Lamentations 3:19-66
New American Standard Bible
Hope of Relief in God’s Mercy
19 Remember my misery and my homelessness, the (A)wormwood and [a]bitterness.
20 (B)My soul certainly remembers,
And [b]is (C)bent over within me.
21 I recall this to my mind,
Therefore I [c](D)wait.
22 [d]The Lord’s (E)acts of mercy indeed do not end,
(F)For His compassions do not fail.
23 They are new (G)every morning;
Great is (H)Your faithfulness.
24 “The Lord is my (I)portion,” says my soul,
“Therefore I [e](J)wait for Him.”
25 The Lord is good to those who [f](K)await Him,
To the [g]person who (L)seeks Him.
26 It is good that he (M)waits silently
For the salvation of the Lord.
27 It is good for a man to bear
The yoke in his youth.
28 Let him (N)sit alone and keep quiet,
Since He has laid it on him.
29 Let him [h]put his mouth in the (O)dust;
Perhaps there is (P)hope.
30 Let him give his (Q)cheek to the one who is going to strike him;
Let him be filled with shame.
31 For the Lord will (R)not reject forever,
32 For if He causes grief,
Then He will have (S)compassion
In proportion to His abundant mercy.
33 For He (T)does not [i]afflict [j]willingly
Or [k]grieve the sons of mankind.
34 To crush under [l]one’s feet
All the prisoners of the [m]land,
35 To [n]deprive a man of (U)justice
In the presence of the Most High,
36 To [o](V)defraud someone in his lawsuit—
Of these things the Lord does not [p]approve.
37 Who is [q]there who speaks and it (W)comes to pass,
Unless the Lord has commanded it?
38 Is it not from the mouth of the Most High
That [r](X)both adversity and good proceed?
39 Of what can any living [s]mortal, or any man,
(Y)Complain [t]in view of his sins?
40 Let’s (Z)examine and search out our ways,
And let’s return to the Lord.
41 We (AA)raise our heart [u]and hands
Toward God in heaven;
42 We have (AB)done wrong and rebelled;
You have (AC)not pardoned.
43 You have covered Yourself with (AD)anger
And (AE)pursued us;
You have slain and (AF)have not spared.
44 You have (AG)veiled Yourself with a cloud
So that (AH)no prayer can pass through.
45 You have made us mere (AI)refuse and rubbish
In the midst of the peoples.
46 All our enemies have (AJ)opened their mouths against us.
47 (AK)Panic and pitfall have come upon us,
Devastation and destruction;
48 My [v](AL)eyes run down with streams of water
Because of the destruction of the daughter of my people.
49 My eyes flow (AM)unceasingly,
Without stopping,
50 Until the Lord (AN)looks down
And sees from heaven.
51 My eyes bring pain to my soul
Because of all the daughters of my city.
52 My enemies (AO)without reason
Hunted me down (AP)like a bird;
53 They have silenced [w]me (AQ)in the pit
And have [x](AR)thrown stones on me.
54 Waters flowed (AS)over my head;
I said, “I am [y]cut off!”
55 I (AT)called on Your name, Lord,
Out of the lowest pit.
56 You have (AU)heard my voice,
“(AV)Do not cover Your ear from my plea for relief,
From my cry for help.”
57 You (AW)came near on the day I called to You;
You said, “(AX)Do not fear!”
58 Lord, You (AY)have pleaded my soul’s cause;
You have (AZ)redeemed my life.
59 Lord, You have (BA)seen my oppression;
(BB)Judge my case.
60 You have seen all their vengeance,
All their (BC)schemes against me.
61 You have heard their (BD)reproach, Lord,
All their schemes against me.
62 The (BE)lips of my assailants and their talk
Are against me all day long.
63 Look at their [z](BF)sitting and their rising;
(BG)I am their mocking song.
64 You will (BH)repay them, Lord,
In accordance with the work of their hands.
65 You will give them [aa](BI)shamelessness of heart,
Your curse will be on them.
66 You will (BJ)pursue them in anger and eliminate them
From under the (BK)heavens of the Lord!
