Lamentations 3
1 Aleph. I am the man that see my poverty by the rod of his indignation.
I am the man who has seen affliction by the rod of his wrath.
2 Aleph. He hath led me, and brought me into darkness, and not into light.
He has led me and caused me to walk in darkness, and not in light.
3 Aleph. Only against me he hath turned, and turned again his hand all the day.
Surely he turns his hand against me again and again all day long.
4 Beth. My skin and my flesh he hath made old, he hath broken my bones.
He has made my flesh and my skin old. He has broken my bones.
5 Beth. He hath built round about me, and he hath compassed me with gall and labour.
He has built against me, and surrounded me with bitterness and hardship.
6 Beth. He hath set me in dark places as those that are dead for ever.
He has made me dwell in dark places, as those who have been long dead.
7 Ghimel. He hath built against me round about, that I may not get out: he hath made my fetters heavy.
He has walled me about, so that I can’t go out. He has made my chain heavy.
8 Ghimel. Yea, and when I cry, and entreat, he hath shut out my prayer.
Yes, when I cry, and call for help, he shuts out my prayer.
9 Ghimel. He hath shut up my ways with square stones, he hath turned my paths upside down.
He has walled up my ways with cut stone. He has made my paths crooked.
10 Daleth. He is become to me as a bear lying in wait: as a lion in secret places.
He is to me as a bear lying in wait, as a lion in hiding.
11 Daleth. He hath turned aside my paths, and hath broken me in pieces, he hath made me desolate.
He has turned away my path, and pulled me in pieces. He has made me desolate.
12 Daleth. He hath bent his bow, and set me as a mark for his arrows.
He has bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow.
13 He. He hath shot into my reins the daughters of his quiver.
He has caused the shafts of his quiver to enter into my kidneys.
14 He. I am made a derision to all my people, their song all the day long.
I have become a derision to all my people, and their song all day long.
15 He. He hath filled me with bitterness, he hath inebriated me with wormwood.
He has filled me with bitterness. He has stuffed me with wormwood.
16 Vau. And he hath broken my teeth one by one, he hath fed me with ashes.
He has also broken my teeth with gravel. He has covered me with ashes.
17 Vau. And my soul is removed far off from peace, I have forgotten good things.
You have removed my soul far away from peace. I forgot prosperity.
18 Vau. And I said: My end and my hope is perished from the Lord.
I said, “My strength has perished, along with my expectation from Yahweh.”
19 Zain. Remember my poverty, and transgression, the wormwood, and the gall.
Remember my affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the bitterness.
20 Zain. I will be mindful and remember, and my soul shall languish within me.
My soul still remembers them, and is bowed down within me.
21 Zain. These things I shall think over in my heart, therefore will I hope.
This I recall to my mind; therefore I have hope.
22 Heth. The mercies of the Lord that we are not consumed: because his commiserations have not failed.
It is because of Yahweh’s loving kindnesses that we are not consumed, because his mercies don’t fail.
23 Heth. They are new every morning, great is thy faithfulness.
They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness.
24 Heth. The Lord is my portion, said my soul: therefore will I wait for him.
“Yahweh is my portion,” says my soul. “Therefore I will hope in him.”
25 Teth. The Lord is good to them that hope in him, to the soul that seeketh him.
Yahweh is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.
26 Teth. It is good to wait with silence for the salvation of God.
It is good that a man should hope and quietly wait for the salvation of Yahweh.
27 Teth. It is good for a man, when he hath borne the yoke from his youth.
It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth.
28 Jod. He shall sit solitary, and hold his peace: because he hath taken it up upon himself.
Let him sit alone and keep silence, because he has laid it on him.
29 Jod. He shall put his mouth in the dust, if so be there may be hope.
Let him put his mouth in the dust, if it is so that there may be hope.
30 Jod. He shall give his cheek to him that striketh him, he shall be filled with reproaches.
Let him give his cheek to him who strikes him. Let him be filled full of reproach.
31 Caph. For the Lord will not cast off for ever.
For the Lord will not cast off forever.
32 Caph. For if he hath cast off, he will also have mercy, according to the multitude of his mercies.
For though he causes grief, yet he will have compassion according to the multitude of his loving kindnesses.
33 Caph. For he hath not willingly afflicted, nor cast off the children of men.
For he does not afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of men.
