Jeremiah 6:2

6:2 I will destroy ¹  Daughter Zion, ² 

who is as delicate and defenseless as a young maiden. ³ 

Jeremiah 51:10

51:10 The exiles from Judah will say, ⁴ 

‘The Lord has brought about a great deliverance for us! ⁵ 

Come on, let’s go and proclaim in Zion

what the Lord our God has done!’

Jeremiah 3:14

3:14 “Come back to me, my wayward sons,” says the Lord, “for I am your true master. ⁶  If you do, ⁷  I will take one of you from each town and two of you from each family group, and I will bring you back to Zion.

Jeremiah 4:6

4:6 Raise a signal flag that tells people to go to Zion. ⁸ 

Run for safety! Do not delay!

For I am about to bring disaster out of the north.

It will bring great destruction. ⁹ 

Jeremiah 9:19

9:19 For the sound of wailing is soon to be heard in Zion.

They will wail, ¹⁰  ‘We are utterly ruined! ¹¹  We are completely disgraced!

For our houses have been torn down

and we must leave our land.’” ¹² 

Jeremiah 30:17

30:17 Yes, ¹³  I will restore you to health.

I will heal your wounds.

I, the Lord, affirm it! ¹⁴ 

For you have been called an outcast,

Zion, whom no one cares for.”

Jeremiah 31:6

31:6 Yes, a time is coming

when watchmen ¹⁵  will call out on the mountains of Ephraim,

“Come! Let us go to Zion

to worship the Lord our God!”’” ¹⁶ 

Jeremiah 50:5

50:5 They will ask the way to Zion;

they will turn their faces toward it.

They will come ¹⁷  and bind themselves to the Lord

in a lasting covenant that will never be forgotten. ¹⁸ 

Jeremiah 50:28

50:28 Listen! Fugitives and refugees are coming from the land of Babylon.

They are coming to Zion to declare there

how the Lord our God is getting revenge,

getting revenge for what they have done to his temple. ¹⁹ 

Jeremiah 51:24

51:24 “But I will repay Babylon

and all who live in Babylonia

for all the wicked things they did in Zion

right before the eyes of you Judeans,” ²⁰ 

says the Lord. ²¹ 

Jeremiah 51:35

51:35 The person who lives in Zion says,

“May Babylon pay for the violence done to me and to my relatives.”

Jerusalem says,

“May those living in Babylonia pay for the bloodshed of my people.” ²² 

Jeremiah 4:31

4:31 In fact, ²³  I hear a cry like that of a woman in labor,

a cry of anguish like that of a woman giving birth to her first baby.

It is the cry of Daughter Zion ²⁴  gasping for breath,

reaching out for help, ²⁵  saying, “I am done in! ²⁶ 

My life is ebbing away before these murderers!”

Jeremiah 6:23

6:23 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.’” ²⁷ 

Jeremiah 8:19

8:19 I hear my dear people ²⁸  crying out ²⁹ 

throughout the length and breadth of the land. ³⁰ 

They are crying, ‘Is the Lord no longer in Zion?

Is her divine King ³¹  no longer there?’”

The Lord answers, ³² 

“Why then do they provoke me to anger with their images,

with their worthless foreign idols?” ³³ 

Jeremiah 14:19

14:19 Then I said,

“Lord, ³⁴  have you completely rejected the nation of Judah?

Do you despise ³⁵  the city of Zion?

Why have you struck us with such force

that we are beyond recovery? ³⁶ 

We hope for peace, but nothing good has come of it.

We hope for a time of relief from our troubles, but experience terror. ³⁷ 

Jeremiah 26:18

26:18 “Micah from Moresheth ³⁸  prophesied during the time Hezekiah was king of Judah. ³⁹  He told all the people of Judah,

‘The Lord who rules over all ⁴⁰  says,

“Zion ⁴¹  will become a plowed field.

Jerusalem ⁴²  will become a pile of rubble.

