1 How hath our Lord in his fury covered the daughter of Sion with darkness: cast forth the noble one of Israel from heaven to the earth, and hath not remembered the footstool of his feet in the day of his fury.
1 Aleph. How hath the Lord covered with obscurity the daughter of Sion in his wrath! How hath he cast down from heaven to the earth the glorious one of Israel, and hath not remembered his footstool in the day of his anger.
2 Our Lord hath cast down headlong, and hath not spared, all the beautiful things of Jacob: he hath destroyed in his fury the munitions of the virgin of Juda, and cast it down to the ground: he hath polluted the kingdom, and the princes thereof.
2 Beth. The Lord hath cast down headlong, and hath not spared, all that was beautiful in Jacob: he hath destroyed in his wrath the strongholds of the virgin of Juda, and brought them down to the ground: he hath made the kingdom unclean, and the princes thereof.
3 He hath broken every horn of Israel in the wrath of fury: he hath turned away his right hand backward from the face of the enemy: and he hath kindled in Jacob as it were the fire of a flame devouring round about.
3 Ghimel. He hath broken in his fierce anger all the horn of Israel: he hath drawn back his right hand from before the enemy: and he hath kindled in Jacob as it were a flaming fire devouring round about.
4 He hath bent his bow as an enemy, he hath fastened his right hand as an adversary: and he hast killed all, that was fair to behold in the tabernacle of the daughter of Sion, he hath poured out his indignation as fire.
4 Daleth. He hath bent his bow as an enemy, he hath fixed his right hand as an adversary: and he hath killed all that was fair to behold in the tabernacle of the daughter of Sion, he hath poured out his indignation like fire.
5 Our Lord is become as an enemy: he hath cast down Israel headlong, he hath cast down headlong all her walls: he hath destroyed the munitions thereof, and hath replenished in the daughter of Juda the humbled man and humbled woman.
5 He. The Lord is become as an enemy: he hath cast down Israel headlong, he hath overthrown all the walls thereof: he hath destroyed his strong holds, and hath multiplied in the daughter of Juda the afflicted, both men and women.
6 And he hath destroyed his tent as a garden, he hath thrown down his tabernacle: our Lord hath brought festivity and sabbath in Sion to oblivion: and king and priest into reproach, and into the indignation of his fury.
6 Vau. And he hath destroyed his tent as a garden, he hath thrown down his tabernacle: the Lord hath caused feasts and sabbaths to be forgotten in Sion: and hath delivered up king and priest to reproach, and to the indignation of his wrath.
7 Our Lord hath rejected, he hath cursed his sanctification: he hath delivered the walls of the towers thereof into the hand of the enemy: they have made a noise in the house of our Lord, as in a solemn day.
7 Zain. The Lord hath cast off his altar, he hath cursed his sanctuary: he hath delivered the walls of the towers thereof into the hand of the enemy: they have made a noise in the house of the Lord, as in the day of a solemn feast.
8 Our Lord hath meant to destroy the wall of the daughter of Sion: he hath stretched out his cord, and hath not turned away his hand from destruction: and the forewall hath mourned, and the wall is destroyed together.
8 Heth. The Lord hath purposed to destroy the wall of the daughter of Sion: he hath stretched out his line, and hath not withdrawn his hand from destroying: and the bulwark hath mourned, and the wall hath been destroyed together.
9 Her gates are fastened in the ground: he hath destroyed, and broken her bars: her king and her princes in the Gentiles: there is no law, and her prophets have not found vision from our Lord.
9 Teth. Her gates are sunk into the ground: he hath destroyed, and broken her bars: her king and her princes are among the Gentiles: the law is no more, and her prophets have found no vision from the Lord.
10 The ancients of the daughter of Sion have sitten on the ground, they have held their peace: they have sprinkled their heads with dust, they are girded with hair cloths, the virgins of Jerusalem have cast down their heads to the ground.
10 Jod. The ancients of the daughter of Sion sit upon the ground, they have held their peace: they have sprinkled their heads with dust, they are girded with haircloth, the virgins of Jerusalem hang down their heads to the ground.
11 Mine eyes have failed for tears, my bowels are troubled: my liver is poured out on the earth, for the destruction of the daughter of my people, when the little one, and the sucking fainted in the streets of the town.
