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The Daily Audio Bible
This reading plan is provided by Brian Hardin from Daily Audio Bible.
Duration: 731 days
New English Translation (NET)
Lamentations 1-2
The Prophet Speaks
א (Alef)[a]
1 [b] Alas![c] The city once full of people[d]
now sits all alone![e]
The prominent lady[f] among the nations
has become a widow![g]
The princess[h] who once ruled the provinces[i]
has become[j] a forced laborer![k]
ב (Bet)
2 She weeps bitterly at night;
tears stream down her cheeks.[l]
She has no one to comfort her
among all her lovers.[m]
All her friends have betrayed her;
they have become her enemies.
ג (Gimel)
3 Judah[n] has departed into exile
under[o] affliction and harsh oppression.[p]
She[q] lives among the nations;
she has found no resting place.
All who pursued her overtook her
in[r] narrow straits.[s]
ד (Dalet)
4 The roads to Zion[t] mourn[u]
because no one[v] travels to the festivals.[w]
All her city gates[x] are deserted;[y]
her priests groan.[z]
Her virgins grieve;[aa]
she is in bitter anguish![ab]
ה (He)
5 Her foes subjugated her;[ac]
her enemies are at ease.[ad]
For the Lord afflicted her
because of her many acts of rebellion.[ae]
Her children went away
captive[af] before the enemy.
ו (Vav)
6 All of Daughter Zion’s[ag] splendor[ah]
has departed.[ai]
Her leaders became like deer;
they found no pasture,
so they were too exhausted to escape[aj]
from the hunter.[ak]
ז (Zayin)
7 Jerusalem remembers,[al]
when[am] she became a poor homeless person,[an]
all her treasures
that she owned in days of old.[ao]
When her people fell into an enemy’s grip,[ap]
none of her allies came to her rescue.[aq]
Her enemies[ar] gloated over[as] her;
they sneered[at] at her downfall.[au]
ח (Khet)
8 Jerusalem committed terrible sin;[av]
therefore she became an object of scorn.[aw]
All who admired[ax] her have despised her[ay]
because they have seen her nakedness.[az]
She groans aloud[ba]
and turns away in shame.[bb]
ט (Tet)
9 Her menstrual flow[bc] has soiled[bd] her clothing;[be]
she did not consider[bf] the consequences of her sin.[bg]
Her demise[bh] was astonishing,[bi]
and there was no one to comfort her.
She cried, “Look,[bj] O Lord, on my[bk] affliction
because my[bl] enemy boasts!”
י (Yod)
10 An enemy grabbed[bm]
all her valuables.[bn]
Indeed she watched in horror[bo] as Gentiles[bp]
invaded her holy temple[bq]—
those whom you[br] had commanded:
“They must not enter[bs] your assembly place.”[bt]
כ (Kaf)
11 All her people groaned
as they searched for a morsel of bread.[bu]
They exchanged[bv] their valuables[bw]
for[bx] just enough food
to stay alive.[by]
Jerusalem Speaks
“Look, O Lord! Consider[bz]
that I have become worthless!”
ל (Lamed)
12 Is it nothing to you,[ca] all you who pass by on the road?[cb]
Look and see!
Is there any pain like mine?
The Lord[cc] has afflicted me,[cd]
he[ce] has inflicted it on me
when[cf] he burned with anger.[cg]
מ (Mem)
13 He sent down fire[ch]
into my bones, and it overcame[ci] them.
He spread out a trapper’s net[cj] for my feet;
he made me turn back.
He has made me desolate;
I am faint all day long.
נ (Nun)
14 My sins are bound around my neck like a yoke;[ck]
they are fastened together by his hand.
He has placed his yoke[cl] on my neck;[cm]
he has sapped my strength.[cn]
The Lord[co] has handed me over[cp]
to those whom I cannot resist.
ס (Samek)
15 He rounded up[cq] all my mighty ones;[cr]
The Lord[cs] did this[ct] in[cu] my midst.
He summoned an assembly[cv] against me
to shatter my young men.
The Lord has stomped like grapes[cw]
the virgin daughter, Judah.[cx]
ע (Ayin)
16 I weep because of these things;
my eyes[cy] flow with tears.[cz]
For there is no one in sight who can comfort me[da]
or encourage me.[db]
My children[dc] are desolated[dd]
because an enemy has prevailed.
פ (Pe)
The Prophet Speaks
17 Zion spread out her hands,
but there is no one to comfort her.
The Lord has issued a decree against Jacob;
his neighbors[de] have become his enemies.
Jerusalem has become
like filthy garbage[df] in their midst.[dg]
צ (Tsade)
Jerusalem Speaks
18 The Lord is right to judge me![dh]
Yes, I rebelled against his commands.[di]
Please listen, all you nations,[dj]
and look at my suffering!
My young women and men
have gone into exile.
ק (Qof)
19 I called for my lovers,[dk]
but they had deceived me.
My priests and my elders
perished in the city.
Truly they had[dl] searched for food
to[dm] keep themselves[dn] alive.[do]
ר (Resh)
20 Look, O Lord! I am distressed;[dp]
my stomach is in knots![dq]
My heart is pounding[dr] inside me.
Yes, I was terribly rebellious![ds]
Out in the street the sword bereaves a mother of her children;[dt]
Inside the house death is present.[du]
ש (Sin/Shin)
21 They have heard[dv] that I groan,
yet there is no one to comfort me.
All my enemies have heard of my trouble;
they are glad that you[dw] have brought it about.[dx]
Bring about[dy] the day of judgment[dz] that you promised[ea]
so that[eb] they may end up[ec] like me!
ת (Tav)
22 Let all their wickedness come before you;
afflict[ed] them
just as you have afflicted me[ee]
because of all my acts of rebellion.[ef]
For my groans are many,
and my heart is sick with sorrow.[eg]
א (Alef)
The Prophet Speaks
2 Alas![eh] The Lord[ei] has covered
Daughter Zion[ej] with his anger.[ek]
He has thrown down the splendor of Israel
from heaven to earth;
he did not protect[el] his temple[em]
when he displayed his anger.[en]
ב (Bet)
2 The Lord[eo] destroyed[ep] mercilessly[eq]
all the homes of Jacob’s descendants.[er]
In his anger he tore down
the fortified cities[es] of Daughter Judah.
He knocked to the ground and humiliated
the kingdom and its rulers.[et]
ג (Gimel)
3 In fierce anger[eu] he destroyed[ev]
the whole army[ew] of Israel.
He withdrew his right hand[ex]
as the enemy attacked.[ey]
He was like a raging fire in the land of Jacob;[ez]
it consumed everything around it.[fa]
ד (Dalet)
4 He prepared his bow[fb] like an enemy;
his right hand was ready to shoot.[fc]
Like a foe he killed everyone,
even our strong young men;[fd]
he has poured out his anger like fire
on the tent[fe] of Daughter Zion.
ה (He)
5 The Lord,[ff] like an enemy,
destroyed[fg] Israel.
He destroyed[fh] all her palaces;
he ruined her[fi] fortified cities.
He made everyone in Daughter Judah
mourn and lament.[fj]
ו (Vav)
6 He destroyed his temple[fk] as if it were a vineyard;[fl]
he destroyed his appointed meeting place.
The Lord has made those in Zion forget
both the festivals and the Sabbaths.[fm]
In his fierce anger[fn] he has spurned[fo]
both king and priest.
ז (Zayin)
7 The Lord[fp] rejected[fq] his altar
and abhorred his temple.[fr]
He handed over to the enemy[fs]
Jerusalem’s palace walls;
the enemy[ft] shouted[fu] in the Lord’s temple
as if it were a feast day.[fv]
ח (Khet)
8 The Lord was determined to tear down
Daughter Zion’s wall.
He prepared to knock it down;[fw]
he did not withdraw his hand from destroying.[fx]
He made the ramparts and fortified walls lament;
together they mourned their ruin.[fy]
ט (Tet)
9 Her city gates have fallen[fz] to the ground;
he smashed to bits[ga] the bars that lock her gates.[gb]
Her king and princes were taken into exile;[gc]
there is no more guidance available.[gd]
As for her prophets,
they no longer receive[ge] a vision from the Lord.
י (Yod)
10 The elders of Daughter Zion
sit[gf] on the ground in silence.[gg]
They have thrown dirt on their heads;
They have dressed in sackcloth.[gh]
Jerusalem’s young women[gi] stare down at the ground.[gj]
כ (Kaf)
11 My eyes are worn out[gk] from weeping;[gl]
my stomach is in knots.[gm]
My heart[gn] is poured out on the ground
due to the destruction[go] of my helpless people;[gp]
children and infants faint
in the town squares.
ל (Lamed)
12 Children[gq] say to their mothers,[gr]
“Where are food and drink?”[gs]
They faint[gt] like a wounded warrior
in the city squares.
They die slowly[gu]
in their mothers’ arms.[gv]
מ (Mem)
13 With what can I equate[gw] you?
To what can I compare you, O Daughter Jerusalem?
To what can I liken you[gx]
so that[gy] I might comfort you, O Virgin Daughter Zion?
Your wound is as deep[gz] as the sea.[ha]
Who can heal you?[hb]
נ (Nun)
14 Your prophets saw visions for you
that were worthless whitewash.[hc]
They failed to expose your sin
so as to restore your fortunes.[hd]
They saw oracles for you
that were worthless[he] lies.
ס (Samek)
15 All who passed by on the road
clapped their hands to mock you.[hf]
They sneered and shook their heads
at Daughter Jerusalem.
“Ha! Is this the city they called[hg]
‘the perfection of beauty,[hh]
the source of joy of the whole earth!’?”[hi]
פ (Pe)
16 All your enemies
gloated over you.[hj]
They sneered and gnashed their teeth;
they said, “We have destroyed[hk] her!
Ha! We have waited a long time for this day.
We have lived to see it!”[hl]
ע (Ayin)
17 The Lord has done what he planned;
he has fulfilled[hm] his promise[hn]
that he threatened[ho] long ago:[hp]
He has overthrown you without mercy[hq]
and has enabled the enemy to gloat over you;
he has exalted your adversaries’ power.[hr]
צ (Tsade)
18 Cry out[hs] from your heart[ht] to the Lord,[hu]
O wall of Daughter Zion![hv]
Make your tears flow like a river
all day and all night long![hw]
Do not rest;
do not let your tears[hx] stop!
ק (Qof)
19 Get up! Cry out in the night
when the night watches start![hy]
Pour out your heart[hz] like water
before the face of the Lord![ia]
Lift up your hands[ib] to him
for your children’s lives;[ic]
they are fainting[id] from hunger
at every street corner.[ie]
ר (Resh)
Jerusalem Speaks
20 Look, O Lord! Consider![if]
Whom have you ever afflicted[ig] like this?
Should women eat their offspring,[ih]
their healthy infants?[ii]
Should priest and prophet
be killed in the Lord’s[ij] sanctuary?
ש (Sin/Shin)
21 The young boys and old men
lie dead on the ground in the streets.
My young women[ik] and my young men
have fallen by the sword.
You killed them when you were angry;[il]
you slaughtered them without mercy.[im]
ת (Tav)
22 As if it were a feast day, you call[in]
enemies[io] to terrify me[ip] on every side.[iq]
On the day of the Lord’s anger
no one escaped or survived.
My enemy has finished off
those healthy infants whom I bore[ir] and raised.[is]
Footnotes
- Lamentations 1:1 sn Chapters 1-4 are arranged in alphabetic-acrostic structures; the acrostic pattern does not appear in chapter 5. Each of the 22 verses in chapters 1, 2 and 4 begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet, while the acrostic appears in triplicate in the 66 verses in chapter 3. The acrostic pattern does not appear in chapter 5, but its influence is felt in that it has 22 verses, the same as the number of letters in the Hebrew alphabet. For further study on Hebrew acrostics, see W. M. Soll, “Babylonian and Biblical Acrostics,” Bib 69 (1988): 305-23; D. N. Freedman, “Acrostic Poems in the Hebrew Bible: Alphabetic and Otherwise,” CBQ 48 (1986): 408-31; B. Johnson, “Form and Message in Lamentations,” ZAW 97 (1985): 58-73; K. C. Hanson, “Alphabetic Acrostics: A Form Critical Study,” Ph.D. diss., Claremont Graduate School, 1984; S. Bergler, “Threni V—Nur ein alphabetisierendes Lied? Versuch einer Deutung,” VT 27 (1977): 304-22; E. M. Schramm, “Poetic Patterning in Biblical Hebrew,” Michigan Oriental Studies in Honor of George S. Cameron, 175-78; D. N. Freedman, “Acrostics and Metrics in Hebrew Poetry,” HTR 65 (1972): 367-92; N. K. Gottwald, “The Acrostic Form,” Studies in the Book of Lamentations, 23-32; P. A. Munch, “Die alphabetische Akrostichie in der judischen Psalmendicthung,” ZDMG 90 (1936): 703-10; M. Löhr, “Alphabetische und alphabetisierende Lieder im AT,” ZAW 25 (1905): 173-98.
- Lamentations 1:1 tc The LXX and Vulgate (dependent on the LXX) include a preface that is lacking in the MT: “And it came to pass after Israel had been taken captive and Jerusalem had been laid waste, Jeremiah sat weeping and lamented this lament over Jerusalem, and said….” Scholars generally view the preface in the LXX and Vulgate as a later addition, though the style is Hebrew rather than Greek.
- Lamentations 1:1 tn The adverb אֵיכָה (ʾekhah) is used as an exclamation of lament or desperation: “How!” (BDB 32 s.v.) or “Alas!” (HALOT 40 s.v. 1.e). It is often the first word in laments (Isa 1:21; Jer 48:17; Lam 1:1; 2:1; 4:1, 2). Like the less emphatic exclamation אֵיךְ (ʾekh, “Alas!”) (2 Sam 1:19; Isa 14:4, 12; Ezek 26:17), it is used in contexts of lament and mourning.sn The term אֵיכָה (ʾekhah, “Alas!”) and counterpart אֵיךְ (ʾekh, “Alas!”) are normally uttered in contexts of mourning as exclamations of lament over a deceased person (2 Sam 1:19; Isa 14:4, 12). The prophets borrow this term from its normal Sitz im Leben in the funeral lament and rhetorically place it in the context of announcements or descriptions of God’s judgment (Isa 1:21; Jer 48:17; Ezek 26:17; Lam 1:1; 2:1; 4:1, 2). This creates a personification of the city/nation that is either in danger of imminent “death” or already has “died” as a result of the Lord’s judgment.
- Lamentations 1:1 tn Heb “great of people.” The construct רַבָּתִי עָם (rabbati ʿam, “great of people”) is an idiom for large population: “full of people, populous” (BDB 912-13 s.v. I רַב; HALOT 1172 s.v. 7.a). The hireq-campaginis ending on רַבָּתִי (rabbati) sometimes appears on construct forms (GKC 253 §90.a,l). By contrast to the first half of the line, it is understood that she was full of people formerly. רַבָּתִי עָם (rabbati ʿam) may also be construed as a title.sn Two thirds of Lamentations is comprised of enjambed lines (the syntax of a line carries on to the next line without a pause) rather than Hebrew poetry’s more frequent couplets of parallel phrasing. This serves a rhetorical effect not necessarily apparent if translated in the word order of English prose. Together with the alphabetic acrostic form, these pull the reader/hearer along through the various juxtaposed pictures of horror and grief. For further study on the import of these stylistic features to the function of Lamentations see F. W. Dobbs-Allsopp, Lamentations (IBC), 12-20; idem, “The Enjambing Line in Lamentations: A Taxonomy (Part 1),” ZAW 113/2 (2001): 219-39; idem, “The Effects of Enjambment in Lamentations,” ZAW 113/5 (2001): 1-16. However, for the sake of English style and clarity, the translation does not necessarily reflect the Hebrew style and word order.
- Lamentations 1:1 tn The noun בָּדָד (badad, “isolation, alone”) functions as adverbial accusative of state. After verbs of dwelling, it pictures someone sitting apart, which may be linked to dwelling securely, especially of a city or people (Num 23:9; Deut 33:28; Jer 49:31; Ps 4:8 [9 HT]), or to isolation (Lev 13:46; Jer 15:17; 49:31). Applied to personified Jerusalem, it contrasts a possible connotation of dwelling securely, instead stating that Lady Jerusalem is abandoned and connoting that the city is deserted.
