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Lamentations 2:16

Old Testament Poetry ASV (1901)

What does Lamentations 2:16 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “All thine enemies have opened their mouth wide against thee; They hiss and gnash the teeth; they say, We have swallowed her up; Certainly this is the day that we looked for; we have found, we have seen it.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

All thine enemies have opened their mouth wide against thee; They hiss and gnash the teeth; they say, We have swallowed her up; Certainly this is the day that we looked for; we have found, we have seen it.
Lamentations 2:16 — American Standard Version

Context — Lamentations 2

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
13What shall I testify unto thee? what shall I liken to thee, O daughter of Jerusalem? What shall I compare to thee, that I may comfort thee, O virgin daughter of Zion? For thy breach is great like the sea: who can heal thee?
14Thy prophets have seen for thee false and foolish visions; And they have not uncovered thine iniquity, to bring back thy captivity, But have seen for thee false oracles and causes of banishment.
15All that pass by clap their hands at thee; They hiss and wag their head at the daughter of Jerusalem, [saying], Is this the city that men called The perfection of beauty, The joy of the whole earth?
16All thine enemies have opened their mouth wide against thee; They hiss and gnash the teeth; they say, We have swallowed her up; Certainly this is the day that we looked for; we have found, we have seen it.
17Jehovah hath done that which he purposed; he hath fulfilled his word that he commanded in the days of old; He hath thrown down, and hath not pitied: And he hath caused the enemy to rejoice over thee; he hath exalted the horn of thine adversaries.
18Their heart cried unto the Lord: O wall of the daughter of Zion, let tears run down like a river day and night; Give thyself no respite; let not the apple of thine eye cease.
19Arise, cry out in the night, at the beginning of the watches; Pour out thy heart like water before the face of the Lord: Lift up thy hands toward him for the life of thy young children, that faint for hunger at the head of every street.
← Lamentations 2:15Lamentations 2:17 →
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What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“All thine enemies have opened their mouth against thee, etc.] Or “widened” f46 them; stretched them out as far as they could, to reproach, blaspheme, and insult; or, like gaping beasts, to swallow up and devour: they hiss and gnash their teeth; hiss like serpents, and gnash their teeth in wrath and fury; all expressing their extreme hatred and abhorrence of the Jews, and the delight they took in their ruin and destruction: they say, we have swallowed [her] up; all her wealth and riches were corns into their hands, and were all their own; as well as they thought these were all their own doings, owing to their wisdom and skill, courage and strength; not seeing and knowing the hand of God in…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“For the transposition of Hebrew letters (Pe and Ain, Lam 2:16-17) in the order of verses, see Introduction. opened . . . mouth--as ravening, roaring wild beasts (Job 16:9-10; Psa 22:13). Herein Jerusalem was a type of Messiah. gnash . . . teeth--in vindictive malice. we have seen it-- (Psa 35:21).”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“Seen it - Omit “it.” The intensity of the enemy’s exultation is shown by the heaping up of unconnected words. We have found what we sought, have seen what we looked for. return to 'Top of Page'”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“2:16 Their enemies were glad that Jerusalem was defeated.”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“thine: Lam 3:46; Job 16:9, Job 16:10; Psa 22:13, Psa 35:21, Psa 109:2 gnash: Psa 35:16, Psa 37:12, Psa 112:10; Act 7:54 We have swallowed: Psa 56:2, Psa 57:3, Psa 124:3; Isa 49:19; Jer 50:7, Jer 50:17, Jer 51:34; Eze 25:3, Eze 25:6, Eze 25:15; Eze 36:3; Hos 8:8; Zep 2:8-10 we have seen: Psa 35:21, Psa 41:8; Oba 1:12-16 Lamentations 2:17”
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Keil & Delitzsch
C. F. Keil & F. Delitzsch · Commentary on the Old Testament · 19th-century historical commentary
“The enemy in triumph express their joy over the fall of Jerusalem. The opening of the mouth (as in Psa 35:21; Job 16:10), taken in connection with what follows, is also a gesture peculiar to scornful speech. The gnashing of the teeth ( Psa 35:16; Psa 37:12; Job 16:9) is here an expression of rage that has burst out. The object of "we have swallowed" is to be derived from the context ("against thee"), viz., the city of Jerusalem. Surely this" is a strong asseveration - "this is the very day." The asyndetic collection of the three verbs accords with the impassioned character of the enemy's speech. "To see" is here equivalent to living to see. Lamentations 2:17”
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Related study paths

Read Lamentations 2 in contextBrowse Hebrew word studiesOpen this verse in the study reader

Sources and verification