Jeremiah 13:12
New International Version
“Say to them: ‘This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: Every wineskin should be filled with wine.’ And if they say to you, ‘Don’t we know that every wineskin should be filled with wine?’

New Living Translation
“So tell them, ‘This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: May all your jars be filled with wine.’ And they will reply, ‘Of course! Jars are made to be filled with wine!’

English Standard Version
“You shall speak to them this word: ‘Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, “Every jar shall be filled with wine.”’ And they will say to you, ‘Do we not indeed know that every jar will be filled with wine?’

Berean Standard Bible
Therefore you are to tell them that this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Every wineskin shall be filled with wine.’ And when they reply, ‘Don’t we surely know that every wineskin should be filled with wine?’

King James Bible
Therefore thou shalt speak unto them this word; Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Every bottle shall be filled with wine: and they shall say unto thee, Do we not certainly know that every bottle shall be filled with wine?

New King James Version
“Therefore you shall speak to them this word: ‘Thus says the LORD God of Israel: “Every bottle shall be filled with wine.” ’ “And they will say to you, ‘Do we not certainly know that every bottle will be filled with wine?’

New American Standard Bible
“Therefore you are to speak this word to them. ‘This is what the LORD, the God of Israel says: “Every jug is to be filled with wine.”’ And when they say to you, ‘Do we not very well know that every jug is to be filled with wine?’

NASB 1995
“Therefore you are to speak this word to them, ‘Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, “Every jug is to be filled with wine."’ And when they say to you, ‘Do we not very well know that every jug is to be filled with wine?’

NASB 1977
“Therefore you are to speak this word to them, ‘Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, “Every jug is to be filled with wine.”’ And when they say to you, ‘Do we not very well know that every jug is to be filled with wine?’

Legacy Standard Bible
“Therefore you are to say this word to them, ‘Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, “Every jug is to be filled with wine.”’ And they will say to you, ‘Do we not very well know that every jug is to be filled with wine?’

Amplified Bible
“Therefore you are to speak this word to them, ‘Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, “Every jar should be filled with wine.”’ The people will say to you, ‘Do we not already know that every jar should be filled with wine?’

Christian Standard Bible
“Say this to them: ‘This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: Every jar should be filled with wine.’ Then they will respond to you, ‘Don’t we know that every jar should be filled with wine? ’

Holman Christian Standard Bible
“Say this to them: This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: Every jar should be filled with wine. Then they will respond to you, ‘Don’t we know that every jar should be filled with wine?

American Standard Version
Therefore thou shalt speak unto them this word: Thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel, Every bottle shall be filled with wine: and they shall say unto thee, Do we not certainly know that every bottle shall be filled with wine?

Contemporary English Version
Jeremiah, tell the people of Judah, "The LORD God of Israel orders you to fill your wine jars with wine." They will answer, "Of course we fill our wine jars with wine! Why are you telling us something we already know?"

English Revised Version
Therefore thou shalt speak unto them this word: Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, Every bottle shall be filled with wine: and they shall say unto thee, Do we not know that every bottle shall be filled with wine?

GOD'S WORD® Translation
"Give this message to them, 'This is what the LORD God of Israel says: Every bottle will be filled with wine.' Then they will say to you, 'We know that every bottle will be filled with wine.'

Good News Translation
The LORD God said to me, "Jeremiah, tell the people of Israel that every wine jar should be filled with wine. They will answer that they know every wine jar should be filled with wine.

International Standard Version
"This is what you're to tell them: 'This is what the LORD God of Israel says: "Every wineskin is to be filled with wine."' When they say to you, 'Don't we know very well that every wineskin is to be filled with wine?',

NET Bible
"So tell them, 'The LORD, the God of Israel, says, "Every wine jar is made to be filled with wine."' And they will probably say to you, 'Do you not think we know that every wine jar is supposed to be filled with wine?'

New Heart English Bible
Therefore you shall speak to them this word: 'Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, "Every jar shall be filled with wine."' And if they shall say to you, 'Do we not certainly know that every jar shall be filled with wine?'

Webster's Bible Translation
Therefore thou shalt speak to them this word; Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Every bottle shall be filled with wine: and they shall say to thee, Do we not certainly know that every bottle shall be filled with wine?
Majority Text Translations
Majority Standard Bible
Therefore you are to tell them that this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Every wineskin shall be filled with wine.’ And when they reply, ‘Don’t we surely know that every wineskin should be filled with wine?’

World English Bible
“Therefore you shall speak to them this word: ‘Yahweh, the God of Israel says, “Every container should be filled with wine.”’ They will tell you, ‘Do we not certainly know that every container should be filled with wine?’
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
And you have said this word to them, "" Thus said YHWH, God of Israel: Every bottle is full of wine, "" And they have said to you: Do we not certainly know that every bottle is full of wine?

Young's Literal Translation
And thou hast said unto them this word, Thus said Jehovah, God of Israel, 'Every bottle is full of wine,' And they have said unto thee: 'Do we not certainly know that every bottle is full of wine?'

Smith's Literal Translation
And say to them this word: Thus said Jehovah God of Israel, Every flask shall be filled with wine: and they said to thee, Knowing, shall it not be known that every flask shall be filled with wine?
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
Thou shalt speak therefore to them this word: Thus saith the Lord God of Israel: Every bottle shall be filled with wine, and they shall say to thee: Do we not know that every bottle shall be filled with wine?

Catholic Public Domain Version
Therefore, you shall speak to them this word: Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘Every bottle will be filled with wine.’ And they will say to you: ‘Are we ignorant that every bottle will be filled with wine?’

New American Bible
Now speak to them this word: Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: Every wineflask should be filled with wine. If they reply, “Do we not know that every wineflask should be filled with wine?”

New Revised Standard Version
You shall speak to them this word: Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: Every wine-jar should be filled with wine. And they will say to you, “Do you think we do not know that every wine-jar should be filled with wine?”
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Therefore you shall speak to them this word: Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, Every wineskin shall be filled with wine; and they shall say to you, Do we not know that every wineskin shall be filled with wine?

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And he spoke to them this word: “Thus says LORD JEHOVAH of Hosts, God of Israel: ‘Every wine skin will be filled with wine.’ Behold, they say to you: ‘Do we not know that all wine skins are filled with wine?’
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
Moreover thou shalt speak unto them this word: Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: 'Every bottle is filled with wine'; and when they shall say unto thee: 'Do we not know that every bottle is filled with wine?'

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And thou shalt say to this people, Every bottle shall be filled with wine: and it shall come to pass, if they shall say to thee, Shall we not certainly know that every bottle shall be filled with wine? that thou shalt say to them,

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Wineskins
12Therefore you are to tell them that this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Every wineskin shall be filled with wine.’ And when they reply, ‘Don’t we surely know that every wineskin should be filled with wine?’ 13then you are to tell them that this is what the LORD says: ‘I am going to fill with drunkenness all who live in this land—the kings who sit on David’s throne, the priests, the prophets, and all the people of Jerusalem.…

Cross References
Isaiah 51:17
Awake, awake! Rise up, O Jerusalem, you who have drunk from the hand of the LORD the cup of His fury; you who have drained the goblet to the dregs—the cup that makes men stagger.

Isaiah 29:9-10
Stop and be astonished; blind yourselves and be sightless; be drunk, but not with wine; stagger, but not from strong drink. / For the LORD has poured out on you a spirit of deep sleep. He has shut your eyes, O prophets; He has covered your heads, O seers.

Habakkuk 2:15-16
Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbors, pouring it from the wineskin until they are drunk, in order to gaze at their nakedness! / You will be filled with shame instead of glory. You too must drink and expose your uncircumcision! The cup in the LORD’s right hand will come around to you, and utter disgrace will cover your glory.

Lamentations 4:21
So rejoice and be glad, O Daughter of Edom, you who dwell in the land of Uz. Yet the cup will pass to you as well; you will get drunk and expose yourself.

Ezekiel 23:32-34
This is what the Lord GOD says: ‘You will drink your sister’s cup, a cup deep and wide. It will bring scorn and derision, for it holds so much. / You will be filled with drunkenness and grief, with a cup of devastation and desolation, the cup of your sister Samaria. / You will drink it and drain it; you will dash it to pieces, and tear your breasts. For I have spoken,’ declares the Lord GOD.

Psalm 75:8
For a cup is in the hand of the LORD, full of foaming wine mixed with spices. He pours from His cup, and all the wicked of the earth drink it down to the dregs.

