Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Jeremiah 14:2
Judah mourneth, and the gates thereof languish; they are black unto the ground; and the cry of Jerusalem is gone up.
2. the gates ] put, as often in Hebrew, for cities, i.e. for the inhabitants, as being the place of general resort.
they sit in black upon the ground ] Cp. Jer 8:21, Jer 13:18; also Psa 137:1; and Isa 47:1.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
They are black unto the ground – The people assembled at the gates, the usual places of concourse, are in deep mourning and sit humbly on the ground.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 2. The gates thereof languish] The gates being the places of public resort, they are put here for the people.
They are black unto the ground] Covered from head to foot with a black garment, the emblem of sorrow and calamity.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
By
Judah is meant the men and women in the whole country of Judah. The
gates is put for their cities; or the men of their cities languished, for want of moisture for themselves or their beasts. They are all in the habits of mourners, or their faces looked swarthy and starvedly, for want of due and wholesome nourishment,
and the cry of Jerusalem is gone up; either their cry unto God by their prayers in his temple, or their cry by the reason of, their misery and grief, is gone up to heaven.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
2. gatesThe place ofpublic concourse in each city looks sad, as being no longerfrequented (Isa 3:26; Isa 24:4).
blackthat is, theymourn (blackness being indicative of sorrow), (Jer8:21).
unto the groundbowingtowards it.
cryof distress(1Sa 5:12; Isa 24:11).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Judah mourneth,…. That is, the inhabitants of Judah; those of the house of Judah, as the Targum; these mourned because of the drought and famine that were upon the land:
and the gates thereof languish; the cities of Judah, as the Targum; the inhabitants of them, which used to be supplied from the field, and out of the country; gates may be mentioned, because through the gates the provisions were brought into the city; but now none; and therefore are said to languish; or else those that sat in the gates are meant, the elders of the people, the senators, the judges, and civil magistrates; these shared in the common calamity:
they are black unto the ground; that is, the inhabitants of the cities, and those that sit in the gates, their faces are black through famine; see La 4:8, so the Targum,
“their faces are covered with blackness, they are black as a pot;”
and which they turned to the ground, and looked downwards, not being able to lift them up through the sorrow and distress they were in, and through faintness of spirit for want of food:
and the cry of Jerusalem is gone up: meaning the cry and lamentation of the inhabitants of Jerusalem because of the famine, for that city was not exempted from it, it having its supply from the country; or the prayer of them, and of the people from all parts got together there, which went up to heaven for rain: it being usual, in times of common distress, for the people in the country to come up to Jerusalem to the temple to pray to God, and particularly for rain, when there was a want of it.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Description of the distress arising from the drought. – Jer 14:2. Judah mourneth, and the gates thereof languish, like mourning on the ground, and the cry of Jerusalem goeth up. Jer 14:3. Their nobles send their mean ones for water: they come to the wells, find no water, return with empty pitchers, are ashamed and confounded and cover their head. Jer 14:4. For the ground, which is confounded, because no rain is fallen upon the earth, the husbandmen are ashamed, cover their head. Jer 14:5. Yea, the hind also in the field, she beareth and forsaketh it, because there is no grass. Jer 14:6. And the wild asses stand on the bare-topped heights, gasp for air like the jackals; their eyes fail because there is no herb.” The country and the city, the distinguished and the mean, the field and the husbandmen, are thrown into deep mourning, and the beasts of the field pine away because neither grass nor herb grows. This description gives a touching picture of the distress into which the land and its inhabitants have fallen for lack of rain. Judah is the kingdom or the country with its inhabitants; the gates as used poetically for the cities with the citizens. Not mankind only, but the land itself mourns and pines away, with all the creatures that live on it; cf. Jer 14:4, where the ground is said to be dismayed along with the tillers of it. The gates of the cities are mentioned as being the places where the citizens congregate. , fade away, pine, is strengthened by: are black, i.e., mourn, down to the earth; pregnant for: set themselves mourning on the ground. As frequently, Jerusalem is mentioned alongside of Judah as being its capital. Their cry of