Forbear to cry, make no mourning for the dead, bind the tire of thine head upon thee, and put on thy shoes upon thy feet, and cover not [thy] lips, and eat not the bread of men.
Ver. 17. Forbear to cry.] Heb., Be silent, and so suffocate thy sorrows; Ne plangas, ne plores. Not as if the dead were not to be lamented - tears are the dues of the dead, a Mors mea ne careat lachrymis - or that it were unbeseeming a prophet to bewail his dead comfort, but to set forth by this figure the greatness of their ensuing sorrow, bigger than any tears; for, Curae leves loquuntur ingentes stupent.
Bind the tire of thy head upon thee.] Mourners, it seems, used to go bare headed and bare footed, to cover their mustaches, to eat what their friends sent them in at such a sad time to cheer up their spirits. Jeremiah 16:5 ; Jer 16:7 The prophet must do none of all this, but keep his sorrows to himself. b
a Pατροκλον κλαιωμεν: ο γαρ γερας εστι θανοντων .
b Singultus devorat.