Isaiah 28:7-8
These also stagger from wine and stumble from strong drink: Priests and prophets reel from strong drink and are befuddled by wine. They stumble because of strong drink, muddled in their visions and stumbling in their judgments. / For all their tables are covered with vomit; there is not a place without filth.

Revelation 14:8
Then a second angel followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, who has made all the nations drink the wine of the passion of her immorality.”

Revelation 18:3
All the nations have drunk the wine of the passion of her immorality. The kings of the earth were immoral with her, and the merchants of the earth have grown wealthy from the extravagance of her luxury.”

Revelation 17:2
The kings of the earth were immoral with her, and those who dwell on the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her immorality.”

Matthew 23:32-33
Fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your fathers. / You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape the sentence of hell?

Luke 21:34
But watch yourselves, or your hearts will be weighed down by dissipation, drunkenness, and the worries of life—and that day will spring upon you suddenly like a snare.

1 Thessalonians 5:7
For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night.

Ephesians 5:18
Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to reckless indiscretion. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.

1 Peter 4:3
For you have spent enough time in the past carrying out the same desires as the Gentiles: living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing, and detestable idolatry.


Treasury of Scripture

Therefore you shall speak to them this word; Thus said the LORD God of Israel, Every bottle shall be filled with wine: and they shall say to you, Do we not certainly know that every bottle shall be filled with wine?

and they shall.

Ezekiel 24:19
And the people said unto me, Wilt thou not tell us what these things are to us, that thou doest so?

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Jeremiah 13
1. By the type of a linen belt, hidden at Euphrates,
9. God prefigures the destruction of his people.
12. By the parable of bottles filled with wine he foretells their drunkenness in misery.
15. He exhorts to prevent their future judgments.
22. He shows their abominations are the cause thereof.














Therefore you are to tell them that this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says:
This phrase establishes the authority of the message. The LORD, the covenant name of God, emphasizes His relationship with Israel. The phrase "the God of Israel" underscores His unique covenant with the nation, reminding them of their identity and obligations. This introduction is typical of prophetic declarations, asserting divine origin and authority, similar to other prophetic books like Isaiah and Ezekiel.

‘Every wineskin shall be filled with wine.’
This statement uses a common cultural image. In ancient times, wineskins were made from animal hides and used to store wine. The filling of wineskins with wine is a natural expectation, symbolizing abundance and prosperity. However, in the context of Jeremiah, it is a metaphor for judgment. The wineskins represent the people of Judah, and the wine symbolizes the wrath of God that will fill them. This imagery is consistent with other prophetic literature, such as Isaiah 51:17, where the cup of God's wrath is a metaphor for judgment.

And when they reply, ‘Don’t we surely know that every wineskin should be filled with wine?’
The people's response indicates their familiarity with the metaphor but also their misunderstanding of its significance. They acknowledge the obvious truth of the statement but fail to grasp its deeper meaning. This reflects the spiritual blindness and complacency of Judah, a recurring theme in Jeremiah. Their response is reminiscent of the scoffing attitude found in other parts of Scripture, such as in 2 Peter 3:4, where people question the coming judgment. The rhetorical question highlights their ignorance and sets the stage for the unfolding of God's message of impending judgment.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Jeremiah
A prophet called by God to deliver messages of warning and hope to the people of Judah. His ministry was marked by symbolic actions and prophecies.

2. The LORD (Yahweh)
The covenant God of Israel, who communicates His will and judgment through His prophets.

3. The People of Judah
The primary audience of Jeremiah's prophecies, often characterized by their disobedience and idolatry.

4. Wineskins
Containers used in ancient times to store wine. In this context, they symbolize the people of Judah and the impending judgment.

5. The God of Israel
Emphasizes the covenant relationship between God and His chosen people, Israel.
Teaching Points
Symbolism of Wineskins
The wineskins represent the people of Judah, and the wine symbolizes the judgment and consequences of their actions. Just as wineskins are meant to be filled, the people will experience the fullness of God's judgment due to their disobedience.

Understanding God's Warnings
The people's response, "Don’t we know that every wineskin should be filled with wine?" indicates a superficial understanding of God's message. It serves as a reminder to seek deeper spiritual insight rather than relying on surface-level interpretations.

The Certainty of God's Judgment
The statement "Every wineskin will be filled with wine" underscores the inevitability of God's judgment. It calls believers to take God's warnings seriously and to live in obedience.

