“There shall be no more praise of Moab: in Heshbon they have devised evil against it; come, and let us cut it off from being a nation. Also thou shalt be cut down, O Madmen; the sword shall pursue thee.”
My Notes
What Does Jeremiah 48:2 Mean?
"There shall be no more praise of Moab: in Heshbon they have devised evil against it; come, and let us cut it off from being a nation. Also thou shalt be cut down, O Madmen; the sword shall pursue thee." Moab's praise is over — the reputation, the glory, the national pride that defined the nation is FINISHED. The enemies plot in Heshbon (once Moab's own city) to cut Moab off from being a nation entirely. The threat isn't defeat. It's ERASURE — removal from the list of nations.
The phrase "no more praise of Moab" (ein od tehillat Mo'av — there is no longer the praise/glory of Moab) declares the end of national identity: Moab's tehillah — its fame, its glory, its praise — is cancelled. The thing Moab was known for, celebrated for, praised for — finished. The identity that defined the nation is erased.
The "cut it off from being a nation" (venakhritenah miggoy — and let us sever it from being a nation) is the goal of total national erasure: not conquest (which preserves the nation under new management) but CUTTING OFF — severing Moab from the category of 'nation.' The enemy doesn't want to rule Moab. The enemy wants Moab to stop existing.
Reflection Questions
- 1.What identity or reputation is being erased — and what will remain when the 'praise' is gone?
- 2.What does being 'cut off from being a nation' — total erasure — teach about the most severe form of judgment?
- 3.How does the sword PURSUING (not just arriving) describe the relentlessness of consequences?
- 4.What former glory in your world has been cancelled — and what's replacing it?
Devotional
No more praise for Moab. No more glory. The nation that was known for something is now known for nothing. The enemies gather to do more than conquer — they gather to ERASE. To cut Moab off from being a nation entirely. Not defeat. Extinction.
The 'no more praise' is the death of national identity: every nation has its tehillah — its glory, its reputation, its source of pride. Moab's is cancelled. The thing Moab was praised for — whatever made Moab MOAB — is over. The identity is dead before the nation is. The praise stops while the people still exist. The glory dies first. The nation follows.
The 'cut it off from being a nation' is the most extreme form of judgment: conquest preserves the conquered (under new rulers). Exile displaces them (to a new location). But cutting off from being a nation is ERASURE — removal from the category of 'nations,' deletion from the list, elimination of national existence entirely. The enemy in Heshbon doesn't want to rule Moab. They want Moab to cease.
The 'sword shall pursue thee' adds the relentlessness: the sword doesn't wait for you. It PURSUES. The destruction isn't passive (a disaster that happens to you). It's active (a sword that chases you). The judgment has legs. The consequence has momentum. The sword runs after the people of Moab like a hunter runs after prey.
What 'praise' — what identity, what reputation — is being erased from your world? And what sword is pursuing what remains?
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
There shall be no more praise of Moab,.... It shall be no more commended for a rich, populous, and fruitful country,…
No more praise of Moab - literally, “The glory of Moab is no more,” i. e., Moab has no more cause for boasting. Heshbon…
We may observe in these verses,
I. The author of Moab's destruction; it is the Lord of hosts, that has armies, all…
in Heshbon they have devised There is a play on the two Hebrew words thus rendered (b"Ḥeshbon ḥash'bu) which might be…
Cross References
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