Lamentations 3
1 I, am the man, that hath seen affliction, by the rod of his indignation;
I AM the man that has seen affliction by the rod of his wrath.
2 Me, hath he driven out and brought into darkness, and not light;
He has led me, and brought me into darkness, but not into light.
3 Surely, against me, doth he again and again, turn his hand all the day.
Surely against me is he turned; he turns his hand against me all the day.
4 He hath worn out my flesh and my skin, hath broken my bones;
My flesh and my skin has he made old; he has broken my bones.
5 He hath built up against me, and carried round me, fortifications and a trench;
He has built against me, and compassed me with gall and travail.
6 In dark places, hath he made me sit, like the dead of age-past times.
He has set me in dark places, as they that be dead of old.
7 He hath walled up around me, that I cannot get out, hath weighted my fetter;
He has hedged me about, that I cannot get out: he has made my chain heavy.
8 Yea, when I make outcry and implore, he hath shut out my prayer;
Also when I cry and shout, he shuts out my prayer.
9 He hath walled in my ways with hewn stone, my paths, hath he caused to wind back.
He has enclosed my ways with hewn stone, he has made my paths crooked.
10 A bear lying in wait, he is to me, a lion, in secret places;
He was to me as a bear lying in wait, and as a lion in secret places.
11 My ways, hath he turned aside, and hath torn me in pieces, hath made me desolate;
He has turned aside my ways, and pulled me in pieces: he has made me desolate.
12 He hath trodden his bow, and set me up, as a mark for the arrow.
He has bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow.
13 He hath caused to enter my reins, the sons of his quiver;
He has caused the arrows of his quiver to enter into my reins.
14 I have become a derision to all my people, their song all the day;
I was a derision to all my people; and their song all the day.
15 He hath sated me with bitter things, hath drenched me with wormwood.
He has filled me with bitterness, he has made me drunken with wormwood.
16 And he hath crushed, with gravel-stones, my teeth, hath made me cower in ashes;
He has also broken my teeth with gravel stones, he has covered me with ashes.
17 And thou hast thrust away from welfare, my soul, I have forgotten prosperity;
And you have removed my soul far off from peace: I forgot prosperity.
18 And I said, Vanished is mine endurance, even mine expectation, from Yahweh.
And I said, My strength and my hope is perished from the LORD:
19 Remember my humiliation and my fleeings, the wormwood and poison;
Remembering my affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall.
20 Thou wilt, indeed remember, that, bowed down concerning myself, is my soul;
My soul has them still in remembrance, and is humbled in me.
21 This, will I bring back to my heart, therefore, will I hope.
This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope.
22 The lovingkindnesses of Yahweh, verily they are not exhausted, Verily! not at an end, are his compassions:
It is of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
23 New things for the mornings! Abundant is thy faithfulness:
They are new every morning: great is your faithfulness.
24 My portion, is Yahweh, saith my soul, For this cause, will I wait for him.
The LORD is my portion, says my soul; therefore will I hope in him.
25 Good is Yahweh, to them who wait for him, to the soul that will seek him;
The LORD is good to them that wait for him, to the soul that seeks him.
26 Good it is—both to wait and to be silent, for the deliverance of Yahweh;
It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.
27 Good it is for a man, that he should bear the yoke in his youth.
It is good for a man that he bear the yoke of his youth.
28 Let him sit alone, and keep silence, because he took it upon himself:
He sits alone and keeps silence, because he has borne it on him.
29 Let him put, in the dust, his mouth, peradventure, there is hope!
He puts his mouth in the dust; if so be there may be hope.
30 Let him give, to him that smiteth him, his cheek, let him be sated with reproach.
He gives his cheek to him that smites him: he is filled full with reproach.
31 Surely My Lord, will not cast off, unto times age-abiding;
For the LORD will not cast off for ever:
32 Surely, though he cause grief, yet will he have compassion, according to the multitude of his lovingkindnesses;
But though he cause grief, yet will he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies.
33 Surely he hath not afflicted from his heart, nor caused sorrow to the sons of men.
For he does not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men.
34 To crush, under his feet, any of the prisoners of the earth;
To crush under his feet all the prisoners of the earth.