34 Lamed. To crush under his feet all the prisoners of the land,
To crush under foot all the prisoners of the earth,
35 Lamed. To turn aside the judgment 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 Lamed. To destroy a man wrongfully in his judgment, the Lord hath not approved.
to subvert a man in his cause, the Lord doesn’t approve.
37 Mem. Who is he that hath commanded a thing to be done, when the Lord commandeth it not?
Who is he who says, and it comes to pass, when the Lord doesn’t command it?
38 Mem. Shall not both evil and good proceed out of the mouth of the Highest?
Doesn’t evil and good come out of the mouth of the Most High?
39 Mem. Why hath a living man murmured, man suffering for his sins?
Why should a living man complain, a man for the punishment of his sins?
40 Nun. Let us search our ways, and seek, and return to the Lord.
Let us search and try our ways, and turn again to Yahweh.
41 Nun. Let us lift up our hearts with our hands to the Lord in the heavens.
Let’s lift up our heart with our hands to God in the heavens.
42 Nun. We have done wickedly, and provoked thee to wrath: therefore thou art inexorable.
“We have transgressed and have rebelled. You have not pardoned.
43 Samech. Thou hast covered in thy wrath, and hast struck us: thou hast killed and hast not spared.
“You have covered us with anger and pursued us. You have killed. You have not pitied.
44 Samech. Thou hast set a cloud before thee, that our prayer may not pass through.
You have covered yourself with a cloud, so that no prayer can pass through.
45 Samech. Thou hast made me as an outcast, and refuse in the midst of the people.
You have made us an off-scouring and refuse in the middle of the peoples.
46 Phe. All our enemies have opened their mouths against us.
“All our enemies have opened their mouth wide against us.
47 Phe. Prophecy is become to us a fear, and a snare, and destruction.
Terror and the pit have come on us, devastation and destruction.”
48 Phe. My eye hath run down with streams of water, 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 Ain. My eye is afflicted, and hath not been quiet, because there was no rest:
My eye pours down and doesn’t cease, without any intermission,
50 Ain. Till the Lord regarded and looked down from the heavens.
until Yahweh looks down, and sees from heaven.
51 Ain. My eye hath wasted my soul because of all the daughters of my city.
My eye affects my soul, because of all the daughters of my city.
52 Sade. My enemies have chased me and caught me like a bird, without cause.
They have chased me relentlessly like a bird, those who are my enemies without cause.
53 Sade. My life is fallen into the pit, and they have laid a stone over me.
They have cut off my life in the dungeon, and have cast a stone on me.
54 Sade. Waters have flowed over my head: I said: I am cut off.
Waters flowed over my head. I said, “I am cut off.”
55 Coph. I have called upon thy name, O Lord, from the lowest pit.
I called on your name, Yahweh, out of the lowest dungeon.
56 Coph. Thou hast heard my voice: turn not away thy ear from my sighs, and cries.
You heard my voice: “Don’t hide your ear from my sighing, and my cry.”
57 Coph. Thou drewest near in the day, when I called upon thee, thou saidst: Fear not.
You came near in the day that I called on you. You said, “Don’t be afraid.”
58 Res. Thou hast judged, O Lord, the cause of my soul, thou the Redeemer of my life.
Lord, you have pleaded the causes of my soul. You have redeemed my life.
59 Res. Thou hast seen, O Lord, their iniquity against me: judge thou my judgment.
Yahweh, you have seen my wrong. Judge my cause.
60 Res. Thou hast seen all their fury, and all their thoughts against me.
You have seen all their vengeance and all their plans against me.
61 Sin. Thou hast heard their reproach, O Lord, all their imaginations against me.
You have heard their reproach, Yahweh, and all their plans against me,
62 Sin. The lips of them that rise up against me: and their devices against me all the day.
the lips of those that rose up against me, and their plots against me all day long.
63 Sin. Behold their sitting down, and their rising up, I am their song.
You see their sitting down and their rising up. I am their song.
64 Thau. Thou shalt render them a recompense, O Lord, according to the works of their hands.
You will pay them back, Yahweh, according to the work of their hands.
65 Thau. Thou shalt give them a buckler of heart, thy labour.
You will give them hardness of heart, your curse to them.
66 Thau. Thou shalt persecute them in anger, and shalt destroy them from under the heavens, O Lord.
You will pursue them in anger, and destroy them from under the heavens of Yahweh.
