Lamentations Chapter 1 — The Sorrow of Jerusalem
Jerusalem is personified as a grieving widow who mourns the loss of her glory and the captivity of her people following the city's destruction.
1How the city sits solitary,
2She weeps bitterly in the night.
3Judah has gone into captivity because of affliction
4The roads to Zion mourn,
5Her adversaries have become the head.
6All majesty has departed from the daughter of Zion.
7Jerusalem remembers in the days of her affliction and of her miseries
8Jerusalem has grievously sinned.
9Her filthiness was in her skirts.
10The adversary has spread out his hand on all her pleasant things;
11All her people sigh.
12“Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by?
13“From on high has he sent fire into my bones,
14“The yoke of my transgressions is bound by his hand.
15“The Lord has set at nothing all my mighty men within me.
16“For these things I weep.
17Zion spreads out her hands.
18“The LORD is righteous,
19“I called for my lovers,
20“Look, LORD; for I am in distress.
21“They have heard that I sigh.
22“Let all their wickedness come before you.
WEB Translation
Notable Verses
Lamentations 1:1
“How the city sits solitary, she who was full of people! She has become as a widow.”
This opening verse establishes the book's central theme of mourning for the once-vibrant city of Jerusalem.
Lamentations 1:12
“Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by? Look and see if there is any sorrow like my sorrow.”
This verse is a powerful rhetorical appeal to others to acknowledge the depth of Jerusalem's suffering.
Lamentations 1:18
“The LORD is righteous; for I have rebelled against his commandment.”
This verse provides a theological turning point where the city admits responsibility and acknowledges God's justice.
Chapter Summary
Lamentations Chapter 1 describes the aftermath of Jerusalem's fall to its adversaries. The city is personified as a woman, once full of people but now desolate and weeping in the night. The text explains that Judah has gone into captivity due to affliction and servitude. Jerusalem's enemies have gained the upper hand, and the temple has been entered by those forbidden to join the assembly. The chapter captures the deep emotional pain of the survivors who sigh and seek bread. In the latter half of the chapter, Jerusalem speaks directly, calling out to passersby to notice her sorrow. She acknowledges that her suffering is a result of her own transgressions and that the Lord is righteous. The chapter concludes with an appeal for God to see her distress and to deal with her enemies as they have dealt with her.
Frequently Asked Questions
The author uses the metaphor of a widow to illustrate the city's isolation, loss of protection, and intense grief following its destruction. It emphasizes that Jerusalem, once a queen among provinces, is now alone and in mourning.
The text explicitly states that Jerusalem has grievously sinned and that her transgressions are the reason for her affliction. It highlights that the city's downfall was a consequence of turning away from divine commandments.
Jerusalem addresses those who "pass by," asking them to witness her unprecedented sorrow. It is a plea for empathy and recognition of the extreme suffering the city is enduring.
Study Note
Lamentations 1 is structured as an acrostic poem, where each verse begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
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