Yeremia 4:16

4:16 They are saying, ¹ 

‘Announce to the surrounding nations, ² 

“The enemy is coming!” ³ 

Proclaim this message ⁴  to Jerusalem:

“Those who besiege cities ⁵  are coming from a distant land.

They are ready to raise the battle cry against ⁶  the towns in Judah.”’

Bilangan 10:9

10:9 If you go to war in your land against an adversary who opposes ⁷  you, then you must sound an alarm with the trumpets, and you will be remembered before the Lord your God, and you will be saved ⁸  from your enemies.

Yeremia 49:2

49:2 Because you did that,

I, the Lord, affirm that ⁹  a time is coming

when I will make Rabbah, the capital city of Ammon,

hear the sound of the battle cry.

It will become a mound covered with ruins. ¹⁰ 

Its villages will be burned to the ground. ¹¹ 

Then Israel will take back its land

from those who took their land from them.

I, the Lord, affirm it! ¹² 

Zefanya 1:16

1:16 a day of trumpet blasts ¹³  and battle cries. ¹⁴ 

Judgment will fall on ¹⁵  the fortified cities and the high corner towers.

[4:16]  ¹ tn The words “They are saying” are not in the text but are implicit in the connection and are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[4:16]  ² tn The word “surrounding” is not in the text but is implicit and is supplied in the translation for clarification.

[4:16]  ³ tc Or “Here they come!” Heb “Look!” or “Behold!” Or “Announce to the surrounding nations, indeed [or yes] proclaim to Jerusalem, ‘Besiegers…’” The text is very elliptical here. Some of the modern English versions appear to be emending the text from הִנֵּה (hinneh, “behold”) to either הֵנָּה (hennah, “these things”; so NEB), or הַזֶּה (hazzeh, “this”; so NIV). The solution proposed here is as old as the LXX which reads, “Behold, they have come.”

[4:16]  ⁴ tn The words, “this message,” are not in the text but are supplied in the translation to make the introduction of the quote easier.

[4:16]  ⁵ tn Heb “Besiegers.” For the use of this verb to refer to besieging a city compare Isa 1:8.

[4:16]  ⁶ tn Heb “They have raised their voices against.” The verb here, a vav (ו) consecutive with an imperfect, continues the nuance of the preceding participle “are coming.”

[10:9]  ⁷ tn Both the “adversary” and “opposes” come from the same root: צָרַר (tsarar), “to hem in, oppress, harass,” or basically, “be an adversary.”

[10:9]  ⁸ tn The Niphal perfect in this passage has the passive nuance and not a reflexive idea – the Israelites would be spared because God remembered them.

[49:2]  ⁹ tn Heb “oracle of the Lord.”

[49:2]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “a desolate tel.” For the explanation of what a “tel” is see the study note on 30:18.

[49:2]  ¹¹ tn Heb “Its daughters will be burned with fire.” For the use of the word “daughters” to refer to the villages surrounding a larger city see BDB 123 s.v. I בַּת 4 and compare the usage in Judg 1:27.

[49:2]  ¹² tn Heb “says the Lord.” The first person is used to maintain the first person address throughout.

[1:16]  ¹³ tn Heb “a ram’s horn.” By metonymy the Hebrew text mentions the trumpet (“ram’s horn”) in place of the sound it produces (“trumpet blasts”).

[1:16]  ¹⁴ sn This description of the day of the Lord consists of an initial reference to anger, followed by four pairs of synonyms. The joining of synonyms in this way emphasizes the degree of the characteristic being described. The first two pairs focus on the distress and ruin that judgment will bring; the second two pairs picture this day of judgment as being very dark (darkness) and exceedingly overcast (gloom). The description concludes with the pairing of two familiar battle sounds, the blast on the ram’s horn (trumpet blasts) and the war cries of the warriors (battle cries).

[1:16]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “against.” The words “judgment will fall” are supplied in the translation for clarification.