Lamentations 3

1 I am the man who has seen affliction
by the rod of his wrath.

2 He has driven me away and made me walk
in darkness rather than light;

3 indeed, he has turned his hand against me
again and again, all day long.

4 He has made my skin and my flesh grow old
and has broken my bones.

5 He has besieged me and surrounded me
with bitterness and hardship.

6 He has made me dwell in darkness
like those long dead.

7 He has walled me in so I cannot escape;
he has weighed me down with chains.

8 Even when I call out or cry for help,
he shuts out my prayer.

9 He has barred my way with blocks of stone;
he has made my paths crooked.

10 Like a bear lying in wait,
like a lion in hiding,

11 he dragged me from the path and mangled me
and left me without help.

12 He drew his bow
and made me the target for his arrows.

13 He pierced my heart
with arrows from his quiver.

14 I became the laughingstock of all my people;
they mock me in song all day long.

15 He has filled me with bitter herbs
and sated me with gall.

16 He has broken my teeth with gravel;
he has trampled me in the dust.

17 I have been deprived of peace;
I have forgotten what prosperity is.

18 So I say, “My splendor is gone
and all that I had hoped from the Lord.”

19 I remember my affliction and my wandering,
the bitterness and the gall.

20 I well remember them,
and my soul is downcast within me.

21 Yet this I call to mind
and therefore I have hope:

22 Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.

23 They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.

24 I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion;
therefore I will wait for him.”

25 The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him,
to the one who seeks him;

26 it is good to wait quietly
for the salvation of the Lord.

27 It is good for a man to bear the yoke
while he is young.

28 Let him sit alone in silence,
for the Lord has laid it on him.

29 Let him bury his face in the dust—
there may yet be hope.

30 Let him offer his cheek to one who would strike him,
and let him be filled with disgrace.

31 For men are not cast off
by the Lord forever.

32 Though he brings grief, he will show compassion,
so great is his unfailing love.

33 For he does not willingly bring affliction
or grief to the children of men.

34 To crush underfoot
all prisoners in the land,

35 to deny a man his rights
before the Most High,

36 to deprive a man of justice—
would not the Lord see such things?

37 Who can speak and have it happen
if the Lord has not decreed it?

38 Is it not from the mouth of the Most High
that both calamities and good things come?

39 Why should any living man complain
when punished for his sins?

40 Let us examine our ways and test them,
and let us return to the Lord.

41 Let us lift up our hearts and our hands
to God in heaven, and say:

42 “We have sinned and rebelled
and you have not forgiven.

43 “You have covered yourself with anger and pursued us;
you have slain without pity.

44 You have covered yourself with a cloud
so that no prayer can get through.

45 You have made us scum and refuse
among the nations.

46 “All our enemies have opened their mouths
wide against us.

47 We have suffered terror and pitfalls,
ruin and destruction.”

48 Streams of tears flow from my eyes
because my people are destroyed.

49 My eyes will flow unceasingly,
without relief,

50 until the Lord looks down
from heaven and sees.

51 What I see brings grief to my soul
because of all the women of my city.

52 Those who were my enemies without cause
hunted me like a bird.

53 They tried to end my life in a pit
and threw stones at me;

54 the waters closed over my head,
and I thought I was about to be cut off.

55 I called on your name, O Lord,
from the depths of the pit.

56 You heard my plea: “Do not close your ears
to my cry for relief.”

57 You came near when I called you,
and you said, “Do not fear.”

58 O Lord, you took up my case;
you redeemed my life.

59 You have seen, O Lord, the wrong done to me.
Uphold my cause!

60 You have seen the depth of their vengeance,
all their plots against me.

61 O Lord, you have heard their insults,
all their plots against me—

62 what my enemies whisper and mutter
against me all day long.

