ירמיהו, פרק נ׳, פסוק כ״ו

The downfall of the Babylonian empire is envisioned as a violent agricultural harvest, where invading armies sweep through the land to shatter storehouses and thresh the city into absolute ruin. The call for the invaders to approach is understood in two distinct ways. The primary approach among commentators is spatial, suggesting a sudden invasion from the very edges of the country or the outskirts of the city, with some noting that the forces arrive directly from the city's flanks [רד״ק]. This strategy is designed to catch the residents of Babylon completely by surprise, trapping them before they have any chance to prepare for battle [רש״י, מצודת דוד, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Alternatively, the approach is viewed as a matter of time rather than geography, signaling that the invaders should strike immediately because the empire's final hour and inevitable collapse have arrived [רד״ק, מלבי״ם].

Once the enemy breaches the territory, the focus shifts to the empire's vast resources. The invaders are instructed to break open the storehouses. Most commentators explain that this refers to the places where grain and wealth are heavily hoarded, drawing a comparison to the feeding troughs used to fatten animals [מצודת ציון, מלבי״ם, רד״ק, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. The objective is to plunder and strip away all the accumulated wealth [מצודת דוד]. However, an earlier interpretation suggests that this command is actually a directive to forcefully throw open the massive city gates, allowing the invading forces to pour inside [רש״י].

As the conquest unfolds, the imagery transitions to the treatment of the conquered city and its people, drawing a direct comparison to heaps of grain. There are two distinct perspectives on how this destruction is carried out. One approach interprets the action as trampling and threshing. In this view, the invaders are to crush the people of Babylon just as a farmer violently treads upon bundles of grain stalks on the threshing floor to separate the wheat [רש״י, מצודת דוד, מצודת ציון, רד״ק, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Another perspective focuses on the act of piling things high. This could mean gathering the massive amounts of plundered spoils into towering mounds [רד״ק בשם אביו], or physically reducing the city itself to rubble and sweeping its ruins into massive heaps of dirt, exactly as one would pile up heaps of harvested grain [מלבי״ם, ביאור שטיינזלץ].

Ultimately, the invasion drives toward a single, devastating conclusion. The sweeping destruction is meant to be absolute, ensuring the complete annihilation of the enemy. When the dust settles, the once-great empire is to be entirely wiped out, leaving behind absolutely no trace or remnant of its former existence [מצודת דוד, מצודת ציון].