Jeremiah 13:1-11

Expanded Bible

Jeremiah’s Linen Belt

13 This is what the Lord said to me: “Go and buy a linen ·belt [loincloth; underwear; ^Cpriests like Jeremiah wore linen undergarments; Ex. 28:39; 39:27–29; Ezek. 44:17–18] and put it around your ·waist [loins]. Don’t let the ·belt [loincloth; underwear] ·get wet [be washed; be brought into water].”

² So I bought a ·linen belt [loincloth; underwear], just as the Lord told me, and put it around my ·waist [loins]. ³ Then the Lord spoke his word to me a second time: ⁴ “Take the ·belt [loincloth; underwear] you bought and ·are wearing [^Lis on your loins], and go to Perath [^Cthe name of the Euphrates River or a town near Jerusalem with a similar name (Josh. 18:23)]. Hide the ·belt [loincloth; underwear] there in a crack in the rocks.” ⁵ So I went to Perath and hid the ·belt [loincloth; underwear] there, just as the Lord ·told [commanded] me.

⁶ ·Many days later [^LAt the end of many days] the Lord said to me, “Now go to Perath [v. 4] and get the ·belt [loincloth; underwear] I ·told [commanded] you to hide there.” ⁷ So I went to Perath and dug up the ·belt [loincloth; underwear] and took it from where I had hidden it. But now it was ruined; it was good for nothing.

⁸ Then the Lord spoke his word to me. ⁹ This is what the Lord said: “In the same way I will ·ruin [destroy; rot away] the pride of the people of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem. ¹⁰ These evil people refuse to listen to my ·warnings [^Lwords]. They ·stubbornly do only what they want to do [^Lfollow/go after their stubborn hearts], and they ·follow [^Lgo after] other gods to serve and ·worship [bow down to] them. So they will become like this ·linen belt [loincloth; underwear]—good for nothing. ¹¹ As a ·belt [loincloth; underwear] ·is wrapped tightly around [clings to] a person’s ·waist [loins], I ·wrapped the families of Israel and Judah around [^Lcaused all the house of Israel and all the house of Judah to cling to] me,” says the Lord. “I did that so they would be my people and bring fame, praise, and ·honor [splendor] to me. But my people would not listen.