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Lamentations 1
Authorized (King James) Version
Lamentations 1
Authorized (King James) Version
1 How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of people!
how is she become as a widow!
she that was great among the nations,
and princess among the provinces,
how is she become tributary!
2 She weepeth sore in the night,
and her tears are on her cheeks:
among all her lovers she hath none to comfort her:
all her friends have dealt treacherously with her,
they are become her enemies.
3 Judah is gone into captivity because of affliction,
and because of great servitude:
she dwelleth among the heathen,
she findeth no rest:
all her persecutors overtook her between the straits.
4 The ways of Zion do mourn,
because none come to the solemn feasts:
all her gates are desolate:
her priests sigh,
her virgins are afflicted,
and she is in bitterness.
5 Her adversaries are the chief,
her enemies prosper;
for the Lord hath afflicted her
for the multitude of her transgressions:
her children are gone into captivity before the enemy.
6 And from the daughter of Zion
all her beauty is departed:
her princes are become like harts that find no pasture,
and they are gone without strength before the pursuer.
7 Jerusalem remembered in the days of her affliction
and of her miseries
all her pleasant things that she had in the days of old,
when her people fell into the hand of the enemy,
and none did help her:
the adversaries saw her,
and did mock at her sabbaths.
8 Jerusalem hath grievously sinned;
therefore she is removed:
all that honoured her despise her,
because they have seen her nakedness:
yea, she sigheth, and turneth backward.
9 Her filthiness is in her skirts;
she remembereth not her last end;
therefore she came down wonderfully:
she had no comforter.
O Lord, behold my affliction:
for the enemy hath magnified himself.
10 The adversary hath spread out his hand
upon all her pleasant things:
for she hath seen that the heathen
entered into her sanctuary,
whom thou didst command
that they should not enter into thy congregation.
11 All her people sigh, they seek bread;
they have given their pleasant things
for meat to relieve the soul:
See, O Lord, and consider;
for I am become vile.
12 Is it nothing to you,
all ye that pass by?
behold, and see if there be any sorrow
like unto my sorrow,
which is done unto me,
wherewith the Lord hath afflicted me
in the day of his fierce anger.
13 From above hath he sent fire into my bones,
and it prevaileth against them:
he hath spread a net for my feet,
he hath turned me back:
he hath made me desolate
and faint all the day.
14 The yoke of my transgressions is bound by his hand:
they are wreathed,
and come up upon my neck:
he hath made my strength to fall,
the Lord hath delivered me into their hands,
from whom I am not able to rise up.
15 The Lord hath trodden under foot
all my mighty men in the midst of me:
he hath called an assembly against me
to crush my young men:
the Lord hath trodden the virgin,
the daughter of Judah,
as in a winepress.
16 For these things I weep;
mine eye, mine eye runneth down with water,
because the comforter that should relieve my soul is far from me:
my children are desolate,
because the enemy prevailed.
17 Zion spreadeth forth her hands,
and there is none to comfort her:
the Lord hath commanded concerning Jacob,
that his adversaries should be round about him:
Jerusalem is as a menstruous woman among them.
18 The Lord is righteous;
for I have rebelled against his commandment:
hear, I pray you, all people,
and behold my sorrow:
my virgins and my young men are gone into captivity.
19 I called for my lovers, but they deceived me:
my priests and mine elders gave up the ghost in the city,
while they sought their meat to relieve their souls.
20 Behold, O Lord; for I am in distress:
my bowels are troubled;
mine heart is turned within me;
for I have grievously rebelled:
abroad the sword bereaveth,
at home there is as death.
21 They have heard that I sigh:
there is none to comfort me:
all mine enemies have heard of my trouble;
they are glad that thou hast done it:
thou wilt bring the day that thou hast called,
and they shall be like unto me.
22 Let all their wickedness come before thee;
and do unto them, as thou hast done unto me
for all my transgressions:
for my sighs are many,
and my heart is faint.
Lamentations 1
New International Version
Lamentations 1
New International Version
1 [a]How deserted(A) lies the city,
once so full of people!(B)
How like a widow(C) is she,
who once was great(D) among the nations!
