Jeremiah 48:38

38 Sobbing is the only sound in Moab. It is heard on all of its roofs. It is heard in the market places. I have broken Moab like a jar that no one wants," announces the Lord.

Jeremiah 48:38 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 48:38

[There shall be] lamentation generally
Or, "all of it [is] mourning" F14; the whole country of Moab is in mourning; or all is full of mourning; all persons, places, and things, express nothing but mourning; go where you will, it is to be seen: upon all the house tops of Moab, and in the streets thereof;
the mourning, as it was general, it was public; it was seen by all, and everywhere; (See Gill on Isaiah 15:3); for I have broken Moab like a vessel wherein [is] no pleasure, saith
the Lord;
as an earthen vessel, which the potter does not like, and which is useless and unprofitable to any, and which he takes and dashes into pieces; into a thousand shivers, as the word F15 here signifies, and can never be put together again; or as a filthy unclean vessel a man cannot bear in his sight: Moab is by the Lord called his wash pot, ( Psalms 60:8 ) . The Moabites were vessels of wrath, fitted for destruction by their own this; and now the time of it was come.


FOOTNOTES:

F14 (dpom hlk) "totus luctus (est) vel omnia luctus (sunt)", Schmidt; "totus erit planctus", Junius & Tremellius; "per omnia erit planctus", Piscator.
F15 (ytrbv) "totalis confractio praedicitur", Schmidt.

Jeremiah 48:38 In-Context

36 "Like a flute my heart sings a song of sadness for Moab. It sings like a flute for the men of Kir Hareseth. The wealth they had gotten is gone.
37 Every head is shaved. Every beard is cut off. Every hand is cut. And every waist is covered with black cloth.
38 Sobbing is the only sound in Moab. It is heard on all of its roofs. It is heard in the market places. I have broken Moab like a jar that no one wants," announces the Lord.
39 "How broken Moab is! How the people sob! They turn away from others because they are so ashamed. All those who are around them laugh at them. They are shocked at them."
40 The LORD says, "Look! Nebuchadnezzar is like an eagle diving down. He is spreading his wings over Moab.
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