ירמיהו, פרק ג׳, פסוק כ״א

A dramatic sound echoes across the landscape, capturing the deep spiritual crisis of the Israelites. High atop the mountains and hills, a powerful cry rings out. The primary approach among commentators is that this scene represents an ideal expectation, a picture of what ought to happen. The voices of the Israelites should be heard from these elevated places so that their calls can travel far and wide. This sound is meant to be one of weeping, begging, and sincere confession, as the people ask for forgiveness for their wrongdoings.

The failures they are expected to mourn fall into two distinct categories. First, they have twisted their path, representing moral corruption and the breakdown of proper relationships between people. Second, they have forgotten God, entirely abandoning the service of their Creator [מצודת דוד]. If the Israelites were to cry out with such genuine regret, God would immediately accept their return [רד״ק]. In fact, this heartfelt plea for forgiveness is seen as something close at hand and ready to be heard [רש״י].

In contrast to the idea of a single cry of repentance, another perspective paints a poetic picture of two completely different voices echoing at the same time. In this vivid scene, God acts as a shepherd standing upon the high mountains, calling out to His scattered flock. Meanwhile, a second sound rises from the valley below. It is the weeping of the Israelites, who are compared to a lost and wandering sheep. They cry out from the depths because they have twisted their path and lost their way. However, the true tragedy of their situation is that they no longer even recognize the voice of the shepherd calling them from the peaks to come back to Him, simply because they have forgotten God [מלבי״ם].