anguish rises up to heaven. This universal mourning is specialized from Jer 14:3 on. Their nobles, i.e., the distinguished men of Judah and Jerusalem, send their mean ones, i.e., their retainers or servants and maids, for water to the wells ( , pits, 2Ki 3:16, here cisterns). The Chet. , here and in Jer 48:4, is an unusual form for , Keri. Finding no water, they return, their vessels empty, i.e., with empty pitchers, ashamed of their disappointed hope. is strengthened by the synonym . Covering the head is a token of deep grief turned inwards upon itself; cf. 2Sa 15:30; 2Sa 19:5. is the ground generally. is a relative clause: quae consternata est . “Because no rain,” etc., literally as in 1Ki 17:7. – Even the beasts droop and perish. is intensive: yea, even. The hind brings forth and forsakes, sc. the new-born offspring, because for want of grass she cannot sustain herself and her young. , infin. abs. set with emphasis for the temp. fin., as Gen 41:43; Exo 8:11, and often; cf. Gesen. 131, 4, a, Ew. 351, c. The hind was regarded by the ancients as tenderly caring for her young, cf. Boch. Hieroz. i. lib. 3, c. 17 (ii. p. 254, ed. Ros.) The wild asses upon the bleak mountain-tops, where these animals choose to dwell, gasp for air, because, by reason of the dreadful drought, it is not possible to get a breath of air even on the hills. Like the , jackals, cf. Jer 9:10; Jer 10:22, etc. Vulg. has dracones, with the Aram. versions; and Hitz. and Graf are of opinion that the mention of jackals is not here in point, and that, since does not mean dracones, the word stands here, as in Exo 29:3; Exo 32:2, for , the monster inhabiting the water, a crocodile or some kind of whale that stretches its head out of the water to draw breath with gaping jaws. On this Ng. has well remarked: he cannot see why the gaping, panting jaws of the jackal should not serve as a figure in such a case as the present. Their eyes fail away – from exhaustion due to want of wear. , bushes and under-shrubs, as distinguished from , green grass.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
The Prophet intimates in these words, that so great would be the scarcity as to appear to be a manifest and remarkable evidence of God’s vengeance; for when God punishes us in a common way, we for the most part refer the event to some fortuitous circumstances, and the devil also ever retains our minds in the consideration of secondary causes. Hence the Prophet declares here that an event so unusual could not be ascribed to natural causes, as that the earth should become so sterile, but thai; it was the extraordinary judgment of God. This is the reason wily he employs so many figurative expressions. He might indeed have said, in one sentence, that there would be in the land a most grievous famine; but hardly one in a hundred would have been moved by words so simply expressed. Therefore the Prophet, in order to arouse their stupor, uses terms the most forcible.
Hence he says, Mourned has Judah Though he speaks of what was future, yet, according to his own usual manner and that of others, he uses the past time in order to shew the certainty of what he said. He then declares that there would be mourning in Judah. He afterwards says, His gates have been weakened, or scattered. In mentioning gates, he takes a part for the whole, for he means the cities: but as judgments were wont to be administered at the gates, and as men often assembled there, he says that the gates would be reduced to solitude, so that hardly any one would appear there. He in the third place adds, They have become darkened to the ground, or, in plainer words, they became overwhelmed with grief; but the proper meaning of the word is to become darkened: and he says, to the ground, as though he said that they would be so cast down as to he in the dust, and would not dare to raise up their heads, nor would be able to do so, being worn down by want and famine. We hence see what he means, even this, — that the scarcity would be so great that men would be down on the ground, and in a manner seek darkness for themselves, as it is the case with us when we flee as it were from the light and he on the ground; for we then shew that we cannot enjoy the light, it being disagreeable to us: and hence we see more clearly what I have stated, — that the Prophet uses very strong terms to produce an impression on the Jews, that they might know that the earth was so sterile, not through any natural or common cause, but through the judgment of God. (105)
He afterwards adds, The cry of Jerusalem has ascended Here he sets forth their despair: for in doubtful matters we are wont to deliberate and to devise remedies; but when we are destitute of any counsel or advice, and when no hope appears, we then break out into crying. We hence see that it was an evidence of despair when the cry of Jerusalem ascended; for they would not be able to complain and to disburden their cares and griefs by pouring them into the bosoms of one another, but all of them would cry and howl.
