Lamentations 2

1 How could My Lord, in his anger, enshroud in gloom, the daughter of Zion? have cast from the heavens to the earth, the beauty of Israel? and not have remembered his footstool, in the day of his anger?

How YHWH covered the daughter of Zion with a cloud in his anger. He has cast down from heaven to the earth the splendor of Israel, and hasn't remembered his footstool in the day of his anger.

2 My Lord hath swallowed up—without pity—all the pastures of Jacob, hath laid waste—in his indignation—the strongholds of the daughter of Judah, hath brought them down to the ground, —hath profaned the kingdom, and the princes thereof.

YHWH has swallowed up all the habitations of Jacob, and has not pitied. He has thrown down in his wrath the strongholds of the daughter of Judah. He has brought them down to the ground; he has humiliated the kingdom and its rulers.

3 He hath broken off—in the glow of his anger—the whole horn of Israel, hath turned back his right hand, from the face of the foe, —and hath kindled against Jacob, a very fire of flame, devouring round about.

He has cut off in fierce anger all the strength of Israel. He has drawn back his right hand before the enemy. He has blazed in Jacob like a flaming fire, which devours all around.

4 He hath trodden his bow like a foe, his right hand erect as an adversary, and hath slain all them who delighted the eye, —In the home of the daughter of Zion, hath he poured out, as fire, his indignation.

He has bent his bow like an enemy; his right hand he has positioned like an adversary. He killed all that were pleasant to the eye. In the tent of the daughter of Zion he has poured out his wrath like fire.

5 My Lord hath become like a foe, hath swallowed up Israel, hath swallowed up all her castles, ruined his strongholds, —and hath caused to abound, in the daughter of Judah, lamentation and mourning.

YHWH has become as an enemy; he has swallowed up Israel; he has swallowed up all her palaces and has destroyed its strongholds. He has multiplied in the daughter of Judah mourning and lamentation.

6 Thus hath he destroyed, like a garden, his pavilion, hath laid waste his place of assembly, —Yahweh, hath caused to be forgotten, in Zion, the appointed assembly and the sabbath, and hath spurned, in the indignation of his anger, the king and the priest.

He has done violence to his temple, as if it were a vineyard; he has destroyed his place of assembly. YHWH has caused solemn assembly and Sabbath to be forgotten in Zion, and he has spurned in his fierce anger king and priest and prince.

7 My Lord hath rejected his altar, hath abhorred his sanctuary, hath delivered, into the hand of the foe, the walls of her castles, —A voice, have they uttered in the house of Yahweh, as on the day of an appointed assembly.

YHWH has rejected his altar, he has disowned his sanctuary, and has given up into the hand of the enemy the walls of her palaces. They have made a shout in the house of YHWH, as in the day of a solemn assembly.

8 Yahweh hath devised to lay in ruins, the wall of the daughter of Zion, he hath stretched out a line, he hath not turned back his hand from swallowing up, —Thus hath he caused to mourn—rampart and wall, together, have they languished!

YHWH has determined to destroy the wall of the daughter of Zion. He has stretched out the line, he has not withdrawn his hand from destroying. He has made the rampart and wall to lament; they languish together.

9 Her gates, have sunk in the earth, He hath destroyed and broken in pieces, her bars, —Her king and her princes, are among the nations, There is no instruction, Even her prophets, have found no vision, from Yahweh.

Her gates are sunk into the ground; he has destroyed and broken her bars. Her king and her princes are among the nations where the law is no more, and her prophets find no vision from YHWH.

10 Seated on the ground, in silence, are the elders of the daughter of Zion, They have lifted up dust on their head, have girded themselves with sackcloth, —Bowed down to the ground is the head, of the virgins of Jerusalem.

The elders of the daughter of Zion sit on the ground in silence. They have cast up dust on their heads; they have clothed themselves with sackcloth. The virgins of Jerusalem hang down their heads to the ground.

11 Blinded with tears are mine eyes, In ferment is my body, Poured out to the earth is my grief, for the sore hurt of the daughter of my people, —when child and suckling are swooning, in the broadways of the city.

My eyes are worn out from weeping, my stomach is churning. My heart is poured on the earth, because of the destruction of the daughter of my people, because the young children and the infants faint in the streets of the city.

