Lamentations 2:12
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Lamentations 2:12
12 They say to their mothers, Where is corn and wine? when they swooned as the wounded in the streets of the city, when their soul was poured out into their mothers' bosom.
Chapter Context
Lamentations 2 is a funeral dirge chapter in the Old Testament that explores themes of prayer, worship, holiness. Written during just after Jerusalem's fall (c. 586 BCE), this chapter should be understood within its historical context: Written amid the devastating aftermath of Jerusalem's destruction by Babylon.
The chapter can be divided into several sections:
- Verses 1-5: Introduction and setting the context
- Verses 6-12: Development of key themes
- Verses 13-20: Central message and teachings
- Verses 21-22: Conclusion and application
This chapter is significant because it offers practical wisdom for godly living in a fallen world. When studying this passage, it's important to consider both its immediate context within Lamentations and its broader place in the scriptural canon.
Verse Study
Lamentations 2:12
12 They say to their mothers, Where is corn and wine? when they swooned as the wounded in the streets of the city, when their soul was poured out into their mothers' bosom.
Analysis
Children's suffering intensifies tragedy: "They say to their mothers, Where is corn and wine?" (le-imotam yomru ayeh dagan vayayin). Dagan (דָּגָן, grain) and yayin (יַיִן, wine) represent basic sustenance. Children asking mothers for food that doesn't exist portrays heartbreaking helplessness. "When they swooned as the wounded in the streets of the city" (be-hit'atafam ka-chalal bi-rchovot ir). The verb ataf (עָטַף, "swoon, faint") describes life ebbing away. Comparing children to "wounded" (chalal, חָלָל) in streets equates famine's effects with warfare's casualties. "When their soul was poured out into their mothers' bosom" (be-hishtapekh nafsham el-kheik immotam). The phrase "soul poured out" describes death—life leaving the body. Dying in mothers' arms amplifies anguish—mothers helpless to save their children. This fulfills Deuteronomy 28:53-57's curse but with devastating emotional impact. Children's innocent suffering serves as ultimate indictment of the sin that caused judgment.
Historical Context
Child mortality during ancient sieges was catastrophic. Malnutrition, disease, and violence killed the most vulnerable first. Jeremiah 6:11 and 9:21 predict children dying in streets. Lamentations 4:4 describes nursing infants' tongues sticking to palates from thirst and children begging for bread no one can provide. The phrase 'corn and wine' represented covenant blessings—Deuteronomy 7:13, 11:14 promise these for obedience. Their absence marks covenant curse. Mothers' inability to provide recalls Hannah's petition for a child (1 Samuel 1:11) and Mary's nurturing Christ (Luke 11:27)—motherhood meant protection and provision. But under judgment, even maternal love cannot shield from consequences. This horrible reality would motivate the post-exilic community to covenant faithfulness, ensuring their children wouldn't experience similar suffering.
Reflection
- How does children asking 'Where is corn and wine?' illustrate the comprehensive reach of judgment, affecting even the innocent?
- What does mothers' helplessness to save their dying children teach about the limits of human love and power under divine judgment?
- How should awareness of judgment's devastating impact on children increase our urgency in pursuing covenant faithfulness and evangelism?