Why does the Lord tell Jeremiah to buy a linen loin cloth and put it around his waist and not to dip it in water?

This passage (Jeremiah 3:1–11) is the first of a number of symbolic acts that the Lord instructs Jeremiah to undertake. This was not an unusual way for the Lord to communicate his message, through his prophets, to his people (Jeremiah 19:1–15, Jeremiah 27:1–28:17, Isaiah 20:2–6; Ezekiel 4:1–13; Ezekiel 5:1–4; Hosea 1:1–3:5).¹ These symbolic acts helped make the message more vivid and their purpose was to urge the people to respond to the message in repentance.²

When interpreting the meaning of these symbolic acts the reader must avoid searching for meaning in every detail since this leads to dangerous allegory which can open the way to finding all kinds of meanings in the text that were never intended by the author.³ The reader should also allow any explanation, that the text itself gives of the meaning of the symbolic act, to guide their own interpretation. In this particular passage the Lord explains the meaning of the act in Jeremiah 3:8–11 and this must shape the readers understanding of the act described in Jeremiah 3:7.

The first instruction the Lord gives to Jeremiah is to go and buy a linen loincloth and put it around your waist. There is some doubt as to the exact garment that Jeremiah was instructed to buy. The Hebrew word used is ezor and it has been variously translated as girdle, waistcloth, loincloth.⁴ We may not be able to be certain as to exactly what type of garment is meant, but what is clear is that it is worn around the waist tightly and it touches the skin.⁵ The Lord explains in Jeremiah 3:11 that this signifies the close covenant relationship the people were supposed to have with him. Some commentators suggest that since the garment is made of linen, a material worn by priests, it may represent the fact that Israel was called to be a kingdom of priests (Exodus 19:6).⁶ If this is the case, then it simply reinforces the nature of the Lord’s close relationship with his covenant people.

Jeremiah is also told to put the loincloth on without dipping it in water. This is probably meant to show that the garment was clean, dry, and freshly purchased when Jeremiah put it on, signifying again the covenant relationship Israel had with the Lord after he brought them up out of Egypt.

Jeremiah completes the first step of this symbolic act by purchasing the loincloth and putting it on as instructed.