- Lamentations 1:1 tn Heb “great.” The adjective רַב (rav, “great”) is used in reference to a position of prominence, leadership (Ps 48:3; Dan 11:3, 5) or strength (Isa 53:12; 63:1; 2 Chr 14:10) (BDB 913 s.v. 2.b; HALOT 1172 s.v. 6). The hireq-campaginis ending on רַבָּתִי (rabbati) sometimes appears on construct forms (GKC 253 §90.a,l). This adjective is the same word mentioned at the beginning of the verse in the phrase “full of people.” These may also be construed as epithets.
- Lamentations 1:1 tn The kaf (כ) prefixed to אַלְמָנָה (ʾalmanah, “widow”) expresses identity (“has become a widow”) rather than comparison (“has become like a widow”) (see HALOT 453 s.v. 1; BDB 454 s.v. כְּ 1.d). The construction emphasizes the class of widowhood.
- Lamentations 1:1 tn The noun שָׂרָתִי (sarati, “princess”) is in construct with the following noun. The hireq-campaginis ending sometimes appears on construct forms (GKC 253 §90.a,l).sn Judah was organized into administrative districts or provinces under the rule of provincial governors (שָׂרִים, sarim) (1 Kgs 20:14, 17, 19). The feminine term שָׂרָה (sarah, “princess, provincial governess”) is a wordplay alluding to this political background: personified Jerusalem had ruled over the Judean provinces.
- Lamentations 1:1 tn Heb “princess among the provinces.” The noun מְדִינָה (medinah) is an Aramaic loanword which refers to an administrative district or province in the empire (e.g., Ezek 19:8; Dan 8:2) (BDB 193 s.v. 2; HALOT 549 s.v.).
- Lamentations 1:1 tn Following the verb הָיָה (hayah, “to be”), the preposition ל (lamed) designates a transition into a new state or condition: “to become” (BDB 512 s.v. לְ 4.a; e.g., Gen 2:7; 1 Sam 9:16; 15:1).
- Lamentations 1:1 tn The noun מַס (mas) means “forced labor, corveé slave, conscripted worker.” It refers to a subjugated population, subject to forced labor and/or heavy taxes (Gen 49:15; Exod 1:11; Deut 20:11; Josh 16:10; 17:13; Judg 1:28, 30, 33, 35; 1 Kgs 5:14 [5:28 HT]; 9:15, 21; 12:18; 2 Chr 10:18; Isa 31:8; Lam 1:1).
- Lamentations 1:2 tn Heb “her tears are on her cheek.”
- Lamentations 1:2 tn Heb “lovers.” The term “lovers” is a figurative expression (hypocatastasis), comparing Jerusalem’s false gods and foreign political alliances to sexually immoral lovers. Hosea uses similar imagery (Hos 2:5, 7, 10, 13). It may also function as a double entendre, first evoking a disconcerting picture of a funeral where the widow has no loved ones present to comfort her. God also does not appear to be present to comfort Jerusalem and will later be called her enemy. The imagery in Lamentations frequently capitalizes on changing the reader’s expectations midstream.
- Lamentations 1:3 tn Heb “Judah.” The term “Judah” is a synecdoche of nation (= Judah) for the inhabitants of the nation (= people).
- Lamentations 1:3 tn There is a debate over the function of the preposition מִן (min): (1) a temporal sense of “after” (HALOT 598 s.v. 2.c; BDB 581 s.v. 4.b) (e.g., Gen 4:3; 38:24; Josh 23:1; Judg 11:4; 14:8; Isa 24:22; Ezek 38:8; Hos 6:2) is adopted by one translation: “After affliction and harsh labor, Judah has gone into exile” (NIV); (2) a causal sense of “because” (HALOT 598 s.v. 6; BDB 580 s.v. 2.f) (e.g., Isa 5:13) is adopted by many English versions: “Judah has gone into exile because of misery and harsh oppression/servitude” (cf. KJV, NKJV, RSV, NRSV, NJPS); and (3) an instrumental sense of “by, through” is possible (BDB 579 s.v. 2.e): “Judah has gone into exile under affliction, and under harsh servitude” (NASB). The issue here is whether this verse states that Judah went into exile after suffering a long period of trouble and toil, or that Judah went into exile because of the misery and affliction that the populace suffered under the hands of the Babylonians. For fuller treatment of this difficult syntactical problem, see D. R. Hillers, Lamentations (AB), 6-7.
- Lamentations 1:3 tn Heb “great servitude.” The noun עֲבֹדָה (ʿavodah, “servitude”) refers to the enforced labor and suffering inflicted upon conquered peoples who are subjugated into slavery (Exod 1:14; 2:23; 5:9, 11; 6:9; Deut 26:6; 1 Kgs 12:4; 1 Chr 26:30; 2 Chr 10:4; 12:8; Isa 14:3; Lam 1:3).
- Lamentations 1:3 tn The antecedent of “she” is “Judah,” which functions as a synecdoche of nation (= Judah) for the inhabitants of the nation (= people). Thus, “she” (= Judah) is tantamount to “they” (= former inhabitants of Judah).
- Lamentations 1:3 tn The preposition בִּין (bin) is used in reference to a location: “between” (BDB 107 s.v. 1).
- Lamentations 1:3 tn Heb “distresses.” The noun מֵצַר (metsar, “distress”) occurs only here and in Ps 118:5 (NIV “anguish”). Here, the plural form מְצָרִים (metsarim, lit., “distresses”) is an example of the plural of intensity: “intense distress.” The phrase בִּין הַמְּצָרִים (bin hammetsarim, “between the narrow places”) is unparalleled elsewhere in the Hebrew scriptures; however, this line is paraphrased in “The Thanksgiving Psalm” from Qumran (Hodayoth = 1QH v 29), which adds the phrase “so I could not get away.” Following the interpretation of this line at Qumran, it describes a futile attempt to flee from the enemies in narrow straits that thwarted a successful escape.
- Lamentations 1:4 tn Heb “roads of Zion.” The noun צִיּוֹן (tsiyyon, Zion) is a genitive of direction (termination) following the construct noun, meaning “roads to Zion.”sn The noun דַּרְכֵי (darkhe, “roads”) is normally masculine in gender, but here it is feminine (e.g., Exod 18:20) (BDB 202 s.v.), as indicated by the following feminine adjective אֲבֵּלּוֹת (ʾavelot, “mourning”). This rare feminine usage is probably due to the personification of Jerusalem as a bereaved woman throughout chap. 1.
- Lamentations 1:4 tn The adjective אֲבֵּלּוֹת (ʾavelot, “mourning”) functions as a predicate of state.sn The term אָבַּל (ʾaval, “mourn”) refers to the mourning rites for the dead or to those mourning the deceased (Gen 37:35; Job 29:25; Ps 35:14; Jer 16:7; Esth 6:12; Sir 7:34; 48:24). The prophets often use it figuratively to personify Jerusalem as a mourner, lamenting her deceased and exiled citizens (Isa 57:18; 61:2, 3) (BDB 5 s.v.; HALOT 7 s.v.).
- Lamentations 1:4 tn Heb “from lack of.” The construction מִבְּלִי (mibbeli) is composed of the preposition מִן (min), functioning in a causal sense (BDB 580 s.v. מִן 2.f), and the adverb of negation בְּלִי (beli) to denote the negative cause: “from want of” or “without” (HALOT 133 s.v. בְּלִי 4; BDB 115 s.v. בְּלִי 2.c) (Num 14:16; Deut 9:28; 28:55; Eccl 3:11; Isa 5:13; Jer 2:15; 9:11; Hos 4:6; Ezek 34:5).
- Lamentations 1:4 tn Heb “those coming of feast.” The construct chain בָּאֵי מוֹעֵד (baʾe moʿed) consists of (1) the substantival plural construct participle בָּאֵי (baʾe, “those who come”) and (2) the collective singular genitive of purpose מוֹעֵד (moʿed, “for the feasts”).
- Lamentations 1:4 tc The MT reads שְׁעָרֶיהָ (sheʿareha, “her gates”). The BHS editors suggest revocalizing the text to the participle שֹׁעֲרֶיהָ (shoʿareha, “her gatekeepers”) from שֹׁעֵר (shoʿer, “porter”; BDB 1045 s.v. שֹׁעֵר). The revocalization creates tight parallelism: “her gatekeepers”//“her priests,” but ruins the chiasm: (A) her gatekeepers, (B) her priests, (B’) her virgins, (A’) the city itself.
- Lamentations 1:4 tn The verb שָׁמֵם (shamem) normally means “to be desolated; to be appalled,” but when used in reference to land, it means “deserted” (Isa 49:8; Ezek 33:28; 35:12, 15; 36:4) (BDB 1030 s.v. 1).
- Lamentations 1:4 tn Heb “groan” or “sigh.” The verb אָנַח (ʾanakh) is an expression of grief (Prov 29:2; Isa 24:7; Lam 1:4, 8; Ezek 9:4; 21:11). BDB 58 s.v. 1 suggests that it means “sigh,” but HALOT 70-71 s.v. prefers “groan” here.
- Lamentations 1:4 tc The MT reads נּוּגוֹת (nugot, “are grieved”), Niphal participle feminine plural from יָגָה (yagah, “to grieve”). The LXX ἀγόμεναι (agomenai) reflects נָהוּגוֹת (nahugot, “are led away”), Qal passive participle feminine plural from נָהַג (nahag, “to lead away into exile”), also reflected in Aquila and Symmachus. The MT reading is an unusual form (see translator’s note below) and best explains the origin of the LXX, which is a more common root. It would be difficult to explain the origin of the MT reading if the LXX reflected the original. Therefore, the MT is probably the original reading.tn Heb “are grieved” or “are worried.” The unusual form נּוּגוֹת (nugot) is probably best explained as Niphal feminine plural participle (with dissimilated nun [ן]) from יָגָה (yagah, “to grieve”). The similarly formed Niphal participle masculine plural construct נוּגֵי (nuge) appears in Zeph 3:18 (GKC 421 §130.a). The Niphal of יָגָה (yagah, “to grieve”) appears only twice, both in contexts of sorrow: “to grieve, sorrow” (Lam 1:4; Zeph 3:18).
- Lamentations 1:4 tn Heb “and she is bitter to herself,” that is, “sick inside” (2 Kgs 4:27)
- Lamentations 1:5 tn Heb “her foes became [her] head” (הָיוּ צָרֶיהָ לְרֹאשׁ, hayu tsareha leroʾsh) or more idiomatically “have come out on top.” This is a Semitic idiom for domination or subjugation, with “head” as a metaphor for leader.
- Lamentations 1:5 tn The nuance expressed in the LXX is that her enemies prosper (cf. KJV, NASB, NRSV, NLT).
- Lamentations 1:5 tn Heb “because of her many rebellions.” The plural פְּשָׁעֶיהָ (peshaʿeha, “her rebellions”) is an example of the plural of repeated action or characteristic behavior (see IBHS 121 §7.4.2c). The third person feminine singular suffix (“her”) probably functions as a subjective genitive: “her rebellions” = “she has rebelled.”
- Lamentations 1:5 tn The singular noun שְׁבִי (shevi) is a collective singular, meaning “captives, prisoners.” It functions as an adverbial accusative of state: “[they] went away as captives.”
- Lamentations 1:6 tn Heb “the daughter of Zion.” This phrase is used as an epithet for the city. “Daughter” may seem extraneous in English but consciously joins the various epithets and metaphors of Jerusalem as a woman, a device used to evoke sympathy from the reader.
- Lamentations 1:6 tn Heb “all her splendor.” The third person feminine singular pronominal suffix (“her”) functions as a subjective genitive: “everything in which she gloried.” The noun הָדָר (hadar, “splendor”) is used of personal and impersonal referents in whom Israel gloried: Ephraim (Deut 33:17), Jerusalem (Isa 5:14), Carmel (Isa 35:2). The context focuses on the exile of Zion’s children (1:5c) and leaders (1:6bc). The departure of the children and leaders of Jerusalem going away into exile suggested to the writer the departure of the glory of Israel.
- Lamentations 1:6 tn Heb “It has gone out from the daughter of Zion, all her splendor.”
- Lamentations 1:6 tn Heb “they fled with no strength” (וַיֵּלְכוּ בְלֹא־כֹחַ, vayyelekhu beloʾ khoakh).
- Lamentations 1:6 tn Heb “the pursuer” or “the chaser.” The term רָדַף (radaf, “to chase, pursue”) here refers to a hunter (e.g., 1 Sam 26:20). It is used figuratively (hypocatastasis) of military enemies who “hunt down” those who flee for their lives (e.g., Gen 14:15; Lev 26:7, 36; Judg 4:22; Pss 7:6; 69:27; 83:16; 143:3; Isa 17:13; Lam 5:5; Amos 1:11).
- Lamentations 1:7 sn As elsewhere in chap. 1, Jerusalem is personified as remembering the catastrophic days of 587 b.c. when Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the city and exiled its inhabitants. Like one of its dispossessed inhabitants, Jerusalem is pictured as becoming impoverished and homeless.
- Lamentations 1:7 tn Heb “the days of her poverty and her homelessness,” or “the days of her affliction and wandering.” The plural construct יְמֵי (yeme, “days of”) functions in the general sense “the time of” or “when,” envisioning the time period in which this occurred. The principal question is whether the phrase is a direct object or an adverb. If a direct object, she remembers either the season when the process happened or she remembers, i.e., reflects on, her current season of life. An adverbial sense, “during” or “throughout” normally occurs with כֹּל (kol, “all”) in the phrase “all the days of…” but may also occur without כֹּל (kol) in poetry as in Job 10:20. The adverbial sense would be translated “during her poor homeless days.” Treating “days” adverbially makes better sense with line 7b, whereas treating “days” as a direct object makes better sense with line 7c.
- Lamentations 1:7 tn The third person feminine singular suffixes on the terms עָנְיָהּ וּמְרוּדֶיהָ (ʿonyah umerudeha, “her poverty and her homelessness,” or “the days of her affliction and wandering”) function as subjective genitives: “she became impoverished and homeless.” The plural noun וּמְרוּדֶיהָ (umerudeha, lit. “her homelessnesses”) is an example of the plural of intensity. The two nouns עָנְיָהּ וּמְרוּדֶיהָ (ʿonyah umerudeha, lit., “her poverty and her homelessness”) form a nominal hendiadys in which one noun functions adjectivally and the other retains its full nominal sense: “her impoverished homelessness” or “homeless poor” (GKC 397-98 §124.e). The nearly identical phrase עֲנִיִּים מְרוּדִים (ʿaniyyim merudim, “homeless poor”) is used in Isa 58:7 (see GKC 226 §83.c), suggesting this was a Hebrew idiom. Jerusalem is personified as one of its inhabitants who became impoverished and homeless when the city was destroyed.
- Lamentations 1:7 tc The BHS editors suggest that the second bicola in 1:7 is a late addition and should be deleted. Apart from the four sets of bicola here in 1:7 and again in 2:19, every stanza in chapters 1-4 consists of three sets of bicola. Commentators usually suggest dropping line b or line c. Depending on the meaning of “days” in line a (see note on “when” earlier in the verse) either line makes sense. The four lines would make sense as two bicola if “days of” in line 7a is understood adverbially and 7b as the direct object completing the sentence. Lines 7c-d would begin with a temporal modifier and the rest of the couplet describe conditions that were true at that time.
- Lamentations 1:7 tn Heb “into the hand of.” In such phrases “hand” represents power or authority.
- Lamentations 1:7 tn Heb “and there was no helper for her.” This phrase is used idiomatically in OT to describe the plight of a city whose allies refuse to help ward off a powerful attacker. The nominal participle II עוֹזֵר (ʿozer) refers elsewhere to military warriors (1 Chr 12:1, 18, 22; 2 Chr 20:23; 26:7; 28:23; 26:15; Pss 28:7; 46:6; Ezek 12:14; 30:8; 32:21; Dan 11:34) and the related noun refers to military allies upon whom an attacked city calls for help (Lachish Letters 19:1).
