Read the Bible

¹ Remember, O Lord, what has happened to us.
    Look at us, and see our disgrace.

² Our property is in the hands of strangers;
    foreigners are living in our homes.

³ Our fathers have been killed by the enemy,
    and now our mothers are widows.

⁴ We must pay for the water we drink;
    we must buy the wood we need for fuel.

⁵ Driven hard like donkeys or camels,
    we are tired, but are allowed no rest.

⁶ To get food enough to stay alive,
    we went begging to Egypt and Assyria.

⁷ Our ancestors sinned, but now they are gone,
    and we are suffering for their sins.

⁸ Our rulers are no better than slaves,
    and no one can save us from their power.

⁹ Murderers roam through the countryside;
    we risk our lives when we look for food.

¹⁰ Hunger has made us burn with fever
    until our skin is as hot as an oven.

¹¹ Our wives have been raped on Mount Zion itself;
    in every Judean village our daughters have been forced to submit.

¹² Our leaders have been taken and hanged;
    our elders are shown no respect.

¹³ Our young men are forced to grind grain like slaves;
    boys go staggering under heavy loads of wood.

¹⁴ The old people no longer sit at the city gate,
    and the young people no longer make music.

¹⁵ Happiness has gone out of our lives;
    grief has taken the place of our dances.

¹⁶ Nothing is left of all we were proud of.
    We sinned, and now we are doomed.

¹⁷ We are sick at our very hearts
    and can hardly see through our tears,

¹⁸ because Mount Zion lies lonely and deserted,
    and wild jackals prowl through its ruins.

¹⁹ But you, O Lord, are king forever
    and will rule to the end of time.

²⁰ Why have you abandoned us so long?
    Will you ever remember us again?

²¹ Bring us back to you, Lord! Bring us back!
    Restore our ancient glory.

²² Or have you rejected us forever?
    Is there no limit to your anger?