Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Jeremiah 48:29
We have heard the pride of Moab, (he is exceeding proud) his loftiness, and his arrogance, and his pride, and the haughtiness of his heart.
29, 30. Expanded from Isa 16:6. For pride as a characteristic of Moab cp. Isa 25:11; Zep 2:8-10.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
29 39. See introd. summary to the ch. The passage may contain some Jeremianic matter, but on the whole is late (see also on Jer 48:37-38) and borrowed to a large extent from Is. 15., 16. (chs. which are perhaps earlier than Isaiah’s time and republished by him. See Skinner, C.B. ad loc.).
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 29. The pride of Moab] See Clarke on Isa 16:1.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
There is a passage, Isa 16:6, &c., concerning Moab, very little differing from this: Isaiah lived some years before this prophet, who yet complaineth of them for the same sins, so as they were not at all reformed. God saith he had heard of their pride and arrogancy; a vice which commonly attendeth ease and prosperity, and is exceeding odious in the sight of God, so as a wicked man is often in Scripture set out under the notion of a proud man.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
29. pride (Isa 16:6;Isa 16:7). Moab was the trumpeterof his own fame. Jeremiah adds “loftiness and arrogancy” toIsaiah’s picture, so that Moab had not only not been bettered by thechastisement previously endured as foretold by Isaiah, but had evenbecome worse; so that his guilt, and therefore his sentence ofpunishment, are increased now. Six times Moab’s pride (or thesynonyms) are mentioned, to show the exceeding hatefulness of hissin.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
We have heard the pride of Moab,…. Israel, and all the nations round about, had heard of this, and seen or heard of many instances of it; the thing was notorious; according to Kimchi, it is the prophet that here speaks in the name of the nations; but it seems best to understand it of the Lord himself, as appears from the
Jer 48:30; and who here speaks in the plural number, because of the plurality of persons in the Godhead; as he afterwards does in the singular number, to denote the unity of the divine essence:
(he is exceeding proud) his loftiness, and his arrogancy, and his pride, and the haughtiness of his heart; a heap of words to express the same thing; suggesting that the instances of his pride were many, and that it was exceeding great indeed: these many words were little enough; and indeed words were wanting fully to declare it. The same was observed in Isaiah’s time, and in much the same language; only more words are here used, to show that his pride was increased since that time; see Isa 16:6.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Jer 48:29 and Jer 48:30 only more fully develop the idea contained in Isa 16:6. Those who “heard” are the prophet and the people of God. There is an accumulation of words to describe the pride of Moab. Isaiah’s expression also, , is here expanded into two clauses, and Jahveh is named as the subject. Not only have the people of God perceived the pride of Moab, but God also knows his wrath. belongs to as a genitive, as in Isaiah means “not right,” contrary to actual facts, i.e., untrue.
(Note: The Masoretic accentuation, according to which Athnach is placed under , exhibits another view of the words in the text: this is shown by the Chaldee paraphrase, “their nobles endure not, they have not done what is right.” The Masoretes took in the sense of “staves,” and took staves as a symbol of princes, as in Hos 11:6. Luther, in his translation, “I know his anger well, that he cannot do so very much, and attempts to do more than he can,” follows the Vulgate, Ego scio jactantiam ejus, et quod non sit juxta eam virtus ejus, nec juxta quod poterat conata sit facere , which again seems to have followed the lxx in taking for .)
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
Here the Prophet intimates by anticipation, that how much soever the Moabites might boast, they could not, by their boastings and their pride, so succeed that God should not appear against them as a Judge. We have said already, that as the Moabites had been long in a quiet state, what the Prophet denounced on them, appeared at the first hearing as incredible. It is then by way of anticipation that he says, that the Moabites were proud, did swell with haughtiness, and breathed much arrogance, that, in short, they manifested high and lofty spirits. When the Prophet says all this, and adds, that nothing would avail them, we see that he meets those doubts which might have possessed weak minds, so as to prevent them to believe his prophecy.
