Lamentations 4:6 NIV

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Lamentations 4:1-12

The elegy in this chapter begins with a lamentation of the very sad and doleful change which the judgments of God had made in Jerusalem. The city that was formerly as gold, as the most fine gold, so rich and splendid, the perfection of beauty and the joy of the whole earth, has become dim, and is changed, has lost its lustre, lost its value, is not what it was; it has become dross. Alas! what an alteration is here! I. The temple was laid waste, which was the glory of Jerusalem and its... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Lamentations 4:6

For the punishment of the iniquity of the daughter of my people ,.... In the long siege of their city, and the evils that attended it, especially the sore famine: is greater than the punishment of the sin of Sodom ; which was destroyed at once by fire from heaven: or it may be rendered, "the iniquity of the daughter of my people is greater than the sin of Sodom" F16 מחטאת ----Nwe ldgyw "et ingens fuit iniquitas--prae peccato", Montanus; "et major extitit pravitas--prae peccato",... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Lamentations 4:6

For the punishment - He thinks the punishment of Jerusalem far greater than that of Sodom. That was destroyed in a moment while all her inhabitants were in health and strength; Jerusalem fell by the most lingering calamities; her men partly destroyed by the sword, and partly by the famine. Instead of no hands stayed on her, Blayney translates, "Nor were hands weakened in her." Perhaps the meaning is, "Sodom was destroyed in a moment without any human labor." It was a judgment from God... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Lamentations 4:6

Verse 6 The Prophet says first,, that the punishment of his people was heavier than that of Sodom. If any one prefers the other version, I will not contend, for it is not unsuitable; and hence also a most useful doctrine may be drawn, that we are to judge of the grievousness of our sins by the greatness of our punishment for God never exceeds what is just when he takes vengeance on the sins of men. Then his severity shews how grievously men have sinned. Thus, Jeremiah may have reasoned from the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Lamentations 4:6

The punishment of the iniquity... the punishment of the sin. This is a possible rendering (see Genesis 4:13 ; Zechariah 14:19 ), but the renderings, "the iniquity," "the sin? are preferable, and yield a finer meaning, viz. that the punishment having been so severe, the guilt must have been in proportion. And no hands stayed on her. To make the picture of sudden destruction more vivid, the poet alludes to the ordinary circumstances of the capture of a city, the "hands" of a fierce... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Lamentations 4:6

The sin of Sodom. God was doing nothing new or indefensible in allowing Jerusalem thus to be wasted and humiliated. The Israelites had in their possession illustrations more than one of how great sin had been followed by great suffering. Jeremiah quotes Sodom, and he might have said something about Egypt when God visited it with the plagues. We must not, of course, press too literally the statement that the sin of Jerusalem was greater than that of Sodom. The prophet's aim is simply to... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Lamentations 4:6

Rather, “For” the iniquity “of the daughter of my people was greater than” the sin “of Sodom.” The prophet deduces this conclusion from the greatness of Judah’s misery (compare Jeremiah 30:11; see also Luke 13:1-5).No hands stayed on her - Or, “no hands were round about her.” Sodom’s sufferings in dying were brief: there were no starving children, no mothers cooking their offspring for food. read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Lamentations 4:6

Lamentations 4:6. For the punishment, &c., is greater than the punishment of Sodom The fate of Sodom was less deplorable than that of Jerusalem; for Sodom was destroyed in an instant; but Jerusalem endured a long siege, and suffered all the miseries of famine, sickness, and hostile arms. In Sodom all were destroyed together, and none left to mourn in bitterness of soul the sad loss of their dearest friends; in Jerusalem many survived to mourn the deplorable fate of their friends and... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Lamentations 4:1-22

Corrupt leaders disgraced (4:1-22)Jerusalem’s former glory is contrasted with her present ruin. The once glorious temple, now defiled and shattered, is symbolic of the once glorious people now shamed and broken. Jerusalem’s dead lie in the streets like pieces of broken pottery (4:1-2). The writer recalls again the scene of horror during the siege. Wild beasts provide food for their young, but in Jerusalem mothers are unable to provide food for their children. Rich nobles die on the streets like... read more

E.W. Bullinger

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - Lamentations 4:6

For = And. punishment of the iniquity. This is the full translation of the Figure of speech Metonymy (of Effect): the "iniquity "being put for its consequent punishment. punishment of the sin. This is the full translation of the Figure of speech Metonymy (of Effect), App-6 , the Hebrew chata (sin) being put for the consequent punishment. overthrown, &c. Reference to Pentateuch (Genesis 19:25 ). App-92 . Stayed = travailed on her: i.e. brought it about; for the overthrow was direct... read more

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Lamentations 4:1-12

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Lamentations 4:6

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Lamentations 4:6

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Lamentations 4:6

The Pulpit Commentary - Lamentations 4:6

The Pulpit Commentary - Lamentations 4:6

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Lamentations 4:6

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Lamentations 4:6

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Lamentations 4:1-22

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - Lamentations 4:6

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