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Lamentations 3:37-5:22
Revised Standard Version
Lamentations 3:37-5:22
Revised Standard Version
37 Who has commanded and it came to pass,
unless the Lord has ordained it?
38 Is it not from the mouth of the Most High
that good and evil come?
39 Why should a living man complain,
a man, about the punishment of his sins?
40 Let us test and examine our ways,
and return to the Lord!
41 Let us lift up our hearts and hands
to God in heaven:
42 “We have transgressed and rebelled,
and thou hast not forgiven.
43 “Thou hast wrapped thyself with anger and pursued us,
slaying without pity;
44 thou hast wrapped thyself with a cloud
so that no prayer can pass through.
45 Thou hast made us offscouring and refuse
among the peoples.
46 “All our enemies
rail against us;
47 panic and pitfall have come upon us,
devastation and destruction;
48 my eyes flow with rivers of tears
because of the destruction of the daughter of my people.
49 “My eyes will flow without ceasing,
without respite,
50 until the Lord from heaven
looks down and sees;
51 my eyes cause me grief
at the fate of all the maidens of my city.
52 “I have been hunted like a bird
by those who were my enemies without cause;
53 they flung me alive into the pit
and cast stones on me;
54 water closed over my head;
I said, ‘I am lost.’
55 “I called on thy name, O Lord,
from the depths of the pit;
56 thou didst hear my plea, ‘Do not close
thine ear to my cry for help!’[a]
57 Thou didst come near when I called on thee;
thou didst say, ‘Do not fear!’
58 “Thou hast taken up my cause, O Lord,
thou hast redeemed my life.
59 Thou hast seen the wrong done to me, O Lord;
judge thou my cause.
60 Thou hast seen all their vengeance, all their devices against me.
61 “Thou hast heard their taunts, O Lord,
all their devices against me.
62 The lips and thoughts of my assailants
are against me all the day long.
63 Behold their sitting and their rising;
I am the burden of their songs.
64 “Thou wilt requite them, O Lord,
according to the work of their hands.
65 Thou wilt give them dullness of heart;
thy curse will be on them.
66 Thou wilt pursue them in anger and destroy them
from under thy heavens, O Lord.”[b]
The Punishment of Zion
4 How the gold has grown dim,
how the pure gold is changed!
The holy stones lie scattered
at the head of every street.
2 The precious sons of Zion,
worth their weight in fine gold,
how they are reckoned as earthen pots,
the work of a potter’s hands!
3 Even the jackals give the breast
and suckle their young,
but the daughter of my people has become cruel,
like the ostriches in the wilderness.
4 The tongue of the nursling cleaves
to the roof of its mouth for thirst;
the children beg for food,
but no one gives to them.
5 Those who feasted on dainties
perish in the streets;
those who were brought up in purple
lie on ash heaps.
6 For the chastisement[c] of the daughter of my people has been greater
than the punishment[d] of Sodom,
which was overthrown in a moment,
no hand being laid on it.[e]
7 Her princes were purer than snow,
whiter than milk;
their bodies were more ruddy than coral,
the beauty of their form[f] was like sapphire.[g]
8 Now their visage is blacker than soot,
they are not recognized in the streets;
their skin has shriveled upon their bones,
it has become as dry as wood.
9 Happier were the victims of the sword
than the victims of hunger,
who pined away, stricken
by want of the fruits of the field.
10 The hands of compassionate women
have boiled their own children;
they became their food
in the destruction of the daughter of my people.
11 The Lord gave full vent to his wrath,
he poured out his hot anger;
and he kindled a fire in Zion,
which consumed its foundations.
12 The kings of the earth did not believe,
or any of the inhabitants of the world,
that foe or enemy could enter
the gates of Jerusalem.
13 This was for the sins of her prophets
and the iniquities of her priests,
who shed in the midst of her
the blood of the righteous.
14 They wandered, blind, through the streets,
so defiled with blood
that none could touch
their garments.
15 “Away! Unclean!” men cried at them;
“Away! Away! Touch not!”
So they became fugitives and wanderers;
men said among the nations,
“They shall stay with us no longer.”
16 The Lord himself has scattered them,
he will regard them no more;
no honor was shown to the priests,
no favor to the elders.
17 Our eyes failed, ever watching
vainly for help;
in our watching[h] we watched
for a nation which could not save.
18 Men dogged our steps
so that we could not walk in our streets;
our end drew near; our days were numbered;
for our end had come.
19 Our pursuers were swifter
than the vultures in the heavens;
they chased us on the mountains,
they lay in wait for us in the wilderness.
20 The breath of our nostrils, the Lord’s anointed,
was taken in their pits,
he of whom we said, “Under his shadow
we shall live among the nations.”
21 Rejoice and be glad, O daughter of Edom,
dweller in the land of Uz;
but to you also the cup shall pass;
you shall become drunk and strip yourself bare.