And when he uses the words, We have heard, he not only means by report, but that the Moabites loudly boasted, as it is usual with proud men; for they made, so to speak, a bellowing, and sought, even by their tongues alone, to strike others with terror. As then they proclaimed their wealth and their power, they sought in a manner to shake the very air, so that all might tremble at their voice alone. This seems to have been expressed by the Prophet, when he said, We have heard In short, Jeremiah does not mean that the report of the pride of Moab had spread abroad, as rumors often fly respecting the haughtiness and boastings of men; but he intimates that the Moabites were heralds of their own power, so that they spoke in lofty terms of their own greatness, and thus their own tongues testified of their haughtiness and arrogance. (14) And hence it was that the Prophet enlarged on their pride; Moab is very proud, he says; we have heard his haughtiness, his pride and his arrogance, (though it be the same word,) and the loftiness of his heart, or, as we may say in Latin, et altos spiritus, and his high sprits. It now follows —
(14) Our version in Isa 16:6, where the same form of words occurs, is, “We have heard of,” though here the “of” is dropped, and thus the meaning of Calvin is conveyed, which is favored by the early versions.
The verse may be thus literally rendered, —
We have heard the arrogance of Moab; Very arrogant has been his insolence and arrogance; Yea, his arrogantness and the loftiness of his heart.
The word for “arrogance” means swelling; it is to grow big, and to claim more than what belongs to us. Then “insolence” signifies to rise high, so as to look down on others with contempt. Arrogance is first, then insolence: and in the last line the two are inverted, and with this difference, the disposition is denoted in the last line, and the acting in the former. — Ed.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
E. Abhorrent Exaltation Jer. 48:29-30
TRANSLATION
(29) We have heard of the pride of Moab, so very proud; his loftiness and his pride, his arrogancy and the haughtiness of his heart. (30) I know (oracle of the LORD) his insolence. His boasts are empty, he is not able to perform them.
COMMENTS
Without question the major theme running through the oracles against the nations is that of national arrogance. Indeed nearly every conceivable facet of this theme is treated in one or more of these oracles. National arrogance is an affront to the Lord and He must deal with it. The proud will be humbled. With poignant pictures Jeremiah depicts again and again the shame, degradation and disgrace into which the nations shall fall.
The arrogance of the Moabites must have been well known in antiquity. Isaiah many years earlier had emphasized this characteristic of the Moabites and now Jeremiah borrows his terminology to make the same point here, The point is forcibly made by piling up synonyms for pride and haughtiness (Jer. 48:29). In verse thirty the Lord corroborates the assertion of the prophet in the previous verse: I know his wrath (oracle of the LORD). The term wrath here probably refers to the arrogant, angry outbursts to which proud men are so prone. The last part of verse thirty is extremely difficult to translate and there is no agreement among the standard English translations as to how it should be rendered, The King James Version is extremely vague. The American Standard Version renders: his boastings have wrought nothing. The Revised Standard Version offers this interpretative translation: his boasts are false, his deeds are false. The basic idea is that in his words and in his works Moab is essentially untrue.
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
(29) We have heard the pride of Moab . . .It will be seen that here and in the next verse the very words of Isaiah (Isa. 16:6) are reproduced. The prophet seems to find a pleasure in going back to the old words as showing that the fault of which he spoke was inveterate, and had shown itself incurable. It is, however, a free reproduction, and Jeremiah, instead of making the whole utterance that of the Jews, inserts the words, I know his wrath, saith the Lord, which come as an oracle from God, affirming the judgment of the people.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
29-33. Substantially taken from Isa 16:6-10.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
A Lament Over Moab ( Jer 48:29-39 ).
The fate of Moab is very much linked with its overweening pride. It tended to be out of the way of invaders from the north who would use the coastal route, and after the demise of the Assyrians had therefore remained relatively unscathed. It was thus confident in itself and in its god Chemosh, and saw itself as superior to other nations, especially Israel and Judah which had suffered much more at the hands of oppressors. It had grown confident that nothing could happen to it of an adverse nature. But it was now to be humbled and brought low in order that it might learn its lesson.
