Lamentations 3

Great Is Your Faithfulness

1 k I am the man who has seen affliction
under the l rod of his wrath;
 2 he has driven and brought me
m into darkness without any light;
 3 surely against me he turns his hand
again and again the whole day long.

4 He has made my flesh and my skin waste away;
n he has broken my bones;
 5 o he has besieged and enveloped me
with p bitterness and tribulation;
 6 q he has made me dwell in darkness
like the dead of long ago.

7 r He has walled me about so that s I cannot escape;
he has made my chains heavy;
 8 though t I call and cry for help,
he shuts out my prayer;
 9 r he has blocked my ways with blocks of stones;
he has made my paths crooked.

10 u He is a bear lying in wait for me,
a lion in hiding;
 11 v he turned aside my steps and u tore me to pieces;
w he has made me desolate;
 12 x he bent his bow y and set me
as a target for his arrow.

13 He drove into my kidneys
z the arrows of his quiver;
 14 a I have become the laughingstock of all peoples,
b the object of their taunts all day long.
 15 c He has filled me with bitterness;
he has sated me with d wormwood.

16 e He has made my teeth grind on gravel,
and f made me cower in ashes;
 17 my soul is bereft of peace;
I have forgotten what happiness 1 is;
 18 g so I say, "My endurance has perished;
so has my hope from the Lord."

19 h Remember my affliction and my wanderings,
d the wormwood and i the gall!
 20 My soul continually remembers it
j and is bowed down within me.
 21 But this I call to mind,
and k therefore I have hope:

22 l The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; 2
l his mercies never come to an end;
 23 they are new m every morning;
n great is your faithfulness.
 24 o "The Lord is my portion," says my soul,
k "therefore I will hope in him."

25 The Lord is good to those who p wait for him,
to the soul who seeks him.
 26 q It is good that one should wait quietly
for the salvation of the Lord.
 27 r It is good for a man that he bear
the yoke s in his youth.

28 Let him t sit alone in silence
when it is laid on him;
 29 u let him put his mouth in the dust -
there may yet be hope;
 30 v let him give his cheek to the one who strikes,
and let him be filled with insults.

31 w For the Lord will not
cast off forever,
 32 but, though he x cause grief, y he will have compassion
z according to the abundance of his steadfast love;
 33 a for he does not willingly afflict
or b grieve the children of men.

34 To crush underfoot
all c the prisoners of the earth,
 35 d to deny a man justice
in the presence of the Most High,
 36 to subvert a man in his lawsuit,
d the Lord does not approve.

37 e Who has spoken and it came to pass,
unless the Lord has commanded it?
 38 f Is it not from the mouth of the Most High
that good and bad come?
 39 g Why should a living man complain,
a man, about the punishment of his sins?

40 Let us test and examine our ways,
h and return to the Lord!
 41 i Let us lift up our hearts and hands
to God in heaven:
 42 j "We have transgressed and k rebelled,
and you have not forgiven.

43 "You have wrapped yourself with anger and pursued us,
l killing without pity;
 44 m you have wrapped yourself with a cloud
so that no prayer can pass through.
 45 n You have made us scum and garbage
among the peoples.

46 o "All our enemies
open their mouths against us;
 47 p panic and pitfall have come upon us,
devastation and q destruction;
 48 r my eyes flow with rivers of tears
because of the destruction of the daughter of my people.

49 r "My eyes will flow without ceasing,
without respite,
 50 s until the Lord from heaven
looks down and sees;
 51 my eyes cause me grief
at the fate of all the daughters of my city.

52 t "I have been hunted u like a bird
by those who were my enemies v without cause;
 53 w they flung me alive into the pit
x and cast stones on me;
 54 y water closed over my head;
I said, z 'I am lost.'

55 a "I called on your name, O Lord,
from the depths of the pit;
 56 b you heard my plea, 'Do not close
your ear to my cry for help!'
 57 c You came near when I called on you;
you said, d 'Do not fear!'

