Θρῆνοι 4
1 πῶς ἀμαυρωθήσεται χρυσίον ἀλλοιωθήσεται τὸ ἀργύριον τὸ ἀγαθόν ἐξεχύθησαν λίθοι ἅγιοι ἐπ’ ἀρχῆς πασῶν ἐξόδων
[Previously our people were like] [MET] pure gold, but now they are worthless. [Like] [MET] the sacred stones in the temple have been scattered, [our young men have been scattered].
2 υἱοὶ Σιων οἱ τίμιοι οἱ ἐπηρμένοι ἐν χρυσίῳ πῶς ἐλογίσθησαν εἰς ἀγγεῖα ὀστράκινα ἔργα χειρῶν κεραμέως
The young men of Jerusalem were as valuable as [MET] large amounts of gold, but now people consider that they are as worthless as [ordinary] clay pots.
3 καί γε δράκοντες ἐξέδυσαν μαστούς ἐθήλασαν σκύμνοι αὐτῶν θυγατέρες λαοῦ μου εἰς ἀνίατον ὡς στρουθίον ἐν ἐρήμῳ
Even the [female] jackals/wolves feed their pups, but my people act cruelly [toward their children]; they are like [SIM] ostriches in the desert [that abandon their eggs].
4 ἐκολλήθη ἡ γλῶσσα θηλάζοντος πρὸς τὸν φάρυγγα αὐτοῦ ἐν δίψει νήπια ᾔτησαν ἄρτον ὁ διακλῶν οὐκ ἔστιν αὐτοῖς
[My people’s] infants’ tongues cling to the roofs/tops of their mouths because they are [extremely] thirsty; the children plead for some food, but no one gives them [any].
5 οἱ ἔσθοντες τὰς τρυφὰς ἠφανίσθησαν ἐν ταῖς ἐξόδοις οἱ τιθηνούμενοι ἐπὶ κόκκων περιεβάλοντο κοπρίας
People who [previously] ate fine food are [now] starving in the streets; those who previously lived luxuriously [MTY] [now] paw/dig through rubbish heaps [to find some food].
6 καὶ ἐμεγαλύνθη ἀνομία θυγατρὸς λαοῦ μου ὑπὲρ ἀνομίας Σοδομων τῆς κατεστραμμένης ὥσπερ σπουδῇ καὶ οὐκ ἐπόνεσαν ἐν αὐτῇ χεῖρας
[The people of] Sodom were struck with a disaster very suddenly, and there was no one to rescue them; but my people have been punished more severely than [the people of] Sodom were punished.
7 ἐκαθαριώθησαν ναζιραῖοι αὐτῆς ὑπὲρ χιόνα ἔλαμψαν ὑπὲρ γάλα ἐπυρρώθησαν ὑπὲρ λίθους σαπφείρου τὸ ἀπόσπασμα αὐτῶν
Our leaders’ [behavior] was [previously] very pure, whiter [and brighter] than snow and milk; their bodies were redder than [red] coral/stones; they were very strong and healthy [MET].
8 ἐσκότασεν ὑπὲρ ἀσβόλην τὸ εἶδος αὐτῶν οὐκ ἐπεγνώσθησαν ἐν ταῖς ἐξόδοις ἐπάγη δέρμα αὐτῶν ἐπὶ τὰ ὀστέα αὐτῶν ἐξηράνθησαν ἐγενήθησαν ὥσπερ ξύλον
But now their faces are blacker than soot, and no one recognizes them in the streets. Their skin has shriveled on their bones, and it has become as dry as [SIM] a wooden [stick].
9 καλοὶ ἦσαν οἱ τραυματίαι ῥομφαίας ἢ οἱ τραυματίαι λιμοῦ ἐπορεύθησαν ἐκκεκεντημένοι ἀπὸ γενημάτων ἀγρῶν
It is better to die in a battle [MTY] than to die of hunger. There was no food to harvest in the fields, so the people slowly starved until they died.
10 χεῖρες γυναικῶν οἰκτιρμόνων ἥψησαν τὰ παιδία αὐτῶν ἐγενήθησαν εἰς βρῶσιν αὐταῖς ἐν τῷ συντρίμματι τῆς θυγατρὸς λαοῦ μου
Women who [usually/previously] were very kind have [killed and] cooked their own children; they ate them [when there was no other food], when Jerusalem was surrounded [by enemy soldiers].
11 συνετέλεσεν κύριος θυμὸν αὐτοῦ ἐξέχεεν θυμὸν ὀργῆς αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀνῆψεν πῦρ ἐν Σιων καὶ κατέφαγεν τὰ θεμέλια αὐτῆς
Yahweh has shown that he was extremely angry; [it is as though] he started/ignited a fire in Jerusalem that burned everything to ashes.
12 οὐκ ἐπίστευσαν βασιλεῖς γῆς πάντες οἱ κατοικοῦντες τὴν οἰκουμένην ὅτι εἰσελεύσεται ἐχθρὸς καὶ ἐκθλίβων διὰ τῶν πυλῶν Ιερουσαλημ
None of the kings on the earth or anyone else believed that any of our enemies could enter the gates of Jerusalem.