The temple mount will become a mere wooded ridge.”’ ⁴³ 

Jeremiah 31:12

31:12 They will come and shout for joy on Mount Zion.

They will be radiant with joy ⁴⁴  over the good things the Lord provides,

the grain, the fresh wine, the olive oil,

the young sheep and calves he has given to them.

They will be like a well-watered garden

and will not grow faint or weary any more.

[6:2]  ¹ tn The verb here is another example of the Hebrew verb form that indicates the action is as good as done (a Hebrew prophetic perfect).

[6:2]  ² sn Jerusalem is personified as a young maiden who is helpless in the hands of her enemies.

[6:2]  ³ tn Heb “The beautiful and delicate one I will destroy, the daughter of Zion. The English versions and commentaries are divided over the rendering of this verse because (1) there are two verbs with these same consonants, one meaning “to be like” and the other meaning “to be destroyed” (intransitive) or “to destroy” (transitive), and (2) the word rendered “beautiful” (נָוָה, navah) can be understood as a noun meaning “pasture” or as a defective writing of an adjective meaning “beautiful, comely” (נָאוָה, na’vah). Hence some render “Fair Zion, you are like a lovely pasture,” reading the verb form as an example of the old second feminine singular perfect. Although this may fit the imagery of the next verse, that rendering ignores the absence of a preposition (לְ or אֶל, lÿ or ’el, both of which can be translated “to”) that normally goes with the verb “be like” and drops the conjunction in front of the adjective “delicate.” The parallel usage of the verb in Hos 4:5 argues for the meaning “destroy.”

[51:10]  ⁴ tn The words “The exiles from Judah will say” are not in the text but are implicit from the words that follow. They are supplied in the translation to clearly identify for the reader the referent of “us.”

[51:10]  ⁵ tn There is some difference of opinion as to the best way to render the Hebrew expression here. Literally it means “brought forth our righteousnesses.” BDB 842 s.v. צְדָקָה 7.b interprets this of the “righteous acts” of the people of Judah and compares the usage in Isa 64:6; Ezek 3:20; 18:24; 33:13. However, Judah’s acts of righteousness (or more simply, their righteousness) was scarcely revealed in their deliverance. Most of the English versions and commentaries refer to “vindication” i.e., that the Lord has exonerated or proven Israel’s claims to be true. However, that would require more explanation than the idea of “deliverance” which is a perfectly legitimate usage of the term (cf. BDB 842 s.v. צְדָקָה 6.a and compare the usage in Isa 46:13; 51:6, 8; 56:1). The present translation interprets the plural form here as a plural of intensity or amplification (GKC 397-98 §124.e) and the suffix as a genitive of advantage (IBHS 147 §9.5.2e). This interpretation is also reflected in REB and God’s Word.

[3:14]  ⁷ tn Or “I am your true husband.”

[3:14]  ⁸ tn The words, “If you do” are not in the text but are implicit in the connection of the Hebrew verb with the preceding.

[4:6]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “Raise up a signal toward Zion.”

[4:6]  ¹¹ tn Heb “out of the north, even great destruction.”

[9:19]  ¹³ tn The words “They will wail” are not in the text. They are supplied in the translation to make clear that this is the wailing that will be heard.

[9:19]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “How we are ruined!”

[9:19]  ¹⁵ tn The order of these two lines has been reversed for English stylistic reasons. The text reads in Hebrew “because we have left our land because they have thrown down our dwellings.” The two clauses offer parallel reasons for the cries “How ruined we are! [How] we are greatly disgraced!” But the first line must contain a prophetic perfect (because the lament comes from Jerusalem) and the second a perfect referring to a destruction that is itself future. This seems the only way to render the verse that would not be misleading.

[30:17]  ¹⁶ tn Again the particle כִּי (ki) appears to be intensive rather than causal. Compare the translator’s note on v. 12. It is possible that it has an adversative sense as an implicit contrast with v. 13 which expresses these concepts in the negative (cf. BDB 474 s.v. כִּי 3.e for this use in statements which are contextually closer to one another).

