Jeremiah 4:31

31 For I heard a cry as of a woman in labor, The anguish as of one giving birth to her first child, The cry of the daughter of Zion ¹gasping for breath, ²Stretching out her hands, saying, "Ah, woe is me, for I faint before murderers."

Jeremiah 4:31 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 4:31

For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail
So the distress of the Jews, at the time of their destruction, is compared to the sorrows of a woman in travail; and a word, that signifies that is used to express it, ( Matthew 24:8 ) : and the anguish as of her that bringeth forth her first child;
whose time is more difficult, her pains sharper, her anguish greater, and, having less experience, the more impatient: the voice of the daughter of Zion, that bewaileth herself;
her unhappy condition, and miserable circumstances: that spreadeth her hands;
as persons in distress do, and particularly women in travail: saying, woe is me now, for my soul is wearied because of murderers:
these abounded: under the second temple, and was the reason, the Jews say: {m}, of the sanhedrim removing from their usual place in the temple; and why they ceased from the beheading of the red heifer ^F14.

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FOOTNOTES:

F13 T. Bab. Avoda Zara, fol. 8. 2.
F14 Misn. Sota, c. 9. sect. 9.

Jeremiah 4:31 In-Context

29 At the sound of the horseman and bowman every city flees; They go into the thickets and climb among the rocks; Every city is forsaken, And no man dwells in them.

30 And you, O desolate one, what will you do? Although you dress in scarlet, Although you decorate yourself with ornaments of gold, Although you enlarge your eyes with paint, In vain you make yourself beautiful. Your lovers despise you; They seek your life.

31 For I heard a cry as of a woman in labor, The anguish as of one giving birth to her first child, The cry of the daughter of Zion gasping for breath, Stretching out her hands, saying, "Ah, woe is me, for I faint before murderers."

Cross References

• 1. Isaiah 42:14
• 2. Isaiah 1:15; Lamentations 1:17

Footnotes

• [a]. Lit "sound"
• [b]. Lit "sound"
• [c]. Lit "palms"
• [d]. Lit "my soul faints"