Jeremiah Chapter 24

Updated: September 14, 2025

The Good and Bad Figs

1The LORD shewed me, and, behold, two baskets of figs were set before the temple of the LORD, after that Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon had carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, and the princes of Judah, with the carpenters and smiths, from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon. 2One basket had very good figs, even like the figs that are first ripe: and the other basket had very naughty figs, which could not be eaten, they were so bad. 3Then said the LORD unto me, What seest thou, Jeremiah? And I said, Figs; the good figs, very good; and the evil, very evil, that cannot be eaten, they are so evil.

4Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, 5Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel; Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge them that are carried away captive of Judah, whom I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans for their good. 6For I will set mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them again to this land: and I will build them, and not pull them down; and I will plant them, and not pluck them up. 7And I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the LORD: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart.

8And as the evil figs, which cannot be eaten, they are so evil; surely thus saith the LORD, So will I give Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem, that remain in this land, and them that dwell in the land of Egypt: 9And I will deliver them to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth for their hurt, to be a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse, in all places whither I shall drive them. 10And I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, among them, till they be consumed from off the land that I gave unto them and to their fathers.

King James Bible

Text courtesy of BibleProtector.com.

The Good and Bad Figs

1 Yahweh showed me, and behold, two baskets of figs set before the temple of Yahweh, after that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and the princes of Judah, with the craftsmen and smiths, from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon. 2 One basket had very good figs, like the figs that are first-ripe; and the other basket had very bad figs, which could not be eaten, they were so bad. 3 Then Yahweh said to me, What do you see, Jeremiah? I said, Figs; the good figs, very good; and the bad, very bad, that can’t be eaten, they are so bad.

4 The word of Yahweh came to me, saying, 5 Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel: Like these good figs, so will I regard the captives of Judah, whom I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans, for good. 6 For I will set my eyes on them for good, and I will bring them again to this land: and I will build them, and not pull them down; and I will plant them, and not pluck them up. 7 I will give them a heart to know me, that I am Yahweh: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God; for they shall return to me with their whole heart.

8 As the bad figs, which can’t be eaten, they are so bad, surely thus says Yahweh, So will I give up Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem, who remain in this land, and those who dwell in the land of Egypt, 9 I will even give them up to be tossed back and forth among all the kingdoms of the earth for evil; to be a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse, in all places where I shall drive them. 10 I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, among them, until they be consumed from off the land that I gave to them and to their fathers.

The Good and Bad Figs

1 After Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had carried away Jeconiah a son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, as well as the officials of Judah and the craftsmen and metalsmiths from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon, b the LORD showed me two baskets of figs placed in front of the temple of the LORD. 2 One basket had very good figs, like those that ripen early, but the other basket contained very poor figs, so bad they could not be eaten.

3 “Jeremiah,” the LORD asked, “what do you see?”

“Figs!” I replied. “The good figs are very good, but the bad figs are very bad, so bad they cannot be eaten.”

4 Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 5 “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Like these good figs, so I regard as good the exiles from Judah, whom I have sent away from this place to the land of the Chaldeans. c 6 I will keep My eyes on them for good and will return them to this land. I will build them up and not tear them down; I will plant them and not uproot them. 7 I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the LORD. They will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me with all their heart.

8 But like the bad figs, so bad they cannot be eaten,’ says the LORD, ‘so will I deal with Zedekiah king of Judah, his officials, and the remnant of Jerusalem—those remaining in this land and those living in the land of Egypt. 9 I will make them a horror and an offense to all the kingdoms of the earth, a disgrace and an object of scorn, ridicule, and cursing wherever I have banished them. 10 And I will send against them sword and famine and plague, until they have perished from the land that I gave to them and their fathers.’ ”

Footnotes:

1 a Jeconiah  is a variant of Jehoiachin ; see 2 Kings 24:12.
1 b Or metalsmiths, and had brought them from Jerusalem to Babylon
5 c That is, the Babylonians

The Good and Bad Figs

1Jehovah hath shewed me, and lo, two baskets of figs, appointed before the temple of Jehovah, -- after the removing by Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, of Jeconiah, son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, and the heads of Judah, and the artisan, and the smith, from Jerusalem, when he bringeth them into Babylon -- 2In the one basket are figs very good, like the first-ripe figs, and in the other basket are figs very bad, that are not eaten for badness. 3And Jehovah saith unto me, 'What art thou seeing, Jeremiah?' and I say, 'Figs, the good figs are very good, and the bad are very bad, that are not eaten for badness.'

4And there is a word of Jehovah unto me, saying: 5Thus said Jehovah, God of Israel, Like these good figs so do I acknowledge The removed of Judah -- that I sent from this place, To the land of the Chaldeans -- for good. 6And I have set Mine eyes on them for good, And have brought them back to this land, And built them up, and I throw not down, And have planted them, and pluck not up. 7And have given to them a heart to know Me, For I am Jehovah, And they have been to Me for a people, And I am to them for God, For they turned back unto Me with all their heart.

8And like the bad figs, that are not eaten for badness, Surely thus said Jehovah: So do I make Zedekiah king of Judah, And his heads, and the remnant of Jerusalem, Who are left in this land, And who are dwelling in the land of Egypt, 9And I have given them for a trembling, For evil -- to all kingdoms of the earth, For a reproach, and for a simile, For a byword, and for a reviling, In all the places whither I drive them. 10And I have sent against them the sword, The famine and the pestilence, Till their consumption from off the ground, That I gave to them and to their fathers!