[30:17]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[31:6]  ¹⁹ sn Watchmen were stationed at vantage points to pass on warning of coming attack (Jer 6:17; Ezek 33:2, 6) or to spread the news of victory (Isa 52:8). Here reference is made to the watchmen who signaled the special times of the year such as the new moon and festival times when Israel was to go to Jerusalem to worship. Reference is not made to these in the Hebrew Bible but there is a good deal of instruction regarding them in the later Babylonian Talmud.

[31:6]  ²⁰ sn Not only will Israel and Judah be reunited under one ruler (cf. 23:5-6), but they will share a unified place and practice of worship once again in contrast to Israel using the illicit places of worship, illicit priesthood, and illicit feasts instituted by Jeroboam (1 Kgs 12:26-31) and continued until the downfall of Samaria in 722 b.c.

[50:5]  ²² tc The translation here assumes that the Hebrew בֹּאוּ (bo’u; a Qal imperative masculine plural) should be read בָּאוּ (ba’u; a Qal perfect third plural). This reading is presupposed by the Greek version of Aquila, the Latin version, and the Targum (see BHS note a, which mistakenly assumes that the form must be imperfect).

[50:5]  ²³ sn See Jer 32:40 and the study note there for the nature of this lasting agreement.

[50:28]  ²⁵ tn Heb “Hark! Fugitives and refugees from the land of Babylon to declare in Zion the vengeance of the Lord our God, vengeance for his temple.” For the meaning “Hark!” for the noun קוֹל (qol) see BDB 877 s.v. קוֹל 1.f and compare the usage in Jer 10:22. The syntax is elliptical because there is no main verb. The present translation has supplied the verb “come” as many other English versions have done. The translation also expands the genitival expression “vengeance for his temple” to explain what all the commentaries agree is involved.

[51:24]  ²⁸ tn Or “Media, you are my war club…I will use you to smash…leaders. So before your very eyes I will repay…for all the wicked things they did in Zion.” For explanation see the translator’s note on v. 20. The position of the phrase “before your eyes” at the end of the verse after “which they did in Zion” and the change in person from second masculine singular in vv. 20b-23 (“I used you to smite”) to second masculine plural in “before your eyes” argue that a change in referent/addressee occurs in this verse. To maintain that the referent in vv. 20-23 is Media/Cyrus requires that this position and change in person be ignored; “before your eyes” then is attached to “I will repay.” The present translation follows J. A. Thompson (Jeremiah [NICOT], 757) and F. B. Huey (Jeremiah, Lamentations [NAC], 423) in seeing the referent as the Judeans who had witnessed the destruction of Zion/Jerusalem. The word “Judean” has been supplied for the sake of identifying the referent for the modern reader.

[51:24]  ²⁹ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[51:35]  ³¹ tn Heb “‘The violence done to me and to my flesh be upon Babylon,’ says the one living in Zion. ‘My blood be upon those living in Chaldea,’ says Jerusalem.” For the usage of the genitive here in the phrase “violence done to me and my relatives” see GKC 414 §128.a (a construct governing two objects) and IBHS 303 §16.4d (an objective genitive). For the nuance of “pay” in the sense of retribution see BDB 756 s.v. עַל 7.a(b) and compare the usage in Judg 9:24. For the use of שְׁאֵר (shÿ’er) in the sense of “relatives” see BDB 985 s.v. שְׁאֵר 2 and compare NJPS. For the use of “blood” in this idiom see BDB 197 s.v. דָּם 2.k and compare the usage in 2 Sam 4:11; Ezek 3:18, 20. The lines have been reversed for better English style.

[4:31]  ³⁴ tn The particle כִּי (ki) is more likely asseverative here than causal.

[4:31]  ³⁵ sn Jerusalem is personified as a helpless maiden.

[4:31]  ³⁶ tn Heb “spreading out her hands.” The idea of asking or pleading for help is implicit in the figure.

