Lectionary Calendar
Tuesday, July 8th, 2025
the Week of Proper 9 / Ordinary 14
Attention!
StudyLight.org has pledged to help build churches in Uganda. Help us with that pledge and support pastors in the heart of Africa.
Click here to join the effort!

Read the Bible

THE MESSAGE

Lamentations 4:19

They came after us faster than eagles in flight, pressed us hard in the mountains, ambushed us in the desert.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Eagle;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Deserts;   Eagle, the;   Persecution;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Eagle;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Heaven;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Ambush;   Heaven;   Lamentations, Book of;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Acrostic;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Eagle,;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Messiah;   Wilson's Dictionary of Bible Types - Heaven;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Eagle;  

Encyclopedias:

- The Jewish Encyclopedia - Cyprus;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Those who chased us were swifterthan eagles in the sky;they relentlessly pursued us over the mountainsand ambushed us in the wilderness.
Hebrew Names Version
Our pursuers were swifter than the eagles of the sky: They chased us on the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness.
King James Version
Our persecutors are swifter than the eagles of the heaven: they pursued us upon the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness.
English Standard Version
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 American Standard Bible
Our pursuers were swifter Than the eagles of the sky; They chased us on the mountains, They waited in ambush for us in the wilderness.
New Century Version
Those who chased us were faster than eagles in the sky. They ran us into the mountains and ambushed us in the desert.
Amplified Bible
Our pursuers were swifter Than the eagles of the sky; They pursued us on the mountains, They waited in ambush for us in the wilderness.
World English Bible
Our pursuers were swifter than the eagles of the sky: They chased us on the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Our persecuters are swifter then the egles of the heauen: they pursued vs vpon the mountaines, and layed waite for vs in the wildernes.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Our pursuers were swifter Than the eagles of the sky; They chased us on the mountains, They waited in ambush for us in the wilderness.
Legacy Standard Bible
Our pursuers were swifterThan the eagles of the sky;They hotly pursued us on the mountains;They waited in ambush for us in the wilderness.
Berean Standard Bible
Those who chased us were swifter than the eagles in the sky; they pursued us over the mountains and ambushed us in the wilderness.
Contemporary English Version
They swooped down faster than eagles from the sky. They hunted for us in the hills and set traps to catch us out in the desert.
Complete Jewish Bible
Those who pursued us were swifter than eagles in the sky. They chased us over the mountains and waylaid us in the desert.
Darby Translation
Our pursuers were swifter than the eagles of the heavens; they chased us hotly upon the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness.
Easy-to-Read Version
The men who chased us were faster than eagles in the sky. They chased us into the mountains. They hid in the desert to catch us.
George Lamsa Translation
Our pursuers were swifter than the eagles of the air; they chased us upon the mountains, they laid in wait for us in the wilderness.
Good News Translation
Swifter than eagles swooping from the sky, they chased us down. They tracked us down in the hills; they took us by surprise in the desert.
Lexham English Bible
Our pursuers were swifter than the eagles of the heavens; they chased us on the mountains, they have set an ambush for us in the desert.
Literal Translation
Our pursuers were swifter than the eagles of the heavens; they hotly pursued us on the mountains; they lay in wait for us in the wilderness.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Oure persecuters are swifter then the Aegles of the ayre: they folowed vpon vs ouer the mountaynes, and layed wait for vs in ye wildernesse.
American Standard Version
Our pursuers were swifter than the eagles of the heavens: They chased us upon the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness.
Bible in Basic English
Those who went after us were quicker than the eagles of the heaven, driving us before them on the mountains, waiting secretly for us in the waste land.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
Our pursuers were swifter than the eagles of the heaven; they chased us upon the mountains, they lay in wait for us in the wilderness.
King James Version (1611)
Our persecutours are swifter then the eagles of the heauen: they pursued vs vpon the mountaines, they laide waite for vs in the wildernesse.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Our persecutours are swifter then the Egles of the ayre: they folowed vppon vs ouer the mountaynes, and layde wayte for vs in the wyldernesse.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Our pursuers were swifter than the eagles of the sky, they flew on the mountains, in the wilderness they laid wait for us.
English Revised Version
Our pursuers were swifter than the eagles of the heaven: they chased us upon the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Coph. Oure pursueris weren swiftere than the eglis of heuene; thei pursueden vs on hillis, thei settiden buschementis to vs in desert.
Update Bible Version
Our pursuers were swifter than the eagles of the heavens: They chased us on the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness.
Webster's Bible Translation
Our persecutors are swifter than the eagles of heaven: they pursued us upon the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness.
New English Translation

ק (Qof)

Those who pursued us were swifter than eagles in the sky. They chased us over the mountains; they ambushed us in the wilderness.
New King James Version
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.
New Living Translation
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.
New Life Bible
Those who came after us were faster than the eagles of the sky. They came after us on the mountains. They hid and waited for us in the desert.
New Revised Standard
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.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Swifter are our pursuers, than the eagles of the heavens, - Over the mountains, have they come hotly after us, In the wilderness, have they lain in wait for us.
Douay-Rheims Bible
Coph. Our persecutors were swifter than the eagles of the air: they pursued us upon the mountains, they lay in wait for us in the wilderness.
Revised Standard Version
Our pursuers were swifter than the vultures in the heavens; they chased us on the mountains, they lay in wait for us in the wilderness.
Young's Literal Translation
Swifter have been our pursuers, Than the eagles of the heavens, On the mountains they have burned [after] us, In the wilderness they have laid wait for us.

