Lam 2:16 | NET2full | STEP | All your enemies gloated over you. They sneered and gnashed their teeth ; they said , “We have destroyed her! Ha ! We have waited a long time for this day . We have lived to see it!”

Lamentations 2:16

פ (Pe)

16 All your enemies
gloated over you. ^{▼▼tn Heb “they have opened wide their mouth against you.”}
They sneered and gnashed their teeth;
they said, “We have destroyed ^{▼▼tn Heb “We have swallowed!”} her!
Ha! We have waited a long time for this day.
We have lived to see it!” ^{▼▼tn Heb “We have attained; we have seen!” The verbs מָצָאנוּ רָאִינוּ (matsaʾnu raʾinu) form a verbal hendiadys in which the first retains its full verbal sense and the second functions as an object complement. It forms a Hebrew idiom that means something like, “We have lived to see it!” The three asyndetic first person common plural statements in 2:16 (“We waited; we destroyed; we saw!”) are spoken in an impassioned, staccato style reflecting the delight of the conquerors.}