58 "You have e taken up my cause, f O Lord;
you have e redeemed my life.
 59 You have seen the wrong done to me, g O Lord;
judge my cause.
 60 You have seen all their vengeance,
all h their plots against me.

61 i "You have heard their taunts, O Lord,
all h their plots against me.
 62 The lips and thoughts j of my assailants
are against me all the day long.
 63 k Behold their sitting and their rising;
l I am the object of their taunts.

64 m "You will repay them, 3 O Lord,
n according to the work of their hands.
 65 You will give them 4 dullness of heart;
your curse will be 5 on them.
 66 You will pursue them 6 in anger and o destroy them
from under p your heavens, O Lord." 7

  1. Cross References
    Jeremiah 20:18
    Why did I come out from the womb to see toil and sorrow, and spend my days in shame?
  2. Cross References
    Psalms 2:9
    You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.
  3. Cross References
    Isaiah 5:30
    They will growl over it on that day, like the growling of the sea. And if one looks to the land, behold, darkness and distress; and the light is darkened by its clouds.
  4. Cross References
    Psalms 51:8
    Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have broken rejoice.
    Isaiah 38:13
    I calmed myself until morning; like a lion he breaks all my bones; from day to night you bring me to an end.
    Jeremiah 50:17
    Israel is a hunted sheep driven away by lions. First the king of Assyria devoured him, and now at last Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has gnawed his bones.
  5. Cross References
    Job 19:12
    His troops come on together; they have cast up their siege ramp against me and encamp around my tent.
  6. Cross References
    Lamentations 3:19
    Remember my affliction and my wanderings, the wormwood and the gall!
    Deuteronomy 29:18
    Beware lest there be among you a man or woman or clan or tribe whose heart is turning away today from the Lord our God to go and serve the gods of those nations. Beware lest there be among you a root bearing poisonous and bitter fruit.
  7. Cross References
    Psalms 143:3
    For the enemy has pursued my soul; he has crushed my life to the ground; he has made me sit in darkness like those long dead.
  8. Cross References
    Job 19:8
    He has walled up my way, so that I cannot pass, and he has set darkness upon my paths.
  9. Cross References
    Psalms 88:8
    You have caused my companions to shun me; you have made me a horror to them. I am shut in so that I cannot escape.
  10. Cross References
    Job 19:7
    Behold, I cry out, 'Violence!' but I am not answered; I call for help, but there is no justice.
    Job 30:20
    I cry to you for help and you do not answer me; I stand, and you only look at me.
    Psalms 22:2
    O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest.
  11. Cross References
    Lamentations 3:7
    He has walled me about so that I cannot escape; he has made my chains heavy.
  12. Cross References
    Hosea 13:8
    I will fall upon them like a bear robbed of her cubs; I will tear open their breast, and there I will devour them like a lion, as a wild beast would rip them open.
  13. Cross References
    Jeremiah 18:15
    But my people have forgotten me; they make offerings to false gods; they made them stumble in their ways, in the ancient roads, and to walk into side roads, not the highway.
  14. Cross References
    Lamentations 3:10
    He is a bear lying in wait for me, a lion in hiding.
  15. Cross References
    Lamentations 1:13
    From on high he sent fire; into my bones he made it descend; he spread a net for my feet; he turned me back; he has left me stunned, faint all the day long.
  16. Cross References
    Lamentations 2:4
    He has bent his bow like an enemy, with his right hand set like a foe; and he has killed all who were delightful in our eyes in the tent of the daughter of Zion; he has poured out his fury like fire.
  17. Cross References
    Job 16:12
    I was at ease, and he broke me apart; he seized me by the neck and dashed me to pieces; he set me up as his target.
  18. Cross References
    Job 6:4
    For the arrows of the Almighty are in me; my spirit drinks their poison; the terrors of God are arrayed against me.
    Psalms 38:2
    For your arrows have sunk into me, and your hand has come down on me.
  19. Cross References
    Jeremiah 20:7
    O Lord, you have deceived me, and I was deceived; you are stronger than I, and you have prevailed. I have become a laughingstock all the day; everyone mocks me.
  20. Cross References
    Lamentations 3:63
    Behold their sitting and their rising; I am the object of their taunts.
    Job 30:9
    And now I have become their song; I am a byword to them.
    Psalms 69:12
    I am the talk of those who sit in the gate, and the drunkards make songs about me.
  21. Cross References
    Isaiah 51:17