Contextual Overview

13 Because of the sins of her prophets and the evil of her priests, Who exploited good and trusting people, robbing them of their lives, 14 These prophets and priests blindly grope their way through the streets, grimy and stained from their dirty lives, Wasted by their wasted lives, shuffling from fatigue, dressed in rags. 15 People yell at them, "Get out of here, dirty old men! Get lost, don't touch us, don't infect us!" They have to leave town. They wander off. Nobody wants them to stay here. Everyone knows, wherever they wander, that they've been kicked out of their own hometown. 16 God himself scattered them. No longer does he look out for them. He has nothing to do with the priests; he cares nothing for the elders. 17 We watched and watched, wore our eyes out looking for help. And nothing. We mounted our lookouts and looked for the help that never showed up. 18 They tracked us down, those hunters. It wasn't safe to go out in the street. Our end was near, our days numbered. We were doomed. 19 They came after us faster than eagles in flight, pressed us hard in the mountains, ambushed us in the desert. 20 Our king, our life's breath, the anointed of God , was caught in their traps— Our king under whose protection we always said we'd live.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

persecutors: Deuteronomy 28:49, Isaiah 5:26-28, Isaiah 30:16, Isaiah 30:17, Jeremiah 4:13, Hosea 8:1, Habakkuk 1:8, Matthew 24:27, Matthew 24:28

the eagles: The eagle, whose wings are of an extraordinary length, darts with amazing rapidity through the voids of heaven.

they pursued: Amos 2:14, Amos 9:1-3

Reciprocal: Leviticus 11:13 - the eagle 2 Samuel 1:23 - swifter 2 Kings 25:6 - they took Job 9:26 - as the eagle Jeremiah 48:40 - he shall Jeremiah 52:8 - General Lamentations 1:3 - all Lamentations 5:5 - Our necks are under persecution Ezekiel 12:13 - My net Ezekiel 17:3 - A great Daniel 7:4 - like Hosea 8:3 - the enemy

Cross-References

Genesis 2:18
God said, "It's not good for the Man to be alone; I'll make him a helper, a companion." So God formed from the dirt of the ground all the animals of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the Man to see what he would name them. Whatever the Man called each living creature, that was its name. The Man named the cattle, named the birds of the air, named the wild animals; but he didn't find a suitable companion.
Genesis 4:6
God spoke to Cain: "Why this tantrum? Why the sulking? If you do well, won't you be accepted? And if you don't do well, sin is lying in wait for you, ready to pounce; it's out to get you, you've got to master it."
Matthew 19:8
Jesus said, "Moses provided for divorce as a concession to your hard heartedness, but it is not part of God's original plan. I'm holding you to the original plan, and holding you liable for adultery if you divorce your faithful wife and then marry someone else. I make an exception in cases where the spouse has committed adultery."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Our persecutors are swifter than the eagles of the heavens,.... That fly in the heavens; and which, as they have a quick sight to discern their prey afar off, are very swift to pursue it; they are the swiftest of birds, and are so to a proverb. Apuleius i represents the swift pursuit of their prey, and sudden falling upon it, to be like thunder and lightning. Cicero k relates of a certain racer, that came to an interpreter of dreams, and told him, that in his dream he seemed to become an eagle; upon which, says the interpreter, thou wilt be the conqueror; for no bird flies with such force and swiftness as that. And this bird is also remarkable for its constancy in flying: it is never weary, but keeps on flying to places the most remote. The poets have a fiction, that Jupiter, being desirous of knowing which was the middle of the world, sent out two eagles of equal swiftness, the one from the east, and the other from the west, at the same moment; which stopped not till they came to Delphos, where they met, which showed that to be the spot; in memory of which, two golden eagles were placed in the temple there l. The swiftness and constancy of these creatures in flying are here intended to set forth the speed and assiduity of the enemies of the Jews, in their pursuit after them; who followed them closely, and never ceased till they had overtaken them. The Chaldeans are designed, who pursued the Jews very hotly and eagerly, such as fled when the city was broken up; though not so much they themselves, as being thus swift of foot, as their horses on which they rode; see Jeremiah 4:13.

they pursued us upon the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness: or "plain" m; there was no safety in either; such as fled to the mountains were pursued and overtaken there; and such who attempted to make their escape through the valleys were intercepted there: the reference is to the flight of Zedekiah, his nobles, and his army with him, who were pursued by the Chaldeans, and taken in the plains of Jericho, Jeremiah 52:7; hence it follows:

i Florida, l. 2. k De Divinatione, l. 2. p. 2001. l Vid. Strabo Geograph. l. 9. p. 289. & Pindar. Pythia, Ode 4. l. 7, 8. & Schmidt in ib. p. 174, 175. m במדבר "in plano", Gataker.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

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 siege the towers erected by the enemy would command these places.

Lamentations 4:19

Our persecutors are ... - Our pursuers (Lamentations 1:3 note) “were swifter thorn the eagles of heaven.”

They pursued us - Or, they chased us.

Mountains ... wilderness - The route in going from Jerusalem to Jericho leads first over heights, beginning with the Mount of Olives, and then descends into the plain of the Ghor.

Lamentations 4:20

The breath of our nostrils - Zedekiah is not set before us as a vicious king, but rather as a man who had not strength enough of character to stem the evil current of his times. And now that the state was fallen he was as the very breath of life to the fugitives, who would have no rallying point without him.

In their pits - The words are metaphorical, suggesting that Zedekiah was hunted like a wild animal, and driven into the pitfall.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 19. They 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.


 
adsfree-icon
Ads FreeProfile