Lamentations 1:1-9
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!”
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 1:1-9
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.
Footnotes
- Lamentations 1:1 This chapter is an acrostic poem, the verses of which begin with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet.
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