Jeremiah 17:5 (WEB)

Passage

Yahweh says: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man, relies on strength of flesh, and whose heart departs from Yahweh.

Nearby Context

Jeremiah 17:3 My mountain in the field, I will give your substance and all your treasures for a plunder, and your high places, because of sin, throughout all your borders.

Jeremiah 17:4 You, even of yourself, will discontinue from your heritage that I gave you. I will cause you to serve your enemies in the land which you don’t know, for you have kindled a fire in my anger which will burn forever.”

Jeremiah 17:5 Yahweh says: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man, relies on strength of flesh, and whose heart departs from Yahweh.

Jeremiah 17:6 For he will be like a bush in the desert, and will not see when good comes, but will inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, an uninhabited salt land.

Jeremiah 17:7 “Blessed is the man who trusts in Yahweh, and whose confidence is in Yahweh.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "yahweh", "says", "cursed", "trusts", "relies", "strength", "flesh", and "whose". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "yahweh" and "says", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 4's "You even of yourself will discontinue from..." into verse 6's "For he will be like a bush...", so "yahweh" and "says" 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 "yahweh" and "says" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.