Lamentations 3
1 I am the man who has seen trouble by the rod of his wrath.
I am the man who has seen affliction by the rod of his wrath.
2 By him I have been made to go in the dark where there is no light.
He has led me and caused me to walk in darkness, and not in light.
3 Truly against me his hand has been turned again and again all the day.
Surely he turns his hand against me again and again all day long.
4 My flesh and my skin have been used up by him and my bones broken.
He has made my flesh and my skin old. He has broken my bones.
5 He has put up a wall against me, shutting me in with bitter sorrow.
He has built against me, and surrounded me with bitterness and hardship.
6 He has kept me in dark places, like those who have been long dead.
He has made me dwell in dark places, as those who have been long dead.
7 He has put a wall round me, so that I am not able to go out; he has made great the weight of my chain.
He has walled me about, so that I can’t go out. He has made my chain heavy.
8 Even when I send up a cry for help, he keeps my prayer shut out.
Yes, when I cry, and call for help, he shuts out my prayer.
9 He has put up a wall of cut stones about my ways, he has made my roads twisted.
He has walled up my ways with cut stone. He has made my paths crooked.
10 He is like a bear waiting for me, like a lion in secret places.
He is to me as a bear lying in wait, as a lion in hiding.
11 By him my ways have been turned on one side and I have been pulled in bits; he has made me waste.
He has turned away my path, and pulled me in pieces. He has made me desolate.
12 With his bow bent, he has made me the mark for his arrows.
He has bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow.
13 He has let loose his arrows into the inmost parts of my body.
He has caused the shafts of his quiver to enter into my kidneys.
14 I have become the sport of all the peoples; I am their song all the day.
I have become a derision to all my people, and their song all day long.
15 He has made my life nothing but pain, he has given me the bitter root in full measure.
He has filled me with bitterness. He has stuffed me with wormwood.
16 By him my teeth have been broken with crushed stones, and I am bent low in the dust.
He has also broken my teeth with gravel. He has covered me with ashes.
17 My soul is sent far away from peace, I have no more memory of good.
You have removed my soul far away from peace. I forgot prosperity.
18 And I said, My strength is cut off, and my hope from the Lord.
I said, “My strength has perished, along with my expectation from the LORD.”
19 Keep in mind my trouble and my wandering, the bitter root and the poison.
Remember my affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the bitterness.
20 My soul still keeps the memory of them; and is bent down in me.
My soul still remembers them, and is bowed down within me.
21 This I keep in mind, and because of this I have hope.
This I recall to my mind; therefore I have hope.
22 It is through the Lord's love that we have not come to destruction, because his mercies have no limit.
It is because of the LORD’s loving kindnesses that we are not consumed, because his mercies don’t fail.
23 They are new every morning; great is your good faith.
They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness.
24 I said to myself, The Lord is my heritage; and because of this I will have hope in him.
“The LORD is my portion,” says my soul. “Therefore I will hope in him.”
25 The Lord is good to those who are waiting for him, to the soul which is looking for him.
The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.
26 It is good to go on hoping and quietly waiting for the salvation of the Lord.
It is good that a man should hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.
27 It is good for a man to undergo the yoke when he is young.
It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth.
28 Let him be seated by himself, saying nothing, because he has put it on him.
Let him sit alone and keep silence, because he has laid it on him.
29 Let him put his mouth in the dust, if by chance there may be hope.
Let him put his mouth in the dust, if it is so that there may be hope.
30 Let his face be turned to him who gives him blows; let him be full of shame.
Let him give his cheek to him who strikes him. Let him be filled full of reproach.
31 For the Lord does not give a man up for ever.
For the Lord will not cast off forever.
32 For though he sends grief, still he will have pity in the full measure of his love.
For though he causes grief, yet he will have compassion according to the multitude of his loving kindnesses.
33 For he has no pleasure in troubling and causing grief to the children of men.
For he does not afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of men.