Jer 48:29
We have heard of the pride of Moab,
(He is very proud),
His loftiness, and his pride,
And his arrogance, and the haughtiness of his heart.”
These words are very similar to those found in Isa 16:1-11. See especially Jer 16:6. They are similar enough to indicate that Jeremiah knew of Isaiah’s prophecy, or of similar common tradition. It would seem clear that Moab’s pride in itself, and its extreme arrogance, were proverbial. It would seem that it was time now for them to be humbled so that they would recognise the inadequacy of their god Chemosh, and the smallness of their own status.
Jer 48:30-32
“I know his wrath, the word of YHWH, that it is nought,
His boastings have accomplished nothing,
Therefore will I wail for Moab,
Yes, I will cry out for all Moab,
For the men of Kir-heres will they mourn,
With more than the weeping of Jazer will I weep for you,
O vine of Sibmah.
Your branches passed over the sea,
They reached even to the sea of Jazer,
On your summer fruits and on your vintage,
The destroyer is fallen.
And gladness and joy is taken away from the fruitful field and from the land of Moab,
And I have caused wine to cease from the winepresses,
None will tread with shouting,
The shouting will be no shouting.”
Compare here Isa 16:7. In Isaiah it is Moab which howls, although the prophet also weeps with them (Jer 48:9). Here either YHWH or the prophet himself is the one who howls for Moab. God’s judgments are always accompanied by God’s weeping even as He carries them out. He is no hard-nosed judge.
“I know his wrath, the word of YHWH, that it is nought, his boastings have accomplished nothing –.” YHWH looks with scorn at Moab’s attempts to aggrandise itself. Both his self-expressed haughty anger against lesser peoples, and his loud boastings, are a nothing, and accomplish nothing. They are empty attitudes and words. In the end all empires, both small and great, collapse into themselves and find themselves subdued.
‘Therefore will I wail for Moab, yes, I will cry out for all Moab, for the men of Kir-heres will they mourn –.’ The question here is as to who is speaking. Jer 48:35; Jer 48:38 suggest that the ‘I’ is YHWH Himself. Others see it as referring to words of Jeremiah, or of some unknown onlooker. But the context is in favour of the first alternative. It is YHWH Himself Who weeps for Moab. And His weeping is in parallel with the weeping of Moab or of sympathetic onlookers (‘they’). This underlines the compassion of YHWH while at the same time emphasising the certainty of what will be. It also brings out the inevitable nature of what follows. The fact that YHWH will weep over it proves that it will happen. But it further brings out that YHWH is not acting in a vindictive manner. He is doing what has to be done. But even as He judges He weeps. He has no pleasure in the death of the wicked, necessary though it be.
Kir-heres, ‘the city of the sun’, was probably a strong Moabite fortress the defeat of which with its powerful defenders signalled the totality of the disaster coming on Moab. Even the sun god worshipped there could not prevent coming disaster. It was only to be seen as an irrelevance not worthy of mention. What happened there was in the hands of YHWH. For Kir-heres compare Kir-haresheth (Isa 16:7) and Kir of Moab (Isa 15:1). Taken together these references indicate an important city.
“With more than the weeping of Jazer will I weep for you, O vine of Sibmah, your branches passed over the sea, they reached even to the sea of Jazer –’. Both Jazer (Jos 21:39) and Sibmah (Jos 13:19) appear to have been near Heshbon, and they appear to have been situated in a part of the land prominent for its vineyards. The vineyards encompassed Jazer and Sibmah stretching even to ‘the sea of Jazer’. This latter was probably a famous inland lake in northern Moab, although some see it as referring to the Dead Sea. Thus their inhabitants were united in mourning over the destruction of their vineyards. But though the mourning of the vinedressers of Jazer might be deep, it did not compare with the depths of the weeping of YHWH. He was equally deeply involved.
