Lamentations 4:2 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 4:2

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... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 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 dishonor in comparison of what they once were. read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Lamentations 4:2

Verse 2 The Prophet comes now to the people, though he does not include the whole people, but brings forward those who were renowned, and excelled in honor and dignity. He then says, that they were become like earthen vessels and the work of the potter’s hands, which is very fitly added. Then by the sons of Sion, whom he calls precious or glorious, he means the chief men and the king’s counselors and those who were most eminent. And he seems to allude to that prophecy which we before explained’... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Lamentations 4:1-2

Fine gold dimmed. Gold is a precious metal, partly because it is less liable to corrode than other metals. It will not rust like iron nor even tarnish like silver. For fine gold to be dimmed is for it to undergo exceptionally severe treatment. Such was the treatment of the gold of the temple after the Chaldean siege of Jerusalem. Josephus describes how the gold glittered on the temple walls in his day; and doubtless the effect of the earlier temple's splendour must have been similarly... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Lamentations 4:1-2

Fallen reputation. I. THE WEIGHT OF THIS REPUTATION . The position of the people was comparable to gold in its glitter and attraction. Gold has its use and iron has its use, and we may be glad we have both; but if one of these two had to be given up, it would certainly be the gold. Iron means immensely more in modern civilization than gold. But if frequency of mention is to count for anything, gold was much more valued among the Israelites than iron, and being so, it had a large... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Lamentations 4:2

The precious sons of Zion; i.e. not merely the nobility, but the people of Judah in general. It is needless (as the literal interpreters of Lamentations 4:1 are compelled to do) to alter b'ne (sons) into bātte (houses) or 'abne (stones). The comparison of men to potters' vessels is familiar to the Hebrew writers (comp. Isaiah 22:24 ; Isaiah 45:9 ). read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Lamentations 4:2

Precious sons...fine gold,…become earthen pitchers. The prophet's appreciation of the proper dignity and value of his nation was naturally very exalted; in proportion were his sorrows and humiliation when his country rebelled against the Lord, and became, in consequence, a prey to the despised and hated foreigner. The reflections are applicable, not to Judah only, but to all the sinful and rebellious among men; for there is no escape from the action of the moral law, from the chastisement... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Lamentations 4:2

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. read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Lamentations 4:1-2

Lamentations 4:1-2. How is the gold become dim “How is the glory of the temple obscured! The sanctuary, which was overlaid with gold, (2 Chronicles 3:8,) now lies in ruins; and the stones of it are not distinguished from common rubbish. It is probable that the prophet, in these words, alluded to the priests, princes, and chief persons of the country, who, though they might have been compared to the pillars, or corner-stones of that sacred building, yet were now involved in the same common... read more

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

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Lamentations 4:2

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Lamentations 4:2

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Lamentations 4:2

The Pulpit Commentary - Lamentations 4:1-2

The Pulpit Commentary - Lamentations 4:1-2

The Pulpit Commentary - Lamentations 4:2

The Pulpit Commentary - Lamentations 4:2

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Lamentations 4:2

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Lamentations 4:1-2

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