12 To their mothers, they keep saying, Where are corn and wine? Swooning off, like one thrust through, in the broadways of the city, pouring out their life into the bosom of their mothers.

They tell their mothers, "Where is grain and wine?" When they faint as the wounded in the streets of the city, as their lives fade away in their mothers' bosom.

13 How shall I solemnly admonish thee? What shall I liken to thee, thou daughter of Jerusalem? What shall I compare with thee, that I may comfort thee, thou virgin, daughter of Zion? for, great as the sea, is thy grievous injury, Who can heal thee?

What shall I testify of you? What shall I liken to you, daughter of Jerusalem? What shall I compare to you, that I may comfort you, virgin daughter of Zion? For your ruin is great like the sea. Who can heal you?

14 Thy prophets, have had visions for thee, false and foolish, and have not unveiled thine iniquity, to turn back thy captivity, —Yea they have had visions for thee, oracles of falsehood, and enticements!

Your prophets have seen for you false and deceptive visions. They have not uncovered your iniquity, to bring back your captivity, but have seen for you false and misleading oracles.

15 All passing by, have clapped, over thee, their hands, have hissed and wagged their head over the daughter of Jerusalem, —[saying], Is, this, the city, of which men used to say—The perfection of beauty! A joy to the whole earth!

All that pass by clap their hands at you, they hiss and wag their head at the daughter of Jerusalem, saying, "Is this the city that men called 'The perfection of beauty,' 'The joy of the whole earth'?"

16 All thy foes, have opened wide, over thee their mouth, They have hissed, and gnashed their teeth, They have said—We have swallowed [her] up! Surely, this, is the day for which we have waited, We have found! We have seen!

All your enemies have opened wide their mouth against you. They hiss and gnash the teeth; they say, "We have swallowed her up. Certainly this is the day that we looked for; we have found, we have seen it."

17 Yahweh hath done what he thought, hath carried out his word, wherewith he gave charge in the days of old, hath thrown down, and not spared, —Thus hath he let the enemy rejoice over thee, hath raised high the horn of thine adversaries.

YHWH has done that which he purposed, he has fulfilled his word that he commanded in the days of old. He has thrown down, and has not pitied. He has caused the enemy to gloat over you and exalted the horn of your adversaries.

18 Their heart, hath made outcry, unto My Lord, —O wall of the daughter of Zion—Let tears run down as a torrent day and night, Do not give thyself relief, Let not the weeping of thine eye cease!

Their heart cried to YHWH. O wall of the daughter of Zion, let tears run down like a river day and night. Give yourself no respite; do not let your tears cease.

19 Arise, cry out in the night, At the beginning of the watches, pour out, like waters, thy heart, right before the face of My Lord, —Lift up, above thee, the palms of thy hands, for the life of thy children, who are swooning for hunger, at the top of all the streets!

Arise, cry out in the night, at the beginning of the watches. Pour out your heart like water before the face of YHWH. Lift up your hands toward him for the life of your young children, that faint for hunger at the head of every street.

20 See, O Yahweh, and do consider, to whom thou hast acted thus severely, —Will women, devour, their own fruit—the children they have dandled? Shall priest and prophet, be slain in the sanctuary of My Lord?

Look, YHWH, and see to whom you have done like this. Shall the women eat their fruit, the children that are dandled in the hands? Shall the priest and the prophet be killed in the sanctuary of YHWH?

21 Youth and elder, have lain down on the ground in the streets, My virgins and my young men, have fallen by the sword, —Thou hast slain, in the day of thine anger, Thou hast slaughtered, hast not spared!

The youth and the old man lie on the ground in the streets; my virgins and my young men have fallen by the sword. You have killed them in the day of your anger; you have slaughtered, without pity.

22 Wilt thou proclaim, like the day of an appointed meeting—My terrors round about? when there was not—in the day of the anger of Yahweh—fugitive or survivor, —Those whom I dandled and reared, my foe hath destroyed.

You have called, as in the day of a solemn assembly, my terrors on every side. There was none that escaped or remained in the day of YHWH's anger. Those that I have borne and brought up has my enemy destroyed.