Lamentations 3
- 1
I am the man who has seen affliction under the rod of God’s wrath. Begin Abide·
- 2
He has driven me away and made me walk in darkness instead of light. Begin Abide·
- 3
Indeed, He keeps turning His hand against me all day long. Begin Abide·
- 4
He has worn away my flesh and skin; He has shattered my bones. Begin Abide·
- 5
He has besieged me and surrounded me with bitterness and hardship. Begin Abide·
- 6
He has made me dwell in darkness like those dead for ages. Begin Abide·
- 7
He has walled me in so I cannot escape; He has weighed me down with chains. Begin Abide·
- 8
Even when I cry out and plead for help, He shuts out my prayer. Begin Abide·
- 9
He has barred my ways with cut stones; He has made my paths crooked. Begin Abide·
- 10
He is a bear lying in wait, a lion hiding in ambush. Begin Abide·
- 11
He forced me off my path and tore me to pieces; He left me without help. Begin Abide·
- 12
He bent His bow and set me as the target for His arrow. Begin Abide·
- 13
He pierced my kidneys with His arrows. Begin Abide·
- 14
I am a laughingstock to all my people; they mock me in song all day long. Begin Abide·
- 15
He has filled me with bitterness; He has intoxicated me with wormwood. Begin Abide·
- 16
He has ground my teeth with gravel and trampled me in the dust. Begin Abide·
- 17
My soul has been deprived of peace; I have forgotten what prosperity is. Begin Abide·
- 18
So I say, “My strength has perished, along with my hope from the LORD.” Begin Abide·
- 19
Remember my affliction and wandering, the wormwood and the gall. Begin Abide·
- 20
Surely my soul remembers and is humbled within me. Begin Abide·
- 21
Yet I call this to mind, and therefore I have hope: Begin Abide·
- 22
Because of the loving devotion of the LORD we are not consumed, for His mercies never fail. Begin Abide·
- 23
They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness! Begin Abide·
- 24
“The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in Him.” Begin Abide·
- 25
The LORD is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him. Begin Abide·
- 26
It is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD. Begin Abide·
- 27
It is good for a man to bear the yoke while he is still young. Begin Abide·
- 28
Let him sit alone in silence, for the LORD has laid it upon him. Begin Abide·
- 29
Let him bury his face in the dust—perhaps there is still hope. Begin Abide·
- 30
Let him offer his cheek to the one who would strike him; let him be filled with reproach. Begin Abide·
- 31
For the Lord will not cast us off forever. Begin Abide·
- 32
Even if He causes grief, He will show compassion according to His abundant loving devotion. Begin Abide·
- 33
For He does not willingly afflict or grieve the sons of men. Begin Abide·
- 34
To crush underfoot all the prisoners of the land, Begin Abide·
- 35
to deny a man justice before the Most High, Begin Abide·
- 36
to subvert a man in his lawsuit—of these the Lord does not approve. Begin Abide·
- 37
Who has spoken and it came to pass, unless the Lord has ordained it? Begin Abide·
- 38
Do not both adversity and good come from the mouth of the Most High? Begin Abide·
- 39
Why should any mortal man complain, in view of his sins? Begin Abide·
- 40
Let us examine and test our ways, and turn back to the LORD. Begin Abide·
- 41
Let us lift up our hearts and hands to God in heaven: Begin Abide·
- 42
“We have sinned and rebelled; You have not forgiven.” Begin Abide·
- 43
You have covered Yourself in anger and pursued us; You have killed without pity. Begin Abide·
- 44
You have covered Yourself with a cloud that no prayer can pass through. Begin Abide·
- 45
You have made us scum and refuse among the nations. Begin Abide·
- 46
All our enemies open their mouths against us. Begin Abide·
- 47
Panic and pitfall have come upon us—devastation and destruction. Begin Abide·
- 48
Streams of tears flow from my eyes over the destruction of the daughter of my people. Begin Abide·
- 49
My eyes overflow unceasingly, without relief, Begin Abide·
- 50
until the LORD looks down from heaven and sees. Begin Abide·
- 51
My eyes bring grief to my soul because of all the daughters of my city. Begin Abide·
- 52
Without cause my enemies hunted me like a bird. Begin Abide·
- 53
They dropped me alive into a pit and cast stones upon me. Begin Abide·
- 54
The waters flowed over my head, and I thought I was going to die. Begin Abide·
- 55
I called on Your name, O LORD, out of the depths of the Pit. Begin Abide·
- 56
You heard my plea: “Do not ignore my cry for relief.” Begin Abide·
- 57
You drew near when I called on You; You said, “Do not be afraid.” Begin Abide·
- 58
You defend my cause, O Lord; You redeem my life. Begin Abide·
- 59
You have seen, O LORD, the wrong done to me; vindicate my cause! Begin Abide·
- 60
You have seen all their malice, all their plots against me. Begin Abide·
- 61
O LORD, You have heard their insults, all their plots against me— Begin Abide·
- 62
the slander and murmuring of my assailants against me all day long. Begin Abide·
- 63
When they sit and when they rise, see how they mock me in song. Begin Abide·
- 64
You will pay them back what they deserve, O LORD, according to the work of their hands. Begin Abide·
- 65
Put a veil of anguish over their hearts; may Your curse be upon them! Begin Abide·
- 66
You will pursue them in anger and exterminate them from under Your heavens, O LORD. Begin Abide·