Amos 8:10

8:10 I will turn your festivals into funerals, ¹ 

and all your songs into funeral dirges.

I will make everyone wear funeral clothes ² 

and cause every head to be shaved bald. ³ 

I will make you mourn as if you had lost your only son; ⁴ 

when it ends it will indeed have been a bitter day. ⁵ 

Yesaya 15:2-5

15:2 They went up to the temple, ⁶ 

the people of Dibon went up to the high places to lament. ⁷ 

Because of what happened to Nebo and Medeba, ⁸  Moab wails.

Every head is shaved bare,

every beard is trimmed off. ⁹ 

15:3 In their streets they wear sackcloth;

on their roofs and in their town squares

all of them wail,

they fall down weeping.

15:4 The people of ¹⁰  Heshbon and Elealeh cry out,

their voices are heard as far away as Jahaz.

For this reason Moab’s soldiers shout in distress;

their courage wavers. ¹¹ 

15:5 My heart cries out because of Moab’s plight, ¹² 

and for the fugitives ¹³  stretched out ¹⁴  as far as Zoar and Eglath Shelishiyah.

For they weep as they make their way up the ascent of Luhith;

they loudly lament their demise on the road to Horonaim. ¹⁵ 

Yesaya 15:8

15:8 Indeed, the cries of distress echo throughout Moabite territory;

their wailing can be heard in Eglaim and Beer Elim. ¹⁶ 

Yesaya 22:12

22:12 At that time the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, called for weeping and mourning,

for shaved heads and sackcloth. ¹⁷ 

Yeremia 4:31

4:31 In fact, ¹⁸  I hear a cry like that of a woman in labor,

a cry of anguish like that of a woman giving birth to her first baby.

It is the cry of Daughter Zion ¹⁹  gasping for breath,

reaching out for help, ²⁰  saying, “I am done in! ²¹ 

My life is ebbing away before these murderers!”

Yeremia 9:10

The Coming Destruction Calls For Mourning

9:10 I said, ²² 

“I will weep and mourn ²³  for the grasslands on the mountains, ²⁴ 

I will sing a mournful song for the pastures in the wilderness

because they are so scorched no one travels through them.

The sound of livestock is no longer heard there.

Even the birds in the sky and the wild animals in the fields

have fled and are gone.”

Yeremia 9:18-20

9:18 I said, “Indeed, ²⁵  let them come quickly and sing a song of mourning for us.

Let them wail loudly until tears stream from our own eyes

and our eyelids overflow with water.

9:19 For the sound of wailing is soon to be heard in Zion.

They will wail, ²⁶  ‘We are utterly ruined! ²⁷  We are completely disgraced!

For our houses have been torn down

and we must leave our land.’” ²⁸ 

9:20 I said, ²⁹ 

“So now, ³⁰  you wailing women, hear what the Lord says. ³¹ 

Open your ears to the words from his mouth.

Teach your daughters this mournful song,

and each of you teach your neighbor ³²  this lament.

Yoel 1:8

A Call to Lament

1:8 Wail ³³  like a young virgin ³⁴  clothed in sackcloth,

lamenting the death of ³⁵  her husband-to-be. ³⁶ 

Yoel 1:11

1:11 Be distressed, ³⁷  farmers;

wail, vinedressers, over the wheat and the barley.

For the harvest of the field has perished.

Yoel 1:14

1:14 Announce a holy fast; ³⁸ 

proclaim a sacred assembly.

Gather the elders and ³⁹  all the inhabitants of the land

to the temple of the Lord your God,

and cry out to the Lord.

Mikha 1:8

1:8 For this reason I ⁴⁰  will mourn and wail;

I will walk around barefoot ⁴¹  and without my outer garments. ⁴² 

I will howl ⁴³  like a wild dog, ⁴⁴ 

and screech ⁴⁵  like an owl. ⁴⁶ 

Mikha 2:4

2:4 In that day people will sing this taunt song to you –

they will mock you with this lament: ⁴⁷ 

‘We are completely destroyed;

they sell off ⁴⁸  the property of my people.

How they remove it from me! ⁴⁹ 

They assign our fields to the conqueror.’ ⁵⁰ 

Wahyu 18:10

18:10 They will stand a long way off because they are afraid of her torment, and will say,

“Woe, woe, O great city,

Babylon the powerful city!

For in a single hour your doom ⁵¹  has come!”

Wahyu 18:15-16

18:15 The merchants who sold ⁵²  these things, who got rich from her, will stand a long way off because they are afraid of her torment. They will weep ⁵³  and mourn, 18:16 saying,

“Woe, woe, O great city –

dressed in fine linen, purple and scarlet clothing, ⁵⁴ 

and adorned with gold, ⁵⁵  precious stones, and pearls –

Wahyu 18:19

18:19 And they threw dust on their heads and were shouting with weeping and mourning, ⁵⁶ 

“Woe, Woe, O great city –

in which all those who had ships on the sea got rich from her wealth –

because in a single hour she has been destroyed!” ⁵⁷ 

[8:10]  ¹ tn Heb “mourning.”

