In Jeremiah

Aroer also possibly appears in Jer 48:6. The larger context is an oracle against Moab (Jer 48:1–47). The MT reads: “Flee! Save yourselves! Let them be like Aroer in the wilderness.” The LXX reads “Flee. Save yourselves. And you shall be like a wild ass in the desert,” and the Vulgate reads “… like a tamarisk in the desert.” The difference in these texts stems from two points of confusion over the noun עֲרוֹעֵר (aro'er). Brown, Driver, and Briggs (Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament, 792) suggest that the word means a tree or a bush, or perhaps a juniper. Koehler and Baumgartner (Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament, 2:883) state that it is the place name “Aroer,” but that it may be a by-form of עַרְעָר (ar'ar), which means “juniper tree.” Contextually, “Aroer” and “juniper tree” are both possible. In this case, the latter is a simile, comparing the Moabites with the relatively lush juniper—both trying to exist in difficult circumstances. Alternatively, the surrounding verses contain place names, so “Aroer” could simply be another place in a series. Since עַרְעָר (ar'ar) clearly refers to a shrub or tree in Jer 17:2, the lack of clarity in Jer 48:6 may point to it being a place name here. Many English translations opt for “juniper” (NASB, ESV, NIV). The NRSV has “wild ass,” but it and the NIV have notes listing “Aroer” as an alternative.