Jeremiah 48:36

36 Therefore my heart moans for Moab like a flute, and my heart moans like a flute for the men of Kir-he'res; therefore the riches they gained have perished.

Jeremiah 48:36 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 48:36

Therefore my heart shall sound for Moab like pipes
That are sounded on mournful occasions, as at funerals, and the like; see ( Matthew 9:23 ) . This the prophet said, as Kimchi observes, in the person of the people, the inhabitants of Moab; whose hearts would yearn and sound for the calamities of their country like the doleful sound of minstrels. So the Targum,

``therefore the Moabites shall sound in their hearts like a harp:''

and my heart shall sound like pipes for the men of Kirheres;
as for the country of Moab in general, so for this principal city, and the inhabitants of it, in particular; (See Gill on Isaiah 16:11); because the riches [that] he hath gotten is perished;
either Moab or Kirheres; the abundance of goods they had got together were now lost, falling into the hands of the enemy; and which was matter of lamentation. The Targum is,

``for the rest of their substance they had got were spoiled.''

Some understand it of the residue of men that escaped the sword; these perished by famine, or other means; see ( Isaiah 15:7 ) .

Jeremiah 48:36 In-Context

34 "Heshbon and Ele-a'leh cry out; as far as Jahaz they utter their voice, from Zo'ar to Horona'im and Eg'lath-shelish'iyah. For the waters of Nimrim also have become desolate.

35 And I will bring to an end in Moab, says the LORD, him who offers sacrifice in the high place and burns incense to his god.

36 Therefore my heart moans for Moab like a flute, and my heart moans like a flute for the men of Kir-he'res; therefore the riches they gained have perished.

37 "For every head is shaved and every beard cut off; upon all the hands are gashes, and on the loins is sackcloth.

38 On all the housetops of Moab and in the squares there is nothing but lamentation; for I have broken Moab like a vessel for which no one cares, says the LORD.