Go up to Lebanon, and cry; and lift up thy voice in Bashan, and cry from the passages: for all thy lovers are destroyed.

JEREMIAH 22:20KJV
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Jeremiah 22:20 (KJV)

What does Jeremiah 22:20 mean?

Jeremiah 22:20 is a message of warning and lament, telling Jerusalem (personified as a woman) to cry out from the mountains of Lebanon and Bashan because all her allies (“lovers”) have been destroyed and cannot help her. The verse uses vivid imagery to show that no matter where she turns or how loudly she cries, her former supporters are gone.

In this verse, the prophet Jeremiah is speaking God’s words to the people of Judah, especially the royal house. The setting is a time of national crisis, as foreign powers threaten Jerusalem. The mention of Lebanon and Bashan refers to regions north and northeast of Israel, known for their strength and resources. The “lovers” are the foreign nations or political allies Judah once relied on, but now these alliances have failed, leaving Jerusalem isolated and vulnerable.

The Hebrew behind Jeremiah 22:20

  • "Lovers" (אֹהֵבִים, ʾohavim): This word often refers to political allies or friendly nations, not romantic partners. Here, it highlights how Judah’s trusted relationships with other nations have collapsed.
  • "Destroyed" (שָׁבַר, shavar): This word means to break or shatter. It emphasizes the total ruin of those Judah depended on, making clear there is no help left from them.
  • "Cry" (צָעַק, tsa‘aq): This word is used twice, showing the intensity and desperation of the call for help. It underlines the hopelessness of the situation—no matter how loudly Judah cries out, no one will answer.

Why Jeremiah 22:20 matters

  • This verse clears up the idea that Judah could find rescue through its political alliances; it shows that trusting in foreign powers instead of God leads to disappointment and ruin.
  • The verse connects to the larger passage where Jeremiah warns the royal family about coming judgment and the futility of relying on anything but God.
  • The vivid language and geographical references make the warning concrete, showing that even the strongest places and relationships cannot save Judah from the consequences of its choices.

Where else these words appear

“cry” Hebrew H6817 · used in 53 verses

  • Genesis 4:10 And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground.
  • Deuteronomy 26:7 And when we cried unto the LORD God of our fathers, the LORD heard our voice, and looked on our affliction, and our labour, and our oppression:
  • 2 Kings 8:3 And it came to pass at the seven years' end, that the woman returned out of the land of the Philistines: and she went forth to cry unto the king for her house and for her land.

“Bashan” Hebrew H1316 · used in 53 verses

  • Numbers 21:33 And they turned and went up by the way of Bashan: and Og the king of Bashan went out against them, he, and all his people, to the battle at Edrei.
  • Joshua 12:5 And reigned in mount Hermon, and in Salcah, and in all Bashan, unto the border of the Geshurites and the Maachathites, and half Gilead, the border of Sihon king of Heshbon.
  • 1 Chronicles 5:23 And the children of the half tribe of Manasseh dwelt in the land: they increased from Bashan unto Baalhermon and Senir, and unto mount Hermon.

“Lebanon” Hebrew H3844 · used in 64 verses

  • Deuteronomy 1:7 Turn you, and take your journey, and go to the mount of the Amorites, and unto all the places nigh thereunto, in the plain, in the hills, and in the vale, and in the south, and by the sea side, to the land of the Canaanites, and unto Lebanon, unto the great river, the river Euphrates.
  • 2 Chronicles 2:8 Send me also cedar trees, fir trees, and algum trees, out of Lebanon: for I know that thy servants can skill to cut timber in Lebanon; and, behold, my servants shall be with thy servants,
  • Isaiah 29:17 Is it not yet a very little while, and Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be esteemed as a forest?

“passages” Hebrew H5676 · used in 84 verses

  • Genesis 50:10 And they came to the threshingfloor of Atad, which is beyond Jordan, and there they mourned with a great and very sore lamentation: and he made a mourning for his father seven days.
  • Joshua 7:7 And Joshua said, Alas, O Lord GOD, wherefore hast thou at all brought this people over Jordan, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? would to God we had been content, and dwelt on the other side Jordan!
  • 1 Samuel 31:7 And when the men of Israel that were on the other side of the valley, and they that were on the other side Jordan, saw that the men of Israel fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, they forsook the cities, and fled; and the Philistines came and dwelt in them.