Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
Jeremiah 22:13 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 13. 13Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that useth his neighbour’s service without wages, and giveth him not for his work;
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
The royal woe identifies unpaid labor, rather than architecture itself, as a mark of unjust rule.
A palace built by unpaid labor is already a verdict
This verse is one part of that explanation in Jeremiah 22:13–19. The complete section carries the connected meaning and how it should shape life.
Read It With
- Jeremiah 22:13–19
Read Jeremiah 22:13 with 22:13–19. By itself, “Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong” can be detached from the speaker, addressee, date, imperial horizon, poetic movement, or outcome that gives it force. The complete unit establishes: Luxury, cedar competition, failure to know God through justice, and exploitation of workers lead to a dishonorable burial oracle.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Within the same chapter, this unit advances from “Exile Is Lamented More than Josiah's Death” into “Jehoiakim's Palace Is Built by Unpaid Labor.” Its non-interchangeable movement is: Luxury, cedar competition, failure to know God through justice, and exploitation of workers lead to a dishonorable burial oracle. This verse's placement is specific: The royal woe identifies unpaid labor, rather than architecture itself, as a mark of unjust rule.
Follow the Context
- The unit begins at 22:13 with the speech, scene, image, or date named in its title.
- Luxury, cedar competition, failure to know God through justice, and exploitation of workers lead to a dishonorable burial oracle.
- At 22:19 the movement reaches its response or transition before the next unit.
What This Verse Is Not Saying
Building a house is not condemned; using unpaid and coerced labor is.
What Remains True
The royal woe ties architecture and luxury directly to labor injustice. In Jeremiah 22:13, that bounded truth is carried through this verse's role: The royal woe identifies unpaid labor, rather than architecture itself, as a mark of unjust rule.
How It Can Shape Life
- For any building or ministry project, require fair pay, safe conditions, worker voice, and transparent contracting instead of treating unpaid labor as devotion.
Teach It Back
Explain Jeremiah 22:13's precise role in Jeremiah 22:13–19: The royal woe identifies unpaid labor, rather than architecture itself, as a mark of unjust rule. State how “Jehoiakim's Palace Is Built by Unpaid Labor” controls the line, keep this uncertainty visible—The critique targets coercive labor and predatory rule; it does not shame craftsmanship or housing itself.—trace role to contextual meaning to enduring truth to application, and reject one use the verse does not authorize.
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Continue in Context
Read the complete section for the connected explanation and how it should shape life. This verse is a doorway into that passage, not a saying that stands alone.
Read Jeremiah 22:13–19 — Jehoiakim's Palace Is Built by Unpaid LaborSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? strong
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete thought-unit coverage.
Exact location: Jeremiah 22:13–19, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Jeremiah
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2; fixed commit
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording and morphology checked at the exact unit without treating morphology as a critical apparatus or interpretation.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Jer.xml, OSIS 22:13–19
Open the fixed Hebrew Jeremiah file ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible: Jeremiah with Translator, Textual, and Study Notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press; official eBible PDF distribution, NET Bible Second Edition; official PDF accessed 2026
Supports: Verse-level controls for Hebrew, syntax, older KJV language, dates, names, textual problems, and material translation alternatives.
Exact location: Official NET Bible Jeremiah PDF, pp. 1258-1459, translator, study, and textual notes attached to Jeremiah 22:13–19
Open the official NET Jeremiah PDF ↗modern scholarly book course
Jeremiah: Summary, Outline, Background, Introductory Issues, Themes, and Bible in the World
Terence E. Fretheim and Michael Chan
Enter the Bible, Luther Seminary, current public course accessed 2026
Supports: Reader-oriented historical, literary, theological, and pastoral synthesis with ancient-to-modern limits.
Exact location: Enter the Bible Jeremiah course, Outline and passage studies: kings, prophets, nations, yokes, Hananiah, and exile letter; applied to Jeremiah 22:13–19
Open the Enter the Bible Jeremiah course ↗open university study guide series
Jeremiah and Ezekiel: Jeremiah Parts 1-3 Study Guides
Joel S. Baden and Jacqueline Vayntrub
Yale Bible Study, 2024
Supports: Current university-level literary-historical synthesis and explicit composition questions.
Exact location: Yale Bible Study, Jeremiah and Ezekiel, Jeremiah Part 2 study guide, pp. 1-6: prophetic conflict, politics, exile, and restoration; applied to Jeremiah 22:13–19
Open the Yale Jeremiah and Ezekiel course ↗