    Wake yourself, wake yourself, stand up, O Jerusalem, you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord the cup of his wrath, who have drunk to the dregs the bowl, the cup of staggering.
    Isaiah 51:21
    Therefore hear this, you who are afflicted, who are drunk, but not with wine:
  22. Cross References
    Jeremiah 9:15
    Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will feed this people with bitter food, and give them poisonous water to drink.
  23. Cross References
    Proverbs 20:17
    Bread gained by deceit is sweet to a man, but afterward his mouth will be full of gravel.
  24. Cross References
    Jeremiah 6:26
    O daughter of my people, put on sackcloth, and roll in ashes; make mourning as for an only son, most bitter lamentation, for suddenly the destroyer will come upon us.
  25. Cross References
    Psalms 9:18
    For the needy shall not always be forgotten, and the hope of the poor shall not perish forever.
  26. Cross References
    Lamentations 1:9
    Her uncleanness was in her skirts; she took no thought of her future; therefore her fall is terrible; she has no comforter. "O Lord, behold my affliction, for the enemy has triumphed!
    Lamentations 1:11
    All her people groan as they search for bread; they trade their treasures for food to revive their strength. "Look, O Lord, and see, for I am despised.
    Lamentations 1:20
    Look, O Lord, for I am in distress; my stomach churns; my heart is wrung within me, because I have been very rebellious. In the street the sword bereaves; in the house it is like death.
  27. Cross References
    Lamentations 3:15
    He has filled me with bitterness; he has sated me with wormwood.
  28. Cross References
    Lamentations 3:5
    He has besieged and enveloped me with bitterness and tribulation.
  29. Cross References
    Psalms 42:6
    And my God. My soul is cast down within me; therefore I remember you from the land of Jordan and of Hermon, from Mount Mizar.
    Psalms 44:25
    For our soul is bowed down to the dust; our belly clings to the ground.
  30. Cross References
    Psalms 42:5
    Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation
    Psalms 42:11
    Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.
  31. Cross References
    Malachi 3:6
    For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed.
  32. Cross References
    Malachi 3:6
    For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed.
  33. Cross References
    Job 7:18
    Visit him every morning and test him every moment?
  34. Cross References
    Psalms 36:5
    Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds.
  35. Cross References
    Psalms 16:5
    The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot.
    Psalms 73:26
    My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
  36. Cross References
    Lamentations 3:21
    But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope:
  37. Cross References
    Psalms 130:6
    My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning.
    Isaiah 30:18
    Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him.
  38. Cross References
    Psalms 130:5
    I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope.
    Psalms 130:7
    O Israel, hope in the Lord! For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with him is plentiful redemption.
    Micah 7:7
    But as for me, I will look to the Lord ; I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me.
  39. Cross References
    Matthew 11:29
    Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
  40. Cross References
    Ecclesiastes 12:1
    Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, "I have no pleasure in them".
  41. Cross References
    Lamentations 1:1
    How lonely sits the city that was full of people! How like a widow has she become, she who was great among the nations! She who was a princess among the provinces has become a slave.
    Lamentations 2:10
    The elders of the daughter of Zion sit on the ground in silence; they have thrown dust on their heads and put on sackcloth; the young women of Jerusalem have bowed their heads to the ground.
    Isaiah 3:26
    And her gates shall lament and mourn; empty, she shall sit on the ground.
  42. Cross References
    Job 42:6
    Therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.
  43. Cross References
    Isaiah 50:6
    I gave my back to those who strike, and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard; I hid not my face from disgrace and spitting.
    Matthew 5:39
    But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.
  44. Cross References
    Psalms 103:9
    He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever.
  45. Cross References
    Lamentations 1:5
    Her foes have become the head; her enemies prosper, because the Lord has afflicted her for the multitude of her transgressions; her children have gone away, captives before the foe.