- Lamentations 1:7 tn Heb “the adversaries” (צָרִים, tsarim). The third person feminine singular pronoun “her” is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity and good English style.
- Lamentations 1:7 tn The verb רָאָה (raʾah, “to look”) has a broad range of meanings, including “to feast the eyes upon” and “to look down on” or “to gloat over” fallen enemies with exultation and triumph (e.g., Judg 16:27; Pss 22:18; 112:8; 118:7; Ezek 28:17; Mic 7:10; Obad 12, 13). This nuance is clarified by the synonymous parallelism between רָאוּהָ (raʾuha, “they gloated over her”) in the A-line and שָׂחֲקוּ עַל־מִשְׁבַּתֶּהָ (sakhaqu ʿal mishbatteha, “they mocked at her downfall”) in the B-line.
- Lamentations 1:7 tn Heb “laughed” or “sneered.” The verb שָׂחַק (sakhaq, “to laugh”) is often used in reference to contempt and derision (e.g., Job 30:1; Pss 37:13; 52:8; 59:9; Lam 1:7).
- Lamentations 1:7 tc The MT reads מִשְׁבַּתֶּהָ (mishbatteha, “her annihilation”) from the noun מִשְׁבָּת (mishbat, “cessation, annihilation”), which is derived from the root שָׁבַת (shavat, “to cease”). The LXX mistakenly connected this with the root יָשַׁב (yashav, “to dwell”), reading μετοικεσίᾳ αὐτῆς (metoikesia autēs) which reflects שִׁבְתָּהּ (shivtah, “her dwelling”). The MT is favored on the basis of internal evidence: (1) The MT is the more difficult reading, being a hapax legomenon, (2) the LXX is guilty of simply misunderstanding the root and wrongly vocalizing the consonantal text, and (3) the LXX does not make good sense contextually, while the MT does.tn Heb “her cessation” or “her annihilation.”
- Lamentations 1:8 tc The MT reads חֵטְא (khetʾ, “sin”), but the BHS editors suggest the vocalization חָטֹא (khatoʾ, “sin”), Qal infinitive absolute.
- Lamentations 1:8 tn Heb “she has become an object of head-nodding” (לְנִידָה הָיָתָה, leniydah hayatah). This reflects the ancient Near Eastern custom of shaking the head in scorn (e.g., Jer 18:16; Ps 44:15 [14 HT]), hence the translation “object of scorn.” There is debate whether נִידָה (nidah) means (1) “object of head-shaking” from נוּד (nud, “to shake,” BDB 626-27 s.v. נוּד); (2) “unclean thing” from נָדַה (nadah, “to be impure”); or (3) “wanderer” from נָדַד (nadad, “to wander,” BDB 622 s.v. I נָדַד). The LXX and Rashi connected it to נָדַד (nadad, “to wander”); however, several important early Greek recensions (Aquila and Symmachus) and Syriac translated it as “unclean thing.” The modern English versions are split: (1) “unclean thing” (NASB); “unclean” (NIV); (2) “a mockery” (NRSV).
- Lamentations 1:8 sn The Piel participle of כָּבֵד (kaved) is infrequent and usually translated formulaically as those who honor someone. The feminine nuance may be best represented as “her admirers have despised her.”
- Lamentations 1:8 tn The verb הִזִּילוּהָ (hizziluha) is generally understood as a rare form of Hiphil perfect third person common plural + third person feminine singular suffix from I זָלַל (zalal, “to despise”): “they despise her.” This follows the I nun (ן) pattern with daghesh (dot) in zayin (ז) rather than the expected geminate pattern הִזִילּוּהָ (hizilluha) with daghesh in lamed (ל) (GKC 178-79 §67.l).
- Lamentations 1:8 sn The expression have seen her nakedness is a common metaphor to describe the plunder and looting of a city by a conquering army, probably drawn on the ignominious and heinous custom of raping the women of a conquered city as well.
- Lamentations 1:8 tn Heb “groan” or “sigh.” The verb אָנַח (ʾanakh, appearing only in Niphal) means “sigh” (BDB 58 s.v. 1) or “groan” (HALOT 70-71 s.v.) as an expression of grief (Prov 29:2; Isa 24:7; Lam 1:4, 8; Ezek 9:4; 21:11). The word גַּם (gam) is usually a particle meaning “also,” but has been shown from Ugaritic to have the meaning “aloud.” See T. McDaniel, “Philological Studies in Lamentations, I-II,” Bib 49 (1968): 31-32.
- Lamentations 1:8 tn Heb “and turns backward.”
- Lamentations 1:9 tn Heb “uncleanness.” The noun טֻמְאָה (tumʾah, “uncleanness”) refers in general to the state of ritual uncleanness and specifically to (1) sexual uncleanness (Num 5:19); (2) filthy material (Ezek 24:11; 2 Chr 29:16); (3) ritual uncleanness (Lev 16:16, 19; Ezek 22:15; 24:13; 36:25, 29; 39:24; Zech 13:2); (4) menstrual uncleanness (Lev 15:25, 26, 30; 18:19; Ezek 36:17); and (5) polluted meat (Judg 13:7, 14). Here, Jerusalem is personified as a woman whose menstrual uncleanness has soiled even her own clothes; this is a picture of the consequences of the sin of Jerusalem: uncleanness = her sin, and soiling her own clothes = consequences of sin. The poet may also be mixing metaphors, allowing various images (of shame) to circulate in the hearer’s mind, including rape and public exposure. By not again mentioning sin directly (a topic relatively infrequent in this book), the poet lays a general acknowledgment of sin in 1:8 alongside an exceptionally vivid picture of the horrific circumstances that have come to be. This is no simplistic explanation that sin merits such inhumane treatment. Instead 1:9 insists that no matter the legal implications of being guilty, the Lord should be motivated to aid Jerusalem (and therefore her people) because her obscene reality is so revolting.
- Lamentations 1:9 tn Heb “her uncleanness is in her skirts.”
- Lamentations 1:9 tn Heb “her skirts.” This term is a synecdoche of specific (skirts) for general (clothing).
- Lamentations 1:9 tn The basic meaning of זָכַר (zakhar) is “to remember, call to mind” (HALOT 270 s.v. I זכר). Although it is often used in reference to recollection of past events or consideration of present situations, it also may mean “to consider, think about” the future outcome of conduct (e.g., Isa 47:7) (BDB 270 s.v. 5). The same term is used in Lam 1:7a.
- Lamentations 1:9 tn Heb “she did not consider her end.” The noun אַחֲרִית (ʾakharit, “end”) here refers to an outcome or the consequences of an action; in light of 1:8, here it is the consequence of sin or immoral behavior (Num 23:10; 24:20; Deut 32:20, 29; Job 8:7; Pss 37:37; 73:17; Prov 14:12; 23:32; 25:8; Eccl 7:8; Isa 46:10; 47:7; Jer 5:31; 17:11; Dan 12:8).
- Lamentations 1:9 tc The MT reads וַתֵּרֶד (vattered), vav (ו) consecutive + Qal preterite third person feminine singular from יָרַד (yarad, “to go down”). Symmachus has καὶ κατήχθη (kai katēchthē, “and she was brought down”) and Vulgate deposita est, passive forms that might reflect וַתּוּרַד (vatturad, vav consecutive + Pual preterite third person feminine singular from from יָרַד [yarad, “to go down”]). External evidence favors the MT (supported by all other ancient versions and medieval Hebrew mss); none of the other ancient versions preserve/reflect a passive form. Symmachus is known to have departed from a wooden literal translation (characteristic of Aquila) in favor of smooth and elegant Greek style. The second edition of the Latin Vulgate drew on Symmachus; thus, it is not an independent witness to the passive reading, but merely a secondary witness reflecting Symmachus. The MT is undoubtedly the original reading. tn Heb “and she came down in an astonishing way,” or “and she was brought down in an astonishing way.”
- Lamentations 1:9 tn The noun פֶּלֶא (peleʾ) means not only “miracle, wonder” (BDB 810 s.v.) but “something unusual, astonishing” (HALOT 928 s.v.). The plural פְּלָאִים (pelaʾim, lit., “astonishments”) is an example of the plural of intensity: “very astonishing.” The noun functions as an adverbial accusative of manner; the nature of her descent shocks and astounds. Rendering פְּלָאִים וַתֵּרֶד (vattered pelaʾim) as “she has come down marvelously” (cf. BDB 810 s.v. 1 and KJV, ASV) is hardly appropriate; it is better to nuance it as “in an astonishing way” (HALOT 928 s.v. 3) or simply as “was astonishing.”
- Lamentations 1:9 tn The words “she cried” do not appear in the Hebrew. They are added to indicate that personified Jerusalem is speaking.
- Lamentations 1:9 tc The MT reads עָנְיִי (ʿonyi, “my affliction”) as reflected in all the ancient versions (LXX, Aramaic Targum, Latin Vulgate, Syriac Peshitta) and the medieval Hebrew mss. The Bohairic version and Ambrosius, however, read “her affliction,” which led the BHS editors to suggest a Vorlage of עָנְיָהּ (ʿonyah, “her affliction”). External evidence strongly favors the MT reading. The third person feminine singular textual variant probably arose out of an attempt to harmonize this form with all the other third person feminine singular forms in 1:1-11a. The MT is undoubtedly the original reading.
- Lamentations 1:9 tn Heb “an enemy.” While it is understood that the enemy is Jerusalem’s, not using the pronoun in Hebrew leaves room to imply to God that the enemy is not only Jerusalem’s but also God’s.
- Lamentations 1:10 tn Heb “stretched out his hand.” The war imagery is of seizure of property; the anthropomorphic element pictures rape. This is an idiom that describes greedy actions (BDB 831 s.v. פָרַשׂ), meaning “to seize” (HALOT 976 s.v. 2).
- Lamentations 1:10 tc The Kethib is written מַחֲמוֹדֵּיהֶם (makhamodehem, “her desired things”); the Qere and many medieval Hebrew mss read מַחֲמַדֵּיהֶם (makhamaddehem, “her desirable things”). The Qere reading should be adopted.tn Heb “all her desirable things.” The noun מַחְמָד (makhmad, “desirable thing”) refers to valuable possessions, such as gold and silver, that people desire (e.g., Ezra 8:27). This probably refers, not to the valuable possessions of Jerusalem in general, but to the sacred objects in the temple in particular, as suggested by the rest of the verse. For the anthropomorphic image compare Song 5:16.
- Lamentations 1:10 tn Heb “she watched,” or “she saw.” The verb רָאָה (raʾah, “to see”) has a broad range of meanings, including “to see” a spectacle causing grief (Gen 21:16; 44:34; Num 11:15; 2 Kgs 22:20; 2 Chr 34:28; Esth 8:6) or abhorrence (Isa 66:24). The words “in horror” are added to “she watched” to bring out this nuance.
- Lamentations 1:10 sn The syntax of the sentence is interrupted by the insertion of the following sentence, “they invaded…,” then continued with “whom…” The disruption of the syntax is a structural device intended to help convey the shock of the situation.
- Lamentations 1:10 tn Heb “her sanctuary.” The term מִקְדָּשָׁהּ (miqdashah, “her sanctuary”) refers to the temple. Anthropomorphically, translating as “her sacred place” would also allow for the rape imagery.
- Lamentations 1:10 sn Lam 1-2 has two speaking voices: a third person voice reporting the horrific reality of Jerusalem’s suffering and Jerusalem’s voice. See W. F. Lanahan, “The Speaking Voice in the Book of Lamentations” JBL 93 (1974): 41-49. The reporting voice has been addressing the listener, referring to the Lord in the third person. Here he switches to a second person address to God, also changing the wording of the following command to second person. The revulsion of the reporter is so great that he is moved to address God directly.
- Lamentations 1:10 tn Heb “enter.” The Hebrew term בּוֹא (boʾ) is also a sexual metaphor.
- Lamentations 1:10 tn The noun קָהָל (qahal, “assembly”) does not refer here to the collective group of people assembled to worship the Lord, but to the place of their assembly: the temple. This is an example of a synecdoche of the people contained (= assembly) for the container (= temple). The intent is to make the violation feel more personal than someone walking into a building.sn This is a quotation from Deut 23:3: “No Ammonite or Moabite or any of his descendants may enter the assembly of the Lord, even down to the tenth generation.” Jeremiah applies this prohibition against Ammonites and Moabites to the Babylonians, who ransacked and destroyed the temple in 587/586 b.c. This hermeneutical move may be explained on the basis of synecdoche of species (= Ammonites and Moabites) for general (= unconverted Gentiles as a whole). On a different note, the prohibition forbidding Ammonites and Moabites from entering the “assembly” (קָהָל, qahal, Deut 23:2-8) did not disallow Gentile proselytes from converting to Yahwism or from living within the community (= assembled body) of Israel. For example, Ruth the Moabitess abandoned the worship of Moabite gods and embraced Yahweh, then was welcomed into the community of Bethlehem in Judah (Ruth 1:15-22) and even incorporated into the lineage leading to King David (Ruth 4:18-22). This Deuteronomic law did not disallow such genuine conversions of repentant faith toward Yahweh, nor their incorporation into the life of the Israelite community. Nor did it discourage Gentiles from offering sacrifices to the Lord (Num 15:15-16). Rather, it prohibited Gentiles from entering into the tabernacle/temple (= place of assembly) of Israel. This is clear from the reaction of the post-exilic community when it realized that Deut 23:3-5 had been violated by Tobiah the Ammonite, who had been given living quarters in the temple precincts (Neh 13:1-9). This is also reflected in the days of the Second Temple when Gentile proselytes were allowed to enter the “court of the Gentiles” in Herod’s temple but were forbidden further access into the inner temple precincts.
- Lamentations 1:11 tn Heb “bread.” In light of its parallelism with אֹכֶל (ʾokhel, “food”) in the following line, it is possible that לֶחֶם (lekhem, “bread”) is used in its broader sense of food or nourishment.
- Lamentations 1:11 tn Heb “they sell.”
- Lamentations 1:11 tn Heb “their desirable things.” The noun מַחְמָד (makhmad, “desirable thing”) refers to valuable possessions, such as gold and silver, that people desire (e.g., Ezra 8:27).
- Lamentations 1:11 tn The preposition ב (bet) denotes the purchase price paid for an object (BDB 90 s.v. בְּ III.3; HALOT 105 s.v. בְּ 17) (e.g., Gen 23:9; 29:18, 20; 30:16; Lev 25:37; Deut 21:14; 2 Sam 24:24).
- Lamentations 1:11 tn The noun נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) may originally have referred to the windpipe opening for breathing but came to have associated meanings such as living being, breath, soul, and life (for the latter, see Gen 44:30; Exod 21:23; 2 Sam 14:7; Jon 1:14). When used with נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh), the Hiphil הָשִׁיב (hashiv) of שׁוּב (shuv, “to turn, return”) may mean “to restore a person’s vitality,” that is, to keep a person alive (Lam 1:14, 19).
- Lamentations 1:11 sn The dagesh lene in כּי (ki) following the vowel ending the verb וְהַבִּיטָה (vehabbitah, “consider”) indicates a dramatic pause between calling for the Lord’s attention and stating the allegation to be seen and considered.
- Lamentations 1:12 tc The Heb לוֹא אֲלֵיכֶם (loʾ ʾalekhem, “not to you”) is often considered awkward and difficult, but there is no textual evidence yet adduced to suggest a better original reading.
- Lamentations 1:12 tn The line as it stands is imbalanced, such that the reference to the passersby may belong here or as a vocative with the following verb translated “look.”
- Lamentations 1:12 tn Heb “He.” The personal pronoun “he” and the personal name “the Lord,” both appearing in this verse, are transposed in the translation for the sake of readability. In the Hebrew text, “He” appears in the A-line and “the Lord” appears in the B-line—good Hebrew poetic style, but awkward English style.