11 Caph. My eyes have failed with weeping, my bowels are troubled: my liver is poured out upon the earth, for the destruction of the daughter of my people, when the children, and the sucklings, fainted away in the streets of the city.
12 They said to their mothers: Where is wheat and wine? When they fainted as the wounded in the streets of the city: when they yielded up the ghosts in the bosom of their mothers.
12 Lamed. They said to their mothers: Where is corn and wine? When they fainted away as the wounded in the streets of the city: when they breathed out their souls in the bosoms of their mothers.
13 Whereto shall I compare thee? Or whereto shall I liken thee o daughter of Jerusalem: whereto shall I make thee equal, and comfort thee o virgin daughter of Sion? For great is thy destruction as the sea: who shall heal thee?
13 Mem. To what shall I compare thee? Or to what shall I liken thee, O daughter of Jerusalem? To what shall I equal thee, that I may comfort thee, O virgin daughter of Sion? For great as the sea is thy destruction: who shall heal thee?
14 Thy prophets have seen false and foolish things for thee: neither have they opened thine iniquity, to provoke thee to penance, but they have seen false burdens and banishments for thee.
14 Nun. Thy prophets have seen false and foolish things for thee: and they have not laid open thy iniquity, to excite thee to penance: but they have seen for thee false revelations and banishments.
15 All that passed by the way have clapped their hands upon thee: they have hissed, and moved their head upon the daughter of Jerusalem, saying: Is this the city of perfect beauty, the joy of all the earth?
15 Samech. All they that passed by the way have clapped their hands at thee: they have hissed, and wagged their heads at the daughter of Jerusalem, saying: Is this the city of perfect beauty, the joy of all the earth?
16 All thine enemies have opened their mouth upon thee: they have hissed, and gnashed with the teeth, and have said: We will devour: Lo this is the day, which we expected: we have found it, we have seen it.
16 Phe. All thy enemies have opened their mouth against thee: they have hissed, and gnashed with the teeth, and have said: We will swallow her up: lo, this is the day which we looked for: we have found it, we have seen it.
17 Our Lord hath done the things that he meant, he hath accomplished his word, which he commanded from the days of old: he hath destroyed, and hath not spared, and he hath made the enemy joyful over thee, and hath exalted the horn of thine adversaries.
17 ¹Ain. The Lord hath done that which he purposed, he hath fulfilled his word, which he commanded in the days of old: he hath destroyed, and hath not spared, and he hath caused the enemy to rejoice over thee, and hath set up the horn of thy adversaries.
18 Their heart hath cried to our Lord upon the walls of the daughter of Sion: Shed tears as a torrent by day, and night: give no rest to thyself, neither let the apple of thine eye cease.
18 Sade. Their heart cried to the Lord upon the walls of the daughter of Sion: ²Let tears run down like a torrent day and night: give thyself no rest, and let not the apple of thy eye cease.
19 Arise, praise in the night in the beginning of the watches: pour out thy heart as waters before the sight of our Lord: lift up thy hands to him for the life of thy little ones, which have fainted for famine in the head of all high ways.
19 Coph. Arise, give praise in the night, in the beginning of the watches: pour out thy heart like water, before the face of the Lord: lift up thy hands to him for the life of thy little children, that have fainted for hunger at the top of all the streets.
20 See o Lord, and consider whom thou hast vintaged thus: shall women then eat their own fruit, little ones of the measure of a span? Is the priest, and the prophet slain in the sanctuary of our Lord?
20 Res. Behold, O Lord, and consider whom thou hast thus dealt with: shall women then eat their own fruit, their children of a span long? Shall the priest and the prophet be slain in the sanctuary of the Lord?
21 The child and the old man lay on the ground without: my virgins and my youngmen are fallen by the sword: thou hast killed in the day of thy fury: thou hast strucken, neither hast thou had mercy.
21 Sin. The child and the old man lie without on the ground: my virgins and my young men are fallen by the sword: thou hast slain them in the day of thy wrath: thou hast killed, and shown them no pity.
22 Thou hast called as it were to a solemn day, those that should terrify me round about, and there was none in the day of the fury of our Lord, that escaped and was left: whom I brought up, & nourished, mine enemy hath consumed them.
22 Thau. Thou hast called as to a festival, those that should terrify me round about, and there was none in the day of the wrath of the Lord that escaped and was left: those that I brought up, and nourished, my enemy hath consumed them.