Lamentations 3:22-50

New Living Translation

²² The faithful love of the Lord never ends!^[a]
    His mercies never cease.
²³ Great is his faithfulness;
    his mercies begin afresh each morning.
²⁴ I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance;
    therefore, I will hope in him!”

²⁵ The Lord is good to those who depend on him,
    to those who search for him.
²⁶ So it is good to wait quietly
    for salvation from the Lord.
²⁷ And it is good for people to submit at an early age
    to the yoke of his discipline:

²⁸ Let them sit alone in silence
    beneath the Lord’s demands.
²⁹ Let them lie face down in the dust,
    for there may be hope at last.
³⁰ Let them turn the other cheek to those who strike them
    and accept the insults of their enemies.

³¹ For no one is abandoned
    by the Lord forever.
³² Though he brings grief, he also shows compassion
    because of the greatness of his unfailing love.
³³ For he does not enjoy hurting people
    or causing them sorrow.

³⁴ If people crush underfoot
    all the prisoners of the land,
³⁵ if they deprive others of their rights
    in defiance of the Most High,
³⁶ if they twist justice in the courts—
    doesn’t the Lord see all these things?

³⁷ Who can command things to happen
    without the Lord’s permission?
³⁸ Does not the Most High
    send both calamity and good?
³⁹ Then why should we, mere humans, complain
    when we are punished for our sins?

⁴⁰ Instead, let us test and examine our ways.
    Let us turn back to the Lord.
⁴¹ Let us lift our hearts and hands
    to God in heaven and say,
⁴² “We have sinned and rebelled,
    and you have not forgiven us.

⁴³ “You have engulfed us with your anger, chased us down,
    and slaughtered us without mercy.
⁴⁴ You have hidden yourself in a cloud
    so our prayers cannot reach you.
⁴⁵ You have discarded us as refuse and garbage
    among the nations.

⁴⁶ “All our enemies
    have spoken out against us.
⁴⁷ We are filled with fear,
    for we are trapped, devastated, and ruined.”
⁴⁸ Tears stream from my eyes
    because of the destruction of my people!

⁴⁹ My tears flow endlessly;
    they will not stop
⁵⁰ until the Lord looks down
    from heaven and sees.