  46. Cross References
    Psalms 103:8
    The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
  47. Cross References
    Psalms 106:45
    For their sake he remembered his covenant, and relented according to the abundance of his steadfast love.
  48. Cross References
    Hebrews 12:6
    For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.
    Hebrews 12:10
    For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness.
  49. Cross References
    Hebrews 12:11
    For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
  50. Cross References
    Psalms 107:10
    Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, prisoners in affliction and in irons.
  51. Cross References
    Habakkuk 1:13
    You who are of purer eyes than to see evil and cannot look at wrong, why do you idly look at traitors and remain silent when the wicked swallows up the man more righteous than he?
  52. Cross References
    Lamentations 3:35
    To deny a man justice in the presence of the Most High.
  53. Cross References
    Psalms 33:9
    For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm.
  54. Cross References
    Isaiah 45:7
    I form light and create darkness, I make well-being and create calamity, I am the Lord, who does all these things.
    Amos 3:6
    Is a trumpet blown in a city, and the people are not afraid? Does disaster come to a city, unless the Lord has done it?
  55. Cross References
    Proverbs 19:3
    When a man's folly brings his way to ruin, his heart rages against the Lord.
  56. Cross References
    Joel 2:12 - 13
    Yet even now," declares the Lord, "return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.
  57. Cross References
    Psalms 25:1
    To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
    Psalms 119:48
    I will lift up my hands toward your commandments, which I love, and I will meditate on your statutes.
  58. Cross References
    Daniel 9:5
    We have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules.
  59. Cross References
    Psalms 78:17
    Yet they sinned still more against him, rebelling against the Most High in the desert.
  60. Cross References
    Lamentations 2:2
    The Lord has swallowed up without mercy all the habitations of Jacob; in his wrath he has broken down the strongholds of the daughter of Judah; he has brought down to the ground in dishonor the kingdom and its rulers.
    Lamentations 2:17
    The Lord has done what he purposed; he has carried out his word, which he commanded long ago; he has thrown down without pity; he has made the enemy rejoice over you and exalted the might of your foes.
    Lamentations 2:21
    In the dust of the streets lie the young and the old; my young women and my young men have fallen by the sword; you have killed them in the day of your anger, slaughtering without pity.
  61. Cross References
    Lamentations 3:8
    Though I call and cry for help, he shuts out my prayer.
    Lamentations 2:1
    How the Lord in his anger has set the daughter of Zion under a cloud! He has cast down from heaven to earth the splendor of Israel; he has not remembered his footstool in the day of his anger.
  62. Cross References
    1 Corinthians 4:13
    When slandered, we entreat. We have become, and are still, like the scum of the world, the refuse of all things.
  63. Cross References
    Lamentations 2:16 - 17
    All your enemies rail against you; they hiss, they gnash their teeth, they cry: "We have swallowed her! Ah, this is the day we longed for; now we have it; we see it!
  64. Cross References
    Isaiah 24:17
    Terror and the pit and the snare are upon you, O inhabitant of the earth!
    Jeremiah 48:43
    Terror, pit, and snare are before you, O inhabitant of Moab! declares the Lord.
  65. Cross References
    Isaiah 51:19
    These two things have happened to you - who will console you? - devastation and destruction, famine and sword; who will comfort you?
  66. Cross References
    Lamentations 1:16
    "For these things I weep; my eyes flow with tears; for a comforter is far from me, one to revive my spirit; my children are desolate, for the enemy has prevailed."
    Jeremiah 13:17
    But if you will not listen, my soul will weep in secret for your pride; my eyes will weep bitterly and run down with tears, because the Lord 's flock has been taken captive.
  67. Cross References
    Lamentations 3:48
    My eyes flow with rivers of tears because of the destruction of the daughter of my people.
  68. Cross References
    Psalms 14:2
    The Lord looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God.
    Isaiah 63:15
    Look down from heaven and see, from your holy and beautiful habitation. Where are your zeal and your might? The stirring of your inner parts and your compassion are held back from me.
  69. Cross References
    Lamentations 4:18
