Lamentations 3
English Standard Version
Great Is Your Faithfulness
3 (A)I am the man who has seen affliction
under the (B)rod of his wrath;
2 he has driven and brought me
(C)into darkness without any light;
3 surely against me he turns his hand
again and again the whole day long.
4 He has made my flesh and my skin waste away;
(D)he has broken my bones;
5 (E)he has besieged and enveloped me
with (F)bitterness and tribulation;
6 (G)he has made me dwell in darkness
like the dead of long ago.
7 (H)He has walled me about so that (I)I cannot escape;
he has made my chains heavy;
8 though (J)I call and cry for help,
he shuts out my prayer;
9 (K)he has blocked my ways with blocks of stones;
he has made my paths crooked.
10 (L)He is a bear lying in wait for me,
a lion in hiding;
11 (M)he turned aside my steps and (N)tore me to pieces;
(O)he has made me desolate;
12 (P)he bent his bow (Q)and set me
as a target for his arrow.
13 He drove into my kidneys
(R)the arrows of his quiver;
14 (S)I have become the laughingstock of all peoples,
(T)the object of their taunts all day long.
15 (U)He has filled me with bitterness;
he has sated me with (V)wormwood.
16 (W)He has made my teeth grind on gravel,
and (X)made me cower in ashes;
17 my soul is bereft of peace;
I have forgotten what happiness[a] is;
18 (Y)so I say, “My endurance has perished;
so has my hope from the Lord.”
19 (Z)Remember my affliction and my wanderings,
(AA)the wormwood and (AB)the gall!
20 My soul continually remembers it
(AC)and is bowed down within me.
21 But this I call to mind,
and (AD)therefore I have hope:
22 (AE)The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;[b]
(AF)his mercies never come to an end;
23 they are new (AG)every morning;
(AH)great is your faithfulness.
24 (AI)“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
(AJ)“therefore I will hope in him.”
25 The Lord is good to those who (AK)wait for him,
to the soul who seeks him.
26 (AL)It is good that one should wait quietly
for the salvation of the Lord.
27 (AM)It is good for a man that he bear
the yoke (AN)in his youth.
28 Let him (AO)sit alone in silence
when it is laid on him;
29 (AP)let him put his mouth in the dust—
there may yet be hope;
30 (AQ)let him give his cheek to the one who strikes,
and let him be filled with insults.
31 (AR)For the Lord will not
cast off forever,
32 but, though he (AS)cause grief, (AT)he will have compassion
(AU)according to the abundance of his steadfast love;
33 (AV)for he does not afflict from his heart
or (AW)grieve the children of men.
34 To crush underfoot
all (AX)the prisoners of the earth,
35 (AY)to deny a man justice
in the presence of the Most High,
36 to subvert a man in his lawsuit,
(AZ)the Lord does not approve.
37 (BA)Who has spoken and it came to pass,
unless the Lord has commanded it?
38 (BB)Is it not from the mouth of the Most High
that good and bad come?
39 (BC)Why should a living man complain,
a man, about the punishment of his sins?
40 Let us test and examine our ways,
(BD)and return to the Lord!
41 (BE)Let us lift up our hearts and hands
to God in heaven:
42 (BF)“We have transgressed and (BG)rebelled,
and you have not forgiven.
43 “You have wrapped yourself with anger and pursued us,
(BH)killing without pity;
44 (BI)you have wrapped yourself with a cloud
so that no prayer can pass through.
45 (BJ)You have made us scum and garbage
among the peoples.
46 (BK)“All our enemies
open their mouths against us;
47 (BL)panic and pitfall have come upon us,
devastation and (BM)destruction;
48 (BN)my eyes flow with rivers of tears
because of the destruction of the daughter of my people.
49 (BO)“My eyes will flow without ceasing,
without respite,
50 (BP)until the Lord from heaven
looks down and sees;
51 my eyes cause me grief
at the fate of all the daughters of my city.
52 (BQ)“I have been hunted (BR)like a bird
by those who were my enemies (BS)without cause;
53 (BT)they flung me alive into the pit
(BU)and cast stones on me;
54 (BV)water closed over my head;
I said, (BW)‘I am lost.’
55 (BX)“I called on your name, O Lord,
from the depths of the pit;
56 (BY)you heard my plea, ‘Do not close
your ear to my cry for help!’
57 (BZ)You came near when I called on you;
you said, (CA)‘Do not fear!’
58 “You have (CB)taken up my cause, (CC)O Lord;
you have (CD)redeemed my life.
59 You have seen the wrong done to me, (CE)O Lord;
judge my cause.
60 You have seen all their vengeance,
all (CF)their plots against me.
61 (CG)“You have heard their taunts, O Lord,
all (CH)their plots against me.
62 The lips and thoughts (CI)of my assailants
are against me all the day long.
63 (CJ)Behold their sitting and their rising;
(CK)I am the object of their taunts.
64 (CL)“You will repay them,[c] O Lord,
(CM)according to the work of their hands.
65 You will give them[d] dullness of heart;
your curse will be[e] on them.
66 You will pursue them[f] in anger and (CN)destroy them
from under (CO)your heavens, O Lord.”[g]
Footnotes
- Lamentations 3:17 Hebrew good
- Lamentations 3:22 Syriac, Targum; Hebrew Because of the steadfast love of the Lord, we are not cut off
- Lamentations 3:64 Or Repay them
- Lamentations 3:65 Or Give them
- Lamentations 3:65 Or place your curse
- Lamentations 3:66 Or Pursue them
- Lamentations 3:66 Syriac (compare Septuagint, Vulgate); Hebrew the heavens of the Lord
Lamentations 3
Lexham English Bible
Israel’s Affliction
3 I am a man who has seen misery,
under the rod of his wrath.
