How the gold has grown dim! The most fine gold is changed! The stones of the sanctuary are poured out at every street corner—the fourth chapter returns to the acrostic form and the image of Jerusalem personified, focusing now on the physical destruction of the temple and the degradation of the sacred. The gold refers both to the temple's decoration and metaphorically to Israel's former splendor. The stones of the sanctuary poured out suggest violation of the holy place; sacred stones are scattered like trash in the streets. Theologically, the verse emphasizes that the destruction is not merely of people but of the sacred spaces and objects; the temple, the very house of God, is desecrated. The image of sanctuary stones in street corners suggests the ultimate reversal: what was most sacred is now exposed to defilement.

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