- Lamentations 1:12 tn Heb “which was afflicted on me.” The Polal of עָלַל (ʿalal) gives the passive voice of the Polel. The Polel of the verb עָלַל occurs ten times in the Bible, appearing in agricultural passages for gleaning or some other harvest activity and also in military passages. Jer 6:9 plays on this by comparing an attack to gleaning. The relationship between the meaning in the two types of contexts is unclear, but the very neutral rendering “to treat” in some dictionaries and translations misses the nuance appropriate to the military setting. Indeed, it is not at all feasible in a passage like Judg 20:45, where “they treated them on the highway” would make no sense but “they mowed them down on the highway” would fit the context. Accordingly, the verb is sometimes rendered “treat violently” or “deal severely,” as HALOT 834 s.v. poel.3 suggests for Lam 3:51, although simply suggesting “to deal with” in Lam 1:22 and 2:20. A more injurious nuance is given to the translation here and in 1:22; 2:20; 3:51.
- Lamentations 1:12 sn The delay in naming the Lord as cause is dramatic. The natural assumption upon hearing the passive verb in the previous line, “it was dealt severely,” might well be the pillaging army, but instead the Lord is named as the tormentor.
- Lamentations 1:12 tn Heb “in the day of.” The construction בְּיוֹם (beyom, “in the day of”) is a common Hebrew idiom, meaning “when” or “on the occasion of” (e.g., Gen 2:4; Lev 7:35; Num 3:1; Deut 4:15; 2 Sam 22:1; Pss 18:1; 138:3; Zech 8:9).
- Lamentations 1:12 tn Heb “on the day of burning anger.”
- Lamentations 1:13 tn Heb “He sent fire from on high.” Normally God sends fire from heaven. The idiom מִמָּרוֹם (mimmarom, “from on high”) can still suggest the location but as an idiom may focus on the quality of the referent. For example, “to speak from on high” means “to presume to speak as if from heaven” = arrogantly (Ps 73:8); “they fight against me from on high” = proudly (Ps 56:3) (BDB 928-29 s.v. מָרוֹם). As a potential locative, מִמָּרוֹם designates God as the agent; idiomatically the same term paints him as pitiless.
- Lamentations 1:13 tc The MT reads וַיִּרְדֶּנָּה (vayyirdennah, “it prevailed against them”), representing a vav (ו) consecutive + Qal preterite third person masculine singular + third person feminine plural suffix from רָדָה (radah, “to prevail”). The LXX form κατήγαγεν αὐτό (katēgagen auto, “it descended”) reflects an alternate vocalization tradition of וַיֹּרִדֶנָּה (vayyoridennah, “it descended against them”), representing a vav (ו) consecutive + Hiphil preterite third person masculine singular + third person feminine plural suffix from יָרָד (yarad, “to go down”), or הֹרִידָהּ (horidah, “it descended against her”), a Hiphil perfect ms + third person feminine singular suffix from from יָרָד (yarad, “to go down”). Internal evidence favors the MT. The origin of the LXX vocalization can be explained by the influence of the preceding line: “He sent down fire from on high.”
- Lamentations 1:13 tn Heb “net.” The term “trapper’s” is supplied in the translation as a clarification.
- Lamentations 1:14 tc The consonantal text נשקד על פשעי (nsqd ʿl psʿy) is vocalized by the MT as נִשְׂקַד עֹל פְּשָׁעַי (nisqad ʿol peshaʿay, “my transgression is bound by a yoke”); but the ancient versions (LXX, Aramaic Targum, Latin Vulgate, Syriac Peshitta) and many medieval Hebrew mss vocalize the text as נִשְׁקַד עַל פְּשָׁעַי (nishqad ʿal peshaʿay, “watch is kept upon my transgression”). There are two textual deviations: (1) the MT vocalizes the verb as נִשְׂקַד (nisqad, Niphal perfect third person masculine singular from שָׂקַד [saqad, “to bind”]), while the alternate tradition vocalizes it as נִשְׁקַד (nishqad, Niphal perfect third person masculine singular from שָׁקַד [shaqad, “to keep watch”]); and (2) the MT vocalizes על (ʿl) as the noun עֹל (ʿol, “yoke”), while the ancient versions and medieval Hebrew mss vocalize it as the preposition עַל (ʿal, “upon”). External evidence favors the alternate vocalization: all the early versions (LXX, Targum, Vulgate, Peshitta) and many medieval Hebrew mss versus the relatively late MT vocalization tradition. However, internal evidence favors the MT vocalization: (1) The MT verb שָׂקַד (saqad, “to bind”) is a hapax legomenon (BDB 974 s.v. שָׂקַד) which might have been easily confused for the more common verb שָׁקָד (shaqad, “to keep watch”), which is well attested elsewhere (Job 21:32; Pss 102:8; 127:1; Prov 8:34; Isa 29:20; Jer 1:12; 5:6; 31:28; 44:27; Ezr 8:29; Dan 9:14) (BDB 1052 s.v. שָׂקַד Qal.2). (2) The syntax of the MT is somewhat awkward, which might have influenced a scribe toward the alternate vocalization. (3) The presence of the noun עֻלּוֹ (ʿullo, “his yoke”) in the following line supports the presence of the same term in this line. (4) Thematic continuity of 1:14 favors the MT: throughout the verse, the inhabitants of Jerusalem are continually compared to yoked animals who are sold into the hands of cruel task-masters. The alternate vocalization intrudes into an otherwise unified stanza. In summary, despite strong external evidence in favor of the alternate vocalization tradition, even stronger internal evidence favors the MT.tn Heb “my transgressions are bound with a yoke.”
- Lamentations 1:14 tc The MT reads עָלוּ (ʿalu, “they went up”), Qal perfect third person common plural from עָלָה (ʿalah, “to go up”). However, several important recensions of the LXX reflect an alternate vocalization tradition: Lucian and Symmachus both reflect a Vorlage of עֻלּוֹ (ʿullo, “his yoke”), the noun עֹל (ʿol, “yoke”) + third person masculine singular suffix. The Lucianic recension was aimed at bringing the LXX into closer conformity to the Hebrew; therefore, this is an important textual witness. Internal evidence favors the readings of Lucian and Symmachus as well: the entire stanza focuses on the repeated theme of the “yoke” of the Lord. The MT reading is obscure in meaning, and the third person common plural form violates the syntactical flow: “[my sins] are lashed together by his hand; they have gone up upon my neck. He has weakened my strength; the Lord has handed me over….” On the other hand, the Lucian/Symmachus reading reflects contextual congruence: “My sins are bound around my neck like a yoke; they are lashed together by his hand. His yoke is upon my neck; he has weakened my strength. He has handed me over to those whom I am powerless to resist.”
- Lamentations 1:14 tn Heb “his yoke is upon my neck.”
- Lamentations 1:14 tn Heb “he has caused my strength to stumble.” The phrase הִכְשִׁיל כֹּחִי (hikhshil kokhi, “He has made my strength stumble”) is an idiom that means “to weaken, make feeble.”
- Lamentations 1:14 tc Here the MT reads אֲדֹנָי (ʾadonay, “the Lord”), the perpetual Qere reading for יהוה (YHWH, “Yahweh”), but a multitude of Hebrew mss read consonantal יהוה (YHWH, traditionally translated “the Lord”).
- Lamentations 1:14 tn Heb “The Lord has given me into the hands of.”
- Lamentations 1:15 tn The verb סָלַה (salah) occurs only twice in OT, once in Qal (Ps 119:118) and once here in Piel. It is possibly a by-form of סָלַל (salal, “to heap up”). It may also be related to Aramaic סלא (slʾ), meaning “to throw away,” and Assyrian salu/shalu, meaning “to hurl (away)” (AHw 1152) or “to kick up dust, shoot (arrows), reject, throw away?” (CAD 17:272). With people as its object shalu is used of people casting away their children, specifically meaning selling them on the market. The LXX translates סָלַה (salah) as ἐξῆρεν (exēren, “to remove, lead away”). Thus God is either (1) heaping them up (dead) in the city square, (2) putting them up for sale in the city square, or (3) leading them out of the city (into exile or to deprive it of defenders prior to attack). The English “round up” could accommodate any of these and is also a cattle term, which fits well with the use of the word “bulls” (see following note).
- Lamentations 1:15 tn Heb “bulls.” Metaphorically, bulls may refer to mighty ones, leaders, or warriors. F. W. Dobbs-Allsopp (Lamentations [IBC], 69) insightfully suggests that the Samek stanza presents an overarching dissonance by using terms associated with a celebratory feast (bulls, assembly, and a winepress) in sentences where God is abusing the normally expected celebrants, i.e., the “leaders” are the sacrifice.
- Lamentations 1:15 tc The MT reads אֲדֹנָי (ʾadonay, “the Lord”) here rather than יהוה (YHWH, “the Lord”); this occurs again a second time later in this verse. See the tc note at 1:14.
- Lamentations 1:15 tn The verb is elided and understood from the preceding colon. Naming “my Lord” as the subject of the verb late, as it were, emphasizes the irony of the action taken by a person in this position.
- Lamentations 1:15 tc The MT reads the preposition בּ (bet, “in”) prefixed to קִרְבִּי (qirbi, “my midst”): בְּקִרְבִּי (beqirbi, “in my midst”); however, the LXX reads ἐκ μέσου μου (ek mesou mou) which may reflect a Vorlage of the preposition מִן (min, “from”): מִקִּרְבִּי (miqqirbi, “from my midst”). The LXX may have chosen ἐκ to accommodate understanding סִלָּה (sillah) as ἐξῆρεν (exēren, “to remove, lead away”). The textual deviation may have been caused by an unusual orthographic confusion.tn Or “out of my midst.” See the preceding tc note.
- Lamentations 1:15 tn Heb “an assembly.” The noun מוֹעֵד (moʿed, “assembly”) is normally used in reference to the annual religious festive assemblies of Israel (Ezek 45:17; Hos 9:5; Zeph 3:18; Zech 8:19), though a number of English versions take this “assembly” to refer to the invading army that attacks the city (e.g., NAB, NIV, TEV, NLT).
- Lamentations 1:15 tn Heb “a winepress he has stomped.” The noun גַּת (gat, “winepress”) functions as an adverbial accusative of location: “in a winepress.” The translation reflects the synecdoche that is involved—one stomps the grapes that are in the winepress, not the winepress itself.
- Lamentations 1:15 sn The expression the virgin daughter, Judah is used as an epithet, i.e., Virgin Judah or Maiden Judah, further reinforcing the feminine anthrpomorphism.
- Lamentations 1:16 tc The MT and several medieval Hebrew mss read עֵינִי עֵינִי (ʿeni, ʿeni, “my eye, my eye”). However, the second עֵינִי does not appear in several other medieval Hebrew mss, or in Old Greek, Syriac Peshitta, or Latin Vulgate.tn Heb “My eye, my eye.” The Hebrew text repeats the term for literary emphasis to stress the emotional distress of personified Jerusalem.
- Lamentations 1:16 tn Heb “with water.” The noun מַיִם (mayim, “water”) functions as an adverbial accusative of manner or impersonal instrument. The term מַיִם (mayim, “water”) is a metonymy of material (= water) for the thing formed (= tears).
- Lamentations 1:16 tn Heb “For a comforter is far from me.”
- Lamentations 1:16 tn The phrase מֵשִׁיב נַפְשִׁי (meshiv nafshi, “one who could cause my soul to return”) is a Hebrew idiom that means “one who could encourage me.” The noun נַפְשִׁי (nafshi) refers to the whole person (e.g., Gen 27:4, 25; 49:6; Lev 26:11, 30; Num 23:10; Judg 5:21; 16:30; Isa 1:14; Lam 3:24). When used with the noun נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh), the Hiphil הָשִׁיב (hashiv) of שׁוּב (shuv, “to turn, return”) means “to encourage, refresh, cheer” a person emotionally (Ruth 4:15; Pss 19:8; 23:3; Prov 25:13; Lam 1:11, 16, 19).
- Lamentations 1:16 tn Heb “my sons.” The term “my sons” (בַּנַי, banay) is a figurative description (hypocatastasis) of the former inhabitants of Jerusalem/Judah personified as the Lady Jerusalem’s children. Jerusalem mourns (and views) their devastation like a mother would her children.
- Lamentations 1:16 tn The verb שָׁמֵם (shamem) means “to be desolated.” The verb is used used in reference to land destroyed in battle and left “deserted” (Isa 49:8; Ezek 33:28; 35:12, 15; 36:4). When used in reference to persons, it describes the aftermath of a physical attack, such as rape (2 Sam 13:20) or military overthrow of a city (Isa 54:1; Lam 1:13, 16; 3:11).
- Lamentations 1:17 tn Heb “his neighbors,” which refers to the surrounding nations.
- Lamentations 1:17 tn The noun II נִדָּה (niddah, “unclean thing”) has three basic categories of meaning: (1) biological uncleanness: menstruation of a woman (Lev 12:2, 5; 15:19-33 [9x]; Num 19:9, 13, 20; 31:23; Ezek 18:6; 22:10; 36:17); (2) ceremonial uncleanness: moral impurity and idolatry (Lev 20:21; 2 Chr 29:5; Ezra 9:11; Zech 13:1); and (3) physical uncleanness: filthy garbage (Lam 1:17; Ezek 7:19, 20).
- Lamentations 1:17 tc The MT reads בֵּינֵיהֶם (benehem, “in them” = “in their midst”). The BHS editors suggest that this is a textual variation from an original text of בְּעֵינֵיהֶם (beʿenehem, “in their eyes” = “in their view”). The ע (ʿayin) might have dropped out due to orthographic confusion.tn Or “in their eyes.” See the preceding tc note.
- Lamentations 1:18 tn Heb “The Lord himself is right.” The phrase “to judge me” is not in the Hebrew but is added in the translation to clarify the expression.
- Lamentations 1:18 tn Heb “His mouth.” The term “mouth” (פֶּה, peh) is a metonymy of instrument (= mouth) for the product (= words). The term פֶּה often stands for spoken words (Ps 49:14; Eccl 10:3; Isa 29:13), declaration (Gen 41:40; Exod 38:21; Num 35:30; Deut 17:6; Ezra 1:1) and commands of God (Exod 17:1; Num 14:41; 22:18; Josh 15:13; 1 Sam 15:24; 1 Chr 12:24; Prov 8:29; Isa 34:16; 62:2). When the verb מָרָה (marah, “to rebel”) is used with פֶּה (peh, “mouth”) as the direct object, it connotes disobedience to God’s commandments (Num 20:24; 1 Sam 12:14, 15; 1 Kgs 13:21) (BDB 805 s.v. פֶּה 2.c).
- Lamentations 1:18 tc The Kethib is written עַמִּים (ʿammim, “peoples”), but the Qere, followed by many medieval Hebrew mss and the ancient versions (LXX and Aramaic Targum), reads הָעַמִּים (haʿammim, “O peoples”). The Qere is probably the original reading. tn Heb “O peoples.” Here Jerusalem addresses the peoples of the surrounding nations (note the use of “neighbors” in the preceding verse).
- Lamentations 1:19 sn The term “lovers” is a figurative expression (hypocatastasis), comparing Jerusalem’s false gods and political alliance with Assyria to a woman’s immoral lovers. The prophet Hosea uses similar imagery (Hos 2:5, 7, 10, 13).
- Lamentations 1:19 tn Here the conjunction כּי (ki) functions either (1) with a temporal sense in reference to a past event, following a perfect: “when” (BDB 473 s.v. 2.a; cf. KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV), (2) with a concessive sense, following a perfect: “although” (Pss 21:12; 119:83; Mic 7:8; Nah 1:10; cf. BDB 473 s.v. 2.c.β), or (3) with an intensive force, introducing a statement with emphasis: “surely, certainly” (BDB 472 s.v. 1.e). The present translation follows the third option.
- Lamentations 1:19 tn The vav (ו) prefixed to וְיָשִׁיבוּ (veyashivu) introduces a purpose clause: “they sought food for themselves, in order to keep themselves alive.”
- Lamentations 1:19 tn The noun נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “soul”) functions as a metonymy of association (= life) (e.g., Gen 44:30; Exod 21:23; 2 Sam 14:7; Jon 1:14). When used with נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh), the Hiphil הָשִׁיב (hashiv) of שׁוּב (shuv, “to turn, return”) may mean “to preserve a person’s life,” that is, to keep a person alive (Lam 1:14, 19).
- Lamentations 1:19 tc The LXX adds καὶ οὐχ εὗρον (kai ouch heuron, “but they did not find it”). This is probably an explanatory scribal gloss, added to explicate what appeared to be ambiguous. The LXX often adds explanatory glosses in many OT books.
