'Woe' in the Bible
“Woe to you, O Moab!You are ruined, O people of Chemosh!He has given his sons as fugitives,And his daughters into captivity,To an Amorite king, Sihon.
The Philistines were afraid, for they said, “God has come into the camp.” And they said, “Woe to us! For nothing like this has happened before.
Woe to us! Who shall deliver us from the hand of these mighty gods? These are the gods who smote the Egyptians with all kinds of plagues in the wilderness.
‘If I am wicked, woe to me!And if I am righteous, I dare not lift up my head.I am sated with disgrace and conscious of my misery.
Woe is me, for I sojourn in Meshech,For I dwell among the tents of Kedar!
Who has woe? Who has sorrow?Who has contentions? Who has complaining?Who has wounds without cause?Who has redness of eyes?
For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up.
Woe to you, O land, whose king is a lad and whose princes feast in the morning.
The expression of their faces bears witness against them,And they display their sin like Sodom;They do not even conceal it.Woe to them!For they have brought evil on themselves.
Woe to the wicked! It will go badly with him,For what he deserves will be done to him.
Woe to those who add house to house and join field to field,Until there is no more room,So that you have to live alone in the midst of the land!
Woe to those who rise early in the morning that they may pursue strong drink,Who stay up late in the evening that wine may inflame them!
Woe to those who drag iniquity with the cords of falsehood,And sin as if with cart ropes;
Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil;Who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness;Who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!
Woe to those who are wise in their own eyesAnd clever in their own sight!
Woe to those who are heroes in drinking wineAnd valiant men in mixing strong drink,
Then I said,“Woe is me, for I am ruined!Because I am a man of unclean lips,And I live among a people of unclean lips;For my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.”
Woe to those who enact evil statutesAnd to those who constantly record unjust decisions,
Woe to Assyria, the rod of My angerAnd the staff in whose hands is My indignation,
From the ends of the earth we hear songs, “Glory to the Righteous One,”But I say, “Woe to me! Woe to me! Alas for me!The treacherous deal treacherously,And the treacherous deal very treacherously.”
Woe to the proud crown of the drunkards of Ephraim,And to the fading flower of its glorious beauty,Which is at the head of the fertile valleyOf those who are overcome with wine!
Woe, O Ariel, Ariel the city where David once camped!Add year to year, observe your feasts on schedule.
Woe to those who deeply hide their plans from the Lord,And whose deeds are done in a dark place,And they say, “Who sees us?” or “Who knows us?”
“Woe to the rebellious children,” declares the Lord,“Who execute a plan, but not Mine,And make an alliance, but not of My Spirit,In order to add sin to sin;
Woe to those who go down to Egypt for helpAnd rely on horses,And trust in chariots because they are manyAnd in horsemen because they are very strong,But they do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek the Lord!
Woe to you, O destroyer,While you were not destroyed;And he who is treacherous, while others did not deal treacherously with him.As soon as you finish destroying, you will be destroyed;As soon as you cease to deal treacherously, others will deal treacherously with you.
“Woe to the one who quarrels with his Maker—An earthenware vessel among the vessels of earth!Will the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you doing?’Or the thing you are making say, ‘He has no hands’?
“Woe to him who says to a father, ‘What are you begetting?’Or to a woman, ‘To what are you giving birth?’”
“Behold, he goes up like clouds,And his chariots like the whirlwind;His horses are swifter than eagles.Woe to us, for we are ruined!”
For I heard a cry as of a woman in labor,The anguish as of one giving birth to her first child,The cry of the daughter of Zion gasping for breath,Stretching out her hands, saying,“Ah, woe is me, for I faint before murderers.”
“Prepare war against her;Arise, and let us attack at noon.Woe to us, for the day declines,For the shadows of the evening lengthen!
Woe is me, because of my injury!My wound is incurable.But I said, “Truly this is a sickness,And I must bear it.”
“As for your adulteries and your lustful neighings,The lewdness of your prostitutionOn the hills in the field,I have seen your abominations.Woe to you, O Jerusalem!How long will you remain unclean?”
Woe to me, my mother, that you have borne meAs a man of strife and a man of contention to all the land!I have not lent, nor have men lent money to me,Yet everyone curses me.
“Woe to him who builds his house without righteousnessAnd his upper rooms without justice,Who uses his neighbor’s services without payAnd does not give him his wages,
“Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of My pasture!” declares the Lord.
“Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Behold, I am going to set My face against you for woe, even to cut off all Judah.
‘You said, “Ah, woe is me! For the Lord has added sorrow to my pain; I am weary with my groaning and have found no rest.”’
Concerning Moab. Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel,“Woe to Nebo, for it has been destroyed;Kiriathaim has been put to shame, it has been captured;The lofty stronghold has been put to shame and shattered.
“Woe to you, Moab!The people of Chemosh have perished;For your sons have been taken away captiveAnd your daughters into captivity.
Put all her young bulls to the sword;Let them go down to the slaughter!Woe be upon them, for their day has come,The time of their punishment.
