TERRORS OF THE BESIEGED CITY

א Aleph

4 How the gold has become tarnished,

the fine gold become dull!

The stones of the templeF lie scattered

at the head of every street.v

ב Beth

2 Zion’s precious children—

once worth their weight in pure goldw—

how they are regarded as clay jars,

the work of a potter’s hands!

ג Gimel

3 Even jackals offer their breasts

to nurse their young,

but my dear people have become cruel

like ostrichesx in the wilderness.

ד Daleth

4 The nursing baby’s tongue

clings to the roof of his mouth from thirst.y

Infants beg for food,

but no one gives them any.

ה He

5 Those who used to eat delicacies

are destitute in the streets;

those who were reared in purple garmentsa

huddle in trash heaps.

ו Waw

6 The punishment of my dear people

is greater than that of Sodom,b

which was overthrown in an instant

without a hand laid on it.