“On your summer fruits and on your vintage, the destroyer is fallen, and gladness and joy is taken away from the fruitful field and from the land of Moab, and I have caused wine to cease from the winepresses, none will tread with shouting, the shouting will be no shouting.” The whole of Moab’s vintage crop will be destroyed, along with its summer fruits (figs and pomegranates) and harvests, with the result that the wine presses will lie empty and unused, and there will be no treaders of the grapes to shout joyously as they trample on the grapes. What shouting occurs will not be joyous shouting. It will not be the shouting of the treaders of the grapes exulting in the harvest, but that of the conquerors scenting their own harvest of booty and conquest.
Jer 48:34
“From the cry of Heshbon even to Elealeh,
Even to Jahaz have they uttered their voice,
From Zoar even to Horonaim, to Eglath-shelishiyah,
For the waters of Nimrim also will become desolate.”
The weeping and crying will not just be localised, it will stretch to all the cities of Moab. Heshbon and Elealeh were two miles apart, and Jahaz was not too far away. The whole area in northern Moab (once Reubenite) would be filled with weeping and cries of distress. And the same would apply to the region from Zoar to Horonaim and Eglath-shelishiyah, including the waters of Nimrim. Here we are in southern Moab. All would become desolate.
‘Eglath-shelishiyah.’ This means literally ‘heifer of the third year’, that is, one not brought under the yoke. Most commentators see it as the name of a city, the three names in southern Moab paralleling those in northern Moab. Others see it as signifying ‘the third Eglath’ (there being two other towns of the same name), or as signifying that Eglath is the third of the triumvirate Zoar, Horonaim and Eglath. Still others consider that it rather indicates that Horonaim (or Horonaim and Zoar) was a city that had never been previously brought under foreign control, the parallel to Jazer (compare ‘the sea of Jazer’ above) being the waters of Nimrim.
Jer 48:35
“Moreover I will cause to cease in Moab,
The word of YHWH,
Him who offers in the high place,
And him who burns incense to his gods.”
Here is one of the foundation causes of YHWH’s judgments, the false worship of the Moabites, for they were eponymously descended from worshipers of the true God (Gen 19:37), and were therefore without excuse. Thus YHWH prophetically assures them that the priests and worshipers of Moab’s false gods will have their activities brought to an end by Him. The ‘high place’ has in mind altars in sanctuaries, some possibly in the mountains. Incense offering was common throughout the Near East, and ancient incense altars have been found.
Jer 48:36-37
“Therefore my heart sounds for Moab like pipes,
And my heart sounds like pipes for the men of Kir-heres,
Therefore the abundance that he has obtained,
It is perished,
For every head is bald,
And every beard is clipped,
On all the hands are cuttings,
And on the loins sackcloth.”
Compare here Isa 16:11 from which the idea is taken. The heart of YHWH is so moved that its vibes sound like funeral pipes playing for the men of Moab and Kir-heres. Even while they suffer under His judgments YHWH weeps with them over their sufferings. And yet His weeping is the very proof that it will happen. Of course all these expressions are anthropomorphisms emphasising that God understands our sufferings and shares in our grief, something especially revealed when He became man on our behalf. This reminds us that when we look at the problem of suffering we must look deep. Our problem is that we are so sinful that we are not aware of the problem of sin. Thus we do not understand why God has to act as He does.
The consequence of what YHWH wept for was that the wealth of Moab would perish, her abundance would cease. And as a result they would all be in dire mourning. The shaving of the head, the clipping of the beard, the cuttings on the hands and the sackcloth on the loins were all recognised funerary activities.
Jer 48:38
“On all the housetops of Moab and in its streets,
There is lamentation every where,
For I have broken Moab like a vessel,
In which no one delights,
The word of YHWH.
