What Does Jeremiah 32:23 Mean in the King James?
And they came in, and possessed it; but they obeyed not thy voice, neither walked in thy law; they have done nothing of all that thou commandedst them to do: therefore thou hast caused all this evil to come upon them:
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
Hebrew repeats בוא (boʾ, “come/enter”) for their entry into the land and for God bringing evil upon them, binding possession and consequence in one root.
THE MEANING
You can possess what is given and still leave its voice unanswered: the instruction goes unheard, the path unwalked, and the commands undone. The verse names the evil that comes upon you as brought by God in response to that refusal.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
It undoes the belief that receiving what is promised automatically proves that you have heard and responded to its source.
THE ROOT
וַיָּבֹאוּ
vayyāvoʾu
GROWS FROM
בוא
Come, enter; in a causative form, bring or cause to come.
“came in / caused … to come” in this verse is vayyāvoʾu. English renders these forms as “came in” and “caused … to come,” while Hebrew repeats the root בוא (boʾ, come/enter). They enter the land, then evil is brought upon them; the root links possession and consequence.
ALSO GROWS
bāʾū: They came or entered.
בָּאוּ
This is the form behind their entry into the land.
hēvīʾ: To bring or cause to come.
הֵבִיא
This causative form shows the same root at work in God bringing evil upon them.
שָׁמְעוּ
shāmeʿū
GROWS FROM
שמע
Hear, listen, heed; hear and respond.
The verse’s “obeyed not” is literally a failure to hear the voice in the sense of hearing and responding. The missing response is carried inside the Hebrew word itself.
ALSO GROWS
shāmaʿ: Hear, listen, or heed.
שָׁמַע
This verb carries the response that the verse says is absent.
shemuʿah: A report or tidings; something heard.
שְׁמוּעָה
The related noun keeps the root’s connection to receiving what is heard.
הָלְכוּ
hālekhū
GROWS FROM
הלך
Walk or go; proceed along a way.
The instruction is pictured as a way in motion. The verse measures the response not only by what is heard, but by whether that way is walked.
ALSO GROWS
holēkh: One who walks or goes.
הֹלֵךְ
This form keeps the root’s concrete movement visible.
halikhah: Walking, a course, or a way of going.
הֲלִיכָה
The related noun shows how walking can describe a continuing course of life.
THE PATTERN
Hearing the voice is expressed in a path walked and a word acted upon.
Ye shall walk in all the ways which the LORD your God hath commanded you, that ye may live, and that it may be well with you, and that ye may prolong your days in the land which ye shall possess.But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.But this thing commanded I them, saying, Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people: and walk ye in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well unto you.THE THREAD
But this thing commanded I them, saying, Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people: and walk ye in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well unto you.Jeremiah 7:23 joins שמע (shamaʿ, hear and respond) with הלך (halakh, walk or go), the same roots behind the unanswered voice and unwalked instruction here. It makes explicit the movement this verse describes through their absence.
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