King James Version

What Does Lamentations 4:10 Mean?

Lamentations 4:10 in the King James Version says “The hands of the pitiful women have sodden their own children: they were their meat in the destruction of the daughter o...” — study this verse from Lamentations chapter 4 with commentary, cross-references, and original Hebrew word analysis.

“The hands of the pitiful women have sodden their own children: they were their meat in the destruction of the daughter of my people.”

Lamentations 4:10 · KJV

Context

8

Their visage is blacker than a coal; they are not known in the streets: their skin cleaveth to their bones; it is withered, it is become like a stick. blacker: Heb. darker than blackness

9

They that be slain with the sword are better than they that be slain with hunger: for these pine away, stricken through for want of the fruits of the field. pine: Heb. flow out

10

The hands of the pitiful women have sodden their own children: they were their meat in the destruction of the daughter of my people.

11

The LORD hath accomplished his fury; he hath poured out his fierce anger, and hath kindled a fire in Zion, and it hath devoured the foundations thereof.

12

The kings of the earth, and all the inhabitants of the world, would not have believed that the adversary and the enemy should have entered into the gates of Jerusalem.

Read Lamentations 4 full chapter

Commentary

KJV Study Commentary
The most horrific verse: "The hands of the pitiful women have sodden their own children: they were their meat in the destruction of the daughter of my people" (yedei nashim rakhaniyot bishlu yaldeihen hayu le-varoth lamo be-shever bat-ami, יְדֵי נָשִׁים רַחֲמָנִיּוֹת בִּשְּׁלוּ יַלְדֵיהֶן הָיוּ לְבָרוֹת לָמוֹ בְּשֶׁבֶר בַּת־עַמִּי). The term rachamaniyot (רַחֲמָנִיּוֹת, "pitiful, compassionate") comes from the same root as God's compassion—making the contrast unbearable. Women naturally tender and maternal boiled their own children for food. This literally fulfilled Deuteronomy 28:53-57's curse: 'thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and thy daughters...in the siege.' Leviticus 26:29 threatened the same: 'ye shall eat the flesh of your sons, and the flesh of your daughters shall ye eat.' This represents ultimate covenant curse—the complete inversion of natural order, maternal love becoming horrific necessity. It demonstrates sin's trajectory: what seems impossible (eating one's children) becomes reality when covenant protection is removed and judgment unfolds fully.

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Historical & Cultural Context

This wasn't hyperbole or metaphor but historical reality. 2 Kings 6:24-29 records an earlier instance during Samaria's siege by Syria: two women agreed to eat their sons, but after consuming one, the other hid her son, leading to public outcry. Josephus records similar events during Jerusalem's AD 70 siege by Rome: a wealthy woman named Mary killed, cooked, and ate her infant, offering half to soldiers who discovered the act. The extremity of these accounts confirms that sustained siege warfare created conditions so desperate that maternal instinct was overridden by starvation. Archaeological evidence from ancient sieges shows signs of extreme food deprivation—gnawed bones, evidence of consuming normally inedible materials. The fulfillment of Deuteronomy 28's curse wasn't divine cruelty but covenant faithfulness—God always does what He promises, whether blessing or curse. This horrible reality shows why treating God's warnings lightly is foolish and dangerous.

Reflection Questions

  1. How does the literal fulfillment of Deuteronomy 28:53-57 demonstrate that God's warnings must be taken with utmost seriousness?
  2. What does this ultimate breakdown of natural motherly love teach about sin's power to corrupt and destroy every good thing when judgment falls?
  3. How should awareness of judgment's severity affect our evangelism urgency and our own pursuit of holiness?

Original Language Analysis

Hebrew · 11 words
יְדֵ֗י1 of 11

“The hands”

H3027

a hand (the open one [indicating power, means, direction, etc.], in distinction from h3709, the closed one); used (as noun, adverb, etc.) in a great v

נָשִׁים֙2 of 11

“women”

H802

a woman

רַחֲמָ֣נִיּ֔וֹת3 of 11

“of the pitiful”

H7362

compassionate

בִּשְּׁל֖וּ4 of 11

“have sodden”

H1310

properly, to boil up; hence, to be done in cooking; figuratively to ripen

יַלְדֵיהֶ֑ן5 of 11

“their own children”

H3206

something born, i.e., a lad or offspring

הָי֤וּ6 of 11
H1961

to exist, i.e., be or become, come to pass (always emphatic, and not a mere copula or auxiliary)

לְבָרוֹת֙7 of 11

“they were their meat”

H1262

to select; to feed; to render clear

לָ֔מוֹ8 of 11
H0
בְּשֶׁ֖בֶר9 of 11

“in the destruction”

H7667

a fracture, figuratively, ruin; specifically, a solution (of a dream)

בַּת10 of 11

“of the daughter”

H1323

a daughter (used in the same wide sense as other terms of relationship, literally and figuratively)

עַמִּֽי׃11 of 11

“of my people”

H5971

a people (as a congregated unit); specifically, a tribe (as those of israel); hence (collectively) troops or attendants; figuratively, a flock

Study Guide

Historical Context

This verse is found in the book of Lamentations. Understanding the historical and cultural background helps illuminate its meaning for the original audience and for us today.

Theological Significance

Lamentations 4:10 contributes to our understanding of God's character and His relationship with humanity. Consider how this verse connects to the broader themes of Scripture.

Cross-References

Verses related to Lamentations 4:10 from Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

Isaiah 49:15Lamentations 2:202 Kings 6:26-29Jeremiah 19:9Ezekiel 5:10Leviticus 26:29

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