Indeed in every town and city lamentation would be everywhere, and this would include in rooftop sanctuaries and resting places (see Jdg 3:20). And this would be because YHWH had broken Moab like a clay vessel which no one wanted, either because it was cracked, or because it was dirty, past its user date and useless. Note the point that Moab’s condition is in mind. It has become defiled and useless. And this was the assured prophetic word of YHWH.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Jer 48:29 We have heard the pride of Moab, (he is exceeding proud) his loftiness, and his arrogancy, and his pride, and the haughtiness of his heart.
Ver. 29. We have heard the pride of Moab. ] See Isa 16:6 . Proud he was then, and the same he is still; no changeling is he.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
pride = arrogance. Note the Figure of speech Synonymia : six expressions, for the sake of emphasis.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Jer 48:29-32
Jer 48:29-32
DIRGE OVER A DESOLATE LAND
We have heard of the pride of Moab, [that] he is very proud; his loftiness, and his pride, and his arrogancy, and the haughtiness of his heart. I know his wrath, saith Jehovah, that it is nought; his boastings have wrought nothing. Therefore will I wail for Moab; yea, I will cry out for all Moab: for the men of Kir-heres shall they mourn. With more than the weeping of Jazer will I weep for thee, O vine of Sibmah: thy branches passed over the sea, they reached even to the sea of Jazer: upon thy summer fruits and upon thy vintage the destroyer is fallen.
Sometimes a new translation provides a deeper insight into the meaning of a passage; and here it is the New English Bible that does so.
“We have heard of Moab’s pride, and proud indeed he is. Proud, presumptuous, overbearing, insolent. I know his insolence, says the Lord; His boasting is false, false are his deeds.”
Kirheres…
(Jer 48:31). The literal meaning of this word is ‘city of potsherds.’ It is the same as Kirhareseth (2Ki 3:25; Isa 16:7). Today, it is probably El-Kerak, 17 miles south of the river Arnon, and eleven miles east of the Dead Sea.
Sibmah. Jazer … Elealeh …..
(Jer 48:32; Jer 48:34). All three of these places were clustered around Heshbon; Sibmah was three miles northwest, Elealeh was 2 miles North and Jazer was 10 miles North of Heshbon. Isaiah also mentioned the vines of Sibmah (Jer 16:8-9) but a careful look at both passages will leave no doubt of the absolute originality of both. The critical nonsense that one sacred writer’s mention of something that another sacred writer also mentioned is always and invariably a sign that one of them copied the other is ridiculous; and that stupid rule has been carried to its preposterous extreme in the alleged so-called doublets of the New Testament.
That reached even to the sea of Jazer…
(Jer 48:32). Translators in some works, trying to guard what they feel is the integrity of the text, have changed the reading here, as in the New English Bible to the fountains of Jazer, which is totally unnecessary. Sure, there is no sea (or ‘inland lake’) at this place today; but this is no indication whatever that there was not a large lake there 2,600 years ago! Visitors to Yellowstone Park are shown the remains of a rather large lake that has disappeared there within the last century, as a natural change wrought by geographical developments. Keil noted this fact. Since the valley of Jazer, lying among the mountains, is somewhat depressed, it was in ancient times probably filled with water. In the light of what is written here in the Word of God, we can be sure that this is true.
Abhorrent Exaltation Jer 48:29-30
Without question the major theme running through the oracles against the nations is that of national arrogance. Indeed nearly every conceivable facet of this theme is treated in one or more of these oracles. National arrogance is an affront to the Lord and He must deal with it. The proud will be humbled. With poignant pictures Jeremiah depicts again and again the shame, degradation and disgrace into which the nations shall fall.
