< Lamentations 2 >

1 The Lord has covered the daughter of Zion under the cloud of his anger. He has thrown the splendor of Israel down from heaven to earth. He has not remembered his footstool on the day of his anger.
How hath the Lord darkened the daughter of Zion in his wrath! and hath cast downe from heauen vnto the earth the beautie of Israel, and remembred not his footestoole in the day of his wrath!
2 The Lord has swallowed up and has had no compassion on all the towns of Jacob. In the days of his anger he has thrown down the fortified cities of the daughter of Judah; in dishonor he has brought down to the ground the kingdom and its rulers.
The Lord hath destroyed al the habitations of Iaakob, and not spared: he hath throwen downe in his wrath ye strong holds of the daughter of Iudah: he hath cast the downe to ye ground: he hath polluted the kingdome and the princes thereof.
3 With fierce anger he has cut off every horn of Israel. He has withdrawn his right hand from before the enemy. He has burned up Jacob like a blazing fire that devours everything around it.
Hee hath cut off in his fierce wrath all the horne of Israel: he hath drawen backe his right hand from before the enemie, and there was kindled in Iaakob like a flame of fire, which deuoured rounde about.
4 Like an enemy he has bent his bow toward us, with his right is ready to shoot. He has slaughtered all who had been so pleasing to him in the tent of the daughter of Zion; he has poured out his wrath like fire.
He hath bent his bowe like an enemie: his right hand was stretched vp as an aduersarie, and slewe al that was pleasant to the eye in the tabernacle of the daughter of Zion: he powred out his wrath like fire.
5 The Lord has become like an enemy. He has swallowed up Israel. He has swallowed up all her palaces. He has destroyed her strongholds. He has increased mourning and lamentation within the daughter of Judah.
The Lord was as an enemie: he hath deuoured Israel, and consumed all his palaces: hee hath destroyed his strong holdes, and hath increased in the daughter of Iudah lamentation and mourning.
6 He has attacked his tabernacle like a garden hut. He has destroyed the place of the solemn assembly. Yahweh has caused both solemn assembly and Sabbath to be forgotten in Zion, for he has despised both king and priest in the indignation of his anger.
For hee hath destroyed his Tabernacle, as a garden, hee hath destroyed his Congregation: the Lord hath caused the feastes and Sabbathes to bee forgotten in Zion, and hath despised in the indignation of his wrath the King and the Priest.
7 The Lord has rejected his altar and disowned his sanctuary. He has given over the walls of her palaces into the hand of the enemy. They have raised a shout in the house of Yahweh, as on the day of an appointed feast.
The Lord hath forsaken his altar: he hath abhorred his Sanctuarie: he hath giue into the hand of the enemie the walles of her palaces: they haue made a noyse in the House of the Lord, as in the day of solemnitie.
8 Yahweh decided to destroy the city wall of the daughter of Zion. He has stretched out the measuring line and has not withheld his hand from destroying the wall. He has made the ramparts and wall to lament; together they wasted away.
The Lord hath determined to destroy the wall of the daughter of Zion: hee stretched out a lyne: hee hath not withdrawen his hande from destroying: therefore hee made the rampart and the wall to lament: they were destroyed together.
9 Her gates have sunk into the ground; he has destroyed and broken the bars of her gate. Her king and her princes are among the nations, the law is no more and her prophets find no vision from Yahweh.
Her gates are sunke to the grounde: he hath destroyed and broken her barres: her King and her princes are among the Gentiles: the Lawe is no more, neither can her Prophets receiue any vision from the Lord.
10 The elders of the daughter of Zion sit on the ground in silence. They have thrown dust on their heads and put on sackcloth. The virgins of Jerusalem have bowed their heads to the ground.
The Elders of the daughter of Zion sit vpon the grounde, and keepe silence: they haue cast vp dust vpon their heades: they haue girded them selues with sackecloth: the virgines of Ierusalem hang downe their heades to the ground.
11 My eyes have failed from their tears; my stomach churns; my inner parts are poured out to the ground because of the destruction of the daughter of my people, children and infants faint in the streets of the city.
