New English Translation
Lamentations 2:8
8The Lord was determined to tear down Daughter Zion’s wall. He prepared to knock it down; he did not withdraw his hand from destroying. He made the ramparts and fortified walls lament; together they mourned their ruin. ט (Tet)
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(KJV)The Lord hath purposed to destroy the wall of the daughter of Zion: he hath stretched out a line, he hath not withdrawn his hand from destroying: therefore he made the rampart and the wall to lament; they languished together.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 He has stretched out a line; He has not withdrawn His hand from destroying; Therefore He has caused the rampart and wall to lament; They languished together.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 destroyed his temple as if it were a vineyard; he destroyed his appointed meeting place. The Lord has made those in Zion forget both the festivals and the Sabbaths. In his fierce anger he has spurned both king and priest. ז (Zayin) 7The Lord rejected his altar and abhorred his temple. He handed over to the enemy her palace walls; the enemy shouted in the Lord’s temple as if it were a feast day. ח (Khet) The Lord was determined to tear down Daughter Zion’s wall. He prepared to knock it down; he did not withdraw his hand from destroying. He made the ramparts and fortified walls lament; together they mourned their ruin. ט (Tet) 9Her city gates have fallen to the ground; he smashed to bits the bars that lock her gates. Her king and princes were taken into exile; there is no more guidance available. As for her prophets, they no longer receive a vision from the Lord. י (Yod) 10The elders of Daughter Zion sit on the ground in silence. They have thrown dirt on their heads; They have dressed in sackcloth. Jerusalem’s young women stare down at the ground. כ (Kaf)
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 planned; he has fulfilled his promise that he threatened long ago: He has overthrown you without mercy and has enabled the enemy to gloat over you; he has exalted your adversaries’ power. צ (Tsade)
- Isaiah 5:5Now I will inform you what I am about to do to my vineyard: I will remove its hedge and turn it into pasture, I will break its wall and allow animals to graze there.
- Jeremiah 5:10The Lord commanded the enemy, “March through the vineyards of Israel and Judah and ruin them. But do not destroy them completely. Strip off their branches for these people do not belong to the Lord.
- 2 Samuel 8:2He defeated the Moabites. He made them lie on the ground and then used a rope to measure them off. He put two-thirds of them to death and spared the other third. The Moabites became David’s subjects and brought tribute.
- 2 Kings 21:13I will destroy Jerusalem the same way I did Samaria and the dynasty of Ahab. I will wipe Jerusalem clean, just as one wipes a plate on both sides.
- Isaiah 28:17I will make justice the measuring line, fairness the plumb line; hail will sweep away the unreliable refuge, the floodwaters will overwhelm the hiding place.
- Isaiah 34:11Owls and wild animals will live there, all kinds of wild birds will settle in it. The Lord will stretch out over her the measuring line of ruin and the plumb line of destruction.
- Amos 7:7He showed me this: I saw the sovereign One standing by a tin wall holding tin in his hand.
- Job 13:21Remove your hand far from me and stop making me afraid with your terror.
- Ezekiel 20:22But I refrained from doing so, and acted instead for the sake of my reputation, so that I would not be profaned before the nations in whose sight I had brought them out.
- Lamentations 2:2The Lord destroyed mercilessly all the homes of Jacob’s descendants. In his anger he tore down the fortified cities of Daughter Judah. He knocked to the ground and humiliated the kingdom and its rulers. ג (Gimel)
- Isaiah 3:26Her gates will mourn and lament; deprived of her people, she will sit on the ground.
- Jeremiah 14:2“The people of Judah are in mourning. The people in her cities are pining away. They lie on the ground expressing their sorrow. Cries of distress come up to me from Jerusalem.
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
New English Translation — © 1996-2016 Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C.
Commentaries