Jeremiah 15:7I have winnowed them with a fan in the gates of the land; I have bereaved them of children, I have destroyed my people; they didn't return from their ways.
The setting
Jerusalem, 586 BC. Jeremiah watches from the city walls as Babylonian siege engines approach. Smoke rises from burning villages outside the gates...
The emotion here: heartbroken but resolute in delivering God's word
The original word
zarah (זָרִיתִי) — to scatter like grain in the wind, violent separation
Why it matters
Winnowing happened at city gates where wind was strongest — the very place of judgment
Read with care
What most readers miss in Jeremiah 15:7
God is the one doing the winnowing — this isn't random destruction but deliberate discipline
Common misconceptionPeople think this is about God being cruel, but winnowing separates wheat from chaff — it's purification, not destruction for destruction's sake.
The thread continues
Verses that echo Jeremiah 15:7
Bible Genome reading
Jeremiah 15:7 — Bible Genome reading
Emotional genome
Jeremiah 15:7 comes from the book of Jeremiah, written during the Divided Kingdom period. These words are attributed to God. The dominant emotion in this verse is grieving, with a comfort power of 10% and a tone that is lamenting. It belongs to the prophecy genre of biblical literature. Key themes include divine judgment, loss. Notable phrases: winnowed them; bereaved of children. This verse contains prophecy.
Emotionally similar
Verses that meet the same grieving
“By the sweat of your face will you eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For you are dust, and to dust you…”
— Genesis 3:19
“Jesus wept.”
— John 11:35
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me, and from the words of my groaning?”
— Psalms 22:1
“They divide my garments among them. They cast lots for my clothing.”
— Psalms 22:18
“for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God;”
— Romans 3:23
Your reflection
What does Jeremiah 15:7 mean to you, today?
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