- Lamentations 1:20 tn Heb “because distress belongs to me” (כִּי־צַר־לִי, ki tsar li).
- Lamentations 1:20 tn Heb “my bowels burn,” or “my bowels are in a ferment.” The verb חֳמַרְמָרוּ (khamarmaru) is an unusual form and derived from a debated root: Poalal perfect third person common plural from III חָמַר (khamar, “to be red,” HALOT 330 s.v. III חמר) or Peʿalʿal perfect third person common plural from I חָמַר (khamar, “to ferment, boil up,” BDB 330 s.v. I חָמַר). The Poalal stem of this verb occurs only three times in the OT: with פָּנִים (panim, “face,” Job 16:16) and מֵעִים (meʿim, “bowels,” Lam 1:20; 2:11). The phrase מֵעַי חֳמַרְמָרוּ (meʿay khamarmaru) means “my bowels burned” (HALOT 330 s.v.) or “my bowels are in a ferment,” as a euphemism for lower-intestinal bowel problems (BDB 330 s.v.). This phrase also occurs in later rabbinic literature (m. Sanhedrin 7:2). The present translation, “my stomach is in knots,” is not a literal equivalent to this Hebrew idiom; however, it is an attempt to approximate the equivalent English idiom.
- Lamentations 1:20 tn The Niphl participle from הָפַךְ (hafakh, “to turn over”) functions verbally, referring to progressive present-time action (from the speaker’s viewpoint).
- Lamentations 1:20 tn Heb “because I was certainly rebellious.” Using the infinitive absolute before the finite verb of the same root emphasizes the verb’s modality, here indicative mode.
- Lamentations 1:20 tn Heb “in the street the sword bereaves.” The words “a mother of her children” are supplied in the translation as a clarification.
- Lamentations 1:20 tn Heb “in the house it is like death.”
- Lamentations 1:21 tc The MT reads שָׁמְעוּ (shameʿu, “They heard”), Qal perfect third person common plural from שָׁמַע (shamaʿ, “to hear”). The LXX ἀκούσατε (akousate) reflects שִׁמְעוּ (shimʿu, “Hear!”), the imperative second person masculine plural form of the same stem and root. Most English versions follow the MT (KJV, NASB, NIV, NJPS, CEV), but several follow the LXX (RSV, NRSV, TEV). Internal evidence favors the MT. The poet has been addressing God (v. 20) and continues to describe his distress, including what the enemy does. The description later in this verse also uses the Qal perfect third person common plural form שָׁמְעוּ (shameʿu, “they heard”). The MT vocalization is most likely original.
- Lamentations 1:21 tn “You” here and in the following line refers to the Lord.
- Lamentations 1:21 tn Heb “that You have done it.”
- Lamentations 1:21 tc The MT reads הֵבֵאתָ (heveʾta, “you brought”) and is followed by the LXX. The Syriac Peshitta translates the verb with an imperative, implying an original text of הָבֵא אֵת (haveʾ ʾet), the imperative plus direct-object indicator. The MT’s reading would arise from dropping an א (ʾalef) followed by wrong word division. An alternate view is to understand the perfect as precative, a proposed unusual volitional nuance of the perfect. The precative may be used in reference to situations the speaker prays for and expects to be realized, a prayer, or a request of confidence (e.g., 2 Sam 7:29; Job 21:16; 22:18; Pss 3:8; 4:2; 7:7; 22:22; 31:5-6; 71:3; Lam 1:21). See IBHS 494-95 §30.5.4c, d. Most English versions employ a volitional nuance, whether precative or imperative of request (NRSV, NASB, NIV, TEV, NJPS, CEV). A few English versions adopt a prophetic perfect future-time nuance: “thou wilt bring the day that thou hast called” (KJV, ASV).
- Lamentations 1:21 tn Heb “day.” The words “of judgment” were supplied in the translation. The term יוֹם (yom, “day”) is often used as a metonymy of association, standing for the event associated with that particular time period: judgment (e.g., Isa 2:12; 13:6, 9; Jer 46:10; Lam 2:22; Ezek 13:5; 30:3; Amos 5:18, 20; Obad 15; Zeph 1:7, 14; Zech 14:1; Mal 4:5 [3:23 HT]) (BDB 399 s.v. 3).
- Lamentations 1:21 tn Heb “proclaimed.”
- Lamentations 1:21 tn Heb “and.” Following a volitive use of the perfect, the vav (ו) prefixed to וְיִהְיוּ (veyihyu, “and let it be!”) introduces a purpose/result clause in a dependent volitive construction: “so that they may be like me!”
- Lamentations 1:21 tn Heb “that they be like me.”
- Lamentations 1:22 tn For the nuance “afflict” see the note at 1:12.
- Lamentations 1:22 tn The parallel statements “afflict them” and “just as you have afflicted me” in the translation mirror the Hebrew wordplay between עוֹלֵל לָמוֹ (ʿolel lamo, “May you deal with them”) and עוֹלַלְתָּ לִי (ʿolalta li, “you dealt with me”).
- Lamentations 1:22 tn Heb “all my rebellions,” that is, “all my rebellious acts.”
- Lamentations 1:22 tn Heb “is sorrowful” or “is faint.” The adjective דַוָּי (davvay, “faint”) is used in reference to emotional sorrow (e.g., Isa 1:5; Lam 1:22; Jer 8:18). The cognate Aramaic term means “sorrow,” and the cognate Syriac term refers to “misery” (HALOT 216 s.v. *דְּוַי). The related Hebrew adjective דְּוַה (devah) means “(physically) sick” and “(emotionally) sad,” while the related Hebrew verb דָּוָה (davah) means “to be sad” due to menstruation. The more literal English versions fail to bring out explicitly the nuance of emotional sorrow and create possible confusion as to whether the problem is simply loss of courage: “my heart is faint” (KJV, NKJV, RSV, NRSV, ASV, NASB, NIV). The more paraphrastic English versions explicate the emotional sorrow that this idiom connotes: “my heart is sick” (NJPS), “I am sick at heart” (TEV), and “I’ve lost all hope!” (CEV).
- Lamentations 2:1 tn See the note at 1:1.
- Lamentations 2:1 tc The MT reads אֲדֹנָי (ʾadonay, “the Lord”) here rather than יהוה (YHWH, “the Lord”). See the tc note at 1:14.
- Lamentations 2:1 sn Chapter 2 continues the use of feminine epithets (e.g., “Daughter Zion”) despite initially portraying Jerusalem as an object destroyed by the angered enemy, God.
- Lamentations 2:1 tn The verb יָעִיב (yaʿiv) is a hapax legomenon (a term that appears only once in the Hebrew OT). Most lexicons take it as a denominative verb from the noun עָב (ʿov, “cloud,” HALOT 773 s.v. II עָב; BDB 728 s.v. עוּב): Hiphil imperfect third person masculine singular from עוֹב (’ov), meaning “cover with a cloud, make dark” (HALOT 794 s.v. עוב) or “becloud” (BDB 728 s.v.): “the Lord has covered Daughter Zion with the cloud of His anger.” This approach is followed by many English versions (KJV, RSV, NASB, NIV). However, a few scholars relate it to a cognate Arabic verb denoting “blame, revile” (Ehrlich, Rudolph, Hillers): “the Lord has shamed Daughter Zion in His anger.” Several English versions adopt this (NRSV, NJPS, CEV). The picture of cloud and wrath concurs with the stanza’s connection to “day of the Lord” imagery.
- Lamentations 2:1 tn The common gloss for זָכַר (zakhar) is “remember.” זָכַר (zakhar) entails “bearing something in mind” in a broader sense than the English gloss “remember.” When God “bears someone in mind,” the consequences are beneficial for them. The implication of not regarding his footstool is to not esteem and so not care for or protect it.
- Lamentations 2:1 tn Heb “the footstool of His feet.” The noun הֲדֹם (hadom, “footstool”), always joined with רַגְלַיִם (raglayim, “feet”), is used figuratively in reference to the dwelling place of God (BDB 213 s.v. הֲדֹם), either of the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem (Isa 60:13; Lam 2:1) or of the ark as the place above which the Lord is enthroned (Pss 99:5; 132:7; 1 Chr 28:2). Once it refers to God’s enemies (Ps 110:1).
- Lamentations 2:1 tn Heb “in the day of His anger.” As a temporal reference this phrase means “when he displayed his anger.” The Hebrew term “day,” associated with the “day of the Lord” or “day of his wrath,” also functions as a title in a technical sense.
- Lamentations 2:2 tc The MT reads אֲדֹנָי (ʾadonay, “the Lord”) here rather than יהוה (YHWH, “the Lord”). See the tc note at 1:14.
- Lamentations 2:2 tn Heb “has swallowed up.”
- Lamentations 2:2 tc The Kethib is written לֹא חָמַל (loʾ khamal, “without mercy”), while the Qere reads וְלֹא חָמַל (veloʾ khamal, “and he has shown no mercy”). The Kethib is followed by the LXX, while the Qere is reflected in many Hebrew mss and the ancient versions (Syriac Peshitta, Aramaic Targum, Latin Vulgate). The English versions are split between the Kethib (“The Lord swallowed all the dwellings of Jacob without mercy”; cf. RSV, NRSV, NIV, TEV, NJPS) and the Qere (“The Lord swallowed all the dwellings of Jacob and has shown no mercy”; cf. KJV, NASB, CEV). As these words occur between a verb and its object (חָמַל [khamal] is not otherwise followed by אֵת [ʾet, direct object marker]), an adverbial reading is the most natural, although interrupting the sentence with an insertion is possible. Cf. 2:17, 21; 3:43. In contexts of harming, to show mercy often means to spare from harm.
- Lamentations 2:2 tn Heb “all the dwellings of Jacob.”
- Lamentations 2:2 tn Heb “the strongholds.”
- Lamentations 2:2 tn Heb “He brought down to the ground in disgrace the kingdom and its princes.” The verbs חִלֵּל…הִגִּיע (higgiʿ…khillel, “he has brought down…he has profaned”) function as a verbal hendiadys, as the absence of the conjunction ו (vav) suggests. The first verb retains its full verbal force, while the second functions adverbially: “he has brought down [direct object] in disgrace.”
- Lamentations 2:3 tc The MT reads אַף (ʾaf, “anger”), while the ancient versions (LXX, Syriac Peshitta, Latin Vulgate) reflect אַפּוֹ (ʾappo, “His anger”). The MT is the more difficult reading syntactically, while the ancient versions are probably smoothing out the text.
- Lamentations 2:3 tn Heb “cut off, scattered.”
- Lamentations 2:3 tn Heb “every horn of Israel.” The term “horn” (קֶרֶן, qeren) normally refers to the horn of a bull, one of the most powerful animals in ancient Israel. This term is often used figuratively as a symbol of strength, usually in reference to the military might of an army (Deut 33:17; 1 Sam 2:1, 10; 2 Sam 22:3; Pss 18:3; 75:11; 89:18, 25; 92:11; 112:9; 1 Chr 25:5; Jer 48:25; Lam 2:3, 17; Ezek 29:21) (BDB 901 s.v. 2), just as warriors are sometimes figuratively described as “bulls.” Cutting off the “horn” is a figurative expression for destroying warriors (Jer 48:25; Ps 75:10 [11 HT]).
- Lamentations 2:3 tn Heb “he caused his right hand to turn back.” The implication in such contexts is that the Lord’s right hand protects his city. This image of the right hand is consciously reversed in 2:4.
- Lamentations 2:3 tn Heb “from the presence of the enemy.” This figurative expression refers to the approach of the attacking army.
- Lamentations 2:3 tn Heb “he burned in Jacob like a flaming fire.”
- Lamentations 2:3 tn Or “He burned against Jacob as a raging fire consumes all around.”
- Lamentations 2:4 tn Heb “bent His bow.” When the verb דָּרַךְ (darakh) is used with the noun קֶשֶׁת (qeshet, “archer-bow”), it means “to bend [a bow]” to string it in preparation for shooting arrows (1 Chr 5:18; 8:40; 2 Chr 14:7; Jer 50:14, 29; 51:3). This idiom is used figuratively to describe the assaults of the wicked (Pss 11:2; 37:14) and the judgments of the Lord (Ps 7:13; Lam 2:4; 3:12) (BDB 202 s.v. דָּרַךְ 4). The translation “he prepared his bow” is the slightly more general modern English idiomatic equivalent of the ancient Hebrew idiom “he bent his bow”—both refer to preparations to get ready to shoot arrows.
- Lamentations 2:4 tn Heb “His right hand is stationed.”
- Lamentations 2:4 tn Heb “the ones who were pleasing to the eye.”
- Lamentations 2:4 tn The singular noun אֹהֶל (ʾohel, “tent”) may function as a collective, referring to all tents in Judah. A parallel expression occurs in verse 2 using the plural: “all the dwellings of Jacob” (כָּל־נְאוֹת יַעֲקֹב, kol neʾot yaʿaqov). The singular “tent” matches the image of “Daughter Zion.” On the other hand, the singular “the tent of Daughter Zion” might be a hyperbolic synecdoche of container (= tent) for contents (= inhabitants of Zion).
- Lamentations 2:5 tc The MT reads אֲדֹנָי (ʾadonay, “the Lord”) here rather than יהוה (YHWH, “the Lord”). See the tc note at 1:14.
- Lamentations 2:5 tn Heb “swallowed up.”
- Lamentations 2:5 tn Heb “swallowed up.”
- Lamentations 2:5 tn Heb “his.” For consistency this has been translated as “her.”
- Lamentations 2:5 tn Heb “He increased in Daughter Judah mourning and lamentation.”
- Lamentations 2:6 tn Heb “His booth.” The noun שׂךְ (sokh, “booth,” BDB 968 s.v.) is a hapax legomenon (term that appears only once in the Hebrew OT). But it is probably an alternate spelling of the more common noun סֻכָּה (sukkah, “booth”), which is used frequently of temporary shelters and booths (e.g., Neh 8:15) (BDB 697 s.v. סֻכָּה). This is a figurative description of the temple, as the parallel term מוֹעֲדוֹ (moʿado, “his tabernacle” or “his appointed meeting place”) makes clear. Jeremiah probably chose this term to emphasize the frailty of the temple and its ease of destruction. Contrary to the expectation of Jerusalem, it was only a temporary dwelling of the Lord—its permanence cut short due to sin of the people.
- Lamentations 2:6 tc The MT reads כַּגַּן (kaggan, “like a garden”). The LXX reads ὡς ἄμπελον (hōs ampelon), which reflects כְּגֶפֶן (kegefen, “like a vineyard”). Internal evidence favors כְּגֶפֶן (kegefen) because God’s judgment is often compared to the destruction of a vineyard (e.g., Job 15:33; Isa 34:4; Ezek 15:2, 6).
- Lamentations 2:6 tn Heb “The Lord has caused to be forgotten in Zion both appointed festival and Sabbath.” The verb שִׁכַּח (shikkakh, “to make forgotten”), the only Piel form of שָׁכַח (shakhakh, “to forget”), is used figuratively. When people forget, “often the neglect of obligations is in view” (L. C. Allen, NIDOTTE 4:104). When people forget the things of God, they are in disobedience and often are indicted for ignoring God or neglecting their duties to him (Deut 4:23, 31; 6:12; 8:11, 19; 26:13; 31:21; 32:18; Judg 3:7; 1 Sam 12:9; 2 Kgs 17:38; Is 49:14; 51:13; 65:11; Jer 18:15; Ezek 23:35; Hos 4:6). The irony is that the one to whom worship is due has made it so that people must neglect it. Most English versions render the verb in a metonymical sense: “brought to an end” (RSV), “did away with” (CEV), “put an end to” (TEV), “has ended” (NJPS), “has abolished” (NRSV). Few English versions employ the gloss “forget”: “the Lord hath caused the solemn feasts and sabbaths to be forgotten” (KJV), and “the Lord has made Zion forget her appointed feasts and her sabbaths”(NIV).
- Lamentations 2:6 tn Heb “In the fury of his anger” (זַעַם־אפּוֹ, zaʿam ʾappo). The genitive noun אפּוֹ (ʾappo, “his anger”) functions as an attributed genitive with the construct noun זַעַם (zaʿam, “fury, rage”): “his furious anger.”
