This is what the LORD says: “See how the waters are rising from the north and becoming an overflowing torrent. They will overflow the land and its fullness, the cities and their inhabitants. The people will cry out, and all who dwell in the land will wail
Parallel translations
- WEB Yahweh says: “Behold, waters rise up out of the north, and will become an overflowing stream, and will overflow the land and all that is therein, the city and those who dwell therein. The men will cry, and all the inhabitants of the land shall wail.
- KJV Thus saith the LORD; Behold, waters rise up out of the north, and shall be an overflowing flood, and shall overflow the land, and all that is therein; the city, and them that dwell therein: then the men shall cry, and all the inhabitants of the land shall howl.
- NKJV Thus says the Lord: “Behold, waters rise out of the north, And shall be an overflowing flood; They shall overflow the land and all that is in it, The city and those who dwell within; Then the men shall cry, And all the inhabitants of the land shall wail.
- NASB This is what the Lord says: “Behold, waters are going to rise from the north And become an overflowing torrent, And overflow the land and everything that is in it, The city and those who live in it; And the people will cry out, And every inhabitant of the land will wail.
- NLT This is what the Lord says: “A flood is coming from the north to overflow the land. It will destroy the land and everything in it— cities and people alike. People will scream in terror, and everyone in the land will wail.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
An overflowing flood from the north (an invading army) will engulf the Philistine land, and all will wail.
Overview
The advancing army is pictured as rising floodwaters sweeping over cities and inhabitants. The image conveys an unstoppable, drowning judgment that leaves the whole population crying out. As elsewhere in Scripture, overwhelming waters symbolize divine judgment, from which only the LORD can provide an ark of refuge, ultimately found in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 29
- Jer 1:14Then the LORD said to me, “Disaster from the north will be poured out on all who live in the land.
- Jer 46:20Egypt is a beautiful heifer, but a gadfly from the north is coming against her.
- Isa 15:2–5Dibon goes up to its temple to weep at its high places. Moab wails over Nebo, as well as over Medeba. Every head is shaved, every beard is cut off.
- Jer 8:16The snorting of enemy horses is heard from Dan. At the sound of the neighing of mighty steeds, the whole land quakes. They come to devour the land and everything in it, the city and all who dwell in it.
- Isa 8:7–8the Lord will surely bring against them the mighty floodwaters of the Euphrates—the king of Assyria and all his pomp. It will overflow its channels and overrun its banks.
- Isa 22:1This is the burden against the Valley of Vision: What ails you now, that you have all gone up to the rooftops,
- Isa 59:19So shall they fear the name of the LORD where the sun sets, and His glory where it rises. For He will come like a raging flood, driven by the breath of the LORD.
- Isa 14:31Wail, O gate! Cry out, O city! Melt away, all you Philistines! For a cloud of smoke comes from the north, and there are no stragglers in its ranks.
- Isa 28:17I will make justice the measuring line and righteousness the level. Hail will sweep away your refuge of lies, and water will flood your hiding place.
- Isa 22:4–5Therefore I said, “Turn away from me, let me weep bitterly! Do not try to console me over the destruction of the daughter of my people.”
- Dan 11:22Then a flood of forces will be swept away before him and destroyed, along with a prince of the covenant.
- Amos 9:5–6The Lord GOD of Hosts, He who touches the earth and it melts, and all its dwellers mourn—all the land rises like the Nile, then sinks like the river of Egypt—
- Nah 1:8But with an overwhelming flood He will make an end of Nineveh and pursue His enemies into darkness.
- Zeph 1:10–11On that day,” declares the LORD, “a cry will go up from the Fish Gate, a wail from the Second District, and a loud crashing from the hills.
- 1 Cor 10:26for, “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof.”
- 1 Cor 10:28But if someone tells you, “This food was offered to idols,” then do not eat it, for the sake of the one who told you and for the sake of conscience—
- Jas 5:1Come now, you who are rich, weep and wail over the misery to come upon you.
- Ps 96:11Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice; let the sea resound, and all that fills it.
- Ps 98:7Let the sea resound, and all that fills it, the world, and all who dwell in it.
- Ps 24:1A Psalm of David. The earth is the LORD’s, and the fullness thereof, the world and all who dwell therein.
- Ps 50:12If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world is Mine, and the fullness thereof.
- Rev 12:15–16Then from the mouth of the serpent spewed water like a river to overtake the woman and sweep her away in the torrent.
- Rev 17:1Then one of the seven angels with the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits on many waters.
- Jer 46:6–8“The swift cannot flee, and the warrior cannot escape! In the north by the River Euphrates they stumble and fall.
- Rev 17:15Then the angel said to me, “The waters you saw, where the prostitute was seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues.
- Jer 48:3–5A voice cries out from Horonaim: ‘Devastation and great destruction!’
- Jer 48:39“How shattered it is! How they wail! How Moab has turned his back in shame! Moab has become an object of ridicule and horror to all those around him.”
- Jer 46:13This is the word that the LORD spoke to Jeremiah the prophet about the coming of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to strike the land of Egypt:
- Isa 15:8For their outcry echoes to the border of Moab. Their wailing reaches Eglaim; it is heard in Beer-elim.
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Christ at the center
Against the failure of false shepherds Jeremiah promises the Righteous Branch, 'The LORD our righteousness,' and the new covenant written on the heart and sealed in the blood of Christ.
How Jeremiah 47:2 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.