(105) The versions connect the two verbs with gates: and if we take “gates” metonymically for those who attended them, the meaning will be evident. We may then render the verse thus, —
Mourned hath Judah, And her gates, they have languished; Grieved have they for the land; And the cry of Jerusalem hath ascended.
In the gates was the court of justice; there the chief men or governors assembled. The languishing belonged, not to the gates, but to those who attended them, and so the grief or lamentation. The first meaning of the verb is to be dark, to be black, but it is used to signify extreme grief or lamentation. See Psa 35:14. As light denotes joy, so darkness is a symbol of grief or mourning. We use a similar kind of metonymy, when we say, “The court is in mourning.” The Septuagint render the verse thus, —
Mourned hath Judah, And her gates have been emptied, And have become dark for the land; And the shout of Jerusalem hath ascended.
Blayney’s version of the third line is as follows, —
They are in deep mourning for the land.
The Targum paraphrases the verb thus, — “Their faces are covered with blackness.” — Ed.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(2) The gates thereof languish.The gates of the cities, as the chief places of concourse, like the agora of Greek cities, are taken figuratively for the inhabitants, who in the black garments of sorrow and with the pallor of the famine, in which all faces gather blackness, are crouching upon the ground in their despair.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
2. Judah mourneth The whole description is vigorous and graphic, and shows the unsurpassed power of Jeremiah in this respect. Country and city, the noble and the peasant, the husbandman and his parched fields, the burnt-up pastures, the waterless wells, and the starving flocks, all have a place in this vivid picture.
The gates By metonomy for cities. They are the places where the people meet, and so the places where any popular feeling manifests itself.
They are black That is, the people, who are in dark mourning attire, are seated on the ground in gloom and despair.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Jer 14:2. Judah mourneth The prophet represents Jerusalem as a mother who has lost her children, and who is oppressed with grief. The gates are put for the city. Instead of, Its gates languish, &c. Houbigant reads, Its crops fall down and grow black upon the earth.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Jer 14:2 Judah mourneth, and the gates thereof languish; they are black unto the ground; and the cry of Jerusalem is gone up.
Ver. 2. Judah mourneth. ] The prophet’s pitiful complaint, bitterly bewailing the common calamity, and labouring thereby to bring them to a sense of the true cause of it, their sins. See 2Sa 21:1 . See Trapp on “ 2Sa 21:1 “
And the cry of Jerusalem is gone up,
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Jer 14:2-9
2Judah mourns
And her gates languish;
They sit on the ground in mourning,
And the cry of Jerusalem has ascended.
3Their nobles have sent their servants for water;
They have come to the cisterns and found no water.
They have returned with their vessels empty;
They have been put to shame and humiliated,
And they cover their heads.
4Because the ground is cracked,
For there has been no rain on the land;
The farmers have been put to shame,
They have covered their heads.
5For even the doe in the field has given birth only to abandon her young,
Because there is no grass.
6The wild donkeys stand on the bare heights;
They pant for air like jackals,
Their eyes fail
For there is no vegetation.
7Although our iniquities testify against us,
O LORD, act for Your name’s sake!
Truly our apostasies have been many,
We have sinned against You.
😯 Hope of Israel,
Its Savior in time of distress,
Why are You like a stranger in the land
Or like a traveler who has pitched his tent for the night?
9Why are You like a man dismayed,
Like a mighty man who cannot save?
Yet You are in our midst, O LORD,
And we are called by Your name;
Do not forsake us!
Jer 14:2 This verse contains a series of mourning VERBS.
