“Is This the Man That Made the Earth to Tremble”

Brant Gardner

Babylon’s fall will be so decisive that people will find it hard to imagine that it was ever powerful.

Literature: Ludlow suggests that the question “is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms,” is a literary reference to the appellation Satan: “This reminds us of Satan’s limited powers to literally shake the ground in his presence (Moses 1:21–23). Also, the Aramaic root of ‘Satan’ is satanah, meaning ‘to shake.’”

Comparison: Verse 24 renders “and shall consider thee, and shall say… ” where the King James Version has “and consider thee, saying.… ” According to Tvedtnes, the Masoretic manuscript also uses the future tense. Thus, the Book of Mormon reading is closer in tense. He does note, however, that the verb “say/saying” is implied in the Hebrew, but not specifically written.

Second Witness: Analytical & Contextual Commentary on the Book of Mormon, Vol. 2

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