[4:31]  ³⁷ tn Heb “Woe, now to me!” See the translator’s note on 4:13 for the usage of “Woe to…”

[6:23]  ³⁷ sn Jerualem is personified as a young maiden helpless before enemy attackers.

[8:19]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “daughter of my people.” For the translation given here see 4:11 and the note on the phrase “dear people” there.

[8:19]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “Behold the voice of the crying of the daughter of my people.”

[8:19]  ⁴² tn Heb “Land of distances, i.e., of wide extent.” For parallel usage cf. Isa 33:17.

[8:19]  ⁴³ tn Heb “her King” but this might be misunderstood by some to refer to the Davidic ruler even with the capitalization.

[8:19]  ⁴⁴ tn The words, “The Lord would answer” are not in the text but are implicit from the words that follow. They are supplied in the translation for clarity. Another option would be to add “And I can just hear the Lord reply.”

[8:19]  ⁴⁵ sn The people’s cry and the Lord’s interruption reflect the same argument that was set forth in the preceding chapter. They have misguided confidence that the Lord is with them regardless of their actions and he responds that their actions have provoked him to the point of judging them. See especially 7:4 and 7:30.

[14:19]  ⁴³ tn The words, “Then I said, ‘Lord” are not in the Hebrew text. It is obvious from the context that the Lord is addressee. The question of the identity of the speaker is the same as that raised in vv. 7-9 and the arguments set forth there are applicable here as well. Jeremiah is here identifying with the people and doing what they refuse to do, i.e., confess their sins and express their trust in him.

[14:19]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “does your soul despise.” Here as in many places the word “soul” stands as part for whole for the person himself emphasizing emotional and volitional aspects of the person. However, in contemporary English one does not regularly speak of the “soul” in contexts such as this but of the person.

[14:19]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “Why have you struck us and there is no healing for us.” The statement involves poetic exaggeration (hyperbole) for rhetorical effect.

[14:19]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “[We hope] for a time of healing but behold terror.”

[26:18]  ⁴⁶ sn Micah from Moresheth was a contemporary of Isaiah (compare Mic 1:1 with Isa 1:1) from the country town of Moresheth in the hill country southwest of Jerusalem. The prophecy referred to is found in Mic 3:12. This is the only time in the OT where an OT prophet is quoted verbatim and identified.

[26:18]  ⁴⁷ sn Hezekiah was co-regent with his father Ahaz from 729-715 b.c. and sole ruler from 715-686 b.c. His father was a wicked king who was responsible for the incursions of the Assyrians (2 Kgs 16; 2 Chr 28). Hezekiah was a godly king, noted for his religious reforms and for his faith in the Lord in the face of the Assyrian threat (2 Kgs 18–19; 2 Chr 32:1-23). The deliverance of Jerusalem in response to his prayers of faith (2 Kgs 19:14-19, 29-36) was undoubtedly well-known to the people of Jerusalem and Judah and may have been one of the prime reasons for their misplaced trust in the inviolability of Zion/Jerusalem (see Ps 46, 76) though the people of Micah’s day already believed it too (Mic 3:11).

[26:18]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies.”

[26:18]  ⁴⁹ sn Zion was first of all the citadel that David captured (2 Sam 5:6-10), then the city of David and the enclosed temple area, then the whole city of Jerusalem. It is often in poetic parallelism with Jerusalem as it is here (see, e.g., Ps 76:2; Amos 1:2).

[26:18]  ⁵⁰ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[26:18]  ⁵¹ sn There is irony involved in this statement. The text reads literally “high places of a forest/thicket.” The “high places” were the illicit places of worship that Jerusalem was supposed to replace. Because of their sin, Jerusalem would be like one of the pagan places of worship with no place left sacrosanct. It would even be overgrown with trees and bushes. So much for its inviolability!

[31:12]  ⁴⁹ tn Reading a Qal perfect from the root II נָהַר (nahar; so KBL 509 s.v. and HALOT 639 s.v.) rather than I נָהַר (so BDB 625 s.v.).