Jeremiah 4:23
Context4:23 “I looked at the land and saw 1 that it was an empty wasteland. 2
I looked up at the sky, and its light had vanished.
Jeremiah 7:33
Context7:33 Then the dead bodies of these people will be left on the ground for the birds and wild animals to eat. 3 There will not be any survivors to scare them away.


[4:23] 1 tn Heb “I looked at the land and behold...” This indicates the visionary character of Jeremiah’s description of the future condition of the land of Israel.
[4:23] 2 tn Heb “formless and empty.” This is a case of hendiadys (two nouns joined by “and” both describe the same thing): one noun retains its full nominal force, the other functions as an adjective. The words תֹהוּ וָבֹהוּ (tohu vavohu) allude to Gen 1:2, hyperbolically picturing a reversal of creation and return to the original precreation chaos.
[7:33] 3 tn Heb “Their dead bodies will be food for the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth.”