Jeremiah 17:11 (ASV)

Passage

As the partridge that sitteth on [eggs] which she hath not laid, so is he that getteth riches, and not by right; in the midst of his days they shall leave him, and at his end he shall be a fool.

Nearby Context

Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and it is exceedingly corrupt: who can know it?

Jeremiah 17:10 I, Jehovah, search the mind, I try the heart, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings.

Jeremiah 17:11 As the partridge that sitteth on [eggs] which she hath not laid, so is he that getteth riches, and not by right; in the midst of his days they shall leave him, and at his end he shall be a fool.

Jeremiah 17:12 A glorious throne, [set] on high from the beginning, is the place of our sanctuary.

Jeremiah 17:13 O Jehovah, the hope of Israel, all that forsake thee shall be put to shame. They that depart from me shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken Jehovah, the fountain of living waters.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "partridge", "sitteth", "eggs", "hath", "laid", "getteth", "riches", and "right". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "partridge" and "sitteth", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 10's "I Jehovah search the mind I try..." into verse 12's "A glorious throne set on high from...", so "partridge" and "sitteth" belong inside that flow. In Jeremiah context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "partridge" and "sitteth" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.