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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width; initial-scale=1.0; maximum-scale=1.0; user-scalable=0;"/><title>Lamentations 3 New American Bible</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="/chapnew2.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="../spec.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/print.css" type="text/css" media="Print" /></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../cmenus/lamentations/3.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" 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align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="../lamentations/2.htm" title="Lamentations 2">◄</a> Lamentations 3 <a href="../lamentations/4.htm" title="Lamentations 4">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheading"><table width="100%"><tr><td width="99%" valign="top">New American Bible Revised Edition</td><td width="1%" valign="top"></td></tr></table></div><div class="chap"><section id="ch31003" class="chapter"> <h1 id="cn31003" class="cn"></h1> <section> <h2 class="ahaft">The Voice of a Suffering Individual<a id="rfn31003000-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn31003000-1">*</a></h2> <div class="senseline"> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003001" class="ver">1</span>I am one who has known affliction</p> <p class="sl1">under the rod of God’s anger,<a id="ren31003001-a" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003001-a">a</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003002" class="ver">2</span>One whom he has driven and forced to walk</p> <p class="sl1">in darkness, not in light;</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003003" class="ver">3</span>Against me alone he turns his hand—</p> <p class="sl1">again and again all day long.</p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003004" class="ver">4</span>He has worn away my flesh and my skin,</p> <p class="sl1">he has broken my bones;<a id="ren31003004-b" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003004-b">b</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003005" class="ver">5</span>He has besieged me all around</p> <p class="sl1">with poverty and hardship;</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003006" class="ver">6</span>He has left me to dwell in dark places</p> <p class="sl1">like those long dead.<a id="ren31003006-c" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003006-c">c</a></p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003007" class="ver">7</span>He has hemmed me in with no escape,</p> <p class="sl1">weighed me down with chains;</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003008" class="ver">8</span>Even when I cry for help,</p> <p class="sl1">he stops my prayer;<a id="ren31003008-d" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003008-d">d</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003009" class="ver">9</span>He has hemmed in my ways with fitted stones,</p> <p class="sl1">and made my paths crooked.</p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003010" class="ver">10</span>He has been a bear lying in wait for me,</p> <p class="sl1">a lion in hiding!<a id="ren31003010-e" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003010-e">e</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003011" class="ver">11</span>He turned me aside and tore me apart,</p> <p class="sl1">leaving me ravaged.<a id="ren31003011-f" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003011-f">f</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003012" class="ver">12</span>He bent his bow, and set me up</p> <p class="sl1">as a target for his arrow.<a id="ren31003012-g" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003012-g">g</a></p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003013" class="ver">13</span>He pierced my kidneys</p> <p class="sl1">with shafts from his quiver.<a id="ren31003013-h" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003013-h">h</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003014" class="ver">14</span>I have become a laughingstock to all my people,</p> <p class="sl1">their taunt all day long;<a id="ren31003014-i" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003014-i">i</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003015" class="ver">15</span>He has sated me with bitterness,</p> <p class="sl1">filled me with wormwood.<a id="ren31003015-j" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003015-j">j</a></p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003016" class="ver">16</span>He has made me eat gravel,</p> <p class="sl1">trampled me into the dust;</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003017" class="ver">17</span>My life is deprived of peace,</p> <p class="sl1">I have forgotten what happiness is;</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003018" class="ver">18</span>My enduring hope, I said,</p> <p class="sl1">has perished before the <span class="tetr">Lord</span>.</p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003019" class="ver">19</span>The thought of my wretched homelessness</p> <p class="sl1">is wormwood and poison;</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003020" class="ver">20</span>Remembering it over and over,</p> <p class="sl1">my soul is downcast.</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003021" class="ver">21</span>But this I will call to mind;<a id="rfn31003021-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn31003021-1">*</a></p> <p class="sl1">therefore I will hope:</p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003022" class="ver">22</span>The <span class="tetr">Lord</span>’s acts of mercy are not exhausted,</p> <p class="sl1">his compassion is not spent;<a id="ren31003022-k" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003022-k">k</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003023" class="ver">23</span>They are renewed each morning—</p> <p class="sl1">great is your faithfulness!</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003024" class="ver">24</span>The <span class="tetr">Lord</span> is my portion, I tell myself,</p> <p class="sl1">therefore I will hope in him.<a id="ren31003024-l" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003024-l">l</a></p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003025" class="ver">25</span>The <span class="tetr">Lord</span> is good to those who trust in him,</p> <p class="sl1">to the one that seeks him;<a id="ren31003025-m" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003025-m">m</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003026" class="ver">26</span>It is good to hope in silence</p> <p class="sl1">for the <span class="tetr">Lord</span>’s deliverance.</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003027" class="ver">27</span>It is good for a person, when young,</p> <p class="sl1">to bear the yoke,</p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003028" class="ver">28</span>To sit alone and in silence,</p> <p class="sl1">when its weight lies heavy,</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003029" class="ver">29</span>To put one’s mouth in the dust—<a id="rfn31003029-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn31003029-1">*</a></p> <p class="sl1">there may yet be hope—</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003030" class="ver">30</span>To offer one’s cheek to be struck,</p> <p class="sl1">to be filled with disgrace.