1. Judah mourns – BDB 5, KB 6, Qal PERFECT
2. her gates languish – BDB 51, KB 63 Pulal PERFECT, cf. Jer 15:9)
3. they sit on the ground in mourning (lit. in black) – BDB 871, KB 1072, Qal PERFECT, cf. Jer 8:21; Job 5:11; Job 30:28
4. the cry of Jerusalem has ascended – BDB 748, KB 828, Qal PERFECT
The drought has caused the Judeans to pray (cf. Jer 14:7-9). See Special Topic: Grieving Rites at Jer 2:37.
her gates This is the place where the life of the city was centralized. It was a place of social and civic justice (i.e., Deu 16:18; Ruth 4).
the cry of Jerusalem has ascended The prayers of these unrepentant idolaters will not be heard (cf. Jer 11:11).
Jer 14:3 This verse describes the wealthy seeking water.
1. sent their servants (lit. little ones, cf. Jer 48:4)
2. came to the cisterns (cf. Jer 2:13)
3. returned with vessels empty
Therefore, the wealthy
1. have been put to shame (BDB 101, KB 116, Qal PERFECT)
2. have been humiliated (BDB 483, KB 480, Hophal PERFECT)
3. cover their heads (BDB 341, KB 339, Qal PERFECT)
As Jer 14:3 describes the wealthy, Jer 14:4 describes the farmer’s problem (i.e., no water).
1. the ground is cracked
2. there has been no rain
Therefore, the farmers
1. have been put to shame (BDB 101, KB 116, Qal PERFECT)
2. have covered their heads (BDB 341, KB 339, Qal PERFECT)
Jer 14:5-6 The results of the drought on the wildlife is described.
1. Jer 14:5, the doe abandons her young
2. Jer 14:6, the donkeys pant for air like jackals (i.e., stress caused by high temperatures)
All creation is affected by human sin (cf. Genesis 3; Rom 8:18-23), note Jer 12:4; Jer 12:11! YHWH’s covenant was targeted to agricultural blessings of the ANE. Its violation resulted in agricultural failures (cf. Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 27-28).
Jer 14:7 Jer 14:7 should begin a new paragraph (cf. NKJV, NRSV, NJB). Notice the thrust of the verse is a corporate intercession (our, we). Jeremiah basically confesses the following sins of the people.
1. our iniquities
2. our apostasies have been many
3. we have sinned against You
Here Jeremiah collectively confesses the sins of Israel, like Abraham, Moses (see note at Jer 15:1), the high priest (i.e., Leviticus 16), or like the father of a family (i.e., Job). See Special Topic: Intercessory Prayer .
It is also possible that Jer 14:7-9 were temple liturgy, said on specific feast or fast days.
O LORD, act for Your name’s sake Jeremiah does not plead for God’s forgiveness based on the people’s worthiness, but on God’s character (cf. Eze 20:9; Eze 20:14; Eze 20:22; Eze 20:24; Eze 36:22-23). He is the God who acts (BDB 793, KB 889, Qal IMPERATIVE). The hope of Israel is in the character of God. See Special Topic: Characteristics of Israel’s God .
Notice how Judah is described.
1. apostasies have been many (cf. Jer 5:6; Jer 7:24; Jer 8:5)
2. we have sinned against You (all sin is against YHWH)
Jer 14:8 YHWH (specified in the LXX of Jer 14:8) is described by two covenant titles.
1. O Hope of Israel – this refers to YHWH as the God of the Patriarchs (cf. Jer 17:13; Jer 50:7)
2. Savior – this is a common characterization or title in Isaiah (cf. Isa 19:20; Isa 43:3; Isa 43:11; Isa 45:15; Isa 45:21; Isa 49:26; Isa 60:16; Isa 63:8)
Why are You like a stranger in the land
Or like a traveler who has pitched his tent for the night This is very similar to Jer 9:2. Jer 14:8-9 e are the people’s response to Jeremiah’s message. They suggest a shocking picture of YHWH as someone who is incapable and doesn’t care, when in reality, He cared deeply as we have seen in Jer 8:18 to Jer 9:16. It was not YHWH’s weakness but the people’s sin that forced Him to act. The problem was not YHWH but idolatry (cf. Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 27-28).
