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Jeremiah 7:30 JPS For the sons of Judah have done what is evil in My eyes, says the Lord; they placed their abominations in the house upon which My name is called, to pollute it.

Is this an idiom? Does it mean that his name was physically on the structure? Or might this be understood (I don't know a lick of Hebrew) as "within which" or "toward which"?

Ruminator
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  • It is a reference to the temple. – Dr. Shmuel Aug 04 '19 at 23:38
  • Thanks. But what does it mean that his name is called upon it? How should I understand "called"? – Ruminator Aug 04 '19 at 23:40
  • If you start from the beginning of Jer 7 you will see that the house is the temple which is called "House of the LORD" so the name was not physically on it, but it was the name OF it. – rosends Aug 04 '19 at 23:51
  • Okay, thanks. So might you translate "the house by which my name is referred"? – Ruminator Aug 04 '19 at 23:52
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    "The house widely-known as mine"... better yet, "the building with which my reputation is associated." ("Name" more broadly as "reputation" or "honor.") – Shalom Aug 05 '19 at 00:38
  • Try studying Deut. 12 for similar language about the future site of the Temple in Jerusalem. – David Kenner Aug 05 '19 at 04:02
  • @Ruminator: God is being invoked (i.e., called upon) in the Temple in prayer(s). –  Aug 07 '19 at 22:51
  • A similar type of expression is found in Shmuel (Samuel) II chap. 6 verse 2. It means the house of G-d's "presence". The exact meaning is very, very deep. – Mordechai Aug 04 '19 at 23:54

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It means the Bais Hamikdash (the holy temple). As an example, Yirmiyahu is referring to King Menashe who placed idols within the temple. II King 21:4-5.

4 And he built altars in the house of the Lord, concerning which the Lord had said, "In Jerusalem I will establish My Name."

5 And he built altars for the entire host of Heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord

Also notice that as the center of worship of the Lord, the building is referred to as referencing His Name.

sabbahillel
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