Jeremiah 22:20
“Go up to Lebanon, and cry out, and lift up your voice in Bashan; cry out from Abarim, for all your lovers are destroyed.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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This verse isn't just calling for lament, but directing it from the highest peaks and borders of the land. It’s as if God is saying, "Let your cries echo from every vantage point, for all those you trusted for help are now gone."
This passage shifts focus to King Jehoiachin, describing Judah's impending destruction and the prophet's summons to lament across the land's borders. Jeremiah calls out from significant geographical locations – Lebanon, Bashan, and Abarim – to emphasize the completeness of the coming devastation. This cry is a lament for Judah's "lovers," its foreign allies like Egypt, who are now destroyed and can offer no help against the Babylonian threat.
Why would God tell his people to cry out from specific mountains? What does this geographic command reveal about their situation?
Jeremiah calls for cries to be lifted from Lebanon, Bashan, and Abarim. These aren't just random locations; they are significant mountain ranges and geographical markers that define the borders and landscape of their known world.
A Symbolic Landscape of Despair
By directing the cries to these high and prominent places, God is not asking for a quiet whisper. He's calling for a public, undeniable expression of grief that echoes across the very land they once celebrated. It’s a declaration that their former strength and prosperity are gone, and their only recourse is a desperate cry.
The verse speaks of 'lovers' being destroyed. Who are these 'lovers,' and why is their destruction so significant to Judah's fate?
The term 'lovers' here is a poignant metaphor. In the ancient Near East, and especially in prophetic language, 'lovers' refers to political allies and alliances. Judah had a pattern of seeking security not in God, but in strategic partnerships with surrounding nations, particularly Egypt.
Failed Alliances, Forsaken Faith
Understand the original words
me'ahev · Hebrew Noun
Refers to political or military alliances that Judah formed with foreign powers rather than trusting in God. These powers are called 'lovers' to depict their idolatrous and unfaithful reliance on foreign nations.
The prophet Jeremiah's words to King Jehoiachin are set against the backdrop of Judah's collapsing alliances, particularly with Egypt, after the decisive Babylonian victory at Carchemish. The 'lovers' destroyed refer to these former allies who can no longer offer protection, leaving Judah vulnerable to Nebuchadnezzar's power.
c. 605 BC
Battle of Carchemish
Nebuchadnezzar, crown prince of Babylon, decisively defeats the Egyptian army under Pharaoh Necho II, ending Egyptian influence in the region.
601 BC
Nebuchadnezzar's Invasion of Judah
Nebuchadnezzar invades Judah and besieges Jerusalem, but withdraws after an indecisive battle with Egypt. King Jehoiakim rebels against Babylon.
c. 598-597 BC— this verse
First Deportation of Jerusalem
Nebuchadnezzar returns and besieges Jerusalem. King Jehoiakim is killed, and his son Jehoiachin surrenders. He and many others are deported to Babylon.
c. 597 BC
Zedekiah Appointed King
Nebuchadnezzar installs Zedekiah, another son of Josiah, as king of Judah, but he too eventually rebels, leading to further conflict.
This passage uses the vivid imagery of a 'young lion' that becomes trapped and exiled, mirroring the tragic fate of Jehoiachin described in Jeremiah 22:20 and underscoring the theme of fallen royalty and lost power.
Jeremiah 46:2This verse speaks of the defeat of Pharaoh-nechoh at Carchemish, which directly relates to the 'lovers' mentioned in Jeremiah 22:20, as Egypt was a primary ally that ultimately failed Judah.
Isaiah 40:9While Isaiah 40:9 calls Zion to 'lift up your voice with strength,' it's a call of hope and proclamation. Jeremiah 22:20 uses a similar call to cry out, but in despair, highlighting the stark contrast between hope and destruction.
Jeremiah 2:36This verse criticizes Judah for constantly changing its 'lovers' (allies) and relying on Egypt, directly connecting to Jeremiah 22:20's lament over these failed alliances.
Jeremiah 1:18Jeremiah is promised to be an 'iron pillar and brazen walls,' a stark contrast to the 'lovers' of Judah who are 'destroyed' in Jeremiah 22:20, emphasizing the prophet's steadfastness against the nation's wavering allegiances.
clarkeJeremiah 22:20: "Go up to Lebanon, and cry; and lift up thy voice in Bashan, and cry from the passages: for all thy lovers are destroyed."
Go up to Lebanon - Probably Anti-Libanus, which, together with Bashan and Abarim, which we here translate passages, were on the way by which the captives should be led out of their own country.
pulpitJeremiah 22:20: "Go up to Lebanon, and cry; and lift up thy voice in Bashan, and cry from the passages: for all thy lovers are destroyed."
Verse 20. - A new strophe begins here, relative to Jehoiachin, the son and successor of Jehoiakim. Go up to Lebanon, and cry. The people of Judah is addressed, personified as a woman (comp. Jeremiah 7:29). The penetrating character of the long-toned cry of an Arab has been mentioned by Dr. Thomson. In Isaiah 40:9 a similar command is given to Zion; but in wh…
This verse isn't just calling for lament, but directing it from the highest peaks and borders of the land. It’s as if God is saying, "Let your cries echo from every vantage point, for all those you trusted for help are now gone."
This passage shifts focus to King Jehoiachin, describing Judah's impending destruction and the prophet's summons to lament across the land's borders. Jeremiah calls out from significant geographical locations – Lebanon, Bashan, and Abarim – to emphasize the completeness of the coming devastation. This cry is a lament for Judah's "lovers," its foreign allies like Egypt, who are now destroyed and can offer no help against the Babylonian threat.
This passage shifts focus to King Jehoiachin, describing Judah's impending destruction and the prophet's summons to lament across the land's borders. Jeremiah calls out from significant geographical locations – Lebanon, Bashan, and Abarim – to emphasize the completeness of the coming devastation. This cry is a lament for Judah's "lovers," its foreign allies like Egypt, who are now destroyed and can offer no help against the Babylonian threat.
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This highlights a core theological truth: relying on human strength and political maneuvering, rather than on God's faithfulness, ultimately leads to devastation.
586 BC
Fall of Jerusalem
Nebuchadnezzar destroys Jerusalem and the Temple, exiling the remaining population to Babylon, marking the end of the Kingdom of Judah.
"“Go up to Lebanon, and cry out, and lift up your voice in Bashan; cry out from Abarim, for all your lovers are destroyed." — This verse isn't just calling for lament, but directing it from the highest peaks and borders of the land. It’s as if God is saying, "Let your cries echo from every vantage point, for all those you t…
