Lamentations 1
Legacy Standard Bible
Zion Lays Desolate
Aleph
1 How (A)lonely sits the city
That was (B)great with people!
She has become like a (C)widow
Who was once (D)great among the nations!
She who was a princess among the [a]provinces
Has become a (E)forced laborer!
Beth
2 She (F)weeps bitterly in the night,
And her tears are on her cheeks;
She has none to comfort her
Among all her (G)lovers.
All her friends have (H)dealt treacherously with her;
They have become her enemies.
Gimel
3 (I)Judah has gone into exile because of affliction
And because of great slavery;
She sits (J)among the nations,
But she has found no rest;
All (K)her pursuers have overtaken her
In the midst of [b]distress.
Daleth
4 The roads [c]of Zion are in mourning
Because (L)no one comes to the appointed times.
All her gates are (M)desolate;
Her priests are sighing,
Her (N)virgins are grieving,
And she herself [d]is (O)bitter.
He
5 Her adversaries have become [e]her masters;
Her enemies are complacent;
For [f]Yahweh has (P)caused her grief
Because of the greatness of her transgressions;
Her infants have gone away
As captives before the adversary.
Vav
6 So all her (Q)majesty
Has gone out from the daughter of Zion;
Her princes have become like deer
That have found no pasture;
So they have [g](R)fled without strength
Before the pursuer.
Zayin
7 In the days of her affliction and homelessness
(S)Jerusalem remembers all her precious things
That were from the days of old,
When her people fell into the hand of the adversary
And (T)no one helped her.
The adversaries saw her;
They (U)laughed at her [h]ruin.
Heth
8 Jerusalem sinned (V)greatly;
Therefore (W)she has become an impure thing.
All who honored her despise her
Because they have seen her nakedness;
Even (X)she herself sighs and turns away.
Teth
9 Her (Y)uncleanness was in her skirts;
She did not remember her (Z)future.
Therefore she has (AA)gone down astonishingly;
(AB)She has no comforter.
“(AC)See, O Yahweh, my affliction,
For the enemy has (AD)magnified himself!”
Yodh
10 The adversary has stretched out his hand
Over all her desirable things,
For she has seen the (AE)nations enter her sanctuary,
The ones whom You commanded
That they should (AF)not enter into Your assembly.
Kaph
11 All her people are sighing, (AG)seeking bread;
They have given their desirable things for food
To (AH)restore their souls.
“See, O Yahweh, and look,
For I am (AI)despised.”
Lamedh
12 “Is (AJ)it nothing to all you who pass this way?
Look and see if there is any [i]pain like my [j]pain
Which was dealt severely to me,
Which (AK)Yahweh grieved me with on the day of His (AL)burning anger.
Mem
13 From on high He sent fire into my (AM)bones,
And it dominated them.
He has spread a (AN)net for my feet;
He has turned me back;
He has made me (AO)desolate,
[k]Faint all day long.
Nun
14 The (AP)yoke of my transgressions is bound;
By His hand they are knit together.
They have (AQ)come upon my neck;
He has made my strength stumble.
The Lord (AR)has given me into the hands
Of those against whom I am not able to stand.
Samekh
15 The (AS)Lord has rejected all my mighty men
In my midst;
He has called an appointed time against me
To break my (AT)young men;
The Lord has (AU)trodden as in a wine press
The virgin daughter of Judah.
Ayin
16 For these things I (AV)am weeping;
[l]My eyes run down with water;
Because far from me is a (AW)comforter,
One who restores my soul.
My children are desolate
Because the enemy has prevailed.”
Pe
17 Zion (AX)stretches out her hands;
There is no one to comfort her;
Yahweh has (AY)commanded concerning Jacob
That the ones round about him should be his adversaries;
(AZ)Jerusalem has become an impure thing among them.
Tsadhe
18 “Yahweh is (BA)righteous;
For I have (BB)rebelled against His [m]command;
Hear now, all peoples,
And (BC)behold my [n]pain;
(BD)My virgins and my young men
Have gone into captivity.
Qoph
19 I (BE)called to my lovers, but they deceived me;
My (BF)priests and my elders breathed their last in the city
While they sought food for themselves in order to (BG)restore their souls.
Resh
20 See, O Yahweh, for I am in distress;
My [o](BH)inmost being is greatly disturbed;
My heart is overturned within me,
For I have been very (BI)rebellious.
In the street the sword bereaves;
In the house it is like death.
Shin
21 They have heard that I (BJ)am sighing;
There is no one to comfort me;
All my enemies have heard of the [p]evil done to me;
They (BK)rejoice that You have done it.
You have brought the day which You have proclaimed,
So that they will become (BL)like me.
Tav
22 Let all their evil come before You;
And (BM)deal severely with them as You have dealt severely with me
For all my transgressions;
For my groans are great and my heart is faint.”
