EasyEnglish Bible 2018
Lamentations 2:8
8The Lord decided to destroy the strong walls of Zion. He carefully broke away each stone. It causes us to weep when we look at those walls. He destroyed them all. He destroyed the inside walls and he destroyed the strong outside walls.
Lamentations 2:8 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)The Lord hath purposed to destroy the wall of the daughter of Zion: he hath stretched out a line, he hath not withdrawn his hand from destroying: therefore he made the rampart and the wall to lament; they languished together.
- New International Version (NIV)The Lord determined to tear down the wall around Daughter Zion. He stretched out a measuring line and did not withhold his hand from destroying. He made ramparts and walls lament; together they wasted away.
- English Standard Version (ESV)The Lord determined to lay in ruins the wall of the daughter of Zion; he stretched out the measuring line; he did not restrain his hand from destroying; he caused rampart and wall to lament; they languished together.
- New King James Version (NKJV)The Lord has purposed to destroy The wall of the daughter of Zion. He has stretched out a line; He has not withdrawn His hand from destroying; Therefore He has caused the rampart and wall to lament; They languished together.
Context of Lamentations 2:8
6He has knocked down his own holy house as easily as someone can knock down a hut in a garden. He has destroyed this place where people once met him. The Lord has caused Zion's people to forget the special events and the Sabbath days in his holy house. He was very angry. So he thought that our king and our priests were not important. He refused to help them. 7His holy house and his altar there no longer give pleasure to the Lord. He has given Zion's most beautiful houses to the enemy. They shout in the holy house of the Lord as people shout on a special holy day. The Lord decided to destroy the strong walls of Zion. He carefully broke away each stone. It causes us to weep when we look at those walls. He destroyed them all. He destroyed the inside walls and he destroyed the strong outside walls. 9Zion's gates fell down on the ground. He destroyed them and he has broken them in pieces. The enemies have taken away our king and his sons to a foreign country. The people no longer understand God's Law. The Lord does not give messages to his prophets any more. 10Zion's leaders sit on the ground and they are saying nothing. They have dressed themselves in sackcloth and they throw dirt on their own heads. They are showing everyone that they are very sad. The young women of Jerusalem can only look down to the ground, because they are very sad too.
Read all of Lamentations 2Lamentations 2:8 word by word
חָשַׁ֨ב יְהוָ֤ה׀ לְהַשְׁחִית֙ חוֹמַ֣ת בַּת־צִיּ֔וֹן נָ֣טָה קָ֔ו לֹא־הֵשִׁ֥יב יָד֖וֹ מִבַּלֵּ֑עַ וַיַּֽאֲבֶל־חֵ֥ל וְחוֹמָ֖ה יַחְדָּ֥ו אֻמְלָֽלוּ׃ סRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- The Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- hath purposedחָשַׁבchâshab · to devise: deviseH2803
- to destroyשָׁחַתshâchath · to ruinH7843
- the wallחוֹמָהchômâh · wallH2346
- of the daughterבַּתbath · daughterH1323
- of Zionצִיּוֹןtsîyôn · ZionH6726
- he hath stretched outנָטָהnâţâh · to stretchH5186
- a lineקַוqav qâv · lineH6957
- he hath not withdrawnשׁוּבshûb · to return: turn backH7725
- his handיָדyâd · handH3027
- from destroyingבָּלַעbâla‛ · to swallow upH1104
- therefore he made the rampartחֵלchêyl chêl · rampartH2426
- to lamentאָבַל'âbal · to mournH56
- they languishedאָמַל'âmal · be weakH535
- togetherיָחְדָּוyachad · togetherH3162
Cross-references for Lamentations 2:8
- Lamentations 2:17The Lord has done what he decided to do. Yes, he has done what he told you about a long time ago. He has destroyed your city and he has not felt sorry about it. He has caused your enemies to be happy. He has made them strong so that they could win against you.
- Isaiah 5:5Now I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard. I will break down its walls, so that it becomes an open field. Then wild animals will go in and they will destroy the vines.
- Jeremiah 5:10The Lord says this to Judah's enemies: ‘March through the vineyards of Israel and Judah, and destroy the vines. But do not destroy them completely. Pull the branches from the trees. Do this, because these people do not belong to the Lord.
- 2 Samuel 8:2David also won a battle against the Moabites. He made the Moabite prisoners lie down on the ground. Then he used a piece of rope to measure them into groups. When he had measured two groups, he would tell his men to kill all those prisoners. When he measured the next group, he would let those prisoners stay alive. So the Moabites were now under David's authority and they began to pay taxes to him.
- 2 Kings 21:13I will judge Jerusalem and I will punish the people, as I punished Samaria and the family of King Ahab. I will remove the people from Jerusalem, like someone who washes the dirt from both sides of a plate.
- Isaiah 28:17Justice and righteousness will make that foundation strong and true. But if you trust in lies, a storm of ice will destroy your safe place. A flood of water will destroy the place where you are hiding.
- Isaiah 34:11Owls, hawks and hedgehogs will live there, as well as all kinds of wild animals and wild birds. The Lord will carefully measure the whole land, so that he can destroy it. It will become like an empty desert.
- Amos 7:7Then the Lord showed this vision to me. The Lord God was standing next to a wall. In his hand was a string with a heavy weight on its end. The Lord was hanging the string down the wall. He was looking to see whether the wall was straight.
- Job 13:21Please stop punishing me. And stop causing me to be so afraid of you.
- Ezekiel 20:22But I did not want the people of other nations to insult my name. They had seen me bring Israel's people out of Egypt. So I could not destroy my people.
- Lamentations 2:2The Lord has destroyed all the houses where Jacob's people lived. He decided that he must punish them. Because he is angry, he has destroyed all Judah's strong towns. Yes, he has destroyed all the buildings, and he has killed the rulers and all the people.
- Isaiah 3:26The city's gates will see all this and they will weep! The city will be empty. Zion will be like a poor woman who sits on the ground, completely alone.
- Jeremiah 14:2‘Judah's people are very sad and upset. The people in Judah's cities are becoming weak. They are sitting on the ground and they are weeping. Jerusalem's people call to me for help.
Commentaries on Lamentations 2:8
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 8He hath stretched out a line - The line of devastation; marking what was to be pulled down and demolished.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8A line - Compare Isaiah 34:11. The destruction is systematic and thorough.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 8Ramparts were stone walls or earth mounds built around a city to protect it from enemy attacks.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 88. stretched ... a line--The Easterns used a measuring-line not merely in building, but in destroying edifices (2Ki 21:13; Is 34:11); implying here the unsparing rigidness with which He would exact punishment. Teth.Read the comment
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Lamentations 2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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