Call to Repentance
The passage serves as a call to repentance, urging the people to turn back to God before the fullness of judgment is realized.

Covenant Relationship
The reference to "the God of Israel" highlights the importance of maintaining a faithful covenant relationship with God, which is central to receiving His blessings rather than His judgment.
Bible Study Questions and Answers
1. What is the meaning of Jeremiah 13:12?

2. How does Jeremiah 13:12 illustrate God's warning to the people of Judah?

3. What is the significance of the "wineskins" metaphor in Jeremiah 13:12?

4. How can we apply the lesson of Jeremiah 13:12 to modern society?

5. What other biblical passages emphasize consequences of ignoring God's warnings?

6. How can we ensure our lives are not like "every wineskin" in Jeremiah 13:12?

7. What is the symbolic meaning of the wine jars in Jeremiah 13:12?

8. How does Jeremiah 13:12 reflect God's judgment on Israel?

9. What historical context surrounds Jeremiah 13:12?

10. What are the top 10 Lessons from Jeremiah 13?

11. (Jeremiah 13:12–14) Why would an all-knowing God need a metaphor of wine jars to illustrate judgment if He already understands human nature?

12. How do we reconcile God's promise never to forsake Israel (Deut. 31:6) with the nation's repeated historical exiles and oppressions?

13. Why does Solomon's prayer in 1 Kings 8:33-34 promise national restoration to Israel if they repent, when other biblical passages suggest God's judgment can remain despite repentance?

14. Zechariah 8:13: How could the house of Judah and Israel become blessings to other nations in light of ongoing regional strife?
What Does Jeremiah 13:12 Mean
Therefore you are to tell them

God sends Jeremiah with a clear assignment. Like prophets before him (Jeremiah 1:7; Ezekiel 2:4-5), he is not to invent a message but to relay exactly what he receives.

• The command “tell them” stresses obedience over personal preference.

• It also underscores urgency—judgment is near (Jeremiah 25:4).

Cross-reference: 2 Chronicles 36:15 records the Lord “sending word to them again and again.” His patience is long, yet He always speaks before He strikes.


this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says

The formula certifies that the words are divinely sourced.

• “LORD” (Yahweh) ties back to the covenant name revealed in Exodus 3:15.

• “God of Israel” reminds the people that the One speaking is their national Redeemer, not a distant deity (Isaiah 44:6).

• Because He is the living God (Jeremiah 10:10), His declarations are non-negotiable.

Cross-reference: Numbers 23:19—“God is not a man, that He should lie,” reinforcing absolute reliability.


‘Every wineskin shall be filled with wine.’

At face value, the statement appears obvious, almost proverbial. Yet it is a veiled warning.

• In Scripture wine often pictures blessing (Psalm 104:15) but also judgment (Psalm 75:8; Jeremiah 25:15-17).

• Here the “wine” will be God’s wrath poured into the “wineskins” of Judah, her kings, priests, prophets, and citizens (Jeremiah 13:13-14).

• The image is literal enough—actual jars will hold liquid—but it carries a moral charge: their sins have ripened; the cup is full.

Cross-reference: Jeremiah 48:11 likens complacent Moab to wine left on its dregs; Judah now faces a similar reckoning.


And when they reply

The Lord anticipates resistance. The people will respond, not with repentance, but with self-assured dismissal.

• Their immediate rebuttal exposes a heart that refuses correction (Jeremiah 5:3).

• This pattern echoes Isaiah 6:9-10 where ears hear but do not understand.

Cross-reference: Matthew 13:14-15 shows the same spiritual dullness in Jesus’ day.


‘Don’t we surely know that every wineskin should be filled with wine?’

The reply drips with sarcasm: “Of course wineskins are for wine—tell us something new!”

• Pride blinds them to the symbolic judgment embedded in the statement (Proverbs 16:18).

• They confuse familiarity with faith; knowing a fact intellectually is not the same as heeding God’s warning (1 Corinthians 8:2).

• Their confidence in common sense replaces confidence in the Word, a deadly trade-off (Jeremiah 8:8-9).