63 Look at them! Sitting or standing,
they mock me in their songs.

64 Pay them back what they deserve, O Lord,
for what their hands have done.

65 Put a veil over their hearts,
and may your curse be on them!

66 Pursue them in anger and destroy them
from under the heavens of the Lord.

LAMENTATIONS 3

There Is Still Hope

The Prophet Speaks:

1 I have suffered much
because God was angry.

2 He chased me into a dark place,
where no light could enter.

3 I am the only one he punishes
over and over again,
without ever stopping.

4 God caused my skin and flesh
to waste away,
and he crushed my bones.

5 He attacked and surrounded me
with hardships and trouble;

6 he forced me to sit in the dark
like someone long dead.

7 God built a fence around me
that I cannot climb over,
and he chained me down.

8 Even when I shouted
and prayed for help,
he refused to listen.

9 God put big rocks in my way
and made me follow
a crooked path.

10 God was like a bear or a lion
waiting in ambush for me;

11 he dragged me from the road,
then tore me to shreds.t

12 God took careful aim
and shot his arrows

13 straight through my heart.

14 I am a joke to everyone—
no one ever stops
making fun of me.

15 God has turned my life sour.

16 He made me eat gravel
and rubbed me in the dirt.

17 I cannot find peace
or remember happiness.

18 I tell myself, “I am finished!
I can't count on the [Lord]
to do anything for me.”

19 Just thinking of my troubles
and my lonely wandering
makes me miserable.

20 That's all I ever think about,
and I am depressed.t

21 Then I remember something
that fills me with hope.

22 The [Lord]'s kindness never fails!
If he had not been merciful,
we would have been destroyed.t

23 The [Lord] can always be trusted
to show mercy each morning.

24 Deep in my heart I say,
“The [Lord] is all I need;
I can depend on him!”

25 The [Lord] is kind to everyone
who trusts and obeys him.

26 It is good to wait patiently
for the [Lord] to save us.

27 When we are young,
it is good to struggle hard

28 and to sit silently alone,
if this is what
the [Lord] intends.

29 Being rubbed in the dirt
can teach us a lesson;t

30 we can also learn from insults
and hard knocks.

31 The Lord won't always reject us!

32 He causes a lot of suffering,
but he also has pity
because of his great love.

33 The Lord doesn't enjoy
sending grief or pain.

34 Don't trample prisoners
under your feet

35 or cheat anyone out of
what is rightfully theirs.
God Most High sees everything,

36 and he knows when you refuse
to give someone a fair trial.

37 No one can do anything
without the Lord's approval.

38 Good and bad each happen
at the command
of God Most High.

39 We're still alive!
We shouldn't complain
when we are being punished
for our sins.

40 Instead, we should think
about the way we are living,
and turn back to the [Lord].

41 When we lift our hands
in prayer to God in heaven,
we should offer him our hearts
and say,

42 “We've sinned!
We've rebelled against you,
and you haven't forgiven us!

43 Anger is written all over you,
as you pursue and slaughter us
without showing pity.

44 You are behind a wall of clouds
that blocks out our prayers.

45 You allowed nations
to treat us like garbage;

46 our enemies curse us.

47 We are terrified and trapped,
caught and crushed.”

48 My people are destroyed!
Tears flood my eyes,

49 and they won't stop

50 until the [Lord] looks down
from heaven and helps.

51 I am horrified when I see
what enemies have done
to the young women of our city.

52 No one had reason to hate me,
but I was hunted down
like a bird.

53 Then they tried to kill me
by tossing me into a pit
and throwing stones at me.

54 Water covered my head—
I thought I was gone.

55 From the bottom of the pit,
I prayed to you, [Lord].

56 I begged you to listen.
“Help!” I shouted. “Save me!”
You answered my prayer

57 and came when I was in need.
You told me, “Don't worry!”

58 You rescued me
and saved my life.

59 You saw them abuse me, [Lord],
so make things right.

60 You know every plot
they have made against me.

61 Yes, you know their insults
and their evil plans.

62 All day long they attack
with words and whispers.

63 No matter what they are doing,
they keep on mocking me.

64 Pay them back for everything
they have done, [Lord]!

65 Put your curse on them
and make them suffer.t

66 Get angry and go after them
until not a trace is left
under the heavens.