Jeremiah 15:1
Then said the LORD unto me, Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my mind could not be toward this people: cast them out of my sight, and let them go forth.
Original Language Analysis
יְהוָה֙
the LORD
H3068
יְהוָה֙
the LORD
Strong's:
H3068
Word #:
2 of 17
(the) self-existent or eternal; jeho-vah, jewish national name of god
אִם
H518
אִם
Strong's:
H518
Word #:
4 of 17
used very widely as demonstrative, lo!; interrogative, whether?; or conditional, if, although; also oh that!, when; hence, as a negative, not
יַעֲמֹ֨ד
stood
H5975
יַעֲמֹ֨ד
stood
Strong's:
H5975
Word #:
5 of 17
to stand, in various relations (literal and figurative, intransitive and transitive)
פָּנַ֖י
before
H6440
פָּנַ֖י
before
Strong's:
H6440
Word #:
8 of 17
the face (as the part that turns); used in a great variety of applications (literally and figuratively); also (with prepositional prefix) as a preposi
נַפְשִׁ֖י
me yet my mind
H5315
נַפְשִׁ֖י
me yet my mind
Strong's:
H5315
Word #:
10 of 17
properly, a breathing creature, i.e., animal of (abstractly) vitality; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative sense (bodily or ment
הָעָ֣ם
could not be toward this people
H5971
הָעָ֣ם
could not be toward this people
Strong's:
H5971
Word #:
12 of 17
a people (as a congregated unit); specifically, a tribe (as those of israel); hence (collectively) troops or attendants; figuratively, a flock
הַזֶּ֑ה
H2088
שַׁלַּ֥ח
cast them out
H7971
שַׁלַּ֥ח
cast them out
Strong's:
H7971
Word #:
14 of 17
to send away, for, or out (in a great variety of applications)
מֵֽעַל
H5921
מֵֽעַל
Strong's:
H5921
Word #:
15 of 17
above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applications
Cross References
Ezekiel 14:14Though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, saith the Lord GOD.Jeremiah 14:11Then said the LORD unto me, Pray not for this people for their good.Jeremiah 11:14Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up a cry or prayer for them: for I will not hear them in the time that they cry unto me for their trouble.Psalms 106:23Therefore he said that he would destroy them, had not Moses his chosen stood before him in the breach, to turn away his wrath, lest he should destroy them.Psalms 99:6Moses and Aaron among his priests, and Samuel among them that call upon his name; they called upon the LORD, and he answered them.1 Samuel 12:23Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and the right way:1 Samuel 7:9And Samuel took a sucking lamb, and offered it for a burnt offering wholly unto the LORD: and Samuel cried unto the LORD for Israel; and the LORD heard him.2 Kings 17:20And the LORD rejected all the seed of Israel, and afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of spoilers, until he had cast them out of his sight.Jeremiah 52:3For through the anger of the LORD it came to pass in Jerusalem and Judah, till he had cast them out from his presence, that Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.Jeremiah 23:39Therefore, behold, I, even I, will utterly forget you, and I will forsake you, and the city that I gave you and your fathers, and cast you out of my presence:
Historical Context
This pronouncement responds to Jeremiah's intercession in chapter 14. God had already forbidden Jeremiah to pray for the people (7:16, 11:14, 14:11), but this verse adds that even Moses and Samuel's prayers would be ineffective. The historical reference acknowledges Israel's intercessory tradition while declaring its limits. By Jeremiah's time, centuries of rejected prophetic warning had accumulated guilt beyond intercession's reach.
Questions for Reflection
- What does the ineffectiveness of even Moses and Samuel's intercession reveal about the limits of prayer when sin has reached its full measure?
- How does this verse inform our understanding of both intercessory prayer's power and its boundaries?
Related Resources
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Analysis & Commentary
This verse opens with a shocking divine declaration: 'Then said the LORD unto me, Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my mind could not be toward this people.' Moses and Samuel were Israel's greatest intercessors—Moses turned aside God's wrath after the golden calf (Exodus 32:11-14) and at Kadesh-Barnea (Numbers 14:13-20); Samuel's intercession was legendary (1 Samuel 7:5-9, 12:19-25). Yet even their combined intercession could not avert this judgment. 'Cast them out of my sight, and let them go forth.' The Hebrew shalach me'al panai (שַׁלַּח מֵעַל פָּנַי, send away from my presence) indicates complete dismissal—exile from God's protective presence. When the greatest intercessors cannot prevail, judgment is fixed.