God is both near and unlimited, seeing all and filling every place, calling everyone to live under His ever—present shepherding.
In the time of Jeremiah, who served as a prophetic voice to Judah from around 627 BC to after the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC, the people were bombarded with messages from false prophets. Amid this confusion, the LORD speaks through Jeremiah, reinforcing His intimate awareness of His people’s situations. When the LORD poses the question, "Am I a God who is near," declares the LORD, "And not a God far off?" (v. 23), He confronts the misunderstanding that His presence is somehow limited. The verse reminds the people that the living God does not reside in distant isolation but actively engages with their lives, ever watchful and perpetually close.
Jeremiah 23:23 reveals the LORD’s assurance that He is not inaccessible or detached from human struggles. This concept appears throughout Scripture, emphasizing the LORD’s nearness to the brokenhearted and His swift response to calls for help (Psalm 34:18). Although the leaders of Jeremiah’s day often wandered from truth, God invited them to grasp His closeness and sovereignty, urging them not to replace Him with ideologies that dimmed the reality of His nearness. Recognizing God’s presence fosters reverence, humility, and a transformation of daily living as people realize they stand continually before Him.
In the New Testament, believers find ultimate expression of God’s nearness through Jesus, who brought divine presence into human form (Matthew 1:22-23). This amplifies the same comforting reality in Jeremiah’s message: God’s proximity signals His love, His concern for moral integrity, and His call to trust Him. While human leaders come and go, God’s Word remains unwavering, consistently conveying His presence and holiness. Verse 23 urges any who doubt to remember that the LORD is always near, inviting hearts to respond with deep repentance and faith in the one true God.
Jeremiah 23:24 continues this theme. By declaring, "Can a man hide himself in hiding places So I do not see him?" declares the LORD. "Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?" declares the LORD (v. 24), God emphasizes His omnipresence. No hidden corner exists where He cannot see, and no person can remove themselves beyond His sight. The prophet Jeremiah speaks this word to an audience susceptible to false hopes and secret alliances with foreign powers, reminding them that God’s gaze misses nothing, even distant intrigues or private deceptions.
Verse 24 reveals the LORD’s power to extend beyond any boundary and envelop all creation. From the highest heavens to the farthest reaches of the earth, God’s presence stands constant. Israel needed to grasp that hidden sin or ignored righteousness would each lay bare before an all—seeing God. In many ways, this passage calls to mind Psalm 139, where the Psalmist celebrates that no distance or darkness can obscure God's watchful care. God’s people thus find both caution and comfort in His all—encompassing visibility, knowing He guides and judges justly.
Through the lens of Christ, this concept of God filling every space resonates with Jesus’s promise to be with His followers, even to the end of the age (Matthew 28:20). Just as Jeremiah’s contemporaries had to learn that God was unquestionably near, so believers today stand in reverent awe of God’s encompassing Spirit. He is not confined to shrines or cathedrals, and no barrier can contain His sovereignty.
Jeremiah 23:23-24
23 “Am I a God who is near,” declares the LORD,
“And not a God far off?
24 “Can a man hide himself in hiding places
So I do not see him?” declares the LORD.
“Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” declares the LORD.
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Jeremiah 23:23-24 meaning
In the time of Jeremiah, who served as a prophetic voice to Judah from around 627 BC to after the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC, the people were bombarded with messages from false prophets. Amid this confusion, the LORD speaks through Jeremiah, reinforcing His intimate awareness of His people’s situations. When the LORD poses the question, "Am I a God who is near," declares the LORD, "And not a God far off?" (v. 23), He confronts the misunderstanding that His presence is somehow limited. The verse reminds the people that the living God does not reside in distant isolation but actively engages with their lives, ever watchful and perpetually close.
Jeremiah 23:23 reveals the LORD’s assurance that He is not inaccessible or detached from human struggles. This concept appears throughout Scripture, emphasizing the LORD’s nearness to the brokenhearted and His swift response to calls for help (Psalm 34:18). Although the leaders of Jeremiah’s day often wandered from truth, God invited them to grasp His closeness and sovereignty, urging them not to replace Him with ideologies that dimmed the reality of His nearness. Recognizing God’s presence fosters reverence, humility, and a transformation of daily living as people realize they stand continually before Him.
In the New Testament, believers find ultimate expression of God’s nearness through Jesus, who brought divine presence into human form (Matthew 1:22-23). This amplifies the same comforting reality in Jeremiah’s message: God’s proximity signals His love, His concern for moral integrity, and His call to trust Him. While human leaders come and go, God’s Word remains unwavering, consistently conveying His presence and holiness. Verse 23 urges any who doubt to remember that the LORD is always near, inviting hearts to respond with deep repentance and faith in the one true God.
Jeremiah 23:24 continues this theme. By declaring, "Can a man hide himself in hiding places So I do not see him?" declares the LORD. "Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?" declares the LORD (v. 24), God emphasizes His omnipresence. No hidden corner exists where He cannot see, and no person can remove themselves beyond His sight. The prophet Jeremiah speaks this word to an audience susceptible to false hopes and secret alliances with foreign powers, reminding them that God’s gaze misses nothing, even distant intrigues or private deceptions.
Verse 24 reveals the LORD’s power to extend beyond any boundary and envelop all creation. From the highest heavens to the farthest reaches of the earth, God’s presence stands constant. Israel needed to grasp that hidden sin or ignored righteousness would each lay bare before an all—seeing God. In many ways, this passage calls to mind Psalm 139, where the Psalmist celebrates that no distance or darkness can obscure God's watchful care. God’s people thus find both caution and comfort in His all—encompassing visibility, knowing He guides and judges justly.
Through the lens of Christ, this concept of God filling every space resonates with Jesus’s promise to be with His followers, even to the end of the age (Matthew 28:20). Just as Jeremiah’s contemporaries had to learn that God was unquestionably near, so believers today stand in reverent awe of God’s encompassing Spirit. He is not confined to shrines or cathedrals, and no barrier can contain His sovereignty.