And upon Dibon, and upon Nebo, and upon Beth-22 diblathaim, And upon Kiriathain, and upon Beth-gamul, and upon 23 Beth-meon, And upon Kerioth, and upon Bozrah, And upon all the cities of the land of Moab, far or near. The horn of Moab is cut off, And his arm is broken, saith the LORD. 26-47. Conclusion of the lament over Moab. 24 25 Make ye him drunken: for he magnified himself against 26 Beth-diblathaim] literally, house of two figs. Some identify it with Almon-diblathaim of Numb. xxxiii. 46, but this is doubtful. 23. Kiriathaim] See note on ver. I. Beth-gamul] not elsewhere mentioned. Beth-meon] called also (Numb. xxxii. 38) Baal-meon, and (Josh. xiii. 17) Beth-baal-meon. 24. Kerioth] It is thought with much probability that this is another name for Ar, the old capital of Moab (Ñumb. xxi. 28), for in the lists. where either is mentioned the other name does not occur, while each evidently denotes a place of importance. The place may have grown to be a union of two or more towns, and hence the name Kerioth (towns). Bozrah] not the Bozrah of chap. xlix. 13; Is. lxiii. 1, which belonged to Edom, but either the Bezer of Deut. iv. 43, or better the Bosora of Maccab. v. 26. "As the word means sheepfolds, it was no doubt a common name for places in this upland region, fit only for pasturage.' far or near] the latter denoting nearer the borders of the country. 25. The horn is an emblem of strength, the arm of authority. For the former see Ps. lxxv. 4, 5, 10, for the latter chap. xvii. 5. 26-47. CONCLUSION OF THE LAMENT OVER MOAB. 26. Make ye him drunken] The comparison of the exhibition of God's wrath upon a nation to an intoxicating draught is illustrated by chap. xxv. 15, where see note. he magnified himself against the Lord] He resisted Reuben in his occupation of the territory which the Lord had assigned him. wallow] more literally, splash into. he also shall be in derision] just as Israel has been. See next verse. 27 28 29 30 31 Was he found among thieves? For since thou spakest of him, thou skippedst for joy. O ye that dwell in Moab, leave the cities, and dwell in the rock, And be like the dove that maketh her nest in the sides of the hole's mouth. We have heard the pride of Moab; he is exceeding proud: His loftiness, and his arrogancy, and his pride, and the I know his wrath, saith the LORD; but it shall not be so; Therefore will I howl for Moab, 27. was he found among thieves?] i.e. Thou couldst not, O Moab, have treated him with more contempt, hadst thou caught him in the act of stealing. skippedst for joy] waggedst thy head, in scorn. xxvii. 39. Compare Matt. 28. dwell in the rock] seek the most secret or inaccessible hiding places. See note on iv. 29. in the sides of the hole's mouth] in the further side of the mouth of the pit. 29. We] the prophet and his fellow countrymen. The character of Moab for haughtiness is brought out forcibly by the accumulation of synonyms that succeed. This and the following verse are in substance the same as Is. xvi. 6. 30. I know his wrath] The Lord corroborates the assertion of the prophet in the former verse. but it shall not be so; his lies shall not so effect it] and the unreality of his lies; they have wrought what is unreal. The passage in Isaiah shews us that the stop should be after and not before the word rendered lies, which is also found in the senses staves, princes. It is in this latter sense that those who added the stops in the Heb. Bible seem to have understood it, and hence the division of the clauses. The words rendered not so here are those which appear as "not aright," "not right" in chaps. viii. 6, xxiii. 10. See note on the former of those two passages. 31. Therefore] not immediately connected with the two preceding verses, but rather going back to the thought of the judgment that was coming. will I howl] In the corresponding passage in Isaiah it is first the country that mourns itself, and only later the prophet also expresses grief. The greater tenderness of Jeremiah's sorrow is shewn not only by his personal lamentation in this verse, but in the later part by the substitution of the word 'men' for the foundations' of the And I will cry out for all Moab ; Mine heart shall mourn for the men of Kir-heres. O vine of Sibmah, I will weep for thee with the weeping 32 of Jazer: Thy plants are gone over the sea, They reach even to the sea of Jazer: The spoiler is fallen upon thy summer fruits and upon thy vintage. And joy and gladness is taken from the plentiful field, 33 and from the land of Moab; And I have caused wine to fail from the wine presses: Isaiah passage. The two words in the original resemble each other in sound. mine heart shall mourn] The insertion of the words 'mine heart' in the Eng. Vers. here is hardly justified by their occurrence in the Heb. of the Isaiah passage (xv. 5). Rather it is, one (they, indefinitely) shall mourn. Kir-heres] the chief stronghold of Moab, the Kir-hareseth and Kir-haresh of Is. xvi. 7, II. 32. O vine of Sibmah] Sibmah according to St Jerome was only five hundred paces from Heshbon, while Jazer was fifteen miles north of the latter city. The grapes of