And I will make Jerusalem heaps, and a den of dragons; and I will make the cities of Judah desolate, without an inhabitant.

And I will make Jerusalem to be heaps of sand, and dens of dragons: and I will make the cities of Juda desolate, for want of an inhabitant.

And I make Jerusalem become heaps, A habitation of dragons, And the cities of Judah I make a desolation, Without inhabitant.

And I will make Jerusalem a mass of broken stones, the living-place of jackals; and I will make the towns of Judah a waste, with no man living there.

And I will make Jerusalem heaps, A lair of jackals; And I will make the cities of Judah a desolation, Without an inhabitant.

And I will make Jerusalem into piles of sand and into a lair for serpents. And I will make the cities of Judah desolate, so much so that there will be no inhabitant.

Et ponam Jerusalem in acervos, in locum draconum; et urbes Jehudah ponam vastitatem, ut non sit habitator.

The Prophet comes now toJerusalem and the neighhouring cities. He said before, that ruin would reach the mountains and the farthest recesses; but he says now, I will turn Jerusalem into heaps This seemed incredible, for it was a well fortified city, and also full of inhabitants to defend it: we know besides that the Jews were in confederacy with the kingdom of Egypt. This denunciation then was extremely unwelcome to the Jews. But though they thought themselves hitherto safe, yet the Prophet set before their eyes their final destruction. They indeed regarded it as a fable; but they found too late, that the despisers of God gain no advantage in hardening· themselves against his threatenings. We shall meet with this verse again; I shall therefore now pass over it lightly. He says, that it would be hereafter a place for dragons; as though he had said, that it would be no longer inhabited. He declares the same respecting the cities of Judah, -- that they would all be a waste. We hence see how courageous and persevering a mind was Jeremiah endued with, that he dared to preach thus in the midst of the city, and to set himself in opposition to the king and his counsellors, and to the whole people, who wished to be soothed with flatteries, and who had been thus treated by the false prophets. As then Jeremiah was thus bold, as a celestial herald, to denounce on them this dreadful calamity, we hence learn that he was endued with the power of God, and that he did not speak as one commissioned by men; for had he not been sustained by God's power, he must have been a hundred times disheartened, nor would he have dared to speak a word. This invincible courage seals his doctrine; ibr we hence with certainty learn, that it proceeded from God, because the wonderful power of the ttoly Spirit was evident. He afterwards adds --

Dragons - Rather, jackals.

A den of dragons - תנים tannim is supposed to mean here jackals; the chakal is a beast frequent in the east, an attendant on the lion, the refuse of whose prey he devours. It is an animal that seems to have been bred originally between the wolf and the dog. The original is sometimes interpreted, dragons, whales, etc.

And I will make Jerusalem heaps,.... That is, the walls and houses of it shall be thrown down, and become heaps of stones and rubbish:
and a den of dragons; only inhabited by wild beasts:
and I will make the cities of Judah desolate, without inhabitant; so that the calamity would be universal; not only Jerusalem, but all the cities of the land, would be destroyed, forsaken, and uninhabited.

And--omit "And." Jehovah here resumes His speech from Jeremiah 9:9.
heaps--(see on Isaiah 25:2).
dragons--jackals.