Jeremiah 16:6

6 Both great and small shall die in this land; they shall not be buried, and no one shall lament for them or cut himself or make himself bald for them.

Jeremiah 16:6 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 16:6

Both the great and the small shall die in this land
The nobles as well as the common people, high and low, rich and poor; none shall be exempted from the grievous deaths by the sword, famine, and pestilence. They shall not be buried, neither shall men lament for them;
as before, ( Jeremiah 16:4 ) , this shall be the common case of them all; the great and the rich shall have no more care and notice taken of them than the poor: nor cut themselves;
their flesh, with their nails, or with knives, to show their grief for the dead, and to alleviate the sorrow of surviving friends, by bearing a part with them: nor make themselves bald for them;
by plucking off the hair of their heads, or by shaving them, and between their eyes; which though forbidden the Jews by the law of God, as being Heathenish customs, yet obtained in the times of Jeremiah, and were usually done; see ( Deuteronomy 14:1 ) .

Jeremiah 16:6 In-Context

4 They shall die of deadly diseases. They shall not be lamented, nor shall they be buried; they shall be as dung on the surface of the ground. They shall perish by the sword and by famine, and their dead bodies shall be food for the birds of the air and for the beasts of the earth.

5 "For thus says the LORD: Do not enter the house of mourning, or go to lament, or bemoan them; for I have taken away my peace from this people, says the LORD, my steadfast love and mercy.

6 Both great and small shall die in this land; they shall not be buried, and no one shall lament for them or cut himself or make himself bald for them.

7 No one shall break bread for the mourner, to comfort him for the dead; nor shall any one give him the cup of consolation to drink for his father or his mother.

8 You shall not go into the house of feasting to sit with them, to eat and drink.