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The F.O.G Commentary

Two Baskets of Figs: When God Sees What We Don’t

What’s Jeremiah 24 about?

God shows Jeremiah two baskets of figs – one with beautiful, fresh fruit and another with rotten, inedible ones – to reveal His surprising perspective on who truly belongs to Him. Sometimes the people we think are blessed might be the ones heading for judgment, while those we assume are cursed are actually God’s treasured ones.

The Full Context

Picture this: Jerusalem has just been rocked by its first major deportation to Babylon in 597 BC. King Jehoiachin, along with thousands of the city’s elite – craftsmen, officials, and influential families – have been marched off to exile. Meanwhile, Zedekiah sits on the throne of what’s left, surrounded by those who managed to stay behind. If you were a regular person in Jerusalem watching this unfold, you’d probably think the exiles got the raw deal while the remnant dodged a bullet.

But God’s perspective? Completely upside down from human expectations. Jeremiah 24 comes at a pivotal moment in Jeremiah’s ministry, right after the initial exile but before the final destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC. This vision serves as both comfort for those already in exile and a sobering warning for those still in the land. The passage reveals one of Scripture’s most profound themes: God’s ability to work redemptively through what appears to be judgment, while showing that external circumstances don’t always reflect spiritual reality.

What the Ancient Words Tell Us

The Hebrew word for “basket” here is dud – not just any container, but specifically the kind used for offering firstfruits at the temple. Think about that image for a moment. God isn’t just showing Jeremiah random fruit at the market; He’s presenting an offering, a deliberate selection placed before Him for evaluation.

Grammar Geeks

The word for “very good” describing the first basket uses the Hebrew tovot me’od – the same phrase used in Genesis when God declares His creation “very good.” It’s not just quality produce; it’s creation-level goodness.

The contrast is stark. The good figs are described as tovot me’od (very good), while the bad ones are ra’ot (evil/bad) – and here’s the kicker – they’re ra’ot me’od (very bad). The Hebrew doesn’t mess around with subtlety. These aren’t just slightly overripe; they’re completely worthless, so rotten they can’t even be eaten.

But here’s where it gets really interesting. When God explains the vision, He uses the verb natan (to give) for both groups. “I will give my heart to regard the exiles as these good figs” and “I will give Zedekiah and those with him to be like the bad figs.” Same verb, opposite destinies. God’s giving is always intentional, but it’s not always what we’d expect.

What Would the Original Audience Have Heard?

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To the people still in Jerusalem, this vision would have been absolutely shocking. They were the ones who stayed in God’s holy city! They still had the temple, still offered sacrifices, still maintained the religious system. Meanwhile, those poor exiles were stuck in pagan Babylon, unable to worship properly, cut off from everything that made them God’s people.

Did You Know?

The Babylonians actually treated the exiled Jewish elite quite well – archaeological evidence shows they were given land, allowed to maintain their culture, and even permitted to prosper in business. Some scholars believe this “comfortable captivity” was part of God’s preservation plan.

The cultural assumption was clear: if you’re blessed by God, you prosper in the Promised Land. If you’re judged, you get kicked out. But God flips this logic completely. The exiles – those who appeared cursed – are called His treasured ones, while those who seemed blessed are marked for judgment.

This would have been particularly hard to swallow for the religious establishment. The priests, the remaining officials, the people who saw themselves as the faithful remnant – they’re being compared to rotten fruit. Meanwhile, their colleagues in exile are described with language that echoes Eden itself.

Wrestling with the Text

Here’s what really messes with our heads: why would God call the exiles “good” when many of them were probably just as spiritually compromised as those who stayed behind? Jeremiah 24:7 gives us the clue: “I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord.”

Wait, That’s Strange…

Notice that God doesn’t say the exiles ARE good, but that He will REGARD them as good and GIVE them hearts to know Him. It’s not about their current spiritual state – it’s about God’s redemptive intention toward them.

This isn’t about moral superiority. It’s about God’s sovereign choice to work through suffering to produce genuine transformation. The exile becomes a crucible where pretense gets stripped away and authentic relationship with God can finally emerge.

But what about those who stayed? Why are they marked as the “bad figs”? Jeremiah 24:8-10 reveals the heart issue: they’re characterized by stubborn resistance. They’ve been given chance after chance, warning after warning, but they’ve consistently chosen their own way over God’s.

How This Changes Everything

This vision completely reframes how we understand God’s work in our lives. Sometimes what looks like blessing might actually be God’s patience before judgment, while what feels like punishment might be His loving discipline leading to restoration.

“God’s favor isn’t always comfortable, and His judgment isn’t always obvious – sometimes the very circumstances we think prove His displeasure are actually His pathway to our transformation.”

Think about the implications: the exiles who lost everything – their homes, their status, their religious system – were actually receiving God’s gracious preparation for a new beginning. Meanwhile, those who kept everything were heading toward losing it all because they never learned to depend on God alone.

This pattern shows up throughout Scripture and human experience. Joseph’s slavery becomes the path to salvation for his family. Israel’s wilderness wandering becomes the forge where a nation is shaped. David’s flight from Saul becomes his training ground for kingship.

Key Takeaway

When life turns upside down and you feel like you’ve been thrown into the “exile” basket, remember that God might be preparing something beautiful that could only happen through the breaking. His best work often happens in the places that feel most like judgment.

Jeremiah Chapter 24

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