The crown has fallen from our head;Woe to us, for we have sinned!
When He spread it out before me, it was written on the front and back, and written on it were lamentations, mourning and woe.
Thus says the Lord God, “Woe to the foolish prophets who are following their own spirit and have seen nothing.
and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Woe to the women who sew magic bands on all wrists and make veils for the heads of persons of every stature to hunt down lives! Will you hunt down the lives of My people, but preserve the lives of others for yourselves?
“Then it came about after all your wickedness (‘Woe, woe to you!’ declares the Lord God),
‘Therefore, thus says the Lord God,“Woe to the bloody city,To the pot in which there is rustAnd whose rust has not gone out of it!Take out of it piece after piece,Without making a choice.
‘Therefore, thus says the Lord God,“Woe to the bloody city!I also will make the pile great.
“Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy and say to those shepherds, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Woe, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flock?
Woe to them, for they have strayed from Me!Destruction is theirs, for they have rebelled against Me!I would redeem them, but they speak lies against Me.
Though they bring up their children,Yet I will bereave them until not a man is left.Yes, woe to them indeed when I depart from them!
Woe to those who are at ease in ZionAnd to those who feel secure in the mountain of Samaria,The distinguished men of the foremost of nations,To whom the house of Israel comes.
Woe to those who scheme iniquity,Who work out evil on their beds!When morning comes, they do it,For it is in the power of their hands.
Woe is me! For I amLike the fruit pickers, like the grape gatherers.There is not a cluster of grapes to eat,Or a first-ripe fig which I crave.
Woe to the bloody city, completely full of lies and pillage;Her prey never departs.
“Will not all of these take up a taunt-song against him,Even mockery and insinuations against himAnd say, ‘Woe to him who increases what is not his—For how long—And makes himself rich with loans?’
“Woe to him who gets evil gain for his houseTo put his nest on high,To be delivered from the hand of calamity!
“Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshedAnd founds a town with violence!
“Woe to you who make your neighbors drink,Who mix in your venom even to make them drunkSo as to look on their nakedness!
“Woe to him who says to a piece of wood, ‘Awake!’To a mute stone, ‘Arise!’And that is your teacher?Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,And there is no breath at all inside it.
Woe to the inhabitants of the seacoast,The nation of the Cherethites!The word of the Lord is against you,O Canaan, land of the Philistines;And I will destroy youSo that there will be no inhabitant.
Woe to her who is rebellious and defiled,The tyrannical city!
“Woe to the worthless shepherdWho leaves the flock!A sword will be on his armAnd on his right eye!His arm will be totally witheredAnd his right eye will be blind.”
“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles had occurred in Tyre and Sidon which occurred in you, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
“Woe to the world because of its stumbling blocks! For it is inevitable that stumbling blocks come; but woe to that man through whom the stumbling block comes!
“But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut off the kingdom of heaven from people; for you do not enter in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.
[Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive greater condemnation.]
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.
“Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple is obligated.’
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others.
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence.
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness.
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous,
But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days!
The Son of Man is to go, just as it is written of Him; but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.”
But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days!
For the Son of Man is to go just as it is written of Him; but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.”
But woe to you who are rich, for you are receiving your comfort in full.
Woe to you who are well-fed now, for you shall be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep.
Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers used to treat the false prophets in the same way.
“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles had been performed in Tyre and Sidon which occurred in you, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.
“But woe to you Pharisees! For you pay tithe of mint and rue and every kind of garden herb, and yet disregard justice and the love of God; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others.
Woe to you Pharisees! For you love the chief seats in the synagogues and the respectful greetings in the market places.
Woe to you! For you are like concealed tombs, and the people who walk over them are unaware of it.”
But He said, “Woe to you lawyers as well! For you weigh men down with burdens hard to bear, while you yourselves will not even touch the burdens with one of your fingers.
Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets, and it was your fathers who killed them.
Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge; you yourselves did not enter, and you hindered those who were entering.”
He said to His disciples, “It is inevitable that stumbling blocks come, but woe to him through whom they come!
Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days; for there will be great distress upon the land and wrath to this people;
For indeed, the Son of Man is going as it has been determined; but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed!”
For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for I am under compulsion; for woe is me if I do not preach the gospel.
Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and for pay they have rushed headlong into the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.
Then I looked, and I heard an eagle flying in midheaven, saying with a loud voice, “Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpet of the three angels who are about to sound!”
The first woe is past; behold, two woes are still coming after these things.
The second woe is past; behold, the third woe is coming quickly.
For this reason, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them. Woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, knowing that he has only a short time.”
standing at a distance because of the fear of her torment, saying, ‘Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon, the strong city! For in one hour your judgment has come.’
saying, ‘Woe, woe, the great city, she who was clothed in fine linen and purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls;
And they threw dust on their heads and were crying out, weeping and mourning, saying, ‘Woe, woe, the great city, in which all who had ships at sea became rich by her wealth, for in one hour she has been laid waste!’