She who was queen among the provinces
has now become a slave.(E)
2 Bitterly she weeps(F) at night,
tears are on her cheeks.
Among all her lovers(G)
there is no one to comfort her.
All her friends have betrayed(H) her;
they have become her enemies.(I)
3 After affliction and harsh labor,
Judah has gone into exile.(J)
She dwells among the nations;
she finds no resting place.(K)
All who pursue her have overtaken her(L)
in the midst of her distress.
4 The roads to Zion mourn,(M)
for no one comes to her appointed festivals.
All her gateways are desolate,(N)
her priests groan,
her young women grieve,
and she is in bitter anguish.(O)
5 Her foes have become her masters;
her enemies are at ease.
The Lord has brought her grief(P)
because of her many sins.(Q)
Her children have gone into exile,(R)
captive before the foe.(S)
6 All the splendor has departed
from Daughter Zion.(T)
Her princes are like deer
that find no pasture;
in weakness they have fled(U)
before the pursuer.
7 In the days of her affliction and wandering
Jerusalem remembers all the treasures
that were hers in days of old.
When her people fell into enemy hands,
there was no one to help her.(V)
Her enemies looked at her
and laughed(W) at her destruction.
8 Jerusalem has sinned(X) greatly
and so has become unclean.(Y)
All who honored her despise her,
for they have all seen her naked;(Z)
she herself groans(AA)
and turns away.
9 Her filthiness clung to her skirts;
she did not consider her future.(AB)
Her fall(AC) was astounding;
there was none to comfort(AD) her.
“Look, Lord, on my affliction,(AE)
for the enemy has triumphed.”
10 The enemy laid hands
on all her treasures;(AF)
she saw pagan nations
enter her sanctuary(AG)—
those you had forbidden(AH)
to enter your assembly.
11 All her people groan(AI)
as they search for bread;(AJ)
they barter their treasures for food
to keep themselves alive.
“Look, Lord, and consider,
for I am despised.”
12 “Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by?(AK)
Look around and see.
Is any suffering like my suffering(AL)
that was inflicted on me,
that the Lord brought on me
in the day of his fierce anger?(AM)
13 “From on high he sent fire,
sent it down into my bones.(AN)
He spread a net(AO) for my feet
and turned me back.
He made me desolate,(AP)
faint(AQ) all the day long.
14 “My sins have been bound into a yoke[b];(AR)
by his hands they were woven together.
They have been hung on my neck,
and the Lord has sapped my strength.
He has given me into the hands(AS)
of those I cannot withstand.
15 “The Lord has rejected
all the warriors in my midst;(AT)
he has summoned an army(AU) against me
to[c] crush my young men.(AV)
In his winepress(AW) the Lord has trampled(AX)
Virgin Daughter(AY) Judah.
16 “This is why I weep
and my eyes overflow with tears.(AZ)
No one is near to comfort(BA) me,
no one to restore my spirit.
My children are destitute
because the enemy has prevailed.”(BB)
17 Zion stretches out her hands,(BC)
but there is no one to comfort her.
The Lord has decreed for Jacob
that his neighbors become his foes;(BD)
Jerusalem has become
an unclean(BE) thing(BF) among them.
18 “The Lord is righteous,(BG)
yet I rebelled(BH) against his command.
Listen, all you peoples;
look on my suffering.(BI)
My young men and young women
have gone into exile.(BJ)
19 “I called to my allies(BK)
but they betrayed me.
My priests and my elders
perished(BL) in the city
while they searched for food
to keep themselves alive.
20 “See, Lord, how distressed(BM) I am!
I am in torment(BN) within,
and in my heart I am disturbed,(BO)
for I have been most rebellious.(BP)
Outside, the sword bereaves;
inside, there is only death.(BQ)
Footnotes
- Lamentations 1:1 This chapter is an acrostic poem, the verses of which begin with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet.