    They dogged our steps so that we could not walk in our streets; our end drew near; our days were numbered, for our end had come.
  70. Cross References
    Psalms 11:1
    In the Lord I take refuge; how can you say to my soul, "Flee like a bird to your mountain.
  71. Cross References
    Psalms 35:19
    Let not those rejoice over me who are wrongfully my foes, and let not those wink the eye who hate me without cause.
  72. Cross References
    Jeremiah 37:16
    When Jeremiah had come to the dungeon cells and remained there many days.
    Jeremiah 38:6
    So they took Jeremiah and cast him into the cistern of Malchiah, the king's son, which was in the court of the guard, letting Jeremiah down by ropes. And there was no water in the cistern, but only mud, and Jeremiah sank in the mud.
    Jeremiah 38:9 - 10
    "My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they did to Jeremiah the prophet by casting him into the cistern, and he will die there of hunger, for there is no bread left in the city."
  73. Cross References
    Daniel 6:17
    And a stone was brought and laid on the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet and with the signet of his lords, that nothing might be changed concerning Daniel.
  74. Cross References
    Psalms 69:2
    I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me.
  75. Cross References
    Psalms 88:5
    Like one set loose among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave, like those whom you remember no more, for they are cut off from your hand.
    Ezekiel 37:11
    Then he said to me, "Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Behold, they say, 'Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are indeed cut off.
  76. Cross References
    Psalms 130:1
    Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord!
  77. Cross References
    Psalms 130:2
    O Lord, hear my voice! Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my pleas for mercy!
  78. Cross References
    James 4:8
    Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
  79. Cross References
    Joshua 1:9
    Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.
  80. Cross References
    Psalms 119:154
    Plead my cause and redeem me; give me life according to your promise!
  81. Cross References
    Psalms 119:154
    Plead my cause and redeem me; give me life according to your promise!
  82. Cross References
    1 Samuel 24:15
    May the Lord therefore be judge and give sentence between me and you, and see to it and plead my cause and deliver me from your hand.
  83. Cross References
    Psalms 35:22 - 23
    You have seen, O Lord ; be not silent! O Lord, be not far from me!
  84. Cross References
    Jeremiah 11:19
    But I was like a gentle lamb led to the slaughter. I did not know it was against me they devised schemes, saying, "Let us destroy the tree with its fruit, let us cut him off from the land of the living, that his name be remembered no more.
  85. Cross References
    Lamentations 5:1
    Remember, O Lord, what has befallen us; look, and see our disgrace!
  86. Cross References
    Lamentations 3:60
    You have seen all their vengeance, all their plots against me.
  87. Cross References
    Psalms 18:39
    For you equipped me with strength for the battle; you made those who rise against me sink under me.
    Psalms 18:48
    Who delivered me from my enemies; yes, you exalted me above those who rose against me; you rescued me from the man of violence.
  88. Cross References
    Psalms 139:2
    You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar.
  89. Cross References
    Lamentations 3:14
    I have become the laughingstock of all peoples, the object of their taunts all day long.
  90. Cross References
    Jeremiah 11:20
    But, O Lord of hosts, who judges righteously, who tests the heart and the mind, let me see your vengeance upon them, for to you have I committed my cause.
  91. Cross References
    Psalms 28:4
    Give to them according to their work and according to the evil of their deeds; give to them according to the work of their hands; render them their due reward.
    2 Timothy 4:14
    Alexander the coppersmith did me great harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds.
  92. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 25:19
    Therefore when the Lord your God has given you rest from all your enemies around you, in the land that the Lord your God is giving you for an inheritance to possess, you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven; you shall not forget.
    Jeremiah 10:11
    Thus shall you say to them: "The gods who did not make the heavens and the earth shall perish from the earth and from under the heavens.
  93. Cross References
    Psalms 8:3
    When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place.
English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.
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