Albert Barnes Commentary Jeremiah 18:16

"to make their land an astonishment, and a perpetual hissing; every one that passeth thereby shall be astonished, and shake his head." — Jeremiah 18:16 (ASV)

Hissing - Not derision, but the drawing in of the breath quickly, as people do when they shudder.

Way his head - Or, “shake his head,” a sign among the Jews not of scorn but of pity. The desolation of the land of Israel is to fill people with dismay.