Behold the Lord empties the land and lays it waste This prophecy represents retribution for Israel. Since he prophesied for them this consolation, and they are destined to see great distress before it, he, therefore, said to them, “Not to you do I say that you will inherit it, for, behold, the Holy One, blessed be He, empties you out and lays you waste, but those of you who survive until the day of redemption, they shall raise their voice and sing;” this is the end of the passage (v. 14), and for them have I prophesied the favorable prophecy.

empties (בּוֹקֵק) empties.

and lays it waste (וּבוֹלְקָה) and lays is waste.

and He shall turn over its face And He shall confuse its esteemed men. עִוָּה is an expression related to (supra 21:3): “I have become confused (נַעֲוֵיתִי) from hearing.”

(Addendum) And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest Not like other travelers, that the master is led by his slave, and the mistress is led by her maidservant; the master is esteemed and the slave is held in low esteem, the mistress is esteemed and the maidservant is held in low esteem, but when the captor leads the captives, all are equal before him. [Addendum to Rashi]

as with the buyer, so with the seller When the people lives in its land securely, the buyer is happy and the seller is unhappy, since he will not return to the land he sold, but when the captor leads them, the buyer will not rejoice and the seller will not mourn, and so, as with the lender, so with the borrower, both are equal, for the borrower has nothing to pay, and the lender, had he not lent to this one, the captor would have taken it. Likewise, as with the creditor, so with the one who owes him. The word לֹֹוֶה applies to money and נֹשֶה applies to other commodities, such as wine, oil, grain, and honey, as it is written (Deut. 24:10): “When you lend your brother anything as a loan.” [Addendum to Rashi]

shall be emptied (וְהִבּוֹק תִּבּוֹק) shall be emptied.

and it shall be pillaged (וְהִבּוֹז תִּבּוֹז) an expression of pillage and spoils.

it has withered (נָבְלָה) Comp. (Jeremiah 8:13) “And the leaf has withered (נָבֵל).” An expression of withering and languishing.

has been humbled (אֻמְלְלָה), an expression of humility. Comp. (Neh. 3: 34) “humble Jews (אֻמְלָלִים).”

The land (תֵּבֵל) This is the land of Israel, which is spiced (מְתֻבֶּלֶת) with many commandments.

the highest of the people of the land the pride of the people of the land.

And the land has deceived This is a sort of deceit; it produces grass but does not produce growing grain; it shows growing grain, but there are no wheat kernels in its stalks (lit., in its straws).

because of its inhabitants (תַּחַת יוֹשְׁבֶיהָ) lit., under its inhabitants; because of its inhabitants.

the everlasting covenant That is the Torah that they received with a covenant.

Therefore, an oath For the sin of vain oaths. ([Manuscripts read:] Because of the sin of false oaths.)

were dried up (חָרוּ) an expression of dryness and thirst through the heat of dryness. Comp. (Jer. 6: 29) “The bellows are dried (נִחַר).”

The joy of the drums that you said (supra 22:13), “And behold, joy and happiness.”

The wasted city is broken When it is broken, it will be called the wasted city.

from entering for anyone to enter.

is darkened (עָרְבָה), is darkened.

the joy of the land That is Jerusalem.

Through desolation, the gate is battered Through the desolation of loneliness, that the houses are desolate, without an occupant, the gates shall become battered by demons and destructive creatures.

For so shall Israel remain in the midst of the peoples, one in a city and two in a family.

like the cutting of the olive tree that leaves over berries at the tip of the uppermost bough.

They shall raise their voice For those few survivors shall come the good that I prophesied above.

they shall shout for joy more than [by the] sea (Lit., they shall shout for joy from the sea.) More than they shouted for joy by the sea during the redemption from Egypt.

Therefore, for the lights (בָּאֻרִים). Jonathan paraphrases: When lights come to the righteous, concerning the two good tidings, both that of the redemption from Babylon and that of Edom. ([Most manuscripts read:] Jonathan paraphrases: When lights come to the righteous, concerning the two lights, etc.) And Menachem stated (Machbereth, p. 32) that אֻרִים is an expression of holes and crevices where they were fleeing, and so (Gen. 11:28): “אוּר, the valley of the Chaldees,” and so (supra 11: 8): “And on the hole (מְאוּרַת) of an adder,” the hole of its dwelling.

From the end of the earth Jonathan paraphrases: From the Temple, which is at the edge of the land of Israel in the east, as we learned: (Maaser Sheni 5:2) [According to Lev. 19:23 25, the produce of the vineyards produced during the first three years of its growth may neither be eaten nor may any benefit be derived therefrom. The produce of the fourth year must be taken to Jerusalem and eaten there. If this is inconvenient, the owner may redeem the produce and take the redemption money to Jerusalem, where he must buy food to eat with the sanctity of כֶּרֶם רְבָעִי, the fourth year vineyard. The Rabbis decreed, however, that within a day’s journey from Jerusalem, all produce must be brought to Jerusalem, and the owner has no option to redeem it. The following Mishnah delineates the boundaries of this area.] Lod from the west, and the Jordan from the east. It is found that from Jerusalem to the Jordan is a day’s journey. But I say according to the simple meaning, that we heard from behind the heavenly Curtain that they are destined to raise their voices in song from the edge of the earth. Now what are the songs? “The righteous shall be upraised.” There shall be a position and an upraising for the righteous.

And I said, I have my secret; I have my secret; woe is to me! Woe is to me that these two secrets have been revealed to me, the secret of retribution and the secret of salvation, for the salvation will be far off until enemies come, plunderers after plunderers, and marauders after marauders (San. 94a). Five instances of treachery are stated here, corresponding to Babylon, Media, Persia, Greece, and Edom, who will enslave Israel before their redemption, and after these plunderings.

Fright and a pit and a trap [shall come] upon you upon the peoples dwelling in the land.

a pit a hole in which to fall, as he goes on to state.

he who flees from the sound of the fright shall fall into the pit. etc. Whoever escapes the sword of the Messiah the son of Joseph shall fall into the sword of the Messiah the son of David, and whoever escapes from there shall be snared in the trap of the wars of Gog.

The earth has broken (רֹעָה הִתְרֹעֲעָה) an expression of breaking. Comp. (Ps. 2:9): “You shall break them (תְּרֹעֵם) with an iron rod.”

has crumbled (פּוֹר הִתְפּוֹרְרָה), an expression of crumbs.

like a lodge a booth of the watchmen at the top of a tree.

the host of heaven He shall cast down the heavenly princes of the nations first.

And they shall be gathered a gathering that is to their detriment, i.e., to bring a prisoner into a dungeon prepared for him, those sentenced to Gehinnom to be brought into Gehinnom.

and they shall be shut up in the prison They are the seven compartments of Gehinnom.

and [sins] of many days shall be visited [upon them] Sins of many days shall be visited upon them. This is what the Kalir (R. Eleazar son of R. Kalir in his final liturgical poem for Parshath Zachor) established: “From many days to be counted, to reckon their reckonings.”

And the moon shall be ashamed, etc. Jonathan paraphrases: And the worshippers of the moon shall be ashamed, and the worshippers of the sun shall be humbled.