- Lamentations 2:6 tn The verb נָאַץ (naʾats, “to spurn, show contempt”) functions as a metonymy of cause (= to spurn king and priests) for effect (= to reject them; cf. CEV). Since spurning is the cause, this may be understood as “to reject with a negative attitude.” However, retaining “spurn” in the translation keeps the term emotionally loaded. The most frequent term for נָאַץ (naʾats) in the LXX (παροξύνω, paroxunō) also conveys emotion beyond a decision to reject.
- Lamentations 2:7 tc The MT reads אֲדֹנָי (ʾadonay, “the Lord”) here rather than יהוה (YHWH, “the Lord”), which occurs near the end of this verse. See the tc note at 1:14.
- Lamentations 2:7 tn The Heb verb זָנַח (zanakh) is a rejection term often used in military contexts. Emphasizing emotion, it may mean “to spurn.” In military contexts it may be rendered “to desert.”
- Lamentations 2:7 tn Heb “His sanctuary.” The term מִקְדָּשׁוֹ (miqdasho, “His sanctuary”) refers to the temple (e.g., 1 Chr 22:19; 2 Chr 36:17; Ps 74:7; Isa 63:18; Ezek 48:21; Dan 8:11) (BDB 874 s.v. מִקְדָּשׁ).
- Lamentations 2:7 tn Heb “He delivered into the hand of the enemy.” The verb הִסְגִּיר (hisgir), Hiphil perfect third person masculine singular from סָגַר (sagar), means “to give into someone’s control: to deliver” (Deut 23:16; Josh 20:5; 1 Sam 23:11, 20; 30:15; Job 16:11; Pss 31:9; 78:48, 50, 62; Lam 2:7; Amos 1:6, 9; Obad 14).
- Lamentations 2:7 tn Heb “they.”
- Lamentations 2:7 tn Heb “they gave voice” (קוֹל נָתְנוּ, kol natenu). The verb נָתַן (natan, “to give”) with the noun קוֹל (kol, “voice, sound”) is an idiom meaning: “to utter a sound, make a noise, raise the voice” (e.g., Gen 45:2; Prov 2:3; Jer 4:16; 22:20; 48:34) (HALOT 734 s.v. נתן 12; BDB 679 s.v. נָתַן 1.x). Contextually, this describes the shout of victory by the Babylonians celebrating their conquest of Jerusalem.
- Lamentations 2:7 tn Heb “as on the day of an appointed time.” The term מוֹעֵד (moʿed, “appointed time”) refers to the religious festivals that were celebrated at appointed times in the Hebrew calendar (BDB 417 s.v. 1.b). In contrast to making festivals neglected (forgotten) in v 6, the enemy had a celebration that was entirely out of place.
- Lamentations 2:8 tn Heb “he stretched out a measuring line.” In Hebrew, this idiom is used (1) literally: to describe a workman’s preparation of measuring and marking stones before cutting them for building (Job 38:5; Jer 31:39; Zech 1:16), and (2) figuratively: to describe the Lord’s planning and preparation to destroy a walled city, that is, to mark off for destruction (2 Kgs 21:13; Isa 34:11; Lam 2:8). It is not completely clear how a phrase from the vocabulary of building becomes a metaphor for destruction; however, it might picture a predetermined and carefully planned measure from which God will not deviate.
- Lamentations 2:8 tn Heb “He did not return His hand from swallowing.” That is, he persisted until it was destroyed.
- Lamentations 2:8 tn Heb “they languished together.” The verbs אָבַל (ʾaval, “to lament”) and אָמַל (ʾamal, “languish, mourn”) are often used in contexts of funeral laments in secular settings. The Hebrew prophets often use these terms to describe the aftermath of the Lord’s judgment on a nation. Based on parallel terms, אָמַל (ʾamal) may describe either mourning or deterioration and so makes for a convenient play on meaning when destroyed objects are personified. Incorporating this play into the translation, however, may obscure the parallel between this line and the deterioration of the gates beginning in v. 9.
- Lamentations 2:9 tn Heb “have sunk down.” This expression, “her gates have sunk down into the ground,” is a personification picturing the city gates descending into the earth as if going down into the grave or the netherworld. Most English versions render it literally (KJV, RSV, NRSV, NASB, NIV, NJPS); however, a few paraphrases have captured the equivalent sense quite well: “Zion’s gates have fallen facedown on the ground” (CEV), and “the gates are buried in rubble” (TEV).
- Lamentations 2:9 tn Heb “he has destroyed and smashed her bars.” The two verbs אִבַּד וְשִׁבַּר (ʾibbad veshibbar) form a verbal hendiadys that emphasizes the forcefulness of the destruction of the locking bars on the gates. The first verb functions adverbially, and the second retains its full verbal sense: “he has smashed to pieces.” Several English versions render this expression literally and miss the rhetorical point: “he has ruined and broken” (RSV, NRSV), “he has destroyed and broken” (KJV, NASB), and “he has broken and destroyed” (NIV). The hendiadys has been correctly noted by others: “smashed to pieces” (TEV, CEV) and “smashed to bits” (NJPS).
- Lamentations 2:9 tn Heb “her bars.” Since the literal “bars” could be misunderstood as referring to saloons, the phrase “the bars that lock her gates” has been used in the present translation.
- Lamentations 2:9 tn Heb “are among the nations.”
- Lamentations 2:9 tn Heb “there is no torah,” or “there is no Torah” (אֵין תּוֹרָה, ʾen torah). Depending on whether תּוֹרָה (torah, “instruction, law”) is used in parallelism with the preceding or following line, it refers to (1) political guidance that the now-exiled king had formerly provided or (2) prophetic instruction that the now-ineffective prophets had formerly provided (BDB 434 s.v. תּוֹרָה 1.b). It is plausible that the three lines are arranged in an ABA chiastic structure, exploiting the semantic ambiguity of the term תּוֹרָה (torah, “instruction”). Conceivably it is an oblique reference to the priests’ duties of teaching, thus introducing a third group of the countries leaders. It is possible to hear in this a lament in reference to the destruction of Torah scrolls that may have been at the temple when it was destroyed.
- Lamentations 2:9 tn Heb “they cannot find.”
- Lamentations 2:10 tc Consonantal ישׁבו (yshvy) is vocalized by the MT as יֵשְׁבוּ (yeshevu), Qal imperfect third person masculine plural from יָשַׁב (yashav, “to sit”): “they sit on the ground.” However, the ancient versions (Aramaic Targum, Greek Septuagint, Syriac Peshitta, Latin Vulgate) reflect a Qal perfect vocalization: יָשְׁבוּ (yashevu, “they have sat [down]”).
- Lamentations 2:10 tn Heb “they sit on the ground; they are silent.” Based on meter, the two verbs יִדְּמוּ…יֵשְׁבוּ (yeshevu…yiddemu, “they sit…they are silent”) are in the same half of the line. Joined without a ו (vav) conjunction they form a verbal hendiadys. The first functions in its full verbal sense while the second functions adverbially: “they sit in silence.” The verb יִדְּמוּ (yiddemu) may mean to be silent or to wail.
- Lamentations 2:10 tn Heb “they have girded themselves with sackcloth.” sn Along with putting dirt on one’s head, wearing sackcloth was a sign of mourning.
- Lamentations 2:10 tn Heb “the virgins of Jerusalem.” The term “virgins” is a metonymy of association, standing for single young women who are not yet married. These single women are in grief because their potential suitors have been killed. The elders, old men, and young women function together as a merism for all of the survivors (F. W. Dobbs-Allsopp, Lamentations [IBC], 92).
- Lamentations 2:10 tn Heb “have bowed down their heads to the ground.”
- Lamentations 2:11 tn Heb “my eyes are spent,” or “my eyes fail.” The verb כָּלָה (kalah) is used of eyes exhausted by weeping (Job 11:20; 17:5; Ps 69:4; Jer 14:6; 4:17), and means either “to be spent” (BDB 477 s.v. 2.b) or “to fail” (HALOT 477 s.v. 6). It means to have used up all one’s tears or to have worn out the eyes because of so much crying. It is rendered variously: “my eyes fail” (KJV, NIV), “my eyes are spent” (RSV, NRSV, NASB, NJPS), “my eyes are worn out” (TEV), and “my eyes are red” (CEV).
- Lamentations 2:11 tn Heb “because of tears.” The plural noun דִּמְעוֹת (dimʿot, “tears”) is an example of the plural of intensity or repeated behavior: “many tears.” The more common singular form דִּמְעָה (dimʿah) normally functions in a collective sense (“tears”); therefore, the plural form here does not indicate simple plural of number.
- Lamentations 2:11 tn Heb “my bowels burn,” or “my bowels are in a ferment.” The verb חֳמַרְמְרוּ (khomarmeru) is an unusual form that is derived from a debated root: a Poalal from III חָמַר (khamar, “to be red,” HALOT 330 s.v. III חמר) or a Peʿalʿal from I חָמַר (khamar, “to ferment, boil up,” BDB 330 s.v. I חָמַר). The Poalal stem of this verb occurs only three times in OT: with פָּנִים (panim, “face,” Job 16:16) and מֵעִים (meʿim, “bowels,” Lam 1:20; 2:11). The phrase חֳמַרְמְרוּ מֵעַי (khomarmeru meʿay) means “my bowels burned” (HALOT 330 s.v.), or “my bowels are in a ferment,” as a euphemism for lower-intestinal bowel problems (BDB 330 s.v.). This phrase also occurs in later rabbinic literature (m. Sanhedrin 7:2). The present translation, “my stomach is in knots,” is not a literal equivalent to this Hebrew idiom; however, it is an attempt to approximate the equivalent English idiom.
- Lamentations 2:11 tn Heb “my liver,” viewed as the seat of the emotions.
- Lamentations 2:11 tn Heb “on account of the breaking.”
- Lamentations 2:11 tn Heb “the daughter of my people.” Rather than a genitive of relationship (“daughter of X”), the phrase בַּת־עַמִּי (bat ʿammi) is probably a genitive of apposition. The idiom “Daughter X” occurs often in Lamentations: “Daughter Jerusalem” (2x), “Daughter Zion” (7x), “Virgin Daughter Zion” (1x), “Daughter of My People” (5x), “Daughter Judah” (2x), and “Virgin Daughter Judah” (1x). In each case, it is a poetic description of Jerusalem or Judah as a whole. The idiom בַּת־עַמִּי (bat ʿammi, lit., “daughter of my people” is rendered variously by the English versions: “the daughter of my people” (KJV, RSV, NASB), “my people” (NIV, TEV, CEV), and “my poor people” (NJPS). The metaphor here pictures the people as vulnerable and weak.
- Lamentations 2:12 tn Heb “they”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Lamentations 2:12 tn Heb “to their mother,” understood as a collective singular.
- Lamentations 2:12 tn Heb “Where is bread and wine?” The terms “bread” and “wine” are synecdoches of specific (= bread, wine) for general (= food, drink).
- Lamentations 2:12 tn Heb “as they faint,” or “when they faint.”
- Lamentations 2:12 tn Heb “as their life is poured out.” The term בְּהִשְׁתַּפֵּךְ (behishtappekh), Hitpael infinitive construct + the preposition בּ (bet), from שָׁפַךְ (shafakh, “to pour out”), may be rendered “as they expire” (BDB 1050 s.v. שָׁפַךְ), referring to the process of dying. Note the repetition of the word “pour out” with various direct objects in this poem at 2:4, 11, 12, and 19.
- Lamentations 2:12 tn Heb “chest, lap.”
- Lamentations 2:13 tc The MT reads אֲעִידֵךְ (ʾaʿidekh), Hiphil imperfect first person common singular + second person feminine singular suffix from עָדָה (ʿadah, “to testify”): “[How] can I testify for you?” However, Latin Vulgate comparabo te reflects the reading אֶעֱרָךְ (ʾeʿerakh), Qal imperfect first person common singular from עָרַךְ (ʿarakh, “to liken”): “[To what] can I liken [you]?” The verb עָרַךְ (ʿarakh) normally means “to lay out, set in rows; to get ready, set in order; to line up for battle, set battle formation,” but it also may denote “to compare (as a result of arranging in order), to make equal” (e.g., Pss 40:6; 89:6 [7 HT]; Job 28:17, 19; Isa 40:18; 44:7). The BHS editors suggest the emendation, which involves simple orthographic confusion between ר (resh) and ד (dalet), and deletion of י (yod), which the MT could have added to make sense of the form. The variant is favored based on internal evidence: (1) it is the more difficult reading because the meaning “to compare” for עָרַךְ (ʿarakh) is less common than עָדָה (ʿadah, “to testify”), (2) it recovers a tight parallelism between עָרַךְ (ʿarakh, “to liken”) and דָּמָה (damah, “to compare”) (e.g., Ps 89:6 [7 HT]; Isa 40:18), and (3) the MT reading, “How can I testify for you?” makes little sense in the context. Nevertheless, most English versions hold to the MT reading: KJV, RSV, NRSV, NASB, NIV, TEV, and CEV. This textual emendation was first proposed by J. Meinhold, “Threni 2, 13, ” ZAW 15 (1895): 286.
- Lamentations 2:13 tc The MT reads מָה אַשְׁוֶה־לָּךְ וַאֲנַחֲמֵךְ (mah ʾashveh lakh vaʾanakhamekh, “To what can I compare you so that I might comfort you?”). The LXX reflects a Vorlage of מִי יוֹשִׁיעַ לָךְ וְנִחַמְךָ (mi yoshiaʿ lakh venikhamekha, “Who will save you so that he might comfort you?”). This textual variant reflects several cases of orthographic confusion between similarly spelled words. The MT best explains the origin of the LXX textual variants. Internal evidence of contextual congruence favors the MT as the original reading.
- Lamentations 2:13 tn The ו (vav) prefixed to וַאֲנַחֲמֵךְ (vaʾanakhamekh, “I might comfort you”) denotes purpose: “so that….”
- Lamentations 2:13 tn Heb “as great as the sea.”
- Lamentations 2:13 tc The MT reads כָּיָּם (kayyam, “as the sea”), while the LXX reflects a Vorlage of כּוֹס (kos, “a cup”). The textual variant is probably due to simple orthographic confusion between letters of similar appearance. The idiomatic expression favors the MT.
- Lamentations 2:13 sn The rhetorical question implies a denial: “No one can heal you!” The following verses, 14-17, present four potential healers—prophets, passersby, enemies, and God.
- Lamentations 2:14 tn Heb “worthless and whitewash.” The words שָׁוְא וְתָפֵל (shavʾ vetafel) form a nominal hendiadys, meaning “worthless whitewash” or “worthless deceptions.” The noun תָּפֵל (tafel, “whitewash”) is used literally in reference to a white-washed wall (Ezek 13:10, 11, 14, 15) and figuratively in reference to false prophets (Ezek 22:28).
- Lamentations 2:14 tc The Kethib שְׁבִיתֵךְ (shevitekh) and the Qere שְׁבוּתֵךְ (shevutekh), which is preserved in many medieval Hebrew mss here and elsewhere (Ps 85:1 [85:2 HT]; 126:4; Job 42:10), are struggling with the root. The ancient versions take it from שָׁבָה (shavah), meaning “captivity.” Such a meaning is not tenable for the Job passage, which suggests, along with a similar phrase in the Sefire inscription, that the proper meaning is “to restore someone’s fortunes.” See HALOT 1386 s.v. שְׁבוּת.
- Lamentations 2:14 tn Heb “worthless and enticements.” The words שָׁוְא וּמַדּוּחִים (shavʾ umaddukhim) form a nominal hendiadys meaning “worthless enticements” or “misleading falsehoods.” The noun מַדּוּחַ (madduakh), meaning “enticement” or “transgression,” is a hapax legomenon (term that appears only once in the Hebrew OT). It is related to the verb נָדָח (nadakh, “to entice, lead astray”), which often refers to idolatry.
- Lamentations 2:15 tn Heb “clap their hands at you.” Clapping hands at someone was an expression of malicious glee, derision, and mockery (Num 24:10; Job 27:23; Lam 2:15).
- Lamentations 2:15 tn Heb “of which they said.”