- Lamentations 1:14 Most Hebrew manuscripts; many Hebrew manuscripts and Septuagint He kept watch over my sins
- Lamentations 1:15 Or has set a time for me / when he will
Lamentations 1
New Living Translation
Lamentations 1
New Living Translation
Sorrow in Jerusalem
1 Jerusalem, once so full of people,
is now deserted.
She who was once great among the nations
now sits alone like a widow.
Once the queen of all the earth,
she is now a slave.
2 She sobs through the night;
tears stream down her cheeks.
Among all her lovers,
there is no one left to comfort her.
All her friends have betrayed her
and become her enemies.
3 Judah has been led away into captivity,
oppressed with cruel slavery.
She lives among foreign nations
and has no place of rest.
Her enemies have chased her down,
and she has nowhere to turn.
4 The roads to Jerusalem[a] are in mourning,
for crowds no longer come to celebrate the festivals.
The city gates are silent,
her priests groan,
her young women are crying—
how bitter is her fate!
5 Her oppressors have become her masters,
and her enemies prosper,
for the Lord has punished Jerusalem
for her many sins.
Her children have been captured
and taken away to distant lands.
6 All the majesty of beautiful Jerusalem[b]
has been stripped away.
Her princes are like starving deer
searching for pasture.
They are too weak to run
from the pursuing enemy.
7 In the midst of her sadness and wandering,
Jerusalem remembers her ancient splendor.
But now she has fallen to her enemy,
and there is no one to help her.
Her enemy struck her down
and laughed as she fell.
8 Jerusalem has sinned greatly,
so she has been tossed away like a filthy rag.
All who once honored her now despise her,
for they have seen her stripped naked and humiliated.
All she can do is groan
and hide her face.
9 She defiled herself with immorality
and gave no thought to her future.
Now she lies in the gutter
with no one to lift her out.
“Lord, see my misery,” she cries.
“The enemy has triumphed.”
10 The enemy has plundered her completely,
taking every precious thing she owns.
She has seen foreigners violate her sacred Temple,
the place the Lord had forbidden them to enter.
11 Her people groan as they search for bread.
They have sold their treasures for food to stay alive.
“O Lord, look,” she mourns,
“and see how I am despised.
12 “Does it mean nothing to you, all you who pass by?
Look around and see if there is any suffering like mine,
which the Lord brought on me
when he erupted in fierce anger.
13 “He has sent fire from heaven that burns in my bones.
He has placed a trap in my path and turned me back.
He has left me devastated,
racked with sickness all day long.
14 “He wove my sins into ropes
to hitch me to a yoke of captivity.
The Lord sapped my strength and turned me over to my enemies;
I am helpless in their hands.
15 “The Lord has treated my mighty men
with contempt.
At his command a great army has come
to crush my young warriors.
The Lord has trampled his beloved city[c]
like grapes are trampled in a winepress.
16 “For all these things I weep;
tears flow down my cheeks.
No one is here to comfort me;
any who might encourage me are far away.
My children have no future,
for the enemy has conquered us.”
17 Jerusalem reaches out for help,
but no one comforts her.
Regarding his people Israel,[d]
the Lord has said,
“Let their neighbors be their enemies!
Let them be thrown away like a filthy rag!”
18 “The Lord is right,” Jerusalem says,
“for I rebelled against him.
Listen, people everywhere;
look upon my anguish and despair,
for my sons and daughters
have been taken captive to distant lands.
19 “I begged my allies for help,
but they betrayed me.
My priests and leaders
starved to death in the city,
even as they searched for food
to save their lives.
20 “Lord, see my anguish!
My heart is broken
and my soul despairs,
for I have rebelled against you.
In the streets the sword kills,
and at home there is only death.
21 “Others heard my groans,
but no one turned to comfort me.
When my enemies heard about my troubles,
they were happy to see what you had done.
Oh, bring the day you promised,
when they will suffer as I have suffered.
22 “Look at all their evil deeds, Lord.
Punish them,
as you have punished me
for all my sins.
My groans are many,
and I am sick at heart.”
Authorized (King James) Version (AKJV)
KJV reproduced by permission of Cambridge University Press, the Crown’s patentee in the UK.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.