There is again an intensity of repetition of words. I suspect there are unique framing words for each poem and framing and thematic words for the whole book. I am working on diagrams but my mind has regressed in my learning as I work through this web of destruction. Do not for a moment think you can read the Bible in 10 minutes.
| Verse | Hebrew text | A translation | What shall we say? | ||
| Aleph | אֵיכָה יָעִיב בְּאַפּוֹ אֲדֹנָי אֶת בַּת צִיּוֹן הִשְׁלִיךְ מִשָּׁמַיִם אֶרֶץ תִּפְאֶרֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל וְלֹא זָכַר הֲדֹם רַגְלָיו בְּיוֹם אַפּוֹ ס | Ah how my Lord has covered in darkness the daughter of Zion He has cast down from heaven to earth the adornment of Israel and he has not remembered his footstool in the day of his anger | Same construction as Lam 1:1 so a similar beginning I don't know any music from this part so here is a Colonially named flower to lighten the pain of this reading - Bougainvillea growing on volcanic waste | ||
| Bet | בִּלַּע אֲדֹנָי וְלֹא חָמַל אֵת כָּל נְאוֹת יַעֲקֹב הָרַס בְּעֶבְרָתוֹ מִבְצְרֵי בַת-יְהוּדָה הִגִּיעַ לָאָרֶץ חִלֵּל מַמְלָכָה וְשָׂרֶיהָ ס | Blasted without pity, my Lord - all the meadows of Jacob He has thrown down in his fury the fortress of the daughter of Judah He has touched to the earth - He has polluted her kingdom and her princes |
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| Gimel | גָּדַע בָּחֳרִי אַף כֹּל קֶרֶן יִשְׂרָאֵל הֵשִׁיב אָחוֹר יְמִינוֹ מִפְּנֵי אוֹיֵב וַיִּבְעַר בְּיַעֲקֹב כְּאֵשׁ לֶהָבָה אָכְלָה סָבִיב ס | Glowing in anger he has cut down every horn of Israel He has turned back his right hand from the face of the enemy and he has burned Jacob as a fiery flame that circles and devours | |||
| Dalet | דָּרַךְ קַשְׁתּוֹ כְּאוֹיֵב נִצָּב יְמִינוֹ כְּצָר וַיַּהֲרֹג כֹּל מַחֲמַדֵּי עָיִן בְּאֹהֶל בַּת צִיּוֹן שָׁפַךְ כָּאֵשׁ חֲמָתוֹ ס | Directed has he his bow like an enemy taking his stand his right hand as adversity and slew all the eye's delectable goods in the tent of the daughter of Zion he poured out like fire his wrath | |||
| He | הָיָה אֲדֹנָי כְּאוֹיֵב בִּלַּע יִשְׂרָאֵל בִּלַּע כָּל אַרְמְנוֹתֶיהָ שִׁחֵת מִבְצָרָיו וַיֶּרֶב בְּבַת יְהוּדָה תַּאֲנִיָּה וַאֲנִיָּה ס | He, my Lord, became as an enemy He has engulfed Israel He has engulfed all her citadels he has ruined his own fortress and has nurtured in the daughter of Judah her lament and her groaning | |||
| Vav | וַיַּחְמֹס כַּגַּן שֻׂכּוֹ שִׁחֵת מֹעֲדוֹ שִׁכַּח יְהוָה בְּצִיּוֹן מוֹעֵד וְשַׁבָּת וַיִּנְאַץ בְּזַעַם אַפּוֹ מֶלֶךְ וְכֹהֵן ס | Violently he removed as a garden his booth He has ruined his feast יְהוָה has let feast and sabbath in Zion be forgotten and he has spurned in the foaming of his anger king and priest | |||
| Zayin | זָנַח אֲדֹנָי מִזְבְּחוֹ נִאֵר מִקְדָּשׁוֹ הִסְגִּיר בְּיַד אוֹיֵב חוֹמֹת אַרְמְנוֹתֶיהָ קוֹל נָתְנוּ בְּבֵית יְהוָה כְּיוֹם מוֹעֵד ס | Zeroed has my Lord his altar He has made void his sanctuary He has shut up by the hand of an enemy the walls of her citadels They give voice in the house of יְהוָה as in the day of the feast | z is difficult in English - for concordance I should use zero in Lam 3:17, 3:31 = cast off, but I probably won't. Curious though that the mathematical image can be continued in the parallel, 'make void' | ||
| Chet | חָשַׁב יְהוָה לְהַשְׁחִית חוֹמַת בַּת צִיּוֹן נָטָה קָו לֹא הֵשִׁיב יָדוֹ מִבַּלֵּעַ וַיַּאֲבֶל חֵל וְחוֹמָה יַחְדָּו אֻמְלָלוּ ס | He had, יְהוָה, considered ruining the wall of the daughter of Zion He had planned the approach and had not turned his hand from engulfing but he made rampart and wall lament they lamented together | This insight and imputation of a cruel character of God is not made behind his back. So let us imitate if we have any complaint against the most high. | ||
