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¹ [ALEPH-BET] How she has sat alone, || The city abounding with people! She has been as a widow, || The mighty among nations! Princes among provinces, || She has become tributary!² She weeps severely in the night, || And her tear [is] on her cheeks, || There is no comforter for her out of all her lovers, || All her friends dealt treacherously by her, || They have been to her for enemies.³ Removed has Judah because of affliction, || And because of the abundance of her service; She has dwelt among nations, || She has not found rest, || All her pursuers have overtaken her between the straits.⁴ The ways of Zion are mourning, || Without any coming at the appointed time, || All her gates are desolate, her priests sigh, || Her virgins are afflicted—and she has bitterness.⁵ Her adversaries have become chief, || Her enemies have been at ease, || For YHWH has afflicted her, || For the abundance of her transgressions, || Her infants have gone captive before the adversary.⁶ And all her honor goes out from the daughter of Zion, || Her princes have been as harts—They have not found pasture, || And they go powerless before a pursuer.⁷ Jerusalem has remembered || [In] the days of her affliction and her mournings, all her desirable things that were from the days of old, || In the falling of her people into the hand of an adversary, || And she has no helper; Adversaries have seen her, || They have laughed at her cessation.⁸ A sin has Jerusalem sinned, || Therefore she has become impure, || All who honored her have esteemed her lightly, || For they have seen her nakedness, || Indeed, she herself has sighed and turns backward.⁹ Her uncleanness [is] in her skirts, || She has not remembered her latter end, || And she comes down wonderfully, || There is no comforter for her. See, O YHWH, my affliction, || For an enemy has exerted himself.¹⁰ His hand has spread out an adversary || On all her desirable things, || For she has seen—Nations have entered her sanctuary, || Concerning which You commanded, || "They do not come into the assembly to you."¹¹ All her people are sighing—seeking bread, || They have given their desirable things || For food to refresh the body; See, O YHWH, and behold attentively, || For I have been lightly esteemed.

¹² [Is it] nothing to you, all you passing by the way? Look attentively, and see, || If there is any pain like my pain, || That He is rolling to me? Whom YHWH has afflicted || In the day of the fierceness of His anger.¹³ From above He has sent fire into my bone, || And it subdues it, He has spread a net for my feet, || He has turned me backward, || He has made me desolate—all the day sick.¹⁴ Bound has been the yoke of my transgressions by His hand, || They are wrapped together, || They have gone up on my neck, || He has caused my power to stumble, || The Lord has given me into hands, I am not able to rise.¹⁵ The Lord has trodden down all my mighty ones in my midst, || He proclaimed an appointed time against me, || To destroy my young men, || The Lord has trodden a winepress, || To the virgin daughter of Judah.¹⁶ For these I am weeping, || My eye, my eye, is running down with waters, || For a comforter has been far from me, || Refreshing my soul, || My sons have been desolate, || For mighty has been an enemy.¹⁷ Zion has spread forth her hands, || There is no comforter for her, || YHWH has charged concerning Jacob, || His neighbors [are] his adversaries, || Jerusalem has become impure among them.¹⁸ YHWH is righteous, || For I have provoked His mouth. Now hear, all you peoples, and see my pain, || My virgins and my young men have gone into captivity.¹⁹ I called for my lovers, they have deceived me, || My priests and my elderly have expired in the city; When they have sought food for themselves, || Then they give back their soul.²⁰ See, O YHWH, for distress [is] to me, || My bowels have been troubled, || My heart has been turned in my midst, || For I have greatly provoked, || From outside the sword has bereaved, || In the house [it is] as death.²¹ They have heard that I have sighed, || There is no comforter for me, || All my enemies have heard of my calamity, || They have rejoiced that You have done [it], || You have brought in the day You have called, || And they are like to me.²² All their evil comes in before You, || And one is doing to them as You have done to me, || For all my transgressions, || For many [are] my sighs, and my heart [is] sick!