Lamentations 2:20-21
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Jeremiah isn't just lamenting the suffering; he's highlighting the ultimate indignity: God is punishing His own chosen people, not strangers. The questions about women eating their children and priests being killed in the sanctuary are meant to shock the reader by showing the unthinkable happening to God's own family. This wasn't just any invasion; it was an internal catastrophe, a violation of the covenant itself.
Look, O LORD, and see! With whom have you dealt thus? Should women eat the fruit of their womb, the children of their tender care? Should priest and prophet be killed in the sanctuary of the Lord? In the dust of the streets lie the young and the old; my young women and my young men have fallen by the sword; you have killed them in the day of your anger, slaughtering without pity.
English Standard Version (ESV)
After describing the devastation and the suffering of Jerusalem, the poet now directly addresses God, pleading with Him to witness the horrific atrocities inflicted upon His chosen people. These aren't just abstract tragedies; they are unimaginable horrors like mothers resorting to cannibalism and even the holy sanctuary being defiled by violence against priests and prophets, underscoring the profound indignity of this judgment.
Imagine a mother driven to eat her own child. This isn't a horror movie plot; it's the reality faced by starving citizens in ancient Jerusalem.
Lamentations 2:20 paints a picture of unimaginable suffering. The prophet describes women being forced to consume their own children – the 'fruit of their womb.'
Extreme Famine
This wasn't just a metaphor for loss. The historical context of sieges, especially in ancient Israel, often led to such desperate measures. As detailed in Leviticus and Deuteronomy, these atrocities were a predicted consequence of disobedience.
Heightened by Innocence
The text specifically mentions 'children of their tender care' and those 'borne in the hands.' This emphasizes the innocent victims – the very ones who should have been protected and nurtured. It's a stark reminder of how sin and judgment can affect the most vulnerable.
What happens when the sacred space, God's very dwelling place, becomes a scene of slaughter?
The prophet doesn't stop at the suffering of families; he points to the desecration of the temple itself. The questions in Lamentations 2:20 are directed at God:
The Slaughter of Leaders
'Should priest and prophet be killed in the sanctuary of the Lord?' This highlights the brutal targeting of religious leaders within the holy grounds. These were individuals set apart for God's service, whose presence in the sanctuary was meant to be a source of protection and intercession.
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A Crisis of Faith
Their death in the sanctuary signifies a profound crisis. It implies that even God's appointed place and His messengers were not spared by the enemy's violence, and perhaps, in the eyes of the suffering people, even by God's permissive will. It’s a desperate plea that questions the very order of things when the sacred is treated with such contempt.
When disaster strikes, the most natural question is: 'Why us?' But Lamentations adds a crucial layer – 'Why us, God? We are yours!'
The core of this plea lies in the opening question: 'With whom have you dealt thus?' This isn't just a general cry of pain, but a specific appeal based on God's covenant relationship with Israel.
Chosen, Not Strangers
The commentaries emphasize that the people were not just any nation, but God's 'chosen ones,' His 'heritage.' They were the descendants of Abraham, the people with whom God had made solemn promises.
An Appeal to Relationship
To inflict such severe judgment on them, their own children, and their religious leaders within the sanctuary, seemed to contradict the very nature of their relationship with God. The complaint implies a plea: 'Haven't you adopted us? Haven't you chosen us? How can you treat us like this?' It’s a bold, wrestling prayer that calls God to remember His promises and His own faithfulness, even amidst devastating judgment.
Understand the original words
miqdash · Hebrew Noun
The holy place consecrated to the presence of God. It represents the dwelling place of God on earth and the center of Israel's worship and atoning sacrifice.
'aphar · Hebrew Noun
A symbol of humiliation, lowliness, mourning, and the frailty of humanity. It is often associated with the material from which humanity was created and the state to which they return in death.
chereb · Hebrew Noun
A military weapon representing judgment, warfare, or divine punishment. It is frequently used in the Bible as an instrument of God's sovereign judgment upon nations or individuals.
aph · Hebrew Noun
A divine attribute manifesting God's righteous reaction against sin and covenant unfaithfulness. While terrifying in its execution, it is always consistent with God's holiness and justice.