the region of Heshbon are even now excellent. with the weeping of Fazer] more than the weeping of Fazer over its ruins, and wasted vineyards. thy plants] thy tendrils. over the sea] to the western shore of the Dead Sea, a poetical way of saying that the influence of this part of the Moabite nation had made itself felt to that distance. the sea of Fazer] Nothing like a sea is found now-a-days in the high valley in which the town lies. It would seem however that a considerable body of water was found there then, now represented by some ponds. We must also remember that the word sea may easily convey to our ears a very erroneous idea of the dimensions intended by the corresponding Heb. word. Compare for this 1 Kings vii. 23. the spoiler] Isaiah has "a shouting." thy vintage] Isaiah, whose word differs only by a single letter, has "thy harvest." 33. This verse corresponds closely to Is. xvi. 10. the plentiful field] The Heb. is Carmel, but of course without any particular reference to the promontory of that name on the west coast of Palestine. winepresses] wine-vats, the receptacles in which the wine was stored, not made. None shall tread with shouting; Their shouting shall be no shouting. From the cry of Heshbon even unto Elealeh, And even unto Jahaz, have they uttered their voice, As a heifer of three years old: For the waters also of Nimrim shall be desolate. Moreover I will cause to cease in Moab, saith the LORD, him that offereth in the high places, And him that burneth incense to his gods. Therefore mine heart shall sound for Moab like pipes, Because the riches that he hath gotten are perished. And every beard clipt: with shouting] For the shout of the wine treaders, see note on xxv. 30. The clause which here follows means that the vintage shout shall be transformed into the battle cry. 34. This verse resembles Is. xv. 4. The sense is that the cry uttered from Heshbon (see note on ver. 2) is heard at Elealeh (about two miles distant) and is even carried on to Jahaz, a considerable distance southwest. Again, the wail uttered from Zoar is borne to Horonaim, both in the south of the land. Thus the lamentation shall be caught by one from another and be universal. The a heifer of three years old] The corresponding Heb. is in the Isaiah passage appended to Zoar. The sense is difficult in each place. probable rendering is either, the third Eglath, or, Eglath with the other two (cities), and the sense either that there were three cities of that name, numbered thus by way of distinction, or that Zoar, Horonaim, and Eglath formed a group or league of cities corresponding to the three cities named earlier in the verse. Nimrim] not the place ("Beth-nimrah") mentioned in Numb. xxxii. 36; Josh. xiii. 27, which is much too far north, but probably the modern Wady en-Nemeirah at the south-eastern end of the Dead Sea. 36. shall sound for Moab like pipes] Their use was connected with funerals, so that the word is appropriate as expressing mourning. Isaiah's word is "an harp" (xvi. 11). the riches] literally, the superfluity. His substance was much more than a mere competency. are perished] There are but two cases in which the word riches (French richesse) is treated as singular in the Eng. Vers. (Wisdom v. 8; Rev. xviii. 17), although this seems merely to have arisen from the word's happening to end in letters commonly used to denote the plural. Upon all the hands shall be cuttings, And upon the loins sackcloth. There shall be lamentation generally upon all the house- 38 tops of Moab, and in the streets thereof: For I have broken Moab like a vessel wherein is no pleasure, saith the LORD. They shall howl, saying, How is it broken down! How hath Moab turned the back with shame! So shall Moab be a derision and a dismaying to all them about him. For thus saith the LORD; Behold, he shall fly as an eagle, And shall spread his wings over Moab. Kerioth is taken, and the strong holds are surprised, And the mighty men's hearts in Moab at that day shall be As the heart of a woman in her pangs. 37. All shall have the usual emblem of mourning. See notes on chap. xvi. 6. 38. generally] wholly. a vessel] the same word as that rendered idol in xxii. 28, where see note. 39. They shall howl, saying, How is it broken down!] How is it broken! they howl. 40. he shall fly as an eagle] See note on iv. 13. The simile seems taken from Deut. xxviii. 49, but is used elsewhere (see chap. xlix. 22; Is. xlvi. 11; Ezek. xvii. 3). It well represented the Babylonian empire, which "seemed to those who witnessed it like the rising of a mighty eagle, spreading out his vast wings, feathered with the innumerable colours of the variegated masses which composed the Chaldaean host, sweeping over the different countries, and striking fear in his rapid flight." Stanley, J. Ch. II. 451. 41. Kerioth] See note on ver. 24. The double sense (both a proper name, and towns) gives rise to a play upon the word, which we cannot translate. are surprised] are seized. 43, 44. Substantially the same as Is. xxiv. 17, 18, and very probably a proverb in frequent use. See note on Lam. iii. 47. JEREMIAH 20 39 40 41 42 43 |
