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38 On all the housetops in Moab
and in all its public squares
there will be nothing but mourning.
For I will break Moab like an unwanted jar.
I, the Lord, affirm it![a]
39 Oh, how shattered Moab will be!
Oh, how her people will wail!
Oh, how she will turn away[b] in shame!
Moab will become an object of ridicule,
a terrifying sight to all the nations that surround her.”
40 For the Lord says,

“Look! Like an eagle with outspread wings
a nation will swoop down on Moab.[c]

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 48:38 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”
  2. Jeremiah 48:39 tn Heb “turn her back.”
  3. Jeremiah 48:40 tn Heb “Behold! Like an eagle he will swoop and will spread his wings against Moab.” The sentence has been reordered in English to give a better logical flow, and the unidentified “he” has been identified as “a nation.” The nation is, of course, Babylon, but it is nowhere identified, so the referent has been left ambiguous.sn Conquering nations are often identified with an eagle flying swiftly to swoop down on its victims (cf. Deut 28:49). In this case the eagle is to be identified with the nation (or king) of Babylon (cf. Ezek 17:3, 12, where reference is to the removal of Jehoiachin [Jeconiah] and his replacement with Zedekiah).

38 On all the roofs in Moab
    and in the public squares(A)
there is nothing but mourning,
    for I have broken Moab
    like a jar(B) that no one wants,”
declares the Lord.
39 “How shattered(C) she is! How they wail!
    How Moab turns her back in shame!
Moab has become an object of ridicule,(D)
    an object of horror to all those around her.”

40 This is what the Lord says:

“Look! An eagle is swooping(E) down,
    spreading its wings(F) over Moab.

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