King James Version:
(The Lord speaking is red text)
They took the young men to grind, and the children fell under the wood.
Complete Jewish Bible:
Young men are compelled to grind at the mill, boys stagger under loads of wood.
Berean Standard Bible:
Young men toil at millstones; boys stagger under loads of wood.
American Standard Version:
The young men bare the mill; And the children stumbled under the wood.
KJV with Strong’s Numbers:
They took{H5375} the young men{H970} to grind{H2911}, and the children{H5288} fell{H3782} under the wood{H6086}.
Cross-References (KJV):
Judges 16:21
- But the Philistines took him, and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass; and he did grind in the prison house.
Exodus 11:5
- And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sitteth upon his throne, even unto the firstborn of the maidservant that [is] behind the mill; and all the firstborn of beasts.
Isaiah 58:6
- [Is] not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?
Exodus 23:5
- If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden, and wouldest forbear to help him, thou shalt surely help with him.
Nehemiah 5:1
- ¶ And there was a great cry of the people and of their wives against their brethren the Jews.
Nehemiah 5:5
- Yet now our flesh [is] as the flesh of our brethren, our children as their children: and, lo, we bring into bondage our sons and our daughters to be servants, and [some] of our daughters are brought unto bondage [already]: neither [is it] in our power [to redeem them]; for other men have our lands and vineyards.
Job 31:10
- [Then] let my wife grind unto another, and let others bow down upon her.
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Commentary for Lamentations 5:13
Lamentations 5:13 is part of the Book of Lamentations, traditionally attributed to the prophet Jeremiah, which mourns the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. The verse describes the harsh realities faced by the people of Judah during this time of exile and suffering. The text speaks of young men being forced into labor, likely a reference to the arduous task of grinding grain, a common form of punishment and servitude in ancient times. Additionally, the verse mentions "the children fell under the wood," which could be interpreted as a metaphor for the younger generation collapsing under the weight of oppression or literally as children being killed or injured in the process of collecting wood, a necessity for survival but also a symbol of the destruction of their city and temple.
The themes of this verse include the brutal consequences of war, the loss of innocence, and the disintegration of societal structures. It reflects the collective trauma of a people who have witnessed the collapse of their nation, the destruction of their sacred spaces, and the subjugation of their youth. The historical context is one of deep national mourning and a sense of divine abandonment, as the people of Judah grappled with the reality of their defeat and the challenges of maintaining their identity in the face of foreign domination. Lamentations 5:13 captures the despair of a community facing the direst of circumstances, with the future of its youngest members particularly imperiled.
*This commentary is produced by Microsoft/WizardLM-2-8x22B AI model
Strong's Numbers and Definitions:
Note: H = Hebrew (OT), G = Greek (NT)
- Strong's Number: H5375
There are 611 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: נָשָׂא
Transliteration: nâsâʼ
Pronunciation: naw-saw'
Description: or נָסָה; (Psalm 4:6 (אֲבַד)), a primitive root; to lift, in a great variety of applications, literal and figurative, absolute and relative; accept, advance, arise, (able to, (armor), suffer to) bear(-er, up), bring (forth), burn, carry (away), cast, contain, desire, ease, exact, exalt (self), extol, fetch, forgive, furnish, further, give, go on, help, high, hold up, honorable ([phrase] man), lade, lay, lift (self) up, lofty, marry, magnify, [idiom] needs, obtain, pardon, raise (up), receive, regard, respect, set (up), spare, stir up, [phrase] swear, take (away, up), [idiom] utterly, wear, yield. - Strong's Number: H970
There are 44 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: בָּחוּר
Transliteration: bâchûwr
Pronunciation: baw-khoor'
Description: or בָּחֻר; participle passive of בָּחַר; properly, selected, i.e. a youth (often collective); (choice) young (man), chosen, [idiom] hole. - Strong's Number: H2911
There are 1 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: טְחוֹן
Transliteration: ṭᵉchôwn
Pronunciation: tekh-one'
Description: from טָחַן; a hand mill; hence, a millstone; to grind. - Strong's Number: H5288
There are 221 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: נַעַר
Transliteration: naʻar
Pronunciation: nah'-ar
Description: from נָעַר; (concretely) a boy (as active), from the age of infancy to adolescence; by implication, a servant; also (by interch. of sex), a girl (of similar latitude in age); babe, boy, child, damsel (from the margin), lad, servant, young (man). - Strong's Number: H3782
There are 59 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: כָּשַׁל
Transliteration: kâshal
Pronunciation: kaw-shal'
Description: a primitive root; to totter or waver (through weakness of the legs, especially the ankle); by implication, to falter, stumble, faint or fall; bereave (from the margin), cast down, be decayed, (cause to) fail, (cause, make to) fall (down, -ing), feeble, be (the) ruin(-ed, of), (be) overthrown, (cause to) stumble, [idiom] utterly, be weak. - Strong's Number: H6086
There are 288 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: עֵץ
Transliteration: ʻêts
Pronunciation: ates
Description: from עָצָה; a tree (from its firmness); hence, wood (plural sticks); [phrase] carpenter, gallows, helve, [phrase] pine, plank, staff, stalk, stick, stock, timber, tree, wood.