ירמיהו, פרק מ״ח, פסוק י״ט

A dramatic atmosphere of anxiety and tense anticipation hangs in the air as a nation awaits the bitter news of war. The residents of an isolated city, untouched by the approaching enemy, are called upon to step out onto the roads and question the arriving refugees about the fate of their people. The inhabitants of Aroer, a city in Moab, are the focus of this impending tragedy [מצודת ציון]. Because of its remote geographic position at the edge of the desert, far from the main battlegrounds, the devastation has not yet reached its gates [מלבי״ם, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Therefore, the people of Aroer are instructed to stand along the highway, watch, and wait [מצודת ציון] for survivors escaping from the other Moabite cities that faced the initial enemy invasion [רד״ק, אברבנאל].

As the refugees arrive, the residents must question every survivor, whether man or woman. While the primary approach among commentators is that this simply includes all escaping individuals, others note a fundamental difference between the fleeing men and women. The fleeing man represents the warrior escaping directly from the battlefield, whereas the unarmed woman is simply running for her life [מלבי״ם]. On a more symbolic level, the male figure represents the nation as a whole, while the female figure embodies the collective congregation of the people [אברבנאל].

The urgent question the people of Aroer must ask the survivors is what exactly happened. They need to uncover the extent of the disaster and find out if anything at all remains from the sweeping destruction [רש״י, מצודת דוד, אברבנאל]. Ultimately, the answers provided by these refugees will carry the tragic news of Moab's downfall, sparking a desperate cry of grief from the people [מלבי״ם].