This verse is a raw, desperate cry from Jerusalem under siege by the Babylonians. The prophet, speaking for the suffering people, highlights the unspeakable horrors of starvation and violence, particularly the unthinkable act of mothers consuming their own children. The plea is not just about the physical devastation, but the profound spiritual crisis: how could God, their covenant Lord, allow such suffering to befall His chosen people, even within His own holy sanctuary?
c. 722 BC
Fall of Samaria
The capital of the Northern Kingdom of Israel falls to the Assyrian Empire. During the siege, extreme famine led to horrific acts, including mothers eating their own children, a fate that would later be prophesied for Judah.
597 BC
First Babylonian Deportation
King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon invades Judah and deports King Jehoiachin and a significant portion of the population, including artisans and leaders, to Babylon. This marks the beginning of Judah's exile.
589-587 BC— this verse
Siege and Fall of Jerusalem
Babylonian forces under Nebuchadnezzar lay siege to Jerusalem. The siege lasts for over a year, leading to widespread starvation and horrific suffering within the city. This is the direct context for the lamentations.
587 BC
Destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple
After the long siege, Jerusalem falls. The Babylonians destroy the city, the Temple of Solomon, and carry off many survivors into exile, ending the Davidic monarchy.
This passage directly warns of the horrific consequences of disobedience, including mothers eating their own children due to extreme famine, foreshadowing the brutal reality described in Lamentations.
Jeremiah 19:9Jeremiah, a contemporary prophet, echoes the same terrible prophecy of starvation and cannibalism, highlighting that these were foreseen and spoken judgments of God.
2 Kings 6:28-29This historical account vividly portrays the extreme famine in Samaria, where a mother ate her own son, serving as a stark, real-world example of the atrocities Lamentations is lamenting.
Psalm 79:1-3This psalm presents a similar plea to God regarding the desecration of the sanctuary and the slaughter of His people, resonating with the deep anguish and the questioning of divine justice found in Lamentations 2:20.
Ezekiel 5:10This prophetic judgment describes similar dire consequences of sin, including cannibalism and widespread destruction, underscoring the pattern of divine discipline for unfaithfulness.
pulpitLamentations 2:20: "Behold, O LORD, and consider to whom thou hast done this. Shall the women eat their fruit, and children of a span long? shall the priest and the prophet be slain in the sanctuary of the Lord?"
Verse 20. - To whom thou hast done this; viz. to Israel, the chosen people. And children; rather, (even) children. The children are the "fruit" referred to. Comp. the warnings in Leviticus 26:26; Deuteronomy 28:56; and especially Jeremiah 19:9; also the historical incident in 2 Kings 6…
ellicottLamentations 2:20: "Behold, O LORD, and consider to whom thou hast done this. Shall the women eat their fruit, and children of a span long? shall the priest and the prophet be slain in the sanctuary of the Lord?"
(20) To whom thou hast done this — i.e., not to a heathen nation, but to the people whom Jehovah Himself had chosen. Shall the women eat their fruit.—Atrocities of this nature had been predicted in Leviticus 26:26; Deuteronomy 28:57; Jeremiah 19:9. They were, indeed, the natural incide…
Jeremiah isn't just lamenting the suffering; he's highlighting the ultimate indignity: God is punishing His own chosen people, not strangers. The questions about women eating their children and priests being killed in the sanctuary are meant to shock the reader by showing the unthinkable happening to God's own family. This wasn't just any invasion; it was an internal catastrophe, a violation of the covenant itself.
After describing the devastation and the suffering of Jerusalem, the poet now directly addresses God, pleading with Him to witness the horrific atrocities inflicted upon His chosen people. These aren't just abstract tragedies; they are unimaginable horrors like mothers resorting to cannibalism and even the holy sanctuary being defiled by violence against priests and prophets, underscoring the profound indignity of this judgment.
After describing the devastation and the suffering of Jerusalem, the poet now directly addresses God, pleading with Him to witness the horrific atrocities inflicted upon His chosen people. These aren't just abstract tragedies; they are unimaginable horrors like mothers resorting to cannibalism and even the holy sanctuary being defiled by violence against priests and prophets, underscoring the profound indignity of this judgment.
"Look, O LORD, and see! With whom have you dealt thus? Should women eat the fruit of their womb, the children of their tender care? Should priest and prophet be killed in the sanctuary of the Lord? In the dus…" — Jeremiah isn't just lamenting the suffering; he's highlighting the ultimate indignity: God is punishing His own chosen people, not strangers. The questions about women eating their children and pries…
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Last reviewed October 2026
