Lamentations 5
The full text of Lamentations 5 in the Trinity Bible Version — clear modern English, translated from the original Hebrew. Free to read.
1 Remember, LORD, what has happened to us;
look, and see our disgrace.
2 Our inheritance has been turned over to strangers,
our homes to foreigners.
3 We have become orphans, fatherless;
our mothers are like widows.
4 We must pay for the water we drink;
our wood comes only at a price.
5 Those who pursue us are at our necks;
we are weary and find no rest.
6 We reached out our hands to Egypt
and to Assyria, to get enough bread.
7 Our ancestors sinned and are no more,
and we bear their punishment.
8 Slaves rule over us,
and there is no one to free us from their hands.
9 We get our bread at the risk of our lives
because of the sword in the wilderness.
10 Our skin is hot as an oven
from the burning heat of famine.
11 Women are violated in Zion,
young women in the towns of Judah.
12 Princes are hung up by their hands;
elders are shown no respect.
13 Young men toil at the millstone;
boys stagger under loads of wood.
14 The elders have left the city gate;
the young men their music.
15 Joy has left our hearts;
our dancing has turned to mourning.
16 The crown has fallen from our head.
Woe to us, because we have sinned!
17 Because of this our hearts are faint,
because of these things our eyes grow dim:
18 because of Mount Zion, which lies desolate,
with jackals prowling over it.
19 You, LORD, reign forever;
your throne endures from generation to generation.
20 Why do you always forget us?
Why do you forsake us so long?
21 Restore us to yourself, LORD, and we will return;
renew our days as of old—
22 unless you have utterly rejected us
and are angry with us beyond measure.
Translation notes (11)
- Lamentations 5:3a This does not necessarily refer to literal orphans, but uses 'fatherless' as a metaphor for the loss of a national protector, such as God or a king.
- Lamentations 5:5a Literally, this means 'On our necks we are pursued,' which evokes the image of a yoke or collar.
- Lamentations 5:6a Literally, 'We gave a hand to Egypt/Assyria.' This is an idiom, meaning submission or treaty-making.
- Lamentations 5:7a Cf. Jer 31:29; Ezek 18:2—the proverb about sour grapes. This verse voices the complaint those passages counter.
- Lamentations 5:8a This likely refers to low-ranking Babylonian officials who were appointed over the remaining population.
- Lamentations 5:12a This possibly refers to impalement or suspension as a form of public humiliation or execution.
- Lamentations 5:13a Grinding at the mill was typically work done by women or slaves, so this represents a forced role reversal as a form of humiliation.
- Lamentations 5:16a The 'crown' here represents national dignity or sovereignty, not necessarily a literal royal crown.
- Lamentations 5:18a Jackals in the ruins = complete abandonment. Cf. Isa 13:22; Jer 9:11.
- Lamentations 5:21a The Hebrew words hashivenu... venashuvah involve a play on words with the root shuv, which means 'return,' 'repent,' or 'restore.'
- Lamentations 5:22a This can also be translated as 'for you have utterly rejected us.' The Hebrew words ki im can introduce either a condition or a statement. This ambiguity is intentional, as the book ends without a clear resolution.
About this translation
The Trinity Bible Version (TBV) is Trinity Bible's own translation of Scripture, made directly from the original Hebrew rather than revised from an older English Bible. Completed in 2026, it is the most modern English Bible translation available, and it is exclusive to Trinity Bible. Reading the TBV here on the web is free — the full study edition, with original-language tools and notes on every verse, lives in the Trinity Bible app.
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