Lamentations 3

Hope through God’s Mercy

א Alef

3I am the man who has seen affliction

under the rod of God’s wrath.

²He has driven me away and forced me to walk

in darkness instead of light. ^y

³Yes, He repeatedly turns His hand

against me all day long.

ב Bet

⁴He has worn away my flesh and skin; ^z

He has shattered my bones. ^a

⁵He has laid siege against me, ^b

encircling me with bitterness and hardship. ^c

⁶He has made me dwell in darkness

like those who have been dead for ages. ^d

ג Gimel

⁷He has walled me in so I cannot escape; ^e

He has weighed me down with chains.

⁸Even when I cry out and plead for help,

He rejects my prayer. ^f

⁹He has walled in my ways with cut stones; ^g

He has made my paths crooked. ^h

ד Dalet

¹⁰He is ⁱa bear waiting in ambush,

a lion in hiding. ^j

¹¹He forced me off my way and tore me to pieces;

He left me desolate.

¹²He strung His bow ^k

and set me as the target for His arrow.

ה He

¹³He pierced my kidneys

with His arrows. ^l

¹⁴I am a laughingstock ^mto all my people, ⁿ

mocked by their songs ^oall day long.

¹⁵He filled me with bitterness,

satiated me with wormwood. ^p

ו Vav

¹⁶He ground my teeth on gravel ^q

and made me cower ^rin the dust.

¹⁷My soul has been deprived ^sof peace; ^t

I have forgotten what happiness is.

¹⁸Then I thought: My future ^uis lost,

as well as my hope from the Lord.

ז Zayin

¹⁹Remember ^vmy affliction and my homelessness, ^w

the wormwood and the poison. ^x

²⁰I continually remember them

and have become depressed. ^yz

²¹Yet I call this to mind,

and therefore I have hope: ^a

ח Khet

²²Because of the Lord’s faithful love ^b

we do not perish, ^c

for His mercies never end.

²³They are new every morning;

great is Your faithfulness! ^d

²⁴I say: The Lord is my portion, ^e

therefore I will put my hope in Him.

ט Tet

²⁵The Lord is good to those who wait ^ffor Him,

to the person who seeks Him.

²⁶It is good to wait quietly ^g

for deliverance from the Lord. ^h

²⁷It is good for a man to bear the yoke ⁱ

while he is still young.

י Yod

²⁸Let him sit alone and be silent, ^j

for God has disciplined him.

²⁹Let him put his mouth in the dust ^k—

perhaps there is still hope.

³⁰Let him offer his cheek

to the one who would strike him; ^l

let him be filled with shame.

כ Kaf

³¹For the Lord

will not reject us forever.

³²Even if He causes suffering,

He will show compassion

according to His abundant, faithful love. ^m

³³For He does not enjoy bringing affliction ⁿ

or suffering on mankind.

ל Lamed

³⁴Crushing all the prisoners of the land ^o

beneath one’s feet,

³⁵denying justice to a man ^p

in the presence of the Most High,

³⁶or suppressing a person’s lawsuit ^q—

the Lord does not approve of these things.

מ Mem

³⁷Who is there who speaks and it happens,

unless the Lord has ordained it? ^r

³⁸Do not both adversity and good

come from the mouth of the Most High? ^s

³⁹Why should any living person complain,

any man, because of the punishment for his sins?

נ Nun

⁴⁰Let us search out and examine our ways,

and turn back to the Lord. ^t

⁴¹Let us lift up our hearts and our hands ^u

to God in heaven:

⁴²We have sinned and rebelled;

You have not forgiven. ^v

ס Samek

⁴³You have covered Yourself in anger and pursued us;

You have killed without compassion. ^w

⁴⁴You have covered Yourself with a cloud

so that no prayer can pass through. ^x

⁴⁵You have made us disgusting filth

among the peoples. ^y

פ Pe

⁴⁶All our enemies

open their mouths against us. ^z

⁴⁷We have experienced panic and pitfall, ^a

devastation and destruction.

⁴⁸My eyes flow with streams of tears

because of the destruction of my dear people.

ע Ayin

⁴⁹My eyes overflow unceasingly,

without end, ^b

⁵⁰until the Lord looks down

from heaven and sees. ^c

⁵¹My eyes bring me grief

because of the fate of all the women in my city.

צ Tsade

⁵²For no apparent reason, my enemies ^d

hunted me like a bird. ^e

⁵³They dropped me alive into ^fa pit ^g

and threw stones at me.

⁵⁴Water flooded over my head, ^h

and I thought: I’m going to die! ⁱ

ק Qof

⁵⁵I called on Your name, Yahweh,

from the depths of the Pit. ^j

⁵⁶You hear my plea:

Do not ignore my cry for relief.

⁵⁷You come near when I call on You;

You say: “Do not be afraid.”

ר Resh

⁵⁸You defend my cause, Lord; ^k

You redeem my life. ^l

⁵⁹Lord, You see the wrong done to me;

judge my case.

⁶⁰You see all their malice,

all their plots against me. ^m

שׂ Sin/ שׁ Shin

⁶¹Lord, You hear their insults, ⁿ

all their plots against me.

⁶²The slander ^oand murmuring of my opponents

attack me all day long.

⁶³When they sit and when they rise, look,

I am mocked by their songs. ^p

ת Tav

⁶⁴You will pay them back what they deserve, Lord,

according to the work of their hands. ^q

⁶⁵You will give them a heart filled with anguish. ^rs

May Your curse be on them!

⁶⁶You will pursue them in anger and destroy them

under Your heavens. ^tuv