- Lamentations 2:15 tn Heb “perfection of beauty.” The noun יֹפִי (yofi, “beauty”) functions as a genitive of respect in relation to the preceding construct noun: Jerusalem was perfect in respect to its physical beauty.
- Lamentations 2:15 tn Heb “the joy of all the earth.” This is similar to statements found in Pss 48:2 and 50:2.
- Lamentations 2:16 tn Heb “they have opened wide their mouth against you.”
- Lamentations 2:16 tn Heb “We have swallowed!”
- Lamentations 2:16 tn Heb “We have attained; we have seen!” The verbs מָצָאנוּ רָאִינוּ (matsaʾnu raʾinu) form a verbal hendiadys in which the first retains its full verbal sense and the second functions as an object complement. It forms a Hebrew idiom that means something like, “We have lived to see it!” The three asyndetic first person common plural statements in 2:16 (“We waited; we destroyed; we saw!”) are spoken in an impassioned, staccato style reflecting the delight of the conquerors.
- Lamentations 2:17 tn The verb בָּצַע (batsaʿ) has a broad range of meanings: (1) “to cut off, break off,” (2) “to injure” a person, (3) “to gain by violence,” (4) “to finish, complete,” and (5) “to accomplish, fulfill” a promise.
- Lamentations 2:17 tn Heb “His word.” When used in collocation with the verb בָּצַע (batsaʿ, “to fulfill,” see previous tn), the accusative noun אִמְרָה (ʾimrah, “word”) means “promise.”
- Lamentations 2:17 tn Heb “commanded” or “decreed.” If a reference to prophetic oracles is understood, then “decreed” is preferable. If understood as a reference to the warnings in the covenant, then “threatened” is a preferable rendering.
- Lamentations 2:17 tn Heb “from days of old.”
- Lamentations 2:17 tn Heb “He has overthrown and has not shown mercy.” The two verbs חָרַס וְלֹא חָמָל (kharas veloʾ khamal) form a verbal hendiadys in which the first retains its verbal sense and the second functions adverbially: “He has overthrown you without mercy.” וְלֹא חָמָל (veloʾ khamal) alludes to 2:2.
- Lamentations 2:17 tn Heb “He has exalted the horn of your adversaries.” The term “horn” (קֶרֶן, qeren) normally refers to the horn of a bull, one of the most powerful animals in ancient Israel. This term is often used figuratively as a symbol of strength, usually in reference to the military might of an army (Deut 33:17; 1 Sam 2:1, 10; 2 Sam 22:3; Pss 18:3 HT [18:2 ET]; 75:11 HT [75:10 ET]; 89:18, 25 HT [89:17, 24 ET]; 92:11 HT [92:10 ET]; 112:9; 1 Chr 25:5; Jer 48:25; Lam 2:3; Ezek 29:21), just as warriors are sometimes figuratively described as “bulls.” To lift up the horn often means to boast, and to lift up someone else’s horn is to give victory or cause to boast.
- Lamentations 2:18 tc The MT reads צָעַק לִבָּם אֵל־אֲדֹנָי (tsaʿaq libbam ʾel ʾadonay, “their heart cried out to the Lord”), which neither matches the second person address characterizing 2:13-19 nor is in close parallel to the rest of verse 18. Since the perfect צָעַק (tsaʿaq, “cry out”) is apparently parallel to imperatives, it could be understood as a precative (“let their heart cry out”), although this understanding still has the problem of being in the third person. The BHS editors and many text critics suggest emending the MT צָעַק (tsaʿaq) to צָעֲקִי (tsaʿaqi), Qal imperative second person feminine singular: “Cry out!” This restores a tighter parallelism with the two second person feminine singular imperatives introducing the following lines: הוֹרִידִי (horidi, “Let [your tears] flow down!”) and אַל־תִּתְּנִי (ʾal titteni, “Do not allow!”). In such a case, לִבָּם (libbam) must be taken adverbially. For לִבָּם (libbam, “their heart”), see the following note. The adverbial translation loses a potential parallel to the mention of the heart in the next verse. Emending the noun to “your heart” would maintain this connection.
- Lamentations 2:18 tn Heb “their heart” or “from the heart.” Many English versions take the ם (mem) on לִבָּם (libbam) as the third person masculine plural pronominal suffix: “their heart” (cf. KJV, NASB, NIV, NJPS, CEV). However, others take it as an enclitic or adverbial ending: “from the heart” (cf. RSV, NRSV, TEV, NJPS margin). See T. F. McDaniel, “The Alleged Sumerian Influence upon Lamentations,” VT 18 (1968): 203-4.
- Lamentations 2:18 tc The MT reads אֲדֹנָי (ʾadonay, “the Lord”) here rather than יהוה (YHWH, “the Lord”). See the tc note at 1:14.
- Lamentations 2:18 tn The wall is a synecdoche of a part standing for the whole city.
- Lamentations 2:18 tn Heb “day and night.” The expression “day and night” forms a merism which encompasses everything in between two polar opposites: “from dawn to dusk” or “all day and all night long.”
- Lamentations 2:18 tn Heb “the daughter of your eye.” The term “eye” functions as a metonymy for “tears” that are produced by the eyes. Jeremiah exhorts personified Jerusalem to cry out to the Lord day and night without ceasing in repentance and genuine sorrow for its sins.
- Lamentations 2:19 tn Heb “at the head of the watches.”
- Lamentations 2:19 tn The noun לֵבָב (levav, “heart”) functions here as a metonymy of association for the thoughts and emotions in the heart. The Hebrew לֵבָב (levav) includes the mind, so in some cases the translation “heart” implies an inappropriate division between the cognitive and affective. This context is certainly emotionally loaded, but as part of a series of admonitions to address God in prayer, these emotions are inextricably bound with the thoughts of the mind. The singular “heart” is retained in the translation to be consistent with the personification of Jerusalem (cf. v. 18).
- Lamentations 2:19 tc The MT reads אֲדֹנָי (ʾadonay, “the Lord”) here rather than יהוה (YHWH, “the Lord”). See the tc note at 1:14.
- Lamentations 2:19 sn Lifting up the palms or hands is a metaphor for prayer.
- Lamentations 2:19 tn Heb “on account of the life of your children.” The noun נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) refers to the “life” of their dying children (e.g., Lam 2:12). The singular noun נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “life”) is used as a collective, as the plural genitive noun that follows makes clear: “your children.”
- Lamentations 2:19 tc The BHS editors and many commentators suggest that the fourth bicolon in 2:19 is a late addition and should be deleted. Apart from the four sets of bicola in 1:7 and 2:19, every stanza in chapters 1-4 consists of three sets of bicola. tn Heb “who are fainting.”
- Lamentations 2:19 tn Heb “at the head of every street.”
- Lamentations 2:20 tn Heb “Look, O Lord! See!” When used in collocation with verbs of cognition, רָאָה (raʾah) means “to see for oneself” or “to take notice” (1 Sam 26:12). The parallelism between seeing and understanding is often emphasized (e.g., Exod 16:6; Isa 5:19; 29:15; Job 11:11; Eccl 6:5). See also 1:11 and compare 1:9, 12, 20; 3:50, 59, 60; 5:1.sn Integral to battered Jerusalem’s appeal, and part of the ancient Near-Eastern lament genre, is the request for God to look at her pain. This should evoke pity regardless of the reason for punishment. The request is not for God to see merely that there are misfortunes, as one might note items on a checklist. The cognitive (facts) and affective (feelings) are not divided. The plea is for God to watch, think about, and be affected by these facts while listening to the petitioner’s perspective.
- Lamentations 2:20 tn For the nuance “afflict” see the note at 1:12.
- Lamentations 2:20 tn Heb “their fruit.” The term פְּרִי (peri, “fruit”) is used figuratively to refer to children as the fruit of a mother’s womb (e.g., Gen 30:2; Deut 7:13; 28:4, 11, 18, 53; 30:9; Pss 21:11; 127:3; 132:11; Isa 13:18; Mic 6:7).
- Lamentations 2:20 tn Heb “infants of healthy childbirth.” The genitive-construct phrase עֹלֲלֵי טִפֻּחִים (ʿolale tippukhim) functions as an attributive genitive construction: “healthy newborn infants.” The noun טִפֻּחִים (tippukhim) appears only here. It is related to the verb טָפַח (tafakh), meaning “to give birth to a healthy child” or “to raise children” depending on whether the Arabic or Akkadian cognate is emphasized. For the related verb, see below at 2:22.sn Placing the specific reference to children at the end of the line in apposition to clarify that it does not describe the normal eating of fruit helps produce the repulsive shock of the image. Furthermore, the root of the word for “infants” (עוֹלֵל, ʿolel) has the same root letters for the verb “to afflict” occurring in the first line of the verse, making a pun (F. W. Dobbs-Allsopp, Lamentations [IBC], 99-100).
- Lamentations 2:20 tc The MT reads אֲדֹנָי (ʾadonay, “the Lord”) here rather than יהוה (YHWH, “the Lord”) as at the beginning of the verse. See the tc note at 1:14.
- Lamentations 2:21 tn Heb “virgins.” The term “virgin” probably functions as a metonymy of association for single young women.
- Lamentations 2:21 tn Heb “in the day of your anger.” The construction בָּיוֹם (bayom, “in the day of…”) is a common Hebrew idiom, meaning “when…” (e.g., Gen 2:4; Lev 7:35; Num 3:1; Deut 4:15; 2 Sam 22:1; Pss 18:1; 138:3; Zech 8:9). This temporal idiom refers to a general time period but uses the term “day” as a forceful rhetorical device to emphasize the vividness and drama of the event, depicting it as occurring within a single day. In the ancient Near East, military-minded kings often referred to a successful campaign as “the day of X” in order to portray themselves as powerful conquerors who, as it were, could inaugurate and complete a victorious military campaign within the span of one day.
- Lamentations 2:21 tc The MT reads לֹא חָמָלְתָּ (loʾ khamalta, “You showed no mercy”). However, many medieval Hebrew mss and most of the ancient versions (Aramaic Targum, Syriac Peshitta and Latin Vulgate) read וְלֹא חָמָלְתָּ (veloʾ khamalta, “and You showed no mercy”).
- Lamentations 2:22 tn The syntax of the line is awkward. English versions vary considerably in how they render it: “Thou hast called as in a solemn day my terrors round about” (KJV); “Thou hast called, as in the day of a solemn assembly, my terrors on every side” (ASV); “You did call as in the day of an appointed feast my terrors on every side” (NASB); “Thou didst invite as to the day of an appointed feast my terrors on every side” (RSV); “As you summon to a feast day, so you summoned against me terrors on every side” (NIV); “You summoned, as on a festival, my neighbors from roundabout” (NJPS); “You invited my enemies to hold a carnival of terror all around me” (TEV); and “You invited my enemies like guests for a party” (CEV).
- Lamentations 2:22 tn The term “enemies” is supplied in the translation as a clarification.
- Lamentations 2:22 tn Heb “my terrors” or “my enemies.” The expression מְגוּרַי (meguray, “my terrors”) is difficult and may refer to either enemies, the terror associated with facing enemies, or both.
- Lamentations 2:22 tn Heb “surrounding me.”
- Lamentations 2:22 tn The meaning of the verb טָפַח (tafakh) is debated. The BDB lexicon suggests that it is derived from טָפַה (tafah, “to extend, spread” the hands) and here means “to carry in the palm of one’s hands” (BDB 381 s.v. טָפַה 2), but HALOT 378 s.v. II טָפַח suggests that it is derived from the root II טָפַח (tafakh) and means “to give birth to healthy children.” The recent lexicons hold that it is related to Arabic tafaha (“to bring forth fully formed children”) and Akkadian tuppu (“to raise children”). The use of this particular term highlights the tragic irony of what the army of Babylon has done: it has destroyed the lives of perfectly healthy children whom the women of Israel had raised.
- Lamentations 2:22 tn This entire line is an accusative noun clause, functioning as the direct object of the following line: “my enemy has destroyed the perfectly healthy children….” Normal word order in Hebrew is: verb + subject + direct object. Here, the accusative direct-object clause is moved forward for rhetorical emphasis: those whom the Babylonians killed had been children born perfectly healthy and then well raised…what a tragic loss of perfectly good human life!
Philemon
Salutation
1 From Paul,[a] a prisoner of Christ Jesus,[b] and Timothy our[c] brother, to Philemon, our dear friend[d] and colaborer, 2 to Apphia[e] our sister,[f] to Archippus our[g] fellow soldier, and to the church that meets in your house. 3 Grace and peace to you[h] from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!
Thanks for Philemon’s Love and Faith
4 I always thank my God[i] as I remember you in my prayers,[j] 5 because I hear[k] of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love[l] for all the saints.[m] 6 I pray[n] that the faith you share with us may deepen your understanding of every blessing[o] that belongs to you[p] in Christ.[q] 7 I[r] have had great joy and encouragement because[s] of your love, for the hearts[t] of the saints have been refreshed through you, brother.
Paul’s Request for Onesimus
8 So, although I have quite a lot of confidence in Christ and could command you to do what is proper, 9 I would rather appeal[u] to you on the basis of love—I, Paul, an old man[v] and even now a prisoner for the sake of Christ Jesus[w]— 10 I am appealing[x] to you concerning my child, whose spiritual father I have become[y] during my imprisonment,[z] that is, Onesimus, 11 who was formerly useless to you, but is now useful to you[aa] and me. 12 I have sent[ab] him (who is my very heart)[ac] back to you. 13 I wanted to keep him with me so that he could serve me in your place[ad] during[ae] my imprisonment for the sake of the gospel.[af] 14 However,[ag] without your consent I did not want to do anything, so that your good deed would not be out of compulsion, but from your own willingness. 15 For perhaps it was for this reason that he was separated from you for a little while, so that you would have him back eternally,[ah] 16 no longer as a slave,[ai] but more than a slave, as a dear brother. He is especially so to me, and even more so to you now, both humanly speaking[aj] and in the Lord. 17 Therefore if you regard me as a partner, accept him as you would me. 18 Now if he has defrauded you of anything or owes you anything, charge what he owes[ak] to me. 19 I, Paul, have written[al] this letter[am] with my own hand:[an] I will repay it. I could also mention that you owe[ao] me your very self. 20 Yes, brother, let me have some benefit from you in the Lord. Refresh my heart in Christ.[ap] 21 Since I was confident that you would obey, I wrote to you, because I knew that you would do even more than[aq] what I am asking you to do. 22 At the same time also, prepare a place for me to stay, for I hope that through your prayers I will be given back to you.
Concluding Greetings
23 Epaphras,[ar] my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, greets you. 24 Mark, Aristarchus,[as] Demas,[at] and Luke, my colaborers, greet you too. 25 May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be[au] with your spirit.[av]
Footnotes
- Philemon 1:1 tn Grk “Paul.” The word “from” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.
- Philemon 1:1 sn The phrase a prisoner of Christ Jesus implies that Paul was being held prisoner because of his testimony for Christ Jesus. Paul’s imprisonment was due to his service to Christ, in the same manner as John was exiled to the Isle of Patmos because of his testimony (Rev 1:9).
- Philemon 1:1 tn The word “our” is not present in the Greek text, but was supplied to bring out the sense in English.
- Philemon 1:1 tn Grk “dear.” The adjective is functioning as a substantive, i.e., “dear one” or “dear friend.”
- Philemon 1:2 sn Apphia is thought to be the wife of Philemon.
- Philemon 1:2 tc Most witnesses (D2 Ψ 1241 1505 M) here read τῇ ἀγαπητῇ (tē agapētē, “beloved, dear”), a reading that appears to have been motivated by the masculine form of the same adjective in v. 1. Further, the earliest and best witnesses, along with a few others (א A D* F G I P 048 0278 33 81 104 1739 1881), have ἀδελφῇ (adelphē, “sister”). Thus on internal and external grounds, ἀδελφῇ is the strongly preferred reading.
- Philemon 1:2 tn Though the word “our” does not appear in the Greek text it is inserted to bring out the sense of the passage.
- Philemon 1:3 tn Grk “Grace to you and peace.”
- Philemon 1:4 sn I always thank my God. An offer of thanksgiving (εὐχαριστῶ, eucharistō) to God is a customary formula for Paul in many of his epistles (cf. Rom 1:8, 1 Cor 1:4, Eph 1:16, Col 1:3, 1 Thess 1:2, 2 Thess 1:3). The content of the thanksgiving typically points to the work of God in the salvation of the believers to whom he [Paul] writes.
