37 Heb “Make him drunk because he has magnified himself against the Lord.” The first person has again been adopted for consistency within a speech of the Lord. Almost all of the commentaries relate the figure of drunkenness to the figure of drinking the cup of God’s wrath spelled out in Jer 25 where reference is made at one point to the nations drinking, staggering, vomiting, and falling (25:27 and see G. L. Keown, P. J. Scalise, T. G. Smothers, Jeremiah 26–52 [], , for a full list of references to this figure including this passage and 49:12–13; 51:6–10, 39, 57).
38 The meaning of this word is uncertain. It is usually used of clapping the hands or the thigh in helpless anger or disgust. Hence J. Bright (Jeremiah [], 321) paraphrases “shall vomit helplessly.” II סָפַק relates this to an Aramaic word and see a homonym meaning “vomit” or “spew out.” The translation is that of 706 סָפַק Qal.3, “splash (fall with a splash),” from the same root that refers to slapping or clapping the thigh.
39 Heb “were they caught among thieves?”
40 Heb “that you shook yourself.” But see the same verb in 18:16 in the active voice with the object “head” in a very similar context of contempt or derision.
41 The reading here presupposes the emendation of דְבָרֶיךָ (dévarekha, “your words”) to דַבֶּרְךָ (dabberkha, “your speaking”), suggested by (cf. fn c) on the basis of one of the Greek versions (Symmachus). For the idiom cf. 191 דַּי 2.c.α.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

“Make him drunk, because he magnified himself against the Lord, so that Moab shall wallow in his vomit, and he too shall be held in derision. Was not Israel a derision to you? Was he found among thieves, that whenever you spoke of him you wagged your head?

NIVNew International Version (2011)

“Make her drunk,

for she has defied the Lord.

Let Moab wallow in her vomit;

let her be an object of ridicule.

Was not Israel the object of your ridicule?

Was she caught among thieves,

that you shake your head in scorn

whenever you speak of her?

CSBChristian Standard Bible

“Make him drunk, because he has exalted himself against the Lord. Moab will wallow in his own vomit, and he will also become a laughingstock. Wasn’t Israel a laughingstock to you? Was he ever found among thieves? For whenever you speak of him you shake your head.”

NLTNew Living Translation

“Let him stagger and fall like a drunkard,

for he has rebelled against the Lord.

Moab will wallow in his own vomit,

ridiculed by all.

Did you not ridicule the people of Israel?

Were they caught in the company of thieves

that you should despise them as you do?

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

“Make him drunk,

because he magnified himself against Yahweh,

and let Moab wallow in his vomit.

And he also will become a laughingstock.

Now was not Israel the laughingstock to you?

Or was he found among thieves?

For as often as you spoke over him

you shook your head.

KJV 1900King James Version

Make ye him drunken: for he magnified himself against the Lord:

Moab also shall wallow in his vomit,

And he also shall be in derision.

For was not Israel a derision unto thee?

Was he found among thieves?

For since thou spakest of him, thou skippedst for joy.

Public Domain