Jeremiah 48:28

28 People in Moab, leave your towns empty and go live among the rocks. Be like a dove that makes its nest at the entrance of a cave.

Jeremiah 48:28 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 48:28

O ye that dwell in Moab, leave the cities, and dwell in the
rock
Signifying hereby that they would not be in safety in their strongest and most fortified cities, which would be besieged by the enemy, and taken; and therefore are advised to leave them, and flee to the rocks and mountains, that if possible they might be safe there: and be like the dove, [that] maketh her nest in the sides of the hole's
mouth;
which, for fear of birds of prey, makes her nest in the side of a hole, or cleft of a rock, that she and her young may be safe from them; and which being pursued by the hawk, flies into a hollow rock or cavern, as Homer ^F4 observes: but here it intends the place where it makes its nest; which is for the most part in deserts and rocky places, where great numbers of doves resort, and make their nests, as Diodorus Siculus ^F5 relates; and especially in the holes and clefts of rocks, to which the allusion is in ( Song of Solomon 2:14 ) . The Targum is,

``and be as a dove that leaves her dove house, and comes down and dwells in the bottom of a pit,''

or ditch.

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FOOTNOTES:

F4 Iliad. 21. v. 495.
F5 Bibliothec. l. 2. p. 92.

Jeremiah 48:28 In-Context

26 "The people of Moab thought they were greater than the Lord, so punish them until they act as if they are drunk. Moab will fall and roll around in its own vomit, and people will even make fun of it.

27 Moab, you made fun of Israel. Israel was caught in the middle of a gang of thieves. When you spoke about Israel, you shook your head and acted as if you were better than it.

28 People in Moab, leave your towns empty and go live among the rocks. Be like a dove that makes its nest at the entrance of a cave.

29 "We have heard that the people of Moab are proud, very proud. They are proud, very proud, and in their hearts they think they are important."

30 The Lord says, "I know Moab's great pride, but it is useless. Moab's bragging accomplishes nothing.