Footnotes
- Lamentations 3:19 Lit poison
- Lamentations 3:20 Or bows down
- Lamentations 3:21 Lit have hope
- Lamentations 3:22 As in ancient versions; MT It is...mercy that we do not end
- Lamentations 3:24 Or hope in
- Lamentations 3:25 Or hope in
- Lamentations 3:25 Lit soul
- Lamentations 3:29 Lit give
- Lamentations 3:33 Or oppress
- Lamentations 3:33 Lit from His heart
- Lamentations 3:33 Or torment
- Lamentations 3:34 Lit his
- Lamentations 3:34 Or earth
- Lamentations 3:35 Or turn aside a man’s case
- Lamentations 3:36 Lit bend
- Lamentations 3:36 Lit see
- Lamentations 3:37 Lit this
- Lamentations 3:38 Lit the evil things and the good
- Lamentations 3:39 Or human being
- Lamentations 3:39 Or on the basis of
- Lamentations 3:41 Lit toward our
- Lamentations 3:48 Lit eye goes down
- Lamentations 3:53 Lit my life
- Lamentations 3:53 Or thrown a stone
- Lamentations 3:54 Or destroyed
- Lamentations 3:63 I.e., daily activities
- Lamentations 3:65 Or insanity
Lamentations 3:19-66
New International Version
19 I remember my affliction and my wandering,
the bitterness(A) and the gall.(B)
20 I well remember them,
and my soul is downcast(C) within me.(D)
21 Yet this I call to mind
and therefore I have hope:
22 Because of the Lord’s great love(E) we are not consumed,(F)
for his compassions never fail.(G)
23 They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.(H)
24 I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion;(I)
therefore I will wait for him.”
25 The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him,
to the one who seeks him;(J)
26 it is good to wait quietly(K)
for the salvation of the Lord.(L)
27 It is good for a man to bear the yoke
while he is young.
28 Let him sit alone in silence,(M)
for the Lord has laid it on him.
29 Let him bury his face in the dust(N)—
there may yet be hope.(O)
30 Let him offer his cheek to one who would strike him,(P)
and let him be filled with disgrace.(Q)
31 For no one is cast off
by the Lord forever.(R)
32 Though he brings grief, he will show compassion,
so great is his unfailing love.(S)
33 For he does not willingly bring affliction
or grief to anyone.(T)
34 To crush underfoot
all prisoners in the land,
35 to deny people their rights
before the Most High,(U)
36 to deprive them of justice—
would not the Lord see such things?(V)
37 Who can speak and have it happen
if the Lord has not decreed it?(W)
38 Is it not from the mouth of the Most High
that both calamities and good things come?(X)
39 Why should the living complain
when punished for their sins?(Y)
40 Let us examine our ways and test them,(Z)
and let us return to the Lord.(AA)
41 Let us lift up our hearts and our hands
to God in heaven,(AB) and say:
42 “We have sinned and rebelled(AC)
and you have not forgiven.(AD)
43 “You have covered yourself with anger and pursued(AE) us;
you have slain without pity.(AF)
44 You have covered yourself with a cloud(AG)
so that no prayer(AH) can get through.(AI)
45 You have made us scum(AJ) and refuse
among the nations.
46 “All our enemies have opened their mouths
wide(AK) against us.(AL)
47 We have suffered terror and pitfalls,(AM)
ruin and destruction.(AN)”
48 Streams of tears(AO) flow from my eyes(AP)
because my people are destroyed.(AQ)
49 My eyes will flow unceasingly,
without relief,(AR)
50 until the Lord looks down
from heaven and sees.(AS)
51 What I see brings grief to my soul
because of all the women of my city.
52 Those who were my enemies without cause
hunted me like a bird.(AT)
53 They tried to end my life in a pit(AU)
and threw stones at me;
54 the waters closed over my head,(AV)
and I thought I was about to perish.(AW)
55 I called on your name, Lord,
from the depths(AX) of the pit.(AY)
56 You heard my plea:(AZ) “Do not close your ears
to my cry for relief.”
57 You came near(BA) when I called you,
and you said, “Do not fear.”(BB)
58 You, Lord, took up my case;(BC)
you redeemed my life.(BD)
59 Lord, you have seen the wrong done to me.(BE)
Uphold my cause!(BF)
60 You have seen the depth of their vengeance,
all their plots against me.(BG)
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.