Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Lamentations 4:8
Their visage is blacker than a coal; they are not known in the streets: their skin cleaveth to their bones; it is withered, it is become like a stick.
8. blacker than a coal ] lit. as mg. darker than blackness.
Their skin cleaveth to their bones ] Cp. Job 19:20.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Their visage … – Their form (their whole person, see 1Sa 28:14)… as in the margin. See Job 30:30.
It is withered, it is become like a stick – Or, It has become dry like a piece of wood.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
They that in the prosperity of the city were fair, plump, and ruddy, look now black for want of fit nourishment, and through sorrow and grief; insomuch that those who before knew them by their countenances, garbs, and habits, did not now know them. And by reason of the famine (for he speaketh with relation to the famine during the siege) they are almost starved, their skin is withered and hard, and even sticketh to their bones.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
8. blacker than . . . coalor,”than blackness” itself (Joe 2:6;Nah 2:10).
like a stickaswithered as a dry stick.
Teth.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Their visage is blacker than a coal,…. Or, “darker than blackness”; or, “dark through blackness” y; by reason of the famine, and because of grief and trouble for themselves and their friends, which changed their complexions, countenances, and skins; they that looked before as pure as snow, as white as milk, as clear as pearls, as polished as sapphire, now as black as charcoal, as blackness itself:
they are not known in the streets; not taken notice of in a distinguished manner; no respect shown them as they walk the streets, as used to be; nay, their countenances were so altered, and their apparel so sordid, as not to be known by their friends, when they met them in public:
their skin cleaveth to their bones; have nothing but skin and bone, who used to be plump and fat:
it is withered, it is become like a stick; the skin wrinkled and shrivelled up, the flesh being gone; and the bone became like a stick, or a dry piece of wood, its moisture and marrow being dried up.
y “obscurior ipsa nigredine”, Tigurine version; “magis quam nigredo vel carbo”, Vatablus; “prae caligines”, Calvin; “ex nigredine”, Piscator.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Now, on the contrary, he says that the Nazarites were become withered, that their skin clave to their bones, that, in short, they were so deformed that they could not be known, not only in obscure corners, but even in the open street, hi the middle of the market-place. We hence learn that as the favor of God had before appeared as to the Nazarites, so now also his vengeance might be certainly known, because they had fallen off from their vigor, and were reduced to a degrading deformity. (214)
The Prophet at the same time shews that worship according to the law had in a manner deteriorated on account of the vices of the people; and this is the design of the whole, as I reminded you at the beginning. For there is no doubt but that he wished to rouse the Jews, that they might at length raise up their eyes to God; for they had long grown torpid in their vices, and had been even inflated with diabolical pride; hence was their inveterate obstinacy. As long as the Temple stood, they thought that they satisfied God by the sacrifices they offered. When the Prophet now tells them that the stones of the Temple were thrown down, it hence follows that the Temple was profaned’ whence this profanation? from the wickedness of the people. The Chaldeans, indeed, thought that they brought a great reproach on God when they demolished the Temple; but, as long pollution had preceded, our Prophet now represents to the Jews their sins as in a mirror or a living form; for they had polluted the Temple before the Chaldeans. So also he shews that the worship according to the law was no longer pleasing to God, for they had mocked him with empty specters; for it was only a vain display when there was no integrity within. The Prophet then shews to them what, he could before by no means have persuaded them to believe, that God was in no way pleased with the external worship of the Jews, while they were audaciously violating the whole law. It afterwards follows, —
(214) As to these two verses there is much disagreement in the early versions and the Targ.; that of the Sept. comes nearest to the original. They may be thus rendered, —
7. Clearer were her Nazarites than snow, They were whiter than milk; Ruddier were they in body than rubies, Sapphire was their polish (or smoothness:)
8. Darker than the dusk became their appearance, They were not known in the streets: Cleave did their skin to their bones, Dried up, it became like a stick.
“
Rubies,” rendered “pearls,” by Bochart; “load stones,” or magnets, by Parkhurst; “red corals,” by Gesenius. They were no doubt precious stones of reddish appearance. The “sapphire” is mentioned for its smoothness, as it appears from the contrast at the end of the eighth verse, where it is said that their skin had become like a dried “stick,” whose rind is shriveled. “Dusk” is rendered “soot” by the Sept., and “coals” by the Vulg. and the Syr. שחור is the dusk, or the dawn: but the river Nile is also thus called on account of its muddy and dusky waters. See Jer 2:18. This being the case, may it not be so taken here.; The character of the passage favors this, “snow,” “milk,” etc. Then the line would be, —
Darker than Sihor (or, the Nile) became their appearance.
—
Ed
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(8) Their visage is blacker . . .We look, as it were, on the two pictures: the bloom and beauty of health, the wan, worn, spectral looks of starvation.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
Lam 4:8 Their visage is blacker than a coal; they are not known in the streets: their skin cleaveth to their bones; it is withered, it is become like a stick.
Ver. 8. Their visage is blacker than a coal. ] Heb., Their visage is more darkened than blackness – scil., With famine, fear, grief, and care; those vultures have so fed upon them that all sightliness and loveliness is lost. Think the same of apostates, God may complain of such. as Mic 2:8
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
known = recognized.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
visage: Lam 5:10, Job 30:17-19, Job 30:30, Joe 2:6, Nah 2:10
blacker than a coal: Heb. darker than blackness. Or, as Dr. Blayney renders, “duskier than the dawn;” shachar signifying “the dawn of the day, when it is neither light nor dark, but between both, at which time objects are not easily distinguished.”
they: Lam 4:1, Lam 4:2, Rth 1:19, Rth 1:20, Job 2:12, Isa 52:14
their skin: Job 19:20, Job 33:21, Psa 32:4, Psa 38:3, Psa 102:3-5, Psa 102:11, Psa 119:83
Reciprocal: Num 6:5 – razor Job 14:20 – changest Psa 102:5 – the voice Son 1:6 – because Jer 14:2 – they
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Lam 4:8. After these consecrated men corrupted themselves with their abominable idolatries, the Lord de
prived them of their glory. The figures of speech in this verse are a description of their state which contrasted from what it was before.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
4:8 Their {e} visage is blacker than a coal; they are not known in the streets: their skin cleaveth to their bones; it is withered, it is become like a stick.
(e) They who were before most in God’s favour are now in greatest abomination to him.