13 ἐξ ἁμαρτιῶν προφητῶν αὐτῆς ἀδικιῶν ἱερέων αὐτῆς τῶν ἐκχεόντων αἷμα δίκαιον ἐν μέσῳ αὐτῆς
[But that is what happened]; it happened because the prophets sinned; and the priests [also] sinned by causing innocent people to be executed [MTY].
14 ἐσαλεύθησαν ἐγρήγοροι αὐτῆς ἐν ταῖς ἐξόδοις ἐμολύνθησαν ἐν αἵματι ἐν τῷ μὴ δύνασθαι αὐτοὺς ἥψαντο ἐνδυμάτων αὐτῶν
The prophets and priests wandered through the streets [as though they were] blind. No one would touch them because their clothes were stained with the blood [of people who had been killed].
15 ἀπόστητε ἀκαθάρτων καλέσατε αὐτούς ἀπόστητε ἀπόστητε μὴ ἅπτεσθε ὅτι ἀνήφθησαν καί γε ἐσαλεύθησαν εἴπατε ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν οὐ μὴ προσθῶσιν τοῦ παροικεῖν
The people [who were alive] shouted, “Stay away [from us] [DOU]! You are defiled/untouchable! Do not touch us!” So the prophets and priests fled [from Israel], and they wandered around from one country to another, because people [in each country] kept saying to them, “You cannot stay here!”
16 πρόσωπον κυρίου μερὶς αὐτῶν οὐ προσθήσει ἐπιβλέψαι αὐτοῖς πρόσωπον ἱερέων οὐκ ἔλαβον πρεσβύτας οὐκ ἠλέησαν
It is Yahweh himself who has scattered them; he no longer is concerned about them. People do not respect [our] priests or leaders.
17 ἔτι ὄντων ἡμῶν ἐξέλιπον οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ ἡμῶν εἰς τὴν βοήθειαν ἡμῶν μάταια ἀποσκοπευόντων ἡμῶν ἀπεσκοπεύσαμεν εἰς ἔθνος οὐ σῷζον
We [SYN] continued to look for someone to help [us], but it was useless. We continued to watch to see if one of our allies would save us, but none of the nations that we were waiting for could help [us].
18 ἐθηρεύσαμεν μικροὺς ἡμῶν τοῦ μὴ πορεύεσθαι ἐν ταῖς πλατείαις ἡμῶν ἤγγικεν ὁ καιρὸς ἡμῶν ἐπληρώθησαν αἱ ἡμέραι ἡμῶν πάρεστιν ὁ καιρὸς ἡμῶν
[Our] enemies were hunting for us, so we could not [even] walk in our streets [lest they seize us]. We were about to be captured; it was time for us to be killed.
19 κοῦφοι ἐγένοντο οἱ διώκοντες ἡμᾶς ὑπὲρ ἀετοὺς οὐρανοῦ ἐπὶ τῶν ὀρέων ἐξήφθησαν ἐν ἐρήμῳ ἐνήδρευσαν ἡμᾶς
Those who pursued us were faster than eagles [flying] in the sky. Even if we fled to the mountains or hid in the desert, they [went there ahead of us and] waited [to attack] us.
20 πνεῦμα προσώπου ἡμῶν χριστὸς κυρίου συνελήμφθη ἐν ταῖς διαφθοραῖς αὐτῶν οὗ εἴπαμεν ἐν τῇ σκιᾷ αὐτοῦ ζησόμεθα ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν
[Our king, ] whom Yahweh appointed, was the one who enabled us to remain alive [MTY]; he was the one whom we trusted to protect us [IDM] from [the armies of] other nations. But he was [captured] [like animals are] [MET] caught in a pit.
21 χαῖρε καὶ εὐφραίνου θύγατερ Ιδουμαίας ἡ κατοικοῦσα ἐπὶ γῆς καί γε ἐπὶ σὲ διελεύσεται τὸ ποτήριον κυρίου καὶ μεθυσθήσῃ καὶ ἀποχεεῖς
You people of [IDM] Edom and Uz, [you may] be happy [about what is happening to us now], but [Yahweh] will be punishing [MTY] you [also]. You will become drunk and will be ashamed [because your enemies] will have stripped off your clothes.
22 ἐξέλιπεν ἡ ἀνομία σου θύγατερ Σιων οὐ προσθήσει ἔτι ἀποικίσαι σε ἐπεσκέψατο ἀνομίας σου θύγατερ Εδωμ ἀπεκάλυψεν ἐπὶ τὰ ἀσεβήματά σου
You [people of] [APO] Jerusalem, the time of your being punished will end; Yahweh will not allow you to continue to live in (exile/foreign countries). But [you people of] [APO] Edom, Yahweh will punish [you]; he will reveal the wicked things that you have done.
