Lamentations 5
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Prayer for Restoration
5 Yahweh, remember what has happened to us.
Look, and see our disgrace!(A)
2 Our inheritance has been turned over to strangers,
our houses to foreigners.
3 We have become orphans, fatherless;
our mothers are widows.
4 We must pay for the water we drink;
our wood comes at a price.
5 We are closely pursued;
we are tired, and no one offers us rest.
6 We made a treaty with[a] Egypt
and with Assyria, to get enough food.(B)
7 Our fathers sinned; they no longer exist,
but we bear their punishment.
8 Slaves rule over us;(C)
no one rescues us from their hands.
9 We secure our food at the risk of our lives
because of the sword in the wilderness.
10 Our skin is as hot[b] as an oven(D)
from the ravages of hunger.
11 Women are raped in Zion,
girls in the cities of Judah.
12 Princes are hung up by their hands;
elders are shown no respect.(E)
13 Young men labor at millstones;(F)
boys stumble under loads of wood.
14 The elders have left the city gate,
the young men, their music.(G)
15 Joy has left our hearts;(H)
our dancing has turned to mourning.
16 The crown has fallen from our head.(I)
Woe to us, for we have sinned.(J)
17 Because of this, our heart is sick;
because of these, our eyes grow dim:(K)
18 because of Mount Zion, which lies desolate
and has jackals prowling in it.(L)
19 You, Lord, are enthroned forever;
Your throne endures from generation to generation.(M)
20 Why have You forgotten us forever,(N)
abandoned us for our entire lives?
21 Lord, restore us to Yourself, so we may return;(O)
renew our days as in former times,
22 unless You have completely rejected us
and are intensely angry with us.
Footnotes
- Lamentations 5:6 Lit We gave the hand to
- Lamentations 5:10 Or black; Hb obscure
Lamentations 5
International Standard Version
A Prayer for Deliverance
5 Lord, remember what has happened to us.
Pay attention, and look at our shame!
2 Our inheritance has[a] been turned over to strangers,
and our homes to foreigners.
3 We are now orphans—without fathers—
and our mothers are like widows.
4 We pay to drink our own water,
and our own wood is sold to us at high price.
5 Our pursuers breathe down[b] our necks;
we are weary, but there is no rest for us.
6 We made a deal with the Egyptians and the Assyrians
for the price of food.[c]
7 Our ancestors sinned and no longer exist
yet we continue to bear the consequences of their sin.
8 Slaves rule over us,
and no one delivers us from their control.[d]
9 We risk our lives to obtain our food,
facing death[e] in the desert.
10 Our skin blisters[f] as from an oven,
due to ravaging blasts of the famine.
11 They have raped women in Zion,
young women[g] in the towns of Judah.
12 Princes they have hung by their hands;
elders[h] they have disrespected.
13 Our[i] young men must grind grain with a millstone;
our[j] youths stumble under the weight of wood.
15 The joy of our hearts has ceased,
and our dancing has turned into dirges.
16 The crown has fallen from our head—
woe to us, because we have sinned!
17 This is why our hearts faint,
and why our eyes grow dim:
18 Because Mount Zion is desolate;
foxes roam around it.
19 You, Lord, are forever—
your throne endures from generation to generation.
20 So why have you completely forgotten us,
forsaking us for so long?
21 Restore us to yourself, Lord,
so that we may return.
Renew our days as before,
22 unless you have utterly rejected us
and are angry with us without limit.
Footnotes
- Lamentations 5:2 Or possessions have
- Lamentations 5:5 Lit. pursuers are on
- Lamentations 5:6 Lit. Assyrians, being satisfied with bread
- Lamentations 5:8 Lit. hand
- Lamentations 5:9 Lit. facing the sword
- Lamentations 5:10 Lit. blackens
- Lamentations 5:11 Lit. the virgins
- Lamentations 5:12 Lit. the faces of the elders
- Lamentations 5:13 The Heb. lacks Our
- Lamentations 5:13 The Heb. lacks our
- Lamentations 5:14 The Heb. lacks Our
- Lamentations 5:14 The Heb. lacks ruling
- Lamentations 5:14 The Heb. lacks our
- Lamentations 5:14 The Heb. lacks have abandoned
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