Jeremiah 6:22-26
New English Translation
22 This is what the Lord says:
“Beware! An army[a] is coming from a land in the north.
A mighty nation is stirring into action in faraway parts of the earth.
23 Its soldiers are armed with bows and spears.
They are cruel and show no mercy.
They sound like the roaring sea
as they ride forth on their horses.
Lined up in formation like men going into battle
to attack you, Daughter Zion.”[b]
24 The people cry out,[c] “We have heard reports about them.
We have become helpless with fear![d]
Anguish grips us,
agony like that of a woman giving birth to a baby!
25 Do not go out into the countryside.
Do not travel on the roads.
For the enemy is there with sword in hand.[e]
They are spreading terror everywhere.”[f]
26 So I said,[g] “Oh, my dear people,[h] put on sackcloth
and roll in ashes.
Mourn with painful sobs
as though you had lost your only child.
For any moment now[i] that destructive army[j]
will come against us.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 6:22 tn Heb “people.”
- Jeremiah 6:23 sn Jerualem is personified as a young maiden helpless before enemy attackers.
- Jeremiah 6:24 tn These words are not in the text, but the context indicates that someone other than God is speaking for and to the people (either Jeremiah or the people themselves). These words are supplied in the translation for clarity.
- Jeremiah 6:24 tn Or “We have lost our strength to do battle”; Heb “Our hands hang limp [or helpless at our sides].” According to BDB 951 s.v. רָפָה Qal.2, this idiom is used figuratively for losing heart or energy. The best example of its figurative use of loss of strength or the feeling of helplessness is in Ezek 21:12, where it appears in the context of the heart (courage) melting, the spirit sinking, and the knees becoming like water. For other examples compare 2 Sam 4:1; Zeph 3:16. In Neh 6:9 it is used literally of the builders “dropping their hands from the work” out of fear. The words “with fear” are supplied in the translation because they are implicit in the context.
- Jeremiah 6:25 tn Heb “For the enemy has a sword.”
- Jeremiah 6:25 tn Heb “Terror is all around!”
- Jeremiah 6:26 tn These words are not in the text but are implicit from the context.
- Jeremiah 6:26 tn Heb “daughter of my people.” For the translation given here see 4:11 and the translator’s note there.
- Jeremiah 6:26 tn Heb “suddenly.”
- Jeremiah 6:26 tn Heb “the destroyer.”
Jeremiah 6:22-26
English Standard Version
22 Thus says the Lord:
(A)“Behold, a people is coming (B)from the north country,
a great nation is stirring from (C)the farthest parts of the earth.
23 They lay hold on bow and javelin;
they are (D)cruel and have no mercy;
(E)the sound of them is like the roaring sea;
they ride on horses,
set in array as a man for battle,
against you, O daughter of Zion!”
24 We have heard the report of it;
(F)our hands fall helpless;
anguish has taken hold of us,
(G)pain as of a woman in labor.
25 Go not out into the field,
nor walk on the road,
for the enemy has a sword;
(H)terror is on every side.
26 O daughter of my people, (I)put on sackcloth,
and (J)roll in ashes;
(K)make mourning as for an only son,
most bitter lamentation,
for suddenly the destroyer
will come upon us.
NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