| Tet | טָבְעוּ בָאָרֶץ שְׁעָרֶיהָ אִבַּד וְשִׁבַּר בְּרִיחֶיהָ מַלְכָּהּ וְשָׂרֶיהָ בַגּוֹיִם אֵין תּוֹרָה גַּם נְבִיאֶיהָ לֹא מָצְאוּ חָזוֹן מֵיְהוָה ס | To the ground are her gates sunk He has exterminated and crushed her bars Her king and her princes are among the nations There is no Torah Even her prophets find no vision from יְהוָה | I wonder if gate (her gate - shariah) and the Muslim 'sharia' law are related in etymology? | ||
| Yod | יֵשְׁבוּ לָאָרֶץ יִדְּמוּ זִקְנֵי בַת צִיּוֹן הֶעֱלוּ עָפָר עַל רֹאשָׁם חָגְרוּ שַׂקִּים הוֹרִידוּ לָאָרֶץ רֹאשָׁן בְּתוּלֹת יְרוּשָׁלִָם ס | Yet in silence on the ground the elders of the daughter of Zion sit They have thrown dust on their heads They wear sackcloths Hanging down their heads to the ground are the virgins of Jerusalem | יְהוָה would also be an acceptable start for this Yod position- not available in this verse I suspect that virgins is used metaphorically here and elsewhere - right? | ||
| Kaf | כָּלוּ בַדְּמָעוֹת עֵינַי חֳמַרְמְרוּ מֵעַי נִשְׁפַּךְ לָאָרֶץ כְּבֵדִי עַל שֶׁבֶר בַּת עַמִּי בֵּעָטֵף עוֹלֵל וְיוֹנֵק בִּרְחֹבוֹת קִרְיָה ס | Knowing tears, my eyes are exausted My belly is in turmoil Poured on the ground is my liver over the destruction of the daughter of my people for the babes and sucklings are weak in the plazas of the town | |||
| Lamed | לְאִמֹּתָם יֹאמְרוּ אַיֵּה דָּגָן וָיָיִן בְּהִתְעַטְּפָם כֶּחָלָל בִּרְחֹבוֹת עִיר בְּהִשְׁתַּפֵּךְ נַפְשָׁם אֶל חֵיק אִמֹּתָם ס | Looking to their mothers, they say where is corn and wine when they are weakened as the wounded in the plazas of the city when their lives are poured out into the their mother's bosom | |||
| Mem | מָה אֲעִידֵךְ מָה אֲדַמֶּה לָּךְ הַבַּת יְרוּשָׁלִַם מָה אַשְׁוֶה לָּךְ וַאֲנַחֲמֵךְ בְּתוּלַת בַּת צִיּוֹן כִּי גָדוֹל כַּיָּם שִׁבְרֵךְ מִי יִרְפָּא לָךְ ס | My testimony for you - what will it be? To what will I compare you O daughter of Jerusalem To what will I liken you that I may comfort you O virgin daughter of Zion for great as the sea is your destruction Who will heal you? | Who is the 'I' in this poem? Is is the 'I' who will take on all responsibility in the next part? | ||
| Nun | נְבִיאַיִךְ חָזוּ לָךְ שָׁוְא וְתָפֵל וְלֹא גִלּוּ עַל עֲוֹנֵךְ לְהָשִׁיב שְׁבוּתֵךְ וַיֶּחֱזוּ לָךְ מַשְׂאוֹת שָׁוְא וּמַדּוּחִים ס | Nothing worth, insipid were the visions that your prophets had for they did not reveal your iniquity to turn away your captivity but their visions for you were utterances of worthlessness and enticements | Gone into exile in Lam 1: 3 seems a limited gloss - perhaps discovered or revealed as being in exile would be better - but we need the G in this verse 3. Here and in Lam 4:22 - itself a frame for the acrostics, perhaps a better rendering would highlight the 'discovery' - not that physical exile is needed, but that a state of exile already exists and will have been revealed by the subsequent history. | ||
| Samech | סָפְקוּ עָלַיִךְ כַּפַּיִם כָּל עֹבְרֵי דֶרֶךְ שָׁרְקוּ וַיָּנִעוּ רֹאשָׁם עַל בַּת יְרוּשָׁלִָם הֲזֹאת הָעִיר שֶׁיֹּאמְרוּ כְּלִילַת יֹפִי מָשׂוֹשׂ לְכָל הָאָרֶץ ס | So they applaud you all passing this way they hiss and nod their heads at the daughter of Jerusalem Is this the city that they say is the perfection of beauty? the joy of the whole earth? | 'pass by' occurs 4 times once each in chapters 1, 2, 3, and 4 beauty for me recalls the Song of course as do the epithets of daughter of Zion, etc also - of course - Psalm 48:1 | ||
