יחזקאל, פרק ז׳, פסוק י״א

The impending punishment of the sinners approaches as an absolute and unavoidable disaster. The injustice and cruelty committed by the people do not simply fade away. The primary approach among commentators is that the sin itself rises up to become the very weapon used to strike and punish the nation [רש״י, רד״ק, מלבי״ם, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. The corruption they planted grows into the instrument of their own downfall. Alternatively, this rising violence represents a specific individual: Nebuchadnezzar, the cruel king of Babylon, who emerges as the oppressive rod meant to strike the people [מצודת דוד, חומת אנך].

The scope of this ruin is devastating. Many commentators understand the disaster as a complete annihilation of the sinners, sparing neither them, their descendants, nor the general population [רש״י, רד״ק, מלבי״ם, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. The great crowds will vanish [מצודת ציון] along with their vast wealth [רד״ק]. The once deafening noise and busy commotion of the society will be completely silenced [מצודת ציון, מלבי״ם, ביאור שטיינזלץ], while the sweeping ruin emphasizes the tragic loss of children and grandchildren [רד״ק]. In contrast to this focus on total destruction, another perspective views these details as a description of the source of the ruin. The devastation does not stem from the natural military strength of the Chaldean enemies, nor from their massive armies or terrifying noise. Instead, every aspect of the downfall is directly guided by the hand of God [מצודת דוד, חומת אנך].

In the midst of such devastation, there is a striking absence of mourning [רד״ק, מצודת ציון, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. This lack of tears is understood in several ways. The sheer volume of tragedy will be so overwhelming that the living will simply not have the time or emotional capacity to cry over the dead [רד״ק]. It is also possible that there will be no survivors left to mourn at all [ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Furthermore, wailing is viewed as inappropriate when the destruction is so clearly a direct decree from God [מצודת דוד]. Another approach sees this absence not as a lack of crying, but as a severe spiritual failure. It stands as a sharp criticism of the people: even while suffering through an overwhelming disaster, not a single person among them pauses to reflect, yearns to change their ways, or desires to repent and return to God [רש״י, מלבי״ם].