Discovery BoxJeremiah 4:31 
Context4:31 In fact, 1 I hear a cry like that of a woman in labor,
a cry of anguish like that of a woman giving birth to her first baby.
It is the cry of Daughter Zion 2 gasping for breath,
reaching out for help, 3 saying, “I am done in! 4
My life is ebbing away before these murderers!”
1 tn The particle כִּי (ki) is more likely asseverative here than causal.
2 sn Jerusalem is personified as a helpless maiden.
3 tn Heb “spreading out her hands.” The idea of asking or pleading for help is implicit in the figure.
4 tn Heb “Woe, now to me!” See the translator’s note on 4:13 for the usage of “Woe to…”