| Peh | פָּצוּ עָלַיִךְ פִּיהֶם כָּל אֹיְבַיִךְ שָׁרְקוּ וַיַּחַרְקוּ שֵׁן אָמְרוּ בִּלָּעְנוּ אַךְ זֶה הַיּוֹם שֶׁקִּוִּינֻהוּ מָצָאנוּ רָאִינוּ ס | Parted against you are their mouths all your enemies they hiss and they gnash teeth they say - we have engulfed her The day that we have been waiting for we have found it - we have seen it | Any glottal can represent Aleph or Ayin - I have failed! Note that these letters are reversed and it would not have been difficult for the author to have avoided the reversal. What prompted the twist? For a moment the enemies seem to triumph - not so fast... | ||
| Ayin | עָשָׂה יְהוָה אֲשֶׁר זָמָם בִּצַּע אֶמְרָתוֹ אֲשֶׁר צִוָּה מִימֵי קֶדֶם הָרַס וְלֹא חָמָל וַיְשַׂמַּח עָלַיִךְ אוֹיֵב הֵרִים קֶרֶן צָרָיִךְ ס | It was done as planned by יְהוָה He has violently achieved his word that he commanded in days of old He has thrown down without pity and he has made an enemy rejoice over you exalting the horn of your adversaries | fulfill or carried out hardly does justice to the way this is put - that God has produced such defeat for Israel as an accomplishment of his word. JB corrects horn of your adversaries to horn of יְהוָה. I don't see why. But then I am reading this for the first time. We have just read the pride of the enemy - a word that occurs 7 times in this chapter and 5 in the first. | ||
| Tsade | צָעַק לִבָּם אֶל אֲדֹנָי חוֹמַת בַּת צִיּוֹן הוֹרִידִי כַנַּחַל דִּמְעָה יוֹמָם וָלַיְלָה אַל תִּתְּנִי פוּגַת לָךְ אַל תִּדֹּם בַּת עֵינֵךְ ס | 'ts crying out to the Lord is their heart O wall of the daughter of Zion Let your tear run down as a torrent day and night give yourself no respite no silence for your eye's pupil | The personification of the wall continues after the mockery of enemy. These stones are encouraged to cry out. | ||
| Qof | קוּמִי רֹנִּי בַלַּיְלָה לְרֹאשׁ אַשְׁמֻרוֹת שִׁפְכִי כַמַּיִם לִבֵּךְ נֹכַח פְּנֵי אֲדֹנָי שְׂאִי אֵלָיו כַּפַּיִךְ עַל נֶפֶשׁ עוֹלָלַיִךְ הָעֲטוּפִים בְּרָעָב בְּרֹאשׁ כָּל חוּצוֹת ס | Quicken, cry out in the night in the beginning of the watches Pour out like water your heart before the face of the Lord Lift up your palms to him for the life of your babes that are weak from famine at the head of every street | |||
| Resh | רְאֵה יְהוָה וְהַבִּיטָה לְמִי עוֹלַלְתָּ כֹּה אִם תֹּאכַלְנָה נָשִׁים פִּרְיָם עֹלְלֵי טִפֻּחִים אִם יֵהָרֵג בְּמִקְדַּשׁ אֲדֹנָי כֹּהֵן וְנָבִיא ס | Regard יְהוָה and look On whom have you imposed here? As if women should devour their fruit, the children of their mothering As if in the sanctuary of my Lord priest and prophet should be slain | |||
| Shin | שָׁכְבוּ לָאָרֶץ חוּצוֹת נַעַר וְזָקֵן בְּתוּלֹתַי וּבַחוּרַי נָפְלוּ בֶחָרֶב הָרַגְתָּ בְּיוֹם אַפֶּךָ טָבַחְתָּ לֹא חָמָלְתָּ ס | Streets and the ground covered with youngster and aged My virgins and and my youth have fallen by the sword You have slain in the day of your anger You have butchered without pity | cf Lam 1:18 | ||
| Taf | תִּקְרָא כְיוֹם מוֹעֵד מְגוּרַי מִסָּבִיב וְלֹא הָיָה בְּיוֹם אַף יְהוָה פָּלִיט וְשָׂרִיד אֲשֶׁר טִפַּחְתִּי וְרִבִּיתִי אֹיְבִי כִלָּם פ | Terrors you have summoned circling around me as on a feast day so there will not be in the day of the wrath of יְהוָה one left or one alive of those I mothered or nurtured My enemy has exhausted them | exhausted - one could use several possible glosses here - but for concordance on this word כָּלָה with chapter 3 and 4 I have chosen this one. |
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