And the prophets dismayed!
And this is followed by one of the sudden protests to God, which are characteristic of Jeremiah:—
10. And I said, Ah Lord God, surely Thou hast wholly deceived this people and Jerusalem saying, “Peace shall be yours,” while the sword strikes through to the life!
2. The Second Scythian Song is like the first, prefaced by a double address, which there is no reason to deny to Jeremiah. Jerusalem is named twice in the song, and naturally, since the whole land is threatened with waste and the raiders come up to the suburbs of the capital. The Prophet speaks, but as so often the Voice of the Lord breaks through his own and calls directly to the city and people (though the last line of verse 12 may be a later addition). On the other hand, the Prophet melts into his people; their panic and pangs become his. This is one of the earliest instances of Jeremiah's bearing of the sins of his people and of their punishment.
IV. 11. At that time it was said to this people and to Jerusalem,
A wind off the blaze of the bare desert heights,
Straight on the Daughter of my people,
Neither to winnow nor to sift,
In full blast it meets me. 12
[Now will I speak My judgments upon them]