2 He has driven me along, he brought
darkness and not light.
3 Surely he has turned his hand against me,
all day long.
4 He has worn out my flesh and skin,
he has broken my bones.
5 He has besieged[a] and engulfed me
with bitterness and hardship.
6 In darkness he has let me dwell
like the dead of long ago.
7 He has built a wall around me, I cannot go out;
he has made my bronze fetters heavy.
8 Though I cry out for help,
he shuts out my prayers.
9 He has blocked my ways with dressed stones;
he has made my paths crooked.
10 To me he is like a bear lying in wait,
a lion in hiding.
11 He has forsaken my way and torn me to pieces;
he has caused me desolation.
12 He has bent his bow and set me
as the target for the arrow.
13 He shot the arrows of his quiver[b]
into my kidneys.
14 I have become a laughingstock for all the people,
their mocking song all day long.
15 He has filled me with bitterness,
he has drenched me with wormwood.
16 He has broken my teeth on grit,
he has trampled me down in ash.
17 My life has been removed from peace,
I have forgotten goodness.
18 And I have said, “My glory is ruined,
my expectation from Yahweh.”
19 Remember my misery and bitterness,
the wormwood[c] and venom!
20 Surely my soul remembers
and bows down within me.
21 This I have reminded myself,[d]
therefore I will hope.
22 The loyal love of Yahweh does not cease;
his compassions do not come to an end.
23 They are new in the morning,
great is your faithfulness.
24 “Yahweh is my portion,”
says my soul,
“Thus I will hope on him.”
25 Yahweh is good to those who wait on him,
to the person that seeks him.
26 It is good to wait in silence
for the salvation of Yahweh.
27 It is good for a man who carries
the yoke of his childhood.
28 Let him sit alone and be silent
when he[e] has laid it on him.
29 Let him put[f] his mouth in the dust;
perhaps there is hope.
30 Let him give a cheek to his smiter,
let him be filled with disgrace.
31 For the Lord will not reject
forever.
32 For even though he causes grief he has compassion
according to the greatness of his royal love.
33 He does not afflict willingly,[g]
or grieve anyone.[h]
34 To crush under his feet
all the prisoners of the earth;
35 to deprive one of justice[i]
before the face of the Most High;
36 to subvert a person in a legal dispute
—the Lord has not found delight in these things.
37 Who can speak[j] and it will happen
if the Lord has not commanded it?
38 Is it not from the mouth of the Most High
that disaster and good will come?
39 Why should any living person complain
about his sin?
40 Let us test and examine our ways;
let us return to Yahweh.
41 Let us lift up our hearts with our hands
to God in the heavens.
42 We ourselves have transgressed and rebelled,
you have not forgiven.
43 You have covered yourself in anger[k] and pursued us,
you have slain and not shown mercy.
44 You have covered yourself in a cloud
so that prayer cannot pass through.[l]
45 You have made us scum and refuse
in the midst of the nations.
46 All our enemies
have opened their mouth against us.
47 Fear and a pit have come upon us,
desolation and destruction.
48 Channels of water run down my eyes
because of the destruction of the daughter of my people.
49 My eyes have poured down unceasingly
without respite,
50 until Yahweh looks down
and sees from heaven.
51 My eyes inflict my soul
because of all the daughters of my city.
52 My enemies hunt me without cause,
like a bird.
53 They have silenced me in a pit,[m]
they have thrown a stone at me.
54 Water has flown over my head,
I said, “I am cut off.”
55 I have called your name, O Yahweh,
from the depths of the pit.
56 You have heard my cry, “Do not shut your ear
to my cry for help, for my relief!”
57 You came near on a day when I called you,
you said, “Do not fear!”
58 O Lord, you have pleaded for my cause,[n]
you have redeemed my life.
59 You have seen my injustice, O Yahweh;
judge my case.
60 You have seen all their vengeance,
all there plans against me.
61 You have heard their disgrace, O Yahweh,
all their plans against me.
62 The lips and meditation of my assailants
are against me all day long.
63 Look at their sitting and their standing,
I am their mocking song.
64 Return to them what is deserved, O Yahweh,
according to the work of their hands.
65 Give them a stubborn heart;
curse them!
66 Pursue them in anger[o] and destroy them
from under the heavens of Yahweh.
Footnotes
- Lamentations 3:5 Literally “he has built against”
- Lamentations 3:13 Literally “the offspring of his arrow quiver”
- Lamentations 3:19 Or “the bitter substance”
- Lamentations 3:21 Literally “I have brought back to my heart”
- Lamentations 3:28 Yahweh
- Lamentations 3:29 Literally “him give”
- Lamentations 3:33 Literally “afflict from the heart”
- Lamentations 3:33 Literally “the sons of men”
- Lamentations 3:35 Literally “to turn aside the judgment of a man”
- Lamentations 3:37 Literally “Who is this that speaks”
- Lamentations 3:43 Literally “in the nose”
- Lamentations 3:44 Literally “from a passing prayer”
- Lamentations 3:53 Literally “they have put to silence my life in a pit”
- Lamentations 3:58 Literally “the legal disputes of my soul”
- Lamentations 3:66 Literally “in nose”
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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