This could perhaps be the deeper meaning of “Nachamu, nachamu”
Chatu b’kiflayim, they sinned doubly, as the pasuk says, “Cheit chatah Yerushalayim.” Therefore, they were doubly punished, as the pasuk says, “Ki lakchah miyad Hashem kiflayim.” They will subsequently be doubly comforted, as the pasuk says, “Nachamu, nachamu ami.”
What does it mean to “sin doubly”? Does it mean they sinned twice? Does it mean they sinned a lot, both quantitatively and qualitatively? If so, then it is not a matter of sinning doubly — it is simply an intensification of sin.
Furthermore, what is a double punishment? If it means their retribution was extensive, it has no relation to being doubled — it simply means a lot! And lastly, what is the double comfort of which Yeshayahu Hanavi speaks?
Perhaps we can shed some light on this Chazal with a very moving story that was shared with the world by Rav Yisrael Meir Lau, former chief rabbi of the State of Israel and currently rav of Tel Aviv. During the Yom Kippur War, 475 badly burned soldiers were brought to Ichilov Hospital for treatment. Four of them were in particularly bad shape, with burns covering almost 100 percent of their bodies.
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