Lamentations 4:9

THE MESSAGE

Better to have been killed in battle than killed by starvation. Better to have died of battle wounds than to slowly starve to death.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Those slain by the sword are better offthan those slain by hunger,who waste away, pierced with painbecause the fields lack produce.

Hebrew Names Version
Those who are killed with the sword are better than those who are killed with hunger; For these pine away, stricken through, for want of the fruits of the field.

King James Version
They that be slain with the sword are better than they that be slain with hunger: for these pine away, stricken through for want of the fruits of the field.

English Standard Version
Happier were the victims of the sword than the victims of hunger, who wasted away, pierced by lack of the fruits of the field.

New American Standard Bible
Better off are those killed by the sword Than those killed by hunger; For they waste away, stricken By the lack of the produce of the field.

New Century Version
Those who were killed in the war were better off than those killed by hunger. They starve in pain and die, because there is no food from the field.

Amplified Bible
Those killed with the sword Are more fortunate than those killed with hunger; For the hungry pine and ebb away, For the lack of the fruits of the field.

World English Bible
Those who are killed with the sword are better than those who are killed with hunger; For these pine away, stricken through, for want of the fruits of the field.

Geneva Bible (1587)
They that be slaine with the sword are better, then they that are killed with hunger: for they fade away as they were striken through for the fruites of the fielde.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Better are those slain with the sword Than those slain with hunger; For they pine away, being stricken For lack of the fruits of the field.

Legacy Standard Bible
Better are those pierced through with the swordThan those pierced through with hunger;For their life flows away, being strickenFor lack of the produce of the field.

Berean Standard Bible
Those slain by the sword are better off than those who die of hunger, who waste away, pierced with pain because the fields lack produce.

Contemporary English Version
Being killed with a sword is better than slowly starving to death.

Complete Jewish Bible
Those slain by the sword are better off than those who are dying from hunger; since these waste away as if pierced through, for lack of food from the fields.

Darby Translation
The slain with the sword are happier than the slain with hunger; for these pine away, stricken through for want of the fruits of the field.

Easy-to-Read Version
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.

George Lamsa Translation
Those who were slain by the sword are better than those who are slain with hunger; for these pine away, like those who are wounded and thrown in the field.

Good News Translation
Those who died in the war were better off than those who died later, who starved slowly to death, with no food to keep them alive.

Lexham English Bible
Happier were the victims of the sword than the victims of famine; they have pined away, very hungry for the crops of my field.

Literal Translation
Better are the ones slain by the sword than the ones slain by famine, those who flow away, pierced because the produce of my fields failed .

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
They that be slayne with the swearde, are happier, then soch as dye of honger, and perishe awaye famishinge for the frutes of the felde.

American Standard Version
They that are slain with the sword are better than they that are slain with hunger; For these pine away, stricken through, for want of the fruits of the field.

Bible in Basic English
Those who have been put to the sword are better off than those whose death is caused by need of food; for these come to death slowly, burned up like the fruit of the field.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
They that are slain with the sword are better than they that are slain with hunger; for these pine away, stricken through, for want of the fruits of the field.

King James Version (1611)
They that bee slaine with the sword, are better then they that be slain with hunger: for these pine away, stricken through for want of the fruits of the field.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
They that be slayne with the sworde, are happier then such as dye of hunger, and perishe away famishing for the fruites of the fielde.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
TETH. The slain with the sword were better than they that were slain with hunger: they have departed, pierced through from want of the fruits of the field.

English Revised Version
They that be slain with the sword are better than they that be slain with hunger; for these pine away, stricken through, for want of the fruits of the field.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Teth. It was betere to men slayn with swerd, than to men slayn with hungur; for these men wexiden rotun, thei weren wastid of the bareynesse of erthe.

Update Bible Version
Those that are slain with the sword are better than those that are slain with hunger; For these pine away, stricken through, for want of the fruits of the field.

Webster's Bible Translation
[They that are] slain with the sword are better than [they that are] slain with hunger: for these pine away, stricken through for [want of] the fruits of the field.

New English Translation

ט (Tet)

Those who died by the sword are better off than those who die of hunger, those who waste away, struck down from lack of food.

New King James Version
Those slain by the sword are better off Than those who die of hunger; For these pine away, Stricken for lack of the fruits of the field.

New Living Translation
Those killed by the sword are better off than those who die of hunger. Starving, they waste away for lack of food from the fields.

New Life Bible
Those who are killed with the sword are better off than those killed with hunger. For they waste away, suffering because they have no fruits of the field.

