刑罚、悔改和盼望

我在耶和华烈怒的杖下受尽痛苦。
祂把我赶进黑暗,
使我不见光明,
又屡屡攻击我,终日不断。

祂使我皮肉枯槁,
祂折断我的骨头。
祂使我四面受困,
尝尽痛苦艰辛。
祂使我住在幽暗中,
像久已死去的人。

祂围困我,使我无法逃脱,
祂给我戴上沉重的铜链。
即使我哀哭呼求,
祂也掩耳不听。
祂用凿好的石头阻挡我的去路,
使我的道路曲折难行。

10 祂像埋伏的巨熊,
又像伺机突袭的猛狮,
11 把我拖离大路,
将我撕成碎片,一片凄凉。
12 祂弯弓搭箭,把我当箭靶,

13 用箭袋中的箭射穿我的心脏。
14 我成了万人的笑柄,
他们终日唱歌讽刺我。
15 祂使我饱受苦楚,尝尽苦涩。

16 祂用石头打断我的牙齿,
把我践踏在尘土中。
17 我失去平安,
忘记了什么是快乐。
18 我说:“我精疲力竭,
对耶和华失去盼望。”

19 想起我的痛苦和漂泊流离,
就如苦艾和胆汁一样苦涩。
20 那情景萦绕心头,
使我心情沉重。
21 然而,我想起这事,
便有了盼望,

22 就是耶和华的慈爱永不终止,
祂的怜悯永无穷尽。
23 祂的慈爱和怜悯每天早晨都是新的,
祂的信实无比伟大!
24 我心里知道,
耶和华是我的产业,
我要仰望祂。

25 耶和华必赐福给那些等候和寻求祂的人,
26 因此,默然等候耶和华的拯救是美好的。
27 年轻时负轭受苦是有益的。

28 受耶和华管教时,
要默然独坐。
29 要谦卑,脸伏于地,
或许还有希望。
30 要任人打脸,甘心忍受凌辱。

31 因为主不会永远撇弃人。
32 主尽管使人忧伤,
祂依然怜悯人,
因为祂有无限的慈爱。
33 祂不愿使人忧伤、痛苦。

34 将囚犯踩在脚下,
35 在至高者面前冤枉他人,
36 审理案件时颠倒是非,
都是主所不容许的。

37 若非主许可,
谁的话可以兑现呢?
38 祸福岂不都出自至高者的口吗?
39 世人因自己的罪受罚,
又何必怨天尤人呢?

40 我们要省察自己的行为,
重新归向耶和华。
41 让我们举起双手,
诚心向天上的上帝祷告说:
42 “我们犯罪、背叛,
你没有赦免我们。

43 “你满怀愤怒地追赶我们,
毫不留情地杀戮我们。
44 你以密云遮盖自己,
以致祷告达不到你那里。
45 你使我们在列国中沦为废物、渣滓。

46 “我们的仇敌都幸灾乐祸。
47 我们充满恐惧,
面临陷阱、残害和毁灭。”
48 因同胞被毁灭,我泪流成河。

49 我的眼泪涌流不息,
50 直到耶和华从天上垂顾。
51 目睹城中妇女的遭遇,
我痛苦不已。

52 敌人无故地追捕我,
如同捕猎飞鸟。
53 他们把我推进坑里,
又用石头砸我。
54 水已经漫过我的头,
我想我要灭亡了。

55 耶和华啊,
我在深渊呼求你的名。
56 你曾垂听我的呼求,
求你现在不要掩耳不听我的祈祷。
57 我向你呼求的时候,
你曾走近我身旁,
安慰我说:“不用害怕!”

58 主啊,你为我申了冤,
救赎了我的性命。
59 耶和华啊,你已明察我的冤情,
求你为我主持公道。
60 你看见了他们怎样仇恨我、
谋害我。

61 你听见了他们怎样辱骂我、
谋害我。
62 他们整天诽谤我,图谋害我。
63 你看!他们或坐下或起来,
都唱歌讽刺我。

64 耶和华啊,
求你按照他们的所作所为报应他们!
65 求你使他们心里顽固,
好让你的咒诅落在他们身上!
66 求你发怒追赶他们,
从世上铲除他们!

'耶 利 米 哀 歌 3 ' not found for the version: Chinese New Testament: Easy-to-Read Version.

Jeremiah’s Heavy Chain

Aleph

I am the man who has (A)seen affliction
Because of the rod of His wrath.
He has driven me and made me walk
In (B)darkness and not in light.
Surely against me He has (C)turned His hand
Repeatedly all the day.

Beth

He has caused my (D)flesh and my skin to waste away;
He has (E)broken my bones.
He has (F)besieged and encompassed me with (G)gall and hardship.
(H)Dark places He has made me inhabit,
Like those who have long been dead.

Gimel

He has (I)walled me in so that I cannot go out;
He has made my [a](J)chain heavy.
Even when I cry out and call for help,
He (K)shuts out my prayer.
He has (L)blocked my ways with cut stone;
He has made my paths crooked.

Daleth

10 He is to me like a bear lying in wait,
Like a lion in secret places.
11 He has turned aside my ways and (M)torn me to pieces;
He has made me desolate.
12 He (N)bent His bow
And (O)set me as a target for the arrow.

