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 caused me to walk in darkness, and not in light.
3 Surely, against me, doth he again and again, turn his hand all the day.
Surely against me he turns his hand again and again all the day.
4 He hath worn out my flesh and my skin, hath broken my bones;
My flesh and my skin he has 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 surrounded me with bitterness and hardship.
6 In dark places, hath he made me sit, like the dead of age-past times.
He has made me to dwell in dark places, like those that have been long dead.
7 He hath walled up around me, that I cannot get out, hath weighted my fetter;
He has walled me in, so I can't escape; he has made my chains heavy.
8 Yea, when I make outcry and implore, he hath shut out my prayer;
Yes, when I cry, and call for help, 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 walled up my ways with cut stone; he has made my paths crooked.
10 A bear lying in wait, he is to me, a lion, in secret places;
He is to me as a bear lying in wait, as a lion in hiding.
11 My ways, hath he turned aside, and hath torn me in pieces, hath made me desolate;
He has obstructed my path, and torn 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 pierce my inward parts.
14 I have become a derision to all my people, their song all the day;
I have become a laughingstock to all peoples, 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 given me in full measure 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; he has pressed me down in the dust.
17 And thou hast thrust away from welfare, my soul, I have forgotten prosperity;
You have removed my soul far away from peace; I have forgotten what prosperity is.
18 And I said, Vanished is mine endurance, even mine expectation, from Yahweh.
And I said, "My strength and my hope has perished from the LORD."
19 Remember my humiliation and my fleeings, the wormwood and poison;
Remember 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 considers them, and is depressed.
21 This, will I bring back to my heart, therefore, will I hope.
But this I call to my mind; therefore I have hope:
22 The lovingkindnesses of Yahweh, verily they are not exhausted, Verily! not at an end, are his compassions:
The LORD's faithful love does not cease; his compassion does not fail.
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 I will 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 those who 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 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 while he is young.
28 Let him sit alone, and keep silence, because he took it upon himself:
Let him sit alone and keep silence when he is disciplining him.
29 Let him put, in the dust, his mouth, peradventure, there is hope!
Let him put his mouth to the dust, there may yet be hope.
30 Let him give, to him that smiteth him, his cheek, let him be sated with reproach.
Let him give his cheek to him who strikes him; let him be filled with insults.
31 Surely My Lord, will not cast off, unto times age-abiding;
For the LORD will not reject forever.
32 Surely, though he cause grief, yet will he have compassion, according to the multitude of his lovingkindnesses;
For though he may cause grief, yet he will have compassion according to the abundance of his loving kindness.
33 Surely he hath not afflicted from his heart, nor caused sorrow to the sons of men.
For he is not predisposed to bring affliction or suffering to human beings.
34 To crush, under his feet, any of the prisoners of the earth;
To crush under foot all the prisoners of the earth;
35 To turn aside the right of a man, before the face of the Most High;
to deprive a man of justice 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 does not approve.
37 Who was it that spake, and it was done, [when], My Lord, had not commanded?
Who can speak a thing and have it come to pass, unless the LORD has commanded it?
38 Out of the mouth of the Most High, Proceed there not misfortunes and blessing?
Doesn't both calamity and good come out of the mouth of the Most High?
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 examine and search our ways, and return 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, and you have not forgiven.
43 Thou hast covered thyself with anger, and pursued us, hast slain—hast not spared;
You have covered yourself with anger and pursued us; you killed without sparing.
44 Thou hast screened thyself with the clouds, that prayer, should not pass through;
You have covered yourself with a cloud, so that no prayer can pass through.
45 Offscouring and refuse, dost thou make us, in the midst of the peoples.
You have made us rubbish and refuse in the midst of the peoples.
46 With their mouth, opened wide over us, [stand] all our foes.
All our enemies have opened their mouth wide against us.
47 Terror and a pit, have befallen us, tumult and grievous injury;
Fear and the pit have come on us, devastation and destruction.
48 With streams of water, mine eye runneth down, over the grievous injury of the daughter of my people.
Streams of tears run down from my eyes because of the destruction of the daughter of my people.
49 Mine eye, poureth itself out and ceaseth not, without relief;
My tears flow and do not cease, without respite,
50 Until Yahweh out of the heavens shall look forth, and see,
until the LORD looks down and sees from heaven.
51 Mine eye dealeth severely with my soul, because of all the daughters of my city.
My eyes bring my soul grief, because of all the daughters of my city.
52 They, have laid snares, for me as a bird, who are mine enemies without cause:
They have chased me relentlessly like a bird, those who are my enemies 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 a pit, and have cast a stone on me.
54 Waters, flowed over, my head, I said, I am cut off!
Waters flowed over my head; I said, 'I am finished.'
55 I have called upon thy Name, O Yahweh, out of the dungeon below;
I called on your name, LORD, out of the depths of the pit.
56 My voice, thou hast heard, —do not close thine ear to my respite, to mine outcry;
You heard my voice; do not hide your ear at my sighs, to 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, "Do not be afraid."
58 Thou hast pleaded, O My Lord, the pleas of my soul, hast redeemed my life;
LORD, you have taken up the case for my soul; you have redeemed my life.
59 Thou hast beheld, O Yahweh, my failure to get justice, Pronounce thou my sentence;
You have seen, LORD, the wrong done to me; judge my case.
60 Thou hast seen all their vindictiveness, all their plots against me.
You have seen all their vengeance and all their plots against me.
61 Thou hast heard their reproach, O Yahweh, all their plots against me;
You have heard their insults, LORD, and all their plots 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 plots against me all day long.
63 On their downsitting and their uprising, do thou look, I, am their song.
Look their sitting down, and their rising up; I am their mocking song.
64 Thou wilt render to them a recompense, O Yahweh, according to the work of their hands;
You will render to them what they deserve, LORD, according to the work of their hands.
65 Thou wilt suffer them a veiling of heart, thy curse to them;
You will give them hardness of heart as your curse to them.
66 Thou wilt pursue in anger, and wilt destroy them, from under the heavens of Yahweh.
You will pursue them in anger, and destroy them from under the heavens of the LORD.