34 In a man's crushing under his feet all the prisoners of the earth,
To crush under foot all the prisoners of the earth,
35 In his turning away the right of a man before the face of the Most High.
to turn away the right of a man before the face of the Most High,
36 In his doing wrong to a man in his cause, the Lord has no pleasure.
to subvert a man in his cause, the Lord doesn’t approve.
37 Who is able to say a thing, and give effect to it, if it has not been ordered by the Lord?
Who is he who says, and it comes to pass, when the Lord doesn’t command it?
38 Do not evil and good come from the mouth of the Most High?
Doesn’t evil and good come out of the mouth of the Most High?
39 What protest may a living man make, even a man about the punishment of his sin?
Why should a living man complain, a man for the punishment of his sins?
40 Let us make search and put our ways to the test, turning again to the Lord;
Let us search and try our ways, and turn again to the LORD.
41 Lifting up our hearts with our hands to God in the heavens.
Let’s lift up our heart with our hands to God in the heavens.
42 We have done wrong and gone against your law; we have not had your forgiveness.
“We have transgressed and have rebelled. You have not pardoned.
43 Covering yourself with wrath you have gone after us, cutting us off without pity;
“You have covered us with anger and pursued us. You have killed. You have not pitied.
44 Covering yourself with a cloud, so that prayer may not get through.
You have covered yourself with a cloud, so that no prayer can pass through.
45 You have made us like waste and that for which there is no use, among the peoples.
You have made us an off-scouring and refuse in the middle of the peoples.
46 The mouths of all our haters are open wide against us.
“All our enemies have opened their mouth wide against us.
47 Fear and deep waters have come on us, wasting and destruction.
Terror and the pit have come on us, devastation and destruction.”
48 Rivers of water are running down from my eyes, for the destruction of the daughter of my people.
My eye runs down with streams of water, for the destruction of the daughter of my people.
49 My eyes are streaming without stopping, they have no rest,
My eye pours down and doesn’t cease, without any intermission,
50 Till the Lord's eye is turned on me, till he sees my trouble from heaven.
until the LORD looks down, and sees from heaven.
51 The Lord is unkind to my soul, more than all the daughters of my town.
My eye affects my soul, because of all the daughters of my city.
52 They who are against me without cause have gone hard after me as if I was a bird;
They have chased me relentlessly like a bird, those who are my enemies without cause.
53 They have put an end to my life in the prison, stoning me with stones.
They have cut off my life in the dungeon, and have cast a stone on me.
54 Waters were flowing over my head; I said, I am cut off.
Waters flowed over my head. I said, “I am cut off.”
55 I was making prayer to your name, O Lord, out of the lowest prison.
I called on your name, LORD, out of the lowest dungeon.
56 My voice came to you; let not your ear be shut to my breathing, to my cry.
You heard my voice: “Don’t hide your ear from my sighing, and my cry.”
57 You came near in the day when I made my prayer to you: you said, Have no fear.
You came near in the day that I called on you. You said, “Don’t be afraid.”
58 O Lord, you have taken up the cause of my soul, you have made my life safe.
Lord, you have pleaded the causes of my soul. You have redeemed my life.
59 O Lord, you have seen my wrong; be judge in my cause.
LORD, you have seen my wrong. Judge my cause.
60 You have seen all the evil rewards they have sent on me, and all their designs against me.
You have seen all their vengeance and all their plans against me.
61 Their bitter words have come to your ears, O Lord, and all their designs against me;
You have heard their reproach, LORD, and all their plans against me,
62 The lips of those who came up against me, and their thoughts against me all the day.
the lips of those that rose up against me, and their plots against me all day long.
63 Take note of them when they are seated, and when they get up; I am their song.
You see their sitting down and their rising up. I am their song.
64 You will give them their reward, O Lord, answering to the work of their hands.
You will pay them back, LORD, according to the work of their hands.
65 You will let their hearts be covered over with your curse on them.
You will give them hardness of heart, your curse to them.
66 You will go after them in wrath, and put an end to them from under the heavens of the Lord.
You will pursue them in anger, and destroy them from under the heavens of the LORD.