Footnotes
- Lamentations 1:1 Or districts
- Lamentations 1:3 Or narrow places
- Lamentations 1:4 Or to
- Lamentations 1:4 Or suffers bitterly
- Lamentations 1:5 Lit head
- Lamentations 1:5 The personal covenant name of God, a form of I AM WHO I AM, cf. Ex 3:14-15
- Lamentations 1:6 Lit gone
- Lamentations 1:7 Lit cessation
- Lamentations 1:12 Or sorrow
- Lamentations 1:12 Or sorrow
- Lamentations 1:13 Or Sick
- Lamentations 1:16 Lit My eye, my eye
- Lamentations 1:18 Lit mouth
- Lamentations 1:18 Or sorrow
- Lamentations 1:20 Lit inward parts are in ferment
- Lamentations 1:21 Or calamity
Lamentations 1
Christian Standard Bible
Lament over Jerusalem
א Aleph
1 How[a] she sits alone,(A)
the city(B) once crowded with people!
She who was great among the nations
has become like a widow.(C)
The princess among the provinces
has been put to forced labor.
ב Beth
2 She weeps bitterly during the night,(D)
with tears on her cheeks.
There is no one to offer her comfort,
not one from all her lovers.[b](E)
All her friends have betrayed her;
they have become her enemies.
ג Gimel
3 Judah has gone into exile
following[c] affliction and harsh slavery;
she lives among the nations
but finds no place to rest.(F)
All her pursuers have overtaken her
in narrow places.
ד Daleth
4 The roads to Zion(G) mourn,
for no one comes to the appointed festivals.(H)
All her gates are deserted;
her priests groan,
her young women grieve,
and she herself is bitter.
ה He
5 Her adversaries have become her masters;(I)
her enemies are at ease,(J)
for the Lord has made her suffer
because of her many transgressions.
Her children have gone away
as captives before the adversary.
ו Waw
6 All the splendor(K) has vanished
from Daughter Zion.(L)
Her leaders are like stags
that find no pasture;
they stumble away exhausted
before the hunter.(M)
ז Zayin
7 During the days of her affliction and homelessness(N)
Jerusalem remembers all her precious belongings
that were hers in days of old.
When her people fell into the adversary’s hand,
she had no one to help.
The adversaries looked at her,
laughing over her downfall.
ח Cheth
8 Jerusalem has sinned grievously;
therefore, she has become an object of scorn.[d]
All who honored her now despise her,
for they have seen her nakedness.
She herself groans and turns away.
ט Teth
9 Her uncleanness stains her skirts.(O)
She never considered her end.
Her downfall was astonishing;(P)
there was no one to comfort her.
Lord, look on my affliction,
for the enemy boasts.
י Yod
10 The adversary has seized
all her precious belongings.
She has even seen the nations
enter her sanctuary—
those you had forbidden
to enter your assembly.(Q)
כ Kaph
11 All her people groan
while they search for bread.(R)
They have traded their precious belongings for food
in order to stay alive.(S)
Lord, look and see
how I have become despised.
ל Lamed
12 Is this nothing to you, all you who pass by?(T)
Look and see!
Is there any pain like mine,
which was dealt out to me,
which the Lord made me suffer
on the day of his burning anger?(U)
מ Mem
13 He sent fire from on high(V) into my bones;
he made it descend.[e](W)
He spread a net for my feet(X)
and turned me back.
He made me desolate,
sick all day long.
נ Nun
14 My transgressions have been formed into a yoke,[f][g](Y)
fastened together by his hand;
they have been placed on my neck,
and the Lord has broken my strength.
He has handed me over
to those I cannot withstand.
ס Samek
15 The Lord has rejected(Z)
all the mighty men within me.
He has summoned an army[h] against me
to crush my young warriors.
The Lord has trampled Virgin Daughter Judah(AA)
like grapes in a winepress.(AB)
ע Ayin
16 I weep because of these things;
my eyes flow[i] with tears.(AC)
For there is no one nearby to comfort me,(AD)
no one to keep me alive.
My children are desolate
because the enemy has prevailed.
פ Pe
17 Zion stretches out her hands;
there is no one to comfort her.
The Lord has issued a decree against Jacob
that his neighbors should be his adversaries.
Jerusalem has become
something impure(AE) among them.
צ Tsade
18 The Lord is just,
for I have rebelled against his command.(AF)
Listen, all you people;
look at my pain.
My young women and young men
have gone into captivity.(AG)
ק Qoph
19 I called to my lovers,(AH)
but they betrayed me.
My priests and elders
perished in the city
while searching for food
to keep themselves alive.(AI)
ר Resh
20 Lord, see how I am in distress.
I am churning within;(AJ)
my heart is broken,[j]
for I have been very rebellious.
Outside, the sword takes the children;
inside, there is death.(AK)
שׁ Shin
21 People have heard me groaning,(AL)
but there is no one to comfort me.
All my enemies have heard of my misfortune;
they are glad that you have caused it.(AM)
Bring on the day you have announced,
so that they may become like me.(AN)
ת Taw
22 Let all their wickedness come before you,
and deal with them
as you have dealt with me
because of all my transgressions.(AO)
For my groans are many,
and I am sick at heart.
Footnotes
- 1:1 The stanzas in Lm 1–4 form an acrostic.
- 1:2 = Jerusalem’s political allies
- 1:3 Or because of
- 1:8 Or become impure
- 1:13 DSS, LXX; MT reads bones, and it prevailed against them
- 1:14 Some Hb mss, LXX read He kept watch over my transgressions
- 1:14 Or The yoke of my transgressions is bound; Hb obscure
- 1:15 Or has announced an appointed time
- 1:16 Lit my eye, my eye flows
- 1:20 Lit is turned within me
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