Jer 14:9
NASBdismayed
NKJVastonished
NRSVbemused
TEVtaken by surprise
NJBconfused
JPSOAwho is stunned
REBsuddenly overcome
LXXasleep
NET Biblehelpless
This is the only time this word appears in the OT. The Hebrew term (BDB 187, KB 214, Niphal PARTICIPLE), according to BDB, means astonish, but KB alludes to a seventh century inscription where it contextually means helpless. Hapax Legomenon (words used only once) are so hard to translate. The proper procedure is to look at
1. the basic meaning of root
2. the root in cognate languages
3. the context (strophe)
4. the parallelism (lines)
5. possible parallel passages in Scripture
6. usage outside Scripture
The LXX’s meaning comes from a one consonant change in the MT.
Jer 14:9 -e This is theologically similar to Jer 14:7 b. It magnifies YHWH.
1. You are in our midst – this could refer to
a. the temple (cf. Jer 8:19)
b. the promise of His personal presence with His people (i.e., the Cloud, the Ark)
2. we are called by Your name (cf. Jer 15:16; Isa 63:19)
Because of these two truths, these lines ask YHWH not to forsake them (BDB 628, KB 679, Hiphil IMPERFECT used in a JUSSIVE sense). This is an unusual meaning for this VERB. It is found only here and Psa 119:121, in the sense of abandon. Its basic meaning is rest, but it is used in the sense of remain in Jer 27:11.
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
Judah . . . Jerusalem. Country and city.
gates. Put by Figure of speech Metonymy (of Adjunct), for the people assembling there.
are black = sit in black. Compare Jer 8:21; Jer 13:18. Job 2:8, Job 2:13. Isa 3:26; Isa 15:3. Psa 35:14.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
mourneth: Jer 4:28, Jer 12:4, Isa 3:26, Hos 4:3, Joe 1:10
the gates: Isa 24:4, Isa 24:7, Isa 33:9
they: Jer 8:21, Lam 2:9, Lam 4:8, Lam 4:9, Lam 5:10, Joe 2:6
the cry: Jer 11:11, Jer 18:22, Exo 2:24, 1Sa 5:12, 1Sa 9:16, Job 34:28, Isa 5:7, Isa 15:5, Zec 7:13
Reciprocal: Deu 28:16 – in the field 1Ki 18:2 – a sore Jer 4:26 – the fruitful Jer 12:11 – it mourneth Jer 23:10 – the land Jer 46:12 – thy cry Lam 1:4 – ways Lam 2:8 – he made Amo 1:2 – the habitations Hab 3:17 – the fig tree
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Jer 14:2. The gates were the places through which the citizens passed to and fro in the activities of their public life, also when the products of the ground were to be offered for use. But the dearth was to stop such activities and plunge the inhabitants into gloom. They are black unto the. ground means the people will give up in despair and sit down on the ground clothed in mourning garments.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Jer 14:2. Judah mourneth The people of Judah and Jerusalem, here considered collectively, and represented as a mother oppressed with grief for the miseries which have come upon her children. And the gates languish, they are black They are in deep mourning: so Blaney, who observes, The gates of cities, being places of public resort, where the courts of justice were held, and other common business transacted, seem here to be put for the persons wont to meet there; in like manner as when we say, The court is in mourning, we mean the persons that attend the court. So that by this passage we are to understand, that all the persons who appeared in public were dejected, and put on black, or mourning, on account of the national distress. And the cry of Jerusalem is gone up Namely, to heaven: That is, the cry of the inhabitants of Jerusalem; of their sin and trouble, but not, as it seems, of their confessions, prayers, and supplications.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
14:2 Judah mourneth, and her gates languish; they are {b} black to the ground; and the cry of Jerusalem is gone up.
(b) The word signifies extreme sorrow.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
Judah was in mourning. Her cities were languishing, as when their gates sagged on their hinges. The people sat on the ground as an expression of their humbled condition. The people of Jerusalem were crying out for relief.