“These are the words
That Yahweh spoke
Concerning Israel
Along with Judah.
‘Thus says Yahweh!
We have heard
A cry of panic,
A cry of terror.
There is no peace.
Ask now!
See!
Can a man bear a child?
Why then do I see
Every man
With his hands
On his loins
Like a woman in labor?
Why has every face
Turned pale?
O!
That day is so great.
There is none like it.
It is a time of distress
For Jacob.
Yet he shall be rescued
From it.’”
Yahweh seems to observe that the people are in a state of panic and terror as they cry out. There was no peace. Why were men acting like women in labor, since they cannot bear a child? Why do they have such a pale look about them? This is a time of great distress, but they will be rescued from it. They just need a little patience.
Eugene Finnegan Bible Project 