The arrogance of the Moabites must have been well known in antiquity. Isaiah many years earlier had emphasized this characteristic of the Moabites and now Jeremiah borrows his terminology to make the same point here, The point is forcibly made by piling up synonyms for pride and haughtiness (Jer 48:29). In verse thirty the Lord corroborates the assertion of the prophet in the previous verse: I know his wrath (oracle of the LORD). The term wrath here probably refers to the arrogant, angry outbursts to which proud men are so prone. The last part of verse thirty is extremely difficult to translate and there is no agreement among the standard English translations as to how it should be rendered, The King James Version is extremely vague. The American Standard Version renders: his boastings have wrought nothing. The Revised Standard Version offers this interpretative translation: his boasts are false, his deeds are false. The basic idea is that in his words and in his works Moab is essentially untrue.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
heard: Pro 8:13, Isa 16:6, Zep 2:8-15
his loftiness: Job 40:10-12, Psa 138:6, Pro 18:12, Pro 30:13, Isa 2:11, Isa 2:12, Dan 4:37, Luk 14:11, Jam 4:6
Reciprocal: Psa 73:6 – Therefore Psa 123:4 – with the scorning Isa 2:17 – the loftiness Isa 25:11 – he shall bring Jer 13:9 – the great Jer 48:11 – emptied Jer 49:16 – terribleness Jer 50:31 – O thou Oba 1:3 – pride Zep 2:10 – for Luk 1:51 – he hath scattered
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Jer 48:29. Pride is not always manifested by a display of outward glory. The original word Is also rendered “avrogancy, which means an overbearing attitude. Moab had certainly shown that disposition against Israel, a noted instance being that in the affair of Balak and Balaam (Numbers 22-24).
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Jer 48:29; Jer 48:39. We have heard the pride of Moab The several synonymous terms made use of in this verse are meant to express the great pride and insolence of Moab. Though some of these terms are not found in the parallel passage, (Isa 16:6,) yet in the main they agree therewith; and while they describe the overweening pride and haughtiness of Moab, and the intemperance of his rage, they intimate the small pretensions he had for such high assuming, either in respect of the extent of his power, or his actual performances. I know his wrath Hebrew, , his fierce wrath, or rage; but it shall not be so He shall not be able to execute it, or bring to pass what he thinks to do: his power shall not be equal to his malice. His lies shall not so effect it Or rather, have not so effected, the verb being in the past time. But this latter part of the sentence seems more properly rendered by Blaney, thus: But he is not alike, (that is, equal to his wrath and threats,) in the extent of his ability he is not alike in performing.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Jer 48:29-39. Moabs pride is without foundation, doomed to a fall which the prophet laments; comparing the past glory with the far-reaching tendrils of a choice vine (Jer 48:32). There is no longer the joy of the ingathering; the shout of battle replaces that of the vintage (Jer 48:33). The beginning of Jer 48:34 is corrupt and yields no sense, but the general meaning is that there shall be widespread ruin. The worship of the land is brought to an end (Jer 48:35). Hence the prophets sorrow for Moab, a land filled with mourning (Jer 48:37; cf. Jer 47:5).
Jer 48:30. Render (after Lord) with Driver, and his boastings are untruth; they do untruth.
Jer 48:32. Omit more than, and the sea of, both with LXX.spoiler: read battle-shout, as in the source, Isa 16:9.
Jer 48:33. none shall tread with shouting: read with Isa 16:10, no treader shall tread.
Jer 48:35. in the high place: involves a slight emendation, as is often the case with RV.
Jer 48:36. pipes: a flute-like instrument, specially used at funerals; cf. Mat 9:23.
Jer 48:37. the loins: prefix all, with LXX.
Fuente: Peake’s Commentary on the Bible
4. The pride of Moab 48:29-39
Moab’s pride would finally come to an end.
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
The sins of Moab were well-known: haughtiness, pride, arrogance, and self-exaltation.
"The sin of pride is one of the principal reasons for Moab’s downfall. Had she boasted in the righteous deeds of the Lord (cf. Psa 20:7; Psa 34:2; Jer 9:24) she would have prospered. The Christian must avoid all false pride (cf. Mar 7:22; Rom 1:30; Jas 3:5, etc.), and must boast instead in God’s redemptive work in Christ (1Co 1:29 f.; Gal 6:14, etc.), since every human boast has been destroyed in Him (1Co 1:25-30)." [Note: Harrison, Jeremiah and . . ., p. 176.]