Some translations set poetry farther to the right than the rest of the text to show that it is poetry. The ULB does this with the poetry in this chapter.
This chapter presents a series of woes, or judgments against those who are spoken against. Most of these judgments are due to the lack of justice in Judah. (See: [[rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/woe]] and [[rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/judge]] and [[rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/justice]])
This chapter begins as an allegory. An allegory is a story with a symbolic meaning. This allegory is meant to teach the Jews that they sinned against Yahweh and that there was nothing more he could have done for them. (See: [[rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/spirit]] and [[rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/sin]])
Verse 17 ("Then the sheep will feed as in their own pasture, and in the ruins of the rich people, lambs will graze") is an example of the Old Testament's prophets' habit of describing complete ruin and desolation in terms of a picture of animals—usually wild animals, but here sheep and lambs—living in or feeding in those places. Whether the picture is of flocks or wild animals, the purpose is to say that the human habitation has gone back to wild nature, and that this has happened because of God's punishment on the people.
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