbidden pagan ones like cutting oneself or shaving the head in grief, won't even happen. It paints a chilling picture of a society so overwhelmed by death that the very human expressions of sorrow are rendered impossible.
In this chapter, God tells Jeremiah not to marry or have children because a devastating judgment is coming upon Judah for its unfaithfulness. This verse reveals the sheer scale of the impending destruction – so many will die that no one will be left to bury them, mourn them, or perform the usual customs of grief, even those pagan practices God had forbidden them. The coming disaster is so immense that normal human responses and rituals will be completely overwhelmed.
In this chapter, God tells Jeremiah not to marry or have children because a devastating judgment is coming upon Judah for its unfaithfulness. This verse reveals the sheer scale of the impending destruction – so many will die that no one will be left to bury them, mourn them, or perform the usual customs of grief, even those pagan practices God had forbidden them. The coming disaster is so immense that normal human responses and rituals will be completely overwhelmed.
"Both great and small shall die in this land. They shall not be buried, and no one shall lament for them or cut himself or make himself bald for them." — What's striking here isn't just the prediction of death, but the lack of normal grieving rituals. The verse highlights that the devastation will be so absolute that customary mourning practices, ev…
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