Bible Strands
Jeremiah 47:3
at the sound of the galloping hooves of stallions, the rumbling of chariots, and the clatter of their wheels. The fathers will not turn back for their sons; their hands will hang limp.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The prophet Jeremiah delivers this oracle from the Lord concerning the Philistines. The message describes an impending northern invasion that will overflow the land and cities, causing widespread wailing among the inhabitants.
The words — The phrase sha.'a.Tat from par.Sot describes the stamping of the hooves of mighty horses. This auditory detail, paired with the Ra.'ash of chariotry, establishes the physical reality of the advancing army.
The thread — The imagery of clattering wheels and thundering hooves echoes the martial motifs in Judges 5:22 and Jeremiah 8:16. The depiction of paralyzed fear aligns with the siege conditions described in Deuteronomy 28:54.
Why it lands — The text reports that fathers will not turn back for their sons and that hands will hang limp from the terror of the approaching force. A reader must confront the absolute breakdown of familial duty and physical capability before divine judgment.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
At the noise of the stamping of the hoofs of his strong horses, at the rushing of his chariots, and at the rumbling of his wheels, the fathers shall not look back to their children for feebleness of hands;
Cross-references
- Judges 5:22 Then the hooves of horses thundered—the mad galloping of his stallions.
- Jeremiah 8:16 The 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.
- Deuteronomy 28:54 The most gentle and refined man among you will begrudge his brother, the wife he embraces, and the rest of his children who have survived,
- Job 39:19 Do you give strength to the horse or adorn his neck with a mane?
- Jeremiah 46:9 Advance, O horses! Race furiously, O chariots! Let the warriors come forth—Cush and Put carrying their shields, men of Lydia drawing the bow.
- Lamentations 4:3 Even jackals offer their breasts to nurse their young, but the daughter of my people has become cruel, like an ostrich in the wilderness.
- Ezekiel 26:10 His multitude of horses will cover you in their dust. When he enters your gates as an army entering a breached city, your walls will shake from the noise of cavalry, wagons, and chariots.
- Nahum 2:4 The chariots dash through the streets; they rush around the plazas, appearing like torches, darting about like lightning.
- Nahum 3:2 The crack of the whip, the rumble of the wheel, galloping horse and bounding chariot!