Cross-reference: Hosea 4:6—“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge,” meaning applied, obedient knowledge.


summary

Jeremiah 13:12 is more than a comment on containers; it is a prophetic indictment. God orders Jeremiah to announce, with covenant authority, that His people are about to be “filled” with the intoxicating consequences of their rebellion. The audience’s smug reply reveals hearts hardened by pride—hearts that mistake familiarity with the truth for obedience to it. God still speaks plainly, and He still expects humble hearing, for every word He utters carries both warning and hope.

(12) Every bottle shall be filled with wine.--Another parable follows on that of the girdle. The germ is found in the phrase "drunken, but not with wine" (Isaiah 29:9), and the thought rising out of that germ that the effect of the wrath of Jehovah is to cause an impotence and confusion like that of drunkenness (Psalm 60:3; Isaiah 51:17). The "bottle" in this case is not the "skin" commonly used for that purpose, but the earthen jar or flagon, the "potter's vessel" of Isaiah 30:14, the "pitcher" of Lamentations 4:2. So taken we find an anticipation of the imagery of Jeremiah 19:1; Jeremiah 19:10; Jeremiah 25:15. The prophet is bidden to go and proclaim to the people a dark saying, which in its literal sense would seem to them the idlest of all truisms. They would not understand that the "wine" of which he spoke was the wrath of Jehovah, and therefore they would simply repeat his words half in astonishment, half in mockery, "Do we not know this? What need to hear it from a prophet's lips?" . . . Verses 12-14. - Here another symbol is introduced - a symbolic phrase rather than a symbolic action. The first symbol referred to the people as a whole; the second represents the fate of the individual members of the people. The words, Thus saith the lord God of Israel, are omitted in the Septuagint, and certainly the form of the following phrase seems hardly worthy of so solemn an introduction. Every bottle. It is an earthenware bottle, or pitcher, which seems from Ver. 13 to be meant (comp. Isaiah 30:14), though the Septuagint renders here ἀσκός. The kings that sit upon David's throne; rather, that sit for David upon his throne; i.e. as David's heirs and successors. The plural "kings" is to include all the kings who reigned during the final period of impending ruin. With drunkenness. The effect of the "wine-cup of [the Divine] fury" (Jeremiah 25:15). Dash them one against another. This is merely the development of the figure of the pitchers; not a prediction of civil war. The pitchers, when cast down, must of course fall together into pieces.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Therefore you are to tell
וְאָמַרְתָּ֨ (wə·’ā·mar·tā)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - second person masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

them that
אֲלֵיהֶ֜ם (’ă·lê·hem)
Preposition | third person masculine plural
Strong's 413: Near, with, among, to

this is what
כֹּֽה־ (kōh-)
Adverb
Strong's 3541: Like this, thus, here, now

the LORD,
יְהוָה֙ (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3068: LORD -- the proper name of the God of Israel

the God
אֱלֹהֵ֣י (’ĕ·lō·hê)
Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 430: gods -- the supreme God, magistrates, a superlative

of Israel,
יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל (yiś·rā·’êl)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3478: Israel -- 'God strives', another name of Jacob and his desc

says:
אָמַ֤ר (’ā·mar)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

‘Every
כָּל־ (kāl-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every

wineskin
נֵ֖בֶל (nê·ḇel)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 5035: A skin-bag for, liquids, a vase, a lyre

shall be filled
יִמָּ֣לֵא (yim·mā·lê)
Verb - Nifal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 4390: To fill, be full of

with wine.’
יָ֑יִן (yā·yin)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 3196: Wine, intoxication

And when they reply,
וְאָמְר֣וּ (wə·’ā·mə·rū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 559: To utter, say

‘Don’t we
לֹ֣א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

surely
הֲיָדֹ֙עַ֙ (hă·yā·ḏō·a‘)
Verb - Qal - Infinitive absolute
Strong's 3045: To know

know
נֵדַ֔ע (nê·ḏa‘)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - first person common plural
Strong's 3045: To know

that
כִּ֥י (kî)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

every
כָל־ (ḵāl)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every

wineskin
נֵ֖בֶל (nê·ḇel)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 5035: A skin-bag for, liquids, a vase, a lyre

should be filled
יִמָּ֥לֵא (yim·mā·lê)
Verb - Nifal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 4390: To fill, be full of

with wine?’
יָֽיִן׃ (yā·yin)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 3196: Wine, intoxication


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OT Prophets: Jeremiah 13:12 Therefore you shall speak to them this (Jer.)
Jeremiah 13:11
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