Mine eyes doe saile with teares: my bowels swell: my liuer is powred vpon the earth, for the destruction of the daughter of my people, because the children and sucklings swoone in the streetes of the citie.
12 They say to their mothers, “Where is grain and wine?” as they faint like a wounded man in the streets of the city, their lives are poured out on the bosom of their mothers.
They haue sayd to their mothers, Where is bread and drinke? when they swooned as the wounded in the streetes of the citie, and whe they gaue vp the ghost in their mothers bosome.
13 What can I say to you, daughter of Jerusalem? To what can I compare to you, that I may comfort you, virgin daughter of Zion? Your wound is as great as the sea. Who can heal you?
What thing shall I take to witnesse for thee? what thing shall I compare to thee, O daughter Ierusalem? what shall I liken to thee, that I may comfort thee, O virgine daughter Zion? for thy breach is great like ye sea: who can heale thee?
14 Your prophets have seen false and worthless visions for you. They have not exposed your iniquity to restore your fortunes, but for you they gave utterances that are false and misleading.
Thy Prophets haue looked out vayne, and foolish things for thee, and they haue not discouered thine iniquitie, to turne away thy captiuitie, but haue looked out for thee false prophesies, and causes of banishment.
15 All those who pass along the road clap their hands at you. They hiss and shake their heads against the daughter of Jerusalem and say, “Is this the city that they called 'The Perfection of Beauty,' 'The Joy for All of Earth'?”
All that passe by the way, clap their hands at thee: they hisse and wagge their head vpon the daughter Ierusalem, saying, Is this the citie that men call, The perfection of beautie, and the ioye of the whole earth?
16 All your enemies open their mouths against you. They sneer and grind their teeth in rage and say, “We have swallowed her up! This is the day we have waited for! We have lived to see it!”
All thine enemies haue opened their mouth against thee: they hisse and gnashe the teeth, saying, Let vs deuoure it: certainely this is the day that we looked for: we haue founde and seene it.
17 Yahweh has done what he planned to do. He has fulfilled his word. He has overthrown you without pity, for he has permitted the enemy to rejoice over you; he has lifted up the horn of your enemies.
The Lord hath done that which he had purposed: he hath fulfilled his worde that he had determined of old time: he hath throwen downe, and not spared: hee hath caused thine enemie to reioyce ouer thee, and set vp the horne of thine aduersaries.
18 Their heart cried out to the Lord, walls of the daughter of Zion! Make your tears flow down like a river day and night. Give yourself no relief, your eyes no relief.
Their heart cryed vnto the Lord, O wall of the daughter Zion, let teares runne downe like a riuer, day and night: take thee no rest, neither let the apple of thine eye cease.
19 Arise, cry out in the night, at the beginning of the night watches! Pour out your heart like water before the face of the Lord. Lift up your hands to him for the lives of your children who faint with hunger at the corner of every street.”
Arise, cry in the night: in the beginning of the watches powre out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord: lift vp thine handes towarde him for the life of thy yong children, that faint for hunger in the corners of all the streetes.
20 See, Yahweh, and consider those you have dealt in this way. Should women eat the fruit of their wombs, the children whom they have cared for? Should priest and prophet be slaughtered in the sanctuary of the Lord?
Beholde, O Lord, and consider to whome thou hast done thus: shall the women eate their fruite, and children of a spanne long? shall the Priest and the Prophet be slaine in the Sanctuarie of the Lord?
21 Both the young and the old lie on the dust of the streets. My young women and my young men have fallen by the sword; you have slaughtered them without taking pity on them.
The yong and the olde lie on the ground in the streetes: my virgins and my yong men are fallen by the sworde: thou hast slaine them in the day of thy wrath: thou hast killed and not spared.
22 You have summoned, as you would call the people to a feast day, my terrors on every side, on the day of the anger of Yahweh no one escaped or survived; those I cared for and raised, my enemy has destroyed.
Thou hast called as in a solemne daye my terrours rounde about, so that in the day of the Lordes wrath none escaped nor remained: those that I haue nourished and brought vp, hath mine enemie consumed.

< Lamentations 2 >