Lamentations 3-5

Lamentations 3

¹I am the man who hath seen affliction By the rod of His wrath.

²Me He hath led, and causeth to go in darkness, and without light.

³Surely against me He turneth back, He turneth His hand all the day.

⁴He hath worn out my flesh and my skin. He hath broken my bones.

⁵He hath built up against me, And setteth round poverty and weariness.

⁶In dark places He hath caused me to dwell, As the dead of old.

⁷He hath hedged me about, and I go not out, He hath made heavy my fetter.

⁸Also when I call and cry out, He hath shut out my prayer.

⁹He hath hedged my ways with hewn work, My paths He hath made crooked.

¹⁰A bear lying in wait He is to me, A lion in secret hiding-places.

¹¹My ways He is turning aside, and He pulleth me in pieces, He hath made me a desolation.

¹²He hath trodden His bow, And setteth me up as a mark for an arrow.

¹³He hath caused to enter into my reins The sons of His quiver.

¹⁴I have been a derision to all my people, Their song all the day.

¹⁵He hath filled me with bitter things, He hath filled me with wormwood.

¹⁶And He breaketh with gravel my teeth, He hath covered me with ashes.

¹⁷And Thou castest off from peace my soul, I have forgotten prosperity.

¹⁸And I say, Perished hath my strength and my hope from Jehovah.

¹⁹Remember my affliction and my mourning, Wormwood and gall!

²⁰Remember well, and bow down doth my soul in me.

²¹This I turn to my heart -- therefore I hope.

²²The kindnesses of Jehovah! For we have not been consumed, For not ended have His mercies.

²³New every morning, abundant is thy faithfulness.

²⁴My portion is Jehovah, hath my soul said, Therefore I hope for Him.

²⁵Good is Jehovah to those waiting for Him, To the soul that seeketh Him.

²⁶Good! when one doth stay and stand still For the salvation of Jehovah.

²⁷Good for a man that he beareth a yoke in his youth.

²⁸He sitteth alone, and is silent, For He hath laid it upon him.

²⁹He putteth in the dust his mouth, if so be there is hope.

³⁰He giveth to his smiter the cheek, He is filled with reproach.

³¹For the Lord doth not cast off to the age.

³²For though He afflicted, yet He hath pitied, According to the abundance of His kindness.

³³For He hath not afflicted with His heart, Nor doth He grieve the sons of men.

³⁴To bruise under one's feet any bound ones of earth,

³⁵To turn aside the judgment of a man, Over-against the face of the Most High,

³⁶To subvert a man in his cause, the Lord hath not approved.

³⁷Who is this -- he hath said, and it is, And the Lord hath not commanded it?

³⁸From the mouth of the Most High Go not forth the evils and the good.

³⁹What -- sigh habitually doth a living man, A man for his sin?

⁴⁰We search our ways, and investigate, And turn back unto Jehovah.

⁴¹We lift up our heart on the hands unto God in the heavens.

⁴²We -- we have transgressed and rebelled, Thou -- Thou hast not forgiven.

⁴³Thou hast covered Thyself with anger, And dost pursue us; Thou hast slain -- Thou hast not pitied.

⁴⁴Thou hast covered Thyself with a cloud, So that prayer doth not pass through.

⁴⁵Offscouring and refuse Thou dost make us In the midst of the peoples.

⁴⁶Opened against us their mouth have all our enemies.

⁴⁷Fear and a snare hath been for us, Desolation and destruction.

⁴⁸Rivulets of water go down my eye, For the destruction of the daughter of my people.

⁴⁹Mine eye is poured out, And doth not cease without intermission,

⁵⁰Till Jehovah looketh and seeth from the heavens,

⁵¹My eye affecteth my soul, Because of all the daughters of my city.

⁵²Hunted me sore as a bird have my enemies without cause.

⁵³They have cut off in a pit my life, And they cast a stone against me.

⁵⁴Flowed have waters over my head, I have said, I have been cut off.

⁵⁵I called Thy name, O Jehovah, from the lower pit.

⁵⁶My voice Thou hast heard, Hide not Thine ear at my breathing -- at my cry.

⁵⁷Thou hast drawn near in the day I call Thee, Thou hast said, Fear not.

⁵⁸Thou hast pleaded, O Lord, the pleadings of my soul, Thou hast redeemed my life.

⁵⁹Thou hast seen, O Jehovah, my overthrow, Judge Thou my cause.

⁶⁰Thou hast seen all their vengeance, All their thoughts of me.

⁶¹Thou hast heard their reproach, O Jehovah, All their thoughts against me,

⁶²The lips of my withstanders, Even their meditation against me all the day.

⁶³Their sitting down, and their rising up, Behold attentively, I am their song.

⁶⁴Thou returnest to them the deed, O Jehovah, According to the work of their hands.

