11 All her people (A)groan
    as (B)they search for bread;
they trade their (C)treasures for (D)food
    to revive their strength.
“Look, O Lord, and see,
    for I am despised.”

12 “Is it nothing to you, all (E)you who pass by?
    (F)Look and see
if there is any sorrow like my sorrow,
    which was brought upon me,
which (G)the Lord inflicted
    on (H)the day of his fierce anger.

13 “From on high he (I)sent fire;
    into my bones[a] he made it descend;
(J)he spread a net for my feet;
    he turned me back;
(K)he has left me stunned,
    faint all the day long.

14 “My transgressions were bound[b] into (L)a yoke;
    by his hand they were fastened together;
they were set upon my neck;
    he caused my strength to fail;
the Lord gave me into the hands
    of those whom I cannot withstand.

15 “The Lord rejected
    all my mighty men in my midst;
he summoned an assembly against me
    to crush my young men;
(M)the Lord has trodden as in a winepress
    the virgin daughter of Judah.

16 “For these things (N)I weep;
    my eyes flow with tears;
for (O)a comforter is far from me,
    one to (P)revive my spirit;
my children are desolate,
    for the enemy has prevailed.”

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. Lamentations 1:13 Septuagint; Hebrew bones and
  2. Lamentations 1:14 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain

11 Her people groan as they search for bread.
    They have sold their treasures for food to stay alive.
“O Lord, look,” she mourns,
    “and see how I am despised.

12 “Does it mean nothing to you, all you who pass by?
    Look around and see if there is any suffering like mine,
which the Lord brought on me
    when he erupted in fierce anger.

13 “He has sent fire from heaven that burns in my bones.
    He has placed a trap in my path and turned me back.
He has left me devastated,
    racked with sickness all day long.

14 “He wove my sins into ropes
    to hitch me to a yoke of captivity.
The Lord sapped my strength and turned me over to my enemies;
    I am helpless in their hands.

15 “The Lord has treated my mighty men
    with contempt.
At his command a great army has come
    to crush my young warriors.
The Lord has trampled his beloved city[a]
    like grapes are trampled in a winepress.

16 “For all these things I weep;
    tears flow down my cheeks.
No one is here to comfort me;
    any who might encourage me are far away.
My children have no future,
    for the enemy has conquered us.”

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. 1:15 Hebrew the virgin daughter of Judah.