Lamentations 4:21

Hebrew Bible

20 ר (Resh) Our very life breath—the Lord’s anointed king—was caught in their traps, of whom we thought, “Under his protection we will survive among the nations.” 21 ש (Shin) Rejoice and be glad for now, O people of Edom, who reside in the land of Uz. But the cup of judgment will pass to you also; you will get drunk and take off your clothes. 22 ת (Tav) O people of Zion, your punishment will come to an end; he will not prolong your exile. But, O people of Edom, he will punish your sin and reveal your offenses!

Targum Lamentations 4:21

Targum

20 King Josiah, who was as dear to us as the breath of the spirit of life in our nostrils and was anointed with the anointing oil of the Lord, was entrapped in Egypt’s snare of corruption. It was he of whom we said, “In the shadow of his merit we will live among the nations.” 21 Rejoice and be of good cheer Constantinople, city of wicked Edom, which is built in the land of Armenia with crowds from the people of Edom. Retribution is about to come upon even you, and the Parkevi will destroy you and the accursed cup shall pass to you and you shall become drunk and exposed. 22 And after this your iniquity will be finished, O Congregation of Zion and you will be freed by the hands of the King Messiah and Elijah[3] the High Priest and the Lord will no longer exile you. And at that time I will punish your iniquities, wicked Rome, built in Italy and filled with crowds of Edomites. And the Persians will come and oppress you and destroy you because your sins have been made known before the Lord.

 Notes and References

"... An example with a greater claim to contemporaneity can be found in Targum Lamentations 4:21-22 ... This Targum contemporizes the Hebrew text to refer to a time when both Constantinople in “Armenia” and Rome in Italy were threatened by Persians and expresses the targumist’s hope that deliverance, and the appearance of the Messiah, were close at hand. The most likely historical setting for such a conflict is the prolonged war between the Byzantine Empire under Heraclius and the Sassanian Empire in the early seventh century CE; and in fact, apocalyptic speculation was rife in Jewish literature of this period. But the reference to Persians oppressing and destroying Rome in Italy is puzzling, since the western Roman Empire was already defunct by the time of the Byzantine-Sassanian war. It is possible that the text of the Targum was revised and updated over a long period and that an original reference to the fall of the Western empire was assimilated to the conflict that threatened the Eastern empire. It is impossible to be sure ..."

Cook, Edward M. "The Interpretation of the Hebrew Bible in the Targums" in Henze, Matthias (ed.) A Companion to Biblical Interpretation in Early Judaism (pp. 92-117) William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2012

 User Comments

¿Que es Parkevi o que significado tiene aquí?

Ariel, August 22, 2024, 6:02 pm

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