“Then all the men which knew that their wives had burned incense unto other gods, and all the women that stood by, a great multitude, even all the people that dwelt in the land of Egypt, in Pathros, answered Jeremiah, saying,”
My Notes
What Does Jeremiah 44:15 Mean?
The Jewish refugees in Egypt openly defy Jeremiah: the men, the women, and the entire community collectively refuse to obey God's word. The detail that the men "knew that their wives had burned incense unto other gods" is devastating — the husbands weren't ignorant of their wives' idolatry. They knew. They allowed it. And now both genders stand together in defiance.
The phrase "a great multitude" emphasizes that this isn't a small faction. The entire refugee community has united in rebellion. There is no faithful remnant in this group. Every person — men who knew, women who participated, the entire settlement — answers Jeremiah with a single voice of rejection.
What follows (verses 16-19) is even more shocking: the people argue that things were better when they worshipped the queen of heaven (likely Ishtar). They claim that abandoning pagan worship is what caused their problems. The inversion is complete: the sin is their solution, and God's word is their problem.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Have you ever mistaken delayed consequences for divine approval?
- 2.How does a community collectively rationalize sin — and have you participated in that?
- 3.What logic are you using to justify something you know isn't right?
- 4.How do you respond when everyone around you agrees on something you know is wrong?
Devotional
Everyone knew. The men knew their wives burned incense to foreign gods. The women did it openly. And when Jeremiah confronts them, they answer together — a great multitude, unified in defiance.
The collective nature of this rebellion is its most disturbing feature. This isn't one person falling and the community mourning. This is the entire community falling together and celebrating it. There's no one left to object. The dissenter has been unanimously outvoted. Everyone has agreed that the sin is fine.
The argument they make is chilling in its logic: things were better when we worshipped the queen of heaven. We had food. We prospered. We didn't face disaster. It was only when we tried to follow God's law that everything fell apart. The solution, they conclude, is more idolatry.
This is how a community rationalizes sin: by pointing to a time when sin seemed to work. There was a season when the compromise didn't produce obvious consequences. There was a period when the idolatry coexisted with prosperity. And the people mistake the delay in consequences for approval. Because nothing bad happened immediately, the behavior must have been fine.
But delayed consequences aren't absent consequences. The prosperity during idolatry wasn't because of the idolatry — it was despite it. God's patience was being mistaken for God's blessing.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
Then all the men which knew that their wires had burnt incense unto other gods,.... Which was a rite God appointed to be…
Had burned incence - Omit “had;” burned incense. This appeal of the prophet was made at a public festival held somewhere…
We have here the people's obstinate refusal to submit to the power of the word of God in the mouth of Jeremiah. We have…
See introd. summary to the ch. This passage, unlike the preceding, apparently comes intact from Baruch's memoirs.
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture