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Monday, July 28th, 2025
the Week of Proper 12 / Ordinary 17
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Read the Bible

Easy-to-Read Version

Lamentations 4:2

The precious people of Zion were once worth more than gold. But now they are treated like something worthless, like the cheap clay jars a potter makes.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Art;   Pitcher;   Righteous;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Arts of the;   Saints, Compared to;  

Dictionaries:

- Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Jerusalem;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Pottery;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Lamentations, Book of;   Pitcher;   Pottery in Bible Times;   Vessels and Utensils;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Acrostic;   Pitcher;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Messiah;   Potter;   Wilson's Dictionary of Bible Types - Earthen;   Pitcher;   Potter;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Earthen, Vessels;   Esteem;   Fine;   Gold;   Pitcher;   Potter;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Bottle;   Drinking-Vessels;   Gold;   Zechariah ben Abḳilus (Amphikalos);  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Zion’s precious children—once worth their weight in pure gold—how they are regarded as clay jars,the work of a potter’s hands!
Hebrew Names Version
The precious sons of Tziyon, comparable to fine gold, How are they esteemed as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the potter!
King James Version
The precious sons of Zion, comparable to fine gold, how are they esteemed as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the potter!
English Standard Version
The precious sons of Zion, worth their weight in fine gold, how they are regarded as earthen pots, the work of a potter's hands!
New American Standard Bible
The precious sons of Zion, Weighed against pure gold, How they are regarded as earthenware jars, The work of a potter's hands!
New Century Version
The precious people of Jerusalem were more valuable than gold, but now they are thought of as clay jars made by the hands of a potter.
Amplified Bible
The [noble and] precious sons of Zion, [Once] worth their weight in fine gold, How they are regarded [merely] as earthen jars, The work of a potter's hands!
World English Bible
The precious sons of Zion, comparable to fine gold, How are they esteemed as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the potter!
Geneva Bible (1587)
The noble men of Zion coparable to fine golde, howe are they esteemed as earthen pitchers, euen the worke of the handes of the potter!
New American Standard Bible (1995)
The precious sons of Zion, Weighed against fine gold, How they are regarded as earthen jars, The work of a potter's hands!
Legacy Standard Bible
The precious sons of Zion,Weighed against fine gold,How they are regarded as earthen jars,The work of a potter's hands!
Berean Standard Bible
How the precious sons of Zion, once worth their weight in pure gold, are now esteemed as clay jars, the work of a potter's hands!
Contemporary English Version
These are Zion's people, worth more than purest gold; yet they are counted worthless like dishes of clay.
Complete Jewish Bible
The precious sons of Tziyon, as precious as fine gold — to think they are now worth no more than clay jars made by a potter!
Darby Translation
The sons of Zion, so precious, comparable to fine gold, how are they esteemed as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the potter!
George Lamsa Translation
The precious sons of Zion, who were better than precious stones, how are they esteemed as earthen pots, the work of the hands of the potter!
Good News Translation
Zion's young people were as precious to us as gold, but now they are treated like common clay pots.
Lexham English Bible
The precious sons of Zion weighed against fine gold, how they are thought of as earthen vessels of clay, the work of the potter's hands.
Literal Translation
The precious sons of Zion are weighed against pure gold. How they are counted as earthen vessels, the work of a potter's hand!
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
The children of Sion that were allwaye in honoure, & clothed with ye most precious golde: how are they now becomme like the erthen vessels which be made with the potters honde?
American Standard Version
The precious sons of Zion, comparable to fine gold, How are they esteemed as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the potter!
Bible in Basic English
The valued sons of Zion, whose price was the best gold, are looked on as vessels of earth, the work of the hands of the potter!
JPS Old Testament (1917)
The precious sons of Zion, comparable to fine gold, how are they esteemed as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the potter!
King James Version (1611)
The precious sonnes of Zion, comparable to fine gold, how are they esteemed as earthen pitchers, the worke of the hands of the potter!
Bishop's Bible (1568)
The chyldren of Sion that were alway in honour, and clothed with the most precious golde: howe are they nowe become lyke the earthen vessels, whiche be made with the potters hande?
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
BETH. The precious sons of Zion, who were equalled in value with gold, how are they counted as earthen vessels, the works of the hands of the potter!
English Revised Version
The precious sons of Zion, comparable to fine gold, how are they esteemed as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the potter!
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Beth. The noble sones of Sion, and clothid with the best gold, hou ben thei arettid in to erthene vessels, in to the werk of the hondis of a pottere?
Update Bible Version
The precious sons of Zion, comparable to fine gold, How are they esteemed as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the potter!
Webster's Bible Translation
The precious sons of Zion, comparable to fine gold, how are they esteemed as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the potter!
New English Translation

ב (Bet)

The precious sons of Zion were worth their weight in gold— Alas!—but now they are treated like broken clay pots, made by a potter.
New King James Version
The precious sons of Zion, Valuable as fine gold, How they are regarded as clay pots, The work of the hands of the potter!
New Living Translation
See how the precious children of Jerusalem, worth their weight in fine gold, are now treated like pots of clay made by a common potter.
New Life Bible
The sons of Zion are worth their weight in fine gold. But they are thought of as clay pots, the work of a pot-maker's hands!
New Revised Standard
The precious children of Zion, worth their weight in fine gold— how they are reckoned as earthen pots, the work of a potter's hands!
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
The precious sons of Zion, they who were weighed against pure gold, How are they accounted as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the potter!
Douay-Rheims Bible
Beth. The noble sons of Sion, and they that were clothed with the best gold: how are they esteemed as earthen vessels, the work of the potter’s hands?
Revised Standard Version
The precious sons of Zion, worth their weight in fine gold, how they are reckoned as earthen pots, the work of a potter's hands!
Young's Literal Translation
The precious sons of Zion, Who are comparable with fine gold, How have they been reckoned earthen bottles, Work of the hands of a potter.
THE MESSAGE
And the people of Zion, once prized, far surpassing their weight in gold, Are now treated like cheap pottery, like everyday pots and bowls mass-produced by a potter.

Contextual Overview

1 See how the gold has grown dark, how the pure gold has changed. There are jewels scattered all around at every street corner. 2 The precious people of Zion were once worth more than gold. But now they are treated like something worthless, like the cheap clay jars a potter makes. 3 Even a wild dog feeds her babies. Even the jackal lets her pups suck at her breast. But the daughter of my people is cruel. She is like the ostrich in the desert that forgets its eggs in the sand. 4 Babies are so thirsty their tongues stick to the roof of their mouths. Young children ask for bread, but no one gives them any. 5 Those who ate rich food are now dying in the streets. Those who grew up wearing nice red clothes now pick through garbage piles. 6 The sin of the daughter of my people was very great. Their sin was greater than the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah. Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed suddenly. No human hand caused their destruction. 7 Some of the men of Judah were dedicated to God in a special way. They were very pure. They were whiter than snow, and whiter than milk. Their bodies were red like coral and their beards like sapphire stones. 8 But now their faces are blacker than soot. No one even recognizes them in the streets. Their skin is wrinkled over their bones. Their skin is like wood. 9 It was better for those who were killed by the sword than for those who died of hunger. Those starving people were sad and hurt. They died because they got no food from the field. 10 Then even nice women cooked their own children. The children were food for their mothers. This happened when my people were destroyed.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

sons: Isaiah 51:18, Zechariah 9:13

how: Lamentations 2:21, Lamentations 5:12, Isaiah 30:14, Jeremiah 19:11, Jeremiah 22:28, Romans 9:21-23, 2 Corinthians 4:7, 2 Timothy 2:20

Reciprocal: 1 Kings 14:27 - made Ezra 8:27 - precious Psalms 89:44 - Thou Psalms 144:12 - as plants Isaiah 1:22 - silver Isaiah 51:20 - sons Lamentations 1:16 - my children Lamentations 4:8 - they Ezekiel 22:18 - brass Joel 2:23 - ye children

Cross-References

Genesis 3:23
So the Lord God forced the man out of the Garden of Eden to work the ground he was made from.
Genesis 4:25
Adam again had sexual relations with his wife, and she gave birth to another son. She named him Seth. Eve said, "God has given me another son. Cain killed Abel, but now I have Seth."
Genesis 4:26
Seth also had a son. He named him Enosh. At that time people began to pray to the Lord .
Genesis 9:20
Noah became a farmer and planted a vineyard.
Genesis 37:13
Jacob said to Joseph, "Go to Shechem. Your brothers are there with my sheep." Joseph answered, "I will go."
Genesis 47:3
Pharaoh said to the brothers, "What work do you do?" The brothers said to Pharaoh, "Sir, we are shepherds, just as our ancestors were shepherds before us."
Exodus 3:1
Moses' father-in-law was named Jethro. Jethro was a priest of Midian. Moses took care of Jethro's sheep. One day Moses led the sheep to the west side of the desert. He went to a mountain called Horeb, the mountain of God.
Psalms 127:3
Children are a gift from the Lord , a reward from a mother's womb.
Amos 7:15
I was a shepherd and the Lord took me from following the sheep. The Lord said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.'
Luke 11:51
You will be punished for the killing of Abel. And you will be punished for the killing of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the Temple. Yes, I tell you that you people will be punished for them all.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

The precious sons of Zion, comparable to fine gold,.... This explains what is meant in Lamentations 4:1; by gold, fine gold, and stones of the sanctuary; not Josiah and his sons, as some Jewish interpreters; but all the sons of Zion, or children of God; not the inhabitants of Zion literally, but spiritually; see Zechariah 9:13. Zion is the church; her sons are her spiritual seed and offspring that are born of her, she being the mother of them all, and born in her, by means of the word; and brought up by her, through the ordinances, and so are regenerate persons; and these the sons of God: and who are "precious", not in themselves, being of the fallen race of Adam; of the earth, earthly, as he was; of the same mass and lump with the rest of mankind; in no wise better than others, by nature; and have no intrinsic worth and value in them, but what comes by and from the grace of God; nor are they precious in their own esteem, and much less in the esteem of the men of the world; but in the eye of God, and of his son Jesus Christ, and of the blessed Spirit, and in the opinion of other saints; see

Psalms 16:3; in what sense these are comparable to fine gold, Psalms 16:3- :;

how are they esteemed as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the potter! they are indeed earthen vessels with respect to their bodies, frail, weak, and mortal; but they are the work of God's hands, even as creatures, and particularly as new creatures, and are a curious piece of his workmanship, and so valuable, and especially by him, who is as tender and as careful of them as the apple of his eye; and yet these are greatly disesteemed by carnal men, are reckoned as the faith of the world, and the offscouring of all things; as earthen vessels, fit for no use but common or dishonourable ones, or to be broke in pieces, and rendered useless and contemptible: see Psalms 31:12.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The precious sons of Zion - The whole nation was consecrated to God, and formed “a kingdom of priests” Exodus 19:6 : in this respect, a type of the Christian Church 1 Peter 2:5.

Comparable to fine gold - literally, “weighed with” solid gold, and so equal to their weight in it. With this is contrasted the hollow pitcher easily broken, and made of materials of no intrinsic value.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Lamentations 4:2. The precious sons of Zion — The Jewish priests and Jewish believers.

Comparable to fine gold — Who were of the pure standard of holiness; holy, because God who called them is holy; but now esteemed no better than earthen pitchers - vessels of dishonour in comparison of what they once were.


 
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