Jeremiah 44 (WK) - Bible Truth Library

or, frame of heaven.As the Sun was worshipped, not only under the name of {baal shamayim,} "Lord of heaven," but also by that of {Molech,} or King; it is likely also that the Moon was adored as {melecheth hashshamayim,} "the Queen of heaven."

So the Orphic hymn addressed to the Moon begins [Klythi thea BASILEIA,] Hear, goddess Queen.

And Homer, in his Hymn to the Moon, addresses her, [Chaire, anassa, thea] All hail, Queen, goddess.

In Epiphanius, we find some women of Arabia, towards the end of the fourth century, had set up another queen of heaven, the Virgin Mary, too well known since under that name and character, whom they likewise worshipped as a goddess, by holding stated assemblies every year to her honour, and by offering a cake of bread in her name; whence these heretics were called Collyridians, from the Greek [kollyris,] a cake.

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as we.

Jer. 19:13• ¹³and the houses of Jerusalem, and the houses of the kings of Judah, shall be defiled as the place of Tophet, because of all the houses upon whose roofs they have burned incense unto all the host of heaven, and have poured out drink offerings unto other gods. (Jer. 19:13)

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Jer. 32:29‑32• ²⁹and the Chaldeans, that fight against this city, shall come and set fire on this city, and burn it with the houses, upon whose roofs they have offered incense unto Baal, and poured out drink offerings unto other gods, to provoke me to anger.
³⁰For the children of Israel and the children of Judah have only done evil before me from their youth: for the children of Israel have only provoked me to anger with the work of their hands, saith Jehovah.
³¹For this city hath been to me as a provocation of mine anger and of my fury from the day that they built it even unto this day; that I should remove it from before my face,
³²because of all the evil of the children of Israel and of the children of Judah, which they have done to provoke me to anger, they, their kings, their princes, their priests, and their prophets, and the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. (Jer. 32:29‑32)

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2 Kings 22:17• ¹⁷{i}Because they have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the work of their hands, therefore my fury is kindled against this place, and shall not be quenched.{/i} (2 Kings 22:17)

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Neh. 9:34• ³⁴{i}And our kings, our princes, our priests, and our fathers, have not performed thy law, nor hearkened unto thy commandments and thy testimonies, wherewith thou didst testify against them.{/i} (Neh. 9:34)

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Dan. 9:6‑8• ⁶{i}And we have not hearkened unto thy servants the prophets, who spoke in thy name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.{/i}
⁷{i}Thine, O Lord, is the righteousness, but unto us confusion of face, as at this day, to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and unto all Israel, that are near, and that are far off, in all the countries whither thou hast driven them, because of their unfaithfulness in which they have been unfaithful against thee.{/i}
⁸{i}O Lord, unto us is confusion of face, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against thee.{/i} (Dan. 9:6‑8)

our fathers.

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Psa. 106:6• ⁶We have sinned with our fathers,{HR}We have been perverse,{HR}We have done wickedly. (Psa. 106:6)

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Ezek. 20:8• ⁸But they rebelled against me, and would not hearken unto me: they did not every man cast away the abominations of their eyes, neither did they forsake the idols of Egypt: then I said, I will pour out my fury upon them, to accomplish my anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt. (Ezek. 20:8)

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Dan. 9:5‑6,8• ⁵we have sinned, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, {i}and have rebelled, even turning aside from thy commandments and from thine ordinances.{/i}
⁶{i}And we have not hearkened unto thy servants the prophets, who spoke in thy name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.{/i}
⁸{i}O Lord, unto us is confusion of face, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against thee.{/i} (Dan. 9:5‑6,8)

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1 Peter 1:18• ¹⁸knowing that not by corruptibles, silver or gold, ye were redeemed, from your vain course ancestrally handed down, (1 Peter 1:18)

in the cities.

Jer. 44:9,21• ⁹Have ye forgotten the wickedness of your fathers, and the wickedness of the kings of Judah, and the wickedness of their wives, and your own wickedness, and the wickedness of your wives, which they have committed in the land of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem?
²¹The incense that ye burned in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, ye, and your fathers, your kings, and your princes, and the people of the land, did not Jehovah remember them, and came it not into his mind? (Jer. 44:9,21)

then.

Ex. 16:3• ³{i}And the children of Israel said to them, Would that we had died by the hand of Jehovah in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh-pots, when we ate bread to the full; for ye have brought us out into this wilderness, to kill this whole congregation with hunger!{/i} (Ex. 16:3)

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Isa. 48:5• ⁵therefore I have declared [them] to thee from of old, before they came to pass I showed thee, lest thou shouldest say, Mine idol hath done them, and my graven image, and my molten image hath commanded them. (Isa. 48:5)

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Phil. 3:19• ¹⁹whose end [is] destruction, whose God [is] the belly, and they glory in their shame, who mind the things of earth. (Phil. 3:19)

victuals.

Heb. bread.

J. N. Darby Translation

but we will certainly do every word that is gone forth out of our mouth, to burn incense to the queen of the heavens, and to pour out drink-offerings to her, as we have done, we and our fathers, our kings and our princes, in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; and we had plenty of bread, and were well, and saw no evil.

W. Kelly Translation

But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouth, to burn incense unto the queen of heavena , and to pour out drink offerings unto her, as we have done, we, and our fathers, our kings, and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem: for then had we plenty of victuals, and were well, and saw no evil.

WK Translation Notes

This was the female form of Baal or Bel, named Beltic, Ashtaroth, Astarte, &c., whose worship was attended by the grossest immorality.