35 To turn aside the right of a man, before the face of the Most High;
To turn aside the right of a man before the face of the most High,
36 To oppress a son of earth in his cause, My Lord, hath made no provision.
To subvert a man in his cause, the LORD approves not.
37 Who was it that spake, and it was done, [when], My Lord, had not commanded?
Who is he that says, and it comes to pass, when the Lord commands it not?
38 Out of the mouth of the Most High, Proceed there not misfortunes and blessing?
Out of the mouth of the most High proceeds not evil and good?
39 Why should a living son of earth complain, [Let] a man [complain] because of his sins?
Why does a living man complain, a man for the punishment of his sins?
40 Let us search out our ways, and examine them well, and let us return unto Yahweh;
Let us search and try our ways, and turn again to the LORD.
41 Let us lift up our heart, to the opened palms, to the Mighty One in the heavens;
Let us lift up our heart with our hands to God in the heavens.
42 We, have trespassed and rebelled, Thou, hast not pardoned.
We have transgressed and have rebelled: you have not pardoned.
43 Thou hast covered thyself with anger, and pursued us, hast slain—hast not spared;
You have covered with anger, and persecuted us: you have slain, you have not pitied.
44 Thou hast screened thyself with the clouds, that prayer, should not pass through;
You have covered yourself with a cloud, that our prayer should not pass through.
45 Offscouring and refuse, dost thou make us, in the midst of the peoples.
You have made us as the offscouring and refuse in the middle of the people.
46 With their mouth, opened wide over us, [stand] all our foes.
All our enemies have opened their mouths against us.
47 Terror and a pit, have befallen us, tumult and grievous injury;
Fear and a snare is come on us, desolation and destruction.
48 With streams of water, mine eye runneth down, over the grievous injury of the daughter of my people.
My eye runs down with rivers of water for the destruction of the daughter of my people.
49 Mine eye, poureth itself out and ceaseth not, without relief;
My eye trickles down, and ceases not, without any intermission.
50 Until Yahweh out of the heavens shall look forth, and see,
Till the LORD look down, and behold from heaven.
51 Mine eye dealeth severely with my soul, because of all the daughters of my city.
My eye affects my heart because of all the daughters of my city.
52 They, have laid snares, for me as a bird, who are mine enemies without cause:
My enemies chased me sore, like a bird, without cause.
53 They have cut off, in the dungeon, my life, and have cast a stone upon me;
They have cut off my life in the dungeon, and cast a stone on me.
54 Waters, flowed over, my head, I said, I am cut off!
Waters flowed over my head; then I said, I am cut off.
55 I have called upon thy Name, O Yahweh, out of the dungeon below;
I called on your name, O LORD, out of the low dungeon.
56 My voice, thou hast heard, —do not close thine ear to my respite, to mine outcry;
You have heard my voice: hide not your ear at my breathing, at my cry.
57 Thou drewest near, in the day I kept calling on thee, thou saidst, Do not fear!
You drew near in the day that I called on you: you said, Fear not.
58 Thou hast pleaded, O My Lord, the pleas of my soul, hast redeemed my life;
O LORD, you have pleaded the causes of my soul; you have redeemed my life.
59 Thou hast beheld, O Yahweh, my failure to get justice, Pronounce thou my sentence;
O LORD, you have seen my wrong: judge you my cause.
60 Thou hast seen all their vindictiveness, all their plots against me.
You have seen all their vengeance and all their imaginations against me.
61 Thou hast heard their reproach, O Yahweh, all their plots against me;
You have heard their reproach, O LORD, and all their imaginations against me;
62 The lips of mine assailants, and their mutterings, are against me, all the day;
The lips of those that rose up against me, and their device against me all the day.
63 On their downsitting and their uprising, do thou look, I, am their song.
Behold their sitting down, and their rising up; I am their music.
64 Thou wilt render to them a recompense, O Yahweh, according to the work of their hands;
Render to them a recompense, O LORD, according to the work of their hands.
65 Thou wilt suffer them a veiling of heart, thy curse to them;
Give them sorrow of heart, your curse to them.
66 Thou wilt pursue in anger, and wilt destroy them, from under the heavens of Yahweh.
Persecute and destroy them in anger from under the heavens of the LORD.
