diff --git a/lib/coffee_script/command_line.rb b/lib/coffee_script/command_line.rb
index 30ad1e11..ada64f1b 100644
--- a/lib/coffee_script/command_line.rb
+++ b/lib/coffee_script/command_line.rb
@@ -141,7 +141,7 @@ Usage:
         options[:no_wrap] = true if @options[:no_wrap]
         options[:globals] = true if @options[:globals]
         CoffeeScript.compile(script, options)
-      rescue CoffeeScript::ParseError, SyntaxError => e
+      rescue CoffeeScript::ParseError => e
         STDERR.puts "#{source}: #{e.message}"
         exit(1) unless @options[:watch]
         nil
diff --git a/lib/coffee_script/parse_error.rb b/lib/coffee_script/parse_error.rb
index 6fbc86d1..0f23bc92 100644
--- a/lib/coffee_script/parse_error.rb
+++ b/lib/coffee_script/parse_error.rb
@@ -11,16 +11,16 @@ module CoffeeScript
       "\n"      => 'newline'
     }
 
-    def initialize(token_id, value, stack)
-      @token_id, @value, @stack = token_id, value, stack
+    def initialize(token_id, value, stack=nil, message=nil)
+      @token_id, @value, @stack, @message = token_id, value, stack, message
     end
 
     def message
       line      = @value.respond_to?(:line) ? @value.line : "END"
       line_part = "line #{line}:"
-      id_part   = @token_id != @value.inspect ? ", unexpected #{@token_id.to_s.downcase}" : ""
-      val_part  = " for #{TOKEN_MAP[@value.to_s] || "'#{@value}'"}"
-      "#{line_part} syntax error#{val_part}#{id_part}"
+      id_part   = @token_id != @value.to_s ? "unexpected #{@token_id.to_s.downcase}" : ""
+      val_part  = @message || "for #{TOKEN_MAP[@value.to_s] || "'#{@value}'"}"
+      "#{line_part} syntax error, #{val_part}#{id_part}"
     end
     alias_method :inspect, :message
 
diff --git a/lib/coffee_script/rewriter.rb b/lib/coffee_script/rewriter.rb
index 1b802822..964aa191 100644
--- a/lib/coffee_script/rewriter.rb
+++ b/lib/coffee_script/rewriter.rb
@@ -171,18 +171,20 @@ module CoffeeScript
     # Ensure that all listed pairs of tokens are correctly balanced throughout
     # the course of the token stream.
     def ensure_balance(*pairs)
-      levels = Hash.new(0)
+      levels, lines = Hash.new(0), Hash.new
       scan_tokens do |prev, token, post, i|
         pairs.each do |pair|
           open, close = *pair
           levels[open] += 1 if token[0] == open
           levels[open] -= 1 if token[0] == close
+          lines[token[0]] = token[1].line
           raise ParseError.new(token[0], token[1], nil) if levels[open] < 0
         end
         next 1
       end
       unclosed = levels.detect {|k, v| v > 0 }
-      raise SyntaxError, "unclosed '#{unclosed[0]}'" if unclosed
+      sym = unclosed && unclosed[0]
+      raise ParseError.new(sym, Value.new(sym, lines[sym]), nil, "unclosed '#{sym}'") if unclosed
     end
 
     # We'd like to support syntax like this: