Jeremiah
Jeremiah 4:30–31
30And you, O devastated one, what will you do,
though you dress yourself in scarlet,
though you adorn yourself with gold jewelry,
though you enlarge your eyes with paint?
You adorn yourself in vain; your lovers despise you;
they want to take your life.
31For I hear a cry like a woman in labor,
a cry of anguish like one bearing her first child —
the cry of the Daughter of Zion gasping for breath,
stretching out her hands to say,
“Woe is me,
for my soul faints before the murderers!”
Word by word
Each English word or phrase beside the Hebrew it translates, in the order of the English. Choose a number to open that word’s study.
Jeremiah 4:30
| English | Hebrew | Sounds like | Grammar | Word study |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| And you | וְאַתִּי | wə·ʾat·tī | Conjunctive waw; Pronoun - second person feminine singular | H859 thou |
| O devastated | שָׁד֜וּד | šā·ḏūḏ | Verb - Qal - QalPassParticiple - masculine singular | H7703 deal violently with, despoil, devastate, ruin |
| one | מַֽה־ | mah- | Interrogative | H4100 what? how? aught |
| what will you do | תַּעֲשִׂ֗י | ta·‘ă·śî | Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person feminine singular | H6213 do, make |
| though | כִּֽי־ | kî- | Conjunction | H3588 burning, branding |
| you dress | תִלְבְּשִׁ֨י | ṯil·bə·šî | Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person feminine singular | H3847 put on (a garment), wear, clothe, be clothed |
| yourself in scarlet | שָׁנִ֜י | šā·nî | Noun - masculine singular | H8144 scarlet |
| though | כִּי־ | kî- | Conjunction | H3588 burning, branding |
| you adorn | תַעְדִּ֣י | ṯa‘·dî | Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person feminine singular | H5710 pass on, advance |
| yourself with gold | זָהָ֗ב | zā·hāḇ | Noun - masculine singular | H2091 gold |
| jewelry | עֲדִי־ | ‘ă·ḏî- | Noun - masculine singular construct | H5716 ornaments |
| though | כִּֽי־ | kî- | Conjunction | H3588 burning, branding |
| you enlarge | תִקְרְעִ֤י | ṯiq·rə·‘î | Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person feminine singular | H7167 tear |
| your eyes | עֵינַ֔יִךְ | ‘ê·na·yiḵ | Noun - cdc; second person feminine singular | H5869 eye |
| with paint | בַפּוּךְ֙ | ḇap·pūḵ | Preposition-b, Article; Noun - masculine singular | H6320 antimony, stibium |
| You adorn yourself | תִּתְיַפִּ֑י | tiṯ·yap·pî | Verb - Hitpael - Imperfect - second person feminine singular | H3302 be fair, beautiful |
| in vain | לַשָּׁ֖וְא | laš·šāw | Preposition-l, Article; Noun - masculine singular | H7723 emptiness, vanity |
| your lovers | עֹגְבִ֖ים | ‘ō·ḡə·ḇîm | Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine plural | H5689 have inordinate affection, lust |
| despise | מָאֲסוּ־ | mā·’ă·sū- | Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural | H3988 reject |
| you | בָ֥ךְ | ḇāḵ | Preposition; second person feminine singular | |
| they want to take | יְבַקֵּֽשׁוּ׃ | yə·ḇaq·qê·šū | Verb - Piel - Imperfect - third person masculine plural | H1245 seek |
| your life | נַפְשֵׁ֥ךְ | nap̄·šêḵ | Noun - feminine singular construct; second person feminine singular | H5315 soul, living being, life, self, person, desire, appetite, emotion, and passion |
Jeremiah 4:31
| English | Hebrew | Sounds like | Grammar | Word study |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| For | כִּי֩ | kî | Conjunction | H3588 burning, branding |
| I hear | שָׁמַ֗עְתִּי | šā·ma‘·tî | Verb - Qal - Perfect - first person common singular | H8085 hear |
| a cry | ק֨וֹל | qō·wl | Noun - masculine singular | H6963 sound, voice |
| like a woman in labor | כְּחוֹלָ֜ה | kə·ḥō·w·lāh | Preposition-k; Verb - Qal - Participle - feminine singular | H2470 be weak, sick |
| a cry of anguish | צָרָה֙ | ṣā·rāh | Noun - feminine singular | H6869 id. |
| like one bearing her first child | כְּמַבְכִּירָ֔ה | kə·maḇ·kî·rāh | Preposition-k; Verb - Hifil - Participle - feminine singular | H1069 give the birthright |
| the cry | ק֧וֹל | qō·wl | Noun - masculine singular construct | H6963 sound, voice |
| of the Daughter | בַּת־ | baṯ- | Noun - feminine singular construct | H1323 daughter |
| of Zion | צִיּ֛וֹן | ṣî·yō·wn | Noun - proper - feminine singular | H6726 Zion |
| gasping for breath | תִּתְיַפֵּ֖חַ | tiṯ·yap·pê·aḥ | Verb - Hitpael - Imperfect - third person feminine singular | H3306 breathe, puff |
| stretching out | תְּפָרֵ֣שׂ | tə·p̄ā·rêś | Verb - Piel - Imperfect - third person feminine singular | H6566 spread out, spread |
| her hands | כַּפֶּ֑יהָ | kap·pe·hā | Noun - feminine dual construct; third person feminine singular | H3709 hollow, or flat of the hand, palm, sole of foot, pan |
| Woe is me | אֽוֹי־ | ’ō·w- | Interjection | H188 woe! |
| for | כִּֽי־ | kî- | Conjunction | H3588 burning, branding |
| my soul | נַפְשִׁ֖י | nap̄·šî | Noun - feminine singular construct; first person common singular | H5315 soul, living being, life, self, person, desire, appetite, emotion, and passion |
| faints | עָיְפָ֥ה | ‘ā·yə·p̄āh | Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person feminine singular | H5888 be faint |
| before the murderers | לְהֹרְגִֽים׃פ | lə·hō·rə·ḡîm | Preposition-l; Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine plural | H2026 kill, slay |
Cross-references
Other passages that speak to the same thing. Point at one to read it.
Jeremiah 4:30 Lamentations 1:19 · 2 Kings 9:30 · Lamentations 1:2 · Isaiah 10:3 · Ezekiel 16:36–41 · Ezekiel 23:9–10 · Jeremiah 13:21 · Isaiah 20:6 · Ezekiel 28:13 · Ezekiel 23:22–24
Jeremiah 4:31 Lamentations 1:17 · Isaiah 1:15 · Jeremiah 13:21
Cross-references from OpenBible.info, used under CC BY 4.0. The best-supported references for each verse are shown.
Scripture text: Berean Standard Bible.