<a id="ren31003030-n" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003030-n">n</a></p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003031" class="ver">31</span>For the Lord does not</p> <p class="sl1">reject forever;<a id="ren31003031-o" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003031-o">o</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003032" class="ver">32</span>Though he brings grief, he takes pity,</p> <p class="sl1">according to the abundance of his mercy;<a id="ren31003032-p" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003032-p">p</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003033" class="ver">33</span>He does not willingly afflict</p> <p class="sl1">or bring grief to human beings.<a id="ren31003033-q" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003033-q">q</a></p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003034" class="ver">34</span>That someone tramples underfoot</p> <p class="sl1">all the prisoners in the land,</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003035" class="ver">35</span>Or denies justice to anyone</p> <p class="sl1">in the very sight of the Most High,</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003036" class="ver">36</span>Or subverts a person’s lawsuit—</p> <p class="sl1">does the Lord not see?</p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003037" class="ver">37</span>Who speaks so that it comes to pass,</p> <p class="sl1">unless the Lord commands it?</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003038" class="ver">38</span>Is it not at the word of the Most High</p> <p class="sl1">that both good and bad take place?<a id="ren31003038-r" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003038-r">r</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003039" class="ver">39</span>What should the living complain about?</p> <p class="sl1">about their sins!</p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003040" class="ver">40</span><a id="rfn31003040-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn31003040-1">*</a> Let us search and examine our ways,</p> <p class="sl1">and return to the <span class="tetr">Lord</span>!<a id="ren31003040-s" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003040-s">s</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003041" class="ver">41</span>Let us lift up our hearts as well as our hands</p> <p class="sl1">toward God in heaven!</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003042" class="ver">42</span>We have rebelled and been obstinate;</p> <p class="sl1">you have not forgiven us.</p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003043" class="ver">43</span>You wrapped yourself in wrath and pursued us,</p> <p class="sl1">killing without pity;<a id="ren31003043-t" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003043-t">t</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003044" class="ver">44</span>You wrapped yourself in a cloud,</p> <p class="sl1">which no prayer could pierce.</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003045" class="ver">45</span>You have made us filth and rubbish</p> <p class="sl1">among the peoples.<a id="ren31003045-u" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003045-u">u</a></p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003046" class="ver">46</span>They have opened their mouths against us,</p> <p class="sl1">all our enemies;</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003047" class="ver">47</span>Panic and the pit have been our lot,</p> <p class="sl1">desolation and destruction;<a id="ren31003047-v" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003047-v">v</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003048" class="ver">48</span><a id="rfn31003048-1" class="fnref" href="footnotes.htm#fn31003048-1">*</a> My eyes stream with tears over the destruction</p> <p class="sl1">of the daughter of my people.<a id="ren31003048-w" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003048-w">w</a></p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003049" class="ver">49</span>My eyes will flow without ceasing,</p> <p class="sl1">without rest,</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003050" class="ver">50</span>Until the <span class="tetr">Lord</span> from heaven</p> <p class="sl1">looks down and sees.</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003051" class="ver">51</span>I am tormented by the sight</p> <p class="sl1">of all the daughters of my city.</p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003052" class="ver">52</span>Without cause, my enemies snared me</p> <p class="sl1">as though I were a bird;</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003053" class="ver">53</span>They tried to end my life in the pit,</p> <p class="sl1">pelting me with stones.</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003054" class="ver">54</span>The waters flowed over my head:</p> <p class="sl1">and I said, “I am lost!”<a id="ren31003054-x" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003054-x">x</a></p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003055" class="ver">55</span>I have called upon your name, O <span class="tetr">Lord</span>,<a id="ren31003055-y" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003055-y">y</a></p> <p class="sl1">from the bottom of the pit;</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003056" class="ver">56</span>You heard me call, “Do not let your ear be deaf</p> <p class="sl1">to my cry for help.”</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003057" class="ver">57</span>You drew near on the day I called you;</p> <p class="sl1">you said, “Do not fear!”</p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003058" class="ver">58</span>You pleaded my case, Lord,</p> <p class="sl1">you redeemed my life.</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003059" class="ver">59</span>You see, <span class="tetr">Lord</span>, how I am wronged;</p> <p class="sl1">do me justice!<a id="ren31003059-z" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003059-z">z</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003060" class="ver">60</span>You see all their vindictiveness,</p> <p class="sl1">all their plots against me.</p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003061" class="ver">61</span>You hear their reproach, <span class="tetr">Lord</span>,</p> <p class="sl1">all their plots against me,</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003062" class="ver">62</span>The whispered murmurings of my adversaries,</p> <p class="sl1">against me all day long;</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003063" class="ver">63</span>Look! Whether they sit or stand,</p> <p class="sl1">I am the butt of their taunt.</p> <p class="slf"><span id="v31003064" class="ver">64</span>Give them what they deserve, <span class="tetr">Lord</span>,</p> <p class="sl1">according to their deeds;</p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003065" class="ver">65</span>Give them hardness of heart;</p> <p class="sl1">your curse be upon them;<a id="ren31003065-a" class="enref" href="footnotes.htm#en31003065-a">a</a></p> <p class="sl"><span id="v31003066" class="ver">66</span>Pursue them in wrath and destroy them</p> <p class="sl1">from under the <span class="tetr">Lord</span>’s heaven!</p> </div> </section> </section> <br /><h1 class="cn"><a class="xref" href="intro.htm"><span class="ac">Book Introduction</span></a></h1><h1 class="cn"><a class="xref" href="footnotes.htm"><span class="ac">Footnotes</span></a></h1></div></div><div id="botbox"><div class="padbot"><div align="center">Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the <i>New American Bible, revised edition</i> © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. 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