Jeremiah - 14:4

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4 Because of the ground which is cracked, because no rain has been in the land, the plowmen are disappointed, they cover their heads.

Verse In-Depth

Explanation and meaning of Jeremiah 14:4.

Differing Translations

Compare verses for better understanding.
Because the ground is chapt, for there was no rain in the earth, the plowmen were ashamed, they covered their heads.
Because of the ground which is cracked, for that no rain hath been in the land, the plowmen are put to shame, they cover their heads.
For the destruction of the land, because there came no rain upon the earth, the husbandmen were confounded, they covered their heads.
Because the ground is chapt, for there hath been no rain on the earth, the ploughmen are ashamed, they cover their heads.
Because of the ground which is chapt, for that no rain hath been in the land, the plowmen are ashamed, they cover their heads.
Because the ground hath been broken, For there hath been no rain in the land, Ashamed have been husbandmen, They have covered their head.
Because the ground is beat down, for there was no rain in the earth, the plowmen were ashamed, they covered their heads.
Those who do work on the land are in fear, for there has been no rain on the land, and the farmers are shamed, covering their heads.
Because of the ground which is cracked, For there hath been no rain in the land, The plowmen are ashamed, they cover their heads.
Because of the devastation of the earth, because rain did not fall upon the earth, the farmers were confounded; they covered their heads.
Propter terram afflictam (contritam, vel, scissam; cum enim verbum hoc proprie significat conterere, non dubito, quin Propheta hic terram vel pulverulentam vel concisam signifcat,) quia non fuit pluvia in terra, confusi sunt agricolae (vel, pudefacti sunt, repetit illud verbum vsv) et cooperuerunt caput suum (etiam eandem dictionem repetit.)

*Minor differences ignored. Grouped by changes, with first version listed as example.


Historical Commentaries

Scholarly Analysis and Interpretation.

The Prophet had said, that though the whole common people were sent to the waters, yet none would be found. He now adds the same firing respecting the husbandmen. Ashamed, he says, shall be the husbandmen, for the ground shall be turned into dust, and God will pound it small. When the heavens supply moisture, the earth retains thus its solid character; but in a great heat we see the earth dissolving into dust, as though it was pounded in a mortar. So he says, On account of the chapt ground, because there is no rain, ashamed shall be the husbandmen, and they shall cover their heads; for sorrow shall not only seize on them, but also fin them with such shame as to make them to shun the light and the sight of men. These things were intended for the same purpose, even to make the Jews to know that they were not by chance deprived of water, but because God had cursed their land, so that it yielded them no water even for the common wants of nature. It follows --

Is chapt - Rather, is dismayed. "The ground" is used metaphorically for the people who until the ground.
In the earth - i. e., "in the land."

The ground is chapt - The cracks in the earth before the descent of the rains are in some places a cubit wide, and deep enough to receive the greater part of a human body.

Because the ground is chapt,.... Through the violent heat of the sun, and want of rain; or, is broken (y); and crumbles into dust. The Targum is,
"because of sins, the inhabitants of the earth are broken:''
for there was no rain in the earth; this was the reason of the dearth, and of the famine, and why there was no water in the pits, and the ground was parched. It is to be understood of the land of Judea only, not of the whole earth:
the ploughmen were ashamed; because they could not work the earth with their plough; were obliged to sit still, could do no work, or go on with their husbandry; nothing could be done for want of rain: they covered their heads; as before; See Gill on Jeremiah 14:3.
(y) "confracta", Schmidt; "attritam", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator.

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