Jeremiah 25:15-17
Thus the LORD, the God of Israel, said to me: “Take from my hand this cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it. They shall drink and stagger and be crazed because of the sword that I am sending among them.” So I took the cup from the LORD’s hand, and made all the nations to whom the LORD sent me drink it:
English Standard Version (ESV)
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This vision reveals that God doesn't just send judgment on one nation; He holds a cup of "fury" that He personally hands to Jeremiah, entrusting him to distribute it to all the nations He sends him to. This emphasizes that God's judgment isn't random but is a deliberate, measured act flowing directly from His hand.
The Lord has just declared that Jerusalem and the surrounding nations will face desolation and be judged. To vividly illustrate this coming wrath, God gives Jeremiah a symbolic vision: he must take a cup filled with the "wine of wrath" and offer it to all nations. This act signifies that God's judgment, poured out through the Babylonian empire, will be drunk by every nation to whom Jeremiah is sent.
Imagine God handing you a cup – not of comfort, but of fury. What does this powerful image reveal about God's perspective on sin and justice?
Jeremiah is called to a profound vision: God, the sovereign Lord, directly hands him a cup. This isn't a simple message; it's a visual prophecy.
The Cup's Contents
You might think judgment is only for a select few. But God's message to Jeremiah shows a much broader scope. What does this mean for us today?
This verse isn't just about Judah's punishment. God commands Jeremiah to 'cause all the nations to whom I send you drink it.'
A Universal Proclamation
Understand the original words
kos / chemah · Hebrew Noun
A common biblical metaphor representing the judgment, anger, or holy indignation of God against sin. It signifies the inescapable experience of God's righteous reaction to evil.
kos · Hebrew Noun
A physical tool for liquid, but biblically used as a frequent metaphor for a portion of divine experience, often representing divine wrath, judgment, or suffering poured out upon individuals or nations.
chereb · Hebrew Noun
A weapon of war, but frequently utilized in Scripture as a symbol of divine judgment, warfare, and the execution of God's justice against rebellion and sin.
This prophecy of Jeremiah's envisions God using the powerful Babylonian Empire as an instrument of His wrath against Judah and surrounding nations. The 'cup of wrath' symbolizes the severe, intoxicating judgments God would pour out, a concept deeply rooted in the historical experience of multiple deportations and the ultimate destruction of Jerusalem.
Late 8th century BC
Assyrian Deportations
The Neo-Assyrian Empire carried out mass deportations of conquered populations, a practice that became a model for later empires like the Babylonians and Persians.
626 BC
Nabopolassar Establishes Neo-Babylonian Empire
Nabopolassar rebels against Assyrian rule and establishes the independent Neo-Babylonian Empire, setting the stage for Babylon's rise to power.
605 BC
First Babylonian Deportation
Nebuchadnezzar II, after defeating Egyptian and Assyrian forces, conquers Judah and deports a portion of the elite, including Daniel, to Babylon.
597 BC
Second Babylonian Deportation
Following a Judean revolt, Nebuchadnezzar deports more of Jerusalem's population, including the prophet Ezekiel and King Jehoiachin.
This passage directly echoes the imagery of a cup of wrath in God's hand, highlighting it as a symbol of divine judgment poured out on the wicked.
Isaiah 51:17Isaiah uses a similar metaphor of a cup of trembling and wrath from the Lord's hand, showing this symbolic language was a recurring prophetic theme to describe God's judgment.
Ezekiel 23:31-34Here, Ezekiel describes God giving a cup of punishment and desolation to the unfaithful, illustrating how the nations in Jeremiah's prophecy would experience God's judgment as a terrifying, inebriating draught.
Revelation 14:10This New Testament passage directly references the 'cup of the wine of the wrath of God,' demonstrating the enduring symbolic power of Jeremiah's vision for understanding future divine judgment.
Revelation 18:6Similar to Jeremiah's prophecy, this vision in Revelation describes judgment coming to a symbolic 'Babylon' in the form of a cup mixed double, emphasizing that judgment is measured and complete.
gillJeremiah 25:15: "For thus saith the LORD God of Israel unto me; Take the wine cup of this fury at my hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send thee, to drink it."
For thus saith the Lord God of Israel unto me,.... The prophet: take the wine cup of this fury at my hand; in a vision the Lord appeared to Jeremiah with a cup of wine in his hand, which he bid him take of him. It is usual in Scripture for the judgments of God on men to be signified by a cup of hot and intoxicating liquor, Isaia…
calvinJeremiah 25:15: "For thus saith the LORD God of Israel unto me; Take the wine cup of this fury at my hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send thee, to drink it."
- Quia sic dixit Jehova Deus Israel ad me, Sume calicem vini furoris (vel, iracundiae) Sume calicem vini furoris (vel, iracundiae) hujus e manu mea, et propina illum cunctis gentibus, ad quas ego mittam to ad eas (sed hoc secundum redundat.)
Jeremiah now explains more at large what might on account of its brevity have appeare…
This vision reveals that God doesn't just send judgment on one nation; He holds a cup of "fury" that He personally hands to Jeremiah, entrusting him to distribute it to all the nations He sends him to. This emphasizes that God's judgment isn't random but is a deliberate, measured act flowing directly from His hand.
The Lord has just declared that Jerusalem and the surrounding nations will face desolation and be judged. To vividly illustrate this coming wrath, God gives Jeremiah a symbolic vision: he must take a cup filled with the "wine of wrath" and offer it to all nations. This act signifies that God's judgment, poured out through the Babylonian empire, will be drunk by every nation to whom Jeremiah is sent.
The Lord has just declared that Jerusalem and the surrounding nations will face desolation and be judged. To vividly illustrate this coming wrath, God gives Jeremiah a symbolic vision: he must take a cup filled with the "wine of wrath" and offer it to all nations. This act signifies that God's judgment, poured out through the Babylonian empire, will be drunk by every nation to whom Jeremiah is sent.
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c. 587-586 BC— this verse
Fall of Jerusalem and Third Deportation
Nebuchadnezzar destroys Jerusalem and its Temple, exiling the remaining significant population. This event is a pivotal moment of judgment for Judah.
c. 539 BC
Fall of Babylon
The Persian Empire, under Cyrus the Great, conquers Babylon, ending the Neo-Babylonian Empire. This marks a shift in regional power and sets the stage for the return of exiles.
"Thus the LORD, the God of Israel, said to me: “Take from my hand this cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it. They shall drink and stagger and be crazed because of the sword that I am sending among t…" — This vision reveals that God doesn't just send judgment on one nation; He holds a cup of "fury" that He personally hands to Jeremiah, entrusting him to distribute it to all the nations He sends h…
