Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
Jeremiah 7:4 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 4. 4Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, are these.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
The prophetic word through Jeremiah states or reports “Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The…” at Jeremiah 7:4 as a specific part of “The Temple Sermon Ties Worship to Public Justice.”
Read It With
- Jeremiah 7:1–7
Read Jeremiah 7:4 with 7:1–7. By itself, “Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The…” can be detached from the speaker, addressee, date, imperial horizon, poetic movement, or outcome that gives it force. The complete unit establishes: At the temple gate Jeremiah rejects building-based security and names justice, protection of immigrants, orphans, and widows, innocent blood, and other worship.
Why This Verse Appears Here
This received unit develops “The Temple Sermon Ties Worship to Public Justice” through its own speaker, addressee, date, oracle, sign, lament, or historical scene. Its non-interchangeable movement is: At the temple gate Jeremiah rejects building-based security and names justice, protection of immigrants, orphans, and widows, innocent blood, and other worship. This verse's placement is specific: The prophetic word through Jeremiah states or reports “Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The…” at Jeremiah 7:4 as a specific part of “The Temple Sermon Ties Worship to Public Justice.”
Follow the Context
- The unit begins at 7:1 with the speech, scene, image, or date named in its title.
- At the temple gate Jeremiah rejects building-based security and names justice, protection of immigrants, orphans, and widows, innocent blood, and other worship.
- At 7:7 the movement reaches its response or transition before the next unit.
What This Verse Is Not Saying
Repeating 'the temple of the LORD' does not make buildings evil or Jewish worship uniquely hypocritical.
What Remains True
The slogan is condemned because it substitutes sacred-place confidence for changed conduct. In Jeremiah 7:4, that bounded truth is carried through this verse's role: The prophetic word through Jeremiah states or reports “Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The…” at Jeremiah 7:4 as a specific part of “The Temple Sermon Ties Worship to Public Justice.”
How It Can Shape Life
- Test institutional claims by justice, safety, and accountability. This verse directs that response through its exact role: The prophetic word through Jeremiah states or reports “Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The…” at Jeremiah 7:4 as a specific part of “The Temple Sermon Ties Worship to Public Justice.”
Teach It Back
Explain Jeremiah 7:4's precise role in Jeremiah 7:1–7: The prophetic word through Jeremiah states or reports “Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The…” at Jeremiah 7:4 as a specific part of “The Temple Sermon Ties Worship to Public Justice.” State how “The Temple Sermon Ties Worship to Public Justice” controls the line, keep this uncertainty visible—The sermon does not erase Jewish temple faith, authorize attacks on sacred spaces, or make vulnerable neighbors props for piety.—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
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read Jeremiah 7:1–7 — The Temple Sermon Ties Worship to Public JusticeSources 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 7:1–7, 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 7:1–7
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 7:1–7
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, Summary, Outline, Background, and Introductory Issues: call, early preaching, temple sermon, and laments; applied to Jeremiah 7:1–7
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 1 study guide, pp. 1-6: composition, Josianic setting, temple sermon, and imperial context; applied to Jeremiah 7:1–7
Open the Yale Jeremiah and Ezekiel course ↗