- Philemon 1:4 tn Grk “making remembrance (or “mention”) of you in my prayers.”
- Philemon 1:5 tn The Greek present participle ἀκούων (akouōn, “hearing”) is an adverbial participle of cause relating to εὐχαριστῶ (eucharistō, “I give thanks”).
- Philemon 1:5 sn Your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints. In accord with Paul, John also advocates this combination of “faith in Christ and love for the saints.” The believers’ invisible faith becomes visible in the demonstration of love for others. This, of course, is not only desired, but commanded (1 John 3:23). Although Paul’s comment here may appear as a stock expression to the casual reader, praising Philemon for his track record of faithfulness to Christ demonstrated in love for the saints is actually integral to the author’s argument in this short but pithy letter. Paul will soon ask Philemon to demonstrate this love toward Onesimus, his runaway slave.
- Philemon 1:5 tn The Greek is somewhat awkward here. It appears as though the text reads “…the love and faith which you have for the Lord Jesus and for all the saints.” In other Pauline letters the emphasis seems to be “faith in Christ Jesus and love for all of the saints.” Some ancient mss have altered the wording to produce a smoother reading; scribes changed the wording to resemble the more readable versions in Eph 1:15 and Col 1:4, “your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which you have to all the saints.”
- Philemon 1:6 tn The term ὅπως (hopōs) refers back to the idea of prayer (μνείαν σου ποιούμενος ἐπὶ τῶν προσευχῶν μου, mneian sou poioumenos epi tōn proseuchōn mou) in 1:4. See BDAG 718 s.v. 2.b; P. T. O’Brien, Colossians, Philemon (WBC), 279. The indicative “I pray that” was supplied in the English in order to make this connection clear.
- Philemon 1:6 tn Grk “everything good.”
- Philemon 1:6 tc ‡ ὑμῖν (humin, “you”) is found in many valuable witnesses (P61 א F G P 0278 33 1505 1739 1881 al sy co). The witnesses for ἡμῖν (hēmin, “us”) are not as strong (A C D K L P Ψ 048vid 1241 M), but nevertheless represent a broad base. Internally, ἡμῖν could be favored because of second person pronouns surrounding it, making it the harder reading. On the other hand, the last second person plural pronoun was in v. 3, and the next one will not show up until v. 22, a fact which tends to counter the internal argument on behalf of ἡμῖν. Although a decision is difficult, with the internal evidence being capable of favoring either reading, our preference is based on the external evidence; ὑμῖν is thus slightly preferred.
- Philemon 1:6 tn Grk “that the fellowship of your faith might become effective in the knowledge of everything good that is in us in Christ.” There are numerous difficulties with the translation and interpretation of this verse: (1) What is the meaning of ἡ κοινωνία τῆς πίστεως σου (hē koinōnia tēs pisteōs sou, “the fellowship of your faith”)? Several suggestions are noted: (a) taking κοινωνία as a reference to “monetary support” and τῆς πίστεως as a genitive of source, the phrase could refer to Philemon’s financial giving which he has done according to his faith; (b) taking κοινωνία as a reference to “sharing” or “communicating” and the genitive τῆς πίστεως as an objective genitive, then the meaning would be “sharing the faith” as a reference to evangelistic activity; (c) taking κοινωνία in a distributive sense referring to fellowship with other believers, and τῆς πίστεως as a reference to the common trust all Christians have in Jesus, then the meaning is Christian fellowship centered on faith in Jesus; (d) taking κοινωνία as a reference to “participation” and the genitive τῆς πίστεως as a reference to the thing participated in, the meaning would then be Philemon’s “participation in the faith”; (2) what is the meaning of ἐνεργής (energēs; Does it mean “active” or “effective”?) and ἐπιγνώσει (epignōsei; Does it refer to simply understanding? Or “experiencing” as well?); (3) what is the meaning of the phrase παντὸς ἀγαθοῦ (pantos agathou)? and (4) what is the force of εἰς Χριστόν (eis Christon)? It is difficult to arrive at an interpretation that deals adequately with all these questions, but given the fact that Paul stresses what Philemon has done for the brothers (cf. the γάρ [gar] in v. 7), it seems that his concern in v. 6 is with Philemon’s fellowship with other believers and how he has worked hard to refresh them. In this interpretation: (1) the phrase ἡ κοινωνία τῆς πίστεως σου is taken to refer to fellowship with other believers; (2) ἐνεργής is taken to mean “effective” (i.e., more effective) and ἐπιγνώσει involves both understanding and experience; (3) the phrase παντὸς ἀγαθοῦ refers to every spiritual blessing and (4) εἰς Χριστόν carries a locative idea meaning “in Christ.” The result is that Paul prays for Philemon that he will be equipped to encourage and love the saints more as he himself is brought to a place of deeper understanding of every spiritual blessing he has in Christ; out of the overflow of his own life, he will minister to others.
- Philemon 1:7 tn Here γάρ (gar) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and contemporary English style.
- Philemon 1:7 tn The Greek preposition ἐπί (epi) is understood here in a causal sense, i.e., “because.”
- Philemon 1:7 tn The word translated “hearts” here is σπλάγχνα (splanchna). Literally the term refers to one’s “inward parts,” but it is commonly used figuratively for “heart” as the seat of the emotions. See BDAG 938 s.v. σπλάγχνον 2 (cf. Col 3:12, Phil 2:1).
- Philemon 1:9 tn Or “encourage.”
- Philemon 1:9 tn Or perhaps “an ambassador” (so RSV, TEV), reading πρεσβευτής for πρεσβύτης (a conjecture proposed by Bentley, cf. BDAG 863 s.v. πρεσβύτης). NRSV reads “old man” and places “ambassador” in a note.
- Philemon 1:9 tn Grk “a prisoner of Christ Jesus.”
- Philemon 1:10 tn Or “I am encouraging…”
- Philemon 1:10 tn Grk “my child whom I have begotten.” The adjective “spiritual” has been supplied before “father” in the translation to clarify for the modern reader that Paul did not literally father a child during his imprisonment. Paul’s point is that he was instrumental in Onesimus’ conversion while in prison.
- Philemon 1:10 sn During my imprisonment. Apparently Onesimus became a believer under Paul’s shepherding while he [Paul] was a prisoner in Rome.
- Philemon 1:11 tc ‡ A correlative καί (kai, “both you”) is found in a few witnesses (א*,2 F G 33 104), perhaps either to underscore the value of Onesimus or in imitation of the νυνὶ δὲ καί (nuni de kai) in v. 9. The lack of καί is read by most witnesses, including אc A C D 0278 1241 1505 1739 1881 M it. Although a decision is difficult, the shorter reading has a slight edge in both internal and external evidence. NA28 places the καί in brackets, indicating some doubts as to its authenticity.
- Philemon 1:12 tc There are several variants at this point in the text, most of them involving the addition of προσλαβοῦ (proslabou, “receive, accept”) at various locations in the verse. But all such variants seem to be motivated by the harsh syntax of the verse without this verb. Without the verb, the meaning is that Onesimus is Paul’s “very heart,” though this is an awkward expression especially because of τουτ᾿ ἔστιν (tout’ estin, “this is, who is”) in the middle cluttering the construction. Nowhere else in the NT is σπλάγχνα (splanchna, here translated “heart”) used in apposition to people. It is thus natural that scribes would want to fill out the text, and they did so apparently with a verb that was ready at hand (borrowed from v. 17). With the verb the sentence is converted into an object-complement construction: “I have sent him back to you; accept him, that is, as my very heart.” But both the fact that some significant witnesses (א* A F G 33 [69 2400 SBL]) lack the verb, and that its location floats in the various constructions that have it, suggest that the initial text did not have προσλαβοῦ.tn Grk “whom I have sent.” The Greek sentence was broken up in the English translation for the sake of clarity. Although the tense of the Greek verb here is past (an aorist tense) the reader should understand that Onesimus may well have been standing in the very presence of Paul as he wrote this letter.
- Philemon 1:12 tn That is, “who means a great deal to me”; Grk “whom I have sent to you, him, this one is my heart.”
- Philemon 1:13 tn This is one of the clearest texts in the NT in which ὑπέρ is used for substitution. Cf. ExSyn 387.
- Philemon 1:13 tn Grk “in my imprisonment.” Paul seems to expect release from his imprisonment after some time (cf. v. 22), but in the meantime the assistance that Onesimus could provide would be valuable to the apostle.
- Philemon 1:13 tn Grk “in the chains of the gospel.” On the translation “imprisonment for the sake of the gospel,” cf. BDAG 219 s.v. δεσμός 1.a where it says: “Oft. simply in ref. to the locale where bonds or fetters are worn imprisonment, prison (Diod. S. 14, 103, 3; Lucian, Tox. 29; Jos., Ant. 13, 294; 302, Vi. 241; Just., A I, 67, 6 al.) Phil 1:7, 13f, 17; Col 4:18; Phlm 10. μέχρι δεσμῶν 2 Ti 2:9. ἐν τοῖς δ. τοῦ εὐαγγελίου in imprisonment for the gospel Phlm 13; cf. ISm 11:1; Pol 1:1.”
- Philemon 1:14 tn Though the Greek text does not read the term “however,” it is clearly implied and thus supplied in the English translation to accent the contrastive nature of Paul’s statement.
- Philemon 1:15 sn So that you would have him back eternally. The notion here is not that Onesimus was to be the slave of Philemon eternally, but that their new relationship as brothers in Christ would transcend the societal structures of this age. The occasion of Onesimus’ flight to Rome would ultimately be a catalyst in the formation of a new and stronger bond between these two men.
- Philemon 1:16 tn Although the Greek word δοῦλος (doulos) is sometimes translated “servant” here (so KJV), the word “slave” is a much more candid and realistic picture of the relationship between Philemon and Onesimus. In the Greco-Roman world of the 1st century the slave was considered a “living tool” of the master. The slave was “property” in every sense of the word. This understanding heightens the tense scenario that is in view here. It is likely that Onesimus may have even feared for his life upon returning to Colossae. Undoubtedly Paul has asked this runaway slave to return to what could amount to a potentially severe and life-endangering situation.
- Philemon 1:16 tn Grk “in the flesh.”
- Philemon 1:18 tn Grk “charge it to me.”
- Philemon 1:19 tn Grk “I wrote” Here ἔγραψα (egrapsa) is functioning as an epistolary aorist. Paul puts it in the past tense because from Philemon’s perspective when he reads the letter it will, of course, already have been written.
- Philemon 1:19 tn The phrase “this letter” does not appear in the Greek text, but is supplied in the English translation to clarify the meaning.
- Philemon 1:19 sn With my own hand. Paul may have considered this letter so delicate that he wrote the letter himself as opposed to using an amanuensis or secretary.
- Philemon 1:19 sn The statement you owe me your very self means that Paul was responsible for some sort of blessing in the life of Philemon; though a monetary idea may be in mind, it is perhaps better to understand Paul as referring to the spiritual truth (i.e., the gospel) he had taught Philemon.
- Philemon 1:20 sn Refresh my heart in Christ. Paul desired that Philemon refresh his heart in the same way that he [Philemon] had refreshed the hearts of other believers (cf. Phlm 7), that is, by forgiving and accepting Onesimus. In this way the presence and character of Jesus Christ would be vividly seen in Philemon’s attitude toward his runaway slave.
- Philemon 1:21 tn Grk “that you would even go beyond.”
- Philemon 1:23 sn Epaphras is probably a shortened form of the name Epaphroditus. This is probably the same individual whom Paul spoke of as “my brother, coworker, and fellow soldier” in Phil 2:25 (see also Phil 4:18). He is also mentioned in Col 1:7 and 4:12, where he is a founder of the church in Colossae (BDAG 360 s.v. ᾿Επαφρᾶς).
- Philemon 1:24 sn Aristarchus accompanied Paul on his journey as a prisoner to Rome in Acts 27:2. He is also mentioned as a fellow prisoner in Col 4:10.
- Philemon 1:24 sn Demas is most likely the same individual mentioned in Col 4:14 and 2 Tim 4:10. Apparently, he later on abandoned the faith because of his love of the world.
- Philemon 1:25 tn Grk “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ with your spirit.” The elided verb, normally an optative, has been rendered as “be.”
- Philemon 1:25 tc Most witnesses, including several excellent ones (א C D1 Ψ 0278 1241 1505 1739c M lat sy), conclude this letter with ἀμήν (amēn, “amen”). Such a conclusion is routinely added by scribes to NT books because a few of these books originally had such an ending (cf. Rom 16:27; Gal 6:18; Jude 25). A majority of Greek witnesses have the concluding ἀμήν in every NT book except Acts, James, and 3 John (and even in these books, ἀμήν is found in some witnesses). It is thus a predictable variant. Further, several good witnesses (P87vid A D* 048vid 6 33 81 1739* 1881 sa) lack the ἀμήν, rendering the omission the preferred reading.
Psalm 101
Psalm 101[a]
A psalm of David.
101 I will sing about loyalty and justice.
To you, O Lord, I will sing praises.
2 I will walk[b] in the way of integrity.
When will you come to me?
I will conduct my business with integrity in the midst of my palace.[c]
3 I will not even consider doing what is dishonest.[d]
I hate doing evil;[e]
I will have no part of it.[f]
4 I will have nothing to do with a perverse person;[g]
I will not permit[h] evil.
5 I will destroy anyone who slanders his neighbor in secret.
I will not tolerate anyone who has a haughty demeanor and an arrogant attitude.[i]
6 I will favor the honest people of the land,[j]
and allow them to live with me.[k]
Those who walk in the way of integrity will attend me.[l]
7 Deceitful people will not live in my palace.[m]
Liars will not be welcome in my presence.[n]
8 Each morning I will destroy all the wicked people in the land,
and remove all evildoers from the city of the Lord.
Footnotes
- Psalm 101:1 sn Psalm 101. The psalmist, who appears to be a king, promises to promote justice in his land and vows to rid his royal court of evildoers.
- Psalm 101:2 tn Heb “take notice of.”
- Psalm 101:2 tn Heb “I will walk about in the integrity of my heart in the midst of my house.”
- Psalm 101:3 tn Heb “I will not set before my eyes a thing of worthlessness.”
- Psalm 101:3 tn Heb “the doing of swerving [deeds] I hate.” The Hebrew term סֵטִים (setim) is probably an alternate spelling of שֵׂטִים (setim), which appears in many medieval Hebrew mss. The form appears to be derived from a verbal root שׂוּט (sut, “to fall away; to swerve”; see Ps 40:4).
- Psalm 101:3 tn Heb “it [i.e., the doing of evil deeds] does not cling to me.”
- Psalm 101:4 tn Heb “a perverse heart will turn aside from me.” The adjective עִקֵּשׁ (ʿiqqesh) has the basic nuance “twisted; crooked” and by extension refers to someone or something that is morally perverse (see Ps 18:26). It appears frequently in the Book of Proverbs, where it is used of evil people (22:5), speech (8:8; 19:1), thoughts (11:20; 17:20), and life styles (2:15; 28:6).
- Psalm 101:4 tn Heb “know.” The king will not willingly allow perverse individuals to remain in his royal court.
- Psalm 101:5 tn Heb “[one who has] pride of eyes and wideness [i.e., arrogance] of heart, him I will not endure.”
- Psalm 101:6 tn Heb “my eyes [are] on the faithful of the land.”
- Psalm 101:6 tn The Hebrew text simply reads, “in order to live with me.”
- Psalm 101:6 tn Heb “one who walks in the way of integrity, he will minister to me.”
- Psalm 101:7 tn Heb “he will not live in the midst of my house, one who does deceit.”
- Psalm 101:7 tn Heb “one who speaks lies will not be established before my eyes.”
Proverbs 26:20
Footnotes
- Proverbs 26:20 sn Gossip (that is, the one who goes around whispering and slandering) fuels contention just as wood fuels a fire. The point of the proverb is to prevent contention—if one takes away the cause, contention will cease (e.g., 18:8).
- Proverbs 26:20 tn Heb “becomes silent.”
New English Translation (NET)
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