22 The punishment of your iniquity, O daughter of Zion, is accomplished,
he will keep you in exile no longer;
but your iniquity, O daughter of Edom, he will punish,
he will uncover your sins.
A Plea for Mercy
5 Remember, O Lord, what has befallen us;
behold, and see our disgrace!
2 Our inheritance has been turned over to strangers,
our homes to aliens.
3 We have become orphans, fatherless;
our mothers are like widows.
4 We must pay for the water we drink,
the wood we get must be bought.
5 With a yoke[i] on our necks we are hard driven;
we are weary, we are given no rest.
6 We have given the hand to Egypt,
and to Assyria, to get bread enough.
7 Our fathers sinned, and are no more;
and we bear their iniquities.
8 Slaves rule over us;
there is none to deliver us from their hand.
9 We get our bread at the peril of our lives,
because of the sword in the wilderness.
10 Our skin is hot as an oven
with the burning heat of famine.
11 Women are ravished in Zion,
virgins in the towns of Judah.
12 Princes are hung up by their hands;
no respect is shown to the elders.
13 Young men are compelled to grind at the mill;
and boys stagger under loads of wood.
14 The old men have quit the city gate,
the young men their music.
15 The joy of our hearts has ceased;
our dancing has been turned to mourning.
16 The crown has fallen from our head;
woe to us, for we have sinned!
17 For this our heart has become sick,
for these things our eyes have grown dim,
18 for Mount Zion which lies desolate;
jackals prowl over it.
19 But thou, O Lord, dost reign for ever;
thy throne endures to all generations.
20 Why dost thou forget us for ever,
why dost thou so long forsake us?
21 Restore us to thyself, O Lord, that we may be restored!
Renew our days as of old!
22 Or hast thou utterly rejected us?
Art thou exceedingly angry with us?
Footnotes
- Lamentations 3:56 Heb uncertain
- Lamentations 3:66 Syr Compare Gk Vg: Heb the heavens of the Lord
- Lamentations 4:6 Or iniquity
- Lamentations 4:6 Or sin
- Lamentations 4:6 Heb uncertain
- Lamentations 4:7 Heb uncertain
- Lamentations 4:7 Heb lapis lazuli
- Lamentations 4:17 Heb uncertain
- Lamentations 5:5 Symmachus: Heb lacks with a yoke
Lamentations 3:37-5:22
New International Version
Lamentations 3:37-5:22
New International Version
37 Who can speak and have it happen
if the Lord has not decreed it?(A)
38 Is it not from the mouth of the Most High
that both calamities and good things come?(B)
39 Why should the living complain
when punished for their sins?(C)
40 Let us examine our ways and test them,(D)
and let us return to the Lord.(E)
41 Let us lift up our hearts and our hands
to God in heaven,(F) and say:
42 “We have sinned and rebelled(G)
and you have not forgiven.(H)
43 “You have covered yourself with anger and pursued(I) us;
you have slain without pity.(J)
44 You have covered yourself with a cloud(K)
so that no prayer(L) can get through.(M)
45 You have made us scum(N) and refuse
among the nations.
46 “All our enemies have opened their mouths
wide(O) against us.(P)
47 We have suffered terror and pitfalls,(Q)
ruin and destruction.(R)”
48 Streams of tears(S) flow from my eyes(T)
because my people are destroyed.(U)
49 My eyes will flow unceasingly,
without relief,(V)
50 until the Lord looks down
from heaven and sees.(W)
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.(X)
53 They tried to end my life in a pit(Y)
and threw stones at me;
54 the waters closed over my head,(Z)
and I thought I was about to perish.(AA)
55 I called on your name, Lord,
from the depths(AB) of the pit.(AC)
56 You heard my plea:(AD) “Do not close your ears
to my cry for relief.”
57 You came near(AE) when I called you,
and you said, “Do not fear.”(AF)
58 You, Lord, took up my case;(AG)
you redeemed my life.(AH)
59 Lord, you have seen the wrong done to me.(AI)
Uphold my cause!(AJ)
60 You have seen the depth of their vengeance,
all their plots against me.(AK)
61 Lord, you have heard their insults,(AL)
all their plots against me—
62 what my enemies whisper and mutter
against me all day long.(AM)
63 Look at them! Sitting or standing,
they mock me in their songs.(AN)
64 Pay them back what they deserve, Lord,
for what their hands have done.(AO)
65 Put a veil over their hearts,(AP)
and may your curse be on them!
66 Pursue(AQ) them in anger and destroy them
from under the heavens of the Lord.
4 [a]How the gold has lost its luster,
the fine gold become dull!
The sacred gems are scattered
at every street corner.(AR)
2 How the precious children of Zion,(AS)
once worth their weight in gold,
are now considered as pots of clay,
the work of a potter’s hands!
