5 Yes, the Lord has vanquished Israel

like an enemy.

He has destroyed her palaces

and demolished her fortresses.

He has brought unending sorrow and tears

upon beautiful Jerusalem.

6 He has broken down his Temple

as though it were merely a garden shelter.

The Lord has blotted out all memory

of the holy festivals and Sabbath days.

Kings and priests fall together

before his fierce anger.

7 The Lord has rejected his own altar;

he despises his own sanctuary.

He has given Jerusalem’s palaces

to her enemies.

They shout in the Lord’s Temple

as though it were a day of celebration.

8 The Lord was determined

to destroy the walls of beautiful Jerusalem.

He made careful plans for their destruction,

then did what he had planned.

Therefore, the ramparts and walls

have fallen down before him.

9 Jerusalem’s gates have sunk into the ground.

He has smashed their locks and bars.

Her kings and princes have been exiled to distant lands;

her law has ceased to exist.

Her prophets receive

no more visions from the Lord.

10 The leaders of beautiful Jerusalem

sit on the ground in silence.

They are clothed in burlap

and throw dust on their heads.

The young women of Jerusalem

hang their heads in shame.

11 I have cried until the tears no longer come;

my heart is broken.

My spirit is poured out in agony

as I see the desperate plight of my people.

Little children and tiny babies

are fainting and dying in the streets.