New Revised Standard
Happier were those pierced by the sword than those pierced by hunger, whose life drains away, deprived of the produce of the field.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Better are the slain of the sword, than the slain of the famine, - for, these, pine away, stricken through, wanting the produce of the field.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Teth. It was better with them that were slain by the sword, than with them that died with hunger: for these pined away being consumed for want of the fruits of the earth.

Revised Standard Version
Happier were the victims of the sword than the victims of hunger, who pined away, stricken by want of the fruits of the field.

Young's Literal Translation
Better have been the pierced of a sword Than the pierced of famine, For these flow away, pierced through, Without the increase of the field.

Contextual Overview

¹ Oh, oh, oh... How gold is treated like dirt, the finest gold thrown out with the garbage, Priceless jewels scattered all over, jewels loose in the gutters. ² 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. ³ Even wild jackals nurture their babies, give them their breasts to suckle. But my people have turned cruel to their babies, like an ostrich in the wilderness. ⁴ Babies have nothing to drink. Their tongues stick to the roofs of their mouths. Little children ask for bread but no one gives them so much as a crust. ⁵ People used to the finest cuisine forage for food in the streets. People used to the latest in fashions pick through the trash for something to wear. ⁶ The evil guilt of my dear people was worse than the sin of Sodom— The city was destroyed in a flash, and no one around to help. ⁷ The splendid and sacred nobles once glowed with health. Their bodies were robust and ruddy, their beards like carved stone. ⁸ But now they are smeared with soot, unrecognizable in the street, Their bones sticking out, their skin dried out like old leather. ⁹ Better to have been killed in battle than killed by starvation. Better to have died of battle wounds than to slowly starve to death. ¹⁰ Nice and kindly women boiled their own children for supper. This was the only food in town when my dear people were broken.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

for: Leviticus 26:39, Ezekiel 24:23, Ezekiel 33:10

pine away: Heb. flow out

Reciprocal: Genesis 47:13 - so that Exodus 16:3 - Would Numbers 20:3 - when 1 Kings 17:12 - that we may eat it 2 Kings 7:13 - they are even 1 Chronicles 21:12 - three years' famine Psalms 59:15 - for meat Isaiah 5:13 - honourable men are famished Isaiah 8:21 - hardly bestead Isaiah 22:2 - thy slain Isaiah 36:12 - that they may Jeremiah 14:2 - they Jeremiah 14:18 - go forth Jeremiah 22:10 - Weep ye Jeremiah 37:21 - until Lamentations 1:20 - abroad Lamentations 2:11 - because Lamentations 4:6 - the punishment Ezekiel 4:16 - eat Ezekiel 5:9 - that which Ezekiel 6:7 - slain Ezekiel 14:13 - break

Cross-References

Genesis 4:9
God said to Cain, "Where is Abel your brother?" He said, "How should I know? Am I his babysitter?"

Genesis 4:13
Cain said to God , "My punishment is too much. I can't take it! You've thrown me off the land and I can never again face you. I'm a homeless wanderer on Earth and whoever finds me will kill me."

Proverbs 28:13
You can't whitewash your sins and get by with it; you find mercy by admitting and leaving them.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

[They that be] slain with the sword are better than [they that be] slain with hunger,.... Not that they are better with respect to their state after death, but with respect to their manner of dying. They that were slain by the sword of the Chaldeans, as many were, either upon the walls, or in sallies out against the enemy, these felt less pain, and had less terror of mind in dying, than those did who perished by famine; they died a lingering death, as it were by inches, and were in continual pain of body and uneasiness of mind:

for these pine away, stricken through for [want of] the fruits of the field: that is, those that died by famine gradually wasted or "flowed" away, their fluid parts by degrees went off; and though they were not run through with the sword, they were stabbed by famine, and were so distressed in body and mind as if a sword had pierced them; not having the fruits of the field, the corn and the wine, to support nature, and keep them alive. Jarchi's note is,

"they that were slain with hunger were inflated at the smell of the fruits of the field, when the enemies were roasting their flesh upon the grass without the wall; the smell entered into those that swelled by famine, and their bellies burst, and their excrements flowed out; and this is the death worse than that of being slain with the sword.''

And to this agrees the Targum,

"more happy are they that are slain with the sword than they that are slain with famine; for they that are slain with the sword flowed when their bellies were burst, by that which they ate of the fruits of the field; and those that were inflated with famine, their bellies burst through "want" of food.''

Most interpreters refer this clause to those that died of famine: but Gussetius z interprets it of those that were killed with the sword; and renders and paraphrases the words thus, "for they being stabbed, sent out"; by the open wounds, "a flux, [which arose] from the fruits of the field"; their food and nourishment being yet in their belly and veins, and so did not pine away through penury and famine; and their misery was short and light, in comparison of others: and so Abendana.

z Comment. Ebr. p. 225.