3 Even jackals offer their breasts
to nurse their young,
but my people have become heartless
like ostriches in the desert.(AT)
4 Because of thirst(AU) the infant’s tongue
sticks to the roof of its mouth;(AV)
the children beg for bread,
but no one gives it to them.(AW)
5 Those who once ate delicacies
are destitute in the streets.
Those brought up in royal purple(AX)
now lie on ash heaps.(AY)
6 The punishment of my people
is greater than that of Sodom,(AZ)
which was overthrown in a moment
without a hand turned to help her.
7 Their princes were brighter than snow
and whiter than milk,
their bodies more ruddy than rubies,
their appearance like lapis lazuli.
8 But now they are blacker(BA) than soot;
they are not recognized in the streets.
Their skin has shriveled on their bones;(BB)
it has become as dry as a stick.
9 Those killed by the sword are better off
than those who die of famine;(BC)
racked with hunger, they waste away
for lack of food from the field.(BD)
10 With their own hands compassionate women
have cooked their own children,(BE)
who became their food
when my people were destroyed.
11 The Lord has given full vent to his wrath;(BF)
he has poured out(BG) his fierce anger.(BH)
He kindled a fire(BI) in Zion
that consumed her foundations.(BJ)
12 The kings of the earth did not believe,
nor did any of the peoples of the world,
that enemies and foes could enter
the gates of Jerusalem.(BK)
13 But it happened because of the sins of her prophets
and the iniquities of her priests,(BL)
who shed within her
the blood(BM) of the righteous.
14 Now they grope through the streets
as if they were blind.(BN)
They are so defiled with blood(BO)
that no one dares to touch their garments.
15 “Go away! You are unclean!” people cry to them.
“Away! Away! Don’t touch us!”
When they flee and wander(BP) about,
people among the nations say,
“They can stay here no longer.”(BQ)
16 The Lord himself has scattered them;
he no longer watches over them.(BR)
The priests are shown no honor,
the elders(BS) no favor.(BT)
17 Moreover, our eyes failed,
looking in vain(BU) for help;(BV)
from our towers we watched
for a nation(BW) that could not save us.
18 People stalked us at every step,
so we could not walk in our streets.
Our end was near, our days were numbered,
for our end had come.(BX)
19 Our pursuers were swifter
than eagles(BY) in the sky;
they chased us(BZ) over the mountains
and lay in wait for us in the desert.(CA)
20 The Lord’s anointed,(CB) our very life breath,
was caught in their traps.(CC)
We thought that under his shadow(CD)
we would live among the nations.
21 Rejoice and be glad, Daughter Edom,
you who live in the land of Uz.(CE)
But to you also the cup(CF) will be passed;
you will be drunk and stripped naked.(CG)
22 Your punishment will end, Daughter Zion;(CH)
he will not prolong your exile.
But he will punish your sin, Daughter Edom,
and expose your wickedness.(CI)
5 Remember, Lord, what has happened to us;
look, and see our disgrace.(CJ)
2 Our inheritance(CK) has been turned over to strangers,(CL)
our homes(CM) to foreigners.(CN)
3 We have become fatherless,
our mothers are widows.(CO)
4 We must buy the water we drink;(CP)
our wood can be had only at a price.(CQ)
5 Those who pursue us are at our heels;
we are weary(CR) and find no rest.(CS)
6 We submitted to Egypt and Assyria(CT)
to get enough bread.
7 Our ancestors(CU) sinned and are no more,
and we bear their punishment.(CV)
8 Slaves(CW) rule over us,
and there is no one to free us from their hands.(CX)
9 We get our bread at the risk of our lives
because of the sword in the desert.
10 Our skin is hot as an oven,
feverish from hunger.(CY)
11 Women have been violated(CZ) in Zion,
and virgins in the towns of Judah.
12 Princes have been hung up by their hands;
elders(DA) are shown no respect.(DB)
13 Young men toil at the millstones;
boys stagger under loads of wood.
14 The elders are gone from the city gate;
the young men have stopped their music.(DC)
15 Joy is gone from our hearts;
our dancing has turned to mourning.(DD)
16 The crown(DE) has fallen from our head.(DF)
Woe to us, for we have sinned!(DG)
17 Because of this our hearts(DH) are faint,(DI)
because of these things our eyes(DJ) grow dim(DK)
18 for Mount Zion,(DL) which lies desolate,(DM)
with jackals prowling over it.
19 You, Lord, reign forever;(DN)
your throne endures(DO) from generation to generation.
20 Why do you always forget us?(DP)
Why do you forsake(DQ) us so long?
21 Restore(DR) us to yourself, Lord, that we may return;
renew our days as of old
22 unless you have utterly rejected us(DS)
and are angry with us beyond measure.(DT)
Footnotes
- Lamentations 4:1 This chapter is an acrostic poem, the verses of which begin with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet.
Revised Standard Version (RSV)
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New International Version (NIV) 
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