A prophet stands overlooking the ruined Land of Israel, met with a scene of absolute desolation. The devastation runs so deep that it extends far beyond human cities, striking at the very heart of nature itself—the mountains, the grazing lands, and the wildlife.
A loud, wailing lament is raised specifically for the mountains [מצודת ציון, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Commentators offer different reasons for this focus on the natural landscape. One perspective suggests the mountains are mourned because, unlike the people, they are completely innocent and free of sin [מלבי״ם]. Another view connects this to the mountains surrounding Jerusalem, where the people once looked with hope for help from God that never arrived [אברבנאל]. Additionally, crying out toward the peaks allows the sound of the lament to echo and be heard from great distances [רד״ק].
The mourning continues for the shepherds' tents and dwellings that once dotted the grazing lands near the desert [רש״י, מצודת ציון, רד״ק]. These areas are now utterly ruined. Some explain this ruin as a state of severe dryness and barrenness [רש״י, מצודת ציון], while others understand it as a metaphorical fire, representing total and consuming destruction [רד״ק, מלבי״ם].
The sheer emptiness of the land is absolute. Where people once traveled freely through the mountains, not a single passerby remains [מלבי״ם]. The familiar sounds of grazing livestock are gone, as the enemy forces captured and carried away the flocks of sheep and cattle as spoils of war [מצודת דוד, רד״ק].
The scope of the ruin is so vast that even the birds of the sky and the wild beasts have fled. The primary approach among commentators explains the disappearance of the birds as a natural consequence of the human exile. Birds typically live near human settlements to feed on seeds, fruits, and agricultural crops. Once the people were driven out and the land became a wasteland, the birds lost their food source and were forced to migrate [מצודת דוד, רד״ק, צאינה וראינה, אברבנאל]. However, another approach suggests that the mention of fleeing birds is an intentional exaggeration, used to paint a vivid picture of the extreme emptiness and total desolation left behind [רד״ק].