Discovery BoxLamentations 2:5
Contextה (He)
2:5 The Lord, 1 like an enemy,
destroyed 2 Israel.
He destroyed 3 all her palaces;
he ruined her 4 fortified cities.
He made everyone in Daughter Judah
mourn and lament. 5
Lamentations 2:8
Contextח (Khet)
2:8 The Lord was determined to tear down
Daughter Zion’s wall.
He prepared to knock it down; 6
he did not withdraw his hand from destroying. 7
He made the ramparts and fortified walls lament;
together they mourned their ruin. 8
[2:5] 1 tc The MT reads אֲדֹנָי (’adonay, “the Lord”) here rather than יהוה (YHWH, “the
[2:5] 2 tn Heb “swallowed up.”
[2:5] 3 tn Heb “swallowed up.”
[2:5] 4 tn Heb “his.” For consistency this has been translated as “her.”
[2:5] 5 tn Heb “He increased in Daughter Judah mourning and lamentation.”
[2:8] 6 tn Heb “he stretched out a measuring line.” In Hebrew, this idiom is used (1) literally: to describe a workman’s preparation of measuring and marking stones before cutting them for building (Job 38:5; Jer 31:39; Zech 1:16) and (2) figuratively: to describe the
[2:8] 7 tn Heb “He did not return His hand from swallowing.” That is, he persisted until it was destroyed.
[2:8] 8 tn Heb “they languished together.” The verbs אָבַּלּ (’aval, “to lament”) and אָמַל (’amal, “languish, mourn”) are often used in contexts of funeral laments in secular settings. The Hebrew prophets often use these terms to describe the aftermath of the
