Lamentations 1
English Standard Version
How Lonely Sits the City
1 (A)How lonely sits the city
that was full of people!
How like (B)a widow has she become,
she who was great among the nations!
She who was (C)a princess among the provinces
has become (D)a slave.
2 (E)She weeps bitterly in the night,
with tears on her cheeks;
(F)among all her lovers
she has (G)none to comfort her;
(H)all her friends have dealt treacherously with her;
they have become her enemies.
3 (I)Judah has gone into exile because of affliction[a]
and hard servitude;
(J)she dwells now among the nations,
(K)but finds no resting place;
her pursuers have all overtaken her
in the midst of her distress.[b]
4 The roads to Zion mourn,
for none come to (L)the festival;
(M)all her gates are desolate;
her priests (N)groan;
her virgins have been afflicted,[c]
and she herself suffers bitterly.
5 (O)Her foes have become the head;
her (P)enemies prosper,
because (Q)the Lord has afflicted her
(R)for the multitude of her transgressions;
(S)her children have gone away,
captives before the foe.
6 From the daughter of Zion
all her majesty has departed.
Her princes have become like deer
(T)that find no pasture;
they fled without strength
before the pursuer.
7 Jerusalem remembers
in the days of her affliction and wandering
(U)all the precious things
that were hers from (V)days of old.
When her people fell into the hand of the foe,
and there was none to help her,
her foes gloated over her;
they (W)mocked at her downfall.
8 (X)Jerusalem sinned grievously;
therefore she became filthy;
all who honored her despise her,
(Y)for they have seen her nakedness;
she herself (Z)groans
and turns her face away.
9 Her uncleanness was (AA)in her skirts;
(AB)she took no thought of her future;[d]
therefore her fall is terrible;
(AC)she has no comforter.
“O Lord, behold my affliction,
for the enemy has (AD)triumphed!”
10 The enemy has stretched out his hands
over all her (AE)precious things;
for she has seen (AF)the nations
enter her sanctuary,
those whom you (AG)forbade
to enter your congregation.
11 All her people (AH)groan
as (AI)they search for bread;
they trade their (AJ)treasures for (AK)food
to revive their strength.
“Look, O Lord, and see,
for I am despised.”
12 “Is it nothing to you, all (AL)you who pass by?
(AM)Look and see
if there is any sorrow like my sorrow,
which was brought upon me,
which (AN)the Lord inflicted
on (AO)the day of his fierce anger.
13 “From on high he (AP)sent fire;
into my bones[e] he made it descend;
(AQ)he spread a net for my feet;
he turned me back;
(AR)he has left me stunned,
faint all the day long.
14 “My transgressions were bound[f] into (AS)a yoke;
by his hand they were fastened together;
they were set upon my neck;
he caused my strength to fail;
the Lord gave me into the hands
of those whom I cannot withstand.
15 “The Lord rejected
all my mighty men in my midst;
he summoned an assembly against me
to crush my young men;
(AT)the Lord has trodden as in a winepress
the virgin daughter of Judah.
16 “For these things (AU)I weep;
my eyes flow with tears;
for (AV)a comforter is far from me,
one to (AW)revive my spirit;
my children are desolate,
for the enemy has prevailed.”
17 (AX)Zion stretches out her hands,
but (AY)there is none to comfort her;
the Lord has commanded against Jacob
that his neighbors should be his foes;
Jerusalem has become
a filthy thing among them.
18 (AZ)“The Lord is in the right,
(BA)for I have rebelled against his word;
but hear, all you peoples,
and see my suffering;
(BB)my young women and my young men
have gone into captivity.
19 “I called to (BC)my lovers,
but they deceived me;
my priests and elders
perished in the city,
while (BD)they sought food
to revive their strength.
20 “Look, O Lord, for I am in distress;
(BE)my stomach churns;
my heart is wrung within me,
because I have been very rebellious.
(BF)In the street the sword bereaves;
in the house it is like death.
21 “They heard[g] (BG)my groaning,
yet (BH)there is no one to comfort me.
All my enemies have heard of my trouble;
(BI)they are glad that you have done it.
You have brought[h] the day you announced;
(BJ)now let them be as I am.
22 (BK)“Let all their evildoing come before you,
and deal with them
as (BL)you have dealt with me
because of all my transgressions;
for (BM)my groans are many,
and (BN)my heart is faint.”
Footnotes
- Lamentations 1:3 Or under affliction
- Lamentations 1:3 Or in the narrow passes
- Lamentations 1:4 Septuagint, Old Latin dragged away
- Lamentations 1:9 Or end
- Lamentations 1:13 Septuagint; Hebrew bones and
- Lamentations 1:14 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
- Lamentations 1:21 Septuagint, Syriac Hear
- Lamentations 1:21 Syriac Bring
Lamentations 1
International Standard Version
The Sorrowful City[a]
1 How lonely she lies,
the city that thronged with people!
Like a widow she has become,
this great one among nations!
The princess among provinces
has become a vassal.
