Lamentations 4:7

Lamentations 4:7 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Her Nazarites were purer than snow, they were whiter than milk, they were more ruddy in body than rubies, their polishing was of sapphire:
• New International Version (NIV)Their princes were brighter than snow and whiter than milk, their bodies more ruddy than rubies, their appearance like lapis lazuli.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Her princes were purer than snow, whiter than milk; their bodies were more ruddy than coral, the beauty of their form was like sapphire.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Her Nazirites were brighter than snow And whiter than milk; They were more ruddy in body than rubies, Like sapphire in their appearance.

Context of Lamentations 4:7

5The people who once ate the richest foods now beg in the streets for anything they can get. Those who once wore the finest clothes now search the garbage dumps for food. 6The guilt of my people is greater than that of Sodom, where utter disaster struck in a moment and no hand offered help. Our princes once glowed with health— brighter than snow, whiter than milk. Their faces were as ruddy as rubies, their appearance like fine jewels. 8But now their faces are blacker than soot. No one recognizes them in the streets. Their skin sticks to their bones; it is as dry and hard as wood. 9Those killed by the sword are better off than those who die of hunger. Starving, they waste away for lack of food from the fields.

Lamentations 4:7 word by word

זַכּ֤וּ נְזִירֶ֙יהָ֙ מִשֶּׁ֔לֶג צַח֖וּ מֵחָלָ֑ב אָ֤דְמוּ עֶ֙צֶם֙ מִפְּנִינִ֔ים סַפִּ֖יר גִּזְרָתָֽם׃ סRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Her Nazaritesנָזִירnâzîyr nâzir · NaziriteH5139
• were purerזָכַךְzâkak · be cleanH2141
• than snowשֶׁ֫לֶגsheleg · snowH7950
• they were whiterצָחַחtsâchach · be dazzlingH6705
• than milkחָלָבchâlâb · milkH2461
• they were more ruddyאָדֹם'âdam · to reddenH119
• in bodyעֶ֫צֶם‛etsem · bone: bodyH6106
• than rubiesפְּנִינִיםpânîyn pânîy · jewelH6443
• their polishingגִּזְרָהgizrâh · cutting/separationH1508
• of sapphireסַפִּירsappîyr · sapphireH5601

Cross-references for Lamentations 4:7

• Numbers 6:2“Give the following instructions to the people of Israel. “If any of the people, either men or women, take the special vow of a Nazirite, setting themselves apart to the Lord in a special way,
• Judges 13:5You will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and his hair must never be cut. For he will be dedicated to God as a Nazirite from birth. He will begin to rescue Israel from the Philistines.”
• Judges 16:17Finally, Samson shared his secret with her. “My hair has never been cut,” he confessed, “for I was dedicated to God as a Nazirite from birth. If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as weak as anyone else.”
• Amos 2:11I chose some of your sons to be prophets and others to be Nazirites. Can you deny this, my people of Israel?” asks the Lord.
• Luke 1:15for he will be great in the eyes of the Lord. He must never touch wine or other alcoholic drinks. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even before his birth.
• 1 Samuel 16:12So Jesse sent for him. He was dark and handsome, with beautiful eyes. And the Lord said, “This is the one; anoint him.”
• Psalms 51:7Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
• Psalms 144:12May our sons flourish in their youth like well-nurtured plants. May our daughters be like graceful pillars, carved to beautify a palace.
• Daniel 1:15At the end of the ten days, Daniel and his three friends looked healthier and better nourished than the young men who had been eating the food assigned by the king.

Commentaries on Lamentations 4:7

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 7Her Nazarites were purer than snow - נזיר nazir does not always signify a person separated under a religious vow; it sometimes denotes what is chief or eminent. It is applied to Joseph, Genesis 49:26. Blayney therefore translates here, Her Nobles. "Her nobles were purer than snow, they were whiter than milk; They were ruddier on the bone than rubies; their veining was the sapphires." On which he remarks: - "In the first line the whiteness of their skin is…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 7The Nazarites from their temperance were remarkable for health and personal beauty, besides being held in religious veneration. Rubies - Or, corals. Their polishing was of sapphire - Or, their shape was “a sapphire.” The allusion is no longer to color, but to form. Their shape was exact and faultless as the cutting of a precious stone.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7their appearance like sapphires: (literally like lapis lazuli): Lapis lazuli is a beautiful blue stone. It is soft enough to carve and is often used in decorations and mosaics.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 77. Nazarites--literally, "separated ones" (Nu 6:2). They were held once in the highest estimation, but now they are degraded. God's blessing formerly caused their body not to be the less fair and ruddy for their abstinence from strong drink. Compare the similar case of Daniel, &c. (Da 1:8-15). Also David (1Sa 16:12; 17:42). Type of Messiah (So 5:10). rubies--Gesenius translates, "corals," from a Hebrew root, "to divide into branches," from the branching…Read the comment

Topics related to Lamentations 4:7

• Famine
• Fraternity
• Nazarite
• Ruby
• Snow

In the dictionaries

• Comparable
• Dim
• Poetry
• Ruby
• Stones, Precious
• Acrostic
• Alphabet
• Body
• Color; Colors
• Coral

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