He

13 He made the [b]arrows of His (P)quiver
To enter into my [c]inward parts.
14 I have become a (Q)laughingstock to all my people,
Their (R)music of mockery all the day.
15 He has (S)saturated me with bitterness;
He has sated me with wormwood.

Vav

16 He has (T)broken my teeth with (U)gravel;
He has made me cower in the (V)dust.
17 My soul has been rejected (W)from peace;
I have forgotten goodness.
18 So I say, “My strength has perished,
As well as my (X)hopeful waiting which comes from Yahweh.”

The Lord Will Not Reject Forever

Zayin

19 Remember my affliction and my [d]homelessness, the (Y)wormwood and gall.
20 Surely (Z)my soul remembers
And is (AA)bowed down within me.
21 This I will return to my heart;
Therefore I will (AB)wait in hope.

Heth

22 The (AC)lovingkindnesses of Yahweh [e]indeed never cease,
(AD)For His compassions never fail.
23 They are new (AE)every morning;
Great is (AF)Your faithfulness.
24 “Yahweh is my (AG)portion,” says my soul,
“Therefore I (AH)wait for Him.”

Teth

25 Yahweh is good to those who (AI)hope in Him,
To the soul who (AJ)seeks Him.
26 It is good that he (AK)waits silently
For the salvation of Yahweh.
27 It is good for a man that he should bear
The yoke in his youth.

Yodh

28 Let him (AL)sit alone and be silent
Since He has laid it on him.
29 Let him [f]put his mouth in the (AM)dust;
Perhaps there is (AN)hope.
30 Let him give his (AO)cheek to the one who strikes him;
Let him be saturated with reproach.

Kaph

31 For the Lord will (AP)not reject forever,
32 For if He causes grief,
Then He will have (AQ)compassion
According to His abundant lovingkindness.
33 For He (AR)does not afflict from His heart
Or grieve the sons of men.

Lamedh

34 To crush under His feet
All the prisoners of the [g]land,
35 To [h]deprive a man of (AS)justice
In the presence of the Most High,
36 To [i](AT)defraud a man in his legal case—
These things the Lord does not see with approval.

Mem

37 Who is [j]there who speaks and it (AU)happens,
Unless the Lord has commanded it?
38 Is it not from the mouth of the Most High
That (AV)both calamities and [k]good go forth?
39 Why should any living [l]person or any man
(AW)Complain because of his sins?

Nun

40 Let us (AX)search out and examine our ways,
And let us return to Yahweh.
41 We (AY)lift up our heart to our hands
Toward God in heaven;
42 We have (AZ)transgressed and rebelled;
You have (BA)not pardoned.

Samekh

43 You have covered Yourself with (BB)anger
And (BC)pursued us;
You have killed and (BD)have not spared.
44 You have (BE)covered Yourself with a cloud
So that (BF)no prayer can pass through.
45 You have made us mere (BG)scum and refuse
In the midst of the peoples.

Pe

46 All our enemies have (BH)opened their mouths against us.
47 (BI)Panic and pitfall have befallen us,
Devastation and destruction;
48 My [m](BJ)eyes run down with streams of water
Because of the destruction of the daughter of my people.

Ayin

49 My eyes pour down (BK)unceasingly,
Without stopping,
50 Until Yahweh (BL)looks down
And sees from heaven.
51 My eyes deal severely with my soul
Because of all the daughters of my city.

Tsadhe

52 My enemies (BM)without cause
Hunted me down (BN)like a bird;
53 They have silenced my life (BO)in the pit
And have [n](BP)placed a stone on me.
54 Waters flowed (BQ)over my head;
I said, “I am cut off!”

Qoph

55 I (BR)called on Your name, O Yahweh,
Out of the lowest pit.
56 You have (BS)heard my voice,
(BT)Do not hide Your ear from my prayer for relief,
From my cry for help.”
57 You (BU)drew near when I called on You;
You said, “(BV)Do not fear!”

Resh

58 O Lord, You (BW)have pleaded my soul’s cause;
You have (BX)redeemed my life.
59 O Yahweh, You have (BY)seen my oppression;
(BZ)Judge my case.
60 You have seen all their vengeance,
All their (CA)purposes against me.

Sin / Shin

61 You have heard their (CB)reproach, O Yahweh,
All their purposes against me.
62 The (CC)lips of those who rise against me and their whispering
Are against me all day long.
63 Look on their (CD)sitting and their rising;
(CE)I am their mocking song.

Tav

64 You will (CF)recompense them, O Yahweh,
According to the work of their hands.
65 You will give them [o](CG)dullness of heart;
Your curse will be on them.
66 You will (CH)pursue them in anger and destroy them
From under the (CI)heavens of Yahweh!

Footnotes

  1. Lamentations 3:7 Lit bronze piece
  2. Lamentations 3:13 Lit sons
  3. Lamentations 3:13 Lit kidneys
  4. Lamentations 3:19 Or bitterness
  5. Lamentations 3:22 Or that we are not consumed
  6. Lamentations 3:29 Lit give
  7. Lamentations 3:34 Or earth
  8. Lamentations 3:35 Or turn aside a man’s case
  9. Lamentations 3:36 Lit make crooked
  10. Lamentations 3:37 Lit this
  11. Lamentations 3:38 Lit the good
  12. Lamentations 3:39 Or human being
  13. Lamentations 3:48 Lit eye brings
  14. Lamentations 3:53 Or cast stones
  15. Lamentations 3:65 Or insolence