[8:10]  ² tn Heb “I will place sackcloth on all waists.”

[8:10]  sn Mourners wore sackcloth (funeral clothes) as an outward expression of grief.

[8:10]  ³ tn Heb “and make every head bald.” This could be understood in a variety of ways, while the ritual act of mourning typically involved shaving the head (although occasionally the hair could be torn out as a sign of mourning).

[8:10]  sn Shaving the head or tearing out one’s hair was a ritual act of mourning. See Lev 21:5; Deut 14:1; Isa 3:24; 15:2; Jer 47:5; 48:37; Ezek 7:18; 27:31; Mic 1:16.

[8:10]  ⁴ tn Heb “I will make it like the mourning for an only son.”

[8:10]  ⁵ tn Heb “and its end will be like a bitter day.” The Hebrew preposition כְּ (kaf) sometimes carries the force of “in every respect,” indicating identity rather than mere comparison.

[15:2]  ⁶ tn Heb “house.”

[15:2]  ⁷ tn Heb “even Dibon [to] the high places to weep.” The verb “went up” does double duty in the parallel structure.

[15:2]  ⁸ tn Heb “over [or “for”] Nebo and over [or “for”] Medeba.”

[15:2]  ⁹ sn Shaving the head and beard were outward signs of mourning and grief.

[15:4]  ¹⁰ tn The words “the people of” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[15:4]  ¹¹ tc The Hebrew text has, “For this reason the soldiers of Moab shout, his inner being quivers for him.” To achieve tighter parallelism, some emend the first line, changing חֲלֻצֵי (khalutse, “soldiers”) to חַלְצֵי (khaltse, “loins”) and יָרִיעוּ (yari’u, “they shout,” from רוּעַ, rua’) to יָרְעוּ (yor’u, “they quiver”), a verb from יָרַע (yara’), which also appears in the next line. One can then translate v. 4b as “For this reason the insides of the Moabites quiver, their whole body shakes” (cf. NAB, NRSV).

[15:5]  ¹² tn Heb “for Moab.” For rhetorical purposes the speaker (the Lord?, see v. 9) plays the role of a mourner.

[15:5]  ¹³ tn The vocalization of the Hebrew text suggests “the bars of her gates,” but the form should be repointed to yield, “her fugitives.” See HALOT 156-57 s.v. בָּרִחַ, and BDB 138 s.v. בָּרִיהַ.

[15:5]  ¹⁴ tn The words “are stretched out” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[15:5]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “For the ascent of Luhith, with weeping they go up it; for [on] the road to Horonaim an outcry over shattering they raise up.”

[15:8]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “to Eglaim [is] her wailing, and [to] Beer Elim [is] her wailing.”

[22:12]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “for baldness and the wearing of sackcloth.” See the note at 15:2.

[4:31]  ¹⁸ tn The particle כִּי (ki) is more likely asseverative here than causal.

[4:31]  ¹⁹ sn Jerusalem is personified as a helpless maiden.

[4:31]  ²⁰ tn Heb “spreading out her hands.” The idea of asking or pleading for help is implicit in the figure.

[4:31]  ²¹ tn Heb “Woe, now to me!” See the translator’s note on 4:13 for the usage of “Woe to…”

[9:10]  ²² tn The words “I said” are not in the text, but there is general agreement that Jeremiah is the speaker. Cf. the lament in 8:18-9:1. These words are supplied in the translation for clarity. Some English versions follow the Greek text which reads a plural imperative here. Since this reading would make the transition between 9:10 and 9:11 easier it is probably not original but a translator’s way of smoothing over a difficulty.

[9:10]  ²³ tn Heb “I will lift up weeping and mourning.”

[9:10]  ²⁴ tn Heb “for the mountains.” However, the context makes clear that it is the grasslands or pastures on the mountains that are meant. The words “for the grasslands” are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[9:18]  ²⁵ tn The words “And I said, ‘Indeed” are not in the text. They have been supplied in the translation to try and help clarify who the speaker is who identifies with the lament of the people.

[9:19]  ²⁶ tn The words “They will wail” are not in the text. They are supplied in the translation to make clear that this is the wailing that will be heard.

[9:19]  sn The destruction is still in the future, but it is presented graphically as though it had already taken place.

[9:19]  ²⁷ tn Heb “How we are ruined!”

[9:19]  ²⁸ tn The order of these two lines has been reversed for English stylistic reasons. The text reads in Hebrew “because we have left our land because they have thrown down our dwellings.” The two clauses offer parallel reasons for the cries “How ruined we are! [How] we are greatly disgraced!” But the first line must contain a prophetic perfect (because the lament comes from Jerusalem) and the second a perfect referring to a destruction that is itself future. This seems the only way to render the verse that would not be misleading.

[9:20]  ²⁹ tn The words “I said” are not in the text. The text merely has “Indeed, yes.” The words are supplied in the translation to indicate that the speaker is still Jeremiah though he now is not talking about the mourning woman but is talking to them. See the notes on 9:17-18 for further explanation.

