Good News Translation uses a transitional marker (“Meanwhile”) to make a connection between verses 7 and 8, just as at verse 7 a marker (“After that”) was used to relate verse 7 to verse 6.

Chaldeans: Throughout this passage, as elsewhere in Jeremiah, translators should take care not to give the impression that the Babylonians and the Chaldeans are two separate groups of people.

The king’s house; that is, “the royal palace” or “the king’s palace.”

The house of the people: Although Hebrew uses the singular house, the reference is obviously plural (“houses” in many translations).

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Jeremiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2003. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .