Lamentations 4:19

Lamentations 4:19 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Our persecutors are swifter than the eagles of the heaven: they pursued us upon the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness.
• New International Version (NIV)Our pursuers were swifter than eagles in the sky; they chased us over the mountains and lay in wait for us in the desert.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Our pursuers were swifter than the eagles in the heavens; they chased us on the mountains; they lay in wait for us in the wilderness.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Our pursuers were swifter Than the eagles of the heavens. They pursued us on the mountains And lay in wait for us in the wilderness.

Context of Lamentations 4:19

17We looked in vain for our allies to come and save us, but we were looking to nations that could not help us. 18We couldn’t go into the streets without danger to our lives. Our end was near; our days were numbered. We were doomed! Our enemies were swifter than eagles in flight. If we fled to the mountains, they found us. If we hid in the wilderness, they were waiting for us there. 20Our king—the Lord’s anointed, the very life of our nation— was caught in their snares. We had thought that his shadow would protect us against any nation on earth! 21Are you rejoicing in the land of Uz, O people of Edom? But you, too, must drink from the cup of the Lord’s anger. You, too, will be stripped naked in your drunkenness.

Lamentations 4:19 word by word

קַלִּ֤ים הָיוּ֙ רֹדְפֵ֔ינוּ מִנִּשְׁרֵ֖י שָׁמָ֑יִם עַל־הֶהָרִ֣ים דְּלָקֻ֔נוּ בַּמִּדְבָּ֖ר אָ֥רְבוּ לָֽנוּ׃ סRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Our persecutorsרָדַףrâdaph · to pursueH7291
• are swifterקַלqal · swiftH7031
• than the eaglesנֶשֶׁרnesher · eagleH5404
• of the heavenשָׁמַיִםshâmayim shâmeh · heavenH8064
• they pursuedדָּלַקdâlaq · to burn/pursueH1814
• us upon the mountainsהַרhar · mountain: mountH2022
• they laid waitאָרַב'ârab · to ambushH693
• for us in the wildernessמִדְבָּרmidbâr · wildernessH4057

Cross-references for Lamentations 4:19

• Deuteronomy 28:49“The Lord will bring a distant nation against you from the end of the earth, and it will swoop down on you like a vulture. It is a nation whose language you do not understand,
• Isaiah 5:26He will send a signal to distant nations far away and whistle to those at the ends of the earth. They will come racing toward Jerusalem.
• Isaiah 30:16You said, ‘No, we will get our help from Egypt. They will give us swift horses for riding into battle.’ But the only swiftness you are going to see is the swiftness of your enemies chasing you!
• Jeremiah 4:13Our enemy rushes down on us like storm clouds! His chariots are like whirlwinds. His horses are swifter than eagles. How terrible it will be, for we are doomed!
• Hosea 8:1“Sound the alarm! The enemy descends like an eagle on the people of the Lord, for they have broken my covenant and revolted against my law.
• Habakkuk 1:8Their horses are swifter than cheetahs and fiercer than wolves at dusk. Their charioteers charge from far away. Like eagles, they swoop down to devour their prey.
• Matthew 24:27For as the lightning flashes in the east and shines to the west, so it will be when the Son of Man comes.
• Amos 2:14Your fastest runners will not get away. The strongest among you will become weak. Even mighty warriors will be unable to save themselves.
• Amos 9:1Then I saw a vision of the Lord standing beside the altar. He said, “Strike the tops of the Temple columns, so that the foundation will shake. Bring down the roof on the heads of the people below. I will kill with the sword those who survive. No one will escape!

Commentaries on Lamentations 4:19

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 19They pursued us upon the mountains - They hunted down the poor Jews like wild beasts in every part of the country by their marauding parties, whilst the great army besieged Jerusalem. But this may apply to the pursuit of Zedekiah. See what follows.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 17-20Verses 17-20 A rapid sketch of the last days of the siege and the capture of the king. Lamentations 4:17 Rather, “Still do our eyes waste away looking for our vain help.” In our watching - Or, “on our watchtower.” Lamentations 4:18 Or, They hunted “our steps that we could not go out into the streets. To hunt” means here to lie in ambush, and catch by snares; and the streets are literally “the wide places,” especially at the gates. Toward the end of the…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 13-20Verses 13-20 Nothing ripens a people more for ruin, nor fills the measure faster, than the sins of priests and prophets. The king himself cannot escape, for Divine vengeance pursues him. Our anointed King alone is the life of our souls; we may safely live under his shadow, and rejoice in Him in the midst of our enemies, for He is the true God and eternal life.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-22Although God’s people still experience his judgment, they will soon experience restoration.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1919. The last times just before the taking of the city. There was no place of escape; the foe intercepted those wishing to escape from the famine-stricken city, "on the mountains and in the wilderness." swifter ... than ... eagles--the Chaldean cavalry (Jr 4:13). pursued--literally, "to be hot"; then, "to pursue hotly" (Ge 31:36). Thus they pursued and overtook Zedekiah (Jr 52:8, 9). Resh.Read the comment

Topics related to Lamentations 4:19

• Eagle

In the dictionaries

• Comparable
• Dim
• Heaven
• Poetry
• Acrostic
• Alphabet
• Lamentations, Book of
• Poetry, Hebrew
• Proverbs, the Book of

Commentaries on Lamentations 4

• 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