Jeremias 9:20

20 Hear now, ye women, the word of God, and let your ears receive the words of his mouth, and teach your daughters lamentation, and woman her neighbour a dirge.

Jeremias 9:20 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 9:20

Yet hear the word of the Lord, O ye women
Not the mourning women, but others who had lost their husbands and their children, and had just reason for real mourning; and therefore they are called upon to it, not only because they were more tenderhearted than men, as Kimchi observes; or because they were more attentive to the hearing of the word of God than men; but because of the paucity of men, such numbers being slain in the siege, and by the sword; and of the loss the women had sustained, see ( Jeremiah 9:22 ) : and let your ear receive the word of his mouth;
by his prophets; so the Targum,

``let your ear hearken to the words of his prophets:''

and teach your daughters wailing.
The Arabic version, "a mournful song"; but not the daughters of the mourning women are meant; but the real daughters of those who had lost their husbands or children; since it follows: and everyone her neighbour lamentation;
signifying that the mortality among them would be very universal, not a family escaping; which is described in the next verses. This wailing and lamentation was made by responses, according to the Jews; for they say ^F4,

``what is lamentation? when one speaks, and all the rest answer after her, as it is written in ( Jeremiah 9:20 ) .''

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FOOTNOTES:

F4 Misn. Moed Katon, c. 3. sect. 9.

Jeremias 9:20 In-Context

18 and let them take up a lamentation for you, and let your eyes pour down tears, and your eyelids drop water.

19 For a voice of lamentation has been heard in Sion, How are we become wretched! we are greatly ashamed, for we have forsaken the land, and have abandoned our tabernacles!

20 Hear now, ye women, the word of God, and let your ears receive the words of his mouth, and teach your daughters lamentation, and woman her neighbour a dirge.

21 For death has come up through your windows, it has entered into our land, to destroy the infants without, and the young men from the streets.

22 And the carcases of the men shall be for an example on the face of the field of your land, like grass after the mower, and there shall be none to gather .