⁶⁵Thou givest to them a covered heart, Thy curse to them.

⁶⁶Thou pursuest in anger, and destroyest them, From under the heavens of Jehovah!

Lamentations 4

¹How is the gold become dim, Changed the best -- the pure gold? Poured out are stones of the sanctuary At the head of all out-places.

²The precious sons of Zion, Who are comparable with fine gold, How have they been reckoned earthen bottles, Work of the hands of a potter.

³Even dragons have drawn out the breast, They have suckled their young ones, The daughter of my people is become cruel, Like the ostriches in a wilderness.

⁴Cleaved hath the tongue of a suckling unto his palate with thirst, Infants asked bread, a dealer out they have none.

⁵Those eating of dainties have been desolate in out-places, Those supported on scarlet have embraced dunghills.

⁶And greater is the iniquity of the daughter of my people, Than the sin of Sodom, That was overturned as in a moment, And no hands were stayed on her.

⁷Purer were her Nazarites than snow, Whiter than milk, ruddier of body than rubies, Of sapphire their form.

⁸Darker than blackness hath been their visage, They have not been known in out-places, Cleaved hath their skin unto their bone, It hath withered -- it hath been as wood.

⁹Better have been the pierced of a sword Than the pierced of famine, For these flow away, pierced through, Without the increase of the field.

¹⁰The hands of merciful women have boiled their own children, They have been for food to them, In the destruction of the daughter of my people.

¹¹Completed hath Jehovah His fury, He hath poured out the fierceness of His anger, And he kindleth a fire in Zion, And it devoureth her foundations.

¹²Believe not did the kings of earth, And any of the inhabitants of the world, That come would an adversary and enemy Into the gates of Jerusalem.

¹³Because of the sins of her prophets, The iniquities of her priests, Who are shedding in her midst the blood of the righteous,

¹⁴They have wandered naked in out-places, They have been polluted with blood, Without any being able to touch their clothing,

¹⁵‘Turn aside -- unclean,' they called to them, ‘Turn aside, turn aside, touch not,' For they fled -- yea, they have wandered, They have said among nations: ‘They do not add to sojourn.'

¹⁶The face of Jehovah hath divided them, He doth not add to behold them, The face of priests they have not lifted up, Elders they have not favoured.

¹⁷While we exist -- consumed are our eyes for our vain help, In our watch-tower we have watched for a nation that saveth not.

¹⁸They have hunted our steps from going in our broad-places, Near hath been our end, fulfilled our days, For come hath our end.

¹⁹Swifter have been our pursuers, Than the eagles of the heavens, On the mountains they have burned after us, In the wilderness they have laid wait for us.

²⁰The breath of our nostrils -- the anointed of Jehovah, Hath been captured in their pits, of whom we said: ‘In his shadow we do live among nations.'

²¹Joy and rejoice, O daughter of Edom, Dwelling in the land of Uz, Even unto thee pass over doth a cup, Thou art drunk, and makest thyself naked.

²²Completed is thy iniquity, daughter of Zion, He doth not add to remove thee, He hath inspected thy iniquity, O daughter of Edom, He hath removed thee because of thy sins!

Lamentations 5

¹Remember, O Jehovah, what hath befallen us, Look attentively, and see our reproach.

²Our inheritance hath been turned to strangers, Our houses to foreigners.

³Orphans we have been -- without a father, our mothers are as widows.

⁴Our water for money we have drunk, Our wood for a price doth come.

⁵For our neck we have been pursued, We have laboured -- there hath been no rest for us.

⁶To Egypt we have given a hand, To Asshur, to be satisfied with bread.

⁷Our fathers have sinned -- they are not, We their iniquities have borne.

⁸Servants have ruled over us, A deliverer there is none from their hand.

⁹With our lives we bring in our bread, Because of the sword of the wilderness.

¹⁰Our skin as an oven hath been burning, Because of the raging of the famine.

¹¹Wives in Zion they have humbled, Virgins -- in cities of Judah.

¹²Princes by their hand have been hanged, The faces of elders have not been honoured.

¹³Young men to grind they have taken, And youths with wood have stumbled.

¹⁴The aged from the gate have ceased, Young men from their song.

¹⁵Ceased hath the joy of our heart, Turned to mourning hath been our dancing.

¹⁶Fallen hath the crown from our head, Wo is now to us, for we have sinned.

¹⁷For this hath our heart been sick, For these have our eyes been dim.

¹⁸For the mount of Zion -- that is desolate, Foxes have gone up on it.

¹⁹Thou, O Jehovah, to the age remainest, Thy throne to generation and generation.

²⁰Why for ever dost Thou forget us? Thou forsakest us for length of days!

²¹Turn us back, O Jehovah, unto Thee, And we turn back, renew our days as of old.

²²For hast Thou utterly rejected us? Thou hast been wroth against us -- exceedingly?