2 Bitterly she cries in the night,
as tears stream down[b] her cheeks.
No one consoles her
of all her friends.
All her neighbors have betrayed her;
they have become her enemies.
3 Judah has gone into exile
to escape affliction and servitude.
She that sat among the nations,
has found no rest.
All her pursuers overtook her
amid narrow passes.
4 The roads that lead to Zion are in mourning,
because no one travels to the festivals.
All her gates are desolate;
her priests are moaning.
Her young women[c] are grieving,[d]
and she is bitter.
5 Her adversaries dominate her,
her enemies prosper.
For the Lord has made her suffer
because of her many transgressions.
Her children have gone away,
taken into captivity in the presence of the enemy.
6 Fled from cherished[e] Zion
are all that were her splendor.
Her princes have become like deer
that cannot find their feeding grounds.
They flee with strength exhausted
from their pursuers.
7 Jerusalem remembers[f]
her time of affliction and misery;
all her valued belongings[g]
of days gone by,
when her people fell into enemy hands,
with no one to help her,
and her enemies stared at her,
mocking her downfall.
8 Jerusalem sinned greatly,
and she became unclean.[h]
All who honored her now despise her,
because they saw her naked.
She herself groans
and turns her face away.
9 Uncleanness has soiled her skirts,
and she gave no thought to what would follow.
She fell in such a startling way,
with no one to comfort her.
Look, Lord, upon my affliction,
because my enemy is boasting.
10 The adversary seized in his hands
everything she valued.
She watched the nations[i]
enter her sanctuary;
those you forbade to enter
your place of meeting.
11 All her people groaned
as they searched for food.
They traded their valuables in order to eat,
to keep themselves alive.[j]
Look, Lord, and see
how I have become dishonored.
12 May it not befall you,[k]
all who pass along the road!
Look and see:
Is there any grief
like my grief
dealt out to me,
by which the Lord afflicted me
in the time of his fierce wrath?
13 He sent fire from on high,[l]
making it penetrate my bones.[m]
He stretched out a net at my feet,
forcing me to turn back.
He made me desolate;
I’m fainting all day long.
14 The yoke of my sins was bound on,[n]
fastened together by his hand.
They settled on my neck;
he caused my strength to fail.
The Lord placed me in the power
of those I cannot resist.
15 He rejected all the valiant men—
the Lord, in my midst.
He set a time to meet with me
to crush my young warriors.
The Lord has trampled, as in a winepress,
the fair virgin that is[o] Judah.
16 Because of all this, I weep;
my eyes[p] stream with tears
because far from me
is the comforter of my soul.
My children are sorrowful,
because the enemy has won.
17 Zion spreads out her hands;[q]
no one is there to comfort her.
The Lord has issued an order against[r] Jacob,
that all who are around him are to be his enemies;
Jerusalem has become
unclean among them.
18 The Lord is in the right,
but I rebelled against his commands.
Listen, please, all you people,
and look at my pain—
my young men and women[s]
have gone into captivity.
19 I called out to my lovers,[t]
but they deceived me.
My priests and my elders
have died within the city
while looking for something to eat
to keep themselves alive.
20 Look, Lord, how distressed I am;
all my insides are churning.
My heart is troubled within me,
because I vigorously rebelled.
Outside the sword brings loss of life,
while at home death rules.
21 People[u] heard how I groan,
with no one to comfort me.
All my adversaries have heard about my troubles;
they rejoice that you have caused them.
Bring on the day you have promised,
so my adversaries[v] will become like me.
22 May all of their wickedness come to your attention,
and deal with them
as you have done with me
because of all my transgressions.
For I am constantly groaning,
and my heart is faint.
Footnotes
- Lamentations 1:1 This book is an acrostic—successive verses begin with a consecutive letter of the Heb. alphabet except in chapter 3, where every three verses begin with the same consecutive Heb. letter.
- Lamentations 1:2 The Heb. lacks stream down
- Lamentations 1:4 Lit. virgins
- Lamentations 1:4 Or are led away.
- Lamentations 1:6 Lit. from the daughter of
- Lamentations 1:7 Or Remember, Lord, Jerusalem,
- Lamentations 1:7 Or Perished are all her valued belongings
- Lamentations 1:8 Lit. has been removed; i.e. due to ritual uncleanness
- Lamentations 1:10 Or watched foreigners
- Lamentations 1:11 Lit. to eat to refresh the soul
- Lamentations 1:12 Lit. It is not for you
- Lamentations 1:13 Lit. high into my bones
- Lamentations 1:13 Lit. overcoming her
- Lamentations 1:14 Lit. was heavy
- Lamentations 1:15 Lit. the virgin daughter of
- Lamentations 1:16 Lit. my eyes my eyes
- Lamentations 1:17 Or Zion rent her linen garments
- Lamentations 1:17 Or Lord kept watch over
- Lamentations 1:18 Lit. virgins
- Lamentations 1:19 Or friends
- Lamentations 1:21 Lit. They
- Lamentations 1:21 Lit. so they
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
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