Lamentations 5
New King James Version
Prayer for Restoration
5 Remember, (A)O Lord, what has come upon us;
Look, and behold (B)our reproach!
2 (C)Our inheritance has been turned over to aliens,
And our houses to foreigners.
3 We have become orphans and waifs,
Our mothers are like (D)widows.
4 We pay for the water we drink,
And our wood comes at a price.
5 (E)They pursue at our [a]heels;
We labor and have no rest.
6 (F)We have given our hand (G)to the Egyptians
And the (H)Assyrians, to be satisfied with bread.
7 (I)Our fathers sinned and are no more,
But we bear their iniquities.
8 Servants rule over us;
There is none to deliver us from their hand.
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,
Because of the fever of famine.
11 They (J)ravished the women in Zion,
The maidens in the cities of Judah.
12 Princes were hung up by their hands,
And elders were not respected.
13 Young men (K)ground at the millstones;
Boys staggered under loads of wood.
14 The elders have ceased gathering at the gate,
And the young men from their (L)music.
15 The joy of our heart has ceased;
Our dance has turned into (M)mourning.
16 (N)The crown has fallen from our head.
Woe to us, for we have sinned!
17 Because of this our heart is faint;
(O)Because of these things our eyes grow dim;
18 Because of Mount Zion which is (P)desolate,
With foxes walking about on it.
19 You, O Lord, (Q)remain forever;
(R)Your throne from generation to generation.
20 (S)Why do You forget us forever,
And forsake us for so long a time?
21 (T)Turn us back to You, O Lord, and we will be [b]restored;
Renew our days as of old,
22 Unless You have utterly rejected us,
And are very angry with us!
Footnotes
- Lamentations 5:5 Lit. necks
- Lamentations 5:21 returned
Lamentations 5
Living Bible
5 O Lord, remember all that has befallen us; see what sorrows we must bear! 2 Our homes, our nation, now are filled with foreigners. 3 We are orphans—our fathers dead, our mothers widowed. 4 We must even pay for water to drink; our fuel is sold to us at the highest of prices. 5 We bow our necks beneath the victors’ feet; unending work is now our lot. 6 We beg for bread from Egypt, and Assyria too.
7 Our fathers sinned but died before the hand of judgment fell. We have borne the blow that they deserved!
8 Our former servants have become our masters; there is no one left to save us. 9 We went into the wilderness to hunt for food, risking death from enemies. 10 Our skin was black from famine. 11 They rape the women of Jerusalem and the girls in Judah’s cities. 12 Our princes are hanged by their thumbs. Even aged men are treated with contempt. 13 They take away the young men to grind their grain, and the little children stagger beneath their heavy loads.
14 The old men sit no longer in the city gates; the young no longer dance and sing. 15 The joy of our hearts has ended; our dance has turned to death.[a] 16 Our glory is gone. The crown is fallen from our head. Woe upon us for our sins. 17 Our hearts are faint and weary; our eyes grow dim. 18 Jerusalem and the Temple of the Lord are desolate, deserted by all but wild animals lurking in the ruins.
19 O Lord, forever you remain the same! Your throne continues from generation to generation. 20 Why do you forget us forever? Why do you forsake us for so long? 21 Turn us around and bring us back to you again! That is our only hope! Give us back the joys we used to have! 22 Or have you utterly rejected us? Are you angry with us still?
Footnotes
- Lamentations 5:15 to death, literally, “to mourning.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.