[9:20]  ³⁰ tn It is a little difficult to explain how the Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) is functioning here. W. L. Holladay (Jeremiah [Hermeneia], 1:311) may be correct in seeing it as introducing the contents of what those who call for the mourning women are to say. In this case, Jeremiah picks up the task as representative of the people.

[9:20]  ³¹ tn Heb “Listen to the word of the Lord.”

[9:20]  sn In this context the “word of the Lord” that they are to listen for is the word of the lament that they are to teach their daughters and neighbors.

[9:20]  ³² tn Heb “Teach…mournful song, and each woman her neighbor lady…”

[1:8]  ³³ sn The verb is feminine singular, raising a question concerning its intended antecedent. A plural verb would be expected here, the idea being that all the inhabitants of the land should grieve. Perhaps Joel is thinking specifically of the city of Jerusalem, albeit in a representative sense. The choice of the feminine singular verb form has probably been influenced to some extent by the allusion to the young widow in the simile of v. 8.

[1:8]  ³⁴ tn Or “a young woman” (TEV, CEV). See the note on the phrase “husband-to-be” in the next line.

[1:8]  ³⁵ tn Heb “over the death of.” The term “lamenting” does not appear in the Hebrew, but is supplied in the translation for smoothness.

[1:8]  ³⁶ sn Heb “the husband of her youth.” The woman described here may already be married, so the reference is to the death of a husband rather than a fiancé (a husband-to-be). Either way, the simile describes a painful and unexpected loss to which the national tragedy Joel is describing may be compared.

[1:11]  ³⁷ tn Heb “embarrassed”; or “be ashamed.”

[1:14]  ³⁸ tn Heb “consecrate a fast” (so NASB).

[1:14]  ³⁹ tc The conjunction “and” does not appear in MT or LXX, but does appear in some Qumran texts (4QXII^c and 4QXII^g).

[1:8]  ⁴⁰ tn The prophet is probably the speaker here.

[1:8]  ⁴¹ tn Or “stripped.” The precise meaning of this Hebrew word is unclear. It may refer to walking barefoot (see 2 Sam 15:30) or to partially stripping oneself (see Job 12:17-19).

[1:8]  ⁴² tn Heb “naked.” This probably does not refer to complete nudity, but to stripping off one’s outer garments as an outward sign of the destitution felt by the mourner.

[1:8]  ⁴³ tn Heb “I will make lamentation.”

[1:8]  ⁴⁴ tn Or “a jackal”; CEV “howling wolves.”

[1:8]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “[make] a mourning.”

[1:8]  ⁴⁶ tn Or perhaps “ostrich” (cf. ASV, NAB, NASB, NRSV, NLT).

[2:4]  ⁴⁷ tc The form נִהְיָה (nihyah) should be omitted as dittographic (note the preceding וְנָהָה נְהִי vÿnahah nÿhiy).

[2:4]  tn Heb “one will lament [with] a lamentation [and] say.”

[2:4]  ⁴⁸ tn Or “exchange.” The LXX suggests a reading יִמַּד (yimmad) from מָדַד (madad, “to measure”). In this case one could translate, “the property of my people is measured out [i.e., for resale].”

[2:4]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “how one removes for me.” Apparently the preposition has the nuance “from” here (cf. KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).

[2:4]  ⁵⁰ tc The Hebrew term שׁוֹבֵב (shovev, “the one turning back”) elsewhere has the nuance “apostate” (cf. NASB) or “traitor” (cf. NIV). The translation assumes an emendation to שָׁבָה (shavah, “captor”).

[2:4]  tn Heb “to the one turning back he assigns our fields.”

[18:10]  ⁵¹ tn Or “judgment,” condemnation,” “punishment.” BDAG 569 s.v. κρίσις 1.a.β states, “The word oft. means judgment that goes against a person, condemnation, and the sentence that follows…ἡ κ. σου your judgment Rv 18:10.”

[18:15]  ⁵² tn Grk “the merchants [sellers] of these things.”

[18:15]  ⁵³ tn Grk “her torment, weeping.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started in the translation by supplying the words “They will” here.

[18:16]  ⁵⁴ tn The word “clothing” is supplied to clarify that the words “purple” and “scarlet” refer to cloth or garments rather than colors.

[18:16]  ⁵⁵ tn Grk “gilded with gold” (an instance of semantic reinforcement, see L&N 49.29).

[18:19]  ⁵⁶ tn Grk “with weeping and mourning, saying.” Here the participle λέγοντες (legontes) has not been translated because it is redundant in contemporary English.

[18:19]  ⁵⁷ tn On ἡρημώθη (Jhrhmwqh) L&N 20.41 states, “to suffer destruction, with the implication of being deserted and abandoned – ‘to be destroyed, to suffer destruction, to suffer desolation.’ ἐρημόομαι: μιᾷ ὥρᾳ ἠρημώθη ὁ τοσοῦτος πλοῦτος ‘such great wealth has been destroyed within a single hour’ Re 18:17.”