Verse Lens · Concise explanation
Jeremiah 4:31 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 31. 31For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, and the anguish as of her that bringeth forth her first child, the voice of the daughter of Zion, that bewaileth herself, that spreadeth her hands, saying, Woe is me now! for my soul is wearied because of murderers.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
The prophetic word through Jeremiah supplies a stated reason through “For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, and the anguish as of her…” at Jeremiah 4:31 in “Creation Unravels while Daughter Zion Labors.”
Read It With
- Jeremiah 4:23–31
Read Jeremiah 4:31 with 4:23–31. By itself, “For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, and the anguish as of her…” can be detached from the speaker, addressee, date, imperial horizon, poetic movement, or outcome that gives it force. The complete unit establishes: A vision of land without form, fleeing cities, divine desolation, and a woman gasping in labor renders siege as cosmic undoing.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Within the same chapter, this unit advances from “The Speaker's Body Sounds the War Alarm” into “Creation Unravels while Daughter Zion Labors.” Its non-interchangeable movement is: A vision of land without form, fleeing cities, divine desolation, and a woman gasping in labor renders siege as cosmic undoing. This verse's placement is specific: The prophetic word through Jeremiah supplies a stated reason through “For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, and the anguish as of her…” at Jeremiah 4:31 in “Creation Unravels while Daughter Zion Labors.”
What Remains True
No metaphor or theological explanation makes abuse, humiliation, torture, sexual violence, or victim blame acceptable. In Jeremiah 4:31, that bounded truth is carried through this verse's role: The prophetic word through Jeremiah supplies a stated reason through “For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, and the anguish as of her…” at Jeremiah 4:31 in “Creation Unravels while Daughter Zion Labors.”
How It Can Shape Life
- Name harm without spectacle, center survivors and consent, and connect interpretation to concrete safety and care. This response follows Jeremiah 4:23–31's specific concern, “Creation Unravels while Daughter Zion Labors.” This verse directs that response through its exact role: The prophetic word through Jeremiah supplies a stated reason through “For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, and the anguish as of her…” at Jeremiah 4:31 in “Creation Unravels while Daughter Zion Labors.”
Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read Jeremiah 4:23–31 — Creation Unravels while Daughter Zion LaborsSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? probable
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete thought-unit coverage.
Exact location: Jeremiah 4:23–31, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Jeremiah
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2; fixed commit
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording and morphology checked at the exact unit without treating morphology as a critical apparatus or interpretation.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Jer.xml, OSIS 4:23–31
Open the fixed Hebrew Jeremiah file ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible: Jeremiah with Translator, Textual, and Study Notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press; official eBible PDF distribution, NET Bible Second Edition; official PDF accessed 2026
Supports: Verse-level controls for Hebrew, syntax, older KJV language, dates, names, textual problems, and material translation alternatives.
Exact location: Official NET Bible Jeremiah PDF, pp. 1258-1459, translator, study, and textual notes attached to Jeremiah 4:23–31
Open the official NET Jeremiah PDF ↗