She weeps bitterly in the night And her tears are [constantly] on her cheeks; Among all her lovers (political allies) She has no one to comfort her. All her friends have dealt treacherously with her; They have become her enemies.

Judah has gone into exile under affliction And under harsh servitude; She dwells among the [pagan] nations, But she has found no rest; All her pursuers have overtaken her In the midst of [her] distress.

The roads to Zion are in mourning Because no one comes to the appointed feasts. All her gates are desolate; Her priests are groaning, Her virgins are grieved and suffering, And she suffers bitterly.

All her beauty and majesty Have departed from the Daughter of Zion (Jerusalem). Her princes have become like deer That have found no pasture; They have fled without strength Before the pursuer.

In the days of her affliction and homelessness Jerusalem remembers all her precious things That she had from the days of old, When her people fell into the hand of the adversary, And no one helped her, The enemy saw her, They mocked at her downfall.

Jerusalem sinned greatly; Therefore she has become an unclean thing [and has been removed]. All who honored her [now] despise her Because they have seen her nakedness; Even she herself groans and turns [her face] away.

The adversary has spread out his hand Over all her precious and desirable things; For she has seen the [Gentile] nations enter her sanctuary (the Jerusalem temple)— The ones whom You commanded That they should not enter into Your congregation [not even in the outer courts].

All her people groan, seeking bread; They have exchanged their desirable and precious things for food To restore their lives. “See, O Lord, and consider How despised and repulsive I have become!”

“Is it nothing to you, all you who pass this way? Look and see if there is any pain like my pain Which was severely dealt out to me, Which the Lord has inflicted [on me] on the day of His fierce anger.

“From on high He sent fire into my bones, And it prevailed over them. He has spread a net for my feet; He has turned me back. He has made me desolate and hopelessly miserable, Faint all the day long.

“The Lord has rejected all the strong men In my midst; He has proclaimed an established time against me To crush my young men. The Lord has trampled down as in a wine press The Virgin Daughter of Judah.

“The Lord is righteous and just; For I have rebelled against His commandment (His word). Hear now, all you peoples, And look at my pain; My virgins and my young men Have gone into captivity.

“I [Jerusalem] called to my lovers (political allies), but they deceived me. My priests and my elders perished in the city While they looked for food to restore their strength.

“People have heard that I groan, That I have no comforter [in You]. All my enemies have heard of my desperation; They are delighted [O Lord] that You have done it. Oh, that You would bring the day [of judgment] which You have proclaimed So that they will become like me.

“Let all their wickedness come before You; And deal with them as You have dealt with me Because of all my transgressions; For my groans are many and my heart is faint.”

The Lord has swallowed up; He has not spared All the country places of Jacob. In His wrath He has thrown down The strongholds of the Daughter of Judah (Jerusalem). He has brought them down to the ground [in disgrace]; He has debased the kingdom and its princes.

In fierce anger He has cut off and destroyed Every horn of Israel. He has withdrawn His right hand From the presence of the enemy. And He has burned in Jacob like a flaming fire Consuming all around.

He has bent His bow like an enemy; He has set His right hand like an adversary And slain all that were delightful and pleasing to the eye; In the tent of the Daughter of Zion He has poured out His wrath like fire.

The Lord has become like an enemy; He has swallowed up Israel. He has swallowed up all its palaces; He has destroyed its strongholds And multiplied in the Daughter of Judah Mourning and lamentation (expressions of grief).

All who pass along the way Clap their hands in derision at you; They scoff and shake their heads At the Daughter of Jerusalem, saying, “Is this the city that was called ‘The perfection of beauty, The joy of all the earth’?”

All your enemies Have opened their mouths wide against you; They [scornfully] hiss and gnash their teeth. They say, “We have swallowed her up! Certainly this is the day for which we waited; We have reached it, we have seen it!”

Surely He has turned His hand against me Repeatedly all the day.

I have become the [object of] ridicule to all my people, And [the subject of] their mocking song all the day.

To trample and crush under His feet All the prisoners of the land,

All our enemies have gaped at us.